The Manifold Magazine by The Manifold Magazine

manifold

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the spirit of

youth the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

3 When they say “start ‘em young” they were talking about these Random Weirdos as they liked to be called. And while they are learning and performing music for just under a year they had the awesome opportunity to open for The Vandals. They are a perfect example of this issue’s theme: The Spirit of Youth. You can follow them at facebook.com/randomweirdos

photo x

letter from the editor Ah, youth. The feeling that the world is at our feet; we are invincible and anything is possible. I wish I could bottle that feeling and apply it once daily. Somehow as we get older life strips that away. The magic slowly disappears and we become fearful and worried. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bring back the stupid, yeah? Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bring back the road trips, the all nighters, the experimentation, and the feeling that life is precious and we want to enjoy every drop of it. This issue is a homage to that idea... the spirit of youth. This issue contains such a range of interesting people who take chances, embody a certain spirit, and make us feel inspired and motivated, and we hope we pass along that feeling to you every time you flip through this issue.

--Napua

The Manifold Magazine is an open submission publication. We are proud to feature contributors from all over the world with stories worthy of being told. Make your submissions to TheManifoldMag@gmail.com.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

masthead

creative director & editor: napua camarillo

Contributors 5

Marina Miller’s work is all over this magazine . Looking at the world through her eyes is a pleasure we hope to continue enjoying.

sales & marketing: jermaine fletcher

Marina Miller was born and raised on O’ahu where she is raising her own brood of 4 boys. She started her photography business, Red Heart Photography, in 2006 shooting weddings mostly. She spends most of her time behind the camera underwater these days.

copy editor: laka “the clean” sanchez

Marina can be found @ redheartphoto.com

contributing writers: genese debeaux (ny) ehren bowling (thailand) travis hancock (hi) napua camarillo (hi) jermaine fletcher (ny) jennifer ginsberg (co) sean reilly (hi) lucas sciberras (mi) contributing photographers: matt miller (nc) christopher “cmart” martin (ny) aaron mcmullen (hi) marina miller (hi) ryan struck (nj) contributing illustrators: kris goto (hi) special thanks to: all the people who supported and helped make this issue possible

We are honored to have Kris Goto’s beautiful illustration gracing our pages (p 10/11). She was born in Japan and has been living outside of it since the age of nine. Her aspiration to become a professional manga artist never wavered until she discovered the simplicity and beauty of thin tipped pen and the world of black and white. Goto moved to Hawaii 7 years ago, where she now works in her studio at the Artists Lofts, in Chinatown, Honolulu. And Goto has recentlybeen chosen to be a part of this year’s Pow Wow in Hnl.

Kris can be found @ kris-goto.com Luke Sciberras is a good-humored character who enjoys expressing observations and personal philosophy in poetry and essaystyle writings. Luke has a wide array of hobbies including online gaming, spreading liberty, and playing outdoor sports like softball and tennis. Luke can be found @ doseofluka.wordpress.com Ryan Struck quit his job at an ad agency and started pursuing surf photography full time. And recently his photos have been in Surfer and Stab, not to mention a long list of websites. We think that bold move is going to pay off for him in leaps and bounds! You can read about him in our next issue but for now you can see his work on p. 46. Ryan can be found @ ryanstruck.com

contents Art

S k a t e/S u r f

Fashion

Kat Reeder combines retro imagery with a modern twist. Read all about her in this Q&A.

Cristobal Keller is our cover boy proving that making a living at what you love doing is entirely possible.

Ella Aki canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help being sexy. Check her out in LOLITA.

Adrian McElhaney is our skater spotlight for more than one reason...

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

#just croozin 2012 = boys, beers, and boards

Fashion

4 surfers from 4 different places, allow us to compare notes in our Versus section.

Julia Currier is delightful in our womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fashion spread titled, YOUNG LADY.

RippleEffect

Profiles

Music

Fashion

Columns

The Ripple Effect found a photographer who turns children’s imaginations into reality.

Emily Nielsen is rocking out for the second installation of The Ripple Effect.

Free People designer, Courtney Rafter found her bliss in Austin TX. Find out how

Named one of the hottest chefs in NYC under 30, Emma Hearst tells us her future plans.

He’s young, talented, and destined for a big future in music. See Ray Hodge on our website to understand why we love him

A Day in LA covers Men’s fashion shot by very talented Sierra Prescott.

We’ve got 3 regular columnists. 1 in NYC, 1 in Thailand, 1 in London. Check in.

photos x marina miller

“I beg young people to travel.

If you don’t have a passport, get one. Take a summer, get a backpack and go to Delhi, go to Saigon, go to Bangkok, go to Kenya. Have your mind blown, eat interesting food, dig some interesting people and have an adventure, be careful. Come back and you’re going to see your country differently, you’re going to see your president differently, no matter who it is. Music, culture, food, water. Your showers will become shorter. You’re going to get a sense of what globalization looks like. It’s not what Tom Friedman writes about, I’m sorry. You’re going to see that global climate change is very real. And that for some people, their day consists of walking 12 miles for four buckets of water. And so there are lessons that you can’t get out of a book that are waiting for you at the other end of that flight. A lot of people- Americans and Europeans- come back and go “Ohhhhh”. And the light bulb goes on.”

Henry Rollins

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

John Florence 4 Questions with John Florence

Make no mistake about John John OR John Florence as he prefers to be called now, he’s the man. And for a 20 year old with his rap sheet to make time for small timers like us, we are beginning to understand why the word around town is: he’s the most humble and bad-ass surfer in this industry! Time out for 4 Qs in seek of some serious A’s with John “MotherF@ckin” Florence.

At this level of your career what would you say is your biggest obstacle?

Getting a 10 at Pipe was definitely one of my goals in life but I think my main goals in life will be winning the pipe Masters and hopefully a world title someday.

For me my biggest obstacles have been keeping the pressure off and having a good head space. It’s funny the crazy tricks your mind will play on you when you’re under pressure. I’ve heard around town that your a super rad humble guy. What do you think attributes to that? I just don’t think about it, I’m still a kid and have fun with my friends just like anyone else.

You scored a perfect 10 last year at Pipe what other career goals do you have?

What has been the most amazing thing about your youth? And what do you hope you can say by the time you’re old as balls? The most amazing thing that I have had being young is being able to see the world since I was little kid, getting to travel around and see all the different surf communities. And when I get older I just want to have the feeling that there was something that I could have done that I missed out on.

Keep your eyes peeled for JJF’s newest surf movie Done out soon on iTunes. In the meantime, to hold you over, you can check out Delayed Departure on our website.: TheManifoldMag.net And get ready for JJF’s photo spread in Contrast magazine.

poem x lucas sciberras illustration x kris goto

Let streams of water Erode the years And feel joy Manifest as tears Swim free,

Like when we were young and carefree, And not old and Lost at sea

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

dont miss out subscribe 5 issues $32 email themanifoldmag@gmail.com keyword: â&#x20AC;&#x153;orderâ&#x20AC;?

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@themanifold

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

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THINGS I wish I knew when I was younger

1. Trust your gut. Intuition is the most valuable thing we have. If something feels off it probably is. Don’t doubt yourself or let someone make you feel crazy. Laka Sanchez, tattoo artist 2. Karma does exist, and it’s a bitch, but you have to have faith in it. of weird things

NC, photographer and collector

3. Be honest, who cares if people can’t handle it. Talk to anyone, no one is superior or better than you. We are all made of the same shit, people just have different talents. Michael Fry, bartender and surly devil

6. You’re going to regret the things you didn’t do vs. the things you did do. photographer

Aaron McMullen, skater and

7. Don’t take anything too seriously and know you are brilliant. Don’t be afraid to be derivative. Only do things you love. If you have to do things you don’t love find a way to love it. Always do your best and trust the universe will unfold to your betterment. Serena Hashimoto, business owner and band manager of Black Square 8. Have no fear or shame in the dignity of your own experience, language and knowledge. writer and general bad ass 9. Don’t stop taking French.

Jack Keroauc,

Scott Jennings, engineer

10. Learn to handle your money.

Maggie Smith, soldier

11. People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. idea. Erik Owen, construction worker.

Learn to make your peace with this

12. Forgiving, once you get the hang of it, can be the most freeing feeling. P, Nurse

Anger has no value.

Nicole

13. Don’t allow worry to be a reaction to any situation. Always be enroute to something. No stagnation. Oh, and blackout less! John Ridgeway, Coast Guarder and one half of the band Dischord and Rye.

T h i n g s

5. Caring about what others do or think is useless-- we all go at our own speed, in our own path, to our own place. Roxanne Murphy, beach lover and mixologist

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4. Never stop learning things, even if you only go to 10th grade.. college isn’t for everyone.. high school isn’t for everyone. Just keep learning. Jasmine Mancos, harajuku wannabe

Kat Reeder

text x napua camarillo illustrations x kat reeder

Hawaiian vintage revival

ne of the things I love most about Hawaii is that it truly is a melting pot of cultures. We are in the middle of the ocean with countries like Japan, the Philippines, China, and Samoa in the distance. We borrow from Japanese culture the taking off of ones shoes before entering a home, the constant at-hand rice cooker fully-loaded, not to mention the mixture of languages into what is now known as a broken English ebonics called Pidgeon. And with these cultural mixtures, I hate to toot our own horns, we make some of the most beautiful exotic mixed race women in the world. Yes, I’m biased. SO, when I see our culture being so beautifully portrayed through illustration, I had to investigate into the brains behind these images. Kat Reeder, an import from Miami via Peru felt drawn to this culture and it’s magical qualities. She then settled down into these islands reviving an old vintage feel to our Hawaiian beauties. Looking through these images, I find myself wanting to live in her illustrations, and realizing, uh, durrr, I do! Let’s get a full read on Kat Reeder, shall we?

Kat Reeder was born In Peru, a beautiful land that was at the time in uncertainty, so her parents immigrated to Florida and settled in Miami, where Kat grew interested in art eventually attending college at the University of Southern Florida and then moving on to Miami Ad School for graphic design. She was graphically motivated but always kept illustration at bay producing sooner or later the piece that she claims had a snowball effect into her Hawaiian beauties collection to this day entitled, Hawaiian Girls (displayed below this very text). After being especially motivated by Hawaii as a place to settle down, she moved to Honolulu and dreamt of designing, creating, and leaving her mark on the islands. She did just that through a special collaboration with LeSportsac Honolulu, when offered an opportunity to showcase her illustration skills on a special edition of a Hawaii-only collaboration that she jumped at the chance for, saying that ‘‘It’s funny when I first moved here, I thought about how cool it’d be to design for them.’’” It seemed reality of the fantasy was just as sweet.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

A few words with Kat

I live in Ewa Beach, Oahu

A hard lesson I’ve learned about saving people from selfdestruction is that you cannot care more than they do.

Art is also the mirror image of music and one of the vital components of cultural identity.

What’s your medium?

Personal inspiration?

Current biggest challenge?

Gouache, watercolor, pencil and digital painting

Bad-ass, don’t-put-me-in-a-box femme fatales like Salome, Frida Kahlo, Maria Felix....and hell, Catwoman too.

My biggest challenge right now is balancing the necessary evil that is business administration and creating new works.

Artistic influences?

If you could collaborate with one other artist dead or alive who would it be?

Where do you live?

