All posts in: Deaths

08 Nov 2020

RIP Alex Trebek

I grew up in my childhood home with Alex Trebek every evening. My family wasn’t good at trivia or rather, it’s not something that we actively pursue unless it’s on Jeopardy. Despite not being great at it, we didn’t care. Trebek was a constant for many people in their evenings. Whether he, himself, knew it or not, he brought people together. More importantly, a lot of these people were families.

In 2020, there are plenty of shows with hosts. Not many of them have been hosting a show for 35 years, but I am left wondering what has made him so unique. It was his kindness, his warmth, and his nature of just being genuine towards every contestant that came onto the show. I never knew anything about his private life aside from the cancer he battled, but he never made that the entire narrative. Even in his last days or weeks when things may have taken a turn for the worse, none of his really knew. After a historic win for the country, waking up to this news doesn’t feel good, but unlike 45, Trebek’s legacy will leave a positive mark and memory on all of us. May he rest in peace.

Alex Trebek’s last episode will air on Christmas Day.

29 Aug 2020

RIP Chadwick Boseman

I love this clip of Chadwick Boseman appearing on Jimmy Fallon and surprising his fans as they speak into the camera about what “Black Panther” meant to them. It is an accurate representation of who he is, his kindness, and his selfless soul. Yesterday was another reminder that people are dealing with their own challenges and they don’t always feel the need to share it. We often immediately point this to mental health or disorders, but this can also mean general health, diseases, cancer. For four years after his diagnosis, Chadwick continued to appear in films and show up for appearances even though his body was failing him. He never stopped working.

I was disheartened when he appeared on camera recently for a live where he was immediately met with criticism about his body weight. People questioned why he was so thin and honestly, this should not be where our minds go to when these things happen. I hope that this was a wake up call for people to not judge others or to speak too quickly. Chadwick did so much for this world through his talents and his legacy will live on for many many years.

14 Jul 2020

Remembering Naya Rivera

If you scroll back through the archives of Yow Yow! then you would know that we loved watching Glee. I still remember being one of the few people in my friend group that was watching the pilot when it first aired and how I felt a little dorky watching it, but loved it all the same. It was the kind of show that you would watch because you couldn’t wait to see what songs they’d cover next. It wasn’t a perfect series, though. In recent weeks, we’ve seen coverage of problematic storylines coming up as well as how actors and actresses behaved towards each other. All of that doesn’t matter this week though. The series has lost their third regular from the show in a tragic accidental drowning. Naya Rivera was iconic in her role as Santana Lopez – a woman of color and a lesbian. Characters like her on television were few and far between, but she was far more than these labels. She was extremely talented as a singer, performer and of course, a mother. Here are a few of my favorite Santana performances from the series.

24 May 2020

U.S. Deaths Near 100,000, An Incalculable Loss

By now, most of you have seen this image of the front page of the New York Times for today. It’s the one thing that I keep seeing all over my social media. I saw it for the first time last night along with this tweet:

I thought about sharing the photo on the left with a comment about how we’ve social distanced long enough so everyone go nuts this weekend. To be clear, I’m being sarcastic; I don’t actually believe that. But as I spent minutes staring at this photo, I decided snark wasn’t the way to go late into the night. This image alone is powerful enough. But that won’t fix the divide that is tearing across America as people continue to show different standards for social distancing. For me, it feels both annoying and frustrating that even those closest to me and I cannot align.

Memorial Day Weekend is going to be the ultimate test, isn’t it? As I think about how many days into shelter-in-place we are, I wonder what this weekend’s setback will do to our country. Are we reopening too soon? Are we going to reopen only to have to restrict once again? I know in the end I have to make decisions that are best for me and my household. Seeing these names along with these one line obituaries should scare you. I don’t want this list to continue to grow and these people deserve so much more of a remembrance than what this is. They can’t because people keep dying and this magnitude of a list doesn’t do them justice. Here is where we stand with all of this on some of the more current pieces:

09 May 2020

Blog Roundup

  • Banksy Honors Healthcare Workers With New Artwork [Hypebeast]
  • ESPN Moves Up Release Date of 3 Upcoming Films [Sports Illustrated]
  • 5 Ways to Keep Bacteria Out of Your Beauty Products [Byrdie]
  • How to Structure Your Days When Time is Fake and You Have Endless Chores [VICE]
  • 21 Times TV Shows Killed Off a Character and Ruined the Entire Series For People [BuzzFeed]
  • In Conversation: Hayley Williams [Vulture]
  • Asian Parents Are Starring in the Most Wholesome TikToks [Buzzfeed] I honestly wish I were in quarantine with my dad cause I know we’d make the best dancing TikToks
  • TV Marianne Is Too Hot and Normal [The Cut]
  • 10 Cooking Mistakes Most Home Cooks Make [Cool Material]
  • Cloth Masks to Shop Now [Vogue]
  • Spike Lee’s love letter to New York [Fader]
  • That Isn’t Actually Michael Jordan’s House in ‘The Last Dance’ [High Snobiety]
09 May 2020

