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NEWS

Lee Wong, chairman of the West Chester Township Board of Trustees, removed his shirt during a March meeting to repudiate the anti-Asian sentiment and violence that’s been rising nationwide. P H O T O : S T I L L I M A G E F R O M V I M E O O F W E S T C H E S T E R’ S B O A R D O F T R U S T E E S M E E T I N G

Anti-Asian Racism Sparks Varied Reactions from Local Business Owners, Lawmakers Violence against Asian Americans has increased during the coronavirus pandemic BY A L L I S O N BA B K A

s the coronavirus pandemic enters its second year, Ohio residents of Asian descent have been dealing with an increasing wave of violence and threats. Nationally — and even globally — crimes against Asians have risen, broadly attributed to racist rhetoric surrounding the coronavirus. The first person known to have COVID-19 lived in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, and scientists believe the virus originated from bats in the region. People with vocal platforms have used that information to malign those of Asian descent and present false, racist narratives that some say have encouraged racist actions. Former U.S. President Donald Trump used such language both during and after his tenure, frequently referring to the coronavirus as the “China virus,” the “Chinese virus” and the “Kung Flu.” Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate (AAPI) — an organization formed

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in “response to the alarming escalation in xenophobia and bigotry resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic” — reported more than 3,795 acts of violence against Asian Americans in the United States from March 2020 to February 2021. Forty of those reports were from the state of Ohio, where more than 345,000 AAPI people reside. The spike in anti-Asian sentiment and violence has elicited different reactions among local and state business owners and legislators. Lee Wong, chairman of the West Chester Township Board of Trustees, removed his shirt during a March 23 meeting to repudiate the racism he’s experienced over the years. “I’m 69 years old, and I’m going to show you what patriotism — the questions about patriotism — looks like,” Wong said during the meeting, unbuttoning his white dress shirt and lifting his undershirt to show the long scars he’d acquired during his 20 years of

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service in the U.S. Army. “Here is my proof,” Wong said. “Is this ‘patriot’ enough?” Wong, who immigrated to the United States from Borneo in the 1970s, described incidents of violence and harassment that he’d experienced over the years, including being beaten up for being Asian. “I’m not ashamed to walk around anymore,” Wong said. “Before, I was fairly inhibited. People looked at me strange and they’d question my loyalty to this country. I don’t look ‘American enough.’” Asian business owners in Greater Cincinnati have shared escalating incidents over recent months. Oriental Wok, which was established in 1977, shared on Facebook in March that its restaurant employees have dealt with harassing phone calls, property damage and threats of violence, particularly at the Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, location. “Our homes and cars have been egged, (and) we are pummelled with daily calls telling us to ‘Go back to China’ along with other crude & violent threats,” they wrote. “We walk our staff to their cars to ensure safety every night. The police were on the premises even today, due to numerous threats.” Tea ‘n’ Bowl in Clifton Heights reported on their Facebook page multiple incidents of people ordering large amounts of food without coming to pick it up and refusing to pay. “These people just call to Asian restaurants to make huge fake order and (don’t pick them) up,” a Facebook post reads. “When you call back on the number shown on the caller ID...they laugh and (say) that they never order(ed) and it was a wrong number. One of them even (told) me that they don’t eat dogs.”

Many local and state politicians have condemned the racist attacks. Even so, some officials have continued to use language that many say encourages anti-Asian sentiment. In March, Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted came under fire for his tweet of an article about baseless claims by Robert Redfield, former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Redfield said it was his “opinion” that the coronavirus escaped a lab in Wuhan, China. The same article also said that the World Health Organization called the claim “extremely unlikely.” “So it appears it was the Wuhan Virus after all?” Husted tweeted. After receiving backlash for his comment, Husted, who had supported Trump, later said during a press conference that his tweet was not directed against Asian Americans or people in China generally. Rather, it was to highlight a “probable cover-up” of the coronavirus outbreak by the Chinese government, he said. Husted didn’t answer directly when asked if he agreed with Redfield’s assertion that the virus originated in a Wuhan laboratory, which most experts believe to be unlikely. For more information and resources to combat racism and to support the AAPI community, visit the Greater Cincinnati Chinese Cultural Exchange Association at facebook.com/GCCCEA, Cincinnati APAPA at facebook.com/cincyAPAPA and Asianati at asianati.com. Allison Babka, Raenosa Onwumelu and Marty Schladen contributed to this story.

CITY DESK

Hamilton County Targets 80% COVID-19 Vaccination Rate by July 4 BY A L L I S O N BA B K A

Hamilton County has a big goal for the spring and summer — to ensure that 80% of the county’s population is vaccinated for COVID-19 by July 4. Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus announced the “Get Out the Vax” effort’s goal during a briefing April 7. Efforts will include vaccination clinics, discounts and education. Driehaus said that local businesses, hospital systems and public health systems have stepped up to coordinate or promote vaccination efforts. She added that local attractions will offer discounts to those who show vaccination verification, such as $10 Cincinnati Reds tickets MondayThursday in April and May. “The idea is to make the vaccine as accessible as possible,” Driehaus said. “We are starting to see an increase in availability because the number of doses continues to increase for Hamilton County, so now is the time to remind everybody to get out, get vaccinated… so we can reopen safely.” The county seems to be well on its way to reaching that goal. Stephen Feagins, M.D., medical director of Hamilton County Public Health, says that more than one out of three Hamilton County residents have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Nearly 75% of residents over age 65 have been vaccinated. Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses for full vaccination, while the Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires just one. Recipients are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their final dose. But Feagins cautions that COVID-19 still is very present within Hamilton County and residents should continue to wear masks, physically distance from one another, avoid large gatherings and practice good hygiene, particularly as Ohio continues to grapple with troublesome coronavirus variants. There are more than 100 variants of the coronavirus that have been documented globally, Feagins says, with five especially concerning because of their higher ease of transmission. The variant from the United Kingdom, B117, has about a 50% increase in transmission. Feagins says that antibodies generated from current COVID-19 vaccines recognize the variants. “Vaccination is possibly 100 times more effective against variants than natural infection.” he says. “Because of the variants and the fact that we’re not all vaccinated, it is important to maintain compliance with public health mitigation strategies.” That advice is somewhat at odds with Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s new statewide health orders, which rescind many restrictions on large gatherings, including at parades and festivals where crowding naturally occurs. DeWine announced the new orders on April 5. “We are still wondering how that could work. While that is encouraging

Local businesses, hospitals and public health systems are part of Hamilton County’s “Get Out the Vax” efforts P H OTO : ST E V E N C O R N F I E L D

that we can relax, the actual doing of that still requires common sense,” Feagins says. “As you walk out and you see groups of folks unmasked in close contact within that three feet, that‘s a close contact, even outside. So we’re still looking at that like everyone else.” As of press time, Hamilton County saw about 716 COVID-19 cases per day at its peak in December and is currently down to around 101 cases per day over the last seven days, Feagins says. He cautions that though the outlook has gotten better, the county still is at the high level of infection that it saw last summer when many state mask mandates and restrictions went into effect. “When something’s really bad and then it’s not as bad, it feels better, even if the level is where it felt really bad a year ago. We still have active cases. We still have hospitalized individuals — thankfully not at levels like we had in January, but we still do,” Feagins says. “Our biggest goal through vaccination is to move from pandemic to endemic, to move from a deadly virus to the types of things like the flu that we deal with every year.” One population the county plans to target for vaccination is college students. Driehaus said during her briefing that the county is prioritizing one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccines for students at universities and colleges throughout the area, noting that DeWine is suggesting the same across the state. “We’ve got quite a few of those in the region, and so we had a conversation about how great it would be if we could have the J&J vaccine available for that, so it’s one shot and you’re done,”

