david rakoff for j. the jewish news weekly

Anxiety-ridden and seeing the glass as ‘Half Empty’
David Rakoff has dealt with paralyzing anxiety, two bouts of cancer and a childhood spent as a “freakishly small” gay boy in Toronto [...]

rock photography exhibit for j. the jewish news weekly

Icons of rock: Show at Marin JCC displays three Jewish photographers’ shots of music legends
What is it with Jewish Deadheads? Jewish rock photographer Bob Minkin, who used to work with the band, isn’t quite sure [...]

tofu dearest for poor taste magazine

Dreaming In Swirls of Cinnamon
Are you aware that if you live anywhere in the U.S., you can now have a box of four gooey vegan cinnamon rolls delivered to your door? Not only that, but the cinnamon rolls come with a variety of delicious flavor options. It’s a mind-blowing concept, I know. I’ll let you sit and salivate with that knowledge for a moment [...]

10 things for sf weekly

10 Things to Do For Under $10
There are so many awesome events this warm weekend in September, the problem won't be what to do, but how to pack it all in. Make the best use of your time, map out a proper schedule and get to it. Here's this week's list of ten things to do for a 10-spot or less [...]

tofu dearest for poor taste magazine

The Art of the Vegan Lunch
The after-summer dregs can get anyone down. Classes have begun; vacations from the office are just a memory. There is one thing, however, that can pump a vegan’s mood once he or she is back to a day-to-day routine — a tasty lunch to look forward to [...]

marina & the diamonds for sf weekly

Marina and the Diamonds plan for megastardom
Marina Lambrini Diamandis plans to be a pop superstar. She's just not quite there yet. The frontwoman of British pop outfit Marina and the Diamonds is unequivocally beautiful — half-Welsh and half-Greek, with dark brown locks and deep-set eyes. Her voice is modern and mesmerizing; it wavers between low-octave brooding and high-pop yelps, carrying hints of Florence and the Machine and Kate Nash [...]

orphaned land for j. the jewish news weekly

Land of metal: Israeli hard rockers coming to S.F. club
When Kobi Farhi wore an Iron Maiden shirt to an Israeli synagogue in 1993, he suddenly realized what he needed to do.

At age 18, he was already two years into his journey as lead singer of metal band Orphaned Land. “Living in Israel, being Jewish, we should use Middle Eastern sounds in our music,” Farhi remembers thinking at that time. “If we were making American heavy metal we wouldn’t have done that.

“That’s how we became pioneers of Middle Eastern heavy metal.”

gimme shelter: the sonic sukkah for j. the jewish news weekly

JCCSF turns its sukkah into an art experience
Who could have predicted way back in 1969 that a Rolling Stones song title would one day be put to use to reinterpret a Jewish holiday?[...]

tofu dearest for poor taste magazine

Nothin’ Fishy About Vegan Sushi
Perhaps it’s sacrilegious to promote the art of sushi without fish, but isn’t being vegan all about creative ways to make food? And what could be more creative than a meal centered on an ingredient that will not be included?

I used to think of sushi in black-and-white terms, too. Sushi equals fish which equals avoidance, simple as that. Slowly but surely, it dawned on me that sushi could be made vegan by simply replacing fish for veggie for a healthy and tasty Japanese meal [...]

Bar Shacterman for j. the jewish news weekly

Art in motion: Sculptor to make piece of art as audience watches
In front of a swarming crowd, Bar Shacterman will create an original clay sculpture in record time next week, using just clay and an oversize hammer [...]

last night: slayer for sf weekly

Most long-running thrash metal acts either pepper their set with goofy, ghoulish shtick or stick to the hard-pounding basics. Megadeth and Slayer, both members of the elite "Big Four" of thrash metal (along with Metallica and Anthrax), represent opposites sides of the shtick spectrum: Megadeth is slightly more about look than substance, while Slayer lacks in visuals but carries a fearsome punch [...]

pickle column for j. weekly

Make our own pickles, save the (old) world
Most days, all I really want in life is a crunchy snack. Sure, I want happiness for my friends and family, inner peace and a healthy life, but in the meantime I’ll just settle for something crisp and tasty.

If you’ve been following my brief path of columns, you may have come to realize that I’m a music lover. What you may not yet know is I’m also food obsessed.

But thanks to a lifelong vegetarian and vegan diet, my Jewish deli choices often are limited to my own homemade versions of meatless sammies and potato salad — or, if I’m stopping by a deli counter, the traditional dill pickle [...]

Food and Wine at Outside Lands for sf weekly

Food and Wine at Outside Lands: You Should Probably Be Excited
Just imagine: Al Green could chow down on a mint It's-It ice cream sandwich this weekend in Golden Gate Park. Those brothers from Kings of Leon might try a Maverick's pulled-pork sandwich or a gourmet cupcake from Mission Minis [...]

tofu dearest column for poor taste magazine

I recently devoured a flaky, savory mini-pie filled with spicy potatoes, leeks, and Daiya cheddar. No bigger than a cupcake, the tiny faux-buttery meal filled me up and pleased my most important sense — taste [...]

10 thing for under $10 for sf weekly

10 Things For Under $10
Bicycle Music Fest, Renegade Craft Fair, Meeting in the Ladies Room, and 400 Blows [...]