Thursday, July 8,2010

Silent Lapse holds benefit concert

Show will raise money for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patient

by Jane Alexander

Members of the band Silent Lapse are reaching out to help Emily Hepker, with a benefit concert at 8 p.m. Friday at The Loft. Hepker, a friend of the band, has battled Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma for three years. The band hopes to help pay her medical bills and travel expenses throughout the process of her fourth round of chemotherapy.

Proving his metal

Former taxidermist now sculpts in bronze

by Jane Alexander

When Roger Smith makes a sculpture, he doesn’t just carve something out of a block. He forms clay molds, carves them and coats them with various layers of wax, rubber, liquid and dust silica, and works away until he is left at last with something detailed and life-like.

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Wednesday, June 30,2010

Lip prints

Smooch Project catches kisses on-camera

by Jane Alexander

While studying Buddhism in Minnesota, Bonnie Fournier came across a concept that immediately clicked. Mudita, or joy, can be interpreted as the enjoyment one gets merely from witnessing someone else’s happiness.

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Wednesday, June 30,2010

Pizza House expands

East Lansing eatery adds full bar seating

by Jane Alexander

“Our major excitement with the whole thing is the addition of the bar,” Bates said. “Because everyone who has been in and seen it ' especially regulars who come in all the time ' has been asking us to build one for a while now, so they’re pretty excited.

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Friday, June 25,2010

Calling all hams

Amateur broadcasters have a Field Day

by Jane Alexander

“But during all of these crises that have hit the nation and the world, they have been e x t r e m e l y useful. Many times, amateur radio is the only thing that operates temporarily during a crisis. They found that in Katrina and in Haiti. Oftentimes, they were the only way local officials could communicate.

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Wednesday, June 23,2010

A Baker-Donora's dozen is 26

6th annual "Extreme Street Makeover" underway in Lansing neighborhood

by Jane Alexander

Anita Moneypenny paused for a rare rest in the shade Friday afternoon in front of the Baker-Donora Center on Baker Street in Lansing. She kept planning to sit down but never made it to a bench — various volunteers kept interrupting her attempts at respite.She points out each person w...

Get ready to be 'Suspended'

Local filmmakers host fund-raiser for latest project

by Jane Alexander

Another feature film is coming down the pike for Last Laugh Productions — and the filmmakers want your help to pull it off. On June 26, Last Laugh will holding a fund-raiser for the production of its newest project, “Suspended.”

Go ask ’Alice’

Mary Job conjures up a different Wonderland

by Jane Alexander

Let’s be honest. Growing up, "Alice in Wonderland" probably scared us as much as it entertained us, particularly if you were raised on the 1951 Disney film. And now that Tim Burton has given his bizarre twist to Lewis Carroll’s classic novel, we may be even more mystified by the story than ever.

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Wednesday, June 23,2010

Culture clubbed

Southern hospitality turns to hostility in ’The Foreigner’

by Jane Alexander

"The Foreigner" follows a pathologically shy Englishman visiting a rural hunting lodge in Georgia. To avoid speaking to people, he pretends not to understand English. By remaining silent on the sidelines, he is let in on many secrets and plans, and may prove to be the key to the lodge’s survival.

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Wednesday, June 9,2010

Eyesore of the week

by Jane Alexander

Architecture critic Amanda Harrell-Seyburn says: One of the least sustainable forms of architecture are national chain restaurants. Built with no consideration for regional architecture, the buildings are overly stylized with imitation water towers, lighthouses and windmills.

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