Page 959 – Good Times

Housing Authority

Local News

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February 10, 2016

The housing crisis in Santa Cruz County has reached a fever pitch. But while there’s plenty of handwringing, there aren’t a lot of options being proffered to solve it, according to Michael Bethke, a longtime planning expert.
“We need to change the conversation,” says Bethke, who is moving to Georgia this month. “A paradigm shift is needed in terms of how we view housing.”
Bethke, a one-time county fair manager and self-proclaimed “change agent,” has spent the better part of his career working to improve housing and living conditions throughout the greater Bay Area, most recently in Santa Cruz.
About two years ago, he launched a program aimed to help the owners—or inheritors—of red-tagged properties get those properties up to code, with the caveat that proceeds from their sale be donated to charity.
Bethke is moving to Georgia for a variety of reasons, including the desire to be closer to his aging mother-in-law. The comparative affordability of housing in that state is also a draw. He’s also moving closer to Habitat for Humanity’s headquarters, an organization he’s hoping to sell on some of the programs he’s developed in Santa Cruz.
Bethke’s recent pet project, “For Sale, For Good,” worked on the premise that house flipping could be used for a good cause. Bethke and a cohort of others, as covered in GT in 2014, took a once-derelict home in the Zayante Valley, fixed it up, and then sold it, with the proceeds going to the local Boys and Girls Club, Jacob’s Heart and other local nonprofits.
“By doing so, [these workers] have also turned a long and tragic story of code violations, neighborhood unrest and untold legal battles into a beautiful story of redemption,” says Bethke, a contractor who also worked as project manager for the iconic Rittenhouse building on Pacific Avenue.
Rusty Hartman was a character straight out of a 1960s novel, a free spirit who sought to create his own version of a utopian residential retreat. Unfortunately, “Rusty’s Retreat” became ground zero for several decades of battles with tenants, neighbors and the County of Santa Cruz.
After Hartman’s death in 2013, members of the deceased’s living trust approached Bethke. Hartman’s estate remained embroiled in court battles after his death, and those in control of his trust sought to find a way to use his remaining assets for a positive effect in the community. After months of work and the efforts of many people, the property was brought up to code and sold, with the profits then going to the nonprofit cause.
Bethke’s hope was to take this proven example and replicate it, and he began working with a couple of other estates to build a living trust that would establish the requirement that the proceeds from the sale go to a good cause.
The project had the potential to be a feel-good situation all around.
“It is comforting to know that no matter how far down we may have gone, and no matter what kind of checkered legacy we may have left behind, we all still have the opportunity to do something good before we die, and hence, receive one of the most gracious gifts of all—redemption,” Bethke says of the project.
Unfortunately, like so many other projects, “For Sale, For Good” quickly became mired in the exact red tape that it was trying to fight against, Bethke says, which prevented them from flipping more houses. The costs of permits, not to mention the amount of time and effort going into obtaining those from the county planning department, quickly added up to more than Bethke and his team could handle.
While in Georgia, Bethke plans to leverage his longtime work with Habitat for Humanity, which is based in Atlanta, and get the organization interested in something that would be radically different than what Habitat has historically pursued. He says his vision for housing also flies in the face of what’s been more or less the status quo.
He would like to encourage more communities to incentivize building accessory dwelling units (ADUS), the converted garages and back houses sometimes referred to as “granny units.” As part of that vision, he’d like more properties to have what’s called tenancy in common, where different owners can be listed on a title and own different fractions of a property.
Bethke believes this could be a new paradigm for Habitat for Humanity to pursue. Traditionally the nonprofit organization, founded by Jimmy Carter, has sought solely to build entirely new properties with the emphasis on single-family dwellings.
The perk is that these accessory units don’t require a separate sewer and water hookup, making them infinitely cheaper from an infrastructure perspective as well as a residential one. At the end of the day, Bethke explains, a house is not just a structure. It is a home—something that everyone should have the right to. And as a society, he explains, it’s our responsibility to ensure that is a reality for our citizens.
“We need to make it so that people in Santa Cruz, and elsewhere, can actually afford to age in place,” he says. “Incentivizing the development of ADUs could go a long way towards allowing this.”

