The Scene Is Dead - Long Live The Scene

I know I've completely abandoned this blog but I've been so busy this month. I haven't had the time to sit down and write something interesting. Although, so many interesting things have happened this whole month. I wish I had taken the time to write them down and share them because to be completely honest, I don't remember much of it anymore. But right now, I just wanted to share a song that I've been feeling a lot lately. It's constantly on repeat on my iPod.

The song is called "The Scene Is Dead - Long Live The Scene" by Cobra Starship. I know, I've professed my love for this band in a previous blog. I can't help it. I really dig them. We all have our guilty pleasures. I guess I just really like the melody of this song. Hope you like it.

#81 Meet A Celebrity--ACHIEVED

Last Friday, I unexpectedly achieved #81 on my list. It all started when I first heard that the band Cobra Starship was coming to town. They were playing a show at 3 different malls around Manila. This mall tour was sponsored by Ayala Malls which I am actually a member of. So when I heard about it, I inquired about getting tickets. Usually when you're an Ayala Mall card holder, you're entitled to 2 free tickets. But the catch is that ticket requests are first come first serve. This time, to get tickets, you had to be one of the first 25 callers at 11am on March 22, 2010. Unfortunately, the lines were busy the whole time I was calling. I was on the phone for 1 hour pushing the redial button like a crazy person and by the time I got through, they were all out of tickets. So I had to proceed to Plan B. This included getting in line early on Friday morning and be one of the 100 lucky fans to get a free ticket. That was the plan and I didn't think it would fail because I didn't expect that many people to be at the mall so early.

Boy, was I wrong! I got to the mall at 1030am (doors open at 11am) and there were already more than 100 people waiting anxiously in line. But I didn't want to lose hope. I kept thinking that maybe they would give more tickets. So stayed in line. All by myself while everyone else was in groups. I didn't mind. I'm a fan, too. It wasn't looking too good since the people standing near me in line kept saying we were already passed the 100 mark. This is when I started to worry that my time there would be a waste. So I asked the kid in front of me to hold my spot in line while I check out the scene. That was the best idea ever because I ended up getting in line for tickets to the autograph signing. This was even better because I would get the opportunity to meet the band in person. When I got a ticket for the autograph signing, I was all kinds of excited so I went back in the show line to try my luck some more. Two hours later, I was shit out of luck and didn't get tickets so I decided to reserve tables at a restaurant with a view of the stage so that I'd still be able to enjoy the show. This wasn't my idea though. One of the moms that was in front of me suggested I do that because there was no other option. And I have to say, I'm thankful she gave me that idea because it was the next best thing to do if I really wanted to watch the show. So that's exactly what I did. I went home with my head up because even though I didn't get tickets to the show, I'd still be able to watch it, and even better, I would be able to meet them and get an autograph.

The photo above is the actual view from where we were eating dinner. It's pretty far (I guess), but it beats having to be in the crowd downstairs. It was a good view, except for those palm trees. They really got in the way at times. It rained that morning, so they set up tents which also got in the way a little bit. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed the show from afar. The show was awesome! They played most of their songs on their latest album Hot Mess and a couple of songs from their previous album Viva la Cobra!.

Anyway, after the show, I had to quickly stuff my face with food because I missed dinner since I was watching the show the whole time. While I was eating, they announced on the loud speakers that those with tickets to the autograph signing should proceed to the line. That was my cue. I'm not going to lie. I was nervous. I have no idea why. I guess it's because I'm a fan of their music and I couldn't believe that I was about to meet them. So there I was, in line with a bunch of high school kids. I've never felt so out of place in my life. But I didn't care. I really wanted to meet them.

Anyway, before I get into meeting them, let me first say that I wore one of my favorite shirts because I knew it would get attention. And I kind of knew they would say something about it. I follow all of them on Twitter and they're very vulgar so I kind of guessed that they would take notice of my shirt. Call me an attention whore, because I kind of am, so I wore this shirt:

I wore this shirt. And I'm glad I did because it got them to notice me. Because when it was my turn to get my CD booklet signed, it was the topic of discussion. The CD signing was supposed to be quick. Most of their fans were just saying "Hi" and shaking their hands. But I wanted to really meet them and actually converse with them. So when it was my turn, I had to play it cool and pretend I wasn't totally excited. They were all lined up on the table signing CD booklets; Nate (drums), Alex (bass), Gabriel (vocals), Victoria (keytar), and Ryland (guitar).

And this is pretty much how the conversation went:
Nate: Thanks for coming out to the show.
Me: Dude, the show was awesome. You guys were great.
Nate: That's a nice shirt.
Me: Thanks. It's on of my faves.
Alex: Sweet shirt, dude.
Me: Thanks.
Gabe: Hey, nice to meet you. I'm Gabe. (followed by hand shake)
Me: Nice to meet you. I'm Arjay.
Gabe: I really like your shirt. Who is that?
Me: I have no idea. I think it's Britney Spears.
Gabe: No, that can't be Britney. What brand is it?
Me: I have no idea. I got it from a night market in Singapore.
Ryland: That's not Britney. I think that's Sienna Miller. I can tell by her side boob.
Me: I love that you can tell by the side boob.
Ryland: Yeah, I know my side boobs.
Gabe: Let me have that shirt.
Me: You could but I don't think it will fit you.
*Laughs all around

By that time, I was holding up the line. There was no one in front of me anymore. So the handlers signaled me to proceed off the stage. So I shook Gabe's, Victoria's, and Ryland's hands one last time and praised them for putting on a good show. And then I was on my way. Completely star struck, excited, and a little flustered that I actually got to chat with them. I'm still a little upset that we weren't allowed to take photos, since now I don't have anything to remember that moment by except through memory. Which is why I'm blogging about it now. I don't want to forget it because it was honestly one of the most exciting things I've done in a while. I know they're not really huge celebrities, but I'm a huge fan of them and their music and so I consider them to be major.

