The Legacy Land Conservancy has posted a short preview of a series of farmland videos that the nonprofit is producing to highlight its land preservation efforts. Among other shots, the clip features Joe Trumpey feeding goats, and a close-up of a cow licking the camera. [Source]
In a post on the Ann Arbor-based Huron River Watershed Council website, Paul Steen writes about a workshop he attended that explored “connections between streams, climate change, and fish populations. The centerpiece of this workshop was a climate change-fish vulnerability model developed by a partnership between the US Geological Survey (USGS), Michigan State University, and state agencies in Michigan, New York, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. This model makes predictions of how likely stream fish populations are to change under a range of climate change scenarios.” [Source]
In a post on his blog, Jeff Masters of the Ann Arbor-based Weather Underground announces that the business has been sold to The Weather Channel Companies. He writes: “As one of the founders of Weather Underground, I am excited about embarking upon this new chapter in our company’s history. Having the infrastructure, resources, and content of The Weather Channel Companies will enable wunderground to create some great new products, and improve the quality and reliability of our existing content. We will now be called Weather Underground, LLC, and will maintain the wunderground.com web site as it is.” The post also provides some history about the founding of Weather Underground. [Source]
The University of Michigan Health System has issued a statement in response to today’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling on federal health care reform: “This ruling will ensure that more Americans will have health insurance and access to timely care – while reducing the burden of uncompensated care that we and other hospitals face.” [Source]
The Ann Arbor District Library staff has posted an interview with former Washtenaw County sheriff Doug Harvey, part of a series of AADL podcasts on local history. A brief description of the interview states that “Harvey shares his memories of the turbulent 1960s in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. He recalls some of the personal, political, and law enforcement challenges he encountered during his years as sheriff – from the 1966 UFO sightings and the South University Riots, to the Coed murders and the John Norman Collins case. He also responds to some of the controversy surrounding his reputation and he speaks candidly about the community leaders and colleagues he admired during these years – and those he did not.” [Source]
An episode of the Syfy Channel’s School Spirits series – titled “Sorority House Terror” – tells a tale about a haunted sorority at the University of Michigan. The episode includes an interview with local historian Wystan Stevens. [Source]
Ward 1 city councilmember Sabra Briere has launched a new blog with the Latin motto, “Officium vocat me de otium” – roughly “Duty calls me from leisure.” The inaugural post describes the blog’s scope as a place “to muse about governmental philosophies, spelling, the way words and thoughts work, gardening, household maintenance, or anything else that I hope is worthwhile.”
From the second post – a reflection on the summer season: “I can listen to the wren try to entice a lady wren to his nest …” [Source]
A video of the June 12, 2012 public forum about the future of the downtown Ann Arbor library has been posted on the Ann Arbor District Library’s website, along with a video of a behind-the-scene tour of the building’s infrastructure. A final forum will be held on Wednesday, June 20 from 7-8:45 p.m. in the fourth-floor conference room of the downtown building, 343 S. Fifth Ave. For Chronicle coverage of the first forum on June 9, see: “AADL Board: What’s Your Library Vision?” [Source]
Writing in Deadline Detroit, Greg Stejskal – a retired FBI agent who was in charge of the agency’s Ann Arbor office – writes about his role in apprehending Ted Kaczynski, known as the Unabomber. Stejskal writes that “technically I identified the Unabomer, but in reality I was merely a cog in the machinery that was already moving inextricably towards knowing Ted Kaczynski was the Unabomer. It’s interesting, and perhaps ironic, that it’s what happened in Ann Arbor – a place where he was so miserable – that played a pivotal role in putting him away forever.” [Source]
Nina Juergens, owner of Acme Mercantile in downtown Ann Arbor, announced on the store’s blog that after 10 years, she won’t be renewing the lease at 111 W. Liberty. She writes: “Instead, we will be expanding into new territory with our online store, which is undergoing a complete overhaul and will launch in the next week or so. It has always been my passion to create more unique Acme branded products and have a wider range of home design price points, while still keeping with our original concept of small department store. This transition will allow the brand to grow and the variety we offer to expand.” [Source]
