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Michigan by Rail: How will we get from here to there?

Posted on July 15, 2010July 15, 2010 by Michigan in Pictures

There’s a great post over on Absolute Michigan about a series of Michigan Rail Forums that are seeking to develop a statewide vision for freight, passenger and commuter rail – click over and check it out! There’s also a great video about the history of railroads in Michigan.

I for one love rail travel and I hope that Michigan can pull together a modern rail system that allows us all to sit back and enjoy the scenery as we ride the rails!

Check this out bigger in Brooke’s slideshow

Wakeboard Jump

Posted on July 14, 2010July 14, 2010 by Michigan in Pictures

Untitled, photo by spacelola.

Check this out bigger in her Ann Arbor slideshow!

Hope summer is making you jump for joy – there’s lots more Michigan jumping on Michigan in Pictures!

Miguel Cabrera and your 2010 Detroit Tiger All Stars

Posted on July 13, 2010 by farlane

Homerun!, photo by Curtnrod

With top vote getter Justin Morneau of the Twins suffering a concussion, the Detroit Tigers Miguel Cabrera will start for the American League at first base (batting third) in tonight’s All Star Game. As a reminder, Major League Baseball’s celebration of its superstars actually has meaning – the winner gets home field advantage in the World Series.

Cabrera makes his fifth All-Star appearance in seven seasons, and although he finished second to Morneau with 2,586,207 votes, he’s second in the majors with 20 home runs and 68 RBIs, has a 19 game hitting streak going and is having a great season. In addition to Cabrera, the Tigers Jose Valverde has been named the closer for the game by AL manager Joe Girardi and 11-5 Tiger ace Justin Verlander will be on the team as well. The Tigers roar into the break 25-5 since June 9th and although a loss to the Twins put them 1/2 game out, you have to like their performance so far.

See this photo from Cabrera’s first season as a Tiger bigger in Sam’s Detroit Tigers slideshow and go AL!

The People of Detroit: Journaturalist

Posted on July 12, 2010July 12, 2010 by Michigan in Pictures

The People of Detroit: Journaturalist, photo by Noah Stephens.

I briefly mentioned Noah Stephens’ project, The People of Detroit, a few weeks ago. If you haven’t checked it out yet, you need too – it’s one of the best blogs in Michigan right now. He says that his ongoing photo essay series is dedicated to the motor city’s residents. It’s not meant to be positive or negative, simply to examine the people who played in serrated crabgrass and never got cut. (too badly, at least).

About this photo he writes:

jour·nat·u·ra·list (jur-nāch’ər-ə-lĭst), noun

1. A portmanteau word formed from “journal” and “naturalist” commonly used to describe a young woman who grew up in South America, lives in Detroit, works as a journalist and has a strong affinity for nature (exemplified by the ability and willingness to milk goats and weed urban gardens with a machete).

see also: Minehaha Forman.

Check out his whole People of Detroit set on Flickr or view the slideshow.

Twirl

Posted on July 10, 2010 by farlane

Twirl, photo by Rudy Malmquist

Hope your weekend is bright and beautiful!

Check Rudy’s photo out bigger and in his slideshow.

Summer’s here – hope you get a chance to dive in!

Posted on July 7, 2010July 7, 2010 by Michigan in Pictures

Untitled, photo by racheldubbs.

Rachel took this with the awesomely awesome Supersampler camera, hailed the “Queen of all Multi-Lensed Cameras”:

One look at the quirky-looking Supersampler and you know that it’s a camera like no other! This ultra-lightweight, low-maintenance 35mm camera fits perfectly in your hand for spontaneous shooting! Aim the Supersampler at your moving (or non-moving) subject, pull the ripcord, press the tiny button – and voila! You have just “sampled” your subject into four panoramic panels. So how on earth is this possible?! See those four beady eyes nestled in front of its plastic body? Those are the ultra-talented, super-sharp lenses that slice your image into four panels. Results are wickedly cool if your subject is in hyperactive motion, or if you prefer to shoot non-moving objects, you’ll have to do the jumping and moving!

