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Hello friends and welcome to another weekend.
Michigan State University announced this week that they are going all virtual for the fall, a week after saying they were going full speed ahead with reopening (to be fair most freshmen were taking classes virtually anyway, but a lot of students were coming back for in- class instruction as well). Not surprising given that there have already been outbreaks at schools and universities that have opened. I just wish some of this stuff that is super obvious or predictable would be addressed ahead of time, right???
Speaking of State, that reminded me of a place I used to go in East Lansing. Bilbo's Pizza in a Pan was of course Tolkien- themed, and I LOVED their old menu. This was years ago, sadly, but I found a pic of their menu online.
Song of the week
PULP COVER OF THE WEEK:
BOOKISH LINKS
Here's the latest Tokyo walking tour (with subtitles)
Treehouse ambience
I do feel bad for all the colleges that were trying so hard to make in person school work and then had to shut down. Clearly it's still not the right time. And I love that pizza menu!
ReplyDeleteRight? I need to recreate some of those sandwiches. :) And I agree. We were so close and it's just not time, but maybe some will make it work? I know different areas are having a worse time than some other areas...
DeleteIt’s a shame that it’s virtual, There has been several outbreaks in schools in our region plus a possible suspected one at my daughters school.
ReplyDeleteThat menu is amazing, there should be more LOTR themed menus in the world!
Yeah I've been seeing outbreaks here too so it's not unexpected!
DeleteThe high school district in my town spent a lot of time coming up with a hybrid plan to have kids go part-time in person, and they had this whole schedule, and now have decided to just go all-virtual. Seems like a lot of time wasted!
ReplyDeleteYeah. Same here. Our school is going hybrid along with traditional, so some kids are going back to in class learning. I'm afraid if there's an outbreak that may not last though...
DeleteLove the cool art! Hope you have an awesome weekend, Greg.
ReplyDeleteYou too !!!
DeleteWait! Did that pizza place close or re-brand? Because that menu is great.
ReplyDeleteThere's still a Bilbo's in Kalamazoo (another college city) but the one in East Lansing is, sadly, gone...
DeleteEverything is so in the air. I feel sorry for everyone who had things planned out and had to make rapid adjustments.
ReplyDeleteI love the menu, too. Great bit of nostalgia.
Love the spooky pirate one after just watching a pirate bio.
I know. A lot of people were moving back to State (and our high school is having traditional learning, where students come back to physical class along with hybrid models) and then it happened.
DeleteI miss Bilbo's. :)
I loved this week's pics :)
That restaurant sounds preeeeetty awesome. I love places that get creative like that!
ReplyDeleteThat place was awesome. Like a lot of college joints though you could wait all night to get your food and drinks lol...
DeleteSeveral universities here have gone all virtual for the fall semester. I imagine they aren't overly thrilled about refunding dorm room fees. That looks like a good menu! There used to be a restaurant in Chicago's Water Tower called D.B. Kaplan's. They had a creative sandwich menu like that too. Lastly, I enjoyed the treehouse ambience.
ReplyDeleteI think if there's outbreaks we'll see a lot of cancelings/ going virtual. And right!
DeleteOoh that place sounds fun. :)
I totally agree Greg! Some things could have easily been told earlier if you ask me!
ReplyDeleteI love that.. A Tolkien menu! So cool.
Have a great week and happy reading.
Our school district did the same thing, we were going to be using a hybrid system to get kids back in school, but then overnight they decided to make it all virtual. Now everything is a mess with back ordered chromebooks, parents who need to work having to find child care services, and the learning centers for at-risk and disabled students being full and understaffed. I hate to say it, but at this point keeping the kids out of school may be doing more harm to their education and mental health than coronavirus ever could, and recent studies have been supporting this by showing soaring rates of youth depression, anxiety, suicide...it's just damned if we do, damned if we don't.
ReplyDeleteI still think US schools/colleges could be doing a little more to get kids back to in-person learning though, but it seems like virtual learning was the only option on the table. Meanwhile, my friends in Europe are able to send their kids back to school right now, because there they've actually taken the time to come up with creative ways to do it safely, like staggered attendance and pod learning. In contrast, alarmist attitudes around the country have resulted in many places with absolutely no attempts to look at other solutions but to just go straight to shutdown.
Oh I love the idea of a Tolkien-inspired pizza place - We have a pub here in the UK called The Hobbit, which has Tolkien-inspired cocktails. 😄 Take care and happy reading!
