Under New Management

Story by Ezikiel Coy
Photos: Kallie Snyder-Burks – Kaperture Photography

I met with Matthew Eldredge in the surprisingly bright afternoon air of the Lucky Dog. We had sat in the partially finished lounge area in the back of the building, while the bartender carried on jovial conversations in the background keeping the day crowd glasses full and the laughs rolling. After exchanging pleasantries, I started asking questions. The resulting conversation enlightened me to the process and trials of the new General Manager of my favorite neighborhood bar:

“I started in mid may as the General manager. As of then, I’m in charge of everything front of the house. All of the employees, this huge remodel, and all of the event planning, not to mention that I’m focusing on getting more of the local businesses to get new draft beers and connect with Idaho companies to bring new and upcoming companies into the community.”

“I want the Lucky Dog Tavern to be a place that our community can be proud of. This whole face lift is to reflect pride we should all have in our local establishment. The patio I wanted to focus on how great the space is, using reclaimed woods and pallets to create a rustic feel. It was actually built be friends and customers that wanted to make the bar better. I wanted some new color and an inviting space to meet with friends. In the back room we wanted a cooler more relaxing space to sit and converse with your friends while you enjoy our new atmosphere.”

“I want the bar to be a place where everyone feels comfortable as a platform for any event that people are passionate about. “

Where the Cowboys Are

Story by Ezikiel Coy

Photos: Kaperture Photography

He Grew up in Fairfield, Idaho on a cattle ranch, so what better way to celebrate his youth and roots than to model for the International Gay Rodeo annual calendar? Lucus Kevan is a Boise local whose roots run deep into Idaho, and we had the fortune to get an interview with him before his event Saturday, July 25th at the Lucky Dog.

Spicy Lamb Curry

by Jerry Nabarrete-Stuart

1 medium onion diced

1 bell pepper diced

3 cloves of minced garlic

1 lb of lamb chop cubed

2 Tbsp of butter

2 Tbsp of olive oil

2 ½ Tbsp of curry powder

1 ¼ med hot red chili powder

1 C heavy cream

Over medium heat, melt butter and add the olive oil. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cover and let cook for 3 min. Add the lamb. Cover and let cook until the lamb is cooked through. Add heavy cream, curry and chili powder. Leave uncovered and simmer for about 20 min. Serve over rice.

I choose this recipe for its versatility, it can be done with lamb or chicken. If you do a chicken version it’ll be 2 cubed chicken breasts. I shopped for the spices at a local Indian market to make sure I did have the right variety of curry and chili powder for a good spice kick. It is a relatively easy quick meal and definitely a wow for guests. The rice I used was Jasmine rice in this recipe.

Focus on OUR family: LGBT-owned business spotlight

by Desmond Slowe

Last summer I fostered a wonderful, boxer named Allie. I was not raised with animals and Allie was the first pet I ever owned – well, leased for a short bit.

The two months that Allie was my “gal” we explored Camel’s Back Park, the Greenbelt and our local neighborhood.
I learned a lot of things about being the caretaker of a dog during warm weather, such as:

Using sunscreen.

Did you know skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in dogs and second most common in cats. Even though fur provides some protection from the sun, you should apply a pet sunblock every 3 to 4 hours to the least hair-covered spots: bellies on dogs (especially ones who like to lie on their backs) and ears and around eyes on cats, which are also areas where malignant tumors are likely to show up. (No need to apply sunscreen directly on fur.) Use products made specifically for pets, such as Epi-Pet Sun Protector Sunscreen ($18; epi-pet.com), which is safe for dogs—ingredients such as zinc oxide can be toxic to pets.

When to walk Allie.

I didn’t walk Allie during the day’s highest heat and humidity, which is usually between 1 and 4 PM. I didn’t feel comfortable and for Allie, who was black, it was probably torture. I found out that dogs with short snouts, such as bulldogs, who can’t pant as efficiently in humid weather due to their narrowed nostrils and windpipes this is especially horrible.

I always made sure I paid attention to Allie for signs of heat exhaustion. Things I would look for were heavy panting, dry or bright red gums, thick drool, vomiting, diarrhea, or wobbly legs. If Allie did experience heat stress, I made sure I didn’t place her in ice cold water, which could have put her into shock. Instead, I would have moved her to a cool place, draped a damp towel over her body, rewetted the cloth frequently, and got her to the vet as soon as I possibly could.

I was very fortunate and Alllie never experienced any signs of heat stress. FYI, a dog’s normal temperature is between 100° and 103°F, so once she hits 104°F, she’s in dangerous territory (106°F or higher can be fatal).

