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pilesofjamesfrancos · 3 months

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Politricks 3/8/24

As Denis Villeneuve's Dune Part 2 finally enters theaters and my entire twitter circle gets to rave about how "we are so back", it seems that the dark hollowness of early 2024 has finally begun to diminish. Christian Bale has opened his own sound of music-esque foster mansion, France became the first country to constitutionally declare the right of abortion, and both MGMT and Everything Everything have dropped two fantastic indie pop records.

Yet, engaging with these cutesy headlines from r/goodnews is like playing russian roulette. You get your critical dosage of serotonin at every victory, but you're still playing with a loaded gun. It took 30,000 reported Palestinian deaths until the U.S. Air Force thought it'd be time to drop a single care package in Gaza, which contained two packets of blueberry fun dip and a silver cap gun. Every online presidential poll shows Trump back on top, and unless dark brandon decides to use his wizardry for good, we will soon live under the guise of the Donald.

I try my best not to sell myself as some political pundit or reactionary. I have a lot to learn and need to finish at least 3 more essays before coming out to my parents as a socialist. It's not my place to be a shepherd for people who I view as straying off course when I am off the fucking map entirely. Today I ate a pretzel bread roll and cut up smoked Gouda from Meijer as I watched Christopher Hitchens on Charlie Rose. My dad walked into my room and asked if I needed any money for dinner; he left $20 on the kitchen counter and went back to his real estate office with his own parking spot and secretary. My privilege is observable, measurable even, and I let it wash over me as I then use the $20 to buy weed and soda from a crumbling gas station in southern Chicago Heights, where my car is always the best looking, and the employees don't ask for your ID.

Noam Chomsky may be the father of modern linguistics, but Chomsky never considered the raw emotional attachment between myself and the Spanish-speaking cashier during our weekly interactions.

"Ay, hello! que deseas, que deseas?"

"Hey, lemme get a pack of black and mild sweets."

"Huh? que dijiste?"

"Black and Mild sweets"

"Ah! Black and Mild!"

"No no, the sweets, these ones right here! Not black, not the black ones"

"lo siento, aqui. Five fifty five"

"Here's six, keep the change."

He wears an American trucking cap and massages his stringing beard that hangs underneath his chin. I can see the sweat accumulating off his black tank top, and he almost always smells like shit. His name might be Mateo or Adrian or Sebastian, and he probably drives a beat-up Chevy pickup truck. I could see myself living this kind of life.

Not to say that this particular person is uneducated or ignorant, but there must be some freedom in the unimportance of your life as a gas station clerk. You don't get to even pretend that you have a real job, like the UChicago fucks who do "research" at nonprofits and vigorously apply for positions at the World Economic Forum. Instead, you sell lottery tickets to mid-life crisis parents, and your biggest concern is kids blocking the entrance with bicycles. You smoke and drink during work cause who cares? It's 2 AM and you're behind the counter of a decrepit Exxon Mobil. These guys are usually religious but I don't know what that brings us to.

After purchasing, I head back to my car and drive home. The sun draws down tangerine streaks, and the low hum of my car's stereo brings me to peace for a moment. Clumps of gravel and debris do nothing against my rugged winter tires and I cruise into the driveway, the sky almost completely dark now.

My front porch is great, I overlook large, skinny elm trees and a winding road that cars like to drive fast on. I watch tobacco smoke fly in the air and circle me, then I breathe in the wet, early spring air, at which point is usually when my night comes to an end, and I walk to my room and put on a movie to fall asleep to.

Now, if we can bring ourselves back to the main point, why would you ever take political, cultural, economic, or philosophical advice from this kind of person? Why must I mention the 30,0000 Palestinian deaths since October 7th in this essay? Why should I have a stake in the marketplace of ideas, and more importantly, why should that reactionary input sprout any meaning for you?

In terms of why I think the way I do, and why I crawl into ideologies, there are two truths.

I need to raise my own self-esteem

2. This is post-secularist thought which can only be natural.

This is who I am now, a growing person making sense of their affluent world and being compelled to comment on it. The "guy who talks about war crimes at party" according to Tim Dillon. But if we categorize all opportunist writers like me into such a box of high-ego, preachy douchebags, if everyone criticized all writers the way I criticize myself, then there would be no point in writing and I'm trapped. I have no mouth and must scream, I have no dick and must cum. And so, I stay here in this persona.

A girl I went to high school with tells me she is scared of the future. I tell her to start smoking weed and invest in Chinese travel companies. She then leaves and I think about what I told her, and how annoying I am, and how I haven't really grown up, and how the only people I call my friends live thousands of miles away. I decide to cook noodles and play Ella Fitzgerald.

#rambles #stream of consciousness

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thelowkeygeek · 4 months

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youtube

Check out the latest LOWKEY GEEK #youtube video! Is Dune 2 As Good As People Are Saying? | The Morning After by LOWKEY GEEK! Good morning and Happy Friday! I had the pleasure of watching Netflix's new Spaceman movie starring Adam Sandler and Carey Mulligan then shortly after that, went to a whole other galaxy and watched Dune Part Two with Timothée Chalamet & Zendaya! I'll be talking about these two movies this morning plus some of the recent headlines! Great ways to show support to the channel is by donating during the live stream in the following ways: TTS is ON at $5+ Super Chats & Donations - Get your messages read out loud! Donations: https://ift.tt/ebL1I58 Become a friend of the channel for just $1 a month. Join a membership TODAY! 🔔 Consider Subscribing: https://ift.tt/n5rLtxe 🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://ift.tt/9dFSTaw 🎧 Listen on iTunes: https://ift.tt/U6CrKto ► The gear used on this channel: https://amzn.to/3L79c1Y ► Sign up for Surfshark VPN and get 85% OFF + 2 Free Months: https://bit.ly/3ZLU5Cn ► Get 3 months of UNLIMITED DATA for only $15/mo with Mint Mobile: https://ift.tt/PHR4U2C ► Fever events and experiences: https://ift.tt/3hAyjkQ ► 80s Tees: 30% OFF with code WINTER30: https://ift.tt/XK2GvH4 ► Entertainment Earth - 10% OFF In-Stock Items Plus Free Shipping On Orders $40+: https://ee.toys/LOWKEYG Other Great Content ---------------------------------- ► Movie Review & Out of Theater Reactions: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YH2jORSfkqtudOJX2KFFJkK ► The Trailer Park: Trailer Reactions: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YETuoR2B2Y1ulc_TfFKkyGZ ► The MovieTime Podcast: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YFrFx7-xandmlAgLWoUwIhc ► The Talking Talk Podcast: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YG3kXuSkEzu2PGgnjvU70Kc ► Special Events & Travel: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YGUo9x5FHnbideFkmHV_lAM ► Japan WOW Now: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YFX48uPJl5FwipHSTGis9Qy ► LOWKEY GEEK Gaming: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YHHmgt_YpmNFEbOi0d52hic ► One-Shots: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsH8u5sKE6YGDDThqnXOa9FOLYtvAjFNK Follow Us --------------------------------------------------- Twitter: https://twitter.com/the_lowkey_geek Instagram: https://ift.tt/4IL5zbh Threads: https://ift.tt/6pknqxY Follow the Team on Letterboxd ----------------- Blake Wolf: https://ift.tt/6vWLum8 Rene A. Zelada: https://ift.tt/FHKpwoR Chapters ----------------- #Dune2 #Spaceman #themorningafter #podcast #movienews #morning #morningnews #morningafter #headlines #entertainmentnews #moviereviews #moviereview #dune #duneparttwo #dunepart2 #spacemanmovie via YouTube https://youtu.be/nQ0uTM_G6E0

#YouTube #Pop-Culture #Movies #Film #Podcast

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prqltothesql · 11 months

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Summer Movie Gauntlet

Me and my best friend and platonic life partner Drew, he's a big movie buff and so we always go see movies together. We splurged and got the Cinemark Movie Club for the summer because there was a new movie we wanted to see every two weeks. And we just wrapped up what I believe is our last hurrah yesterday, so I wanted to go through them.

