Rob St. Mary was already traveling light when he moved to Colorado in March. He sold many of his belongings, including his car, packed his cats and a U-Haul, and set out from Detroit to a job at Aspen Public Radio. Just a few months into his new life, he is even lighter, having shed […]
Nancy Derringer
Nancy Nall Derringer is a former reporter at Bridge
Posted inThe Center for Michigan
Black Thursday, or who to throttle first at the Thanksgiving table
The word “rant” is overused in describing today’s political discourse, but what this man, a psychologist in his 50s, is working himself up to can hardly be called anything else. He is sitting at a table in a gracious home in Grosse Pointe Park, among friends and friends of friends, invited to a discussion about […]
Posted inThe Center for Michigan
Attack or stand down?
If Thanksgiving cooking is so daunting that a poultry producer can set up a 1-800 help line, what advice dedicated to social interaction on the holiday might be helpful? Marci Raver, an Ann Arbor etiquette expert, admits it’s a tough one: “I’ve found that it is very tricky to drink just enough wine” that one […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Taxing tensions in Troy
Mayor Dane Slater, chosen initially by city council to replace recalled Janice Daniels and then re-elected to finish her term, stands in the Troy Community Center. (photo by Nancy Derringer) Jennifer Hilzinger is one of many Troy residents who sometimes can’t understand what’s going on in her hometown. One minute she’s living in the place […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
The race to join the middle class: it’s a steeper climb for minorities
ON TRACK: Students learn machinist skills in a Focus: HOPE classroom. The program is designed to put them on a career path to a middle-class income. (Courtesy photo) Craig Vanderburg will be the first to tell you that he’s worked hard for what he has, but caught a few breaks along the way. He came […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Michigan’s bike cities shift gears and commuting cultures
PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: Above, Monday-night “slow rolls” organized by Detroit Bike City take riders past some of the city’s landmarks. Here, riders take a break in front of the Motown Museum. (Photo by Greg Ezzo, courtesy of Detroit Bike City) For a place that calls itself the Motor City, there was a whole lot of non-motoring […]
Posted inQuality of Life
As the middle class morphs, so does the idea of marriage
FIRST COMES MARRIAGE? Keith and Emelia Stark were middle class before they got married, and are likely to stay there. But can marriage elevate less economically secure couples into the middle class? Experts aren’t so sure. (Courtesy photo) Keith and Emelia Stark admit their marriage isn’t a typical one – Keith has 19 years on […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Middle class shifts challenge traditional service clubs
They’ve been a fixture of city-limit signs for generations: Under the one that welcomes you to the community, two or three service-club logos and exhortations to join the Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions or Jaycees at their regular breakfast or lunch meetings. Service clubs are many things, but exclusive isn’t one of them. Once the barriers to […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Far from bankrupt: Michigan art museums thrive despite economic woes
To hear John Henry, director of the Flint Institute of Arts, tell it, there once existed a near-magical time in that city’s history, when its blue-collar roots lived in harmony with a yearning for beauty and creativity somewhere off the assembly line. That was the era when Charles Stewart Mott, the city’s two-time mayor and […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Why go? A peek inside some of the state’s best art museums
With the end of a summer approaching, Michigan tourists may be looking for more indoor destinations in fall. The state’s art museums welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors in a year, with collections and programming that vary widely. A few possibilities are: Detroit Institute of Arts Michigan’s largest, located on Woodward Avenue in the city’s […]