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lead levels are high in pittsburgh, but not where you think
BOMB DAY
miles mccoy reports from hiroshima 72 years after japan’s darkest day
ENDING AN ERA
when it’s time for our favorite athletes to finally hang it up
MISS LORETTA’S CORNER
a gem of pittsburgh, miss loretta millender shares unheard tales of the steel city
LEAVING TOWN
what’s a boy to do when faced with departing the home of the stanley cup
MATTERS OF THE HEART
dating advice: you asked, we answered
And A Crossword Puzzle, Too
Cover Art By: Kirsten Lowe-Rebel
RIVERS OF STEEL
a chat with the artists & organizers behind the transformation of the carrie furnaces
LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAK when you gotta go, you gotta go
DRAWING PITTSBURGH
a glimpse into the evolution of kirsten lowe-rebel
Dream
Your Room May Be Closer Than You Think.
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STEEL THIS FALL 2017
24 THE DIRT ON LEAD:
contents
8
a look at lead contamination in pittsburgh soil
MISS LORETTA’S CORNER: the ‘bible of lawrenceville’ sheds light on pittsburgh’s divided past
14 BLAST FURNACE ART SCENE: a peek at the artist-driven revitalization of an industrial graveyard
Steel This Magazine needs your help. Writers, Photographers, Salespeople... we need you! If you’re a creative, or if you simply have some good story ideas, please reach out to: John@SteelThisMag.com to get involved. Staff: Publisher - John Dubosky Creative Director/Graphic Design - Kelli Koladish Editor - Susan Cunniff Photographers - Tim Cox & Brian Volinic Contributing Writers - Bob Stallsmith, Amy Maurine Edwards, Alyse Horn of Storyburgh, Miles McCoy, Susan Dunhoff, Loretta Millender, Skipper Anderson and Ian Mikrut Crossword Puzzle - Daniel Finan
52 KIRSTEN’S GREAT ESCAPE: leaving the comfort of her home-studio, one pittsburgh artist is taking a huge step forward
READER FEEDBACK: “I loved your article on Prototype. I’m definitely looking these guys up!” -Sandra W. -Mt. Lebanon “Oh great, just what we need, cookie-cutter advice columns from a bunch of yinzers,” -Jake B. -The internet “Yes! This! Everyone should raise chickens! We need to focus on sustainable, locally-sourced products that we produce ourselves. Thank you for reporting on this movement!” -Tom -Schenley Park
OP-ED: reflections on the bombing of hiroshima
steel this crossword: daniel finan does it again. try not to cheat
MATTERS OF THE HEART: dating advice: you asked, we answered
LEAVING THE HOME OF THE STANLEY CUP: hitting the road ain’t easy, but sometimes it’s the only way to move forward
HANGING IT UP: when is the right time to throw in the towel?
A HOLY RECKONING: an unfortunate tale of a catholic boy’s accidental desecration of a holy site
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MISS LORETTA’S CORNER
An Oral History Of Mid-Century Lawrenceville Through The Eyes Of Loretta Millender By: John Dubosky
Miss Loretta Millender, or “the Bible of Lawrenceville,” as some call her, possesses an intimate knowledge of Pittsburgh going back more than 70 years. As a black woman and civil rights activist, community organizer, school board member, and avid participant in her church, she’s familiar with parts of the city’s history that often get glossed over. Segregation, gentrification, redevelopment, and the changing facade of the Steel City aren’t often touted on clickbait internet headlines of which Pittsburgh is so frequently the subject, yet they are as much a part of our past as steel mills and the industrial might of generations ago. In the year or so I’ve known Millender, she’s told me first-hand stories of Pittsburgh that you won’t find in brochures: roadblocks, speakeasies, and parts of town people of color weren’t welcome. She also tells anecdotes of a more jovial nature, about babies being born, families coming together to aid each other, and white business owners organizing to support poorer minority communities against the interest of their bottom line.
“At 11 years old you’re thinking of nothing but playing with baby dolls, or going out skating or riding a bike. My life was different.” Born In Greensburg in 1941, Millender was a gregarious soul and determined worker and entrepreneur from a young age. She’s been cooking professionally since she was a little girl making sandwiches and lemonade for garbage men in her front yard in Lawrenceville. After that, it was straight to work at the age of 11, cooking in a boarding house for black train porters on their weekend breaks in the city. She worked for decades as a homemaker, babysitter, cook, and event coordinator, making her way around town building a reputation for herself as a trusted housekeeper and nanny. She
eventually worked in the homes of and the campaigns of some of Pittsburgh’s more prominent political figures, including mayors Sophie Maloff, Bob O’Connor, and Richard Caliguiri. She sat on the Arsenal School PTA as President, and worked at St. Francis Hospital as a nurse on their death and grieving committee. Meanwhile, she’s held roles with the Youth Department at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church, her place of worship for the last 59 years, and has taken part in countless community and church events. “There’s nothing she won’t do for you if she can,” said Dede Daniels, a friend of Millender for more than 20 years. Daniels’ sentiment is echoed by many in Millender’s church, like Deacon Staffordee Williams. “I’d describe Miss Loretta as a beautiful person. A beautiful heart, she’s always trying to help people, she’s a worker,” said Williams. “I have never been a follower, I’ve always been a leader and when I’m leading you, I’m going to make sure I’m leading right. I want no mess up,” said Millender. I first met Millender at a baby shower in Lower Lawrenceville. She had volunteered to cook dinner for a young family who worked at a restaurant she frequented in her neighborhood. A struggling family at her local pub needed help, and Millender didn’t hesitate to step up. Incidentally, I recently found out Millender is now the baby’s Godmother. My first encounter with Millender last year lead to a conversation about the neighborhood. “Did you know that under that doughboy statue was a public toilet?” she asked me. Laughing, I told her I had no idea, and I wondered what else I didn’t know about the history of my own city. That kicked off a series of interviews that have become a recurring column we’re calling, Miss Loretta’s Corner. It will be a place to share lesser-known stories of our city so that we can understand our collective history more personally. We’ll hear about school boycotts to stop the bussing of inner-city children to the suburbs, a protest that shut down the intersection at 40th St. and Butler St. to petition the city’s lack of crossing lights and crossing guards for poor school children, and we’ll learn about
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able to sell them drinks, they were able to eat there, able to sleep there. All they had was just speakeasies and after hour joints at houses that had basement underground clubs for blacks. I would put my finger up against a gallon of wine and measure their little ten cents out for their drink.
Millender works with local organizers to address poor home conditions.
the people who stood up to cross the color line at a pivotal point in time for minority communities in the United States. For now, we’ll leave you with a passage from Milleder. Here, she’s describing her first job at Miss Ada White’s boarding house. The setting is downtown Pittsburgh in the mid 1950’s. While Pittsburgh wasn’t a segregated city, there were many businesses that discriminated openly against people of color. Even though there was a fair employment ordinance adopted in 1953, Pittsburgh received about onefourth of Pennsylvania’s discrimination complaints. This was also a decade before the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964. As trains full of black porters entered the city, Millender and her family would snap into action accommodating them for the weekend. Here’s a snapshot of that time told by Millender herself.
Miss Loretta, in her own words: At 11 years old you’re thinking of nothing but playing with baby dolls, or going out skating or riding a bike. My life was different. I had to start helping my mother and my aunt cook for some black porters. At Miss Ada White’s Boarding House on 28th street, the train left off 100 black porters; nobody would let them into restaurants because they were black. They could rent a room for the weekend in the rooming house, then they’d report back to the train. They weren’t allowed in bars and places like that, so the lady that owned the place was
train workers. From time to time she’d have twelve here, fifteen there, depending on when the porters came into Pittsburgh. As days went on I started to ask questions, because I was curious as a little kid. Why are they here? Why are we doing this? I came to find out that no one else served the black porters, so, Miss Ada White had opened her door to them. The pork chops were 10 cents, 25 cents for a dinner. Your tip was a half a cent. So I got a half a cent tip. Sometimes when I went home I had 18 cents, sometimes I had 20 cents. These men, Miss Ada White made sure, a very lovely elderly lady, that these men didn’t say anything inappropriate to me as a little kid. And my mother and aunt were there, too, to protect me, but these men treated me with such high respect. First of all they respected me as an eleven year old working, then they respected me as a person with a mouth that was gonna tell them what I wanted to tell them. I wasn’t shy about speaking out.
