True Urban Legends

i got all caught up cleaning my love's room, though i had a good time going through his dragon shirts (we had to throw them away because it's a golden rule that one cannot have a dragon shirt and an asian girlfriend.) and i found tekken.

when he got home, it was time to board the metro north to explore brooklyn, mostly to go to see little brother play for free in a park. it was a bit of drama getting there on the subway (and sooo freaking hot underground) but we made it for a few numbers, most importantly my jam with my man, percy. they also did a jodeci segue which was awesome. the sound was pretty good considering the setup, because usually rappers hide behind their beats, but you could hear every lyric precisely. i like it. glad to have caught them, because i missed them in vancouver, but next up is leela james in prospect park on friday. can't wait for that.

just as we were about to go nuts from hunger (like we did in manhattan earlier in the year) we magically found a mexican restaurant (kinda ironic considering it happened last time too) and this time it was the sweetest spot called "pequena" on portland between fulton and lafayette. it was a nice ambiance, and the food was killer. we had fresh salsa and toasted chips, fried plantains with queso fresco and sour cream, and the most delicious shrimp and guacamole quesadillas with black beans and rice. YUM! we had plans to go to juniors for cheesecake but we didn't make it. we had a nice train ride back home and i got to listen to my favorite station, kiss 98.7. still no teddy pendergrass though. 

it's true. they play hockey in the bronx.

the first sunny day was spent laying out by the pool with nana and the kids, trying to work out my bandeau tan line and waiting for my love to get off work so we could go to trader joe's. i have to say it was my least favorite trader joe's experience because they were sold out of my mochi balls and raspberry chocolate sticks. though i have to say, for P&W, that they sell "trader's joe's Canadian white bread" out here and i was tempted to send you some through the mail, but i decided against it. we got some mango flavored salsa chips that weren't very mango-ey but the snap pea crisps were off the hook. the pineapple salsa is always a favorite, and we got some mint cocoa powder to compliment our almond milk.

we were armed with healthy snacks to watch the kids play roller hockey against a tough competitor from the bronx, and though they were just 8-11 years old, it was the most riveting game i've been to in awhile. i was accused of rabble rousing, as i was calling dirty refs (they put our girl in the penalty box twice consecutively) and about to start something with the red-faced jeff bridges looking dad from the other side of the bleachers. cuz E was all, "that's what happens when you bring a canadian to a hockey game, please don't get us beat up in the parking lot". it was a nailbiter, being tied up at the end and our team taking it and scoring the winning shot at the last second of overtime, but it would've been fun to see them do a shootout. look out pros, the kids are coming! the best part is that the teams were co-ed and the girls were the scrappiest players. werd. 

first days upstate nyc were spent with the familials, lots of scrabble (i spelled "vatican" and "dracula" on the same board, y'all-finally got that rematch from Queens) pancake breakfasts were cooked, and rainy days spent "ridin' dirty" (when only 8 year olds will defend your shit, it's time to get a new job) going to the mall to tear up their H&M because it seems to be way better out here. we also bonded with cuzzin E and took our first venture to the city to a club called "love". 

i'm not the biggest fan of house music (i need a lyric or two at least every hour) but the club was neat, with the love room being straight out of fraggle rock (no joke, furry cubes and all) and hear shaped bean bags spread out on the floor in the next spot. there's also a waterfall with holograms, so it's pretty neat.

the car ride down was the best, rocking out to brandy and robyn s. i need some teddy pendergrass though! love tko! there's only 25 seconds of it on youtube. grrrr.... 

when one door closes, another one opens. just when i got the shaft from just for laughs on my media pass to see the great margaret cho, i find out that my downstairs neighbor is my very first gay boyfriend in montreal, and he's asian! though my korean lovely only speaks in european languages, i would have no one else run around and yammer on at me in french and german. we met in the laundry room when i destroyed my clothes and traded incense. he's pretty straight acting, but the alarm bells went off when he offered me something to drink, then proceeded to squeeze fresh limes into three blended kinds of fruit juice and served it all over crushed ice. 

i came down to knock to see what kind of housewife he was going to be if he was never home, and to see if he was responsible for the cheesebread smell. he wasn't, but i walked in on miss thang getting ready to go out, so i got roped into drinking and waiting for another delicious gay boy to show up and we ended up going to the infamous "parking" though two out of three of us wanted to go to a shisha cafe.

the club was dark and garage themed, with the back end of cars everywhere, a house room and a hip hop room, and many, many nipples were pinched that night, i can't help it, i have a problem! there was one point where i was in a cage grinding with four near-naked (and when they were dressed, they were well-dressed!) sweaty Montreal gay boys and i was in heaven. finally. i can see the luck turning around now in the city.

