The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Category: Life & Arts

  • Cal Poly Professor Hosts Weekly Pinball League at Dead Reckoning in Arcata

    Cal Poly Professor Hosts Weekly Pinball League at Dead Reckoning in Arcata

    by Valen Lambert

    Originally printed March 1, 2023

    The 80’s is still alive at Dead Reckoning. Tucked in the back of the bar is a pinball lover’s retro-neon sanctuary, buzzing with the clacks and dings of the shaking machines and steel pinballs blasting against paddles. You can try your hand at the Godzilla or Ghost Busters games, or maybe you’re more of a Revenge on Mars kinda guy. They’re fun, and have definitely eaten up a decent amount of my pocket change, but there’s a whole community surrounding this arcade favorite. 

    Every Tuesday night from 6:30-8:00 p.m, Arcata’s pinball league takes to the bar’s seven machines for their weekly tournaments headed by Cal Poly Humboldt’s very own professor of biological sciences and pinball wizard, Jonathan Montgomery. Everyone is encouraged to join. 

    Montgomery is bent over Revenge on Mars while the crowd and I watch him with the focus of a sports game. He talks to me attentively without breaking his pinball focus. Montgomery got into pinball during his graduate program in Riverside, where he had joined a league. After moving back to Arcata to teach in 2019, he missed having the community of a league and decided to start his own. 

    Believe it or not, the International Flipper Pinball Association writes up a whole internationally recognized framework for the organization of pinball leagues, which Montgomery forms the tournaments around. Folks pay-in a dollar and are randomly assigned to a team. After three games, whoever has the most points takes all the cash. 

    How does one even get good at pinball and take home the gold? Montgomery, who has the highest pinball score at Dead Reckoning of 1.2 billion points, says you first have to stop “double-flipping”, where you push both flippers up at the same time.

    “You end up making a larger gap for the ball to fall through,” Montgomery says. “And secondly, the machine only has so much power. The flippers are weaker if they are powered together”. 

    The next step to pinball stardom is cradling, where you catch the ball, hold it, and time the flip-up to exactly where you want it to go. The sport takes a lot of muscle memory, but despite the rings, dings, and neon lights, people are drawn to it because of its meditative qualities. 

    “The thing I love about pinball is you get in this flow, and this sort of really focused state,” Montgomery says. “It takes all your attention”. 

    Montgomery also favors the physicality of the game, where you’re actually getting to hit a ball around instead of stare at a video game screen. But a lot of the magic lies in the community of pinball, which was something I noticed when I approached the group as a lone pinball noob and received nothing but warm welcomes and good conversation. 

    “Even if you don’t know that a pinball community is near you, it’s there,” says Montgomery. “There’s always a crew of nice, relaxed, people who want to play a fun, Zen game.”

  • Humboldt hosts late-night legend Jay Leno

    Humboldt hosts late-night legend Jay Leno

    by Andres Felix Romero

    Originally printed March 1, 2023

    He’s been burned by gasoline, cracked both his kneecaps after being clotheslined by a wire while riding a motorcycle, and he testified at Michael Jackson’s 2005 trial. He’s the hardest working man in show business, and he’s met several sitting presidents. He’s Jay Leno. 

    The Centre Arts Department of Cal Poly Humboldt hosted two Jay Leno stand-up comedy shows on Feb. 26 at the Arkley Center for Performing Arts in Eureka, CA. Centre Arts puts on many performances for the Humboldt Community, but Leno’s first outing in Eureka is undoubtedly one of the biggest names they’ve booked. 

    I was amazed to see that Jay Leno, an entertainment legend known for his shows such as Jay Leno’s Garage and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, was going to be down the street from campus.

    Being a huge fan of stand-up comedy, I was pleasantly surprised when Leno managed to hit my favorite markers in any comic’s set in his first punchline; personal stories, social commentary, and just the right amount of dark humor. He began his show by telling us how the process of healing from a garage accident last fall had left his face with burns that came with  a surprising expense.

    “The most expensive part of the situation was the gasoline that burned my face,” Leno said to the crowd. 

    Not every joke landed for me, and some plain went over my head. Granted, I don’t always understand humor or sarcasm. Leno also knew his audience and jokes were directed to an audience more his age. I enjoyed the self-awareness the seasoned comedian displayed.

    Despite this, I still appreciated hearing Leno compare different aspects of society from decades ago to today, such as how the Sears catalog is the original Amazon Prime. Also hilarious are his own personal thoughts as an elder in a world that is always changing socially and developing technologically. 

    My favorite parts of Leno’s show came from his social commentary, which he often gave through jokes on topics such as backwards values on violence in entertainment. His set included stories of his wife refusing to watch animal violence on television, but enjoyed a scene where a woman brutally stabs her husband to death. One of the highlights of the night was the story about a mafia member venting to Leno about how The Sopranos was offensive, because a mob boss going to therapy in the show highlights the strange value system in entertainment. 

    “Oh, it’s not the murder and beheadings,” said Leno, “It’s the mental health aspect he’s upset about.”

      Towards the end of his set, Leno began to stray away from personal anecdotes and began to rapid-fire jokes and punchlines on a variety of subject matter, some risky and others lighthearted. Getting the audience to laugh at a topic as heavy as Bill Cosby’s abuse allegations to something as stupid as remote control breast enhancements showed me Leno’s veteran status as a stand-up comedian. 

    My favorite of these punchlines was on the topic of politics and how just about anyone from either side of the political aisle can enjoy them, like when he poked fun at the investigations into Joe Biden.

    “You know what you call someone who digs up dirt on Joe Biden?,” Leno questioned the audience. “An archeologist.”

    After the show, some of Leno’s fans waited behind the Arkley Center for a chance to meet him. A half-hour later, Leno popped out the back door of the building. 

    He greeted us, took pictures, shook hands and signed autographs. He still carried the same calm demeanor he had had on stage that made it feel easy to talk to a man who has a chin known by most of the nation. It was cold outside, he was likely exhausted from flying into Humboldt earlier in the day, but he still took a few minutes to chat with us. It was a great lesson on humility.

    Before he left, I asked Leno if he could share any advice to Cal Poly Humboldt students trying to figure out how to succeed in their fields. Leno recommends that when trying to contact someone in your field, be personable by writing a letter to stand out in a digital age and be professional.

    “But if you actually handwrite a letter, you got to have decent penmanship.” Leno said. “Don’t write in crayon on a paper bag.”

  • John Craigie merges folk with humor at the Van Duzer Theatre

    John Craigie merges folk with humor at the Van Duzer Theatre

    by Brad Butterfield

    John Craigie blended comedic anecdotes with folk music, creating a one-of-a-kind show on March 1 at the Van Duzer Theatre. Describing himself as ‘the love child of John Prine and Mitch Hedberg with a vagabond troubadour edge,’ Craigie embodies his own version of the American singer-songwriter. He avoids cheap recreations of the 60s and 70s, while making subtle nods towards it. Craigie has carved out an irreplicable style of concert that forgoes complex stage theatrics, instead emphasizing audience interaction and storytelling.

    The Ballroom Thieves opened the night with Martin Earley on guitar and Calin Peters on cello. Taking turns singing, the artists wove creative storytelling into gentle folk melodies as the crowd filed into the theater. The set jumped between songs dealing with humanity’s endless exploitation of earth’s resources, the dark realities of being touring musicians, and even the tragedy of a parking ticket that the duo received recently.

    Just before 8 p.m., Craigie found his way through the unlit stage to a modest metal chair. A moment of absolute silence preceded his first song, “Beethoven.” The song was hilariously self-aware with lyrics like, “I had a dream where I met Beethoven, and Beethoven told me that I wasn’t very good… I got burned by Beethoven.”

    To an un-primed crowd the song could have shocked the room into a confused, murmured applause. But the loud cheers and hollers indicated that the entire room had long ago boarded the Craigie train; they knew what they were getting into. 

     “What has changed for the better is that I’ve been able to know what rooms and settings are most conducive to the kind of show I put on. So I can be in tune with my audience,” Craigie said, speaking of the evolution of his performing career.

    While some musicians fumble at the slightest crowd interjections, Craigie bathed in every heckle that came his way, with only well-timed and creative ones earning retorts.

    “What people don’t always understand is they’re buying tickets to see a singer/songwriter, but they’re also buying tickets for a stand up comedy show,” said student Carlina Grillo, who enjoyed the show from the first row. “Everyone in the theater was laughing, hard. He’s a beautiful songwriter and truly funny person.” 

    After hilariously recounting the time he performed high on oxygen, Craigie stopped to acknowledge Grillo’s clever sign that read “I <3 John Gravy,” a reference to a joke on his 2018 live album Opening for Steinbeck. 

    Craigie’s 2022 album Mermaid Salt builds upon his folk roots with a much more produced and electronic sound than albums previous.

     “It hasn’t been too difficult playing the songs as they were originally written, but it was a challenge at first to try and make them sound similar to the way they came across on the record,” Craigie said. “It was a fun journey to see how I could marry the heart of the song as a solo piece with elements of the melodies and layers from Mermaid Salt.” 

    After quipping that conventional wisdom advises against a performer playing new songs onstage, Craigie began playing “Distance” off of the new album to a captivated audience. Exemplifying his ability to put universally relatable feelings into words, the song was born partially from the forced solitude of the Covid pandemic.

    “I think that is a refrain I have said many times before lockdown. But it just felt so much more concrete when everyone was stuck at home,” Craigie said. “There were people I wasn’t able to see for years because of it. So it felt like a global emotion that I was tapping into.” 

