Monthly Archives: April 2012

April 30, 2012 · 12:05 am

Chris Daughtry In Concert

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When I found out that Chris Daughtry, “American Idol” favorite who most definitely should have won over Taylor Hicks, was going to performing for free at MLB Fan Cave, I made sure I would be there. It was a really nice space and not that large, so it was a sort of intimate setting with some 100 fans. My friend and I were able to see Chris Daughtry and his  band pretty well, only a couple rows from the first.

Chris was lovely and perfectly charming, singing about 5 songs and I fully enjoyed hearing each one. His voice was so sweet, and emotion-filled love stories. I especially liked “4AM,” which he is gorgeously crooning below.

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Alas, the concert ended too quickly and I wasnt one of the lucky few to win a “Meet & Greet” with the performer Chris Daughtry but I still loved the experience of seeing him live!

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April 26, 2012 · 10:07 am

Hair Update

The other night I went all the way to Buswick, Brooklyn to get my hair cut and colored by someone who I worked with at  Hair Design Institute, who has since gotten her credentials.  She also gave me a great deal for doing both.

We started with coloring my hair. The mixture was carrot colored at first which had me a bit apprehensive, but of course the color didn’t come out like that. The color came out to be brighter orangey red on top and a more toned down reddish brown on the rest of my locks.

While I had the color in, the hairdresser ordered dinner for us.  I got chicken quesadilla with Jack cheese and a huge container of lemonade- the natural kind with actual lemons- and all for $5.25!

Washing my hair out with lovely scented products felt really nice and made my hair feel extra silky and beautiful.

The next step was getting the cut. I didn’t go for a drastic change- just a few inches at the end to get rid of split ends, and a more pronounced layers style.

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April 22, 2012 · 10:02 pm

USA Japan Music Goodwill Concert

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Last week I attended the USA-Japan Music Goodwill Concert at the most prestigious concert venue in the world, Carnegie Hall. We got complimentary tickets and got to sit in the 2nd Tier which was a great view and not too high up.

Around 150 Japanese ladies were flown to Carnegie Hall to perform. They were wonderful, and looked beautiful in perfectly tailored purple gowns.

The first part of the concert was the Goshiki Sakura Story Suite where the Japanese ladies sang in their own language. It was beautiful and the subject matter was “A Story of Five-Colored Cherry Blossoms.” Most of the songs were sung by the entire choir, with dancers in traditional, lovely and very colorful Japanese kimono garb, scarves, parasols and other props. The dancing coincided with the topic of the songs and were so graceful. During some of the songs, a soloist came to sing an aria, which sounded both wonderful and haunting (in a good way).

Here were some of my favorite lyrics:

Through cold winters they endured
and bloomed in joy of life.
Our dreams came true in cherry colors,
and so are the sky and our hearts

After the Cherry Blossom themed songs, more Japanese performers came out with instrumental music from Japan using the piano, flute and ocarina. This was complemented with a drummer, and Japanese ladies kneeling on the ground on red mats and doing crazy cool movements and twists with props.

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We also heard the Japanese choir sing some great American songs. They had changed into gorgeous flowing dresses of blue, almost royal blue- just a tad lighter. They did selections from West Side Story: Tonight, I Feel Pretty, America and One Hand, One Heart, as well as “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.” It was delightful and charming to hear their versions, and loved the ending when they cleverly transformed into a car for “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” and left the stage in that way, smiling and waving.

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We heard from the Westchester Chordsmen after that, which was a real treat. They sang some great songs, such a “Oklahoma!” “Summertime” “God Bless America” with gusto and heart, charming us with their strong voices and lively formations that mirrored the words and sentiment of the songs. They also sang “Prayer of the Children” which is the song used for special, serious occasions such as the 9/11 commemoration, memorial service for the Columbine High School tragedy, and for a concert in memory of the Oklahoma City bombing. This rendition was emotional and heart wrenching.

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The finale was when all the performers, from the Japanese singers and dancers to the Westchester Chordsmen to sing “New York New York” and was just magnificent and a feast for the visual and auditory senses.

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April 16, 2012 · 3:57 am

Beautiful Event-Packed Weekend

I enjoyed a full weekend, starting Friday night with a 3-course meal at lovely 21 Club and getting to see The Fantasticks starring Aaron Carter. I was actually kind of excited to see Carter in it because I have listened to and liked his music. He was a nice addition to the show, and still looks super young and fresh faced with spiky hair and dark eyes. The part of the Luisa was also well cast- Pretty, sweet, and innocent with a beautiful voice.

