City Saunter Books

Sometime around noon tomorrow, I should be getting 5 cases with 100 of my memoir books in it. My book. Your books. I am so thankful to all the people who trusted me and pre-paid for their chance to be the first owners of The City Saunter Story. As nervous as I am about having people read it ⁠— finally, I am also super pumped to hear what other people think! The photo/blog book will be here sometime next week and I get to have the excitement all over again! Then I get to start booking signings, talks, presentations, and one City Saunter with someone who chose that as their campaign pledge! If anyone is interested in having me come in for a talk, I would love to work out the details with you. If you have a place of business or a group that meets someplace, and you’d like to host a book signing, let me know about that too!

If you didn’t get your book, you can still order through me. Here is the link for that: I WANT A BOOK!

Thank you!

“We Were in the Band Together”

Lansing is often referred to as a Little Big City. I think if you asked 5 people what that really means you probably would get 5 different answers. For me, it means there are enough big city activities such as museums, theater, and festivals to entertain the locals and make us feel we have a variety similar to any larger city on one hand. Then on the other you still feel your voice matters, you can get involved in a more intricate way and if you are out and about you run into people you know. This Saturday was a blaring example of this point. Since completing City Saunter and taking on the management of a creative space in REO Town, I have increased my presence down there, including hosting local events, helping with the festivals hosted by REO Town and being voted in as a board member of the REO Town Commercial Association. This means when something is going on down there I am usually present. Yesterday was the 5^th year of REO Town’s Art Attack event. It’s an amazing day spent creating art, listening to art, tasting art, buying art and watching art being created. The smell of spray paint and the sounds of local bands is a given. This year one of the bands playing was Bastards of Young. I wasn’t familiar with the name but one of the band members was someone I was familiar with, Scott Owens. Some of you might know Scott from the band 19 Wheels. But I know Scott from many years earlier when I entered Lansing Eastern High School for the first time as a freshman in 1984. I had signed up to play flute for the Lansing Eastern High School band and band camp was a month before school even started. I clearly remember my dad dropping me off in the high school parking lot that summer. I had no idea what I was doing. I found one of my middle school friends; Jennifer Foster (no relation) and she led me around, helping me load my bags into the buses and giving out instructions. She’d been through all of this with her siblings. I unfortunately was a first born and all of this was new to me. When it was time to get on a bus, I just picked one. I didn’t really know anyone so it didn’t matter to me much.  This bus only had seats in the back available and I somehow picked a row very near Scott and the senior drum major, Rip Kinne. They sang loud and proud to every song on Prince’s Purple Rain cd and by the time we arrived at the Ebersole Center I was well versed in all the band chants, Quaker cheers and “Let’s Go Crazy” was my new favorite song. This was the very beginning of turning into a band geek. These Quakers became family as I spent more time with them through four years of camps, practices, games, class time, parades, and trips out of state than my actual family. It was probably because of how much time we spent together that these years still mean a great deal to me. Some of my closest friendships formed through the band. So when I found out that not only was my old drum major playing at Art Attack but three other fellow Quakers (two of which were in the band with us), I immediately sent out a social media post that some Quakers were in the house. Soon we had collected six other Quakers (3 of which were in the band together) to rock out to our friends performing on stage. To add to the fun, we ran into our band director, Jack Mike, who had come out to watch the guys play. Some 30 years after we were all in the band together we had met up again to enjoy a wonderful #lovelansing event on a gorgeous Michigan day. To me that’s what makes Lansing so great. I can head out to enjoy an exciting festival and still find a handful of old friends and memories, overlapping, year after year, event after event. The weaving of these encounters; remembering who we were, embracing where we are and anticipating who we will become, only reinforces my love for this little big city I call home.

Scrapping Along

The warnings started arriving via phone apps early: Heat Advisory for your area. The warning for extreme heat isn’t new in the Lansing area but we hadn’t had much heat yet this summer. Despite the threat, a purposeful storm system with high winds, heavy rain and lightening pounded the area just before noon reducing the temperatures by 10 more degrees. I’m pretty sure the anticipated high of 90 degrees never arrived. But the damage was done and plans were canceled leaving our family with nothing to do. I suggested, once again, that we could all drive to Old Town for The ScrapFest. Within minutes we were traveling west.For the first time The Scrap Fest was venturing out onto its own; it wasn’t paired with the Festival of the Sun and Moon. I didn’t really notice a reduction in foot traffic and it seemed to have a more craft festival feel to it. There were crafter tables around the perimeter of the event as well as hands on activities hosted by REACH Studio Art Center. There was the given musical entertainment area under a large canopy which had kept the crowd dry earlier. At the center was the Scrap Art. Each year participants forage through Friedland’s scrap yard locating the perfect set of recyclable material to create their masterpiece and each year the resulting art is magnificent. This year was not any different. There was a flexible metallic fish that actually had a swimming motion when a wheel was manually turned. There was a giant mosquito that despite being all metal looked horrifyingly real, given this year’s bumper crop of the pest. Crafted in metal there were turtles, dragons, fish, flowers, and even a mosaic Michigan table, including the Upper Peninsula as a high top table.We spent about an hour there looking at the art, enjoying the music and running into quite a few people we knew, which is one of the great things I love about Old Town.

