Originally published at The Definitive Dmbosstone. Please leave any comments there.

I have never been to a show quite like this one.

I’m talking about the Lil Wayne/I Am Music tour concert I went to last Tuesday at the Verizon Center.

It was a pretty good show, Gym Class Heroes were good as well as T-Pain. While Gym Class Heroes and Lil Wayne were more like a traditional set, T-Pain had this elaborate “circus” theme and sang halves of songs with lots of set-up and stunts. T-Pain even came out during Lil Wayne’s set on a Segway. I guess the rappers are getting more and more technologically advanced.

While Corey, Adam, Meg, and I watched the show from the suite I couldn’t notice how everyone else got all dressed up- even if you were in the nosebleed section you looked pretty good as you danced along.

I celebrated New Years Eve at my place with a party for all of our friends. While some circles already had plans I was happy to see quite a few of my friends drop by. I was rocking a cool paper crown from my office’s holiday party- because I’m king of the castle. Sarah and I decked out the place with a projector to show the ball drop, beer pong played on a door in my basement (tres ghetto), and games of drunken Jenga in the living room. We bought a knock off Jenga set called “Jumbling Towers” and it quickly became the joke was we wrote down our instructions. It’s actually still not complete yet so if anyone has any ideas let me know. Also if anyone wants to hang out at my place I have enough leftover beer and liquor to last us past Inauguration, Super Bowl, and beyond.

New Years Day was a full of cleaning up the house and taking naps. My kind of day.

The weekend was supposed to be dedicated to shopping and editing- I only got so much editing done when Rebecca called me out to come out with her and the crew. I couldn’t turn down an offer like that. We went bowling over at Strike Bethesda then grabbed some drinks at Chadwicks.

I thought I was going to get some work done on Sunday but after some brunch with Carrie I just wasted some time watching The Rock and D3: The Mighty Ducks. Man FiOS and all those channels are deadly.

The rest of this week is jammed packed so at least I know I won’t be wasting time watching any TV.

Tags: bethesda, blog, bowling, debauchery, girls, holidays, lil wayne, tenleytown, verizon center, washington dc

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Living in the DC area for a couple of years now has certainly turned me on to politics and current events. It’s the bug everyone gets when they move in. As much as I could see myself working in the government I don’t think I’ll be running for office anytime soon- but you never know. Thanks to Anh “Joseph” Cao- the new congressman from Louisiana’s 2nd district and first Vietnamese-American ever elected to Congress I now have new hope in what I can do as a proud Vietnamese-American.

A lot of this week has been centered around politics. The highlight of this week was a visit to the White House. Now closed to public tours, you have to know someone in order to get in there. In this case Carrie knew someone and we went on a tour this past Thursday.

I thought it was interested how the photos on the wall are constantly updated. As we walked in there were photos on the wall of Bush’s recent Holiday Reception. He certainly knew how to fit in with kids. I was also amazed to see the photos that adorned the walls around Cheney’s offices. By the elevator there’s a really sinister looking half portrait of his face. One of Carrie’s friends and I had one goal while we were there- and that was to use the bathroom. I wanted my own Forrest Gump moment. I was impressed that the bathrooms had a cool machine that buffed your shoes.

The Oval Office was brighter than I thought. It was roped off and guarded by Secret Service after-hours. So I guess I won’t be having any cool moments inside the room. As we went from room-to-room it was interesting how the seat the President sits in is always taller than the rest. Talk about King of the Nation. The new Press Room was certainly impressive, from the camera banks to the engraved seats. Everyone has a specific spot- with the best seat in the house going to Helen Thomas (who is also the only one that has their name on their seat, usually it’s just the outlet.)

Carrie and I capped off the night at this quaint Greek place in Dupont called Mourayo. It was quiet for the night but still classy- except for the waiter that was dressed like a European sailor. I don’t know how classy it is to be served by a member of the Village people.

Well besides stealing sugar packets from the White House I was up to other things, I’ve finally got back to editing “The OBX Season 2” and I hope to have something done before I go back home for Xmas.  I also got to catch up with Wendi over dinner and a Bruins/Capitals game- it’s amazing to hear that the Bruins were in first place in the Eastern Conference as they lost to the Caps.

This weekend I wanted to celebrate my big quarter century but personally I’ve been too busy to effectively plan a bash. Last minute attempts at a night out ended up falling through. I’ve had great birthday nights the past three years and this year should be a special one, but with work killing me softly and the fact my birthday is always around the holidays makes it tough. I

Saturday I did go out with Sarah and Falkor to celebrate our friend Owen who was in town. We met up at a small place in Bethesda called Saphire. Carrie, Doug, and Katie met up with us later that night.