ReplyDeleteI love the old menu card. And I would think a developed nation like the USA would think it through, with all the leaders and systems it boasts of. Stay safe Greg.
ReplyDeleteIn my state kids still enjoy their vacation. But in other states they are already back in school and have to deal with a lot of rules. One school had to close after two days again, because of some positive test results. It is quite a challenge for all. And we have the discussion going on if a professor who gives online classes at a university can ask students for the same fee as he does when they attend his class in person. It is really a challenge...
ReplyDeleteThe card looks wonderful. And makes my mouth water *smile*
Stay safe and well.
That restaurant looks so cool! I wonder if it was there when my aunt and uncle attended. They were big Tolkien fans, they could have eaten there!
ReplyDeleteI saw my old college CMU has had an issue with COVID and partying... I attended CMU my freshman year and came home because I partied too much. LOL. I did better attending Eastern.
That restaurant looks like it would have be cool! I don't know about our colleges but I know the school here in town are still going ahead with in person school from grade school to high school. I feel bad for Freshman who want the college experience, I wouldn't have wanted to start it off online. :(
ReplyDeleteHave a great week!
Stormi
Week in Review
It's a nightmare... Apart from anything else, no one knows if children actually carry the illness asymptomatically - and until we do, then teachers are at major risk. But I'm also aware that all children are starting to struggle - I watch my grandchildren becoming increasingly unhappy at being stuck at home and away from their friends. They are desperate to get back to school - and until our school year starts, no one knows if the measures put in place are going to be workable. My heart goes out to everyone stuck in this ongoing mess:(.
ReplyDeleteOn a happier note - your pictures this week are awesome - and I love the Hardy Boys' cover! Have a good week, Greg.
I think I'm going to start printing out all your Hardy Boys covers and stick it on the originals. Wonder how long it will take the kids to notice... Love it!!
ReplyDeleteHope you will have a good week!
Elza Reads
Greg our universities will open in a few weeks with lessons in situ and not online so I am crossing all my fingers and toes that we don't have such outbursts!
ReplyDeleteI have a feeling many of the schools that go back in the fall will end up being virtual. There have already been so many outbursts since some students already went back. Very scary stuff.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great menu! Thank you for sharing it.
I hope you have a great week!
Schools here in California are at home, but I think eventually it'll be some sort of hybrid version where it's part in person and part home. I hope they come up with a vaccine soon. Hopefully you'll get back to Bilbo's Pizza in a Pan soon! Maybe they have outdoor dining? That's the only way we can eat out right now which is super fun with all the smoke from the fires everywhere! Oh, and don't forget our triple digit heat! Have a great week, Greg!
ReplyDeleteMy grandson is going back to school tomorrow and I'm glad it's all online.
ReplyDeleteI hope schools and colleges are paying attention to the ones that opened and had outbreaks. Clearly, some are rethinking their position on in-person classes. I honestly don't think it's safe to go back while we're still experiencing significant spread of the virus. It might be different if we had a) gotten the spread down to virtually none and b) had sufficient testing capacity, PPE, and disinfectants available for all schools. But neither is true, alas.
ReplyDeleteThe menu is great, and so is the autumn treehouse ambient video. (Well, the 2 minutes I had time to watch, anyway.) I also like the "Dream House." And the Hardy Boys cover made me laugh out loud.
I'm still not sure what will happen with the schools here. The cases are ramping up everywhere, thanks to the total lack of social distancing (and proper mask use) that a number of morons have practiced during the summer...
ReplyDeleteI love the menu, so much fun!
ReplyDeleteMy daughter will go to university next year in January but with no idea what to expect from the pandemic, figuring out accomodation in advance is tricky.
Wishing you a great reading week
A Tolkien themed restaurant would be so fun!
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the universities. I get that in an ideal world we'd be able to operate normally. But we're far from that ideal world right now and we all know it. *sigh* I don't envy decision makers position right now though. All possible options are shitty.
Have a great week Greg. And stay safe!
I like My Dream Home image! Fun stuff.
ReplyDeleteNot fun about how schools backtrack on their plans, when they should realize it's too risky.
Enjoy your books and your shows. I love that menu!
