Yesterday’s homeward commute? Smooth as can be and hardly had to spend more than a few seconds at any stoplight. Okay, I did leave 10 minutes early. It’s a slow week. Today? Driving TO work was fine but on the last stretch southward on S. State St., they were digging out the *northbound* road shoulder and the northbound lane was at a standstill (only one lane each way at that point). Okay. I knew that my homeward commute would involve going “all the way to the bottom” [say it in a British accent if you will] and so I did. Somehow what feels like about an extra five miles is only two and today it was pretty smooth but it’ll be a looooonnnng summer.

Oh yeah and plus, a semi heading south on bumpity clunkity old US23 mixed it up with some sort of lawn mowing thingy this afternoon. I don’t know if they have sorted out exactly what happened yet but the guy driving the mower is in critical condition. Yuck yuck yuck. The freeways are *still* gummed up from that nearly four hours later. People were apparently getting out of their vee-hickles and partying and stuff. [Oh just kidding about the partying…]

Yaaaayyyy! The Planet Ann Arbor City Council voted to end the public art boondoggle. I don’t totally understand all of the details about this controversial program but something like 1% of the funding for certain kinds of construction prodjects was decreed to be used for “public art”. Proposed art installations were chosen by a committee of appointees. I am not against art. I am not against tax-payer funded art (see below). Given that over the last few years the city has been constantly trying to cut basic services like police and fire, it seemed to me that taxpayer-funded art was just about the *last* thing anyone in the city government should be talking about. I would rather my tax dollars go toward a few *extra* faaar-fighters, etc. I don’t care if they don’t have enough to do to fill their work hours. When they are needed, they are NEEDED!

About taxpayer funded art… Like many folks even throughout the country, I am HORRIFIED that the city of Detroit’s new emergency manager has even hinted at putting the Detroit Institute of Art‘s collection (or any part of it) up for sale. My grandmother Bolette [who used to attend DIA board meetings] is probably turning in her grave. I don’t imagine anyone who has ever donated art to the DIA would be very happy to have Governor Snyder and Detroit EFM Kevyn Orr sell it off. I know it isn’t exactly the same thing but it kind of reminds me of when my family donated land to a large well-known national land conservancy and they turned around and sold it to Conrad Ganzhorn, a two-bit yooper real-estate developer who almost immediately drove in there with heavy equipment, tore down trees and built paved roads.

We had really very little recourse in our land donation situation and although a significant portion of land was ultimately saved, now there are double-wides and things in there. Yuck yuck yuck. My hope is that if Governor Snyder and Mr. Orr do decide to go down the road of selling off art at the DIA, the state will find itself entangled in litigation for the rest of this century. Except that *that* scenario would be horrible for the state. You guys? We know Detroit is in dire straits but you *must* keep the art off the table. If all of this makes me a “liberal”, then I am proud to be labeled that. Bolette? She was a staunch republican back in the day but I bet she will throw a few lightning bolts at some of these bumbling idiot politicians if she can.

I was kvetching about train whistles yesterday. Today I encountered the “optics”. What do I do with *these*? Just then the GG came in and said, “Do you want me to take those optics? I’m saving optics in a special drawer.” Well, YES! Even though that special drawer is in my house. It did allow me to *finish* emptying the last box and recycle the box. Thank you!

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