Memory Chips

Patricia Arnao is a multimedia visual artist who was one of the first artists -in-residence at our art space in Turkey.  Then I started a new one and I invited her to be first because she's Number 1!!!

Pat showed up in West Virginia fresh off her most recent trip to Sicily, where she was taking care of legal business as part of her Italian citizenship application.   Over our Happy Hour Aperol Spritzes, we dove into why Americans are obsessed with Italy, Italian and American culture, and, of course, potato chips.

Cameo by my beloved, Árni.

Bags:
*Le Contadine--Mediterranean Flavor (Tomato Basil)
*San Carlo--Salami and Fennel
*San Carlo--Vivace (Spicy)
*Lays Bolognaise

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Sibel Horada is an artist from Turkey.  She is also my friend.  A friend who calls me from the supermarket in Ankara (Turkey) to show me what kinds of chips they have!

Sibel has been making sculptures from found styrofoam that has washed ashore on Turkey's beaches.  In a nod to the Chips, she bought some Puffed Rice cakes because they are like styrofoam!  And then we talked about the elements, her work, Turkey, and bad graphic design.  Like the design on this episode's bags from my collection:

Estrella "Cipso". Regional Flavors "Inner Anatolia Flavor--Pasturma"
Estrella "Cipso" Regional Flavors "Aegean Flavor--Yogurt and Aegean Herbs"

I miss Sibel.  www.sibelhorada.com

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In the absence of live Polish friends available for "Chip Talk"--I instead reveal my ignorance about my relative, the esteemed and honorable Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski.

The only thing I knew about the Cardinal before researching for this episode is that he
is the spitting image of my Grandfather, Floyd Weshinskey, and my nephew (who is named after Floyd!)

Niech Żyje Polska! with traditional Flavors:

*Lay's Golonka (Ham Hock) and Spicy Horseradish
*WieskjieZiemniaczki (County Potatoes) brand Butter and Salt
*Wieskjie Ziemniaczki brand Dill
*Wieskjie Ziemniaczki brand Old Dried Sausage of Krakow
*Lorenz Polish Gulasz

Music:

Chopin's Waltz in C# Minor played by 
Chopin's Heroic Polonaise played by Arthur Rubenstein

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In 1989 my husband, Árni Gu∂mundsson , accidentally burnt down the sculpture department of the Swedish Royal Academy of Art .**  He recounts the trauma of that experience on the occasion of our anniversary.

Our last anniversary episode involved trigger warnings, and so does this one:  there is mention of  police violence, sexual assault, and, or course, fire.

Lagom is the Swedish idea/lifestyle of "just so".  

All Bags from Sweden:

OLW Jalepeno Yoghurt
OLW Wafflecut Cheddar and Chipotle
OLW BigCut Jalepeno and Ranch
Estrella "West Coast" Chips: Garlic, Chive, and Chili
Gårdschips Piri Piri and Roasted Garlic
OLW "Delichips" Mild Chili and Sour Cream
Estrella Double Cheese and Chili
Estrella Hot, Sweet Chili
OLW Grilled Cheddar Chilis
OLW Chili and Bernaise sauce
OLW Sour Cream and Sweet Chili
Estrella Hot Sweet Chili

For the record--all the chips, with the exception of the Gårdschips, tasted exactly the same.

**Not to be confused with the second time the sculpture department caught on fire on Skeppsholmen in September 2016**

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Why did I think it was a good idea to collect potato chip bags?  I asked ethnologist, Charlotte Hagström about that, and she told me that it is a normal impulse . . .  if I were a child .  . . or an artist :)

As a Senior Professor at Lund University in Sweden, Charlotte has done research on Swedish Fredagsmys (Friday Coziness), bicycles and their riders, female railway conductors, and collectors and collecting!

