Friday, December 29, 2017
Flipping the Script
An excerpt from OZY -
TRAP KITCHEN LA: WHERE FORMER GANG RIVALS COOK FOR KENDRICK AND KOBE
By Jemayel Khawaja
When I first talk to Malachi “Spankihanas” Jenkins, he’s cooking up pineapples and lobster at Snoop Dogg’s compound in Inglewood, California. He and his partner, Roberto “News” Smith, are two of the unlikeliest hot (and haute) chefs in American cuisine right now. Over the past few months, Jenkins and Smith have cooked for everyone from Kendrick Lamar to Kobe Bryant, seen their business triple in revenue in 2016 alone and become local celebrities in their south Los Angeles neighborhood.
Jenkins and Smith’s upstart, Trap Kitchen LA, is a plate-by-plate catering service started in 2013 in a cramped apartment kitchen in Compton. Alongside the likes of Bronx-based culinary upstarts Ghetto Gastro, Trap Kitchen is flipping the script on not just soul food, but the whole restaurant industry. They cook for locals and celebrities alike, charging $10 a plate and selling upward of 100 meals every day, all with a staff of just two and headquarters in home kitchens.
~~~~~~~~~~
A few years ago, Jenkins and Smith were on a very different path. After moving to south LA from the west side as a kid, Jenkins learned to cook by making dinner for his younger sister while their single mom worked late. Although officially in Crips territory, he skirted gang affiliation because of his mother, who earned Malachi the name “Spanky” — she would physically drag him home if he stayed out too late. As a youth, Jenkins made acquaintances with a kid named “Bad News” Smith, a distant relative from a friendlier branch of the opposing Piru Blood faction. As young adults, the guys bounced through uninspiring jobs as cashiers, auto detailers and ice cream men, and hustled everything from jewelry to hair weaves to drugs, racking up arrests for petty crimes and narcotics possession in the process.
At the same time, Jenkins had eyes set on a different future. He enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Las Vegas. But he couldn’t quite leave his ’hood. While visiting home in 2010, Malachi witnessed his friend’s murder by gunshot during a gang-related scuffle. It stuck with him. After a period of exile in Portland, he realized escaping LA wasn’t the answer — changing it was. In 2013, Jenkins reconnected with Smith, who was fresh out of jail for marijuana possession and looking for a way to turn his street hustle legitimate, even removing the “Bad” prefix from his street name as a signal of his intent. Together they formed Trap Kitchen; its name is an acronym for “Take Risks and Prosper.”
http://www.ozy.com/rising-stars/trap-kitchen-la-where-former-gang-rivals-cook-for-kendrick-and-kobe/72254?utm_source=weeklydose&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12292017&variable=e3bf1057d4e3c0988a79ae4bce515610
TRAP KITCHEN LA: WHERE FORMER GANG RIVALS COOK FOR KENDRICK AND KOBE
By Jemayel Khawaja
When I first talk to Malachi “Spankihanas” Jenkins, he’s cooking up pineapples and lobster at Snoop Dogg’s compound in Inglewood, California. He and his partner, Roberto “News” Smith, are two of the unlikeliest hot (and haute) chefs in American cuisine right now. Over the past few months, Jenkins and Smith have cooked for everyone from Kendrick Lamar to Kobe Bryant, seen their business triple in revenue in 2016 alone and become local celebrities in their south Los Angeles neighborhood.
Jenkins and Smith’s upstart, Trap Kitchen LA, is a plate-by-plate catering service started in 2013 in a cramped apartment kitchen in Compton. Alongside the likes of Bronx-based culinary upstarts Ghetto Gastro, Trap Kitchen is flipping the script on not just soul food, but the whole restaurant industry. They cook for locals and celebrities alike, charging $10 a plate and selling upward of 100 meals every day, all with a staff of just two and headquarters in home kitchens.
~~~~~~~~~~
A few years ago, Jenkins and Smith were on a very different path. After moving to south LA from the west side as a kid, Jenkins learned to cook by making dinner for his younger sister while their single mom worked late. Although officially in Crips territory, he skirted gang affiliation because of his mother, who earned Malachi the name “Spanky” — she would physically drag him home if he stayed out too late. As a youth, Jenkins made acquaintances with a kid named “Bad News” Smith, a distant relative from a friendlier branch of the opposing Piru Blood faction. As young adults, the guys bounced through uninspiring jobs as cashiers, auto detailers and ice cream men, and hustled everything from jewelry to hair weaves to drugs, racking up arrests for petty crimes and narcotics possession in the process.