Driehaus said. “The end of the school year is coming, and they are likely to be returning home or traveling during the summer.” Jeff Coleman, vice president for risk management at Xavier University and chair of Xavier’s COVID-19 task force, says that by April 14, every Xavier student will have had the opportunity to get a COVID-19 vaccine. “It’s really a great step forward in developing herd immunity, not just here, but across the country,” he says. Xavier also continues to host public vaccination events, Coleman says, such as the long-term mass vaccination

clinic at Xavier’s Cintas Center. Metro is offering free rides on all routes on select dates in April and May to help transport people to vaccination distribution centers. “We’re making significant progress with vaccine efforts. Vaccine-induced herd protection will give us the best chance at returning to normal activity,” Feagins says. “Hang in there. We almost see the light. We have been doing well, and we want to continue to do well.” Learn more about Hamilton County’s vaccination efforts at hcph.org and testandprotectcincy.com

Vote in Cincinnati’s Mayoral Primary on May 4 BY A L L I S O N BA B K A

Cincinnati residents will vote Tuesday, May 4, in the mayoral primary election. Registered voters should bring identification to their polling location, which will be open 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Early voting and absentee ballots and voter assistance are options through the Hamilton County Board of Elections. As of press time, primary candidates include startup founder Gavi Begtrup, Cincinnati City Council member David Mann, educator Herman J. Najoli, retired Cincinnati firefighter Raffel Prophett, Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Aftab Pureval and State Sen. Cecil Thomas. The Cincinnati mayoral general

election is scheduled for Nov. 2 and will be between the top two vote-getters from the May 4 primary. Just before the Feb. 18 filing deadline, federally indicted former Cincinnati City Council member P.G. Sittenfeld and current council member Chris Seelbach withdrew from the race. Current Vice Mayor Chris Smitherman also declared that he would not enter the race. Current mayor John Cranley has served since 2013 and will not run again due to term limits. Find voter and election information at votehamiltoncountyohio.gov

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CICADAS ARE COMING YOUR GUIDE TO THE SOON-TO-EMERGE BROOD X | 6BY RACHEL C ISMITH, T Y B ESEAN AT. C M BRYN A P R I LAND 2 0MAIJA 2 1 ZUMMO M.OPETERS, DIPPOLD

ollowing a 17-year residency underground, billions (yes billions, not a typo) of cicadas soon will emerge throughout Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky and Southern Indiana. The class of periodical cicadas, “Brood X,” will begin surfacing in early May to partake in what Gene Kritsky, Ph.D. calls a “generational event” for many residents in the area. Brood X (as in the Roman numeral for “10;” a 19th-century entomologist assigned Roman numerals to different periodical groups) is the largest of all the 17-year cicada broods. Also known as Magicicada septendecim and “Pharaoh Cicada,” we last saw them in 2004. "For people who have been around awhile, they will remember what it was like 17 years ago or even farther back to when they were kids, and they'll know what to expect," Kritsky, the dean of behavioral and natural sciences at Mount St. Joseph University, says. "For those who weren't alive 17 years ago or who were too young at the time and can't remember, they are in for quite an

experience." Kritsky is a prominent entomologist who recently published Periodical Cicadas: The Brood X Edition and is the local cicada expert. He’s renowned across the country for his dedication to the study of all things cicada-related since 1976, when he led his first project to map out the distribution of Brood XXIII in Illinois. Originally from North Dakota, he moved to Cincinnati in the 1980s for three things: “Major League Baseball, trilobite fossils (and) periodical cicadas,” he says. Cicadas in Brood X will emerge throughout 15 U.S. states this summer, including in nearby metropolitan areas such as Indianapolis, Louisville, Lexington, Columbus, Dayton and, of course, Cincinnati. “When I did the census numbers in 2004, I had as many as 356 (cicadas) coming up per square yard in Delhi and around 200 to 250 coming out per square yard in Hyde Park,” Kritsky says. “These square yards (were) under canopies of trees, not out in open areas that are clear cut, but you look at how much acreage that is going to be and you're

going to see literally millions of cicadas just in parts of Cincinnati. And when you count the number of eggs laid in each tree, each tree probably had about 40,000 eggs. There's a high mortality underground, but that's still several thousand cicadas under every tree.” A lot of media sources have a tendency to warn their audiences of an impending cicada emergence as if the insects were an invasive swarm of locusts, prompting people to anticipate an apocalyptic wave of buzzing madness sure to destroy the livelihood of their otherwise quiet communities. But this is way off the mark. “They are an integral component of the Eastern Deciduous Forest. They're not a keystone species, in that if the cicadas go extinct the whole forests won’t collapse, but they do provide a lot of benefits to the eastern forests,” Kritsky says. “For example, when they emerge from the holes in the ground, those holes are like a natural aeration. So, when it gets warmer in the summer and when it rains, instead of that rain sort of draining off the surface, it

actually goes down those holes and waters the trees.” The insects also provide a nutrient boost for opportunistic feeders — cats, birds, raccoons, mice and sometimes even humans. And Kritsky says periodical cicadas are important to a region’s ecology. The insect lays its eggs in trees, which prompts a “natural pruning” that increases the amount of flowers and fruit in the following years. After their deaths, the cicadas’ bodies decay and contribute a substantial amount of nutrients to the soil. “There was a paper published in the 1890s titled ‘How Out of Evil Cometh Good’ and it was all about how cherry growers were having a bumper year because of the cicadas the year before,” Kritsky says. But Kritsky isn’t just a researcher. He has developed an interactive way for cicadas to remain on scientists’ radar while also encouraging engagement from local citizens. He created the Cicada Safari app in partnership with the Center for IT Engagement (CITE) at Mount St.

A FEMALE CICADA INSERTING EGGS INTO AN APPLE TREE TWIG ILLUSTRATION: R.E. SNODGRASS/PUBLIC DOMAIN

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HISTORIC PHOTO OF MRS. BERNAD LONG SWATTING CICADAS OFF FENCE PHOTO: KENTON COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY

Joseph University. The app allows users to search, photograph, record and map cicadas in their area. Once a user submits their findings, scientists will then verify the cicada by studying the photograph or video. Following verification, the cicada will be included in Mount St. Joseph University’s cicada map. (Make sure your location services are on before snapping a photo or video so the team can get an accurate latitude and longitude.) “You go around and look for cicadas, and when you find one, at the bottom of the app, there's a little button that you push to turn on your camera and you photograph the cicada,” Kritsky says. “My colleagues at CITE and myself, we look at every single photograph. And then if it's accepted, it goes on the map. “We ask our users, our scouts, when you hear cicadas calling in your area, to

take a video for 10 seconds of the calls. Because from the calls, I can tell you what species are present.” Kritsky claims this information will move scientific research forward by determining the cicada distribution and population status across the region. “As strange as it may sound, periodical cicada broods can go extinct,” he says. An example, Kritsky says, are the cicadas from Brood XI, which emerged in enormous numbers for centuries prior to becoming extinct in 1954. In addition to this tracking system being a vital tool of scientific research, the app is also an engaging way for members of the community to spend time outside during the warm summer months. "We developed this app because so many people are fascinated by cicadas," Kritsky says. "This is true citizen science.” Using the public to gather information about cicadas isn’t just a new-age

technology. “The crowdsourcing of information to study cicadas goes back to the 1840s,” Kritsky says. He tells of a researcher in the 19thcentury who would write newspaper columns to verify the location of 13-year cicadas by asking people to submit sightings to him. “Not only did he ask for records to be sent to him, (but) he offered to return their stamps,” Kritsky says. In the 1890s, the United States Department of Agriculture began sending postcards to school superintendents, railroad conductors and mail carriers requesting that they report cicada sightings. And, before his app, Kritsky himself set up a hotline when Brood X emerged in 1987. “I had an answering machine with a hotline number that people could call when Brood X emerged and it broke the machine in the first hour. It literally jammed,” he says. “And then when

HISTORIC PHOTO OF CICADAS ON A FENCE IN NORTHERN KENTUCKY PHOTO: KENTON COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY

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Brood X came out in 2004, I had a website asking people to send me emails. I was getting an email a minute — one day I had 600 emails.” So why are people so fascinated with these insects? “They’re bugs of history,” Kritsky says. “In ’87, I had a woman call the answering machine and I ended up talking with her. She remembered distinctly in 1936, a cicada landing on her brother's nose that she knocked off with a baseball bat and broke his nose. Seventeen years later, 1953, she's married and she's got a daughter who's 3 or 4 and she was out with her daughter looking at the cicadas and telling that story. (In) 1970, with her grandkids — it’s the story being retold every 17 years.” Locals who want to join the safari trip can download the free app from the Apple app store or Google Play. Folks also can learn more about cicadas through fact sheets, maps and activities by visiting cicadasafari.org.

