City Weekly November 6, 2025

CITY WEEKLY

POT LUCK

As legal cannabis proliferates, experts urge caution around shared holiday snacks.

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL

S AP

BOX

War Powers

“A top Justice Department lawyer,” the Washington Post reports, “has told lawmakers that the Trump administration can continue its lethal strikes against alleged drug traffickers in Latin America—and is not bound by a decades-old law requiring Congress to give approval for ongoing hostilities.”

That law is the War Powers Resolution, which requires the president to inform Congress within 48 hours of commencing military hostilities, and to cease those operations within 60 days unless Congress authorizes their continuation.

The first admitted U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean occurred on September 4; under the War Powers Resolution those strikes (which have killed dozens) would necessarily end on November 4 unless Congress says “sure, keep on going.”

But it’s more complicated than that, and not just because White House Office of Legal Counsel chief T. Elliot Gaiser claims the War Powers Resolution only applies when US troops are “in harm’s way,” and that the drone strikes in question pose no such danger.

The big issue with the War Powers Resolution is that it’s unconstitutional. Not for the reason most administrations claim—that it limits an imagined presidential power to wage war at will and on whim—but in the other direction.

The Constitution assigns the power to declare war exclusively to Congress. Not after the president has done what he wants for 60 days, but from the very beginning. Aside from immediate defense against direct attack, a president waging war prior to/outside a congressional declaration is an impeachable “high crime.”

Some argue that the passage of time and advancement of technology imply a necessary expansion of the presidential war powers: He must be able to act in the moment and not wait around on a dawdling Congress. It’s actually the other way around.

In 1941, it took 29 hours and 30 minutes from the first explosions at Pearl Harbor for Congress to declare war on Japan. That was before members of Congress could hop on planes to return to Washington— or, for that matter, boot up their laptops for Zoom meetings.

Since Congress has used remote and proxy technology before (during COVID), the infrastructure is already there for Congress to act quickly if its members believe a war is called for.

Absent something on the level of a nuclear holocaust, the president could receive full war authority within singledigit hours.

But let’s take Gaiser at his word for a moment: If the drone strike campaign in the Caribbean isn’t war, what is it?

It’s not law enforcement. In law enforcement, there are investigations,

charges filed, judicial warrants issued and attempts at arrest. These drone strikes include none of those elements except, supposedly, investigations. They also take place entirely outside the legal jurisdiction of the United States.

Not war. Not law enforcement. What, then? Murder. Murder most foul. Murder plain and simple.

Instead of whining at the administration to explain itself pursuant to legislation which illicitly assigns congressional war powers to the president in violation of the Constitution, Congress should impeach, remove and forward criminal referrals to the Department of Justice concerning the president, the secretary of defense and military commanders who issued unlawful orders to commit dozens of murders as a distraction from the president’s domestic failures and political problems.

And then Congress should address one of those distractions by releasing the Epstein files.

THOMAS L. KNAPP

The William Lloyd Garrison Center for Libertarian Advocacy Journalism

THE WATER COOLER

Delete one thing from earth that you think would make it better. (besides a politician)

Kayle Dreher Cancer.

Wes Long

If I can’t remove greed from the world, I would have to go with the internet.

Katharine Biele

Most of the billions of guns we have everywhere.

Scott Renshaw Billionaires.

Bryan Bale

If we can’t specify any politician, how about corruption in general? I think the world would be much better off if we could eliminate avarice and deceitfulness. This would have implications far beyond politics.

Chelsea Neider Racism and guns.

Krista Maggard

It’s honestly a toss-up between billionaires and Artificial Intelligence for me.

Benjamin Wood

The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, or MUTCD. It’s the bible of government road design that codifies driver supremacy over human safety.

PRIVATE EYE

BY JOHN SALTAS

He’s Leaving Home

In 1967, somewhere in England, a young girl quietly left her home at 5:00 a.m. on a Wednesday morning. She carried only a handkerchief and left a note behind for her parents to later discover.

She was last seen the following Friday at 9:00 a.m. greeting a man from the motorcade. She has not been heard from since.

Her note, like all such notes of departure, did not say enough. Where could she have gone, her parents wondered. Are we to blame? Why did she leave us? Did we do enough? Their lament was of one all too familiar to all too many—after all they had done for her, how could she do this to them?

It’s now 58 years on and no one has any idea what became of her. Did she grow into a mother herself, a mother who might have felt the same remorse upon a loved one leaving home as her own mother once did?

Did she return to her parents and reconcile whatever caused her to leave in the first place? Were her parents right to wonder if she left home merely to have fun? And, importantly, did she have fun?

We will never know. That is, unless Sir Paul McCartney revisits that long ago world and tells us. His lyrical homage to a young woman’s decision to leave home—as reported in a local newspaper—reportedly prompted McCartney to write the song “She’s Leaving Home.”

The song was among the many bright candles of what many believe to be the greatest album of all time: The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (never mind

that none of the Beatles performed any music on that particular song).

I am not alone among Baby Boomers who recall all the words and notes of Sgt. Pepper. I must have listened to that album 5,000 times—4,500 of them while lying on the itchy carpet floor of the living room in our house in Lead Mine, Bingham Canyon, where our stereo console ate about 20% of the room all by itself.

Oh that poor, poor stereo needle. But my lats!

I listened to the song so often that I, too, resolved to leave home. While I did so in far less dramatic fashion than the girl in the song, I was similarly young—18 or 19—when I left.

I was so profoundly inexperienced in all things that I spent the better part of the next decade trying to figure out who I was and what I wanted to do in life.

I left no note. I just said, “Hey, mom, I’m moving out,” and that was that. I was flat broke, and had no job, but my parents didn’t bar the door. Instead, they kept the gasoline tab open at “Fat” Hurley’s Chevron gas station in Copperton so I could drive the 15 miles or so back home now and then to tank up.

Sometimes I even stopped in to say hi and grab a sandwich. Among the things I was not good at was taking care of myself.

I did kind of figure that out, though; mostly via the 8-or-so college degrees I accumulated while tending bar at some of the best Utah nightclubs of that era. People and places and lies, oh my! I met men and women of all stripes and all cultures (which I was good at anyway, but which was only further reinforced).

A good many of them would later support me and the little paper I started—this one—for many years with not just encouragement, but with advertising dollars, too. They taught me business, communication, salesmanship, bar tricks, how to hold your liquor and, importantly, how to keep a secret.

I didn’t realize it in the moment, but not ratting out the big tipper when he was drinking with his mistress and not his wife was not dissimilar to making sure I held the trust of a news source. Per the prior, I kept earning tips. Per the latter, I kept getting tips.

By the time I was 25 years old, I knew the little secrets of many people, a good number of whom were not supposed to be seen in a bar in the first place, let alone be witnessed snorting lines of cocaine off of a waitress’s tip tray. But you know, people are only saintly to a point.

Politicians and priests, businessmen and businesswomen—everyone held secrets in a bar and, as I later learned via the newspaper business, outside of the bars as well.

Most people are good, and that’s what most of us are. But the bad guys, the crooks, the braggarts, the cheats, the liars, the raconteurs with no soul? Bartenders saw them coming a mile away and always cringed when management let them in because they were supposedly good for business with their flashy smiles and fists waving big bucks. It was the opposite. Decent folks fled.

I describe it thusly: I knew Donald Trump before Donald Trump became Donald Trump.

Modern big media is no different—it encourages the scurrilous, least worthy among us to be in the news and to make the news, promoting them into our highest political offices because it’s good for business. Honest journalists cringe when their owners fold. Citizens become disillusioned and check out. It may be good for business, but not for long.

I’m one of those who is looking to check out. I’m becoming the girl in Paul’s song—feeling something inside that was always denied for so many years. This business is no longer fun. It’s time for another song: “We (I) Gotta Get Out of This Place.” CW

Send comments to john@cityweekly.net

HITS & MISSES

BY KATHARINE BIELE | @kathybiele

MISS: Tax and Spend

AI generated an album about property taxes—really. You probably won’t be hearing it on Spotify, but Ohio voters are tuning in because they want to eliminate the tax. Just as Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson announced a 19.63% “adjustment” to the tax rate, a national movement is growing to ditch the property tax. It’s probably no surprise that boomers want it gone while the younger generations see it as an impediment to home ownership. While homeowners sit on their property, the age of first-time homebuyers has risen to 38. Utah, however, is not about to lose this tax revenue, as California did in 1978. “Property taxes generate about 70% of all local tax revenue nationwide. In many states, it’s 80% or 90%, or even higher,” the Tax Foundation says. But getting rid of the tax isn’t the solution. A lack of affordable housing is a major problem, and the question of how to fund schools without property taxes just makes the situation even worse.

MISS: Free to Read

Alliance House

In September, Alliance House held the grand opening of its newest residential development, the Nelson-Christensen Apartments at 1805 S. Main Street in Salt Lake City. Consisting of 16 one-bedroom units with high ceilings and their own washers and dryers, each unit rents for $500 a month and boasts secured entry. Executive Director Paige Huff is very proud of this accomplishment.

“There is no housing that I’m aware of that is as affordable as what we have,” Huff said.

Founded in 1987, Alliance House is a community for adults living with mental illness and is based on the International Clubhouse model, which focuses on member rehabilitation (residents are called “members”).

“We want our members to reintegrate through housing, education and employment,” Huff explained.

