Ann Arbor residents now have the opportunity to try cocktails made by David Martinez, the winner of best garnish in the 2013 Shake it Up Cocktail Competition.

Martinez has attended the Nightclub and Bar Convention and Trade Show in Las Vegas every year as a manager at The Torch Bar and Grill in downtown Flint, where he worked until coming to work at the Alley Bar in Ann Arbor in early May.

It wasn’t until this year that he decided to submit an original cocktail recipe for competition.

More than 800 people from all over the country submitted drinks for the contest. Martinez was one of the 30 selected to compete live at the convention.

“I was so surprised,” Martinez said. “My initial reaction was excitement and then I was nervous. I emailed the company holding the competition constantly asking questions. It was my first cocktail competition and I didn’t know what to expect.”

Contestants were given 15 minutes to prep and then 7 minutes to complete the drink on stage. Although Martinez did not win for his cocktail recipe, he did win for best garnish — a candied orange peel rose resting on a bed of fresh mint sprigs, which took around 8 hours to produce.

“The competition is a lot of fun, but it’s nerve racking at the same time,” Martinez said. “I’m definitely going to submit a drink again next year. It would be cool if I could get in to the competition again.”

The award-winning bartender left his position as manager in Flint to work in Ann Arbor.

“I came to Ann Arbor because I heard there was a better cocktail scene,” Martinez said. “It’s a faster pace with a lot more people coming in. I had strayed away from interacting with the people and being able to make the drinks when I was managing at The Torch. A big part of why I left was to get back to bartending.”

Alley Bar owner Robbie Shulz said the award was impressive, but not the main factor in hiring Martinez.

“We hired David because of his excitement to learn more about the industry,” Shulz said. “His energy is just amazing and contagious. That’s what we always look for when we’re hiring new workers. He’s been doing great here. He has a lot to learn still, but he has a lot to share too. For that reason he’s been a great addition to the staff.”

Martinez will be moving to The Last Word, also owened by Shulz, within the next few weeks.

“We’re changing our hours at The Last Word and opening a little earlier now,” Shulz said. “We were looking for someone we felt comfortable with running a new program and I think in the long term it will be a good fit for him. We will be able to see the creative side in him because he will have access to a kitchen at The Last Word. He’ll be able to help us drive the program forward and he’ll have more room to grow.”

The Last Word will be launching ‘Green Hour’ from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, featuring traditional absinthe drips and cocktails.

“I’m excited to make the move,” Martinez said. “I like Alley Bar because it was an easy transition for me. It reminded me of The Torch with its comfortable, casual atmosphere, but a place like The Last Word is where I have always wanted to end up.”

Martinez describes The Last Word as a dark, speakeasy-style bar with a more formal feel.

“It’s what I have pictured in my head since I started bartending,” Martinez said. “Everything is handmade and crazy fresh. This is a step in the right direction for me.”

The cocktail Martinez submitted for competition is still being served at The Torch. It’s a mix of Jameson, Patron XO Cafe, orange peel-infused simple syrup and Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate Bitters.

You can test out Martinez’s skills at the Alley Bar or The Last Word, where he will be working in a few weeks.

Chelsea Hoedl is an intern reporter for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at choedl@mlive.com.

Shinska plans to provide oral health care to children in Uganda as a part of Hope Smiles.

Courtesy of Ryan Shinska.

At a church in Uganda in 2012, University of Michigan Dental School graduate Ryan Shinska listened as the preacher asked if there were any U-M fans present. Shinska was in Uganda that day as a part of an outreach program. He and a team of dentists traveled to provide care to Ugandan children and to educate them about dental hygiene.

“He didn’t know I was there or that I was from Michigan,” Shinska said. “It was completely random. There were a lot of random things like that, which led me to where I am now. All these crazy, inexplicable things in my life got me over to Uganda, and are sending me back now.”

Shinska, who graduated from the dental school in 2005, will return to Uganda on July 24 to provide children with accessible dental care, connect with communities throughout the country and enable Ugandans to provide oral health care services to their own communities.

“There’s a tremendous need there and I’ve been given the tools and resources to make something happen,” Shinska said.

The clinic, Hope Smiles Uganda, will be located in Jinja, one of the largest towns in Uganda. Shinska, the leader and coordinator of the clinic will employ two assistants, a secretary and a driver who also will act as a translator.

Shinska’s team also will be comprised entirely of native Ugandans. He hopes this help to connect with the community and more successfully give locals the tools to provide basic oral care in the future.

“I just want to provide the same kind of care that you see here in the states and empower locals to provide that care as well,” Shinska said. “I don’t think where you are born should determine what kind of health care you receive.”

Shinska said ultimately he hopes to create a dental school to train Ugandans to provide basic oral care for their villages.

“Even in inner cities in the states there is access to care,” Shinska said. “It may be difficult to obtain, but it’s just a matter of connecting with the city, whereas in Uganda, there are literally no dentists for people to see.”

Shinska said he wants communities around the world to have the ability to provide oral care and hopes he can encourage and enable Ugandans to deliver care within communities.