Across the street on 29th street, there was a one-room black church called St. Mark’s. It was just one room with a piano and a pastor. The room was probably about this size [motioning to a small section of the room], or maybe a little bigger. Some sat on floors, some stood. Whoever wanted to hear the word came in. After church service, I would get them settled in their rooms. The guys would get their word, then it was time to get their little duffle bag. The owner of the boarding house, she had one bathroom with a bathtub, and these guys took turns. You’d see these guys standing in line with their towels and everything draped over, to go upstairs and get their bath for that weekend. I would take the guys to their room with a bar of soap and a towel for ten cents and my tip was a half a I would take them a bar of soap and a clean cent. A half a penny, that was my tip. towel and then fill their bath up and leave them, and they would give me another half And I couldn’t figure out, even though I a cent or a whole cent, and that was my tip. knew this place, Ada White’s, was a rooming As time went on I got to know them and I house and rented to black men, single black got to learn from them and they told me men, I couldn’t figure out why did we have about the cities they’d visit and where they to cook for these people. And why was it went and what it was like there and how that these men coming in from the railroad different it was from Pittsburgh or from couldn’t eat anywhere they wanted? This is Philadelphia or from this place or that. So, what I thought as a young black girl. So, my first thought was, they must be special. They must be special people that we had to get dinner ready for them because they would be going back out on those trains. So, the first time I went there, my mother put me on this wooden box to stand up on the stove because I was so short. My mother and my aunt would clean the pork chops, wash them off, flower them down, and then put them on a platter and they’d give them to me. And I’m standing there with this cast iron skillet at the stove. And to this day I should hate pork chops, and I still like them! But, anyway, they said that we had to have the food cooked for these men. So, I start noticing that where the kitchen door was open there was something like a cement yard and benches and there were men sitting out there. These were the black porters, the
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cooking for the porters made me travel places I had never been, places I had never heard about. And as I was cleaning, or helping my mother and them clean their rooms, I could hear them talking about what it was like at this place, or how someone had said wrong things to them, or someone had treated them with respect, or how much respect they had on the trains but once they got off the trains the respect wasn’t always there. I thank the porters to this very day for all that they taught me. And they told me, “now Loretta, I’m giving you this money so you can save for your future.” I don’t know how much they wanted me to buy with that half a cent, but thank you, God, for everything they did give me. I thank God every day for it.
“Why are they here? Why are we doing this? I came to find out that no one else served the black porters, so, Miss Ada White had opened her door to them.”
They taught me respect for the elderly; they showed me respect and they taught me respect. They taught me how to laugh and joke about things that weren’t right. They taught me that there can be a smile in every way that you look at things, it’s not always a problem. I have always thought that God puts people in your life to make you a better person; you just have to learn from it. So I believe that God had put me there as an eleven year old cooking to learn from these men. And these men taught me. They taught me how to count, cause if they gave me money, they’d say, “how much are you giving me back,” and if I gave them the incorrect change they’d say, “wait a minute, Loretta.” I never missed school to work there, but they taught me about a bar of soap and a clean towel, and you can’t be long cleaning this bathtub because the next guy’s gotta go. So I had to hurry up and clean it, and they gave me extra money, which was extra pennies or nickels or whatever. They taught me so much. If I came into their room and helped my mother make the bed or sweep, and they’d say, “excuse me little girl, I think you forgot something right there.” And then I would go and I said, “what did I forget,’’ and they’d say, “you forgot your tip over there.” So they taught me laughter and fun. They taught me so much. Have fun even though you’re working. And that has stuck with me: their kindness to me and their respect for me. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about that. My thought was this: first of all, here was a bunch of grown men that were not receiving the
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respect that they should have received after all that they had done, except for when they were on the train. But here were all these grown men to show a young girl that there is respect, that there is kindness. They wanted to show me that everything wasn’t as bad as it sounded. What I got from it was, “don’t go out in the world mad, Loretta, cause they don’t have everything together yet. By the time you get to our age, it might be together.” They taught me don’t hate. They’d say, “be kind towards people. Be kind, be nice, and by the time you reach our age, all this might be gone.” And I think that’s what all of them had in their mind. “Here’s a young 11 year old working, let’s not let her come up with all the stuff we got in our mind and all we’ve seen. Give her something better to look to for her future.” That’s what I think they instilled in me. Because they could have come in there and they could have told me, “we’re black porters here to eat because whites don’t allow us in the place.” Even though I found out about that, they could have told me that with hatred saying, “look, we ride in trains, we gotta do this, we gotta do that for them, and they won’t let us be equal to them.” But they left their jobs, and they left their jobs at the station. They didn’t bring their misery, their madness, or if someone had made them mad there. They came there to enjoy themselves for the weekend, and they had fun, and they gave me the respect and happiness to make sure I had fun and carried on.
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RIVERS OF STEEL ARTS:
Transmutation of History and Experience
“
By: Amy Maurine Edwards Photos By: Ivette Spradlin
It is the birthplace of the middle class and a legacy that mustn’t be forgotten. It is a narrative and story that strikes a chord not just locally, but nationally and internationally.”
The resilient remnants of the Carrie Furnaces reach for the sky above Swissvale; the zenith of the blast furnaces jut above all else, visible from the entire surrounding valley. The postindustrial fortress’ 135 acres are penned in on three sides by railroad tracks and by the Monongahela River to the south. Constructed in 1884 and in operation for just under a century, until 1982, the site was producing 1,000 to 1,250 tons of iron per day during its apogee. Today, only blast rurnaces six and seven remain. The Rivers of Steel Corporation manages the site, the only existent pre-World War II iron making facility. In 2016, Rivers of Steel Arts was created to support artistic projects that further the interpretation of local history and re-imagine the future of familiar places. Co-founded by current RoSA Director Chris McGinnis, local artist Sean Derry, and Director of Historic Resources and Facilities, Ron Baraff, the program unites and expands upon the range of independent art initiatives designed for the Carrie Furnaces in order to better serve the mission of Rivers of Steel and bring this mission to the public. Their website states their goal is to, “through a range of exhibitions, performances and educational experiences,
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“RoSA owes a great deal to the creative pioneers who over the past twenty-five years found inspiration in our region’s industrial remains at a moment when most people only saw detritus and failure. RoSA’s dynamic programming is at once a tribute to the progressive vision that Rivers of Steel has for the Carrie Furnaces and a testament to the value of creative expression and collective spirit represented in these historic places. I feel both excited and honored to work with such passionate and talented artists helping to reshape the future of RoSA and the community through our public programs,” said RoSA Director, Chris McGinnis. RoSA program departments are: Photo Arts (photography), Urban Arts (aerosol and graffiti), Metal Arts (iron and aluminum casting), Eco Arts (native plants and the surrounding environs), Heritage Arts (folk arts and traditions), and Alloy Pittsburgh (a temporary site-based program offered every two years for regional contemporary artists). I sat down with Ron Baraff, who is old-school ROS, as well as some of the new program coordinators, and got caught up on some of their new program offerings.
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Ron Baraff, Director of Historic Resources & Facilities, Rivers of Steel RBaraff@RiversofSteel.com How long have you been involved with Rivers of Steel & the Carrie Furnace site? I have been with Rivers of Steel since 1998. My introduction to the [Carrie Furnace] site was in late 1998 as I hoped to work on the National Historic Landmarks nomination and preservation of the site. I have been the lead or heavily involved in most aspects of preservation, tourism, programming (education, arts, etc), restoration, and events there. We began public tours of the site in 2005, though our efforts really began in earnest in 2010 when we obtained title to the site. What is the historical significance of this site, and why is its preservation important to you and to the area as a whole? The Carrie Furnaces National Historic Landmark site stands as a reminder of the region’s industrial past and the legacy and culture of big steel. It reflects not just who we were as a region, but also who we are as a people. It’s a place where we can celebrate the industrial and the post-industrial legacies of this region that strikes to the heart of the spirit of Pittsburgh, past, present, and future. What was created there helped to build America’s 20th century. It is the birthplace of the middle class and a legacy that mustn’t be forgotten. It is a narrative and story that strikes a chord not just locally, but nationally and internationally. The Carrie Furnaces resonate on many different levels. We talk about the region’s rich history and its impact; we discuss how the legacy of what was created there changed the world. We explore how sites such as these change and evolve through the years - what happens when the work goes away and it’s rediscovered and reinvented on an aesthetic level rather than occupational. The site serves as an inspiration not just because of its past, but also for the present and future. What is happening there now with the diversity of programming and events is the bringing of new people and ideas into the narrative. It is invigorating and getting them excited to create a climate in which new change can take place, all of which can have a very positive and wide reaching impact, not just on the historic site, but also on the surrounding communities, the region and beyond. The Furnaces meant prosperity in the past and it can mean so again in the future. We are not constrained by a box. We are thankfully able to get outside of it and create new and innovative ways of interacting with one another. These are just a few of the many reasons why the site matters and matters so much. What is it like watching the inception of RoSA? What do you most look forward to from the new program? Virtually all of the arts programming at the site existed prior to the formalization of the program under the RoSA banner. Beginning with embracing the Carrie Deer, [a hallmark metal sculpture of a deer synonymous with the Carrie Furnaces transition from functioning blast furnaces to a hub for wayward artists and eventually an organized creative space] we understood that the post-industrial interactions were meaningful. Early on we began to explore programming through the metal arts, photo arts, eco arts, and urban art programs, all of which pre-date RoSA by a number of years. As an example, Shane [Urban Arts Coordinator] and I began the Urban Arts program a number of years ago as a way to stabilize the activity at the site as well as foster a relationship with graffiti writers. We recognized the importance of the interactions that took place at the site between closure/sale by USS (1988) and our increased presence on site (2010). The question for all of the arts programming was how do we change the culture of the site and explore new ways to tell the story. What was (and is) important is that there are many different ways to love and appreciate the site. There are many, many different stories to tell, but how do we do so? I often tell people that it is not our place as an organization to devalue someone’s experience. Whatever the reason that brought them to this place, that caused them to be inspired or fall in love with it, is important and needs to be explored and embraced. The programming through the arts allows us to do this, to stretch the limits of what we know and to explore new ways to see the site; to re-envision the past and the present, and move forward into the future.