Cold Shoulders

Local News

Mat Weir

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February 10, 2016

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It’s 4 p.m. on a cold winter day, and two dozen people have huddled up in front of a brightly lit cafeteria. Within a half an hour, the line has nearly doubled at the Homeless Services Center (HSC) as men and women of all ages gather to eat a warm meal of polenta and kielbasa sausage with veggies in a flavorful sauce. After dinner, a 24-passenger bus pulls onto the campus, ready to shuttle individuals to the National Guard Armory hangar in DeLaveaga Park.
Upon arrival, guests are given a last chance to turn over any banned paraphernalia—drugs, alcohol or weapons—they might have previously forgotten into an “amnesty box.” They are then wanded by a metal detector, as their bodies and bags are searched for contraband.
As HSC staff checks people in, several volunteers lay out sleeping mats in men’s, women’s and couple’s sections.

The Armory has not hit full capacity this season and only reached a peak of 91 people during a coldsnap between Christmas and New Year’s. The numbers are surprising, considering at last count a year ago, there were 1,964 homeless people in the county, 69 percent of them unsheltered.

A number of people immediately lay out their belongings, trying to fall asleep quickly, while others walk toward the television and DVD player set up in the middle of the room or head toward the bathroom. Conversations bounce off the wooden floor throughout the hollow room as staff members listen to guests’ needs and pass out hygienic supplies.
“It’s really helpful [running the shelter] when you have a dedicated, compassionate staff,” explains Winter Shelter Program Manager Jordan Boyer. “Detail-oriented people are exactly what we need.”
By 5 a.m. the next morning, 85 individuals will wake up, gather their life belongings and take the shuttle back to the HSC campus, where coffee and a warm breakfast waits.
Since Nov. 16, this is how the Winter Shelter has operated every day, taking in an average of 80 individuals a night for 100 possible spaces.
The Armory has not hit full capacity this season and only reached a peak of 91 people during a coldsnap between Christmas and New Year’s. The numbers are surprising, considering at last count a year ago, there were 1,964 homeless people in the county, 69 percent of them unsheltered. Also, the city’s camping ban, which allows police officers to cite people for sleeping outside at night, does not go into effect on any nights the winter shelter is full.
The Santa Cruz City Council had voted in October to pay $31,000 to help keep the shelter open for the wet El Niño year, with other local jurisdictions also chipping in as well.
Mayor Cynthia Mathews, in an interview with GT last month, used the extra spots in the winter shelter as a reason she was hesitant to support a separate Warming Center program, an emergency shelter started by activists for near-freezing nights.
Phil Kramer, HSC’s interim director, and shelter clients say there could be a number of reasons the winter shelter still has spaces.
Many in the homeless community have a hard time making the 5:30 p.m. bus call, often because of work. Other people decline using the Armory because the National Guard doesn’t allow pets or because there isn’t enough space on the shuttle for additional bags, Kramer says. Some people might not even want the help, or they might not feel comfortable in the shelter.
“Some of the people that refuse the services are a bit rougher to handle,” says Andy Carcello, a 59 year-old HSC resident and cafeteria volunteer. “They possibly have more problems and become more isolated.”
Supporters say the volunteer-run Warming Center Program (WCP) has been covering some of those needs in the homeless community.
The program goes into effect after consecutive days of rain or if the temperature drops below 34 degrees. The Warming Center sets up their “Soup and Shuttle” station in downtown Santa Cruz’s Pearl Alley, serving hot soup and decaffeinated coffee to individuals before shuttling them to one of three sleeping locations. Last month, the City Council voted to donate the use of a city building to the WCP as a “last resort” if other locations are filled.
WCP manager Brent Adams called the decision “huge,” and Kramer says the Warming Center is indeed filling a special niche of its own.
“The Warming Center really accommodates many people we can’t,” he says.

