oh dear.
not even close, but my kid just tied a doo-rag onto her stuffed dogs head.
enjoy these days, guys.
I love how connected you are to where you live and how honest you are with Juniper about the beauty and brutality of the world.
I think we all have a naked guy playing a trumpet inside us... oh wait, that doesn't sound right
Sounds like Detroit is in need of some plaques and other permanent acknowledgments of history.
The cut sounds great, and I hope it comes out great in a different way when they're done with it.
We recently looked into a preschool for Edan that had some very pompous stringent rules for any child who wished to attend, based on the belief that anything that wasn't an imaginative game about pretty butterflies would damage their delicate psyches. We came to our senses and chose not send Edan to this ridiculous institution, but I worried throughout most of our visit -- knowing there were literally countless stories that she could tell that would out me as the parent who respected his child's intelligence and maturity.
I am ashamed to admit that I don't know much about Austin. I need to put the babe in the stroller, head downtown, and soak up the sights of our capital city.
Love, love, love the Flickr images.
Fantastic. That Juney is a steel trap.
And I will echo those before me who admire that you share so much of the world with Juniper, even that which many would consider "age-inappropriate." From toddlerhood, my father always treated me like a person and would answer my avalanche of questions the best way he knew how. It made me trust and respect him, and made me smarter than most kids, to boot. Juney is a lucky girl.
Great story. I love it when kids offer that little tidbit of information sure to make other parents wonder what you do with your time. 
ok, so I am not crazy...that WAS a pheasant that cut in front of our car as we were snaking through back streets after leaving the Market
As a former resident of Detroit, wonderful pieces such as this make me long to move back and bring a tear to my eye for many reasons.
Outsiders often cast Detroit as a gritty and inhospitable place. Violence, racial segregation, and poor leadership have taken a serious toll, but if you can get beyond Detroit's obvious failings you'll develop a strange appreciation for what the city is, and isn't. As this entry so nicely illustrates, the city's tumultuous history is mind-boggling, the architecture is fascinating, and if you scratch below the surface Detroit has a lot offer that many people don't care to notice.
I just wanted to thank you for being so generous and sharing all these fantastic photos with us. You've inspired me to take my own photos to a little higher level.
And I love a good Juniper story too.
You make me care about Detroit. You remind me of the teacher that made learning interesting...have you considered writing non-fiction?? Maybe a whole book on the history of Detroit with both text and photojournalism? You've probably already thought about it...but you should!
Reading your blog gives me a better idea of what Detroit is like. Thank you. What do you do with the bricks you find?
This story reads like a Utah Phillips story about riding the rails.
Breaks the heart in the most bittersweet of ways.
I'm sure you have, but if you have not, you should read Middlesex. Eugenides' Detroit story is among my favorite.
Your honesty with Juniper is fantastic.
I just read your essay in Things I learned about my dad in therapy -- it was just beautiful. Thanks for all of your writing.
I love that Juniper calls you Pops.
dude, juniper is going to be one well-educated kid when she grows up. you are amazing people.
thanks for the fascinating history lesson. the things i never knew about detroit but keep learning. thanks for that.
I really like the name Dequindre Cut. If I ever wrote a porno, I would definitely consider it for the name of one of the male protagonists.
I love that you are so connected to where you live. The history lives in you and is being passed down to your child. Kudos to you.
My kids do that as well. They focus on the one thing I say that I don't want to have to explain. I am glad I am not the only one that explains even though it is about a naked man.
I've always thought Dequindre Cut is a nice name for what it really is. The revamp is sort of bittersweet in a way. All of that history lost.
And Juney... you've got your hands full with that one!
have you read "outside lies magic" by Stilgoe? I read (most of) it recently and kept thinking of you and your urban explorations with juniper. I found his writing style kind of annoying but, if you haven't already, you should definitely check it out. There's a whole part on following abandoned train tracks which is why this post reminded me to ask you.
i'd like to think somewhere the naked guy is still out there blowing his trumpet.
thank you for sharing.
i love your stories and photos about detroit, as much as your stories about juniper... my daughter was born in the same week. i traveled from LA to Detroit 8 times in about 5 years to do community building with activists and everyday folks in detroit involved with community gardening, making murals, poetry, and rebuilding detroit.
What is it about the image of a naked guy and a trumpet?
we saw a homeless guy masturbating while sitting on a home depot bucket down there, last spring.
also love that she calls you Pops. I'm assuming you promoted it over "Daddy"? I would think it would definitely be a little easier to hear over and over just because it's so amusing.
I envy your maleness for one particular aspect - that you can and do go to places like The Cut, the book depository, the train station... places with all this graffiti and crime. And you don't feel particularly afraid to do it. As a woman, I don't feel I can go and see that kind of thing and not feel afraid for my personal safety. Perhaps as a single woman, I might have been tempted to go and photograph or experience it. As a wife and mother, it would be irresponsible of me to risk doing it. Thanks for sharing the pictures as well as the experience of it.
Even as an adult, I'll still turn my head more for a naked guy story than one without.
My husband and I were listening to my grandmother go on and on about family history, and we were ready to pass out from boredom until she finished the tale quite nonchalantly with, "And then she was strangled by a crazy woman." Best story ever.
Great post - really. Re a combo of this and PSA #346, any chance you might post this one for purchase?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/swe...57604823327577/
I stumbled across your blog from your guest post on Ms. Dooce's page. Just wanted to tell you I love your photos (and plan on buying several in the next few weeks) and your writing. Your post on the Detroit Book Conservatory, and now this one on the Dequindre Cut, brought tears to my eyes. Something about the loss of another beautiful place in the world (although I'm sure many people would disagree with my definition of beautiful), just really affected me.
Please keep bringing these stories to us with your amazing talents. They are truly appreciated.
PS I also tell my 4-year old all about his world in a way that is honest and doesn't sanitize it for his consumption. I fully believe the world is a beautiful place because of its "flaws", not despite them. I was raised this way by my own parents, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
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