Dancing Rams V: The Bizarre Bazaar (4/12/08)

Another year, another birthday, another Dancing Rams fiesta. This year Nora and I decided to step up our game and put all of our efforts toward MAKING the most ridiculous PARTY™ ever and what better theme to do so than The Bizarre Bazaar. We had high hopes and I must say - they were absolutely shattered. A few hundred revelers showed up to The Porch in the East Village last Saturday for what will surely go down in history as one of the most nutrageous affairs of the recent past. I'm not sure how exactly to describe what went down other than to say it was 12 straight hours (2pm-2am) of mayhem plus another 6 hrs of trouble we got into afterward. I'll let the shout-outs and pictures speak for themselves...but please forgive me if you aren't represented... so many people made it such an incredibly special day for Nora and I.

Herman the Hamster - one day you'll thank us for this psychedelic break from PetCo, my hairy little son! You probably won't, however, thank us for that excursion to Teen Wolf's crotch. Sorry!

Ginger the Goldfish - I hope that you met a quick and painless end down a disco dump-free toilet Sunday morning. RIP.

Justin & Jilly - still rockin, even AFTER the baby's due date... you guys never cease to amaze me. Thanks for coming and for waiting to have Gabrielle on my REAL BIRTHDAY!

Joel & Melanie - thank you, thank you and thank you again. Neither one of you has ever let me down! Perfect mix of daytime funk, dirty boomty-boomty jams and old school bombs.

Captain Jack Sparrow, Gio & Boz (from The Porch) - sorry that I tried to go into the bathroom with 5 people and 3 sheep, that I sprayed your faces with silly string and that we utterly DESTROYED your bar! Let's do it again soon (-;

KJ - you absolutely rock in every way possible. It would have NEVER been the same without you so thanks so much for hopping across the pond for a party!

Kellogg crew - thanks for showing up in droves, for laughing at my antics and for remembering...this ain't The Keg! Extra special love to all the boys who came in from out of town and lasted till the wee hours (and pissed in my courtyard)...that would be you Greg, Chris & Billy!

San Fran boys (aka sheep) - Gal, so happy we got to MAKE PARTY in yet another city...love you!! Steve & Casey - after Halloween and Dancing Rams, we are officially family! You guys added such a great vibe to the party!

Everyone - sorry that I threw two huge bags of marshmallows at your faces and dumped an entire bag of shredded paper onto your heads and into your drinks. Sorry if I violated you with a blunt object, shook my a$$ a little too hard in your personal space or did/said something that offended you, your religion, your family, your country or anything else.

Nora - thanks for always pushing me off the silly cliff then picking me up and pushing me off again. I haven't stopped laughing since the day I met you and never could have dreamed of a more perfect ram to dance with! Oh and btw, parakeets are on sale...$19!

Mikey Smilez - costume of the day! Holy shit!

Kim & Keith - giveaway of the day! One-way tickets to Mangladesh...priceless!

Anne & Dave - prop of the day! Yodeling pickle!

Bridge Art Fair NYC (3/30/08)

Thanks to Colleen, my good friend and author of New Dork City, I was in the know on the eight international art fairs happening this weekend in New York. With so many choices...how's a girl to choose? I opted for the Bridge Art Fair over the Armory the others mostly because Colleen sent me an email about it, I read there was going to be some contemporary Asian art (something I haven't seen much of) and I wanted to check out the space. It was held in The Waterfront building, a 23,000-square-foot converted railway tunnel that was once home to the infamous Tunnel nightclub, a place I never got the chance to see. The Fair showcased more than 50 international exhibitors, many of whom had not yet shown their work in the States. The highlight for me was definitely the work of Polish photographer, Anna Druzcz. The basis for her work, part of a series called In Vitro Complex, are photographs of artificially reconstructed, natural environments which she later manipulates digitally. The content and aesthetic of the photos were very unique and interesting as was her statement about man's interaction with nature.

Si*Se @ Highline Ballroom (3/29/08)

It's not often I actually hit up live (non-DJ) music events...shame on me! Luckily my peeps are always on the move and this time it was Saisha that provided the good word that NYC-based latin-soul-electronica group, Si*Se, was playing at Highline Ballroom - right in my neighborhood! Me and a few of the girls ventured over for the show and were blown away. Not only is lead singer Carol C's voice just as good in person as it is on Si*Se albums but she also happens to be gorgeous! Whoa! We took bets about her family's nationality and all guessed South America. However, after some quick research I found out that she's a Brooklyn-born, Dominican-American. Oh and apparently she's a house music DJ. Does it get any better? Check out the band online @ SiSeNYC.com . And if you're interested in buying some of their music, I would suggest "More Shine". One final tidbit about the night... we ran into Spike Lee @ Hiro after the show (-:

International Pillow Fight Day (3/22/08)

So... when Nancy told me a few months ago that I could show up in Union Square and beat people at will with a pillow on March 22 I was all in! Yup, that's right... NYC was one of many cities to host International Pillow Fight Day - all out feather-filled mayhem! It turns out that I'm not as much of a brute as I originally thought as I was pretty content to watch from the sidelines after only a short while in the action. However, I did make sure to venture in early with my video camera rolling in one hand and my pillow pummeling in the other... to ensure you could live vicariously. Let's go to the video tape! PS - my pillow has brown squares on it.