Last night I went out with a whole group of friends to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The show was similar to the one I saw last year but it was still a great show to watch, and it always helps to enjoy it with a suite full of your friends.

As we enter the last week before Christmas- there’s a lot I need to do before I go home. I need to finish my shopping. I took the day off of work today and knocked a lot of it out with a trip to Potomac Mills.

I also need to finalize my plans for New Years. I also want to finish “The OBX Season 2.” I also need to plan out all the people I need to see while I’m back home. You can see how celebrating my birthday isn’t going to fit in the immediate picture, yet as I write this I’ve now crossed over to December 16th.

Tags: asians, bethesda, blog, dick cheney, dupont circle, forrest gump, george bush, girls, helen thomas, holidays, joseph cao, louisiana, potomac mills, trans-siberian orchestra, washington dc

Originally published at The Definitive Dmbosstone. Please leave any comments there.

First off I got to express my joy to see the Sox clinch the American League East as well as the best record in the MLB this week. I’m psyched to not see the Red Sox totally screw it up at the end of the season (see end of 2006 season.) Too bad it appears I’m about to settle for 4th place in my fantasy baseball league. It’s a drop from my third place finish last year but at least I have fantasy football.
I’ve been busy with lots of work this week. Long hours have really kept me from doing anything fun. I did get a break however on Friday where I went bowling at the Naval Medical Center with Melissa and Hollie (it appears they have a pretty cheap bowling center.) The part I love the best: cheap subsidized food. Makes me wish I actually worked at NIH, but then again I’m not that smart.

Yesterday I went to the Maryland Renaissance Festival with all my favorites. It was quite the experience, turkey legs, sword fights, and jousting were abundant, so were the extreme fans that actually dressed up in costumes. It wasn’t that bad, the shows were pretty entertaining. I’d still call my Diana and Kim dorks for going to them however.

Ok well it’s almost time for week 4 of football. Here’s to a big fantasy comeback!

Tags: baseball, bethesda, blog, bowling, fantasy sports, nih, red sox, renaissance festival, stress

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My love for football has grown steadily since college. From watching Patriots games freshman year to fantasy football last year. Now I’m in two fantasy football leagues and I’m even enjoying watching college football games. My how love flourishes. I think I may have reached the point where Sundays are just going to be useless.

This past week I drafted my team in my office league, I’m satisfied with my choices. I grabbed Shaun Alexander and Tony Romo and even drafted two players that caused me grief last year, LaMont Jordan and Joey Galloway; however with all the preparation I did this year I made sure I grabbed them later in the draft so I wasn’t wasting my picks. Man I feel like a football dork.
But back to Earth for a minute, I enjoyed Labor Day by watching Superbad with Doug. It is by far one of the best movies I’ve seen since Anchorman. It’s the American Pie for a new generation… which really doesn’t make sense since we are the American Pie generation… oh well.

Wednesday’s kickball match was an utterly disappointing loss but we made it up in flipcup afterwards. Ya I woke up the next day without my contacts, car, and sharpie on my left arm. It was one of those nights.

Friday we all celebrated Emily and Laura’s birthday at, where else, Union Jacks. It was an ok night- I wasn’t feeling the tunes the DJ was pumping out.

I don’t know why but last week was all about not sleeping. After three hours of sleep on Wednesday I got just about the same amount after Union Jacks. Why? Because I was smart enough to schedule to bring my car in for an oil change at 8 AM on a Saturday. Ugh- never again. The state inspector was out so that means I gotta bring my car back- and I have to fix my turn signal light before I can get it inspected… great…

At least last night was fun… kinda. Sarah, LJ and his sister Leigh, and I went to the Red Sox/Oriole’s game. LJ and Leigh are Sox fans and I was excited to get a chance to see Dice-K pitch. However Dice-K kinda blew the game and I had to put up with mocking from Sarah instead.

The times after the baseball game were much better. We all went to Fells Point and met out with Cliff and Eliza at Max’s. It was a pretty cool bar with all kinds of different beer but more importantly, multiple TV’s showing all kinds of NCAA games. LJ and I were engrossed with the SFU/Auburn game. It was an intense game that came down to overtime. If you arn’t familiar with NCAA rules for overtime in football, then you should check them out, it lends for lots of suspense.

Ok enough writing I gotta get back to watching the Redskins game- Portis isn’t doing that bad so far… maybe I should of drafted him again too.

Tags: american pie, anchorman, baltimore, bethesda, blog, camden yards, clinton portis, daisuke matsuzaka, fantasy football, fantasy sports, football, joey galloway, kickball, lamont jordan, orioles, patriots, red sox, redskins, shaun alexander, superbad, tony romo

Originally published at The Definitive Dmbosstone. Please leave any comments there.

