Worcester Magazine October 8 - 14, 2021 by Worcester Magazine

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Worcester Magazine 100 Front St., Fifth Floor Worcester, MA 01608 worcestermag.com Editorial (508) 767.9535 WMeditor@gatehousemedia.com Sales (508) 767.9530 WMSales@gatehousemedia.com VP, Sales & Strategy Andrew Chernoff Executive Editor David Nordman Editor Nancy Campbell Content Editor Victor D. Infante Reporters Richard Duckett, Veer Mudambi Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Sarah Connell Sanders, Gari De Ramos, Robert Duguay, Liz Fay, Jason Greenough, Janice Harvey, Barbara Houle, Jim Keogh, Jim Perry, Craig S. Semon, Matthew Tota Multi Media Sales Executives Deirdre Baldwin, Debbie Bilodeau, Kate Carr, Diane Galipeau, Sammi Iacovone, Kathy Puffer, Jody Ryan, Regina Stillings Sales Support Jackie Buck, Yanet Ramirez Senior Operations Manager Gary Barth Operations Manager John Cofske Worcester Magazine is a news weekly covering Central Massachusetts. We accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. The Publisher has the right to refuse any advertisement. Legals/Public Notices please call 888-254-3466, email classifieds@gatehousemedia.com, or mail to Central Mass Classifieds, 100 Front St., 5th Floor, Worcester, MA 01608 Distribution Worcester Magazine is inserted into the Telegram & Gazette on Fridays and is also available for free at more than 400 locations in the Worcester area. Unauthorized bulk removal of Worcester Magazine from any public location, or any other tampering with Worcester Magazine’s distribution including unauthorized inserts, is a criminal offense and may be prosecuted under the law. Subscriptions First class mail, $156 for one year. Send orders and subscription correspondence to GateHouse Media, 100 Front St., Worcester, MA 01608. Advertising To place an order for display advertising or to inquire, please call (508) 767.9530. Worcester Magazine (ISSN 0191-4960) is a weekly publication of Gannett. All contents copyright 2021 by Gannett. All rights reserved. Worcester Magazine is not liable for typographical errors in advertisements.

Featured ..............................................................................4 City Voices ........................................................................10 Cover Story.......................................................................13 Next Draft .........................................................................19 Artist Spotlight................................................................21 Screen Time .....................................................................24 Adoption Option.............................................................27 Last Call.............................................................................28 Classiﬁ eds ........................................................................29 Games................................................................................30

On the cover Jasmin Rivas is the new diversity officer at Old Sturbridge Village. CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

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FEATURED

Second Chance opens doors to more pet owners seeking emergency help Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

It’s Saturday evening and your dog starts giving you the impression something is wrong. A quick Google search tells you that Luna is exhibiting symptoms of having swallowed something she shouldn’t have … after a look around the house you fi nd her favorite toy is mysteriously missing as well. That’s no coincidence and now you need professional help. On the weekend or after hours, your regular vet won’t be available. Where do you go when your pet needs urgent medical care? The sudden rise in pet ownership during COVID, or the “pandemic puppy” trend as it’s sometimes called, has triggered a nationwide shortage in veterinary care — too many pets and not enough vets. Emergency animal hospitals have found themselves overwhelmed, and numerous primary veterinary clinics are taking a break from accepting new patients, in order to better serve their existing clients. Second Chance Animal Shelter, which has always been there to address the fi nancial hardship of veterinary care with subsidized pricing, is now working to alleviate the shortage of emergency care. Though all their locations provide emergency surgery, the organization’s North Brookfi eld facility has increased the hours for this service. The tradeoff was scaling back spaying and neutering, or elective surgeries, said Sheryl Blancato, president and founder of Second Chance. “We can push off elective surgeries,” she said, “but emergencies like foreign body surgery have to be taken care off right away.” The organization has sent out notices to local veterinarians and emergency animal hospitals notifying them of this change and that they can now direct cli-

Dr. Jackie Celmer visits with a pet who underwent an almost ﬁ ve-hour surgery. SECOND CHANCE ANIMAL SERVICES

ents to Second Chance as a back-up. North Brookﬁ eld is now open for emergency surgeries three days a week — Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays — as well as Mondays and Fridays when time permits, added Kristen Cormier, Second Chance veterinarian. The most common emergencies for both dogs and cats, she said, were foreign

bodies — when a pet swallows something and it causes a blockage or pain. For dogs, these items can be almost anything, but toy parts, most often squeakers, and corn on the cob, are most frequent. In feline cases, hair ties take the top spot, but Cormier has begun to see more than a few nerf gun darts.

“It makes sense,” she said. “Something shoots out of a kid’s toy at high speed, a cat’s going to want to chase it and catch it. And probably try to eat it.” Right behind foreign bodies is pyometra, or infection of the uterus and bladder stones. While demand is high, See HELP, Page 5

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Help Continued from Page 4

Cormier said the hospital has been able to keep up. “It’s pretty rare that we can’t help, but sometimes it gets pushed back to the second day.” Capacity will be further increased with the opening of a new Second Chance animal hospital in Southbridge next month, in partnership with Southbridge Vocational High School. The hospital will be part of a new program for students pursuing a career as veterinary assistants. While the expansion has been planned for a couple of years, Amanda Normandin, Second Chance’s chief operating oﬃ cer for hospitals and hospital director, who oversees the organization’s four hospitals, agreed that the timing certainly aligned well. “[Southbridge] is

another town with a great need for subsidized veterinary pricing,” she said, “we’ve been looking to expand in that area for some time.” Southbridge resident Michael Maestaz, along with his dog, Gambit, would welcome an emergency facility. Though happy with their mobile vet from Sturbridge, appointments must be booked weeks in advance, making immediate care impractical. “There’s a dearth of options in terms of emergency care,” said Maestaz. “You have to travel about half an hour or more for an emergency scenario, which could mean life or death for your pet. It’s huge to have something local.” The Southbridge facility will have a grand opening on Nov. 6 and will be open three days a week to start. “People are going to the 24hour Tufts clinic, which only recently reopened its critical care unit,” said Normandin. But

the wait times can be long for non-emergency cases. The facility has even begun to hire veterinary students to operate a triage line, which often means that a life-threatening situation is moved up and your companion may have to wait longer to see a vet. Jullian Nazzaro, ﬁ rst-year vet student at Tufts and triage line worker, said students like her actively work to avoid such long wait times, instead giving advice on a pet’s particular situation whenever they can and see themselves as a ﬁ rst line of support for the owners who call in rather than simply an ER answering service. While it’s true that not every companion animal is seen as soon as their owners would like, in a matter of life or death, no one is turned away. “Whenever I have a client who calls in with a serious life-threatening issue,” said Nazzaro, “I say give me your last name, give me

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your number and get over here as quickly as possible. Just go, I’ll handle everyone else.” However, most of the cases Nazzaro hears are along the lines of skin infections or ear aches. While these are all things that require care, the timeline is on the scale of the next day rather than the next hour. “It’s not like being hit by a car or getting shot while hunting,” she said, which are naturally the cases that take priority. Despite this, it can still be diﬃ cult telling someone they can’t see anyone about their pet’s ear infection that day without an eight- to 10-hour wait. “Even telling people that is hard,” she said, “it is disappointing to call up a hospital and be told ‘hey we can’t accommodate you right now.’ It sucks.” That being said, Nazzaro hopes to put the situation in context for owners, pointing out that if an ailment does not

warrant immediate care, that’s generally a good sign. “If we’re telling you that you don’t have to come in right away, that’s a good thing. Sometimes I end up telling people that this should be seen but I’m going to save you the $200 emergency fee — go to your regular vet on Monday.” Blancato is clear that emergency care is not Second Chance’s primary business, but explained “that huge vet shortage across the country, due to the increase in pets, impacted the emergency hospitals hardest.” As a result, they felt compelled to expand their capacity for urgent care. “It was challenging at ﬁ rst and still is on some days — like everybody else in the world, we have been short-staﬀ ed from time to time,” she said. Ultimately, the animals are number one. “We wanted to help as many as we could.”

6 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Cinema 320 begins screening at WCUW Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

When a limited fall schedule ended in October 2018, with screenings of the documentary “Bisbee ‘17,” it was also the end, after just over 36 years, of Cinema 320 at Clark University. Cinema 320 owner and operator Steve Sandberg had rented Room 320 of the Jeff erson Academic Center at Clark University, which was the inspiration for the name of the independent movie “art house” and its home since 1982. “Clark was always generous and sympathetic to what I wanted to do,” Sandberg said. However, “I had really had the feeling that that particular project has come to the end of its natural life.” The lights were shut off , but now Sandberg has turned the lights on for Cinema 320 at the Front Room performance space of nearby radio station WCUW 91.3 FM., 910 Main St. For a long time, Cinema 320 at Clark University was the only place you could catch challenging independent or foreign feature fi lms and documentaries in the city except for college-run movie programs. Even with other outlets springing up (and then sometimes disappearing) over the years, Cinema 320 remained a place to see movies that otherwise you would have to go Boston to take in. The newly named Cinema 320 at WCUW Radio debuted with screenings at 7 and 9 p.m. Sept. 24 of the documentary “On Broadway.” Directed by Orin Jacoby, “On Broadway” chronicles, with interviews and footage, how Broadway, on the verge of bankruptcy in the 1970s, avoided collapse and reinvented itself. There are timely lessons as Broadway reopens after the pandemic. And coincidentally, Cinema 320 has reopened.

Steve Sandberg is illuminated by a projector in the Front Room at WCUW Sept. 23. Sandberg’s Cinema 320 at WCUW Radio debuted Sept. 24 with a screening of “On Broadway.” RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

“It went ﬁ ne. The attendance was not super overwhelming, but there were people in the building,” Sandberg said after the ﬁ rst Sept. 24 showing of “On Broadway” in the new space. “It left me with an optimistic feeling. Troy was happy with it,” Sandberg said of WCUW 91.3 FM executive director Troy Tyree. “I’m ecstatic,” Tyree said. The arrival of Cinema 320 in WCUW’s Front Room, which has also been a venue for concerts, is part of Tyree’s “desire for it to be a viable performance venue. Cinema 320 is the creme de la creme.” (”On Broadway” is scheduled to be screened Oct. 8, at 7 and 9 p.m. Tickets $9; $7 for seniors and WCUW members. Patrons must bring proof of vaccination and will be asked to wear a mask.)

The space seats about 35 to 44 people, which could be expanded to 60 if social distancing considerations are more favorable in the future.

An intimate space “It’s gonna be a small theater, no matter how you cut it,” Sandberg said. He noted that the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline has a couple of screening rooms that are about the same size. Room 320 of the Jeﬀ erson Academic Center could “hypothetically” sell out at 300 seats, and it did “when we showed ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show,’” Sandberg said. Although the Front Room at WCUW is about one-tenth the size of Room 320, “it’s a very intimate space. You get an image that’s very dominant,” Sandberg said.

“The theater has been really well worked by Troy. It’s an atmospheric space. There are really no distractions there. It’s really like the screen is ﬂ oating in outer space. It’s a space that’s very conducive to watching a picture.” Sandberg runs his own video production company. “As was the case at Clark, I’ll be renting the space as an independent vendor,” Sandberg said. But while he operates that way, Cinema 320 is also an operation that could be described as a labor of love over 40 years. “It’s not the money,” Sandberg said. “It’s a nice feeling to give people something that entertains them in some way. That shows how other people in the world think. In some way you’re inﬂ uencing people hopefully for the better and giving them an experience they wouldn’t otherwise get.”

