COMEDY CAMP WEEK 8 (WITH DANE COOK!)

Saturday at Comedy Camp, was a very awesome day. I didn't do the GREATEST since I was a tad nervous of the fact that DANE COOK was there. But I learned so much from that day...

I am so so incredibly happy that DC finally made it to the party. He was such a sweet guy, very down to earth and he helped us out A LOT. I'd be less nervous if he wasn't there, BUT... He gave me the most wonderful advice I could ever get.

When I was still on stage, he seemed to have really liked me. He said that I have what it takes to be a comedian, but then he also said I have to BELIEVE in what I'm writing. My nervousness might've screwed my performance up a bit, but I completely appreciated his honesty.

During lunch-time, I spoke to him again. I told him that it was an honor to have one of the very best comedians ever, be there for us. Then he looked me in the eyes and told me that I have a dark side to my sense of humor. There was a word that reminded him of me and I wish I could remember it...

But I'm still so surprised by what he said. He is such an intellectual person. So smart, that he figured out my personality just by hearing my voice and that's truly amazing. Normally, when people talk to me, they're distracted by my clothes, or my hair, but he looked me in the eyes!







My mom took some photos of us on stage and later, after we all ate, we took some all together and had another conversation with him. He sounds just like how he does on stage. Same personality, same person... He's just himself and I admire him for that. He's a great conversationalist, very approachable and so it felt so natural talking to him.



Now, I am re-writing ALL of my jokes so that I don't sound so scripted and my personality will be able to break through. I think that will also give me more confidence when I am performing.

But I'm getting rather nervous for next Tuesday since it's our "Graduation" in which we have to perform for... Dane said it's going to be a full house and since I screwed up a bit this time due to my nervousness, I'm scared it'll happen again. I shouldn't be nervous, but when I go up that night, there will be so many more people watching me. I guess I'll just have to practice my stuff and do my best...

I hope I can do this.

COMEDY CAMP WEEKS 6 & 7

Saturday, August 18th, was my sixth(?) week at Comedy Camp. I didn't post about it last week l, so I will compare then to my most recent performance.

So first, let's talk about last week.

It was okay. I didn't do well due to lack of sleep, but it was okay. I let my exhaustion take over my performance which left me spacing out and almost forgetting what I had written! Also, that was a pretty slow day and so Jamie (Masada) called this a "practice round". There's not too much to say about this one.



However, this week as so much better... With plenty of rest, my jokes remembered, and some confidence, we headed down to the Laugh Factory. Before anyone went up, Marinzio Vance, the guest comedian from this week and the week before, gave out notebooks he bought to the kids who didn't have one. That was sooo sooo sweet of him to do, since some of the kids in this camp may not be able to get one.

This time, I sat real close to the stage so I wouldn't have any trouble getting up there. When my name was called, I went up, but before I grabbed the mic I took my jacket off and placed it on the bar stool. When he was giving me feedback, Maronzio explained the move as looking like "you were gonna kick someones @$$"! But I have an actual reason for taking it off... The jacket is almost like a security blanket for me. I feel safe in it. So for this performance, I took it off to "challenge" myself a bit. And also, it's very cold in there so THAT woke me up!

I asked him if there was anything I needed to work on or improve on and he seemed to be a bit surprised by that question and even considered me brave for asking it. I don't really think it's really all that brave, though... I just want constructive criticism so that I can learn from the mistakes I may making. He said that I should build on to my jokes more with some more details.

So with THIS performance compared to the LAST one, I have definitely improved. I hope that next week will be good and that Dane Cook comes back! I even have a special joke for him. :)

SSMF 2012!

Saturday was the third and final day of the Sunset Strip Music Festival. Since we went last year, we went again to follow our new tradition.

We got there around 3:40. Welcomed by the hot, burning sun we tried to walk around but we were practically baking in the sun. So we went inside the Roxy to cool down just as Matt Skiba had just finished. A band called Wallpaper went up and their awesome drum beat got the crowd dancing. Well, except for the ones who just came in, panting and fanning themselves off.

We ventured outside again, and we saw someone that seemed rather familiar. My mom knew him from Tommy Hilfiger ads and MTV (as a VJ). We looked him up and he turned out to be Simon Rex also known as "Dirt Nasty". We WERE going to ask for a photo with him, but instead he called us over. (I guess we look interesting...?) We talked with him a bit and took our photo with him.