My Michigan

Petosky, MI

About a year ago one of my family members was moving from California to either Michigan or Florida. I quickly found myself creating lists of reasons why a move to Michigan would be the perfect choice. I guess I wasn’t the only one looking into the many assets our great Mitten State has to offer. A recent article from Thrillest.com ultimately decided that Michigan was ranked the greatest state out of all 50. Many of us here in Michigan already know that. On the same note the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau asked folks on social media to create a Pinterest page dedicated to all the things people love about Lansing summers. I was able to create this page: I #LoveLansing Summers. I think it’s natural to have pride in the location you’ve decided to live in, raise a family in, work in and vacation in. Michiganders love their state.  We love the great lakes, the urban cities, the national forests, the four seasons, and the people.

Here’s just a short list of some of my favorite Michigan places.

Lansing, MI view from the Boji Tower

1. Lansing, MI

The Grand River at Francis Park

This is home. This place has such a stronghold on my heart that it’s hard to explain how much I adore it. The people here are amazing. The sense of community is intoxicating! The changes that have taken place in the last 30 years are hard to comprehend. Each year this little big city expands and grows much for the better. I look forward to seeing where we will be in another 30.

2. Traverse City

Golfing at Traverse City

I hadn’t spent much time here as a child but my husband’s family did. As an adult we make a trip to Traverse City almost every year. From the camp grounds to the quaint city there is something for everyone. We’ve spent time picking red raspberries and eating cherries from a roadside stand while meandering through the peninsulas. We’ve golfed at scenic golf courses. We’ve sat at the beach and camped at the campground. There are Cherry Fests and Film fests that draw in thousands a year.

Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City

3. Sleeping Bear Dunes

Sleeping Bear Dunes, Michigan

This can almost be rolled into the Traverse City section but since it was rated by GMA in 2011 as the most beautiful place in America, I thought I would give it its own vote. As a child I would take trips here with my grandparents who had an RV at Duck Lake. As an adult I’ve traveled to these majestic sand mountains during the summer and also winter. Some may not know but they allow sledding on these hills in the winter and it was one of the best sledding I’ve ever done.

Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan

4. Porcupine Mountains

Lake in The Clouds the view from Porcupine Mountains, MI

As a child my family would travel the 12 hours to Lake Pomeroy and camp for almost two weeks. From there we would take day trips to waterfalls, Lake Gogebic and, my favorite, Porcupine Mountains. I was able to take my older kids to this beautiful wilderness area and we enjoyed ourselves greatly despite the steady rain.

The Presque Isle River that run through Porcupine Mountains into Lake Superior.

5. Holland, MI

Windmill Island Holland, MI

This was another location my family would head to when I was a child. We would take the 1.5 hour drive to the Holland Beach and spend the whole day there. My sister in law recently moved there with her family and we usually take 3-4 trips to Holland a year now. We’ve explored Tunnel Park, Windmill Island and the adorable city.

Tunnel Park in Holland, MI

I’m sure everyone has their favorites too. It’s honestly extremely difficult to pick only a handful. I hope everyone enjoys your summer wherever you decide to spend it!

All images are ©Ariniko Artistry 2015.

Ariniko is a greater Lansing photographer who specializes in community enrichment through family portraits, business photography and event photography. To find more examples of her work check out her website at www.ariniko.com.

Up the River with a Paddle

On May 16 of this year I was asked to photograph a new adventure race. The creators of the DirtyFeat race were at it again. This time they established Lansing’s first kayak race. On a cool, foggy morning I joined a group of about 60 people; racers, volunteers, coordinators and fans, along a four mile stretch of inner city rivers. With my camera tucked inside a backpack I raced along the Lansing River Trail on my bike, visually documenting the progress of 40 kayakers. The process was relatively simple; check in at the Lansing City Market, leave by van to the race start near Frandor, enter the water in your kayak, and paddle back to the market. Jeff Smith, who is one of the creators of this event, said it was such a simple process that it could be recreated on almost any water way, at any time of year. There’s a hope to host it twice a year. Not only was it a great way to get out onto our amazing rivers but proceeds from the race benefit the Friends of the River Trail. If you’d like more information you can find it at the RedPaddle website. A full set of photographs can be found here.

