Aug 26-28 - Return to NY, Still Hot, Still Having Fun

I was very happy to be back in NYC and see the scene I had missed for the past 2 weeks. Work has been under control and I made sure to get enough rest and take care of myself in order to get over the jet lag and the dehydration of my week ago vacation in the sunny vales of San Diego. I have been getting used to the strange commuter pattern of having to come up and out of the Path station and walk through downtown to get to the City Hall station. The commute is definitely more complicated but I got up and and out and through it all to make my way home. My PC problems have continued all the way until today and beyond (and even distracted me from posting to my blog over the past 2 weeks) but I have finally gotten it under control enough that I can spend the few moments and chronicle the stuff that I have been through. I was doing computer configuration when I first came home and then moved on to having dinner when it finally arrived. The steak was unsliced but tasted good enough and the dinner was good the the last bite. I then moved on to getting my hair did after a 2 week hiatus of no haircut. It worked out as well as could be expected and I was across the house and taking a shower in no time. After choosing the outfit and making sure everything was in place I checked the time and prepared to head out. Pais was going to sleep in this night so I was heading into the city alone. I walked over to Castle Car service and waited for a car to return to the base. One of my friendly neighborhood cab drivers showed up and proceeded to bring me into the city. The drive on the BQE and then the Bklyn Bridge would have been a little faster but the two checkpoints at both ends of the bridge span held us up a little bit before the driver crossed over to the west side and we headed uptown. The drive turned on 16th and he dropped me off right on 18th Street so I headed on into Gym. The bartender said hello and asked if I was waiting for Brett I said yes and he gave me my drink and began to wait. In the meantime I headed back and said hi to DJ Smoky and chilled for a little bit before his friends came to the back with a whole entourage in tow. I headed back to the front and got myself a can of ROCKSTAR while sharing greetings with the staff. Brett reappeared upstairs and went to clean his station at the bar before stepping out. After noting the direction of all eyes I followed barman Brett out into the night and we walked over the few blocks to where his other half lived. We discussed parties, fire island drama and plans for the fall. After we reached Sixth Ave we said our goodnights and I headed down the block to 17th street and
Splash. I rolled up inside and took in the crowd. The music was energetic and there was plenty of crowd for a summer week end. I picked up a frozen margarita downstairs and then headed back upstairs to look over the crowd from the stage. The DJ for the eve was Billy Carroll who I always have enjoyed on the turntables. As I watched the crowd and danced a bit I finished off my drink and cleaned up a spill on the stage that threatened to derail my evening even as I barely began my evening of dancing. The boxes were both full of gyrating professionals but I just stood back and took in the lightshow in between heading back downstairs and trying the different bartenders downstairs as I picked up my ever present SMIRNOFF ICE®s with a splash of Grenadine. Between the three different downstairs bartender's I ended up the eve with three different prices but the one that charged me the best price got the best tip. He also noted that even though they had run out of large glasses they did have plenty of margarita glasses on hand. Over the course of the eve I heard Deborah Cox "Stupid Like You" as well as a nice wide swathe of recent hits that had the guys and girls in attendance in dancing and paying close attention. When it came time to clean off the box in front of the stage and then dance some the crowd watched some while I danced but it was still plenty of fun and then of course the dancers returned to the now cleared box to do their own shaking in search of tips. I headed outside to pick myself up a bottle of water at the pizza place and on the way back in I ran into Grace. She was feeling a little under the weather and was heading home early but wished me well as I headed back inside. I almost couldn't find my hand stamp but I did locate it and was waved in so I could return to the dancefloor and hang with the peoples. As the music built I took to the speaker box in the back once again dancing to Amerie and a hot remix of "One Thing". I got energetic enough with lights in hand that the light-board guy conspired to turn off all of the lights in the place and shine down blue spotlights on my area as I had my back shining out towards the crowd, lights crossed in my hands behind me. As it finally got late enough around 3:30, I headed up to the booth and said thanks to the light board guy and also thanked Billy for a great eve and told him that I looked forward to his next appearance. The taxi was waiting right outside and I stepped in and gave him directs back to Bklyn and he got me home bound post haste. The ride was quick and I woke up at the turn up and off of 4th Ave. In front of my building I paid the driver waved goodbye and made my way inside. Another Friday Night under wraps.

Saturday we walked down the street to the Cafe to have breakfast. Russ had a bagel with cream cheese while I went for the eggs and bacon on a platter. After breakfast I picked up an orange juice and then we headed next door to the met to pick up some sodas. After heading back up to the house I spent some more time messing with the computer before it was time to head out once again and pick up some groceries from Pathmark and get some stuffing for the Shady Brook farms turkey I was planning to cook on Sunday Night. Back in the house we put away the groceries and Russ took a nap while I missed with the computer some more. As the eve moved in we ordered dinner from the Friends Cafe and I enjoyed a chicken caesar salad delivered nice and meaty. I then cleaned my contacts in the 5 minute solution as I showered and chose an outfit for the eve. After cleanup I settled on the green A/X shorts before topping with my new Rocawear shirt and Tommy baseball cap. The Jimmy arrived around 10:15 and we hung out for a bit before heading out around 11pm.

