Cicada Killers
Full disclosure: This column originally ran in August 2012. I’d intended to run it again last week, as it seemed like it was time to…
Read MoreFull disclosure: This column originally ran in August 2012. I’d intended to run it again last week, as it seemed like it was time to…
Read MoreAah, the joys of summer. Here in the midst of another hot spell, the signs of the season are undeniable. Cicadas are buzzing, prairies are…
Read MoreAhh-CHOO! *sniff* Yep, it’s that time of year again. If you suffer from seasonal allergies, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Your body’s immune…
Read MoreWhether we realize it or not, we all have hidden talents – a special skill or talent we trot out from time to time to…
Read MoreBack in the day of Saturday morning cartoons, one of the more memorable commercials (and one of the more annoying, if you ask my mom)…
Read MoreThe things you learn when you write a nature column. Years ago I didn’t know, for instance, that the word fungus made some folks uncomfortable.…
Read MoreThe other morning I got a text from my good friend Laura McKinsey. That in itself was a great way to start the day, as…
Read MoreLike so many people, I’d planned to get away this summer. That’s right, I-the girl who walks to work, and considers a drive to Wheaton…
Read MoreHere at Good Natured World Headquarters, we get a fair amount of correspondence asking for assistance in “getting rid of ____________.” Over the years that…
Read MoreDon’t you just love a good Aha! Moment? You know what I’m talking about…that instant where a lightbulb comes on, the brain fog clears and…
Read MoreI don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the air these days has a distinct buzz about it. Here we are, gradually emerging from our collective…
Read MoreGood Natured readers might recall how last week we talked of how jigsaw puzzles were all the rage during the Covid quarantine, and how satisfying…
Read MoreSo today I’m wondering, how many of you passed at least part of our corona quarantine poring over jigsaw puzzles? I have several friends who…
Read MoreAs we slowly crawl from our quarantine-kindled cocoons, many of us are looking at the days ahead as a sort of rebirth. We’re vowing to…
Read MoreWouldn’t you know it? Just as our world starts to get back to normal, or what we may see as our new normal, something comes…
Read MoreI’d like to start this week’s column with a quick note of thanks. So many of you Good Natured readers have taken the time to…
Read MoreI hate to say this, but if you’re reading this column because you hope to find out about our area’s morel mushroom hotspots…you’re going to…
Read MoreOkay folks, show of hands. How many of you have spent the past several weeks thinking of crows and blue jays every time you hear…
Read MoreIn these days of physical distancing and social isolation, the sight of a familiar face can bring immeasurable joy. Even, it turns out, if that…
Read MoreOkay folks, show of (thoroughly washed) hands… How many of you had your spring break plans dashed by the COVID-19 conflagration? Were your visions of…
Read MoreGeneva, some of you might recall, has a bit of a history when it comes to owls. And no, I’m not talking about The Little…
Read MoreMaybe all this social distancing is starting to get to me. Or maybe I watched too much TV as a kid. But do you know…
Read MoreI’m gonna go out on a limb here and guess that your life has changed quite a bit over the past couple of weeks. I…
Read MoreSpring starts a week from today and with it comes the promise of warmer temperatures, as well as visits from a host of migrating birds–including…
Read MoreOver the past several weeks, we’ve taken a Good Natured look at the tracks and signs of many of our area’s most common mammals, from…
Read MoreSeveral years ago we received an email from a St. Charles resident who had found the remains of a feline beneath a pine tree on…
Read MoreSeveral years ago, my friend Jessi and I went exploring at McKee Marsh–a small but wonderfully diverse parcel at the north end of the Blackwell…
Read MoreWalking along Ferson Creek recently, I couldn’t help but notice how the tips of so many plants-young trees, shrubs and crispy brown wildflowers alike-looked really…
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