48 Hours (the June 6-7 Edition)

Ladies and gents, now that was one helluva weekend!!!

I had a pretty packed weekend and loved every second of it. I got to do 4 different activities with 4 different social circles! Apparently, diversity was the theme of the weekend!

Let's review how things went down:
Saturday (6/6) - MORNING:
Drove to Belmont Park to watch the 141st running of the Belmont Stakes (the 3rd leg of horse racing's Triple Crown)! An old HS friend had an extra ticket and I was the first to step up to take it off his hands. I've always wanted to go to the three major races of the year (Kentucky Derby and the Preakness are the other two for those of you who don't know) and finally got to check one off my To-Do-List. =)

There was also the chance that Calvin Borel would be the first person to win horse racing's Triple Crown on two different horses. He won the Kentucky Derby on Mine That Bird and won the Preakness riding Rachel Alexandra (the first filly to win at Pimlico in 85 years). On this day, Borel would be back on the morning favorite, Mine That Bird.

I arrived with plenty of time to go over the past performances for the horses in the first few races. Post time for the first race was roughly 11:30am and I stayed until the finish of the Belmont Stakes (race #11 on the day with a post time of 6:30pm). I did place some bets throughout the day. I won early and won some on the big race but overall it was a net loss. Oh well, that's why they call it gambling. There were 2 other races after the Belmont Stakes but I had plans for the night and wanted to get home, have a decent meal, get a workout in, before going out. The lack of funds with which to gamble also played a major role in that decision, sadly... haha.

[Oh, for those of you wondering, Calvin Borel was NOT able to make history on this evening. Mine That Bird's half-brother Summer Bird win the big race taking the lead with about 1/8 mile left. Mine That Bird finished 3rd.]

NIGHT:
Saturday was a friend's birthday and I had been looking to hang out with her and the rest of the crew. She's been working so hard finishing up grad school (Columbia University, tyvm) that she's pretty much been MIA for most of the last year and a half. If it wasn't for Facebook and the major gatherings in that time (the Asqui wedding, BBQ, etc), I may not have ever seen her at all in that time. I got a ride from my friend who agreed to be my designated driver for the night only because he says he's been boozing too much lately and wanted to keep his alcohol intake to a minimum (better for me!).

When we arrived at the bar/lounge, it was pretty empty and the DJ was mediocre at best. Not simply because of his song choices but his transitions were bad as well. Most of you who know me personally know I do NOT dance. I get more enjoyment from the people I'm around and the music that's being played. A bad DJ can ruin my night faster than a drunk chick vomiting on my leg (which thankfully has never happened to me). This was shaping up to be a difficult night for me because I love the people I was hanging with but the DJ was really ruining it for me. I realized that leaving to another spot was NOT an option so I only had two choices left: (1) drink MUCH more or (2) take a breather and regroup. I went with option #2.

I decided to leave the lounge for a few minutes and go for a walk to collect myself. I reminded myself I was there for my homegirl's b-day and shouldn't let one bad DJ ruin that. I also didn't want to be everyone else's buzzkill. I came back and decided to get another drink and make the most of the night.

When I got back something miraculous occurred. Around 2 am... the DJ actually developed some skills. I don't know if someone came by and handed him a CD with pre-recorded mixes or if he was "saving his good stuff" for the end of the night but I was having an AMAZING time! There was a good mix of all music... even a little Spanish Rock which warmed my soul ("...y yo estoy aquí... borracho y loco!!!....")

Keeping in touch on fb with new friends during my walk, enjoying good company in person at the lounge, and loving life by the end of the night! I can't expect Sunday to top this!

Sunday (6/7) - MORNING:
I get to finally play some softball this 2009 season!!! We were set to start at noon so I had the chance able to sleep in a little... or so I thought. That was until I woke up really really angry at 9:30am. I was upset because I had missed my flight on Lufthansa. And the stupid employee at the gate didn't even try and help me out when I was trying to figure out what my options were.

At least that's how things went down in my dream. I had such a vivid recollection of the dream, I swore it really happened to me. It wasn't until I was awake for a few minutes that I realized it was a dream. Very strange feeling... that's never happened to me before.

AFTERNOON:
Game time!! I barely got any warm-up throws and had NO BATTING practice whatsoever so, needless to say, the first game of our annual ALAS v Bookstore battle was not a shining moment for yours truly. I got overanxious at the plate, had very opportunities to make any defensive plays at third base (my fave position), and just felt really rusty in Game 1.

Game 2 was a different story as I swung the bat a little better and even had a chance to pitch as well. There were at least 2 innings I can recall clearly where my team got two quick outs to start the inning and then an error on a potential 3rd out led to rallies of three runs or more. Oh well, can't win 'em all!