FAST X

This was awesome, although I didn't like Jason Momoa's performance, way too over the top and cartoonish. The F&F series is over-the-top and requires you to suspend your disbelief, but this was too much. Regardless, I had a blast, the movie was super fun, the cast was great. We had seen F9 in theaters and marathoned all the F&F movies before that after I'd literally only seen 1 and 2. So seeing this was very cool.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

I think we were both prepared for this to be great, not as great as it actually was. The first 20 minutes of the movie with Gwen was movie of the year, and then the title card played and it only got better. Hilarious, heart-wrenching, mind-bending, great twist, great cliffhanger, animation was outrageous, score was incredible. One of the top films of the year by far.

The Flash

I really enjoyed this movie. I had a giant smile on my face the entire time and just absolutely loved it. I got past the CGI and some of the goofy comedy like Flash putting babies in the microwave. This is the DCEU's portrayal of the Flash, which probably is different than the upcoming DCU and different than the Arrowverse. Michael Keaton was alright, Sasha Calle was amazing as Supergirl. I had a blast watching it, despite it doing awful at the box office.

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One

Another one that I'd never seen, he made me watch all the MI movies (I'd never seen any of them), and we did Ghost Protocol, Rogue Nation and Fallout in one sitting and each one was better than the one before it. This one was fabulous and I keep thinking about it, even now 2 weeks later. Amazing action, great cast, fun plot, great stunts, great cinematography, and a nice bookend to this chapter setting up the next movie. It's in a bad spot release date wise, more people should be talking about it because it was fantastic.

Oppenheimer

I'm 24 hours removed and I'm still thinking about it. What Christopher Nolan was able to do with no action scenes, practical special effects. Doing a biopic like it was Tenet or Inception and it totally worked. Ensemble cast, great actor after great actor, all of them seemed to be in competition with each other to try and steal the movie. Great twists and turns again for a movie with no action. Trinity test scene was awesome. Last third of the movie was incredibly gripping despite all of the exciting stuff being over.

Barbie

I wanna see this one again cause I don't feel like I fully appreciated it, although I had an absolute blast. Absolutely a fever dream of a movie, everyone committed 1000% to the bit. Super fun, I laughed my ass off at so many scenes. And someone else said it best, this movie really tackles what it means to be a female in the world today, something I cannot appreciate or experience. And it does it in a way that doesn't put down men, which would have muddied the message. And at the same time, it has a message for men too that isn't derogatory. And at the same time as all of that, it has great commentary on the human condition and what it means to be alive. Totally not the movie anyone expected, but an amazing spectacle and one that will stand the test of time.

Sadly, our movie adventures are over until the double whammy of Dune Part Two and The Marvels in November, although if this strike continues, both have been talked about being pushed back. Regardless, this was a string of 9 weeks and 6 movies that were quite incredible and I'm grateful to have done this and done it with my best friend.

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freddyfreebat · 4 years

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Get to know Jack Dylan Grazer, ‘IT’ kid and 17-year-old star of HBO's ‘We Are Who We Are’

Patrick Ryan for USA TODAY | published 12:59 EDT 15 September 2020

Back in 2017, when he was just 14, Jack Dylan Grazer saw coming-of-age gay romance Call Me By Your Name with his mom.

“I was in love with that movie,” Grazer says. “I walked out of the theater and told my mom I wanted to work with that director (Luca Guadagnino). And my mom said, ‘Maybe one day.’ ”

Fast forward three years, and the young actor is co-starring in Guadagnino's vibrant, provocative new HBO series We Are Who We Are (Mondays, 10 EDT/PDT). The eight-episode series is a coming of age tale about two teens: Fraser (Grazer), a wild yet introspective kid who moves from New York to an American military base in Italy with his two moms (Chloe Sevigny and Alice Braga), and Caitlin (Jordan Kristine Seamón), a fellow Army brat he befriends.

Through many of its adult and teenage characters, We Are Who We Are thoughtfully explores topics such as masculinity, queerness, gender identity and sexuality, as Fraser develops a crush on a strapping Marine in his 20s (Tom Mercier). Grazer, 17, hopes the show will spark important conversations among Gen Z viewers.

“This generation I'm a part of, everybody's coming forward and not being afraid to question themselves and get rid of the stigma of normality,” Grazer says. “At first, I didn't really think I was going to relate to Fraser in any way, but I walked away from the role having complete understanding of people like (him). And I learned a lot about myself in that regard and the things maybe I had not realized about myself until I played the character.”

Here's what else you should know about the rising star:

1. He brought some of his personal style to Fraser

Like Fraser, Grazer paints his nails and has an eye for hip, androgynous fashion. But the character's bleach-blond hair was entirely Guadagnino's idea.

“Originally, Fraser was going to have brown hair with a bowl cut and wear hats all the time, and then Luca was like, ‘Something is missing. Maybe we need to bleach your hair,’ ” Grazer says. “I was like, ‘Oh, God!’ Because I would never, ever dye my hair. But it was the perfect step for me to look in the mirror and see Fraser, which really helped me delve into the character a lot more.”

2. You already know him from the ‘IT’ movies

Grazer is perhaps best known for his role in 2017 horror blockbuster IT and its 2019 sequel, playing the lovably neurotic Eddie Kaspbrak, a member of the misfit Losers Club fighting Pennywise the Clown. The actor swears he's not a hypochondriac like Eddie – although because of the pandemic, “I'm still very careful and conscientious of germs” – and compares the film's shoot to “summer camp.”

“The greatest part of being in IT was being able to spend every single day with all my best friends,” Grazer says of the young cast, which includes Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Sophia Lillis (I Am Not Okay with This). “I felt like I had known them for five years after two weeks of knowing them. We're so close.”

3. He's in ‘Shazam!’, too

Grazer also had a major role in last year's surprise hit Shazam! playing Freddy Freeman, foster brother to Billy Batson (Asher Angel), who transforms into an adult superhero (Zachary Levi). Freddy will return in the sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods, although Grazer insists he knows nothing about the movie.

In a third-act Shazam! twist, Freddy was given his own grown-up superhero alter ego, played by Adam Brody, most famous for teen drama The O.C., which Grazer admits he's never seen. (The Fox series premiered in 2003, the year he was born.) “I don't even know what that is – oh, shoot, that's the show he was on!” Grazer says. “I love Adam Brody, he's a sweet dude, but I've never watched The O.C.”

