Current January 2015

| 2015 Y R A U

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JAN

The

MICHIGAMERS The region’s booming board game scene

Mezzevino p17

Leaving a mark

The story with Literati’s typewriter p30

G Th ui ri de ft S p1 in to 4 sidre e

Restaurant Review

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contents

michgamers 7

by Matt M. Casey

january 2015 vol. 25 / no.1

17 restaurant review Mezzevino

by Brandon Bye

reuse, restore & 14 repurpose

by Mary Ann Humphrey

music feature 22

Interview with The Dustbowl Revival

by Jeff Milo

Kotopoulo Forno

28 art beat

30 lit

The story with Literati’s typewriter

by Alice Holbrook

32 sports

HeALTh

e

Allegorical Space at the AAAC

by Louis W. Meldman

+WELLNESS 11

On the hunt for Sasquatch in Washtenaw County

by Ann Dwyer

current

online exclusives Cover Photo by Andy Brown boardcrafting.com

Weekly Up Whawt’sriter

Music o is Jeff Mil ene, sc e th on eat is b is and h Tune correct. ent. rr u c e in to Milo’s com for hat’s W Weekly mn—a Up colu f o curation nd a s rt e c con ews in music n w na Washte

Current

DOTCOM getmoreonline ecurrent.com ecurrent.com / january 2015 3

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Adams Street Publishing Co. What’s your New Years resolution?

Publisher/Editor in Chief

Collette Jacobs (cjacobs@toledocitypaper.com) None

Co-publisher/Chief Financial Officer

Mark I. Jacobs (mjacobs@toledocitypaper.com) Stocking 12 year old Irish whiskey in the cabinet

Editorial

Assignment Editor: Brandon Bye (brandon@adamsstreetpublishing.com) MANDOLIN

^ Hopcat Pounces on A2 Over 100 kinds of brews? Ten different styles of burgers? Sign us up! The self-proclaimed “craft beer Mecca” began construction on its downtown Ann Arbor location in October, and the 300-seater bar is expected to open later this month. The bar will occupy a portion of the former Borders location.

311-315 Maynard St. ^ New Business Chains Ten national retailers and restaurant chains plan to set up shop in a six-building commercial project in front of the Meijer store off of Ann ArborSaline and Lohr Roads. Panchero’s Mexican Grill, Bob Evans, Starbucks, and Texas Roadhouse are expected to open this winter.

Staff Writer: Rose Carver (rose@adamsstreetpublishing.com) Keep a dream journal Calendar Editors: Marisa Rubin (mrubin@adamsstreetpublishing.com) Exercise. (but who am I kidding...)

Catherine Bohr (calendar@adamsstreetpublishing.com) eat more yogurt Digital Media Specialist: Saul Jacobs (saul@adamsstreetpublishing.com) eat more cheeseburgers Contributing Writers: Matt M. Casey, Mary Ann Humphrey, Brandon Bye, Robert James Russell, Jeff Milo, Louis Meldman, Alice Holbrook, Ann Dwyer, Stephanie Carpenter

Art/Production

Production Manager: Brittney Koehl (adsin@adamsstretpublishing.com) Find a new hobby... Any suggestions?

Senior Designer: Leah Foley (leah@adamsstreetpublishing.com) take a vacation this year

^ Thompson Block Local real estate developer Beal Properties breaks ground on the premier corner of Depot Town. Some of the tenants set to move into the Thompson Block include Zingerman’s Community of Businesses office, The Barracks Bar, and Unity Vibrations. 400 N. River St., Ypsilanti. ^ Hand & Stone Massage Spa Offering spa treatment for those on a budget, this chain has 175 locations all over the US and Canada. Walk-ins are welcome, and prices range from $50 massages and facials, to $70 hot stone massages. Open MondayFriday 9am-10pm, Saturday 8am-8pm, and Sunday 10am-6pm. 223 N. Maple Rd. 734-662-2000.

Graphic Design: Imani Latief (imani@adamsstreetpublishing.com) be more awesome than I already am Chelsie Parton (chelsei@adamsstreetpublishing.com) Become healthier

Advertising

Regional Sales Manager: Aubrey Hornsby (ahornsby@adamsstreetpublishing.com) yoga Sales Manager: Connie Peters (connie@adamsstreetpublishing.com) JOIN A BAND Sales Coordinator: Molly Davis (mdavis@adamsstreetpublishing.com) Volunteer more in the community Account executive Ellen Weis (ellen@adamsstreetpublishing.com) SWITCH TO DECAF

^ Mr. Alan’s comes to Ann Arbor Mr. Alan’s Elite, a shoe and apparel boutique, will open in Ann Arbor in early February.

Rare items with limited distribution from high-end merchandisers like Asics, New Balance, and Puma fill the shelves. 3406 Washtenaw Ave. 313-893-8216. ^ Wafel Shop No More After two years in business, The Wafel Shop in Ann Arbor is now closed.

The shop served up deluxe and creative variations of Belgian style waffles. Auf wiedersehen, Wafel Shop.

Classifieds: Catherine Bohr (classifieds@toledocitypaper.com)

Administration

Accounting: Robin Armstrong (rarmstrong@toledocitypaper.com) dejunk my house

© 2015 by Adams Street Publishing Co., All rights reserved.

3003 Washtenaw Ave., Suite 3, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, Phone (734) 668-4044, Fax (734) 668-0555.

First class subscriptions $30 a year. Distributed throughout Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and neighboring communities.

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^ Two Jerks Music The name of the new record store in Depot Town started as a joke, but the store’s owners are serious about their love of music. Mark Teachout, one of the “jerks,” is the Photo bia Facebo owner of Depot Town’s Cafe Ollie. ok Mark and his brother Ryan are the devoted music fans behind the store which opened in early December, and includes old rock, soul, R&B, novelty discs, comedy records, soundtracks, 45s and more, along with custom and used guitars.

22 E. Cross St., Ypsilanti. 734-829-9112. ecurrent.com / january 2015 5

fyi

green corner

U-M’s Ford School Lecture series line-up

Livingston Award winner Luke Mogelson will discus the themes of his New York Times article “The Dream Boat,” in which he details his incredible voyage from Indonesia to Christmas Island aboard a nine-metre refugee timber boat that was “clearly not designed for passengers.” He and his colleague Joel van Houdt shared the boat with two Indonesian crew, an Afghan man, and 54 Iranians including nine children and more than a dozen women, one of whom was seven-months pregnant. Panel members: The New York Times editor Joel Lovell and the Ford School’s own John Ciorciari and Susan Waltz. Free. January 12, 4-5:30pm. Well Hall Annenberg Auditorium, 735 S. State St. (734) 764-3490.

As part of the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy lecture series, Janet Napolitano, the 20th president of the University of California, former US Secretary of Homeland Security, and former Governor of Arizona, comes to town to talk politics and policy. Free. January 14, 4:00pm. Power Center for the Performing Arts, 121 Fletcher St, (734) 647-3327.

Author of the memoir The Beautiful Struggle, national correspondent at The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues, Ta-Nehisi Coates asks big questions about race in America—What does "black culture" mean? What is the continuing role of both the older and younger generations in shaping it?

Where will gentrification, education, and the splintering (or unifying) of families take it? Free. January 21, 5:10pm.

Rackham Auditorium 915 E. Washington St., (734) 763-3333.

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Sustainabili-TEA

Aubrey and Jeremy Lopatin’s decade-long mission to find the world’s best organic teas and deliver them as sustainably as possible— through backyard compostable packaging and green shipping alternatives—has given their business, Arbor Teas, huge momentum. The next phase in their mission includes the launch of an organic tea farm—with 600 tea plants germinated and grown in the couple’s Ann Arbor backyard. The tea farm will provide Arbor Teas with domestically grown product and opportunities for community education.

Initially, the farm will feature a 30’ x 150’ hoop house powered by solar energy and warmed geothermally in the winter. Down the line, the Lopatins hope to grow their business to include an on-farm learning center, ready-to-drink beverages, and an Arbor Teas café.

1342 N Main St., (734) 994-7698.—BB

feature feature

The

MICHIGAMERS

The region’s booming board game scene Wolverine Country leads the U.S. at the game table

O

By Matt M. Casey

n a cold weekend in mid November, hundreds of people gathered at a hotel in Ypsilanti for a convention centered on a decidedly indoor activity: board games. Players—many of them bearded or wearing shirts that reference geek culture—sat at large tables in grand ballrooms. There, they rolled dice, shuffled cards and moved colorful bits around boards.

While the topic might sound familiar, the titles may not. In three days of all-day play, not a single participant opened a copy of Monopoly, Risk or Sorry. Those games are practically dirty words at U-Con, where games tend to require more strategy than Americans are used to. Players often must plan several turns ahead, and many modern board games rely on very little luck—though that’s not a hard rule. The 2014 title Fun Farm, for example, is built on silliness, chaos and stuffed animals.

“There’s this whole world of hobby games… out there that are unfamiliar to the vast majority of Americans,” said Alex Yeager who works at industry-leader Mayfair Games.

“Really, there’s something out there for everyone.”

A Golden Age

Decades of progress separates the games played at U-Con from those most Americans are familiar with.

Board game design is a technology, just like video game design is a technology. Games like Monopoly are the board game equivalent of Pong—the kind that people

play as kids and move on from. But a dedicated subculture has pushed the field forward year after year. As a result, modern board games are more interesting and more fun.

In Dead of Winter, for example, each player takes the role of survivor during the winter of a zombie apocalypse.

They have to cooperate to gather supplies, overcome regular crises, and fortify their colony. A player can only win if the colony survives and they complete the group objective as well as their own secret objective. It’s a game about tough choices, both mathematical and moral.

Designer Jonathan Gilmour attended U-Con to help teach people how to play.

Dead of Winter will also appear cont on p 8

ecurrent.com / january 2015 7

feature “There’s this whole world of hobby games… out there that are unfamiliar to the vast majority of Americans. Really, there’s something out there for everyone.”

— Alex Yeager Mayfair Games

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cont. from p 7

this year on the web series TableTop. The show stars Star Trek alum Wil Wheaton who, each episode, plays a board game with three celebrity guests. It’s like Celebrity Poker for the geek set. The show is now in its third season, and the Season 3 game selection shows a strong bias for titles published in the last two years.

“We’re living in a golden age right now,” said TableTop producer Boyan Radakovich. “Even a mediocre game nowadays would have been a massive smash hit 10 years ago.”

A Growing Niche

As the state of the art has advanced, the subculture has grown. U-Con was a curiosity when it started as a campus event at the University of Michigan in 1988. In 2011, it moved off campus and drew 528 attendees. In 2014, that number jumped to 741—a 40 percent increase in just two years.

Similar conventions have popped up across the U.S. Hobby games remain a niche activity, but one that increasingly flirts with mainstream acceptance. Yeager, who lives in Ypsilanti, noted that Mayfair Games’ flagship title Settlers of Catan has even appeared on television shows like The Big Bang Theory, The Tomorrow People, and Chicago Fire. The company paid for none of those placements, Yeager said. Writers, actors and directors have let the game appear in front of the camera simply because they love it.

That mainstream acceptance has translated to sharplyincreased sales. In 2013, according to website ICv2—a group which collects data on the explosive growth of comics, festivals, and retailer responses—retailers sold roughly $700 million worth of hobby game products. While that number pales in comparison to Hasbro’s $4 billion in annual revenue, the hobby game market roughly doubled in size between 2008 and 2013.

After being relegated to specialty shops for decades, now big-box retailers like Barnes & Noble and Target are stocking more of these niche games.

But, while the entire country is getting involved, Michigan—and particularly Washtenaw County—is ahead of the curve. Ann Arbor residents have access to some of the richest board gaming resources in the country. Players jonesing to toss some dice or backstab their friends can visit plentiful conventions, gatherings and game stores. Vault of Midnight on Main Street hosts open gaming sessions— with a free library of board games—on Thursday nights and Sunday afternoons. State Street’s Get Your Game On

feature

hosts card game events several days per week, and Fun 4 All in Ypsilanti hosts a weekly board game meetup every Wednesday.

Several bars in the area—including the Chelsea Alehouse—also host regular or periodic board game gatherings. Several groups hold all-day Saturday game days in Ann Arbor, Canton and Brighton.

Ann Arbor’s Game Culture

The area’s gaming culture has become so ingrained that regular participants struggle to remember the time before it started.

“I’ve been gaming since I can remember, and there’s always been gaming stores that I’ve gone to,” said Sara Castle, the event's co-chair for 2014.

But, trace it back far enough, and Michigan’s current nation-leading game culture draws its roots from four things: The University of Michigan, nearby conventions, Euchre and cold winters.

The Polar Vortex may not be a normal occurrence, but Michigan still has some of the coldest weather in the U.S. Combine that with the state’s above average population density (17th, according to 2014 statistics), and Michigan is an ideal breeding ground for indoor group activities.

This likely helped Euchre become the Michigan phenomenon that it is. The game, introduced by German settlers, barely exists outside of the state. It’s both more strategic than many other card games—on par with Bridge—and uses a non-standard deck. Its prevalence may have also primed Michiganders to understand and enjoy more complicated games like those played at U-Con. The line from Euchre to board games, Yeager said, may bend through Magic: The Gathering. Magic is a collectible card game in which players buy packs of randomized cards and build personalized decks to battle one another.

First published in 1993, some players found the game so addictive that they called it “Cardboard Crack.” Teenagers and college students intensely interested in the game play and build Magic decks for as many as 50 or 60 hours each week.

The introduction of Magic: The Gathering coincided with the importation of European game culture. While traditional American board games like Risk and Monopoly focus on destroying other players and eliminating them from the game, European games tend to focus on indirect conflict. In Settlers of Catan, players compete to collect and spend resources to grow their civilizations. The first player to earn 10 points wins, and all players remain in the game until then.

The popularity of Magic and European board games grew hand-in-hand—often supported by the same college clubs, conventions and game groups. But, as Magic players have aged, Yeager said, they’ve gravitated toward board games.

“The people who got in on that first wave of Magic— and understood how deep a game could be—now have kids.”

“You could attend the two largest shows in the U.S. for the price of half a tank of gas and as many people as you could cram into a hotel room...”

— Alex Yeager Mayfair Games

They still want to have the intellectual challenge that games provide, he said, but they want those intellectual challenges to play in more predictable chunks of time.

Conventions Close By

Southeast Michigan, Yeager noted, also has the advantage of being driving distance from two of the biggest gaming conventions in the world. Origins, held at the beginning of each summer in Columbus, Ohio, serves as a gathering point for gamers around the country. Gen Con, held at the end of each summer in Indianapolis, serves as an annual staging ground for publishers to unveil their new titles.