Are we gonna do this again next week, fellas? Lemme know!!!

EVENING:
My sister was freaking out a little when she saw my Facebook status indicating I was playing softball. You see, folks. She had called me earlier in the week asking if I wanted to go with her to a concert at Jones Beach. I'm not one to turn down a free ticket and a chance to hang with the baby sis. I asked her who was performing and she tells me Nine Inch Nails and Jane's Addiction.

I know she's a huge JA fan (an old friend of hers put her on to them several years ago). I only knew a handful of songs by JA and NIN. I figured the best way to introduce myself to a full discography of these bands was to see them perform their songs live. The thought of being around crazed white kids with pent up rage did concern me for about 3 seconds but I told her "I'm down".

After reading my status on Facebook Sunday afternoon, my sis starts panicking as if I won't be able to make the show (now would be a good time to mention that she doesn't drive and didn't want to go alone). I reassured her that I would make it as long as she met me in Queens. All I would need is time to shower, eat something, and we'd be good to go.

I did just that and she met me at my place. Despite leaving "late", we got to the Jones Beach Theater at 7:30pm for a show that was scheduled to start at 7. I tried telling her 7:30 was NOT late but she just didn't want to miss JA. Needless to say, the show had not begun yet. I had overlooked one tiny detail that would come back to haunt me by the end of the night. I was underdressed for an outdoor, night time concert by the ocean. All I had on was a t-shirt and shorts. The shorts were not an issue but my upper body was FREEZING for more than half the show. My hoodie would have done me a world of good!

NIN opened the show at 7:50 and at one point in their set Trent Reznor told the crowd they were keeping the bullshit to a minimum so they could get in as much music as possible. Thank God for a band that GETS IT!!

I'd like to take this time to recognize the polite girl sitting in front of us who turned around to ask "Is the smell bothering you?" At first, I wondered "What smell?" Despite not smelling anything, I quickly realized what she meant. We're in an OUTDOOR venue. At a rock concert. I EXPECTED there to be a huge cloud over the seats (and not from the smoke machines)! I assured her it would not be a problem at all. She later turned around to ask (with her bloodshot blue eyes) if it would be alright for her to stand up. Really dude?? Go for it!!! Just don't be a dick about it and abuse it, you know? My sis is a short girl and if she stands up, she won't be able to see over you and your boyfriend. (FYI, they didn't abuse it)

Any who.... NIN did their thing... great start to the show!

About a half hour later, JA came on stage. But I was not in my seat. No. I was on a freaking line. For the men's room. For almost 25 minutes!!! How insane is that!?!? Thankfully, I was almost inside but I didn't get to see the excitement on my sis' face when they first came out. I have a mental picture of how it probably looked. I'll have to live with that.

I have to admit, despite how much fun JA's lead singer, Perry Farrell, had performing his set (my sis and I were SURE he was higher than the full moon), NIN was the better band on this night (Sorry, sis... lol).

After the contact high wore off, I drove my sis home (in Brooklyn) and made it back to my house (in Queens) around 1am. A great end to a wonderful weekend.

Until next time, faithful reader......

Fonseca's NYC performance

It's been nearly a month since my last full post. I hope you've all been able to survive without me and my writing.

Without any further ado, on with the show!!!!!

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Last night, I bought a ticket for Fonseca's concert in the city tonight as an early birthday present to myself. I was on the fence for over a week as to whether I really wanted to go or not. Would I want to actually go alone if no one else was interested in coming along? I decided at the last minute (last night) to buy my ticket to the show. Admittedly, I would have loved to have had some company – especially someone who is more genuinely Colombian than I am so that they could help me navigate any issues that might come up. Either way, I went to the show with fairly high expectations based on reviews of the opening show in Miami last week of his Gratitour (a pun of the title of his current album, Gratitud) and a show he did in Charlotte, NC a few days ago (enough Colombians/Latinos in NC to have a show there?? Who knew!?)

There was a ridiculous line outside the venue (the Fillmore at Irving Plaza, for you nosy folks). I got there around 8:20 for an 8 PM show. Now considered it was a Colombian artist and the audience is Latino, it was a safe bet that the show wouldn’t start before 9PM since we’re all running on Latino time. But I didn’t expect so many people to still be on line considering that people were being let into the theater when I passed by the entrance. Thankfully, the line continued to move well as they were letting people in at a fairly good pace considering the line wrapped around a block and was close to three blocks long. One employee monitoring the line said they were told the event was "over sold out". He estimated there were well over 1500 people in attendance.