 

Floating on Air

Our City Saunter interview April 13, 2011.

On a cool Mid-Michigan morning in early April 2011, I met my second news anchor in person. I had contacted Evan Pinsonnault of WLNS Channel 6 news when he put out a request for cool things happening in Lansing for his Tell Me Something Good Segment. He quickly responded to the email I sent and within the week he was joining me for one of my Saunters. He brought a camera man and they put together this lovely video. It was one of the greatest days of my walking adventure and I wrote this blog about it. After that moment I’ve had a handful of run ins with Evan; Common Ground Film Festival, Blues Festival, The Red Nose Rukus party and Ye Old Christmas. It seemed we attended quite a few of the same events and every time he saw me there, he walked straight to me, hugged me, said he was glad to see me and took time to ask how I was doing. Every time. To this day it amazes me. I’ve had folks from the Lansing community that I have photographed and been introduced to over 20 times who still have no idea who I am.

Evan judges Ye Old Christmas gingerbread house competition. I was the photographer for this event.

Evan on the WLNS float during Silverbells

When my City Saunter project came to a completion Evan tried desperately to get me on his broadcast again. Unfortunately it didn’t work out.

Then came the news that he was moving to California. I wasn’t surprised. He had mentioned to me before that he had hopes to move to a new location. Although I feel he will be greatly missed in Lansing, I am very excited for him.

Through communication on Facebook he suggested I come onto his Feel Good February segment to do a re-cap of the City Saunter Project, how I completed it and what I’m up to now. I, of course, said YES!

This morning I woke up bright and early, 4:45 a.m., to arrive at the station by 5:45 a.m. I’ve been to a few news stations to be interviewed for this project before but am always intrigued with the functionality of each. I was ushered to the “green room” which was really the computer offices of all the staff. One wall held at least 6 televisions all broadcasting different stations and news updates as well as the live broadcast. It was quite fascinating. I entered just as the clip showing me came on. There is something a bit surreal when you walk into a news station and you are on the news. One of the employees says, “Hey that’s you.”

I was offered a cup of coffee and told Evan would be in soon. The other anchor, Chivon, came in and we talked for a few minutes.

When the live broadcast switched to local commercials I knew Evan would be in soon. When he did come in,  just like always he came straight to me, arms spread for his perfected hug, warmly saying, “Hello my dear!”

I gave Evan this photo to remind him of Lansing while he continues his journey. I hope he will always remember his time here fondly.

I sort of don’t remember the interview. I know we talked about City Saunter. I know we plugged AA Creative Corridor. I know we plugged my Ariniko Artistry photography, I know I was so nervous and didn’t know where to look. Luckily Evan asked all the right questions and prodded me along when I need it.

It’s a bit sad thinking that these meet ups won’t happen again. Maybe I’ll write a City Saunter book and have him arrange a book signing in California!

A girl can dream, right?

xxoo

Driving Forward in REO Town

Thursday night while attending a REO Town Association meeting, as we went over the yearly schedule for 2015, the new businesses coming to our little section of town and the recognition as a Michigan Main Street, it really sunk in. REO Town business owners, residents and those that support this area are really kicking butt! When I first started City Saunter in late 2010 REO Town wasn’t much on the map.

There were hints of movement within its chrysalis; Gillespie Group was interested in starting a crowd sourced restaurant and there were rumors that BWL was planning to build a new state of the art facility. One came to fruition, and the other not so much. However it provided the groundwork for the very successful Good Truckin’ Diner to move in last year.

 Skip ahead five years later and The BWL Cogeneration Plant has been operating for almost two years now, Washington Ave had a complete make-over, there’s multiple places to dine with new ones on the horizon, and the Washington Ave. section has at least five new businesses that were not there five years ago, myself included.

Not only are there businesses that are flourishing in this location there’s also a consistent set of festivals that have been taking place down there for multiple years now.

ARTS & CRAFT BEER FESTIVAL

At the end of January REO Town’s festival season officially begins with I’m a Beer Hound’s ambitious Arts and Craft Beer Festival. For this year’s activities there will be three venues, including the gallery space I manage (AA Creative Corridor), an outdoor area behind REO Town Pub and also inside the Cadillac Room which is now ran by Riverview Church, who moved in last year. All three venues will have music and arts as well as Right Brain Brewery beer.

