Yes/No Detroit

We are somehow already in NOVEMBER, and the weather is reflecting it: yesterday I think it was around 70-75 degrees, which is unusual for October, and today the high is 56 (brr).  Fire Whip show at TX Ren Fest What I've been up to this week: Traveling to Houston, TX. This was our third year making this trip—the first year, we were dating, the second year, my husband and I were engaged, and this year we are newlyweds! (and no, this was not our honeymoon ... that's still TBD)  We arrived on Saturday and grabbed lunch, and then drove to my husband's friend's house, where we stayed the night with him and his girlfriend, who were great hosts. He cooked us a brisket for dinner, and then on Sunday, we all went to the Texas Renaissance Festival (more on that below), for my 3rd year there, which is always a lot of fun.  On Monday, we did the Houston Aquarium and dinner at Taste of Texas, which is always a treat, and on Tuesday we did a quick lunch and then had to head to the air

Photos courtesy of Review Wire Media *Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Review Wire Media for Blue Fox Entertainment. All opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Lost on a Mountain in Maine will be in theaters this Friday, November 1st, and I'm excited to see it - it's produced by Sylvester Stallone, and I love movies based on true stories. About the movie: Lost on a Mountain in Maine tells the inspiring true story of 12-year-old Donn Fendler, who becomes separated from his family by a fast-moving storm atop a treacherous mountain. For nine days, Donn fights to stay alive as he attempts to survive the unforgiving wilderness of northern Maine without food, proper clothing, or the knowledge of how bad his situation really is. His disappearance sparks a massive search effort that captures national headlines and attracts hundreds of volunteers, including his father, who fears he may never see his son again. Rated PG. Directed by: Andrew Boodhoo Kightlinger Pr

This week has been an odd one but went by fast, and tomorrow we are going to Houston for a few days to visit friends and attend the Texas Renaissance Festival (our 3rd year going together) which is always a fun time.  MJ the Musical, Fisher Theatre, Detroit What I've been up to this week: MJ the Musical, at the Fisher Theatre, Detroit.  On Wednesday night, my mom and I attended this, and I was blown away by how good the dancing was—the actor who plays Michael Jackson in it is SUPER talented. It's playing at the Fisher through November 3rd, and I highly recommend seeing it; you can read more info about it here at my initial blog post. Seeing movies . I officially canceled my AMC A-List subscription after seeing Goodrich at the Forum last Friday night, which pained me to do, but I'm now at my "new place" (husband's house) full-time and the closest AMC is AMC Livonia, which is old and does not have recliners. I decided to try out the new MoviePass, and so far it

Not sure how it's already MID October, but I made it through colonoscopy prep weekend—oddly enough, it was bad but seemed easier than 2022's prep—and it has been nice to be able to eat solid foods again this week.  Bee pollen and honey drink at Candy Bar, Detroit What I've been up to this week: Dining out/getting takeout . I had a nice sort of "last hurrah" last Friday before my prep—it was a friend's birthday, and we had a night out in Detroit for it. We went to Wright & Co. for dinner, a small plates restaurant that I had been wanting to try for a while (apparently it opened in 2014?), and then went to Candy Bar and Monarch Club after for drinks. What's funny is that a few years ago, I guess in July 2019, I also went to Candy Bar and Monarch Club one night for drinks, and swore I'd never got back to Monarch—my friends and I had a pretty bad experience with a bouncer that thought he was a god, basically, and took forever to let us in—but this time

*Disclosure: I received a digital code for this movie in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Deadpool x Wolverine is now available on digital, and it will be available on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD as of October 22. FIVE of my lucky readers will be able to win a digital code to own the movie! Check out my giveaway below. More info: LFG! Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine bursts onto digital retailers (Prime Video, Apple TV and Fandango) on October 1 and explodes on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD on October 22. The highly anticipated introduction of the edgy, and dynamically comical heroes into the Marvel Cinematic Universe has already proven to be a massive success, becoming the biggest rated-R movie in history and the #5 highest-grossing MCU domestic release of all-time. “The movie broke so many records,” said Ryan Reynolds. “The only way to

This week went by fast, for some reason. This weekend I have to go to Meijer, because next weekend is the *most fun* one of the year (being sarcastic here) ... colonoscopy prep, in which I can't have food for 2.5 days, basically (just liquids). Cat pumpkin from ALDI What I've been up to this week: Getting takeout/going out to eat. Last Friday, we got Pink Garlic takeout, which is my favorite Indian restaurant in this area. On Sunday, my husband and I went to see my parents, and we got Hungry Howie's takeout. On Monday, I was hoping to resume going back to the gym—I wasn't able to go right before the wedding much, because of all the last-minute things to do—but unfortunately the light fixture in the kitchen decided to malfunction, so we spent an hour or so fixing it, then decided to call it a day and get Doordash from Sidecar Slider Bar. On Wednesday, my mom and I went to Panera before seeing a show at the Fisher (more on that below), and yesterday, a friend gave me a Sh

