Jason Mraz Concert

After spending a lovely day in one of the coolest cities (literally, it was freezing) ever, the countdown to the concert began.  After arriving at the venue, (the beautiful antiquated Fillmore Auditorium) we found to our dismay that even though we had arrived early-two hours early- it wasn't good enough.  It seems early bird Mraz fans had already been braving the Northern California cold long before we had even arrived to the city.  The line stretched down not one, not two, but THREE blocks of the neighborhood before rounding the corner of a Taco Bell.  

Parked outside the streets were also three or four  of these eco-friendly tour buses.  Mraz' tour with friends is part of a promotion to spread some eco-lovin' ideas to the world.  

All sorts of concert-goers appeared.  It seems Mraz' appeal crosses ages, races and sexes. Young or old, punk or folk, gay or straight, everyone loves Mr. A-Z.

So with two hours on our hands, we practiced our expressions.  Here I am suffering from the cold while warm and bundled jlO smiles cozily.

Shocked because...what is this? Jason? with a ring in his hand?  Bent down on one knee? proposing to me??!  Yes, I do! I do!

 

What is this??!! The concert is cancelled??!!!!!!! DOn't EVEn!!!

In the midst of our goofiness, Mrazzzzzz himself came out with a ukulele and started serenading the audience!! He was literally an inch away from me!!!  Him and another artist, Bushwalla was all freestylin' and flowin' and when this other person waiting in line started making up these lyrics, they totally went along with it and created a stupendous tune!

The concert itself was also spectacular.  Since the place was standing room only, it was up to us and our sharp elbows to poke and prod our ways to the front. We had a pretty good view the entire night.  

Whether he was just jamming away on his guitar or partying it up with his opening acts and band-mates or signaling for a  jazz trio to pop out of the balcony, Jason Mraz live in concert was most definitely a worthy show. 

When In Rome...

I just saw the Judd Apatow comedy, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" yesterday.  Written by and starring Jason Segal, this film was, in many ways, a fairly standard Apatow vehicle.  This means plenty of raucous jokes, sexual innuendoes (and outuendoes), objectified females and good ol' frat boy bonding.  That still doesn't mean it wasn't sweet, endearing, clever and memorable at times.  It was-but it also made you walk out feeling a little nauseous like, "I laughed a lot because it really was a funny movie but I don't feel so good about it."

Anyway, one scene really stood out to me from the film.  

No, it wasn't (*SPOILER ALERT!)

the part where Segal shows his privates a lot-and I mean ALOT.  No, it wasn't that memorable scene near the end with all the singing monster puppets. It was this one tiny clip which showed an asian couple taking pictures at their breakfast table.  The husband was snapping away while the wife posed with her forks mid-air as if about to dig into her eggs and ham.  Something kind of like this...

except dorkier cause, you know, my roommates are totally way cool.

Asians seriously have this stereotype of taking pictures of everything they see.  I notice it everywhere I go.  I see the Japanese tourists asking me to take a picture of them near Royce. I've been one of those tourists, always having to rush up to my friends because I've been left behind, snapping a shot of a cool-looking leaf (what? it was cool.)

And I know other people notice it.  Once, at a concert, a couple friends and I got caught up taking pictures of a REALLY awesome looking light (what? it was cool) and my friend Hayoung, overheard a man behind us exclaim, "Dude, what are they taking pictures of? They're just perpetuating the stereotype of Asians."  Ok. I don't even think he put it that eloquently but..WHAT??!!  

Yes, we are Asian. Yes, we do have cameras but so do pretty much 50% of the world out there. Digital cameras are being sold like candy and with an increase in standard of living, more and more people can afford to take a vacation every now and then.  Are we Asian for wanting to preserve those memories of our happy times with photos?  I was angry at that boy only because he was stereotyping Asians but as an Asian who fits that stereotype, I can't argue against it.  But you know what, that's ok. Because for every comment like that that someone makes, I get 50 more fun photos that I can look back on and cherish until I'm 50.  

