An evening with Davy Rothbart
Ladies Literary Club
Nov. 10, 8 p.m.
Free
calvin.edu/sao, (616) 459-6322
At some time or another you have probably written a letter raging at your boss, never intending to send it. Or made a shopping list with "boyfriend" scribbled in right after soap. And you probably tossed them in the trash and figured they were gone for good. Well, there is a chance someone is poking around and sending your junk to FOUND magazine.
A collection of sent in items found all over the country and world, FOUND magazine is the brainchild of Davy Rothbart. Every day, five-to-20 physical finds show up in FOUND’s mailbox, and some online. Things like letters found in couch cushions at thrift stores or notes discovered under movie theatre seats are examples of what the magazine prints. Some of the finds include people’s dirty little secrets, others are funny or heartbreaking.
Rothbart got the idea for FOUND in 2000, after a note intended for someone named Mario was left on his car. Rothbart and a group of friends began to wonder what other people were finding, so they decided to start a magazine, showcasing finds sent in by people. Since then, FOUND has compiled three anthologies and nine magazines with themes like “FOUND Parking Notes” and “Dirty FOUND,” a collection of the most promiscuous finds.
Rothbart travels to events around the country in order to spread the word about the project. He describes them as fun and lively, with Rothbart sharing the latest treasures that have shown up in the FOUND mailbox.
“It’s kind of like a rowdy spoken word," he said. "Basically, I do kind of a lively energetic reading. I get on stage with a big stack of my favorite found notes sent in over the years. … I try to read them with the energy and emotion they were written with.”
Rothbart keeps his project inclusive by offering his events for free or less than $10 for admission. At the events, he encourages people to bring in their recent finds to share for full audience participation.
“It’s a community art project that requires the participation of as many people as possible," he said. "We just want to make sure people can come and enjoy it and be apart of the FOUND community.”
Along with the found items, Rothbart also shares excerpts from his collection of personal stories, My Heart is an Idiot.
After 10 years of sharing people’s most private thoughts and letters Rothbart decided to open himself up in the same way, with the result being My Heart is an Idiot.
“Some of the stories are about love and relationships and my own misadventures. Sort of how my heart has been an idiot over the last 10, 20 years.”
By sharing other people’s experience of being human, along with his own, FOUND shows us the human experience is universal.
“I always think when I am laughing at one of these found notes I am really laughing at myself, because ya know I've written that same pitiful love note like a hundred times.”
So next time you go to discard that pitiful love note, maybe consider burning it.
