Tag: Spike lee

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February 2024 Life Update Part 1

Black history month is such a powerful and exhilarating time for me. This month, I decided to do activities that allowed me to honor the legacy of my people while simultaneously trying something new. 

To kick off the month I attended an art class inspired by Alma Thomas. The art class was hosted by The Art Club East Village which is owned by passionate women artists. I first fell in love with Alma Thomas while at the Brooklyn Museum. She creates bright, bold and colorful artwork, some of which are inspired by florals. What I also admired about Alma Thomas was that she was an educator that started her art career later in life. She was the first black woman to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum. Her abstract art is striking and many years ago before I knew a class like this existed, I tried to imitate her art while painting for leisure. This turned out to be a special night for me. I came out of my shell and did something I knew I would really enjoy.

“I’ve never bothered painting the ugly things in life. People struggling, having difficulty. You meet that when you go out, and then you have to come back and see the same thing hanging on the wall. No. I wanted something beautiful that you could sit down and look at. And then, the paintings change you.” – Alma Thomas

In the name of art and culture I needed to visit the Spike Lee exhibit before it ended. Two days after the Alma Thomas art workshop I visited the Brooklyn Museum to get engulfed in all things SPIKE. It was like an inside look into his mind, creativity, and passions. The exhibit explored history, politics, race, culture, and all things Brooklyn. The portrait he has in his art collection of Toni Morrison is captivating. He has one of the last photos of Denise McNair, one of the four little girls who was killed in the church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. He also directed the documentary “4 Little Girls” about the incident which was something new that I learned while at the exhibit. I left on a high motivated to create but also with so much pride. Brooklyn is the birth place to creative geniuses like Spike who is one of my local heroes and creative inspirations. 

Ginger turned 3 years old this month. Being a dog mom is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. It is truly a blessing. I love Ginger and I am so grateful she’s my pup baby. To celebrate her big three birthday, I bought decorations for the house and kept up with the tradition of taking her to Starbucks, she is obsessed with her pup cups. Later that evening Ginger’s twin brother Blaze came over with my mom, and we hosted a Super Bowl party(or shall I say Usherbowl party) for them since it was the same day. 

Can we talk about the Usher half-time show? It was one of my favorites. I saw Usher in concert many years ago during his confessions era, which to me was peak Usher, but I am loving this evolved version of Usher. The half time show and subsequently listening to Confessions for the following two weeks on repeat, brought back so many memories, from high school. I remember I held out on listening to the “Confessions” album until one of my friends urged me to do so one day in school and it became one of the most pivotal and legendary albums during my coming of age era. I remember this was the album we were blasting during my 15th birthday in my bedroom (yes a bunch of friends and I gathered in my bedroom when I wasn’t allowed to go to the skating rink). Usher is a lege-[]nd!

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Confronting My History

This is what happened when I decided to confront my history in one day.

January 18, 2016

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, I had the day off and decided to watch all of the black historical films that I’ve been avoiding since the year 2012.

First, let me explain my avoidance. These films as a black person are just hard to watch. They are completely necessary to watch but hard nonetheless. I take on the emotional burdens of these historical films depicting Slavery or the Civil Rights Movement. My mind does not allow me to separate between this being a movie, made by Hollywood, from the fact that this Hollywood made movie is a depiction of actual events and occurrences that took place in the past, and so I watch these films as if these movies are real and I am emotionally burdened by it all.

In spite of this, I just decided I wanted to be radical and not just watch one of these movies but all of them in one sitting. I wanted to watch D’Jango Unchained, 12-Years A Slave, The Butler, and Selma (if I had time, I would’ve thrown in the Malcom X movie). I dived headfirst. I started with Selma because it was MLK Day. Selma had a few rough scenes that shook me to my core and made me cry. The police ruthless beatings with the batons, the violence, the hatred, the disrespect, it messed with me but I kept going.

Next up, I tried to find 12-Years A Slave. I couldn’t find it on Hulu or Netflix. My friends later told me, God spared my mind because that movie is a hard one. One day I will come back to it.

Then I watched D’Jango which was interesting. I liked it. It showed a black man empowered during slavery even though he was a murderer…hmm. What I hated most about this movie was the dog scene where a runaway slave was torn apart by dogs. This was a practice of slave masters during slavery, it just hurt so bad to watch.

The Butler, was next on my list. I was surprised by how great this movie was. It’s really powerful. The opening scene is a tearjerker. The rape and murder of Cecil Gaines parents illustrate how dehumanized black lives were during this time. Cecil Gaines worked hard and made his way into the White House, but he resented his eldest son who was a part of the struggle. His son was a part of the civil rights movement, the freedom rides, the Black Panther movement, and the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa. These historical references added so much substance to the movie and illustrated just how challenging the times were. Certain parts of this movie hurt to watch. Cecil constantly fought to get paid equally as the other white butlers but was shut down and told he could quit. His work as a domestic although underestimated and looked upon as uncle tom’ ish made a huge contribution to the plight of our race and I thank him for his work and the work of many black domestics of our times just trying to make a living for their families.

January 19, 2016

By the time I watched all three of these movies I was emotionally beat. I tried to go to sleep but I couldn’t. Continue reading “Confronting My History”

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15 Of My Favorite Things In 2015

TV Shows

I’ve discovered a lot of new TV Shows this year since I’ve been taking a TV Writing class, and the key to writing for TV is watching it. So excited about my discoveries because these shows are amazing!

1-Younger (TV Land)

The creators of Sex and The City have done it again with this show Younger. What I love about this show is that it takes place in Brooklyn (and Manhattan), so everything feels familiar, but it’s mocking millennials and everything we stand for, which I think is kind of humorous and pathetic at the same time. The main character Liza, pretends to be 26-years old (even though she’s in her 40’s), just to land a job at a publishing firm after her divorce. Her efforts to conceal her identity is both suspenseful and funny at the same time.

2-Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)

I’ve never laughed so hard after watching a series since Martin and that’s saying a lot. This show created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock chronicles the life of Kimmy Schmidt, a woman that was kidnapped by a man when she was a teenager and was rescued by a swat team after being locked up in a bunker for years. Now, as a 30-something year old, she’s forced to reintegrate into life in New York City. It may seem weird, but it’s laugh-out-loud funny.

3-You’re The Worst (FXX)

I am so happy I discovered this show, You’re The Worst. Another show that makes me laugh so hard I gasp for air. Jimmy and Gretchen are two cynical and borderline terrible people who meet at a wedding and fall for each other. They decide to have a non-conventional, non-mushy relationship but what they find out is when it comes to matters of the heart, they can’t stay evil forever. This show is HILARIOUS.

Books

I actually have been reading a lot this year. Here are a few of the books I’ve read this fall. I am sure you will also enjoy the little treat I have for you under my review of The Alchemist. Continue reading “15 Of My Favorite Things In 2015”