So last Sunday I downloaded the Night Ripper album by this artist Greg Gillis who guys by the name Girl Talk. Ryan suggested I give a listen- and I have to tell you that I am in love. Thanks Ryan- I can’t stop listening to it, I think I need to buy his other albums.

On Monday I wrote the DMB Warehouse a Thank You letter for giving me awesome tickets next month. I know I’m a geek. Talking about that- the show is coming up and I still need to find someone, and figure out how I am going to celebrate my 30th show in style.

On Thursday I went out with Melissa to see Sicko. I walked in knowing that the movie was probably going to be exaggerated and biased, which it was, but it managed to still convince me to hate our Nation’s health care system. That means I liked the movie. I also checked out MooreWatch- the anti Moore website that was mentioned in the movie, just so I could feel like I got both sides of the story.

Friday I had a classy dinner with friends at the Gordon Biersch Brewery in Rockville- nice town, it has a classy look to it much like the restaurant.

Satruday I met up with Colleen, an old friend from high school. She’s down here for a few weeks so I thought I’d show her some sights in DC. We went out onto U-Street to see Improvapalooza. It was a great time, afterwards I managed to find my way to Adams Morgan so I could show her chaos at 1 AM.

I need to buy some more Girl Talk albums.

Tags: adams morgan, bethesda, blog, dmb, food, girl talk, improv, night ripper, rockville, sicko, u-street

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I just finished eating the first meal I cooked on the grill this year- it will be the first of many. I love wonderful weather, it’s been great all week long. I hope the weather keeps up- I want to try and get out more after work. My ideal after work situation is to either enjoy the cityscape as people go about their business, or just sitting on my porch and enjoying a drink (the Margaret Landry approach). I haven’t had a chance to do that, I spent a lot of last week doing errands after work- but at least now I have my haircut and my grill is now ready for summer.

Friday I enjoyed some Happy Hour fun with Melissa, we went to Union Jacks and I was exposed to a lot of the social life and norms of people at NIH- and I really need to say that sometimes it blows me away. I won’t go into which direction. Last night was Cinco de Mayo and I celebrated with my friends at Guapo’s (I mean you have to go have a Mexican dinner right? I made it an all Mexican day with lunch at Taco Bell). Afterwards we went back to Watch Hill Lane to play Apples to Apples (I really need to get this game), and Super Jeopardy (thanks Diana for your old school inclinations, and yes you do blow it very well). To end the night we sat in a stupor watching the rest of Armageddon.

Today I shopped Tyson’s Corner, starting to get some new warez for the season. Once again I enjoy cruising down Route 7 on a sunny day.

This week will be exciting, I found out I have to go to Canada for work- my first real business trip! Not as cool as Emily’s (she’s going to Paris) but it’ll do.

Tags: apples to apples, armageddon, bethesda, blog, canada, food, fun times with friends, holidaays, montgomery county, super jeopardy, tyson's corner, work

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I am excited. I am excited for fantasy sports. I am excited for March Madness. I’m excited for nice weather. What I’m not excited about is being tired.

I pulled off two trips to the Verizon Center: first on Tuesday for a Raptors/Wizard’s game and then on Friday for a Capital’s game. Ben and I went to the Wizards game, it was a total domination of the Toronto Raptors, a thrashing that left me wondering what sport Canada doesn’t suck at? Maybe it’s Hockey. Dan decided to make the game a little more interesting with a little wager on the total points of the game. I grossly miscalculated the scoring potential. One of Margaret’s friends won the pot. It was my first time traveling down there by car, which I carpooled with Margaret. Amazingly DC isn’t that bad at night.

Friday I went to the Capital’s game with Rebecca- and it was a lot of fun. There was a fight which kept me entertained as the home team lost. Of course after seeing numerous National’s game I’m used to see a DC team lose. After the game I got a word that Doug, Sarah, and Emily were in my hood at Dr. Dreamo’s. Carolyn and I went down there to meet up and enjoy the many selection of beers they had to offer. It’s too bad they don’t sell any liquor. I should go back and check it out when the open the beach patio. After throwing some darts that night I’ve come to realize that I should stop trying to put money into Jukeboxes- they never play the song you want.

There’s been a lot of transient faces at my house- my roommate Simon brought back some drunk chick who proceeded to spend the entire night in the bathroom washing her face and throwing up. However she also cleaned the entire bathroom when I got up. That’s gotta be a plus.

