Winning Isn't Everything ...

I posted way back in the luke-warm July heat about the Heath brothers new and exciting book, Switch. Back in July, I filled out a form, saying I would like to receive an advance copy (based on the email). I've read some blurbs here and there about the book, but today received notification that I "won" an advance copy and that they'll be shipping it out soon! It pays to try, right!

The Heath boys are at it again. Their new book Switch will arrive in February.

And now, on with the original story ...

And how, exactly, did Target make itself into a design mecca?) Switch explains a 3-part framework to help you change things, whether you're trying to influence your curmudgeonly coworker or your stubborn teenager.

One of the greatest books ever, Made to Stick, reinforced the need for information to make sense to people. Any information needs to be (1) simple; (2) unexpected; (3) concrete; (4) credible; (5) emotional; (6) story. You should read the book, if you haven't. I also read Dan and Chip Heath's articles and blog regularly. They also write in Fast Company every month.

I received an email in July that said they were putting the final touches on their new book, Switch. It's about a cool subject, and one we have discussed on RWA before: CHANGE. The subtitle is "How to Change Things When Change is Hard."

It's been a winning–type week for me. The other day, I found out that I was the grand prize winner in the Central Montcalm softball gun raffle. Apparently, the gun I won is pretty cool. I've had several offers from hunters who are interested in the gun. I bought $100 worth of tickets thinking it would be a donation to the program ... with no intention of winning. I've never owned a gun, but now I do. Who would've thought?

What's up with ...

What follows are a few comments about topics that I've said, "I should blog about that." So, here's an attempt to "think out loud" and see what everyone thinks ...

What's up with ...

...all these restaurant servers who reply to "thank you," with "not a problem." What happened to "you're welcome." When someone thanks you for delivering a Coca Cola refill we know it's not a problem, that's why we asked for it. You don't have to say "not a problem." Just say "you're welcome." It's that easy.

...John Mellencamp delaying the release of his long–awaited box set almost a whole nother year? I remember when it was going to be called Nothing Like We Planned about 10 years ago.

...so many stores offering so–so deals on Black Friday, thinking they'll still have people lined up at 5 a.m. I don't see any reason to be in Traverse City shopping before 8 a.m. What happened to Best Buy's must–have DOOR BUSTERS!!!

...bad customer service even being tolerated when so many people are lined up looking for work. The service counter woman at the Mt. Pleasant Kohl's last Friday was so rude that we almost decided to leave all of our stuff (but the deals won out ... where were our principles?).

...the awnings at Cranker's Coney Island in Mt. Pleasant. They're so worn and faded looking I don't know how anyone would venture in there. Imagine what the kitchen would be like. Not to mention the large salad has become smaller than most smalls. You know, anything to shave a dime.

...an optimist sounding like a pessimist.

Happy Thanksgiving!

*The photo is an old coney place in Detroit. It is not Cranker's.

Thankful

Thankful.



It's a week to be thankful. Thanksgiving is Thursday. Black Friday is the next day.

I remember back in the old days when Mom and Grandma Morgan would go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. I don't think it was called "Black Friday" back then, but Mom would always get the Santa Bear at Hudson's (or whatever name the store was called then). I think they always went to Flint.

Life is busy. We always move way to fast. Time never slows down. But then again, what is time if we don't force ourselves to be bound by calendars and clocks? Time? I don't have any problem being busy because it keeps me focused. The busier I am, the better the results.

A few years ago, my Dad and I decided we would venture out on Black Friday. It's usually pretty fun. We get to visit, do some Christmas shopping, and have some fun. A couple of years ago, Lori decided she would come along, too. Now, we go out and about, hit a few stores and try to get some deals.

Life goes fast. Some days, I can't believe it's November, let alone believe that in a few weeks it's going to be 2010. That would mean I've been out of high school for 20 years. Where did all that time go? I can just hear Jim Croce sing, "If I could put time in a bottle ... "

Lately, I've been taking a lot of pictures. I've always liked to take pictures. They provide memories. But, I've been taking pictures lately because by slowing down, really looking at a potential picture, setting up my tripod, setting the D60 just right, and really thinking about what I'm going to capture, allows me to slow down and put time in a bottle. It's like the phrase, "Stop and smell the roses." That's what I do when I capture a sunrise or sunset — or if I just stop and take some shots of a swamp. It's a way to relax. It's my way to relax.