When I was driving with Allie.

I was always with Allie and she travelled around town with me. I never left her in my car. Even if windows are cracked, there isn’t enough air flow to make a real difference. The interior temperature will be 20 degrees hotter on the inside of the car than outside in about 7 minutes. Although Allie does have a higher core body temperature than a human, on a hot day, this can be deadly. When Allie was at home.

I was very fortunate that I could take Allie with me to work so she didn’t need to stay at my house all alone during the day. At both my house and my office, I made sure I kept it cool. I turned on the AC in my house and office so I was comfortable, which meant Allie would be comfortable, too.

Since I was new to taking care of a dog, I was not ready for the smell of a dog. With us going on walks and her normal daily life, she needed a little freshening up.

I found a great little website that helped me combat with the new smell but also pampered my ‘gal.’Gerrard Larriett Aromatherapy Pet Care is a line of premium products for your pet, including its signature Pet Spa in a Box, room sprays, and soy candles. I also liked the fact that Gerrard Larriet is a gay-own and -operated business. I like to keep my money in the LGBT community.

I don’t think Allie was used to getting baths since she was very scared and apprehensive at first but thanks to the aromatherapy products, it actually seemed like she wanted a bath after a while. I loved the smell of the Happy Jasmine fragrance – it reminded me of Hawaii.

I started my Gerrard Larriett experience with the Aromatherapy Pet Spa in a Box contains shampoo & conditioner, freshening and shining spray and a handmade soy candle made especially for the home. As with all Gerrard Larriett products, these are custom formulated for the sensitive skin of pets and they have been manufactured under the strictest quality control system to ensure that every pet experiences the best possible bathing session and ends up feeling clean and fresh.

The Aromatherapy Pet Spa in a Box products are manufactured in the United States and are made of natural and 100% biodegradable ingredients. Gerrard Larriett is a pet lover and works to make sure all of his products are free of harmful chemicals or other irritants. After many years of success, the Gerrard Larriett products have earned the recommendation of veterinarians across the United States. The company offers five distinct product scents, each with unique aromatherapy benefits.

I highly recommend all pet lovers to check out www.gerrardlarriett.com and try one of his products.

Ello, Mate! 6 reasons why the LGBTQ community should give the newest social network a shot

by Mikey Rox

We all love our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, but each of these popular social networks come with annoyances that can muddle the connected experience.

Facebook, over the past year, has igniting a firestorm of controversy regarding its ‘Real Name’ policy, wherein users must “use the name they use in real life,” much to the dismay of marketing-savvy drag queens everywhere. Twitter, in its efforts to curb offensive tweets, has been heavy-handed in deciding what’s considered inappropriate, resulting in tweets flagged by error due to a fallible algorithm. And over at Instagram, NSFW images are a no-no, despite that the distinction is relative to each user, giving individuals the ability to report your “offensive” pics, which can result in warnings or even a suspended account.

Enter Ello, a new social network that has eliminated the restrictive elements of our standard networks to create a freer, more inclusive society accessible with the flick of a finger. On Ello, you can use whatever name you’d like; you can post NSFW images (and opt in or out of seeing them in your feed); and there are no ads, which makes the intrusive data mining of other common networks non-existent.

But perhaps the most interesting facet of Ello is that the LGBTQ community is at the core of its focus.

“Ello takes a stand for LGBTQ issues, because we – the founders who still control the company – believe these are fundamental civil rights issues, both for ourselves, LGBTQ employees current and future, and members of the Ello community,” says co-founder Paul Budnitz, who, along with six partners, created the platform.

If that’s not enough encouragement to become an early adopter, here are 6 other LGBTQ reasons you should give Ello a go.

1. Ello doesn’t require real names

Whether you’re a drag queen, a survivor of domestic violence, or just somebody who prefers to maintain a modicum of privacy on the web, Ello understands. The network allows you to choose any name you’d like, and it will never ask you to change it.

“Unlike Facebook and many other networks, Ello doesn’t require real names,” Budnitz says. “This is a big deal, because there are many people in the LGBTQ community who use an alias, either because they want to or for the sake of privacy and safety. There are still 22 states where you can be fired for being gay, and 10 countries in the world where you can be put to death. Safety and privacy is about choosing what you want to put online, rather than being forced to post everything and trust a big network, the mission of which is to sell your data to the highest bidder.”

