Behind the White Coat

Thievery Corporation NYC

So I finally got to see my favorite group, Thievery Corporation, perform live in NYC on May 21st!   If you haven't heard of them before (which is quite likely) Thievery Corporation is a DC based duo who produce their genre defining chilled-out lounge music.  Combining percussion beats with electronic blips and bleeps, instrumentals, and various vocals from all around the world, they create a unique blend of electronic fusion.  From chilled out candlelight songs, to dancing in the car upbeat rhythms.  It's the kind of music you can lay back on a Sunday in the park or beach with you iPOD, listen to after a long night of partying, or pop in for a road trip.

The event was held at Spirit nightclub (the former Twilo).  Fun and sophisticated crowd, comprised of eclectic Thievery lovers from college kids to hipsters to professionals.  A stage setup of 3 different types of drumsets, guitars, horns, an electic citar, turntables, synths and the whole deal, and a slew of wicked lights and visuals to complement.  They brought in guest vocalists who ranged from Rasta, South American, Indian and others who really put the feel in their tracks (I am not sure if all of them did the vocals for the recorded versions though).  They played a lot of their hot tracks including The Lebanese Blonde, Richest Man in Babylon, Le Monde.  And they payed a lot of stuff from the new album.  Twas brilliant!   Not too crowded, everyone got to see the stage and get full face value of their live show.  They will often be around DJing at various clubs as well, as they have several mixed CDs out, but if you havent expeienced them live, you my friends, are missing out! 

Of course no night is without incident...  As Amber recounted to me her trip to the ladies room midway through the show, some girl apparently stole some other girl's bag, and there was some ruckus, and the next thing she knew, there werre 4 girls beating down this other girl, smashing her against the stall walls, and kicking her on the ground...  Quite shocking considering the crowd wasn't even ghetto... But in the words of Lil Jon, "There's about to be a what? GIRLFIGHT!"

I am working on getting the video clips I took online... See if i can figure that out!

Till then, Go download some of their music!!!

Thievery Website: http://www.eslmusic.com

Back Porch Sundays, Part 2

Saturday night was my cousin Amber's birthday held at Rhone in the red hot meatpacking district.  Big showing of many friends, random peeps, and lots of liquor had us going well into the next morning till 4:30am.  Back at the 'condo' (i.e. Yat and co.'s apt), I could barely sleep until about 8:30am because of the damn pimp's car circling around 28th street blaring the same fucking song over and over again (Bobby Valentine).  Damn hookers.  Anyway, I finally slept, but was mistaken in thinking that one wild and crazy night would conclude the bulk of my weekend's festivities.. For this was only the beginning...

Sunday awoke me from a 3 hour slumber by its warm sun and blue skies.  Now who could have predicted we would have ended up at the same table of the same bar as the previous Sunday with 42oz margaritas and twice as many people?  Apparently Teesh and Yat did.  For it was the long awaited margarita challenge, Yat vs. Teesha, that brought us all together that fine (for many blurry) Sunday afternoon once again, at the Back Porch.  Put about 15  twenty-somethings in an outdoor bar with gigantic margaritas, get them to play college drinking games, and what are you going to get?  Well for one, some really angry patrons sitting at the next tables.  We were literally out of control.  Drunken, scandalous mayhem to put it lightly.  But we were definitely having a blast.  Yat and Teesha had both finished their 42oz drinks, so the score stood even at 1-1 (high score means you lose!).  But the day hasn't ended yet has it?  We have to keep going, it's only around 5pm! Beer Pong you say? are you serious? Shit why not.  It was then I heard the laugh, the scream, and the rusting thump of bodies and chairs as I saw Teesha take a fall, with either Anuj or Yat falling down with her.  Please note witnessed fall #1.  Unfortunatley I only got a pic of them helping her up. But believe me, She fell.  Teesha: 2, Yat: 1.

So off we all went to Whiskey River a few blocks down.  Of course the journey was a belligerent yet vivdly entertaining one, the highlight of which included witnessed fall #2.  This time, Yat was the unlucky recipient of a double piggy-back jump courtesy of Nuj and Ronak.  The Rock might as well have given him the Rock Bottom right onto the sidewalk, because we all heard and saw the loud body-to-concrete thump that even spooked the pigeon straddling the adjacent garbage can.  I managed to snap the post-fall recovery, as Yat examined his battle wounds on his forearm.  Teesha: 2, Yat: 2

Whiskey River had a sole (yet ideal) table for beer pong (a.k.a. beirut).  Between ping-pong balls flying back and forth, downing of beers, spectator shots, and dabbing Yat's bloody wounds every 15 min, Teesha remained locked in the bathroom the whole time.  Refusing to open it, she spent well over 45 min locked in there.  At one point we heard this loud bang and thump, which we presumed to be unwitnessed fall #1.  She was eventually discreetly ushered out of the bar and home into bed by a few friends.  Teesha: 3, Yat: 2.

After that most went home, but a few of us finished off the night at Le Souk.  Sunday nights were pretty hot:  good house music, nice lil crowd, and the always tasty hookahs.  We even ate there, and the food was surprisingly quite good.  Nothing like ending a wild Sunday night with a drink, a bite, and a smoke of shishah.  When Smitty and I returned to the condo, we learned that Yat had lost himself in a drunken stupor, was belligerent, and just passed out.  Sorry Yat.  Teesha: 3, Yat: 3.  Looks like the main event is a draw!  I look forward to the rematch....

