Occupy Grand Rapids Protest Photo

Below is a photo of protestors in the "Occupy Grand Rapids" demonstration. Photo acquired from Flickr with Creative Commons License.

Grand Rapids Church Supports 'Occupy' Movement

The nondenominational Fountain Street Church in Grand Rapids, MI is openly endorsing the "Occupy Grand Rapids" movement in word and deed. MLive.com reports that Senior Pastor Rev. Fred Wooden says that Jesus Christ himself would have been part of the anti-Wall Street protests if he were alive today. In addition to a vocally public endorsement, the church is also allowing protestors to sleep in their church parking lot at night. According to the article, other inter-faith organizations and churches are also beginning to express support for the growing movement for its outrage over growing poverty rates and extreme economic disparity.

The map below marks the location of the Fountain Street Church in Grand Rapids.

Marty Dow Photo Submission

This photograph is of the Vice-President of the United States of America
Joseph Biden. He recently made some controversial remarks
regarding crime during a visit to Flint. Some have argued the
accuracy of these statements. This photo is by Jim Greenhill
and is reproduced under a Creative Commons License.

Michigan State Player gets Suspended

On October Saturday 15 2011, Michigan State player William Gholston, a defensive end, was called for two personal penalties resulting in his suspension from the Wisconsin game on Saturday, Mlive.com reports. The first penalty was for pulling Michigan Quarterback Denard Robinson to the ground by the face mask, the second penatly was after punching Michigan's Offensive Lineman Taylor Lewan.

Photo Provided by mattradickal at flickr William Gholston at Saturday's game.

Gholston released a statement.

"Although provoked, my response was inappropriate," he said. "Coach Dantonio regularly reminds us that actions have consequences, and I will be better prepared to handle these circumstances in the future. I look forward to my reinstatement."

Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio had this to say about Gholston's actions.

"In the heat of the moment, he momentarily lost his composure. Football is an emotional game of split-second reactions. It was an unfortunate incident. We look forward to his reinstatement"

For the complete article go to Mlive.com or see the Big Ten Release or Michigan State's Release.

The photo is relevant because it is of Gholston at the game on Saturday before both penalties happened. The link to the photo is underneath it and this is the link to the license.

Skateland Arena celebrates 50th anniversary

photo by Indy Charlie on Flikr
Skateland Arena in Genesee Township will be celebrating its 50 year anniversary. Skateland, which has been open since 1961, will be holding a big birthday bash for its customers this Saturday to celebrate. Guests will be charged 50 cents to get in from 1-7 p.m. in honor of the anniversary. Skating from 8-11 p.m. will be half off and there will be skating for adults 18 and older from midnight to 3 a.m., according to arena co-owners, Denise McChesney and Peggy McCombs. Skateland has been a family business since its opening and was founded by McChesney and McCombs' dad and grandfather. McChesney and McCombs are already looking with high hopes at a 100 year anniversary of Skateland Arena.

The full story can be found here. Here are the photo rights

Oxford Scarecrow Festival correction

I realized after posting this story yesterday that I forgot to include a link to the story it was based on. The Scarecrow Festival story can be viewed
here.
I also realized that the map that I included turned out to be too small. I've included a larger map.



View Oxford Scarecrow Festival in a larger map

Map Posting

I am choosing the following map posting for a few reasons. The map shows the location of the Brent Run Landfill in Montrose, Mi. I drive past this landfill every time I come to class. The landfill creates a lot of traffic among other things. One day this past summer the trash trucks had traffic backed up again, as they do many times. A man did not stop at the traffic back-up and his vehicle slammed into my dad's stopped blazer at 55 miles per hour. My Father suffered severe whiplash from it. So along with the environmental impacts from this landfill there are personal impacts. This article describes  an expansion of the landfill I am referring to.


View Larger Map

Oxford Scarecrow Festival

Fall is here once again and families can enjoy the annual Oxford Scarecrow Festival on Saturday, October 22 from 2-6 p.m. The Scarecrow Festival will have a variety of activities, contests, and live entertainment. Most of the festival will take place at the Oxford Centennial Park, with a few activities taking place at nearby locations, as shown on the map. Activities set to take place include face painting and a moon bounce for children, vendors selling custom yard art and jewelry for adults, and a pet costume parade for pets. Parents are encouraged to bring their children in costume, so they can trick-or-treat at participating businesses on Washington St. Live entertainment will include the band Lipstick and Venom (playing music from the '80's, '9o's, and today) from 2-3 p.m. and the acoustic guitar stylings of Jaimie Marvin from 3:45-4:45 p.m. For more information or to register for any of the contests, visit
oxfordscarecrowfestival.com


View Oxford Scarecrow Festival in a larger map

Man finds hole in wall at business

According to an article in the Flint Journal, burglars left a hole in the wall of a Flint business, which was found on Sunday Oct. 16 by the owner. Among the items missing where 3 computer laptops, a furnace, and a sound system. According to the police report, there is no suspect information. Also there seems to be no information about what made the hole in the first place. I picked this photo because I think it most accurately describes the site the owner would've witnessed as he arrived at his businesses on Sunday. Photo link is here. License link is here. I'm pretty sure I followed everything.

Halloween Locations in Lapeer

Finding safe places to trick or treat at Halloween can be tough, but in Lapeer we have the annual Treat Walk. This provides parents with a fun day of carving pumpkins, Halloween decorations and a safe environment for trick or treating. The Lapeer County Press reported in Sunday's addition that the annual Treat Walk will be held Saturday, October 29.  The pumpkin carving begins at 9 a.m. at the Farmer's Market, the Treat Walk begins at 2 p.m., and the Baffling Bill's Halloween Magic show at the Pix Theater starts at 2:30 p.m. Tickets for Baffling Bill's Halloween Magic show can be bought here for 5 dollars.


View Halloween Locations in Lapeer in a larger map



The map above includes locations of the businesses involved in the Treat Walk, along with the location of the Farmer's Market, Pix and Past Tense. Past Tense Cider Mill has Halloween activities along with concerts for the month of October. It also offers Past Tense After Dark, which includes The Hayride of Despair, The Corn Maze of Fear and the House of Horrors, tickets to those events can be bought here.

The Making Strides Against Cancer Walk occurred on Oct. 15 at the Flat Lot across from the University Pavilion. Approximately 2,600 attended, including 319 cancer survivors, such as Barbara Armstrong. "I was diagnosed 16 years ago. I've been rediagnosed seven times. It's moved all over my body. I've lost my hair six times. I'm almost done with my [current] treatment. And I refuse to give up."

The event saw much participation from the students of UM-Flint, such as the CAB organization. The walk also drew support from businesses in the area, like Taylor and Morgan, an accounting firm that let their employees have the day off to participate. These facts are based on my own article about the event for the Michigan Times. Unfortunately, it wasn't up last time I checked so the article the Flint Journal wrote can be found here.