Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-bike!

Last weekend I rented an e-bike from Zoomo in downtown Chicago.

I’ve wanted one since last year, the day after I fell and broke my wrist because I didn’t have enough “oomph” to make it up a slight incline. The bike rolled back and I fell in slow motion. The next day Annie told me “that wouldn’t have happened if you’d been on an e-bike.” So true.

So all year long I’ve looked at e-bikes but I just haven’t been able to shell out $1000 for a low-end e-bike. Then I saw an advertisement for Zoomo, for weekly and long-term rentals. Yesterday I bit the bullet.

It was definitely a millennial experience. I had to chat online with Sherrine to ask questions and set up an appointment. Then I had to complete all my paperwork online, including uploading my driver’s license and proof-of-address mail. In person, I sat at a small table while another girl filled out the rest of the information on her I-pad. I signed a few papers and she gave me a 3-minute explanation about the bike. Later, I tried calling to ask a question about the charging cords and guess what–there is no phone number for contact. I had to submit a request and they’ll get back to me whenever they can. They are only open Monday-Friday.

Online I tried to find out more about the bike–like a manual? Ha!

I took a quick ride as soon as we got home but it was really cold so I decided to wait. John and I set out the next day for a 3-mile ride. We weren’t far before I was way ahead of him, realizing that even at the lowest level of pedal assist, the bike was going faster than my legs were working. I played around with turning pedal assist on zero and changing the gears. It helped to ride behind John so that I could see and feel more of a normal bike ride, but could still turn the pedal assist on if wanted or needed. It also has a throttle button that I can hit if I am on a bigger incline and really want the help. A quick touch of that makes a nice start up as well.

Zoomo mostly rents to young people working as couriers or other delivery services in big cities. It is an Australian company with sites in the UK, EU, and US, located in big cities like New York, San Francisco and Chicago. I am not their typical client. (I asked.)

I will only rent it for a couple of months, racking up about $200 in charges. I figure this is a good way to 1) finish the Camino before summer; 2) test ride an e-bike without breaking the bank; 3) see if I really like biking enough to invest; and 4) give my feet time to heal.

In the meantime, I’m ready for spring and for the rest of my Camino. I try hard not to feel as if I’m cheating–and to put as much of my own muscle power into the process as possible. I think this will be fun.
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!


A long post-script:
The longer virtual challenges are a bit daunting. Alps to Ocean (New Zealand) was 180 miles which I finished in 80 days. The Cabot Trail was 186 miles, done in 56 days and Kilimanjaro was only 60 miles, completed in 21 days. I’ve been working on the Camino since last September and still have 133 miles to go. Therefore, I decided that for any future long challenges, I am going to do them as a team, one of the options on the Conqueror Challenge. Essentially, team members pool their miles to move more quickly along the path. They each pay for the challenge and each get a medal at the end. So far, I’ve walked in “communities” which track each other but still maintain a bit of competition.

There are two long challenges that I am interested in doing with a team. Maybe you’d like to join me for one of them:

The North Coast is a 500.5 mile hike/ride though the Scottish Highlands. It costs $34.95.

The Lord of the Rings Challenge was just released. In this case, you can form a “fellowship” instead of a team to pool your resources. This one is more expensive, but possibly more rewarding. It contains five challenges that must be done sequentially and is a bit more pricey. It follows the LOTR film trilogy postcards and stories. A lot of people are either reading or listening to the books as well. You can buy the full package or buy them individually. I think I would opt for the second option to spread out the cost over a year or so. There also are options for more or less miles on some of the challenges. The Shire (145 miles.) The Fellowship (98 or 680 miles.) Mines of Moria (40 miles) The Eye of Sauron (95 or 668 miles) and Mordor (282 miles.) It is also okay to do just one or two of them if that satisfies you.

Check them out at the Conqueror app and let me know!

Forty-five!

Today is our 45th Wedding Anniversary. Yikes. What is even more weird is that some of our close friends are celebrating their 50th this year. I mean, like, isn’t that for old people?

I remember my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary. Although they lived in Florida, they came back “home” to Chicago to celebrate the event at Mayfair Bible Church. My Gramma made herself a gold dress and I got my first “store boughten” dress for the occasion. I was fifteen.

