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As I began to write this column, I realized it would be published on Feb. 29, a leap day. Now as everybody knows, leap years only come once every four years, making them a special and somewhat rare occasion. However, for me at least, and I'm sure for many, they aren't very significant. And I don't mean to be rude to the lucky (or perhaps unlucky) few who get to have their birthday only once every four years. I wish you all a very happy birthday. Anyway, as I was pondering the...
Signs provide us with all kinds of information. "Slow, children playing" lets us know kids reside on a particular block. (Since kids live on many blocks that don't have such signs, these warnings also might indicate worried parents live on the block as well.) Signs indicating downtown Hinsdale and the Robbins Park subdivision are on the National Register of Historic Places demonstrate the importance of the village's past to Hinsdaleans - or at least to those who are...
This past football season, I finally realized a long-standing dream of mine to watch football 24/7. Impossible, you say? Way, I say. First of all, there is some kind of football on broadcast TV, cable TV, streaming, online, etc., nonstop, all day, every day. Now, don't get me wrong. You do have to be flexible. It's not all pro or college. Sometimes you have to watch games that were decided decades ago. Sometimes you have to watch high school football, flag football, Falcon...
Robbins Park? Southeast is the true name of the controversial neighborhood in Hinsdale. It’s Southeast Hinsdale. The dirt that lies under homes — that were built in a different era, when folks listened to the radio after having dinner provided to them by live-in servants — is the focus of wealthy homebuyers these days. It’s the beauty of lot sizes, mature trees, exclusivity of Southeast that enchants buyers. Many, many homes in Southeast have been torn down and many more will be too. What some residents do not choose to admit...
Black History Month is not simply asking, “How can I remember and learn about Black people?” It is all of us asking, “How can we love Black people by seeing them, hearing them, relishing in them and creating a world where Black people feel loved, inspired and protected?” — writer Danté Stewart February is National Black History Month, an occasion to celebrate the contributions of Black Americans to the evolution of our nation across all areas of society. Locally, stop by the Hinsdale Public Library’s Youth Services Department...
I'm not worried about the world ending in a nuclear explosion or an alien invasion. The robots are what scares me. I am not the only person who worries about robots taking over the world, a quick Google search confirmed. I've been reassured by those who say that robots and AI lack the desires and motivations - say for world domination - that humans do. Others point out that robots and AI are programmed by people and operate within those set limits. But we've all seen the...
I used to think that business travel was glamorous. This was back when it was called taking a "business trip," when '80s TV shows featured beautiful, cosmopolitan people in power suits. Before I chose medicine as my career, I imagined myself striding through the airport purposefully, designer briefcase in hand. I would do impressive and important paperwork on the plane, wow clients and colleagues at my destination, eat gourmet meals and stay at fabulous hotels courtesy of a...
Which Super Bowl commercials were your favorites on Sunday? I loved Christopher Walken in BMW's "Talking Like Walken" ad, in which everyone from the valet to the guy at the drive through to his tailor offers their own impersonation of his unique voice. "There's only one Christopher Walken and one ultimate driving machine. The rest are just imitations," the announcer says, in his own Walken-esque style. The ad reminded me of one of my all-time favorite Saturday Night Live...
The Robbins Park neighborhood in Hinsdale undoubtedly is a special place. The northern half was platted in 1866 by Hinsdale founder William Robbins and contains some of the oldest housing in the village, according to the village’s website. The southern half, the William Robbins Park Addition, was platted in 1870, with curved streets and landscaping designed by Horace Cleveland. One hundred and thirty-nine homes were considered “significant” when the neighborhood was declared a National Register Historic District in 2008....
It’s 6 a.m. My phone dings once. A few seconds later, a second ding. I roll over and see the familiar green and yellow squares. And so the day begins, the family Wordle group texts are activated. I smile, assessing my mom’s score. I know she played at midnight, unable to sleep. She’s mentioned once, twice — or a dozen times — that she politely waits until 7 her time, before hitting “share” to not disturb the few of us who are an hour behind, living in the central time zone. The second ding will be on the other family group...
As is The Hinsdalean’s tradition the week before Valentine’s Day (next Wednesday, don’t forget!), we hereby issue our own “valentines” to those helping to make the community a more kindhearted place. Here are this year’s honorees as nominated by organizations in the village. • Amy and Emily Lohan, the mother-daughter team that works with the Hinsdale Humane Society’s trap/neuter/return program, manage a colony of feral cats to helps reduce cat overpopulation and euthanasia. It’s a side of rescue work that many people may not...
I wouldn’t describe myself as a huge Taylor Swift fan — although I do know all the words to most of the songs on “1989,” as it was the only music we listened to driving through Colorado on a family vacation in 2015. Of course, you don’t have to be a huge fan to know something about her. Sunday night she claimed her fourth Album of the Year Grammy, making history by surpassing the likes of three-time winners Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon and Stevie Wonder. She’s won a total of 14 G...
