First woman president?

Hillary Clinton is running for the up and coming election. I'm curious to see how she holds her campaign and how people respond to a woman running for president. Also, if she did win, I wonder how things would change in the whitehouse, and what the differences would be coming from a woman's "rule".

Do blonde's really have more fun?

This is a kind of nonsense quickie blog.
Two things:
1.) I have been blonde all of my life, and recently died my hair a darker brown. I do find that I don't get as much attention from random people. (the kind of "hey baby wussup?" kind of people) but I do find that I get more personal attention. (the kind of "hey, how are you? my name is mike, what's yours" type of attention) Either way, blonde of brown, i still have the same amount of fun.
2.)I get so stoked when I see that I have a new comment on a blog that I've written. I kind of feel silly saying that, but it makes me so excited!!

Stereotyped

We had talked about stereotypes a little while ago in class. Now, I just moved into my new house, and I am not sure if it's because of the winter and people don't really have that much leisure time, they want to get in there car and get where there going, or if it's because I'm young. But, it seems as though, none of my neighbors are really that friendly, or it it's not that, they just aren't social. And I can't help but feeling it's because I'm young; most people don't want teenagers moving in down the street, because of the parties and late hours, etc. I hope once it warms up, they start to warm up.

Drunk Mother

Yesterday I was reading this story online about two kids who called their father crying and saying something was wrong with mommy. The father called the cops, as well as a convenience store worker, who saw them on his break. The mother was completely intoxicated and blew four times over the legal limit. She was passed out in the driver's seat next to the convenience store. When the sheriff got there, the kids had already been picked up by the dad, and she was arrested. Isn't that such a shocking storyy? That's the very least person you would think would be that irresponsible. I wonder what was going on in her head. Thank God nothing happened to the children.

Stolen Money?

I work at a lounge/sushi bar/restaurant/bar in downtown Dearborn. It's a family owned business and I have been working there for almost 14 months. I work hard and I work a lot, but the pay off is good. I make more money there than I do anywhere else. Though, the workers put up with a lot of bull$h!+, and there really isn't any way for us to fight it. For example, I worked New Years Eve, it was kind of a dud. There was a pre-set menu and charge per person. Some people payed ahead of time, and some people were paying at the door, or had made arrangements with management on later payments. At the end of the night, it ended up being that the servers weren't given gratuity for 27 people at $115 each, that's about 31 hundred dollars, and that's about 775 dollars of gratuity we weren't given that night, but promised to in full in the next couple of days. A few days later, my manager tells us we aren't getting payed for it because we were drinking on the job. It's true that some people were, but also true that many of us weren't, including me. Now, how do you fight that? There's no higher, boss, they are the only people in charge. And also what am I supposed to do, it's not like I can quit, even with getting ripped off that much, I still make good money there. How do you fight that? How do you fix that?

crazy fights in detroit

I was just reminded of something that I saw a while back downtown at Envy, and I thought I'd share it since our topic for this semester is kind of about Detroit. I had no idea what was going on, but the story was clarified to me later. There was two friends who came together to the club, one of them was little and the other was huge, like cock-diesel huge. The little guy went to the bathroom, and while he was in there, there was like 3 guys who were kind of picking on him, pushng him around, and making fun of him. The little guywent back out and told his friend what had happened, meanwhile the other 3 guys have moved there way back to the dance floor. The bigger friend just walked right over there and layed one of the kids out and the little guy comes behind him with a glass in his hand and just boom, smashes it over one of the other kids forehead, and then just keeps cracking him in the face, over and over. There's blood gushing out of his forehead and he keeps fighting. More and more people try and jump in, and the bodyguards are trying to stop it, but can't. There's more and more and more blood, enough to stain th bottom of your pants. Finally the bouncers get the guys outside and the cops and ambulance show up. The guy with the glass in his head is laying in the ambulance getting worked on, when the little kid comes out of the club, and the guy jumps out of the ambulance and goes to fight him again! This guy is going to bleed to death. The little kid just stepped to the side and kicked him right in the face again! I couldn't believe how bad of a fight this was, there was blook throughout the whole place and outside, like a crazy amount. And who cause the fight?-The kid who got hurt the worst. And what was the fight really about?-Nothing. I don't understand people's mentality when the fight, and I don't understand why. They weren't really fighting for any real cause, just out of stupidity. Someone could have died! I'd like some responses from the men in this class...have you ever fought? what or as caused you to? What's the worst fight you've ever been in? I'm just really confused as to how things escalate to that extent, because I've seen it multiple times.

