Winter Enthusiasts Rejoice - Winter is Back!

Except for us in southern lower Michigan, it looks like winter is hitting Michigan once again. A foot of snow is predicted all across northern lower Michigan. Grab your skis, load up the snowmobile, and make sure you have 4-wheel drive if you are heading up for some outdoor winter fun. If you are heading up to the Upper Peninsula, you might want to check out the Mackinac Bridge webcam and current Bridge Conditions. They are currently experiencing such high winds that the Mackinac Bridge Authority is asking you to use caution and reduce your speed to a maximum of 20 miles per hour.

The current bridge cam images allow you to barely see the highway when on a normal day you can see the towers of the bridge. Looks like travelling will be interesting. This is good news for the winter tourism industry though.

Granholm Leads DeVos in Recent Poll

Governor Jennifer Granholm currently leads her challenger Dick DeVos in a recent poll. Granholm garnered 53% to Devos' 36% with the remaining 11% undecided. The survey of 600 likely Michigan voters occurred Jan. 15-25 and has an error rate of +/- 4%. AP News from the Traverse City Record-Eagle

Incredible Pictures of Northern Michigan Beach in the Winter

The Traverse City Record Eagle ran an interesting piece today on Michigan's beaches in winter. The story and photos concentrate on the Frankfort area just south of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The icy photo of Point Betsie Lighthouse is simply surreal. The Record Eagle was nice enough to include the story exactly as it appears in the newspaper as a PDF. This is great for those of us who do not have a subscription to this fine northern Michigan newspaper. Enjoy!

Link to the PDF that you can download - A Day at the Beach

Link to the online story - Photo Essay: A Day at the Beach

Michigan Looks to Spend $2 Billion in Alternative Energy Research

During the next decade, Michigan will be investing up to $2 billion in research, development, and business incubation in the field of alternative energy. To ensure that it becomes the hub of America's alternative energy research, Michigan is planning to spend $2 billion in bond money in the next decade. Even though Michigan is known for being an auto producer the funds will be directed toward research that promotes the cleaner heating and cooling of homes and businesses.

A quick peak at the technologies that will be researched are - hydrogen fuel cells, biodiesel, ethanol, solar, and nuclear. The one I am sure most people will question is nuclear. It is only a clean source of energy until it is time to dispose of the spent radioactive rods.

For a look at what kind of businesses will be using these funds check out NextEnergy. This nonprofit research and development incubator began operations in 2001. Tomorrow, I will be posting a list of links for some really neat websites/companies that deal with alternative energy sources.

MICHIGAN'S $2-BILLION INITIATIVE: State aims to become nation's alternative energy hub