This Thursday — Leap Day — only comes around every four years, and as someone with a Feb. 28 birthday I’ve always found the phenomenon particularly interesting.
I’ve lost count of the number of times people have said to me, “It’s lucky you weren’t born in a leap year,” but the reality is I still would have been born on the 28th. If I were born a day later, it would have been March 1 and I bet no one would have said anything.
Before we left on our most recent trip to our home country of England a couple of weeks ago, some American friends asked me what the British thought of King Charles and I had to admit I had no idea.
Recent events in Naperville both heartening, saddening The League of Women Voters of Naperville was both heartened and saddened by the speakers at the Feb. 6 Naperville City Council meeting, who addressed Councilman Josh McBroom’s recent migrant housing proposal and the recent racially-charged post by a now-resigned member of the city’s Human Rights and Fair Housing Commission. One of the foundational policies of the League of Women Voters is our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Policy, which articulates a commitment “to fostering, cultivating and preserving a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, access and belonging for all people. The League … respects […]
Sometimes I become absorbed in a film to the extent that I project myself onto the screen, where I might be, say, Bradley Cooper falling in love with Carey Mulligan in “Maestro.” More recently, my cinematic inspiration was Adam Driver romancing Penelope Cruz in “Ferrari.” And then Shailene Woodley. Both within the same quarter hour. I am not delusional. I know that with my age and follicular challenges, I more resemble a Paul Giamatti than a Ryan Gosling. Not that there’s anything wrong with Giamatti, who is a brilliant actor and delightful man, but I think you know what I mean.
I was still grieving the death of my father when my sister succumbed to cancer on a bitter cold day in January. On the eve of her passing, we wrapped our kitchen pipes and stuffed towels along window sills before heading south on an icy I-55. When we stopped for gas, most of the pumps were out of operation. Inside the wayside McDonald’s, employees wore parkas while pouring lukewarm cups of coffee. It was a forbidding journey toward an unbearably sad destination.
There have been many changes for Naperville-based Loaves and Fishes food pantry in the 40 years it has existed, but there’s been one constant for 26 of them: volunteer Nancy Malinowski.
Hard as it might seem, planning ahead for death can alleviate a lot of end-of-life suffering, experts say.
No other place celebrates Mardi Gras like New Orleans. More than a million people descend on the Big Easy every year, partying in the streets as the best parades on the planet pass by. There’s one place in New Orleans where every day is Mardi Gras. Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World is both a working factory and a museum.