Ed Parrish Jr. Metal Arts Coordinator, RoSA edparrishjr@yahoo.com How did you come to be the Metal Arts Coordinator at RoSA and what is your past experience with the Metal Arts? I studied sculpture at East Carolina University where I became hooked on iron casting. After college, I moved to Pittsburgh where I worked and ran my own metal fabrication shops where I continued to explore the metal casting process. I started working with Ron Baraff at Rivers Of Steel in 2007 and we cast iron at the pump house as a part of Hot Metal Happening — an iron casting demonstration and performance series. I continued working with Carrie Furnace over the years to preserve the iron casting offerings on-site and then stepped in to develop their Metal Arts program at The Foundry. How does the unique setting of the Carrie Furnace influence new designs and projects in your own artwork? It definitely directly influences my aesthetic and approach to cast iron. For me, going to pour at Carrie Furnace is like going to church. Being able to work in a place where iron casting has been done on such a huge industrial scale and getting to continue that work in a more creative process and share that with people is transcendental. We create a place where other artists can come and commune. That aspect is actually more influential to me than the direct aesthetics of the site. Do you feel that metal pours and workshops can connect those in the present to the past significance of the Carrie Furnace? Most certainly. The metal pours allow people to encounter a process that most anyone from this region (or those who come through this region) feel a significant connection to but have never actually seen or experienced. It is important for them to see and feel the process - the smell, the heat, but on a smaller scale. It gives them a first-hand experience of the process that they have only ever heard of. This industrial process historically provided people with work. Now, it is more like a living thing that people can explore creatively. Iron casting workshops are listed on the RoSA website. What can the public expect when attending a pour, and are they for all skill levels? Yes, they are for all skill levels, from no experience to advanced. They can expect to create an object, of their own design through the creation of a sand mold, a casting made from a unique or original object and then walk away with a physical reproduction/representation of that object transformed into iron. They can also expect to experience working as a part of a team of artists and craftspeople. By working together, they will create their own work as well as help in the creation of other people’s work. It is a very community-oriented activity. Expect to sweat, get your hands dirty, and to work hard. Expect to experience some level of magic and alchemy that is hard to find in these times.
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Ivette Spradlin, Photo Arts Coordinator, RoSA ivettespradlin@gmail.com How did you come to be involved with the Photo Arts programming at Rivers of Steel Arts? Silver Eye Center for Photography first hired me to lead their Photo Safaris at Carrie Furnace in 2011. Silver Eye ended up going through a transformation soon afterwards and a lot of their non-gallery programming ceased for a while. During that time, Rivers of Steel and I decided to continue the Photo Safaris since they were so popular. I have been leading the safaris ever since and, in the last few years, have been in conversation first with Rivers of Steel and later with Rivers of Steel Arts about how the site can provide different photographic opportunities. Which elements, or subjects, do you like to focus on in your role as Photo Coordinator? How does this position augment, inspire, or inform your own original body of work? As the lead artist / coordinator for the Photo Arts at RoSA my goal is to think about how the site provides a unique experience to create photographic images. Although right now we only do safaris at Carrie Furnaces, there is talk of doing some at the other heritage sites, like the W.A. Young and Sons Foundry and Machine Shop, or even a walk through Homestead. There are the safaris that allow for participants to roam freely at their own pace, and workshops to teach a specific photographic technique. I aim to create programming that fosters an opportunity for a diverse range of photographers. This is not only for the photographers who are drawn to photographing abandoned buildings or architecture. The Photo Arts programming is diverse; including workshops on tintypes, event photography, off camera flash, and astro-photography. Once our camera obscura is up and running, I will create programming around that, which will reach beyond the photographic to drawing and painting. Working with Rivers of Steel has given me a chance to create a permanent camera obscura on site at Carrie Furnace. Creating a public camera obscura has been a personal dream for 15 years. The Carrie Camera is still a work in progress, we hope to open in 2018. I will forever be grateful for this opportunity. (More about the Carrie Camera below) “Photo Safaris� and Workshops at the Furnace are advertised on the RoSA website. What can the public expect from one of these workshops? Are they open to all skill levels? First and foremost, the safaris offer access with not much else happening on site at the scheduled time. Next, they allow for participants to be on site with a small group of other photographers. This gives participants a chance to be able to photograph without anyone else in their frame, but also feel the energy of other people photographing on site with you. Finally, there is a representative from Rivers of Steel to answer questions about the site, and I am there for any photo instruction or guidance. The safaris are open to all skill levels and all types of photographic equipment. The first half hour I walk the group around to show them the grounds, where they can and cannot go, and what to watch out for; the site is still in decay and can be dangerous in some parts. After the walk through, participants are set loose to explore within the parameters given. I continue to walk around checking in on people to see if they need help. These safaris are for the independent photographers, not for one who wants instruction. I am very happy to answer questions about cameras or lighting, but instruction to the group will not be given.
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Shane Pilster, Urban Arts Coordinator, RoSA shane@82concepts.com Were you familiar with the Carrie Furnaces site prior to working with RoSA? Absolutely. Pittsburgh’s post-industrial landscape used to house many abandoned mills, factories, warehouses, etc. all over the city. Most have been torn down, converted into some lofty apartments, or have evolved into something else, much like Carrie. Several friends of mine grew up in Swissvale, which looks right at the mill from the hillside, and have been going into the place for a couple decades doing everything from exploring, painting, having parties, or just whatever you do in an abandoned iron mill. NECSKE and REMIX first took me there in I believe 2007ish to paint pieces; there wasn’t enough space to all get on one wall so they painted inside the main structure and I painted a solo wall on a shed in the middle of the central yard. Wiz Khalifa or someone filmed a music video there and the production team buffed out their pieces but, because the side of the shed I painted didn’t have a lot of room to get photos or film equipment in there, it stayed for all these years and still exists at the site. I really only painted there a couple of times but had been back maybe ten times to explore and take photos throughout the years before eventually partnering with Rivers of Steel National Heritage Corporation (organization that is site manager / co-owner of the site). The place is amazing still to this day. Who are some of the guest artists that you have brought in to paint and create on-site? There have been several over the last four or so years; some were friends, or friends of friends, some were passing through town and got in touch with me, and others we brought out specifically to paint. In no particular order, here’s a few I recall: Remix, Necske, Soviet, Rams, MFOne, Seak, Prism, Mare139, Ridle, Kavis, Canoe, Court, Dever, Wheats, Gypsy, Cedar, Saren, Vick, Vamp, Chu, Trism, Red, Stoe, Rime, Toper, Trav, Begr, Kove, Skum, Rufie, Thor, Ivory, Kaffeine, Orion, Wes, Stef, Kif, Fars, Radeo, Roskoe, Like, Jaber, Aware, and I’m sure I’m forgetting several. There’s been a lot of people to come through to paint and many more in the future. What are your dreams for outdoor/Urban Arts in the future, both for RoSA and public spaces in general? Really, I enjoy painting with a can, painting with friends or meeting people that paint, and being able to create something larger than life whenever possible. With that has come many opportunities for commissioned projects throughout the city and abroad, teaching/programming/outreach for and in schools ranging from sixth graders to college-aged kids and adults, and being able to do what we love without the threat of the legal system crashing down on us. With Rivers of Steel/RoSA, and Ron Baraff (Rivers of Steel) we have created a curriculum that educates people on the history, culture, and style that really gives people a broader understanding to the art of using an aerosol can to create something amazing. I’ve partnered with other organizations in the city to grow the culture and education of the culture and creative outlets for artists; one of which is where the classroom concept began with HipHop on L.O.C.K. (non-profit that works with youth to educate on the culture of hip-hop, the music industry, and giving people skills to advance in life). Another is a partnership we established with Steve Root of the Graffiti Watch in the Southside of Pittsburgh to form the Southside Community Mural Project, which is currently raising money to be able to compensate artists
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properly for creating murals in the Southside; hopefully some of which could use aerosol. We also partnered with the University of Pittsburgh to bring in artists from Chicago and Léon, Mexico to conduct workshops with youth and paint multiple murals in the city while they were in town. So I’d really like to expand on all of the above, partner with other national and international organizations doing similar programs and projects to bring together like-minded individuals to partner with and throw events in the future. Also to grow our client list for commissioned projects nationally and internationally so we can continue to do what we love on a creative and professional level. Urban Arts workshops are listed on the RoSA website. What can attendees expect, and are they available for all skill levels? At the Carrie Furnaces we’ve created the Urban Art Tours and Workshops. It also includes either demonstrations of painting or a crash course in lettering, can techniques, different caps, what paint to use, color theory, composition, creative uses for such skills and examples of them in practice. We use a handson approach with using a can so people can see for themselves the amount of skill it requires to create something with aerosol. On some occasions we allow people to paint walls at Carrie, others we have canvases that people can take home (some have been donated to us through our partnership with Artist & Craftsman Supply Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill). At the end of the day, people from sixth grade to seniors have walked away from our tours and workshops with a broader understanding of the culture and history behind the art form. And sometimes a souvenir like a canvas they created or one of the graffiti coloring books we have at Rivers of Steel Arts. You can check out some of the future tours and photos we have on the website: www.rosarts.org/programs/ urban-arts.
