Friday, May 31, 2013

Mike's Bikes

Citibank's bike share started last weekend and I've seen many kiosks around Manhattan near my office.  I've actually seen a few people riding Citibikes (also called Mike's bikes or Bloomberg's bikes) in the city.  Oy!  I still believe riding a bike down 6th Avenue or Broadway is a mistake.  You take your life in your hands just walking the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn!  Someone has already been mowed down on a Citibike too.  A rider was hit yesterday in the Village.  According to reports I read, the bike rider blew through a light, but that does nothing to diminish my fear of biking in the city.  I've said it before and I'll say it again:  New York is not Amsterdam!!  Mike's bikes are a menace to the city.  I am not anti-biking.  I just believe bikes should be available near parks and other areas where it's safe, not smack dab in the middle of Midtown on 43rd and 6th Avenue or, as my picture below shows, on 51st and Broadway.


Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Pippin

I went to see Pippin on Broadway last night.  Before I saw the show, I had no idea what Pippin was about and the only thing I really knew about it was that Ben Vereen starred in the show many moons ago. 

The current revival of Pippin was really good.  There were acrobats doing Cirque du Soleil-type moves, there were a lot of Fosse-like dance moves, and the show was quite funny.  But the real star is Patina Miller who plays a kind of MC for the show.  She was excellent.  Her voice was superb and she just brought an elevated level of energy to the show whenever she was on stage.  The same can't be said, however, for the actor who played Pippin.  The actor, Matthew James Thomas, was good, but he wasn't great and he certainly wasn't on the same level of many of the other performers in the cast.  His singing and dancing were adequate, but I kept feeling like I was watching an eager understudy rather than a top-billed performer when he was on stage.  He previously starred in Spider Man:  Turn Off the Dark, so maybe that's why he was less-than-thrilling in Pippin.  The dude just didn't seem to be ready for a "real" Broadway show.  Aside from Matthew's performance, I was a little disappointed with the music also.  There were no memorable songs for me and I certainly wasn't rushing to get the soundtrack after the show as I did with Rent, Chicago, and Fosse.  But my minor quibbles didn't stop me from enjoying the show or from recommending it for others. 


Monday, May 27, 2013

Who Are These People????

I read my share of celebrity gossip just like the next person, but lately I keep seeing headlines on my favorite websites about people and I have no idea who they are.  Who is Amanda Bynes and why should I care that she was arrested in New York?  Who is Aaron Paul and is his marriage over the weekend really celebrity news?  I know I'm out of touch with things going on sometimes (particularly with the music of today), but I didn't think I was that out of touch.  I read about people and I have no idea who they are or what they've done to end up on some gossip website.  I guess everyone who gets a wee bit of fame gets a gossip update now.  I remember I was going out for coffee one morning and a swarm of photographers surrounded a car that pulled up outside of the building where I work in Midtown.  (My office building houses some Sirius radio stations so we get a fair share of celebrities coming in and out.)  Because so many photographers swarmed, I stuck around to find out who was going to emerge from the car that pulled up.  It turns out it was some guy from the Vampire Diaries show.  (I actually had to ask someone who the dude was because I didn't know.)  I later found out it was Ian Sommerholder.  Who??  This is the dude photographers swarmed to get a picture of???  Really???  Nothing against Mr. Sommerholder who actually is a nice looking guy, but you would have thought George Clooney had emerged from the car the way the photographers acted. 

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Million Dollar Listing New York

My new television obsession is with Bravo's Million Dollar Listing New York (MDLNY).  Now that Selling New York's season is over on HGTV, I have to get my New York real estate fix from another source.  (As a side note, I blame my sister for getting me addicted to these real estate shows in the first place!)

MDLNY is not even a great show, but it's like a train wreck I just can't look away from.  I didn't even really watch the last season, but I'm into it now.  The deals are ridiculous and you just know most of what they show is phony, but it's still entertaining.  The three agents, Ryan, the nasty but good looking former hand model, Fredrik, the Swedish former adult film star, and the new guy Luis, the tiny Puerto Rican with the accent that comes and goes, all bring such a level of ridiculousness to the show that it's must-see TV for me right now.  I even had to stay awake last night and watch Andy Cohen interview the agents on his Watch What Happens Live show because I didn't want the tomfoolery to end.  Luis acted like he was on drugs.  He was so hyper, even more than usual.  I kept waiting for him to spontaneously combust.  Ryan acted like he didn't want to be there and had a shade of lipstick on that matched the pink shirt he was wearing.  (I don't know what that was about.)  Fredrik just seemed happy to be there.  (He's growing on me...like a fungus.)  Ryan and Fredrik wouldn't even sit next to each other.  They had to put Luis in between them.  Damn, is the hate that strong?  Those two need to either fight it out or hug it out.  (I believe there's a level of attraction there that neither man wants to cop to, but that may just be in my warped mind.)

