u/MikefromMI

Which is bigger, a half or a third?

I went to Leo's Coney Island yesterday and ordered an olive burger, which was on special that day. It was available in two sizes: 1/3 pound or 1/2 pound. The waitress asked which one I wanted, and told me which one was bigger, which I thought was funny at first, but now I'm a little worried. Do a significant number of Lansing residents not know whether 1/3 is greater or less than 1/2? So many that a waitress routinely has to tell customers that a half is bigger than a third?

I remember the Hardee's chain tried a 1/3 pound burger many years ago, intending to outdo McDonald's Quarter Pounder, but Hardee's had to discontinue it because so many people thought 1/4 was bigger than 1/3, or so the story goes. I had hoped it was some kind of urban legend or exaggeration, but I guess some people do get through school without learning basic fractions.

I asked my search engine (not Google, and not AI),

"What is the word for the strip of lawn between the sidewalk and the street?"

The top answer I got was a Wikipedia article about "road verge", an expression I had never heard before(?). But the article listed several other terms that are also in use, and there were even more in the other articles that came up in my search, none of which were familiar to me. I think I may have heard someone say "curb strip" or "grass strip" before, but not recently or often.

Does anyone in Michigan use the term "road verge"? If not, do we have any agreed-upon term(s) for that area?

[Edit: Thanks for your responses! It looks like this would have been a good question for a poll.

It looks like easement or right-of-way are the most common responses. I see why, but it seems a bit like calling your canine pet a mammal instead of a dog.

Many people call it a boulevard or parkway, and a few people call it a median, but these responses puzzle me because such usage is at odds with what those words usually mean -- think of the Blue Ridge Parkway or Ventura Boulevard, or what we use the abbreviations Pkwy. or Blvd. for -- without being a clear metaphor like apron. And it seems to me that a median should properly be in the middle of something, such as the area in the middle of the freeway.

Berm or island? Do these fit? Eh, I don't know, kind of, I guess? Could be confusing if there's an actual berm or traffic island in the neighborhood.

It's strange that the terms that are most specific, such as curb strip, hellstrip, or lawn extension, which apply to nothing else afaik, seem to be the least commonly used.

And hardly anybody calls it road verge! ]

>Now this anxiety-driven nonsense has been reshaped by popular scientism with a booster charge from a plague of snake oil industries. Petey Hesgeth is processing his own attachment to these superstitions through pop-scientism, his suppressed homoeroticism, and a cranium full of pickled neurons.

Chicory is in full bloom these days; my yard is overrun with it. Coincidentally, lettuce is not safe to eat and coffee prices are through the roof. It occurs to me that this might be a good time to experiment with foraging chicory. Eat the leaves, and roast the roots to grind up and use as a coffee extender.

I've never eaten chicory, but I've seen a post or two about chicory here in the past. If you've picked chicory around here and consumed it, do you have any tips or links you'd care to share?

Cardinal Burke says synodality has no definition and no history. Both halves of that sentence can be checked. Neither survives it.

Haley Stevens has rebounded since Mallory McMorrow dropped out. But polls of both the Michigan primary and the general election don't tell a consistent story.

The Silversides will be towed about 120 miles across Lake Michigan to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, where it will undergo a full workup and renovations.

The Archdiocese of Detroit is running out of priests, parishioners, and time

And also not buy takeout, because in this economy??

Aurelius library branch could close after township sends 90-day termination letter

I don't think I've ever seen as many bats anywhere in Michigan as I've seen this year in Lansing. I'm seeing lots of small bats shortly after sundown. I had read that their numbers had fallen in recent years due to disease. Have their numbers rebounded?

Fireflies also seem to be doing well again this year; I wonder if there's a connection.

I'm also seeing more woodchucks but fewer skunks this year.

>This time of year can be wonderful, it’s a celebration, and I love sharing this unique region with friends and family. But as you can probably guess, it’s also a walking hell for many of us who live here.

What happened to the log cabin that was once the oldest house in Detroit?

A recent Zenith Research poll says all three democrats can beat Mike Rogers in the race for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat.

[Now that McMorrow has dropped out, this poll suggests that electability need not be the main concern for voters who are deciding between El-Sayed and Stevens.]

The vibes have coagulated

 ‘Find something you love and hopefully become good at’ -- as opposed to ‘Find something you’re good at and hopefully fall in love with.’

Even in today's climate, there should be one fundamental principle everyone respects: whatever you think about someone in politics, you leave their kids alone.

Are you interested in learning the Irish language (Gaeilge)? A free study group is forming. Our first meeting will be on Monday, June 29, from 5:30-7:30pm at Kelly's Irish Pub & Restaurant, 220 S Washington Square.

RSVP's appreciated. You can sign up on our Meetup listing here or reply below.

Trump is blocking the opening of the Gordie Howe Bridge. The feds can prevent traffic from coming in from Canada, but can they prevent traffic from leaving? The feds can't stop the Canadians from letting people in from the US.

What would happen if, at an opportune moment, the Michigan state gov't let Canada-bound traffic through? Those travelers would have to come back some other way, but still, it would cut into the millions of dollars of revenue that are presently being lost every day the bridge remains closed, and it would be a big middle finger to Trump.