How old are you? In the prime of my life. :) In your own words, how did you start doing art, and what have you gained from it? I started drawing to make people happy. I loved giving drawings to friends as gifts and sending art to my father after he migrated to the US. What’s your personal philosophy? Every moment in life should be scored by music. Every happy feeling should be expressed through dance. Every statement of love should be told through cooking. Hardest lesson ever learned??

Frida Kahlo, Alphonse , Adam Hughes. Proudest piece? Hawaiian Girls. It was a spontaneous creation where all the elements worked together perfectly. For the rest of my life, I will attempt to recapture that magic. Dream commission job? My dream job would be either creating a mural for a historic hotel like Moana Surfrider or creating a graphic for the Hawaiian Airlines jetliners. Art is ____all there is_________

Dead: Alphonse Mucha. Alive: Adam Hughes. What do you hope your art accomplishes right now? What do you hope it to accomplish in the future.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

I hope my art elicits happiness and romance. I want to promote a multiethnic standard of beauty and encourage others to celebrate different cultures from around the world. Do you have an artistic process? My process begins with immersing myself in music--first and always. I create various thumbnails to nail down he layout before beginning a master pencil sketch. I then either paint in gouache or create my colors digitally, incorporating various textures and painted elements. My final output is either as a limited edition canvas print or watercolor paper. Do you have any advice that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d give to up and coming artists? No matter how talented you are or how annoyed you are by clients, you must always be a professional. As communicators, it is our job to educate clients about our process and artistic vision. In todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s digital world, news travels fast. No one wants to hire a prima donna. Be a professional. Be courteous, and always deliver on time!

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every moment in life should be scored by music. Every happy feeling should be expressed through dance. Every statement of love should be told through cookingâ&#x20AC;?. the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Cristobal Keller

interview x jermaine fletcher images x cristobal keller

When I first stumbled upon Cristobal’s work, it was a nice relief from realistic paintings and back to the days of whimsy and playfulness. Bold colors with a certain skate appeal that brings your homie from down the street straight to your living room via acrylics and canvas. Cristobal’s resourcefulness to paint his characters is admirable, transforming random objects into “mind of tobal” originals. Everything from skate decks, to wooden thrifted hearts, and even milk cartons are all subject to his handy work. And it’s not just his art, it’s his character that makes him worthy of investigation.

Who are you and where are you from? My name is Tobal, and I’m from Ceres, CA. As an artist, what are you striving for? (In terms of your style, image and message) It sounds cheesy but I just want to help make the world a better place. Nothing feels better than creating something that makes people stop and smile. Who and what are your biggest influences? I’m influenced by everything. I can get ideas from a movie, a joke, nature, skateboarding etc...the world influences me everyday. As far as specific artists I really look up to are Kaws, Sam Flores, Andy Jenkins, Nikko Hurtado, Mike Giant, Travis Millard, David Choe are the first that come to mind. What would you define as ground-breaking? Ground breaking to me is something that you’ve never seen done before and makes you actually stop and study it. the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

The theme of this issue is “youth”. Taking that word into your own consideration...What comes to your mind as it relates to you, your life and your environment? I feel like youth is not so much an age thing, but a mentality. It’s being able to not worry so much about life and find joy in everything, even your trials. I’m 30 now, more bills and responsibility, but I still make sure I’m having just as much fun as when I was 17. Still skating, still creating and still smilin What is your personal, day-to-day, philosophy? How can I be better than I was yesterday? I never want to settle for being mediocre. We all have amazing potential to do things, so why not do them. One of the areas of The Manifold that we’re trying to build is the “inspiration” and “instruction”, so how do you do what you do?

Where do you begin?

I kind of use the same method I’ve always used to get where I want to be. I start by writing long term goals of where I want to be, then I write a list of short term goals on what I need to do to obtain the long term ones. Writing your goals down just motivates me daily cause I see it right in front of me daily to remind me to get to work! Are you able to showcase your work? I do showcase my work at art shows, and my blog. With technology these days you have so many resources to help you get out there. Free social media sites, free blogs, twitter, instagram etc.... The world is seriously a click away. It’s awesome. Do you find yourself developing your own technique or using some of the techniques you have learned over the time you have been an artist? My technique of painting is-- I have no technique. I just paint what makes me happy and what I feel I would like to have on my wall. I think that’s the biggest thing you can do as an artist, is just be yourself.

“I never want to settle for being mediocre”

I think in art it’s really important to create a style and you’ve done that in such a whimsical way. Where did your style come from? I think it comes from my lack of talent in certain areas to be honest. For example I used to try to paint something realistic like a bear, but I would hit a point in the painting where I wouldn’t know how to make the body look right. So instead of having a lopsided bear I would think in my head ” oh screw it” I’m just gonna have him standing up like a human and put a white shirt and tie on him. So I guess my style comes from just improvising in the areas I lack in, as well as watching a lot of cartoons growing up. I really enjoy your blog because you go through all of your art and tell us where your inspiration comes from. You seem to pump out work on the regular how often do you make pieces? I love to paint. Or even better I just love to create. When I wake up I already have ideas going through my head of what I want to see come to life. When my eyes just can’t take it anymore and they need to shut, my mind is thinking of what I’m going to do next. So I would say I’m creating new art daily. I don’t think I could stop if I tried. You’ve mentioned before that you are a man of faith how do you feel that comes into play in your life and in your art? It comes into play daily for me. I believe whatever talents I do possess is for a reason, and that reason is to try to do some good in this world. Even if it’s as small as making someone smile. the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Is there a reason why you have a lot of characters in disguise or wearing“animal hoodies” etc? I tried to reach deep down in my soul and give you a deep answer but honestly I just think it looks cool. What’s your normal medium? I guess that depends on how much money is in my wallet at the time. Sometimes the image in my head looks perfect for a canvas, but sometimes I’ll look at my stack of old skateboards and start to see different images on them. So it’s about even between canvas and old skate decks. Actually lately I’ve been really into painting on old milk cartons.

To investigate Cristobal Keller further you can find more of his work at Mindoftobal.blogspot.com

Lolita photography x napua camarillo modeled x ella aki

above: bikini top x Lspace $69, bikini bottoms x hisla $26, vintage sweater x barrio vintage $19, boots x Forever 21 $20, knee highs x Forever 21 $4.99, vintage bangles x Mish Mash shop

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

right: jean shorts x Abercrombie & Fitch $34.50, white vintage sheer blouse $15 x Mish Mash Shop, Bikini top x Lspace $^69

previous page and above: hat x stetson $75.00 x Mish Mash, vintage lace top $ 15 x Mish Mash, vintage necklaces from modelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s personal collection, vintage boots $25

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

vintage jeans x levis $19 @Barrio Vintage, white top x American Apparel $22, vintage jean jacket $15 x Barrio Vintage.

Ella is no doubt a beautiful girl. It might be her Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese ethnicity, her killer bod, and the fact that she surfs. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s better? She works for a sustainability company. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s better than a hottie who cares about the environment? Nothing! You can follow Ella @bellaumbrella on instagram to keep up with her daily adventures.

Adrian McElhaney

intro x sean reilly images x matt miller & christopher martin

Adrian is the style tech dawg on the Natural Koncept squad, hailing from the same hood as the Skate Mafia!! SD Represent! As a teammate I’ve been fortunate to travel half the states in the country with Adrian skating and partying. On a trip to Northern Georgia we were being shown around looking for spots and the tour guide said, “Just down the road is where the KKK is said to have originated.” We all slowly turned and looked at the only brutha on the team, Adrian, who jokingly said “Maybe I should just stay in the van.””And in calm Southern twang, the tour guide replied, “Yeah, you might want to.” In all the weird and crazy situations we’ve been through across the nation, Adrian has always maintained his humility, generosity and massive pop on a skateboard. I am proud to call him a friend and wish the best of luck on his move to the Big Apple...

Age: 24 Hometown: San Diego Sponsors: Natural Koncept, Osiris, Route 44 skate shop Years Skating: 13 Favorites::::: Favorite trick to do? My favorite trick to do is any trick I can do well and consistently. So that varies depending on the day. In the end, a well done kickflip feels great. Favorite skate/street/spot to skate? The streets of Spain contain the best terrain I’ve ever had the pleasure of skateboarding. Rhymin.... Favorite skate video? Toy Machine’s “Welcome to Hell” on VHS. It was the first skateboard video I ever owned. I watched that video a few times a day, everyday. I like all the new videos too but Welcome to Hell marks the beginning of skating for me.

Favorite skater and why?

2AM.

There are a lot of awesome skateboarders that are favorites of mine. Stefan Janoski is definitely one of them. I really like his effortless style and trick selection. He makes tough tricks look too easy. I enjoy watching his skating.

What do you love about touring?

LOVE/HATE What do you love about where you’re from? Well, I’m from San Diego. San Diego offers everything for everyone. We have awesome beaches where you can do all types of beach activities. The weather is great all year round. If you really want to change it up, Mexico is just a few minutes away. Other than that, San Diego has tons of skate spots and is a really laid back city.

Traveling, skateboarding, and beer. I’m not sure where to begin. Hahaha... Touring is crazy. When you start off, you feel fresh and ready for anything. Then from there, it all goes downhill. Just playing. Touring is such a good time. I love traveling, so it’s great to visit new cities. Once you get to the new city or town, you get to meet the locals and they show you all the cool stuff there is to do there. Sometimes there isn’t much to do and other times it gets pretty eventful. It’s nice to skate new spots and meet new people. You end up spending a lot of time with the people you’re on tour with during the long van rides. As long as everyone is getting along, it’s nothing but good times.

What do you dislike?

Hate?

There’s not much to dislike about San Diego. I guess it would be cool if the bars here would stay open later than

There’s not much to dislike when you’re out on tour. I guess one thing that I disliked was when a few of the teammates were attacked by bed bugs

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

photo x

from some sketchy motel that we stayed at. It looked like hell. Those dudes were literally being tortured. They had bites all over their bodies. Where they had bites, they were swelling up. It was bad! I really hope that doesn’t happen again. That’s the last thing that you want to deal with while you’re on tour. Share with us a funny/gnarly/crazy skate story from your adventures. This story dates back to our tour that we did in California. The tour started in Los Angeles. So the back story is that we went to visit the Pull-In Underwear store in L.A. It was a sort of celebration/party. Pull-In Underwear was a major sponsor of our tour. While we were at the store, we were drinking and having a good time. After drinking with the Pull-In guys, we began the tour and headed up North to Santa Cruz. By the time we had reached Northern California, everyone was sleeping and hung over. It was late night and rainy. We were lost, trying to find our way to Santa Cruz. It’s not unusual for us to get lost. The driver pulled the van over to figure out where to go but he ended up pulling the van into some thick mud. When we tried to drive out, we couldn’t. We were stuck. We were in the middle of nowhere so there wasn’t anyone who could help us, so, we all had to wake up, get out of the van and push. It was so ridiculous, we were covered in mud. A few of the guys fell into the mud because it was so slippery. It took a good 15 minutes before we were able to break free. Hahaha. It was pretty bad, back in the van all muddy, dirty, and hung over.

photo x matt miller of youth the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit

Matt Miller helped take some of these photos. He was born and raised on the skate and surf culture of Wilmington, NC. He found a passion for photography at age 15 and followed the passion to college. Matt graduated in May 2012 from Appalachian State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Technical Photography and General Business.

