Turn Your Blue Mind On

Hi Everyone... Well, Summer is officially here!!! :-) We certainly have received a great deal of rain lately and we do have a bit of flooding so a bit more precaution to take but I wanted to give you some links for some ideas to get out on the water in IL! If there is another link you would like me to add let me know!  Openlands: Paddle IL Water Trails   - Events Illinois Paddling Council  - Events Chicago Whitewater Association - Events Lincoln Park Boat Club - Events Pecatonica River Water Trail Lincoln Heritage Water Trail Blackhawk WaterWays

Hi Everyone... Here is a great video & link on a mile of lakefront beach north of Chicago which has taken 10 years to restore, but now is a great place to check out and get your Blue Mind Turned On! No swimming, but still a great deal to enjoy!

Hi Everyone... This is an AWESOME story by WGN ! A Chicago Korean War Veteran, Gabriel Spataro at 80 yrs old, got scuba certified so he could go down to the Florida Keys with his 80 yr old friends and dive to see the Christ Statue underwater that he brought back from Italy. Italy had donated a copy of the statute. Watch the video for the full story.

Hi Everyone... Can't get the video to share right on my blog, so you'll have to click t his link to watch it . The Shedd Aquarium is working with Urban Rivers and they are revitalizing the north branch of the Chicago river known as "Goose Island." They are placing floating islands with plants in hopes of bringing back fish, birds and other wildlife and they have set up cameras to study the progress. Their hope is to get 60,000-70,000 square feet of floating islands! Sounds AWESOME!!! I can't wait for it to be finished and everyone can enjoy it and 'Turn Their Blue Mind On' there! :-)

Hi Everyone... Well, yesterday I made a joke about "Free Bath/Shower Day" for the birds, bunnies etc. Look what I saw when I pulled in my drive this evening. HA! I know it may be hard to see, but best I could get, didn't want to scare it off.  He/She just sat there under the bushy tree for a long time while I tried to take pictures and videos. :-)  I have at least 4 bunnies in the area (I saw 4 together at one time so...). One comes by my deck and eats grass and dandelions while my kitty Sterling watches him/her and the birds. I have sweetly named them "Flopsy," "Mopsy," "Cotton-tail," and "Peter" not knowing their genders but....HA! It rained most of the day & is expected to until tomorrow. I think I'll head out tomorrow & take some pictures, since we have received quite a bit of water in the last few days. Some 1st day of Summer with the temps only in the low 70s. It is 64 degrees now! We had 90s for Spring and ...

Hi Everyone... Well, today's water is Rain! We have some storms moving through this evening and it is adding some refreshing water to my plants and my birdbath. Hopefully! We have had some rains that left dust spots on all our cars this summer. Very odd. They say it is from the farms. Hmmm. The rain is light and quite meditative to watch and listen to...even with a few small lightning strikes and low boom booms. I like how it also makes my deck lights blur and twinkle more! :-) I always say it is "Free Car Wash Day" (other than those dusty ones) but I'm thinking the birds and rabbits and other animals might like "Free Shower Day" for them! HA! Now, keep in mind we really don't necessarily need the rain right now. Chicago's WGN TV states we have had 12.41 inches of rain since May 1st, which is 6.37 more than normal. They say it is the wettest for this time period since they began logging it in 1871!

Hi Everyone... Well, I felt I had to at least make this post to make people aware. It may be more Red Mind but sometimes it is needed to get to Blue Mind. I won't say much, but to just ask that if you didn't know about this, you look into it, think about it & do what you feel is right. Here are a few links: Executive Order Regarding the Ocean Policy to Advance the Economic, Security & Environmental Interests of the United States Healthy Oceans Blog : Trump's Administration Executive Action Threatens Decades of Valuable Ocean Conservation, Repeals National Ocean Policy Update: Dems request Hearing!