“It’s about empowering people,” Shinska said. “It’s not about people thinking they have all the answers when really they just have all the resources.”

Dental issues have been shown to have several a person's overall health and can create major health issues reaching outside the mouth, according Shinska, so children receiving regular check-ups and proper education about how to take care of their teeth is extremely important.

Shinska will partner with NGOs and ministries in order to provide children with proper dental care. Initially, Shinska will care for about 3,500 kids, but he plans to work with other communities after he establishes more connections in the country.

“I hope to partner with different villages,” Shinska said. “For the most part I’ll be seeing kids in Jinja, but it’s important to connect with outside communities and provide care wherever I can.”

All of Shinska’s equipment will be portable, so traveling to unreached communities will not arise as an issue.

Hope Smiles Uganda is raising money to pay for the tools and equipment needed to provide care to children in Jinja as well as children in surrounding communities. Shinska set the fundraising goal at $50,000 and already has raised more than $32,000.

“Right now I’m focusing on fundraising and spending time with friends before I leave,” Shinska said. “All of the travel plans are taken care of and there are a lot of things I can’t do until I get there, like find a place to live or get a driver’s license.”

Shinska said he will be staying in Uganda indefinitely.

“It could be two or three years, or it could be 30 or 40,” Shinska said. “I’m leaning towards 30 or 40 because I think it’s going to work. It really depends on finances and eventually obtaining grants.”

After Shinska’s visit to Uganda in 2012 and his return trip in January 2013, he said he has been in touch with a lot of people in the area and is looking forward to using his education and resources to help those who need it.

The biggest challenge for any health care provider is connecting with the community, Shinska said.

“It’s about making sure you’re learning the culture and understanding what they struggle with and what they dream about every day,” Shinska said.

Chelsea Hoedl is an intern reporter for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at choedl@mlive.com.

The city of Ann Arbor is planning a public art project at the site of the popular Argo Cascades on the Huron River, and it wants input from the public.

A pair of kayakers enters the Argo Cascades on Saturday, June 29, on the Huron River in Ann Arbor.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

The deadline for chiming in is 5 p.m. July 19.

• Take the survey

Three selected artists will visit Argo Cascades and meet with citizens in August. In September, the three artists will present their ideas for a permanent art installation for the site.

Citizens will be invited to attend and give input before the final artwork is selected.

According to a request for artist qualification statements that went out in March, a budget of $115,000 has been established for the selected public art project. The budget must include all artist fees, materials, design, engineering consultation, insurance, travel, fabrication and installation.

"The Argo Cascades public art project will be informed by the historical connection of the urban city and the natural river at this location," the SOQ request states.

"The public art here will be a marker of the community's interest in 'facing the river' and will celebrate the river as an asset and a source of drinking water," it continues. "Because of the celebration of the river as a source of drinking water, the design must convey the importance of water quality and conservation in the use of water to preserve it as a resource."

• Download the SOQ request

Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.

Local blog MarkMaynard.com has an interview with members of Spontaneous Art, the local performance-art group, who appeared on the NBC-TV show "America's Got Talent" this week.

Note: the post contains adult language and material.

• Read the interview on MarkMaynard.com

What did you think of the performance? Leave a comment at the end of this post:

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo performs at the Power Center on Friday.

Daniel J. Brenner | AnnArbor.com

Certainly, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, the all-male comedy ballet company that played Power Center Friday evening under Ann Arbor Summer Festival auspices, has no quarrel with that definition. In fact, it glories in it, with a roster of buff and brilliant ballerinos—all with hilarious Russianized stage names; some with a hint of five-o’clock shadow peeking from the bodices of their spangled tutus—who have got that assoluta thing down pat. Yeah, they have their cavaliers, too, but girls like Marina Plezegetovstageskaya (Roberto Forleo) know it’s ladies first, and they know how to put a porteur in his place, even if he is a prince—with a small break from ballet’s decorous manners for some fisticuffs.

It’s been about 25 years since the Trocks, as they are known, have been in Ann Arbor, and the program they presented Friday included old favorites—for example, Act II of “Swan Lake” and “Go for Barocco,” Peter Anastos’ astute send-up of Balanchine’s neo-classical “Concerto Barocco.” These hold up more than well. In fact, it was only the broadest of the flock of dances, the “Dying Swan”—a heavily moulting version of Pavlova’s classic solo to Saint-Saens—that seemed less than immortal. Still, even there, Lariska Dumbchenko (Raffaele Morra) was smartly stylish, gliding in on pointe with little, liquid bourrees and properly rippling arms.

And that’s one of the things that makes the Trocks so much fun these days: they dance so well. It’s not just the wattage, which is high: you enjoy them because they dance with such elan. But these guys have a lot of technique at their disposal, and, for the most part, they see no need to dumb it down for comedy. They can get the laughs with timing and gags and a few pratfalls and show off their whipping fouette turns in their Costco-size pointe shoes the rest of the time. Seeing them do what ballerinas do so well is a large part of the pleasure.