We wanted to make sure we got out early enough to find parking once in the city. After making our way through the congestion on the Bklyn Bridge (two cop cars squeezing the traffic into two lanes on the span) and up the west side we found a nice spot right on 10th ave. We then were able to walk up the street and right into the Roxy right behind the boys getting their ID checked by doorman Derek. Once past the security outside it was time to wait online for the security inside. Even though the startoff DJ was Chad Jack the later party of Junior Vasquez meant that we had to endure searches and bag checks once inside by another squad of security. After I had shown off the contents of my pockets it was time get up to the cashiers and then on inside to the front bar. I didn't realize that it had eaten up 15 minutes in waiting for security but it was still a good idea to start off my night with a bottle of spring water. After that it was time to start with a nice drink and a Stoli Orange and Red Bull hit the spot nice. Of course there was the mini-drama of the boy who drank too much who fell to the floor right next to us. He hit the floor so hard that I felt the vibration in my knees. He then picked himself up off the floor and collapsed onto the couch next to some people that he did not know and pretended that all was well but of course we knew differently... In the meantime we said hello to our friends Troy as well as Kevin and rest of the crowd until I heard the first strains of "Don't Cha" pulling me over to the speaker in the asian section and with my two side speakers (backup dancers) I listened to a rerub mixed in between the Pussycat Dolls and Mary J Blige "Your Child" with the stress being on the "Girlfriend" hook. After that it was time to step down and check on what the rest of the friends were up to. We hung out with the boys in the front and in the back and also down the stairs in the smoking section where I met some kids in to see Junior spin (he came on at 3am) and also greeted Erica at the back bar in time to get a tequila shot for her and wish her well with her evening. I danced on the front speaker next to the stage while listening to Gwen Stefani and "Hollaback Girl". We also watched and then said goodnight to Quentin Elias after his performance as well as saying hi to DJ Chad Jack at the back bar after his set was over. The energy of the party continued in the right direction well into the eve and even after the drink cutoff I found the energy to take to the speaker overlooking muscle beach and put on a final show for the crowd both hands lit and in motion. At around 4:40am we finally headed outside and found a taxi right out front that was ready to take us back to BK nice and easy. Another night finished off and oh so nicely done.

Sunday it was time for delivery breakfast and more messing around with the PC (all of the Sony Media Solutions software finally installed and working, Yay) and received a phone call from my bro on SI that he was on his way over to hang out some. He arrived soon after and we spent the afternoon playing Nintendo DS games and watching an episode of Thundercats before settling in and watching Blade Trinity on the widescreen. After the movie we dug into the great turkey dinner with a side of stuffing and some macaroni and cheese. The dinner was great and we ended the eve by driving Ian down to the SI bus to head back over the VZ bridge and then taking a trip to the 24hr McDonalds and buying a pair of Mcflurries (one Oreo and one M&M) and then settling for the eve and then messing with the PC some more before I finally thought to go to bed. I really enjoyed my weekend but it can make a body so tired. Got to make sure to get my sleep.

San Diego, the Sun, the Fun and the Friends through Day and Night

San Diego Trip, I actually took a trip over to the West Coast. Flew out on JetBlue Airways and was once again very enthused with the friendly flight attendants, on-time flight and only had issue with the baggage claim taking a little longer than usual. Of course that could be blamed on the distances in the airport rather than Jetblue. We said goodbye to Paul, Dennis and Tamara who flew out on the same flight (Paul in the same row after trading with another lady on the flight), and proceeded to the car rental shuttle and Hertz and ended up choosing a Ford Explorer for the rental. We have really spoiled ourselves with the SUV back in NY so having the higher viewpoint and maneuverability of the new vehicles, as well as having a car that does not look like a rental kept us comfortable for our trip. As I had not booked the hotel or car rental myself I had forgotten to get directions while still at home. However we did get the handy map at the rental agency and were able to get out to the hotel with not much issue. The Jimmy and Chris had already flown out earlier in the day so by the afternoon we were able to make telephonic contact check out what they were doing before doing too much else. We thought we would have time before heading out for the evening to head over to the softball world series Host hotel down in the downtown area and pick up the registration materials and head back since it was so close (15 min) but the ball game traffic heading out to Petco park and the lack of parking spaces available conspired to just make it a sightseeing trip before we headed back up Route 163 and Hotel Circle to our conveniently located but not much else Holiday Inn Select. With one elevator broken and rather small rooms and rather spotty wireless internet (very slow) we were not impressed with the hotel but the price continues to be its only lasting selling point (at 109 a night for the week). We soon said hello to the newly arrived Ty and got ready to head out for the eve. A short drive across the highway to the Fashion Center Mall and we were up at the food court ordering ourselves some take out dinner from an italian eatery. The pizza and chicken parmesan we ordered was fair to middling but hit the spot to get us something to eat before it got too late. We spent a while looking for a place to hang out for the evening. We first had heard about the Brass Rail and paid for parking and headed over but ended up leaving within 25 min. after paying a $7 entry fee and buying one drink as the place was empty and the 20 year old salsa music with low number of early evening clientele. After that experience I had picked up a handy magazine at the front and looked over the addresses of the different places to go. We ended up heading over to Pecs which billed itself as a bar for men but ended up being just a very crowded bar on Saturday night with a very boisterous crowd. We almost witnessed a fight as two patrons got agitated over sharing the same space and ended up assisting with separating the two and deciding to move on as the place had worn out its welcome. We dropped off The Jimmy and a Friend at club Numbers and as the line grew to long to wander through we headed back to the hotel to go to sleep.

