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Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Century-old Mundelein firetruck prepared for countywide tour; ‘It has personality'
Ezra Atunez's birthday party theme this year was firetrucks because he just loves them, his parents said. The 4-year-old was happy to ring the bell of an antique firetruck named Old Number One on display at the Mundelein Memorial Day parade. Many more will get to see it at the Fremont Public Library's summer kickoff party on Sunday, and at other locations throughout Lake County in the coming months. Today, the restored vehicle is admired at parades and special events. A century ago, it was the village of Mundelein's first firetruck — Number One. 'In 1925 this was state-of-the-art; the best firefighting equipment on the road,' said Bob Stadlman. As chairman of the Old Number One Preservation Committee since it was created in 2008, Stadlman has worked with the Mundelein Heritage Museum and other entities to put together the truck's history, complete with photos. Year-round, the committee makes sure its six-cylinder engine, red body, gold-embossed lettering, big tires and shiny silver bell are always ready to provide that wow factor. The 1925 Stoughton Fire Engine was a gift from Cardinal George William Mundelein to the village, in gratitude for renaming it after him in 1924. The cardinal founded St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in 1921. Records show the village had gone through other names before that, including Rockefeller, after the industrialist and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller. 'The wise cardinal knew that improved fire protection would better protect the huge investment the diocese was making at the seminary, as well as protecting the village of Mundelein; a win/win scenario for both parties,' Stadlman said. Until then, the department's only firefighting equipment had been a hose cart with several hundred feet of hose. That 1915 relic is on display at the village's museum. Stadlman said it had been mandated in the truck's purchase contract that it be inspected and its pumps tested. The Chicago Fire Department at Navy Pier did so in the summer of 1925, according to records. Number One served Mundelein for more than 20 years. But by 1945, it had become unreliable, and so it was sold the following year. Then sold again and again. Stadlman said the truck went to different places in Illinois, to Tennessee, and Virginia. Number One eventually ended up in a barn in North Carolina. It was then that retired Mundelein firefighter Jim Carew said, seemingly out of nowhere, he got a call. The caller said that if you want the truck to come get it, otherwise it's going to the scrapyard. Carew had been in the fire department for nearly 30 years. He was also a mechanic known for his love of firetrucks. To say the vehicle was in disrepair is an understatement, he said. It took two trucks to transport the boxes containing the parts that once made Number One whole. 'Everything was loose,' Carew said. 'It took hours to find and load everything, but it's the history of my department, and I wasn't going to let it go.' Carew's intention was to restore the firetruck. He put it together enough to see the shape of it, but due to a lack of time and the money needed for that scope of a project, the progress stopped. Number One sat in his garage untouched for 14 years, until the village came calling. Stadlman said the Village Board wanted something to show residents at the village's centennial celebration, and chose the firetruck, because after all, not too many places can say they still have their first. They purchased it from Carew for $11,000, and hired him to restore it to its original condition. 'The caveat was that in nine months I had to have it done,' he said. Carew and a team had to work fast, especially because pieces and parts had to be specially made as they were no longer manufactured, he said. Old Number One was presented to residents at the village of Mundelein's Centennial Celebration on Oct. 17, 2009, at the University of St. Mary's of the Lake. 'I was pretty proud of it at the unveiling,' Carew said. 'I could never have afforded to restore it like that, working out of my wallet.' Thanks to the preservation committee, which raised the $70,000 in donations that it took to restore it, not only does it look new, but Old Number One can operate in fighting a fire. 'No tax dollars were used for the restoration,' Stadlman said. 'To this day, this award-winning fire engine continues with just donations.' An annual golf outing is the committee's biggest fundraiser, Stadlman said. It pays for the truck's maintenance. The difference between typing on a computer keyboard and an original typewriter is how Darrell Hughes describes driving Old Number One compared to a modern fire engine. Hughes was a mechanic for the Mundelein Fire Department who retired in 2021. He joined the committee last year. He said he had to practice to be able to drive the old firetruck because it's challenging to maneuver. As in 1925, it doesn't have a windshield or seatbelts. It doesn't have power steering; it has mechanical-only rear brakes and weighs about 10,000 pounds. 'The firefighter that had to drive it out on calls in December or January back then was a tough one,' Stadlman said. There are no turn signals on Old Number One, so its driver has to use hand signals. Only while in motion can its large wheels be turned. To protect it, no one is allowed to get on the truck or touch it at events, but the bell can be rung and children love to, Stadlman said. Last year, it rang approximately 24,000 times, according to their bell counter. 'Back in the day, they rang the bell so horses and people and whatever cars there were would get out of the way,' Stadlman said. Co-founding committee member Wendy Frasier said she enjoys kids asking about Sparky, the stuffed dalmatian dog toy that sits atop the truck. She said it represents the real dalmatians that used to accompany firefighters to their calls. This year, Old Number One is scheduled to be at almost 40 Lake County events. Stadlman said usually it's half that, but this year is special, being that it's the truck's centennial. Committee members said they're excited to show it off. 'Everyone smiles and waves when they see it driving by,' Stadlman said. 'It has personality.' Old Number One's biggest outing is going to be at the village's Community Days event during the 4th of July weekend.
