Fourth of July by Colin Blakely in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Ann Arbor throws a big 4th of July parade through downtown every year. However, the town festivities all end before sundown, so fireworks are a DIY affair. We have three or four people on our block who literally begin stalking up months ahead of the event. On 4th of July evening, we get all the kids out after dark, bathe them in bug spray and sit on the bleachers at the park while 3 or 4 dad’s put on an impressive display of fireworks. This smoke bomb was release at dusk as a prelude to the festivities to come.

Name:Colin Blakely

Place you live: Ann Arbor, MI

Place your photo was taken: Ann Arbor, MI

Can you sum up Ann Arbor? I live on the 500-block of Keech Avenue. Bordered on one side by Michigan Stadium and by Almendinger Park on the other, both entities play an important role in the identity of my neighborhood. We have literally thousands of visitors to our street every year. People come from all over the country to visit the stadium and participate in the American ritual of Big-10 College Football. People come from all around town to visit the park and participate in activities there. Visitors to both places inevitably end up passing through Keech Avenue.

Occupation: Professor/Department Head, Art Department

Preoccupation: Father, Photographer. No time for much else, but also high on the list of things I love to do: tinkering with RC helicopters (or anything that flies really), downhill skiing, whitewater kayaking

A perfect day in Ann Arbor? There’s a different one for each season: in fall it includes a walk in the woods, in winter it includes sledding or building a snow penguin, in spring it involves walking downtown, in summer it involves drinking beer on neighbors’ porches.

If someone was visiting, what must they do? Walk inside Michigan Stadium. Take strolls down Main Street and State Street, eat lunch at Zingerman’s Deli. Have a beer outside at Dominick’s

A perfect meal in Ann Arbor? Smoked chicken and monteray jack macaroni and cheese and a Sprecher Pub Ale at Zingerman’s Roadhouse

What is the best thing about your spot? Football days

What is the worst? Football days

A little known fact about where you live? Bob Seger’s Mainstreet was inspired by Ann Arbor’s Main Street.

Where is your favorite place in the world? Either Santa Fe, NM or Big Bend, TX

colinblakely.com

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