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The plot of The Fantasticks is inspired by the “The Romancers” where the the starry-eyed boy and girl next door fall in love but face challenges when their parent separate them with a wall between the two. This was an fun and interesting play with great music, leaping and effortless choreography, charismatic as well as silly characters.

Saturday turned out to be gorgeous sunny spring weather so it was perfect for an outdoor photo shoot at an idyllic lake and underneath a cool bridge with black/white checker markings and arches.

I headed to the Pamela Kay Cook 1st Annual Scholarship Fundraiser event that night. Normally, I don’t often go to fundraisers, but this one was worth it. All the proceeds go directly to the cause, which is the help the uninsured and the reason for it is a sad story: Pamela Cook passed away because she was unable to get treatment because she was not insured.

We celebrated the life and legacy of Pamela Kay Cook at a wonderful location, the New York Public Library and enjoyed an evening of fun featuring a delicious food, dessert bar, live band, DJ, and raffles with amazing prizes.

When we first came in, we got to glam it up and have our photos taken on the Red Carpet. Then I found one of my friends sitting at where all the desserts were placed, so I happily joined her there. We sampled marshmallow rice cripsy treats, red velvet cupcakes and vanilla cupcakes with lavender frosting; cheesecake in a jar. My favorite were the red velvet cupcakes- Delicious and rich frosting paired with moist red velvet cake. (All desserts from JackBill Baked Goods).

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Some stand out hors d’ouevreswere waffles with fried chicken (*my absolute favorite!), lime shrimp on skewers, homemade grilled cheese with warm tomato soup- fresh basil and onion, fried pot stickers and hamburger meat dipped in melted cheese. Food was provided by Beth Morgan Catering.

There was also a live DJ playing club hits and later on, live performance by Boss Culture which was fully enjoyable- Great songs, lovely lead singer backed up with keyboard and guitar. We also got full access to the Royal Photo Booth which was a ton of fun- It took 4 poses each and the images turned out beautifully!


I also entered to win a couple of the raffles. The ones that caught my eye were Night Out on the Town with free night in W Hotel, dinner & comedy show; makeup collection complete with makeover and haircut; and a day at the spa with lunch at Red Rooster. I ended up winning the Day at the Spa, which was very exciting. I can’t wait to be pampered and relaxed.

On the way out, there were wrapped homemade chocolate chip cookies with the recipe and hand written note attached. A really sweet and personal touch and a nice way to end the evening.

Sunday also dawned sunny and warm and was a great day for the Central Park Spring History Tour with Random Events that I help host, guided by David Cervini. This was unique journey back in time where we got to see see the grandeur of the original design, seeing the updates, improvements and actual pictures taken from the 1800’s through today. We started at the old Tavern on the Green (sad that I never got to dine there), going through The mall, Navy Terrace, The Ramble, Belvedere Castle, ending at the Great Lawn.

My favorite areas were the graceful flowing Betheseda fountain, tunnel with gospel singers and gorgeous tiling, cherry blossom trees (though more will be blooming in about 2 weeks), the most photographed bridge in Manhattan, the Belvedre Castle (but of course) and at the very end of the tour where we got to see a great view of Central Park.

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We had brunch at nearby Noona afterwards, and I ordered the cheeseburger with french fries. Burger was okay, but the fries were delicious- crispy and flavorful.

Then I headed to Dex Beauty for a Baubles and Garden Party- Stella & Dot jewelry trunk show; strawberries and grapes; and amazing red velvet cupcakes. I also enjoyed makeup application by John Henry (National Makeup Artist) with Dex’s gorgeous line of eye shadows with names of Manhattan/Queens locales. He used Riverside and Harlem Nights on me (purple hues). John Henry was such an expert at what he does and so fun-lovable.

I ended the night working at a cocktail party (in charge of the drinks!) at a great space, General Assembly. I got to meet some very cool people and enjoyed the conversation.

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April 13, 2012 · 12:10 am

Lockout & The Lucky One

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I had the privilege of previewing two movies (at free screenings) this week. The first was Lockout with Guy Pearce  where he plays a sexy bad guy who is given the mission to rescue the president’s daughter from a maximum-security prison in space that has been overtaken by hundreds of inmates, who are murdering and taking crew hostage.

It’s an interesting plot, but the execution of it wasn’t so great. It was cliche, predictable and the dialogue was lacking. Though I did like some of the banter between Snow (Guy Pearce) and Emily (the president’s daughter). The characters were not very developed and many were inconsistent. I also found most of them to be pretty dumb. The smartest person in the movie was Snow.

