Here's our only pic from LaSalle street which Dick shot before we found out they are CRAZY serious about no pics on their set.......note Pritzker Pavilion in the background.....

We found out that Transformers 3 is in town shooting, and this past weekend, they were in my backyard! We were up and out at 7am hanging around the park across the street waiting for helicopters and parachuters. Apparently, alien robots are coming to a theater near you, but they start out life as (crazy) big guys in black jumping from helicopters in very narrow spaces among the downtown high rises. We saw the five jump and steer through the neighbor buildings and land in our park. They then dragged their chutes to the fenced playground and re folded them in the middle of the swings. Pretty cool...though making movies seems to involve alot of sitting and waiting and then some fast action.....the guys in black will be digitally erased and replaced with the bad robots. I'll have to bone up on this Transformer stuff....

After the parachuting, we headed to the Loop where LaSalle and several cross streets were completely closed. Large concrete debris, burned out cars, smoldering piles covered LaSalle. But, they're all made of foam! Well, the cars are real...some with and some without engines....We saw them shoot an explosion from a block away (that was as close as we could get, and believe me, I tried). They shouted "Fire in the hole!", and we covered our ears. Big, loud bangs, small fireworks, two flipped cars and a VERY low flying helicopter (probably 2 - 3 stories above ground) filming it all....we clapped and cheered, and I made a mental note to see Transformer 1...or whatever the first one is called.

On our way back, we cut through Millenium Park where the Chinese American Museum was hosting the family activities in the Target Family Tent. Sarah completed a dragon craft, and had her name written in Chinese calligraphy.

Is this a GREAT city, or what!!!!

Wow....they're making a movie in my backyard!

painted forest

In our walks around town we've come across these groves of orange and yellow painted trees. It was so pretty and eye catching, but puzzling! Hitting google told us that it's a joint project between the Chicago Park District and their landscape firm. It was installed late last fall to provide color and they used over 100 dead trees sourced from area nurseries. I think it's a great way to add color and use dead trees!

Not to be outdone by those artsy-folks, the Field Museum dressed one of their residents in a Blackhawk Jersey.....quite a time of celebration after the Stanley Cup Win.....

Finally, here's a picture of the Lions with the Blackhawk helmets that greeted us on move-in day!

Being green.....

Last Wednesday, after reading about the forty something weekly farmer's markets in Chicago, I headed out to the grand daddy of them all, the Green City Market, held up in Lincoln Park. I entered the address into the RTA trip planner and it told me exactly what buses to take. I left about 7:30am and by 8:00 was enjoying a beautiful spread of local and sustainable harvests. Oh my goodness was it pretty! So many different colors of tomatoes, fat blueberries, greens galore and homemade breads and sauces and desserts. The people there were equally colorful--moms with stroller tykes, older folks, suits on their way to work, overwhelmed newcomers (me), dog walkers with beautiful dogs (almost all were big dogs BTW---and I petted each one!). I circled the whole thing twice before getting a game plan. I ended up with blueberries, fresh( not dried) pasta, fresh shelled peas, one pound ground beef, portabella spaghetti sauce, and a non-dairy berry smoothie for my breakfast! I would have gotten more, but I ran out of cash! It was great to talk with the farmers themselves--they're pride was obvious and they couldn't have been more helpful. It was also quite a "community"---I got the feeling the customers and the vendors were all regulars---they all seemed to know one another and were asking after each other. I suppose, this might have been what it was like before the big superstores.....kinda nice...

I also found a small indoor farmers market between the apartment and Sarah's ballet. Great place to stop for items to fill out dinner. They also referred me to the Pastoral Cheese shop, and they fixed me up with some shavings of parmesan when I realized that I didn't own a grater here and couldn't grate their wedges. Super nice folks...

Funny to think that in the heart of the city I have access to all this wonderful, healthy food with more choices than in Atlanta! And, I get to walk to it!