How Could Anyone Not Like Him?

Jerry Seinfeld Live

Pantages Theatre -- Los Angeles, CA

Friday, March 16, 2012

7:00 pm

Back in 2010, I saw Jerry Seinfeld perform at the Saban Theatre.  On that night, my friend June had taken ill, so she was unable to go with me, and I took Liz instead.  This time around, June was able to go with me.  June and I often quote "Seinfeld" to each other, so I was glad that she could finally join me to see my favorite comedian.  The show was originally slated for only 2 performances on Saturday night, but the tickets sold out quickly, and 2 more shows were added.  We got tickets to the earlier show.

I picked up June at her place after I got home from Arizona.  We were both hungry, and the pub next door to the theatre had a long wait, so we checked out Delphine, across the street.  We didn't have a reservation, but they were able to fit us in, and got us out in time for the show, so they get extra bonus points and tip (or commission, as they called it) for that.  The Delphine is part of the W hotel, so the restrooms are actually in the hotel lobby, which was fine, since it's such a nice establishment.  My food (scallops with crispy artichoke, watermelon radish and truffles) was wonderful, albeit a bit pricey ($31).  

We made it into the theatre with several minutes to spare. Our seats were in row WW, in the orchestra section on the right side.  Mario Joyner was the opening act, and he was very funny, making fun of all of the people arriving late, and talking about living in Santa Monica, the "haven for interracial couples and homeless people....so if you're an interracial homeless couple, you've got it made.  Oh, and in Santa Monica, they're not called homeless.  They're called mortgage-deficient."

Seinfeld was met with thundering applause, and I'll try my best to remember some of his lines this time around.

• Life is just what happens between the times that you've found your next seat.
• I can't believe you're taking this way, driving that fast, wearing that shirt.
• We were not properly prepared for the invention of the Pop-Tart.
• We don't drink coffee.  We "have" coffee.
• It's not enough that we hung the poor innocent creature, but let's hit it with a bat and then eat whatever comes out of him and falls on the ground.  Then we'll take his brother, put him up on the wall, and stick pins in him with his own tail.
• All you really want is a juiced-up, hard rectangle in your pants.
• A deathbed?  Why would anyone want to buy anything called that?
• 69?  This is the number they came up with?  Are you telling me that nobody at the phone company went to junior high school?...I can't wait to see what you come up with for 3-way calling.
• I didn't know that being in a marriage is the same as being in a musical.
• Men really want to make their wives happy.  They do.  They just can't.  Marriage is like being on a game show every day, and you're playing in the lightning round.  "I'll take 'Movies' for $200."  My wife, the returning champion, says, "I'll take '15-minute conversations that took place 5 years ago in which you probably said something wrong' for $1000, Alex."

He received a standing ovation, and took a few questions from the audience.  I liked when they asked if his mom lives in Florida.  He said yes, he bought her a car, which has a cataract windshield: it's 10 inches thick, and when you look into it, everybody's heads are huge.  

To quote Seinfeld's TV mom: "How could anyone not like him?"

Hilarious.

There Is Nothing Like a Broadway-Belting Dame

An Evening With Bernadette Peters

Valley Performing Arts Center -- Great Hall

Saturday, March 3, 2012

I joined several of my co-workers at the new Val-PAC at CSUN to see Bernadette Peters in a sold-out performance.  She actually had scheduled a show last season, but it was canceled, so I'm glad that she was able to return.  Our seats were in the upper balcony, in the box seats on the audience left.  Our seats were situated one in back of the other, so we weren't really sitting side-by-side unless the chairs were swiveled that way.  There was some glass above the side of some of the boxes, but not all.  I didn't have any glass right next to me, so I could look over the side, which was kind of a mistake, due to my fear of heights.  Woozy!  Unfortunately, the program did not have the song selections, and I'm writing this 2 weeks later, so I don't remember everything that she sang.

