"24 Hours in the Lair of Insanity." A title burned into my memory. It was a piece written for my high school newspaper, chronicling Cisco's attempt at spending 24 hours confined to our local Denny's. Both a brazen exposé (simultaneous celebration) of Mozzarella Sticks and dramatic portrayal of the cast of characters that staffed the Denny's on Encinitas Boulevard, it captivated me as much then as it does today. Whenever I need a jolt of life's vibrant, tastable, strange beauty, I dig through old issues of "The Mustang" (the aforementioned periodical) and read Cisco's work. Or, I'll spend some time with his photographs: goosebump-inducing, expansive environments, or quietly stunning renditions his fiancee, Pan. Better yet, I will climb to the top of a hill and drink air with him.
Flavor?
"Dirt" like its been dragged through the sieve of the earth. Right now I am munching on fistfuls of rinsed kale. I like tastes that don't register on the descriptive palette for food, I think of flavors like angular, jagged, porous and oxidized.
Food Destination?
K.L. 24 jam. Street food in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 24 jam, means 24 hour. I love wading out into the humidity; lush fragrant chaos spilling over the cityscape. It's got this really cool tropico-future vibe. I love the people, Malaysians are so cosmopolitan, so cool, their posture 100% slack. The food is bright and spicy and not too complicated. They've got some serious cuisine out there; but I just like the plastic stools and plastic bags of soy milk. Reminds me of being a kid before the burden of self-awareness.
Beverage of choice?
Sparkling water. This is my most cherished consumable. I love it more than any food. It's like a crisp cool crystalline fire.
Food memory?
There used to be this Thai stall in one of the late-hour food courts in Berkeley, the guy claimed they had a "1 - 20" spicy scale. Being no stranger to spice and that being clearly ridiculous, I asked for 17. After a moment sizing me up, the guy said, "you get 8!" After several visits, building up report, I finally said, "come on give me 13," to which he just handed me a toothpick and said "eat this." My sinuses instantaneously erupted, body debilitated into a cold sweat, tongue searing helplessly like ceviche. That man had a pretty good sense of humor.
Most intriguing item of produce?
Radishes…rubies of the earth.
Cookbook?
Reading groovefood is as ambitious as I get. About 8 years ago I suppose I got philosophical about this idea of "intuitive" mixing etc. but that wore off. Now I primarily eat yogurt, sugar-free protein bars and Wasa crackers.
Guilty pleasure?
Sashimi. After 15 years of vegetarianism, I am never 100% comfortable eating meat; but sometimes when a certain tension of dolefulness and masculinity arises, I might slip into a sushi restaurant and eat some really buttery flesh. Chewing through sinews makes me think about the neolithic; its a specific kind of pleasure.
Food scene in a film?
Just got a visual flood from Tampopo. I wasn't able to identify a "scene" amidst the montage of gorging and sensuality, although I think the "sashimi" reminded of Japan and the carnal.
Strangest thing you've ever eaten?
Fire Ant pâté. Actually not the strangest, but just sounds the fanciest. It was rather pleasant. My fiancee, (very Buddhist) jokingly threatened not to marry me if I ate it. It was strange too, because I particularly like ants. It was almost like eating a totem. As they were crunching around in my mouth, I thought of this passage from the intro to "Thousand Plateaus" were the authors describes the holographic experience of the text as passages and concepts migrating between different sections like the movements of ants.
Dessert?
Not really. Even fruit seems too "syrupy" for me these days. Touché to Ryan Shrock on figs….oh my.
Notes
* The photo of Cisco was taken on a cell phone at a food stall in Kunming. He confesses that he is taking a bite of dog meat and it is a scar on his hopefully compassionate soul.
* The image that follows is Cisco's self-portrait, offered in humor. He reports: "True to my lack of interest in food, I never was able to resolve my mouth in drawings; always a huge fan of the Freudian unconscious."