we came home and i had a bus to catch in a few hours, so S made me a tofu and organic greens salad and we talked for a bit before i retreated upstairs to pack my bags. the bus ride to nyc was long but i made friends with a new old lady who's going to call me for coffee when she gets back to Montreal. pickle shot. 

first off, i have to say that i have my first film credit under my belt, spending last friday on set with my first (no talking) part in a student documentary about trafficked women. it was a surprise to me, but when opportunity comes up, you know this girl will look it in the eye and say, "who are you?!" it was a nice trip back to SE Asia (they have so many photos, etc) and to my women's studies/film studies degree. so, we spent the day in seedy motels and hopped up on tim horton's and ended it at value village looking for crazy costumes.

i went to see the Asian Invasion comedy show on my first requested media pass here in Montreal, and I have to say the highlight of the show was one Sugar Sammy (http://www.sugarsammy.com ) who was a hilarious host. Also, my company was pretty great. (http://www3.sympatico.ca/karen_tam ) Not only is this girl a talented and provocative artist, she's ready to go at the drop of a hat (I only gave her an hour's notice and it takes her 25 minutes to get into town) about the show and we fandangled our way into bypassing the lineup that went around the block. The very fact that we even met up is a small wonder to me, and i think i saw more Asians in Montreal that night than the entire two months I've been here combined. Next up, Margaret Cho.

i have to bigup the Just For Laughs festival for the other events that they bring on. i'm not sure when breakdancing and comedy went together, but the above festival is responsible for some of the sickest breakers i've seen in a long time, during their street arts festival. the competition on saturday nite was amazing, showcasing a final between Montreal's proudest bboys vs. Korea's Maximum crew.

it made me late for the premiere of Strangers With Candy, though better late than never, as i've been bellyaching about how it's not playing here, my Toronto and Vancouver peeps have had access to the thing for two whole weeks without me! and it was not exactly a sold out affair (though there were a lot more bums in chairs when it came down to it than not) so i managed to get a poster for my new apartment. (my 8 year old roomate is so excited that i'm moving in that he's telling all his friends and bugging his dad about when i'm going to be there).

the show was a bit budget, but still great to see on the big screen, and the best part is that Paul Dinello and Amy Sedaris were actually in attendance to heckle people during the question and answer period. Stephen Colbert couldn't make it, i guess cuz he's a big star, but the other two were definitely worth it. i got a squeeze and a picture from Dinello, who is the sweetest thing, and an action shot of Amy signing autographs. she was a bit standoffish, but i guess there's a difference when she's being attractive Amy and grotesque Jerri. but she did sign my poster "pee on me", from her favorite episode and mine, the egg.

all in all, "it was a great night".

ps. bigups to Siya (http://www.myspace.com/siyachen) for turning the tables and asking ME some questions for once! look out, i'm going international! my first interview as an interviewee!  

yo. it's worth it to stalk someone for two years then get offered the tail end of their banana. for real.

lemme tell you about this girl named Masia, she's such an inspiration and it's refreshing to talk to a sista from south east Asia. she doesn't let it get to her that she still isn't major (in terms of the canadian music industry) but finds her own way to touch the muthafuckin' sky. and she brings everyone up with her.

i have been in kind of a funk lately with all the crap that comes along with moving, silly run of the mill ish really, the accounting, etc. of it all, but talking to this girl yesterday made me forget that rut of sitting at home addicted to logic puzzles and pistachio ice cream and made me want to jump out of an airplane and fly.

so ya, i gotta big up this girl in every single way possible and i can't wait for the world to read what came from our interview (it will be up soon)

i also got my latest Ricepaper (fall edition so y'all will have to wait a few months, in the meantime, enjoy the Jenna Chow cover) and it was soo exciting! Paula Toledo and Kelly Konno get the best of my love in that one. i also got some special coloured biz cards made by the fabulousest of editors so it was a nice touch. i'll have to soup them up a little, but it's all good.

i'll be back in NYC next week and make my acting debut in a documentary starting tomorrow. i hope i can fandangle my way into seeing margaret cho next week too! whew. life is indeed a cabaret.

but ya, back to the Masia-spring release on the album folks...teasers are at:

www.myspace.com/masiaone

www.masiaone.com 

this past weekend has been one of sunshine and adventure.

saturday marked the furthest i've been on the metro on the green line (pi IX) to the olympic stadium which is now used for nothing but 2 gay raves (whoo hoo! can't wait) and when the pope visits. (sigh) i guess that's why folks are so opposed to the olympics, since montreal just finished paying off the damn thing 30 years after they hosted the games. such a pity that vancouver is going through the same nonsense. 30 years, just think of all the social programs that could benefit from that and the long term benefits, but no, let's have a 17 day testosterone fest instead!

