Can drinking wine help save a life? In this case it may help save the life of the drinker and the lives of countless others. Though the medical establishment has never exactly narrowed down all the benefits of drinking wine, we know that a little wine can be beneficial. So if you attend the Relay for Life Wine Tasting, you will definitely be helping yourself. And since the proceeds from the event will be put towards cancer research, you are, without a doubt helping someone else as well.

If that isn’t enough, you will get to feast on appetizers and enjoy the scintillating company of your fellow Macomb County wine drinkers and friends.

The Relay for Life Wine Tasting Event will take place on May 13, 2008 from 5 to 9 pm at the Red Hat Micro Winery, 24601 Jefferson Avenue, St. Clair Shore, MI.. They are asking for a $10 donation and as was mentioned 100% of the donations goes to cancer research. The actual Relay for Life event takes place May 30-31.

Visit the Red Hat Micro Winery website or call 313-549-0072 for more information.

The Equilibrium Pilates Studio is having an event to celebrate women-owned businesses in our area that will also serve as a benefit for Camp Casey. Camp Casey is a horse camp for kids with cancer. You know that this will be time (and money) well spent.

You’ll be able to eat, shop and take advantage of spa and meditative services in a calming atmosphere. There will also be a raffle and winners will get fantastic gifts from shops from our neck of the woods and from all over the state.

Don’t worry about having to get someone to watch your kids, this event is for kids and for the family as a whole. You may be able to finish some of that Mother’s Day shopping that you tend to put off until the last minute. Or, if you bring your mom with you, you can treat her to spa services as a pre-Mother’s Day gift.

The Equilibrium Pilates Studio is located at 6405 Telegraph in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. You can go to their website to learn more about what they offer.

I have to relate this story to you, it disturbed me to no end and still does to this day.  Not much rattles my brain, I think I have pretty much heard it all (or done it all).  The names have been deleted to protect the identities.

I had a client in my chair the other day that I have not seen in over a year.  This is common, people bounce around all the time, that is not what disturbed me.  Her hair was a mess, jacked up to high heaven.  I never ask who did the clients hair prior to me, it's one of my policies.  Secondly, I never tear down another stylists work, I let the client do that themselves.  She told me that a friend does her hair at another salon and she was coming to me to "fix" it.  I know this other stylist very well, that's not what disturbed me either.

This is what distrubed me....

I finally asked her if she had been seeing the same stylist who has been wrecking her hair.  She said she always sees her and every time, something is screwed up about the haircut, this time it was out of control, and it was.  At this point I had to stop what I was doing and ask her point blank for my own insight why she would stay with the same person if they kept ruining her hair.

This is what disturbed me more.....

She said not only herself, but a group of women from an organization that both they and the stylist shared went to her.  They apparently ALL had gotten messed up every time all the time.  She explained further that they only went to her because they knew the stylist friend had been going through some hard times with a divorce and was a single mom.  They thought it proper to give her their business at the sacrifice of their hair.  They all believed that leaving her was not the best answer and if they did leave, the stylist would fail as a person and be left destitute.  Evidently this last haircut put my client over the edge and had to do something.

So this is what disturbed me to no end.....

I put this into perspective.  If this stylist had a group of several women that stayed with her out of sheer pity, then I assumed she had a larger group that stayed with her for the same reason.  Pity.  This stylists business was held together by the pity of others.  Every dollar that stylist recieved was out of goodwill and guilt.  I couldn't fathom it.

Pity is something we should not give another human being.  Compassion, yes.  Pity, no.  As human beings we should help the person being pitied to help themselves or not help them at all.  I believe that if you pity someone, you are putting them much lower than you, lower than humaity itself.

As a business person behind the chair, I can not fathom having a clientelle based on the fact that they feel sorry for me because I might be down on my luck, or not being able to make ends meet. 

I like Meijer.  But if Meijer starts selling me bad meat or wilted vegetables, I sure as heck wouldn't keep shopping there until they could get their act together.  Bottom line is this, if the product is bad, don't buy it.

