Inauguration Day 4 & 5: The Big Day in DC and Our Last Day in Philly

01.20.09 The Big Day

Trisha and I woke up at 3AM in the shitty Howard Johnson Motel in College Park, Maryland. We headed to 7-11 to pick up a Washington Post but they were running late that day so we just had to try to get it later. At about 3:30AM the road was clear and we were heading to the freeway entrance that was about a half mile for the Greenbelt Green Line Metro Station. The night before it took us about 3 minutes from the hotel to get to the parking lot of the metro station. The parking opened at 3:30AM but the second we got on the freeway we experienced the worst delay in traffic that we could ever expect. The delay was mainly due to the fact that there was only one entrance, with one person, that was accepting money ($4 to park all day). We are talking one person accepting money for 3400 cars. While we were waiting in line there was a dynamic message signs that said the parking lot was full at about 3:50AM. We just stayed in line cause we figured that was impossible and we didn’t want to drive to another station that would be worse. I even did calculations in my head:

1. 12 cars per minute (1 car every 5 seconds)
2. 2 cash collectors
3. 3400 car capacity

That is 142 minutes or 2.5 hours. So we figured we were safe. After getting off the ramp and getting into the parking lot road, we saw that no one was using the right lane so we jumped in it and it saved us a good hour. All in all, it took an hour and a half to finally get parked.

Trisha and I boarded the Metro Greenline at about 5AM and got to L’enfant Station at about 5:30AM. It was crowded but manageble. We headed over to the line that was for the Silver Ticket entrance. Problem was that the gate opened at 8AM. We stood in line from about 5:45AM to 8:15AM in freezing tempuratures (about 20 degrees that day). I was actually wearing two thermals, a hoodie, and two jackets on my upper and long johns, sweatpants, andjeans on my lower. Along with a beanie, ear muffs, gloves, and wool socks, I was still HELLAcold. It didn’t help to just stand in one place either.

After we got passed the gates we had to fight to get a good view, but after going back and forth between areas, the crowd ended up breaking the fence down andproceeding to closer viewing areas on the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial. We were standing on the second to lowest step in front of the statue that is farthest north. We were about 850 feet away from the podium. Check out the Google Earth schematic below:

We Were on the Second to Lowest Step Next to the Northern Statue

We were pretty fucking close considering the mall is about 2 miles long. It was a great experience and here are some photos that Trisha and I snapped while we were there.

First Shot I Took After Getting Into the Silver Ticket Area

The Capitol is Beautiful

The Capitol

The Capitol

Taking in the Winter Scenery

The Crowd Patiently Waiting, A Few Hours Until Showtime

I Dunno

The Capitol

The Crowd vs. The Capitol

Crowd was Crazy

WTF?

Trisha Trying to Stay Warm

Looking Back Down the Mall, Taken by Trisha

Prime Seating

Love this One

No Words

This May Have Been Through the Prayer Service

Ya Boy, Spingineer, Trying my Best to Thaw, Taken by Trisha

Obama Coming Out

My Favorite Picture by Far

Obama Getting Sworn In

Happiness

Need an Interview?

From the Steps to the Statue

Craziness

Experiencing the Crowd

WTF America? The Aftermath of the Inauguration at the Mall

After Obama’s speech, Trisha andI tried to head back to the Metro station but found ourselves stuck like sardines in a sea full of people. After twenty minutes and moving about 50 feet at most, we decided to head back into the mall. We didn’t know where to go to escape the mall. Roads were all blocked on the northbecause of the proceeding parade. Trisha suggested we take refuge in the Natural History Museum. We found out that everyone had the same idea and the museum was hella crowded. Every piece of wall to lean on was taken, bathroom lines were super long, and people made beds out of benches and floor space right in front of exhibits. It was too much and we decided to move on when we overheard someone say that 18th Street was the exit to allow people to move north of the mall. We left the museum and headed to 18th Street which was 16 blocks away from where we were originally (2nd Street).

Upon getting to 18th Street, we decided to walk north and look for a place to reax, sit down, and eat. We used yelp but it didn’t help, everything was crowded. We walked all the way up to Dupont Circle (a 3 mile walk total from our standing place during the inauguration) when we finally gave up and decided to try to head back to the car. Getting on the Metro Red Line was not bad but transferring at Chinatown Station onto the Green Line sucked. It was packed from end to end, where we thought entering on the last car would make a difference. No one got off until the last stop and me and Trisha hasdto stand for another 30 minutes. Upon getting to the car, I took a 5 hour energy and we were on our way back to Philly.

This was by far the greatest trip I ever had. It wasn’t relaxing, the weather conditions weren’t ideal, schedules were tight, and overcrowdedness exceeding any expectations I could ever imagine, but I loved it. As I explain it to everyone who asks, it was a journey, my first journey, me and Trisha’s first journey together. After this journey, I am eager to take my next journey and just wonder, who’s down to go on a journey?