I am constantly amazed at the outrageous New York city real estate prices.  I complain about the rent I pay for my apartment in a non-hip-and-trendy part of Brooklyn, but the Manhattan prices are off the chain.  How can anyone who doesn't make at least a healthy (and I do mean HEALTHY) six-figure salary even afford to live here???  Uh, most folks can't!  No one should be paying over $1 million for a two-bedroom apartment, I don't care where it is.  That's crazy, but it's not crazy in New York.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Weiner's In!

Disgraced ex-Congressman Anthony Weiner has thrown his hat into the mayoral race in New York.  Good for him.  I've said before that I think he'd be a good mayor for the city.  I was preparing to vote for Bill DeBlasio before Weiner hopped in.  I think Weiner should have remained a resident of Queens rather than moving to Manhattan because I thin firmly believe candidates who live in the boroughs will be more sympathetic to the concerns of people in those boroughs, but that's not a deal breaker for me.  But, the election is many months away so there's time for Weiner to blow this thing.  Hopefully, he won't. 

Monday, May 20, 2013

Speed Dating

I did some speed dating last night and it was fun.  This is my third time going to a speed dating event, but I hadn't been to one in a few years because the last one I went to annoyed me.  The event was supposed to cover two different age groups:  people in their 20s and people in their 30s, but everyone didn't show up and the groups were combined.  I didn't enjoy having to spend my evening chatting with 20-somethings (nice 20-somethings, but 20-somethings nonetheless).  Last night's event was for the 40+ crowd, so that was good.

I met some nice guys last night.  They all were pleasant and held a variety of jobs (elevator operator company owner, real estate agent, chiropractor).  A few stood out from the crowd though.  The real estate agent, who was funny and very perceptive, struck me as gay.  My gaydar just went off on him the moment I laid eyes on him and I kept wondering what he was doing there trying to meet women.  Maybe he was in denial or maybe he was bi.   Then there was the guy (I'm not sure what he did) who talked about women and men getting sex change operations.  He asked me if a man got a sex change and became a woman and started dating men, isn't he gay?  Huh???  And then there was the high school physical ed teacher and coach who just gave me the creeps.  He was aggressive...and not in a good way.  All I could think about when I talked with him was that he seemed like a wife beater.  I can't even imagine how he is with the kids he coaches.  He probably berates them on a daily basis.  Ugh. 

Still, I had a great time and would definitely speed date again.  I doubt there will be any love connections for me from this group, but it was nice to get out, talk with people, and drink some wine.

Friday, May 17, 2013

Googa Mooga Madness!

I knew something was wrong when my usual F train I take from work around 4:30 was crowded and pretty much stayed crowded until I got off at Bergen Street to head to Trader Joe's.  But that wasn't the worst of it.  The nightmare started after I'd done my shopping and stood on the platform waiting for about 15 minutes for a train, praying that my frozen food wouldn't melt.  Finally a G train came...and it was packed.  I managed to squeeze in, but things didn't ease up until the 15th Street stop.  And what was the reason for this influx of afternoon riders?  Googa Freaking Mooga!  I knew Googa Mooga was starting today, but I didn't realize the influx of hipsters would start during rush hour.  (I guess they don't have jobs to go to.)  It's bad enough that Prospect Park is pretty much off limits all weekend due to this hipster music/foodfest, but it looks like the subway trains are also a disaster.  Wait until Saturday and Sunday when the hipsters realize the G isn't running between Hoyt/Schermerhorn and Church Ave heading towards Queens and the F is express between Church Ave and Jay Street.  Yeah, that's happening, too.  Maybe they'll figure out they can catch the train at 7th Ave or maybe they won't.  I'm sure they'll make it back to Williamsburg or wherever they came from safely somehow. 

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Name Change?

I just read an article on The Root called "I Hate My Ghetto Name.  Can I Change It?" (Here's the link: http://www.theroot.com/views/i-hate-my-ghetto-name-can-i-change-it?page=0,1&wpisrc=root_lightbox).  My answer to this question is a resounding "yes"!

If you've read my book, Clean Hands, you'll know that I'm no fan of phonetically challenged, made-up names that people (black people, in particular) tend to saddle their children with.  But I have a solution to this!  If you really really want to name your daughter LaKeisha or your son Raykwan, then make these middle names and give your kids a more conservative first name like Stephanie or Robert.  That way, you can call them by their middle names and feel glad that you were able to show your creative side while not limiting your child to being discriminated against because he or she has a ghetto name.  Seriously, if a hiring agent sees two resumes, one from Loquisha and one from Lisa and both applicants have similar job and educational backgrounds, chances are Lisa will be getting the call and Loquisha won't.  When you have a ghetto name, people make assumptions about you and about your background:  that you're poor, ignorant, and uneducated and that you came from parents who share these traits.  These assumptions may or may not be true, but the truth is irrelevant when you're being discriminated against.  No, this is not fair, but this is the way of the world and if you want to try and navigate your way through it, you need to be smarter about what you do and how you do it.

