It's pretty much winter, so....

I won’t be hunting insects for a while. I got less this past summer than I had in 2007; some ants and a few interesting things in Louisiana, but not as much as I’d have liked. I spent two very intense months filming a TV program, did roughly 35 library presentations, taught a summer composition class, and had other responsibilities. I stopped posting entries partly because I felt overworked and stressed. Not that I'm complaining, really -- I like being busy.

Future entries will likely continue the different directions my company is going in. I haven’t decided whether it’s better to expand my stock of exotic edible insects or to increase supplies of the species that can be more easily cultivated. Whether to concentrate on developing the educational aspects or product generation. What about that whole ‘office space’ idea, can that possibly be smart? And then there’s the important progress toward gathering the literature and creating a community.

All of these have great potential value, and as I’ve mentioned I’m just one guy. Figuring out how best to spend my energies isn’t easy. New development frequently arise, any of which could bring great success. It could be communication with someone in China or Mexico who says he wants to export insects and is looking for sources, or a journalist writing an article [I just found a new one today], or something else. But I’m not going to include every lead when the vast majority of them end up going nowhere.

Got to get the camera back out; more pictures needed.

Back From The Dead

Meaning, this blog is. I’ve remained busy with my work throughout the summer and fall, and I’ll indulge an impulse to list my doings thus far in ’08 [this list is far longer than any from previous years, yet it’s probably incomplete]:

1/16: Banquet for the Gastronauts (exotic foods group), New York NY
2/10: New York Times Article (Sunday Magazine Section)
2/13: Colbert Report (aired same day)
2/19-2/21: FAO Conference, Chiang Mai, Thailand
2/28: Interview, Jay Thomas Show, Sirius Radio
3/2: Birthday party, Boston MA
3/6: Interview, Newport Mercury
3/21: ESA Conference, Liverpool NY
The Bryant Park Project [NPR program]
3/27: Appearance on One Guest [WGBH channel] Boston MA
4/17: Library program, Braintree MA
4/20: Cook-out in Southern Illinois
5/08: Discover Magazine article
5/25: Cooking contest in Richmond VA.
6/9: Time Magazine article
6/16: G Word program [on the Planet Green channel] (aired on 10/1/08)
6-7/08: Animal Planet program (air date TBD)
7-8/08: 35 gigs at various Libraries in RI and CT
8/08: Cooking contest in Philadelphia PA
9/08: RI Monthly article
9/12: Cultivating Life (PBS program), Portsmouth RI
9/16: Science Café presentation, Raleigh NC
9/21: BugFest, Raleigh NC
9/27: Birthday party, Exeter CT
10/2: The Tyra Banks Show (air date TBA), New York NY
11/14: Brown Daily Herald article, Providence RI
11/15: Birthday party, North Providence RI


As for updates regarding my endeavors:

I’m looking into getting an intern, and office space;

engaged in republishing the old issues of The Food Insect Newsletter [more on this
as it develops];

starting a conversation about founding an insect farm in one of the Southern states;

hard at work on a book about my progress from eccentric to creator-of-solutions;

continuing to expand my stock [I’ve been getting several new kinds of bugs];

and other stuff….

I’ve also been corresponding with a lot of people, so many that I couldn’t include them all so I’ll mention two promising contacts: Mr. Bart Hogebrink of the Netherlands regarding his very exciting project: http://www.foodfactoryfoundation.org/ and the Fourth Grade class of Ms. Deanna Lengyel in Oakley, California. I hope to continue dialogues with both parties, because either [or both] could change the world.

Mr. Hogebrink intends to create a factory to make insect foods and feed the hungry. The students of Ms. Lengyel’s class seem fascinated with the idea of what edible insects could represent. THIS is why I’m in the edible-insect business! The next challenge is to post more frequently…

Bread and Vodka (and new friends)

Among the several new projects at SLS are two that have me working with new colleagues!

The first is insect flour. I'd worked with it a few years ago and wanted to do more with it. This speaks to the question of, "is it okay to transform the insect as part of processing it into food, or is that 'selling out?'" For a while I was against 'hiding' the bugs, but I've come to realize that if people are aware and content to benefit nutritionally, environmentally, etc from the experience of eating insects, that's what matters. Besides, it's good to meet people half-way. If eating a slice of toast (ground-up insect and all) is easier than chomping on an entire insect body, then why not help the people out in that regard?

