Vox Magazine March 2019

THE SCOOP ON SECRET SOUNDS PAGE 16

CHEAP SMOKES, RISING RISKS PAGE 18

FILL YOUR BELLY AND YOUR WALLET

RUTH ACUFF IN THE SPOTLIGHT

PAGE 47

PAGE 38

For decades, we’ve gobbled up Earth’s resources and damaged the planet without regard for our future. Can Columbia do its part to change before it’s game over? PAGE 24

Photography by Photographer Name

VOX MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019

1

Missouri Contemporary Ballet: Carmina Burana Friday/Saturday April 5 & 6 | 7pm Missouri Theatre

Glenn Miller Orchestra Saturday, April 13 | 7pm Missouri Theatre

BOX OFFICE 203 S 9th Street | Columbia 573-882-3781

www.concertseries.org

MU Choral Union: Mozart’s Requiem Thursday, April 25 | 7pm Missouri Theatre

Ozark Mountain Daredevils Friday, May 3 | 7pm Missouri Theatre

FR OM THE EDITOR

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE...

DE PUT Y E DI T OR STEN SPINELLA M AN AGI N G E DI T O R ELIZABETH ELKIN DI GI TAL M AN AGI N G E D IT O R MCKENNA BLAIR

F

or most of my life, even the faint scent of a burning cigarette has ignited a headache. No one on either side of my family smokes, and from a young age, I was told of the dangers of tobacco.

Sometime in my pre-pubescent years, one of our local health organizations traveled to my elementary school and emphatically discouraged us from ever trying a cigarette by showing us a smoker’s lung that was charred like a crisp marshmallow. In middle school, our health teacher told us a disturbing story about how a friend of his had surgery to remove half his jaw because he’d developed cancer from chewing tobacco for the last 25 years. I even watched one of my friends try a pinch of Skoal Wintergreen in the ninth grade, which he promptly threw up, and neither of us even thought about trying it again.

I should say here that I’m from Colorado, which has essentially become a smoker-free zone. It’s prohibited in all government and private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, retail stores, recreational facilities, restaurants, bars and even the handful of casinos there. You’re more likely to see someone smoking marijuana than a Marlboro. Downtown Columbia, and MU’s campus especially, seems much the same way. Rarely do I see someone with a cigarette.

“We’re insulated in a clean-air bubble (and who’s complaining?), but there’s a health crisis outside our smokeless safe space.”

Last August, MU’s campus is completely smoke-free. We’re insulated in a cleanair bubble (and who’s complaining?), but there’s a health crisis outside our smokeless safe space. As you’ll see in Michael Connolly’s tale of taxes (page 18), tobacco remains one of the deadliest killers in our state — contributing to more than 11,000 deaths from related illnesses each year. Missouri taxes cigarette sales less than any state in the country, and it provides little-to-no help for people trying to quit compared to states like California and Colorado. At the same time, thousands of high school and college students in Missouri — and across the country — have begun experimenting with e-cigarettes, developing a need for nicotine and spending upward of $150 per month on odorless vapor pods.

And yet, voters in our state repeatedly strike down initiatives and tax increases that would go toward helping people quit.

When smoking doesn’t affect our daily lives, it’s easy to forget the nearly 1 million smokers in our state. That doesn’t mean there isn’t a crisis.

While doing the reporting and editing for this issue’s cover stories, we learned a lot about our treatment of the Earth.

• Only 20 to 30 percent of MU’s disposed recyclable materials can actually be recycled, mostly due to careless misplacement of materials.

• Columbia’s only landfill is expected to reach capacity between 2026 and 2031, according to a sustainability report by the city.

Thankfully, our town is taking some steps toward change.

• In 2018, 15.7 percent of Columbia’s energy came from renewable sources, with plans to increase this to 30 percent by 2029.

• The city, as well as Boone Electric, offers free audits to find wasted energy in your home.

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

ON L I N E E DI T OR LAUREN PUCKETT CR E AT I V E DI R E CT O R KELLYN NETTLES ART DI R E CT OR S SHAOYANG CHEN, HOPE JOHNSON PHOT O E DI T OR JESSI DODGE M ULT I M E DI A E DI TO R SAM MOSHER

AS S I S TAN T E D IT O RS CULT UR E CAMERON R. FLATT, KATHERINE HERRICK,

KEEGAN POPE Editor-in-Chief

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E DI T OR -I N -CHI E F KEEGAN POPE

BROOKE JOHNSON, CONNOR LAGORE, LUCY SHANKER E AT + DR I N K KAELYN ADIX, MCKENNA BLAIR, JESSICA DUFFIELD, ABBEY PERANO CI T Y L I F E JENNA GRUNDTNER, TEDDY HANS, NAT KAEMMERER, MADISON SKAHILL CON T R I B UT I N G W RIT E RS ANTHONY ASHLEY, ISAAC CARMICHAEL, ALLISON CHO, SHANNON HENDERSON, ASHLEY JONES, MORGAN SPEARS, DANIELLE PYCIOR, JOE SIESS, ETHAN STEIN, SAVANNAH WALSH, TAYA WHITE DI GI TAL E DI T OR S DRU BERRY, MARGARET DONOHUE, ASHLI ELLERMAN, BROOKE KNAPPENBERGER, EMILY HURLEY, NICOLE JIE YI FONG, CARY LITTLEJOHN, HANNAH MCFADDEN, LIBBY MOELLER, BIANCA RODRIGUEZ, RUNJIE WANG M ULT I M E DI A E DI T OR S AEDADAYO AKALA, SAMANTHA BOWERS, HAITING HU, REGAN HUSTON, KAIXIN LIU DE S I GN E R S CLAIRE HARMAN, HAYLEY ODOM, ALYSSA WEISBERG

E DI T OR I AL DI R E CT O R HEATHER LAMB DI GI TAL DI R E CT OR SARA SHIPLEY HILES E XE CUT I V E E DI T OR JENNIFER ROWE OF F I CE M AN AGE R KIM TOWNLAIN

Vox Magazine

@VoxMag

@VoxMagazine

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MAGAZINE Cover design by Shaoyang Chen

FEATURES

38

The Everyday Rock Star Ruth Acuff is the essence of a Renaissance woman. She can write, sing, strum the guitar, dance and even pluck the harp.

After getting her start in mid-Missouri, she’s taking her talents to the Big Apple.

BY STEN SPINELLA

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24

Most cigarette smokers have a story about how they started and many more stories about how they’ve tried to quit. That struggle is made even more difficult by Missouri’s low cigarette taxes and easy access to smokes.

BY MICHAEL CONNOLLY

We hear a lot of buzzwords when it comes to saving the planet. But what do zero waste, carbon footprint and sustainability practices actually mean? Grab this guide to how Columbians are trying to make a dent in climate change.

BY VOX STAFF

Smoker’s Paradise

Photography courtesy of Ruth Acuff

Reduce, Rethink, Respond

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

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SECTIONS

45

7 13

49 IN THE LOOP

CULTURE

EAT + DRINK

CITY LIFE

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13

45

49

Want to chuck an ax? Two new local establishments let you do just that.

SLAM! Louder Than A Bomb gives kids an opportunity to flex their poetic muscles.

Follow your fresh food all the way from the farm to the feast.

8

15

Ballin’ on a Budget

It’s been an eventful few months for the CoMo Roller Derby team, which lost its rink and opened its doors to all genders. But the wheels keep on turning.

Columbia has transit issues.

Can we solve them?

Your favorite rapper’s album cover might have come from right here in CoMo.

Sharpen Your Skills

Birds & Buses

10

6

What’s In a Poem?

Rappers’ Delight

Q&A: Audra Sergel

16

Choir director Audra Sergel chats about her inclusive singing group.

The music company brings the tunes close to home.

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

Sofar, So Good

Pig Out On Pork

47

Seek out these eateries to satisfy both your stomach and your bank account.

48

Pop Up for a Night Why do these blink-andyou-miss-them eats keep springing up around town?

Rowdy Rollers

51

Fashion Forecast Kansas City’s rise in the style world can be seen in its fashion week, where a Stephens College grad comes home to see her work hit the runway.

Photography by Qinghui Kong, Madison Parry, Liz Goodwin, Jason Vance

IS PUBLIC TRANSIT

FORMING AN

FOR THE BIRDS? P. 8

LGBTQ CHORUS P.10

Brittany Morris and her husband Jason retrieve their axes between throws during a league match at CoMo Axe Attack.

Sharpen your skills Lace up your boots, don a flannel shirt and summon your inner lumberjack.

Ever wanted to do your best impression of Mel Gibson in The Patriot and take down an entire fleet of soldiers with an ax? Well, we don’t suggest you try that, but you can wield an ax with bravado at one of Columbia’s two new ax houses. Ax throwing is the latest activity trend, and it has landed in town.

Located off Nifong Boulevard, The Axe House’s main focus is on the axes, but there also are ninja stars, throwing cards and knives for you to toss if you’re feeling like James Bond.

Customers are even allowed to bring their own food, beer and wine. COMO Axe Attack, located north of Interstate 70 off Rangeline Street, offers throwing for ages 12 and up, and the owners say they won’t let you leave until you’ve stuck an ax in the target. The Axe House, 3910 Peachtree Drive; COMO Axe Attack, 901 Safari Drive

Photography by Jason Vance and Antranik Tavitian, illustration by Sadie Collins

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

7

IN TH E LOOP ESSAY

The Birds and the buses When electric scooters landed in Columbia last August, they revolutionized short-distance commutes.

Where did public transportation go wrong?

BY KEEGAN POPE

I

miss the small flock of Birds that used to appear on the front step of my downtown Columbia apartment. Typically there were three or four, sometimes standing in a pack, sometimes tipped over by wind or a group of drunken passers-by the night before. They were my ticket to anywhere in town — as long as the battery didn’t die before I got there. They’re just $1 … and then 15 cents per minute.

Birds, which are essentially an electric version of the Razor scooters we coveted as kids, became a popular form of transportation when they were dropped in the city unannounced in August. After a night of recharging, nearly all of them would appear to have landed among Stephens College, MU and Columbia College. A glance at the app would show that a handful made their way into neighborhoods outside of downtown Columbia, but the scooters were limited almost exclusively to an area where there is the disposable income necessary to use them and short distances to travel on them. Students were the most visible customers, but every so often I’d see a young professional in a pantsuit, an orange vest-clad

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VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

construction worker or even a parent trailing behind their more scooter-educated child buzzing down the street.

Buses take a backseat Their usefulness is debatable, but for those who live downtown, Birds (and the similar Lime scooters) are more efficient than walking or waiting for a city bus.

If I live within a mile or two of where I need to be and don’t have access to a car, it’s likely there’s a Bird within a hundred feet or so. For example, a trip to Hickman High School on North Providence is a 25-minute walk from my apartment, according to Google Maps. By bus, it’d be about the same amount of time to go one way, not including the time waiting at my nearest stop. By scooter, it took me less than 10 minutes round-trip.

Therein lies the question not only about scooters, but about any of Columbia’s public transportation: What is the threshold for convenience that Bird reaches but the bus system does not?

Birds are designed with the consumer in mind. City transportation is not.

It’s unknown exactly how many scooters came to Columbia, but Steven Sapp, the city’s director of community

BIRD BUCKS

Columbia’s agreement with Bird requires the company to pay $1 per day to the city for every scooter in use.

relations, estimated in early October that 450 were on the streets. In the first 87 days of operation, the scooters were used 138,000 times and traveled 200,000 miles, according to Bird officials. For comparison, there were 589,438 bus rides over the entirety of 2016.

The city’s bus system, which has tried — and, for the most part, failed — to attract consistent ridership outside of a few select routes, simply doesn’t match the needs of a majority of Columbia residents. According to the 2016 U.S. Census, 45 percent of Columbia households own at least two cars, four points higher than the national average. Meanwhile, 78 percent of residents drive alone on their commutes, and just 1.5 percent take public transportation — four points lower than the national average. Despite a nearly 40-percent growth in population over the past 15 years, the city’s traffic hasn’t yet become so unreasonable that residents consider other transportation options.

Why would they? Recent budget cuts to the city’s transportation department have eliminated some routes completely, pushing wait times in certain areas from approximately 15 minutes to sometimes more than 45. The city added a “flex” route in 2017 to remedy areas lacking coverage, Illustration by Sadie Collins

I N T HE LO O P ESSAY

but the route was eliminated this past fall amid budget cuts. And in June, the city will eliminate Saturday routes, according to a February story in the Columbia Tribune.

Columbia’s City Council also voted in September to end bus service at 7 p.m. and paratransit service at 6:25 p.m., cost-saving measures included in a 7-percent downsizing measure to the city’s transportation system. Fourth Ward City Councilman Ian Thomas blasted the board after it rejected nearly all of the proposed compromises for public transportation, saying, “We are making the wrong moral decision ... and a very bad one.” A number of citizens backed Thomas at the meeting, and in 2014, more than 60 percent of Columbia residents surveyed said they supported an increase in public transit funding, despite only 25 percent using the service.

State of neglect The blame doesn’t lie solely at the city’s feet, though. Across Missouri, funding for public transportation has decreased from $7.7 million in 1997 to just $1.7 million in 2018. In Columbia alone, grant money allocated for transportation by the State of Missouri decreased by 92 percent between 2008 and 2012.

Kimberly Cella, the executive director of the Missouri Public Transit Association, told the Columbia Tribune in October 2017 that most transit systems across the country receive about 40 percent of their funding from their respective states; .004 percent of Columbia’s transit budget comes from state grants.

Proponents of public transportation have implored Columbia to partner with MU, the city’s largest employer, to improve ridership. Many of the university’s peers, such as Iowa State University, partner with their home cities. At Iowa State, students account for about 6 million city bus rides per year — or about 94 percent of the city’s total ridership.

MU students were once regular users of public bus routes, too; beginning in 2007, student housing complexes contracted with the city to provide bus rides to and from campus for their residents. Each complex paid the city about $26,000 to let students ride for free, and Illustration by Hope Johnson

during the 2007-08 school year, more than 300,000 riders used the service.

After a few years of the agreement, the complexes opted to partner with Green Way Shuttles, and the city lost a substantial portion of its ridership. Columbia Transport Director Drew Brooks estimated in 2014 that students composed 70 percent of the city’s public transportation users. Without students, the city’s annual ridership dropped by 28 percent between 2014 and 2016.

Now, the school has approximately 23,000 parking spaces across 80 parking lots and seven garages, most of which have outstanding debt service paid for by student fees or revenue from the sales of those spaces. Students who don’t drive to campus often have the luxury of private shuttles provided by their apartment complexes. In addition, MU contributes money to the Tiger Line, its free on-campus student shuttle service.

The lack of interest in traditional public transportation and the perceived necessity of alternative options leaves the city in a precarious spot when it comes to scooters. Cities like Denver, San Francisco and Winston-Salem, North Carolina, have all banned Birds, citing inadequate regulation after the scooters were often left splayed across sidewalks in their city. Residents in Columbia have complained that they make certain areas impassable for those with disabilities.

