A couple of days before our wedding, The Mrs. and I (we weren’t married yet, I assure you!) were running a whole bunch of errands getting ready for it. Part of our path took us to an old hangout for many Michiganders, and I definitely went there a lot when I was finishing up college.
She told me about its closing, but nothing prepared me for the silent hulk I saw.
Man, I was so sad to see it. The Studio 28 complex was indeed a part of my life for many, many years, and I miss it.

Here you go:

I’ll tell you right now, I won’t be used to that kind of weather when I step off that plane on Wednesday.

Courtesy of Fifth Third Park, where the West Michigan Whitecaps play Minor League Baseball:

Wait till you read the nutritional stats on this monstrosity. Even if you divvy it up between four people, it’ll even give the government a frakkin’ heart attack!
Now I dare Basil to bring this to his home town’s ballpark menu. That is, if his home town has a minor league team this year.

Senator Clinton sure wants those Michigan delegates and superdelegates (which include Governor Jennifer Granholm, Senator Carl Levin, and Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, the mother of Detroit’s embattled mayor), doesn’t she! Tuesday, June 3, is the target date for the re-vote. There is, however, a small hurdle to cover.
While the funds are being raised by private donors (who can say George Soros first!), the plan still has to be signed off by the divided Michigan Legislature (The House is controlled by the Democrats, while the Senate is in the GOP’s hands). I’ll not question the decision of the lawmakers there…besides, watching Shrillary and Barack Hussein Obama slug it out is getting to be a real hoot to watch! Not only that, Florida is still trying to figure this out. What a bunch of idiots!
Hey, pass that popcorn over here willya!

I was going through some old papers and lo and behold! I had a newspaper clipping from 1990, when I actually did some research for my old hometown paper on the late actor Mark Lenard, who played Sarek of Vulcan, the Romulan Commander, and the first ridged Klingon on Star Trek (spanning both TOS and TNG). Lenard was born in Chicago but grew up in South Haven, Michigan, my old hometown. Not a lot of people in that little burg knew what became of him after he left in 1942.
This article was released about five months after the TNG “Sarek” episode aired, which depicted the Vulcan ambassador as dying….it was a sad episode indeed; Lenard’s final appearance in “Unification” was even sadder. He passed away in 1996, and I wish I could have met the guy.

I damn near fell out of my chair at work when I learned about this development with the attorney (who defended Dr. Death) and Michigan gubernatorial candidate, Geoffrey Fieger: he’s been charged with illegally contributing $125,000 to the Breck Girl’s campaign coffers back in 2004. That must have been before Senator Kerry chose the South Carolina Senator as his running mate.
One would think Senator Edwards might have been able to do something for Mr. Fieger’s locks? Or perhaps a quid pro quo: give me money and I’ll make sure I’ll pass legislation legalizing doctor-assisted suicide in alll 50 states? I sure hope this publicity isn’t generated to make everyone look one way while Dr. Kevorkian does another back-door “procedure”...if you know what I mean.

Well, I have been running around South Haven all week, doing errands for Mom, but she is not feeling well, and so yesterday I took an opportunity to go see some friends in Kalamazoo.
But none of them were available…even though I told them last month that I was coming to Michigan. Seems like they all has bulls**t excuses. In lieu of that, I decided to go around the town a bit. Aside from a new bus station just north of downtown, and a fancy new fascia for the Hyatt, nothing else has changed. Nothing.
But there was still one friend left there who invited me over to dinner with her and her daughter. No, she’s already involved, and no, she’s actually a liberal!...and a professional counselor at that. At least she knows how it is. I give her credit for remaining in Michigan, even though the economy still sucks after three and a half years gone from there. She doesn’t blame me for leaving and especially not for considering going elsewhere if I’m to return back East.
Tomorrow I check in on my flights, and then I fly back on Sunday. Can’t come soon enough.

With all the insane news that’s happening this week…and with all the errands Mom’s been having me run so far…I sure need a few good drinks at Joe’s Bar...but in lieu of that, here are two photos of South Haven’s harbor…populated by many boats from elsewhere. It’s always been a tourist town, where lots of well-to-do people from the Народный Социалистический Город-Государство Чикаго* come to escape from that environment.