RoSA Contact Info: Shane Pilster, shane@82concepts.com - for all inquiries at the Carrie Furnaces, or tours, please call Rivers of Steel at: 412.464.4020 RoSA will be hosting Metal Arts workshops October 9-14th
It’ll Take More Than A MACK TRUCK To Stop FRANK FUNARO. A decade ago, en route to Texas to open a new restaurant, not even the 18-wheeler that rearended Frank and spread his car’s debris for over a mile slowed him down. Frank’s next move? He jumped out of his car, off of the bridge on which he was stuck into a swamp below. Frank spent a night in a hospital and with nothing more than the shirt on his back jumped on a bus the next day to finish his journey and get his shop opened on time. The South Hills born entrepreneur and overall kitchen master, Frank is the brains behind Olive Oil’s Pizzeria in Bethel Park. The name Olive Oil’s is a nod to the Popeye’s Chicken franchise, whose original location was also used as the inaugural location for Frank’s first pizza parlor. Since 1984 Frank has been running shops like this all over the country. Frank’s drive to succeed in business is paralleled by his culinary styling behind the oven. Through his career he has learned the importance of fresh ingredients and quality cooking. House-made dough, freshly-baked bread… even his salad dressing is made on the spot. That means a lot to local patrons who have come to expect a level of quality from Olive Oil’s Pizzeria that isn’t always easy to find this side of New York City. This season marks the Grand Opening of his new shop in Brookline on Brookline Blvd. The sister store of his original Pennsylvania shop in Canonsburg is now pumping out pies like nobody’s business. Cheese steaks, salads, and calzones of the highest standard can be found at this establishment. Frank is there and waiting the next time you need your fix of Italian comfort food. Throwing a party? They also cater parties of 10-200 people. What more do you need to hear? Get on the phone with Olive Oil’s and let Frank know you’re ready for him to send his fastest driver. advertorial
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As part of our commitment to strengthening the voices of Pittsburgh’s authors and journalists, Steel This Magazine has partnered with one of our favorite media consortia, Storyburgh. Their mission is to amplify human experience through words and images, and they’ve got their finger on the pulse of many lesser known members of our communities and their experiences. Over the coming issues of Steel This Magazine, we’ll work together to spotlight some of the scenarios and community interactions Storyburgh has highlighted. Through their comprehensive reports and giving Pittsburghers the power to tell their own stories, we’ll share insight and background on community activists, change makers, and people of interest we think are worth reading about. To continue their effort, they rely on community sourced story telling. If you’re an interested storyteller or you know a story begging to be told, visit their website: Storyburgh.org. In their first installment, Storyburgh founding director and photographer, Wil Halim, and journalist, Alyse Horn document efforts to minimize lead levels in Pittsburgh, and no, it’s not all about tap water.
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“People are worried about water, and they should be, but water is not the main driver of lead poisoning among children.” Jonathan Burgess [pictured above], senior agriculture conservationist at the Allegheny County Conservation District, said studies show the majority of lead poisoning comes from dust and paint, not water. Burgess said the sources of lead contaminants, such as lead smelters, gasoline, and lead paint, end up in soil. Lead contaminated soil can be found in playgrounds, gardens, and vacant lots. Around the country there is a lot of interest in soil lead levels, particularly in old industrialized cities, like Detroit and Pittsburgh. fall 2017
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In the Steel City, groups like ACCD, DECO Resources (a green tech resource), and Grow Pittsburgh have been able to conduct studies on soil lead levels in neighborhood vacant lots using an X-ray Florescent Spectrometer, also known as the XRF. This handheld machine can test soil for lead and receive results in about 60 seconds.“We affectionately call it the soil ray gun,” said Anthony Stewart, president and environmental director of DECO Resources. At the end of 2015, Burgess said the ACCD started looking for ways to make it easier for organizations to test soil lead levels. Before getting the XRF, soil samples had to be sent to labs at Penn State University or the University of Massachusetts, costing time and money. Tests cost $15 to $66 and take up to two weeks for results. “You can get a grant to pay for soil tests, but how quickly does that run out? So we started looking into purchasing equipment to do that in house,” Burgess said. “That led us to XRF technology.” The X-ray Florescent Spectrometer was purchased by a grant from the Hillman Family Foundation. The ACCD reached out to the Environmental Protection Agency and other organizations for advice on using the equipment in field exploration. Burgess said not many people are using XRF to test soil levels, and it is mainly for testing the metal makeup of rocks or determining if there are metals in soil or paint. But it can also be used to test lead levels in soil if the soil is processed properly. To properly test the soil in a vacant lot for lead, Stewart said the lot is first broken up into areas that are usually 10 square feet and five samples are taken from each section. The soil must then be dried and processed into fine granules before being tested by the XRF. With this level of analysis, Stewart said they have been getting laboratory grade results. “We do send out 10 to 15 percent of our samples to a lab for confirmation, and we are finding that we are spot on,” Stewart said.
Test results as displayed on the XRF unit.
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Countrywide Soil Lead Screenings. Since obtaining the XRF, the ACCD has been holding free soil screenings for neighborhoods around Pittsburgh and the county. By asking the participants nearest intersections, Burgess said they are able to start compiling data of lead levels around the area with the goal of sharing those larger findings publically. “[We want] to engage people and give them information on how to deal with and mitigate the problem,” Burgess said. They also conducted a large-scale pilot test in Larimer with evolveEA, an architectural consulting firm, and took more than 400 soil samples from the area. Stewart said they ended up finding a lot of variability, with high levels of lead next to low levels of lead. Rachel Bukowitz, a soil science fellow with ACCD and recent University of Pittsburgh graduate, said there were two 10-square-foot areas within the Larimer lots that had particularly high lead levels. Working out of Dr. Daniel Bain’s lab at the University of Pittsburgh, she began testing different soil amendments and how each affected the lead levels in soil with the goal of remediating it. Bukowitz was looking at bioavailability. By adding different soil amendments, Bukowitz said she was changing the pH balance of the organic matter and changing, “how much of that lead is actually a potential threat to become bioavailable and become a harm for anyone in those lots,” Bukowitz said. She chose compost, woodchips, and lime for her soil amendments. Compost and woodchips are organic matter, which lead in soil will bind to, making the lead less bioavailable. Lime, Bukowitz said, raises the pH in soil making it more alkaline, which would also result in decreasing the bioavailability of lead. Shelly Danko+Day, the open space specialist for the city, said she became aware of soil lead levels in the area in 2006 when she was working for Grow Pittsburgh. Danko+Day said once they started testing the soil, they were finding levels of lead that were dangerous for children and others.
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In 2014 when Danko+Day started working for the city, the first thing she did was create a soil policy and standards for the Adopt-A-Lot program that made lead testing mandatory. Stewart said the city only requires one test from each vacant lot, which he believes is inadequate because of lead variability, but Danko+Day said each test has a composite of eight to ten samples from a lot. “While it’s true we only require one soil test per project, primarily to keep the costs low for the applicants, they are free to take more if they would like,” Danko+Day said. Burgess said this has been the standard for lead testing in many different cities, but, “because of how quickly land use and prior land use changes every couple of feet,” there is a lot of variation within five to 10 feet. Burgess understands the city doesn’t want to make vacant lot rehabilitation costs prohibitive to well-meaning people, which is why the ACCD offers free soil screenings with the XRF.
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Getting The Community Involved. Danko+Day has been working with Stewart and Jmar Bey, president of South Hilltop Men’s Group, to help them gain permission to experiment with soil remediation techniques in four lots on Beltzhoover Avenue. The lots, Stewart said, have lead levels between 400-1,000 parts per million, meaning technically they are not allowed to dig into the soil and must use raised beds per City guidelines. Stewart said he and Bey were able to work out an Adopt-A-Lot agreement with Danko+Day and they will use raised beds, “but the idea is that even though we aren’t going to be digging into the soil, the plants will still root. We are using a completely natural process to begin mixing that soil, so when we go and test again we hope that those levels of lead are lower. Then we will be able to till that soil and really reduce those levels of lead completely within the code of the city.”
X-ray Florescent Spectrometer (XRF) purchased by a grant from the Hillman Family Foundation.
