Unexpectedly I have spent the last few days down in Ann Arbor. Before I left town Saturday morning I did a quick drive through the downtown area, reminiscing about the days, more than a decade ago, when I was there every day working on my graduate degree.
I didn’t end up stopping anywhere yesterday, but I saw that my favorite bagle/fragle place, and my favorite flower shop are now canibus stores. (With home delivery!) My favorite ceramic studio and gallery is now a sushi place. And my favorite vegan restaurant is a Christian Science Reading Room.
Nothing stays the same. But I’m gonna really miss that fragle place.
Change Is Hard 
October 17, 2021 at 6:28 am
Sushi is overrated.
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October 17, 2021 at 6:47 am
I can only eat the ones made only with vegetables. Can’t do raw fish.
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October 17, 2021 at 6:36 am
I have to ask: what’s a fragle? My first read through, I thought it was a misspelling of ‘fragile,’ and then I read again and saw it paired with ‘bagle.’ Inquiring minds want to know!
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October 17, 2021 at 6:47 am
It was a hot bagle that had been rolled in cinnamon sugar. Yum.
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October 17, 2021 at 6:48 am
Oh, my. I’ll bet they are supercali – fragle – istic!
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October 18, 2021 at 6:00 am
omg, here in NY they would die before rolling a bagel in cinnamon. Sacrilege! It really made me laugh. It does sound yummy 🙂
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October 17, 2021 at 8:07 am
Always sad when favorite places close.
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October 18, 2021 at 8:13 pm
Yes, but then you never know what the new places will have! Though canibus doesn’t interest me. I’m going to look for somewhere else that sells fragles!
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October 17, 2021 at 8:16 am
We have a lot of cannabis stores here now too. I wonder how they can be profitable.
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October 18, 2021 at 8:14 pm
They are relatively new here in Michigan. So lots of people juggling for a spot. We’ll see how many of these stores survive.
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October 17, 2021 at 8:50 am
Yep, change is the only constant, so it’s said. I miss Ann Arbor. But what I miss may have gone by the wayside, just like some of your favorite places.
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October 18, 2021 at 8:14 pm
I’m sure it’s very different. Someday maybe I’ll park and walk around. It’s hard to drive and look at the same time!
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October 17, 2021 at 9:06 am
I found the place I grew up to be all but unrecognizable, when I went back. Even here, near where Blue Sky and I walk is changing way too fast… most recently a fence going up, keeping me from some of my favorite trees. I felt frustrated and thought about how the animals like deer and turkeys (and all the rest) must feel, when humans change and violate and destroy their paths and hunting grounds, and their very homes.
Change IS hard.
Micky
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October 18, 2021 at 8:16 pm
Yes, the town I grew up in is almost unrecognizable…especially out where we were that was sort of almost rural and now has miles and miles of big box stores and stop lights. I also sympathize with the annimals. We had three vacant lots behind us for 25 years, this year all 3 have houses on them. The deer and turkies are now hanging out in our relatively large back yard.
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October 17, 2021 at 9:40 am
I haven’t been to Ann Arbor since the 70’s and can barely remember our visit there (to watch a football game between Michigan and South Carolina — we were rooting for the Gamecocks since that’s where M and I went to school). Actually, one of the funny things I remember is from the game. The USC folks were cheering, “Let’s go Cocks!” and two little old ladies sitting nearby were wondering who this Cox fellow was and then started giggling because of the word itself.
My last visit to Kent, Ohio was a lot like your visit to Ann Arbor in that everything has changed so much since we lived in that area (our youngest son graduated from Kent State).
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October 18, 2021 at 8:17 pm
Is the school mascot still a Gamecock? Cause I can see that being a problem…. lol…times are achanging, that’s for sure.
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October 17, 2021 at 11:52 am
Going back is hard – so much change everywhere! I lived in Walled Lake (Wall lake?) not far from Ann Arbor for a little while in the early 70s – have not been back there since, so I’m sure I wouldn’t recognize anything.
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October 18, 2021 at 8:17 pm
Walled Lake. It’s really built up, I’m sure you wouldn’t recognize any of it. I have only been through there a couple times, and it’s not very far from me. Too much traffic, too many people, just too much of everything down there.
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October 17, 2021 at 1:18 pm
When I was camping on Whidbey Island last year, I drove into the town of Oak Harbor to take a look at the high school I went to … gone! torn down. But the home our family lived in is still there and it’s in great shape. Those special places and things that have changed so much sure tug on our hearts. When I lived in Portland, Oregon, I worked as the very-early-morning bagel baker for The Bagel Ladies for one summer … one of the many varieties we sold was a deep friend hot raisin bagel dredged in cinnamon-sugar, yum!! 🙂
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October 18, 2021 at 8:18 pm
My Junior high was torn down, I don’t know when, but many years ago. Oh yes, the fragle was probably deep fried…yum! 🙂 🙂 🙂 I’m glad it wasn’t just the one store, that it’s actually a thing.
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October 17, 2021 at 3:13 pm
Oh, gee, I’m sorry to hear this. There’s been so much change of late, when I think some things should stay the same. Home delivery of cannabis? Sheesh, what will they think of next?!?
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October 18, 2021 at 8:19 pm
Ann Arbor is always ahead of the curve…I’m sure if you can get groceries home delivered people would expect this to be delivered too.
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October 18, 2021 at 12:53 am
I’ve never been to Ann Arbor but I love your photo! The orange/red leafed tree is gorgeous on the left! The building is really cool too! ❤️
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October 18, 2021 at 8:22 pm
The building is famous on the University of Michigan campus. When my dad went there in the 50s it was the engineering school. There’s an arch, over which there are classrooms. The arch leads to the center of the campus. When I went to UM in the 2006-2008 it was the school of information and I sat in the same classrooms as my dad had sat so many years ago. Bittersweet.
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October 19, 2021 at 12:38 am
Aww, that’s so AMAZING! Thanks for sharing such rich and personal history. I bet it’s such a beautiful campus especially in person. 💞
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November 2, 2021 at 9:50 am
Oh, boy, can I ever identify with this! Returning to East Lansing is just sad, anymore! The married housing, where my girls and I happily lived for six years, had all been torn down My favorite bookstore, gone. The list goes on.
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