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CICADAS ON A TREE PHOTO: MATTHEW BUCKLEY/CREATIVE COMMONS

CICADA BASICS BY CITYBEAT STAFF What is a cicada?

According to Merriam-Webster, they are “any of a family (Cicadidae) of homopterous insects which have a stout body, wide blunt head, and large transparent wings and the males of which produce a loud buzzing noise usually by stridulation.” Basically, they’re those loud black insects with transparent orange wings and red eyeballs that pop out of the ground every 17 years. Cicadas emerge as little teenagers (nymphs), shed their exoskeletons (the creepy brown cicada-shaped shells you see on plants and in the dirt), and then eat, mate and lay eggs in trees. Once the eggs hatch, they fall to the ground and the baby cicadas bury themselves in the earth to feed on roots until they emerge from the depths in 17 years and do it all again.

What is Brood X? And why does everyone keep talking about it?

How many cicadas are in Brood X?

“In South and Southwest Ohio, we are probably expecting in the billions,” says Gene Kritsky, Ph.D., the dean of behavioral and natural sciences at Mount St. Joseph University.

When will they be here?

Cicadas start burrow out of the ground when “the soil 8 inches beneath the ground reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit,” says cicadamania.com. That means May and June, most likely, depending on the weather.

What do they eat?

Cicadas don’t actually eat. They suck up juice, aka xylem, from plants (remember phloem and xylem from biology class?), which is where the nutrients are.

Do cicadas bite?

Brood X (as in the Roman numeral for “10”) is the largest of all the 17-year cicada broods. We last saw Brood X, also known as Magicicada septendecim and “Pharaoh cicada,” in 2004.

Where will they be located?

Cicadas in Brood X will be present in 15 states, including in cities like Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Louisville, Lexington, Columbus and Dayton.

Cicadas aren’t dangerous to humans, but they are loud and annoying. Pest control company Orkin says, “Adult cicadas do not bite humans unless they are allowed to remain on someone long enough to mistake a part of the human body for a part of a plant.” So avoid mimicking a plant while the cicadas are here.

Why are they so loud?

That blaring chirping motor sound they make? That’s the males’ song. Male cicadas vibrate their “tymbals” — little membranes — to attract mates, but they also hum when they’re afraid, establishing territory or when they’ve found a girlfriend. Multiple males also will sing all at once in a “chorus” to attract more females.

Can you deter them?

You cannot stop cicadas from emerging. They are inevitable. But you can wear a hat — or a WalkingPod Mesh from local company Under the Weather (see sidebar) — to prevent them from dropping into your hair or peeing on you. Yes, cicadas do let out little weewees of xylem.

CLOSE-UP OF A PERIODICAL CICADA PHOTO: CC BY-NC-ND 2

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HOW TO EAT CICADAS BY SEAN M. PETERS Eating locally grown food is an important way of life for many people. But how many locavores’ diets will include the forthcoming Brood X cicadas, which are soon due to emerge after 17 years underground? The cicadas of the 17-year Brood X are edible for humans, prominent entomologist and local cicada expert Gene Kritsky, Ph.D., says. In fact, cicadas are a clean, sustainable, vegetarian insect packed with protein. This food source holds great significance to many cultures. According to a story on onondaganation.org, the Onondaga Nation’s dependence on cicadas (or Ogweñ•yó’da’) was a vital component to their survival when George Washington’s troops decimated their homes and crops. Exiled and under constant threat of attack, the Onondaga Nation saw the emergence of cicadas as a gift among sorrows. Cicadas tend to be fried and eaten whole, though other methods are available, including cicada powder that’s similar to the protein-packed cricket flour seen in many kitchens these days. Kritsky references a cicada and rhubarb pie recipe published in the Cincinnati Enquirer in 1902. The recipe calls for 50 white female cicadas shortly after they’ve emerged — just remove their wings, legs and heads, and mix them with breadcrumbs, dairy and rhubarb. Pour the mixture into a pie crust and bake it. The pie’s flavor is noted to be like partridge, and the recipe is credited for “good eating.” Another cicada dish instructs cooks to marinate the insect overnight in Worcestershire sauce and fry them the next day in a lightly seasoned batter. The dish is said to taste like chicken. Cicadas also are considered to be a simple shrimp replacement in dishes, and can be spiced and boiled, stir-fried or roasted. Local pizza staple Snappy Tomato Pizza even made a jingle that first aired in 1987, featuring “Snappy Cicada Pizza.” The lyrics were changed from the classic Snappy Tomato Pizza theme, saying, “We choose the freshest cicadas

in town / When we run out we pull more from the ground.” Snappy Tomato didn’t actually put cicadas on its pizza then, and it won’t this year, but the pizzeria is bringing the song back for Brood X. “We partnered with WEBN in 1987 and made the cicada jingle, brought it back in 2004 and will be bringing it back on the air waves (in 2021),” says Andy Ritter, Snappy Tomato’s director of marketing. “No cicadas, just excellent pizza.” Kritsky has a few tips for Cincinnatians who want to experiment with cicadas as a food source. Be sure you can properly identify anything you intend to eat, Kritsky says. Only gather live cicadas; do not pick up dead ones. And look for the females (remember, the males are the cicadas that do the “singing”).

One more warning before you forage for your own cicadas: In 2004, researchers from the University of Cincinnati’s College of Engineering found high levels of mercury in Brood X bugs — about 0.02-0.20 parts per million. Just as you would heed advice from the EPA and FDA about consuming fish that contain large amounts of mercury, you should be careful before ingesting copious cicadas. If you want someone else to do the bug collecting for you, visit Jungle Jim’s. While Kathy Lane, general manager of creative services, says they most likely won’t have edible cicadas in stock this year (most of their insects are farmraised in Thailand), they do offer other bugs which you can eat dried or in snack items like candy and chips.

DEEP-FRIED CICADAS PHOTO: XIANGRUI HUANG/CREATIVE COMMONS

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ONE OF CINCY SHIRTS’ CICADA-THEMED TEES PHOTO: PROVIDED BY CINCY SHIRTS

WEARABLE CICADAS BY BRYN DIPPOLD During Brood X’s time underground, a lot has changed in Cincinnati. We’ve elected two new mayors, built a soccer stadium and became collectively obsessed with a hippopotamus. Since opening in 2014, Cincy Shirts has been reflecting Cincinnati’s cultural shifts via apropos tees referencing the likes of Graeter’s, Skyline Chili and, of course, that hippo. The local T-shirt shop now is highlighting another Cincinnati infatuation: The Great Cicada Comeback of 2021. “At Cincy Shirts we are always looking for new trends to put on T-shirts as well as nostalgia,” says co-owner Darin Overholser. “The new brood of cicadas are both a hot topic in the news and have a nostalgic aspect. Everyone has a cicada story or some memory of the last time they were here. We decided to do some tees, and they have been our second highest-selling topic right now behind our (Major League Baseball Players Association) tees.” In the collection of 10 shirts, shoppers can find a variety of cicada fashion, perfect for any season. One shirt

proclaims “Here for a good time, not for a long time” around a colorful cicada. Another is like the classic Batman signal, but instead of the bat — you guessed it — there is a cicada encased in the yellow light. Gotham (or Cincinnati) is calling for a small but incredibly loud hero. Cincy Shirts also has teamed up with WEBN-FM to offer a retro cicada design. “They have a loyal fan base who is eating them up,” Overholser says. Overholser says that Cincy Shirts is working with Snappy Tomato Pizza on a new design that features the pizzeria’s 1980s jingle about putting cicadas on their pizzas. “WEBN released the jingle as a joke, (but) people really thought Snappy Tomato Pizza was putting cicadas on their pies,” Overholser says. “Of course they weren't, but that just led to another legendary cicada story in Cincinnati. When people are talking, that's when we are there to put it on a shirt.” The cicada shirts are $15-$25, and all designs can be seen on Cincy Shirts’ website. Cincy Shirts has locations at 1301 Main St., Over-the-Rhine and 2709 Observatory Ave., Hyde Park. For more info, visit cincyshirts.com.

