Back in the NY Groove

It has been waaaay too long!

For the past I don't know how many months I've stayed on Long Island Saturday nights.  I've stopped dancing.  I've stopped being adventurous.  It hasn't been making me feel so good about myself.  Almost every week for the past several weeks I've been saying that I was going to go back into the city, but each week I've found a reason to stay on L.I.

Gosh, for years I went into the city clubbing week after week after week, and I almost always had the time of my life.  Eventually though, with the opening of XL and then the closing of Splash, my visits to NYC have waned.  I'm glad we've got Nuts n Bolts out here, but it's nothing in comparison to a city club.

Out here, the people are the same, there's really no dancing, and it's easy to get bored with it each and every week.  In the city it doesn't matter who you know.  Anonymity makes it easy to be yourself, and I find it so easy to let loose when I have no one around me, judging me.  At least that doesn't make me uncomfortable.

So tonight, I am returning to the city.  My first destination is XL Nightclub and then perhaps The Ritz, where I haven't been since last spring.  I can't wait to be out there on the dance floor!

   

Ida Corr vs Fedde Le Grand - Let Me Think About It by dunyaerk

The Last Splash

I love to dance!  It's one of my absolute favorite things in the world to do.  When I'm out on the dance floor, getting my groove on, I'm as happy as I ever.  No worries, no fears.  It's just me and the music, expressing myself and loving every minute of it.

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Some may find it strange that someone of my age would enjoy going out clubbing so much.  I don't, really.  I mean, yeah, sometimes I feel like an old fart among all of the young people that go to clubs, but I know I am nothing close to an old fart.  I look younger than my age and I surely feel a lot younger, too.

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So when I go to any club, I'm sure that some may take one look at me and think to themselves, oh geez, here's a creeper looking to pick up guys, which couldn't be farther from the truth.  Really, I only come to dance.  If I happen to meet someone, then that's just a bonus.

Dance, it's all I wanna do so won't you dance...K. Minogue

I've had a love for dancing ever since I discovered Diana Ross back in 1980.  From countless hours spent dancing in my room, burning up the floor on Fire Island and in clubs with my ex, and now as a single guy looking for joy, I've always been addicted to the expression of dancing, which brings me to Splash.

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Though I'd been to Splash a couple of times during my relationship with Joe, it was never a regular hangout for me to dance until about six years ago, after he and I broke up. You see, Long Island, where I live, is a very strange place.  There is no real Long Island 'community' because the place is so spread out, and the attitude here is pretty unwelcoming.

londonorca

There is no real 'bar scene' to speak of, and dance clubs have been relegated to special 'party' nights at disjointed places across the island.  Even when you go to a bar here, it's not a good thing to dance, as stares and attitudinal glances make their way in your direction, and it's not fun.  I learned this early on in my second tourney at being single and so I quickly turned to the city...and Splash.

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Ever since I've been a club goer, I've been a loyal one.  Whenever I found a club that I liked, I always stuck to it until the very end, for whatever reason.  Maybe it's just good old fear of change. I remember when Kiss, my very first regular hangout, started to wane, it was sad.  It was the same with a bar called Crystals and now it is the same with Splash.

queerty

You could tell the end was near almost immediately after XL opened last year.  All of a sudden the Saturday night crowds began to wane and everybody was talking about the new place up in Hell's Kitchen.  Little by little, the new joint began to steal Splash's theme nights...20 Something Thursdays (Campus Thursdays at Splash), Broadway Mondays (Musical Mondays), etc., etc., etc... and the rest is history.

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As it turned out, maybe it was overkill, but I did go to Splash one more time last night before it closed its doors for good tomorrow night.  I guess it was an appropriate ending.  Thursday night used to be my favorite night to go there, as it always had a nice crowd and Steve Sidewalk always played great music.  I always did more dancing there on a Thursday than any other night, but last night just wasn't meant to be.

queerty

For being one of the last nights in a major club like Splash, there really wasn't much fanfare going on last night.  Nothing special happening, and the crowd was small, though probably a little larger than before the closing announcement came.  John Marto was the deejay, and I haven't been liking his sets lately, especially last night.  The music was full of teaser snippets of good songs thrown into very clubby music that was not fun to dance to.

queerty

So, not even an hour into getting there, my last Splash was done.  I took one last walk around the place, remembering what used to be of the place: dancing up a storm for hours on a Saturday night in the makeshift dance floor downstairs; meeting Ivan and helping him find his cell phone minutes after; hanging with Paul, Ozzie, Jeremy, Blanche, Dita and Eddie; the Madonnathon; dancing and flirting with strangers; and a certain look from below the stairs as I ascended.

The Wanted perform at Splash

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These are the kinds of memories that have been long gone, really, but memories are made for a reason.  Whenever I think about them I can smile to myself.  Though things haven't been the same at Splash for more than a year already, I'm still gonna miss the place.  So thanks Splash, thanks for giving me a place to express myself and for providing me with a home of sorts for the past six years.    

Splash promoter Dougie Meyer

Next Magazine

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Song of the Day - We Found Love - Rihanna

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In a final tribute to songs that remind me of Splash, here's RiRi, whose hypnotic and mesmerizing tune provided me plenty of special dance floor moments in the joint.  Happy Friday!

