I want to watch
the Rimrocks cry
during a heavy rain
that spews it’s tears
into the basements
of those who are dumb enough
to live underneath
while the Shop Vacs clog
and turn to mold.

I want the street signs
to melt
and the turkeys
to block all traffic
halting commerce
and progress
while that Mercedes Benz
and all Subaru Wagons
turn to dust
and blow away
in the wind.

I want Pygmy Owls
to steal the souls
of bad local comedians
and shit them out
on the heads of the police
and I want them to suffer
perpetual foot cramps
while they stub and break
pinky toes.

I fear depression
has wrote a blank check
for my soul
but I was too down
invisible
drunk
and exiled in loneliness to notice.
Now I await for anything to happen
and talk to the birds I meet
and drink the ordered drinks
and silently wish for love
that will never happen.

I want you to gamble on me
because the final parlay
will be worth it and sweet
and in the meantime
I’ll float around in the bars
looking for the best anodyne
while the sidewalks boil
and the parking meters freeze
while derelicts stagger and mumble
and you are elsewhere and difficult.

The post When the Street Signs Melt appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Even after 57 years it seems incomprehensible.  My high school friend and swimming teammate, Fred West, was killed in Vietnam, only a few weeks into his tour of duty.

Fred was a year behind me in high school and, as we were not particularly close, I was unaware that he had enlisted in the Marines immediately after graduating.  I’ll never know what led Fred to join the Marines. He was a gentle, genial, seemingly uncomplicated guy, and I knew no one else who joined the military.

The news of his death was a profound shock.  In 1965, the war was distant and impersonal, of minor relevance to my friends and me.  Fred’s death at age 18 closed that distance.  Little did I know that a year later I would be drafted into the Army and faced with the possibility that it could happen to me too.

I think of Fred on each Memorial Day as a tug on my conscience as I navigate the odd juxtaposition of Memorial Day’s true purpose and its cultural place as the symbolic, celebratory start to summer.  These two things can’t really be reconciled.

With my own induction, the war transitioned from an abstraction to a nightmare – quite literally.  I would occasionally dream of combat, the images informed by newsreels of firefights in dense jungles, muzzle flashes coming from all directions.  Then, in Basic Training, advanced infantry training and Officer Candidate School, the muzzle flashes came from my rifle and my bayonet was thrust into straw men made to look like the enemy.  We were taught, not too subtly, to hate the “gooks,” as we prepared to kill them before they killed us. It was a perversely effective process.

I lucked out and never saw Vietnam, except from the safety of 30,000 feet on my way to a posting in Thailand.  But many of the friends I made during a year of training weren’t so lucky.  My weekly review of Stars and Stripes would reveal another loss, printed in plain type; whole, complicated human lives gone, reduced to simple listings – alphabetized casualties of an immoral war.

By the time I might have been sent to Vietnam as a platoon leader, I had considered refusing, or deserting.  The futility and questionable purpose of American involvement had become clearer and it hardly seemed cause for self-sacrifice.  Looking back with more honest perspective, I don’t think I would have refused or deserted. We males are socialized to be brave and stoic.  Despite intellectual and moral clarity about the war, the conditioning toward unquestioned duty and the need to prove myself would likely have prevailed.  Only in subsequent years did I know that true bravery would have been to refuse.

We should have learned from Vietnam, but we have not.  Nearly every military action since then has been fraught with the same hubris and deceit.  Just as it is impossible to justify Fred West’s death as “in a good cause,” no life lost in Iraq or Afghanistan has been “in a good cause.”

So how does one reconcile this tension?  I suppose the only reasonable way is to hate the war and honor the warrior, yet that is a terribly painful process for loved ones.  It is, naturally, easier to accept the loss of life in a noble cause.  This is why veterans are honored for defending our freedom, even when nothing about our freedom was really at stake.

On Memorial Day we must honor every lost life with reverence and respect.  Like my friend Fred, every man and woman who dons a uniform does so with noble intent, no matter the ignobility of the politicians who send them to war.  Service should be honored, but it is our profound responsibility to insure that no lives are lost in vain – for political vanity.

The greatest honor we can bestow on our troops is peace.

The post Hate the War, Honor the Warrior appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Novelist and queer literature icon Ursula K. Le Guin stated that it is the duty of the writer to put into words that which cannot be put into words. A daunting task which turns many away from the path of the pen. But one Colorado native has taken it upon themselves to approach this monumental task, an enigmatic figure with a monosyllabic moniker and poet Laureate of Lafayette Colorado, Z. Like a mythical figure, Z has the bearings of someone who walks between multiple worlds. A self-described Two-spirit, and proud member of the First Nation community, when Z isn’t speaking out out for the rights of indigenous people or the LGBTQ community, they are tending to their duties as the sitting chieftain for the Balam Na.

Taking inspiration from Hip Hop culture and a rich history of poetry and song, Z’s poetry has an almost sacred quality to it, with meters and diction that reflect something akin to a chant. An invocation of the spirit of the righteously indignant. War-chants for the marchers, the rioters, and those who charge through city streets with fists raised high in spite of the teargas.

Their poems can range from moments of heart-wrenching beauty and soul-baring agonies to the sublime rage felt to a world ablaze. There is an intrinsic political nature to their poems, which speak truth to power in the tradition of the ancient skalds whose rhymes were said to mark the skins of unworthy rulers. Should the old legends hold true, then there may be a reason so many politicians have crews dedicated to makeup. We had the immense pleasure of sitting down with Z to talk about the nature of their work and the natural rhythm at which life facilitates art.

ZBassSpeaks, Poet Laureate of Lafayette Colorado

YS: Where do you get your inspiration?

Z: I get my inspirations from everything, I take attributes of a scientist I am curious about everything. I am motivated by my emotions and hip hop culture. My own culture plays a huge influence in my messages and perspectives. It’s the things that I see, the stories that I have been told and what I extrapolate from interactions. The beauty and shadows of this Earth, the hearts of amazing people, and the state of the world is what pushes my pen forward. The human experience and mind really perplexes me and I find myself constantly watching it and deriving theory and philosophies. And sometimes I just want to have fun with words that contain simple things or nothing at all. It’s just a state of me.

YS: How has your life affected your creations?

Z: My life is the blood of my poems, no matter how many times I reflect and put myself in other shoes I always come back to myself. I grew up in a struggle, a life in poverty where Santa was just a fictional character and all the presents just came from strangers. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was critical in cementing my ideals, which gave me a rebellious attitude especially with authority that carry out injustices. Being an artist with words was not looked at with favor but with shame, it wasn’t a “skill” to the working class. When you grow up not seeing yourself making it, then it has no place or value to your life. So when I started competing in poetry competitions I had to bring 200% more than everyone in the room, and every second on the stage I had to muster the heat from my own hell to that mic. And that consistency of pushing against the grain, trying to prove myself, has led to where I am now. That background is what gives breath to some of my most meaningful poems. Leading, impacting, and changing people in different ways throughout my time performing. And I feel very honored by that.

YS: Would you say your identity has influenced your art? If so, how?

Z: I would say who I am, a manifestation of chance and what my people have dreamt of, I say yes. My ancestors’ form of speaking comes across as backwards to English speakers. I find myself being “corrected” on my form of writing or speaking, with them not knowing it was done with explicit intention. Virtually every aspect of my culture is drastically different from the “White” or “European” version of America. As I have learned different things from my Maya culture, it has fed me an even wilder imagination and wonder. The Earth is my home. What we do has an effect and while we are not perfect, it is a duty to grow better not for yourself but for others. It has shaped my opinions as to what is truly important in this world. All of that has fingerprints in my work both written and spoken and nothing will change that.

YS: Who would you say is your greatest inspiration?

Z: I have spoken about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the words still stand true about his influence and inspirations that drove me to writing. I would like to speak about my mentor Maria Ramirez. She was my ESL teacher back in middle school and the person who introduced me to the world of poetry. Her dedication to her students and persistence to finding my voice in paper, was a lightning in the bottle moment for me. She could have just seen me as another child in the school system, worried about her paycheck, but she would drive me after school on her own time to show me the power of poetry. I still remember her presentation about her childhood as the daughter of an immigrant who would go into college as a mother and as a fighter of cancer. After all that she would go on to be recognized for her work as a teacher across the nation and have breakfast with the president. I owe a lot of my success to her faith and encouragement towards me. Her story is what cemented my choice into writing.

YS: What work are you most proud of?

Z: I would say I am most proud of my experiments that come from pushing my limits. Such as the three poems that won me competitions for three years a row. Each one of them was an intense session that would make or break my faith in my work. For some of my newer work, I would say Mango Juice, where I brought a fusion of all three of my cultures together. I also have some poems that I have not yet performed that I look forward to sharing.

YS: What kind of world do you want to show others with your art?

Z: I want to show my part of the universe, the kind of questions that ask the bigger questions out of genuine curiosity, the part of me that makes me just like every other person. I am not the type of person to stick to one thing or stay in one place. I am a voyager on this planet that sails among the cosmos. My expression is through poetry. My writing is my diary of what I have found, the notes of my thoughts, the shards of my own reflection, the fears that haunt me in the daylight. I desire to show a possible world that we can build together. My poetry could be a strain of hope that things will get better, and to show that one person that they are not alone. I hope to inspire the right people to take these words and do something bigger and amazing that no one else would have imagined.

