14th
The big trip this winter was a two week guided trip through inland Ecuador. Nancy’s parents gift to the two of us. It was incredible, memorable, and life-altering.
There is a pretty extensive, play-by-play, 35mm photographic account here. So, instead, find below some of my favorite cell pix from the trip presented without comment.


























Here’s a trip from this summer that I’m just getting to…
I went to Calgary for a wedding but when we arrived, we started our trip in nearby — and insanely beautiful — Banff, Alberta.

See what I mean? This is the view from the famous Banff Springs hotel which, sadly, I don’t have any pictures of. It’s a really beautiful old fashioned hotel.
Anyway, back to Banff. Here’s some pictures from a hike we went on:



It was an amazing hike. A few more pictures from my film camera made the cut in this Facebook album.
We went to Banff more than just for the scenery. There’s some family out there. Here’s the cutest of them all: 
And here’s the walk we took to get to that porch:

Stunning, really.
OK, so after Banff — which really could have been enough — we went to Calgary for a family friend’s wedding. The wedding itself was lovely and all, but it was after that we met up with Mikey:

He took us out for a night on the town. It included dancing at a gay bar on Drag Night, karaoke at a hipster local mainstay, pizza (of course), and a nightcap on an office building’s rooftop. I took a ton of cellpix, but I’ll leave you with just one brilliant triptych:



Only a few months back I got the chance to spend a week+ in my hometown, Chicago.

If you’re a Chicagoan, you know that LGA flights are out of the very charming Marine Terminal.

The main purpose of the trip was a family wedding (more on that next). So our first night included some family home videos, obviously. That’s cousin Vince on screen in his cowboy boots and a cape.


I was the driver for the pre-wedding photos. Here’s my cousin Joe and his beautiful Aussie wife, Mel.



Of course I had to include some obligatory Chicago architecture.
Here’s the new “Willis”…Aon…Jeanne Gang’s Aqua…Plus Frankie G and a Skidmore, Owings and Merrill sandwich with Mies Van Der Rohe bread.


It was beautiful that week, though hot. Spent most of the trip outside, but was thankful for a dip in a public pool.

Nancy walking the streets of The Windy City…


…and at the Art Institute.


Patterns.
(Mom’s building, Maria’s Packaged Goods in Bridgeview)




Locals.
(Bartender at VFW, Cousin Melissa, chubby kid at Billy Goat, Zach’s cute kid Frances)