And so it was that in “Swan Lake,” for example, that Plezegetovstageskaya (Forleo), as the swan queen Odette, danced a quite lovely, more than respectable, pretty much straight-from-Ivanov solo to end the act. Of course, the Trocks need to break the spell, and they do it with up-to-the-minute smart-phone panache, as the prince’s sidekick, Benno (Pepe Dufka) snaps a pic of his master (Marat Legupski, aka Giovanni Ravelo), who’s been vanquished by the evil magician Von Rothbart (Yuri Smirnov).

You could also write many kinds words about Yakatarina Verbosovich (Chase Johnsey) and Vyacheslav Legupski (Paolo Cervellera) in the “Don Quixote” pas de deux. Here was a Kitri who could wield a mean fan, wangle both hauteur and sultriness, and put across Kitri’s prancing steps on pointe with charming lightness.

And if you weren’t yet sold on the suppleness of these dancers’ backbends —essence of the ballerina—or their way with the quick beaten steps ballet dancers call petit allegro, their dazzling “Paquita,” clinched the deal. Alla Snizova (Carlos Hopuy) and Legupski (Ravelo) were the stylish leads in this production staged by Elena Kunikova (her real name!); a great cast, strong on ensemble dancing and wearing eye-popping neon red and pink tutus, triumphed in these mean-and-lean variations.

For ballet insiders—those who have been tugged along in the dance of the four cygnets in “Swan Lake” by feathered friends who have lost the ups-and-downs of the steps or the correct tilt of the head (it was their fault, really it was!); those who have gotten tangled in the web of arms in the complex partnering of “Concerto Barocco”); those who could never make Kitri’s fan open—or close—at quite the right time in “Don Q”—the Trocks’ comedy holds special joy. You don’t have to have danced these ballets, though, to love what the Trocks wreak, or even to have seen the ballets in question many times. The comedy reads for everyone; the audience gets the extra jut of the hips in “Barocco,” the break-out frugging, the elaborate play of hands.

And the dancing, as well as the comedy, seems to sharpen the eye and whet the appetite for really seeing these ballets done seriously. Except, perhaps, for Riverdance. I’ll stick with the Trocks’ deadpan encore. Like everything in life, it’s so much better with tutus and tiaras.

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo at the Power Center

Daniel J. Brenner | AnnArbor.com

Michigan Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville

AP file photo

LANSING — The leader of the Michigan Senate may press ahead in search of a Medicaid expansion plan to pass muster with fellow Republicans, but it's clear he doesn't appreciate how the governor called the Senate out for refusing to vote.

If anything, Majority Leader Randy Richardville said, he saved Gov. Rick Snyder from a big defeat more than two weeks ago by not calling a vote on House legislation to expand eligibility for government-provided health insurance to 320,000 low-income adults in 2014. The Republican governor had cut short a trade trip in Israel to return home and lobby the GOP-dominated Senate.

"I think he was convinced that the votes were there. I'm in the room where those votes get counted," Richardville, of Monroe, told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday, the day he outlined his expectations for a Senate workgroup that will study Medicaid expansion this summer.

"This debate, this issue, is alive because I provided leadership on this issue based on the feedback from the Senate Republican caucus. This thing was dead if we had taken a vote when it was being demanded that we take a vote. It wasn't a gentle request. There was a demand and then after the demand there was a — they called it a press conference. I've got other words to describe it, but I'm not going to use them."

In a June 20 news conference, an uncharacteristically angry Snyder blasted the Senate for not voting on a bill that had passed the GOP-led House with bipartisan support a week before. He urged them to "take a vote, not a vacation" — a line he has since dropped following a private conversation with Richardville, who's in his 13th year in the Legislature.

"When you say that, 'If you're not following me then that's a lack of leadership,' well quite frankly that's bull----, you know, because I got elected by 25 of my colleagues to lead the best I can the most diverse group in a caucus maybe in history," Richardville said. "It's not an easy task."

Snyder also has toned down other criticism of Republican senators while still keeping the pressure on during a statewide tour of hospitals in their districts. He has defended, however, billboards calling on at least 10 GOP senators by name to support Medicaid expansion and remains confident the legislation will pass if a vote is allowed.

Richardville himself favors insuring more people under the federal health care law but wants at least half of the 38-seat Senate's 26 Republicans to be OK proceeding with a vote. He has indicated he could drop the unwritten rule for the Medicaid measure but not before the Senate can put its stamp on the bill.

Richardville disputed the notion that pressure from tea party groups is mostly to blame for the Senate's inaction.

"This conservative group of (senators) genuinely has beliefs that expanded government is something we're here to fight," Richardville said. "A lot of them believe that even though this program's already paid for and all that this would be an expansion of government and potentially cause dependence on government and move toward socialist Europe kind of thinking. They came up here to keep government limited."

He said he understands Snyder's concern that time is running out to secure federal approval to cover new enrollees starting Jan. 1, but said "if we don't do it right, why do it?" He attributed some of the governor's consternation to not knowing what the Senate may come up with and whether it can receive the Obama administration's OK.

