Featured Artist: Grace Dickinson - 1.27.2010
Interview by: Gian Hunjan
Q: Hey Grace, thanks for reaching out to The Pudding. You have a blog called Food-Fitness-Fresh Air, which delves into your everyday life which revolves around natural food, health, fitness and the great outdoors. Can you give Pudding readers some background information on where you’re from and how you came to love such healthy living?
A: I’m from the small town of Red Lion, PA which basically means I grew up in the middle of nowhere. This is what helped shape my love of fitness and the outdoors. It takes at least a half hour to get anywhere from my house in Red Lion, so as a kid I’d would play outside a lot. As I got older, this progressed into a love of hiking, and later into running. I also got involved with tennis in high school, which further motivated me to stay in shape and increased my love of exercise and fitness. I was also brought up as a vegetarian. As a kid, I didn’t eat fruit loops or fruit roll-ups. I ate real fruit, fresh from the trees that came from the orchard up the road from me. My parents have helped to instill healthy eating habits since I was born. My parents both like to cook, so I’ve always grown up around healthy, home-cooked meals. I’ve also developed a love of cooking, so it’s easy for me to put these health habits into use.
Q: Did you find it difficult to maintain a healthy lifestyle after moving to the city? Everyone knows Philadelphia has never been the best for maintaining one’s health, how do you deal with it? Pat’s or Gino’s?
A: The thing I miss most [about Red Lion] is green grass! I miss being able to wake up and go take a walk or go for a run on back roads that are lined with trees and are free of exhaust. During my freshman year at Temple I did a lot of running on the track but that got old quickly! I finally convinced myself to break my fear of city streets and start running the roads, but it’s still nothing like running in the country. However, Philly definitely has its ups. I’ve found that people in the city tend to be better educated in the latest fitness trends and technology. The city is inherently diverse, so there are so many people introducing me to foods and exercises that I’ve never even heard of. Plus, yoga, another love of mine, is definitely more popular in Philly than Red Lion. It’s very inspirational and motivational. Pat’s or Gino’s, well, I’ve only ever eaten one cheese steak in my life, and it wasn’t at Pat’s or Gino’s. It was at Jim’s, and I discovered that cheese steaks are so overrated. Some would probably argue it’s because I chose the wrong place. I’ve gone full vegetarian, so I will probably never eat another cheese steak again.
Q: In addition to being a cook, you’re also a yoga instructor. How has yoga provided you with an escape from the fast paced city lifestyle?
A: Yoga is so beneficial. It has slowed me down a lot! I’m the kind of person who’s always doing things, but you can’t just go-go-go without ever taking a break or you’ll really take a toll on your body. Yoga has taught me the importance of slowing down, and how good this can actually make you feel. Whenever I’m feeling stressed out or overwhelmed, I make sure to take time out for myself to do yoga. Even if I don’t think I have the time to do it, I’ll do it anyways because yoga is a natural stress reliever, and almost immediately makes me feel better.
Q: As a journalism student, do you find it necessary to have a blog showcasing your talents and interests? How has blogging helped you find success within the journalism community in Philadelphia?
A: I don’t think it’s necessary to have a blog, but it’s definitely beneficial. What is necessary is to just get out there and do something, whether it be blogging, writing for your school newspaper, or trying to land an internship. However, blogging has definitely improved my writing skills and to some extent gotten my name out there. Occasionally companies will contact me and ask me to review their products which mean free stuff for me. It’s opened me up to a whole new world of people, but it definitely takes work to actually gain a following and produce consistent articles of quality.
Q: One of your most recent blog posts were some pictures and recipes of leek and mushroom soup. How long have been cultivating your cooking skills, Grace? What is the one fruit or vegetable you wish you had immediate access to in Philadelphia year round?
A: I’ve been cooking since I was a kid. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wasn’t making gourmet food when I was five. I was making fruit plates with cut up apples and slice bananas with peanut butter. I got really into baking during high school and was even all set to go to the Culinary Institute of America after I graduated. I actually changed my mind at the last minute, which is how I ended up at Temple. If I could have immediate access to one fruit all year around, it would definitely be mangoes. Mangoes are my favorite fruit, though I don’t eat them often since they don’t grow around here. I try to eat foods that are in season and grown locally.
