THE PHOTOGRAPH is a love story, in fact it is two love stories connected by a photograph.

When Christine Eames (Chanté Adams), a renowned photographer dies she leaves her daughter Mae (Issa Rae) a photograph and two letters.  One she has written to her and one to be given to her father.

Christina and Mae were never close, in fact, Mae was never sure if her mother really loved her. As she reads the letter, she finds out so much about her mother and why she was the way she was. Through the letter we are taken back to view the life and love of Christina and her boyfriend Issac (Y’lan Noel – young Issac).  They loved each other but Christina needed more and Issac was content to be where he was.  She wanted to see the world and tell a story through the eye of her camera while Issac just wanted to be devoted to her and live out their lives in their small Louisiana town. Their love story is deep, somewhat predictable but draws you. 

After Christine’s death, journalist Michael Brock (Lakeith Stanfield) has the assignment of writing a in depth story about her. He meets Issac (Rob Morgan – older Issac) in Louisiana to get apart of the story of her past. He then comes back to New York and meets Mae and is immediately attracted to her. Their love story begins here. 

It was refreshing watching a true love story of color that didn’t have any violence, jail time, cheating or affairs. These were two love stories that any one of us may or could have no matter our circumstances or upbringing.

There are a lot of insecurities, commitment issues, and awakenings portrayed in this film.  Writer/Director Stella wrote a heart felt story of two women who loved but had to make hard decisions.

While I found the love story between Christina and Issac a little more interesting than between Mae and Michael.  It felt that Mae and Michael’s story dragged some with the long lingering looks and a few heavy sighs.  I also found the parallels between Christina’s mom and Christina eye opening with the choices they both made at almost the same time of their lives.

THE PHOTOGRAPH is worth spending the money to see it theaters.  I give it 4 out of 5 winks of the EYE.

Until next time, keep your EYE to the sky!

So here I am, years down the road from the start of my journey to redemption. It took a while, but I’ve confronted and mostly overcome the obstacles that stood in the way. My white knuckle grip on the wheel has eased and I’m coasting comfortably in cruise control.

Along the way I wrote in my journal describing both the breakdowns and surges of power as I charted my emotional cartography. It made for a powerful story and when I reached the end of the challenging uphill climbs and perilous switchbacks that demanded my full commitment, I published the memoir as a way to share the adventure and perhaps help others with common backgrounds and enthusiasm for adding joy and meaning to the years that remained.

So what’s left to do? “Enjoy life,” you say, “With GPS laying out the route all you have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride.”

And therein lies the pitfall, confusing the satisfaction and contentment of “being in the moment,” as rationalization for merely marching in place.

When I am aware, focused, my antenna raised, taking in the energy that pulses through the universe, it is fulfilling and rewarding. But it is a two-way process. We transmit energy as well as receive it. I must be wary of sitting in front of the buddha, being mindless rather than mindful! It’s easy to use my meditation as an excuse for leaving the bed unmade and the dishes unwashed, postponing the start of the day rather than welcoming it with eager expectation.

For me, the danger is slipping into a do-nothing rut and allowing that groove to grow deep, until – alarm bells – I’m stuck in the last chapter of my memoir. Which is antithetical to what that chapter describes – the joy of turning anxiety into anticipation and overcoming fear with the lure of unknown adventures. Years of mulling over the past led to a conclusion about what was driving me, but the end of the biography is not the end of the journey. To the contrary; it’s the terminus for changes in how I manage my life and recalibrate going forward.

I’ve added dimension to my quest for personal peace having learned to accept both ‘what is’ and ‘what is not.’ My goal is a clearly defined boundary protecting me from my arrogance in thinking I have the power to change the behavior of others, and conversely keeping me focused on what I can do; mainly, tell my story whenever an audience appears.

I am not thinking about ‘performance’ when I refer to audience; rather my willingness to reveal the path of my life and offer its lessons, so painfully learned, to any takers.

All of us have within us, a light to shine. Not as gurus or sainted persons, but as the authors of the lives we live, using the tutorial of the past as syllabi for the way forward. The book is not closed.

Tired of waiting for summer?

Why wait?

The snow may be lingering outside but that hasn’t stopped Aba from opening up their spectacular outdoor patio.

Look up and you’ll see the heating elements above, Photo: Carole Kuhrt-Brewer

We stopped by, the popular Fulton Market hotspot on the final Sunday of Chicago Restaurant Week to sample their CRW brunch menu.
The “outdoor” patio, that is partially-enclosed for winter, was beckoning. 
I stepped “outside,” with tables adjacent the snow.  Surprisingly the temperature felt quite comfortable due to the blazing fire pits, heating elements in the ceiling and blankets in baskets nearby–just in case.
Let it snow! We were perfectly comfortable at our table adjacent the snow. Photo: Carole Kuhrt-Brewer

Across the land in prison cells

Whose space would harden me.

The inmates are more courteous

And now say “Pardon me.”

Hundreds of old cassette tapes were sitting in storage for the last ten years, and I finally had them back in my possession. The problem is, what to do with them now? Some are old band tapes that I want to transfer to mp3s, but many were mixtapes or copies of the real thing.

For instance, my older brother kept on losing The Smiths, Strangeways Here We Come, so I dubbed a copy for the car. It didn’t sound as good, but I always knew that it would be right where I left it.

Speaking of cars, how many tapes did you have in your car? I think I had over 50, stored in bins, plus the ones that were spilling over the cup holders, onto the passenger seat.

Anyways, I donated them to a person on Craigslist looking to do a project, who had never owned any cassette tapes. It actually made me feel good. But, I still kept the real ones, the original ones, even though most of them sound like shit. Now it got me thinking about vinyl’s triumphant return, and I wondered to myself, “Would cassette tapes ever make a comeback?”

Here are 5 Reasons Why The Cassette Is Not Making A Comeback.

1.) Sound quality. As an audiophile, did it ever really sound that good? I don’t think it had the warmth of vinyl or the clarity of CDs.

2.) Longevity. Didn’t the tape easily get crinkled or ripped, or stuck, or twisted? They just don’t last as well as other forms of music.

3.) Art and Information. There’s not a lot of room for lyrics or information. Even in later days when the jackets would fold out, you still had to squint to read them and there’s just not a very broad canvas for the cover art. CDs and records can stand upright, being displayed next to the player, showcasing the artwork.

4.) The hiss. I’d rather hear a record pop, than a tape hiss, because the hiss is constant. On some of these older tapes, the hiss never ends. Every listen is important, and if a record keeps popping or if a tape keeps hissing, I’m going to turn them both off.

5.) Streaming is just too easy for anyone to go back to cassettes anymore. It has ruined almost every format of music. CDs and vinyl have stayed afloat, but after the advent of streaming, the tape just doesn’t offer up enough to survive. Who wants to rewind, or fast-forward, when you can just click and play.

I know what you’re thinking, there are several artists releasing their new music on tape. As a matter of fact, I’m a huge fan of Polyvinyl, and they are doing this with most of their new releases. But, the point I’m trying to make is that is there isn’t as much value in buying a new cassette. The sound quality isn’t as good as vinyl and tapes are too much work. You don’t get a lot of bang for your buck, where I feel you do with vinyl.

What does the jury say? Are they still out, or have they come back?

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Try as hard as you might to pretend that you had not much–make that nothing–to do with the rise and fall of former governor and convicted felon Rod Blagojevich, you, Illinois Democrats, created and nurtured him.

He was the scion of the Chicago, Cook County and Illinois Democrat party and your efforts to disown him are laughable and pitiable.

Worse, the system that him is the same corrupt and criminal enterprise that exists today.

For the full history of how Democrats inflicted Blago on the people and state of Illinois turn to John Kass in this morning’s Chicago Tribune, “The Shawshank Rod Blagojevich Redemption Tour begins”.

In better days when J.B. Pritzker and Gov. Rod Blagojevich were pals. (Chicago Tribune )

Now in a futile attempt to disown Blagojevich, condemnations rain down on him from on high in the party. Most notably, Gov. J.B. Pritzker. He issued a statement, presumably with a straight face:

Illinoisans have endured far too much corruption, and we must send a message to politicians that corrupt practices will no longer be tolerated. President Trump has abused his pardon power in inexplicable ways to reward his friends and condone corruption, and I deeply believes [sic] this pardon sends the wrong message at the wrong time. I’m committed to continuing to take clear and decisive steps this spring to prevent politicians from using their offices for personal gain, and I will continue to approach this work with that firm conviction.

Oh, sure.

Let us turn to Austin Berg, Vice President of Marketing for the Illinois Policy Institute, who adroitly exposes Pritzker for the hypocrite that he is in this: Blagojevich returns to an Illinois as corrupt as he left it.

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