I just read on MIRS News (I’m not going to link or copy their text here because it is a registration site) that there is a deal in the works for the smoking ban. Sen. Bishop has said he will consider exempting the Detroit casinos and he will NOT sit on the bill. He expects a vote after his caucus figures out what they want to do.
Another Smoking Ban Update
3 06 2008Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: Legislature, Michigan, Politics, Smoking Ban
Categories : Michigan, Politics
Smoking Ban Bill Update
3 06 2008HB 5074 has been transmitted to the Senate and today, it was referred to the Committee on Government Operations and Reform which is the same committee HB 4163 was referred to when it was sent to the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop discharged HB 4163 from committee for a vote on the floor. At that time, the Senate ammended the bill to get rid of all exemptions. At the time, Senator Bishop said he did not favor a smoking ban, but let the bill be called because that’s what the people wanted. After passing the Senate, the House sat on the bill for a few days before calling a different bill, HB 5074 and using it as a vehicle bill. They amended HB 5074 which was bill written to ban smoking in college dorms. They struck all of that language and inserted the original language of HB 4163. HB 5074 passed and was sent to the Senate.
How futile is this? It took the Senate FIVE months to call HB 4163 then they changed it. There’s only four weeks left in this session. Does the House really think Sen. Bishop will allow another vote on the same bill they’ve already amended? Currently, HB 4163 sits in the house. They can still call this bill before the session ends and pass it without the exemptions. HB 5074 sits in committee and will probably die there. The Committee on Government Operations and Reform hasn’t met since November, so there won’t even be a committee vote on the issue.
The Detroit News ran a story this morning ont the debate. There was one part in particular I had a problem with.
After Ohio voters approved a ban in 2006, bars in Toledo were hammered and many patrons flocked to bars just across the state line such as M.T. Loonies in southern Monroe County. Sales rose 20 percent to 30 percent and the crush of smokers prompted general manager Craig Herbster, 26, to hire six more workers.
What about Cleveland? What about Cincinatti? What about Columbus? The paper chose to pick one metro area close to a state that doesn’t ban smoking. I’m not denying that people are doing that, but let’s look at Michigan’s case. Obviously, people are not going to flock to Ohio to smoke because they can’t. They can’t run to Canada. There will be a small stretch near the Indiana border and a small stretch of the UP along the Wisconsin border that will have to deal with this for a little while. Michigan is in a unique situation that the borders of non-smoking states are relatively small. There might be a tiny percentage of business leaving Michigan so they can smoke in a bar, but a percentage so small no one will even notice.
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Tags: Legislature, Michigan, Politics, Smoking Ban
Categories : Michigan, Politics
Eat Local!
3 06 2008Want to eat local, but don’t know how? I was looking through Runs With Spatula and found this link that she posted a couple months ago. The site is called Lansing Area Localvores and they give lists of where to find local grown or produced products. Most of the products can be found at the East Lansing Co-Op, but there are other places you’ll need to go. They encourage people to only eat food grown, raised, and produced within 100 miles of Lansing. The website hasn’t been updated since late last year, but the list of businesses who stock local food should be pretty close to accurate.
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Categories : Michigan
MSU Dairy Store
31 05 2008
The MSU Dairy Store was one of the stops on the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitor’s Bureau “Be A Tourist In Your Own Town” event and it looks like it may have been one of the most popular. The MSU Dairy store is inside Anthony Hall on the campus of Michigan State Univeristy. After a day of touring our town, we headed out to MSU to finish the day off with some ice cream. We weren’t the only ones who thought that. The line wrapped around the walls inside the store, in the hallway outsdie the store and then out the door. Since we had nothing better to do, we decided to stick it out, but some families with small kids who got in line behind us weren’t that brave. We ended up waiting about an hour before we finally got to the counter to get our ice cream.
