Tim Nielsen's Northbrook Days

  My wife and I gave each other a unique gift this past Christmas.  We decided to get a NordicTrack studio cycle.  This piece of exercise equipment is much more than a spin class bike.  It is a virtual vacation every time you choose to use it. The bike has a computer screen mounted to it that can take you virtually anywhere in the world.  Whether you choose to cycle or do a yoga class, you can be transported around the world with a tap on the screen.  This idea of getting from one place to another got me thinking and this story was born. Growing up, our family didn't have a car until 1968.  Yes my dad had one, but my mom and the kids were land locked.  Our grandfather called one day with news we were getting a car and we literally began jumping up and down in celebration.  We would now be able to expand our world and realm of possibilities. Before the car, we walked.  I remember we would all walk to the grocery store in the summer pullin...

 Our grade school library at Crestwood was a window into the world of wonder.  At first glance, it appeared rather small and crowded with books that kind of smelled dank and old.  Upon further investigation, these hidden treasures unlocked the door of knowledge, imagination, and creative thought. It was on these shelves that I discovered books such as  Curious George, JFK and PT109, Denny McLean 31-6, and Rifles for Wattie.  The following is why these titles have stood out to me all these years: At a very early age, the Curious George book series was an introduction to animation portraying life situations.  Curious George was a monkey who challenged your imagination to expand and grow. The JFK and PT109 book was my very first book report.  It was a fascinating historical look at former President John Fitzgerald Kennedy's time during his military service.  He was involved in a torpedo boat accident where he saved a lot of lives at great risk to his...

Phil Hillinger of the old Cypress Inn dubbed it "amateur night".  He said that New Year's Eve was when people who normally don't drink, partake in an obligatory ritual that had dire consequences.  He actually closed his restaurant/bar early each New Year's Eve proclaiming that it simply wasn't safe to be out and about with all the rookies possibly being behind the wheel of an automobile. As kids, we would watch from the safety of our home and look out the front windows on New Year's Eve to witness drivers on Dundee Road doing strange things.  Hubcaps would go flying as cars rubbed against curbs and it seemed there were a lot of police cars pulling  over people.  The flashing lights would light up the woods announcing another suspected DUI. Inside our warm house on New Year's Eve, we would set up the card table and lay out a feast of snacks to enjoy until midnight.  Cheeze whiz and Ritz Crackers, along with ginger ale, were popular choices back then.  T...

I was on an historical Northbrook Facebook page today and saw some photos of when Crestwood school was partially demolished before they transformed it into a long term care facility.  My attention immediately was drawn to the location of where the gymnasium use to be located. The photo clearly showed the entire gym wiped from the face of the earth with just a partial wall still standing that connected to the school.  That particular wall was where the infamous wall tennis game was born.  Legend has it that Jeanne Weckler's brother invented the game and I have no reason to doubt this fact. We spent endless summer days mashing a tennis ball against this wall.  The black asphalt surface was smooth and slick as you maneuvered around the playing field.  There were natural obstructions, like trees, that came into play and were dubbed hinderances and ultimately do-overs.  There were also built in flukes to the game, like hitting windows and brick ledges, that woul...

  When you're small, the dark can be a scary place.  Pitch black is where disorientation and things unknown reside and go bump in the night.  A little light goes a long way towards building confidence and soothing fear.  So, when we were little, we had night lights. The first night light I remember was strategically placed in our bathroom.  The door to the bathroom was always left open when unoccupied.  With only one bathroom for 6 people, you can understand the need for a lighthouse to keep the ships from crashing up onto the rocks near the shore. The night light I enjoyed the most though was my Trix night light.  I believe we actually had to send away for it and include money and box tops to obtain it.  I would spend hours lying in my bed staring at this night light.  What was its significance?  The face of a rabbit with glowing eyes of red shed a low glow as the hours passed each night, seemingly standing guard for me as I slumbered. ...

The train slowed down and eased into the Northbrook train station on a cold and grey December 27th afternoon in 1978.  On board were two travelers that had ridden the rails all the way from Houston, Texas.  Their 27 hour journey felt like a portal back in time, back to the way things use to be. They felt like they had been away for years, but it had only been months.  Family and friends picked them up and ushered them back to their familiar haunts.  The attempt to conceal their identities with peach fuzz facial hair and cowboy hats was comical indeed.  Their cross country transport of Coors beer and Ruby Red grapefruit was impressive if not only for the weight of the storage suitcase. The initial meet and greet was formalized that evening with a ceremonial bonfire in Somme woods in the 20 degree weather.  The travelers were more susceptible to the cold since their blood had clearly thinned in the Texas heat.  Tales of the adventures were spun and the C...

 NORTHBROOK Daze on Facebook may be coming to an end.  If this happens, I will be continuing my writing on the subject under the name Tim Nielsen's Northbrook Days.  I hope the transition is a smooth one for those who want to read along in the future. Enjoy the day, Tim Nielsen