In Paradise

Why must weekends fly by so fast? Friday night we stopped at a party for my friend Matt while in Milwaukee. Unfortunately by the time we actually got there tons of people had left. Oh well. We took advantage of being in town and were able to pick up some cd's at my parents going out of business sale. Sweet! Chus did very well on his first road trip. Only one mishap was on the way up he threw up on Rob! He was fine the entire way back. He just slept and slept. To be a dog. My parents passed on their old leather sofa/loveseat to us. Yay! We don't have to sit on folding chairs now. Nothing really super eventful from the weekend. Though we did stop at Maxwell Street on Sunday. I hadn't had a huarache in months! Oh my god it was orgasmic!!

I've been meaning to pick up this cd forever, but my Laissez Faire CD arrived today from amazon. Holy aquanet!!

My belated bday celebration is still up in the air. In more exciting news my good friend Rocío will be staying w/ us for 1 month while she has to work at our office (she works from Mexico but puts in an appearance once a year). Should be fun. Especially since lesbians are so handy around the house :) Speaking of handy I bought a new coat rack and drilled it into the wall all by myself!! I am so butch! Lol.

BTW everyone, yesterday was Meiver's bday. Please stop by her journal and wish her a happy belated bday.

Why was there no Desperate Housewives last night? WTF?? I at least got to watch The Surreal Life. I also watched Napoleon Dynamite for like the 7th time last night. Sweet!

For the song of the day I've chose Cuídate by a little-known Mexican band by the name of Luna Limón. This is one of my favorite songs from their second album. Download it here. Enjoy! BTW if anyone actually knows who they are, or likes them w/o me having told u about them...then you rock!

Kumar

Today is Friday! Yay! First things first, I would like to wish a very Happy Birthday to my lovely friend Matt:

So last night I finally got around to watching Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle. It was fun. You know those stupid funny movies. But the best part of it...Kal Penn (Kumar). Grrr!! He's f*ckin' hot!!! I love me some Indian men. He kinda looks like my BF now that I think about it. Good job Joe!

For my über gay moment of the day, I must tell you all about my latest purchase and current musical obsession...Crystal Gayle. I remember her from when I was kid w/ her very very long hair (is she the American Daniela Romo??). For some odd reason I've been wanting to hear some of her stuff. Well am I glad I did! I love her voice! It's gorgeous! I picked up The Best Of Crystal Gayle for only $6.99 at Tower (which you to can purchase via my musical links to the left of this post) and I can not stop listening to it! I've never been a country music fan, but there are some wonderful vocalists in that genre. Get past the misconceptions and you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised.

For my song of the day I wanted to share something by Elan from her amazing debut album Street Child. For those of you who know me I've been going on and on about her every chance I get. This is one of my faves from her debut, which btw is quickly becoming my favorite album of all-time! Let me know what you think of her. God I could listen to this woman's voice over and over. For you...CALL HOME.

p.s. Meiver when is your bday? Did I miss it???

Overdue update

Sorry I haven't blogged in a few days. Work has beeen hectic. Too many projects. Just want to let everyone know that my Pajama Party cds finally arrived!! I am in freestlye heaven :) What did we do this weekend? I forgot already! Not much because of the snow. Normally I don't mind but this is getting ridiculous. We still have not caught the mouse, but this morning our landlord came over and set out some poison behind our appliances. Hope it works!

So I am official obsessed w/ Napoleon Dynamite. I have watched this movie at least 6 times in less than a week. I even went out and bought it on Sunday! Sweet! Now I can watch it over and over and over. My favorite character has to be the brother, Kip. I created this little graphic in his honor. If you get the quote, than you rock!

I had to take Chus to the vet yesterday to get dewormed. All is fine! The vet said he is perfect health and to keep up the good work. Since I love to share pics, here is Chus doing one of his favorite things, sleeping in his Mommy's arms (aka me):

I must tell you all that my lunch Friday w/ my twin blogger, Esperanza was awesome! We had so much fun. I'm just glad I didn't scare her. I can be a bit much. Lol. In her honor (and at her request) the song of the day is El gato y yo by Argentina's loudest diva Amanda Miguel (and drag queen favorite). It's campy fun! Meow!

