Pixelgawker

I’m a transplant. I was born and raised on the southside of Chicago. Until I moved to Michigan 3 years ago, I didn’t know a tremendous amount about the state. Sure, I spent time at the beaches on the “west coast,” I knew that a place like Frankenmuth scared me and Detroit was a place that I thought I would never want to visit. I now work in Detroit and call SE Michigan my home. I commute downtown every day and live in the shadow of a city struggling to rediscover itself. To outsiders, Detroit is defined by high crime, misery (see Forbes) and a sinking automotive industry. To those same outsiders, Michigan is characterized by foreclosures and the mass exodus of unemployed individuals. Unfortunately, I have learned that most of these are accurate assessments. What I have also learned is that many of these characterizations can be applied to other states throughout the country. The difference is Michigan has done a better job of mismanaging their economy and a poor job of diversification.

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By: Aubrey Stalnaker

I have been thinking intensely for the past few days about what I could contribute to the blog that could be of relevance. I started writing about the idea that students are being rushed to think and design and that it is not just in school, but in the professional realm as well. It occurred to me that I could not make sense of any of this. I moved onto a second draft on the same topic. I found myself getting more and more mad at what I was writing, so I stopped. (more…)