The Route 66 Chick

The cast of Aprons Away:  Women's Work on the Mother Road salutes the audience and crew at the end of a performance at the Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center in Pontiac, Illinois, during the June 22-23, 2019, weekend. Photo by Mitchell T. Fransen, courtesy of the City of Pontiac. Aprons Away: Women's Work on the Mother Road , my stage play had its world premiere in a one-act version October 28, 2018, at Blackburn College in Carlinville, as part of the fourth annual Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference. But the new two-act, theatre-length version with original music and lyrics debuted in Pontiac, Illinois, on June 22-23, enjoying a successful two-day run at the Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center! The performances were sponsored by Pontiac Tourism and the Route 66 Association of Illinois. The Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center in Pontiac, Illinois. Photo by Cheryl Eichar Jett. With the tag line “The most famous highway in the world....

Now don't get me wrong, I do love a road trip. In fact, I love multiple road trips. But when I've got tons of work waiting for me at home, and somehow three trips end up scheduled in less than a two-week period, even I get tired out. The first trip (April 21-22) was a two-day retreat for all the Illinois Scenic Byways (we have seven!) directors, board members, and associated stakeholders, including, of course, the Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway. The event was held at the scenic Pere Marquette Lodge on the Great River Road up north of Grafton, Illinois. Not a far drive for me at all, but I wanted to try out the lodging there (it was excellent) plus we had a scheduled soiree at the Grafton Winery (never to be missed!), and so I just stayed there overnight. The retreat sessions provided us with updates on Illinois tourism funding - or lack thereof - partnerships, byway programs, and a great chance to network with other Illinois tourism folks. Next up was a three-day trip (Apri...

Pontiac is a delightful Route 66 town, and I spent the day there last Saturday (June 21) with my co-author, Joe Sonderman. Joyce Harbin Cole hosted us for two book signing sessions at Old City Hall Shoppes. The rooms of Joyce's shop, located in the old City Hall (oddly enough!), are artistically filled with antiques and Route 66 souvenirs and books.  Joyce Harbin Cole's Old City Hall Shoppes. Joyce's photo of a couple authors that showed up that day. We had a two-hour break between morning and afternoon signing sessions and made good use of it. Lunch at Lydia's Cup was excellent. This lavender-painted cafe is clearly the place where locals and travelers gather to eat and get coffee - it was packed. Service was very good and so was the food - a breakfast plate and a horseshoe.  For any of you not familiar with Illinois cuisine, the horseshoe is a large plate of french fries, bread or Texas toast topped with a hamburger patty or other meat, and the entire...

Joe and I are excited to announce our book release events for "Route 66 in Illinois" for the month of June! We're happy to share the new book with all of you and hope to see many of you at any or all of the following events! (This list is just for June! We're working on booking the rest of the summer as we speak. Confirmed so far later in the summer are the Route 66 Cruise In in Carlinville in July and the Route 66 Festival in Kingman, AZ in August!) Here's the list for June: Sunday, June 8th - Edwardsville! We will do a program with slides, and sign books afterwards, at the Madison County Historical Society Archival Library at 715 N. Main Street. This is the first day and place you can buy the book, and purchases at this event will benefit the Madison County Historical Society. Program begins at 2:00 pm. There is some parking BEHIND the library accessed from Second Street and also street parking - please get there a little early to find parking! Monday,...