The next day of Sunday began with waking up late and heading downstairs to hang out with The Jimmy, Chris and Ty. We spent a while trying to figure out how to spend the afternoon with calls for the beach, the pool, the zoo and a trip to ballpark. After finding out the entry price of just $21 dollars and proving it more cost effective than most options we headed downtown. With the newly arrived Moises and the rest of the crew we braved the traffic to find a space in a lot and getting over to the turnstiles of the park to pick up our automated will call tickets at the gates of Petco park. The hand held credit card scanners at the turnstiles made our way inside a breeze and we climbed the various stairs and escalators to our seats in the upper deck without too much trouble. After waiting until 2 innings into the game Ty and myself headed out to the concessions and picked up some beers and park food before heading back to the seats and watching the game. Back at the seat I was happy I had worn a set of nylon shorts from Old Navy as I spilled a beer onto myself trying to get my camera out of my pocket. We watched the Phillies play the Padres until the sixth inning was over but with the game pretty much in hand by the Phillies we decided to leave before the exit crush and walk down to the street level and out to head over to the host hotel and pick up more of the game information for the week. The walk past the convention center and up to the hotel was easy and after asking a passerby with a bag from the registration we headed back to the room where we could pick up the welcome packages, a free Culligan water and buy some series clothing along with finding out about some of the other sporting events coming up shortly. We then made our way back to the car lot to pick up the Explorer and head back to the hotel. Meeting up shortly with everyone to go to dinner down the road from the hotel at the family restaurant we were underwhelmed with the food and decided not to go back any time soon as the food did not impress and yet costed as if it should have. We walked back to the hotel and made plans on the rest of the evening. Finding out that we had our first game at 8am in the morning meant we could not stay out too late on Sunday night so after hearing the Pecs was supposedly better on Sundays and not many other choices thrown out there we headed back to University Ave and the place with no name on the door (until the door was opened). Turns out the place was even less crowded and had even less to show for itself beyond the games of pool we could play. We ended up staying for a bit to have a few drinks and then after Chris won at pool and we said hello to Dave who had just flown in that day we decided we would not stay much longer and headed back to the hotel so we could get up early enough to play the next day.

Waking up at 6am was no joke but having showered the night before I was able to get ready fairly quickly while Pais also got himself ready soon enough for us to be downstairs at 6:30 and meet up with everyone else to get to the park for our early morn game. We got out to the fields with no problems, the directions culled from the internet were on point and the trip was without incident. We parked and warmed up and said hello to the rest of the team as we took in the cool San Diego morning. I was fortunate Pais had reminded me of the southern California weather and was dressed in my jacket as we took to the field as the home team and proceeded to come from behind and then win a great game (12-7). With the team in high spirits and with the whole day ahead of us we headed back to hotel circle and cleaned up before heading out to Denny's for lunch. Tired of the sub par food we had rushed to eat over the previous night and day we decided to go for our usual vacationing fare and found the nearest Denny's after asking the hotel staff where the nearest was located. The meal was as good as expected and we were happy we had searched it out. After getting back to the hotel and cleaning up we were once again heading out and across the way to the mall to check out the Macy's where I picked up a few shirts for both work and play and Pais picked up a few things as well. Shopping trip for the day over we went back over to the hotel. We rested a bit before checking in with the guys and finding out what everybody was up for.

When it was time to step out we decided to start with one place but quickly move on if it didn't work out. At 9:45 we ended up at Pec's which continued its downward spiral and so after one drink we were out the door and heading over to Hamburger Mary's (Kickers). We got into Hamburger Mary's after flashing our Series Player badges we got inside and checked the place over before starting in with our Drinks, Donnie, Ty and Chris along with Pais, the Jimmy and myself all had a pretty cool time before leaving Chris with his friends and taking off for the eve. We picked up Dave who had stayed a little after us but ended up needing a ride while we were circling the neighborhood because of highway closures (damn nighttime landscaping) but we were soon looped all the way back around Balboa Park and then heading up route 5 away from Downtown and back to Route 8, and then to Hotel Circle to arrive in one piece and say our goodnights so we could turn in and prepare for the next day.

We didn't have to wake up so early on Tuesday but once again the cool morning gave way to a hot and hotter day. The team banded together once again and even though we had a hard loss of 10-12 for the first game due to some errors we came back in the second game to shut the other team down despite our underachieving hitting to win the second game 7-6. In between the games we dined out at Mimi's Diner over on the other side of the Home Depot that loomed over the hills in the playing outfield. The food there was good and after a not too heavy lunch the members of the team that had gone out were more than ready to finish off the games before heading back to the hotel. We had heard that Hamburger Mary's hosted a Hip Hop night on Tuesday's so we were looking forward to that after hanging out with the guys from the team down in the Jimmy's room for a while. After everyone was all cleaned up and we met up in the lobby it was time to go out and hang.