“You could attend the two largest shows in the U.S. for the price of half a tank of gas and as many people as you could cram into a hotel room to make it economical for your typical 18 or 19 year old,” Yeager said.

Ann Arbor’s proximity to those big conventions encouraged local groups to start their own—like U-Con. As those events endured and grew, other events cropped up on unclaimed weekends. Now, the area is saturated with conventions. The U-Con website alone lists 20 other conventions that Michiganders can drive to in four hours or less.

A similar feedback loop has played out for Ann Arbor’s game retailers. According to Nick Yribar manager at Vault of Midnight, the store, which opened in 1996 primarily focused on comic books, had long stocked a handful of games. Around 2006, Alex Yeager convinced the store to try stocking Settlers of Catan. Then, the employees themselves got excited about a game called BattleLore.

What started as a sideline for the store has now grown to occupy roughly half of its floor space and account for a quarter of its revenue. cont on p 10

ecurrent.com / january 2015 9

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cont. from p 9

Game Creators

As a side effect of the Ann Arbor area’s concentration of board game culture, the area serves as a home and gathering point for board game creators.

Brian Lewis, who organizes the weekly gathering at Fun4All, designed the 2013 game Titans of Industry and is readying a Kickstarter campaign for his next game, Stab a Panda. The latter title gives players a selection of unpalatable choices—such as stick your hand in a garbage disposal that might turn on—and asks them to rank which they would be most likely to do. Other players score points for correctly guessing the active player’s selections.

Designers sometimes appear at the local game stores to test their new designs, but the area’s designer population is best represented by the annual Protospiel convention, a phenomenon which started in Germany, and which will be held in Chelsea in 2015, where game creators gather in one place to test and refine their prototypes. While groups now host Protospiel events all over the country, the Eastern Michigan Protospiel, which started in 2001 was one of the first to appear outside of Europe.

The first events, said Yeager, drew less than a couple dozen creators. Now, he said, the community has grown to a couple hundred creators “and at a protospiel event you’re going to see 100 different people with 300 different designs.”

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A Good Way to Get Through Winter

With the polar vortex threatening to freeze Southeast Michigan for the second year in a row, this might be the season to see what’s going on with Washtenaw County’s board game scene. Local stores can point you to local designs—or simply popular ones.

If nothing else, these games serve as a fantastic way to pass cold nights.

To get involved with board games in Ann Arbor, visit Vault of Midnight on Thursdays at 6pm or Sundays at 12pm, or contact the Ann Arbor Board Game Group on Meetup.com.

Matt M. Casey is a freelance writer and founder of CleverMoveGames.com.

special advertising section

HeALTh+ Everyone has broken their New Year’s resolutions in the past. But this is the year to turn that trend around. Sure you can’t carve out six pack abs in two weeks, but there are quick changes you can make to become healthier in 2015.

feature

WELLNESS Area gurus share tips, tricks and the favs that keep them moving.

The People's Food Co-op 216 North 4th Avenue (734) 994-9174

Dr. Susan Rose 5889 Whitmore Lake Road #4 Brighton, MI 48116 (810) 588-6911

I resolve to see a doctor.

A visit with Dr. Susan Rose, a fully licensed physician specializing in osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) and cranial sacral therapy (CST), is an effective and cost efficient choice for comprehensive evaluation and treatment of problems such as musculoskeletal pain and/or restriction, postural problems, headaches, dizziness, poor balance, TMJ dysfunction. Expertly performed OMM/CST by Dr. Rose can also help to optimize performance for musicians, dancers, and athletes who may have injury, overuse syndrome or suboptimal technique.

I resolve to eat more mindfully.

Mindful eating flows from the mindful selection of local, organic and sustainable produce and products that have been offered at the award-winning People’s Food Cooperative since 1971. Open daily with a grocery store, bulk foods, hot/salad bars and grab-and-go, Café Verde serves fair-trade coffees and teas, freshly made baked goods and juices along with live music (Thursday nights from 6-8 pm) and free Wi-Fi. Start your New Year off right by visiting downtown Ann Arbor in Kerrytown across from the Farmers Market.

ecurrent.com / january 2015 11

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2030 COMMERCE BLVD ANN ARBOR, MI 48103

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A2 Yoga

2030 Commerce Boulevard (734) 216-4006

I resolve to find calmness through meditation.

“Life is often crazy, so finding a mindful moment can be a relief. Classes at A2 Yoga, like our new Yin Yoga class, Restorative Yoga, and Gentle Yoga & Meditation, help students learn the importance of meditate.

Classes are usually bookended by mindful meditative moments.The benefits of meditation include increased relaxation and internal energy or life force, plus it develops compassion, love, patience, generosity and forgiveness. The next step is to take it beyond the studio and incorporate it into our daily lives. A living 'sadhana'!”

S h e op h T A HIGHER LEVEL OF QUALITY & SERVICE (734) 961-2770 513 W. CROSS STREET YPSILANTI, MICHIGAN 48197 W W W. T H E S H O P Y P S I . C O M ecurrent.com / january 2015 13

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Reuse

restore

&

e s o p r u p e R

By Mary Ann Humphrey Photos By Marisa Rubin

Resale shopping isn’t for the faint of heart. Dedicated thrift shoppers brave the dust and the piles of previously owned items to find unique pieces. It’s the thrill of the hunt that drives many bargain shoppers. And while it can be frustrating to search for a specific item, patience and a good eye are key ingredients to finding a score.

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Kiwanis Thrift Sale Downtown This is a great place to score vintage furniture, jewelry and art. The Kiwanis thrift store has two floors of merchandise—small household goods, books, dishware, glassware and clothing on the first floor, and downstairs carries furniture, art, antiques, jewelry and more. The Kiwanis also has a warehouse on Plaza Drive which houses tons of furniture—an excellent place to find the perfect vintage chair or table to repurpose for your home.

200 S. First St. Saturdays, 9am–noon Plaza Dr. and Airport Blvd., Building 840 Saturdays, 10am–1pm kiwanissale.com

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The Treasure Mart The Treasure Mart’s three floors of vintage, antique and used items is the place to go if you’re starting a collection, or want to complete one. Items range from brightly colored original international goods to worn wooden milk crates—it’s a place to spend some time browsing for home decorating inspiration. The front patio has larger furniture items where patrons often wait for trucks to pull up with the newest old stuff.

Parking can be a challenge, so go during the week when it’s less crowded.

529 Detroit St. Monday–Saturday, 9am–5:30pm treasuremart.com

The Ann Arbor Thrift Shop The Ann Arbor Thrift Shop is a well-organized store that looks more like a boutique than a resale shop. Small household goods, dishware, clothing, books, shoes and jewelry are nicely displayed and easily accessible. This is a good place to find higher end clothing for a fraction of the retail cost.

3530 Washtenaw Ave. Monday–Saturday, 10am–4pm Cash only annarborthriftshop.org

Ann Arbor PTO Thrift Shop This thrift store takes a little bit of work—it’s big and a bit jumbled, but definitely home to great finds.

Linens, crafts, clothes, toys, furniture and seasonal items are available. “PTO” stands for “Parent Teacher Organization,” and the greatest thing about this store is that all proceeds benefit Ann Arbor public school student activities. So whether you’re shopping or donating, you’re giving to a good cause. For every $5 you spend, you get a token in support of one of the student groups which displays information about their enrichment activities in the store lobby. The shop donates $1,000 each week of the school calendar year.

2280 S. Industrial Pkwy.

Monday-Friday, 9am–7pm; Saturday, 9am–6pm; Sunday, 11am–7pm a2ptothriftshop.org

ecurrent.com / january 2015 15

feature Recycle/ Ann Arbor’s ReUse Center 2420 S. Industrial Hwy. Monday–Saturday, 10am–5pm; Sunday, 10am–2pm recycleannarbor.org

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january 2015

The ReUse center offers 20,000 square feet with a huge variety of lumber, building materials, bathroom fixtures, kitchen cabinets, furniture and electronics. It also boasts the unique “Urbanwood” program; dead trees that are removed from the city are reclaimed and made into furniture and flooring. This is a go-to store for home improvement. Reclaimed wood items are offered for sale in Ann Arbor, Flint and Haslett. For more information, go to urbanwood.com.

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food

Restaurant Review Mezzevino

A comfy ode to the vast Mediterranean

By Brandon Bye

A

fter living in Ann Arbor for three years, setting a course for downtown—at least knowing the difference between Washington and Liberty— should be a cinch. Yet somehow I still manage to get it wrong on most occasions. Walking a few extra blocks through freezing temperatures, my date and I lamenting not looking up the address for Mezzevino, I was hopeful that the new restaurant on the block would navigate the cuisines that call the wide-reaching Mediterranean region home better than I navigate Ann Arbor’s small downtown on a Thursday night.

The room smelled like garlic and toasted herbs. Two vertical spits, crisping rounds of pork and chicken gyros meat, stood sentry before the semi-open kitchen at the far end of bar. One of the cooks chiseled into a spit. Later, we ordered a warm salad of chicken gyros, chickpeas, and cilantro mint dressing, and as we savored the crisp, spicy bites, my date and I traded looks.

We did it again when we ate braised lamb Moussaka—Greek shepherd’s pie with cinnamon, eggplant and roasted tomato, topped with bechamel sauce. Putting words to our looks, my date asked, “is this Mediterranean comfort food?”

The answer to that question applied to many of the things we ate (and drank) that night. Thank the gods for gin toddies.

Combining hot water, gin, honey, lavender, and cinnamon, the aromatic toddy—and a generous side portion of roasted olives, tossed in toasted cumin—brought back the warmth that I lost during the walk.

The iPad menu, thoughtfully dimmed to match the low, golden filament lighting of the room, seemed like a boon—the photos of the drinks and dishes are vivid and professional—but became cumbersome while ordering.

Having to revert to the main page to find and press the the section of the menu to revisit the dish you had been eyeing is a chore. Ordering directly from the iPad: problem solved.

Mezzevino

120 E Liberty St., (888) 456-3463 mezzevino.com Monday-Thursday 11am–11pm Friday-Saturday 11am–Midnight Sun 4pm–10pm From the front door to the table and throughout the meal our server was proactively friendly and enthusiastic, and she balanced her time, at and away from the table, perfectly. She never lingered; we never waited. She encouraged us to order tapas-style, setting a stack of small plates in the near corner of the table to ensure the hot yolk from our fried egg and eggplant crostini wouldn’t mingle with the sherry paprika dressing of our camerones, keeping the sherry dressing from the Moussaka, and so on.

Next was orecchiette and ground lamb sausage, bitter with tiny stalks of rapini, hot from the pepper flakes, and salty from the grana padano, served in broth and scooped with a slotted spoon, leaving the reserve broth to sop up with fluffy, housemade pita. Just as we finished the pasta, the swordfish arrived, sweet and still moist inside, served atop smoked eggplant puree, punctuated by tiny piles of a tomato and feta combo, encircled by parsley oil.

Sweet and spicy in equal measure, and true to Mediterranean form, the cardamom-infused Moroccan creme caramel, a perfect round of custard halved by a crisp chocolate tuile, completed our meal. But on the way out, enticed by the barman’s fire-play, we decided to delay the cold walk ahead with a seat at the bar.

We sipped from glasses of dark, digestive Fernet Branca, which Wayne Curtis, author of And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails, describes as being “akin to waking up in a foreign country and finding a crowd of people arguing in agitated, thorny voices outside your hotel window.” It may go down like a bread knife, but it sure settles the stomach.

I suppose any hot meal on a cold night constitutes comfort food. And while the concept of comfort food and the Mediterranean diet are not generally paired together, Mezzevino, with its ingredients and dishes from distant locales, offers the Midwest palette something it’s used to: rich abundance.

Enticed by the barman’s fire-play, we decided to delay the cold walk ahead with a seat at the bar.

ecurrent.com / january 2015 17

food

10 saturday Dexter Winter Market Place

Deals on Meals: A2 Restaurant Week: A Critic’s List

9am-1pm. Dexter Senior Center, 7720 Ann Arbor Rd. dextermarket.com Free

On Sunday, January 18, Ann Arbor Restaurant Week includes over 50 of the city’s finest eateries. Perusing the list of participating venues, you may be wondering which threecourse $28 dinner specials and two-for-one lunches to sample. Broken down by category, here’s what I’ll be aiming at. Enjoy!

Date Night

Mani Osteria & Bar (wood-fired pizza and Italianinspired cocktails), Isalita (refined Latin standards) Grange Kitchen & Bar (organic and sustainable everything), The Ravens Club (culinary cocktails and farm-to-fork American), Pacific Rim (fresh, light, and elegant Pan-Asian fare).

Day Dining

The Lunch Room (vegan, gluten-free friendly), Prickly Pear Cafe (plenty of fresh salads and southwest-y options), Bigalora (gourmet pizza is always worth it).

Just Cuz

Blue Tractor BBQ & Brewery (um… BBQ and beer?

Never a bad idea), Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery (Main Street’s gastropublican hangout), Grizzly Peak (for solid food in a pub-y setting).

A2 Restaurant Week, Sunday, January 18 23. Downtown Ann Arbor. 734-668-7112. For a full list of participating restaurants visit annarborrestaurantweek.com —BB

2 friday First Friday Shabbat

from around the world. Drawings for beer related prizes.

Tickets include unlimited beer sampling and a German appetizer buffet.

All are invited for a dinner and brief Shabbat observance with songs, candle lighting, wine and challah.

Brewery Vivant Beer & Cheese Tasting

6:30-9pm. $10, $25/family. Jewish Community Center, 2935 Birch Hollow Dr. 734-95-9872. jewishculturalsociety.org

8 thursday Porters and Browns Arbor Brewing Company Beer Tasting

9 friday 6-8pm. $45. Zingerman’s Creamery, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-0500. zingermanscreamery.com

Learn about Brewery Vivant and their unique brews, paired with a selection of delicious cheeses. Registration required.

7-9pm. $25/advance, $30/door. Arbor Brewing Company, 114 E. Washington St. 734-213-1393. arborbrewing.com

Sample and learn about two dozen porters and brown beers

GLUTEN FREE • NON-GMO • NO PRESERVATIVES • CREATED LOCALLY

Thank you to all of our loyal customers!

This Dexter winter farmer’s market will include offerings of produce, homemade delicacies, and much, much more! Saturdays and Sundays through the 24th.

11 sunday Home Espresso

january 2015

/ ecurrent.com

Amateur and professional brewers create beers in Rat Pad small batch brew system.

22 thursday Connection Food and Faith

7-8:30pm. Downtown Library: MultiPurpose Room, 343 S. Fifth Ave. 734-327-4200. aadl.org

Learn how to make a cafequality beverage with the basic “4 M’s” of making espresso, followed by tasting, demonstrations, and hands-on practice. Limited to 6 people, so registration is required.

