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Something's Brewing at Brewhaus - posted on January 7, 2010
"When you think you know everything, it’s time to quit," Frank Parker says about his 30-some years of trumpet playing. Fortunately for music fans in the Springfield area, he isn’t planning to quit anytime soon. "You never stop learning," Parker says. It’s a truth Parker and his fellow musicians know all too well from their Monday jam sessions at Brewhaus, a downtown Springfield bar.  When I first meet Parker before one such jam session, the spry older man is wearing a snug red turtleneck, broken-in black pleated pants, and a New Orleans Saints ball cap, with tufts of curly silver hairs peeking underneath. He casually exhales between drags on a cigarette outside before the jam session begins. "It was the easiest gig I ever got," Parker says. "Three years ago on Va...

Central Illinois Wineries - posted on October 2, 2009
The hunt for beautiful vineyards often takes wine connoisseurs to Sonoma, Napa, Tuscany, Rhone—and central Illinois. It may sound like a bit of a stretch, but it’s true. The state, known for its fertile soils, is home to as many as 80 wineries and 450 vineyards. And 10 scenic wineries are located right in central Illinois (plus the rest are within easy daytrip distance).Fall is a terrific time to visit central Illinois wineries—in many instances, you can enjoy sunny autumn weather and striking fall foliage in addition to scenic views of the vineyards. Plus special events—some of which are listed below—ensure there’s never a dull moment when you embark on your next wine-tasting adventure.Alto Vineyards  4210 N. Duncan Rd., Champaign217.356.4784 This...

Get Spooked - posted on August 12, 2009
Abraham Lincoln history and the supernatural collide in Springfield, Bloomington, and Lincoln, where guided tours highlight the sites and spirits of Central Illinois. Springfield WalksInspired by ghost walks he took through Europe, Illinois native Garrett Moffett began researching Illinois ghost lore. After developing Macomb’s first ghost walk, Moffett started Springfield Walks in 2006. On a given night, as many as 100 people may participate in the thoroughly researched Lincoln’s Ghost Walk tour—one of many Moffett offers.   Lincoln’s Ghost Walk: Legends & Lore is a 90-minute, 12-block walking tour that combines Lincoln history with eerie stories about Lincoln’s spiritual beliefs, his prophetic visions, his ghost in the White House, Mary Todd Li...

An Evening With Shakespeare - posted on July 28, 2009
“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” William Shakespeare wrote in Sonnet 18, and it’s likely the summer’s day he spoke of was similar to the one on which we attended the Illinois Shakespeare Festival at the Ewing Cultural Center in Bloomington-Normal. We arrived just after 6 p.m., in time to spread out a blanket on the lawn behind the Ewing House and enjoy a picnic. A number of other small groups were scattered about the grounds with snacks and bottles of wine, relishing the weather, the scenery, and the madrigal singers wandering about in period costumes serenading guests with renditions of all manner of traditional English songs.After dinner, we relaxed on the lawn until the amphitheater doors opened for the play. Then something wicked our way came&mdas...

The World's Largest Covered Wagon - posted on June 1, 2009
Stop by Lincoln, Illinois, the town named for the venerable bearded president (before he even became president, mind you), and you’ll find plenty of Abraham Lincoln sites to explore. One of the most noticeable: The World’s Largest Covered Wagon, also called the Railsplitter Covered Wagon, located at 10006 Woodlawn Road (on the corner of Woodlawn and Route 66). The giant wagon first appeared in Lincoln in January 2007, after it was purchased by the Abraham Lincoln Tourism Bureau as a tribute to Abe.The hulking wagon, which weighs five tons and measures 40 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 24 feet tall, holds the title of World’s Largest Covered Wagon according to the ultimate authority on the matter: The Guinness Book of World Records. A stern 350-pound, 12-foot-tall Abraham Li...