Books, as a political topic, are right up there with the debate over free speech. And here we go again, as Utah bans its 19th book from public schools. Let’s not forget that journalist Bryan Schott was fired from The Salt Lake Tribune after offering to buy kids banned books. Some suggested Schott was offering porn to minors. But most readers know that defining porn is a fool’s errand. “These bans claim to stamp out ‘pornography’ and other sexual or vulgar content, but have instead been weaponized against content that politicians or governments do not like,” the ACLU says. It’s unlikely that many of those objecting to the books have actually read them. And by law, it only takes three school districts to launch a statewide ban. Now that Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why has been banned, kids will have to turn to the Netflix series.

HIT: Show Business

Utahns and cinefiles are still mourning the loss of the Sundance Film Festival. Now we’re learning that employees of the Sundance Institute were blindsided by the news, too. The Tribune’s Sean Means reports that there were no “open” conversations with leadership about the move to Boulder in 2027, even though many staffers had made Utah their home in support of the festival. Now the Sundance Institute Workers Union has petitioned Sundance to recognize the union. The institute is based in Utah and it is not yet known if that, too, will move to Colorado. With Robert Redford’s death, there is no way to ask him what he thinks, except through his core principles that say “The Institute nurtures and supports artists—the same should be true with our team members.” Perhaps the union will have a continued influence and maintain those principles.

In line with the clubhouse model, Alliance House is deliberately understaffed so that members can help contribute to their community, whether by preparing food, assisting in groundskeeping or working on publicity in the communications unit. “If you are in housing, then the expectation is you are involved in the clubhouse,” Huff said. “We believe work is therapy. It builds confidence and pride.”

Shane McDonald credits Alliance House with giving him a fresh start. McDonald, a 34-year-old and longtime member, was psychiatrically hospitalized as a teenager and became very isolated as a result. “I had no one to talk to,” McDonald said. “My therapist suggested I try Alliance House in 2011. I’ve been here ever since.”

Bruce Price, a 25-year-old member, comes to the clubhouse two or three times a week and assists the culinary unit in preparing lunch for clubhouse members. He also works part-time at the University of Utah. Price says Alliance House gave him housing when he had none.

“I wish I had known about Alliance House sooner, it would have saved me a lot of trauma,” Price said.

Huff said Alliance House isn’t merely a housing program. “In order to get into the housing, you have to be engaged with our mission,” Huff said.

Huff, who has been in this field all her professional life, is a licensed clinical social worker and all the staff are case managers. In addition to stressing clubhouse participation, Alliance House stays involved with its 350 members. There are mandatory monthly resident council meetings, as well as housing support visits to ensure members have what they need. Given the right resources and social environment, Huff believes, people living with mental illness can thrive.

“Our foundation is meaningful relationships,” she said. “In the clubhouse model, you work together a lot more and the outcomes are a lot stronger.”

Crystal Smoot, a 51-year-old member, credits Alliance House with expanding her social circle.

“I appreciate that the community is supportive,” Smoot said. “It’s given me a new start.” CW

New in November

The 2025 TV season isn’t over yet—here are seven new shows premiering this month.

BY BILL FROST comments@cityweekly.net

You don’t typically see many new TV series being dropped in November— but 2025 has been anything but typical, so why not? Maybe the streaming services are throwing out bonus Q4 content to distract from ever-rising subscription rates and corporate mega-mergers that may eventually result in a single app for everything, like ParamountDisneyWBApplePrime+. Until then, check these out.

I Love LA (Sunday, Nov. 2; HBO Max): Rachel Sennott’s cult-flick résumé as writer and actor includes shaggy indies like Bottoms and Shiva Baby. Thankfully, Sennott’s first TV series feels like an extension of her go-for-broke Gen Y universe, a Charli XCX party banger remixed into eight episodes. (If you had to look up Charli XCX, I Love LA might not be for you.) The setup is simple—the messy lives of young Los Angelenos, personified by a cast of upand-coming comic killers—but I Love LA is a plausible Sunday nightcap after HBO’s tonal whiplash combo of It: Welcome to Derry and The Chair Company. All’s Fair (Tuesday, Nov. 4; Hulu): American Horror Story: Delicate proved that Kim Kardashian could pull off a small acting gig as a version of her reality-show self, but alongside Naomi Watts, Sarah Paulson and Glenn Close? All’s Fair is such an over-the-top-of-the-top legal drama from Ryan Murphy and the Doctor Odyssey (R.I.P.) team, the real question is, will she even be noticed? This lush buffet of

A&E TRUE TV

scenery-chewing follows a firm of women divorce attorneys whose mission is to crush, rend and humiliate The Patriarchy, one stilted case at a time. The results are hilarious, right down to their “clown cervix” of an office.

All Her Fault (Thursday, Nov. 6; Peacock): Marissa (Succession’s Sarah Snook) goes to pick up her 4-year-old son from a playdate, only to find a childless house and no one who’s even aware of young Milo. All Her Fault is the stuff of parental nightmares and poolside thriller-novel dreams (it’s based on Andrea Mara’s hit 2021 book), fortified with the star power (including Dakota Fanning, Jake Lacy and a dramatically adept Michael Peña) to avoid reduction into missing-child Lifetime movie cheese. The real villain (or villains) of All Her Fault seem apparent at first, but that doesn’t alleviate the series’ tension.

Death by Lightning (Thursday, Nov. 6; Netflix): U.S. President James Garfield didn’t die due to lightning, nor did he hate Mondays (but he probably did love lasagna—who doesn’t?). Historical facts and cartoon cat trivia aside, Death by Lightning dramatizes the 1880s assassination of the

20th president, played here by Michael Shannon, who reliably stands out in a sea of power-bearded actors (including Succession’s Matthew Macfadyen as Garfield’s killer, the overly ambitious Charles Guiteau). Death by Lightning reminds us that while American politics has long been cutthroat, at least it was once better dressed.

Pluribus (Friday, Nov. 7; Apple TV): Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan’s new Pluribus reteams him with Better Call Saul’s Rhea Seehorn, whose character here is “the most miserable person on Earth” charged with “saving the world from happiness.” Little else is known about the sci-fi-adjacent series, but Gilligan’s past as an X-Files writer suggests he knows his skewed stuff. Since he’s not giving anything away, here’s a long-shot theory: Seehorn is a present-day version of Roxanne, the uber-miserable character she played on the 2011–2013 Whitney Cummings sitcom Whitney. Cummings’ podcast would back me up on this.

Stumble (Friday, Nov. 7; NBC, Peacock): Bring It On (and the viability of any competitive cheerleading comedies after it) was fatally crushed by Jaime Pressly’s sin-

gular, masterfully snarled line in 2000’s Not Another Teen Movie: “Oh, it’s already been brought-en!” But now, 25 years later, Stumble dares to step up to make competitive cheerleading (intentionally) funny again—in the Friday night dead zone of broadcast TV, no less. The faces you’ll recognize in Stumble belong to Kristin Chenoweth and Taran Killam, but this mockumentary sitcom probably isn’t a contender in NBC’s potential comedy comeback. Malice (Friday, Nov. 14; Prime Video): While vacationing in Greece, married couple Nat and Jamie (Carice van Houten and David Duchovny) are charmed enough by new manny Adam (Jack Whitehall) to bring him back home to London to hang with the family—good luck enjoying the gorgeous scenery through all those red flags. Like Prime Video’s The Girlfriend before it, Malice is a psychological thriller designed to tap into your brain’s familial-fear nugget. But, Whitehall is no Olivia Cooke, and Duchovny is napping through his scenes, so … who to root for? The kids and their new, smarter foster parents, obviously. CW

theESSENTIALS ENTERTAINMENT PICKS,

Complete listings online at cityweekly.net

PYGmalion Theatre Co.: Tiny Beautiful Things

Before Cheryl Strayed became a bestselling author with Wild—her memoir about her 1,000-mile solo journey across the Pacific Crest Trail—she was just another struggling would-be writer. So it was that in 2010, she took over from her friend Steve Almond as “Sugar,” the unpaid anonymous advice columnist for the online literary magazine The Rumpus The resulting essays in response to reader questions were brutally honest explorations of her own life, which Strayed collected for the 2012 book Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Life and Love from Dear Sugar; she subsequently revived the “Sugar” persona for a podcast that had multiple runs, first from 2014-2018, then in the COVID spring of 2020.

NOVEMBER 6-12, 2025

In 2016, writer/actor Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) re-imagined Tiny Beautiful Things as a theatrical play, casting herself as Sugar with three additional actors playing the roles of various advice-seeking letter-writers. PYGmalion Productions launches its season with a production starring Tamara Howell in the role of Sugar, directed by Howell in collaboration with her daughter, Madison, and with Pygmalion artistic director Fran Pruyn. Says Tamara Howell of the show, “This script is so captivating because it’s filled with real letters from real people. They are funny, heartbreaking, and eye-opening—all at the same time.”

PYGmalion Productions presents Tiny Beautiful Things at the Rose Wagner Center Black Box (138 W. 300 South) Nov. 7 – 22, with performances Thursday – Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 –$22.50; visit saltlakecountyarts.org for tickets and additional event information. (Scott Renshaw)

theESSENTIALS

Ballet West: A Midsummer Night’s Dream / New World Shakespeare: Hamlet

You say you want your Shakespeare, but you want it a little … different from the way you got it back in high-school English class? Fascinating ways to interpret the Bard go back centuries—and this week, you can choose between creative interpretations of two classic Shakespeare works.

