For nearly half of his life, Davy Rothbart has devoted time to celebrating discarded and found notes, letters, and photos.

Collectively, those items have helped tell the beautiful and hilarious stories he’s published over the last 25 years through Found Magazine.

The Ann Arbor resident has published 13 editions of the cult-classic magazine, which has spawned everything from books to podcasts to tours and brought Rothbart to all 50 states to connect with fans of the Found franchise.

Over the years, he has also narrated several stories from Found Magazine for his current job at This American Life.

Earlier this month, he celebrated Found Magazine’s silver anniversary with a party and storytelling event at his parents’ house in Ann Arbor, which still serves as the magazine’s mailing address and headquarters.

Now, Rothbart is honoring the magazine and franchise with a June 28 Found Magazine & Friends event at Ann Arbor Summer Festival. The event will feature his famed live show, where he’ll read some of the magazine’s most profound finds and help close out the festival.

The Radar tracks new music by Washtenaw County-associated artists and labels.

This week: Michael Gordon, Doug Perkins & the University of Michigan Percussion Ensemble, Out of Focus, Mree, Dylan Charles, Rabbitology, DJ FLP, Chloe Drallos, and Wipeout.

Is Ann Arbor becoming an improv hotspot in the Midwest?

Considering how deftly I just improvised that amazing sentence while sitting at my Ann Arbor desk, the answer is surely a resounding YES.

Meanwhile, the brand new Yes, Ann Improv Festival is going to make a much stronger case for Tree Town's spur-of-the-moment comedy bona fides than my extemporized prose.

From June 24 to 27, improv comedians will fill the Michigan Theater and the hear.say brewing + theater with laughs conjured from thin air and a variety of prompts:

The inaugural Yes, Ann Improv Festival brings four days of improv comedy to Ann Arbor, featuring national headliners, standout local teams, visiting ensembles from across the country, workshops, special events, and more than 50 improv teams from 12 states. The festival features performers known from Dropout, Smosh, Upright Citizens Brigade, NBC’s Superstore, film, television, podcasts, and stages nationwide.

One Track Mind features a Washtenaw County-associated artist discussing a single song.

Standout Track: No. 1, “Dragon Rider,” from SoZeN, a thrash metal band from Waterford and Ypsilanti. The band’s latest release, EP, explores overcoming obstacles and achieving some type of victory—whether large or small—at the end of the day.

On “Dragon Rider,” SoZeN sings about feeling empowered and embarking on a new adventure. The song’s uplifting lyrics come from the band’s appreciation of fantasy-inspired media, including Dungeons & Dragons, The Elder Scrolls, Game of Thrones, and Fourth Wing. “All fandoms to which many of our lyrics pay homage,” wrote Devin White, the band’s vocalist, in an email interview. “No matter what real life may look like, imagination can give you strength, and belief can manifest greatness.”

In Ashlyn Slaviero’s oil-acrylic painting, Lay Me Gently, a person lies naked in a field filled with plants and beside a bog.

The person rests on their side, covers their face, and tries to hide their vulnerability from the world.

“The bog is a harsh, acidic environment, a home to plants that almost seem alien,” wrote Slaviero in her artist statement.

“These plants rely on carnivorous diets, acidic soil that is not conducive to other plants’ growth, and visceral features used to ward off predators. The parallels of queerness run strong and can feed into the idea of othered and alone. This ‘othered-ness’ manifests as our most insurmountable fears, but also fosters our strongest bonds and diverse communities.”

Slaviero’s compelling piece is featured in The Queer Show, a mixed-media exhibit showcasing artwork by 36 LGBTQ+ artists and running through June 26 at Ypsilanti’s Dzanc House.

The Radar tracks new music by Washtenaw County-associated artists and labels.

This week: Ani Mari, Chirp, Salvador Flores, Kenji Lee’s Fortune Teller Trio, Teiku, and Bekka.

According to poet Scott Beal’s new collection, Stegosaurus Moon, “The world / out there is fact and misconstruction.”

His poems build an interior world where the poet questions and copes with all that goes on in and around the poems. A marriage ends. Parenthood continues. Queer identity develops.

As the poet’s world changes and turns into something else, it becomes clear that “even intact, no one could have lived in it.” When a bocce ball falls into the lake in the poem “The Day Our Marriage Ended”:

What would you do if your social media accounts were hacked by someone who looks just like you? Who seems to have a better time living your life?

Would you try to live up to that image, or take back your identity?

For Jonah, the main character in the new comic Followed, the choice is clear.

But how do you confront an adversary who knows your whole life from the inside?

Followed is the third standalone story in Concentrate editor Patrick Dunn's series of Graphic Nightmares. Written and illustrated by Dunn, the Graphic Nightmares explore unsettling themes and situations in a variety of artistic styles and horror-genre flavors. Followed employs a more realistic style than previous entries in the series, with gritty charcoal renderings building off original photo references.

I spoke with Dunn, who lives in Ypsilanti, about Followed and the Graphic Nightmares series, as well as the rewards and challenges of journalism and comics.

One Track Mind features a Washtenaw County-associated artist discussing a single song.

Standout Track: “Down With It," a standalone single from Hannah Baiardi, an Ann Arbor artist, songwriter, pianist, and producer. The song explores people’s frustrations with modern dating and addresses their fears of rejection. “‘Down With It’ became my response to that,” wrote Baiardi in an email interview. “I wanted to capture what so many of us are thinking, but don’t always say out loud: ‘If you’re interested, be interested. If you care, say so.’”

While the song offers a cathartic outlet for listeners, it also encourages them to be authentic when meeting new people. “This song is about choosing courage over caution and honesty over games,” Baiardi wrote. “That’s why it became an anthem for taking risks in relationships, not because it’s fearless, but because it’s about acting despite the fear. … Whether it’s sending a text, asking someone out, or admitting you’re interested, there’s a kind of freedom that comes from taking the risk instead of staying stuck in uncertainty.” 

A few years ago, some family members decided to go up in a hot-air balloon, and they asked me if I wanted to join them. Considering I don't even like to be on a ladder, let alone be floating above the Earth in a contraption powered by hot air, I declined their offer to plunge to an untimely death. (Note: They survived—and so did I.)

But for those of you who get a lift from going up, a new exhibit at the University of Michigan's Clements Library will float your basket.

Up, Up, and Away: A History of Ballooning in America features rare photos, postcards, books, advertisements, and other historic records that document the daring and innovative rise of balloon flight.

While you can fly over to the Clements and see the exhibition in person, the library also does a bang-up job in presenting Up, Up, and Away online, featuring a wide array of images and insightful text.

Isaac Burgdorf, William L. Clements Library's marketing coordinator, wrote a short article about Up, Up, and Away that gives you a good sense of what's covered in the exhibit: