Tag: New York City

BBQ downtown

Never a bad thing

On the heels of dinner with my college friends, I also had two nice dinner events prior to Thanksgiving.

The first was with the Firecracker and her family. They’re all huge fans of Korean and Japanese BBQ, so we all headed downtown to Gyu-Kaku in Astor Place.

Me: I’ve been here before; it used to be a Korean restaurant like 15 years ago. I guess Gyu-Kaku took over the lease and make it Japanese.
Him: Makes sense, everything’s already done.

We ended up doing the all-you-can-eat option and that worked out great as the food was excellent and my appetite remained on point.

Me: I’m gonna order more food before we run outta time.
Her: (after I ordered) You ordered FOUR plates of food? We’re all stuffed.
Me: Oh, those are just for me.
Her: You’re gonna eat four plates of food by yourself?
Me: Looks that way.

And I did.

Wanna say that she was impressed but I’m not sure that’s the appropriate adjective to describe how she felt as I ate four full plates of food on top of all the other food we ordered.

We also got a beer tower to round things out, as well as some sochu…

…and the kids – and Firecracker – got s’more for dessert.

Her: So, you’ll eat four additional plates of food but you’re gonna draw the line at s’mores?
Me:…yes? I do have some standards.

All-in-all, it probably wasn’t the best night for my waistline but good for everything else.

If nuthin else, it was more memories for the kid to have.

And that’s never a bad thing.

Location: the kid’s jits class, sitting on a pillow for my back
Mood: old
Music: Every day I’m gonna celebrate, even when it’s not that sweet (Spotify)
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Tags family, friends, good things, New York City, NYC

personal

Big Apple Circus, Pt 2

44 years between shows

The rest of the acts were all equally amazing.

There was the acrobat that dangled above the hard floor without a net…

…and then reappeared later to hang off her partner’s neck.

Me: Man, my back hurts just watching that.
Him: (laughs)

Oh, speaking of backs, on the walk there, we were all getting drenched, but it was also destroying my back sitting there for a solid hour.

Me: (to the usher) Hey man, I’ve got a crap back. Can I do some squats in the hallway?
Him: (laughing) Sure. Sorry to hear about your back.
Me: (nodding and starting to do some squats) Yeah, I’m sorry to say it. Getting older stinks but is still better than the alternative.

There was only one animal act (dogs) versus what I remember as kids, but otherwise, it was still a lot of what I remember as a kid.

There were jugglers…

…tightrope walkers…

…aerialists…

…and clowns.

The boys were dying laughing with the clowns.

Walking home was absolutely brutal because the rain plus sitting for two hours destroyed my back.

But it was all worth it because the kids were so jazzed about seeing the circus for the first time.

Me: What did you think?
Him: I loved it! Can we go again?
Me: Sure, maybe next year?
Him: A whole year!?!
Me: Hey, I waited 44 years between shows.
Him: 44…?! Wow…you’re so old.

Location: about to head out to Japanese BBQ with the Firecracker’s family
Mood: beat tired
Music: sometimes the truth is harder than the pain (Spotify)
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Tags family, friends, good things, New York City, nightlife, NYC, video

personal

Big Apple Circus, Pt 1

His first circus

It’s been months since it rained here in the big city but the night it began to rain for three days was the same night that I brought the kid out to his first circus.

You can see the very top of the big top in the center.

I remember my first circus – this is me with my brother and his friend.

I think I’m about seven in this – and just starting to get chunky.

I’d won four tix to the Big Apple Circus at Lincoln Center with absolutely killer seats.

The thing about the BAC is that they played in two places growing up – just a few blocks from my parents home in Queens and the literally across the street from my law school.

I remember for years walking past these signs on the way to or from Law School and thinking: Maybe someday I’ll check it out.

And last week was that day.

Unfortunately, the Firecracker and her kid couldn’t make it, so we invited one of the kid’s classmates.

To say that they loved it is an understatement.

