Communities are defined in so many ways, and in my understanding of being human, communities are vital to our survival and overall wellbeing. I heard a phrase the other day that a locale in India is using for their social policy: “physical distancing, social solidarity,” which feels like a good idea.
This Side of Beets episode is about some people I know and love who are bravely doing their thing in their communities, amidst much chaos and change. With each indie business, I’m sharing a track, too – resulting in our first mini mix!
Here we go…
Public Displays of Affection Pizza – Brooklyn, New York
“So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings” – Caroline Polachek
“So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings” is a summery tune about longing for the object of one’s affection while peeping at the phone and wishing to see them. I’ve been listening to it on repeat and Caroline seems to really be missing some PDA (aren’t we all?!?!?!)
So, Caroline, meet PDA Pizza!
Opened by Michigander, Chef Rob Guimond in 2020, PDA Pizza is crushing it. The shop was a dream of his for a long time and – with support from his rad sis, Emi, and crazy amounts of work – he made it happen. Over the past few months, even though they’re such a new business, PDA has been donating pizzas around NYC, cooking up wood-fired foodles for take out, and spreading some seriously positive vibes.
Dani Antes Art – Chicopee, Massachusetts
“Colors” – Black Panther
“Colors” by the Austin based Black Pumas is a soulful invitation to celebrate diversity, through color. It’s both timeless and extremely relevant to this moment. Funky, loving, and full of all my favorite colors…
Black Pumas, meet Dani Antes Art!
Dani Antes is a watercolor and art magician. She is also a musician, wicked good chef, loving human, and wonderful wife of a another wonderful friend. Dani told me recently that in making art, she feels (for the first time) safe to experiment and if need be, fail, which, to me, means she’s more likely to un-fail. Dani is un-failing so hard that I would call it achieving wonderful things.
Colleen’s of Medford Square – Medford, Massachusetts
“Tender Love” – Mounika. feat. Ocie Elliott
Mounika. is a French musical artist whose sound is unique, chill, and beat driven. He teamed up with folk-duo Ocie Elliot for this track, and it’s tender, strong, gentle, and groovy. Apparently, this track took some extra time to get out, but here it is, full of tender love!
Mounika., meet Colleen’s!
Colleen’s is a classic malt and sandwich shoppe (yes, “shopPE”), owned and operated by one of the cutest husband and wife teams in all the land. When Chef Kolin Burgoyne worked there as a wee lad, he dreamed of one day owning a restaurant just like Colleen’s. It took some twists and turns, but Kolin and his partner in cuteness, Vicki, didn’t rest until they made this vision a reality. And a tenderly loving one where The Reverb Junkie is often heard coming from the stereo system…?
SoWa Mosaics – Boston, Massachusetts
“Bampa” – The Reverb Junkie
SoWa Mosaics and I collaborated on a short video this year, and so I’m pairing her work with one of my happiest TRJ tunes, “Bampa”. You’ll see why in a moment…
The Reverb Junkie (ME!), meet SoWa Mosaics!
The tagline for SoWa Mosaics is, “Art You Can Touch!”, which perfectly encapsulates the feelings I feel about the art created by artist, Audrey Markoff. I feel invited in, I feel sunshine coming out of my chest, and I WANT TO TOUCH THE ART! I’m definitely one of those people who in any museum will get waaaaaay to close. Audrey’s art has her warm, vibrant, open, and welcoming personality in it. And that brings me (and those who get to TOUCH THE ART!) so much happiness.
Pipe Dream Cupcakes – North Andover, Massachusetts
“Night” – Kelly Lee Owens
Kelly Lee Owens is a badass who makes her own genre-bending electronic music. Her sounds are inventive, mesmerizing, and inspiring. Need I say more?!
Kelly Lee Owens, meet Pipe Dream Cupcakes!
Nadine, the super-being behind Pipe Dream Cupcakes, wakes up at the crack of dawn, bakes, bakes, bakes, takes her food truck around the greater Boston area, gets ingredients for more bakes, preps for the more bakes, goes on a run, and spends time with her family (yep, she’s a mamma!). In addition, she recently donated 4,000 cupcakes to healthcare workers (yep, she bakes them herself!!). Wow!
Resolve – Santa Fe, New Mexico
“Cloud Song” – Caribou
When I first heard “Cloud Song” on a walk, I though it was one of the best make up songs I’d heard. It says, “if you love me come hold me now/don’t tell me what to do/I’m broken, so tired of crying/just hold me close to you.” I think in an argument, many of us can push our loved ones away when we really want them close. Of course, this is not the truth for all disagreements, but I think inside, most of us really want to be loved and we have some pretty odd ways of going about it.
Caribou, meet Resolve!
Last but the opposite of least, Resolve is a non-profit organization with a mission “to prevent violence by building skills and inspiring individuals to be agents of personal, community & cultural change,” and they do just that. Normally, their workshops are on location, but during this time, they’ve opened online classes, and people around the globe can access this valuable information.
Thank you for reading!!
FIN
Posted March 21, 2020