REO TOWN THRIFT STORE GALA

March 21, 2015 the REO Town association will host its second REO Town Thrift Store Gala. Last year there was a combination of retro foods, products and pin-ups. It was exciting and the perfect event to get to know the REO Town folks that are working hard day in and out to make REO Town a thriving entertainment area.

REO TOWN BEER FEST

June 27 I’m A Beer Hound will be hosting its third REO Town Beer Fest out on Washington Ave. Last year, even with threat of rain, a large crowd gathered on Washington Ave. to experience craft beers of over thirty breweries, music and community.

THE DOG OLYMPICS

There isn’t a greater event than one that is create by a child for a cause that is dear to his hearts. Last year for the second time Isaac Torok hosted his good-natured, for a cause, Dog Olympics. This year it will be held July 25 and will again benefit the American Cancer Society Bark for Life. Last year they raised $1400.

ART ATTACK

In September Art Attack will once again take center stage. This hands-on arts event brings together craft vendors, performers and artists. Last year the artists used their incredible talents to create trashy works of arts.  By that, I mean contestants used their extensive creativity to design unique trash receptacles that were placed in various locations around town. The year before the elaborately, much photographed, graffiti wall was created. I would imagine this year’s event will continue in this vein.

PEACE OF LANSING

Only a couple of weeks after Art Attack I host Peace of Lansing. This year will be the second time this single day of global peace has been in REO Town. This is the 5^th year of Peace of Lansing and will fall on a Monday. This event is used to pass out free books, collect school supplies for Lansing School District Schools and provide a stress free time to reconnect with the community.

OTHER ACTIVITIES IN REO TOWN

As great as it is to have these continued festivals it should also be pointed out that quite a few other activities are frequently happening in downtown REO Town. Every Friday AA Creative Corridor hosts dancing. The second and fourth Fridays have Salsa Capital dancing and first and third Fridays have Sugar House Blues Dancing.

The theater group Ixion Theatre Ensemble also performs multiple times a year in this location with the play Shipwrecked opening February 14.

The opening debut of The Robin Theater at 1105 S. Washington Ave. sometime later this year will provide the area with a fresh and exciting performance venue. Quite a few familiar faces are coordinating efforts to create this space, including members of the Lansing Unionized Vaudeville Spectacle, who have already performed in the space.

Last summer Co:Space opened its doors as a new collaborative workspace for state workers, traveling business people and IT Professionals that might need a location to work that fits their specific needs. The brain child of Scott McLean, Vice President of Operations at New Horizon and Ryan Kinkaid of Kinkaid Henry Building Company, this facility provides the perfect centralized location for professionals to create and connect.

As REO Town continues to drive forward and with staple businesses like LEAP, St. Vincent De Paul Thrift Store, Michigan Women’s Historical Center & Hall of Fame, Leroy’s Classic Bar & Grill, Soulful Earth Herbals, REO Town Pub, REACH Art Studio, Cuttin’ Up Barbershop, Just B Yoga, Good Fruit Video, Uno Deuce Multimedia, Studio Intrigue Architects and Foliage Design Systems (the short list) firmly in place, you may want to put on the brakes and visit one of Lansing’s actively artistic areas.

All images © Ariniko Artistry, who has a studio in REO Town.

Dressing Up for the Dogs

Super Dog!

Sometimes I have a side gig where I take photos and even write a small news paragraph to accompany the photographs for the City Pulse. I was recently asked to cover a Halloween activity in Old Town. I had a really busy week at the AA Creative Corridor and thought there was no way I could fit it in but it happened to fall into a time frame that I had nothing else planned. Plus it was something that I thought my kids might enjoy. So last Friday I loaded them both into the car and told them we needed to go to Old Town to take photos of the Old Town Doggie Trick or Treat. Our pet Samoyed, Sparty, had passed away a few years ago and both of the kids have wanted a new dog. I don’t know if my letting them hang out with a crowd of dogs benefits my reluctance to get them a dog or not. But I think they had a great time. Here are some of the photos we took.

Fluffy Strawberry

I am always intrigued by the idea to put a pet into a costume.

Love the Look

Most of the dogs were cute a cuddly. This one really made me laugh though. What an adorable face.

Cowdog

Cuddly Pumpkin

Scooby

An adult dressing up like a dog.

Frog Dog

Color coordination is always a winner!

Super Hero Huskies

Happy Halloween Everyone! Stay safe, fun and be kind to your neighbors as you spend time out and about this Friday!

