Toy Story 4 and the Hudson Yards

I went to see Toy Story 4 yesterday and really enjoyed it. I'd seen the three previous Toy Story movies and enjoyed them also. Toy Story 4 really resonated with me because I saw it as a story about change and needing to adapting to change in one's life. (That sounds deep for a children's movie and it is!) Woody had to come to terms with the fact that his role in life had changed. When he's no longer useful as a child's toy, he has to adapt and create a new role for himself. I get that. Change also came to Forky who thought initially he was just trash, but came to realize that his role in life was larger. Yes, he was made from garbage, but he changed into a toy and had to learn how to navigate that role in life. A great message in a great movie. See it yourself and take the kids (if you have them).

In other news, while I was in New York last week, I had a chance to visit the Hudson Yards. I had no idea a fancy shopping mall had been built down near the waterfront. It was fascinating to see this area. I remember when I used to walk down 10th Avenue during my lunch break. There was nothing worth seeing in that area around 34th and 33rd Streets. Times certainly have changed. Now you can buy a Piaget watch and a high-end Coach bag at the fancy new shopping mall there. Yet, a couple of avenues away, you're still smack-dab in the middle of public housing. New York is schizophrenic, yet it somehow manages its schizophrenia. Go figure.

Goatless Goatham

I just got back from a short trip to New York that was mainly for my day job, but I also had the weekend to do some other things and one of those things was to see the hired goats in Riverside Park who'd been contracted to eat through the overgrown vegetation there. I hiked uptown to Riverside Park Saturday afternoon, taking the 1 train to 96th and then a shuttle bus up to 116th Street (because the MTA was doing track work).  I went all that way only to find out the goats had been rounded up and taken by the farmer that morning because, apparently, there wasn't enough for them to eat at the park. Sad! Goatham with no goats! What a disappointment. Still, I had a great time in New York and got to see friends and coworkers I hadn't seen in a while. I also went back to my old neighborhood in Brooklyn to see how it looked. Not much had changed (at least that I could see) but I did notice a more diverse crowd of folks at the Church Avenue F stop on Sunday. I saw more young white couples with kids and even a gay couple so the neighborhood is certainly becoming more diverse. I miss my old Kensington neighborhood, but New York is too expensive for me now.

Not Worthy!

Every time I hear Gary Numan's song "Cars" in a commercial for Walmart or Jackie Wilson's song "To Be Loved" used in a milk commercial, I think that these songs are too good to be used in advertisements. Walmart isn't worthy of Gary Numan and Jackie Wilson's great voice shouldn't be used to hock milk. Some would argue that using these songs in commercials exposes them to an entirely new audience of people and that's probably true. But I still hate to see great songs used to sell stuff on television. All I can hope is that Gary Numan owns the rights to "Cars" and is making some money from the Walmart deal and that Jackie Wilson's estate also get some cash from the milk lobby (provided he owned the rights to "To Be Loved" and, sadly, he probably didn't).

The Last Black Man in San Fran

I went to see The Last Black Man in San Francisco today and throughout the movie I kept thinking, I should have gone to see Godzilla...

I am a fan of independent movies and I try to see ones made by people of color because I know they need support. But, regardless of who is behind the screen and on the screen, I calls 'em how I see 'em. The main message I got from this film was that this is what happens when mental health services are removed from communities that sorely need them. Both of the main characters, in my opinion, were sorely in need of mental health services. Also, the main character, Jimmie, was far too attached to his family home. I know how that feels. When you've lived in the same house for a long time and you grew up there, you obviously gain an attachment to it. Unfortunately, Jimmie's family lost their ancestral home and he never got over it. He basically squatted at the property and I can't cosign to anyone just moving themselves into someone else's home like that no matter how attached they are to the property. The film just was all over the place. Although the main story was about Jimmie and his family's former home in San Francisco, it was also about gentrification, family dynamics, and black male relationships. There was just too much going on here and the film suffered under the weight of all of these issues. Plus, I just never believed two black dudes could squat in a huge Victorian home in San Francisco without someone in that neighborhood calling the cops on them. Let's just be real, folks.

Affordable Housing

I went to a meeting at my local Y tonight about affordable housing and it was interesting. There isn't much "affordable" (depending on your definition of affordability) where I live. At the meeting tonight, one of the panelists said a studio apartment here averages about $1,200 per month and, in order to only have to spend 30% of your income to pay your monthly rent, you'd need to make about $50K per year to do that. And I don't live in Brooklyn anymore!!! It's getting harder and harder to find decent housing in a lot of places. But what kills me about Evanston, where I live, is that the so-called "affordable" housing (what little there is) is often placed in the black and brown communities, not in the northern part of town or near the Lake where the higher-priced homes are located. There's an affordable housing building going up in a mostly black part of the city and many people in that area complained. The powers that be around here claimed the building was placed in this particular neighborhood because it was close to pubic transit and shopping. It is, but there are other parts of the city that also have close public transit and shopping (i.e. largely wealthier, whiter neighborhoods) yet no affordable housing units were placed there. When you look at environmental issues also, like the water crisis in Flint, you know this kind of thing wouldn't have happened in a more affluent city. Grosse Pointe would never have this kind of problem nor would Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham, or a host of other wealthy Michigan cities. The struggle is real, folks.

Happy Pride Month...See Rocketman

Delayed greetings, but Happy Pride Month! Despite our government's attempts to silence people during this month by refusing to allow embassies in Washington, DC to fly rainbow flags alongside the flags of their home countries, I do hope people are allowed to ignore this foolishness orchestrated by our idiot in chief, Donny T., and celebrate the LGBTQ community. I read the NYPD apologized for their treatment of Stonewall patrons. (Yes, it's too little too late, but it's better than nothing, I guess.) Even though it sometimes seems like we take one step forward and two steps back, I like to think society has moved forward in changing negative perceptions about LGBTQ people. There's still work to be done, of course, but I'm optimistic that things are changing for the better.

Since we are about a week into Pride Month, it was fitting that I saw Rocketman this weekend. I thought the movie was really good and I enjoyed many of the musical sequences. I didn't realize the movie would have dance and singing numbers throughout. It was Cabaret-gay! I was especially pleased to see one of my favorite Elton John songs, "Honky Cat," featured in one of the musical numbers. I also loved the "Benny and the Jets" number although it was far too brief. Rocketman reminded me of the Amy Winehouse documentary where you have people pushing someone to perform despite that fact that the performer is crumbling mentally and physically. It's sad. Elton's story, obviously, has a happier ending than Amy's did.

Back from Bama

While Donny T was in the UK with his family of grifters trying (and failing) not to embarrass himself, I was in Alabama for a few days to visit family members but I'm back from that trip. I hadn't been there to visit in probably about four years, so it was due time to return. I had a great time as I usually do but, as I've said before, I have a love/hate relationship with Alabama and I don't think I could see myself living there anytime soon. I hope my dad doesn't go senile or have serious health problems that force me there to care for him. (Stay strong, Daddy!) But, if I had to go, I guess I'd have to suck it up and go. I'm always surprised (although I shouldn't be) to see Fox News playing at fast food restaurants in Alabama. Oy! I feel for the workers who have to listen to that propaganda during their shifts. Hopefully those who disagree with the views of that station are able to block it out as they work.