photo x christopher martin

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

#justcroozin2012

text x travis hancock images x aaron mcmullen

“and” in there can be pretty fucking rad if you do k, so this is where I write all about “youth” it right. Despite our many follies, my friends and I through the beer-goggled lens that was my summer managed to carve out a healthy slice of “and” time of travels and adventures with a bunch of borderline this summer. Our troubles melted in the sun and we scumbags. Are you ready? If not stop reading. But achieved what felt like some new rendition of the wait! First, know this: there is only one truth: death. American Dream, measured in leisure and carefree We will all die and there is no God or higher power, self-abuse rather than financial success. To be sure, unless of course you consider electro-magnetism. our collective financial situation was altogether That’s a fine conversation I am willing to have, but devastated by the merrymaking. elsewhere. All else aside, you live and die; but that If you are still with me then good for you–most good ‘ole fashion American readers have thrown this magazine down and are sitting cross-armed with scowls on their faces shaking their heads disdainfully. Before I continue, allow me to add two caveats, two little tidbits, I’ve been meaning to get off my chest for various reasons. The first is Fuck Arizona (the hot-tubs there are too hot!), and the second, obviously, is Fuck Golf. Anyway, as I was saying, life and death. Ya’ gotta do your damndest to stretch that “and” out. Well, stretching requires some application of force, which is attained via movement. That’s the ticket: movement. In a word, youth is about movement; and death is defined by its stillness. People such as myself find that one of, if not the, best way to prolong youth is by moving often and quickly. That’s why extreme athletes seem to maintain their teenagedness (such as myself, and yes I would like to make it perfectly clear that I am an extreme motherfucking athlete and that this article is actually about the X-Treme sport of skateboarding). It’s also why Lance Armstrong was able to lose a nut and still win the Tour de France (although the steroids helped too, a lot). Finally, constant movement is why George Clooney seems like such hot shit in the first half of the Jason Reitman film, Up in the Air. If you haven’t seen it, it’s the movie where he is basically a professional airplane passenger. His job requires him to fly daily like an angel of death who swiftly delivers mass layoff notices to hardworking people. But none of this phases Clooney, because his persistent movement creates an almost impenetrable bubble of youthful bliss. Eventually, the bubble pops, when Vera Farmiga’s character gives him a reality check and breaks his heart. That point in the movie is sort of analogous to the hangovers I endured at regular intervals this summer. But unlike Clooney’s character, who only had 109 minutes of screen time to make a full character arc, I had days upon days to rebound from my lows.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

“...we achieved what felt like some new rendition of the American Dream, measured in leisure and carefree self-abuse rather than financial success.”

So what the hell am I talking about? I am talking about a phenomenon called #justcroozin2012. What’s that? It’s an Instagram hash tag in the inter web. What’s that? I don’t really know. Less than five years ago, such nomenclature would be utterly meaningless. Before the invention of the hashtag-o-plex realm, our experiences with ampersands were proportionate to our pay phone usage. When compared to the Industrial Revolution, our generation hasn’t actually invented shit in the way of tangible objects that enhance our lives. We just re-invent phones and cameras and load them up with time wasting methods to avoid actually talking to people in real life. These lamentations aside, what do exist are actual people and their stories, which sometimes intersect with other people to create a larger story. Sometimes, from this is even born an idea. I broached an idea earlier: movement = youth. That was the unspoken idea driving #justcroozin2012. And due to our current point in time and technology, the various debauched intersections between my friends and I that corroborated that idea were documented via Instagram. What follow will be brief character sketches of the actors and captions describing the fateful events. The #justcroozin2012 experience happened all over the island of Oahu, tended to by bright skies and crystalline seas. In total, the island played host to somewhere between 10 and 12 men with skateboards, unshaven faces and beers in hand up and down the month of August, 2012. Half of these gents hailed from California, while myself and the others were locals. But the process of convincing the Cali boys to get over to Hawaii was an adventure itself which takes us back into June and July, during which time I was gallivanting around Los Angeles. Every day in L.A. was a skate mission and every night was a party of some kind. The name of my game was “say yes to everything.” This M. O. led to skate spots, schoolyards, skate parks, rooftops in the Hollywood Hills, hotel balconies, the ‘Bu, Las Vegas for 24 hours during which many drugs and dollar margaritas were consumed, and Palm Springs for an entirely different 24 hours during which rental car keys were literally lost among the tumbleweeds. As I embarked on each of these experiences, my main goal was to try to spread enough Aloha vibes to my compadres in hopes of sealing the deal on a Hawaiian trip, upon which I could return their favors and allow them to wreck havoc on my turf. It worked.

The first photos in #justcroozin2012 come from the feed of my buddy Max. Max is a small man with a big heart and a newly formed affinity for a red and green shot called the Wolfbite. He acquired a taste for them at Honolulu’s Downbeat Diner and Lounge, where he consumed a record eight in one sitting. This is not recommended. The green color in the Wolfbite comes from absinthe, and to the typical drinker one splash of the bohemian elixir is enough to send the night into a tailspin. Max learned to dismiss such myths and ordered them with muscle memory by the end of the trip. He was not immune to their effects, and after a half dozen was hitting on waitresses before mustering the wherewithal to film himself vomiting in the toilet. Regardless of his drinking, Max managed to skate better than he had in months while he was in Hawaii. “Mucho take it easy, bro”–so says the tattoo on his foot, next to Shamoo the whale and a tiny palm tree. Also emerging from the Insta-feed are numerous pictures of a semi-nude white Neanderthal named Elliott, or Big El. Elliott is like a dual citizen of the U.S. and the U.K., so half of him is really polite and the other half likes to party, but I am not sure which half performs which function. Either way, he gets MVP for most attempts to get girls and to do, at all times, “whatever is raging” (a term also used often on this trip). For instance, there is a lovely group shot in the album of all of the boys nestled on Sunset Beach around a 30rack of Coors Light, but Elliott is nowhere to be seen. We scanned the horizon for his albino hide and lo and behold there he the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

is at the water’s edge talking to a brunette girl. We call for him and he comes running up, “She’s from Burbank!!!” He was a trooper through and through, enduring sun burns on the trans-island skate park tour and numerous swift shutdowns from bar side cougars. In the end he did manage to score though, albeit in a Porta-Potty after a polo game that nobody watched. Raging bull. The third of the Los Angelenos to make it out for the adventure was professional skate photographer Sam Muller. Sam was not supposed to come, and Sam does not like the beach. His shirt rarely ever even comes off. That shit just ain’t gucci with him.

But after seeing the first few photos pop up on the ‘gram, he shelled out for a ticket. So on the night of the first ever HI Skate Film Series, a skateboarding film festival, at the Honolulu Museum of Art (curated by yours truly) I received a crazy phone call amid the after-party from Sam telling me to meet him at the airport the following day for a covert pick-up mission. Finagling this proved difficult, but I managed to convince the whole gang, who had been depending on me for all transportation, that I had to go to the hospital to get x-rays on my back or hip, which had in fact been bothering me due to a skate injury. Could I have concocted a less complicated lie? Probably. The lie led to many more white lies, to the extent that I found myself wandering around Pearl Ridge Mall for hours before Sam’s arrival, while all my friends thought I had been admitted to the ICU at Kaiser Hospital. Worth it. Sam finally flew in and I delivered his haole ass to the world famous A’ala Skate park where everyone was skating. The looks on everyone’s faces was amazing. Sam managed to get some great photos, but incidentally did not manage to score in a Porto-Potty or elsewhere, despite the ample opportunities afforded him. Next time. Finally, we come to my best friend Adrian Adrid, who grew up in Hawaii, but moved to L.A. about 5 years ago to skate big time. He is the guy in the photo with the insane bleached hair and perma-grin on his face. Even when his face looks angry, he is usually joking. Best fucking dude. Needless to say, he slaughtered every skate park and spot on the island, as per usual when he returns to visit. Like his smile, Adrian rarely takes off his little red shorts. He likes to be able to hop out of moving vehicles on a whim to go scamper off and dive into the ocean. He did this several times in bad traffic, sometimes skating in the middle of Kam. Hwy. to get far enough ahead of the car to intercept us dripping wet. Yeah grom. The rest of us are the locally-based Hawaiians. We grew here you flew here, etc. In our day in age, the memory loss associated with insobriety is finally meeting its match, as ubiquitous cameras seem to come out even more readily in drunken hands. Every moment is documented, which can be helpful when one wants to get nostalgic or detrimental when one wants to get a high-profile job. But who wants that? I recommend moving at high speeds for as long as possible.

Maybe death is simply a world of photographic negatives where all the colors are inverted, and everything is darker in the day and the nights are brighter and more raging. In the meantime give the shutter-speeds something to compete with. Relegate your stillness to the realm of photo stills. Stay positive and live in the realm of the positives. Travis Hancock is from the North Shore of Oahu. He expresses his ideas through writing, drawing, and skateboarding. Each night, he plays the ukulele to relax. He is currently pursuing an M.A. in American Studies at U.H. Manoa. More of his collages can be found at www.tdhancock.blogspot.com You can also follow Travis and Adrian on instagram @chocolatehaupia

West Coast

V e r s u s

Name: Ryan Sokol Age: 31 Years surfing: 14 or so Home town: San Diego, California What kind of board do you ride? I prefer hand me downs from my friends. Feel like it keeps my creativity and wallet a little fatter. Right now I’m on a TeeDeeKay. Love it.

West Coast vs East Coast vs Hawaii surfers. We talked to four different surfers from four different places that tell us why surfing stoke is awesome no matter where you live!

Is it a locals only spot? It attempts to be at times, but the loudest ones are usually transplants that have lived here for a few years ha ha. Locals only spot depends how big and good it is out I guess. What sucks about your home break?

What’s your home break? I guess I would have to say Imperial beach. I surf a lot of spots in San Diego though, try not to limit myself ya know.. What’s great about your home break? I’d say it’s one of the few places in the world you can get pitted, a disease, and watch a family of immigrants from mex cross the border all within a ten minute window, pretty unique surf spot I’d say.

The Tijuana “river” flows right into it. So a lot of times when it’s firing, it’s also super polluted. Where else have you surfed? Mostly keep it local and surf all the nice little gems we still have that fortunately have yet to be exploited. gotta say love me some blacks and the cliffs, on a good one though.

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What do you think is special about West Coast surfers?

What is your dream surf spot/surf trip?

Anywhere with warm water, good peeps, cold beer, a cute girl, and good music. Could be anywhere really. I really wanna explore more

As a West Coast surfer when is the best time of year to surf? Why? All year. I love the summer here, and the winter. The summer is really rad because the weather is perfect the water is warm and everyone gets to come out and enjoy our ocean, its really sweet to see people from all walks enjoying what’s in my backyard. We get some really good south swells as well. Downside: litter. Winters are good here. It’s mostly just surfers in the water so it’s not crowded, more consistent swells and better waves. Downside: cold water and my beach gets really really polluted. Do you follow the WCT? If so who do you want to win the world title? Yes I do follow the WCT, mos

41 def wanna see Florence clean house. What is the best thing about surfing in your opinion? The places it has taken me, the people I have met, being able to express myself on an ever changing canvas. Spending time with my daughter Kailea, she loves the ocean more than any girly I know. She always has a way of reminding me how important and special our ocean is. Oh and I can honestly say surfing has saved my life over and over again through the years.