    “Dissect the Bird,” performed at the end of his set, contains all of the ingredients that Craigie fans have grown to love in his music.  

    Lines like “I’m tryna stay focused and stay in the moment, but all I can think about is if my fly is open,” mix with, “I don’t trust a musician who’s always complaining, it’s hard out here but so is everything.”

    Craigie capitalizes on the impact on the sentiment with his casual delivery, like an old friend would have after a long toke.

    The Ballroom Thieves joined Craigie onstage for the encore song, “I am California.” The song is a beautiful love letter to the golden state, and received a well-earned standing ovation from the crowd. Cragie, ever the diplomat, refused to help settle the hotly contested CPH debate of Norcal vs. Socal. 

    “I feel like a yin yang of NorCal and SoCal,” Craigie said. “Being raised in LA and then having my formative years in Santa Cruz and Mendocino County, I know the good parts and bad parts of both. And my heart is loyal to the whole state.” 

  • Authors’ Celebration brings writers together

    by Dezmond Remington

    Writers are famously loners, depicted in media as squirreled away in some dark cabin deep in the woods or confined to a cockroach-infested apartment. At the bare minimum, they’re often regarded as imprisoned in their own minds, victims of tortured genius that leaves them incapable of truly connecting with other people. The several dozen local writers who all showed up to socialize and enjoy the company of other writers at the ninth annual Author’s Celebration shows that isn’t always the case. 

    On Feb. 14 in the campus library, the Author’s Celebration provided an opportunity for every author who showed up to meet other writers and celebrate the craft. Attendants ranged from students such as Toyon’s acquisition editor Shelby Smith to the 86-year-old children’s book author Josephine Silva, who in the last year has published three books about teddy bears. 

    An especially notable attendant was Humboldt State alumni Meg Godlewski, the technical editor for Flying magazine and a flight instructor. She was a journalism student at HSU back in the ‘80s, focusing mainly on broadcast journalism, especially aviation-focused news. She was on air at KHSU in 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger exploded, breaking the news to Humboldt county. She did 10 years of broadcast journalism while she got her pilot’s license. She said living and going to school in Humboldt was one of her best life experiences. 

    “Living in Humboldt taught me how to look at the bigger picture,” Godlewski said. “I did a piece on finding healthcare in Humboldt county during the AIDS crisis that touched a lot of people. Every story you write reaches someone.”

    Many speakers at the event spoke about the power of the Press at Cal Poly Humboldt, whose chief objective is to make sure those stories reach people. The Press is unique in the CSU system, said Provost Jenn Capps. Cal Poly Humboldt is the only library in the system that has a press. It published over 600 works in the last year. 

    “I thank students for becoming authors,” Capps said. “I thank the staff for nurturing them, and the alumni for their continued creativity. I commend you for your dedication, your talent, your voice on all disciplines on campus.”

    Many of those published works come from students; according to Kyle Morgan, the scholarly communications librarian who helps run the press, students have contributed over 400 published works to the list over the years. 

    “All this is applied learning so [students] can use that knowledge to succeed in the world,” Morgan said. “All students should have a publication on their resume.”

    Getting published can be hard. Many speakers commiserated about the often painful process that writing and publication can be. However, most of them also talked about the euphoria that comes from seeing your name in print. 

    “It’s a lot of work,” library Dean Cyril Oberlander said. “I wish I could say it was easy…but [that first publication] feels so great. Your voice matters…it profoundly and positively impacts the community.”

    Alumnus and novelist Justin Paduganan agreed. For him, writing can also raise one’s self-esteem. 

    “Writing allows you to want more,” Paduganan said. “It allows you to be yourself in a higher fashion. When you publish something, you understand how powerful it is to start and finish something.”

  • Community revives lost indigenous seafaring craft

    Community revives lost indigenous seafaring craft

    by Valen Lambert

    Mind’s Eye is more than just a charming cafe in the center of Ferndale’s downtown. It’s also home to the Manufactory, a makerspace that cafe-goers can watch through glass as artists and craftspeople work on projects. Right now, there is a community at work building a 27-foot-long Unangan canoe called a nigilax̂. 

    Longtime woodworker Marc and his wife Leah Daniels are the owners of Mind’s Eye Manufactory and Coffee Lounge. For several years, Marc Daniels has been collaborating with Unangax̂ to host apprenticeships on the crafting of iqyax̂, or the traditional kayaks of the Unangax̂ people of Alaska’s Aleutian islands. However, this nigilax̂ build is something entirely different.

    The nigilax̂ has not been built in the nearly two centuries since Russian fortune seekers invaded Unangax̂ villages, enslaving the people and cutting off all chances of escape by destroying their nigilax̂ fleet and anyone with the knowledge to build one. Two centuries later the Daniels, Unangax̂ descendants, Wiyot Tribe members, and other non-Native community members are putting together the missing pieces. 

    Some Russian invaders sketched pictures of these boats in the ship’s log. In a few instances, actual draftsmen were on board these invading ships, documenting some of the details of how these vessels were put together. Some of this information was found in the least expected places.

    Marc Daniels was doing some work with the Museum of the Aleutians, which had retrieved 1,500 year old kayak parts that some mummies had been buried with.

    “But then there were these odd parts,” says Daniels. “And turns out, after looking at them for a while, we realized that they were nigilax̂ ribs from that era 1,500 years ago.”

    The project and its materials have the blessing and approval of the Wiyot. The wood was combed from beaches in Humboldt and Alaska, like the 27-foot-long Sitka spruce now serving as the base of the nigilax̂. Traditionally, bull seal skin is used, but this nigilax̂ will be constructed with a ballistic nylon material. The vessel will hold eleven paddlers in addition to another ten to fifteen people. 

    The project has been bringing together Wiyot members and non-Native Humboldt community members, as well as distant Unangax̂ who have come to Ferndale for the build. For Mike Ferguson, an Unangan, working on the nigilax̂ has been a way to connect with his ancestry. 

    Photo courtesy of Mike Ferguson | Marc Daniels teaching people lashings on the lower stringers

    “It feels like the start of a potentially really deep journey,” says Ferguson. “I think there’s many deep stories to explore; some of that has to deal with healing trauma for my family.”

    Ferguson met another Unangan on the build who turned out to be a cousin he hadn’t met, solidifying the feeling that this project was powerful. 

    Leah Daniels finds the communal effort of the build deeply rewarding.

    “It’s a life connection,” Daniels said. “You’re connecting with each other, but you’re connecting with life, with ancestors, with the universe, and that just deepens relationships with people.”

    If blessed by the Kashia Pomo of the area, the ceremonial launch of the nigilax̂ is planned to take place during the Unangax̂-hosted festivities on Alaskan Native Day, May 27, at Fort Ross on the Sonoma Coast. Fort Ross, originally a Kashia Pomo village site named Metini, is a former Russian settlement that many displaced Unangax̂ ended up at. 

    “It’s kind of a full circle thing,” Leah Daniels said. “To rebuild the vessels, and to bring one back into this region, it feels much more powerful to have it launched at that site.”

    The nigilax̂ has an active future ahead, including plans for cultural journeys like Sealaska Celebration in Juneau, and Tribal Journeys in the Salish Sea waters of Washington and British Columbia. It will be made fully available for use by Unangax̂ to connect with their heritage and ancestry. Marc Daniels also plans to take members of the public out into Humboldt Bay once a month so the community can experience the beauty of Humboldt from the water. 

    “I hope that more opportunities like this become available for people of all cultures, backgrounds, and abilities,” Ferguson said. “It’s a really special way to be in community.”

  • Making waves at Moonrise Herbs

    Making waves at Moonrise Herbs

    by Nina Hufman

    Irene Lewis has built a business and a reputation from creativity, a desire to help people, and a passion for plants. Lewis is an herbalist and the proprietor of Moonrise Herbs, located on the plaza. Lewis’s relationship with Moonrise began with her selling herbs to the store. 

    “I had a different business that I owned,” Lewis said. “I had owned that for like 15 years where I was making herbal products and selling them to Moonrise.” 

    Her business was called Irene’s Dream Simply Herbal and was founded in 1990. She made salves, soaps, lotions, creams, and other herbal products that were carried at Moonrise. Years later, she started working in the store doing herbal consultations.

    “I started working a couple days a week back in like 1997,” Lewis said. “I lived out in the hills and I was coming to town so that I could have more social contact and do more herbal consultations here in the store and teach classes.”

    Moonrise Herbs was started by sisters Sarah and Lisa Hoyt in 1985. Lisa Hoyt left soon after the business was created while Sarah Hoyt continued to run the store. It was originally run out of a Victorian-style house before being moved to the plaza location in 1996. The business provided many of the same services it does now: selling books, herbal products, bulk herbs, and educating people about herbalism. 

    In a letter about the store’s history, Lewis wrote of the impact that Moonrise had on her, as well as its role in the Arcata community. 

    “The store was like a dear friend, inspiring many, and had become a retreat for several whom entered the store just simply to breathe,” Lewis wrote. “Irene also came to realize that Moonrise Herbs was and is highly respected by physicians in our area who regularly send in their patients who are seeking herbal knowledge.”

    Sarah Hoyt decided that she was ready to sell the store in 2003. She had owned and run the store for 18 years.

    “The owner of the store was ready to sell when I was ready to do something different with my other business,” Lewis said. “It just worked out that I moved into ownership of the store in 2004.”

