http://www.cruzweb.net Detroit musings from the mind of John Cruz Sun, 28 Feb 2010 19:01:39 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Nobody is perfect, mayor Dave Bing included. And making arguments for the need to downsize what was once America's fastest growing city is, well, nothing short of radical. No surprise, people are getting angry and confused at a proposal that will re-locate residents and will change the structure of the ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2010/02/28/the-need-to-shrink-detroit-and-why-we-must-do-it-now/ With a city government that is strapped for cash, has no idea how to spur economic development and has been given clown noses to wear at commission meetings, it's no wonder Mount Clemens is in the mess that it is. There is no perfect solution for these (and the other ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2010/01/10/its-time-for-mount-clemens-to-adopt-a-ward-system/ As promised, I've spent my time off putting together a portfolio site for my photography. I'm very happy with the way everything came out, all the little tweaks in wordpress I had to do to get things working the way they should, etc. I haven't hunted down all of the EXIF ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2010/01/01/new-year-new-site-welcome-to-misplaced-focus/ [caption id="attachment_963" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Down the Tracks"][/caption] So just for kicks, I decided to submit my photo "Down the Tracks" to the Bing.com (picture on the left) facebook contest to see what will be featured on Bing.com (yes, the background of the search area). Well, to my surprise, I got an email ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/12/15/i-need-your-help-down-the-tracks-is-a-finalist-for-bing-com/ Yah, I get the point. Damn, lay off. http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/12/12/hey-facebook/ Lately, I've taken up a strong interest in photography as of late. In doing so I've decided to upgrade from my little Samsung NV15 P&S to a Nikon D5000 DSLR so I can get more serious about what I'm doing. I had some great encouragement with my Old Main at ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/12/11/im-not-turning-this-into-a-photoblog-so/ So my group for my Thursday night urban planning course finally presented all of our research data on turning Detroit into Urban Villages last night. Keeping in step with making sure data is free to be shared with the masses, here's what we came up with. The download is in ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/12/11/urban-villages-in-detroit/ We started off the new millennium with lots of hopes. The whole "Year 2000" thing sounded so exciting and futuristic, and we were all expecting great things to come. Instead, this decade has been an awful start that hopefully won't set the stage for the next 90. While some areas ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/12/11/goodbye-and-goodriddence-to-2009-and-this-awful-decade/ With the rise of On Demand video, an overall lack of new movies I have no interest in seeing *cough* and the fact that nobody I know works there any more, I have little interest in going to Hollywood Video any more. With the desolate wasteland that the area is, ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/11/21/know-your-customers-hollywood-video-now-offers-a-stoner-movie-section/ So with the weather surprisingly pleasant and the sun setting, I opted to head out with a camera and see what I could find. Here's what happens with a camera on railroad tracks as the sun is setting. [caption id="attachment_963" align="aligncenter" width="614" caption="Down the Tracks"][/caption] http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/11/14/down-the-tracks-hdr/ Back in my undergrad days, I started putting up my papers online for people to see. So I decided, what the hell, I'll keep the tradition alive in grad school as well with anything that may be interesting. Peer review is always good too, of course. For those curious, you ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/11/14/book-review-last-harvest-how-a-cornfield-became-new-daleville/ With elections coming this Tuesday, I figured it's as good of a time as any to make my election endorsements for the Metro area. Some of these people I'll be able to vote for, others I won't. But if I could, here's the direction I'm heading. Macomb County All citizens in Macomb ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/29/2009-november-election-endorsements/ http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/29/sigh-poor-old-grosse-pointe/ A shot I took the other day of a house that's part of the Heidelberg Project on Detroit's East Side, on Heidelberg Street by Mt. Elliott. . You can view all of the pictures I took over in the photos section, but here's one of my favorites that came out ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/17/polka-dot-heidelberg-house-hdr/ Unlike many of my comrades, I usually take it easy on the mainstream media. After all, they're just people trying to do their jobs, usually. Particularly, I've shied away from making comments about news outlets that gave me positive press during the past school board elections. However the other day, I ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/17/macomb-daily-you-have-got-to-be-kidding-me/ Today I did the first of three days as part of the Detroit Orientation Institute. You can learn more about it here, and if you get the chance I highly recommend doing it sometime. Anyways, we were in the Opera House for a tour and a panel discussion on the Arts, ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/15/the-detroit-opera-house-chandelier-hdr/ I found this today on the wall of the Bucharest Grill, around the corner from Cliff Bell's and a block from Grand Circus Park.If you haven't been there, you must try it. It is a great place in Detroit to buy shawarma (or döner, whatever you call it), so stop ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/06/meet-the-shawarman/ If you are viewing this though RSS or Facebook, go to http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/06/levi-johnstons-nuts/ you'll really want to see this video. In case you don't recognize the name Levi Johnston, he's the fine and upstanding young man who Sarah Palin's baby's baby's daddy. A move that one could only assume would usually would ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/06/levi-johnstons-nuts/ This post contains a video. If you are viewing it through facebook or RSS, go to http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/05/brian-johnson-on-the-employee-free-choice-act/ to watch. Brian Johnson, the executive director of Americans for Worker Freedom, explains the Employee Free Choice Act and touches on some other things. From the Defending the American Dream Conference, 2009 in Arlington, ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/05/brian-johnson-on-the-employee-free-choice-act/ Because it deserves it's own post. I would have put this up yesterday but I was exhausted and needed to get to sleep. View them all over in the Photos section. People boarding the busses to the capital from the hotel: A Wheelchair-bound patroit The Press. Didn't catch what station he was with. ... http://www.cruzweb.net/2009/10/03/pictures-from-the-defending-the-american-dream-rally-townhall-yesterday/