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Eye candy of the week
Ehinger Park is one of those unique features. Deep inside the Chesterfield Hills Neighborhood is this superbly located pocket park — a small park accessible to the public in an urban setting. This one is located on an irregular piece of property at the lowest point in the neighborhood, unsuitable for a house.

‘We need help. It’s every day’
“See? Everybody knows,” Bo says. Bo is a refugee from Burma and has lived in Summer Place Townhomes for about seven years. You can see his neighborhood from the cash register. He’s helped his mother manage the small market since it opened about four months ago, which sits in a small strip of businesses next to a shuttered Rite Aid in southwest Lansing.

Pushing (and sliding) Michigan onto the map
The two-day event included a “main event” four-mile push race from Lansing’s east side to downtown on the River Trail, followed by a “slide jam” and a slalom race in south Lansing. Imagine that: Nearly 100 longboarders packing the River Trail from the Whiskey Barrel to the City Market.

An unconventional script
Let’s start with the basics. Lindemann is the 20-year incumbent running for a sixth term managing the county’s numerous drains. It’s a deceivingly powerful position that comes with the ability to blow up million-dollar developments or tax entire communities without a public vote.

Phone spy
“There are numerous cases of jealous spouses who can use this information to track them,” Goldsberry said. “What is really critical in 2012 is if the Syrian government or less democratic countries get a hold of his data, this information can be exploited by very powerful entities.

Stalin is dead — let’s party
By LAWRENCE COSENTINO A double shot of piano concertos featuring piano god Ralph Votapek, the mighty rumble of Shostakovich Tenth Symphony, big choral works from Brahms and Monteverdi, the return of pianist Christopher O’Riley and a generous salvo of lesser-known music promises to make the 2012-2013 Lansing Symphony season a ride and a half.

A view from the ranks
All three drooled at the prospect of lending a hand Oct. 6 to the Shostakovich epic, one of the 20th century’s great musical canvases. “Every time you turn the page, it’s exciting,” Kroth said. “The slow movement is just poetry, with the flute, oboe and bassoon.

Zeroing in: Chamber series
By LAWRENCE COSENTINO Two flute melodies darted in and out of 80 ears in a breath-taking butterfly chase that spiraled to the ceiling of Lansing’s Molly Grove Chapel Sunday. The silvery echo lasted barely half a second. It was too late to grab the net. Flutists Richard Sherman and Bryan Guarnuccio smiled at their fleeting communion.

Sound and soundness
The numbers defy national trends. Ticket sales jumped 13 percent in 2009-2010, rose another 5 percent the next season, and rose again “slightly” this season, according to general manager Courtney Millbrook.

2012-2013 Lansing Symphony Orchestra Schedule
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Running against the wind
By ALLAN I. ROSS Sunday, April 22, downtown Lansing. At 7:35 a.m., several hundred people are milling about in the shadow of the Accident Fund Building, jumping and stretching to keep warm. It’s cold enough to snow, but clear blue skies belie that fear. The cutting northeast wind is their concern today.

The screening room
The engrossing, fascinatingly detailed Iranian drama “A Separation” reminds us that pointing fingers can be very risky business indeed. Writerdirector Asghar Farhadi argues that the workings of the world are so tricky that simple solutions and easy answers are often hard to find.

Honors college
By TOM HELMA How does a musical that focuses on the stereotype of a blonde woman being a superficial airhead become a substantial piece of theater? In the case of Michigan State University’s production of “Legally Blonde,” simply by demonstrating the obvious: that while beauty might seem to be skin deep, intelligence is not.

Congo lines
No brawls, no bullets — and, if you’re a miner, you’d better wash your feet and hands in the bucket outside. These are some of the rules to be followed at the Congolese brothel run by Mama Nadi in Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “Ruined,” which Peppermint Creek Theatre Co.

Straight from the harp
Deidreanna Potter, a 17-year-old harpist from Charlotte, receives the Kenneth G. Bloomquist Lansing Concert Award at Saturday's Band Lansing Concert Band performance; 8 p.m. Saturday, April 28 she will perform Dart Auditorium composer David 500 N. Capitol Ave.

Top of the Town
City Pulse presented its annual Top of the Town awards last Thursday at a ceremony at Perspective 2 in Old Town. The evening was emceed by Tim Barron of WLMI-FM and Evan Pinsonnault of WLNS-TV, and included music by Root Doctor and Frog and the Beeftones.

Booking the big names
Ward, who won the National Book Award in 2011 for “Salvage the Bones,” and Gordon, the 2010 award winner for “Lord of Misrule,” will join 2009 finalist Campbell (“American Salvage”) for a conversation about winning, writing and life after the award at the 2012 Night for Notables award ceremony Saturday at the Library of Michigan.

Advice Goddess
Boundaries aren’t such a bad thing; they keep the cows from roaming the freeways. Should the urge strike to let one’s lips prowl the neck of another woman’s husband, true friendship and empathy make the best fences.

OUT ON THE TOWN
This Thursday, Lansing artist Chelsea Roberts gives a theatrical performance titled "Put-On: Wearing Gender" at (SCENE) Metrospace. Roberts’ past work includes collage installments at Basement 414 and Creole Gallery in addition to performances at The Root Cellar and Mac’s Bar.

Turn it down
Rocking for Rolling The Mitten Mavens, a Lansing-based all-female roller derby team, hosts a rock show fundraiser Friday at Mac’s Bar.

New in town
Located on East Michigan Avenue, Zeppelin’s is a small, all-ages club that includes a live music room, movie lounge and private rehearsal rooms.

Free Will Astrology
"Can I have some more, please?" SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): A political strategist told me one of her most important rules: To win an election, you have to help your candidate choose the right fights. I think that would be an excellent guiding principle for you in the coming weeks, Scorpio.

Bringing the east to East Lansing
There are a couple of spots in town that I head to if I don’t feel like rustling up my own Thai curry at home, but it’s not like the Lansing area is a magnet for the southeast Asian cuisine.

Food Finder
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Food Finder
food@lansingcitypulse.com.