From here on out the blogging is totally optional. I don't know how I feel about this blogging thing. It's a very efficient way to get students writing a few times a week and it as well opens up a community of writing and communication. However, I feel blogging is pointless without an audience. Every so often my friends will read my blog, but I don't think this is significant enough to keep going. I will do a few more posts before the semester is over, just for the hell of it, but after class I think I will delete my blog. Thoughts? Opins'?

So the weather official suck. It's nearing the middle of April and there has been a constant precipitation. This is normal except for the snow. I was really looking forwards to getting outside with the ultimate Frisbee club. Even if it's a decent day outside the fields are still going to be soaked. Most likely it wont be till summer semester that we can go outside and have fun. It needs to hurry up because I am sick of playing indoors.

Easter was a blast. The weekend started off right with all my friends coming home for the weekend. Erica's parents were out of town and she was told to watch over the house. Friday and Saturday we all went over there and had a good time. I got to dye Easter eggs twice with my girlfriend, once at Erica's and the other at home on Sunday. I don't particularly enjoy this activity but it makes her happy. As well my Jewish friends took a turn at coloring the eggs. They had a blast. It's funny because I have always thought of this technique as second nature, probably because I have done them since i was little. They struggled, especially Josh, but he had a blast and everyone was happy. Family came over on Sunday and we had a good time. It was nice seeing my cousins, except Kelly, she goes to Ohio State. Just kidding, she was sick and we all felt bad for her because she was unable to enjoy in our feast. Ham and pasta seems to be the theme every year. This year we had stuffed shells which are a personal favorite. Over all a great day. No complaints

Looks like I will not get my abrasive draft peer reviewed. I came into class with it done and emailed to my account, but the printer was not working. This is concerning because this part of the writing process is normally very helpful to me. My paper needs a lot of work. I have good arguments, but they need structure and some elaboration. I was considering adding photos to my essay because it would help to explain a few key points. These points being conflict points in an intersection and the difference between classic and modern roundabouts. I will just get it reviewed outside of class, no worries...

Catholic School Closings

Over all i thought the author had a very good paper. Not only was the topic relevant to his local area, but he had a good amount of invested interest. I thought his thesis could have been a little stronger. "I believe that the Archdiocese of Detroit has not given enough thought to the overall negative impact these school closings are having on the students who are being displaced." The simple removal of (I believe that) would make his argument seem stronger; it creates an assertive claim instead of a personal opinion. Over all his paper is supported well and he pushes his audience to emphases with the students.

As far as sources are concerned I thought they were a little weak. The interviews were good, but the articles were out of news sources not professional publications. To his credit I can imagine it to be difficult to find extremely credible sources on such a local issue. The interviews of people who dealt with similar experiences gives a realistic look into the situation and added a lot to the paper. Overall it was a decent read and gave me some concepts I want to work with on my final paper.

My Sources

• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10576672&dopt=Citation
• http://www.dmv.org/mi-michigan/department-motor-vehicles.php
• http://www.roundaboutsusa.com/design.html
• http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=13623190
• http://ntlsearch.bts.gov/tris/record/ntl/7921.html

Thesis For Final Paper

Thesis

The addition of roundabouts in the Farminton-West Bloomfield area will cause more problems than solutions.

• The thesis seems rather focused.
• Not too informative and states an argument.
• Not too obvious, they are building them.

Outline

1. Intro (Thesis)
2. Against Roundabouts (Costs, Time, Confusion, Other issues)
3. For Roundabouts (Traffic Facts, etc.)
4. Conclusion (Sum it all up)

Sources -Need 8

• Traffic Reports (Roundabout & Lights).
• Studies on traffic control (Cost/Benefits).
• Reports on driving in unusual situations.

I bought a breathalyzer earlier in the week. It arrived yesterday and good thing. I purchased it because I am sick of my friends driving drunk. It happens at least once a week and no matter what you say to them they insist they are sober. I believe drunk driving is a plague on our society. Yesterday my friend was trying to leave after a night of heavy drinking. After arguing with him I brought out the breathalyzer for its first trial. It worked, seeing the flashing red number made him think twice about driving. I am glad I invested in one, even happier with the price I got on it. It was a $150 unit that I found for $81 and free shipping. It really pays to contact the manufacturer. The most importaint thing I have to watch for is that people don't use it for games. Nothing would piss me off more than people sitting around and seeing who can get drunk and blow higher.

Good for Brandon. His blog got a little attention in the media. The Observer-Eccentric interviewed Brandon about his photo-essay. Not only was the article framed around, him but they used his photos in the paper. Check out his blog. http://roorings.blogspot.com/

I decided to do my photo essay on the roundabouts that are going to be installed soon in the Bloomfield-Farmington area. I did some research online and found the intersections that were being considered for the roundabout project. Surprisingly the Free Press was my most helpful source. I was unable to find all seven locations, MDOT only had four listed. A problem from the start was that none of the projects had been started. Because of this I was unable to capture any construction in progress. I decided to visit these locations and get pictures of the intersections and surrounding areas. Once I got going I realized the pictures I would be able to take would not show the viewer much. From the ground I was only able to capture the road, street signs and traffic lights. I balanced this by mixing in satellite photos from Google Earth. I edited these photos by marking the positions where the pictures were taken. I as well gave an approximation of the area captured in the photo. I thought this would help to put the seeming random picture into context. When I went to the intersection I tried to get photos from all corners of the intersections. However, some came out better than others and I did not use all of them. The one thing I learned was people are much more conscious of pedestrians in Ann Arbor than in Farmington. I almost got hit three times navigating the 14, Northwestern, and Orchard Lake intersection. I was being conscious and waited for a walk sign, the drivers seemed to simply be oblivious. This is why I don’t think roundabout will work. Most drivers are unaware of how to navigate in unusual situations. These roundabouts will cause a large amount of problems for new and inexperienced drivers. Tuesday my friend David reminded me he had a roundabout in his neighborhood. I went and checked it out. It was indeed a roundabout, just on a very small scale. This concerned me because Dave said all the neighbors have problems with drivers going the wrong way or simply blowing through the stop signs. The photo essay did not come out as flashy as I would have liked, however, it does provides a good foundation for the argumentative paper which I will do on the same topic.

When most of us think of roundabout this is the images that comes to mind. This is the Arch de Triumph, probably the most famous roundabout in the world. Until now runabouts have been a foreign presence to most of us. There are a few scattered around the state, but now they are coming to the Bloomfield and Farmington area. Roundabout are used to control intersection traffic by collecting traffic into a constant flowing circle. Statistically there are less accidents in a roundabout and it cuts down on wasted fuel by keeping traffic moving.

In this area there is a plan to install up to seven roundabouts. As of now two have been approved for construction. One will be installed at 14 Mile and Drake and another at 14, Northwestern, and Orchard Lake.

14 Mile and Drake Road.

This satellite photo gives a better perspective of the intersection.
The red buildings have significance in the roundabout project. When developed the city shafted the property owner and would not give him a permit to sell them as commercial properties.
The owner got the city back by building useless properties. When the city had to buy the land for the roundabout project the prices got driven up significantly.

14 Mile, Orchard Lake, Northwestern Highway
This is the only roundabout that I think will actually be useful. Here three main roads intersect and it is rather confusing. There are are five traffic lights here that will be removed and replaced with yield signs.


The next three pictures were taken from the central island. This chunk of land is perfect for a roundabout because it is un-devolopable for business and is currently owned by the city.


On the north-west corner there is a small wetland preserve. This reserve will be destroyed in the building process. It's not a very large area, only around 200' by 100'. Still it provides nice scenery and home to natural life.

12 Mile and Orchard Lake RoadThis is one of the most dangerous intersections in the state. There are a lot of accidents here and MDOT hopes a roundabout will cut down on incidents.
There are businesses on every corner. The building process will obstruct and slow business until the completion of the project.

15 Mile and Drake Road

I don't think a roundabout would be useful here. The traffic flow is not that intense and a traffic light seems to work fine. The building process will probably cause more harm and frustration than good.
Since these satellite photos were taken there has been significant development in the surrounding areas.

The final picture is a roundabout that is located in my friends neighborhood. This is particularly concerning because of the neglect for the roundabout-rules. Its marked one way around with three stop signs. People do not follow these rules and go both ways around the island. Even worse I am told people rarely even yield to the stop signs.

I decided to do my photo paper on the roundabouts going into our area in the next few years. I thought I would start with the cross streets where the roundabouts are going to be built. I went out and took pictures over the weekend. They came out horrible. I was standing next to the intersections and tryed to take pictures that captured the entire intersection. Most my pictures just look like cars driving on the road. To fix this problem I am going to work in images from GoogleEarth. Still it's going to be difficult to capture good pictures on my own. I could perhaps try to get on top of a building or find some way of getting a better perspective of the road. Any ideas would be helpful...

Today is going to be fun... It's 12:40 p.m. on Thursday and all my friends are drunk. Some how my group of friends came to the realization that St. Patty's day is about going through your daily routine drunk. While this may be the case with many college students I feel its a stretch. Since the holiday falls on a Saturday and everyone would be krunk* anyways, Erick decided to designate Thursday as observed St. Patty's Day. They picked up a keg of green beer this morning and started drinking at 9am. My girlfriend started at 10 after her exam. I could be opposed because I don't get to participate. Being I attend a commuter campus the drinking during school doesn't accommodate well. Either way we all know what St. Patty's Day is about... Honoring this man...

Today the topic of discussion is graffiti. Personal I have mixed feelings on the issue. I think it's utter destruction of property, but at the same time it's very intriguing. There are many reasons why people will tag something. Often it only serves the purpose of impressing friends, you can see this in pointless messages and sloppy tags. Often there are professional street artists. These people are getting a message across or trying to have their art reach the public. This can simply be seen in artistic ability and strong outlining. I searched FLICKR, one of those photo websites, in attempts to find some relevant street-art. There were three photos that immediately stirred interest. The first is of a wall on a playground. This was probably a mural because of its grandness and appropriateness. I thought the color scheme was fun and if anything there is an uplifting message. The second was a very creative poster. I'm not even going to explain it, look for yourself. The final image I selected was confusing. I understand it, just not the artists motivation behind it. As far as tagging people and items in a photo I think most peers of mine would understand it. Facebook has taught us so much...

I have no idea what I want to do this photo essay on. I asked my friend Zach and he thought I should document my St. Patties day. It fits the concept of in the local neighborhood, but I don't want it to be just pictures of my friends drinking. Perhaps if I kept it tasteful and tried to tell a story of the night. Better yet, i'll get a new idea... Just as soon as it hits me. It's still a possibility to cover the issue of new roundabouts in West Bloomfield. Being none have been built I would be limited in possible photography. It would be interesting to try and photo shop the area to predict how the roundabouts would work. I think it would be more beneficial to save that topic for the argumentative paper. Still looking for the idea.

So I quit smoking... Needless to say I have been rather moody. Its day 5*, I don't know exactly. All I know is I have been an asshole. I got really sick of my girlfriend telling me all the risks involved with smoking. If they cured cancer tomorrow I would light up in a second. I think that's how the future will be. As soon as cancer gets a simple cure people will start smoking like the French. If AIDS was cure I could guarantee there would be a huge rise in promiscuous sex. I have such good decision making skills.

