Musings 06032025

A New York Primary, Chicago Shenanigans, Sesame Street, and... Beyoncé

Where. To. Begin. First - if you’re reading this from the city of New York, then don’t forget to DREAM — Don’t. Rank. Eric. (or) Andrew. (for) Mayor. That’s right. Our mayoral primaries will be held on June 24, rank choice voting style, and you if you’re unsure, you can find your voting site here. Also, please be aware of canvassers trying to solicit your progressive leaning ways and blindly sign petitions to run ‘independent candidates.’ This happened to me a few months back on the Upper West Side and having to pull the canvasser’s teeth about which candidate they were running - they finally relented and told me it was Adams. Blasphemy.

Here’s a great explainer on Rank Choice Voting too. If you’re really hype for a candidate, don’t just list them five times. Obviously write in your top pick in the #1 slot, but to help keep Eric and Andrew out of the race as much as possible, list your second and third choices etc. down the ballot. Yes, you can just fill in your top pick, but listing others down the ballot also helps with electing new leadership if you catch my draft. Listing your favorite candidate five times only helps the opposition. Rank wisely.

And if you’re unsure on who or how you want to rank, make sure to catch the first Mayoral Debate this Wednesday June 4 at 7PM ET on NBC.

New York (and Chicago), I Love You

For some, New York lately has been a bit ‘chilly.’ I welcome it obviously. The longer I can stave off the unwelcome heat and humidity of summer I’ll be happy. #WinterGirlie My windows are open. It’s already June and I have yet to turn on a single window unit and my weeks old bouquet of Trader Joe’s flowers are going strong on the kitchen table. I’ve only broken a sweat at physical therapy and only because they refuse to open the windows and let the cool air rush in. Rude.

New York has been kind. To close out the end of Taurus season, a friend and I ended up dining at Via Carota then capping the night off nearby at Smalls. I haven’t been to Smalls since the before times and it was a real treat to be back in such a hallowed jazz space again. Too — a few weeks earlier, we ascended The Whitney for a free Friday night taking in the equal parts breathtaking and heartbreaking Amy Sherald exhibit. To see her portrait of Breonna Taylor up close, to read about then see the detail of the engagement ring on her finger, it gave me chills to bear witness to such a tragic painting.

Elsewhere, where the Lower East Side meets Chinatown, I was lucky enough to catch the opening night festivities of ballerina Cassandra Trenary’s intimate portraits on display at Priv.y Gallery. Seeing the film prints of photos usually only reserved for her b-side instagram up close and personal (and amongst her subjects too) was a real New York moment. After I left, in no hurry to go home, I discovered a small plant shop, its warm light beckoning me to check it out as the sky slowly darkened into evening. Leaving the shop, and still not wanting to hop back onto the train to Brooklyn, I also stepped inside a well curated Korean homewares shop called Rainy Sunday Morning where small envelopes were hidden throughout the nooks and crannies, tucked behind artisan ceramics, jewelry, and even dishcloths. Each envelope held a thin piece of paper, the artist’s message to the consumer in beautiful, blue, slanting text. It was thoughtful. Intentional. The space was special. I left with a couple of postcard size flower prints that I hope to stick into some spare gold Ikea frames…

Shout out to thee Bryce Loren, producer extraordinaire, and founder of Black Women in TV & Film. She hosted a Sunday picnic this past May and it was truly a highlight to my spring. I caught up with familiar faces, met recent graduates, and somehow managed to co-win a pitch contest. My partner and I drew the theme ‘western’ and we spun a tale rich with Black cowboy history with a heavy dash of cross dressing adventure a la Mulan. It wasn’t until the end of the meetup that I realized it was the one year anniversary of Bryce creating the group. When I saw pictures of the first gathering, I realized I was there, in that group, having been invited in by Ludi. So to you both, I say thank you for creating such a strong community. Much needed given our industry’s turbulent times.

Speaking of fabulous Black women, I also managed to be influenced (hi Instagram) into nabbing a ticket to a Blk Getaway event. The event: wine tasting in the Hudson Valley. And while I was nervous leading up to the adventure, not knowing anyone else going, in the end I’m glad I went. We toured Benmarl and Whitecliff vineyards and wineries, discovered a new to me grape called seyval blanc, met amazing women, and while most folks weren’t pleased with the weather (cool, overcast), I was in heaven and hype for exploration.

