The Upper Peninsula in winter looks like a Currier and Ives print. And what’s for dinner on the big day? How about some venison?
Ron Riekki
Ron Riekki was born and raised in the U.P. His books include “U.P.” (Ghost Road Press), “The Way North: Collected Upper Peninsula New Works” (Wayne State University Press), and other books, plays, and chapbooks. He has twice been nominated for Illinois Press Awards for journalism and prefers waffles for brunch. The views and assertions of guest columnists do not necessarily reflect those of Bridge or The Center for Michigan.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
You can take the boy out of the U.P., and this one went into showbiz
Actor Stephen Wiig talked his way from Negaunee into Metallica’s road crew, and from there he hasn’t really looked back.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
One main street, many bars, and a stubborn U.P. problem
Alcohol – and, increasingly, drugs – are deeply ingrained in over-the-bridge culture. And like everywhere, they are behind the area’s crime statistics.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
For such a beautiful part of Michigan, the U.P. isn’t ready for its close-up
Why do so many films made in the state shoot in the southern regions? People, equipment and inadequate promotion.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
When we all sat on one blanket, in U.P. summer celebrations of yore
Today, fireworks and patriotism are complicated things for many. Then, they were part and parcel of the best day of summer.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
Under the U.P. skies, it holds the reflection of all it sees
If you grew up in Michigan, you might have a place like Teal Lake. Lucky you.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
By the shores of Gitche Gumee, another writer finds inspiration
Ellen Airgood is one recent Upper Peninsula novelist whose work has traveled beyond the state. But she still hasn’t quit her day job.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
For U.P. residents, some health data to provoke chest pains
Does the Upper Peninsula have abysmal health statistics because of geography, behavior, poverty or something else? Likely all of the above.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
From the U.P. to the Screen Actors Guild? It’s kind of a funny story…
How does a kid from Negaunee become a card-carrying union brother of George Clooney? Practice, practice, practice.
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
Steve Hamilton on the real, and fictional, Upper Peninsula
NO PLACE LIKE PARADISE: Author Steve Hamilton is a Detroit native, but chose the Upper Peninsula as the setting for his successful crime series. (Photo by Julia Hamilton) Steve Hamilton is a bestselling author who locates his crime stories not in the big city, but in the small town of Paradise, Mich., a dot on […]