Daily Record
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Kings of Leon singer's 'freak accident' causes cancellation of UK tour
Caleb Followill suffered a painful injury and shared an emotional message online, announcing the cancellation of the Kings of Leon UK and European tour dates. Kings of Leon have announced the cancellation of all of their upcoming UK and European shows, as lead singer Caleb Followill posted a heartfelt message to the band's fans, revealing that he is injured and cannot perform. The band were set for several UK dates this summer. Frontman Caleb said: "Hello to everyone out there, especially our European fans that are preparing to come and see us this summer. Unfortunately, I regret to inform you that those shows will have to be cancelled due to a freak accident that happened the other day. "I broke my foot pretty bad when playing with my kids," he said. "It was pretty gnarly and I will spare all the details. We are fortunate enough to have some great doctors here in Nashville that gave me emergency surgery." The singer continued: "I am on the mend but they told me that I can't be on my feet or travelling for the next eight weeks or so. It is a big bummer man, we were so excited. We were preparing for a long time." Caleb added: "In the meantime we are going to do whatever work we can while I have these limitations. Exciting things are coming. I know this isn't what people want to hear and it isn't the message I want to be sending." He ended his message: "Wish us luck," before showing his foot in a large cast. The music legends were due to perform at Newcastle's Come Together Festival and Portsmouth's Victorious Festival. They were also set to play in Cardiff and Lytham Festival in Lancashire, reported the Mirror. Kings of Leon were also to play in Europe included dates in Paris, Madrid and Lisbon. Brothers Caleb, Jared and Nathan Followill along with cousin Marrow Followill make up the iconic rock band. They have been on the music scene since 2003, topping the charts in the UK six times with their albums and with their huge Number One hit single Sex on Fire in 2008. During their past stint in the UK, the band hinted at an unexpected feud with fellow American band The Killers. They have been around for a similar amount of time - landing on the music scene in 2004 with all seven of their albums to date reaching Number in the UK, but they have never topped the UK singles chart. Caleb and Jared appeared on The One Show and took an unexpected swipe at their fellow Americans. Asked if they ever play unreleased tracks to fans before the release date, Jared told hosts Alex Jones and Roman Kemp that he does sometimes test out new material on unsuspecting members of the public. He said: 'You can't let the cat out of the bag too much. So I'll sneak it on in, like, an Uber or at a party or something. You put the aux on and just play a new song. And it's a good way to get boots on the ground intel.' The musician then smirked: 'If they think it's good I'll tell them after 'Maybe that was us.' And if they don't like it, I'll tell them it's the new Killers song.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Irish Examiner
13-05-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Julie Jay: My preschooler is a walking, talking, information-gathering machine
There is so much I love about hanging out with my children — the hugs, the kisses, and the barrage of questions which serve as daily reminders that I know very little about this planet, despite living here most of my life. So philosophical are some of these queries, I often find myself verging on an existential crisis before I've ever had my Coco Pops. Given that the baby can't yet string a sentence together, we will cut him some slack, but Number One is basically a walking, talking, information-gathering machine. Forget foreign apps stealing my data: The top threat to my GDPR is sitting two feet away in my ramshackle kitchen. The four-year-old is curious and mad to acquire as much knowledge as