Mr. Sunshine Takes the CTA

I grew up on the Northwest side of Chicago, off of Harlem and Foster. So I had no other choice than to be a Cubs fan. I grew up listening to Harry Caray singing the Seventh Inning Stretch, his boozy rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game."

"It's one. Two. Three Strikes You're Out. At the old ballgame."

When I was doing research for this #ChicagoCollage Challenge, I discovered that Ernie Banks was on the CTA Board from 1969 to 1981. I found this photo from the Chicago Transit Authority's historical photo collection of Mr. Banks and his sons. I knew that I wanted to use it as the centerpiece of this collage challenge for day #2 - Chicago Transit Authority. Mr. Banks was as known as "Mr. Cub" and "Mr. Sunshine." I can only imagine the big and small ways he served the community after retiring from the Chicago Cubs.

Plates from Sheila Bridges Harlem Toile .

#chicagocollagecommunity #handmadecollage #handcutcollage #contemporarycollage #chicagoartists #chicagoartscene #inspiration #collagechallenge #chicagollage2023 #onionfield #Chigagou #algonquian #neighbor

The Onion Queen & The Three Fires -- who's city is this?

Last year, I started art journaling, which in turn led me to work in collage. I am finding as a writer that I enjoy putting the words away and focusing solely on image. It is extremely refreshing and has turned into my new obsession.

Here is a piece that I completed for a week-long challenge for Chicago Collage Community.

I had found images of local native and indigenous people but couldn't figure out a way to include them in the image in a way that didn't feel exploitative. I was taking a picture of my final image, and I hadn't put away all the images I had found, and these two images were in my work area. I call this a happy accident.

Native people are part of Chicago’s past, present, and future and it is our responsibility to listen to Indigenous voices, to honor their rights, and to work together towards equity and inclusion. The Chicago Collage Community recognizes and honors the native and indigenous peoples of the Chicagoland area - the Three Fires Confederacy, Potawatomi, Odawa and Ojibwe Nations, as well as other Tribal Nations that know this area as their ancestral homeland, including the Menominee, Ho-Chunk, Miami, Peoria, and Sac and Fox.

I found this image of the onion lady in a vintage ad for onions. The tagline was, "Don't get that bottled-up feeling. Onions will keep you fit." I made her into my Onion Queen.

This was my original design before the black-and-white photos landed in the photo. I found the sticker with the numbers on my floor when I was cleaning up my paper scraps and stuck it on the image for fun.

This image was part of the @chicagocollagecommunity for our weeklong challenge CHICAGOLLAGE. #chicagollage for a possible feature on the @chicagocollagecommunity

Jan 1st: Chigagou, an Algonquian word meaning “onion field.”

#chicagocollagecommunity #handmadecollage #handcutcollage #contemporarycollage #chicagoartists #chicagoartscene #inspiration #collagechallenge #chicagollage2023 #onionfield #Chigagou #algonquian #neighbor

Mom Was Waiting for Us in the Dark

Grief and the holidays go together like peanut butter and jelly. I have found that grief will hit you like a cosmic bitch slap out of nowhere; suddenly, you find yourself crying into a pile of Kleenex while you are trying to clean your desk.

I know that comforting a loved one in a moment of grief can be hard. I have found the following to be extremely helpful for me -- tell me a story about my lost loved one, hug me, or say I don't know what to say. It is such a vulnerable moment, and the worst thing you can do for the person grieving is to brush past it and not acknowledge it. It honestly hurts more than the feeling of grief. So, if you are confronted by a grieving loved one this holiday season - DON'T PANIC. JUST TAKE A DEEP BREATH and BE IN THE MOMENT WITH THEM. That's all we really want.

Here is a story I had published by SPILLWORDS for their "12 Days of Christmas."

The string quartet begins to play the opening bars from “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.” The music hits me right in the middle of my chest, and my heart begins to shake off any remnants of sadness. It stretches and expands, opening up and letting my little family inside. I hold each of them, and with each beat of my heart, I bring them a bit closer to me, to us.

Stan Mansion, located at 2408 N Kedzie Blvd, Chicago, IL 60647

To read and like MOM WAS WAITING FOR US IN THE DARK, visit SpilledWords.com.