4. He got his start in a Walmart commercial

Grazer made his screen debut in a Spanish-language Walmart commercial that aired during the 2014 World Cup, in which he and his TV family lose their minds as they ecstatically watch a soccer game.

“I had to speak Spanish and slide on my knees (across a living room floor). That was cool, I guess,” Grazer says. “They lubed up the floor and put knee pads on me, and I had to slide on the floor like, ‘Goooooool!’ ”

5. He once played a younger Timothée Chalamet

Guadagnino's gut-wrenching Call Me By Your Name catapulted Timothée Chalamet to the A-list, landing him his first Oscar nomination for best actor. The film shares a similar basic storyline with We Are Who We Are – both follow teenage boys exploring their sexuality in Italy – so naturally, Twitter users have drawn comparisons between Grazer and Chalamet. Grazer says people tell him all the time that he looks like the Dune star.

“Oh, yeah,” Grazer says. “People have even compared Fraser to Elio in Call Me By Your Name. I told Luca that, and he was like, ‘No, that is not right at all. That is not good. Very, very different.’ ”

The physical resemblance has its perks. Grazer played a younger version of Chalamet's character in the 2018 addiction drama Beautiful Boy. The actors still talk occasionally, “but you know who he really got close with was my mom. My mom and him would have lunch all the time when we were shooting Beautiful Boy.”

#jack dylan grazer #fraser wilson #we are who we are #eddie kaspbrak #it chapter two #freddy freeman #shazam!#wawwa #wawwa press #usa today

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ver-pelishd-pelicula-online · 4 years

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!! [Descargar] Dune - Pelicula Completa En Español online 【Latino】 2020

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próximamente / Ciencia ficción, Drama Dirigida por Denis Villeneuve Reparto Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac Nacionalidad EE.UU.

SINOPSIS

Un futuro lejano, en el que las familias de nobles se disputan el dominio del árido planeta Arrakis, también conocido como Dune por su geografía compuesta por desiertos de dunas. Arrakis es el único lugar donde se encuentra 'la especia', la sustancia más codiciada y valiosa del universo que producen gigantescos gusanos de arena. Debido a su rareza, y a su arriesgada extracción, quien controla la producción de la especia, controla el destino no sólo del Imperio, sino de toda la humanidad. El Duque Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) aceptará la administración de este peligroso planeta y será enviado a Arrakis junto con Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) y su hijo Paul (Timothée Chalamet). Será entonces cuando la familia Atreides corra un gran riesgo por estar en el punto de mira de fuerzas malvadas como las de su enemigo el Barón Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård).

Nueva adaptación cinematográfica del clásico de la ciencia-ficción Dune (1965) de Frank Herbert, que dirige el cineasta nominado al Oscar Denis Villeneuve.