A WEBN-INSPIRED CICADA T-SHIRT PHOTO: PROVIDED BY CINCY SHIRTS

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PROTECTIVE PODS BY MAIJA ZUMMO With the billions of cicadas in Brood X set to emerge this May, one local company is thinking ahead. Cincinnati's Under the Weather has a solution to keep the insects off of you while you enjoy the great outdoors. The company started out making pop-up protective pods to keep out inclement weather at sporting games but has since gone on to create items like the hospital-ready IntubationPod. And this latest limited-edition invention is geared toward stopping cicadas. The WalkingPod Mesh is a "warmclimate, wearable mesh-screen bubble that pops open in seconds to slip easily over the upper body as a breathable fully-enclosed cover," according to its description. "This Pod design has been in the works for some time, but with cicada season on the horizon, we decided now was the perfect time to roll it out. In addition to protecting from cicadas, it also offers protection from a variety of insects and pests, including mosquitos," said Under the Weather CEO Rick Pescovitz in a release. The pod is made of fine-gauge mesh panels and comes with an adjustable shoulder and waist strap. It's available with "safety yellow" or gray trim and has fitted armholes so you can go about your business while donning your pod. According to the release, the pod is "flexible, pops open and folds down in seconds, with zero assembly required." It can also fit into a provided portable backpack. Suggested uses for the WalkingPod Mesh? Put it on while hiking, gardening, walking the dogs, beekeeping or doing any other outdoor activity where bugs might be a nuisance. "Our mission at UTW is to create products which help people feel safe, protected, and comfortable in all kinds of conditions and the WalkingPod Mesh does exactly that," said Kelly Mahan, UTW president. The pods cost $89.99 and are available for pre-order at UTWPods.com. Pods will begin shipping in mid to late April. THE WALKINGPOD MESH PHOTO: PROVIDED BY UNDER THE WEATHER

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ARTS & CULTURE

Harold Brown P H OTO : P R O V I D E D BY T H E C I N C I N N AT I SY M P H O N Y ORCHESTRA

Classical Accountability The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra appoints Harold Brown as its First Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer BY A N N E A R E N ST E I N

he Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra announced the appointment of Harold Brown as

chief diversity and inclusion officer in March. This position marks a first not only for the CSO, but also for a major

American orchestra. Brown, a resident of Springdale, was chosen from a pool of more than 80 nationally recruited candidates, according to CSO President and CEO Jonathan Martin. Martin also says that Brown’s decades of experience working on equity and inclusion initiatives for Miami University, KnowledgeWorks and the Greater Cincinnati Foundation set him apart from other candidates. “I am delighted that in our search we found Harold right in our own community. He will bring to the CSO tremendous experience in effecting meaningful results in organizations for which he

served,” Martin stated in a press release. Brown describes a common thread throughout his three-decade career working with educational and healthrelated organizations as “connecting those lacking a clear and simple pathway and resources they need to fulfill their goals to those resources, as well as connecting them with people who can make things happen.” “Whether it was working to improve outcomes for students in poverty, creating a more welcoming campus environment for students of color or helping the Greater Cincinnati Foundation to

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CONTINUES ON PAGE 38

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

CULTURE

Sharonville’s Renée Grace Bridal Helps Fight Human Trafficking with Every Dress Sale BY R AC H E L S M IT H

Sewing gowns and saving lives are both included in this Cincinnati-based bridal shop’s business model. Sharonville’s Renée Grace Bridal, co-founded by husband-and-wife duo Steve and Teresa Eklund, donates a percentage of every dress sale to international organizations that combat human trafficking. “What we’re trying to do is structure a company around something greater than ourselves, but that also involves beauty in itself,” Steve says. Teresa, the bridal shop’s head designer, has had more than 30 years of experience customizing wedding gowns. With 50-plus original designs in store, Teresa says her work combines her passion for high fashion, creativity and classic beauty. In 2016, Renée Grace Bridal began as a manufacturer that primarily sold dresses to other bridal shops. But after the pandemic caused a dip in wholesale orders, the Eklunds opened their own storefront and atelier in late 2020. Teresa had dreamed about opening her own store and says she always wanted the business to include an essential sense of altruism in its model. A decade ago, she and Steve first began learning more about human trafficking, which eventually grew into a focus for the couple. During her research, Teresa visited several locations in India and Moldova to learn more about the issue, but soon realized that it wasn’t just a problem in other countries. “It is very much an issue for the United States and I wanted to be able to have our dresses and have the proceeds from our dresses make an impact on that issue,” she says. As defined by U.S. Homeland Security, human trafficking involves “the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex.” It’s estimated that millions of people are trafficked worldwide — including in the United States. In 2019, the U.S. human trafficking hotline reported 11,500 cases. Overwhelmingly, most of the victims of commercial sex and labor trafficking are women and young girls, according to the American Psychological Association. Originally, Teresa traveled abroad with the goal of hiring survivors for the business, but obstacles arose and instead she decided to give back to organizations raising awareness of human trafficking and actively rescuing victims. “It’s just a diabolical, unbelievable thing that’s happening in our world today, and there’s more (trafficking) going on today than there ever had been before,” Steve says. Clothing manufacturing is one of the largest industries likely to utilize trafficked labor. With the rise of fast-fashion trends, manufacturers began using inexpensive materials and inexpensive

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A percentage of the proceeds from every dress sold is donated to two organizations that fight human trafficking. P H OTO : DA N I E L L E S C H U ST E R

labor. At Renée Grace Bridal, all of the dresses are designed and manufactured in Cincinnati by salaried employees. Teresa says it is extremely important to her that her dresses are ethically made. With every dress sold, a percentage of proceeds is donated to two organizations: the A21 Campaign and the Dressember Foundation. The A21 Campaign raises awareness about slave labor and partners with authorities to rescue trafficked individuals around the world. The global organization also provides aftercare to survivors, including relocation services and housing accommodations. Dressember is an international campaign designed to encourage the general public to learn more about human trafficking and leverage “fashion and creativity to restore dignity to victims and survivors,” per their website. Teresa and Steve chose these companies after extensive research, and they are open to expanding their organizational partners in the future. Steve says every gown purchased from Renée Grace Bridal allows customers to contribute to the fight against human trafficking — any bride can to take a step toward making a difference. While the ultimate goal of this program is to end human trafficking, Teresa says wider awareness of the

APRIL 2021

issue in the United States would help bring more resources and attention to victims and survivors. “I think that we, especially as Americans, don’t think it can happen here. And we don’t really understand that it’s still happening,” she says. “It happens in every country all over the world, and so if we can begin to open up people’s eyes to realize that there are women, children and men whose freedoms are taken away and they’re in bondage, it can help educate them.” Renée Grace Bridal, 11176 Main St., Sharonville, reneegrace.com

Teresa (left) and Steve Eklund P H OTO : DA N I E L L E S C H U ST E R

CULTURE

Free Blockbuster Boxes Are Popping Up Around Greater Cincinnati with a ‘Take a Movie, Leave a Movie’ Ethos BY S E A N M . P E T E RS