Columbia’s City Council approved a temporary agreement between the city and Bird, in which the company must pay $1 per day to the city for every Bird scooter in use. Over the yearlong agreement, the city could net a maximum of roughly $165,000, or about seven times what it received in transportation funding from the state of Missouri in fiscal year 2016. And theoretically, hosting the scooters doesn’t cost the city any money, unlike the bus system, which would have required a budget of nearly $500,000 before the city approved the cuts in September.

Vox’s editor-in-chief, Keegan Pope, found the convenience of Bird scooters a refreshing change.

IF I LIVE WITHIN A MILE OR TWO OF WHERE I NEED TO BE ... IT’S LIKELY THERE’S A BIRD WITHIN A HUNDRED FEET OR SO. – KEEGAN POPE

Citizens stranded Residents who need bus service, especially those who aren’t near downtown, are losing options for transportation.

Representatives for residents with disabilities have lambasted the city’s disregard for their transit needs. And those without the means to pay for services like Uber, Lyft or even Bird have few options to get to work, grocery stores or other places they need to go.

Columbia’s city government, without much financial assistance from its state-level counterparts and with a populace that continues to vote down fuel tax increases, has its proverbial hands tied. Will the city address the transportation issues facing a seemingly small portion of its residents by making public transportation a priority, or is individual transportation simply too easy to pass up? We might not know until the Birds migrate home for the spring.

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

9

IN TH E LOOP ESSAY

Singing with the Quorus Longtime music director Audra Sergel reflects on her musical upbringing and tragedy-inspired creation.

BY TAYLOR RYAN MOORE

W

hen 50 people were murdered at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub in 2016, a national conversation began about LGBTQ safe spaces.

Audra Sergel, who was getting her master’s degree in vocal music education from Central Methodist at the time, was moved to respond. A month later, Sergel began formulating a plan for an LGBTQ community safe space in Columbia centered on music. She became the artistic director of Quorus, a 30-member chorus that includes people from the LGBTQ community and their allies.

Quorus meets for practice every Sunday night at Unity of Columbia church. The choir has performed at Columbia churches, a nightclub and the Mid-Missouri PrideFest.

Quorus accompanist Tim Hercules says he could see the excitement in Sergel’s eyes when she formed the group.

“As an LGBTQ community, we need to come together, and I feel like even in our own community, we feel separated,” Hercules says. “This is an organization that includes anyone and everyone.”

As Quorus takes off, Sergel, a full-time musician and music teacher, opens up about her early love for music and the meaning of Quorus.

What was your first experience with music?

I was playing the piano by the age of 5.

My father is a percussionist, and he was a director of band at Northwest Missouri State for 23 years. My brother is a professional musician. It was in the blood. I was in choir by the time I was in first grade, and I was in band by fourth grade. In college, I stuck primarily to choral music because that was my major. I started teaching and In addition to Quorus, Sergel teaches music and performs with her band and three other bands.

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VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

performing pretty much out of the gate when I was done with school.

How did you form Quorus, and what were the early challenges?

I started by calling certain friends after the idea came to me. I called my friend Anthony Hernandez, who ended up being our accompanist for the first two years. I called Robin Anderson, and I called my father. I just said, “Hey, if I start this thing, would you help?” My friends and family were really helpful. From the get-go, there has been very little negative feedback that I’ve received from our community. It’s been a really positive, dynamic experience.

Why do you think there was so much support from the community?

I’d probably say that there’s some sort of theory that the universe says, hey, this needs to happen, and the universe responds by saying we are going to support you. I definitely feel that. We have been met with nothing but a lot of love and support.

What type of music does the group perform?

Quorus is really diverse in our repertoire.

It does not subscribe to the fancy stuff. So, because of that, the music is secular in nature. Choral music specifically grew out of a sacred tradition for the church. It’s been a challenge; I’ve done extensive research on finding queer composers. There are some whom we all know such as Stephen Sondheim, and there are others like local artist Violet Vonder Haar. We’ve even done classical pieces by Randall Stroope to “We Are Family.”

What effect has starting Quorus had on you?

I didn’t realize how much I needed a queer safe space. I’ve been out for almost 20 years, and my partner and I both have found such a great community through this group. Quorus has taught me to step into a leadership role in our queer community and be supported. I was raised in a conservative small town, and as I’ve gotten older, it’s been really emotional to see how the mindset around the LGBTQ community has changed.

Photography by Antranik Tavitian

I N T HE LO O P VOX PICKS

Vox’s picks for

MARCH

Each month, Vox curates a list of our favorite shops, eats, reads and experiences in and around Columbia.

We highlight the new, trending or criminally underrated — so you’re always informed of the best our city has to offer.

BY TEDDY HANS

VISIT...

Taylor Stadium, and watch the Mizzou baseball team’s first home series of the year March 8–10 against Northwestern University. After a 34-22 season last year, and with top MLB prospect Kameron Misner returning, the Tigers looks to build on last season’s success.

Taylor Stadium, 1303 Research Park Drive

WATCH...

Films from 2018’s True/False Film Fest at Ragtag Cinema. The cozy venue will be screening some of last year’s documentaries along with this year’s Apollo 11 throughout March. Keep your eye on the Ragtag calendar, and book your tickets fast.

Ragtag Cinema, 10 Hitt St., 441-8504

EAT...

LISTEN...

Mouth-watering Mexican flavors at Taqueria Don Pancho, a taco shop bringing authentic cuisine to mid-Missouri. Taqueria Don Pancho, 26 Business Loop 70 E., Mon– Thurs. 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Fri–Sat. 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. 639-0565

To Grammy Award-winning artist Gary Clark Jr. shred at The Blue Note on March 14. The legendary blues guitarist is no stranger to Columbia — he headlined the Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival in 2017. He is promoting his latest album This Land, which landed in stores on Feb. 22.

The Blue Note, 17 N. Ninth St., 514-3849

Photography by Antranik Tavitian

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

11 11

JOIN US

for our Area Spring Games April 13 – Rock Bridge H.S. Come out and enjoy our Opening Ceremony at 9 a.m. and then stay to volunteer and cheer on our athletes.

Central Area Spring Games – April 13 (Rock Bridge H.S.) For more information, visit www.SOMO.VolunteerHub.com.

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LOCAL DESIGNER

COMO’S SECRET

SNAGS BIG GIGS P.15

CONCERT SCENE P.16

What’s in a poem?

For students involved in youth-focused poetry organization Louder Than A Bomb, it’s all about empowerment and connection.

BY ANTHONY ASHLEY Slam poetry exists among genres of art. It is poetry, theater and sometimes even music, yet it is none of those things. Poets might race through alliterative, tongue-twisting lines or lapse into a soul-gripping chorus. They might dazzle the audience with their vocabulary and metaphors, or they can punctuate a phrase with silence that means just as much as the words that come before and after. Slam poetry can be anything, but it is always one thing: expression.

Photography by Madison Parry

Mikayia Lewis is part of Hickman High School’s 2019 Louder Than A Bomb team.

VOX MAGAZINE •MARCH 2019

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C ULTURE POETRY

Prior to 2018, Hickman High School had the only scholastic poetry team in Columbia. Community youth activist Josh Runnels wanted to change that. With the help of poet T’Keyah Thomas, local poetry organization OneMic and a group called Young Chicago Authors, Runnels established a local chapter of Louder Than A Bomb. The youth-focused organization arranges poetry slams between teams of students ages 13 through 19. It’s a competition, but also, it isn’t. A common refrain among slam poets is: “The point is not the points. The point is the poetry.” And the point of the poetry is what it does for each student it reaches.

connection Lauren Sisher, 18, never participated in team sports, but she could see the camaraderie they created even when, for example, the Hickman High School’s 2017 football team won just a single game her senior year.

So when Sisher got involved with Louder Than A Bomb and saw that same excitement emanating from her fellow writers, it was invigorating. The poetry slams she attended felt welcoming. Students from “opposing” schools greeted one another like old pals, and the emcees were enthusiastic. She didn’t need to be the best — she just wanted to be part of it.

empowerment Hazen Blair, 17, had a lot to say. After finding his voice while canvassing for presidential candidate Bernie Sanders during the 2016 election cycle, he wanted a broader, more inclusive stage.

He turned toward audiences of fellow artists, toward poetry. It wasn’t the pompous thing he’d learned about in school. Poetry was honest, liberating and addictive. He’d been performing for six months when Thomas asked him to help build Mexico High School’s Louder Than A Bomb team as a junior last year.

Poetry has become his safe space. For Blair, writing is like breathing: “I tug out my eyelashes to make wishes and blow them into the wind. I cannot tell you the number, just that there is always something in my eye.”

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VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

control Regina Hartleip-Pinto, 17, felt helpless. She saw herself falling into the same patterns she had seen family members fall into whenever they faced hardships, which was often. She had watched as alcoholism damaged relationships, and she saw the negative ways in which her father had coped when her uncle died by suicide.

It seemed as though she could trace pain and hardship all the way up her family tree, from her parents to her ancestors, who had been born into slavery in Brazil. She felt written into the tragic story of a chaotic and painful life.

She decided she had to change that.

Hartleip-Pinto, now a senior at Hickman High School, picked up a pen and wrote herself a new story: “Grimm brothers I demand you to give me the ink because now this princess is ready to reign as queen.”

community No matter their experience or point of view, when poets are onstage, they are

Nancy White, Hickman’s Louder Than A Bomb coach, talks with students during a team practice. White has taught creative writing at Hickman for 11 years.

How it works:

Beginning March 12, LTAB teams compete to advance through multiple competition bouts, which culminate in the April 20 finals.

heard. Teammates shout chants to their classmates before they perform, and audience members snap when they hear something that strikes them. When poets profess the most vulnerable points of their lives and assert their personalities, strangers become friends, and friends become family. If a judge gives a low score, the crowd often shouts, “Listen to the poem!” They know the scores don’t matter; the poetry does.

Photography by Madison Parry

C U LT U RE ART

Rappers’ delight Meet Farris Knudsen, a 22-year-old MU graphic design student creating covers for some of rap’s emerging artists.

BY LILY O’NEILL

H

e gives a casual shrug when asked about his design portfolio, as if it were typical for a 22-year-old college student in mid-Missouri to have crafted cover art for rising and established rap stars. After using Instagram to send fan art to rappers emerging in the SoundCloud music scene, Farris Knudsen, a graphic design student at MU, began creating covers for artists Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage and Gucci Mane.

In December 2015, Lil Uzi Vert complimented Knudsen’s talent. “Fire,” the rapper responded to an Instagram message with a digitally manipulated portrait of himself that Knudsen made to fit Uzi’s trippy style. Knudsen says he went “full fanboy” and saw this as a crucial opportunity. He told Uzi to let him know if he ever needed design or art direction, and the two exchanged phone numbers. The interaction sparked a freelance design gig Knudsen never expected, expanding his portfolio to include four record covers.

Money Longer Two months after discovering Knudsen on Instagram, record producer Don Cannon asked him to do one of his first covers for Uzi’s 2016 single, “Money Longer.” Knudsen’s only direction was the title. He wanted to incorporate his own digital manipulation style, so he decided to create another portrait of Uzi but with dollar signs bouncing out of his eyes, like an old cartoon. The single was about Uzi realizing how much money he was going to make as a rising rapper, which Knudsen wanted to communicate.

“You have to get in their brain in a sense ... just get in their shoes,” Knudsen says.

Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World A couple weeks after Knudsen designed “Money Longer,” Uzi asked him to do the cover for his mixtape Lil Uzi Vert vs.

Photography courtesy of Amazon

Knudsen’s cover designs capture the personalities of rappers, such as Gucci Mane, Lil Uzi Vert and 21Savage.

the World. Inspired by the movie Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Uzi wanted a comic book style similar to the film.

As the mixtape gained more recognition, so did Knudsen. Record producer Metro Boomin followed him on Twitter after Uzi gave Knudsen a shoutout on the platform for his artwork, and Knudsen sent him a message. The two quickly bonded over their shared hometown, St. Louis, and a few weeks later, he asked Knudsen to design a cover for 21 Savage.

Savage Mode For Savage Mode, Knudsen was simply told to create something red and bloody with knives, giving him freedom to incorporate his own ideas and style. The cover features red tones and a hint of black, reflecting 21 Savage’s dark music.

A knife tears through a wave of psychedelic rose petals with faded white lines, creating a vintage look. “I was a big 21 Savage fan during the time,” Knudsen

says. “I’m just glad I got to make a piece that was seen by that amount of people and had the results it did.”

Droptopwop Metro Boomin, again impressed with Knudsen’s art, asked him to do the cover for Gucci Mane’s mixtape Droptopwop.

Knudsen was instructed to base the cover on rap group Clipse’s 2002 album Lord Willin.’ Because Knudsen wanted to incorporate a drawing rather than Photoshop effects, he worked with Jared Calder, an artist he found on Twitter.

Knudsen acted as art director, providing Calder with essential thematic elements and guiding him through the process.

Two years after receiving that first response from Uzi, Knudsen is focusing on creating a more substantial career as a graphic design artist. He says he appreciates all he learned from the process, and in the future, he wants to branch out from the music business.

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CULTURE MUSIC

Sofar, so good Columbia’s latest addition to the music landscape brings secretive, intimate concerts into unconventional spaces.

BY JASMINE-KAY JOHNSON

A

s a manager of The UPS Store in Columbia, Erika Skaggs spends her days ensuring that customers’ packages get delivered.

During her evenings, though, she delivers something else to a wanting crowd: a distinctive concert experience. After craving a more intimate musical affair, Skaggs stumbled upon Sofar Sounds online and decided to become the newest innovator in Columbia’s music scene by opening a branch here.

Sofar Sounds is the music enthusi-

Husband-and-wife duo Porter Union, who played at the first Sofar show, have spent the better part of the last decade touring and performing country music together.

ast’s pop-up shop. It’s an international concert curation company, started in London by Rafe Offer, that hosts intimate live shows in alternative locations, such as someone’s living room or a retail store. The catch? In order to attend the show, you have to apply, and only if you’re accepted are you allowed to purchase a ticket. The ambiguity doesn’t stop there. Guests won’t know where the venue is, outside of the city it’s located in, until 36 hours beforehand. They also

won’t know who’s performing until they arrive at the show.

With Sofar’s Columbia debut, music-loving locals no longer have to limit themselves to concerts defined by rowdy crowds, sticky beer-covered floors or the haunting blue lights of phone screens.

In fact, at Sofar shows, guests are asked to refrain from using their phones and discouraged from leaving mid-show.

Prior to opening the Columbia branch in January, Skaggs didn’t know

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VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

Providing the community with a stimulating environment for experiencing the visual arts through exhibitions, education, appreciation, promotion, and creation of art.