2. It’s ad-free, so there’s no need for censorship

In many cases, censorship on social networks is a result of other users reporting what they consider inappropriate content (which can vary widely from person to person) or the network’s attempt to control the content so it doesn’t offend conservative advertisers. Because Ello is ad-free, there are no advertisers to please, leaving little room for restrictions.

“Ello doesn’t censor,” Budnitz boasts. “On other networks they have really started to restrict what they consider more edgy content, simply because it may offend an advertiser with conservative values. ‘Edgy’ can be just talking about gay marriage and the LGBTQ lifestyle. Since we have no advertisers we need to please, we’re free to let people be themselves.”

3. As a result, you can post all the NSFW selfies you want on Ello

No advertisers + no censorship = you can finally clean out that naughty cache you’re keeping.

“We feel that it would be impossible for us to decide what is and isn’t NSFW without censoring,” explains Budnitz. “Instead, we require anyone who posts NSFW content to just mark their accounts as such — and when in doubt, mark your account. Then people can choose whether or not they want to see it on their settings page. This works for everyone, and everyone feels respected.”

4. Ello takes pride in our Pride

While Ello launched last September on the web, the Ello iPhone app only recently launched on June 18. To mark the occasion and its alignment with Pride Month, Ello designed a rainbow logo to show its solidarity with our community.

“By creating a Pride version of the Ello logo, we express that as a company we take a stand for what we believe in,” Budnitz says.

5. Ello also hosted a Pride Day to protest Facebook’s ‘Real Name’ policy

Ello supported the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a charitable and activist group run by drag queens, who held a protest against Facebook at the company’s Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters on June 1, despite the threats of dissenters.

“When we launched Ello Pride Day, a few thousand people left Ello in protest — but about three times that many signed up,” Budnitz recalls. “I actually wrote a post that was reposted several hundred times, where I pointed out that Ello respects and welcomes all points of view. It’s important that the new majority – those who support LGBTQ rights, gay marriage, etc. – commit to not repeat the evils of those that opposed us in the past when we were the minority; that we always be respectful of others, even if they don’t agree with us.”

“We received many comments and posts from people who don’t agree with LGBTQ issues, but who stayed on Ello because they feel respected,” he continues. “I think that’s awesome. All that said, our company policy is to firmly support LGBTQ issues, including gay marriage and our No Real Name policy.”

Ello also ran live coverage of the protest on the network.

6. Its partnership with the LGBTQ community runs deep

In addition to the June 1 protest, Ello has committed itself to other LGBTQ causes.

“Our partnership with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is just the start,” Budnitz says. “We’ve financially supported a filmmaker who is making a documentary on people’s reactions to Facebook’s ‘Real Name’ policy. We’re also participating in the Denver Pride Parade, where our main tech office is based; some of our employees are marching in the parade.”

7. Ello’s acceptance and embracement of the LGBTQ community is legit

Bottom line: There is no other mainstream social network available that has committed itself so strongly to the LGBTQ community.

“Ello loves and welcomes you with more than words,” Budnitz asserts.

 

Mikey Rox is an award-winning journalist and LGBT lifestyle expert whose work has been published in more than 100 outlets across the world, including CNN.com, The Huffington Post, The Advocate, Instinct magazine, and Out.com, among many others. He splits his time between homes in New York City and the Jersey Shore with his dog Jaxon. Connect with Mikey on Twitter @mikeyrox.

Positive Thoughts: Passing the Test

By Oriol R. Gutierrez Jr

Getting tested for HIV nowadays is a snap. In the era of over-the-counter rapid in-home testing, I’m befuddled why so many gay men, especially young guys, lack awareness of their HIV status.

I suppose part of the answer, at least for young guys, is plain old feelings of invincibility. All young and young-minded folks share in those feelings.

Perhaps, for some guys, not knowing gives them license to say they’re HIV negative, since for all they know they are. For others, perhaps not knowing insulates them from any potential pain of a positive result.

I could keep that list going, but the point is that countless reasons exist for not knowing. Many of those reasons may even seem reasonable. Well, I’m here to tell you that no reason you can come up with is a good one.

Maybe you’re just a procrastinator. No matter. I’m a world-class procrastinator myself. Procrastination isn’t a good reason. Being fine with getting tested in theory but delaying doing so in practice is only asking for trouble.

Knowing your HIV status is crucial. If you test negative, you have incentive to stay that way. If you test positive, you can start the process of staying healthy. Better to know now than to be blind-sided later.

Although I’ve been living with HIV for more than two decades, I still remember what it’s like to get tested for the virus. The fear is understandable, but it shouldn’t stop you. Your health is paramount.