Check it out background bigalicious and don’t miss her supersampler slideshow.

Need more? You’re in luck! Michigan in Pictures has more supersampleration!

The Dime Building in Detroit

Posted on July 6, 2010 by farlane

Inside the Dime Building and Dime Building, photos by Adore707

Detroit 1701’s page on The Dime Building relates how Daniel Hudson Burnham found fame as a city planner and was influential in the founding of the City Beautiful Movement. His architectural firm, Root and Burnham, designed the 20-story Masonic Temple Building in Chicago in 1893, one of the nation’s first skyscrapers, and they were tapped by Dime Bank:

The Dime Bank wanted an appropriate building for their facilities. The first floor was to serve as a banking floor where patrons would make their deposits and withdrawals. The higher levels in this 23-story building provided the many offices the bank needed for business, undoubtedly growing as the vehicle industry boomed in Detroit. Burnham designed the attractive lobby that you see with its skylight and numerous decorations. Electric elevators for tall buildings were first successfully installed in the 1890s, so they were still a new invention when Burnham designed this Dime Building…

Air conditioning was unavailable in 1910 and electric lights were, apparently, less efficient than the ones we have today. This motivated Burnham to incorporate a design that provided a window for ventilation and light in every office. You will notice the light well as soon as you enter the lobby of the Dime Building. This one faces Griswold and clearly illustrates this typical feature of Burnham’s Chicago style skyscrapers. Just to the east on Griswold, you will see the Ford Building that Burnham designed for its 1909 opening. In that one, Burnham’s light well is invisible from Griswold.

The Dime Building has its own web site and there’s a little more about the Dime Building on Wikipedia. You can see an old photo of the Dime Building from Wikipedia and another of the Dime from the early 20th Century at Shorpy.

See these other other photos bigger in his Detroit MI slideshow.

Boat Night and a boatload of Michigan July Events!

Posted on July 5, 2010 by farlane

Boat Night, photo by Jon DeBoer

“Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.”
~Sam Keen

Every month, we feature some of the coolest events in Michigan on Absolute Michigan. Our July Michigan Event Calendar features big events you probably know like the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, Common Ground in Lansing and Blissfest in Cross Village and some less well-known ones including Jackson’s Michigan Shakespeare Festival and the Michigan Elvisfest in Ypsilanti. Head over for all these and many more!

One event we didn’t have was Boat Night in Port Huron. It’s held every year on Black River in Port Huron on the Friday night before the Port Huron to Mackinac sailing race. The race is Saturday, July 17th, making Boat Night Friday the 16th.

Check this out bigger in Port Huron, MI + surrounding areas slideshow and get out and enjoy some Michigan July!

How about a little independence for Independence Day?

Posted on July 3, 2010November 26, 2024 by Michigan in Pictures

elevator watching, photo by gsgeorge.

Geoff writes: Renaissance Center elevator, holding at the 72nd floor for fireworks spectators. They passed out 3D glasses for whatever reason. Maybe the future was so bright it needed to be in 3D? See this bigger in his Detroit slideshow and also check out the Independence Day slideshow from the Absolute Michigan pool.

Wikipedia says that Independence Day alias Fourth of July alias The Glorious Fourth alias The Fourth is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Of the signing of the Declaration, John Adams wrote to Abigail:

I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

Thomas Jefferson, served with Adams on the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence and observed that a groups of people from great nations to town councils will always have disagreements. He nonetheless spent much of his life serving the cause of creating an enduring nation. He made a point that I think could serve governments who are locked in petty disagreements while our country and citizenry face serious threats at home and abroad, economically and environmentally that require action immediately:

Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.

Hope you all get out and have fun, and if you have a chance to talk to an elected official at a parade, let them know what you’re looking for. And whether you have that chance or not, take some time to work to make the world become what you think it should.