Skip to main content

Sunday Sundown Rundown - 4/18/21


 
3 Up

1. St. Louis Elects First Black Mayor - It's kind of crazy to think that the newly elected Tishaura Jones is the first black woman elected as the Mayor of St. Louis - but then again, considering ALL of history, it's really not all that crazy. Representation matters in governance, and we're seeing a lot more of it across the country. 

Jones' comments after the win are also interesting, "We are done avoiding race and how it holds this region back." 

The election also saw an uptick in voter turnout as well. 

2. St. Vincent and Grenadines Relief Effort - I'm cheating on this "up" as I'm tied to the situation, but it's awesome, nonetheless. This week, the island of St. Vincent had two massive volcano eruptions leading to evacuations, resource shortages, devastation, and ash covering the island and neighboring islands as well. The relief efforts for those displaced have been amazing from the many Caribbean and West Indian individuals to other countries giving aid. 

3. Jackie Robinson Weekend - Jackie Robinson day(s) in Major League Baseball will never NOT be cool to me. Robinson's legacy is one that has taken a turn of whitewashing and "comforting" change to his narrative, but for now the core is there - this man did a lot to bridge some serious gaps! 

Also, it's a reminder that he didn't HAVE to endure what he did. He really didn't. This will always be at the core of his story. He didn't "break barriers", he endured one. 

3 Down

1. Police Shootings - If the Derek Chauvin trial wasn't enough, the week brought us everything that was Daunte Wright, just to layer it with the horrifying video that was Adam Toledo. And yeah, it sprinkled in this head-shaking story. Yeah, the distrust of police by people of color hasn't gotten any better.

On a personal note, just this weekend while driving in Brooklyn, I witnessed a car summoned to be pulled over by a police car. After pulling over to the side at a major intersection, the officers began slamming the side of the citizen's car as they approached the driver's window - upon witnessing that, many suddenly hands with phones aimed were extended out of the car windows at the site. Of course, with many others doing so on the sidewalk. That's the world we're in now. 

2. Mass Shootings - Another week, more senseless shootings, and more heartwrenching realities of the lives lost and the families devastated. America has a gun problem, period. I'm not sure what else can be said here. 

3. European Super League - This is absolutely absurd. The greed among these teams who are defecting to create their own league mid-week among the already established Premier League is head-shakingly bad. Just a bad look for football/soccer. 

2 Interesting

1. President Biden Ends War - The United States military has been in Afghanistan for so long, I'm not even sure I know the real reason why we're still there. I'll have some research to do. President Trump deserves some credit for not engaging the US in,  another war (besides the one at home - for another post, obviously), and now, President Biden is bringing troops home - should be interesting to see this play out. 

2. Dwyane Wade Jazz Ownership - The Utah Jazz now has Dwyane Wade as a minority owner of their franchise. From the perspective of a former player investing in the league with another franchise, not the one his legacy is synonymous with (hello: Derek Jeter), to it being well, we're talking about Utah! - this has all the makings of a door being kicked down. 

I guess we'll see...

1 Honorable

1. U.S. Capitol Police Officer William Evans - It was tough watching Officer Evans' son hold the bear his dad gave him while circling his father's casket. Officer Evans recieved the honoring and celebration he deserved for his service. Because really, his dad died, for what? For what?!! So sad. 

Recent Favorites

Dome Pondering Movie Review: The Incredibles 2 (2018)

What is it about? The Parr family returns to take on a new mission which involves a change in family roles as well as a new villain. Who is in it? Craig T. Nelson - Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible Holly Hunter - Helen Parr/Elastagirl Sarah Powell - Violet Parr Favorite Scene: After trying to contain Jack-Jack, his constant battle with a backyard rodent opens up the family to the multitude of powers that he possesses, or even, can develop. Favorite Quote: "If you wanna get out of the hole, first you gotta put down the shovel." Review: Like many, I LOVED the original Incredibles film. And yes, I too was annoyed whenever a sequel wasn't announced. After all, there were many franchises that debuted, got a sequel, and even moved straight to release on their third installment before our lovable heroic family got their turn! But I digress... Nonetheless, it finally arrived. And if I'm being honest, The Incredibles 2 was good. It just wasn't what I wa

AEW All IN: London (2023) Review: "This large of a crowd for an event that wasn't the WWE!"

I'm obviously registering these thoughts incredibly late, but such is the current state of pro wrestling right now - there is just so much going on, and so much to enjoy. It's a great time to be a fan, regardless of where your tribalism fandom falls - if you carry such allegiances.  I'm sure no matter what product you find entertaining, you circled AEW's All In event from Wembley Stadium as a must-watch. I don't care about someone else's "take" on the attendance total - I couldn't care less if it was the record for a pro wrestling event or not - what AEW was able to accomplish is absolutely amazing! Four years in, and the company produced an event on the levels of Wrestlemania in terms of attendance and business - that's damn impressive! Tony Khan and the entire company deserve loads of credit for taking that leap because it very much could have failed. They took a chance, and absolutely delivered (and so much more), and proved there is a subs

Sunday Sundown Rundown - 9/10/23

3 Up 1. Coco Gauf & Novak Djokovic - The US Open wrapped up this weekend and tennis crowned some deserving champions. Djokovic continues to add to a remarkable career with his 24th (!!) grand slam title win. And of course, Coco Gauff won over America with her win. It's impressive to see the effect that the Williams sisters have had on tennis - wow. Looking forward to seeing the star Gauff will become.  2. Olivia Rodrigo - Her first album was fire. Even this late-thirties male enjoyed it. The sophomore album is always the toughest and Rodrigo apparently (haven't listened to it myself, yet) dropped an absolute banger in "Guts". So much so, that it broke records for debut stream with over 60 million streams!  3. Deion Sanders - There's way to much dialogue around Sanders that isn't needed. Here is what it boils down to for me - Sanders took over a program that was 1-11. He brought in 80+ players. His team is currently 2-0, including victories over a ranked op