Monday, November 09, 2009

VICENTE FERNANDEZ - The VFG Concert 11/08/09

This Mariachi filled concert was scheduled to begin at 8:15 p.m. on Sunday night at The Gibson Amphitheatre inside The Universal Studios in California. My friend Queru and I arrived early enough to purchase a couple of Margaritas to get us in a Mexican Fiesta mood=D

Here’s a curious fact about me. When I go to concerts, I enjoy dressing up for the occasion – depending on the concert. And I enjoy checking out other people’s clothes, men and women! At this concert, there was a mixture of Good Taste “Vaquero” and “Club-Like" dressy attire. And I also enjoy taking small swifts of the various aromas of colognes the guys wear. Weird you say? I know, I know but good smelling colognes is a passion for me & I enjoy it=/

This was the third of ten concert performances for Chente, at this venue and it was packed! Queru and I found our Mezzanine seats (which were awesome) and exactly at 8:17 p.m. the show began with Maribel Guardia (instead of Shaila Durcal whom was originally scheduled) – as an opening act.

Let me tell you…I’m a woman. But I can definitely acknowledge when another woman is a professional at her field or beautiful. Maribel is both! And she entertained men - and women alike - by singing five songs for us and made us laugh with her adlibs, quick improv, and funny anecdotes between each song. I had never taken the time to pay attention to Maribel on TV before but, I must admit, that I was quite impressed with her singing ability, (her gorgeous) long straight black hair AND…her shapely body.

It is hard to believe that this woman is 49 years old! We should all look that good at any age, let alone at almost 50...Dang!


As soon as she waved good-bye and walked out, Vicente Fernandez walked in and the audience’s applause ROARED! We greeted him with a Standing Ovation and he walked in beautifully dressed in an off white Charro Suit and an impressive embroidered Sombrero. He belted out the first of sixty songs he performed for us! After this first song, Vicente told us his current Motto, “Mientras ustedes no paren de aplaudir, yo no paro de cantar” (As long as you don’t stop applauding, I won’t stop singing). “…Asi por lo menos desquitan el mendigo boleto que compraron…” (This way the money you burnt on your ticket is worthwhile). And so...he sang hit, after hit, after hit, after hit for us for the next three hours. =)

When I say “sang”, I mean “SANG”. 69 year old Vicente can still belt out the classics we’ve come to love with such feeling and a lot of strength. Many of the songs were constantly chorused by all of us of course, and Chente would just allow us to sing them all on our own. He devided the songs & segments by the composers and we were treated to; Joan Sebastian, Martin Urieta, Jose Alfredo Jimenez, Juan Gabriel and a couple of songs written by him as well. Up until this point, I was not aware that Vicente had written “Las Llaves de mi Alma”! He asked us to sing it to him and so we sang the entire song as he soaked in the words he, one day, wrote down on paper. This is a very beautiful song.

And talking about – beautiful songs – we were also treated to a brand new song that is not out yet. I think it is called “El Que Mas Te a Querido” (The one who’s loved you the most). It is a beautiful ballad that depicts the love a Father has for his daughter, in comparison to the love any other man can provide to her. I say, this song will be a great hit and definitely danced - by Dads and daughters - in future Quinceañeras and Weddings.

Waltz Snippet of "El Que Mas Te a Querido"
My friend Queru decided to keep count on the amount of songs he offered us, just to see how much each song would be worth, at the end of the night LOL. Now, as my dear brother Jose commented to me, Vicente tends to get a little tipsy while performing. (Let me comment back to you my brother, he also smoked two cigarettes while singing=/) He has an assistant serving him small shots. The minute Chente would place his empty glass on the table, it was quickly replaced by a new one. I’m not quite sure what drink he was consuming but it was a bright gold one in color. Tequila??? Maybe! He did mention that it was sweet. Throughout his performance, he’d give-a-way a freshly poured drink to some of the fans sitting in the front row, much to their delight=D Queru, (along with counting the songs) attempted to also count his drinks, but…lost track=/ I'd say he must have had no less than ten. Yikes! I hope he had a designated driver. Ji,ji,ji.

