Chapter One from a Literary Curator

For most of the last month my whole apartment has been carpeted in zines, magazines, and books (see also: candy wrappers and clothes). There is a regiment to the madness, I swear. There are piles grouped next to other piles, and.... well, it's all going to come together in the Library at The Summit. Probably a hell of a lot better than it's come together on my apartment floor.

[caption id="attachment_688" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Even though I live alone, I still find myself looking at my messy apartment like it's someone else's fault. "][/caption]

I say "Library" but right now I'm working within the confines of a 10' high by 3' wide really, really nice magazine rack. I'll have more space to work with in November, but it's probably best that I start small.

[caption id="attachment_689" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="A mock-up of the initial "Magazine Rack" placed between the coffee station & the ATM - can't miss it."][/caption]

There's a whole lot that I want to fit onto those 6 little shelves, and even more that I want to fit into the completed Library, but I have narrowed down the first collection of work to (mostly) fit within a theme.

The "theme" concept for the Library was Desi Daganan's idea. Instead of jamming together a bunch of magazines randomly, wouldn't it be neat to think of the collection as sort of an art show at a gallery? As someone who enjoys going to art shows and museums, I've had a lot of fun trying to translate the way an art curator puts together a show to a process that I can use when putting together written work for the Summit Library.

[caption id="attachment_690" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="An art show at 111 Minna Gallery in SOMA."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_691" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="...doesn't look so terribly different from this Library. Only those are books on the wall instead of paintings. And those are little kids instead of drunk hipsters. "][/caption]

This month, the theme for the Library is "Don't Call it a Comeback" (taken from LL Cool J's smash hit "Mama Said Knock You Out", because all themes for Libraries should have ties to rap songs) I didn't choose this theme because I love rap and Cool J's sexy abs (I love both a lot though), I chose it it because I wanted the first installment of the Library to remind people of where The Summit came from.



That's right "Don't call it a comeback, I've been here for years." Most everybody knows by now that The Summit has risen from the proverbial ashes of Poleng Lounge, a restaurant and nightclub, with strong ties to the Hip Hop community (The RZA once drank tea and played chess at Poleng until 3 in the morning). And with the doors finally opening to the public, Desi and many ex-Polengers (myself included) have made a comeback of sorts.

[caption id="attachment_695" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Poleng's last night was more fun and positive than it was sad."][/caption]

So how exactly does this influence what's featured in the Library? Well, I came up with a long list of people, companies, countries, etc who exemplify the tenacity it takes to climb from defamation back to success: Steve Jobs, Nelson Mandela, Ford Motor Company, David Needleman of Jet Blue, Jack Bogle of Vanguard Funds, The Lakers, The Red Sox, Martha Stewart, China, etc. Then I began hunting down magazine covers detailing each of these subjects at their worst, and then back up on their feet. I learned pretty quickly that back issues of magazines can be expensive and difficult to obtain. Ultimately I determined that, within my budget, Ford Motor Company, Steve Jobs, and China were the best subjects for which I could find the two magazine covers I needed to demonstrate the Press's conception of a downfall and then a comeback.

[caption id="attachment_697" align="aligncenter" width="208" caption="1993 issue of French Vogue featuring Nelson Mandela for $118? Can I use the company card?"][/caption]

So, like an art show centered around a few key pieces, this month's Library will be centered around 6 really awesome magazines.

[caption id="attachment_698" align="aligncenter" width="227" caption="The Steve Jobs cover story from last post ties with this 1967 issue of TIME for my favorite pieces in this month's collection."][/caption]

In the future, I want themes to be less restrictive (i.e. a whole bunch of drug related stuff for the November Marijuana ballot?). And there will always be a selection of reading material that doesn't relate to the theme. In an effort to please the very eclectic group of people who work and spend time at The Summit, the Library will be pretty eclectic itself.

It looks like the doors to The Summit will finally be open this Thursday, and I encourage you to come by and check out The Summit mini-Library and give me some feedback on what you'd like to see included next month!

It was meant to be...

1 year ago i got a call from my buddy Steve Jang about a space in the mission i needed to see. in a span of less than 48hrs i found myself staring at a beautiful off market space for a restaurant and then staring at my laptop for 14hrs straight to get a proposal submitted to i/o ventures.

those that know me well know that my b-day is a sacred holiday filled with debauchery, drunken shenanigans, and seances that leave little time for work. so the prospect of having to write a business plan for a space unbuilt is kinda of a stretch, but there was something about this opportunity that made me take a step back on focus on the future.

[caption id="attachment_673" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="making it to my 35th is a sign of victory"][/caption]

my future restaurant circa 9/27/09 was then called "casa poleng." a full service restaurant that was an iteration of the poleng concept revolving around the culinary fusion of the spanish and portuguese in asia.

