Playing Catch Up…12.04.08 – 12.07.08

It’s been awhile since I wrote a real post. Problem was I came home from SF last Friday and had The Come Up the next day. Then I was sick from Sunday until Tuesday. After recovering from my sickness, I was working to finish up my Bay Area rap mix for the podcast which should be posted mid-week. These podcasts will mainly be posted here and on The Come Up Events blog. Our submission was rejected from itunes so we are relying on blogs to get our mixes out.

Lets catch up…

Thursday, 12.04.08

SIPA Sessions

I headed to SIPA to get down on the turntables. Me and Laurent got some time to beat juggle and scratch. Surprisingly, Laurent had two students now. One was a repeat student and the other was a new student. I actually met her at Diggin Sunday because she was diggin my music. I guess she was interested in learning how to do what we do. The session was good that night but I had to leave early to meet my girlfriend.

Laurent & Wessam

Laurent

Laurent Teaching His Students

Downtown Lights

Me and Trisha signed up to take a walking tour of Downtown LA holiday lighting but we were running so late that we could not meet up with the group. We drove over to 4th and Main to hopefully catch up with the group at 4th St between Main and Spring where the lights were very impressive. There was one problem, they didn’t go that way and we waited there for a good 20-30 minutes.

4th Street Lights

4th St Lights

Harlem Pl Alley

Harlem Pl Alley

LA Live

We decided to park the car close to the 7th St Metro Station to take the Blue Line to Pico Station. We found out later that we only parked about 15 minutes away from LA Live and taking the Blue Line from 7th St Station to Pico Station took about 20-25 minutes including the walk from Pico Station to LA Live. We also passed by Staples Center and got me thinking why I have only been to one Clippers game and one Kings game both in the nose bleed section. A new priority of mine is to get close to court side tickets to a key Lakers game. I am not a Lakers fan but I know the game will be exciting.

Walking down to 7th St Metro Station

Staples Center

Anyways, back to LA Live. We were not really impressed withwhat LA Live had to offer as of yet. Most of the businesses promised weren’t open yet and it was not that large of a complex as we expected in the time we were anticipating its opening. They also had this fake light Christmas tree that was cool but not as good as the real thing. I would prefer a tree like that in Rockefeller Plaza in NY. Most things were closed that night for private receptions since it was opening night but there were only a few places open for business including ESPN Zone, the Conga Room, Nokia Theatre, Nokia Lounge, and Bowling. We heard that Britney Spears was there an hour before we got there but we didn’t really care. I guess I will give LA Live another chance since everything is not open yet. I have to admit that I am waiting for Yard House to open so I have a place to go to to satisfy my thirst for beer. ESPN Zone will be cool too for games as long as they stay open long hours.

Fake Christmas Tree at LA Live

Crane LA Live

Lots of Flash, But is There Any Substance?

Slick Escalators

Office Space at LA Live

Slick Lights

View from Upstairs

Weird Performer at LA Live

Friday, 12.05.08

The Shrimp Head Sucking Posse

At work, we decided to go have lunch at Grand Central Market to get several pounds of cooked shrimp with the heads on, of course. The group included Sinuhe, Jade, Camelia, Muna, June, Manuel, Marco, Angelka, and myself. We went to Maria’s and got 5 pounds of shrimp (3 garlic and 2 diablo). We also got 2 grande fried tilapias (prepared in the same way Filipinos prepare it), and a pound of salmon. I swear we waited for about 25-30 minutes for them to cook everything but it was worth the wait. When we finally got to sit down and eat, Jade showed us all the correct way to eat the shrimp. Stick the head in your mouth, suck out all the juices, spit the headshell out, and then eat the rest. It is really good and I hope to bring some homies from outside of work there to get their grub on.

Maria's at Grand Central Market

Maria's Menu

$6.49/lb With the Heads On and They Fry it Up For You at A Minimal Cost

Maybe Next Time

Sinuhe Waiting

Modelo While We Wait

Jade Posing

The Pound I Was Eating

Yummmm!!

