The (Almost) American Dream

Living a good life in Ann Arbor

For three weeks during the Christmas/New Year’s period, I was only two cows shy of living the American Dream. Sustainable, comfortable house? Check. Roaring roadster on the street? Yup. Alright, so I was also missing the fence, two kids, a dog in addition to my acreage of other calling animals. But I was content, with the best company in the greatest of holiday traditions.

Whiteout

We’re snowed in, dragging our furry slippers up and down the stairs of a two-storey house in serene Ann Arbor. In the fourth year of asking, barring a freak spike in global warming, this Thursday will be my first white Christmas. My first in the U.S. in 2005 was holed up in a motel in Memphis, where every one stayed indoors to be with family and where its middle-America location meant no snow.

Next in 2006 was spent at Las Vegas, also too dry and far south to overcome the red sand. It was chilly, but hardly anything in the same freezer as the past few days (-30 Celsius, -22 Fahrenheit). The following year broke all traditions. Tired of shivering through countdowns, I flew to tropical Puerto Rico in 2007 and substituted white snow for yellow sun.

Being Blue is Best

A pretty sight hard to get sick of

For the first time in four years, I’m not spending my Christmas break in a tourist spot. Better yet, I headed back to Ann Arbor, Michigan to be with loved ones. It’s as if I only took an extended leave of absence from this beloved university, and for the next three weeks I’ll get to recondition myself to big and small changes this little quaint town as gone through since I left in June.

Sleep, Where Art Thou?

Long time ago, I’d no problems with six hours of sleep a day. To some of you, six hours is already a luxury but it’s my minimum for reasonable efficiency the next day. Back in the days of National Service, operating on six hours rest wasn’t so much a want but a need. The day of a training soldier involved lots of physical work, and without enough rest your body would crumble exponentially.

Remembering Paradise

The American Horse: a symbol of might and gallantry

Two days before my official departure from Michigan (in late June), Guo Lu and I sneaked away to a sculpture park in Grand Rapids. From what I’d seen and heard about the Frederick Meijer Gardens, I felt it would’ve been fitting for a celebration of the Midwest lifestyle.

Great expanse of space, large-scale sculptures and greenhouses — these are reminiscent of the American way but also specifically the Midwest culture. Bigger is better, everyone knows. And it’s put to good effect at the Meijer Gardens. Think of it as a stroll in very big park, designed to be a wonderland of sorts. If you imagine yourself to be Carol Lewis’ Alice, then there’s nothing much in this park that you won’t like.

We spent three-quarters of the day there, walking for most of it. Apart from the mega-sculptures, the preservation of flowers and greenhouse plants is also significant. Remember to check out real-life replicas of some of Monet’s paintings. We found one of his ‘lakes’ but couldn’t find any more.

More photoshere.

Right here in New York City, I do miss those laid-back sentiments of suburban lifestlye, where you can prace around with outstreched arms and not have a worry for miles. Sure, it was a date. But more importantly it was an exclusive experience with my love, and I’m hoping nothing can take those shared moments away. I do believe its these special moments that fortify a bond in a couple. Because then you could say: “I’m glad I shared this with you, and only you.”

Football Fever Returns

For three years, the opportunities to follow live soccer matches week-in, week-out were few and very, very far between. Soccer can be considered child’s play to Americans, what with their own ‘big 4’ — American football, baseball, ice hockey and basketball — dominating the sport channels. But in this awesome spring in Michigan, I’m savoring live matches of Euro 2008. Even better, they’re not in the dead of night in Singapore time, but on breezy afternoons where heavy eyelids don’t threaten to get you ‘sent off’ to your bed.

The quarter finals have been particularly scintillating. Mouth-watering five (!) goals for the Portugal/Germany match, and big favorites the Dutch getting their orange butts kicked by the Russians, whom were appearing in the quarterfinals for the first time since the fall of the USSR. Sadly I missed both the Turkey/Croatia thriller and the Red Army’s demolition of the Dutch. Then when I find the time to watch a match proper, Spain and Italy disappoint with a boring 0-0 display.

That said, the setup for the semi-finals is beyond most people’s wildest imagination. An underdog could go all the way (like Greece did four years ago), or it could be an old-timer stamping his foot on the grass. I’m already looking forward to the next match.