Snow (Guy Pearce) was probably the most redeeming quality of the movie- Good acting, and oh so sexy and smoldering with swagger and a sweet physique of bulging muscles.

But I did enjoy watching Lockout. It was entertaining and action-packed.

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The other movie I got to see was The Lucky One which I was expecting to like a lot more than I did, especially since I’m a big fan of Zac Efron. He was decent in it and looked great with those beautiful blue eyes of his but the plot, character development, and dialogue were mediocre, at best.

I mean, I liked that Zac played a Marine and that he lived through all those crazy life threatening situations because of one thing in particular, but to base a whole movie off that- it was a little much. I would’ve liked to see more twists. I wanted the movie to go deeper, to explore more themes and show motivation behind actions.

I also wanted to like the Beth (Taylor Schilling) more than I did. I found her to be whiny and ridiculous at times, and it didn’t help that I kept thinking she looked like she was in her 30’s when Zac is clearly much younger. Their relationship was not fully developed either.

I did really like Ellie (Blythe Danner) who was Beth’s grandmother. Ellie was understanding, funny, sweet and wise. And of course Logan (Zac Efron) was a beautiful character- Mysterious, but fiercely protective and loving.

I’m definitely glad I got to see these particular movies for free!

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April 11, 2012 · 1:21 am

Psycho Therapy

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Monday night my friend and I got to see Psycho Therapy at the Cherry Lane theater in West Village. I had heard about it previously and was somewhat interested before, so when the play came back and I had the opportunity to get free tickets I took it.

We decided to have a little picnic on the bench right in front of the theater before the show. My friend had picked up sandwiches and drinks from Bear Burger near her place at the Upper East Side. She had gotten me a panko-breaded chicken sandwich with onions, mushroom, bacon, mayo. It was the best chicken sandwich. I would make the trek there just to have another one.

Then we headed into the Cherry Lane theater lobby waiting area. It was nice and charming, with complimentary desserts of homemade chocolate chip cookies. After we had some of that, we were allowed into the theater which had a realistic set up of a therapist’s office with a white couch, a little table with a tissue box and candles, and a large black hanging on the wall.

Psycho Therapy takes place in Los Angeles, where Lily comes in for couples therapy. However, all is not as it seems and the person who arrives for the first session is not actually Lily’s current beau and fiance, which the therapist doesn’t know. That person is Lily’s hot, young, immature and highly sexual ex boyfriend, Dorian. Next came a scene between Lily and Dorian which gave background to their heated on-again, off-again relationship.

Lily’s fiance, Phillip finally comes into the mix at the next couples therapy, turning the session into couples therapy for three. Things get crazy intense between the characters and at times, quite humorous with the yelling, fighting and revelations.

I enjoyed the acting in this, but thought the plot could be a little stronger.

The characters were interesting: Lily, a model/actress type is beautiful and stylish but really doesn’t know what the hell she wants. Both Dorian and Phillip are good looking blonds but their personalities and what they want from life are miles apart. Then there’s the therapist herself who has a crazy life (or at least crazy friends) and some not so sane tendencies, but when dealing with her patients, appears insightful and together.

The ending is a breath of fresh air, yet exasperating at the same time and effectively turns the tables.

Below, the cast: Phillip (Laurence Lau), Lily (Gabrielle Miller), Nancy (Jan Leslie Harding), Dorian (Alexander Cendese).

psychotherapy cast

Location: Cherry Lane Theater at 38 Commerce St.

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April 8, 2012 · 10:33 pm

Happy Easter

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“Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.” ~ S.D. Gordon


Photo taken from Your Comment Codes

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April 5, 2012 · 12:42 am

Macy’s Flower Show

It still doesn’t feel like Spring to me.. NYC seems to be plagued by chilly and windy nights, though some of the days are not so bad. However, there is one place in the middle of the city that looks and feels like true Spring and that is inside Macy’s Flower Show, featuring Brasil: Gardens in Paradise. Instead of the flower show being infused inside of the store, this year it’s housed inside a huge tent outside on 34th St and Broadway.

There is an beautiful display of lush plants and colorful blooms that are reminiscent of tropical rainforest and urban gardens. The Flower Show features six separate gardens that come together on a whimsical, winding cobblestone path. Each garden depicts a different type of Brazilian horticulture, from old-world gardens with towering palm trees to cool urban rooftop gardens.

The Flower Show starts with green, purple and deep red leaves with fuchsia and lilac flowers surrounding a small, charming fountain.  The walls behind are painted to represent windows which adds a homey village touch.


