I had the pleasure of interviewing John Beatty yesterday, a strongman and nurse from Pesotum who's competing on "America's Got Talent."

Between 2008 and when I started in the features department last September, I did some work in The News-Gazette's marketing department.

I love social media.

At my house, the bags my newspapers arrive in tend to pile up.

I reuse them to clean up after dogs I'm dogsitting and during painting projects. They're the perfect size and shape to hold a paintbrush between coats. I put the bag and brush into the fridge so the paint doesn't dry out.

Rob and I recently tried a recipe for beer-can chicken from "The Big Book of BBQ."

It turned out so well that I thought I'd share the recipe with you. We made two birds instead of the three this recipe calls for and they turned out well.

 If you enjoy good food that's produced locally, you might be interested in a local-food dinner happening Saturday evening in Champaign-Urbana, and perhaps get involved in similar events in the future. 

 I'm all for local food. I love the idea of eating items that haven't been shipped across the country, and have superior nutrition to what you find on supermarket shelves. And obviously, I'm into do-it-yourself projects.

Today is the summer solstice and the first day of summer.

Even though it's felt summery for a while now, I like to celebrate summer solstice. It's the longest day of the year, and after today, the days just get shorter. Plus, it's the perfect time to make cookout food.

Despite the rain, Rob and I hung my wine-bottle tiki torches last night.

(If you're interested, instructions are here.)

This project was really easy - drink the wine, buy the supplies, use a drill to put up the torches.