Q: You recently traveled to San Francisco. What aspects of traveling do you find help you to enrich your lifestyle?
A: I love traveling. It opens my eyes to the diversity within our own country, let alone the diversity around the world. I love learning, exploring, and seeing new things, and traveling is one of the best ways to do so. I’m into hiking and food, and traveling allows me to experience these two elements it totally different ways. Traveling is fun, but it definitely costs money to do so.
Q: Thanks again for the feature, Grace, best of luck with Food-Fitness-Fresh Air and your future endeavors. In closing, can you leave Pudding fans with the best way to contact you if they’re interested in finding out more information on healthy living?
A: The best way to contact me would be via my blog (www.foodfitnessfreshair.wordpress.com). I check it on the daily, and usually update it daily, so feel free to drop by, take a look around, ask questions, or just say hi!
A: I’m from the small town of Red Lion, PA which basically means I grew up in the middle of nowhere. This is what helped shape my love of fitness and the outdoors. It takes at least a half hour to get anywhere from my house in Red Lion, so as a kid I’d would play outside a lot. As I got older, this progressed into a love of hiking, and later into running. I also got involved with tennis in high school, which further motivated me to stay in shape and increased my love of exercise and fitness. I was also brought up as a vegetarian. As a kid, I didn’t eat fruit loops or fruit roll-ups. I ate real fruit, fresh from the trees that came from the orchard up the road from me. My parents have helped to instill healthy eating habits since I was born. My parents both like to cook, so I’ve always grown up around healthy, home-cooked meals. I’ve also developed a love of cooking, so it’s easy for me to put these health habits into use.
Q: Did you find it difficult to maintain a healthy lifestyle after moving to the city? Everyone knows Philadelphia has never been the best for maintaining one’s health, how do you deal with it? Pat’s or Gino’s?
A: The thing I miss most [about Red Lion] is green grass! I miss being able to wake up and go take a walk or go for a run on back roads that are lined with trees and are free of exhaust. During my freshman year at Temple I did a lot of running on the track but that got old quickly! I finally convinced myself to break my fear of city streets and start running the roads, but it’s still nothing like running in the country. However, Philly definitely has its ups. I’ve found that people in the city tend to be better educated in the latest fitness trends and technology. The city is inherently diverse, so there are so many people introducing me to foods and exercises that I’ve never even heard of. Plus, yoga, another love of mine, is definitely more popular in Philly than Red Lion. It’s very inspirational and motivational. Pat’s or Gino’s, well, I’ve only ever eaten one cheese steak in my life, and it wasn’t at Pat’s or Gino’s. It was at Jim’s, and I discovered that cheese steaks are so overrated. Some would probably argue it’s because I chose the wrong place. I’ve gone full vegetarian, so I will probably never eat another cheese steak again.
Q: In addition to being a cook, you’re also a yoga instructor. How has yoga provided you with an escape from the fast paced city lifestyle?
A: Yoga is so beneficial. It has slowed me down a lot! I’m the kind of person who’s always doing things, but you can’t just go-go-go without ever taking a break or you’ll really take a toll on your body. Yoga has taught me the importance of slowing down, and how good this can actually make you feel. Whenever I’m feeling stressed out or overwhelmed, I make sure to take time out for myself to do yoga. Even if I don’t think I have the time to do it, I’ll do it anyways because yoga is a natural stress reliever, and almost immediately makes me feel better.
Q: As a journalism student, do you find it necessary to have a blog showcasing your talents and interests? How has blogging helped you find success within the journalism community in Philadelphia?
A: I don’t think it’s necessary to have a blog, but it’s definitely beneficial. What is necessary is to just get out there and do something, whether it be blogging, writing for your school newspaper, or trying to land an internship. However, blogging has definitely improved my writing skills and to some extent gotten my name out there. Occasionally companies will contact me and ask me to review their products which mean free stuff for me. It’s opened me up to a whole new world of people, but it definitely takes work to actually gain a following and produce consistent articles of quality.
