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esskay
Digital storyteller, Photographic narrator, Hogwarts alum. In real life, I write things. I speak fluent sarcasm. I'm unintentionally funny. My favorite thing is food. Guac is life. I'm a fountain of the most random information. I'm pretty, only because it's weird to call oneself beautiful. I'm weird in all the good ways. I live in the greatest city on Earth. I was Sasha before Beyonce was schizophrenic. My life is stranger than fiction. But please, don't take my word for it. My pen is mightier than my sword. Instagram
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Saturday, June 20, 2015 || 1:27 PM
So the Governor's Ball Music Festival happened. Three weeks ago, to be exact. My only defense is that I didn't have time to blog those shenanigans because I was enjoying other shenanigans. Also, I still don't have all of the pictures but it's been three weeks so those will just have to come later.
When I first heard about the Governor's Ball, I thought it was just that. You know, fancy party, important people in formalwear. Then I realized it's like New York's version of Coachella. And it was awesome. I went with a friend that I grew up with (who's actually always been more like a big brother) and his girlfriend and we had a really great time. We had 3-day passes but we were all busy on Saturday so we went on Friday and Sunday. I guess it's a sign of old age creeping up on me because those two days were more than enough. I don't know how people do Coachella. After two days, I was ready to tap out and climb into bed. Nonetheless, I had a really great time and it was an awesome experience.
Day one: Friday
We got there late in the afternoon and it was pretty much a zoo. I'm guessing the first day is always the craziest as there were people as far as the eye could see in every direction. But the food (curated by the good folks over at the infatuation) was definitely on point. After procuring a few corn dogs and some funnel cake and beer, we found a nice spot on the grass to enjoy the show.
     
Highlights:
The people watching was superb. Pictured above is a group of friends carrying a big ass slice of inflatable pizza through the crowd. Where else? Seeing Drake and Florence + the machine perform was also pretty dope.
Day three: Sunday
This time, we got to the island pretty early. The ferry ride over was beautiful. Once we got there, there was lots more to see and do. We hit up Asia Dog for some eats and then took a trip over to the lounge for some drinks before we did a little exploring.
         
Highlights:
It was pretty cool to see Weird Al perform. The hot dogs from Asia dog were well worth the wait. The silent disco was a new and interesting experience. We got to take a bunch of pictures all over the place (that natural sunlight filter is everything). We also got to make a gif, so that was fun.
Overall, I'd say this was one of those really awesome, unforgettable experiences and I'm glad that I got to share it with some dope people. It was also a really great way to kick off the Summer and I'm looking forward to more awesome experiences and making more memories with dope people along the way. Since tomorrow is officially the first day of Summer, I hope you all have a great one!
Labels: entertainment, friends and fam, fun times, good eats, in real life, pop of culture Saturday, May 9, 2015 || 7:23 PM
Last week was the annual Met Gala and I'll be the first to admit that to this day, I really have no idea what that even is. But it's kind of like an episode of Sex and the City; you really only watch for the fashion. And it being one of the most interesting red carpets of the year, I always look forward to seeing all of the crazy/beautiful styles. Usually I don't write about this sort of thing but there was a lot of buzz following this year's Met Gala. I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this so let's just get on into it, shall we?
This is Kim Kardashian
And this is Kim Kardashians 2015 Met Gala dress
Having a strange sense of deja vu? I wouldn't be surprised.
Here's the thing about Kim Kardashian: I really don't like her. Actually, I don't know her but since she has opened up her entire life to the scrutiny of the world, I can say this much: I don't like who I perceive her to be. And I could be wrong and she could just be seriously misunderstood but I highly doubt that's the case. The truth is, while their antics and shenanigans amuse me, I really don't like that family and all of the shallow, negative things they stand for. There are literally two people in that family that I actually do like, and trust me, their last names aren't Kardashian. (If anyone was wondering, it's Kendall and Mason...just, fyi.) But I'm not just a hater for the sake of hating. While I don't personally care for them, I have to respect their hustle. And their style is, eight times out of ten, impeccable. I have no trouble admitting when Kim Kardashian slays a look, which she usually does. And the thing is, she definitely slayed this look. It's just super disappointing that the one time she gets it all the way right on this, the best (in my personal opinion) red carpet of the year, she totally rips off Beyonce's look. This should explain that weird deja vu you were experiencing before....