…Back to the Terrific Music…

Vicente sang the songs that introduced him to the world, many of his classics, songs that are Mexican Staples, a set of songs made popular by 70’s Artists & redone with Mariachi and many of his new hits. The crowd’s cheers and applause roared at the beginning and at the end of each song. I did get goose bumps with many of them as I sang along, but the one song that was the culprit of bringing tears to my eyes was definitely, “Aca Entre Nos”. The power in his voice and "El Sentimiento" that he puts in his interpretation, is what did it for me=,(

Chente loved putting his hands behind his ears - to amplify the sound of the crowd - singing along to his songs. He interacted with his audience of an equaly enthusiastic mixture of young and old fans alike and would wave at each section of the theatre acknowledging all of us, clicking his glass in “cheers” with some of the people in the front row & gave away four shots to some very excited fans. He also received a long stem rose, took out the plastic wrapping, cut the long stem down and graciously wore it on his lapel for the rest of the night. Grabbed a Stetson “Tejano” hat, wore it for the entire song then returned it back to the fan. And the best part of all, he grabbed a cell phone that was handed to him and sang a good part of his song in to it. Now, I don’t know if there was someone on the other line listening to Chente sing to them or if the cell phone’s owner was recording it as his voicemail, but either way, that was cool!=D

Chente singing on the Cell Phone

So after three entire hours of being serenaded by Vicente Fernandez, I can honestly say that I enjoyed this concert very, very much. I had been trying to see him for the past three years and the tickets were always very expensive and Sold Out! Thanks to Queru’s (new) Long-Distance-Beau, that gave her two $149.00 dollar concert tickets for her birthday. And thanks to Queru whom in turn - generously gave one of them to me for my birthday - I was able to finally witness this Legend in concert before The Lord calls him for his own $2.48 per song concert in heaven.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Michael Jackson's THIS IS IT By: Chely



I thoroughly enjoyed this Film/Documentary/Concert!

I think that you don’t have to be a hard core Michael Jackson fan to appreciate this movie. Everyone’s hard work, dedication and creativity are here for us to see and that in its own…is IMPRESIVE!

My Comadre Gladys invited me to accompany her to the “This Is It” preview & grand opening of “The Regal Theatre”. This gorgeous, three-story theatre is now part of the AEG Live group in Downtown Los Angeles, California. Gladys had tickets for the 10:00 p.m. show and we were concerned about the traffic and parking availability because, there was an event in just about every venue surrounding the Nokia Plaza. Add the opening of the Regal Theatre, plus the preview of the movie that was filled with many celebrities.

Gladys & I agreed to be there an hour earlier (anticipating the crowd) and were pleasantly surprised to have found parking right away! We walked towards the theatre and were directed to line up along with many, many people. It had been a very windy day and we were prepared but although the wind blew, the weather was comfortable enough to chit-chat for an hour.

THE THEATRE
Ten minutes before 10:00 o’clock we were ushered inside in a very orderly manner. We got to walk the red carpet and there were a few TV Cameras still filming this event. All the attendants in the theatre were very helpful, cool and extremely polite. We walked in and said “WOW”. Took the escalators up to the third floor and said “WOW”. Looked at the enormous hanging chandelier and said “WOW”. Looked down to the lobby from the third floor and said “WOW”. As we walked in to the designated theatre, I heard a man say, “Hmm, it smells like a brand new car!” It sure did, everything is brand new, the seats were very comfortable and even the restrooms had cool features that left you impressed. LOL Needless to say, this theater in Downtown L.A. is worth visiting.

THE MOVIE
I will not provide detailed information on the movie for the benefit of those of you who are planning on watching it. I do want to recommend to you when you view it, to keep in mind that this was never intended to be filmed as a big budget feature. This was footage from the Michael Jackson Estate’s Archives that ended up giving us a look at a Concert that never was to be.

Many of the camera angels are up close and on stage. I liked this because it gave me the feeling of being right up there with Michael and to experience the effort and determination to perfect every single move for his show. It interested me to know the details of what goes into an election of the best of the best. With this I mean, that the best dancers around the world were chosen, the best backup singers, the best musicians, the best guitarist, the best visual and special effects technicians – and all of this was always supervised and approved by him.

