Now as for my past weekend, I didn't expect on doing shit for those past two days, but apparently I manage to survive with some decent experiences.
My weekend started off with an experience not so decent. As many of you who have been reading this website for the past two years or have known me for quite a while, you've probably already know that I sold my car on Thursday. That car was a '95 Nissan Sentra XE that I was given to by my parents five years ago. They've actually been driving it ever since they got it from the old Culver City Nissan dealership back in the summer of 1995, when the B14 Fourth Generation model first came out that year. After my moms switched the title from her name to mine a year after I got the car, this was the first and only vehicle I ever owned. I had to get rid of it cause the transmission was no longer functioning, and its been parked in front of my pop's driveway since the beginning of the year. But damn, I had SO much great moments while driving that whip. It went from driving 4 of my shit-wasted fimmaking roommates back to our place in Oxnard from a kickback that was busted by the cops in 2006 to driving all the way to Lancaster back in the summer of 2009 late at night on the 14 freeway without my license, in which I realized after I drove past Acton and there were 2 CHP patrol cars and a Sheriff's car that was behind me for a while without their lights who so happened to drive past by me later. I didn't get a whole lot for selling the car, and I don't give a shit about the price. But other that than, its been a great ride (pun intended) for the past five year with that vehicle.
Then on Friday, I literally spent the whole day with my little brother. It wasn't intended to be planned like that cause originally I was gonna go with him to the barber shop at Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza and back home that had supposed to be 2 hours, which then turned into 12 hours. My little brother's Ford Taurus kept awkwardly stopping several times on the road and once on the off ramp to La Brea Ave from the 10 Freeway east. I had to keep on depressing the gas pedal in order to start the engine every time the car stops. We actually did make it to the mall where my little brother got his haircut done. After that, it took us a very long time to get back home to the Valley, other than taking quick stops at Samy's Camera to develop and pick up my film prints and to eat at Carl's Jr. in Universal City. Also, the sun was setting when we were driving back, and obviously, every road in the Greater Los Angeles was filled with gridlock traffic, which took us even much longer.
We went on Ventura Blvd instead of the freeways, and to our surprise, the traffic on that road was smooth than usual at that time. By the time we approached Granada Hills, the temperature on my brother's Taurus spiked to the high reading and I had to pull over at the McDonald's next to the Knollwood Country Club to let the engine cool down. By the way, for those who know me very well, that's literally about a mile away to his house, which is where I used to live at. After about 30 minutes of waiting, I started the car up again, but this time, the engine wouldn't ignite just like before. My brother got really upset and he wanted me to call a tow truck to take it to his place. He assume that it wouldn't bee to much money since his house is less than a mile from where the car is parked at, but after I spoke with a tow truck company in Granada Hills, I told my brother that the base rate to get it towed is $70 and $5 extra per mile. So instead of risking to invest alot on getting the car towed, we just left it there and walked back home so that he can take car of it the next day.
As we were walking home, my brother expressed his emotions over his phone to my sister about the whole situation. I don't blame him cause gone through much more of the worst shit with my whip than his. I remember back in late August of 2006, I was driving on the 101 freeway to my parents house in Granada Hills from my old summer place in Oxnard (this was a week before I moved out of Ventura County to return back to the San Fernando Valley). Just as I was driving by Newbury Park and was about to approach Thousand Oaks, my car of a sudden slowed down, which I then had pull over, and then the engine blew off. Couldn't start or anything. There I was, an 18 year old filmmaker two months fresh out of high school stuck in the Conejo Valley with no money to get it towed to Granada Hills or back to Oxnard. Keep in mind, this was WAY before I got into cars and knew about automobiles like right now. I made my pops drive from my uncle's house in Mid-City to come out to Newbury Park so that he can help situate all this, which ended up having him tow my car all the way to a Pep-Boys in Westlake Village. That was a terrible way to start Freshman year at Valley College. (before I went to Pierce a year later)
Then on Saturday, I spent the whole day just scanning and touching up my prints that I just got developed a day before until my good friend Joanna Rodriguez wanted to meet up in Hollywood. So I took the subway down there and met her at the Egyptian Theater there on Hollywood Blvd. Now I haven't seen her in two years and it felt like I just saw her recently. We were about to go to the Hard Rock Cafe where the old Virgin Megastore used to be at, but it was just too damn loud in there. So we went to the bar inside the new Rolling Stone restaurant on Hollywood and Highland. Suddenly as the very last second when the bartender was about to approach us, I then told her that we should go to the California Pizza Kitchen across from the Rolling Stone restaurant. We just pretty much caught up with each others lives and bringing back that time that I did that epic photoshoot of her back in 2009. Later we walked by every club in Hollywood Blvd from Kress to the new Supperclub that just opened a month ago and poking fun at those people in the long ass lines who won't be able to get in one the clubs that reach at full capacity. We didn't want to go inside any of the clubs but we went back to our homes though. Thanks again for the lift back to Valley, Joanna. Wish you the VERY best in your Nursing career.
Next on Sunday, I got a text from my friend Marlene, who's the sister of Aftergloam's Elvis Galvez, saying that she's throwing a Barbeque party for celebrating one of their friend's birthday (HAPPY BELATED, JULIE CANIZALEZ). I gave her an 8x10 portrait I took of her when I first met her at Elvis' place last year on his birthday party. Plus, it happened on the same day when Game Six of the NBA Finals was taking place in Miami. I didn't think Dallas Mavericks would win on that day, but it was great to see the OG athletes like Jason Kidd finally getting a championship victory in his long career and Mark Cuban ACTING A DAMN FOOL ALL OVER THE CLUBS IN SOUTH BEACH WHILE CARRYING THE LARRY O' BRIEN TROPHY. I'm surprised he didn't get jumped or stuck up by some coked-up goons on Ocean Drive that night, but he's a billionaire and I'm sure he had the top of the line security that had their chest made out of bullet-proof muscles to protect the team owner's life. Other than that, it was fun being at the DLT's that day for another weekend kick back and taking photos there. Major shoutout to Marlene for checking out my websites. And another shoutout to Yvonne and her daughter Mia. Great seeing them again and I wish all of them the best.
One last thing. I've said this before and I'll say it again. May is now the new June. I say that cause last 2 weeks there have been a lot of graduations that usually supposed to take place this week or next week just like before. Many of those graduations were from people I knew from high school who have finally completed their University studies or the requirements to complete Community College. Alot of people will gripe about paying extra for tuition or having to give up a relationship to study for a test that's being assigned every other day or to only receive about 40% of the funds you paid for your textbooks that you bought at the beginning of each semester for the past 4 years during buyback week or having to give up traveling and clubbing with your roomates just to makeup some units during the summer sessions. Degrees aren't just for what you're pursuing in, but it shows how much challenges that you invested so much time (I won't say money for this purpose) you put in over the past four so years, and its worth it when you look back at it. It's very great to see my friends finally reaching that point. Seriously.
By the way, fuck Microsoft's Steve Balmer and his blue collar-ass staff in Redmond for their back to school promotion of getting a free Xbox 360 for buying a new Windows 7 Laptop or Desktop. Apple invented that shit with the free iPod Touch with a new Mac computer for the past several years. Hell, I'd flip the gaming console for some new textbooks or a years worth of scantrons, bluebooks and change to use for the Laundry machines at the dorms. And in terms, or mid-terms, of taking a break from homework? Shit, I'd rather take the semi-hot girl with the black thick rimmed glasses that I would meet at a study group to Skateland in Northridge than to increase the number of "kills" on the Call Of Duty series over Xbox Live.
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