Ahead of the 2021 WNBA draft, commissioner Cathy Engelbert said when it comes to expansion it’s not a matter of if but rather when.

When asked if there have been any specific lineups that impressed him through the first two weeks of training camp, Sky coach and general manager James Wade gave a concise response.

“No,” he said.

The Sky are still without many of their guards, making it impossible for Wade to see what his true starting lineup will look like. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any position battles.

At point guard specifically, competition is fierce. With 11-roster spots available, 20 training-camp players and five guards on training-camp contracts, it’s easy to see why.

“Everyone on a training-camp contract is fighting to make the team,” Jessica January said. “You have a tryout every day.”

This is January’s third training camp, and she said the mental toll of working through camp only to be cut is tough. That every-day tryout she referred to is what gets added to a player’s resume. If there are injuries or Wade talks to other coaches in the WNBA or overseas, that resume is what he draws from.

January and Brittany Boyd, who is also on a training-camp contract, have been going head-to-head a lot throughout camp. January described the competition level as fun. The goal when they aren’t playing with the starting five is to make them better.

Wade has five days before he has to trim the roster to 12, and while league expansion is not something he is overly concerned with, it’s not lost on him that playing in the WNBA is the dream.

“This is my least favorite time of the year,” Wade said. “I feel heavy when I have to take that dream away from someone. Even if more than likely it’s temporary.”

With multiple Sky players expected to leave during the regular season due to national-team commitments, it’s possible some of these training-camp players could sign replacement contracts over the course of the season.

Still, a temporary contract is not the answer to the overload of talent coming out of college and looking for opportunities.

Ahead of the 2021 WNBA Draft, commissioner Cathy Engelbert said when it comes to expansion, it’s not a matter of if but rather when. The problem with that is while the league figures out the right time to expand, players are losing valuable opportunities.

Rookie Natasha Mack, for example, is a player Wade has raved about. She has intangibles that can’t be taught, Wade said, and her length has been disrupting players throughout camp. On draft night, Wade said there is always a place for players like Mack in the WNBA.

After the team put Gabby Williams on the full-season suspended list, it opened up a spot for a player like Mack or guard Lexie Brown on the Sky’s final roster.

The league is going on 11 seasons with 12 teams, and for it to continue its upward trajectory, it needs to be home to more than 144 players.

“I think if we have a very successful season this year, this time next year, we can certainly start talking about what expansion would look like, how many, and the time frame over which that would occur,” Engelbert said.

Read More

Vegas sportsbooks join Bears fans in speculating whether the quarterback will play for a different team 

LAS VEGAS — Jay Kornegay paused when he first heard Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers might land in Denver to play for his beloved Broncos.

“It’s almost like your heart starts beating faster,” said the vice president of the Westgate SuperBook. “Aaron Rodgers a Bronco? He’d change the whole organization. The Broncos go from a below-average NFL team to a contender.

“It’s exciting, as a fan.”

That first seed dropped about 10 days ago. But with each passing hour, Kornegay knows the likelihood of Rodgers donning a No. 12 Broncos jersey diminishes.

Broncos backers did respond at the Westgate, driving 60-1 Super Bowl LVI odds down to 20-1. On Monday, Kornegay bumped that to 30-1.

As the levelheaded boss of a prominent Las Vegas sportsbook, Kornegay can’t currently envision Rodgers anywhere but Green Bay, if he does play, in September.

For a moment, though,

Kornegay weighs a hypothetical inquiry. If Rodgers were to be dealt to Denver, which group would be happier, Broncos supporters or Bears fans, who’d say good riddance to their twice-a-season rival?

Kornegay laughs. “Certainly both would be happy, but I think Bears fans would buy Broncos fans drinks.”

CUE DON DRAPER

Rio de Janeiro-like Carnival might erupt in Chicago should Rodgers depart the Black and Blue Division.