I was surprised - every time - the set up for a song would be presented. All the concepts, the backgrounds, the dancers, the visuals, the effects, the fusion of the visuals with the live performances were impressive. I especially liked the updated Thriller intro and enjoyed the backdrop scenery for his 70’s songs.

Every single hit song he was to showcase had a specific and intricate choreographed dance, concept, visual, surprise element and message to it. But I cannot deny his ability to sing and dance. At almost 50 years of age, his voice was strongly still there and the moves…undeniable!

I can only say that if this show would have gone as planed, it could have been one of the BEST LIVE CONCERTS EVER!


The above is only my perspective, as a music lover in general, who appreciates and applauds the hard work and dedication of this art form.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Life is like a Roller Coaster.

Yesterday, I was reading past Newsletters and Posts and came across this comparison I wrote back in December of 2006. It was originally written as "a comment" to my friend Lori on her Blog. She responded by saying that, what I wrote could have easily been a post in itself. As I read what I wrote, I couldn't help but smile at the fact that I still feel this way today. And as to how fitting it is at this point in my life. So after three years, I decided to post it as a blog.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"...for me, as scary as they may look, I ALWAYS enjoy the ride on the ones I choose to climb...."

The following are my Roller Coaster/Life thoughts when I'm faced with heavy choices:

The feeling of anticipation as we slowly struggle upwards to what seems an endless climb. Once we're on top, the feeling of fear we get as we think that we are not going to withstand the freefall we foresee. Some of us close our eyes until it's over but some of us keep them open so that we don't miss the entire experience. Oh, what a thrill it is to complete this journey and to realize that our thoughts were scarier than the ride itself.

We find ourselves with the realization that it wasn't as bad as we expected and that this experience only pumped us up and filled us with the adrenaline which provides the drive to either try it again or tackle bigger and better roller coasters.

But I must be wise! There are some coasters out there that I prefer to leave alone. On these, I rather just admire their intricate structure and applaud those who are brave enough to withstand the experience. Choosing not to ride them does not make me feel weak, but rather sure of my physical and emotional capabilities and limits. Roller coasters are not for everyone, but I am happy that they exist because without them, life wouldn’t be as thrilling.

It is ALWAYS empowering to share our courage and our fears. I am blessed to have family and friends I can count on to climb these coasters with me or to simply just cheer me on from the sidelines. I want you to know that I am here to share the ride with you but if distance keeps us from doing it so, then you can rest assure that I too will be on the sidelines cheering you on.

I love you

Chely

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Chely's Timeshare for Rent!

[Double-Click on picture to get a better view of the room!]




Last June, I took my friends on a great, mini-vacation weekend to my Timeshare in Palm Springs. Once there, I attended an “Owner’s Meeting” in which I was updated on new features and privileges of owning this particular Timeshare.

I have had this property for about 15 years now. Originally, a “Studio” (holds 2 people) was purchased which consisted of:

A Kitchen
A Bathroom and a
Dining Room/Living Room with a sofa-bed only.

Seven years later, it was upgraded to a “Suite” (holds 6 people) which consists of:

A fully stocked Kitchen
Dining Room
Living Room
(all living rooms provide sofa-beds!)
Two Bathrooms
Two Bedrooms
(One of which is a Master with a King size bed.)


The main reason it was purchased was, because realistically, vacationing with a family of 5 can be extremely expensive. Thereby, minimizing family vacations. Not only does the resort have Five-Star Amenities, but walking into the Suite has all the comfort of walking into my very own Luxury Apartment. And having a fully stocked Kitchen provides dining affordability for our family. Who wouldn’t enjoy affordability?

The timeshare is pretty much the Entertainment Venue at this point because they all have:

Huge swimming pools and Water Slides
Billiard and Game Room
Bar and Lounging Areas
Exercise Rooms
Daily Fun Group Activities
(Planned for anyone who’d like to join in with the rest of the guests, just like on a cruise!)


