News & Announcements Archive

November 23, 2005 — SPOILER ALERT: Spinter Workshop Schedule on Horizon

That’s right, friends. We know you’ve been waiting, some of you impatiently, for the unveiling of our next set of stellar workshops. The Spinter Workshop Schedule (Get it? It’s winter and spring. Hey…it sounded better than the Wing Workshop Schedule.) will be up on this very site mid-December.

We’ve listened to your input! We’ve taken scrupulous notes! We’ve heeded your advice! What this means in slightly less vague terms: You wanted more workshops! You wanted workshops for younger students! You wanted more workshops where you work with paste! You wanted a place to keep your secrets! You wanted a puppy! (SPOILER: You will not get everything you want, and for this we are truly sorry. But, glass half full, you will get most of what you want.)

Here’s something even less vague: We’ll be offering a workshop on writing comics. We’ll have a workshop where 6-8 year olds will make their own picture books. There will be a workshop in which participants test the bounds of what can be done with one 8.5 x 11 piece of paper. We will show you how to make a fancy diary that has a secret part that no one else will know is there. (Except us, and we promise not to look.)

Oh dear. We’ve said too much. Check back soon.

POSTED BY AMY AT 12:36 PM

 
November 18, 2005 — How You Can Help By Doing Something You Were Probably Going To Do Anyway

I hesitated to add a new blog, as I am currently very enamored with C. Jason’s. And, for the sake of clarity, I would like to mention that no cars were ticketed or towed. Fortunes falling? You bet. Children crying? Absolutely. Musty afghans? Yes, yes, and yes. (There were three of them.) But towed cars? Not a chance; we have our own lot!

That said, let’s get on to the matters at hand. With so much incredible stuff happening, we get many requests from people who want to help. Their queries range from “We really appreciate what you’re doing. What can we do to help?” to “You are doing such great work. Is there any way we can help you guys out?” Want to help? YOU CAN!

Here’s how:

You were going to buy books for holiday gifts anyway, right? Wait until December 17! If you buy books at the Barnes & Noble in Ann Arbor on that day, 826michigan gets a portion of the sale! Simply print out this voucher and bring it with you.

Want to help us out but can’t make it in that day? Donate $100 to 826michigan, and we’ll buy the hardcover book, CD, or DVD of your choice (as long as it costs under $100!) and ship it to you! We can also be hired to do your holiday shopping for you that day, at a negotiable price. What is it worth to you to not have to battle crowds and stand in line? We’ll need requests for this by December 10.

Contact me at amy@826michigan.org for more information.

Also December 17…FREE BOOKMAKING Workshop! All ages, no registration necessary, at 2pm, Barnes & Noble, 3235 Washtenaw Ave, Ann Arbor.

That afternoon, we’ll be offering an exciting bookmaking workshop at Barnes & Noble, where people of all ages will learn how to make little books and write family stories/myths in them.

You see, last week, Erin, John, C. Jason, Heather and I all took a field trip to East Lansing, where the wonderful Jeanne Drewes taught us how to bind all manner of interesting and astounding books. We’re bookbinders now! We want to spread our knowledge and teach you how to make books too!

Furthermore, literary superhero Chuck Hatt (also the Elementary Literacy Coordinator for Ann Arbor Public Schools) will give a workshop on writing personal narratives, which we will put into our little books. What a clever gift idea!

Show your support of the wonderful work 826michigan is doing in our community by coming out for voucher day, and join us for the workshop!

I’ve used more exclamation points in the five months I’ve been working here than I have in the whole twenty-nine years I’ve been alive, PS.

POSTED BY AMY AT 3:13 PM

 
November 16, 2005 — A Series of Unfortunately-Overwritten Paragraphs

Saturday’s Lemony Snicket event at Wunderlab 826michigan was, by Mr. Snicket’s own peculiar standards, a resounding success; children cried, fortunes fell, parents panicked, and a few cars were ticketed and towed. (Please, friends! Read the signs in the lot!)

What I mean to say is that a kind of melancholy blanketed our writing lab like a musty afghan.

At one point, an elderly woman stopped by to ask for directions to the nearest currency exchange. None of us knew the answer, and as we sent her out into the evening, I couldn’t help but think that she was more lost than ever. When I say that, I’m using flowery language to note that her life seemed to be a bit of a mess. I mean, why would this woman need $12,000 in Bolivian pesos?? And on a Saturday night, no less! She’s in southeastern Michigan! We use the dollar here! (And occasionally those Canadian “loonies” that find their way across the border.) I still think about her. Partially because of the discontent that she inspired, but mostly because she borrowed my pen to write down the directions we gave her (we made something up) and I’m pretty sure that she kept it. We’re on a budget here, lady!

We here at 826michigan offer our sincerest thanks to Mr. Snicket for taking time from his busy schedule to [order one of his subordinates to] spend the afternoon with our students. His unique worldview reminds us that there is power in dour, that mope provides scope, and that rhyming in lieu of conjuring actual descriptions of an event is just plain lazy writing. (I apologize to you all.) Children are wonderfully—beautifully—optimistic by nature, so it falls to men of conscience such as Mr. Snicket to point out that while it is often darkest before the dawn, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the morning won’t bring an overcast day that drizzles freezing rain onto the backs of feral cats and squirrels, matting their fur and something something something something…

POSTED BY C. JASON AT 1:23 PM

 
November 7, 2005 — Ya’ll Sure Do Like Lemony Snicket, Don’t You?

I mean, who doesn’t? I’m also a fan of Daniel Handler, the man through whom Lemony often deals with the public (interestingly enough, I’ve never seen the two of them in the same place at the same time…). Daniel also played accordian on a Magnetic Fields album that I like very much.

I don’t know if you are fans of the Magnetic Fields, or, more likely, the Series of Unfortunate Events books, but either way, our Lemony Snicket workshop this Saturday filled up in record time. And when I say “record time,” it should be noted that it took about a day, give or take twenty or so hours.

I’m sorry to say that, due to the nature of the workshop, and that its participants receive very nice, hardcover copies of Noisy Outlaws, Unfriendly Blobs, and Some Other Things That Aren’t as Scary, Maybe, Depending on How You Feel About Lost Lands, Stray Cellphones, Creatures from the Sky, Parents Who Disappear in Peru, a Man Named Lars Farf, and One Other Story We Couldn’t Quite Finish, So Maybe You Could Help Us Out, we cannot let anyone else in. We cannot take walk-ins, so please, for your sake as well as ours, don’t try it. Seeing the disappointment on your faces would be too much for us.