V e r s u s

We have some of the best spots in the world here on the West coast. It’s definitely got a different vibe than other places I have surfed. We have managed to keep a lot of our really good spots “secret” and local. The weather is pretty amazing here. Come here with the right person and attitude you could access some of the best spots we have to offer, come here with a camera crew and cocky ass attitude you’ll get paddled in and rolled up. We keep a good equilibrium here in the west.

of what Mexico has to offer. Actually travel and surf as many spots as I can while I’m still “ young” ha ha.

Alaska

V e r s u s

Name: Kris Farmen Age: 37 Years surfing: 10 Home town: Anchor Point, Alaska What kind of board do you ride? It all depends on the conditions, really. In Alaska you don’t necessarily have the luxury of defining yourself as a long boarder or short boarder, or even as a stand up surfer for that matter. Conditions can be fickle and access is often limited, so you generally have to make the most of whatever surf you can find. To this end I’ve learned to be flexible with both my surf craft and my ideology. That being said, my favorite board is what we call a “pumpkin seed”; it measures 7’2” with a short board nose and a quad fin profile. I also ride an 8’2” mini-mal when it’s small, and I’m considering adding a boogie board to the quiver as well, for days when there’s just no other way to get onto a wave. What’s your home break? I live way out in the woods, but the closest break to my cabin is the beach at Anchor Point. It’s the first place I ever surfed in Alaska, so it holds a special place in my heart.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

What’s great about your home break? The single best thing is that I’m virtually the only person who surfs there. From time to time some of the Homer crew will come up, and occasionally I’ll see some guys from Anchorage, but ninety percent of the time I have the place to myself.

What’s not so great about your home break? There’s a twenty-foot tidal range, which means that when a swell hits you’ve only got a couple hours’ window for surfing, when the water is at the right level over the right part of the beach. The currents can be unforgiving, and it took me several years to get the place wired. It’s all a matter of knowing when to go, and you can’t learn that overnight. In another way that’s actually a good thing; being such a tricky place to surf means most people don’t bother with it. Or if they do, they don’t know when they should be there and they wind up thinking it’s a shit house spot for waves. Where else have you surfed? I first went surfing in Oregon near Newport, but that was only a handful of times. I really cut my wave riding teeth when I lived in South Australia near Adelaide. I’ve also surfed Tasmania and Western Australia.

What do you think is special about Alaskan surfers?

in the spring. The water is still cold, but it’s sunny and the air temperatures are well into the fifties, and there’s not much else going on to take your attention away from surfing. The swell can be hit or miss in spring, though. All around, fall is probably the best of it—the water’s warmer, the air temps are still pretty decent, and there’s generally plenty of waves. There’s also a sublime quality to the light in the fall that you don’t find at other times of the year.

What is your dream surf spot/surf trip?

What is the best thing about surfing in your opinion?

I’ve been trying for several years to put together an extended surf safari across Alaska’s Gulf Coast. The idea is to write a book about the journey, sort of one part journalism, one part travelogue, and one part memoir. My publisher is keen to tackle the project, but right now the biggest hurdle is funding. One of the downsides of living in Alaska is that travel can be expensive.

By far the best thing about surfing is the feeling of riding a wave. In fact it’s not only the best thing, it’s the only thing as far as I’m concerned. That might sound pretty obvious, but there’s an awful lot of horseshit that gets spread around the surfing world with respect to the supposed virtues of our sport. Surfing is about one thing and one thing only: Riding waves. Everything else is just idiotic posturing.

As a West Coast surfer when is the best time of year to surf? Why? Winter generally has the most waves, but up here the water as you might expect is pretty cold. Pan ice tumbling around in the waves can be a real problem in winter, and I don’t go out when there’s a lot of it—a chunk of ice could quite literally take your head off. I really prefer surfing

Do you follow the WCT? If so who do you want to win the world title? Frankly, I couldn’t care less about the WCT. I’ve got firewood to cut, berries to pick, and weather maps to study.

V e r s u s

Surfing in Alaska is really a whole separate world from the East Coast-West Coast-Hawaii thing. We’re pretty isolated up here, which is both good and bad, but geography also isolates Alaska’s surf crews from one another. What I like the most is that surfing in Alaska is like going back in time sixty or seventy years to the days of Simmons and Frosieth and all the other pioneers of the sport. There are spots here that I’m pretty sure I’m the first person ever to surf. Much of what you learn about surfing in the rest of the world doesn’t really apply in Alaska, and you wind up having to learn a whole new set of skills. Like pissing on your frozen feet in winter to warm them up so you can drive home. And the whole crew in a given area tends to be only ten or twenty people at most, so you all know one another. There’s a real camaraderie among us, and agro is practically unknown.

East Coast

V e r s u s

Name: Stephen Pafford Age: 38 Years surfing: 24 Home town: While growing up I moved around a fair amount over the years but all within two counties on or near the New Jersey shore, Monmouth and Ocean County. What kind of board do you ride? I like short performance boards. I currently ride a 5’11” Firewire and a 6’3” Bill Johnson as a step-up and a fun shape if it is small. I want to get a fish for small, mushy days to replace the fun shape. Hopefully soon!…

Also, these are deeper water spots, relatively speaking, so sometimes you can get grinding tubes 30-50 yards off the beach. Is it a locals only spot? Not really. Obviously locals hold it down but the sandbars shift and change so you tend to have to be willing to consider different spots to get the best waves each swell. Lots of Virginia surfers frequent the Outer Banks and NJ is so densely populated so there are different faces in the lineup all the time. Usually you can distinguish the real locals by who surfs consistently through the winter months. The lineups thin out a lot then with the cold water and weather.

What’s your home break?

What sucks about your home break?

Well, currently I live a couple hours inland in VA. So my go-to spots are on the Outer Banks of NC (Nags Head or Rodanthe). I also go to NJ frequently. There I usually surf in Bayhead or Spring Lake.

Tourists crowds and swimming only beaches are annoying to deal with during the couple summer months in NJ. But a lot of local businesses depend on them so it is a give and take. Also, when it gets really big a reef or point set-up would be ideal instead of beach break. There are a few spots like that but they get super crowded so they are my last resort.

What’s great about your home break? These places are all beach breaks so I like that the crowd can spread out well when the swell is good.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

image x ryan struck

Where else have you surfed?

What do you think is special about East Coast surfers? There is a common bond between East Coast surfers in the way that much of the rest of the surfing world doesn’t know anything about East Coast waves and surfing. Often they think we are all kooks with no real waves. This perception has changed some over the years as more and more videos and pictures make it onto the worldwide-web. Also, East Coast surfers are really committed in the way they brave the cold and the elements through the winter in thick wet suits from head to toe. It is intimidating falling or getting caught inside wearing all that rubber because you can’t move or breathe quite as easy. The water gets below 40 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter for almost all spots north of NC.

Anywhere with good waves, friendly locals and minimal crowds. Realistically I want to go to Indo, Africa and Australia in that order. My ultimate dream trip would be to sail down the east coast, the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal, up the Mexican coast and into California surfing all along the way of course. A 35+ foot catamaran would do the trick as a moving home.

As a East Coast surfer when is the best time of year to surf? Why? Hurricane season for sure because of the long-period ground swells and warm water/weather as well as longer swell windows. Having said that I have gotten just as good waves throughout the spring months most years but the swell window is smaller and less predictable…but if you plan right and pay attention to the forecast you can still score, usually with fewer crowds as well because everyone pays attention to the hurricane swells.

Do you follow the WCT? If so who do you want to win the world title? I do but I typically only watch the contests if the waves are good.

I love watching the young progressive guys who don’t hold back as much. Currently the guys I like the most if they were to win a world title include John John Florence, Owen Wright and the Hobgoods.

What is the best thing about surfing in your opinion? One of my favorite things about surfing is how you get to partake of the same waves/conditions as the professionals (unless it is a contest obviously). You can never go down to the local basketball court and demand next game and expect to play with professionals, and that holds true for most sports in my opinion. But in surfing you get to be right in the mix if you want to try and you even have a right to the waves assuming you are in position. It’s very equitable in that regard. I loved getting to surf along side of the likes of Nathan Fletcher in Hawaii or the Hobgoods in California. Surfing professionals are more accessible in that regards than most other professional athletes.

V e r s u s

I have been to Central America too many times to count over the years. I have surfed in Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and El Salvador. I also have taken several road trips down into Baja, Mexico. I have lived in California for a couple years or so as well in the San Diego area. I have roadtripped up to Northern California and surfed along the way. And a couple winters ago I got to visit Hawaii for about a month. The best waves I got there were at Off The Wall.

What is your dream surf spot/surf trip?

V e r s u s the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

image x ryan struck

Hawaii Name: Aimee Antipala Age: 34 years old Years surfing: 20 years Hometown: Koloa, Kauai

I ride a 6’0’’ DeMarco Surfboard because I like to order boards from shapers that I know and surf with. Joe lives down the street and we surf Vland together. He knows how I surf and stoked he was able to create the perfect board for me. I like my boards thick so they float me good and light rocker so I have more board on the water. I also like Will Scovel Surfboards from Kauai.

What’s your homebreak? I grew up on Kauai surfing PK’s and Shipwrecks on the South shore. I like Shippys because it is a fun breach break where you can get a quick powerful surf. Pk’s is more

What’s great about your home break? Is it a locals only spot? My home break is great cause it’s me and all my friends surfing together. And yeah, there’s a couple local secret spots, which I won’t reveal.

V e r s u s

What kind of board do you ride?

of a reef break that has an outside long left that reforms into a little lined up right. Long rides and you can go left and right all in one wave. Nowadays, I am living on the North Shore of Oahu across from Velzyland. When Vland is on, it’s a perfect right barrel that hits that inside reef and let’s you in the tube. My home break is great cause it’s all my friends surfing together. What kinda sucks about my home break though, is that there’s a lot of transplant kooks now.

Where have you surfed?

V e r s u s

I have surfed all over Hawaii, Cali, Baja/Mainland Mexico, Bali, Costa Rica. From the places I have traveled, I have my favorite spots: Pavones in Costa, Uluwatu in Bali, Las Gaviotas in Baja, and Scripps in San Diego. What do you think is special about Hawaiian surfers? I think when you grow up over here in Hawaii the ocean becomes part of you and surfing is a lifestyle. No matter what happens to you in your life when you go in the ocean it just feels so good. I feel so blessed to grow up in Hawaii and proud of all the successful Hawaiian surfers that have made it in this industry. Dream surf trip? I had a lot and a dream trip back and explore lands over there Philippines with hahaha.

of fun in Bali would be to go the other isand surf the my Beavers.