We made it over to the place easily since we had come there the day before and this time brought Hal, Moises, Steve, Donnie and the Jimmy. The ride was cramped in the car but everyone piled in and got out without too much fuss. The machine in the lot was out of order so we couldn't pay for parking but we ended up with no parking ticket anyway. Once inside of the restaurant we asked for a table for all of us and sat down to a great dinner. The wait wasn't too long and the food was very good as we all had our fill while listening to various Hip-hop hits. After dinner was over we moved on to the bar where after getting a few drinks it was on to the dance floor where I danced to everything that came on from 50 Cent, Khia, Missy Elliot all the way to Vanity 6 and the Pussycat Dolls. We ended up staying until 12:45 before heading out with the boys and calling it a night. After all of the dance music I usually hang out to, dancing to Hip Hop was a little slower and very comfortable. However the landscaping meant that once again we had drive most of the way downtown before heading back up route 5 and then over down 8 to get back to Hotel Circle. Everybody had a good time and we turned in to get a good nights sleep.

The game on Wednesday was at 11:15 but due to some delays from the early morning games going overtime we did not play until almost noon. The rest of our team of Mike, Ed and the other Dave had arrived and after quick practice we were ready to take to the field and win our game. The game was well played and finely executed with a final score of 12-3 that totally had the team hyped up and ready to celebrate. After meeting after the game to take our team photo and do a happy birthday for Hal (yesterday) and Dennis (Today) we split to go our separate ways and a few of us ended up eating at Mimi's Diner once again. Another great meal and it was then time to return to the hotel and rest a little bit so we could meet the others for a team dinner.

We verified the directions as the team met in the lobby and then proceeded to get lost as the turn was a left rather than a right onto Washington. The detour was not totally useless however as it let me see that Washington did in fact go all the way to route 5 giving us another way to get back when the inevitable landscaping closed our normal way home. The restaurant was not as busy as Hamburger Mary's but was able to fit us all in at one continuous linking of tables after we did some minor alterations to the decor (moving some plants) but once we were in place it was time to laugh, drink and have a good meal. The full complement of 22 in attendance ordered our drinks, sampler appetizers and each had a pretty good entree (some better than others). My pork chops were done pretty well, (the special of the evening was stuffed pork chops, so I figured getting regular pork chops would be fresh without being something off the rack). When dinner was over we discovered that the Jimmy, Larry and Dave had gotten together to use the team funds to pay for everyone's dinner which made a good meal even better. After dinner was over we all decided to see how Mary's was doing but of course my sense of direction and the layout of the streets did not combine to let us find the place as quickly as we were supposed to. In the end Pais got out and asked for directions and we found we were only 1 block down and 1 block over from where we were supposed to be. We piled out and caught up with the others that had arrived earlier. Of course it was hard to follow up the fun we had the previous night since for Wednesday the theme appeared to be disco. We had a few drinks but the energy was not there. However after a few SMIRNOFF ICE® drinks it was a little better and Mike and I headed over to the dancefloor to dance to Donna Summer and a few other classic hits before it was time to say goodnight to the crowd and the doorguys and get back to the hotel. Thankfully we did not have to wake up too early but leaving the place at 12:25 am was late enough and I was plenty tired before heading to bed. Soft bed.

Thursday morning we awoke early enough to go to Denny's for Breakfast and enjoy a great repast. We picked up Steve and Hal in the lobby and all four of us had a great breakfast. I ordered one of the breakfast specials myself and enjoyed the singular goodness of another well cooked breakfast on vacation at Denny's. After we finished up and headed out we saw another car full of softball teammates heading in just as we were heading out. We still had an hour to change and get ready before meeting the team down in the lobby so it was plenty easy to get ready and be out so that we were ready by 12:45pm. The ride up to the fields was easy as always and we even had a nice easy trip to the field along with giving directions to the car that followed behind so that we all got there with plenty of time. The team practiced before the game once again and come game time (pushed back a little once again) the team came together to form another crushing defeat for the other team with a score of 15 to 3. We hung around for a bit and gave directions to Steve and Hal's family so that they could head further on their trip and make the drive up to LA in short order. After the high of that it was off once again to have lunch and we drew up a few teammates and headed back to the hotel and decided to pick up Wendy's on the way back so we would not have to trek around for something to eat. After scoring the food we headed back to the hotel lobby, divvied up our tasty lunches and then retired to our rooms to chow down. After a short rest and some time hanging out with the rest of the team we firmed up what everyone else's plans were for the evening (turning in early no late night hanging out because our game in the morning would once again be at 8am). There was nothing much to do before that so besides picking up a few things at the mall (Target) It was once again time to chill a little before the end of the day. We didn't go out but we did go to dinner. Larry told us about a seafood restaurant that we could go to just up the street from our hotel and despite the Ramada Inn exterior the food was acceptable and the service was very good. I enjoyed my entree of chicken over a type of lo mein noodle while Pais dug into a nice lobster and steak. We ignored a lady at a nearby table who talked loudly on her cellphone, except for a few pointed comments we had to speak of course (even though there were other people at her table that she appeared to be ignoring). We finished off with dinner and then headed back to the Hotel where Larry joined the rest of the team by the pool and I called it a night and headed up to watch some TV (Bring It On) before turning in for bed. (When "Bring It On Again" came on I knew I could not stay up to watch anymore).