    While Moonrise has been a large part of Lewis’s career as an herbalist, it was not her beginning. Lewis’s interest in herbalism began at Columbia Junior College in 1987.

    “I was going to college studying natural resources and hearing the different tidbits about Native American uses for plants,” Lewis said. “That kinda sparked me.” 

    After moving to Humboldt County, Lewis started experimenting with making herbal products simply out of her own interest. 

    “I started making things and I just kept giving them away,” Lewis said. “Then I had more than I could give away and so I started doing fairs.”

    Her experiences at the fairs led Lewis to further educate herself.

    “In doing fairs people were asking me questions that required more herbal knowledge,” Lewis said. “I started diving in deeper and learning more about herbs through an abundance of ways, different conferences and apprenticeship programs.”

    Lewis also learned from the people she was serving. 

    “I would go back to the same fairs year after year and from the things I was making I was learning from the people too, what they were experiencing from the products I was creating,” Lewis said. 

    As the owner of Moonrise Herbs, Lewis has continued to learn and has inspired others to do the same. 

    Alex Ammon is an herbalist and customer service specialist at Moonrise. She feels that working for Lewis allows her to be creative and learn new things in her workplace. 

    “It was hard for me to conceptualize working for someone because for a lot of years I didn’t,” Ammon said. “It’s nice to go somewhere where I feel really supported by my manager and my boss and they’re always encouraging us to learn. I do learn a lot from the people who come in as well. The constant learning is key for me.”

    Ammon also admires all that Lewis has achieved as an herbalist. 

    “She is super, super cool and she’s done so many things in her life that it’s really inspiring,” Ammon said. “The more I work with her one-on-one the more I’m like, ‘you’re a really rad person.’ She’s my boss but there’s a cool understanding and flexibility.” 

    Heather Sumeriski, another herbalist and customer service specialist, appreciates the creativity and freedom that she has working at Moonrise. 

    “It is the best place I’ve ever worked. It feels the safest and the most comfortable,” Sumeriski said. “We do have some creative leeway here and there. If we come up with some cool idea and present it to the boss she’s often likely to bring it into the store or adapt that idea.”

    Sumeriski feels Lewis creates a sense of community in the shop. All the employees fulfill the same roles, helping customers and making herbal blends. 

    “My boss is amazing in who she hires, we all mesh together really well,” Sumeriski said. “We do have a little bit of a turnaround because Arcata’s just like that. People kind of flow in and out. That’s a little bittersweet, it’s beautiful too.”

    Lewis’s extensive knowledge of herbalism and her connection with the community have made Moonrise an important part of Arcata. 

    “She’s been doing this for like over 20 years,” Sumeriski said. “She has a lot of knowledge about not just herbalism, but about business and changing tides. She’s known herbalists that have come and gone, that have passed. She has had people work here who are now really big herbalists in their own regard and have like published their own books and stuff.”

    Sumeriski feels supported by Lewis’s experience, it creates opportunities for growth. 

    “It feels great to know that you can rely on such a vast amount of knowledge,” Sumeriski said. “It’s there for the taking if you have a minute to ask her ‘hey, what’s your opinion on this?’ She’s always willing to help.” 

    Lewis’s main goal is to serve the community as best she can, helping people with both their physical and mental health. 

    “We’re not allowed to diagnose or prescribe, that’s against the law,” Lewis said. “Our main job is to support people through the process.”

    “We’ve been able to help people through all phases of their life,” Lewis said. “We also deal with life and death and support people through that process as well. If someone has lost somebody close to them, I feel like they’ve come in here and we’ve been able to help them with their grief.”

    Through the pandemic, Moonrise stayed open, continuing to help people with their needs.

    “We just kind of did what we saw people needed and we were doing exactly what herbalism should be,” Lewis said. “It was very gratifying.”

    In the same way that she has supported them, Lewis feels supported by the community. Those who work for her also appreciate the compassion and learning that they have experienced from their customers. 

    “We’ve been in business since 1985. We survived a recession and then the pandemic,” Lewis said. “I think we’re well supported by the community.” 

    “I love community work and sharing this knowledge because I don’t think it should be like just kept to yourself,” Ammon said. “What we need is the upsurgence of the more basic back-to-earth kind of knowledge.” 

    “This is the strongest [community] I’ve ever experienced,” Sumeriski said. “It’s very unique, it’s not common that you find this kind of community.” 

    Now, Lewis deals mostly with the details of running her business. She hires people, delegates tasks, ensuring that the newsletter goes out, social media posts are made, herbs are bought, and teas are blended. However, she still continues to practice. 

    “I still make a product that I sell within our store as well as three other stores that’s from my old days,” Lewis said. “I keep my hands harvesting plants still and making medicine even outside of Moonrise.”

  • Everyones getting into swing

    by Jasmin Shirazian

    Monday nights come to life for swing dancers at Redwood Raks World Dance Collective. After finding out Cal Poly Humboldt offers swing dancing as a class this semester, it became a goal for me to find out about the community here. From 6 P.M. to 7:50 P.M., Professor Phillip Nicklas teaches swing to students in the kinesiology building. Afterwards, he rushes to Redwoods Raks, where he can be found at Monday night swing. He recently mentioned this to his class, leading a few students to join in on the ever-growing swing nightlife. 

    Swing dancing began in Harlem, New York during the 1920s. Most dances came from Black communities, coming in many styles and forms, such as the Lindy Hop, East Coast Swing, and so on. Luckily, the art continues to thrive, including in Humboldt. 

    I watched as people were asked to dance, being swept up off the floor and twirled in fervent circles. I even found myself on the floor after a wonderful man named Tony asked for my hand. He quickly showed me how to do the Charleston and I tried my best to follow. Professor Nickolas was there to keep the spirits up as he DJed through the whole night.

    Growing up here, Nicklas has been dancing since 1996, 2 years after graduating high school; his first Lindy Hop lesson was actually at Redwood Raks. He began teaching in 1997 after joining the military and finding out he was the only one with knowledge of the dance. 

    “I love teaching swing dancing,” says Nicklas. “I notice I’m just in a great mood after I teach.” 

    Many of the students who take his class agree that they can feel his love and passion for the art. Somerset Miles Dwyer, a first time swing dancer, has been taking Nicklas’ class this past semester. 

    “I used to dance a lot when I was younger, and I wanted the opportunity to learn how to dance with a partner,” says Dwyer. “[This class] is a fun way of getting to dance with a lot of different people, and finding someone you like dancing with. People have a lot different styles, and that can teach you a lot more.”

    Other students, such as Kaya Knutzon, struggle with the time that the class is at, and thus prefer going to Monday night swing at Redwood Raks. 

    “I joined swing dancing due to pressure from my roommates, but I just thought it would be a really cool skill to have,” says Knutzon. “I’ve definitely learned a lot with the amount of times I have gone, there’s a surprising amount of moves you don’t realize are going on. I don’t think I’ll take the class next semester, but I’ll definitely be going to the out-of-school activities.” 

    All in all, it seems like swing is alive and well in the Humboldt community. It was really refreshing to see such an array of skill, and it felt nice to not be judged due to my lack of talents. It’s nice to know that if there’s nothing to do on a Monday night, swing dancing is always an option.

  • Radium Girls spins gold out of straw

    Radium Girls spins gold out of straw

    by Alana Hackman

    When I discovered that the spring play would be Radium Girls, I was ecstatic. I had previous historical knowledge of the event and the TV show, but was unaware there was a play. The play was a meaty one at nearly three hours, but had impressive delivery by the all-student cast for such an emotionally charged story.

    The Theatre Department put on quite a well-organized performance, considering the main cast was only eight people. Each actor aside from the main protagonist, Grace, (played by Sophia Escudero) were playing up to four characters each. 

    One could look at the small cast, lack of props and scene changes as a dealbreaker for the production, but it only impressed me more. Cast members being involved in all of the moving parts is what really made Radium Girls so charming and applaudable. A majority of the scene changes were led by the cast members immediately after delivering lines. 

    There were no closed curtains and very few techies were spotted on the wings or stage throughout the show. The lack of props on the stage during most of the scenes really forced the audience to focus their attention on the actors’ performance. It seemed to me the cast and crew were able to work with what they had and still deliver a killer performance. 

    Krystie Obiso and Izzy Waring stood out to me the most with their performances. 

    With Obiso playing the parts of Irene, Miss Wiley, Board Member #2, and Mrs. Michaels, she put a firecracker spirit into every character portrayed. From her impressive transatlantic accents and strong emotional outbursts, she really had an enchanting stage presence even when playing side characters. 

    Waring also played a handful of characters including Mrs. Roeder, Madame Curie, Customer, and Board Member #3. Her performance as Mrs. Roeder is what wowed me the most; Waring’s ability to deliver such emotional anguish and distress of a wife discovering her husband’s negligence following the truth of radium’s negative health effects was not something I expected to see in a college play. 

    Obiso and Waring’s delivery really set the emotional ambiance of each scene and of Radium Girls as a whole. They really pushed the theme of women’s pain and truth being overlooked throughout history. 

    The set design was also very professional and clean looking. It had a lot of technical parts to really get an emotional reaction out of the audience, but was still simple. From the city skyline physically “closing in” to symbolize the truth about radium, as well as the white screen used as screen to play with light and impose the feeling of ‘time running out’ throughout the show. 

    I will say the one critique I had during my time as an audience member was the lack of microphones. I wasn’t able to tell if any of the actors were wearing mic packs and had a hard time hearing some of the dialogue, especially during what seemed to be vital conversations within the storyline, like the scenes between Grace and her mother. Same with stage blocking; sometimes a cast member would turn their back and be completely muffled out from the audience. This made following some of the intense dialogue on stage a bit harder, especially when accents came into play.