On his blog, former head of the Ann Arbor News copy desk Michael Thompson posts the copy desk schedule for the last week of production of the News. He stumbled across it recently cleaning out email archives. [Source] [.pdf of last copy desk schedule]
The Michigan Transportation Musical – a 12-minute video by the University of Michigan’s student-run Filmic Productions – takes a comedic, song-filled romp through the Ann Arbor campus to teach incoming students about how to navigate the bus system. The video includes puppets, teleporting, dancing, bus rides – and concludes with a series of outtakes. [Source]
Autoblog.com, an online news site owned by AOL, reports that Road & Track magazine is moving from Newport Beach, Calif., to Ann Arbor this summer, making it the third major automotive magazine to be based here. Others are Car & Driver and Automobile. Larry Webster, Road & Track’s new editor, lives in Ann Arbor, according to the report. [Source]
The University of Michigan is holding a contest on Facebook to name the four peregrine falcons – two male, two female – that hatched on May 2 atop the University Hospital. Suggestions so far include Hugh, Andy, William and Kim (HAWK); Ann, Arbor, Maize and Blue; and Larry, Curly, Moe and Shemp. [Source]
Serious Eats reviews the burgers and patty melts at Zingerman’s Roadhouse. The reviewer praises both, but writes: “As good as the burger was, the gut-busting patty melt was better. …The thick slices of rye bread, which naturally comes from Zingerman’s Bakehouse, is simply the best I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating. It’s loaded with flavor, has a particularly thick and chewy crust around a soft interior, and will make virtually any sandwich ever invented taste better. The mountain of grilled onions and wild mushrooms add a sweet and juicy umami bomb to the patty melt, and the baby Swiss from Deppeler Cheese Factory in Monroe, Wisconsin, brings a nice coating of creaminess.” [Source]
Washtenaw County’s public health department has issued a press release to alert residents that four skunks have tested positive for rabies so far in 2012, all found in the city of Ann Arbor. No cases of rabies in humans have been identified. Health officials recommend that all dogs or cats be vaccinated against rabies, and that contact with wild animals or other potentially unvaccinated animals, such as stray or feral cats, be avoided. The release quotes Dick Fleece, the county’s health officer: “We are not alarmed, but we do want to make people aware that this situation exists and advise them to avoid contact with ill animals.” [Source]
Coda to Sunday’s Water Hill Music Fest – a video posted on YouTube of the Tinkerhess family singing Pete Seeger’s “My Rainbow Race” on their front porch. Festival organizers Paul and Claire Tinkerhess are seen on the right. [Source]
The Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Regional Chamber of Commerce weighs in on ballot issues facing voters in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti on Tuesday, May 8. The chamber supports an 0.5 mill tax to fund a $45.8 million technology bond for the Ann Arbor Public Schools. [.pdf of chamber position statement on AAPS bond] But the chamber opposes two ballot proposals in Ypsilanti: (1) a 1% income tax on businesses and residents, and an 0.5% income tax on non-residents; and (2) a tax to cover $18.2 million in payments related to the Water Street project – 4.94 mills to be levied in 2012, and an estimated simple average annual millage rate of 5.40 mills. [.pdf of chamber position statement on Ypsilanti ... [Full Story]
A video of the entire April 28, 2012 University of Michigan commencement ceremony at Michigan Stadium has been posted on UM’s website. In addition to the various speeches given at the event – including the main address by CNN chief medical correspondent and UM alumnus Sanjay Gupta, the 1 hour, 24 minute video includes shots of many graduates and faculty trying to hang on to their caps in the gusting winds. [Source]
In advance of a mid-May conference of the national Business Alliance for Local Living Economies in Grand Rapids, Mark Maynard posts a wide-ranging email interview with BALLE board member Paul Saginaw, co-founder of Zingerman’s. Much of the interview focuses on the broad issue of support for local, independent businesses, but in response to a question about a possible Zingerman’s operation in Ypsilanti, Saginaw writes: ”It would actually be easier and more realistic to move our Mail Order operation to Ypsi, and that is a possibility. I still would really like to have a Zingerman’s presence in Ypsilanti and I believe that it will happen at some point. Although I do worry about being viewed as an unwanted outsider.” [... [Full Story]