Following their season-opening Romeo & Juliet, Ballet West presents a program headlined by A Midsummer Night’s Dream—or, more specifically, by The Dream, a 1964 interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by British choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton, set to the music of Felix Mendelssohn. It retains all the comedic charm of the story of lovers manipulated by the fairies of an enchanted forest, with the added enchantment of beautiful dance. Les Noces, by choreographer Bronislava Nijinska set to the music of Igor Stravinsky, rounds out the program, which runs Nov. 7 – 15 at the J. Q. Lawson Capitol Theatre (50 W. 200 South), with performances Friday, Saturday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., and a 2 p.m. matinee Nov. 15. Tickets begin at $30 at balletwest.org.

On the tragic side of things, you’ve got New World Shakespeare Company’s version of Hamlet. Élise C. Hanson offers a gender-swapped interpretation of the melancholy prince, indicating in a press release that “one plays Hamlet because they have to play Hamlet, because the role lives inside them, under their skin, and because they know no other way than this.” Hamlet runs Nov. 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 21 & 22 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (261 S. 900 East). Tickets are $20 at newworldshakespeare.com. (SR)

Broadway at the Eccles: Suffs

In the 78-year history of the Tony Awards, it has only happened one time that the Best Book and Best Score awards for a musical went to a solo female creator—and it was just last year. In 2024, Shaina Taub earned those honors for her musical Suffs, which chronicles the American women’s suffrage movement from 1913 to the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920. So it perhaps is only fitting that this tale of women breaking barriers became one that broke barriers of its own.

The story acknowledges the challenges faced by key figures like Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, Carrie Chapman Catt and Mary Church Terrell, as well as the complexities of gender and racial oppression colliding in this time. Yet it was a story Taub felt called to tell. “I wanted to write Suffs kind of for my 13-year-old self, who was so desperate and hungry for a story about a group of girls taking on the world together,” Taub shared in a promotional interview. “I feel like I’ve been searching for that my whole life. … I grew up going to public school, and never learned about [the women’s suffrage movement], so it was like, if I would have had this story as a kid, it would have inspired me so much. I would have felt so seen; I would have felt so motivated; I would have felt so … happy!”

Broadway at the Eccles brings the first national touring company of Suffs to the Eccles Theater (131 S. Main St.) Nov. 11 – 16. Tickets begin at $69.94; visit saltlakecountyarts.org for tickets

Team Effort

SpyHop’s

PitchNic program puts collaboration ahead of the auteur theory.

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net @scottrenshaw

At a time when solitude defines so much of how we spend our days, there’s immense value in things that remind us how much we need each other. For some local kids, that includes a reminder that “a film by” doesn’t mean “a film only by.”

This week marks the premiere of four short films developed and completed as part of the year-long PitchNic program of the media-arts nonprofit SpyHop: Whinnie, directed by Jamie Jean; Happy Thoughts, directed by Tommy Pepper; Unfortunate Son, directed by Phoenix Ballesteros; and Bicycles, directed by Marilyn Heaner. All four were chosen from among pitches submitted by approximately 16 teenage students, with those whose pitches were not chosen serving as crew members for the other films.

The sense of the program as a place where people can become collaborators after a process that could make them feel like competitors is in some ways built into how SpyHop becomes a place of comfort for its young participants. According to SpyHop’s Strategic Partnerships Director, Robert Dick, “What I keep hearing from these young folks … is that this becomes their ‘third home.’ They’re meeting their tribe, and the people they want to be with, that they might not have met in their schools or their homes.”

That familial feeling proves crucial in a program like PitchNic, which matches a filmmaking mentor with the student participants. For 2024-2025, that mentor was Jon Nelson, a Utah-based professional cinematographer who ventured into this kind of teaching for the first time, not entirely sure what it would entail for him.

“I thought initially it was going to be much more a traditional ‘stand in front

of a class, give a lecture’ sense,” Nelson recalls. “I’ve come to find out it’s more hands-on, really playing and experimenting, and getting excited about what the students want to work on.”

The first weeks of the program focus on helping the students develop and hone their movie “pitch” for presentation in February. Naturally, with only four films that will actually be chosen for production, there’s the potential for real disappointment. “I always say, it is the single hardest night of the program,” Nelson notes, “because it’s statistically more likely you’re not going to end up the star of the show.”

Yet those same possibly-disappointed students will soon need to become teammates helping to realize another director’s vision—and setting that stage is another huge part of the program. “I think the key in curbing that disappointment, in fostering the bounce-back, has been putting a lot of energy into fostering those friendships early on,” Nelson says. “So this isn’t just a class of random students; they all have community with each other, and friendships already built.”

The filmmaking process then becomes one in which they fully grasp how collaborative a medium filmmaking is, and how important their roles can be even if they’re not sitting in the director’s chair. “I think they understand it from a conceptual standpoint, because they’re all film nerds, and see all the names attached to a credits list,” Nelson says. “But there’s a shift when you become part of it. It’s like, ‘Oh, yeah, if I don’t take my job seriously as a focuspuller, that affects our day.’ They learn a lot about that on the set.”

For his part, Nelson tries to convey from his own experience as a creative artist what are crucial principles for working in film, including having a solid work ethic and coming to work with a positive attitude. Meanwhile, when guiding filmmakers, he looks to strike a balance between instruction and curiosity about what he sees.

“I think what it comes down to is thinking about how we’re fielding feedback,” he observes. “Is there an artistic reason you have this shot starting out unsteady? Oftentimes it’s no, that actually is a mistake. Or also understanding there are things that are just going to come off as an error vs. those you can defend as an artistic choice. A lot of the time, they’ll come to their own conclusions.”

After months of filming and editing, the result of all that collaborative work is finally ready to share with an audience. And just as Nelson knows there’s going to be nerves approaching the premiere, he shares that anticipation with them.

“I think there’s always a level, when you’re in the storm with the students, there’s a little anxiety that happens,” he notes. “But there’s also excitement, knowing how hard they’ve worked, and waiting for them to have this moment.” CW

POT LUCK

AS LEGAL CANNABIS PROLIFERATES, EXPERTS URGE CAUTION AROUND SHARED HOLIDAY

SNACKS.

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL comments@cityweekly.net

The holidays—from roughly Thanksgiving through the New Year—are known as the most wonderful time of the year. And given all the fixings, traditions and good cheer, it’s easy to understand why.

For Catherine Christman, one holiday season stands out in her memory. After a familiar swirl of activity, with her big family and their friends laughing and talking together, she planned a quiet night at home, finishing holiday chores as the others split off for various dinner plans.

Christman figured that she’d have a late-afternoon snack and then eat supper once folks left. Poking around the kitchen, she happened upon a brown paper bag in the fridge that held chocolate chip cookies.

“I’ll just have a couple of these,” she thought. The first cookie she tried seemed dry and not terribly tasty. But that didn’t stop her from having a second. About an hour later, her body started feeling heavy, slow and numb inside. Her thought processes and speech also slowed down.

Christman, who has high blood pressure and high cholesterol, recalls wondering if she was having a stroke.

“I don’t feel very well,” she finally told a family member. “I’ve never felt like this.”

Christman’s family helped her down the stairs and rushed her to the emergency room, where a doctor conducted preliminary tests. As she waited alone, Christman mulled over her situation and remembered hearing that a relative staying at her house had previously brought baked cannabis products with them.

Since no one knew Christman had eaten the cookies, they wouldn’t have suspected that as the cause of her symptoms, especially in a woman who was almost 70.

When the doctor returned, Christman outlined her thoughts about what might have happened. “I could tell he was chuckling a bit internally,” she recalled. “He urged my relatives to keep an eye on me and told me to take it easy for several hours.”

Edible Arrangements

Unsuspecting adults and children eating foods that contain cannabis is a situation with which Sherrie Pace is all too familiar. An outreach education manager at the Utah Poison Control Center, Pace said that roughly 150 reports of accidental exposure came in during 2024, and that such cases have been steadily increasing for the last 10 years. The vast majority of them involve very young children.

“Seventy percent of all our cannabis exposures are in children 6 years old and younger,” Pace said. “Ninety percent of those exposures were [due] to edibles.”

She added that such exposure typically occurs when cannabis products aren’t stored safely and kept out of sight.

“A kid will do a lot of climbing and reaching for what looks like a little gummy bear or a brownie or cookie,” Pace says. “They get a large amount of cannabis, and then their bodies don’t do well with it.”

Dr. Michael Moss, medical director for the Utah Poison Control Center, said that he and his col-

leagues are constantly discussing how cannabis should not be treated like food, even though it can often take that form.

“When a child ingests cannabis, they can experience nausea, confusion, anxiety, drowsiness, and difficulty breathing,” Moss said. “There are edible products that are meant to taste good and are packaged like food, rather than in medicine bottles. He adds, “Cannabis should be locked up, preferably even in a designated lockbox and kept out of reach, not kept in the kitchen cabinet or pantry.”

Altered States

Pace said that parents should call 911 if their child is having trouble breathing.

Otherwise, she recommends calling Poison Control (800-222-1222) as a crucial first step in the event of exposure.

“When you call the Poison Control Center, you are talking to a pharmacist or nurse who has been specially trained. The call and advice are both free and confidential,” Pace said. “We’re not here to judge. We want to help you get through it.”

