New Guitar Options for Power and Sound Quality

Well, it appears my grandaughter is really getting serious about her guitar playing. She is advancing quickly and her teacher is impressed with her dedication. Since her birthday is coming up, my daughter is looking into some guitar brands to get her an upgrade to a better instrument. Of course, the first guitar my daughter bought for Alexis (my granddaughter) was, while nice, on the lower end of the cost scale. It is servicable, and is doing its job well, but it couldn't possibly have the quality of a truly well-crafted instrument. No one would expect it too. Before really investing in a top-quality guitar, however, my daughter wanted to be sure it was something Alexis would stick with.

At first, my daughter asked me about the brands and styles of guitar I would suggest. After doing her own research, however, it was becoming apparent that I was going to be the beneficiary of a lot of new ideas on the subject. It has been a long time since I have personally held a guitar and the new brands and styles are quite amazing. One brand that is under serious consideration is the godin multiac. It's a very versitile acoustic guitar that offers many electronic benefits as well. I have always loved both accoustic and electric guitars. Alexis is happy with her current accoustic, but one of the Godin's would give her a lot more options for rich and powerful sound.

Sunday's Spot

While not the paradise that Isle a la Cache was, we did find another spot along the Des Plaines river that was quite beautiful. We had a really pleasant day since the weather was just a little nicer than on Saturday. However, as much fun as it was, this spot didn't yield any fish. It was really surprising to me since the spot should have been bountiful. It was at the mouth of a river convergence where Salt Creek meets the Des Plaines, there were lots of structure spots and small holes for fish to hide. Finally, I spotted a lot of minnow and tadpoles in the area. Where there's bait there's usually game fish, but not on Sunday. Possibly the cooler water, the change in temperatures and the fast current played against us. Regardless though, it was a lot of fun and a nice day on the banks of some beautiful water. I even spotted a deer who was nice enough to pose for a few pictures. Here are some pics.

Getting the Right Bankruptcy Help

My husband and I recently contemplated filing bankruptcy. There are a lot of costs to declaring chapter 7 or 13. We were looking into chapter 13 since we had too much property value to declare chapter 7 without losing our home. Along with the possibility of losing valuable assets, there is a cost to filing for bankruptcy when it comes to your reputation. Since your credit rating is an indictor to businesses of what your personal attitudes and ability to repay loans is, a ding in your rating from a bankruptcy of any type can be a painful one to overcome. However, there are a lot of ways that filing chapter 7 or 13 can actually help you. If you are contemplating filing, then it is pretty likely your credit rating is already in bad shape. Filing bankruptcy will clear that up and banks will be aware that those old debts are no longer an issue. When filing for bankrupcy we immediately sought out the advice of a lawyer. While filing is not cheap, it is far less expensive than paying debts you can't afford, or continuing to fight the bad credit too much debt causes. However, always be sure to find free consultation bankruptcy information. There are two reasons you should find a lawyer that will offer a free consultation. The first is that while bankruptcy will cost you money, that is one less bill you do not need. The second reason is that you should talk to as many representatives as necessary to feel comfortable with who you hire to handle your case, and make you feel like they understand your needs. That can get very expensive if you have to pay just to speak with each person while making that decision.

New Fishing Paradise just a few Minutes Away

We just found this place on a shore fishing expedition since the weather wasn't particularly condusive to boating this week. While this area won't suit our boat it will be great to kayak, and we had fun fishing it. Caught some lovely smallmouth bass.

Sometimes it is just amazing what you can find tucked away even in an industrial area.There's a place called Isle a la Cache here along the Des Plaines river. The area is surrounded by industry such as the Citgo oil refinery. You'd never think such an oasis (and it's not small, lots of hiking) would be nestled in there. It was along an old trading route where settlers and French traders would make deals with the local Potowatomi. There's even a little museam with artifacts and models of stuff.

Here are some pics

Challenges to an Old House

There are a lot of advantages to the home we moved into a few years ago. While it is small, it's the perfect size for just the two of us. It has a very small yard compared to what we had before, but it is so much more manageable, and it is fully fenced for the dog. That makes things really nice, and we are very happy. However, there are some big drawbacks to the fact that it is an older home. It is really only about 60 years old, which makes it on the older side of an average aged home that's for sale. However, the prior owner was very old and didn't do anything to keep up with some important repairs so we have had to spend a lot of money over the last two years to just make it liveable.

The biggest thing that we still have to do is remodel the bathroom. Along with being seriously outdated, it is also run-down and in need of repair. Since there are also repair issues it is so important to save money while at the same time getting quality fixtures. Looking for special items like bathroom sinks from qualitybath.com means we can get the great looks we want at a price that will leave us enough left over for the repair work needed without breaking the budget.

Once we get the bathroom done, we will actually finally be in a position where we can relax and just do normal upkeep. As much as I like tinkering, and to a point like doing rehabs and projects on the places I live, this was a lot more than I would have chosen to do normally. I am looking forward to being done with the major repairs so that I can have more fun doing the kinds of home projects I like to do.

Starved Rock to Spring Valley Boating

Had an amazing time last Saturday. The weathr was beautiful. Mid 80s temps, bright sun, and no wind. Perfect for baoting so we hauled the bass boat down to Starved Rock and launched at the state park just past the dam. Then we headed out and fished and cruised for 20 miles down to Spring Valley before turning around and running back to the LaSalle area and beaching on an AMAZING beach. We had the small grill along and cooked out brats and just had a really wonderful time sitting on the beach just inside the treeline for some shade, and playing in the water. I made a video of the trip in general: