Archive for November, 2008

Ed Vielmetti gives a summary of local election coverage and events, including a gathering at the county clerk’s office and a Drinking Liberally group at Cafe Felix. [Source]

To capture the experience of Ann Arbor voters today, The Chronicle is tagging along with city attorney Stephen Postema as he drops by polling places around the city, filling his role as one of three election commissioners. The Chronicle won’t be given special access to areas reserved for election inspectors, but we will be covering a lot of territory. Check back for periodic updates throughout the day – with the most recent posts at the top of this article – and add your own observations in the comments section.

9:30 p.m. Still at Slauson, where results from Ward 5, Precinct 4 have now come in. The 15th District Court judicial race remains tight: Easthope 623, Gutenberg 648. For city council, Hohnke drew 1,259 … [Full Story]

Arbor Update has a thread that posts several local freebies and discounts for people who vote, including free ice cream at the Ben & Jerry’s store on South State and free movies tomorrow at Michigan Theater. [Source]

The Detroit News reports on Monday night’s midnight Obama rally at the Michigan Union ballroom, attended by hundreds of students. One of the speakers was Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Said UM freshman Zeid El-Kilani: ”We have a chance to elect someone special. I think young people across America are excited. He represents what we want the world to be.” {Source] The rally story in the Michigan Daily notes that Granholm wore a T-shirt with “1.20.09″ – Inauguration Day. [Source]

There’s a page on the Homeless Dave website called HD Washin’ Man, which is probably the most frequently visited page on the site. It documents a pedal-powered laundry spinner I cobbled together. It’s more popular than Bill Clinton’s teeter totter interview or even T. Casey Brennan’s. (T. Casey has a massive email contact list and he’s not bashful about using it.) I hear from T. Casey from time to time or else bump into him on my frequent trips through downtown Ann Arbor. [Full Story]

The Wall Street Journal’s Washington Wire gives a rundown on the 7th District race between incumbent Republican Tim Walberg and Democratic challenger Mark Schauer: “The game-changer in this district may well have been Sen. John McCain’s decision to stop campaigning in Michigan. Walberg will now have to channel some of his funds toward getting out the vote, though his church-to-church efforts have proven successful. Schauer has bashed Walberg’s free-market philosophy, and Walberg has run ads accusing Schauer of supporting pornography for minors. Schauer voted against criminalizing the practice, and the bill in question was later declared unconstitutional.” [Source]

"You'll need a partner for this one." Bob Schoeni and Gretchen Spreitzer demonstrate a stretch during the group warm-up session.

On Sunday, the northeast corner of Burns Park was already teeming with humanity at 1 p.m. That was the start time that Ann Arbor Active Against ALS [A2A3] had scheduled for its kickoff fundraiser: a family field day. David Lowenschuss, one of the organizers, pointed out Bob Schoeni for us among the crowd waiting for the formal start to the festivities on a crispy overcast day. Schoeni had provided the impetus for the formation of the A2A3 nonprofit, when he was diagnosed with ALS in July.

A few minutes later, when Christopher Taylor took the microphone to help get the field day fun started, the gray skies had gone from spitting a few misty drops of rain to a steady sprinkle. It was hard to escape the conclusion that it was really raining. Added to a breezy day that saw temperatures in the low 50s, the rain meant that Taylor’s declaration, “It’s a beautiful day!” easily drew the chuckles it deserved from the crowd. [Full Story]

Absentee voter ballot box inside the Larcom Building on the first floor. Absentee ballots can be turned in up to 8 p.m. on Nov. 4. Absentee ballots obtained today (Nov. 3) must be voted today.

Tomorrow The Chronicle plans to log a few miles visiting as many precinct polling places as we can. We’re getting a ride from Stephen Postema, city attorney and one of three election commissioners for Ann Arbor. The other two are city clerk Jacqueline Beaudry and police chief Barnett Jones.

We’ve chosen not to obtain press credentials so that we can have the same experience the general public has at any polling place on election day. In this we’re taking a page from Postema’s book. He doesn’t vote absentee, he says, because he wants to get a feeling for the voting experience that most voters have. That will mean that he’s not even able to cut in line – no special privileges are afforded Postema as city attorney or as election commissioner. [Full Story]

Stephanie Frey is crowned Miss Washtenaw County by Alicia Jaros, Miss Washtenaw County 2007. Looking on is Katie Lorenz, the winner from 2004 who moved to Chicago and is now Miss Illinois.

During the interview portion of Saturday’s Miss Washtenaw County pageant, one of the contestants was asked this question: What is your response to those who say Miss America is outdated or irrelevant?

Her answer: “Come to a local pageant.”

The Chronicle was already in the audience of about 200 people sitting in the chilly auditorium of Chelsea High School. Most of them seemed connected to the pageant in some way, cheering on a friend or family member. Several audience members were wearing sparkling tiaras and sashes, as current or former title holders: Miss Oakland County, Miss Tip of the Mitt, Miss River Raisin Festival and others. The current Miss Michigan, Ashlee Baracy, and Miss Illinois, Katie Lorenz – both former Miss Washtenaw County winners – were on hand, as were the parents of the current Miss America, Kirsten Haglund (a Miss Michigan from Farmington Hills).

None of these audience members needed convincing that the pageant was relevant. [Full Story]

On his director’s blog for UM’s Center for Entrepreneurship, Thomas Zurbuchen writes about the mystery of slow UM maintenance trucks: ”I have one big worry that I have not been able to confirm. The drivers are moving at a slow speed because they are not looking forward to their day’s work. Besides being out of work, this is pretty much the worst case for every employee….The mystery of slow maintenance trucks therefore brings up one of the most relevant questions for each entrepreneur. How do we motivate our employees, and especially our support personnel, who are often many layers removed from the overall mission of our organization?” [Source]

You’re driving along I-94 and you see a McCain-Palin campaign sign lying in the middle of the road. For the sake of argument, let’s say you pull over and pick it up – because it’s a safety hazard. Or else because you don’t think McCain and Palin are in the middle of the road on the political spectrum and you don’t want people to get the wrong idea. Whatever the reason, let’s say you’ve got a McCain-Palin sign in the trunk of your car. Now what? [Full Story]

In an article about the federal government rejecting a bid by GM to financially support its merger with Chrysler, the New York Times quotes David Cole of Ann Arbor’s Center for Automotive Research: “The auto companies are clearly running out of cash, and badly in need of more liquidity. Releasing the $25 billion in loans is a necessary first step.” [Source]

In a report on the shortage of black teachers, the Detroit News quotes Vernon Polite, dean of EMU’s College of Education, who said that African-Americans in the past had gone into teaching because other fields weren’t an option: ”Now that those barriers no longer exist, African-Americans are exercising their option to choose other things.” [Source]

On the Erie Hiker blog, Mike Ingels posts pictures and a description of his recent trip to Brauer Preserve in Freedom Township: “The preserve was once farmed and the preserve management plan includes continued farming on areas of cleared land. That said, many areas of wetlands and woodlots have escaped the plow and provide a good natural experience.” [Source]

Photographer Kelly Ferreira posts more than two dozen photos taken in and around Chelsea, including shots of the Jiffy Mix plant, Zou Zou’s Cafe and the clock tower. [Source]

A post on the Munky Bizness blog shows a black-and-white photo of Washtenaw looking south from the curve at Huron: “On the way back from a fantastic breakfast at Angelo’s today, I found this street all empty as if it were being readied for a drag race.” [Source]

Thanksgiving is still a few weeks away, but on the occasion of The Ann Arbor Chronicle’s two-month anniversary, I’d like to go ahead and say thanks. Thanks first to everyone for reading. That’s the number one thing anyone can do to help this publication along. [Full Story]

The LA Times reports on a study by UM researchers who looked at how instructions presented in different fonts affected the perceived difficulty of a task. Apparently, quite a bit. [Source]