[HELLA HEATED summer foods 2012] D'Lo & D'FunQT

I’m not saying that I have it down completely, but I’m trying. Lord knows that the little things, like eating healthy (not expensively) is like saying “fuck you” to the homophobes. ---D'Lo.

if you know about any combo of the following: theater, queerness, comedy, and desi identity, then you probably know the dynamic and hilarious work of D'Lo. his work has internationally rocked audiences with chuckles, critical thought, and cunning. i'm sure this is the way of many communities and subcultures--- athletes, professional gamers, construction workers, stamp collectors (none of which i currently belong); participants invested in their thriving communities know who the innovators are. well, in my multiple communities, D'Lo is one of the innovators. as someone kindred to the spoken word and theater movement of  the APIA old skool wave, i'm pleased to see D'Lo blasting stages and serving punchlines.   i caught the bay area version of D'FunQT earlier this spring and hope y'all in the east  coast get to watch his play served NYC style. expect some gut-thrusting laughter and also, some choice tender moments during this production's upcoming run. to tide you over, here's some of D'Lo's very own summer time reflections a la food. he mentions popsicles, brooklyn donuts, and some very necessary NYC standards to check out.  ------#RFP 

name/preferred name: D’Lo

preferred gender pronoun(s):  He/Him

age: 34

however you identify: Queer/Trans

describe yourself in five words: Queer Tamil Sri-Lankan American Artist

1) any orgs/events you wanna give shout out to? 

QWave, Salga, Astraea, Queers for Economic Justice, Audre Lorde Project, Sylvia Rivera Law Project, Brooklyn Boihood, Brown Boi Project and the list goes even longer!

2) any foods you have a crush on right now? 

Digging on Cheap Dumplings from Prosperity Dumplings on Eldridge in China Town, Passion Fruit Donuts from Brooklyn’s Dough Donut Place (not as amazing as the ones at Dynamo Donuts in SF, but the next best thing for sure), Kati Roll’s Shrimp Rolls (the one near 34^th street, not the one near NYU), HomeMade Salads with Crushed Red Hot n Blue Chips on top, and my morning Stonyfield yogurt that I swallow my vitamins with.

3) favorite summer grubbin' & chillin’ music?

I can say that I am ;ooking forward to hearing the mix of soca, Selena and Baila(Lankan) music I have at pre-show every night my show D’FunQT (defunct) goes up at Dixon Place this July. The sound in the theater is incredible.

4) please name some of your favorite summer foods?

I don’t know if these are foods – but since it’s so damn hot already in NYC, I’d like to pay my due respect to my summer survival digestables: Natural Popsicles, and the not so natural. Cold Teas and Coffee and any one of my drink specials “Thursht Quenchers” which are like my personal take on mojitos and margaritas and rum punches. 

5) are there connections to food and your art/work/activities/politics? 

In the show that I’m doing, I talk about queer people’s health, both physical and mental. I think that it’s sexy when you know how to take care of your body. It’s even sexier when you know how to take care of someone else’s body – whether by food, or by listening, or by massage or through sex. Looking back at my 20’s,  I learned that I had such a hard time even waking up to do the day, so much so, that I wasn’t proactively thinking about the next step – which was food and health. I’m not saying that I have it down completely, but I’m trying. Lord knows that the little things, like eating healthy (not expensively) is like saying “fuck you” to the homophobes. I don’t know if I’ll die by the hands of homophobia/transphobia, but I will do everything I can do while I’m alive to make sure my body is strong, my mind is strong and that my spirit is strong – only to prove to myself from the inside out, that I do indeed belong and my voice is important until all people feel they belong.

------------

for more on D'Lo's work, please check out his show D'FunQT  now showing for the next three weekends! thanks D'Lo for being all about the interview during your busy summer time. to note: i too love yogurt, but for a pill/vitamin swallowing aid, i'm more of a chocolate pudding guy myself. what? since we're all disclosing, why not share? whatever. you try it and tell me if it doesn't work for you.