"If the (Snyder) administration needs more time to implement and they need more time to talk to (federal officials), well I've heard this stuff about dog years for 2 ½ years," Richardville said. "So when we give you a superior product to implement, use dog years to get it done. Dog years seems to only apply when he's talking to the Legislature."

The legislative branch represents the people's will more than the executive branch does, Richardville said.

"This group has got a voice and they're standing up for the voices that elected them," he said. "I'm proud of each and every senator that is speaking whether for, against or unsure about the issue at this point. So to undermine them and call it a lack of leadership was inappropriate. But it's water over a dam and I'm not going to dwell on it. I'm instead going to take a look at the track that's in front of us and try to stay on it and stay on the high road. I think that there will be a superior product to be talked about, debated, maybe come out of committee within a few weeks."

Email David Eggert at deggert@ap.org and follow him at twitter.com/DavidEggert00

Patriotic tunes are sure to be in the air Tuesday when the Washtenaw Community Concert Band presents “A Salute to America,” a free outdoor concert on the grounds of Washtenaw Community College.

The program includes “Thrillers and Chillers” by John Williams, as well as soloists Pat Padilla playing tenor saxophone on “Persuasion” and Bey Hurt playing trumpet on “Trumpeter’s Lullaby.”

The group, which numbers around 70 and is made up of Washtenaw Community College students and area residents, is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year.

Bring your lawn chairs or blankets. Pie (apple perhaps?) will be served after the concert is over. In the event of rain, concert will be held at same time at WCC’s Morris Lawrence Auditorium.

The Washtenaw Community Concert Band will play Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Washtenaw Community College's Community Park, 4800 E. Huron River Drive. Details at 734-973-3300. Admission is free.

Following its usual practice on the first Saturday of the month, Washtenaw County plans a test of its warning sirens at noon today.

The sirens at noon will be for test purposes only. For more information, see the Washtenaw County website.

Main Street/M-52 in Chelsea from Van Buren Street on the south end to North Street will be restricted to one lane from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting Monday, July 8 for the final stages of the streetscape project.

The project, which will replace five crosswalks and add tress, curb bump-outs and lighting, is expected to be completed by July 12.

Traffic going both directions will be maintained by flag crews. Motorists will experience delays.

City of Chelsea Planning and Zoning Engineer Christine Linfield said the streetscape project was originally projected to be complete by late June, but because of weather conditions the construction is a few weeks behind schedule.

View Larger Map

Chelsea Hoedl is an intern reporter for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at choedl@mlive.com.

A series of rain gardens is planned for Arbor Oaks Park on Ann Arbor's southeast side, and city officials say it should improve management of stormwater runoff that enters the park.

The existing layout of Arbor Oaks Park, which contains a play area, basketball court, pathways, picnic tables, benches, shade trellis and open field area.

City of Ann Arbor

Arbor Oaks is a neighborhood park located near Bryant Elementary School and the Bryant Community Center, southeast of Interstate 94 and Stone School Road.

The park contains a play area, basketball court, pathways, picnic tables, benches, a shade trellis, and an open field area.

The project involves regrading a portion of the park to accommodate the installation of a series of rain gardens, which are designed to detain and infiltrate rain from storms.

To ensure drainage to the rain gardens from a large open area within the park, and to make the area usable for neighborhood residents, soil will be placed to raise the elevation of the open area, according to Nichole Woodward, a utilities engineer in the city's field operations unit.

City officials said the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality is helping with financing the project through a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency revolving fund. The project is eligible for up to 50 percent loan forgiveness for water quality improvement construction costs.

The total budget for the project is $164,925, which includes a contingency in the amount of $15,000 for change orders to be approved by the city administrator.

Funds for the project are being advanced from the city's approved stormwater capital budget pending reimbursement from the EPA's revolving fund.

The debt service for the loan repayment — less 50 percent loan forgiveness — is budgeted in the city's approved stormwater operations and maintenance budget.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.

Local authors Shutta Crum and Shanda Trent will be at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor Tuesday evening for a joint launch party to celebrate their new picture books with a reading and signing.

Crum’s “Dozens of Cousins” takes place during an annual family reunion, and the dozens of cousins are running wild like beasties. In Trent’s “Farmers’ Market Day,” follow an enthusiastic (and slightly clumsy) little girl as she searches for the perfect treat.

Crum is a former teacher and librarian turned author and poet. “Farmers’ Market Day” is Trent’s first published picture book, which Amazon.com says is “a colorful feast for the senses.”

Shutta Crum and Shanda Trent will be at Nicloa’s Books, 2513 Jackson Road, Tuesday at 7 p.m. Details at www.nicolasbooks.com or 734-662-0600. Admission is free.

Barnes and Noble may have continued shrinking in the nearly two years since the last Borders closed, but smaller independent bookstores have begun to fill in the void both locally and across the country.

“The America Booksellers Association, the main advocacy body for independent booksellers, has been reporting gains now for two years running,” Peter Blackshear said.