Photography courtesy of Jacob McGrath

C U LT U RE MUSIC

much about Sofar Sounds. She came across its website by chance and thought it was what had been missing in her life for the past year.

The Sofar crew, including Skaggs’ fiancé, Jacob McGrath, and team ambassador Andrea Jackson, hosted its first Columbia show at Bur Oak Brewing Company in January. There, attendees watched performances by local stars The Burney Sisters, husband-and-wife duo Porter Union and singer-songwriter Nina Lee Cherry. Like Skaggs, Cherry hadn’t known much about Sofar when she was asked in December to perform, but she was intrigued. For her, playing in an intimate space for an audience that listens intently without the distraction of phones seemed like a change of pace.

Despite her initial hesitation, she says she felt that the experience was special because of the inherent intimacy of the show. “For me, it’s really important that I have a chance to connect in that kind of environment,” Cherry says. And though she enjoys a good show at Rose

Photography by Jacob McGrath

Music Hall or The Blue Note, Cherry describes Sofar as something entirely different. At a larger venue, the chance of being very close to a performer is slim; however, closeness is expected for audience members at Sofar shows. “We encourage them to get as close to the artist as possible and sit right underneath their feet,” Skaggs says.

Beyond Sofar’s cool factor lies a potential wave of influence that others are picking up on. Hitt Records co-owner and local music guru Kyle Cook not only approves of Sofar in Columbia, but he also thinks it will have a positive effect on the music scene.

“To book a show in a venue is kind of an intense and corporate-driven process,” Cook says. “Instantly they’re like, ‘How many numbers can you bring in? How much money is going to be involved?’” Sofar alleviates the numbers-driven pressure by giving up-andcomers a platform to do what they love; the company is community-driven, not financially driven. “When you strip a lot

Attendees of Sofar shows don’t know the venue until 36 hours beforehand, and they only find out who’s playing when they arrive.

Check out Sofarsounds. com/columbiamo to get involved.

of those things away, you can take more chances on having an artist who’s not really well-known,” Cook says.

Despite the already vibrant music community, Cook is excited for the stability that Sofar could bring. As of now, he says Columbia has a revolving door of bands because of the thousands of college students who live in town. He thinks Sofar Sounds could amplify and strengthen the presence of local acts, which is exactly what it aims to do.

Eventually, Sofar hopes to be a staple in the Columbia music scene.

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VOX MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019

Smoker’s Paradise

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BY MICHAEL CONNOLLY  PHOTOGRAPHY BY TRISTEN ROUSE

cigarettes in Missouri this year, and roughly 11,000 of them will die from smoking-related illnesses. Our state charges the lowest excise tax in the country, so it’s no surprise Missourians are so quick to light up.

WARNING: Nearly a million adults will smoke

I

It had been two years since Hughes Ransom touched a cigarette as he sat in Smokey Joe’s bar in Philadelphia in February 2018. The 22-year-old had just finished a stand-up comedy set when a Natural American Spirits representative armed with coupons and an iPad entered the bar, approached him and asked if he was a smoker.

I met Ransom our freshman year at MU before he transferred to the University of Pennsylvania. He was then smoking about a pack a week. He quit during the second semester, so he told the representative that he was a former smoker.

“What if I told you I could get you two packs of American Spirits for $4?”

“Oh, well I would definitely take that.”

Ransom thought he’d be able to savor the two packs and stop there. He typed his email address on the iPad and took the coupon for his favorite cigarettes.

He cashed it in, tore through the two packs, about 40 cigarettes, and just like that, he was hooked again.

He thought the stress of being a student at Penn, an Ivy League school, was why he continued to smoke and shell out more than $11 a pack for American Spirits. He was sure he’d quit once he returned home to Kansas City after the school year ended. He was wrong.

“As soon as I got to Missouri, cigarettes are $5 a pack,” Ransom says. “Why would I quit? I’m getting double the bang for my buck.”

MISSOURI’S TAX PARADOX

In contrast to Pennsylvania’s cigarette tax of $2.60 a pack, the 12th-highest in the nation, Missouri’s cigarette tax is just 17 cents per pack, the lowest in the nation. Because of Missouri’s 1980 Hancock Amendment, which requires state tax increases be passed by a popular vote, you shouldn’t expect a tax increase anytime soon, says Leah Martin, director of advocacy for the American Lung Association. Low taxes on cigarettes might save Missourians money up front, but it costs the state greatly in the long run.

According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, the revenue generated from tobacco VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

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before he returned to Penn for the fall semester, he visited me and other friends in Columbia. He had a few beers and sat slouched in my armchair with an unlit cigarette hanging out of his mouth. “I’m at the level of drunk where I constantly want a cig,” he said, the cigarette bobbing up and down as he spoke. Many smokers crave cigarettes when they drink, and Ransom says he does, too. So I joined him outside my front door while he puffed away at his American Spirit, and we talked about Russia, communism and Kanye West. products in Missouri in 2017 was just over $105 million, but smoking-related illnesses cost the state $3 billion annually.

Smoking is something to worry about not only in Missouri, but also in the United States as a whole. It is the No. 1 cause of preventable death in the U.S., accounting for about one in five deaths in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to 2017 research from the CDC, 20.8 percent of adult Missourians smoke, the 12th-highest rate of any state. “In Missouri, I don’t feel as bad about smoking cigarettes,” Ransom says. “I see a lot more people around me smoking cigarettes.” In Pennsylvania, where 18.7 percent of adults smoke, Ransom’s smoking is met with more backlash. “Hey Hughes, are you killing yourself slowly again?” one of his Penn classmates asks him while he smokes a cigarette on his porch. “Yeah,” Ransom says with an empty chuckle, “... yeah.”

SMOKING MORE THAN EVER

After spending the first two weeks of last summer in Kansas City, Ransom went to Los Angeles for an internship and was determined to quit smoking by the end of the summer. As a parting gift to himself, he took advantage of Missouri’s bargain prices and bought a carton of 10 packs of cigarettes. He made the drive over two days and smoked non-stop, ripping through 50 cigarettes by the time he reached California. He finished the

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Wade Simms began smoking at 12 years old. “I thought it was cool,” he says.

Now 51 years old, Simms regrets ever starting. “I wish I’d never picked ‘em up. I’ve managed to quit before — once for five years, once for two years — but I always go back to it.”

Jordan Isaacs is a 21-year-old bank teller. He started smoking when he was 15 years old and has tried to quit more than five times in the six years he’s been smoking. “Drinking is a huge part of the relapse,” Isaacs says. Isaacs states that being around other smokers is also part of his relapse.

He’ll get cigarettes from other smokers even if he’s trying to quit and doesn’t have any.

remainder of the carton in three weeks and wasn’t able to kick his habit that summer. He was smoking more than ever.

He had started smoking cigarettes when his cousin bought him a light-blue pack of American Spirits for his 18th birthday. After that, he smoked his senior year of high school and most of his freshman year of college.

After his summer internship and

ASPECTS OF ADDICTION

The social aspect of smoking is one of the three links in the chain of addiction, according to Quitters Circle, a group created by the American Lung Association and Pfizer to help smokers quit.

Both Ransom and another one of my friends, Sami Baugher, an MU student and Columbia native, say the social facet is one of the driving forces behind their

smoking. It’s hard for them to decline an invitation to step outside with their smoker friends and get a few quiet minutes away from a party. If they’re in a group with other smokers, it’s always an option to go have a cig.

“There are certain friends in my friend group who I’d definitely be less close with if they weren’t also smokers,” Baugher says. One of his roommates is typically quiet in larger groups, but the four or five minutes of one-on-one time has made them closer.

Baugher also comes from a family where smoking is normalized. His mom is from France, where 27 percent of adults smoke, a higher rate than anywhere in the U.S. Although his mom doesn’t smoke, almost everyone on her side of the family does. On top of that, Baugher smokes with his dad when they golf together. “I smoke with my relatives, and I have for years now,” Baugher says.

“Not that anybody encourages me to smoke, but it’s an accepted thing in my household.” It’s a habit he always knew he’d pick up. What also didn’t help his addiction was when the older kids on the high school baseball team would buy him cigarettes and chewing tobacco.

Dipping catapulted his nicotine addiction, and he continued to use tobacco through graduation. The only change he made is the move from Marlboro Reds to Marlboro Lights.

About once a day after he smokes a cigarette, Baugher thinks to himself, “I didn’t even want to smoke that.” He just smokes it because it’s time to smoke.

This is the second link in the chain of addiction behind social pressure: the mental aspect. Baugher uses cigarettes

Abi Fulcher, 22, began smoking a little over a year ago during a hospital stay. Now, she says, “It’s a routine — something I do to take a break from work, mainly.”

As far as trying to quit, Fulcher says it’s “hard when the person I’m dating isn’t quitting at the same time.” She says she does want to quit before she has her wisdom teeth removed, an operation she just pushed back after cutting her hand at work. “It’s just a nasty habit.”

to punctuate tasks, so on days when he accomplishes a lot, he tends to smoke more. “There’s something unsatisfied in my brain if I don’t do that,” Baugher says.

Cigarettes become a part of a smoker’s daily routine. At the end of a day, Baugher can think back and recall every cigarette he smoked that day, especially if it’s a weekday where he follows a regimented schedule. “It’s almost like I have them in my head with my classes,” Baugher says. Smokers’ routines man-

ACCORDING TO 2017 RESEARCH FROM THE CDC, 20.8 PERCENT OF ADULT MISSOURIANS SMOKE, THE 12TH HIGHEST RATE OF ANY STATE.

ifest themselves from when and where they smoke to their brand of cigarettes.

Ransom only smokes American Spirits.

For Baugher it needs to be a Marlboro.

In addition to being a built-in part of a smoker’s daily routine, smoking becomes part of their identities. Research from Norwich Medical School in July 2018 showed that one reason quitters relapse is to regain the identity they lost by quitting. “Some of my friends call me Marb Red as a joke sometimes,” Baugher says.

The third link in the chain of addiction is physical. “It’s a bodily craving,” Ransom says. “It’s more of a physical reaction than me rationalizing why I need a cigarette.” The urge rises in Ransom until he is compelled to smoke to relieve the tension inside him. Nicotine replacement, typically through gum or patches, is the primary way smokers

ABOUT THIS PROJECT Photographer Tristen Rouse sought to highlight tobacco smokers and their stories. He spoke with both lifelong and recent smokers.

He photographed them at their homes, so he could learn about the role smoking plays in their lives.

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can overcome their physical addiction.

Finding something to replace the oral act of smoking is another way. Baugher was once able to quit for a month by eating whenever he wanted a cigarette.

After this, however, he relapsed.

QUITTING TIME

Five months ago, Ransom decided to try to quit. He called 1-800-QUITNOW and was connected with Pennsylvania’s Free Quitline. He received a four-week supply of nicotine patches and was introduced to a personal quit coach. According to the ALA, the state of Pennsylvania’s quitline allocates $1.47 per smoker, which is below the national median of $2.21 but well above Missouri’s 51 cents. Missouri’s funding only allows for two weeks of nicotine replacement therapy. Missourians are limited to four phone calls with a trained quit coach and have access to online and text support after the multiple call counseling sessions.

Like Missouri’s quitline, Pennsylvania offers two or more weeks of nicotine replacement therapy, but it has the option to continue if necessary. Additionally, Pennsylvania residents get five calls with a coach that will help them quit.

The state provides online and text support, which includes a call to the center.

The ALA has been doing the “State of Tobacco Control” report for 17 years, which grades each state on tobacco prevention and cessation funding, smoke free air, tobacco taxes, access to cessation services and Tobacco 21— a campaign that focuses on raising the age for buying tobacco from 18 to 21. On the American Lung Association’s report card, Missouri received five Fs and Pennsylvania received four Fs and one D. Compare that to California, which received four Bs and an A on its report card. Its cigarette tax is $2.87 per pack, well above the national average of $1.79. The state also invests $3.14 per smoker in its quitline. On top of that, it is also one of just six states that have raised the sale age of tobacco to 21. California’s commitment to tobacco control has paid dividends; it has the

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Ellie Worsham, 21, started smoking as a 17-year-old high school student, partially because her then boyfriend smoked as well.

“It’s harder to quit when you work in a restaurant or when your friends smoke too,” Worsham says. However, while she has tried to quit in the past, it’s not her top priority. “I’m ok with smoking right now.”

second-lowest adult smoking rate in the country at just 11.3 percent.

IT’S GETTING BETTER

Missouri might not have the public funds necessary to control tobacco, but residents here still have access to state or national programs aimed at helping smokers quit.

In Columbia, Ginny Chadwick, western regional director for the Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation, was involved in the 2014 effort to raise the city’s sale age for tobacco to 21. She first became involved in the issue when she was a member of the Columbia City Council in 2014. She sponsored the city’s Tobacco 21 ordinance, which passed in 2014. “Missouri was one of the first places to pass it, and we don’t typically lead in tobacco control,” Chadwick says. “I was getting calls from across the country asking me how to do it.”

Greater accountability comes at the federal level from the FDA, but even its fines for sale to a minor aren’t much of a deterrent. In 2018, the Gerbes grocery store on Paris Road received a no-tobacco-sale order after its seventh offense.

It is the second retailer in Columbia to receive one, the other company being the Break Time on Nifong Boulevard, which has received two.

Following the passing of the Tobacco 21 ordinance in 2014, Columbia saw decreases in the percentage of retailers the FDA caught selling to minors in both 2015 and 2016. However, in 2017, the percentage of retailers caught by the FDA jumped to 11.8 percent and then 16.9 percent in 2018. Stan Cowan, a research aide with the University of Missouri School of Medicine and with Missouri Tobacco Control Research Center, speculates that retailers have learned the ordinance isn’t strongly

I MOST LIKELY WON’T GET CANCER FROM CIGARETTES FOR AT LEAST 40 OR 50 YEARS... I’M GENUINELY NOT WORRIED ABOUT IT. —­ SAMI BAUGHER enforced, so they are willing to take more risks.

Kevin Everett, an associate professor in family and community medicine at MU, was involved in developing MU’s smoke- and tobacco-free policies and also used to work as a cessation coach.

One quitting technique Everett has focused on is identifying teachable moments. Everett says these are when smokers face the negative consequences of their smoking and make the link between those consequences and their habit. For example, if a smoker has a heart attack, that can be a jumping-off point for them to quit. At MU, trained ambassadors also go around campus several times a day and approach people breaking the rule in a nonconfrontational way. The ambassadors carry nicotine gum, lozenges and pamphlets with information on resources to quit.

As of Aug. 20, 2018, MU is completely tobacco-free.

On Feb. 19, the Columbia City Council passed a bill that will require tobacco retailers to be licensed to sell tobacco, vapor or nicotine products according to the Columbia Missourian. The bill will help the city identify businesses that sell tobacco. To obtain a license, businesses will need to turn in a written form to the city business services administrator. Once the applications are accepted, then licenses will be given. If businesses don’t follow these guidelines, then they could be fined up to $5,000.