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THE STORY After graduating from Harvard, Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) forgoes the standard opportunities of seeking employment from big and lucrative law firms; deciding to head to Alabama to defend those wrongfully commended, with the support of local advocate, Eva Ansley (Brie Larson). One of his first, and most poignant, case is that of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx, who, in 62, was sentenced to die for the notorious murder of an 2-year-old girl in the community, despite a preponderance of evidence proving his innocence and one singular testimony against him by an individual that doesn’t quite seem to add up. Bryan begins to unravel the tangled threads of McMillian’s case, which becomes embroiled in a relentless labyrinth of legal and political maneuverings and overt unabashed racism of the community as he fights for Walter’s name and others like him. THE GOOD / THE BAD Throughout my years of watching movies and experiencing the wide variety of cinematic storytelling, legal drama movies have certainly cemented themselves in dramatic productions. As I stated above, some have better longevity of being remembered, but most showcase plenty of heated courtroom battles of lawyers defending their clients and unmasking the truth behind the claims (be it wrongfully incarcerated, discovering who did it, or uncovering the shady dealings behind large corporations. Perhaps my first one legal drama was 624’s The Client (I was little young to get all the legality in the movie, but was still managed to get the gist of it all). My second one, which I loved, was probably Primal Fear, with Norton delivering my favorite character role. Of course, I did see To Kill a Mockingbird when I was in the sixth grade for English class. Definitely quite a powerful film. And, of course, let’s not forget Philadelphia and want it meant / stand for. Plus, Hanks and Washington were great in the film. All in all, while not the most popular genre out there, legal drama films still provide a plethora of dramatic storytelling to capture the attention of moviegoers of truth and lies within a dubious justice. Just Mercy is the latest legal crime drama feature and the whole purpose of this movie review. To be honest, I really didn’t much “buzz” about this movie when it was first announced (circa 206) when Broad Green Productions hired the film’s director (Cretton) and actor Michael B. Jordan in the lead role. It was then eventually bought by Warner Bros (the films rights) when Broad Green Productions went Bankrupt. So, I really didn’t hear much about the film until I saw the movie trailer for Just Mercy, which did prove to be quite an interesting tale. Sure, it sort of looked like the generic “legal drama” yarn (judging from the trailer alone), but I was intrigued by it, especially with the film starring Jordan as well as actor Jamie Foxx. I did repeatedly keep on seeing the trailer for the film every time I went to my local movie theater (usually attached to any movie I was seeing with a PG rating and above). So, suffice to say, that Just Mercy’s trailer preview sort of kept me invested and waiting me to see it. Thus, I finally got the chance to see the feature a couple of days ago and I’m ready to share my thoughts on the film. And what are they? Well, good ones….to say the least. While the movie does struggle within the standard framework of similar projects, Just Mercy is a solid legal drama that has plenty of fine cinematic nuances and great performances from its leads. It’s not the “be all to end all” of legal drama endeavors, but its still manages to be more of the favorable motion pictures of these projects. Just Mercy is directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, whose previous directorial works includes such movies like Short Term 6, I Am Not a Hipster, and Glass Castle. Given his past projects (consisting of shorts, documentaries, and a few theatrical motion pictures), Cretton makes Just Mercy is most ambitious endeavor, with the director getting the chance to flex his directorial muscles on a legal drama film, which (like I said above) can manage to evoke plenty of human emotions within its undertaking. Thankfully, Cretton is up to the task and never feels overwhelmed with the movie; approaching (and shaping) the film with respect and a touch of sincerity by speaking to the humanity within its characters, especially within lead characters of Stevenson and McMillian. Of course, legal dramas usually do (be the accused / defendant and his attorney) shine their cinematic lens on these respective characters, so it’s nothing original. However, Cretton does make for a compelling drama within the feature; speaking to some great character drama within its two main lead characters; staging plenty of moments of these twos individuals that ultimately work, including some of the heated courtroom sequences. Like other recent movies (i.e. Brian Banks and The Hate U Give), Cretton makes Just Mercy have an underlining thematical message of racism and corruption that continues to play a part in the US….to this day (incredibly sad, but true). So, of course, the correlation and overall relatively between the movie’s narrative and today’s world is quite crystal-clear right from the get-go, but Cretton never gets overzealous / preachy within its context; allowing the feature to present the subject matter in a timely manner and doesn’t feel like unnecessary or intentionally a “sign of the times” motif. Additionally, the movie also highlights the frustration (almost harsh) injustice of the underprivileged face on a regular basis (most notable those looking to overturn their cases on death row due to negligence and wrongfully accused). Naturally, as somewhat expected (yet still palpable), Just Mercy is a movie about seeking the truth and uncovering corruption in the face of a broken system and ignorant prejudice, with Cretton never shying away from some of the ugly truths that Stevenson faced during the film’s story. Plus, as a side-note, it’s quite admirable for what Bryan Stevenson (the real-life individual) did for his career, with him as well as others that have supported him (and the Equal Justice Initiative) over the years and how he fought for and freed many wrongfully incarcerated individuals that our justice system has failed (again, the poignancy behind the film’s themes / message). It’s great to see humanity being shined and showcased to seek the rights of the wronged and to dispel a flawed system. Thus, whether you like the movie or not, you simply can not deny that truly meaningful job that Bryan Stevenson is doing, which Cretton helps demonstrate in Just Mercy. From the bottom of my heart…. thank you, Mr. Stevenson. In terms of presentation, Just Mercy is a solidly made feature film. Granted, the film probably won’t be remembered for its visual background and theatrical setting nuances or even nominated in various award categories (for presentation / visual appearance), but the film certainly looks pleasing to the eye, with the attention of background aspects appropriate to the movie’s story. Thus, all the usual areas that I mention in this section (i.e. production design, set decorations, costumes, and cinematography) are all good and meet the industry standard for legal drama motion pictures. That being said, the film’s score, which was done by Joel P. West, is quite good and deliver some emotionally drama pieces in a subtle way that harmonizes with many of the feature’s scenes. There are a few problems that I noticed with Just Mercy that, while not completely derailing, just seem to hold the feature back from reaching its full creative cinematic potential. Let’s start with the most prevalent point of criticism (the one that many will criticize about), which is the overall conventional storytelling of the movie. What do I mean? Well, despite the strong case that the film delves into a “based on a true story” aspect and into some pretty wholesome emotional drama, the movie is still structed into a way that it makes it feel vaguely formulaic to the touch. That’s not to say that Just Mercy is a generic tale to be told as the film’s narrative is still quite engaging (with some great acting), but the story being told follows quite a predictable path from start to finish. Granted, I never really read Stevenson’s memoir nor read anything about McMillian’s case, but then I still could easily figure out how the movie was presumably gonna end…. even if the there were narrative problems / setbacks along the way. Basically, if you’ve seeing any legal drama endeavor out there, you’ll get that same formulaic touch with this movie. I kind of wanted see something a little bit different from the film’s structure, but the movie just ends up following the standard narrative beats (and progressions) of the genre. That being said, I still think that this movie is definitely probably one of the better legal dramas out there. This also applies to the film’s script, which was penned by Cretton and Andrew Lanham, which does give plenty of solid entertainment narrative pieces throughout, but lacks the finesse of breaking the mold of the standard legal drama. There are also a couple parts of the movie’s script handling where you can tell that what was true and what fictional. Of course, this is somewhat a customary point of criticism with cinematic tales taking a certain “poetic license” when adapting a “based on a true story” narrative, so it’s not super heavily critical point with me as I expect this to happen. However, there were a few times I could certainly tell what actually happen and what was a tad bit fabricated for the movie. Plus, they were certain parts of the narrative that could’ve easily fleshed out, including what Morrison’s parents felt (and actually show them) during this whole process. Again, not a big deal-breaker, but it did take me out of the movie a few times. Lastly, the film’s script also focuses its light on a supporting character in the movie and, while this made with well-intention to flesh out the character, the camera spotlight on this character sort of goes off on a slight tangent during the feature’s second act. Basically, this storyline could’ve been removed from Just Mercy and still achieve the same palpability in the emotional department. It’s almost like the movie needed to chew up some Dunetime and the writers to decided to fill up the time with this side-story. Again, it’s good, but a bit slightly unnecessary. What does help overlook (and elevate) some of these criticisms is the film’s cast, which are really good and definitely helps bring these various characters to life in a theatrical /dramatic way. Leading the charge in Just Mercy is actor Michael B. Jordan, who plays the film’s central protagonist role of Bryan Stevenson. Known for his roles in Creed, Fruitvale Station, and Black Panther, Jordan has certain prove himself to be quite a capable actor, with the actor rising to stardom over the past few years. This is most apparent in this movie, with Jordan making a strong characteristically portrayal as Bryan; showcasing plenty of underlining determination and compelling humanity in his character as he (as Bryan Stevenson) fights for the injustice of those who’s voices have been silenced or dismissed because of the circumstances. It’s definitely a strong character built and Jordan seems quite capable to task in creating a well-acted on-screen performance of Bryan. Behind Jordan is actor Jamie Foxx, who plays the other main lead in the role, Walter McMillian. Foxx, known for his roles in Baby Driver, Django Unchained, and Ray, has certainly been recognized as a talented actor, with plenty of credible roles under his belt. His participation in Just Mercy is another well-acted performance that deserve much praise as its getting (even receiving an Oscar nod for it), with Foxx portraying Walter with enough remorseful grit and humility that makes the character quite compelling to watch. Plus, seeing him and Jordan together in a scene is quite palpable and a joy to watch. The last of the three marquee main leads of the movie is the character of Eva Ansley, the director of operations for EJI (i.e. Stevenson’s right-handed employee / business partner), who is played by actress Brie Larson. Up against the characters of Stevenson and McMillian, Ansley is the weaker of the three main lead; presented as supporting player in the movie, which is perfectly fine as the characters gets the job done (sort of speak) throughout the film’s narrative. However, Larson, known for her roles in Room, 6 Jump Street, and Captain Marvel, makes less of an impact in the role. Her acting is fine and everything works in her portrayal of Eva, but nothing really stands in her performance (again, considering Jordan and Foxx’s performances) and really could’ve been played by another actress and achieved the same goal. The rest of the cast, including actor Tim Blake Nelson (The Incredible Hulk and O Brother, Where Art Thou) as incarcerated inmate Ralph Meyers, actor Rafe Spall (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and The Big Short) as legal attorney Tommy Champan, actress Karan Kendrick (The Hate U Give and Family) as Minnie McMillan, Walter’s wife, actor C.J. LeBlanc (Arsenal and School Spirts) as Walter’s son, John McMillian, actor Rob Morgan (Stranger Things and Mudbound) as death role inmate Herbert Richardson, actor O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Long Shot and Straight Outta Compton) as death role inmate Anthony “Ray” Hinton, actor Michael Harding (Triple 2 and The Young and the Restless) as Sheriff Tate, and actor Hayes Mercure (The Red Road and Mercy Street) as a prison guard named Jeremy, are in the small supporting cast variety. Of course, some have bigger roles than others, but all of these players, which are all acted well, bolster the film’s story within the performances and involvement in Just Mercy’s narrative. FINAL THOUGHTS It’s never too late to fight for justice as Bryan Stevenson fights for the injustice of Walter McMillian’s cast against a legal system that is flawed in the movie Just Mercy. Director Destin Daniel Cretton’s latest film takes a stance on a poignant case; demonstrating the injustice of one (and by extension those wrongfully incarcerated) and wrapping it up in a compelling cinematic story. While the movie does struggle within its standard structure framework (a sort of usual problem with “based on a true story” narrations) as well as some formulaic beats, the movie still manages to rise above those challenges (for the most part), especially thanks to Cretton’s direction (shaping and storytelling) and some great performances all around (most notable in Jordan and Foxx). Personally, I liked this movie. Sure, it definitely had its problem, but those didn’t distract me much from thoroughly enjoying this legal drama feature. Thus, my recommendation for the film is a solid “recommended”, especially those who liked the cast and poignant narratives of legality struggles and the injustice of a failed system / racism. In the end, while the movie isn’t the quintessential legal drama motion picture and doesn’t push the envelope in cinematic innovation, Just Mercy still is able to manage to be a compelling drama that’s powerful in its story, meaningful in its journey, and strong within its statement. Just like Bryan Stevenson says in the movie….” If we could look at ourselves closely…. we can change this world for the better”. Amen to that!