    When it comes to such a detailed and long play, I do wish the actors were mic’d up to make it a bit easier to follow. I can assume that the cast and crew were working with a tighter budget for this production, but it didn’t stop them from executing a successful opening night.

  • Holi celebration on the Quad welcomes spring with color and joy

    Holi celebration on the Quad welcomes spring with color and joy

    All photos by Alex Anderson

    Jenny Leon (left) braces for an incoming cloud of flourescent yellow powder being thrown by Minerva Patterson (right) in celebration of this year’s Holi. Leon said that she loves the event, the history behind it and getting completely covered in color with friends.
    Multiple colors of fluorescent powder being thrown in the air by students at this year’s Holi festival.
    Cal Poly Humboldt student Nishaant Sinha shares a colorful exchange with a fellow Holi attendee. Holi brings people together in celebration of love, spring and new beginnings. “It reminds me of home,” Sinha said.
    Dakari Tate, a Cal Poly Humboldt wildlife major has face completely covered in flourescent yellow powder for this year’s Holi festival in celebration of spring outside the Gutswurrak SAC on Mar 24.
  • Good vibes at Good Relations

    Good vibes at Good Relations

    by Alana Hackman

    Nestled away in Old Town Eureka on 2nd and D street is Good Relations, Humboldt County’s very own independent lingerie and sex store. Founder Linda Meyers began the company in 1983 while attending Humboldt State University for mathematics before changing her focus to psychology.

    “I was going to be a junior high school math teacher way back then, and then I realized I would probably wind up getting fired because I would drive a kid to the [sexual health] clinic,” Meyers said. “So I just decided to skip that part and go immediately to the next career.” 

    Meyers is a fourth-generation Humboldt State graduate. She attended elementary school in Gist Hall because her father taught at Humboldt State. Meyers graduated from Humboldt State in 1988 with a bachelor’s in psychology and got her Doctorate in psychology in 1994. She also lectured for 25 years in the psychology and Multicultural Queer studies department up until 2017. 

    Adorned in a golden labia necklace and sporting dark red painted nails, Meyers welcomes all customers in her Eureka store with her beaming smile. Good Relations opened its first store in the early 90s after Meyers wrapped up nearly 1000 of her own “pleasure parties”. Meyers compares these parties to the Tupperware parties of the 1980s, where she would bring her basket of sexual health goodies to different houses for those attending to buy.

    “It was all word of mouth,” Meyers said.  “Usually I knew somebody who had referred me.” 

    Good Relations was an at-home company in its foundational years until the first storefront opened in Arcata in 1995. A second location was opened in Eureka in 1998, and is now the only open location. This year, the store will be celebrating its 40th anniversary.

    Meyers is grateful for Good Relations giving her the ability to have a free schedule within her work life, especially when she was still attending school and raising her children. Meyers mentions opening her first store was the result of her eldest son asking why there were penises on a shelf in their spare bedroom that Meyers worked out of. 

    Good Relations is focused on sexual education and creating a welcoming atmosphere for any curious or experienced customers that walk in. Meyers mentioned accessibility and diversity is the main focus within the company from differing skin tone options for lingerie, custom corsets, and lingerie sizes up to 5x and up if needed. 

    Photo by Alana Hackman | Handblown glass buttplugs for sale at Good Relations

    “Auntie-ing people is in my nature, it’s in my culture, it’s in every cell of my body, and the nice thing about having a place like this is it’s very appropriate to auntie people, right,” Meyers said. “Aunties will kind of tell you what you need to know, even sometimes if you don’t really want to hear it, so we tell the truth. We educate the stores as a front for sex-ed and always has been.” 

    Good Relation’s success for the past 40 years can be attributed to Meyer’s efforts to bring in a well-trained staff and make sure they are knowledgeable in all topics around sexual wellness and education, as well as consent.

    Abby Beha, an employee of Good Relations, mentions the three-month-long training of videos, pamphlets and tests is a crucial part of employment, but is necessary for trying to help people have better sex lives. 

    “I just want them to feel welcomed, and that they can ask any question without feeling that they’re gonna get made fun of or ridiculed,” Beha said. “Everyone starts somewhere and we’re just here to help.” 

    A new employee, Gabrielle Castro, has only been working at Good Relations for a month after a second try at applying for the position and is grateful for the opportunity to help others.

    “I really do believe that personal human pleasure is a basic right,” Castro said. “Everyone should have the opportunity to experience what they want to experience before their deathbed and shouldn’t have to wait till they’re in a retirement home partying their ass to be able to do it.”

  • Tattoo Expo Brings Body Art to Humboldt County

    Tattoo Expo Brings Body Art to Humboldt County

    by Emma Sjostrom

    Tattoo artists, enthusiasts, piercers and piercers alike came together this past weekend for the 13th annual Inked Hearts Tattoo Expo at the Blue Lake Casino and Hotel. Featuring over 30 artists, the three day event allowed attendees to get tattoos, piercings and to simply witness tattoo artists’ work. 

    Not unlike the planners and artists themselves, some patrons have been looking forward to the event for weeks. Take for example, Ashley Juarez-Mazariegos who came to the expo for a long-awaited tattoo. 

    “It’s my first time at the expo so it’s exciting,” Juarez-Mazariegos said. 

    As music rang and tattoo needles buzzed, attendees excitedly chatted with artists and meandered around their booths. Expo goers were not the only ones excited. What started as a rushed event scrambled together in 3 months and just a $15,000 budget back in 2009, has turned into a much-anticipated showcase of art that draws numerous tattoo artists from Humboldt County and beyond. Co-hosts and owners of NorCal Tattoo Ted and Amy Marks spoke about what an event such as this brings for the community. 

    “Humboldt gets to see the best work they’re ever going to see, and artists get to see Humboldt for the first time,” Ted Marks said. 

    This so-called heart-to-heart connection is what in part inspired the convention, and the logo for that matter. According to the Marks’, the event allows for local artists to work alongside artists who have traveled great distances to get to the event. 

    Ventura Tattoos for example made the over 600-mile trek from Southern California to be in Humboldt for the event. Artist Danny Rentevia expressed excitement for the convention, despite what he described as the stress and jarring nature of leaving the familiarity of their shop and coming here. 

    “It’s a great event, it’s a great time,” Rentevia said. “It’s just fun to be here.” 

    As a local, Amy Marks touched on how the expo has grown into the event that it is now and what that has brought for the community. 

    “I love [this event], especially growing up here there was never anything like this,” Amy Marks said. “Nobody’s done it up here, so it’s fun for us to work together.” 

    Photo by Alex Anderson | Former Eureka high teacher, 63 year old Craig Carroll shows off his tattoos at the Inked Hearts Expo.

    More than just a prime time to get a tattoo, featured tattooists say the event serves as a sort of celebration of the art form, or at the very least a chance to interact with other artists. The event allows for artists to speak of their work with each other and clients, be highlighted in daily contests, and even get tattooed by fellow artists. 

    “This cannot be replicated, I guarantee it,” Ted Marks said. “[Large shows] are cool and sometimes there’s a lot of people, but none of the artists talk. And art doesn’t grow in that environment.” 

    As a relatively small event, Ted and Amy marks have gotten offers to expand their operation, offers that they have readily denied.

    The Marks’ also commented on what Cal Poly Humboldt students have brought for their shop and expo. Ted Marks  mentioned his pride from seeing new students come to their shop to bond with new roommates and friends to witnessing them graduate. 

    “It’s amazing, without [the students] we’d be done,” Ted Marks said. “Cal Poly keeps us going.” 

    While the event has passed, students have not missed their chance at a tattoo. Artists featured at the event can be found through the event’s Instagram page @inkedhearts_tattoo. Students can also enjoy discounts for good grades at NorCal Tattoo. They are located at 750 16th St., in Arcata, and can be contacted by phone at (707) 496-7034 or Instagram @norcaltattoo707.

  • The great Humboldt diner crawl

    The great Humboldt diner crawl

    by Valen Lambert

    In a Western world fraught with the tasteless chrome of modern design (AKA gentrification), we seek refuge in vestiges of the past. That’s why nothing hits home more than the timelessness of a good ol’ fashioned diner.

    Americans love diners; besides baseball, rock n’ roll and the worst gun violence in the world, it’s a sliver of culture we can really call our own.

    What does it take to be a diner? I can tell you it is not looking like the nauseating drab that is Toni’s. What they need is a waitress who is certainly going to call you hun. They need to serve eggs, sausage, bacon, toast and pancakes. They need to have the worst coffee you’ve ever had in your life. The food is always mediocre at best and the interior design needs to look like the inside of a 1970’s old folk’s home, or the kind of retro where you’d expect Elvis to walk out of the bathroom at any moment. 

    Deb’s Great American Hamburger Co. – 5/5 stars

    Tucked away in the 1,500 person town of Redway, just a 5 minute drive from Garberville, lives Deb’s Great American Hamburger Co. If you ever really want to wow a hot date or need a moment of respite on your heinous commute to anywhere south of Humboldt county, this is the place to go.

    Walking in, I could tell it’s the kind of spot that serves as a living room for locals. A little boy was running around while his parents watched a show on their laptop. In the corner were several arcade games where two guys drank beer and cussed over a deer hunting game. Then there was me, bent over a slice of pie. 

