So Brendan, Juan and I were hiking down the pier in Waukegan, it's like, oh, 150 degrees or it felt like it. The sun was blasting its heat on the top of our heads and as we walked by these two kids, Juan nonchalantly asks, "Catch anything?" They answer, "Yeah."
And for some reason, we keep walking, we all didn't listen for their answer. They were fishing so close to the shore and docks (see in background) that I personally wouldn't think any fish would come that far in and in warmer water. So the one red-haired boy yells at us, "I said Yeah!" and all three of us come to a dead halt, back-up and, of course we are all over these kids, "How many did you get?" "Where are they?" and up they pull a string of fish. "Cool, we all say." "That's great!" "Good job!" "Who's going to clean them?" "Are you going to eat them tonight?" (We all love kids).
This is one of the greatest shots I ever took. I wish I could of got a release. I could of sent it into the local paper. Don't they look happy and proud? It's a day in the life of an American boy.
By the way, I started a part-time job so I won't be posting every day anymore. So anyone who is linked to me and pulls me off because I'm not posting a picture a day-I won't cry.
My sister is in the second shot, but Ally poked her head in just in the nic of time.
So I walk into my sister's kitchen and these three are there with these old outdated sunglasses on. My sister, Kim, on the left, saved every pair of sunglasses that ever came her way or anyone elses way, for the past 30 years. I love the pair she has on and the one on my daughter, Ally, completely covers her face. My son, Matthew picked ones from the 70's. 
From left to right is my daughter Ally, Jean, Holly and my oldest daughter Sylvia. We all went to an excellent authentic Italian restaurant in downtown Milwaukee.
On the left is my friend Juan (pronounced Ha-Juan to all Hispanics) and on the right, Brendan who is going to Graduate school in the fall to study Urban Planning. He has worked with the homeless population in Waukegan for the past year and before that was a social worker in Boston. He's smart and has a dry sense of humor. Juan is a also a case manager and is never without a joke or smile. He comes from Waukegan and has 13 bothers and sisters. His family was one of the first in Waukegan to immigrate from Puerto Rico. As we drive back to work Brendan and I are always indundated with murderous facts pertaining to various houses-"There was a murder in that house, and that one had a..." (details always follow). Today on our way back, as we were going down a street he told a gruesome tale of his cousin, who was riding his bike out into the road and not paying attention. He got hit sideways by a semi truck. You can probably imagine the gruesome details here, but Juan also said that this cousin was also his only friend as a child. Juan was a chubby kid who loved food and hated bathing. I threw in, "and you didn't brush your teeth, right?" he responds with a quick, "What for?!" So he was a smelly fat kid with bad breath and like Juan said, his cousin accepted him and was his friend. Juan said he cried so hard and so loud at the funeral his Mom made him leave. 
Known also as Queen Anne's Lace, Wild Carrot, or Bird's Nest.