A panel of interfaith leaders explore the connection between faith and food at this kickoff event for a year-long Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice program entitled Food & Justice: An Interfaith Exploration of How Our Food Choices Impact Our Environment, Our Economy and Our Neighbors.

14 wednesday

23 friday

Roman Agriculture

6:30pm. Pittsfield Union Grange, 3377 Ann Arbor-Saline Rd. 734-769-1052. pittsfieldgrange.org Free

UM Classics Professor Ruth Scodel will speak on Roman agricultural practices and ceremonies. Preceded by a potluck dinner.

16 friday Cocktail Class: It’s Gin-uary

7-9:30pm. $65. Cornman Farms, 8540 Island Lake Rd., Dexter. 734-619-8100. zingermanscommunity.com

Explore the history of Gin while learning how to mix drinks with its almost infinite potential.

Appetizers are provided by Cornman Farms chefs.

Vertical Gouda

6-8pm. $35. Zingerman’s Creamery, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-0500. zingermanscreamery.com

The favorite goudas of 2014 are gathered and celebrated!

Take a guided tour of the Creamery, listen to a brief history of gouda, and of course, taste delicious gouda cheeses of different ages from all over the world. Registration required.

18 sunday Ann Arbor Restaurant Week

10am. Main St. annarborrestraurantweek.com

Extraordinary three course dinner menus or fixed price fair lunch menus from Ann Arbor’s most excellent restaurants.

Runs through Friday 23.

1-3pm. $30. Zingerman’s Coffee Company, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-6060. zingermanscoffee.com

18

6-9pm ABC Brewpub, 114 E. Washington St. 734-213-1393. arborbrewing.com

1-3pm. $40. Zingerman’s Coffee Company, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-6060. zingermanscoffee.com

Brewing Methods

visit annarbortortilla.com to see where you can find our products

21 wednesday Rat Pad Release

Learn the keys to success when brewing coffee from a wide variety of methods. Learn 6-8 ways to brew, and discuss the differences of each style with an expert. Registration required.

Cheese Mastery Class #4: Semi Lactic Cheese 6-8pm. $35. Zingerman’s Creamery, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-0500. zingermanscreamery.com

Creamery Managing Partner offers a lesson on the most challenging forms of cheese making. Get a clue on the many mouthwatering varieties, such as Brie and Camembert.

24 saturday Mozzarella Making Class 2pm-3pm. $30. Zingerman’s Creamery, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-0500. zingermanscreamery.com

Make Mozzarella with the masters! Pull balls of Mozzarella, stretch string cheese, and make burrata. For ages 12+.

Registration required.

27 tuesday Chinese Cooking with Ming 7pm. Dexter District Library, 3255 Alpine. 734-426-4477. dexter.lib.mi.us Free

Chef Ming Louie demonstrates how to make traditional chicken corn chowder. Registration required.

29 thursday My Hummus is Bigger Than Your Hummus: Food and Politics in Israel 4-5pm. Michigan League Henderson Room. 734-764-0446. events.umich.edu Free

Dafna Hirsch is a UM faculty member in the Department of Sociology, Political Science, and Communication at the Open University of Israel, who will be focusing on the case study of hummus.

31 saturday Winter Wine and Wool Festival

10am-5pm. Sand Crane Vineyards, 4724 Walz Rd., Jackson. 517-7640679. sandhillcranevineyards.com Free

food

RAT FEST 2015

Creativity, competition, and beer: Rat Fest brings the best ingredients of life together in one event. Brewers have been working hard on four original recipes to put on tap for this event. Seasoned beer drinkers and novices are invited to judge which concoction is the best. Awards are given to winners in several categories including most original and best beer.

Tickets include a commemorative tasting glass, beer samples and snacks. $35 in advance or $40 at the door, Saturday, January 31, 2-5pm. Arbor Brewing Company Microbrewery, 720 Norris St., Ypsilanti. 734-480-2739.—RC The winery will be filled with colorful yarn from many vendors, to warm your spirits during the cold season. The cafe will be open all day, with wine to drink! $5 wine tasting.

Ongoing: All Week

Drink Specials at The Bar The Bar, 327 Braun Ct. 4pm-2am.

734-585-5440. brauncourt.com

Tues. $2 off All 2oz whiskey pours, Weds. $7 old fashioneds, Thurs. $5 punch (’til it’s gone), Fri. $5 punch (’til it’s gone).

a bottomless Bloody Mary and mimosa bar.

Sundays

Sundae Sunday

Stay warm this winter with Oven baked pizza Burgers Wings Pasta & More

9am-7pm. $5. Zingerman’s Creamery, 3723 Plaza Dr. 734-929-0500. zingermanscommunity.com

Zingerman’s cheese shop offers a single scoop of gelato for $5 with up to 3 toppings!

Snackie Hour

4-6pm. The Bar, 327 Braun Ct. 734585-5440. brauncourt.com

$2 off any item on the Snack Menu.

Saturdays

Wednesdays

Create memories to last a lifetime

Noon-3pm. Bona Sera Cafe, 200 W. Michigan Ave. 734-340-6335. eatypsi.com/brunch

4-11pm. Aut Bar, 315 Braun Ct. 734994-3677. autbar.com

.BJO 4USFFU 4VJUF t %FYUFS .* t 4PVUI -ZPO .* t

Saturday Brunch

Every Saturday at Bona Sera: A signature brunch menu and

Beer Bust Wednesday

Every beer is a dollar off, not to mention pool is free, all day!

Sponsored By:

Handel

Wilkommen:

A Tribute to Ann Arbor’s German Heritage

Bach

Sunday, January 18, 2015, 2pm

In Memory of Walter Metzger

U Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor

Featuring All German Music and Composers Vienna Philharmonic Fanfare - Richard Strauss Hindemith Symphony in Bb - Paul Hindemith Academic Festival Overture - Johannes Brahms Overture to Rienzi Little Fugue in g minor and much more!

Brahms

All tickets available at the door or in advance from band members Adults...$10 Seniors/students...$5 Children 12 and under...FREE

Strauss I

Come enjoy an afternoon of German Music Tradition!

(734) 478-7515

www.aaband.org | www.metzgers.net The Ann Arbor Concert Band has been serving the greater Ann Arbor, Michigan area since 1978.

ecurrent.com / january 2015   19

food Behind Bars

Hot drinks for cold weather

By Brandon Bye

Few things stave off the cold like a hot toddy or a glass of warm mulled wine. For the scarf-wrapped public, area bars have modern takes on classic winter cocktails.

Sample these three warming libations to stay toasty.

Swedish Glogg Dry red wine Sweet wine Sweet vermouth Raisins Orange peels

Whole cloves Fresh ginger Cinnamon stick Sugar

Former Chicagoan, now Bona Sera owner Annette Weathers says her Glogg is an homage to Chicago’s Northside neighborhood bars, “which were full of Glogg… just fond memories of holidays and winters in Chicago—warm, inviting, and hanging out with good friends.”

Combine and left overnight, slowly simmered for 1 hour before serving, and paired with a traditional housemade triple ginger snap cookie, a glug of Weathers’ Glogg is sure to put your spirits in a warm and happy place.

Bona Sera, 200 W Michigan Ave, Ypsilanti, MI 48197, (734) 340-6335

Blackwoods Hot Whiskey Punch Buffalo Trace Bourbon Demerara sugar Peeled lemon rinds Housemade bitters

The drink originally surfaced in 1854 in the footnotes of Blackwood's Magazine, a Scottish journal that ran fictional accounts of popular figures of the day discussing current events while sipping punch at Ambrose's Tavern in Edinburgh.

After a 24-hour steep, combine the bourbon and dissolved sugar—lemon rinds now removed—with equal parts hot water, keeping the temperature of the water below 180 degrees to avoid cooking off the alcohol. Finished with The Ravens Club’s housemade bitters and a squeeze of lemon zest, a glass of Blackwoods Hot Whiskey Punch goes down as warm at The Ravens Club as it seemed to at Ambrose's Tavern all those years ago.

The Ravens Club, 207 S Main St, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, (734) 214-0400

Hot Buttered Rum Anejo Rum Salted MI farm butter MI maple syrup Hot water

You could substitute cider for water and toss in some cloves and cinnamon sticks, but that would just get in the way of the no-frills simplicity of the thing. 327’s take on an old standard is delicious, soothing, and pure Michigan comfort. Vanilla notes from the rum mix sweetly with the earthiness of the maple syrup and the light salty creaminess of the butter.

Bar 327 Braun Court, 327 Braun Ct, Ann Arbor, MI 48104

20

january 2015

/ ecurrent.com

food food

Hidden History

112 W. Liberty Street: Alley Bar

By Robert James Russell

BL#000902 courtesy of Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan

No pictures are known to exist of Charles Binder. Yet, you can just picture him leaning against the pine bar top that stretches nearly half the length of the building at 112 W. Liberty St, dispassionately browsing through advertisements in the now-defunct Ann Arbor Argus—Hangsterfer’s French hand-made bonbons, Clark’s Mile-End Spool Cotton, and Eisenbarth Liver Pills meant to “stimulate a sluggish system.”

“Ann Arbor in the late 19th Century was divided along Division Street,” says Professor Francis Blouin of the University of Michigan.

“To the west it was a small industrial town with a population largely of German descent.”

Picture further: Outside the front windows, a delivery man rests atop a four-wheeled cart parked on still-muddy Liberty Street, stacked high with oak beer barrels ready for delivery. Later, Charles recounts in a slight German accent to his wife, Agnes, that he had been swindled, that the price of beer had gone up significantly in the past year and that he’d have to raise prices himself. And that it made him sick to do so.

Since 1880

In its current iteration the space is now Alley Bar, still dark and moody, a nearly building-length room full of hoary, sunken booths—themselves relics from The Flame’s original location on Washington, gutted and hacksawed to fit in their current resting place. It’s been called by many names (Bab’s, The Flame, The Round Table, Kitty O’Shea’s), but has always existed as a bar or bar/restaurant combo since 1880 (except during prohibition, of course).

Though there were those in Ann Arbor who shunned drinking as the devil’s work, saloon and bar culture in the late 19th Century was vitally important to the local economy—which explains why German-cum-American entrepreneur Charles Binder chose this location to build his historic saloon.

“With the influx of immigrants into the nation from places where alcohol was really fundamental to local culture,”

Professor Blouin explains, “drinking was more common.”

And the idea of the place is much the same as it has always been: it’s a gathering spot for local folks who want a drink, want to converse and rouse rabble.

Only a single photo of Binder’s Saloon exists—taken circa 1890 by C. Howard Ross— which shows the before-mentioned beer wagon stationed in front of the saloon, the black awning stenciled with Binder’s name in white. Alley Bar has an awning, too, a deep-crimson one with no name written on it, as well as a glaring neon “open” sign positioned in the darkly-tinted front windows that cause passers-by to stop, peek inside, and see what’s going on.

Robbie Schulz, owner, says, “Our idea is to create a space where a construction worker or lawyer, a book club or whoever can come in here and feel welcome. There need to be places around where people feel comfortable.”

It holds as true now as it did then

History, of course, doesn’t involve only life-changing events—just the simple act of existing is historic enough, and buildings are often overlooked portals into that history, personal connections to something of the past. Binder’s Saloon paired well with the sudden appearance of unskilled factory jobs; the drinking, the meeting at these saloons helped, as Professor Blouin says, “to relieve the monotony of the workday,” much as it does today.

Robbie Schulz recalls, “I used to open up and get some of the older townies, people that used to live here, peeking in. They’d say ‘I used to hang out here in the Sixties!’”

I don’t know what Charles Binder looked like or if he read the Ann Arbor Argus or if he complained about beer prices to his wife. But the building is still here, and the ghosts of Binder and that beer barrel delivery man and C. Howard Ross and all the patrons still roam this long narrow bar. Even now, today, 134 years on, you can sit here, in this living tableau vivant with the exposed original brickwork in shades of russet and rust and chestnut and copper—this reminder of who we were and, more rapturously, who we are today—and disappear completely. ecurrent.com / january 2015 21

music

Incantations and Reincarnations The Dustbowl Revival plays Hill Auditorium

By Jeff Milo

Going to a Dustbowl Revival show is like diving into a dense musical encyclopedia. The west coast collective’s eight talented players bring a range of eclectic instrumentation to the stage, conjuring up an old world sound in a new world setting.

Their songs are punctuated by danceable drum tempos, fitful acoustic guitars, high soaring clarinet solos, a washboard, and a banjo. Led by raspy, riled-up vocals and lively gospel-harkening choruses, Dustbowl Revival combines jazz, big-band, swing, ragtime, gothic gypsy folk, bluegrass and rootsy Americana. The strumming and fierce finger picking, the throaty, soulful incantations transport audiences to steamboats and barn-dances.

And it all started here in Ann Arbor. Sort of…

The Dustbowl Revival’s singer/guitarist/founder Zach Lupetin is a U-M grad and cut his teeth gigging around The Blind Pig and the Canterbury House. The band released their second album, Carry Me Home last year. Their third album will be a collection of live recordings from a few prominent concerts (including songs from last month’s performance at L.A.’s Troubadour).

different music that I would not normally have listened to. Playing around this community in college was really great. So many intelligent people from all over the world made that small town feel very cosmopolitan with exposure to new music and art. I loved my time in Ann Arbor.

So this will be somewhat of a homecoming for you. Can you talk about Ann Arbor and its influence on your development?

Zach Lupetin: Playing at Hill is going to be a huge

Besides an endearing timelessness, what drew you to this blend of styles, old swing-jazz and boisterous bluegrass?

thrill for me. We played the Ark a few times and it’s always been magical, but this is our first time playing the Ann Arbor Folk Festival. I formed my musical backbone in Ann Arbor, playing in a blues band called The Midnight Special. I was lucky enough to come into contact with very talented musicians from the jazz school and they opened up my consciousness to a lot of

22

january

2015 / ecurrent.com

You seem keen on engaging with the crowd.

There’s necessity for energy, not just what you all give, but what the crowd gets, right?

Even early on when we played dive bars, the main goal for me was to create a musical experience that brings people joy and enthusiasm. Traditional American music, like bluegrass and jazz, sometimes, can be very stoic. And that is not what we do. We encourage people to get up and dance and there’s this musical conversation with the audience. We really go all-out at each show and try to one-up each other. People gravitate towards certain kinds of music. Certain things that become your trademark, your thing, for some people it’s rock or reggae or rap, but for us it’s making new American standards that have a timeless Americana-sound.

Sometimes, I think it’s almost like a past-life sort of thing. Maybe some of us were in old big-bands back in the ‘30s in another life in New York and we woke up one day and it started sinking in, as a kid playing music in bars, who knows?