The MSU Dairy store is set up just like any other ice cream store in the country. The difference is they make all their own ice cream. There is a huge list of flavors….most of which are named after Big Ten schools. My girlfriend was willing to experiment and went with Sesquicentennial Swirl and Black Cherry. The Sesquicentennial Swirl was some kind of cake batter ice cream and the Black Cherry had chunks of cherries in it, “It was soooo good,” she just told me. She got two scoops in a waffle cone. After we walked away and she had a few bites, she said it tastes like they make their own cones. I happened to notice the waffle irons behind the counter, so yes, they do make their own cones.
I was less adventerous and got a vanilla shake. They take their homemade vanilla bean ice cream and fresh milk and mix them up to make the most delicious shake I’ve ever had. The homemade ice cream is DELICIOUS. We both agreed the hour wait was worth it. This is probably the best ice cream I have ever had.
Besides scoops, they offer their ice cream in pints and quarts and they also sell homemade cheese. There’s a counter before you get to the ice cream filled with cheddar, chocolate cheese, colby jack, jalapeno pepper, and dagano cheese.
We’ll definately be back and from now on, we’ll take visiting friends and family for a little treat when they’re in town too! Hopefully we’ll hit a day that isn’t quite so busy though
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Tags: Dairy, Food Reviews, Ice Cream, MSU
Categories : Michigan
Jon’s Country Burgers
28 05 2008- 3109 S. Cedar St.
- Lansing, MI 48910
- (517) 393-1627
- No Known Website
- Menu
I’ve driven by Jon’s Country Burgers quite a few times on my way to some other restaurant downtown and always wondered, “What the heck is a country burger?” Well, I found Jon’s menu on-line and answered that question. It’s “two patties of fresh ground meat, melted cheese, pickle, lettuce, and salad dressing on a toasted bun.” OK, so that really doesn’t sound appetizing to me (it’s the salad dressing part), but I needed a place to eat a quick dinner one night because I didn’t feel like cooking.
I picked my girlfriend up from work and we headed down Cedar to Jon’s which was obviously a drive-in back in the day. There’s still an awning for curbside service, but there’s also a dining room…which USED to actually be the drive-in. It looks like they just put up four walls and added some furniture. You can still see the wall that used to be the exterior wall. The door to “go inside” is still there and the waitresses use still use the small counter to pick up orders behind the glass wall.
Jon’s was a little confusing for us first-timers. When we walked in, we really didn’t know what to do. A waitress came out and said to just find a seat so we did. We pulled out the menus on the table and began to look them over. A different waitress came over with water and told us when we were ready to order to just pick up the phone. Yes, there are phones at every table that connect you right to the kitchen. That’s how you place your order. The waitress doesn’t take it.
After a few minutes of looking over the menu, my girlfriend picked up the phone and placed our order. She got the chicken stips which came with an order of fries. They were the standard deep fried chicken strips, but they were soft and moist. She got honey mustard on the side and asked for a couple sides of barbecue sauce as well. The five strips and out of the bag fries were more than enough for her.
I got the Bacon Burger with Cheese basket. My sandwich came with fries and applesauce which I passed over to my g/f. They also brought out a shaker of cinnamon to the table for the applesauce. My burger was, again, your standard drive-in burger. There were two strips of crispy bacon a slice of cheese on a juicy burger. It’s the kind of meal that just begs for me to oversalt the fries then wipe the plate with the burger just to make it a little more salty. I’m not sure why, but it’s one of those wierd things that I’ve just been doing forever with cheap burgers.
I finished my burger and fries long before my girlfriend did. I really didn’t feel like there was a whole lot there. Either that or I was really hungry. The waitress came and took my plate while my girlfriend finished then seemed to forget about us. I don’t want to be too tough on her because she was in training and she was a little timid it seemed like. My g/f finished her meal then we sat there for 10-15 minutes waiting for a check. The waitress finally came over and asked if we needed anything else and we ended up just asking for the check just to make sure we got it then. She went back into the kitchen area and came out a few minutes later. The total for the two of us was $20. Stupid me, I thought I had a $20 in my wallet, but to my surprise when I opened my wallet, there was only $10. I felt a little stupid having to ask my girlfriend to spot me $10, but she did and I’ll make it up to her with lunch tomorrow.
