Share: Hispanic Heritage Month ended on October 15, but the Latino-owned businesses of Pasadena continue bringing flavor and authenticity to the community all year long. As we close out the season honoring the cultures and independence of Central American nations, we can still take the time to highlight the significant contributions of the Hispanic and Latine communities as business owners, artists and farmers. Cafe De Leche: A campus coffee shop with cultural flavors Located at Pasadena City College, right in front of the E Building …
‘Ubu Roi’ fails to deliver sense or substance, but comes through on laughs
Share: The ominous synth beat of Fever Ray’s “If I Had A Heart,” plays over darkness. Lights rise on a cartoonishly styled couple seated at opposite ends of a long dining table set with a feast of inflatable chicken. “Papa Turd,” lets out a long, thunderous fart then utters the first word of Alfred Jarry’s play “Ubu Roi”: “Merdre.” Shit, in French. But with an extra “r,” thrown in for silly spice. Papa Turd and his wife, Mama Turd, then quickly hatch a plan to …
Audiences roared with applause for ‘Dragon Lady’
Share: “Dragon Lady” is the first installment in a trilogy titled “The Dragon Cycle” about playwright and star Sara Porkalob’s “Filipino American gangster family” as she describes it. Each play follows a female protagonist from a different generation of Porkalob’s family; her grandmother, her mother, and herself. The show is a two-act cabaret musical that opens with Maria Porkalob Sr. expressing her frustration with the ingratitude with which she feels her children–her eldest daughter in particular–treat her on the eve of her 60th birthday. In …
A goat peed on my yoga mat and it was the highlight of my weekend
Share: Hello Critters Goat Yoga invited everyone nearby the Pasadena community to attend their September 28 event and learn about the estate of the Gamble House while stretching with goats. The organization travels all around to different venues to share their goats while doing yoga for a relaxing and joyful experience. Trying out goat yoga for the first time was a very fun and calming experience. I went into the session thinking it would be just a quirky activity, but it turned out to be …
“Folie à Deux”: A Franchise’s Killing Joke
Share: “Folie à Deux”, the sequel to the hit movie “Joker”, released in the United States this weekend. The sequel stars Joaquin Phoenix returning as Joker and newcomer Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, the eccentric girlfriend and partner in crime of the Joker, in a film that feels as dark and depressing as the original, and that seems to many fans an attempted money grab that no one asked for. When “Folie à Deux” was announced, the first idea discussed was the Joker meeting Quinn. …
PCC celebrates centennial with cakes, concerts and candy
Share: A red, rectangular piñata that reads “PCC 100” hung outside the bridge between Lancer Pass and the Quad inside Pasadena City College. Children lined up in a single file to pull down the piñata with thinned strings instead of a bat, with each child pulling a string one at a time for the trap door to open. As the bottom fell out, the children ran towards the floor to pick up as much candy as possible. “This is Latin Heritage Month as well. So …
Dumb phone, dumb life: I felt stupid without my smartphone
Share: From having #FOMO to doom scrolling to now brainrotting, the social media lexicon continues to grow, and the buzzwords that float around social media begin to signal that something is wrong. As dramatic as it sounds, it’s a well known fact that social media is destructive to our health. It’s attacking our self esteem and body image, our attention span and critical thinking. These attacks place future generations in a vulnerable position. Just this past week Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law that …
‘Megalopolis’ is a crime against humanity, but watch it anyway
Share: Drugs are bad kids, but if you’re Francis Ford Coppola, you take them to come up with something as batshit insane as “Megalopolis.” I can barely even bring myself to call “Megalopolis” a film. It is truly its own beast. I wouldn’t argue with anyone who thinks that this is the biggest piece of shit to ever come out in the history of cinema. If someone went into the cinema expecting “Megalopolis” to be the next “Godfather,” then they would be sorely disappointed. And …
Colin Farrell’s ‘Penguin’ makes Cobblepot a charismatic criminal to root for
Share: Though it exists in the same universe as Matt Reeves’ “The Batman,” HBO’s new show “The Penguin” starring Colin Farrell is very decidedly not a superhero show. Instead of Batman fighting bad guys, “The Penguin” focuses on the gritty underworld of Gotham city. In fact, it feels a bit more like an homage to “The Sopranos” than a comic book show. Colin Farrell’s performance (as well as the prosthetics) make him nearly unrecognizable. Instead of a handsome, charming Irishman, Farrell transforms into the power-hungry, …
‘It feels like the world is calling me’: International students cut through red tape to study
Share: As the weather changes and summer comes to an end, students trickle into PCC for the fall semester, a picture of diversity and inclusivity. As the new school year comes to a start, students from different parts of the world arrive in California to attend PCC as part of the international student program. According to the International Student Center, these students come from countries such as Armenia, Italy, China, El Salvador, France, Mozambique, Korea, Myanmar and more. A few of these students explain that …