Friday morning came up upon us leaving me plenty tired but very ready to head out and get to the early morning practice (at 7am) with the team. After hitting the ball a few times everyone was ready to run out there and smash into the first team we faced but then... something bad happened. The team actually lost the first tournament game. Of course this would be the same team that actually went on to win 3rd place in the tournament but we were right there with them until the last inning were the team made a 7 run rally but could not climb the last 4 runs to take the game. A loss of 12-15 was hard to take but the team had a breakfast at the field watched the other teams play, (especially the sister team from NY) and prepared to meet the next team at 2:30. The team did very well at first but then when the game got away from them they continued to not be able to get a hit. Everyone was especially hard on themselves but it was an entire team effort and when the final score of 7-9 was hit we were sad that our series was over and we were going home so quickly. The team still hung out after the game a bit and discussed and looked forward to hanging out at Dave's place in Mission Hill where he was staying but that was later in the afternoon. We stayed a little to watch some of the games the other NY Team was doing but I just did not have the energy, especially after having woke up so early so Pais and I headed back to the hotel and caught some rest.

We picked up the Jimmy in the lobby and headed over to BevMo for some mixer and some drinks to bring over to Dave's place. Of course after going up the wrong street and looking for the place I dropped the $20 bottle of Sky vodka right on someone's front lawn in the bag. Thankfully we did have the other bottle so after calling and re-confirmation we were headed over to the right place and inside the party. A lot of people had already arrived and we said goodnight to Tamar and Dennis as they headed back to the friends they were staying with. We said hello to Dave and Donnie, Moises, Larry , Steve and Hal along with some new friends we just met who lived in San Diego. The party was fun and the drinks were even better as we spent the time talking about softball, cities and each other. After I headed upstairs to get some drinks and helped mess with the radio inside the house I went to the front door to answer the bell. I was confronted with the angry neighbor from around back who was complaining about the noise (loud argument between Donnie and Steve) and wondered what I was going to do about it. I told her I would tell them and after she threatened me with the SDPD she finally went on her way. I told everyone else about her stress but the party people had already moved indoors anyway so it was kind of a moot point. We partied a bit more before it was time to go out and the rest of the team arrived to have our final drinks with us before it was time to head out and see what the city was up to. Larry and Steve surprised us with a Piano and song duet that put everyone in a good mood before we headed out and said our goodnights to those who were not going out. We had heard that the Brass Rail was interesting on its Hip Hop night and we wanted to see what that was about. Another $7 and handstamp later it was pretty much the same as last time but with different music. After I had hung out for a bit I headed outside to find Donnie and then we both made the trek up the street to Baja Betty's to find the rest of the team that had went out. We found Hal and Steve, Ed and Larry, and Mike and a bar that looked like it was about to close. Steve had had a little too much fun and was over with his party for the eve. Larry agreed to take Steve back to the hotel brought Mike back to the hotel as well. The rest of us trekked back up the street to hang out until closing time with the Jimmy and Pais over at the Brass Rail. We even danced a little bit to Missy and a few other choice tunes before the party quieted down around 1:30 and they told everyone it was last call and then time to go for the night. We regrouped outside and then headed over to the Hamburger Mary parking lot where we had left the car. The day was sad but the night ended happy as we all headed back to the hotel and called it a night.

Saturday we awoke and decided we would start off with a good breakfast so off to Denny's once again despite the crowd out front and inside. We were seated in less than 15 minutes and I dug into a great pile of eggs bacon and sausage with a side of buttermilk pancakes. After breakfast we picked up the directions and then headed inland for a trip to Viejas Casino on the indian reservation and the Outlet mall nearby. After stops at Eddie Bauer, Niketown, Ralph Lauren and Guess we headed across the street into the Casino to check out the scene. the decor was nice and while not as big as a Vegas casino the staff was friendly and the gaming was fast. Fast way to lose your money that is as after moving to 3 different tables we decided to cut our losses and head back across the street to pick up some lunch. We settled on Mickey D's as a lunchtime repast and after finishing that off we decided to make our way through the desert heat back over to the vehicle and head on out. The drive back to the city was much faster and we relished the return to the cooler air as we headed back to the hotel and rested up a bit before the evenings festivities. When it came time to go out everyone was concerned about what would be for dinner and we ended up looking over the menu that the pizza place stuck under the door. After looking it over 3 times I decided on some random entree and let Pais call but after finding out it was a 45 minute wait I decided our time would be better spent getting our food ourselves. Fuddruckers was still not open yet and so we settled on Chevy's for our dinner of barbecue chicken and a sampler of all of their best fajita fillings. With dinner out of the way we picked up a bottle at BevMo and headed back to the hotel and the rest of the team that was getting ready to go out. All final preparations were in place and it was time. Half of us had settled on Rich's while the other half was heading over to Number's . We arrived and parked. After checking over that the parking was legal we wandered up the street and into the party at Rich's hosted by L.L. Bear. The partygoers were in effect early but since I knew that the cutoff at 2am was approaching I was wondering when the party was going to really pick up steam and head into the big drive. It seemed that finally around 12am and with the place starting to get really packed that the music had finally arrived. When I heard Offer Nissim and "First Time" I headed out to the dancefloor with Donnie and Mike in tow and we danced a bit before the music segued over to the Pussycat Doll's and "Don't Cha". This of course was my cue to head for the stands near the wall and step up onto the raised wall and light my hands and dance for the crowd. I dance the song out and then stepped back into the crowd as Pais headed over to Number's to see how the other half of our team was doing. Inside Rich's we danced and took breaks outside in the smoking area before climbing back up and dancing some more to Mariah Carey and "We Belong Together". After stepping down again I talked to more of our team and Larry thanked me for the light effects and entertaining in my area while I made sure to catch up on the last call and get my final drink on. Of course the party ended at 1:40 and after the lights came on it was no more drinks for us. We said our goodnights, waved off our drunken admirers and headed back to the cars to get back to the hotel. We hung out for a bit in Jimmy's room but after 2 different noise complaints from the hotel security it was time to call it a night and go out separate ways. The party broke up around 3 and we called it a night on our San Diego vacation.