Phil Stone is a Master Stylist at BIANCHIS salon and Spa in both Clinton Twp. and Troy MI.

www.myspace.com/phil_stone

www.modelmayhem.com/philstone

"Mr. Moo Moo" the cow is grazing in the pasture with his little buddies.  Along comes the farmer and steers him and his friends into a truck and ships them off to the slaughter house to be "processed". 

At the end of the "processing", the hamburger meat produced is shipped off to different buyers at restaraunts to be made into hamburgers.  Now here is where it is interesting.  These are all the same cows ground up and in the end made into burgers, but the price of the burgers are totally different at each restaraunt.  McDonalds charges $.99  TGIFridays $7.99  Longhorn steakhouse $12.99, same cow, same meat, different price.  So what constitutes this?  What makes Mr. "moo moo" more expensive in some places and cheaper in others? 

PRESENTATION and skill in preparation my friends, along with dressing up the burger with spices and sauces and served on bread I can't pronounce. 

The same goes for hair.  What constitutes the difference between a $5.99 haircut and a $60.00 haircut?  PRESENTATION and SKILL.  The experience you recieve from a $60.00 haircut should be TOTALLY different from a $5.99 haircut.  The skill recieved for a $60.00 haircut should be above and beyond that of a 15 minute $5.99 haircut.  Extensive training in the hands of an artist that can create an entire look for the individual justifies price.  I would much rather eat a hamburger from Ruth Criss Steakhouse than a $.99 burger from Wendy's.  The difference is night and day.  But what I really want to talk about is the COMPLETE package.

In order to sell more burgers and fries McDonalds employed a clown, Burger King, a king, and Wendy's, a dead niece of founder Dave Thomas.  These icons are what create recognition to consumers.  How does your hairdresser fit in?

A stylist could give the greatest haircut in the world, but his or her personality could be downright rotten if not absolutely void.  The chance of a client returning to that stylist is next to nil.  When I give a hairstyle to a client, I want the client to talk about me as well as the hairstyle that I gave her.  It's much more flattering when a client raves not only about her hair, but about her stylist as well.  It's a complete package. 

I see so many stylists in so many salons walking around with color processing in their hair while styling clients, or stylists walking around the salon with their hair still wet from the morning shower or not done at all.  They look sloppy and unkempt.  They have the appearance of not caring.  A stylists outward appearance reflects their inward attitude.  This is obviously ruining their total packaging of their product.

Bottom line is this, an upscale hair cut with an upscale price should be justified by the toal package.  From the skill demonstrated, to the attitude and outward appearance of the stylist.  You are buying into the complete deal.

Phil Stone is a Master Stylist at BIANCHIS salon and Spa in both Clinton Twp and Troy locations.

www.myspace.com/phil_stone

www.modelmayhem.com/philstone

What do you know about Cinco de Mayo? Did you know that the phrase Cinco de Mayo simply means “fifth of May” in Spanish?

The holiday known as Cinco de Mayo, is not Mexico’s official día de independencia or Independence Day (that is celebrated on September 16). Still, in the U.S., it is a beloved celebration because it commemorates Mexico’s moral victory in its struggle against French occupation. The 5th of May marks the 1862 Battle of Puebla, an important milestone in Mexico’s march towards independence.

Miscommunication helped fan the flames that led to the Battle of Puebla, but out of the confusion, came a renewed national pride. Although the Battle of Puebla did not end Mexico’s struggle to be independent of France, it was great stride forward.

As Americans, we know what it means to struggle to be free from the unjust rule of another nation. We fought for our independence from Britain and we too had many pivotal battles to go through before finally achieving liberty.

Cinco de Mayo is actually celebrated with much more enthusiasm in the U.S. that it is in Mexico because it has become a day that symbolized freedom and liberty.

Being introduced to music and learning how to play an instrument can truly change a child’s life.  Music is about more than just sound, it also has a mathematical component to it. There are many math scholars who are also gifted musicians. Whatever the reason you many have for introducing your child to music, you can be assured that they will lead a much fuller and more well-rounded life because of it.

See what music has done for some Macomb County Youth by learning more about and supporting the Metropolitan Youth Symphony (MYS). The talented musicians of the MYS will perform in concert on Sunday, May 4 at 4:30 pm and the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts. This nonprofit organization includes elementary, middle, junior high and high school students from our area. Students must audition for the opportunity to join the MYS’s three orchestras—String Orchestra, Concert Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra.