This will start next year. Chadwick’s organization recommends doing at least one compliance check per year for the Tobacco 21 policy to be fully effective.

TO QUIT OR NOT TO QUIT?

But just because people are providing help doesn’t mean everyone is looking

for it. Baugher has no plans of quitting any time soon. “People always laugh at me when I say this, but to me, modern medicine plays a big factor,” he says. “I most likely won’t get cancer from cigarettes for at least 40 or 50 years … I’m genuinely not worried about it.”

On the other hand, some smokers, such as Ransom, are more than happy to make use of the resources available to them. After starting his effort to quit on

Oct. 26, he was cigarette-free by mid-November. Three weeks later, he relapsed during Thanksgiving break because he reduced his nicotine patch dosage from 21 milligrams to 14 milligrams too quickly. He says he felt the pressure to smoke with a friend when he was in Kansas City.

He plans to try quitting again soon, but this time he’ll have to buy his own nicotine patches. He hopes sticking with the 21-milligram patches will help him quit for good.

Smokers follow different paths, but their shared addiction is something they carry with them even after they’ve quit.

For former smokers, the fight to stay cigarette-free is endless. They never know when their addiction will walk through the door with a fistful of coupons.

Derek Tarwater, 33, began smoking at age 11. He managed to quit for seven years during a health kick but started back up again two years ago. “It always goes from ‘I can just have one’ to ‘I can smoke a pack a day,’” Tarwater says. Tarwater also cited Missouri’s comparatively low state tobacco taxes as part of why he can keep smoking.

“Missouri is the last place it’s affordable to smoke.”

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY KELLYN NETTLES AND SHAOYANG CHEN

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I N T HE LO O P ESSAY

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he U.S. comprises less than 5 percent of the world’s population, yet in 2014, we produced 15 percent of the carbon dioxide emissions that cause global warming. According to the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, historically, we’re responsible for more of the excess carbon dioxide heating the Earth than any other country. The bottom line? We’re consuming more than our share.

As global temperatures and sea levels rise, extreme weather events increase and air quality decreases, our economy and way of life will change.

“Our planet is not ours to do whatever we want with it,” says Columbia Sustainability Manager Barbara Buffaloe. “It’s important because if we reduce our impact, that means that my children and my children’s children will still have a planet Earth to call home.”

People across the city are working to make Columbia sustainable. A team of Vox writers takes an inside look at how local businesses and MU are going green (or falling short), and consider options to start reducing your environmental footprint.

Earth, wind and solar Renewable energy abounds in Columbia if you know where to look.

BY TEDDY HANS

J

ack Meinzenbach drives one of the relatively few Teslas that can be spotted in Columbia. His house is heated with ground-source pumps.

He has bought into Boone Electric’s community solar and renewable choice wind programs. His EnergyStar Certified home is caulked airtight, and even its foundation is insulated. All this is an investment with a worthy goal: saving the planet.

Renewable energy is exactly what it sounds like — energy from sources that are naturally renewed. The main sources are solar, wind and hydropower. The beauty of renewable energy is that it is, theoretically, infinite. The sun shines, the wind blows and the rain comes, no matter what.

But is it really possible for countries around the world to run on 100 percent renewable energy? In a partnership with National Geographic, Stanford professor of civil and environmental engineering Mark Jacobson released an interactive article with a blueprint outlining how every country could achieve 100 percent renewable energy by 2050 given each country’s natural resources. For example, sun-soaked Egypt would rely primarily on solar power, whereas the United States would focus more on wind.

There are others who don’t believe

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Jack Meinzenbach worked at Boeing Co. in St. Louis for 44 years before moving to Columbia. It was at Boeing that he decided anything can be accomplished when smart people get together to solve a problem.

100 percent renewable energy is possible, though. Among them is Frank Maisano, an energy and environmental media specialist who works with several large energy companies, including oil, gas and solar. Citing infrastructure issues and other logistical challenges, he says, “We’re moving along at a pace that the market is allowing.”

Regardless of whether 100 percent renewable energy is plausible, the environmental damage caused by fossil fuels has prompted people to start going green. “There are three types of people in this world,” Meinzenbach says.

“Those that watch things happen, those that make things happen and those that wonder what happened.”

Despite his belief that Missouri in general is watching what’s happening, Meinzenbach believes Columbians are among those who are making moves and getting things done.

Be energy efficient In the effort to reduce our collective carbon footprint, being energy efficient is step one. Simple tasks such as shutting off lights, being conscious of water use and unplugging electronics can all help with energy efficiency.

“You can build and pay for all the green energy you want, but don’t you want to get your footprint as small as you can get it first?” says Meredith Hoenes, communications specialist for Boone Electric.

Both Boone Electric and the city of Columbia offer customers free audits by an expert who comes to your home and assesses where energy is slipping through your fingertips, such as through power-sucking outdated appliances or poorly sealed windows.

Not only will reducing your energy consumption save you money, but it’s also important because renewable energy Photography by Antranik Tavitian

has its own pitfalls (albeit much smaller ones than those of coal).

Understand where your power comes from In Columbia, electricity comes from either nonprofit cooperative Boone Electric or the city of Columbia. Which energy provider you have depends on where you live.

A portion of each provider’s energy mix comes from renewable sources.

Boone Electric buys its energy from Associated Electric. The city of Columbia’s mix is composed of energy from the open energy market, its own two solar fields and contracts with other renewable energy providers. In 2018, 15.7 percent of Columbia’s energy came from renewable sources. A recent ordinance requires the city to increase that number to 30 percent by 2029.

Use your provider to your benefit Boone Electric offers both wind and solar options on top of its regular energy mix, in which you rent wind blocks or solar panels as an additional cost added to your regular utility bill. You won’t receive the financial benefits, such as tax breaks and rebates, that come with installing panels on your own property, but you’ll still be more eco-friendly.

Wind blocks are $2 each per month, and each one can produce up to 100 kilowatt-hours of energy. For the solar program, each kWh produced by a single panel costs 7.25 cents.

Meinzenbach, for example, rents eight panels. So if the entire field produces 12,000 kWh of energy this month, that will be divided by the 400 panels in the field. Multiply those 30 kWh by Meinzenbach’s eight panels, and he’s entitled to 240 kWh, meaning he’ll pay $17.40 on top of his normal utility bill.

Meinzenbach doesn’t mind the extra cost. He says he wants the planet to remain a hospitable place for his grandkids to grow up.

The city of Columbia is working to establish a community solar program similar to Boone Electric’s. Eric Hempel, Columbia’s energy educator, says the idea has been approved at Columbia Water and Light, though the final details are still being ironed out.

Associated Electric in Springfield, Missouri, supplies 51 local energy cooperatives in Iowa, Oklahoma and Missouri — ­ including Boone Electric. Check out its annual energy mix for 2018 below.

Coal

63 12

19

Natural gas

Wind energy

Hydropower

6 Hear the call to action In 2017, the world added 98 gigawatts of solar power capacity, which is more than the growth of fossil fuels and nuclear capacity combined; 52 gigawatts of offshore wind power capacity were also added.

One gigawatt of power is equal to 1 billion watts. The average energy consumption for a single residence in 2017 was about 10 million watts, which means that a single gigawatt could fuel approximately 100,000 homes.

Capacity, however, does not necessarily equal production. For example, if it were sunny every hour of the day, solar power would be producing at its full potential, but that’s not how the sun works. Renewable energy sources such as wind and solar are also simply not as reliable as coal, Maisano says.

Additionally, although the growth of solar and wind power is outpacing the growth of fossil fuels and nuclear capacity, it is not yet moving quickly enough to combat climate change.

Valuable time passes as people debate the politics of it all. “Mother Earth cannot handle an infinite amount of pollution,” Meinzenbach says. “We are getting to the tipping point … but nothing is impossible. We have very smart people that can solve any problem.”

WANT RENEWABLE ENERGY ON YOUR OWN TERMS? Solar panels Panels mounted in sun-soaked spots (e.g., your roof) to convert the sun’s rays into energy • The average system size for a U.S. household is 6,000 watts, which costs around $13,000.

• The federal government offers tax breaks, and the city of Columbia offers rebates for those who install panels on their homes.

• These benefits can reduce the amount you pay to just 45 percent of the total cost, says Ryan Roe, owner of Green Leaf Solar in Columbia.

Ground source heat pumps Fluid-filled pipes buried several feet below ground that connect to a pump above ground and utilize geothermal temperatures to heat and cool the home • The typical cost for a 2,500-squarefoot home is $20,000 to $25,000.

• These pumps can reduce your energy consumption by up to 50 percent.

• Despite the high initial cost, Boone Electric’s communications specialist Meredith Hoenes says the return on your investment is actually much quicker than it is for solar.

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How trash becomes … not trash Everything you need to know about Columbia recycling from doorstep to processing plant.

BY LAURA MISEREZ

H

umans have created 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste since we began mass-producing cheap plastics in the 1950s and ’60s, and only 9 percent of that has ever been recycled, according to a study published in Science Advances.

Recycling plastic instead of creating more diverts products from landfills, which means cities can go longer without having to build new ones. Columbia is already planning to expand its landfill, as the current one is estimated to fill up between 2026 and 2031. Many residents use the city recycling program by dropping recyclables in containers at non-residential or multi-family complexes or into bags provided by the city for single-family homes.

But have you ever wondered where your old newspapers and empty bottles go after you take them outside? Recycling isn’t over once the items leave the street. At that stage, their journey is only beginning.

3. The trash comes out.

Non-recyclables are picked out of the pile. If too much food or oil gets through, would-be recyclables turn into landfillbound trash. Many people also try to recycle items that Columbia doesn’t currently have the infrastructure to recycle, such as paper coffee cups and juice cartons, which slow the assembly line.

WHERE DO YOU STAND? 1. Kicked to the curb.

Every weekday, dump trucks drive the streets of Columbia collecting curbside blue bags and items from the 13 recycling drop-off centers around town. The trucks spill their contents onto the tipping floor of the Material Recovery Facility on Peabody Road, a massive garagelike room with no windows.

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2. One of these things is not like the other. Two conveyor belts bring the items to employees who further sort the recyclables as they pass by. Fiber items are sorted into newspaper, office paper and cardboard. Container items are separated on the other as a magnet catches steel and tin cans.

To get an idea of where you should make the biggest changes, check out a carbon footprint calculator.

The program will ask you basic questions about your life, such as household size, income, transportation and dietary habits, then it will tell you what aspect of your life has the highest impact on emissions.

h

Shrink your carbon footprint in every aspect of your life.

BY RACHEL TAYLOR

T

4. Crushed, sealed, delivered.

The items are pressed into bales to be stored until they’re sold to a processing plant, where the materials will be broken down and made into new products.

Bales of newspaper are stored and sold monthly to Midland Davis, an Illinois processing facility that then sells the repurposed material to a paper company.

he electricity you use at home makes up the majority of the average American’s carbon footprint. According to Ecoshift Consulting, an organization that offers services in sustainability, Americans individually emit four times more carbon annually than the world average.

Vast quantities of energy are used to heat and cool residences and businesses, and where you live affects your carbon footprint. Your carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide you directly and indirectly emit. In general, people living in rural areas produce more carbon emissions than those in urban areas due to larger homes and the necessity of traveling a greater distance for work and errands.

The average carbon emissions in New York City, for example, are 30 percent below the national average, according to studies by the International Institute for Environment and Development.

“Together we as a family (on Earth) have moved the needle on the climate, and so we need to also work together … to reduce global warming,” says Crystal Chissell, the vice president of operations and engagement at Project Drawdown, an organization that presents climate solutions.

Carolyn Amparan, the chair of Osage Group Sierra Club and a member of the Mayor’s Climate Action Task Force, recommends simple, small actions to begin reducing your carbon footprint, such as using reusable shopping bags and bar soap instead of bottled soap. “Every day you’re presented with so many choices,” she says.

To reduce food waste, Amparan suggests planning meals ahead of time so you know exactly what to purchase when going to the grocery store.

And freeze leftovers to make them last longer.

Plan your outings to reduce driving time. If you’re going downtown for lunch, what other errands can you get out of the way while you’re there?

Replace incandescent lightbulbs with LEDs, which use 90 percent less energy. Purchase energy-efficient appliances, insulate your home, and turn down the thermostat in the winter and up in the summer.

To save water, Chissell recommends switching to low-flow fixtures and turning off the faucet while brushing your teeth. Minimizing water usage decreases the energy needed to supply, treat and pump the water.

START AT HOME The Center for Behavior & the Environment identified 30 small, individual actions that can be implemented to help decrease global carbon emissions.

The organization, which encourages behavior change to support conservation efforts and the planet, built on information presented in a research book of climate change solutions by scientists and policymakers.

Incorporating some of these solutions in your life will reduce your carbon footprint.

FOOD

•

Reduce food waste.

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Eat a plant-rich diet and reduce consumption of animal products.

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Compost biodegradable waste, such as fruit and vegetable scraps, to use as soil fertilizer.

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Carpool and use ride-sharing services and public transportation rather than private vehicles.

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Ride bikes instead of driving.

•

TRANSPORTATION

ENERGY AND MATERIALS Install rooftop solar panels. Use energy-efficient LED lightbulbs in homes.

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Use water-saving devices, such as lowflow showerheads and faucets.

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Recycle paper, plastic, metal and glass.

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Adding green to black and gold MU has made progress in its sustainability initiatives, but recycling contamination and pushback from the UM System’s Board of Curators has slowed its roll.

BY BRANDON HILL

I

f you ever watch students disposing of meal remains or trash in the bins labeled “landfill,” “plastic/bottles” and “aluminum/cans,” you’ll often see bottles tumble carelessly away from the plastic recycling and into the aluminum or landfill options. Too many wrong tosses can doom a whole container of recyclable materials to an irreversible trip to a landfill.

Raghu Raghavan, sustainability manager of MU’s Sustainability Office, says only 20 to 30 percent of all recyclable materials disposed at MU is eligible for recycling. This is mostly due to im-

Myth: You have to carefully clean and separate parts of recyclables.

Reality: New technology allows for easier recycling. For instance, you don’t need to separate plastic windows from envelopes or rinse soda bottles before recycling them.

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proper recycling practices and careless misplacement of materials.

“The challenges of sustainability on a large campus are far more widespread than the challenges on a smaller campus,” Raghavan says. The daily volume of people on campus can have a higher impact on a concentrated area than spread-out cities.

Progress at the university In 2017, The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education ranked MU No. 43 among 941 institutions in its sustainability assessment system, which measures the overall sustainability performance of universities of all sizes.

MU’s policies, such as the Sustainable Cleaning Program, which regulates the use of cleaning supplies and of powered equipment, have helped improve the school’s performance in the metric.