Pretty much the whole night:

Him: WOW! How did they…?
Friend: DID YOU SEE THAT?!

The last time I was in the circus was 1980 – 44 years ago (!!).

Back then, this was my absolute favourite act – although in the version I saw the guys rode a motorcycle in it!

And the acts were pretty much all amazing, like this contortionist…

…and these guys who were doing some pretty intense flying moves.

But this entry’s getting super long so I’ll continue this in the next one?

Until then, here are two more quick videos:

Location: home, trying – very unsuccessfully – to block out the jackhammers outside my window
Mood: annoyed
Music: In the pouring rain, putting back the pieces of a broken dream (Spotify)
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Tags family, good things, New York City, NYC, video

personal

Court Papers

And then lunch in Chinatown

Her: It happened!
Me: What?
Her: My papers! The judge signed off on everything, we’re done!
Me: Sweeeeet – I’ll head down with you so you can grab a copy.

The Firecracker’s been involved in a legal matter for the better part of a year now and it was finally resolved last week (in a manner that made her happy).

So, early the other day, we took a train down to the court house together to get an official copy of everything.

Managed to get a copy and get out the door in less than an hour.

Afterward, we walked down to Chinatown to get some food.

Along the way, she noticed a cute little bookstore:

Her: OMG, that’s the best name: Yu and Me Books!

While we didn’t stop in, we did stop to get some cherimoyas, which are essentially Asian pawpaws.

They were $10 each so basically the same price as a domestic pawpaw.

Afterward, we made our way to a local greasy spoon.

Me: Could we get everything in takeout containers? We have to eat and run.
Waiter: Sure thing.

The Firecracker had to dash back to work so she left while I made my way back to work, belly full.

Not a bad way to spend a morning that involved heading to court.

Location: standing in front of my desk, wondering when my hip won’t hurt
Mood: okay
Music: It’s not over. You’re not your mistakes (Spotify)
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Tags good things, New York City, NYC

personal

Hanging out at JP’s pad

Something adult-like

Me: Do you wanna hit up the Morgan Library and Museum?
Her: Is it a museum or a sit and read kinda place?
Me: I think a little of both? It’s been ages since I was there last. I forgot who I even went with

Whenever the boys are away, the Firecracker and I scramble to do something adult-like since we always have factor in entertaining the kids otherwise.

We didn’t really have any set plans so just randomly got tickets to the Morgan Library and Museum.

I was coming in from dropping the kid off in Jersey so we met outside the museum.

It was a quick line so we were inside in no time.

Me: Crazy that someone once lived here.
Her: I think that this is actually an enclosed courtyard – I think these are two separate buildings they combined.
Me: Whoa, I think you’re right. (shaking head) Man, that is a crazy amount of scratch this dude had.

The actual library stuff was like something outta a movie.

Her: I’m waiting for Belle from Beauty and the Beast to show up with a book in her hand.
Me: Of course you are.
Her: Listen, I’m whimsical and romantic. There’s nothing wrong with that.

She even found some really cool Dickens and Chinese stuff.

Side-by-side to boot!

We also went to the mezzanine to admire the view – again, this was someone’s house once (or at least the outdoor space of someone’s house).

Wild.

It was gorgeous inside but there really wasn’t all that much to do so we spent probably an hour there at most.

Me: I’m ready to eat.
Her: Me too!

We walked a few blocks and ended up at this relatively empty Persian joint called Miraj Healthy Grill.

While they had some odd decoration choices…

…the food itself was on point.

Her: Man, the number of pictures I have of you with that face.
Me: I can’t help it – I love food.

I not only ate everything on my plate, I ate everything on hers. The food was excellent.

Me: OMG, I’m so full.
Her: Wow, you never say that.

Afterwards, we took the long way home and enjoyed a nice night out as two adults.

Me: Did you have a good night?
Her: Were you there? Then yes.
Me: (laughing) Thanks, I’ll take it.

