Detroit News Weblogs

What's wrong with these pictures?

I can't decide what was the more unsettling sight:

The disheveled guy I saw walking down Gratiot last week, pushing a shopping cart with all his worldly possessions inside of it.

Or the woman I saw in Los Angeles on Thursday, dressed to the hilt and pushing her dog -- which was much bigger than Paris Hilton's purse-size pooch -- in a fancy stroller.

Wonder what would happen if their paths crossed. Would dog-stroller woman help out shopping-cart man?

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L.A. hasn't burned down

I got off the plane yesterday half expecting to find most of Los Angeles on fire.

That's what it looked like from the video footage and doomsday commentary I saw Tuesday on television anyway.

Funny thing, when I've told people from L.A. that Detroit is my hometown, they seemed surprised that anybody still lives in Motown. They say that from what they've seen on TV, they perceived all of Michigan as hell on earth.

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Sticking around the old neighborhood

I left The Detroit News yesterday, started a new job today and am headed to L.A. soon for some training.

Life is good for me. But it's still not so good for the kids on Dobel Street.

That's why it matters not where I go professionally; it just matters that we stay put in the old neighborhood and stick up for the kids who need a voice.

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Community treat

It was like the days of yore on the northeast corner of Mack and Brys in Grosse Pointe Woods Saturday night.

A bonfire raged in a portable pit on the front lawn while about a dozen adults from the neighborhood sat around the hearth, drinking sodas and spirits, and handing out candy to young trick-or-treaters.

You could feel the warmth as you approached the house, not just from the fire, but from the people themselves, who were clearly enjoying the company, and welcoming the kids with smiles and compliments on their costumes. Better yet, they offered each adult passerby a beer treat for stopping by with the kids.

This wasn't the only stop that felt old-school comfortable. Most of the folks I met while accompanying my kids on their trick-or-treat trek were remarkably jovial, generous with their treats and conversation, and seemed to take as much as they gave from the experience.

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Headless Horseman at Holy Name

Each mid-October when the Detroit Public Library Bookmobile made its stop at Holy Name, I tried to nab the book before any of my classmates could.

It contained two of Washington Irving's classic stories: "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle."

Fittingly, "Rip Van Winkle" put me to sleep. But "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" was and still is one of my favorite tales of the Halloween season.

I used to imagine myself in poor Ichabod Crane's saddle, trying to get away from the galloping black stallion ridden by the headless beast who held the horse's reins in one hand and a fiery jack-o-lantern in the other. Before too long, my pulse would race faster than the stallion's pace as I anticipated my, err, Ichabod's horrifying demise.

In October 1974, the Headless Horseman nearly did kill me -- and my father was his accomplice.

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Belle Isle 'Soul of the City'

From July 18 through Oct. 10, the Detroit Historical Museum played host to an exhibit on Belle Isle. This was the second time this decade that the Friends of Belle Isle were asked to put together an exhibit for them. The last one was in 2001 and focused on the tradition and history of the island. The 2009 exhibit focused on the present and future preservation of Belle Isle, using the theme "Soul of the City".

The theme was selected on the concept that when people visit Belle Isle it becomes a part of them, and they are drawn back again and again for fun, meditation and celebrations. Memories made there stay with you.

Friends of Belle Isle (FOBI) was the logical choice to create this type of exhibit since its mission is to promote the preservation of the natural beauty, restoration and preservation of historical sites and the adaptive use of existing structures on the island for the enjoyment and use by all people.

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A Hall of Fame day

I've talked with several people about Sunday's Treats 'n Trunks at the park and we all agree that what took place there belongs in the Hall of Fame of Friends of Fletcher Field events.

The fall colors around the park are breathtaking.

As for why we made that determination, well, none of us could pinpoint it quickly.

Yes, the weather was grand and the turnout was great. But we've had better weather and bigger turnouts for events at the park before and yet, at the end of the day, we didn't feel like we did Sunday.

For me, two things stand out:

First, since a major portion of the neighborhood surrounding the park has gone back to nature, which is showing off its fabulous fall colors right now, the scenery around Fletcher Field was absolutely breathtaking and served as a friendly Halloween mask for the horrifying blight in the area. No kidding, the setting made it feel like northern Michigan, not Detroit's east side.

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It's not the end

It's absolute in the movies. After the final scene, the credits roll and then it's the end -- unless, of course, there's a sequel.

But real life is more abstract. The lines are fuzzy, often making it difficult to determine beginnings from endings and vica versa.

One thing is certain: My days are coming to an end at The Detroit News. That does not mean, however, the end of this blog.

After talking to my boss yesterday, we came to an agreement to leave the blog as is, here, with me as its primary author, at least through Dec. 31, 2009. There's also a good chance that deadline could be extended.

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Behind the grill and loving it -- just like my grandmothers

Lunch for 200? No problem.

Both of my grandmothers loved to cook and were versatile enough to compete with the finest chefs in Europe and the best short-order cooks New York City has to offer.

Each could satisfy a table of one with a grilled cheese sandwich and a piping hot bowl of chicken soup in less than 15 minutes. Just as easy, they could prepare traditional Polish fare -- sausage and sauerkraut, potato and cheese pierogi, golabki (stuffed cabbage) -- for the entire Holy Name congregation in a single afternoon.

When I took leave from the U.S. Navy back in the mid-1980s, I always got dinner invitations from my grandmothers.

Grandma Lemanski made me golabki -- until the day I finally had the nerve to tell her I hated cabbage. From that day forward she served me my favorite dish -- spaghetti and meatballs -- and her famous banana-nut cake with buttermilk frosting for dessert.

Grandma Happy often surprised me with homemade pierogi, which she meticulously shaped and stuffed despite having debilitating arthritis in her hands. She then sent me home with two dozen more to support my pierogi habit until my leave ended.

Audio slideshow: 2009 Treats 'n Trunks at Fletcher Field

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Another Fletcher Field treat

I went into the weekend feeling somewhat uneasy and nostalgic, but went to bed Sunday thinking nothing but happy thoughts.

Everything went great for Sunday's Treats 'n Trunks at Fletcher Field: The weather was perfect; the turnout (at least 150) was terrific; the kids, all us really, had a wonderful time.

Nearly the entire park side of Mt. Olivet was parked up from Gilbo to French Road, the vehicles creatively decorated for the season. One featured hippies, peace signs and an advertisement for suspicious brownies. Another posed as a dentist office with human dental floss and the tooth fairy handing out candy. My favorite, a Detroit Public Library book mobile replica, belonged to Bob and Lee (Harding) Walmsley.

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