Stewart and Bey will start with sunflowers, hops, and mustard greens in several soil blends that include two different amendments: woodchips and compost. All three plants are effective at removing lead from soil, and this study will determine what plants and amendments work best at making the soil less harmful for humans. Eventually oyster mushrooms will also be added, which, according to Stewart, will pull the lead out of the soil and into the mushrooms roots through a process called chelation. The SHMG recently received a grant from the Conservation Leadership and Innovation Program through the ACCD, which allows the project to move forward with DECO as the consultant. Stewart said the goal is to have members of the community become certified in maintaining the lots so, “they won’t need companies like us. We are trying to empower the community to be able to take ownership of these sites that may have elevated levels of lead.” Within Pittsburgh’s scientific community, a collection of individuals from various organizations have formed the Urban Soil Working Group with the intentions of educating the public on how to deal with lead in soil and creating guidelines. Stewart, who is part of the group, said he would like to see collaboration between the organization and the city so vetted scientists would be allowed to access the city’s soil data that is currently internal and private. “It would be incredibly helpful to use that data to drive policy and decision making. That’s kind of where I see the shortcoming right now,” Stewart said. Rachel Bukowitz (right) assisting a local community resident at a Free Soil Testing Event in Braddock on May 13th. Fall 2017
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Lanterns
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Fall 2017
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August 6th, 2017 in Hiroshima was hot. Sweltering. Muggy. Torrid. I had been told by current and former expats that summers in Japan were usually pretty unpleasant as far as weather goes, but that day, there didn’t seem to be enough adjectives in English to describe it. Everywhere, old ladies swung humid air back and forth with fans. Businessmen dabbed their necks with handkerchiefs to keep their collars dry. Teenagers, just out of school, let their towels drape their shoulders as they walked down the street. The sun was starting its long descent into the west, as I made my way to the A-Bomb Dome, but the air was still thick with heat and sweat. It only got worse as I made my way to the river, crowded with people, Japanese and foreign alike, who were trying to get as close as possible to watch the annual lantern lighting. As I edged my way through the mob, the solemn tone and thoughtful atmosphere were overwhelming. Through the haze I tried to imagine the weather on that same day 72 years ago. What had it been like? Had the air been as humid as it was today? Was the sky clear or overcast? My brain tried to place myself at that same spot nearly a century earlier; by that point of the day, Little Boy had already fallen, with some 80,000 people killed instantly in the blast. I read later that this year’s festival drew record numbers. According to the Japan Times, a little over 50,000 individuals attended the morning address and the evening festivities. As I looked around me on the river’s edge, I tried to comprehend so many people - men, women, children - completely disintegrated, myself included. As an American, it can be difficult at times to reconcile my feelings about the war in the Pacific, its death toll, and the destructive tools used to bring it to its end. Growing up in the United States, I remember reading about the attack on Pearl Harbor in History class, watching documentaries and dramatic retellings of the Pacific Theater, hearing the accounts from veterans about island hopping towards the mainland. The use of nuclear force was never glorified but always justified. Experts estimate that the ratio of Japanese to American casualties was around 2 to 1 as U.S troops worked their way across the island of Okinawa in early 1945. Japanese troops were rarely taken prisoner. The majority of Japanese forces defending the occupied islands were either killed in action or committed suicide. Facing an enemy who considered its own life forfeit so long as it destroyed its opponent, and with growing fear of a nuclear arms race between itself and other major political powers, America seemed to view its use of nuclear force against the Empire as a necessary evil, utilizing it in order to bring a swift and strategic end to a war where even greater loss of life was all but certain.
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Standing on the shores of the Motoyasu on that sultry Sunday evening, with the shadow of the dome growing longer in the setting sun, it was hard to justify any of that “gung-ho” rhetoric. When you walk through the Peace Memorial Museum, seeing the faces of more than 300,000 people killed by the bomb immediately and in the years after, it becomes more and more difficult to defend those who would support the use of a nuclear “deterrent.” As I stood and watched more and more lanterns laid out on the water and candles lit at the statues, I found it even more surreal than ever that in spite of the horrors caused by their use, nuclear war is still a very current and relevant issue. Despite numerous sanctions, North Korea appears determined to continue to develop its nuclear weapons program. The country has conducted 14 missile tests this year alone as of this writing, the latest landing only a couple hundred miles from Japanese shores. After estimates of the missile’s trajectory placed many American cities firmly within range, American news media went into a frenzy. While the previous administration seemed confident in the use of diplomacy as a form of deterrence, the current administration appears just as confident that a reciprocal use of force would be more appropriate. This response has not only failed to de-escalate tensions, but keeps Japan in an increasingly precarious situation. North Korea and the threat it represents to Japan’s security has been relevant for many years now. The tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are still fresh within the memories of many Japanese people, and the government as a whole has encouraged a policy of “universal peace” ever since the end of the war. However, the fact remains that Japan is well within the range of a ballistic missile from North Korea, if they chose to launch one. With no signs of tensions between North Korea and the United States cooling down anytime soon, and Japan comfortably under the United States’ nuclear umbrella, it is more dependent than ever on its allies for security if talks descend into nuclear war. As humans, we seem doomed to repeat the transgressions of those that came before us, no matter how far in time we progress. Before coming to Japan, I couldn’t imagine the wasteland that Little Boy left in its wake. As an American, I couldn’t fathom just how many lives were shattered that day, or the lives of those who had to pick up the pieces. An entire ocean away, it can be tough to relate, to empathize, and to truly comprehend. Watching the soft glow of lights on the still surface of the river that night, there was one thing of which everybody present was, in some way, wholly certain: if we err again and once more choose overwhelming violence over debate and reason, there will be no true victors. There will only be the dead. Just how many more memorials will be built before we, as a species, truly comprehend the consequences of our actions is unknown.
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But things aren’t all bleak. Looking at those tiny lanterns, I still managed to find hope. After all, there was record attendance this year. More and more people are aware of nuclear weapons, the tragedy they bring, the history surrounding them and the science that makes them. With more and more people conscious of our past, we have a chance, no matter how small, of moving towards a brighter future.
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7 Grand ___
30 Group of concubines
8 Jigsaw puzzle component
33 Acclaimed WWII journalist
9 Lyrical lead-in to “...will always love you”
36 Hone (down) 38 Tough guy persona
35 Member of the extended fam
3 Thing or Swamp Thing, e.g.
10 Keeps on riding
36 More dry, as humor
4 “I’m ready!”
11 ___ club
37 Former pitcher Hideo
5 Required attire, informally
12 Modern-day dating acronym for ancient times
43 Big name in casinos
38 Grown filly
6 Dole (out)
14 Aquatic transportation
45 Subject of a Facebook reminder, for short
16 Clears from a hard drive 17 Chevy classic 21 Fuel-efficient whip 23 Lacks
Presented By:
24 Ice house? 25 One who’s far from chipper 26 Steel 27 Skin affliction 28 Troy’s last king, in Greek mythology 29 “Care to see ___?”
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41 Boop of Jazz Age cabaret 42 Take down
46 47-Down’s Obi-Wan, e.g. 47 Actor McGregor 48 Lea ladies 49 [At once!] 51 Elaborate practical joke 52 Word before a conclusion 53 “Citizen Kane” studio 55 Org. with many arms
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39 STEELTHISMAG.COM
MATTERS OF THE heart
?
Dating and relationship advise from Susan Dunhoff, professional matchmaker and relationship adviser, and her executive assistant, Nicole Bruno. Both are with The Modern Matchmaker here in Pittsburgh and volunteered to answer some of our reader’s relationship advice inquiries. We put out a call each issue to hear from our readers with their stories and questions about everything Pittsburgh dating. We’ve put together an advice column answering some of the texts, emails, and facebook messages we received, changed the names to protect the innocent, and asked our friends at Modern Matchmaker what they thought. What courtship queries do you have? What do you think of our advice? Write us at: moth@steelthismag.com
Tag Along My best friend is dating the most annoying and aggravating person I’ve ever had to deal with on a long-term basis. It’s not just me. Our whole group of friends agrees. How do I say this to her without hurting her feelings? I have a few ideas but it’s hard to see any of them playing out well. -Exasperated Accomplice
?
Dear Exasperated Accomplice, There is a polite way to explain to your friend that you are not fond of their partner; however, is telling this person you dislike their partner really worth risking the loss of your friendship? Consider explaining to your pal that you don’t feel comfortable around her boyfriend. Be honest with her. Tell your friend you’d prefer to hang out with her without being in the presence of someone with whom you don’t get along. Remind your friend how much your friendship means to you and explain your stance without being too harsh. Love often blinds us to the toxic characteristics of romantic relationships. You and your friends are on the outside looking in. Your feedback is valuable as your best friend may be too blinded by love to realize her partner’s flaws. Ultimately, who your friend dates is not your call. Your duty is to stand by your best friend without judgment even when she makes what you perceive to be the wrong decision, and to offer her a shoulder to cry on if she realizes what you and your friends knew all along.
To Tell or Not To Tell
?
Can you settle an argument for us? Here’s the scenario: after swearing you to secrecy a close friend confides to you they’ve cheated on their partner. Do you have an ethical obligation to tell your friend’s partner they’re getting the run-around? I say mind your own business. My friend says that’s lying by omission. Who’s right? -Split Decision
Married Without Children
?
Why does everyone want children? Is that like a prerequisite of dating in Pittsburgh? I have to marry you and move to the suburbs and raise a litter of kids? Where are all the single people here that want to settle down without reproducing? -Reasonable Requester
Dear Split Decision, I would encourage you to advise your friend to stop cheating and grow up. I don’t, however, feel it is your place to involve yourself in others’ romantic affairs. There’s a slew of reasons that breaking this news to your friend’s partner is the wrong decision, but in this case it comes down to this: your close friend came to you with what may be the biggest secret of their life in confidence. You need to respect that confidential space and absolve yourself of all guilt associated with their decision making.