Blockbuster-themed newspaper boxes are now found in Covington and Northside, filled with old video games, VHS tapes and DVDs that are free for the taking. A third box is expected shortly in Clifton. Whether you keep the media, return it to the box after you’re done or even bring some old tapes of your own to donate, there’s no threat of late fees these days. The blue-and-yellow boxes are not officially connected to the slain multibillion dollar movie rental titan Blockbuster, which mainly exists as a brand name after the 2013 closure of its last 300 locations (save for the famed “Last Blockbuster” in Oregon). Blockbuster had 9,000 retail stores at its peak. Free Blockbuster, which has requested a license to use the franchise trademark, is responsible for around 35 free boxes across the country. The repurposed newspaper boxes are decorated and stocked by volunteers — similar to Little Free Libraries — partially in order to celebrate the unique experience video rental shops like Blockbuster offered in the 1980s and ’90s. “I think the beauty of this and why it’s important is because we have only streaming services and we kind of freeze up because there is so much media we could consume that we almost don’t know what to pick,” says Greater Cincinnati’s Free Blockbuster manager/franchisee Shadow Woolf. “I think it’s really great to give someone a limited amount of stuff to choose from — you don’t have to just sit and sift through things for an hour. You can take a glance and go, ‘Oh, I haven’t watched Moonrise Kingdom in a while. I haven’t seen Gremlins in years,’ and you can pick that up and have a fun night.” Woolf is an artist and when he’s not thrifting for more titles to restock the boxes or working as a motion graphics artist for Pure Romance, he creates esoteric action figures of pop culture characters, like Doctor Scott from Rocky Horror Picture Show and local billboard icon Blake “The Attorney” Maislin. Along with the figures, Woolf makes custom VHS sleeves for movie and TV titles like Scott Pilgrim vs. The World and Stranger Things. “Prior to the boxes in Cincinnati, the closest (one) was in Detroit. I really wanted to check one out and I kept kind of waiting to see if someone was going to make one here in Cincy, then I realized, why don’t I do it? I know how to do all this,” Woolf says. “I have way too many VHS tapes and DVDs and a lot of duplicates that I’ll just pick up thrifting. So, it made sense.” Already well stocked with movies from his personal collection, Woolf’s first step was to get hold of the newspaper boxes. While many of these can be found across the city — and could hypothetically be stolen for personal use — Woolf insisted the boxes be obtained honestly and

legitimately. A business owner told Woolf the boxes outside their shop hadn’t been maintained for years and he was welcome to clear the sidewalk of them. Woolf took them home, cleaned them up and painted them Blockbuster blue and yellow. Woolf connected with two businesses in the area that were sensible hosts for Free Blockbusters: Earth to Kentucky art and toy shop in Covington and Arcade Legacy: Bar Edition in Northside. Both were natural decisions based on their wares and clientele (Woolf also manages Arcade Legacy’s social media and sells his figures at Earth to Kentucky.) If you’re looking for the Northside box, it’s inside Arcade Legacy: Bar Edition, conveniently next to the Stranger Things Free Blockbuster franchisee Shadow Woolf outside Earth to Kentucky in Covington pinball machine; P H O T O : P R O V I D E D BY S H A D O W W O O L F Earth to Kentucky’s is outside the shop. “I’m putting them recapture the feel of in places with the hope that the people the 1980s and ’90s. It’s that are already going to be there are not surprising that the same ones that will be excited to Blockbuster holds such see something like this, whether it’s a special place in so people going to Earth to Kentucky who many hearts, millenare into retro toys and old school stuff, nial and beyond, as or obviously, at the (arcade bar), those it was the primary fit,” Woolf says. source for much of Free Blockbuster is an organization America’s cinematic whose stated mission is to combat the consumption for myth of scarcity by providing free enterdecades. tainment to as many people as possible. “I think being at And similar to the aforementioned home and having to Little Free Libraries, the boxes also help entertain yourself upcycle media that might otherwise (during the pandemic), make its way to the landfill. everyone kind of “I have in my personal collection, I became little kids think about 400 VHS tapes. And I again for like a year. picked up my first one as an adult a You had to remember, year ago,” Woolf says. “I was at a toy The Free Blockbuster at Arcade Legacy: Bar Edition ‘How did I have fun store and I saw Pee-wee’s Big AdvenP H O T O : P R O V I D E D BY S H A D O W W O O L F and stay entertained at ture. I’m a big Pee-wee Herman guy. It home before?’” Woolf was still in the plastic, for five bucks. I says. “The last time you Be kind and rewind before you return picked that up and just stared at it. And did that you were probably a kid. And I any borrowed tapes to the boxes. I thought, you know, I miss having VHS think everyone reverted back to being tapes. I’m 26, we grew up with tapes, kids and teenagers for a while. Yes, it and then, all of a sudden, they were all Find Free Blockbusters at was a horrible time. But then I think gone. Like really fast. I didn’t realize that was kind of a cool, weird benefit Earth to Kentucky, 836 Main St., how much I would miss that.” that none of us ever thought we would Covington and Arcade Legacy: Nostalgia for “simpler times” is have. I know I fell into it hard (with Bar Edition, 3929 Spring Grove more prevalent than ever. Millennials these Free Blockbusters).” Ave., Northside. For more info and are now entering their 30s and 40s, so And just like your last trip to an updates, follow instagram.com/ pop culture heavily revolves around actual Blockbuster, it may have been a freeblockbustercincinnati this demographic and their desire to while since you’ve heard this reminder:

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FROM PAGE 35

make (diversity, equity and inclusion) a priority in their strategic planning, equity has always been in the forefront,” Brown says. Brown will oversee the implementation and follow-through for initiatives defined in the CSO’s 10-point diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) action plan announced last August. The wideranging program includes a review of all CSO policies to ensure equity; expanding internship opportunities to encourage, mentor and retain BIPOC; developing and strengthening relationships with underserved communities; and implementing cultural competency/implicit bias training for musicians, staff and board members. Brown will also oversee DEI initiatives for the May Festival. It’s an ambitious agenda, and Brown intends to spend his first months listening and learning. “I need to know how people are doing regarding the plan’s goals and initiatives,” he says. “It’s important to know how everyone in the organization is experiencing the organization, and you do that through conversations and assessment. There are so many initiatives already in the formative stages.” For Brown, the CSO’s commitment to DEI and its forward momentum were key to his accepting the post. “If the CEO was not authentic and not committed to this work, that would have been a red flag for me. I’m very impressed with Jonathan Martin and the board members I’ve met who are totally committed to this work,” Brown says. In fact, well before George Floyd’s murder brought race and equity to the forefront of the national conversation, Martin and his staff had already planned to hire a chief diversity and inclusion officer and their DEI plan was near completion. COVID-19 forced a temporary halt as the administration pivoted to revamp its season. But as Martin has made clear throughout the pandemic, diversity, equity and inclusion are a priority in every aspect of the CSO, from performers to staffing, board membership and especially audiences. Brown’s CSO portfolio expands the range of his previous equity endeavors, but he notes that this work is a survival strategy. “It’s really important for everyone to embrace, and at a minimum understand, the mission case for this work. This isn’t about checking off boxes, it’s about the future of the orchestra,” he says. “A lot of those major donors in the audience won’t be around in the next 20 or 30 years. As those major demographic shifts occur, it’s vital for the orchestra to embrace that and understand the need to appeal to a broader swath of the community, never leaving the traditional music — that will always be important.” “We have to grow and diversify our donors, volunteers, patrons (and) audience for the future to guarantee the success of the orchestra,” he continues. Brown grew up in Oxford, Ohio, and Classical music wasn’t part of the family’s culture, but music and especially

