www.ai-studio.com/jason     about
    resume CV
    political stuff

 

[Photo 1: Travelling] [Photo 2: Flint] [Photo 3: Diabetes] [Photo 4: Biketrials]

Flint
 
I was born in Flint, Michigan. My dad worked, and still works, for GM. When I was 5 years old, my dad took a transfer to the GM truck plant in Pontiac, about an hour south of Flint. He's driven there for every day of work since. I think that's crazy. He thinks it's crazy as well. My grandpa Hill worked for GM also.


 
My grandpa worked at "Buick City", what used to be the largest automotive production plant in the world, just a mile or so north of downtown Flint. I remember taking a tour of Buick City with my class in 3rd grade. I even rode my bike past it a few years ago and was still impressed at just how big it was. The photo above is what is left of Buick City now. Actually, not long ago, the power plant (the big blue building... OK... the only building standing in the photo) came down. So, Flint is no longer "Buick City." There used to be a sign on the highway that proudly welcomed everyone to Buick City. They even took that down.
 
Now that I live in Burlington, Vermont, I've noticed a huge difference between cultural preservation in Flint and Burlington. Here, people try to save things. And, I don't just mean that they try to save jobs blah blah blah. I mean, saving old buildings and such things is important here to Vermont's sense of identity. That wasn't true at all in Michigan. AutoWorld is a classic example. Most viewers of Mike Moore's film "Roger and Me" know AutoWorld as the auto factory themed theme park that Flint constructed at the river front in an attempt to draw in tourists. It was a horrible flop. Of course, after auto workers do a 40-50 hour week, the last thing they want to do is go to an amusement park themed on their job. So, everyone sort of went and browsed around the place once, and then never went back. In fact, I remember one of my elementary classes was planning on going on a field trip to AutoWorld. But, so many students backed out because "we've already been there, and don't want to go back" that it was cancelled. Anyway, "Roger and Me" and the story I just told don't really entirely describe what the AutoWorld complex was. The ugly part was the theme park. The older, arguably more interesting part, was the IMA Auditorium that was built in the 1930's and used for displaying Buick's new cars every year. The IMA was huge and, when it was created, had the largest roof of any building in the world that was only supported at the outside walls. Getting back to the historic and cultural preservation part: In Vermont, this building would have been a treasure. It was beautiful and historic. But, not in Flint. In 1997, long after the theme park had been removed, the University of Michigan-Flint decided to implode the IMA in order to make way for a new classroom building that it didn't need. They convinced the public that the building was going to collapse any day, that it was structurally unsound. And, I remember watching as the explosives went off inside the IMA and a huge cloud of dust filled the air. Then, the dust settled. Only about 3 feet had been blown off the bottom of the building, the rest plopped down as if nothing had happened. It was like a rock. Yeah... "It's going to collapse any day."
 
So, the university removed the IMA and built a 22-million dollar building exactly where the old building had stood. Then, the university was so strapped for cash that they couldn't even afford to keep all the lights on or keep the library open on nights or weekends. Good job.
 
Actually, what is somewhat funny, is that Autoworld was originally a Six Flags park. Yes.. "Six Flags Autoworld." Six Flags pulled out soon after the theme park opened and Autoworld closed within six months.


 
Ahh.. Downtown Flint.
 
The black and white building is the Genesee Towers. Someone had the bright idea of stacking two buildings on top of each other, with a parking garage being the lower building. Note how you can see through the middle section of the building. So, that is the largest building in Flint. (Which also means it is the largest vacant building in Flint, at least currently.) The building in front is the Mott Foundation Building.
 
I miss a few things from downtown Flint. I miss the Good Beans Cafe. I miss Tom Z's coney island (a diner). I miss Angelos (another coney island). I miss Halo Burger.. Oh my God do I miss Halo Burger.


 
Speaking of things I miss: Here are three of them pictured above.. Angelos, my twin brother Josh and my mom. But, since this is about Flint, I'll stick to Flint related things. My mom was born and grew up in Flint. She used to go to Angelos when she was young. I think Angelos is a place that you only really understand if you're from Flint. EVERYONE in Flint knows Angelos. I've taken other people ("outsiders") to Angelos and they're immediately disgusted when we walk in the door. I'll admit, Angelos is the dirtiest diner you'll ever eat at. But, and I don't totally understand why, I love it. Before I moved to Vermont, I'd go to Angelos at least once a week and usually more. They used to be open 24 hours before the Health Department made them shut down for a few hours every night to clean. I used to show up at Angelos at 4-5am to do math homework and study before tests. I even spent New Years at Angelos one year.