Megan and Peter Blackshear are in the midst of renovating the space that will become Bookbound.

Courtney Sacco | AnnArbor.com

Blackshear, who worked for Borders for over 20 years and has 12 years experience as a bargain book buyer, will have another gain for the association to report when he and his wife, Megan, open Bookbound on Plymouth Road later this summer.

The store, which will open in late August in the Courtyard Shops, has been in the works for about a year.

“Last summer we started bouncing the idea around about having a bookstore and then in the fall it really changed from a fantasy to ‘maybe we should really do this,’” Megan Blackshear said.

As Megan and Peter took the first steps towards opening their own store, they heard about another couple who were contemplating the same thing. Peter said he and Megan met early on with Hilary Lowe and Mike Gustafson, who were at the time still searching for a location for the recently opened Literati bookstore.

“It was a little frightening thinking that two of us were going to be trying to do this at approximately the same time, but we both came in with a ‘the more the merrier’ attitude about it,” he said.

“It was comforting to think that there had been 40,000-square-foot bookstores in town before, so if they’re going to have a couple thousand square feet and we’re going to have a couple thousand there should be enough business for both of us.”

Lowe said since its opening three months ago business at Literati has been even better than expected.

“We’ve been doing well, and I’m excited that Book Bound is going to be here now too,” she said. “I think it’s going to be great and it will add even more to the book culture we have in Ann Arbor.” Literati and Book Bound join other, more established stores such as Nicola's Books on the west side and Aunt Agatha's downtown.

Similar to Lowe and Gustafson, the Blackshears said that a big part of their business model is the personal connections they will make with their customers.

“Independent bookstores, especially ones where the owner is on the premises, can connect to customers much better than the big stores could,” Peter said.

“It can both personalize the experience and the selection with in the stores. When I was working for Borders I was buying for hundreds of stores and I couldn’t worry about if one store in Jersey had a fan base for this one author. Now as I talk to people who come in I can be attentive to that sort of thing. That really makes a difference.”

Personalizing the selection within the store is neither easy nor cheap, Peter Blackshear said. He estimated that the cost of opening Book Bound will be between $100,000 and $200,000.

“The lions share of the investment is in the books themselves, and even that requires a lot of guesswork,” he said. “When we open we’ll have about 10,000 books in stock.”

Of the thousands of books in the store, Megan said that the two initial “specialty areas” will be bargain books and children’s books.

“The kids' books are really fun to look at and pick out and people like to touch them and see them and give a child a physical gift,” she said. “It’s actually a growing market which is rare in the book business.”

With their focus on owner-customer interaction, Megan said the couple doesn’t plan on hiring many new employees during the store’s first few months of operation.

“At the beginning it will just be Peter and I with a couple of friends doing a shift here and there,” she said.

“We look forward to being able to hire people, but at the beginning it’s a small store so we plan on mostly running it ourselves.”

Book Bound is renovating their space in the Courtyard and is planning on a mid-to-late August opening with a “Grand Opening” tentatively planned for the first week in September. Editor's note: The story and headline have been corrected to note that the name of the store is one word: 'Bookbound,' not 'Book Bound'

Ben Freed covers business for AnnArbor.com. You can sign up here to receive Business Review updates every week. Get in touch with Ben at 734-623-2528 or email him at benfreed@annarbor.com. Follow him on twitter @BFreedinA2

A rain garden at the Ann Arbor Municipal Center.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

The municipal center was chosen by the National Landscape Architecture Foundation as a model of sustainable landscape design thanks to such features as its green roof, rain gardens and permeable pavement.

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are conducting a survey, which is posted at www.surveymonkey.com/s/Y82M27G through July 19. Adult visitors, employees, as well as developers and builders in Washtenaw County who visit the Ann Arbor Municipal Center and observe its landscaping, are invited to participate in the online survey.

The purpose of the survey is to help understand ways that landscape design can improve the environmental quality of public spaces.

There is more information on Ann Arbor's stormwater management programs at www.a2gov.org/storm.

The holiday weekend's muggy weather is offering plenty of incentive to residents to seek relief in whatever source of water they choose. Local swimming pools and lakes are busy, and the Huron River, which is running high with a heavy flow thanks to all the recent rain, is also a draw.

"It was deeper than I expected and quite cold but it felt nice," said Clarissa Skye who was canoeing with her dad near Mill Creek Park in Dexter

"We never flipped over but had to portage in several spots and got quite wet," said Eric Skye.

After a long bike ride, Doug Terrikowski waded through an offshoot of the river.

"It's a little chilly, and the rocks hurt my feet," he said. "But it feels good."

Mindy Janes and Sandy Sobocinski were preparing to go tubing in the Huron River just west of Dexter-Huron Metropark.

"I love the water and it's relaxing," said Janes.

"It's a great way to hang out with friends," said Sobocinski.