    It’s got faded black and white checkered floors, and the walls are adorned with tacky Betty Boop memorabilia and pictures of motorcycles. It’s got classic American breakfasts and dinners. It’s wonderfully retro; the ghost of an American past. It’s the closest you’ll ever get to a Twin Peaks diner around here. If you need a muse to write a Tom Waits song, this is the place. 

    Kristina’s – 5/5 stars

    Kristina’s is a place you can’t miss, resting right at that sharp turn as you drive the 101 north, just before that shady strip through downtown Eureka. It’s got an inviting pink exterior and abundant booth and bar seating that makes it look hauntingly empty on a quiet night. It lies more on the old-folks-home side of the design spectrum, but just a tad saucier with pink neon lights, red accents and funky carpeting. 

    Here, you can eat a classic diner breakfast anytime between 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., or go crazy and get some New York steak and scampi for dinner. My waitress didn’t call me hun but she was wearing 4-inch platform knee high goth boots and that was good enough for me. 

    Samoa Cookhouse – 6/5 stars

    Dear reader, I am saving the best for last. In the odd little town of Samoa lives the revered Samoa Cookhouse, which has literally been in business for 150 consecutive years. It was originally an old dining hall that fed 500 mill workers at a time but opened up to the public sometime in the 1960’s. 

    It’s a huge red building overlooking the bay that always has stray cats lurking around outside. Inside is a massive cafeteria layout with plaid tablecloths and old logging equipment adorning the walls. They even have a little museum where you can eat amongst rusty old chainsaws and other ambiguous logging paraphernalia.

    Their only menu item is a breakfast, lunch or dinner special that changes everyday of the week that they serve family style. You can eat breakfast until you pop and it’ll only be $14.25. To my luck I landed on their sausage, scrambled eggs, and homemade toast special, but I was weak, and barely made it through two rounds of their perfect diner breakfast. 

    When this world gets a little too shiny for you, when the fluorescent lighting of the classroom starts to burn a hole in your brain, when TikTok starts digging your personality into a grave, you can time-travel away from all your problems in the dusty neon lights of Humboldt’s diners.

  • The Humboldt spoken word community is alive, stomping, snapping, and whistling

    The Humboldt spoken word community is alive, stomping, snapping, and whistling

    by Valen Lambert

    Every Tuesday, Word Humboldt takes over Northtown Coffee to host their free open mic nights, where anyone is welcome to join and perform. From 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., you can expect everything spoken word, from poetry, song, and rap to short stories and improv. The nonprofit builds a thriving poetry scene through safe, supportive, and accessible events for new and seasoned writers of all ages.

    The beginning half of the night is saved for the community to share, and the second half of the night is for seasoned staff writers. To wrap up, everyone writes a line of poetry to add to a collective group poem. 

    Word Humboldt was started six years ago by co-founders Dylan Collins, Wil Gibson, and Susanna Gibson. Eureka poet laureate Wil Gibson prides the organization on curating a radically inclusive environment, where people feel safe in expressing themselves and being vulnerable.

    “The basis of Word Humboldt is to reach out to the community to make poetry accessible for everybody; to amplify and uplift underrepresented voices,” Gibson says. “You can’t be a poet in a vacuum.” 

    Gibson lived many years as a traveling poet and has performed at enough open mics to know what works and what doesn’t. This informed his belief that open mics should be free so that they are accessible to all, to encourage people of all ages and walks of life to attend and share so that everyone has a chance to feel seen. The love that permeates this community is what makes it special.

    “We built this community wanting love to be the main focus,” Gibson says. “You can feel the love between the crowd and the poet.”

    Bamidele Menchu Hotep has been attending the open mics since 2019 and is now on the Word Humboldt board of directors. He sees this community as family.

    “The importance of a writing community is that we’re able to inspire each other through our work,” Menchu Hotep says. “Through our writing we heal, so this is a community of growth and healing.”

    For Julie Avina, an environmental science and management major at Cal Poly Humboldt, Word Humboldt open mics were her first time performing a poem.

    “Everybody was so supportive even though I was so nervous,” Avina says. “They cheer extra loud for you once they know it’s your first time.”

    The crowd is eager to engage with the poems. They snap and stomp for powerful lines, echoing around the small cafe space. They shout ‘rewind!’ when it’s so good they want to hear it again and ‘new shit!’ when the poet shares something new. 

    The room is animated and electric, far from the solemnity that some people may associate with a poetry reading. Susanna Gibson, the executive director of Word Humboldt, starts the night off by hosting the first half with energetic charm and attentiveness, making each poet feel heard and seen by uplifting their performance. 

    Beyond the open mics, Wil Gibson hosts three poetry workshops throughout the week: Sundays 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Epitome Gallery in Eureka, Mondays 6 p.m.-7 p.m. at Fit Coast in Sunnybrae, and Thursdays 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at The Thing in Arcata. Each workshop is a $3-$5 donation, but no one is turned away for lack of funds.

    “We believe every poet has value in the future,” Gibson says. “Every poet deserves to learn.”

    On the second Saturday of each month starting at 6:30 p.m., Word Humboldt hosts the Redwood Poetry Slam at The Thing. Poetry slams are competitions with a cash prize, using elimination rounds in front of a panel of judges and a lively, engaged crowd.

    Word Humboldt is also co-organizing the second annual Redwood Poetry Festival taking place April 23-29 which boasts performances from local and national award winning talent, as well as workshops and community building.

    Whether you’re looking to dip your toes into poetry or are a seasoned writer, Word Humboldt hosts an array of events to make you feel at home in a community.

    “Poetry saved my life,” Gibson says. “I just want to give back.”

  • Van life on campus is not for the weak

    Van life on campus is not for the weak

    by Brad Butterfield

    It was Spring semester’s first Monday, 11 p.m., 40 degrees fahrenheit. I was strumming through a sloppy chord progression in an empty campus parking lot with a fellow student I’d just met named Ryan Kelly. We tag-teamed a pasta dinner topped heavily with Egyptian hot sauce that sent me into a sweat. 

    Kelly’s right-hand-drive Toyota Hius van was parked next to my home on wheels – an all white Chevy 3500 christened ‘The Dump Truck.’ We are both student vanlifers. This unplanned, laughter filled jam session only tells a small aspect of what it means to live in a van. 

    In fact, my first week on campus was mostly colored by a lack of showering and being cold. This is to be expected. I have owned The Dump Truck for nearly three years now and have weathered a number of uncomfortable days in some strange places. 

    By week two on campus, I had found the best shower locations and was pleased to meet a handful of other fine folks choosing the same lifestyle as me. Vanlife is a lifestyle that attracts vastly varied characters with differing goals. 

    Wildlife major Steven Childs put it bluntly to me one evening in Bigfoot Burgers. 

    “It shows sheer willpower, and some intelligence,” Childs said “You don’t do this by fluke. Its not like one day you happen upon an RV or a van and are like -oh fuck it im going to college. You plan it out. You’ve thought about the things you need to do, and some people are willing to go a little further than other people to make it happen. Or their situation puts them in that position.” 

    Childs said there are also financial motivations behind his lifestyle choice. 

    “A room, which is about 500-600 dollars a month and utilities…that’s going to really put me in a financial bind,” Childs said. “On top of tuition and books -and then trying to juggle that- I’d put a bigger burden on my wife. And so, the idea was born.” 

    Obviously, it isn’t just frugality that leads to sleeping in the back of a van. 

    Ryan Kelly explained his sleeping setup to me, which consists of an inflatable camping mattress laid diagonally under his table and thermal undergarments to stay warm. 

    “I’m more mobile, it’s convenient,” Kelly said. “I want to see places and be able to travel and save money. Living in a van is the way to do that.”

    When I pressed him on the lack of creature comforts afforded in our chosen way of life, Ryan doubled down without hesitation. 

    “If you want to live in a house and be comfortable, that’s fine,” Kelly said. “I don’t need much. Just got to have the bare essentials. A place to stay dry. Something to sleep on is good.”

    Students are in a unique bubble here in Humboldt county. There is a lack of housing and lack of jobs. What jobs there are, are often low paying, particularly when compared to the jobs that students have left behind. 

    “I had come from bartending in San Diego in a very rich area and was making really good money and then came here,” said Bobby Howser, another vanlifer.“I passed out resumes for two weeks, didn’t hear back from anybody for two months and then got a bussing position at a spot. I was more experienced than the people that worked above me.”

    Howser is content with his situation.

    “Camping is my favorite thing,” Howser said. “I don’t need a lot to be happy. A comfy bed and I can figure the rest out. It’s about perspective.” 

    Of course, there are the unavoidable inconveniences that come along with sleeping in a vehicle. Vanlife is about perspective, as Howser said, but it is also about reality. And reality can be a gross beast. 

    “When you have an all metal interior, it’s the condensation that gets you,” Howser said. “Things don’t ever dry out here because it’s so moist. When it’s really wet outside, and my breathing is causing condensation on the walls, mold can grow. I had that happen last semester which sucked. And water will drip off the ceiling and hit me in the face while I’m sleeping, you know… Like super fucking cold.” 

    Walking up a cold, steep hill in the morning just to take a piss is less than ideal. I don’t want to have a conversation through the shower curtain either. These are the sacrifices that come when one doesn’t pay rent though; acceptance of these trade-offs was the common theme of all of the conversations I had with van dwellers this week.

    In the past, I’ve used a propane heater to take the edge off of freezing nights. They don’t burn very efficiently and the safety of using one in an enclosed space is highly questionable. Arcata nights are cold, but thankfully not freezing. I have a few fluffy Costco blankets (thanks mom) that keep me comfortable through the night. 