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todaysbiggesthits · 4 years

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The Exam

Best Music Moment of 2019

BC: Three straight hours of this

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in my Chapman Ryder Cup match with Code -The Robert M. Chennault Playlist in my Ryder Cup match with Laser -Vampire Weekend's "M79" with Parks and Rec theme interlude in Pawnee Peytonville with my babe -Late night music game with JD and Chaps this Fall -My kids competing for best air guitar solo to Daft Punk's "Digital Love" -The Stones soundtracking Raceday morning with Counterfeit Kenny and the Kennel Boys

Codem: -Picking up the keys after closing on #our house and listening to Arden's dreams for the pad while listening to the songs that brought us together in the first place. -Perched in the balcony of Park West watching Chromatics live and in person. -The Chapman format playlist that Brendon and I put together. It was just one song on repeat. Xtal - Aphex Twin -Plugging in my klipsch's for the first time in the new house to listen to elliott smith on the day of his death. the sound of his discography wafting throughout the whole house was a true delight.

Bronco: My 6-year-old discovering Green Day. My 9-year-old discovering Metallica. Both discoveries have awakened something in them that is hilarious and awesome to behold. And seeing Tool was pretty flaming awesome.

JD: March: Realizing I’d never heard this Stones song, nodding along to the opening riff, and exploding into my biggest laugh of the year at the first line.

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June: The Joni Mitchell performance in the Rolling Thunder Review documentary on Netflix. June: Catching the Thom Yorke Anima short film at the IMAX theater on the Upper West Side. July: Code and I getting a perfect 99 score on the greatest rendition of “Emotional Rescue” karaoke you’ll ever see. October: Playing the music game WAY too deep into the night with BC and Chap (look for the next day’s hangover on my worst moments list).

Chap: Patrick Stickles singing "I'm sorry dad no I'm not making this up" to his dad in the audience.

Nasty: Listening to music at BOB. Nothing but jams that whole weekend. Driving in with Laser - GOOGLE MUSIC JAMS. Trip to the casino - JAMS. Hanging out on the deck - JAMS. Driving to the course with Blazer Black - Fuck Buttons - Sweet Love for Planet Earth aka JAMS. In the cart with Code - JAMS. Driving Chappy and Sfreddo to the rental car - JAMS (but quietly).

Larse: Greta Thunberg speech dubbed to metal

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Best Shows Seent in 2019

Nasty: The Killers @ Summerfest. Hot Fuss will always be an all-time favorite album and Mr. Brightside is the best pop song of our lifetime, IMO. Also, my wife loves them which is about the only band in middle of the venn diagram.

Larse: The Lonely Island at Summerfest

BC: Dead & Company

JD: 1. The Rapture at Music Hall of Williamsburg 2. Viagra Boys at Bowery Ballroom 3. The Strokes and Parkay Boys at the All Points East fest in London with drunk lads screaming along to the guitar parts 4. B Boys at Union Pool 5. Titus Andronicus at Bowery Ballroom 6. Avey Tare at Market Hotel 7. Tame Impala at MSG 8. Weeping Icon at Elsewhere 9. Priests at Elsewhere

Code: interpol - chicago theater illuminati hotties - hideout it looks sad - subT downstairs robyn - riviera steve malkmus - art institute eleventh dream day - hideout colleen green - sleeping village swearin' - lincoln hall surf curse - subT shura - the bottle

Chap: TA was the only show I saw. It was great!

Bronco: All of them. They were each great in their own way. Aside from Tool I was able to interact with the band members at each of the shows. One I didn't have a ticket for and scored one at the door. One was in the tiniest venue I've seen a show at. One had a surprisingly entertaining opening act. And Tool surprised me with how much I enjoyed an arena show despite being so far away I couldn't see the facial features of the band members. And there was SOOOOOOO much weed being smoked in the Garden that night. And I was with a few good buddies. And I was able to sell my fourth ticket for twice what I paid, simulatenously covering me and my fourth friend who had to bail because his life sucks because his wife sucks.

Confession of 2019

Nasty: I consume more music at my cushy, suburban OrangeTheory workout classes than in my own free time. S/O to Coach Vanessa for having some Girl Talk on her playlists.

Codem: i had more fun listening to stuff that i already knew about than stuff that was coming out.

BC: I saw a Yacht Rock cover band and didn't hate it -I succumbed to social pressure and saw DMB -I didn't realize until the last minute that my favorite album was released in 2018 (Wild Nothing). Removing it greatly reduced my loyalty to my list.

Bronco: I'm losing my edge. I enjoyed way more lady singer bands this year than in any other year.

Chap: Couldn't get my shit together on the tracks list so just posted a random playlist

Larse: Not really a confession but more of a TIL (today I learned), but Raphael Saadiq was an original member of Tony! Toni! Tone!

Biggest Disappointment of 2019

Bin: The National @ Summerfest. From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "the frontman was completely detached, even confessing at one point that he was excited to get back home to his family. The result was an incredibly depressing show — which, given the band's dour songs, is really saying something." ... Huge Bummer.

BC: Didn't see nearly enough shows with nearly enough of yous

Chap: Sturgill Simpson... unlistenable!

Bronco: Baroness.

Laser: Modest Mouse opening for The Black Keys

Code: i was really messed up by dave berman's passing. i had tickets to see him play at the end of august. it was going to be my first catching him live and in concert. i had waited for this moment since i picked up american water back in 2003. two weeks before he was supposed to come through town, he up and died. also, much less of a bummer, the chromatics show in miami that Arden and i were going to attend got canceled two days before the show.

Most Overrated of 2019

Nasty: Kanye's shoes

Chap: LEGACY! LEGACY! – Jamila Woods seems to have been highly regarded? Not my thing

BC: FKA Twigs

Bronco: Baroness.

JD: Big Thief

Code: cancel culture

Larse: Mayor Pete

Make it Stop 2019

Chap: In my house, the Nutcracker Suite. It's great, until the 300th time that day.