Cost of Trip (Plane, Hotels, Rental Car, Transit): $1500 for Trisha and I
Time wasted in Lines, Waiting for Obama, on Transit, and Driving: 16 hours
Tempuratures Endured: 17-35 degrees Farenheit
A Huge Check on My List of Things To Do Before I Die: Priceless

01.20.09-01.21.09 Last Hours in Philly with A Stopover in Delaware

On the way back from DC, Trisha and I decided to stop in Wilmington, Delaware to eat and check out the city. We ate at a place called Corner Bistro after checking Yelp. It was a nice place and the food was decent even though it was in a strip mall. I asked the waitress what there was to check out in Wilmington and she pretty much said nothing. She said it was a sleepytown and everything was pretty much closed. Bars were here suggestion. We went downtown anyway and found out there really wasn’t anything there. Looking at some of the buildings you can tell that the city, at some point, been on the verge of becoming big but it just never happened. I will surely never go back to Wilmington and never suggest it to anyone I like.

After getting back to Philly, I decided to go to the Museum of Art to see the Rocky Steps and Statue. Trisha didn’t want to get out of the car which kind of killed the whole experience for me, so I ended up just taking pictures of the statue in front of the steps.

Statue in Front of Rocky Steps

Statue in Front of Rocky Steps

On our last day in Philly, we decided to knock out a couple things we missed earlier. First, we headed to the Reading Terminal tocheck out the Quakers or Amish (one of those) booths. We had breakfast at one spot that was really cheap but tasted okay. We then headed over to the University of Pennsylvania to get my firend Leo a Quakers pennant. He is a teacher and has pennants from a bunch of different universites hanging in his classroom (I will pick him up a University of Hawaii, Manoapennant this weekend). After that, we took a taxi to Rittenhouse Square which was a $7 ride for a 5 minute drive. There was nothing there that we couldn’t see in any other big city. So we then walked back to our hotel picked up out luggage and headed to the train station to head back to home sweet home.

Liberty Towers from Univ. of Penn.

Rittenhouse Square

Officially Leaving Philly

Inauguration Day 3: DC & Baltimore, The Day Before The Big Day

Trisha and I picked up the rental at Enterprise at 8AM and headed to Washington, D.C. right away down the I-95 South. Right after getting on the freeway in Philly we got lost and ended up in Camden, New Jersey, which is known for being America’s most dangerous city year after year. We got out of there quick and soon got back on the right path. There are a bunch of toll roads getting to the DC area and you could spend between $10 and $20 depending on how far you go.

Trisha and I got to the Minnesota Metro Station at about 11AM. We bought our fare cards to get to Capitol South Metro Station as well as our day passes for inauguration day. After getting off the Orange Line at the Capitol South Station we experienced some of the over crowdedness that we would see on inauguration day. Little did we know that this was nothing compared to inauguration day.

Capitol South Station

It was a mad house and tens of thousands of people, if not more, were picking up their tickets on this day. We had to get ours at the Rayburn House Office Building. There were two lines but with no direction or guidance we ended up standing in the hour line instead of the 20-minute line, which both went to the same place. In line, we had to stand in front of a group of annoying campaign workers that felt like they were something special and that they had some kind of special connection to Obama. One was an obnoxious older Jewish woman who had attachment issues with a younger mixed-race campaign worker that reminded me of a bootleg Barack. Another member of the party included a woman in her 30s with braces who made remarks about Asians and Hispanics that weren’t positive. I truly believed she thought she could say those things for four reasons:

1. She voted for Obama
2. She was attending the inaguration
3. She was married to a Latin man
4. She could talk Spanish with the worst gringo accent I’ve ever heard

Once we got the front of the line we found out the delay was due to a security checkpoint that wasn’t upgraded to accommodate the immediate increase in users. Finding the congressperson’s office wasn’t that easy either, Trisha and me got lost for about 10 minutes before finding the office. After getting the tickets, we were a little upset when we found out we were in the Silver Section, which was the farthest ticketed area from the capitol. It didn’t matter though cause we were there for the experience and soon got over it.

Ticket Pick Up Line Wrapped Around the Block, Taken by Trisha

Captiol from the Line

Statue at Rayburn from Line

Patiently Waiting

After getting back to the Minnesota Metro Station, which was in the hood, we took off to Baltimore but not before having a good 20 people staring at us before getting to the car. There wasn’t really any Asians or Latins in the neighborhood anyway.

Trisha on the Metro

Before heading to Baltimore, Trisha and I stopped in College Park, Maryland to check into the Howard Johnson, which was a really shitty motel but we only needed it for a few hours so it was good enough.

Our first stop in Baltimore was Lexington Market, which was in the hood. We got in there and it was similar to Grand Central Market (GCM) but it had as many fried chicken stands as GCM has taco stands. It was shitty but not as bad as GCM. I ate at Faidley’s since Trisha said their crab cakes were supposed to be really good. I had a Jumbo Lump crab cake which cost $13 (WTF?) and it was good but not worth the cost.

Lexington Market

Faidley's in Lexington Market, Taken by Trisha

Baltimore's Best Crab Cake?