Asked if wouldn’t be just as easy for people to watch a fi lm like “On Broadway” from their living room, Sandberg said, “Don’t you dare suggest they do that. I don’t think streaming is an appropriate way to watch a movie people put their heart and soul into making.” He noted that one can watch a movie from the couch that the dog has just been shoved off of (leaving behind dog hair), but “it’s not an experience, it’s not an event, it’s another domestic experience you have. It is absolutely not like getting out of your home and having a shared collective experience with a bunch of strangers.” On the other hand, Cinema 320 has been off ering livestreaming of fi lms during the pandemic. “I still do on the Facebook page. There are some pictures there that in some cases have been up for over a year.” He said that income has helped his theater bank account. The generosity of Anna Maria College helped provide a projector at WCUW, Sandberg said, and the screen came from grant money. The sound is “under the auspices of a radio station,” Sandberg said. “It’s a really good theatrical presentation. It’s gonna have a really good impact on its audiences.” With cinema-worcester (another more recent independent movie art house that puts on pop-up shows) having no scheduled in-person screenings the weekend that Cinema 320 reopened, the Front Room at WCUW was the only place you could actually catch a movie in Worcester, independent, commercial or otherwise. The last commercial movie theater complex in Worcester, Showcase Cinemas North, is now permanently closed. See CINEMA, Page 7

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 7

Cinema Movies on the move In 1980 a group of movie enthusiasts had rented the Paris Cinema on Franklin Street to show art house types of fi lms. There was also a bar. “I was in the crowd the night they opened in 1980. I started volunteering in 1981,” Sandberg said. But then in 1982, the owners of the Paris Cinema decided the theater was going ... “adult,” and the enthusiasts had to move out. Still, they booked a fall season of indie and foreign movies at what would be called Cinema 320 in Room 320 of the Jeff erson Academic Center. Most of the fi lms would be getting their Worcester area premieres. The fi rst movie Cinema 320 screened at Clark University was was Federico Fellini’s “City of Women” in September 1982. The opening night turnout was “smallish.” Sandberg operated the projector. Unfortunately, as Sandberg has previously recalled, “City of Women” was a rather long fi lm and he had to have an intermission to change reels. When he popped in to Room 320 to see how the audience was doing at the break, the room was empty. Everyone had gone. Still, National Amusements — which owns and operates the Showcase Cinemas chain and once had locations in downtown Worcester, Webster Square, Lincoln Plaza and White City in Shrewsbury — wasn’t likely to show a fi lm like “City of Women” at any of its venues in the city in the 1980s. Meanwhile, the powers that be at the Worcester Telegram were disinclined initially to run any reviews of movies at Cinema 320, but changed their minds. A few years later, National Amusements did make an effort to show “art house” types of fi lms on one of the 18 screens

“... In some way you’re influencing people hopefully for the better and giving them an experience they wouldn’t otherwise get.” at Showcase Cinemas North, which opened in 1996. Showcase Cinemas North shut down in March 2020, with the pandemic, and Showcase Cinemas announced that it was permanently closed in June. “That’s unfortunate, really. I have to say with the Showcase (North), I was sort of depressed when it ended. That was a theater I could actually walk to. It’s part of the city that was kind of dead otherwise,” Sandberg said. “I gather they had been in diffi culty even before COVID, and was perhaps overbuilt in terms of the number of screens they had.” Sandberg went from volunteer, to Cinema 320 No. 2, to No. 1, choosing and booking all the movies. There would be a spring and fall schedules, with a fi lm a week screened Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings and two screenings on Sunday afternoons. Friendships were formed among regular fi lm-goers who might not have otherwise have ever met. But over the years, an increasing problem at the Jeff erson Academic Center was being on the third fl oor. Even through an elevator was available, the stairs and the location of the theater had become “too impractical for too large a portion of the audience to make continued screenings feasible there,” Sandberg said. In February 2020, after more than a year off , plans were announced to have Cinema 320 operate at radio station WCUW. The opening was tenSee CINEMA, Page 9

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8 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

FIRST PERSON

Confessions of an Overeaters Anonymous dropout Rachel Allison Eisner Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I’m not your typical addict. I don’t wear crumbs on my sleeve. Or engage in behavior that overtly reveals my inadequacies. The only and last time I stole was in 1984, when I lifted a $0.35 pouch of Big League Chew from Gilbert’s Pharmacy in New Haven, Connecticut. Two days later, I sheepishly returned the 35cent pouch without prompting from my parents. Or punishment. By 11 years old, I had a conscience bigger than my 4’10, 100-pound frame. To this day, I maintain my integrity. I rarely fi b unless it benefi ts someone. Throughout secondary schools in Connecticut, then University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford and eventually Clark University, I never cheated on a test or paper. I joined a 12-step program, Overeaters Anonymous, to treat my food addiction. It didn’t work or result in my wearing a bikini and winning the “Miss Massachusetts” contest. However, it did clue me in that my obsession with food was really not about what I put in my mouth so much as what I was grappling with prior to eating. Addict. Compulsive Overeater. Chompers. There’s no pretty name for someone who sits down with a loaf of bread and butter every night or frequents the McDonald’s drive thru for their evening meal of fi ve Big Macs, four large french fries, three milkshakes and a diet Coke to wash it down. I’ve never gotten a DUFI (yes, you read that correctly). Driving under the Food Infl uence, but I know that’s legitimate. How can you be fully aware of what’s going on when you have a hamburger in your right hand and a milkshake in your left? One could be so consumed by the fast food burger in hand that you overlook the kid on his skateboard or the elderly woman ambling across the street. Overeaters Anonymous did not solve my problem because there was no need to fi x me. I defi nitely have strengths and weaknesses, like everyone. I wish I had been kinder to my classmates when I was in high school. I regret not being compassionate to everyone I meet or sometimes being curt with my parents

“There’s no pretty name for someone who sits down with a loaf of bread and butter every night or frequents the McDonald’s drive thru for their evening meal of ﬁ ve Big Macs, four large french fries, three milkshakes and a diet Coke to wash it down.” FILE

or my customers on the phone. I am contrite for occasionally making too much noise in my apartment or having a bitter word with my landlord. But I don’t have a history of conduct that would suggest character ﬂ aws or needs to make amends. While I relished the group meetings and related to food “addicts, I couldn’t identify with many of the core concepts of the 12-step rational. Yes, I’m powerless over food because I like it so much!! I deﬁ nitely salivate when I see sweet potato casserole. But I don’t see the point in asking G-d to remove this obsession. I hope that my G-d has better things to do — maybe focus on eliminating COVID-19 or end poverty — than bar me from entering Boston Market on a daily basis. As for “taking a painless inventory,” or “making amends to whom I have harmed …” all that mumbo-jumbo

in the program books, I just need to stop eating crap before I get diabetes or die. The only one I really need to apologize to is myself. For letting me get to the point where I have a double chin, love handles and enough poundage to warrant a knee replacement before I turn 50 ... All kidding aside, I don’t want to undermine the success of 12-step programs and the thousands of former addicts who have benefi ted from their resourcefulness. Nor do I wish to criticize victims of alcoholism, drug addiction or binge eating or imply a blanket stereotype of “addict behavior.” Not everyone who abuses substances is a thief, nor does every thief suff er from addiction. Diff erent strokes for diff erent folks. People attain progress in so many diff erent ways. I am a former smoker. After seeing the fi lm “28 Days,” in which Sandra Bullock plays a journalist who ends up in re-

hab after a drunk-driving incident. I was able to quit smoking after incorporating some of the movie’s teachings. I was also fascinated by the ﬁ lm Bill W., the 2012 biographical hit about the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous. Just seeing snippets of Bill’s life — what led him to drink, his incredible vulnerability to alcohol, and his ﬁ erce commitment to improving both his life and his fellow addicts — it was amazing. Literature and media about addictions are extremely helpful, when portrayed in constructive ways. I had nearly exhausted every avenue, every path I could take, every program I could swallow. Though the pandemic abruptly ended my participation in Overeaters Anonymous, I was almost a dropout of my own volition. I reserved books about See DROPOUT, Page 11

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 9

Cinema Continued from Page 7

tatively set for late March 2020, but then the pandemic arrived. Since then, Cinema 320 has been a small number of livestreaming movies. But now after three of years of Cinema 320 having no live in-person screenings, it was time for showtime again. With regard to access, Tyree said the Front Room is the “the ﬁ rst street-level performance ﬁ lm theater on Main Street in Main South.” Clark University is generously providing access to parking for Cinema 320 customers at its Idrisi Program parking lot, Sandberg said.

Different audiences As was alluded to earlier, Cinema 320 isn’t the only independent movie outlet in town. The mission of cinemaworcester, founded by Andrew Grigorov over three years ago, is a little bit diff erent than Cinema 320. On its website, cinema-worcester states that its goal is to create a “full time, community cinema for Worcester.” It started out with pop-up screenings. Prior to the pandemic, the charming Park View Room was being increasingly used. Then cinemaworcester went online to show fi lms as the pandemic raged, but in June it returned to the Park View Room and screened several movies during the summer although there has been nothing shown since the end of August. Grigorov was planning to screen a new fi lm from Greg Sestero (”The Room,” author of “The Disaster Artist”) titled “Miracle Valley” on Oct. 4 at Redemption Rock Brewing Company, 333 Shrewsbury St. However, Grigorov concluded that it’s a “bad time to try to pack people into a room for a movie” and the event was can-

celed. He may try some outdoor screenings in October, he said. Sandberg and Grigorov have had a friendly relationship. Sandberg said Cinema 320 and cinema-worcester are “still on each other’s Facebook pages. We’re not directly competitive. Each of us has our audiences. It’s not a question of battling over movies. Movies come, movies go, it’s the long run trends you have to pay attention to.” One long term happening was Cinema 320 not showing a movie live and in-person for nearly three years. Sandberg recalled the opening of the movie “Alien” when all is dark and silent on the spaceship until then the lights come on and the crew starts a new day. “That’s the way I spent the last three years. My cinematic systems were shut down, but now they’re activated again and its a nice feeling. We’ll see how it goes.” Hopefully there won’t be any of the catastrophes that the “Alien” crew had to endure. Sandberg is playing it carefully. The engagement for “On Broadway” is “open-ended and exploratory,” he said. Tyree said that just the fi rst night on Sept. 24, Cinema 320 brought people to WCUW who had never been to the radio station before. “That’s the other element to why I’m excited to have Cinema 320,” Tyree said. Cinema 320 will run “Fridays only for now,” but more nights may be added, as well as a matinee, Sandberg said. As for future fi lms, “I’m on mailing list of a lot of theatrical distributors of the fi lms I like to run. My in-box is crowded out. There are a few possibilities that could be interesting. It’s sort of a collection of possibilities right now.” For more information, visit www.cinema320.com and www.facebook.com/cinema320.

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10 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY VOICES LANDGREN WILL NURSES STRIKE SETTLEMENT

GO THE WAY OF THE IVORY-BILLED WOODPECKER?