Ann Arbor Folk Festival, Dustbowl Revival, $38, Saturday, January 31, doors at 6:30, 825 N University Ave, (734) 764-2538.

music

Photo by Sean Cook

Frontier Ruckus

January 10 / The Blind Big

One month after the release of their new album Sitcom Afterlife, Frontier Ruckus plugs in at The Pig. Their new album hits notes that are more upbeat than their previous releases, while maintaining their usual haunting lyrics and excellent musicianship.

Openers include Ann Arbor’s electro-rock band Caves and prominent area indie musician Chris Bathgate. $12/advance, $14/day-of. 9pm. January 10. Blind Pig, 208 S. First St. (734) 996-8555.

Blindpigmusic.com.—RC

The Devil Makes Three January 16 / St. Andrews Hall

This three-piece band’s blend of bluegrass, blues, and ragtime isn’t exclusive within the zeitgeist of old-timey Americana, but frontman Pete Bernhard’s songwriting includes classic Biblical themes—good and evil, the cycles of death and rebirth, the climb from self-destruction to redemption—in a genuine, straightforward manner, and sets the group apart. And while he and his bandmates might harmonize over Hallelu, the spirit of irreverence is never far off. After all, this is the guy who pointed out “if you’re gonna do wrong, buddy, do wrong right.”— Do Wrong Right (2009) $22.50.

8pm. January 16, St. Andrews Hall, 431 E Congress St, Detroit, MI 48226, (313) 961-8961—BB

1 thursday Mittenfest

7pm. $10. Blind Pig, 208 S. 1st St. 734-996-8555. blindpigmusic.com

Blind Pig hosts Mittenfest IX. All proceeds go to 826Michigan in Detroit, Ypsilanti, and Ann Arbor. Get the lineup at Mittenfest.org. Concert runs through Tuesday 6.

2 friday Laura Rain & The Cesar’s 7pm. The Mash Bar, 207 E. Washington St. 734-332-6046. mashbar.net Free

Sultry jazz singer Laura Rain brings her band for a night of heart and heat.

ts More event online a m .co ecurrent

Breathe Owl Breathe

8pm. $15. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

This indie-folk band brings a male and female vocalists with complimenting somber singing styles, poignant lyrics, and excellent musicianship.

3 saturday The Yellow Room Gang

8pm. $20. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Michigan songwriters put on a show, exhibiting talent from award winning songwriters Jim Bizer and country folk road warrior Annie Capps.

P-Funk Night

9pm. $5. Crossroad’s Bar & Grill, 517 W. Cross St., Ypsilanti. 734-340-5597.

The return of P-Funk night, featuring The Enema Squad WSG P-Funk Alumni.

cont. on page 24 ecurrent.com / january 2015 23

, 2pm

Sunday, January 18, 2015, 2pm

eater, Ann Arbor

posers

In Memory of Walter Metzger

music

Devil Elvis with Black Jake and the Carnies

U Michigan Theater, Ann

saturday Featuring All German 17 Music and Composers

8pm. $10. Crossroad’s Bar & Grill, 517 W. Cross St., Ypsilanti. 734-340-5597.

auss ith hms

Dick Siegel

Richard Strauss Paul Hindemith Johannes Brahms

8pm. $20. The Ark, 316 S. Main St.

Vienna Fanfare The Dark King of Philharmonic Rock and Roll 734-761-1818. theark.org will rise on this night, bringing Michigan folk- artist Dick Siegel Hindemith Symphony in Bb the gift of rock from hell. Ypsi is a self-proclaimed “interrock group Black JakeFestival and the Academic Overture preter of daydreams” and is Carnies will also perform. alsoto a legendary composer and Overture Rienzi lyricist.

en:

10 Little saturday Fugue in g minor and much more!

Ragtime Extravaganza

e!

Strauss, and Brahms Bach Brahms Strauss I Bach,

members der...FREE

German Heritage Willkommen: A Tradition!

18, 2015,Tribute 2pm to Ann Arbor’s

German chigan Theater, AnnHeritage Arbor

$15-$62.

Michigan Theater, All tickets available at the door8pm. or in advance from band members James Dapogny Quartet 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8397.

7pm. $5-$30. Kerrytown Concert Adults...$10 Children 12 and under...FREE michtheater.org House, 415 N. 4thSeniors/students...$5 Ave. 734-769-2999.

Join America’s premier ragtime Jazz enjoy pianist Jim Dapogny leads Come an afternoon of German orchestra, the RiverMusic Raisin Tradition! an explosive trio in a fun early Ragtime Revue for a bur-

Sunday, 18 / Michigan Theater

Welcome! The Ann Arbor Concert Band celebrates c.net and Composers A2’s German influence with sound and spirit. Spon-

kerrytownconcerthouse.com

jazz quartet, with jazz and pop standards.

lesque, ragtime, and vaudeville (734) 478-7515 performance of the year.

www.aaband.org | www.metzgers.net Frontier Ruckus Mischief to join the stage.

9:30pm. $12/advance, $14/at the door.

The Ann Arbor Concert greater area since 1978. sored by Metzger’s Restaurant, the Concert Band will Band has Thebeen Blindserving Pig, 208the S. 1st St. Ann Arbor, Michigan Eighth Blackbird e - Richard Strauss 734-996-8555. blindpigmusic.com play some classic selections from Johann Sebastian 8pm. $24-$50. Rackham Auditorium, The Blind Pig welcomes this Bach, Johannes Brahms, and Richard Wagner.

915 E. Washington St. 734-763-3333.

- Paul Hindemith Michigan folk band. Frontier ums.org John Metzger, third generation owner of Metzger’s - Johannes Brahms Ruckus exudes an earthy Chicago-based chamber music Restaurant, has dedicated the concert to his father sound and haunting lyrics. ensemble Eighth Blackbird Walter Metzger who sadly passed away in Novemenzi Acoustic artist Chris Bathgate comes with the finesse of a ber. $10.00 for adults; $5.00 for students and seniors, is also set to play, as well as string quartet, energy of rock d much more!Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. Caves, a local electro-funk band, and audacity of a storeance from band (734) members 668-8463. band. See pg. 23. front theater company.

Strauss I

dren 12 and under...FREE

man Music Tradition!

515

.metzgers.net

a since 1978.

Paula Cole

Saturday, 24 / The Ark

Dust off that yin-yang choker necklace and bust out the Birkenstocks. Are you ready to remember the Lilith Fair days— the now-distant sound of the ‘90s female singer-songwriter genre? Paula Cole, now on staff in the voice department at her alma mater Berklee College of Music, still delights audiences with her smooth voice and piano playing. $25. 8pm. January 24, The Ark, 316 S. Main St. (734) 761-1451. —BB

Epiphany

6pm. Donations appreciated.

Canterbury House, 721 E. Huron St. 734-665-0606. canterburyhouse.org

Canterbury’s Annual Celebration with religious music and an eclectic group of musicians.

7 wednesday On The Tracks SingerSongwriter Showcase

7-9pm. $15 suggested donation. Chelsea Depot, 125 Jackson St., Chelsea.

734-475-0862. chelseadepot.org

Judy Banker and Jay Stielstra are a veteran duo of local folk singers and songwriters.

Dan Orcutt

9pm. The Mash Bar, 207 E. Washington St. 734-332-6046. mashbar.net Free

Dan Orcutt brings his jazz feel and down home blues.

8 thursday Renaud Garcia-Fons

8pm. $5/students, $15/GA, $20-$30/ assigned rows. Kerrytown Concert House, 415 N. 4th Ave. 734-769-2999. kerrytownconcerthouse.com

bass has to offer. Renaud will play scores from his awardwinning 10th album.

Abigail Stauffer

8pm. $15. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Acoustic sensation plays her new album “Where I’m Going” with heartfelt chords and lyrics.

The opening band is the acoustic folk band The Accidentals.

9 friday Ann Arbor Soul Club

9:30pm. $5/GA, $8/under 21. The Blind Pig, 208 S. 1st St. 734-996-8555. blindpigmusic.com

january

8pm. $20. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Detroit singer songwriter, and winner of 37 music awards since 1997, comes back around for her annual birthday bash.

11 sunday Earthwork Music Collective Tour

7:30pm. $20. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Inspired by UMMA’S exhibition of “Fred Tomaselli: The Times,” Stephen Rush and guests perform protest songs and Americana favorites.

8pm. $20. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Innocent love songs, and sincere lyrics, Forbert sings about his emotional life and gets personal.

15 thursday Tropidelic

9:30pm. $5/GA, $8/under 21. The Blind Pig, 208 S. 1st St. 734-996-8555. blindpigmusic.com

The funky-reggae, rock, ska band brings together a hip-hop influence in a fun show.

16 friday

Jonny Carroll

2015 / ecurrent.com

The 36th Anniversary Season of the Ann Arbor Concert Band continues with music from Strauss, Hindemith, Wagner, Brahm, and more.

14 wednesday

“Craft American Roots” is provided by Anna Lee’s Company, with former members from the Ragbirds, Back Forty, and Hoodang.

Drift deeply into Carroll’s warm voice and complete honesty, and become captivated by his story, as more and more of his compelling narrative is revealed with each song.

2pm. $10/GA, $5/students & seniors.

Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8397. michtheater.org

This Land is Your Land

Soul Club brings you groovy beats from DJ’s Brad Hales and Breck T. 8:30-10:30pm. Crazy Wisdom Bookstore and Tea Room, 114 S. Main St. 734-665-2757. crazywisdom.net Free

18 sunday

Wikommen: A Tribute to Ann Arbor’s German Heritage

New music from Michigan musicians Seth Bernard and May Erlewine.

Anna Lee’s Company

This jazz virtuoso explores all the possibilities that a double-

24

Jill Jack Birthday Bash

Steve Forbert

cont. from page 25

6 tuesday

Expect burlesque dancer Mimi

8:30-10:30pm. Crazy Wisdom Bookstore and Tea Room, 114 S. Main St. 734-665-2757. crazywisdom.net Free

Juggernaut Jug Band

8pm. $15. Green Wood Coffee House, 1001 Green Rd. 734-662-4536. greenwoodcoffeehouse.org

Jazz, blues ragtime, swing, mixed with washboards, washtubs, kazoos, jugs and various other make-shift instruments makes up the sound of the Juggernaut Jug Band.

7-9pm. University of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

19 monday Chris Emmerson + Stevie Frank

The Plymouth Coffee Bean, 884 Penniman Ave., Plymouth.

734-454-0178. plymouthcoffeebean.com Free

Airy singer Stevie Frank comes to the Bean. This Detroit musician will sing original songs with an emotional tone.

That night will also star piano virtuoso Chris Emmerson.

20 tuesday The Moanin’ Frogs

7pm. $5. Silver Maples Garden Room, 100 Silver Maples Dr., Chelsea. 734475-4111. silvermaples.org

Local saxophone sextet known for its wonderful ensemble with expansive work, ranging from fox trots, rags, character pieces, and waltzes characteristic of early 20th Century vaudeville and burlesque shows to original compositions and arrangements and works

by U-M music school modern rag masters William Bolcom, William Albright, and Stephen Rush.

21 wednesday

24 saturday Paula Cole

Edie Herrold Trio

Family-friendy duo San and Laz Slomovits have reinvigorated their career by creating new music aimed more toward adults.

Entertainment weekly calls Cole ”a feisty poet with a soaring voice and a funky groove.”

From a small town in Massachusets, and a background in jazz from Berklee College of Music, this female vocalist is sure to enchant.

Vinology’s Thursday Jazz Night features the Edie Herrold Trio performing Latin, standard, and modern jazz including some originals performed by bassist Herrold, with guitarist Brian Delaney and pianist Dale Grisa.

8pm. $15. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

22 thursday The Weller Duo

8pm. $5-$25. Kerrytown Concert House, 415 N. 4th Ave. 734-769-2999. kerrytownconcerthouse.com

Anna and Derek Weller will give a recital of Mozart and more with pianist Giacomo Schniardo.

23 friday The RFD Boys

7pm. $11. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Delightful Southeastern Michigan band has been playing for audiences since 1969, always bringing great musicianship to the stage, along with a good sense of humor.

Stephen Rush Naked Dance!

8pm. $5-$25. Kerrytown Concert House, 415 N. 4th Ave. 734-769-2999. kerrytownconcerthouse.com

Piano, percussion, saxophone, clarinet and flute will all be featured in this performance, with Jeremy Edwards and Andrew Bishop.

8pm. $25. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

25 sunday Black Jake & The Carnies

7:30pm. $15. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1818. theark.org

Fierce murder ballads and tough, no-nonsense lyrics are the style of this old-time string band. It’s Americana with guts.

Folk the Police 5th Anniversary

8pm. $15. The Blind Pig, 208 S. 1st St. 734-996-8555. blindpigmusic.com

Celebrate 5 years of folk tribute to hip-hop with the next installment in this series that honors hip-hop legends in the style of folk. Ages 18+.

26 monday Marco Aziel

8pm. The Plymouth Coffee Bean, 884 Penniman Ave., Plymouth. 734-4540178. plymouthcoffeebean.com Free

Dark lyrics and original scores highlight this artist’s performance.

music

29 thursday

Gemini

8pm-10:30pm. Vinology, 110 S. Main St. 734-222-9841. vinologya2.com Free

30 friday Kenny Garrett

8pm. $18-$99. Max M. Fisher Music Center, 3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit.

313-576-5111. dso.org

Detroit native Kenny Garrett has enjoyed a stellar career that spanning over 30 years.

Garrett has always brought a vigorous yet melodic and truly distinctive alto saxophone sound to each of his musical situations. Now Garrett comes home, along with his quintet, in what’s sure to be an unforgettable evening.

38th Annual Folk Festival

6:30pm. $37.50-$200. Hill Auditorium, 825 N. University Ave.

The Folk Fest is back! The lineup for the first night: Brandi Carlile, Jason Isbell, Yonder Mountain String Band, Baskery, Bahamas, Mandolin Orange, Billy Strings, Don Julin, with Steve Poltz as MC. Runs the following night, Saturday 31.

The lineup for the second night: Amos Lee, Ani Difranco, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Holly

Williams, The Dustbowl Revival, Laith Al-Saadi, and Cheryl Wheeler as MC.

Michael Joseph

7pm. Silvio’s Organic Pizza, 715 N. University Ave. 734-214-6666. silviosorganicpizza.com Free

A rocker at heart, Michael does covers with an acoustic, sometimes jazzy, twist.

Everything from Badfinger to Cowboy Junkies to Smashing Pumpkins, with a few originals in between.

31 saturday Mozart Birthday Bash

8pm. $31-$62. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8397. michtheater.org

Mozart’s works are performed by the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, including the only oboe concerto. The concert ends in the ever-popular Symphony No. 40.