Drag Queen Puppet Bingo & Rhythmism.com 4th Anniversary Party (2/22/07)

DRAG QUEEN PUPPET BINGO.

Could you possibly think of a string of four more fun words or a better Friday night pre-game activity? I heard about this little Friday night affair about a year and a half ago while living in Chicago but wasn't able to check it out until this week. I met a few of my peeps at View Bar in Chelsea and was mesmerized within the first five minutes. Puppeteer Joe Kovacs and his lady friend, Greta Green, are outrageously hysterical. They had us laughing our a$$es off! Me, Mike and Karen even made our way on stage to take part in the antics.



After DQPB, we made a quick pit stop at Colleen and Sean's and then made our way to Pacha for the Rhythmism.com 4th Anniversary party featuring James Zabiela, Deadmau5, Sleepy & Boo, various NYC locals in the basement and The Martinez Brothers (the main reason why I even ventured out). TMB are a teenage DJ duo originally from the Bronx (they now live upstate in a town a few over from where I grew up) who broke on to the scene in 2006. Their dad is an old school Paradise Garage house head who introduced them to house music as an alternative to commercial rap and hip hop. Within no time, Chris (15) and Steve (19), were hooked and obsessing over vinyl and eventually dabbling in production. Lucky for them Dennis Ferrer actually reads his MySpace messages because after a few internet exchanges, TMB found themselves under the wing of the well known house music producer. During the last year and half, they've played Shelter, Pacha, Cielo, PS1 and 718 Sessions in NYC as well as in numerous cities around the world.

Their performance at Pachita on Friday night was truly inspiring. Not only are they the real deal when it comes to track selection and mixing but they also know their role as entertainers - something lost on a lot of veterans on the scene. I still don't trust DJs who can't (or won't) dance and that is certainly not the case with TMB who are movin and groovin behind decks, Joe Clausell style! They played some classics, some pop remixes, some deep, some dirty - pretty much everything I'd want in a night out. At one point they mixed Nelly Furtado "Say It Right" into a classic house anthem. Beautiful! Not only was the music on point, but they brought out a new generation of house music fans, many of whom I'm assuming may not have otherwise been interested. I'm not sure if it's their age, their race, their taste in music or cross-over appeal but the scene could use more DJs who attract a diverse group of young people to come out. The Martinez Brothers may just be a hot new thing, but they also might just be the breath of fresh air that the stagnating NYC scene needs to get it kick started. I'd put my money on the latter.

Spice Girls @ Madison Square Garden (2/18/08)

Sunday night I got the call. That's right, free tickets to see the last of six sold out Spice Girls shows in the NYC area. The Spice Girls last visited New York City in July '98 on their first world tour and the concert sold out in 12 minutes. However, Ginger (Geri Halliwell) left the group in May of that year so as far as I can tell this was the first and only performance of all five Spice Girls in NYC. Granted I would have never paid to see them perform, but free tickets? Hell yes! Oh and did I mentioned I was sitting 20 rows from the stage? (-:

They played a bunch of the expected hits as well as a number of solo spots and covers (see below for full set list) all of which the capacity crowd loved. The pitch was high and the voices were shrill - it reminded me of being at a WNBA game. Ginger, Baby, Posh, Scary and Sporty - all between the ages of 32 and 35 - definitely still have enough entertainment value and Girl Power to rock an arena. Women of all ages (and a few gay boys) were really into it. I was however, pretty surprised at how risqué some of the numbers were given the audience - there was boob grabbing, a$$ smacking and even some simulated fellatio - whoa! One of the highlights was definitely the song "Mama" during which all the Girls (except Sporty) brought their kids on stage. Of course one of the Beckham boys, Cruz, stole the show by break dancing to the roars of the crowd (see video below). He and his mommy, Victoria, were definitely the most popular with the New York crowd. If you ask me, I think she needs to head a few hamburgers - way too skinny!!

'Spice Up Your Life'
'Stop'
'Say You'll Be There'
'Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)'
'Lady Is A Vamp'
'Too Much'
'2 Become 1'
'Who Do You Think You Are'
'Are You Gonna Go My Way' (feat. Mel B)
'Maybe' (feat. Emma Bunton)
'Viva Forever'
'Holler'
'It's Raining Men' (feat. Geri Halliwell)
'I Turn To You' (feat. Melanie C)
'Let Love Lead The Way'
'Mama'
'Celebration Medley'
'Goodbye'
'Wannabe'
'Spice Up Your Life' (Reprise)

"Mama" featuring Cruz Beckham breakdancing:


"Spice Up Your Life"

A Weekend Without a Party (2/16/08)

Yes people, contrary to popular belief it's possible for me to go a weekend without MAKING PARTY™. Friday night I went to the Theater for the New City in the East Village to see "A Clear Midnight," a performance inspired by Walt Whitman's poem "Song of Myself." A work colleague, Ramiro Sandoval, starred as the young poet who reads a selection of verses illustrating his lifelong path. Along the way he encounters a solider, a woman, a maiden and death who each help depict various facets of the protagonist's life and being. It was great to get out for some theater - it's been too long! Kudos to Ramiro for an a job well done and to Death to giving the creepiest (and best) performance I've seen in a long time!

