Movie premieres are a sight to see. Earlier this week we were invited to the premiere of Machete starring Danny Trejo, Robert De Niro, and Jessica Alba. Having only been to one movie premiere before, Tiago and I were juiced for the occasion. Arriving around 5pm we were greeted by a fleet of lowriders, strategically placed to escort each cast member into the theatre once the premiere began. While the first hour was pretty uneventful, things picked up once Jessica Alba arrived.
I feel like for many of us New York is that elusive destination that we all must get to. It’s like the last level of Mario or something. New York’s like Bowser’s castle, hella ominous at first, but hella fun once you get the hang of it. A.K., Jarron and Amanda are out there now, The rest of us will be there soon. In the meantime we can marinate on these overhead shots. A truly majestic city. New York by 2012.
Success is pretty dope. It’s like you work and work and work and work, for what? For goals, I suppose. But more so it’s about the journey. I think our personal pursuits are in a lot of ways like climbing a mountain. Moments like Reggie’s here, are like the times when you’re climbing a mountain and stumble upon a clearing and happen upon a view. You get a chance to take a deep breath, and see how far you’ve come. They’ll be special moments along the way that’ll make it all worth it. But you’ve gotta climb the mountain to see the pretty views.
When we look back on our era in American history, I think most of us will say we lived in a pretty strange time. I’m not one to judge, and I know these drugs help some people, but damn. With all the luxuries we enjoy, and the advances of modern society, people still just don’t seem happier. Anxiety, depression, panic attacks. Prescriptions by the tens of millions. If I can try to drastically oversimplify the problem, the data suggests to me that folks are left feeling unfulfilled by the society we’re living in.
At the end of the day, the pharmaceutical industry is probably as grimy as any other industry, and they have a product to sell like everyone else. Convince people they need something external to solve an internal problem, and you turn a profit. Just take a look at the numbers above. When medicine becomes a for-profit business, you run into some pretty interesting statistics. Thanks to the folks at Good, as always, for making a complex issue seem relatively simple. Informative as usual.
I’m not gonna lie, when I heard the title Ghetto Physics I was skeptical. The title and the aesthetic had me questioning if I really wanted to spend a couple hours taking this movie in. However, upon our invitation to the premiere this past week, I was astonished by the tact and poignancy of this film. Highlighting the role of politics in our daily lives, Ghetto Physics uses the relational dynamics of the pimp and the ho to create a framework to analyze some of the more manipulative power dynamics in American culture. From healthcare, to religion, to marriage, the film covers a variety of topics that provoked many conversations after the final credits. Ghetto Physics is one of those movies that makes you think differently after you watch it. And that’s powerful. In addition to L.A., Ghetto Physics will be premiering in select cities across the nation, including Oakland. So stay tuned.
It’s crazy. The power of the human spirit is really boundless. Tiago has this magnet chilling on our fridge that reads, “Each of us have a fire in our hearts for something. Find it, and keep it lit.” I couldn’t agree more. Whether you’re trying to get through some shit, or are determined to do something, you can do it. It’s simply a matter of your desire for it.
If my words were not enough, let me introduce you to Richard Sowa. His lifestyle’s a tad bit different from ours. I’m not sure if he checks the bowties, or if he’ll hear about it in the near future. But truth be told, we’re talking about him. And that means something. Collecting bottles around Cancun, Mexico, Richard collected thousands of bottles by hand, taking over 3 years to build his private island. Totally self sufficient, Richard lives on the island, along with his cat and dog. I think it’s safe to say that Richard Sowa is winning. Perhaps Dubai should reconsider the meaning of a man made island.
About 3.5 million US residents (about 1% of the population), including 1.35 million children, have been homeless for a significant period of time. Over 37,000 homeless individuals (including 16,000 children) stay in shelters in New York every night. This information was gathered by the Urban Institute, but actual numbers might be higher.
Fox Business estimates there are 18.9 million vacant homes across the country. 3.5 million people without homes; 18.9 million homes without residents.
Challenging the notion that humans are motivated by monetary rewards, Dan Pink presents a variety of studies that have tested this question to find out what truly motivates humans. I know, 10 minutes is kind of crucial, but this is one of those, “and after that I never thought the same again” videos. A paradigm shift according to Ruud. Even better the entire discussion is illustrated, which is dope on so many levels, and it makes it a lot easier for the visual folks.
This is what we do for it for. For the folks (like myself) that never knew this existed until today. And for those who needed that little bit of inspiration for their Wednesday night. A lesson in dedication perhaps. Because you’ve gotta want it. Mallakhamb, practiced throughout 29 states in India. And I thought strippers were nice with it.
I have had many good times in Harlem. I think it’s the vibe you get when you hit the corner of 125th street and guys are yelling outside the barbershop, the smell of soulfood, and sounds like those of the legendary Apollo. It’s a place full of stories and individuals. This neighborhood of New York City cannot be replicated anywhere in the world. You can get a small taste of Harlem just by attending a street fair and walking one block. This specific day was the Harlem book fair, people were simply enjoying themselves in the best way they knew how.
Amanda said, “science never ceases to amaze me.” And quite frankly I couldn’t agree more. Shit’s just hella fascinating. I think in our busy busy lives we (or at least I) don’t give science/the world/people the amount of time they deserve to really be understood. Recently, oceanic reef fossils were discovered in Australia, “proving” that life existed 650 million years ago. 650 million years ago! Think about that! I always say we gotta give love to the first humans who were out here, because they were fighting sabertooth tigers, giant insects and all kinds of crazy shit to bring us to where we are now. While today, all we have to fight is the media… But in all seriousness, this is a tremendous discovery that you can learn more about below.
I’ve been trying to put into words this experience for a while. We threw up a few posts about it a while back, but it was kinda hard to do it justice. Luckily Nike’s done the hard work for us. So here it is. Acting weird at 1:04 and the settled profile at 1:57. wineandbowties.com/outhere.
Once we’ve gotten our priorities straight regarding reducing the massive amount of oil we use in transportation – largely because we’ve built our communities into places where most people need to drive rather than walk, bike or take public transit -there’s another conceptually big issue that needs to tackled: What to do with plastic?
Now, plastics alone don’t amount to much out of a single barrel of oil compared to liquid fuels, but their utter ubiquity in our lives combined with the resultant massive waste management and water pollution issues means we’ve got some serious contemplation to do.