My Dad didn’t think he’d make it to their 50th after having a heart attack at age 58, so we celebrated their 45th with a special family weekend. They went on to celebrate their 50th, 55th and 60th, at which point I told him “no more parties.” They actually made it all the way to 66.

John’s parents did celebrate their 50th, but it was nine years into Mom’s journey with Alzheimers. When they wheeled Mom into the community room at the nursing home, I almost told them they had the wrong patient until I recognized her dress from one of the weddings. I cried through the whole party.

So, how did we–and our friends–get to this place? Why do we seem so much younger than our grandparents at that age? The gallery below is actually not quite fair since John and I are five years behind on the anniversaries, though the ages might not be so different. Gramma Freeberg was 19 when she married my grandfather. Mom was 20, and I was 23.

Buen Camino

“Pride goeth before a fall.”

Last year I walked 700+ miles and bragged about it in my Christmas letter. This year I got sidelined with plantar fasciitis. I bought new shoes, rested, stretched, had Physical Therapy, and two really good foot massages, but I still can’t walk a mile without pain.

Since January 1, I’ve “walked” 61.5 miles. I snowshoed, cross country skied (very little), walked, and taken credit for my weekly restorative yoga class. I even count the 0.4 mile on the step bike I use for my warm up at PT. Here in Florida, I am swimming laps in the pool to count towards my miles.

Currently, I’ve finished 326.3 miles of the Camino (since September) with 154.5 to go. At this rate I might finish by the August, six months after my projected goal of the end of March.

But it is still a Buen Camino, a good hike. I’m healthy (except for my foot) and doing well. My cancer numbers are good. It has been two years since my second cancer diagnosis and the first med regimen is still working well with no noted side effects.

And, I am very much enjoying two weeks in sunny Florida. I visited my aunt and uncle in Titusville for 4 days and then drove south to spend a week with friends on Captiva. Lizi and I will end our trip with 3 nights and 2 days at Disney. I think a day of walking at Epcot will do serious damage to my feet so I am planning to spend the second day just relaxing at our resort. We have lifetime passes to Disney, but since it is spring break, there are blockout dates to the parks that day. A last day of rest and relaxation poolside sounds just right to me.

And hopefully, when we get back home Spring will be just around the corner.

Buen Camino!

Research Update

Here’s an update of some of my research on The Pillars:

Out of the blue, or so it seemed, I received an email from the librarian at the Mary Baker Eddy Library in Boston with a copy of Mary Keeley’s reminiscences of her interactions with Mary Baker Eddy. It told of her initial interest in Christian Science (1888) and her training at the Massachusetts Metaphysical College (1898) to become a Christian Science practitioner. It also described her husband’s resistance to her faith and practice and his gradual softening towards it. Apparently he embraced the faith toward the end of his life, but not fully as he never gave up his medical practice. He died after being treated by Christian Science practitioners and then calling for medical treatment too late. (Mary Keeley was the second owner of the home, between 1913-18. I wrote about her in Going to Dwight.)

From this record, it seems unlikely that Mary Keely bought and improved the Pillars property to provide treatment for anyone addicted to alcohol or medicines. If anything, it is possible that she intended to serve the Christian Science faith in some way through the development of the property. Or, perhaps she simply enjoyed a big country home and property. I do know that she unloaded her investments in the Keeley Company, selling low to expedite the process since it didn’t seem in line with her faith. She later sued many of the family and business. I am not sure how that suit turned out, but I am guessing she may have used any awards to purchase the home in Oswego. I would love to know, but at present I have hit a brick wall in the research.

Secondly, after Christmas, I invited the daughter of a previous owner to visit the Pillars. Laurel Erlanson was born right about the time her parents purchased the run-down home on Main Street. She was brought home from the hospital to their new/old home, which had been subdivided into four apartments some time previously and painted throughout in “lime green.” (This was 1969.) Her parents worked hard over the next decade to restore the home, creating an elegant mansion once again while they raised four unique and talented children. They added the marble floors, the handmade carpets, the blue decor and the Czechoslovakian chandeliers, special lighting and sound systems. My favorite story is that her mom placed a sign by the door to the dining room, stating “Be a Blue Walker,” which was a reminder for the family to stay on the blue edges of the mostly white carpeting in the dining and living areas to preserve the expensive carpeting. Laurel brought real estate brochures dating from 1981-1996 while they attempted to sell the home and an extra copy of the Better Homes & Gardens magazine featuring the remodeled kitchen done in the early 80s. It was fun touring the home with her and sharing her stories of her family’s life in the home.