Here it is, Size of a Baseball

Eat Them Oysters

After eating, Trisha and I stopped by the Washington Monument. We snapped a couple shots and then drove down to Inner Harbor, which is Baltimore’s waterfront and main shopping, dining, and entertainment area. They had a lot of shopping which included the same stores that you could find at any mall or outdoor shopping area in LA. They also had something called Power Plant Live which had similar businesses as LA Live. I guess “Live’s” will be popping up in many cities in the near future.

Baltimore's Washington Monument, Taken by Trisha

Baltimore Houses, Taken by Trisha

Statue in Front of the Washington Monument

Washington Monument

Lion Statue in Front of the Washington Monument

Washington Monument

Church Next to Washington Monument

Statue in Front of Washington Monument

Snow Covered Car in Baltimore

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

At Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Trisha and I were hungry so we checked Yelp for good places to eat. We drove to Fells Point to check out some of the restaurants and bars. It was pretty dead over there so headed over to Greektown to check out a restaurant that was rated number one on Yelp. The food was too expensive for what it was and just didn’t taste that good. We wondered what Baltimore Yelpers were thinking.

Me and Trisha headed back to the motel in College Park, Maryland to get prepared for Inauguration day and sleep. I took some pictures of the tickets to share.

Two Silver Tickets

What a Souvenir...

Inauguration Trip Day 2: Philly

We headed out pretty late to get to an 11AM appointment for a tour at the Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP). My plan was to make a stop at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, which is best known for the steps made so famous in Rocky, before stopping walking over to the ESP. Trisha had other ideas due to the 30-degree weather and blanket of snow on the sidewalks. So we ended walking to Suburban Station to get transit information so we didn’t have to walk to the ESP.

City Hall

Trisha and I at Love Park

Love Park

City Hall

Suburban Station in the Middle of Downtown?

Trisha and Snow

After getting to the ESP, we found out that our appointment was at 10AM but they would accommodate us anyway. Our group was large and the 10AM tour only had two couples, which would have allowed me more time to take clearer pictures. Even though the facility was falling apart the actual tour was very interesting and is probably one of my favorite tours.

Prison Door at Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Al Capone's Cell at Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary

Trisha and I went to Reading Terminal Market for lunch, which is like Grand Central Market in downtown Los Angeles but much cleaner. I got a Philly cheese steak at Carmen’s and Trisha got a vegan Philly cheese steak from somewhere. My Philly cheese steak was mediocre and Trisha wasn’t impressed with the vegan version.

Carmen's at Reading Terminal Market

Philly Cheese Steak Hoagie from Carmen's

Reading Terminal Market

Reading Terminal Market

Reading Terminal Market

We decided to check out the historical part of Philly since it was only a few blocks away from the Reading Terminal Market. Even though it was the winter, there was still a long line to tour Independence Hall. Trisha and me weren’t interested in the tour and decided to take pictures of historical landmarks without waiting in lines. We also saw the Liberty Bell, which was much smaller than we expected and didn’t really impress us. We tried to check out the burial site of Benjamin Franklin but the cemetery was closed, lucky for us there was a gated opening in the brick wall they gave us a clear view of the tombstone. People throw pennies on his grave for some reason but I don’t know why.

Independence Hall

Trisha and Barack

Liberty Bell

Independence Hall

Congress

National Constitution Center

GW

GW

GW and Independence Hall

Congress

Ben Franklin's Resting Place

Ben Franklin's Bust

Frozen Fountain and Brass Cat at Betsy Ross House

That's Philly

Trisha and I then walked over to Elfreth’s Alley, which is the oldest continuously inhabited street in Philly. The houses were pretty nice but the street was pretty narrow and I was wondering where residents park their cars.

Elfreth's Alley

Elfreth's Alley

Elfreth's Alley

Elfreth's Alley

Elfreth's Alley

We hit South Street to check out what many travel magazines called the hip spot in Philly. I was thinking it would be like Haight Street but it came off more as something between Melrose and Haight. It was snowing pretty hard when we went so our ability to explore a little was severely reduced. I got a Philly cheese steak with cheese whiz at Jim’s, which was supposed to be the best according to yelp, which rated Pat’s and Geno’s badly, but was just not impressed. The Philly cheese steak just doesn’t fulfill my desires like a street taco in LA. I will stick to Great Steak, thank you very much.

Jim's on South Street

Piggin' Out

It was the big Eagles versus Cardinals NFC championship game this day so everybody was draped up in Eagles gear. We didn’t know the outcome of the game until we for to Tir Na Nog Pub and Grill and saw all the Eagle fans sad and wasted. We sat down and watched the Steelers versus Ravens game but no one really was interested in talking to us at that bar.

Back to the hotel…

Snow Tracks

Inauguration Trip Day 1: LA to Philly

We had a 8:30 AM flight so we had to leave at 6:00 AM to get over to Union Station to catch the Flyaway bus on time. Trisha and I didn’t have seats together but asked the check in counter to seat us together and they did. The only problem is that we sat in the emergency exit row. We had a lot of leg room but our seats couldn’t recline…booooo!