Gospel singing were constants in his life. He sang in Gospel choirs throughout high school, in college as a member of the Harvard Kuumba Singers and in his church choir here in Cincinnati for almost 35 years. “When I was in Kuumba, I learned that you could reach audiences with different styles of music,” he says. “We sang a program that combined traditional spirituals with a staging of Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ music video.” Many of his favorite Gospel artists incorporate orchestral sounds into their arrangements, particularly Richard Smallwood. Brown recalls that when he heard Smallwood’s “Total Praise” at his first Classical Roots concert with the Cincinnati Pops, the experience was overwhelming, leading Brown and his wife Gwen to sign on as Classical Roots lead sponsors for the past two years. “I have a lot to learn,” he says with a chuckle, turning serious as he notes the need to make everyone feel welcome wherever the CSO performs. And sitting in silence may not be the way people respond. For example, two years ago, electric violinist Tracy Silverman played Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish” as an encore during a CSO performance and the hall erupted in cheers and applause from the moment he started. “This is a two-sided coin and there’s education on both sides,” Brown says. “People used to being in Music Hall need to understand there will be people who’ve never attended a concert like this, and those first-timers need to understand this isn’t like going to a concert on Fountain Square. The more understanding there is, the more diverse the audience will be.” Brown sees his work as a marathon, an ongoing project that will take years to forge a meaningful cultural shift. But he’s buoyed by a dedicated administration and board and community members eager to be part of the audience, the organization and the orchestra. Among his priorities is creating benchmarks and assessment tools to measure progress and hold everyone accountable — especially himself. And he views the CSO’s DEI action plan as win-win. “The challenge is for the dominant culture not to feel threatened by our work. Our commitment to excellence in the music performed will never change. Our goal is to ensure that more and more people experience this great orchestra and feel welcomed,” he says. “Very few orchestras have invested in DEI at the level of the CSO. Other arts organizations are only beginning to catch on. It’s fascinating to see what Cincinnati will do in leading the pack on this front. And I’m happy to be part of that.” Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Music Hall, 1241 Elm St., Over-theRhine, cincinnatisymphony.org

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FOOD & DRINK

Oakley Fish House P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

A New Spot for Seafood Oakley Fish House, from the team behind Teak OTR, offers a menu of fresh seafood with options for landlubbers, too R E V I E W BY PA M A M IT C H E L L

s we inch our way toward postCOVID (or at least post-vaccination) life, my thoughts keep returning to The Beatles tune, “Here Comes the Sun.” Yes, “it’s been a long, cold, lonely winter” and yes, “I feel that ice is slowly melting.” One of the most joyous signs that we’ve turned the corner back to normality has been the opportunity to eat in restaurants again without worrying that it might kill me. “Sun, sun, sun, here it comes.”

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

Even vaccinated, we have to be careful in indoor settings when others around us may not have protection from the virus. But what a relief it has been to return — masked and distanced — to a couple of favorite dining spots and to try some new ones that have opened since the pandemic started. It can’t have been an easy decision to start a restaurant amid so much uncertainty, and I salute those who have been courageous enough to do so.

APRIL 2021

The De Lanerolle family — Chanaka and his wife, Suron — actually opened two new places to eat during the annus horribilis of 2020: Teak OTR and Oakley Fish House. You can consider both of them as reboots of very similar establishments the family owned in Mount Adams (Teak Thai and the Mount Adams Fish House) that closed several years ago. One neighborhood’s loss has turned into gains for Over-the-Rhine and Oakley. The Fish House’s new home occupies a spot near Oakley Square where the more casual Habit’s Café sat for several decades before closing late in 2019. The location should be a good one, considering the density of that part of town, the incipient end of our homebound isolation and what may soon be a surge in dining out. The sidewalk on Madison Road will give the new restaurant a spacious patio that will be ready to go within a few weeks. Even before the weather had gotten

warm enough for outdoor dining, the Fish House had steady business and “packed” weekends, according to a staffer I talked with. Just as the trees began flowering and the evenings lingered a little longer, my also-vaccinated friends and I went for dinner — early on a Tuesday, as we were still skittish about dining out before we reach the longed-for herd immunity. I hadn’t been to Habit’s in years but could see that the two dining rooms had been spiffed up and redecorated. I noticed some nice touches around the bar, and especially in the restroom area, which had a bright, modern look. Plexiglas partitions — de rigueur in the Age of COVID — don’t beautify interiors, but I do appreciate their presence. The Fish House has plenty of them, and our cozy table had partitions on each side of us. While we were pretty much the first arrivals, by the time we left a couple hours later, the restaurant was about half full. Not at all bad for a

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Crab-stuffed sole on a bed of saffron-enriched risotto P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

Tuesday. The menu includes what you would want in a seafood-oriented establishment, with a couple of landlubber offerings. Among entrees, there are two steaks ($29 for a flat iron with vegetables, and $38 for a filet with potato latkes and toasted garlic), a somewhat spicy Yucatan chicken achiote ($19) and a vegetarian choice ($17 for portobello parmesan). But, as you would expect, the kitchen’s strengths are with the sea creatures. Our server recommended mussels ($14) and Ahi tuna ($16) among the six appetizers, but I wanted to try two seafood apps I gravitate toward when they’re offered: grilled octopus ($14) and fried oysters ($18). My friends agreed and we split those. The results were mixed, with the octopus being the best of the two. The meat was tender and cooked properly, and the plate was heaped with baby artichokes and lots of tasty olives. The oysters disappointed, however. The four shelled mollusks, while well-seasoned with Cajun butter and Tasso ham, were mushy instead of crunchy, and lacked the contrast between the salty, crisp exterior and briny insides that can make fried oysters such a wonderful taste sensation. The Asian salad ($9), a generous serving that was easy for two to split, would be a good choice for anyone avoiding meat — in fact, it’s vegan. I thought it was one of the best dishes we sampled, in part because it had plenty of textural contrasts. Based on a variety of fresh greens pulled together by a zippy ginger vinaigrette, the salad included a handful of well-seasoned, toasted cashews and — my favorite touch — a topping of tiny sweet potato crisps. I imagined how delicious this salad would be topped with grilled salmon filet and a

little more of the vinaigrette. We each selected a fish-based entrée: lobster ravioli ($22), pistachio and herb salmon ($28), crab-stuffed sole ($24) and Mediterranean fish stew ($29), which definitely covered almost all the seafood entrees. The standout was the sole, plated artfully with the fish wrapped in a circle around a mound of shellfish stuffing. The sole was browned, covered with a creamy caper sauce and sitting on a bed of nicely cooked, saffron-enriched risotto. The fish stew had a hearty coconut milk-based broth and heaps of fish and shellfish. Tomato, onion, peppers, tahini and other flavors enhanced the broth. The menu listed couscous as an ingredient but it wasn’t evident in the bites I tried, or maybe it’s just the kind of grain that can get lost in such a rich dish. The salmon had an herb-and-pistachio crust and more risotto, a fairly simple presentation. The ravioli didn’t do much for me — just a plate of creamy pasta with enough lobster to satisfy, but the dish struck me as one-dimensional. My friend, who had selected it as her main course, thought so too. We weren’t drinking much that evening, but the sparkling, rosé and white wine options were well chosen for the seafood-heavy menu. The $10 cocktails covered all the major spirits, and beer lovers will find plenty of bottled and canned brews along with a half-dozen on tap. All in all, Oakley Fish House promises to be a worthy addition to the east side of Cincinnati.