He is 21-5 lifetime against the Bears. The apex triumph occurred on Jan. 23, 2011, when he led the Packers to a 21-14 victory at Soldier Field to reach Super Bowl XLV, in which Green Bay beat Pittsburgh.

He has thrown 55 touchdown passes against the Bears, who have picked off 12 of his 822 career attempts against them.

The Packers drafting Utah State quarterback Jordan Love last season was one source of Rodgers’s alleged irritations.

Another, supposedly, was coach Matt LaFleur opting for a field goal near the end of the Jan. 24 NFC title game against the Bucs.

The prima-donna quarterback and aspiring game-show host conveniently overlooks his failure to run it in on third-and-goal. Moreover, he has grossed $241 million and, for another $74M, is signed through 2023.

His persistent petulance brings to mind Don Draper’s famous “Mad Men” line: ‘‘That’s what the money is for!’’

NOT ON MURPHY’S WATCH?

During the draft on April 29, Denver’s Super Bowl odds were sliced to around 16-1 to 18-1 at various books as the “disgruntled Rodgers” theme gained steam. Golden Nugget sportsbook director Tony Miller cut his figure to 20-1.

Denver’s odds of getting Rodgers had been whittled to -150 (bet $150 to win $100) at FoxBet, Las Vegas was +250 and New Orleans +500.

On Monday at DraftKings, the number on Rodgers remaining with the Packers was -125, +200 on the Broncos, +500 Raiders, +900 Saints. At some shops, by midweek, Rodgers staying in Green Bay was -150.

Kornegay, a former Air Force brat who went to Colorado State and considers the Centennial State home, will not post a Rodgers-destination proposition.

“Those are difficult to book sometimes,” he said, “knowing that there is certain information out there.”

South Point book director Chris Andrews is staying away, too. On Wednesday, Andrews opened Green Bay at -150 to win the NFC North, Chicago at +400 and Denver +600 to take the AFC West.

Michael Lombardi, The Athletic’s NFL writer, said Monday on the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN) that he believed Rodgers had finally had enough and planned to retire.

Tuesday on VSiN, William Hill U.S. director of trading Nick Bogdanovich tapped Green Bay’s projected win total in the upcoming 17-game season at about 11. Without Rodgers, he’d set that at 6½ victories.

Ultimately, Bogdanovich didn’t foresee team president Mark Murphy trading Rodgers. “You don’t want to do that on your watch.”

At DraftKings, the Packers’ season victory total is 10½. Johnny Avello, its sportsbook chief, projected it at 7½ without the 37-year-old Rodgers, who won league MVP honors last season.

“Aaron Rodgers wins you three games in a season with his heroics,” Avello told VSiN on Tuesday. “It would be a dramatic difference if he’s not the Packers’ quarterback. A big loss. He’ll be 38, but I think he still has some good fight in him.”

SENSES TAKE OVER

As draft day ekes farther back in his rear-view mirror, Kornegay becomes more convinced that Rodgers playing for Denver is more fantasy than fact.

The Broncos have quarterback Drew Lock, inspiring Kornegay to recall a favorite line from the 1983 movie “Risky Business,” when it dawns on Tom Cruise that the Ivy League will not be needing him.

Wearing a pair of dark Ray-Bans and grinning goofily, Cruise’s Joel Goodson says, ‘‘Looks like University of Illinois!’’

Kornegay says, ‘‘Looks like Drew Lock!’’

Teddy Bridgewater is also on Denver’s roster.

“I was very excited, a little giddy there for a little while, thinking [Rodgers to Denver] was going to happen. But time passed, the senses took over; shoot, this is probably not going to happen. Even though nothing has been totally confirmed yet, it doesn’t look like it’s going to become reality.”

We tangent to a hypothetical — and diabolical — Bears scenario, in which they fashion a fantastic season and advance in the playoffs only to lose to . . . the Broncos and No. 12 in Super Bowl LVI in California.

Kornegay relishes his Broncos winning titles. In that series of events, however, no Broncos supporter could expect a single gratis beverage from any Bears fan.

