Flint Expatriates

03/07/2025

Unpacking some boxes and uncovered this classic Flint artifact that I collected from my temporary front yard in Carriage Town while researching "Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City."

"I tossed the phone down, got dressed, and ventured outside for what had become my morning routine. Each night, someone unfettered by bourgeois concerns about recycling deposited an empty pint bottle of Seagram’s Wild Grape in the front yard of my temporary residence. For the uninitiated, it’s “Extra Smooth Premium Grape Flavored Vodka.” I dutifully picked it up before breakfast, arranging it with all the others in a corner of the front room, figuring I’d throw them out once the pattern was broken. Years of Catholic school had made me unwilling to depart from ritual."

www.teardownbook.com

14/06/2025

https://www.facebook.com/braunn/posts/pfbid02WHU6ZMf3QAsZSxnMdn8aVU17o7NUFt9YUnCQ4vaGr2HEnTHA1u3QYHBt9DjuJ4PFl

16/02/2025

I'll take the Woody Coupe in antique white, please.

16/02/2025

With postcards like this one, Gary is clearly not suited for employment with the Flint tourism board.

11/02/2025

The Michigan Mitten...with emphasis on the thumb.

08/02/2025

Walking down 17th near Hartford in San Francisco last night and came across this orange icon. A rare vintage Chevette. Even rarer...no rust.

23/11/2024

Is it too early for Flint-related Christmas gift ideas?

At the height of the real estate bubble, Gordon Young and his girlfriend somehow manage to buy a tiny house in their dream city, San Francisco. They’re part of a larger influx of creative types moving to urban centers, drawn by the promise of fulfilling jobs, a thriving literary scene, and the sat...

23/11/2024

12/08/2024

My latest in East Village Magazine...

"Flint isn’t exactly associated with fun and games. So it’s fitting that a new board game centered on Vehicle City tackles a seminal event in its history that was defined by violence, corporate greed, and worker revolt.

"Striking Flint is the creation of Flint native John du Bois and immerses players in the drama of the 1936-1937 Sit-Down Strike, a confrontation that established the United Auto Workers union as a force that would reshape American life."

By Gordon Young Flint isn’t exactly associated with fun and games. So it’s fitting that a new board game centered on Vehicle City tackles a seminal event in its history that was defined…

07/08/2024

Here We Go Again: Morrissey at Flint's Capitol Theater on November 20th (Allegedly)

02/05/2024

Thanks to April Baer and Michigan Public, the NPR affiliate in Ann Arbor, for discussing the fate of The Michigan Times with me today on Stateside.

Why to steer clear of the website, TheMichiganTimes.com, one researcher's perspective on how pharmacists could mitigate plant and animal extinctions, and chef Eddie Vargas's birria recipe.

23/04/2024

Is an AI chatbot Flint's latest source for local news? It can be hard to tell. A follow-up on the demise of the UM-Flint student newspaper and the challenges facing regional news organizations.

By Gordon Young Technically, the Michigan Times still exists, but it’s probably not what you think it is. When the University of Michigan – Flint student newspaper let its domain name l…