Along with updates to existing facilities on campus, the university has put more focus on constructing sustainable buildings. MU has a set of green building guidelines and is home to several buildings with the highest rating from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

The LEED system grades the construction of the buildings and the buildings themselves in five areas and awards four levels of certification based on the total points received. Raghavan says MU’s platinum-rated LEED buildings include Johnston and Wolpers residence halls and the MU Hospital’s Patient Centered Care Learning Center. The campus is also home to one of only two gold-rated collegiate softball fields in the country.

Raghavan says one of the largest contributors to the high sustainability score is the MU Power Plant, an on-site generator of green energy. It is considered to be

highly sustainable because of a new biomass fuel generator that uses waste wood chips as a source, but two other generators at the plant are still natural gas-powered.

Students take action The Mizzou Energy Action Coalition is an MU student organization whose purpose is to hold the university accountable in its goal to be carbon neutral by 2050 and to reduce MU’s investments in fossil fuels to zero. MEAC built a case last spring for the UM Systems’ complete divestment in fossil fuels and sent the proposal to the UM System Board of Curators. The group cited environmental, social and economic advantages for the university. MEAC argued, for example, that the 1 percent of the UM System’s investment portfolio for fossil fuel investments would be better invested in renewable energy. The proposal was signed by every student government organization at MU, but it was turned down by the Board of Curators.

The board pointed to the university’s existing investments in renewable energy, such as a $76 million biofuel generator. It also contended that, from an economic perspective, the fossil fuel industry will remain a critically important component of the global economy for decades and that energy from fossil fuels will continue to represent the majority of energy consumes in the U.S. by 2050.

MEAC President Haley Gronniger believes that much of what the university is doing for sustainability are the easy things that get the public attention.

But they’re not doing the real impactful things that could make an environmental difference in the long run.

Gronniger and Sustain Mizzou President Ian de Boer say divesting from fossil fuels even by 2050 is too late. The United Nations 2018 climate

Raghavan says MU has dropped its greenhouse gas emissions by over 50 percent since 2008, in large part because of the biomass fuel generator.

MU has made it a goal to be carbon neutral by 2050.

report painted a dim outlook for the future, noting that a global temperature rise of 1.5 degrees Celsius could cause irreversible and catastrophic changes to the planet. At the current rate, that degree of global warming is expected to occur between 2030 and 2052.

“We have to make drastic change now,” de Boer says. “People have constantly said we’re in the process of it, but if the process is another 30, 40 years, we’re going to be already facing the issues that are irreversible in 2050.”

Take an extra second Although there are many organizations taking a strong approach to sustainability at MU, there are other actions that students and Columbia residents can take themselves to help the city become more eco-friendly.

Raghavan says that small and simple

practices like paying attention to where you place your recyclables can have a major impact on sustainability at MU. He calls practices like this “low-hanging fruit,” or easy, climate-friendly habits that might seem simple and pointless but, when practiced by enough people, can make a significant change. He believes the biggest way people can contribute to campus sustainability is to take an extra second to think about their actions and what consequences they would have on the environment.

Raghavan also says there is a lot more to sustainability that not everyone always understands. “The goal of sustainability is a sustainable society,” he says. “In a sustainable society, yes, we have very good recycling metrics and capabilities, but on the economic front, we also have to have an economically and socially equitable society.”

The MU Power Plant was constructed in 1921 and has provided steam, electricity and water to MU since 1923.

Photography by Tom Hellauer/Archives

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Chasing zero A complete zero-waste lifestyle is nearly impossible, but a few local residents strive toward it.

BY JAKE SUTHERLIN

Z

ero waste is an idea that’s been at the forefront of sustainability efforts for the past few years.

Internet searches reveal dozens of high-profile blogs such as Zero Waste Guy, Going Zero Waste and Zero Waste Chef. Combined, these three have more than 200,000 followers on Instagram alone.

Talk of the zero-waste lifestyle is gaining traction, but it’s still nearly unattainable. But that’s not the point. “It’s not about perfection; it’s about making better choices,” Kathryn Kellogg writes on her blog Going Zero Waste.

Sustainable choices That’s the purpose behind the movement. It’s about doing more as individuals to cut down on waste and be conscious of what is purchased and whether those purchases are necessary.

Director of Mid- Missouri Peaceworks Mark Haim writes in an email that this involves buying things we need, rather than those dangled before us by retailers, and buying durable, rather than shoddily-made, items.

Mid-Missouri Peaceworks promotes sustainable living as a key element in creating more peaceful, satisfying communities. Haim himself has been practicing sustainable living for nearly 50 years. He’s been composting since 1971, and he helped found the Columbia Earth Day Coalition in 1989 before starting Peaceworks in 1991. Haim says he doesn’t know anyone who lives a fully zero-waste life, but he does know many who have joined the effort to get as close to zero as possible.

A harmonious relationship Amy Dove, a member of Peaceworks, has managed to achieve a low-waste life-

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Zero-waste efforts can make a dent in reducing your carbon footprint.

MYTH: Plastic is the biggest culprit in stuffing our city landfill.

REALITY: Of 42 categories of items in the Columbia landfill, food waste takes up the most space, at 17.8 percent.

style with her home on a quiet dead-end street in the middle of Columbia. Her yard is an oasis dedicated to the earth.

Amid the bustle of school buses and commuters, it stands as a sanctuary of tranquility. Bird songs breeze through the decade-old trees that surround her home. Small plots of kale, green beans and sage make up her gorgeous gardens.

A blue 50-gallon rain barrel sits at the edge of her porch; she says it fills nearly every time it rains. It’s used primarily to water the garden and abundant plant life that dominate her yard. A couple years worth of firewood from a recently felled tree is stacked neatly by the fence.

Inside her home, cloth napkins rest on the table, and a work-in-progress substitute for foil lies next to the kitchen sink; it’s made from cloth and wax.

Dove says that her community supports a harmonious, symbiotic relationship with the planet.

Photography by Tristen Rouse

P

The Terra Nova community uses an extensive gardening system to emphasize communal living and sustainability.

“The key is to keep doing what you can do, stay motivated and try to influence where you can,” Dove says. “If everybody could just take care of their own space, we could move mountains.”

Communal living Hoyt DeVane is another Columbia resident who goes to great lengths to reduce his impact on the environment. He is 65 and has been composting for 50 years.

For the past five years, DeVane has lived in the Terra Nova community, a small group that emphasizes sustainability through communal living and gardening located west of downtown. “On a household level, (sustainability) has to do with the quality of life,” DeVane says.

“You want woods you can walk around in; you want birds singing. If we create waste, we have to do something with it.”

Energy usage is essential to the modern community structure, but it’s also a decision. For Dove and DeVane, it means living close to work and the farmers’ market so that they can walk.

It means riding scooters and bicycles.

Sustainability is a choice, and in an age of immediacy and luxury, it might not be the easiest one, but perhaps it’s the best one.

Photography by Alex Grigsby/Archive

BUSINESSES LEAD THE CHASE Individual efforts can only go so far. In a city of more than 120,000 people, local businesses have the ability to make an enormous impact. Here are three trying to make a difference.

Harmony’s Treasure Box, 1900 N. Providence Road #201 Harmony Evans opened Harmony’s Treasure Box in 2009 with the goal of helping people afford and reuse children’s clothing. Her store is lined with thousands of outfits, all secondhand.

“A lot of times (baby) clothes will be in perfect condition,” Evans says. “They’ll wear them once, and then they’ll end up in the trash, or parents just stock them up, and they won’t get their full use.” Forbes reported in 2015 that the average American family spends $1,700 on clothing annually. “Clothing is one of the main things that fills landfills because as Americans, we overbuy clothing and underuse it,” Evans says.

Affinity Office Furniture, 1800 Burlington St. Don Corwin is a founder of Affinity Office Furniture, which started 10 years ago and specializes in refinishing and selling used office furniture.

Instead of using traditional lacquer paints, which release volatile organic compounds that reduce air quality, Corwin’s team uses water-based paints in the refinishing process. Affinity recycles all wood and cardboard, and the company does its best to recycle metal, which requires higher costs and difficult labor.

Unfortunately, Corwin estimates that more than 50 percent of furniture material isn’t being reused in Columbia, especially the Styrofoam used for shipping, and he still sees plenty of furniture tossed into dumpsters around Columbia end up in the landfill.

MBS Textbook Exchange, 2711 W. Ash St. MBS Textbook Exchange keeps about 10 million used textbooks out of landfills annually, says Mark Pulliam, vice president of logistics. He says the company is devoted to sustainability because management feels it’s a responsibility and a business model. It doesn’t make financial sense to throw things away when they could be reused, he says.

If it can’t be reused, it’s recycled. Bins around the warehouse contain old DVDs and CDs, and the break room is filled with recycling bins for cans and plastics. Pulliam calculated that more than 650,000 pounds of cardboard were recycled in 2018.

“I dig through the trash if someone throws a can in the trash,” Pulliam says. “I’m very firm about recycling.”

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Eco-friendly travel Thanks to organizations such as PedNet and GoCOMO, low-emission transportation is just a step away.

BY BRILEY EILERS

D

avid Ritz has a short route from his house to MU for his first class of the day. With the sun behind him, he heads down Bass Avenue, past brick apartment buildings and houses with white picket-fence yards and turns left onto College Avenue.

The sign announcing that you’ve left downtown and entered MU’s campus is where Ritz turns on University Avenue.

His final turn takes him up Hitt Street toward the Arts and Science building, in the center of campus, where he heads to class. It’s a short distance –– just 0.8 miles –– and he does it all without starting his car.

Ritz, a senior at MU, is a member of a community in Columbia that travels primarily on foot or by bicycle. Ritz is also the president of MU’s Triathlon Club and has been biking since he was 7 or 8 years old. After moving east of campus, Ritz found it made sense to bike his daily commute to class. He doesn’t claim to be a big environmentalist, but he says there are obvious benefits.

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He still owns a car, but Ritz says he only uses about a half of a tank of gas in a month. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that about 20 pounds of carbon dioxide are released per gallon of gasoline burned. By increasing his biking, he has reduced his carbon emission by 120 pounds in an average month if his car holds the average 12 gallons.

In the grand scheme of the country’s carbon emissions, Ritz’s small decision doesn’t seem as though it would make a dent. The EIA estimates that in 2016, U.S. transportation that uses gasoline and diesel resulted in 1.5 billion pounds of carbon release. Yet, when people dedicated to pedestrian transportation, such as Ritz and his fellow triathlon club members, and organizations such as PedNet Coalition combine to reduce their overall carbon footprint, even a small dent can show improvement.

Alternative transportation PedNet’s goal is to create a transportation system that is accessible to the entire community, with a majority of that accessibility geared toward bikers and walkers.

Executive Director Lawrence Simonson says the way it reaches that goal is different from nonprofit organizations.

“The best way to think of an advocacy organization is that we are representing individuals that believe in the mission and vision that we have for the community,” Simonson says.

Simonson estimates that PedNet represents about 7,000 people in Columbia through business and organization memberships as well as individual memberships. Since his start with the coalition eight years ago, he’s seen an increase in membership and participation.

Rising interest provides an opportu-

MU student Clayton Cornett boards a bus home, to save money and help the environment, at the stop near the Student Center.

MU professor and doctor Kevin Staveley-O’Carroll bears the cold to walk through campus near the Reynolds Alumni Center. No matter the season, walking is the easiest form of transportation around campus.

nity for more advocacy, such as the Vision Zero policy, an action plan to reduce the number of transportation accidents. The plan was adopted by the Columbia City Council in December 2016.

PedNet also hosts events to promote eco-friendly transportation in the city.

Simonson says it has motivated more citizens to think about alternative transportation. “It triggers in people’s minds that ‘Hey, I just biked or walked to this place Photography by Yanran Huang

at this event. Maybe it’s something I can do more,’” he says.

PedNet is not “anti-car,” Simonson says. The organization also wants to improve transportation for everyone who needs to get around Columbia, including those who primarily use a car. It’s not just organizations getting involved, however.

A citywide effort At Bike, Walk and Wheel Week, an annual event each May, the city of Columbia and PedNet collaborate to offer a week of free rides on the city’s bus system, which includes Para-transit, a ride service for Americans with Disabilities Act-eligible residents.

Amanda Capua, marketing specialist for GoCOMO, says events such as Bike, Walk and Wheel Week provide an opportunity for the city to showcase some of its sustainable transportation.

“People are excited about our electric buses; they like that there are less carbon emissions, which means cleaner air,” Capua says. “Not only are more people riding this one bus, but they’re riding a bus that gives off no emissions.”

Nine electric buses are now active out of the 51 total vehicles that make up the GoCOMO line. The city plans to add one or two more electric buses early this year after receiving a grant from the Federal Transit Administration in September 2018.

All of the electric buses are charged overnight at the Wabash Bus Station, and three hours of charging time can provide up to 12 hours of running time.

Getting involved Simonson, who grew up biking or walking nearly everywhere in his hometown and now bikes 98 percent of the time, passed his habits on to his kids. He bikes with his son to school and says that other kids are often jealous because they know how fun biking can be. But if you haven’t grown up in that lifestyle, it can be a hard adjustment.

“The best thing to do is get out there and try it and start small,” Simonson says.

“Whether that be taking one trip over the weekend by bike, by foot or by public transportation or maybe one day a week using your bike or public transportation to do an errand.”

Many students choose to ride bikes, an option with both sustainable and health benefits.

MYTH: Buying green products is enough of an environmentally friendly contribution.

REALITY: The order of the words is reduce, reuse, recycle for a resason.

It’s better to not buy new items than to buy and recycle. Shop at secondhand stores, and rent items whenever possible.

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Making coal green with envy Columbia’s Climate Action Plan aims to eliminate all carbon emissions by 2060.

BY CHARLIE CLARKE

F

ederal climate action has become almost nonexistent under the Trump Administration, so cities across the country — including Columbia — have begun to take one of the biggest issues of this generation into their own hands.

Following President Trump’s abandonment of the Paris Agreement in June 2017, Mayor Brian Treece called for a climate action plan and compiled a task force for the job.

Treece’s initiative is part of what Angie Fyfe, executive director of ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability USA, calls a wave of local climate action.

“We’ve seen a lot more commitment coming out, mayors being very vocal about their support for climate change activities in their community,” Fyfe says.

Myth: One person can’t make a difference in the fight against climate change.

Reality: A person who recycles just one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for two hours.

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Prior to Treece’s initiative, Columbia’s Office of Sustainability was primarily working on environmental education.

Now, it’s also tasked with setting policies to help foster change. Columbia Sustainability Manager Barbara Buffaloe says the plan is by far the largest task since the department’s inception in 2010.

In order to scope out what kinds of policies members of the Columbia community would like to see, the department held well-attended community meetings in May and November 2018, and it conducted an online survey that garnered more than 900 responses. Task force member Ryan Kaufmann says that they are taking these responses into consideration as they come up with policy recommendations for the sustainability department to put into action.

Columbia’s Climate Action and Adaptation Plan hasn’t been completed yet, but Vox has compiled answers to some questions you might have in the meantime.