We Found Love by YardieGoals

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Song of the Day - Give It to Me - Madonna

A little over a year ago, March 2, 2012 to be precise, Splash played host to a Madonnathon.  At the time, the MDNA album was about to be released and it was Madonna anticipation everywhere. Thus the special event that was a dream for me...all Madonna, all night, and in a club filled with like-minded Madonna-crazed clubbers.  This was but one of the many fond memories I have from Splash, and for some reason I distinctly remember dancing to this song...

Madonna - Give It 2 Me by Madonna-Official

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Song of the Day - Take Over Control - Afrojack, featuring Eva Simons

Beginning with yesterday's Song of the Day, I am posting songs this week that remind me of Splash, which will close its doors this Saturday.  I remember dancing to this one plenty of times there and I just love it when the music crescendoes and gets wild...

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Saying Goodbye to Splash

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Wow, it is almost 11:30 p.m. on Sunday and I have not slept, well really slept, since Friday night. It's hard to believe, really, even for me, and I'm still pretty wide awake.  You see, after writing that post yesterday, Is It Me?: An Introduction, I've just been all out of sorts, and I drank one too many cups of coffee yesterday, including a large one from Dunkin Donuts on my way home from Splash.

Splash, yes, that's the reason for this post.  Last night was the last Saturday I would ever have the chance to go and so I couldn't miss it.  For any of you who've ever followed me over the years, you all know how I've enjoyed my Splash Saturdays (and Tuesdays, and Thursdays, and Fridays...) over the past years, and even from when before I was single, Splash was always fun.

I know that to a lot of people it became, with its fame, a kind of a hokey, touristy place, the kind that tourists go to when they come to NY, but still, despite the touristy type that goes there, it's been fun for me going there over the past five years.  I have a lot of good memories of the place, like getting to know my little Asian group of co-clubbers, dancing up a storm on my own or with complete strangers on many a night, making friends and meeting people, the Madonnathon last year, and meeting Domingo, too!

The place was very packed in last night, just like in the club's heyday.  There were so many people there that I almost yearned for a Saturday night like the ones I experienced there ever since XL opened last year.  It was too crowded to really have a great time.  Apparently, I wasn't the only one taking in the old place just one last time.  There wasn't much room on the dance floor, and it felt like a typical night at Splash just a couple of years ago.  The music was thumping with DJ's Steven Sidewalk and Hector Fonseca and the crowd, and the male dancers, were bumping and grinding right along.

My bartender was there, too.  I don't know why, but I can never remember his name.  I met him a few years back when he worked downstairs and he had his own crowd of customers, not because of his looks, but for his pleasant character.  As always, he greeted me with a fist bump and a smile and poured my drink without me even having to order it. What a truly nice guy, and with a good memory to boot!  I didn't get a chance to ask him, but I'm hoping he's going to XL with the rest of the Splash staff.

That's my bartender, the larger one towards 

the back.  I know it's not a very good picture, but hey!

Throughout the evening, I couldn't help but feel a little sad that this was all coming to an end.  It really is the end of an era in New York.  I still may try to get there just one more night this week. I'm afraid I'll be a few hundred miles away next Saturday when they have their final sendoff, which I'm sure will be way bigger than last night.  Who knows what's in store?  Weeknights are a different kind of fun, anyway, so for me I still want to spin around on that dance floor one more time.  I didn't really get to do that last night.

So here's a big thank you to Splash bar for giving me (and many others) a place to let loose a little and meet some nice people along the way!

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Frat House in P-Town Right Around the Corner

I haven't spoken about this on here before, but in just a couple of weeks I am going on a big trip.  I say "big trip" not because I'm going very far or because I'm spending so much time away from home, but it'll be a trip unlike anyone I've ever taken before.  You see, I'll be spending an entire week in Provincetown, Massachusetts in a house I'll be renting with six other guys.

It all starts with bowling, my new-found gay social life. The guys at bowling had been planning this from when I practically just joined the league and I was asked in on the trip probably somewhere in October.  "Sure, I've never been to P-Town," I said to my buddy Tim.  "Oh, that's gonna be fun!"

Oh my, how time flies!  Two weeks from tomorrow I'll be hitting the road again, only this time I'll be headed northward towards seven days of drinking and partying and drinking some more...and all in one of the biggest gay worlds around.  I almost feel like I'm going to be on the Gay Real World, Provincetown!

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The true story of seven strangers picked together to live in a house...

Well, we are kind of strangers.  I mean, well they've all known each other longer than I've known them, and they're all really nice guys, but it should be very interesting to see how it goes because we're all going to know each other a lot better after this week.  I've socialized with these guys here and there, but I really have no idea what to expect, but I am sure it will be fun.

I bring this all up now because last night we had our very first house meeting, to discuss some of the logistics of going up there.  You know, food, booze, coolers, and whatnot.  It was during the meeting that it hit me just how close it is.  After having it be so far on the horizon for so long, I never really thought about what it's going to be like.

"You better be blogging about it....I want blow by blows of all the action," my pal Dit tells me.