The next morning I packed got myself together and Pais and I drove the rental car back to Hertz. The flight back to NYC on Jetblue was great as usual despite the missing channels on the DirectTV (about 8 of them) but after watching multiple episodes of Being Bobby Brown I settled in and watched a few episodes of Thundercats on my Powerbook DVD. We had a little time of getting our car service pickup at the airport as our driver told us some random woman tried to steal our taxi and take it somewhere else in Brooklyn but he had kicked her out after he called the base to confirm. Being regular customers has its privileges. We got home in time for chinese delivery and to the bulb burning out on the DLP TV. So no big TV until next friday afternoon (boo hoo).

Sayings of the week:

- Random bitches

- "45 minute wait?!, F--k them!"

and of course many other drunken remarks that the sober are too slow to remember. It was a great vacation out west but now I return to the east and the usual suspects are gathering to see what we shall do.

Party, Sleep, Exercise, Party Friends and Painting?

729-731

Work was good this week, nothing too stressful. Just the normal range of things that we have come to expect. Definitely no lasting scars to show for it and plenty of time to think higher thoughts and come up with plans for the future. I have decided to pay off one of my credit cards. The one with the highest interest rate. To do this I have taken out a loan against my 401K. Since the loan is only for 18 months it is not really too bad and maybe I can hurry up and buy some cheap funds before it all goes up. Its really hard to save any money when you have a card charging you over a $100 dollars in interest every month. That is $1200 a year I would save just paying off that one card. Anyway I will just have to endure a few months of lower pay while the loan is repaid. I think I can do it. Its nice to have a plan.

I got off of work on Friday a little early. Terry had the office well in hand so I bid goodnight to my coworkers and headed out into the night. Thankfully the overpowering heat of earlier in the week had finally broke Wednesday night and we were now only feeling the heat into the low 80s rather than a sticky 96 degrees. I made it home easily with no holdups or distractions and got up the hill and into the house quickly. The dinner was already awaiting me but I made sure to put a few things away first and washed my hands before settling in and devouring my spinach and steak with a few forkfuls of cheesy mashed potatoes. Pais and I watched Dateline NBC and then 20/20, seeing stories of Lynda Carter and the strongest boy in the world (little kid must have did steroids but thankfully his father is in jail). I cut my hair and cleaned up and prepared to go out. Pais had to rest up for his family day on Saturday so I was heading into the city alone. A bid goodnight to Pais and after making sure I had everything I headed down the street to the car service.

