City Weekly August 5, 2021

C I T Y W E E K LY. N E T

AUGUST 5, 2021 — VOL. 38

N0. 10

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SALT LAKE

Going for the Gold...

AGAIN

Utah’s Olympic organizers say it’s a matter of when, not if, Salt Lake City hosts another Winter Games.

By Benjamin Wood

CONTENTS COVER STORY

GOING FOR THE GOLD ... AGAIN Utah’s Olympic organizers say it’s a matter of when, not if, Salt Lake City hosts another Winter Games.

By Benjamin Wood

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Cover design by Derek Carlisle

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SUMMER GUIDE

Missed the issue?

Find all our tips for your hot vax summer at cityweekly.net facebook.com/slcweekly

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Go to cityweekly.net for local restaurants serving you.

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STAY INFORMED! Want to know the latest on coronavirus? Get off Facebook and check out these three online resources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov World Health Organization: who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019 State of Utah Coronavirus Updates: coronavirus.utah.gov

STAFF Publisher PETE SALTAS Associate Publisher MICHAEL SALTAS Executive Editor JOHN SALTAS News Editor BENJAMIN WOOD Arts & Entertainment Editor SCOTT RENSHAW Contributing Editor JERRE WROBLE Music Editor ERIN MOORE Listings Desk KARA RHODES

Editorial Contributors KATHARINE BIELE ROB BREZSNY MIKE RIEDEL ALEX SPRINGER Production Art Director DEREK CARLISLE Graphic Artists SOFIA CIFUENTES, CHELSEA NEIDER Circulation Manager ERIC GRANATO

Business/Office: Technical Director BRYAN MANNOS Developer BRYAN BALE Sales Executives: KELLY BOYCE DOUG KRUITHOF KATHY MUELLER Display Advertising 801-716-1777 National Advertising VMG Advertising | 888-278-9866

Salt Lake City Weekly is published every Thursday by Copperfield Publishing Inc. We are an independent publication dedicated to alternative news and news sources, that also serves as a comprehensive entertainment guide. 15,000 copies of Salt Lake City Weekly are available free of charge at more than 1,800 locations along the Wasatch Front. Limit one copy per reader. Additional copies of the paper can be purchased for $1 (Best of Utah and other special issues, $5) payable to Salt Lake City Weekly in advance. No person, without expressed permission of Copperfield Publishing Inc., may take more than one copy of any Salt Lake City Weekly issue. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without the written permission of the publisher. Third-class postage paid at Midvale, UT. Delivery might take up to one full week. All rights reserved.

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THE BOX

What’s the first movie you saw in a theater?

Mikey Saltas

Finding Nemo. I remember I peed my pants during the movie because I didn’t want to miss any of it. I was 5, OK?

Chelsea Neider

Little Mermaid, which is probably why I always try to live my best mermaid life!

Annie Quan

Back to the Future. Then I became obsessed with dressing like Marty McFly.

Skye Emerson

ET. Where I found my love for storytelling

Mike Ptaschinski

I was 6 when our family went to see The Searchers, my dad’s favorite western, playing downtown at the Rialto Theater in Racine, Wisconsin, in 1956. I was too young for all the moral complexities, but I did get the good vs. evil thing.

Scott Renshaw

I’ve always been under the impression that it was Disney’s animated Robin Hood, but that might be just a mental trick to help myself justify having a nostalgic affection for such a bad movie.

Carolyn Campbell

It was The Parent Trap with Hayley Mills.

Before the movie, my aunt took my cousin and me for our first professional hair styling at a salon. It was quite a day.

Tom Metos

Probably something animated like Jungle Book at The Villa Theater. They had Saturday matinees, so my parents dropped off a carload of kids just to get us out of the house for a few hours.

Christa Zaro

Star Wars: in 1977, long, long lines. I was 6 years old and fell asleep. I never watched the movie all the way through, and I’ve never watched any subsequent Star Wars movies. Am I the only one?

Ben Wood

No, but I remember that The Score, in 2001, was the first R-rated movie I saw in a theater because I was 14 and snuck in with two friends.

Eric Granato

All Dogs Go To Heaven at Movies 10 in Sugar House. I cried like a baby.

Jerre Wroble

Ben-Hur. At age 5. My older brother talked my mom into dropping us both off at the theater. Still have PTSD from the chariot races.

SOAP BOX Weak Showers Just Waste Our Time

Toward the end of his otherwise tumultuous term, former President Donald Trump leaned into his role as Whiner In Chief to do something nice for all of us. Something minor and, in a sane world, completely non-controversial, but nice nonetheless.

“Showerheads—you take a shower, the water doesn’t come out,” he complained.

“You just stand there longer or you take a shower longer? Because my hair—I don’t know about you, but it has to be perfect.”

The reason: U.S. Department of Energy “conservation rules” that limit how much water (2.5 gallons per minute) a shower head is allowed to pour over you.

And by golly, Trump did something about it: He directed the Department of Energy to roll back its restrictions to the glory days of 1992, when showers could still rain down cleanliness on you such that it was possible to get wet, washed, dry and dressed during the last segment of Unsolved Mysteries and not miss the opening scene of Seinfeld.

The minor change, however lovely, was not yet implemented by shower head manufacturers when the Biden administration nixed it on July 16 for the purposes of “water conservation.” The real reason, one

@SLCWEEKLY has to assume, is “because it was a Trump thing, and all Trump things must be undone.” The rule reversion probably won’t save an ounce of water.

For one thing, if you have to spend twice as long in the shower to get clean, using half as much water per minute doesn’t save any. It just wastes your time.

For another, weak showers drive many back to an old-fashioned and more waterwasteful alternative, the bath.

And, finally, a little secret: Anyone with a pair of needle-nose pliers and access to YouTube can quickly and easily pull the “flow restrictors” out of their shower heads, hopefully wagging their middle fingers in the direction of Washington, D.C., as they do so. Manufacturers are required to put those flow restrictors in the shower heads they sell, but you’re not required to leave them there. Yet. If the Biden administration is serious about water conversation, it should look into options like reducing water-wasteful methanol subsidies instead of dirty tricks like mandating inferior shower experiences.

THOMAS KNAPP

William Lloyd Garrison Center for Libertarian Advocacy Journalism

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“They’re Against It,” July 21 Private Eye column

It’s tempting to think “I’ve had the shots and tested negative—those stupid antivaxxers deserve whatever they get.”

But actually, the longer they resist getting shots and are a reservoir for new infections, the more opportunity the virus has to mutate.

So right now, I may be safe against the delta variant—but what of the epsilon variant that is undoubtedly on its way? And by the time the experts have figured out a way to mass-vaccinate against that, there will have been time for the zeta variant to appear. And so on, ad infinitum.

A national public health crisis should not be prolonged, killing more people and leaving thousands with “long COVID,” because of people being given bad information by (vaccinated) celebrities trying to boost their ratings.

RICHARD MIDDLETON

Salt Lake City Correction: A photo in the July 29 cover story “Every Last Drop” misidentified state Sen. David G. Buxton, R-Roy, as Sen. Stuart Adams. We regret the editing error.

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AUGUST 5, 2021 | 5

THIS WEEK'S WINNER After several weeks of questions asked of you, how do you feel about it? Pick One: 1. Totally inadequate 2. Totally inadequate Or 3. Totally inadequate?

M. JOHNSON

Salt Lake City

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Each author of a published question will get a $25 prize from City Weekly.

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Hey, sane Utahns! Here's your chance to ask Burgess Owens anything you'd like. He doesn't know Utah and doesn't speak to Utahns, but we can try.

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6 | AUGUST 5, 2021

ASK BURGESS

SEND YOUR ‘ASK BURGESS’ QUESTIONS TO JOHN@CITYWEEKLY.NET

PRIVATE EY

Little House Lineup T

here was a short period of time—a few years is all—in our long history when we published a newspaper in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We bought the Planet Jackson Hole weekly, ostensibly, to keep it alive, but those few short years later, we were the ones that wrote the newspaper’s obituary. We just couldn’t keep it afloat any longer as a print publication, and we sold off what little we could so that people living in Jackson Hole might give it a go. It wasn’t an easy decision, and we’ve taken our lumps for it. Only hedge funders don’t mind killing newspapers.

Well, not exactly. After all, it’s easy enough to look around and see newspapers—even in this valley of ours—that are alive, but really aren’t, forever changing their makeup and changing their topdown story lines in order to appear vitally young. I can’t say I blame them. Sometimes it seems the one thing most keeping City Weekly alive is that we hate to think what this town would be like if we weren’t around. According to our critics, the city would be better off without me and the pa-

per. Yet according to nearly all of my close friends and family, without City Weekly, Utah would be forever locked in a Twilight Zone loop where Little House on the Prairie is broadcast every hour of every day.

Every day, that is, except Sunday, which would no longer be called Sunday, but Sexday. That’s what it is, anyway. If you can’t mow the lawn, and if you can’t take out the garbage, you have sex. It’s a local rule.

Everyone already knows what’s going on behind those curtains and closed Sunday doors, so Sexday is just a more accurate description of the day itself, one that doesn’t always produce sunshine anyway.

It takes nothing from the Lord. Sexday can still be a day of worship. Indeed, it should be. There’s no reason why one cannot continue to attend the worship house of your choice in the morning and buzz off some sex mantras in the afternoon, just like people do now. People would still be free to choose not to mow their lawns or wash their cars. That’s also as it should be.

It’s just that there would be no broadcasting of Little House on the Prairie on Sexday.

We can all live with that.

A nice side benefit of being in that particular Twilight Zone loop is that we wouldn’t have COVID. We’d just have cows and such and ponder the larger issues that matter, like, what’s for breakfast, Ma? With no other dark voices stirring the roux, all sexes and

B Y J O H N S A LTA S @johnsaltas

genders would no longer need to secretly hide their feelings for Michael Landon. We could also trust that Landon himself would never allow a Matt Gaetz-like creepo to hit on young Melissa Gilbert. Landon knew there were fences in life. Gaetz would never survive on a prairie where there are actual bad outcomes for behaving badly.

Without COVID, the New York Yankees could field a full baseball team and potentially vie for the American League East baseball title. As it is, however, they just keep screwing up and spreading the virus to the point that on some days it looks like their lineup was picked from a Macy’s closeout sale—albeit that new Rizzo guy was a helluva sale price find.

Wouldn’t you know it, though? Jackson Hole doesn’t have a Macy’s. Well, it does, but the Macy’s there is a septic tank cleaning service—which I hereby endorse. So, why all this meandering today? Because I’m sick of all the nonsense of these past 18 months, of all the finger pointing, of all the unnecessary dying, of all the left-right Gordian knotting that makes a mess of us all. I just wanted to be in a little house on the Snake River for a minute today, and my mind wandered. That’s all. Be smart and be safe, dear reader. CW Send comments to john@cityweekly.net.

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AUGUST 5, 2021 | 7

HITS&MISSES

BY KATHARINE BIELE @kathybiele

MISS: Penalty Kick

Utahns should be really upset, up in arms and calling their representatives.

Instead, it’s The Daily Beast, The Atlantic and almost every other national news outlet that are rightfully concerned about civil rights. California teen Lauren Gibson was arrested in Garfield County on an enhanced hate crime charge for stomping a Back the Blue sign. The Utah dailies instead focused on the defense from Sheriff James D. Perkins, who said his deputy acted in a “proactive and compassionate manner.” There’s little doubt that Gibson was acting like a pissy and aggressive teenager, but that should draw a misdemeanor charge—at most—not a year in prison. The ACLU agrees. A hate crime?

