REFLECTION & REASON

If you live in Toronto, grew up in Toronto in the 90's, or are familiar with the Toronto party scene, you know without a doubt that Saturday, March 14th’s “ I LOVE THE 90’s ” concert was a success. For a city that has its fair share of era-themed parties, be it the 90's, a particular genre of music from a particular moment in time, or a particular style of celebration, promoters and DJs have been coming up with innovative ways to enjoy themselves, to share their love of music, and to entertain the often hard-to-please Toronto audience, each and every weekend. From time. There was nothing original about I LOVE THE 90’s . It’s been done. We’ve seen old school artists trickle through this city so regularly that we’re probably one of the main cities out there that embraces the artists of the past so warmly. If they had a hit in the 80’s, 90’s or early 2000’s..chances are they’ve passed through Toronto in the past few years. We appreciate classics. We don't forget the talent...

Nothing to see here. I was curious about the movie...the soundtrack sounded dope. The visuals look enticing, helicopters, and pretty condos. It seemed like it might be something intriguing. Young girl. Rich dude. Why not? I refused to watch the movie without reading the books. That's how this journey began. E. L. James hit the jackpot with this story, and what kind of writer would I be if I didn't at least attempt to check it out?! Well, I didn't make it through the entire book, maybe 65% according to my Kobo e-reader. I wanted to see what the literary hype was, and for the first say, 30% or so, I was into it. Typical fluffy love story, a light read, I could get down with it. It wasn't half as "sexual" or terrible as I thought it would be...but after a while, it was redundant. Christian and his demands. Anastasia biting her lip...ooh, "don't bite the lip or I'll have to punish you"...at about 65% I just gave up on the book entirely, and...

This show is everything. I've been saying that a lot lately, which is great. Which means that I can finally break out of my reality TV spell, and get back into a handful of great scripted programs. It started with " Being Mary Jane ," continued with " Scandal ," went on to " How to Get Away with Murder ," and now keeps keepin' on, with the hit television show " Empire ," that just debuted earlier this year on FOX. I'm a sucker for a predominantly Black cast, Black writers/directors , and grew up watching and enjoying, and being inherently interested in their career paths and progression. I can't help but support the familiar faces and entertaining antics. Naturally, these shows were made for me. The best part about these quote-unquote "Black" shows it that everyone is digging them. Not just Black female writers, like myself. Not just "urban" folks in "inner cities" who can relate. But these show...