By the way...

This is for John at DetroitBlog. I've been reading you since July of 2003. Found you by googling the Wings. I've been a fan ever since. Though I may be the only Wingnut in the world from Hawaii, and quite possibly the only crazy woman in the world who DREAMS of going to The Joe and watching the boys play on home ice, I've loved living a Detroit life vicariously through you. Since you didn't have a commenter and don't list an email, (which I understand considering you do what you do), I even went to the trouble to try to get an email to you through a Detroit writer who wrote a story about Detroit bloggers that you appeared in. He also didn't know how to reach you but wished me luck.

I admire your work and the risks you've taken to share the beauty of the towering relics and archive these for posterity as a good historian would. I've walked through those buildings with you, through your pics and words, in complete and utter awe. As you describe the sights and smells, I can sense them. I hurt for your friend when he cut his head, I worry for your safety when you venture into dangerous darkness. I've marveled at the beauty of the present, though the granduer is lost in some sense, and wondered about the rich past. I wanted to thank you for these steps through timeless time, if that makes any sense. I think to you, it will.

Now that you mostly use your blog to write about these wanderings, I wanted you to know that I miss the "debaucheries" as you put them. They gave me a local's glimpse into your world. One that I know I'll see someday. And even then, much like through the blogs of other blog friends, when I do finally get there, I will feel like I've been there before and I'll smile. I miss your runaway lunchbreaks to watch the Wings practice. I miss your editorials about the players. I miss your visits to local haunts, hearing about your hockey games. I wonder how your collarbone is healing up and how it effects your play. I think about your despondent coworker and wonder if he's ok. I don't mind the change. Just wanted you to know that I miss the other stuff too.

Thank you John. You're a gifted and talented writer. A courageous defender of a time long past. A historian. Somehow, even though you don't know me, I consider you a friend. Even if you never read this, at least I'll know I tried. I have this thing about letting talented people know how I feel about their work. Somehow, I feel like you'll get the message.

And by the way....Go Wings! :o)