Rockapella Rendezvous for Camp Heartland - Adams Playhouse, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY - June 1, 2002

I asked my cousin to drop me off Penn Station so I could take the LIRR into Uniondale. I was to be picked up by fellow diehard, Madelin, at the station, go to her house and from there we’d get ready to go to Hofstra University for our Rendezvous with the guys. I arrived at my stop and found Madelin waiting for me, along with diehards, Amy, Sarah, and Angela. As soon as we got to her house, we got ready to go to Hofstra, whilst watching Rockapella videos and chatting about our favorite pella guys. We arrived at Hofstra about an hour before show time, and as soon as I got off the car, I saw this girl running towards me. It turned out to be Jessy, another diehard, who I became good friends with online. She was so excited to see me, she practically jumped me! It was great! We all walked over to the front of the Playhouse where everyone else was waiting to get in. I immediately saw Barb’s kids, Manda and Scotty, and I went over to Manda and gave her a big hug. She just hugged me for a while and didn’t seem to want to let go. I told her that it was going to be okay, and that she can cry if she wanted to. I looked over and saw her younger brother Scotty and gave him a hug too. I saw Gene, Barb’s husband and we hugged for a bit and asked him how he was holding up. It was such an emotional reunion, as Barb had just passed away a few weeks prior to the show. I saw my other friend MJ, who’s also a close friend of Barb’s, and she and I hugged each other and just cried. We finally went inside and got to our seats. Before the show-proper, there was a short presentation on Camp Heartland, the reason why the Rendezvous was being held. The founder of Camp Heartland came out and explained what it was all about. Before I go on, Camp Heartland is a camp that was founded as a place for kids, who have HIV or AIDS or who have family members with the disease, to feel like they belong and just get the support that they need. Anyway, the founder also brought out some of the kids that have attended the Camp. It was great seeing those kids all smiling and full of life. After the presentation, the guys came out and everyone just had a great time. During the auction, the guys did a small presentation honouring Barb, and they sang a song that Gene, Barb’s husband, had especially requested, being that it was Barb’s favourite song (I can’t remember what the song was though, argh!). They also raffled off some goody-bags and I was fortunate enough to win one (I still have my Christmas ornament from Brookstone that has audio-recording capability – I have Bear singing “Grinch” into it). The Rendezvous… After the show, all of the Gold Circle ticket holders were escorted to a reception room downstairs to have dinner with the guys. One by one, the guys came in, greeted by applause. We were already situated at our table, eating our food, when I turned around and saw Jeff walking towards our direction. He was making his rounds, from table to table. When he got to our table, he didn’t realize I was sitting there (my back was towards him) so I turned around and said “hi”. He was surprised to see me there (aren’t they always? LOL). Anyway, one of the girls, took out a gift for him, a stuffed Spiderman toy I believe, and he started laughing and thought it was great. So, I took that as my cue to give him the present that I brought him. I had never given him a gift before, and I didn’t want to bring him food. I wanted to give him something special and unique. And that’s what I did. I got him a gift that I knew he would absolutely enjoy. So, I presented him with the gift, I told him that I hope he didn’t have it yet, that he likes it, and that it fits him. He got curious so he asked me if he could take a peak. I told him that he could, so he opened the wrapper partly, and then I saw his eyes “bug-out” when he saw what was inside! He looked at me and said, “how did you find this?” I told him that I saw it at vintage store in L.A. I told him that I hope he liked it, he said that he did and he came over to where I was sitting, gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Aww…I’m glad I made him smile. :-D I spent most of the evening talking with friends, mostly Manda, Scotty and Gene, along with MJ and Jill. I did my rounds and took pictures with the guys, who were all surprised to see me on the wrong coast, again! LOL We took group pictures with all the Rockapella diehards that were there, and even Scott joined in at one point (well, I grabbed him as he was walking by, and pulled him next to me). Kevin ended up taking pictures of us as well. All the girls gave him their cameras, and he became our photographer (I have a picture somewhere that I took of Kevin taking our picture, LOL.). I went over to Jeff and asked if I could have my picture taken with him. So, I gave my digital camera to MJ, and stood next to Jeff. At first, we were just standing, side-by-side, with his arm over my shoulder and my arm around his waist. Next thing I knew, he pulled me closer to him, like we were about to hug. I tell yah, this guy can pull a few fast ones on you. LOL Sneaky, sneaky… ;) Gotta love it though! After the Rendezvous, we all headed to Madelin’s SUV. As we were about to drive off, the guys’ limo drove past us, with the window rolled down, and they started heckling at us. We yelled back at them as they drove away. It was too funny! Those guys can be silly when they want to. It was an awesome evening all together.

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.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, whaddya know? It’s Turkey day today! Thanksgiving day, always something I look forward to every year. There’s a lot to be thankful for, I tell yah that much. God has been good, well, He’s always good, but I just want to take this opportunity to say that. These past few months have been hard on all of us. This country has been a target of inexplicable evil and so many lives have been lost because of some senseless acts of violence…and it hasn’t stopped…yet. But there is some good that came out of these very horrible circumstances of the last couple of months, it has brought people closer together and, most notably, closer to God. God is amazing!