Gimme Shelter

The past year was a tumultuous one for the HSC, and not just because it lost approximately $650,000 in funding, including the $350,000 Emergency Services Grant—which funded showers, meals and mail service. The center faced uncertainty at the top with the resignation, after only one year, of director Jannan Thomas.
The Homeless Services Center has also been getting complaints from community members about people loitering outside the campus. Because it is a closed campus, Armory guests have nowhere to go after breakfast, leaving many to congregate in front of the gate until the shower service opens at 10 a.m.
“There’s no getting around the uncomfortableness of asking people to leave the street,” says Kramer, who took over as interim director last fall. “But as a good neighbor, we are trying to address the needs of the community.”
Through community donations, the nonprofit raised $200,000 to keep the Paul Lee Loft open through this June, when HSC’s fiscal year ends.
Kramer also reports that “Hygiene Bay” has re-opened from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day, thanks to the time and work of a few volunteers. The Center continues to serve four meals a day—two breakfasts and two dinners—but only for individuals living on HSC’s campus or enrolled in that day’s winter shelter. Additionally, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors voted last summer to give an additional $66,000 to keep the mail room open for HSC residents.
HSC officials are aware they can’t celebrate yet. The Paul Lee Loft and mailroom are funded only through June, when they will re-apply for federal funding, leaving a funding gap until at least fall.
Kramer blames the uncertainty on ever-changing federal grant guidelines, which have not been released for the upcoming cycle, as well as the feds’ increased tunnel vision for housing people on the streets.
“The indication from the federal government is that they are focused on funding housing, which is great,” Kramer says. “But it’s at the expense of these essential human needs: eat, sleep, go to the bathroom, etc.”

Opinion

Steve Palopoli

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February 10, 2016

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EDITOR’S NOTE

When I first heard about the supposedly recent phenomenon of “ghosting,” when someone ends a relationship by abruptly cutting off communication with someone else, I thought: oh right, we had this before, except we used to call it “when someone ends a relationship by abruptly cutting off communication with someone else.”
But I’ve changed my mind after reading Anne-Marie Harrison’s cover story this week. It is different, because new technologies have given us ever-more cover for our fear of confrontation and our worst irresponsible tendencies. While smartphones can make us feel more connected than ever before to the people we care about, they also have the potential to devastate us in entirely new ways. As the story explains, the consequences can be brutal not only for the person who’s ghosted, but also for the one doing the ghosting, as well. Let’s all read it, and then agree not to let technology turn us into cowards.
Also in this Valentine’s Day issue, Lily Stoicheff lays out a spirited defense of this often groused-about holiday. After putting out alt-weekly V-Day issues for a number of years, I can attest that almost all the ideas pitched for stories in them are anti-Valentine’s in some way: worst dates, terrible singles scenes, etc. They do make for great stories, I have to admit, but I found this a refreshing switch-up. Hope your own Valentine’s Day is filled with affection from lovers or admirers or friends or family—or pets! Pets are the best.
STEVE PALOPOLI | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Read the latest letters to the editor here.

End Solitary
Re: “Jailhouse Knock”: People who have mental health issues need support and groups for growth and coping skills, not the torture of being locked in a cell for 23 hours a day.
Violence in California prisons has decreased since the California Prisoners’ Human Rights Movement’s Agreement to End Hostilities across ethnic/racial and geographic lines took effect in October 2012. The state of California, CDCR, and all correctional systems should distribute the Agreement to End Hostilities to all people in all lockups, to probationers and parolees, and to our communities.
Ashker v. Governor of California plaintiffs stated: “Our movement rests on a foundation of unity: our Agreement to End Hostilities. It is our hope that this groundbreaking agreement to end the violence between the various ethnic groups in California prisons will inspire not only state prisoners, but also jail detainees, county prisoners and our communities on the street, to oppose ethnic and racial violence.”
As President Obama said in his op-ed in the Washington Post, “How can we subject prisoners to unnecessary solitary confinement, knowing its effects, and then expect them to return to our communities as whole people? It doesn’t make us safer. It’s an affront to our common humanity.” State and local corrections systems should follow this lead.
Willow Katz
Santa Cruz

Great Catch
I want to thank you for the opportunity to work with Kara Guzman on the Santa Cruz Fiber article last month titled “Catching Fiber.” I appreciated Kara’s ability to craft a compelling story that showcases how much care and thought went into devising the fiber project. It is a great story that de-emphasized the technical and kept the impact on the community central. The City of Santa Cruz is committed to working with Cruzio to make a world-class fiber network that benefits our economy for decades to come. By providing affordable and accessible Internet, our community can unleash its full creative and entrepreneurial potential to the world.
J. Guevara
Economic Development Manager | City of Santa Cruz

