Opinion

The Ziploc plastic bag gaped open obscenely, its filmy girth impaled atop an empty glass. Tiny drips of soapy water collected at each corner. Foggy shapes and patterns tattooed the bag’s surface, leaving crackled Rorschach blots. I gasped in terror. This was the bag I’d used to coat last night’s fried chicken. The bag I…

I’ve often noticed how deer live mostly in quiet environments. This morning, I watched one city dwelling doe begin to get a bit nervous when the noise of traffic began to surround her. She quickly moved to a quieter place. Not only do they prefer soundless surroundings, but most of the time deer do very…

I watched a Live Science video last week in which a new species of wasp was confronting a much larger fruit fly and forcibly inserting its stinger into the abdomen of the fruit fly, thereby laying fertilized eggs inside the fruit fly.   The eggs hatched and a new wasp later emerged from the abdomen…

I terrorize my stylist with pleas and threats when she leans in to cut my bangs. She knows that my happiness in life is tied to what happens in the next few minutes. In one sloppy snip, he or she can ruin my day, my week, and—possibly—the next two months of my life. Having bangs…

Nearly a year ago my tree stand collapsed from under me. It happened in a split second. Thankfully my safety harness and climbing system only let me drop a couple of feet, and I was able to climb down safely. While it wasn’t a “wake-up-call,” it was a healthy reminder to check my set-ups each…

Several weeks ago, I wrote a column about praying mantises.   Frankly, until I did the research, I was always somewhat confused as to the differences between praying mantises and walking sticks.   I mean, they are, after all, just insects, right?     Actually, the walking stick is more than “just an insect”; it…

By Chris Enroth Horticulture Educator, University of Illinois Extension Recently, chilly mornings have me grabbing my hoodie before loading the kids into the car for school. Apple orchards are starting to advertise cider and donuts. Mums are starting to adorn front porches. And that smell…could it be? Pumpkin spice! I will continue to lie to…

September in Illinois is a soft, mellow hum. Lazy puffs of wind—quiet and occasional—sigh hot-breathed words along the grassy slopes and harvested fields. Like satisfied gluttons, filled and tired and sleepy, most insects of September find the simple act of sound-making much too taxing. They glob into lackluster clouds now, whispering lazily along the edges…

My ground blind leaks. Yours does too. Yeah, I know you have the top-of-the-line, largest, most cushy, made-of-the-best-waterproof-material-blind money can buy. I’m sure it’s nice. But it leaks. It may not leak as much as mine. It may not leak in the same places as mine. But it leaks. Those leaks may not show up…

When I was a young teenager, I had a switchblade knife.  So did a number of my friends.   No, we were not hoodlums hanging out on a street corner looking for a “rumble”.   Those switchblades were essentially “toys” that we really shouldn’t have had in the first place, but it sure seemed cool…