This video is so cool. I meant to post it a while back, but am just now getting around to it. Watching it gave me chills. So cool that they could get such a huge crowd of people all to do this dance. They all had to be there the day before for rehearsals. My favorite part is an areal shot of the crowd splitting down the middle and moving back together.
I also love that Oprah seemingly had no idea. Yeah. Right.
Categories: Culture · Inspiration · On the street
Friday night we walked to a new bar in Long Island City, Dutch Kills. It was probably about a mile from our apt and a bit of a walk, but it was definitely nice out and I was in flat sandals. It was a bar my roommate had heard about and wanted to go to. I was a little apprehensive and from the name of it I was imagining black, skulls and tattoo style roses.
As we were walking up, my other roommate’s sister, who is in town visiting, said, “Are we going to that place with the sign flashing ‘BAR’ outside?” We could only really say, I think so..
I was very pleasantly surprised when we walked in. The door was just a solid, dark metal door and seemed a bit sketchy. Inside, however, it is a long, narrow place with dark wood on the walls and ceiling. The first half of the establishment is table that fit 4-6 and 2. Past that is the area where the bar is located and beyond that is a small area with a couch or 2 and a piano. The floor in this area was painted dark and sprinkled with saw dust. This is where the live jazz band hung out. On the bar was a ton of fresh fruit stacked in bowls. Behind the bar was a huge block of ice that it looks like they cut from to put in drinks, high end liquors, chalk boards listing the drinks of the season (they change as the fruits that are in season do). Guiseppe Gonzalez took our order, diligently made our drinks, paying attention to every detail, lined them on the bar, and explained each, complete with the story of their origins before doling them out. The whole place had a very 1920s feel to me. I would definitely go back.
Categories: Culture · New York · Out on the Town · Wining and Dining
In the ’90s people said “dude” and “like.” In the early ’00s, people said “your mom.” In business presentations people said, “um.” People are now replacing those words with “honestly,” “I mean…” “I feel like,” and “Yeah, no…” or “No, yeah…”
These new words or phrases have really inundated the vocabulary of almost every person I know. I hear them all the time and it’s almost completely unnecessary to attach any of these to the beginning of a sentence. They seem like a very passive way to disagree or even agree to me. They’re a cover up for what a person is really trying to say, but doesn’t want to come out with because they don’t want to appear confrontational. I guess it really just bothers me that people aren’t comfortable saying what they mean and if they’re not comfortable there are 2 things that need to be considered…maybe they shouldn’t be saying it at all, or maybe we have become far too sensitive as a culture.
Categories: Culture
So I have a broken capillary on the right side of my nose. It goes straight out from my nostril. I also have what I think is an age spot that seems to be taking over my forehead – to the point that my roommate asked me if I have a bruise on my forehead. I’m getting a little paranoid that it’s skin cancer or something. While I’m sure it’s not, I might just get it checked out anyway. Anyway, my point is, I’m 26 and I’m old.
That leads me into the topic of the “quarter life crisis.” I would just like to say, I think it’s crap. Someone sent me an article about QLCs and I couldn’t get all the way through it. It’s crap. People blame irresponsibility and a desire to stay young forever on age, when in reality, we are immature.
Look at generations before ours. People were married, living on their own, raising children, working jobs, paying bills all by like 22 or 23. Now at 23 people look at you funny if you’re engaged. They say “you’re too young,” and we buy it. People make excuses for our irresponsibility, so we feel better and the cycle is perpetuated. We continue with our bad behavior, we live with our parents, we travel for a year, we live off of our parents, and all the while, our stupid decisions and mistakes are forgiven because we’re “young.”
30 years ago 26 was not young – at 26 you were expected to be an adult. Albeit, gender rolls differed 30 years ago from what they are now, but I don’t want standards lowered for me.
I basically think the whole “quarter life crisis” thing is crap, and I also don’t think it is a “crisis.” Now, acting out in your mid 20s is tolerated and almost encouraged now which really bothers me. It encourages a lack of responsibility and accountability. People have little to no expectation of what they can accomplish – or have to accomplish for that matter – in their 20s. No wonder people do terrible things in life and think they can get away with them – because we all feel entitled to x and that behavior is tolerated by society as a whole.
Take, for example, all the people who encourage not getting serious and “exploring your options” – in both relationships and work. How is it benefiting anyone to sleep around and not get serious? Isn’t the point of dating to find a mate, if you will? I don’t see how sleeping around does anything but hurt. Sure, it’s gratifying in the moment and it might feel good, but what’s beneficial about it? As far as work, I don’t see how not getting serious about a job can be good. That can set you back and who really wants to be the 30 year old just starting their 1st real job? Or why would you want to start a job that’s not going to lead to the career you want for your life? Why waste your time?
There are so many arguments from so many points, and it can be really interesting. Regardless, I don’t think the way 20 somethings act is the direct result of a crisis, I think it is a title that was kitschy and cute that caught on. Because of that people have made bad behavior acceptable. It makes things interesting. I like to see how people who don’t adhere to this mindset make it in life as opposed to people who do make room for a QLC.
I recently went to the Frick Collection with my roomie, tbf and a friend. It is free on Sundays, so we all went to church and went to the Frick after. I loved it! It was a house a family owned until the 1920s or something and the museum has worked very hard to preserve the sense of the house. Much of the art is of the Fricks’ own collection and all fits together really well. I especially enjoyed observing the furniture, the ser ups of the room, the fireplace log holders, the books, the knobs on the windows, etc.
There were quite a few people there, but that’s to be expected because Sundays are free between 11 and 1. I would definitely go back and look at it all again. I think my favorite piece was a bell they had in a glass case. I don’t know why I loved it so much, it was just so pretty.
I also loved that because the Frick used to be a residence it was small. I don’t have the patience to spend 5 or 6 hours in a museum, so this was perfect as far as time spent. I definitely recommend that if you’re into are you visit the Frick.
