Last Thursday, I received one of those urgent phone calls from Mr. Gothard’s office! With only one hour of sunlight left in the day, I was commissioned to photograph a hotel close by that IBLP is in the process of purchasing: the Drake Hotel of Oak Brook.

My instructions were specific: get the front of the hotel in full sunlight, with the gold inscription glinting in it’s auriferous rays. Every insuring day was cloudy, so today was our last chance. The task sounded adventurous. It was freezing outside, so I donned my winter clothes and drove off into the fading light.

Well, the sun makes all the difference in any outdoor photographic adventure. I quickly found out upon my arrival that the front of the building faces east, so what we had imagined was only a figment of our imagination.

But I’ve learned to never let a trip be in vain. I took pictures from all angles of the building in preparation for another trip sometime in the future . . . in the morning.