Waiting

My Pajama Party cd's have not come yet! I want them now! Lol. Sorry I just had to share that w/ everyone. It's snowing like crazy! I love it! I love this weather :) Especially since I rarely have to drive anymore. Hopefully it's not too bad since we are going to Milwaukee on Saturday. Speaking of Milwaukee, here's an excuse to post a picture of Chus w/ his Grandman (aka my Mom)! FYI, tomorrow I am going to have lunch w/ my twin blog Esperanza, aka Espelina. I am so excited about meeting her! Check out her blog and find out why we have so much in common :)

Did you hear that there is a warrant out of ex-Menudo Charlie Masso's arrest? Apparently he hasn't been making child support payments to his ex-wife. Whatever! If he does go to jail, which I doubt, what I wouldn't do to be his cellmate! This man is smokin'! He makes me moist in the panties! Grrr!!! Read all the dirt here. I feel inspired to dig out my Charlie Masso CD when I get home (I only have Inevitable, damn I need the rest now!!!).

BTW I finally rented Napoleon Dynamite. Why did I not see this sooner?? OMG it was hilarious!! The movie's a bit pointless if you think about it, but the bizareness and quirkiness of the characters had me rolling on the floor. When his brother is all homie-g'd out, I laughed so hard! I was literally on the floor. I tried so hard not to laugh at his best friend Pedro, but what a beaner! And his chach sister! In the words of Jerri Blank, Hilarious. What an excellent flick! I must buy this! Must! Must! Must!

For the song of the day I leave u w/ a dittie from the early 90s from MIA dance/pop singer Stacy Earl. This is her debut single and still rocks to this day! Enjoy!

Song of the day: Stacy Earl: Love Me All Up

Ben

So this weeked we found a lovely surprise in our home. We got Ben! On top of the counter and in the bathroom, we saw some mice droppings! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeew!!!!!! We are both deadly afraid of mice so this is not good. Fortunately I found this sensor that you plug in to deter mice that my Mom had given me. In our last apartment we never once had a mouse. So I am hoping this thing will work in our new place now that I've actually placed it! Our landlord brought over mousetraps, sticky traps, etc. But being the chicken shit I am, if it does get caught I DO NOT want to see it. So I went out and bought those no see traps. So far nothing. Eeeeeeeeeew!!!!

In much more serious news, over the weekend my mother has informed me that after 10 years, my parents have decided to close their business. It's sad but I understand that it's hanging by its last thread. After my bugging them we opened a Spanish language music store in Milwaukee. While I ran it I had to time of my life. Met lots of friends and got tons of free music. I'll miss it. So with that being done, they are gonna focus their time/energy on doing more events like the recent concerts they have put on. Good for them I say. Since my mother is all about redecorating the house now, she is ripping out the old ugly flower carpet. She has decided to part w/ her cream coloured sofa and loveseat. Naturally she asked me if I wanted it. Hello!!! It's free!!! This is perfect timing because we are both broke from the move and were worried about $$ for a new sofa. Leave it to mom. God I love that woman so much. She's always there for me. Ok enough mushyness. We are gonna go up on Saturday and Cd shop @ Mundo Musical's liquidation sale!

I really don't mind this cold weather (I'd much rather be cold than all hot and sticky), but it sucks having to take Chus out in the morning. Oh well I guess it's my unofficial wake-up call. BTW Rob bought me my birthday present on Saturday (that I picked out). I got Strangers With Candy Season 2 & Muriel's Wedding on DVD!!! So excited!!!

Song of the day: Go Home Productions (mash-up of Duran Duran's Notorious & Kelis's Trick Me)-Notorious Trick

Hide & Seek

My first week back at work is finally over! Thank God for Fridays. Work's been steady & boring as always. Oh well. BTW my bday dinner was the bomb! I love Indian food so much. When we're rich we want an Indian cook. I could eat it everyday! But onto more important matters. Guess what I found??? On my bday I was browsing ebay because I told myself I was gonna buy myself Pajama Party's rare CD Up All Nite. I was expecting to pay $30-50 for it. What do I stumble upon?? Someone was selling both of their cd's for only $20 Buy It Now. OMG!!! Pass me a tissue cause I'm drippin' wet! Now I can have a freestyle throwdown Pajama Party-stlye anytime I want :) Baby put your love on me....

Chus update! He's doing fine. I was really sad that I had to leave him home alone for so long, but what can we do?? He seems to be doing fine going to the bathroom on newspaper while we're gone. Yeah it's gross, but he's still a puppy. It breaks my heart when I have to hear him crying after I leave. Awww :( But it's the weekend and we can spoil him all over again!

It sucks being broke. I have like $70 to last me 'til next Friday (payday). Looks like I'll be brown baggin' it next week. Thank God for Aldi; they are my life savers! Speaking of being broke I found out I am gonna either have 30 or 60 days to pay that speeding ticket I got last month. $230!! I'm have another ebay sale to raise money. What's a boy to do?

