I am lucky to say that I know this dude. We met when we were sophomores in high school and started making music together in May 2004. We had no idea what lied ahead of us, but since that moment, he has been killin it.
I feel that he has what it takes to be successful, not because I am biased, but because I believe Hip Hop needs a voice like this.
Here's to my boy, Alan. You can call him Keno.
And the Beat Goes On...
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
The first day of the rest of my life...
To start - I miss Karen Aficial. High Bubba!!
In the past two and a half months, I have been slowly easing my way into a routine where I have a regular sleeping pattern and where my eating habits are decent . But as always, in classic Alex fashion, I do something to throw off the entire routine by adding something to the schedule. Last week, I decided that I am going to go full force in trying to learn Japanese. I thought of different options: I can use Rosetta Stone, take private lessons once a week, or just get drunk at an izakaya (local bar) and learn the drunk Romeo lingo. In the end, I decided to go big or go home.
This morning I started a 3-month intensive where I am taking a beginner's Japanese class, Monday-Friday, from 10-12. I must say that I felt a little overwhelmed because of course, the entire class was in Japanese. The Language basically slapped me in the face and told me that I have a lot of work to do. She was mean to me today. But looking on the bright side, it is another opportunity to get better everyday. I thought it was pretty cool to see the other cultures that were learning Japanese for the first time. It is interesting to hear a Koreans, Chinese, and Spanish people learning Japanese with their respective accents.
In taking this class, I figured that I should dedicate this next three months to learning a foundation of the language so that I can at least have small talk with the locals. I feel that it is necessary to sacrifice these next 3 months in order to get the best experience for the rest of my stay. As ETtheHipHopPreacher says, "At any moment, you need to be able to sacrifice what you are for what you can become." For whatever it is that I will become, I am willing to sacrifice.
I also feel that learning a new language fluently will be a step towards my career, whenever she decides to reveal herself. I hope she likes me when she finds me.
And the Beat goes on...
In the past two and a half months, I have been slowly easing my way into a routine where I have a regular sleeping pattern and where my eating habits are decent . But as always, in classic Alex fashion, I do something to throw off the entire routine by adding something to the schedule. Last week, I decided that I am going to go full force in trying to learn Japanese. I thought of different options: I can use Rosetta Stone, take private lessons once a week, or just get drunk at an izakaya (local bar) and learn the drunk Romeo lingo. In the end, I decided to go big or go home.
This morning I started a 3-month intensive where I am taking a beginner's Japanese class, Monday-Friday, from 10-12. I must say that I felt a little overwhelmed because of course, the entire class was in Japanese. The Language basically slapped me in the face and told me that I have a lot of work to do. She was mean to me today. But looking on the bright side, it is another opportunity to get better everyday. I thought it was pretty cool to see the other cultures that were learning Japanese for the first time. It is interesting to hear a Koreans, Chinese, and Spanish people learning Japanese with their respective accents.
In taking this class, I figured that I should dedicate this next three months to learning a foundation of the language so that I can at least have small talk with the locals. I feel that it is necessary to sacrifice these next 3 months in order to get the best experience for the rest of my stay. As ETtheHipHopPreacher says, "At any moment, you need to be able to sacrifice what you are for what you can become." For whatever it is that I will become, I am willing to sacrifice.
I also feel that learning a new language fluently will be a step towards my career, whenever she decides to reveal herself. I hope she likes me when she finds me.
And the Beat goes on...
Sunday, April 17, 2011
An Ode to 220...
Of all the times doing this song, this is one of my favorites...
And the Beat Goes On...
And the Beat Goes On...
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
2 Months In...
What an amazing journey so far!!
Here's a little video of how I'm feeling two months in, as well as a tour of my room (I saw my friend Emi do something similar, so I wanted to try it). But before I do that, here are the notable quotes that I have come across in the last couple months.
"You are the only shadow standing in your own sunshine." - Fabio, Top Chef
"Can't is the cancer of happen." - Charlie Sheen
"A man who correctly guesses a woman's age is smart, but he is not bright."
