Flood Day 2014

In times of crisis, the connection&bond with a place can strengthen.

This past Monday, Metro Detroit found itself under water.

4 hours of rainfall flooded freeways&home.

I watched people standing at the edge of flooded areas helping people out of their submerged cars and directing traffic. My neighbors were out giving each other fans and shop-vacs and assisting in emptying flooded basements. Though the circumstances were dire - the reactions were beautiful.

I lucked out with only about 4" of standing water that drained quickly once the rain stopped. Other's got it much worse. Some cars were still under water on Wednesday afternoon and many portions of the highways were still blocked off.

It's felt like a bit of post-apocalyptic world this week - driving around on flooded&empty streets lined with home-goods-turned-garbage due to flooding.

Despite the disaster, Mr.U&I simply enjoyed a Tuesday off to catch up on sleep&cleaning and, obviously, snuggling&playing with Fiona. We couldn't find a route to get both of us to our offices anyway.

Closures due to flooding

Corktown Home & Garden Tour

I saw the sign for the Corktown Home & Garden Tour hanging in Starbucks weeks ago, but I thought Joe&I would be gone for the weekend. When plans changed and we stuck around, I was excited to be able to attend the tour. The weather was absolutely beautiful for the 5 mile walking tour. The houses, I'll admit, were not what I expected. I thought they would be more historical&restored, but they were most modernly renovated, which was disappointing, but still enjoyable. We got to see inside the first warehouse that had been renovated into condos in Detroit - restored in the 1990's - and a pretty, old church. And on the field where old Tiger Stadium used to stand, a historical baseball game was going on, which was cute&cool. Once we'd finished our walk, we opted for lunch at Slows BBQ. Excellent as always.

mounted horseman who patrolled the event

corktown view from the middle of michigan ave

beautiful ivy covered building

love peace happiness fence

random old bus

St. Peters episcopal church

rusty old fire hydrant

row of buildings in corktown

Cool faded sign

cute little alley

corktown neighborhood sign

historical baseball players

woman in period costume at the game

Zoo Date

After brunch, Elise&Erica joined me at the Detroit Zoo.

Bunnyville was going on for Easter Weekend,

so we made a food donation and joined the herd of children at the zoo.

Luckily, most of the little ones were entertained by the Bunny-themed festivities,

so we were able to enjoy the animals with a bit more peace.

First we walked through the butterfly & bird gardens in a beautiful domed building.

There must have been something in the air, cause all the animals were sleeping

and - oh my goodness - it was so adorable.

The grizzly bear was passed out on his back with his paw over his face.

The lions were spooning and the tiger had found a nice spot in the shade.

The animals that were up&about were so wonderful, too.

I forget how much they take my breath away until I find myself at a zoo again.

The zebra hung back away from the fence, but the stripes were still incredible.

The giraffe awkwardly tucked his back legs and plopped down on the ground for grass.

And the big-bodied rhinos wandered side-by-side through their area.

My knees were hurting me, so I didn't walk through the kangaroo exhibit,

but from the back side of the fence I could see the girls walking past the sleepy lil animals.

Before leaving, we got snacks - a pretzel for Elise, dip-n-dots for Erica, & cheese popcorn for me.

Then we started our journey back through Royal Oak to the car

stopping first for the skirt, shoes, & ring I'd bought and the clock Erica had found.

Wild Things

Empty storefront in Royal oak

Season tickets

pen that only gets my hopes up

beer for buddy bachelor party

Blarney Stones

These were the most wonderful things I've ever eaten from Detroit Beer Company.

Corned Beef, Swiss Cheese, Sauerkraut Dusted with Rye&Caraway Bread Crumbs

Deep Fried with Thousand Island Dipping Sauce

Eastern Market

I've driven through Eastern Market, but I've never truly experienced it. After brunch in downtown Detroit, though, Syd&I decided to head out to Eastern Market to pick up some flowers and look for goodies.

It was mostly a good time.

We looked at rows&rows of plants and table after table of fruits&veggies. We went into a cute, little antique shop where I found a cool, old saw to decorate with and admired the fun&unique architecture of the market buildings.