I woke up on Saturday, hit the gym and then made my way to Lusker Rink in North Central Park to ice skate with 20 autistic kids from the Bronx. The kids were so cute and so much fun. At first a few of them were really scared to leave the safety of the rink wall but after a little while I had them skating laps! What a great day - I had a blast and am really hoping to do more activities with the same kids in the future. For the NYers reading this, sign up with NY Cares for similar volunteer opportunitieshere!

Saturday night I stayed home and watched a documentary from 2004 called "The Future of Food" which according to its website is "an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade. From the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada to the fields of Oaxaca, Mexico, this film gives a voice to farmers whose lives and livelihoods have been negatively impacted by this new technology. The health implications, government policies and push towards globalization are all part of the reason why many people are alarmed by the introduction of genetically altered crops into our food supply." I highly recommend checking it out as I think you'll be shocked at the impact of GMOs and the inner workings of the industry. I actually got the DVD from a young guy at the 8th Avenue "L" subway stop who was giving away copies of films he felt were important for people to see. I grabbed "The Future of Food" and "Sicko" so stay tuned for more on the latter.

"The Future of Food" Movie Trailer

Free Rice: Practice Your Vocab and Fight World Hunger!! (2/16/08)

Visit FreeRice.com and practice your vocabulary. For every word you get right, they will donate 20 grains of rice through the United Nations to help stop world hunger. For those who are wondering about the details, donated dollars come through ad revenue generated by the site. 18 billion grains of rice have been donated since October 2007!!

And this just in, you can also do trivia for free flour here!

While we're on the topic, also check out their sister site Poverty.com which tallies the deaths per hour around the world for poverty-related illnesses like Hunger, AIDS, Pneumonia, Diarrhea, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Measles. According to the site: "The United Nations estimates that the cost to end world hunger completely, along with diseases related to hunger and poverty, is about $195 billion a year. Twenty-two countries have joined together to raise this money by each contributing 0.7% (less than 1%) of national income. Some of the countries have already met this goal. Others are being a little slow, but this can be fixed. You can see how the countries are doing here. Get involved by going here.

If you like this idea of *clicking* to help causes:

http://ecologyfund.com/ecology/_donate_species.html - Protect Wildlife!
http://www.buildaschool.org - Help build a School!
http://www.e-inclusionsite.org/en/clickDonate.php - Promote IT!
http://www.theliteracysite.com - Free Books to the poor!
http://www.ripple.org/give.php?p=education - Help Educate!
http://stopglobalwarming.care2.com/ - Offset Carbon, Stop Warming!
http://ecologyfund.com/ecology/_donate_pol.html - Reduce Pollution!
http://www.theenvironmentsite.org/donate.php - Help the Environment!
http://cannecy.free.fr/solar/index.php - Create Free Solar Energy!
http://www.ettklickforskogen.se/engelska/ettKlickeng.asp - Help Old Forests!
http://www.tree4life.com/ingles/ingles.htm - Plant a tree in Brazil!
http://ecologyfund.com/ecology/_donate_us.html - Save the Wilderness!
http://ecologyfund.com/ecology/donate_plant_tree.html - Plant a Tree!
http://redjellyfish.com/ - Help the Rainforest!
http://rainforest.care2.com/ - Help our Rainforests!
http://breastcancer.care2.com - Prevent Breast Cancer!
http://www.giveaminute.org/ - Give Healthcare!
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com - Stop Breast Cancer!
http://www.thechildhealthsite.com - Child Healthcare!
http://www.thestophivsite.com - Stop HIV/AIDS!
http://www.craigresearchlabs.com/cancer.html - Stop Cancer!
http://www.ripple.org/give.php?p=food - Start a Crop!
http://www.povertyfighters.com - Help Raise Money!
http://www.solvepoverty.com - Help Jobs!
http://dsmith11.tripod.com - Help Health and Poverty!
http://www.accse.net/rasa/donacion-rasa.html - Help Agriculture!
http://www.freeflour.com/ - Free Flour!
http://children.care2.com - Feed Children!
http://www.bhook.com/ - Feed People!
http://www.click2care.org - Feed People!
http://www.clickbokin.ekokoro.jp/50.html - Feed People!
http://www.feedsa.co.za - Feed People!
http://www.freerice.com - Feed Rice!
http://www.hungerfighters.com - Feed People!
http://www.hungrychildren.com - Feed Children!
http://stopviolence.care2.com - Stop Violence against Women!
http://www.clearlandmines.com - Stop Land mines!
http://www.ripple.org/give.php?p=water - Give 6 days of clean water!
http://www.cliquesemiarido.org.br/eng/default.asp - Free Clean Water!