*Disclosure: I have an ongoing media relationship with TSO. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. all photos courtesy of TSO The Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is coming back to Little Caesars Arena this year, on Dec. 28th, and it's always an amazing show! They'll be playing multiple cities this area again, also - see below for details. About the show: This year, multi-platinum rock group Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) kicks off a monumental winter tour on November 13th. The tour marks a triple celebration: 20 years of their beloved rock opera "THE LOST CHRISTMAS EVE," reaching their 20 millionth concertgoer, and surpassing a phenomenal $20 million donated to charity. For more details on tour dates and ticket sales, visit www.trans-siberian.com . TSO remains true to the vision of their late founder, Paul O’Neill, by being one of rock's most generous bands. This year, the band will surpass a staggering $20 million donated to charity, a testament to thei

*Disclosure: I have an ongoing media relationship with Broadway in Detroit. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. SIX is coming to the Fisher Theatre this January, and I missed it the last time I'm in town, so I'm excited to see it. About the show: Broadway In Detroit is delighted to announce that the Tony Award®-Winning electrifying new musical phenomenon SIX by Tony Award®-winners Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss returns to the Fisher Theatre January 7–12, 2025. Tickets go on sale Friday, September 20 and will be available online at BroadwayInDetroit.com . From Tudor Queens to Pop Icons, the SIX wives of Henry VIII take the microphone to remix five hundred years of historical heartbreak into a Euphoric Celebration of 21st century girl power. This new original musical is the global sensation that everyone is losing their head over! SIX won 23 awards in the 2021/2022 Broadway season, including the Tony Award® for Best Original Score (Music and Lyrics) and the Outer Critics

This week has been a lot of forms and a lot of name-changing, and it will continue today with changing my work name/email, in Outlook.  Nicholas Sparks (left) at the Berman Center, West Bloomfield What I've been up to this week: Nicholas Sparks event at the Berman Center (the J), West Bloomfield. Back in March or April, I stumbled upon a social media post saying that Nicholas Sparks, one of my favorite authors, would be coming to Michigan—at the J (formerly JCC), like a 7-minute drive from me now—to promote his new book, Counting Miracles . Fast-forward to this month, and it took place this Wed. at 6pm, so I went by myself (not my preference, but for events like these I don't mind). I *thought* the event would be a reading from his book and him answering questions, but instead it was a quick one-hour "fireside chat" type of deal with local journalist Neal Rubin, whom I think I've met before at blogger events. We also got to take a picture with Nicholas after, whic

Apologies for no Friday Five last week, but I was just a little bit busy getting married! We left Friday for Holland and came back on Tuesday. Right before the ceremony What I've been up to this week: Wedding weekend . We arrived in Holland last Friday, and stopped at Fazoli's in Lansing on the way west, which has become something of a tradition—they don't have any in metro Detroit, not including the Monroe location. Most of my husband's (!) extended family arrived Friday or Saturday too; his parents and sister came in from Indiana, where they live, and he had relatives fly in from Idaho and Florida, and drive in from Minnesota. Rehearsal lunch . On Saturday, we had rehearsal at the venue (Boatwerks restaurant, in Holland) and then lunch at Seventy-Six, a restaurant in downtown Holland. The food was very good, although unfortunately the lunch had a few hiccups (i.e. we had one waiter for our group of 30 people, so it took a long time for people to get food).  Wedding da

Wedding countdown is officially on: we are getting married in 9 days (on Sun. 9/15) and this week have been working on finalizing things with the venue, DJ, desserts, and other details. I don't think I will fully believe it until we are in the car driving to Holland a week from today! It's crazy how we have been planning this for a year already, for the most part. Owl at the Michigan Renaissance Festival What I've been up to this week: Picking up our marriage license . Last Friday, we headed to the Oakland County building in Troy, and it wasn't exactly how I expected—first off, they have probation offices there too, so when you arrive it feels like the airport, as in you have to take off belts, anything metal, etc. Then we were directed to the marriage license area, and it was all very clinical; fill out paperwork, pay a $20 fee, etc. No "congrats on your marriage" or "good luck" or anything like that. I will be back a week from this Wed. to file our

all photos courtesy of Focus Pictures *Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this film in exchange for this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Although Didi is still in theaters, it's now available to rent or buy on digital. TWO of my lucky readers will win a digital code to download the film! See below for details. About the film: Relive your adolescence in this year’s funny and heartwarming story in Focus Features’ Dìdi (弟弟). The film celebrated its World Premiere earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival, where it took home both the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award and the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast. The film, which is currently Certified Fresh with a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score, is available for the first time exclusively on digital platforms to own or rent, and available to own on Blu-ray™ October 29, 2024 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Masterfully directed by Academy Award® nominee and first-time feature filmma

Well, well, well—if it isn't the end of August already. I've been stressing out this week because we have a lot of wedding choices that are due Sunday and Monday, which we haven't done yet (music choices plus some venue stuff), but hopefully it'll get done this weekend. I also have tickets for Ren Fest I have to use this weekend too though ...  $5.99 shawarma from Kabob Royale, Madison Heights What I've been up to this week: Picking up my wedding dress in Ann Arbor . This proved to be more complicated than originally thought, because I pulled up to my parents' house to pick my mom up, and saw a GIGANTIC nail or something in my tire; we had to quickly pivot, and we took my parents' car (with me driving) instead. I got my dress at The Brides Project, in A2, which I highly recommend; it's a nonprofit and all of their proceeds go to cancer research. On Saturday we were picking up my dress after the seamstress there had worked on it, so I had to try it on wit