This blog has lain fallow for some time, but I’m hoping to nudge it awake.
One of the things I decided that I could write about are the walks I take. I don’t get much exercise per se but I do go for walks — sometimes, rather long walks — and I’m often struck the be beautiful, the hauting, the pastoral, and bizarre things I see around my city.… Read the rest
Walking Post 1: My neighborhood Read More »
This has been a momentous month for all of the wrong reasons…
For almost two years, a growing chorus of parents, children, scientists, and everyday people in my city have been complaining that our water was dirty, unclean, unsafe, and undrinkable. … Read the rest
The Flint Water Crisis Read More »
Thank you to everyone for your thoughtful posts and comments over the last week.
But… and here’s the rub… while the thoughts and prayers are very much appreciated, what we really need is money. A lot of money.
While the state government is most culpable in this crisis (albeit abetted by some actors on the local and federal level) their commitment to fix the problem has been slow and, so far, insufficient.… Read the rest
#FlintLivesMatter. Please Consider Making a Donation. Read More »
In Flint, if you walk behind Southwestern Academy, past the sunken track and football field, the well-manicured baseball diamonds and tennis courts and their overgrown cousins, and the launching point for the Cronin Soapbox Derby Downs, you’ll find a creaky pedestrian overpass that crosses I-69 and seems to descend into a huge thicket of trees. … Read the rest
Exploring Flint’s Happy Hollow Nature Area Read More »
The Gothic Funk Press has organized a Kickstarter fundraiser to support our first community engagement project of 2015. The project is to be called FLOOR or the Flint Order of Orpheus, and with just $100 we will be able to develop it.… Read the rest
FLOOR: The Flint Order of Orpheus Read More »
Kristiena Sartorelli wrote an interesting list for Movoto of “29 Things You Need to Know About Flint Before You Move There.” It is a positive piece of boosterism, pretty well researched, and, in that sense, a welcome change from the sort of coverage we usually get.… Read the rest
29 (Different) Things You Need To Know About Flint Before You Move There Read More »
About a year ago I undertook a sort of informal pilgrimage.
One night, starting at the Saginaw Street bridge downtown, I followed the Flint River upstream north and east, looking for the headwaters. The drive took me deep into Lapeer County, through tiny towns I’ve heard of most my life, but most of which I had never visited: Columbiaville, North Branch, Dryden, Metamora. … Read the rest
It’s two days after Christmas and Maxine Street has never looked more beautiful. Many days of snowfall have created an ice-cream landscape that calls to mind the snow village on display at Bronner’s, a Christmas emporium forty miles to the north.… Read the rest
Flint, Michigan: My Remarkable Home and Its Beautiful People Read More »
I had the opportunity this past week to go to Chicago for the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Conference, although I can’t claim I went entirely on the up-and-up. About a month ago, I found out about the panel Midwest Gothic: Dark Fiction of the Heartland. … Read the rest
Arguments for Flint via Chicago Read More »
This is the third and final installment of my photoblog exploration of East Village, Flint, the neighborhood where I grew up and where I now live again after being away for 21 years. The first installment — posted here — explored the area south of Court Street as well as Pierce Park. … Read the rest
Flint’s East Village in Pictures (3 of 3) Read More »