Q: One of your most recent blog posts were some pictures and recipes of leek and mushroom soup. How long have been cultivating your cooking skills, Grace? What is the one fruit or vegetable you wish you had immediate access to in Philadelphia year round?
A: I’ve been cooking since I was a kid. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wasn’t making gourmet food when I was five. I was making fruit plates with cut up apples and slice bananas with peanut butter. I got really into baking during high school and was even all set to go to the Culinary Institute of America after I graduated. I actually changed my mind at the last minute, which is how I ended up at Temple. If I could have immediate access to one fruit all year around, it would definitely be mangoes. Mangoes are my favorite fruit, though I don’t eat them often since they don’t grow around here. I try to eat foods that are in season and grown locally.
Q: You recently traveled to San Francisco. What aspects of traveling do you find help you to enrich your lifestyle?
A: I love traveling. It opens my eyes to the diversity within our own country, let alone the diversity around the world. I love learning, exploring, and seeing new things, and traveling is one of the best ways to do so. I’m into hiking and food, and traveling allows me to experience these two elements it totally different ways. Traveling is fun, but it definitely costs money to do so.
Q: Thanks again for the feature, Grace, best of luck with Food-Fitness-Fresh Air and your future endeavors. In closing, can you leave Pudding fans with the best way to contact you if they’re interested in finding out more information on healthy living?
A: The best way to contact me would be via my blog (www.foodfitnessfreshair.wordpress.com). I check it on the daily, and usually update it daily, so feel free to drop by, take a look around, ask questions, or just say hi!
Featured Artist: Omari McCleary - 1.15.2010
Interview by: Gian Hunjan
Q: Hey Mo, thanks a lot for the feature. You’re not the traditional artist featured on the site. Can you give Pudding readers a run down on where you’re from and why you enjoy being around creative individuals?
A: I’m just a kung fu hippie from a gangsta city (i.e Brooklyn, NY when it wasn’t all hipsterific). But really I’m from eternal tribe of men and women, an ancient fraternity of Imagineers: Individuals who allow imagination to push them to places beyond inhibition. These Imagineers have social visions used to express concepts that tapped into the thoughts of the creator. From these Imagineers also came Artists, Beatniks, Free Spirits and Weirdos. They have always been my kind of people.
Q: You’re an individual who values a sense of humor, which when crafted correctly is an extremely valuable and influential art form. When did you know that making people laugh is what you want to incorporate heavily into your future?
A: It is an art form. At first it was a martial art form, for me. I think back to all my class clown moments since the 2nd grade… It was the only token nerdy black kid’s defense mechanism. But it wasn’t until later I realized that the ability to laugh, both the skill and practice says so much about a human being.
Humor requires you to comprehend and synthesize. Comprehending wit, timing, ironies, surrealism, and blonde dead priest’s baby jokes are true signs of intelligence. Humor goes so deep, take people who get dark comedy, you know laughing at the mundane and self-deprecating? That’s humility and persistence.
Q: To use your creative talent for community service you committed two years to Teach For America in Houston, TX. What was your most effective method of teaching? Did you try to incorporate humor into your daily teachings? Don’t you think if you can make a student laugh based on a joke that relates to a concept, the student will undoubtedly remember the concept?
A: Colleges are becoming overly glorified vocational mills. Educaton iz in truble in this country. I saw it first hand, really sad stuff. Test taking robots! It takes a special kind of person to teach. Not me! I only think I survived because I try to use the place between Education and Entertainment. This generation is so hopped up on media and pop culture, that the extra spark in your instructional delivery is what really will leave an impression. Not to mention students are so overloaded with marketed and targeted brands that they lack any real connection with creativity. So I tried to give them a show, and show them that life isn’t just a bunch of strategies to choose ABC or D. Life is free response.