Online Comments
Re: ‘Bubbling Up’
Love what’s happened to the Wrigley Building … but to completely overlook the years that Marty Collins and his team put in to keeping the space vibrant with film and commercial production, arts and performance events, and internship opportunities for UCSC media students is a shame.
— Chip Street
Re: ‘Not Digging It’
The Seaside Company owns that land. It is theirs to do what they want with it. Since when do we take other people’s land whenever someone decides to do so?
— Wendy Lambeth
Re: ‘Jailhouse Knock’
Most of the individuals in the SHU are not in there for violent actions against others. Most are in there because they are perceived to be a gang member or associate. The proof needed is very vague, and the inmate has no way to defend himself from this label.
— Misty Arteaga
Solitary Confinement, SHU, Secure Housing Unit, RTC, Restricted to Cell, One Cell 8 x 10 feet: are all a matter of semantics describing isolating confinement. Clearly not a vision quest nor a meditative retreat, nor a rose by any other name.
— Catherine ‘Cat’ Steele
Until there is a civilian presence inside the prison, one who can report back to the community what is actually happening inside the prison, there will always be solitary, police murder, starvation, insanity, and torture. For Terry Thornton to deny that Pelican Bay is solitary confinement shows how detached she, and the organization she represents, is from the people they were tasked with caring for, and preserving.
— Steven Czifra
Re: ‘Rail of a Trail’
We do not need a train at astronomical prices running through our town. Pull up the tracks and put in a trail, it will get way more use and is more ecological. I could go on and on, but just ask who profits by a rail to be subsidized at $12 million a year.
— Tom Haid

PHOTO CONTEST WINNER

Submit to ph****@*******es.sc. Include information (location, etc.) and your name. Photos may be cropped. Preferably, photos should be 4 inches by 4 inches and minimum 250dpi.

GOOD IDEA

REPORTS FOR HUMANITY
Eighth graders in Ashley Selckâ€™s history class at Monte Vista Christian School are learning about the Gilded Age. In the process, they dove deep into a different era of journalism, writing editorials about various social enterprises. Hannah Denny wrote about the Penny Ice Creamery and the work it does for the community. Bryce Ebrahimian wrote about Cards Against Humanity, which has generously supported the Wikimedia Foundation, educational groups and other organizations.

GOOD WORK

WHEEL BE SEEING YOU
A big announcement rolled in last week from Future Motionâ€”the company that launched OneWheel and was featured in Kara Guzmanâ€™s recent GT cover story about the Wrigley Building on the Westside. Future Motion has secured more than $3 million in funding, allowing it to expand manufacturing of its electronic skating device, which feels rather like riding on a snowboard, CEO Kyle Doerksen says. Itâ€™s also opening a distribution center in Europe.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

