I'm back!

Well, I made it to NYC and back! I had a great time! i wish I could've stayed longer. Maybe next time. I'd like to go back this summer, but I don't know if I'll have the time, especially now that I'm both working and going to school full time! *sigh* I went to karaoke with my cousins and their friends and found my self in total "flirt" mode with some Australian dude at this weird karaoke bar on the Lower East Side. LOL

I got a chance to see "Ground Zero." Eventhough it was only from a distance, I still got to see the huge damage and the huge void those buildings left. It went on for blocks! I think the most profound moment I ever had was when I saw a firefighter, in full gear, looking at the memorial wall just around the corner from the platform where you get to view where the Twin Towers used to stand. I took a picture of him, from behind, catching that letters "FDNY" on the back of his jacket. Then, my friend convinced me to go up to him, and ask him if I could take a picture with him. So, I did. I went up to him, asked him if I could take a picture, and he obliged. And after our picture was taken, I thanked him, for what he's done and is still doing. He gave me a smile and I thought I was going to cry. The experience was surreal and sobering. I couldn't wrap my brain around the vastness of the damage, and trying to get used to the fact that the 2 towers aren't standing there anymore. It was disorienting. I felt lost, like, I wasn't in New York City. It was the oddest thing.

Rockapella Concert/Meet and Greet - Florence Gould Hall, New York, NY - January 12, 2002

Yet again, two shows in one night that I almost didn’t make. My dear friend Barb and her family was supposed to pick me up at my aunt’s house in Jersey City, but I hadn’t given them specific directions, and I made the mistake not to give them my cell phone number, so they couldn’t contact me to let me know that they couldn’t find my aunt’s place in Jersey City and that they were going to head over to FGH without me, and hoping that I would make my way to the city somehow. I finally convinced my cousin and his friend to drive me to the city and see the show with me, so we made it just in time for the 2nd show to start. When I got there, I saw Barb and she explained to me what had happened and I realized what a stupid dork I was for not giving her specific directions and my cell phone number! Anyway, she was glad that I made it safe and we all headed inside for the next show. We sat way in the back of the theatre, about 5 rows in from the back. They were good enough seats. I turned around and saw Rene Ruiz of Toxic Audio sitting on the row behind us. My friend Cheryl was also there sitting right behind me. She and I had a good time. At one point, during Jeff’s solo, I yelled “you go Jeff!” which reverberated throughout the whole auditorium. Later on, one of the diehards, Amy, would tell me that she and the rest of the diehards immediately knew that I made it to the show because they recognized my voice. LOL The time for picking the Pretty Woman came and I got very excited because Kevin made it all the way to the back and was actually standing right in front me, I really thought he was going to pick me as PW!!! I knew he saw me because we made eye-contact, but then he just smiled at me and walked back down to pick another girl for PW (It turned out that it was a set-up, the girl’s boyfriend was going to propose to her that night, so the PW was already pre-selected). I’m still a little disappointed though. LOL Throughout the whole night, Cheryl and I were just having a grand ol’ time. Some of the girls who were sitting in front of us asked us if we knew Rockapella. Well, technically yes. Not personally (I wish! LOL). They thought that was cool. After the show, we waited for the guys to come outside since there wasn’t going to be a meet-n-greet inside the lobby (boo on FGH!). I met up with Barb and family outside, and we just hung around and chatted. One by one the guys came outside. I went up to Jeff first, and he was surprised to see me there. He gave me a hug and said that it was good to see me. Barb took a picture and then he and I were done. We said our goodbyes and he continued talking to other fans waiting for him outside. I went around and saw Kevin. I didn’t talk to him much, I just told him that I wanted to say “hello” and he gave me a hug. I looked for El and found him with Louise and Sue and he just looked so cute with his brown beanie hat with what seemed to be either dog ears or bunny ears, not quite sure which. All I know was that it was too cute! I told him that I loved his shaved head and that he was a "hottie", he chuckled and blushed a little, and I proceeded to rub his head. I don’t think he minded at all because he even leaned over so that I could get a good rub. LOL I went back to where Barb and family were and found them talking to Scott. So, I joined in on the conversation. During the conversation, Barb pointed out that there was someone behind me that I might want to say “hi” to. I turned around and it was Shelly (a.k.a. Sparky)! It was too cool to see her. I gave her a hug and took a picture with her. We got to chat a bit and then she left. I got back into the conversation with Scott, Barb and family, and Scott told me that he was just surprised to see me on the East coast. He said that he really appreciated that and he was glad I came. I told him that I didn’t mind traveling at all to see them. I suggested to him that Rockapella Centre should have a frequent-flyer program for Rockapella fans who travel far-and-wide to see the shows. And that if we rack up enough mileage, we should get either free tickets to shows or a private meet-n-greet with the Guys. He thought that was a good idea. LOL After taking a picture with him, I said my goodbyes to him and to Barb and her family. I didn’t realize that this was going to be the last time I would see Barb alive. Looking back, I wish I had spent more time with her that night. It was one of my more sentimental meet-n-greets. She was a good friend.