Get Your Hands On It

A fabricated tornado

Not many people know about Ann Arbor‘s Hands-on Museum — mistakenly labeled as a kid’s science museum — but I can testify that college students can have a lot of fun learning cool trivia on geography, physics and much more. The best part? We get our hands dirty in the process.

Among the ‘experiments’ to play with are what you see here: artificially-constructed tornadoes, locking mechanisms, manipulations of light, and a simulated ice rock wall. The museum isn’t big, and even with four stories, the entire excursion can be completed comfortably in just over three hours.

Apparently the museum is rated one of the best places to have fun in Ann Arbor, so I’m quite baffled as to how some of my most loyal friends to Michigan haven’t heard of it. Well if you can take my word, then spending a relaxing afternoon making your fingers and mind work won’t be a disappointment. For information, check it out.

More photos:

Learning how keys lock

Guolu doing a dance!

Cedar Point

Cedar Point - Raptor

Conquered one of the ‘big four’ — “Raptor”

My last roller coaster ride was so long ago I don’t even remember how old I was. But I do remember being scared shitless and vowed not to take such a ride again. See, that changed last weekend as the bunch of us took the two-hour drive to Cedar Point, renown (supposedly) to be one of the best roller coaster theme parks in the world.

L/R: Li Hui, Chenli, Sze Yen, Guo Lu, Xiaowei

Girls.

We spent the whole day there, from its opening at 10am, to its closing 12 hours later. I was initially dead-set not to take any big rides, but with Guolu encouraging me, I joined them for our first ride of the day. The fiendish ride turned out to be Raptor, a rather modern and looping thrill that didn’t bank on acceleration or free-falls to intimidate, but wicked corkscrew twists that ‘turned’ you out of this world.

L/R: Kevin, Roy, me, Chih Hung

Guys.

Weirdest of all, after stepping down from the ride, I realized I quite enjoyed it, even though granted I was nervous as our train inched slowly higher, leaving our legs dangling for the dead. Nevertheless, my heart doesn’t favor unnecessary stress — I sincerely believe getting a heart-attack in one of these rides is a very real, and scary, possibility. That would be my last major ride for the rest of the day (despite pleas from the rest to try more), but I’m glad I conquered one of the most highly rated rides in the whole park. For you speed-freaks out there, do make a point to visit Cedar Point if you can. One day I hope to completely obliterate the 17-second-30-storey ride Drag-ster (see below). I dare you too.

Cedar Point - Dragster

Revamped

North Campus has never known to be a glamor stop among Michigan students. Despite its vastness, the land is occupied more by greenery and deers than school buildings and students. There’s only one dormitory (Bursley) and two apartment housing areas (Baits and Northwood) and amenities are scarce to say the least. Last I heard, Panda Express still has a kind of fortuitous monopoly over the students. Shopping space is at a ridiculously high premium so competitors can’t come in.

All that’s about to change over the next several (?) years as the University revealed a new plan for North Campus, as proposed and designed by students and faculty. Looks like we now know where all our exorbitant tuition fees are being invested in. We may not reap the benefits but it does bode exciting times ahead for Michigan. I would like to see nothing more than the school growing in potential and punch to keep up with the best tertiary institutions in the U.S.

To read more about the ‘new’ North Campus (with a map), go here.

Tulips & Us

This is what spring is all about — blooming flowers, radiant sun, and great company. It was a swell road trip to Holland, Michigan where eight of us met up with Rachel to catch the annual Tulip Time festival. Although the hundreds of thousands of tulips can’t possibly compare to the original pastures in Holland across the Atlantic, this was a satisfactory substitute. Like I say tulip and time again, it’s the company that counts.

Guolu and Me

Besides tip-toeing among tulips to take photos, we also tasted awesome Mexican food at this local and unrighteously low-key joint called Margarita. The prices weren’t even steep, and if a Mexican place can make me eat their entire portion of beans (when I usually can’t), you know they’re doing something right. By the time dinner was over, the sun was setting (at 9pm), albeit over an overcast sky. We still took the innocuous ten-minute drive to Lake Michigan, and again the cameras came out. Once back at Rachel’s enormous house, we dabbled in Dai Dee for the rest of the night.

Love these small and cozy trips that don’t cost much. That’s why I’m here for Spring.

Want more photos? Go here.