Apparently one of the things I wasn't aware of until our meeting was that each house (there are other people going, too, staying in other residences) has to host everyone one of the nights during the week.  That's cool, but the house party must have a theme.  Since we're the largest group of people in a place, we've been nicknamed the "Frat House," and so we were kicking around a party to go with that theme (hint, hint).

So be on the lookout for my Song of the Day tomorrow...it'll be dedicated to the boys of our Frat, lol.  In the meantime, I am heading to Splash in the city tonight.  They announced the other day that after 22 years of being one of the world's most famous gay clubs, they will be closing forever. So sad!  The end of an era!  You can check out my article on that here if you like.

Until tomorrow....


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Working It Out On My Own

This has been one rough week, and the last couple of days especially have thrown me into somewhat of a tailspin.  All sorts of problems have been plaguing me lately, and each of them wouldn't be so bad had they been happening by themselves, but when things like this come in bunches everything gets magnified and when this happens sometimes, I just go into meltdown.

Work, Work, Work

The bulk of my problems have to do with my job.  My role as an ESL teacher, Immigrant Liaison, social worker, tutor, etc., etc., etc. has grown so big that I've hardly got time to do the things I should be doing to teach, and the frustration has begun to hit me like a ton of bricks.  My days lately have been twelve hours minimum almost every day and the hour drive to and from work doesn't help.  Though for most people Wednesday is Hump Day, mine seems to be Friday lately and I see no end in sight.

Money, Money, Money

One of the reasons I am working so hard is because I need some paper.  Ever since I've been on my own for the last five years, it's been a struggle, to say the least, and even though I do all I can to make a little extra when I can, it never seems to be enough.   So when I'm tired and frustrated like I've been, thought of what I can't have and what I can't do occupy my mind.  Will I ever get to take a vacation again?  Will I ever be able to buy this or that?  Will I ever blah, blah, blah...

Problems Magnified

It would take a lot of words to mention all of the things that have been plaguing my mind over the past couple of days, and it serves no purpose to recount them all here.  I'm currently dealing with guy problems and family ones that have been wearing down on me, as well.  I'm not looking for a pity party, only a way to work through it and move on.  The way I've been feeling lately has had me find an escape: sleep.  The other night I went to bed at 8:30, which I haven't done in years.

Am I depressed?  I like to think not...just a temporary low brought on by my current situation.  I try to stay upbeat most of the time, but every so often when this happens I tend to shut down.

Shutting Down

When I get in the frame of mind that I find myself in right now, I tend to shut down a bit, cutting myself off from the world.  I don't like that I do it, but for whatever reason I do.  I don't answer phone calls or text messages, I don't post to Facebook, and for a long time I've tried not to write about it.  I skipped my school Christmas party yesterday and a night out with some friends, and even today I'm blowing off a friend because I just want to be alone.

I remember though, those dark days almost two years ago when that relationship ended I shut down like this for weeks.  Writing about it helped me think it through and so I hope this will work the same way, and hopefully this time it won't last that long.  I hate being this way!

Dance Therapy

Tonight I head into the city to dance.  I haven't given myself any dance therapy in awhile and I'm hoping that'll be just what the doctor ordered.  Hex Hector, one of my favorite deejays, is playing a set tonight at Splash and then I think I may head to The Ritz.  I hope it helps.

I want to apologize to all the people I've shut myself off from.  I hope you know that it's better for me that way, and I hope to be myself again soon!


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Writing Wednesday, April 11th, 2012

Wow, I can't believe it's Wednesday already!  It feels like it came quicker thann a usual Wednesday would, probably because I'm off from work.  I promised myself that I'd get out and see "Hunger Games" today (finally!), so I just wanted to put this out there before I go.  Since I missed last week, there's plenty of stuff to cover, so here we go...

A to Z Challenge

Anyone who follows this blog knows that I've been participating in the Blogging fro A to Z April 2012 Challenge.  I sort of participated in it last year, though it took me awhile to finish (way beyond April, lol).  This year I'm actually an official participant and so far I'm on target with the rest of my fellow bloggers.  I love the challenge because it forces me to reach into topics I wouldn't ordinarily write about, and I think that some of them are really pretty good.  Check out what I've written so far:

A is for Abs   ...I want em so bad!

B is for Boy Bands...The Wanted, One Direction...a reincarnation of the genre for the new decade?

C is for Cheese...I crave it!

D is for Dark Shadows...A horror soap opera resurrected for 2012.

E is for Easter Eggs...Egg-coloring fun at school.

F is for Friday Songs...TGIF, TGIF, TGIF...

G is for the Grove...Cherry Grove, that is!

H is for Happy...My latest poem.

I is for Ice Hotels...Cool!  I mean, cold!

Today will be a "J" day, but I'm still undecided!

Madonna News

Of course, now that "M.D.N.A." is in full swing, I've tried my best to keep up with news items I've found worthy of note:

Madonna earns 8th #1 album with "M.D.N.A."

"M.D.N.A." faces huge drop in sales in its second week 

Madonna's set list revealed

This one is fresh off of Perez Hilton's blog, with exciting news about some of the songs Madge will be performing on her upcoming tour.

