From the category archives:

Chambana

O Chambana Will You Cry For Me?

February 10, 2009

I have an uneasy relationship with the Midwest.
A Northerner by birth, I spent most of my life on the shoreline: first in the Great Lakes industrial city in which I grew up, later along the Thames, when my family lived as expatriates in London, and finally, as a young adult attending college in Boston.
Water is [...]

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Chambana AKA Blogging Capital Of The Midwest

January 29, 2009

I sat at our local Little Gym today, nose in my book, deliciously unfettered. The baby was home with the sitter, rare for a Thursday, but The Poo had an appointment after class and I didn’t want him to distract me from focusing on the girl.
I managed to groom myself this morning, a minor miracle [...]

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Frigid

January 15, 2009

We woke up this morning to bright sun, but despite the pretty daylight, my weather.com widget claims the temperatures here in Chambana are about 12 below zero.
I’m used to blizzards and wind chill, but the flat topography of the prairie here never fails to make me feel as if winter is interminable, and we will [...]

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Winter Driving Tips From Mrs. Chicken

December 18, 2008

If the weatherman predicts an ice storm for the next day, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO DRIVE WITH EXTREME CAUTION THE DAY BEFORE THE PREDICTED STORM.
When an ice storm does hit, STAY HOME.
When the posted speed limit is 35 mph, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO DRIVE AT 30 MPH.
If you are driving under the posted [...]

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An Open Letter To The Urbana Free Library

November 20, 2008

To The Urbana Free Library:
Why, for the love of Pete, do you persist in re-shelving DVDs that are scratched beyond all salvation?
We checked out three of your children’s DVDs this week, and not one, not two, BUT ALL THREE DVDS COULD NOT BE PLAYED.
Do you know what it sounds like when a sick, tired and [...]

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Halfway Up

September 8, 2008

Shaggy and I spent an unusually contented two hours alone together Saturday evening, while Mr. C and The Poo went to Mass.
Normally we go to church, as well, but the boy had a string of bad days and even worse nights. He was finally asleep when it was time to leave for Saturday evening vigil, [...]

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Diagnosis: Homesick

May 20, 2008

Most of you know that I flunked my three-hour glucose test – and rather spectacularly, to quote the midwife – and the likely scenario is insulin for the remainder of my last trimester.
It makes sense – I had a mild case with The Poo, and I’ve felt so very, very crappy this time. I just [...]

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Not-So-Tiny Earthquakes

April 18, 2008

Last night I held on to the bed during an earthquake – and not a metaphorical one.
It was a very rough night. The Poo fell asleep face-down on the hardwood floor at just about 6 p.m., and woke me at midnight complaining that it wasn’t morning yet.
She won’t have anything to do with her father [...]

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The Plot Thickens

April 2, 2008

Remember yesterday when someone put a GIANT FILTHY DILDO on my trash can?
So disturbed by this development was Mr. Chicken that he decided to come home early. I heard the key in the lock around 4:15, and he came in looking glum and concerned.
Earlier, after I called him about the whole sordid incident, he took [...]

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My Dirty Garbage Day, Or This Could Only Happen To Me

April 1, 2008

Here in the great state of Illinois, in the small city of Chambana, we do not have municipal refuse collection. I had no idea there were places where you had to pay for your own garbage collection – especially here, considering that our tax bill would indicate that we live in a palace on an [...]

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