Its 6:39 pm
So how did it go from being a beautiful day yesterday to a grey overcast one yet again? The weather here is beyond goofy,no winter,then summer in March and now a spring that may be colder then our winter.
Haven't done anything worth while today other then pay a bill,put 20 bucks of gas in my PT Cruiser,do a little of pantry shopping (our local Meijer was running a great little sale so I got some stuff for the pantry) and switched our shovels for the rakes in the garage. Then I hooked up the hose because despite it being chilly,it hasn't translated into much rain and our trees need the water.
Quickly cleaned up the old newspaper in the kitchen,had dinner and now am cranking this little entry out.
Finished my latest book "leave the building quickly" by Cynthia Kaplan,thought it was brilliant in many places and definitely worth my buck at the Dollar Tree. Now its time to finish "House Poor" and then tackle Lisa Ann Walter's book. Can't wait to read it...even though I have had it since last October. I tend to read the books I get in the order I get them so that why it has taken so long to get here. Just had to explain that in case Lisa Ann drops by and reads this....
We just now heard a terrible story that happened just about a mile away from our house. Seems like a woman had been very depressed as of late. Her husband was so concerned,he stayed home with her for a week to see if he could help her. On one of these days he went to to store to pick up a few items. The woman then proceeded to douse herself in fuel and set herself on fire. Her horrified neighbors tried to put out the flames but she ran into her house. They broke down the door and called 9-1-1. She was still alive when they got there but she died later at the University of Michigan's Burn Center. What a terrible way to die.
Decided to take a chance on the IC group page and invited my entire circle,all 481 of them. So far we have kept about 420 which I suspect will continue to go down. But suddenly we have all sorts of activity on the page,mostly political but a couple of musicians posted show dates,one reader asked me about setting up a blog,while I love Blogspot,not really convinced its the best way to get readers,especially those who want to comment/follow but not sign up to Google. So while I don't think he'll land here,once he does get his blog up,I'll provide a link so you can check it out. Its going to a football blog about South Alabama football but as I'm also a fan of a "smaller" school in San Jose State,you know we have to stick together,we all can't be Georgia,Miami or Wisconsin fans,right?
Wonder what happened to Scorpion?
As many of you know,I'm a huge supporter of ex-Detroit police chief Warren Evans. Its no accident that since he was forced to resign,the crime rate in the city has just skyrocketed. Every day someone is getting blasted to pieces in the city. Charlie LeDuff opened a recent 10 pm newscast with a 10 minute report on just how bad the city as gotten....over 1,000 people have been shot to death and 4,000 wounded in just a 3 year window. And most of those have happened AFTER Chief Evans left.
He and I have swapped messages and emails the past two years....so imagine my surprise last month when he sent me a message asking me to call him to get together. Quite honestly,I was shocked. First because we have never talked but thru the computer and second,I'm dead certain his time is very much in demand. I sent back a note asking him for a good time to call...and when I didn't hear back,I wasn't surprised. The man is BUSY and to find time to talk to someone he knows only on the computer,well,I can understand. I didn't call him because I didn't know what would be a good time.
I was explaining this to my neighbor Al and he asked me why I didn't call when he invited me to. He said "If Warren asked,he knew what he was doing...he wouldn't have asked you if he hadn't". Putting it that way made a lot of sense and so I called him up. He was in South Carolina but asked if he could call when he gets back so we can can get together. I'm actually pretty jazzed up to meet him,this area really needs a man like him to help turn things around. Finding good people who have no ulterior motives to run for public office is a rare animal these days. Most who run,run with purpose,for money,fame,power. Men like Gary Brown and Warren Evans run to help people,that is why they made such good cops.
My gut feeling is Warren is going to run for Wayne County executive and he is starting to get a grassroots campaign team assembled. Now while I have never actively been involved in one,I would for Warren Evans in a heartbeat and have told him that many times. We are going to talk this week so I'll keep you updated if I can.
Been on a Ryan Downe kick lately.....wonder whatever happened to him?