Location: court, again.
Mood: annoyed
Music: drinking in the dark, I don’t know where I wanna go (Spotify)
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Tags good things, New York City, NYC

personal

Movie Premier: Gladiator II

Post author By Logan Lo
Post date 2024/11/21
No Comments on Movie Premier: Gladiator II

Cray Rachet

Scenic Fights got an invitation to a pre-release screening of Gladiator II the other day.

I got picked to go pretty much just because it’s walking distance from my pad.

So, the other night, the Firecracker and I got dressed and took a little walk to the movie theatre.

We arrived and immediately queued to have our pictures taken.

The main picture above is the Getty image that we took.

I asked the gentlemen to not be so much taller than me but, clearly, they didn’t comply.

While she was queuing, I went to get us drinks.

Me: Can I get a Gladiator for my date, and I’ll have the Roman Empire, but toss in like two shots of vodka for me?
Bartender: You got it and good choice with the vodka.

It was really pretty good.

Afterward, we took our pics and then went to the other room for food…

…so much food.

The Firecracker managed to snag one of these cool little Colosseum popcorn buckets.

My producer asked me to get as many shots of myself as I could but the lighting in a movie theatre leaves a lot to be desired.

Speaking of leaving a lot to be desired, the flick itself was pretty good – I was surprised what a good job they did linking it up to the original that came out close to a quarter century ago.

The issue was that we were sitting next to possibly the most rachet group of influencers out there.

They were clearly suffering from Main Character syndrome with zero interest in the film – they were just talking loudly and texting the whole time.

Luckily, they left with 1/3 of the film to go – like I said, they had zero interest in the film.

All-in-all, it was a nice night out with the Firecracker and a good excuse to get dressed up.

I told her that we needed to get invited to a premier like for The Killer, which was awesome.

Her: That was fun!
Me: I thought so – our seat partners notwithstanding.
Her: Can’t win them all.
Me: Evidently not.

Location: court, again.
Mood: annoyed
Music: drinking in the dark, I don’t know where I wanna go (Spotify)
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Tags #gladiator2, #gladiatorii, good things, New York City, nightlife, NYC

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Hot pot with a buncha hapas, Pt 1

Post author By Logan Lo
Post date 2024/11/14
No Comments on Hot pot with a buncha hapas, Pt 1

What’s a Hapa?

A hapa, in Japanese, has traditionally meant someone that is half Japanese and half something else.

Other Asians, like myself, have co-opted this term to mean anyone that is half-one race and half-another.

So, my son is not technically a hapa but I call him that.

In any case, after a lotta back-and-forth – and because alla our significant others got along so well – Bryson, the Frenchman, and I finally agreed to meet up for another dinner, this time at Bryson’s.

There, I marveled how the hapas completely outnumbered the only three people there that weren’t hapas – namely, myself, the Firecracker, and the Firecracker’s kid.

What I found the most interesting was that the Frenchman (French/Japanese) married another hapa, Tess, (Chinese/Caucasian), while Bryson (African-American/Okinawan) married another hapa, Nikki, (African-American/American).

And Bryson and Nikki have three hapa kids, while the Frenchman and Tess have two hapa kids.

The kicker is that some of the hapa kids were dating…other hapas!

Me: How do you all keep finding each other?
Bryson: We’re everywhere!

I’m finding this to be true.

Always wondered if the kid was gonna end up with an Asian like me, or a Caucasian like Alison, or something else entirely.

It never occurred to me that he might end up with another hapa.

Based on what we were seeing with the kids, that seems more likely than I had originally thought.

In any case, the food was so amazeballs that I felt it deserved its own entry, so I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.

Oh, and I’ll explain what’s going on in the picture above as well.

Her: Everybody point at Logan!
Me: That’s really not…ok, I see this is happening.

Location: my apartment, showing the boys how to escape an American lock.
Mood: parched
Music: We ‘bout to elevate, getting up and getting down (Spotify)
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Tags family, friends, good things, New York City, NYC

personal

Halloween 2024

A losing battle

This year was the same as previous years but also a bit different.