That typically involves violence, not just a juvenile, angry confrontation. The Salt Lake Tribune did note, at least, that Garfield County has a little history of enhancing charges against unpopular groups that don’t like police. It may not be in Utah’s Dixie, but it’s close enough.

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MISS: Take It Slow on Climate

8 | AUGUST 5, 2021

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Let’s talk about climate change and the “right balance.” While Utah Policy’s LaVar Webb applauds Sen. Mitt Romney and Rep. John Curtis for addressing climate change, he doesn’t exactly make a good case—unless it’s for business. Webb is all about taking it slow. “The key is to invest in things that will really make a difference. That doesn’t necessarily mean enormous projects. Like air pollution, a million (maybe a billion) little things cause climate change, and it will take a million (billion) little lifestyle changes to improve it.” In other words, the Green New Deal—even though it’s not a thing— is asking too much. Webb “believes” the foundation is being laid “even though worldwide emissions are not declining right now.” Innovation and the free market will reduce emissions, he says. The New Yorker ran a story called “The False Choice Between Economic Growth and Combating Climate Change,” because it is. It reported that in the United States, “after three years of decline, carbon-dioxide emissions increased by an estimated 3.4 per cent in 2018.” Fast economic growth was a major factor. But Webb is in the Profit Before Planet group.

HIT: Eagle Wellness Visit

Did you know that the golden eagle is in big danger? The Deseret News followed Hawkwatch International, and the paper’s intrepid photographer, Spenser Heaps, captured stunning photos of what can only be seen as an unusual and unlikely collaboration to save a predator bird. And it is, in fact, climate change that’s increasingly endangering the birds. “Loss of food source and habitat is a death sentence,” the DNews headline reads. A large part of the blame goes to climate-stoked wildfires destroying habitat. Hawkwatch works with information from oil and gas concerns, the Bureau of Land Management, the Department of Defense and even wind farms—because what happens to the golden eagle presages what happens to all living things.

CITIZEN REV LT IN A WEEK, YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD

The Future of U.S. Security

Join Chris Stewart, Utah’s 2nd Congressional District representative, at his annual Stewart Security Summit for a look at where—after four years of Trumpism and the U.S. pulling out of the global arena—democracy stands in the face of political, technological and national security incursions.

Speakers include: Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Florida, member of the House Committee on Appropriations; Rep. Jim Himes, D-Connecticut, member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the House Financial Services Committee; Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Col. Jenise M. Carroll, Hill Air Force Base commander. Themed “Defining America’s Role in the World: A Look Forward,” this event is one to attend if only to prepare for the brave new world of national security that looms in our future. The Grand America Hotel, 555 S. Main, Friday, Aug. 6, 9 a.m., free. Register/tickets at https://bit.ly/2USwLpw

Butterflies in the Park

Monarch butterflies are some of the most beautiful and iconic of the species, but they are in crisis. Just last fall, monarch migration fell by more than 99%, causing scientists to panic. At Lunch & Learn Fairmont Park Monarch Habitat, Rachel Taylor and the Utah Friends Of Monarchs will present information on monarch/pollinator habitat, what’s being planted and an overview of the monarch crisis. One way to help the monarch population is to plant milkweed, a vital monarch food source, in private yards, parks, common areas and open spaces. Monarchs are known as an indicator species because what happens to them could spell trouble for other important pollinators. Bring a lunch. Chairs and kids’ bookmarks will be provided. Fairmont Park/east side, 1040 E. Sugarmont Drive, Tuesday, Aug. 10, noon., free. https://bit.ly/3BLFom9

Creating Multicultural Environments

Maybe living in an inequitable world isn’t a foregone conclusion. If we invite and hear diverse voices, the conversations may change in healthy and inclusive ways. At the United Way’s Speaker Series—Hugh Vasquez, “we can unpack and disrupt traditional ways of thinking. We can challenge institutions and devise new ways of viewing our world. And we can cultivate opportunities that enable all of us to thrive.” Come with an open mind and questions for a candid Q&A with United Way’s Bill Crim and Vasquez—one of the country’s top equity and diversity educators and a consultant to campuses and organizations working towards creating healthy multicultural environments. Salt Lake Community College Grand Theater, 1575 S. State, Wednesday, Aug. 11, 7 p.m., $10 on-campus program ticket or free to livestream. Register at https://bit.ly/3rryDkV

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Going for the Gold...

AGAIN Utah’s Olympic organizers say it’s a matter of when, not if, Salt Lake City hosts another Winter Games.

By Benjamin Wood

UTAHNS LOVE THE OLYMPICS.

Since the 2002 Winter Games boosted Salt Lake City’s international profile, surveys on the prospect of a second turn hosting have shown levels of support that a politician could only dream of. And more recently, Forbes analyzed Google Trends data and found The Beehive State leading out on Tokyo-related internet searches.

“The Olympics transcend general sports interests,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall. “It’s not just about Team USA, it’s about the world coming together.”

During a recent interview with City Weekly, Mendenhall talked about her experience with the 2002 games. She said she was a newlywed living in the Avenues at the time, and in addition to attending bobsled runs and the gold medal round of curling, she would head downtown to bask in the Olympic energy.

“It’s just so heartening to participate,” she said, “whether you’re watching it on TV, or we may be so lucky as to see it in person in the future.”

According to Utah’s Olympic organizers, the prospect of Salt Lake City hosting a second Winter Games is less a question of luck than it is timing. The various public and private entities critical to a future event are on board, existing venues have been relatively well-maintained, development has bolstered the city’s public infrastructure and the citizenry are energized, not to mention the Wasatch Front boasts about the greatest snow on Earth.

“I believe strongly it’s when, not if,” said Fraser Bullock, president of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games. “We’re one of the best cities in the world. We have incredibly beautiful mountains, superbly welcoming people, and we have a full complement of venues, all in a very compact geography, which makes us very, very unique.”

But Utah also set an atypically high bar for itself with what is generally considered to be one of the more successful Olympic Games in the modern era, scoring viewership records at the time and turning a sizeable profit that helped fund, among other things, the creation of the Utah Athletic Legacy Foundation. Subsequent host sites have contended with runaway costs, construction-related deaths, community displacement, performance-enhancing drug operations, leadership scandals and, of course, a global pandemic.

Yet despite the talk of Olympic inevitability around town, very little has been set in stone regarding what a future Winter Games in Utah would look like, how it would function and what it would cost to pull off.

And in the absence of those details, it’s difficult to verify or challenge the undaunted optimism of folks like Bullock as Utah waits for a clearer picture of the next Olympic dream to take shape.

“We think, absolutely, we can capture lightning in a bottle again for a new generation that hasn’t experienced it,” Bullock said. “And for those of us who have experienced it, being able to do it twice in a lifetime is just so special.”

A Date With Destiny

While it can feel like Utah has been anticipating a second Olympics since the moment the cauldron at Rice-Eccles Stadium was extinguished, Bullock said high-level discussions began in earnest in 2012. The idea at the time was to aim for 2022—the 20th anniversary of Utah’s host year— but it wasn’t until 2018 that Salt Lake City was designated by the U.S. Olympic Committee (now the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee, or USOPC) as the nation’s candidate for its next Winter Games bid, whenever that bid might occur.

“We have a focus on 2030 or 2034,” Bullock said. “And we’ve been working in partnership with the USOPC for many months now to determine which one we want to collectively pursue.”

In the past, it was prohibitively expensive to bid for the games, let alone host them. And the winning sites were selected in a winner-take-all fashion, with losing candidates expected to effectively start over from scratch to stay in the running.

But a new approach that has taken shape over the past decade prioritizes dialogue—with interested parties invited to submit more generalized proposals that are then refined over time to fit a specific edition of the games.

According to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the new process dramatically reduces the cost of bidding, while encouraging local governments to fit the

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Sepp Kuss, of Colarado, won the 15th stage of the 2021 Tour De France, ending a 10-year drought for American riders in cycling’s top race.

COURTESY PHOTO

Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said a second Olympics could speed up the city’s plans around housing, transportation and community investment.

(Keeping up With) The Durango Kid

T

he Tokyo Olympics aren’t the only place where U.S. athletes are taking on the world’s best this summer.

When Colorado native Sepp Kuss crested Andorra’s Col de Beixalis on July 11, it had been 10 years since an American cyclist won a stage at the Tour de France. But there were still 15 kilometers to go, all downhill, and Kuss was holding a slim 30-second lead against his nearest competitor.

Virtually any error could have cost him the stage. But the 2018 Tour of Utah champion—who got his start in mountain biking and raced his first Tour de France in 2020—executed a flawless descent to the finish line and cemented his status as the United States’ top male road cyclist.

City Weekly caught up with Kuss— known in the cycling world as “The Durango Kid”—who opted to forgo any Olympics aspirations this summer to focus on the Tour de France and the upcoming Vuelta a España.

City Weekly: It’s been a couple weeks since the Tour de France ended. Have your legs had any chance to recover?

Sepp Kuss: There was a bit of rest but you always want to keep moving. After a week off, it’s normal training again to get ready for the next race.

When you won Stage 15, the commentators pegged you to finish first as soon as you finished the climb. When did you know you had the race?

Like any stage in the Tour, you don’t want to get over-excited. I didn’t really believe it until I was one [kilometer] from the finish. Anything can happen, and I didn’t want to get too ahead of myself.

Once I got over the top with a decent margin, I felt confident for the descent. It was still a little way to the finish. I didn’t truly let it sink in until I could see the finish line.

How does a race like the Tour of Utah compare to the Tour de France?

The Tour of Utah is a really hard race.

To me, it’s certainly the hardest race in the U.S. Any victory is a big deal. It’s really hard to win in cycling. For the Tour [de France], it’s the biggest race in cycling. The level is just so high, every single rider in the tour is at their top level, and there’s just so much more at stake.

Did racing in the 2020 Tour de France change the way you prepared for 2021?

Not so much. More than anything, it just gave me the confidence to do what I needed to do in the race. You learn something every race.

Any lessons from this year’s Tour?

Mostly it was a mental takeaway. In the first week, we lost our leader [2020’s 2nd place finisher Primoz Roglic], and we had so many crashes. I think the biggest thing to learn was you always have to keep pushing forward and try to get the most out of every day and stay positive.

You skipped this year’s Summer Games, but the 2024 Olympics will be held in Paris—any chance you’ll roll down the road and compete with Team USA?

Maybe. I can’t imagine the [Olympic] course that year will be really suited to me. I don’t know if 2024 is really on my radar—maybe if they go into the hills a bit more?

You got your start mountain biking. Do you ever make it to the trails anymore?

I try and get out whenever I can. Usually, the training is pretty structured, but if there’s a free day, I like to go on the mountain bike. For me, it’s a nice break from the normal routine and just a lot of fun.

What’s next for you?

The Vuelta and then after that some one-day races in Italy in October to finish the season. Right now is kind of the main part of my season, doing the Tour and the Vuelta. I’m really looking forward to the next race, and I feel good.

COURTESY PHOTO

BY BENJAMIN WOOD

games into their existing and planned infrastructure projects in lieu of Olympics-specific construction that might fall into disrepair and disuse after the games conclude.

“The reforms ensure the IOC remains in step with a rapidly changing world to deliver games that are better aligned with future hosts’ long-term development plans while maintaining the inherent magic of the games and providing the best possible experience for athletes,” the IOC website states.