More "M.D.N.A." Track Reviews


I finally made it all the way through the tracks on the new record.  I actually reworked them and put them all together in one place on Yahoo, but I'm still waiting for it to be published. (This is why I hardly write for them anymore!)  Take a look at my thoughts on the remainder of "M.D.N.A.", complete with audio:

Some Girls                                  Superstar

I Don't Give A...                         I'm a Sinner

Masterpiece                               Love Spent

Falling Free                               Beautiful Killer

I F**ked Up                            B-Day Song

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Music Tidbits


Here are some news items about the artists I follow:

The Wanted to appear on American Idol

Last week, my favorite "boy band" of the moment appeared on the AI elimination show.  The above post was an announcement of the performance, yet I haven't had the opportunity to share it here, until now...

A Letter from P!nk

P!nk is back, and she recently shared her excitement of what's to come in a personall letter to her fans.

P!nk goes pink on outing with hubby, baby

P!nk dyed her hair pink once again and shows it off in some cute pictures with hubby Carey and baby Willow.

Missy and Timbaland rock it out in NYC

Hip hop princess Missy Elliott is back and she made a surprise appearance in NYC last Thursday with her pal and collaborator Timbaland to preview a new song.

The Funny

In the past couple of weeks, I've shared a couple of funny items, too:

Shallow Thoughts for Today

Oh, I could've written these!

Another post-dentist high video goes viral

Does anyone remember the hysterical video of David after the dentist?  Well, it seems that these types of silly videos have become very popular among YouTube viewers and there's a brand new one of a North Carolina girl after getting her wisdom teeth pulled.  It's not as funny as David's video, but it is funny!

Coasters

Mr. Freeze in Reverse!

In a cool twist, Six Flags in both Arlington, TX and St. Louis, MO are changing up their "coolest coasters on the planet," Mr. Freeze to go backwards for the season.  I so wanna ride!

The Personal

When I first started writing regularly for this blog, most of my posts have been in the form of memoirs, and several people that I know follow me like these types of posts most of all.  Keeping that in mind, I continue to intersperse these within the blog.  Here are a couple from the past two weeks:

Aunt Barbara, Toots and Meatloaf

On March 28th, I went to an Aunt Barbara Tupperware party, which is always a good time, and next I had a reunion with one of my oldest friends, Marcia, who was up here from Florida for a visit.  The meatloaf?  Well, that was a lesson I taught in school that was awesome enough to talk about!  I also wrote a review piece on the Tupperware party for Examiner, which you can see here.

End of Splash Saturday; Easter; Photo Shoot Fun

This one I just posted yesterday.  I went to Splash last weekend and the resulting post is something that Ii just had to say about where that club seems to be going in comparison to the new XL.  Stay tuned for an Examiner piece once I visit the new place.

On Monday, my pal LK and I headed out east to take some pictures for my websites, of which I am still having trouble deciding to use.  Lots of samples in this post, hehe.

Restaurant Week

Finally, I penned an article just the other day on Long Island's 2nd Annual Spring Restaurant Week.  I just love this promo, as it allows you to check out some great eateries you wouldn't normally try because the $24.95 prix fixe menu is so nice.  Read on here.

Whew, that was a lot, huh?  I really need to stay on top of WW to avoid such in depth posts as this one.  If you're still reading by now, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.  I hope you enjoy at least some of the things I put out there.  I always try my best to find interesting things to share from among my many interests.  Writing Wednesday is a great way for you to muddle through my writings to check out what you like, so I hope you'll tune in at least once a week for that.

And remember, you can subscribe to a once-daily digest of John's World by entering your email address at the top right section of this page.  Thanks as always for reading and Happy Hump Day!  Now, it's off to see "The Hunger Games"...  

Image Sources:

As previously posted on John's World

Mr. Freeze: Coaster Gallery

Aunt Barbara: Facebook

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Sunday, March 18th, 2012: Back to the Personal; Splash Waning; Bowling

Happy Sunday! Today is going to be a beautiful day, with sunny skies and temps in the 60’s. It’s really amazing how weather can affect your mood. I would imagine that people who live in places where it doesn’t get cold, though, wouldn’t ever really experience this euphoria that comes with the change of seasons from winter to spring. It’s a feeling like no other! Now I’ve just got to put my head down, write what I’ve got to write and get out there to enjoy it!

Back to the Personal

As many of my regular readers may have noticed, the blog has changed in recent months from what it used to be. During this time I’ve gotten away from more of the personal side of my life and a little more into music tidbits, interesting items, and of course, my “Songs of the Day.” I know that most blogs should really focus on one specific thing in order to be really successful, but I can’t help it, I’m not a single-minded type of guy. I have many different interests and I like to spread myself around, so to speak.

With that said, I have tried to stay a little bit more away from the personal side of stuff, but I’ll not abandon it completely. I call this blog “John’s World,” because that’s exactly what it is: my world. I think that in their entirety my posts give people a sense of who I am as a person and who knows, maybe this will end up being my legacy.

So from time to time, like now, I’m still going to pen some personal memoirs…I know that there are some out there that enjoy reading my trials and tribulations, no matter how sappy or trivial. They’ve not stopped, so neither will my talking about them. It just won’t be as often as in the past…


The new XL nightclub is giving Splash a run for its money!