HARVEY

What do you mean you’ve never seen a single episode of “Downton Abbey”? ITV

WORCESTERIA

Need some breathing room away from the unvaccinated, unmasked Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Remember back at the beginning of the pandemic, and the masks a lot of people were wearing were colorful and fashionable? A-list celebrities were modeling them for paparazzi, and as much of a nuisance as they might have been, there was at least a sense of us all being in this mess together. Well, mostly. Let’s be honest, there has always been a sizable portion of the population who have been terrible about masks, and since vaccinations began, there’s an almost equally large group of people who have resisted getting vaccinat-

ed. I don’t have enough information to make a Venn diagram of where those two groups intersect, but I’m betting there’s a lot of crossover. According to USA Today’s vaccine tracker, just over 60% of Worcester County is fully vaccinated. Which is pretty good, but it also means that just under 40% of eligible residents still aren’t. Right now, according to data from the city, we are averaging 78 new cases a day, with two deaths since the preceding week. Taking a trip out to the Shaw’s grocery store on Grove Street Tuesday, pretty much every face was masked. See ROOM, Page 12

TV anxiety, a consequence of the pandemic lockdown Janice Harvey Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I’m feeling anxious. In fact, I’m anxious about admitting that I’m anxious, and that is what makes anxiety such fun: the fun never ends. I know I’m not alone. Some of us deal quite well with the nagging worries of everyday life, like jugglers keeping ﬁ ve rubber balls in the air. For anxious people like me, the rubber balls are daggers, and the fear of dropping one keeps us awake at night. Surviving a pandemic hasn’t eased my worries, but it has altered what I worry about. I still agonize over politics. I still wonder if I locked the door before I got into bed — which I did, of course. (Anxiety’s cruel cousin is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, a subject for an-

other day.) Lately, I’m anxious over stuff I never would have dreamed would concern me, and for that I blame the Great Quarantine of ‘20. I’ve developed TV anxiety. Like every one else, I relied on both the Internet and television viewing for entertainment while sequestered. At fi rst, I welcomed suggestions from friends. I’d jot down the names of series I just had to watch. I started feeling guilty about not seeing them, and grew anxious over what I’d been missing. “You’ve never seen any of ‘Downton Abbey’?” “You’ve never watched ‘The Wire’?” “You’d love ‘Game of Thrones’! Seriously.” When I look into these series, I fi nd that some of them were on the air for six seasons or more. The idea of committing to eight seasons of medi-

eval fantasy makes me break into a sweat. It took me forever to watch all eight seasons of “Dexter,” and I am a huge fan of any story with a serial killer in it. Knowing that I should be in the TV viewing loop has made me anxious. I feel left out, like the last kid picked for whiﬄ e ball. My friends talk about “Nine Perfect Strangers” and I have nothing to contribute. I experience the same feeling when I pick up People magazine and the only names I recognize are listed under “Deaths.” The pressure of not ever seeing a single episode of “The Sopranos” is weighing on me. The fact that I did watch all ﬁ ve seasons of “Breaking Bad” doesn’t buy me any TV cred. I can’t even chime in with “BetSee ANXIETY, Page 11

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 11

Droupout Continued from Page 8

persons with eating disorders from the Worcester Public Library, including Susan Burton’s “Empty,” Ron Saxen’s “The Good Eater” and Roxane Gay’s “Hunger: A Memoir.” The latter was one of my favorites. Roxane Gay stated in the beginning of her work that she was not offering any solution or triumphant story, but that she was sharing her experience to make herself heard. I ordered the lone book I could not fi nd from WPL on Amazon, Azure Moyna’s “Fullness: A Memoir.” I wanted to read, to digest, to rifl e through the thoughts and feelings and history of overeaters who had conquered food addiction with or without the help of 12-step programs. To study other writers, and to learn what worked for them, what didn’t? I have done it all — Overeaters Anonymous, Weight Watchers, the South Beach diet, Nutrisystem, Take off Pounds Sensibly. I wasn’t always forced to shop in the

Anxiety Continued from Page 10

ter Call Saul” references because that series seems to have disappeared without resolution. Recently, my TV anxieties have spilled into my dreams. After viewing not one but two documentaries on Britney Spears’ battle to end her conservatorship, I dreamed of her sad plight. I don’t recall what was said in the dream, but my main concern seemed to be her overuse of the color turquoise in decorating her living room, which I believe wasn’t even visible in the actual ﬁ lm. Apparently I do dream in color. Perhaps my sleeping self melded those documentaries

“Pleasingly Plump” section of Sears. I used to be 5’2 and 120 pounds, a svelte young thing who ran potato sack relay races and played soccer in middle school. Then came puberty, depression and subsequently, medication to treat the melancholy moods that “blew me up like a giant blueberry,” a SuperSize Rachel. I have pored over recovery literature and read countless fi rsthand accounts of problem eaters from a myriad of backgrounds and dysfunctional families. What I eventually extracted from all my research was that weight and self-worth are two separate entities, much like the separation of church and state. I wouldn’t expect to recite the Lord’s Prayer at a public school assembly, so why would I attribute my weight to my character or self-worth? I fi nally realized that if I were going to add weight loss to my existing achievements, that I needed a diff erent approach. I would begin by accepting and celebrating who I was fi rst. Acknowledging my strengths and previous endeavors — a kid from New Haven who came to

with the fact that the televisions at Creative Nails where I go for manicures only stream HDTV and The Food Network. If I dream tonight of upsidedown pizza cooked in a skillet, I’ll know. Currently, I’m one episode behind on “Only Murders in the Building,” the limited comedy/mystery series starring Martin Short and Steve Martin. That makes me anxious. If I don’t catch up between now and the next episode, I won’t be able to keep up with the cool kids — I mean, fellow viewers. I’m not adverse to medications for anxiety. I’m actually on one. However, I refuse to call my doctor to ask her to up the dosage so that I can watch more television. I may be anxious, but I still have my pride. Sorta.

Worcester and fought against the odds to graduate from Clark University and land a job at the Telegram and Gazette and later, a local hospital. A Freelance Writer who has had numerous articles published in the New Haven Register and the Worcester Magazine and additionally self-published a memoir collection: Rachel Eisner and her Bicycle. A woman with close friends, a job, and a spacious apartment on Worcester’s west Side. A veteran of depression and a Clarkie who has mastered cooking, bicycling, gardening and growing her own vegetables. To jumpstart my metabolism and weight loss, I would need to ask myself some diﬃ cult questions and treat myself more kindly. And fairly. Who was I doing this for? Myself? My parents? My primary care? Will I be a diﬀ erent person after I lose 50 pounds? Will my relationships change? Is this whole battle with the bulge about weight or self-esteem: Am I addicted to food or

is there another void that I am trying to ﬁ ll? Is this never-ending appetite a yearning for love and acceptance? I ordered three T-shirts, two camisoles and four pair of pants for my current build. I donated the size eights and tens to Goodwill, promising myself that I would set realistic goals and not starve myself to look like a celebrity after bariatric surgery. Once I lost 10 pounds, I promised myself a Bluetooth speaker for my bicycle. Done. Five more pounds, I was the proud owner of a new pair of Asics sneakers. At any size, there’s nothing more fun than hopping on my Diamondback and bicycling in Elm Park to the tunes of Tub-thumping’s, “I Get Knocked Down,” or the TV theme, “Greatest American Hero.” Though I want to be so “thin that no one will recognize me,” my perspective has slightly changed. At 200 pounds or 150 pounds, I am still Rachel

Eisner: the “girl on the bike,” the comedienne. Axel’s fur-Mom. I will always smile and give everything my best shot. Despite the occasional splurge on a box of donuts from IKRAVE, I will manage to donate $25 to the Worcester Animal Rescue League or the Worcester Boys and Girls Club. In honor of my rescue cat, Axel, I made a nominal gifts to Abby’s House and Willy’s Kitty Angels. Aside from losing weight, bicycling, cooking and giving makes me feel good. While qualifying for a triathlon in the 2024 Olympics may not be in the near future, I can still lift weights and ride my bike from Elm Park to Clark. I may never satisfy “my hunger,” but I will always have my family and friends to ﬁ ll my heart. Rachel Eisner lives with her rescue cat, Axel, in Worcester, where she rides her bicycle and drinks lots of coﬀ ee.

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Room

back – the bar was also used as a setting in the ﬁ lm, something it has in common with “American Hustle” – I can attest to its power and intensity, which Shea orchestrates masterfully. It burns with anger, but also a sort of vulnerability that makes the whole thing feel indelibly human, especially in the openness of lead actor Sean Carmichael’s performance. The movie also features a score by Steven Lanning-Cafaro of the Duende Project, and the band performs its poem/song “Trinity Tango” in a scene that was shot at the Palladium. It’s very much a local production, and while its themes can be dark and deeply uncomfortable, it’s very much worth watching.

Continued from Page 10

That hasn’t been true everywhere, even with the citywide mask mandate. The penchant for more colorful, personalized masks has ebbed, though, replaced with standard black or surgical blue. You know, the ones you buy in bulk. Oh, a personalized mask might get broken out for a special occasion, but on the whole, it’s all become a bit too ordinary for all that now. It’s all become a bit too tiring. Whatever sense of togetherness the pandemic fostered – even if it was always mostly illusory – has been crushed underneath a grindstone of resentment at the vocally unvaccinated and the callously unmasked. What was once a diff erence of opinion in the face of terrible events has gradually, over time, given way to a simmering anger at the people whose selfi shness has protracted this mess. When vaccinations fi rst rolled out, it was easy to shrug off the willfully unvaccinated. After all, it seemed like they were only endangering themselves. That wasn’t actually true, even then: There’s always going to be a vulnerable segment of the population who CAN’T be vaccinated, who need protection, and while children seemed virtually immune to COVID-19, we know now that wasn’t the case. But now that the virus has had time to mutate, it’s hard not to look at the willfully unvaccinated and the chronically unmasked as not just foolish, but also selfi sh. They are, after all, now endangering others as much as they are themselves, and they’re straight-up the reason why we have to live under restrictions. It’s exhausting, and the more we tolerate that behavior, the worse it’s going to get for everybody. A year ago, we had no one really to blame for the state of aff airs. Increasingly, now we do. The visit to Shaw’s was nice, because that amount of diligent mask-wearing isn’t always the case. Other grocery stores have been hit or miss, sometimes good one day and not the next. It’s not really the store’s fault: The city’s mask mandate is unenforceable. Asking around on the subject, I’ve had waiters and bartenders admitting they fear for their tips when they ask people to mask up. You talk to grocery store clerks, and they just don’t want to deal with being constantly shouted at all day, every day, by belligerent plague vectors. In their

Breaking down Drake

Hundreds gather at the State House to protest the state’s health-care worker vaccination mandate. BOB BREIDENBACH/PROVIDENCE JOURNAL

selfi shness and belligerence, they wear down everyone around them. “The best lack all conviction,” to dredge up W.B. Yeats, “and the worst are full of passionate intensity.” The trend toward having to show proof of vaccination, on the other hand, is greatly enheartening. Honestly, reviewing Ricky Duran at The Hanover Theatre was the most comfortable I’ve been at a music or sporting event since COVID restrictions fi rst eased, from bars and nightclubs up to Polar Park. Knowing everyone had to show proof that they were vaccinated, and being able to look around and see everyone was masked, took an enormous weight off my shoulders that I hadn’t fully realized I was carrying. That’s pretty much where all the big venues are going. Even the ones such as the DCU Center, which is still saying it’s going to let promoters take the lead on the matter, will likely eventually have to move in that direction as – according to a conversation with Palladium co-owner John Peters – that’s the direction all the show promoters are moving anyway. If smaller venues want to move that way, I for one would be fi ne with it. The fewer spaces the rest of us have to share with the people dragging out this ordeal, the sooner all of us can breathe freely.

