The Educated Emotion

End of Summer  Have you ever noticed how a slogan will start to be passed around in advertising for a while? As a kid, I remember all the stores that were open late in the fall would call their sales "midnight madness" or something to that effect.  A few years ago the buzz phrase was "Christmas in July". This year is no different. I have heard Labor Day termed "the unofficial last day of Summer" more than a handful of times this year. It doesn't have quite the same charm as Christmas in July but it does give one pause. Ending Summer when living in the Midwest is quite a sobering thought. But guess what? In Michigan, Summer isn't the only exciting season around here! Fall in Michigan means amusement parks without blistering heat, cider mill and maple tree tours, and...the ARTS!! One way to verify that fall is here is with the Kerrytown Bookfest happening this Sunday. John F. Buckley The writing and poetry community is definitely read...

Ann Arbor, Michigan has made it to the top of many lists as the best place to live for women, bicyclists, and even dating. Recently, Ann Arbor has made it to the top of a not-so-noble list: The Laziest Cities list.  My first reaction was that of disbelief. But, then I read how the list was derived. For instance, locals like to begin their day at an average time of 8:17 a.m., which is later than most cities in the United States. My guess is that Ann Arbor's appearance on this list is a byproduct for some of the other lists it has topped. Locals like to carpool, bike, walk, and jog to work. Also, there is a lot of support for the arts. Between 2004 and 2005 I witnessed thousands of people lose their jobs and careers after a major pharmaceutical company left town. The estimated loss to the local arts community was nearly $400,000. This is a combination of the loss in funding directly given by the company as well as the decrease in highly paid professionals with time and...

Nicola's Books in Ann Arbor, poster made for Giving Tuesday, Cafe Ollie's in Ypsilanti, Santa and 3-y-old Judah in Depot Town, Kolossos Printing  in Ann Arbor, and Bookbound of Ann Arbor. In a conversation with the founder of DishFish , Joel Vergun, he said something that really stuck out to me as a community enthusiast. He likened the support of small businesses to a cause that you you would normally associate with a nonprofit. "We see helping small businesses in the community as a worthy cause," said Vergun.   In the collage above, I captured a few locally owned and operated businesses and organizations that I patronized this year. In the top row f rom left to right:  Mashup of an evening with poet Nikki Giovanni at Nicola's Books in Ann Arbor, a poster for my first year serving in the role of a social media ambassador for Giving Tuesday, In the bottom row, from left to right:  Danielle Teachout, co-owner at Cafe Ollie's in Ypsilanti, ser...