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Oakley Fish House, 3036 Madison Road, Oakley, oakleyfishhouse.com

APRIL 2021

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

THE DISH

MOXY Meal Kits Offer Chef-Quality Dishes at Home BY B RY N D I P P O L D

Last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic changed innumerable lives, the food service industry was hit especially hard. Out of all of the jobs lost throughout the nation in March 2020, restaurant and bar positions accounted for more than half — about 417,000 jobs lost, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Gene and Lou Turner, husband-andwife veterans of the Cincinnati food service industry, were part of those statistics. Both were laid off after the pandemic began, but they decided to make the most of their situation with a new venture. “We wanted people to be able to create and curate the same chef-quality meals that we were making at home during quarantine,” Lou says. Their goal was an accessible, luxury dining experience, and MOXY was born. MOXY offers various meal kits featuring locally sourced ingredients. All come pre-prepped and portioned with written cooking instructions. And while the duo did their first pop-up under the MOXY moniker in 2019, this current iteration launched in January. Weekly themed kits include a Thursday Pasta Kit with housemade focaccia, a seasonal salad, fresh pasta and a dessert, as well as a Vegetarian Kit with a salad, entree and dessert. MOXY has also offered Friday Family Meals, a Breakfast Kit and Weekend Boxes. Kits feed two to four people and retail for around $55. For those who don’t need to feed two-to-four people, their new Solo Kit ($25) is aimed at singles and features a single serving drink, side, entree and dessert. A recent combo included lemon iced tea, mac and cheese, an Italian hoagie and a lemon hand pie — a high-quality, multi-course meal for those working crazy hours or who just don’t feel like cooking for one. MOXY currently operates out of the Incubator Kitchen Collective in Newport, a local nonprofit organization that helps food entrepreneurs hit the ground running. Kit pre-orders open at 10 a.m. Thursdays and close at 8 p.m. Tuesdays. Weekly menus are available to view on their site and you can choose when to pick up your kit from the Incubator Kitchen (pick-up hours are 1-6:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday). Limited delivery is available on Saturdays between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. You can also sample MOXY eats during their weekly pop-up at Oakley Wines on Sundays. Lou, a rural Pennsylvania native, does most of the pastry and dessert making. “It’s mostly food that both of us remember growing up and bringing some elegance to it,” she says. She began her food service career at Eli’s BBQ, where she fell in love with cooking. She went on to work with Jose

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

An example of a MOXY meal kit box P H O T O : C AT I E V I OX

Salazar, the chef behind local restaurants Mita’s, Salazar and Goose & Elder, for a few years and then began cocktail bartending. Gene most notably worked at Boca for three years as the sous chef. “It’s an extremely hard (area) to work in,” Lou says of the food service industry. “I always found comfort in the chaos, but it’s a hard way to live.” Currently, Lou and Gene are the only two employees at MOXY. “Gene wakes up around 5:30 a.m. and goes to the Incubator from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., usually,” Lou says. “I wake up around 9 a.m. or 10 a.m., do office work, and then I work on graphics.” She then heads to her part-time job, and when she gets off at 11 p.m., she goes to the Incubator to make pastries until 5 a.m. — a schedule that is a testament to both of their years in the service industry. Lou says she used to work 90 hours a week as a sous chef, but she wanted something different. “I never got the opportunity to be a manager or a leader,” she says. “When you’re young and you’re female, it’s so hard to get (those) jobs. I kind of just realized that it was going to get to the point where we would have to run our

APRIL 2021

A prepared meal-kit dish P H O T O : C AT I E V I OX

own stuff to move up. That there was no ceiling that I could reach anymore.” Lou says MOXY is named after a family member’s dog. “(But) it’s actually like a ’60s term that means ‘women that have grit, women

that have moxy,’” Lou says. “We (want) to be the community mom, we (want) to be of and for the people.” For more info on MOXY or to order a meal kit, visit moxycincinnati.com

THE DISH

53T Courier’s Bike Messengers Offer Local Food Delivery and More BY S E A N M . P E T E RS

In cycling terms, 2020 was a steep climb for 53T Courier. But every hill has a summit. Riders for the intrepid local bike delivery service can often be seen zipping through Cincinnati with food and parcels stowed in massive backpacks or cargo crates connected to their sleek two-wheel machines — but not as regularly as pre-pandemic days. Twenty-twenty was the year of food delivery and takeout. While people might assume a service that delivers food should have made a killing in the depths of quarantine, that’s not the case when other factors of 53T’s core clientele are considered. “The pandemic, despite the overall upward trend of food delivery, has actually worked against us significantly,” says Ian Bulling, founding partner and courier for 53T. “We’ve essentially made our name on being a very reliable, very quick delivery option for downtown offices, especially for large executive lunch orders and meetings.” Before social distancing and quarantine became commonplace to reduce the risk of spreading COVID, corporations catered large food orders to be delivered by the bike couriers on a consistent basis. In the wake of work-fromhome, the corporate lunch meeting largely disappeared and 53T’s business took a hit with the widespread cancellation of traditional office culture. “The fact that this particular customer base trusts our reliability and level of service over national companies like Uber Eats and DoorDash is our competitive edge. So, the fact that a very large percentage of people that were working downtown are now working from home has definitely negatively affected us,” Bulling says. “In addition to that, food delivery is only about 60%-70% of what we do on a day-to-day basis. We also handle B2B and legal messenger work, which currently is almost nonexistent; parcel work, like P.O. box pickups — a lot of which we have managed to retain; and restaurant wholesale delivery for Allez Bakery and some vendors in Findlay Market, which initially slowed to a trickle during the stay-at-home order but has since rebounded. So while work for purely food delivery companies has been booming, we’ve seen some fluctuations over the past year, and we’re still very much feeling the loss of more traditional downtown messenger work.” Despite his company’s stellar reputation for expedient, reliable delivery with great customer service, Bulling says

Ian Bulling, founding partner of 53T Courier P H O T O : F R A N C I S C O H U E R TA

53T has had to compete with rideshare delivery apps like Uber Eats and DoorDash more frequently lately because more and more restaurants are using the national platforms. While 53T has a stipulation in their contract that forbids this, Bulling says he’s certainly not going to penalize a restaurant owner who is trying to stay afloat by reaching a wider base of customers. “I think it has cut into our volume a bit, because there are now three to four different avenues through which to get delivery from ‘X’ restaurant instead of exclusively through our website. I will say that the night shifts, which tend to be primarily residential food delivery, have definitely seen a pretty big uptick,” he says. 53T went from a crew of nine or 10 riders pre-pandemic to a current staff of five to six couriers, with one or two picking up occasional odd shifts. The company has not received any federal aid, but Bulling says that with their lowoverhead, they shouldn’t really be at the top of the list to receive anything. “I think there is so, so much credit due to the service industry in our community. There are a lot of people, many from outside of the downtown community, that over the course of the past

year have shown, at times, a pretty blatant disregard for the humanity of industry workers in the way they’ve behaved during this pandemic,” Bulling says. “Working with these restaurant staffs daily and seeing both their resiliency in getting through this past year of work and the stoicism with which 53T delivers food from select local restaurants they’ve dealt P H O T O : F R A N C I S C O H U E R TA with some of these situations, widespread distribution of vaccines is absolutely underway, the plateau is closer than awe-inspiring.” ever and soon Cincinnati will see those A good cyclist is a lot like an entrepreplucky bicycle couriers back on the neur in that they’re alert and can make streets much more often, deliveries in split-second strategic decisions with tow. the strength to see their task to completion. Bulling shifted gear when his company faced the uphill battle COVID For more on 53T Courier and to presented and powered through the view their delivery options, visit steepest parts of the climb. With the 53tcourier.com