Now on Amazon A successful tour of the the festival circuit has taken the psychological thriller “Trinity” all over the world, but now you can watch it in your own home. The fi lm, written and directed by Uxbridge fi lmmaker Skip Shea, is now available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime. Mind, it’s not exactly popcorn fare – it’s the story of a man who accidentally bumps into the priest who abused him when he was a child at a local coff ee shop, sending him on a twisted journey through his past. Knowing that elements of it are inspired by a true story – Shea has talked to the Telegram & Gazette before about his own history with clergy abuse, and how he used the experience to shape his early short horror fi lms, “Microcinema” and “Ave Maria.” “I wanted to change the formula of the rape revenge movie,” Shea told me in a 2013 interview. “I wanted to make the woman not be a victim at all when she gets justice. An ‘avenging angel’ kind of character … ‘Microcinema’ was a shot at my abuse history, about people who victimize innocent people getting their just deserts. But with ‘Ave Maria,’ I wanted to point the fi nger at the church.” Having seen “Trinity” in its screening at Nick’s Bar and Restaurant a while

Hip-hop artist Garrett Mahoney of Leominster may not be a household name yet, but his TikTok video, “How To Make A Drake Song,” has certainly made an impact, garnering more than 2 million views. “You just ﬁ nd an instrumental with some humming or singing in the background,” says Mahoney in the video, as such a beat plays on his car stereo, “and then you write down a bunch of (expletive) that sounds like it might mean something, but really it means nothing at all.” He then demonstrates, rapping, “The winter’s gone but it’s still cold here/it’s been a bold year/ but it’s italics when I’m sipping out that chalice,” and so on. In a later video, he explains that, “This time you’re going to want to write down a bunch of (expletive), but pause in-between bars for effect.” Naturally, what was meant as something of a sendup instantly developed a fan base. Garrett gained 36,000 followers on TikTok and 10,000 on Instagram following the release of the videos, and he received praise from global super stars such as Joe Jonas and Jason Derulo. Fans in the comments compared him to Drake, J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar and Tory Lanez, which is kind of hilarious considering how this all started. Now, he’s released a single based on the videos, called, “Italics.” Yes, there’s a lot of irony here, but … well … it’s kind of an addictive song. And really, you could probably do a lot worse than cracking Drake’s formula – he is, after all, one of the most successful rappers in the world – but really, this one rides on Mahoney’s own technical skills, and while we may not be ready to call him the next Drake, J. Cole or anyone just quite yet, his rapping is no joke.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 13

COVER STORY

Old Sturbridge Village’s new diversity officer, Jasmin Rivas, is shown Sept. 22. CHRISTINE PETERSON/ TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Making sure everyone feels welcome in Old Sturbridge Village Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

As a living history museum, Old Sturbridge Village focuses on rural 19th-century New England daily life. The 1800s were a crucial point in both regional and national history, and OSV explores important transitions such as technological shifts in agriculture, the beginnings of the industrial economy, and the value of trade. It has been an educational, cultural and academic resource for the region, but to some, it feels like something has been missing. See WELCOME, Page 14

14 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Old Sturbridge Village’s new diversity officer, Jasmin Rivas.

Welcome Continued from Page 13

In 2018, OSV received a $75,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to fund a study on how the museum could create a more comprehensive experience on multiple areas, including, but not limited to, race and gender. This brought to light that one of the things not always well represented is the African-American and the Native American story, and OSV visitors may

have been left with the sense that life at that point in history was exclusively white and male-dominated. The depiction of the role of women also needed work — while men worked in the ﬁ elds or in workshops, women were the glue that held the households together, in possibly the most important role in society. In some ways, OSV’s interpretation of daily life accidentally whitewashed history. In reality, New Englanders, at that time, were caught between abolitionist See WELCOME, Page 15

A sign lines the entrance to OSV. PHOTOS BY CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 15

People enjoy a horse drawn tour around the common of Old Sturbridge Village on Sept. 22. PHOTOS BY CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

16 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Derek Heideman is the Director of Collections and Research at Old Sturbridge Village. CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Welcome Continued from Page 15

movements and deep-seated racism, between increasing freedom for women and restrictive gender roles for them. Now, in the 75th anniversary year of OSV, there is change afoot in line with these ﬁ ndings. On both the customerfacing front end as well as the

backend of staﬀ hiring and archival research. “I think there are ways to look at history in context,” said Jasmin Rivas, the Director of Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion, a newly formed position. “What was happening around that time period, politically, with diﬀ erent areas and groups, what voices and stories can we amplify in regards to the indigenous population, knowing that in this geographic area

that the Nipmuc tribe was here long before any settlers.” Though OSV had been doing some of the work already, centralizing the responsibility in one person to lead the charge may make the initiative more eﬀ ective. While Rivas is from a more educational than historical background, she has ideas on how to make such a speciﬁ c area and time as rural New England in the 1800s more in-

clusive. Collaborating with and making sure to honor the diversity that simultaneously existed can bring a new perspective to telling the story. She expects to work with the historical experts to form a more accurate narrative and make sure that the OSV exhibit and presentation language presents the history of those who shared the space, “as more than a footnote,” she said, and to show respect, being equitable rather

than tacking something on as an addition. The director of DEAI is charged with ensuring that the initiatives continue and are implemented. They include such components as tours with information in Spanish so that all the communities they serve are included, advertising in diﬀ erent language media to reach out to communities that may See WELCOME, Page 17

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 17

Welcome Continued from Page 16

not know of OSV, such as Spanish language newspapers, job postings in other spaces like LGBT media, and seek out focus groups from target demographics. There will be change — beyond what the visitors see — to aff ect how the organization works for employees, making minority staff members feel welcome and heard, in what is often seen as a primarily white space of employment. Rivas explained how when an organization doesn’t recognize the diversity of visitors, that can lead to blind spots in promotional materials that do not refl ect reality. “We gravitate towards what’s comfortable,” she said. “For example, a white photographer will unconsciously approach and photograph white people for promotional materials.” As a result, Rivas hopes to build staff confi dence and comfort with approaching people diff erent than they are and combat unconscious bias. But how does one make history more inclusive? Derek Heideman, director of Collections and Research, explained how they are trying to fi nd out more about the lives of minorities in the period, but it’s hard to form a clear picture with archival details. OSV staff have actively researched historical perspectives related to identity, but incorporating piecemeal knowledge into the interpretive program is not simple. Mainly, the goal is to combat the perception of racial homogeneity by creating a unifi ed program that seamlessly blends the stories of non-white, non-male populations. Period archival documents, supported by primary and secondary resources from the past several decades, are used to shed light on the complex and changing communities of 19th-century New England. For example, the issue of slavery in New England is well documented — it persisted into

the early 19th century even though the region is often credited with ending slavery. Heideman is clear that while the majority of the population was Anglo-Saxon, there are defi nitely stories of people of color to be found, such as the family of Guy Scott, the foreman of the local graphite mine in the 1830s. Village staff conducted extensive research into the lives of such individuals as well as other families of color (usually referring to indigenous and those of African descent) living in the Massachusetts area. Rhys Simmons, Director of Interpretation, agreed that Rivas is a great addition to the team due to her diff erent perspective since she doesn’t come from a traditional museum background. “Jasmin is from the social work and education space — experience with community engagement is very benefi cial in these discussions, how can we elevate voices historically not highlighted for various reasons.” He talked of the collaborations with nine historical scholars, including a historian of the Wampanoag tribe, Linda Coombs. A museum like OSV is a forum for the community, said Heideman, and connecting the dots between the past and the present for people who visit is paramount. To do this, they will be hiring and training staff about cultural competency as a necessary step. Rivas will be instrumental in hiring and retaining a diverse staff trained to help visitors see the present through the lens of the past and see how far we have come. Topics of inclusion and exclusion relevant to African and Native Americans, non-Christians, physically challenged, socioeconomic levels and class distinctions, will be front and center. In the future, OSV is committed to making these stories a regular part of the narrative and blending them into the fabric of other stories.

James and Roberta walk toward exhibits at Old Sturbridge Village. CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

JIMMY BUFFETT’S

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18 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY LIVING TABLE HOPPIN’

Namaste Woo, Pacha Mama join Worcester Public Market Barbara M. Houle Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Worcester Public Market, 160 Green St., continues to attract new businesses, last month adding Namaste Woo and Pacha Mama to its list of vendors serving ethnic cuisine. Meet these enthusiastic fi rst-time vendors. Pooja Vishal of Namaste Woo (Indian-inspired food) lives in Shrewsbury with her husband and their two daughters. She’s originally from India and has been a “home cook for 25 plus years.” Her fi rst business began in 2018 after she talked to Shon Rainford, director of the Worcester Regional Food Hub, about becoming a food hub member and using the hub kitchen to prepare Indianstyle meal kits that she planned to sell at local farmers markets. The Indian meals are based on Vishal’s mother’s recipes. “My mother was a terrifi c cook and when she passed, my father was alone and left to cook for himself,” said Vishal. “I thought of him when I created the meal kits because through the food he could sense my mother. Food brings people together, no matter what culture.” The popularity of the readyto-cook meal kits sold at farmers markets led to Vishal’s company, Urban Spice World, and the website www.urbanspiceworld.com, an online service that makes cooking fun and easy. “All the ingredients that

Pooja Vishal recently opened Namaste Woo at the Worcester Public Market, where she prepares Indian specialties for take-out. Her meal kits are sold at The Market Pantry. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

you need to make a delicious meal and exactly the right proportions are in the meal kits,” said Vishal. “I include a little card inside with instructions. So easy, it’s really no-brain cooking.” “Chef Pooja” on her YouTube channel demonstrates how to create meals using the kits. More information about videos and recipes are on her website. College students especially enjoy food with ﬂ avors of

home, according to Vishal, who said she has repeat customers throughout the United States. “I love getting feedback,” she said, “and special food requests.” When the Worcester Public Market opened in February 2020, Vishal told herself, “One day, I want to be there.” The market shut down shortly after the grand opening as a result of the pandemic, reopening the summer of 2020. Vishal has

been a vendor for several weeks. Namaste Woo lives up to Vishal’s expectations. “The booth has been very busy, especially on weekends,” said Vishal, who prepares Indian specialties or “quick bites,” such as samosas, for take-out. On weekends, diﬀ erent curries are on her menu. “I love bringing a taste of India to guests. It’s diversity and unity on a plate. And, I’m all about

healthy food,” said Vishal. While Vishal’s meal kits are on display, she does not sell them at her booth. The kits instead are sold at The Market Pantry inside the Worcester Public Market, a business that carries local foods and artisanal products. Social media plays an important role in introducing new customers to Namaste Woo and Vishal’s website. Her husband is her “rock,” she said, explaining that she wouldn’t be in business without his support. “I couldn’t have done any of this without him,” said Vishal. Drop by the Namaste Woo booth for both good food and conversation. Vishal is super friendly! Cliﬀ ord Buck and Leo Alarcon are friends who opened Pacha Mama last month, with the goal of one day owning a dinein Peruvian restaurant. Alarcon, who came to the United States from Peru with family members in the early ‘90s, is a registered nurse. His father, Raoul Alarcon, is associated with Pacha Mama, making most of the desserts. Buck has a sales and marketing background and has traveled extensively. He’s a musician (drummer), a graduate of Johnson & Wales University in Providence and a guy who got his ﬁ rst taste of Peruvian cuisine when he vacationed in Peru’s capital of Lima several years ago. Alarcon was on the trip and introduced Buck to See HOPPIN’, Page 20

