A.N. Pritzker Elementary School

The U.S. education is in such a fine state that even a lil ole three-year-old like me has to hope and pray I'll get into a good pre-k class. Yes, that's right. Pre-k, not high school or college. Luckily for me I have a Mommy who dedicated herself to volunteering for Friends Of Pritzker, an organization that raises funds for the continued improvement of A.N. Pritzker Elementary's pre-k facilities.

As it turns out, Mom's hard work and maybe Dad's political rants paid off, when my first day of school arrived on Tuesday, September 29. Ever since, I have enjoyed my weekday mornings with Miss Russel and Miss O'Conner, until either Uncle Vino or Gigi & Papa arrive to pick me up for the afternoon.

I imagine I'll continue at Pritzker until it comes time for me to win a lottery, pass a test, or God knows what in order to- hopefully- go to a safe and good high school.

Harvest Time

I may live in a big city, but I still know how to pick tomatoes. I filled my dumptruck with plump fruit and my Aunt Megan used them to make a caprese salad. Afterward I chilled out in the grass.

Aina's 90th Birthday

My Great-Grandma, Aina, turned 90-years-old in September, which meant yet another visit to one of my Dad's- and by default my- favorite cities, Toronto.

It was my fourth time there and the best yet, as the entire family was along and we stayed in the historic Royal York. The place was huge, had a great little kids pool with a fountain, and a toy store in the basement. Plus, on the day we left they were filming a TV show, complete with gun shots. Awesome.

Some things were the same though. We flew Porter, visited Centreville- where luckily the workers were no longer on strike, so all the rides were running- and as usual the CN Tower seemed to follow me everywhere.

We ended the wekend with Aina's party. It was a beautiful sunny day that really complemented the smile on Aina's face, when her friends and family sang her Happy Birthday.

Little Drummer Boy

I've played drums a few times at Schubas, but the latest was by far the best. Old Fake, my babysitter Megan's boyfriend Colin's band, was supporting Free Energy and he let me have at them for a while after their sound check. Village opened the show and since that was a solo act there was no change over, so Mo- Old Fake's drummer- said I could go play his drums again. I performed in front an audience for the first time. They seemed to enjoy my cymbal dominated version of Twinkle.

Why We Live In Chicago

Dad is a huge fan of Chicago and even more so in September, when the temperatures are ideal and the sun shines the most. This September he or I were away three of the four weekends, so when the second weekend arrived and we were both in town, we made the best of it.

On the Friday night we met Gigi and Papa for a snack and a Lyric Opera performance in Millennium Park. Dad and I liked the greatest hits set and it ended early, so we got to walk around a bit.

Saturday night we headed to Belmont Harbor to check out Redmoon Theater's production of Last of My Species: The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan. I had seen a Redmoon production before and this one had their great contraptions and interesting music, but it was on a much larger scale.

Finally, on Sunday we headed back to the Lakefront for a trip to the Shedd Aquarium. I hadn't been since they unveiled their remodeled Oceanarium and it's Polar Play Zone. I spent a good twenty minutes acting like a penguin and another twenty manning a submarine. I was none too happy when Dad said we had to leave and I gave the fish one heck of a show before I was finally dragged out of there. I passed out before we got back to the car and when I woke from my nap, Dad made sure to remind me that this weekend was why we live in Chicago.

Who Is That Tall Guy?

Dad saw Chrissy and Doug Rathbun, two of his cousins from California, for the first time in many years. They came to Chicago for a visit with their dad Hal, who is Gigi's brother and my dad's uncle. Family can be confusing. Needless to say my dad's cousins- my second cousins- have grown-up. Especially Doug, who is 6 feet 9 inches tall. I didn't even reach his waist.