RIP Little Richard

https://youtu.be/7tEyaLaThes

Growing up, 90’s sitcoms were what I looked forward to every weekend. And I’m lucky that my parents let me stay up a little bit later to watch them. I grew up with Full House, Step by Step, and Hangin’ Mr. Cooper. Many of these shows had cameos from other celebrities and the first time I even laid eyes on Little Richard was his appearance on Full House. I was saddened by the news of his passing when I woke up this morning, however, know that his legacy will never be forgotten. His influence on rock and roll paved the way for so much of what we hear in today’s music industry. He also continued to show up for kids my age back in the day including his notable performance in the Magic School Bus theme song. He surely will be missed!

02 May 2020

Blog Roundup

  • Photos: Scenes of a New Normal in San Francisco [The Bold Italic]
  • Top E.R. Doctor Who Treated Virus Patients Dies by Suicide [New York Times]
  • Mexican Wrestlers Sew Luche Libre Face Masks to Help Fight Against Coronavirus [Hypebeast]
  • 10 Remote Homes [dezeen]
  • 19 Outrageous Dennis Rodman Stories [Vulture]
  • Restaurants After COVID [Slate]
  • The Spaces Between Us [The Cut]
  • Taco Bell Celebrates Cinco de Mayo w/ At Home Taco Bar Kits [Hypebeast]
  • How to Make Your Groceries Last Longer
  • How Normal People Does Sex So Good [Vulture]
  • 87 Cloths Masks To Shop Now [Vogue]
  • The New Rules of Chivalry [Valet Mag]
  • Love in the Shape of Cut Fruit [Refinery29]
26 Jan 2020

Kobe Bryant Killed In Helicopter Crash

Kobe Bryant has died Sunday morning after being in a helicopter crash along with his daughter and seven other individuals. He was 41 years old and retired from the NBA in 2016. Kobe leaves behind his wife Vanessa and three daughters.

Kobe and his 13-year old daughter Gianna were on their way to a travel basketball game.

[Source]

22 Jan 2019

Munchery Shuts Down

One day you’re a start up and the next day you’re not. While everyone was out celebrating the long weekend, Munchery was shutting down their entire operation. 2019 claims yet another startup after Chariot. It may seem like somewhat shocking news now, but these days this happens more than you would think.

Munchery has been around for some time now, but they haven’t always had an easy ride. Last year, they shut down operations in all of their other cities to double down on their efforts in San Francisco. That amounted to laying off 257 of their employees. Even though Munchery had been on our radar, I didn’t actually use it for the first time until this past summer. Most of you know that I haven’t spent much time these days cooking on my own so meal convenience is important to me. Of course, I [used] Munchery during a time when I wasn’t working, but I liked the appeal of it. It came when it was supposed to and the meals seemed healthy and were delicious.

Meal start ups like Munchery haven’t been surviving well. Even Blue Apron seems like it is just hanging by a thread, but it’s all we got left so we hope they can stick it out.

13 Jan 2017

RIP American Apparel

I can’t believe I’m actually writing this post. This may sound dramatic, but a part of my youth here is dying. When my scene days had reached a bougie level, that’s when I started shopping at American Apparel. It was almost like I became an upscale hipster – if that was even possible. I knew the retailer was sinking. We’ve been reading about this for what feels like years, but I didn’t think it would actually die. And now, we must prepare for the worst and figure out how to move on. And by move on, I mean all 110 stores are closing and everything is 40% off so it looks like we’ll all be at American Apparel this weekend so that we can stock up on those classic hoodies. It’s okay though, I’m hoping to find some other stores and online sites to satisfy my big comfortable hoodie cravings (hint, I’ve already started to look!) and found some nice basic hoodies for being comfortable, as well as some other detailed designs like this Chinese dragon hoodie and others that can bring a bit of zest to your daily outfits! However, I might never get over American Apparel having to close.

The news of this comes just days after it was announced that Gilden Activewear had purchased American Apparel in an auction for $88 million. To be clear, they are just acquiring American Apparel’s intellectual property and some of the manufacturing equipment. Not included in this acquisition were its 110 stores (which will all close by April) and their LA headquarters.

I had to scroll through pages of Google images because I forgot how inappropriate their advertisements use to be and my parents wouldn’t approve of me having one of those to accompany this post.

RIP to my favorite pieces that you can still buy… for now.

Read more “RIP American Apparel”