Letterboxing!

On Sunday I went Letterboxing. I got the idea from this article in the Courier. A friend and I went followed this clue to a forest preserve I never knew existed–Voyager’s Landing.

We had to climb up and down a lot of small yet steep hills to get to the hidden box.

Finally, a letterbox!

It had lots of stamps in it from other people who had found it over the past two years.

There were two boxes hidden, but we only found one. We weren’t sure what “a sleeping giant” in the clue referred to–another tree?

Tags: Elgin, forest preserve, fun, letter box, letterbox, letterboxing, nature, outdoors, photography, photos, Voyager's Landing
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The moon loomed large last night

I almost didn’t take any photos of the moon because my camera wasn’t on me. Then I said to myself, “Jessica, it’s 9 pm. If you can’t muster up the energy to run into your apartment, grab your camera, then drive half a mile down the street to get a good photo of the moon, you’re getting OLD.”

I would’ve just walked the half mile, but someone threw a rock (or something equally heavy) at my car while I was driving down that stretch of road to get the camera. Plus it was past dark. I’ll just admit it: I was scared.

“Luna” means moon. That’s where the word “lunatic” comes from. If I wanted to be really cheesy I would’ve titled this “The luna loomed large last night.” Or “The lunatic loomed large last night.” The lunatic being the person who threw something at my car–not me!

If I was an artist I’d say these photos get crazier to show the moon’s effect on people. But I’m not an artist so I’ll tell the truth–I couldn’t get a clear photo so I just had fun with it.

Tags: Elgin, Grove, IL, Illinois, Kimball, moon, nature, outdoors, photography, photos
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Beautiful gardens around Gail Borden?

I’m not sure that the Courier could publish an article that would excite me more. Click here for the full thing.

Water and wind turbines, a fish-watching spot, interactive games, rooftop gardens and babbling brooks could one day wrap around Gail Borden Public Library.

…

Hornig’s design includes cisterns that would capture water from the library roof. The water would then be directed into small streams, which would turn small turbines. Another spot, toward the Fox River, could have small windmills, which also would produce a small amount of power.

That power could be used to run an outdoor electronic game. “It’s like the game Simon,” where players must touch lighted screens in time with the game, Hornig said.

On the banks of the Fox River, the plan includes a fish library — a floating wetland in the river that would provide a habitat for the fish found in the Fox. To make that area accessible to people, a glass wall would be built into the bank.

Awesome!

Tags: Elgin, environment, fish, Fox River, Gail Borden Public Library, games, gardens, Illinois, nature, news, outdoors, rooftop garden, water, wetland, wind turbines, windmills
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