Last night I went out with Melissa to Union Jacks, and I had a really fun night. Melissa certainly dances to her own beat. I also noticed an influx of older gentlemen, definitely higher than usual. Now dancing with 20 somethings when you’re 70 is one thing, trying to get their numbers after last call is something else. Gross.

This new Daylight Savings Time situation has left me with even less sleep than usual. I walked in last night and wondered how I was out for that long. I don’t like how my computer updated the time but my VCR didn’t. I know this will probably lead to problems in a month.

Oh I just thought of more things to be excited about: WWE Raw at tomorrow (I know, real high class Patrick- but at least the Donald will be in town) and St. Patrick’s Day. Let’s hope I can make it through the week first.

Tags: bethesda, blog, capitals, clarendon, daylight savings time, donald trump, fantasy sports, fun times with friends, holidays, march madness, nationals, raptors, raw, wager, weather, wizards, work, wwe

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What a wonderful weekend! I got to see a lot of Chelmsford people, all starting with the Captials game on Thursday. I took Patrice and it was a great time. It was my first hockey game and I couldn’t help but cheer on for Averman, Banks, and Conway… too bad they are all fictional characters from The Mighty Ducks. Man that was a good movie. I wonder if the Anaheim Ducks ever do any Flying Vs that would be awesome, maybe even dawesome. I was excited to see the game end in a shootout, disappointed that there were no real fights.

On Friday I went to a surprise birthday party for Melissa, all of her NIH friends threw it and it was I really enjoyed meeting all of these scientific types. I got a new perspective on what life must be like on the campus of the National Institutes of Health. It’s really interesting- I totally see it as a backdrop of a TV Show. Maybe I should write that script.

Saturday was a busy day, in the afternoon I went shopping (because Asians love Costco) and then I went on a little Pub Crawl with Rebecca, Megan, and Julia. It was great to see a few high school friends. After a couple of rounds I walked down the street to meet up with some peoples to see Nick Di Paolo. He was alright, nothing to write home about (who does that anymore?) After the act we did a little whirlwind run to DC-9 to see some bands Doug heard about. Again nothing to really write home about, however we really liked the back room with all the couches. After being bored we left and ended the night at Buffalo Billiards, where we ran into one of the comics who opened up for Nick Di Paolo, and was much funnier. I appreciated the fact he was from Everett.

So March is upon me and I’m excited for all that it stands for (March Madness and St. Patrick’s Day). I already have some ideas for St. Patrick’s Day, and I can’t wait for March Madness- gotta get my Bracketology on.

Tags: bethesda, blog, capitals, dc improv, debauchery, ducks, dupont circle, fun times with friends, hockey, holidays, march madness, mighty ducks, nick di paolo, u-street, washington dc

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Happy New Year! It’s about time for 4075, 4074 was so passe. The year of the Golden Pig- a year that comes every 60 years. I’m lucky enough to be born under this sign. I actually went out to celebrate it a little, I visited Chinatown in DC to see some Dragon dancing and firecrackers. I saw Mayor Fenty there, I don’t know why he has to wear that hat all the time- it makes him look way sketch.

I even went into Eden Center to buy some food for dinner tonight. Way to embrace the Vietnamese Patrick.

Last night I went out with some peoples to Union Jacks, it was an ok time. Tomorrow is a holiday so I hope to get lots of rest. I think I was getting sick with something but I fought it off with some Cold-eeze, and I did eventually take some Airborne. I don’t care what my boss says now, it works!

Ok time for that food.

Tags: adrian fenty, airborne, bethesda, blog, chinatown, cold-eeze, eden center, food, holidays, seven corners

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Well it’s been an awesome week for going out. Thursday was the Strauss Radio holiday party. It was at this swanky place in Adams Morgan. I got to hang out with some of my work favorites and I met the head of ABC News Radio in DC amongst others. Afterwards Chandra and I went to Ragtime where we sat next to this creepy looking guy and had dirty martinis. Carolyn picked me up to end the night.

Friday was a fun time at work; I got some hardcore editing done with Paul (my freelance editor). I managed to once again put awesome music into my work. This piece is going to feature P. Diddy’s Victory- now I thought the instrumental was original but I discovered that it’s actually a sample of Going the Distance from Rocky. No wonder they used it in the Rocky Balboa trailer. After a long night at work I went up to Lindsay/Sarah/Doug’s house for our Holiday pot luck dinner and Secret Santa. I provided bags upon bags of salad. Greg brought potato latkes and let me tell you- I totally love them. It’s like a classier hash brown. Diana got me the latest Guster CD, and I can’t wait to listen to it. I got Sarah a pirate book and a bottle of wine- two things I know she loves. I was so glad and relieved to see her beam at my present. It’s so stressful sometimes to get a gift you hope someone will love. But in the end it’s all worth it. The book had all these trinkets like treasure maps and pirate oaths. I know that Sarah will be digging holes in her back yard all winter. Diana got season 1 of Wonder Showzen (a show I later remembered watching with Bill and Mel one late night). We popped it in and if you haven’t seen it, I recommend watching it late at night while either drunk or high- it’s better to comprehend that way (I think must have been one of the two when I watched it back in Fitchburg). After the party I drove over to Carolyn’s and hung out with her friend Hillary and her cousin Tony.