Read More

Parkinson, a new U.S. citizen, is working his way up women’s coaching ranks

Red Stars assistant coach Scott Parkinson walked into Pleasant House Pub, a bar he frequents in his Chicago neighborhood, and ordered bangers and mash and a beer.

Analyzing Parkinson’s order and location, nothing appeared out of the ordinary, but this rainy afternoon was not like others.

He looked down at his meal, then up at his surroundings and thought maybe he should have gone to get a hot dog. He had just completed his oath ceremony surrounded by strangers from different countries who were all becoming American citizens.

“They had us all sat outside under a huge American flag,” Parkinson said. “The judge came out and said he was in our seat 30 years ago in Miami. At the end, he said, ‘Welcome home,’ and gave us a certificate like we were at a soccer camp.”

Parkinson didn’t start playing soccer until he was nearly 10, which is late for a boy growing up in Liverpool, England. His uncle coached soccer camps over the summer, and Parkinson picked the game up there. He eventually began playing with Everton FC’s youth team.

After the team released him at 17, he said he really fell in love with the game because the pressure was off.

Parkinson spent his early 20s balancing school, working as an engineer and playing semi-professional soccer. By day, he worked in a manufacturing plant for Jaguar Land rover as part of an apprenticeship, but by night he was on the pitch.

The whole time, his closest friends and family were telling him his future was in -soccer.

He ended up in Oklahoma City visiting a friend he grew up playing soccer with who had opted to pursue a scholarship at an NAIA college. Parkinson couldn’t believe the luxuries he was seeing.

Everything from the way the program fed its players to the facilities was more professional than that of most pro teams in England, Parkinson said.

“The minute I saw [that environment], I thought, ‘This is it. I can do this,’ ” Parkinson said.

Parkinson’s 12-year journey to becoming an American citizen started at that moment.

At 24, he sold his house in Liverpool and his car and gave up on his -engineering career to move to Chickasha, Oklahoma.

He accepted a scholarship to play soccer at the University of Science and Arts of -Oklahoma and began his pursuit of becoming a coach.

After graduating, Parkinson spent the next few years working his way up the coaching ranks, starting at the youth level. He became the coach of the Rogers State women’s soccer program in 2016.

His jump from the NCAA to the National Women’s Soccer League happened under similar circumstances as his move from -Liverpool to Chickasha. Parkinson was once again on a trip. This time, it was a coaching seminar in Arizona, where he met the United States women’s national under-20 team coach, Laura Harvey.

At the time, Harvey was coaching OL Reign, and after meeting Parkinson, she -offered him a job.

“It didn’t quite work out [with OL Reign],” Parkinson said. “But we stayed in contact. When she took the job in Utah, she called me again.”

Parkinson made the jump from Division II collegiate soccer to the professional level in 2018. He left his position in Utah to become Rory Dames’ lead assistant in 2020.

It was another career move that happened with divine timing.

Parkinson’s wife was the first person he met on campus at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The two were married in 2014, which allowed Parkinson to remain in the United States on a two-year green card that transitioned to a 10-year green card.

He began the process of pursuing full -citizenship last May.

His goal is to represent the U.S. women’s national team, but he isn’t -distracted by that dream. Parkinson’s career has been all about being in the right place at the right time.

He’s confident what’s for him won’t miss him.

“I wanted to feel like I wasn’t just representing the best team in the world, but I was representing my country,” Parkinson said. “That would make [the dream] feel even more special. If and when that day comes.”

Read More

Zach Davies had his best outing in a Chicago Cubs uniform on Friday, but the numbers behind his start were strange, to say the least. In the first of a three-game set against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Zach Davies gave the Chicago Cubs seven strong innings and danced out of a bases-loaded, nobody-out situation to end […]

Chicago Cubs: Zach Davies turns in bizarre outing for win – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & More

Read More

Chicago Bears: 4 underrated free agents left to sign after draft by Ryan Heckman

The Chicago Blackhawks have some very nice young players. There isn’t enough there yet where you can be excited about the future as there is still a long way to go but there are some positives. As far as the future, it is led by Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach. They are both very good and can be leaders on a very good team. However, you cannot say that they are Patrick Kane or Jonathan Toews. Those guys are the first-ballot Hall of Fame type players that are a tick above everyone else in team history.

