Don't you forget about me

Brunch with Becks is an ongoing weekend series where I wax poetic on tales from my life starting with the 9 Truths. Yes, I too can’t comprehend that all these odd occurrences have happened to me.

This is the most boring of the “truths” out of the lot but a fight about Brat Pack films did indeed tighten the bond between my husband and I. Since Yesterday marked the 25^th anniversary of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off it seemed the best time as any to talk about it. It also makes me feel incredibly old.

Back in 2003, when I barely knew the man I now call my husband, we had a bit of a spat. I recalled it being that he said that Pretty in Pink came out before The Breakfast Club. That’s just crazy talk and I had to correct him.

Thank god for never deleting my emails! His actual statement was that St. Elmo’s Fire came out before The Breakfast Club. I know this because my email tells me it's so.

Either way, I was right. The two movies did come out in the same year, though.

Our love for the Brat Pack genre spurned hours of conversations.

Like the fact that I once wrote John Hughes a letter pointing out 5 continuity flaws in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. I never sent the letter and the only one I remember is that there is a Birmingham Groves letterman’s jacket in one scene in the movie.

Or, that when my older brother was in high school he looked EXACTLY like John Cusack. Well, maybe not exactly but put some dark sunglasses on him and sit him in the back of a movie theater and watch the teenage girls go wild.

So, indulge me while I take a stroll through some of my favorite movies of that era.

Pretty in Pink - "His name is Blane? Oh! That's a major appliance, that's not a name!"

One Crazy Summer - "When there’s no plan, there’s no attack. No attack, no victory."

"If we give into those people, we’re giving into all the cute and fuzzy bunnies in the world."

Sixteen Candles - Jake: Happy birthday, Samantha. Make a wish. Samantha: Well, it already came true.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off - "Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

Maitre D': I'm suggesting that you leave before I have to get snooty.
Ferris: Snooty?
Maitre D': Snotty.
Ferris: Snotty?

The Breakfast Club - "Can you describe the ruckus, sir?"

You see us as you want to see us.. In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain and an athlete and a basket case… a princess and a criminal. Does that answer your question?

What are these movies about? We all want to find our place in the world. We get jealous of others who seem to have it easier than us. Good friends are hard to find but once you find them you’ll do anything for them.

It's not much different now as it was way back then.

I feel particularly blessed as I look around at my friends and see amazing and diverse people. Brains and basket cases, athletes and princesses, geeks and leaders, artists and innovators. Luckily, no criminals.

And on that note, “Stay gold, ponyboy. Stay gold."

What are your favorite Brat Pack or coming-of-age movies? Which lines do you have imbedded in your brain?

Detroit Moxie's Weekend Roundup

First off, the winner of the pair of tickets to BRU Fest is… Tammy Purol (@tam_tamm)! She loves some provolone on her burger. Have fun at BRU, Tammy! And, in case you’re wondering, bacon was the most mentioned burger topper. Gotta love bacon!

Second, my friend @nullfear made this fabulous site when the Detroit Moxie t-shirts first launched. I shared it on Twitter and Facebook but it just dawned on me that I’ve never shared it here. So, clicky click if you’re wondering how many Detroit Moxie t-shirts have been sold.

He’s pretty awesome. Did I mention that he’s 14? Yep!

Speaking of t-shirts, I have more coming in this afternoon! Specifically, I’ll be adding more pink and white t-shirts to the shop in a few hours. There are still brown & blue ones available.

I’ve been getting asked quite a bit lately who I use to print my t-shirts. I want to give a big shout-out to Triple Thread in Clawson! They’ve been awesome and if you’re looking for local screen printers, I highly recommend them.

Finally, get out there and enjoy your weekend! There are SO many fabulous things to do in Detroit.

Weekend Roundup

1. Bedknobs and Broomsticks - “You'll beWITCHED!” by this fun Disney tale starring Angela Lansbury. See it on the big screen with an organ performance before the movie and a special appearance by Pluto. June 10—11.

2. River Days Kids Fishing Fest - This FREE event at the William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor lets kids fish on the Detroit River. Free food, bait, fishing, face painting and more. June 11th.

3. 6th Annual Chaldean Festival - Celebrating the culture of Detroit's estimated 120,000 Chaldeans, the 3-day festival features carnival rides, entertainment, food and children's activities. June 10—12.

4. Berkley Art Bash - Over 100 amazing artists are included in this party in downtown Berkley. Plus food and live music. June 11th.

5. Urgh! A Detroit Music War - Eighteen of the hottest Detroit bands will take the stage a PJ's Lager House and will be filmed live. The reusult will be a feature length documentary of the Detroit music scene. June 11th.

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

Graffiti behind glass: The Woodward Windows

Jane Fader walking through my shot all Audrey Hepburn-like.While visiting the Schwankovsky in downtown Detroit last week, I had to stroll a few feet south and take a look at the Woodward Windows.

In another instance of authorized street art, 323 East Gallery of Royal Oak and SCM Studios have partnered up to brighten the empty storefronts on the 1400 block of Woodward Avenue. Artists Malt, Fel 3000, Kobie Solomon and Sintex are showing off their skills.

I apologize that the photos aren’t my best work—I haven’t mastered the shooting-through-glass thing yet. This is only a tease anyway, go take a walk and check them out yourself.

The Woodward Windows are located on the east side of Woodward Avenue just south of John R.

Win tickets to BRU Fest!

If you read this blog with any regularity you know that I love Michigan beer and I like to chomp down on some tasty food. This time I’ve got an opportunity for you to do just the same.

BRU Fest takes place on June 18^th at the Royal Oak Farmers Market and features burgers from Bagger Dave’s, wings from Buffalo Wild Wings and 13 craft beers from Michigan’s Bell’s Brewery plus live tunes from DJ Mike Anthony.

BRU Fest is a fundraiser to benefit the Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan and proceeds will go to help children and adults affected by leukemia, lymphoma and other blood related cancers throughout the state.

Tickets are $35 in advance and $40 at the door. They include 10 tokens for 10 beers (5oz pours) and all the burgers, wings and ice cream from Treat Dreams that you can eat! Additional tokens for beer can be purchased for $1 each.

Featuring the following Bell’s beers:

Bell’s Oberon Ale • Bell’s Amber Ale • Third Coast Beer • Bell’s Oarsman Ale • Bell’s Porter  Bell’s Pale Ale • Bell’s Lager of the Lakes • Bell’s Kalamazoo Stout • Two Hearted Ale • Bell’s Batch 9000 • Bell’s Batch 10000 • Bell’s Cherry Stout • Bell’s Consecrator Doppelbock

Now the fun part!

I have a pair of tickets to give away to one of you lovely people. I love giving things away—it makes me feel like Santa!

How to win:

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite burger topping is. Make sure you leave your email address when you post the comment so I can get in touch with you if you win. (Your email address will not be published.)

For an additional entry, tweet this:

I entered to win tickets to @BRUfestMI from @becksdavis & Detroit Moxie. http://bit.ly/lP5CFQ #BRUcontest #BRUfestMI

For the additional entry, you must’ve already left a comment with your favorite burger topping.

You must be 21 years of age or older to attend BRU Fest.

The contest ends on Wednesday, June 8, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. EDT. The winner will be announced on Thursday, June 9, 2011.

I will select the winner using random.org.

So, what's your favorite burger topping?

The one about the one-armed prostitute

Brunch with Becks is an ongoing weekend series where I wax poetic on tales from my life starting with the 9 Truths. Yes, I too can’t comprehend that all these odd occurrences have happened to me.

Going off to college was one of the most exciting and happiest times of my life. With the car fully packed with the mini-fridge and toaster oven, my family drove me to the wilds of Milwaukee, Wisconsin where I was to start my freshman year at Marquette University.

You should know that Marquette wasn’t my first choice school. My first choice, which I had dreamed of since my uncle went there in the late 70’s with his waterbed and bead door, was the University of Michigan.

U of M said, “thank you for your application fee but no dice.” I’m sure they said “no dice.” They broke my teenage heart into a million tiny little pieces.

I had applied to five schools: U of M, MSU, Boston University, Loyola of Chicago and Marquette University. The University of Michigan was the only one that said no.

So, my next choice was BU. I had the dorm picked out and was looking forward to some good chowder and hanging out at Faneuil Hall. Everything was all set to go. Then the financial aid came back. Apparently, BU was, and I’m sure still is, very expensive. The financial aid package was not what we were expecting and this time it was my dad who said, “no dice.”

This is going to upset a lot of people but I never even considered MSU. Too many people from high school were going there. I wanted a new adventure!

So now what?

Remember the Preppy Handbook? I’m sure many of you are too young. Whatever. Anyway, the author, Lisa Birnbach also wrote a guide to colleges. I don’t remember the exact words she used but of Marquette University she said something like, “Being in the center of the beer capital of the world, Marquette is the place to go to college if you’re underage and want to party.”

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

It should be noted at this time that I was 17 years old when I went off to college and wouldn’t turn 21 until my senior year. Luckily, Marquette also happened to be a damn fine educational institution.

I know what you’re thinking. What the hell does this have to do with a one-armed prostitute? Fine. Rush me, why don’t you?

Having decided late where I was going to be educated, I didn’t receive my first, second or third choice of dorms. No.

I was put in the YMCA.

Sing it with me... "Because it’s fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A. They have everything that you need to enjoy, you can hang out with all the boys…"

Let me explain.

MU had procured the 10^th through 18^th floors of the main branch of the Milwaukee YMCA for its students. Floors 3 through 8 were for regular YMCA people. And another area technical college took over the 9^th floor. To get to the MU floors you had to have a special elevator key so it was secure-ish.

I was devastated. Are you kidding me? I had been looking forward to this for my entire life and I end up in a YMCA! I’m going to be living with a cop, a cowboy, a soldier and a construction worker?

Wait. This isn’t sounding so bad.

It actually turned out to be amazing. I had a room to myself with a private bathroom and shower! The frosh in the other dorms weren’t so lucky. Even the girls across the hall from me had a communal shower. Thank god I ended up on the good side of the hall!

Two other friends from my high school were also in the Y, one on the same floor as me. I made great friends. It was also co-ed. That part was nice too. And if we went down one floor to where the other school lived we didn’t have to abide by University rules.

Not so shabby.

The biggest benefit, in retrospect, was that we were living in the same building as real people. Some down on their luck, some a bit seedy and some were probably traveling. We were safe but we weren’t sheltered. We got to see real life.

And yes, there was a woman who lived there who had a prosthetic arm and she was widely known to be a prostitute. I rode the elevator with her and her gentlemen callers but I really don’t have anything else to say about her. Sorry about that.

There was also a sweet old man who really cared about all the students and we, in turn, watched over him.

I absolutely loved Marquette University and it wasn’t just because you could scribble a stick figure and a fake date of birth on a bev nap and a bouncer named Apache would take it without blinking an eye.

MU taught me compassion, critical and thoughtful thinking, and what it means to really be a part of a community.

Cheap beer was just a bonus.

Post script: Marquette University ended up buying the YMCA building, revamped it, made it a "real" dorm and named it Straz Tower. From what I've read you can rent a room there during the summer months. My 20th college reunion is in July and, although I doubt we'll be able to make it, I can't help to think what it would be like staying in the same room or building 20 years later.

Photo Credit:JD Hancock on Flickr