So I've been featuring a song of the day for awhile on my blog. I'm adding something new though. I've decided to upload mp3's of the song to share with you all! How do I do this w/out my own webserver? Why the wonderful folks at yousendit.com of course! You can send files up to 1GB for free! Don't ask me what the catch is, it's just the most wonderful thing. Because of them I am sharing the first downloadable song of the day. Someone on sayhey posted the entire Apollonia 6 Cd!! Do you know how rare this is?? It goes for $300+ on ebay. So look for the song at the end of this post. It's a camp classic! Please note this will only be available for 25 downloads and/or for 7 days, whichever comes first).

My other wonderful news to share is that one of my favorite divas and my #1 loud bitch, Mónica Naranjo is FINALLY releasing something new!! Well sort of. Since her last album tanked and the english version was only released in Greece and various other random European countries, Sony is releasing a new best of CD/DVD! It will contain 1 new track and the DVD is going include live clips from the Minage tour. To be released in March in Spain, you can read more about the release here

Song of the day: Apollonia 6-Sex Shooter

Top 10 albums of '04

So I've been meaning to do this since last month, but I'm just FINALLY getting around to it. Here I present you my picks for my favorite albums of 2004. Enjoy:

1. Elan, Street Child: If anyone knows me I have been going on and on about this broad ever since I've heard her. Technically this came out in '03 but I didn't discover it til early '04 (so it counts!!!). I have not been this moved by one artist in years. The passion and emotion that come out of her mouth are so raw and addictive. I can not get enough of her. A brilliant, moody album that should not be ignored. So simple yet so complex. It's a crime she's not a household name. I honestly listen to this album everyday on my ipod. It's my most played album. My favorite song changes on a daily basis. Yes people it's that good. Can not wait for album #2.
   
2. Ely Guerra, Sweet & Sour, Hot y Spicy: Probably one of my top 5 vocalists of all time, and by far the best live. Ely has recorded yet another winner. This is probably the fist time she lets go in the studio and you hear the intensity that she eludes live. You can not leave this planet w/out seeing this woman in concert. Stunning!
   
3. Fangoria, Arquitectura efimera: Alaska! Diosa! Fangoria consistently produce the best electronic music en español. They never fail to dissapoint me and this album is no exception. Long live the Mexican Acid Queen!
   
4. La 5a Estación, Flores de alquiler: I first heard them while in Mexico City last May. Hailing from Spain via Mexico they are garnering quite a following. The vocalist sounds like so much like Edith Márquez it's not even funny! Their music is fresh and this, their second effort, will not dissapoint fans of good pop/rock music.
   
5. Alicia Machado, Alicia Machado: Just because she's a former Miss Universe you shouldn't knock her. Alica Machado has proven to me at least that she is a great singer (her voice reminds me a lot of María Conchita Alonso) and is off to a good start. This album is great mix of pop/rock music that works well with her voice. Don't even ask me how many times I listen to El paía de las maravillas a day. Take a chance you may be pleasently surprised.
   
6. Sasha Sökol, Por un amor: Former Timbiriche member and one of my all-time faves returned to the music scene in 04 with a surprising new album. After the masterpiece that was 11:11 Sasha left her pop roots behind and shocked us all by doing an album of rancheras. Of course in her own style. I know she doesn't have the greatest of voices but there is just something bout the texture and delivery that I can not get enough of. If you like Chavela Vargas and the likes, this album is for you as Sasha interprets rancheras stripped down to their basic elements fusing jazz, flamenco (influenced by her new residence in Madrid where this album is developing a life of it's own). I paid an obscene amount of money for the Spanish import (it was just barely released in Mexico) and it was worth every cent.
   
7. Gloria Trevi, Come nace el universo: I never thought I'd see the day Gloria Trevi released a new album (at least not in this decade). Forget all the scandal, the jail sentence, etc. Gloria is back! Back w/ that crazy and beautiful voice doing what she does best. Writing and singing from her heart. Te extrañé Gloria
   
8. Miguel Islas, Solo: Former singer of the bands Ragazzi & El Círculo, Islas has finally flown solo. Produced by Loris Ceroni (Natalia Lafourcade) he has done a wonderful job in creating some amazing pop/rock material. Now being the fag I am, I very rarely listen to male singers (as if this list wasn't any indication) but I've always loved his voice dating back to Ragazzi. Entre tus piernas is such a sensual song. Not sure if this will ever see the light of day in the US (I picked up the import when I was in Mexico City in May as well).
   
