Community

Collision Course

Jeffrey Stamm, a former tenor with the New York Metropolitan Opera, has used a wheelchair since suffering a stroke five years ago. He says he moved to Ann Arbor last August because he wanted to live in a safe place. At the end...

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Star Power

George Clooney filled every seat on the main floor of the Power Center last month. He was directing a scene for his new movie, The Ides of March, in which he plays an innocent governor who learns the evil ways of presidential...

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Serbian tennis camps

Last month’s Fake Ad for Serbian tennis camps led by Novar Borwebic prompted as many quick returns as a weak serve. In all, 130 Fake Adders spotted the ad, along with several misguided readers who named real ads as the...

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Ordinary Heroes

One recent weekend, I stopped in at the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library bookshop. I was hoping to pick up a cheap used copy of Into Thin Air, a book I had read a dozen years ago but agreed to reread with my nephew...

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Ann Arborite Buzz Alexander

U-M English prof William “Buzz” Alexander believes the annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners is the largest exhibit of prisoner art not just in the nation but in the world. Last year, almost 4,000 people...

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Logan’s eye

March’s clue–“an ‘eye’ nearby”–spurred Kathy Babcock to think of See Eyeware on State Street; it was Bennett Optometry on Main for Beth Simon. But the “eye” in this case is...

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Behind the Green Apron

At a Starbucks in Winter Park, Florida, I ordered coffee and then gave my partner number for my employee discount. The barista asked, “Where do you work?””Gainesville,” I replied, “and Ann...

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Tending the Patch

Daniel Lai is easy to pick out from among the dozen farmers, hippies, and hippie farmers at the Dexter Bakery. His laptop gives away his ­identity—it’s emblazoned with a decal that reads “Patch.” And as he...

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Auctions for Education

Spring is fundraising season at local educational foundations: in March and April, volunteers will hold events to benefit the public schools in Chelsea, Dexter, and Saline (see list below). With sharper marketing and more...

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Jon Buller comes home

Despite the trend toward books becoming cold, hard screens, Kevin Spall and Jon Buller passionately believe that readers will always treasure real books—especially those bound lovingly and beautifully. Which is why...

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The Third Wave

In late September, a historic Ann Arbor building went up for sale. The listing highlighted the Alonzo Palmer House’s “beautiful details,” including original woodwork from the 1860s. What it didn’t mention...

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Touching story

“I’ll pay you back tomorrow.”She was standing on Detroit St. one evening after work, trying to get someone to stop to talk to her. “I’m locked out of my car,” she told me....

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Lowe-flying Birds

A recent afternoon snowstorm led to a very quiet day at the Lowe’s home improvement store on Jackson Road. So quiet that two women running checkouts were able to spend a few minutes chatting. As a lone customer approached,...

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Putting Teeth in Title IX

“I have a pretty good sense of outrage,” says attorney Jean Ledwith King.King was one of just ten women to graduate from the U-M Law School in 1968 and, at forty-five, probably the oldest in her class. Just two years...

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Healthy Firefighters

On a cold February evening at the Michigan Theater, Rip Esselstyn wore a college jersey that said “KALE” (in the “YALE” font) across his chest. The former Austin, Texas, firefighter was in town to promote...

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Free Adult Snowboarding Lesson

What with Valentine’s Day, post-holiday recovery, and the first hints of a spring thaw, love is truly in the air in February. No surprise, then, that 231 Fake Adders loved last month’s Fake Ad for the American Board...

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Ben Kwon

“I have so many regular customers,” says Ben Kwon, owner of Bell’s Diner. “They know everybody in town. They talk about who passed away, who is in hospital. Sometimes it can be sad. They come in to share...

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Public Housing Shakeup

“The board is trying to bring us out of the mid-twentieth century,” says Marta Manildi.Last March, the city of Ann Arbor demolished its housing commission, terminating three of five board members. Manildi, one of the...

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Vogel’s Lock and Safe

“Only one place in Ann Arbor has such a wonderful display of keys,” writes Angad Singh. “It’s Vogel’s Lock and Safe (of course!)” exclaims Ingrid Ault. “In business since 1913!”...

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