Sweet Land of Liberty
by Cleo Tobbi
A mom-and-pop store in Glendora transmutes humble dough into pure, gustatory gold.
"Like many other origin stories, the story of the creation of the doughnut is shrouded in mystery. The inventors of the pastry and the hollow centers that make them famous are still in debate. However, Dutch settler, Captain Hanson Gregory, is typically given credit for adding the hole in the center of a doughnut in 1847. One version mentions how Gregory was annoyed with the traditional oliekoek, meaning “oil cake,” which was typically never cooked all the way through. At an attempt to remedy this problem, Gregory punctured the center of the dough with a tin pepper can from his ship, fried them with their centers missing, and then taught his mother to do the same."
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Little Armenia: Shawarma, Falafel and the Feeling of Home
by Michael Karakash
Falafel...as metaphor.
"It is where Armenian families have their prolonged, talkative dinners. It’s a place where mothers bring their children for an afterschool snack and also where Armenian American businessmen can escape for an hour during their lunch breaks, loosen their ties, slip into a relaxed conversation in their first language and grumble about their stress. It is one of the last surviving connections to their cultural past, consistent and unchanging in the middle of a rapidly evolving L.A. community" |
Obituary of a Medieval Arcade
by Dominique Zamora
Tracing the pleasures and fears of childhood across the map of an Anaheim family fun center.
"Once past the first few holes on any of Camelot's courses, it’s clear they all follow an almost childlike descent into whimsy. Closer to the exit are the more basic obstacles, but further in, guests can find anything from water-traps and loop-de-loops to swinging pendulums and miniaturized castles and moats. Rainbow flower lamps light all the central holes, transforming rolling golf balls into blooming lotuses as their shadows trace along the ground until the balls disappear, clinking away into small metal tins. |
How Long Can They Last?
by Jenny Lyons
A 1920's marathon dance contest at a long-lost grand ballroom on the Santa Monica Pier.
"As these punchy young Americans reveled in the new dance marathon fad, Santa Monica businessman Ed Conliss was raising the walls of the biggest ballroom on the West Coast. Conliss was in the business of providing the public with bright, new beachfront attractions, and the La Monica Ballroom represented his grandest venture yet."
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Where the Wind Blows
by Jennifer Jopson
An early pioneer of the sport of hang gliding keeps a low-profile in Huntington Beach while inspiring others to soar.
"At 16,000 feet the pilot of a white sailplane running parallel to Jerry, a bit below him, warned him of a thunderstorm building up behind him. The pilot dipped a wing in the air to him, and pointed back to the gathering clouds. Jerry acknowledged him with a thumbs up. "
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The Ice Rookie
by Irene Marie Cruz
Someone in your sunny, Orange County neighborhood is training for the Iditarod.
"In the early morning, fresh powder snow lined the ground, brought in by Iditarod volunteers. The vast whiteness made the race appear lush and fresh for the 50,000 spectators. It painted a picture for an audience that only saw the tip of the iceberg, the good parts. In reality, the Iditarod did not involve the smooth elegance that this first event encompassed. In reality, it was treacherous, especially this year. The weather had produced very little snow. The trail of the Iditarod would not be smooth and white. The path would be laced with more jutting rocks and branches and flowing rivers. It would be extremely perilous, life-threatening to both dog and musher."
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Utopia Has a Cost
by Sarah Gray Isenberg
A north San Diego-county deli offers generous helpings of religion on the side.
" The Twelve Tribes practiced the purest form of Christianity. They were a people who walked a solidified path with God, rather than live an amoral life 364 days of the year and then come to terms with their sins on Easter. They purified themselves from the inside out. They spoke openly about everything, they were expressive of their love, they were not afraid to cry, or to communicate anger or sadness.. They farmed what they ate. They spent more time as a family than they did working, and did not have a need to fill an emotional void with material objects. They were not empty like us. They were whole. "
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Chanelle's Hustle
by Shadi Jafari
A girl from Sacramento can't quite explain how she got hooked on the "easy money" of the sex trade.
"Within the span of a month, Chanelle made around $4,000 just working a couple days out of the week. The game sucked her in and wouldn’t let her go. She quickly became addicted to the money and lifestyle that came along with it. She no longer had to cry every month wondering how she was going to pay a certain bill, or why she couldn’t buy any new clothes for months on end. It was a refreshing and amazing feeling to finally be financially secure."
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From Structure to Stage
by Taylor Weik
While the University of California, Irvine is more commonly known for its extensive research facilities and its many bio majors, many forget that it’s also home to some of Southern California’s elite dance crews.
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Jasreen Gupta
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