Why does Columbia need its own plan?

Among other things, climate change affects weather patterns — think more heat, floods and droughts. Right now, Columbia has an average of five days per year when the temperature reaches above 95 degrees. That number is projected to increase to 50 days per year by 2050. According to the Climate in the Heartland Report, Columbia is also expected to see a rise in annual rainfall by 2050, about 2.98 more inches per year but a decrease in summer show-

ers. This could mean droughts in the summer and heavier rains in the spring and fall.

WANT TO KNOW MORE? The Columbia Climate Plan website has more information on what this plan will look like in the future for both indiviuals and businesses.

COMO.gov/ sustainability/ climate-acton

What are the city’s goals?

On Aug. 20, 2018, the Columbia City Council approved the goal of 80 percent reduction of carbon emissions by 2050, an interim 35 percent reduction of emissions by 2035 and 100 percent reduction by 2060. Fyfe says these goals are fairly common among the cities that are taking the strongest actions.

How does it plan on reaching these goals?

Carbon emissions from homes, businesses and industrial plants account for approximately two-thirds of Columbia’s total emissions. The city has some control over businesses and industrial plants because it operates Columbia Water and Light, the electric provider for much of the community. Buffaloe says that the utility’s next resource plan will have to demonstrate that its future power generation will meet the goals.

The task force has also proposed

that the city help buildings of a certain size keep track of and disclose their energy and water use.

Can the city control emissions coming from homes?

Not really — that’s where community buy-in comes in.

The city offers energy efficiency and renewable energy loan and rebate programs, which can result in lower utility bills for residents. The city will likely expand on those programs. Eric Hempel, an energy educator for Columbia’s water and light department, says the city wants to make sure these programs are accessible to all community members, including those who rent or have limited incomes, for example.

What about emissions coming from cars and buses?

In 2015, transportation accounted for about a quarter of the city’s carbon emissions. In hopes of serving more people, the sustainability office wants to increase the frequency of bus runs in areas of town that need it. This would build on the foundation of previous planning efforts in order to “respect and reflect” on what community members have asked for in the past, Buffaloe says.

Also, the city already operates eight electric buses and has diversified its fuel fleet. It’s also looking into incentivizing electric cars and installing more electric vehicle charging stations. Kaufmann thinks curbing transportation emissions will be the most difficult task to tackle.

How will the city get businesses on board?

The city has held the Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement Awards every year since 2015 to recognize businesses and organizations in the community that engage in sustainable and environmentally conscious practices. True/ False Film Fest won an award in 2018 for its “continued efforts in reusing through artistry, composting, recycling and reducing single-use items,” according to the city’s website.

How involved is the University of Missouri?

MU’s sustainability director, Raghu Raghavan, is on the city task force, but the university has its own action plan.

What’s the timeline for the plan?

It’s set to be completed in April, presented to Columbia City Council in May and adopted as a policy resolution in June.

Although bigger cities might have more resources to deal with climate change, Fyfe says that college towns such as Columbia are lucky because they have the expert knowlege of university professors and researchers.

Buffaloe also has high hopes for what Columbia can accomplish: “For me, I see it as a Midwestern common-sense philosophy. If we see this happening, we have to reduce it and get better about it. I think a lot of smart people coming together to improve the future is what we do in Columbia.”

INSPIRATION FROM OTHER CITIES Columbia isn’t starting from scratch in its effort to reduce carbon emissions. Instead, it has looked to other cities and taken from their examples.

In 2015, Fort Collins, Colorado, adopted goals to reduce carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2020. As of October, emissions are down 17 percent. Columbia’s community conservationist Danielle Fox says Fort Collins has been a big inspiration for Columbia.

Columbia’s policies might also look similar to those of Iowa City, Iowa, which adopted its plan in September. There, buildings are a primary focal point for emissions reductions, says the city’s sustainability coordinator, Brenda Nations. Nations says the plan is to achieve energy savings through code enforcement as well as retrofitting buildings. Iowa City also hopes to replace over half of vehicle trips with sustainable options, such as public transportation, biking, walking or clean vehicles.

“When (Nations) was developing her scope of the services for what her project would look like, she shared it with us,” Buffaloe says.

“We just kind of stole it and reworded the things we needed.”

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IN THE SPOTLIGHT Ruth Acuff is a Columbiabred artist who boasts many musical talents, including singing, songwriting and playing the electric bass, guitar and even harp.

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Photography by Photographer Name

THE EVERYDAY ROCK STAR

T TH U R

FF U AC F

BY STEN SPINELLA

I

n August of 2018, I went with a friend to Fortune Fest, a music festival in its second year at Rose Music Hall. I was among a smattering of sweaty people who arrived early to catch a buzz before headliner Black Joe Lewis, buy from vendors or merely hang around and see what’s what.

Most of us occupied picnic tables.

My friend and I had come to see Black Joe Lewis, a modern blues rocker and living throwback to a past era. As we sipped our beers, we people-watched. I noticed one concertgoer. She wore a skintight red jumpsuit and gaudy jewelry and talked with friends at a full picnic table. Her golden-blond hair reached to her waist. She was slender, her arms like drawstrings, and diminutive, standing barely over 5 feet. I found the dichotomy between her showy get-up and that of the casual shorts, tank tops and summer dresses around her stark.

Soon, she was on stage, and I understood. Her hair blew back behind her like a mane. And when the music started, urgent guitars and percussion stormed out from massive stand-up speakers, and her voice, the sheer embodiment of power, roared from her and out over the crowd. She was a rock star. She is Columbia native Ruth Acuff.

Five young girls lined up against the

Photography by Photographer Name

railing in front of the stage, dancing and hula-hooping as close as they could to the singer and her band.

“One little girl, I sang something or screamed something, and I saw her, and she was making this face at me,” Acuff recalls. “Just in disbelief, I guess of what I was doing, and I was like, ‘Yes!’ That’s exactly the face I was looking for,” Acuff says.

“After the show, she came up to me with her mom and was like, ‘Can I have your autograph?’” Emboldening people, girls and women especially, to feel like they can be rock ’n’ rollers motivates Acuff. “‘Oh, there’s a woman playing rock music. I can do that, too.’”

Origin story Of course, the term “rock star” is relative, especially for someone who used to live a fairly quiet life in a home on the west side of Columbia. Up until January, when she moved to Brooklyn, New York, with her husband, the 34-year-old Acuff had lived and played music in Columbia her whole life. She is respected by peers and fans alike.

But she is perpetually dealing with the uncertainty of being an artist.

Her music career started in coffeehouses around town when Acuff was 17, but her

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And you can see it in her wardrobe for each role. She dresses the diva for The Royal Furs, outlandishly for Interstellar Overdrive and in elegant, flowing dresses for her solo harp shows.

Going from a predominantly folk background sitting behind a harp and singing sweetly to being the frontwoman of a frenetic rock ’n’ roll band seems drastic. But The Royal Furs and its singer were both looking for something special.

When the members asked Acuff to join, she asked, “Have you heard me sing? I sing pretty.” They tried it anyway, with results as surprising as the voice emanating from Acuff. The singer is not very big and says she is often confused for a teenager. But being in The Royal Furs gave her the chance to be wild and let go, Acuff says.

Mike Hagan, a longtime KOPN radio host and quasi-arbiter of taste within Columbia’s music landscape speaks to the genesis of The Royal Furs and his role in it. He says he got to know Acuff and the other band members 10 to 12 years ago at The Blue Fugue, a now-defunct live Parts to a whole Trinity. This is how Acuff represents her- music club where, Hagan says, a lot of self. Three parts. One whole. Introspec- the people in the scene these days actually tion can be considered one corner of her cut their teeth.

“I was doing radio, and I would triangle. Her inward songwriting is at its most devastating on her 2014 EP To The go down there to this open mic night Moon, which honors the memory of her that they would have once a week, and best friend, the one who convinced her I would scout the place for new and upto pick up a guitar and who died at 28 coming talent, and Ruth was obviously from a drug overdose. This is Acuff’s solo somebody when I first saw her that I was side, the one with her harp and her own like, ‘Holy shit, who is this girl?’” Hagan lyrics.Then there is The Royal Furs side, says. Josh Wright, The Royal Furs’ basswhere Acuff can “let loose” and “dress like ist, and Mike Marshall, the band’s songa queen,” she says. And with Interstellar writer and lead guitarist, were playing in Overdrive, a Pink Floyd cover band, it’s a band called Lunar Mansion that split up “a big show with lights and video, and when their lead singer left town. Hagan I’m a backup singer, and I get to dance remembers the night Lunar Mansion like a backup singer.” She calls these three ended. He says everyone was at his house, outlets her “tri-force,” reflecting distinct it was in June of maybe 2013, and they types of music that all fuel one another. were discussing what was going to happen to the band. “I said, ‘You guys should get Ruth.’”

ON GIRL SHE...

O “She has her M harp thing going, MY ES YOUR PAIN AND K then she has the TA O, MAKES G T I alter-ego rock godTS LE D dess,” Hagan adds.

N A E S S S ME UR LT O “She’s always had a Y NOW. S E K real rocker side, but I L she’s also had a beautiful, soft side as well.”

- “Moon Girls” by Ruth Acuff When Lunar Manfirst musical memories are singing with her sister when she was 4 or 5. Then guitar at age 15. Her best friend suggested they learn because a boy whom she liked played it, too. Acuff’s initial performances consisted of original solo songs with her guitar, which prompted men with little interest in her craft but much interest in her relationship status to ask her to play with them. A 2009 Vox article noted Acuff more for her famous relative, country singer and distant cousin Roy Acuff, than for her prodigious and eclectic talents. Since then, she has constructed a successful singer-songwriter and harpist career that has brought her on long North American tours.

In 2014, she became the lead singer of local psychedelic-rock band The Royal Furs. “I feel like it’s kind of my dream band from the time I was in high school,” Acuff says. “It’s definitely in me, and it’s definitely a part of me, that kind of energetic and somewhat aggressive singing, so it feels really natural.”

“

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”

RW

Renaissance Woman

A

cuff constantly tests her artistic limits. She has been a part of many groups and recordings, but these acts define her musicianship: Ruth Acuff: It starts with Acuff herself.

She built a career as a harpist and singer-songwriter long before her first official release in 2013.

Lux/Rutherford: This indie-rock band began as Lux and morphed into Rutherford once members of the group changed.

Ruth provided electric guitar, bass guitar and vocals, 2003—2009 Interstellar Overdrive: Ruth Acuff is a backup singer/dancer for this Pink Floyd tribute band, 2009—now

Violet and The Undercurrents: Ruth played bass guitar for this indie rock band, 2011—2013 The Royal Furs: Ruth is the lead singer of this pop punk group, 2014— now Jane Doe Revue: This Female Rock Orchestra features Ruth’s vocals, 2017—now

sion disbanded, they hoped to change up their abrasive garage-rock style.

Acuff’s first memory of Wright was him drunkenly playing the banjo and singing in front of a crowd — an act that he says represented 95 percent of his life between the ages of 19 and 24. When Wright originally approached Acuff about a new band, his request resembled Hugh Grant’s rambling romantic comedy monologues: “Well, you know, like, you should join, and you can tell me to fuck right off…” She ultimately agreed.

A pitch-perfect fit The move to join the band was a shrewd one. In October 2018, The Royal Furs were awarded pop-rock band of the year for the Mid-Missouri Rock awards during a ceremony at The Blue Note. The group doesn’t love being classified as “pop,” but it also is not interested in turning people away from its music, and it’s certainly not against popular appeal. And consider this: The band of the year hadn’t released an album in two years. A frequent performing presence and impressive debut album likely helped. Marshall’s brash and clever songwriting didn’t hurt. Acuff’s rendering of Marshall’s words — the delivery just as cocksure and charming as the content — is arresting, and the band’s lively rhythm section of Wright on bass and Noel Feldman on drums keeps the enterprise together.

“Ruth brings a whole lot to the Furs — her stage presence and showmanship were big factors in us wanting to work with her,” Marshall says. “Plus she sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before.”

The four musicians are working on a new album, even with Acuff’s move to Brooklyn. Acuff says she will return home for the occasional live performance. To an outside observer, though, the band’s long-term future is uncertain. “I think maintaining a live presence is difficult when you’re separated by that much distance,” Hagan says. “My gut is that Ruth’s got so much ambition and so much getup-and-go … I have a hard time thinking that she’s not going to get deeply involved in the New York scene, and I don’t think it’s going to take too long.”

Acuff is trying to find her niche in Brooklyn, and she recently booked her first live gig. The rush of the city is in turns intoxicating and overwhelming.

Photography by Jessi Dodge

D ED G U N A LOA E LIK THE ROOM, M N I’ I E’S NO REST R E TH IL YOU PUT T N U AY ME AW .

“

”

- “Blood and Honey” by The Royal Furs

BOLD SENSE OF STYLE Ruth Acuff often dons bold outfits for her role as frontwoman of the pop-punk band The Royal Furs.

She says she favors playful and powerful ensembles that make her feel like a queen.

The Royal Furs occasionally perform outside Missouri, and they once headlined a small festival, Hong Kong Pizza Party, outside Chicago. Before Acuff became a Royal Fur, though, she was doing everything she says she wants for the band — traveling throughout the country for 30-plus show tours, accruing thousands of listeners in her genre’s community, expressing herself in a genuine way and finding a pocket to excel in.

So why, then? Why reinvent herself?

Do more networking? Conduct extra business? She has a good thing going already. Again, why?

“Because it’s fun,” Acuff says.

An uncharted path The temperament of an artist is a peculiar thing. Many Americans lead lives they’ve been conditioned to lead, but artists like Acuff do what they want for the sake of it. It can be naive and idealistic, but it’s pure. That doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences or ramifications for choosing a way of life and a profession with no set path. “It has not been easy,” Acuff confesses, “and I still feel like I’m reaching for something more than I have musically.” Marshall says The Royal Furs do not “prioritize success over making excellent music.”

She has long been a full-time artist,

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with her harp, her rock band and her background singing and dancing, but among other engagements, she’s had to work a number of odd jobs in the past, such as nannying, freelance writing and hosting guests through Airbnb. She labored for a long time in order to raise money and buy her harp, which, when she purchased it, cost more than her Ford Focus Wagon. Money is always a looming issue, and Acuff notes, “I can’t keep playing music if I can’t eat.” So she’ll play her harp at a funeral or a wedding, and she’s “not gonna play that gig for 50 bucks” anymore because it isn’t worth it.

Toward the end of 2016, Acuff had a harp gig at a Northern Missouri theater — she didn’t want to name it. Her husband, Jeff Mueller, and a percussionist friend, Drew Lance, were with her to play the stand-up bass and the drums. “I just assumed for this specific show … that they would have a cover charge.” They didn’t. After the show, Acuff went up to take her cut. There was no contract, she thought she’d be paid, but she was told that nobody was collecting money at the door. She walked out, grabbed a stool at a nearby bar and, flanked by her compatriots, proceeded to question her life choices: “That was definitely a point where I’m like, ‘What am I doing wrong?’”