Prantl's Famous Burnt Almond Torte
Dear Married Reasonable Requester, Doesn’t everyone want a house in the suburbs, with the white picket fence, at least two kids and a dog named Happy? Well actually, the answer is ‘no!’ Don’t faint yet. Times have changed. Some people prefer to focus on their career, have more disposable income, or travel the world with their spouse. They may desire a more carefree, spontaneous life. This does not mean that they are not accomplished, forwardthinking, or that they are selfish or cold-hearted. Quite frankly, it is their prerogative to make that choice. Children are not for everyone. It is better for children to not be brought into this world if they are not wanted. Keep looking, there’s more to the Pittsburgh dating landscape than you may be experiencing. Try some new patterns in your social outings, visit new establishments, take a different route to work, make a point to introduce yourself to new people, and you may be surprised at who you meet. fall 2017
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Stuck In The Middle My fiancé and I had a ménage a trio with a casual acquaintance of ours. It went well and we all enjoyed ourselves but our friend has been texting and calling my husbandto-be more frequently as of late and it’s pissing me off. We’ve been getting in arguments about it and I’m not sure where to draw the line. I’d like to have the experience again, but I don’t want an open relationship. Is a good balance between the two even possible?
?
-Three’s Company
Dear Three’s Company, You need to set boundaries with your husband and this casual acquaintance in regards to an appropriate frequency of communication (if one exists). If you find that this experience has birthed insecurities, jealousy and mistrust, it’s possible that a polyamorous relationship isn’t in the cards for you. Take some time to find out what your boundaries are and what you’re comfortable with. It is human nature to become attached to an individual one is sexually intimate with, but if your husband-to-be cannot understand why communicating with this casual acquaintance on a more frequent basis causes you distress, then you need to reevaluate your relationship with him. Don’t compromise your sexual and emotional boundaries for the sake of appeasing your partner.
Under Pressure
?
Do everyone’s parents insist they get married, or just mine? Since my late twenties it’s every visit. I’m almost 40 so it’s getting ridiculous. Does it ever end? -Single and Satisfied
Dear Single and Satisfied, Your parents should be more concerned with your happiness and well-being than your marital status. Many people confuse the two and end up putting unnecessary pressure and unreasonable expectations on their children. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that just over half of American adults are now single, so you’re actually part of a growing majority. If your parents’ comments are making you uncomfortable, tell them about it. You need to let them know they’re mistaken about their assumptions about what makes you happy and what you want for your future. My advice: live the best life you can live for yourself without dragging the chains of other’s expectations through it.
Lack of Lust
?
Dear Lonely Lover,
My wife and I barely have sex. We’ve even started sleeping in different rooms. She’s seeing a therapist and I’ve been seeing one, too, but we can’t seem to get in the groove. We’ve got a million exercises and plans to work on, but it’s getting tough and I wanted your opinion.
Take comfort in knowing that this is an extremely common complaint. Sexual partners often have different levels of sexual desire at different times in their lives. Research also shows that men greatly exaggerate the amount of sex they’re having when talking with friends. So, don’t panic. I suggest you and your wife attend couples counseling to promote communication, learn about the problems in your marriage, and discover what you each need from the other to solve them. Having your own therapist for personal growth and reflection is helpful, but if you’re not working together to practice therapeutic exercises with a professional, you’re putting yourselves at a disadvantage. Through couples therapy you may gain perspective on your problems.
-Lonely Lover
Timeless Engagement Rings
Dear New To Town,
Unsafe Scenario
?
I’m transgender and I’m new to Pittsburgh. I’ve seen and heard some transphobic, racist, and small-minded people in town. I haven’t been on any dates since I got here a couple of weeks ago. Is Pittsburgh really as closed-minded as that? I was at pride week and I know there’s a great LGBTQ+ community here, but there’s also a lot of assholes. Should I be worried about this city? Can I go out on dates here without the fear of being attacked by some redneck I accidentally meet online? -New To Town
If you experience any harassment, report it to the police immediately. There’s a community here to offer support while you navigate this new city. Pittsburgh groups like TransPride and The Garden of Peace Project are great places to reach out for support if you experience harassment. Another resource a colleague of mine pointed to was Pittsburgh’s Transgender Resource Guide: transgenderresourcespgh.blogspot. comnumber. As a transgender individual, you’re at a much greater risk of harassment and violence than other segments of our population and our current political climate fuels hatred for minorities of all stripes. Do not allow those small minds to determine your outlook on a city after only being here a few short weeks. Give Pittsburgh a chance and do a bit more exploration. Attend some more LGBTQ+ events. There are people in this city with similar life experiences. Online dating apps always come with risks no matter what your gender, but it’s more dangerous for the trans community. You cannot let that fear stop you from getting out there and meeting people with whom you can trust and feel comfortable.
Found at the Clark Building
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UP with
GROWING
STANLEY
CUPS By: Ian Mikrut
Ian is a freelance writer-photographer and native Pittsburgher. He writes about and photographs craft beer, live music/performances, businesses, and events. He’s a self described vinyl collector and NBA junkie.
It’s clear I’m unprepared. Sitting in a sticky airport in northern Florida, pant legs already rolled up to reveal pale legs, I start to remove more layers: the gray 412 snap back that’s served me since college, a fresh, heavy Steel City hoodie, and underneath it all a 2017 Stanley Cup Champs locker room T-shirt. I’m covered in baggage from home, literally and otherwise. My phone tells me it’s a beautiful day with temperatures in the upper 80’s – smooth sailing and a fresh start. But the mountain of humidity outside suggests I’ve still got a climb ahead of me. 2016 wasn’t always the kindest to me. I unexpectedly lost an important person in my life, someone very close to the one I love. Loss and death were things that I had experienced before, but this was a harsh gut shot. I felt a real loss of control and direction, like the safety net of youth had been stripped away. It’s hard to be someone’s rock when you’re not sure what’s holding you in place. Perhaps the greatest feeling of helplessness is realizing the extent of someone else’s pain, knowing there is nothing you can do for them but be there and say, ‘I know.’ I had just moved to the North Side, tucked somewhere between Deutschtown and the base of Troy Hill. This made frequent trips to Allegheny General Hospital both convenient and a constant reminder of the shitty hand life can deal. That spring the Penguins would make a run for their first Stanley Cup in seven years. It was a welcome distraction that also unintentionally weaved its way into some of my worst memories.
Dough To Go On a chilly evening in March I was driving home after work to make dinner with the kids. It was my turn to cook that evening but at 6:30 I had no time to shop. So, I pulled over to to grab a pie at a place my friends have been raving about, Crust Cafe and Pizzeria in Upper St. Clair. I walked in during a dinner rush and surveyed the dining room. Delicious sandwiches, Sicilian and Hand-Tossed Pizza, bottles of wine (This place is BYOB!) the place was buzzing! The smells were enough to make my mouth water. I stepped to the counter to order a pizza to go. “Take and bake?” asked the counter girl. “Take and... what?” I responded, a bit perplexed. “Yeah, we make fresh dough every day, toss it, cover it with our signature pizza sauce and fresh cheese. We use market fresh toppings of your choice, shrink wrap it and you can bake it at home like it came fresh from our oven.” “How long do I have to cook the pie?” “As long as you bake it within 24 hours, you’re fine. Just pop it in your oven and you’ll have a perfect pizza in 15 minutes. Plus, all Take and Bake pizzas are discounted.” Sold. I jumped in my car, called my wife and had the oven pre-heated by the time I got home. I let my kids open up the package. They peeled back the lid to reveal our gourmet treasure inside. We slid it into the oven and within minutes the house flled with the wonderful aroma of a fresh home cooked meal. The crust slowly turned golden brown, the pepperoni sizzled and my son counted down the minutes as the cheese slowly melted. We sat at the table and devoured the pie in minutes fat. Crispy, hot and fresh from my oven. My advice? Do yourself a favor and stop in for a slice. You won’t be disappointed!
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45 STEELTHISMAG.COM
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This isn’t a muse about the power of sports to transcend entertainment, to teach life lessons and lift the spirit. Being a fan was a habit that permeated life growing up within a 20-mile radius of the city. That spring watching hockey became something to do to avoid the subjects of doctors, options, and uncertainty – something to fill the few free moments in-between the tunnel vision. When the long dreaded, middle of the night phone call came, the Penguins had just clinched an Eastern Conference Finals berth. And watching the ensuing Conference and Stanley Cup Championships that followed was more habit than actual distraction. I remember tearing down East Ohio Street blasting Queen’s, “We are the Champions,” in a vain attempt to enjoy the moment. I ultimately felt disappointed by my own indifference and the feeling of angst at no longer having that distraction meant that the coming days, weeks, and months ahead would be filled with facing the void that the loss of someone important in your life makes. When I was younger I imagined I’d head west or flock to New York for no other reason than it seemed like a thing that you’re supposed to do. As a writer I dreamed that moving to a mecca would be a seamless transition to inspired work, entry to a larger network of creators, and maybe even a regular paycheck. Naïve? Yes. Possible? Certainly. I think everyone gets that Springsteen itch to skip town at one point or another. But if there was a time for that kind of move, I thought it had definitely passed. What surprised me most was realizing that I no longer wanted to chase that dream, and everything I was looking for could be found in my backyard of Pittsburgh.
