Detroit Free Press

TRAVELER, WHY NOT SIMPLY DISCONNECT?

TRAVELER, WHY NOT SIMPLY DISCONNECT?

LONDON -- I can still see the old train station in that northern Italian village. Can still feel sun on the back of my neck and the weight of a huge canvas pack on my shoulders.I was just out of college, traveling across Europe, as kids did back then. I had little money -- too little to spare for phone calls or a newspaper -- and the next train wasn't for hours. I took a place against the white stone wall of the station, dropped on my rear end and exhaled."This," I said to myself, gazing at the hot empty streets, "must be what they mean by 'the middle of nowhere.' "
HOW WE WASTED OUR TIME IN ’99

HOW WE WASTED OUR TIME IN ’99

Once again, the end of the year draws near, and all I want for Christmas is my time back.That's right. Here in America, Home of the Hype, we give up so many hours to subjects that seem SOOOOOOO important at the moment, yet turn out to be a colossal waste of time.I want mine back.I want it now.For example, every minute spent talking about "The Phantom Menace," an overblown, big, fat zero of a film that was nonetheless on the cover of every magazine and paper and on the lips of every TV broadcaster, radio host and McDonald's Happy Meal dispenser this summer?
U-M WOES SHOULDN’T COME AS A SURPRISE

U-M WOES SHOULDN’T COME AS A SURPRISE

First of all, Michigan basketball players, their coaches and fans must understand one thing: The game didn't begin with them. There is a bad news history in this sport, and much of it has to do with fancy cars and hidden envelopes of cash and outsiders who get too cozy with the players.
CONE SHOULDERED YANKEES’ LOAD

CONE SHOULDERED YANKEES’ LOAD

ATLANTA -- The plane sat on the tarmac, stuck in limbo, and the man who would have to save the World Series for the New York Yankees sat inside it, feeling the beads of sweat starting to form."How long?" he wanted to know.Maybe a half-hour, he was told. Maybe hours. No way to tell. Computer problem."Computer problem?" he thought.He envisioned every travel nightmare you can think of. Flight gets canceled. Back-up flight gets canceled. He spends the rest of night wandering around an airport . . ."Wait a minute."
THIS TIME, LIONS CAN ONLY BLAME THEMSELVES

THIS TIME, LIONS CAN ONLY BLAME THEMSELVES

The ball came out of the lights in a quick drop -- which is what Corey Raymond was doing beneath it. His feet got tangled. Down he went. He watched the ball land in the hands of the New York Giants' Chris Calloway, who raced to the end zone with the catch, the victory, and any chance the Lions had of convincing people they are worth betting on this year.
CLEVELAND ROCKSBY TAKING CENTER STAGE, LOFTON SAVES DAY FOR TRIBE

CLEVELAND ROCKSBY TAKING CENTER STAGE, LOFTON SAVES DAY FOR TRIBE

CLEVELAND -- It was almost 50 years ago and the World Series was a thing that was played during the day, under the sun, as baseball should be. Irving (Sonny) Dwosh, now a retired carpet layer, was just a few years out of school. On game days, he and his father went to Peterson Nut Company and picked up 25 pounds of peanuts. Sonny carried one bag, his father carried the other. They set up on Third Street, near the bridge that straddles the freeway."Good spot," his father said. "People have to walk past to get to the game."
AS ALWAYS, OUR LIONS ARE PREDICTABLY UNPREDICTABLE

AS ALWAYS, OUR LIONS ARE PREDICTABLY UNPREDICTABLE

Here they come again, the "other" Lions, the ones that always appear just as you're about to give up on them. You know these Lions. They do everything right. They do everything the other Lions don't do. They use their talent, they use their strength, they make crunching hits, incredible catches, dazzling runs that pretty much blow the roof off the Silverdome.And like the piece of chocolate cake that appears just as you swear you're going to start your diet, they suck you back in. You become a fan again.
HACKER PUTS A FAMILY ON SUPERHIGHWAY TO HELL

HACKER PUTS A FAMILY ON SUPERHIGHWAY TO HELL

The lights flashed on, but she had not flicked the switch. The TV changed channels, but she had not touched the remote. There was a voice on her phone that interrupted her conversations with burps, curses, and laughter -- but there was no one in her house on the other extension.The modern-day version of a haunting was happening to Debbie Tamai and her Windsor family. Only this phantom was not some long-buried soul, but a very real, very alive, very conniving punk who calls himself "Sommy" and who thinks it's cute to terrorize a family.

Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.

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