Alrighty then...time for lunch and coupon clipping,then a little yardwork and a 2 mile walk. Busy day ahead so lets get cracking....see you Tuesday!
Showing posts with label Wayne County. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wayne County. Show all posts
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Losing a life,saving lives
Its 8:31 am
Nice crisp morning outside. I can see our local dog walker with her two Greyhounds down the street. Those dogs look fast even when they are standing still. First time I have seen her in a quite a while.
Caught a little of the Super Bowl on Sunday. Game was a little boring to me but am amused how Coughlin of the New York Giants seems to have to New England's Billichek's number as of late. Why everyone is acting like this is a such a big event is also funny because Coughlin knows what any real football knows....you can't win if you can't RUN the ball! New England hasn't had a real rushing back in quite a while. You can can win games with a passing attack but you win championships with a running game.
My wife wanted to watch the Madonna show at half-time so we checked it out. It was pretty much as we expected...lots of dancers,lip synched and pushing Madonna's new single. Safe and gaudy...and hoping next year they'll have a live band again. The ads were so-so with the Doritos ad showing the dog killing the cat being the worst ad by a long shot. As I said,a pretty boring Super Bowl.
But the 8th annual Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet was a lot of fun to watch this year. The Puppy Bowl features animals are are looking for homes and are featured playing football (the puppies),creating a kick ass half-time show (kittens),cheerleaders (pot bellied pigs) and flying a blimp covering the game (hamsters).
The premise is to have different groups of puppies come onto a football field and romp around with each other and several chew toys. And if a puppy manages to grab a toy and cross the goal-line,its a touchdown.
Different dogs play until they get tired out then a fresh group runs out. Half-time features the cats who are up for adoption getting their moment in the sun along the pigs and other animals. Its pretty funny actually and the play by play announcer has a lot of fun with the dog's antics.
What was also pretty cool was we had homemade pizza,the first time since radiation. While we normally load it up with tomato sauce,pepperoni,fresh tomatoes and onions,we played it safe by making it a very lean and basic pepperoni because we didn't know how Lori's stomach could handle it. She managed a slice and a half with no ill effects. This was cause for a big celebration to be sure! Well that and the fact she has discovered she loves cranberry juice after I have been trying to get her to try it for years.
Its sort of strange when I sit and write this blog out. I feel like I'm sort of repeating myself on some past entries but that is because I also feel I'm writing for people who may stumble across this from Blogspot or other areas and not just the current Inner Circle readers of which have seem to have dropped off after I landed here. I knew it was a risk but I decided to chance it anyways,right?
Besides my buddy Scorpion just reviewed this blog on his latest entry of "As My Stomach Turns"
This is what he wrote:
nd that now brings me to the last (but certainly NOT least) in this list. I met Michael "Booker" Sullivan back when I was dating Brat/Melissa back in the late 90's. At the time, he was a talent buyer for a club in San Jose. Not only did we have a mutual love for music off the beaten path, but it turns out that Booker is a pretty mean Risk player, too. (A pause for a moment for the local Peanut Gallery Risk players to stop twitching and convulsing as they recall the wicked thrashings we all took from Booker on the Risk board the times he ventured out this way). We also discovered that we both wrote e-mail newsletters. While AMST/B has pretty much stayed the same over the years, Booker's has evolved as his life has changed. Booker moved out to the Detroit area about 12 years ago, and he lives with his wife, Lori, who is battling cancer.
His blog, now called "The Inner Circle" is a well worded and highly opinionated (and I say that in a good way, natch) look at politics (especially Detroit's, where Booker leaves no sacred cow uncooked), as well as his life and his wife's battle with cancer. Booker also talks entertainment, weather it's music, movies, comics, TV shows. But not a lot of celebrity gossip, which is nice.
I am very thankful for the kind words and I have to say,not only is Aaron's blog a hoot to read but his other bloggers he is pushing as well are also very much worth reading. To see Aaron's blog,just click the link on the right hand side of the page under "Blogs I Follow".