She is currently a research coordinator at the Swedish National Railroad Museum


This episodes chip flavors:

Estrella Tzatziki Flavor
Gårdchips Asparagus Flavor

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Quilling is the ancient art of paper rolling.  Quilling Mistress and painter, Josie Jenkins,, tells me I have it ALL WRONG when trying to 'quill' two bags from my Chinese collection:

Kimchi and 
Lay's Kyushu Seaweed

Josie's Quilling site:  https://josiejenkinsquilling.wordpress.com/about-josie/
Josie's Painting and Project site:  http://www.josiejenkins.co.uk

We met as resident artists at the Chinese European Art Center in Xiamen, Fujian Province, PRC.  Josie was with me when I collected several of the bags from my collection.  She paints landfills, scrap heaps, and garbage, and works with hoarders!  She loves people and chaos/order

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The last time I saw Holly Treddenick I was dressed in a nude leotard.  Things like this can happen when you take part in circus incubators, and other creative events that are concerned with communication between artists and audiences.

Also, the last time I saw Holly Treddenick in Toronto, I bought some bags of chips:
2 different version of Ruffles All-Dressed!

Creative incubators, face licking, and how the rest of the world can learn what circus people already know:  Communication is key.

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It takes more than one onion to make a collection of onions.  Ludvig Ödman is a collector from Sweden whose favorite chip flavor is "Triple Onion" (because one isn't enough!)

Ludvig collects belly button lint, and various bodily sheddings--but his most recent and important collecting work involves selling prints of his drawings to collect money for Ukraine aid.  Then he takes that money and uses it to collect vehicles and supplies which he then transports from Sweden to Ukraine.

Flavors (from Sweden):
*Estrella Triple Onion
*Estrella Warm Sandwich
*OLW Chipotle and Cheese
*OLW BBQ vs. Cola


 

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Last episode I spoke with the "Yes Lady" Lindsay Anderson in Taber, Alberta about the strange path that led to her starting a soup business.

Today, we get crackin' on writing our own obituaries, or at least talking about some of the obituaries in Lindsay's collection!

Kettle Brand Apple Cider Vinegar Chips from Niagara Falls, Canada remind us that 'sour' is just another way of saying "tangy"!

https://lindsayanderson63.wixsite.com/my-site

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The first part in a series of conversations with Lindsay Anderson--the woman who likes to say 'Yes".

In this  episode, Lindsay tells the unlikely story about how she started her soup business--which sounds like it would be boring--but because it is Lindsay--it isn't!

Chips Flavors purchased in Toronto, Canada:
Savoursmith's Bubbly and Green Chile
Savoursmith's Black Truffle and Rosemary


https://lindsayanderson63.wixsite.com/my-site

Subscribe to Memory Chips podcast on any of your podcast platforms! https://pod.link/1588265708

Subscribe to Memory Chips podcast on any of your podcast platforms! https://pod.link/1588265708

My conversation with healer Orlene Carlos sparked an idea to create a real tarot deck out of potato chip bags--but that is for later.

For now, Orlene and I discuss our time in China training umbrella foot juggling, circus performers as healers, and Swedish Roasted Garlic and Sea Salt-flavored potato chips.

Orlene Carlos the Healer
https://www.quantumhealers.com/orlenegentile

Piccolo Zoppe Boutique Circus

Wondercabinet Wellness ( Anne's health and wellness site)

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While negotiators meet today in Turkey to discuss a potential end to the Russian invasion of Ukraine,  the world hopes for some progress.  And I remember a performance video I made in our neighborhood in Istanbul that played with the ideas of patriotism and nationalism and my discomfort with flag-waving.

"Perşembe Pazarı Pride Parade"
https://vimeo.com/76127398  

Chips:

Frito-Lay "A la Turka"  Centennial Recipes, regional flavors--Poppyseed and Sun-dried Tomato
Cipso (by Estrella) Regional Flavors (Southwest) Spicy Pepper Dip (Acılı Ezme)

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This episode's guest was supposed to have been Anastasia Polubotko from Ukraine--talking about mushroom-hunting in Sweden and Swedish and Polish mushroom-flavored chips bags.