Last, I recently reviewed my research on third family that lived in the home, the Hansons’, who owned the home from 1918-1947. I knew that they had suffered a lot of loss in the home and that they were also Christian Scientists, but what I missed was that Eva was also a Christian Science practitioner as early as 1910. They had one son who came home ill from Dartmouth College in 1929 and died. Did they forego medical treatment? Sadly, five years later, Harry Hanson, the father, took his own life down at the pool house or “summer house” on the property. It does not seem as thought Mrs. Hanson stayed in the house for the rest of her tenure as an owner, and who could blame her? I wonder what these losses did to her faith?

(Interestingly, the first owner, Margaret Woolley also experienced much loss. She purchased the land from her sister who lived next door, she and her husband Charles built the home. He died seven years later, followed by the death of her sickly son a couple years later and her mother, whom she must have nursed in the home, a year or two after that. No wonder she chose to purchase land on the other side of her sister’s house to build a smaller home for herself.)

I’m kind of at an impasse in my research but there are still tantalizing details that help me press on. In the meantime, it is fun to watch the Birkey family enjoy the home and find ways to share it with others. Currently they are hosting house church three Sundays a month and Laura is looking for ways to develop a retreat location. She has hosted two yoga retreats and also has dreams of making the third apartment in the carriage house into a small retreat center. It is currently a run down, unoccupied apartment needing renovation, but opens up onto a secluded patio and a quiet, secluded view of the yard and river. At this time of year, with the foliage out of the way, we are enjoying the views of the river and the loud cacophony of a huge population of geese living on the river’s islands. The kids and I had fun snowshoeing one afternoon and they have enjoyed several snowy days of sledding down their back hill. Still, we are all really looking forward to spring with warmer weather and a resurgence of all the native flowers. It hasn’t even been a year since the Birkey’s moved in but the house is already well-loved.

A Really Nice Day

This morning started with a phone call from Johnny, letting me know that he was up and going, ready to head to his first day of work. He was hired at the end of November and had some training in January, but waiting for the job to begin has required patience–for both of us.

He is a program assistant at the Fox Valley Special Recreation Association, assisting young adults with recreational activities. Today that meant assisting with a Special Olympics Bowling team and then a regular bowling activity. The hours are light for now, but he will likely be able to pick up other activities and hours.

He has a light load at school as well: two regular classes and a 1-hour observation class. He needs to spend 30 hours observing programs for people with special needs. He can use some of his work time for the class and is also volunteering twice a week at Penguin Players, an on-campus theater production/group for young adult with special needs. He really enjoys this as well.

The next part of my day was a Refresh Retreat at Laura’s house. From 9-1, I participated in a Yoga retreat in the living room of her lovely home. During the solo quiet time, I was able to finally snuggle into an easy chair tucked into a corner of the entryway, right next to a grill hiding the biggest radiator in the house. When I first visited the house a year ago I could picture it as a cozy warm spot in winter–and that’s just what I experienced today. It was also such a pleasure watching Laura and Brandi lead a small group of women in retreat and listening to her heart to share their home with others, particularly as a place for quiet retreat.

I returned home to more rest and Johnny’s happy reports of his first day at work. He also opened several cards and notes from family helping him celebrate a year of sobriety. One year. He has also been smoke-free for a month and almost two weeks of settling into regularly staying at his apartment! Woohoo!

Lizi went out for the evening with her good friend, Siobhan, who drives from Elmhurst about once a month for dinner and a movie. Johnny headed downtown to see friends and we actually had an empty nest for a few hours!

We spent some of that time having a long, leisurely conversation with Annie in New Zealand. We watched Theo run-walking. He took his first real steps a day or so ago and is definitely on the go and mostly upright. He kind of wobbles like a drunken sailor, but it is really cute and funny. Charlee came to show us her first lost tooth and Simme came in to be comforted by her mum, but most of our conversation was with Anne, a rare, sweet time.

A really nice day.

Going to Dwight

Yesterday I went to Dwight.

If this were the 1890s, you might assume that I went to Dwight, Illinois, to get help at for a “liquor habit” or, as a woman, for an addiction to laudanum (a form of opium.)