Don’t blame us. Blame Lemony, and his ability to tell a magnificent story such that people go crazy for a chance to communicate with him via satellite.

And fear not, my kittens, for our Spinter (Winter and Spring, it sounded better than Winting) Workshop Schedule will be released in mid-December! Write on!

POSTED BY AMY AT 2:00 PM

 
November 2, 2005 — There’s a Million Stars in the Sky, and Almost as Many Things I Want to Tell You

I handed off the fundraiser wrap-up to John. I was afraid of what might happen if I tried to write it. (I did, after all, start crying at the event, on stage, in front of everyone. What can I say? I got choked up.) I do have a list of things that—with any luck—will not make me cry, from happiness or otherwise.

• Do you want to help Lemony Snicket finish a story? Join us for the Six-City Noisy Outlaws Extravaganza! This is an 826-wide (San Francisco, NYC, LA, Chicago, Seattle, and us) workshop which will take place on Saturday, November 12 at 4. Hosted by local writer Steven Gillis, participants will work together to finish Lemony’s story while he presides over the event via satellite. For extensive details, click here.

• Poetry Night in Ann Arbor V! Difficult to quantify, but I’m quite certain this is one of the coolest things we’ll do this year. We’re partnering up with the Neutral Zone, Washenaw Literacy, and the Ann Arbor Book Festival to make this event a raging success.

Details forthcoming, but for now, pull out your planner. No, it’s fine, we’ll wait. Did you check your bag? When did you have it last? Oh, there we go. Good. In big, bold letters, write “Poetry Night in Ann Arbor V, Rackham Auditorium, 7pm,” on the night of Thursday, December 8.

Featured performers will be Roger Bonair-Agard, 1999 National Poetry Slam Champion; Patrick Rosal, author of Uprock, Headspin, Scramble and Dive; VOLUME Youth Poets; Ann Arbor Wordworks; and community poets. Tickets are $5 for students, $10 for general public ($4/$8 in advance).

• Barnes & Noble wants to give us money, and you can help! We’re fairly certain you were going to give books as gifts this holiday season anyway, so listen to this. We’ve teamed up with B&N in Ann Arbor on Saturday, December 17 for a voucher day!

What does that mean, you ask? Well, it’s a two parter. Part one, if you buy books at B&N on 12/17, and have a special coupon in hand, we get a portion of the sale. (To get a coupon, stop in to 826 or e-mail me at amy@826michigan.org.) Part two, we’ll be teaching a bookmaking workshop at B&N that afternoon. Come for the workshop—it’s all ages—and while you’re there, do some shopping, and, you know, luxuriate in the happy feeling of supporting literacy through creativity, and creativity through literacy.

Ta!

POSTED BY AMY AT 9:16 AM

 
November 1, 2005 — Fundraiser Wrap-Up

Fundraiser? More like FUNraiser. Huge success. (Sentence fragments.) Who would have thought that zombies, vampires, Sylvia Plath, and Blackbeard could be so enthusiastic about providing students with free writing workshops and tutoring? They seemed pretty enthusiastic about the artichoke dip, too.

Congratulations to Maggie, who captivated the impressive audience with her short story, “Bicycle Girl.” I look forward to the day when I place her book on my shelf between Norman Mailer and Herman Melville. Andrew’s delivery of his poetry followed. It is easy to tell those artists who have a wealthy combination of talent and skill, and Andrew undoubtedly falls into this category. I particularly liked “Bubble Boy.”

Elizabeth Kostova, man. She puts so much thought behind her words. Seeing her read part of “The Historian,” dressed as a vampire complete with blood and veil, was an experience I am unlikely to forget. She has a fantastic sense of humor to boot.

Julie Orringer, man. I was fortunate enough to get to know her a little bit. She is charming, funny, and warm. Her reading of her story, “Flores,” though, revealed a capability of darkness. At one point, I wanted to yell out, “Not the dog!” The story was creepy, thoughtful, and hilarious at the same time.

I was slightly worried that having all that talent on one stage would create a vortex and open a portal to an unknown realm. It probably would have been pretty cool, but the fundraiser was excitement enough for me.

Thanks to everybody who got involved. 826michigan volunteers are like Maverick and Goose in Top Gun, only not so reckless. They are the best of the best of the best, and we couldn’t have pulled off the fundraiser, or anything else, without their help. Our donors, guests, and supporters helped make Saturday so successful. Thanks again.

POSTED BY JOHN AT 5:41 PM

 
October 28, 2005

Many thanks to Jen Guerra from Michigan Radio for putting together a magnificent piece on us. To hear it, go here. It’s 826AWESOME!

No time to write my usual rambling blog, as we’re gearing up for our big fundraiser tomorrow! Hope to see you all there.

POSTED BY AMY AT 1:26 PM

 
October 24, 2005 — One more time: MONSTERS’ BALL! & more words.

Do you like the work we’re doing here? Do you appreciate us? Do you—dare we say—love us? Do you at least like kids?

Show your love and support for 826michigan by attending our fall fundraiser!

Monsters’ Ball will take place this Saturday (!!!!), October 29 at Greenhills School’s Campbell Center for the Performing Arts. Bestselling authors Elizabeth Kostova (The Historian) and Julie Orringer (How to Breathe Underwater) will share the stage with 826 students reading their own work. Come at 7 for drinks and desserts. The show starts at 8. Click here for more info.

Please show your support for this crazy endeavor we’ve undertaken by attending! Tickets are “pay what you can.” (Suggested donation $10/students, $15-50 general public.) Your generous support helps us provide free workshops and tutorial sessions to students throughout the year.

Are you a writer looking to hone your craft? Come to our Day-long Camp for Writers! This event also takes place this Saturday (!!!!), October 29 at Greenhills School. Julie Orringer and Barbara Shoup will be teaching workshops on short story and novel writing respectively. For more information on this, go here.

E-mail Amy at amy@826michigan.org for more information about these exciting events.

Can’t make it, but still want to help?

• Got some wine sitting around you’ve been looking to get rid of? Donate it to our fundraiser!
• Donate money! You can send checks to 826michigan, 2245 S State St, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. You can also use your credit card with Paypal on our website here.