But then a war rearranged our priorities, and instead I am talking about Nastia, about mushroom hunting with her, and how the Stoic philosophy can maybe help us deal with the funk and depression we are all feeling these days.

Slava Ukraini!

http://www.anastasiapolubotko.com

This episodes chips:

Lantchips "Plain Chantarelle"  (Sweden)
Estrella  "Chantarelle, Garlic, and Hot Pepper" (Sweden)
Estrella "2016 Yearly Harvest Chantarelle" (Sweden)
Lorenz Crunchips "Boletus Mushroom and Sour Cream" (Poland)

For a more light-hearted jaunt into Swedish chips--Listen here
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1812533/9658477

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This episode's two flavors:  Gourmet Red Pepper and Feta and Lay's Burger King Flame-Broiled Hamburger have nothing in common except that I got them both in Turkey.  And also that they reminded me of Sevinç Gürmen Hall and her stage persona, Joy G. Wild.

 "Sevinç" is Turkish for "Joy"--as in the Joy of Pole--the studio where she creates an inclusive, supportive community of pole dancers, movers, acrobats, and fun people of all genders.

We became friends in Turkey where our paths crossed as a couple out of a handful of circus performers living and working in Istanbul, and we continue to be friends as a result of our common interest in mobility and movement training and a weird coincidence that we talk about in this episode!

Find Sevinç here:

joygwild.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f92oS3lmy5k

Turkey's Got Talent:

Insta:  @joy_g_wild (pole)
              @the.punk.barbie (tattoo)
         
Other episodes featuring Turkish bags:

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1812533/9753759-turkish-sucuk-soojook-flavor-or-how-an-artist-thinks.mp3?download=true

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Valentine's Day special (WTF?!)   Although this is the first time we decided to 'celebrate' Valentine's Day, we get really into it by talking about what surprises us about our relationship now as compared to what we expected at the beginning.

The conversation if prompted by three bags of Lay's potato chips that we collected together in Amsterdam, where Árni grew up.     All three bags were part of a contest called "Guess the Flavor" (Raad de Smaak in Dutch).   We had grand ideas of winning a bunch of money guessing the flavors, but alas--we never got around to entering the contest.

One thing we DO get around to is delving into exercise guru, Bonnie Prudden's 2011 book,
Exer-Sex: The fantastic new fitness plan that improves your lovemaking. Excercises for sex, for love, for life.   And also eventually revealing what the mystery flavors were . . . 

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My co-host this episode is Nia Pushkarova from Sofia, Bulgaria.  Nia and I met at the same artist initiatives meeting in Istanbul, Turkey where I met my husband.   Mine and Nia's friendship is no less enduring.  In fact, since 2015 the three of us have been trying to link together the cities of Pernik, Bulgaria and Charles Town, West Virginia through the bonds of art and culture, as well as potato chips!

Nia initiated and is responsible for the Water Tower Art Fest--first a festival, then an artist-in-residency program, always a socially engaged project.    In 2015 WTAF took place in Pernik, BG.    I had spent a great deal of time in Bulgaria prior to meeting Nia and participating in several WTAF projects, but this time was special, as you will learn during the episode.  Our project was/is called "Pernik, USA"

Chips Bags:

Chipi "Beer-drinking chips"
Chipsoni "Sour Cream and Onion"
Smak "Smoked Ham"

One of my favorite Bulgarian folk songs (even if the lyrics are a little church-y and nationalistic  for my tastes) starts out this episode:  "Malka Moma" sung by Neli Andreeva (from the band, Kitka)

We dance out of the conversation with Riko Band and DJ Krisi playiing something called "Pernik Kyuchek" .   Stay subscribed for future episodes when we go into why some Bulgarians may have a problem with this juxtaposition of traditional folk music with Roma dance music.