But Chicago…. whew, what an odd 48 hours. I usually don’t have such a quick turnaround when visiting one of my favorite cities, but given the impromptu nature of the trip and my cousin’s availability to accommodate, I flew in on a Wednesday afternoon and was supposed to fly out that Friday morning. We hit the ground running after C got out of work and headed south to Hyde Park. With our separate plans dissolving by the minutes, we decided to say fuck it and she indulged me allowing us first to hit up an indie bookstore I’d been itching to visit — Call & Response. We met the owner, browsed for about an hour, I picked up Jacqueline Woodson’s Another Brooklyn (check out my full recap over on

mia read this

), and was reluctant to leave the cozy space. We wrapped our evening with drinks at Mesler then dinner at Virtue. Yes the blackened catfish paired with the collard greens and cornbread is that good.

That Thursday I was left to my own devices and did my usual walk north on the Lakefront Trail, past Adler, and eventually crossing precariously over Lakeshore Drive to arrive at the steps of Buckingham Fountain. I meandered through the Lurie Garden, didn’t go as far as Tribune Tower or the Wrigley Building this trip, but instead hopped on the Brown line (then a bus) toward my first order of business — a cute stationary shop in Andersonville. Along the way, I realized I was close to another bookstore on my Chicago indie list and did a quick detour into The Understudy where I found an acquaintance’s play. Finally making it over to Paper & Pencil, I rested on a bench, happy with some new and cute journaling supplies, and contemplated how to get my butt back south in time to prep for Beyoncé. With time on my side though, I took one last bus down to Chicago’s romance bookshop, The Last Chapter, and while the selection was meager, I did end up supporting by purchasing a fun new vinyl sticker.

And because my original plan for dinner at Monteverde was replaced with Virtue the previous evening, I took a Lyft to the Westloop for lunch. I was surprised by how packed it was for the middle of the day and with no reservation, was able to score a spot at the bar. Taking out my copy of Kennedy Ryan’s Before I Let Go, I settled in, ordered a dry white wine, and indulged in some too delicious cacio whey pepe pasta. Given the low hanging clouds and humidity, I was quite warm and the minute I hit my cousin’s apartment, I changed into my indoor clothes and did my best to pass the fuck out… but my rest lasted but half an hour before I was put to work to help prep for C’s Beyoncé pregame party.

To keep the story as short as possible, basically the evening was a bit of a shit show leading up to Queen Bey taking the stage. The pregame was poppin’, a pair of BFF Gen Alphas in our presence put on a dance show to “16 Carriages” while the concert was delayed til “past 9.pm.” given the accumulating severe weather, and between our proximity to Soldier Field, and Gen Alphas’ pleas to not ‘miss’ Beyoncé, we decided to chance our walk over given the current doppler readings. The goal was to make it to Soldier Field before the rain hit but alas, we were caught up in it two blocks into our journey, made a mad dash to my cousin’s friend’s nearby SUV, and managed to drive the rest of the way despite the sheets of rain, active power outage impacting traffic lights, and the fact that we could barely see out the SUV windows. I felt so bad for folks stuck in the thick of it outside… Miraculously we made it into the parking garage in record time and as we rode up in the elevator to the stadium itself, that’s when the sirens went off (sup tornado) and we were told to shelter in place.

At this point my nerves were shot but I was trying to remain calm for the kiddos. I was nervous about the mood of the crowd, the possibility of being crushed in some sort of stampede-like situation (I watch too much TV), but for the most part, everyone was there to party. At one point, a friend from high school spotted me in the crowd, we snapped a selfie, and somewhere around 10 p.m., the shelter in place order expired, and we were let into the stadium.

