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Saturday: Weekend

Hidden stories

There’s quite a bit to love about secondhand items: The mysteries, the stories, the joyful coincidence of just the right object somehow finding its way to you, the chance to give something another use, a new life. Whether an item comes from a thrift store, a yard sale, an estate sale, a friend, a relative, or another type of secondhand conduit, there’s likely more to it than meets the eye. Depending on the situation, you may or may not know an item’s story, but it can be fascinating to try to learn more about its history; or at least, imagine the series of events that led up to ...

Moving into the digital economy

MARQUETTE — Ray Johnson, CEO of Innovate Marquette SmartZone, is retiring. But the mission continues. Innovate Marquette SmartZone was created to help accelerate the creation and growth of technology-based start-ups and jobs in Marquette. Johnson was hired in September 2015 as its ...

Photographic memories

Albums. Boxes. Hard drives. Discs. Social media. The cloud. While all of these methods of storing photos have their relative benefits and drawbacks, I find nothing quite compares to flipping through an album or box of photo prints. For one, there’s the tactile experience of looking through and organizing physical prints and negatives, which our smartphones, tablets, and computers just don’t quite replicate. Then, there’s the joy of looking through these photos with a family member and sharing the collective memories — or guesses — about what’s depicted in the ...

‘Anatomy of a Start-Up’: NMU alumnus talks about business experience

MARQUETTE — Martin Heikel drew from his personal experience in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds to give business advice to Northern Michigan University students on Tuesday at the Northern Center. Heikel, a former Verizon vice president and founder/CEO of Flatiron Apps Company in ...

Kirk Douglas rose from poverty to become a king of Hollywood

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK — He was born Issur Danielovitch, a ragman’s son. He died Kirk Douglas, a Hollywood king. Douglas, the muscular, tempestuous actor with the dimpled chin, lived out an epic American story of reinvention and perseverance, from the ...

Curling up with a good book

Someone from a much warmer locale recently asked me what people here do to get through the winter. I told them about the wealth of winter recreation opportunities, such as fat tire biking, skiing, snowshoeing and winter camping. And although it hardly seems as exciting by comparison, I also mentioned reading, because, for me, that’s one of the best ways to get through a long winter — or anything, really. Reading has been a constant source of entertainment and joy throughout my life, with many of my fondest childhood memories involving some wonderful books. A few examples ...