At the same time, Jenkins had eyes set on a different future. He enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Las Vegas. But he couldn’t quite leave his ’hood. While visiting home in 2010, Malachi witnessed his friend’s murder by gunshot during a gang-related scuffle. It stuck with him. After a period of exile in Portland, he realized escaping LA wasn’t the answer — changing it was. In 2013, Jenkins reconnected with Smith, who was fresh out of jail for marijuana possession and looking for a way to turn his street hustle legitimate, even removing the “Bad” prefix from his street name as a signal of his intent. Together they formed Trap Kitchen; its name is an acronym for “Take Risks and Prosper.”
http://www.ozy.com/rising-stars/trap-kitchen-la-where-former-gang-rivals-cook-for-kendrick-and-kobe/72254?utm_source=weeklydose&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12292017&variable=e3bf1057d4e3c0988a79ae4bce515610
Unsung Hero
An excerpt from OZY -
THE FIRST BLACK FIGHTER PILOT
By Jack Doyle
You never know who you’re sharing an elevator with — and back when Rockefeller Center still had elevator operators, it was easy to ignore the elderly Black man in the corner. Neither Eugene Bullard nor his neat uniform commanded the same attention as the 1950s Manhattan elites who shared his little space every evening.
But little did they know that they were sharing a lift with an American who had been smack in the middle of the most dramatic twists and turns of the 20th century. Bullard was a boxer, World War I fighter pilot, Paris nightclub owner and World War II resistance fighter. He escaped the Gestapo and was beaten by police at a civil-rights demonstration. But even for many years after his death, his legacy remained that of an unnoticed, forgotten elevator operator.
Many details of Bullard’s life remain shrouded in myth, some of which was his own making. And who can blame him? He was born in rural Georgia to a large, poor Black family, and the odds were stacked against young Eugene. His family struggled to support themselves and, by Bullard’s recollection, faced violence with terrifying frequency. A lynch mob killed his older brother, Hector, and Eugene nearly lost his life on more than one occasion to racist attacks.
http://www.ozy.com/flashback/the-first-black-fighter-pilot/67003?utm_source=weeklydose&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12292017&variable=e3bf1057d4e3c0988a79ae4bce515610
THE FIRST BLACK FIGHTER PILOT
By Jack Doyle
You never know who you’re sharing an elevator with — and back when Rockefeller Center still had elevator operators, it was easy to ignore the elderly Black man in the corner. Neither Eugene Bullard nor his neat uniform commanded the same attention as the 1950s Manhattan elites who shared his little space every evening.
But little did they know that they were sharing a lift with an American who had been smack in the middle of the most dramatic twists and turns of the 20th century. Bullard was a boxer, World War I fighter pilot, Paris nightclub owner and World War II resistance fighter. He escaped the Gestapo and was beaten by police at a civil-rights demonstration. But even for many years after his death, his legacy remained that of an unnoticed, forgotten elevator operator.
Many details of Bullard’s life remain shrouded in myth, some of which was his own making. And who can blame him? He was born in rural Georgia to a large, poor Black family, and the odds were stacked against young Eugene. His family struggled to support themselves and, by Bullard’s recollection, faced violence with terrifying frequency. A lynch mob killed his older brother, Hector, and Eugene nearly lost his life on more than one occasion to racist attacks.
http://www.ozy.com/flashback/the-first-black-fighter-pilot/67003?utm_source=weeklydose&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12292017&variable=e3bf1057d4e3c0988a79ae4bce515610
A Jacket With Its Own Heating System
From USA Today & Reviewed -
10 helpful gadgets every runner needs in the winter
By Shelby Deering, Reviewed.com
2. A jacket with its very own heating system
Heated jackets have grown more and more prevalent in the last few years, and they’re pretty much godsends for cold-weather runners. This one has three heating areas—two in the chest and one in the back, and you can choose low, medium, or hot. Any jacket on its own can keep you fairly warm, especially once you get moving, but this is toasty right away, making it easier to get outside and move.