I actually went to Dwight to continue my research on The Pillars. Here’s the fun story:
After three trips to the Kendall County Records office, I managed to come up with a pretty good idea of the Chain of Title for the house, a record of ownership and title transfers. Using the newspaper archives and Ancestry.com, I was able to learn a little about each family who owned the house. Except one.

The second owner of the house was Mary E. Keeley from Chicago. She purchased the property in 1913, as well as two more parcels of adjoining land to the southwest, more than doubling the size of the property. She probably added an addition, clay tennis court and a pool and pool house. She definitely hired a gardener as reported in the newspaper, which also noted that she sent her effects to California when she sold the home in 1918. She was listed as a widow on the 1918 warranty deed.

I tried searching for Mary E. Keeley in Chicago and came up with a few possibilities, but none of them seemed to fit. I asked about her at the historical museum and searched for her at both the Oswego and Aurora public libraries. Nada.

Then one night I had dinner with one of Laura’s neighbors–Roxy–who happened to mention something about the “Keeley Cure for Alcoholism.” Bingo! I immediately glommed onto the name and went home to google it. It turns out that Mary E. Keeley was the wife/widow of Leslie E. Keeley, a doctor who studied alcoholism, believing it to be a disease rather than a moral failure. He and the chemist who worked in the drug store below his office collaborated to develop the “bichloride of gold” treatment, eventually claiming that alcoholism was a disease that could be cured. Over the next twenty years, they treated thousands of men and women, most of whom went on to live productive and alcohol-free lives. They trained others and started clinics in other states and countries until there were more than 80 Keeley Clinics around the world. Graduates of the program went on to form clubs, a kind of precursor to Alcoholics Anonymous and several national conventions followed. There was even a Keeley Day at the Chicago Exposition of 1893. This was also a time of huge temperance movements and Prohibition, which lasted from 1920-1933. Although Keeley’s methods seem a bit “quackish” in light of modern medicine, they really were in line with how medicine was practiced in those times. Still, opinions vary to this day, some calling him an opportunist quack and others that are more positive.

The town of Dwight underwent a huge boom of growth and wealth. Now a small town on historic Route 66, there are massive buildings and large beautiful homes and parks that look out of place in such a small town. An elegant hotel now stands empty and his partner’s home is an empty restaurant with a For Sale sign in front.

Dr. Keeley died in 1900 leaving an estate of over $1,000.000, most of it to his wife, “our” Mary E. Keeley.

I do not know a whole lot about Mary, but I do know that she bought the Oswego home, improved it and then sold it five years later. She moved to Pasadena, where I also know she “devoted her life to the furtherance of the Christian Science cause” and donated large amounts of money to the local Church of Christ, Scientist. I also know that she had an extensive collection of Christian Science literature and Bibles dating back to the 1500 and 1300s. This information is from her obituary when she died in 1931. Both she and Dr. Keeley are buried in an impressive mausoleum in the Dwight Oaklawn Cemetery.

I believe that her improvements to the PIllar’s property may have been to develop a place to treat men (or more likely women?) for alcoholism or drug addiction. I am guessing that the addition on the house, as well as the gardens, tennis court and pool were intended to provide a place where the Keeley cure could be administered. I don’t know if that ever happened or if it was a plan and a dream that was never realized.

I also know that she was Mary E. Dow before marrying Dr. Keeley in 1887, at age 38, twelve years younger than him. They never had children. Mary also studied the Christian Science faith (possibly a student of Mary Baker Eddy) and probably convinced her husband to embrace the faith late in his life as well. Interestingly, the Pillars was owned by Christian Scientists for the next 70+ years and through the tenure of three families, all Swedes with surnames ending with “–sons.” The Hansons (1918-1947), the Carlsons (1947-1969) and the Erlansons (1969-1996.)

I am still looking for answers but the story just got a lot more interesting. (I realize that genealogy stories may be boring to some and even more so, stories that aren’t actually related to anything but a house, but I am having a great time.)
















Kilimanjaro

Today I finished the 60.3 miles of the virtual Kilimanjaro challenge–3 days ahead of my goal time of 21 days. I picked up Kellen, Oaks and Olive to walk the last 1.7 miles around a forest preserve and up the sled hill for my “summit.” We had smoothies as a reward.

First of all, the Oakhurst Sled Hill is where our two friends (and sometimes John) trained for the real Kilimanjaro trip, which they took in the middle of August. The two/three of them would don hiking boots and walk/run up and down the hill 10-15 times to build up their strength for climbing. (Dan’s family paid for Dan and one friend to travel to and climb Kilimanjaro as a special treat.)

What they couldn’t train for was altitude. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain in the world. It rises from its base almost 5,000 feet to its peak at 19,341 feet. It is one of the Seven Summits in the world. It’s difficult to predict who will be challenged with altitude sickness; it doesn’t really depend on conditioning. One of our two friends was able to summit; the other experienced severe altitude sickness and had to forego summiting.

I walked my 60+ miles on relatively flat terrain. We live on one of the highest points of our relatively flat neighborhood so I liked to joke about “summiting” as I climbed the gentle slope back to our house. John says the grade might be 2%. The sledding hill may be as much as a 40% grade but it’s a pretty short path to the top and I only did that once at the very end of my challenge.

It was fun taking this virtual challenge “with” our friends (and virtually with Connie and one of the friends’ wife.) My biggest challenge was getting up early to walk before the heat of the day in this very hot summer.

I’ve already signed up for the next challenge: a 480 mile pilgrimage beginning in France and ending in Spain called the Camino de Santiago. I’m not planning to hurry along this path, but keep up a tortoise-like pace through the fall, winter and even into the spring, if need be.

Since the Camino is an ancient religious pilgrimage, I want to make mine a spiritual pilgrimage of sorts. I’ve loaded up on a few books and plan to correlate my walk with the BSF study of Matthew and reading of the Gospels, as well as using Peterson’s A Long Obedience (Psalm2 120-134) pilgrimage metaphor and maybe some ancient prayers and spiritual disciplines.

I’ll keep you posted!

Something to Celebrate

While we have been celebrating the birth of a grandchild (March) and the Birkey’s new house (May), a quieter event has been developing in our family that is definitely something to celebrate: This weekend marks a milestone in Johnny’s journey of living without alcohol. It has been six months since he had his last drink.

Although we were certainly aware of his increasing habit of drinking and hoped for change, this has come as a surprise both to us and to him. He was sick for a few days in mid-February. When he started to feel better, he realized he’d already gone through the first effects of withdrawal so he decided he would “give up alcohol for Lent.” As the days progressed he started realizing that he slept better and felt better. He also realized that when he had crises, he could turn them around more quickly without alcohol in his system. (I used to call it throwing gasoline on a fire.) Days, weeks and now six months have gone by and he is committed to continuing.

This has been a hard year for everyone but especially difficult for someone like Johnny. 2019, the year we “kicked him out”–was hard, but he managed to work for almost a full year and was learning to live independently. A broken foot complicated things, but he still managed to hobble into work and was just given the go-ahead to return to normal physical activities (including tap) when Covid hit. He was staying with us at the time and continued to do so through the first uncertain months of the pandemic. By mid-summer, we moved him into an apartment, but allowed for a gradual transition, especially after he re-injured his foot, requiring another 12 weeks on crutches. Alcohol became part of his daily routine for managing anxiety and sleep problems.

This is just one part of a complex story, one good decision, made daily at first, with a growing commitment to a healthier life (and relationships.) It is definitely worth celebrating.*

*Most of this was written last May when he celebrated his three-month anniversary. We can’t believe another three months have flown by. He has something else to celebrate this month as he returns to school, hoping to complete his college career started so many years ago. He plans to major in Special Education or Special Populations at Northern Illinois University, starting next week. Hopefully he will work part-time on campus to help pay his other bills. He still has his apartment, right next to I-88 where he can begin the 40 minute commute.

Tortoise

I walked a lot this year.


In January I signed up to walk 100 miles with the Pine Pacer Challenge at the Morton Arboretum. I managed 88 miles, finishing 100 miles mid-February. I decided to keep going and added another 60 miles by early April. Connie introduced me to The Conquerors website and we began a virtual walk across the South Island of New Zealand, the Alps-to-Ocean challenge. Early on I worried that couldn’t keep up with Connie’s walking pace and added biking to my routine. First trip out I fell and broke my wrist 🙁 Fortunately it wasn’t a bad break. I couldn’t ride anymore, but I could keep walking.