Before leaving, Z provided us with some parting words. Words we hope will provide our readers with something to turn over in their minds like a polished river stone, something to stay in their pockets to bring home with them to contemplate on those quieter days.

To writers who share my love and passion for the art, I implore you to share it with your community. If you seek wisdom, take notes from the peoples advice. Listen to the songs of birds, the whispers of mountains, and take from the kindness that stand tall from trees. Maybe you’ll find something.

The post The Whispers Of Mountains: An Afternoon With Poet Laureate And First Nations Activist Z appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Even when you anticipate it
the sting pulses through you
whether it’s a love interest
who picked someone else
or the local poetry festival
that rejected your work
as unsurprising as it is.
It still hurts.
It’s a big shit sandwich
you have to eat.
It’s reality.
and before you move on
to someone else
and buckle down
and work at writing better poems,
you silently wonder why
and replay everything
possibly wrong
over bourbon
and beers
and an 8 ball of cocaine
and you drink your failures
and snort your rejection
through a dollar bill in
the bathroom
as the drip and the rush
simply say
fuck them.
You consume it.
Consume it all
as it consumes you.
You go back to your stool,
down another shot
and the bartender
brings you another round
and throws the empty bottle,
your life
in the garbage
and you clank with the other
discarded lives
as the hip, academic poets
read down the street
and the person you want
the most
is not with you
and you find someone else
for just the evening
if you’re lucky
to fill the empty time
and to ease anything.
The sprinklers turn on at 5
just before the sun rises
and you come down
with failures and rejections still
reminiscing in the first beam
of light as you write it down.

– Ian A Dundas

The post Rejection | Whiskey and Words appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Photo: Deborah Cameron

When you’re The Sink in Boulder and you’ve been in business since 1923, special moments happen a lot.

Maybe it’s a meal from your college days, a first date, or the virgin taste of an iconic Sink Burger. Other times it’s an unexpected celebrity drop in, like the visits by Barack Obama, Madeleine Albright, Anthony Bourdain, or Guy Fieri.

One of these connections went beyond any of these. The meeting of Peter and Suzie Gilbert created a 58-year old marriage, three children, and ten grandchildren. Now 81 and 82 years old, the pair met at The Sink in 1959, just four years after Robert Redford mopped floors and changed trash can liners there.

“I was with friends to meet some other girls, but saw her walking past the window,” Peter said. “She had cutoff jeans, a white t-shirt, and a pixie haircut. She was sashaying down the sidewalk.”

He continued, “The window is like ‘that wide’ but one of the girls knew Suzie and knocked on the window to get her attention. She came in and I was overwhelmed. It was quick. It was like all the din in the bar just silenced for me.”

Peter, a descendant of one of the original settlers in Gold Hill, a 20-minute drive west into the mountains beyond Boulder, still lived there but was down in Boulder for the night to hang with friends and to borrow their plumbing for a shower (Gold Hill didn’t have water at the time).

Suzie was here for a summer scholars program at the University. “I happened to be walking home from a study date and the girls inside who saw me, they were my roommates. That’s why they called me in,” Suzie said.

Although they no longer reside in Boulder, Suzie and Peter wanted to go back with their family  to where everything started.That’s how 35 people – including their children, spouses, grandchildren, and Peter’s two sisters – came to the Sink on a July Friday night.

Photo: Deborah Cameron

The meal was part of a larger tour of the family history sites in the area. It was the ultimate family meal.

There was laughter, conversation, and recreations. Peter kept pointing out the exact window the pair met. Eventually, he walked the group there and sat in the booth as Suzie stepped outside the window to recreate that first magic moment.

Amy Carter, the pair’s daughter, talked about how meaningful the meal was. “It’s really something — incredible that we have his siblings with us, too. It’s meant a lot to be able to be here.“

Gwynedd Bailey, The Sink’s Marketing Manager, helped organize the dinner. She said that when a restaurant has been in business for more than 90 years, management hears stories.

One customer, John Lund, described what it was like decades ago. “As engineering students, the only way we knew to find a date on Friday afternoon was to go to The Sink, buy a quart bottle of 3.2 beer and hang around hoping to find a date. Of course, it seldom worked – so we just drank more beer.”

Other customers talked about carving a heart into one of the table tops that they could go back to years later. A former employee had their wedding reception there.

Joyfully intense moments like these are more than just a part of what The Sink gives to Boulder; they demonstrate what food and restaurants can give to a community. They’re more than just a place to enjoy a meal, or a momentary excuse to put the world aside for a good time.

The Sink epitomizes how a restaurant’s value can be both simple and profound. As simple as being a low-ceilinged, community institution beloved for their beer and hamburgers, and as profound as being a place with a booth by a window where a couple can fall in love.

The post Love, True Love: They met at The Sink, then came back. Love wins. | Foodie appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Graphic by Irina Ratsek for Yellow Scene

Although Fermina Daza may have erased Florentino Ariza from her memory, he had obsessed over her and their long, troubled love affair that had ended fifty-one years, nine months, and four days before the story opened. That’s the beginning of Love in the Time of Cholera, the classic from Gabriel García Márquez, Colombian. Cholera is listed by the World Health Organization as the “forgotten pandemic”, pointing out that, “[m]any people think of cholera as a 19th century disease. This is true for high-income countries. But elsewhere, cholera never went away. The current pandemic – the 7th that has been recorded – has been ongoing since 1961. It is the world’s longest running pandemic.”

It’s stunning to realize we’ve had a global pandemic ongoing since 1817. That’s over 2 centuries. Sr. Márquez’s novel came out in 1985, 36 years ago, but it’s set approximately between 1880 and the early 1930s. Love was found even then; before modern medicine. Are we still finding love today? Are you? I believe, to paraphrase Jeff Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park, love will find a way.

While the world has been in our current, newest, global pandemic for just over one year (the first known US case was January 20, 2020), love has flourished. Not to sound pessimistic, but love has also died. Depends on whom you ask.

I asked a lot of people, and I got so many replies I was stunned. I was stunned, not only by the willingness to share, but by the diversity of responses: in love, broken hearted, barely survived…

But first, let’s consider the impact of major world events on love and it’s secondary outcomes. Baby boomers, for example, dropped 76.4 million babies during that 22-year period, which comprised about one-quarter of the U.S. population at the time.

Winter, though not necessarily a calamity event, is known less for interest in excursions and more for cuddling under covers. Love is found where warmth is. Did you know the most common birth months for new babies is July-October, according to UnityPoint.org. July is 9 months after October (start of the Fall cool down) and October is 9 months after February (the traditional end of winter). Smithsonianmag.com points out that “There’s evidence of seasonal reproduction all the way back to the 1800s.” Really? Do tell…

“It turns out reproduction is seasonal across all living organisms,” says Smithsonian, “from plants, to insects, to reptiles, to birds and mammals – including human beings. The ultimate explanation for this phenomenon is an evolutionary one… Organisms have evolved strategies to reproduce at the time of year that will maximize their lifetime reproductive success.”

Lest we get lost in cisheterosexual ideas, which are not rigid laws, here’s a reminder that humans and nature exist on the LGBTQIA spectrum. There is evidence of the same survival instincts regardless of gender or sexuality, of cuddling and finding warmth with warm bodies around you, regardless of whether a baby is on the way. In fact, queer animal couples have been seen adopting babies or carrying for abandoned eggs, or just existing together.

Babies are not – necessarily, anymore – the ultimate or only endpoint of companionship. If you ask the Denver-based 20s/30s Singles Facebook group, most folks just wanna hook up for the night, have someone to hold, and maybe a beer pong partner. Damnit, I’m in. Before I get lost in the casual hookup, let’s hear from those who responded to my query about love in the time of COVID.

Most names have been given an abbreviation to respect anonymity. Edited for clarity and length.

Self Love and Singles

I left a toxic relationship right before the pandemic and started telling myself “I love you” in the mirror every morning.

We can start with the casual fun, my perennial location. E told me that, the “First couple months [of the pandemic] I was dating someone. Ended up not being worth it. And I’ve been back on my BS since. Hookups and being single af [as fu*k].” What a great place to start.

Pardis

My friend Pardis (real name) chimed in with, “I left a toxic relationship right before the pandemic and started telling myself “I love you” in the mirror every morning. About a year later and I can confidently say I believe it. That’s my love story.” That’s a beautiful thing. Makes me wonder how you’ve practiced self love during the pandemic, whether or not you’re in a relationship.

W had a lot to say, starting with, “I left my ex in July after he cheated on me and tried to call it polyamory.” I’ve been there, with a woman I offered a poly relationship up front, knowing we were about to do long distance. She cheated and asked to go poly. I declined. She wasn’t asking for a poly relationship, but a get out of consequences for cheating free card.

