Northville, My Home Town

This village of 2,500 people in sourthwest Michigan is located in huge Wayne County which also contains Detroit. Northville's first "land patent" is dated in 1823, placing it 30 miles from Detroit - a journey of three days. Now it takes a half hour for my son to drive from his Northville bakery to suppliers in Detroit.

Great Harvest Bakery Northville, my son's busines.

I moved here 3 years ago after 10 years of visiting from my home in Ohio. I could not resist the double lure of the town's old-fashioned charm and my growing family, so I found an 1893 house just ten minutes' walk from my son's bakery in the tiny "down-town".

Northville is in the northwest corner of Wayne County, the largest in Michigan. It covers 614 square miles, 2/3 the size of Luxembourg at 998 square miles. (It is larger than six other European countries including Vatican City.) It holds several townships, each containing other suburbs, as well as Detroit Metro Airport which covers 11 square miles according to the 2010 census - likely more today. 

For some wonderful tours of Detroit and the area click here: Video Tours  And for more personal views of Wayne County and some current issues you can visit another of my blogs: Mary in Michigan

To whet your appetite, here are some great stills:        

                                             

                      Part of Detroit's Reality Today: Ambassador Bridge to Canada       

            

          

International Freedom Festival, June 2008

I did not realize when I came to live here that my two feet would would be firmly planted in different eras, with 200 years between! Our news contains a jumble of information about Detroit's looming bankruptcy and related lack of public services, the auto industry's resurgence, third-world conditions in the "inner city", and exciting programs of the arts and culture. Not to mention weekly community events from concerts to marches to races, all usually with fireworks over the river.

It's a fascinating place to live, in the middle of "the action" yet as far from it as one can get. For details and pictures of some of it I invite you to visit my personal journal at MARY in Michigan. 

Flowers

This is the first of two posts on the topic of planting my back yard. Tomorrow's post describes the areas to be planted and plans for preparation. Today's post explores choices for planting 800 square feet in two plots, after the ground is prepared.

The first step was to find my "hardiness zone for flowers". That turned out to be 6a (south-east Michigan), but already judgment was called for. Our winters (like the one just past) can be fairly harsh and long, so I think hardier zone 5 plants would be better.

I always loved Cosmos and think they would look great in my two empty spaces:

But when I checked the zone it turns out they need a warmer climate. Plus, they are annuals, and I already have a lot to do so prefer perennials. But I also love Foxglove, Lupine, Salvia and Snapdragons. Wouldn't a group like this be grand?

Well, that might be overdoing it, but at least I have some suitable names to research in the greenhouse. 

GROUND COVER, FLOWERING AND NOT

Next I reviewed some types of ground cover for my zone. I have always admired ornamental grasses so they were the first. Some can grow to 4 feet, but 18 inches seems about right for me. That would be Pampas Grass, another of my favorites. And Miscanthus would be good, too.

PAMPAS GRASS

MISCANTHUS

I considered vines, but they are too flat and take too long to cover. But the plants below might work. They are flowering perennials that spread to hug the ground.

AJUGA

LINGONBERRIES
Very hardy perennials which also make great jam. Worth considering!

Such a lot to choose from and truly not much time.  Stay tuned - 

Suggestions are welcome in Comments below. Thanks for visiting and helping me think through this. 

Activism and Advocacy

You'll propbably agree that this is a heavy opener for a blog about the "spice of life". If you dropped in to be titillated I apologize! In the future I'll take a lighter hand, but this is a day for reflection. It's a day to contemplate my own good fortune compared to the lives of so many others, and to ponder ways I might make a difference for some of those others.

I find it hard to be playful when 239 people on a 777 airplane are lost over the ocean, when Syria has become a nation of refugees, and the Central African Republic is a literal death camp. Equally distressing is awareness of the plight of many right here in Wayne County, Michigan, USA.

The differences between my life and theirs keep nagging me, urging me to seek ways to address that difference. That's where Activism and Advocacy come in. I won't spend a lot of time "word-smithing", but I need some tools to help me find ways to be involved. Advocacy is aligning oneself with an issue or idea, then working within its structure to raise awareness and work toward improvement. Activism is more "impatient. It usually operates outside an established structure to initiate steps toward quick change, often in confrontational ways.

As an experienced "organization person" I'm looking for a suitable advocacy group. I know my capabilities and limitations, so when I find something that appeals to me I'll know where I might fit in.

The Devil is in the Details  Important aspects of the "right" organization:

• It will probably be a non-profit, perhaps an NGO (non-governmental organization). 
• There will be lots of "grunt work" where I can start with little training.  
• There may be some pay, however small. (I don't know if that is possible.) Volunteering is noble, but after contributing hundreds of hours since "retiring" I know that burnout and lack of respect are inevitable no matter how good the cause.  Even a little pay would make up for the loss of personal time and inevitable failures.  

For practical advice I reviewed  Everything You Need to Know About Working for a Non-Profit.

Ready, Set, Go . . . 

That's my plan. I am searching the internet for suitable groups and I'll report to you under various letters in this blog. Whatever else I post you can be sure I'll be working on this project "in background".

Oh, yes - if you have any suggestions for me to look into please put them into comments. I look forward to hearing from you.

I'll see you later,
Mary