Entry #11: Just checking in

It's been over a week since I've taken a break from Facebook.  So far the break has been nice, though I did have to reference it a few times briefly to post things to Facebook and to double check that those things posted.

For instance, big news this week includes the momentous release of the first, full-length ChikënFist song just in time for Christmas in July, entitled, "Christmas of Want [Adolescent Lament]."

Click here to listen!

It was released on Monday (7/25) after having been started around Christmas 2010 and then revisited in mid-July.  The song focuses on the stereotypical perspective of what children feel around the holidays and we may or may not have added a some influence from our own childhoods from way back when in the 90s.  What you'll hear starts out as a jovial Christmas tune, but add to that some lush instrumentation and harmonies, feelings of disappointment, a list of demands and an open letter to Santa, and you have Christmas of Want [Adolescent Lament]!

We also did a photo shoot for this single and for that we owe our friend Lauren M. huge props for agreeing to be our photographer as well as spending time editing the photos.  Great job Lauren!  Here are some of the photos from the shoot:

In other news:

Recently, I bought the newest expansion to the deck-building game I have really taken a shine to, called Dominion.  The newest expansion, entitled 'Cornucopia,' is a small set, but well worth having because of its variety, which is the theme of the expansion.  There are rumored to be three more expansions to be released, which brings the grand total to eight.  I cannot wait to see what Donald X. will come up with next!

Hmm, what else...

I got to experience two friends' twenty-first birthdays this week.  Congrats, Jose and Ashley!

I was able to see the opening night performance of The Wedding Singer last night at PA Playhouse.  I want to send a congratulations to the entire cast and crew-what a great job!  If you have not seen the show yet, please order your tickets immediately.  It was a lot of fun, the cast really brought life to the show and really made it their own.  It was also interesting to sit back and watch many of the people I worked with in Drowsy and other productions do their thing on stage.  You never really know how much you miss working with certain people until you see them doing something and then wish you could be doing something together.  Even so, I was cordially invited to go out for food and drinks after the show with the cast and we all had a blast:

Lady and the tr... other lady?

Thanks for the great night, all!

I almost forgot!  Last week I bought two more teacups at Goodwill and I forgot to post a pic!

Also, right before I left Facebook, I hit a milestone by reaching 1,000 Facebook friends.  Here's a screencap: 

Oh, and one more thing before I sign off!

For all of my musician and/or techie friends: If you are thinking of buying cables, adapters, sound equipment, instruments, etc. online, please consider buying from a company called Sweetwater.  I bought an adapter from them about a week and a half ago and they are very customer-oriented.  A day after I placed my order, a representative from the company called me and thanked me for ordering and told me to let him know if I had any questions and gave me his first name so I knew who I was talking to.  Not only that, when I received my shipment, I also received a slip that told me who packed my item and they even threw in some FREE CANDY!  As an added bonus, they offer tons of ways to receive FREE SHIPPING, so, seriously, check them out! They have a four star rating in my book.

Here's to Ian Malcolm action figures!

Vince

Entry #10: Unrequited

I will try to make this post as short as possible.

Earlier today I was going through some old yearbooks and old notes I have kept for some time.  This was grounds for disaster, considering how much personal drama I've repressed over the years.  Once I unfolded those pages it all came flooding back...

Look, we have all made mistakes in our lives and I am no exception.  It is incredibly obvious that I am not perfect, I have, believe it or not, done some shitty things that I am not proud of.  Not to mention any other various conflicts I have been a part of, where I was on the defensive standing up for myself when I knew I was right, or even just having to stay true to who I am.  When I refer to myself as a perfectionist, I mean everything but perfecting who I am.  I am who I am, and unfortunately there is not much I can do to change that.  Call it predisposition, call it fate, call it what you will.  I let my life happen as it will and unfortunately the "right" decisions were not always the foremost on my To-Do list.  

For instance, I remember my first feeling of true love.  You may think it silly, being that I was in middle school when it occurred, but I do not believe love to be beyond young people, no matter how intricate a concept it is made out to be.  That being said, it was new to me.  Everyone thought me a fool to fall for this person, but I could not stop myself.  The relationship was rocky from start to finish: lots of questionable situations, lack of communication here and there, jealousy, the whole gambit.  In retrospect, it hurt a lot to go through it, I am sure for both of us it was difficult and we both shared faults throughout, but sometimes that is just how life is.  I bet if we both reflected on it now, we would think of how it made us better people and that we learned to just cherish the good times that were had, even something as little as listening to Green Day together.

I do want to take a moment to apologize to anyone that I have hurt in the past.  If you are ashamed to know me, if you feel I have changed you for the worse, if you regret an experience we had or regret sharing anything with me, I am sorry.  I understand these are just words, but at this point what is there left to do?  All I can do is try to salvage what is left and move on.  I apologize, I make it sound like I travel around leaving behind destruction in my wake.  That is not who I am.  Unfortunately I am just focused more on the negative this time around.