Infographic by Julie Upmeyer

If you really want to start a fight about what is and is not "Bulgarian", or to rile up West Virginians about our local opioid epidemic, watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juuz3tM7Iuw

Subscribe to Memory Chips podcast on any of your podcast platforms! https://pod.link/1588265708

Where do I start?  How about with this episode's bags, which were collected by me in China in 2014:

*Lay's Sichuan Pepper and Chicken Flavor
*Lay's Spicy Green Peppercorn Fish
*Lay's Numb and Spicy Hot Pot
*Lay's Cheese Lobster
*Lay's French Chicken
*Lay's Kyushu Seaweed
*Ridge Barbeque Skewer

I met with Dr. John Flower--a friend of mine, who together with his wife , Dr. Pam Leonard, spearheaded the giant project of moving a traditionally-built folk house from Yunnan Province in China to Jefferson County, West Virginia.   You can read all about and watch video of the disassemblage and moving of the house here:  https://www.chinafolkhouse.org/

Weirdly enough--my family, my husband, myself, and various friends in this area of West Virginia all have ties to China.  Some of us have studied there, some have run businesses there, others have toured and played music there.  John Flower has done all of those things in addition to being the Director of the Chinese Studies Program at Sidwell Friends School. 

Because some of my bags are only in Chinese characters and I am illiterate in Chinese, John looked through my collection and helped me translate.  Not that is made much sense anyway!  He also reflected on the role of regional ideas of flavor and connecting people through food.

Glossary:

la:  hot/spicy

Yunnan:  region of China that borders Tibet, Laos, and Myanmar. The region is known for its   
                      large number of ethnic minorities such as Bai, Naxi, and Lisu  people.  Along with
                      the Chinese Han majority and Tibetans,
Sichuan:  A region of china known for its distinctive cuisine involving hot peppers and
                     numbing peppercorns.

Thank you to bluegrass band, Magraw Gap, and John Flower for singing "Kangding" so beautifully.

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On December 30, 2011 my husband Árni Guðmundsson and I were married in Round Hill, Virginia.  On the occasion of our 10th anniversary, we recorded ourselves telling the story of the night we met in 2009!

This story features three bags of potato chips from Turkey, but you won't find out which ones until the end of the story.

For up-to-date relationship status, listen to our Valentine's Day episode:


Trigger warning:  This episode includes descriptions of graphic physical violence and injury.

This episode is dedicated to our departed friend, Cristian Rieloff .  Cristian played a large part in this story as well as in our lives.  He was Árni's dear friend and artistic collaborator whose presence is sorely missed.

We would also like to thank the painter, Mehmet Ekiz for kindly helping us out when we needed him the day after we met!

Links:

Artist Árni Guðmundsson
http://www.artandvikingvax.com

Stina Pehrsdotter
https://www.pehrsdotter.se/Stina_Pehrsdotter/home.html

A Description of the Tarlabaşı Neighborhood
https://balkanstories.net/import-export/tarlabasi-a-slum-quarter-in-istanbul/

Historic German Hospital
http://www.intmedtourism.com/en/companies/german-hospital-istanbul/

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Julie Upmeyer and I are artistic collaborators who ran an art space together in Istanbul, Turkey (Caravansarai).  We also both had jobs collecting data for a market research company called Datamonitor.

Sound boring?

Well, does a Turkish-Swedish Meatball Eating Competition sound boring?  Or a fake charity supplying much (not really) needed black hair dye to Swedish artists?  How about a photo display of empty shampoo bottles for the Tehran Biennial?  All of these art works, and more, would not have existed had it not been for our Datamonitor jobs.

In today's episode, Julie and I discuss these things over a bag of Migros (store-brand) Sucuk Flavored potato chips.

Julie Upmeyer:  https://www.julieupmeyer.com/

Plas Bodfa:  https://www.plasbodfa.com/

Anne Weshinskey:  https://v4larts.com/

Subscribe to Memory Chips podcast on any of your podcast platforms! https://pod.link/1588265708