I enjoy a good mystery. I found one Christmas Eve. A small, beautiful figurine was strategically placed next to a creche at my sister's house. I was immediately drawn to it: an elderly man, seated on a rock structure, dressed in old-world European garb, playing a bagpipe-like instrument. The detail and craftsmanship were stunning, down to the minute wrinkles in his face and tiny fingers on the pipes. It reminded me of a Lladro in quality and artistic aesthetic but crafted from...
Jan. 14 we escaped the winter for 11 days. Like always, our neighbors take care of everything while we are gone. We stop the mail and newspaper deliveries and our “ghost lights” go on and off while we are gone. Already a day later, Shari Cornies called us in Mexico to find out if we were well and happy. She had found our Sunday news paper in the driveway. She worried if we were OK, and if we had made the trip to Mexico safely. Jan. 25 we came back from our dream vacation. Our house was icy like an igloo. We went to bed wit...
February is a month devoted to matters of the heart. With Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14 — wait, that’s not what we’re talking about here! February is American Heart Month, a time when people are encouraged to focus on cardiovascular health. For those who didn’t pay attention in health class — or are too many years removed to remember — the heart is the primary organ in the circulation system, pumping blood throughout the body, carrying oxygen to every cell. After delivering the oxygen, the blood returns to the heart, which sends...
“If the story you’re telling doesn’t serve you, tell a different story.” I typed that while taking my morning walk and listening to my current favorite podcast, “Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris.” I wanted to remember the quote to share it with someone, which I did. And I thought I might want to listen to the episode again. If only I had written down which episode I was listening to at the time! I can never remember where I’ve heard things. There I go. Telling a story about...
My dad and I do not look one bit alike, but I did get one distinguishable trait from him: his love for movies. My own admiration began when I was a kid, when he would take my brother and me to see the big new movie. I loved the hours spent in the cold, dark theater, but my favorite part of these outings began when the movie ended. My dad would take us out to eat (Chipotle, California Pizza Kitchen, Portillo's) to review and discuss the movie - what our favorite scenes were,...
Candor Health Education is marking a milestone this year. Exactly a half-century ago, the organization’s precursor, the Robert Crown Center for Health Education, moved into 21 Salt Creek Lane in Hinsdale, becoming the nation’s first fully independent health education center. According to the agency’s website, the moniker was a tribute to the Robert Crown Family, who had provided funding for the groundbreaking endeavor. The agency’s actual incarnation dates back to 1958 as the Hinsdale Health Museum, a locally organiz...
I'll admit it. I joined a Ted Lasso Fans Community page on Facebook a while back. I was hoping the posts would share lots of great inspirational quotes from Ted. And there are some. But many of the posts are from fans - fanatics, in the truest sense - asking what book Trent Crimm carried through the office in Episode X Season Y or explaining the double in/double out rule during Ted's dart game against Rupert or wondering if anyone else caught the nod to "Hamilton." Oh, and way...
Like any parent, I am accustomed to receiving a lot of emails from my kids’ school – many of which relate to safety. Whether the communications relate to crossing the street, bundling up during the winter or staying home when sick, it is clear our schools are invested in students’ welfare. Why, then, don’t schools communicate with parents about the No. 1 cause of death among children in the U.S.? This danger is not the flu, crossing at a crosswalk or forgetting a scarf – it is firearms. Every year, 350 children in America g...
I grew up nestled together with my family of four on a puffin shaped lake in Michigan. My mom stayed at home and my dad managed his business in town. Lazy summers were spent on the water, and in winter we built snow forts, went ice skating or cozied up inside reading and watching movies. In lots of ways, my childhood was enchanting, but like many families, there were tiny fissures happening beneath the surface. During my junior year of high school, my parents decided to...
It’s been a stormy eight months in Hinsdale High School District 86, but we see signs that the skies are clearing. Board members say they’re excited about their superintendent hire, Michael Lach, who currently works as assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment in Township High School District 113. Lach, in turn, says he’s very excited about the opportunity. So what could go wrong? Well, we won’t dwell on that answer. But we will say that the board must remain as committed to working with Lach as...
I haven't watched all that many TED talks, but my favorite is one by a Hinsdale resident. Oh, did I mention that he's in preschool? At 4 years, 9 months and 22 days old, Bennet Haried became the youngest TEDx speaker Oct. 23 at an event organized by his preschool, Avery Coonley in Downers Grove. Bennet spoke on "Building Big Dreams: You Have to Make it Stable." It all came about when Kenny Bae, director of STEAM innovation at Avery Coonley, decided to organize a TEDx event at...
According to the American Red Cross, the country is experiencing an emergency blood shortage as it faces the lowest number of people giving blood in 20 years. With January’s designation as National Blood Donor Month, this is the perfect time to help address this critical situation with a donation of blood and/or platelets to help alleviate the shortage and help ensure lifesaving medical procedures are not put on hold. “One of the most distressing situations for a doctor is to have a hospital full of patients and an empty blo...
Sometimes high school feels like trying to board a train at a busy station. Platforms and classes and trains and deadlines and tickets and papers and times and due dates and people and people — so many people trying to hold on and get to their destinations. When winter starts to approach, all the passengers turn their focus toward riding to the end of first semester, waiting to finally be able to rest from the flurry of activity. But, for the past few years, final exams a...