In our defense, we were in San Francisco's Chinatown and Japantown. We had to fully "perpetuate our Asian stereotypes." We just had to.

Maybe this was going a little overboard.  You creepy creepster!

Farmer's Market

After a six hour ride from Los Angeles to San Francisco, my road trip comrade Jennifer Lo (jlO) and I headed towards the shores, expecting to land at the Fisherman's Wharf. Imagine our surprise when we come out of the parking structure to find ourselves, yes, by the beach...

but also by the local farmer's market.  Luckily, Spring is the perfect season to appreciate the bountiful harvest provided for us by dear ol' Mother Earth.  

As if all the scrumptious eatery weren't enough to satisfy our senses, Embacadero Street was also surrounded by lovely sights...

and sounds...

to thrill.  Thank You for all the beauty in the world! (Including jlO. =))

A Tale

Janice and JlO's journey to the Jason Mraz jubilant jam began early Saturday morning. Oh boy, was it early.  Especially for Janice, whose body seemed to have picked the worst day to suffer some jet lag and woke her up at 2 in the morning, never able to go back to sleep again afterwards.

The road was windy and long and the trip was one filled with mellow music (surprisingly, not too much Mraz. You'd think we'd want to prep ourselves) and lovely scenery.  It even contained some surprise stops to frolic in the fields and take a closer look at the majestic Californian windmills.

But alas, frequent distractions like this made the journey even lengthier so it was to our heroines' relieves when the light at the end of the tunnel welcomed them with open arms. 

San Francisco was fun and Jason Mraz was spectacular but all good journeys have a final destination. In this case, it was the front of Reiber Vista.  To rate Janice and jlO's journey success? Why...two (four) thumbs up of course!

Date With Mraz

"You and I Both" know that Jason Mraz is my absolute favorite singer EVER.  "I'll Do Anything" to see him in concert. (In fact, I already have once, I'm just a "Geek in the Pink" like that.)  I would sell "1000 Things" or lose "Sleep All Day" just to indulge in this "Common Pleasure" of watching my favorite songster perform. 

And that's basically what we did.  jlO and I drove all the way up from LA to San Fran in the course of a day to watch the "Music, Magic and Make Peace"  tour put on by Jason and friends. We lost sleep, lost a lot of money in our wallets, lost some feeling in our feet but found ourselves enjoying one of the best weekends ever.  It was "Strange" driving on San Fran soil but there was "No Stopping Us" and "No Doubling Back." I just wanted to tell Jason..."I'm Yours."  I never got to 'cause I'm just "Shy That Way" but I did get to catch an awesome performance that will stay with me for days to come.

BTW: I was most definitely trying to do some "Wordplay." 

Music is my Boyfriend

When traveling, there's a lot of free time on the plane or train.  I myself always tend to pack a carry-on full of goodies to keep me preoccupied through the ride (or flight).  There's always a couple of magazines, my journal, my homework, some books, food, laptop, (it's a large carry-on) and most importantly, my lovely ipOd! (his name is Solaris) 

With people taking their ipods or mp3 players with them anywhere they travel, it's important to keep said gadget clean and safe.  This is where sheer whimsy comes in.  My crafty good friend Helen has gone all entrepreneurial and have created some beautiful cases for which to put your valuable techs into.  You can custom order a one-of-a kind protector on her etsy shop.  Be sure to check it out!  Here are just a small sampling of her gorgeous creations.

Despite all the great things one can do on the plane or train or car, there is nothing that beats just plain ol' knocking out.  

At least I am able to go to sleep knowing my belongings are safely stored in their customized sheer whimsy bags!

A Walk in the Park

Omm...
Beautiful Khaosiung was perfect for a day at the local art park.  The park is the perfect place to make a poem. (A shoddy one but it rhymes!)

Beautiful traditional Chinese music trickling in the air...

the wind blowing in your hair...

look! what's over there?

just bell art ringing in your ear

I love my family anywhere!