Moss says that part of the problem is how 5 to 10 milligrams of THC used to be common for one edible, but now the potency can vary greatly between products.

Local cannabis pharmacies sell gummies with as much as 100 milligrams of THC per dose. Many patients will cut these higher-content gummies into halves or fourths, giving their dosage a lower THC amount, but the option of a full dose (or potential for accidental exposure) remains.

Utah Poison Control outreach education manager Sherrie Pace says the majority of cannabis exposure cases involve children.

Contributing to the situation is the increased accessibility of cannabis, since Colorado and Nevada have legalized recreational adult use alongside Utah’s more tightly controlled medical cannabis program.

“Utah shows increased exposures as the states around us have changed their laws,” Pace said.

On the positive side, awareness from an increased number of incidents has led to greater accuracy and faster diagnosis in ER settings. Instead of a big workup right away, less invasive urinalysis and drug tests are conducted.

“It used to be, when a child was brought into the emergency room and didn’t wake up, possibly something like even meningitis was suspected,” Moss explained. “Now, though, for better or worse, the problem has become prevalent enough that ERs are on the lookout for this.”

Moss said that he has never heard of a child dying from cannabis exposure, and he added that most instances are not life-threatening. However, they can result in seizures or a child being admitted to the ICU.

Both Moss and Pace urged holiday celebrants to take special care and continue to keep cannabis safety in mind—for this year and all the years to come. CW

“Cannabis

Michael Moss, Utah Poison Control medical director

OUT OF THE CANNABIS CLOSET

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL

Iconfess—even though I look more like the type who’d buy strawberries or skim milk than cannabis, I carry a “weed card.” To the uninitiated, this form of stateissued ID allows me to possess and consume cannabis for medicinal use.

To be sure, my four kids never imagined I’d get a weed card. But because of health issues I’ve grappled with for years, my general practitioner advised me to obtain medicines from a cannabis pharmacy (what other states would call a “dispensary.”)

I‘ve had dreadful insomnia since high school. It happened so frequently, I took to calling the nights I didn’t sleep my “white nights.” On those evenings, my mind would race, refusing to be quieted. Hours would pass before my inner slideshow finally came to a halt. But even then, more time would elapse before I finally fell asleep. I took strong sleeping pills for a while. But one night, hoping it would help me to achieve a measure of peace, my son gave me a CBD honey stick. Before long, a gentle sleep enveloped me. The next morning, I awoke, celebrating the fact that, finally, I’d been given relief. CBD, or cannabidiol, is the second most prevalent active ingredient in cannabis. One out of hundreds of components in marijuana, CBD does not cause a high by itself.

Yet another health challenge I’ve had to grapple with is neuropathy. The best way to describe what that’s like is to imagine you are experiencing lightning strikes of pain on the soles of your feet.

Through trial and error, I learned that cannabis-based salves calm and quiet my foot pain—in fact, sometimes it’s completely gone. And eventually, through experimentation, I found that if I ingested an edible dose and put salve on my feet before dozing off, my white nights were a thing of the past.

When my local CBD outlet raised its prices, my son suggested I could save money by getting a weed card. My regular clinic recommended that I see KindlyMD, a health care company that integrates primary care with alternative treatments such as medical cannabis.

The KindlyMD doctor I met with was very understanding and seemed to fully comprehend the kind of pain I was experiencing. I was issued my weed card that very same day.

When I actually went to the dispensary, it looked like a scaled-down version of Fort Knox mixed with the Emerald City. The first thing I noticed was a solid square building with only one visible entrance. The exterior was metal and brick, with security guards hovering around the doorway.

In addition to a provider evaluation, some states— including Utah—require a consultation with a licensed pharmacist before you can make your first purchase. Subsequently, once you pass through the security barrier at the pharmacy, the atmosphere is friendlier.

The pharmacist is always upbeat and congenial. Like the doctor who issued my weed card, it’s evident that she understands my health challenges.

Since my first visit last spring, I follow the same procedure—one-half gummy and salve each night. The good news is that I never wake up high, but the painless calm in my feet feels like I am truly walking on air. CW

The central dining area at Central by Saffron Valley

DINE

All Aboard

Taking a culinary journey with Central by Saffron Valley.

BY ALEX SPRINGER comments@cityweekly.net @captainspringer

For the past 16 years or so, Lavanya

Mahate has been a true pioneer when it comes to bringing the flavors of India to Utah. Most of us know her work with the Saffron Valley restaurants, which, though they have multiple locations, are far from being considered a “chain restaurant.” Much like the cultural cuisine of India and South Asia, each Saffron Valley restaurant has its own set of flavors and nuances that make them feel more like stops on a train car trek across India. Perhaps this is why Mahate’s recent concept known as Central by Saffron Valley borrows so heavily from railroad travel—she has been building a culinary route across the Wasatch Front, and that route culminates with this new downtown location.

When I spoke to Mahate earlier this year about Central, she was enthusiastic about creating a culinary love letter to the train-car culture that has been integral to India’s society for decades. I thought that the train car concept was also a nice touch given Utah’s own Golden Spike history, and the restaurant is truly a convergence of Mahate’s Indian and Utahn culture. Central’s space—which used to belong to the Italian restaurant Stanza— now has a renovated train car in the dining room along with some gorgeous revamps to the interior design.

As Central’s core culinary theme is born of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway chai carts and the street food vendors of

West Bengal’s Howrah Junction railway station, the menu is decidedly social. I’m always going to hit up the samosas ($9 for veggie, $12 for lamb kheema) as a starter, and you’ll want to follow suit. Both veggie and lamb options are great, but the latter stands out as an elevated version of this classic snack.

The menu also features plenty of shareable appetizers such as naan with assorted dips ($13) and the tandoori cheese broccoli ($15), but I was most taken with the Chicken 65 ($16). It’s a plate of crispy fried chicken morsels—a favorite in Southern India. The dish is garnished with fresh curry leaves and dried chilies, and possesses the perfect seasoning palette to shift your appetite into gear. For a vegetarian take on this dish, I’d suggest the Cauliflower Manchurian, which swaps fried chicken for fried cauliflower tossed in a spicy garlic-chili sauce.

Of course, Central is no stranger to the wide variety of curry that is present in Indian cuisine, and there are plenty of great options to choose from here. If you generally consider yourself to be a fan of classics like chicken tikka masala, saag paneer or rogan josh, you’re going to find higher-end versions on Central’s menu. I was most impressed with the Old Delhi Butter Chicken ($21), which takes the foundational flavors that make butter chicken so delightful and elevates them to gorgeous new heights. From the silky texture of the sauce to the tenderness of the chicken, this is a dish that will make you forget everything you think you know about Indian food.

Any trip to a Saffron Valley location would be remiss without the inclusion of a golden-brown dosa or a fluffy dish of biryani, and Central features flavorful versions of both. The chicken tikka dosa ($18) is always a classic, but the asparagus uthappam ($16) is an unex-

pected vegetarian hit. On the biryani side of things, the nawabi lamb biryani ($24) is the most luxurious by far; the lamb is melt-in-your-mouth decadent.

Setting Central as your dinner destination makes a whole lot of sense, but there is something to be said about basing your visit around the restaurant’s chai and dessert menus. Especially if you’re dining with only one other companion, the chai flight ($11) and Sweet Ending Flight ($20) are both excellent options for those after more of a social engagement with small bites and hot drinks. The chai flight comes with some adorable biscuits for dipping, and it’s always a strong brew— something to keep in mind next time that caffeine flavor hits.

The Sweet Ending Flight lets you pick two dessert items, and I’d personally go with the gulab jamun cheesecake ($10) or the mango coconut panna cotta ($9). The cheesecake is one of the most creative interpretations of gulab jamun—small, donut hole-looking guys soaked in honey or syrup—as they are baked into each slice. It’s a creative way to incorporate this traditional dessert, and it’s playing with some wonderful dessert textures.

As a local food enthusiast, I’ve enjoyed seeing the enthusiasm and passion that Lavanya Mahate has for her culture and cuisine. My first experience with Indian food was at a Saffron Valley restaurant, and seeing that brand set a new standard in local fine dining is a pleasure to see. Fans of Indian food will find plenty to love about Central, and the restaurant feels like a culmination of sorts for the Saffron Valley brand. CW

2 Row Brewing

73 West 7200 South, Midvale 2RowBrewing.com

On Tap: “Octoberfest” Lager

Avenues Proper

376 8th Ave, SLC avenuesproper.com

On Tap: I Am The Vvitch - golden ale with pumpkin and spices

Bewilder Brewing

445 S. 400 West, SLC BewilderBrewing.com

On Tap: Pink Boots - Pink Pony Pilz

Bohemian Brewery

94 E. Fort Union Blvd, Midvale BohemianBrewery.com

NEW Releases: Kölsch, Dusseldorfer “Alt” Bier

Bonneville Brewery 1641 N. Main, Tooele BonnevilleBrewery.com

On Tap: Peaches and Cream Ale

Chappell Brewing

Grid City Beer Works

333 W. 2100 South, SLC GridCityBeerWorks.com

NEW: DK Rice Lager

Heber Valley Brewing

501 N. Main Street, Heber City, UT hebervalleybrewing.com

Fresh Canned ’To-Go’: NZ Choice

IPA - Hazy IPA w/ New Zealand hops (7.1% ABV)

Helper Beer

159 N Main Street, Helper, UT  helperbeer.com

Hopkins Brewing Co. 1048 E. 2100 South, SLC HopkinsBrewingCompany.com

On Tap: Chili Mangose

Kiitos Brewing

608 W. 700 South, SLC KiitosBrewing.com

On Tap: Pumpkin Spice Latte

Kiitos Brewing Sugar House Bar 1533 S. 1100 East, SLC KiitosBrewing.com

2285 S Main Street Salt Lake City, UT 84115 chappell.beer

On Tap: Pie Hole - Strawberry Rhubarb Tart Ale

Corner Brew Pub Sugar House 2110 S. Highland Drive, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/wasatch

On Tap:  Top of Main Coalition Hellfire Chili Pepper Ale

Craft by Proper 1053 E. 2100 So., SLC properbrewingco.com

On Tap: I Am The Vvitch - golden ale with pumpkin and spices

Desert Edge Brewery

273 Trolley Square, SLC DesertEdgeBrewery.com

On Tap:  Centennial Steamer, California Common Lager

Epic Brewing Co.