• Ms. Peters was wearing a beautiful shimmering lavender gown, which showed off the fact that she's still got a great figure.  Work it, Girl!
• At the beginning of the show, she said, "Hmm, what should we talk about?  How about the real estate market? I'm selling my house."  Then, throughout the show, she gave specifics about her home in Miami, like how many bedrooms it has and the fact that it has a swimming pool.
• She had just finished up a return to "Follies" on Broadway, and did a couple of songs from that show, including "Losing My Mind".  Her acting chops are obvious during this song, as she was wiping tears away, fully embracing her Sally character.
• I love when she sings Sondheim songs.  Thankfully, she sang a lot of them, though not all of the ones that are on her "Sondheim, Etc. -- Live at Carnegie Hall" CD that I love.  I don't know why, but I can't find my CD.  I have the jewel case, but no CD in it.  That annoys the heck out of me because I really want to listen to it.  Perhaps I should just buy it again.  I would have done so if she had it for sale at the show, but that didn't happen.
• ANYWAY, now that my lost CD rant is over, the songs that she did sing from that Carnegie Hall show were "Broadway Baby", "No One Is Alone", "Some People", "You Could Drive a Person Crazy", "Not A Day Goes By", and "Being Alive".  All awesome.  I do wish that she would have sung "Johanna", but I can't have everything.
• She also sang some selections by Rodgers and Hammerstein, my favorite of which was "There is Nothing Like A Dame", mainly because it's such a different take to have a woman sing what is traditionally sung by a bunch of lonely men in "South Pacific".  I also liked that she was singing the song to certain men in the audience.
• Ms. Peters showed her slinky sexy side most of all on "Fever", as she sung while laying on her side on top of the grand piano.
• The drummer is Cubby from the Mickey Mouse Club!  
• She included a song that she wrote (a lullaby)  in dedication to her dog, and proceeds of her CD and book sales (she wrote a couple of children's books) went to her favorite animal charity, Broadway Barks.
• She also sang, "Oh, Shenandoah" and "When You Wish Upon A Star", which were lovely, but I'd rather hear her sing Broadway songs because she emotes so well.

That was a fantastic concert, and I'm glad that I was able to see it.  Oh, if only she would sing something as Rita from "Animaniacs", I'd be in heaven.  :)

DLR LotD 03/11/12

Disneyland Resort
Line of the Day


Sunday, March 11, 2012


"Just let me know if you want something to eat." -- Team Captain Jenn, multiple times during MouseAdventure: Card Games

Full of Grace

It's been a difficult week or so for some of my loved ones.  My best friend's mom passed away last week after an 18-month battle with lung cancer, and her funeral took place today.  


Like in all families in my culture, anyone that is the age of my parents is an Auntie or Uncle, depending on their gender, of course, and it didn't matter if you remembered them or not.  But with Auntie Nancy, it was different for me and Bro.  Auntie Nancy and Uncle Romy were my parents' friends since the time that they moved here from the Philippines, back in the early 1970s.   When I met them, I was 6 years old, and their daughter, Michelle, was 2.  So I had nothing in common with her.  Whatever, they were friends with my parents, and we had gatherings every month or so, thanks to Jenn's parents, who had introduced our families to each other.  


Time went by, and eventually, Michelle's family and my family grew closer as we would take camping trips with other families.  Our 2 families had the same interest of venturing out farther than the California border, and Michelle's family eventually bought a motor home in which to travel in style.  I remember the excitement we shared when Uncle Romy showed it to our family, and made plans to eventually get a boat.  That boat thing never actually happened, but we were happy nonetheless.  Before the motor home, we shared a huge tent, and sometimes Mich and I would just share a pup tent so we could giggle all night.  With the motor home, we had to giggle a little bit quieter, but were always the last to go to sleep after watching the campfire and giggling outside.


We didn't just hang out in the summer: we saw each other on many weekends just to spend time together, and we also shared the big holidays together. Since we were spending so much time with Michelle's family, it was inevitable that Michelle and I would grow closer.  We were both boy crazy and talked about our crushes and boyfriends and shared our heartaches with each other.  We became best friends, and I have Auntie Nancy and my mom to thank for forcing us to spend time together.   Oh, yes, of course, and our dads, who just loved driving to all of the different national parks and entertaining us with their corny jokes.  Our families were bonded for life.


Then things happened and a divorce got in the way, but Michelle and I remained close, as did Auntie Nancy, Janice (Mich's sis), and my family.  Bro stayed with them for part of the time that he was doing an apprenticeship in Temecula.  I stayed over several times, and remember being there on the morning of the Northridge earthquake, shaking away and trying to find door jambs.  Auntie Nancy always opened her house for everyone to stay, no matter how crowded the bedrooms became.


Yes, our families had quite the history together.  When my mom was diagnosed with lung cancer, she wanted it kept quiet, but I was too distraught and confided in Michelle.  Their family supported us all the way until her remission.  Then Auntie Nancy was diagnosed, and her disease was far more advanced than my mom's had been when it was discovered.  The prognosis wasn't good, but Auntie Nancy fought with all of her might up until the very end.  When I thought about her the night that she passed, I wept when I thought of how unfair it was that my best friend does not get to have her mom around anymore, due to the same disease that my own mom survived.  I am truly blessed that my mom's cancer was caught at a very early stage and could be treated.  I pray that she stays cancer-free.  But Michelle doesn't get to go to her mom for advice about her kids, and she doesn't get to hear her mom call her for dinner anymore.  My heart breaks for her.


Auntie Nancy had a wonderful soul.  Living up to her name, which, in Hebrew, means "full of grace",  she was always gentle and smiling, even when she was scolding us kids for doing whatever foolish thing we did.  When I would talk with her, I always felt like she was on my side, even though maybe she was actually sympathizing with my mom instead.  It was just that sweet smile of hers (but don't worry, Mich, I never told her our secrets). She left behind two beautiful daughters, and 2 grandchildren.  She lived a full life, full of friends and happiness and wonderful memories.


I told Michelle last night that one of my favorite memories of her mom is this: whenever we went on one of our trips, there would come a point when it was time to eat a snack.  Auntie Nancy would take out the Tupperware, open it, and offer us her delicious mamon cupcakes.  They were tasty and just sweet enough (no icing or anything: just cake) to satisfy a sweet craving.  Whenever I see mamon, I think of Auntie Nancy and our camping trips.


The picture below was taken in 1986, at Zion National Park.  Auntie Nancy is in the pink tank top, and for some reason, I joined in their family picture.  I guess printed bermuda shorts were the style those days!  That was a memorable trip for us, as Mich and I had to deal with being homesick because we missed our boyfriends.  Thank goodness our parents knew better than us and took us to see Zion, Bryce Canyon, Yellowstone, Salt Lake City, Devil's Tower, Mount Rushmore, and the Grand Canyon with the Yabut family.  That was a fantastic trip.  It is due to this trip that Bryce Canyon is one of my favorite places in the world, mainly because of the wonderful memories of that summer.

Sher and the Vidals -- July 20, 1986

Thank you, Auntie Nancy, for your gentle spirit.  Thank you for all of the memories of camping and karaoke and all of the laughter we shared.  But most of all, thank you for giving birth to my very best friend.  I'll miss you dearly.

Voice Battles s2r1

No, I won't be blogging about every episode of NBC's "The Voice".  First of all, if I started now, I'd have a lot of catching up to do.  Secondly, this ain't a cappella.


I just wanted to post these 2 videos for posterity, because I was very impressed by both of these battles.


First, Cheesa vs. Angie, in "Total Eclipse of the Heart".



Then came Jesse vs. Anthony, in "If I Ain't Got You".  I wish these 2 would be released as singles, and not just available by the winning artist.





I'm glad that I didn't have to choose in these battles.  Wow.

DLR LotD 03/04/12

Disneyland Resort
Line of the Day


Sunday, March 4, 2012


"Isn't that the name of one of those new buddy cop shows?" -- Mox, in Downtown Disney, regarding Yak Butter and Milk Fish

When My Favorite Bands Collide

Fellow Pella fan and NKOTB fan Aura shared this video with me, and I giggled a LOT.


O. M. G.


In case y'all didn't know, CSL4 fronted a rock band at Tokyo Disneyland before he joined Rockapella. Since that was in the late '80s, one of the popular bands at the time was New Kids on the Block.  You know that cover bands in theme parks play popular songs, right?  Well, here is the rock band Horizon, singing some '80s hits in Tokyo DIsneyland.





Yup, there you are, CSL4 at about 4:35, rocking out as a New Kid.  I love his hair! The fashion cracks me up, too.


I especially love that he did the moves from the NKOTB video.  


Thank you for sharing, Aura!

DLR LotD One More Disney Day

Disneyland Resort
Line of the Day


One More Disney Day Edition - 2012


Wednesday, February 29, 2012
"I'm a snow cone.  You could lick the back of my head." -- Cindy, at the esplanade between DCA and DL


Thursday, March 1, 2012
"Should be at home." -- Sherry, several times, while pointing at various children in Disneyland