For those of you who do not know me so well, it is now one of those times where I will slip into a reflective, somewhat depressed, state when not in the public eye and evaluate my priorities and most likely run myself through the ringer about all the wrongs I have committed thus far, especially if I have yet to right them, or even if they are beyond repair.  So henceforth, if you would like to contact me, I will  not be on Facebook until further notice, so my email, phone number, and in person are the only ways to contact me.  I feel it a necessary component to cut out the main source of social networking when trying to isolate oneself in an attempt to evaluate one's life and potential future decisions.  I need to break away from the solipsistic coma I can feel myself slowly slipping into and bring myself back to the here and now.  I also need to forego my feelings for the time being, in that I need to stop pondering the 'what-ifs' and wondering if anyone cares for me.  I need to learn HOW TO BE ALONE... at least for a little while so that I can be me.  A better me.

Vince

One for love. Love for all.

Entry #9: Music, music, music!

This blog will start with this:

I sang at Coca-Cola Park last weekend.

On July 9th CCP held the 2011 Men's Senior Baseball League All-Star games.  A few weeks prior I had been contacted by the baseball commissioner for Northampton County and he told me that he had heard me sing a few months earlier and that he would like me to perform two songs between the first and second game as well as sing the National Anthem to open the second game of the day, AND I would be getting paid for it!  Obviously, for one reason or another, I gladly accepted.  The day's weather was both beautiful and scorching.  Beautiful wide open blue skies, scantily clad with puffy, white clouds.  White clouds just scant enough to enable the sun to rain down and cause anyone to instantly perspire.  When I stood on the pitchers mound and faced the grandstand, sun grazing my forehead, I felt both nervous and at ease.  I am grateful to have had the opportunity for such a wonderful, enriching experience and I can only hope that I will happen upon another opportunity like this one in my lifetime.  If and when I receive the video footage from the event, I will share it with you.

The Bookstore.

- Plainly and simply, one of the best and most chill places in the Lehigh Valley; I went there within the past week and plan to return as soon as possible.  Highly recommended.  Now, I told you that story to tell you another, which I've entitled,

"Whistling Beards, or, Whistling, Beards?"

This is an ongoing tale that has only just begun... a story of three beardly men who wish to combine their talents and join together in song.  Seeking gigs near and far, the trio builds their repertoire with a variety of tunes to suit audiences young and old alike.  With their first rehearsal proving productive and fruitful, the gang documented the momentous occasion:

They also plan to make an appearance this Sunday at Godfrey Daniels open mic night anytime after 7:00pm. Please come out and support these fine gents.

A "Weird"ly amazing evening.

So when I finally left work yesterday, I met up with my brother, Jimmy, for a trip to Lancaster.  Why Lancaster, you ask?  Well, besides the entertaining and scenic view along the way, not to mention the savory, occasional strong aroma of manure (thanks, Kutztown), the real cause for our adventure was the result of a five-year wait for new material and a tour from one of my favorite artists, parody-master, Weird Al Yankovic!  I love those moments in life when you experience something and as soon as you break away from it and have a free moment to reflect on what you've just experienced, all you can say is, "wow."  I will try my best to explain a few of the thoughts that ran through my mind last night.  I have seen Weird Al in concert 4 times thus far and so far I have NEVER been disappointed, and to this day my opinion has not altered.  Besides the hilariously awkward sketch humor and often side-splitting mastery of parodic lyricism, Al remains a standout among all artists, even after nearly 30 years of performing.  Somewhere within that time period the response to his music has transformed from being insulting to being an honor to have a parody written of their music.  From an artistic perspective, you know you've done your job well if people are honored to have you cover their song, even if it is in a parodic style.

Being a long time fan of Al's music, I have a majority of his catalogue committed to memory, and I am always excited to see what selections will be included in the live show.  The thing that surprised me was the fact that he seemed to be returning to his roots, which is very refreshing to experience as an avid fan that has followed an artist throughout the years.  What I mean by that is that in addition to performing a bunch of songs from his new album, Alpocolypse, as well as a few of his classic hits from the late 80s and 90s, he performed at 15 minute medley of songs from his first, self titled album, his Dare To Be Stupid album, his The Food Album album, and even his The TV Album album.  The songs were any true fans favorites, even if they were lesser known by the general public.  But of course, a Weird Al concert always contains the 'icing on the cake' element, which in this case consisted of: an array of costumes, a Segway ridden on stage, streamer cannons, "DRUM SOLO!"s, a lineup of people in Star Wars costumes, and of course, many video clips.  All in all, an amazing night.

