Done.

I finished my fast. And lost 16 pounds, feel great, and I'm slowly beginning to eat solid foods again. Awesome!

If anything is worth doing, do it with all your heart.
-The Buddha

Fuerzabruta!

fuer • za • bru • ta
\ f'where - zah - broo - tah \
1: brute force 2: the new show from the creators of DE LA GUARDA 3: a 360° heart-pounding theatrical experience

Here's the e-mail I sent out to my network before ever even seeing the show (Dated Friday October 12th 2007):

Hey Folks,

Recently I was told that the producers of De La Guarda (www.delaguarda.com) were opening a new show in NY (thanks Hollis). With a bit of clicking and Googling I found Fuerzabruta! the newest production from the makers of the aforementioned De La Guarda. Many of you on this haphazardly assembled electronic mail list know me fairly well. That means you know I am a passionate person,especially when it comes to things i like to do/see/hear/enjoy. Well, I've yet to see Fuerzabruta! but I am giving it my 100% recommendation. If it means you have to take a weekend and travel to NYC exclusively to see this show do it. It will be worth every scent. I was lucky enough to see De La Guarda twice before it closed 4ish years ago. The show blew my mind, and the mind of every single person I took to see it. I could sit here and describe the show to you for pages and pages of text and you would still have not a single clue what to expect upon entering. With Fuerzabruta! I expect the same, if not better (as time ages the best things in the world). Expect a dance party, expect a mind altering theatrical experience, expect water, sex, tears, beats, rhythm, strobes, and confetti... better yet, enter expecting nothing. Just call me when those doors open onto Union Square and tell me how you feel.

The show runs 18 weeks only (when they say limited engagement they mean it). Tickets run $35 dollars before Oct24th and $70 dollars following. Rush tickets are available the day of performances for $25 dollars (line up early folks).

www.fuerzabruta.net


Forward this to people who care, and I'll see each and every one of you in Union Square.

Cheers,
Joe

Now having seen the show, and planning to see it again, I agree with Joe from the past. Fuerzabruta will blow your mind. Blown. You will dance, and you will feel emotions never before felt from a theatrical experience. I've been a Broadway fanatic since I was 15 years old, and Broadway's got nothin' on Union Square right now. If you have $25 US dollars, go wait in line and enjoy yourself. You won't be disappointed, that I guarantee. But don't go in there expecting Phantom of the Opera either, give me a break, and be primed to dance and explode.

I know you wanna see the trailer, well who am I to deny?

Rush tickets go on sale two hours before curtain time, line up early folks. Real tickets cost $70 US dollars and are available here: telecharge.com

This is a VERY limited engagement that will end in June of 08.

Find out more about Fuerzabruta! here: fuerzabruta.net

Find out more about De La Guarda here: delaguarda.com

Link for tickets (again) here: telecharge.com

Attention Boston Friends: King Britt

King Britt is a sick ass DJ who spins crazy ambient? dance? electronica? hip-hop? (I guess) African/African-American/jazz/ninasimone/awesome music. He's Playing at The Estate this Friday. Go. I might come up for it (doubtful) but I really wish I could.

More information on The Estate here: theestateboston.com
Give King Britt a listen here: myspace.com/kingbritt

AND HE'S PLAYING IN NY ON MY BIRTHDAY! (more to come on this event)

Sex and the City Trailer!

Whatever, I'm a homo, and you are too. And we all love Carrie, regardless of sexual orientation.

Wall.E

Below you'll find the trailer for the newest Disney/Pixar collabo (Toy Story, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, A Bugs Life), Wall.E. Due out in Summer of 2008. I can't wait.


Find out more about Wall.E here: Wall.E

Max Fish

Ahhhh, now here's a nightspot I can get along with. A funky fresh facade leads to a colorful and friendly atmosphere. Pirates of The Caribbean pinball, $4.50 (US dollar) vodka tonics, and enough hipsters to keep even brooklynvegan happy. I think I'm in Love. There's also a Shi Tzu and a Pitbull to greet you, and I'm pretty sure they live at the bar (sick huh?). Go to Max Fish (but only when Bulgaria is closed).

Max Fish is located at 178 Ludlow Street btw Houston and Stanton
Check out their website here: maxfish.com (it might not work)

(photo credit: Lauren Klain Carton and NYMag.com)

I'm also more than half done with my fast! Sick huh?