Coffee, Capuccino's and Latte's

The reading about the coffee shop was so cool. It's very true how coffee is addicting as well as the place you get it from. Personally, I buy into the gimmick. Even though coffee from 7 Eleven probably tastes very similar to Starbucks, I'd still choose Starbucks over anything anyday. I actually had Starbucks twice today, that's just bad. But one reason I went was to access the internet, it's not quite working at my house yet. I feel like I'm living in the stone ages. And they do make all the coffee shops equipt with comfort, style, music, munchies, a place to hang out for as long as you want, and internet.

new house!

Okay, so Wednesday I closed on my new house!! It's in Dearborn and part of the historic home district. I'm moving in with my two girlfriends Bridget and Stephanie. I can't believe I'm actually doing this. The past six months I have been living in Wyandotte with my boyfriend (an unexpected move) and I am so excited to actually have somewhere of my own. I know this semester is goign to be hard, adjusting to a new lifestyle, once again, paying more bills (rent, car, insurance, phone, and other stuff), but I am going to have to do it. Hopefuly it won't be overwhelming...

Downtown Dearborn?

I have lived in Dearborn almost my entire life, and I have never thought of it as a place to actually go if you wanted to do something. Most of the time, you go downtown, to Farmington, to Novi, etc. Dearborn really didn't have much to offer, entertainment wise, except for a few public pools. Though, recently it seems as if the city is just shooting up new businesses all at once! It's exciting to me. There's a two block strip where the old Jacobson's used to be, that's transformed into so much more. There's a new Buffalo Wild Wings, Au Bon Pan, Panera, Starbucks, bd's, 1-800-flowers, Coldstone, Venue, Om Spa, the list goes on and on. The good news is that there is still so much more to come! I can't wait for the summer time when I can actually walk to dinner and down the street to everything else there is to offer now.

Irony and Representation

To me, the photo and the title use irony at it's best. The way the baby's face is wet, makes it look as though it has been crying; left alone and forgotten.

This busted up television is a really good representation of parts of Detroit to me. The city was once working and glowing, a place for entertainment along with comforts of home. Now it's abandoned and broken, just like Detroit. (well some parts at least) The title was kind of humorous to me as well.

Some Brainstorming

I really hadn't had any idea of what I wanted to write about for our paper, and when I was chosen to go first, I blanked. But then right after my turn, my brain just started shooting out ideas.
the Core Value signs in all of the public schools
Fordson-even though Hisam wants that too
the Baltimore- family owned dive bar downtown
henry ford estates
I used to live, and am moving to a historical home in dearborn
the Civic center-how it beneftis the community
the dearborn fire station
kiernan's steakhouse-that has more community and personal significance
there was a huge fire in dearborn, that my grandpa actually helped put out, i forget where it was, but it was a huge issue, the place had a lot of importance to the city-i have to get more information on it though
ford motor company-the start, where it is now, the changes our whole city is going through because of it

I'd really like some feedback, on what seems like the best idea.
Thanks.

I thought that "Homeplace" by Bell Brooks was a little bit redundant. I understand the importance of stressing her points, but I felt as each paragraph brought up the same point. I think everyone has a different idea of feminism, but from my definition of what it is, I don't really believe in feminism. I think feminist's have a superior view for women. I believe more in equality. I also can't imagine what it would feel like to be uncomfortable or unwelcomed in my own neighborhood. I can't fathom the feeling of being scared to walk down the block. Also, I didn't really understand what the writer meant in the end, when she was talkng about black woman today, I don't see a problem in the here or now, and I hope someone can enlighten me on what the problem is; maybe I am neive or inexperienced in this departmen, but what problems do they really face today?

Karma

I have always believed in Karma, but never have I experienced such imediate results. The other day, after we got off of work, me and my boyfriend were on our way to meet some friends downtown (again). We were parked at a red light on Pelham and Outer Drive. I looked to my right and there was a middle aged man standing there picking through the trash at the gas station. I felt so bad and I was actually in disbelief, that's something you see in downtown Detroit, not in Dearborn. We ended up pulling over and giving the man 20 dollars. He was so grateful, and that made me feel even worse. He looked like a dad, just going through a hard time, he was clean cut, just trying to make ends meet I guess (he was looking for cans mostly). When I handed him the twenty, he said to me, "God bless you. I hope you win the lottery."
Okay, so good deed done, we continue on our way downtown, and there's this area that goes from I think 70 to 55 mph, and we were talking, not paying attention, and he was going about five over anyways, so we ended up going 20 miles over the speed limit. We see a state cop, who you never get slack from, he put his lights on, pulled up to us, and then just motioned his hand for us to slow down, and drove off. I couldn't believe it, I have never seen Karma work so quickly.
We ended up meeting up with our friends, and had a good time, up until, both me and my girlfriend got drugged. It was horrible. So, in this case, karma confused me.

Downtown

Last night I went downtown with my girlfriend, Katie. We parked and had to walk a couple blocks to our destination. Because of our discussion in class, I actually saw the reality of the city. I have been downtown numerous times, for games, shows, and just going out, and I always saw everything that went on, but I kind of looked through it, not at it. I can't even begin to imagine what it feels like to be homeless, living on the streets.

Commentary on Niki's Window

In "Niki's Window: Detroit and the humiliation of History" I felt the disappointment in Heron's tone. He seems unpleasant and irritated with the way Detroit is today and how it seems as though no one cares about the great city it once was. I myself, travel through and to Detroit often, and have never really stopped to think about what the city used to hold, used to promise. Heron gives you the real story behind "Greektown", which was founded by French, then Germans, the false history it appears to preserve. It isn't even a town, its a couple of blocks. the whole area is play, nothings real, nothing's what it appears to be. The city is a ghetto, with murders, crime, drugs, along with many other not so glamorous affiliates. Greektown is a tourist attraction for young to middle aged whites who come to eat dinner and hold hands. There is no truth in Greektown. It's all a farce. "Trapper's Alley" claims to be historical, but is "generic", made up with no real historical backing. Heron says Trapper's Alley stands for "pastness"; this meaning that in the past trappers did sell their pelts and hides here, but it isn't history, its just something that happened. Niki's used to actually be the shop for the Dodge Brothers. This was so fascinating to me. Also, to discover that Henry Ford was just the guy smart enough to put his name on the car, but had no backing. His success came from them. Also, the Dodge brothers loved gambling, this obviously points to the numerous gambling visinities in Detroit. The city has become a playhouse for grown ups, its fun to visit, but it's really pretend and you can't really live there. Heron says, 'the nostalgia for history can be shared, but the experience is purely recreational.' I think he means that you can go see restored and preserved buildings with "historical" meaning, but the "history" you're witnessing is falsified and made up. Heron I think is making a joke about the To A Tee shirt vendor who "kept the faith" by having a shirt with a dictionary definition of Detroit on it. The whole city is fake, fake history, fake purple souveneirs that are imported, showing that we don't even have faith in ourselves anymore, we don't buy our own products, the same people out there commiting crimes, are doo-whopping as they make fudge. Dennis Kefallinos reached the American dream, he got the promises we once dished out, to come and make a new life. Niki's still has a "Boydell Building" faded sign on the front of the window, a truly historical place, but it's faded and overlooked, just like the city and it's unkown history. When Heron says, 'Detroits a symbo of humiliated American pride', I have to partially agree because I do share the viewpoints that he has expressed in "Niki's Window". I think that Heron did explore a very obvious topic that may be so obvious that it's easy to miss, but I also think that he didn't touch at all on the benefits that Detroit still has to offer, such as Comerica and although it might not be correct history, Dennis still is living the American Dream, regardless if it was Antoine Laument who got there first.