How did she get through this reeval-

MULTI-TALENTED Ruth Acuff has worked numerous odd jobs, but fulltime music remains her focus. She plans to stay involved in the Columbia music scene, embodying the different faces of her artisty through the outfits she wears for each group she’s in. She hopes to face other life adventures down the road, like having kids, but she says she simply hasn’t yet because music is such a big part of her.

uation of her career? “A few shots!” Acuff remarks jokingly before crediting her husband and Lance for consoling her.

“Being any kind of artist, it’s natural to doubt your ability and your worth … so having other people support you is pretty huge,” Acuff says. “Otherwise, I would still be playing music, but I’d probably just be playing in my house and not performing in public.”

Mueller also recognizes the mental toll of being a musician: “Sometimes the work doesn’t seem to be worth it,” he says. “There are good memes out there about the roller coaster of being an artist that are pretty spot-on.”

Still, Acuff is happy with her career choice, in part because it wasn’t a choice at all. She was immediately infatuated with the instrument when she strummed a harp in a pawnshop one day and decided she had to learn to play. It was not too long after that she quit her nannying job. Acuff’s priority is to affect the listener: “I’ve heard that music is supposed to make you feel comfortable if you’re uncomfortable in your life, or if you are comfortable in your life, music is supposed to make you feel uncomfortable,” she says. She wrote a song called “Queen Ann’s Lace” about how she can flourish under all conditions in hopes that she could comfort the uncomfortable.

Ambition, of course, is a part of what pushes Acuff. She says she wants to do something that hasn’t been done before musically. Mostly, though, it’s people that make it worth it, Acuff says.

Play like a girl Until two years ago, Acuff hadn’t really thought about being a woman in rock ’n’ roll. Then she performed with a female rock orchestra called the Jane Doe Revue, which is made up of more than 50 women based mostly in the Columbia and Kansas City areas.

“Going to rehearsals for that felt so different than going to a rehearsal where … I’m the only lady,” Acuff says.

“I didn’t realize until I was in a room with all-women musicians … Is this what it feels like when all guys play together?

There’s this sense of, I’m accepted in sisterhood.” Now, Acuff bristles when sound technicians or bookers at venues communicate through her Royal Furs bandmates rather than her, and she observes the apparent tension between which genre of Photography by Jessi Dodge

music you’re performing as a woman and how acceptable it is.

Acuff says she went over a decade without thinking about her gender in the context of her work before having this revelation. “You’re used to living a certain life, and you don’t realize, ‘Oh, maybe I shouldn’t be getting catcalled.’”

The reason she said no to her husband when he first asked her if she’d play music with him was because of the other men who had approached her and didn’t actually want to play music. “If you want to take me on a date, just ask me on a date,” she says.

In 2003, after she denied him, he jumped on stage in the middle of her set during an open mic night. A drum kit was already set up for the next act, and he grabbed his electric bass and began playing along flawlessly with her original songs. It was presumptuous, arrogant and downright genius. They played music together for a year before dating, and they’ve been collaborators since. They married in 2008.

Acuff adds that the majority of the male musicians she’s been involved with in Columbia have been supportive and inclusive. “I wouldn’t stay in a musical relationship if I wasn’t considered an equal or my opinion wasn’t listened to,” she says.

For the last two decades, Columbia has primarily been a rock and country city, encompassing the various subge-

Photography courtesy of Ruth Acuff

nres that go with them. Wright, Marshall and Acuff all agree that the platform for live, local music has shrunk because there are fewer venues now, especially because the rambunctious Royal Furs are not a coffeehouse band. However, they pointed to several acts they think of when they think music in Columbia: the Hooten Hallers, Don’t Mind Dying, The Many Colored Death, The Flood Brothers and The Cotton Mollies, for example.

Hagan says a lack of venues has made live performance around town a bit of a struggle, but also notes some new live venues are popping up. “I think the scene is really healthy. It may be a little tighter than it was back then, but I also think it’s evolved, much more high-quality music is coming out of it,” he says.

Acuff calls Columbia’s music scene “a pretty tight-knit community.” Wright and Feldman both play in another band called The Ridgerunners, and she plays in other groups around the area, so “it’s kind of a family in the sense that a lot of people play music with each other.” And Acuff doesn’t want it to be a contest. She wants everyone to think they have a place, for people to root for one another. Still, she notes there is inevitably competition.

Acuff says, for example, as a band that might be playing a gig with Black Joe Lewis, they obviously hope to get the opening spot.

“

”

I CAN GROW, RE, TAKE MY H W HE AN Y N D, N A C S HARE A WE .

- “Queen Ann’s Lace” by Ruth Acuff

Ruth Acuff is pulling plenty of strings at one time, with her solo career playing the harp, her gig as a backup singer with Interstellar Overdrive and as the “lead woman” for The Royal Furs. She says she will continue her involvement in all three groups despite her move to New York City in January.

MULTI-FACETED

Harmony of the Heart To say this is merely music, or only a profession, is to lie, because Acuff is music, and music is she. Now, one would be forgiven for thinking that her answer to the musicians who have influenced her — Joanna Newsom, Counting Crows and The Distillers — is camp because that in itself is a perfect triangle and directly related to Acuff’s musicianship. But the reason she is a rock star is because Acuff is self-actualized; she knows who she is and becomes who she’s supposed to be.

Being a normal Columbian who regularly plays pool at Billiards and who goes to the same shows as everyone else doesn’t preclude Acuff from being a rock star.

Neither does a new start in Brooklyn.

Neither does the love she has for her dogs. According to Marshall, she’s a beast at board games, loves soap operas and eats mostly potato chips. Does rock star mean wealth and opulence? Parties and notoriety? Ludicrous record sales? Depending on which definition you’re adhering to, yes and no. Acuff is a struggling artist, at once two hours away from major cities like St. Louis and Kansas City, seemingly years away from the rest of the country, and now in New York where, in a sense, she’s beginning anew. She came to this point in her life and career consciously. The only part she didn’t control was when the music seduced and eventually hexed her.

At a 2016 Folk Alliance International conference in Kansas City that went all night, Acuff wanted to keep people awake for her 3:30 a.m. harp show, so she wore one of her Royal Furs outfits.

“You have a six-foot harp coming through and a five-foot person that’s dressed like David Bowie or Prince,” Acuff says. And everyone else is “wearing a nice embroidered dress with flowers on it … I think the folk world just couldn’t handle the combination.”

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

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MID-MISSOURI’S HOME FOR ALL THE HITS!

LISTEN LIVE AT Q1061.COM • DOWNLOAD THE Q 106.1 MOBILE APP /Q1061HITS @Q1061

Register at www.como.gov or by contacting the City of Columbia’s Volunteer Programs at 573-874-7499

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Help Cleanup Columbia on Saturday, April 13. Volunteers will be assigned all over town in the morning to pick up litter and make our city look great.

Cleanup Columbia is a perfect volunteer event for individuals and groups of all sizes and people of all ages and abilities.

The City of Columbia will provide you with a cleanup location, bags, and gloves and will pick up the filled trash bags.

Volunteers are invited to lunch at noon at Twin Lakes Recreation Area.

Lunch and supplies will be provided.

Filled bags will be picked up by the city.

A special thank you to our sponsors as well as Solid Waste Utilities and Columbia Parks and Recreation.

M

MISSOURIAN

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MO’ FOOD, LESS MONEY P. 47

NEW EATS ARE POPPING UP P. 48

Craig Cyr, co-owner and executive chef of The Wine Cellar & Bistro, prepares a crusted local pork chop dish.

Photography by Qinghui Kong

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

45

E AT + DRINK EAT THIS

Pig out on local pork A CoMo restaurant’s key ingredient is regionality.

BY EMMY LUCAS

W

hen creating new dishes, The Wine Cellar & Bistro’s executive chef and co-owner, Craig Cyr, considers locally sourced ingredients, seasonality and flavor. The center-cut pork chop combines all three.

The pork chop itself comes from Patchwork Family Farms, a Missouri hog farm that distributes statewide. After it is easoned and grilled, the chop is topped with a crust of pecans, black walnuts, honey and sage. Cyr says the pork and sage are a classic combination. The pecans subdue the black walnut flavor, and the honey adds

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a herbaceous, sweet and savory taste.

All ingredients are sourced from Missouri producers, which Cyr is proud to serve to his customers.

“I think that any restaurant chef, grocer or owner of any business that attempts to support our local food system, even in a small way, is doing the community a huge service,” Cyr says.

The finishing touch for the center-cut pork chop is an elderberry reduction. The juice comes from River Hills Harvest, a farm located in Hartsburg. Cyr says it gives the dish some acidity to counterbalance the richness of the pork and nuts.

“I have always liked to play around with the combination of different nuts, different herbs and spices on them,” Cyr says.

His inspiration for the center-cut pork chop stems from his efforts to support small businesses in mid-Missouri. Using local ingredients when in season complements Cyr’s dishes.

“Connecting people with their food system brings our community together in a way that buying food from the internet will never,” Cyr says.

Craig Cyr has been the executive chef since the 2003 opening of The Wine Cellar & Bistro, which is known for its pairings of local and organic foods with its award-winning wine list.

Photography by Qinghui Kong

E AT + DRI N K RESTAURANTS

Ballin’ on a budget Quell your hunger with these local spots that won’t cost more than pocket change.

BY JACK PARODI

S

aving money is nice; nobody’s debating that.

But sometimes you just need a night out. From Southern comfort food to Chinese cuisine, Columbia is full of eclectic eats on the cheap. These eight restaurants will keep your wallet and stomach full.

WEST

Smokin’ Chick’s BBQ Barbecue With nine sandwiches that come in regular and large sizes, you can get more than half-pound of barbecue with two sides for $12.99. Five of the large sandwiches cost less than $10.

3301 W. Broadway Business Park Court A, 256-6450, Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fri.–Sat., 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

NORTH

Ms. Kim’s Fish and Chicken Shack Southern comfort Ms. Kim’s Fish and Chicken Shack features meals perfect for one or a family at an affordable price. The restaurant offers everything from catfish to frog legs, and there are also discounted family meals and combo options. A family of four can feast on a Chicken Coop, which includes 12- to 20-piece chicken meals with three to five sides and eight to 16 hush puppies, for just $29.99.

1416 Hathman Place, 256-5467, Tues.–Sat., 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

A 6-ounce basket of fried pickles at Ms. Kim’s Fish and Chicken Shack is only $1.99. Upgrade to a pint of fried pickles for only $4.99.

Carlito’s Cabo Peruvian-Mexican If you want some traditional Peruvian-Mexican food, Carlito’s Cabo, known by Columbians for its carnitas tacos piled high with cilantro and onions, is the place to go. The menu has tostadas, quesadillas, tacos and eight different burritos for less than $10.

12A Business Loop 70 E., 443-6370, Mon.–Fri., 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

SOUTH

Peking Restaurant Cantonese Peking Restaurant is an inexpensive option for your Asian food fix. All of its pork and chicken dishes are less than $10, while other full meals range from $10 to $12. Peking also has a daily lunch special from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

China Chef Chinese With a menu that features more than 200 items, a handful of which cost less than $10, China Chef has one of the most expansive menus around town.

The lunch options are only $5.50, and although the restaurant doesn’t deliver, you can get takeout.

27 Conley Road No. 106, 449-8218, Sun.– Thurs., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri.–Sat., 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

G&D Pizzaria Pizza and steak This pizza spot might not be as famous as some of its local competitors, but the combination steakhouse-pizzeria provides you myriad options on the cheap.

G&D’s lunch specials include a hamburger and fries for less than $5, pizza slices for less than $3 and a prime rib sandwich for less than $10.

212 E. Green Meadows Road No. 4, 256-6060, Sun., 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Fri.–Sat. from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

2 1 0 1 W. B r o a d w a y, 4 4 5 - 8 3 3 6 , Mon.–Sat., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

503 E. Nifong Blvd., 214-0393, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Photography by Mary Kaleta, Ryan Levi

EAST

Peking Restaurant offers a 4-piece crab rangoon appetizer for only $3.25. All 25 main dishes come with an egg roll, fried rice and soup.

Mad Cow American Fresh patties, cheap prices and fast service; Mad Cow is all about that. Its large burgers ($5.79) have two quarter-pound beef patties while regular burgers feature one.

Med Mex Cafe Mediterranean-Mexican If you can’t decide between Mexican and Mediterranean, here’s a place you can get both in one stop. Med Mex Cafe gives you bang for your buck with most entrées costing $5 to $8. The restaurant features traditional Mexican favorites such as tacos, burritos, beans and rice, as well as Greek gyros.

2609 E. Broadway, 442-8727, Mon.–Sat., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sun., 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

47

E AT + DRINK TRENDS

Pop up for a night Restaurant pop-ups are the newest trend in Columbia, giving chefs an opportunity to show off their skills without racking up all the bills.

BY CATHERINE WENDLANDT

I

n the narrow commercial kitchen of Cafe Berlin, Shelly La Fata grabs a fist-sized, Saran-wrapped dough ball. She rolls it out, then runs it through her new pasta machine. At the other end of the metal table, a tray of freshly stuffed toasted ravioli is waiting to be sold at her latest pop-up at Pizza Tree. La Fata runs Sidebar, which is a pop-up that sells Italian food around town a couple times a month.

Pop-ups are temporary miniature restaurants that operate in other restaurants, bars and public locations, according to the National Restaurant Association. They’re different from food trucks or carts because these restaurants are ephemeral. One moment they’re there; the next they aren’t. “It’s literally like opening a restaurant for a day or half a day,” says Benjamin Hamrah, who started a Middle Eastern cuisine pop-up called Beet Box in 2018.

Pop-ups are a way for chefs to test the waters with their menus and figure out the logistics of running a food business. Chefs also like doing pop-ups because of their guest appeal, novelty and potential to expand into a larger business, according to a 2018 National Restaurant Association article.

Some pop-ups become actual restaurants, Hamrah says. He’s in the process of turning Beet Box into a brick-andmortar location.

Colin Enslin, executive chef of Coco’s Taco, says pop-ups are a quick way to get feedback. “If you’re putting a lot of money and time into building a food business, you need to know if people actually want it,” Enslin says. They are also a good networking tool. Although catering brings in more money for Coco’s Tacos, his pop-ups help him put a face to his business and build relationships with customers.

Establishing restaurants is notori-

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ously expensive. The median start-up cost is around $375,500, according to Restaurantowner.com. Food trucks, too, are expensive. The actual truck can cost between $50,000 and $200,000, according to Forbes. But with pop-ups, chefs don’t have to worry about those initial costs or the costs of actually maintaining a restaurant, says Frances Harvey, who runs the ramen-inspired Fujiko Izakaya.

