We went to an estate sale at a house that belonged to the owner of a truck dealership. It was a way swanky, sprawling ranch house. When Martha first walked in she said it was like walking into the peak of the 1950’s roaring party style. Not a thing changed. Acres of deep white shag carpet. Huge melted “chunky” resin chandliers. Faux-Chinese art everywhere. Wild wall murals. Low ceilings, dark paneling. Over the top in every way.
Then she went to the basement. Oh…my…gawd! It was the party basement to beat all. She brought me over the next day. By then much of the coolness had been bought away, but it was still there, in spades! What a wild place to hang out, and be shady, and entertain guests tonight. The basement was huge and colorful and made for high-rolling fun.
All I can say is check it out: Panorama of Swanky Basement.
In the spirit of “party in your basement,” I started two new blog/forums:
With “Michigan Parties” I’m reviving the socialite page for Michigan. If you’ve had or been to nice parties and have some nice pics and description, post em here, to inspire and brag it up. With all the new meadow mansions in our state, I’m sure there are some over-the-top parties. You can keep parts of things private, sure, but ya know what? A party didn’t happen if no one knows about it. Coccooning anti-culture values notwithstanding.
With “Lake Lansing Local Spirit” I’m calling attention to a rare functioning neighborhood, community, beautiful area in this area. The streets around Lake Lansing in Haslett, Michigan, are small as are many of the houses. But there’s also a new contingent of big party houses. They seem to fit in OK, boosting the lake’s diversity. But the world needs to know: are the mansions carrying their weight? How are things going over there at the lake? It’s an actual area of culture. The water world seems to bring people together and get them outdoors. Unfortunately, although there are a couple bars and bistros in the area, there is ZERO outdoor seating (due to parking woes). There are 3 parks and a bandstand. An ice cream place, even. I know this place has a lot of history and characters and stories. I suppose every area with a lake or water neighborhood is this way: but it’s our only one around here, so it stands out. So here’s a place for it.
