The Kapralova Festival
Once upon a time there was a little girl named Vitka who lived in Brno, Moravia, in what is now called the Czech Republic. Vitka’s mother, Viktorie, was a very pretty classically trained vocalist. Vitka’s papa,...
Read More2015 September
Which Wich
“We don’t talk to the customer. We just get their sandwich,” says Alexandra Zaki. She and husband, Sheref, own the Which Wich franchise that just opened beneath the dark overhang of 301 E. Liberty, that...
Read MorePiano Sonatas
For the past three years, EMU professor Joel Schoenhals has been trekking his way through Beethoven’s thirty-two piano sonatas, performing them free of charge at EMU’s historic Pease Auditorium, where the biannual...
Read MoreGary Snyder
Gary Snyder is now eighty-five years old. Most poets appear to slow down rather dramatically as they age, but not Snyder. In recent years he has published his correspondence and/or interviews with Allen Ginsberg, Wendell Berry,...
Read MoreAnn Arbor Arms Moves and Grows
The success of Ann Arbor Arms has stunned–Tasered?–many locals who think Ann Arbor is too urban, or not urban enough, or definitely too liberal to support a business dedicated to self-defense weaponry. Owners Bill...
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Beagle Brain is Renamed
When Ben Falk, owner of Beagle Brain in Nickels Arcade, decided to move to Seattle, he sold the business to his employees Raul Tomas Perdomo and Claire Harrison. When Beagle Brain opened at 2 Nickels Arcade in 2009, it was a...
Read MoreArchivists’ Dilemma
Recently, someone called the U-M’s Bentley Historical Library offering to donate a family quilt. The library declined–it doesn’t accept three-dimensional objects–but other would-be donors call every day,...
Read MoreTrolley Pub
North Carolinian Kai Kaapro aims to roll out Ann Arbor’s first human-powered drinking spot this month. The roofed, open-air “Trolley Pub” sports a trained driver (who stays sober), while up to ten people pedal...
Read MoreOn Green Slime Pond
On my penultimate morning in Ann Arbor, I visited my favorite spot, the Green Slime Pond.The emerald algae-covered watery depression in Eberwhite Woods was my Thinking Place during my first dozen or so years here, a...
Read MoreMary Doria Russell
Epitaph, Mary Doria Russell’s new book about the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, might almost be a called a nonfiction novel, like In Cold Blood. The gunfight story is as overlaid with myth as anything that ever came out of...
Read MoreFrom Smoothies to Stanhopes
Pretty much every armchair philosopher has reached the conclusion that downtown retail is a no-go: between the big-box stores and the Internet, who’s going to walk into a store and buy stuff? If you want to start a...
Read MoreThe Creature Conservancy
Animal rescues, pictures, information, and videos make up 90 percent of my sister-in-law Jennifer’s Facebook posts. Volunteering at the Huron Valley Humane Society, she wanted to bring every animal home, but her three cats...
Read MoreThe Medicine Men
“I roasted the cashews. Do you want me to soak them?” asks a breathless cook at the Back2Roots Bistro in early August, the hectic day before the vegan restaurant’s opening. “No, leave them...
Read MoreMusical Marathon
Playing all thirty-two of Beethoven’s piano sonatas–the greatest piano works by one of the greatest composers of all time–is a heroic feat, last done locally under the UMS’s auspices by Hungarian pianist...
Read MoreAndy LaBarre
Waiting nervously for his life-changing interview, Andy LaBarre was startled when “this great, big bear-like man comes out of his office.” LaBarre’s voice deepens as he quotes the man’s words:...
Read MoreTo Market, To Market
“September is a perfect time to visit the market because it highlights the fullest diversity of Michigan produce,” says Sarah DeWitt, general manager of the Ann Arbor Farmers Market.Expect a mix of summer and fall...
Read MoreThe HolloSys Tunnel System
We received a whopping 231 entries–an inordinately high number for the frequently slow month of August–correctly identifying last month’s Fake Ad for the HolloSys tunnel system. The ad appeared on page 77 of...
Read MoreRelax Station’s Weathervane
“This is the weathervane that sits atop the RelaxStation on the northeast corner of Huron and First,” writes Kate Heywood. “You didn’t make this hard enough to stump a chump like me,” says Kevin...
Read MoreAnn Arbor Poetry Slam
In 1987, less than a year after the first-ever poetry slams were born in Chicago, Ann Arbor became just the second city in the world to host them. They’ve continued here, almost without interruption, ever since.Poetry...
Read MoreTaylor’s Win
In fourteen years as mayor, John Hieftje never publicly opposed the reelection of a fellow councilmember. His successor, Christopher Taylor, took that risk in his first term. In August’s Democratic primary, Taylor backed...
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