I saw "mostly a good time" because the strangest thing happened when we were walking in. We parked a few blocks away and as we were strolling past a storefront who's door I was admiring this woman came running down the middle of the street with a flat of flowers in her hands yelling, "Get him!" "Call the police!" "That son of a bitch!" ...that's when we noticed that the man who'd been standing by the car outside the storefront we'd been gazing at was actually stealing from her car! By the time we realized, the man had disappeared and the woman claimed he hadn't gotten anything. I'm not trying to be rude, but just because you're at a pleasant farmer's market on a sunny Saturday afternoon doesn't mean you've fallen into a thief-free society and should leave your doors unlocked... Sad, but true.

Hudson Cafe

Syd&I went to the Hudson Cafe on Saturday afternoon for brunch. I'd never been there, but it's right downtown Detroit in a relatively freshened-up neighborhood near some of downtown's biggest businesses offices. I drove around block and opted to park in the MGM Parking Structure (like usual) and walk through town. The weather was beautiful and the people were friendly. I'll give it to the men of this city... they may spend their days sitting around by the mass transit station, but they know how to compliment a lady passing by. I was feelin' pretty confident&comfortable, which is something I love to be able to say in this city of mine. Syd had met the chef for the Hudson once before, so once we were seated, she requested he head out to out table when he got a chance. Shortly after, he came out and greeted us - inquiring what we'd ordered. Obviously, he felt we needed to try the Red Velvet pancakes, cause he had them sent out to our table with the rest of our meal. They were absolutely amazing. For out original meals I'd gotten the Juevos Rancheros and Nutella Crepes w/ Banana&Strawberry. Everything was amazing. The décor was great, the service was excellent, and the food was superb.

I will definitely be going back.

Afternoon Walk

I love walking through the city on a sunny afternoon.

 The People Mover

 Different SkyLine View

 Rosa Parks Transit Center

 Sidewalk Under Construction

 Washington & Grand River

 Tights Squeeze Between Buildings

Fuck Hipsters?

Mom&Dad Weekend

My parents came over to My Side of the Mitten this past weekend. It made me so happy to see them and show them around where Mr.U&I live.
We started out by putting our names in at Slows BBQ. We’d parked across the street in a security-guarded lot with proceeds benefitting the surrounding neighborhood, which warmed my heart a little then walked around Corktown while waiting to be seated in the restaurant. It was a first visit for all of us, so we had fun with the experience. And it did not disappoint.
After lunch, we drove to MGM Grand Casino to park then walked to Comerica Park for a Tiger’s game. The sun came out as we got to our seats, so we baked in our front row balcony seats while watching the game. A couple times my mom&I walked around on the shaded terraces and gazed out at the city skyline to avoid the beating rays. It was a nail-biter at the end there – Valverde hopped back on the Closing-Struggle-Bus, of course – but we ended up winning. We headed back to the car then drove back to our house – driving by the house we’re attempting to buy first, so dad could see it for himself. Then, after a quick hello to Mr.U’s mom, they left for the journey back to their side of the state.

It was a great great day to spend with them and only made me miss them even more. It’s hard to be so close, yet so far at the same time. Hopefully we showed them a good enough time that they’ll want to come back eventually.

DIA Day

Mr.U&I had a half day for Good Friday

so we headed downtown to enjoy an afternoon

at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

I'd never been there

and was very excited for the experience.

There was a lot of awesome stuff to see,

my favorites being the middle eastern area

with all the beautiful tile work and colorful art.

It started getting busy as the afternoon wore on,

so we didn't get to see everything we wanted.

We'll just have to make a trip back.

There are a lot of great places

that I really want to discover downtown.

I also really loved this courtyard area.

So beautiful.

Final Absolution

I tried this locally brewed beer

on Friday before St. Patrick's Day.

Final Absolution by Dragonmead's Microbrewery

It's so strong.

Oy.

I was pretty toasted after 3.

Tasted great, though.

Last Game

The last Lion’s game of the season was a memorable one – not because we lost (no surprise there) but because my brother and his buddies came in from Chicago. He’d gotten me a new jersey for Christmas and I was pumped to wear it – though I had to take it off when we were losing in the 4th quarter… can’t jinx a new jersey by wearing it through a losing game.