    All of the vanlifers I spoke to were dealing with the chilly nights in a similar fashion. Layers, layers, layers. Of course at some point in the morning one has to depart their blanket cocoon and face the Humboldt dawn hour.

    Childs has served in the military and is no stranger to sub-par sleeping situations. Still, sometimes the reality of the current situation drowns out perspective.

    “When you wake up in your vehicle in the morning, that’s the snap to reality,” Childs said. “That’s when shit gets really real. When you wake up there’s no escaping that you’ve slept in a vehicle. The most challenging thing is to put on chilly pants in the morning.”

  • SZA’s second album gives a blunt evaluation of all those toxic relationships

    SZA’s second album gives a blunt evaluation of all those toxic relationships

    by Alana Hackman

    Following the release of her 2017 debut album, “CTRL,” SZA has graced us again. Known off-stage as Solána Imani Rowe, the singer recently delivered the juicy 23-track album “SOS.” It includes powerful vocal features from Travis Scott, Phoebe Bridgers, Don Toliver, and even a posthumous sample from Wu Tang Clan’s Ol Dirty Bastard.lmwd

    “SOS” is on the search for blood following SZA’s 2017 triple-platinum album “CTRL.”  Now “CTRL Deluxe” with the arrival of seven unreleased tracks this past June 2022, where she delivered a brutally honest 14-track journal entry assessing where she falls short in her relationships due to insecurities. 

     From apologetic melodies about her unshaven legs and lack of attractiveness to her ex in “Drew Barrymore” to longing for her father to be proud of her in “Normal Girl,” SZA has come back for vengeance with “SOS.” 

    Throughout the one-hour and eight-minute album, SZA enters an internal feud where she weighs the pros, cons, and desires she longs for within her past and present intimate relationships. Brutally honest once again, SZA doesn’t hold back in her sophomore album. 

    The 23 tracks are so personal and well-paced it feels like we’re listening to SZA’s stream of consciousness on a facetime call as her best friend.

    SZA approaches all of her tracks from a critical lens of herself and her past partners. She begs plenty of questions listeners have probably asked themselves at some point, which makes the album that much more relatable and enjoyable. 

    Does she want a committed relationship? Is she searching for validation and meaning from her romantic partners? Why can’t she seem to end things with her ex? Is she the toxic partner in these relationships? 

    SZA explores all of these questions in a straightforward conversational manner throughout the album. SOS spans multiple genres, presenting loyal listeners with a twist on the R&B genre we’ve associated with the St. Louis artist in previous years.

    We get a taste of SZA’s rapping abilities in “Smoking on my Ex Pack,” where the singer addresses the rumors and hate her exes have spewed towards her in previous years. The singer also spoils us with the indie-inspired hit “Kill Bill,” detailing her dramatic urge to kill her ex even though she still loves him. 

    She openly displays toxic traits in the alt-rock inspired track “F2F,” her vocals in which bear a striking similarity to Hayley Williams’, staged over a Paramore-esque beat. The lyrics dive into her pattern of having sex with other men just cause she misses her ex whom she continues to ignore for her own enjoyment.

    The honesty that defines the entirety of “SOS” is what has made it so addicting to returning fans and new listeners. 

    SZA doesn’t hide the lack of shame she feels after getting her ‘body done’ in “Conceited.” She candidly sings about her sexual past and how her “pussy precedes” her in “Blind.”

     Anyone who has been stuck in a whirlwind of lackluster situationships, or any intimate relationship that’s short of love and respect outside of the bedroom, can feel connected to SZA’s truthful verses. 

    It’s refreshing to see a female artist be so upfront about her sex life and toxic relationship traits. Which may be why she has gained newly devoted followers after “SOS” and kept the loyal fanbase she’s had since the release of “CTRL.”

    SZA’s fresh melodies and beats on “SOS” paired with her open honesty have allowed the album to break the Billboard record for the biggest streaming week for an R&B record. The album also is in its fifth week on No. 1 for Billboard’s top 200. 

    SZA has brought a relatable and open edge to the R&B table once again and has obviously earned her seat with the big dogs within the genre.

  • Noise, rage, and skateboards — RampArt releases compilation LP

    Noise, rage, and skateboards — RampArt releases compilation LP

    By Nathan Sano

    Through the endless cloud of hairspray, denim and the occasional crop dusting lies a paradise for local skaters, punks and music lovers alike. For the rest of us, it’s something adjacent to a welcome fever dream. 

    This fabled haven is none other than Rampart Skate Park. A place where the restless can indulge in both kickflips and mosh pits. Though I wouldn’t say it’s a relaxing experience having to dodge flying skateboards while you’re trying to bop around to some music, I will say it’s quite fitting for the genres common at the venue.

    The show in all its hardcore glory was organized in support of a new LP release, Skate Sessions VOL 1, a compilation including tracks by local bands WarMoth, The Bored Again, Imperial Destructo, RACKET, FOIL, Biomass and Dead Drift. In conjunction with these local legends are songs from Scythe, of Mendocino, and War of Knives, from Oakland. 

    From what I could tell based on the numerous conversations I was able to eavesdrop on, most people were there to see FOIL and War Moth; for good reason, too. If you haven’t had the opportunity to listen to these guys or make it out to one of their shows, I highly encourage you to dip your toe into their Bandcamp discography.

    At the show, there were songs about drug addiction, songs about the pigs, songs about hating your job, etc. These are aspects of mainstream culture that fuels the punk scene and bring so many to it, but it isn’t often you get to see a spectacle such as this LP release.

    Photo by Camille Delany

      I guess I couldn’t say if it was the beer or just the nature of the music itself, but after a while, these great ballads of an anti-capitalist alternative started to blend together and became an incredibly distorted roar of noise that lit the revolutionary fire lying dormant within my gut. Most of what these bands were dishing out is exactly what one would expect and hope to hear at a punk show.

    As the show went on and the crowd grew bigger, I began to notice a diverse mix of people both young and old. The show was of course all ages but I was quite taken aback when kids no older than twelve were thrashing around in the mosh pit. 

    I was just noticing the young average age of the crowd when a thought dawned on me. Punk rock as a genre, and the punk scene in general, haven’t really undergone any massive changes in twenty or so years. I suppose whether or not that’s true is relative, but my sentiments were confirmed by Travis Bille, guitarist and singer of the band Dead Drift, whom I was lucky enough to have a very lengthy conversation with. 

    “It’s for blowing off steam and having fun,” Bille said. “It’s stripped down, and there’s no fucking bullshit. That’s what I love. There’s so much bullshit everywhere and for me it’s raw.” 

    Photo by Camille Delany

    Change in one form or another is usually a component of survival for any existing medium, yet punk somehow seems to transcend that need to change due to the nature of what it is and what it’s always stood for. There is something about its raw flavor and aggressive behavior that takes you away from the bullshit. When those heavy riffs blow out your ears and those throaty vocals vibrate your insides, you kind of melt away into the crowd and become part of a larger community of people who all want the same thing – to express their humanity in the rawest way possible.

  • Destroy Boys and Margaritas Podridas rock the Gutswurrack

    Destroy Boys and Margaritas Podridas rock the Gutswurrack

    By Ollie Hancock and Kiana Znika

    In masks and makeup, showgoers shook the barrier, moshed, and crowd surfed to queer punk anthems to kick off the Halloweekend in an alternative safe space. Destroy Boys, and Margaritas Podridas filled the Gutswurrak with noise on Oct. 28 with songs about radical self-love and systemic defiance. The show was free to attend and hosted by Cal Poly Humboldt as part of the second annual SAC Halloween Bash. 

    Destroy Boys were excited about the accessibility of their set, as it was their first college show. 

    “Shows are so expensive to put on, and there’s so many people to pay,” the band’s guitarist Violet Mayugba explained. “We try to make our ticket prices as low as possible, but we rarely get an opportunity to do something like this where the funds are there like the promoter is a college.”

    As the opener, the Mexican punk band Margaritas Podridas exhilarated the crowd. Lead singer Carolina Enriquez filled the venue with her scream grunge vocals, sporting fairy wings, and a princess crown. They struck passion in the crowd with their recently released single, “No Quiero ser Madre,” a pro-abortion anthem. The crowd was surging and barely contained by the barrier by the end of their show.

    Destroy Boys walked out to a frenzied crowd. For this Halloween show, they acted out a religious skit in which Mayugba, dressed as the devil, fought over the soul of lead vocalist and guitarist Alexia Roditis, dressed as a nun. 

    The show was preaching to the choir, the choir being a mostly queer cop-hating crowd who sang along to anti-cop lyrics throughout the show.

    The band explains they’ve received a lot of LGBT support within the punk scene, their bassist David Orozco stating, “If you’re in a punk scene where they care about if you’re queer or not, that’s not punk.”

    Roditis enthralled fans with crowd interaction, jumping down from the stage to run along the barrier more than once during the show.  In their asides between songs, they preached radical self-love and acceptance, a message embedded in their music. Their shows reflect the same values; Roditis orchestrated a fems-only pit and encouraged the crowd to confront any abusive behavior. 

    The band hopes to inspire their young fans to find their own unique voice and be themselves.

    “Do what you want to do, as much as you can, without hurting people,” they explained. “That can go into being queer, being trans, dressing a certain way. Do whatever it is you want to do. You can’t fuck up your own heart.”

