Twenty-two done ... thirty to go...

What: #49 Get a Detroit Tigers shirt

When: June 30th
Where: Comerica Park
Why: Most summers, I find myself at the ballpark for at least a few games. This summer, I've had the good fortune of having a partial season package, so I'll see about 30 games from my seats off the third base line. I never know what to wear because at first pitch, I usually want a tank top or tee on while the sun is out, but by the end of the game, I'm usually wishing for a long-sleeve shirt or hoodie as the river breezes kick up and the sun goes down. To have enough Tiger apparel to meet all of these needs, I'd have to spend a fair sum of money, which I haven't done. Still, I always feel left out that I don't have a good Detroit Tigers shirt to wear. I do wear my Detroit Republic shirt, which does sport a nice tiger on it, but it isn't really a Tigers shirt.

My manicure matches my jersey!

It turns out that as one of the promotions this year, in honor of the amazing 1984 championship team, they were giving away jerseys to the fans that got in early to the game on June 30th (it's the 30th anniversary of that World Series team). The 1984 team is very special to me; it's the first time I remember being aware of baseball, and as a young girl that summer, I collected their baseball cards, knew their stats, met them and got their autographs, and fell asleep listening to Ernie Harwell call the games. So, not only was it very exciting to see players like Alan Trammel, Lou Whittaker, and Darrell Evans again, it was especially cool to do it wearing a jersey that says "Champions" across the back, with number 84 emblazoned on it.

To cap off the night, I got to see Rajai Davis hit a walk-off grand slam, an absolutely thrilling finish to a great day at the ballpark!

Twenty-one done ... 31 to go...

What: #27 Go inside the MGM Grand Casino in Detroit

When: June 29th
Where: Detroit
Why: Years ago when they opened up the regulations to allow gambling in Detroit, it was a move that I thought would be very detrimental to the region. As someone who is always very protective of the perceptions that others have of Detroit, I was staunchly opposed and thus never did want to support the casinos in the city. As time rolled by, it seemed that there wasn't anything quite as awful coming from the presence of the three casinos as I had anticipated, so I've come to accept their existence, even using the Greektown Casino as my own personal parking lot for Tigers games and enjoying the light show that graces the facade of the Motor City Casino. The other casino, the MGM Grand in Detroit, always seemed a tad silly to me because it pales in comparison to the actual MGM Grand in Vegas. Still, I decided that I should take time to visit this casino to fairly assess it.

The casino floor is pretty typical, nothing flashy or overly interesting. There are a few restaurants that surround it, including a Wolfgang Puck eatery and TAP, which is a pretty cool bar. The one lap that I did around the casino to take it all in was a pretty quick one because of all the smoke; I think I had forgotten you could still light up inside casinos, and that was a huge deterrent for me wanting to spend much time in there. Luckily, I saw this room - "The Clear" - as I walked by, so I was able to sit for awhile and have a little fun at a slot machine.

In general, the casino seems to be nothing special. Perhaps the hotel part is more of a destination, but I'll probably not feel the need to add a stay there to my list for next year.

Eventually, I lost it all...

Big spender...$5 at the quarter slots!

Twenty done ... 32 to go...

What: #47 Drive to the end of Platt Road

When: June 15th
Where: Dundee, MI

The end...

Why: About a year ago, my parents were telling me their plans for the day. They had just moved to a new town and were getting their bearings. On this particular day, my mom was telling me that there is a road they often pass by, and so that day, their plans involved taking that road to see where it goes. Simply that: get in the car and find out where the road ends. Now granted, it's a pretty nice day when that's all a person has on their to-do list. Also, it speaks to my enjoyment of taking a road trip, seeing what's off the beaten path, discovering a piece of Americana. So, that's how this ended up on my list. I've lived off Platt Road for many years, and routinely drive to its northern terminus, but had never taken it as far south as it went. It seemed fitting that on the last day of owning my most recent car, it was decided that Maggie May (my car) and I would take this journey together to commemorate all of our good times.

As we entered the small town of Milan, I was hungry, and after finding a nice place for lunch, we stopped by the Dairy Barn. This is exactly what I'm talking about when I say I enjoy going off the beaten path. Sure, I love Dairy Queen as much as the next person, but finding a local independent shop like this is always a delight, especially when it serves such deliciousness!

After filling up on a hot fudge/peanut butter/moose tracks sundae (yes, that's right), we continued south. The next interesting sight along the road was this boat. In a parking lot. In the middle of an industrial park. Surrounded by farm fields. I truly have no guess how far away the next body of water is that would warrant a boat of this size; the most common waterways around this area are small rivers fit for a kayak. And it was just an unusual boat. It's a mystery.