 
Etcs., Written in the Form of a Love Letter

I’ve come to grips with it. I’m the wordy one. John has a talent for brevity; he’s more a poet, better equipped to say what he means succinctly. I’ve always fancied myself a short-story writer, but perhaps I’m a novelist after all. Or perhaps I’m just in need of a good editor. It’s hard to contain, though, this excitement I’m learning to live with twenty-four hours a day. It comes with a lot of, well, words, apparently. I mean, you don’t have to read it.

Is it time for a love letter? If it is, have I mentioned lately how much I love Erin? She’s the best. (Really, that says it all.) And John? Oh man! John. I can’t get sick of him (I’ve tried). Have you ever been lucky enough to work every day with two of your favorite people?

And what about our terrific and ever-expanding army of volunteers? Many bear mentioning, but today my favorites are C. Jason, Rahul, and Julia Smillie. C. Jason is alarmingly cool, for a nerd. Rahul, well, we’re brainwashing him, and soon enough he’ll forget all about med school. (John is well versed in Jedi mind tricks.) Julia’s edging in on being the funniest person I know, and I know some funny people. Just the thought of any one—or, gasp!, all three at once—makes me smile. Many thanks also go out to some of our most reliable and excellent tutors: Lee (who also has given us a printer, a table, and too many pens and pencils to count; furthermore, she brings two of our favorite dogs in on Mondays), Megan, Ryan, Franco, Katie, Dave, and Jeff.

Also, we’d like to take this opportunity to electronically shower our Superintern, Heather, with kisses: mmmMMAAA!

And, most of all, a million thank yous to all the wonderful students who come for tutoring and workshops! Your ability to inspire us seems to grow exponentially every time one of you walks through our door.

Group hug! (And yes, that means you too, John. You can’t get out of this one.)

POSTED BY AMY AT 2:51 PM

 
October 14, 2005 — Start here:

So many exciting things are happening here at 826, I hardly know where to begin. I don’t think blogs are supposed to be novellas, but I’m inclined to write one. Keeping you, the reader, foremost in my mind, I’ve decided to arrange it thusly: with numbers and bold fonts. Read what interests you, and I’m sorry about the overuse of exclamation points, but it couldn’t be helped.

1. Radio 826: The Wrap-up! The first but certainly not the last Radio 826 broadcast from Crazy Wisdom last Wednesday. If you like being places that feel magical, if you enjoy inspiration coming at you in ten-ton blocks, if you seek out happy feelings in all their wondrous forms, well, you shoulda been there. If you were, you know what I mean. Two Maggies and an Aja read from their work, and superstar Jeff Kass proved, for the fifty millionth time, that he’s a superhero. Many thanks to Jeff, Maggie, Maggie, Aja, all the open mic participants, and the very lucky and thoroughly engaged crowd that filled Crazy Wisdom past capacity.

   Radio 826 will broadcast again, soon; you can be sure of that.

2. 826michigan presents: world-famous cartoonist Keith Knight! Got any plans for Wednesday night? The author of The K Chronicles will be at the library, courtesy of us. Click here for all the gory and delicious details.

3. Swag-mania! Last week, Erin, John, myself, and 826 board members Heidi and Deanne spent what has become, undeniably, the best money we’ve ever let go of. We bought a button maker! Want a button that says “a period is 1/2 a semi-colon” or “Let’s hear it for BOOKS!” or “Censor ships” or “write something” or our logo or the Monster Union logo? Come on in; they’re only a dollar. And if you have another dollar, while you’re here, buy a sticker! We’ve got hot pink, peacock blue, and bright orange to choose from. They’ll look marvelous on your bumper, trust me, I know. We also have hot-off-the-presses t-shirts with C. Jason’s wondrous Monster Union logo (yellow on green and hot pink on gray).

4. Computer Lab! We now have seven computers that actually work!

5. Writers’ Day Camp!Hey adult writers! Looking for a place to hone your craft? Want to support a local writing center, so that young writers can be taken seriously? Want to combine those activities? Julie Orringer and Barbara Shoup will be teaching writing workshops as part of our day-long fundraising extravaganza on October 29. Click here for more info.

6. Monsters’ Ball! It’s alive! But it can’t live without your support! Please come to our first fall fundraiser, featuring the fabulous Julie Orringer, the brilliant Elizabeth Kostova, and the incomparable Maggie M! (There was talk of showing video clips from Radio 826 at this event, but after attending Radio 826, it was determined that what made the night so special was that we were watching students read their work, not watching video clips of students reading their work. And so, there will be actual students on stage actually reading their work. What a great opportunity for these students to get to share the stage with bestselling authors!) Click here for more information on this not-to-be-missed event.

It may sound like I’ve just downed a pot of coffee, but I don’t actually drink coffee anymore. I don’t need to, not with a place like this. The colors are brighter here than other places, the people more gregarious. The ladybugs luckier.

I promised myself I’d keep this under 600 words, and so I must go now, before…

POSTED BY AMY AT 4:56 PM

 
October 12, 2005 — Things That Make My Heart Feel Warm Here at 826, #4,348

Some of you may not know this, but our first anthology is “in the works,” as they say. Who exactly are they, you want to know? I’m not sure, and at any rate, it doesn’t matter, at least not today.

Twelve truly remarkable seniors from Stella Beale’s non-fiction writing class at Greenhills have been matched up with twenty-two equally remarkable students from Valerie Shedd’s fifth grade class at Haisley. A few weeks ago I got to spend some time with the seniors, and I was truly inspired by their creativity when determining a theme for the anthology. Last week, I went in to meet the fifth graders, and found them all to be, well, pretty awesome. (When I asked what they like to write, their responses ranged from “realistic fiction” to “personal narrative” to “science fiction.”)

Yesterday, the stars aligned, as stars are wont to do—this time with eight pizzas—and the two classes met for the first time. MEAP tests were happening at Haisley, so when we got to the classroom door, Valerie quickly reminded them, “Silent cheering!” I don’t know if I have ever seen any moment as lovely as the one I saw yesterday, walking into a classroom to twenty-two open mouths on beaming faces, forty-four arms waving wildly in the air. (It happened in some sort of slow motion.) While being introduced to one another, it was discovered that there are quite a few similarities between these thoughtful fifth graders and their “senior buddies.” Many of them like video games, for example, and playing a variety of sports. “Music,” said one of the fifth graders, “is my life.” Nods all around.

