Sam Smith Concert at the Greek Theatre LA

For Jimmy's birthday I bought him Sam Smith tickets.  I remembered at Coachella Jimmy was so excited when Sam Smith when he came on during the Disclosure set as a guest.  I could recall his smile and energy as we pushed our way closer to the stage. 

When I learned that Sam Smith was coming to LA I hunted for tickets and only lucked out when Sam Smith released a second day.  I was day dreaming about keeping it a secret until we were in front of the venue.  A couple of weeks before the date, Jimmy asked me if I wanted to go to the concert because our friend had two extra tickets.  Well fuck.  The jig was up and I told him I got him tickets for his birthday.  So much for it being a surprise. 

We didn't take many pictures.  My iPhone 4S is terrible in low light, but the only important picture is the one of us.  Everything else I was able to snag off instagram.  Thank you hashtag and geotags!  The credit for these pictures are in the file name.

If only we were this close!  But Jimmy and I got pretty good seats.  Better seats than what our friends were offering.  Heehee.

Though I suppose no seat in the house is that terrible.  The Greek is a great outdoor venue.  Go LA!  Though there were these two really drunk older ladies.  One fell over when she tried to grab her phone when she dropped it in the row in front of her.  "Do you need help?" responded the tween in front of her.  Hilarious. 

Sam Smith had everyone pull out their cellphones to light up the theater.  Pretty magical.

I took this video. So sweet. Sam Smith announced that aside from Stevie Wonder he prefers female diva singers. Which is why he did that cover of Whitney Houston. He's amazing live - lots of chills.  Here is a longer version.

Afterward we enjoyed a slice of Strawberry Pie at House of Pies in Los Feliz until Prime Time for Lyft was over.  Happy Birthday Jimmy.

Coachella 2014 - Cont...

I already bought tickets for next year.  Coachella has become my ONE concert for the year so I'm pretty excited to participate again!  Though it was very stressful since users were able to cut in line to pre-order tickets with a secret link.  But our entire group was able to get in thankfully!

Coachella is different during the day and night.

There are a ton of pictures of the art installations.  These are my versions.

These windows were fun to play with.

The group with our guiding lights.

No enhancements needed to get sensory overload from the sahara tent.

Coachella 2014

I was lucky enough to attend Coachella with experts.  And I was impressed with everything I experienced.  Food was good, lines were short, people had good energy.  It was spectacular.  I also couldn't get over the beautiful bodies and faces.  It was obvious that people spent months to be seen at Coachella. Abs abs abs everywhere and a pretty face to match.

I was expecting dirt ground, but it was all grassy and comfortable to lay on.
I was expecting long lines, but there were none
I was expecting insufferable heat, but there were plenty of shady spots and air conditioned booths
I was expecting my phone to die and to get lost, but my group had a lit up guiding lantern that kept us together and we found charging stations
I was expecting to pay an arm and a leg for water, but it was ALL free with easy filling stations
I was expecting to be bored, but as Jimmy described it - it's a playground with tons to see and things to interact with.
I was expecting to have difficulty sleeping, but the Marriot Villa Suite that we stayed at was pretty upscale.
I was expecting to wait an hour to leave, but our shuttle got us out of there quick!

I was expecting to be exhausted... that.. was a reality.  Currently I'm tired and spent all of Monday just laying down.  From the standing, the heat, the non-stopness of it all.

I stayed pretty sober, only drinking in the morning on the shuttle before I was forced to dispose the liquid before entering the grounds.  But it wasn't hard to sneak things in, but I wasn't really trying.

I wish I had taken pictures of all the unique things that people held up in the air to keep from getting lost in the crowd.  They printed large pictures of their faces/celebrities, they held up glowing gummy bears, they tied stuffed animals on sticks.  Even though there were 45,000 people there, It was easy to stay together if you held up something.  And the creativity made this part of the event really interesting.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/50-best-things-we-saw-at-coachella-2014-20140414/best-way-to-be-found-giant-heads-0996908

What's even more amazing is that Coachella transforms at night.