In the past, we used to go out and wander all over the UWS. But something felt different this year.

My kid’s dressed up as French soccer player Kylian Mbappé.

I’d been reading about shootings in the area on the upswing and I just didn’t feel comfortable with Nate running around outside; especially since, in the past, there were times I felt penned in in some streets and the last thing I wanted at that time was some violence.

It turns out that I was right, because my sister wrote me to tell me that a McDonalds – which my kid and I’ve been to easily 2-3 dozen times – had a shootout just an hour after when we were supposed to start trick or treating.

So, while the Firecracker and her kid went trick-or-treating out and about, I only let the kid do it in the large apartment complex next door.

On the positive side, though, it’s nice that he and I have so many friends in the neighborhood that we have the opportunity to do things like that.

It stinks that kids can’t just be kids these days.

Like all parents, I try to shield him from what I can but it’s a losing battle.

Still, he’s such a resilient little kid, I’m hoping it’ll be ok, somehow.

Location: the kid’s BJJ class, watching him try to throw another kid
Mood: nostalgic
Music: maybe you’re gonna be the one that saves me (Spotify)
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Tags New York City, NYC, observations, video

personal

It looks like me

But it’s not me

Just did my last shoot for Scenic Fights for 2024.

I’m not slated to do any more shoots until 2025, which is great, because I’m pretty beat.

Ever since we started doing these shoots, I’ve got a newfound respect for content creators; it’s pretty draining to shoot these scenes over and over again until they’re perfect.

I just checked – I did my first shoot in the summer of 2019 and we’re now closing in on 2025. Close to six years.

Man, time is just sprinting by these days.

On that note, check out the above video – it looks like me but it’s actually not me at all!

It’s an AI generated video from my Scenic Fights producer.

Wild, right?

(The picture above *IS* of me, though).

On that note, I met up with my boss at the law firm for lunch the other day at the Bryant Park Grill.

I’ve been with the firm, in one form or another, since 2008 or so, so some 16 years.

That too reminds me that life is sprinting by.

Now that I’ve been a lawyer for close to a quarter-of-a-century, I’ve been lucky in that I can be very picky with the new cases I take on.

Him: Well, what in particular?
Me: It’s gotta be something interesting OR with a huge payout. Otherwise, my patience for dealing with other people’s nonsense is pretty thin these days.
Him: (laughing) I get that. OK, interesting cases or big check.
Me: Essentially.

Location: in front of my sink, wondering if it’s time to call in a plumber
Mood: So. Annoyed.
Music: crazy how we live our lives, we spent it all on borrowed time (Spotify)
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Tags friends, good things, human condition, New York City, NYC, self-improvement

personal

It started off all so well

Anything from Bibigo is solid

We were supposed to meet up with the Surgeon and his family for some hot pot the other night but that shifted to a party at their pad, which was actually even better since the kids could play.

Wanted to bring something so I asked Pac if he could recommend something to buy at H Mart now that it was in the UWS.

Me: Heading to a dinner party tomorrow and don’t wanna schlepp alla way to Chinatown for Chinese dumplings.
Him: Anything from Bibigo is solid.

So, we went and got a bag of beef dumplings and a bag of pork ones.

While the pork was definitely good, the beef was killer and we chowed through a lotta that before the other guests even came.

The Surgeon was mixing drinks all night and said – at the end of the night – that we kicked an entire bottle of mezcal with the four of us (him, his wife, me, and the Firecracker).

I didn’t think that it would affect me the same way as tequila does, but it turns out, it’s much, much, much worse on me than tequila is, which is saying a lot.

Never a bad thing

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44 years between shows

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His first circus

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And then lunch in Chinatown

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Something adult-like

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Cray Rachet

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What’s a Hapa?

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A losing battle

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But it’s not me

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Anything from Bibigo is solid

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