Jon’s is a really unique place. The ordering system is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It lets you talk directly to the cook, so you take the middle man out and make sure you get exactly what you order. Some of the other things were a little wierd. The waitresses uniforms looked too much like nurses uniforms and they were always carrying around trays which really made things feel more like a hospital than a restaurant. The food was classic comfort food which met, but didn’t exceed my expectations. It’s another one of those places I’m glad we went to just because of the uniqueness of the building and the expeience, but not sure if we’ll go back. It probably wasn’t a good thing that on our first trip there we had a waitress in training since we didn’t really know how things worked. It was almost so confusing that it really took away from the dining experience.
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Tags: Burgers, Jon's Country Burger, Lansing, Michigan
Categories : Burgers, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches
Campaign for Smoke Free Air Optimistic
28 05 2008Even though I’v been a vocal supporter of an outright ban, I think today’s vote was the nail in the coffin. I really don’t see Sen. Bishop letting a second, yet exact same, version of the smoking ban being called before the session ends on June 26. However, the lobbyists disagree with me.
Lansing, Mich. – The Campaign for Smokefree Air (CSA) is encouraged today by the state House’s actions in moving the smokefree bill forward, but is disappointed that it chose to include exemptions, causing the bill to be sent to the other chamber. “We were pleased by the additional support in the House, in that nine more representatives see the need for smokefree air. However, we are concerned that the House did not concur with the Senate passed version and instead allowed exemptions,” said Susan Schechter, spokesperson for CSA. “All employees deserve the same protections from secondhand smoke. We will continue to work with both chambers to pass a comprehensive smokefree workplace bill.”
The House passed a vehicle bill, HB 5074, which is essentially the same bill that was passed by the chamber in December. The bill was approved 65-39, and sent back to the Senate for consideration.
Of the 33 states that already have smokefree workplace laws, more than two dozen regulate smoking inside casinos, including six that provide smokefree gaming areas and halls. Three more states (Montana, Nebraska and Oregon) will expand their smokefree policies to include casinos in 2009. The city council in Atlantic City recently voted to close the loophole in New Jersey’s law that exempted casinos — all worksites in the city will be smokefree starting in October.
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Tags: Casinos, Michigan, Politics, Smoking Ban
Categories : Michigan, Politics
HB 4163 Wednesday Update
28 05 2008The House of Representatives has already ended their session today without voting on HB 4163. There was discussion of the bill when they were voting on HB 5074 which bans smoking in college dormotories. There was a discussion of why they need to pass this bill if HB 4163 would pretty much ban smoking in all workplaces.
UPDATE – The Lansing State-Journal put an article on-line saying the House DID in fact pass a smoking ban bill this afternoon. However, it was not HB 4163 which was sent back to by the Senate. I went back and looked at the text of HB 5074 as passed this afternoon and it is THAT bill that was passed with the same language as the original HB 4163.
This is why I should pay attention when I’m watching The House. I heard them talking about the the smoking ban during the discussion, but the bill title was about college dorms. If you look at the enrolled bill and the passed bill, they don’t even resemble each other other than the word smoking.
So, to make this clear, what happened was the House passed the same bill they passed originally exempting Casino’s, bingo halls, and cigar bars. The bill goes back to the Senate which will now have to vote, again, on the same bill they’ve already amended and sent back to the House. In short, things have probably hit a permanent road block.
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Tags: Legislature, Michigan, Politics, Smoking Ban
Categories : Michigan, Politics
Could the House Vote on the Smoking Ban Tonight?
