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Aurelio's Dough Process Via TikTok - Pizza Making - April 2026

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Yesterday, I posted about salt in pizza dough and talked about how I am always collecting tips and tricks and ideas when it comes to pizza making.  So, whenever I get a peek behind-the-curtain of a pizza place, I usually sit up in my chair and try to learn something.  But, when that place is the home of my childhood pizza (and...the source of my own Pizza Cognition Theory basis of pizza), then, I look over the video like I'm watching the Zapruder film.  Here, below, is a TikTok from Aurelio's that shows off their Homewood location .  There, you'll usually hear about the 'old ovens' as a source of the best pizzas.  But, it appears that in addition to older ovens, they also have some other, pretty great, old equipment.   @aureliospizza Simple ingredients perfected by 67 years of practice. #ItsTheDough ♬ original sound - Aurelio’s Pizza There' so much to see in this video. From the mixer (the mixer!) to the dough trough.  The liquids.  ...
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Sandhill Crane Spring 2026 Migration North - April 2026

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I took this photo below back on March 21st, the first day of Spring 2026 and it shows a flock of Sandhill Cranes flying over Downers Grove, Illinois (60515) in DuPage County.  We are fortunate that twice-a-year in both Spring and Fall, we can hear that familiar croak of these big birds flying in clusters overhead. Over the years, I've posted photos and videos documenting their migration pattern over Downers Grove, Illinois. Here is a video from late November 2025 showing them flying south .   Here is a video from March 2025 showing them flying back north for the warm weather .  Here is a video from March 2024 with these large birds over Downers Grove, Illinois in Spring .  And a photo from March 2020 showing them flying in a v-shape over Downers Grove, Illinois (60515).
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Location: Downers Grove, IL, USA
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The Band - YouTube Music Badge - April 2026

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Top point-zero-two-percent of listeners for The Band?  I'll take it.  This is one of the badges that YouTube Music gave me at the wrap of last year.  Either there aren't too many people listening to The Band or I'm over-indexing on their music.  I'm good with both options.
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Compost Kitchen Scraps In Winter Snow - March 2026

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Don't tell the Parrillos that you shouldn't compost citrus peels.  Our kitchen compost stands out against the remaining winter snow of the season.  With all the deciduous leaves in the storage bin, the weekly dose of coffee grounds are a welcome balancer that increase the greens (nitrogen) and hopefully get the mix a little bit closer to where it needs to be.   The vibrant colors from the top of the bins always contrast with the drab surroundings before Spring arrives in the far back of our garden.
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Burning Leaf Litter In-Place - March 2026

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Part of my DIY Spring clean-up is doing some small, controlled burns in place with the left-behind leaf litter in the beds.  I rake up some small piles that have defined edges (so the burn can't run everywhere) and use my little weed-burning torch to set the piles on fire.  They burn up the leaves, leave behind some ash and eventually exhaust themselves when they run out of material.   Here's one of the small piles I am burning under the Hornbeam trees in back:
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Location: Downers Grove, IL, USA
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Summer Beauty Allium Tips Emerge in Spring - Backyard - March 2026

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 More Spring is emerging in the backyard, in particular the Kitchen Curved bed.  The colony (or drift) of Summer Beauty Alliums that have been planted in our garden since the very first year are emerging from the leaf litter and showing green tips in their usual clusters.  Below are a few photos showing these early-season foliage stars in between the Thujas and a little cluster of boxwoods in the Kitchen Curved bed.  These are planted a bit further back from the Amsonia that is mid-bed.   The leaf litter is going to be cleaned-up in the next few weeks - between a combination of efforts (I hope):  some by me, some by professionals.  
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Location: Downers Grove, IL, USA
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Expanding Cut Flower Beds - Lazy Method - Sideyard Garden - March 2026

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One of my 2026 to-do items is to 'expand the beds in Fall'.  I say 'Fall' because of how I utilize what I call the "lazy method" of smothering out the turf with cardboard.  That means that in addition to materials like cardboard and municipal biosolids, I need time.  Time for the grass to die.  Time for the cardboard to breakdown.  And time for the biosolids to MELLOW OUT.   Last year, I missed the Fall window to do some bed extensions, so I started to do them this Spring.  The first one was a few weeks ago with the Island Bed taking on new edges .  I used cardboard, municipal biosolids and composted manure to create a blend that I'll plant up (and mulch) later this Spring.  In the sideyard, I want to do the same thing:  expand the beds along the foundation to be more proud of the house.  Last year, I planted out the Dahlias in late May/early June.  I like to have about six weeks of time between laying down these bed exten...
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