The Hinsdalean - Community journalism the way it was meant to be

Bret Conway. Jack Fredrickson. Gabriela Garcia. Kelly Abate Kallas. Amy McCauley. Susan O'Byrne. Beth Smits. Alegra Waverly. Carol Wittemann. These fabulous writers served as our co... — Updated 6/23/2021

“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 Perce... — Updated 6/9/2021

Spending a few days in a small guest house on Knapp Creek Farm in Wisconsin provided just the break we needed a couple of weeks ago. We headed out on a Wednesday night after the... — Updated 6/2/2021

For three and a half years, plastic cups in the fence on the 47th Street bridge have reminded many of the courage young Brooks Tonn of Hinsdale displayed in his fight against cancer... — Updated 5/20/2021

I wouldn't call Jim Slonoff a liar. After all, he's my friend of more than 30 years and business partner here at The Hinsdalean. But he does, at times, play fast and loose with the... — Updated 5/12/2021

Charlie Harley stopped in Monday to let us know about the Armistice Day celebration in Burr Ridge May 15 — at which he will receive the Jack Schaus Patriot Award. I told him I... — Updated 5/5/2021

I had great dreams for myself as a parent before I became one. I was going to spend each and every day laughing with and enjoying my children (back when I thought I would have more... — Updated 4/29/2021

I don't remember the last movie I saw in a theater. Do you? Ooh, wait - I do. I saw "Frozen 2" on March 8 of last year - the day after I was out much too late at the cast party for... — Updated 4/21/2021

My memories of taking Ainsley to Disney World when she was 5 are magical. We rode many wonderful rides, met many princesses and ate dinner at Cinderella's castle, with Ainsley... — Updated 4/7/2021

How will women be remembered in history? Clearly it depends on whom you ask. Esquire magazine identified the 75 greatest women of all time a couple of years ago. The headline popped... — Updated 3/24/2021

I remember when my mom first uttered the words. "The doctors are all kids!" she told me. My father, who was a brittle diabetic, had been hospitalized again. My mom - younger at the... — Updated 3/3/2021

The Muppets are back. And they are offensive. That's the message attached to 18 of the 120 episodes of the family variety show, which Disney Plus launched Friday. You remember... — Updated 2/24/2021

Perhaps you’ve heard the famous Albert Camus quote: “In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.” I appreciate Camus’ message... — Updated 2/17/2021

My favorite ads on TV right now are ones that feature kids of various ages expressing some level of disgust with their parents. First, there’s the Geico “Scoop, There It Is... — Updated 2/10/2021

21 for '21. Gretchen Rubin's suggestion seemed pretty simple. "If you don't want to make a New Year's resolution, consider writing your '21 for 2021' list," the author of "The Happi... — Updated 2/3/2021

Imagining what the inauguation would look like in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic was difficult for me. Would Planet Fitness sponsor "pods" for first responders to view the ev... — Updated 1/20/2021

The best advice I encountered for 2021 as 2020 came to a close was hilarious. And prophetic. "Nobody claim 2021 as 'your year,' " the Facebook post advised. "We're all going to... — Updated 1/13/2021

"Schadenfreude" is a term introduced to me by the very erudite musical, "Avenue Q." Its technical definition is taking pleasure ("freude") in another person's pain ("schaden"). Or,... — Updated 1/6/2021

Nine years ago I began an annual tradition that I have somehow managed to continue. In the issue before Ainsley’s birthday each year, I use this space to write a special letter... — Updated 12/29/2020

“Turn and face the strange ch-ch-changes.” — David Bowie One thing you learn as a parent is how much things change each holiday season as your kids (or kid, in my case) get... — Updated 12/16/2020

Several years ago I found a reprint of a vintage Betty Crocker cookie cookbook at Yankee Peddler - the very same one my mom had when I was a kid. I later regretted not purchasing... — Updated 12/9/2020

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." - the 14th Dalai Lama Did you ever learn a new word and then start to see it everywhere? Or encounter the same message or theme... — Updated 12/2/2020

Last Monday I was supposed to start the week with a 90-minute gratitude walk at Mayslake Forest Preserve. Instead, I was home in quarantine while my COVID-19 positive husband was... — Updated 11/24/2020

"The world is round, and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning." - Ivy Baker Priest I've used that quote many times since I first read it in a book... — Updated 11/11/2020