Jade Will Probably Kill Me For Posting This One

Post-Large Meal Cancer, Camelia, Muna, & Jade

June, Angelka, & Mint Chocolate Chip

Sinuhe, The Big Payback

After Work Drinks at the Liquor Store

Myself, Marco, James, Sinuhe, and Alberd left work and went to the liquor store to have some beer. It is a store that sells liquor but also offers tables for people to dine on lunch, snacks, cheese platters, and drink alcohol. They actually charge more for those who decide to drink in store rather than take you liquor to go. They do have Happy Hour before they close at 7PM which is $4-$5 for a pint or 22 oz. beer. It is actually more expensive to buy small bottles. So I got a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale cause I felt like having a hoppy beer. It was good as usual as we watched the Lakers kill the Wizards. After one pint and two wax covered cheese varieties, we left. James, Marco, and I went to my pad to use the bathroom before heading to Kike’s Tacos. Problem was that Kike’s was not open yet and we didn’t realize until we got there. I guess the early darkness threw me way off. We ended up driving to a Taco Truck next to the Walgreens in Echo Park. I had 4 tacos: cabeza, lengua, tripas, and some meat from the back of the ribs of I forgot what type of animal. I have never been upset with any meats I have tasted in a taco except the tripas (tripe). They deep fry it but it taste pasty/chalky and the flavor is not too pleasant. It was almost impossible to chew as well and I ended up just swallowing pieces whole. Yukkkk!!

True Beer Lover, Check the Closed Eyes to Enhance the Taste Buds. Sike

You Got to Open Your Own Shit Here

Saturday, 12.06.08

I had a lot planned for this day, Pacquiao/SIPAfundraiser, Scoops Tasting Challenge, watch UCLA vs. USC game, watch Pacquiao vs. De La Hoya fight, and check out the Block Party at 4th and Main St in Lofttown Los Angeles.

Pacquiao/SIPA Fundraiser

It was a fundraiser where a portion of the profits from Pacquiao t-shirts and silent auction went to the SIPA foundation, which you all know by now if you read my blog. It was at the Montalban Theatre, which was a makeshift Nike Store for the weekend, in Hollywood (Vine and Selma) which made it a bitch in regards to finding parking. I had no change for meters and lots were charging flat rates when I was only planning on staying for 30 minutes or so. I ended up parking on Hollywood where they have the new machine installed that take credit cards. I didn’t really know how to use it and paid for a full hour ($3, I think). We decided to check out Hollywood since we haven’t really been there since about 2003. Hollywood didn’t change much since then except for Hollywood/Highland. Just a bunch of souvenir stores, smoke shops, tattoo shops, suit shops, urban wear shops, memorabilia shops, and Scientology Centers. I was not surprised but that’s Hollywood.

Pacquiao is the Man

Pacquiao is my Height, Weighs 25 Pounds Less, and Can Knock Me Out in One Punch

Dance Crew at the Montalban Theatre

Capitol Records in Hollywood

Scoops Tasting Challenge

After Hollywood, Trisha and I went to Scoops for a tasting challenge to benefit an organization. We got 10 scoops for $10 and we had to guess the flavors to win a shirt. I was just there for the ice cream, even though I believe in donating to good causes, I had no prior knowledge that it was a fundraiser. We ate all we could before it started to melt and got nine out of ten of the flavors right, oh well.

10 Scoops

Trisha Going Gaga Over All That Ice Cream

Little Kids Loving the Ice Cream

UCLA vs. USC Game

Although we had season tickets for UCLA football, we didn’t know how hard it was to free up most of your Saturdays to go so in the end I only went to the Tennessee and Stanford games. We had to sell the UCLA vs. USC tickets to make some money back for all the tickets we couldn’t sell since nobody seemed to want to go to a UCLA game for a cost. We ended up going to the Arts District to find a place to watch the game. No one had the game on. But after walking into a closed e3rd steakhouse, we got the guys to let us sit at the bar and watch the end of the game. It was horrible though because UCLA was losing 28-7 to USC. We left the bar unhappy but moved on. Before leaving the Arts District, we stopped by Crazy Gideons to check out what the hype was all about. Honestly, everything was crap and all outdated.