The first meeting was, for lack of a more dynamic set of words, a total and complete success. And so, on this slightly cold, mostly overcast October day, I would like to thank some people. I would like to thank the fifth graders, for that silent cheer, for the way they welcomed us all into their classroom, and for their dedication to this project. I would like to thank the seniors, for their maturity and intelligence, for the way they walked into that classroom and got to work, and for their dedication to this project. And, I would like to thank Valerie and Stella, for their obviously masterful teaching, for their friendship and intelligence, and for their dedication to this project. People like you are the reason I practically have to pinch myself every day. I don’t know what I did to deserve a job this wonderful, but I vow to try to earn it.

POSTED BY AMY AT 4:29 PM

 
October 7, 2005 — Radio 826 Takes Over the Airwaves

Radio 826 will broadcast for the first time this Wednesday, October 12, at 7pm, from Crazy Wisdom’s Tea Room, 114 Main St. This radio-formatted program will feature readings by some of our favorite 826 kids: Maggie M and Aja B, and VOLUME poets Maggie Ambrosino and Rafe Scobey-Thal. The students will read from their work and be interviewed, followed by open mic. Hosted by poet, teacher, and all-around superstar Jeff Kass.

Trust us when we say this is an event not to be missed. We’ve read some of what the students will be reading. Upon leaving this event, you will be no less than three of the following words: amazed, awe-struck, and inspired.

(It should be noted that volunteers can earn up to 48 brownie points for attending.)

POSTED BY AMY AT 11:05 AM

 
October 3, 2005

Fall has fallen upon us, and the box elders seem to like the sign outside our door, handsome little bugs. In the field down the hill from the writing center live at least three fat groundhogs. One watched me from beside his hole, while two others bounded playfully through the tall grass. I think this place is enchanted.

Our volunteers are amazing. When I left 826 Valencia, I doubted I would ever again meet such wonderful and spirited people. Lo, I have found a growing group of people who are just as dedicated, interesting, and creative. The students seem to like them as much as I do, as they respond enthusiastically to receiving individual attention. The students themselves are creative and inspiring, and they have quickly become some of our favorite people. Again, this place feels enchanted.

This energy and enthusiasm will spill over, no doubt, into our fall fundraiser, the Monsters’ Ball, and into schools as we take our Three-Hour ‘Zine workshop into classrooms. The Quarterly is gaining momentum as well. We are all fortunate to be on board for this exciting ride.

Our friend, Chuck Hatt, will be offering a wonderful workshop for those interested in teaching and writing. How about it, Chuck?

Dear Folks,

We know that there is no substitute for experience when it comes to sharing wisdom with others. This is particularly true of writing. Engaging in the writing process gives us insight and perspective as teachers of the writing process. To this end, I am inviting folks to join me for a series of teacher writing workshops. In the first workshop we will explore the personal narrative genre study which many of us have implemented in our 3-5 classrooms this fall. We will begin with an immersion phase wherein we explore the characteristics of personal narrative. Next, as a pre-writing activity will engage in personal story telling and flash drafting. We will then go through a series of craft and revisions which are specific to this genre. Finally, we will publish a group anthology and have (an adult) author party. I’m hoping folks will join. This series is in collaboration with 826michigan. The workshops will be located in their space. Food (well....pizza) will be served. All classroom teachers and district educators are invited as well as 826michigan staff and any volunteers or tutors who work with grades 3-8 students in the writing workshop. Here are the particulars:

Time: 4:30-6:00
Dates: October 4th, October 11th, 25th, November 1st, and publication party (date and location to be decided by the group)
Location: 2245 South State Street
To register please email Amy Sumerton at amy@826michigan.org

Chuck Hatt
Literacy Coordinator
Ann Arbor Public Schools

Thanks, Mr. Hatt!

POSTED BY JOHN AT 3:06 PM

 
September 21, 2005

The results are in! It’s official! Kids love tutoring at least as much as we do!

This from nine-year-old superstar 826 student Maggie:

Hi Everybody!

Thank you thank you thank you for letting me come in yesterday! I had a blast and got some great new ideas for “The Bicycle Girl.” Thank you so much for the shirt, I am wearing it to school today! I can’t wait to see you next Monday and show you what I have got so far.

Love,
Maggie

Maggie has decided to turn the short story “The Bicycle Girl” into a story cycle based on the marvelous help she got Monday from John and Michelle. She’ll be reading the piece at Radio 826 on October 12 at Crazy Wisdom. For more information on Radio 826, click here.

Tutoring has become the brightest spot in all of our days. Many, many thanks to the magnificent tutors we have had the great joy of working with, and many, many more thanks to all the incredible kids who have been inspiring us on these lovely, late-afternoon fall days! Our hearts swell when we think of you. Seriously, they do. If it continues, we may have to seek medical attention.

MONSTERS’ BALL! OH MAN! FUNDRAISING!

826 Fall Fundraiser: “Monsters’ Ball” featuring Elizabeth Kostova and Julie Orringer!
Saturday, October 29, 8pm.
Greenhills School’s Campbell Center for the Performing Arts
850 Greenhills Drive, Ann Arbor

Bestselling authors Julie Orringer (How to Breathe Underwater) and Elizabeth Kostova (The Historian) will read their fiction. The reading starts at 8pm, and will be followed by Q&A. This event will also feature video clips of 826 students reading their fiction at “Radio 826” (see October 12).

Participants are invited to come at 7pm for music and drinks and desserts served by ghouls, goblins, and both dead and undead literary figures. The general public is invited to dress accordingly.

Ticket prices for this event are $10/students, and a sliding-scale $25 to $50 for adults. To reserve your space, e-mail Amy at amy@826michigan.org or call 734.761.3463. Seating is limited, so don’t procrastinate!

Furthermore, adult writing seminars will be offered that afternoon as an additional fundraising venture. Julie Orringer’s “Where Good Stories Come From” workshop will be offered for short-story writers. Novelist Barbara Shoup will present “Novel Ideas,” an intensive, day-long exploration of the novel. (Click here for more information.)

If you want to help with the fundraiser or attend any of the activities, e-mail Amy at amy@826michigan.org and let her know.

POSTED BY AMY AT 1:52 PM

 
September 19, 2005

I certainly missed tutoring, and the first day was a wild success. It is good to be around creative, young minds, and to be able to give them the help and attention that they can’t always get. One can easily tell by their beaming faces and inquisitiveness that they appreciate having someone dedicated to helping them achieve their goals.

