It’s been a rocky year-end for a lot of people. The weather in New York has been a bit weird and with mercury out of retrograde, we’re having a difficult time finding things to blame our hardships on. Each day can’t come faster, and a little raincloud seems to sit on the shoulders of every other person I see in this city.
Or at least, that’s the state I was in before coming into the New York City GOODfest. But when I headed into the BAM theater, the little glow of the lights and the energy of the room shifted my body chemistry. All of a sudden, I felt a little more *up* you know?
I was entranced by the opener, Madame Gandhi, whose spoken word and song committed the audience to a rallying cry of social change and activation. Her refrain: “The future is female, the future is female.” I couldn’t agree more. I played with the Google Pixel I was given for the evening, and as an iPhoneographer (I know, I know), I couldn’t get over how great the photos looked in low light, helping me capture Kiran’s face and energy with more distinction.
After a lull, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band emerged from the back, guerilla-style, and the blared through the crowd. Everyone held out their phones to capture it as they headed to the front of the stage, later joined by Shilpa Ray, a local blues punk band with a frontwoman that I can’t get out of my head. In an energized room, her silken voice and sardonic sense of humor captured the crowd and brought things down a notch.
When Glass Animals finally came on, most of the crowd (myself included) were a few glasses in. The theater was lubricated, and feeling positive, so when frontman Dave Bayley came out and let out his first little croons, we were all the way up there on his level. Something about the theater lights and the time and space we were at created a bit of a tingle in the room. Like I said, with everything going on right now, it was a sweet relief to feel some good.
Two people study a mapCanva
Foggy Chinese villageCanva
Older woman drinking coffee and looking out the window.Photo credit: 
An older woman meditates in a park.Photo credit: 
Father and Daughter pose for a family picture.Photo credit: 
Woman receives a vaccine shot.Photo credit: 
A young lion playing with an older animal
A colorful bird appears to be yelling at it a friend
An otter appears like it's holding its face in shock
Two young foxes playing in the wild
Two otters appear to be laughing together in the water
A fish looks like it's afraid of the shark behind it
A bird appears to be ignoring their partner
A squirrel looks like it's trapped in a tree
A bear holds hand over face, making it appear like it's exhausted
A penguin looks like its trying to appear inconspicuous
A young squirrel smells a flower
An insect appears to be smiling and waving at the camera
An otter lies on its side apparently cracking up laughing
Two monkeys caught procreating
A young chimp relaxes with its hands behind its head
A snowy owl appears to be smiling 
A monkey holds finger to face as if it's lost in thought
A turtle crossing the road under a 'slow' sign
A polar bear lies on its back like it's trying to hide
A rodent strikes human-like pose
An excerpt of the faxCanva
Robert Redford advocating against the demolition of Santa Monica Pier while filming "The Sting" 1973