Dessert and more at Opa! Fest -- and a century-old message in the St. Clair River

I have a major soft spot for Opa! Fest, scheduled for Friday through Sunday at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, partly because the organizers have invited me out a few times to do cooking demonstrations. That's a lot like having Jose Feliciano do driving demonstrations.

Homeless until the end, familiar figure gets help with final resting place

You could not fairly call T.C. Latham a beloved character on the streets of Detroit. The truth is, he could be annoying.

Shower gifts for future kings and queens

The guests wore spiffy hats, the mood was festive, and it was in all respects a lovely baby shower a few weeks ago — even if the impending mom was 3,762 miles away.

No way, Van Gogh stays in Detroit

In Los Angeles, a city with no pro football team and apparently a shortage of great artworks, a columnist has decreed that the DIA's Van Gogh self-portrait would be better off hanging in a museum there.

• Detroit’s Van Gogh Would Be Better Off in L.A.

Mammoth sight on Middlebelt becomes standing attraction

Yes, that’s a bear. A rather large one, 9 feet tall and probably 1,500 pounds, standing upright and leaning against a tree along Middlebelt Road.

At Harbor Town Cleaners, the mayoral election hangs on only two issues

Minah Lee has two campaign signs in her store window and no favorite in the race.

How swiftly have you driven? For Grand Prix patrons, the answer is very

I can ask just about anybody just about anything and get an answer. What I kept hearing at the Chevrolet Belle Isle Grand Prix was, "You don't want to know."

Need a phone? A story? You can find them on Jefferson Avenue, the route to Grand Prix

Welcome, auto racing fans, to the city where a T-shirt proudly declares, “Detroit: Where the weak are killed and eaten.”

Tolerance for zero

I said .05 strikes me as a foolhardy figure to determine which drivers are OK to get behind the wheel and which aren’t. In response, Teresa Herzog Mourad suggested an even rounder number: Zero.

Missing the High Life

At 4:54 p.m., I finished my Miller High Life. Then I walked a tenth of a mile to the Farmington police station and blew into a plastic tube.

Radio’s ‘Blaine & Allyson’ want to see higher standards for who’s noteworthy

You have to draw the line someplace, and for one of Detroit’s most successful radio teams, Farrah Abraham is on the wrong side of it.

Study says Detroit is a great departure city — which counts as an honor, sort of

It took some work, but I've found a ranking of major cities in which Detroit actually looks good. At least for awhile.

Friends and Red Wings fans gather at Signature Grill, the gateway to Joe Louis Arena

At the Signature Grill, Stefanie Delvecchio is known as Computer Girl, because she brings her widescreen laptop downstairs with her and sets it up on the bar.

Even without the animals, we should be proud to be the Wolverine State

We are the Wolverine State, even though we have no wolverines.

Hoofbeats and hatchbacks

I was driving north on Lahser Road in Southfield when I saw George Phifer walking in the other direction.

U.S. Postal Carriers will collect nonperishable food on Saturday to feed people in need

Things have changed a bit since the old days when stamps had to be licked. The wooly mammoth has died out, for one thing. Also, people are sending emails ...