possible, especially regarding the natural world. Unfortunately for him, his mother is not exactly a wealth of information about nature, given that I have the reputation of being perhaps the only citizen of the world who never made it through a David Attenborough documentary. The truth is, if I wanted to see males tear strips off one another, I'd just mosey along to Temple Bar on a Saturday night. When Number One asks questions, he is not messing about. His need to know the answer immediately is nothing short of urgent, so he usually can't wait until I'm finished on the loo or done declogging the shower drain (given Daddy's lack of hair, I'm happy to take this one for the team), before bombarding me with queries. I knew parenting came with sleepless nights, but I didn't realise it also came with having to explain why you can't marry your mammy or how we know for sure the world is round. The latter question has been coming with increasing frequency of late, so we are adding 'flat-earther' to Number One's list of interests as he heads in to junior infants. Last week, I woke up to Number One peering over me, asking the big question, 'Mammy, how do fish find their way home when the ocean is so big?' And I just… blinked. Because that is a fair question. And I don't know the answer. Do they go on instinct? Is there a Google Maps for fish? If so, does it also tell them to turn right just a beat too late, resulting in them having to do an emergency U-turn and explain to a concerned guard when stopped that they were just making an impromptu dash for chips? It is amazing how one question leads to a litany. Number One asks questions like it's his full-time job. And not soft ones. Oh, no. He is clearly borrowing from the book of Jeremy Paxman at his peak, and rather than beating around the bush, he just cuts straight to the chase. 'Mammy, why do you have hair on your toes?' Or, 'If I eat too many peas, will I turn green?' Once, he asked me, very solemnly, 'What would happen if Daddy turned in to a toilet?' It was a fair question, pointing to the inordinate amount of time his father spends on the throne. And Number One giggled when I said I would still love Daddy, but he'd probably look a little strange in the family photos. I've Googled more questions in the last year than in all of my time in college. 'Do whales sleep?' 'Are clouds heavier than cows?' Thanks to my inquisitive little guy, I have become the dream team-mate for pub quizzes, including a nature round, though still utterly useless for anything else, unless there is a section on reality television. I love how Number One's constant questioning has made me question the status quo and reconsider stories and narratives I once thought straightforward. AT the end of our re-reading of the Hungry Caterpillar the other night, Number One looked pensive as the baby played with the beautiful butterfly finger puppet at the end. For those of you unfamiliar with this modern classic, it revolves around a caterpillar who — spoiler alert — turns in to a butterfly. 'Mammy,' he ventured after a minute. 'What is so wrong with being a caterpillar?' He accompanied this wonderful question with a hand movement so adorable in its quiet dramatics that I almost burst with love for him. Because what is wrong with being a caterpillar? The answer is nothing, nothing at all, but it took a four-year-old to ask the question. I told him as much, and also how thoughtful and wonderful he was to think of such a beautiful question. Snuggling down, I kissed him goodnight, and he repeated, 'Caterpillars are beautiful, too, mammy,' which will undoubtedly be the origin story should the makers of Marvel films read this column and decide to make Colin the Caterpillar a new type of hero. I love my children's curiosity. I never want them to lose it, because the older I get, the more I understand that we need to ask more questions, not fewer. Except, of course, when it relates to Mammy's hairy toes. That's one where I feel the status quo just needs to be accepted, without challenge.