This is Beyonce's 2012 Met Gala dress
Look familiar?
While the dresses aren't exactly the same, the similarities are just too much too ignore. Now these are actually the work of two different designers (Kim's is Cavalli and Bey's is Givenchy) but we'll get to that in a minute. I think Kim went for her signature cinched waist and shoulder pads look because those things are flattering on her figure. She's very slightly shorter and stouter and (falsely) thicker than Bey so I doubt she could pull off the exact same look. But she knows what works for her and she looked good.
That said, lets go down the list. Barely there naked dress? Check. Long sleeves? Check. Super long train of feathers? Check. Slicked back ponytail? Check. She even mastered the over the shoulder booty tooch. Come on, son. Am I really supposed to believe that this is a coincidence?
Of course I am!
Kim very conveniently came up with an explanation, the "inspiration" for her look.
Because obviously we were all thinking "ugh, I can't believe Kim Kardashian ripped off Cher's look at the first ever Met gala, she's so lame!"
Meanwhile, this also happened...
But you know, that's also just a coincidence. *Kanye shrug*
And of course, Queen Bey in the flesh (almost literally) at this years Met Gala
Now as I mentioned before, I always keep it real. I love Beyonce. Does she always get it right? Not necessarily. Is this look growing on me? Meh. I love the dress in all honesty but I really don't care for this hair with it.
(Disclaimer: that was a lie. Obviously. Beyonce is everything and always gets it right and is always flawless because she woke up like this. Tell the BeyHive please don't come for me. I'm on their side.)
If I'm being totally honest, the real winner in all of this is Rihanna.
She stuck with the theme (China: Through the Looking Glass), wore something that was actually made by a Chinese designer (Guo Pei), made a (literally) big entrance and made sure we wouldn't forget it. Bonus points for wearing this huge ass dress and not having the dress wear her.
Gotta love her....
Also...this happened.
I friggin' LOVE the internet.
Moral of this story: this tweet is truer now than it was a year ago
But you know, I don't got the answers.
Labels: babble and rant, entertainment, pop of culture Wednesday, February 4, 2015 || 10:32 PM
Before: I thought Bruno Mars was relatively handsome and pretty talented. I wasn't a stan. I was barely a fan. I have to be in a certain mood for his music but I do enjoy it. I actually have both of his albums, so there's that.Labels: anomaly, entertainment, pop of culture, stranger than fiction Thursday, August 7, 2014 || 7:32 PM
"Some infinities are bigger than other infinities" -John GreenToday, for the first time in a long time (longer than I'd like to admit), I woke up this morning and I didn't open my laptop and check Facebook. I didn't pick up my phone and scroll through Twitter or Instagram. Good morning texts went unanswered, emails unopened. This morning, I woke up and just read. I read all day, only stopping to make (and by make, I mean toast) two very delicious waffles in the late morning. Yesterday, while wandering through Target buying things I don't need, I picked up The Fault in Our Stars. Admittedly, I'm late and the bandwagon is probably already past capacity but I'll feel free to hop on anyway. I haven't seen the movie because I've been waiting to read the book, telling myself I'd get to it eventually (much like I never got to reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower before I finally just gave in and watched the movie). I am so happy that I decided to wander aimlessly through Target yesterday. I have a lot to say about this book. But first, some background. The first John Green book that I read was An Abundance of Katherines. I picked it up randomly in the library one day because the cover caught my eye and it seemed like an interesting read. I never recognized the author as someone I'd heard of elsewhere, just another name on one of the many books I picked up at the library. Years later, while browsing YouTube, I stumbled onto the Vlog Brothers and watching them, I felt a certain familiarity. Maybe it's because I am the biggest nerd I know but I'm also infinitely cooler than most. I subscribed to them, never making the connection between one half of the Vlog Brothers and that really good book