Worlds Apart
Driving west on Whittier Street in Columbus yesterday, I saw some of my friends gathered on the sidewalk, so I knew I was in the right place. I turned right on Carpenter and parked in the first available space. Walking back to Whittier, I saw a beautiful female pit bull terrier and her owner sitting outside their home. I asked if I could pet her and the owner agreed, so I pet her and we chatted for a minute. Her rear right leg had recently been injured. I could tell she was sweet, but pain in the leg had her a bit out of sorts. So I kept the love sesh brief, to avoid getting nipped.
My friends were gathered at the rear of a U-Haul box truck. Not long after I arrived and said hello, we started receiving instructions on how to set up for the event. We opened the door on the back of the truck, revealing a jumbled mess of things that we began unloading and placing in the street.
Our volunteer efforts were in support of Nationwide Childrens Hospital’s Playstreets program - the hospital puts on this series of free block parties throughout the summer to encourage play time for children, build community and to connect community members in need with support services.
It was a gray day, rain clouds looming larger and darker, making attendance light. Once it became clear that showers were imminent, we rapidly broke down the tents, tables and toys, loading them back into the U-Haul as efficiently as a world-class player of Tetris. Whoever offloads this van for the next event will appreciate this, and hopefully replicate it.
Since we wrapped up earlier than expected, our group grabbed a few slices of the donated Donatos pizza and gathered inside a nearby building to learn more about the Playstreets program, and the people it serves. The high school graduation rate in the area is about 40%. Why are the kids not graduating? Family dysfunction and poverty. Poverty means food insecurity, no furniture, lack of transportation (bussing has been eliminated for high school students due to lack of budget…so Ohio’s flawed school funding schema also contributes to the lack of resources). It all makes my head spin. We are wasting so much human potential by failing to support these communities better. The Playstreets program is lovely and necessary - but insufficient at disrupting the cycle of generational poverty.
In local Licking county news, Leopard Spot Pizza opened a few weeks ago in the location that previously housed DeFelice Brothers Pizza. Readers who have been on this ride with me long enough know that the tenant prior to DeFelice Brothers was a little startup called Maamos Kitchen - a business that Lori and I founded, that opened its doors May 1st, 2016. So the location carries a little more emotional resonance. It was the writing of a weekly email newsletter for Maamos Kitchen customers that has since morphed into this weekly essay/blog habit of mine. When I closed the business, many readers of the newsletter asked me to continue publishing it. I have done so, with minimal disruption ever since.
Leopard Spot Pizza is very, very good! And for good reason: It’s founder, Nate Kaiser, worked for DeFelice Brothers for many years. And Nate’s mom, Susan Kaiser, has deep experience in the commercial food business, having run the Faire La Cuisine catering business out of this same space for more than 25 years. I held off on mentioning this new pizza business in my weekly posts out of an appreciation for how any new food operation is often still figuring things out. But I think they are ready for the onslaught of customers I’m sure this write up will drive to their door. :-). They wisely are keeping their menu more simple than some pizza operations - one example of this is that they only offer one size of pizza. But everything on their menu is first-class. This includes a new dessert item I had the privilege of trying on Friday - they call it the “Perfect Bite.” It is a small, rich, miniature chocolate cupcake, topped with whipped Snowville cream, which is then dipped in chocolate and chilled. It really is the perfect sweet finish to the palate after eating something savory. Check them out the next time you feel like eating pizza!
Sunday Supper
Ground Turkey, Shiitake, and Cashew Lettuce Cups
Sunday Music
Norah Jones w/ Meshell Ndegeocello
Buena Vista All-Stars in Toulouse, France two weeks ago
Glen Hansard (RIP), live at KCRW in 2015
Robert Glasper in Paris recently
Enjoy!
If you know anyone who might like this essay, please share it with them. Have a great week ahead!
You can do anything you set your mind to. Let me know how I can help.
Peace & Love,