Visit the Metropolitan Youth Symphony website to read more about the great work they are doing with Macomb County youth.
The Macomb Center for the Performing Arts is located at 44575 Garfield Road, Clinton, MI 48038.

Calling all comic book fans (and their long-suffering families)!  Just kidding, keeping up with comic books is a great, imaginative pastime. Sometimes those around you may not quite share your enthusiasm, but this is a great opportunity to expose them to the great world of comic books.

Saturday May 3 is Worldwide Free Comic Book Day in Dearborn. Like many comic books shops the world over, Green Brain Comics in Dearborn will be celebrating comic books and giving some away. This all day event will include special guests, like award-winning cartoonist James Kochalka and all sorts of fun. David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), and Corey Barba (Yam) as well as local talents like Sean Bieri (Jape), Matt Feazell (Amazing CynicalMan) and Michelangelo Cicerone (Ozone Jones) will also be on hand.  There will be cd giveaways, music provided by DJs and refreshments too.  You’ll have a chance to peruse comic books in many genres and talk about the latest and greatest with other enthusiasts.

Call 313-582-9444 for more information on this fun event.

Worldwide Free Comic Book Day @ Green Brain Comics, 10am-8pm
13210 Michigan Avenue

If you have been hankerin’ to get out there and see some of the world, but feel like you’re not prepared, then tomorrow’s “”World Travel 101” workshop, presented by the Michigan Council of Hostelling International-USA (HI-USA) is for you. The information presented will be useful, even if you are not thinking of packing a bag in the near future.

This session will help travel newbies and travel veterans who are open to learning new ways to travel and save money. The speaker, Bob Holley, has been all over the world and he thinks it is best to travel light—meaning travel should be easy on the wallet and free of cultural biases. When traveling keep in mind that you are in someone else’s home, so you should be sensitive to their cultural norms.

Your first exercise in traveling inexpensively can be attending the workshop, since it is free. Your only expense will be transportation to the Berkeley Public Library. The workshop is from 6:30-8:00pm and the library is at 3155 Coolidge Highway in Berkeley.

You can call 248-302-8026 or send an e-mail to HI-Michigan@twmi.rr.com to get more information.

Puppetry is an ancient form of theater that dates back to recorded ancient times and beyond. It has been used as entertainment and as a way to spread messaged of political and social satire. More often than not, puppetry involves storytelling. And sometimes it is a safe way to see ourselves and learn lessons because the puppets are both like us and very different from us. Puppets are not real, so sometimes people are more open to what they see in a puppet show than they would be to seeing human actors perform.

The Detroit Puppeteers Guild will present “A Day of Puppetry” on Saturday, April 26. This all-day workshop will run from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. The purpose of this program is to promote puppetry for adults, teachers, librarians, Parents, Teens and Group Leaders.
The workshop will be held at the Mount Clemens Public Library, located at 150 Cass Avenue Mount Clemens MI 48043.
Registration is $25 and you can contact Diane Boatman by phone at 248-357-2090 or through e-mail at dlmbm@comcast.net. You can also learn more about the Detroit Puppeteers Guild at their website.

If you are looking to experience great theater, look no further than the Rosedale Community Plays theater group. They will be putting on a production of the comedy “Run for Your Wife”, written by Ray Cooney. You don’t have to travel far to see unique theater productions, there is entertaining theater being produced right here in our area.

The show’s main character is a hardworking taxi driver who just happens to be happily married, twice over. John’s meter runs into overtime as he tries to divide himself between two families who live on two different sides of town.

You can see this side-splitting production on April 25 and 26 or May 2, 3, 9, and 10. On most dates the show starts at 8pm, but there will be at least on matinee. To get tickets call Margaret Bross at 313-537-7716 or contact the theater group at 313-532-4010. Tickets are $14 each and discounts are available for seniors and groups.

For more information on the Rosedale Community Players, visit their website.

The play will be performed at:
Bushnell Congregational Church Fellowship Hall
15000 Southfield Fwy Service Drive
Detroit, MI 48223