The Chicago Blackhawks have been lucky to have great players over the years.

DeBrincat is a 23 year old winger that is becoming a stud. When he played with Connor McDavid and Dylan Strome as a member of the Erie Otters, it was clear that he was going to make a great winger in the NHL if he had good playmaking around him. Well, he is actually looking even better than we originally thought because he can be a bit more than just a sniper. However, he isn’t at Patrick Kane’s level and likely never will be.

As for Kirby Dach, he was the third overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. He had a solid rookie season and missed most of his sophomore season due to a wrist injury. The talent is there to be a dominant number one center. With all of that said, saying he is the next Jonathan Toews is just flat out wrong. Toews was everything you need in a centerman and more. That guy was next-level in terms of his competitive drive, leadership, and pure hockey talent.

Let’s be clear about something, that doesn’t mean that these two can’t lead the way on a championship-caliber team. They can be great if things develop that way. Saying they are the next Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, however, is just flat out wrong. Players as impactful as them don’t come around often. Generations can go by without seeing kids like that come through.

88 and 19 were so good that they led their team to three Stanley Cup championships. Kane has a Hart Trophy, a scoring title, and a Calder Trophy. Jonathan Toews also has those same three Stanley Cup championships along with a Selke Trophy and a Messier award. Each of them has one Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs as well.

Related Story: Three Blackhawks who will be gone by the 2021 NHL Draft

Putting together a duo like that is amazing and something that shouldn’t be taken for granted. We are all rooting for Dach and DeBrincat to be the next great leaders but saying that they are the next Toews and Kane is both wrong and unfair.

Read More

Chicago Bears: Is the narrative changing on Ryan Pace? by Dominique Blanton

Next1 of 5Prev post

Use your (arrows) to browse

Chicago Bears (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

The dust has settled, but Chicago Bears fans are still hyped about the job their team did in the 2021 NFL Draft.

General manager Ryan Pace addressed several needs and obtained some incredible value throughout the entirety of draft weekend. It all began with the Bears throwing caution to the wind and trading up with the New York Giants to pick 11 — where they landed Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields.

The excitement won’t dim for a very long time, especially if Fields impresses right away and snatches the starting job from Andy Dalton in training camp. This kid, along with the rest of his fellow Draft mates, have completely changed the tune in the city of Chicago.

Although the draft provided plenty of talent for the Bears, the job is not yet done. There is still a few months left of the offseason before things start getting real serious. But, the Bears can’t be quite done forming this roster.

The Chicago Bears, along with the rest of the NFL, are beginning to explore the remaining free agents.

Following the draft, teams are now looking at a large pool of free agents still looking for homes. Because of the league’s salary cap going down this year, there are more free agents waiting to be signed than normal. Teams have had to be very careful with their spending, and also more aggressive with cuts.

But, now that the draft is over and teams know where they stand with roster needs, there will be another wave of signings. For the Bears, there are a few spots where they could use some additional help.

Not only would some depth be a good idea at a few positions, but more than anything, adding players they could label as “all-in” moves would be a good idea.

Let’s be real: Fields has to win the starting job in camp, right? If he does, then this team is ready to win now. Which players could help the Bears make a run, that aren’t necessarily talked about as much as the bigger remaining names? Let’s look at four in particular.

Next: 1. Olivier Vernon

Next1 of 5Prev post

Use your (arrows) to browse

Read More

Mona Charen’s recent column, “Why, Goodness, Who Could Possibly Oppose Universal Pre-K?” mixes apples and oranges, and a few bananas. Her column mixes up daycare and preschool (two very different programs) and a parent’s desire to work while parenting young kids. All three concepts deserve a separate column.