We turned around and spotted Shifty Shellshock from Crazy Town. (You know... "Come my lady... Come, come my lady... You're my butterfly... Sugar, baby...") We met him before, so it was nice to see him again.

Bad Religion's show was next. Since they're pretty popular around here, I expected them to put on a great performance. But unfortunately, I didn't get to see the whole thing.

And the dudes in The Offspring were pretty fly for white guys, hahaha... They did pretty well. There was a better mood in the atmosphere, although as people were singing along, they were all yawning, exhausted from the heat.

We chilled out in a tattoo shop till we heard eerie, dark music shake the windows. Again, we headed outside REALLY excited for Manson! With my mother close by, I squeezed in to put my foot on a railing. Eventually, the big black curtain dropped to unveil the stage, making people from all over the festival come rushing in.

Right as Manson pulled out a knife, I attempted to stand on the railing to see him, but the girls I was in between kept pushing me away, calling me names and bragging about how long they've been waiting. (I wanted to say, oh yeah? You've waited for five hours?! I waited for SEVEN!) I tried again, and again, and when I could finally see him, their shoulders pinned me. One pushing into my sternum, and the other in my spine. There was no other thought in my mind other than the fact that I was suffocating. It was so scary... My vision blurred, and I couldn't breathe. With all the strength that I had at the moment, I forced myself free and fell into my mom's arms, hyperventilating and gasping for air. She screamed at them saying that I was only a child.

She dragged me back into the tattoo shop and I was a complete mess. Crying, almost falling to the ground... I felt so weak with my legs shaking violently under me. She guided me to the couch and I laid back, drinking water and wiping my tears with the tissue one of the people that worked there gave me. That moment was absolutely terrifying. I'm unsure about how long the scene lasted, but it seemed so long... I felt like I was going to suffocate to death.

Later, my attention gravitated towards the window. Even though I wasn't outside didn't mean I couldn't enjoy the show. So I slowly walked closer to get a better view but instead, saw the depressing darkness of the stage. Just as I thought the show was over, my face perked up as I heard the VERRRRY familiar sound of an organ. Then of a guitar... Soon, the lights shined upon not only Marilyn Manson, but the remaining Doors, Ray Manzarek and Robby Kreiger.



When they started playing "People Are Strange", the tears returned and my legs began to shake again. This time, I was happy. I've been a Doors fan for a few years and I remember that when I visited LA, they were the soundtrack for that week-and-a-half. I was obsessed with them, visiting the places they went to and walking on the same ground as them. After the visit, I read every book I could find on them, and got all their albums... I've found so much acceptance and freedom here, in LA and The Doors represent my journey here. They mean so much to me... I never in my life would have ever thought that I would get the honor to see them on stage, and there they were.





Manson was amazing. He immediately became possessed with Morrison's spirit. Every lyric, every move... Even the facial expressions! You could just feel his spirit all around... The performance was so powerful... It was almost as if Jim was on stage himself.

They only did two other songs together, "Love Me Two Times" and "Five To One", but the experience was so amazing. At the end, he picked up Robby as he hugged him, and Ray propped his foot up on his organ. They all looked so happy together. Instead of Bono or John Travolta (they actually considered him for Jim's role in the band!), they should have Morrison--AHEM! I mean--Manson play with them more. He's truly amazing...





BUT THE SHOW WAS NOT OVER!

The stage returned to darkness and lit up to a podium. On the podium, there were several microphones which he knocked over to show expression for "Antichrist Superstar", the song he was performing. Then out came a book that he ripped pages from, throwing them and eating them. He then threw it into the mosh-pit making the fans go crazy.



He didn't really announce WHEN he was done, he just kinda... Left. But the show was so moving with the Doors, and amazing and spectacular with Manson. Personally, in my opinion, SSMF last year was so much better. Not just because the weather was nicer, but because the bands, Crüe, Bush and Public Enemy, brought good vibes and energy to their performances. But I enjoyed my time there. The whole thing was hot and tiring until Manson went on, and he just made the whole thing better. However, I wish that he would've done "The End" with Ray and Robby...

Anyway, we had fun, this year was quite an experience, and I hope they get bands in next year of even more diverse genres and performances. Actually, they should let people vote on who they would like to play there...