I asked W about the drama and she was completely blunt, telling me, “so, basically, we were together for almost seven years.. We met online in [another state] in 2014. In 2016 we moved to be closer to his family. A lot of sh*t happened, [including] family being killed by a local pd, had a kid, etc. Apparently at some point he formed a secret relationship with a person who we had known for at least two years, and was supposed to be both of our friend.” Talk about tea. Do go on!

“This person was coming over and hanging out with us…, and I thought, ‘oh cool, he’s finally making friends’. Turns out he wanted to be poly with this person, but didn’t want to be intimate with me anymore, and basically told me he wanted me to be his live-in child care and housekeeper. I said ‘fu*k that’ and he told me that I was being the opposite of my values (he said he had to have her sleep over at the house with him or he would try to have non consensual interactions with me), etc. I decided to leave.

I had almost no money, his car and my kiddo. I was fortunate enough to find work, safe housemates and a great place to live and bring up my kiddo. I’m poor af and trying to find better work, but at least now I’m getting divorced from him and my kiddo will have at least one stable parent and environment to count on.”

Avaeda

Avaeda (real name) told me with a surprising amount of brutal honesty that, “the last relationships I had [sic] been in I was literally almost killed. Was codependent and struggled to get on my own two feet. Been single for a WHILE but the pandemic allowed me to slow down enough to really enjoy single life and myself. Self love is legit the BEST love (aside from pets, nothing tops the fur babies)  [emphases hers].” It was the first response that really delved into dangerous territory so I asked for clarity.

She offered, again, piercing honesty (trigger warning, violence): “he held a knife to my throat, raped me, and held me hostage for like six hours and threatened to gut my then three month old in front of me. That happened years ago and my last relationship didn’t end up much better. But that’s why I’m enjoying the single life. Self love is the best love. I’ve been single almost four years now to work and focus on myself and my kids. Completely celibate going on two and a half years. Right now [during the pandemic] there are no next steps ????? It’s not something I’m actively pursuing but I’m open to things happening if the right person came along.”

Finally, to close couples with a more robust conversation than we’ve had thus far, we interviewed a local activist, friend, and bada*s who does work across the Front Range, and even travels for actions, as a member of the Colorado Brown Berets. We’ll call her Mad.

“When the pandemic started I was actually married,” she begins the tale. “My marriage was really toxic and, one night, one of our fights got so bad that the next day he moved out. My divorce was finalized in October [2019]”. Relationships – even the potential – have “changed a lot over the last year. I kinda jumped into a monogamous relationship too fast (Summer 2020) and that lasted a couple months. Since then I’ve been in flirtations with a few people; but I have a follow through issue I’m trying to work through. It’s been really hard to navigate a dating path, especially while trying to avoid mistakes of my past. I also really am working on a goal of being polyamorous. It seems to make the most sense, but admittedly, I’ve been known to have a jealous streak so I’m working through that first lol.”

I asked Mad, what does love mean for you? She says that, “the pandemic has given me a lot of time to reflect on love, and that’s how I came to believe polyamory makes more sense than monogamy. Love for me means feeling care and admiration for someone in your whole mind (and body, if it’s romantic love). It comes with so many different expressions, like from good morning texts to falling asleep together to holding space for one another, that it makes sense to me to share it with more than one person. My ideas of love from the start of the pandemic up until now have changed almost 180 degrees in terms of being really forgiving of the human condition, too, both with others and myself.”

Mad deserves love. I realized that from our interactions, and from our conversation where she was feeling blue wondering if she’d ever find it. I can understand ‘cause I feel the same way about my own love life. I asked her if she’s dating now? She’s not.

“I’m not actively dating,” she tells me, actively being the operative word. “Sometimes I get butterflies, but I really don’t leave my house except for activism and trips, which aren’t good conditions to meet someone to start dating lol. (It’s important that who I date is active in their community, but I mean activism not being a good place to meet people, because that’s the last thing on my mind at protest, ya know?) Also, I’m unsure that I’m ready to get back out there, which is probably a sign that I’m not. I love having a crush, because it’s so safe. It’s like all of the pros of dating, but none of the pressure.”

And finally, Mad, what’s your plan for love – whether finding or keeping what you have – going forward?

“I’m very open to the possibility of finding love. I’m just trying to do self work in the meantime, so that when it happens, I’m ready.”

Next up: Couples, Recently Coupled, and Married

In this section we look at a few friends that got together during the pandemic, as well as those that have been together – dating or married – and are faithfully carrying on. We’ll begin internationally because, first, that angle is fun and as yet unexplored and, second, it’s one of only three men who replied (all of whom are in this category). Leave it to the women to be emotionally vulnerable and honest about love in the time of COVID.

Pim (right) with his partner

Pim (real name) is a friend I met in Utrecht, NL, while living abroad in Europe. He and I met in a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) class. A great guy, he became a wonderful international friend as I settled back into America in 2016 and he went on to do English language work in Ecuador and Colombia. He invited me down to Colombia when he was there, and I almost went if not for this job at Yellow Scene.

He tells me, in the vein of Hollywood meets unrequited love facing insurmountable odds as global catastrophes bear down, romance novel type drama that, “I met my girlfriend a couple of years ago at a party in Ecuador. We were both in a relationship but we clicked and became friends. I left the country for a job in Colombia but after two years I was back in Ecuador and we got together. But family matters intervened and I went back to The Netherlands for a while. We met up for New Year in Istanbul and made plans to live together in Spain or Greece or wherever. Then COVID hit us: borders closed, jobs disappeared and hope became a lifeline for our relationship. Europe closed up but I found a job in Cuenca, Ecuador, permitting me to leave, finally. Since December we are together again, taking care of each other and determined to stay together til the end of times.” If anything in these pages gives you hope, let it be this. And this is possible here in Colorado, too, given the amount of people that move here.

R used to work at a strip club and we became friends. She’s braided my hair and we’ve gone out to party. I know her boyfriend. She was crystal clear: “My bae and I opened up our relationship to keep it spicy.” Ok, and what happened, I asked her. Well, she tells me, “we’ve been a couple for just over five years and we’ve been struggling during the pandemic. We’re both ‘essential’ so we’ve been working through this mess and our schedules don’t line up anymore. So we’ve adopted a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy. He still hasn’t gotten laid though and my DMs are overflowing with simps.”

AR told me that she’s, “in an open relationship but haven’t had any new lovers since the pandemic because I’ve been taking COVID really seriously and don’t want to expose them and their other partner to more people. But a previous lover and close friend from California just moved into my house and it’s TENSE.” How is it tense, AR? Let us know. We’re crawling with anticipation. “It’s tense,” she tells me, “because we both wanna be intimate but they moved in more long term and that sounds too complicated for me. I didn’t cut anyone off because of the pandemic, all of my other lovers besides my partner live in other states and we haven’t had an opportunity for a safe visit unfortunately. One day soon I think it will be okay to do, but it’s mostly been my comfort level restricting that with how big the pod is.”

Safety first is something I can support. Remember early in the article where I cut off a threesome pod because members didn’t take my health seriously enough. Interestingly, the third person we brought into that specific situation has reached out, as recently as the time of this writing, to get back in a bed with me. I think I’ll hold off and see what else is out there.

Jessica and Nick

Jessica and Nick (real names) have been very upfront about relationship struggles. Jessica often posts on her well-followed Facebook profile about their stresses, their ups and downs, their therapy sessions. She offers a hopeful look at what the pandemic can bring to a struggling couple, saying, “As soon as COVID hit, I joked to my friends, ‘this will either result in divorce or help Nick and me work through our issues.’ Happily, it’s the latter and while not everything is fixed, we are in a much better place than we were at the beginning of 2020.” Don’t you love the honesty? That’s how love survives.

“I don’t know that we’re going to make it – f o r e v e r – but where I was thinking, ‘this relationship may be over,’ I now think, “this is a rich and strong relationship that still has potential.”

I asked for more info because it felt like a lot to unpack. She tells me, “We both have jobs that require us to be out of the house, so it’s easy to get disconnected and avoid fully resolving conflicts. Being in the house all the time has given us time to connect daily and doesn’t allow us to avoid resolving issues.” It reminds me of the old adage to never go to bed angry.

But what issues are at the fore? “Where to start? Hahaha. Issues range from your basic development as people, overcoming past trauma, hurts & habits, to raising kids & over the last three years, helping our kid survive deep personal trauma and abuse, which has led to suicidality and multiple hospitalizations.”

Love survives, I would say, especially in dark times. It must. Indeed, she says, “We are okay. We are all still alive – which is a miracle. COVID has given us time to be together, to be here for each other, and to take care of each other. I think we see each other differently than before and have a deeper appreciation.”

AC tells me the same thing as JC, that the pandemic has helped. “My wife and I are stronger than ever and so grateful we are going through this with each other. And turns out more time together allowed me to move quickly through issues of trust I didn’t even know I had and become even more vulnerable, connected, and in love with her.”

“I’ve done so much work on myself,” she says. “All I can literally see is that it was more time together. I’m guessing I had trust issues from past trauma, but I didn’t even recognize I did until I felt myself open up in ways I hadn’t before with her. It was all out of my view and consciousness. Our commitment to each other was solid from the start – we actively work on us, but this was on another level. We both just kept showing up for each other. And she’s so good at loving me for me, it’s almost unbelievable. Luck, work, reflection, commitment.”