I'd read some time ago. The first time I'd heard about The Fault in Our Stars, it was from one of my favorite YouTubers. She'd also mentioned Looking for Alaska and I'd made a note of the two titles, telling myself I would read them. Eventually. I still hadn't made the connection. And even after all of the excitement over the movie, I still didn't get it. Not until yesterday when I picked up that book, turned it around and saw the author's picture on the back cover, saw the list of his other titles. That's when I knew, I had to buy it. Also, Target is a trap so I probably would've bought it anyway. I have a lot of feels about this book. All of the typical "this book is so amazing" feels are obviously present but it's more than that. Being someone with an illness that is incurable but not terminal, I can understand the characters better than I'd like. The pity that they hate, the struggle of having a shit nurse in the ER, feeling like a burden to your family. At one time or another, I have felt all of those things. Of course, it's not as severe as Cancer. I would never compare my pain to those who are "fighting the battle" but calling a 10 a 9? I've been there. I think, more than identifying with the characters to an extent, the reason that I enjoyed this book so much is because it took me back to a previous version of myself. The version who wasn't always glued to some electronic device, who could spend days unplugged, with her nose buried in a book. The version of myself who laid out on the living room floor all day with nothing but a bottle of water and read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in it's entirety. It was nice to go back to that place today. To sink into myself and go to a place where the characters jump off of the page and into your life was bliss. I laughed with them. I cried with them. And that's the kind of writing I've been missing since Mr. Potter defeated the Dark Lord. I've missed days like this. And I've missed books like this. So I must thank John Green, the man whose dots I couldn't connect until now. I look forward to reading more of his work. I look forward to more days like this. Labels: anomaly, entertainment, in real life, personals, pop of culture Saturday, April 5, 2014 || 6:54 PM
I feel like I encounter the subject of misogynistic douchebags way too often. The most recent encounter can be found here. But honestly, I'm tired. Like, really freaking tired. So I'm just gonna leave this here. Because it's everything. Do with it what you will.In case you're wondering, this is one half of my favorite duo, Crissle and Kid Fury from The Read. This is a snippet from an episode of their podcast, titled "Say No To Fuck Boys". The rest of the rant can be found here or on iTunes. Labels: babble and rant, entertainment, pop of culture Friday, March 21, 2014 || 7:36 PM
So...Kimye is on the cover of Vogue.
It ain't Ralph tho...
I figured I'd just put it out there fast, like ripping off a band-aid. Now, I obviously have to say something else. So here goes....
They look beautiful, I mean, this is Vogue but I'm actually a little disappointed. I've been against this from the very beginning and I'll tell you why. I used to like Kanye West. He was actually someone whose music I genuinely enjoyed. And I used to like Kim Kardashian. I find her family way more interesting than I find her but she is the reason for it all and I never actually disliked her. However Kanye and Kim together, I cannot stand. Kanye West has become a ranting, self-important jackass, while Kim has become a raging bitch. It's weird how this transformation happened right before our eyes and yet I'm still confused about it. Kanye West is the man who gave us College Dropout, an album with 21 tracks on it and I could never skip one because each one had something so REAL to say. Each one is so relevant and relatable TO THIS DAY! How do you go from that to ranting about leather jogging pants? As for Kim, the entire world saw her suck Ray J's dick (which is a fail in so very many ways, in and of itself) and now she feels like she's better than the world. I guess my biggest problem with this couple is the fact that I wish they would humble themselves because you can be the best at whatever it is that you do but this attitude that you're better than people and the world owes you something doesn't make you any more likable.
