The Flat Head 3001 World Tour

[fruitbrute]

superb view you got there, can't help but be a little jealous. nice shots, too

[mpcec]

seriously, incredible view aho. keep it up

[aho]

Day 8

Another slow day so far...although I do have one main highlight! I dropped by my local cobbler today to pick up...my new Alden 405's! Apparently I was lucky enough to receive a pair from the new stock which means...leather lining! I was surprised when Tony (from Cobbler's Corner in Northville, one of the few Alden retailers in Michigan) brought them out...I thought that maybe I received a special pair but nope! Anyways, Tony is such a good guy he threw in two horsehair brushes and neutral meltonian polish plus a polish rag for free...now thats good business! All in all I'm satisfied with this pair and it seems Alden is taking it up a notch with their foot balance line...

Free stuff

Flash

No flash

Leather lining!

Very nice stitching...have they also taken up a notch the quality control?

[aho]

Day 8 contd.

More gratuitous Alden shots...what can I say, I was excited

Shameless bathroom shot hahaha

Don't you love that leathery feel of fresh new Aldens?

And now, with the jeans

I got scuffs on my 4060's...I'll have to post a few shots of before and after wax polish to show the wonders of Cordovan leather...

That's about it for now...I'm staying in for the night so don't expect the most interesting shots...

[aho]

Day 9

As expected things are starting to really slow down here but I'll do better over the next few days with a few interesting activities planned during the weekdays...

Tested out the Indy's today...I don't want to take them off! They don't match perfectly with the faded tour jeans but I don't care and both will get all my lovin'

Sanders...a local Michigan ice cream/chocolate place since the 1800's..went with the Hot Fudge ice cream

Ate at Mitchell's Fish Market tonight...standard, not really worth the price, too much salt/sweetness going on but not bad for suburbian Michigan dinner fare

PEI

Salty calamari with that "Asian-y sweet sauce" :X

Pretty good Shrimp and lobster alfredo

Not sure if I'll have updates later...staying in yet again but maybe I'll show some of the work I've done on the journal?

[aho]

Day 10

1/3 of my time complete with the tour and still things are going slow...I hope you all don't mind my lackluster updates as of late...such is the life of the peasant/jobless recent graduate!

I basically wake up and put the jeans on...here is my preferred storage method:

For breakfast I had the most random foods...leftovers from last night, random nut clusters (I'm addicted to these now...don't even know where they are from), my trusty Yakult alternative (Danactive for regularity), applecider, and Kilwins taffy leftover from a trip up north to Macinac Island:

This is what suburban Michigan looks like from my car window

[aho]

Day 10 contd

I drove up to get some sushi at the hands down best sushi place in Michigan..."Noble Fish". They added a few new items like the "Monterrey Sushi" that has cilantro...trust me, some of the best stuff you'll find outside of Japan IME...My personal favorite is the Tofu Roll. I know ordo prefers his sushi on a Friday, maybe I'll make this a new tradition? Sunday Sushi...

Got home, watched a few hours of History International Channel...some show about Barbarians: Mongols...not sure why the re-enactments called for white people to play ethnic Chinese...lol some Mickey Rooney stuff going on there...

And afterwards, of course, more food! For dinner I ate a special concoction that is basically home cooked comfort food for me..."Sloppy Macaroni", basically custom Chili sauce with macaroni

Afterwards I drove out to a night meeting for work...

And walked in the dark with the trusty new Indy's...damn if these aren't the most comfortable shoe ever

After getting home I decided I'd better update the journal for real...Here are some things of note that are going in

Whats going down for tomorrow? I'm thinking more "action shots"...again apologies for the recent slowdown...Mr Haga is killing me in that department right now...my hat goes off to you sir!

[ordo]

I am not picky about what day I eat sushi. In fact any day is a good day to be a sushi day.

[Mr HaGa]

Mr Haga is killing me in that department right now...my hat goes off to you sir!

Hell, dude, you're the one who's making me look bad!

A little competitive spirit between 2 world tours can only be beneficial though, right?

[aho]

ordo, I'll raise a wasabi filled nigiri kanpai to that sentiment...I guess living in Vancouver makes it easier to access fresh fish?

Mr HaGa, just don't point any of those guns at me

[Medine]

did you say you live by detroit?

[aho]

Metro Detroit...suburbs about 25 min. out of the city but I do have some things planned for downtown, tour-wise...

[Medine]

i went to this great soul food place in the detroit suburbs, i forgot what it was called tho...

[beatle]

I am not picky about what day I eat sushi. In fact any day is a good day to be a sushi day.

so true***********

[salaami]

i want food

[almostnice]

I am stuffed.alcohol is the key for tonight.

[aho]

Day 11

I've just about adjusted back to the slow lifestyle/daily no-grind living of suburban Michigan. Thought I'd showcase downtown Northville, which is home to my favorite (and only) local cobbler. There are also a few historic areas as the town has been around since the early 1800's, including the second oldest institution, Parmenter's which makes delicious Apple Cider and Cider mill donuts...

I went to the mall first actually...

Who was that one sufu member that had this awkward pose again?

OK, on to actual Northville pics...across the street is Cobbler's Corner, a nice little shop, home to Alden shoes...

Marquis theater...used to go here on Field Trips as a kid to watch Rumpelstiltskin (sp.?)

There are tons of freaky stores in Northville as well since the buildings are so old. If you visit some of the second hand shops/consignment shops, many of them have basements with old furniture and mirrors in the basements. Couple that with the sound of ringing churchbells in the background and you've got one freaky town...