Bullock said a past bid would cost anywhere between $50 million and $100 million, with no guarantee of success. By contrast, the current budget for Utah’s next bid is $3.8 million, he said, all from private donors.

“We’re still in the process of raising money,” Bullock said.

Broadly speaking, the changes to bidding work in Utah’s favor, according to Bullock.

Unlike many previous host sites, Utah has made regular use of its Olympic venues. And the growth of the state over the past 20 years has corresponded with the construction of a new airport, the expansion of light rail and mass transit lines and the proliferation of hotels and other housing facilities.

“Everywhere you turn,” Bullock said, “we’re even more capable of hosting the games in the future than we have been in the past.”

He said the next phase of Olympic planning will see the state’s conversations with the USOPC shift in a more targeted direction, with the nuts and bolts of a particular bid year—2030, 2034 or beyond—becoming more clearly defined. But he added that there’s no set date for when the USOPC will decide which year to pursue, or when the IOC will make its selection, particularly with Olympic energies focused on back-to-back games.

“They are obviously pretty occupied right now with Tokyo,” Bullock said. “And then right on the heels of Tokyo, they’ve got Beijing and they’ve got another games to get ready. It’s an extremely busy Olympic period in 2021.”

Beyond the cost of the bidding process, Bullock said Utah would be in a position to

save money on hosting the games, since the state could update its legacy venues rather than start construction from scratch.

But Bullock declined to comment on the potential cost of a second Winter Games, even in ballpark terms, saying he prefers to release financial projections when they are more narrowly detailed.

“Once we feel like it’s polished and ready to go, and we have a version for both 2030 and 2034, we would then share those with the public and discuss the components of those budgets,” Bullock said.

A 2018 policy brief from the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Institute pegged the cost of the 2002 games at $3.5 billion in direct spending, generating an overall economic impact of $6.1 billion for the state.

“Based on our analysis of Utah’s travel and tourism industry before and after the 2002 Olympic Winter Games,” the brief states, “we expect skier visits, national park recreation visits, accommodation taxable sales, airport passengers and private leisure and hospitality employment to continue a positive growth trajectory after another Olympic Winter Games.”

Village People

The broad strokes of a future games are expected to mirror 2002, with the same or similar ski resorts and competition venues welcoming the world’s athletes.

But preparing to host the games would be more involved than simply getting the key to the Olympic Oval and turning the lights on. Regular athlete training and event hosting has kept Utah’s venues from falling into disrepair, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re ready for the Olympic spotlight— now, or a decade from now.

“There would be extensive touching up, so to speak,” Bullock said. “They’re at a worldclass level now, but they are aging. They will need more investment to make sure they’re at their absolute peak for the games.”

Bullock pointed out that a mere do-over of 2002’s events and venues would be insufficient, with a 40% increase in sport disci-

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plines added to the Winter Games over the past 20 years.

New events like Ski Cross or Big Air and Slopestyle snowboarding have changed the on-the-ground realities of what it takes to be a host city, he said.

“We are blessed with many resources here in Utah to not only handle what we did in 2002, but also handle all the new, exciting events for a future games,” Bullock said.

And while U.S. organizers are on board with a Salt Lake City repeat, it is ultimately the International Olympic Committee that makes a site selection. Los Angeles is slated to host the 2028 Summer Games, and the more globally oriented IOC could be reluctant to follow that event with an American-hosted winter edition just two or four years later.

If Utah’s bid were to be rejected, Bullock expects the state to essentially try, try again until success is achieved.

But Mendenhall—who agrees that Salt Lake City is optimally positioned to host a future Winter Games—said pushing the selection date beyond 2030 or 2034 would strain the city’s advantages.

“The age of the facilities might come into play if we look that far out from 2002,” she said. “We would be a different applicant beyond the years that we’re aiming for.”

As with the 2002 Games, the University of Utah is expected to serve as the beating heart of a future event, with the opening and closing ceremonies to be held at the nowexpanded Rice-Eccles Stadium and with student housing repurposed as the Athlete Village.

But there is a critical difference between then and now.

Housing facilities on the U campus were built specifically for the games’ competitors and later populated with students. The next time around, however, the games would require the displacement of residents.

“Of course it’s going to create some interruption to schedules,” Bullock said. “But last time, we demonstrated we can do that in partnership with [the U] very well, and we anticipate the same in the future.”

Jason Perry, University of Utah’s vice president for government relations, said campus leaders are aware of the looming challenges and have the benefit of time to draw up plans.

“Ever since we held the Olympics in 2002, most of us have known it’s just a matter of time until they come back,” Perry said. “Most people in Utah would say we are ready for whenever it comes, we just want it to come.”

He said continued development of university housing provides administrators with flexibility to fit an Athlete

Village into an active campus. And while there are obvious inconveniences to hosting the games in the middle of an academic year, there are also the advantages of being part of the Olympic experience.

“We will put together a plan as to whether we need to hold some rooms back or find alternative housing in other places in the valley, or even adjusting the school schedule for that period of time,” Perry said. “There are a lot of good options to try to minimize the negative impact on our students. There’s also a corresponding opportunity for many of these students to participate.”

Perry said most of the faculty who were with the university in 2002 consider the experience to have been an “unqualified success,” building on the reputation of the state of Utah as well as its flagship university.

“We made our commitment already as part of the bid package that went forward,” he said. “We have a lot of time to plan how we can do it best, and the University of Utah is very supportive of having the games come back.”

Sink or Swim

Salt Lake City is “on the rise,” Mendenhall said, and has grown over the last two decades in ways that make it a better fit for the Olympics—perhaps the best positioned city in the world to host the games.

And if past is prologue, Salt Lake’s selection by the IOC could trigger yet another building boom and catalyze investment in public works.

“That visibility would increase the popularity of the city,” Mendenhall said. “It’s an opportunity and a challenge that I wholeheartedly would accept.”

The effect of the 2002 games on Utah’s capital city can’t be overstated—from the obvious examples like The Gateway Mall and Gallivan Plaza where Olympic imagery still evokes the games to the frenzy of UTA activity around the turn of the millenium that saw the buildout of TRAX and Frontrunner.

Olympic energy accelerated the city’s plans for transportation, housing and community resources, Mendenhall said. And with many, many more plans on the books, in some cases stalled for years awaiting funding and prioritization, a second Winter Games could be the spark that moves those initiatives forward.

“You could look to any of the plans that our community has helped us build in recent years and imagine those ac-

UNNIVERSTIY OF UTAH

Fraser Bullock, president of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games

COURTESY PHOTO

Jason Perry, University of Utah VP for government relations: There are “good options to try to minimize the negative impact on our students.”

celerated and amplified, able to come to fruition sooner than they would otherwise,” Mendenhall said.

But the Olympics are also a cautionary tale. The changes to the bidding process lauded by Bullock are part of an intentional rebranding effort by the IOC after years of controversy and allegations of corruption (those stories have been told better elsewhere, and also prominently feature the 2002 games). And part of the reason Salt Lake City’s Olympic debut is remembered so fondly by Utahns is because so many of them were able to attend events, with thousands of unsold tickets distributed by organizers to schools and other community groups.

That Utahns will turn out in droves as spectators to the games can no longer be taken for granted as a sure thing.

The delayed and crowdless summer games in Tokyo demonstrate how Mother Nature can make even the best-laid plans go awry, and nations of the world have been made painfully aware that there can be no assumption of safety from emerging diseases—or lingering COVID-19 for that matter—particularly with overt vaccine skepticism sweeping conservative politics.

What the next decade brings is anyone’s guess. Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney—who became a household name leading the 2002 games—is increasingly suggesting a diplomatic boycott of next year’s events in Beijing. And the declining snowpack in Utah’s mountains is cause for many concerns, perhaps the least of which is athletic competition.

Bullock stressed that organizers are taking an athletesfirst approach to the games, with notable Olympians joining the Committee for the Games in leadership roles. And underlying all of the discussions is the strong endorsement of the public at large, which to date has been the most constant variable in the machinations but one with the potential to shift with little warning.

“That strong support, which is incredibly high, reflects on the great success of 2002 and the enthusiasm for hosting again,” Bullock said. “That is foundational to our bid.”

He said he looks forward to providing more specifics to residents as they take shape—perhaps as early as next year following the Beijing games—and finding ways to involve community members in the planning process when, not if, things accelerate.

“As we make progress toward a bid, we envision having celebrations, having community activities where people can learn more and celebrate our various stages of success,” Bullock said. CW

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AUGUST 5, 2021 | 15

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BEAU PEARSON

ENTERTAINMENT PICKS, AUGUST 5-11, 2021

Ballet West @ Park City Eccles Center As trying a time as the past 17 months have been for arts organizations of all kinds, Ballet West has remained almost impossibly busy. In addition to the spring live production Precious Gems, the company performed a live production in fall 2020, plus offering its Summer Intensive program. On top of all of that, Ballet West participated in the creation of the nineepisode documentary series In the Balance: Ballet for a Lost Year, which followed the company and several individual dancers over the course of a month as they prepared to stage live performances in the volatile COVID era.

Part of being a thriving performing arts company is also bringing your work to audiences beyond your usual theater space, and this month Ballet West visits Park

City for a one-night-only show at the Eccles Center (1750 Kearns Blvd.) on Aug. 5 at 7:30 p.m. The program consists of three contemporary works, two of which received their world premieres in May of this year. Choreographer Emily Adams’ The Thing With Feathers—a collaboration with the Sundance Institute’s Music Film Program—set to the violin of Isabella Reyes. Matthew Neenan’s The Solo Year showcases the technical skills of eight dancers and the bold costuming of Mark Zappon, with a score featuring the concertos of Pietro Locatelli. The closing piece, Piece of My Heart, brings us the work of Ballet West resident choreographer Nicolo Fonte as inspired by the music of Janis Joplin.

Tickets are $20-$200, available now. Visit balletwest.org for additional performance information, and for up-to-the-minute health and safety protocols. (Scott Renshaw)

Wayne Coyne: The King’s Mouth Anyone who has attended a live performance by the Flaming Lips understands that those shows are not so much rock concerts as they are performance art pieces— trippy multimedia experiences that might include frontman Wayne Coyne bouncing through the crowd in a plastic bubble (and this was pre-COVID!). Coyne’s artistry has extended into a variety of different artistic disciplines, and as Flaming Lips returns to the Ogden Twilight series for a third time, locals will get a chance to see another manifestation of Coyne’s seemingly limitless imagination.

Ogden Contemporary Arts (455 25th St., Ogden) hosts The King’s Mouth, a multimedia arts installation that has been touring since 2015, and links to the story of Flaming Lips’ 2019 album of the same name. The centerpiece is a giant head in the form of a gleaming chrome tree, with an open mouth inviting visitors inside. Original music, animation, video and lighting effects add to a dazzling sensory extravaganza. “This will be our third year (at Ogden Twilight) and now we’ve got this crazy art installation happening at the same time and for

COURTESY PHOTO

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ESSENTIALS

the

me it’s like, wow, in just a couple years Ogden has become this great sort of art-y progressive place,” says Coyne in a press release.

The King’s Mouth visit to Ogden begins with a reserved-slot “King’s Stroll” on Friday, Aug. 6, with openings beginning at 4 p.m. for $15 per person. Tickets are also available for a special pre-party with Coyne before the Flaming Lips show on Aug. 20. The King’s Mouth runs through Sept. 19; visit ogdencontemporaryarts.org for additional information.

