Why karaoke is never/always a good idea…

Is this you?

Is this you?

When I think of karaoke I think back to my first experience of it.  Being 18, having just arrived in Japan and on a bus going somewhere.  We were all jet lagged and completely agog at our surroundings.  For many of us, it was the first time being out of the country, let alone in Japan!  At one point the tour guide, a petite (well, aren’t all Japanese people petite), young pretty girl gets up, grabs the microphone and a monitor above her turns on and unfamiliar music starts to play.  Then we see Japanese characters appear and she starts to sing.  In the deep recesses of my mind I knew the Japanese loved karaoke…but never did I expect this.  That memory is burned into my head as my first karaoke experience!

That being said, I don’t karaoke regularly.  In fact, I try to avoid karaoke bars at all costs.

“But you’re a SINGER!!  Why?!??”

For exactly that reason.  People find out you’re a singer and expect you to sound like Mariah Carey, Debbie Harry or Celine Dion.  You never do and instead of enjoying your performance, they’re slightly disappointed because their expectations are set too high.

I also tend to start judging people subconsciously.  Not that I expect people to be good when they’re doing karaoke.  I mean, there’s good for karaoke, there’s good in the sense that it’s so bad it’s good.  But often times there’s that middle ground which is the most painful for me.  I was joined by another singer friend last night and we were discussing this.  What often gives me a bad taste about karaoke are the people who think they can sing but are always just a little off pitch.  It actually hurts my ears…which is part of the reason why I don’t go to karaoke that often.

That being said, I can’t avoid karaoke completely.  After all, I’m friends with GAY people *shock, horror*.  And as we all know, the gays love karaoke (or at least my gays do!  *waves*)  I actually recently enjoyed a karaoke stint at my friend’s wedding where they had karaoke set up at the reception.  But then again, we were mostly singers in the same group and so there were no expectations set.
Last night I joined quite a few friends at Encore for fun and frolicking…and karaoke.  Now, this is a semi regular gathering with these folks and the last time I was there I opted not to sing anything.  But I decided last night that I’d probably need to get over my fear/haughty thoughts about karaoke and do it.  As it happens, I had a great warm up because when I walked in my friend Michael told me he was doing Love Shack and that he needed a girl to sing with him!  Karaoke is kind of like chocolate…once you have it, you want more.  You can’t just have one!  So I signed up for another song.  I was holding off for my friend’s Tim & Susan to get there but finally turned it in…I was told at the time it would be a 2 hour wait.  WTF?!  Yes, this place is THAT popular.  Lucky for me it ended up being only about a 50 minute wait.  I heard my name called & I thought, well, this is it.  Drank my liquid courage, put on my sunglasses and walked on stage.

At this point in the story, maybe you’re thinking you’d like to hear about how everyone came to their feet in utter awe or maybe you’d like to hear that I fell flat on my face in embarrassment….neither of those things happened.  BUT, people did get into it.  Tim walked in just as I started singing and joined me for a bit.  Then unbenknownst to me, a girl I had just met that evening took the other mic for the last few verses with me.  It was a lot of fun.  Will I become a regular karaoke singer? No.  Will I feel more willing to sing in the future?  Yes.  I just hope my voice teacher from college never walks into the bar I’m singing it at….she’d have a heart attack with my antics! 😉

Where did November go?!

Hey there.

Long time no talk…this month has flown by!  I’ve traveled the past three weeks so forgive me for neglecting my blog.  Lots going on with the end of the year.  Lots of stress, lots of excitement, lots of disappointment…thank God 2008 is coming to an end!

I hope you 5 readers out there are doing alright.  I’ll be moving my blog soon to a new site.  Stay tuned!

ROCK THE VOTE!!

Hey party people.

Short but sweet as I’m in PA (a swing state, dontcha know) and need to finish some work.

This PSA is just to say get out and vote. Don’t be complacent…don’t assume something or someone will win because of what the polls say.  No matter who or what you vote for, it’s important.  I pray that tomorrow evening will bring good news, but it may not if you don’t do your civic duty and vote!

And that’s all I have to say about that…

Halloween: An acceptable time to dress up pets…

It pains me to see people walking or carrying pets down the street (or in a store) that are dressed up in costumes or little coats and jackets.  My first thought is to feel sorry for the poor animal subjected to it’s owners’ sick and twisted amusement in dressing them up like children.  Then I think, do people really have money to waste on animal clothing?!  I’m sure I will be upsetting some dog owners who constantly dress up their pets but hey, it’s just my opinion.
However having said that, I do find it somewhat acceptable to dress pets up for Halloween…some may think this hypocritical of me, but c’est la vie.
Acceptable?

Acceptable?

This one Im not so sure of...

This one I'm not so sure of...

OMG - A Cat Costume...LOL

OMG - A Cat Costume...LOL

Best one EVER

Best one EVER

I haz an bug!

**Warning: This post may contain TMI for some of you.  Don’t worry, it’s not communicable!**
Oooh, nasty bugz in mah intestinez...

Oooh, nasty bugz in mah intestinez...

So I come home today and as per usual, open up my mailbox to see what sort of junk arrived today.  Typical stuff;  credit card apps, Macy’s catalog, Bed Bath & Beyond coupon…oh, and a letter from the San Francisco Department of Public Health, Communicable Disease Control Unit.

THE LETTER

THE LETTER

For those of you who are having trouble reading it, it says that “As required by law, The California Pacific Medical Center has reported your recent campylobacter infection to the San Francisco Department of Public Health, Communicable Disease Control Unit.

WTF?!  What the hell is Campylobacter and how the fuck did I get it?!?