[caption id="attachment_672" align="aligncenter" width="182" caption="spanish + portuguese food = filipino food?"][/caption]

nix that. i/o ventures turns me down.

but it was meant to be. any business plan written on my b-day has to be.

3 months later, i/o was still open for proposals and a scaled down version of the "casa poleng" concept was finally accepted. then poleng collapsed on 1/23/10 leaving casa poleng in jeopardy.

after some soul searching and a suggestion from Marcozy about reviving a long forgotten party i produced years ago the summit is born again.

back track 8 years ago

i'm knee-deep in the hiphop scene, but my taste in music and scenes is boundless. a late-night 420 session along with and close encounters of the 3rd kind blows my mind. the idea of communicating thru basic tones and flashes inspires me to create an event that blends the world of hiphop, hose, d&b, 2-step, dancehall, and beyond called the summit.

[youtube=http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=tUcOaGawIW0]

[caption id="attachment_678" align="aligncenter" width="208" caption="the true origins of the summit"][/caption]

fast forward to 9/27/10

1 year +1 day = my 35th birthday + the birth of the summit. we're open for business on thursday, 9/30/10.

KKW's Prologue

I can think of few things more excruciating than bus rides, waiting rooms, or lunching solo without something to read. I spend a lot of time in transit, and between destinations I find myself stuck in the Mission with 20 minutes to spare, or at the 33 MUNI stop watching the estimated arrival time waver from 18 minutes to 63 minutes. 99% of the time I have a book in my purse, but I have collected hours upon hours reading and then rereading The Guardian and The SF Weekly. Most weeks I can relate to you in great detail what Paul Reidinger thought of the udon at Izakaya Sozei or Dan Savage has to say about maple syrup fetishes.

[caption id="attachment_617" align="aligncenter" width="259" caption="I'm borderline obsessed with Ray Bradbury. The Illustrated Man remains one of my favorite books."]

INTERN-SPECTIVE: KRAZY FOR KOMBUCHA?

It’s been three weeks since the last post, and all I have to report to you is that we’ve still got building inspectors to impress, a Grand Opening to prepare for (pending inspections), a soft launch to recuperate from, and some kombucha brewing in our kitchen.

Did my move to Austin set me back a few years? I had no idea that—along with coconut water and Blue Bottle coffee—kombucha might be the first words San Franciscans teach their infants. Some folks claim that kombucha helps promote weight loss or is capable of curing cancer.

[caption id="attachment_636" align="aligncenter" width="289" caption="i literally need to get my ass on the kombucha diet.  there's a linear relationship with my expanding waistline that correlates with the time i spend cooking in the kitchen."][/caption]

Kombucha is a fermented tea produced through a symbiotic relationship between a kombucha culture/mother (or SCOBY - symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) and bacteria. The culture itself feels like a thick, leathery pancake. The kombucha mother culture is placed in a tea highly concentrated with sugar and then feeds off the sugar for at least 10 days. The process turns the tea into a drink concentrated in acids and nutrients.

[caption id="attachment_637" align="aligncenter" width="358" caption="after 10-14 days of fermentation the tea is bottled and an anaerobic process gives the final beverage its effervescence"][/caption]

After some in-house training with a local kombuchaseur the Summit’s got its own kombucha house-brew on the way that will possibly be a regular feature on the menu. I can’t promise we’re serving any cancer blasters or that you’ll have Halle Berry’s abs drinking our house formulation, but kombucha is a step up from the ordinary iced tea or coffee. The initial sip shocks the palate with prominent acidic flavors layered with subtle sweet tones. Someone described kombucha as an exotic, effervescent rose water. If I can’t convince you to give our kombucha a try, would it matter if I told you Lindsay Lohan drinks the stuff?

Kombucha news might not be exciting, but the news I do have to offer is the soft opening we just wrapped up this past weekend. Two months have passed since I started my internship with the Summit, and three days ago I had my a shot at working in a professional kitchen for the very first time. If you ask me to describe the work that goes into launching a restaurant I have three words: f*****g hard work. And that’s coming from the girl who’s just the intern. I don’t recall a weekend the Summit managers weren't  here to clean or build out the space, which now looks like this:

[caption id="attachment_638" align="aligncenter" width="470" caption="The Summit. check out your new Third Space"][/caption]

We haven’t had a Grand Opening to prove that the hard work’s paid off, but we did have a full attendance that had food orders coming faster than the kitchen could prepare them, more plates to push out than our runners could keep track of, and a shortage of food even before closing (we still find ourselves apologizing to the friends and family whose orders weren’t fulfilled). We hope that the feedback and positive support we received from this weekend’s soft opening resonates with the response we’ll get once the Summit opens to the public. Pictures of the soft launch are on their way. In the meantime, I’m on my way to chant to the Grand Opening Gods to pray we pass the next building inspection and that the Opening I sniffed out four weeks ago takes place soon...

- MISS U