#normal il

[saturdaynightlivedork]

Listen, my children, and you’ll be in seventh heaven…

When I show you McLean Stevenson’s birth announcement from 1927.

[route22ny]

Diamond Tourist Camp on Route 66 near Bloomington, Illinois, as seen in a picture postcard from the 1930s.

(source)

[kenneturner]

B/W Photo - Normal, IL 1974

B/W Photo – Normal, IL 1974

Image by kenne Over the many years of interest in photography, I rarely shot black & white photos. However, this is one I recently rediscovered (thanks to Mary Ann). The date was around 1974. The location is the front yard of our home in Normal, Illinois. The camera is (I still have it.) a Canon FTb QL. I have no idea about the setting, but it is reasonable to say a very slow shutter speed with a…

View On WordPress

[playnormalesports-blog]

Join us at Play Normal eSports on January 26th at 5 pm for PlayNormal eSports' first Counter-Strike Competition. 

Fees: 

$10 Venue free + $5 Entry fee for each team member Prize

 1st wins 75% prize pool. 2nd earn 25%

Set up and check-in starts at 5 pm at the location. The first match will start at 6 pm. Single elimination bracket. Seeds will be based on the average rank of the team 

 CLICK HERE FOR RULES

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER  

 Each Player must have a CS: GO account and a full team to participate

[saltyfukin-trash-baby]

Sign the Petition

Town of Normal City Council: Save the Mural, Save our Money

My Town is trying to tear down some of the last historic buildings still standing in Normal in order to make room for a new 5 story, $30 million building for offices and residential apartments. Help us keep them!

[ignore-me-more]

Went for a bike ride a few days ago and I loved the fog. 

[bayleeasteelman]

Grassroots Activism in Illinois and My Lens

I took the above photos at seven different rallies and protests in Kankakee, Ill., Bloomington and Normal, Ill., and Springfield, Ill. from 2016-2018 as both a member of the media and an American citizen. Folks attended each rally for a different reason, motivated by different social issues.

The pink glove on the fence and the “It’s a man’s world..” photos were taken at the Women’s March in Springfield on the anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration. There were rallies across the nation this day, with 600,000 people turning out for Chicago’s march in Grant Park. The purpose of the Women’s March, especially in Illinois’ state capital, was to push for registered voters to vote women into office for the upcoming election. Speakers included poets, singers, Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, State Sen. Andy Manar and a young girl that identifies as a Dreamer through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA).

I attended this rally as an Illinois resident, not on behalf of a media outlet. During this rally I particularly paid attention to the intersectionality and representation of ALL women. Black, white, Latinx, Arab, disabled, LGBTQIA+, undocumented, Asian, refugees… A Women’s March shouldn’t focus on just the white agenda, which usually compromises of equal pay and abortion. There are so many conversations we should be having on behalf of all women. My expectations rang true, and the rally was amazing. I felt empowered with my friends, and I was satisfied with the turnout of a smaller rally. Representation was missing during the Women’s March after the president’s inauguration, and I think a conscious effort to fix that was achieved.

The third photo of a young boy holding a multicolored sign was taken after a rally hosted by the Not In Our Town chapter in Bloomington-Normal, which works to ward off hatred and racism and create a welcoming environment for people of color in the twin cities. The sign the boy is holding reads in English, Spanish and Farsi. It says: “No matter where you’re from, we’re glad you’re our neighbor.” This sign was created and distributed following the president’s travel ban he imposed toward the beginning of his presidency that restricted travel from several majority-Muslim countries. Several members of the Bloomington City Council, Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan University professors, and other prominent activists spoke to a packed audience at the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts to declare Bloomington a safe, welcoming city for families of all backgrounds regardless of action on the federal level.

I also attended this rally as a regular human being, not a journalist. I was with two of my good friends, and we decided to go very last minute. It felt like an obligation. There was no question that I was going to this rally. I was baffled at President Trump, and feeling the utmost empathy for my friends with family members in the Middle East. While we cannot change the world and peoples’ views, we can create a safe space to gather in our local concert hall to express our gratitude for our neighbors, and dissatisfaction with our White House. As a member of the media, I didn’t care that people saw me there that recognized me. I am a human being before I am a journalist. I am able to have an unbiased conversation in my work even though I have sometimes radical views. Sorry not sorry!

[pretentioussavage]

Roomie In Central, IL

Hey, my name is Alexandria and I’m looking for someone to take the second bedroom in the trailer I’m going to be renting in a few months. I’ve never looked for a roommate before and I thought I’d post around here first.