When’s the best time of year to surf in Hawaii? In Hawaii you can surf year round which is awesome. As a kid, I loved surfing the South shore in the summer. The days are long and there is a lot of Poipu spots that are very playful and fun. During the winter, my friends and I would push our surfing abilities with stronger swells and surf the north and west sides of the island. That means, early dawn patrol sessions, dirt roads, and mud puddles to get there. Do you follow the WCT? If so, who do you want to win? I don’t really follow the WCT, but when they get here for the Triple Crown, I definitely pay attention. I love to see the Hawaii boys get far and I am always rooting for them. But, I got to meet Parko a few years ago and we became friends. I was stoked to see him clench the WCT and win at Pipe.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

What do you think is the best thing about surfing? The best thing about surfing to me is when your out there with your friends. With the waves being perfect and seeing the gorgeous green mountain ridges and rainbows in the sky. Wintertime sunsets are so beautiful too, with the firey red skys and pink clouds. Also, when you are paddling out and a turtles pops his head out, your sitting on your board waiting for a set and huge Humpback whale jumps out of the ocean. And walking in from your surf session and finding a Sunrise shell at your feet...that’s the best!!!!

photo x marina miller

Young Lady

Photography x Napua Camarillo Modeled & Styled x Julia Currier Hair and Make up x Liza Neginskya Clothing x Kai boutique the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Dress x Bali Design $98, Hand weaved China manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hat $200

This page: Shorts x Florencia $68, Vintage Beer shirt $45, Next page: bathing suit x Mikoh $200

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Previous page: Dress x Gilla $155, hat: modelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own. This page: Dress x Kai Boutique $120, vintage jewelry

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

“I want to give them the chance to play,” said Anshutz, a Honolulu-based photographer who is spearheading The Lemuria Project. This multimedia, interactive project transforms children who have potentially terminal illness into characters of their imagination. “It’s very out of this world. There’s not really a word to describe how awesome it is,” said Xander Van Den Berg, the 10-year-old dragon rider who is in remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The project is named after Lemuria, a continent that allegedly was located in the Pacific Ocean. The mythical land’s ephemerality allows the children to dream up what it could have looked like. The project is a temporary way for children to escape their world of hospitals and medical tools for a more imaginative place.

James and Xander met when Xander was going to the hospital every month for antibiotic IV drips that would take hours to flow through his body. Delving into the world of dragons and drawing was a very good distraction from the treatment. “I’ve always had a fascination with dragons,” Xander said while busily drawing robots and other creatures in his sketchbook. “I started drawing them in treatment and I never knew how far they would get me.” The dragons in Xander’s imagination have taken him pretty far. As part of the project, he enjoyed a full day photo shoot where a makeup artist transformed half of his face into dragon scales and painted his hands and feet blue. A costumer created a colorful outfit complete with Xander’s favorite part -- a belt across his chest to house a sword. He said the surprise of seeing his costume for the first time was “jaw dropping.” “I felt like I should be displayed in a museum.”

Ripple Effect

ames Anshutz can’t readily remember what kind of cancer the children have that he’s helped transform into goddesses and dragon riders. He just sees them as kids.

text x jennifer ginsberg photos x james anschulz

The

The Lemuria Project

The Ripple Effect the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

The event continued with James snapping still photos and videographers shooting Xander sitting in a chair and walking, which will later be animated into him riding a dragon. Anshutz’s drew inspiration for this project from previous projects where he photographed children with cancer and women who had survived breast cancer.

Meanwhile, Xander’s mom Lisa is ready to continue helping James with whatever the project needs to take off for the kids. “It comes from the purest part of his soul,” she said. “You don’t see many people like that anymore.” For more information about The Lemuria Project, contact Anshutz at (808)561-6727 or visit: facebook.com/ lemuriaproject

Ripple Effect

Anshutz began the self-funded project in 2010 and has relied on friends in the entertainment business to volunteer their time and talents. Now, he’s at a point where the production needs a bigger budget. He envisions creating a documentary, children’s book and an interactive smart phone and tablet app. He’d love to provide 12-15 children with costumes, props and acting coaches to help them act out their imaginations on

Now, Anshutz is having the footage from the participants’ imagination adventures edited into a movie trailer, which he’ll use to promote the project in an online fund raising campaign and to approach national organizations for financial contributions in early 2013.

The

““I’m doing it because I like to see people smile. I provided them an outlet for a day, for a lifetime,” he said.

the big screen.

Jennifer Ginsberg’s passion for wellness education, writing and travel have taken her all over the world including her most recent year-long adventure in Oahu, Hawaii. Now, she calls Denver home and is stoked to have lived in five of America’s time zones! Learn about her fitness and nutrition endeavors at: www.jg-fitness.com

The Ripple Effect

Finding a way

text x napua camarillo photos courtesy of Rock Vs Cancer

It’s hard for me to write this article without being biased. Believe me, I’ve tried. I can’t help it. Writing about your best friend can tend to be that way. In this issue’s Ripple Effect, I thought who better to represent the idea of taking a positive spin on life, than one of my own personal heroes. That being said, bear with me. “We’ll find a way”, was the infamous phrase that I adopted when I first met Emily Nielsen nearly 9 years ago. There was just something about her. She brought out the adventure in me. And since I’ve known her, she’s never slowed down, so, I’ve tried to run alongside. Most of the time at a sprinter’s pace. Youth is supposed to mean leaping without a safety net, learning lessons the hard way, and blowing money like it’s the end of the world, right? And that’s what we did, and we were okay, for the most part… Emily was just your average 20 something, alright she might’ve been a tad above average. A surfer at the age of 13 and a promising soccer star with a scholarship to San Diego State University, Emily was athletic. And even when an ACL tear caused her to trade soccer for water polo she stayed positive. She majored in costume design and immediately started her own fashion line called “Romantic Rock Designs”. Her interests weren’t just in sports and fashion but music as well. She’d been involved in the music industry at a young age, first selling merch, then eventually managing and booking bands. Somehow music was the one thing that tied her life together. Emily and I met while teaching surfing on the La Jolla the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Shores and after getting to know her, she put my mediocre accomplishments to shame. She’d lived abroad, was well traveled and had this insatiable zest for life. She made me realize just how many things were possible in life. We were young and ambitious. “We’ll find a way.” she’d say. And she was right. By the end of 2004 we’d seen more than 20 bands popular at that time for free. We’d roamed all over San Diego, L.A, and Santa Barbara. Thanks to Emily most of my fondest albeit foggiest memories came from our adventures. Things like sharing a cigarette and conversation with Paul Banks of Interpol, working on the Van’s Warped Tour and trekking across the country, making unmentionable memories at Punk Rock Bowling in Vegas and calling some pretty amazing musicians my friends. Emily always had some event we were supposed to go to, some adventure unplanned, some somebody to meet. Like I said, she never slowed down. In 2006 at the age of 24, Emily delayed the pace when a doctor’s visit declared that she had stage II non Hodgkins Lymphoma. Cancer. How could this be? The athletic, vegetarian, 24 year old has cancer? C’mon, really? This isn’t supposed to happen. Emily found herself uninsured and in disbelief. Her journey to remission became a snail’s pace of radiation, paperwork, and at times self doubt. he would call me distraught and defeated and for a mere second it felt like my best friend Emily had slowed down forever. Those thought quickly vanished after a while when I heard that not only was she in recovery but she had found a way to help the cause.

The

Ripple Effect

The Ripple Effect

“Battling cancer makes you go through a roller coaster of emotions and thoughts about your life but one thing is certain, I looked at this battle like any another obstacle in my life. I wouldn’t let it beat me or better so slow down my life. I took it head on with my heart, my body and most of all my mind and now being over 5 years in remission I look back and wouldn’t change my battle for anything and now am trying to help others in the same fight to let them know they too can be a survivor." says Nielsen. She put her music industry contacts and connections to use when she decided to hold events where she could raise money for third party cancer charities. The thought occurred to her when she asked her friend, Tim McIlrath of Rise Against to pen his lyrics over a picture she painted. This sparked an idea to reach out to both friends like Tim, superstars like Christina Aguilera, and anyone else who’d listen and get involved. Rock Vs Cancer began. She’d set up someone who’d been influenced by cancer with a canvas and some paint, then let a musician pen lyrics over it and finally auction it off on Ebay with 100% of the proceeds going to various cancer charities. To this day bands like Social Distortion, Incubus, Rise Against, Angels and Airwaves, Pepper, Pennywise, Bouncing Souls, Face to Face, MxPx, Thursday, Motion City Soundtrack, Underoath, Say Anything, Saves the Day, and Strung Out (who played the first ever Rock Vs Cancer in 2007) have all helped Emily give back. Over 30,000 dollars in funds have been raised thanks to this idea, and Emily, true to form, has no plans of slowing down. She’s currently planning another Rock Vs Cancer in Los

Angeles labor day weekend 2013. For this event proceeds will go to Music Saves Lives, while past charities have included, Canteen, a company that assists children living with cancer and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

The truth is life happens. And life can be like an ocean, calm and still or rough and rigid. Some days are good, some days are bad, or maybe it’s just a matter of perspective. It doesn’t matter how old you are you can get a life threatening disease. You can be the richest of rich and lose it all (hello Donald Trump). You can be on your way to super surfdom and then lose your arm (hello Bethany Hamilton). Life turns on a dime. How will you handle the lemons in your life? How will you find the positive in all the negative? I’m not quite sure, but I know what Emily would say...”We’ll find a way” and that’s why she’s the perfect ripple effect.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

top: Rock Vs Cancer booth at Social Distoriion, middle: Rock vs Cancer San Diego 2010, bottom: Emily Neilsen, Mike Ness and auction winner

If you know someone who’s making a difference whether it big or small, let us know about it. Go on now tell us your story at TheManifoldMag@Gmail.com

sew grown up In today’s world of follow-the-leader, terrible economy,

scholarly accolades before talent, it often feels like we are losing our artists, our independence and our will to live for love, beauty and adventure. That’s why I loved hearing Courtney Rafter (Associate designer for Free People) recall the story of how she came to move to Austin a few months ago. “I went to Psych -fest in Austin with one of my co- workers, where we spent the weekend scouting vintage and seeing shows. Then I met Grant. We sort of fell in love.. So I went home to Philly. Went back to work, and everyone could tell something had happened, and next thing you know, I’m moving to Austin to be with Grant and taking my chances with working solo, as a free-lance designer.” Courtney is like a bohemian porcelain doll, with auburn hair and ruby lips, wearing a red vintage dress and curled up in a black wrought iron chair on the front lawn of the purple cottage she, Grant, and their cat, share. This is the second time we’ve met but she feels like someone I’ve always known and haven’t caught up with for far too long. We talk of childhood and those defining moments of torturous adolescence that seem to be a precur-

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

text & images x elza burkart

sor to the future. To keep a conversation with as many dizzying detours as a Lynch film, as succinct as possible, I asked Courtney a few questions about how her early days might influence her present life.

How would you define your relationship with clothing, as a kid? My mother had a huge hand in how I dressed as a kid. She dressed me with an eye for detail, socks matching my coat, nice fabrics. We weren’t wealthy, but she appreciated quality clothing, because it lasts longer. I didn’t really understand that then, and all I wanted was to dress like other kids in baggy jeans and Payless shoes, and my matching, prim clothes kind of embarrassed me for a while. It’s silly how strong that desire for image is, even as a kid. As a kid, your clothes define you, in some ways. When you want to follow the pack, by looking like the pack you don’t recognize what you want to be when wearing your clothes, you’ll probably start obsessing over it. It was a love hate relationship. Did you end up having an “Ah-ha!” moment where

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I felt mute and bored. I started going to shows and hanging out with skaters and I finally felt a pulse in my surroundings.â&#x20AC;?

you decided to stray from the pack? I did! I should hope we all do, at some point. I was with my friends, and suddenly everything felt muted. I felt like I still didn’t relate, but beyond what kind of shoes I wore, I just felt like these people I’ve been trying so hard to be with, are actually not at all captivating, there was always the same drama, there was no substance or intrigue. I felt mute and bored. I started going to shows and hanging out with skaters, and finally felt a pulse in my surroundings. These kids were creative and connected, and becoming a part of that, was a complete revelation. You felt like a community and that was magic, so I said goodbye to blending in, and became myself in a group of wide awake kids. I remember when I started going to shows, getting dressed was a RITUAL. Not quite a costume, but a chance to appear as who I truly wanted to be. Did you start discovering yourself in that sense too? Absolutely. I tried a lot of things out before I was sure of myself. I loved and sometimes envied girls that would wear tattered band shirts and stitched up jeans with combat boots, but it didn’t feel like me, and for the first time, it didn’t have to. I found that I could still be somewhat girly and still throw myself in the pit and be a part of it.