I normally don't get all serious in my posts, but I'm going to switch gears. We recently found out that Amber (she's the one pictured above) has a large cyst in her abdomen area. It may be attached to her ovaries or it may be attached to her uterus. It's huge — the size of a cantaloupe we were told yesterday. She has to undergo surgery on December 10. After the surgery, we will find out what the cyst is made of.

The CT–Scan, ultrasounds, etc. cannot show exactly what is happening. It may have grown suddenly; it may have festered for years. We're hopeful for the best. You know what worries Amber more than anything? It's missing her classes at college and her work at Meijer! She's in a groove (well, she is struggling in her math class) and it stresses her that she has to STOP to take care of this.

She is relieved to know that the pain will go away. But the timing isn't just right, but it's as good as could be done. She'll miss her last week of classes and miss some busy times at work. Her attitude toward the surgery is positive. And that's half the battle. We're thankful that we know what the problem is and that it can be solved.



So, when you're out and about, think about what you're thankful for. And stop and smell the roses. Or snap a shot of the sunset. It's worth slowing down ... for just a moment.

52nd Street

We were visiting Uncle George and Aunt Nancy in Traverse City. It was winter in 1978. The song I kept hearing over and over on the radio was "My Life" by Billy Joel. Apparently, this Billy Joel dude was doing all right in his career. He was a year removed from his breakthrough album, The Stranger, and 52nd Street was doing all right itself.


Still a classic today. I guess that's what a classic is!

I asked if I could get the song. We went to Meijer's Thrifty Acres on "the other side of Traverse City" and ended up buying the album. Aunt Nancy was nice enough to let me play the new album on Dick's turntable. "But be careful." It wasn't so much a warning as it was an order.

By the end of the afternoon, I actually knew every song on the album, even if I didn't understand them. In fact, for many songs it was years later that I actually understood the concept.

"Got a call from an old friend, we used to be real close
Said he couldn't go on the American way
Closed the shop, sold the house
Bought a ticket to the West Coast
Now he gives them a stand-up routine in L.A." ("My Life")

I didn't understand much of the of the first verse, but I liked the music and the song. From my point of view, the song was different. But years later, it began to make sense. It probably made more sense to my older cousins, Tom and Dick, at that time. Both of them were in college.

That night, though, both of them said I could have made a copy of the album because both of them had a copy. In fact, I could have had one of the albums. Music is timeless. It's cool to a seven year old, a 20 year old, and as I listen to "My Life" right now ... it's still a great song 30 years later.

Reform, re–form, re form ...

What does "reform" mean? Haven't American schools been under the "reform" gun since 1983? I know some of my readers would be able to comment on that. But what does "reform" really get at? Wouldn't reform be akin to recreate? I'm not trying to pick a fight here or anything like that, but when you change a couple of things here and there and try to keep your structure untouched, is that really reform?

This post will not argue for the "fixing" of school finance. This post will argue for the fixing of the system? When you review the proposals for ReImagine, many of them include incorporating Mandarin Chinese into their school systems. The last time I checked, many of our students cannot even perform basic English Language Arts functions ... let alone Chinese. If you use the MEAP scores in Michigan as a yard stick, schools have a long way to go as far as reading and writing proficiency. (Maybe we were teaching Japanese back in the mid-80s as reform, I don't remember).

Anyway, I would suggest there are three things that can be done to "fix" or "reform" education. Or, at least begin the journey. (These are not necessarily in chronological order)

1. We need to take a serious look at a year–round school model in Michigan. Sure, the legislature made it illegal to begin before Labor Day, but that does not apply to year–round school systems. Our 150–year old system no longer services our kids. If we really want to make change that is good for kids (retention of information!), then a year–round model makes sense. Many states have year–round, so there are many models to choose from. Is it summer you're concerned about? Then build your model around July and see what you create.
2. Believe the research and embrace a guaranteed and viable curriculum. But don't stop there. Teach principals, administrators, teachers HOW to monitor that curriculum. Evaluation is under attack and it should be. Every school (not just every district) does it differently. The focus should be on improving instruction and highlighting great teachers, but it's become an inconvenience for principals and teachers. It's cumbersome. Evaluation should be able to be done in conjunction with the teacher to provide some type of feedback that helps instruction. If a school embraces a guaranteed and viable curriculum, incorporates best practices (example: Robert Marzano's nine instructional strategies that work), we will see assessment score skyrocket.
   