"Wise men are not always silent, but they know when to be."
"I'm fresh to death, I'll see you in the afterlife." - B.O.B.
Music in my playlist -
1. Mos Def - World Premiere
2. Keno - Ohso1derful
3. Tribal Theory - Reggae Party
4. Snoop Dogg - Boom
5. Marvin Gaye - Ain't Nothin Like the Real Thing
And the beat goes on...
Here's a little video of how I'm feeling two months in, as well as a tour of my room (I saw my friend Emi do something similar, so I wanted to try it). But before I do that, here are the notable quotes that I have come across in the last couple months.
"You are the only shadow standing in your own sunshine." - Fabio, Top Chef
"Can't is the cancer of happen." - Charlie Sheen
"A man who correctly guesses a woman's age is smart, but he is not bright."
"Wise men are not always silent, but they know when to be."
"I'm fresh to death, I'll see you in the afterlife." - B.O.B.
Music in my playlist -
1. Mos Def - World Premiere
2. Keno - Ohso1derful
3. Tribal Theory - Reggae Party
4. Snoop Dogg - Boom
5. Marvin Gaye - Ain't Nothin Like the Real Thing
And the beat goes on...
Monday, February 28, 2011
Ayooo Aight
This is one of the funnest times I've ever had on stage. This is Fusion X, a hip hop dance competition in San Diego, CA. There was about 2000 people and we got the show started proper. Big ups to AngieGirl on the beatbox.
And the Beat Goes On...
And the Beat Goes On...
Sunday, February 27, 2011
The Pre-Requisite For Writing is Having Something to Say - Langston Hughes
I have been in Japan for 3 weeks and as simple as it sounds, my assessment is that Japan is a cool, intriguing country.
Osaka itself has 20 million people and it is considered the nation's "kitchen". There are restaurants everywhere, and when I say everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE. Any kind of Japanese food you want, you can find in a small radius. People always say that it is expensive, but if you look, you can find some places where you are not breaking your pocket to eat. I have slowly found my places to eat, especially my versions of drunk food (since there is no 24 taco shops). When you enter restaurants here, you will hear people yelling "Welcome!" in Japanese, and once you sit down, you are greeted with a warm towel and hot tea or water, depending on the time of day. Although there is no tipping in Japan, each person works with a passion to give customer service. They take pride in their work.
The train system is crazy. There are too many train/subway lines for me to count and that is not including the local trams. They are unbelievably punctual and each train stops exactly where it needs to, and by that I mean that the train stops on the platform where there is a marker for people to get on and off. I'm blown away by the accuracy, timing and complexity of the train system.
The people. People here are such hard workers, and for the most part, that is all they know to do. I have heard that some of our students go to school for 12 hours a day. And I thought I had it bad. Many people here run their own shop and everyone takes a break between 2-5. This is something that I wish the United States adopted. We would be so much happier and more productive.
On a personal side -
I have learned soo much in the past 3 weeks. Oh man. First off, it was funny to hear for the first time that I had an "accent". When someone told me that, it never dawned on me that that was possible. I always thought to myself that I'm normal and everyone else has an accent. But when I was told that I have a heavy American accent, I was caught off guard. My training group consisted of 9 people total from various English speaking countries: England, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Boston, New York, and of course San Diego. It has been cool to learn the different lingo from all of these different parts of the world.
When I came here, I was brought to become a teacher of English, but I did not know exactly what I was getting myself into. I basically had a two-week crash course of how to be a teacher with this company and I had my first day as a teacher yesterday. Wow, what an experience. I taught classes with kids that were 1 and a half to older women in their 60s. I was extremely nervous in my kids class because their parents are in the class as well. I had to get the kids to participate by singing songs and acting a fool of myself, but it was rewarding experience. Because kids are afraid of change, one kid saw me and instantly started crying. I felt so bad. I didn't know what to do. I also met the cutest little girl. Her name is Chihiro. She was very shy, but at the end of the lesson she said bye to me like 5 times. That made my day.