This place is beginning to have a pulse of its own. I turn my back for a moment and there is a new face, a new personal touch here and there, a new piece of writing from another smiling student. Amazing things are taking form, and it is a thrill to be witness to it.

Don’t you want to get involved? Tutoring brings beautiful karmic rainbows. Try it. Email me at john@826michigan.org.

On another note, we need to get our new and lovely Executive Director, Erin, to San Francisco so she can meet with 826 National. This is very important. The future of 826 rests upon this. I mean, you like kids, don’t you? So donate frequent flyer miles (sometimes frequent flyer miles come on green pieces of paper, sometimes referred to as “money,” or multicolored pieces of paper, also known as “checks”) and help us help you! By going to National, Erin can learn all the tricks of the trade, the ins and outs, and up to a hundred other clever clichés. And that will alleviate mass amounts of stress from poor Erin’s brainbox. Right now, it fills up so quickly she has to manually drain it at least twice a day.

Are you having a wonderful day? Please do.

POSTED BY JOHN AND AMY AT 5:29 PM

 
September 15, 2005

I probably don’t need to mention this, but Amy and Steve and I were a smash hit last night when we read fiction and nonfiction at Crazy Wisdom. I needn’t mention it because you were probably there. And if you were there, there is no way you would miss the next one. So, moving on…

I am terribly excited for tutoring to begin on Monday. One student already showed up, eager to receive one-on-one tutoring attention. He was almost a week early. I appreciate this sort of enthusiasm. Wow, man. Tutoring. Ain’t no trip to Cleveland.

The countdown to our fall fundraiser, The Monsters’ Ball, has begun. We cannot pull it off without you. Let us know if you can help out with preparation (baking, making/procuring monstrous costumes, brainstorming fun things to do at the event, putting together goodie bags, getting sponsors, putting together a short video about 826, etc.). Also, we will need a small army of folks to help run the event. We’re moving this bad boy to the front burner, so keep October 29 open.

You’ve seen the Fall Workshop Schedule, yes? For those of you who want to tutor, but have problems with scheduling, you should consider helping out at the workshops. They usually take place in the evenings or on weekends, and they are so fun you will want to wear your shoes as a hat. How? Oh, you’ll find a way.

In case you’re wondering what we had for lunch today, Amy and Erin had spicy broccoli and garlic. I had lo mein. Andrew devoured two P.B.&J.s with his eyes. Amazing. I only mention this because a volunteer, Paddy, was curious about our daily routine. Paddy, the jelly was concord grape.

POSTED BY JOHN AT 4:57 PM

 
September 9, 2005

Our first volunteer appreciation event, “Challenge Night,” was a huge success. If you don’t count the fact that only one volunteer showed up, that is. This is the missive we sent out:

Speaking of forthcoming details, remember how we told you to keep Thursday night open? The 8th, seven o’clock? Well, wouldn’t you know, we have decided upon a venue for our madness. This Thursday at Leopold Bros., we invite volunteers to join us for board games, cards, pool, and coin-flipping. If you can beat me (John) at pinball, you just might be rewarded with something delicious. I know Amy doesn’t want to get pub schlarr in her hair, but I hear she can stand on her head for a long, long time. It might be worth challenging her. And you know what’s a good way to get to know strangers? Staring contests.

It’s flip night on Thursdays at Leopold Bros., so there is a fifty percent chance that each tasty beverage will be very affordable. That and the company of Amy and I are reason enough to show up, right?

We challenge YOU to:

• show up wearing boots
• bring a flower for Amy (No weeds, no goldenrod—she’s allergic.)
• quote Star Wars as much as you can
• bring an object you found on your way to Leopold Bros.
• empty your bank account and bring it to us
• impress us with the art of origami
• wear a blue shirt
• make your jaw click
• have some sort of hat on your head (This is a challenge, yes, but a practical one. See “pub schlarr” above.)
• lick your elbow
• sing a song by the band Canada
• recite a fancy poem from memory
• cross only one of your eyes
• wear mismatched socks
• come with a pocketful of challenges for us

Sounds fun, right? Well, it was. That’s why it was successful. Amy beat John at pinball twice, but received only one delicious thing. She also beat him at pool, but that feels like a lie because he scratched, and she wasn’t really playing all that well. He ultimately redeemed himself by schooling her at foosball, winning a staring contest, and beating her at pinball, incredibly, twice in one game.

Giraffecat “The Challenger” was there. No one brought Amy a flower, although at one point, we became very excited when, while looking expectantly out of the window, we saw a woman across the street carrying flowers. Apparently she was not a volunteer, though.

Our new Intern, Heather the Wonderful, Lovely, and Vivacious, made an appearance, causing Erin, John, and Amy to weep with joy. (Well, Amy and Erin wept. John was crying on the inside.) That girl’s got fashion sense. Big time. She went to art school, and thus knows how to pull off wearing two different earrings.

Laughs were had, too many to count. Our stomachs are still a little sore. Hopefully our next volunteer appreciation event will prove even half as fun.

POSTED BY AMY AT 5:02 PM

 
September 8, 2005 — T-U-T-O-R-I-N-G!!

Get ready. It’s almost time, my friends, to put our tutoring caps on. (Say, special caps aren’t a bad idea.) I had a whim today, and if people think this is not a good idea, they should let me know. I was thinking that, next Thursday, September 15th, at 7 o’clock, people who plan on tutoring could get together at 826. Those who hadn’t yet filled out volunteer applications could do so. Tutors could get a feel for the space, and I could briefly explain how our little tutoring system works. It would be a totally optional event, unlike the training on the 21st. I imagine, however, that many would like to meet the other tutors, and have a sense of how we run this well-oiled machine before being thrown into it. I promise you, P-R-O-M-I-S-E, there will be snacks. I know how much you love snacks. I’ll make sure to provide music, too. Let me know if you’re interested.

If you are interested in tutoring, and have not yet done so, contact John at john@826michigan.org. Tutoring is a wonderfully rewarding experience, and we would be lucky to have you on our team.

POSTED BY JOHN AT 12:23 PM

 
September 6, 2005

Erin, our new executive director, showed up today. She brought with her a refreshing aura to the office. I’m pretty sure it had something to do with her vanilla air freshener. I told her it reminded me of my car in high school. We are quite happy to have her here. When I helped unload her car, I half-expected to find the mechanical lion that forms Voltron’s head parked behind our office.

