Teaching Christmas a Lesson

What's the logical thing to do when you're bored at Christmas? Apparently, you trash the outdoor decorations at Bronner's Christmas Wonderland in dear old Frankenmuth, where even the 7/11's look like a Bavarian ski lodge.

LaNia Coleman of The Bay City Times reports:

Frankenmuth Police have arrested four Genesee Township men, 17 to 21, in connection with the Christmas Day vandalism that caused about $40,000 worth of damage to 75 statues at Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland.

“At this time, all suspects are cooperating with investigators,” said Police Chief Donald Mawer. “It is still unknown as to the motive for this crime.”

Flint Expatriates T-Shirts in Lapis Blue

Due to popular demand, artist Jessica Lynch is making the official Flint Expatriates t-shirt available in a new color — Lapis Blue. (Check out the color to the left with a different design.)

You can only get the original slate gray color in XL at this point.

And, yes, I realize that the official Flint Expatriates t-shirt doesn't actually say "Flint Expatriates" anywhere on the shirt. It's really more of a t-shirt ode to Flint than a branding opportunity.

I don't make any money off these shirts. Jessica covered all the cost for design, labor and materials, so she needs to sell the shirts to make her money back.

Go here to order the shirts.

And go here for more info on how the Flint Expatriates t-shirt came to be.

Even the Abandoned Bars Aren't Safe

The oddly agrarian style of the Bottom Street Bar, abandoned but still standing. (Photo by Thomas Wirt)

Another fire, another unexpected vista. (Photo by Gordon Young)

I had another one of those now-familiar disorienting moments when I drove by the site of Chevy in the Hole earlier this month and discovered that the Bottom Street Bar was gone, along with the nearby bank, both victims of arson. (This used to be the Sundown Lounge, perhaps The Sundowner. Hard to remember.)

You can now stand on the edge of the rubble and see Hurley Hospital across the vast, empty plain bisected by the river.

I never stepped foot in the place, but it holds a prominent spot in my memory of Flint. If you happened to be driving on Chevrolet during a shift change when the traffic backed up, you could come to a stop directly in front of the bar door, which was often propped open during the summer. This was a big thrill for me as a kid. I loved mystery books and I imagined that it was the kind of dark, smokey place where somebody could get murdered. (Perhaps somebody did over the years.) This is how I discovered that it was acceptable to drink at 7 a.m. in Flint.

Me: What are they doing in there?

Mom: Drinking.

Me: In the morning?

Mom: They just got out of work. It's night time for them.







View Larger Map

A Flint Expatriate Christmas

Gordie Young (Flint Powers Class of 1984) and Pat McFarlane Young (Flint Central Class of 1948)

Halo Burger Send Off

An important message via the Halo Burger Lovers Facebook page:

Tomorrow, Tuesday, December 28, is the last day that the Thomas Family will own Halo Burger after over 65 years. The business is being sold to a new owner. FOR THE THOUSANDS OF FLINT FAMILIES THAT THE THOMAS FAMILY HAS HELPED SUPPORT THROUGH JOBS, FINANCIAL AID AND VARIOUS GIFTS, HOW ABOUT WE SEND THEM OUT WITH THEIR SINGLE BIGGEST SALES DAY EVER? EVERYONE TRY TO HAVE LUNCH AT ANY HALO LOCATION ON TUESDAY!!!!!

Merry Christmas from Flint Expatriates

Flint Expatriate Tom Pohrt supplies some Christmas memories from Sears in Flint, circa 1960:

As I recall I was just notified that I was on the "naughty list" for that year. Even under a whithering look I was always quick on my feet. I countered, questioning whether Santa was up on his union dues. Got your number Mr. P2 14207.... and I'm 'checkin' it twice. It was a tense moment in negotiations when this picture was taken. That was a bummer as the Sears catalogue toy section was the BEST! Can't recall the outcome.

My brothers on the other hand always fared better than I as evident in their classic mid 50's Santa photo.

Check out the sadistic Santa on another photo card holder from Sears. Bah humbug! Wow man, the artist they hired that year to illustrate this must have had a rough one. Those reindeer look absolutely terrified under Santa's whip. CHILL SANTA CHILL !

Flint Photos: W. Paterson Street in 1967

Another gem from the archives of Tom Pohrt.