Nasty: Cage the Elephant (but children, instead of elephant, and in real life, not the band)

BC: Lizzo

Code: lizzo

JD: Memes

Larse: Trump

Bronco: News

Biggest TBH Regret of 2019

Chap: Can't seem to get to more than one show per year; Jessica Pratt in a church by my old place

JD: Missin’ dat Pratt yet Nick!

BC: Should've listened to the Kanye album. Should've spent more time with the Deerhunter record.

Rotty: Skipping CHVRCHES at Summerfest

Code: another year with no fog party

Nasty: Not going to Indy 500. lol jk.

Bronco: I didn't buy tickets to a few shows I would've liked to have seen. One of them I went to the venue and didn't get in. That bummed me out, but I crossed the street and had a few beers by myself for good measure, so it wasn't a total loss.

Detective Murtaugh of 2019

JD: Everything.

Bronco: Shows that don't start until 10pm. That Girl Band show nearly wrecked me.

Chap: How much I loved Bruce Springsteen's adult contemporary western-themed old-man album.

BC: The ten seconds I lasted with 1000 GECS

Nasty: For the life of me - I cannot figure out how to operate the "play next" queue on these apps.

Laser: Lizzo at Summerfest - lot of younglings running around; people were racist towards Lizzo's security guards, she vowed not to come back to MKE, one of the most segregated cities in America :(

Resolution for 2019 Status

Laser: — How It Went: Who can even remember this shit...I'm sure it was that I'd do better at keeping track or listen to more shit people suggest and I'm sure I failed.

BC: Listen to one new album a week; reboot the Classic Album Review Club How It Went: Noooot toooo gooooood

Code: catch ovlov, pictureplane, washer, chromatics, EMA and colleen green live this year. How It Went: i saw chromatics and colleen green. last i checked .400 gets you into cooperstown.

JD: Greater consciousness of how I’m using my attention - an ineffectual and meaningless protest of the ways the world is burning down in pursuit of it. How It Went: Not bad! I especially nailed the “ineffectual and meaningless” part.

Chap: Learn Piano; Guilt Joe Dons into finally inviting me to a concert. How It Went: Learned some piano but got to busy for it... Couldn't guilt JD to invite me anywhere but I DID invite him to a show! The same one I went to! With him!

Bronco: Read more 'classic’ books. I didn’t read many of them, even in school (especially in school? Never could read a book I was told to read). But I’m leaning in the sci-fi direction of 'classics’. I just read Dune this summer, and wrapped up Fahrenheit 451 the other day. I’m feeling an unexplained need to beef up my nerd credentials and this seems the way to accomplish it. How It Went: Nope. Fell back in to zombie-apocalypse genre series that I've been reading for a while. But I am currently reading arch-nerd Neal Stephenson's "Fall; or, Dodge in Hell". It's almost 900 pages, I feel like I've been reading for months now, and because I'm a stupidly slow reader, I read only before going to bed, and can only make it 10 minutes before falling asleep and hitting myself in the face with my phone, I'm only 25% of the way through. But man is it painting a creepy yet eerily plausible scene of the near future. Guy just knows how to write.

Nasty: Hope last year I was smart enough to leave this blank. (editor’s note: [removes shoes, pets cat, puts on slippers, retires to favorite easy chair, sips martini, slowly pulls reading glasses out of cardigan pocket, dusts them off, loads todaysbiggesthits.tumblr.com, scrolls to ‘Resolution for 2019’] “Nasty: I’m sticking with it - get to NY for a show with JD.”)

Resolution for 2020

BC: See Phish in 2020

Codem: i'm making it easier this year. catch ovlov, washer, EMA and colleen green live this year. bonus points: see dom's much anticipated return to the stage.

Bronco: Build a vinyl collection. I know I dumped on Brendon for suggesting he press copies of Carpet Affair, but my kid's getting way into music and listening to it on his own (via Alexa in my bedroom which is super fucking annoying), so we're getting him his own record player and I think it's going to be a cool activity to go record store diving for whatever classics we can scrounge up.

JD: Get to more shows. Take more aimless strolls spinning tunes.

Bin: Send an email about music on the TBH! thread.

Larse: None

Chap: Eh I'm cool

Most Anticipated of 2020

Code: my man dom said that he is coming back to the world this year. i have to believe that he'll keep his word. i'm thinking 2020 is going to be the year for chromatics' Tommy.

Chap: TWOD, Perfume Genius, Jason Isbell

BC: Huey Lewis and the News, Tame Impala, Run the Jewels

Bronco: Kvelertak and Mastodon, maybe some surprise extra Tool material?

JD: Working Men’s Club

Nasty: Spotify getting Jay-Z's catalog back.

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travelingtheusa · 6 years

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INDIANA

3 Jun 2018 (Sun) – We did the laundry this morning. Being Sunday, few attractions are open today. We spent most of the day just hanging around the campground, tending to household chores. We drove to the Texas Corral for lunch (looked a lot like the Texas Roadhouse complete with peanut shells on the floor).

2 Jun 2018 (Sat) – We drove to Gary this morning to see the home of Michael Jackson. OMG. It was like going into the slums. The town was full of boarded up and falling down buildings. It seemed like there was a blight on the town. U.S. Steel Works used to be in the town but it is now a mere shadow of what it once was. I guess when the country started importing steel, our industry went belly up. The street where the Jackson family once lived was small and narrow with tiny houses lining both sides of the street. Their home was on the corner of Jackson Street and Jackson Family Blvd. I don’t think there were four rooms in the little house. It looks like there might have been a monument in the corner of the yard but it’s gone now. The house was not open to the public.

We then drove to Porter to see the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. They wanted to charge a $3 fee so we turned around. Then we drove into the Indiana Dunes State Park and paid $12 to park. Paul was quite annoyed about it. It looked just like the beach at our cabin on Long Island. There was really nothing spectacular about the area. It was probably very nice for the residents but for folks like us, it really wasn’t anything special.

I called the Goshen RV Center to see if the fender skirt had come in from Vanleigh for the RV. They said they didn’t have it. The tech support guy at Vanleigh told us it was supposed to have arrived by 8 p.m. yesterday. The clerk probably just didn’t want to look for it.

We drove into town and had lunch at the Shoreline Brewery. It looked like a former factory turned bar/restaurant. There were a lot of abandoned factory and warehouse buildings in the town so it was nice to see one repurposed.

1 Jun 2018 (Fri) – We putzed around this morning until after 11 a.m. then we went to lunch at the Ponderosa before stopping in at the Goshen RV Center. We are waiting for a fender skirt to be shipped up from Alabama by Vilano. They did not have the part so I called the service tech in Alabama. He told us it had been shipped and was scheduled to arrive sometime by the end of the day. Oh, well. We’ll have to come back for it.

Our new campground is only 70 miles north in Michigan City. The Michigan City Campground is a very nice facility. The campsites are roomy. The interior roads and campsites are hard packed gravel. There is a concrete patio with picnic table and fire ring. The campground also has a heated pool.

When we left Goshen, the temperature was 95 degrees. When we arrived in Michigan City, it was downright cold. The thermometer was reading 65 degrees. A cool front has moved down from Lake Michigan. The pond on the campground had steam rising off the surface. I hope it’s warmer tomorrow!