I am pumped for tutoring. I cannot wait to meet our new students and tutors, and to watch as our lab bubbles with excitement and laughter. It is strange to me how something like homework morphs from a dreary task into an encouraging and productive activity. I think, this year, I’ll count how many times I hear somebody say, “I wish I had something like this when I was in school.”

As hard as it is to be negative in this place, I do miss Erik and Diana. Luckily, I still spend time with the man who trained me in the ancient art of coordinating volunteers. As for Diana, I am sure she is going to have a wonderful semester, and I can’t wait to hear her tales. Come home soon, DK! Amy still wears a veil in mourning.

The time is now, folks, to get involved. I can think of nothing more rewarding than tutoring, but there are so many ways you can help. Always feel welcome to contact us if you have something in mind you’d like to do, or even if you don’t have a clue (the story of my life). Knowing that I am doing something good is the only thing that keeps me sane sometimes. Now I have sanity to spare. Here, have some. It tastes like children.

POSTED BY JOHN AT 5:57 PM

 
September 1, 2005

The fall workshop schedule is done! Last week, much like Moses, Amy came down off Mount 826 speaking in tongues, scratching ferociously, reeking of raccoon, and carrying two large stone tablets. John immediately set to work translating them and feeding Amy warm milk through an eyedropper until she stopped (for the most part) mumbling to herself.

Thus, we received the fall workshop schedule. Click here to gaze upon it in all its wonder and glory.

Students must register for workshops to participate in them! Call (734) 761-3463 to register. You are only guaranteed a spot in a workshop if you talk to a real, live, actual human when you call. Leaving a message unfortunately does not mean you have registered! Each student may only sign up for two workshops per schedule.

Also, drop-in tutoring starts on September 19! Drop-in happens Mondays through Thursdays from 2:30 to 5:30pm, and, as the name “drop-in” implies, pre-registration is not required. During tutoring, students will be paired up with a savvy adult willing to help with homework, work on a comic strip, or just hang out. Our tutors are highly trained volunteers. Some of our tutors are teachers, education majors, editors, writers, poets, and explorers. For more information on drop-in tutoring, or to find out how you can be a tutor, contact John at john@826michigan.org.

POSTED BY AMY AT 2:43 PM

 
August 31, 2005 — Drop-In Tutoring Will Start On Monday, September 19! Huzzah!

Tutoring happens Monday through Thursday from 2:30-5:30. Tutoring involves: helping kids with homework or other projects, creating projects to do with kids, and generally hanging out. Tutoring only works, though, if we have tutors. To sign up, e-mail John at john@826michigan.org and ensure yourself a place on his “do not berate” list. John may introduce you to our most famous and huggable monimal, the giraffecat.

Do you feel like you don’t know what you’re doing? Don’t worry. We will offer a tutor training session at 826 on Wednesday, September 21 at 6:30. It probably won’t last long, it will be an opportunity to meet other volunteers, and you might actually learn something. Besides, it’s pretty much mandatory. We understand, though, that we need you more than you need us, so we promise that this meeting, as with all things 826, will be fun.

INTERNSHIPS! — Straight-up volunteering just not enough of a time commitment? Looking to move in? Apply for an internship. Interns do all sorts of things. All John (a former 826 Valencia intern) will say is that they do “everything. They do, like, everything.” Then he started saying something about blood in a giant monster. Now he’s saying something about how if people are into something, like art or writing, then we can steer that intern in that direction. Whatever. If you’ve got 15-20 hours a week to hang out here, apply.

POSTED BY AMY AT 2:43 PM

 
August 30, 2005 — There and Back Again.

It is 5:58 in the morning, and I woke with a start. Only one more morning in this town before I leave for Boston. But, I will be back.

The boxes piled in my closet and under my desk threaten to topple at any moment. My bookshelves are empty. My pale blue walls have no postcards hung with scotch tape. Leaving is hard. Make no mistake: I am certainly looking forward to studying on dark wood floors with crossed legs and a cup of tea, more than you might know.

But, here it is. My summer here in Ann Arbor, and especially at 826, was unreal. Unreal in the way that a maple-syrup ocean would be — and, in fact, actually is — unreal. I sometimes think that summer was a figment of my imagination. But no; this neon palace, these people, those giraffecats, were my daily existence. My heart would race all morning, (and this, I am not making up) with ideas and short-term memories which I just could not believe were mine.

This place does something to people. It grasped my narrow wrist in early sunny June and dragged me stumbling, racing, laughing all the way into the last of my days here. I have never loved an institution or a collection of beaming faces so fiercely, so fully — Erik, Andrew, John, Papa Steve, and Amy...and Amy. (You know you mean so much to me it hurts.) If you are wondering whether you might want to spend your time here, you can stop wondering. You do, and all of it. It becomes impossible to stay away. And so, yes. I will be back.

love, always, Diana.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 7:53 AM

 
August 29, 2005 — Things I Said Everyday, and Still It Doesn’t Feel Like Enough.

Things have gotten even more quiet since DK wrote our last blog. I didn’t realize that the “what’s coming next” that DK alluded to was going to be so…quiet. You see, we lost two of our MVPs on Friday: the magnificent and radiant DK and her loveable, oft-partner-in-crime Erik. DK is very much like a ray of sunshine, only not that hot, temperature-wise, and Erik is very much like one of those things you throw into the water to save someone from drowning.

(Do not misunderstand me. My life has been saved by both of them, no more or less than the other. And don’t let me get too nostalgic: my life continues to be saved by John and Andrew and Papa Steve.)

As I write this, I’m inclined to start sobbing. And then I’m reminded of my reaction to DK’s tears over her last few days. Something to the effect of: “No! We are not going to do that!” Once, I’m sorry to say, there was a slamming door. I wasn’t really angry, just misguidedly sad.

Anyway, the point is, on behalf of everyone involved with 826michigan, THANK YOU to Diana “DK” Kimball and Erik “E-Rock” Buehmann for all your hard work this summer. Without you, this place would not be the adorable monster that it is. Sure, there would still be plastic babies everywhere, but there would be no intern dungeon, and no deep-seated love of hair bands.

You can’t take credit for the giraffecats, though.

The screen’s getting hard to read now, so I should probably go. (No! I am not going to do that!...slam.)

Much love, group hugs, kisses, and loving glances,
Amy, working in a very quiet, very empty office

P.S. Oh yeah...tutor training September 21, time tba. Drop-in tutoring starts September 19. Fall workshop schedule will be up later this week.