Now, I’m not a concert person. The most I do when it comes to live music is seeing Usher in middle school, a string of small venue, intimate, Lianne La Havas shows in New York, and I wouldn’t mind seeing Tiera Kennedy in some fashion, but with the hype surrounding Beyoncé and her ‘legendary’ and ‘life altering’ shows — I was a bit underwhelmed. Her voice was amazing. Her execution, flawless. But she was a tiny spec far away despite my 100 section ticket, I watched it mostly on the giant big screens, there was a questionable dancer on pointe, too much Renaissance, and the ‘experience of Beyoncé live’ did not meet my expectations… which not sure what they were to begin with. More story? More theatre? I still don’t know. I’m happy I went. I can say I saw Beyoncé, but I’ll stick to spending what little disposable income I have on books, ballets at Lincoln Center, broadway, and the WNBA.

To wrap out Chicago, I don’t think we made it back to my cousin’s til past 1 A.M. and head didn’t hit pillow til closer to 3 A.M. My flight later that morning was delayed three hours, and once we boarded, we spent another four hours on the O’Hare tarmac. But hey, got to be in the plane while it rocked back and forth, the sky turning brown, our windows plastered with dust, as Chicago experienced its literal first ever dust storm. #Historic. Once we were finally in the air, we rode turbulence the entire way. Never have I ever been so grateful to land safely at LaGuardia.

Back in New York, I found myself unexpectedly on Sesame Street, my cheeks literally hurting from smiling so much at meeting Elmo, Grover, Prairie Dawn, peeping Big Bird’s nest, and sitting on the iconic stoop. Thank you Bryce! Elsewhere, V, D, and I hit up The Met’s roof before it closes (until 2030!) and took our time walking the impressive Superfine: Tailoring Black Style exhibit. On the opposite side of town, one dreary and cool afternoon, L and I caught up over scallop crudo at Pastis on Gansevoort (I never know how to say this street name) then hit up the High Line and a string of galleries after. Y’all. Don’t sleep on the galleries in Chelsea. They’re free! Swiping through my photos, I wanted to share what my favorite piece or gallery was from that afternoon’s adventure but if I’m being honest, they were all so amazing and unique in their own way. Che Lovelace’s pieces at Nicola Vassel swept me away with their use of color, Malick Didibé’s use of reverse painted glass was so cool to see up close alongside his black and white photographs of newly liberated 1960s Bamako, Mali. Too, I got to see my first ever IRL Henry Osawa Tanner at the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery’s survey ‘Bienvenue: African American Artists in France,’ and it was fun seeing how close we could get to the giant Takashi Murakami paintings at Gagosian, trying to spot his little monsters.

And if you’re not tired of me yet, it’s finally time for the…

R.E.P.O.R.T.

Reading - Ooh so many delicious things. Loved Lottie Hazell’s Piglet, Road Trip Rivalry by Mona Shroff was an unexpected gem,

Kirthana Ramisetti

’s The Other Lata was a fun whirlwind of double and mistaken identities, and Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke was too good to put down and chilled me to the bone. Tia William’s latest Audre & Bash was such a joy to read, and you can find my in-depth review of Kennedy Ryan’s Before I Let Go here.

Eating - With the warmer months upon us, I stocked up on a fresh pint of Jimmy Butler’s Big Face x Van Leeuwen affogato ice cream and was so impressed by this strawberry cake at a staff dinner that I decided to make one myself. Also, when my friend A was in town, she treated herself to a fancy multi-course omakase dinner at Sushi Yasuda while I partook in two seared salmon filets to keep her company. We were quite the comical pair.

Playing - I have seen Sinners three times and cried at every single screening. Do yourself a favor and see this in theaters while you still can.

Obsessing - See Sinners (above). Can’t get enough.

Revelations - While I was raised to put others first, I think I’m going to try and enter a wee selfish era to see what comes of it. Wish me luck!

Treating - Given my recent birthday, I was blessed with a myriad of gift cards. I always vacillate between wanting to spend vs. wanting to hoard them, but I’ve been sitting on a Nike one since Christmas and finally used some on A’ja Wilson’s new satin lined hoodie. The pink is so bright and fun!

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That’s a wrap for this edition of musings. As always, thank you for reading. If you’re in New York, don’t’ forget to vote in the upcoming primary elections and also remember to d.r.e.a.m.

Stay safe. Stay vigilant. Vote. And take care of yourselves,

m.