We finally got to our hotel in Philly at about 6:00 PM eastern time. We are staying at the Windsor on 17th Street and Benjamin Franklin Parkway between City Hall/Love Park and the Museum of Art/Rocky Steps. It took a shitload of money for all the connecting trips:

1. LA Red Line from Civic Center to Union Station: $1.25
2. LAX Flyaway Bus: $6.00
3. Philadelphia R1 Regional Rail from PHL to Center City: $7.00

Total: $14.25 total per person. This is on top of the $15 per checked bag charged by crook ass United.

Out the Hotel Window

Love Park, All Blurry

Twiggy

City Hall

City Hall

After settling down for a second, Trisha and I took the Market-Frankford Subway Line from 15th Street Station to 2nd Street Station. It cost $2.00 each way to take the subway but there is a 20 cent discount if you buy tokens so we got some. On Chestnut Street, we went to Amada where we got 6 dishes along with my two beers and Trisha’s rum and diet and white wine sangria. The wait was supposed to be an hour but we ended up getting a spot at the bar. We chatted with the only Asian person in the room besides Trisha and he turned out to be from San Francisco too, obviously.

SEPTA 15th Subway Station

Westbound Train to 69th Street Station

Guy Singing on the Subway with Mic and Speaker...Famous Line: "I Know the Ladies Aren't Happy Cause They Aren't Going Home With Me"

Amada

Meters for Midgets

Even though the food was great, the bill came out to $120.00 for six tapas dishes, two beers, and two cocktail. Damn!

After Amada, we walked down Market Street to 5th Street and hopped back on the Market-Frankford Subway up to Spring Garden Station to hit up Silk City on Spring Garden and 5th. We waited for the DJ to come on and he turned out to be pretty wack. He was playing a bunch of indie and didn’t mix at all or couldn’t mix. He hyped himself up too with a light up “DJ Deejay ” sign (yes that was his name). But the white folks were feeling him so maybe it was just us, probably not though. We bounced fast after the DJs forth track and headed back to Spring Garden Station. On the way there, it started to snow a little bit but was short lived. It was funny cause I was wearing about 4 layers on my upper and white people were out there in t-shirts. It was 18 degrees out there!!!

5th Street Station Platform

5th Street Subway Platform

Railing at Silk City

Trisha at Silk City

DJ Deejay Unsets the Mood at Silk City

Philly Skyline from Spring Garden Station

After getting on the subway, we headed back to the subway and called it a night.

Follow Up Post to Feelin It Mix

Since I started off the last mix with Feist’s “1, 2, 3, 4″ track…

I was checking out Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream Blog and I saw this youtube video of Feist performing “1, 2, 3, 4″ on Sesame Street. She and all the hompies (homie puppets) get down to the track. Shit is made for little kids but it does make me smile. Have you guys seen the Sesame Street of today? It blows the old Sesame Street out of the water. Anyway the video is cute…in the sense of how it would be perceived and enjoyed by a toddler. I may have just stripped myself of my manhood with that last line…oh well, I don’t really give a fuck…enjoy kids.

New Mix: Feelin It Mix Featuring a Bunch of Songs Downloaded From Your Favorite Blogs

New mix for that ass!!! I have been trying to pump out as many mixtapes as possible so you guys always have something to listen to in your ipods, jeeps, and boom boxes while you are working out, working, or driving.

I have been staying up to about 1AM to 4AM for the last week for some reason. But instead of letting the pre-insomnia drive me crazy, I decided to be more proactive with that time. I hit the turntables. I found out that I am way more creative and my mind is much clearer in the late late late hours of the night. I never get tired of mixing like I may do in the day cause I am pretty much mixing until I get tired enough to pass out.

The routine goes like this:

1. Try to sleep
2. Get up cause I can’t sleep and go watch Adult Swim
3. Get bored with cartoons and head to my mix lounge
4. Prepare a lineup that may take me 1-3 hours
5. Record the mix the next day

I call this mix the Feelin It Mix since it was put together while I was feelin it in the wee hours of the night. I stuck to one folder which was packed with songs I downloaded from music blogs. So maybe we can call it the Music Blog Mayhem Mix (kind of whack name). I try to just build on top of each proceeding song with something that I felt that fit right even if the genre doesn’t match. So be prepared for hip hop, soul, neo-soul, disco, and so on…

Feelin It Mix (Week of 01.12.09) – Click to Download

Tracklisting:

