Six years ago, I started my album review of Kanye’s (sorry, Ye’s) Jesus is King with the line “I love Kanye. I love the old Kanye. I love the new Kanye”. Well, who would’ve thought that six years later we would be where we are now with the maverick artist? Unfortunately, Ye is just one of a litany of musicians afflicted, and often unsupported, with mental illness.
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I stand transfixed, a vibrant display of colour adorning the pale rock in front of me. Behind me, my recently acquired American friend is asking me something but I am completely oblivious, attempting in vain to piece together the story laid out before me on this natural tapestry. We had left behind the Pyramids in the heart of Cairo for this beautifully preserved temple in Abu Simbel, and I remained in my wide-eyed existential crisis.
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On the 14th of August 2016, quarterback Colin Kaepernick, was on the bench for a preseason NFL game. What he did next would plant the seeds for a movement that would unite and yet also divide the world.
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The most nervous I’ve ever been wasn’t for my medicine interview or the HSC. It was the morning of my first proper hard ball cricket match, as I had graduated from the soft ball shenanigans of the under 10s. I had a new bat, I practiced diligently and was going to be opening the batting. Everything was in place to shine. But when i finally got out there, I froze. For a whole hour, I was unable to be dismissed but also unable to score, reaching a grand total of 2 after twenty overs. The pain was finally ended by a run out, and I went home and cried. Thankfully my cricketing life has got somewhat better after that.
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I love unassuming trinkets. Connections to places, people, memories all packaged in an innocuous exterior. My once proud collection was now at one however. A cloth artwork, black and white taped to my grey wall. Every glance provoked a flood of memories, vibrant surges of joy, pangs of regret.
Continue readingNo, this is not another spotify one. On that note, yes every man and his dog been sharing theirs (me included) but it really has been fun getting a window into people’s diverse tastes. Kanye might not have had election success this year, but he did win my 2020 prize. Well done Ye.
But anyway I digress. Back to this comeback article. The phrase “unprecedented times” have been produced ad nauseum, so I’ll just say what have we learned in this…unusual…year?
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On a sweltering summer day in Newcastle, I was trudging through a park alone. Why you ask? Well in an addition to my growing list of car mishaps I had punctured my tyre on the highway, and was in the middle of the painful wait while I waited for my ride to be ready.
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A friend recently told me that I seemed like a different person each time we had caught up recently. And in essence, she was right- 2020, the year of finding oneself, has led me to test drive different personalities and outlooks. There was calm me, confident me, and a brash experiment where I attempted to incorporate a Dave Chappelle style of comedy into my daily interactions. The latter was harder than it looked on Netflix for sure.
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“We saw him as this bully sometimes. But that day he showed his compassion and empathy for all of us”. Steve Kerr’s closing remark at the fag end of The Last Dance is emblematic of the enigmatic picture of Jordan painted in Jason Hehir’s engrossing documentary. I finish it after five weeks of Monday nights that did their best to paper over the frustration of the absence of the NBA. I leave thinking, how do I see Michael Jordan, his Airness?
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Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy was alone. Not surrounded by thousands playing live, not live streaming to millions, not flocked by fans. ‘XXXTENTACION’ as he was known, this time, was alone, striding out of a motorcycle dealership. Was he scared? Did he feel vulnerable? We will never know. What we do know is that seconds later Onfroy was shot, and a life that oscillated between the sublime, horrific and confusing was ended, however you may feel about him, too soon.
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