Q: In your years of experiencing different individuals through your endeavors, how important is it for those trying to make a life out of comedy to appreciate different types of people? How much can you attribute to growing up in different cities?
A: You know why TV shows like Fresh Prince, Perfect Strangers, Odd Couple, I Love Lucy, Rush Hour, Will and Grace, Dharma and Greg work (what? I liked that show)?Because comedy is almost guaranteed when differences collide. Now for Visual Media, the difference has to be overt, so that the timing will be easier to work with and the gags come a little easier. When you fine tune, and collide differences on a small level, say like just different upbringings, that’s where the magic comes from. Subtleties, sarcasm ,dry humor are prime examples.
Man I’ve lived in New York, Philly and Texas and they are different planets! What makes it so funny, and what I take with me is comparison in people and the humor that comes from our exposure to each other. Humor is just new Interaction with the familiar.
Q: Mo, who/what are some influences of yours? Who is really killing it right now that you see making a positive impression on the masses?
A: I’d say God must have gotten a new P.R. person, and thank God right? He needed it...or shall I say we needed it. I’ve noticed more peeps have been re-imagining our respective spiritual martyrs. Which I can dig, they were our first artists and eventually our first rock stars.
Q: For all the young ones out there looking to make their mark whether through a painting, sculpture or comedy short, what is some general advice you can divulge? What is it about working hard with persistence that gets people ahead in the long run? What about having an entrepreneurial spirit, and not thinking twice about putting yourself out there?
A: Significance before success. If your mind stays on contribution and not gain, if your heart stays on relationship and not hierarchy then you’re in a solid place. Give your hallucinations plans so they become dreams, and then don’t chase your dreams, but find out where they are going and meet up with them later. A great comic said that…
Q: Thanks again for your words Mo. What are some plans and goals you have for the future? Where can we expect to see you?
A: Right now I’ve been delving into the responsibility and potential an artist of let’s say, life, has. I want to continue to use my art for some service. In January I will be continuing my new introduction into performance art (concert design was my first ), continuing the shorts, and continuing my work with the Awakening Movement.
A: I’m just a kung fu hippie from a gangsta city (i.e Brooklyn, NY when it wasn’t all hipsterific). But really I’m from eternal tribe of men and women, an ancient fraternity of Imagineers: Individuals who allow imagination to push them to places beyond inhibition. These Imagineers have social visions used to express concepts that tapped into the thoughts of the creator. From these Imagineers also came Artists, Beatniks, Free Spirits and Weirdos. They have always been my kind of people.
Q: You’re an individual who values a sense of humor, which when crafted correctly is an extremely valuable and influential art form. When did you know that making people laugh is what you want to incorporate heavily into your future?
A: It is an art form. At first it was a martial art form, for me. I think back to all my class clown moments since the 2nd grade… It was the only token nerdy black kid’s defense mechanism. But it wasn’t until later I realized that the ability to laugh, both the skill and practice says so much about a human being.
Humor requires you to comprehend and synthesize. Comprehending wit, timing, ironies, surrealism, and blonde dead priest’s baby jokes are true signs of intelligence. Humor goes so deep, take people who get dark comedy, you know laughing at the mundane and self-deprecating? That’s humility and persistence.
Q: To use your creative talent for community service you committed two years to Teach For America in Houston, TX. What was your most effective method of teaching? Did you try to incorporate humor into your daily teachings? Don’t you think if you can make a student laugh based on a joke that relates to a concept, the student will undoubtedly remember the concept?
A: Colleges are becoming overly glorified vocational mills. Educaton iz in truble in this country. I saw it first hand, really sad stuff. Test taking robots! It takes a special kind of person to teach. Not me! I only think I survived because I try to use the place between Education and Entertainment. This generation is so hopped up on media and pop culture, that the extra spark in your instructional delivery is what really will leave an impression. Not to mention students are so overloaded with marketed and targeted brands that they lack any real connection with creativity. So I tried to give them a show, and show them that life isn’t just a bunch of strategies to choose ABC or D. Life is free response.