In my eyes, Vogue Magazine has always upheld a standard. And Anna Wintour putting Kimye on the cover makes me feel like Vogue has laid their standards down by the riverside. In my eyes, Kim never deserved to be on the cover of Vogue. A writer for one of my favorite websites actually said it best:
"It may be interesting to talk about Kim Kardashian (as a cultural phenomenon). It may be interesting to look at Kim Kardashian. Kim Kardashian, however, is not an interesting person in and of herself. She has no discernible talent or skill and never says anything worth reporting or repeating. Moreover, she is, let's face it, a woman who first became famous thanks to a purposefully 'leaked' sex tape. That is to say, she will do anything for fame, except be worthy of it. She represents a crass and cynical mode of consumerism that is only one inch divided from pornography, Paris Hilton, and Bratz Dolls. The fact that her fiancé has to argue for her, has to convince people she belongs on the cover just underscores how much she doesn't."
So really, I guess this is why I'm disappointed. The fact that Kim couldn't get on the cover without Kanye makes me sad. It kind of underscores the fact that she has no personality, nothing interesting to say and not one original thought in her brain. But on top of that, she got her dream off the strength of being a trophy to a man more powerful than she is. And to add insult to the injury of this blasphemy on the cover of the fashion bible, there was a hashtag under the photo. A hashtag. On the cover of Vogue. What??
Anywhoo, Anna Wintour released a statement about the cover. The fact that she released a statement speaks volumes more than the statement itself but I'm not gonna go there.
I guess she was expecting some backlash about this whole thing and felt the need to defend herself. Which is fine but still, no. Because standards. On another note, I do feel like there is some shade in this statement, as well as the fact that they're on the April cover but that's neither here nor there. Congrats to them on this not so well deserved honor. Whatever.
Labels: babble and rant, entertainment, pop of culture Monday, February 3, 2014 || 12:05 AM
So yesterday was Superbowl Sunday. The biggest day in sports or whatever. There was really nothing super about it. The game sucked. The commercials sucked. It was ass, you guys. If you watched it, you know what I'm talking about. It sucked so bad, I won't even waste my time (or yours) pretending that there was anything interesting enough to write about. But I will say this: the fact that Eli Manning has two rings and Peyton only has one makes a lot more sense to me now. I'd explain myself further but I'm so looking forward to the Giants hate that will surely drift my way. Still...AFC champ is better than nothing.Here's what I will write about though...Twitter. Well, social media in general but especially Twitter. You guys know I love Twitter. It's where things like this happen: 
"Google's homepage tomorrow..."
However, it really irks my nerves that Twitter can't ever let women be great. Slut-shaming and name-calling aside, it's annoying that a woman can't watch sports without the "y'all pretending to like sports" douchebag in their mentions. I happen to be a woman who enjoys sports. Basketball and football for the most part. I tried getting into baseball but it bored me to tears. I don't pretend to know everything about basketball and football, but those are the sports I like to watch because when I was growing up, those are the sports my dad would watch. He would sit in his chair with a cold beverage and every once in a while, I'd watch with him. Didn't know what was going on, didn't care much either, but I'd still ask questions just because. And you wanna know something crazy? If you ask enough questions, you eventually retain some knowledge of the subject. As I got older, I'd watch with my brothers and listen to their commentary. I'd play video games with them, NBA live, Madden, and the like. The men in my life are the reason I know anything about sports, the reason I like the teams that I do. Between them and Google, I'd say I have a pretty good grasp of what goes on in a football and basketball game. Like I said, I don't pretend to know everything but I know enough to enjoy them. I'm not ashamed to ask a question when I don't understand something. I'm not that guy. So the fact that I can't watch a game without some fucktard commenting about how I should stop pretending I know what's going on and get back in the kitchen is really fucking annoying. If you are one such asshole, in the words of Kid Fury, I want you to sit on a dick and twirl, twirl, twirl, you chauvinistic pig.
Labels: babble and rant, entertainment, pop of culture Thursday, November 21, 2013 || 10:12 AM
****SPOILER ALERT****
If you haven't seen THOR: The Dark World, Iron Man 3 or season 2 of The Legend of Korra and are remotely interested in watching them your yourself, please DON'T READ ANY FURTHER!!
Instead, click here for unicorns and rainbows.
So...remember when this happened...?