The best thing to do when the sun sets is to remove your sunglasses and use a face wipe to peel off the layers of sunscreen on your face.  All of a sudden, you're at a different festival.  And people start to glow.

What about the music?  The performances were amazing.  And the light shows made me feel like I was tripping on drugs when I was completely sober the entire time.  I learned that it's always better to be in front, but that's difficult when you want to see multiple acts.

This is what I saw:

Friday
HAIM - Ern/Erik got me into HAIM.  These girls were fun to watch with their facial expressions... they were our welcome to Coachella
Bastille - Just stopped by to listen to their hit Pompeii
Ellie Golding - Fun to sing along to though I couldn't understand her when she spoke
Chromeo - SO good!  I was dancing around, I love the beats
Flume - I don't remember
Zedd - We were deep in Sahara air hangar-like arena immersed in lights, this was intense

Saturday
Banks - She was wearing a big hat and looks like Monica from Friends.  She was hitting those high notes
CHVRCHES
Capital Cities - The trumpet player was good... and Safe and Sound.
MGMT - Missed their hit songs to catch Lorde
Lorde - Amazing live
Solange - We were pretty close and Solange is a very amazing performer.  Once Beyonce came out, the crowd did NOT know how to react.  I think I lost my breath.  They danced together.  It was amazing.

Pharrell Williams - Wish I was closer to the stage to see ALL of his surprise guests!  His voice was shocked so he couldn't really sing

Sunday

Flosstradamus - Jimmy LOVES this DJ.  We were in the front and ended up moshing. I was worried because I was surrounded by children, but it was pretty fun!  Flosstradamus got all of the girls up on the guys shoulders at one point.  And though I missed a confetti shower, I experienced a water bottle shower when the group encouraged everyone to throw something in the air when the beat dropped.  Ridiculously fun.

I'm on the right with Jimmy

Little Dragon - She's part Asian.  Yay.  I saw her first song.  Yawn.
Calvin Harris - We were a bit far and the closer we got, the harder it was to see.  Still great!
Lana Del Rey - Great vocals, but I wanted to sit for this performance
Disclosure - Amazing. Amazing.  When it was just me and Jimmy, I pushed us closer to the front and he fell in love with the night when Sam Smith appeared.

Sad that I missed 
The Knife - Ern said they were great theatrical performers.
Fatboy Slim - Just wanted to hear their "She's All That" Song.. Funk Soul Brother
Empire of the Sun - For that one song I love...
The Yuma tent was also supposed to be pretty inside with hardwood floor and shiny things

During Disclosure, we found a large group of older shirtless meaty gays obviously tripping on something and making out with each other.  "I can't until I reclaim my gay youth when I turn 40 I thought to myself."

Jimmy put together a video of the weekend which included the Do Over Pool Party.



I think I'll go again next year.  But really think about wearing things that glow for the evening and getting creative with the guiding sticks.

Brunch with the boys at Ace Hotel Cafe: King's Highway

Cait wait!  I hope the prices don't go up again.

Most of these pictures were taken from Instagram #Coachella - photo credit given in file name

Elements of a Successful Karaoke Nights

There's always something about karaoke that some people hate.  The songs were boring, they are self conscious, people are mic hogs, but we managed to overcome all of that during our Diva Karaoke night by making sure that we achieved the essential elements.

1. Alcohol
Can't do karaoke without being loosened up?  Max Studios in Little Tokyo was so lenient.  We "snuck" 6 bottles of soju and a 12 pack of beer in reusable bags.  We made sure we cleaned up and weren't too rowdy so that we weren't blacklisted.

2. Current Songs - Max Studios also prides itself in keeping up to date.  They had Rebecca Black's Friday.   Our group was really diverse.  Folks put in rock, dance, musicals, 90's R&B, pop all good energy.

3. Performing Divas - Dab won the diva award that night with his reenactment of the Little Mermaid while singing "Part of Your World."  Situated on a rock in the ocean, see Dab lift his tail yearning to have legs.

Tommy got runner up feeling the music.  First call out.

Andrew and Jlo's rendition of "Marry You" by Bruno Mars was pretty epic as well.  Channeling Glee. Really committed to this song! Awwww worthy.

4. All Sing - You have to pass the mic and put in songs that everyone will sing to.  We even got some shy ones to shine.  If you're gonna chip in for the room, you best sing a song!   Journey, Seasons of Love, Disney songs are all winners.  And because we went with a big group - 1.5 hours = $12 a person.

5. Share the Mic - If everyone looks bored while you're singing - cut it short!  We managed to be considerate of everyone's time.

At one point, there was a spill and I brought in a mop and danced with it while people sung songs from Wicked.

After party

Jam Session

Jimmy had a jam sesh with  Sean. First time playing with a Shamisen!  I tried to join in with some mad vocal skillz.. but they asked me to leave.

OK Go Loves Echo Park

Echo Park Lake is walking distance from my house. Once a month I would find myself having a picnic with friends or taking an outoftowner for a stroll. I love it because to the east is an amazing view of downtown and to the northwest are majestic mountains.
I'm waiting for the day they open up paddle boating. They also have random illegal swap meets .. and possibly legal festivals (Cuban Festival, Lotus Festival).
My love for Echo Park Lake grows with the latest OK Go Music Video for End Love:

OK Go is totally coming with the Echo Park love lately. Following up their mindblowing Echo Park warehouse Rube Goldberg machine is this time-lapse extravaganza shot at Echo Park Lake. - LA Curbed

In the video is a goose that follows them around! It's epic.

This video of an enormous Rube Goldberg machine, for the song "This Too Shall
Pass," was shot in one take on two stories of an abandoned and vandalized
warehouse on Glendale Boulevard in Echo Park. - LA Curbed

Shit, I gotta pay attention to the happenings of my neighborhood. I'm gonna get my friends to recreate this video (good luck) and to visit that warehouse to see if we can step on nails or find barrels of paint flying towards our faces.
I wish I knew about the recording at the lake -to be an extra is anything is to die happy.
Instead of saying that I live on the East Side.. I'm going to say, I am East of the West side and West of the East Side - that's the place to be!

Stop Inviting the Drunk Uncle into these Songs

Lil Jon is like that drunk Uncle that ruins speeches by blurting nonsences at the climax.
"I'm ALReADY Drunk!!!"
"Let's GO!"
"DO YOU reMEMber!?"
"HEY!!"
"This is for ALLL the LADDDDIES"

I feel like they're just using sound clips that he pre-recorded!

The above is a great Jay Sean song (with NO Autotune..i think, thank God), but then Lil Jon fucking ruins it with his maddness.

SHUT THE FUCK UP UNCLE JON!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHH!!!!
He is SO not invited to my wedding.

Though I do like the beginning, it's like roll call! "Lil JON!!" "Seanny Paull..." Ridiculous, time to get an iPod to listen to old songs.

==

Can you imagine if Lil Jon was featured in like... Celine Dione songs?

Titanic Remix: HEY! My Heart Will Go On... Let's GO!

Near, far, wherever you are (CelIne DEEE ON!)
I believe that the heart does go on (OKAY!)
Once more you open the door (I'M ALREADY DRUNK!)
And you're here in my heart (WHAT'S HAPPENING!?)
And my heart will go on and on (FOR THE LADIES!!!)

SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!! AHHHH!!!

I Need a Prius

Ernesto has a prius, he's really environmentally conscious. I joked that when he parked, I saw his Prius plant seeds.



On Friday:
Instead of going out to "White Night" with my coworkers for some German Sausages at Wurstküche and then fancy pants night clubbing at the Edison and instead of going to West Hollywood to see old NSU folks, I chilled with Ernesto at AkBar- a local (key word) Gay Arabian Themed Hipsters club... that means, a whole bunch of fun songs I dont know AND MIA, Jimmy Eat World and Katey Perry... my head was spinning. It was like someone's iPod was playing. While people watching, Ernesto and I decided, the hat, skinny jean, vest, aviators, cigarettes and kicks was too much "look."