POSTED BY AMY AT 5:50 PM

 
August 22, 2005 — No Going Back.

Thursday was the last of our summer workshops, and we miss our students already. There are fewer uncapped ballpoint pens lurking in the shadows between chair legs, but there are also fewer small voices clamoring to speak. It has seemed especially quiet around here ever since our now-legendary Three Hour ‘Zine workshop. After those three rollicking hours of conceptualizing, creating, and assembling a 20-page publication — Monimals: The Species Unknown, an in-depth account of monster-animals in nature, the movies, and imaginations — I don’t think any of us will ever be the same. There is no going back.

So here, in this gray-skied, lawn-smelling interlude between summer and school, we are waiting and smiling to ourselves. Even with all these colossal Crayola rooms, the five of us still crowd into Amy’s turquoise office to type lightly on keyboards like toy pianos. We laugh loudly. Amy reaches around long yellow paper pads to find her glass jar of watery tea; John sometimes crawls under her desk to work when he has a headache. We pass jotted addresses back and forth on bright post-its, and Reese’s Pieces back and forth in warm palms. We are getting ready for what’s coming next.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 4:00 PM

 
August 17, 2005 — Another Grant-Writing Meeting

Dearest Grant-writing Volunteers,

826michigan requests the honour of your presence at 826michigan for the union of Grant-writing and your enthusiasm. This marriage will be held during an 826michigan Grant-Writing Meeting on the 17th of August at 7:15pm 2005. If you were not at the last meeting, please try to come. If you signed up for only events organizing, you do not have to come but you can if you want.

Please RSVP via email at info@826michigan.org. If you cannot come and want more information please email your regrets.

POSTED BY ERIK AT 3:53 PM

 
August 08, 2005 — 826michigan Needs An Accounting Consultant!

826michigan Needs a Volunteer Accounting Consultant, badly. We are a writing center and unused to these things you call “numbers”. Oh, the abstraction hurts our heads! The person should have some basic tax knowledge and the ability to add and also Quickbooks experience.

This is a volunteer position — the accounting consultant will not be paid in money, such a transient, temporal, and meaningless thing, but rather he or she will be paid in love and appreciation and the good feeling that follows a good deed

If you think you are our Accountant, please give us a call at 734-761-3463 or email Erik at info@826michigan.org.

POSTED BY ERIK AT 3:26 PM

 
August 08, 2005 — Fall Workshops Coming Soon!

The dedicated 826michigan employees are toiling morning, noon, night, brunch, breakfast, and dinner to bring you our Fall Workshop Schedule! We are also endeavoring to bring you information on our Drop-In Tutoring which is scheduled to open sometime in September.

STAY TUNED: we will have information for you soon.

If you would like to sign up to our email list please email info@826michigan.org with your name and what you would like to learn more about: tutoring, workshops, other 826michigan events, volunteering, or interning.

POSTED BY ERIK AT 11:53 AM

 
August 08, 2005 — 826michigan Needs A Merchandiser!

826michigan is looking for a Volunteer Merchandiser to help us start the Monster Union Local 826 Store. Experience with Theater, Music Store Retail, or any Retail Merchandising (the “s” makes the word look very British) preferred. Must be frugal and be slightly mad. Mad as in wiley, precocious, and insanely creative, not mad as in angry. This is a volunteer position -- the merchandiser will not be paid in money, such a transient, temporal, and meaningless thing, but rather he or she will be paid in love and appreciation and the good feeling that follows a good deed.

If you think you are our Merchandiser, please give us a call at 734-761-3463 or email Erik at info@826michigan.org.

POSTED BY ERIK AT 11:38 AM

 
August 07, 2005 — Henceforth, Gertrude.

Only Just the Start
Originally uploaded by 826michigan. Like the frosted-pink balloon of Bazooka bubblegum that billowed out of Kateri’s 9-year-old mouth at a recent workshop, the cast of characters here at 826 Michigan is swelling. The scrubbed faces of our brave young students are becoming more familiar with every workshop. Sometimes, we know their names now without even glancing at their neon nametags. They know our names, too, although they have in some cases deemed them unfit. A certain Wendy L. has a particular penchant for giving gender-bending -- though always affectionate -- nicknames to our volunteers. Steve R., for instance, will henceforth be known as Gertrude. There is nothing he can do about this.

Five workshops through, we are almost fanatical in our love for the kids who keep coming back. We are fervent in our adoration of the tiny jaws that drop as they walk into our color-drenched basement cavern for the first time. We clamor to take small hands and lead them through our labyrinthine corridors on the master tour. We threw open our doors only two months ago, and already we feel flush with happiness, because: it’s working.

Do you know how Jiaao described a photograph of a sky charged with furious lightning? A river map without the words, she said. Andy saw the spaces between lightning spikes and decided that they were ghosts. Mohan whispered to me with all his might,“I know what it looks like,” and then scrawled the sentence fragment on his paper in ballpoint pen. “Crossed lines,” he’d written, and I asked him where he’d seen scribbled lines like that before. He smiled mischievously. “On my little sister’s homework.” I did not know how to respond. All of them were enormously right, and it is hard to believe that this is only just the start.

(All right. We will admit that we are including some individuals of questionable authenticity in the alleged headcount of our “swelling” ranks. We apologize if you feel you have been misled, but we feel that this liberty was entirely justified. Take the case of Thaddeus R. Blotch, our mysterious, demanding, hermitlike -- and/or potentially invisible -- publisher. He is very sensitive, and easily offended. (We think this is because he had a rather nasty case of garlicky body odor as an adolescent, but we cannot be sure.) And the six-foot-tall glow-in-the-dark monster whom we are trying to convince to take up residence in our supply closet? Well, alienating him wouldn’t help matters, now would it? Finally, we would just like to defend our inclusion of wombats and all other Australian mammals. They have been pulling their weight and more around here, and I think it is safe to say that they deserve some recognition.)

POSTED BY DIANA AT 9:28 PM

 
August 05, 2005 — Belatedly, We Remember This Scene:

Maggie Discovers the Babies
Originally uploaded by 826michigan.
Urgently and conspiratorially, I whispered to the four intrepid young explorers to “follow me down the secret corridor!” It was not a secret until precisely that moment, and even then not for very long, considering that I told it right away. The four young explorers, fortunately, could be trusted. They tiptoed toward the doorway of the lightswitch-dark room taking long and elegant steps. Running ahead, I poised myself by the doorknob, nodding at them to make sure we were all action-ready. My hand reached inside, flipped the switch, and threw the door wide onto an alarmingly fantastical wonderland, glowing shades of lime green. I could not tell if the silence was shock or awe, but I may never know. Maybe it was both.