A little background:

On October 1st I went out to dinner prior to seeing James in concert and after the meal, wasn’t feeling 100%.  I figured I had ate too much or maybe the food didn’t agree with me.  However, what followed was several days of cramping, diarrhea and fever.  I chalked it up to food poisoning at first but after having it for more than 5 days I made an appt to see my Nurse Practitioner.  When I went to see her, she suggested I take dairy out of my diet as it’s difficult to digest and to have stool samples be tested for bacteria.  Let me tell you here and now – pray you never have to do this!!  It is up on the list of most disgusting things you’ll ever do!

Anyway, so I did those, dropped them off at the lab on Friday and today (Thursday) I receive this letter.  Did I receive a call from my MD office?  No…instead I have a mild heart attack when I read the first few words of the letter, not knowing what the hell this infection was or if it was curable.  Thankfully as I read their fact sheet, I find out it’s a common bacterial infection that usually goes away on it’s own accord. *whew*

Still, I feel at least somewhat relieved that it wasn’t a)something more serious and b)that it was something at all!  No one wants to have to go through stool samples to find out that nothing is wrong!! LOL

Anyway, it seems to be going away.  Have had a couple nights of stomach pains but overall seems to be getting better.  Thank God I can freely love the dairy again and not feel guilty for sneaking it back into my diet!

Cheese...so good!

Cheese...so good!

Inexperience, not immaturity…

I have a lot of friends. Being the social bee that I am, I have a lot of people I call friend (although very few I would call close friend).  These friends range in age from 21-47.  It’s quite a wide age range when you think of it, but I’ve always felt that once you’ve entered into your 20’s you’re an adult and are all the same to some degree or another.

This is wrong of course, but in my idyllic world I am wont for it to be true.  But I’m reminded of this from time to time when I see people do things or make comments about things that are either so completely out of touch with reality or just plain wrong.  Immaturity runs rampant across the ages…but what I really see with some of the younger people I have hung out with in the past is inexperience.  Inexperience in life, in human interaction… basic things that you only learn from making mistakes and getting burned, I suppose.  It pains me at times to see my friends fall into these situations…delusion gets the best of us at time but for some reason I see it more often with some of the younger people I’ve had the fortune (or misfortune) to spend time with and put energy and effort into.  Sadly, all I can do is sit back and watch.  Hope the best for those I care about, and shake my head and walk away from those who would brazenly throw their façade of “maturity & experience” in my face.  I would feel sorry for them if they deserved my pity, but alas they do not deserve anything from me but indifference.

Rain!!

I love rain.  The sound of it, the smell of it.  It brings back memories of lounging on the couch as a child, feeling the warmth of a fire and eating grilled cheese sandwiches.  Or at school when we’d be forced to eat in the classroom which I secretly enjoyed because of the indoor games we were able to play (Heads Up Seven-Up).  One thing I particularly love about the rainy season are rain boots!  Across the pond they call the wellies, but that name hasn’t really caught on here.  Now, I know rain boots have existed for some time – but I don’t ever recall having a pair when I was a child and I certainly never wore them growing up.  But they’ve come into fashion the past couple years, with pretty colors and patterns.  Here are a some of my favorites I’ve seen lately.

At Zappos. $59.99

At Zappos. $59.99

At Zappos $144...pricey but hot!

At Zappos $144...pricey but hot!

Michael Kors $120

Michael Kors $120

Joules $75

Joules $75

Evercreature £23 (roughly US$40) And I have a great scarf that would match these!

Evercreature £23 (roughly US$40) And I have a great scarf that would match these!

I *heart* SF Part I

How can I possibly sum up why I love this city in one post.  How do you take an infinite number of memories and create a cohesive mixture of words to express what is in my heart, mind and soul.  Shadup, I know I sound cornball but it’s true.  I’m not eloquent enough like some of my friends to even come close with words, so I’ll do a few pictures to try and express what I love about “the city”.  I say Part I since I’m sure more will come along.

View of SF from Treasure Island

View of SF from Treasure Island

Sunrise on an Autumn Morning

Sunrise on an Autumn MorningYerba Buena Gardens

Mr. TVL - an unequivocal positive force in my life here in SF

Mr. TVL - an unequivocal positive force in my life here in SF

Ridiculously awesome events like Bacon & Beer Happy Hour

Ridiculously awesome events like Bacon & Beer Happy Hour

SF Fog...a constant stapleSF Fog…a constant staple
The Golden Gate, Iconic SF

The Golden Gate, Iconic SF

What do you love about SF?

TGIF, San Francisco!

While Friday is a day I always look forward to I have been especially looking forward to Friday this week.  I’ve been out every night (partially my own doing) and work has been so crazy lately.  My body tells me I should take an evening off but plans are already in the works for this evening.  At least I’ll be able to go out tonight knowing that I wont need to get up before dawn tomorrow.

In other news, I’ve finished The Twilight Saga .  I really enjoyed it – in fact I read all four books in a little over a week.  Some may balk at the idea of reading them considering they’re in the YA section but hey, it’s more adult than Harry Potter and people of all ages enjoyed that.   That being said, my enthusiasm started to wane a bit in the last book.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it but I didn’t agree with the story line the author decided to take.  I guess it doesn’t really matter but after thristily reading through the first three books I was expecting more for the last book of the series.  Ah well…it’s easy reading and for the most part keeps you on the edge of your seat.  For any local friends, you can borrow them if you’re interested although Suki already has first dibs!

This weekend is The Treasure Island Music Festival.  I had initially planned on attending but due to lack of funds and lack of interest from the majority of my friends, will not be attending.  However, reviewer extraordinare will be there.  Definitely keep an eye out for his review on his blog (and in Performer Magazine!).  He’s one of the few people whose reviews I actually enjoy reading; perhaps because he himself is an artist and reviews as such.

Please feel free to share your exiting weekend plans…especially if they involve events in SF!  I’m always up for hearing what is going on in our fair city!