I passed my first HIV test with flying colors: Negative. At the time, I had just turned 21 and boy was I psyched. I was cleared for duty, so to speak, as well as legal to drink. Watch out world, here I come.

However, I was more careful this time around. Before that test, I hadn’t always adhered to the condom rule, although I knew the risks. Now that I was given this reprieve, I was determined not to squander it.

A year later, I failed my second HIV test: Positive. I found out the day after my 22nd birthday. My commanding officer in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve read my diagnosis from a script. Cold, but tactful.

I knew the positive result was correct, but denial took over. I retested twice before accepting the reality of my situation. At that moment, I started believing that I was going to die before I turned 30.

It was 1992. Effective HIV treatment wouldn’t arrive until 1996 and AIDS-related deaths were still increasing. The death of my boyfriend in 1994 only increased my fear that I wouldn’t live much longer.

Fast-forward over two decades. Turns out I’m still here and I plan on being here for a long time. Failing that HIV test wasn’t the end of the world, but I must admit that I still wish that I had passed it.

I’ve learned to live with HIV in my body, but the virus remains an unwelcome guest. If the cure for HIV was here tomorrow, I would quickly get in line. I have no romantic attachment to the virus.

I also have no attachment to any resentment about getting HIV. Despite my late boyfriend not telling me the truth about his being HIV positive, I agreed not to use condoms with him. We both shared in that decision.

I’m not alone. Much of why the epidemic continues can be explained by folks not knowing their status and transmitting HIV unintentionally, but also by couples who ditch condoms before they know for sure each is negative.

You could argue that my late boyfriend had a moral imperative to disclose his HIV status that was higher than my moral imperative to protect myself. Perhaps you could even be right. However, even after all this time, I still haven’t decided.

What I have decided, now having lived more than half of my life with HIV, is that I did the right thing for myself by forgiving him. I believe he never intended to transmit HIV, so forgiving him wasn’t too difficult for me.

The anger I felt toward him in the first few years after I seroconverted was soon trumped by the experience of now being in his shoes. Not pretty. Rejection was everywhere. The stigma was stifling. I now understood.

And I still understand. Little has changed when it comes to HIV stigma. Not only has the virus proven resistant to a cure, it also has resisted decades of attempts to eradicate the stigma surrounding it.

Strangely enough, I believe testing regularly for HIV would do wonders in stomping out stigma. If everyone did it, and did it often, folks would finally start feeling like it’s not so scary. Peer pressure at its best.

Oriol R. Gutierrez Jr. is the editor-in-chief of POZ magazine. Find him on Twitter @oriolgutierrez. This column is a project of Plus, Positively Aware, POZ, The Body and Q Syndicate, the LGBT wire service. Visit their websites — http://hivplusmag.com, http://positivelyaware.com, http://poz.com and http://thebody.com — for the latest updates on HIV/AIDS.

Three Shades of Gay

by Desmond Slowe

Now that Pride is over for 2015, get ready to go back to your normally scheduled life.

Let me rewind nine-weeks: There I was, sitting in the waiting room of the Boise Counseling Center waiting for my first appointment with a gay counselor.

The previous Friday I made a plan which consisted of contacting my insurance company for counseling benefits and finding a LGBT counselor. Once I got the name and number of the Boise Counseling Center I called and scheduled an appointment. Whew! First step done and the easiest in the process.

I received the new client paperwork via email before the weekend and had it all filled out and ready to go when I arrived. I was nervous and chatted with the front desk person, Chris, while waiting for the counselor.

This was a new adventure for me: counseling. I needed to talk to someone about where I was in regards to my sexuality and relationships. I wanted someone that was objective and impartial, so here I was.

In walked the counselor. Jacob Durtschi was the Licensed Clinical Social Worker I had scheduled with. I had really one criteria in looking for a counselor: gay. I felt that my struggle as a gay man was best relatable by working with someone who was also gay.

My nervousness quickly subsided when Jacob and I started talking and his natural empathy and rapport comforted my apprehension and phobia about counseling. During the session he mentioned a book that I should read, The Velvet Rage. The exact title of the book is The Velvet Rage: Overcoming the Pain of Growing up Gay in a Straight Man’s World. Great title.

Two days later my Amazon Prime purchase had arrived.

The Velvet Rage needs to be a book every gay man reads. Put it on your “must-read” list now!

It is written by Alan Downs, a clinical psychologist who draws from his private practice experience, his personal gay journey and the journeys of clients he has worked with.