Maturity vs. Age

Alicia Keys rocks! I love her! Her music is innovative and soulful at the same time. I also like Mary J. Blige. I love her new cd, especially the title track, "No More Drama." india.arie is another one of my faves. If you don't know who she is, she's one of the female artists featured on the latest GAP commercials (where they sing that song that goes, "give a little bit, give a little bit of my love to you."), she's the African-American lady with dreadlocks and a bandana around her head, with a great, deep, soulful voice. She was wearing the v-neck, hooded sweater and a denim skirt. She's awesome. I love her song, "Video."

I just realized that I tend to hang out with people who are younger than I am. It's not that I'm immature or anything like that (we'll maybe I am, LOL), it's just that I'm intimidated by those who are actually my age and older. I think I hang out with people younger than me because I don't have to impress them, and especially the younger guys that I hang out with, I don't have to look at them as "potential" boyfriends or whatnot. The funny thing is that most of the younger people that I hang out with, are more mature than those of the older "acquaintances" that I know of, in so many ways, spiritually being the most important aspect of it. One of my very good friends is 21 years old and he's spiritually more mature than the other college-aged people at their church. And he already knows what he wants to do with his life and that is to serve God by becoming a pastor. I see it in him, I know God has called him to do this, and I'm very blessed to know him and to have him as a friend. He's been a great encouragement to me and a confidante. And he prays and gets into the Word, and that makes him wise. I see a lot of guys who are much older than him, some who are way into their 20s and 30s, and they can't even hold a candle to him because they're still "playing games." It's really sad.

Boredom

Yet, another unproductive day. So, I woke up around 12:30pm today, ate lunch, then sat for about 3 hours or so in front of the computer, doing the usual - email, chatting, surfing, and whatnot, then plopped in front of the tv and watched for at least 2 hours, took a shower, watched tv some more, ate dinner, watched more tv, ate again, and now, i'm back to going online while watching SNL. Ahh…I love my life! I think I'll try something different tomorrow. Well, of course, I go to church on Sundays, but when I get home, I think I'm gonna do my laundry. Wow, talk about livin' it up! uh…yeah…

It's t minus 5 days 'til I go to NYC! By now, it can be concluded that I love NYC…I've never denied that fact anyway, a lot of people know that I love that city and that, one of these days, I would love to move there. I've always wanted to live in NYC ever since I first visited 5 years ago.

Ok, so I ate dinner twice tonight. I didn't know watching "G.I. Jane" could make you hungry. Actually, I was craving for coffee, but was too lazy to go out and buy my usual Iced Grande Mocha (my beverage of choice) at Starbucks.

Well, as of yesterday, I'm officially going to NYC! I've been looking forward to this for weeks. I've been needing some time-off ever since I-don't-know-how-long, and I believe that it's very much deserved. I still don't know who I'm staying with and who's picking me up from the airport. My cousin Ry gave me a couple of options on how I'm going to get my butt transported from JFK (awful public restrooms btw!) to my aunt's house in Jersey City. Option 1: Take the bus from the airport to Port Authority and THEN take another bus into Jersey City. Option numero dos: Take a cab and pay $60 bucks to avoid the freakin' hassle of actually having to lug all my belongings from one bus to another. Actually, I wouldn't really mind paying $60 bucks…sheesh! What da heck am I saying? Dang, talk about being spoiled by the perks of living in Los Angeles…Barely anyone takes the public transportation around here. I guess I better dress comfortably so that I wouldn't have to worry about looking good while transporting my luggage around the city of New York!

First thing I want to do when I get there is go to "Ground Zero." It's not out of morbid curiosity why I want to go, it's out of respect for those who perished and for the fire-fighters and policemen who, day-in and day-out, give so much of their time to recover the bodies and to clean up the wreckage. I want to go out of respect for New Yorkers and to be able to sympathize with what they went through and what they're still going through.

It bites that I'm sick right now. Hopefully, I'll be well enough by the time I go to NYC. My cousin told me that all I will be doing that weekend is sing, sing and sing some more! He's been checking out karaoke bars in Manhattan, looking for dives where everyone and their momma can hear me sing…Hey, who knows? Maybe some music executive will hear me and sign me on the spot! Wouldn't that be loverly? heh! Big, fat chance! But still, you never know…So, I need to get better by the time I go…Gotta rest up these pipes!

I'll be seeing my favorite music group in NYC as well. 2 shows in one night, what a treat!
Alright, I think I'm gonna hit the sack. My nose is dripping like a faucet and I'm running out of tissue…on to my next box! LOL Good nite all!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone out there who read my blog!!! Hope you had a great time welcoming the New Year. My celebration was pretty quiet, nothing spectacular…I'm pretty excited about the next couple of weeks! In two weekends, I'm going to NYC just to have a personal vacation, just to get away from everything and everyone I've been surrounded and familiar with, even just briefly. I don't want to be away from everything for so long, but I just want some "me" time, and do something outside of the usual routine…I'm going to be starting school fairly soon and I'll be working on top of that, so it's going to be pretty crazy for me. But I'll manage somehow, by God's grace. If things don't work out, I can always go back to Canada. Well, I just hope this year will be better than the last, more blessings and growth, emotionally, AND most importantly, spiritually. I pray the same for my loved ones, friends and you.