Lindsay Struve and Courtney Burk were walking dogs and a baby along Mill Creek in Dexter. Murphy and Riggins, a Wheaton terrier and a silky terrier, enjoyed a quick romp in the water. Burk and 15-month-old Lucas elected to go to a swimming pool instead.

Artist Tom Rosenbaum enjoys the Huron River from a painter's perspective.

Lisa Carolin | AnnArbor.com

"There were at least six of us out here," said Rosenbaum, who describes himself as a plein air painter, meaning in the open air. "It's beautiful being out in nature."

Fans of plein air painting can attend the first Paint Dexter Plein Air Festival Aug. 13-17, when artists will scatter across the area to paint everything from wetlands to wildlife.

The Ann Arbor Summer Festival has announced rain has delayed the start of the musical acts scheduled for Top of the Park on Saturday.

Derek Fawcett, scheduled on the Grove Stage, was delayed indefinitely. But as of 6:10, the rain was letting up and the festival announced Abigail Stauffer was on stage as scheduled.

Scheduled activities for the rest of the evening include Theo Katzman and Funkadesi on the Rackham stage. Find a full lineup here.

More than 40 kids used imagination and engineering skills to create a capsule device to protect an egg during the Ann Arbor District Library's "Eggcllent Engineering" event on Saturday.

Participants used a variety of materials including tape, foam, container tops, plastic netting, and cardboard boxes. There were no restrictions or guidelines, and the recurring event was open to anyone in kindergarden to fifth grade. The egg drop was was approximately 12 feet in the multipurpose room on the lower level.

Youth and Adult Services and Colletions Manager Sherlonya Turner says lots of kids had fun and had no problem coming up with their own design. "No one cried, so it was great," she says.

Here's the schedule for tonight's Top of the Park, the free (donations welcome), outdoor component of the Ann Arbor Summer Festival. Descriptions provided by the festival. Top of the Park takes place in the area around East Washington Street at Ingalls Mall, except as noted. Tonight is the final Top of the Park for this year.

5 p.m.: KidZone - KidZone Tent
Children can make their own bubble wand and blow bubbles while parents learn more about the Conceptual Development Lab at the University of Michigan, a group of who study how children develop language, categorize knowledge, and think about the world around them.

5 p.m.: Retreat: YogaFLEX - Power Center Lawn
Sharpen intuition and reconnect the mental with the physical in this yoga-inspired, stretching and core strengthening class that can help improve strength, flexibility, and range of motion with Marty Betts.

5 p.m.: Shari Kane & Big Dave Steele - Grove Stage
A long celebrated Ann Arbor acoustic blues duo, Shari Kane and Big Dave Steele throw a four handed guitar party of original and time-honored blues, gospel, swing, and ragtime.

6 p.m.: Annie & Rod Capps - Grove Stage
Locals Annie and Rod Capps will be closing the festival’s Grove Stage with songs about broken things and poignant little ponderings delivered with a rootsy vibe, a touch of twang, and a soulful groove.

7 p.m.: Hoodang - Rackham Stage
Drawing inspiration from the traditions of English murder ballads, hardcore American country music, and searing electric blues, Hoodang plays hard-hitting country featuring gritty vocals, smart lyrics, and gleaming pedal steel.

8 p.m.: George Bedard & The Kingpins - Rackham Stage
In what has become an annual tradition, George Bedard & the Kingpins will close Top of the Park and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival season with their crowd-pleasing, swinging rockabilly and blues.

"Grease"

More people are currently employed in the Ann Arbor area than ever before, but hiring is not slowing down.

According to University of Michigan economists George Fulton and Don Grimes, earlier this summer Washtenaw County passed the previous jobs peak from the fall of 2002. A rapidly increasing labor force, the measure of people either working or looking for jobs, can hardly keep up with demand from employers.

As the economy continues to improve and more "help wanted" signs hang from windows, many temporary hires are turning into permanent jobs.

Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com

Manpower is a temporary staffing agency that helps find employees for a wide range of business.

“People say there’s no work, but there’s work,” she said.

“When the economy takes a downswing they let go a lot of employees, then when it picks up they’ll call a contractor or temporary service because they’re not sure it’s quite back yet, so they use us.”

The jobs rebound is being led by the “professional and business services” sector, which includes a wide variety of jobs ranging from architects to basic scientists to lawyers. According to a report from the Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and the Budget, the sector added 900 jobs in May and 1,900 since May 2012, accounting for over half of the private sector jobs added in the past year.

“Temporary help companies are actually in that sector as well, and firms use them all the time,” Grimes said.

“When you get a recovery, firms typically don’t want to hire people on a permanent basis right away so they need to have someone produce the products they’re making, so the way they add to their labor is through a temporary help agency. That means you get a big spike in the sector at the beginning of a recovery.”

Because temporary agencies fit into business and professional services, it can be difficult to gauge which sectors are actually driving the comeback. Many of the agencies offer employment opportunities in areas that are hesitant to add new full time employees.

The darker side to temporary jobs is that they can disappear as quickly as they grow. Between 2007 and 2009, the sector lost over 3,400 jobs according to previous county economic forecasts.

