You're a big kid now, Detroit Moxie!

Detroit Moxie turned 2 years old on March 20^th but I was keeping the big blogoversary quiet while I was working out the kinks of this amazing new site design. Go ahead, look around and fluff the cushions!

So now I can shout it out like the toddler I am, “I’m two, I’m two, I’m two!” I’m pulling up my big kid pants, “Mommy WOW, I’m a big kid now!” At least I'm potty trained, unlike some toddlers I know.

The most colossal of thanks go out to Curve Detroit, Charlie Wollborg (@CharlieCurve), and Ashley Sako (@SakoCurve) for the creativity, vision, and know-how to make Detroit Moxie look like a million bucks. This wouldn't have happened without them.

Seriously, I’m in love with the new design. It’s so pretty and the logo rocks!

I also would like to say thank you to Hadi Kadri (@HadiKadri) for helping me implement the new design with his Photoshop skills. The next one is on me!

Oh, and did ya see? Scroll down the sidebar, t-shirts are coming soon! Oh heck, I’ll just show you here. See!

Coming soon on a body near you!

Besides the beautiful and more user-friendly design, expect some fresh new content. I’m starting a new feature or two in the next few weeks that I’m hoping you’ll like. After all, I’ve got those 9 truths to tell you about. Plus there is so much going on in Detroit that I can hardly keep up!

There are still a few bugs to work out with the new design. If you notice something is wonky please let me know. 

The Lie

This is the reveal post from Wednesday’s 9 Truths & a Lie. If you haven’t already read that post you should do so before scrolling down.

The Lie! The Blatant Lie! Which one was it?

Did I really kiss everyone’s favorite piano man, Billy Joel? Did I live near a crazy cannibal? Did I ride my bicycle for 500 miles to The Windy City? What about Slash, how did that precious cat get her name? The one-armed prostitute was very popular but did she exist? And what’s up with that trip to Paris?

I have to say that the comments, both here and on Twitter, were cracking me up. I had a lot of fun with this. I hope you enjoyed it too. I want to give Sven a special shout-out for noticing my "midwestern pedigree." After being raised here, I went to college in Milwaukee and lived there for six years before spending the next seven years in Chicago.

So, you want to know the lie? I KNOW you do! Here it is. Plain and simple. Which was the most boring choice?

I didn’t date a guy named Chip; it’s a lie. As Kevin said in the comments, “Who would date a guy named after a food group?” But it is a take on the truth.

My college sweetheart’s name was Mondy. Or as we used to say, “like the day without the A.” He would introduce himself to people and I would inevitably get, “are you his Girl Friday?” Or, “you must be Tuesday.” Because apparently, if your name sounds like a day of the week you’re only allowed to date other days of the week. What the… what?

And yes, after we broke up The Boomtown Rats’ “I Don’t Like Mondays” was in heavy rotation on my playlist. Of course, we didn’t have playlists back then, but I digress.

Truth be told, I could have included many other juicy tidbits. I was going to mention that I was written up in the Chicago Tribune gossip column for kicking Neil Simon out of a rehearsal* but I recently talked about that on Twitter. Or, that I’ve watched The Simpsons with Steve Martin* but my friend Jane Fader, who LOVES Steve Martin, already knew that.

You see, those were just things that came with the job of working in professional theater. They didn’t make me special and they certainly have no bearing on my life now. The ones that I included touched me somehow, whether morbid, hilarious, creepy, romantic or innovative.

I’ll somehow get around to writing about all of them but it’s going to take some time. Detroit Moxie is mainly about Detroit with sprinklings of “Becks” so I don’t want to roll out a bunch of personal posts all at one time.

Billy Joel performing at The Rose Bowl in Southampton, UK. This is not where I kissed him.Yes, I did kiss Billy Joel!

Oh, one last thing before you go on with your day. The elves and fairies are coming in to drop some awesome on the site very soon. So don’t be startled if everything looks different on your next visit.

*Both are true.

Detroit Moxie's Weekend Roundup

Baseball begins today! That means it really is spring, right? Good luck to our 2011 Detroit Tigers! We’ll be cheering you on from a distance today but we’ll join you at Comerica Park real soon.

Weekend Roundup

1. The Bat Zone (Facebook link) - The Organization for Bat Conservation is throwing a birthday party for their sloth, Molasses. He's 10! Visit with Mo and his bat friends. April 1st.

2. Idiots And Angels - Head to the Detroit Film Theatre to catch this animated feature without dialogue. It promises to be funny, twisted, and possibly gross. April 1-3, 8-10.

3. Detroit covers Detroit - See your favorite local bands in a completely different way! They'll be covering other Detroit bands. Listen to Betty Cooper as The Detroit Cobras, The Hand Grenades as Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., Illy Mack as Eminem, and more. April 2nd.

4. Russell Industrial Center open house - This is a great opportunity to explore the former manufacturing plant designed by Albert Kahn and the many artists and creative professsionals that work and exhibit there, including  photographers, painters, metal sculptors, woodworkers, glassblowers, and sculptors. April 2-3.

5. Spring into Spring - The Arab American National Museum celebrates spring with games, craft activities, food, karaoke, and live butterflies at this family-focused event. April 2nd.

Don't forget! Royal Oak Restaurant Week continues through Saturday and Detroit Restaurant Week starts Friday.

Do you know of a great event going on in Metro Detroit this weekend? Add it to the comments and share it with us!

9 Truths & a Lie

I had a lot of fun with the Who the Heck is this Becks Davis Chick? post a while back and I thought I’d do something a little different this time. I’ve listed 10 things about me, 9 of them are the truth and one is a lie. A blatant lie! Or maybe it’s just a take on the truth.

Which is which?

1. I once ran a blind pig. I was underage at the time.
2. I rode a bicycle from the Twin Cities to Chicago. It took 6 days.
3. My college sweetheart's name was Chip. People would ask me if I was Dale.
4. For many years I thought I would die on April 2^nd. Yeah, it’s coming up.
5. I lived 3 blocks away from Jeffrey Dahmer. People I knew warned others about him.
6. I named my previous cat Slash so that my Guns & Roses loving friends would accept her. (And not get her drunk.)
7. I lived in a building that also housed a one-armed prostitute.
8. While I was on a first date I was asked to go to Paris a few hours later. I didn't go.
9. The thing that brought my husband and me together was a fight about brat pack films.
10. I’ve kissed Billy Joel. It was OK.

I can't believe that 9 of those statements are true either. I've had a shocking life.

So, which is the lie? Let me know 2 things in the comments: which one is the lie and which one you’d like me to write about. I can’t guarantee where this is going but I’ll do what I can. I mean, I can’t really write about the lie. Or can I?

Oh, and if you happen to know which ones are true, don't share it with the peanut gallery! I'm really curious to see which one people think is the lie.

Find out which one is the lie.

Locally made libations flowed at Drink Michigan event

The fabulous women over at Drink Michigan threw one helluva party this past Saturday night with their “Sip of Michigan” tasting event. Over 200 tickets were sold to their party at Nicky’s Willow Grill in Livonia and people who didn’t buy tickets in advance had to be turned away at the door.

Audrey Walker, co-founder of Drink Michigan said, “We were shocked and overwhelmed by the event turnout, and are very sorry that we couldn't get everyone in that wanted to attend.”

Walker, and co-founder Trisha Verma, started Drink Michigan in July of 2010 to promote and celebrate Michigan beer, wine, and spirits. It's been growing ever since.

Walker said of the successful turnout, “It just goes to prove that Michigan wine, beer and spirits are gaining steam in popularity, and the great people of Michigan are willing to drink local. The next time we do an event of that caliber, we intend to get a larger space to fit more people in a more comfortable way.”

“The coolest thing about this event for me was all the new people that we had show up.  It wasn't just our circle of friends, but really creating awareness of Michigan-made beer, wine and spirits for a group of people that don't necessarily hang out on Facebook & Twitter all day,” added Verma.

Trisha Verma, co-founder of Drink Michigan.

Henry Balanon, West Bloomfield resident and one of the founders of the Detroit food website The Hungry Dudes, said of the evening, “The event was totally sweet. A bit crowded but Trisha and Audrey plan such great events that it doesn't surprise me that it sold out. It was like a mini world expo of beer, world expo of liquor, and world expo of wine."

The room might have been small for the crowd but the selection was enormous. Six different beverage distributors were pouring Michigan-made libations throughout the room. From the wineries of Black Star Farms and L. Mawby, to craft beer from Jolly Pumpkin, Short’s, and Detroit’s own Atwater Brewery, the attendees weren't going to go thirsty.

And that's just the beer!

The spirit table was just as popular, if not more so, than the beer and wine. Personally, I fell in love with Adult Chocolate Milk. It lives up to its name and I could sip on that quite easily, for far too long. Balanon agrees, "The fan favorite was definitely the Adult Chocolate Milk. If you like White Russians, you'll love it."

One of the other spirits people were buzzing about was NutLiquor, a peanut butter flavored vodka from Pandora Spirits in Temprance, Michigan. Yep, peanut butter! They say it’s like “drinking a peanut butter cup,” and I have to agree. Yum!

The event sponsor was Brass Mug Liquor in Livonia. Verma said of owner Louie Yeldo, “He's a huge Drink Michigan supporter, and we couldn't have done it without him.” 

The event raised over $1000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Keep an eye on their website at www.drinkmichigan.org or follow them on Twitter or Facebook for more information. Walker tells me that they are planning some events on the East Side in April, which happens to be Michigan Wine Month.