[Sex, Gender, and Food: Spotlight on Queer Brown Boi Activist, Kay Barrett] QWOC Media

this month, i was sweetly interviewed by the amazing resource QWOC MEDIA. can i be any more content with such a PRIDE month gift? seriously. if you aren;t familiar with QWOC MEDIA here's a brief rundown pulled from their website: 

"Queer Women of Color Media Wire (QWOC Media Wire) is a media publishing and advocacy organization that amplifies the voices of Lesbian, Bisexual, Queer, Transgender women and gender non-conforming people of color, diaspora, and other racial and ethnic minorities around the world."

pretty fresh, yes? i'm humbled to be interviewed by this necessary and fiery project as well as previously having the pleasure to feature as an artist for their QWOC+Boston showcase. special thanks goes to VICTORIA MCCARROLL and SPECTRA SPEAKS for the endless support of my work online and beyond. QTPOCS gotta stick together, homies! check out Spectra's keen wit and social commentary as you'll likely want to add their website to your daily intake of news, updates, and awareness.

Big ups to my ancestors and universe for allowing me this gift… reminding me that for as long as I have a breath, I have a pen and I am one of many vessels for humanity.

There are many ways marginalized communities are speaking out against injustice; from art to activism, parliament to poetry, queer people of color are using their voices to demand change.

For trans spoken word artist, educator, and food-lover Kay Ulanday Barrett, communication on identity and social issues takes many forms, which are not just limited to his performances of poetry on stage. Turns out, this brown boi also has a passion for food.

“I’ve kindled my interest in food as a spiritual, cultural and social action,” he says. “Nourishing yourself and your people while surviving multiple forms of oppression is seriously a real art!”

In addition to running the successful food blog, Recipes for the People, Kay Ulanday Barrett has been published in a wide array of media outlets, including the Windy City Queer Anthology, KICKED OUT, Filipino American Psychology, MotherTongues, make/shift, LOUDmouth, and venus zine. He’s performed poetry all across the country; in 2010, he was voted on to the Campus Pride Hot List, and has released an EP titled Since My Body.

QWOC Media Wire recently interviewed Barrett to learn more about his history as a writer and the inspiration that drives his work, both as a spoken word artist and an activist for justice.

TO READ INTERVIEW & ARTICLE GO HERE.

[simply bliss catering // oakland. ca.] review.

it's queer and transgender PRIDE month. pull out your forks, spoons, and appetites as so many are bringing some great LGBTQ energy to the table to feed our community! i'm finding that supporting local chefs, farmers, and food activists is a clear point of consciousness, but let's push further as only this blog earnestly tries. upcoming reviews for JUNE will feature restaurants and food spaces that highlight those particularly of the queer and transgender people of color community.  i find it vital to see what models of support, success and heart are out there for QTPOC community. this segment hopefully will share a couple dope food innovators you can support and if at all, learn from.

[eggs, salmon cakes, pancakes, and grits. obligatory hot sauce shout out off the corner! the salmon cakes were crisp on the outside, moist and rich with tastes that let the quality of fish shine through without over seasoning or zealous breadcrumbs. the grits were a smooth refined texture and the pancakes i couldn't get enough of.  spring 2012.]

our first JUNE review?  SIMPLY BLISS CATERING by Chef Yulanda. i can't begin to praise yulanda enough on their freshness, skill, and over all generosity. i think some of my friends aptly discuss how we can taste the love in the food. well, this food right here shines love. perhaps, it was the oakland magical dust, perhaps. but if the food i ate during the brown boi project at all illustrates this chef's typical eating experience, then by all means, you better book them for your next dinner, event, celebration! if not, more salmon cakes, pot pie and gluten free desserts for me. did i mention lemon bars? you won't photos of those, homies. i ate them too quickly to archive.

_______________

simply bliss catering 

Oakland, CA 94608 / 

 

(510) 595-1032

chef yulanda's food is exquisitely tasty, using fresh and simple ingredients and i can say that i ate until my plate was dry. her food was given to us for a five-day long retreat in oakland. our cohort knew when food time was on it's way because we could hear chef prepping, cooking and making us a memorable meal. the smells from the kitchen alone were distracting! she provided breakfast, lunch, dinner with accompanying desserts that were just as scrumptious.

