grandhaven

When Octopi Fly

Posted on May 28, 2009May 28, 2009 by Michigan in Pictures

Last night the Red Wings managed to beat the Blackhawks 2-1 in an overtime thriller and return to the Stanley Cup. For those unfamiliar with the traditions of Hockeytown, I give you The Legend of the Octopus:

The Legend of the Octopus is a sports tradition during Detroit Red Wings home playoff games in which an octopus is thrown onto the ice surface for good luck. The origins of the activity go back to the 1952 playoffs, when a National Hockey League team played two best-of-seven series to capture the Stanley Cup. The octopus, having eight arms, symbolized the number of playoff wins necessary for the Red Wings to win the Stanley Cup. The tradition was first started on April 15, 1952 by Pete and Jerry Cusimano, brothers and storeowners in Detroit’s Eastern Market. The team swept the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens en route to winning the championship, as well as winning two of the next three championships.

Since 1952, because the tossing of octopuses is generally viewed as a successful symbol of good luck, the practice has persisted each year; in one 1995 game, fans threw 36 octopuses, including a 30-pounder. The Red Wings’ unofficial mascot is a purple octopus named Al, and during playoff runs two of these mascots are also hung from the rafters of the Joe Louis Arena, symbolizing the 16 wins now needed to win the Stanley Cup. It has become such an accepted part of the team’s lore, that fans have developed what is considered proper etiquette and technique for throwing an octopus onto the ice.

Those octopi also flew a few weeks ago at the Grand Haven Kite Festival (click that link for a slideshow from the Absolute Michigan pool).

See this photo bigger in GH Patriot’s Other slideshow.

Intergalactic Human Sled Race at Grand Haven Winterfest

Posted on January 22, 2009January 22, 2009 by Michigan in Pictures

bDSC_2656, photo by cyoas55.

Actually, this is from last year’s Cardboard Sled Race at Mulligan’s Hollow, but I really needed to say “Intergalactic Human Sled Race” for my own fulfillment … and hopefully to SEE a picture of it in the Absolute Michigan pool (hint, hint).

The race takes place Friday night at 8 PM on Washington Ave. in Grand Haven and will feature teams with 4 Pullers, 1 Musher and 1 Rider. It’s all part of Grand Haven Winterfest 2009 that takes place January 22-25 and features all kinds of winter fun: sled & snowboard competitions, ice sculpting, a snow angel contest and (of course) the sport of kings, hamster and gerbil racing. There’s also art, music and event a luau. Sounds like great fun if you’re in the area this weekend (and please remember the part about the photos of the Intergalactic Human Sled Race).

This photo is one of several in Craig’s Winterfest slideshow and there’s even more in the Grand Haven Winterfest slideshow.

Sailing into 2009

Posted on January 1, 2009January 1, 2009 by Michigan in Pictures

Sailing, photo by gh patriot.

I thought it was pretty neat that this photo showed up in the Absolute Michigan pool after yesterday’s post. Be sure to check it bigger. It’s part of Kevin’s pier/sunset set (slideshow)

As 2009 dawns, I feel some trepidation. While things have been bad for us here in Michigan, there seems to be little doubt that our national economy has even further to fall. What that might mean to us is anybody’s guess.

One thing I do know is that after years of being in a “single state recession,” we now have company. That will undoubtedly mean less assistance in some cases, but it will also open up more opportunities and solutions as other states and nations begin to grapple with the issues we have been wrestling with.

I expect that in the year to come we in Michigan will make decisions that will have profound effects on our state’s educational system, our infrastructure and our amazing natural resources.

My most profound hope is that our decisions take into account the truth that Gov. Milliken referred to below.

The truth is that the quality of life in Michigan depends on nature. The natural beauty of our state is much more than a source of pleasure and recreation. It shapes our values, molds our attitudes, and feeds our spirit … in Michigan, our soul is not to be found in steel and concrete, or sprawling new housing developments or strip malls. Rather it is found in the soft petals of a trillium, the gentle whisper of a headwater stream, the vista of a Great Lakes shoreline, and the wonder in children’s eyes upon seeing their first bald eagle. It is that soul that we must preserve.

-Michigan Governor William G. Milliken
from William G. Milliken: Michigan’s Passionate Moderate

Happy New Year folks!

Creating Cities in Michigan

Posted on October 4, 2008October 5, 2008 by farlane

Lansing, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, Traverse City, Marquette and Kalamazoo are by no means all of Michigan’s cities (or even the largest). Each, however, seems to be an anchor for its region – a center to which people look to for culture, entertainment and commerce.

October 13-15, 2008, lovers of cities large & small from Michigan and all over the country will head to Detroit for the Creative Cities Summit 2.0 (CCS2), an exploration of what our cities could become and how we can work to make them. Organizers have chosen Detroit, a city so deeply forged in America’s industrial fires that it’s been devastated by the flickering of that flame. I’m headed down there and will try to bring some of the ideas back to you through Absolute Michigan – I hope that some of you can join me there.