“The first thing that happens after a recession is a lot of manufacturing companies use them to add workers when they get a spike in demand,” Grimes said. “They also can keep some people on this status when things are going well and they’re the first to disappear. They go down really quickly in a recession.”

Simpson said Manpower acts as a stepping-stone for people entering or returning to the workforce. The Washtenaw County labor force grew by 2,400 in May and is up 5,000 over the past year according to the DTMB report.

“It’s a very diverse group of people we’re seeing looking for jobs,” she said.

“There are people coming for second careers, people just out of school, and people saying ‘how do I find the job.’ But the industry is fun right now because it’s booming. Everyone is taking a deep breath and saying wow we’re on an upswing and that’s an exciting time.”

The company does background checks on its applicants and helps coach them on how to keep a job once they are placed. Grimes said companies often hire temporary workers full-time once they are more confident that the economy is on more solid ground.

“If you get a good temp worker in your plant or store or office, then you’re going to offer that person a job if you need a permanent hire,” he said.

“You figure out that this is a good person to have and you don’t have to go through the job search process. In some ways a more efficient way to go, almost like an internship.”

Simpson said that as the recovery has progressed, her agency has continued to field calls from employers for more jobs than she has people available. Economists expect that as the economy stabilizes, temporary hiring will level off and the rest of the professional and business services sector will begin to make up ground.

“When you look at the subsectors (within professional and business services) for the last year or so you’re seeing that the growth is dispersing to more of the industries,” Grimes said.

“You’re seeing more of the professional, architecture, legal, computer programing and management consulting-type jobs. That means higher-paying jobs, which is a good sign.”

Ben Freed covers business for AnnArbor.com. You can sign up here to receive Business Review updates every week. Get in touch with Ben at 734-623-2528 or email him at benfreed@annarbor.com. Follow him on twitter @BFreedinA2

"Keepers of the Taj" by Frederick Beutler

The diffused religiosity of these photographic and oil on canvas works proves to be the exhibit's greatest asset.

As the Senior Center’s Francesca Cassara tells us in her introduction to the show, “In their world travels, local artists Fred and Sue Beutler have been inspired by the beauty of religious expression, not only in religious sites but also in the daily life of people around the globe.

“Fred and Sue have a unique eye for the ever-present human impulse for spirituality and a thought-provoking portrayal of religions worldwide. Both artists communicate the differing forms taken by various religions in their devotions, from pre-Columbian practice through Buddhism and the Abrahamic faiths. Sue’s oil paintings explore that impulse through many religions, while Fred’s photography both portrays and comments on the way people worship.”

It’s a good way to describe this compact exhibit, because “Of Many Faiths” is far more fascinated by the ineffable dimension of spirituality than by doctrines.

Fred Beutler has contributed six color photographs that take an interesting view of religion. As Cassara says, he’s more interested in illustrating the power of belief rather than any specific belief-state.

A few of these photographs were on display at the Ann Arbor District Library in November 2010. And Beutler’s reusing his statement from that prior “My Window to the World” exhibit.

“As a photographer,” says Beutler, “I let intuition be my guide, recording those images that please me. These may include landscapes, human interest scenes, portraits, humorous situations, and textures and colors. My artistic vision is fundamentally painterly, as modified by the demands of the photographic image process. I let technology serve me, taking the same liberties as a painter might to modify the original photograph to produce my idea of reality.”

Given his evident expertise, this is an understatement. As I said of that AADL display — which is also true of this display — Beutler’s got a superb eye whose sensitivity serves as the invisible narration of his photograph.

“United in Faith” is an adept illustration of piety, in which a rabbi sits in a chair a few feet away from a standing military officer at Jerusalem’s Western Wall; both men in deep meditation. Their wardrobe creates a societal context — just as their posture gives us another glimpse of each man’s place in Israeli society — but their devotion also reflects a solidarity that speaks volumes of their culture.

As a nuanced counterexample, Beutler works the issue of faith in a casual manner where three “Keepers of the Taj” youths lounge on the steps of this magnificent Mughal edifice at Uttar Pradesh, India. But this wonderfully relaxed composition is also merely a prosaic subtext of this remarkably skillful photograph. For the photograph is precisely calibrated to give us a sense of the resplendent white marble mausoleum with special attention placed on the Koran inscriptions at its entrance.

"On the Road" by Suzanne Beutler

She adds, “Even though we come from different cultures, I put myself in their culture with my imagination, knowledge, wonder, and appreciation of who they are and their contribution to our life together in this world.”

It’s certainly how she goes about depicting faith.

Using the time-honored tradition of iconography to illustrate her ideas, Beutler uses images that reverberate transculturally. “In my ‘Gabriel: A Messenger of Peace’,” she therefore says, “the angel Gabriel is important to Christian, Hebrew, and Muslim religious history, and the dove carries an olive branch of peace.”

Her masterwork in the exhibit ties together the places she and Fred have visited with her keen sense of wonder. “On the Road” features the five major world religions — Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam — in one grand composition.

