These past few weeks have been what seems like a huge burden on my shoulders. With PACN, Midterms, and Ultimate Brawl coming up, I never get a moment to sit down, relax, and catch my breath. Along with the three things I mentioned, there are a bunch of little things here and there that seem to pick on me whenever I get a chance to chill, or should I say "chill".
Which is what brought me here tonight... I usually remember this place as a place where I took a loved one on our special days, but today was different. Don't get me wrong, everytime I come here I think about her and the times we've spent here, but all I came here for this time was to take a breather from the mile-run we call life. Shit's been hitting the fan lately, and damn is it hard to clean up. I just needa make it past this week before I can finally slow down, and stop this train.
Today marks 52 years of my Dad's living and I can't be more proud and happy for him than I am now. His birthday just makes me think about all the struggle he's been through in his life and how he's changed for so much better. From being raised in the poverty of the Philippines to fighting through the struggle of beginning a new life here in the US, he's come a LONG way. Happy Birthday Dad, hope you enjoyed the pho.
Well, it's not so mysterious actually. One night after dance practice, all of B-Mod (myself included) found good-luck notes and and endless amount of inside jokes written on the windows of our cars. Some we're hilarious, while others were kinda inappropriate. Regardless, I was tired of not really being able to see out of my windows and the words were fading, so I washed them off. Besides, my car needed a wash anyways.
Fusion X. Another one of the Big 5 competitions that all the teams look forward to competing in. Being that it was my first, I was just there to enjoy the atmosphere and experience, and show the world simply what I love to do. Barkada Modern was their name. Represent? Hell yes.
A special shout-out to the Manucal family for letting us spend the night at their humble abode for the night. It saved us the trouble of waking up early and driving all the way to SanDeezy in the morning and this is how we thanked them.
Has nothing to do with this blog. But speaking of which, the celtics don't stand a chance this playoff season. I did get my ears pierced this past weekend however.
Easter Sunday was a nice, chill day and after being so fking busy lately, it was really nice to spend time with my fam, who i feel like i haven't seen in forever. We all went to church around 9 and hit up the local Pho joint (Pho Ha) for a Sunday brunch.
World of Dance, also known as WoD, is the largest West Coast urban dance competition that took place this past Saturday at the Pomona Fairplex. With focus on uniting today's Fashion and Independent Street Wear with the art of Freestyle Dance and Urban Choreography, World of Dance is the largest touring event connecting with the urban youth dance lifestyle and Barkada Modern was lucky enough to be a part of it.
If you hadn't noticed our SICK costumes at WoD, or even in the video, here's the man behind the designs. Paul Basallo. Now out with his first line titled, "PaulJames", be on the lookout for his unique designs, and funky fresh dance moves.
Jessi, Jay, Bobert, and I carpooled and made our way there to meet with the rest of the fam, stopping by a gas station, to stock up for the long day ahead.
As we arrived, we ran into some Common Ground and 909 homies, Carl being one of them... To be completely honest i think one of the only reasons we remember each other's names is because we have the same name.
B-Mod made their way inside and the moment we caught a glimpse of the stage and the crowd we'd be performing in front of, we knew it was on.
Byron, unfortunately, had been given the job to watch all of our stuff as the "kids" went out to play, or bird-watch. Might I add that it was a beautiful day in the season as some of the colleagues and as well as myself, were fortunate enough to witness some of the rarest types of species.
Not only is WoD a huge dance competition, but it's also home to some of the biggest b-boy battles, one is allowed to witness and some of the sickest streetwear vendors around.
Some were so amp'd about this event that they expressed their excitement through hairstyles?
Youth division had just ended, and the upper division was about to begin. Our call time had come and it was time for us to get ready and discuss the game-plan.
I don't get it either...
The time had come... where all of the blood, sweat, and tears pay off, where the dance community gets to witness everything we've been working towards, and most importantly Barkada Modern's time to shine. (Please watch in HD and wait for it to load).
The performance felt AMAZING. I truly felt as if we all had ripped our hearts out and left in on that stage. I felt the vibe, the energy, and each other. To be honest I don't think there's ONE team out there that has as strong a bond as Barkada Modern.
After our performance, we stuck around to watch our fellow competitors, show off all of their hard work and dedication. So I took a few snaps.
Marvelous Motion. (3rd Place)
CADC.
Choreo Cookies. (1st Place)
The night slowly came to an end as the award ceremony took place, and we felt amazing. Although we didn't place (Congrats to Choreo Cookies, PAC Modern, and Marvelous Motion!), the dance community knows who we are and they know we're bringing it hard this year. Every judge gave us great compliments, and our average scores were right up there with teams like CADC and GRV, so don't think this is the last of us. You just wait...
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