825 S. State, SLC EpicBrewing.com

On Tap: Chasing Ghosts IPA

Etta Place Cidery

700 W Main St, Torrey www.ettaplacecider.com

On Tap: Imperial Cider, Fig-Tamarind Session Mead

Fisher Brewing Co.

320 W. 800 South, SLC FisherBeer.com

On Tap: A rotation of up to 17 Fresh Beers!

Prodigy Brewing 25 W Center St. Logan Prodigy-brewing.com

On Tap: 302 Czech Pilsner

Proper Brewing/Proper Burger 857 So. Main & 865 So. Main properbrewingco.com

On Tap: I Am The Vvitch - golden ale with pumpkin and spices

Proper Brewing Moab 1393 US-191, Moab properbrewingco.com

On Tap: I Am The Vvitch - golden ale with pumpkin and spices

Red Rock Brewing 254 So. 200 West RedRockBrewing.com

On Tap: Gypsy Scratch

Red Rock Fashion Place 6227 So. State Redrockbrewing.com

On Tap: Grand Bavaria

Red Rock Kimball Junction 1640 Redstone Center Redrockbrewing.com

On Tap: Bamberg Rauch Bier

RoHa Brewing Project 30 Kensington Ave, SLC RoHaBrewing.com

NOW OPEN!

Level Crossing Brewing Co. 2496 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake LevelCrossingBrewing.com

On Tap: Helles Munich Style Lager

Level Crossing Brewing Co., POST 550 South 300 West, Suite 100, SLC LevelCrossingBrewing.com

On Tap: Look Up! Amber Ale on Nitro

Moab Brewing

686 S. Main, Moab TheMoabBrewery.com

On Tap:  “Big Drop” West Coast Pilsner

Mountain West Cider 425 N. 400 West, SLC MountainWestCider.com

On Tap: Forbidden Fruit Pomegranate and Blood Orange Hard Cider

Offset Bier Co 1755 Bonanza Dr Unit C, Park City offsetbier.com/ On Tap: DOPO IPA

Ogden Beer Company 358 Park Blvd, Ogden OgdenBeerCompany.com

On Tap: 11 rotating taps as well as high point cans and guest beers

Park City Brewing 1764 Uinta Way C1 ParkCityBrewing.com On Tap: Cinnamon Apple Seltzer

Silver Reef

4391 S. Enterprise Drive, St. George SGBev.com

Squatters Corner Pub – Valley Fair

3555 Constitution Blvd, West Valley City squatterscornerpub.com

On Tap: Salt Lake Brewing Co. Acapulco Gold Mexican Lager

Squatters Pub Brewery / Salt Lake Brewing Co.

147 W. Broadway, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/squatters

On Tap: Salt Lake Brewing Co. Strawberry Kolsch

Strap Tank Brewery, Lehi 3661 Outlet Pkwy, Lehi, UT StrapTankBrewery.com

On Tap: “Virgil the Guide” (Italian Pilsner); “Smiles und Sunshine” (German Leichtes Weizen)

Strap Tank Brewery, Springville 596 S 1750 W, Springville, UT StrapTankBrewery.com

On Tap: “Orange Hopsicle” Hazy Pale; “Trouble” American Sour with Mango and Passionfruit

On Tap: Pumpkin Black

Roosters Brewing Multiple Locations RoostersBrewingCo.com

On Tap: Cosmic Pumpkin Chocolate Chip

SaltFire Brewing 2199 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake SaltFireBrewing.com On Draft: Master Control Program NIEPA

Salt Flats Brewing 2020 Industrial Circle, SLC SaltFlatsBeer.com On Tap: OPEN ROAD SERIES #3Barrel Aged Grand Cru

Scion Cider Bar 916 Jefferson St W, SLC Scionciderbar.com

On Tap: Melonhead 5.6% ABV

Second Summit Cider 4010 So. Main, Millcreek https://secondsummitcider.com

On Tap: Blueberry Spruce Tip

Shades Brewing 1388 S. 300 West, Salt Lake City ShadesBrewing.beer

New Batch: Raspberry Pistachio Sour Ale

Shades On State

366 S. State Street, Salt Lake City Shadesonstate.com

On Tap: Six Wheat Under Hefeweizen

Ogden TalismanBrewingCo.com

On Tap: Witches Brew; One Nut November (Nut brown ale)

Thieves Guild Cidery 117 W. 900 South, SLC thievesguildcidery.com

On Tap: Crossbow - Bright apple forward cider w/orange zest | 5%

Top of Main Brewery 250 Main, Park City, Utah topofmainbrewpub.com On Tap: Top of Main Brewery Hop Carousel IPA

Uinta Brewing 1722 S. Fremont Drive, SLC UintaBrewing.com On Tap: Was Angeles Craft Beer

UTOG

2331 Grant Ave, Ogden UTOGBrewing.com

On Tap: Golden Grant 5% ABV. Vernal Brewing 55 S. 500 East, Vernal VernalBrewing.com Zion Brewery

BEER NERD

Beer Hunters

No orange vests are required to hunt down these delicious trophies.

BY MIKE RIEDEL comments@cityweekly.net @utahbeer

UTOG/Home Range - Good Gourd:

The recent collaboration between UTOG and Home Range Brewing has yielded a seasonal brew that captures the essence of autumn. This beer, crafted with a full pumpkin mash and a thoughtful selection of spices, stands out from many of its peers with a complexity and depth I found impressive.

It pours a deep, amber color with a frothy head that dissipates to reveal an impressive aroma. The nose is dominated by a nice nutmeg scent, which is warm and authentic, suggesting a fresh-baked pumpkin pie rather than an overpowering spice rack.

Upon the first sip, the initial impression is a resounding, “Whoa.” The beer delivers a bold, malty backbone that provides a rich foundation. This is complemented by a distinctly toasty malt character, which evokes caramelization and roasted pumpkin, providing a welcome sweetness without being cloying. The spices are present and pronounced, but are well-integrated and balanced, never overwhelming the beer’s fundamental flavors. This brew has a ton of body for a 5.0 percent ale, giving it a smooth and creamy mouthfeel that is far from the watery, flavorless spice beers that are all too common. The addition of vanilla provides a subtle, complementary sweetness that rounds out the spices beautifully, bringing everything into perfect harmony.

Verdict: The beer’s full-bodied nature and balanced profile make it a truly excellent example of its style, a beer that both pumpkin-ale enthusiasts and skeptics can appreciate for its craftsmanship and autumnal charm.

Offset - Eggers Special: Eggers Hops is a small, family-run hop farm out of

New Zealand that specializes in Riwaka. These are some of the most amazing hops in the world but they’re also a total pain in the ass to grow. Eggers Special is a rare variant of Riwaka that was hand selected from over 20,000 specimens, and Offset was lucky enough to acquire some for this beer.

Every once in a while, a beer comes along that is so unapologetically itself, you have to stand back and applaud. This is one of those beers. It’s a full-on Riwaka explosion—and yes, Riwaka Explosion would be an excellent band name. From the moment it’s poured, you know you’re in for a hop-forward journey.

The palate is where the hop detonation occurs. There is a massive amount of hops at play here, creating a wonderfully super-chewy and substantial mouthfeel that feels luxurious. It’s not a massive fruit bomb, but it leads with a sharp and vibrant charge of grapefruit zest that awakens the senses. This is quickly followed by softer, more rounded notes of sweet mango and a medley of lime and juicy, sun-ripened berries that adds depth and complexity. It’s a profile that tastes expensive—a top-shelf experience that, thankfully, doesn’t come with a punishing price tag.

As the fruit-forward wave subsides, the finish pivots beautifully. A wonderful herbal character emerges towards the end, providing a clean, sophisticated finish with only minimal bitterness. The brewers’ approach feels almost comically excessive in the best way possible; it’s like they had a truck filled with prime Riwaka hops that tripped and fell directly into the kettle during the boil. The result is not chaotic, but rather a wellcrafted and cohesive brew.

Verdict: This isn’t just good, it’s so damn delicious. An absolute must-try for any fan of expressive, modern IPAs.

I haven’t seen any Eggers Special on draft here in the valley. If you’d like cans to go, Offset’s Park City Brewery is the place to snag some of this 5.0 percent ABV pale ale. I also found cans at The Bayou and Slackwater. But if you’re looking to try Good Gourd, UTOG in Ogden or Home Range Brewing in Logan are your only options for now.