Downs refers to a very specific anger he has encountered in his gay patients which he has coined as The Velvet Rage. Catchy phrase. The book explores the drug abuse, promiscuity or alcoholism this anger that may be displayed in gay men. Downs argues that the root of this anger is found in childhood shame and parental rejection.

He writes, “Velvet rage is the deep and abiding anger that results from growing up in an environment when I learn that who I am as a gay person is unacceptable, perhaps even unlovable.”

I can relate to this. I live in Idaho and feeling unaccepted is an almost daily feeling.

Downs breaks down the gay male struggle into three stages: Overwhelmed by Shame, Compensating for Shame, and Cultivating Authenticity.

Shame is a huge theme in his book for the fact that it can be consuming and damaging to a gay man’s mental wellbeing.

The first stage, Overwhelmed by Shame is the stage ALL gay men deal with when they first struggle with their sexuality.

Shame caused by a dual existence. We have all heard of “being in the closet” and stage one is that dual existence.

I acknowledged my gayness as a junior in high school but I still limited my outness since I lived in Meridian. I was not a jock, I was a band geek so my duality was not so severe. I was the Damian at Meridian High School – almost too gay to function. I never hid it but I was also not having little pride parades every day as I walked the halls.

The second stage, Compensating for Shame, is the stage gay men endure when they try to make up for feeling different from other men, as outsiders in society, and flawed. What does this compensating look like? Well, for me, like many sexually repressed and confused kids, it was being really good at school.

Getting straight A’s and being in all the best clubs and groups so I looked like a model student. I was trying to make one part of my life seem “normal.” I was addicted to being the perfect student. Other gay guys develop other addictions. This stage also sees the appearance of depression. Being gay is hard and sometimes realizing you are gay makes you mad and sad – I get it. I have been there; I am still there. I am pissed it is even an issue.

The addiction and depression are self-destructive behaviors but I don’t think they are inherent to gay men. I think life is hard for everyone. I think we need to be kind since everyone is battling a hard fight but I also feel that as a minority with unprotected rights, it is a much harder battle. My addiction is food and shopping, versus alcohol, drugs or sex but can be just as destructive.

Food is tough since many people (myself included) use food for joyous celebration and comfort for the hard times. There are days that I am so glum that I want to pull a Greta Garbo (“I vant to be alone.”). See no one, stay in my apartment watching Sabrina, While You Were Sleeping and the complete Gilmore Girls boxed set while doing my best impression of a cat without legs. Often accompanied with every frozen restaurant brand that Albertsons stocks. Although it feels amazing to eat a pile of T.G.I. Friday’s Loaded Cheddar & Bacon Potato Skins and Mozzarella Sticks while lounging on my couch watching Lorelei and Rory navigate their colorful lives in their quirky, eclectic Connecticut town, it is not healthy – physically or mentally.

Stage three is gay nirvana: Cultivating Authenticity. Like Rupaul says, “If you don’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?” Straight (gayly forward) from the horse’s mouth! Cultivating Authenticity is all about loving yourself. You get past the parts of your life where you were beaten down by shame, accepted it, bought the t-shirt, and are now ready to live your life for you. You want the best life you can have and stage three is when you have transcended into a state in which self-destructive behaviors no longer interest you. Gay paradise. Your own personal Ibiza or Mykonos!

Like I mentioned earlier, I am in my ninth week with Mr. Durtschi. I am just beginning my Velvet Rage journey. I have all the baggage of shame checked and getting ready for this flight to land. It may be long, uncomfortable and seem exhausting at times, but it is a journey I need to make to find my bliss – my happiness.

My wish is for all gay men to be authentic. I believe the world would be a better place for all gay men once we are truly happy with ourselves. I found this book through a trained counselor, a guide to help me through my journey, my gay Sherpa on the Mt. Everest I need to conquer. If you, too, want to find your bliss, please explore the options available at the Boise Counseling Center.

The Boise Counseling Center is located near the stadium at BSU and next to the greenbelt (Mr. Durtschi will conduct portions of our counseling session while walking on the greenbelt, which is relaxing and refreshing). There is a diverse team of educated and licensed professionals just waiting to help.

Please visit their website
boisecounselingctr.com or give the lovely Chris a call at 208-908-0500.

And always remember what Kasey Musgraves sang:

Say what you think
Love who you love
‘Cause you just get
So many trips ‘round the sun
Yeah, you only
Only live once
Just follow your arrow
Wherever it points, yeah
Follow your arrow
Wherever it points

 

 

Sights, Scenes, & Savor: The Big Easy

by Amanda Gooddell

 

Everyone should try and visit the Big Easy at least once. I went with a vague plan and a couple of days. My cross country road trip let me be flexible with where, when, and how long I stayed in each destination. Going to New Orleans right before Mardi Gras made finding a hotel room on the fly a little easier. I highly recommend checking what events the city has going on before visiting and making reservations (if you know your arrive and departure dates.)