1. Feist – 1, 2, 3, 4
2. K-Os – 4, 3, 2, 1
3. Notorious B.I.G. vs. Frank Sinatra – Nasty Boy (DJ Cappel Remix)
4. White Label – You Could Say I’m Sort Of The Boss
5. Kid Sister – Get Fresh
6. J*Davey – Slooow
7. The Final Solution – Brotherman
8. Family Tree – Family Tree feat. Sharon Brown
9. Escort – Starlight (Darshan Jesrani Dub)
10. Blue Boy vs. Ol Dirty Bastard – Shimmember Me (DJ Not I Remix)
11. Jay-Z – Brooklyn (Go Hard) feat. Santogold
12. Marlena Shaw – California Soul (Diplo/Mad Decent Remix)
13. Q-Tip – Gettin’ Up
14. Black Ivory – You And I
15. Bambu – Crooks & Rooks
16. Alchemist – Therapy feat. Evidence, Blu, & Kid Cudi
17. Ludacris – Do The Right Thing feat. Common
18. Wale – Nike Boots
19. Menahan Street Band – Home Again!
20. People Under The Stairs – Montego Slay
21. Madlib – Blow The Horns On ‘Em feat. Guilty Simpson
22. Raphael Saadiq – Seven
23. Da King And I – Tears (To My Eyes)
24. Paris – The Days Of Old
25. Erykah Badu – Soldier
26. Jose Feliciano – California Dreaming (Brendan Bring ‘Em Remix)
27. The Cool Kids – 88
28. Evidence – Rain Or Shine
29. The Blue Scholars – Southside Revival
30. Rick Ross – Hustlin’ (Dr. Dog Mix N Mash)
31. Common – Go (Beatnick & K-Salaam Remix)
32. Camp Lo – On Smash feat. Styles P & Pete Rock
33. U-N-I – Beautiful Day (Remix) feat. Evidence, Big Pooh, Aloe Blacc, Fashawn, Mickey Factz, Theo, & Kes Kaos

Peace out and pray to GOD, Allah, Buddha, and more that I get more sleep or that I pump out a shitload of new mixtapes while I am not sleeping.

Spin

The Come Up Crew Podcast Vol. 4: B’More vs. Grime featuring Spingineer & Siik

Getting right down to it for 2009, myself and Siik came at y’all with something new. We wanted to open up your ears to the scene outside of MTV, BET, and every major city’s major night clubs. One of the best things, in my opinion, about being a DJ is the fact that we are on the up and up on many different genres and we could be doing a straight underground hip hop mix one day, electro mix the next, and 80s freestyle after that. We spin it all cause we know it makes y’all dance, bob your head, and throw your hands in the air. Trust us, cause we have given our lives to music and we strive to give you guys something old, something new, something gangsta in crip blue, something to dance to like NWA, something to jam to at clubs that love gays, we got what you looking for…

Check the podcast we got for y’all with a spotlight on B’More (Baltimore Club Music) from Baltimore and Grime from East London. The kind of music that makes you want to move and jump while the beats are fast and bob your head and throw your hands in the air when them beat breaks down. Shit is fresh and y’all need to get with it…

The Come Up Podcast Vol. 4: B’More vs. Grime (Week of 01.05.09) – Click to Download

Tracklisting:

Introduction: Dumlao, Siik, and Spingineer (Background Music: The Cool Kids – A Little Bit Cooler – Instrumental)

Set #1: B’More (Baltimore Club Music) featuring Spingineer

1. M.I.A. & DJ Blaqstarr vs. DJ Shadow – Save Ur Soul vs. Right Thing (Spingineer Blend)
2. M.I.A. & DJ Blaqstarr – S.U.S. (Save Ur Soul)
3. David Bowie & Queen vs. Three 6 Mafia – Stay Fly Under Pressure (DJ Slink Remix)
4. Big Daddy Kane vs. Pitbull & Nina Sky – Here He Comes Raw (DJ Day Blend)
5. A-trak – Wampercycle feat. The Clipse & Slim Thug
6. Top Billin – One Last Time
7. Diego Bernal – Bring It on Home (Mexican with Guns Remix)
8. Estelle – American Boy feat. Kanye West (Nadastrom Remix)
9. DJ Assault vs. DJ Slink – A&T
10. Twista vs. Colplay – Viva La Celebrity (DJ Slink Remix)
11. DJ Ayres – Move On Up (Curtis Mayfield Baltimore Club Remix)
12. Top Billin – San Fran
13. League 510 – To The Beat
14. Nick Catchdubs & DJ Ayres – Tell Me When to Go feat. E-40 (Remix)
15. Kid Sister – Pro Nails feat. Kanye West
16. Johnny Blaze – Dora the Explorer (B-More Remix)
17. Yung Joc – It’s Going Down (Bamabounce Remix)
18. Ms. Streamz – Tear It Up
19. The Hump Day Project – Real Hot for Everyone
20. Santogold – You’ll Find A Way (Switch & Graeme Remix)
21. Spankrock & Amanda Blank – Loose (DJ Ayres Potion Remix)
22. Eric B & Rakim – Let the Rhythm Hit Em (Omega One Remix)
23. Kid Sister – Damn Girl (Remix)
24. Aaron LaCrate – Get Um Gerl feat. Amanda Blank
25. DJ Blaqstarr – Shake it to the Ground feat. Rye Rye

Interlude: Spingineer, Dumlao, and Siik (Background Music: Baby Boy Da Prince – Naw Meen feat. Mannie Fresh – Instrumental)

Set #2: Grime (East London 2 Step Music) featuring Siik

1. Gwen Stefani – Luxurious (Remix)
2. Lady Sovereign – Cha Ching
3. Big Seac – Nah Nah
4. Sticky – Booo! feat. Ms. Dynamite
5. Platinum 45 – Oi! feat. More Fire Crew
6. Wiley – (Unknown)
7. Virus Syndicate – Karma
8. No Lay – Unorthadox Chick
9. Roll Deep – Heat Up
10. Lil Jon – Let’s Go (Remix)
11. Juelz Santana – We Don’t Give A Fuck feat. Paul Wall
12. Lil Keke – Chunk Up Da Deuce feat. Paul Wall & UGK
13. Jay-Z – Nigga What, Nigga Who

