Day 5 of LAUSD’s vaccine mandate

My first movie, in an actual theater, in 2 years…

9/14/21. Tuesday

10:00-11:00 - L. wakes me up to tell me she’s going…somewhere??? I realize I’m running late. Damn…I have a Zoom meeting with my evaluator at 11:00.  I put on a professional blouse on top and yoga pants on the bottom, then wash my face, brush my teeth, and spackle on the make-up. I brush and curl my hair. My Shingles rash is much improved and the lesions have scabbed over.

I make coffee, report to my office, arrange my desk lamp for the best lighting, then Zoom in for my meeting, just in time.

11:00-12:00 – Meeting with my evaluator, F. We have a discussion regarding tasks that I need to complete in order to facilitate my eval. We also arrange dates for my in-class evaluation. F. is a white male who is going through his own “tenure” evaluation – he does not have a PhD.  Although I’m the only instructor in my department who does, in fact, have a PhD, F. refuses to call me “Dr.”, instead bringing me down a few notches by using the title “Ms.”  This doesn’t bode well and I take it as a bad sign.

12:00-1:30 – After the meeting, I email my Syllabi to F., for his convenience; add him to my Canvas shells so he can stalk me, per his request; and check email at College No. 1. When I’m finished, I break for lunch, have leftover Branzini, and read Work Won’t Love You Back.

1:30-2:30 – Shower. Lotion. Covid-19 uniform.

2:30-3:00 – I drive to my local Laemmle Theater.  It was built last year but closed during Covid – it recently opened up again. I’ve never been to this theater and I have not been to a movie in 2 years.

3:00-5:00 – My first movie, in two years…[drum roll please]…is the horror movie, Candyman.

I wanted to see this movie as a result of Jordan Peele’s production involvement AND the fact that he co-wrote the script. The director is also a woman. I’m a big fan of Get Out and Us and this movie doesn’t disappoint. It features a struggling black artist, living off of his wife, an art critic. The main character is suffering from “artist’s block” and needs to create several pieces for an upcoming exhibit. He settles on an exhibit discussing the urban legend, Candyman, who is reincarnated during periods of re-gentrification and/or when white-on-black violence is committed, i.e., the movie also explores class/race divisions. In a strange twist, the author morphs into Candyman and that’s all I’m going to say.

The staff at the concession stand are masked and I am, too. I’m the only one inside the theater, which I love, and there is the quandary of wearing my mask or taking it off.  I decide to wear my mask the duration of the movie.

5:00-6:00 – The movie ends and I go to Pops for gourmet ice cream, only to discover that they’re closed on Tuesdays [insert sad face emoji here]. I really want some ice cream so I head to the mall for some gelato, but the parking lot is jam packed and there is no place to park…on a Tuesday, at 5:30…. I leave and go home.

6:00-6:45 – I have dinner outside on the patio and finish The 57 Bus. My reading output for August/September is abysmal. Last month, I was close to finishing this book but I got distracted with Work Won’t Love You Back. The 57 Bus was a non-fiction referral from L. and it was…okay. The main character, Sasha, is a transgender male and wore skirts every day.  One day, as he was taking the 57 bus home, as usual, a black male juvenile pulled out a lighter and set fire to the skirt. Sasha had a 2-year painful recovery in a burn unit and the black male was convicted of assault and served a 3-year stint in juvey.

I’m ravaged by mosquitoes so I return inside.

7:00-7:30 – I take the dog for a walk; and

7:30-8:30 – water my plants.

8:30-9:30 – I watch the first episode of Nine Perfect Strangers, a referral from B.

9:30-10:30 – Tomorrow is my highschool class so I update the Canvas shell and get ready.

10:30-11:45 – Kitchen duty and I make my lunch bag for tomorrow.

11:45-12:00 – I do a 45-minute Insanity- Cardio workout.

1:00-2:00 – Blog posts

2:00-3:00 – Nighttime routine. Bed. Slowly but surely, my Shingles are improving.