The process is simple: take your thawed crickets out and dry/toast them in the oven. Then grind into flour.



A couple weeks ago I dropped off the flour at Liberty Elm Diner at 777 Elmwood Avenue in the glorious city of Providence. Liberty Elm is a relatively new establishment and they're multo cool -- not just because they're willing to bake with insect flour. Their food is great, they've got live music, and they're friendly and wiki-enabled. You can learn more about them at

http://www.myspace.com/libertyelm

Here's the flour and what we made with it.

In fact the diner's baker made the wheat-flour/potato bread both with and without the cricket flour, for comparison's sake. The dark one contains the cricket flour; it was also quite a bit denser. I'm mildly embarrassed to say that I don't yet know exactly how she worked that recipe -- how much flour was called for, and how much cricket flour was used, and did the latter simply replace the usual flour or was added to? Questions like these need answering, but the more important details are that the cricket rolls were very tasty, with a sort of parmesan cheese taste to them; AND that even though the rolls were not officially on the menu, several people ordered and paid for them! Most cool. With a little more effort I could help Providence reach the forefront of entomophagic cities in this country...

The other project: BOOZE!

I am fortunate enough to be in contact with the illustrious Baron Ambrosia, who creates some pretty amazing stuff in NYC. He's classy, enthusiastic, and he excells at staying presposterous. You can get a taste -- nay, a banquet! -- at http://www.underbellynyc.com/season1/

I have no images yet, just this link to the episodes of Underbelly. As can be seen upon a perusal thereof, each of the episodes concludes with the proclamation, "Stay Preposterous!!" From what I can tell he's all about the high life, and to that end he's got some very interesting ideas about capturing the essence of insects [particularly the giant water bugs, for example] in distilled spirits such as vodka. This is just the kind of thing I want to work with, since it's another way of making the concept of entomophagy a viable option. But in terms of the Baron himself, there is a good deal more going on.

Granted, at first blush it looks like he's only playing around, there's a serious message too. The Baron has filmed not only in the gritty 'first-world' of The Bronx, but in Liberia and Sierra Leone as well. He and his crew plan to visit Somalia and Chechnya in the coming year. When I asked him about his predilection for travelling to places wherein he's likely to have his ass shot off, he said something like, "The Baron loves the world. I want to do things the other shows won't do, which is to show how beautiful people really are." Granted this was a telephone conversation, so I can't claim to quote verbatim, but the gist is that in the service of humanity there is no danger to fear. I was moved. And I look forward to working with him.

Finally: Two important links!!

Hey there, everyone.

Although these things happened about two months ago, and though all of my friends have found them already through simple Google searches, here's the links to those two milestones:

the New York Times article of 2/10/08, written by the great Sam Nejame:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/10/magazine/10wwln-essay-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin


and, following the above, my 2/13/08 guest appearance on The Colbert Report:

http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=156551


Maybe it's just taken me this long to get used to the idea that these things have really happened. That said, though, it's not like they've propelled my little company into any stratospheres of prominence and/or success. Yet. But they have been efficacious. My webmaster tracked the "bumps" in the hits, and suchlike marketing details.

More big things ahead...

What's going on these days

I'll be posting more about Thailand soon, but for the moment I want to just run through current projects:


I’m trying to be patient during some heavy-duty business negotiations.

Bugstock 3 will take place in rural Louisiana at the end of May: I’m deciding whether I can make it.

I’m trying to write a book, at last, on my life as an entomophagy guy.

I’m busily making cricket flour for baked goods, and a couple days ago I dropped off some at a diner here in Providence. I'm told they'll make some oatmeal raisin cookies with it, and I'm definitely hoping they'll use it in bread as well.

I've Got Representation!

Since I'll be in Thailand for a little while, it would be a shame if those who'd like to talk with me missed out. While I'm away please direct inquiries into me and/or Sunrise Land Shrimp to:

Mike Ritz
Mritz@eyeofprovidence.org

Media, contact 617-462-6908 to schedule interviews.


Thanks,

Dave

Some Big News for SLS.

Today there's an article about my work in the New York Times Sunday Magazine. Sam Nejame wrote it and he did a really nice job on it. It arose from an ice cream project I'd done in the Fall, which -- along with a few other subjects, like my wonderful Gastronauts experience and Zack's shipment of bugs from the wilds of Louisiana -- I need to post about. Though the article includes neither my website nor the name of my company, I know that potentially interested parties will be able to locate me well enough.

