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Binny’s, Downtown

Found this on my camera, from some time ago. This was taken in the parking lot, outside of the Binny’s downtown, off Roosevelt. I was taken with the big electrical substation next door. The lighting was pretty interesting, and the Sears tower peeking up from the background also caught my eye. I wish these Binny’s vans weren’t there, but they’re…

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Candy Accounting

All told, here’s the tally:

Rice Krispies Treats (32)
Hersheys/KitKat miniatures (185)
Twix (32)
Dots (18)
Welch’s Fruit Snacks (60)
Nerds Variety (90)
Reese’s Variety (65)
Ring Pops (22) x 2
Oreos (25)

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Election Day, 2024

A nice walk in the cool Fall air. And a part of the grand experiment that is United States. While I have strong opinions on who I want to lead our country, I feel lucky and privileged, fortunate and honored, to have the ability to vote.

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20×2 Chicago: Can You Explain?

I can’t tell you how much this epitomizes the 20×2 Chicago event. Really fun, really surprising, and you never know what to expect. One minute folks are watching a baking tutorial with flour being mixed on stage… and the next, everyone’s tasting some great banana bread with their beers.

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Whisky and Fire

In the afternoon, I mowed the yard, did a bit of cleanup. And towards the evening, set up our fire pit so we could sit outside for a little while with some drams.

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Spa Day

We had several different sessions at the spa: about 45 minutes relaxing in a salt room, then 15 minutes in a sauna. After that, about 15 minutes in a steam room (which was a first for me, and actually quite intense). And the last bit of it, involved us doing a CBD bath soak for about 45 minutes.

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Halloween in Hyde Park, 2024

This year, we dusted off the Operation game for Halloween. I’ve been making some variation of this costume for, oh… over two decades now. That’s a little crazy to say out loud.

I did my first version a long while ago, when I was a grad student at OSU. I think the first documented version I have of the costume is from 2004, which was a wearable/portable version.

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Halloween Eve Prep

Back home, Liz prepping for tomorrow. Our Halloween “game” involves sticking small pieces of velcro on every single piece of candy we give out. So it’s definitely time-consuming.

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Some Operation Surgery

I pulled out the old Operation Candy Dispenser several days ago, and was saddened by the fact that things weren’t quite working. I couldn’t figure out what the issue was, and couldn’t get the door buzzer to go off, despite trying every variation I could think of.

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Marine Corps Marathon 2024, Day 5: Race Day, Dinner at The Dubliner

A long day, but faster than it seemed. Despite us being in DC for a few days, it felt like we didn’t have enough time to visit with Kirt, Tricia, Paige, and Lisa/James. It felt like a blur to me, but it was probably doubly so for Liz.

All in all, I’m quite awed by what Liz has done. I know Tricia and Paige also completed the marathon, but for Liz… this was her first. And something she’s been working and training for, for almost a year. I’ve seen the work and struggle up close, and trust me when I say to you: it’s a LOT.

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Marine Corps Marathon 2024, Day 2: Milk Bar, Jack Rose Dining Saloon

We tried looking at the whisky list (it’s 72 pages long). While we had some favorite distilleries to look up, Liz and I soon gave up after a few minutes of searching.

The person helping us was Chris (the whisky advisor), someone Max recommended we speak with. A bit of serendipity there.

We gave Chris some general preferences, and the next thing we knew he was off and climbing up the ladder.

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