(Scott Renshaw)

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ENTERTAINMENT PICKS, AUGUST 5-11, 2021

Complete listings online at cityweekly.net

AUGUST 7, 2021 7:30 PM

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Park City Kimball Arts Festival You really shouldn’t need an excuse to head into the local mountain during the summertime, what with the clean air and temperatures 10-15 degrees cooler than the ones that are baking the Wasatch Front. But in case you’ve been dragging your feet, the delights of Park City’s historic Main Street being turned into an open-air showplace for visual art and music should give you the necessary nudge.

The Park City Kimball Arts Festival returns Aug. 6-8 for its 52nd installment, presenting three days of exhibiting artists and craftspeople, food (in the Brewpub parking lot and on Heber Avenue) and live music. Participating artist booths have been reduced slightly to allow for greater distancing, but there’s still plenty to see and do in the open air, plus the Studio

on Main to provide examples of Kimball Art Center’s year-round hands-on programs. Whether your interests run to painting and sculpture, or textiles and jewelry, there’s something for everyone in the nearly 200 participating artists, with 40 of them coming from Utah, including local favorites like Chris Bodily, Stephanie Swift, Anna Leigh Moore and Erik Jensen. Music headliners scheduled at press time include Tenshin Taiko drummers, Ballet Folklorico Sabor Latino, Los Chaskis, Swagger and Hot House West.

Tickets are $10 per day or $25 for a threeday festival pass, with Friday free for Summit County Residents. Festival hours are 5-9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Sunday. Proceeds from the event support Kimball Art Center’s year-round programming and educational outreach. Visit parkcitykimballartsfestival.org for additional event information. (SR)

MODERN WEST FINE ART

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ESSENTIALS

the

Modern West Fine Art: Earth Among the many results of the COVID-19 pandemic was an increased collaboration between artistic organizations—a recognition that especially in a time of crisis, it was necessary to pull together in order to help ensure the sustainability of each organization. It’s encouraging and enlightening every time these collaborations occur, and a current exhibition at Modern West Fine Art (412 S. 700 West) marks a special joint effort between the gallery and Cedar City’s Southern Utah Museum of Art. Earth serves as a preview of sorts for SUMA’s upcoming exhibition This Earth, albeit with a few added goodies. Selected works from This Earth are on display alongside new work by artists represented by Modern West, as well as pieces by invited guests who also explored the theme of works inspired by the natural

world and humanity’s interactions with it. Among the works on display is “Swarm”, by local artist Lenka Konopasek, continuing the kind of threedimensional sculpture-style work that she has previously demonstrated in pieces like “Indoor Tornado.” “Swarm” takes inspiration both from the 2017 solar eclipse and from the movements of birds, with interwoven semi-circles that evoke both the shadows case by moving celestial bodies and the choreography of birds in flight.

Other participating artists include Shonto Begay, Rebecca Campbell, Day Christensen, Michael Coles, Ash Ferlito, Kiki Gaffney, Tom Judd, Courtney Leonard, Anna Laurie Mackay, Colour Maisch and Christopher Woodward.

Earth runs at Modern West Fine Art (modernwestfineart.com) now through Sept. 30; This Earth opens at Southern Utah Museum of Art (suu.edu/suma) in October. Visit each organization’s website for additional information. (SR)

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DAVID DANIELS

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A&E

THEATER

Cabaret of Light

Salt Lake Acting Company emerges from a year full of change with a new musical comedy production.

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net @scottrenshaw

F

or Salt Lake Acting Company executive artistic director Cynthia Fleming, returning to the world of creating an in-person theatrical production—as director of the upcoming #SLACabaret—after more than a year off seemed like magical thinking for a while. “Even the thought of it, as we were in planning meetings and as we got closer to rehearsal, I was thinking I was in a land of make-believe,” Fleming recalls. “It felt like, ‘it’s not going to happen, I’m just doing this to make myself feel better.’ But it did happen.” #SLACabaret marks the next phase in a year that has been full of change for the company, even beyond that which all arts organizations experienced during the pandemic. They explored the world of digital theater presentations,

with short-form works and this spring’s all-virtual production Alabaster. They began an ambitious renovation of their theater space for increased accessibility. They discontinued the successful, long-running annual production of Saturday’s Voyeur. And they even launched a new website, just for good measure.

Returning to a good old-fashioned live theater production might seem like just the dose of normalcy called for in the face of so much upheaval, yet for Fleming, it was important that the company took this opportunity to look at how they created theater, and to not return to business as usual. “My team and I had a lot of discussions about how we want to enter into the world of creating theater again,” she says. “What does it look like, how can it be kinder, how can it be ‘people first,’ not ‘play first.’”

To that end, Fleming solicited input from all of the company’s staff, actors and designers to find out what they needed in order to do their best work.

Some of the answers challenged longstanding traditions, like a costume designer asking why it was necessary for the first full dress rehearsal to be one that allows for no stopping to problemsolve with actors. And there was a clear new focus on allowing anyone the time they needed for any personal challenges that might emerge. “With this new philosophy,” Fleming says, “watching the actors work through the play, help develop the play and just feel that creative spirit, it did jump-start my heart.”

The production of #SLACabaret is itself part of the aforementioned change

that removed Saturday’s Voyeur from its traditional summer slot. The new work, written by Martine Kei GreenRogers, Aaron Swenson and Amy Wolk, is also a musical comedy presentation, with a premise that focuses on a new arrival to Utah learning about the state’s peculiarities through folks she meets at the newly-renovated Salt Lake City Airport. The decision to replace Voyeur, according to Fleming, was part of a broader goal in the world of theater towards looking at the inclusiveness of the kind of works they presented—including the jabs at Latter-day Saint theology and culture that were often part of the Saturday’s Voyeur humor.

“Is it right to make fun of somebody’s beliefs?,” Fleming says. “How can we still find joy and comedy and entertainment that isn’t at somebody’s expense?

That was kind of the shift—there’s this new world of theater inspiring us to be better, and do better. It was just time.”

Fleming notes that while #SLACabaret might not replicate the Saturday’s Voyeur model of focusing explicitly on local and national headlines from the previous year, it still manages to address what we’ve all been going through. “It does, kind of underneath it all, explore our journey over the past 18 months—‘I went through that, I went through that,’” Fleming says. “It kind of asks us, are you still searching, have you figured out what matters? I think we’re all still on this journey.”

We’re certainly still on the journey through the COVID era, and SLAC made a decision early-on to require proof of

The cast of Salt Lake Acting Company’s #SLACabaret

vaccination for everyone who attends performances of #SLACabaret. “At one time, the [Actors Equity] rules were that the audience all needs to be vaccinated,” Fleming says. “I don’t think they say that now, but it makes me feel that the actors are going to be safe, the audience is going to be safe, and we can all have a good time. … We’ve gotten a little pushback, but I’m sorry, I don’t want anybody getting sick because of SLAC.” And for those who remain unsure about being in a live theater space, there remains the option of streaming the production, with professional filming overseen by local filmmaker Kenny Riches. The lessons learned from the pandemic year, and the ongoing option for virtual theater, allow Fleming to approach the upcoming 50th anniversary season with peace of mind, despite the ongoing uncertainty of the COVID world. “I don’t think we’re ever going to be as bad as we were,” Fleming says of case numbers. Then she adds with a laugh, “But because of streaming, I can sleep at night.” CW

#SLACABARET 2021

Salt Lake Acting Company 168 W. 500 North Aug. 11-Sept. 12 in-person performances Aug. 28-Sept. 12 available for streaming saltlakeactingcompany.org

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AT A GLANCE

Open: Mon.-Fri., 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Sat., 10 a.m.-9 p.m.

Best bet: The birria taco plate Can’t miss: Smut it up with the huitlacoche

FAMILY OWNED LOCALLY LOVED

I’ve always had a deep adoration for our local brand of Tex-Mex places hiding out in the strip malls along the Wasatch Front. I’m a total a sucker for gooey enchilada combos served upon bafflingly hot plates, five-dollar margarita specials and complimentary baskets of chips and salsa. While La Casa Del Tamal (2843 S. 5600 West, Ste. 140, 385-266-8729, lacasadeltamalutah.com) shares some foundational DNA with these neighborhood favorites, its modernized interior space and unique take on a wide array of traditional Latino cuisine reveals a restaurant that breaks free from the mold of its predecessors.

La Casa Del Tamal first popped up on my radar while drooling through social media pics of cheesy, dippable birria tacos.

Though the thought of snagging a plate of these trendy tacos was the impetus of my visit, I soon found that the menu has much more to offer. When I arrived, I became distracted from my quest by the list of tamales—after all, the restaurant’s name implies some kickass entries in this medium.

They go for $1.99 apiece and come in flavors like the robust rajas con queso, stuffed

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Come for the birria and stay for the mole tamales at West Valley’s La Casa Del Tamal.

stewed birria, and dipping one of these cheesy tacos into that savory broth makes you question any affection you ever had for a French dip sandwich. The consommé softens the taco and its ingredients just enough to create an amazing texture between crunchy and chewy.

After starting with a few safe bets that were immensely impressive, I made an executive order to try huitlacoche for the first time within the walls of La Casa Del Tamal.

Sometimes called corn fungus or, in much more awesome parlance, corn smut, huitlacoche is a gray fungus that grows on ears of corn. It can be a gnarly concept, until you realize that edible fungus is edible fungus, and nine times out of 10, it’s excellent. Such is the case with the huitlacoche quesadilla ($10.95).

Quesadillas at La Casa are essentially tacos in stretch limo format—they’re made on the same corn tortillas that have been extended to include extra food girth. This one comes overflowing with shredded lettuce and queso fresco, and the huitlacoche has been simmered to gravy-like perfection, creating a filling that shares a texture with black beans. The result is the hearty, stewed flavor of mushrooms with a bit of sweetness from the corn kernels. Mushrooms have always been a solid stand-in for proteins, and with the huitlacoche’s long legacy as a Central American delicacy, I’m surprised more plant-based joints don’t use it for their own meatless recipes. After downing this quesadilla, I can proudly say that I am pro-corn smut.

My experience at La Casa Del Tamal was defined by the unexpected. I went in with my gaze fixed on a plate of tasty birria tacos, but I was so pleasantly surprised by the other items I ordered that I can’t wait to go back. CW

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Best Supporting Mole

with a creamy poblano pepper and cheese mixture; the rojos de puerco packed with shredded pork and a chile puree; and the mole poblano, which is dripping with rich, warmly spiced mole.

I feel like tamales are often an underutilized part of the Mexican food arsenal—the humble tamale contains so much flavor and textural potential. La Casa Del Tamal realizes this potential, and each representative of its tamale roster is a superstar in and of itself. A good baseline to start with is the rojos de puerco, as it brings a nice chile flavor that complements the tender roast pork. The tamale masa is perfect—just the right hint of steamed corn sweetness to provide the undertone for the savory tag team within.

For diners after something with a spicy and sophisticated flavor profile, I’d suggest the mole poblano. I’m sure mole tamales are more common than I am used to, but this combo was new to me at the time of my visit. That said, I couldn’t contain my excitement—I could only imagine the wonders that a good tamale and mole mix would create in my mouth. When it arrived, lovingly wrapped in a steaming hot corn husk and stained chocolatey-brown from the mole that was to come, the aromas were tantalizing. Eating mole is always a bit of a risky endeavor, as its flavors and composition vary so starkly from place to place, but this had all the right moves for me—rich, autumnal flavors that evoked raisins and cinnamon, paired with a smoky heat that embraces your whole body like a warm hug.