I have no doubt that some of the surveys that she quoted are accurate. It is exceedingly difficult to balance work and parenthood. Part-time work is a great compromise, as mentioned in her column. But balancing work and parenting is not the point of the president’s desire to expand preschool for all. Nor is it the point of his desire to offer two free years of junior college to all. The point is more education for more kids.

The “gold-standard” preschool study she notes only followed the kids until third grade. The Perry Preschool study followed them for 15 years and found great outcomes. Also, subsequent studies found that some kids in low-income neighborhoods need after school tutoring throughout grade school as well.

All kids at age 3 are eager to learn. A former neighbor of mine and I used to talk about our “kids” in our classes. I used to complain about 17-year-olds who made it through high school lacking basic reading and math skills. She complained about 5-year-olds who were not ready for kindergarten. I had no idea that kids that young could differ so much in skills.

Head Start and other preschool programs are the great equalizer. They get kids ready to learn. President Lyndon B. Johnson started Head Start because he taught young kids from a very poor area in Texas and saw the need.

Ms. Charen should write a column devoted to the teachers who work with young kids every day.

Jan Goldberg, Riverside

SEND LETTERS TO: [email protected]. Please include your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes. Letters should be approximately 350 words or less.

We need more technology like ShotSpotter

Not only am I a proponent of ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology, I don’t feel it goes far enough.

The times I’m aware of shots being fired on my block, the police have shown up and that’s a good thing in my opinion. Invariably, they then ask residents if they have security cameras that may have picked up the incident. My question is, why aren’t there working police- monitored cameras on our blocks? We need to get serious about making peace-seeking residents safer.

Michael Pearson, Englewood

Baseball’s fan base

It is a real shame that people no longer have free television access to the baseball games.

Growing up, it was great to watch the Cubs play. The fans were the backbone of these clubs. On a special day, maybe they could make it to the stadium in person, with their cow bell in hand. Now they’re home because of COVID-19, or because they’re retired or maybe sick and can’t work. These folks can’t watch their teams unless they pay up for special TV access.

It seems like the sports teams have turned their backs on their most loyal fans. Hope it doesn’t come as a surprise when they find their fan base strikes them out.

Carol Huotari, Melrose Park

Keep Trump away for good

A board at Facebook kept former President Trump off of Facebook. Ah, peace.

I took myself off of Facebook in 2018. But a white supremacist who seeks civil discord should not be given a platform to display discrimination against everyone who does not think as he does. “My way or the highway” is not expected from a former president. “All for the common good” is more like what we need to hear.

My message: Permanently remove Donald J. Trump from Facebook and other social media.

Janice Gintzler, Crestwood

Read More

I remember Mama…

Mama was the kind of woman who loved her children more than anything else in the world and would protect them unto death. A brown-skinned woman with thick brown lips and pretty eyebrows, she also loved God, a pack of Winston’s, a 16-ounce bottle of Pepsi-Cola, and snapping her fingers to a slow jam playing over the radio.

Mama was gentle and kindhearted, quick to help a friend or family, always willing to give her last. She believed in family and in sticking together. “Family is always first,” I can still hear Mama telling her children. “All y’all gonna ever have is each other.”

Mama was tender-hearted and easily wounded, but also a fighter. If you had to go to war, you would want to take Mama. She wasn’t the kind to back down and wasn’t one to mince words, either.

Mama was a supreme curser. When she was spewing profanities, the words shot out like hollow-point bullets that could penetrate even the most fortified of psyches. She created word combinations of such invention that I have rarely heard the equal, even from some of the most proficient of profanity spewers.

Mama didn’t curse — she cussed. Her enunciation was riveting. She’d cut ’em up then walk away, depending on whether the person still wanted to tango.

I loved to dance with my Mama…

“I wanna hold your han-an-and,” I sang as Mama got ready for work, the sounds of the radio sweeping through our apartment like the smell of Dial soap and Mama’s instant coffee, which she always mixed with water she boiled in a small uncovered pot on the kitchen stove.

