"if isis listened to mariah, there would be no war"

i think i went to karaoke 4x in a 2 weeks.  chinese new year karaoke was kind of miserable with a washed up duo trying to outsing out rap and out scream each other.   so the next weekend i had to do it right.   inspired by daytime mariathons of love takes time on youtube....i did two amazing nights in a row at biny where fernando couldn't find our bottle the second night and ended up giving us a new bottle.  and as i raved about how much fun i had at karaoke then, it inspired 88 greenwich to have karaoke session part 4.   singing with 19 year olds puts songs in perspective esp when "i think i've heard of alex to before...."














“Nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” 
― Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild

by now, lifes ups and downs are priced into your experience on earth.  how you much you grow from each experience is up to you.  people deal with things differently but it seems all roads lead to a solid foundation of friends and family to turn the corner.   after reflecting upon a day of midtown bar lunch, a late show, a ktown lawyer event, commodore fried chicken i realized my advice was trumped by the great seth meyers...

look in the mirror and give yourself positive affirmation....

"i am a powerhouse..."







Kevin McCallister: Oh no. My family is in Florida, and I'm in New York...
[Gleefully]
Kevin McCallister: My family's in Florida... I'm in... New York?

my family left me at home alone for a month.  they told me to 看家。。。 so i joined the local retro fitness gym.  a throw back 90s gym donned in yellow and red which could have easily accommodated women in unitards and crop tops along side body builders in spaghetti strap U neck tank tops but this is 2015.  and these gyms are reserved for high school football teams lifting for mass..."can i work in with you??"

the gym in the burbs is a far cry from the equinoxes in manhattan.  100 dollar shorts and matching outfits with pristine fly knit sneakers are replaced with ratty college athletic wear, lacrosse mesh shorts and a headband working out not for vanity but rather like u're still clinging onto that state championship from 7 years ago.   obviously, i fit right now.  

even my weekends started to fit in w the bridge and tunnel crowd.  douchebag workouts accompanied by douchebag dinners at stk.  followed by pravda.  a stop at chomos.  gemma.  then louie and chan.   followed by brunch at marta the day after....







good thing i didn't go to the ny public library...and double checked that it was the public theater...








"we don't have to go crazy tonight..."

taiwan skiing tour groups to japan are cheap.  but if u have a lop to visit and end up flying into tokyo on your own....the economics of the trip just went out the window.  that was the least of my worries.  because as soon as victor and i are in a room, just about everything goes out the window.  my flight was delayed, the ride in from narita took forever,  but everything seemed to recalibrate as we sat down for our first meal.  i woke up with feria drink tickets in my pocket and zero recollection of going to feria.  i remember shots at geronimo.  and i remember irish carbombs.   and i vaguely remember eating when we got home.   and with that hangover...i lugged my dignity and two pieces of luggage from hiroo station to ueno to the shinkansen to sendai station to the local train to the sendai airport...only to then take another hour and a half bus ride to mt zao in yamagata prefecture.

the 5 days i was up there....i i destroyed myself daily. physically on the slopes...gastronomically with sodium, and mentally with alcohol.  it was an amazing time.  food fun friends and incomparable powder.   so by the time i made it back to tokyo on thursday night,  i was exhausted.

"hey buddy...im a little tired.  lets just sit here for a bit."
"ok.  hurry up...i'm hungry"

and before i knew it. it was 8am. we had aggressive plans to go biking, swimming, running, shopping on friday.  all plans were cancelled as we laid on the couch, watched an iq reducing movie about spring breakers and piranhas while ordering burgers and chowder.  we just laid around until josh got in, until we would have to do it again.  until we would have to re-do the epic-ness that ensued the previous night.  re-do all the high fives.  re-do all the "omg i can't believe this is happening".  re-do all the "i need this...lets make it epic"....and basically, we did it again (sans powerhouse).  till 8am.

burnt ramen kind of made me feel better.  the novelty was much cooler for my instagram than the taste.  walking around shopping got the adrenaline flowing, just enough to make it home in time to put together a shirt tie and jacket combo for johns japanese wedding after party at the new andaz hotel in toranomon hills.   i was still sweating and fatigued from 2 consecutive 8am nights, but only found solace in the free flow yamazaki at the civil get together.   they served western food with a kara-age plate.  we drank beers afterwards upstairs.   and the night ended expectedly early, only to have my body in odd shock.  as midnight would be the typical trigger point the past two nights.  so we went to eat.  and we had sake.  and again...i was a couples therapist.

i have zero credibility when it comes to anything really.   but when it comes to a social setting, when it comes to conversation...maybe what im able to bring to the table is the ability to push the conversation.  to assess the perspectives,  run through each choose your adventure option logically....fundamentally....theoretically...and that friendly sounding board is invaluable.  i dont preach.  i can't, im not sure of myself enough to do that...(as evident when i tried coaching high school football).   i dont like being told what to do, so i dont tell people what to do.  i believe in the basic iq of my peers to find their own path....and usually they do...tho...some conversations are more frustrating than others...and that's just cause for more drink.  so my friendship is two fold.  an outlet.  and a bad influence.  take your pick.  GODSPEED.

i almost felt lucky to have to rush back sunday...as i knew my body needed a break.  and snow monkeys and onsen would've just been a complete wash.  so i rushed back.  rested sunday...and tore it up the rest of the week.    i'll never learn.
























when there's a snowstorm in nyc...and u can't fly till the following week...and u've finished everything u had to do in a half ass way the day you were supposed to fly...taipei is a dangerous place for an interim period...it becomes a dangerous alcoholic binge in the interim....

i dont even know what night is what night anymore....