Happy hunting. As always, cheers! CW

the BACK BURNER

BY ALEX SPRINGER | @captainspringer

Veterans Discount at Taqueria 27

Over the years, Taqueria 27 has become one of the state’s most beloved taco spots, primarily for its creative take on its rotating taco and margarita menu. As a veteran-owned local restaurant, Taqueria 27 is looking forward to showing its support for all of the veterans who call Utah home. During the entire month of November, Taqueria 27 (taqueria27.com) locations will be running some great specials to show appreciation to military veterans. To start, the restaurant will be offering a 25% discount for any veterans and their families. On Veterans Day (Nov. 11), the restaurant will offer a free meal for all veterans.

Chubby Baker Closes

In a recent social media post, Ying Nance of Chubby Baker (chubby-baker.com) announced the imminent closure of all three Chubby Baker locations (Salt Lake City, Sandy and Orem). Nance cites rising costs and expenses as one of the reasons for this closure, along with a desire to spend more time with her family. A longtime favorite of local donut fans, Chubby Baker made a huge splash on the scene with its creative riffs on this classic dessert. Nance and her team always made visitors feel welcome, and it was hard to leave without taking a dozen donuts to go. Chubby Baker’s last day in business will be Nov. 9.

Guest Appreciation Week at MOOYAH

The Sandy location of MOOYAH (9710 S. State Street, Unit 101) is commemorating its first anniversary with a customer appreciation week taking place until Nov. 9. Customers can swing by this location and participate in storewide specials and merchandise giveaways which will change each day. The best way to take advantage of these deals is to download the MOOYAH app or check out the Sandy store’s Facebook page for updates. Fans of giant burgers and thick milkshakes rarely leave MOOYAH unhappy, and a week full of deals is a great way to experience this fast-casual burger joint.

Quote of the Week: “The optimist sees the donut, the pessimist sees the hole.” – Oscar Wilde

Flux Capacity

Local flow arts team House of Flux is making its mark in the electronic music scene.

BY ARICA ROBERTS Comments@cityweekly.net

When Alexis Martinez, the co-founder of the flow arts dance team Haus of Flux, first saw a silk fans performer at Das Energi in 2018, she was immediately mesmerized. “She was just absolutely the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen,” Martinez recalls.

While Martinez had been dancing ballet since she was four years old, this incident inspired her to begin her own journey with silk fans. Despite dealing with social anxiety, she connected with the local Salt Lake City flow community through her friend Anthony Benitez and eventually began teaching her own workshops.

Benitez, the other co-founder, is a natural entertainer, with a childhood background in gymnastics and theater before he discovered hooping at a local “flow jam.” His mom used to tell him he belonged in the circus—which now, as a full-time hooper and performer, he isn’t far off from.

As a queer Latino male, Benitez wants to normalize male dancers in the electronic music scene. He is now the only male artist sponsored by a hula hoop company (Astral Hoops) and has performed at Utah’s biggest festivals such as V2’s electronic music events Get Lucky, Get Freaky and Das Energi, as well as the Utah Pride Festival and Utah Arts Alliance’s Illuminate. He’s also been able to travel across the country to perform at other major festivals, which has made him more aware of the deep pool of professional-level performance talent that Utah possesses.

“Utah, it’s a hidden gem for sure,” Benitez says.

While our state can be frequently overlooked, Martinez and Benitez both agree that Utah deserved a dedicated platform, which is why they created Haus of Flux. As active members of the local electronic music scene, they share a goal to encourage a supportive, family-like structure (“a house”) for flow ( flux is Latin for “flow”) performers, and to showcase the oftenoverlooked local talent within Utah’s entertainment scene. From hosting workshops that include “how to’s” for dance resumes and auditions, stage presence and makeup, they are committed to holistic professional development.

The spelling of “haus” also alludes to queer culture. “I love drag queens,” Martinez explains. “I love how creative they are. They absolutely blow my mind with some of the things they do. So yeah, a lot of inspiration for the look and the style and stuff, that all comes from there as well.”

Martinez’s elaborate makeup and selfmade costumes attest to her deep appreciation for drag and the levels of selfexpression and artistry that go into flow arts. The dancers, like drag queens, also have performer names. While Benitez is known as “Hoop King,” Martinez goes by “S1lk Angel,” alluding to her angel number birth time: 11:11.

Beyond a creative outlet, flow arts are also an outlet for physical well-being and powerful, effective tools for mental health and healing. Martinez explains how when she first began hooping, she would take the hoop everywhere with her. “It was like my fidget toy,” she explains. “It was making me feel safe, that little circle.”

Her hula hoop became a source of comfort and a healing tool during a challenging period in her life. She would hoop for hours every day to pull herself out of some of the hardest times. Benitez also used hooping to find a “light back in myself” after working a stressful job and receiving a PTSD diagnosis.

What specifically about flow arts does she find so healing? “The state of flow, we

MUSIC

call it flow state,” Martinez explains. “It’s very grounding, because it makes you focus your energy on one thing, such as your prop or props. And when you hit that flow state, it’s just electric, because you’re so focused on something that doesn’t have anything to do with anything with the outside world. It doesn’t have to do with any of your worries. You just let go and pretty much you become one with your prop, essentially. So it’s just very grounding to have that feeling and also just inspiring. You feel really good, really uplifted afterwards.”

Benitez adds, “It’s a state of meditation.” He was born with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and developed multiple fibromyalgia, so his body doesn’t always move the way he wants it to. “There’s times where I want to go out and hula hoop, but there’s times where I can barely grab it,” he says. As a form of meditation, he can put on some music and tap into that

“flow state” to relieve stress.

Flow artists at electronic music events often use LED-powered props that can make geometric shapes and patterns, bringing those who are watching the performers into a meditative state as well. Whenever Martinez and Benitez or their other team members perform, they are always met with enthusiastic praise and awe, which they call “the flux effect.”

Last month, Haus of Flux held auditions and now has a few new members, plus exciting future plans in store. They intend to continue performing at nightlife shows such as at Plumhouse and other bigger events. You can follow them on Instagram @hausofflux to keep up with their schedule, and see their amazing talent to become mesmerized yourself.

Benitez promises, “This is just the beginning of the flux effect.” CW

TUESDAYS

WEDNESDAYS

BEST BAR IN UTAH!

GREAT FOOD

MUSIC PICK S

J.I.D. @ The Union 11/6

J.I.D.’s album God Does Like Ugly is such a revelation. Sure, his first three studio LPs built upon the bricks of the Dreamville rapper’s unique style. However, the Atlanta native’s latest (released earlier this year) is when it really all came together, and he fully completed his move from the Never/Forever stories to a true hip-hop original. “Everything’s just been going up. Like I said, just stepping stones.” Destin Route (J.I.D) told People.com. “I just want to make sure everything I do is bigger than the last time I’ve done it, and everything follows suit with that little method or whatever. Just more opportunities and just more visibility and more eyes on the music.” God Does Like Ugly is as infectious and popular as anything currently around. Modern, eclectic soundscapes with top-class flow and lyrics from the head as well as the soul. Even when he rhymes about the staples of rap, he does it with far more eloquence. The track “Community” is a highlight here. Joined by the dynamic duo, Clipse, the tune is intense, real, strong and with clear intentions and thoughts. The “doves cry” line by Malice IS culturally appropriate. It really is a wonderful time to be a hip-hop fan right now. Young Nudy opens. Catch these acts on the God Does Like Paradise tour at The Union on Thursday, Nov 6. Doors at 6:30 p.m., show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the all-ages show are $62.40 and can be found at ticketmaster.com. (Mark Dago)

SHOWS

MUSIC PICK S

Night Ranger @ Tuacahn Amphitheatre 11/6

There was a period of time that marked the evolution of rock radio from the progressive sounds of the ’60s (the endlessly extended instrumentals, side-long epochs and music that didn’t cater to the confines of the three-minute single, etc.), to a format known as AOR, short for “album-oriented radio.” It eventually became as commercially viable as its Top 40 predecessors, even while focusing on more eclectic and charismatic bands, no longer being constrained by formula-fueled dictates. For their part, Night Ranger was an ideal candidate for AOR airplay, courtesy of songs that boasted sophisticated yet melodic tunes, cool charisma and, most importantly, an easily accessible sound that allowed them to bridge the divide between pop and prog. Their recent live album, 40 Years and a Night with Contemporary Youth Orchestra, affirms their consistent credibility, courtesy of such 1980s classics as “Sister Christian,” “(You Can Still) Rock In America” and “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me,” among the many. Likewise, with sales of over 17 million albums and an ongoing presence on any number of TV, film and video game soundtracks, they set a standard for the new wave of mainstream MTV artists and for arena rock overall. It’s best, then, to get those air guitars in tune and your phones ready to flicker. Night Ranger is still intent on rocking our world. Night Ranger performs at Tuacahn Amphitheatre (1100 Tuacahn Drive, Ivins) at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov 6. Tickets cost $38 - $68. For more information, go to tuacahn.org. (Lee Zimmerman)

