This was history in the making, so I had to check it out. The place was mobbed with people in 2 lines that extended for a combined 10 blocks at least by the time I left. Luckily, I got there around 11am when things were still a little sane. Unfortunately, James was late. He showed up around 2pm when people were already supposed to be going through the Apollo at 1.

Anyway, the line experience was full of well meaning comradery… for the most part. (The initial delay and the fact that celebrities and other “dignitaries” were allowed in first before anyone else had almost everyone grumbling and occasionally shouting at police.) But walking through the Apollo, onto the stage, and looking at this very small, old, dead man in a purple suit with a quirky smile frozen on his face was truly, truly, bizarre.

I don’t think I’ll forget this freaky day.

(Update: I had forgotten until today that old song from the 90′s by Lords of Acid, “James Brown is Dead”)

Yesterday was Christmas which started with my woman seemingly not loving her presents due to there being no toys in the mix and me absolutely loving my presents mostly due to the new 50mm lens and flash additions to my photo kit. Additionally, my woman managed to craft some delicious buljol for breakfast, we watched Scrooged and ended up having Christmas dinner at my cousins (shockingly seeing my family twice in one year).

One more thing to remember about Christmas this year is that James Brown died. He was slated to host New Years Eve at B.B.Kings in Times Square, but I guess the Godfather of Soul won’t be making it.

Nana 2 had its international premiere last night at the IFC Center and I checked it out. After having only seen a number of episodes of the anime, I had high hopes for the film which tells the story of two girls named Nana who meet on their way to Tokyo both with dreams of happiness they would find mostly through boyfriends who had separately already left them a year ago to move to Tokyo. Since this is the sequel to one of the biggest movies in recent Japanese films I just figured it would be good… and I guess it was… if it doesn’t bother you that neither of the real life Nanas are particularly likable or that the movie is at least 40 minutes too long.

I should still remember to keep checking out new foreign flicks even though they won’t all be my favs.

Swung by the Access Theatre last night to check out the intriguing sounding Standards of Decency Project “a program of nine new short plays that collectively challenge the notions of decency and obscenity.” Basically, a bunch of playwrights were asked to write short 10-15 minute plays “that included at least one of these elements—nudity, blasphemy, and violence—in a manner that is fully warranted and justified (that is, that avoids mere gratuitousness or sensationalism), while also intended to offend conventional standards of decency.”

Although the plays ranged from serious to hilarious and artsy to silly, there was a lot of good stuff there. Blasphemy seemed like the favorite of the night with the last piece about three southern girls having a bachelorette party for themselves because the next day they were going to marry Jesus being extremely funny and amazingly well cast. Coming (uhm…) in second was nudity which found nude guys spending an awful lot of time on stage in two of the plays both times discussing religion and a fantastic piece with a boy’s school professor discussing the “three parts of a woman” with an appealing nude, female assistant. Violence was less well presented and the only one which I thought fell flat.

I actually had very low expectations and was going on more of a whim than anything else, but I have to admit, aside from a couple shorts which I could have done without, it was a great little (no pun intended) show.

Ate at The Tasting Room the other night for the first time. The appetizer was absolutely delicious, however the rest of the meal was just good. Additionally, the decor in the back dinning room wasn’t my thing (except for this giant fake orange peel installed on the wall above us which was pretty cool) and the staff was more than just a little cold.

I should remember to keep trying, undaunted, to find as many great restaurants as possible. Mmmm… food.

As New York Magazine said about The Spa at Mandarin Oriental: “As close to heaven as a New York spa gets, this 35th-floor spot will leave you and your wallet feeling substantially lighter.”

There’s not much else that can really be said about this place. The sex-specific “heat experience” rooms outfitted with very large jacuzzi-ish “vitality” pools with submerged lounge seating, amethyst-crystal steam chambers, and interesting heat showers with colored lights corresponding to water temperatures are only the beginning to your “journey” at this place.

The services provided and products used are both unbelievable.

And ending the whole 3 hour experience with some time spent in the “relaxing” rooms looking blankly out of floor to ceiling windows at the amazing views from their 35th floor location makes you wonder how you can possibly manage trudging through the grime below again.

Expensive is an understatement, but I should remember to try to get into this place again.

After not visiting this place in years, I decided to swing by yesterday because I was still fighting a fever and sore throat which made me long for delicious teas. What I found was the place exactly as it was when I used to bring dates there back in ’99 and 2000, except now it was planning on closing this coming 24th.

Luckily, the teas they sold will still be available for purchase at their online tea market, so I should remember to order some up sometime to reminisce.

(image: Wild Lily Tea Room by Miss Hag.)

After uploading my first photo just over three months ago, today my Flickr account hit 1,000 views. I don’t know if that’s a big deal, but it seems like some kind of milestone I might want to remember.

I swung by ladder 131 in Brooklyn yesterday to drop off a print of the fire shot I caught Thanksgiving night for them to hang on their wall. It’s great to feel that even though I only just picked up a camera, people are interested in my shots.

Adding to that shot’s minor celebrity status it’s now garnered over 280 views on Flickr and was published on page 12 of yesterday’s Brooklyn Papers!

I gotta remember to keep shooting!

(Update: That fire shot has just broken the 300 views mark on Flickr. Nice.)