27 05 2008I’ve got House TV on in the background and at 7:45 PM, they’re still in session. I’ve heard from friends in the media that phone calls to both caucuses and the Clerk have had some wierd answers. The Democrats caucused for quite a while late this afternoon and as of this writing, the House “At Ease At The Call Of The Chair.” I’ll keep the video feed up while I’m watching TV tonight to see if anything happens.
8:07 PM – The House has been called back to order.
8:20 PM – I’ve been told by that same friend that the House has “a lot of business” to deal with and they are planning on staying late into the night. Still wouldn’t answer whether HB 4163 would be called tonight or not.
8:29 PM – In another surprise move, the House in now voting on SB 776 which is the Partial Birth Abortion Ban, so it looks like they really are expecting a long night.
10:54 – They are STILL in session. They just announced there will be no further voting tonight, but the House will be back in session tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at 10 AM instead of their usual 1:30 PM start time.
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Tags: Legislature, Michigan, Politics, Smoking, Smoking Ban
Categories : Food News, Michigan, Politics
Gardening “growing” in Popularity
27 05 2008It used to be I got depressed watching the news because all they covered were car accidents and murders (hey, I grew up in Chicago’s DMA). Now, I get depressed watching the news because it reminds me how I rising prices are effecting everything I do. News stories are now starting to focus on people’s changing habits when it comes to saving money.
Adam Lenz has worked at Wenke Greenhouses for the past three years, and says one section of the business has recently seen a major boost.
“We’ve noticed a rise in the last year or so in our vegetable sales,” said Lenz. “A lot of people are trying to see to grow their own to keep the cost down a bit.”
I don’t eat nearly enough vegetables to justify growing a garden. Oh yeah, plus I live in an apartment complex. I don’t think management would like that too much. While it doesn’t make sense for me, it does make sense for some people.
Beudrie says the reason she’s starting her own garden is because she can’t afford to spend $200 on groceries every week for her family.
“It’s getting really expensive and the whole grocery budget is going through the roof,” she said.
To start up her garden, it will cost Beudrie less than a weeks worth of groceries, and over time, it will end up saving her much more.
Gardening is another one of those things that has kind of become a lost art in recent years. Growing up, my grandma always had (and still does) a garden. A lot of my friends parents did too. My family never did, but we didn’t eat a lot of vegetables either. In some ways, these rising prices are a good thing. It’ll bring families back to the table. Their own table. Not Applebees table. We got lazy in the last decade or so when it comes to food. Maybe this isn’t such a bad thing after all……
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Tags: Food News, Gardening, Michigan
Categories : Food News, Michigan
Stanley Cup Wager
27 05 2008I love it when dignitaries make wagers like this. It’s pretty much commonplace among Mayors….but who would want to wager with Kwame Kilpatrick….and usually the winner gets food from loser.
LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today placed a friendly wager with Pennsylvania’s Governor Edward G. Rendell on the 2008 Stanley Cup finals between the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Adding a note of friendly competition to the Red Wings and Penguins Stanley Cup final series, Granholm and Rendell have agreed that the governor of the losing team must be photographed enjoying a meal from the winning state while wearing the winning team’s jersey. A photo of the occasion must be publicly released.
The selected meal from Michigan that Governor Rendell would enjoy includes, Faygo Rock and Rye pop and Kowalski Kowality sausage, both companies are headquartered in Detroit. For a sweet treat, Michigan-grown cherries would also be provided to Rendell. Hot dogs from The Original Hot Dog Shop, a Primanti Brothers sandwich, and Smiley Face cookies from Eat ‘n Park restaurant, all Pittsburgh establishments, have been selected for Governor Granholm.
The Detroit Red Wings have won 10 Stanley Cup championships throughout history, more than any other franchise based in the United States. Game one of the finals is scheduled for Saturday, May 24, at 8 p.m.
To make things even more interesting, Governor Rendell should get his Faygo sprayed on him by The Insane Clown Posse…..looks like it could happen by this weekend too…
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Tags: Michigan, Pennsylvania, Penquins, Red Wings, Stanley Cup
Categories : Food News, Michigan
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