Out the Side View in the Arts District

The Skyline from the Arts District

From the Stairway in Crazy Gideons

Pacquiao vs. De La Hoya Fight

Although Sinuhe invited me to watch the fight at his pad in San Pedro, I was lazy to drive and we had plans that night in Downtown for the Block Party. That was a big mistake because we watched the fight on illegal live online streams. But everyone was getting shut down. There was one guy who kept starting new streams after being shutdown which allowed me to watch the fight in 4 short segments. I did get to see the 8th round though when they pulled De La Hoya out of the fight. Pacquiao defeats De La Hoya and I could hear the Filipinos in the Philippines go crazy from Los Angeles. I was very proud at that moment that we had another Filipino to represent our culture’s talent. If you guys didn’t know Filipinos are usually good at:

1. DJing
2. Swagger
3. Dancing
4. Boxing
5. Singing
6. Looking Fresh to Death 24/7

Downtown Lofts Block Party

All I have to say about this was WHACK!!! What happened to the real downtown residents. It was just another event taken over and exploited by hipsters. No one was coming down from their lofts. They were coming from their cars since they just drove from Malibu or the Hollywood Hills. It could have been a cool event with all the restaurants adding tables outside on the street, live bands and DJs, art gallery showcases, and a beer garden. Too bad…I will stick to the Downtown Art Walk, diversity is better than uniformity, in regards to style in this case. After leaving the block party soon after we arrived, we stopped by Pershing Sqaure to check out the skating rink and holiday lighting along the way home.

From Pershing Square

At the Citi Bank Plaza

Sunday, 12.07.08

Shopping

I needed to shop for an outfit for my company Christmas party and Trisha had to shop for gifts. We started at Ikea where she got a mugs and plates for her grandpa. I picked up a picture frame so I could finally out up some shots in my bathroom.

We then went to Glendale where I picked up a pin stripped vest and trousers for $50 at H&M. I wanted the blazer but they ran out of my size. The blazer was only $50. Hopefully they restock my size before Friday so I can get everything altered in time.

Trying it On in the Fitting Room

After H&M, we went to Carousel, a Lebanese Armenian restaurant, on Brand in Glendale. The food was good. I got yogurt kebabs and Trisha got a vegetarian dish. It only came out to $43 with tip after which was unexpected since the restaurant was pretty nice inside.

We finished up out shopping day with a trip to Glendale Galleria. This place was sooooooooooo crowded. We just stopped by Macy’s so Trisha could find pajamas for her grandma, she didn’t. We also stopped by the Apple store to see some of the Ipod dock/alarm clocks. None worked how I wanted them too when I tested them. Some alarms turned on the Ipod but had the volume at 0. Some didn’t allow you to use the Ipod to wake up. No success this time.

LA DWP Holiday Light Festival

We checked this out since we never did before even when we lived on Los Feliz Blvd off the 5 Freeway. It was cool but was definitely a one time thing. there were a few impressive light pieces but most were mediocre if not awful. I liked the Golden Gate Bridge and the entry/exit light tunnels, but not much more. It also rained once we got to the end before we had to turn around and walk back.

Tunnel of Lights

More Lights

Trisha & More Lights

Holly

Wood

The Golden Gate Lights

Wrap Up
The weekend was fun and eventful and it made me happy to get out of the house, especially since I spent most of my time with my girlfriend. Some great events are around the corner, including the free secret location Common show I got tickets for and my company Christmas party. Also, The Come Up Crew will be putting out our second podcast highlighting Bay Area Rap: Old and New featuring me, Spingineer, and Dumlao. If you are interested in checking out our first podcast, which was 90s hip hop, go to the music page on my blog or the podcast page on The Come Up Blog.

I’ll be back soon…Peace.

