Paradise, Michigan shows how to finish off a fireworks display in this video taken from the 2007 fireworks show. For those of you who cannot wait for your local displays tonight - here’s a little taste.

Happy 4th of July!

Just a quick note - we’re closed tomorrow, July 4th in observation of the 4th of July. Our online store is always open (of course ) so feel free to place any orders through our web store and they will ship out Monday, July 7th.

Also, any orders placed today that ship via Priority Mail will not ship until Saturday, July 5th as there will not be any mail service in observation of the 4th of July holiday.

Have a fun and safe 4th!

Tiger Stadium has suffered it’s first wounds in the demolition phase of it’s existence. A gaping hole was torn in the cement block wall behind the bleacher seats. For pictures see this article at the Detroit News.

Demolition is currently only taking place between Trumbull and Cochrane while awaiting the August 1 deadline for the Tiger Stadium Conservancy or any other group to raise the funds necessary to save a portion of the stadium between the dugouts.

Get your Detroit Tigers tickets to a game at Comerica Park and make a final pilgrimage to Tiger Stadium before the game and before she is gone except for photographs and treasured memories.

Learn more about the history of Tiger Stadium

Watch this video and remember how Tiger Stadium looked back when the Tigers were still playing there -

Over the weekend while working outside my son and I heard a constant barrage of rumbles and loud bangs from local pyrotechnicians perfecting their craft for the 4th of July. Yes, it’s that time of the year again when local dogs run for cover under the porch or in their doghouse and don’t emerge until the 4th of July weekend is over.

*Important Legal Disclaimer*

Now remember, any firework that explodes or shoots up in the air (other than sparks shooting in the air) is illegal in Michigan so I do not recommend purchasing anything like that for use in Michigan.

*Legal Disclaimer Over*

It is safest to leave it up to the experts and attend a local fireworks display. Plus, other than the donation bucket that makes its way around the crowd - they’re a lot cheaper than buying your own meager display.

To find nearly any display of fireworks this 4th of July head on over to MichiganFireworks.com. You can search by date or city. Site creator Meg Geddes has 460 displays listed as of this blog post.

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is represented in a new business venture from two NMU students - Darren Young and Brian Emigh. The two took an entrepreneur class at NMU and were inspired to start a business involving custom longboards (like skateboards only longer and more stable).

The wood for the longboards is from local maple trees and the sand used for grip on the boards is from the shores of Lake Superior. Young dubbed the sand “Superior Grip.” Their business name is Presque Longboards - an homage to the area they are based in (there’s a Presque Isle Park just up the road from NMU).

From a guy that runs a business that features only products from Michigan - I’ve got to say I love this idea and concept. I wish Darren and Brian all the best in their endeavor.

Visit their site at PresqueLongboards.com

Read the article about this venture in the Escanaba Daily Press.

Limestone cliff, originally uploaded by Blondieyooper.

This is a great shot of the limestone cliffs you will see at Fayette Historic State Park. This “ghost town” offers a look at the early years of iron smelting operations in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

More information about Fayette Historic State Park

I’ve got to take a moment to brag on my garden a bit. I planted a 3′ x 3′ plot of strawberries in a raised bed four years ago and just let them spread to the rest of the raised bed and then let them spill out over the sides. The patch is approximately 10′ x 6′ now and filling in nicely.

Since June 10th we’ve been picking a quart of strawberries or better each day. It’s been nice to head out there and pick strawberries to make fresh strawberry shortcake or even just to add to the morning cereal.

Quick Strawberry Recipes:
Easy Strawberry Freezer Jam
Strawberry Butter

In other garden news - our tomatoes, pole beans, cucumbers, and red potatoes are doing quite well. It’s been a bit on the dry side the last seven days so I’ve been watering everything. My next project is to get my rain barrel put together and then wait for rain ;).

I’ll post instructions on how to build your own rain barrel whenever I get mine completed.

Happy Gardening!

The past two years have seen much ado about, well, nothing so far in the case of the proposed $161 million theme park near Grayling. The next hurdle needing to be crossed is the proposed $5.2 million dollar sale of 1,700 acres of state-owned land.

It looks like the July 10 Michigan Natural Resources Commission meeting in Munising will decide if the sale will go through. If approved at that meeting, the final approval (don’t you love how many layers government has?) could happen as early as August.

Much has been said both for and against this proposed theme park, but with the price of gas how far away will folks drive for this amusement park? Sure, in-state folks will probably check it out rather than driving all the way to Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH, but will there be enough of a draw to make this pay?

Any thoughts?

Michigan cherry farmers are looking at what could be as small of a crop as the decimated 2002 cherry crop for their projected 2008 crop. Hail, late frost, weak trees from last year’s drought, and poor bee pollination are sited as reasons behind the weak outlook.

Growers are looking at a cherry crop that will most likely be less than half of 2007 totals. The 2007 cherry crop was 134 million pounds. The official cherry crop estimate for 2008 is due out today from the Michigan Frozen Food Packers Association.

Read the full article at the Traverse City Record-Eagle

In an effort to shave approximately $13,000 off of its annual operating costs the Mackinac Bridge Authority and MDOT have put in place a plan to shut off the bridge’s decorative lighting beginning at 1 a.m. In the past the decorative lights came on a sunset and shut off at sunrise.

This way, folks can still see how pretty the bridge looks all lit up at night and the state can save money too. The roadway lights will remain on for safety, of course.

Read about the Mackinac Bridge Authority’s green initiative.