Artistic Apathy

Am I “Escaping” Through Film and Television?

This has been a question on my mind recently.

I. like many other people on this spinning globe enjoy a good film or two. Even a long running television series.

But is it all a means of escapism or is it something deeper?

Let’s discuss.

Ever since I was young I’d been captivated by various characters and their stories through television, the screen and in books.

I remember having a real love for Pokémon as a child and it drove me to write stories of my own.

I was a kid that loved to play and goof off and spend time with my friends. As a child I had many things I could be doing but I often found myself sitting in front of the television a lot or buried in a book.

Was that child at that age looking for a means of escape or was he simply fascinated with the colorful and boisterous worlds that appeared out in front of him?

I would go with the latter. I know that film and television can be a means of escape for many from the daily droll of modern day life and it can be a problem. But not for me. I still do things I want to get done. I’ll admit that a lot of times I don’t find my life as exciting as the stories on the screen and escapism may play a small part but there’s something bigger at play.

For me stories are a way of life. Stories, whether fictional or factual, inspire me, put me in a different state of mind and motivate me to write stories of my own. Anything that inspires you to create or break up your daily monotonous routine is purely worth it.

I’ve created stories since I was a little boy and new stories inspire me to create more and give me new ideas.

It’s not to say that you can’t have too much of it. Yes, you should get out and make your dreams come true and not live your life through fictional characters but stories bring people together, get them talking, inspire and motivate.

This is a question I’ve asked myself because maybe deep down there is more I could be doing but by no means are movies/entertainment a waste of time by any means.

I think it all lies in the balance between the two. Consuming and creating. In this world today it’s hard not to be a consumer but whether you end up a victim is entirely up to you.

“Top Boy” Netflix Series Review

Without revealing too much, fans of American crime dramas, especially ones that deal with urban plight will love this show.

Over the course of this week I’ve had the pleasure of binge-watching one of Netflix’s best shows and one of the best shows I’ve recently seen: Netflix’s Top Boy.

So what’s good about it?

Take everything you love about American crime dramas and make it British.

The show provides an insight into the seedy underbelly of the London streets that’s not often documented–that is unless you listen to the heavily popular Grime music genre.

Gangsters or roadmen as they’re called in London localized vernacular, traffic drugs in and out of their London council estate.

They’re just like American drug runners except, er, a bit different. They have their own slang, their own way of doing things and this series displays that lifestyle brilliantly. So much that I want to adopt some of the slang I hear being used in the show.

But enough about the slang or appearances… We want to hear about the meat of this sandwich, right? The actual content that makes this show riveting.

Continuing off where Top Boy: Summerhouse left off, the show follows Dushane and Sully again and this time a newcomer–a young “yute” named Jamie.

Jamie is the leader of The Fields (later they come together to form a gang known as the ZTs.) While Dushane and Sully run the Summerhouse council estate. Both have one object: making money. Whoever stands in the way of that should heed warning.

The story basically boils down to the two vying for control of the local drug market in their council estates. Simple enough plot but you are pulled in with the direction of the story and the thrill of being on the edge of your seat not knowing who will make a move when and how.

Without revealing too much, fans of American crime dramas, especially ones that deal with urban plight will love this show. As long as they can get past the accents and the sometimes confusing vernacular. That in and of itself should not stop you however from enjoying this ride of a show.

This show will send you on a ride you won’t want to forget with characters that feel real and palpable.

I give Netflix’s Top Boy a 4 out of 5.

This has been my review. What did you think? Will you stream it? Have thoughts on the show as a whole? Comment down below! Until next time.

Days Gone By

Days, days, days… they slip away one by one.

They seem to blend together to create one long continuous day. Time is no longer a factor.

What will you do with your “time?” Days… One foot in the grave, one foot out.

A kinship with death, inseparable.

The clock is ticking. Time is running out.

Will you try to make everything happen before it’s too late or just lie down and take it?

Days… what does it mean to be here.

Something more…

Journal – Oct. 11, 2019

I have no more thoughts about people.

And I don’t mean to say that I dislike people or I discount them.

What I mean is I have no more judgements about people.

No more pre-conceived notions of who they are based on something as unreliable as appearance or any other trivial thing.

But this is a good thing right? It’s better I don’t judge a book based on its cover or by a single action. I’m much happier this way.

This way everyone is equal in my eyes. No one is “good” or “bad.”

I heard someone once say “to judge is to suffer.” I find that holds true. If you’re constantly labeling things as either good or bad, if you exist in these two polarities, you will find misery…

Inheritors of the Earth

Today I was walking along my usual trail and a thought occurred to me. I looked at the lush green forest and the riverbank and I thought to myself “this is all mine.”

The bible says in its text that we are inheritors of sin, passed down from Adam and Eve. Well even better, what if we’re inheritors of this Earth that we walk on?

What if we inherited the paradise that they called the Garden of Eden? What if this heaven that so many seek is here on this very green earth?

We are born in this world and some are luckier than others, I know this. That still doesn’t mean you are at a disadvantage. You have all the advantages. This entire world was made for you. Who else is going to seize it if not you? Who is going to take ownership of it? Who is going to maintain it?

It is our obligation to maintain this Earth that we call our residence. Our home is not our home like they say but everywhere is our home. And still we trash our home everyday and we have little regard for it. It’s sad really. Not just literally but we also trash it with our antagonizing of other people: road rage, racist remarks, violence in the streets.

I don’t want to go into a whole tangent but just know that this world is like a huge sandbox just waiting for you to play in. Sure there are some places you legally cannot cross but people have even found ways around that. Forget about borders, forget about all these manmade constructs like time and dates and the like.

Forgot about all your limitations and live in this wonderful planet that we are so fortunate to live in.

Just some thoughts I’d share. Thank you for listening.