Party Now, Sleep Later

The crazy weekends of debauchery never seem to cease. As the end of med school approaches (T-minus 3 weeks), we maximize our weekends (and weekdays for that matter) with as much partying in NYC as we can. Friday night went off with a bang for my 27th (ugh) birthday party at Libation on the LES.  It was packed, and this was dangerous for me since everyone tried to buy me drinks. I maintained my consciousness (barely) throughout the night, mainly by avoiding the scotch and tequila shots, and having lots of interim water (but falling victim to attacks on my dignity.  A fair trade for staying alive). Nonetheless, I kicked back about 15 shots (everything from Jager bombs to SoCo), and about 8-10 cocktails. I don't know how I remained standing, and how I (barely) didn't throw up, but it was stalworth performance if I don't say so myself. The end of the night was a little blurry, but someone threw me in car, and miraculously got me home to bed in the Bronx.

Post-hangover on Saturday, I thought maybe we'd have some good clean sober fun somewhere.  Instead, about 10 of us somehow ended up at the Back Porch in Murray Hill, downing giant 42 oz margaritas at about 5 in the afternoon. It was pretty much all downhill from there.  Though Steve and Smitty came close, the most drunk award went to Yatin, who was so hammered, he threw up twice and couldn't even make it out later that night.  He even got out-drank by Teesha! (Granted she poured the pitcher into his mouth). Congrats to Yat.  We were so loud and obnoxious, I think the whole neighborhood was thrilled when we left.  Later we hit up the new Kush. Larger than the last one, beautiful decor and setup, with great music as always.  A great night out!

After another Sunday packed with eating, galavanting, and chilling, the Bronx dwellers of the group finally made it back home. Of course 5 minutes from home, going 45mph where I should have been going 25mph, I got pulled over by an undercover cop. Son of a bitch! "Do you know what the speed limit is here?" he asks. I told him sorry, we are Einstein students, and I was just excited to be almost back home in the Bronx (yea right). He took my information, came promptly back, and said "Ok buddy, have a good one. Just take it easy." Wow. This doctor thing is finally begining to pay off! A crazy weekend of drinking, hanging out with lots of cute girls, and ending off by a cop letting me go free, which has never happened in my many encounters.  What a way to go out.... We are now Untouchables.

I am retarded

I really am retarded.  So I mentioned before how I scheduled my USMLE Step 2 Clinical Skills exam (the one where actors play patients, kind of like that Seinfeld episode) for June 20th in Los Angeles, and was planning on spending the weekend in L.A.  Today as I browsed my paperwork, I realized that my residency orientation is actually on the 20th!  Good lord how did I miss that? 

So now I must reschedule my exam, which I will probably take on the 6th of June.. Then I can still spend a weekend in Cali, though its gonna cost me about 75$ to change my plane ticket.  Oh well.  Hopefully I can still go somewhere between then and June 20th when my life for the year will come to an end.

In other news, I think I found myself an apt...  A 'unique' place on 77th btwn 1st and 2nd.  Very spacious, very old building, and an interesting layout.  At leat Im living back near my old hood.  I used to live on 204 E 77th btwn 2nd and 3rd, and I almost got the EXACT same apt as I had 4 yrs ago!! Too bad someone had applied for it literally 3 days before I called that broker.. What a shame.. But I will be happy if I get this studio...

Getting Old

So May 2nd I turned 27.  Now usually I've always looked forward to birthdays.  Excitement about another year of celebration, hitting 18, turning 21, and other milestones of leaving childhood and becoming a man.  But what is there now? I am 27.  This marks my entrance into the "late 20s".  Is that something to look foward to?  I am just one step closer to being 30.  And there aint nothing exciting about that!!  So from here on, it's all downhill.  Granted my maturity level is closer to 21, but I am leaving the prime of my life.  I just hope year 27 is as good as year 26 was.  Though one positive I have going for me is that I can tell people that I really am a doctor now.  Scary eh?  Anyway, if you want to send me money or a gift, I will gladly accept it.  So please people, do not hesitate.  (I'll send you sizes etc. upon request)

Now I sit here in the library of Long Island Jewish Hospital.  My final rotation of medical school, Neurology.  I happened to be in the "hard" site, which translates into I don't get to leave till 4 or 5pm, and do minimal work throughout the day.  Though the patients are somewhat interesting.  A lot of strokes, seizures, and movement disorders such as parkinsons.  But I've already seen some interesting things, like a guy with hearing loss, headache, likely from the 2 synchronous brain tumors on MRI that may mean Neurofibromatosis.  We had one guy with a vertebral artery dissection causing multiple embolic strokes to the posterior circulation, which was interesting as well.  So it is not super bland, but I have a severe case of senioritis, so naturally I am seeking to the bare minimum for my last month. 

Anyway, if anyone out there wants to party on Friday, come check out Libation on the Lower East Side.  It is bound to be a crazy night of debauchery.  I hope I can keep my composure this time, and hopefully I can remember some of the night.