Still Telling My Story

I like this. I really, really like this. I am sitting at 1133 South Washington Ave.; the newly energized AA Creative Corridor (that’s another blog), with my photographs from a three year journey on the walls. I have friends, family and even strangers that stop and read through each of my placards for the photos on display. I get feedback and questions. I have really great conversations with the people who pass through. What I really like is the relaxation of this new part. Before, when I talked about City Saunter the question always came up; “how much more do you have to walk?” This suspension of completion always irritated me. I know it makes perfect sense to ask, but I felt like because the project was unfinished it was dismissible. I would feel exhausted thinking about how much work I still had to do. Now that all the walking is complete, I get to analyze it. I get to theorize it. I get to share it. I really enjoy that part. I’ve found through this analysis part that there are many aspects to this project and it’s often hard to settle on just one as the most significant.

There’s the photography. I loved that I was able to use my journey to solidify my love of photography. I also love that it is through the photographs that I get to share Lansing. For the few moments you take to look at the photographs, you LIKE Lansing, you really like Lansing. It’s gorgeous and fun and exciting from the perspective of this exhibit. I enjoy bringing that to people.Then there’s the process; the how I worked my way through all the streets of Lansing. I didn’t systematically walk the streets. I used events, and volunteering and familiarity to branch out across the city. This allowed me the chance to get into a lot of different aspects of the city as a venue. I remember a few years ago Lori Lanspeary the Leisure Marketing Manager for Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau invited me to Lugnut’s stadium for her birthday because “I was helping her do her job and she wanted to thank me”. I hadn’t even met her! It was these type of piggy backing that allowed me the greatest opportunity with this project; meeting amazing people that were also trying to make Lansing amazing. We all #lovelansing.

Then there was the actual walking part. A woman just came in today and after checking out the exhibit looked at me and said, “You look amazing.  I mean you did all that walking”. She then took me to the photo that LSJ took of me in February 2011. My face is much rounder in that photo than what it is today. I think she was a bit embarrassed but I understood what she meant. I was walking a lot; 535 miles to be exact! From September 4 to October 4 I walked 197 miles. On October 3^rd alone I walked 29 miles and biked about 5 more. It was 10 hours of exercising! There is no way I could have ever done that before. Twenty Nine Miles!! I have it colored in orange on the map at the gallery; I’ll show it to you!I’m sure there are other aspects to this project that I haven’t even gotten yet. There has definitely been this “opening of doors” effect that still astounds me, especially as I sit here in gorgeous REO Town, in an historic building, diligently working on the next aspect of this journey.Come down to 1133 Washington Ave this week to catch an encore presentation of the City Saunter Exhibit. I’ll be here from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. every day this week. There’s no need to knock, the doors will surely be open!

Be the Love

Carefully I planned out my attire for this walk; red corduroys with matching top, my daughter’s pink poncho with hearts and peace signs all over it and a pink bow in my hair. I wanted to wear a sign on my back that said “Honk if you #LoveLansing” but Pat thought it was too much. The night before I had finished creating 24 Hershey Kiss rose buds. Today I planned to pass them out as I walked one of my final east side routes. I’d learned before that giving away things to people isn’t as easy as you’d think. A few months back I desperately tried to hand out 5 Biggby cards. People tend to be wary of a stranger walking around asking if you like coffee. I knew with this give away I would look the part and act the part; happy City Saunterer (it’s a noun now) dressed like a Valentine Card, handing out homemade treats. It mostly worked. I had a slow start as the streets I needed to walk were residential. As I worked my way closer to the busier streets I began to find more and more people to flower/candy bomb.
Here’s my route:
http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/232707078
My recipients:
1. Lady walking her dog. The dog growled at me.
2. A man in a wheelchair on his front porch. He was feeding about 5 squirrels peanuts.
3. The mailman on Allen St.
4. I placed one on a set of delivered packages on a decorated home on Allen St.
5 & 6 I crossed the street where a man and woman whose disabled car left them abandoned in Lansing from out of town. I told them I couldn’t fix their car but I could try to cheer them up. It did.
7 A woman walking out of Ronald McDonald House.
8 & 9 Two girls walking down the street. Their response was ; “How sweet”.
10. A man walking on Kalamazoo St.
11 A young girl on Jones
12. A young guy on Holmes
13. Another guy on Pennsylvania
14 A girl walking down Pennsylvania with heart shaped balloons trailing behind her. She also had a package in her arms. When I gave her the flower she announced that it was also her birthday! What a treat!
15. Lady carrying packages into Rite Aid
16. & 17 Two girls getting on the bus on Michigan Ave.
18 A man hurrying across the street from Sparrow. He had a red coat on. I couldn’t resist.
19 Burcham Hill driver
20. A well dressed woman waiting outside Sparrow Professional Center
21 & 22 A couple also waiting outside the Sparrow Professional Center
23 & 24 A couple waiting for the bus down the road from Sparrow.
What a great day of giving!