AM is a local lawyer. She is excited about love, having found someone during the pandemic. How? “My partner and I met on Tinder during the pandemic a couple months after I left a violent DV relationship beginning of last year. We did the virtual contact until we felt ‘ok this could be serious let’s meet in person’ and we have been essentially inseparable ever since (in a healthy way, lol). He has supported me through three surgeries last year on top of the baggage I’m working through. I can’t help but wonder if the lockdown helped our relationship in two ways. First in establishing a real connection before meeting in person, and second in the fact that quarantining with someone can ramp up a relationship – for us in a good way. I couldn’t be luckier or happier that it worked out the way it did.”

The first three months [of the pandemic I] had two weeks of threesomes with five women, alternating…

Coleen and Matthew

We’ll end couples with Matthew and Coleen. Coleen works at a law firm and Matthew is the National Sales Director for CO Lift Hemp Company. I knew him before that. He’s instrumental in a lot of projects I spearhead, including our Everyone Deserves Tacos events to feed the unhoused across the Front Range. Matthew opens up with a lighthearted, if seriously interesting, origin story, saying, “The first three months [of the pandemic I] had two weeks of threesomes with five women, alternating who wasn’t working and whatnot. [Then I] joined the Denver 20s/30s activities group on FB, [went to an event and] walked behind Coleen climbing a mountain… them pink shorts hit. A couple of socially distant activities and meetings later, we started doing a thang!”

And that “thang” continues. Coleen is clear that, “I support all of this! Crazy fun sex is great. I was in a S/D (sub/dom) relationship for a bit and it was fun but not what I really needed in my life, so I went out to look for something more and found it.” She explains that she, “took some time to cultivate some friendships and was working on myself by joining a FB group. Wasn’t looking for anything but went on a couple dates with a few people. They didn’t work out but I got a couple of friends out of it. Then I went on a hike and a few casual events and kept telling Matt no for about a month or two. He was very persistent but respectful so eventually I came around and we are still together”.

Determination being the key to the story, we love that they found love.

That’s it, folks. Love has, is, and will continue to find a way. For those who’ve lost love, we hope you hold out hope because love will find you when you’re ready. For those who are avoiding it, may your time alone be a time of growth and fulfilled individual passion. For the couples – both ongoing and newly found – may your love grow and the horniest (I mean lovingest) holiday be one of fondness and closeness. For the married couples, we wish you bliss, contentment, and the right amount of space to navigate.

The post Love in the Time of Corona | Single Files appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Dating is hard. It requires effort, and small talk; it requires maneuvering weird social norms and mannerisms while communicating effectively and building a healthy and genuine bond with another person. What better place to do so than going out… and into an environment where trust is key, good decision making is a must, and natural beauty is plentiful. In the era of adventure buddies and instagram explorers, it’s time to get with it and get outside. Boulder may be a bubble of Lululemon, Patagonia, and Arcteryx, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t actually getting outside. Despite the hype, people are exploring the outdoor world more and more. Sure, some of it is due to social media, but a lot of it is an understanding of nature’s profound ability to affect our bodies and our mental health. If you live in Boulder, you’ve definitely been outside and, even more likely, you’ve probably done something outdoorsy. And perhaps you may be dating. We’re here to bring those two together to provide you the best day hikes and weekend trips for a date. Whether it’s your first, your last, or somewhere in between, the mountains are calling, and you two (or three) must go.

1.Mt. Sanitas

Boulder is home to some of the best hiking around and a fantastic place for an outdoorsy date. Up the road at the base of the foothills on Mapleton lies the trailhead for Mt. Sanitas, a 3.1 mile loop that can also be done as an out and back. Along the way you’ll catch beautiful glimpses of the greater Boulder area as you make your way towards the summit. With a steep start, you will eventually find some more even terrain towards the middle upon which you can casually traverse amongst the pines and wildflowers (depending on the season.) If you’re lucky there are several deer that are known to hang around the area. At the top you’re graced by an amazing vista of the CU campus, the Flatirons, the extensive plateau that stretches to the east, and the continuing flow of foothills to the North. Bring a lunch, drink plenty of water, and embrace one of Boulder’s best hikes.

2. Chautauqua / Flatirons

We know it, you know it, and most of us love it. Yes, it can get incredibly busy, but there are plenty of spots to feel lightyears away from the doldrums of society. Chatauqua is a beautiful place for a date. Bring a picnic, explore the Flatirons, stroll along the more mellow terrain, or take in all the spectacular views of the foothills and the wildflowers that gently cover them. The best, obviously, is to get yourself up that first or second flat iron. 2.6 miles and 1,400 ft gain. Yeah, it’s a decent amount of elevation gain, but it’s famous for a reason. It’s the quintessential Boulder hike. The view at the top only adds to, if not obliterates, the majesty that you experience day after day staring up at them. Much of the hikes are on small single track that winds its way up and around each formation. On occasion, you can get so close to the actual Flatiron that you might even be able to see some climbers making their way up a more ‘direct’ route.

3. Royal Arch

At 4 miles and 1,492ft of gain this is a moderately trafficked single track and a perfect experience to one of Boulder’s most coveted natural formation (besides the Flatirons of course). This out-and-back gives you a chance to mingle among the trees, the birds, and the bees. The trailhead is at Chautauqua and runs south along the foothills past the third flatiron and over Sentinel Pass. Drink some water and gaze out over Boulder and NCAR, this area is known for its Bouldering and climbing so be on the lookout for climbers as you continue on the final approach to the arch. The area has tons of other trails so it’s possible to combine them along with this hike if four miles just isn’t enough for you. It’s possible to include the first and second flatiron in your hike if you’re feeling especially motivated. Royal Arch is great all year round, just bring the proper equipment in case of ice or snow. A spectacular natural arch awaits you as you and your date make your way onto an adventure all your own.

4. South Peak

This is a big one. 7.9 miles and 2,913ft of gain, which is about 750 ft each mile. It’s decent, and most definitely worth it. Start your hike south of Boulder at the trailhead for Townee Trail. Follow Townee until it meets with Shadow Canyon Trail, which you’ll follow to the top. Up, Up, Up, some more and up, up, and up some more you’ll go. No matter the weather, the hike is possible, but even in the hot summer months the canyon you follow will keep you cool as you stairmaster your way up towards the saddle between Bear Peak and South Peak. It’s definitely a workout, but that doesn’t mean you and your date won’t have a good time. Bring some snacks, drink a lot of water, read poetry to one another while you lingerly stare into the sublime abyss of nature’s perfect chaos of trees, earth, and low lying plants, bushes, and vines, and surrender to the kickass sensation of peak bagging. Once you reach the saddle you’ll hang left and make your way to the top of South Peak. If you want to do Bear Peak instead, hang right. The very top is a rock field that requires some technical hiking. The summit presents you with views West into the Rockies, east over the plains, Bear peak to the north, and Golden to the south. An absolute local beast right there for the taking.

5. Brainard Lake

Just outside of Boulder up Left Hand Canyon is Ward. And just outside of Ward is Brainard Lake Recreation Area in which lies, as you may have already guessed, Brainard Lake. The hike out to the lake is absolutely wonderful at any time of year. Whether you are snowshoeing, walking, running, or sauntering around in proper John Muir style, you are certain to find solitude, beauty, and inspiration amongst the higher altitude forests that surround you. The snowshoe trail starts and ends at the Brainard Gateway Trailhead and comes in at 4.8 miles. It is possible to drive all the way to Brainard lake depending on snow and start a different hike from there. The entire area all the way West to Granby lake is littered with hikes and lakes to explore. Everything from day hikes to multi-day trips are found throughout the area. Brainard Lake, however, is a great option for a winter snowshoeing trip. If you don’t own a pair, you can rent them from a local outdoor shop. What would be better than a date to a Colorado winter wonderland as you and your date slowly make your way through stunning beauty only to come up on a picturesque mountain lake surrounded by the romantic high peaks of the Rockies?

6. Chasm Lake

Rocky Mountain National Park. It’s right there, a mere hour drive from Boulder to Estes Park. Estes Park, a date all its own, has plenty to explore and provide for pre- and post-hike activities. Nearby is the gateway to RMNP where the real hike starts. Chasm Lake is a badass 8.5 mile hike with 2,500ft elevation gain and a max altitude of 11,823 ft. This is definitely one of the most strenuous hikes but one well worth it. A heavily trafficked route (it is a national park after all) leads you way up to the high altitude lake. At the lake you’ll see the stunning Diamond face of Longs peak towering above you. More than 2,400 ft of solid rock, the Diamond is a humbling experience of sheer natural power. Although both Longs and Mount Lady Washington are nearby, they both add considerably more effort and danger to a hike. Chasm Lake is definitely a wonder all its own within Colorado. A strenuous hike that will certainly provide plenty of awe to fulfill desire and stimulate conversation.