Saturday I turned 23- it’s weird to think I’m getting old. What ever happened to college and partying day after day? Well at least I was able to party that night. My friends took me to Baltimore to this cute bar in the inner harbor called Howl at the Moon. Sarah won a happy hour party so we were getting crunked at 6 PM. Oh that was definitely a long night. All I can remember is dancing to Shania Twain on stage in front of the entire bar, ordering, various writings on my arms, seeing Laura win a pole dancing contest, people buying me all kinds of drinks, buying 12 jello shots for all my friends, taking two more jello shots from Supergirl, ending up in Bethesda where I snuck into the Palisades and headed over to Union Jack’s, and definitely making some drunken texts and calls. One of those calls was my mom, who called me in the middle of the night to wish me a happy birthday. That must have been an awesome conversation. All in all it was a great birthday. Thanks to everyone who called, texted, and posted shit on my Facebook and MySpace pages. This isn’t my first birthday away from home but it is my first one in DC and away from Massachusetts- as I said in my jello shot toast, I am really thankful to be able to pick up my life, move it somewhere else, and still manage to surround myself with wonderful people. I am thankful for all my co-workers, family, and friends. They have really made life in DC enjoyable. I was afraid that I’d know nobody down here and I started off not knowing anyone. I’m really glad to have the friends I’ve made so far- and I know it’s only the beginning. To my other friends back at home I’m thankful that they haven’t forgotten about me. When I come back next week I can pick things up where up and have a great time with them for the holidays. I love you all.
Damn that was a great way to end my post- too bad I still have more shit to write. So today I treated myself to a Red Barron pizza and Smoked Salmon for my meals. Clearly a fattie moment. I went shopping today and got myself a new cell phone case (Teha broke mine at the Strauss holiday party). I also got other goodies for my house. Now I hope to crack open some Xmas cards and start on that shizzle (As Chanelle would say, or maybe she uses that word in a totally different context). I still have to do some holiday shopping but I still have one more week before I have to take another long drive to Massachusetts (thank goodness I have EZPass this time). I wished I could of gotten some cool GM cars to take back to New England. I’m getting to test drive some cars before and after the Holidays. I got myself a Pontiac G6 this week and after I get back, a Saturn Aura. I’ll write about those experiences later!

Ok time to watch The Office Christmas special and write cards!

Tags: abc news, adams morgan, baltimore, bethesda, birthday, blog, cell phone, clarendon, debauchery, food, friends, fun times with friends, holidays, montgomery county, p.diddy, rocky, the office, wonder showzen, work

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After a long day at work on Friday I’m in the middle of a nice long weekend. Bill
and Kim couldn’t make it up so that’s sad. But what was great was I met up
with some new friends in Bethesda and we did it up all night long. Went to
this place called Union Jacks, it’s pretty cool- like the Wine Cellar but
ten times cleaner. Girls in DC aren’t that bad at all- and they seem to get
action way more in the bars. Ok well I gotta catch up with my work- I’m
being so lazy on the weekends! But then again when am I not?

Tags: bethesda, blog

Originally published at The Definitive Dmbosstone. Please leave any comments there.

My neck hurts. Last night it was hurting and I think I made it worse in the gym. Oh well. This weekend I went out with Danielle, it’s nice to have some schoolmates in the area. I went out to her apartment over the river in Bethesda. It’s really nice- like millionaire status luxury. We went out bar hopping around Northwest, found some good places that we’re going to make weekly stops at for now on. I saw the Washington Monument from afar and realized I was a block away from the White House. It is our goal to get drunk and take photos in front of it. The rest of the week was busy. Work’s going well, I’m really starting to get comfortable now that I have job duties and stuff. The other interns started this week and they are really cool girls from George Mason. Kim Conner has been the best, we’ve been sending e-mails to each other and we found out that her and the ASB crew are flying into Dulles in March, hopefully we can have a little reunion that week. I have the bestest friends in the world.

Tags: bethesda, blog, debauchery, fun times with friends, george mason, washington dc