I tried to track down my coworkers because they were in the same neighborhood to no avail. We got the munchies and had some Eggplant at Suehiro Cafe in Little Tokyo and my coworkers spontaneously poured in! "CHRISTOPHER LQ!" Of all places in LA, of all places.

I introduced my coworkers to my future "roommate" Ernesto and he lift his arms, spread his legs and said, "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!" .... jk. But that would have been funny. Blog readers this is my "roommate" Ernesto. He takes care of me.

And... BTW. there is such good food here, I am collecting business cards like mad.

To DO:
A. LACMA with Antony to see Contempory Korean Artists (though I briefly saw this already.)
B. Kim Chi Pizza with Michelle before she leaves for DC... forever! + Possible OC night clubbing.
C. Sunday in the OC with Madeline -> Call JV and Cousin

Missing Out on:
A. West Hollywood to see Sally and Colleen
B. Universal Studios with Randy and Breck
C. Lunch with Jane (who I found out on Twitter that she just decided to drive to LA from San Jose after work. WHO DOES THAT?)
D. Modern Dance Class with Ernesto (he wanted private time *sad face)
E. Gay Swim team fundraiser in Long Beach. 1 dollar beers. (ARG! No time!!!)
F. Happy Hour with Will B.- he never called me back :[

Next Week
A. Find Time for Sally
B. Connect with Connie
C. Meal with Cyrus
D. Cook dinner with Sandy!
E. Connect with my coworker about buy a bicycle to bike to work =X

YEAH LA.. Keep it coming, I will arrange/prioritize my time SO efficiently. BOO YEAH. And I STILL need to look at the recommendation list from Danster and Trinh!! TO DO LIST IS SO EXTENSIVE!

==

Blowing my mind:

http://www.eebmusic.com/flash_content/flash_content.html
Yeah Ebrahim!!!!!!!

Thanks JR!

Just... A Posession

So, I lost my camera. Somewhere between the Documentary and Home, I dropped it. I lost pictures from Manhattan Beach and Shawtel Boba with Andy.

But that's okay. I think of it as an opportunity to upgrade. Right now I have my eye on the Canon SD780 IS. Super slim, super sexy. I'd rather buy a new camera than laptop. Though, I miss my Canon SD1000 we've been through a lot.

Delicious.

==

I'm feeling Clazziquai's 4th Album, Mucho Punk. Thanks for giving me the 411 Thwany. Clazziquai is a mixture of Classical and Jazz, combining funky beats they create a musical sensation that really feels good. I love driving home to this stuff. The first song that I heard, Come To Me still gives me chills.

I Gotta Feeling

This guy is so cute... it's ridiculous.

==

Jimmy makes me like guys with random moles and natural eyeliner. Or ManLiner.

Church Makes me Think Nasty

When I don't feel like writing. I'm going to comment on a Post Secret entry that I connect with. You should too.


I also think about dirty things during funerals. My mind is vastly inappropriate.

==

Chris shared this with me.

I love it. I find it interesting when folks speak an unexpected language. I love Asians who speak Spanish/French and White folks who speak an Asian language etc etc.

At the Asian/Mexican Market there was an ambiguous dark skinned butcher who jumped from English to Vietnamese to Spanish within 5 minutes. It was brilliant.

==

I deleted my Adam4Adam account. I figured, I hooked up with a guy from there and I really wasn't into the anonymity of it and there's nothing more that I needed from that site.

Folks judge... oh so and so hooks up with guys from online. *gasp*. Without really appreciating the community that they are a part of. Without realizing that back in the day they had an account on XY.com, they were in Gay Chat rooms on AOL (GAM), they were chatting with folks on rateapix/hotornot they were just as bad because they were little horny curious teenagers. And from there became the foundation of their gay network.

It's hard to be gay. It's hard to meet people. It's hard to feel wanted. Being gay and lonely seem to go hand in hand. So it makes sense that the web is our resource. Just be safe & responsible.