Free Press

When searching local issues the economy is still the greatest factor. Personally, I really enjoy reading the prep. sports articles. I played for three teams in high school and it's nice to be able to follow them online. The Free press does a good job of telling the news pretty unbiased. However, it's not uncommon to find interjections of personal opinions or assumptions. This isn't a totally bad thing when dealing with the local news. Assumptions are usually in the form of predicting impacts or the population's stance on the issue. Example being the article on roundabouts being added in West Bloomfield. In the next few years there is going to be seven added within ten miles of my house. This scares me. I know how to drive a roundabout, it's really not that hard. It's the other drivers that worry me. Teenage Bloomfield drivers in mommy's Lexus, who struggle with normal driving conditions will not be able to comprehend the circular chaos. When they first get installed there will be a lot of accidents - which will take a very long time to clear, halting traffic. The Free Press really focuses on the topic's impact on the community. The articles are not simply telling a story, but why you should care as a citizen. This presents a human factor. The paper doesn't over use the human factor, which is good, but it does have a place in the paper. I think I am going about the roundabouts, simply because of the relevance to my community. In the next five years they will become so common place it will be impossible to navigate West Bloomfield without having to deal with one. The only reason this would be a problem is because the paper is going to be based on pictures. No construction has started yet so it would be rather difficult to find relivent pictures. If this idea doesn't work out I may want to explore somthing dealing with urban devolopement. Anything that would provide me the chance to go out and take some pictures.

Best Buy Adventure

I have absolutely nothing to write about, so I am going to tell my avid readers about my venture to Best Buy. Richard had to go to a meeting so I went in to return his PSP for him. He broke it last week; probably looking at Internet porn. Regardless he did not have a product replacement plan for it. So I decided I would try use mine and get Richie's replaced. Disappointing, it did not go as well as planed. The lady at the counter asked for my phone number and I gave her mine, not remembering my girlfriend bought me the PSP for my birthday. After looking through my dad's purchases and seeing over twenty PSP units she was confused not to find a single replacement plan. I then remembered, spoke up, and gave her my girlfriend's phone number. Success. All was going well until the lady, for some reason, decieded to check the PSP's serial number. Botched. When my PSP broke and I traded it in, it was no questions asked. Just took a look at it and gave me a new one. However, the trip was not a waste. I got some new paper work and a phone number to replace the PSP. We are going to try tomorrow at a different Best Buy. (Feeling Guilty)

Response to Free Press

News about the economy seems to comprise the largest chunk on freep.com. The top two stories being Comerica's relocation to Dallas and breaking news on DiamlerChrylser. It's good to finally catch a glimpse of good news coming from the motor companies. The Grant case is still in the news. It will probably still get face time for another two weeks to come. Overall I dislike the Free Press. I find online news is much better at BBC America. For international BBC is the way to go. No need to respond.

Tango Bravo Argentine Grill

I thought the restaurant review was rather good. The author did a good job of not over praising the establishment. In fact she was probably more negative than positive, surprising for giving a "good review". I feel like this gave the author more creditability and made her statements more realistic. Jane Slaughter (author) started out by introducing the restaurant and than gets to specific dishes. The atmosphere is described with vivid details, but the author did not sound overly impressed. The paragraphs were ended funny ways. For example talking about the atmosphere and then ending, oh and it was a subway. The last sentence of the article seems irrelevant and I question its necessity.

Draft Revision Ideas

I haven’t even touched on any vivid details in my paper. I need to add some personal stories - Give both Jones and myself creditability. This will go along well with the voice I will use. It will probably be best to use a reflective-admiring voice. This gives the readers a concept of Jones being larger than life. The paper needs specifics events. This could go along with the personal story, but should be tailored to the paragraphs claim. FUN STUFF.

Before reading this blog check the guy below it...

The story starts out with me "re-inventing" a cool new game. I'm sorry that is always has to be about drinking, but the game is shot-glass checkers. Instead of using shotglasses we used standard red plastic cups. The board was created on the floor under Zach's rug using ducttape. To add to the chaos two games of checkers were to be play simataniously. Conseptualise a checkers board, you only move on 1/2 the squares. Two games, cups only distinguishable by sharpy design: Excelent game of checkers. We matched up boys vs. girls. ANYWAYS. This is the picture I snapped of Z and Jeff.



A few days later Jeff is fooling around for his first time in photo shop and he created this... Cute... This is what Jeffery B. wants me to blog about...