Dysnomia

5-8:30pm. $30. Detroit’s Eastern Market, 2934 Russell St., Detroit. 313833-9300. detroiteasternmarket.com

Brooklyn based trio with insane yet listenable music stylings, with electronic roots.

ts More event a e onlin com ecurrent.

ecurrent.com / january 2015 25

film 1 thursday The Imitation Game

Time TBA. $10/adult, $8/students & seniors, $7.50/ members. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-6688463. michtheater.com

It’s your last chance to see this movie starring Benedict Cumberbatch at the Michigan Theater. The story of mathematician and cryptanalyst Alan Turing.

2 friday Spike & Mike’s Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation

8pm. $14.50. The Magic Bag, 22920 Woodward Ave., Ferndale.

248-544-3030. themagicbag.com

Adult comedy meets animation in this event. Come and view this raunchy comedy genius.

Runs through January 3.

9 friday Selma

Time TBA. $10-$15. Rave Cinema 20, 4100 Carpenter Rd., Ypsilanti.

734-973-8424. movietickets.com

The film surrounding the movement stirred by the charisma of one man, and the non-violent revolution he supported. The story of Martin Luther King Jr. hits theaters on this day.

We Are Twisted F***ing Sister

8pm. $7. The Magic Bag, 22920 Woodward Ave., Ferndale. 248-5443030. themagicbag.com

View the special sneak peak of the film about the famous band Twisted Sister during a special fundraising screening.

10 saturday Miss Granny

2pm. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463. michtheater.org

The 2014 South Korean comedy-drama film about a woman in her 70’s who magically finds herself in the body of her 20-year-old self.

ts More event online a m co ecurrent.

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january

Turtle Power Sunday, January 11

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the international pop-cultural fixture of the late 1980s and ’90s, returns to the silver screen. The four crime-fighting anthropomorphic turtle brothers, mutated by exposure to radiation, were featured in comic books, a TV series, feature films, and a toy line the LA Times reports to be worth the GDP of Guinea-Bissau. Oh, and we got a Vanilla Ice ninja rap, too. 1:30pm Sunday, January 11. $10/adult, $8/student, senior, veterans, $7.50/ member, free/kids 12 and under. Michigan Theater. 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463.

12 monday Noir Film Series: The Maltese Falcon

7pm. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. $10/general admission, $8/children, students, & seniors/$8, Members/$7.50.

734-668-8463. michtheater.org

Classic detective drama adapted from the Dashiell Hammett novel about “the stuff dreams are made of.” Starring Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Peter Lorre.

From John Huston, 1941.

13 tuesday Negativland: Our Favorite Things

8:30pm. Arbor Brewing Company, 114 E. Washington St. 734-763-3500. arborbrewing.com Free

18 sunday National Theatre Live: John

7pm. $22. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463. michtheater. org

Live theater broadcast from London from DV8 Physical Theatre, “John” combines movement and spoken word to create a moving portrayal of real-life stories.

19 monday Noir Film Series: Laura

7pm. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. $10/general admission, $8/children, students, & seniors/$8, Members/$7.50. 734-668-8463. michtheater.org

WCBN-FM presents the Veteran San Francisco avant guard sound collage animators 2007 DVD compilation.

A police detective falls in love with the woman whose murder he is investigating. Starring Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews.

From Otto Preminger, 1944.

16 friday

20 tuesday

Why Not Now!

Yizkor

Documentary about the life and works of the mid-20th-century philosopher and spiritual entertainer Alan Watts.

As part of the Yiddish Film Series, this film, presented by Frankel Center for Judaic Studies, dramatizes the theme of fidelity to one’s self, one’s community, and one’s religion.

7pm. Jewel Heart Buddhist Center, 1129 Oak Valley Dr. 734-994-3387. jewelheart.org Free

17 saturday A Hard Day

2pm. The Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463. michtheater. org Free

Homicide detective Go Geonsoo is having a hard day, and the following events happen to him in less than 24 hours. Watch this Korean movie, directed by Kim Seong-hun.

2015 / ecurrent.com

5pm. Room 2022, 202 S. Thayer St. lsa.umich.edu Free

22 thursday Knitflix: Cinema & Crafts 6:30-8:30pm. Saline District Library, 555 N. Maple Rd. 734-429-5450. saline.lib.mi.us Free

Bring your crafts and settle in for a classic movie. Knitting, crochet and other handicrafts are welcome. Registration requested.

24 saturday Hope

2pm. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463. michtheater.org

Korean Cinema NOW presents the film based on a true story of the infamous Nayoung case, a controversial rape case in 2008.

25 sunday Central Asian Film Series: Student

4pm. Rackham Amphitheatre, 915 E. Washington St. 734-764-6296. rackham.umich.edu Free

A solitary philosophy student steers his listlessness toward the commission of a violent crime, spurred on by postmodern musings and a post-Soviet order characterized by growing inequality, institutional corruption and a ruthless ethic of “eat or be eaten.” Inspired by Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment.

Kazakh & Russian, subtitles.

26 monday American Denial

5pm. Weill Hall, Annenberg Auditorium, 735. 734-764-3490. fordschool.umich.edu Free

As part of the 2015 Martin Luther King, Jr. Symposium, the Center for Diverse Societies in Public Policy presents a screening of American Denial, followed by a discussion with producer/director Llewellyn Smith, Martha Jones (link is external), and moderated by the Ford School’s own Joy Rohde.

STEEL MAGNOLIAS

theater

The Purple Rose Theater presents the story of a few regulars who convene at a local beauty shop. Through the insults, rumors and gossip it might seem like these women aren’t meant to be friends, but Truvy, Shelby, Clairee, Ousier, and Annelle depend on each other when tragedy strikes, sharing jokes along the way. January 15 - March 14. Purple Rose Theatre, 137 Park St., Chelsea.

734-433-7673. —RC

2 friday Closing Weekend: Wicked $55-$195. Detroit Opera House, 1526 Broadway St. 313-237-7674. michiganopera.org

The musical Wicked is having its final showing of the season in the first week of January.

Come and experience the untold story of the witches of Oz. 8pm Fridays, 2pm and 8pm Saturdays, 7:30pm Sunday.

3 saturday Opening Night: Pinocchio 2:30pm. $9. Marquis Theatre, 135 Main St., Northville. 248-349-8110. northvillemarquistheatre.com

Northville’s Historic Theatre brings the story of the doll who got his wish to be a real boy.

Showing Saturdays & Sundays all month long.

5 monday 50 First Jokes: First Annual Ann Arbor Event 8pm. $10. The Ark, 316 S. Main St. 734-761-1451. theark.org

A national comedy event comes to Ann Arbor. Fifty of the Michigan area’s aspiring and veteran comedians take the stage to tell their newest jokes.

7 wednesday Opening Night: Helen and Edgar

$45. 7:30pm. Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin Ave. 734-764-2538. ums.org

The creative team behind storytelling juggernaut The Moth joined with acclaimed raconteur Edgar Oliver to create a mesmerizing, hilarious, heartbreaking tale of Edgar’s strange childhood in Savannah with his sister Helen and their mother’s smothering paranoia. 7:30pm Wednesday & Thursday, 8pm Friday, 2pm & 8pm Saturday and Sunday. Show runs through January 11.

8 thursday Mark Sweetman at Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase

8pm. Thursday: $9/advance, $11/ at the door; Friday & Saturday: $12/ advance, $14/at the door. Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase, 212 S. Fourth Ave. 734-996-9080. aacomedy.com

This veteran Detroit comic known for his dry wit and philosophical humor. Show runs through January 10.

10 saturday This Is The 70s

8pm. $29-$49. The Whiting, 1241 E. Kearsley St., Flint

This Is The 70s is the ultimate multimedia stage experience that takes the audience on a journey through the music, news events and pop culture of the 1970’s in a creative blend of live music performance, film, dance, lighting and superior graphics. This stage production features classic songs from Journey, Led Zeppelin, Peter Frampton, Fleetwood Mac and many more.

Cirque de la Symphonie

8pm. $19-$105. Max M. Fisher Music Center, 3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit.

313-576-5111. dso.org

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Stuart Chafetz are joined

by Cirque de la Symphonie. Aerial acrobats literally swing into Orchestra Hall performing ravitydefying feature choreographed to live music performed by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

Acrobats, aerialists, contortionists, strongmen, and jugglers all perform above and around the orchestra. 8pm Saturday and 3pm Sunday.

15 thursday Opening Weekend: Yellowman

7:30pm. $12.50-$39. Performance Network Theatre, 120 E. Huron St. 734-663-0681. pntheatre.org

A two-person multi-character love story about racial identity, as two people from separate backgrounds are tied together by fate. Written by Dael Orlandersmith. 7:30pm Thursday, 8pm Friday, 3pm & 8pm Saturday, 2pm Sunday. Thursday-Sunday through February 15.

Opening Weekend: Steel Magnolias

7pm. $12-$55. Purple Rose Theatre, 136 Park St., Chelsea. 734-433-7782. purplerosetheatre.org

The classic comedy that celebrates the strong bond of six small-town women who can still laugh at the face of adversity. Showtimes: 2pm & 7pm Wednesdays, 7pm Thursdays, 8pm Fridays, 3pm & 8pm Saturdays, 2pm Sundays. Runs until March 14.

Bonnie & Clyde

8pm. $13-$25. Lydia Mendelssohn Theater, 911 N. University Ave. 734-763-3333. a2ct.org/shows

The story of a couple of outlaws is sung and danced through on

stage. The play is directed by Ron Baumanis. 8pm ThursdaySaturday, 2pm Sunday. Runs through January 18.

Kinky Boots

$59-$500.The Fisher Theatre, 3011 Grand Blvd., Detroit. 313-872-1000. broadwayindetroit.com

The easy-to-love Broadway musical Kinky Boots comes to The D. Follow the heartfelt story of a drag queen who, out of desperation to keep his family business afloat, employs a less than traditional marketing strategy. With music by Cyndy Lauper, this Tony and Grammy Award winning play makes for a great night out on the town.

Show runs until January 25.

Visit website for showtimes.

Roy Wood Jr.

Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase, 212 S. Fourth Ave.. $14/advanced; $18/at the door. 734-996-9080. aacomedy.org

Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase presents Roy Wood Jr., known for his prank calls and TBS sitcom Sullivan and Son. 8pm Thursday-Saturday, 10:30pm Friday & Saturday. Show runs until January 17.

16 friday Dobet Gnahore

8pm. $20, Students/$10. Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-6688463. michtheater.org

Theatre and dance company from the Ivory Coast brings Dobet Gnahore, a singer, dancer, and percussionist. Immerse yourself in African melodies and rhythms.

22 thursday Strega Nona and the Magic Pasta Pot

10am. $8/child, senior, $12/adult.

Towsley Auditorium, 4800 E. Huron River Dr. 734-973-3300. wildswantheater.org

Strega Nona is a story that will satisfy your appetite for laughter. Our main character magically controls a pasta pot, so come watch as silliness ensues. 10am Thursday, 10am & noon Friday, 11am Sunday.

Runs through January 24.

Kathy Griffin at Motor City Casino

8pm. $40-$60. Motor City Casino, 2901 Grand River, Detroit. 866-752-9622. motorcitycasino.com

Her wicked sense of humor is never meant to be malicious, but Kathy Griffin can’t seem to avoid bringing the shock factor to her routine. Dishing the dirt

about celebrities is her calling card, and her most recent standup album “Calm Down Gurrl” won her a 2013 Grammy.

23 friday Compagnie Marie Chouinard

8pm. $26-$48.Power Center, 121 Fletcher St. 734-647-3327. ums.org

Described as “a hurricane of unbridled imaginativeness,” Chouinard brings her Montrealbased dancing troupe to A2 to show off her compelling choreographic version of India ink drawings and poetry.

30 friday Momentum

7:30pm. Walgreen Drama Center: Studio 1, 1226 Murfin Ave., North Campus.734-763-5097. music.umich. edu/performances_events Free

Theatre students present a staged screenplay about maintaining community while living on the edge. Parkour and street smarts, love stories and conflict are all parts of this story. Also runs on Saturday, January 31.

Tick, Tick…BOOM!

8pm. $15. Ann Arbor Civic Theatre Studio Theater, 322 W. Ann St. 734-971-2228. a2ct.org

From the author of RENT comes an autobiographical musical about the courage it takes to follow your dreams. This is the show’s first performance, and it runs until February 8.

More showtimes are online.

31 saturday VooDoo Theatre Company 7:30pm. $5. Greenhills School, 850 Greenhills Dr. 734-205-4098. greenhillsschool.org

Student-written and produced comedy show.

Ongoing Thursdays: Comedy Jam

8pm. $5. Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase, 212 S. Fourth St. 734-996-9080. aacomedy.com

Performances by aspiring standup comics from the area.

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ecurrent.com / january 2015 27

art art art

Quiet by Dylan Strzynski

ArtBeat Allegorical Space at the AAAC

Sightings by Jason DeMarte

By Louis W. Meldman

T

he Ann Arbor Art Center was founded 115 years painter gathering the tribe together in the warm, stinking ago. It is one of Michigan’s oldest visual arts organi- glow of the scrap lumber fire: Human progress is overzations and it keeps getting better. It hosts monthly rated.” That’s my Dylan! Lately he’s been using oil and tar, art exhibitions for the public, teaches studio art and art acrylic graphite, staples and found junk, solvent transfers, appreciation courses, organizes youth art camps through- Conte crayon pencil, sod, paper mache and prismacolor to out the year, runs an outstanding gallery shop promoting make his distinctive paintings, sculptures and landscape regional artists, and puts installations. It’s cool, it’s fun, and this is a great time to on special events—parties, experience his latest work.

Photo by Millee Tibbs really—such as Artini, Jason DeMarte. A tenured Paint the Town and the professor in photography at EMU, Ann Arbor Art and Brew.

DeMarte garnered his BFA in photog“Allegorical Space” opens raphy at Colorado State University on January 9 and runs and his MFA in photography at the through February 22.