Flint Photos: Whiting Auditorium at Night

Flint Photos: Interior of House on Dayton Street

Flint Artifacts: Community Presbyterian Church Bulletins

Thanks to Tom Pohrt for these Flint artifacts.

A Tale of Two Bars

Rube's near the corner of Chevrolet and Flushing recently closed.

But the nearby Ambassador Bar survives.

Flint Expatriates on Facebook

Flint Expatriates has a Facebook page if you're interested. Go here.

Donate to Neithercut Elementary

Want to help a Flint school with a donation that will go directly to a specific classroom need? Go here.

Flint Photos: A Block of W. Dayton Avenue

All the houses on a single block of W. Dayton Street between Proctor and Lawndale Avenues.

Flint Photos: Corner of W. Patterson St. and Milbourne Ave.

U.S. Census: One of a Kind

Michigan is the only state in the union that lost population in the last decade, according to 2010 U.S. Census data.

Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight speculates on what it means for Michigan's congressional districts:

Michigan (−1 seat) As in Ohio, many Michigan districts have lost population. The districts with the largest population losses, the 13th and the 14th, are Democratic-leaning parts of Detroit, and Republicans are in control of redistricting, which would seem to give them an edge.

Michigan’s current boundaries were already pretty decent for Republicans — and some of their strongholds have lost population, too — so while they can work to improve the odds that the lost seat will be a Democratic one, they may not be able to guarantee it. For instance, they could try to force Democratic incumbents Dale Kildee and Gary Peters, now of the 5th and 9th districts, to compete against one another — but that might render the 11th or the 8th districts, now held by Republicans, more vulnerable.

Flint Photos: MLK at Wood Street

Flint Photos: Christmas Spirit on Illinois Avenue

Flint Photos: Humboldt Ave. at W. Rankin St. in Civic Park

How fast does an abandoned house deteriorate in Flint? I posted the photo below this June. I took the two photos above three days ago.

The Contradictions of Civic Park

Two Civic Park classics — one on its last legs and another looking just fine — sit side by side on Delmar Street, which is all but deserted now.

Flint Photos: Saginaw Street in the Snow

Raking It In With the Red Wings

Ever wonder how much money Nemo's bar, located just a few steps from the site of dearly departed Tiger Stadium, makes on a night when the Red Wings beat the Canadiens? I'm not sure of the exact amount, but it's so much they don't even bother with the cash registers. The money just gets piled wherever there's some open space behind the bar until the rush is over.

The Flint Diet

I vowed that on this reporting trip to Flint I would eat better. That means salads, vegetables and all that. I've been pretty good so far, but things went south today at lunch. I guess no matter how good your intentions, sometimes you just find yourself sitting in the parking lot next to Jazz Hair & Nails on Flushing Road near Ballenger eating a coney and a fried Twinkie. It simply can't be helped.

Retro Flint T-Shirts for the Holidays

Each holiday season Flint Expatriate Shawn Chittle opens a retro t-shirt shop with proceeds to benefit the Whaley Children's Center. This year he has recreated 16 vintage Flint shirts that he owns. It's only open during December, so this is your brief chance to get a custom-made memento of Flint landmarks like Smith-Bridgman's, Ace Record Exchange and many more.

Go here to order shirts.

To promote the store, Shawn will be running a weekly trivia contest at shawnchittle.com. The first person to correctly answer the trivia question each week via email gets a free t-shirt of their choice.

Attack of the 50 Foot Woman! In Flint!

I'm in Flint on a reporting project and had a chance to meet local photographer Sarah Reed today. She's creating a series of Flint photos based on classic movie posters that are a must-have for Flint Expatriates. Here's the first, and it's available here.

Venn Diagrams for Flint Expatriates

Can Venn diagrams be used to simply sum up complex situations. This Venn by Jessica Hagy at thisindexed.com captures a lot of the emotions swirling around Flint. But it also leaves out much of the nuance that defines the feelings of residents and expatriates alike.

Perhaps a more elaborate Venn — like the one below that attempts to capture "Things That Are Bad" — would be in order for Flint.

"Things That Are Bad" Venn Diagram courtesy of burningdoor.com. Click to enlarge.

Thanks to grumkin for this idea.

Corvair Mania

A Corvair 110 convertible, somewhat worse for wear, spotted this morning near my house in San Francisco. (And lest readers think Flint Expatriates is more profitable than I've indicated, that's not my house in the background. Mine would probably fit nicely in the garage of the house in the photo.)