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An attention to detail seems to be a theme in your childhood, tell me about your first designing debut. I was in school, and we had our end of the year show coming where everyone shows a creation, and I had seen a show at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Schiaparelli and Chanel, and we had to pick one to draw upon, and Schiaparelli seemed so wild and that had totally inspired me. So, I set out on making this crazy, painstakingly detailed labor intensive dress, with hundreds of cut out silk green leaves from a fabric I had to beg my mom to buy me. Then I hand sewed on this crazy, hot pink, Schiaparelli gown, and I had my brother’s girlfriend model it. It was the last piece of the show and I wore a green and pink halter top that matched my dress, I was so proud! Has your approach to designing changed over the years? I still find myself doing that, spending hours and hours doing these tiny embellishments on a dress that may, or may not make the cut for my employers, and I think about how I could, just go into making

basic pieces and probably make a lot of money, but, I’d rather do what comes to me naturally, and sell a special dress to a girl who is going to love that dress for a long time, rather than make something with no story, that is going to be someone’s mindless purchase, forgotten in the closet. Are there pieces in your wardrobe, that remind you of who you were when you were a kid? That’s a hard one, I feel like I still am a kid…I’ve gotten rid of most of my stuff in the move, but I got this tie-dye jumpsuit in a vintage shop that totally reminds me of going to New Jersey as a kid where I wore this tie-dye bathing suit cover up that had a unicorn on it. I wore that all summer. I think I was subconsciously drawn to it from memories. Was clothing designer your first calling? Not really, I grew up in a really working class environment where my idea of a track was the track for the L line. I went to an all girl’s catholic school. We didn’t have things like swim teams and a huge art dept. Until high-school where I got access to sewing and de-

sign courses, I wanted to be a journalist or a writer, because that was the first creative atmosphere I could be in. I’ve always been a dreamer and I guess I always saw myself doing something with art, in some sense, but making clothes came later. I think it was all a natural progression, I do wish I could have started earlier, because you’re never too young to learn how to do it right. If you could take child you out for a coffee and have a chat, would you have any advice to give yourself? START SEWING EARLIER. Do not believe the teacher’s that say “if it’s in a magazine, its been done” because everything can be re-invented and you can make it your own. I’d maybe slip myself a cheat-sheet of the things I’ve learned on working with a real design team to make the ride a little smoother, but in all, I’m happy. and I love every step this journey has taken me. I’d tell me to not question myself too much and do what I think is the right thing.

Elza Burkart is a traveling stylist, writer and singer in The Saint James Society. She currently lives in LA after a move from Austin, TX. She takes along her husband and their demon cats. You can follow her at thelingernots.com

a dash of

Hearst

text x jennifer ginsberg image x napua camarillo

Manhattan chef and restauranteur, Emma Hearst, is tak-

Shore restaurant, you can be sure her aim will remain the same as at Sorella: striving for her restaurant goers to feel the emotion in the food.

Hearst, 26, bought her first house last November overlooking the Pacific Ocean on Oahu’s North Shore. While the area is famous for its world-class surfing and laid back lifestyle, Hearst feels its cuisine has a little catching up to do. “I have a book of ideas of things I could do on the North Shore business wise, so there is a lot of brainstorming, but not one idea is set in stone,” she said. “I don’t want to jump into anything too quickly.” She’s tossing around many ideas, including the possible opening of an Italian restaurant not to mention the possibility of a television show.

Hearst believes any new Hawaiian venture has to be the done with the right timing. Right now she’s too back and forth between the North Shore and New York City working on a book due out in October. The book will be called “Sorella Means Sister” and share the story of how her and Krathen’s Manhattan restaurant came to be. The recipes will teach at home cooks how to approach cooking with their intuition and cover the reasoning behind their movements.

ing a break from biting into the Big Apple and is ready to dig in to a more chill locale -- Hawaii.

Hearst’s new potential venture would draw upon her plethora of culinary experience. She started cooking when she was four years old and starting working in restaurants at 13. She and fellow Culinary Institute of America grad, Sarah Krathen, became business partners and opened the Italian restaurant, Sorella, on the Lower Eastside of Manhattan after extensive hands-on research. “We, Eat, Pray, Love’(ed) our way through Italy,” she recalled. It was in the Piedmont region, tucked away in the Northwestern part of the country, where they drew their culinary inspiration for Sorella. Hearst is also the youngest chef to have appeared on Iron Chef America and was named by Forbes to be one of the top 30 chefs under 30. The cleaver necklace that dangles midway down her chest is instant proof that her love of all things food related runs deep. If Hearst opens a North the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Despite her action-packed work ventures, Hearst is pretty stoked to be living a more domestic life. “I am loving living there and can’t wait to be able to enjoy it on a more of a full time basis, which should happen in a few months,” she wrote in a recent email from New York, where it was three degrees. Hearst’s favorite part about owning a home is having space and acting domestic, especially doing her own laundry. When she’s at her apartment in New York, she sends her laundry out, never cooks and enjoys her favorite restaurants Gramercy Tavern and Franny’s in Brooklyn where “they treat their ingredients right.” But now being part of a neighborhood and smaller community is pretty sweet, too, she admits. “I live on a special street with a lot of great people and I feel very lucky for that.” As for us, we can’t wait to see what, Hearst brings to the table so to speak on the North Shore. And right now, Emma Hearst, is the freshest ingredient.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have a book of ideas of things I could do on the North Shore business wise, so there is a lot of brainstorming, but not one idea is set in stone.â&#x20AC;?

Ray Hodge Interview by Alex Campbell & Jermaine Fletcher

When you hear of Jamaica, Queens some of the last genres of music you would associate with the borough would range from progressive to metal. This area of New York is connected to many hip hop icons, jazz legends as well as poets of the last few decades but today we manage find to a young talent by the name of Ray Hodge. We first came across his music in the summer of 2012 during the “Chicken & Cake” festival presented by Ramell Bass. The Manifold Magazine caught up with Ray Hodge at his home to dialog about his music and overall story. 1. Q: Here we are in Queens. Is this where you’re originally from? A: Yes. Lived here my whole life. 2. Q: Have you lived anywhere else for an extended period? A: Just for like months at a time. I’ll go down south for a month or two, but that’s just recently. 3. Q: What makes you most inspired on a day to day level? A: Usually what inspires me is emotional stuff or something I’ve seen on TV or heard in music. I’m listening to music 24/7... listening to it and studying it. It [music] inspires me a lot. When I can hear what they’re talking about, what they’re going through, what their emothe manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

tions are--even if it’s not their own-- it inspires me a lot. Also, life stuff... the things that come with life. 4. Q: What are you aiming for in terms of your music and writing? A: To be honest, I said this to myself when I was younger, the whole reason for me doing this whole thing is because I feel like it’s my mission and duty to do so. I feel like I don’t have an answer for that b/c I feel like I’m pushed by a spiritual sense of things. I just need to do this. Even when it comes to writing, I just put the pen down and write whatever flows out. Sometimes I don’t even think of it., it just comes out. It becomes its own entity with its own personality. 4. Q: Tell us about your songwriting. From what we’ve heard thus far, a lot of passion is inserted into the lyrics as well as the way you deliver them. A: When it comes to writing I try to be as real as I can. Even if it’s something that is created from nowhere or nothing, I want it to have the life that I have as if I breathe it. Like today is cold, so I would want the song to have that exact feel. For example, in one of my songs I breathe a certain way... I give this scared feeling.I want the listener not only to understand the story or situation but I want them to feel it. I want them to lose themselves in it like I have. I guess in a way I want them to see it how I see and how I feel it. One shared experience at a time.

5. Q: As far as we know, You sing in bands that range from progressive to metal. Genres can be confusing, so is this an accurate statement? A: Yes, but right now I’m working on a project with Ramell Bass that should sound very different from what people have heard from me so far. 6. Q: [While on the subject of genres] what did you listen to growing up... and what have you been listening to lately? A: I remember The Jackson 5. My mom used to play that on the big surround sound. I was also into a lot of Spanish music. Then things started changing. In junior high school I started getting into rock, Evanescence came out. Then when I got to high school it was System of a Down. And I started listening to heavier music. Then Meshuggah and it got a little heavier. Then i met new friends. At first, I was embarrassed listening to rock being a black kid. I’d be like “oh God, they’re not going to like the music I’m listening to”, so I’d turn it down on the bus. Over time, I started not to care and I began to blast it to rep what I love. Right now, I listen to a mixture of stuff from Shoegaze to a lot of progressive [rock] of course, to pop... I listen to pop too, increasingly a lot now. Of course, Lady Gaga. I just love her. Katy Perry and Pink. There’s this band called 22 that mixes prog and pop music sorta like Meshuggah meets Incubus, meets Mew, meets a lot of other pop stuff. And, I love Mew too! I also listen to a lot of Italian music that they [Italiens] would consider pop. I

love this woman Eliza. there something about her voice; sometimes I

don’t know what she’s saying, but it sounds amazing. And, Bjork! These are my idols: Jill Scott, Glen Hansert, Shingai from the Noisettes, Cedric from Mars Volta, Anthony Green, then Bjork, Sarah Vaughn, then it goes back to Ella Fitzgerald, and the list goes on. These are people that I’ve taken something from to create who I am and the creative process is still going.

7. Q: You performed at Chicken and Cake, a small private event that showcases local musicians. Overall, how do bands and artists that you’re connected with support each other? A: We support each other by re-blogging each others stuff when we can and promoting each others shows, letting people know within our genre or fanbase about other bands’ stuff to see how they like it. We’re not trying to steal fans. I guess just sharing whatever they have with other bands. 8. Q: When in your life did you decide that you wanted to take music seriously? A: After I met these guys--Zach and Sean--who were in my first band.,They were the people I met and found out that they liked rock too. I remember meeting them and

â&#x20AC;&#x153;...we opened for Big Sean, Meek Mill, and Fabolous. It was hard to get the fans that were there to understand what was going on, but they loved it.â&#x20AC;? the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

lying, saying “I can sing”, but I wasn’t really a singer. I just wanted to be a part of something that had that rock aspect to it. After a while, they gave me a chance to sing. That’s when I started thinking people can get the words that I was writing as poems as a kid and the writing that people didn’t understand or thought made sense but wasn’t being used in the right way, if I write them in a song with a melody and give the words a face. They could get the point. 9. Q: What has been the biggest difficulties or obstacles you‘ve encountered pursuing your art and developing yourself? A: What’s going on right now with this whole thing that’s happening in 2013, Ramell [Bass] and I are doing our own project where we can do the things that we actually love to do professionally. I’m used to joining the bands and adapting to them, then figuring out how to make them sound interesting. The bands are going to be around, but to create this project, I have to let go of one band. That’s hard and it’s really sad too. It’s going to be hard to maintain the relationship with the band. Musically, it’s going to be a big obstacle to dish out and really let my emotions flow instead of just letting my emotions flow to an extent and then holding back. To fully let go and approach writing like it’s meditating is going to be hard. 10. Q: Where did your most memorable local show and out-of-town show take place? A: Hmm... a lot of big ones. The first time I ever performed was in high school - Jamaica High School. The way that the crowd accepted us - kids who didn’t even listen to rock. They were out of their seats and they were yelling. That was when I was like, “this is what I need to do”. The most memorable one was when Fall of the Albatross played at Highline Ballroom... I think we were opening for the band Kitty. The amount of people there,

dancing and singing along... it was amazing. A second one - for Verbosa - was when we opened for Big Sean, Meek Mill (Meek Mill$ at the time), and Fabolous. It was hard to get the fans that were there to understand what was going on, but they loved it.

