A few weeks ago, official Mindreader historian Jenny sent me a link to a site called Teeter Talk. The site, run by an Ann Arbor resident, consists of a number of interviews (95 of them, in fact); most interview subjects are from the Ann Arbor area, with a few from points beyond. And far from being exclusive, he invites readers to suggest future interview subjects. But the most appealing attribute of the site is apparent in its name: all interviews are conducted on a teeter totter in Dave Askins’ backyard.
Monthly Archives: April 2007
Photo of the Variable Time Period, vol. 88
Leapin’ Bulldog! (13 April 2007)
Chelsea first baseman Ben Bradburn leaps for an errant throw during the Bulldogs’ season-opening game against Milan. He couldn’t make the catch, but Chelsea still won, 12-2. The teams played only one game due to the wet field.
“It’s not an expiration suggestion,” FDA warns
Annette, loyal friend of the Mindreader, has discovered a disturbing piece of information concerning one of the staples of the American diet; out of concern for the health of the general public, the Mindreader feels compelled to disseminate this information.
Recently, Annette’s stomach initiated a fairly one-sided conversation, the full account of which has been provided to the Mindreader:
“I want food,” said the stomach.
“But–” protested Annette.
“I WANT FOOD,” said the stomach, in a tone reminiscent of Mr. T when foolish villains dared to threaten the A-Team van. Annette, having previously witnessed the fearsome wrath of B.A. Baracus, wisely avoided physical harm by not giving her stomach backtalk. (Sucka.)
This conversation compelled Annette to forage for food. Fortunately, like Hannibal Smith, she’s always handy with a plan, so it took her no time at all to find what she needed: a box of macaroni and cheese. Pleased by this discovery, she set out to make macaroni and cheese tasty like Howlin’ Mad Murdock made craziness fun.
Ah, but like an A-Team plot, it was not as simple as it should have been. Before she could start on her way to a great American meal, she was waylaid by that nefarious villain of scrumptiousness: the expiration date. In fact, her macaroni and cheese wasn’t just expired; it was a culinary antique: it expired in 2004. To be precise, it expired on 15 December 2004.
Still, this seemed like a minor barrier; pasta lasts a good long time, and the powdered cheese mix … well, that could survive a nuclear attack and greet the fallout with a smile and a hot meal, so surely it scoffs at the very mention of an expiration date. Right?
Not so right. Actually, wrong. After realizing that her macaroni and cheese expired when Snoop Dogg was dropping it like it was hot, Annette decided to inspect the contents of the box. And that was when she made her horrifying discovery: like the retiring Bob Barker, even powdered cheese is subject to the ravages of time.
When she opened the packet of cheese mix, the sad reality was readily apparent. Rather than seeing the pleasant golden powder just waiting to be combined with actual dairy products, she was confronted with a different substance. It was not a pleasant, welcoming yellow; instead, it was a darker shade of yellow, perhaps most accurately described as slightly foreboding. And its smell did not give a hint of cheesy goodness; instead, it could be described only as odd-smelling.
Annette, knowing she could not in good conscience suppress this information, immediately contacted the Mindreader. And that brings us back to the present, where, like Templeton Peck confronted by a failed con, a stunned world struggles to handle the revelation of the mortality of one of its mightiest foods.
The Jackson 200
On Monday morning, a group from Immanuel Bible Church — my parents’ church — traveled to Jackson to take a tour of the New Tribes Bible Institute. Thanks to my self-unemployment and a dearth of sports events due to Chelsea schools’ spring break, I was able to join the group for the tour.
As a part of the New Tribes mission organization, NTBI’s purpose is to equip believers for missions by providing a concentrated but thorough Bible education. After two years at NTBI, many students go on to further training for mission fields all over the world.
The student population of NTBI ranges from young singles to married couples with young children; that diversity of stages of life is a benefit to the entire range of students as they interact. And there is plenty of interaction; the school is contained in one building, so the 200 or so students live under the same roof.
NTBI is housed in an old Jackson public middle school building that New Tribes was able to acquire from the city. Since the school building was built back when the city likely was a bit more prosperous — NTBI has inhabited the building for a number of years — it is a good-sized building, and it is well-suited for the school.
Thanks to my photo work, I spend a fair amount of time in and around public school buildings, and it has been my experience that for whatever reasons, many public school buildings do not age extraordinarily well; it seems that when public school buildings are old, they tend to be a bit like Michigan’s Crisler Arena — functional but slightly dingy and not entirely pleasant. So, between my mental image of typical older school buildings and the general somewhat run-down condition of Jackson, I was curious to see the interior of the NTBI facility.
