this is the Oscar home stretch so i have to see all the rest of the Best Picture films before Sunday

so when AJ was all, lets go, tonight! i was all f yes!

i have this Uber subscription that gives me 20 rides all around LA for $4. even though i knew i wasnt gonna get drunk and even though it was President’s Day, who doesn’t like getting a ride for $4 across town?

we met at The Landmark on Pico which has very fancy theaters.

i was starving but i got there early so i walked through my new favorite store, Nordstrom, and on to the Food Court.

it was empty in the Westside Pavillion. Super empty. Sad empty. People were cleaning things that were already clean.

Ordered some food at the Panda Express. They never have panda. Weird.

Walked back and AJ arrived. We got a Mexicoke and a popcorn and the film began.

Soooo many black people in the film. When was the last time you saw something like that? And a story told very slowly. Also good. But in the end I was all, what happened? Did anything really happen? And what was i supposed to learn from it? Stay in school, don’t do drugs?

I couldn’t understand why this is getting so much Oscar buzz. Same with La La Land. But that’s me, Mr. Critical. Mr. Meh. Ashley so many years ago was right, I cannot be pleased.

But what was pleasing was AJ and I walked around West LA. Just walking and talking. Catching up. We tried to eat at Islands but they were closing and didn’t like the looks of us. I tried to eat at Jack in the Box but AJ was all, come on Tone. So we settled for a donut or two at this Donut store.

We walked more, talked more on the quiet streets. It was very nice. Very. Sometimes friends youve known for a long time are better than Oscar nominated films.

Sometimes always.