JennFriend #5: Notta Guy

Nowhere in the rules does it say that JennFriend club members have to be people!

Down on the corner with Sam Riddle

As I raised my camera to get an updated picture of the tumbling Lafayette Building earlier this week, a man standing on the corner of Lafayette and Shelby eyed me suspiciously. When our eyes met, I was immediately pretty certain it was Sam Riddle, the political consultant who's awaiting a jury verdict in his case on charges of bribery, extortion and assorted other things you'd never put on your resume. He looked at me as if suspicious that I planned on aiming my camera at him, which, of course, I did a few seconds later as he crossed Shelby.

Apparently the courtroom was breaking for lunch, and somehow Riddle was standing by himself just outside the federal courthouse, right across the street from news vans representing every TV news crew in town. Nobody was filming him or taking pictures or asking for quotes or anything. It was kind of like they didn't know he was there - the whole thing seemed very strange. Maybe by now, the media doesn't bother asking him anything directly, they just wait to see what his next Facebook or Twitter post says.

As for the trial, the jury appears deadlocked, and is huddling up again today to continue sorting through everything.

Reading the writing on the walls at the Detroiter Bar

I was grabbing lunch last week over in Bricktown at a bar called the Detroiter Bar. You've probably seen it; it's right down the street from Greektown.

Anyway, I noticed a sign above the bar that said, "Malaka's Bar". A little while later, I saw another sign above the door into the kitchen that said, "Malaka's Bar". And then a hockey stick on the wall that said, "Malaka". And a cigarette machine that said, "Malaka's Bar & Grill". You get the picture.

I was curious what it meant, so I did a little investigating, which is technical-speak for "I asked the bartender."

To find what I learned, click here.

Lafayette Building falling fast

Is this getting old? It really is amazing to see up close.

I've added a "Lafayette Building" link on the right side of this page so you can see all of the posts together. You may recall the first one; it talked about "the building with the trees growing on the roof."