Mama loved music. Our hi-fi was truly one of Mama’s treasures. It was one of those rectangular-shaped, mahogany-colored wooden boxes. Our hi-fi sat in the living room. Mama had amassed her own collection of 45s and LPs. She had everybody: Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, the Temptin’ Temptations, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and the Pips, James Brown.

Mama’s love for music rubbed off on me. I also picked up her knack for dancing. I especially liked to dance with Mama. She smiled and snapped. I shuffled and shook.

“You getting’ down, boy,” Mama used to say in that way older Black folks do when they’re watching a little kid boogie down.

I never said a word. I just smiled and danced with all my might until I got tired or the music stopped.

How I wish I could dance with my mother again…

Even during my senior year of high school, money was tight. Mama scrounged up enough for deposits on my senior pictures and class ring, though in the end we could afford neither. I kept the proofs of my pictures, wallet-sized photos etched with the name of the studio and the word “proofs.” I never laid eyes on the ring.

But at least I was getting my diploma. Mama couldn’t afford that, either. But true to her word, sometimes through borrowing, penny-pinching, and always sacrifice, she had found a way to pay my tuition at Providence St. Mel.

The best picture that I took that sun-washed graduation day is one that I have kept all these years safely tucked away behind the plastic preserving pages of an old photo album. In that photo, Mama stares at the camera. I hold my diploma, kissing her on the cheek. Mama’s face is spread in a girlish smile.

But it is her eyes that move me. They are so happy.

Nearly seven years since her passing, I miss her everyday, especially on Mother’s Day.
But until my dying day, I will always remember Mama.

Email John Fountain at [email protected]

Send letters to [email protected]

Read More

I’ve Got The Hippy Shakes

• About
• Subscribe by Email
• Beatles
• Music
• Parkinson’s Awareness Month
• Faces of Homelessness
• Gallery Week

Van Morrison does it again….and that’s not a good thing

Tweet

By Howard Moore,
today at 12:17 am

They tell us that ignorance is bliss
I guess by those that control the media, it is
They own the media, they control the stories we are told
If you ever try to go against them, you will be ignored

What the Hell happened to Van Morrison?

He’s has written many wonderful songs. His catalog includes beauties such as “Moondance”, “Tupelo Honey”, and “Crazy Love.” When it comes to writing songs about love and romance, it’s hard to find someone who does it better than Van. At the same time, he has a reputation for being extremely difficult in both his professional and personal life. The two things aren’t mutually exclusive. You can find many examples of talented artists who are miserable humans.

In the last year, Van’s extreme views of what is going on in the world have taken over his music. Last year, Morrison recorded and released three anti-lockdown songs. “Born To Be Free,” “As I Walked Out” and “No More Lockdown” was not well received by music journalists and the public. He took a lot of heat for his selfish lyrics at a time when millions of people were dying of Covid-19. It wasn’t only the words that bothered everyone; the songs themselves were horrible. His Covid-denial/anti-lockdown trilogy was no “Astral Weeks.”

After a year of controversy, Morrison apparently decided to double down on bad taste. His new album is called “Latest Record Project, Volume 1.” The lyrics at the top are to a song from this album called “They Own The Media.” Apparently, Van has no use for the media. It’s not as if this opinion is anything new. We’ve heard this almost every day over the last four years. I’m surprised he didn’t incorporate the phrases “fake news” and “enemy of the people” into this song.

He continued to trash the media with these lyrics later in the song:

They control the narrative, they perpetuate the myth
Keep on telling you lies, tell you ignorance is bliss
Believe it all and you’ll never get the truth
Never get wise, wise through their lies

Okay…okay…Van the man, we get it. You hate the media; join the club. The main question everyone is asking is WHO IS THEY?

The word on the street is They are Jewish people and the song is laced with anti-Semitism. Well, you know that we Jews do own and control everything. Van, our main goal is to try and make your life worse….oh, brother.

