This Week in Leelanau: December 10, 2010

Here’s the news & events from the week!

Sorry for the brief email – in central Illinois on a poor connection and hustling to get back before the weather gets bad!

Shut the Door in Chicago Please!

On Leelanau.com this morning we have an in-depth article from Traverse City based Circle of Blue about how the Chicago Waterway System is pretty much the best friend that invasive species have. Joel Brammeier, president of the Alliance for the Great Lakes explains why permanent separation is the only solution:

“Asian carp are only the latest and certainly the most graphic example … we’ve already donated zebra mussels and round goby to the Mississippi River Basin, something that I don’t think the other half of the continental United States is too happy about. We can certainly count today half a dozen other invaders in either direction that could move through this system. No technology solution has been demonstrated to be able to provide the kind of certainty against invasion that we think the Great Lakes deserve.”

On Absolute Michigan this week we Remembered Hudson’s in Detroit, tasted food & wine on the Old Mission Peninsula, checked in on the The Search for the Westmoreland, learned about some Michigan Toy Stories and invited you to Ski Michigan in 2011!

Meanwhile, on Michigan in Pictures we hitched up the airstream and drove by the Knapp Building in Lansing to learn a little about the streamline moderne design style.

If you have a Michigan business, you can add your link for free to Michigan’s largest site for Michigan news & links, absolutemichigan.com!

This week’s photo is Leelanau Snowscape (3) by Pettman’s Photographic Memories – see it background big and check out more of the beginning of winter in Ian’s Leelanau County slideshow.

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The Leelanau Calendar

If you’ve got a Leelanau event, you can add your information (for free) to the Leelanau Calendar. Not only will it be listed in this newsletter every week, but we may do a feature story on your event on Leelanau.com!

FEATURED EVENT

Two Holiday Events!

Pathfinder Holiday Arts and Crafts Fair on Saturday December 11 ~ Join the students and staff of Pathfinder school Saturday from 9-4 at the Pathfinder School Gymnasium for a day of fun! Refreshments provided at this Arts and Crafts Fair. The students have created a wonderful array of holiday items!

Holiday Hootenanny at Higher Grounds on Saturday, December 11 ~ The day runs from 10 AM – 11 PM. It is a benefit for the Run Across Ethiopia and features a Trunk Show, Silent Auction capped by a concert by Seth Bernard and May Erlewine. Get the details on Facebook.

Northport’s Annual Christmas Concert, Saturday, December 11 at 8pm
This traditional family affair at the Northport Community Arts Center will feature the Village Voices and the Northport Community Band. Over 100 performers will fill the auditorium with the sounds of Christmas. You can also catch a show on Sunday the 5th at 3 PM. Tickets are $20 for adults, $5 for students and Northport students are free. Call 231-386-5001. Tickets will be available at the door.

Tweet & Taste: Sparkling Wines of L. Mawby
Leelanau’s L. Mawby winery has teamed up with Michigan By the Bottle for a Tweet & Taste on Tuesday, December 14 at 7 PM featuring two of their M. Lawrence wines, Fizz and Us. It’s a chance to join MichiganByTheBottle, the winemakers, a master sommelier and several wine bloggers as they explore two sparkling wines from one of the nation’s most respected sparkling wine makers right in your own home! Click above for a video explaining it!

MORE EVENTS FROM THE LEELANAU CALENDAR

Dec 9 – Friendship Center Holiday Festivities
Dec 9 – Silent Auction & Cocktail Party
Dec 9 – Lady’s Night
Dec 10 – Vinyl Night!
Dec 11 – Day of Giving
Dec 11 – Holiday Arts and Crafts Fair
Dec 11 – Snowbird Bingo
Dec 10 – Inn at Christmas time
Dec 14 – Meet the Winemaker Wine Dinner- Peninsula Cellars
Dec 14 – PEEPERS – Oh Christmas Tree
Dec 14 – LIWDA monthly meeting
Dec 16 – Men’s Night
Dec 18 – Festival of Trains
Dec 18 – Greening up the Holidays
Dec 18 – Opening Weekend
Dec 19 – Free Yoga Classes
Dec 19 – Christmas Celebration in Music & Word
Dec 22 – Family Snowshoe Hike
Dec 31 – SwingShift and The Stars Grand Final Event
Dec 31 – New Year’s Eve Cherry-T Ball Drop

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Did we mention you could add your events forfree? Get busy folks!

Now Playing at the Bay Theater in Suttons Bay: ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 1’ (PG-13) runs thru 12/16. Coming soon: ‘Fair Game’ (PG-13), and ‘True Grit’. The Bay Film Series 2010/2011: Another year of great world cinema available right here in Suttons Bay, MI is now underway! Our next feature is a drama/romance out of France titled ‘Wild Grass’ (PG) 12/12-14. Mid-Week Specials are back!! Tuesdays – Free Popcorn (one medium corn with ticket purchase), Wednesdays – $5.50 for all seats (Specials are not valid for special events or film series). Bay Theatre Gift Certificates: ‘Say it with a Movie’ gift certificates provide a memorable and enjoyable experience all year ’round. Check the web site for details!

The Weather

It’s 29 degrees under cloudy skies at 7:15 AM at Leelanau Coffee Roasting in Glen Arbor. The record high for a December 10 was 54 degrees in 1971, a far cry from the bone-chilling low of -6 in 1919. The forecast for today calls for temps in the 30s with a chance of freezing drizzle. Saturday will be cloudy & breezy with temps in the 30s and snow picking up late in the day (1-3″). Although Leelanau put on its winter coat this week with lots of lake effect snow (over a foot in some places), it looks like we’re going to get a pile more layers on this weekend. Forecasters are calling for a major winter storm rolling in Saturday night and adding north winds at 40+ dropping temps into the single digits and bringing another 5-8″ of snow on Sunday.

Click for the news & weather from last year!