This unexpected, but very welcome, diversion from my primary objective of birria tacos had me a little flustered—it’s not often that you go on a blind date only to run off with the Uber driver en route. All the same, my birria taco plate ($11.95) looked appealing enough to recapture my attention. The combination of melty cheese and slow-stewed birria turns the warm yellow corn tortillas into a lovely orange hue indicative of the greasy goodness inside. A plate of birria tacos also comes with a cup of the glorious consommé created by the

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onTAP 2 Row Brewing 6856 S. 300 West, Midvale 2RowBrewing.com On Tap: Feelin’ Hazy Bewilder Brewing 445 S. 400 West, SLC BewilderBrewing.com On Tap: Blueberry Pomegranate Sour Bohemian Brewery 94 E. Fort Union Blvd, Midvale BohemianBrewery.com Bonneville Brewery 1641 N. Main, Tooele BonnevilleBrewery.com On Tap: Peaches and Cream Ale

Moab Brewing 686 S. Main, Moab TheMoabBrewery.com On Tap: Bougie Johnny’s - Rose Ale Mountain West Cider 425 N. 400 West, SLC MountainWestCider.com On Tap: Ruby’s Gay Hard Cider Ogden River Brewing 358 Park Blvd, Ogden OgdenRiverBrewing.com On Tap: Injector Hazy IPA Policy Kings Brewery 223 N. 100 West, Cedar City PolicyKingsBrewery.com

Desert Edge Brewery 273 Trolley Square, SLC DesertEdgeBrewery.com On Tap: Fresh Brewed UPA

Proper Brewing 857 S. Main, SLC ProperBrewingCo.com On Tap: Lemon Shandy

Epic Brewing Co. 825 S. State, SLC EpicBrewing.com On Tap: IPA in the Coconut

Red Rock Brewing Multiple Locations RedRockBrewing.com On Tap: Baked Pastry Stout

Fisher Brewing Co. 320 W. 800 South, SLC FisherBeer.com On Tap: Red Ale

RoHa Brewing Project 30 Kensington Ave, SLC RoHaBrewing.com On Tap: Fuzzy Pucker Peach Sour

Grid City Beer Works 333 W. 2100 South, SLC GridCityBeerWorks.com On Tap: Extra Pale Ale Hopkins Brewing Co. 1048 E. 2100 South, SLC HopkinsBrewingCompany.com On Tap: Strawberry Sorghum Hoppers Grill and Brewing 890 E. Fort Union Blvd, Midvale HoppersBrewPub.com

Roosters Brewing Multiple Locations RoostersBrewingCo.com On Tap: Cosmic Autumn Rebellion SaltFire Brewing 2199 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake SaltFireBrewing.com On Tap: 10 Ton Truck West Coast IPA

Kiitos Brewing 608 W. 700 South, SLC KiitosBrewing.com

Salt Flats Brewing 2020 Industrial Circle, SLC SaltFlatsBeer.com On Tap: Bombshell Cherry Belgian Ale

Level Crossing Brewing Co. 2496 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake LevelCrossingBrewing.com On Tap: You-tah Coffee Uncommon Ale

Shades Brewing 154 W. Utopia Ave, South Salt Lake ShadesBrewing.beer On Tap: Blue Berry Blast Beer Slushie

A list of what local craft breweries and cider houses have on tap this week Silver Reef 4391 S. Enterprise Drive, St. George StGeorgeBev.com Squatters 147 W. Broadway, SLC Squatters.com Strap Tank Brewery Multiple Locations StrapTankBrewery.com Springville On Tap: PB Rider, Peanut Butter Stout Lehi On Tap: 2-Stroke, Vanilla Mocha Porter TF Brewing 936 S. 300 West, SLC TFBrewing.com On Tap: Northern Lights Terpene IPA Talisman Brewing Co. 1258 Gibson Ave, Ogden TalismanBrewingCo.com On Tap: Berry Salty: Raspberry Gose Toasted Barrel Brewery 412 W. 600 North, SLC ToastedBarrelBrewery.com Uinta Brewing 1722 S. Fremont Drive, SLC UintaBrewing.com On Tap: Was Angeles Craft Beer UTOG 2331 Grant Ave, Ogden UTOGBrewing.com On Tap: OG Juice Vernal Brewing 55 S. 500 East, Vernal VernalBrewing.com Wasatch 2110 S. Highland Drive, SLC WasatchBeers.com Zion Brewery 95 Zion Park Blvd, Springdale ZionBrewery.com Zolupez 205 W. 29th Street #2, Ogden Zolupez.com

Temporary at TF

BY MIKE RIEDEL comments@cityweekly.net @utahbeer

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AUGUST 5, 2021 | 27

emplin Family/Horus Aged Ales: This collaboration between Salt Lake’s TF Brewing and Oceanside, Calif.’s Horus Aged Ales marked at least a couple of “firsts.” One, it marked the first collaboration between a local Utah brewery and a San Diego brewery; two, this is the first lager that this ale house has created, to the best of my knowledge. Using a type of craft pilsner malt that hails from the San Diego area called Atlas, the lager has a yeast-hazed, cloudy sunburst straw body, with a proud three fingers of off-white head that will not budge; it’s like a nitro head, and I’m impressed with that kind of staying power. Honey and bread notes emerge up front, lingering on forever with a touch of spicy hop character. It’s not an overly complex aroma, but it promises a bountiful swig of bread and honey goodness—and who doesn’t like bread and honey?

Yep, this is as good as expected; TF fails to disappoint yet again. The reason I love their Kellerbier is that, for a lager, it tastes round like an ale, but with the clean quality of a lager. Atlas has bread, honey, spice/ pepper, light floral hop notes and a dry cracker finish—all the good stuff, with a cleaner and lighter feel. Mid to light/almost medium-bodied, with that classic German creamy but light carbonation that makes you realize, “These lager nerds know their shit.”

Overall: I could drink this all day. In any case, this is a damn solid Zwicklebier, and if you’ve never come across the style,

be forewarned: You might find it a bit on the dense side and lacking in spritziness.

It’s certainly not a palate-cleanser, if that’s what you’re after. This is real beer done in a traditional fashion.

Templin Family - Barrel-aged Grisette: This beer has been aging in chardonnay barrels with chardonnay must for nearly a year. The base beer is a light Belgian ale, akin to saisons. It has an amazingly nice-looking head that is off white in color and starts out about three fingers thick with nice uniform bubbles throughout. It retains very well, settling into a one-fingerthick head and becomes pillowy dense. The color of the brew is yeast-hazed straw, with soft carbonation rising to the top and the lacing is all right—nothing special in the grand scheme of things.

There is plenty of chardonnay barrel sweetness in the nose that straddles the fence between wine grapes and tropical/ orchard fruit (apricot, pears)—smooth dry spice (pepper), hints of wild funk and a peachy apple finish. This is rich and very vinous.

Initial flavors of oaked earthiness, chardonnay wine robustness and creamy biscuit/yeast come out up front—very little alcohol in the body, and the yeasty dryness makes this style what it is. The finish becomes fruity, with apricot kernel and citrus rind, while throughout there is a hint of vanilla from the oak. Perhaps a soft hopped bitterness ensues on the finish Overall: This is a highly drinkable ale that is medium-to-full-bodied, and has awesomely tight carbonation that reminds me of a sparkling chardonnay spritzer. The 5.0 percent alcohol isn’t very noticeable, which makes it prime for August drinking.

These two beers are quite different, and really showcase the versatility of TF’s portfolio. While they are gaining a reputation in the beer industry for their lagers, beer like this session strength, barrel-aged ale will keep beer nerds and the curious coming back to see what all the fuss is about this week. Atlas is available on draft and in 16-ounce cans, while the grisette is only available on draft for a limited time. As always, cheers! CW

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A fleeting opportunity to try some Old World influences.

MIKE RIEDEL

MIKE RIEDEL

BEER NERD

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BY ALEX SPRINGER @captainspringer

Eat Drink SLC Tix on Sale

Tickets just went on sale for Eat Drink SLC (eatdrinkslc. com), one of downtown Salt Lake City’s most anticipated food and wine events. This year, the event will be divided into three “petite eat drinks” that will take place on Sept. 8, 15 and 22, starting at 6 p.m. Like past events, this year’s celebration will take place at Tracy Aviary (589 E. 1300 South, tracyaviary.org) for all three events. If you’ve never attended Eat Drink SLC, you can expect an evening of curated food and wine prepared and presented by Utah’s best and brightest within the welcoming confines of Tracy Aviary’s exhibits and gardens. It’s a swell night out for any lover of local food and drink.

The Tavernacle Closes

Fans of the dueling piano bar known as The Tavernacle (201 E. 300 South) shed a collective tear as we heard news of its closure. As a swan song to commemorate this beloved establishment, the Tavernacle team held a farewell party to give the space a proper sendoff. This downtown mainstay offered one of Salt Lake City’s most unique takes on nighttime entertainment, and that spirit of creativity was present during every event hosted at The Tavernacle. We’ll miss the tasty lunch menu, the memorable piano duels and the utterly fabulous drag queen brunches. Best of luck to the Tavernacle team as they close up shop.

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Raising Cane’s Expands

Hot off the tails of their traffic-jam-causing debut in South Jordan (3788 W. 11400 South), Raising Cane’s (raisingcanes.com) just opened a second location in Provo (132 W. 1230 N.). Known for their sparse menu of fried chicken fingers, crinkle cut fries and buttery Texas toast, Raising Cane’s South Jordan opening saw a huge turnout, causing major traffic delays around South Jordan’s District shopping center—we do love our fried chicken, I suppose. Based on that experience, it’s safe to bet that the Provo location will be equally packed, so plan accordingly if you’re in the market for some chicken fingers down south.

Quote of the Week: “Food is as much about the moment, the occasion, the location and the company as it is about the taste.” –Heston Blumenthal

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GOODEATS Complete listings at cityweekly.net Featuring dining destinations from buffets and rooms with a view to mom-and-pop joints, chic cuisine and some of our dining critic’s faves.

705 S. 700 E. | (801) 537-1433

Burgers

If you’re craving amazing fine-dining cuisine in Holladay, head over to Franck’s. For an appetizer, the braised beets are splendid, as are the scallops.

There’s a nod to France on the restaurant’s menu with three-cheese fondue, as well as New World specialties such as organic Southern-fried chicken, pan-seared sea bass and smoked duck breast and confit leg. Franck’s version of meatloaf is slowly braised pulled pork, veal and chicken in a blueberrylavender sauce. Don’t miss out on their not-so-traditional take on steak: wagyu sirloin steak served with porcini purée, crimini mushrooms and blackberries. 6263 S. Holladay Blvd., Holladay, 801-274-6264, francksfood.com

Acapulco

Café Madrid

PATIO NOW 30 east Broadway, SLC 801.355.0667 Richsburgersngrub.com

Distillery 36 2374 S. Redwood Road, West Valley 801-983-7303 Distillery36.com Eight Settlers Distillery 7321 S. Canyon Centre Pkwy, Cottonwood Heights 385-900-4315 EightSettlersDistillery.com

Simplicity Cocktails 3679 W. 1987 South #6, SLC 801-210-0868 DrinkSimplicity.com

Moab Distillery 686 S. Main, Moab 435-259-6333 TheMoabDistillery.com

Sugarhouse Distillery 2212 S. West Temple #14, SLC 801-726-0403 SugarhouseDistillery.net

New World Distillery 4795 2600 North, Eden 385-244-0144 NewWorldDistillery.com

Vintage Spirits Distillery 6844 S. 300 West, Midvale 801-699-6459 VSDistillery.com

Ogden’s Own Distillery 615 W. Stockman Way, Ogden 801-458-1995 OdgensOwn.com

Waterpocket Distillery 2084 W 2200 South, West Valley City 801-382-9921‬ Waterpocket.co

Cocktail of the Week Ogden’s Own Strawberry Spring-Thyme Ingredients: 1.5 oz Five Wives Vodka juice from half a lemon 1/2 oz simple syrup (1:1) club soda 2 large strawberries, quartered 2 sprigs of fresh thyme Directions: Muddle strawberries, lemon juice, simple syrup, one sprig of thyme and vodka in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake to chill. Pour contents into a rocks glass.