Outro: Siik, Spingineer, and Dumlao (Background Music: T.I. – I’m Illy – Instrumental)

Top 2008 Lists of this Blog

Check these links out because everyone else couldn’t get enough…

Top 5 Posts
1. New Mix Posted: Post Diggin Sunday 11.16.08 Update
2. New Nikon 50mm F1.8D Lens
3. The Come Up Crew Podcast Vol. 2: Bay Area Rap
4. History of Pre-Hyphy and Non-Hyphy Bay Area Hip Hop
5. Day 7, 8, 9: San Francisco

Top 5 Pages
1. Music: Mixes, Remixes, and Podcasts
2. Music, DJing, and Life
3. About Spingineer
4. Photography
5. Music Videos: Mixes and Remixes

Top 5 Clicks
1. Downtempo Mix
2. The Come Up Crew Podcast Vol. 2: Bay Area Rap
3. Siik’s Blog
4. The Come Up Crew Podcast Vol. 1: 90s Hip Hop
5. Loungin’ Mix

Top 5 Referrers
1. Facebook
2. The Come Up Events Blog
3. WordPress Tag: Music
4. WordPress Tag: Photography
5. WordPress Tag: Downtempo

Top 5 Search Engine Terms
1. Monterrey
2. Nikon 50mm F1.8
3. Dorothy Moyrong
4. Tiny Toones
5. VJ Music Videos

From these stats I found out that posting on facebook is the way to go in getting people to your blog, especially if you got friends with hella friends that recommend your post to others. Case in point, after I posted my “downtempo” mix, LinoType suggested it on facebook and I got a huge amount of hits that day and its popularity has slowly decreased. Big ups to Mr. Manansala for that one. Being as specific as possible with tags can also help. People also like to hear music and look at pictures, but I believe people want to hear the story behind the mixes and photos where they may have the opportunity to walk in your shoes or see through your eyes. And lastly, people want to hear your opinions about music, events, activities, places, and so on, so they can either justify their feelings about something or find someone to disagree with about something. It’s only human…I’m just trying my best to feed the masses.

Prince Paul

Worst Song of 2008 Goes To…

These Beezies Must Be Krazy!!!

The award for worst song of 2008 goes to Pitbull and Lil Jon for the huge hit “Krazy.” This song is so one dimensional and is a step behind in the Miami music scene as well as the entire urban music scene in general. I know this is as stupid as the song itself, but I was always bothered by the the low word count in the song which caused me to waste a bunch of my precious time counting Pitbull’s awful lyrics. Here are my results:

Different words (from English, Spanish, and slang): 142, Super low in my opinion
Specific People: 17
Specific Places: 17
Nationalities: 4
Race: 1
Complexions: 2
Longest Word, English: Everybody (Pitbull got a complex vocabulary…Haha…j/k)
Longest Word, Spanish: Dominicanos
Words That No Language Would Ever Want: 12

Word Use Top Ten Ranking:
1. Krazy* (82 times)
2. Get (61)
3. Jump (60)
4. Let’s (40)
5. Now (29) (Tie)
5. Up (29) (Tie)
7. They (25)
8. Go (23)
9. Boom (22)
10. No (21)

*How come the word used most frequently is not even in the English language? Fucking Pitbull…

Pitbull’s favorite words from “Krazy”:
1. Krazy (Obviously)
2. Como (What Pitbull says to any question you may ask. Be prepared to ask the same question several times and explain with pictures and drawings.
3. Cubanos (Cause Cubans are dope minus Pitbull)
4. Castro (He was referencing the dictator in his experience “One Night in Castro on Castro” when he busted a brokeback in a dirty hourly hotel in the Castro with “Big Daddy” as Pitbull calls Fidel. I got the DVDs for sale for those that are interested…)
5. Boom (Cause he says that shit in every fucking song)

In Conclusion:
Pitbull is a party track kind of artist and don’t expect much more than that. I respected him for some of his other tracks but “Krazy” is just the biggest cop out ever. I hate hearing the youth of the different Latin and Hispanic backgrounds bump this song in their cars like it is the shit. I would rather listen to “Lean Like A Cholo,” “Magic Orgasms” or even “In The Ghetto.” I have yet to ever play “Krazy” at any gig and I promise to never play it unless I get a tip that matches my base fee, scouts honor. What a way to end the 2008 year…thanks Pitbull.

Peace y’all and pray for better/higher quality tracks in 2009.