[chef getting the arugula ready! spring 2012.]

some of my favorites were yulanda's pot pies--- both the chicken and the vegetarian with delicious mushrooms. the gravy was thick, flavorful and loaded with vegetables that weren't overcooked but still slightly crisp. the crust which is the real business, was rich and still managed lightness in the buttery texture.  desserts that i loved were the lemon bars which were a perfect union of tart and sweet without being overwhelming. each meal comes with side dishes like roasted vegetables and a salad. the most notable was a simple arugula and roasted beet salad with pecans and goat cheese. don't let me get started on breakfast foods, like the salmon cakes. i'm salivating, so let's stop. just to say, perfect texture. well spiced, i could many many of them.


over all, yulanda was a pleasure to support. her understanding of food is a holistic and accessible one. her demeanor is respectful and of sound integrity, which is evident in the food you eat. if you want some contemporary technique with down-home flair at your next event, simply bliss is the obvious bay area choice. i give props and love to the chef, looking forward for another plateful of her work, commitment and savvy! 

[salmon with roasted vegetables of mushrooms, asparagus, yellow and red beets. to the side is a wee portion of
an artichoke and olive pasta salad. spring 2012.] 

[rest in power & complicatedness] food & healing memoir.

cecilia ulanday barrett / rest in power. you would have been 68 this year. to honor you this week i've done the following: slept in; told you how annoying you were; listened to leaves dance with the wind; ate a soft shell crab for you; cried; mourned the relationships i've lost after your death; ate lumpiang sariwa; read journals where we wrote together; studied the arc of your handwriting; studied my face and the architecture you left behind; sent the kind of intentions you send to each person who's supported you in this loss; ate a butterfinger; made plans to movie hop like the old days; let others be gentle to me; daydreamed about eating fresh lychee and buko on your beach in san fabian; decompressed after a big-ass trans* conference; let others cook/feed me; listened to the beatles, neil diamond, jackson 5; ate with my hands; recognized the smells of burnt and ocean salt from your birth town; understood that i will always mourn deep and complicated moments and that process is ours, between you and i.

[dear bay area...again: may 2012] part 2.

here goes the latter part of my bay area trip via food. click photos to enlarge any photos you want some keener sights on. there are nuts, meat loaf, samosa, and qtpoc confused responses to racism. what would this blog be without any of those components, eh?

[hawker's fare for snacks. it was a simple sunny afternoon with my

boi, f. we talked our mouths off about heart sores, moving far away, 

and had to call out these big plans with some potent flavors. 

roasted peanuts and fried tiny anchovies tossed in shallot and 

chili jam were brought to us by fellow foodie, k. who 

happened to be working a dinner shift. the crispy shallot 

and anchovies were tasty. the chili jam in the mix made me 

want to stuff every morsel in my pockets and mouth and 

anywhere else for future consumption.]

[dear self: when with new friends, get tacos in a gentrified part 

of downtown oakland because you don't really know your way 

around. apparently, critical discussions of anti-racism, cultural

work, and healing modalities will still take place. oddly, new 

company will not judge you for your thoughtless fooding. at yolo tacos, 

we had a special of 2 shrimp tacos and a beverage of choice. the tacos

were pricy for west coast standards, but with a flavorful crunchy batter 

that led to plump shrimp cooked properly. here's the view of homies

as i make my second beverage order. we also saw a white man

who had the word "revolt" shaved into the back of his head quite

unskillfully. it's not food-related, but i had to mention it. oh, bay area. 

you want to court me and then you pull some shit like that.

the latter picture possibly being in response to that visual.

w/ m & l.]

[left is a section of my well stacked plate. we've got a meatloaf 

and some garlic mashed potatoes by dope queer woman 

of color visual artist, ammo. i encourage you to vote on her work 

for student artist of the year in the artla contest. check it out here. 

her contribution to the meal was: "i'm bringing meat and potatoes."

why argue with that? you see me wanting to get into a

scuffle regarding that? hell no. in addition, we had sauteed

kale with ginger and onions as well as roasted cauliflower 

with cumin and lime. hosted by rld & poobah the dog.]

[my last night in the bay area meant a long-awaited trip to 

berkeley to hang out with leroy (krip-hop and POOR magazine) 

and patty (sins invalid).patty opened up her home as we talked 

about crip / krip / disabled people's community. we shared perceptions,

personal awareness and political landscapes. it was a nourishing

time that led to leroy and i having samosa and mango lassi 

right before a neighborhood restaurant closed. we then 

continued to chime in agreement about new york city gritty 

and our disinterest in some slam poetry. over all, a gorgeous

way to depart the bay area. in addition, it also coaxed me even

more to yearn for a bi-coastal reality.]