MUSIC PICK S

Geoff Tate @ The Depot 11/6

Stuttgart, Germany-born vocalist and songwriter Geoff Tate is best known for his time fronting Queensrÿche, the progressive metal band he co-founded in 1982; Tate was with the group through the release of 2011’s Dedicated to Chaos. His stint with Queensrÿche also included the period when the created its breakthrough album, the 1988 conceptual work Operation: Mindcrime. Tate—a classically-trained vocalist—is renowned in progressive rock and heavy metal circles for his powerful voice and commanding presence. Immediately after he left Queensrÿche, Tate launched a band of his own, billed as Geoff Tate’s Queensrÿche, eventually re-branding as Operation: Mindcrime. That group continued on in the spirit of his former band, releasing a string of well-received concept albums. Tate has also made a pair of solo albums, moving beyond the prog-metal style and toward experimental and alt-rock textures, and two with Sweet Oblivion, an Italian metal project. Tate has also racked up a long string of guest appearances on other artists’ albums and collaborative works. His current solo tour features a performance of Queensrÿche’s Operation: Mindcrime in its entirety, for what Tate says will be the final time. The “Operation: Mindcrime – The Final Chapter” tour comes to The Depot on Thursday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. General admission tickets for this 21+ show are $38.50 and are available from ticketmaster.com. (Bill Kopp)

Infinity Song @ Soundwell 11/6

Infinity Song self-consciously embraces soft rock in every aspect: A wholesome band of brothers and sisters who grew up in Detroit singing church hymns together, their whole vibe is crisp, clean, buttoned-down and unashamedly bougie (they’re signed with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, and their website lists $100 vintage jeans above links to buy their new album). Like all the best soft rockers, they’re also masters of satisfying songcraft, with an abiding respect for the classics. They’ve learned each others’ voices as intimately as Simon and Garfunkel, and have notched respectable covers of Burt Bacharach and Fleetwood Mac. “We’re very, very in-tune with each other vocally” says Momo Boyd of the bands’ signature rich four-part harmonies in a video interview with Allen Media Group. “When you’re siblings,

and it’s just so fused together because of your shared experience and the DNA you share, the harmonies are just like, locked in.” Fittingly, Momo’s brother Abraham credits her with the group’s finger on the popular pulse: Their undeniable vocal chemistry propelled Infinity Song’s 2023 single “Hater’s Anthem” to viral success on TikTok, showcasing the band’s sharp lyrics and warm, easygoing sound with a perfectly breezy ode to the joys of rejecting self-improvement and wallowing in egotism, a winning blend of sweetness and self-awareness. The quartet is currently in the home stretch of a marathon eight-month world tour, stopping in at Soundwell on Nov. 6 at 8 p.m., with Virginian folk-pop wunderkind John-Robert opening. Tickets for the all-ages show are $28 at soundwellslc.com. (Kerry Renshaw)

What So Not @ Sky SLC 11/7

Hailing from Sydney, Australia, music producer Emoh Instead (What So Not) takes the more emotional route with his musical sound. With melodic and percussive beats, Instead has a powerful impact. You may know him as part of a duo with more mainstream EDM artist Flume, but he’s proven he can stand on his own. His debut album, Not All the Beautiful Things, was released in 2018, featuring hits like “Innerbloom” and “Tell Me” with RL Grime. Three years ago, he released another album, Anomaly which is sorta what it is. It deviates from what is expected from Instead as an artist, including a diverse mix of genres like house, hip-hop and more experimental elements that show Instead’s growth as an artist. He’s come a long way since his remix of Major Lazer’s “Get Free,” which was streamed hundreds of millions of times. It seems like now he’s embodying his own sound and message through songs like his “Mercy” edit, featuring fellow producer James Flannigan and singer MØ. It includes infectious melodics and euphoric instrumentation, building perfectly to the drop. We can all relate to the raw plea for forgiveness and deep sense of regret that comes when you make a mistake. This song embodies all of that. Check out What So Not on Friday, Nov 7. Doors open at 9:15 p.m. at Sky SLC. This is a 21+ show. General Admission tickets cost $29.35 at tixr.com. (Arica Roberts)

free will ASTROLOGY

BY ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In 1995

Wolves were reintroduced to the American wildlife area known as Yellowstone Park after a 70-year absence. They hunted elk, which changed elk behavior, which changed vegetation patterns, which stabilized riverbanks, which altered the course of the Lamar River and its tributaries. The wolves changed the rivers! This phenomenon is called a trophic cascade: one species reorganizing an entire ecosystem through a web of indirect effects. For the foreseeable future, Aries, you will be a trophic cascade, too. Your choices will create many ripples beyond your personal sphere. I hope you wield your influence with maximum integrity.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

I authorize you to explore the mysteries of sacred laziness. It’s your right and duty to engage in intense relaxing, unwinding and detoxifying. Proceed on the theory that rest is not the absence of productivity but a different kind of production—the cultivation of dreams, the composting of experience and the slow fermentation of insight. What if your worth isn’t always measured by your output? What if being less active for a while is essential to your beautiful success in the future?

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)

You are not yet who you will become. Your current struggle has not yet generated its full wisdom. Your confusion hasn’t fully clarified into purpose. The mess hasn’t composted into soil. The ending that looms hasn’t revealed the beginning it portends. In sum, Gemini, you are far from done. The story isn’t over. The verdict isn’t in. You haven’t met everyone who will love you and help you. You haven’t become delightfully impossible in all the ways you will eventually become delightfully impossible.

CANCER (June 21-July 22)

By the time he became an elder, Cancerian artist David Hockney had enjoyed a long and brilliant career as a painter, primarily applying paint to canvases. Then, at age 72, he made a radical departure, generating artworks using iPhones and iPads. He loved how these digital media allowed him to instantly capture fleeting moments of beauty. His success with this alternate form of expression has been as great as his previous work. I encourage you to be as daring and innovative as Hockney. Your imaginative energy and creative powers are peaking. Take full advantage!

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)

In his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Black activist Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote, “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” He was proclaiming a universal truth: Real courage is never just about personal glory. It’s about using your fire to help and illuminate others. You Leos are made to do this: to be bold not just for your own sake, but as a source of strength for your community. Your charisma and creativity can be precious resources for all those whose lives you touch. In the coming weeks, how will you wield them for mutual uplift?

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

Who would have predicted that the first woman to climb Mount Everest would have three planets in Virgo? Japanese mountaineer Junko Tabei did it in 1975. To what did she attribute her success? She described herself not as fearless, but as “a person who never gives up.” I will note another key character trait: rebellious willfulness. In her time, women were discouraged from the sport. They were regarded as too fragile and impractical for rugged ascents. She defied all that. Let’s make her your inspirational role model, Virgo. Be persistent, resolute, indefatigable and, if necessary, renegade.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Among the Mbuti of the Congo, there’s no word for “thank you.” Gratitude is so foundational to the culture that it requires no special acknowledgment. It’s not singled out

in moments of politeness; it’s a sweet, ambient presence in the daily flux. I invite you to live like that for now. Practice feeling reverence and respect for every little thing that makes your life such an amazing gift. Feel your appreciation humming through ordinary moments like background music. I guarantee you that this experiment will boost the flow of gratitude-worthy experiences in your direction.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Martin Luther King, Jr. said that harnessing our pain and transforming it into wise love can change the world for the better. More than any other sign, Scorpio, you understand this mystery: how descent can lead to renewal, how darkness can awaken brilliance. It’s one of your birthrights to embody King’s militant tenderness: to take what has wounded you, alchemize it, and make it into a force that heals others as well as yourself. You have the natural power to demonstrate that vulnerability and ferocity can coexist, that forgiveness can live alongside uncompromising truth. When you transmute your shadows into offerings of power, you confirm King’s conviction that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

Apophenia is the tendency to perceive meaningful patterns in seemingly random data. On the downside, it may cause a belief in delusional conspiracy theories. But it can also be a generator of life’s poetry, leading us to see faces in clouds, hear fateful messages in static, and find key revelations in a horoscope. Psychologist C.G. Jung articulated another positive variation of the phenomenon. His concept of synchronicity refers to the occurrence of meaningful coincidences between internal psychological states and external events that feel deeply significant and even astounding to the person experiencing them. Synchronicities suggest there’s a mysterious underlying order in the universe, linking mind and matter in nonrational ways. In the coming weeks, Sagittarius, I suspect you will experience a slew of synchronicities and the good kind of apophenia

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Philosopher Alfred Korzybski coined the phrase “the map is not the territory.” In other words, your concepts about reality are not reality itself. Your idea of love is not love. Your theory about who you are is not who you are. It’s true that many maps are useful fictions. But when you forget they’re fiction, you’re lost even when you think you know where you are. Here’s the good news, Capricorn: In the weeks ahead, you are poised to see and understand the world exactly as it is—maybe more than ever before. Lean into this awesome opportunity.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

Babies are born with about 300 bones, but adults have 206. Many of our first bones fuse with others. From one perspective, then, we begin our lives abundant with possibility and rich with redundancy. Then we solidify, becoming structurally sound but less flexible. Aging is a process of strategic sacrifice, necessary but not without loss. Please meditate on these facts as a metaphor for the decisions you face. The question isn’t whether to ripen and mature—that’s a given—but which growth will serve you and which will diminish you.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

Beneath every thriving forest lies a lacework of mycelium. Through it, tree roots trade nourishment, warn each other of drought or illness, and make sure that young shoots benefit from elders’ reserves. Scientists call it the “woodwide web.” Indigenous traditions have long understood the principle: Life flourishes when a vast communication network operates below the surface to foster care and collaboration. Take your cues from these themes, Pisces. Tend creatively to the web of connections that joins you to friends, collaborators, and kindred spirits. Proceed with the faith that generosity multiplies pathways and invites good fortune to circulate freely. Offer what you can, knowing that the cycle of giving will find its way back to you.