HOLLAH, CHALLAH!

Stagemakers at the J staff

Today was my last day working at the summer theatre camp at the Allentown JCC.  It has really been a great experience and I have learned a lot from it.  I learned that lesson plans are not my favorite thing, but  I also learned that if you make them interesting and fun, there will be much more of an interest.  (Sidenote: I think this is something colleges do not put a lot of emphasis on when training their students on how to educate others.  I understand with the way the educational system runs in America today that curriculums are so jam-packed with information that you can barely spend any time elaborating on any given topic, let alone being able to sift through the grains of sand to find what is really interesting and valuable, but regardless, it is a point I still stand by.  As a student myself as well as an educator, there is nothing I hate more than learning or teaching about a topic I have little to no interest in AND relaying it or having it relayed to me in a blasé manner.  Simply: make it fun, make it interesting.  'Nuff said.)  

Oh, and as for my mentioning in my last post that I would write about July 4th, here is mine in a nutshell:

- Had lots of fun hanging out with great people.

- Watched Team America.

- 'Burger-bomb': The most 'MERICAN thing ever invented.

- Katamari Damacy.

I really want to play Dominion right now.

Until next post,

Vince

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Things I did while writing this post:
- Caught up on watching some new videos from YouTube channels I subscribe to
- Appreciated the beautiful evening weather and hearing the birds chirp outside
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Entry #8: Summertime, Summertime, Sum Sum Summertime

WOW! It has been forever, people!  It's time for another post and boy did I take my time with this one.

So much has happened since last time:

Pomplamoose featuring Lauren O'Connell

First I want to announce that the Summer of Concerts 2011 has officially begun!  Two weeks ago seven friends and I embarked on a trip to World Cafe Live in Philly to see POMPLAMOOSE on their limited 2011 east coast tour!  It was an AMAZING show, complete with some of their classic coversongs, a lot of original material AND featured Ben Fold's guitarist/bassist Ryan Lerman on guitar, not to mention fellow indie artist and friend of the band Lauren O'Connell as their opening act!  Sidenote: I bought SO MUCH MERCH: Five CDs, a poster and a bar of POMPLAMOOSE SOAP!  Even Nataly looked at me in disbelief.  The highlights of the trip are as follows: Team Armadillo!"; getting to hear Pomplamoose live while standing in the very front; having Lauren O'Connell tell me she liked my shirt during her set; "Things we like in hats-things we like in hats! ...Wanna hear it again?"; getting to meet, take photos with, and get autographs from both Pomplamoose and Lauren O'Connell; getting lost on the way home due to my wonky GPS; spending the day with great friends.  

Tally Hall pre-order

A few days after Pomplamoose, I received a package in the mail.  It just so happened to be the long-awaited pre-order of Tally Hall's newest album, Good and Evil.  I was excited to finally get it because for one, Tally Hall fans have awaited the release of this album for a few years now, not to mention this would be my first official unboxing ever! #nerd.  Inside, I found a CD copy of the album, the insert signed by the band; the vinyl edition of the album; two tally hall temporary tattoos; a promo card for Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum in Michigan; a promo postcard for a book called Requiem for a Paper Bag; a black/white photo of Rob Cantor (yellow tie of TH); and last but not least a trophy stating I placed 472nd out of 500 pre-orders.  I feel accomplished.

But, I digress.

Me and Dex @ camp!

I have a question for those of you who either know me or have been following my blogs/vlogs long enough to make this kind of judgement: Do you think I am capable/should be teaching children?

I ask because on June 27th I began teaching technical theatre at the Stagemakers at the J summer theatre camp at the Allentown Jewish Community Center.  So far the kids have been a great bunch to work with; I teach two classes a day, five kids per class, so it is pretty small.  I am glad to have this opportunity  and I am trying to make it as fun for them as possible.  I have taught lessons on set design, props, and   costumes so far, and the next lesson will be on lighting and sound.  Meanwhile, I have been designing the set for the showcase at the end of camp, as well as the props and I have been collaborating on designs for costuming.  If you would like to attend the showcase, the event information is available in the right hand margin.  

Well that's all for now.  Sorry for the wait.
*Spoiler alert: The subject of the next blog will have at least something to do with July 4th.*

PHOTOBLOG!

Here are some bonus photos from the instances mentioned in this blog.  

Enjoy!

      

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Things I did while writing this post:
- Watched SHAYTARDS on YouTube
- Played with my dogs
- Watched Nick Swardson's "Seriously, Who Farted?"
comedy special on Comedy Central
- Took a couple pics
- Ate some chewy chocolate chip cookies
- Went bowling at the Pig Pen
- Went to a rehearsal
- Cleaned my house twice
- Had a fourth of July get-together
- Napped/slept somewhere in between
- Relaxed
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