I can hardly wait for next year to see who plays! And I hope that global warming stops... :(

Comedy Camp

AHH! I THOUGHT I HAD POSTED THIS EARLIER!!

LAAAST SATURDAY....

Was a very good day, except for that awful feeling in my gut. I don't know what's up with me, but I guess I just had that feeling automatically? I'm not sure. I wasn't really nervous. Although, like I said in the other post, I don't feel nervous mentally, anymore. I just feel it physically...

I'll look that up later, how to get rid of bad gut feelings, but let's get back to the story!

Jamie Masada, the owner of the Laugh Factory, walked by and noticed that I had very little food on my plate during lunch and he said that I could get more. But when I get stressed, in any way, I tend to have a hard time eating. I explained that to him and he didn't understand how I could be nervous and I didn't either! :) He said he would try to get me on stage as soon as possible.

When my name was called, I got up there very, very quickly so that I wouldn't have time to think about it. I went through the two jokes I already had memorized and then I began the new one. This is what I was scared about: forgetting what to say. I had written the joke the night before, very last minute (due to a busy week), and I was tired from rehearsing it so late that night.

Well, thank GOD I remembered it. And I did it better than all the times I rehearsed it! I got even better reviews this week... Speaking of, for the fourth week, we had three guest comedians this time: Tony Rock, Moranzio Vanze and Alex Scott from last week!

After the their comments, I thanked Mr. Masada for the program I was participating in. I am truly grateful for being in that camp. So grateful...

Before I joined, I was so scared and had very low self esteem. Back when I was only in elementary school, the "popular" girls would make me sing and dance so they could throw things at me and insult me. My self esteem and confidence got so bad that I couldn't even audition for the school Christmas show without my throat locking up to the point where I couldn't even speak with tears streaming down my cheeks. And that memory of them stuck with me up until my freshman year of high school!

Now, I feel so much better. I can proudly throw away all those bad things that those girls said to me back then. I've learned so much with being on stage only four times and I will forever treasure those lessons because they have changed my life.

When I thanked him, up there, I almost cried. This program means so much to me and I cannot thank him enough.

Wish me luck next week! Or... Tomorrow! I am feeling more excited about this than scared. ^__^

National Chick-Fil-A Day

So today, the first day of August, which supposedly was "Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day". To "celebrate", my mother and I, amongst a few others joined together to protest in front of the restaurant.

At first there were only a quiet few, but as time went on, some more people chipped in and chanted with us. We stood tall and proud with our signs and flag as we screamed in joy to the people honking their horns as they passed by. But unfortunately, the reactions we got weren't all positive.

CFA's customers began to yell at us and tease us because of what we were doing. One woman held out her Chick-Fil-A cup to my mother and said, "Hey! You want some water?!", trying to get her to hold the cup. Some kids, younger than me were yelling something like, "Eat more chicken, not rainbows!"

And that's not all! The protest ended with some nasty, dirty, man who was missing teeth trying to start a fight with one of us. His tone was very insulting with his rude homophobic remarks. We tried to get rid of him, but when he spit on my mom, I lost it. I shouted and screamed at him and he spit on me as well.

I started to cry my face off. At that moment I felt so powerless. The people who we were protesting with helped calm me down with hugs and saying nice things. But it's not the fact that I was spit on that makes me upset, it's how much hatred people can carry in their hearts against innocent people.

All we were doing, was fighting for what's right and what is fair. Chick-Fil-A is not about the food anymore. People aren't eating there because of that at all. Now, it's just become some ignorant symbol against the GLBT community. What really sickens me is that their customers KNOW that. They know where their money is going to, and it's just so wrong... Even the cops were "teaming up" with their customers! They threatened to arrest the one protester who was just defending himself verbally against the rude people.

What also bothers me is seeing on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc., how many people showed up there only to have pride in "standing up for what's right". So many people... Who knows how much money they made, I'm scared to death on what the results would be.

With what happened tonight I feel pride in my heart. Being part of something like this has made me feel stronger. Not only do I believe with all my heart, mind and soul that their needs to be equality, but I KNOW for a FACT that it needs to happen. It's the right thing.

It sucks how history repeats itself with fighting for what is fair and right, but I hope on Friday, when we'll protest again, that something will happen.

I am so happy to be a part of something so supportive...