The religions, says Beutler, “are ordered along the road according to time.” And as such, the painting features a winding road from top to bottom where Angkor Wat winds its way to Jerusalem’s West Wall; just as the Temple of Universal Peace winds its way to a Midwest church steeple to end up at the aforementioned Taj Mahal.

“There is not a separate road for each belief,” says Beutler of both her art and her view of life, “but the same (road) for all peoples of all beliefs.”

“Frederick and Suzanne Beutler: Of Many Faiths” will continue through July 31 at the Ann Arbor Senior Center, 1320 Baldwin Ave. Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Thursday. For information, call 734-794-6250.

The new Blu Homes offices are located in the Riverfront Buildings on North Main Street before the entrance to M-14

Janet Miller | For AnnArbor.com

While Blu Homes — builders of eco-friendly, prefab homes — is anchored on the East and West coasts, the heart of its design operation is located just outside downtown Ann Arbor, with new offices in the Riverfront Buildings on North Main Street before the entrance to M-14

The move in May to the 3,500-square-foot space from a tiny office on Fourth Avenue near Kerrytown signals the rapid growth the company has seen since it set up shop less than two years ago.

But this wasn't always the original plan — Ann Arbor became the design base by accident.

Karl Daubmann, associate professor of Architecture at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan, was teaching classes in design, technology and construction. While the auto and airline industries were using computer modeling in design, most architecture schools were not. Except Daubmann. The university began providing a pipeline to Blu Homes, established in 2008, of young architects familiar with the computer modeling that set Blu Homes apart from other companies and made it different.

Karl Daubmann, an associate professor of Architecture at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at U-M and creative director with Blu Homes.

Janet Miller | For AnnArbor.com

When it began looking for a new creative director two years ago, Blu Homes assumed it would work out of the Boston-area office, Daubmann said. But with 90 percent of its new architects coming from U-M, Blu Homes quickly warmed to the idea of setting up a design outpost in Ann Arbor and hired Daubmann to be creative director.

The Ann Arbor office has since grown to a professional staff of 36, with more new hires on the horizon, Daubmann said. There also are another 23 architects spread throughout the Boston and San Francisco offices.

“While our office has the feel of an architecture firm, the company is more of a tech startup,” Daubmann said.

Blu Homes has grown at lightning speed, despite an economy that hasn’t been kind to new home-starts. It built close to 100 homes between 2008 and 2012, but is on track to build another 100 to 120 homes this year, said Dana Smith, company communications director. In late June, the company secured $65 million in investments which will allow them to build 15 to 20 display houses in key marketing areas, including Silicon Valley, Seattle and New York. None are currently slated for Ann Arbor, but one will likely be in the Midwest, Smith said.

When it was launched in Massachusetts and California, Blu Homes wanted to turn home building on its head, Daubmann said.

“The way homes are built in the United States hasn’t changed in more than 100 years. Some of the materials are unhealthy, final costs aren’t known until the project is finished and it can be a difficult time for homebuyers," Daubmann said.

Blu Homes taps into technology and allows clients to custom design their own homes on the company’s website. They select from one of eight styles, referred to as "products," decide the layout and select the finishes, fixtures, exterior and more. The 3-D software and Google Earth allow clients to see how their new home will look on their land from every angle.

Blu Homes products range from studios and cottages to four-bedroom homes. The Ann Arbor office is working on two new designs, including a narrow style, good for small infill lots in existing neighborhoods, Daubmann said, along with designs for garages.

Blu Homes also aims to be eco-friendly. The company takes into consideration the way they are oriented on-site, the materials used, including bamboo and reclaimed wood floors, as well as the use of low-VOC paints to cut down on toxins released, Daubmann said.

With the software, the final cost also is able to be calculated before the first nail is hammered, he said.

Blu Homes are constructed in a 250,000-square-foot former submarine repair shop on Mare Island, 35 miles northeast of San Francisco. Their steel structure allows them to be built, complete with cabinetry, lighting and appliances, then folded, and shipped across country by truck. It takes two days to unfold and make the house water-tight, Daubmann said, and another one to two months to completely finish.

While the majority of the design operation is located in Michigan, it’s not because the homes have a foothold here. Michigan’s first Blu Home will be completed in the Upper Peninsula next year. The majority of Blu Homes are located on the East and West coasts, including California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and New Hampshire.

Cost is slightly higher than traditional construction, Daubmann said, but as the technology evolves and efficiencies are found, prices should drop. That’s one of the reason Blu Homes are more popular on the coasts, where higher housing costs are expected. Costs range from $130,000 for a small home that can be used as an addition or cottage to $590,000. Costs do not include land, the foundation, permits or landscaping.

Like the Blu Homes themselves, the new Ann Arbor offices are open, with lots of light and an uncluttered simplicity. Everything in the offices — excluding the black sofas — is white, including the concrete floors (no shoes allowed), tables, chairs, ceilings, ductwork, shades and storage.

Janet Miller is a freelance reporter for AnnArbor.com. Contact the news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.