Mr.U&I met them at Loco's prior to the game then headed back to the Greektown Hotel so the guys could change into their silly game-day outfits. Once we got in line at the stadium, Bears fans from every direction were yelling “Da Bears!” at our group – a point in the day that was certainly not Mr.U’s favorite. And in our seats, which were conveniently in the same section, we passed around smiles&beers throughout the game. After the loss, we headed to Detroit Pub for food&drinks. Of course – I had too many, got emotional, and needed to head home early. Before that mishap, though, it had been a pretty good day.

I guess the biggest thing about that day was my realization the next morning that I need to control my drinking better… getting drunk and crying is annoying – especially when the things I’m crying about happened over 3 years ago. New Year’s resolution to Never Do That Again.

TicketText

So there’s a lot of debate going on about building a new arena downtown Detroit for the Pistons and the Wings to play in. The Pistons currently play in Auburn Hills, which is a pretty far drive out of the city – making going to their games pretty unappealing for me (and more-than-likely most people living anywhere downtown&downriver). So the idea of moving them downtown is very exciting to me. I’d love love love to be able to see Pistons games more easily&often. They were discussing this concept on 97.1 the Ticket this evening on our commute home from work and I don’t think any callers have fired me up more than today. Two men in particular – Gabe&Greg – made me especially angry, claiming downtown hasn’t done anything to “deserve” a new arena and that the suburbs have “done too much” for downtown already – obviously, actually driving down there (in the multiple cars Greg insisted on pointing out owning) to support the local economy is above them. They both called in and bashed downtown, discussing how much they didn’t want to encounter the “un-cut lawns” and “abandoned buildings” blocks away from the proposed new arena. I personally feel these men don’t know anything about downtown, though. Anyone who knows the proposed location knows there aren’t even houses in that “neighborhood” so lawns are out of the question. And that area (where all the athletics would be located) is at most 2 blocks from the highway, so passing anything unpleasant is unnecessary. I’m sure people are scared of downtown … and I can completely understand why … but trying to ignore downtown and abandon the concept of fixing it up or adding to it is completely pointless&ignorant. I couldn’t help but send in a Ticket Text to voice my opinion about these arrogant men and their obnoxious opinions.
“Gabe & Greg are pompous assholes. The longer we neglect downtown, the more likely those un-kept-lawn-residents will creep into their perfectly-manicured-suburban-neighborhoods. I’m a petite, 24-year-old Lions Season Ticket holding female and I LOVE going downtown.”
I don’t know if it was read on-air or not, since I got home and stopped listening, but sending the message made me feel better anyway. I have hope for this city … long-term hope, obviously, since it’ll take time to bring this city back … but I support downtown and long to see it flourish someday.

Thursday's Loss

The Detroit Lions have a magical ability for finding new ways to lose.

After a horrible call by the refs and an unnecessary review flag from Coach Schwartz, the energy in the stadium went from buzzing&excited to angry&frustrated with “Boooos” booming from every direction and rumbling inside my body. Every single time – from that moment on – that a ref was shown on the big screen, the boooos boomed again and the Lions never quite recovered, though they've started off with such energy, and even with the extra over-time to pull out a win. I felt like the emotional highs&lows of the game seriously beat me down. My brain felt like mush and my heart seemed to ache as we walked back to our car to drive home. Mr.U attempted to “say one thing then move on” from the loss, but we couldn’t help going through every horrible play and missed opportunity that led to the last-minute downfall and loss of our Lions. It was so incredibly frustrating and I needed a rest before dinner.

Someday… Lions, please win for us. These season ticket holders will love you through anything, but another winning season – with a playoff appearance – would be absolutely wonderful.

The halftime show was pretty funny, though - at least the people who were so excited to see it. I'd never heard the Detroit song Kid Rock played, but the effects were pretty cool. This big circle thing dropped down from the ceiling displaying images the whole time and the field was filled with female, youth dancers who had a pretty sweet routine. All-in-all, it was a great game with a good halftime show and an anything-but-good ending.

Detroit Traffic

Traffic on our work route is often ridiculous.

I know there are bad drivers all over the place, but this city seems to collect the absolutely worst and allow them access to every road they shouldn’t be allowed on.

This was the view we came upon after sitting in a 30 minute traffic jam.

No joke.

People shamelessly pull off the road anywhere they feel like, pull out through multiple lanes of traffic, and pull into oncoming traffic to shortcut to their destinations. It’s absurd, annoying, and – sadly – starting not to surprise my anymore when I see crazy scenes like this one.

Oy.