Top with club soda. Garnish with a strawberry and sprig of thyme.

AUGUST 5, 2021 | 29

OPEN

The namesake pho here is characteristically deep russet in color, with flecks of finely chopped green onions and cilantro and a fist-sized chunk of oxtail that sits like an uncharted island within a sea of heady broth. The tripe is sliced so thinly that it becomes virtually indistinguishable from the noodles. The potstickers are juicy and flavorful, once again proving that Pho 33 knows its beef. Pho 33’s variety is hard to beat, and it’s a great place to dive into a dish that’s become a trendy lunchtime staple.7640 S. State, Midvale, 801-889-4090, pho33utah.com

Dented Brick Distillery 3100 S. Washington St, South Salt Lake 801-883-9837 DentedBrick.com

Holystone Distilling 207 W. 4860 South, SLC 503-328-4356 HolystoneDistilling.com

Silver Reef Brewing and Distillery 4391 Enterprise Drive, St. George 435-216-1050 StGeorgeBev.com

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Pho 33

Clear Water Distilling Co. 564 W. 700 South, Pleasant Grove 801-997-8667 ClearWaterDistilling.com

The Hive Winery and Spirits Company 1220 W. Jack D Drive, Layton 801-546-1997 TheHiveWinery.com

Outlaw Distillery 552 W. 8360 South, Sandy 801-706-1428 OutlawDistillery.com

Boasting longevity as a traditional Spanish restaurant, Cafe Madrid is a go-to spot for tapas.

The first bite into the albóndigas yields a tender, nuanced bit of Spanish gastronomic history. The solomillo de buey al queso picón de Treviso is a grilled beef tenderloin served with root vegetables and slathered in a Roquefort cheese sauce—ideal for the steak lover in your life.

Ordering the paella is an event in itself; it’s a slowcooked endeavor, so if you want a full dish for two, the kitchen staff requires 24-hours notice—but it’s worth the wait. 5244 S. Highland Drive, 801273-0837, cafemadrid.net

Beehive Distilling 2245 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake 385-259-0252 BeehiveDistilling.com

High West Distillery 703 Park Ave, Park City 435-649-8300 HighWest.com

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Since 1991, this casual eatery has been serving up Mexican dishes with flavor and friendliness. Fans of freshly made authentic food rave about Acapulco, where even the tortillas are made in-house daily.

Chow down on enchiladas, smothered burritos, flautas, pozole—you can even get ribs and a cheeseburger. But whatever you decide on, make sure to grab a sweet dessert. And don’t forget to ask about their daily lunch specials. 4722 S. 4015 West, Kearns, 801-964-1553, acapulcorestaurantutah.com

Alpine Distilling 7132 N. Silver Creek Road, Park City 350 Main, Park City 435-200-9537 AlpineDistilling.com

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As Big As Ya Head!

Franck’s Restaurant

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MUSIC

Sophie Blair explores her mental health and her expansive musical talents on flatline.

BY ERIN MOORE music@cityweekly.net @errands_

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efore Sophie Blair was a pop star, the Utah County-based pop artist was walking a fairly straight line—towards a career in classical music. Then, in 2020, her debut EP Arteries blazed into the world. Far removed from anything she’d done before, it was rich in the essence of pure pop—catchy hooks all over, bleeding emotion. Behind the scenes, Blair’s pivot to pop really is like the best of pop music—easy on the ears, emotionally cathartic and a total product of practice, patience and perseverance.

“I was probably 19, and I had a boyfriend at the time who said something like, ‘The best musicians are the ones who are writing pop songs,’” says Blair. A lifelong Taylor Swift fan, she was receptive to this bold statement. “I don’t actually know if that’s true—it’s probably not—but I’m a very ambitious person and that kind of got in my head a little bit. So I started studying pop music like I had studied classical music in college for about a year, before I dropped out. I was planning to be a violist in a symphony and gigging as a string player, so I was doing a lot of stuff that was using my viola … and I got this little itch.

I started researching pop songwriting and songwriters.”

She began to wonder, could she do this too, and do it well? She began practicing hooks, with the intention of making the best pop music she could. “Obviously I haven’t done [that],” she admits.

“But I started putting my energy towards that. I also realized that this niche of music is saturated with a lot of meaningless shit, actually.”

That statement hardly needs explaining, because much pop music has a reputation for lacking depth. Blair’s pop experiments aren’t, though. Her lyrics draw from places of struggle that are almost primed for pop, a genre that often fixates on heartache and pain.

Blair says, “I have a diagnosis, Borderline [Personality Disorder], and a lot of Arteries is about my experiences with that. There’s an obsession with a favorite person where you make these really serious attachments and have these severe fears of abandonment,” she adds, quoting her lyrics, “I love you so much my body might break” as an example of physically feeling that fear.

Other songs, like “Drive,” grapple with the issue of suicide, both involving a loved one and her own past attempt. “It’s being a teenager and in your early 20s—which is where I’m at—and really loving someone through the lens of this severe, heavy mental illness.”

She cites one of her favorite songs, the über-catchy single “Don’t Be Like That!,” as an example of an unhealthy attachment she’s had. “Listening back, there’s definitely this theme of, ‘I’m in love, but it’s not happy, this is actually very painful.’”

But, she says, her life has always been like that, and pop has become a positive new mental space. “Sometimes when I’m writing my Phoebe Bridgers-type folk songs, I’m too deep into the deep feelings,” she says. “It almost feels like I’m taking it all too seriously. Within the pop landscape, it felt like I was making fun of

MAIYA BUCK

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Sophie Blair myself a little and it didn’t feel as heavy. [Pop] made it feel like, ‘Eh, this is just how my life is.’ I think it was healing for me, actually.”

On her June 2021-released EP, flatline, she realized her illness doesn’t have to isolate her or make her unrelatable. “There’s a little more leaning into the exciting part of being a little bit mentally ill, and being really in love,” she says.

And while Arteries and flatline were recorded together a yearand-a-half ago with producer Nate Pyfer (Kaskade, Fictionist), Blair notes that flatline reflects the confidence she found towards the last half of recording. She was initially timid in the new environment of professional recording, but it didn’t take long for her big personality to meet the prolific Pyfer’s, and in a stressful moment, she remembers asserting, “I need you to fucking listen to me!” There was a shift, and the two fell into harmony.

“When our energy was good, it was crazy, we’d both be like manically pacing around at midnight, 1 a.m. It pushed me a lot, and taught me a lot, but we also had a lot of fun. When we made ‘Close Quarters,’ we were both like, sobbing,” she says, citing the slow burn that closes out flatline.

With these two sparkly pop debuts under her belt, what’s next?

“I don’t like to be held down, and I can see myself evolving in lots of other ways,” Blair says. “I write every single day. So I have albums of songs that are done—obviously not all of them I want to release.”

But what she will release will remain in the pop realm, though she’s also eyeing the “perfect country song” question. “I’m still in the process of figuring out exactly what I want to be as a musician.

For me, it’s been me trying to dunk on myself over and over and over again. ‘You did this, now can you do this?’”

The answer to that question seems clear. Catch her at Kilby Court on Friday, Aug 6 and keep up with her on Instagram at @ sophiexblair. CW

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Darkest Dawn Records Showcase

Head down to Kilby Court on Wednesday, Aug. 11 for a taste of what Ogden’s hip hop scene has to offer. The artist and producer collective Darkest Dawn will be heading down to Salt Lake to show off all the talent represented in their group, and it’s a diverse crew. Alt-hip hop artist Cotes will be there to show off his stuff, including his recent single “You Make Me Feel Wild, which dropped July 18. He’ll be joined by local vocalist Saysha, and the oozing sound of confidence from fellow hip hop artist Mod, who also released a recent round of singles under the moniker CoMpLiCaTeD. Rounding out the roster of Darkest Dawn artists for the night are Lobo, Same Book Different Page and Mai. All of these artists have stayed busy throughout the pandemic, so now’s the time to hear for yourself what these Ogdenites have been up to. If attendees like what they hear at the show, they can also hit up Darkest Dawn for beats, recording sessions or other music production needs. This show is 21+, starts at 7 p.m., and is only $7. Keep up with Darkest Dawn Records and all of these artists on Instagram at @darkestdawnrecs.

Audientis! A Mental Health Charity Event

The era of COVID has given many of us much to think about, but that’s probably most true for those who actually dealt with the disease and all of its fallout personally.

That was the case for Weston Paul of local band Stolen Stars, who not only dealt with being hospitalized with COVID, but also spent time reflecting on all of the mental health shifts this last year has caused for so many. While suffering from his illness, Paul had time to think about his experiences with depression throughout his young life, which led him to working at a treatment home for teenagers going through the kind of struggles he knows himself. In the face of a year that’s been hard on everyone, he and his brother/bandmate Tanner Pierce are bringing mental health to their music with their upcoming event “Audientis!” Named

Cotes

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for the Latin word for “the listener,” the event will provide music, food trucks and opportunities to learn more about mental health in an approachable environment. In addition to a performance by Stolen Stars themselves, the duo will be joined by fellow locals MERC, Southernmost Gravy and Winter Sirens. The event will be rounded out by booths featuring vendors and a raffle, and all money donated will go to the Jed Foundation, a Utah-based organization with a focus on mental illness and suicide prevention. If interested, make your way to the Terra Health and Wellness building in Millcreek on Saturday, Aug. 7, where the event will run from 3 p.m. - 10 p.m.

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National Park Radio

Tune-Yards

Indie vanguards of funky production and scintillating themes, TuneYards are back in SLC this Tuesday, Aug. 10 at Metro Music Hall. Starting in 2009 with the album BiRd-BrAiNs—released then as a solo project by founder Merrill Garbus—Tune-Yards has been a defining point in the constellation of 2010’s music culture with their distinctive style of clattering percussion, surprising ukulele and other novel effects. The now-duo of Garbus and Nate Brenner scored Boots Riley’s indie film Sorry To Bother You in 2019, and this year they released their fifth album, sketchy. The album finds them as-ever in their funk-infused element, with songs that trip over themselves and which buzz with the energy of Garbus’ unmistakable voice. sketchy. walks the same kind of tight-rope often walked on Tune-Yards albums, namely in that the songs are political or tricky in nature (past albums have interrogated white privilege, disordered eating and inequality) while also drawing from incredibly danceable, bubbly genres like Afrobeat, vintage R&B and ’60s soul to create the complex deluge Tune-Yards is known for. It is probably fair to say that their music is immediately deeply listenable for some, and deeply puzzling for others—which isn’t a bad thing. Watch them walk the tightrope at this upcoming show, where they’ll find support in Salami Rose Joe Louis, whose 2019 sci-fi album Zdenka 2080 addresses climate anxiety, a fitting theme for these smokey-skied times. This show is 21+, with doors at 7 p.m. and tickets for $22.50. Visit metromusichall.com for info and tickets.