In mid-May, we decided that if we pushed a bit, we could finish our walk together when she and Larry visited Memorial Day weekend. We both walked 4-5 miles a day to be accomplish this just before the beginning of the parade in Oswego. 180 miles in 50 days. That was fun, though I paid a price with sore feet and a trip the podiatrist. New shoes seemed to solve the problem.

In June we started off on the Cabot Trail in Nova Scotia, once again virtually. I decided that a steady three miles a day would accomplish my goal and quickly learned to get the first two miles in early before the heat of the day. I usually finished the last mile or so in the evening.

I did well through June and then my knee began to hurt. At first I tried walking through the pain but eventually that wasn’t possible. I visited Dr. O’Rourke who diagnosed patellar tendonitis and recommended rest, NSAIDs and quadricep strengthening.

Meanwhile, the hare plunged ahead, outdistancing me by about 20 miles!
This week, I started walking 1 mile each morning and evening.

I am the tortoise*.

A tortoise might be a good metaphor for my cancer treatment as well. Every 4 weeks I have labs drawn, visit my oncologist and get a Prolia injection. My numbers are staying steady month after month, which means my medications are still working to keep the cancer at bay and hemoglobin in the normal range. I was recently told I was a boring patient. That’s okay by me; tortoises are pretty boring too.

*I won’t achieve my Cabot Trail (186 miles) goal by the end of July as planned, but I am okay with that. In August I only have a 60 mile trail (Kilimanjaro) as my goal. After that we are going for the 480 mile Camino de Santiago, which I’m guessing will take us me most of the fall, winter and spring.


This Old House

For the past five months a good part of my mental energy has been wrapped up in on old house in downtown Oswego. When Laura first invited us to see the house, I glanced through the Zillow pictures and decided not to go since I didn’t think they were going to like it. Was I ever wrong! “The Pillars” became the standard by which they evaluated every other home they visited.

When the Birkey’s started to look for a new home, I expected them to choose a slightly larger home with a full basement in an average Aurora neighborhood. It turned out that land was a higher value for them and then “old” started to charm them. After months of waiting and several negotiations, they moved in last Saturday.

This old house was built in 1902 and is situated on two acres of land that borders on the Fox River. Next door is another 3-4 acre undeveloped park that the kids are welcome to roam. It has 36-37 pillars in and around the house, which gives it a presidential look. Early on, when Laura hoped for a January move-in date she suggested we could have an inauguration, #Lauraforpresident. (One day during Laura’s senior year of high school she came home and declared that she wanted to become the President. She was frustrated by the three-year road construction process on the main route to her high school. She was sure she could have managed that better.)

The house is spacious–five bedrooms, three-and-a half baths, a library, two porches (one screened in and one all-season, two stairways up to the second floor) kitchen, dining room, family room and living room. It also has a port-cochére, a carriage house, and two butler bells 🙂 It has a full unfinished attic and an unfinished basement. The property is wooded, full of trees and flowers and a large old grape arbor. I’m really enjoying watching the flowering trees and perennials that keep blooming. The yard and neighborhood are perfect for the kids. Papa and Kellen are already designing a tree house.

It also has a history, which we are still learning. In the 1960s it was split into apartments. In the 80s, a family moved in and restored it to a family home with a kitchen that was featured in Better Homes and Gardens. The last family to own the home (2000-ish) remodeled it to preserve its historical heritage. It has “good bones” and a new roof, so we’re hoping Laura and Taylor will enjoy fixing it up without major expense.

On closing day, we were invited to join them for dessert to celebrate. I decided to try to make a cake that looked like the house. I bought pillars in the cake section at the craft store and went home to create a facsimile of the house. If any of you are familiar with Lamb Cakes, you may have seen this meme:

Here’s how my cake turned out. Definitely nailed it (Not!) but my grandkids still thought it was awesome.

I did a better job at Christmastime. Laura said the only thing she wanted for Christmas was a house. Here is my Lego version of The Pillars.

It’s also just 15 minutes away from us, either by back roads through farmland or across the mile-long main strip of big box stores where we do most of our shopping. Oswego is a great little and developing town. I’ve walked miles through its park and frequent its library, coffee shop, and the neighborhood of unique homes, many even older than the Pillars. I’m loving this!