Day 4, 5, & 6: San Francisco

Day 4:

I didn’t do much this day. I woke up late and breakfast was already out of the question. My mom and I were gonna go have lunch but we were going to bring my grandma lunch at the nursing home in the Millbrae area. We brought her some Filipino food and chilled with her for about an hour. She is in her early 90s and is in the nursing home because last December she passed out, fell face first, and dislocated her shoulder. There is no one to take care of her at her house in Pacifica so she had to go there. She will be coming home for Thanksgiving though but just for the day and then back to the nursing home.

I kind of hate going to the nursing home because you feel really bad in there. You walk in and almost all the old folks just sit in the hall and they stare at you when you walk by as if you should be coming to see them. Even when we are sitting down with my grandma in her room, old folks come by and just stare at us. It is a little weird but I endure it to see her. She hates it. She hates the food. She hates the help. She hates that other old folks there will steal her food. But mainly she hates that she can’t be with her family as much as she wants to be. We all hate that she is there too but no one can be home all day to make sure she is safe.

After seeing my grandma at the nursing home, my mom and I headed to “The Avenue” in Downtown San Bruno to get some grub. I always want to eat at a place that is not in LA. I stress this to all my family and friends who seem to keep offering places likes BJ’s, TGI Fridays, and Chevy’s as a legitimate place to dine. We ended up going to this Middle Eastern restaurant that was pretty good. The problem was that I got a huge food coma after eating there.

A Bite of Falafel

We left the restaurant and headed to Tanforan Shopping Center so I could pick up some jeans at Old Navy. But I was suffering from the food coma and I had to take a 30 minute nap in the car to try to re-energize. After getting inside the mall, I was like “fuck looking around let’s just get the stuff and go.”

After getting home I thought I was in store for another boring night until my boy Karl (DJ Panik) called me to tell me he was at his parents’ house in SF. This was perfect because their house was a block away from me. I headed over there and we just got in to DJ business talk. He hooked me up with some music videos for the whole VJ thing and we talked about opportunities to get on in SF or the Bay. He offered me his slot for a massive teen party in the East Bay on the Saturday before Christmas. It would be held by the Bayfunction Ent. crew and would expect about 1600 teens. I would be down but I don’t have the leave at work to stay in SF for a whole week again, and I wouldn’t want to anyway as you read in my last post. He then told me about getting a booth for HIN (Hot Import Nights) in the Southern California area. The problem was that it would take promoting and that flyer returns would dictate pay.

Should I?

Later, me and Karl went to Roma Pizza on Mission St. and Amazon St. for a pie and beers. We bought the large house special but could not finish half.

The night was over…

Day 5:

This was probably my most non-vacation day of the week so far. I woke and my mom made me take measurements of the lower level of the house. She recently evicted a tenant who was pretty much mentally disturbed. The lady filed a lawsuit against my mom. My sister was working for a law firm at the time in Honolulu and found old cases where the lady tried to pull the same shit on previous landlords. She always sued for the same amount, had the same statement, and accused the landlords of threats and trespassing. My mom finally got her evicted a few months ago but the damage was done. The lady snitched my mom out about building code violations. My mom has some illegal apartments downstairs (as most houses in San Francisco do) that my dad built to help her make more cash to help pay the bills. Now my mom has to bring a bunch of things up to code and can no longer let one of the rooms be inhabited. It’s crazy cause I grew up in the room they deemed unlivable. Shows how much they know.

My mom also wanted some shots of her and the dog, Daisy, in her new garden area. It was built by her friend Marshal, who lives downstairs in the unlivable room a couple of days out of the week. He only pays my mom about $200 a month to live there and keep his belongings there but he does a lot of handy work for her in the house and backyard. He has also done work for my extended family and has become a family friend. Sometimes it seems like he is the help though. He was even at both my aunt’s and uncle’s funerals last year to help set up the food on the viewing days. Yeah, we eat after the viewing and rosary almost everyday until the funeral.