Hater out…

San Francisco Christmas Trip: 12.24.08 – 12.28.08

12.24.08 Christmas Eve: LA to SF to Suisun City to SF to San Carlos to SF

Trisha and I left at about 11PM on 12.23.08 and got to SF at about 5AM the next day. We rested a little that day before me and Trisha had to head back out to run errands. We first went to West Portal so Trisha could get some free coffee at Pete’s. I doubled parked cause parking is always a bitch out there. It’s funny how normal it is though to block a complete lane of traffic in SF. You can’t get away with something like that in LA. There were like two cars in front and behind me double parked too. We then headed to North Beach/Little Italy so Trisha could pick up one of two gift certificates at a restaurant for her parents. Next we headed to the Embarcadero to get another gift certificate after taking a stroll through the newly renovated Ferry Building. There are a bunch of restaurants in there that I want to try but just haven’t got a chance to yet. My mom also asked me to pick up some whole chickens at Boston Market since they were supposedly $1.99 each. This sounded to good to be true but I decided to entertain her request to get 6 chickens. I went to the Boston Market in Potrero Hill but it ended up being $38 for the first chicken and the meal and a second chicken for $1.99. I knew they were mistaken but it was all good. After we left, we headed back to West Portal, taking the long way down 24th Street in the Mission. I picked up a Crab Melt at Toastie’s and it was pretty good just pricey at $10.

At around 4:30PM, my mom and I headed to Suisun City to attend a Christmas Eve party at my cousin Ted’s (DJ Tom Solo) house. I checked the traffic and the usual route 101 to the 80 to the 12 was all red. I ended up taking the 101 to the 80 to the 580 to the 24 to the 680 to the 12. It took us 2 hours total where it should have took and hour and 15 minutes. My cousin Ronnie told me it took them two and a half hours taking the regular route except they left at 2:30PM. Before leaving at 8:30PM, I got to mix a little, eat some good food, watch the kids open gifts, take pictures, and catch up a little with a small segment of my family. There were 10 nieces and nephews at this party that I bought gifts for:

Kyle – Bakugan
Christian – Bakugan
Jared – Bakugan
Kelsie – Apple Gift Card
Bianca – H&M Gift Card
Angelica – H&M Gift Card
Jonathan – Hot Topic Gift Card
Linea – Limited Too Gift Card
TJ – Jacket
Skylar – No Mess Art Set

Kyle Smiling for the Camera

Tita Carmen and All Her Grandchildren

Mom Posing

Party Lights for Christmas?

Angelica and Kyle Getting Down

Skylar Happy to Get Her Gift

Christian and Kyle Getting Their Gifts

After, leaving Suisun City, I drove back to SF in heavy rain to drop my mom off at home and pick up Trisha before I headed to San Carlos. Trisha’s dad’s family was having their annual Christmas Eve party at Trisha’s uncle’s (Marshall) house. San Carlos was about 75 miles away from Suisun City so you can imagine how late we got their. Most people were already done eating and opening presents but we still ate when we got there. Trisha and I got two gifts that included food from her grandma and her aunt’s family. We also got a bottle of wine from her Uncle Vic. We soon left and headed back to the SF.

12.25.08 Christmas Day: SF to Pacifica to SF

After waking up late, Trisha and I played with her mom’s dog, Fozzie, for awhile but then went to open some gifts. Fozzie got to open his presents himself, me and Trisha too. Fozzie got toys, Trisha got clothes and accessories, and I got a 2009 Almanac.

Fozzie Opening His Gift

New Toy

Foz

So Happy

Huh?

What You Got For Me?

BeforeI headed over to the family house in Pacifica for the annual Christmas party, I dropped by my brother’s and sister’s house in SF. I dropped off gifts for my nieces and nephews:

Mikey – Bakugan
Marcell – Pokemon
Adrian – Ben10
Keilani – High School Musical Doll and School Set

I got to Pacifica early but it was okay cause it gave me a chance to relax finally and eat. After everyone arrived we got to catching up with each other and watched the Lakers vs. Celtics game which was a pretty damn good game. After watching Casino Royale we opened gifts. I got my cousins gifts this time:

Joseph – Upper Playground Gift Card and Face/Off DVD
Kris – Upper Playground Gift Card and Watermelon Hookah
Ian – Sports Authority Gift Card and War DVD
Adrienne – Cash
Kim – Cash
Vincent – Spiderman disc shooter

My cousin Joseph got me a bottle of Crown Royal and two glasses. I opened up the bottle and we shared it as a family. I was pretty much killed by the end of the night. I also got a polo shirt, thermal shirt, button up shirt, a charging station, wine, apple cider, chocolate and oatmeal.

Ian and Kim Enjoying the Movie

Adrienne and Kris Enjoying the Movie Too

Ian, Kim, and Tita Lu Watching

Brenda, Mom, and Tita Carmen Chatting It Up

Joseph and Ian Listening to the Stories

Adrienne Handing Out Gifts

Vincent Watching TV

After opening presents, I had to rush out and head to Trisha’s mom’s family party. I got there pretty late when they were eating dessert and drinking wine. I really only stayed for about 30 minutes which kind of sucks. They decided to call it a night and we headed back to Trisha’s house to end the night.