Splash Waning

For the first time in a long time, I went to Splash on a Saturday night. It was a last minute decision, because I went bowling last night and got a late start out of my house so I wasn’t sure whether or not I would make it by 12 (that’s when the price doubles!). I had originally wanted to go to the new XL, which I haven’t tried yet, but since I got out of my house late, I just opted for my usual standby. XL is undoubtedly the hot spot these days in NYC, and I can tell from both the photos they put on Facebook and the size of the crowds at Splash.

For the past several weeks, Splash has been undergoing a renovation, presumably to try and win back some of the clientele it has certainly lost to the newer and supposedly larger midtown nightclub. The place is somewhat of a mess, with the whole front section of the upstairs being reconstructed. The new bar there is in place and to me it doesn’t look too different from before???

Time will tell whether or not these renovations will make a difference, but for the time being things are definitely not the same. The crowds are much sparser than they once were and last night DJ John Marto was conspicuously absent from his downstairs gig, at least while I was there. It used to be that down there would get just as packed in as upstairs with people who prefer a more pop sound to their dance music, but there was no one dancing to the automated video/dance music.

Needless to say, Splash is still a city club and the place wasn’t empty by any means. The crowd was still much larger than a LI club, and the music was pretty good, too. Unfortunately I made the choice to run up to the Ritz around 1:30, but even that place was packing them in more-so than Splash, as there was a hefty line outside waiting to get in. I figured with such a line it would be way too crowded so I chose not to wait and opted to head home. I should have stayed where I was!

I think that next week is the time to try XL, finally. Stay tuned for that…


XL Nightclub, Facebook

Bowling

I’m not sure if I ever mentioned this before on here, but once a month I bowl in a league. It’s the first such time since I was a kid and I joined as a favor to my friend Reet, whose friend asked her to join. This particular one-Saturday-per-month league is called “Just Friends,” and it is not a serious league by any means. Many of the bowlers kind of stink, and up until recently it really hasn’t been that much fun….key words “until recently.”

The past two times we bowled were a lot of fun! I’m not sure if it’s the company, the beer, or a combination of the two, but I become absolutely giddy when I’m there. I like making jokes and playing around with people. Just last month there was this one lady who was what I like to call a “chucker.” That is, whenever she bowls, the ball flies in the air about half-way down the lane, crashing with a loud thud before moving on towards the pins. No matter how many times she went, every single time up she’d chuck that ball, which I found to be so funny, especially considering her, um, large stature.

Not that I am any better…My form when I bowl is much better than when I was younger, but still a little odd. As a kid, for some crazy reason whenever I bowled my left leg used to kick up high and to the side, lol. I don’t know why that was, but it was. I credit my childhood friend Marc’s dad for helping me rid myself of that embarrassing habit. I remember him on the last day of our league, going up with me every time it was my turn and forcing me to concentrate on not kicking my leg up. Unfortunately, in the years since, I’ve developed another irregular method of bowling: these days I stumble!

Yes, I don’t know if it’s because I take too many steps before I reach the foul line or whether I’m just too excited to be doing what I’m doing, but almost every time I throw the ball, I stumble. Sometimes I even fall forward, having to brace myself from falling completely down.

Last night we bowled against a really fun team, and it was finally somebody else’s turn to make fun of me. They were cheering for us and we were reciprocating, laughing the whole night long and having the best time ever. At the end of the night, one of the ladies came up to me and told me that I had such a “fun” method of bowling, that it was “unique and hysterical.” Well, I’ll never be a serious bowler, and so I guess my bowling style has to fit my giddy personality when I’m at the lanes.

By the way, our team began last night in third place overall. Not bad, huh? And we won two out of the three games we played and maybe next week we’ll inch a little closer to first. Ya never know!






Well that’s all she wrote, for now! Time to get out there and enjoy this beautiful gorgeous day…enjoy!

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The Wanted to Return to US for TV Appearances

First it was Emile Sande and now The Wanted...two great music artists out of the UK with limited track availability in the US. Frustrating!

Anyway, one of my new favorite sites, Idolator, is reporting that the British boy band, riding the wave of a top ten single, are returning to the US this spring for some television appearances beginning March 20th on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, followed on April 2nd on MTV Spring Break, April 24th on The Today Show, and April 25th on The View. (Click the title to read more.) The boys will also be doing several club appearances (more on that later!).



Ever since I first heard this song, all I've wanted is more from these five singing cuties, but other than this track, a live set and the single "All Time Low," they can't be found yet on iTunes. I'm hoping for their sophomore CD, "Battleground," to come out soon, but I still cannot find a release date. Grrrr!!!! In the meantime, here's a performance of "Glad You Came" at Splash, NYC:

The sun goes down, the stars come out...







Image Source: Homorazzi

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M.D.N.A.thon 2012- All Madonna, All Night at Splash NYC

Last night was one of the best nights ever as me, my pal Rich and a few hundred other fellow Madonna devotees took to the dance floor at Splash for the M.D.N.A.-thon 2012. It was the first time I’d ever seen, much less attended a Madonnathon, and it was completely awesome! The event was hosted by a group called Madonna's World and it could not have been any better.

All Madonna, All Night Long

Madonna is really the only artist for whom any bar could have such a night. Sure there are other artists that have enough material to fill an evening’s worth of music, but none with such a vast catalog of music in the dance genre. From early pure club smashes like “Everybody” and “Lucky Star” to more recent favorites such as “”Give It 2 Me,” “Hung Up,” and “Revolver,” Madonna’s got enough iconic and danceable songs to keep the floor full from opening until closing, and that’s just what happened at Splash last night.









A Packed House

Rich and I arrived at Splash around 10:45 and the place was packed in. Normally the club hosts an event called F-Word Fridays, which I’ve gone to and this was definitely way more crowded than any of those nights. The crowd was decidedly mixed, men and women, younger and older, black, white, Hispanic and Asian, and they all had one thing in common: a love for Madonna.

Deejay Susan Levine, who is the regular Saturday night spinner at Cherry’s on the Bay on Fire Island in the summer, was on hand to spin the best of Madge, old and new. Rich and I got drinks and headed out to watch the goings-on on the dance floor, which was full of people. “Borderline” was playing overhead and I had a smile on my face from ear to ear as I think this was the very first time I ever heard it in a club.

Soon Madonna’s debut single from 1982-3 came on, a bassy dance tune called “Everybody,” and my night of dancing had begun. I excused myself from my pal, who was not ready to jump on it just yet, to make my way to the dance floor.

I know you’ve been waiting
Yeah

There I was dancing, singing and smiling the whole time, and in another rarity, the people around me were doing the same thing and returning one another’s smiles, being friendly. I danced with several people to “Celebration,” “Get Together,” “Fever,” and more before Rich finally joined in on “Express Yourself.” It was an absolute blast, and we literally danced our asses off!

So for any club owners out there who are looking to do something different, host a special night and attract a lot of people to it, I highly recommend having a Madonnathon. I promise you will attract a crowd that will be mixed and friendly. As for myself, I’m going to keep an eye out for more of these…

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Sunday, January 15th, 2012 - Return to Splash/Ritz; Two B'day Celebrations; Writing

Brrrr!!! It is absolutely freezing outside today. Fortunately, there’s no precipitation in the forecast, so it looks like we will continue our winter of no snow, at least for now. And they say this bitter cold, with temps in the teens, will subside in a day or so. Thank goodness for that!



Splash/Ritz Saturday

For the first time in awhile I returned to Splash and the Ritz last night. With the holidays falling on Saturday nights this year and me realizing that staying home equals saving money, I’ve stayed away from the city for about a month, and it was nice to get back yesterday.

All in all it was a good night. I can’t remember who the deejay was, and I can’t for the life of me find any of the flyers I saw for it online, but he was good! I worked up a sweat pretty quickly before heading off to Ritz like I usually do, only the Ritz was not fun last night. As it happens sometimes, the crowds in the small place get way too big to have any fun and I didn’t last very long. Moving five feet forward in the place took a myriad of maneuvers and way too much time. Oh well, that’s the gamble of going there!


Me and the birthday girl from last summer

Two B’day Celebrations on Tap

Even though I wish I could just stay inside on this very cold day, I cannot. I’ve got two birthday celebrations to attend to today, one for my pal Vera’s daughter Bella and the other for me. Even though I detest kid’s birthday parties, Vera is like family to me and so I will venture out for her, and then afterwards my pal Laura Kim is taking me out for my much belated birthday dinner, something we do together for our special days. We’re heading to Perabell’s in Patchogue and I am very much looking forward to that!



Writing, sigh!

Though I’d really love to get writing today, there is little time for it. I’m going to give a try penning at least one thing before the day’s festivities begin in a couple of hours. I’m just not sure which to do, a blog post, an Examiner piece or a Yahoo one. I’ve got stuff planned for all three, I just need to decide which to tackle first! Have a great Sunday and thanks for checking in! Stay warm, too!

Image Source: allanstanglin

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November 27th, 2011 - A Nice Start to Birthday Week

Last night I met the man of my dreams! He’s tall, dark and handsome. He’s intelligent, sweet and he loves music. Oh, and he’s a journalist, too. His name is Vin and I met him at Splash last night. Between that club and the Ritz, he and I had a blast dancing all night long, literally closing the latter club before heading out to Dunkin Donuts for a bit of coffee to cap off the night. What a great way to start my birthday celebration, huh? Well, not so fast. You see Vin, or Vinicius, is from Brazil, and he’s just here on vacation.



That’s funny, right? I mean, I go out week after week hoping to meet a guy that I could hang with for awhile and here we are, the one night I do he not only doesn’t live near me, he lives in a whole other hemisphere! It’s okay, though. Vinicius is a real sweetheart, and I could tell almost immediately that he was a genuinely good guy. We met outside while having a cigarette, which is something I hardly ever do when I go to Splash.

While standing outside, I got into a conversation with another dude I always see there whom I’d never spoken to before. Vinicius was standing right there and got in on our conversation. After all cigarettes were done, we all headed back inside and parted ways, but I kept running into Vin seemingly everywhere and eventually we restarted our conversation. He has the same exact taste in music as I do and we danced a bit before I suggested heading on to The Ritz. Since he’s staying in Westchester, he had to catch a 5AM train at Grand Central and I told him that I could drive him there afterwards.