My New Boyfriend

His name is Paul Dateh....

*swooon*



And even sexier when I saw him on concert.

==

Ken Hirai
Is a conundrum. He's 100% Japanese.


This video makes me laugh. The scrawny model girls are so hungry, they keep licking inedible objects. And Ken's voice doesn't match his face... it's like someone grabbed his balls and said, "SING IN JAPANESE BITCH OR I'LL CUT THEM OFF I SWEAR!"

But he's so pretty.
==

I'm feeling this shift in popular music.
Everything is becoming danceable/electronic ... even R&B.



I would add Chris Brown's "Forever," but he beats women.

What Korean Do You Like

안녕하세요
An nyoung ha seh yo!


Korean Girls!? They differ by hair style! So Many to choose from(Gee)


Or one of these Korean Boys... which hairless twink do you liiiiiie? (Shinee)


Or Korean Craig David (Wheesung)


Or Korean boy on Crack (SeugRi)


Or Buff Wet Korean (Tae Yang)


Do you see my camio? I'm the dude with the fake glasses.


or Korean on wings (Bi)


or Tall Skinny Korean in S&M (Bi)


Black and White Korean (Se7en)


or English Learning Korean (Se7en with Lil Kim)

This is Raffy

So... the 19 year old behaviorist got me a giraffe pillow that transforms into a plush.

K... no more giraffe stuffed animals. But I welcome other giraffe things like notebooks, t-shirts and toothbrushes.

Hehe, Raffy is the perfect sleeping mate because he's big... biggest giraffe plush ever.

==

I usually buy things for boys I like. Hmm, i guess he beat me to the chase. I enjoy the company and the attention, yet I don't feel restrained and on the flip side, nor do I feel obsessed.

==

I had (Shady) Pho with the InNOut Guy again. I like how he appreciates my company- asking me why "I'm so nice to him." I told him... that we, as gay people or as people in general, need to try to be nicer to each other. I makes life more tolerable. And again, I enjoy talking to people observing behaviors and learning about myself.

He paid for my Lunch. You know, Vietnamese people (from Vietnam) fight over paying for the meal. God, this would be so stressful IF i didn't like getting treated.

Of course, it's going to linger in my mind that I owe him.

==

Oo Laotian New Years in San Francisco! I LOVE CULTURES!

==

Mood: motivated.

==

Antony P. recommends-

Download "The Dream" Album Love vs. Money

==

New Music January - March 2009 (stop listening to "Just Dance" That was so Summer 2008)

Music Genre

It's really hard to classify music because there's so much overlap... But I've created some personalized Music Genres in my iTunes. But maybe I'm getting too complicated.

Boybands - Backstreet, Nsync, 98 Degrees
Mellow White-ish Girl - Michelle Branch, Vanessa Carlton, Sara Bareilles
Brotha With Soul -Omarion, Ne-yo, Usher
Slutty Girl Groups - Danity Kane, Pussycat Dolls
Gay Bar - Bob Sinclar, Eric Prydz, September, Enur, Ida Corr
Club Hip-Hop - T-Pain, YingYang Twins, Sean Paul, Diddy
Boy with Guitar - Jason Mraz, John Mayer
Booty Shaking Black Girls - Cassie, Rihanna, Ciara
Good Girls Gone Naughty - Britney, Christina, Lindsey Lohan
Emo Rock - Panic! At the Disco, Fall Out Boy
Electronica - Imogen Heap, The Postal Service, MGMT
Latin - Enrique, Ricky Martin
Underground Hip-Hop - Songs by hip-hop artists that aren't mainstream but are used by dance crews and are really cool to listen to in the car
Hip-Pop - Timberland, Justin Timberlake, Nelly Fertado, Fergie


And when I don't know where they go... I put them in generics

Alternative, Rock, Hip-Hop, Oldies, Jazz

==

I'm having an issue with Rock and Alternative. I'm thinking of separating the songs by mood like. Angry Rock and Happy Rock.