31 May 2018 (Thu) – We spent the morning calling around to campgrounds until we found a place to go tomorrow and then the next place near the Midway Airport in Chicago, where I’ll be flying home from. There are no campgrounds less than an hour away from the airport and most of those in Illinois get bad reviews. The Illinois county campgrounds run $60 a night. That’s much too high! We wound up making a reservation for a casino campground for a week while I’m in New York. I hope it’s going to be OK.

Once we finally got the campgrounds locked in, we drove to Elkhart to see Linton’s Enchanted Gardens. It is rated number one on Trip Advisor. It turned out to be a nursery laid out in a nice way with lots of pathways and decorations to dress it up – mini houses, statues, and decorations. There was also a small petting zoo and an enchanted train (which was nothing more than a tractor pulling wagons decorated to look like train cars). There was also a gift shop and a small café. It you’re into flowers and plants and the little extras, then it would be a nice stop. As for us, we really didn’t find the experience very interesting.

After we came out we looked over attractions in the area but didn’t find anything that appealed to us. Ultimately, we decided to go to a movie. We drove to the movie theater in Elkhart but they were showing “Solo” in 3D. We did not want to watch a 3D movie so we drove to the theater in Goshen where we caught the 1:30 p.m. showing of “Solo: A Star Wars Story.” It was OK but seemed to concentrate more on the characters than the story.

We stopped at the supermarket on the way back to the campground to pick up a few groceries. We also got fuel. Ready to move tomorrow. We’ve been here long enough.

30 May 2018 (Wed) – We drove to South Bend to the University of Notre Dame. They only give two tours a day at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. We arrived at 10 to 11 so we missed the tour. The Basilica closed at 11 a.m. for midday mass so we missed seeing the Basilica. It is a walking campus so we couldn’t drive to any of the buildings to see. We walked for about an hour, looking at different buildings. We saw the murals painted in the halls of the Golden Dome building. We rode the elevator up to the tenth floor of the library because the woman at the visitor’s center told us you could get a good view of the entire area. That wasn’t exactly true. You could walk to each corner of the building and look out of a window. It gave you a peek at a piece of the property. We then walked down the mall to the stadium. It was closed to the public so we just stood in front of it and took a selfie. The entire campus was very attractive and peaceful. All the buildings were built with the same light colored brick so everything looked alike. It was a very beautiful campus.

We left the campus and drove to the Hall of Super Hero Museum. It was a collection of mostly super hero action figures and comic books in a small two story garage. It looked more like someone had so many dolls and comics that they decided they should open a museum. There were also a couple of movie props and lots of pictures of actors with the director of the “museum.” He said they are trying to get donations to open a bigger building because the collections don’t fit anymore. The guy had to nerve to charge $6 per person. It was a rip off!

After the museum, we drove to the RV/MH Hall of Fame. It was a collection of old RVs and motor homes that showed the evolution of camping vehicles over the years. Things sure have changed. There was also a manufactured home on display in back of the museum. It was quite attractive.

We then drove into Elkhart to get a bite to eat. Consulting Trip Advisor, we drove to the Heinnies. It was a steak house but they weren’t serving steaks until 5 p.m. so we had burgers. They were OK.

29 May 2018 (Tue) – We drove to Shipshewana today. The flea market was open and in full swing. There were hundreds of booths to look at. After a while, it seemed like everything was the same. It was so hot – in the 90s. We walked up and down the aisles for about two hours then stopped for lunch. Then we walked another hour. We picked up some items both for us and gifts for others. We heard many people complaining about the heat yesterday. Apparently the flea market was open for the holiday despite signs that said it was only open Tuesday and Wednesday. (We would have gone had we known.) The thermometer topped one hundred yesterday. Today it was in the high 90s.

We stopped at the Menno-Hof Museum down the road. It was a fascinating museum that told the story of the religious groups in the area. Way, way back in history (around 300 BC) a group of people split off from the church because they believed people should be baptized as adults whereby the belief of the day was that baptism should take place within the first year of a child’s life. The group that broke off was called Anabaptists. They further split over the years and basically became three groups, with other splinter groups within them. They are the Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites. A lot of the splits had to do with how the groups interact with the world around them. Some want extreme purity, some want restricted functions, and some work within the modern world, dressing and acting like the people around them. It was a very interesting stop.

After the museum, we stopped at the Das Dutchman Essenhaus for dinner. I was looking for the fried chicken like we had at a Pennsylvania Dutch Amish restaurant but they had broasted chicken. It looks like a fried chicken without breading. It was good but not exactly what I was looking for.

28 May 2018 (Mon) – We drove into town to watch the parade. It was small compared to what we did back home. I think it was over in ten minutes. The VFW coordinated the event and rode in a couple of cars in front. There were two fire engines. The biggest group was their church. It was still nice to see people turn out and remember the men and women who gave their lives in defense of this country.

We returned to the campground and just hung around inside the RV all day. It was pretty hot.

27 May 2018 (Sun) – With everything in the area closed, we decided to do the laundry. We packed up the clothes and drove into town to the laundromat. After we put the clothes in the washer, we drove to Goshen Brewery Company for lunch. The reviews on Trip Advisor raved about their brisket sandwich. Unfortunately, they had a brunch menu with no brisket on it. There weren’t many options and half of them had duck in them. I chose a meal with several items served in a bowl – biscuit, gravy, potatoes, cheese, duck eggs, and duck bacon. Paul got a bagel with fruit flavored cream cheese and duck breast.

After lunch, we returned to the laundromat and transferred the clothes to the dryers. Then we sat for half an hour. We went back to the campground and spent rest of the day hanging out. We tried going outside but it was too hot. Although the thermometer says the temperature is in the mid-80s, the blazing sun feels like it’s searing the skin.

26 May 2018 (Sat) – We drove to Shipshewana today. We were there in 2011 and didn’t get a chance to thoroughly explore it. Shipshewana is America’s third largest Amish and Mennonite communities. They have the largest flea market we’ve ever seen with hundreds of vendors in many rows. In fact, the Great Amish Country Auction is listed as a must-see in the “1,000 Places to See Before You Die.” Sadly, the flea market is only open on Tuesday and Thursday. There was a large tent with hundreds of people attending an auction. The majority of the attendees were Amish, dressed in plain but very colorful clothing, the women wearing cute little white hats and the men broad brimmed straw or black hats.

We wandered through Voder’s Meat & Cheese Company, which was a large shop right next to the auction/flea market area. There were lots of different kinds of cheeses and meats we could sample, and we bought some beef jerky and cheese curds. Most other places in the area were also closed.

The vet’s office called while we were at the flea market to say the culture came back on Bonnie’s foot. There are two kinds of bacteria in her foot. He told us to discontinue her current antibiotic and to pick up a different one at the office. So we drove back to Goshen and got the new medication. Her foot is doing so much better. It is no longer swollen and oozing and it does not hurt her to have it touched. Things are looking up.