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 19

THE NEXT DRAFT

Witchﬁ nder General the overlord of pumpkin spice beer oﬀ erings Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

HUDSON – Rail Trail Flatbread Co. cook Nigel Mendoza arrives to work early one morning last week to light a roaring ﬁ re for the only pumpkin beer he will drink each year. When the oven gets smoky enough, Mendoza begins sliding in trays of ﬁ nely shredded pumpkins, a mix of sugar and cheese gourds collected from Rota Spring Farm in Sterling. The pale orange mush roasts for several minutes, releasing an oddly pleasing smell of charred squash throughout Rail Trail. As I watch Mendoza carefully perform this crucial step in

brewing Medusa Brewing Co.’s smoked pumpkin stout, “Witchfi nder General,” I can almost see the debate and hoopla over these seasonal beers melting from the heat of the massive fi re. I bring you the dark overlord of pumpkin beers, Witchfi nder General, as the next entry in my Signature Brew Series. Unlike the pumpkin beers of late June and August, Witchfi nder General eschews cinnamon, sugar and spice for freshly harvested pumpkins and smoked malt. The fi res of hatred brought Witchfi nder General into life, said Medusa co-founder Keith Sullivan. “The whole premise of this beer is we hate pumpkin beers, because there’s no pumpkin in a lot of them; it’s all

just cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg — it’s pumpkin spice.” Sullivan’s partner at Medusa, head brewer Keith Antul, will probably forever hate me for spotlighting a pumpkin stout brewed once a year as one of his brewery’s signature beers, while ignoring the IPA “Laser Cat” or the award-winning pilsner “Duchovni.” I apologize in advance to him and likely horde of angry Medusa fans who will tear this column to shreds. But Witchﬁ nder General — named after a 1968 horror movie — isn’t just one of the best pumpkin beers I’ve ever

tasted. It’s a touchstone for what should be the only way to brew these fall favorites. Medusa can’t take all the credit, though, as the brewery learned a lot from brewmaster Will Meyers at Cambridge Brewing Co. and his classic “Great Pumpkin Ale.” It’s no secret that a lot of the pumpkin beers on the shelves aren’t actually brewed with real pumpkins. Often too sweet and too boozy, they achieve the “pumpkin” ﬂ avor from spices, extracts and purees. Today most breweries release their pumpkin beers before farms even have pumpkins ready to

pick. But Meyers has always preached patience. Each year, he waits until he can get his hands on some 4,000 sugar pumpkins for CBC’s Great Pumpkin Ale, meaning you won’t see it until October, months after the ﬁ rst wave of pumpkin beers have nearly all disappeared from stores. Meyers perfected the system for preparing fresh pumpkins for brewing; it’s hard work, requiring his team of volunteers chop and shred every pumpkin by hand. See DRAFT, Page 20

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food he grew up with. Buck said in Peru he instantly fell in love with the food and the people. He later returned to Lima for a year to teach English. He said he learned as much as he could about the cuisine from chefs and home cooks. “Peruvian food is all about bold ﬂ avors and spices,” said Buck. “It’s diﬀ erent from other cuisines because it relies so much on a variety of indigenous ingredients. Everything is so fresh. It’s considered fusion cuisine at its best.” Buck and Alarcon tossed around the idea of opening a Peruvian restaurant or café because “there isn’t anything like it in Worcester.” Alarcon said he had to go to Boston or Providence for traditional Peruvian food, or eat at home. A friend told him about the Worcester Public Market. Ceviche, probably Peru’s most famous food, is on Pacha Mama’s take-out menu, in addition to empanadas, dishes such as Causa Rellena, chicken salad layered in between mashed potatoes, and Alarcon’s favorite, Lomo Saltado, stir-fry beef mixed with French fries. Note: Potatoes are included in many Peruvian recipes as the country boasts more than 3,000 varieties. Alarcon said

Draft Continued from Page 19

“Will fi gured out that if you shred the pumpkins and roast them, then throw them in hot mash, you get some squash fl avor in the beer,” Sullivan said. Medusa employs this technique for Witchfi nder General, fi rst brewed in 2016. It prefers cheese pumpkins, because they have a squashier fl avor

Leo Alarcon, Clifford Buck and Maria Morillo at Pacha Mama, which opened last month at the Worcester Public Market. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

potatoes are an important part of Peruvian heritage. Visit http://pachamamawoosta.com for full menu, including desserts. Connect on Facebook. Buck mans the booth daily and also creates Pacha Mama’s weekly menu. Alarcon usually makes all the sauces (mild not spicy) and helps out wherever he’s needed. Owners said food is made from scratch and most seasonings and dried ingredients are from Peru. “Our distributors have been really good at ﬁ lling orders,” said Buck. “So far, no problems.” Fresh produce is from local growers.

Buck said the ﬁ rst week at the Worcester Public Market was a “wild ride,” with Pacha Mama landing its ﬁ rst catering job. “It was incredible,” he said, adding the business has remained steady and is extremely busy on weekends. Maria Morillo, a friend of the owners, is often at Pacha Mama in traditional Peruvian costume. She’s from Peru and speaks both Spanish and English to describe traditions and cuisine. Peru is a South American country that has fast become a leading culinary destination, and the cuisine has gained in

than sugar pumpkins. “It’s not a classic spicy pumpkin beer,” said Brewmaster Antul. “The pumpkin itself cooked in the wood oven lends a lot of smoke to the beer. How much comes from the smoked malt and how much from the smoked pumpkin, we don’t know.” Between prepping the pumpkins then roasting them, Witchﬁ nder General is by far the most labor-intensive beer Medusa brews. If every pump-

kin beer had to be brewed in this fashion, you would see far fewer, far later. Brewing Witchfi nder General has become a community affair, with Medusa calling on other Main Street businesses for help. New City Microcreamy off ers Medusa a commercial shredder to make the job of breaking down the 400 pounds of pumpkins a little easier. And Rail Trail lends its oven. “I need to get a good smoky fi re going for the pumpkins,”

popularity in the United States. Pacha Mama (Mother Earth) brings a taste of Peru to the city. Worcester Public Market is truly rich in ethnic diversity, says Domenic D. Mercurio Jr., executive director of the market. “Under one roof, we have 13 countries represented,” he said. “The food is incredible, prepared by folks that are indigenous to these countries. There’s a tremendous amount of heart and soul put into every recipe that’s created here. “We’re so pleased to have Namaste Woo and Pacha Mama as new additions,” said Mercurio. “Everything they turn out is so ﬂ avorful and colorful, and both restaurants are exceptionally popular with our patrons.” The Worcester Public Market is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Closed Monday and Tuesday. Note: Vendors remain open until 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Oct. specials at Sole, Via October is a month of food celebrations at Worcester Restaurant Group restaurants. The Sole Proprietor, 118 Highland St., Worcester, (www.thesole.com) oﬀ ers an Oysterfest menu featuring dishes prepared a variety of ways to include baked, stuﬀ ed, fried and raw. Classic appetizers include Oysters Rockefeller and Oysters Casino. Choose a Fried

said Mendoza, who has been helping Medusa with the task of roasting the gourds for the last few years. After roasting the pumpkins, he will head down the street to Medusa’s brewhouse and scoop the squashy slurry into the mash tun, where the brewing process begins. Mendoza never knew pumpkin beers existed before brewing Witchﬁ nder General. And it’s still the sole pumpkin beer he permits himself to drink.

Oyster Roll or Haddock with Crispy Oysters as an entrée. The restaurant will host a Moet and Chandon Oyster Dinner on Oct. 19. Seating is limited. Reserve on the Sole’s website. It’s the annual PigFest at VIA Italian Table, 89 Shrewsbury St., Worcester. Start oﬀ with appetizers such as Roasted Pork Belly or Smoked Pork Crostini, or head straight to entrees like Berkshire Pork Osso Buco or Porchetta. Creative pork dishes on VIA’s menu include Berkshire Pork Osso Bucco, Roasted Porchetta, Pork Milanese, Roasted Pork Belly and Local Cream Corn, plus more. Visit www.viaitaliantable.com. So many choices!

Bah-Bah-Q and beer in Rutland Black Sheep Bah-Bah-Q & Kitchen will be at Milk Room Brewing Company located at Alta Vista Farm in Rutland during Columbus Day weekend. The food trailer is regularly parked at 387 Main St., Spencer, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; noon to 9 p.m. Saturday; noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. For more information, visit www.blacksheepbahbahq.com. If you have a tidbit for the column, call (508) 868-5282. Send email to bhoulefood@gmail.com.

I envy him, having tried too many pumpkin beers. Committing to only one this time of the year would be an impossible vow to uphold. I can assure you of one thing, though: Witchﬁ nder General will be the last pumpkin brew I ever write about. Medusa will release Witchﬁ nder General at the end of this month, ahead of its annual Halloween party. Check social media for the announced date.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 21

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Ann Rosebrooks Ann Rosebrooks Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Though having little formal training, Ann Rosebrooks has been creating artwork since she was 14 years old. She obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from Rhode Island School of Design in 1970. Since then, she has become an Artist-in-Residence at both the Pulpit Rock Artists Community in Connecticut and Agung Rai Art Museum in Bali. Her work has won many awards through the years, including the Best

Painting at ArtsWorcester’s Biennial in 1991 and 2009. Ann’s paintings strive to engage the viewer while still leaving room for interpretation. She quotes life experiences, people, places and feelings as contributing to the creation of her art. This Artist Spotlight is presented by Worcester Magazine in partnership with ArtsWorcester. Since 1979, ArtsWorcester has exhibited and advanced the work of this region’s contemporary artists. Its exhibitions and educational events are open and free to all. Learn more at www.artsworcester.org.

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22 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

LISTEN UP

Boston rapper Oompa goes deep with ‘Unbothered’ Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

In her 2019 album, “Cleo,” Boston hip-hop artist Oompa created a narrative of survival, of pushing through deprivation and obstacles and, fi nally, at the end of the journey, becoming one’s self. It was a powerful, layered piece of work, but also one that leaves the listener thinking: “Well, what’s next?” With her new album, “Unbothered,” Oompa answers that question with aplomb. In all honesty, this sort of sophomore album trips up a lot of hip-hop artists: In the wrong hands, this part of an artist’s journey can feel false, fi lled with contrived rehashes and empty braggadocio. Oompa manages to avoid all of that by looking inward, and fi nding that she still has plenty to say. “Unbothered” is a lyrical album, fi lled with moments of melodic beauty, but it never loses sight of who the artist is and where she comes from, that sense of honesty becoming the fuel for its power. The album begins in prayer, with “Amen.” It’s a moment of gratitude, even as it acknowledges desire: “I want my piece, I want my space … I want the keys/I want the lane” sings Oompa, before shifting into rap. “If it causes stress/then it ain’t for me,” raps Oompa, and that’s a bit of a refrain throughout the album: self-care, and letting go of negative elements in one’s life. “I’m going back to the days where we used to play/ and were really non-complicated/they are still in your childhood/man get yours back/ ’cause that’s the only way (racial epithets) are going to make it.” This is a delicate game for any artist to play, because the search for inner peace can be dull subject matter. Oompa