Once inside (9:06 PM for those keeping score), I had a chance to take in the scene. Sure, it was crowded but it wasn’t packed sardine tight like the employee indicated while I was online. The place itself was quaint. There was a full bar available as well so I bought (and subsequently) downed a reasonably priced Newcastle Brown Ale. As I walked onto the main floor at ground level, the DJ was playing some great Spanish rock songs that everyone was vibing to and singing along with Mana and Enanitos Verdes before throwing in some Carlos Vives in the mix [Check out the 1^st video below]. Some of the other songs played while I was there (songs I haven’t heard in a loooooong time FYI): El Venao; Sopa de Caracol; Pasame La Botella; and Me Voy. The place is packed and there is no seating. It is standing room only and rather than get squeezed out by the hundreds already in place downstairs, I decided to move up to the balcony where railbirds were already in place. Though I figured being right behind them with a vantage point directly above stage right was fine by me.

What a performance!! Some old stuff (Te Mando Flores, Como Me Mira), some new stuff (Gratitud, Perdon), some covers (Idilio, El Cantor de Fonseca – haha get it? Cuz that’s his name… lol). This led to a rendition of El Rey (set-up nicely by explaining the common-knowledge "fact" that Colombians love Mexican music - not all of it but certainly rancheras) before transitioning into Arroyito to close his set. Simply genius!

One of the downsides was my inability to take better pictures since DSLRs were not allowed thus forcing me to revert back to my ol’ standby, my point-and-shoot camera. In the end, that worked out well since I have video capability on that camera (even if the video is grainy and low quality). Another sour moment of the night came when one of the railbirds, understandably, was getting annoyed by my consistent picture taking over his girlfriend’s head. He finally got fed up and turned around basically asking me WTF. We later joked about what happened to my camera since he hadn't seen a flash overhead in over a half hour. I thought to myself, “Haha, a-hole. F**k you.” But we had a good laugh about it anyway because he actually did me a favor. I was now less concerned about taking pictures and was totally dedicated to taking in the performance. It allowed me to enjoy the show THAT much more.

I would love to see Fonseca gain enough of a following to one day perform at an arena that can seat thousands like Nassau Coliseum or the Prudential Center (and one day the grand-daddy of arenas, MSG). But, for now, the intimacy of this venue was perfect for the energy and parranda-atmosphere Fonseca and his band provided, something that could be lost in a larger arena. The space was tight but everyone was dancing (yes, myself included... believe it or not. How could you not??). This was one of the best concert experiences I have ever had (right up there with the Marc Anthony concert at MSG where he covered Hotel California).

Even if you didn't understand Spanish, the music was so infectious and the set so well organized that ANYONE could get into it and enjoy the show regardless of cultural background. Sure, it helps if you're Colombian, but it's not mandatory to have a good time with Fonseca.

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COMPLETE SONG SET OF NEW YORK PERFORMANCE::

Concert began at 9:40.

1 - Enredame

2 - Como Me Mira

3 - San Jose

4 - Alma de Hierro

5 - Idilio (slowed r&b-ish version)

6 - Catalina

7 - Paraiso

8 - Sigo Aqui Cantando

....Fonseca talks to the crowd. Shout-out to sponsors, etc....

9 - Perdon

10- Gratitud

11- El Cantor de Fonseca (sick accordion solo for 2-3 min...naaaaasty!!)

12- not sure of the name and didn't quite catch the lyrics.. Slow, mellow, rock-ish jam....

13- Confiesame

14- Viene Subiendo

15- Lagartija Azul

....band member intros - shout outs for engineers/behind the scenes employees and various cities of Colombia....

16- Hace Tiempo (started slow for first verses and the chorus while Fonseca sang and played guitar unaccompanied)

[Time check - 10:56]

17- Te Mando Flores (2nd video below)

[Time - 11:05... when will he do Arroyito already? The audience has been chanting "Arroyito! Arroyito!" on and off between the last several songs]

18- El Rey (Slowed down version, check the video below)

19- Arroyito (uninterrupted lead-in from El Rey before singing the song at "normal" tempo)

....requests from the audience....

20- Simulacion (cover of Diomedes Diaz track)

21- Bonita (cover of Diomedes Diaz track - 3rd video below).

Fonseca indicated that 'Bonita' was a song they didn't normally play but he had to just be teasing us all because they f**king rocked the house down as they ended the night with this song.

Concert ended at 11:25PM

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Video 1 - Pre-concert: crowd singing Carlos Vives


Video 2 - Te Mando Flores (live)


Video 3 - Bonita (live)


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Until next time, faithful reader....

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BONUS VID!! (Added 3/28)
"El Rey" into "Arroyito"