* - People’s Socialist City-State of Chicago

Turns out not much has changed about the town I grew up in. Except that the local library does have a WiFi hotspot, so at least it is now a member of the 21st Century. Good thing too. I’d have gone nuts if it didn’t.
More reports as time passes. Stay tuned.

Thanks to Michigan Justice and time off for good behavior, Jack Kevorkian, a convicted murderer, got out of prison yesterday after serving only eight years. He says he’s going to work to legalize doctor-assisted suicide without getting into trouble again.
I don’t believe him. Someone out there desperate to die but doesn’t have the ‘nads to do it themselves will fork over some serious funds to this guy and he’ll do it again. Only this time, he won’t have to mail the tape to 60 Minutes…he’ll just upload it to YouTube! The Michigan authorities had better watch Kevorkian like a hawk. No one has the right to call their own shots when it comes to dying…that is left solely to the decision of God Almighty.

Now word comes from Michigan that the state Democratic Party wants to give an iPod to every child there. My first retort to this proposal is: why? Is this a proposal designed to keep families from moving due to the crappy economy? I would certainly think so.
Don’t get me wrong…iPods are great, but I don’t want MY Tax Dollars going to this effort, so kids can have everything given to them. Governor Napolitano better not try this here anytime soon.

HAT TIP: Jonathan

This is a shout-out to a certain radio show host in Southwest Michigan, who was genuinely surprised when I sent her a “hello, how are you?” message. Hope to hear from you again real soon!

Here’s an interesting story from Back East, courtesy of tgs333:

This is Nathaniel Abraham, a 21-year-old man who’s just been released from prison after doing time for Murder 2…after being convicted in 1999 of gunning down an 18-year-old Ronnie Greene, Jr. back in 1997 when he was 11. When he turned 21, he got out as per Michigan State Law. Now he’s got a second chance at life while the family of the murder victim still grieves; I hope they don’t go after him and let him prove he’ll make good on his pledge to be a better person.
All that said, I do have one small concern. Pimpin’ himself out in those clothes makes me wonder where he got them, and who will be helping Mr. Abraham celebrate his release, given that he’ll be working as a factory custodian.

This ruling is definitely going to get some people in the Great Lakes State mighty nervous, especially if they’ve been frakkin’ around on their spouses while breaking the law in a felonious matter:

The ruling grows out of a case in which a Charlevoix man accused of trading Oxycontin pills for the sexual favors of a cocktail waitress was charged under an obscure provision of Michigan’s criminal law. The provision decrees that a person is guilty of first-degree criminal sexual conduct whenever “sexual penetration occurs under circumstances involving the commission of any other felony.”
Charlevoix Circuit Judge Richard Pajtas sentenced Lloyd Waltonen to up to four years in prison after he pleaded guilty to two felony counts of delivering a controlled substance. But Pajtas threw out the sexual assault charge against Waltonen, citing the cocktail waitress’ testimony that she had willingly consented to the sex-for-drugs arrangement.
Charlevoix prosecuting attorney John Jarema said he decided to appeal after police discovered evidence that Waltonen may have struck drugs-for-sex deals with several other women.
Cox’s office, which handled the appeal on the prosecutor’s behalf, insisted that the waitress’ consent was irrelevant. All that mattered, the attorney general argued in a brief demanding that the charge be reinstated, was that the pair had sex “under circumstances involving the commission of another felony”—the delivery of the Oxycontin pills.

What this means, of course, is that until the Michigan State Legislature changes the law, if two people who are not married to each other, but married to other people, are involved in an adulterous relationship, they better not be robbing banks or swapping drugs or anything like that, or else it’s Hello Jackson!
I’m not sure whether to laugh or shake my head….whether that Legislature gets up off its a** and actually changes the law is another matter.

FIVE MONTHS after the incident where Tasha Douglas was refused service by bus drivers in Grand Rapids, MI, she still feels shame and humiliation. And here I thought this was a recent occurrence. When you read the article, you will find that the Rapid transit agency determined that it was an isolated incident.

And guess who’s helping her get a cash settlement to put this all behind her? Yep, the ACLU, who are playing the race and religion cards for all they’re worth!
By the way, I recognize this location: it’s South Division Street, the main drag through GR, and it’s about 3 or 4 blocks just south of downtown, where a lot of poor people live.

HAT TIP: Little Green Footballs