I went to my home state of Michigan over the Memorial Day weekend and I couldn't believe the changes that have happened in downtown Detroit. That area is so different than how it was when I grew up in the city. (The techno Movement Festival was also going on while I was there, much to my surprise!) Downtown Detroit was a virtual ghost town after business hours when I was growing up. No one hung out down there. Now there are new restaurants, Campus Maritus Park, techno music festivals at Hart Plaza, and KAWS sculptures (see picture below). Wow. But, for all of the success the downtown area is having, things don't seem to be trickling down to help the neighborhoods. Some areas were as blighted as ever. I drove downtown via Woodward Avenue from the suburbs. Change is slow for places like Detroit, unfortunately. I always enjoy going back to Michigan to visit, but would I live there again? I doubt it, but never say never, right?
In other news, why, oh why, did I waste my time half-watching the latest comedy special from Ricky Gervais on Netflix? I think I laughed out loud two times during his set. So many low and lazy (and not funny) jokes on everything from AIDS to cats. I don't know why I thought his set would be funny. I've never been a huge fan of his. I remember watching the original version of The Office that he created and starred in and I thought it was one of the most depressing shows I've ever seen. My manager at the time loaned me her set of DVDs so I could watch the series. She loved it. I wanted to cry after watching it. The combination of awfulness and the fact that I worked in an office and could relate to so many things in the show just left me feeling depressed. I never watched the American version after that because I was too traumatized from the British version.
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