Pisco Punch: The Pricey San Francisco Cocktail That Was a Gold Rush Knock-Out
If you’re a cocktail drinker, you’ve probably tasted a few Pisco Sours in your time. It’s that pale foamy drink made with pisco - a highly potent Peruvian brandy. The Pisco Sour originated, as you might expect, in Peru, back in the 1940s. But many years before that, 19th century San Francisco was gripped by a craze for another pisco concoction, one that maybe should have come with a health warning. As part of our Golden State Plate series exploring the food and drinks invented in California, Carly Severn has the story of one beverage that embodied an era of excess.
Letter to My California Dreamer: ‘I Feel I’m Finally Home’
This week’s letter comes from Toni Rodriguez, addressed to himself. A Bronx-native, and later Midwest-dweller, Toni truck drove his way to Modesto, where he got the support to become his true self.
‘There Was No Way I Was Going To Raise a Child Who Was Ashamed of Who They Are’
We talk with KQED Science editor Jon Brooks about another family trying to navigate complicated family dynamics - when their toddler proclaims she's transgender. Jon tells us about Molly, a mom whose daughter, Gracie, has been living as a girl since she was four years old. Jon talks about Molly's emotional arc, from dismay to fully embracing her daughter for who she is, bringing us a unique look at a parent's perspective on what it's like to have a very young transgender child.
San Francisco Therapists Help Migrant Families Cope With Trauma
Two bilingual therapists from the Bay Area traveled to Texas this month to help asylum seekers being released from immigrant detention. Immigrants are often traumatized by violence in their home countries, they say, trauma that gets re-triggered in detention. The therapists wanted to help with that and connect people with treatment. KQED’s Julie Small takes us to the Greyhound station in San Antonio where volunteers help more than a hundred parents and their children a week as they head to family members or sponsors all over the nation.