    The band is growing out of their diss track punk roots and towards more narrative songwriting that tackles bigger, philosophical topics. 

    “I used to write more about my personal experiences, but I’ve kind of wanted to stray away from that,” Roditis said. “I’m becoming a different songwriter.”

    Recently signed to Hopeless Records in 2021, the band is excited to be working on a new album with two songs already done. Roditis said they don’t expect to be fully done with writing diss songs but are looking forward to potentially writing a nice love song for Destroy Boys one day.

  • Cal Poly Humboldt Consent Project starts conversations

    Cal Poly Humboldt Consent Project starts conversations

    by Ione Dellos

    The tenth annual Consent Project was hosted by CHECK IT and Peer Health Education on Thursday, November 10th, to educate people about consent culture through interactive booths, art projects, and a survivor speak out. Turnout for the event was impressive considering that Peer Health had not gotten a chance to run the event since 2019 due to the pandemic. 

    As an option for those who wanted to attend the event but weren’t able to be there in person, there was an online art submissions option available. Those who were unable to attend were still given the opportunity to have their work displayed at the event if submitted before the deadline. 

    The Project had lots of fun and informative booths; attendees could learn more about consent, get connected with student resources like the Campus Advocacy Team, and even paint their own rock!

    Decorating a rock of your choosing wasn’t the only creative activity at the event. There was also a Jeans4Justice booth, where attendees could paint or draw on a pair of jeans that they had brought. 

    In the center of the Goodwin Forum, where the event was held, there was a collaborative mural. It was beautifully and carefully decorated, with flowers and foliage lining the walls. The attention to detail shone through in every corner of the room. 

    The main event was the survivor speak out, which started at 7pm. In a safe space, survivors were encouraged to speak out about situations on campus where their consent was violated, and how that can be potentially life-altering. 

    Out of respect to those who spoke, I will not include specifics of details shared, but it takes an immense amount of strength to tell one person your story, let alone a whole room full of people. 

    As a survivor, you can often feel guilty about what happened to you. You may feel that there was something that you could have done to prevent that from happening. Having a space like the Consent Project to explore those feelings with other survivors and be able to get in touch with resources like the Campus Advocacy Team is very important as it can be crucial to healing.

  • Cumming together on the quad

    Cumming together on the quad

    by Carlos Pedraza

    Dildos, cock rings, and ropes, oh my! With the cooperation of the Peer Health Center, Check it, and Queer Humboldt, The Womens Resources Center hosted “Kink on the Quad” on Monday. Sex positivity was the theme of the event; it promoted open discussion of sexuality, sex education, and just plain sex, with an emphasis on violence prevention and LGTBQ+ identity. 

    There were mutiple sex-themed games for attendees, featuring pin the dildo, porn hole, and condom kerplunk. Students seemed distinctly unhesitant while holding a dildo to pin onto the image of a vagina, or when throwing bean bags into cardboard vaginas labeled with the names of popular porn categories.  

    Isabela Acosta, the Head Coordinator of Sex Health Body Politics at the WRC, did notice a difference between how students interact with the activities.  

    “Women are way more open to this,” Acosta said. “Men are so guarded and stuff.” 

    Tables covered with red table cloths had condoms, rows of sex toys and dildos pointed high in sky waiting to be grabbed. Acosta described how some students were very supportive, while others were weirded out by the dildos. Acosta wants students and people in general to be more open about sex. 

    “Just be comfortable,” Acosta said. “I know you’re having sex, we all do.” 

    Check-it and Students for Violence Sex Prevention were there to educate, not just about safe consensual sex, but also about preventing sexual violence. 

    Check-it focused on informing students on the 3D’s. The 3D’s are methods for helping someone get out of a harmful situation. They stand for “direct, delagate, and distract.” The groups saw the event as a way to open discussion on sexual violence.  

    “It opens the door for more in-depth conversation, for survivors to understand what consent is,” said the Students for Violence Sex Prevention team.

    Queer Humboldt hosted their own game to educate students on sexual identity. The game involved identifying celebrities, historical figures, and activists, along with their connection to the LGBTQ+ community. 

    “A lot of the time most people have no idea these figures are in the LGBT community,” said Avery Sidonia, a volunteer with Queer Humboldt. 

    Sidonia called the event awesome; she was excited for it since it combined fun and education in a way that got people interested. 

    “Kink on the Quad” ended with a raffle of sex toys. A huge, boisterous crowd gathered in anticipation of hearing their name and winning a free sex toy

  • Humboldt International Film Festival hosts at Van Duzer Theatre

    by Lidia Grande-Ruiz

    The Humboldt International Film Festival (HIFF) team hosted a night of film sharing at the Van Duzer Theatre on November 3. The films were pulled from the HIFF archives and all have a common theme: discomfort and exploring it more through that feeling. 

    The films shown were “Simon” (2015, directed by Camille de Galbert), “Dancing with Scissors” (2019, directed by Steven Vander Meer), “Gone Sale” (2018, directed by Matt Meindel), “Aviary” (2021, directed by Lauryn Blottin), “Prey” (2018, directed by Jing Sun), and “The Quiet” (2019, directed by Radheya Jegatheva).

    “Change occurs at the point where it outweighs risks,” said Sarah Lasley, assistant film professor at CPH. “So when you are so uncomfortable that the fear of risks in change is no longer scary, we are kind of forced to make change.”

    Lasley continued to speak about the night. 

    “A lot of new wave films are intended to make the audience feel some kind of discomfort and these films occurred in a huge shift and change in sociopolitical climate,” Lasley said. “When you think about how that mixes in with discomfort, you know this idea on how discomfort outweighs risk, this change is occurring.”

    Students in the audience thought that the festival was cool and visually appealing. There were some who mentioned how certain films made them uncomfortable and freaked out, especially the film “Gone Sale,” which brings back memories of going to the mall but touches on consumerism. 

    “These nights are very successful nights because it is nice to see a variety of films coming to the school and the school has become a hub for all these international films,” said Ralph Valle, a film student and one of the co-directors of the film festival. “It is very honorable to be part of something like this. We get to distribute these films to a variety of people and it brings me joy because I get to see how people view life and movies that try to have some kind of message that they are trying to convey is pretty awesome to see.”

    All kinds of people, not just film majors, came together to see films that can resonate with everyone in some kind of way. The films emphasized that, while we may come from different backgrounds but we have one thing in common. We are impacted by what we see around us. From historical perspective to animation, at the end of the day, film brings us around and we discover at times not just people we never planned on meeting, but also a new side of ourselves.

  • Native film showcase brings culture to Eureka Theater

    Native film showcase brings culture to Eureka Theater

    by August Linton

    A great, warm sense of community filled the Eureka Theater during the Da’Luk Native Film Showcase on Saturday. Native American youth, their families and community members gathered to watch short films on Indigenous life in Humboldt, produced by participants in the Voices From the Center and Weaving Culture into Wellness short film projects. These set out to document Native American people’s experiences and ways they found meaning and health by giving them the tools and assistance to set them to video.

    The critically-acclaimed 2022 short documentary “Long Line of Ladies” was also shown. It follows one Humboldt County family’s revitalization of the Karuk Ihuk ceremony, a traditional rite of passage for young women that had not been practiced in generations. 

    Da’Luk Youth Program Coordinator Vincent Feliz opened the event with information about how the program serves Indigenous youth. This division of the Northern California Indian Development Council (NCIDC) focuses on engaging youth with culturally rooted lessons and activities in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. 

    Da’Luk means ‘words and talking’ in Wiyot, a meaning that Feliz feels speaks to the ultimate purpose of the program: to connect youth to each other and ready them to participate in their community.

    The NCIDC offers mental health, anti-discrimination, and educational support to Indigenous youth, and has recently completed several mural projects in Eureka and Arcata.

    At the film showcase, community member Julian Lang also spoke about how language can build community.

    “Look for your language, that’s really important to understanding who you are as a human being; who you are as a tribe, a group, a village,” Lang said. “Not to heal but to reconnect your brain…your soul to where it’s supposed to be connected.”

    Lang then performed an opening song/prayer for the event, which he encouraged others to sing along to if they knew the words. The final descending note rang off the high ceilings with many voices.

    The Voices from the Center film project focused on native youth and elders as the subjects, consisting of many short films ranging from one minute to around five.

    One film documented the experience of building a Yurok plank house, including the healing experience of residing in a traditional Indigenous space. A brief film taught viewers to count to ten in Karuck, using acorns as visuals, while another film explored one woman’s passion for making and wearing regalia, such as bark skirts and deer-skin dresses.

    COVID-19 isolation gave one of the filmmakers, Celinda Gonzales, more time to engage in traditional practices such as beadwork. Her film compares the strength and resilience of her community with how new plants grow out of the burn scar of wildfires. 

    “You see these flowers, the trees coming back, the grasses coming back, you see beauty in the midst of that,” said Gonzales. “With COVID, even though we were all separated out, there was still beauty in that…I had more time at home, I was weaving more, talking to family more.”

    Robbie Lara’s film was about her connection with the plants in the garden she cultivates, and her realization that plants have souls like any other creature. She spoke of her gratitude to the plants for nourishing her and encouraged the audience to keep gardens.

    “It came to me that while I’m passing by all these trees and all this greenery, why can’t I give that my attention,” Lara said. “What I hope that the video does is help you have a relationship with the plant world.” 

    A second collection of short films was shown, produced by the United Indian Health Services’ Weaving Culture into Wellness project. Facilitator Jude Marshall said he started the project after traditional cultural practices improved his health. It was made possible with funding from UIHS and from the Rural Indian Health Board’s program to reduce chronic diseases in Native communities.