After procuring a hotel room within walking distance of the French Quarter I headed to Café Du Monde for fresh beignets. Beignets are delicious fried vehicles for powdered sugar. The original Café Du Monde is located on 800 Decatur Street and is open 24 hours a day. That’s right, beignets can be had at any hour. Day or night. The café opened in 1862, I made it a point to go back before leaving town.

Someone told me I had to see the graveyards in New Orleans. They were right. They are old, they are broken, and they are a beautiful part of this cities history. There are several different tours available and they have set times. As of March 2015 self guided tours are no longer allowed in an effort to help with the conservative and restoration of the grave sites. So the only way to view the interior of the walled graveyards are with reservations and a tour guide. I am glad I did not skip seeing them.

Drinking a tasting flight of bourbon at The Bourbon House located on Bourbon Street, enjoying a refreshing cocktail from the tiki bar Latitude 29, and having a beer with the locals at a dive bar? Say yes to all of these things. Experience everything NOLA has to offer. The locals are friendly and helpful in finding your next booze adventure.

Spicy alligator sausage, boudin, crawfish, shrimp boils, jambalaya, fried chicken, gumbo (really, I could go on and on). New Orleans is a melting pot of cultures and their food can’t be ignored. Every meal can bring a new flavor experience. It seemed hard to go wrong in this city. Everyone seems to have their own options on what is the best place to eat. I had fun trying places based on internet recommendations, walking in off the street as it struck my fancy, and asking the servers where they liked to eat.

This city has a vast array of choices for exploration. Mine mainly lied in exploring  the French Quarter with the limited amount of time I had on my first visit. There are museums, casinos, riverboats, beautiful scenic Tulane University, the music of Frenchman Street, streetcars, and so much striking architecture that I didn’t get to see this time around. Just remember if you go during Mardi Gras that they grease the poles. So no trying to climb up the buildings for a better vantage point. No, really. Greasing the poles has been a New Orleans Mardi Gras tradition for over 40 years. In a city this unique everyone can go and find something that strikes their fancy.

The a.l.p.h.a. Choice Food Pantry

by M. Hope

As part of its on-going vision and expanded efforts at outreach, education, and community-building, Allies Linked for the Prevention of HIV and AIDS (a.l.p.h.a.) operates the Choice Food Pantry. Our new location is: 575 N. 8th Street, Boise ID 83702.

In keeping with its stated mission, “The a.l.p.h.a. Choice Food Pantry is a free support service for individuals infected with or directly affected by HIV or AIDS. It is our goal to provide service to clients who qualify, without discrimination or requirements.” A qualifying client is an individual infected with HIV/AIDS. In addition, care givers to clients as well as members of the immediate family living with clients are directly affected by HIV/AIDS, and so they are served through the Choice Food Pantry as well.

In 2015, a.l.p.h.a. celebrates 12 years of life and service to our community. Operated in the early years on a shoestring budget and with few physical resources or volunteers, the Choice Food Pantry was reorganized, modernized—rejuvenated in the early fall of 2013.

Since that time, The Choice Food Pantry has continued to grow, expanding the ways and means to better reach more client households in need in the Boise metropolitan area and in surrounding communities in Ada and Canyon counties.

The Choice Food Pantry now operates year long, with the exceptions of Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day when the a.l.p.h.a. Office is closed for business. Up from three days of operation per week in 2013 and 2014, the spring of 2015 saw the Choice Food Pantry doubling the hours of service. Currently, the Choice Food Pantry is staffed and ready to assist clients from Noon to 3:00 PM on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, as well as 5:00 to 8:00PM on Thursday evenings. Access to the services of the Choice Food Pantry outside of normal hours is possible, and is provided by advance appointment with the a.l.p.h.a. Office.

In 2013, the a.l.p.h.a. Choice Food Pantry collected, processed/repackaged, stored and distributed over 7,000 pounds of meat, fresh produce, dairy, and canned/packaged food as well as personal care and home cleaning products. A total of 48 households were served, comprising 101 people. This was possible only through the dedicated work and contributions of a.l.p.h.a. staff and volunteers, a renewed partnership with the The Idaho Foodbank, and generous donations of money and in-kind services/gifts from local organizations and sponsoring individuals—in particular, the Imperial Sovereign Gem Court of Idaho.