After their heads had spun as their small t-shirted bodies slowly turned to every wall teeming with krazy-glued treasures, I told the four that they were the first, and that their mission was to return with word pictures plundered from the Inspiration Room. The stickers – an astronaut, a shark, an ice-cream cone – glinted on their brand-new Moleskine writer’s notebooks as they unsnapped the elastics holding them closed and readied their ballpoint pens. For the next ten minutes, they dragged their feet through the magenta shag carpet while they looked back and forth between the walls, the ceiling, and the blank page in front of them. Every exclamation – “Whoa, what’s that doorknob doing in the middle of the wall?!”, or “Why are all those babies in trees?!” – elicited the same delighted reaction from me: Write It Down. And, being the supreme explorers that they were, they did. We silently reentered Headquarters with the matching strides of those returning from a long and famously eventful journey — notebooks, of course, firmly in hand.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 3:12 PM

 
August 01, 2005 — Linnea’s First Snapshot

Camera Camera
Originally uploaded by 826michigan.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 1:34 PM

 
July 28, 2005 — This Reminds Me Of...

One moment, you’re minding your own business, merrily whisking together flour and sugar. But then, you open up the cinnamon and WHAM! And all of a sudden, you are the one being whisked – whisked back to a time you thought you’d forgotten, when your little brother wouldn’t let you have the bigger cinnamon bun, and you threw a tantrum, and you did not get your way.

We have heard that it is not good to live in the past, but we beg to differ. In fact, we created an entire workshop to defend this very practice. On Tuesday, July 26, 15 students were treated to the taste of Bazooka bubble gum; to the smells of vanilla extract, cinnamon, and garlic; to the distinct tactile sensation of thrusting their hands into a vat of squishy spaghetti noodles mixed with ice cubes and plum puree. While blindfolded. After each encounter, workshop leader Stefan Kiesbye engaged in a riotous dialogue of free association with the students. In the Writer’s Gallery, you will find a few of the results. After reading them, we think you will agree that living in the past is a good thing after all.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 7:33 PM

 
July 21, 2005 — Better Together

• peanut butter and bananas
  
• Batman and Robin
  
• cake and frosting
  
• Lucky Charms and ketchup
  
• our beautiful neon basement cavern and energetic, brilliant kids

Perhaps not Lucky Charms and ketchup.

But the students, bubbling with ideas, have finally arrived. We couldn’t be happier. We held our first two workshops last week: Building the Story, taught by author Steve Gillis, and The Writer’s Notebook, run by journalist Cindy BeMent. Pictures from The Writer’s Notebook can be found HERE, at THE OFFICIAL 826 ONLINE PHOTO ALBUM. Please look at them. They will warm your heart.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 4:45 PM

 
July 05, 2005 — Inspiration

Inspiration. Sometimes you have it. Sometimes you don’t. Here at the 826 Laboratorium, we have been performing secret and highly scientific experiments night and day in an effort to better understand this phenomenon. In the process, we have been wildly abusing graph paper (the tiny boxes cry out to be made into crosswords) and jellybeans. For the jellybeans, there is no excuse.

After much toil and the consumption of many small candies, we have come to the conclusion that Inspiration is fundamentally analogous to that famed computer game by the name of “Tetris.” The small nuggets of inspiration may fall from the sky in any manner of colors and shapes. Sometimes they will come slowly, and sometimes they will come in a torrential downpour, faster than you can find places to put them, faster than you think should be possible. All you can do is keep smashing the arrow keys, turning the ideas round and round like caffeinated pinwheels, and praying that they will all fall into place. But even if you find yourself sweating up a storm, overwhelmed by all the ideas or Tetris pieces that demand homes, remember: you earned this predicament. You asked for it. You got to Level 10. And it may be more than you bargained for, but you cannot deny there is a certain thrill to the monsoon of creativity, in a thousand colors, raining down mercilessly and wondrously upon your umbrellaless head.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 4:43 PM

 
June 24, 2005 — Perseverance

Perseverance is something we value very highly here at 826michigan. It is a lesson we learn and relearn almost daily. For instance, when Amy decided that she was going to cryogenically freeze a small blue elephant to the lime-green wall of the Inspiration Room with Goop brand adhesive, did she give up when it fell to the paint-splattered floor again and again? She did not. When Erik and I ventured forth into the aisles of our local Meijer in search of yellow cautionary tape, did we abandon our search when the going got tough? We did not. Well. Erik did not. I was tempted to. But with Erik’s stubborn encouragement, I pushed onward. And, eventually, spied a large roll of HUNTING: NO TRESPASSING tape, which I proposed could be used interchangeably, like a physical synonym. Erik peered at me very skeptically, and then did his own looking and came up with a roll of the proper tape, which I can only assume he found with his superior and potentially X-Ray Capable vision. However, slightly later, when Erik was valiantly attempting to affix a large Batmobile to the Inspiration Room wall with Krazy Glue, did he abandon all hope when the Batmobile refused to stop rolling down the wall on its wheels? He did. But he persevered for a very long time prior to abandoning all hope, and so we will consider his lesson learned.

POSTED BY DIANA AT 4:41 PM

 
June 24, 2005 — Welcome

826 Valencia was started in San Francisco by famed writer and editor Dave Eggers. Have you heard of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius or McSweeney’s? Well, he’s behind both. Anyway, a few years back he decided to start a non-profit organization that focused on mentoring kids in creative writing. Founded by Ann Arbor writer Steven Gillis, 826michigan is a chapter of that national non-profit organization. In case you don’t believe us you will notice the official 826National seal on the bottom of our homepage. Through afterschool, drop-in tutoring, field trips, workshops, writing rooms, and various other means, 826’s main goal is to inspire young people and foster their creativity. We take kids very seriously in an often not-so-serious way. Programs are free of charge. We are not responsible for how overwhelmingly creative or thoughtfully energized any young person may be upon leaving 826. We should note that we are the world-renowned Monster Union Local 826. We bet that intrigues you, and therefore, we’re going to be coy and tell you that details on that are forthcoming. (That’s called narrative tension.)

Tutoring starts this fall!