Mom's Garden Area

Mom and Daisy

After taking dimensions, we drove to my cousin Eric’s house in Pacifica so that my Uncle Mel, who is a civil engineer, could take the dimensions and draft them up professionally. I could have done it myself, but my mom is to impatient to wait for me to get back to LA. I also picked up my Pacquiao shirt but it was too small just like my Upper Playground shirts. I told my cousin Ted to get me a large instead.

Uncle Mel

While at Eric’s house, I enjoyed the view that they had of the deeply vegetated hills of Pacifica. It’s something you don’t really see in metro areas.

Out the Patio Door

Veggie

When I got home from Eric’s house I called my sister Dorothy so I could go hang out at their spot in Colma. I headed over there but I had to make a stop at the ghetto liquor store in the worst neighborhood in Daly City. I bought a six pack of Negra Modelo and a “Cutty Bang” cocktail set. It was funny, they has a whole bunch of ziploc bags that had the ingredients to make single serve cocktails. But most of them are ghetto concoctions that you never heard of like cutty bang, apple jack, go dumb, and a bunch more. You also get a tall styrofoam cup to drink it from (think Lil Wayne). I actually bought it to be part of my white elephant gift at work. I wanted to give a joke gift this year after being the final reciepient of the one last year. I got a huge pair of pink ladies’ underwear, a pack of cigarettes, a $5 gift certificate to McDonanld’s, two cans of malt liquor, and a bunch of scratchers.

Cutty Bang

I got to my sister Dorothy’s (Dee) house and my brother-in-law Mike and his boy Neel were watching the Packers vs. Saints game. I was just talking to Dee, drinking a beer, and taking pictures of the boys Mikey and Marcel (Dee and Mike’s kids). Dorothy is a year older than me and we have the same dad but different mom’s. When Neel left, me and Mike were just catching up while Dee was taking 150 shots on my camera. She did get a really good one on there of her son Marcel though.

My Nephew Marcel

My nephew Mikey, Taken By Dorothy Moyrong

I Like This One of Marcel, Taken By Dorothy Moyrong

Representaz, Taken By Dorothy Moyrong

Night Over…

Day 6:

Today, I was determined to get to Huf and True. I left the house after 11AM and headed to Upper Playground to exchange my shirts for a larger size. I found residential parking but street cleaning was in 10 minutes so I had to get in and out quickly.

Next, I headed to Huf. Good news was that I found parking right on the corner of Hayes St. and Octavia Blvd. Bad News was that the meter cost 25 cents for every 10 minutes, change only. I paid for an hour but when I got to Huf they didn’t have t-shirts or hats anymore, just shoes. I guess they moved all the apparel to the Sutter store downtown. I left quickly and tried to see what else was around, nothing. I ended up eating at Flipper’s Gourmet Burgers to make use of some of my meter time.

I took off and headed to Haight St. I found parking on the corner of Haight St. and Ashbury St. in front of Aardvarks, still 25 cents for 10 minutes. I went to the True shoe store and clothing store but didn’t find anything. They charge way too much for everything (think of Workmen’s on Melrose in LA). They even had the Pacquiao shirt I got for $6 more. I wasn’t fucking with them. They suck. Why do I even go in there every time I go back and almost never buy anything. They would probably try to sell me a $5 bill for $7 if they could. Instead of getting ripped off by True, I ended up buying a Upper Playground shirt at Crossroads for $8.50 and it was in pretty good condition. I also got a pair of Air Max 90s on sale at Shoe Biz for $63.

Later, I went to the downtown Nordstrom with my cousin Joseph so he could pick up some items since he got a 33% employee discount that day. He told me I could look around but I didn’t need to cause I know I can’t afford anything at Nordstrom. I just went along so that me and him could catch up a little. I didn’t know before, but he actually moved in with his girlfriend, Camille at a place in the Sunset district. But when we got back to my house he parked in my driveway, since my mom let’s him, to go stay at his parent’s house for the night, which is two blocks away from my house. Parking is a bitch in SF, you guys already know from the last post.