7. Mt. Sneffels

This is a difficult hike, so remember to use proper gear, do proper research, and practice good outdoor skills. Located in the San Juans, this 14er is rated an easy Class 3, 6 mile out and back with 2,900 ft of gain. It’s far away (six hour drive to be exact) but it is 100 percent worth it. Use the drive to expand your understanding of one another, share your best playlists, embrace a little awkward silence, and take in the sights of the oft dangerous I-70 corridor. Mt. Sneffels is most easily accessed through Ouray, Colorado, a picturesque town tucked into an isolated valley deep within the towering spikes of the San Juans. A great place to stock up before or replenish after, Ouray is a really spectacular place to explore together (we visited Ouray on a winter travel loop recently, so check that article out at YellowScene.com). Your hike starts at 4-6am from the first trailhead in Yankee Boy Basin 9.5 miles outside of Ouray. The long dirt road becomes increasingly more hairy as you make your way from 7,792 ft to 11,350 ft. so having all-wheel-drive or 4×4 is recommended. It is possible to get to an even higher trailhead at 12,460ft but a high clearance vehicle with 4×4 is required – you’ll be rolling over boulders getting up there. As you start your hike, headlamps on, enough water for the entirety of the trip, and food aplenty, the cool crisp air tingles against your face as your body begins to heat up by the exertion required to hike at such altitude. Small lakes, a glacier, wildflower galore, and absolutely stunning views of the great Yankee Boy Basin will lie before you as you haul yourself up and up towards the looming beast you’re about to bag. From the second and higher up trailhead, it’s a mild traverse across a rock field to the base of the rockslide that leads you to the saddle just below the summit. Helmets are recommended and starting early is key. The rockslide is loose and dangerous and if you hit it late, when others are coming down, you’ll be dogging rock bullets the size of oranges. Bring a helmet. If you don’t have one, rent one from one of the guide companies in Ouray. Scrambling your way up the side is hard work but the views only get better. To your left a second more technical route makes its way to the summit via the Southwest Ridge. Below you, people slowly make their way up and a growing vista of beauty extending out behind them. Then, like it ain’t no thang, you’ve done it, you’re at the saddle. Drink some water, congratulate one another, take in the first views of the north and keep hauling. The last bit is up a narrow chute to the crux, where you jump and squeeze yourself through a little hole in the wall and emerge at the base of a small climb to the summit. Then, after all your work, you’re there. You, your date, some other similar minded people, and the local marmot, gather together surrounded by absolute expansive beauty at 14,150ft. In all directions, peaks and valleys extend endlessly as though you’re standing at the height of existence itself gazing upon the mighty San Juans.

8. Great Sand Dunes National Park

There are sand dunes in Colorado. Massive Sand Dunes. Or should we say Great Sand Dunes? Roughly four hours south of Boulder, lies another one of Colorado’s National Parks, Great Sand Dunes National Park. Another long drive that will need to be incorporated into an overnight trip, the sand dunes offer an adventure all their own. It’s definitely hard hiking in deep sand but perhaps that just means you won’t have to go as far. With a wonderful little visitor center, the hike starts with a short jaunt across a flat river bed to the base of the dunes. From there, it’s all fair game. Go where you wish, just don’t get lost. If you do, head south to the visitor center? Don’t know where south is? Get high and hope you find sight of civilization. In all seriousness, don’t go unprepared, and make sure you know how to stay safe. The dunes are a conglomerate of deep pits, long spines, high peaks, and an incredible amount of sand. Our editor did a flight over the park with the Sierra Club to see where the Trump administration planned to do oil drilling (read online) and he confirms it’s absolutely stunning and massive.

You can hike around and explore, you can jump, run, slide, and you can even snowboard or ski down one of the many slopes. Bring a picnic, take in the vast valley that surrounds the dunes to the west, and look up at the peaks that cradle them to the east. Mt. Blanca is ancient and sacred to the native population, specifically the Dine Nation. When you’re tired and done and ready to head out, you probably don’t want to drive all the way back to Boulder so check out the nearby town of Del Norte. Although it’s a straight shot west for about an hour, it won’t add much time to your trip back. Instead of taking the I-25 back up as you probably will have taken it down, you can take the mountain roads back through Salida and then either up to the I-70 corridor or east along the 285. It’ll take about four hours to get back to Boulder. Why go to Del Norte? Well, it’s home to Three Barrel Brewing. A seemingly odd placement for a brewery of its caliber, Three Barrel has made a name for itself in the tiny town in the south of Colorado far from the hustle and bustle of summit county, denver, or grand junction. Serving up delicious pizza and good beer by kind hearted people, it’s definitely worth a visit.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re just getting to know one another or you’ve been married for fifty years dating is an integral part of a relationship. It’s the time and space to take one another out into the world and spend dedicated time together, to get to know each other (again), to figure out what is currently exciting the other, and to just say, ‘hey you’re great and I want to be with you’. We get it, bars and restaurants are the thing to do; we’re just here to say that hiking is cool, too. Getting out in nature is healthy, it brings people together, it pushes our boundaries and develops trust. It’s romantic, and beautiful, it’s primal, it’s vast, and it’s the absolutely perfect environment for two lovers to come together and ponder the world together.

The post Love Trek: Epic Hikes for Elevated Romance appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Mississippi Fried Catfish

Leenies Cafe – Lafayette

Leenies might have recently changed location, but the quality of the food has remained top-notch. Good old Southern hospitality pours out of the waitresses from the second you walk through the door, and then the menu offers enough New Orleans-style delights so as to actually be a bit of a problem. We plumped for the Mississippi fried catfish, and it was an inspired decision. The catfish is covered in a thick cornmeal coating but isn’t at all greasy or over-cooked (an easy mistake to make with fish), and the accompanying hush puppies are crispy and tasty, seasoned beautifully. The menu also has Southern standards like shrimp creole, red beans & rice, and assorted po’ boys. Leenies offers a little taste of New Orleans in Lafayette, and ticks all the right boxes.

Lobster Mac & Cheese

4580 – Boulder

Yum. There isn’t much more to say. This dish—which you’ll recognize by the lightly golden-crusted top in a delicate dish—is the best of seafood and mac & cheese rolled into one. Dare to let your spoon break the surface and the bubbly contents hit you first in wafts of cheddar and gruyere. Once the (fresh) Maine lobster meets with your tongue, it, along with the shallots and panko breadcrumbs, go ahead and finish convincing your stomach that it will never know anything more richly delicious. With its lunchtime affordability and all the time availability, there’s no need to make your way northeast for lobster; everything you could ever need is officially here in Boulder County.

Mole

La Botana – Thornton

The words “chocolate” and “chicken” don’t seem like they should go together except perhaps around Easter) but a dish called mole will change that perception. Mole is a complicated sauce made of peppers, spices, and cocoa, the key ingredient in chocolate, and La Botana does mole extremely well. Served over tender chicken with traditional rice and beans, and eaten with warm flour tortillas or fresh homemade corn on Saturdays and Sundays (call for times/dates), La Botana’s mole is a meal that should not be missed.

Breakfast Pupusas Plate

Bistro 503 – Lafayette

Pupusas might not sound like the most obvious choice for a breakfast dish, but Bistro 503 have turned into Salvadorian classic into an early morning (or brunch) delight. Two thick pupusas are stuffed with pecan smoked bacon, ham and Italian sausage, then a healthy portion of pepper jack cheese. The whole thing is topped with two eggs, sliced avocados and salsa. The dish is that perfect combination of firm and gooey, with the egg and salsa basically dripping over everything else. It’s a potent combination. Elsewhere on the menu, the sweet plantain – caramelized and served with beans, eggs and sour cream, are incredible too.

Pulled Pork with Sweet Potato Casserole and Mac & Cheese

Georgia Boys – Longmont

Georgia Boys is one of those great little secrets that the locals swear by. The Shack (as it is known) is surrounded by industrial buildings, off the Main Street drag. In fact, when our GPS was directing us to it and there was only 450 feet left, we seriously thought that it had made a mistake. But no, the building  sits there, patrons enjoying the patio. The service is cafeteria style, but that’s nothing to complain about. We went for the “one meat plate,” and chose pulled pork, with sides of sweet potato casserole and mac & cheese. The meat is delicious; smokey and juicy, and complimented by the sweet original BBQ sauce. The mac & cheese is rich and creamy, and the sweet potato casserole is packed with pecans. Even the Texas toast is thick and hot. The kitchen is open, and you can see the care and attention that the  boys lavish on their meat.

Brewers Burger

The Sink – Boulder

Do you want a foofy burger, delicately sat on a bed of something with delicate hints of something else? Move along. The Sink is a dive bar in the classic sense (graffiti over everything), and the burgers are appropriately big and messy. The Brewers Burger is a heart-threatening, messy gem – a hand-pattied slab of Angus beef decorated with caramelized ale onions, applewood smoked bacon and a gloriously drippy pale ale cheese sauce. Yes, it looks a little like roadkill but, damn, it tastes divine.  Order it cooked rare-to-medium – that burst of meat juice and cheese sauce on the first bite will haunt your dreams. Take some Cajun-spiced fries on the side and a cold Prost Pils in-between bites, and you have yourself a serious meal. Incidentally, the pizzas that we saw emerging from the kitchen looked awesome too.