Q: In your years of experiencing different individuals through your endeavors, how important is it for those trying to make a life out of comedy to appreciate different types of people? How much can you attribute to growing up in different cities?
A: You know why TV shows like Fresh Prince, Perfect Strangers, Odd Couple, I Love Lucy, Rush Hour, Will and Grace, Dharma and Greg work (what? I liked that show)?Because comedy is almost guaranteed when differences collide. Now for Visual Media, the difference has to be overt, so that the timing will be easier to work with and the gags come a little easier. When you fine tune, and collide differences on a small level, say like just different upbringings, that’s where the magic comes from. Subtleties, sarcasm ,dry humor are prime examples.
Man I’ve lived in New York, Philly and Texas and they are different planets! What makes it so funny, and what I take with me is comparison in people and the humor that comes from our exposure to each other. Humor is just new Interaction with the familiar.
Q: Mo, who/what are some influences of yours? Who is really killing it right now that you see making a positive impression on the masses?
A: I’d say God must have gotten a new P.R. person, and thank God right? He needed it...or shall I say we needed it. I’ve noticed more peeps have been re-imagining our respective spiritual martyrs. Which I can dig, they were our first artists and eventually our first rock stars.
Q: For all the young ones out there looking to make their mark whether through a painting, sculpture or comedy short, what is some general advice you can divulge? What is it about working hard with persistence that gets people ahead in the long run? What about having an entrepreneurial spirit, and not thinking twice about putting yourself out there?
A: Significance before success. If your mind stays on contribution and not gain, if your heart stays on relationship and not hierarchy then you’re in a solid place. Give your hallucinations plans so they become dreams, and then don’t chase your dreams, but find out where they are going and meet up with them later. A great comic said that…
Q: Thanks again for your words Mo. What are some plans and goals you have for the future? Where can we expect to see you?
A: Right now I’ve been delving into the responsibility and potential an artist of let’s say, life, has. I want to continue to use my art for some service. In January I will be continuing my new introduction into performance art (concert design was my first ), continuing the shorts, and continuing my work with the Awakening Movement.
My concert got reviewed, non intentionally. Writer didnt know I was doing a sketch:
http://www.houstonpress.com/2009-08-27/music/roman-holiday&page=1
Near the bottom is a write up of my comedy work with the Yankees:
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staten_Island_Yankees
"The summer of 2004, the Yankees added another personality to the stable. Omari McCleary (who previously held multiple roles in the on-field department) became the SI Yankees on-field host. The fan reaction was enthusiastic. Omari's unique antics included bits of insults with the PA announcer, pranks and dances with the mascots, magic tricks, throwing t-shirts, and hosting games. Omari McCleary was accompanied by a group dubbed the “Pinstripe Patrol”. His trademarks were his many alter egos, the most popular being "Grandma-Mari". The SI Yankees message board teemed with discussion about the team spirit element and entertainment his shtick brought to the ballpark. Some even considered Omari as the team's lucky charm. Omari and the Mascots often appeared at charity events in the surrounding area. Season ticket holders often hired Omari to host private parties and engagements, and he has toured other Yankee farm team stadiums. Omari has since left for other endeavors, but makes occasional visits.
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staten_Island_Yankees
"The summer of 2004, the Yankees added another personality to the stable. Omari McCleary (who previously held multiple roles in the on-field department) became the SI Yankees on-field host. The fan reaction was enthusiastic. Omari's unique antics included bits of insults with the PA announcer, pranks and dances with the mascots, magic tricks, throwing t-shirts, and hosting games. Omari McCleary was accompanied by a group dubbed the “Pinstripe Patrol”. His trademarks were his many alter egos, the most popular being "Grandma-Mari". The SI Yankees message board teemed with discussion about the team spirit element and entertainment his shtick brought to the ballpark. Some even considered Omari as the team's lucky charm. Omari and the Mascots often appeared at charity events in the surrounding area. Season ticket holders often hired Omari to host private parties and engagements, and he has toured other Yankee farm team stadiums. Omari has since left for other endeavors, but makes occasional visits.
A documentary I did over the summer: