Playlist | "Running From Vecna"

As you may or may not know, volume two of the fourth season of Stranger Things (2016 - Present) is being released on Netflix on Friday, July 1st 2022. And if you haven't seen volume one, you might want to stop reading and go catch up because my post is kinda spoiler-ish, not really...

For those of you that have watched it, I've been thinking a lot lately about what songs would snap me back to reality from Vecna's grasp. So I made a playlist titled "Running from Vecna" on Spotify and I made it as if it was on a cassette that holds 90 minutes worth of songs. There is not rhyme or reason to the order I put the songs in, I just know that these songs would 100% would bring me back to my realm.

Side A

1. "Everlong" by Foo Fighters -- 4:10
   
2. "Wish You Were Here" by Incubus -- 3:32
3. "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" by Whitney Houston -- 4:51
4. "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence + The Machine -- 4:11
5. "Queen of the Night" by Whitney Houston -- 3:15
6. "Back That Ass Up" by Juvenile -- 4:25
7. "Shake" by Ying Yang Twins feat Pitbull -- 4:01
8. "It's Gonna Be Me" by N'Sync -- 3:12
9.  "Brujería" by Aja -- 3:32
10. "Bomb Intro / Pass That Dutch" by Missy Elliott -- 3:37
11. "Shake That" by Eminem feat Nate Dogg -- 4:34
12. "Tambourine" by Eve -- 3:12
    

 Side B

1. "La Negra Tiene Tumbao" by Celia Cruz -- 4:13
2. "Sick Sad Little World" by Incubus -- 6:23
3. "Shots" by LMFAO feat Lil Jon -- 3:42
4. "Get Back" by Ludacris -- 4:30
5. "Scotty Doesn't Know" by Lustra -- 2:55
6. "Roman's Revenge" by Nicki Minaj feat Eminem -- 4:36
7. "Killing In The Name" by Rage Against The Machine -- 5:13
8. "Black Velvet" by Alannah Myles -- 4:47
9. "Amor Prohibido" by Selena -- 2:52
10. "Juicy" by The Notorious B.I.G. -- 4:45
    
11. "Alive" by Pearl Jam -- 3:24

What do you think of my list? Would any of my song choices save you? If not, what song or songs would save you from Vecna? Lemme know!

Stuck In My Head: Started

All day long I've had "Started" by Iggy Azalea stuck in my head and you know how I roll, if it's stuck in my head I'm going to get it stuck in other people's heads...

Stuck In My Head: Not Tonight (Ladies Night Remix)

All day long I've had Lil' Kim's 1997 single "Not Tonight (Ladies Night Remix)" featuring Da Brat, Left Eye, Missy "Misdeameanor" Elliott and Angie Martinez stuck in my head.

And as you know, if it's stuck in my head I need to get it stuck in someone else's head, so here it is...

Stuck In My Head: Money

Earlier in the day myself, Nicole and a couple of other staff members had a ten minute dance party in our office just because (Don't worry, there were no patrons around) and ever since then I've had "Money" by Cardi B stuck in my head. And you know how it goes, if it's stuck in my head I'm gonna try to get it stuck in yours...


Have you ever just had an impromptu dance party at work just to relax for a couple of minutes? Or do you think we're crazy? Lemme know!

Stuck In My Head: Time To Dance

On my way to work this morning I was feeling a bit nostalgic for the music of the early to mid aughts, so I ended up listening to Panic! At The Disco's 2005 album "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out" and I currently have "Time to Dance" (Which was one of my favorite songs on the album) stuck in my head. And as you should know by now if it's stuck in my head, I'm gonna try to get it stuck in your head...


What is your favorite music from the early/mid aughts? I would love to know!

Month In Review: September 2018

♥ Vacationing in Croatia with Justin.
♥ Justin & I celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary.
♥ Hanging out in Brooklyn with the crew and discussing vacation plans for 2019.
♥ Finally going to the Camp Ground with Day.
♥ Having dinner with Gino & Christina to figure out our upcoming trip to New Orleans.
♥ Making plans to go see the new Halloween (2018) movie with peoples.
♥ Dinner date with Day.

♥ Brooklyn In Huji
♥ Getting Ready For New Orleans

Cuisine Royale (2017)
Paul Hollywood's City Bakes (2016 - Present)
Happiness Is In The Plate (2012)
2 Dudes & A Kitchen (2016 - 2017)
Donna Hay: Basics to Brilliance (2016 - Present)
Murdoch Mysteries (2008 - Present)
The Hunt For The Trump Tapes With Tom Arnold (2018 - Present)
American Horror Story: Apocalypse (2011 - Present)

Stuck In My Head: Jackie Chan

All day long I've had "Jackie Chan" by Tiësto and Dzeko featuring Preme & Post Malone stuck in my head and you know how I roll, if it's stuck in my head I'm going to get it stuck in other people's heads...

Stuck In My Head: Nice For What

For the past couple of weeks I've had various Drake songs playing on a loop in my brain and today is no different, so I thought that I'd get my currently earworm stuck in other people's heads... Enjoy!

Month In Review: May 2018

♥ Meeting my niece.
♥ Justin buying me a box of roses from Venus ET Fleur.
♥ Mother's Day dinner with my family.
♥ Celebrating my sister's 31st birthday.
♥ Hanging out with Day at her new apartment in Brooklyn.
♥ Planning a big group outing to a Mets game for later in the summer.
♥ Seeing "In The Heights" off off off Broadway.
♥ Meeting Sir Pugs-a-Lot.
♥ Finding out that all of my photos were back on the blog.
♥ Celebrating Christopher's 7th birthday.

♥ Hanging Out With Day In Brooklyn
♥ Lost Dog
♥ Everything Is Coming Up Roses | Venus ET Fleur
♥ My Photos Are Back | Photobucket Set Our Photos Free

Guy's Ranch Kitchen (2017 - Present)

 "Styling for Instagram: What to Style and How to Style It" by Leela Cyd
"Blame It On Bianca Del Rio" by Bianca Del Rio 

"Wanderful: The Modern Bohemian's Guide to Traveling in Style" by Andi Eaton



 Sibling Rivalry

Huji Cam

"Dinero (feat. DJ Khaled, Cardi B)" by Jennifer Lopez

"Brujería (feat. Mitch Ferrino)" by Aja

"Good As Hell" by Lizzo

"Celia: My Life" Coming To Television

A board book I bought my future 

niece about Celia (@MisfitLibrarian)

As you may or may not know, I am first generation Cuban-American from my father's side and I have been brought up as Cuban as one can be from Long Island with a mother who does not have a drop of Spanish/Latin in her. And aside from Cuban food, the second most prevalent things growing up as a Cuban-American was music (I mean, the fact that my father is a musician probably has a lot to do with it also). I grew up listening to Gloria Estefan, Cachao, Los Van Van and the Queen of Salsa, Celia Cruz in between all of the pop and alternative rock hits of the 90's and early aughts.

So because of this, when I found out that they were making a scripted television show about Celia Cruz based off her autobiography "Celia: My Life" I was beyond excited and had to share it just in case anyone else loves themselves some Celia. 

ENDEMOL SHINE NORTH AMERICA AND MAJOR TV TO ADAPT CELIA CRUZ’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY INTO TV SERIES     

Kenny Ortega Set To Executive Produce & Direct     

Los Angeles, Ca. — Endemol Shine North America and Major TV have optioned the rights to late Latin superstar Celia Cruz’s best-selling autobiography, “Celia: My Life,” with plans to adapt it for a scripted television series.     

Veteran film and TV producer/director/choreographer Kenny Ortega (“High School Musical”) is signed on to serve as an executive producer and direct the series. Flavio Morales, Executive Vice President, Endemol Shine Latino, U.S. Initiatives, is also set to serve as an EP.     

Cruz, known as the Queen of Latin music, was one of the most popular recording artists of all time, having won 4 Grammy Awards, 5 Latin Grammy Awards, recording 23 gold albums and attracting millions of loyal fans globally before her death in 2003.     

Endemol Shine and Major TV are currently developing an English language series based on Cruz’s only authorized autobiography, with a foreword by the late Maya Angelou. Based on more than 500 hours of taped interviews by the Smithsonian, recorded just months before her passing, Cruz let fans glimpse a life that, while lived in the full view of the public, had remained largely private.      

“There is no bigger name in Latin music than Celia Cruz,” says Endemol Shine North America CEO Cris Abrego. “We are thrilled to be adapting her amazing life story, one filled with triumph and tragedy, for a dramatic television series with a producer of Kenny Ortega’s pedigree attached.”     

Added Ortega, “I had the extraordinary honor of working with Celia Cruz many years ago as a burgeoning choreographer on a little movie called ‘Salsa.’ While we were working together, Celia and her husband invited me to join them for her concert at the Hollywood Palladium. Celia seated me in a chair on stage and I was there, in the light, watching La Reina de la Salsa, hypnotizing the audience with her voice and performance magic. Over the years, my appreciation of her gift to music has grown and deepened. Celia has been an inspiration for so many and I am honored to participate in this tribute of the incomparable Celia Cruz.”     

“With a voice that transcended language, color, race, and gender, Celia Cruz broke barriers, changed the landscape of music and became a Global icon. Capturing her authorized life story for the first time on screen, in any language, is an incredible milestone,” says Major TV’s Raymond Garcia. “We are honored to have the captivating vision of Kenny Ortega guiding this production. His universal sensibility in story-telling, expertise in resonating with viewers through music and dance, coupled with his sincere cultural and personal connection with Celia, makes this one of the most important, moving, and electrifying musical series of all time.”      

“Celia Cruz was a black woman, of limited means, who painfully abandoned her small island and triumphantly conquered the world with the power of her voice.  Her story is a testament of perseverance, hope and inspiration that deserves to be told,” said Omer Pardillo Cid, Executor of the Celia Cruz Estate and her former manager.

Endemol Shine and Major TV previously announced that they had jointly optioned the rights to Chris Perez’s “To Selena With Love,” the best-selling book that tells the late Latin superstar Selena Quintanilla-Perez’s love story through the eyes of her husband.     

Major TV is led by Raymond Garcia, formerly publisher and founder of Celebra at Penguin Random House, where he published numerous New York Times and international best-sellers with top authors such as Ricky Martin, Jennifer Lopez, as well as, Gloria and Emilio Estefan. 

Endemol Shine North America and its Spanish production division Endemol Shine Boomdog, currently have numerous scripted series in development, including “To Selena With Love” (With Major TV) and the upcoming drama “Nicky Jam: El Ganador,” which is slated to debut later this year on Telemundo and Netflix.     

From her modest childhood in Cuba, to her exile years in Mexico, to her remarkable career and life in the U.S., Cruz was a woman of contrasts. Her flamboyant costumes contrasted with her simple and straightforward demeanor. She was open and accessible to her fans, but staunchly private about her personal life. She was uninhibited without decadence, honest without offense, confident but not arrogant, and generous without fault. Yet above all, Cruz was authentic, and it was this authenticity that resonated so deeply with her public.   

After Cruz passed away on July 16, 2003, more than a half million people stood in line for hours in order to pay their respects, in both Miami and New York. Millions more paid tribute to her, holding impromptu memorials in living rooms and crowded street festivals throughout the world.   

Ortega is a three-time Emmy winner and he’s served as a director, choreographer and producer on many top TV series and films. Some of Ortega’s works throughout his illustrious career the feature documentary “Michael Jackson’s This Is It,” “Newsies,” “Hocus Pocus,” and Disney Channel’s “High School Musical” franchise and served as the executive producer for “High School Musical’s” multi-platinum soundtracks. In 2008, Ortega directed and executive produced “High School Musical 3: Senior Year (HSM 3)” for Walt Disney Motion Pictures.     

Most recently, Ortega directed, “A Change of Heart” (produced alongside long-time friend and partner, Emilio Estefan, and starring Jim Belushi and Virginia Madsen), “The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again” for FOX and Disney’s “Descendants” and “Descendants 2,” which premiered to record breaking numbers in July 2017.  The “Descendants 2” Soundtrack also debuted at #1 on iTunes.     

Ortega has been the recipient of three Emmy Awards, and 2 Director’s Guild of America Awards, The Fred & Adele Astaire Lifetime Achievement Award, Bob Fosse Award, American Choreography Lifetime Achievement Award, MTV Video Music Award, American Music Award, Billboard Award, ALMA Award, Nosotros Golden Eagle Award, Imagen Creative Achievement Award, NAACP Award, as well as a number of others. 

This is definitely a television show I'm going to keep my eyes out for because Celia lived such an interesting life and was such an incredible musical talent. I really do look forward to seeing what they do with the accounts from her autobiography and rich life she lived.

Here is the video for one of my favorite songs by Celia:

Stuck In My Head: Finesse (Remix)

For the first time in a long time I have a song stuck in my head. Literally for the entire past week I've had "Finesse (Remix)" by Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B playing on loop in my brain. It's just so damn catchy and reminds me of the early 90's R&B and rap songs that I love so much.

So here it is to get it stuck in your head...

8 Tour | Incubus At Jones Beach...

As you all may or may not know, Incubus is not only my favorite band but my sister's also. So every time they come through New York on tour we go to see them. And as you can probably guess, this was the case this past Wednesday night when they played Jones Beach Theater here on Long Island.

My sister, her fiancé, Nicole and I (And almost everyone we went to high school with apparently according to Facebook and Instagram) went to rock out to Incubus with Jimmy Eat World (Whom I didn't pay attention to until they played "The Middle" and "Sweetness") on their 8 Tour.