National Park Radio at Soundwell

While here in Utah we have our own national parkinspired musical act in The National Parks, they’re not the only ones around who’ve been so influenced by the nature around them that they named their band after it. Based out of the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas, the duo at the center of National Park Radio finds their inspiration in the beauty of their home region, with its old, low mountains and sprawling ancient lake. Inspired by acts like the Avett Brothers and with indie folk contemporaries like Kitchen Dwellers and our own National Parks, they’ve gathered inspiration from their tour travels, inspiration that would go on to inform two albums and two EPs, the latest being 2020’s The Road Ahead.

Composed of songs devoted to the beauty of being on the open road interacting with fans and nature alike, The Road Ahead recalls a fantasy many in the music realm entertained while stuck at home during the pandemic.

But come 2021, on the road again they are, and they’ll be stopping in at Soundwell on Friday, Aug. 6 for an early show starting at 7 p.m. Support is TBA, the show is 21+, and GA tickets are $13. Tables for up to eight people can be rented for $120. Visit soundwell.com for more info and tickets.

PHIL CLARKIN

POONEH GHANA

Tune-Yards

Love is the Answer

For those not bound up in the soap opera-esque dramas of the local live music world, it may have seemed at a passing glance that the popular bar Tinwell—where dance nights abounded and their upstairs tiki bar was oh-so perfect for secret DJ sets—was just another casualty of the early pandemic, as it closed its doors a few weeks before the panny hit. But it was actually the result of a change in ownership, and now has The Pines plastered above its door. Not much in the bar has changed, and that goes for music now, too. This Saturday, Aug. 7, make your way back to that fabulous patio space of theirs to catch the very best of New City Movement with their event Love is the Answer.

Starting at 9 p.m., this 21+ DJ showcase will feature two different ways to dance. Inside the bar, you can catch BRED back-to-back with DJ Tina, plus Jake Larsen and Fifty Thousand Dinar. Outside are four popular local names in Flash n’ Flare, Jesse Walker, Gizmo and Matthew Fit. If you’ve yet to get your booty out dancing this summer, now’s the time to do it. Follow @newcitymovement on Instagram for more details on this event and others.

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AUGUST 5, 2021 | 35

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net @scottrenshaw

S

ometimes, as a critic, you stand alone.

Sometimes you hate the thing everyone else loves, and sometimes you love the thing everyone else hates, and it just comes with the territory. That notion manifested itself powerfully at the 2021 virtual incarnation of the Sundance Film Festival, where the U.S. Dramatic Competition entry John and the Hole had me convinced I’d seen one of the best films I’d see all year—while everyone else appeared to be reacting with at best a shrug, if not outright disdain.

Maybe it’s unlikely that I’m going to turn on a lightbulb for those who saw John and the Hole as a pretender to the misanthropic deadpan thrones of Michael Haneke and/ or Yorgos Lanthimos. It’s certainly not an inviting film, with director Pascual Sisto’s set-ups keeping us often at a physical distance from the movie’s characters as well as an emotional distance. But there’s so much more going on here than an alienating portrait of a budding sociopath—and the key, as it is to so many things in life, might just turn out to be Stephen Sondheim.

The bulk of the narrative focuses on John (Charlie Shotwell), a 13-year-old boy from a wealthy family that also includes his father

Charlie Shotwell in John and the Hole she’s 12, not 13—and therefore, not really the same as John in the story the mother intends as a preparation for what she’s about to do.

Nicolás Giacobone’s screenplay for John and the Hole does ultimately explore the notion of what’s going on behind the oftenblank expressions in Charlie Shotwell’s performance as John. The text goes out of its way to explain that nothing the family has done is “to blame” for how John is; even his older sister, after an incident where John is being particularly annoying, responds with a kiss on the forehead rather than a smack in the face. As much as the premise sometimes feels like Home Alone reimagined as a psychological thriller, John’s experiment at being a grown-up is perhaps less about what he can do than what a family is willing to forgive, as indicated by an amazing late scene built around John’s “test” of whether they still love him.

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That’s part of the story Lily’s mother is telling, too, something that’s less often explicit in our instructive fairy tales: We need the people in our lives who will forgive us for anything. As chilly as John and the Hole might seem, it’s deeply felt in its recognition that, whatever may pass between parents and children, everyone wants to feel that when they walk into the woods, they are not alone, that no one is alone. CW

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Into the Woods

(Michael C. Hall), mother (Jennifer Ehle) and older sister, Laurie (Taissa Farmiga). One day, while flying his new drone in the woods near the family home, John discovers the construction site where a neighbor started, but never completed, a deep in-ground shelter. After careful testing that includes slipping a mickey to their gardener, John drugs all three of them with his mother’s sleeping pills, lowers them into the concrete-lined hole, and leaves them there.

The “why” behind John’s actions is important, but before we get there, it’s important to note that John and the Hole is a nested narrative. We learn that John and the Hole is itself a story being told within the film—by a mother (Georgia Lyman) to her daughter, Lily (Samantha LeBretton). That’s a crucial component, because it positions everything else we’re seeing as potentially unreliable.

And, as that framing narrative itself unfolds through its brief, harrowing appearances, it reveals John and the Hole to be a fairy tale of the kind that parents have told their children for generations as a way to prepare them for the scary realities of adulthood, whether they’re ready for them or not.

It’s here that Mr. Sondheim becomes relevant—specifically, Into the Woods. That musical, which folded in elements of multiple iconic fairy tales, explored their thematic connection to the liminal ground between adolescence and adulthood, and fears like being alone in a frightening place, separated from the protection of parents. John and the Hole is about those stories that parents might tell, theoretically to help their kids deal with the moments when the parent can’t protect them. But it’s also a recognition that parents themselves can be terrible judges of what their kids are ready to know, and when. The single most crucial moment of dialogue in the film might be when Lily tells her mother that

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B R E Z S N Y

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ARIES (March 21-April 19) Filmmaker Federico Fellini had an unexpected definition of happiness. He said it was “being able to speak the truth without hurting anyone.” I suspect you will have abundant access to that kind of happiness in the coming weeks, Aries. I’ll go even further: You will have extra power to speak the truth in ways that heal and uplift people. My advice to you, therefore, is to celebrate and indulge your ability. Be bold in expressing the fullness of what’s interesting to you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) “Look for a long time at what pleases you, and longer still at what pains you,” wrote the novelist Colette. What?! Was she making a perverse joke? That’s wicked advice, and I hope you adopt it only on rare occasions. In fact, the exact opposite is the healthy way to live—especially for you in the coming weeks.

Look at what pains you, yes. Don’t lose sight of what your problems and wounds are. But please, for the sake of your dreams, for the benefit of your spiritual and psychological health, look longer at what pleases you, energizes you and inspires you.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) If you deepen your affection for butterflies and hummingbirds, I will love it. If you decide you want the dragonfly or bumblebee or lark to be your spirit creature, I will approve. You almost always benefit from cultivating relationships with swift, nimble, and lively influences—and that’s especially true these days. So give yourself full permission to experiment with the superpower of playful curiosity. You’re most likely to thrive when you’re zipping around in quest of zesty ripples and sprightly rhythms.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) Professor of psychology Ethan Kross tells us there can be healthy, creative forms of envy. “Just as hunger tells us we need to eat,” he writes, “the feeling of envy could show us what is missing from our lives that really matters to us.” The trick is to not interpret envy as a negative emotion, but to see it as useful information that shows us what we want. In my astrological opinion, that’s a valuable practice for you to deploy in the coming days. So pay close attention to the twinges of envy that pop into your awareness. Harness that volatile stuff to motivate yourself as you make plans to get the very experience or reward you envy.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Poet Walt Whitman bragged that he was “large.” He said, “I contain multitudes.” One critic compared him to “a whole continent with its waters, with its trees, with its animals.”

Responding to Whitman, Sagittarian poet Gertrud Kolmar uttered an equally grandiose boast. “I too am a continent,” she wrote. “I contain mountains never-reached, scrubland unpenetrated, pond bay, river-delta, salt-licking coast-tongue.”

That’s how I’m imagining you these days, dear Sagittarius: as unexplored territory, as frontier land teeming with undiscovered mysteries. I love how expansive you are as you open your mind and heart to new self-definitions. I love how you’re willing to risk being unknowable for a while as you wander out in the direction of the future.

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CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Poet Ezra Pound wrote a letter to novelist James Joyce that included the following passage: “You are f—king with my head, and so far, I’ve been enjoying it. Where is the crime?” I believe the coming weeks will be prime time for you to engage with interesting souls who f—k with your head in enjoyable ways.

You need a friendly jolt or two: a series of galvanizing prods; LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) The next two months will be a propitious time for you and your dialogs that catalyze you to try new ways of thinking and seeing; intimate allies to grow closer by harnessing the power of your lively exchanges that inspire you to experiment. imaginations. I urge you to be inventive in dreaming up ways to educate and entertain each other. Seek frisky adventures AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) together that will delight you. Here’s a poem by Vyacheslav Blogger Mandukhai Munkhbaatar offers advice on the arts of Ivanov that I hope will stimulate you: “We are two flames in a intimate communion. “Do not fall in love only with a body or midnight forest. We are two meteors that fly at night, a two- with a face,” she tells us. “Do not fall in love with the idea of pointed arrow of one fate. We are two steeds whose bridle is being in love.” She also wants you to know that it’s best for your held by one hand. We are two eyes of a single gaze, two quivering long-term health and happiness if you don’t seek cozy involvewings of one dream, two-voiced lips of single mysteries. We are ment with a person who is afraid of your madness, or with someone who, after you fight, disappears and refuses to talk. I two arms of a single cross.” approve of all these suggestions. Any others you would add? It’s a favorable phase to get clearer about the qualities of people you VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Virgo spiritual author Don Miguel Ruiz urges us not to take want and don’t want as your allies. anything personally. He says that if someone treats us disrespectfully, it’s almost certainly because they are suffering from PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) psychological wounds that make them act in vulgar, insensitive I gave my readers homework, asking them to answer the quesways. Their attacks have little to do with what’s true about us. I tion, “What is your favorite rule to break?” In response, Laura agree with him and will add this important caveat. Even if you Grolla sent these thoughts: “My favorite rule to break is an refrain from taking such abuses personally, it doesn’t mean you unwritten one: that we must all stress and strive for excellence. I should tolerate them. It doesn’t mean you should keep that per- have come up with a stress-busting mantra, ‘It is OK to be OK.’ son in your life or allow them to bully you in the future. I suspect In my OKness, I have discovered the subtle frontier of contentthese are important themes for you to contemplate right now. ment, which is vast and largely unexplored. OKness allows me not to compete for attention, but rather to pay attention to others. I love OKness for the humor and deep, renewing sleep it LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) “People who feel deeply, live deeply and love deeply are destined has generated. Best of all, OKness allows me to be happily aging to suffer deeply,” writes poet Juansen Dizon. To that roman- rather than anxiously hot.” I bring this to your attention, Pisces, ticized, juvenile nonsense, I say: No! Wrong! People who feel because I think the coming weeks will be a favorable time for you and live and love deeply are more emotionally intelligent than to investigate and embody the relaxing mysteries of OKness.

able

its Avail

Stage K

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CANCER (June 21-July 22) Life is showing you truths about what you are not, what you don’t need and what you shouldn’t strive for. That’s auspicious, although it may initially feel unsettling. I urge you to welcome these revelations with gratitude. They will help you tune in to the nuances of what it means to be radically authentic. They will boost your confidence in the rightness of the path you’ve chosen for yourself. I’m hoping they may even show you which of your fears are irrelevant. Be hungry for these extraordinary teachings.

folks who live on the surface—and are therefore less fragile.