Psychology of Clown Assault.
I see the greatest factor in assault to be aggression. That alone should be a simple fact to accept. Aggression is the violent-natured discharge from stress. Stress can be defined as the emotions and anatomical responses felt from the blocking of a goal oriented behavior. This can be conscious or subconscious. When aggressions get out of control people often take it out on a 'safe target'. If you get in a fight at work with your boss you very well cannot deck him -unsafe target. According to frustration aggression hypothesis we carry this aggression with us until we can release it on a safer target. Hopefully in the form of a punching bag. I don't want to start ranting about domestic violence, it's a plague on our society. Any specific clown targeting seems to indicate a past negative experience. Perhaps clowns scared poor Jeffery B. in his youth. This could be a lash out again prior constraints. Though most people find clowns hilarious, though it's not uncommon for people to have other stirring emotions. Take Chucky for example, that was some pretty twisted stuff. However, that's what we are dealing with... Jeffery B. My final statement deals with the significance of the creation. Why the fuck did you make that? You're odd...

Sandwich Crew

My friends have started reading my blog on the regular. Since I love them, and the fan base; I said I would give them a call out. Richard wanted me to write about the Frisbee club and Jeff wanted me to compose an entry about the psychology of clown assault. Awkward topic, but there's somewhat of a story involved. Being i'm the co-president of the Frisbee club I will start with this. Most importantly we toss it up every Wednesday at 8:30p.m. No experience necessary, we're down to teach. However, the club is looking to put together a serious program. More people, more fun. Always down to answer questions... RCahill@umd.umich.edu We designed our first year logo and t-shirts recently; I believe we're only selling them for three dollars. The club is looking to the stars and wants to go big. There are a number of possible upcoming tournaments and a chance for making a Dearborn Hat League. Call it out.

In class we recently split up into two group and read different articles pertaining to rap music. Both articles made valid points, but I would overall have to disagree with the conclusions. I don't think rap music is corrupting our society or setting too poor of standards for our youth. I think more people get annoyed always hearing about bitches and bling than strive to fit the male gender roll imposed. I am a fan of rap music, even gotten on a few tracks with YNP. Not all rap is gangsta garbage. Take Atmosphere for example. He flows about substantial issues and even when he talks about women it's usually more tasteful than not. I think there's a solid percentage of rap fans who appreciate thoughtful and less vulgar lyrics. The claim one article made about rap not being music is beyond ridiculous. To me that isn't even worth arguing. The final complain I have was splitting the groups up by gender. There was only 5 or so girls in the class to the 15-some boys. No wounder the girls weren't participating as much as expected.

Interview Paper 2

The interview paper didn't turn out too bad. I ended up writing on one of my high school wrestling coaches. Jones was a good choice because he contributed significantly to my development into a young man. I really need to add some length to the paper; I was rather mentally blocked at the time of composition. With the addition of a personal section and another on his contributions the paper should be up to par. Brandon's paper was interesting because he had all the filler and necessary information, but struggled with claims and his thesis. As soon as this get altered he will have a solid paper. Smith's was over all really good, significaly better than mine and Brandons.

There was an idea in the syllabus to blog about different songs that repersent our community. I want to twist this idea in a small way. YNP - Your Neighborhood Pimps is a rap group that sprouted out of the WB (West Bloomfield) in that early part of 2003. Since then the group has released 5 cd's. The foundation of the group is made up of David K. (KO), Zach W. (Z-money), and Richie C. (Chambaz). These "white" rappers are revolutionizing the game and making fools of themselves along the way. Either way I think it's good stuff. Check YNP out for yourself.

I am really stuck with who I am going to write this paper on. I wanted to keep writing on my friend Andy, but the outline doesn't want it done on friends. I want to find someone who impacts everyone behind the scenes, but no one gives him/her recognition. Perhaps a teacher or positive adult figure. I'm looking for ideas - Through me some.