As we took our tour, I was impressed by the clean, bright, pleasant building; the NTBI staff has done an excellent job of maintaining the school. It didn’t feel like an old dingy school building; it felt like a place that is very much alive. Unsurprisingly, the NTBI-owned houses around the school building were equally well-maintained.
More importantly, the building was representative of its occupants; the school exists for the glory of God, and that spirit — or Spirit — was apparent. Throughout our visit, the staff and the students were a credit to NTBI; everyone we met was pleasant and welcoming.
As part of our tour, we were able to attend both a chapel service and a hermeneutics class. The chapel speaker spoke of finishing strong and not taking shortcuts or giving only a minimum effort; the hermeneutics professor gave an introduction to the interpretation of the Bible. Both were thoroughly worthwhile.
After the hermeneutics class, our time at the school concluded with lunch in the school’s cafeteria; instead of standard cafeteria fare, we were pleased to discover that they serve actual food at NTBI. (Monday’s lunch was baked ziti, if you were curious.) While we ate, we had a very pleasant conversation with one of the students, a senior named Amanda.
For me, the tour of NTBI was encouraging; this world can be a dark place, so it meant a great deal to see the light of God reflected in the staff and the students.
—–
On a different note, the high school sports photographer in me was interested to see what athletic facilities they’d kept from the old middle school; I get to see plenty of venues, both old and new, but I most enjoy seeing old local venues — facilities with history. And while the swimming pool seemed well-maintained, it was the old gym that caught my eye.
Because it was an old middle school, the gym was fairly small; I didn’t measure the floor, but it was clearly not large enough to hold a modern regulation high school basketball court (note the proximity of the center circle and the free throw line). But that didn’t matter to me; I was too interested in the three-tier construction of the gym.
The first level was the gym floor; the second was spectator seating; the third was a running track, complete with banked turns. Elevated tracks have become a common feature in high school gyms in recent years, including Chelsea’s and Dexter’s new gyms, but I didn’t realize the idea went so far back.
Ain’t no firewall high enough
This just in: the Mindreader reaches across political barriers to deliver … well, whatever it is the Mindreader delivers.
How do I know? Well, the Great Firewall of China swiftly and happily tests any URL to see if it is available in China. Because I know the Mindreader is crucial to the long-term health of China, and because I am an expert — or at least a highly-advanced novice — at using the internet for all sorts of frivolous purposes, I tested this URL. And, miracle of miracles, the Great Firewall told me something good.
(I found the Great Firewall link at CFR.)
Yes sir, right away, sir
The other day, I was tooling around facebook, and one of their advertisements caught my eye.
I know I always respond well to namecalling.
Photo of the Variable Time Period, vol. 87
Jenny Jones (09 April 2007).
Local musician Jenny Jones dropped by for a front porch portrait session on Monday.
I can see clearly now
Not too long ago in this space, as I was giving my impressions of my MacBook, I said I would soon be acquiring a 20″ Apple Cinema Display for my photo work. Well, the time has come.
No, your eyes do not deceive you: it is awesome. (Believe me, I can’t photoshop that kind of awesome into a picture.)
(If you’re curious, the desktop picture is from a Chelsea baseball game at Ann Arbor Huron last year.)
Cry me an Olentangy River
Today is a cloudy, cold, blustery day with intermittent snow and high wind gusts. (Happy spring break, Chelsea students!) But none of that matters, because Annette, a loyal friend of the mindreader, sent me a ray of sunshine she received from Florida.
Believe me, I have no love in my heart for the Gators. (Less and less every day, in fact.) But I’m a Michigan fan, and that sign … well, that just warms my heart.
In other Ohio State news, we are learning more about Columbus’ definition of safe. Let’s compare:
- Buckeye fans in Columbus celebrated OSU’s football victory over Michigan this past fall with 40 fires, 38 arrests and one overturned car.
- Gator fans in Gainesville celebrated Florida’s basketball victory over OSU with five arrests and one serious injury.
Can you guess which university president, apparently pleasantly surprised by the numbers, hailed its celebration as “safe”?
Photo of the Variable Time Period, vol. 86
Come on, get happy (again) (29 march 2007).
Chelsea’s Leah Morrison (1) is hugged by teammate Emily Rabbitt after scoring a goal against Ann Arbor Huron. Morrison scored both Chelsea goals in a 2-1 victory over the River Rats.