I would love to give Morrison the benefit of the doubt, but after his crap over the last year, he hasn’t earned that. This song is certainly in the same mode as the last three tunes. Plus, this isn’t his first time being accused of writing anti-Semitic lyrics. In 2005, Morrison wrote, “They Sold Me Out.” Guess who the They is?

Hey Van, let me give you a little advice….maybe for your next recording try something closer to “Gloria”, “Brown Eyed Girl” or “And It Stoned Me” and a little less of “The Long Con,” “Big Lie,” and “Why Are You on Facebook”, three other lovely ditties from your newest album. Yeah, you’d still be a far right-wing Covid-denying, anti-Semite asshole, but at least we’d love your music as we did in the good old days. They were better days for us and you.

Related Post: Van Morrison continues to be a putz about the Covid-19 pandemic

Type your email address in the box and click the “create subscription” button. My list is completely spam free, and you can opt out at any time.

Filed under:
Entertainment:: Music, Music, News

Tags:
Van Morrison

Tweet

• Advertisement:

• Advertisement:

• 
  

  Welcome to ChicagoNow.

  Meet
  our bloggers,
  
  post comments, or
  
  pitch your blog idea.

  Sign in
  Pitch your idea
  Play games

• Meet The Blogger

  

  Howard Moore

  My so called friends think it’s time to edit this section. After four years, they may be right, but don’t tell them that. I’ll deny it until they die!
  I can’t believe I’ve been writing this blog for four years.
  It started as a health/wellness thing and over the years has morphed to include so many things that I don’t know how to describe it anymore.
  I really thought this was going to be the final year of the blog but then Donald Trump came along. It looks like we’re good for four more years..God help us all!
  Oh yeah…the biographical stuff. I’m not 60 anymore. The rest you can read about in the blog.

• Subscribe by Email

Completely spam free, opt out any time.

Facebook

Tweets by @howardmoore611

Tags

• Donald Trump (197)
• Parkinson”s Disease (50)
• Coronavirus (34)
• Chicago Cubs (32)
• Paul McCartney (24)
• John Lennon (24)
• Cancer (23)
• Melanoma (22)
• Covid-19 (21)
• Mike Pence (20)

Show more tags »

Categories

• Music (349)
• Wellness (308)
• News (277)
• Health (240)
• Satire (193)
• humor (177)
• Uncategorized (169)
• Parkinsons (154)
• Pop Music (146)
• Entertainment:: Music (110)

Show more categories »

Latest on ChicagoNow

• Van Morrison does it again….and that’s not a good thing

  from I’ve Got The Hippy Shakes by Howard Moore
  posted today at 12:17 am

• Sizzling Hot Chicago Real Estate Market Had Record Sales In April

  from Getting Real by Gary Lucido
  posted Friday at 4:54 pm

• Are you going to Ravinia this summer?

  from I’ve Got The Hippy Shakes by Howard Moore
  posted Friday at 2:10 pm

• 32 Years Later, Michael Defeating the Cavaliers Still Matters

  from Gray Fedora Sports by Dooley
  posted Friday at 1:37 pm

• Recuse: a Word Worth Defending for the Best Posts lists

  from Margaret Serious by Margaret H. Laing
  posted Friday at 11:44 am

Posts from related blogs

• 

  Spiritual and Physical Wellness

  Most recent post: Practice Gratitude

• 

  Improv Class For The Soul

  Most recent post: CHOOSE PROGRESS

• 

  Say What?

  Most recent post: When Is It Time To Replace Hearing Aids?