As always, Incubus was amazing. They just put on such a great show and are so incredible to watch live -- Trust me I know, I've seen them live eleven times in the past fourteen years. In addition to that, I love going with my sister because we always have a great time no matter what the weather is like (When we saw Incubus with Linkin Park [Can we talk about how incredibly sad it is that Chester Bennington committed suicide?] in 2012 on the Honda Civic Tour, it was so gross outside and we had to wear ponchos but it was still a great time) or whatever else is going on.

For any of you interested, here is the setlist they played that night. I thought it was a good mix of their older hits and newer songs.

Setlist
Love in a Time of Surveillance
Warning
Nimble Bastard
Anna Molly
Glittebomb
Megalomaniac
The Warmth
Wish You Were Here
State of the Art
Pardon Me
Drive
Undefeated
Redefine
Sick Sad Little World
The Original
Loneliest
Make No Sound In The Digital Forest
No Fun
Nice To Know You
Aqueous Transmission

Bachelorette Party Playlist...

My sister's bachelorette party is less than a week away, so I thought that in honor of her last soirée in Las Vegas that I'd throw together a playlist that we could shuffle and get down to while we get ready for the chaos we have planned for the weekend. And obviously because I made a playlist, I had to share it with all of you... So enjoy!

Stuck In My Head: Baby One More Time...

As you may or may not know, I haven't had very many "Stuck In My Head" posts in the past year because I've spent a lot of my time in the car listening to podcasts or audio books. Thus I haven't been listening to music.

But as of late I feel like I've blow through all my favorite podcasts (Slumber Party with Alie & Georgia is on an indefinite hiatus, so there is an extra hour every week in the car gone) and I haven't found any books that I'd want to listen to on audio.

So I've started listening to more of the music on my iPhone and as a result I have Britney Spears' 1998 debut single stuck in my head all morning.

And as you know, if it's stuck in my head I need to get it stuck in someone else's head, so here it is...


Oh, if you don't hate me for getting some Brit Brit stuck in your head and you have a podcast and/or audio book recommendation for me, I'd love something new to listen to.

Stuck In My Head | Do-Re-Mi...

Ever since seeing Lin-Manuel Miranda's 'Sound of Music' Home Movie on Ellen's YouTube Sunday night, I have had "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music (1965) stuck in my head.

I mean, it's not the worst Rodgers and Hammerstein song to have stuck in one's head. But it is stuck in my head nonetheless.

So here it is to get it stuck in your head...


Fun Fact: My sister literally watched The Sound of Music EVERYDAY for the longest time as a child. So I've seen The Sound of Music probably about a 100+ times.

Stuck In My Head: Space Cowboy...

As you all should know by now I love N'Sync, so it should be no surprise that an N'Sync song would be stuck in my head. Especially since I didn't listen to any music while I was away (The only thing I listened to while I was away were podcasts), so of course an N'Sync song would be the one crawl into my brain and take it over.

And because I'm me, here it is so at least one of you can get it stuck in your head too...

The Story Of Wednesday Night | Hamilton On Broadway...

Last Wednesday night Justin and I went into New York City to see Hamilton on Broadway. Yes, yours truly got to see the pop culture phenomenon that is Hamilton before creator, composer and star Lin-Manuel Miranda left the show and we are so happy we did.

So, how did this Hamilton journey begin? Let me start from the beginning... After listening to numerous Still Untitled podcasts where Adam Savage gushed about Hamilton, Justin (Not me) decided to listen to it and instantly became obsessed with it. He became so obsessed that one night in bed, after an evening out drinking he lamented over how impossible tickets were to get and how much he wanted to see the show -- It was so funny that I found the need to tweet about his first World problem (Which you can read here).

Fast forward to Friday, June 3rd... Lin-Manuel Miranda announced he would be leaving and his final performance would be July 9th. The news just sent Justin into Hamilton madness (Like he called me while I was at Toni's house going "I think I'm going to do it... I'm going to do it..." and me I'm like "Do what? Kill yourself? What are you mumbling about?" and he finally said "I'm going to do it! I'm going to buy us tickets to see Hamilton for this coming Wednesday" and that was that) and he "spent more than he is willing to admit" on a pair of rear mezzanine tickets for us to see Hamilton before Lin left the show (And I'm not going to lie, I'm so happy he did).

Prior to Justin purchasing the tickets I refused to listen to the cast soundtrack because I saw Justin's twitchy obsessed behavior. But once he bought the tickets I decided that I should become familiar with the music before seeing the show and that is when I realized what all the fuss was about. The soundtrack is absolutely amazing -- I've honestly been listening to it everyday since he purchased the tickets.

Fast forward to Wednesday... Justin and I went into the city early to meet up with Day to have dinner and drinks at BEA in the theater district.