Early expansion efforts in 2014 saw the Choice Food Pantry participating with the El-Ada Community Partnership in promoting and facilitating the Feed the Children initiative. Choice Food Pantry client households were identified in the spring, and some 2,500 pounds of boxed food and personal hygiene/home care products were collected and distributed to 41 households comprising 103 individuals.

Later that summer, the Choice Food Pantry became a partner agency and authorized distribution site with El-Ada, and began distributing food to low income households as part of the USDA food commodities distribution program. Inasmuch as the majority of a.l.p.h.a. clients are of low income, this arrangement with El-Ada and the USDA was a welcome enhancement to the services and supply of foodstuffs available through the Choice Food Pantry.

This partnership also allowed the Choice Food Pantry to be of service in another, important way: to help provide for the food and nutrition needs of low income individuals and households who did not qualify as a.l.p.h.a. clients, but who were in no less need of food assistance.

By the end of 2014, the Choice Food Pantry had hit noteworthy milestones in service to the community: over 35,000 pounds of meat, fresh produce, dairy, and canned/packaged food as well as personal care and home cleaning products were collected, processed, and distributed to support the needs of 92 client households comprising 214 individuals. Households and individuals served were double the number of 2013. And, of those 92 households served, 62 (a full two-thirds) were qualified both as a.l.p.h.a clients and USDA clients. The distribution of 35,000 pounds of goods represented a dramatic 500 percent increase over 2013 numbers.

In early 2015, the Choice Food Pantry teamed up with The Idaho Food bank to host a “Cooking Matters” course. The six week/six meeting course, funded entirely by The Idaho Food bank and national sponsors, provided selected Choice Food Pantry clients with valuable information and educational materials on nutrition and health, food buying, food preparation and food safety. Participants were provided a cookbook and cooking utensils, and earned a Certificate of Completion—all at no cost to the course participants.

Much of the time in each class meeting was devoted to hands-on preparation of a nutritious family-style meal that was staged, cooked and served by participants to one another. The inaugural course was quite a success, and more courses are being planned for this year and into 2016.

In anticipation of serving a greater need from even more households and persons during 2015, a.l.p.h.a. continues to actively seek volunteers and to solicit additional organizations and individuals to contribute their time, talent, and treasure to the Choice Food Pantry and related outreach efforts. Current figures indicate that, for 2015, the Choice Food Pantry is on target to distribute some 50,000 pounds of food and personal care/home cleaning products to over 125 client households comprising some 250 individuals in need. With on-going support, the a.l.p.h.a. Choice Food Pantry can accomplish its vital mission of service, and continue to directly and positively impact the lives of at risk individuals and families in our community.

For additional information about the good work of a.l.p.h.a. and the Choice Food Pantry, or to learn more about volunteering or making cash and/or in-kind donations, please do contact a.l.p.h.a. at (208) 424-7799.

The Divine Mrs. Shawn

by Desmond Slowe

It’s a bird…it’s a plane…it’s the super hero to the gays – Shawn Pelofsky!

The amazingly funny and talented Shawn Pelofsky graced Boise Pride with four performances at Liquid Laughs.

Shawn’s first trip to Boise to perform comedy was in 2010. She was invited by Boise’s own premier, gay comedian, Matt Bragg. The two have been friends for close to a decade and Bragg told Shawn she would love it out here.

And what was Shawn’s response?

“Boise sounds like its Oklahoma City, I didn’t think I’ll like it but I loved Boise immediately. I love the food. I love the people I love the culture. Everyone is the nightlife. People are great here. They really love life here. I feel that people are very nice here. Plus you have Pie Hole! My ass doesn’t like it, but I do!”

That first trip is when I met Shawn. A group of us met for breakfast at the old Owyhee Hotel restaurant and I offered to show Shawn and her friend, Chris, around town afterwards. We hit it off immediately and have been good friends ever since. For the last five years, Shawn has scheduled performances during Boise Pride Week.

She flew in Thursday, June 18th and was one of the judges at that night’s Voice Xtravaganza. She had two shows on both Friday and Saturday night. I am a huge fan so I went to both shows on Friday and after the second show we sat on the patio of Liquid Laughs for a little interview. (I want to thank her again for granting me an interview and being interviewed at 1am – she had to be exhausted.)

How did you decide to go into comedy?