Choripan

Rincon Argentino – Boulder

While the empanadas seem to be the most popular dish at his canteen-style local favorite (and there is plenty of choice when it comes to that South American classic), a sandwich layered with delicious chorizo (Argentinian sausage), plus lettuce, tomato and a really vibrant and tangy chimichurri sauce seemed like a winner to us, and we were not wrong. Everything about this sandwich, from the crusty bread to the crisp salad, was very right, but it’s all about the meat here. Gamey with just a slight bite, the choripan makes for an ideal lunch.

Grilled Palisade Peach

Sugarbeet – Longmont

Some foods are automatically linked with the grill—burgers, hot dogs, ribs, even eggplant. But peaches? These delicate, juicy spheres of summer deliciousness are one of the last foods that seem likely to be charbroiled, yet at Sugarbeet that is exactly what Chef Witherspoon does in this divine “beginning,” as they’re called (actually appetizers). Tender and succulent, the halved peaches bear faint grill marks beneath lavender ricotta, freshly-picked mint and chili oil that coat and run over the top. Just when you didn’t think a Palisade peach could get better, it does—so much so that you might not move beyond this first course.

The post Top 25 Ethnic Dishes We Love: The Americas appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Steamed Wild Maine Mussels

Volta – Boulder

We can’t say for sure that the mussels served at Volta swam as far as they could and then caught a cab the rest of the way to Boulder, but they sure as hell taste fresh enough to imagine that could be the case. Cooked perfectly to allow the taste and texture of the shellfish to breathe over the butter and white wine sauce with red onions and fennel, these babies are served with delicious grilled bread. It’s a simple but very effective dish, delicate and light. To be honest, we could have eaten to orders.

Chicken Mushroom Pie

The Burns – Broomfield 

Full disclosure – Yellow Scene‘s associate editor is English, and so he really knows British food. So you can believe us when we say that the chicken mushroom pie is delicious. Flaky pasty covers a thick and creamy mushroom sauce that is seasoned beautifully. It’s not subtle, but it’s hearty and not unlike the pies served in pubs in Britain. We recommend that you ask for a side of the chip shop-style curry sauce to dip the chips (fries to you Americans) in. In addition, the mini Cornish pasties, filled with chunks of beef and potato, make for an excellent appetizer.

Veal Picatta
Carelli’s – Boulder

Carelli’s has gone from being a sandwich shop two decades ago to one of Boulder’s best-loved and swankiest Italian eateries. Despite it’s cool-factor, it doesn’t always get the attention that it deserves. We recommend the real deal veal picatta with plenty of capers in rich lemon butter sauce, risotto funghi made with local wild mushrooms and white wine, fettucine alfredo – rich and creamy and scented with nutmeg, blue corn crepe with shredded chicken and arugula, and baked jumbo shells stuffed with spinach and cheese and baked with marinara. Don’t skip dessert, they are innovative and just begging to be shared. And this being Boulder, they’ve got a gluten-free menu, too.

Golabki

Cracovia – Westminster

Polish food hasn’t always had the best of reputations; it’s seen by many as little mort than “meat and potatoes” food – simple and largely tasteless. This is unfair, although there are plenty of Polish restaurants out there that do nothing to dispel the myth. Cracovia isn’t one of these. While it adds a little bit of small print to the outside sign by billing itself as “Polish-American,” the food is fairly authentic and extremely tasty. Golabki is stuffed cabbage, a Polish staple, and here the sausage meat is smooth and knuckle-free, and the cabbage isn’t over-cooked. The magic is in the mushroom sauce (which we recommend over the tomato option). Rich and slightly peppery, it brings the whole dish to life. For desert, the paczki (Polish donuts) are delicious but not for the health-conscious.

Escargot L’Atelier

L’Atelier – Boulder

OK, so we wanted to eat light at a French restaurant but also try something fundamentally French. The escargot is the obvious choice. At this point, the world at large should have gotten over the fact that the  escargot is a variety of snail, not least because these little beauties are delicious. Six snails are served with a green herb butter garlic and gorgonzola on a little twist of mashed potato, and each one is a wonderful combination of textures and tastes. The bold gorgonzola and vibrant green herb butter compliment the meaty escargot so well, it’s like there’s an edible garden in your mouth. Because there kind of is.

Calamari Fritti

The Med – Boulder

Sometimes, the most simple dishes are the best. Many great chefs, including plenty in Boulder County, will tell you that there are few things more enjoyable than calamari cooked briefly with a little garlic and lemon juice. The Med know this, and their take on the dish is pretty much exactly that. Soft and mildly fishy, the dish is only lightly seasoned to allow the taste of the calamari to be overriding. They do serve it with a marinara dipping sauce, but we advise you to use it sparingly, if at all.

Tay’s Pizza

Pizzeria da Lupo – Boulder

After the first bite of their famous Tay’s, it’s obvious why chef Jim Cohen, also of the Empire Lounge, is a Jim Beard nominee. Cooked in a traditional style with a wood-fired oven, this pizza was covered in fresh sausage, meats and classic Italian cheeses. Balanced by a crispy hand-tossed crust, the flavors come together to deliver moist—but not soggy—bites that beg for a big glass of red wine. The garlic, pepperoni and Calabrian chiles turn up the heat and spice, but gobs of fresh ricotta to put that fire right out. Your hand might turn black from the oven ash on the bottom of the crust, but this authentic hallmark is a small price to pay.

Pretzel

Bohemian Biergarten – Boulder

This place can be described in one word: homemade. Everything—from the sausage and sauerkraut to the brawny wooden tables—is crafted in-house. And while the sausages and cheese trays look wonderful, all that is really required to recreate your own Oktoberfest or feel like you belong on a Viking ship, is one of the homemade pretzels, and maybe (probably) one of the dunkel-style beers. Unlike the store-bought, freezer-kept rubbery versions that I happily ate for snacks in middle school (okay, and sometimes in college), the burly fists of golden dough that are served here might as well be called something entirely different. The crust is satisfying both in look—shiny enough to almost catch your reflection—and crunch; the middle is silky and warm; and the salt teams up with the sinus-clearing mustard to provide all the flavor you could ever need in this world (or so you’ll believe in that moment, at least).

The post Top 25 Ethnic Dishes We Love: Europe appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Thupka

Sherpa’s Adventurers Restaurant – Boulder

Let us sum up what you need to know about Boulder’s Sherpa’s Adventurers restaurant:  the food is delicious, the service is friendly, and if you go before cold weather sets in you can sit outside on their lovely patio to enjoy both the food and service.  The menu includes items traditionally found in Indian restaurants – tikka masalas, aloo gobi, vindaloo – but you really must not miss the Tibetan specialties.  Especially recommended is the thupka.  This steaming, hearty bowl of noodles, rich broth, veggies, comes with your choice of meat.  Be brave, order the yak.  The meat is sweet, tender, and mild and goes perfectly with the thick chewy noodles.  Also recommended:  the Sherpa Stew.  A highly seasoned, flavorful dish of broth, dumplings, vegetables, and choice of meat (again, go for yak) will prepare you for your next mountain climbing adventure.

Beef with Tomatoes

Chez Thuy – Boulder

Vietnamese cuisine has Chinese, Indonesian, Thai, and French influences and that means that there are more flavors to love.  Chez Thuy is the best Vietnamese spot in Boulder County – indeed, it’s beloved in Boulder County thanks to a wonderful menu and, of course, owner Thuy Le herself, a fascinating women who can quickly size you up and offer dish recommendations.  Some favorite entrees are beef with tomatoes.  This dish is deceptively simple and so delicious it sometimes shows up in dreams.  In addition, the curry stew is hearty with large wedges of potato, yam, carrot, and meat or tofu in a thick coconut curry.

Warm & Spicy Chocolate Cake

The Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse – Boulder

They might be known for tea—it is in their name—but equally important is what you eat with the tea, and that’s where the Dushanbe Teahouse shines. Enter this dessert plate; with a modest chocolate cake turret and side of avocado ice cream (you read that right), the only tough part of the visit is deciding which of the many teas to pair it with. The cake is more airy than most, resembling its molten lava cousin and making it that much harder to slow down on the devouring. Though the chocolate flavor is solid, there is a subtle buzz of cinnamon and other spices (cardamom, perhaps?) that runs throughout. The spice is reinforced by a layer of chile caramel sauce upon which the cake and ice cream sit. And while vanilla ice cream normally suffices for most chocolate cakes, this isn’t most cakes. Instead, the avocado is rich, creamy and most importantly, cool, as it balances the bit of heat from the cake. Whatever guacamole flavor you might be wary of, don’t be; it’s much closer to a green tea taste with the way it refreshes the whole mouth.

Chef’s Choice Biryani

Flavor of India – Longmont

Rice may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Indian food, but when the rice is the flavorful basmati strain and it is woven with meat and spices into the collection of elaborate dishes known as biryanis, created during the Mogul Raj, it is not just a staple but an experience. Flavor of India in Longmont offers biryanis in several varieties – chicken, pork, lamb and shrimp. We recommend you combine them all in the guise of the Chef’s Choice Biriyani.