An hour later I got picked up by my sister Dee and brother-in-law Mike. We met up with my brother Philip, his wife and daughter, Sherril and London, my sister Carol, and her boyfriend Dex. We had dinner at Val’s in Daly City. It’s funny cause we all have passed by this place a million times in our lives but just never ate there. The only reason we ate there was because Dee’s co-worker’s husband owns the place. The food was good, but pricey. I got fried prawns instead of steak because I hate steak. Steak is just not good to me so I never get it. Probably because I like my meat well done.

While Mike was at the ATM

Over dinner we talked about my sister Michelle in Honolulu, my brother Harold who is AWOL since last year, and my sister April who married Phil’s best friend and moved to Dallas with her four kids. We also planned a trip to Vegas in March since me, Dex, Mike, and Phil all have our birthdays that month. London cried a lot during dinner too but Dee told Phil to show her Barney or Elmo on youtube on his iphone and we watched that crying stop quickly. At the end of dinner we actually got free dessert from the owner, but it was just ice cream.

Dee & Phil

London & Sherril

Phil & London

After dinner, Dex and Carol told me to pick up the new San Quinn album because Dex (Dex Beats) produced a few tracks on it. San Quinn is a veteran San Francisco rapper and his been putting out albums since 1995. He is a legend to San Franciscans and is comparable to Joe Montana, if you listen to Bay Area Rap.

After Dinner Scenery

End of night…

For anyone reading this who is confused about my siblings:

Dad: Lawrence Lee Laughlin (Irish)

17 Kids

First 4 children Unknown

Woman: Unknown Mom #1 (Mexican)
Larry
Eva (deceased)
Mike

Woman: Minda (Filipino)
Philip (30 years old)
April (29 years old)

Woman: Katie (my mom-Filipino)
Michelle (28 years old)
Paul (25 years old)

Woman: Betty (Filipino)
James (27 years old)
Dorothy (26 years old)
Carol (25 years old)

Woman: Unknown Mom #2 (Filipino)
Harold (25 years old)

Woman: Rowena (Filipino)
Renz (11-13 years old)
unknown name girl (unknown age)

My dad got a lot of kids and I got a lot of siblings. Michelle is my full blood sister, but the rest are half. Me, Michelle, Phil, April, Dorothy, Carol, James pretty much kept in touch. But now that I live in LA, Michelle lives in Honolulu, and April lives in Dallas it seems harder for us all to get together like we did this night.

My dad may have been a womanizer but he gave me more family which is a good thing to me. For those who might wonder where my dad is now, living like a queen in the Philippines with his wife and youngest kids.

SIPA Sessions Are A Must!!

Whoever thought you could learn how to DJ, make beats, and record music for free without being a hot girl or having a Dj in your family or circle of friends. Well people this is your chance to learn it all. Come to SIPA (Search to Involve Pilipino Americans) Sessions, where the love for music brings together men and women of many different races, ages, class levels, and religious backgrounds to do one thing, make dope music.

Learn how to DJ from Laurent with opportunities to learn more from seasoned vets like Linotype, Jeffrey.Soulspeak, Phatrick, Waxstyles, and myself, Spingineer. Feed off each other in roundtable type mix and scratch sessions. Making beats your thing? Soulspeak and Phatrick are there too provide priceless knowledge in making beats, recording tracks, and so on. With a good amount of MCs that make their way to SIPA for every session are always down to freestyle with you over some hot beats.

So make your way to SIPA Sessions at the corner of Temple St and Dylon St every Monday and Thursday from 5PM-8PM. This also a great place to network for those DJs, producers, and MCs who already know a little something about the business. I was a DJ for almost 11 years when I first got to SIPA Sessions and the networking opportunities are never ending.

DJs currently affiliated with SIPA:
Linotype
Jeffrey.Soulspeak
Phatrick
Waxstyles
Laurent (Don’t know his alias)
Matt (His either)

MCs/Producers currently affiliated with SIPA:
Budda Baboon
Proda-Gz
Phazze Beats
Queen Herstory

SIPA Sessions Official Flyer

Shots from previous SIPA Sessions:

4x4 Session

Making Beats

More Session