“First of all I grew up Jewish in Oklahoma so I had no choice but to be funny. My family, you, my parents are New Yorkers. My whole family, everybody in my family, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, extended family, everybody in my family has a really good sense of humor so I kind of picked up on that but I think when I really decided to focus on comedy I was in second grade and I was playing the wicked witch of the west on The Wizard of Oz – how gay is that? – and then I melted before Dorothy threw the water on me and the audience laughed and that’s how I knew I liked the sound of it. That’s when I knew I wanted to be strictly comedy.”

“As a kid, I was always in the school plays playing the comedic character. I always envisioned I wanted to be in the cast of Saturday Night Live so I did a lot of impressions and a lot of characters. I geared myself and went to the USC School of Theater (Go Trojans!) and while I was studying at USC I did an intern at a production company and someone told me about The Groundlings where a lot of SNL cast members come from. So I started training in sketch and improv with The Groundlings and I changed gears after I graduated college. I took a stand-up class and didn’t do anything with it and then joined Acme Comedy Theater, which is The Groundlings rival in Los Angeles. “

“I was a member of their company for a couple of years and then I realized I wasn’t making any headway being in a group with people that were all really talented. Many went on to be major successes so I decided I needed a better showcase for myself. I started stand-up again and then immediately someone recommended me to The Comedy Store, Mitzi Shore who owns The Comedy Store, Paulie Shore’s mom, was looking for female comics and I got a chance to showcase for her and the rest is history. It was just kind of a domino effect – the more I got up, the more people saw me, then I got representation. I decided I wanted to do comedy professionally about seven years ago and I wanted to quit my desk job and travel.”

“I seemed to have a lot of gay friends around me, the equation seems to be that if you want to really be a star, it starts with the gay community. So I immersed myself in performing for gay men and that is when Atlantis cruises picked me up. It’s been really great. Today, with the LGBT following, who are super loyal, it has helped me get to the place of mediocrity that I am (snickers).”

Have you always been gay-friendly?

“Yeah. In sixth-grade, I dated Heath Riddles the only gay guy to ever come out of Oklahoma. Every Sunday my family would load up our station wagon and go have Chinese food, because that’s what Jews do. We’d go eat pork ribs at Hunan’s every Sunday night and there was a ‘gaysian’ named Shawn, who was the manager. He would just come out floating and when he would see my dad he would just light up. He was all, ‘oh, doctor Pelofsky…’ He amused me and fascinated me. I am still fascinated by the gay community. In a good way. “

Why do you think your comedy works?

“The longer I have done comedy the more I like to improvise, talk to people, work off my feet, see what information I can get out of them and stretch my brain. There aren’t a lot of women comics who do this. I am hoping to entertain people. I want to be edgy but entertaining. That’s what’s important. “
Currently, Shawn has pulled back her stand-up dates, which used to consume about 200+ days to focus on creating projects for tv and film. She is working on a book as well. She is ready to move to the next level. She stated, “Sometimes you can’t wait around for the opportunities to come to you, you have to create them.”

Can you talk about the book?

“Yeah.”

What does that look like?

“Well, the book is called The Death of Dating. It is a tell-all, non-fiction memoir about all the men I dated and my search for “the one” and how technology has changed the face of dating. It is kind of the experience of all the ways I tried to meet the right person. I actually finished the book two years ago and two months later I met my husband. So we had to go in and rework some things to give it an even happier ending. It is very raw. It’s a little Chelsea-Handler-tales-of-my-whoring-life meets Sex and the City meets Bridget Jones’ Diary.”

When do you anticipate that being out?

“Well I am hoping next year. We have been shopping it around. I have a book agent and just trying to find the right publisher. Hopefully, someone will bite. It is a lot of work. I thought it would be easy to write a book. ‘I’ll just write a book and become a best-seller.’ It is like stand-up comedy, it’s just as hard.”

Can you talk about the other projects?

I am trying to push a screen play that I’ve written with another comedian. I also have a webisode called Stop It! with Jill-Michele Meleán, from MadTV. Once a week we put out rants about topics that people are talking about, dislike, just to be funny, or relevant.

Any parting words for the gay audience of Boise?

Yeah. Wear a condom! Why can’t you be versatile? I am a bottom and a top! Oh, no, you mean something inspirational? Boise has one of the best LGBT communities I’ve ever encountered and it’s an honor to perform in front of them and be their friend. The loyalty here is bar none and I’ll keep coming back year after year.

If you missed Shawn while she was in town, please go to her website http://www.hahachick.com. You will find videos, photos and a calendar of upcoming events (in case you are travelling where she is performing). You will also find a link to her Lady HaHa comedy album in iTunes and her web series at www.Stopitshow.com.