I used to complain that my name was plain, but I don't complain anymore.  My name was almost Seasha (Southeast Alabama Self-Help Association).  Uh, I'll take Kim any day over Seasha.  I probably would have changed my name if my father had gotten his way and named me Seasha Mageela.  (I wouldn't even be able to rely on my middle name for comfort!!!)  Thankfully, my mother put her foot down and Kim Jenice was what they went with.

I work with a woman (not black) who chooses to go by a first name that isn't her own because she has a very ethnic first name that she, apparently, has issues with.  (I don't personally like her, so I doubt I'll ever have a conversation with her about why she is not comfortable using her legal first name.)  I have two questions about this.  First, how is this not fraud?  Can anyone just take a new first name and use it without identifying your real, legal first name?  I like the name Nina.  Can I just start calling myself that at work even though it's not my legal name?  Can I do business and present myself to customers as Nina even though my legal name is Kim?  Second, if you're 35 years old (as this woman claims to be), shouldn't you have come to terms with who you are and what your name is by now?

The bottom line is, if you don't like your name and you're an adult, change it.

Monday, May 13, 2013

Don Draper, the Sadist

Why oh why did Don Draper go all 50 Shades of Gray ordering Sylvia, the woman he's having an affair with, around like a dog on last night's episode of Mad Men?  Oh, how the mighty have fallen!  When he asked Sylvia to crawl on the floor and get his shoes, I almost turned the channel.  Thankfully, she didn't crawl, but she did get the shoes for him and put them on his feet.  Is this what Mad Men has become?  What happened to Don asking a hooker to slap him in the face?  (I guess that was during his masochistic phase.  He's come full circle now!)  That face slapping scene was sexy.  The tomfoolery going on last night wasn't sexy at all.  It was pathetic.

I'm starting to long for the day when Mad Men wraps entirely so Jon Hamm can do comedy work full time.  He's so funny but he can't be funny on Mad Men because Don Draper isn't funny.  Don Draper is a jerk and a buzzkill.  Is this the start of Don's fall off the building that we see in the opening credits for every show?  Is this the beginning of the end for Draper?  Maybe.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Random Thoughts

A publisher (whose name I won't reveal) my manuscript because the story contained infidelity.  I was told something like, "Our customers don't like stories where infidelity is involved."  Huh?  Since when is infidelity off the table in a relationship novel?  I've read plenty of romance books where infidelity rears its ugly head.  I'm not a fan of infidelity, but it happens and I certainly wouldn't toss a book because of it.  Who are these mythical creatures who reject romance books because of infidelity?  I assume they never watched soap operas either where infidelity is a constant plot line.  I guess I should be glad I got a personalized response, but I think I would have preferred to receive feedback that was more generic.

In other news, kudos to John McCain for introducing a bill to break up these cable television packages and allow customers to pick the channels they want.  As I blogged about last week, my cable bill went up and I complained about having to pay for sports channels (like ESPN) that I won't even watch.  Cable channels should be offered a la carte.  I'd be more than willing to pay for channels that I want (USA, Sundance, Comedy Central) and not have to pay for channels that I don't want (Univision, Fox News, E!). 

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

The Nance

I went to see The Nance last night at the Lyceum Theater and thought it was very good.  A little long, a little preachy, but still very good.  It's the story of a gay burlesque actor/singer who plays a gay man (a Nance) on stage.  Normally, the Nance is played by a straight actor, but in the play the Nance was really gay.

Nathan Lane, the show's star, was excellent, as expected, and the supporting cast members were also great.  Nathan's love interest, Ned, played by Jonny Orsini was so sweet and endearing even when Nathan (Chauncey) was treating him like crap.  And what a pleasant surprise to see Orsini in a brief nude scene at the beginning of the show.  I wasn't expecting to see schlong and bare ass on Broadway, but there they were in all their glory.  It must take a tremendous amount of willpower (and a lot of time at the gym) to have the confidence to
stand totally naked in front of an audience six nights a week (and during the Wednesday and weekend maintees).  Damn, Jonny!  But, I digress.

The Nance showed the tremendous amount of suffering a gay man went through in the 30s when you could be thrown in jail for being a pervert just because you were homosexual.  It's hard to understand how such a thing could happen, but it did.  What was interesting to me was that while then New York Mayor LaGuardia was working to shut down these burlesque shows and round up any actors performing in homosexual skits, no one seemed to care about the men dressing in drag doing song and dance numbers.  Dressing in drag is just like putting on a costume.  But if a man came on stage and did a Nancy boy act (hence the Nance), he was tossed in the clink.  Crazy.


Sunday, May 5, 2013

Brooklyn in Bloom

We've been having such wonderful weather here lately that I just had to get out and enjoy it. Here's a shot of the circle near Prospect Park.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

The Punching Bag

In his latest effort to try and justify the "stop and frisk" tactics of the NYPD, Bloomberg made some crack about how New York's murder rate would be like Detroit's if not for the controversial plan. I'm so tired of everyone from Bloomberg to my beloved Stephen Colbert using Detroit as an example of everything that's wrong in a major urban city. Detroit's problems are different from New York's and to compare the two places are like comparing apples to bananas. People need to stop using Detroit as their own personal punching bag. Really.