9. Scissor Sisters, Scissor Sisters: First of all, their name has to be one of the coolest ever! They are overtly gay sounding (think Elton John does disco glam rock). My favorite hip band of 04!
   
10. Minnie Driver, Everything I've Got in My Pocket: I am a sucker for actresses who sing (hello I own every Jennifer Love Hewitt album & I love them). I had no idea what to expect but Minnie's got something. Vocally she reminds me a lot of Natalie Merchant and her folk/pop is to die for. Here's hoping she'll continue to record and not be a one-album-wonder (I'm still waiting for another album from Jasmine Guy & Tia Carrere)!
    

Honorable mentions go to : Emma Bunton, Angel City, Chenoa, Paulina Rubio, Robi Draco Rosa & Zayra Alvarez.

How gay is gay?

I've been beyond busy at work today, trying to get out by 5 so I can let Chus out. Tomorrow I will try my best to write more. Bday dinner was postponed to tonight. I just had to share this with you all. Have you ever seen a gayer band? They are called Ranifer's International and have members from Mexico, Argentina, Guetamala, Columbia & Venezuela. I think they're gayer than Locomía:

28

Today is my 28th birthday. 28!! I honestly don't feel it. So far the day has been lovely. Rob let me sleep in and took Chus out (I usually take him out in the mornings) and made me breakfast (pancakes & scrambled eggs; delicious!!). Not sure what we are gonna do since we've decided to postpone any type of party 'til next month (so we're properly settled in). Maybe have Indian food. My favorite! My coworkers are ordering in Thai food (my second favorite) for me today. Thanks to those of you who've already sent me bday greetings. Enjoy my day.

Song of the day: Quiero ser santa-Alaska y Dinarama

I'm back!

Yes bloggers of the world. I am back! DSL will be up tomorrow at home, but in the meantime I am back (unfortunately) at the office. I have a project to start, but I think updating my blog is much more important. Lol! I already gave a recap of the move/holidays so I won't bore you all w/ even more details. Pretty much unpacked (I think there are like 2 or 3 boxes left). I just picked up our dinning room table & chairs on Friday (fyi the table is really cool...but also REALLY heavy; don't ask me how I got it up the stairs all by myself). Our furnace is f*cked up, the pilot light keeps going out. It's being fixed today. Other than that the aparmtnet is perfect. In a funny note I put too much soap in the dishwasher the other day and there were suds EVERYWHERE! Hey I'm new to these things. Es que en mi casa la chacha hacia todo, ves o sea. Saturday my parents came up for my birthday (it's tomorrow 1/11/05...28!!!) so we went for Puerto Rican food (¡¡Chacho nene!!) and took a trip to Petsmart w/ Chus. My friends Alex & Mario from Mootown came up and finished painting for us. Our bedroom is now this really cool deep blue :) I swear I'll post pics of our place soon, I just want it to look perfect first :P In the evening w/ went to Roscoe's w/ my Milwaukee Sister, José and the Milwaukee bunch. Fun times, especially eating pizza drunk after. Yummy. Sunday we traveled all the way to the far north side because we had a craving for Arby's. Can you believe there is like 1 in the entire city of Chicago? The rest are downtown and are not opened on the weekends. Uff! FYI we discovered this CD shop in Humboldt Park (Puerto Rican neighborhood) and they had so much old inventory. I found Yuri's Soy libre first edition on CD and get this IRIS CHACÓN!!! Milwaukee sister we have to take you there!

So the moment you've all been waiting for! Pictures of Chus!! The first couple of pics are before his haircut, he was a furball! But he kept getting dirty/wet because of the snow so he had to get taken in last Friday to get groomed. He looks adorable in his green sweater that his Grandma (aka my Mom) bought for him. I had to leave him at home today as it was my first day back :( I hope he's ok. He's spoiled to death. He's super friendly, loves to sleep, loves to run around in the snow, he really loves to play and last night he managed to take about 75% of his toys out of his bin all by himself and play with them! First picture is Mommy and child, 2nd and 3rd are Chus in the snow, 4th is Chus and his new sweater/haircut (how cute!!) and the last is him pulling some toys out of his bin (awww!!!):

Once I'm all settled in some more I am gonna do a recap of '04 (music, movies, etc.) and hopefully get back in the swing of things. Hope you're all well. I've missed you all! I'm trying to catch up on all your blogs/journals as well. I think Meiver had a bday...when was it??? Glennys mentioned it in her blog...so happy belated bday mamita. Later everyone!

Song of the day: Sobreviviré-Lorena Herrera