Goong Ob Woon Sen

Busaba Thai – Louisville

While the classic dishes like pad thai look nice enough, on a big plate garnished with shredded carrot and beet, we couldn’t resist something a little off of the beaten path. The menu describes the dish as “steamed bean thread noodles with shrimp, bacon, garlic, ginger and cilantro, in special soy blend,” and that’s exactly what you get. Its served in a bowl, so it’s fairly light, and the noodles are glassy and perfectly sticky. Large, fresh shrimp and slices of salty bacon are complimented by a whole garlic clove and a sliver of ginger. It looks and tastes a little like home-cooking, and that’s because the proprietors are a family from Thailand, using mom’s old recipes. Brilliant.

Aunt Tai’s Curry Chicken

Spice China -Louisville

The first thing you’ll notice here (besides the floor to ceiling murals depicting Chinese village life) is the enormous book that is their menu, including an impressive Shanghai section. Let us save you the trouble; order Aunt Tai’s Curry Chicken. Whoever Aunt Tai is, we love her for this warm dish that flirts with having a stew-like consistency, yet leaves you wanting more, even on a 90 degree day. The not-too-sweet coconut curry sauce binds everything together and sticks to soft chicken, chopped carrots, bell peppers and onions. It’s a dish that satisfies a hankering for sweet and sour, but isn’t the ordinary sesame chicken in a white carton that you might expect to find along the Front Range. (You can still get a white carton to-go if you really want, though.)

Shoyu Ramen

Sushi Tora – Boulder

Sushi may be the most iconic of Japanese menu offerings and it is the item from which Sushi Tora draws its name, but sushi is far from the whole of the cuisine, and while Sushi Tora’s sushi is remarkable, we are recommending a different Japanese dish. You will have to show up on Saturday or Sunday between 11:30 to 2:00 to get it but Sushi Tora’s ramen is worth the effort. The dish is a soup of chinese style noodles in a lighter shoyu broth, with bamboo shoots, green onions, fish cakes, soft boiled eggs, and roasted pork, and it’s delicious.

Dosa

Tiffins India Cafe – Boulder

What’s in a name?  Tiffin is an Indian English word meaning a small meal, often referring to lunch or the box that contains the lunch.  In this case the name is somewhat misleading – these meals aren’t small, the portions are large and filling.  Start with samosa chat.  Two richly seasoned samosas come smothered with chick peas in a slightly sweet, spicy sauce with crunchy noodles sprinkled on top.  One bite gets you flaky pastry, tender potato, mealy chick pea, sweet cinnamon, tangy cilantro, and spicy red chili.  Follow this with a dosa.  Imagine a thin, crispy, buttery crepe made of rice and lentil flour wrapped around a spicy potato filling.  Now imagine it is a foot long and four inches across.  This impressive dish comes with chutneys for dipping and a side of sambar.  Finish off your meal with cardamom-laced, cream-rich carrot halva.  You will feel, for a moment, like you have traveled far from home.

Ma Ma’s Chicken Soup Noodle

Zoe Ma Ma – Boulder

Zoe Ma Ma serves food like Mom makes – if Mom is from China.  Luckily for all of us, even those without a Chinese mother, that food is simple, filling, healthily made, inexpensive, and available in downtown Boulder.  It being Mom-style food, you really must try the Ma Ma’s Chicken Soup Noodle.  You will get a bowl filled with chicken broth, shredded all-natural chicken, vegetables, and rice noodles and you will feel like, for that moment anyway, everything is right with the world.  Also notable is the Sunday/Monday/Tuesday special – Sichuan Braised Beef Noodle.  It just sounds good, and the taste follows through.  It’s a dish rarely found on American Chinese menus and alone is worth the visit.  It’s a saucy, soupy, brothy, spicy, dish loaded with thick noodles and chunks of tender meat.  When you are offered cilantro and scallions to finish the dishes, by all means say yes.

The post Top 25 Ethnic Dishes We Love: Asia appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Openings/Closings

Happy closed its doors and reopened as simply The Bitter Bar. According to a release, the bar will serve the same cocktails by the same mixologists, with the addition of “delicious, straight forward, American bar food and decadent, intelligent, well-made desserts.” /Azitra, an Indian restaurant, opened at FlatIron Crossing in Broomfield. /Your Place or Vine, a wine bar offering wines by the glass, craft beers and Mediterranean-inspired small plates opened in Prospect, Longmont. /Another small plates restaurant, Riffs Urban Fare, opened in Boulder in the former Book End Café space on the Pearl Street Mall. /Minglewood opened in east Boulder. The owners describe it as high-end deli during the day and a bar at night.

News

Colorado brewers made a great showing at the Great American Beer Festival, including a win for Upslope Pumpkin Ale, by Upslope Brewing of Boulder. /Café Aion was included in Esquire’s “Where to Eat in Colorado Right Now,” list. /Owners of The Kitchen were lauded by Entrepreneur magazine for their leadership in the farm-to-table movement. /Visit Denver announced that Denver Restaurant Week will remain two weeks long, with the 2012 dates of Feb. 25–March 9.

Best of the Month

Not so much eats as drinks—the Fire in the Sky and Seedy Southpaw cocktails at Amaro in Boulder impressed. Order alongside an excellent cheese or salumi platter, or order up some braised Long Farm pork shoulder with polenta. /Killer crispy tacos at Agave in Boulder. Really, anything with their tortillas is good. /Mouthwatering lamb sag and vegetable biryani at Flavor of India in Longmont. Super-juicy turkey burger at Larkburger in Arvada. /Caramel custard frozen yogurt with a fresh grind of sea salt at Smart Cow in Arvada. /And choco-bliss with a cup of drinking chocolate at Piece, Love and Chocolate in Boulder.

Events

Restaurants are accepting reservations for First Bite Boulder, Nov. 11–19. /Café Aion is offering two more Sunday night wine dinners Nov. 13 and Dec. 18 featuring five courses of tapas paired with wines from Spain, Morocco and the Mediterranean. /Zoe Ma Ma in Boulder will offer the Lucky 8 Dinner, a special eight-course meal limited to eight guests on a monthly basis. The next dinner is November 12.

Have food news? Have a dish pick? Email editorial@yellowscene.com.

The post Eatery News Nov. ’11 appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Creepy Cupcakes
by Genny Fetherson
Piece, Love and Chocolates
805 Pearl St., Boulder, 303.449.4804
Both designs can be made from any cupcake base, with a favorite chocolate frosting and white frosting. The ghost cupcakes are made by using white fondant, which can be easily found at any major craft store in the cake decorating aisle.

Also needed:
1/4 cup of chocolate, melted and put into a small zip-lock bag with the very tip of a corner cut off (a white chocolate bag is optional)
Black jellybeans
Chocolate sprinkles
Mini chocolate chips
Large marshmallows

For spider web cupcake:
Frost the cupcake with white frosting, making the surface fairly smooth. With melted chocolate, make a spiral design starting in the center of the cupcake and circling outward. Immediately draw a toothpick through the pattern, moving from the center to the outer edge. You can make a spider by using a black jellybean (or coffee bean). We covered ours in chocolate and rolled it in sprinkles (to make him hairy!). If you want, make eyes on the spider by using melted white chocolate and legs using dark chocolate.

For ghost cupcake:
Frost the cupcake with either chocolate or white frosting. Place a large marshmallow just behind the center of the cupcake. Roll fondant on a clean, smooth surface (use a bit of vegetable shortening to keep the fondant from sticking). Cut into 4-inch circles. Carefully place one over the marshmallow and sculpt it to create the head and flying body. Add eyes by quickly melting the bottom of a mini chocolate chip and placing it on the ghost’s face, or putting melted chocolate on the bottom of chip to use as glue.

Pulled Candy

by Robin Autorino

Robin Chocolates

237 Collyer St., Longmont, 720.204.8003

Ingredients: (makes about 2 pounds)

2 cups sugar

2 cups corn syrup (honey can be substituted for a very tasty option)

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. extract (your choice; lemon, peppermint, raspberry, almond, anise, etc.)

3 drops food color (totally not needed if you don’t want colors)

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, corn syrup and salt. Stir until sugar is dissolved. With a damp pastry brush, wipe down the sides of the pan.

2. Stop stirring, raise heat to high and cook until the temperature reaches 290 F.

3. Pour syrup onto a marble slab or heatproof, non-stick surface, sprayed with nonstick spray. Using a bench scraper, fold the edges of sugar mass in toward the center.

4. While the candy is hot, add extract and color. Don’t worry if the color is not even, when you start to pull, it will smooth out.

5. When the candy is cool enough to handle, wearing latex gloves—sprayed with nonstick spray—pick up enough candy that you can pull but not so much that it’s hard to handle, start pulling the candy into a rope. Once the rope is formed, fold in half and pull again. Continue this for approximately 10 to 15 minutes or until the candy is opaque and very difficult to pull.