University of Oregon. His work invesAllegorical space retigates how our contemporary interfers to the background, the pretation of the natural world reflects context, the setting within our consumer environment, which he which all of our experiences calls “unnatural.” He works digitalare based—visual experily, juxtaposing fabricated flora and ence, of course, but also fauna with commercially produced Mountains + Valleys (Death Valley #3) the physical, mental, emoproducts. It is a fascinating, beautiful and

by Mille Tibbs tional and spiritual aspects of our very colorful exploration of what is “real.” lives. We see and notice the figure, but almost by necesMillee Tibbs. She has her MFA in photography from sity we ignore the ground behind it, and to that extent we the Rhode Island School of Design and is currently rebecome ungrounded. An elk in the forest is invisible, but if siding in Detroit and teaching at Wayne State University. it exudes an iridescent color not found in nature it forces a She has had solo shows from Portland, Oregon to Chinew reality of both the animal and the environment. This cago to Boston to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic show brings into relief that which we commonly ignore, to Cologne, Germany and everywhere in between. She is but without which we would have no sensation at all. interested in surfaces and their relationship to what lies True to form the Center has appointed as curator a beneath the surfaces. She feels that photography is preuniquely qualified and gifted artist and teacher of art: Bri- eminently suited to this investigation because of its ubiqan Spolans. Spolans is an Assistant Professor of Fine Art uity in all of our lives. In the case of Charles Kanwischer, at Eastern Michigan University, which has in recent years however, etching can be just as real and evocative as phobeen luring top artistic talent from around the world. He tography, sometimes more real. Kanwischer was born in was awarded his own Bachelor of Fine Art degree from Oklahoma City and earned his BFA in printmaking at the the University of Texas, and his Master’s in printmaking University of Iowa and his MFA in painting and printfrom the University of North Texas. His interest has al- making at the Yale University School of Art. His work is ways been the reorganization and recontextualization of part of numerous public and private collections, includstories from the popular media, and he does it in pleasing ing that of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. He sees the and delightful pictures with pen, ink, watercolor and other world, natural and man-made, in flux and he captures that media. For this show Spolans has brought together eight awesome movement and interchange in his prints. You local artists, each with his or her unique take on the spaces can meet all eight artists and the curator, the Art Center that frame our lives. community, and maybe even me at the opening on January Dylan Strzynski. Long an Ann Arbor favorite, 9, from 6 to 8pm. Bring a date or two or the whole family.

University of Michigan School of Art grad, Strzynski sees It’s going to be fun. himself “more a drawer than a painter, sort of a cartoon Ann Arbor Art Center, 117 W. Liberty St., (734) 994-8004 expressionist. Ultimately I am a post-industrial cave

28

january

2015 / ecurrent.com

When art collides with science

art

The Flip Your Field series invites professors and professionals to curate and design an art exhibition that falls outside of their realm of expertise.

Georgios Skiniotis, a professor of Biological Chemistry and instructor at U-M’s Life and Sciences Institute and Medical School, curates an exhibition that examines how our brains perceive light. This scientific series displays threedimensional models of cellular components, the microscopic inner-workings of the structural and functional units of life, juxtaposing magnified shadows and projections viewed from different perspectives. January 24th through July 19th.

UMMA, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395.—RC

Sonia Sheridan, Self-Portrait in Time, 1989, digital print, UMMA, Gift of Professor Diane M. Kirkpatrick, 2000/2.15

4 sunday Closing Day: Paramodel

University of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

An art collaboration established by two contemporary Japanese artists, Yasuhiko Hayashi and Yusuke Nakano, in Oksaka in 2001. Working in a variety of media, including painting, sculpture, photography, and video, constructing a parallel world of “play” intersecting with the real world.

8 thursday Continuing Drawing

1-3:30 pm. $200. Ann Arbor Art Center, 117 W. Liberty St. 734-994-8004. annarborartcenter.org

Designed for students with minimal to intermediate drawing experience this course will focus on learning/reinforcing foundation principles of drawing. Runs until March 5th.

Registration required.

9 friday Anatomy & The Figure 6:30-9pm. $240. Ann Arbor Art Center, 117 W. Liberty St. 734-994-8004. annarborartcenter.org

Class begins under instructor Nick Reszetar in an introductory course to the depiction of human form through observational drawing. Runs until March 6. Registration required.

11 sunday Guided Tour: Engaging with Art

1-2pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

UMMA docents guide visitors through the galleries on tours centered around their expertise.

In Conversation with Carole McNamara

3-4pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

Suspended Moments of Childhood is the title of the exhibit that UMMA’S Senior Curator

of Western Art, Carole McNamara, will discuss during this talk. Registration is encouraged.

Guided Tour: Reductive Minimalism: Women Artists in Dialogue 2-3pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. Umma.umich.edu Free

Take a tour of the newest stage of evolution of minimalism, and learn about the women who transformed the style by putting it on a more intimate scale.

12 monday Basics of Linoleum Cut Printmaking

6:30-9pm. $100. Ann Arbor Art Center , 117 W. Liberty St. 734-994-8004. annarborartcenter.org

tage during the genocide and reconstruction in its aftermath constitute powerful symbols of violence, but also of human survival and recovery. Speaker is Heghnar Watenpaugh, associate professor of art history from University of California, Davis.

17 saturday The Butter Lounge

6pm-2am. $10 suggested donation.

Make Art Studio, 215 S. Main St. makeitonmainstreet.com

Be immersed in an avant-guard exploration of the mind. Let visual art and sounds transport everyone peacefully to the “Butter Side” of the mind. Also runs on Sunday.

22 thursday

This 8-week course begins. It will teach the basics behind this exciting printmaking technique. For both the complete novice and the seasoned professional, block printing with linoleum is fun and easy to learn.

Dykes, Dads, and Moms to Watch OuT For: The Comics of Alison Bechdel Exhibition

14 wednesday

The opening reception of an exhibition of the work of American cartoonist Alison Bechdel.

Originally best known for the long-running comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, she came to critical and commercial success in 2006 with her graphic memoir Fun Home, which was subsequently adapted as a musical. Exhibit runs until February 25.

Now or Never

8:30am-7pm. Audubon Room, Hatcher Graduate Library, 913 S. University Ave. las.umich.edu Free

The Francis W. Kelsey exhibit of opens, displaying photos, artifacts, and documents of the aftermath of WWI. Runs until April 24.

Eastern Michigan University Faculty Exhibition Reception

4-7pm. Eastern Michigan University, University Gallery, 900 Oakwood St., Ypsilanti. 734-487-0465. emich.edu Free

Exhibit featuring the work of EMU’s Art Department faculty.

Art Heritage and Armenian Genocide Opening Reception and Lecture

4-7:30pm. Hatcher Graduate Library, Room 100, 913 S. University Ave. lsa.umich.edu Free

Art Exhibit highlighting the destruction of cultural heri-

6:30pm. University of Michigan Institute for the Humanities, 202 S. Thayer St.734-936-3519. lsa.umich.edu Free

24 saturday Flip Your Field

11am-5pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

Scientist Georgios Skiniotis creates three dimensional models of cellular components that examines how we perceive light. Runs until July 19.

Medicinal Plants and Gardens

11am-5pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-1354. umma.umich.edu Free

The exhibit displays rarely seen archival plant specimens, with historic photos, and a drawing of the new garden. The exhibition celebrates the opening of the new Medical Garden at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, aiming to explore the botanical origins of historical and current medicines, and to examine the relationship between plants and human health. Runs until May 3.

25 sunday Guided Tour: Detroit before the Automobile

2-2:30pm. University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

Drawn from the extensive holdings of the U-M William L. Clements Library. Be guided through an exhibit that illustrates the rich history of Detroit before its identity as the motor city.

28 wednesday Monthly Figure Drawing

12:30pm-3pm. $20. Ann Arbor Art Center, 117 W. Liberty St. 734-994-8004. annarborartcenter.org

Work independently from nude models in a large studio and work at your own pace. Registration is required.

Ongoing

Photographs from the Detroit Walk-In Portrait Studio

Free with Museum Admission/$8.

Detroit Institute of Art. 313-833-7900. dia.org

Dutch-born photographer, now detroiter, Corine Vermeulen’s photographs share stories about the city and support of its diverse communities.

More events online at ecurrent.com ecurrent.com / january 2015 29

literature

“Does This Have Any Apps?”

Literati’s typewriter lets customers leave their mark

By Alice Holbrook

“Thanks 4 such a beautiful shop!”

“Do you know how loved you are?”

“Fart fart fart fart fart fart fart” Customers venturing into Literati’s basement will first find a typewriter and the thoughts of some grateful, philosophical, and occasionally silly customers, taped to the wall above it.

The different messages delight co-owner Mike Gustafson. “The typewriter is the world’s smallest, most efficient publishing house. Everything is in real time.” And, because he switches out each full sheet, he adds, “There’s at least one person reading everything.”

For Gustafson and his partner Hilary Lowe, it’s hard to say where the idea for the typewriter came from. However, it’s supported by his personal typewriter collection – “I have 15 or 20” he says, mostly from Kiwanis and Treasure Mart – and he believes it fits in with the store.

“A different process happens when you type on the typewriter. When your key hits the page, you have to be very sure of yourself. There’s a similar notion behind an independent bookstore of our size. We have to curate carefully and respond to community needs.”

That one of these needs was self-expression came as a bit of a surprise to Gustafson and Lowe. Initially, he says, the typewriter was “more for display. Then people started writing these amazing insights and observations, and I started taping the sheets up on the wall, and that spurred on more interesting insights and observations.”

Literati is now on their third or fourth typewriter, and Gustafson has more than his share of stories.

“We’ve had two people propose on the typewriter.

They both said yes.”

BATMAN IN FOCUS

Matt Yockey is an Assistant Professor of Film at The

University of Toledo by day, but by night he studies the dark-winged detective super-hero Batman. Vault of Midnight Comix invites Yockey to lead a talk about his new book Batman, which explores the social impact the superhero’s 1966 TV-series had on American culture. 6:30-7:30pm. Friday 30. Vault of Midnight, 219 Main St. 734-998-1413. --RC

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Photo by Marisa Rubin

It has also inspired an inter-species pen-pal relationship. “The Violin Monster typed a message on the typewriter and I put it up on our social media page. Then one of our customers, a 7-year-old named Logan, saw the message, and wrote one back to the Violin Monster, and I posted that. And then the Violin Monster wrote a message back...”

Logan and the Violin Monster also arranged their eventual meeting on the typewriter.

Kids like Logan are some of the typewriters biggest fans, Gustafson says, and he loves seeing parents and grandparents introduce them to the technology. He adds, “It’s heavily used by a lot of people who’ve never used a typewriter before, which is the point.”

When repairs are inevitably needed, Gustafson is happy to step in. “As far as I can tell, there are no longer any typewriter repair shops in Michigan, so I’ve tried to do as much as I can myself.”

And when it’s not fixable? “It just gives me an excuse to find the next one.”

But customers are typically respectful when it comes to the machines and what they write on them, and Gustafson emphasizes that he and Lowe value customers’ contributions. They rarely remove messages.

“I like the typewriter to be a mirror of our customers, and I want it to be as accurate as possible,” he says. “We’re a community space. Having people come in and have fun is great.”

Literati Bookstore, 124 E. Washington St.

current reads

Local Reads Monday 5 Prophetic Poetics

Noon. Michigan Union Ballroom, 530 S. State St. 734-763-5750. uunions.umich.edu Free

An event sponsored by the Islamic Studies Program which focuses on the works of Middle Eastern poets.

Monday 12 Mystery Book Club

7pm. Breakaway Restaurant, 501 Coliseum Dr., Chelsea.

734-475-7035. chelsea.lib.mi.us Free

January’s Chelsea District Library book club subject is Peter Robinson’s Alan Banks mysteries.

Wednesday 14 The Power of the Public

4-5:30pm.Power Center, 121 Fletcher St. 734-764-3327. fordschool.umich.edu Free

Janet Napolitano, see FYI pg 6 for more info.

Book Discussion Group

7pm. Saline District Library: Brecon Room, 555 N. Maple Rd. 734-429-5450. saline.lib.mi.us Free

Monthly book club meets for January’s book, We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves

by Karen Jay Fowler. New participants are always welcome, pick up the book at the Adult Reference Desk on a first-come, first-served basis.

An Evening of Poetry and Written Word

7-8:45pm. Crazy Wisdom Tea Room, 114 S. Main St. 734-665-2757. crazywisdom.net Free

Crazy Wisdom Tea room presents Madeline Strong Diehl, winner of T.S. Eliot Poetry Prize, and now a magazine journalist and editor, discusses her new book Wrestling with Angels.

Thursday 15 Poetry Readings

7pm. The Plymouth Coffee Bean, 884 Penniman Ave, Plymouth.

734-454-0178. plymouthcoffeebean.com Free

Come to the Plymouth Coffee

Bean with your beaten up spiral notebook, and your bleeding heart, and muster the courage to read your original poetry.

Friday 16 Edwards Reading Series

7pm. 2072 Pauline Blvd. Apt 2072TA. 734-764-6330. lsa.umich.edu/english/events Free

In the third installment of the Edwards Reading Series, first year MFA students Elizabeth Dickey, Josh Garfinkel, Hannah Louise Poston, and Helena Smith will read poetry and prose.

Tuesday 20 The Moth

6-10pm. $8. Circus Bar, 210 S. First St. 734-918-8890. circusannarbor.com

Storytelling comes to Ann Arbor in this NPR event that shows off funny, sad, and true stories.

Wednesday 21 On Purpose: Lessons in Life

and Health from the Frog, the Dung Beetle, and Julia 5:30pm. Hatcher Library Gallery, 202 S. Thayer St.734-327-4200. lsa.umich.edu Free

Sunday 25 Ann Arbor Storytelling Guild

Wednesday 28

2-4pm. Nicola’s Books, Westgate Shopping Center. 734-971-5763. nicolasbooks.com Free

Listen to the guild members swap stories, or share your own story.

Monday 26 Jerry Dennis

7-8:30pm. Downtown District Library’s multipurpose room, 343 S. Fifth Ave. 734-327-4555. aadl.org Free

Vic Strecher’s panel describing his inspiration from the experience of being “broken open” after the death of his daughter Julia. His book,a self-help guide, college lecture, confessional, and time-travel adventure all rolled into one, On Purpose uses a beautiful, fantasy-fueled, graphic novel format to tell a story of selfdiscovery and personal growth you’ll never forget.

This renowned Michigan nature writer discusses his writing career, followed by a book signing. Dennis recently published his debut poetry collection, A Daybreak Handbook.

Thursday 22 Alison Bechdel Lecture

January’s book is titled Life after Life by Kate Atkinson.

The novel combines narratives of alternate possible lives for upper middle class British women born in 1910. Copies available at the Chelsea District Library.

5-6pm. The Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. 734-668-8463. michtheater.org Free

In part of the Helen Zell Visiting Writers Series, Alison Bechdel is a cartoonist and graphic memoirist exploring the complexities of familial relationships in multilayered works that use the interplay of word and image to weave sophisticated narratives.

She leads a discussion on her work.

Friday 23 Mark Webster

Reading Series

7-8:15pm. University of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu Free

This series remembers the life and poetry of Mark Webster.

One MFA student of fiction, Rory Atwood, and one of poetry, Rachel Harkai, will read their works. Event takes place in Helmut Stern Auditorium.