Although I feel that I've learned a great deal in the first 3 weeks, it is truly only the beginning. Now that training is done, I am going to have the opportunity to meet more Japanese people, as well as other fellow English speakers. I have yet to find what this country really has to offer and I have yet to find what it is that I most certainly want.
The Journey Continues and the Beat Goes On...
Osaka itself has 20 million people and it is considered the nation's "kitchen". There are restaurants everywhere, and when I say everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE. Any kind of Japanese food you want, you can find in a small radius. People always say that it is expensive, but if you look, you can find some places where you are not breaking your pocket to eat. I have slowly found my places to eat, especially my versions of drunk food (since there is no 24 taco shops). When you enter restaurants here, you will hear people yelling "Welcome!" in Japanese, and once you sit down, you are greeted with a warm towel and hot tea or water, depending on the time of day. Although there is no tipping in Japan, each person works with a passion to give customer service. They take pride in their work.
The train system is crazy. There are too many train/subway lines for me to count and that is not including the local trams. They are unbelievably punctual and each train stops exactly where it needs to, and by that I mean that the train stops on the platform where there is a marker for people to get on and off. I'm blown away by the accuracy, timing and complexity of the train system.
The people. People here are such hard workers, and for the most part, that is all they know to do. I have heard that some of our students go to school for 12 hours a day. And I thought I had it bad. Many people here run their own shop and everyone takes a break between 2-5. This is something that I wish the United States adopted. We would be so much happier and more productive.
On a personal side -
I have learned soo much in the past 3 weeks. Oh man. First off, it was funny to hear for the first time that I had an "accent". When someone told me that, it never dawned on me that that was possible. I always thought to myself that I'm normal and everyone else has an accent. But when I was told that I have a heavy American accent, I was caught off guard. My training group consisted of 9 people total from various English speaking countries: England, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Boston, New York, and of course San Diego. It has been cool to learn the different lingo from all of these different parts of the world.
When I came here, I was brought to become a teacher of English, but I did not know exactly what I was getting myself into. I basically had a two-week crash course of how to be a teacher with this company and I had my first day as a teacher yesterday. Wow, what an experience. I taught classes with kids that were 1 and a half to older women in their 60s. I was extremely nervous in my kids class because their parents are in the class as well. I had to get the kids to participate by singing songs and acting a fool of myself, but it was rewarding experience. Because kids are afraid of change, one kid saw me and instantly started crying. I felt so bad. I didn't know what to do. I also met the cutest little girl. Her name is Chihiro. She was very shy, but at the end of the lesson she said bye to me like 5 times. That made my day.
Although I feel that I've learned a great deal in the first 3 weeks, it is truly only the beginning. Now that training is done, I am going to have the opportunity to meet more Japanese people, as well as other fellow English speakers. I have yet to find what this country really has to offer and I have yet to find what it is that I most certainly want.
The Journey Continues and the Beat Goes On...
Sunday, February 20, 2011
From Karen.
"as much as you might not perceive it, you are a huge inspiration to everyone. the aura you exude is extremely captivating especially to those you come in contact with, its the truth. i respect your will to inspire. alex, you've allowed us to witness what it takes to achieve a dream...passion, hard work, and determination. you never settled for less...you never gave up alex...i admire that.
if it means anything to you, i want you to understand how significantly you influence my life. you reinforce my desire to become a better woman. ever maturing, ever learning, ever growing in more ways than you know. thank you, really.
continue to inspire each and every one of us throughout your adventure in japan, we're all listening.
"
watashiwa anatawo aishitemasu,
bubba.
if it means anything to you, i want you to understand how significantly you influence my life. you reinforce my desire to become a better woman. ever maturing, ever learning, ever growing in more ways than you know. thank you, really.
continue to inspire each and every one of us throughout your adventure in japan, we're all listening.
watashiwa anatawo aishitemasu,
bubba.
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