11. Q:What’s different about performing out of New York? A: Performing in New York, the people are more crazy [than in other places] when it comes to having fun. Playing in a heavy metal band, I’ve seen them jump on top of each other, beat each other up, and still love each other. Certain places outside of New York City are more, I guess, accepting. One thing about New York, is that there is such a big range of things going on here. That’s the reason I love staying in New York and don’t think I could ever leave it. There’s so many different things that people are clinging to, you could say that the time changes really fast or the emotions to whatever they are connected to changes fast. But outside, they are more, I guess, accepting. I thought it would be different. I thought that New York would be the more accepting place. But when I played in places like Massachusetts, people were amazing, nice people. Some of them even invited us to stay in their houses. They ‘d be like “you don’t have to stay in a hotel! Come stay in our house or in our dorm room or whatever”. They’re more cool about things. Especially if you have a very different kind of way you go about how you make music - they’re the places to try it out and see how far it will go. I’m not bagging and saying that New York sucks. We judge fast here because we have so much here; so many options to judge about. One second, you could be like, “this restaurant just opened up... oh it’s so good!”. Then the next restaurant opens up that’s better and you’re like “oh whatever about that other one. Let’s no longer think about that one anymore.” When something new comes to New York City, you have to fight to stay. Outside of it, it feels easier. You still have to fight to

stay at that status you want to stay at, but when it comes to where is more accepting, I feel it’s outside of New York. 12. Q: If you’ve performed in different Boroughs (including Queens of course) or parts of the tri-state, can you share a little about how those experiences vary. A: Borough to borough, everything changes. Even if I lived a couple miles away, it’s like the whole culture changes for me. I’m like, “oh, it’s kind of weird the way they go about things”. You know what? They’re all just great. Forget what i just said. They’re all just great. I love everyone!

13. Q: If you can share, what real life situation has greatly impacted the way you go about music? A: I’ll try to answer this without going into detail. There have been things that have gone on in all of the lives of the members of the family that have triggered us to go about things in different ways. I was never ever abused in my life. Never beaten to a pulp or anything like that. Every family struggles, but I’m in this one and I feel like my family struggles a LOT A LOT! Especially back when we [Ray and his brother] were kids. My mom struggled, she had a drinking

problem at one time and she couldn’t be there as much as she wanted to because she was battling her own demons. When my mom had a problem, my grandmother and my grandfather raised us - me and my brother - so they were my mother and my father. They had to hold a lot of things together. My grandfather had to keep order. My grandmother would work babysitting to make some money while watching over us, and the kids she was babysitting were very weird, very disgusting for their ages I would say. I don’t know how they were at their house, but they tried to do nasty things to me. For a while, it depressed me and I was good at hiding it. I was always the jokester, I was always laughing, and I was always smiling. Inside I was dead, especially when I got to high school. By the time I got to high school I was completely depressed, but I waited until I was outside of the house to be depressed because I felt like if I was depressed inside I’d be adding to the problem. Those years were like the worst and best, because when I got to my second and third year in high school, I met my friends--the people who would listen to me and not judge me. They did their parts as friends and became my family. They helped me through everything. That whole thing that happened to me as a child--being touched and all that--changed my whole way of thinking. When I got to high school, I had to save myself. I didn’t know how to get help. I did a lot of talking to myself

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

like “what are you gonna do? You got to get yourself out of here.” One thing I did was start picking up the guitar. My mom bought me a guitar. I didn’t know how to play. I never had a lesson in my life. I just started playing; then I started playing my heart and writing words that I could express the way I felt with and let it go. That was the time when things were changing for me. It taught me to write in a way that I don’t have to be myself. I can confess everything I want to say within a song or the way I go about singing it. Even the rhythm of how I’m singing it can be me confessing something. I don’t want to be one of those people that say, “this happened to me and now that changed me, and that’s why I’m so good”. I do it in a secretive way. I leave its imprint in the music. I feel like, in a way, my life has been a very poetic film. 14. Q: What is your personal philosophy? A: The philosophy I live by now is that it’s 2013 and it’s time for truth and honesty, love and a sound mind. That means to stay honest to myself now. Before, it was “love others before yourself so you can understand from another person’s viewpoint”, and before that, it was “go through it and fall so you can see what it feels like to stand up”. Every year it changes. 15. Q: How does your family come into play with you musical pursuit? A: They help when I need anything. It

“It’s 2013 and it’s time for truth and honesty, love and a sound mind.”

could be when I have a show to go to and I need $2.25 to get on a bus and find my way back home after. When I need clothes, to new strings on the guitar, to a rug on the floor, they give me that. They help financially, emotionally, and spiritually. They make me feel like I can go on with their support. 16. Q: What projects can we support of yours right now? A: You can support Verbosa. You can support Fall of the Albatross. You can support this upcoming project that I’m working on with Ramell Bass, when it comes out. You will know when this project comes out, because I think it will be very big. It will speak for itself. I know this isn’t the question, but I have to talk about Ramell Bass--Mr. Ramell Bass. Ramell is a very great person. We’re still in a band together, and we were in FOTA together. He used to be the bass player. I remember the day I met Ramell. He was at the drums eating Chinese food and playing on them at the same time. We were sitting in my friend Zach’s basement and Ramell just started playing this beautiful melody on his acoustic guitar and he told me to sing because he had faith that I could do more than what I was doing. He just said think of anything, even if you mess up on a word, just sing it all out... sing your emotions. Writing wise, he has never said “that sounds stupid”. I’ve had people say “that makes no sense” or that I write like I’m back in the 1800s. He’s like my brother. I mean I have one, and I’m not trying to shit on him, but on the music side, he’s supported everything and helped me through so much. He’s an amazing person for that.

“If I can do it and still remain humble and kind and know to respect the elders then you can too.” the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

17. Q: Outside of music, is there anything going on in the world that you’re either very proud of or that concerns you in terms of global issues or current events? A: I’m very proud that times have changed and that

we have a Black president. Not because he’s Black but because this man is very smart and that he can be a good leader of the free world. Other than that I believe in global warming. I love nature and trees and all of that kind of stuff and I believe that we can work in a lot of ways to save this world. Something that I’m a little bit saddened by is that I feel like the new generation is a little bit off. Something has happened to their attitudes and the way that they go about life. I don’t want to call it barbaric because it’s rude but they’re losing their way. Maybe it’s because of the way they live but I look at myself, and I’m like “if I can do it, and still remain humble and kind and know to respect the elders then you can too”. I can’t judge other places, but here in New York, the youth need more help. They need someone to guide them. Not to tell them what to do because no child wants to be told what to do. Just someone to guide them and show them that this is the road that you can grow and prosper and make all these great things and this is the road where you can possibly ruin your whole life.

17a Q: Is there anything that you think music can do to help these kids? A:Yeah! It’s doing it now. But, I feel like music is at a battle. You have the music that kids are attracted to-- it can be rap, it can be rock, it can be anything. It depends on the message that’s being brought out. I understand that people like to tell stories, but I feel like some artists are not being the idol they should be. It’s ok to write a song about death and have a way of life in it. I listen to rap. Especially lately, I feel that rap is leading [people] in a different way than I thought rap was about. Now, all I hear is money-money-money, molly-molly-molly. On one hand, I understand. You’re just trying to celebrate that

you’re free and that you’re doing what you want. But, it’s elaborated on too much. And, I’m not trying to say that it’s just rap. Some rock artists do it and some pop artists do it too. All they talk about is sex sometimes. Sometimes I’m like “uhh, I don’t want to hear that anymore. Why are we [still] talking about sex three albums in”. That’s why I love Jill Scott. She has a way of talking about sex in a very poetic way and making you feel what is going on. There are times when she literally said what she’s going to do, but still has that poetic side, that intelligent, strong black woman side... that “I’m forgiving and loving” side. What happens to all that? The only time I hear about it now is when I hear some underground band that’s doing pretty good for themselves. That’s why I love Lady Gaga. She’s not only fighting to keep gay people in the light. She’s fighting for love and acceptance. I think that’s awesome and that’s why she’s as big as she is now. It’s not just because her music is very good, but because of what she’s aiming for. Even Katy Perry. She’s showing that you can bring fantasy to light. She was raised very differently herself.

18. Q: If you can share only one piece of advice to a younger version of you who is going after the same dream, what would you tell them? A: I would say keep going,whatever you want is real. You create the steps to your future. If people try to kick you down or tell you, you can’t have what you want just be kind to them and think of it like they are only teaching you to do the opposite for others. Be good to others and don’t lose yourself. Surround yourself with the positive and remember what you are living for. All is a whisper away.

“Be good to others and don’t lose yourself. Surround yourself with the positive and remember what you are living for.”

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

Idi-Odyssey (Yoots)

Wishful thinking and a severe case of

Peter Pan Syndrome have allowed me to convince myself I am still enjoying my youth. I’ve found a few gray hairs and my knee and my back are starting to complain in the mornings but I can still quickly get along to it. I’ve had a good run with plenty of ups and downs across life’s spectrum...recalling it all fondly. And confident if I died today I got my money’s worth...that is until two days ago. I was slightly comboozelated and looking for a place to sit down. It was evening but the sun was still glowing from below the horizon and I was in an area of town where my white skin gave me a bit more leniency for acting a fool. I am not proud of this advantage but I do understand its benefits and use it resourcefully.

I had a bottle of bourbon in a bag and I was drinking it alone

as I observed living going on up and down the side walk. I sat down between an old man and a whore house. I would never call a prostitute a whore”but where they conduct business will always, warmly, be considered a whore house. I don’t and I won’t pay for sex but everyone should have a conversation with an honest prostitute from time to time. Women would understand their man a lot better and men would understand their woman, just a little. Now I’ve digressed. The old man, a really old man, I mean, he was Asian and he looked really old so he must have been really really old, was just staring into the empty void of a vacant lot surrounded by looming cubes of concrete and rebar. The open lot was excavated about three meters below street level so that you could not actually see where the hole stopped...it truly looked like nothingness. Bangkok’s sprawl seems to be preternatural, the space surround-

text x ehren bowling illustration x napua camarillo

ing the concrete and lights cannot retreat quickly enough. The buildings go up on top of each other as the jungle retreats but it just can’t keep up with Capitalism. The city swells and the back-pressure threatens to relieve itself into any existing nook and cranny. I expected the buildings around old man’s vacant lot to implode at any moment and hear a collective sigh as Krung Thep’s belt loosened just that much. The void held while we sat, though.

thoroughly. Sure I was losing something in translation: index finger in and out of thumb-and-index-finger-hole. Hmmm. Surely this was not the universally accepted hand-signal for...“doing it”? Then I looked on his face. Now he was smiling. The toothless grin and sparkling eyes affirmed that oh yes, he was indeed giving me the international “sexing” sign. I scrunched my eyes, tucked my chin and stood up...”what the fuck old man”?