Rockapella Concert - Lancaster Center for the Performing Arts, Lancaster, CA - October 26, 2001

Waiting for 4 months to see the boys again in concert was not an easy thing to do. The last time I saw them was at Hofstra University in June for Camp Heartland. You can imagine the excitement that I felt to see these 5 very talented men once more. My cousins and I arrived at the Lancaster Performing Arts Centre a tad bit late, and walked in at the end of the 3rd song, "So Much Better." After a brief intro by Elliott, they went right into "No Doubt At All," the new tune El wrote, which I (and my cousins) absolutely adore! I love jazz music and I love how El sings those jazz tunes, his voice is so perfect for them, so mellow. Great arrangement and I love the exchange between El's scatting and Jeff's "drumming" towards the middle of the song. The song is adorable! They segued right into "Dancing in the Streets" complete with Kevin's own brand of "shake-down" much to the delight of the audience. After the song, Barry takes center-stage and does his "manly/wimpy" speech, and goes right into "16 Tons." During the song, the audience started to clap along as the guys were singing, but at one point, the audience went off-beat with their clapping, almost throwing off the guys and causing Elliott to laugh! Barry started snapping on beat, but he still couldn't get the audience to clap along on beat, which caused one of the guys to say, "they are determined, aren't they?" which I thought was very amusing. "Use Me" was up next. Again, this song always puts a smile on my face. It's got a great fast R&B feel to it, and the fact the Jeff is drumming and singing at the same time makes it even more fun to watch. Oh, and I love the BGV's - "usein-me-ga-git-gotcha-ooh-ahh-usein-me" - now, that's clever. Scott also gets a chance to "set-off" his vocal pyrotechnics during this song (even more so than in other songs), which is why this song is one of my absolute favorites in their repertoire. Before singing "A Change in My Life," Kevin took a moment to talk about how it was great to be in Lancaster, and to be back in Southern California once again. He mentioned that Bear was from Los Angeles and being back "home" makes Bear happy. (LOL) The guys went right into "Dance With Me" a '70's song, I believe, which Scott arranged. This is starting to become my new favorite Rockapella tune. It's so beautifully arranged, the harmonies are very tight and you can dance to it! J This song brings back childhood memories for me. I remember my uncle playing this record when I was a little kid. After a 10-minute intermission, the boys were back on stage again, doing "Love Potion #9." Then, El stepped up and introduced Rockapella's "greatest hit" which is, of course, Folger's "Rockin' Morning." They also did "Holiday Wake-Up" complete with the bells, much to the audience's delight. Elliott also mentioned that the Christmas Folger's commercial will be aired again this season. Yay! "Don't Do It" was next, followed by "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress." After the song, Kevin commented that Scott didn't smack his bottom like he usually does and that he misses it. (Uh, okay Kev…LOL) Then Kevin walked off-stage and into the audience to look for his "Pretty Woman." Sandy was the PW of the night and she did a fabulous job. They followed PW with "Don't Tell Me You Do" which was a total surprise to me! It is my favorite Rockapella song of all-time and I was absolutely thrilled when I heard the first chord of song - I let out a shriek which startled Mr. Leonard, almost causing him to lose his concentration (my apologies to Scott and the guys, LOL). This song is what got me hooked to Rockapella. I will never get tired of hearing this song. They should put it back on their repertoire, permanently! After Scott's "girly man" bit, Bear took center-stage again to sing, "Big, Bad John, a new Bear song, which was also arranged by Scott. ;-) This song is very enjoyable. I love Scott's facial expressions! And I love the arrangement, you couldn't tell that it was originally a country tune. Jeff had some kick-butt moments in this song as well. WITWICS followed which "rocked da house" and Jeff's VP solo -whoa! It clocked in just a little under 3 minutes. They ended the show after 2 sets of encores. They sang the Star Spangled Banner of course, and during the song, the American flag was lowered behind them. That was a very moving moment. The show was great, it was definitely worth my 4-month wait. Thank you guys again for a wonderful weekend! Come back soon!

Karaoke momma.

Call me the Karaoke Queen…LOL I went with a friend of mine to her cousin's house for a birthday party, and as soon as we walked in the door, she told me that I couldn't leave until I sing karaoke. After getting my grub on, my friend's cousin set up the karaoke machine so we could start singing. Well, whaddya know?! They have I Will Always Love You, sung by Whitney Houston, on laser disc! Of course I HAD to sing it… It never fails, it's like a curse, everytime I go karaoke-ing (if that's even a word, lol), I always end up singing that song. But hey, I ain't complaining one bit. I love to ham it up, well, once-in-a-while, with the whole karaoke thing. I even have my "money song," Nobody's Supposed to Be Here by Deborah Cox (a fellow Canuck). Anyway, I knew I wasn't gonna be able to leave that place without doing one more song…LOL So, I did Celine Dion's Because You Loved Me complete with her Quebecian-like (okay, so I don't think that is a word either) accent…LOL