More from Lifestyle: Wellness

Read these ChicagoNow blogs

• 

  Cubs Den

  Chicago Cubs news and comprehensive blog, featuring old school baseball writing combined with the latest statistical trends
  • Daily Cubs Minors Recap: Chase Strumpf continues fast start; Amaya collects three hits; Iowa gets the Marquee treatment
• 

  Pets in need of homes

  Pets available for adoption in the Chicago area
  • Fatima – Hyde Park Cats
• 

  Hammervision

  It’s like the couch potato version of Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
  • Movie Review: The Mitchells vs. The Machines

Read these ChicagoNow Bloggers

• 

  Candace Jordan

  from Candid Candace:
  Remembering Hugh Hefner on his birthday by a Bunny who loved him
• 

  Dennis Byrne

  from The Barbershop: Dennis Byrne, Proprietor:
  Hell, why stop at $6 trillion? Why doesn’t Biden go to $10 trillion, $20 trillion or more?
• 

  LeaGrover

  from Becoming SuperMommy:
  It’s fine. I’m fine. Everything is fine.

Advertisement:

ChicagoNOW

• About ChicagoNow
• •
• FAQs
• •
• Advertise
• •
• Recent posts RSS
• •
• Privacy policy (Updated)
• •
• Comment policy
• •
• Terms of service
• •
• Chicago Tribune Archives
• •
• Do not sell my personal info

©2021 CTMG – A Chicago Tribune website –
Crafted by the News Apps team

Read More

Moon Alert

There are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions. The moon is in Aries.

Aries (March 21-April 19)

This is a lovely day for you. The moon is in your sign dancing with Saturn, while meanwhile, Venus and Jupiter are cozy and in touch. This means you will vacillate between being self-indulgent vs. being self-disciplined. An interesting day!

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

You feel happy and good about life. This is why you want to kick back and relax. Nevertheless, something going on behind the scenes will make you do some work and a little research so that you will still get something done today. Oh yeah.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Part of you wants to be low-key and stay behind the scenes. That’s just fine. However, another part of you wants to get out and schmooze. No doubt some of your interaction with others will be with someone older or more experienced than you. Good chance to learn something new!

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

You are high visibility, which means that people notice you more than usual. Fortunately, they see you as competent, careful and conscientious. Nevertheless, your close friends know that today you want to play! Enjoy hanging out with creative people!

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)

You make a fabulous impression on bosses, parents, teachers and VIPs. In fact, you will impress them to the extent that some of you might begin a flirtation or a romance with a boss. (Oh my.) Meanwhile, a serious discussion about politics, religion or legal matters might also take place.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

Travel for pleasure will appeal today. This is also an excellent day to meet people who are “different.” Legal judgments might favor you. Meanwhile, serious discussions about shared property, inheritances, taxes and debt will be precise and satisfactory.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Keep your pockets open because gifts, goodies and even money from others might come your way today. Yes, this is a fortunate day for you! Meanwhile, expect to have a serious discussion about something that matters with a partner or close friend. It’s all good.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Relations with those who are closest to you are warm and charming. You will enjoy their company and they will enjoy seeing you. It’s the perfect day for a long lunch or any excuse to avoid work. Nevertheless, you will take care of some details, especially something that is pet related or to do with your health.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

This is a good day to practice a skill or hone a technique perhaps in the performance arts or sports so that you get better and better at something the more you do it. Just do short spurts because you also want to kick back and play. It’s a mixed bag.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Serious discussions at home, possibly with an older family member, might take place. Nevertheless, meanwhile, you want to play as well today and enjoy fun activities with kids, sports events and social diversions. (It looks like you can have it all!)

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

You might want to entertain at home today. You will certainly want to do something to make your home look more beautiful, which is why efforts to redecorate will appeal to you. If you need to discuss your ideas with someone, you will be serious and detail-oriented.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

Although you want to relax and enjoy the company of siblings, relatives and neighbors today — really hang out — nevertheless, you will be quite serious when it comes to financial matters. If you’re shopping or spending money, you’ll know what you’re doing.

If Your Birthday Is Today

Actress Melissa Gilbert (1964) shares your birthday. You are generous, intelligent and kind. You are also astute and have excellent organizational skills. As your new personal year begins, you enter a year of endings and wrapping up things. It’s time to get ready to move on to something new! This is not loss. You are cleaning up things and clearing the way for new ways of doing things.

Read More