I did sympathise with Mumia Abu-Jamal. I heard of his situation before the story and unarguably he deserves to be where he is. He brought up some very interesting points. There is a huge problem with dehumanization in prisons. I cannot speak on the racism, but I believe it to an extent. This may be a personal opinion but the Black Panthers are not helping his situation. Talk about creditability, they have made quite a name for themselves good, bad or otherwise. I thought his title was rather creative and really brings into context the point of killing a man twice. You die when you get put on death row and again twenty or so years later when our system finally gets around to putting the man down. Our penile system has a lot of problems, but all do. We need to cut sentences down and work more on rehabilitating people and getting them straight and back into society. Oh my ideal world...

This was from the free write the class did last Tuesday. The paragraph is about my old friend Andy. I recently ran into him a week ago and needless to say it was interesting. "Andrew Yorke. What can be said; the man, the myth, the legend. The kid who defecated in the corner and destroyed your belongings; yet here he is again. How did he get here, why did he come? Probably the beer. No one dares to ponder the inner workings of this mad Irish man, perhaps solely operating on just his id. Only one thing can be certain when chilling with Yonker: destruction." I thought that was the best passage out of my paragraph. Tell me what you think. Hope it wasn't too mean.

I really like the new logo for Detroit. Evermore the five words to describe the city fit very well. If there was one I would change it would be culture; I feel the other four are simply better descriptive of our city. It's going to look great with dozens of these banners hanging from light posts up and down the streets. Hopefully it will work, you know more people will be attending Tigers games. Possibly the commission can get tourism to be a big part of the Detroit economy.

Peer Review

Brandon ripped the shit out of my paper. I thought it was decent, but it defiantly needs more length. My content is good and organization fine; I just need to give a stronger thesis. I was impressed the quote a received from Zach. "I believe it’s important for everyone to understand the social implications behind the Holocaust; Jewish or not. It’s about the world learning from this ridicules event and nurturing the next generation into an open and righteous society."
Brandon did the same topic and his came out more or less the same. I am going to borrow from his ideas and touch on the history of the Center. Derek Smith's paper was as well good. He wrote about Novi, twelve oaks mall mostly and the impact on the developing city. Back to class.

Girly Tequila

When my best friends drove home from their trip to the Rose Bowl they grabbed me a little sup rise. A bottle of tequila (Asom Broso Reposado). However, this bottle was unlike any I had ever seen. Blown glass bottle with a light-pink tequila. It had a smooth finish with an indescribable distinct pink taste. Went down easy and was very enjoyable on the rocks. The only problem I had was the shape of the bottle. It may be me; but it may resemble a fallace. Take a look for yourself.

Humiliating History

Pictures from my girlfriend's trip to Greece. Notice how the city buts right up against the ruins. The top picture shows what is left of the Temple of Zeus. Is this culture distroying their history by intergrating the modern with the past? I don't believe so, but it's shocking how close the two eras exist. How cool would it be to have the Temple of Zeus in your backyard? RESPOND BACK

I am a huge fan of tequila and have a respectable collection; acquiring different kinds of tequila and becoming a coinsure has become a small hobby. Since the blog and class have been open up to free posts I think I am going to critique something I enjoy. The obvious place to start is top-shelf and work my way down. Patron is the top product in which I have completed the collection. (Minus the coffee liquor – excited) The blends rank in order of: Anejo, Reposado, and Silver. Meaning “aged”, “rested”, and silver. Patron is interesting because the company does not actually distill their own tequila. They buy out top reserves of the year and mix up to three different types until proper taste is reached. Each bottle is hand crafted and individually numbered. The anejo is very nice and has a quality oak barrel taste. The reposado is comparably smooth and has a flavorful burn, excellent in a margarita. The silver is smooth, but I was not overly impressed with the blend. I thought all the types were smooth on the rocks and would recommend it to any tequila fan. Over all Patron represents the best mainstream tequila choice on the market. The tequila is quality, but for the price, you are paying for the name. Unless the product is being consumed on the rocks I would personally recommend a cheaper product.