12.26.08 SF to Daly City to Colma to SF

Trisha and I decided to go get some brunch, so we headed to Brenda’s Soul Food on Polk Street, between Turk Street and Eddy Street in the infamous Tenderloin district. I guess we came at the perfect time cause we took the last table. The couple after us had to sit at the counter and by the time we left there were a good 15 people waiting outside where the place looked like it only seated 15-20 people. The food was pretty damn good. I got a oyster and bacon omelet with grits and watermelon ice tea, Trisha got a vegetarian omelet, and we got Bananas Foster french toast to share. The Bananas foster and grits were the best parts of the meal. I ended up talking to the guy at the counter when he saw our food come out. He was originally from Chicago but now calls San Jose home and it was his second time to Brenda’s.

Trisha at Brenda's

After Brenda’s, Trisha and I headed over to 24th Street and Harrison Street to check out the murals in this alley. I first saw this alley back when I was in elementary or middle school. I guess they are updated more often than I thought. It was a pretty cool sight and there were a bunch of tourists there from as far as Europe and Asia.

Birth...

Kid Fighting the Power

She

Essential

Cactus

After the Murals, I dropped Trisha off and set out to meet up with my brother James and sister Dee to bowl. We were going to originally go to Serra Bowl next to the Colma BART station but my brother called me asking me to get his extra car alarm chain cause he lost the one he had just then. I ended up bringing all the way back to SF and then we got a call that we were instead going to meet at Classic Bowl deeper in Daly City. We had more time to kill so me and James headed to Serramonte to check out the hats at Sport City. They got a shitload of SF hats in multiple colors and designs. James picked up the all white SF hat. We then went to Sport Authority and Big 5 to look for thermals, no luck.

When we got to Classsic Bowl, Mike (Dee’s husband) was already in line. I guess there was a mad dash to get in line for the special deal that goes on on weekdays. It was a $7 cover, $4 for shoes, and 25 cents per game between 5PM and 8PM. Bowling was me, James, Dee, Mikey (Dee’s son), Mike, and Ric (Mike’s friend). We played 4 games and my highest score was 170. I would have been the highest scorer for the day until Ric got 171 on the last game. Classic bowl has been infamous for being a Filipino hang out spot back in the day, now it seemed to be full of Chinese folks. The place also has a club that is supposed to be pretty good. When you walk in there you are pretty surprised that a club/bar like that could be in a shitty bowling alley like Classic Bowl.

Mikey Bowling

Watching and Waiting

After we finished bowling, we all met at Dee and Mike’s house in Colma, minus James, who never showed up. We just chilled and played the new Rock Band with the drums. It was pretty hard but Mikey, who is only 7, was pretty damn good at it and he just got it a month ago. Other folks came through as well, Gil and his two kids, Ric, Ranier, Marvick, Mason, Javie and his girlfriend Diana and son Max. Javie was a little kid that used to be on the block (Bertita Street) back in the day. He is now 21 and has a one year old with his girlfriend who is older than him. His son Max is really cute though and is Mexican and Chinese. We also ended up playing poker but I was out of chips quick.

Marcell and Dee

Marcell and Elmo

Marcell and Elmo, Taken by Dorothy Laughlin

Max, Taken by Gil

12.27.08 SF Sick Day

I woke up this day feeling real bad with a sore throat that kept me in bed and sleeping almost all day. I tried everything to get better including Vitamin C, Oranges, Noni Juice, soup, and more. Nothing worked. I ended up just eating pizza, drinking pepsi, and taking tylenol later and feeling better. I pretty much didn’t do anything that day except drop off a gift for my boy Karl’s daughter Karlyne and pick up Trisha from dinner in the Tenderloin. On our way back to her house, we stopped by her grandma’s house so she could give us food. It seemed like she really missed Trisha and was sad that she didn’t visit more.

12.28.08 SF to Solvang to Santa Barbara to LA

We left SF at about 8:30AM to be able to beat some of the traffic heading back to LA. We took the 101 this time to be able to make some stops on the way. On the way to San Luis Obispo where we planned to switch drivers I got a ticket by CHP for going 82 MPH. This sucks cause I just got a ticket and did traffic school on the 118 after field work. This means I get points and higher insurance premiums. My insurance premium already went up almost $500 since I started living in downtown. It seemed like the CHP cops were desperate to meet that end of month/year quotas. There were two motorcycle cops with there radar guns and the second me and the other car took off they started taking speeds immediately. The cop didn’t even waste any time asking me what speed I was going, he just wrote it and gave it to me.

We stopped in Solvang to see this Danish Village that we heard about from older family members and in the movie Sideways. We got there and we were both not impressed. We ate at Paula’s Pancakes and thought the food was worse than mediocre. It’s funny cause it was rated better than 4 stars on Yelp.

After Solvang, we went to State Street in Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara wasn’t that impressive either. We walked all the way down to the beach and just didn’t find much to do. It was beautiful out there and I am sure that there is a good night life scene after seeing a couple cool looking bars, but just nothing to do that wasn’t shopping or eating.

We then headed back to LA on the 101. We bypassed the 101 section through the Hollywood Hills since the google maps on my blackberry said it was hella backed up. Instead we used the 118 to the 5 to the 2 and took the streets back to the house. Vacation over…