Art & Authors: Book

Discussion - 8 Girls Taking Pictures

10:30am-12:30pm. Free with museum admission of $8. Detroit Institute of Arts, 5200 Woodward Ave. 313-833-7900. dia.org

This novel weaves together the stories of eight 20th Century women photographers.

These fictional characters are inspired by real-life photographers, including Imogen Cunningham, Judy Dater, Sally Mann, Tina Modotti, and Ruth Orkin whose images are part of the DIA’s extensive photography collection. Pre-registration is required. Runs through the following day, Saturday 24.

Tuesday 27 Reading Glasses Book Club 7:30-9pm. Chelsea Alehouse, 420 N. Main Street, Suite 100.

734-475-8732. chelseaalehouse.com Free

Hopwood Underclassman

Awards Ceremony

3:30pm. Rackham Amphitheatre, 915 E. Washington St. 734-764-6330. lsa.umich.edu/english/ events Free

Winners of the fall term creative writing contests administered by the Hopwood Awards Program will be announced. A fiction reading by Changrae Lee will follow the announcement of the awards.

Chang-rae Lee is a Korean American novelist and a professor of creative writing at Princeton University. He is the author of five novels, most recently On Such a Full Sea, which is set in a dystopian Baltimore.

The Literary Adventures of Silver in Early Modern China

Noon-1pm. Michigan League Anderson Room, 911 N. University Ave. 734-764-0446. uunions.umich.edu/league Free

Brown University Asian languages-cultures professor Sarah Kile discusses popular anecdotes and fictional narratives from 17th-century China that reveal how silver and the objects whose value it both represented and contained were imagined and depicted.

Author’s Forum: Staging

Ground

7pm. Ann Arbor District Library: Downtown Branch, 343 S. Fifth Ave. 734-327-4200. ums.org Free

Ann Arbor author Leslie Stainton lectures on her new book Staging Ground, which captures the history of one of America’s oldest and most ghosted theaters, The Fulton Theatre in Lancaster, Pennyslvania.

Thursday 29 Emily Wilson and Michael

Morse Canarium Books Poetry Reading

5-6:15pm.University Of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State St. 734-764-0395. umma.umich.edu

Emily Wilson is the author of The Keep, Micrographia, and The Great Medieval Yellows.

Michael Morse has published poems in various journals, like The American Poetry Review.

Friday 30 Matt Yockey at Vault of Midnight

6:30-7:30pm. Vault of Midnight, 219 Main St. 734-998-1413. Free vaultofmidnight.com

See more pg 30.

Ongoing: Mondays:

Monday Evening Book Group 7pm. Ypsilanti District LibraryWhittaker: Conference Room 1C, 5577 Whittaker Rd. 734-482-4110. ypsilibrary.org Free

Joining a book group is a great way to meet new people and experience the fun of discussing a book together.

Thursdays:

Comics Literary Society

7pm. Ypsilanti District Library, 229 W. Michigan Ave. 734-482-4110. ypsilibrary.org Free

Come join YDL’s newest book club as we explore graphic novels, graphic nonfiction and comic strips from different countries and different subcultures.

ts More event online a m co ecurrent.

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sports The Truth is out there On the hunt for Sasquatch in Washtenaw County

By Ann Dwyer

There are a few things you need to know before going out on a Sasquatch hunt. Bring a good flashlight and plenty of water. Know your territory so you don’t get lost in the woods. Refer to them as “Squatch,” and you’ll sound like you’ve done this before.

Also, be prepared to make some really strange noises.

I joined cryptozoologist Greg Smith on a hunt for the elusive hirsute creature after we met at the neighborhood party store where Greg works part time. As I paid for my wine, he eagerly told me about his Sasquatch adventures.

I nodded politely, but after overhearing him talk to other customers on different occasions (I buy a lot of wine, don’t judge), my interest was piqued.

Smith is aware that some people might think his hobby is a little odd, but according to him, “you have to debunk something before you can prove it.”

Using this approach, Smith says he has convinced even his most skeptical friends with his evidence.

Smith, a former corrections officer, got into Squatch hunting after a co-worker took him out on a hunt.

Twenty-six years later, he continues to hunt, sharing his interest with his family and friends.

I followed him in my car to a patch of woods in northern Washtenaw County, a location which will remain undisclosed. Smith likes to keep the number of visitors to a minimum; too much human intrusion tends to keep the Squatch away.

Smith refuses to be called an expert on the “Squatch,” claiming there is no such thing as a Sasquatch expert. “To be an expert, you’d have to interact with them face-toface. No one has done that, so no one can claim to be an expert.”

But just because he has yet to interact face-to-face with a Squatch doesn’t mean Smith hasn’t seen one. In fact, he has seen a few. He even gives them names—Blondie and Pickapoo.

So what do you need to know about the Sasquatch?

Tall. Greg described Blondie as roughly eight to nine feet tall.

Bodies covered in hair.

Hands that fall below the knees allowing them to run on all fours.

They smell like urine.

“Oh, I’ve smelled ‘em,” he says.

So as long as you are sure you are nowhere near a Port-a-John, the smell of urine is like the sweet odor of success, and you are on the right trail to finding a Squatch. But the hunt does not rely on the olfactory sense alone.

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I.A. LATEEF

Holes in the ground may be evidence that a Squatch has been digging for food such as ants.

Sticks placed in patterns such as tic tac toes or crosses.

Felled trees with no root ball.

Trees placed in the forks of other trees.

But beware that if a Squatch is in the area, you may find yourself getting “zapped.” What is getting zapped?

“Basically it makes you feel disoriented and you’ll go in the wrong direction even though you know which way is the right way,” says Smith. Even with the use of high tech devices and a good sense of direction, Smith says he and a fellow Squatcher found themselves confusedly travelling in circles one night. “You can’t figure out what it is, if it’s a sound, or why they do it.”

Squatches also possess the ability to mess with photographic equipment. Smith cited several instances in which he had set up trail cameras only to find no pictures on them despite the light signaling they had gone off. “I have seen them. I just can’t get a picture of them.”

It is his major goal in his hunt, to get photographic evidence and prove without a shadow of a doubt they exist. Unfortunately, they are not very cooperative.

sports Light a lantern to pique their curiosity.

Beating on trees with a stick is often how they communicate.

Leave out bait, such as peanut butter.

Squatch call.

As an observer, I can say first hand you never get used to hearing a Squatch call. It is a loud guttural yell that will take you by surprise even if you are prepared for it.

From what I gather, it takes a lot of practice to become proficient in the proper Squatch call.

In the end, we never saw a Squatch. Maybe they don’t exist. Or maybe we can blame my lady-ness. Whatever the reason, it was still a lovely walk in the woods with someone who truly believes in the unknown. The Truth is out there.

Michigan vs. Michigan State, On Ice January 30 / Joe Louis Arena

Since 1991 these two in-state foes have faced off at the Joe once a winter, and Michigan leads the rivalry 14-9-4. Coached by Michigan alum and legend Red Berenson, who came south from Regina, Canada to play at U-M for its combination of academics and hockey—and so he and his teammates could watch Gordie Howe play for the Red WIngs at the Joe—the Wolverines look to take their fourth straight win in this series. $20-$45. 7pm. Joe Louis Arena, 19 Steve Yzerman Dr, Detroit, MI 48226, (313) 396-7000.

Their diet consists of many different items from deer to berries to ants to peanut butter.

Prefer to be left alone.

Curious.

Smith says to think of Squatch as friendly bears.

“A less aggressive bear that likes to throw rocks and sticks.”

There is one other somewhat unseemly quality of the Squatch. Apparently they aren’t big into ladies, the human ones at least. “I could have thrown them for a loop bringing out a woman. They don’t know what to think.” Smith also says the sounds of a woman screaming will upset them. Typical Squatch.

ecurrent.com / january 2015 33

everything everythingelse else

Point of View Parking structure

By Stephanie Carpenter

Above the entrance to the parking structure, a sign displays the number of available spaces, but we— pedestrians—disregard this number and take the elevator up to the seventh level, step outside, and walk to the far ledge.

Stretched out below us is a quilt of roofs, white and tar-black, stitched with ventilation ducts and HVAC units.

One building is crowned with solar panels; another sprouts a living roof. Nearby stores and restaurants draw our gaze with their Italianate façades painted summery colors: lavender, thunderstorm blue, sunshine, chartreuse, and olive. In the second story window of an adjacent building, a naked Barbie reclines on the sill.

Despite the commercial warmth of downtown, sidewalks are empty, and the damp asphalt hisses with the passing of an occasional car. Low, gray clouds press against the giants of our city: Tower Plaza, Burton Memorial Tower, the First National Building, and several new luxury apartment and condo high-rises. There is no kindness in the weak, unfocused daylight. Many of the surrounding windows are black and still, like they’ve been stuffed into hoods.

The residential neighborhoods encircling downtown are mostly obscured, reduced to two scratchy strips of trees to the north and west.

This is Ann Arbor in early winter, a bird’s-eye view.

It’s not particularly breathtaking, not the kind of rooftop panorama you would pay for (sans car). I don’t snap and share any photos with my iPhone.

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There have been moments, though, when the view dazzled. A sunny afternoon during the peak of autumn.

At sunset. After dark on July 4th. A predawn hour during a recent lunar eclipse. This vantage point is visited by a fugitive wonder dependent upon season and atmospherics, the swirl of the heavens, the rise and fall of light.

When the skies are lackluster, we lower our focus to the neighborhoods and use breaks in the foliage to map the northwest side where we live—there’s Liberty, there’s Miller, there, at eye-level, is Sunset Road. We point out the Elks Lodge, a row of pastel Victorian houses, and the charming white home—so tiny from here!—that belongs to someone else, currently not for sale, yet we dream of owning someday.

While the sights are constantly changing, the view never fails to make me gasp and turn my legs to jelly when I lean over the chest-high ledge and glance down. And then I am always reminded of that winter day a few years ago when a woman stepped off this ledge. Since that day, I’ve never been able to look, fully, at the spot in the alley where she landed.

The absence of thick glass and protective fencing are what make the vistas so sharp, so near and intimate, though. We’re not so high off the ground that we can’t yell and wave at familiar passersby. The view from this parking structure orients me in time and place: to particular moments of awe, to an evolving skyline, to where I am today and where I hope to be in the future.

everything else

LGBT Toastmaster Club Meeting 7pm. Jim Toy Community Center, 319 Braun Ct. 734-585-5440. speakout. toastmastersclubs.org Free

CHELSEA ALEHOUSE GAME NIGHT

Go old school with Risk and Monopoly, or new school with Settlers of Catan and Dominion. Every Monday, the Chelsea Alehouse Brewery hosts a game night with board games, cards, friends, strangers, and brew. The ten ales on tap provide a toast among victors or can be knocked back after defeat. Every Monday, 4-11pm. Chelsea Alehouse, 420 N Main St. 734-433-5500. --RC

Geared towards the LGBT population, this Toastmaster Club helps you gain confidence in your chosen life path, whatever that may be, by sharpening your communication and leadership skills.Also on Thursday, January 22.

12 monday Astro-Seminar

4-5pm. 1085 S. University Ave., West Hall, Room 335. lsa.umich.edu Free

Luis Lehner of Perimeter Institute talks about space and the infinite examination of it.

Biophysics Seminar

4-5pm. Chemistry & Dow Willard H. Library, Room 1300, 930 University Ave. lsa.umich.edu Free

Carlos Baiz talks about the ultrafast 2D IR Microscopy research he has been conducting.

14 wednesday DISCS NOT DEAD

Forget iTunes and Spotify, avid collectors with a fond appreciation for the novelty of old records and CDs unite.

Rerun records presents “Ann Arbor’s Monster Record & CD Collectors Show” a 60 table display of thousands of samples—from limited edition Zappa to pristine Beastie Boys vinyl to original Stones. January 25th. $3 at 10am, early admission $15 at 8am. Weber’s Inn, 3050 Jackson Rd. 734-604-2540. --RC

2 friday Hoedown Skate

7:15-8:45pm. $6/gGA, $5/ages 17 and under, senior. Buhr Park Ice Rink, 2751 Packard St. 734-761-7240.

All cowboys and cowgirls are invited to ice skate and listen to Western music. Prizes included for best costume.

3 saturday 10th Anniversary Mario Kart Grand Championship Tournament

1-4 pm. Ann Arbor District Library’s 4th-floor meeting room, 343 S. Fifth Ave. 734-327-8301. aadl.org Free

Test out your skills in this legendary racing video game.

Think you got what it takes to avoid the green shells, red shells. and bananas -- come down and take what’s yours!

Grades 6 to Adult.

5 monday Permaculture Ypsilanti Meeting

7pm. Gilbert Residence, 203 S. Huron St., Ypsilanti. 734-786-8401. growinghope.net Free

Meet with others who are passionate about creating a more sustainable community through the practice of permaculture.

7 wednesday Visitor’s Night at Ann Arbor Model Railroad Club

7:30-10pm. Michigan Central Depot, 3487 Broad St., Dexter. 734-4265100. aamrc.org Free

Come check out trains whizzing around on the club’s elaborate layout in the club’s depot.

8 thursday Snowflake Making Workshop

Noon-2pm. Gifts of Art Gallery Taubman Health Center North Lobby, 1500 E. Medical Center Dr. 734-936-4000. med.umich.edu/goa Free

In this annual workshop, snowflake master Dr. Thomas L. Clark, a.k.a. Doctor Snowflake, shares his paper cutting techniques and helps participants try their hands at some seasonal designs.

There is also opportunity for participants to experiment with their own creations. An exhibition of his work is on display until Feb. 1, 2015 in the Gifts of Art gallery where the workshop will be held.

Bring your own scissors!

Denial of Violence: Ottoman Past, Turkish President, and Collective Violence against the Armenians, 1789-2009.

Noon-1:30pm. International Institute, room 1636, 1080 S. University Ave. lsa.umich.edu Free

17 saturday

Recycling Plant (MRF) Open House: Recycled Robots

10am-noon. Ann Arbor’s Material Recovery Facility, 339 E. Liberty St. 734-663-9474. ecocenter.org/education/mrf-open-house Free

Make your very own “robot” or character by repurposing old scraps like CD’s egg cartons, or anything else you can find! Visitors are encouraged to bring their own parts and pieces for their creation.

Groups of 5+ must preregister.

Death Café 10am-noon. Crazy Wisdom Tearoom, 114 S. Main. 734-395-9660. deathcafe.com Free

All are invited to participate in a conversation about death, led by participants. Hosted

by After Death Home Care founder Merilynne Rush.

18 sunday Winter Orienteering

2-4pm. $2/single, $5/family. Eddy Discovery Center, 17030 Bush Rd., Chelsea. 734-475-3170. michigan.gov

Hike around and learn to find your way through the woods in the winter. Registration required.