Yeahh it's happened again. Ever since the Avengers, I've waited to see how each Avenger's separate story would evolve. I still don't know how to feel about Iron Man's story. They completely humanized him. I did appreciate his PTSD after New York as well as the storyline with the little kid. Also I think it's cool that he totally validated himself as a superhero when his suit died and he walked up into the enemy's house like a boss...
BUT he destroyed his suits and got rid of the chest piece so now I'm dying to know how that'll work in the second Avengers. I guess we'll see.
Thor on the other hand, left us nicely set up for the next movie. What with Loki on the throne and Odin MIA. And that guy who I feel like I should know who he is but I don't, stealing the whatchamacallit that looks like the tesseract. Yes, Marvel, you've done it again. However, the longer I sat in the theater, the more I felt like I've seen it all somewhere before. Not all of it exactly as it was but COME ON SON!
Convergence happens every 5,000 years. The nine realms align and all the worlds are connected.
Once Convergence happens, Malekith plans to unleash the aether into the nine realms, plunging the worlds into darkness and chaos.
...sounds familiar.
Every 10,000 years, Harmonic Convergence happens and the spirit of dark and light must do battle for the world.
When Harmonic Convergence happens, Unalaq fuses with Vatu and uses his dark spirit to plunge the world into 10,000 years of darkness and chaos.
Coincidence? Who knows. But I mean, they're even called the same thing so...*shrug*
In other news, I was very happy with the second season of the Legend of Korra. Not happy with all of it but happy nonetheless. The first half was a total waste in my opinion. The season didn't really start until the episode where we see how Juan became the first Avatar and learn all about Rava and all that good stuff. But I'm happy because Korra has finally done something worthy of the title "legend" and it was freaking amazing. I'm curious to see where the writers are going from here, especially now that she's disconnected from her past lives. We shall see.
Labels: entertainment, pop of culture Tuesday, March 19, 2013 || 4:41 PM
"I remember when this show was about a community college" -Abed NadirGuys, I'm a sad panda. I was so psyched for October 19th and the new season of Community but it pains me to say I'm mildly disappointed in what I've seen so far. I'll admit, Abed TV was a cool idea and it was so them to air the Halloween episode on Valentine's day but the forced puns are killing me. I feel like this show is becoming a parody of itself. Maybe the past seasons have set the bar too high. Admittedly, everything they've tried to do this season is pretty cool in theory. It's like seeing the ghost of seasons past. But their execution is a little bleh. As I've said before, I'm not the final word in all things Community, I could be wrong but this is just my opinion. What do you guys think? Six seasons and a movie or should they quit while they're still ahead? I'm still holding out hope.  Labels: entertainment, pop of culture Monday, March 4, 2013 || 5:43 PM
**********SPOILER**********
If you haven't yet seen the series finale of Gossip Girl and plan to watch it someday, maybe, possibly...DON'T read any further.
As you guys may or may not know, I was a huge Gossip Girl fan. I read the books when I was younger and they were ok but the story it turned into was just amazing. I was hooked from day one. I'm kinda sad that it's over but being a writer, I'm painfully aware that every story has to end sooner or later. Before the finale, during that behind the scenes pre-show that they did, the producers said that they always wanted the show to operate like a magazine. You could go to a stand, pick one up and find out all the latest trends in fashion and music and restaurants or you could just watch Gossip Girl and get all of that. And they definitely succeeded with that, at least for me. I've been to a few restaurants featured on the show and there are still more than a few on my list. There was always some fashion inspiration in any shot of Blair or Serena. And the music was awesome (and totally the reason I fell in love with Florence + the machine). The other day, I was looking for something new to listen to on Spotify and coming up blank so I went to the network's website to see if there was still music from the show and I was in luck. I listened to all the music from that final episode and even found my new favorite song. It's called Body of Work by The Mynabirds, featured during the reveal of GG.
I swear, even though it's gone, Gossip Girl is the gift that keeps on giving.