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urban LIVING

“Mormon Smiles”

You may have seen the lines stretching halfway around the block last week, filled with women trying to get into Deseret Book. There was a run to the store to buy the latest rendition of the Latter-day Saint garment—specifically, a new variety without sleeve caps. The Saints were forced to go to the stores because the website for online orders crashed within a few hours.

Until I came to Utah in high school, I had never known a Mormon or what the church was about. I heard from friends that Mormons had tattoos of a red star on their scalps. I soon found out that was B.S., although they did wear some kind of “magic underwear.”

I didn’t learn more until I moved to Salt Lake, made friends and literally went to the library to research more about these undergarments.

Church founder Joseph Smith launched the idea for this clothing around 1842. Members believe, as Smith did, that they are sacred undergarments, meant to remind Latter-day Saints of their temple covenants. The original garment was a one-piece that had long sleeves and full-length legs (“wrists to ankles”) but over the years, changes were allowed.

Initially, any alteration was considered a sin. But in 1923, modifications were approved and the original collar was eliminated, an open crotch was closed, sleeves ended at the elbow and legs could be shortened to the knees. Other modifications followed throughout the years, including changes to the cut lines and fabric options.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ACROSS

1. Hand-craft?

5. “Get outta here”

10. Burt’s Bees target, sometimes

14. A head

15. Justice Kagan

16. Red-wrapped cheese

17. Wee

18. Used an e-cig

19. “Could ___ ... Satan?” (mid-1980s “SNL” catchphrase)

20. “First, a favorable lottery ticket would be nice ...”

23. Organ with a hammer

24. Words before “the world on a string,” in a song

25. “Next, I’d like something hand-written ...”

31. ___ Sophia (Istanbul landmark)

32. Secret competitor

33. Tennis feat

36. Measure of land

37. Kenneth ___, theater critic and cowriter of “Oh! Calcutta!”

38. Shortstop great Vizquel

39. Boot point

40. Media attention

41. Best Picture of 2024

42. “A little later, I’d like my own aviary ...”

44. Lunar stages

47. Highway warning sign, for short

48. “And further down my list, a beautiful panoramic view”

55. Gillette razor option

56. Dentist’s directive

57. “Banana Boat Song” refrain

58. Arena level

59. HBO series set in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

60. “___ three ships ...”

61. Staircase part

62. More offbeat

63. Calligrapher’s supply

Mormons aren’t the only ones who wear sacred clothing. Jews wear a kippah (skullcap) and tallit (fringed prayer shawl). During high holidays, Jews wear white and refrain from wearing leather, to symbolize humility.

Muslims require men to cover their bodies from navel to knees and women wear a hijab headscarf to symbolize their faith, piety and relationship with God. Some other options include a niqab, which is the veil to cover a woman’s face, an abaya or chador (loose fitting outer garment). During the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, Muslims wear white garments called ihram. Hindus wear saffron robes and saris and Christian clergy have a variety of vestments and head covering.

Latter-day Saint garments can only be purchased by members in good standing. The church did a test run of new, thinner garments made of light nylon fabric last year in Uganda, Kenya, South Africa and the Philippines. Some members in the states had friends ship them the new styles—which lacked sleeves—before the Utah release. There’s also now a women’s “period garment” and, next year, a “nursing top” will come out for new moms.

So, no more seeing weird dresses with bell sleeves on local female news reporters—sleeveless is now acceptable, although the capped garment is still around. And the “Mormon smile” (the lower neckline of the garment) will still be an instant tell that someone is wearing their sacred clothing. ■

9. Arrived, but barely

10. Songwriting partner of Stoller

11. Suitcase label

12. Literature Nobelist Neruda

13. Refine, as ore

21. Funny response

22. Road-tripped, in a way

25. “Um, [points to an item out of range]”

26. Site of Baylor University

27. Fiend of fairy tales

28. Blanket

29. Physicist Mach

30. Litter

33. Love, in Lima

34. King or queen

35. Times for Swifties?

37. Gives for safekeeping

DOWN

1. Free version

2. Pour down

3. Dermatology concern

4. Some formal wear

5. ___ tire damage (warning sign topic)

6. Acknowledge the performers

7. Defaulter’s risk

8. Over again

38. Bowlful at a party

40. Frost or Pound, e.g.

41. Not just ready and willing?

42. Musical neighbor of G

43. Artist known for tessellations

44. Fuel sources

45. “Now play!”

46. Say “My sentiments exactly!”

49. Like some water or time

50. Looked over

51. “My sentiments exactly!”

52. Facility

53. Director Coogler

54. Cries of pain

Complete the grid so that each row, column, diagonal and 3x3 square contain all of the numbers 1 to 9. No math is involved. The grid has numbers, but nothing has to add up

NEWS of the WEIRD

BY THE EDITORS AT ANDREWS MCMEEL

Prank Gone Wrong

On Oct. 14, three masked individuals approached the front door of a home in Alexandria, Virginia, rang the video doorbell and began threatening the woman who answered, WJLA 7 News reported. The terrified resident called her brother, who arrived with a handgun less than two minutes after the trio left, and then the police, who began an investigation. News of the unsettling incident had the community on edge until Oct. 27, when Alexandria Chief of Police Tarrick McGuire announced during a press conference that the culprits had been found and that the whole thing was a prank—the masked would-be intruders were actually the teenage sons and nephew of an adult related to the victim. “For me, my team and this community, it represents a moral failure,” McGuire told a gathering of the press. “A moral failure where consequences could result in deadly consequences.” After consulting with attorneys and the victim, the decision was made not to press charges.

Standing Room Only

Spanish police announced on Oct. 22 that they had arrested a group of criminals for stealing chairs—more than 1,100 chairs, to be more precise. The New York Post reported that the thieves, six men and a woman who did the pilfering under cover of darkness, had stolen the chairs from the outdoor seating areas of 18 different restaurants and bars throughout Madrid and a nearby municipality during August and September. Police said the chairs were resold in Spain, Morocco and Romania, and estimated the impact at about 60,000 euros ($69,000). The gang will face charges of theft and belonging to a criminal organization.

Brief Thief

Tempted to return to the scene of the crime once too often, a suspect has been identified in a rash of women’s underwear heists, The Pattaya News reported on Oct. 31. The crimes have all taken place in the same apartment complex in the district of Phan Thong (no pun intended), Chonburi, Thailand. The most recent victim, also the owner of the complex, installed cameras after complaints about the perp’s previous capers, and sure enough, in the wee hours of Oct. 29 after she had hung her unmentionables out to dry, a man casually walked up and claimed another trophy. Police say they have collected additional evidence in the cases and expect to apprehend the thief in short order.

It’s the Even Greater Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

In a rare case of a pumpkin doing the smashing, a Utah man used a 1-ton gourd to destroy his 1991 Geo Metro. Alan Gebert, a pumpkin farmer, had driven the car for nearly 35 years, KMPH reported on Oct. 29, but it had finally given out. Such a trusty vehicle deserved a memorable send-off, so Gebert devised one: death by prize-winning produce, dropped from a height of about

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14 stories. Before sealing the Geo’s fate, the pumpkin in question won first place at the Utah Giant Pumpkin Festival, weighing in at 1,917 pounds.

Unnatural

Researchers in Germany have, for the first time ever, captured video of brown rats (also known as Norway rats) actively hunting bats, Popular Science reported on Oct. 30. The freaky footage, made available to the public concurrently with a study recently published in the scientific journal Global Ecology and Conservation, shows the rats stationing themselves at the openings of hibernation sites in the towns of Segeburg and LunebergKalkberg, where the researchers had set up thermal and infrared cameras to monitor the bats’ activities. The rats, which are effectively blind when hunting at night, pounced on bats climbing to the sanctuaries, and were even able to nab their prey in midair. The authors of the study issued a call for action: “Management of invasive rodents at important bat hibernation sites supports biodiversity conservation and reduces potential public health impacts.”

Just Had to Know

Friends, acquaintances and other mourners at a funeral in Konchi, a village in Bihar, India, were stunned when Mohan Lal, the man whose funeral they were attending, rose and began taking part in the rituals of the Hindu service. Metro UK reported that the 74-year-old Lal, a retired Air Force veteran, is well-respected in Konchi for his work within the community—which, oddly enough, includes helping to fund and build a crematorium for the rainy seasons—but all of that goodwill didn’t stop Lal from carrying through his plan. “I wanted to witness it myself and see how much respect and affection people give me,” Lal said. Reactions varied from shock to confusion to relief, but Lal was able to calm things down by throwing a feast for the attendees.

Just Dropping By

As staff at the Sequoia Park Zoo in Eureka, California, performed inspections in the early morning of Oct. 17, they were surprised by the presence of an unexpected visitor—a wild American black bear, leaning on the gate to the park’s bear habitat. In a Facebook post from the zoo, the wild bear was described as “a very polite visitor” that was observed interacting nonaggressively with resident bears Tule, Ishung and Kunabulilh. The zoo called in the Eureka Police Department and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the bear was escorted out of the park and back into the nearby woods. “We respond to bear calls within the city of Eureka quite often,” state department spokesperson Peter Tira told the LA Times “but having a wild bear get into the zoo is a first.”

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com

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