Warning: I'm using my blog to brag about my husband's photo in Time Out Chicago

As previously stated on this blog, my husband Dave Ford recently did one of his Truck Drawing projects Chicago to Philadelphia and back! Click here to see photos.

During the two-week project, I dedicated lots of energy and focus to publicizing the heck out of the project and trying to get local media to cover it. Because the Truck Drawing would be featured at the 8th Annual Guerrilla Truck Show and was sponsored by Packer Schopf Gallery and Penske Truck Rental, I figured it would be easy to get some good press.

19 million Tweets and 45,000 Facebook posts later, I wasn't feeling the love and didn't hear from Chicago Magazine, Time Out Chicago, The Tribune, WBEZ, etc. And here I thought Chicago was madly in love with us...

But we did end up getting some good publicity from local design blogs and lots of support on social media and Flickr after the main event, so I was satisfied.

Exactly one week after the event, my husband Dave was looking through Time Out Chicago and found the photo above and a nice write up on page 5! How exciting is that? The photo is by Andrew Nawrocki (one of the best photos of the project, ever) and the write up is by Jake Malooley. Click here to read it.

It's been an amazing year for everyone in our family but especially for my husband, who's worked on several really amazing projects with some great people. I know I shouldn't use this blog to brag about my spouse's art career but I wanted you to hear it from me, as I had a hunch you'd be excited for him!

To see more of my husband's work visit www.fordart.wordpress.com.

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Thank you for reading my blog "Evanston Newbie", a project that I am using to chronicle my new life in Evanston. Do you have favorite Evanston bakeries, bike shops, events that you can recommend? Send me an email at thelisadshow@gmail.com and I will post my review on this blog. -Lisa Degliantoni

Evanston Newbie Celebrates One Year Anniversary with a Truck Drawing!

As many of you know, this blog was created to track my family's move across the country (El Paso, TX, to Evanston, IL) and our first year in our new city, Evanston. The year is up as our official One Year Anniversary was June 10!

To say this move was a good one or has gone well is a massive understatement. So far the move has gone swimmingly - we love our children's new school, both my husband and I found work that is stimulating and pays well, the beach is two blocks from our house, Evanstonians rock as we've all made new friends...I'll stop there.

This past weekend we all celebrated the anniversary in our own special ways; My older son hosted his best friend from El Paso for a visit, my younger son had a play date at a new friend's house and made a backyard store, I had dinner at a new friend's house and my husband made a Truck Drawing from Chicago to Philadelphia.* (Gratuitous plug below.)

Thanks again for your readership and support of this blog. I'm still on the fence about what to do next as I'm really not a newbie anymore! I'll keep you posted and thank you for making our first anniversary such a happy one!

*Pictured above are the boys in the Penske Rental Truck before my husband hit the road. The Truck Drawing will be on display tonight at the 8th Annual Guerrilla Truck Show in Fulton Market in the Packer Schopf Gallery Truck. We'll all be wearing Penske tee shirts handing out flyers, so stop by and say "hello"! Visit www.fordart.wordpress.com to learn about the Truck Drawing project and my husband Dave Ford's work.

On marrying a visual artist, staying For Real and communal living in Chicago

That's my husband Dave Ford at Artprize 2010 standing in front of his "Truck Drawing El Paso, TX, to Grand Rapids, MI". His truck drawings were on display at the UICA and landed him in the top 75 Artists category for Artprize 2010. He looks so happy in this photo, which is the emotion he feels when making art, which is why he's an artist and why I totally support him 159% in that endeavor.

I am not necessarily a good wife, I am just the type of friend who only loves you if you are living honestly and to your true drum beat. The reason I surround myself with people who live honestly is I need the encouragement and social pressure to stay for real. And my husband Dave Ford is totally for real, which is one of the top 14 reasons I married him.

Part of our move to Evanston focused on getting Dave into a more competitive art market where he could meet more artists, see more art and show more art. And so far, that plan is working out. Today Dave will have his first art opening in Chicago at the Sothside Hub of Production (SHoP). SHoP is an artists collective run by this fantastic and warm woman Laura Shaeffer (Click here to read more about SHoP in a recent Time Out Chicago), who is working with John Preus (read John's review of Dave's Truck Drawings here) to make tonight's art happening a fantastic event.

And both Laura and John represent the type of people we've met here in Chicago since our move; helpful, warm, kind and friendly. Everyone here seems very excited and willing to play along and help you along and it's a wonderful way to live. Chicago feels much more communal than any other city I've lived in.

If you're up for a unique and interesting art opening, head down to the Southside tonight from 5-9 p.m. at 5638 S. Woodlawn and see Dave Ford's "Truck Drawings Santa Fe, NM, to Chicago, IL", it would be great to see you. If you can't make it, you can see more of Dave's work at http://fordart.wordpress.com/.