The Photos (left to right)

Downtown View – Lansing, Michigan by Mario.Q
Motor Within a City by SNWEB.ORG Photography, LLC.
Partly Cloudy by GR58
Old Flint (HDR) by Hemicuda82
Traverse City, Michigan by farlane
View from Mt. Marquette by fastbird232
The Kalamazoo Radisson by bill.d

Creative Cities Summit 2.0 in Detroit on Oct. 13-15, 2008

CCS2 will present a dynamic and engaging conversation about how communities around the world are integrating innovation, social entrepreneurship, sustainability, arts & culture and business to create vibrant economies. Full conference registration is $300 for the two and half day event, and there’s also a “no frills” registration that is only $100. There’s also a free “Unconference” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) on the 12th for designers, urban planners, civic leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, students, community leaders to explore and discuss what’s possible for Detroit.
Keynote speakers include:

Bill Strickland, MCG-Bidwell Corp.
Richard Florida, Author Who’s Your City
Charles Landry, Author The Art of City Making
John Howkins, Author The Creative Economy
Dean Kamen, Inventor, DEKA
Majora Carter, Sustainable South Bronx
Doug Farr, Architect and Author Sustainable Urbanism
Ben Hecht, Pres. & CEO Living Cities
Tom Wujec, Fellow, Autodesk
Carol Coletta, CEOs for Cities
Giorgio Di Cicco, Poet Laureate, City of Toronto and Author, The Municipal Mind
Diana Lind, Editor, Next American City magazine

Breakout sessions on topics such as:

Race and the Creative City
Cities, Universities & Talent
Marketing, Media and the Creative City
Measuring New Things – ROI in the Creative Economy
Creative (Small) Cities
New Ideas in Urban Amenities
Community Vitality: The Role of Artists, Gays, Lesbians & Immigrants
Midwest Mega-region: How the Midwest Can Compete
Transportation Innovation for Cities
Making the Scene: Music & Economic Development

Much (much) more at creativecitiessummit.com.

Grand Haven Musical Fountain

Posted on July 30, 2008July 30, 2008 by Michigan in Pictures

Grand Haven Musical Fountain 4 (Small), photo by Michphotog.

This is part of Michphotog’s Grand Haven Musical Fountain set (slideshow). Wikipedia says that:

The Grand Haven Musical Fountain is a synchronized display of water and lights in Grand Haven, Michigan located on Dewey Hill on the north shore of the Grand River, not far from the Grand’s mouth at Lake Michigan and Grand Haven State Park. Shows run nightly from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Weekend shows run during the months of May and September. Shows begin at dusk and run 20 to 25 minutes

You can see a video and even try your hand at programming this cool piece of watery art at the Grand Haven Musical Fountain Development Site.

As a side note, I am continually amazed by the cool things I learn through Michigan in Pictures!!

Dream of Flight

Posted on April 9, 2008April 9, 2008 by Michigan in Pictures

Dream of Flight, photo by n.weaver.

This photo is part of Neil’s Scenes set (slideshow).

Speaking of kites, the annual Great Lakes Kite Festival in Grand Haven takes place in a little over a month: May 16-20, 2008.

Photographers of West Michigan and a Grand Haven Sunset

Posted on March 11, 2008March 11, 2008 by Michigan in Pictures

Grand Haven 05, photo by jbatts.

jbatts says that on a whim she drove out Grand Haven and captured these photos from sunset at Grand Haven State Park (slideshow) on a January evening with 25+ mph winds and single-digit windchills.

It’s one of the photos in the new group she started on Flickr for Photographers of West Michigan. Speaking of the photographers of West Michigan, what do you want to bet that you can find the photo from the guy in the red jacket on Flickr too?

The Ferry House, A Michigan Home

Posted on March 6, 2008March 6, 2008 by Michigan in Pictures

Ferry House, photo by ER Post.

Most readers of Michigan in Pictures probably know about Absolute Michigan and some might know that this month we’re featuring Michigan Homes this month. In addition to highlighting a historic Michigan house museum every day, we’re also going to check out home & home design blogs & sites, explore green building and other new trends in construction and redevelopment, feature some of the great neighborhoods across the state and take a closer look at the state of the Michigan real estate industry.

As a part of this focus on Michigan homes, we’ve created a group on Flickr titled A Michigan Home, where folks are invited to add a single photo that (for them) represents what a Michigan home is. See our Michigan Home Gallery Slideshow on Absolute Michigan.

The photo above of the Ferry House in Grand Haven was added by ER Post. The house is actually for sale right now, and the owners write:

The Ferry House, as it is called on the National Registry of Historic Places, was built in 1872 by Edward Payson Ferry. This Proud Victorian is of primarily wood construction and is in the Italianate style. E.P. Ferry, son of the Rev. William Ferry (one of Grand Haven’s founders), was a local lumberman and banker…

The home features 11′ and 12′ ceilings, hardwood flooring, impressive woodwork, restored antique gas (converted) and electric light fixtures, plaster ceiling medallions and cornice moldings. The main level contains a large living room and formal dining room with bay window, 2 gas log fireplaces, as well as a family room, guest bedroom and a library on the main level. A gorgeous curved walnut stairway leads to the upper level, which features a large master suite, two bathrooms, laundry, and two additional bedrooms.

A Public Service Announcement from Michigan Beaches

Posted on February 11, 2008October 2, 2009 by Michigan in Pictures

Strolling in the sand., photo by photoshoparama.

We interrupt this wild winter weather for a special message from Michigan’s beaches who remind you that – despite all appearances to the contrary – winter is not forever and they will soon return with an all-new season of sun, sand and summer fun!

Thanks to Daniel (and Quentin) for the reminder from Grand Haven State Park in April of 2007. Be sure to click to the super-size for the full, glorious effect!

We now return to Winter, already in progress…