3. Embrace and work with our communities to provide programming that schools may not be able to provide for many more years. Discussions need to begin now about how schools will offer sub–varsity sports, transportation options, etc. Funding rates will never be what they were only five years ago, according to Michigan's State Superintendent Mike Flanagan. So we have to begin to understand that, while our expenditures will continue to rise, our revenues may not. What can we do, working with the community, to continue to offer options. Granted, our communities are decimated as is the funding situation in the State and at schools.
   

Start with curriculum (backbone of the institution), fix the calendar, and work with your community. Sure, that then leads to another set of questions: are the right people on the bus?

Brand New Morning

There may be no better rock 'n' roll album than Bob Seger's seminal classic "Live" Bullet, released in 1976. To fully appreciate the "greatness" of this classic vinyl, one has to travel back to '76 and realize who Bob Seger was at the time. (Warning, this post will not focus on Bob Seger for very long. Or music. It will focus on life.)



Seger was an unknown, everywhere except Detroit and Traverse City. Seger was huge in Detroit. It's said that he could pack the Silverdome (i.e. Pontiac Metropolitan Stadium) but draw 700 people in Chicago. "Live" Bullet contained 16 songs, all rocking jams. It also contained the single greatest line in live album history.

I have always gone through "periods" of music. At times, it's been John Cougar, Billy Joel, Jimmy Buffett, Bob Seger, Kix, KISS, etc. For the past several years, it's been Kid Rock. I've been to many concerts. But, Bob Seger is a musical theme I seem to come back to now and then. I've never heard his album Brand New Morning, from 1971. I've never even seen a copy.

I've read about it, mostly in the new book about Seger's early years. (Travelin' Man: On the Road and Behind the Scenes with Bob Seger by Weschler and Graff was published on October 1, 2009, by Wayne State Press. According to Weschler, the book features "lots of photographs nobody has seen before and plenty of stories from the studios and the gigs on the road." It's an incredible book!) With the release of the book, and my new interest in Detroit, I'm in classic Seger mode.

I like the title. Brand New Morning. It's refreshing. Lately, I've been taking pictures of our brand new mornings. We're getting toward the time of year when the sun doesn't necessarily come up and it doesn't get much more than dawn or dusk in Michigan. Maybe that's an exaggeration, but still ...

Life in Michigan is rough right now. Families are moving out. They're likely not coming back. School districts, ones that were doing well only a couple of years ago, are looking at laying off 50 people ... in the middle of the school year. Some days it's hard to face the new day for many people.

Right now, many people are disgruntled, concerned, frustrated. I face it every day. Some days, I think I'm becoming disgruntled, concerned, frustrated. I try to keep in mind that, with vision and planning, you can get where you need to go. But, when the world that surrounds you is in survival mode, is vision even an option?



I'm not a fan of slogans, e.g. "Yes we can." I think slogans are empty. I'm a substance person. I'm not the kind of person who jumps on a bandwagon. In fact, I like to see the bandwagon emptying before I close enough to join the ride. I am a believer in positive thought, though. If you believe something or believe in yourself (or others), that makes a huge impact.

We found out yesterday, that our daughter has to have major surgery next week to remove a nearly five inch dermoid cyst from her ovary. We don't know where it came from, but it's grown quickly in the last couple of months. We've had her to the doctor about it only a couple months ago, and the physicians' assistant blew it off, saying it was mostly likely a temporary bowel obstruction. That's frustrating. Her stomach started hurting in May, by August she had been to the doctor. Now, it's going to be major surgery on a large cyst.