â€œFor me, the iPhone is harder than reading Faust.â€
-Rufus Wainwright

Freewheelers

A&E
Music

Cat Johnson

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February 10, 2016

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When Lech Wierzynski was a youngster in Warsaw, his parents listened to American music with the volume turned way down and the radio pressed to their ear. In Communist Poland, the American music coming over the airwaves, including Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, and Louis Armstrong, was considered anti-regime.
“If your neighbors heard you listening to American music,” says the frontman for the California Honeydrops, “you could get ratted out and you’d never come back.”
Wierzynski’s parents were journalists and members of the underground solidarity movement. When the movement grew too strong for the government’s liking, the press was shut down and martial law declared. Wierzynski’s father had an agent assigned to follow him around and was eventually given the option to leave Poland or be put in jail, so the family came to the States. The young Wierzynski was three years old.
Wierzynski is now free to sing and play American music—and how he does. The Honeydrops are a beloved Bay Area party band with sky-high energy, a contagious sense of fun, and a strong New Orleans vibe, with funky horns, deep soul, and irresistible dance grooves.
Wierzynski fell in love with the New Orleans sound early, listening to his dad’s Sidney Bechet and Louis Armstrong records. When he started playing trumpet, however, he didn’t find that same joy.
“In school, you learn jazz and they teach you modern jazz, like Miles Davis and Charlie Parker,” he says. “I was like, ‘You know, I like this, but I really love that music that my dad had on. It had so much fun in it.”
When a friend turned him onto the Rebirth Brass Band, Wierzynski found what he was searching for.
“That’s the music of celebration in the streets,” he says. “That sound just did something for me. It’s made for all occasions. It’s made for the saddest and happiest moments in life.”
Once Wierzynski pinned down his style, he took his own music to the streets, busking with Honeydrops drummer Ben Malament in Oakland BART stations.
“I love playing on the street,” Wierzynski says. “You don’t have to call up a club and say, ‘I want to play at your club for ten people and zero dollars.’ You get to go out there and get straight to the people.”
Although associated with the New Orleans sound, the Honeydrops are not limited to one style. They play classic soul, rhythm and blues, funk, gospel, and more. Wierzynski describes it as a mix of different American roots music and adds with a laugh, “It is what it is, I guess.”
What it is is an unbridled celebration, with band members all over the place and audiences in a near-frenzy state. The members tried using setlists, but they never stuck.
“I’ll start off with a couple of songs I want to do,” says Wierzynski. “Then, after that, I look around and somebody just starts something.”
On past recordings, the Honeydrops have tried to recreate the raw energy of their live performances. On 2015’s, A River’s Invitation, however, the band took a different approach. Instead of going into the studio and pretending they were playing for an audience, they recorded in Wierzynski’s living room and just played for each other. The result is a mellower record steeped in classic soul.
“We always felt like we were trying to force something in the studio that wasn’t supposed to be in the studio,” says Wierzynski. “The album is actually the most live in terms of the way it was recorded.”
Their recordings are almost all original songs, but for performances, they have a deep catalog of tunes to draw from.
For their upcoming three-night, two-venue stint in Santa Cruz, the band will cater to the different tastes of their audience and showcase the depth of their repertoire, playing originals as well as reworked renditions of their favorite songs.
“In the tradition of music we play … you’re not supposed to be playing your own songs all the time,” says Wierzynski. “You’re more just an interpreter of a common feeling.” He adds, “Some of those old songs are just so damn good you’d be a fool not to play them.”

7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11. Kuumbwa Jazz, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $25. 427-2227; 9 p.m. Feb. 12 & 13. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $18-$25. 479-1854

Pub Watch

Christina Waters

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February 10, 2016

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Sometime this spring we’ll be able to belly up to a 34-foot redwood bar, burrowed into a contemporary beer hall housed in the Old Sash Mill complex (next to Patagonia), and not only sample six to eight artisanal beers on tap, but also savor seriously handmade meats, sausage sandwiches and creative ethnic pub food.
This long-awaited tasting room—The Oasis—and kitchen represents the tasty partnership of Chris LaVeque of El Salchichero butcher shop and brewmaster Alec Stefansky of Uncommon Brewers. “This isn’t my first rodeo,” LaVeque reminded me last week at the shop’s preview tasting. But the new large-scale kitchen—called Matambre—is the first restaurant for LaVeque, whose exceptional prosciutto, sausages, chops, and steaks fuel some of the finest restaurants in the area. Stefansky was busy hauling in infrastructure paraphernalia at the preview, but LaVeque took a minute to give me the lay of the land. “This entire area behind me,” he says, pointing to the former River Street furniture store, “will be the restaurant and lounge. We’re going to push out that wall on the right, and that’s where the kitchen will be.” At the far back of the huge hall, LaVeque indicates where the tap beer tasting bar will be. “There will be cured meats hanging all along the back bar, and upstairs will be beer barrels,” he says, pointing to an enormous loft space. Much more space for meat curing and barrel aging is available in the former Farmers Exchange space. The transformation will take a few more months, but be prepared to be amazed. And meanwhile, stay thirsty. On second thought, go sample some of LaVeque’s patés and sausages over at the Swift Street El Salchichero shop, and check out Uncommon Brewers’ wares at enlightened stores in your neighborhood. I love their Golden State Ale, available at Whole Foods, Shopper’s and New Leaf.

Pasta of the Week

The ricotta pappardelle Bolognese at Gabriella Cafe is nothing short of addictive. So easy to love, those wide noodles—comfort food for fashionistas since the days of the Medici—and that triumphant sauce, slow-cooked so that you can sense every herb, every vegetable, every hour of simmering that occurred before it arrived at your table in a deep bowl. Try it with a starter of roasted beets, goat cheese and honey pistachio puree.