==

I realize that I missed out on 90's R&B when Anthony was playing songs off his iPod and I didn't know any of it. I grew up with Alternative thanks to Alysia. :D.

==

My must have playlist is "Songs About Boys"... basically songs that remind me of particular boys in my life. That's actually my favorite playlist to listen to.

==

I need help with these songs/artists:
Mrs.Officer by Lil Wayne - Club Hip-Hop, R&B, Hip-Pop or just Hip-Hop?
Coldplay - Pop, Happy Rock, Alternative or just Rock?
P!nk - Rock, Good Girls Gone Naughty, or Angry Rock?
One Republic - Rock, Pop or Electronica maybe?
Leona Lewis - ... Defintely pop.. huh? yeah. Definitely. She doesn't make me feel mellow.
The Ting Tings - Electronica or Indie? I feel like a lot of Indie is Electronic sounding.

Maybe I should have a, Shopping Music genre?

It's Interesting How they Take songs and Make Them Better.. then releasing them.

2006 Version

2008 Hyper Gay version - That means stronger beats.


I like this type of gay music.

BTW: sorry about the last post of pure gibberish. It was me having blogging diarrhea.

SameSame

OMG.

These two songs use the exact same chords and no one cares!
Rascal Flatts- What Hurts the Most & Raffaela - Right Now, Right here.

Am I crazy for caring?

Music Obsession

When I hear a good song, I hunt to find it.
The Apple Application Shazaam was made for me!

I was at Hunters (surprise) and I fell in love with a song. The next day, I tried to remember the song, but could only remember two notes: da da!! I called and asked everyone I knew and sang the two notes, but they couldn't identify the song. Worthless.

It was like Lady Gaga's, Just Dance.. but that's: Dah.. DAHDAH.. Not DAHHH DAHH!

The other day, I was watching WongFu production, Just a Nice Guy

And I heard a song that sounded similar to the one at Hunter's at 6:48...
I tried to make out the lyrics.. "ALL NIGHT!" But this couldn't be it.. it sounded so 80s.

Today I google searched those lyrics and found "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes off" By Jermaine Stewart (1986) and other covers by Lil Chris and Clea.

The song was quite catchy, but not exactly it. Too 90's and too European.
I liked the lyrics. Seriously, we don't have to take our clothes off to have a good time!!!

Finally I did another search and found "Clothes Off" by Gym Class Heroes! And there it was.

I can't believe I found it.

I'm so proud... it feels good not to be plagued by mystery!

==

By the way... I'm really ghetto.
I Love Hip Hop with Dance Moves!
Click here for the video playlist and corresponding dance move on the right bar!



==
This is me showing Michelle the Harlem Shake.

And for those of you who have a thing for the BOOTY SHAKE! HAHAHA

I Like Watching Filipinos sing on YouChube

I really do...
While Vietnamese people are kicking something something on Reality TV. Filipinos are definitely penetrating entertainment through the Chube.

Gabe Bondoc reminded me that I like boys especially when he says "elll-O"... and that I like boys who look like cats.


Rin on the Rox turned me a little straight .... okay.. turned me a lot of straight. DANG. Yeah.. wow.. hot. wow. Becoming straight curious....



But then AJ Rafael turned me gay again!



And... then I realized that Filipinos have a lot of Soul. Especially JR Aquino


...and Miss Carolinaxoxo


SO I'D LIKE TO REPRESENT THE VIETNAMESE AMERICAN COMMUNITY!
YEAHHH UR!!! ENJOY!



YOu Thought THAT was embarrassing- check out Tila.. sigh.

Ooo, Music Is Getting Better!

Obviously I haven't been downloading Music so I got some Top Hit Tracks and I was pleasantly surprised.

These songs are fun and very danceable.

Hot 'N Cold by Katy Perry
Shake It by Metro Station
Just Dance (Official Remix) by Lady GaGa
Let it Rock by Kevin Rudolf
Shut Up and let Me Go by The Ting Tings

Thank you OBAMA!! Yes, we CAN improve the Music of the nation.