Pop-ups were ranked the sixth-most popular restaurant concept trend in a 2018 National Restaurant Association survey of 700 American Culinary Federation members. Hamrah says he’s noticed this trend and has seen more pop-ups in Columbia in the past six or seven years.

Some restaurants, such as Barred Owl and Cafe Berlin, host their employees’ pop-ups. Harvey’s pop-up has always been hosted at Barred Owl, where she’s the lead bartender. Other food businesses hold their own events. Pizza Tree, for example, has a pop-up on Wednesdays at Logboat, owner John Gilbreth says.

Pop-ups are growing in popularity,

Shelly La Fata lets customers watch her cook the Italian dishes at the events.

Executive Chef Colin Enslin says one of his most memorable nights was when he sold out of 120 tacos in 30 minutes.

but they can be challenging logistically.

Finding a kitchen can be difficult; Enslin says he’s had trouble searching for a space to prepare his food. The next challenge is staying organized, Hamrah says. Chefs have to plan their cooking schedule and how to transport all of their equipment to the location. La Fata says having and moving her mobile equipment is the most strenuous.

She spends the whole day of her events lugging everything to the venue and then making sure things are in order.

Before her event at Pizza Tree, La Fata stuffs 2,000 toasted ravioli at Cafe Berlin. She had her first Sidebar pop-up there in October 2016. She made toasted ravioli filled with roasted eggplant, sweet peppers and a hybrid of mustard greens and spinach with roasted garlic and homemade goat cheese ricotta. After that night, she changed the menu for different pop-ups. She now incorporates lasagna, cannelloni, focaccia, her grandmother’s cookies and seasonal salads. But locals line up at the door for a taste of her toasted ravioli, which she will continue to make in her upcoming pop-ups.

Find their next pop-ups here: Facebook: Cocos Taco Bar; Sidebar CoMo Instagram: @Fujikoizakaya Web: eatabeetbox.com

Photography by Sarai Vega and courtesy of Shelly La Fata

MIDWESTERN MAVENS P.51

WHAT TO SEE AND WHERE TO GO P.52

Rowdy rollers What do you get when you combine helmets, elbow pads, wheels and a group of scintillating skaters? The CoMo Roller Derby league, of course.

BY SHANNON HENDERSON Maimy Fisher, legally known as Jessica Hawk, sits on a cold concrete floor, utility wrench in hand and violet-tipped braid hanging across one shoulder. She forces clean bearings into the axles of her neon skate wheels and laughs about the early days on Columbia’s first-ever women’s roller derby team. “I looked like a prostitute!” Hawk says. “I wore fishnets and a mini skirt and garters. We made our own jerseys, and we made our own helmet covers. It was definitely more of an Etsy feel back then.”

Rebecca Heffron, who goes by the skating moniker “Code Monkey,” is a member of Columbia’s only roller derby league. Roller derby grew in popularity nationwide in the early 2000s.

Photography by Liz Goodwin

VOX MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

49

CITY LIFE SPORTS

Columbia’s roller derby team first laced up in January 2007 when the sport was swelling in popularity. Dating back to the 1930s, the competition has evolved into modern-day bouts in which two teams of five players score points by passing members of the opposing team.

“It started out very much as a safe space for women to be physical and aggressive and independent and entrepreneurial in a fashion that a lot of them have never had a chance to be,” Hawk says.

Previously known as CoMo Derby Dames, the CoMo Roller Derby league is promoting a fresh perspective on the majority-female sport. “Derby is not just for women anymore,” Hawk says. “Our league in particular is gender-inclusive.

All genders are welcome, but it still remains that kind of safe space for people.”

The upcoming season, which begins March 23 against Springfield Roller Derby, will feature the team’s first competitve male skater, Jason “Doughbi-Wan Pierogi” Fenton. The first bout that he is allowed to compete in will be Nov. 16 in Wichita, Kansas, against ICT Roll-

The

er Derby. Fenton joined the league as a non-skating official in 2013. “I think part of my hesitation to start skating is just trying to be mindful in making sure that people who are here for particular reasons still had that space,” Fenton says.

Transitioning to all-gender play is not the only change CoMo Roller Derby is facing this season. Its home practice spot, Empire Roller Rink, closed in January.

Although the team must now rely on other spaces, such as the Bob Lemone

l

iva & Fest

Plowman

CHAMBER MUSIC COMPETITION

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March 23 vs. Springfield Roller Derby; Bob Lemone Building Hallsville 6:30 p.m. $8 entry

3/21 3/22

Friday, 7pm Ida Kavafian, violin & Peter Miyamoto, piano Ravel, Stravinsky & Beethoven First Baptist Church, $20/$10

3/24

PlowmanCompetition.org

FIRST BOUT

Building in Hallsville and Sk8 Zone in Jefferson City, the game’s undeniable quirk and community atmosphere keep the wheels rolling.

League president Heather “Dee Flesher” Gibb encourages anyone interested in derby to give it a try. Gibb feels the derby community has given her confidence, strength and some of the best friends of her life. “Skating is amazing because no matter what, you feel like ... it’s the closest you can feel to flying.”

Thursday 7pm Wei-Yi Yang, Piano All Schumann Recital First Baptist Church, FREE Admission

3/23

Naomi Sugino Lear

Laura Pruitt, known as “L On Wheels,” and Victoria Woods, known as “Tormanator,” are teammates on CoMo Roller Derby.

3/25

Saturday, 9:30am-5:30pm Plowman Competition: The Semi-Finals First Baptist Church, $10 Sunday, 1:30pm Plowman Competition: The Finals & Award Ceremony Missouri Theatre, $35/$25 March 25 (Mon) 12pm Dale Clevenger, horn & Natalia Bolshakova, piano Mahler, Strauss, Mozart First Baptist Church, $20/$10 Photography by Liz Goodwin

C I T Y LI FE FASHION

Fashion forecast

Spring might be on its way, but Kansas City Fashion Week designers are shaping next winter’s styles.

BY LAUREN BROCATO

S

tyle fanatics might say following New York or Paris Fashion Week on social media is enough to discover what trends will be on the racks next season.

But for those who actually want to be present for runway highlights and fashion crises, scribble Kansas City Fashion Week into your schedule. From March 24-30, KCFW will bring high-fashion fall and winter collections to the Grand Hall in the Power and Light District. A bustling garment district until the 1980s, Kansas City attracts a tight-knit community of designers, brand representatives and fans.

“It provides an opportunity for people in the Midwest to see the trends and have access,� says Jaime Mestres, a textile and apparel management professor and adviser at MU. KCFW President Teisha Barber praises designers for their ability to predict potential trends in coming seasons.

For example, Barber and KCFW Executive Director Katie Sellers predict plaids, mixed patterns and pastels will grace this year’s runway. “A lot of the designers that we have show either are picked up by some of those boutiques, or (the boutiques) have something similar from what has been shown on the runway,� Sellers says.

KCFW’s lineup includes Joshua Christensen from Project Runway and Jaxon Metzler from Project Runway: Junior, as well as local designers sprinkled throughout the itinerary. KC native and Stephens College graduate Audrey Lockwood’s glam rock collection will show at 7:30 p.m. March 29. Lockwood got her start selling clothes on Etsy while immers-

Models flaunt Audrey Lockwood’s first Devil Doll collection, which was inspired by Wes Anderson and French models of the ‘60s.

ing herself in the Stephens fashion community. She’ll be participating in KCFW and getting the hard-earned exposure that comes with it for the second time, less than a year after her college graduation. Her F/W collection, inspired by the band The Cramps, was designed with one question in mind: “What would a girl be wearing if she was the coolest girl on the street?�

Rose Music Hall

FIRE STATION

WABASH STATION

Coming Home The Beach Salon

Talking Horse Productions Dogmaster Distillery Yoga Sol North Village Recording Studio

E. Ash St.

Orr St. Farmers & Artisans Market

Fretboard Coffee

Missouri Contemporary Ballet

EVERY SUNDAY

Range Free

PARKING

Orr Street Studios

Good Food Co.

Shannon Webster Studio Resident Arts Shear Soul Hair Studio

COURTYARD

N. 10th St.

9th St. Public House

Orr St.

N. 10th St.

CafĂŠ Berlin

E. ASH ST.

Ophelia’s Flowers Dancearts

AMEREN LOT

Park Avenue

WildysWorld!

Artlandish Gallery

Sager Braudis Gallery PARKING

Hubble Dr.

DrinKraft Le Bao

St. James St.

The North Village Arts District is an art, music, food, drinks and fun lovers paradise packed into beautifully renovated warehouses, shops and historical buildings in downtown Columbia, Missouri.

E. Walnut St. SHORT ST. GARAGE PARKING

WHAT YOU UNEXPECT

Carla Ciolli Hair Studio ALLEYWAY

PACE YOUTH THEATRE

Dogwood Artist Workspace

Broadway Photography courtesy of Lindsey Nhingsavath

PARKING ENFORCEMENT HOURS Parking Garages 8a-6p M-F Parking Lots 8a-6p M-S Street Meters 9a-7p M-S

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CALENDAR

TO-DO LIST

Your curated guide of what to do in Columbia this month.

ARTS

CoMo Africa Fest: The Power and Promise of Women The festival is the third annual celebration of African culture and diaspora. This year, it will focus on female speakers, dancers, musicians and artists. March 8, 6 p.m., Missouri Theatre, $12; $20 for families; Free for students, $50 at door, 882-3394 Waiting for Godot Samuel Beckett’s 1953 two-act comedic tragedy has been called the most significant play of the 20th century. Come experience the play as performed by MU’s theatre department.

March 13–16, 7:30 p.m.; March 17, 2 p.m., McKee Gymnasium Studio 4, $16, 882-7529 Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar As one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays,

Julius Caesar is always a must-see. Stephens College will be delivering a gender-bending variation of the production. March 14–16, 7:30 p.m.; March 17, 2 p.m., Macklanburg Playhouse, $16; $8 for students and seniors, 442-2211 Show Me Opera: The Magic Flute Originally written in 1791, this two-act opera was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

When a heroic prince is tasked with saving the queen’s daughter, he discovers that the situation is not that simple. March 15 and 16, 7 p.m., Missouri Theatre, $23; $16.10 for children, 882-3781 Marc McKee This Columbia Poet will speak about his new poetry collection, Meta Meta Make-Belief.

McKee will be signing books after the event.

March 16, 10:30 a.m., Boone County History and Culture Center, Free, 443-8936

CIVIC

2nd-Annual Columbia Missourian Regional Spelling Bee Everyone remembers the word they spelled incorrectly at their childhood spelling bee. It’s the time of year to dig up those haunting memories and watch Columbia students earn their shot at glory by correctly spelling words like “stoic” and “luminosity.” March 13, 4 p.m., Keller Auditorium, Free, 882-5720 Just Between Friends Spring Pop-Up Resale Twice a year, this resale happens. Locals can bring old clothes, books, toys and anything useful to sell from 50 to 90 percent off retail price. Clear out your closet while bringing in a

little extra cash. March 14, 4–8 p.m.; March 15, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; March 16, 8 a.m., 4747 E. Elk Park Drive, (816) 309-8926

FOOD + DRINK

Pi(e) Day Celebration Join Peggy Jean in celebrating the yummier kind of pie on this day. All baby and nine-inch pies will be discounted to $3.14. Supplies are limited, so get your goods early. March 14, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Peggy Jean’s Pies, 447-7437 Missouri Beer Festival Enjoy beer from more than 50 booths at the Missouri Beer Festival. While you’re there, grab some wings from Como Smoke & Fire. March 16, 1–4 p.m., Holiday Inn Expo Center, $30 in advance; $40 day of, 886-8987

MUSIC

Emo Royale II Break out the black eyeliner. Emo Royale II at the Blue Note is going to bring Columbia back

Don’t mis s Taco Tues day and Soul Food Everyday !

Located in Vandiver Plaza | 1301 Vandiver Dr, Suite E - Columbia OPEN TUESDAY TO SUNDAY | 10:30 am - 6:00 pm Dine In • Carry Out 573-424-3718 Menu Changes Daily • 10 Minutes From Downtown

Mrs G’s A Touch Of Soul 52

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C ALE N DAR

to 2005 for one night only. Tune in, and rock out with tribute sets of My Chemical Romance and your other favorite emo bands. March 8, 7 p.m., The Blue Note, $5, 874-1944 90s vs. 00s: St. Paddy’s Day Ball Free green beads. Green beer. Endless bops.

Need we say more? The St. Paddy’s Day Ball will be a night filled with hits from another decade with an Irish flair. March 16, 9 p.m., The Blue Note, $5, 874-1944 Russian String Orchestra A high-energy orchestra concert? Sign us up.

It’ll be a lively evening filled with mesmerizing recitals and creative performances. March 19, 7–9 p.m., Missouri Theatre, $38; $28 for children, 882-3781 Plowman Chamber Music Competition This event is a competition among 70-plus world-class musicians. Listen to the finals, where up to five ensembles have made it to perform in front of one last audience. March 24, 1:30–5 p.m., Missouri Theatre, $35; $25 for students; 882-3781

SPORTS

Columbia College Softball vs. Lindsey Wilson College Columbia College is coming off an impressive 37-16 record in its 2018 season, and the team is aiming for another successful year.

Support the Cougars for one or both games of a doubleheader at the Antimi Softball Complex.

March 9, 2 and 4 p.m., Antimi Softball Complex, $5; $3 for students, 875-7433 Women’s Month 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament Grab two friends to celebrate Women’s History Month with a double-elimination women’s basketball tournament. Armory Sports Center is hosting the event, and the top three teams will win trophies. March 16, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Armory Sports Center, $60, 817-5077

Spring intO the Berg!

Enjoy our roof-top patio!

Kitchen Open Late

410 S 9th Street | Columbia 573-449-6927

www.theheidelberg.com

KOPN 89.5fm...Where Else?

It’s not just radio, it’s community radio.

On your radio dial at 89.5 fm or live streaming at kopn.org

Mizzou Baseball vs. Ole Miss The Tigers plan to start the season off on a good note as they face one of the best teams in the SEC. Be sure to make it to the stadium to root for your Tigers. March 22, 6 p.m., Taylor Stadium, $8, 882-6501

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Studio 4 McKee Gymnasium 672 Hitt St.

7:30 pm: Mar 13 - 16 2:00 pm: Mar 17 Tickets: Rhynsburger Theatre box office Mon - Fri, 2p - 5p (573) 882-PLAY (7529) or online at theatre.missouri.edu Scan with smart phone to purchase now.

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photo finish

Planting seeds PHOTOGRAPHY BY QINGHUI KONG Michelle Zhang chooses a pack of tomato seeds at a Spring Thaw Community Gardening Kick-Off event hosted by the Community Garden Coalition on Feb. 23 at the Activity and Recreation Center. Zhang came to the event with Kevin Liu after they attended services earlier that morning at the Columbia Chinese Christian Church. She has been in the United States for 12 years and attended the gardening event in the past. She says she tries to bring other community members to events like these when she can.

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