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were constant reminders. Allegheny loomed in the distance of the view front door. I could see the exact AGH I had looked out of just before and I couldn’t help but was looking out of it now.
General from my window of months wonder who
There’s a certain comfort in routines, in knowing what to expect and when. While this can be advantageous in the year following a big loss, routines can also have their pitfalls. With comfort can come c o m p l a c e n c y, resulting in a lack of change that would otherwise be beneficial. Take it from me, it’s alarmingly easy to get to a place where you find yourself going through the motions. I had gotten too comfortable in Pittsburgh, too quick to let my favorite places become the only places I went, the routine another cozy distraction. And that went for any work I pursued, as well. Despite all the growth and amazing things I read about the city on a weekly basis, I couldn’t actually see or be a part of it. As odd as it seems to want to leave Pittsburgh at a time like this, with people flocking here and so much innovation emerging, the events of the last year had burned me out. The indifference I felt the night of the Stanley Cup victory had returned, but this time with my Pittsburgh experience as a whole, trying again to carve out a moment that ultimately felt forced. My yinzer tinted glasses just grew a little jaded.
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The reset button took us somewhere we probably wouldn’t have chosen otherwise, and farther south than I ever thought I’d live, but we committed fully and started getting used to the idea of living in Jacksonville, Florida. Neither of us had a clue about what we had in store. Jacksonville? I hadn’t noticed it on any Forbes lists, but it had beaches, warm winters and brought a new sense of possibility. What we didn’t expect from our last few months in Pittsburgh was the freedom it would bring. Freedom to enjoy Pittsburgh again, to be grateful for the experiences it’s brought and how it’s shaped what life’s potential looks like moving forward.
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And when the Stanley Cup Playoffs rolled around this year, they once again aligned with a significant change in my life. But they were no longer a distraction. Like an old friend who you’d gone through something
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When my fiancé (one of the few truly wonderful things 2016 brought) had career opportunities that would take us out of Pittsburgh, we both said yes without wavering. What else do you do when you’re feeling stuck? Moving for work felt more like pressing the reset button than running from anything.
NORTH
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48 STEELTHISMAG.COM
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terrible with, things would never be exactly the same, but that was ok. Maybe you’re better for it. In this case another championship felt like a personal victory lap, and a chance to actually, genuinely enjoy it for what it was. This year as toasts were made, confetti falling, cheering all around, I was rooted firmly in a place I loved, with people I loved even more and excitement at what was to come for the first time in a long time. And for as much as I thought I was looking forward to leaving, I found the final weeks leading up to our departure moved too quickly. If the last decade has shown us anything it’s that there are big-little cities everywhere full of interesting people, organizations and businesses doing amazing things. There’s always a new hipster paradise and every city has its own self-proclaimed version of Brooklyn (yes, it turns out Jacksonville has one, too; a neighborhood actually named Brooklyn that’s undergone a lot of change itself). What changes are the individuals that come together, bringing big ideas that help push that culture and uniquely shape it. Every city has a vibe. What’s always interested me about Pittsburgh, especially recently, is how many transplants make up the movers and shakers. The fierce loyalty and hard work of longtime natives that have helped usher Pittsburgh into this new age is undeniable, but transplant stories end in conversion often enough that the lines get blurry. And if it’s not transplants, it’s a homecoming of sorts for individuals who had left for a time and are now bringing those experiences back. So far Jacksonville has brought kindness from strangers, a new community, a sense of adventure that exploring any new place brings, and warmth in more ways than Florida’s “endless summer.” We all have our baggage and scars. My latest are still a little fresh, but I’m excited to be the new kid for a change. Maybe if I’m lucky I’ll have my own successful transplant story, bringing a little bit of Pittsburgh to the Sunshine State. I’m not sure if a homecoming will ever be in the cards, but I’m already feeling pretty lucky to have called Pittsburgh home, scars and all.
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A BIG STEP FORWARD Kirsten Lowe-Rebel gets the studio she deserves By: John Dubosky
Fall 2017
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If you follow Steel This Magazine, you’re aware of our fondness for local artist Kirsten Lowe-Rebel. Her work has graced the cover many times, including this issue, and our staff has enjoyed her sketches of town so much that our brand has become synonymous with her cityscapes (the Steel This Magazine website banner is one of her sketches of downtown that adorned our first issue). An article catching up with Lowe-Rebel is long overdue, so here I am, officially introducing you.
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I caught up with Lowe-Rebel at her new workshop on the second floor of the Ice House Studios in Central Lawrenceville. Navigating my way through the back alleys of the one hundred blocks near the 40th St. Bridge, I sauntered in five minutes late to our meeting. This was my first time seeing her studio space, and she was excited to show off the new digs. When I walked in, the room looked like she had been there for months. Prints and sketches adorned the southern wall, lit by waist-high windows that envelop the eastern and northern sides. A coffee maker, Lacroix cans, and wine bottles topped with Lowe-Rebel’s signature stoppers gave the warm, welcoming feeling that Lowe-Rebel is known for, her voice rising a few notes with excitement at passing colleagues and acquaintances who pop their heads in her door to say, ‘hi.’ The new space was necessary for her to crack out of her chrysalis, and stretch her wings in a larger ecosystem than her Lawrenceville home and her grandmother’s garage couldn’t provide.
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“I was moving into my grandparents’ garage and just taking up more space, more houses. I thought, ‘how could I pass this up with Lawrenceville, the way things are going and being in the heart of it and being close to my home; it’s the perfect space.’ It happened at the right time, maybe three years too late,” Lowe-Rebel said as she lead me on a short tour around the room.
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Raised by her grandparents, Richard and Rebecca Lowe, Lowe-Rebel has been a maker since a young age, crafting gifts in her grandmother’s Shaler home. “We always worked on things. Something I look back on now that was important was all the Christmas gifts. Every year we made the Christmas gifts for the family, up until I was probably way too old to be giving out handmade Christmas gifts, but it seemed like everybody loved it. And now I get to do that for the whole city. So, I love thinking about that. People are excited to get gifts of my drawings that I’m making. I think it’s so much fun. I love that connection,” said Lowe-Rebel. The influence her grandparents had on her life and work can’t be understated. She and her grandfather began working to complete new jobs as Kirsten’s art worked its way off the canvas and onto bracelets, earrings, throw pillows, and many other decorative media. He was particularly helpful with metal work. It was a segue into a world she hadn’t entered before. They worked closely together until his death last summer. “It’s been a tough year,” said Lowe-Rebel.
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Her grandfather was an engineer with a surgically clean workshop in his garage. That’s where he’d take on projects after retiring in 2011 from owning his own business, the Fuel Equipment Co., which he ran for 34 years. Until later in life when her work collided with his craftsmanship, she had yet to be invited into that world. Her artwork became a catalyst for a budding friendship between the two. “Our relationship really grew. I think we became buddies. His space was always the garage, and then I was welcomed into it. It was a sacred space. He definitely would, unlike me, clean up after every project. You know, ‘let’s take a minute to vacuum the sawdust,’ where I’m, ‘this order needs done, and we have to move and go as it comes.’ I am doing things faster now because of that; I hope he thinks I’m doing a good job. Our relationship changed quite a bit because growing up he was so reserved and had this meticulous engineer mind, but as I grew and wanted to leave day jobs—I always worked like 16 jobs at a time—and I just really wanted to spend that time with the people who raised me, and just missing that generation you know? I was bartending but then I wanted to try these bracelets and I didn’t want to buy them for however much they were pre-made. So, said, ‘Grandpa, you’ve worked with local metal companies while running your business, do you know those water jet cutters from the 60’s?’ He helped me in all start up capacities, passing on tips from his years of entrepreneurship; he was definitely old school. He wouldn’t even buy a drill press. My grandma said, ‘this is a great gift. We can get you a drill press,’ because I needed it for my wood stops, and instead he built the saw to turn it around so it was radial, and built a contraption so it would hold down the cork. It was so unnecessary because a drill press costs something
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like $20 or $60, but he spent a week designing it so his 1960’s Craftsman radial saw could meet all my needs as they came. He loved the challenges. He made these tools to make life easier. He was amazing; he had great wisdom,” Lowe-Rebel said. Now she’s taking what she honed in her grandparents’ house and using it to push forward her expansion into her new studio. To that end, along with the move to the new space, came her first assistant, Caitlin O’Connor. “It’s been a nice balance of finding where we both have our strengths and where we both need help. And I think that we’re lucky because we’re really complimentary on those aspects, you know? I have a little bit more of organizational focus,” said O’Connor. “Yeah, I think it’s about finding the right person with a similar mind with creative ideas. I’m glad that she has some managerial-type tendencies because I’m ready to let it go. All of these pieces are one of a kind; we’re not pumping them out. The cuffs take 17 steps each, and I still sand and touch everything, but I want to let that go a little bit so I can focus on the drawings, which is what this is supposed to be about. I can draw Pittsburgh churches bridges for a lifetime,” said Lowe-Rebel.