Yeah, I don't understand why so many schools decided that in-person would be a good idea. Around me, most of the colleges are MOSTLY online and only in person when they really need to be. That's not really the case with the younger students (non-colleges) but hopefully things don't get too out of hand with COVID outbreaks.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
I honestly just wish there was a federal mandate. I love literary themed anything. Their was a Poe themed restaurant in a town I lived for awhile. It was neat. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteAs a North Carolina girl, I've been watching from afar as the state universities went back for in-person instruction... and are slowly going back to virtual. Chapel Hill barely made it a week! We all knew it was going to happen. It doesn't matter how clean and socially-distanced your classrooms are if the students are having big parties on the weekend, and that's exactly what happened. As predicted. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteThe last picture reminds me of these treehouse spheres. An overnight stay in one of them is on my bucket list! Unfortunately, at their price point, that's probably where they'll stay. https://freespiritspheres.com/
Enjoy your week!
Aww that pizza place sounds like fun. I'm worried about what happens when the schools open in a few weeks for the kids. Especially with everything that is already happening in the schools that have already opened. Hope you have a great week.
ReplyDeleteI love that menu! So clever.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I have always loved the raptors in the Jurassic Park movies. I always felt bad because, while they were super smart, they were little devils. lol Luckily, the newer movies assured me that they weren't all that bad.
Have a great week!
My daughter knew from a few months ago that all her university classes would be online. My son who is in his last year of high school will do 4 days in school and 3 online on a 7 day cycle. What a weird school year this is going to be!
ReplyDeleteWhat a clever menu. So creative!
They reopened schools here last week and already have many cases. Sigh. Loving the pics, Greg. Some of them would be great hanging on my walls.
ReplyDeleteSeems like this virus will be affecting us all for quite some time to come. Virtual education is the way to go.
ReplyDeleteWell I think eventually we will need to open things up again including the universities, we can't stay closed forever because I have a feeling this thing will be around for a while. But here in my state they are opening them up halfway and insisting on masks. Of course its young adults who are the age who never wear them lol not sure how effective that will be though. I love those old time menus from the food places we love.
ReplyDeleteThere’s LoTR pizza? If I ever go to Michigan, I’m eating there for sure! Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
"We Dead" I am cackling 😂 Also the college thing is absurd- we all KNEW this was going to happen because of like, common sense and basic intelligence, but colleges could not get it together? Like- of COURSE they're going to close. I would be so pissed if I moved my kid in there (and spent tons of money to do so) and then had to drag them back home, possibly with a shiny new COVID infection. I feel like it had to be extra hard for parents too, because you can TRY to not let them go, but since they're actually adults it's totally different. UGH. That menu is fun though!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like it was a fun restaurant. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteDid you know that I'm a Spartan? I can't remember if we've ever had this conversation! I was there from 1994-1998. I have lots of good memories from school and East Lansing. :)
ReplyDeleteThemed restaurants are fun! Great collection of images this week, being a big Jurassic Park/Jurassic World fan (movies - not the books) that one is my favourite.
ReplyDeleteA lovely week to you!
The university I work for is just started and they are doing in-person classes, though most classes are hybrid. I love pizza places and that one looks like it would have been fun to go to.
ReplyDeleteThese universities are absolutely scrambling! My family and I took a drive up to a park but kept on driving because all the Northwestern kids were on campus. I do not look forward to the fall.
ReplyDeleteAmber Elise @ Du Livre
Schools and universities are getting mixed messages from those in charge. Parents aren't sure what to do. I know that virtual education is not as good as in-person education, but it is better than stirring up the virus, I think.
ReplyDeleteHave a good week!
A Tolkien themed restaurant?! That sounds so awesome!
ReplyDeleteA Tolkien themed restaurant sounds very cool. I’m not surprised to hear about the decision for things to go virtual, I think a lot of places will make the decision with infection rates still being high. It’s all about waiting to see what happens I think.
ReplyDeleteLOL - love that menu! Fellowship of Cheeses :-)
ReplyDeleteYIKES! Did a Dead Doll sure sounds creepy, Gorgeous Greg!(lol) And the author's name sure is an attention grabber! So much back and forth here in NC when it comes to college and sports. Also, it seems that once the decision was made to go remote in schools(grade school and high school) everyone should have had their laptops BEFORE school started. Some kids are still waiting causing the entire process to slow down. My son said his daughter's class doesn't anticipate being on track for at least another week. Hope you are doing well and sending lots of hugs, RO
ReplyDeleteOops! I forgot to mention, how clever to do a LOTR Menu and glad the menu is still around to peek at. Really leaving now!(lol) RO
ReplyDeleteI would want to eat out at Bilbo's all the time! What a wonderful creative menu! I'd like a Tom Bombadil special I think...
ReplyDeleteDoes Bilbo's still exist, or is all that remains that wonderful menu? 😯
ReplyDelete