Wine of the Week

Byington Liage Sauvignon Blanc Paso Robles 2013. Located on Bear Creek Road above Los Gatos, the spectacular Byington Estate plays host to tasters and special parties throughout the year. With Andrew Brenkwitz at the winemaking helm, the wines have never been better, as I found out recently, sampling a bottle of the aromatic and mineral-infused Sauvignon Blanc (the sister wine to the house Alliage Bordeaux-style red). Kissed with just a touch of Viognier, the award-winning Liage delivers the citrusy, slate qualities of Sauvignon Blanc, and the kumquat, grapefruit peel and gardenia aromas of Viognier. A beautiful balance of salty and floral, we found it an intriguing food wine, thanks in part to the delicate 13.7 percent alcohol. You’ll have to look around, although I’m told you can find this one at the 41st Avenue Whole Foods—and of course at the hilltop Byington tasting room. Oh, and if you’re a fan of opulent Barberas, Byington’s 2013 creation from Shenandoah Valley grapes overflows with cherry, spice and floral intensity. Why not just stretch your legs and treat your senses—all of them—with a weekend visit to the tasting room, open Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. byington.com.

Food Porn

Maria Grusauskas

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February 10, 2016

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I meet Elizabeth Birnbaum at Hidden Peaks Teahouse, and over a two-hour pot of pu’erh we fill the zen air between us with talk of hedonism, guilty pleasure and the history of aphrodisiacs. Birnbaum launched the Curated Feast last June, and is in the middle of preparing her research for Sexy-Self Love, a women’s event presented by Santa Cruz Socialites at Pure Pleasure next week. While the event is designed around the truth that you can’t love someone else if you don’t love yourself, Birnbaum’s participation promises a rich cultural exploration of love and sex.
“Apparently gladiator sweat was an aphrodisiac to Roman women, because the gladiators were sex symbols. And so the women would use their sweat in cosmetics,” says Birnbaum, her eyes wide. She says that while most of her research starts on the Internet, it ends in the library or with a phone call to a UCSC professor. Then, through Curated Feast, she collaborates with local chefs like LionFish SupperClub to orchestrate a dinner experience that brings to life, say, Ancient Greece or the Silk Road.
There won’t, unfortunately, be any gladiator sweat at Sexy-Self Love, but Birnbaum is working with chocolate maker Becky Potter of Pure Heart Chocolate, and chef Hedy Nochimson to create four small aphrodisiac dishes. Each love bite will introduce a different speaker, including Bez Maxwell on the female orgasm, Amy Baldwin on self-pleasure with tingly toys and Denise Elizabeth Byron on discovering your inner sensuality.
“From 1000 B.C, they found coriander seeds in Egyptian tombs, and coriander seeds were linked to being an aphrodisiac,” says Birnbaum. “And so it’s a way of saying ‘OK, well, we hope that love continues.’ It’s beautiful. So there are all of these poetic, amazing stories about aphrodisiacs.”
But underneath the myth and lore, Birnbaum says, is the fact that foods’ psychoactive chemicals affect our mood and physiology. “If you’re eating foods that trigger physiological reactions, that get your heart pumping, your blood vessels opened up, that make you breathe deeper and sweat a little, all of these effects kind of feel like love might feel,” says Birnbaum, speaking about the capsaicin in hot peppers in particular.
The Aztec emperor Montezuma is said to have consumed chocolate in vast quantities to satisfy his many wives. Among its chemical constituents, chocolate contains tryptophan, which helps produce the serotonin needed for elevated mood and sexual arousal. It also contains phenylethylamine, a stimulant released in the brain when we fall in love.
“Aphrodisiacs have to be put in cultural context to be understood,” says Birnbaum. “Peacock tongues and black pepper were eaten by the Ancient Roman elite. They were both considered aphrodisiacs, and were brought out at special feasts. It almost makes sense that these foods, which would have been a part of a lavish display of wealth, were also getting people excited in other ways.”
Indeed, most foods that are purported to be aphrodisiac (and there are a lot) are expensive or risky to acquire, or are steeped in the power of suggestion. For instance, science still hasn’t figured out whether it’s the high zinc level in oysters (low levels of zinc are linked to low libido) or their faint resemblance to female genitalia that is responsible for their passion-inducing reputation.
“Food is inherently sensual,” says Birnbaum—and we both agree that we wouldn’t want to share a meal with an ex we felt tender about, because it’s also so intimate to eat with someone. To be present in the moment—without phones—and sharing the ecstasy of each bite is not only an experience that parallels the sexual act itself, it’s also a maxim of the slow food movement, in which Birnbaum has been active for many years now. “I think that with Instagram, and ‘food porn’ … it’s funny because if you’re watching real porn, you can interact with it in your own way, ostensibly. But with food porn, what’s your interaction? It’s like, here’s this thing I’m eating, isn’t it sexy and beautiful? But you can’t even smell it, you can’t taste it,” says Birnbaum.
It’s exactly this disconnect that Birnbaum loves to reconstruct, in a multi-dimensional way—by teaching not only where one’s food came from, but also what it has meant to people and events over the eons.