APRIL 2021

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

APRIL 2021

Musical Dichotomy

MUSIC

Cincinnati Pop Rocker Jay Madera thrives on contrast for his debut album Anxious Armada BY B R I A N BA K E R

he contrasts in Jay Madera’s life and music couldn’t be more pronounced. He grew up in Cincinnati, the son of a liberal Jewish father and a conservative Catholic mother; his extremely faith-based upbringing led to his agnosticism. He’s a young man in his mid-20s, but his musical inspirations are the emotion-laden work of 1970s singer/songwriters like James Taylor and Carole King, as well as ‘80s New Wave and Alt-Rock purveyors, particularly the dark, edgy angst of Elvis Costello. Those influences — filtered through his piano-centric creative prism — then suggest contemporaries like Joe Pernice, Low Cut Connie and Ben Folds. And his debut album, Anxious Armada, is a homegrown combination of Pop/Rock anthemics and heartfelt balladry that is being released by Los Angeles-based Indie label Pop Cautious. “(Pop Cautious) heard my debut single, ‘Curb Appeal,’ in 2019 and (they) were interested in talking with me,” says Madera. “They were looking to expand their roster. The best thing that’s happened to me is some random playlist added one of my songs and people started to hear it. It’s interesting because it’s a Cincinnati project and now (a record label) that’s definitely not Cincinnati is taking part in it.” Madera’s musical explorations began with Classical piano and guitar lessons in childhood, which he hated. In high school, he explored musical theater, choir and a cappella (“All the nerdy things,” he says). And then at Denison University, he took songwriting and composition classes and played in a variety of bands. After his 2015 graduation, Madera submitted his song “You Make Sense” to American Songwriter’s Lyric Contest; his whim paid off with a win for the November/December 2016 edition. “It was this random thing that inspired me to keep going,” Madera says. That validation led him to go all-in with his solo career. He continued to write songs as a way of expressing his views of the world and to cope with its injustices, as well as for therapy after various break-ups. By the time he sat down with Mia Carruthers, local scene wunderkind and eventual producer and contributor on Anxious Armada, Madera had recorded around 50 demos that had to be whittled down to a single album’s worth of music. “Mia was like, ‘This is way too much. You’ve got to pare this down,’” says Madera. “It was a brutal process of, ‘Jay, this song is a four out of 10. It’s out.’” With a cadre of Cincinnati talent,

Jay Madera P H OTO : P ROV I D E D

including Carruthers, multi-instrumentalist/engineer Adam Pleiman, former Bad Veins drummer Sebastien Schultz, R&B vocalist Lauren Eylise, and a host of University of Cincinnati CollegeConservatory of Music-affiliated musicians, among others, Madera and Carruthers arranged the songs that comprise Anxious Armada. Just as he had a very specific vision and intent for each song, Madera was also purposeful in releasing material. He carefully chose the three singles that would serve as the official introduction to his work. The aforementioned “Curb Appeal” debuted in 2019 and garnered an impressive response. Like most of Madera’s songs, its seemingly obvious message is not always the intended one. “It’s a classic break-up song, but it’s really about self-empowerment and recognition and redemption of the self that I was going through,” he says. “It wasn’t about anyone in particular, it was kind of a culmination of all the failed romantic relationships I’d been in to that point.” Anxious Armada’s opening track served as Madera’s second single. Released late last year to coincide with the presidential election, “A House Divided” was not only a potent statement but also a successful fundraiser. “It was meant to be a political call to arms,” says Madera. “I donated all the money I made on pre-sales to Get Out the Vote and other voting awareness causes. The goal was to do something

good in a time when it felt impossible to do anything good.” Madera’s third single is the justreleased “OH-126.” The song achieves his goal of presenting as many examples of his sonic and thematic diversity as possible. “I meant it to be a cross between a lo-fi Indie song and, if I dare say, a Dylanesque piece,” he says. “You’ll notice the lyrics don’t end at the end of the song. They keep going, as if the sound engineer brings down the master fader because he’s tired of hearing your 17th verse. The song is very personal and intimate — my rejection of our latestage capitalism and consumerism. I’m talking about physical, tangible things that will outlast me and the recognition of how we’re poisoned by them. I collect things, I have a lot of things, but this is my personal statement against the lust over things in our culture.” Anxious Armada’s defining moment is the cinematically majestic and orchestral sweep of “A Faithful Foil,” segueing seamlessly into the piano Pop/Rock dynamics of “Janus-Face. Madera identifies these two pieces of music, particularly “Janus-Faced”— named for the Roman god of beginnings, endings, transitions and duality — as the album’s foundation, in terms of their sonic eclecticism and conceptual nature. “This album is marked by contrasts and dialectical viewpoints,” Madera says. “Every song has this one side of

me and there’s this other side of me, and there’s one side of our culture and this other side of our culture. The album is talking about the Janus-faced deceit I present to my world, that you present to your world and societally and culturally we present collectively.” The album’s title, Anxious Armada, has its own evolution. Madera originally intended “Janus-Faced” to be the title track but decided he didn’t want to unfairly elevate the song’s profile from the rest of the album. An anxious armada is, in itself, an interesting dichotomy; an armada is an intimidating and powerful force, but it’s made up of individuals who may nearly be incapacitated by the fear that their strength and mortality will be tested to the ultimate degree. “It’s the idea that I am a powerful vessel in the world and, as completely meaningless as my life is, I make a difference. It comes from some of my personal struggles with anxiety,” Madera says. “When you think of an armada, you think of this empowered body and I’m flipping that on its head by saying, ‘I’m an armada but it’s an anxious one.’ “As corny as it is, that’s the reveal of the album. The way I make music and the way I see the world is the push and pull of everything we want and everything we fear.”

APRIL 2021

For more about Jay Madera or to listen to Anxious Armada, visit jaymadera.com

C I T Y B E AT. C O M

APRIL 2021

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CREATIVE STRUGGLE BY B R EN DA N EM M E T T Q UIG LE Y

ACROSS

moment

DOWN

1. Investment options

42. The Cavaliers of the NCAA

1. Hit the bong

6. Thing shown off in a muscle shirt 9. Flimsily made 14. Nigeria’s capital 15. Cost of doing business 16. First thing everybody’s going to do once we’ve achieved herd immunity 17. Online combatant of all things evil on the internet 20. Sylvan ___ (electronic pop act)

43. Element with a silveryblue appearance 45. Wrist action 46. Object 47. Combative spots written by one 17-Across to go after another 17-Across? 50. MMA decision 51. Cabinetmaker’s medium 53. With 68-Across, gauntlet drop by a 17-Across

2. Titles bestowed by the Queen: Abbr.

34. Director Luhrmann 37. Sweet potato

5. ___ Tomé and Príncipe

40. Frequently, in verse

6. Haircut fluffed out with a comb

41. Jimmy Cliff’s genre

7. Mulligan 8. Pet kitten whimper 9. Lifeguard’s qualification, for short 10. Two threes, in craps

60. Mash note verse 61. Strictly verboten

11. The lake in “Mistake By the Lake”

62. Inarticulate grunt made after a foolish comment

12. It gets smashed in a lab

25. Additional playing periods: Abbr.

65. Big name in brushes

27. Skirmishes between two 17-Acrosses?

66. “Sounds fun!”

34. Clean up in the tub

67. Record label with a snapping fingers logo

35. Storting’s nat. 36. Cancel out

33. Hold onto

3. Van ___, CA

22. Bonus track on an expanded album reissue, perhaps

64. M portrayer between Robert and Ralph

32. Metal fastener

4. Room with decks

21. Cashmere and angora

23. Cuzco 57-Down

started a vacuum company

13. One with a lighter touch? 18. No longer with the company, for short?

44. Betty Crocker product 46. “What? Are you deaf? Forget it!” 48. “Top Chef” judge Colicchio 49. Half of an umlaut 50. Defender’s courtroom opponent 52. Hit below the belt, say 53. Hype up 54. Pack in the overhead bin

19. Starting from

55. Old West card game

24. Driving lanes: Abbr.

56. Letter-shaped construction piece

26. Schmuck

68. See 53-Across

27. Columnist ___ Weiss

69. Lines at the casino

28. Directive on an env.

38. “The first mistake of ___ is to assume that it’s serious” (Lester Bangs)

30. “America’s Drive-In”

39. At the next available

31. Entrepreneur David who

29. First name on a bomber

57. Doubloon makeup 58. Quoits pegs 59. Sheepskin holder 60. They’re worn while going undercover 63. Scoreboard nos.

L AST MONTH’S ANSWERS: