Legacy

Cicely Tyson passed, and the world lost another cultural icon. Her new book just came out, and I recently watched an American Masters special featuring her and five other Black women entertainers who participated in the Civil Rights movement. Younger, contemporary stars like Halle Berry and Alicia Keys also speak about the six women's legacy. The documentary was called "How it feels to be free" and it might still be streaming on PBS's website. It was also based on a book.

I remember in school that we watched The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, and I was young enough not to know that the movie was fictional. I had some trouble hearing some of Jane's dialogue because she whisper spoke it, but nowadays I watched it with subtitles on HBO Max.

Meanwhile, there was some news about stock manipulation regarding GameStop and other companies. I've read a few explanations; it's something to do with "short squeeze," a tactic to counteract investors trying to do a "short sell." I don't really follow stocks that much, but I read that AMC's stock was also affected, and they took the opportunity to convert a lot of their debt. So now they are in a better position to survive until movies come back. That's an unexpected, but fortunate side effect.

New Things

I've discovered a new fruit. I thought I was buying regular navel oranges recently, but instead I got cara cara oranges; this is apparently a hybrid mutation with pinky red flesh like a grapefruit, but it tastes sweet and juicy, not sour and bitter. Where has this been all my life? I love it.

Meanwhile I bought a small laminator and used it to fix an ID badge I have. Worked great. I'll have to try to use it for other stuff like photos. I tried to buy Lego's latest Chinese New Year sets, but I'm too late yet again; they're all sold out already. They've got to manufacture more and realize how many Asian families around the world want the Lunar New Year stuff, not just Chinese families.

I heard that the Biden administration is going to get Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill now; the Trump Administration had delayed the issue until 2030 to avoid displeasing the bigot. I sure would like to get some Tubman currency this year, even if I won't spend cash that often. Most places want exact change or credit card.

Lupin and Batwoman

Meanwhile, the new Batwoman premiered on Sunday. They did a pretty good job setting up the new character Ryan, finding the suit in the plane crash, and learning to team up with the Bat crew. The writers are still playing with the idea that Kate Kane may have been killed or kidnapped by that Safiyah that's been mentioned. In the meantime, we'll have to see how Ryan deals with her kryptonite wound.

On Netflix, I watched the pilot of the new Lupin starring Omar Sy. I like it a lot, mixing fun heist with backstory about Assane Diop's history as an immigrant from Senegal, dealing with French white privilege. And due to his father's unjust arrest and suicide, Assane vows revenge and creates a new life for himself based on his last birthday gift, the book about Arsene Lupin. It's a nice way to reimagine the concept, and I'm glad they went with a Black hero.

A New Dawn

I was at work yesterday so I couldn't watch the inauguration, but I'm glad it went well. Now the Biden administration can get to work and we can have less chaos. I was also worried that there would be violent protests at state capitols, like the insurrection in D.C. but apparently everything was fine. Only a few people attended, perhaps scared off by the arrests. Or perhaps they were finally disillusioned like the Qanon people on the internet. Who knows?

I'm not sure how the Senate's going to schedule the 2nd impeachment with confirming Biden's new nominees, but hopefully they'll work it out. I want Cruz expelled for his sedition, but I don't know how to get it done. I signed a petition for it, but not sure it will do any good. Not sure if Cornyn will support ousting the guy he never liked, or will continue the same Republican attitude of party politics over country.

Anyway, onto tackling Covid, racism, and terrorism. Hope Biden will get on the issue of reuniting families at the border soon too.

Epiphany

Hooray for the double win in Georgia last night!! Both democrats won their runoff elections, and we'll finally have functioning Senate. This morning started out so great, full of hope.

Today is Epiphany or Three Kings Day, which in Christian tradition is the day the Magi visited Jesus after his birth. Historically, it was the end of the 12 days of Christmas. I'm not Christian myself, but have read about and seen TV specials with Lucy Worsley about old timey Christmas.

Nancy Pelosi also referenced Epiphany in her speech in the House tonight, returning after the mob stormed the capital. As Democrats, we also hope that Republicans will have an epiphany and finally realize that they can't keep coddling Trump's feelings or supporting his traitorous lies. God knows it's terrible that it took an armed insurrection in the Capitol, putting their own lives in danger, for them to finally talk about unity, democracy, and a sacred tradition of government. Trump and his cronies have run amok and stomped on norms and precedent for 4 years. It's only too much now?

Republicans could have joined the Democrats during impeachment a year ago, but no, they wanted to keep him in office despite all the chaos and shit that clings to him. I have no fucking idea why they didn't remove him from office in 2020 and get Pence instead. What a fucking hellish year we've been through as a consequence of their cowardice. Did that teach you anything, huh? Are you having any kind of moral and political epiphany? We'll see if people actually go through with using the 25th amendment, or if they're just gonna let him keep going again with some slap on the wrist.

Anyway, January 6th is also Sherlock Holmes's birthday, according to Sherlockians like the Baker Street Irregulars. The evidence is flimsy at best, but it's tradition. Another year, and another 3 short stories fall into the public domain. I believe that Three Gables, The Blanched Soldier, and the Lion's Mane are now out of copyright. Only 3 more Casebook stories are left for next year, so that's something to look forward to.

New Year

Apparently I missed the news this summer, about Mr. Malcolm's List. Constance Wu has joined the film as executive producer and she'll be taking over the part of Julia from Gemma Chan. I'm sorry to see Gemma go, but I suppose it could be due to schedule conflicts, since Covid delayed or cancelled a lot of projects. I'm glad to hear that the full length movie is still going forward. I do love a period film, though most of the time I prefer mysteries to romances.

Another period drama I've been watching is Cinemax's Warrior series, based on a concept from Bruce Lee. This show is set in San Francisco during the Tong Wars; the acting and historical details are great. It explores a lot of racial and political conflicts in the city's Chinatown, with some characters worried about the proposed Chinese Exclusion Act to stop immigration. One character is a white police officer from Georgia, whose family fought in the Confederacy, but he's surprisingly fair and kind to other races. Meanwhile, a lot of racist characters are Irish Americans who fought on the Union side in the Civil War, but they blame the Chinese for taking jobs from them during hard times. The series also shows a lot of complex women characters, and they aren't all in the brothel. That being said, the show contains lots of nudity, acrobatic sex, and violence. Apparently Cinemax isn't making TV shows anymore, so HBO Max is streaming the show now. Some fans are hoping that HBO Max might agree to order season 3 if the ratings are good. I'm not sure I'll finish the whole show because I have trouble telling characters apart and am not sure I can take all the gory deaths.