anyways, the reason i was out there was to view the fireworks, a weekly occurance here and old montrel would be too crowded. they were kind of sucky though, and we used it more as a time to get caught up. we caught a crowded train back into town and experienced some uncharacteristic subway aggression.

grumpy's was the aptly named locale of the first show in the coloured lights' string of shows this summer and it was great to see them rock in a new environment. i was a bit apprehensive because they had their stuff jammed into such a small place, but jay played my song "if you need me" because i kept up my end of the deal, so it was all good. the guys got a bit drunk and nuts though, but it's to be expected. i decided to help g-spot unload the truck at the jam space because it wasn't fair that he do it all on his own. besides, no one else was small enough to fit under the bass amp in the front seat.

sunday was salsa and bellydance and roaming about jeanne-mance park to look for the hare khrisnas. i found them and enjoyed a lovely free vegetarian feast. and as an aside, to the folks out toronto way who were trying to make me drink kool-aid, i usually stay away, but damn, i was thirsty and that's what they were pouring, so i had some. it was sugary and delicious. makes you wonder about religion and sugar, no? "i've finally seen the light!" 

Ok, so my infactuation with Toronto continues...on route (bellydance class to jazzfest) i see a small raccoon, kinda cat sized and it was very slinky. this has no significance, other than it captivated me. i am fascinated by wildlife in cities, like all those skunks i kept seeing in Vancouver, and the familiarity of the squirrels when i first moved to Montreal. i love that chipmunk that my love found for me, and i'm still not over Superdog. (there's more in that series, just wait).

but sadly i missed Isis and Zaki on stage due to a change in scheduling, though i did get dragged into the tent area and got to watch Tumi and the Volume from the side stage, which was amazing. i gotta give props to a big dude who can (and do) move, homie must have amazing breath control! Not only that, but he shouted out all of Africa in one breath. whoo. until now, Eritrea got no love. Tumi had many styles too, and you know i love it when a cat isn't afraid to be sexy. i'll bet the groupies were waiting to pounce like lynxes. the encore "ladi dadi" (snoop version) was awesome too, very innovative and inspiring performance altogether.

but the street performance of ...Love was the best 'cuz she did it just for me. and we got it on tape! and now i finally have the ep so i can bump it in my house and not only all over my Myspace. but all y'all are gonna buy my book when it comes out, all this money i'm shelling out for cds, but it's all love though, i consider it an investment, and i'm pumping my hard earned money to make sure that my dream continues, essentially.

and of that one that i'm finally gonna get at on monday: i've been stalking masia one for damn near a year, and now i've seen her in two cities in a week, and last nite she offered me the nub of her banana. who woulda thunk it?

big shoutout to the assorted cast and crew that i linked/shared a bit and bite with...TORONTO love!

no, i haven't seen the movie yet (and maybe won't) but you better believe i'll be revisiting this one! thanks erika!

so, montreal's finest, i opened my first appearance at the jazz fest on saturday nite, and after roaming all the stages, we finally found something ill to groove to, King Sunshine. whoo. that's what i'm talking about, forget the pan flutes.

 sunday morning culminated with the tam tams on the "mountain" and an old skool popsicle. we also took photos on graffiti walls and hung out on teeter totters. next up, we stroll on st. laurent (again) and end up back on st. viateur (one of my favorite places even though it's a hella long walk from my place) and back at cafe olympico, which was a bit different because the street was closed off for the  Feast of Madonna della Bruna and there were lounge singers, fruity tango dancers, carnival games, and processions, among them marching bands and the actual Madonna herself (statue version of course). we partook in a watermelon eating contest, and i almost choked because i was laughing so hard that the juice was going up my nose, and the ridiculousness of the whole thing, with our hands bound and plastic bibs blowing in the wind. but the good part is that i got to keep it afterwards and not eat it like a heathen. 

we hung out for a long time, just enjoying the sunshine and the atmosphere on the street, ran into some folks and made friends with this couple that's been married for 30 years, who was very sweet. we had some of the free pasta that was dished out in the street and took a hiatus to buy some cheap shoes from the Yellow (NOT where they sent asians in this town, as I originally thought) entrepot. all in all, a good couple of days.

i'm really glad the library's open today and i forgot that i have appointments to do more psych experiments, though the last one nearly killed me, all that freaking reading in japanese! whoo! i was able to kind of stumble through the reading, but damn if i was to comprehend, but it was $25 for 2 hours so...i'm not going to complain. alright. olives.