Our other daughter is having blood work done because of enlarged lymph nodes and a sudden loss of weight. We had the blood work done at the same doctor's office as the August visit. Again, they're doubtful it's anything major, "but we'll do the blood work." Symptoms. I'm concerned. Lori and I are both concerned.

We try hard to not become disgruntled. It's a tough place to be right now, Michigan. Middle of Michigan. Wherever, Michigan. Where is Michigan going? Where are any of us going? It's hard to retain perspective right now.

All I know is that I greet every day and hope for the best. I maintain a positive outlook. Lori, she maintains the negative outlook. We balance each other that way. My blog is not about me usually. It's about the world that surrounds us. Think positive thoughts. It will be all right.

Now, go greet the day. The sun will shine. On all of us.

Detroit Photo Essay

The movie Red Dawn is being filmed mostly in Michigan. Detroit has been home to the new movie since early October.


"They" are tearing down the historic Lafayette Building in Detroit. It's another in a series of buildings or places that are torn down in "the D."


If you want to enjoy a real, honest to goodness Detroit Coney Island, you have to try them at Lafayette Coney Island. It's a Detroit staple.


The Packard Motel, right in the shadows of the Packard Plant, which closed in 1956. It's still there.


The inside of one of the many buildings still open to the public at the Packard Plant. Very interesting piece of Americana ...


The sign in the road at the Heidelberg Project.


The "car of the future" and ... an old, abandoned car.


The Heidelberg Project.


Lori was able to think outside the box and paint on the Dotty Wotty house in Detroit.


An American icon.

Star at the Packard

Star at the Packard
Originally uploaded by Rick Rock Radio

"I hear 'em singing about shutting Detroit down ...
I'll never leave because this is my hometown ..."

– Kid Rock "In Times Like These, 2009

For years, I was one of those Michiganders who would drive in to Detroit, attend an event, and drive back out. People said, "Stay on the main drag and don't go anyplace else."

A few years ago, I was good at driving in and driving out. I would get off the exit and visit Tiger Stadium, maybe snap a few pictures, and head down Michigan Avenue on my way to Comerica Park. But, I didn't sway. It was Michigan, maybe Trumbull, Cass, and Woodward.

Then, I wandered. I wandered to Henry the Hatter. Not a bad walk. Corner of Broadway and Gratiot ("Gratiot, that's a real rough route ..."). Wandered a little more, walked down to Lafayette, bought myself a Coney Dog.

I became curious about Detroit. Its history. It has a rich history, you know. Wait, let me go back. Back to 1976, when Spider–man was at Cobo Hall and my family drove in and drove out, but lost our car in the Cobo Parking Garage. Stress? Yea, my parents were stressed. We were in Detroit and this was the '70s. That was my first history with the 'D'.

On Flickr, I started to view other people's awesome images of Detroit's decay. It's amazing that decay could be so beautiful ... but you have to go beyond the decay and see the history, the "what was."

I started learning about Michigan Central Station, the old Packard Plant, the Fisher Body 21 plant, etc. It all started with the decaying Tiger Stadium. Some of these photographers had other "cool" pictures on their Flickrs. And I became curious. I wanted to see "first hand" what they see.

And a journey began. Lori and I have explored all kinds of Detroit places. She doesn't even say, "You need to let it go now," about Tiger Stadium. She and I even toured the Heidelberg Project and learned its vast history from Tyree, the founder, Saturday. It's said that 25 years ago, you wouldn't walk that neighborhood in the daylight.

I would venture to guess that Detroit can become a great city again. It will take some work, some vision. Some people are going to have to realize that the history so prevalent in the city has relevance.

Sunset Along the Montcalm County Road

Sunset Montcalm County #2
Originally uploaded by Rick Rock Radio

Sometimes days are lousy, but the trip home and the reflecting one does makes a long day worthwhile. Most of the trip home today, I tried to convince myself to stop and take five minutes to shoot the gorgeous sky. I battled between frustration and disappointment. You know, some days just don't go how you want them to.

I turned down a dirt road, grabbed my camera and tripod, and walked out into the middle of a field. I spent about 10 minutes taking a few shots of the sky, burning brightly behind the trees.

Exhausting. Glowing.