sketches of the mind

Here’s how I became an accidental SingStar…

Last night on my way to a friend’s place (where I’m staying at the moment) from my parents’ place I decided to swing by another mate’s place to see if he was home. As fate would have it he was, and I caught him and his girlfriend on their way out to a barbecue. Funny thing was the barbecue was down the street! So I tagged along.

The barbecue was interesting - complete with drunken guys playing poker (with real cash), my friend talking to his cousin for the entire duration that we were there about fishing (not exactly one of my passions so I tuned out after a while and focused on the poker), a spit roast (tempting but no I resisted, and I’d already had dinner anyway), and lots of alcohol (again I resisted).

About an hour later we left the barbecue and headed back up the street.

It was then when the Sony Playstation 3 came out. It was actually the first time ever that I’d seen or used the console. I’m not much of a gamer these days. We played some game with cute characters which reminded me of Donkey Kong Country from back in the day before the real fun begun.

That’s right, it was Singstar time!

Ive been hankering from some karaoke for ages but none of my friends, well except for Jose-Jose, in Toronto are really into the whole singing in public thing. I enjoy it for laughs more than anything else. Nothing like making a fool of yourself from time to time

So Singstar is basically Karaoke with points, and it’s an absolute blast!

Unfortunately I didn’t have my camera on me (silly me left it in the car) but I had a great time rocking it out with my friends until 2am or so. I’m tempted to get my own PS3 now just for that one game.

So seeing as there’s no video of us, here’s some random stranger who’s actually very good at the game:

My voice is now in recovery mode, and it was totally worth it

If you were around in the late 80’s then you may remember New Kids On The Block…

Well they’re back… again. This is the second comeback effort. The last one didn’t go too well. I suspect this time they might do a little better. Teaming up with Ne-Yo for “Single” will definitely win them some fans.

I have to say, I heard the song one day last week and I was hooked. It’s typical cheesy pop but hey I wouldn’t expect anything less.

Their new album “The Block” is now available for purchase, and it features some other popular artists such as The Pussycat Dolls, New Edition (R&B super group of the 80’s), and mega producer Teddy Riley.

For all the latest including tour dates check out nkotb.com.

You know, there’s just not enough random fun and silliness in the world today. That’s just me generalising of course but that’s how I feel sometimes. So I’m thankful that groups such as Improv Everywhere and Newmindspace continue to come up with some crazily creative concepts like today’s MP3 Experiment.

The mission was simple enough:

1. Download the Mp3.
2. Load the track onto your mp3 player (iPod, etc) or burn to a CD for use with a “Discman.”
3. Do not listen to the track.
4. On Sunday, wear a t-shirt that is one of the following colors: Red, Blue, Yellow, or Green. (Long sleeves / sweaters are OK too.)
5. Bring an umbrella and an uninflated balloon. (Any kind of umbrella. Any kind of balloon that can be blown up.)
6. Bring a watch with a second hand (or use your cell phone if it displays seconds.) Before you leave, sync it up to this atomic clock.
7. As 2:00 approaches, take a seat anywhere on the field. Spread out and don’t sit too close to others who look like they might be a part of it.
8. At exactly 2:00 PM, press play.

The meeting point was the Southern end of Riverdale Park, and when I arrived there by bike I was surprised to see all the people there dressed in reds, blues, yellows and greens. The sight was just great!

At 2pm the fun began. Soon everybody was following the instructions on the MP3 and that made for some hilarious moments. I thumb-wrestled, hugged, played twister, and balloon battled with total strangers and there were a few familiar faces in the crowd too (glad to know I’m not the only crazy person amongst my circle of friends!).

I was far too busy participating to take any real decent photos, and I didn’t even have my DSLR anyway. To view some awesome captures from the event refer here.

Other people who attended the event thought it was a success too. Can’t wait to see what IE & NMS come up with next!

Speaking of MP3s if you’re not a fan of iTunes (like me) then check out Floola. It’s a small and cool self-executable application that a CS friend of mine (Bernard) put me onto. Works really well with any Apple Ipod product. Doesn’t work at all with my Samsung MP3 player unfortunately.

My friend LiLi Roquelin finally got a music video done for her song “I Saw You”. I love it, the direction really works well with the music and as always LiLi looks great.

Check it out here:

I missed meeting up with LiLi last time I was in NYC so I’ll definitely have to catch up with her next time I’m there, or if she comes to Toronto for a visit

After a 15 year hiatus Cirque Du Soleil returned to Toronto. I was fortunate enough to catch the show last night at the Air Canada Centre with Neesa and her brother. This was my 3rd Cirque Du Soleil show (I saw Quidam in 2004 and Verekai in 2006, both in Sydney) and as always it was a feast for the senses!

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