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Calling It Quits By: Bob Stallsmith
Bob Stallsmith is a sports writer, comic book enthusiast, and a semi-professional pinball player with Polish Hill ‘Full Tilt’ Pinball.
The fastest man in the world, Usain Bolt, ended his spectacular career on the ground. Tom Brady decided he wasn’t done, saying he could play until he is 45; we’ll see what happens. John Elway and Peyton Manning both decided to saddle their horses and ride off into the sunset on top. Chris Chelios chose to play until he was 47, spending most of his final season of hockey in the minors. Most sports careers don’t get the magical bull crap, Disney sort of storybook ending that people love. I mean, no one likes to remember Emmitt Smith as an Arizona Cardinal. It happened. And it wasn’t pretty.
The most difficult position I’ve been in like this is saying no to that extra beer or slice of pizza at the end of an evening, or not quitting on this article as I write it. But this summer I’ve had to watch what seems like the last steps in the slow push out the door of one my favorite athletes. I didn’t watch hockey with any sort of regularity until the 2004 finals between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Calgary Flames. This was my first time seeing the Flames’ Jarome Iginla play. He was one of the team’s most skilled players, and he was absolutely the toughest guy on the ice. The way he played is very much the reason I became a fan of the sport. Iginla became my new definition of what it meant to be a great hockey player. He stood up for his teammates, he hit, he fought, and he scored. While I’ll admit to being one of the people that thinks fighting should be removed from the game, I’ll always have respect for the guys that aren’t afraid to drop the gloves, and still have the skill to put the puck in the back of the net. Calgary lost the finals. Iginla hasn’t been able to make it back in the thirteen years since. The last four of those have been spent with five different teams after spending his first sixteen seasons in Calgary. I cried real tears when I saw him in a Penguins uniform for the first time. Joyful tears dried away to reveal the sad reality of what Iginla’s career would be for the rest of his time on skates. Over the last three seasons he’s played 244 out of 246 regular season games, which is impressive for a man who just turned 40. Perhaps just as telling is that 246 was the maximum games he could play, but he’s had zero playoff appearances in the last three years. I, on the other hand, decided to end my baseball career after one season of little league. It seemed appropriate at the time, but strikes me as maybe too soon now that I have aged. Walking away comes easier to some than others. I certainly am unable to relate to playing a game at its highest level for two decades. Now he’s supposed to hang up his stick and enjoy the rest of his life, maybe become a coach or a GM somewhere? Knowing when to call it quits is tough for everyone, especially for the most competitive among us. There is no way to know if someone picked that sweet spot because people will always wonder how much was left in the tank, or why someone let it drag out so long. Iginla wants to play and I want to see him play. As of this writing, there are no teams that seem to share that conviction. We can just hope that some team, any team, changes their mind and signs him. Well, any team except the Flyers.
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look before you leak By: Skipper Anderson
Artist rendering of Roman Catholic saint, Kateri Tekakwitha, Lily of the Mohawks
Fall 2017
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Part 1 June & Early July 1972 To say that Hurricane Agnes drenched Pennsylvania does not render justice to that storm. The greater portion of the Commonwealth received at least seven inches of rain. Some places in the northeastern quadrant got inundated with nineteen inches. I mention this because Agnes’s part in my story is like Jacob Marley’s death in Dickens’, A Christmas Carol. The difference being that nothing wonderful comes of it in this tale. I was enjoying my first full year of being a soldier emeritus. Drafted in 1969, I had spent two years in uniform, including, as a matter of course, a year in the Republic of Vietnam. Though I did little to stop the communist dominoes from falling, I was competent enough to be promoted to sergeant before Uncle Sam and I parted company. As a bonus, I was discharged alive. I was living in high cotton until Agnes abruptly entered stage south. The devastation following Agnes was nearly biblical. The Penn Central Railroad had sustained enough damage that Congress eventually stepped in and legislated Conrail into existence. Entire towns had been obliterated. A rumor arose: people in the inactive reserve —my military designation—might be called back to help with flood relief. I found this concept reprehensible, and took steps to avoid becoming, again, a soldier. I fled to Canada! Let me back up. It wasn’t lending a hand to my fellow Pennsylvanians, or shame of my prior efforts in the military that disturbed me, it was that the army might enjoy my services, and send me someplace other than, say, Antigua. How ironic; when I was inducted in May of 1969, I might have taken a trip to Canada, but it never crossed my mind. My dad, who was vehemently opposed to the war, offered to bankroll my escape, but I found the concept offensive and told him so. Imagine his bemusement when I decided to take it on the lam because of rain. But there you have it. Agnes made me a draft dodger! Bob and Jimmy were chums from high school. In a copacetic conversation, Bob told me that not only was he part Indian, but he was also planning an extended visit to his indigenous relatives somewhere in Quebec. Ticketyboo! Thus, on Friday, June 30, 1972, we got in a car and turned north.
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We drove all night. I know the last of our reefer was used well before crossing into Canada at the Thousand Islands. There would be no Cheech and Chong rush of smoke as doors were opened to greet the Mounties. Minutes before dawn we arrived at Kahnawake, a Mohawk village across the St Lawrence from Montreal. Had it been our intention to sneak into town, we failed. There to greet us were about six young, Mohawks finishing their night’s festivities. Bob, who looked and talked like James Stewart, got out of the car and approached them. He quickly established his bona fides as the cousin of not only the chief, but the head policeman. And thus began four days of excessive drinking with our indigenous Canadian brothers. In Canada, tribal people are known as First Nation. I found these folks welcoming and friendly. In honor of our Independence Day, they threw an early party on Saturday. Cases of beer were placed under tarps to warm them up for consumption. I found this extremely gracious if somewhat hard, literally, to swallow. So, much of our four days was spent in debauchery. There are two incidents which should be mentioned. First, Bob’s cousin did not appreciate the French. He told me that as a boy they would go to a Cowboy and Indian movie (his words), and the French would scream, “L’Savage,” when his people appeared. On the wave of a dozen warm Mooseheads, I assured him that I was also no fan of these arrogant snail eaters. Into the house he goes and returns with a scoped 30.06 rifle. We are on his deck, which looks out onto the St. Lawrence, and across the river —about 600 yards—lies a freighter at anchor. The chief raises his rifle and skips a shot into the hull of the boat with a distant, BONG. In an air of triumph, he says, “screw the French!” Then he hands me the rifle and tells me, “shoot the French,” which I gladly did, BONG. Tres magnifique! Screw the French, indeed. The second incident of note is of much greater import. On that Saturday, as I staggered around Kahnawake, the need to relieve myself became immediate. Foregoing swinelike tendencies, I chose modesty, and ducked into a convenient, peaceful grotto and let nature have its way. As you shall see, there is, as Paul Harvey used to say, a rest of the story.
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Part 2 May 30, 1993
Coffee’s for closers.
My wife, young son and infant daughter were distant promises when the Susquehanna left its banks twentyone years prior to this date. Here we were visiting my mom on what the people in my home town referred to as, “Remorial Day.” We all sat on the front porch and watched the annual parade pass by: kids riding bikes with red, white, and blue crepe paper twined through the spokes, Little Leaguers marching on their way to play ball, old soldiers, including a 94-year-old veteran of the Great War, riding in stylish convertibles. My son, the little arsonist, was smitten with the fire trucks. We had a picnic, my wife and infant daughter took a nap, and I went off to the Legion for a beer with my comrades. Later that afternoon, as it was Decoration Day, we drove to the cemetery where my dad and baby brother rest in peace to put flowers near the headstone. My mother will be buried here. Her name is on the stone with her birth date. All that is missing are those final few letters and numbers. I asked her how she felt about that. She said that she found comfort in the certainty of that final math. We talked about my little brother, who was a year younger than me, and had died of the flu caught from the child of people my parents had welcomed into their home after their house burned. We spoke of my dad and his gentle ways. We spoke of my brothers and sister, and family members here and gone. And at that moment I felt an almost painful kinship to my mom. As we stood there pondering, in our own ways, eternity and the meaning of life, a childhood friend of my mother’s approached. Her name was Mary and her late husband resided just up the hill from my dad. They talked, as old friends do, of things ephemeral and precious, and I felt that in their periods of silence they communicated in a manner even they did not understand.
So are we.
When it was time for Mary to leave, my mom asked me to walk her to her car. It was a short distance and I misremember much of the conversation on the journey. When we got to her car, I noticed she had a Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, (Lily of the Mohawks) decal on her car’s back window. When I told her that a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Kateri had just opened near where I now live, Mary just lit up. She told me that she was dedicated to Blessed Kateri, and she credited her prayers to her for intercession for curing her cancer. Mary told me that as a way of showing her gratitude, she had made a pilgrimage to a shrine erected in the saints honor. She told me, “ It’s in a lovely grotto in a town called Kahnawake in Quebec.” BONG!
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