Mikaela says:
Okay, so This American Life managed to suck the humor out of the funniest newspaper I've read, in trying to understand how the newsroom distinguishes the simply silly from the really hilarious, and manage to build an enduringly funny paper in the process.
The best part of the show was hearing new (read: young) reporters describe simultaneously trying to emulate their heroes, still on staff, while also poo-pooing them for offering more of the same (which they grew up admiring).
Still... it was short and a little flat, and well ... disappointing.
Whatever, I'm over it.
Why?
Because check out how much the Onion rocks:
3' by 4' Plot of Green Space Rejuvenates Neighborhood
Notorious for its abandoned buildings, industrial warehouses, and gray, dilapidated roads, Detroit's Warrendale neighborhood was miraculously revitalized this week by the installation of a single, three-by-four-foot plot of green space.The green space, a rectangular patch of crabgrass located on a busy median divider, has by all accounts turned what was once a rundown community into a thriving, picturesque oasis, filled with charming shops, luxury condominiums, and, for the first time ever, hope.
"Sitting in the middle of the park, it's like all of the troubles of city life just melt away," said homeowner Samantha Hodge, who every day gazes at the narrow green space between two lanes of traffic and is filled instantly with calm. "A week ago, I was ready to call it quits and never come back. Nowadays, I couldn't imagine living anywhere else."
Despite the overwhelmingly positive influence of this simple patch of lawn, a number of Warrendale residents have come to regard its popularity as a double-edged sword.
"Everywhere I look now, well-dressed moms are pushing babies in designer strollers, high-end coffee shops are opening their doors, and fancy galleries are replacing old neighborhood bars," said mechanic Kevin Miles, who was evicted from his tenement apartment after his rent tripled almost overnight. "I used to know everyone who lived here, but now it seems like half the people are college kids or vacationing Europeans."
Added Miles: "I never thought I'd say this, but I miss the old decrepit Warrendale."
I want to know: Who on that staff went to planning school?
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