Find a Personal Trainer

Photo by Ariel da Silva Parreira

It's almost the New Year. 2013 is just a few hours away now.

For many Americans, this means a resolution to lose weight. If you're one of them, I recommend finding a really good personal trainer who can help you every step of the way. You can find a comprehensive list of them here.

This has been your Warrendale Tip of the Week.

The Changing Demographics of Warrendale

Photo by Peter Mazurek

I received an email from a student at Kansas State University who was during a research paper on the Polish-American community in the Detroit area. Her research was primarily focused on Hamtramck where she found strong evidence that deindustrialization and race relations in 1960s - 1980s caused a considerable number of Polish immigrants, as well as 2nd and 3rd generation Polish-Americans to leave the inner city for the suburbs.

She wanted to know if there were similar parallels in the Warrendale neighborhood, which also had a strong Polish-American presence for most of its history. She wasn't able to find very much information about Warrendale so she reached out to me.

I wrote her a lengthy email in response with links to a few other resources. When I was finished with it, I thought it would make for an interesting blog post. Therefore, I have decided to publish my entire email below. I welcome your reaction, either in the comments section or in a private email.

Metallica Comes to Belle Isle in Detroit

Metallica - Official Press Photo

One of the most legendary heavy metal bands ever, Metallica, confirmed today that they will bring their Orion Music Festival to Belle Isle in Detroit this summer. Detroit is also expected to host the festival in 2014 and 2015.

While Belle Isle is several miles from the Warrendale neighborhood, I think it's really cool that a band of Metallica's stature is bringing their signature music festival to the city of Detroit. The Detroit Free Press has more about this story on their web site.

Merry Christmas, Detroit

Photo by Joey McEight

I want to wish a Merry Christmas to everyone in Detroit's Warrendale neighborhood and beyond. I hope the holiday season brings the best of everything to you and your family.

I also want to let everyone know that my next pizza party at Gracie See Pizzeria and Sports Lounge (6889 Greenfield Rd.) will be on Wednesday, December 26 starting at 6:30 p.m. We will be in the front room, which is to your left when you walk in the door. As always, our first pizza of the evening will be on me. After that, we simply split the bill when it arrives.

I will be back with more posts and news about the Warrendale neighborhood on Wednesday, December 26. Until then, Merry Christmas, everyone!

Celebrate the World Not Ending

Contrary to how some people have interpreted the Mayan calendar, the world did not end today. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm more than a little relieved by this. In fact, I feel like celebrating. Luckily, there are a couple of great opportunities to celebrate the fact that Mayans were wrong about today.

Publicity Photo for Roxi D'Lite

Roxi D'Lite, the world famous "Bad Girl of Burlesque" and Miss Exotic World 2010, will have 2 special live performances at the Toy Chest Bar (18728 Ford Rd.). While her performances are about as far as you can possibly get from being family friendly, they are still always really good.

Roxi D'Lite, after all, isn't called a smoking, drinking, and dancing machine for nothing.

If Roxi D'Lite and her burlesque performance aren't the way that you want to celebrate the world not ending then our friends at Chick's Bar (18550 W. Warren Ave.) are also having an End of the World Party all day today. They have a clearance shelf of liquor, just in case the world does end, with drinks available for only $1.50. They will also bottles of beer for only $1.75, drafts for only 75 cents, and $1 well drinks.

Oh, and Chick's Bar will also have free dart games all night long. No burlesque dancers, mind you, but free dart games.

Update @ 5:39 p.m.
Not to be outdone, my friends at Last Call Bar (19432 W. Warren Ave.) are also having an End of the World Party until 10 p.m. this evening. Their version of it will feature $1.75 domestic bottles of beer as well as 12-ounce drafts for only $1.

Buffalo Soldiers Take Over the House Barn in Detroit's Rouge Park

Photo by Jason Kingsbeer

After several years in the making, the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Association finally secured a long-term agreement with the City of Detroit to operate from the former Detroit Police Department's horse barn in Rouge Park. The group has operated from that horse barn through a series of short-term agreements for several years now.

In addition to keeping the history of the buffalo soldiers alive, the group also offers horse rides for kids during the warmer months. The Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Association is a valuable part of maintaining Rouge Park as one of the great jewels of Detroit and the Warrendale neighborhood.

More information about the Buffalo Soldier Heritage Association is available on their Facebook page.

Free Truck Driver Training

Photo by Ilker Ilco

Detroit Empowerment Solutions is offering a free training program to help those interested Detroiters get their commercial drivers license. This is the first step in a new career as a truck driver.

There are certain restrictions associated with this program. Additional details are available here.