4/25/2016 Lil Yachty for VFiles

I show up late of course thinking the line wasn't going to be bad. I arrive at 6:15pm or so when the listed times is 6-8:30. FAIL. Yachty popped his head out the third floor showroom and the side doors here and there. The scene was chaotic and managed poorly. V-Files did what they could do. The shop is like a sardine can, not designed for this size crowd of course. Enjoy the pictures and video. I'm playing around on iMovie etc. 

4/27/2016 Just A Lil Thick Pop-Up Event at Villain LLC

Fried Chicken and Beer. These two were the main draws for this video release event for Trinidad James' newest video, Just A Lil Thick, an ode to bigger gals. An hour into the event and the fried chicken was still flowing. The DJ spun jams and a full figured dance company, Pretty Big, did a set on the floor in prep for the other openers.

Mystikal took the stage and did about 5 or 6 of his usual classic bangers. 

Lil Dicky came next and performed $ave Dat Money, while wearing his Trojan condoms sponsorship hat.

Trinidad James opened with some track off his mixtapes and then went into All Gold Everything leading into a performance of Just A Lil Thick video sing-a-long followed by an encore of the track after.

4/6/2016 Converse Rubber Tracks Presents BOSCO and T-Pain at Williamsburg Music Hall

Doors opened at 8 apparently. I got there shortly around 9. I have troubles with the guest list and tickets. Nothing a call and text couldn't fix. Apparently there were some last minute changes at the venue. My entrance begins as Bosco began her set with DJ Speakerfoxxx. She goes through her set list, including a finale with her rapping in the crowd. 

 

T-Pain comes out and goes through an hour and and a half of his hits. The man has hits and can turn up a crowd. 

 

 

4/6/2016 I'm Gonna Die

My day starts EARLY. I made an appointment the day before to go to my Rheumatologist at 10:30am over the phone the night before. I explain them my new insurance, and I was given the ok to just come in. I get in at right around my appointment time and and told they don't accept that insurance. I have a new health insurance plan, which is a Medicaid plan that I chose provided by Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield HealthPlus. They told me they accept Fidelis, Healthfirst, and various other Medicaid options, that I didn't select. 

I get on my phone and select the Healthfirst plan to transfer my health plan so that I can get service, which will begin on the first of next month. FUCK. Its April 6th, all thats going through my mind is 'I have to wait all of April in order to get my meds and knee drained?!'. I ask about how to get service now and soon since I hadn't had Methotrexate for about 2 weeks. I have acute joint swellings, but nothin severe lately. The attendant there calls up another place nearby to see if they accept my current plan to get seen. I go there and that tidbit will be explained later. This was my first strike of the day.

I go off to get lunch here next, Sweetgreen. I like the Harvest bowl with the wild rice and goat cheese. I'm trying to minimize the amount of red meat and dairy as that is fatty and dairy is difficult to process. I think this is the best value. The Spring seasonal dishes are next on my list to try especially the Beets Don't Kale My Vibe dish. All 3 look good actually. The photo below is right before it got busy. Within 15 minutes of taking this, the place was SWAMPED. I was busy enjoying my meal, people watching, and charging my phone. I had drained my battery while at the Rheumatologist's office.

After charging up, I went around the corner to my usual dentist, Lawrence Wang of Madison Square Dentistry. Gabby who works the front desk greeted me as usual. I had been going here for the last 3 years about, once every six months. I went to check if my Medicaid was accepted. NOPE. I was emailed a list of the insurances that they accept, all of which were PPOs. I will be having to get a different dentist, provided under the new plan:(

After dealing with that second strike headache, I head to this place nearby to see If I could get a prescription for Methotrexate. I get in, fill out the paperwork, and wait like usual. This place is looks like it just popped up or something and is mad sus from the look of the front from this photo I posted, but they were good. The doctor asked about what I was there for and I told her. She said she wouldn't give me a script for the Methotrexate due to the black box warnings on it. I would need to go see a specialist to get my blood testing and such with them. I was like FUCK. I would have to wait until the end of the month when I'm able to see my usual doctor because of the insurance coverage. I leave this and head downtown.

I head to the Stanton Tailor Shop to pick up my blazer and jeans. I get there and he has trouble finding my jeans. It turns out they hadn't been worked on yet. Even though I show up one day later than expected, they aren't done. His workers get on that immediately and tells me, 'Come back 1 hour'. I was going to wait there but decided to go around the corner. 

I go around the block and hit this place up. Economy Candy is a sweet tooth's wet dream. This place has mad varieties of candies in bulk and great pricing. It has been around since 1937, and the guy running it now is the grandson of the original owner I believe. I picked up a few things as shown below. I went across the street to pick up the two juices as well. I needed to get my nutrients somehow. I used the green to get some greens and the other one to get some cleansing, via the beet juice in it. 