The deep ones are likely to be psychologically adept; they have skills at liberating themselves from the smothering crush of their problems. The deep ones also have access to rich spiritual resources that ensure their suffering is a source of transformative teaching—and rarely a cause of defeat. Have you guessed that I’m describing you as you will be in the coming weeks?

© 2021

SHRINKING VIOLET

BY DAVID LEVINSON WILK

ACROSS

1. Shade of blue 2. Potpourri 3. Big name in synthesizers 4. Member of Kirk’s bridge crew 5. Decide one will 6. Waste away 7. Wally’s TV brother, with “the”

G

Gentrification Nation

8. Bob Marley’s “____ the Sheriff” 9. “Madam Secretary” star 10. Yield to pressure 11. Right this minute 12. Certain Saudi 13. 1950s autos with “horse collar” grilles 18. Longtime columnist Bombeck 22. Very strong hold 24. Fish whose name means “very strong” in Hawaiian 27. ____ deferens 28. “Sorta” 29. Opposite of ‘neath 30. Churchgoers, collectively 32. Copenhageners, e.g.

34. Performers of the ceremonial haka dance 36. Cousin of reggae 37. Colorado NHL club, to fans 39. Most likely to celebrate Pi Day 40. WC 41. Them, in French 42. ____-Mex 45. Wise one 46. Key of Beethoven’s “Für Elise” 47. In a cutting manner 49. Shakespeare’s “Henry

____” 52. Home to the world’s three highest capital cities 54. “... but that could be wrong” 56. GM cars of the 1990s 57. Openly declare 59. Quartet that sang “Teach Your Children” and 60-Down, for short 60. See 59-Down 61. Prince’s “____ Go Crazy” 62. Mgr.’s helper 65. DiFranco of Righteous Babe Records

Last week’s answers

No math is involved. The grid has numbers, but nothing has to add up to anything else. Solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic. Solving time is typically 10 to 30 minutes, depending on your skill and experience.

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Complete the grid so that each row, column, diagonal and 3x3 square contain all of the numbers 1 to 9.

1. Jules et Jim, par exemple 5. Top of a wizard’s staff 8. “My order arrived in the mail!”

14. Surname of the only MLB brother trio to play together in the outfield 15. Poet who wrote “We loved with a love that was more than love” 16. In a chair 17. *1990s Nicaraguan president Chamorro 19. Ruinations 20. Kind of smoothie 21. *Reason for an R rating 23. One who delivers 25. Numbered hwy.

26. Berkeley school, for short 27. *Actress Davis who said “I see what y’all write about my snot tears” 31. Fuss 33. Warning signs 35. On the ocean 36. Jimi Hendrix followed them at Woodstock 38. Shy person ... or the progression of the starred clues beginning with 17-Across 43. Special-____ (football players used only in specific situations) 44. Rakish fellow 45. Mythical figure known for ribaldry 48. “____ was saying ...”

49. *Arthritis drug recalled in 2004 50. OB/GYN’s org.

51. “Well, lah-di-____!”

53. Luau finger food 55. *Birth state of four of the first five U.S. presidents 58. Cough drop name yodeled in ads 63. Chipped in 64. *Goes poof!

66. Sure-to-succeed 67. Bed-Ins for Peace participant 68. Small grievances 69. Dates not found on the calendar 70. Clever one 71. 2015 World Series winning manager Ned

SUDOKU X

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38 | AUGUST 5, 2021

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

We hear the term “gentrification” a lot these days when it comes to neighborhoods. When wealthier buyers and renters move into a poor neighborhood and make upgrades, the gentrified neighborhood then pushes out the less financially abundant folk living there.

I became aware of this in Salt Lake City many decades ago when John Williams, one of the owners of Gastronomy/Market Street Grill/The New Yorker purchased a home in the Capitol Hill area. At the time, many were astounded that he didn’t buy a home in the Harvard/Yale, Federal Heights or Holladay neighborhoods, where the city’s expensive homes were traditionally found.

Williams had lived downtown and buying on the Hill was a natural for him because his new home would be close to his office. But people still scratched their heads as to why he’d live in an area that wasn’t thought to be an “exclusive neighborhood.” Thanks to Williams homesteading in a less-expensive neighborhood, buyers’ eyes turned to the wonderfully historic homes around the Utah State Capitol. Soon, a younger and more affluent group of buyers would call the Marmalade and Capitol Hill neighborhoods home.

Over the years, this trend has been seen in other Salt Lake Valley neighborhoods including lower Sugar House, Taylorsville, areas around Cottonwood Heights (i.e., White City) and Rose Park. You can see it happening now in the “up and coming” ’hoods of lower 9th and 9th, Poplar Grove and Glendale.

Beyond Salt Lake, a new type of gentrification is being felt in East Coast shoreline communities. Dubbed “climate gentrification,” CNN describes it as a “process in which wealthier people fleeing from climate-risky areas spur higher housing prices and more aggressive gentrification in safer areas.”

When the wealthy see the horrific news of climate-related disasters like the Miami condo collapse last month that killed almost 100 people in the middle of the night, they react by fleeing the dangers of hurricane winds, storm surges and water damage by moving inland to higher ground.

As a result, the Black working-class neighborhoods on high ground in New Orleans are seeing an influx of new neighbors grab up cheaper homes above the flood plain and push up housing prices.

“Climate-risky cities around the country are also seeing signs of gentrification … where booming real estate prices in higherground, minority neighborhoods—like Little Haiti—have been tied to sea-level rise,” reported CNN. As the climate changes, sea levels will rise.

New York City is only 33 feet above sea level, Miami is 6.5 feet and San Francisco is 52 feet near the bay. The areas of the U.S. that see the most coastal flooding include Tampa, Charleston, Long Island and New Jersey.

Given the massive monsoon rains in Southern Utah this year, homeowners may want to reassess if they should live on higher ground in the future if these storms are going to become the norm.

The theory of climate gentrification would then logically point to affordable housing appearing in flood-prone neighborhoods. And flood insurance is extremely expensive! n Content is prepared expressly for Community and is not endorsed by City Weekly staff.

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Creme de la Weird An arrest warrant was issued July 8 in Little Rock, Arkansas, for Brian Dale Reams, 32, in connection with several incidents where he allegedly approached women and asked if he could touch their feet—with a curious twist, KATV reported. In Conway, Arkansas, a woman said a man with no arms followed her into a Walmart last September, telling her she had pretty feet and asking if she liked having people touch them. Later, he began harassing her on Facebook. In June, a second woman said a man matching the same description (but wearing a face mask with “Brian” written on it) followed her around the same Walmart and wondered if she’d let him give her a foot massage. He apparently didn’t explain how that might work.

A third woman identified Reams after viewing screenshots of his Facebook account; he approached her in a Kroger store.

Awesome!

Delray Beach, Florida, has a new addition to its fleet of police vehicles: an ice cream truck. Police Chief Javaro Sims told WPBF-TV that he’s been thinking about getting an ice cream truck for some time. “We must continue to find ways to break down those invisible barriers we continue to deal with on a daily basis within our communities,” Sims said. He hopes the public will grab some free ice cream and stay for some conversation, getting to know the officers and building relationships.

Bright Ideas California Highway Patrol officers were called to a spot on I-80 near the Nevada border on July 15 because of a car on fire, SFGate reported. When they got there, they discovered a man yelling about “the bears,” Officer Carlos Perez said. After talking with him, they determined that the man had set his car on fire to ward off bears. “Listen, we have bears in the area,” Perez said, “but there were no bears nearby. ... You can’t light a fire on the hood of your vehicle to ‘keep the bears away.’”

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Questionable Judgment An unnamed 31-year-old woman in Beachwood, Ohio, went on a spectacular joyride on June 15, crashing into another car at more than 100 mph before spinning into a utility pole, another car and a house, WJW reported. Surprisingly, no one was hurt in the series of crashes, including the driver and her 11-year-old daughter, who was sitting in the front seat with her. Officers didn’t detect any evidence of drug or alcohol use. Instead, the driver told police that she’s been going through some “trials and tribulations” and was recently fired from her job, so she “let go and let God take the wheel.” She went on to say that she believed she had done the right thing. She now faces charges of felony assault, endangering a child and driving under suspension.

Send your weird news items to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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n Jimmy Jennings of Lafayette, Louisiana, doesn’t like being stuck in traffic. But on July 9, as he sat in a jam on the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge, he was struck with a dubious notion: He would jump off the interstate bridge into the river below.

“When I hit the water, my shoulder went up, I kind of hurt my shoulder, but I started swimming,” Jennings said, according to WABC-TV. “I couldn’t get back to the bank because the current was way too strong. I thought I was going to die, but God saved me.” Eventually, Jennings found his way to land, where he rode around on an ATV for a while—only to discover he was on an island. Finally, he found a boat and was met by police, who charged him with criminal mischief and trespassing. Jennings later admitted on Facebook that his leap of faith was a bad idea.

But Why? A Reno, Nevada, woman was charged on July 14 in a break-in incident at a dental practice where she worked, the New York Daily News reported. Laurel Eich allegedly broke into the practice in May and stole $23,000 worth of checks and cash. In the course of the investigation, Eich also admitted to extracting 13 teeth from a sedated patient after using anesthetic discarded by the practice—even though she is not

Babs De Lay

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licensed to perform such procedures. Eich was charged with multiple felonies, including performing surgery on another without a license.

Smooth Reaction When Fort Worth, Texas, code compliance officers arrived at a home at around 8:30 a.m. on July 16 to issue a violation for toohigh grass, the homeowner did not answer the door. But when mowers hired by the city showed up and started cutting the grass, the person inside began shooting at them, KDFW-TV reported.

The police officers who had accompanied the compliance team took cover and waited for backup; the person inside continued shooting until SWAT units arrived and shot tear gas into the home. The shooter was taken into custody at about 1 p.m.; the citation was his seventh in two years. “Being shot at for trying to make the community look better?” said Fort Worth officer Jimmy Pollozani. “That just proves the dangers of this job.” The man was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Say What?

The Guardian reported on July 19 about a phenomenon among American preschoolers called the Peppa Effect. The hypothesis is that children who watched a lot of Peppa Pig during the pandemic lockdown have developed British accents and started using British terms like “mummy” (mommy), “give it a go” (try it) and “satnav” (GPS). Wall Street Journal reporter Preetika Rana tweeted that her niece “had an American accent before the pandemic.

Now she has a posh English accent.” One responder agreed: “And for Christmas I had to put out a freaking mince pie for Father Christmas, or, as we call him here in the States, Santa Claus.”

Least Competent Criminal Robert Perez, 53, was pulled over in Iowa City, Iowa, on July 15 for erratically driving a stolen Kawasaki motorcycle, The Smoking Gun reported. He told police that he had borrowed the bike from “a fellow meth user,” but he couldn’t provide the name or address of that friend. Perez admitted that he had injected meth five hours earlier; while in police custody, he was caught Googling “how long meth stays in your system after initial consumption,” Officer Daniel Boesen said. Investigators obtained a blood sample from Perez and sent it to the crime lab; he was booked for theft, DUI and driving with a suspended license.

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