I believe I mentioned in Monday’s Mr. Softee post that I’d toiled for four summers as a soft-serve technician for the Dairy Queen. The hours were horrid, the pay was insulting, but the Blizzards were free — or at least one per 8-hour shift was free. Now, a politician in Michigan wants to rid food-service employees throughout his state of the benefit of free lunches. [More]
michigan
Towing Co. Loses Half Its Accounts After Suing Over Facebook Page
By 5.25.10
Surely some of you remember the item we posted last month about a towing company in Michigan that had filed a $750,000 slander and libel lawsuit against a college student because he’d created a Facebook page for people to voice their complaints about the company. Well, that move appears to have backfired for the towing company, which has since lost a good chunk of business. [More]
Missing Some Mail From The Early '90s? There's A Shed That Might Interest You
By 5.25.10
The AP says that thousands of pieces of undelivered mail from the early ’90s were recently found in a shed in Michigan, and a ex-mail carrier is now charged with stealing mail — the punishment for which is up to 5 years in prison. [More]
POLL: Is Advertising In Schools OK?
By 3.31.10
Many schools have seen some sort of inside advertising since the ’90s, but it’s usually been relegated to a few posters in the cafeteria. But several school districts in the Detroit metro area are moving ahead with plans to include advertising for national brands on gym walls, athletic fields and school web pages. [More]
Burger King Employee Tells Facebook Friends He Spits On Food
By 3.26.10
While it may not be as egregious as the Domino’s Pizza employees who videotaped themselves desecrating their work kitchen, a Burger King employee in Michigan is in hot water after blabbing on Facebook about spitting in the food. [More]
VIDEO: Woman Drives Through Burger King Window
By 3.11.10
Apparently unclear about the whole “drive-thru” thing, a woman in Grand Rapids, MI, decided to actually drive her entire car through the window of her local Burger King last night. [More]
Advice: Do NOT Get A Circumcision On Craigslist
By 3.4.10
We all know Craigslist can be great for finding an apartment, retrieving your stolen property and getting a law degree from Georgetown. And apparently, the site’s reputation is so solid that there are adult men in Michigan who thought it would be perfectly okay to arrange a circumcision through the online bazaar. [More]
Will A Human At BofA Finally Please Modify My $160,000 Underwater Mortgage
By 2.5.10
Jim and Susan’s mortgage is underwater by $160,000. They want to live up to their obligations, they want to keep their home, but they can’t do it with a $370,000 mortgage on a house that’s only worth $210,000. An attorney told them to send some “jingle mail,” just pop the house keys in an envelope, mail it to the bank, and move away. What they really want is a modification so they can stay in their house, but Bank of America has been jerking them around and they don’t have faith that this last hurdle will actually get them a mod. Isn’t there a decision-making human at BofA that can finalize this deal for them? [More]
Target Calls Cops On Breastfeeding Shoppers
By 12.1.09
The AP says that police were called when Target employees tried to throw a couple out of the store because the woman was breastfeeding in the electronics aisle. The husband, a Detroit police officer, says they were told by the security guard that the act was “against the law.” [More]
Michigan Utility Company Must Refund $39 Million To Overcharged Customers
By 11.5.09
In Michigan, utilities can increase rates without first getting approval, but that means the Michigan Public Service Commission can later reduce them. That’s what happened on Monday, when the Commission ordered Consumers Energy to refund about $39.6 million to customers it overcharged since last May.
Certified Pre-Owned Cats: Inspected, Detailed, Better Than New!
By 8.19.09
The problem: thousands of sweet, cuddly, adoptable adult cats languishing in shelters. People gravitate toward tiny kittens, which are plentiful in the summer months, leaving adult shelter cats without humans to own. A possible clever solution: Clever marketing ploys. Which is the origin of the Michigan Humane Society‘s Certified Pre-Owned Cats campaign.
Crafty Michigan Credit Unions Implement A Lottery Worth Playing
By 8.2.09
Save to Win gives Michigan residents the chance to win the lottery simply by purchasing a certificate of deposit. Here’s how it works: residents who contribute at least $25 into a Save to Win CD are automatically entered into monthly drawings for a $400 raffle, and an annual drawing for a $100,000 jackpot. Even if you don’t win, you still have an interest bearing CD.
No Charges In Case Of Utility Freezing 93-Year-Old To Death
By 6.8.09
No charges will be filed in the case of a 93-year old Michigan man who froze to death after the utility company put a malfunctioning electricity limiter on his house.
Where Are New Job Opportunities? Try Wyoming, North Dakota, Virginia
By 5.6.09
As unemployment grows, MainStreet looked at where in the U.S. there are actually new job opportunities. Ranked #51 is Michigan. #1? North Dakota.
America's 10 Fastest Dying Towns
By 12.11.08
Here’s a bleak list from Forbes — America’s 10 Fastest-Dying Towns. Many of the towns have something in common — manufacturing jobs moving overseas or to cheaper, more rural, areas.
Seinfeldian: Some Consumers Really Do Drive Their Cans And Bottles To Michigan
By 10.28.08
Remember that episode of Seinfeld where Kramer and Newman attempted to drive a mail truck full of cans and bottles to Michigan in order to profit from the $0.10 bottle deposit? Well, apparently, people really do this. And it’s no fun for Michigan.
By 9.30.08
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There’s a pretty nasty e. coli outbreak going on in Michigan and Illinois — apparently “industrial” sized bags of lettuce from a Michigan company called “Aunt Mids” have been contaminated. Among those affected were students at Michigan State and the University of Michigan and some inmates at Lenawee County Jail. [Michigan Department Of Community Health & Progressive Grocer] (Thanks, Alex!)
Houses For $1: "My 14-Year-Old Son Could Buy a Block of Detroit Property"
By 8.14.08
Things are looking pretty bleak in parts of Detroit these days. In fact, you can get a house for $1. Yes, that’s right. A house.