Sexy Self Love event is 7-9 p.m., Feb. 18 at Pure Pleasure. Tickets are $28.42 on eventbrite.com. For info on Curated Feast see thecuratedfeast.org.

Auma Matters

A&E
Film

Steve Palopoli

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February 10, 2016

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Before watching The Education of Auma Obama, the 2011 documentary about President Barack Obama’s Kenyan-born half-sister, it’s hard to understand the meaning of the title. After watching it, it’s hard to pinpoint just one. Does it refer to the first half of the movie, which traces Auma Obama’s life growing up in Kenya, and her years studying in Berlin? Or to the end of the film, which shows how Auma has become an educator herself? Or to something else entirely?
But after talking to the film’s director, Branwen Okpako, who will participate in a Q&A at the film’s screening at the Nickelodeon on Wednesday, Feb. 10, it’s clear which of the many possible meanings she intended for the title: all of them.
“There was this constant theme of education,” says the 46-year-old Nigerian-born director. For one thing, she first met Auma Obama in film school in Berlin. Then, besides Auma’s formal education and personal discoveries documented in the film, the title reflects the cross-cultural education that Auma gets about Germany and America, and that her brother Barack gets about his Kenyan roots.
Okpako even had the 1983 Michael Caine film Educating Rita in mind—and in fact considered calling the documentary that, since Auma changed her name from Rita.
“And of course,” says Okpako, “Lauryn Hill and the idea of miseducation.”
That’s the kind of filmmaker Okpako is: a post-modernist modernist, open to all interpretations and themes, while crafting a solid narrative that never gets lost in any of them.
That narrative is particularly interesting in the way it does not begin, as many documentaries desperate to establish their subject’s worthiness would have, with news clips of the president or something else to cement Auma Obama’s ties to him in the minds of the audience. Though we do hear about the upcoming election (Okpako was in Kenya shooting for the 10 days leading up to the 2008 presidential vote), we don’t even see an image of President Obama into an hour in. Instead, the Barack Hussein Obama we learn about is the president’s father—The Education of Auma Obama starts at his grave, a site that will become incredibly important later in the film. When the family returns there after the election results are in, they dance around his grave and sing “Daddy, we are going to the White House.” It is the most powerful scene in the movie—and was the most powerful scene to shoot, as well.
“Our cameraman was so overwhelmed he could hardly hold the camera,” says Okpako.
But the most important thing is that we always learn about these characters in relation to Auma herself—Okpako never lets her story be eclipsed by the fact that her brother is the most powerful leader in the world. It’s possible that was made easier by the fact that she met Auma in the ’90s, before he was.
Some filmmakers, a Michael Moore or Werner Herzog, would probably have put themselves in the role of the onscreen personality who revisits many of the important spots in this story, interviewing people who were involved, but Okpako lets Auma herself drive the action, while the director remains offscreen.
“Once I convinced her to do it, she was open,” says Okpako. “She’s a filmmaker. She understood what I needed in terms of freedom.”
Okpako saw her own role in the narrative much differently. “I try to represent the people watching,” she says. “I am there to be the audience and ask the questions they would have.”

‘The Education of Auma Obama’ will be shown at the Nickelodeon at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 10. There will be a Q&A with director Branwen Okpako. Tickets are $10.50. Okpako will also give a ‘Living Writers Talk’ at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 11 at the Humanities Lecture Hall at UCSC, which is free and open to the public.