When it was originally purchased, I only had access to about three (3) properties. The original in Palm Springs, one in Lake Tahoe and one near San Diego. The beauty of my purchase is, that my Owner Contract automatically makes me owner of; not just the original one I signed up for in Palm Springs but all others AND…any future resorts that are built. Well, “Monarch Grand Vacations” has definitely honored this for all owners like me. They now have grown & expanded to nine resorts! One of my favorite ones is “Cancun” in Las Vegas, Nevada and I’ve yet to visit the luxurious “Cabo Azul” in Los Cabos, Baja California, Mexico. I’m soooooo looking forward to getting there very soon! And last for now, a tenth one is in the planning stages in beautiful Hawaii as well!

Back in the day, as owners, we could not rent it to others. The idea behind that rule - we were told – was that by renting it, owners who’d rent their timeshare would decrease the availability for other owners and their families to enjoy it when they required it for their leisure. However, times change! There are now nine (9) properties and more on the works remember? And I have access to all of them=)

Just calculate…How much would a one night’s stay at a hotel cost you? And that is just “Sleeping Quarters”. This is an APARTMENT! Realistically, many of you don’t normally stay at your hotel when you reserve a room, because your destination is usually a specific Entertainment Venue, right? However, consider the timeshare stay when you are low on funds but still would like to take your family out on vacation or would like to travel with a group of friends for a good “Pachanga”. Bringing your own food and cooking it in a Kitchen that is stocked with ALL Appliances (Refrigerator, Stove, Microwave, Dish Washer, Blender, Coffee Maker) Dinnerware & Silverware, Pots, Pans, Baking Molds & Salad Bowls, and Cooking Utensils (Knifes, Spatulas, Can & Wine Openers, Ect.) certainly helps any budget.

Even if you were to go to a specific Entertainment Venue (such as: Vegas, Sea World, Baja or Snow Skiing per se) coming back to an Apartment or Penthouse (holds 6-8 people & includes 2 Jacuzzis) - which I can also provide – is the perfect "After Party Place", I think=D


So, with this expansion, availability has increased as well, providing owners the opportunity to rent them now! Since I know that many of you LOVE to travel, I’m officially offering you, my family and friends, the opportunity to request vacation reservations in any of the following:

[Click Resort Name to see Pictures & Location to see Information]
Cabo Azul Resort
in Lake Tahoe

Cost for reserving the Apartment in the Resorts varies depending on the day of the week and the Hi-Peek or Low-Peek Seasons of the town they’re situated in - just like any other Hotel. I believe that The Cancun in Vegas, Tahoe Seasons in Lake Tahoe & Cabo Azul in Los Cabos, Mexico is Hi-Peek Season year round though. But, it ranges between $60 to $100 a night. Three years ago when I reserved the Penthouse in Las Vegas for 8 of us, it cost me $300.00 Total for a 2 Night/3 Day Stay. We each ended up paying $37.50 for the entire weekend stay.
I'd say...That's not bad! Not bad at all!

If you are interested in visiting any of these places, “Reservations” are on a first-come-first-serve basis so, with this in mind, try to plan ahead and provide reasonable notice for me to help you set up your vacation.

I hope you consider my offer as a potential future Vacationing/Party destination and look forward to finally sharing it very much with you all. Click the links above to take a tour of all the Resorts and obtain information on the accomodations.

Besitos,

Chely

Thursday, October 08, 2009

~ M Y B R O T H E R S ~ M Y H E R O E S ~




~ A brother is a friend given by Nature. ~

~ Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero. ~

~ Siblings are the people we practice on, the people who teach us about fairness and cooperation and kindness and caring - quite often the hard way. ~

~ There's no other love like the love for a brother. There's no other love like the love from a brother. ~

~ A brother shares childhood memories and grown-up dreams. ~

~ To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. ~

~ As we grew up, my brothers acted like they didn't care,
but I always knew they looked out for me and were there! ~

~ I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see. I sought my God, but my God eluded me. I sought my brother and I found all three. ~


Thank you Fide & George for being the BEST brothers a sister could ever have. I pride myself in the relationship & love we've shared throughout the years. My friends have had to sit and listen to me talk about you guys, many, many times. Ask, and you'll see! I thank God for giving you guys to me. I know I can always count on you, no matter what. You've proven that to me, time and time again.=)

I love you guys<3<3


Your sister - Chely