Monday, February 23, 2009

Art Project

The folks at Su Casa called me up on Sunday looking for some neighborhood kids to help them design and paint a mural on their soup kitchen wall. I called Picasso to put him and Joey on the project. We'll see if they come through. Hope it works out.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

UIC Basketball

Sorry this post is so late--tech problems last week intervened. Yes, Junior, his brother, Picasso, Joey and I joined Su Casa in a trip to see UIC play Youngstown State at the Pavilion last Saturday.

Bad news: UIC lost. Good news: the guys liked the game, the Jesse White Tumblers at halftime (they were amazing), and the cheerleaders. Yes, they are teenage boys. I laughed.

The really good news came after the game ended. When they dropped us off, Joey's mom wasn't back from work yet, so he came to my house and hung out for a while. He was surfing the Internet when he said, "I'd like to take another art class. Not like the one I did before (at Marwen), but something else."

"There's some in Pilsen you might like," I said. I had the flyer for Pros Arts Studios--they had class registration in January. He looked at the classes and thought he might like them. "I was going to tell Picasso, too. I thought you guys could maybe go together."

"Yeah," he said.

I was just thanking God he's still interested in doing something like that. I've been afraid he was totally lost to the streets. They have something called open studios--I hope that means you don't have to register. I'll try to remember to call them up and see when Joey and Picasso could go.

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Romance on the Sidewalk

When I came out the door this afternoon to look for the Brady Girls, the first thing I saw was Joey escorting a young lady down the sidewalk. Back last spring he had a little girlfriend, but he was kind of shy and just walked next to her. He walked her home and then came back to his house.

Now that he's all of 12, he's getting bolder and maybe more jaded. (I'm not sure if this is the same girl or a new one.) They got to his gate and he kissed her. Then they chatted a little longer and she went on down the block by herself. I think he invited her in and she said no.

Job Hunting

This afternoon I took a break around 2, when Chavez dismisses, to respond to a very cute message I got from a couple of the Brady Girls. They are having a Valentine's Day party and want to make cookies again to serve at their soiree. I'm not sure if the timing will work but I hope to talk with them soon about it. I went outside and Ines's mom was watching for her kids, but Ines had gone to the library so I missed her.

Meanwhile, Peter Pan's mom was out watching for her kids to come home, too. About half an hour later she and her husband showed up at my doorstep. He's out of work and was wondering if I had any job-hunting ideas. I asked him what kind of work he does and he said, "Warehouse." That's not the kind of work I know or get job notices for much.

I asked if he had tried Instituto del Progreso Latino at 46th and Wood. He said he'd been there once and they said they would call him but he never heard back. He also said there's a rumor that office may be closing. I know some folks who work at their main branch on Blue Island, so I gave him their names, the address and phone number. I hope it helps. Times are tough and I was very concerned to hear he's been out of work for a couple of months. I think they've owned their house for a long time, like 10 years, so hopefully their mortgage is manageable, at least for a little while longer.

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