Source: clubfly

The Ritz was rocking as always, but the music was sooo good that we danced straight through to last call. We went upstairs and downstairs and mixed and mingled with strangers on the dance floor. It was literally a blast! Since I knew from when I met him that there was no way I’d even try to get romantic with him, I approached the night as if we were just good friends, which wasn’t hard. Vinicius is one of those people that is just so easy to get along with. Oh, and he loves my new favorite song, “Dog Days Are Over,” by Florence & The Machine, too! Cool!

I have to say the whole night was a lot of fun, and now I have yet another friend who lives in South America. Since we couldn’t find his Facebook page on my iPhone, we exchanged emails so that we can stay in contact. Vinicius is going home on Tuesday and he wanted to go out again tonight, so I steered him towards Greenhouse. I wish I could have gone, but the mini-vaca is over.

Vin already invited me to come stay with him in Sao Paolo. I've never been to Brazil before. Now that could be fun!


Sao Paolo, Brazil
Source: fernandavanderlaan

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November 6, 2011 - Reunion with an old bestie; Splash Saturdays, Ritz and Ultimate Frustration

Source: comments 18

Today is Sunday, November 6th, and we have another day of beautiful weather out there. Today’s the first day of Standard Time, which means that we set the clocks back last night one hour and now it’ll be getting dark much earlier. Yup, we’re into the short, gloomy days of winter ahead, which to me is one of the worst things about this time of year. Oh well, at least we all got an extra hour of sleep last night, right?

Reunion with an old bestie

Last night I had a reunion with an old, old friend of mine. Bessie and I used to work together in Citibank and we’ve been through a lot together. Aside from working in the trenches together at the bank for a number of years, we’ve been in touch on and off for twenty years now. I deejayed her wedding, I’ve been to the christenings of her three beautiful children, and she and I never lose a step in our conversations whenever we talk.

Bess lives in eastern Queens and since I was going to be passing where she lives on my way to Splash, I came up with the idea of hanging with her a bit beforehand, which she was down for. I hadn’t seen her in at least three years, nor talked to her in months, but she and I often interact on Facebook (which is one of the things I love about the site!). Anyway, I surprisingly remembered how to get to her house and by 9:15 we were shooting the breeze just like old times.

She and I spent the next two hours chatting and we probably could have gone another three or four. That’s what makes a good friend, you know, a person with whom you can just pick up where you left off no matter how long it’s been, and without losing a step. It was really great to reconnect with her and I think now we’ve found a new way to keep connected. I’ll see ya soon Bess!

Splash Saturdays, the Ritz, and Ultimate Frustration

After leaving Bessie’s house, I ran down to Splash. It was so nice to have only a 20-minute drive for a change…it makes me yearn to move to the city even more. I beat the midnight cover charge by about ten minutes (Bessie and I have always had a hard time leaving one another’s company, lol). The crowd at the bar was a typical Saturday evening one, and world-famous deejay Hex Hector was spinning. Last time Hector played at Splash the music was awesome. Not so much last night, and I hardly danced. Since there was an extra hour I figured I’d try my luck at Ritz.

Ritz was its usual crowded self, with wall to wall people, but it wasn’t as crowded as it has been, so there was actually room to dance. Within minutes of hitting the floor this dude Jeremiah came up to dance with me and I ended up hanging out with him the rest of the night. He’s from Rockland County, NY, which is like a three hours drive from here, and that’s just my typical luck.

Jeremiah and I ended up in my car somehow, chit chatting until the wee hours. During that time, something really bad happened: my iPod disappeared. I kind of remember it happening…I had tucked it under the seat earlier when I had parked and I recall tugging on the wire to pull it out from under there and feeling it dislodge from the wire. After Jeremiah left I sat there for what seemed like an eternity looking for it. After about a half an hour of searching the underbelly of the car, and with the clock ticking towards 5AM, I finally gave up and rode home in silence, worried about the missing iPod.

My iPod is my life! As you all may very well know from reading this blog and my other stuff, you know that music is one of the things that’s most important to me and it’s the one thing I cannot do without. The damned space beneath the seat in my car is so tiny…my hand can barely fit to feel around under there,, but as soon as I finish this post I’m heading back out there where hopefully daylight will let me find it. Wish me luck…

Well, that’s all she wrote! I plan to be back here later with second Sunday post, so look for that. In the meantime, enjoy this beautiful November day!

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October 23rd, 2011 - A long, fun night at Splash

Happy Sunday everyone! Even though I despise Sunday evening (it comes way too quickly!), I love Sunday mornings. A nice breakfast, the Sunday paper, and a day ahead full of promise! I got off to a late start this morning, but for good reason. Last night was Dougie Meyer’s birthday celebration at Splash and I had one of the best times ever…



Dougie Meyer’s Birthday

“Who is Dougie Meyer?”, you may ask. Well, I don’t know him personally, but he’s one of the main promoters at Splash and from what I can see on Facebook, he’s a pretty cool and popular guy. Anyway, yesterday was his 30th birthday and Splash pulled out all the stops to make it a big celebration. For the first time ever since I’ve been going there, I felt as if I was at the fictitious Club Babylon from “Queer as Folk.” The place was bedecked in balloons galore and special lighting effects and it was jam packed.