I was greatly enjoying my iPod shuffle, which was compact enough to take anywhere and gave me a soundtrack to walk the streets and get into the pretty much silent car of the car service. After walking into the place and starting to tell my destination he waved me over to the available driver and I headed outside. After he opened the door for me I was greeted by the sight of a nice folded $20 bill sitting on my seat. At least my ride was paid for and I didn't even have to threaten anyone . Of course I still miffed it up as I gave the driver directions to 10th Ave instead of 8th Ave but it ended up well as the traffic to cross chambers street was avoided as he headed for the west side and he got me up to 18th street fairly quickly. Of course it was two blocks too far too west but with the headphones it wasn't all that bad and I got to listen to the end of "What it Feels Like for a Girl" anyway. I turned the corner and greeted the doorguys and after that brief stop I was inside and ready to get a drink. Barman Brett was busy at first but noticed me shortly and handed me a nice drink of Stoli Orange and Rockstar. I drank it like I was actually thirsty and was soon ready for another. He held me up and thanked me for the CDs of the weeks before but still liked the "B4 Afterparty" the best. I went outside for a second and called Pais to let him know I had arrived alright and then headed back inside
Gym to say hi to John and Andrew. They had their shots and beers and I walked over to the corner and got Brett's attention once again. I handed him over the newest CD "Skyline Driveby" which was actually along the same groove as the other CD he liked so much. I then told him I was going to check out the DJ booth in the back and made it through the crowd to say hi to DJ Smokey. He was feeling in a good mood and playing some classics along with some pop remixes and saying hello to his various friends who stopped by and chatted a bit. He told me he had no other plans for the rest of the summer besides working with the music and listening to some more. I myself was very much looking forward to my West coast trip in a few weeks. I also talked to Carlos who told me he had to play 3 games of softball this weekend and finalize the season in his division. I picked up a can of Rockstar over ice and a Corona for Carlos and returned to the back. We hung out for a bit but then I left just as he began his game of pool with his friends and barman Brett returned from counting out downstairs. We all said our good nights along with owner Rick and then parted to our separate ways. I headed cross town and then down one block to the pizza place and picked myself a bottle of water. I drank down the bottle of water on the way across the street and then headed over to the front door to say hi to doorman Ray as well as the new security guy who recognized me even though I didn't recognize him. As I made my way inside of Splash I said hi to the cashier and then headed downstairs to get myself something to drink. Michelé was talking to the guy in coatcheck, Sergio and we all said hello and hung out for a sec before Michelé returned to work. I watched the counter for a sec while Sergio retrieved some bags from the back and then I headed over to the bar to get myself a drink. I meant to ask my bartender for his name but I am sure I will see him again. Between my trips upstairs to dance and look over the crowd I would head back downstairs to get a drink and who should I bump into but John and Andrew again. For some reason they were talking to the weatherbeaten redhead with the facial hair that the body nazi followed home in a drunken stupor. But besides that I gave over a copy of my "Forward Spring" CD to John who I had been meaning to give a CD for a while now. He thanked me and I headed back upstairs to listen to the sounds of DJ Joe D'Espinosa. For some reason he seemed familiar to me but I guess maybe I had either seen him doing DJ duty before or maybe as a bartender. But despite that I enjoyed his happy groove but got kind of lost as he played a lot of songs that I had not heard before that while they had nice beats seemed to go on too long. However when he played Mariah Carey and "We Belong Together" I saw that there were too many guys sitting on the box near the stage so I headed across the floor and danced on the steel box in front of the screens. I made sure not to smack anyone in the face with the lights and finished out that song well before picking up the remains of my frozen daiquiri and headed back across the floor. Back near the front who should I spot but Grace who had just arrived and told me she was missing one of the dancers who she had met the previous week but was not in attendance tonight. She decided to hang out some more and we danced over near the stage before I headed back downstairs to get another Smirnoff Ice over ice (with a splash of Grenadine). I watched the floor from up on the stage, and retrieved some napkins to clean up a wet spot that made me slip a bit, before spotting Grace once again. She had handed her flags over to another boy who was dancing in front of the DJ booth. After she lit him with a blue flashlight I pulled out my own from my keychain and we gave him two-point spotlighting as the floor lights were cooled down for a bit. After I was over that I prepared to dance again myself but was still waiting for the DJ to play something I recognized so I would be able to really dance without fear of a misstep or overreach. Finally when it was about 3:25 am he graced us with the Victor Calderone Remix of "Low Frequencies" and I took to the box in front of the stage to light up my hands and move the lights as I watched the crowd move to the song. I got active enough for a bit that I actually gave my shoulders a bit of a workout and felt the burn as I had to control the swing of the lights to keep them in synch as well as not hitting myself or any bystanders. As that song wound down the DJ went into Shauna Solomon and "You Can Get Over". I danced with just my hands lit but without the lights in motion and finished out the set without falling off the speaker or even tripping so late into the evening. The crowd was finally winding down but the DJ was still into giving them some more music but I felt it was time to finally step out into the night. I made it over to the DJ Booth and thanked him for the good night and then made my way to the back, retrieved the magazines from the racks and then headed outside. I said goodnight to Grace who was taking a cigarette break outside and then turned and picked up the next taxi to pull up out front. I got inside and got comfortable and after giving the cabbie directions I mentioned that he knew the way but he didn't get the reference until later. I got home with ease with very little traffic on the roads and as I pulled up in front of my building the cabbie finally recognized that he had been there before. I smiled and told him that yes that was what I meant when I first climbed inside the backseat and he smiled back and wished me a goodnight. I made sure to check the seat as I got out and then made my way upstairs and bid my night goodnight as well.

I awoke on Saturday earlier than I expected and ended up watching some DVR programming before seeing Pais off. He was off to Westchester to visit family. I had to take a walking trip over to the Post Office to retrieve my newest copy of Bottom Line Personal yearbook for 2005. The day was pleasant and the walk was shorter than I thought before I was inside the office and waiting on line. A surprising number of people were there to conduct various sorts of business both sending and receiving. After waiting for like 10 min I was sighted by the greeter and as the place was about to close in 20 min she asked me what I was in for. Once I told her I was there to pick up a package she told me I was on the wrong line and mine was the much shorter one in the corner underneath the TV showing the latest iteration of the Power Rangers. After a much shorter wait and a flash of the passport I had my boxed book in hand and was off and back up the street. I stopped for a Vitamin Water at a bodega on the way and then made my way back home. After making sure everything was in order and minor outfit change I was off to the gym in the city. Even though I had just missed a train another one cam shortly and I rode into the city with the regulars. Once I arrived at Church St I was surprised once again by the enormous number of tourists and the bag sellers and DVD salesmen who populated almost every inch of the sidewalk. After I squeezed past the crowds I was finally able to get over to Vesey street and headed for the gym. The packed sidewalks gave way to the sparse indoors of the gym. After micro-locking my articles in the locker I made my towel in hand way up to the gym floor and proceeded to work out. The usual suspects were there doing their stretches, workouts and poses and I got through my own routine with no interruption and plenty of time to get on with the rest of my day. I had time for a bite at Wendy's, picked up cable for the video camera from J&R and then did some back to work shopping at Century 21. Bag in hand it was down to the hot train station for me and I rode back to Bklyn half asleep but happy I had did the chores I had planned on. Sorry to say I did not hear from Nadia but Pais called and let me know he would be returning to BK in the early eve so I just chilled out and rested up some for the coming night. After checking that all of my gift CDs were in place I cleaned up and got dressed and prepared to step out and have some fun. The Jimmy arrived at 10:50 and after some drinks they were ready to go and I was there to rush them out.