And speaking of politics in the Detroit area.....I wrote recently how busted up the EMS services are in the city. Broken ambulances,lack of good equipment,a credit rating so bad the city can't get a loan to buy new units...a local journalist here in our area,Charlie LeDuff,has been bringing horror story after horror story of the people who have died waiting for help. The misspent money,the corrupt officials. The stories often end with Charlie saying "We contacted the Mayor's office or the City Council for comment but haven't heard back"
Well this past Sunday, a 40 year old cop suffered a heart attack while on duty at his station. A call to EMS was put through but after waiting 10 minutes for the bus,they loaded up the cop in the back of a squad car and dashed to the ER to no avail. The ambulance showed up 12 minutes after they rushed the cop to the hospital. 22 minutes....22 minutes for a officer down! But what makes this story really bitterly ironic?
The cop was the brother of Charles Pugh,the President of the City Council. So now Charles gets to experience what so many other Detroit families have....a lifetime of thinking "What if he/she had gotten the help they needed in a timely fashion?". Makes you think that perhaps a Emergency Manager is indeed needed if only to make sure the city gets some better equipment NOW instead of lives being lost by a 22 minute wait for a broken ambulance.
I have blogged before about the Bloody Mile,when we used to live in Northville,we lived off 7 Mile Road. I have written about the incredible loss of animal life there. It got so bad that I started carrying a shovel and plastic bags with me to scrape off the poor souls killed by drivers driving too fast. I saw everything,dogs,cats,deer,coons and even a huge snapping turtle that had been hit and killed. Soon another man also joined me in taking these dead creatures off the road. Lori and her friends started calling us "Road Angels". But what I really wanted was a couple if signs,a "Deer Crossing" or a "Children at Play" sign up as to help slow the traffic down. I called and emailed the county endless times begging for those signs. I went to the Department of Natural Resources to get some help but they again said it was the County's job.
I wrote that someone would be killed if nothing was done and sure enough,in the past calender year,3 people have now lost their lives on 7 Mile. A popular radio personality,another person and now a cook from a Chinese diner we used to eat at. She was killed crossing the road on the way from work. While she was crossing in the street and not at the light as the Northville cop pointed out,I like to point out that are NO crosswalks at the corner of 7 Mile and Silver Springs which would be the closest light. And why is that? That light has a major apartment complex on one side and a active mall on the other side that includes a bank. And still no crosswalk?
I'm mentioning this because I recent have befriend a county commissioner on FB named Kevin McNamara.
Kevin has recently made headlines by calling out the dirty politics by our county executive,Robert Ficano. He must have struck a nerve because all of a sudden,a tape popped up that show Kevin dangerously close to getting arrested for a DUI. While he was legally under the limit and was driven home by a Canton police department cop,the tape was released to embarrass Kevin and his family.
When I commented how disappointing to see a public official so close to the edge,he personally wrote me and again said how sorry he was. Now that takes heart for a guy who really didn't have to take the time to say sorry to anyone,come out and personally hold himself accountable. I gained a whole new level of respect for Kevin and now am asking for his help in getting two crosswalks painted and some deer crossing/Children At Play signs up on 7 Mile. Its pretty sad when you see more crosses of the people killed on that road then you do warning signs.
But I believe we'll see action in 90 days by Kevin in getting this done. I'll keep you updated.
Time to end this on a lighter note. I have been uploading my iPod as of late and now am walking with it. I have over 900 songs of which maybe 170 I put on for Lori. So went out last night and walked until I heard 15 songs play. I figured,15 songs x 3 minute average equals 45 minutes. I hit shuffle play and headed out. Of the 15 songs that played....7 were hers! Its not that they are bad but I'm not really a Coldplay kinda guy. Just thought it was funny.
Here is the link to the report of Charles Pugh's brother passing. My deepest sympathy to his family.
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/detroit-police-sergeant-dies-on-the-job-at-12th-precinct-20120205-rs
Thanks for reading and please....come "follow" me here!
Scorpion - thanks for the great plug!
Kevin- I believe
Michelle/Amy L. - thanks for showing up!
bear - I need to send you some new music.
Chris B. - I need your street addy again.
Nice crisp morning outside. I can see our local dog walker with her two Greyhounds down the street. Those dogs look fast even when they are standing still. First time I have seen her in a quite a while.
Caught a little of the Super Bowl on Sunday. Game was a little boring to me but am amused how Coughlin of the New York Giants seems to have to New England's Billichek's number as of late. Why everyone is acting like this is a such a big event is also funny because Coughlin knows what any real football knows....you can't win if you can't RUN the ball! New England hasn't had a real rushing back in quite a while. You can can win games with a passing attack but you win championships with a running game.
My wife wanted to watch the Madonna show at half-time so we checked it out. It was pretty much as we expected...lots of dancers,lip synched and pushing Madonna's new single. Safe and gaudy...and hoping next year they'll have a live band again. The ads were so-so with the Doritos ad showing the dog killing the cat being the worst ad by a long shot. As I said,a pretty boring Super Bowl.
But the 8th annual Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet was a lot of fun to watch this year. The Puppy Bowl features animals are are looking for homes and are featured playing football (the puppies),creating a kick ass half-time show (kittens),cheerleaders (pot bellied pigs) and flying a blimp covering the game (hamsters).
The premise is to have different groups of puppies come onto a football field and romp around with each other and several chew toys. And if a puppy manages to grab a toy and cross the goal-line,its a touchdown.
Different dogs play until they get tired out then a fresh group runs out. Half-time features the cats who are up for adoption getting their moment in the sun along the pigs and other animals. Its pretty funny actually and the play by play announcer has a lot of fun with the dog's antics.
What was also pretty cool was we had homemade pizza,the first time since radiation. While we normally load it up with tomato sauce,pepperoni,fresh tomatoes and onions,we played it safe by making it a very lean and basic pepperoni because we didn't know how Lori's stomach could handle it. She managed a slice and a half with no ill effects. This was cause for a big celebration to be sure! Well that and the fact she has discovered she loves cranberry juice after I have been trying to get her to try it for years.
Its sort of strange when I sit and write this blog out. I feel like I'm sort of repeating myself on some past entries but that is because I also feel I'm writing for people who may stumble across this from Blogspot or other areas and not just the current Inner Circle readers of which have seem to have dropped off after I landed here. I knew it was a risk but I decided to chance it anyways,right?
Besides my buddy Scorpion just reviewed this blog on his latest entry of "As My Stomach Turns"
This is what he wrote:
nd that now brings me to the last (but certainly NOT least) in this list. I met Michael "Booker" Sullivan back when I was dating Brat/Melissa back in the late 90's. At the time, he was a talent buyer for a club in San Jose. Not only did we have a mutual love for music off the beaten path, but it turns out that Booker is a pretty mean Risk player, too. (A pause for a moment for the local Peanut Gallery Risk players to stop twitching and convulsing as they recall the wicked thrashings we all took from Booker on the Risk board the times he ventured out this way). We also discovered that we both wrote e-mail newsletters. While AMST/B has pretty much stayed the same over the years, Booker's has evolved as his life has changed. Booker moved out to the Detroit area about 12 years ago, and he lives with his wife, Lori, who is battling cancer.
His blog, now called "The Inner Circle" is a well worded and highly opinionated (and I say that in a good way, natch) look at politics (especially Detroit's, where Booker leaves no sacred cow uncooked), as well as his life and his wife's battle with cancer. Booker also talks entertainment, weather it's music, movies, comics, TV shows. But not a lot of celebrity gossip, which is nice.
I am very thankful for the kind words and I have to say,not only is Aaron's blog a hoot to read but his other bloggers he is pushing as well are also very much worth reading. To see Aaron's blog,just click the link on the right hand side of the page under "Blogs I Follow".