He looked at me for a long time before he said anything. His face was obviously happy but not smiling. He had a twinkle in his eye and his lips almost bent enough to be called a smirk but his aura wasn’t arrogant enough to allow that. His skin, hands and back were folded and looked as though a comfortable position no longer existed for him in this life’s time. Even though,

He just laughed, audibly. He didn’t have the slightest what-the-fuck about anything anymore, or maybe he knew more about what-the-fuck than I can presently imagine. Whether his joy stemmed from senility or alongside nirvana is of no importance. It was real, genuine, either way. He knew many things I do not, obviously, and so I greet each day happy to learn. Devoted to enjoying my youth as much as that old man is still enjoying his. We’re not designed to live on this Earth long enough to become old. Enjoy your youth.

he appeared completely content on a level that I’m not yet familiar with

or even know exists. I offered him a drink to be polite and he declined. I was romanticizing about and mildly racist-ly imagining the pearls of wisdom that he must possess after so many years on our Earth...and now, possibly moments away from his ultimate end he may want to share with me, me, who serendipitously sat down next to him, me, who unknowingly needed some symbolic North Star to guide my life back on course. Here he was! I readied myself for accepting life-altering information and a mind-blowing. He lifted an arm at the elbow, his forearm and wrist lifting in separate deliberate and slow actions. His index straightened and he pointed to the lot. I followed the line from his finger to the lot and nodded. Feigning some sort of recognition and understanding of the gesture. Bringing his other hand to his chest, he touched his index finger to his thumb to make a circle. Very slowly, he brought his pointing finger down and slowly, very slowly, fingered the hole he was making with his other hand. I was perplexed. My head tilted, like a dog thinking. I studied his action

Ehren Bowling is a writer who lives in Thailand where he will consistently share his experience and witty word for our amusement. Stay tuned for more of his Idi-Odyssey.

NO loss of youth an instagram gallery of travel text & images x Bonnie Rose

I was born to travel. Growing up as a military brat, I moved twelve times by the age of sixteen. However, no number of

stamps in your passport can fully prepare you when you are abroad. My wanderlust took my husband and I beyond familiar to an adventure we could not have dreamed up. We went wandering through Paris, France and Italy in the postcard locations of Rome, Napoli, Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri. Experiencing a romantic seaside dinner in Sorrento, setting up a photo shoot in the Pompeiian ruins, trying different flavour combinations of gelato, my first ride in a squad car after phone theft, taking a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;short cutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; on the Island of Capri that took hours, spending hours

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

looking at art at the Louvre, touring Paris with a Parisian roller derby player, listening to jazz in an underground club in gay ol’ Paree, and seeing the Eiffel Tower lit up at night for our 9th anniversary. Together we relived childhood memories in the spirit of our youth.

But to say, “Enjoy your youth” for me is kind of a contradiction because in a way youth never ends, it just gets a little smarter.

Bonnie Rose is a photographer living in London, England with her husband and two kids. Her photos can be found at BonnieRosePhotography.com and she’s a regular on our website, TheManifoldMag. com.

Pencil Shavings

I see myself. Sitting there. No more than six years old. Perched in front of an old wooden table. The kind that has an extension piece you put in the middle. Dawned with a cheap vinyl tablecloth. Porous, polka-dotted with floral design. I’m just sitting there. Soft wicker at my back. Staring at magnets on a fridge, each one an advertisement from local companies. Auto insurance, fine dental work, Chicken Charlie’s. The walls house a certain shade. Some call it rose. Most call it pink. In all honesty, it is the shade of a young piglet. Young is slightly redundant in that phrase. It never made sense to me, the pink, not the redundancy. To say the least, my mother isn’t a “pink” kind of lady. I have always loved that about her. I’m staring at those flesh-toned walls again. I feel fragile. I always did. Not like these floral walls. Just. Small. Tiny. Fragile. The Latin definition for my name is; “Small, but strong” Go ahead, look it up.

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

text x paul rossi images courtesy of the rossi family

Six years old, and staring at my kitchen walls again. This kitchen. I hear my dog’s collar clanging against the air. He’s headed towards me. I can feel it. In a flash, he appears. Striding across the floor like a swift breeze. Digging his face into a blue bowl filled with dog food. The bowl slowly slides with each nudge of his nose. Bump by bump across that vinyl floor, until he’s jammed in the corner. He has traveled five feet without a distraction to eating. I have always loved that about him. I’m smiling. Daydreaming. Always daydreaming. A smack against my bare forehead brings me back to that pastel cube. I now see the smack was from a hand. The hand belongs to an arm. Attached to my brother. He leans against the chair with a James Dean slack. Tells me, “Get ready.” “Ready for what?” As soon as it pours out of my mouth, my mind wanders again. I’m staring at his magnified lenses.

Those giant magnified eyes observing every move. Framed in amber. His hand meets my forehead once again. “For school.” Always, keeping me on track. I have always loved that about him. I’m stuck to this chair, staring at flesh colored walls. A slight chill rolls across my back. I turn to check the source. That giant split window. All it shows me is white. White speckled with stems of brown. It is obvious to me now that it is winter. This explains the long johns I am currently wearing. I stare at its waffle print. Daydreaming. “Paul” “Paul” Daydreaming. “Paul!” I break away from the waffle print of the long johns. It’s my sister. Her hair is straight. Straight and brown. Smooth as satin. “Get ready for school.” She stares at me, “Stop daydreaming” She always knew what I was up to. I have always loved that about her. As she leaves, my eyes wander across the room. Across vinyl floors, faux wooden cabinet, and an old stove. Advertised refrigerator, rose-shaded walls, and frosted windows. Only now do I realize, that I am still that child. Fascinated by walls and windows. Drawn in by shapes and tones. By patterns and colors. All of it.

The simplistic beauty of it all. Balled up into one. It was a symphony to me.

I was never daydreaming. I was building the railroads. Riding the plains with aged Indians. I was landing on Plymouth rock. Dueling with Greek gods. I was erecting the pyramids. Fighting evil in foreign trenches. I was building the Great Wall of China. Demolishing Berlins. I was launching into space. I was never daydreaming. Just sharpening my imagination. I have always loved that about me.

After years of traveling, couch surfing, living on boats and tour buses, Paul Rossi has temporarily settled in San Clemente California. Where he is launching his art-centered company “Death Rattle.” For updates on his work check out his website: www.deathrattle.org or his blog: www.blogspot. miserydrinking.com.

genese in general

Dear 12 year old Genese,

These next few years are gonna be some of the best but stop being such a damn weirdo and it will be a lot easier for you!

Let me start by warning you, ALL of the members of *NSYNC are gay so covering your wall with their stupid posters and crying at their concerts because they didn’t pull you on stage is just fucking ridiculous. You’re gonna lose a lot of friends acting like that. Secondly be nice to everyone and don’t make it your goal to be the ring leader of the mean girls. You’re not Regina George, stop trying to make fetch happen, it’s never going to happen! When you finally“become a woman”just tell someone for fucks sake! Your homemade pads and wearing two pairs of underwear on PE days are the worst idea ever and you’re about to ruin all the khaki pants you have ever owned! Maybe if you wouldn’t have made fun of everyone who had their period already you would not be in this position but remember the truth will set you free! > So now you’re 13 and your first boyfriend EVER likes to tell people you’re a hermaphrodite because you have a deep voice, so beat the shit out of him! After all we know your a girl I mean clearly your blood stained pants say it all. Your dad will tell you that you can’t shave your legs ‘til a certain age but doing it little by little hoping no one will notice is stupid idea #828 of yours. No one likes a girl with smooth calves and hairy ass thighs. Yes it’s noticeable and, yes, you again look like a freak.

text x Genese Debeaux

Go to town with that razor, girl. People are already calling you a he-she so lets commit to going full on SHE. Definitely keep breaking the no make up rule because that’s in our favor but enough with the damn blue eye shadow you are not Priscilla Queen of the Desert so let’s not put out that vibe! Now that you are using tampons and have grasped the concept of how to apply mascara not at the bus stop you are ready for high school! Just remember when dad says no boys allowed in the house, don’t get caught with one in your bed and hickeys on your neck. Be smart public parks are fine for making out or at a random friends house because they aren’t your parents so who cares if they think your a slut. You won’t be friends with their bitchy daughter in a few months anyway! Muahahah suckers! By the way your mom is the baddest bitch in town! Let her get wasted and do weird things all she wants, it’s going to help you in the future tremendously, show up to all 4 weddings with a smile on your face because this will provide endless entertainment for the rest of your life! You will eventually give her the nickname Dragon, so start calling her that now, she will probably be confused but she will come to love it! Be smart when she lets you try a little bit of her apple martini don’t take it down like a shot it will blow your cover, ya moron. You have put in a lot of work covering up those hangovers don’t fuck it up now! When your sister finally starts driving but won’t give you rides because she had to ride the public bus and wants

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

to torture you in the same way, just borrow all her clothes show up at all the high school parties first, and laugh that you’re 3 years younger and getting away with way more than she ever will. Payback’s a BITCH! You’re going to want to fall in love with the first Mexican you see in your Mormon town but DON’T DO IT! You don’t know what love is and you won’t for a long time don’t waste your high school career sitting around wondering if that jerk off will ever stop cheating on you because he won’t! So return the favor, stay boy crazy and be the football teams mascot if ya know what I mean ;) YOLO! (You don’t know what yolo means yet and if you ever repeat it you’re the biggest douche bag and there’s no turning back from that). Even though your driving now and actually have some people convinced you’re a part of the cool crowd, keep making your family watch those stupid dances and shows you make up (in the privacy of your own home of course). It will make for a great story later. Take a lot more pictures of yourself in a mirror because your MySpace is lacking creativity, stop spending your time in online chat rooms giving out your a/s/l and sign off AOL already. Spend time with friends and family and enjoy every moment because being this young and dumb is only acceptable now! Love ya, bitch, but do me proud! > Your friend, > You ( from an older and way better place )

Genese is a comedian in New York City, writing endless hours of entertainment about her mother. She’s come to win a few awards in the process and slangs drinks at one of NYC’s hottest lounges. Go visit her at Inc Lounge, she’s got great stories.

Last Word

“Youth has no age.” --Pablo Picasso

Never lose your youthful outlook on life, folks. It keeps a warm sense of humor in what can sometimes be a chilly world. Make a lot of mistakes! It’s fun. It makes for more entertaining stories and builds character. Don’t be a dick. Growing up is tough enough. Treat everyone with respect. Once you learn that lesson, you’re literally set for life. Laugh like you’re a 5 year old. Or at least find the people that bring that out in you. Take risks before you grow to fear them. Fear is learned not inherited so make the impossible possible, friends! Aloha

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth

The Manifold Magazine create.

submit.

expose. photo x Marina Miller

In the Next Issue:

The Creative Pursuit

the manifold magazine issue 2 the spirit of youth