Cafe Wha? Wha-tever

Let me begin by saying I'm sorry. I'm sure Cafe Wha? means a lot to a lot of people, but I'll go right ahead and say it's one of the lamest night spots I've ever been to. Cafe Wha? comes off like it should be the chillest nightspot ever. A darkened basement, a fun funky live band, a history that could make Carnegie Hall blush (Hendrix, Dylan, Springsteen, Crosby, Prior, Velvet Underground to name a few have all graced it's darkened stage), plenty of dancing, and plenty of libations.

So you might be asking yourself "what seems to be the problem, joe?" well, let me fucking tell you. First we arrive and we're meeting people, the hostess is bouncing her twaty breasts to keep herself warm although I doubt she was anything less than cold-blooded. We let her know were meeting people and she says: "Ok go find them." OK. I then spy a sign on the door that reads "No unaccompanied gentlemen. Find a date." Now I'm sure this sign is 35 years old but fuck that! Fine, so we walk in and there's a lot going on. Dancing, band, servers, chaos. Were looking for our friends, obviously it's a mess. And we stop for a moment before the twaty hostess strikes again. KEEP MOVING. As if we were school children. Uh, OK, perhaps seat us? Lunatic? It is your fucking job. No big deal.

We're seated. Our server comes over and speaks to me about a two drink minimum. Now, I'm fasting so I make is clear that I'm not drinking. SORRY. Any other night I'll run a tab that will make P. Diddy blush (do black people blush?) but not tonight sorry Charlie. He "politely" explains that it's not optional, even for people fasting. I say Kristen will drink our minimum and he mumbles something about her not going to drink 6 drinks. Give me a break.

Our group is reunited before long. And the alcoholic bunch that we are, the minimum is drank almost instantly.


Now the time of the night comes for a smoke break. And we dash left and right to get to the door to find a bouncer blocking the door. He collects hall passes to smoke. "I'm sorry, you can't go outside. Find your server and get a pass" PERMISSION TO SMOKE PLEASE SIR? What the fuck? Can you imagine? I'm like "how about I light this smoke right here and you throw me out, and I never, ever come back."

So we send Alex back through the treacherous crowd to hunt down our server who gives him a pass. For 1. There are three of us trying to smoke. "I'm sorry, you can't go outside. You should have told your server it was for three." Well thanks for letting us know, it's only your full-time job.

Hello? Am I the only one who thinks this is utter Nazi lunacy? So Alex goes back through the crowd (what a guy) and secures us two more passes. All in all 20 minutes waiting to smoke a 45 second cigarette.

So the band keeps playing and everyone seems to be having a fun time despite the Nazi Lunacy. We decide a few hours later to move on.

Now, if you want to exit Cafe Wha? you need a receipt with a hand stamp from your server also to be presented to douche bag bouncer I-only-enforce-the-rules-never-question-the-lunacy-of-the-rules guy. Again, another 20 minutes wasted trying to exit the damn basement just to smoke a fucking cigarette and drink my damn lemonade sustenance. Is this legal?

Hey Cafe Wha? staff I have an idea. How about holding a fucking credit card and a fucking ID like every other drinking establishment in the world? I guarantee you'll get every tab paid AND you can fire that douche bag bouncer. And we can smoke, without seeking permission.

All in all, Cafe Wha? like so many other examples of NYC culture is gone. I'm sure these rules weren't in place when Bob Dylan was playing 35 years ago. And I'm also sure that every once of spirit that attracted these musicians to this night spot is also gone. It's a shame really. I won't be going back. I don't care how good the music was.

TWO DRINK MINIMUM: EVEN FOR PIOUS MUSLIMS
TWO DRINK MINIMUM: ESPECIALLY FOR PREGNANT WOMEN
TWO DRINK MINIMUM: EVEN FOR JESUS CHRIST
TWO DRINK MINIMUM: EVEN FOR ORTHODOX JEWS
TWO DRINK MINIMUM: EVEN FOR PRIESTS, NUNS, AND OTHER MEN AND WOMEN OF THE CLOTH
TWO DRINK MINIMUM: EVEN FOR RECOVERING ALCOHOLICS


(Photo credit: wikipedia.org)