And speaking of politics in the Detroit area.....I wrote recently how busted up the EMS services are in the city. Broken ambulances,lack of good equipment,a credit rating so bad the city can't get a loan to buy new units...a local journalist here in our area,Charlie LeDuff,has been bringing horror story after horror story of the people who have died waiting for help. The misspent money,the corrupt officials. The stories often end with Charlie saying "We contacted the Mayor's office or the City Council for comment but haven't heard back"
Well this past Sunday, a 40 year old cop suffered a heart attack while on duty at his station. A call to EMS was put through but after waiting 10 minutes for the bus,they loaded up the cop in the back of a squad car and dashed to the ER to no avail. The ambulance showed up 12 minutes after they rushed the cop to the hospital. 22 minutes....22 minutes for a officer down! But what makes this story really bitterly ironic?
The cop was the brother of Charles Pugh,the President of the City Council. So now Charles gets to experience what so many other Detroit families have....a lifetime of thinking "What if he/she had gotten the help they needed in a timely fashion?". Makes you think that perhaps a Emergency Manager is indeed needed if only to make sure the city gets some better equipment NOW instead of lives being lost by a 22 minute wait for a broken ambulance.
I have blogged before about the Bloody Mile,when we used to live in Northville,we lived off 7 Mile Road. I have written about the incredible loss of animal life there. It got so bad that I started carrying a shovel and plastic bags with me to scrape off the poor souls killed by drivers driving too fast. I saw everything,dogs,cats,deer,coons and even a huge snapping turtle that had been hit and killed. Soon another man also joined me in taking these dead creatures off the road. Lori and her friends started calling us "Road Angels". But what I really wanted was a couple if signs,a "Deer Crossing" or a "Children at Play" sign up as to help slow the traffic down. I called and emailed the county endless times begging for those signs. I went to the Department of Natural Resources to get some help but they again said it was the County's job.
I wrote that someone would be killed if nothing was done and sure enough,in the past calender year,3 people have now lost their lives on 7 Mile. A popular radio personality,another person and now a cook from a Chinese diner we used to eat at. She was killed crossing the road on the way from work. While she was crossing in the street and not at the light as the Northville cop pointed out,I like to point out that are NO crosswalks at the corner of 7 Mile and Silver Springs which would be the closest light. And why is that? That light has a major apartment complex on one side and a active mall on the other side that includes a bank. And still no crosswalk?
I'm mentioning this because I recent have befriend a county commissioner on FB named Kevin McNamara.
Kevin has recently made headlines by calling out the dirty politics by our county executive,Robert Ficano. He must have struck a nerve because all of a sudden,a tape popped up that show Kevin dangerously close to getting arrested for a DUI. While he was legally under the limit and was driven home by a Canton police department cop,the tape was released to embarrass Kevin and his family.
When I commented how disappointing to see a public official so close to the edge,he personally wrote me and again said how sorry he was. Now that takes heart for a guy who really didn't have to take the time to say sorry to anyone,come out and personally hold himself accountable. I gained a whole new level of respect for Kevin and now am asking for his help in getting two crosswalks painted and some deer crossing/Children At Play signs up on 7 Mile. Its pretty sad when you see more crosses of the people killed on that road then you do warning signs.
But I believe we'll see action in 90 days by Kevin in getting this done. I'll keep you updated.
Time to end this on a lighter note. I have been uploading my iPod as of late and now am walking with it. I have over 900 songs of which maybe 170 I put on for Lori. So went out last night and walked until I heard 15 songs play. I figured,15 songs x 3 minute average equals 45 minutes. I hit shuffle play and headed out. Of the 15 songs that played....7 were hers! Its not that they are bad but I'm not really a Coldplay kinda guy. Just thought it was funny.
Here is the link to the report of Charles Pugh's brother passing. My deepest sympathy to his family.
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/detroit-police-sergeant-dies-on-the-job-at-12th-precinct-20120205-rs
Thanks for reading and please....come "follow" me here!
Scorpion - thanks for the great plug!
Kevin- I believe
Michelle/Amy L. - thanks for showing up!
bear - I need to send you some new music.
Chris B. - I need your street addy again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)