Scotsman
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
I tried the £99 dinner at this luxury five-star Scottish hotel and was utterly spoiled rotten
This hotel has still got it, Michelin star or not Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... £99 doesn't get you very far these days. Contributed You could probably book a haircut, along with a fraction of highlights. Well, at least the two streaks at the front, a la Geri Halliwell in the Spice Girls' hey-day. Perhaps the left foot on a new pair of the latest New Balance, or a direct flight to Riga. No return. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I know where I'd rather spend that amount of cash. Here, at Number One at The Balmoral. As well as their set seven-course £125pp dinner tasting menu, they're currently offering a seasonal three-course a la carte for £99pp, and you can add paired wines for an additional £50. It may not have a Michelin star anymore, but who cares? Not me. They still have four AA rosettes. At 28-years-old, which is about 246 in Edinburgh restaurant years, this basement level destination is still as fine-dining an establishment as ever, with head chef Mathew Sherry at the helm, though the food is marginally less fussy than it used to be. I'm a fan because a visit is always an old-school spoiling session. The interior is cossetingly swanky, and the staff are wonderful. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In an age when joggers are classed as office attire, a visit is an excuse to dress up. Since the website asks guests to refrain from wearing sportswear, shorts and beach shoes, I left my signature Crocs and neon leotard at home and aired a musty frock. It felt like it was my birthday, but better, since there were no actual numbers involved. There is also no sense of being hurried. The three courses are book-ended by lingering loveliness, starting with the amuse bouche. We had a pair of two Cullen-skink-themed croustades, which were haddocky and plush mouthfuls, plus two rich duck liver and pistachio bites on buttery cups of shortcrust. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Then we were presented with a guinea-pig-sized loaf of flour-dusted linseed sourdough, with a perfect glossy globe of butter on the side. For starters, I'd gone for the west coast langoustine, Denhead Farm asparagus, coral hollandaise (£15 supplement), and the plate was an Irish flag vision of green and orange hues. There was also a single spear of asparagus, all dressed up with tiny fronds of dill and flowers, like Millais's painting of Ophelia. The plate also featured three large nuggets of seafood, and two veloutes - a coral Hollandaise and a charred asparagus number He'd gone for another seaside gem - the hand-dived scallop, which was cut into four fishy and pearlescent doorstopper slices, with artichoke crisps, a roast chicken vin jaune and little leaves of sea beet. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Gaby Soutar Mr Double Fish followed that up with the Shetland halibut. It had also been sliced into two pale palm-sized pads, alongside a courgette and halibut veloute, a crispy whole artichoke, and a quenelle of red pepper marmalade. For my main course, I had the equally gorgeous Cullinan Farm lamb option. There were pieces of short saddle, and almost everything else on the plate - apart from the jus, the triangle of potato fondant, and shallot puree - was a fragrant celebration of wild garlic, with intense blobs, cooked leaves and a dark green jam. It was like walking up Castlehill in spring. I'd pre-ordered my Maracaibo 65% chocolate souffle, so there wasn't the usual lengthy sojourn before it arrived. Still, when it landed, I was ready and could've happily face-planted and inhaled the whole breezily light bubble-bath-esque celebration of cocoa in one nostril-tickling slurp. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Gaby Soutar He'd gone for the rhubarb number, with its riff on this vegetable - it's not a fruit, guys - and custardy cremeaux accoutrements, 'My dream dessert,' he said. And it wasn't over. We're usually the first to tap out, as I think our appetites are becoming bird-like. We often don't even make it to puddling. But I think we wanted to stretch the evening out, so I could enjoy being in this room, wearing my smart frock and feeling like a blow-dried chinchilla. Thus, we said aye to the cheese course. Three for £15, and, since he doesn't like blue or goats, we chose St Andrews Farmhouse Cheddar; ewe's milk cheese, Spenwood, and our favourite earthy and creamy Winslade. They came with poppy seed crackers, mini oatcakes, truffle honey and a facemask-esque cucumber jelly. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad We tanked the lot, though when they brought round the sweetie trolley - every restaurant should have one - our hulls were groaning like old cargo ships. Thankfully, they let us take away an After Eight macaron, some whisky tablet, and other bonnie bites. It's been a long time since I've felt this spoiled. Go, and a very happy birthday. The ones without any numbers are the best.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
2025 Country Music Hall of Fame inductees announced
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSAV) — The Country Music Hall of Fame announced its 2025 inductees Tuesday, and they include the late June Carter Cash and Kenny Chesney. The announcement came at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Musuem in Nashville, hosted by Hall of Fame member Vince Gill. June Carter Cash will be inducted in the Veterans Era artist category. The Cash family said, 'June's place in country music is undeniable.' They said her contributions to country music span decades, from singing with her mother Maybelle Carter and her sisters, as well as on her own and with her beloved husband Johnny Cash. Cash family members said they were grateful and proud that June will be in the Hall of Fame. Kenny Chesney is being inducted in the Modern Era artist category. The singer/songwriter has four Country Music Association and four Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year awards to his credit. He had his first Number One record in 1997 and has added 32 more to that since. North Carolina native Tony Brown will be inducted in the Non-Performer category. He's been a country music musician, producer and record label executive. Brown is also a six-time Grammy winner, a member of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. Chesney, Carter Cash and Brown will be officially inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in a formal ceremony later this year. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
