May the Source Be With You
Your July Edition of what to watch and listen to includes a thought-provoking indigenous podcast, along with Loki and Shadow and Bone I m sitting in a profoundly air-conditioned hotel room overlooking Pilot Butte, a few hours before the fireworks begin on the Fourth of July. Living next door to the starting location of the Freedom Ride means that every Independence Day my home becomes a breeding ground for drunken half-naked revelers looking for somewhere to pee, puke or toss their trash. So usually, I rent a hotel room somewhere far away from Pioneer Park and watch the Butte burn from a cheap balcony with expensive whiskey in my hand. This year is no different, so without further ado, here s the stuff I m loving in July and I hope you will, too.
May s edition of podcasts and shows So, for the last few months I ve been putting together a book of poetry that compiles some of the pieces I ve written over the last 10 years. It s called The Sad Bastard Chronicles and, as you might have guessed, the book is filled with some pretty heavy memories that have, as the kids used to say, put me deep in my feels. So, I ve been combatting that by watching and listening to some lighter stuff this month. No true crime, no politics and no media that reminds me of the shimmering void of nothingness that is my soul. For anyone else feeling like they re feeling just a little too much right now, here are a few recommendations.
April Edition So those were definitely some Oscars, huh? There were definitely a few very good choices (Daniel Kaluuya winning Best Supporting Actor and Youn Yuh-jung winning Best Supporting Actress were chef s kiss), but if that wasn t the most strangely anticlimactic ending of the Academy Awards of all time, then I don t know what could top it. Maybe Ricky Gervais baby birding an Oscar statue to himself? Don t get me wrong, Anthony Hopkins was astounding in The Father and he might have given the best performance of the year, but Chadwick Boseman s work in Ma Rainey was truly revelatory. We all know Sir Hopkins is the GOAT, but Boseman proved in his final screen performance that he wasn t just a movie star, but an actor that could disappear into a role without any ego. The 2021 Oscars would have been the perfect chance to award him, not just for his amazing performance, but for a legacy cut off way too soon. A huge missed opportunity.
February Edition How is February shaping up for everyone? Have things slowly started feeling like they re getting back to normal? I still mostly work from home, mostly just talk to my cat on a lot of days and still watch a lot of movies and listen to way too many podcasts. Wow. That should be my dating profile. Anyway, I hope life is feeling brighter for most of you and the days are filled with sunshine, socially distanced hugs and laughter. With that said, here are a few things that have been making me feel a little more connected this month.