Labels: entertainment, pop of culture Thursday, February 7, 2013 || 11:42 PM
Guys, it's the other most wonderful time of the year. I'm talking about October 19th, folks. You're probably thinking "whoa! She's talking crazy! It's clearly the 7th of February" but WRONG sir! It's definitely October 19th. Confused? You should be.So now that October 19th has finally arrived, to get into the spirit of things, here's the top 10 greatest episodes of Community. Because you know, that's how we dean! 10. Physical Education For the first time, we get to see "cool guy" Jeff Winger really lose his shit in a totally awesome way. Who else can start a game of pool in booty shorts, finish it totally naked, win and still be completely badass? Also, we learn that Abed has self-esteem "falling out of his butt." He might just be the greatest vampire who ever lived. 
Edward Cullen who??
Remember the blanket fort that put all our fondest childhood blanket fort memories to shame? Remember the return of the blanket fort that started the war between Blanketsburg and Pillowtown? Those men fought bravely, friendships were lost, chaos ensued, the campus was divided in a standoff between pillows and blankets. In essence, it was probably one of the stupidest things ever, not to mention a huge waste of time. But the architecture, God, the architecture was flawless!  8. Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas Admittedly, this one was a bit sad. But it was so heartwarming how they all came together in the end, sang that nice Christmas song and got rid of the evil douchebag wizard. Plus, how awesome was the Christmas pterodactyl? Pretty awesome, eh? 
*sings* Troy and Abed in stop motion!
7. Paradigms of Human Memory
This one is mostly a whole lot of bickering after we discover that Annie's Boobs is a cute and cuddly klepto. But we get to take a walk down memory lane with the gang, including, but not limited to a montage of Dean Pelton's greatest costume moments. Then Abed saves the group by taking this huge argument and shoving it up it's own ass and Jeff gives his most epic motivational speech ever.
Dean-a-ling!
6. First Chang Dynasty
Remember when Chang went mad with power, kidnapped the dean and expelled the study group? It was like Chow and Chang merged into one awesome person for a moment in time. I was half expecting him to do a line of coke but I feel like that might've been too good to be true. 5. Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples Abed was God and Pierce was a not-so-juvenile delinquent. But more importantly, Abed was God! I think I've said enough. 
4. Epidemiology
Dean Pelton's sus taco meat for the Halloween party turns everyone into zombies and the study group has to figure out a way to survive, to the soundtrack of the dean's voice reminders, no less. It's a nightmare come true. However Troy proves to be one badass nerd.
 3. Digital Estate Planning How cool would it be if everyone could play a video game to come into their inheritance? It's just an idea.... 
He was even creepier in the video game...
2. Introduction to Statistics
So we're always in for a treat when it's Halloween at Greendale (see #4) but this is my personal favorite. Pierce tripping balls and Abed as Batman? Freaking comedic genius! But Batman literally swooping in and saving the day was just the icing on top of the tombstone cookie. It was everything.
1. For a Few Paintballs More
Last but certainly not least, it's the big one. The epic conclusion to A Fistful of Paintballs, this episode had everything. Conspiracy theories, treachery, mystery assassins, alliances, paintball strategies of epic proportions, even a cameo of Abed as Han Solo. And seriously, Badass Annie gave me a total lady boner.
  So there you have it, the top 10 episodes of Community. You guys are definitely welcome to dispute me though, as well as let me know what some of your favorites are. I definitely don't have the last word in the what's what of Community. If you liked this list, cool. Cool, cool, cool. If you didn't, you'll be iight. And to my fellow Human Beings, happy October 19th! Labels: entertainment, pop of culture, stranger than fiction Wednesday, February 6, 2013 || 9:41 PM
Folks, I got something on my mind and I'm gonna try really hard to say it without ranting because y'all know I'm good for it.So I'm a Beyonce fan. Back in the day, I was a Destiny's Child fan (until I realized that being one was pretty much being the other. No shade, tho) and I've always loved her as an artist. Let me make myself clear. I am not a Beyonce stan but I will stan for her occasionally. This happens to be one of those times. So I was surfing the interwebs earlier and decided to go watch her Superbowl halftime performance on YouTube. If you haven't seen it yet, shame on you! Also, today's your lucky day :)  Labels: babble and rant, entertainment, pop of culture |