Finally, it was out onto the open road south of Milan. Just miles and miles, straight through farm fields, seeing cool old barns and clouds rolling across the sky.

When it turned into a dirt road, I was absolutely thrilled; it made it feel like more of an adventure, more like the good ol' days of driving from town to town, without GPS, just seeing what was next to discover. For me, my adventure ended at the edge of a soybean field. This list item was intended to be a simpler task to complete, but the enjoyment I got from doing this was more than I expected...

Nineteen done ... 33 to go...

What: #99 Sleep overnight in a Frank Lloyd Wright house

When: June 13-15
Where: The Palmer House, Ann Arbor

Notice my FLW bookmark, too!

Why: I've been fascinated by Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture even since I saw the Plymouth "Snowflake House" when I was very young. I remember thinking that it was unlike any home I'd ever seen in the way it was laid out, which of course is an understatement. I've made it a point to see other homes and buildings of his throughout the years, many in Michigan, those in Chicago, in the LA area, and of course Falling Water and Kentuck Knob - both in Pennsylvania. After reading "Loving Frank" last year, I have an even keener desire to see Taliesin in Wisconsin, and hope to visit it one day soon. In the meantime, I took all this touring up a notch by actually living in an FLW home for a weekend. The idea started about 6 years ago when this particular home went up for sale for the first time, and I watched with interest to see what became of it. Much to my surprise, the owners converted it into a rental property, and after finding a few friends to make it possible, my dream of living in an FLW home finally came true!

The original Origami chairs, and gorgeous vaulted ceilings!

The immediate reaction when you enter is the openness of the living area; not just in sheer space, but how open it feels to the outside, and when the surroundings are as beautiful as they are in Ann Arbor, it's a pleasure to feel so connected to the outdoors. Despite protests from our friends who stayed with us or visited, I could definitely see myself living in this home. I like that the bedrooms are small because I spend limited time there versus in the living room; I love that the windows are left without curtains or coverings; and I like how the lights are seamlessly blended into the ceilings, the walls, and the original furnishings. Even the kitchen - a room that, let's be honest, I spend less time in than my bedroom - was a great space, with a wonderful skylight, practical counters, two sinks, and ample room to move around in it.

It blends in with the landscape...

Throughout the home, the abstract bird blocks were repeated, giving a very unique view outside and around corners. The whole use of glass (walls), concrete (floors) and wood (ceilings) is just beautiful, and seeing the intricate puzzle of fitting together rooms and hallways and built-in furniture with rarely a right angle gave me a lot to discover.

Another building on the property, the tea house, was constructed in a similar style of the same materials, by design of Wright's apprentice. It, too, uses the equilateral triangle as its foundation and brings the outside in with incredible sliding window walls. This is where the Palmer's daughter would practice her yoga, so I paid tribute.

Yoga in the tea house, as was intended!

Eighteen done ... 34 to go...

What: #43 Shower in my own guest shower

When: June 1st
Where: My guest bathroom

Guest shower...kind of plain...

My own shower curtain...love it!

Why: Sometimes, my list of new things too closely resembles a bucket list of big ticket items when, in fact, there are magical moments to be found in experiencing smaller-sized new things, too, so I tried to keep that in mind as I created my third annual list. One thing that many of my friends have done that I haven't is right here in my own home: use the guest bathroom shower. To put this in perspective, I did not just move in to this home; I've lived here for nearly a decade. And in all that time, I've never tried out the shower in my second bathroom. I have, believe me, showered in plenty of other places in my life (not always with the temperature I'd prefer - like my cold showers in the Amazon rainforest, and often with many insect participants...shudder), so it isn't a fear of the unknown shower. I guess part of it is that I *do* spend enough time traveling and using foreign showers that when I'm home, I want the comfort of my own space. The reason this was added to the list is that, as I enter my tenth year of home ownership, I wanted to do some renovating, remodeling, redecorating, and rearranging. To make the guest bathroom a better haven, I've thought of leaving comment cards for my friends and friends of friends to give me tips on what they would like to have in there, but that seemed a bit weird. Instead, I thought I'd experience it firsthand, and I learned a lot. Such as, a woman with a few bath products (shampoo, conditioner, razor, soap, face wash, pumice stone) does not have space to put all of her things. Another is that in order for the razor to be used, it takes quite a bit of contorting, and even as someone that has done a lot of yoga, it was eventually too much for me and I gave up. Frankly, I'm not sure how a person much larger than me could do much of anything in the shower aside from enjoying the feel of a pretty perfect water flow and temperature. (Side note: the drain worked...which is a step ahead of my own shower and the reason I tried this out today). There are definitely modifications I'll work on to make the bathroom experience more pleasant for my guests, and for myself when I want a change of scenery...suggestions welcome!