On her blog Mae Travels, Mae Sander has posted some photos taken yesterday (April 18) of the new Argo Dam bypass, dubbed by the city “Argo Cascades.” Sander writes, “Some of the narrow places look a bit rough – we’ll wait and see how it is when canoe season really starts. This is going to also be a great path for bikes or walking: both wonderful sports in Ann Arbor.” [Source]
In a video posted on YouTube, the Second City comedy troupe parodies a recent controversial Burger King commercial featuring Mary J. Blige. Nyima Funk, who grew up in Ann Arbor, plays the role of Blige. Funk is the daughter of Wendy Woods, city planning commissioner and former city councilmember, and Ron Woods, an Eastern Michigan University professor and Ann Arbor housing commissioner. [Source]
Writing on his Common Monkeyflower blog, Richard Murphy makes a proposal that he describes as a starting point for discussion: Ypsilanti “should hand out $10,000 cash grants to people who purchase, fix up, and occupy vacant and foreclosed homes. Why? Because it’s a net fiscal gain for the city.” Murphy uses properties owned by Ypsilanti landlord David Kircher as a case study for this proposal. His conclusion: “Even if we’re only looking at tax revenues, the city can expect between a 10% and 40% annual return on this investment.” [Source]
A post on the State Bar of Michigan blog includes a five-minute video of Soultivity, an R&B band of attorneys from Ann Arbor. The band has advanced to the final round of the American Bar Association’s Battle of the Lawyer Bands Contest. Online voting that’s taking place until June 1 will determine the winner. [Source]
Several University of Michigan executives and faculty members respond to news of journalist Mike Wallace’s death, in a posting on the University Record. Wallace, a UM alumnus, had several deep connections to the university. He served as honorary co-chair of the Michigan Difference Campaign, which raised more than $3 billion, and was a key donor to the Knight-Wallace Fellows, a UM program for mid-career journalists. He provided funding and the house where the program is located at 620 Oxford St., known as the Mike and Mary Wallace House. From UM president Mary Sue Coleman’s statement: ”Society will remember Mike Wallace as a dedicated, hard-charging journalist. At the University of Michigan, we know him as that and so much more. He … [Full Story]
The motto of the website Michigan Gifs is “Demonstrating the Michigan Difference, one gif at a time.” One gif – a short video clip – shows a possible response to the statement “When you overhear someone talking about Frita Batidos and you turn around like …” [Source] Frita’s is an Ann Arbor restaurant on West Washington owned by chef Eve Aronoff.
The Center for Michigan’s Bridge magazine publishes an op-ed co-authored by Glenn Nelson, a trustee of the Ann Arbor Public Schools board, and Brit Satchwell, president of the Ann Arbor Education Association. They argue that Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed budget “strikes a new low in the priority given to public K-12 education. The consequences for our children are devastating.” In a counterpoint essay, Snyder contends that he and the legislative majority “made the tough, but necessary, decision to ‘rebase’ the [K-12] foundation allowance in the current-year budget. This move was critical in getting the budget back in structural balance.” [Source]
A post on the Water Hill Music Fest’s website credits James Gotts for pointing out a Robert Frost poem – “Evening in a Sugar-Orchard,” written while Frost was living in Ann Arbor – that mentions Water Hill. An excerpt: “I thought a few might tangle (as they did/ Among bare maple boughs and in the rare/ Water Hill atmosphere not cease to glow/ And so be added to the moon up there.” This year’s festival is set for Sunday, May 6 from 2-6 p.m., with a rain date of May 13. [Source]
A 2.37-minute video of Friday night’s FoolMoon festivities has been posted on YouTube, featuring jellyfish, skull and lip luminaries, and a shadow puppet. [Source]
On her Relish blog, Myra Klarman features photographs of preparations for the Friday, March 30 FoolMoon festivities as well as the Sunday, April 1 FestiFools parade and related events. She also gives some advice: “What happens if it rains Friday night? The good word is that FoolMoon will embrace the weather conditions. The event will go on rain or (moon)shine, and I find this ‘can do’ attitude very refreshing, even Foolhardy (with emphasis on hardy). Some of the features may have to be tweaked and brought under shelter – I’m excited to see how it all plays out. Got any fish lanterns from last year? I hear those would love to come out and play in the rain. … [Full Story]