We drove into the city with the Jimmy being a little more aggressive than usual on the roadways but nothing too dangerous and we dodged aggressive travelers and taxi drivers to get over to the west side with no scratches and plenty of time to find parking. We couldn't fit into the first two spots we sighted but the third time was the charm as we parked behind another aggressive parker (taking up two spaces) but we were able to squeeze in and then head over to the place to be. We said hello to Reggie on our way over and then turned the corner and stepped up to the front. The line moved quickly and after a hello to Derek and the stern faced glasses security guard we were in there like athletes foot. A wristband and a cashier later we were inside of Roxy and feeling fine. The first round of drinks was bought, the first copies of gift CDs were given to Matt and Barker (B4 AfterParty) and after a few scattered hellos, our night was seriously underway. Reggie arrived inside shortly but was looking for his friends. After we recollected we took to the dancefloor right at the front where there still space after stepping down from the bar. Of course after we had the space for only one song there was a rush of people onto the floor as DJ Merritt threw on our summer anthem of "Don't Cha". An impromptu danceoff with the new guy up on the box was an intermittent sidebar to our representation of our space on the dancefloor. This was followed up by an extraordinary mix of "Solid Textures" cross-referenced with DirtyFilthy which had us all sweated up and ready to find the rest of our crowd. Instead of performing watchman duty of the drinks when the boys went outside to smoke I made sure they finished off their drinks instead and I filled up the time and took to the stage for Suzanne Palmer and "Home" as the flavor of music turned more tribal and introspective. Reggie and I took over the stage and truly worked it out in spite of the boys that tried to sabotage me with spilled drinks and outflung hands. I dodged them like bullets and eventually cleared out my space and took to the front watching the crowd watching me and watching the boys watching Reggie. After we had that bit of fun I found the boys back at the front and had myself a red bull before taking to the stage once again. I waxed between high energy and too much to drink and let the music take us far into the night. I wrested the speaker in the asian section from some drunk boys and then introduced Erica to the crowd before she to moved on to the dancefloor and I moved back to the front. Before it was time to go I climbed up on the speaker near the front door and danced lightless but with full footwork in effect while admiring the mass of the onlookers as the hours grew later. We finally fulfilled the night at around 4:30 and bid goodnight to the Jimmy and Reggie too before heading out and catching a cab over on 10th ave. The driver took us back to BK without too much fuss but once he was around the corner from the building he pulled over too soon and gave us some unclear message that he couldn't take us any further we climbed out and then of course he took off and drove right in front of our house before heading into the city. We don't know why he couldn't take us up to the front but its not like a walk from the corner was too much even after such a long night as we had. We had arrived safely, had left nothing behind and were ready to turn in. Goodnight moon.

Sunday of course was the morning I had to get up at all kind of inconvenient hours like 9:45am because the painters were arriving at 10 to paint the walls of the bathroom. I stumbled out of one room to go to sleep in the other just to have some peace. The took forever to leave but not before I stumbled back across the house and laid down some more before they were finally done and out. Breakfast had already been delivered and I enjoyed the eggs and bacon before settling to watch some DVR programming in between mixing my latest CD "Dance Summ More". I was taking a break from the loungey vibe and moving back over to the harder dance beats. I have one more CD to make in the 2 CD set and then its on to the lounge mix and rave mix (of course a Pop Mix and an R&B Mix could be thrown in too). I finished up the CD and then watched some Kathy Griffin on Trio before switching over to Worlds Wildest Videos on Spike TV. I decided to DVR it so I could watch it later with Pais and without commercials and then it was time to head out and pick up some dinner. We had waited too long to go to the supermarket so there was no time for anything else besides Dallas BBQ. We drove over while listening to the new CD and found a spot right across the street. I did the walk-in and braved the crowds before placing my order and waiting around a bit. I finally retrieved the food and listened to some more music during the return trip. After making it back upstairs (noticed the elevator finally got fixed) we ate dinner while watching Wildest Videos before I took my Sunday Eve nap and passed out on the couch. After I awoke (no more Dallas BBQ for a while, too greasy) we decided to catch up on our Six Feet Under and finally watch an episode on the night it was playing. Thankfully Pais had DVRd it so I didn't miss it and we started it when we wanted. Shocking stuff, as usual (that cat scared me to death at the beginning) and we have much wild mess to look forward to next week. I ended the eve watching more DVR programming (Encore Action) before finally calling it an evening and wishing the weekend well.

It is a great thing to have friends there to push you on to do more than you would by yourself. Friends to be inspiration, friends to have fun with, friends to share the fun times with so you can talk about it later. I have reached the downward slide of the summer with all guns blazing. Hopefully we will take out all of the bad days before we run out of bullets. I will enjoy myself and make sure my friends have fun along with me. The fun that is shared is not added to but multiplied. So break out the calculator and lets multi-play.