Get the ororo Heated Jacket for Women on Amazon starting at $154.99
Get the ororo Heated Jacket for Men on Amazon starting at $149.99
https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/reviewedcom/2017/12/28/10-helpful-gadgets-every-runner-needs-in-the-winter/108977314/
10 helpful gadgets every runner needs in the winter
By Shelby Deering, Reviewed.com
2. A jacket with its very own heating system
 |
| (Photo: ororo) |
Get the ororo Heated Jacket for Women on Amazon starting at $154.99
Get the ororo Heated Jacket for Men on Amazon starting at $149.99
https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/reviewedcom/2017/12/28/10-helpful-gadgets-every-runner-needs-in-the-winter/108977314/
Clean House in 2018
An excerpt from the Huffington Post -
8 Types Of Toxic People To Leave Behind In 2018
Good riddance. 👋
By Kelsey Borresen and Brittany Wong
The new year is an opportunity to let go of the negative people in your life who are holding you back and weighing you down.
Whether they’re coworkers, friends or family members, setting boundaries with these toxic people ― or removing them from your life entirely ― can be difficult, but it’s ultimately necessary and freeing.
We asked experts to tell us which kinds of people you’re better off leaving behind as we head into 2018. Here’s what they had to say.
1. The Debbie Downer
The people in your life should build you up and celebrate your accomplishments ― not poke holes in them. But somehow, Debbie Downers manage to find the storm clouds in even the sunniest skies.
Got a raise at work? “That’s all? You really deserve so much more for the work you’re doing,” a Negative Nancy will reply.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bye-toxic-people_us_5a452515e4b0b0e5a7a547d9?ncid=APPLENEWS00001
8 Types Of Toxic People To Leave Behind In 2018
Good riddance. 👋
By Kelsey Borresen and Brittany Wong
The new year is an opportunity to let go of the negative people in your life who are holding you back and weighing you down.
Whether they’re coworkers, friends or family members, setting boundaries with these toxic people ― or removing them from your life entirely ― can be difficult, but it’s ultimately necessary and freeing.
We asked experts to tell us which kinds of people you’re better off leaving behind as we head into 2018. Here’s what they had to say.
1. The Debbie Downer
The people in your life should build you up and celebrate your accomplishments ― not poke holes in them. But somehow, Debbie Downers manage to find the storm clouds in even the sunniest skies.
Got a raise at work? “That’s all? You really deserve so much more for the work you’re doing,” a Negative Nancy will reply.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bye-toxic-people_us_5a452515e4b0b0e5a7a547d9?ncid=APPLENEWS00001
Thursday, December 28, 2017
Clever Road Signs
From USA Today -
Delaware agency's 'clever' traffic messages grab motorists' attention
USA TODAY NETWORKJerry Smith, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal
One message that has garnered a lot of attention has been geared toward distracted driving: "Don't text and drive. Get your head out of your apps."
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/nation-now/2017/12/28/delaware-traffic-messages-grab-motorists-attention/987619001/
Delaware agency's 'clever' traffic messages grab motorists' attention
USA TODAY NETWORKJerry Smith, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal
 | ||
| (Photo: Jason Minto, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal) |
 | ||
| (Photo: Jason Minto, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal) |
One message that has garnered a lot of attention has been geared toward distracted driving: "Don't text and drive. Get your head out of your apps."
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/nation-now/2017/12/28/delaware-traffic-messages-grab-motorists-attention/987619001/
Best Films
From the Washinton Post -
Cal Ripken’s favorite baseball movie, and 24 others on the best film about their profession
By Monica Hesse, Ben Terris and Dan Zak
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/cal-ripkens-favorite-baseball-movie-and-21-others-on-the-best-film-about-their-profession/2017/12/25/223c8fb8-e5d0-11e7-833f-155031558ff4_story.html?utm_term=.df48a983d1dd&wpisrc=nl_rainbow&wpmm=1
Cal Ripken’s favorite baseball movie, and 24 others on the best film about their profession
By Monica Hesse, Ben Terris and Dan Zak
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/cal-ripkens-favorite-baseball-movie-and-21-others-on-the-best-film-about-their-profession/2017/12/25/223c8fb8-e5d0-11e7-833f-155031558ff4_story.html?utm_term=.df48a983d1dd&wpisrc=nl_rainbow&wpmm=1
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