I ride home with my completed jeans and jacket, and take a nap. I then get up in a few hours to head back into the city. I bike in to meet up in the chilly night near my former work. I go by my work and run into one of my former drivers. I ask for a ride over the Williamsburg with my bike in tow. He obliges and drops me off. Thats what the photo below is. I get caught up behind a G-Wagon in my boy's Camry Uber. Listening to Slime Season 3 and charging my phone at the same time while in the front seat was my idea of a quality Uber ride. I ride through Brooklyn from Metropolitan and the BQE home, to just ride back:(............

Medicaid is health insurance everyone can have, but not everyone takes. If I die, blame it on Medicaid, trying to figure out who accepts it. In order to not die from the illness, I'll die from having to pay the medical bills.

4/1/2016 Half Successful

Today was a day for running errands, a mission for the day. I ticked off as many of the objectives possible. I was trying to do as much as possible, get in and out, because today is Friday. I had to carry my backpack in today. The bag was packed with a suit jacket, two pairs of jeans, and my bike lock. The weather forecast for this day was relatively pretty good at a high of upper 60s I believe. I was definitely sweating after I got over the bridge. 

First, for the agenda today was to get my suit jacket sleeves on an OAMC jacket shortened. I am 5'8, and these sleeves easily swallowed half my palms. I come here on the referral of a twitter follower. Apparently he has been around for over a quarter of a century, and his clean website. 

Across from Arlene's Grocery, and relatively nondescript of an awning, I walk into the office of Pablo and his company of Stanton Tailor Shop. Spanish was flying from a customer and the crew immediately as I stepped in and waited. I pull out my jacket from my jacket, slip it on, and hop on the raised platform with mirrors to let the guy in charge pin my sleeve up to know how much to take it up. Next were my APC jeans. I showed the crotch area and explained I needed this to be reinforced from the unraveling that was taking place at the joint section of the four leg panels. 

I go around the corner next to Self Edge. I bring my RRL jeans with a crotch blow out and leave them here. The turnaround time here was three week. Stanton's tailor shop said next week for both my jeans and jacket. Pricing between the two were relatively equal. I am interested in the quality of work by both once I receive them back. 

After this place, I head up to Dover Street Market to speak to the manager Hunderson there, but I couldn't find him. I also run into Jenny, a former co-worker, and find Marcela nowhere to be found. I talk to Ross, one of the guys who works on the second floor here for a second. I struckout in finding Hunderson. I head over to my Rheumatologist a few blocks away on my way to Stumptown also to make an appointment and update my medical insurance. Little did I know that they close very early on Friday, at 1pm. I arrive at like 5 or so. Crap. 2 Hits and 2 strikes so far. I head up to Duane Reade on 34th and pick up my prescription. I wanted to update my insurance there as well. I start digging in my pockets and all the compartments in my backpack. I can't find my insurance card info. I later realized I forgot the medical card and rent check on a shelf in the stairwell of my building when I got back home. Luckily the Pharmacist let me rock and update it next time. 

I roll through next to Stumptown to try a Coconut cream cold brew and a sticky bun pastry. Both were new things for me. The coco cream cold brew is like a true vegan mixture, but it leaves an aftertaste in my mind. The sticky bun is super sticky. It was very thick as well and has many air crisps in my mind similar to that a croissant. I also use this time to charge up my phone while I wait. Bless the baristas of Stumptown Midtown NYC.

 

I went to get a grilled chopped chicken banh mi next. The price of it was about 9 dollars. I like Henry's better, cheaper and same or more in quantity in Park Slope.

I ride home and see a 300zx on my way home, but couldn't get a clear pic. Seeing that model, in a good running and clean condition after such a long time is rare as it is over 20 years old usually. 

In the end, I completed the objectives of dropping off my jacket and jeans, got my prescription, and got dinner. I struck out in finding Hunderson at Dover Street Market, making an appointment and updating my insurance at my Rheumatologist, and didn't update my insurance at Duane Reade as well. That was what I meant by the title of Half Successful for today.

3/31/2016 To Be Continued.....

So I decided to wash my two of my jeans two days ago. I took a million photos of them; before, during, and after. The details are as follows. I took photos in the natural sunlight coming into my room as much as possible. I filled my tub with warm water. I threw the two into the tub, and gave the jeans some agitation with my hands to get the grime and muck from the outside and in the pockets off. The reason I did this was to be able to drop off my jeans at the repair shops the following day. Luckily NYC has some shops with darning machines which create denim to fill in the rips. I wanted to only fill in the crotch rips on the RRL and reinforce the APC jeans.

Before: APC+RRL Front and Back

 

Before: RRL Back and Back Top

 

Before: RRL Front Top and Buttons

 

Before : APC Front and Crotch

 

Before: APC Front Top and Front Top 2

   

Before: APC Back Top and Back Bottom

 

Before: APC Inside Crotch Patches and Inside Back Patches

 

During: Clear Water Tub and Some Agitation Tub

 

During: Tub Detail and After Water

 

During: Hanging APCS+RRL and Tub Residue

After: Both APC+RRL Front

After: APC Front Top and Front Bottom

 

After: RRL Front Top and Front Bottom

 

After: RRL Back

 

After: RRL Back Top and Back Bottom