    Ernie Albers Jr. starred in a film about the gym that he runs, Lifted Arcata. He described his ‘human-specific’ approach to working out. This means incorporating postures and motions which he said mirror those used in traditional lifestyles.

    Another film in this collection focused on food sovereignty. Liz Lewis  shows the process of making salmon head soup, and speaks on the role of food in reclaiming one’s culture. She uses salmon fished locally by Native people and peppers from the UIHS’ Potawot Community Garden.

    “Not everyone may be able to do all the practices that we used to do, but cooking is a great way to be connected [to your culture,]” Lewis said. 

    In Willard Carlson’s film, he recounts his experiences fighting for river access and fishing rights in the 70s. 

    “We never ever want to give up our cultural identity and where we came from,” Carlson said. “I feel good, optimistic about our future…coming into this inheritance is very special.” 

    These documentaries eloquently showed how deeply supportive and connected the community around their production was through food, song, and stories.

    Daniel Aipa, the Native Hawaiian producer of the Weaving Culture into Wellness films, believes in the power of spreading Indigenous stories.

    “When you tell one story …it becomes 50 or 100 different stories, depending on what you take from it,” Aipa said. “And that’s Native culture. Our oral history is everything to us.”

    “Long Line of Ladies” was shown next, following the Allen family, their spiritual family, and their preparations for Ahtyirahm “Ahty” Allen’s Ihuk coming of age ceremony. The Ihuk is performed for Karuk young women once they have their first period, and was revived in 1995 after a long dormancy. 

    “There’s points [in life] where we all come together, and that’s something that Native people have lost,” said Pimm Tripp-Allen. “This is the kind of thing that we’re supposed to be doing for our young people.”

    The family lives in McKinleyville, and many scenes are set in familiar Humboldt locations, such as the walking path across the Mad River trestle bridge. The documentary has been shown at Sundance, SXSW, and other film festivals. It is available to stream through the end of November on New York Times Op Docs, a platform for independent short films. 

    The family felt at ease among the home crowd attendees, and opened up about funny and personal experiences they’d had during production. 

    “We’re talking to you guys a little different than we talk to other communities,” said Alme Allen. “Because we’re back home, and you’re our people.”

  • Rooted and Rising puts Black voices onstage

    Rooted and Rising puts Black voices onstage

    by Sophia Escudero

    In five years at Cal Poly Humboldt, lecturer Dionna Ndlovu had not seen a single production written by a Black playwright. On Monday, Oct. 24, she will direct one. 

    Rooted and Rising is a series of staged readings produced by CDOR and the Umoja Center for Pan African Student Excellence in collaboration with the Theatre Arts Department, beginning this semester with a reading of “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992” by Anna Deavere Smith. Each work, including this one, will be one written by a Black writer.

    “The staged reading series will happen twice a year, once in the fall, once in the spring,” Ndlovu said. “It’s a collaboration between multiple departments, faculty, staff, students, and community members.” 

    A staged reading differs from a play in that there is not a set or full costumes. Traditionally, the cast reads off scripts, and there is minimal stage movement, allowing for a lower investment of time and energy while still creating theater. Ndlovu was personally drawn to theater by listening to and participating in staged readings.

    “When I looked at our season, I noticed we didn’t have one staged reading, and we didn’t have use of our second stage space, which is our studio theater,” Ndlovu said. “It creates an opportunity for students who are maybe looking for more performance opportunities, for faculty and staff who want to participate, at low stakes.”

    To Ndlovu, another important aspect of the staged reading format is that it is often followed by a talkback between the audience and the cast and crew. This work, she believes, is part of an important dialogue to be had in the Humboldt community. 

    “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992” is a series of monologues about the 1992 Los Angeles Uprising, a six-day series of riots. The conflict was born from the acquittal of four police officers in the beating of Rodney King, the killing of 15-year-old Latasha Harlins by a Korean convenience store owner, and years of racial tensions, particularly between the Black and Korean communities. When the riots ended, 63 people were dead, 2,383 more were injured, and over 12,000 had been arrested. All of the monologues are derived from real interviews with people who were involved or directly affected, their words translated directly to the page. 

    Performer Jennifer Be, born in LA county, is very aware of the history behind the show. 

    “I did some research on what the production was going to be, and saw that it was something I could contribute to,” Be said. “It showcases so many perspectives and experiences after the riots, that felt like something I wanted to contribute to and be a part of.” 

    The cast is composed of eight actors, including Ndlovu, of various races, ethnicities, genders, and ages. Casting was entirely open— some actors are students, others members of the greater Humboldt community. Every performer delivers several monologues, each one from a different person’s perspective. 

    “I’m reading four folks, and they all have very contrasting backgrounds,” Be said. “They’re all from different socioeconomic experiences, and what sort of their purpose was during that time was very contrasting as well. There’s such a juxtaposition, that’s really fun, but the most important thing is that there’s something relatable about everyone’s experience.” 

    Several performers had not had any previous experience with theater. Performer Elijah Moore had not acted before, but found himself intrigued by a casting call flyer and joined the production. He says he’s proud of the opportunity to present such powerful monologues on a crucial topic. 

    “It’s groundbreaking work, of course,” Moore said. “The written word is very important, and I think highlighting the massacres and the terrible things that happened during the riots is really important to understand that police brutality is really a thing. Being able to highlight those topics in a performance is really cool.” 

    Patricia Iwok, also new to performance, found the experience to be educational as well. She had never heard about the Los Angeles Uprising before, and feels that she has learned a lot from her involvement. She particularly appreciated the staged reading format. 

    “I feel like it’s the most stress-free experience, like it’s really nice,” Iwok said. “Just reading lines, experiencing what we’re reading, I feel like that’s cool. It’s something new, something exciting.” 

    Fellow performer Binta Wright finds Rooted and Rising to be incredibly significant for Humboldt’s Black community, and an important step forward for representation locally. 

    “To be part of something like this where we are is unprecedented,” Wright said. “Humboldt has never had a focus on Black works, and stage readings have been just as scarce. It’s refreshing and I’m excited that there will be more presence of Black playwrights and stories told in theater here at Cal Poly in the near future.”

    “Twilight: Los Angeles 1992” will be performed at 7 pm Oct. 24 in the JVD Studio Theater, and is free to attend and open to everyone. The reading will be followed by a talkback with the audience.

  • She Kills Monsters: not a Nat 20

    She Kills Monsters: not a Nat 20

    by August Linton

    In the hours before I attended the opening night of She Kills Monsters, I was excited. Live theater has been absent from my life, and the chance to see people perform a play was one I relished. But I didn’t enjoy this production for many reasons, mostly stemming from an amateurish air, and a lack of sensitivity in its queer representation.

    Certain elements of the show’s queerness were successful. The relationship between Tillius the Paladin (Geneva Bell) and Lilith the Demon Queen (Kyrstie Obiso) and their real-world counterparts was surprising and wonderful in its intimacy. As someone who was a nerdy gay teenager, I saw myself in their fear, their yearning. It affected me to see a gay kiss on stage— I hadn’t before. Queerness often intersects with desire to escape into fantasy, and I saw that genuinely represented in She Kills Monsters.

    The decision to cast one of the succubus villains, Evil Tommy (played by Oliver David) as a gay man felt strange considering the role this character occupies. The character is regularly called Evil Tina and played by a female actress. I found myself uncomfortable and struggling with cognitive dissonance as an obviously queer-coded character bullied, screamed slurs at, and borderline sexually harassed another character. 

    The stage combat, too, left me wanting something more. It’s evident that the cast spent blood, sweat, and tears on choreographing and practicing the show’s many fights, but many stretched my suspension of disbelief. Swords swung three feet from their targets, while victims lowered themselves to the ground rather than falling. A show with such a focus on its fights deserved better.

    The production design, however, impressed me and greatly increased my enjoyment of the show. The boss monster props especially charmed and impressed me. The undulating fabric-covered frame of the gelatinous cube, intensely staring papier mache orb of the beholder, and numerous large dragon heads of the final boss fight wow and amaze in cinematic fashion. 

    Other elements of the production seemed unfinished or fell flat, including sometimes jarring sound design and inconsistent costuming. This gave She Kills Monsters a distinctly high school play feel, despite the myriad uses of the word fuck. 

    The age of She Kills Monsters as a script showed in its dialogue and in its ideology. Released in 2011 and set in 1995, it has many elements and jokes which fell flat. Why does the main character Agnes (Miah Carter) treat her sister’s gayness with disbelief and fear? The politics of dating and marriage in Agnes and Miles’ (Stephan Chittenden) relationship also felt dated, and weirdly emphasized. And what was with that joke about Miles touching his girlfriend’s younger sister?

    Despite this, Bell and Obiso as Tilly and Lilith were two standouts, bringing a wide variety of attitudes to their characters in both the real world and the dream world. The character of the Great Mage Steve (Maverick Cheney) deserves a special shout out for being a consistent source of laughs every time he flopped onto the stage to be killed in yet another gruesome way. Vera (Elena German) also very much embodied the role of high school guidance counselor, and drew laughs with her creative use of a rolling chair. However, much of the ensemble’s acting didn’t impress me, lacking physicality and emotion. She Kills Monsters has an emotional core of loss and drama that felt smothered by the production’s issues.

    At the end of the show, about a quarter of the audience stood up, attempting to trigger a standing ovation. It didn’t happen.