it's 6:30 and still light out!

pardon my excitement over the vernal equinox. it's not especially impressive here in the big bad ci-TAY, but the birds and the dirt and the gangsters in low-slung jeans are all out daily now to welcome the sun as she rolls on in. even the snow we had last Thursday melted in the morning without a peep. (peep is such a springlike word! real and marshmallow baby birds rejoice!)
so. today we strolled along the path at Northerly Island on our way to the Shedd aquarium for a real day away from cat puke and stacks of dirty dishes. We spotted two KILLDEER (a sure sign of approaching warmth) and later I saw what I think was a SAVANNAH SPARROW en route to Canada and points north. And this was at noon! Being there at sunrise must be so awesome right about now.
The only crappy part of the day came when the snippy aquarium worker came over to kick us off of the fake rocks we had perched our tired buttocks on to watch the dolphin show. Hating dolphin shows as much as I do snippy aquarium workers, I was only too happy to oblige, but S. limped sadly away, turning to look one last time as the dolphins began their show. He really wanted to see it, but the seats were 100% taken. We even tried to sit in the wheelchair-only section but then a person in an actual wheelchair showed up and we were shamed off the risers. Boo to the aquarium for their limited seating and crappy attitude-having workers!