Dim Sum is a type of Chinese cuisine characterized by small plates or eats. They are served via a roving cart and include steamed dumplings, spring rolls and other types of Hors' Dourves-type treats. The cuisine originated in Chinese teahouses but can now be found at a few restaurants in the Metro-Detroit area, including Shangri-La in West Bloomfield.

The table-side service at Shangri-La is fast and efficient; the portions are large; and the price per person is very reasonable. Check it out!

More Information:

• Review of Shangri-La Restaurant in West Bloomfield

• What is Dim Sum?

The movie Stick it in Detroit, which stars John Lutz from Saturday Night Live and Kieran Campion from All My Children, comes out at select theaters in the Metro Detroit area this Friday.

So, aside from an ode to the Motor City in the film's title, what's Detroit about it?

Just about everything.

The movie's producer/director/co-writer/actor, Robert Phelps, was born and raised in Detroit. The aspiring filmmaker was living in Los Angeles and working as a waiter when he came up with the idea for the film and turned to his high-school buddies, who were by this point living all across the country, to help write it. The movie takes place in Detroit, is loosely based on characters from Detroit, was 100% filmed in Detroit and, according to Phelps, "is true to Detroit."

If you're thinking the movie is a cross between just about any National Lampoon movie and American Pie, you'd be spot on. The movie is about a group of friends who are still hanging out years after their time together in a Detroit-area high school. Specifically, the group of characters are preparing for their annual Halloween party. The plot thickens when their ring leader, Todd, is offered a promotion that would require he move to Georgia. While the movie hinges on the will-he-or-won't-he plot device -- whether he will stick it in Detroit -- reviewers love it for its cast of characters and F%#*ing Funny rating. In fact, the movie won the Best Comedy category in the Detroit/Windsor International Film Festival in 2008.

Check it out!

Special Engagement: MJR Theaters in Waterford, Sterling Heights and Southgate starting November 6th

Reviews:

• Dork Dimension

• Punch Drunk Critics

The 2009 election in Michigan doesn't have the controversy of a stem-cell-research proposal or the media blitz surrounding a presidential race, but it does have a lot of funding proposals and local government races. For instance, the ballot in Detroit gave Detroiters yet another chance to vote for mayor.

Were the races and proposals in 2009 glamorous enough to get you to the polls?

Detroiters have arguably been desensitized to all things scary after having endured Kilpatrick's antics, GM's bankruptcy and mass layoffs. Maybe that's why we require ever higher levels of horror to truly get a thrill -- just look at the abundance of haunted attractions in the Metro Detroit area and around the state.

As it turns out, however, a lot of Michigan's haunted and spooky happenings aren't manufactured attractions. For instance, did you know that:

• Michigan was rated the 11th most haunted state in the nation from 2007 to 2009 by Haunted American Tours?
• That the movie The Crow, which was set in Detroit, is rated fifth on Haunted American Tours's list of the top haunted, cursed or scariest horror movies? The distinction is based in part on the curse on the production itself. In addition to several other injury accidents that occurred during production, the film's star, Brandon Lee, was killed when a prop gun misfired on the set.
• Harry Houdini died in Detroit at Grace Hospital on Halloween in 1926?

Want more? Check out Detroit and Michigan's paranormal legends.

House decorated for Halloween in Plymouth Township, 2009 © Laura Sternberg, Licensed to About.com

This corner lot on Eckles Road and Ann Arbor Trail in Plymouth Township has been transformed into a cemetery, complete with tombstones, the living dead, the Reaper, a coffin and even a guillotine.

If you want to nominate a house and/or street as the best decorated for Halloween in 2009, comment below or send a picture to me and I'll post it.

House decorated for Halloween, 2009
Submitted by bm

You've gotta love a house that takes Halloween decoration to the next level. Imagine how spooky this would be at night.

If you want to nominate a house and/or street as the best decorated for Halloween in 2009, comment below or send a picture to me and I'll post it.

This may seem like no big deal to you, but those of us on the west side of the Metro-Detroit area have sadly lived without certain fast-food favorites. After years of Sonic commercials featuring Sonic Burgers and Chili Cheese Coneys, we can finally feed our craving without driving too far.

How far will you drive for a favorite store or restaurant?

While football is the usual sport through which Michigan State University and the University of Michigan play out their rivalry, the Spartans hosted the Wolverines in soccer this weekend. The atmosphere (and apparently money spent on facilities) is a little different for soccer. For instance, there were no traffic tie ups; concessions were only available in trucks and tents; and restroom relief came by way of a line of port-a-potties. Worse yet, the Sparty mascot was no where to be seen -- although there was a semi-naked guy painted green and white. Even so, the Spartans took it to the Wolverines, beating them 2 to 1.

Soccer: The Michigan State Spartans vs. the University of Michigan Wolverines © Laura Sternberg, Licensed to About.com

According to the Big Ten Men's Soccer Standings, the game did nothing much to improve MSU's standings nationally (neither team is in the top 25), but it was a lot of fun -- especially if you're a Spartan.

More Information:

• Ranked Sports of Michigan's colleges and universities going into the fall, 2009 season

Sometimes, perception is everything. If Michigan is perceived as waffling on its commitment to its film incentives package, movie productions think twice before coming to the state to film. If this in turn slows down the construction of Unity Studios and a news story on WDIV-TV marks the project as in trouble, the negative impression could spell doom for the studio and the state's burgeoning industry.

Good News Rebuttal:

The news story prompted a press release by Jimmy Lifton, the president of Unity Studios, declaring that the studio project is moving forward. The Lifton Institute for Media Skills starts its first class next week; construction has begin on the film stages, production services and post-production suites; and several movie projects are scheduled to begin pre-production in the coming months.

We as a state planted the movie-industry seed, now its time for a little care and feeding. The Unity Studio project is still alive and a movie-industry in the state is still a good idea. Are we committed to helping this industry grow or not?

More Information:

• List of movie studios in Michigan

• Guide to Michigan's movie industry

Unfortunately, the Swine Flu arrived in Detroit before its vaccine. While incidents of the flu have been reported across the metropolitan area, the vaccine has finally arrived in limited amounts. It is available to people in high-risk groups: babies, children and young people age 24 and under; pregnant women, health-care workers; and people with respiratory conditions.

City and county health departments across the Metro-Detroit area have begun to schedule vaccination locations. Check the appropriate website for specific, up-to-date information.

• The City of Detroit will have both the injectable and nasal vaccines available starting on Monday, October 27th at its Department of Health and Wellness Promotion Clinics.
• Macomb County has only the nasal vaccine available and will provide doses to people ages 2 to 49 (except pregnant women). The vaccine will be administered on Wednesday and Thursday (October 28th and 29th) at Freedom Hill Amphitheater in Sterling Heights.
• Oakland County will have the vaccine in both injectable and nasal forms on Saturday at Clarkston Junior High School in Clarkston and Oakland Community College, Orchard Ridge Campus in Farmington Hills.
• Washtenaw County will begin administering the vaccine to high-risk groups starting on Monday. The locations will vary day to day but will be school based.
• Wayne County will have the injectable vaccine available on Saturday at its clinics and at Hamtramck High School Community Center. The school-based location for vaccine administration will vary week to week.

Michigan's Department of Community Health has a website devoted to the Swine Flu. It is a great resource for information about the Swine Flu and its vaccine.

Information about the benefits and risks of the vaccine can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website