6. Pull into a long rope and cut (spray the scissors) into half-inch pieces.

7. Wrap each piece in wax paper. The candy will keep for 2-3 weeks in a tightly covered container. Do not refrigerate.

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Early man hunts for love

Evolutionary psychologists take the story of Adam and Eve very seriously. Not because they don’t believe Darwin’s evolution is as revolutionary for the field of biology as Newton and Einstein were for physics, but because it asks the most crucial question about what separates us from the animals. Nothing an animal does is immoral because it acts according to its nature, but once the first couple broke God’s commandment and ate of the fruit, they knew the difference between right and wrong, and sin became possible.

Darwin is always used to rationalize bad behavior, from social Darwinism and Ayn Rand’s The Virtue of Selfishness to the philanderer’s excuse that monogamy “goes against nature.” In truth, we are also wired to work together and bond with one mate—for a time, at least. We humans, armed with the knowledge of good and evil, are capable of moral judgment, even if it is, ultimately, for selfish reasons.

So, what was it that gave us the potential to act against our instincts, and do what is right as opposed to what merely spreads our genes? What makes humans capable of altruism: the act of making a personal sacrifice for the benefit of others?
In a word: Love.

Empathy

Biologists have found that generally, the more social an animal is, the more intelligent. This suggests there’s something about close relationships that requires a lot of brainpower.

The problem stems from cooperation. As animals start to gather in herds or hunt in packs, it requires quite a bit of risk to each individual. What’s the incentive to be the first to tackle prey if everyone gets a piece? Why defend when you can be defended? Each wolf would be better off hanging back and enjoying the spoils of those doing all the work, but if no one takes the risk, no one eats. But why on Earth would anyone want to be the hero?

The answer to this conundrum, again, comes from the Bible: the Golden Rule.

If you have extra to spare, you will personally benefit more by sharing—if you can trust them to return the favor when you fall on bad times. To know who to trust and keep track of favors owed requires lots of gray matter—and language, so you can gossip about what that bastard such-and-such did to so-and-so. You also need to be able to punish freeloaders. So it’s do unto others and an eye for an eye.

But freeloading is only one way the selfish can exploit the system: they can lie, cheat, preach one thing and do another, thus encouraging more sacrifice by others while diverting attention from your own selfishness. There’s a reason we despise hypocrites.

To figure out what someone else is up to requires an ability to read people and put yourself in their shoes, or empathize.

What makes this possible is mirror neurons. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, neurophysiologists from the University of Parma in Italy made one of the most important neurological discovery in decades. By using electrodes on macaque monkeys to measure their brain activity during various actions, they found that some of the same neurons fire both when the monkey performed and observed an action such as sticking out their tongue. So to a very real extent, one experiences what others do, particularly humans.

It’s a revolutionary concept. If you can imagine yourself as someone else, you can run simulations in your head and predict the result of sticking your hand in the fire without doing it yourself. Seeing someone dance in pain is enough. Empathy allows us to imitate, learn and speak—we know if a panda “eats shoots and leaves” or “eats, shoots and leaves” because we put things in context.

With empathy, we want to stop someone’s suffering because their suffering is ours.

Meat

Get your mind out of the gutter. We’re not talking about the beefsteak lifting weights at the gym, but the steak you grill in the backyard. On second thought, go ahead and hop your brain back in there because the purpose of this BBQ does, eventually, come down to sex.

All this extra brainpower had a cost as the growth of skulls outpaced female hips. Women started to die in childbirth, and natural selection postponed more mental development until we got outside, increasing the length of child rearing. Our instincts were replaced by education and experience until human children required the longest period of parental attention. Whereas cubs might be hunting within a period of months, human brains don’t fully mature until college.

So, when you’re up against animals pumping out pups by the litter, a lot rides on the succes of every child. Women couldn’t easily hunt, so they created agriculture, education, pottery and basically laid the foundations of human civilization while the men went off with their buddies occasionally spearing shit.
(They even took a form of primitive pornography with them, clay figurines of their ideal woman: exaggerated breasts, ample hips—no head.) And when they came back empty handed, they didn’t pick up after themselves or lift a hand to help out around the hut.

What they did bring back was invaluable: meat. Agriculture gives a consistent supply of food, but the protein and fat of a juicy steak was an invaluable supplement. Men who brought home the bacon quickly learned they could trade this valuable commodity for what they wanted, and women saw their offspring were healthier with a man around to add a little red meat to their diet.

When men figured out that one well-fed youngster might outlive a dozen starving bastards, things changed. Gathering meat became not just a lure, but providing for a family. She provided the veggies, him the protein, and both had healthy, happy offspring.

Cheaters

So, what happened to “spreading the seed”? Don’t get cocky, guys. For years, blood tests at paternity wards have shown that 1 in 10 of those men who think sleeping around is not in a woman’s nature are raising someone else’s kid. (By the way, the bird that lays its eggs in another bird’s nest is a “cuckold”.)
If that weren’t enough to get you tracking your wife’s SUV on the GPS, women are actually genetically wired to ensure they are impregnated by their lover NOT their husband.

As a general rule, you can determine the promiscuity of the females of a species by the size of the males’ testes. For example, the enormous but monogamous gorilla only sports a pair of golf balls, whereas the female chimpanzee, which hands out sexual favors like handshakes in heat, is courted by bow-legged males who look like they’re lugging around a bag of cantaloupe.

So where do human men (ahem) measure up? About average.

It seems if we are hardwired for anything, it is to have a variety of partners and a
faithful spouse waiting at home whom never gets jealous. Since such a person is rare, it is our nature to be in conflict. We all must choose our torment: a wife or husband’s wandering eye, the swinger’s jealousy, the bachelor’s loneliness or player’s fear of getting found out.

It is in our interest to be a player. That’s the selfish thing to do. Yet a recent study published by the Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy suggests 45-55% of married women and 50-60% of married men have strayed at some point in their relationship. High, but still, most are faithful for most of their relationships. Though difficult, almost half manage to remain faithful their entire marriage.

If it’s in our genetic interest to sire many children, or expand your genetic pool by having your beau raise the alpha male’s child, what force, what chemical in our brains is so powerful it could overcome millions of years of evolution dictating we look out for numero uno?

Heroin

Dopamine is the brain’s carrot (more or less), reinforcing good behavior. A lot of animal instinct is about getting our fix. Do what your body thinks it needs—eat, drink, cozy up to the fire on a cold night, find a new way to the watering hole—get a couple of CCs of joy juice.

According to Dr. Helen Fisher, author of Why We Love, romantic love is an addictive drug:
Virtually all “drugs of abuse” affect a single pathway in the brain, the mesolimbic reward system, activated by dopamine. In fact, when neuroscientists Andreas Bartels and Semir Zeki compared the brain scans of their love-stricken subjects with those of men and women who had injected cocaine or opioids, they found that many of the same brain regions became active.

If dopamine is the currency of our motivation, heroin is the counterfeit operation that can flush our brains with cash without having to earn it. No wonder, then, that one bitten by the love bug shows the three classic symptoms of addiction: tolerance, withdrawal and relapse.

One starts casually dating, convinced they can quit any time, but as the addiction takes hold, they become obsessed with maintaining their high, skipping class or risking their jobs to sneak away from work for lunchtime rendezvous to satisfy their craving for constant contact. When the love-junkie is abandoned, they yearn for another hit, and start to demonstrate the symptoms of withdrawal: crying fits, depression, loss of sleep and appetite. And you can relapse: after quitting cold turkey for a few years, a poke on Facebook from an old flame might be all it takes to put you back on the wagon.

Sex puts us at huge risk: the big heads make more women die in child birth, the long rearing times requires a huge investment, the exchange of bodily fluids puts us at risk of disease. To get together at all requires the dopamine equivalent of beer goggles. It appears that this narcotic cocktail our brain releases when we fall for someone includes chemicals specifically designed to impair judgment, amplify someone’s attributes and blind us to their faults.

So what happens when we’re around each other as much as possible, and build up tolerance? Then, another force takes hold: attachment, the bond so deep and enduring we’d be willing to die, kill or even remain married into our grouchy golden years.

Love and War

As our attachments extended further into our families, so did our dependency on the rest of society. Evolution favored selfish groups instead of selfish individuals. As we took on different roles and drew lines in the battle of the sexes, there also started to be a division of labor outside of the immediate family. Man can’t live on bread alone, but he can be a baker—provided there are farmers, blacksmiths and the like to trade with you.

All this interconnectedness and getting along came with a downside. With the concept of “us” comes “them.” To define who is part of our group worth fighting and dying for, we need to determine who is not.
Very few species demonstrate this much specialization. In this respect, humans have more in common with ants than primates. Ants have a queen, workers, farmers and soldiers. That capacity for war is only found in these highly social animals because only a society that interdependent is capable of having a devoted class willing to die for the greater good.

As we expanded our definition of family outward to include cousins, neighbors and state, we also bred nepotism, tribalism and nationalism. From love came hate, our camaraderie bred prejudice, the capacity to choose good requires an option for evil.

And, with love comes jealousy and heartache. In the end, the best summary of all the conflicting drives and emotions of love are found in the book of Genesis. Adam was with Eve when she broke God’s commandment. As Milton interpreted it, Adam must have know the implications, but when faced to choose between his God and his woman, Adam said, “For with thee, certain my resolution is to die,” and ate because damnation was preferable to living without her.

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