Picture Test

I love high-def photography...

I thought the DetroitFUNK's post of Forgotten Toys was interesting. I wounder if he placed the toys or came across them. It has an over all dejected fell. This is his second post of toy pictures withen the last five days. I do not see the symbolism, but for some reason it stirs various emotions.

For this assignment it was necessary to review two blogs on Detroit. These blogs were filled with images and short posts. Detroit Funk was the fist blog I checked out. The images stirred some interesting emotions and I was able to relate to most all the picture.
The first eleven picture were of the iced over terrain. Not only similar to the view outside my house, but it reminded me of glass blowing. I just started blowing glass and I am working on a flower type piece, this gave me two interesting ideas to work with.
The next pictures were of a busted up television. This really struck emotions and memories of a time when my friend through a weight through a TV. This happened after we snuck into an abandoned warehouse. Probably not the smartest idea; but tequila has been known to impair my judgment. It’s actuality an impressive sight; the bulb does not just break, but explode. The artist did a good job of capturing this; we only got a video on a camera phone.
I really liked the black and white photography. The artist did a good job of capturing depressed areas. The contrast of grayscale does an excellent job of capturing the dejected buildings. I don’t understand why he captured the Temple Beth El building. It did not seem to fit with the theme of the rest of the photography. I’m glad to see the artist captured the resolution in 2400. High deff photography is starting to get really popular because of the significant drop in price of equipment.
The post before had more of a striking contrast. It seems like the pictures were taken in a toy-machine. The colors are very vivid and the pictures are much more fun than the previous ones.
Overall this blog is very appealing. The pictures are very interesting and there is a lot of media to search through. I would however like to see more written, the artist should at least caption his pictures. The site seems to have a decent following and when I visited it said there were 15 other people visiting the site.
The second blog was Faded Detroit. This site had a lot more to read through. I thought the post History vs. Parking – Parking Wins, related very well to the class. It’s about an 81 year old Chicago style school building. This piece of history is being redeveloped into a parking structure. There are as well 80 condos being built on top of the structure. The owner of the blog is upset about this and probably agrees this act is “humiliating” the history of the city. Personally I agree with developing the building. It is stationed at a prime location and could serve the population better with this new plan.
The photography is not as good on this website, but still interesting. I like the picture of the Trans outside Co Bo arena. This reminded me of how my dad use to bring me to Detroit for Red Wings games when I was a young kid. Both these blogs were interesting and I got some good ideas from both of them. I think I am going to add more pictures on mine. It would give me something to respond to once a week.

Home Place: A site of Resistance; was a reflection of Bell Hook's youth and memories of trips to her Grandmother's house. The story focused on the efforts of Black women and the impossible struggle of balancing work with maintaining a proper household. It talks a lot about recognizing the subversive value of the homeplace. This was important because it provided a private place, sheltering residents from harsh realities of life.

Analysis Paper Idea

I think I will do the analysis paper on the Jewish Mem. Center. This is importaint because of our vast Jewish population in West Bloomfield. It was importaint enough to change the name of Northwestern Highway. Research will not be hard to do on this subject. God knows I have plenty of Jewish friends with "invested-intrest" and I can interview someone there. I know the center got a huge grant from the city and takes an active community roll. This should be a whoot.

I thought Nikki’s Window was a very interesting story. It did a good job describing the context of the city and the white flight to the suburbs. I can plainly see what the story was getting at; being I only go down to Detroit for Tiger’s games. I do not totaly agree with the points made in this article. I believe attractions like greek town only bring more money into Detroit. This helps to fix the city and its future history; not cover it up. Nostalgia is a bittersweet longing of something from the past. Humiliation is what Herron uses to describe the destruction of the city’s history. This is the main focus of the story. The people who write the history are the strongest survivors and business men. This example was concreted with the example of the first Ford.

Established

I was never into the blogging hype. I know a few people who are hooked on it, near obsessed. Interesting way to keep students activly writing almost every day. Established.