There are so many benefits to living downtown in any city, everything could be so close-by if you chose your spot right. I got it right when I moved to Minneapolis. Bars, cafes, Twins/Vikings stadium, my office, running trail and the library are all within ten blocks.
With this new setting came new habits. One being the frequency of my visits to the library – probably more than I have in my entire lifetime. I get books, dvds, audiotapes, magazines and all sorts of old newspapers to read whenever I can. But one thing I do so consistently is to borrow a dvd whenever I visit the library. This rich and unrestrained collection of history and stories has become quite fun to peruse.
My dvd choice varies; I am not confined to the sort of framework analysis that comes into to play when I buy a dvd for my collection (which I hardly do), or rent from a video rental store. I go crazy like a kid in the candy store – anything that peaks my interest. And I must say that I have learnt a lot about myself in the process. I make better dvd choice when I freewill and do not analyze a lot (can’t do without a little bit☺).
Some of the dvds I got recently are documentaries on past famous figures like Mary Cassat - the only American to exhibit with the Impressionist group (Paris Salon) in late 19th century Paris, which members included the likes of Degas, Monet, Renoir, and Pissarro. In 1868 the selection jury for the Paris Salon accepted one of her paintings, A Mandoline Player, for the first time – check it out, it’s lovely. The feminist would like her – she represented everything a modern day feminist would aspire to…
I have also seen Ray Charles - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival (2002). Filmed in 1997, the 18-song, approx. 1hr show features Charles on the keyboard and at the tail end with his band. I saw the movie RAY, seeing this performance at the Montreux unravels the man to me. He was quite an “act”
Growing up in Nigeria I always wanted to go see Fela Anikulapo Kuti – the Afrobeat King and legendary Nigerian musician, at his music Shrine, but it never happened. Today, I watched a live recording of his son Femi Kuti (Femi Kuti, live at the Shrine) - an explosive blend fusing jazz, funk, and traditional African music. Live At The Shrine takes place in the Kuti family’s hometown of Lagos at the Africa Shrine, where every Sunday Femi plays to a packed house of revelers. I have to check it out on my next trip.
I’ve got “This is ELVIS” A film biography of Elvis Priestly for my next project. Mary, Ray, Fela, Femi and Elvis all had one thing in common – ability to build stage presence.
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