Oompa’s newest album is “Unbothered.” PROMOTIONAL PHOTO

sidesteps this with a sense of honesty, yes, but also with a sense of having come through the ﬁ re, and sharing what she’s learned. When, on the title track, she raps about self-care, and taking it in stride when people “call you on your (expletive),” she asks the question, “Can you do that?” It’s not just a rhetorical question: It’s the core of moving forward, one Oompa asks even as she moves to remind the listener of the

damage people can cause in one’s life with seeming ease. “Stress/aw, naw/hell no we don’t do that,” she refrains, “Hell nah, we been through that.” The rapper looks to move past continually being aﬀ ected by the past, and to not repeat the mistakes of the past. Oompa displays a sense of balance and wisdom, and it informs everything that comes afterward, even when she switches up the tone with the

bare-knuckled “Lebron.” “You do what you can,” she raps, “I do what I want.” This is a bit of a battle anthem, and it has a soaring energy that seems to almost contrast the loose rapping style she uses for most of the song, her rhymes increasingly tightening as the song progresses. The song’s a ﬂ ex on multiple levels, and she earns it on all of them. When she picks up the tempo with the dance beat-inﬂ ected, “Outta Pa-

tience,” all the energy that’s coiled in “Lebron” gets released like a rabbit punch. (I know, there should be a basketball metaphor here, but boxing just worked better.) “I ain’t made it but I’m damned close,” she raps, meditating on how even nearing success aﬀ ects her relationships: “It’s like they’re happier to see you when you’re struggling with it/but when you get it they forget you had to go and get it/so they throw the dirt back on you/to remind you of the trenches.” This is a familiar theme in the genre, and unfortunately it’s probably familiar because it happens, but by delaying this burst of anger to later in the album, she allows it to hit hard, and then dissolve into the darkly pointed, “It Ain’t Safe,” where she refrains the lines from earlier, “You do what you can/I do what I want.” But now, it seems to have a dangerous undertow. “Hide your wife/hide your man/hide your chain,” she cautions, and it’s hard to say whether it’s she herself who she perceives as being unsafe, or the situation she ﬁ nds herself in. Maybe it’s both. What’s undeniable, though, is the song has an irresistible hook, dragging the listener deeper into the song’s murky waters, and from there into the the riptide of the next song, “Deep.” There’s an almost old-school R&B vibe to the song, one where a sense of longing and need is conveyed as much through the tone of Oompa’s singing as through lyrical content. The switch from rap to mostly singing escalates the song’s slow-burn heat, a swelter that leads into the more erotically forward, “Where My Silky?” Oompa’s ability to layer tone and meaning while taking the listener on an internal journey is masterful throughout this alSee OOMPA, Page 23

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 23

SANDRA RAIN

Confessions of Worcester’s ‘most insuﬀ erable restaurant critic’ Sandra Rain Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I know our editors have been fi elding endless inquiries regarding my whereabouts. They receive boatloads of emails asking, “What happened to Sandra?” and messages spelled out in individual letters like ransom notes with threats such as, “Make it Rain, or else.” I wish I could tell you I was scooped up by the LA Times or poached by The Globe, but the truth is, I couldn’t bear to eat another breaded white fi sh. The steak tips had gotten to me. The rice pilaf was fi nally more than I could handle. Worcester has plenty of locally owned restaurants. “There’s a seat for every ass,” as they say. But, there were never enough restaurants for proper criticism to fl ourish here. When The New York Times decides a restaurant is worthy of a review, that is a testament to its standing. One star from The New York Times means the establishment is “good.” Four stars means it is “extraordinary.” Because of the devastating impacts of the pandemic on hospitality, The Times has ceased to award stars altogether. I decided if Pete Wells wasn’t going to give out stars while the

Oompa Continued from Page 22

bum, culminating with the album’s penultimate song, “Go.” “Is it worth it,” she sings. “I know it ain’t worth it.” There is only forward motion. She’s

If I ever told you your carnations were ugly or your mason jars were gauche, I just want to apologize. PIXABAY

world crumbled, then I sure as hell wasn’t about to knock a mom and pop shop on Shrewsbury Street. With that, my ﬁ veyear stint as Worcester’s most gloriﬁ ed Yelper came to a close. What have I been up to? Well, I’m mostly just trying to relax. My friend, we’ll call him Thaddeus Snow, tells me the legalization of recreational marijuana can help. He replaced his

nightly beer with a cannabis seltzer called Wynk. I’ve always been a lightweight, so I imagine the 2.5 mg of THC would be plenty to mellow me out. If he’s feeling especially indulgent, he pops a Cheeba Chew — the weed infused taﬀ y he keeps in his freezer. I’ve considered giving it a try. My nights of passed apps, wine dinners and comped desserts are over. I

wish I could tell you I missed my old life, but that would be a lie. I don’t want you to think I’m being irresponsible. Legalization has brought forth a lot more information about the beneﬁ ts and risks of cannabis. I expect the wrong dose would make me anxious, which is why I am more open to the idea of a carefully calculated seltzer or

been telling the listener this through the entire album, but when she makes it explicit here, you can feel the things holding her back fall away. The album ends with the song, ‘Everything Good,” which begins with Oompa rapping, “Hey take this red pill/how ‘bout this blue pill/I said, ‘Who

was the pharmacist?’/Inside the matric/outside the matrix/ you can’t escape your own karma, kid.” Here, she talks about being poised to head to Los Angeles, and being interrupted by the world literally shutting down. “You want the antidote for the world’s problems/but yours got a face,” she raps.

“Look at your demons/they look just like you/that’s why you’re running away.” The song brings the listener full circle: The album begins with a sense of self-worth and self-care, but by the end, the rapper reminds the listener that those are states of mind that need tending, and that

edible than I am to actually smoking the stuff . I’m glad I waited until middle-age because the research shows regular use can lead to IQ loss in young people over time. I believe I’ve already sacrifi ced enough brain cells to know my limits. If I ever told you your carnations were ugly or your mason jars were gauche, I just want to apologize. I hope my public decrees caused you no harm. I do stand by my absolute slaying of one establishment for serving me a glass containing what I diplomatically described as a “fl oating black grain of rice.” I’m certain it was a mouse dropping. I literally ate shit for this job, but that’s neither here nor there. All this is to say, I’m sorry if I docked you for having a carpet in your dining room or putting too many dishes on your menu. I got lazy toward the end. Anyway, don’t look for me on the pages of Worcester Magazine. You are not likely to fi nd me here anytime soon. For all you know, I could be stoned devouring a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in front of the television until further notice. The truth is, it doesn’t matter. Thank you for tolerating me, Worcester. Sandra Rain bids you adieu.

doesn’t happen until you make peace with your own demons, and coming to terms with what it is you really want. “I’m not where I wanted to be,” she raps, “but that’s probably because I couldn’t imagine a life/where I had all that I needed/the whole time it’s all been inside me.”

24 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

SCREEN TIME

Worcester-shot ‘Don’t Look Up’ not our ﬁ rst Apocalypse Craig S. Semon Worcester Telegram & Gazette USA TODAY NETWORK

Sixty-six million years ago, all the cool dinosaurs and even the wimpy ones were wiped out by a game-changing asteroid and/or comet that impacted the planet surface. Ouch! In two months, another catastrophic asteroid belt/comet apocalypse combo will be making bespectacled, bearded Leonardo DiCaprio hyperventilate as he gets belittled by Johan Hill in Netfl ix’s “Don’t Look Up.’’ In addition to DiCaprio having a panic attack in a public men’s room, the “Don’t Look Up” trailer serves up a crimson haired, nose-pierced Jennifer Lawrence ordering “two more glasses of red wine” and barking “And I don’t need the judgy face” to a waitress; Meryl Streep as a cheery, condescending and clueless Commander-In-Chief (sound familiar?); and publicly disgraced (and totally expendable) military man Ron Perlman at the helm of speeding space shuttle about to rendezvous with a whizzing, world-weary widowmaker. And with all its A-list actors, biting black humor and state-of-the-art action scenes in “Don’t Look Up,” it appears that “Superbad” Hill, who stole “The Wolf of Wall Street” from “Titanic” third-class passenger Jack Dawson, steals this movie also. Heck, Hill certainly steals the offi cial trailer. “Don’t Look Up” is written and directed by once impoverished Worcester native Adam McKay and fi lmed — in part — in Worcester, although none of those parts made the minute-long trailer, nor the subsequently released extended Oval Offi ce scene that makes it more apparent that the meteor plotline is merely a thinly veiled allegory for the coronavirus. The star-studded disaster satire “Don’t Look Up” — think Michael Bay’s “Armageddon” meets Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove” — will have a limited theatrical release on Dec. 10 (to start potential Oscar buzz), prior to coming home for the holidays, via streaming, on Netfl ix on Dec. 24. The premise of “Don’t Look Up” isn’t original by any stretch of the imagination, but the social satire certainly is. You have the same basic premise in the

Bruce Willis is humanity’s best chance of drilling a hole in a meteor on a collision course with Earth in “Armageddon.” God help us all. TOUCHSTONE PICTURES

‘70s disaster movie “Meteor,” as well as 1998’s dueling Texas-size asteroid/”extinction-level” comet on a collision course with trite soap opera subplots, two-dimensional characters and bad acting in the God awful “Armageddon” (quite possibly the worse movie I’ve ever seen in a ﬁ rst-run movie theater) and a little better than “Armageddon” (but nothing to write home about) “Deep Impact.” In “Meteor,” our hero is Sean Connery, aka the best James Bond ever in the worse movie of his career. In “Armageddon,” it’s John McClane, aka Bruce Willis, playing a “renowned driller,” which if that isn’t a double entendre (which it isn’t), is just plain stupid, and the Corleone Family’s consigliere Tom Hagen, aka Robert Duvall, in “Deep Impact.” As for women with supposed brains doubling as eye candy, you have Natalie Wood (John Wayne’s Comanche kidnapped niece in arguably the best western ever made, “The Searchers”) in “Meteor.” Three years before casting her elven magic in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, Liv Tyler is annoyingly loud and overacting as Willis’ daughter and Ben “Batman” Aﬄ eck’s girlfriend in “Armageddon.” And Téa Leoni plays a trusted national journalist that breaks humanity’s cosmic space calamity story to the public in “Deep Impact.” And that’s why

they call it acting folks. As for presidents, “Meteor” has arguably the greatest actor of his generation, the “Ghost of Tom Joad” himself, Academy Award-winning actor Henry Fonda, while “Armageddon” has no-name actor Stanley Anderson (best known as playing Drew Carey’s dad on “The Drew Carey Show”), and “Deep Impact” has the voice of God himself, aka Morgan Freeman, as the Commander-In-Chief. If Hollywood has taught us anything, a runaway asteroid belt, an out-ofwhack meteor shower and ferocious fi reballs falling out of the not so friendly skies usually have been heaven’s hemorrhoids on the cheeky backside of humanity for the last 70s years. In 1951, you had George Pal-produced sci-fi classic, “When Worlds Collide,” about an attempt to ship off some of Earth’s beautiful people on a “space ark” before a rogue star smashes the planet to bits. If the plot wasn’t heavy handed enough for you, the movie also quotes the “Book of Genesis” (aka the fi rst book in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament NOT the ‘70s progressive rock British band with Peter Gabriel and later Phil Collins, aka “the Bob Uecker of rock ‘n’ roll”). Two years later, Pal produced his masterpiece, “The War of the Worlds” — which, along with 1951’s “The Day the Earth Stood Still” and 1956’s “Forbidden