21 wednesday

Speaker Muge Gocek, professor of sociology and women’s studies at U-M discusses the topic of violence in Armenia’s past and present.

A Deeper Black: Race In America

Annual Seed Cleaning and Exchange

Speaker Ta-NeshisiCoates, a National Correspondent from The Atlantic, discusses the conflicted and hopeful state of black America today.

6:45-8:30pm. Matthaei Botanical Gardens, 1800 N. Dixboro Rd. 734647-7600. mbgna.umich.edu Free

Matthaei-Nichols will assist participants with cleaning the 2014 Arb and Gardens and Wild Ones seed harvests and learning about cleaning and propagation methods. Bring extra seeds to share. Presented by Wild Ones Ann Arbor.

16 friday Friday 16

Leslie Science & Nature Center Presents: Birds of Prey

11am-noon. Dexter District Library, 3255 Alpine St. 734-426-4477. dexter. lib.mi.us Free

Join us for an entertaining and educational event for ages 4 and up. Expert handlers are bringing a variety of wild birds to the Library that will captivate your imagination and educate your mind. Learn all there is to know about hawks, falcons, owls, vultures and even a bald eagle while meeting these birds face-to-face.

5pm. Rackham Auditorium, 915 E. Washington St. 734-763-3333. rackham.umich.edu Free

23 friday Human Rights Initiative Lecture

Noon-1:30pm. U-M School of Social Work Building, Room 1636, 1080 S. University Ave. lsa.umich.edu Free.

Speaker Julian E. Mendez, Professor of Human Rights Law, leads a lecture on the possibilities surrounding the abolition of torture.

25 sunday Bats of the World

2-3pm. $2/single, $5/family. Eddy Discovery Center, 17030 Bush Rd. 734-475-3170. michigan.gov

Bat experts lead a discussion and display of the habits and vulnerabilities of live bats from around the world.

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road trip KATHY GRIFFIN in the motor city Thursday, January 22 / MOTOR CITY CASINO

Her wicked sense of humor is never meant to be malicious, but Kathy Griffin can’t seem to avoid bringing the shock factor to her routine. Dishing the dirt about celebrities is her calling card, and her most recent stand-up album “Calm Down Gurrl” won her a 2013 Grammy award. January 22. 8pm. $40-60. 2901 Grand River, Detroit. 866-752-9622.—RC

KINKY BOOTS AT FISHER THEATRE Thursday, January 15 / FISHER THEATRE

The easy-to-love Broadway musical Kinky Boots comes to The D. Follow the heartfelt story of a drag queen who, out of desperation to keep his family business afloat, employs a less than traditional marketing strategy. With music by Cyndy Lauper, this Tony and Grammy Award winning play makes for a great night out on the town. January 15-25. $59-$500, with deals on groups of four. Tickets and times are available at broadwayindetroit.com. 3011 W. Grand Blvd., Detroit. 313-872-1000. —RC

More events updated daily at ecurrent.com

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everything else

CONTINUED from P.35 Monster Ann Arbor Record & CD Collector’s Show

10am-4pm. $3. Weber’s Inn, 3050 Jackson Rd. 734-604-2540. rerunrecords.com

Peruse this popular fair with more than 50 dealers showing off their rare and collectible used records and CDs.

28 wednesday Neil deGrasse Tyson

7:30pm. $65-$95. Detroit Opera House, 1526 Broadway St., Detroit.

313-237-7464. michiganopera.org

Astro-Physicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and friends discuss the nature of the universe in this lecture, providing other worldly examinations of pop culture and other entertaining topics.

ONGOING SUNDAYS

Sunday Afternoon Dharma Service

4-5:30pm. $5 suggested donation.

Ann Arbor Zen Buddhist Temple, 1214 Packard St. 734-761-6520. zenbuddhisttemple.org

Dharma Service consists of chanting and singing as well as sitting in meditation.

Stand-Up Comedy Class 5-7pm. The Mix Studio Theater, 8 N. Washington St., Ypsilanti. chilichallis.com

Former staff comedy writer for The Tonight Show, Chili Challis teaches this fantastic stand-up comedy class. Followed by Open Mic at 8pm.

TUESDAYS

Aerial Silks Class At Ringstar Studios

6-7pm. $10. Ringstar Studios, 3907 Varsity Dr. a2ringstar.com

This class will explore very basic techniques and poses of aerial silk with an emphasis on strength, flexibility, and body awareness. this popular circus art.

WEDNESDAYS Trivia Night

7pm. Wolverine State Brewing Co., 2019 S. Stadium Blvd. 734-369-2990. wolverinebeer.com Free

An off the beaten path venue for some great pub trivia.

THURSDAYS Tarot Readings

6-9pm. $1.50 per minute. Crazy Wisdom Bookstore & Tearoom, 114 S. Main St. 734-665-2757. crazywisdom.net

Rebecca Williams reveals your present, past and future.

No appointment necessary.

health events Thursday 1

Saturday 10

11:30am. Ann Arbor Zen Buddhist Temple, 1214 Packard St. 734-761-6520. zenbuddhisttemple.org Free

7-7:45pm. $50. Aikido Genyokan Dojo, 3796 Plaza Dr., Suite 3.

734-662-4686. aikidoyoshokai.org/

New Year’s Day Service

Get your chakras in order, and enjoy a meditative start to the new year.

Tuesday 6

New Year/New Vision-Create Your Own Vision Board

7-8pm. Malletts Creek Branch Library: Program Room, 3090 E. Eisenhower Pkwy. 734-327-4200. aadl.org Free

Wellness coach Shawn King will help guide you in creating a visual map of your dreams and goals using the art of feng shui. With poster board and old magazines we’ll create a collage of pictures, phrases, words or items that represent you and your goals.

Aikido is a Martial Art that is synonymous with ”The Way of Harmony.” Learn basic techniques with local masters. Join this 6-week course starting January 10th and the 14th. Registration required.

Minimum age of 14. Runs until February 14.

Friday 16

Winter Biking

10-11am. Downtown Library: 4th Floor Meeting Room, 343 S. Fifth Ave. 734-327-4200. aadl.org

Learn about strategies to ride your bicycle safely and enjoyably during the winter months. Local bike mechanic Kevin Sanchez will discuss what you need to keep on biking throughout the cold months of the year.

Wednesday 7

Tuesday 20

6-7:15pm. Zion Lutheran Church, 1501 W. Liberty St. 734-485-8725. dawnfarm.org/programs Free

7-8:30pm.Crazy Wisdom Bookstore & Tearoom, 114 S. Main St. 734-994-4589. peoplesfood.coop

Family Matters at Dawn Farms

Dawn Farms offers a six-session, skill-building support group for family members, loved ones, and friends of those struggling with addiction. The group allows you to share your stories with those who understand. Every Wednesday.

Thursday 8

ADHD in Your 20s and 30s

7-8:30pm. Ann Arbor Public Library, 343 S. Fifth St. 734-623-4444. sarisolden.com Free

ADHD specialist, Dr. Michelle Frank, a clinical psychologist with Sari Solden & Associates, will offer an engaging and informative seminar on everything you need to know about ADHD in your 20s and 30s.

Registration suggested by emailing sarah@sarisolden. com.

Health Insurance Marketplace (Obamacare) Everything You Need to Know 7-8pm. Saline District Library, 555 N. Maple Rd. 734-429-5450. saline.lib.mi.us

Open enrollment for the Marketplace is from now until Feb. 15, 2015. Come to this session if you need health insurance, have questions about the Affordable Care Act, have current insurance through the Marketplace, or wonder what your eligibility would be for help in lowering the cost of insurance. Certified Marketplace Navigator, Dr. Lois Berman, will discuss what you need to know. Registration is required.

ts More even y at il a d d te a upd com ecurrent.

health

Aikido Beginner’s Course

Herbal Wisdom: Herbs and Our Pets

Free

Part of the Healthy Living Classes sponsored by the People’s Food Cooperative.

In this talk, Linda Diane Feldt will discuss using alternative and integrative approaches for simple health care for our pets. Registration required.

Wednesday 21

Herb Hour 101 with Maggie David

7-8pm Stamatopoulos & Sons Olive Oil, 869 W Eisenhower Pkwy.

734-369-2995. stamsons.com Free

Participate in an introduction to Western Herbalism. Discover the traditional uses of herbal medicine. Enjoy taste samples of herbal infusions (teas) from the featured herbs. The class will be led by experienced herbalist, Maggie David.

Saturday 24

Community Vinyasa Yoga 10-11:30am. Traverwood Branch: Program Room, 3333 Traverwood Dr. 734-327-4200. aadl.org Free

Yoga is a fun way to gain strength, flexibility and balance, while decreasing stress and tension. Come learn some of the basics of the Vinyasa style of yoga, which integrates breath with movement.

3rd Annual Taste of Health

11am-5pm. $10/pre-register, $14/ at the door. Aprill Wellness Center, 107 Aprill Dr. 734-531-9570. aprillwellnesscenter.com

Learn how to transform your mood with food. Classes, recipes, food comedy improv, and raffles will all be a part of this event.

“Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.”

—Henry David Thoreau, Walden

Sunday, January 12

Up the ante this winter by combining your usual cross country skiing and snowshoeing expeditions with winter orienteering. The Waterloo Recreation Area Public Programs offers a course in winter orienteering—learn how to find your way in the woods. Compasses will be provided or bring your own. Advance registration required. Limited to 35 participants. Sunday, January 12. 2–4pm. 17030 Bush Rd. Chelsea, MI. 734-475-3170.—BB Sunday 25

Wednesday 28

DIY Lip Care

2-3pm. Pittsfield Branch Library: Program Room, 2359 Oak Valley Dr. 734-327-4200. aadl.org Free

Its winter! Learn how to whip up a few treats to keep your smile smooth.

Monday 26

Educating Community Members About Health Insurance Options

7-8:30pm. Malletts Creek Branch Library: Program Room, 3090 E. Eisenhower Pkwy.734-327-4200. aadl.org Free

Science Cafe: Shining Light on the Brain 5:30-7:30pm. Conor O’Neill’s Traditional Irish Pub, 318 S. Main St. 734-764-0478.lsa.umich.edu/ ummnh

New research on the brain and how we view it’s functions in language and bilingual acquisition in children and adults is the topic of this discussion. Join Ioulia Kovelman of the UM psychology department in this thought provoking conversation.

Want to know more about the Affordable Care Act? Representatives trained by the Washtenaw Health Initiative discuss insurance coverage options at the local level.

Ongoing Thursdays:

Tuesday 27

Learn wellness through yoga, meditations, acupressure, and nutrition.

Substance Use and Mental Disorders: One, the Other, or Both?

7:30-9pm. St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Education Center, 5305 Elliot Dr., Ypsilanti. 734-485-8725. stjoesannarbor.org/dawnfarmseries Free

Dr. Stephen Strobbe, PhD, RN. Clinical Associate Professor, University of Michigan School of Nursing and University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry focuses on differentiating substance use and mental health disorders, and explains that they often travel together. This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series.

Simple Self-Healing Techniques

9:30-11am. $15. Ann Arbor Senior Center, 1320 Baldwin Ave. 734-794-6250. ci.ann-arbor.mi.us

Fridays

New Beginnings Yoga with Patty

9:30-11am. $15. Aprill Wellness Center, 107 Aprill Dr. 734-531-9570. aprillwellnesscenter.com

Small group classes for new yoga students or those wanting a gentler practice.

Saturdays

Border to Border Ride

10am. Wheeler Park, N. Fourth Ave. 734-662-0205. aabts.org Free

Ann Arbor Bicycle Touring Society offers a 22 mile ride every Saturday on the border to border trail from Ann Arbor to Ypsilanti.

ecurrent.com / january 2015 37

Across 1. Apply without care, as paint 5. Ella, in El Salvador 8. Beautify 13. Italian vino district 14. They’re counted carefully during a potential no-hitter 16. Medical prefix with logical 17. Things broken by people who’ve never been to an alley before?

20. Make a paper crane, say 21. Club component, perhaps 22. “Listen up, you old bugger” 23. Real pig 26. TV actor Ventimiglia 28. As modest as ever?

32. Some installations 35. InDesign measurement 36. Bird stuffed in 28-Across 37. Toss here and there 39. Many moons 40. “Where’s the Kleenex?”

43. Overflowing (with) 44. Believer that somebody is always watching him?

46. Pro-wind turbine prefix 47. Turkey setting 48. Bird stuffed in 49-Across 49. Place where Dante does his writing?

53. Thanksgiving ___ 54. Christmas lights holder 55. Feel a dull pain 58. “Yes, cap’n!”

60. Take notice of 63. Launched an ICBM? 68. Tree with banana-looking fruit 69. Commuting option 70. Stewpot 71. “Just ducky” 72. Soccer mom’s vehicle 73. Blunt object?

december

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5

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7

14

17

18

29

24

25

30 36

39

40 45

48

49

26

63

32

33

34

41

42

61

62

43

46 50

38

47

51

52 54

57

58

59

64

68 71

41. Home listing measurement 42. Cadiz courtesy title 45. Game that no one wins 50. Raita bread 51. Reminder for a show, e.g.

52. Go ___ (exceed) 53. Mastodon’s genre 55. Snakes in some decorative armbands 56. Plug in the mouth

2014 / ecurrent.com

12

27

37

53 56

11

22

31

44

10

19

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Down 1. Small bit of gel 2. From this moment on 3. “Songs of Innocence” band 4. Fashion designer who said “when in doubt, wear red” 5. 67-Down’s boy 6. Warm embrace 7. Impress, as in memory 8. 4 letters?

9. Car racer Franchitti 10. Singer Redding 11. Bird stuffed in 63-Across 12. Prying 15. Star of an underwater viewing attraction at SeaWorld 18. One with a fan club 19. Mideast biggie 24. Poetic tributes 25. Big name in drum heads 27. Guitar maker Paul 28. One in a black suit?

29. Frosted Flakes mascot 30. Strand, as during a polar vortex 31. ____ D’Orsay (Paris attraction) 32. Come up in conversation 33. Mortgage lowerers 34. Make small adjustments 38. Location where new product lines debut

38

3

60 65

66

69

67 70

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57. 2008 political slogan 59. Biblical twin 61. Brazilian futebol legend 62. Alma mater of noted plagiarist Fareed Zakaria 64. Bird stuffed in 17-Across 65. Zingers and such 66. It has a head and hops 67. Old man

73

for crossword answers, go to ecurrent.com

GIVE ‘EM THE BIRD

2

©2014 By Brendan Emmett Quigley (www.brendanemmettquigley.com)

crossword

1

classifieds

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