Source: L.C. Chase

I had gone with my friend Paul, who I occasionally take with me when I go to the club. Anyway, I was supposed to pick him up at 9:30, but things went awry a little before that and for awhile there I thought the night was doomed from the start.


Source: China Whisper

A Saturday Night Traffic Jam

I actually left my house on time, in plenty of time to be at Paul’s house by 9:30, but then it happened. I had only been about five miles from home when I suddenly saw a sea of red lights ahead of me. I slowed down at first, but soon came to a dead stop. It was one of those traffic jams that are a nightmare. For the better part of an hour I inched forward ever so slowly as I was stuck in between exits and could do nothing but wait it out.

I texted Paul to say I was going to be late, and then I turned to my phone out of boredom. To make that excruciating time go by I started writing song lyrics to my status on Facebook out of not knowing what else to do. I was listening to Lily Allen and posted this:

“Get out of my face, just leave me alone, and no you can’t have my number, cause I lost my phone.”

Hehe, my friend Jorge had been online and he mistook it for something entirely different. He asked what was wrong. Well, I literally laughed out loud and in my temporary insanity I started furiously writing more one-liners from songs. I quoted Madonna and Britney, Michael Jackson and even “Ricky Don’t Lose That Number.” I was very giddy from that, and thank goodness because it took my mind off of standing still for so long.

More Bad Signs

I finally got to Paul’s around 10:30, an hour after I was supposed to pick him up. It didn’t take long for something else to go wrong, as Paul realized he had forgotten something after we had already been on the road about five minutes. We had to go back to his house and by the time we were finally headed to Splash, about 45 minutes to an hour away, it was already 10:45. It wouldn’t be so bad, except that midnight is the witching hour at the club, when the admission doubles from $10 to $20, and neither one of us wanted to pay 20 bucks to get in.

I drove as quickly as I could, and luckily there wasn’t too much traffic until we hit the city, of course. Those damned taxicabs! I like to think of them as cockroaches, infesting the city streets and blocking people’s way at seemingly every turn. The cabs were all over the place last night, and there were a couple of close calls between the Midtown Tunnel and the club.

Then there was the parking. Usually I have no trouble finding a space, either on the same block as Splash or the next one up, but of course with the clock ticking, a space became really hard to find. I dropped Paul off in front of the club and I drove on, eventually finding a spot a long ways away. A couple of minutes later I almost had yet a third fall walking from the car down to Splash as I inadvertently stepped on a plastic bag and slipped. I pirouetted not to fall, much to the amusement of passersby, but I did not fall, thankfully and took it as a reminder to watch where I stepped.

I would’ve thought that all of these things were a bad omen of how the night was going to go, but in fact just the opposite happened.


Source: anything beautiful

Splash Saturday

As I said earlier, Splash was hopping last night and I was feeling it. I thought I looked good in my gray Hugo Boss slacks and black t-shirt and so my confidence was flying high. Though Paul and I usually go our separate ways when we hit the club, we stuck together a lot last night. There was a guest deejay who played the kind of house music that I like, with frequent hard-driving dance sequences in between short lulls, for catching breaths, lol.

We danced and flitted about, separating here and there, but at the one time when I needed him most, Mr. Paul couldn’t help me like he was supposed to. Oh, he tried, but eventually gave up on trying to save me from this dude who I’d danced with a few weeks back.

The guy was tall, about 6’3”, and Brazilian from what I remember. Paul and I had been dancing downstairs and the dude had been right near us. He immediately came up behind me and started to grope. At first I was just dancing with him, but then he whispered in my ear that he had come to Splash just to look for me. I only smiled and kept dancing and then he became a little forceful, grabbing my shoulders and trying to kiss my neck. I looked to Paul, who took my queue and came right up on me to ward off the fiery Brazilian. After getting no reaction from the guy, and them some attention from another dude, Paul left me to my own devices and that’s when the guy started to try and bite me on my neck. Yes, I said bite! I had to take matters into my own hands and pushed him off of me, giving him a big, loud “NO”, and went back upstairs alone.

Paul

Paul and I have had an up and down relationship since we first met sometime last year. He’s a lot younger than me, and he reminds me of me when I was his age, only maybe I was a little more tame. At first, I wasn’t so sure if he’d be around for any length of time in my life, but the more I hang out with him, the more I like him. He’s definitely a party dude and can get a little off the wall sometimes, especially for someone my age, but he’s got a good head on his shoulders that I think many people don’t see and for whatever reason we get along really well.

It’s funny, but I’ve kind of become a watchful guardian of his when we go out, keeping an eye on him from afar to make sure no trouble comes his way, and other times all I can really do is let him do his own thing, which is cool by me. It’s not often I have a friend to go clubbing with like that, someone who I can go with and do my own thing, yet have there when I need it. So to him I say thanks for the fun last night and let’s do it again soon! You’re cool and fun no matter what people say about you, lol. (Joking, of course!)

Well that’s all she wrote for this Sunday. It’s a little chilly outside, but I’m heading out there to get some much-needed things done, then heading to mom's for some of her delicious beef stew. Yum! Enjoy everyone!

Here's a clip of that Lily Allen song I quoted last night. It's called "Friday Night" and it's great stuff!





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