After an awesome dinner and another round of drinks at Señor Frog's (Because we are classy like that) we parted ways with Day and we headed over to the Richard Rodgers Theatre. Where once inside we spent a glorious three hours enjoying the awesomeness that is Hamilton.

Since seeing the show I've had a bunch of people come ask me if it's worth the hype or what-have-you and I can honestly say yes, yes it is totally worth it. I am absolutely in love with Hamilton, I cannot wait to see the show again (Which we will be doing again on May 10th next year) and I will be listening to the soundtrack for a long long time.

If you you've seen it, I'd love to talk about it with you. Or if you haven't and have any questions about the show, feel free to ask because I've been getting tons of questions from people I know and people who have overheard that I've gone. 

FUN FACT: We have friends who are bragging to people that they know someone whose seen Hamilton. Which is just the funnest thing ever.

Night Out In Brooklyn | Homegrown Heroes Music Festival...

Friday night Day and I headed into Brooklyn to go to the Homegrown Heroes Music Festival at The Paper Box because we know one of the members of The Driggs. So we went out to show our support and rock out with the hipsters in Bushwick East Williamsburg (We even dressed the part because as you guys know, that's how we roll).

We got to Brooklyn before the doors opened at The Paper Box, so we decided to kill some time by going to grab a quick dinner and some drinks at The Anchored Inn. Which was awesome, and all we had were their Carmen Fries and a couple of Downeast Ciders.

Eventually after getting a few texts from our friend in the band, we closed our tab out and headed over to the venue. Which killed us because The Anchored Inn had air conditioning and The Paper Box did not. But since the concert was the main reason for our trek out to Brooklyn we sucked it up.

Thankfully The Paper Box had an outdoor area, so Day and I hung out there until The Driggs went on because it was honestly too hot in that damn venue to stand around and watch other bands.

While we were out there, we did end up making friends with a dude that ended up being a scout for the record label that was throwing the festival. We bullshitted and had a few drinks with him before going inside to sweat our asses off watching The Driggs.

After their set, Day and I ran back outside (Because we were dying and didn't want to have heat strokes) and waited for our friend to get back from dropping the equipment off at the studio area near by that the band rents.

For some reason it took forever, so we decided to run back to The Anchored Inn to have another drink. Eventually he met up with us, as did the lead singer of the band and some of their friends.

The newcomers didn't think The Anchored Inn was cool enough, so we wandered around the corner to The Well which was deemed a much cooler spot. We had a round of drinks before bumming the lead singer out be getting an Uber to drive us to Jamaica Station so we'd be able to catch a 12-something AM train back to Long Island.

Even though it was hot as hell, we had a really great night out in Brooklyn and it was a great way to kick off Memorial Day weekend. I can't wait to see the band again (Especially in an air conditioned venue) because they are actually really good.

If you wanna check out the band for yourself, here is a video of them performing one of their songs...

If you check it out lemme know, they love to know what people think of them and their music.

Swim Trunks & Flippie-Floppies | On A Boat With Classroom Instruments...

Can we please talk about The Lonely Island on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon last night doing "I'm On A Boat" with classroom instruments?


I don't know about you guys, but I absolutely love "I'm On A Boat" by The Lonely Island. So I was so excited to see them do it with Jimmy and The Roots with classroom instruments.

The whole thing was kinda nostalgic for me, bringing back those 2009 vibes because even though it was just a Grammy-nominated SNL skit it was totally my jam back in the day. Plus I've actually sang/rapped it at karaoke before (And I'd do it again if the song was available at a karaoke bar, because I know ALL the words).

And then what makes it even better is that you have Jorma sitting there the whole time with the dunce cap on and "The Joy of Land" book?! Just amazing.

So you guys digging it as much as I am? Or am I just a weirdo? Lemme know!

PS - It's totally stuck in my head now.

Stuck In My Head | Regulate...

As you guys know, I got into a car accident back in March and I totaled my car. Well I obviously had to get a new car and with my new car I got a three month trial subscription to SiriusXM. And much to my own surprise, I really like it. Like so much so I'm contemplating paying for s subscription when my trial is up.

So since getting it I've been flipping between it (Specifically: SiriusXM FLY, 90's on 9, Pop2k and a handful of over stations) and my podcasts.

Well because I've been so into SiriusXM FLY and 90's on 9, I've heard Warren G and Nate Dogg's "Regulate" so many times can't even count and it's been stuck in my head for the longest time now. And you guys know, if it's stuck in my head I have to get it stuck in other people's heads. So here it is...


"If your ass is a buster 213 will regulate..."

Sorry.