Other news: I'm to be a featured guest on the Colbert Report this Wednesday, 2/15. That'll be interesting. And I'll be leaving for Thailand on 2/15 for the FAO [Food and Agriculture Office, a branch of the UN] Conference mentioned in the NYT article. I'm looking forward to seeing Thailand; I've never been to South-East Asia before.

Please stay tuned, you wonderfully patient and loyal readers.

Basics Part 1: Presentations of the Past [and upcoming]

So far I've mostly focused on the recent acquisitions of fancy exotic insects, and it's been great to share that. Yet my "business history," if I can use that phrase, has centered more on simply feeding the public the crickets and other insects that I can get on a steady basis. Sometimes I tend to take these insects for granted; they're far from boring, and it's time that I featured them.

But before I go into detail about those bugs I'll focus on the people part of all this. These are the educational programs [and other notable business-related activities] I've done thus far. My website doesn't yet feature the entire list -- I'll put that on the list of things to do...

2001

10/6: Peabody Museum of Natural History - Yale University; New Haven CT


2004

3/7: ESA [Entomological Society of America] Eastern Branch Conf.; New Haven CT


2005

3/17: AS220 Gallery; Providence RI
3/20: ESA [Entomological Society of America] Eastern Branch Conf.; Harrisburg PA
7/31: EcoTarium; Worcester MA
9/10: Dennison-Pequotsepos Nature Center; Mystic CT
10/9 Roger Williams Museum of Natural History; Providence RI
11/9: Menunkatuck Audubon; Guilford CT


2006

9/15: Centers for Nature Education at Baltimore Woods; Marcellus NY
9/16: Helmer Nature Center; Rochester NY
10/7: Powder Mill Ledges Audubon Refuge; Smithfield RI
10/31: La Laiterie; Providence RI
11/17: Community MusicWorks; Providence RI
11/25: Jamestown Philomena Library; Jamestown RI
11/26: EcoTarium; Worcester MA


2007

2/21: Radio Show Interview, WNRI; Woonsocket RI
3/10: Portsmouth Public Library; Portsmouth RI
3/15: Shipment, Tonight Show with Jay Leno; Burbank CA
3/17: Peace Valley Nature Center; Doylestown PA
3/18: ESA [Entomological Society of America] Eastern Branch Conf.; Harrisburg PA
4/17: NY Entomological Society; New York, NY
5/24: Cranston-Calvert Elementary School; Newport RI
5/24: Broad Meadow Brook Audubon; Worcester MA
6/09: Newark Museum; Newark NJ
6/25: Shipment, meeting of the Washington Entomological Society; Washington D.C.
8/01: Radio Show Interview, WNRI; Woonsocket RI
8/05: Farmer's Market; Mystic CT
8/12: NOFA Conference; Amherst MA
9/6: Powder Mill Ledges Audubon Refuge; Smithfield RI
9/29: Centers for Nature Education at Baltimore Woods; Marcellus NY
10/13: Central Square Festival; Cambridge MA

I bolded the last few listings because at this point they're coming up.

A Good Day

A good many of these posts will be old history of what I've been doing in the last three years or so [though the real goal will be to serve up "hot off the press" posts], but here's some relatively new news. On May 17th I served I gave an insect tasting at an Audubon party, celebrating the hard-working people who nurtured the Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary over its 15 year history in Worcester MA. Some of the attendees were really into what I was serving, which is always good. Some of them were really into the Giant Water Bugs that I so love to serve, and others chowed down on the less ostentatious cricket. Though I did hit my usual environmental message a little, I was content to be part of the entertainment, along with the talented caricaturist who did a great job on me.





In fact, yeah, that's one of those Giant Water Bugs right there; I'm holding it in the wooden spoon. And a big “Thanks” to my good friend Trip Wolfskehl of Screen Craft Tile Works in Providence for scanning this for me.

And while I'm at it: the Newark gig was two days ago, and that went very well. Bug Mania! 2 had well over 1,000 visitors; not all of them came over to my table, and even fewer ate insects, but quite a few folks got involved.
As it happens, this was one of the gigs where I was on my own, so there was no-one there to take pictures. I may be able to score some from the museum's photographer [you never know...]