[aho]

Day 11 contd.

More Northville shops...This is Great Harvest, they make some good bread and some of the best Snickerdoodle

Thought this was a cool little alley

Fun little Toyota

When I got to Parmenter's I completely forgot to take pictures of the actual place...but I did manage to take pictures of the food as well as a tree that just can't let go of it's fall colors. Who doesn't love a good Cider Mill?

[aho]

Day 11 contd.

More food...Forgot to post this earlier in the thread...but do all Macy's have a Yogurt section or is this a midwest remnant of old Hudson's/Marshall Field's ownership?

When I got home I decided to make one of my favorite Pho recipes which uses Chicken instead of the usual beef variety...

Boiling that broth

Prepping ingredients

Removing the star anise, garlic cloves, etc. from the broth

Anddddd...the final product:

That's it for today! If I had a better camera I'd take pictures of the meteor shower tonight but that's just how it goes...

[aho]

Day 12

Admittedly I've been pretty bad about getting pictures of me wearing the jeans and doing activities...today is more of the same but it sucks not having anyone to follow me around taking my picture. This shall be fixed by next week so no worries.

Today I decided to showcase Plymouth Township, another Victorian area community nearby me. Plymouth is home to the largest Ice Sculpture festival (in the world I believe?) and has tons of town fairs/events going on pretty much every other weekend. I grew up going to Fall Fest, Art Fair, etc. so I'm not a stranger to the area...Like much of historic Michigan, many big Industrial Revolution type figures and companies were in the area but have all since vacated...(Henry Ford used to live in Northville, from my previous post)

Approaching downtown

Main street

Penn Theater

Lots of older houses that I'm guessing are haunted

[aho]

Day 12 contd.

Thats Kilwin's across the street...had no idea they had one but they sell some good Mackinac Island Fudge and taffy

Signs of change

The wall you see in this picture is from the Daisy BB factory...BB Guns were apparently invented in Plymouth and the original factory was here before they moved to another state in the mid 1900's...The old factory has since been demolished in order to make way for...you guessed it, Condo's! (How often have we heard this? esp. with denim mills etc.)

More fancy houses

For any Detroit Redwing or general Hockey fans...this is Chris Osgood's house (although a ton more of the Redwings live in Northville just north of Plymouth)...pretty modest huh?

Got home and took random pictures from the garage...remember these stickers?

Old bike

Later that day I had Chinese classes, just for fun

After class I went home and ate some dinner cooked by my dad...he tends to forget he's cooking and overcooks EVERYTHING...he even forgot to put in the noodles!

And that's all for today...

[beatle]

good stuff*************

[aho]

thanks beatle, much appreciated! I'll have to review your tour updates to get some inspiration...

[beatle]

nope - you don't - just go out there and be who you are ......

[aho]

Day 13

Wrote cover letters all day but when I finished I decided to check out Northville Downs, a local harness racing track...

Getting gas but too cheap to pay more than $10...

another gloomy day

gave the Alden's a break today

ten dollars worth of gas

I live in Canton, MI, apparently the fastest growing area in the state. Due to the increasing population, and IMO, the addition of the only Ikea outside of Illinois (?), we get tons of traffic. Ford road in Canton alone accounts for the most accidents in the whole state because of this. The solution? Color coded flags throughout the area's lampposts. This brilliant idea cost the city $45,000...

Afterwards I checked out Northville downs...

[aho]

Day 13

Now, it was my first time here at the Downs so I wasn't sure what to expect. This was the last week for Harness racing for the month (runs through April I believe) but I decided not to stick around because I was two hours early for the race. The actual building itself had the exact atmosphere of a Casino...old retired grumpy people smoking cigarettes and drinking beer while sitting around tv screens and poker tables passing the time...

[aho]

Day 13 contd.

Despite being early, there were a few racers warming up with trial laps

a lonely seat

Somewhat freaky basement

I wish I could say it was a welcoming environment but as soon as I took this next shot, a grumpy older waitress yelled at me...apparently pictures weren't allowed, which she clearly enunciated for me (I guess because she thought I didn't speak english...LOL) and warned that the police would confiscate my camera...But by that time I was already on my way out and took all the pictures I was going to take anyway...

Having not made any big bucks at the races, I went on my way home but decided to pay a visit to Border's first. I have no shame in admitting I pick up Paris Vogue once in a while

After I got home (ate leftovers so no food pics!) I decided I'd give the Alden's a fresh coating of neutral Meltonian cream that I got for free from the Cobbler...

Pre-polish

Holey sock "wax-on/wax-off" technique

And the boots after polish, brush and buff

Damn, I'd forgotten how shoe polish/cream can smell...There goes that fresh new shoe smell!

That's all for now!

[aho]

Day 13 contd.

Felt kind of weird without posting food pictures today...lol so here is the snack I just ate...random watermelon, giant grapes and bread...

Just about wraps up my day!

[aho]

Day 14

Today was more of the same...computer work at home but I also had a chance to head out to Heritage Park and the Library...

Can you believe we already have Christmas decor up?

Heritage Park...its alot bigger but I just went to one section...hard to avoid all the geese droppings

[aho]

Day 14 contd

Some strange sculptures in the park

gazebo...I used to catch caterpillars crawling on it when I was a kid and put them in glass jars in hopes that they'd become butterflies...

Afterwards I went to the library...

Next two pictures are a painful reminder of the horrible proportions of my clothing...I need a longer peacoat and tailored shirts...but unfortunately I spend too much money on jeans and shoes...

More in a bit...cooking dinner!