AOL has an interesting group of comments this morning on excuses for getting out of a traffic ticket. I had to laugh at some of them but, then again, it reminded me of the time in my life when I was a suburban cop many years ago. There were several funny encounters with drivers but the one that stands out in my mind is this. . .
(more…)

I wish I had discovered this earlier in time for Christmas. Preservation Wayne sells gift certificates for their tours. Valentine’s day is coming up . . .

A friend and I have been recently getting together to learn how to cook by experimenting with a different ethnicity for each meal. We have had some pleasant shopping trips to Eastern Market; however, when it came time to shop for Indian food day, well in particular Bengali Indian food day, I was pleasantly surprised to discover a treasure trove in Hamtramck. This original Polish establishment has since been infiltrated by enterprising Bangladeshis and I’m sure even Bengalis from India. You can get a huge range of Indian supplies and clothes for fairly reasonable prices along Caniff Street. I cannot even tell you how great it was to hear Bengali spoken all around me.

The Detroit Historical Society is having an event on Friday, February 9th at 5:30 p.m. called the “Reel” story. This is a new exhibit that explores 100 years of movie going in Detroit. It begins in the earliest entertainment districts and theaters through the growth of sububan multiplexes and recent effrorts to save historic theaters.

The Detroit Historical Museum is located at 5401 Woodward and has free parking. The event will feature “movie” refreshments. The presentation is curated by well known historian and author Michael Hauser. So come celebrate a century of going to the movies in metro Detriot. For further information, call Suzanne Koceyan at 313-833-1980.

I’m not much of a car guy so I wasn’t crushed when I didn’t make it to the auto show this year. I didn’t hear too many good things about this year’s show though. Almost everyone i spoke with told me that pasts years shows were better than this year. In fact, I heard an NPR bit about how many of the asian auto manufacturers are moving their big displays and announcements to the Los Angeles Auto Show, not necessarily because Cobo or Detroit is a bad venue but because they can do it on more friendly turf (rather than next door to the massive GM Headquarters).

Did you go? How was it compared to last year and years past?

There’s this super website out there. It’s called Judysbook. It’s basically a site that allows you to review and rate local businesses – mostly restaurants but other things too. It’s got a pretty comprehensive list of restaurants and reviews of said restaurants. You can read my unqualified and biased reviews or you can see the whole Detroit page.

I realize that this entry was a shameless plug for another site but I’ve really gotten alot of use out of Judysbook and get a kick out of reviewing all the crazy places I go around town.

Preservation Wayne has compiled a great list of resolutions which may last longer and make a greater impact than your losing weight resolution. Such resolutions include writing letters to your government representatives or taking a tour of the city. The nice thing is that links are provided to direct you to any addresses or further information you may need to actually attain these goals.

Detroit’s Synergy’s Third Thursday was held at the Signature Grille and Bar at the Riverfront Towers residential community. The venue is gorgeous overlooking the Detroit River. The décor is swanky and the food delicious. There is a full service bar, free coat check, and enough TVs to catch all your Detroit sports. We were lucky enough to witness the weekly Thursday night karaoke. It seems like there may be an expert karaoke scene in Detroit as most people seemed to know each other and really could sing. Make sure you ask for precise directions to the restaurant at the gatehouse because signage is poor. Once you are in though you are sure to have a great time.

According to ClickOnDetroit.COM, a Detroit Police officer has been shot while on duty around St. Anne and Bagley in the southwest area of the city.

The female officer is currently in the hospital, and her condition is unknown.

The suspect has been arrested, and police are on the scene gathering evidence.

I am hoping that the officer will have a quick and speedy recovery.

Speaking of Detroit’s parking pay stations and payment methods, I hope this information is outdated, but it appears that the pre-paid meter cards are only available for purchase at the Neighborhood City Hall Central office in the Coleman Young Building.

While I’m only about a half-mile from that office, the trip in total would likely take up 30-45 minutes of spare time that I just don’t have. Just some friendly feedback for the city: I’d be much more likely to buy a pre-paid card if I could purchase it online and have it sent to me in the mail. And, I can’t imagine sales will be very high if they are only available in one location; it’s just not convenient if you park the majority of the time in New Center or Midtown. At first, I thought having them in vending machines in certain buildings might be a good idea, but I don’t know how that would go in terms of theft. Why not make them available at Greater Downtown post offices, though? Or how about branches of the Detroit Public Library near the areas the parking stations are located?

I am also interested to find out whether the pre-paid meter cards have an expiration date (similar to how some gift cards do, where if you don’t use it for a certain period of time, $1 or $2 is subtracted from the balance on the card).