Planet” — stands as the trifecta of quintessential sci-fi classics. Unlike the Steven Spielberg-Tom Cruise 2005 remake (which starts off great but peters out in the fi nal third), the original “The War of the Worlds” has its extraterrestrials invaders on high body count, human-extinction mode crashing into our planet in pseudo-meteorites with mayonnaise jar-type lids. Also in 1951, you had “The Day of the Triffi ds,” a feel good story about how most of the people in the world have been blinded by a meteor shower while the countryside is overrun by killer vegetation that looks a lot like the free tomato plants that they used to pass out at Spag’s every spring. And, you can’t leave the ‘50s without mentioning “The Blob,” an all-consuming goo from outer space that was unleashed by a crashing meteorite not from talk radio. Also unleashed in “The Blob,” Steve McQueen as a rebel teen who grows up to become Captain Virgil Hilts (aka “The Cooler King”) in one of my personal Top 10 fl icks of all times, “The Great Escape,” and San Francisco Police detective Lt. Frank Bullitt in the granddaddy of all car chase fi lms, “Bullitt.” Before we leave this topic of apocalyptic asteroid/cataclysmic comet for another 66 million years (give or take a few million years), it wouldn’t be nice not to mention the best comet movie of all time. Here’s a hint: It came out in the ‘80s. Here’s another hint: It’s not Stephen King’s moronic “Maximum Overdrive,” in which the best scene in the movie is when a killer truck crushes to death an unsuspecting Marla Maples (aka the then future ex-wife of Donald Trump) with its cargo of humongous watermelons. (Insert tasteless joke here). The best apocalyptic asteroid/cataclysmic comet movie ever is 1984’s shoestring-budgeted, box-offi ce sleeper “Night of the Comet,” starring Catherine Mary Stewart and Kelli Maroney as SoCal comet surviving siblings that have to bond together and learn to be tough. And when the going gets tough in “Night of the Comet,” the tough go on a cost-free shopping spree at the local mall accompanied by a cheesy ‘80s soundtrack.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 25

5 THINGS TO DO

BLUES MASTER COCO MONTOYA, COMEDIAN EDDIE PEPITONE AND MORE ... Richard Duckett and Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

‘Coming in Hot’ Veteran blues-rock guitarist and vocalist Coco Montoya returns to the Bull Run Restaurant in Shirley on Oct. 14 as hot as ever. His latest Alligator Records album, “Coming In Hot,” has been described as “a high temperature affair.” He’s played with legends such as John Mayall and Albert Collins, but Montoya has a masterful, hard-edged sound that’s all his own. (RD) What: Coco Montoya When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 14 (doors open for dinner and seating at 5:30 p.m.) Where: Bull Run Restaurant, 215 Great Road, Shirley How much: $25. Proof of vaccination or proof of negative COVID test within 72 hours of performance is required. www.bullrunrestaurant.com.

Adi Bielski stars in “An Israeli Love Story.” SUBMITTED PHOTO

‘An Emotional Roller Coaster’ The Central Massachusetts Jewish Theatre Company in conjunction with Theatre Nephesh, Tel Aviv, Israel, will present the U.S. premiere screening Oct. 12 of the award-winning “An Israeli Love Story,” a one-woman show starring Adi Bielski and written and directed by Pnina Gary. Gary’s true story takes place in pre-state Israel in the 1940s as a romance unfolds amid the tension and violence of the times. The show has been described as “an emotional roller-coaster that will have you laughing and crying within the same minute.” (RD) What: “An Israeli Love Story” When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 12 Where: Register for the screening at www.cmjtc.org How much: Free. Donation welcome

Coco Montoya will perform at Bull Run Restaurant in Shirley. PROMOTIONAL PHOTO Continued on next page

26 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

A Grave Concern In Ivan Menchell’s comedy-drama “The Cemetery Club,” three Jewish widows meet once a month for tea before going to visit their husbands’ graves. But complications arise when they meet Sam the butcher visiting his wife’s grave. The Gateway Players return to the stage for its first live production in over 20 months starting Oct. 8 at Elm Street Congregational Church in Southbridge. The cast includes Gail Riva White, Joan Stewart, Carol Vancil, Jim Douglas and Chris McTigue. Lou-Ellen Corkum directs. (RD)

The Gateway Players will present “The Cemetery Club.” GETTY IMAGES

What: “The Cemetery Club” performed by The Gateway Players When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 8, 9, 15 and 16, and 2 p.m. Oct. 17 Where: The Fellowship Hall of Elm Street Congregational Church, 61 Elm St., Southbridge How much: $15 for adults, and $13 for seniors and youths under 18. Tickets may be reserved by calling (508) 764-4531 or online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/5238064. Audience size for the performances will be limited in order to maintain social distancing. All audience members at all performances will be required to wear masks regardless of their vaccination status

Cailin Marcel Manson is a guest vocalist in “A Dill Pickle,” a chamber opera presented by The Worcester Chamber Music Society. TROY B. THOMPSON PHOTOGRAPHY

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Something to Rant About To paraphrase one of his own routines, you’re not going to hear a lot about dating in Eddie Pepitone’s upcoming show for Guerrilla Theatre at Ralph’s Rock Diner. “It’s not fun!” he shouts at the audience, in a video, “We’re in End Times!” That pretty much gets to the heart of Pepitone’s work. He can be surreal — he has a routine about listening to Stalin on Spotify: “The early (expletive), not the later stuff when he sold out” — to socially critical, such as when he explains why dogs are better than people. Pepitone’s rants can be equal parts angry and outlandish, but they are always hilarious. (VDI)

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What: Guerrilla Theatre with Eddie Pepitone, JT Habersaat and Kendra Dawsey When: 8 p.m. Oct. 9 Where: Ralph’s Rock Diner, 148 Grove St., Worcester How much: $20

The Worcester Chamber Music Society will present the world premiere of the chamber opera “A Dill Pickle” by local composer Matt Malsky Oct. 10 in the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC. The performance will also be live-streamed. The opera is based on “A Dill Pickle,” a short story by Katherine Mansfield. In the story, former lovers have a chance meeting at an Edwardian café in which the conversation ranges widely and explores the themes of lost love and regret, self-centeredness and missed connections, new experiences — and improbably, a dill pickle. Malsky, a composer and educator, was recently named the inaugural Tina Sweeney, M.A. ’49, Endowed Chair in Music at Clark University. Guest vocalists are Cailin Marcel Manson, baritone, and Caitlyn Felsman, mezzo-soprano. (RD) What: “A Dill Pickle” — chamber opera When: 3:30 p.m. Oct. 10 in-person and livestreamed. On Demand Oct. 17-24. Where: BrickBox Theater at the JMAC, 20 Franklin St., Worcester. Proof of vaccination and masking required in-person. How much: In-person — adults, $38-$40; students, $10; EBT/WIC, $5; youth 17 and under, free. Live stream and On Demand — adults, $20; household, $38, student, $10; EBT/WIC, $5; youth 17 and under, free. Information and tickets for this concert are available on the ensemble’s website, www.worcesterchambermusic.org, or by calling the office at (508) 926-8624

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 27

ADOPTION OPTION

Meet Zach Welcome to Adoption Option, a partnership with the Worcester Animal Rescue League highlighting their adoptable pets. Check this space often to meet all of the great pets at WARL in need of homes. WARL is open seven days a week, noon-4 p.m., 139 Holden St. Check them out online at Worcesterarl.org, or call at (508) 8530030. Meet Zach. This big boy weighs in at 95 pounds and is looking for an experienced large breed dog owner. He was surrendered to the shelter, through no fault of his own, after being previously adopted from us about 5 years ago. Zach loves to play with all types of toys, enjoys walks, aff ection and car rides. He is very strong and uses a harness when walking. He will need a strong owner who is able to handle him when walking him. His previous family spent a lot of time with him teaching him all of his commands and he is a very smart guy. Zach can sit, lay down, give paw, high fi ve and sit and stay when asked. Although very playful and fun, Zach does have a serious side too. He does not like to be bothered while eating and does not like to be removed off of furniture. He will growl and if pushed snap. Due to his size he needs an owner who understands these behaviors and can manage them safely for themselves and Zach. For these reasons an ideal home for him would be with adults only. He does not like other animals and is looking for a home where he can be the king of the castle. Zach is on a medication called Apoquel for his allergies. We are unsure if Zach has food or environmental allergies, but this medication keeps him comfortable and should be something his new owners continue with him. If you would like to learn more about Zach or you would like to make an appointment to meet him, please contact the shelter today. Zach is a part of our foster

to adopt program. He currently has ear infections we are treating here at the shelter and he will need to come back for rechecks. WARL COVID-19 Procedures As of Nov. 9, 2020 As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, we want to share with you some changes we have implemented so that we can continue to serve the pets and people of our community while keeping our team protected. • ADOPTIONS: At this time, adoptions are being held BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. If you are interested in adoption, please visit our website worcesterarl.org/ adopt/ to learn more about our available animals then call us at (508) 853-0030 ext.0 or email us at info@worcesterarl. org to schedule an appointment. • CASUAL VISITS TO THE SHELTER are prohibited. We will strictly enforce this in order to keep our animal care team protected while still maintaining the most essential function of our operation ... ﬁ nding homes for animals in need. • ANIMAL SURRENDERS: Our business practice for surrendering a pet remains the same. All pet owners must contact WARL in advance of surrendering a pet. Please call (508) 853-0030. • SPAY/NEUTER CLINICS: All scheduled appointments will be honored. If you have a scheduled appointment, we will be contacting you to discuss changes to our drop oﬀ / pick up procedures.

Zach is available for adoption through WARL. ANJIE COATES/FURRY TAILS

• DONATIONS ACCEPTED except for open bags of food. • Pet food, cat litter, and other shelter supplies will be essential in continuing to provide for our animals and to assist community members in need. To avoid unnecessary travel and exposure, items can be purchased online from our Amazon Wishlist — https:// www.amazon.com/gp/regis-

try/wishlist/3AX342JIL73M0 • Weekly training classes are going on for adopters. • The WARL Volunteer Program is temporarily suspended. All regular volunteer shifts are on hold. We look forward to welcoming you back as soon as we can. We have many animals in our care who depend on us to stay healthy and well. The above measures help to protect

our staﬀ and community from the spread of COVID - 19 by minimizing face-to-face interactions while continuing to operate only core essential services. Please continue to follow our Facebook page for additional updates. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the shelter at (508) 853-0030 or info@ worcesterarl.org.