But that's not where this story ends. After I met them, I actually tweeted them a photo of my shirt just to see if they'd actually remember. Anyhow, here's the tweet:

Gabriel Saporta, the lead singer, actually replied to my tweet!! How awesome is that? I say it's quite awesome. To be completely honest, I'm still overwhelmed. Major Cobra Starship hangover. I have to say, everything worked out and I got what I wanted. I got to meet the band and at the same time cross off an item on my list-- #81 Meet A Celebrity.

Thank you Cobra Starship!!!

Concert Week

You know that feeling when you're on a natural high? When you're so happy and grateful for everything that has just happened to you? That's kind of how I feel right now. This week was kind of good to me.

It all started last Wednesday when I got to meet up with one of my good friends whom I grew up with in Japan. It was her first time back to the Philippines in 9 years so I had planned for us to get a lot done in one day since she's only here for a week and a half. It was an exhausting day but it was fun. It's always nice seeing good friends and being able to hang out. And I feel like we never ran out of anything to talk about. That's what's so great about your childhood friends. You guys can talk endlessly about everything and nothing and still have a good time.

On Friday, I went to the mall early to try and score tickets to the Cobra Starship show. Unfortunately, when I arrived, there were already tons of people waiting in line and they were only giving away 100 tickets. So I opted to line up for the meet and greet tickets because at least I was guaranteed to meet the band. And I did. Details will have to follow on another blog. Right now, I just feel like summarizing my week.

Then on Saturday, I went to the most awaited concert of the year. And it was the most successful concert to ever hit Manila. The concert was sold out! With more than 80,000 who attended the big event. I was lucky enough to get discounted tickets from the VIP section. If I had a lot of money, I would have paid $200 for the mosh pit, but since I'm not rolling in dough, I opted for the VIP section. Anyway, we got a great spot in the very front of the VIP section. We stood there for four hours until the show started, but I have to say, it was worth it.

All in all, I have to say that I'm extremely happy. I can't believe how much fun I had this week. I'll blog more about the details of each day in the upcoming days. It's been such a whirl wind that I hardly have time to blog. I just really wanted to share how happy I am right now. It's weird. I almost forgot what it felt like.

#69 Attend a Hip Hop Dance Class--ACHIEVED

As hard as it was to wake up at 7am last Saturday to attend my fourth day of dance class, I managed to attend. Saturday mornings are pretty difficult for me. I'm so accustomed to sleeping in the wee hours of the morning and waking up late in the afternoon that I find it incredibly hard to get out of bed on Saturday mornings.

Nevertheless, I enjoy my dance classes, so I'm glad I haven't missed any sessions. Last Saturday, we learned some basic b-boy dance moves. I have to say, it was actually the easiest lesson I've attended. I'm in no way saying that b-boy dance is easy, because I've seen people kill it in the b-boy department. I'm just saying that the moves we learned weren't as difficult as I had expected. Of course, I expected us to be on the floor most of the time break dancing. It was nothing like that. We learned basic steps and I have to say, it's the only choreography that I've gotten down perfectly.

I was a little frustrated and disappointed in myself after the class though. At the end of every session, we usually do some dance battles and a lot of people who have guts do their own little solos in the middle of the dance floor. Well, during this session, aside from battling, students were chosen to perform the choreography. And not just any student. They chose the stand outs of the day. And I was one of the them. And although I did quite well during class, I couldn't keep it together during the performance. My friend was videotaping me (as we usually do for every class), and for the life of me, I couldn't perfect my moves while she was recording. The weird thing is, when she wasn't recording me, I was nailing the moves. Needless to say, I'm not impressed with the video. And I was kind of disappointed in not pulling through under pressure.

Anyway, I still enjoyed myself. I think I'm just being really hard on myself because I felt like I needed to kill it because I was chosen as one of the best during that day. So yeah, I think I'm being hard on myself.

*Update: I wasn't able to attend my last class. A little upset but I really needed rest that day. Anyway, I still achieved my goal.

Wreck This Journal

I haven't shown off my journal in a long time! I just wanted to show some of the progress being made with my journal.Wreck This Journal has been very therapeutic. I'm not much of an artist, but I try to just express myself by wrecking. I'm a total control freak and perfectionist so doing this journal has been quite liberating.

The journal told me to doodle on the cover page. I thought it would look better if I glued cut outs from magazines. Call me lazy but I think it all worked out. I love what some of the cut outs say.

I collected these leaves on the same day I conquered my fear of snakes. We were in a city named "Tagaytay" and it's pretty much in the mountains. After we went to the zoo to get #29 on my list accomplished, we went to Starbucks to work on our art journals. I felt like doing this page so I went outside and picked up a few things from the ground.

This is probably one of my favorite pages from the journal. It felt so good defacing this photo of me. And the photo kind of suited the emotion I was feeling while defacing the photo. I had the idea of tearing the photo into pieces then gluing it back together. My face needed some color so I colored over it using different colors for each piece. I really love how it came out. It's a little inappropriate, but I don't really care.

I probably won't get to do my journal as much since I'll be busy in the next few weeks. I guess I can take a break from it since I'm looking for more inspiration for some of the pages.