We drove into Goshen for lunch and ate at Tony’s Famous Grill. The food was OK but nothing great. Afterward, we walked up and down the main street, looking at the old buildings and wandering through a couple of shops. We stopped in at the historical society and explored Goshen’s history. We learned that the town built a canal that was used by several manufacturing plants. There are many trains running through the town almost constantly. Goshen is on the route between Toledo and Chicago. They blow their horns every time, even at 2 and 3 in the morning.

When we were done wandering the main street, we drove over to the canal to take a look. We stopped at the dam and admired the serenity of the lake it created. It was a very pleasant area.

25 May 2018 (Wed) – We were up at 6 a.m. this morning. Tucked everything away, hooked up the RV, and drove to Lippert. They had us drop off the trailer and we drove off to find breakfast. One of the workers recommended Angel’s House of Pancakes. It turned out to have very good food.

After breakfast, we drove to a nearby lake and walked a little bit around the area. Bonnie’s doing so much better but we are still trying to take it easy with her. We put one of my socks on her foot and it seems to come off within the hour. She managed to pull out the wick this afternoon. Ugh.

We then decided to find a Pet Smart and buy some booties for Bonnie. The nearest Pet Smart was in Elkhart, so we drove 28 miles north. While we were in the store, Lippert called to say the RV was ready for pickup. We hopped in the truck and drove back to Goshen. They found grease from the seals on the brakes so they replaced the brakes, seals, and hubs on all four tires. I’m glad we got in. There is only three weeks left on our one-year warranty.

We hooked up the trailer and drove back to the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds. Most of the rally folks have gone and we had a pick of many open sites. Once situated, Paul went over and paid for the week. It cost a little more because we now have full hook-ups. We are closer to the office and the Wifi is SO much better here.

At 4 p.m. we drove into town to get dinner. Hopper’s Pike Street Grill had good ratings so we ate there. They had frog legs on the menu and the waitress told us they are known for their fried fish. Seems weird that a state so far north would have good fish and frogs. Seems like that’s more of a southern dish. At any rate, I had ribs and Paul had pork chops. The food was excellent!

After dinner, we drove to the Old Bag Factory. It turned out to be a four-story factory built in the 1800s that has been turned into a shopping area. There were many shops in the building. Unfortunately, they closed at 4 p.m. We wandered about the building, admiring the old floors, brick walls, and hanging barn doors. They kept a lot of the flavor of the architecture. In its hey day, the factory produced soap and bags for produce. There were 28 factories around the U.S.; the biggest operations in Goshen, IN and Orlando, FL.

24 May 2018 (Tue) – Paul was up and out at 7:30 a.m. to bring the truck to Ford. Thankfully, they kept the appointment, checked out the truck, and found a faulty sensor. It was replaced and Paul was back at the campground by 11:30 a.m. It cost us almost $300.

We stopped by the campground office to tell them we would not be moving to the new site until tomorrow. They charged us $27.50 for tonight and left it for us to settle up tomorrow.

We drove to the RV Factory to take a tour of their manufacturing process. This company produces Luxe Gold and Luxe Elite. They only produce one or two fifth wheels a week, opposed to the other guys who churn out about 20-25 a week. They allow customers to buy direct from them, eliminating the middle man and allowing you to customize your RV the way you want it. They use top quality items to build their RVs. We were very impressed and will keep our eye on them when we are ready to buy another fifth wheel.

There is a big store in the area called Menards. It is, I believe, Amish owned and run. We stopped in to see what it was like. It turned out to be some combination of Home Depot, Ace Hardware, a department store, and a supermarket. The store was huge! There didn’t seem to be thing they DIDN’T carry. Wow. We picked up a couple of items and returned to the campground.

23 May 2018 (Mon) – We took Bonnie to the vet this morning. He did not find anything obvious. The doctor put a wick (a kind of cotton drain) in the foot to help pull the fluid out. He also took a culture and sent it to the lab to see if we could see what kind of bacteria is infecting her foot. There is a pretty bandage wrapped around it. Bonnie’s been out of it all day. Dr. Jeff said they were using a light sedation, not anesthesia but she sure is having a hard time recovering.

We had breakfast at Angel’s House of Pancakes. Paul ordered fried mush and I had corned beef hash. It turns out the fried mush is a cornmeal batter that is cooked like a pancake. There was a senior citizen special going on today – five mush cakes and free coffee for just $6.99. Paul ate two cakes and left the rest. He said he preferred biscuits and gravy. Another customer came in when we were done and sat across from us. She asked if the food on Paul’s plate was the fried mush. We said yes and she asked to take a taste. Delighted, she said she was going to order it. When she saw us leaving the food on the plate, she asked if she could have it. I gave her the plate. Weird.

After breakfast, we drove to an RV supply place to try and find a fender skirt for the RV. When we had the blowout last month, a piece of the fender was broken off. We did not find it. While driving around, we saw a sign for a Moose Family Center. We drove over to look at it. It turned out they had a large campground in back behind the lodge. We drove through it but it appeared to be permanent residents; no transient sites.

When we got back to the campground, I started making some phone calls. I made an appointment with Lippert to bring our RV in for inspection of the brake seals on Friday. I confirmed our appointment with Ford tomorrow morning. I called The RV Factory and made an appointment for a tour of the factory on Friday morning. I also called DRV Luxury Suites RV for a factory tour but they close down at the end of the month. They won’t start tours again until June 1. I called Vanleigh Vilano to get a slide seal replaced and see if they could send us the fender skirt, too. The items will be sent to the RV dealer here in Goshen.

22 May 2018 (Tue) – We wanted to pick up a couple of items at the information center so we waited until 9 a.m. when we thought they’d be open. When we got there, the office had opened at 8 a.m. We asked for 22 copies of a DVD about the Army Corps of Engineers’ campgrounds around the U.S. and 22 carabiners. We got a carabiner in the gift bag that was really nice. It has a knife, a nail file with flat tip as a screwdriver, and a pair of scissors.

We had to break down in a drizzly rain and left Iowa City, IA, at close to 10 a.m. It rained on and off during the drive. We arrived in Goshen, IN, at 12:30 p.m. There is a rally going on so they put us in an area with just electric and water hookup. When the rally ends on Thursday, we will be moved to a site with full hookups. The Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds is very large with 350 campsites. There are many buildings on the grounds where the 4-H club puts their animals for display and judging. There is also a track where they train horses to trot. We have been watching trainers run their horses around the track. One owner had his horse connected to a pickup truck and was leading it around the track at a trot. I guess that’s how they teach it what speed to run at.

When we arrived, I found a veterinarian and we took Bonnie to get her foot checked out. It has been getting worse. The area in between the one toe now has two cysts on either side on the inside of the toe. It is also oozing and bleeding a little, too. The vet said he wanted to take a look at the paw with Bonnie under sedation. It was very tender and Bonnie kept pulling her paw away. We made an appointment to bring her back tomorrow morning.

After dinner, we took a walk around the fairgrounds. There are hundreds of Entegra motor coaches parked around the campground. There is a rally going on. There are vendor displays and a class on how to drive a motor coach. Each coach had a sign outside with the name of the owner(s) on it. I guess when they register for the rally, Entegra makes up a sign for them. There are also a number of golf carts driving around, giving anyone rides from one point to the other as the fairgrounds are very large.

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