28 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

LAST CALL

Anita Fabos, Professor of International Relations and Social Change Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Last month, Worcester welcomed its fi rst group of Afghan evacuees fl eeing the Taliban takeover of their home country. Local volunteers, in coordination with state and federal services, are working to get the families settled. Last Call sat down with Professor Anita Fabos, Professor International Relations and Social Change at Clark University, who has conducted research on refugees and forced migrants across the Middle East, Europe and the United States. Fabos discussed how refugees are vetted, what this means for Worcester and how we can be more welcoming as a community. What’s the diff erence between this and normal refugee assistance? Normally, it starts with the State Department — Bureau of Population, Migration and Refugees who works with international partners to identify people in very vulnerable and perilous situations. U.S. offi cers work with these partners to identify which cases might be needing resettlement, but the tiniest group of people are eligible. It’s a drop in the bucket. Once those cases are identifi ed, there’s an extraordinarily long vetting process that can take years. U.S. government offi cials and security personnel will come and re-interview them before the IOM will arrange for them to come to the U.S. It’s not that the process necessarily takes a long time, just that there are backlogs because of the way our infrastructure was very thinned by the previous administration. This process is an emergency evacuation that has accessed diff erent categories of resources in the United States. My big picture understanding here is some of the people who were evacuated actually were in line for one of the categories for people who were helping the U.S. government in Afghanistan and considered to be most at-risk for being targeted by the Taliban. Those people would have already been in the process

Anita Fabos, a professor international relations and social change at Clark University. CLARK UNIVERSITY

— having been vetted and their paperwork already viewed. Don’t know the exact percentage but I expect it would be considerable. How would you suggest we go about changing public perception on this contentious issue? Diff erent governments have diff erent policies towards refugees and despite what you see in the news, those policies have been more and more resistant to people crossing borders — refugee movement in particular — especially in the last 15 years. Claiming asylum is getting more and more diffi cult and resettlement is one of the few remaining pathways to citizenship. There’s this international framework in which the U.S. is a signatory to support people who have been displaced by confl ict and it was a bipartisan issue for many years. In the U.S., we’re just taking such a tiny little drop. I was asked to speak to

the inﬂ ux and said “can we talk about that word?” A few hundred people over the course of the year in a city the size of Worcester seems like such a small number, especially in a college town with thousands of students who arrive each year. Some people’s movement is OK and other’s is not OK — it’s hard to characterize but I would say race and racism and the fear that some people are more culturally distant than others in the United States. Is resettlement what applies to the Afghan refugees? They are humanitarian parolees and not part of the usual resettlement program. There’s a bill in the House to designate them as part of a major resettlement program so they would have access to the services from the Oﬃ ce of Refugee Resettlement. That’s why there’s such a volunteer movement because a lot of these people are not eligi-

ble for the ORR services. If you could clarify something about this situation, what would it be? I think that Americans have a long history of stepping up and helping refugees in emergency situations, and we can look back at the Indo-Chinese resettlement program. People coming from Vietnam and Laos over a period of eight or nine years, about a million, and that was the beginning of our modern resettlement system in the U.S. I think over time the volunteer aspect has fallen away. What I would say would be really important is that people do need help but they don’t need a charitable approach. What I’ve seen is that refugees are put into these situations where they are obliged to feel grateful for any help that they get and I think if we thought of refugees as people whose rights have been violated by circumstances and if we thought of it as helping them access those rights again, the helping hands would be less patronizing. People coming to this country have skills and we want to help them achieve a digniﬁ ed life. Would you say that acknowledging trauma is important in this dialogue? Absolutely. Listening to people is really important too — not just to instruct newcomers but to be able to listen. My father was a resettled refugee in the ‘50s. He came from Hungary as a political dissident after six months in a refugee camp. People were very gracious and there was a warm welcome from the Hungarian community but he said that people were not interested in what he had gone through. They wanted him to ﬁ t in right away and learn to be an American. It wasn’t until 20 years later that people actually wanted to listen to what happened to him. He said it was so meaningful to be able to share his story. Just listening can be really helpful beyond the amazing resources that Americans are able to provide — we’re very good at pulling together to give material resources. See FABOS, Page 31D

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 29

LEGALS

SERVICE DIRECTORY

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30 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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Across 1 Wheat byproduct 6 Australian boots 10 Ensemble 14 Burj Khalifa locale 15 It comes before a fall? 16 Italian volcano that has been erupting through most of 2021 17 Opinion that the ordinal suffix from 4 onward is the worst of the group? 19 They may rehabilitate injured animals 20 Turn into 21 Songs to Wear ___ To (early 2000s website with humorous music) 22 Jason’s mythical vessel 25 Drive into hard 26 Highly decorated 27 Personal notification that nothing but dense, flavorful bread is available? 30 A little off 31 Soothing ointment 32 The color of money (if that money is a Brazilian 10 real note) 33 “___ Doubtfire” (movie turned into an upcoming Broadway musical) 36 Louis XVI, once 37 Sunscreen letters 40 South American mammal that looks like a raccoon 42 Like some roof panels 44 The physics of a Spanish bear tying its shoes? 48 Figures on some Valentine’s Day cards 49 Pantone selection 50 Added color to white canvas shoes, maybe 51 Lounges around 52 Formidable 54 Leaning type (abbr.) 55 Request for Garfield’s canine pal to hurry up? 59 Self-referential 60 Actor Steve of “Superstore” 61 Person from Malmo 62 Maverick of “Maverick” 63 Plays like Diz 64 Garden creeper Down 1 It ends in Chicago in Nov. 2 “Wait, what?” 3 “Aladdin” monkey

4 5 6 7 8 9

Some Comic-Con attendees Bona ___ Hoo-ha 23 so far for Jay-Z, e.g. 7 to 10, on the Beaufort Scale 2011 World Series winners, or short 10 Degas contemporary 11 Like many group renditions of “Happy Birthday,” to music students? 12 Condescending 13 Cup, in France 18 Beige-like shade 21 Qualifying clause 22 Distant 23 Capital on the Tiber 24 Graph paper pattern 26 World capital where parts of “Tenet” were filmed 28 Pop music family from Utah 29 Daith piercing locale 34 “Peanuts” expletive 35 Poker Hall of Famer Ungar 37 Kill it on the runway 38 Treasure hunter’s step 39 Mister Rogers 40 “Try” singer Colbie 41 Egyptian considered to be history’s first architect 43 “___ Road” (Lil Nas X song) 44 One making citations 45 Still awake

46 They might not retain lint as well 47 Give the appearance of 48 Reach new heights? 52 Walt Kelly comic strip 53 Mike of Social Distortion 55 Apprehend 56 “Breaking Bad” org. 57 Despot Amin 58 Migratory swimmer

Last week's solution

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | 31

NEW ON DVD

LeBron’s squad takes the court in ‘Space Jam’ update A sequel to Michael Jordan’s beloved ‘90s Looney Tunes mashup starring LeBron James tops the DVD releases for the week of Oct. 5. “Space Jam: A New Legacy”: The Tune Squad is back in action, this time led by a new No. 23 as King James, the Los Angeles Lakers star, takes center stage as a father whose teenage son would rather design video games than follow in his father’s footsteps on the hardcourt. The sequel, which fi nds James and his son sucked into the Warner Bros. Serververse and features nods to much of the company’s intellectual property, “is just as manic as the fi rst,” Tribune News Service critic Katie Walsh writes in her review, “leaving one feeling as if they’ve been hit by a truck driven by Bugs Bunny, synapses fried by one of Wile E. Coyote’s sticks of dynamite.” In updating the fi lm after 25 years, Walsh asks “what is the lens through which we should view ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’? A nostalgic one? An ironic one? The fi lmmakers try to do

Fabos Continued from Page 28D

How could refugee assistance programs stand to improve? One of the things that’s less well developed in refugee services is that we don’t draw on the experience of people who have been refugees in terms of leadership or giving them decision making power and ability or help in designing programs. We have so many people from refugees or forced migrant backgrounds in this country but very few of them work in

range of supernatural powers. “The Stand”: Stephen King’s post-apocalyptic tale gets a new treatment in this Paramount+ limited series starring Whoopi Goldberg, Alexander Skarsgard and James Marsden. “Audrey Hepburn 7-Movie Collection” (Blu-ray): Celebrating the 60th anniversary of “Breakfast at Tiﬀ any’s,” originally released on Oct. 5, 1961, this set also includes “My Fair Lady,” “Funny Face,” “Sabrina,” “Roman Holiday,” “Paris When It Sizzles” and “War and Peace,” as well as bonus content for most of the ﬁ lms.

“Escape Room: Tournament of Champions”: Taylor Russell returns as Zoey, who again ﬁ nds herself an unwilling participant in a deadly escape

room contest, this time a tournament of champions. “Six Minutes to Midnight”: Eddie Izzard and Judi Dench star in this espionage drama set at an English boarding school just before the outbreak of World War II. “Broken Diamonds”: Ben Platt, star of “Dear Evan Hansen,” is a young writer getting ready to move to Paris when his father’s death means he becomes the caretaker of his mentally ill sister. “Clarice: Season One”: CBS drama that debuted earlier this year follows FBI agent Clarice Starling as she returns to the fi eld a year after the events of “Silence of the Lambs.” “Fried Barry”: Horror comedy about Barry, a drug addict abducted by aliens who then assume control of his body and take it on a debauched journey through Cape Town, South Africa. “The Nevers: Season 1 Part 1”: The fi rst six episodes of HBO’s steampunk sci-fi drama set in Victorian England in which a group of people, mostly women, suddenly gain a

leadership positions at these organizations. More work in direct services roles like translators but I would love to see more of an eff ort made to bring in people who have that lived experience to help create programs. They might look a little diff erent than what was put together by people who have not had that experience. What stokes this fear of diff erence? There’s this mismatch between people’s fears and the actual tiny, tiny number of people in the resettlement pipeline. But what’s at the basis of these fears? That’s a question a lot of us in the fi eld could ask.

Why is it less scary to have 15,000 students come every September? I think people have a fear of diﬀ erence and there are very few programs that try to consider the integration needs of the current population. The shift that I’m trying to do in my own work is to think about integration — it’s not necessarily a one-way process but multi-directional. We have lots of programs for teaching English but none for teaching settled people to communicate with those who don’t speak English that well. It’s very hard to learn English but much easier to learn how to listen to understand a foreign accent.

Settled populations have very high expectations but there are things we could do that aﬀ ect strategies for accommodation. Like with your father? Exactly — become as similar as possible as fast as possible. But what I would say about Worcester is that it’s amazing in its ability to accommodate both slow shifts and rapid new situations. How do you best help refugees based on what part of the world they come from? The thinking on that has changed over the past 10 years or so — not just in the refugee ﬁ eld but other social services.

LeBron James dunks on the Goon Squad in “Space Jam: A New Legacy.” COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES

both, while also trying to amuse new audiences, and the result is a strange brew, a frenetic piece of ﬁ lmmaking that is incredibly meta, but deeply lacking in self-awareness.”

Also new on DVD Oct. 5

Out on Digital HD Oct. 5 “Old”: A family on vacation starts aging rapidly after some leisure time on a secluded beach, reducing their life expectancy to one day, in M. Night Shyamalan’s latest thriller. “The Amityville Moon”: Two girls try to escape from the church home that holds them captive, only for one of them to be killed by a werewolf.

“Because of Charley”: An estranged stepfamily reluctantly gathers in Florida for an anniversary party, fully intending to keep things brief, but Hurricane Charley changes their plans. “Paul Newman – The Paul Newman Trilogy”: Three early live TV performances starring Paul Newman as a college student, clothing manufacturer and cowardly soldier respectively that have not been seen since their original 1956-57 air dates. “The Power and the Glory”: 1961 TV movie adaptation of the Graham Greene novel about a priest in 1930s Mexico, starring Laurence Olivier, Julie Harris and George C. Scott. “Saving Sloane”: Family drama about a spoiled city girl sent to the country by her parents, where she forms an improbable bond with a horse. “Sunset on the River Styx”: A chance meeting of two young lovers sends them spiraling down a surreal rabbit hole into their pasts, futures and even a vampire death cult in this horror thriller.

Understanding people’s languages and cultural norms is all well and good but there are certain commonalities that apply to everyone. Learning to listen and that other people’s ways are not the same as your ways. We’re talking more about cultural competence rather than competence in a speciﬁ c culture. A broad competence in inter-cultural relations rather than treating people diﬀ erently based on where they come from — but also recognizing that people will have deep nostalgia for the life they left behind. That’s a common thing for all humans.

32 | OCTOBER 8 - 14, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Worcester Magazine October 8 - 14, 2021

Articles inside

Adoption Option

Games

Last Call

Artist Spotlight

Screen Time