Next, there was a huge Toucan bird made out of almost glittery material and painted gorgeously bright colors: Yellow, sky blue, green, orange and red. The bird was surrounded by leafy greens.

There was a small area with some more greenery and pinkish white, purple flowers and a birdbath drinking fountain protruding out of the wall. Then I come upon a lovely villa area, which transported me to a world of sunlight and serenity.


Next along the path was the sound of fresh water trickling. There is a wooden footbridge which leads to a beautiful waterfall coming down a stone-like fixture.

The Amazon Garden shows off colorful and delightful blooms, featuring chocolate, coffee, papaya and citrus plants, which are native to Brazil’s rainforest.


Close to the last part of the Flower Show, the walls were painted sky blue with clouds with mountains in the distance; potted plants and flowers and chairs were placed as if on a patio with a beautifully wrought fountain. This display gave a sense of being in a small villa in an exotic locale.


To further make me feel as if I was in a lovely exotic location, there was a room set up with large windows, huge green ferns, comfortable red chairs, and a delightful bouquet of pink and white flowers, red berries and green leaves hanging from the ceiling.

Nearing the exit is a little tree shaped kind of like a palm tree and mosaic tiles in shades of blue and white.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Macy’s Flower Show was a delightful tropical and exotic journey of vibrant colors, plants, flowers, waterfall, and wonder. It is definitely worth a visit, and is open daily from 10A to 9P through Saturday, April 7.

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April 2, 2012 · 11:43 pm

Buns & Puns Comedy Show

Buns & Puns, the popular comedy show produced and hosted by the very fun and funny Jonathan Powley, is back! Previously every week at Arlo & Esme, which is sadly now closed, I enjoyed this free show immensely. We were always provided with free jello shots, buns and performances by top notch comedians that were sometimes better than a paid show.

Now, this past Friday, Buns & Puns made its debut after over a year at the Long Island City location, Creek & Cave which is a restaurant, bar and theater venue all in one with two levels and an outdoor patio. Nice spot, close to Manhattan, fairly easy to get to with an intimate feel.

Jonathan was a charming and welcoming host who made sure we got our orange and cherry jello shots, huge sugared cinnamon buns and even hooking up the front row with drinks and food. (Note to self: Next time, I’m all over that front row!) To warm us up, Jonathan showed us a hilarious video of him and his break dancing team around NYC. I enjoyed seeing the crazy moves the group got themselves into and had a good laugh. For me, the video prefaced a great show ahead, and I wasn’t disappointed.

First up was Joe Machi, who was not my favorite. He was just all right.. The cool thing about him was that he was unapologetic about who he is and he made some decent jokes.

The next comedians more than made up for Machi’s mediocre performance: Thomas Dale has been on MTVs New Years Eve Bash 2011, Comics Come Home,  NY’s Funniest Competition in New York Comedy Festival 3 yrs in a row, Sirius Radio, Comical Radio and WOR’s Joey Reynolds Show. It’s safe to say I had a secret crush on Thomas (not so secret anymore) even though he’s clearly gay. Or at least clearly after he announced it to the audience and used that as his platform. He was edgy, truthful, direct and it was definitely interesting to hear from his unique viewpoint.

Ophira Eisenberg was the only female comedian, and shined. She has appeared on Comedy Central, VH-1, Fox, E! Channel, CNN, Oxygen Network, and the Discovery Channel. I’m usually not a big fan of female comedians, but Ophira was easy to relate to and understand, giving us a glimpse into her interesting life.

Chris Laker was next, and while okay, wasn’t all that memorable for me.

I enjoyed the next performer, special guest Seaton Smith. This guy had me in stitches. As described on his website, Seaton applies smooth charisma to a layer of explosive energy, topped off with unforgettable characters sure to permanently reside in your brain, and leaves his audience in a state of comedic euphoria. This is high praise, but completely true. And I just loved how articulate and cool Seaton was.

The headliner of the show was Yannis Pappas was kind of crazy. He went off about men, women, relationships, cheating and how it’s a natural instinct for men, continuing with his rant by describing in detail how women are hypocrites. The men were completely into it, hooting and hollering while we women just shook our heads – It was controversial and completely off base but that was the point I suppose. I was somewhat amused but at the same time, totally not. But I do have to hand it to Yannis… He sure knows how to rile up a crowd.

Overall, a very fun, engaging show with a great lineup and no one can beat the price: Free! My thanks to Jonathan and here’s hoping Buns & Puns will happen again soon.

 

Location: Creek & Cave at 10-93 Jackson Avenue  Long Island City, NY

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