Bridge Crosswalk

Downtown crosswalk to Nvo. Laredo

Looks better in a picture than it does in person. Nonetheless, I'm going there later today to take some pictures. (Pic found on city-data.com)

MakeupJunkie18's Youtube Channel

Doing some simple searching on Youtube for local Laredo videos, I somehow stumbled upon Makeupjunkie18’s blog and Youtube channel.  Jennifer is the person responsible for some interesting makeup and fashion videos that she has posted on her channel for the others to view and take note.

The thing that caught my attention about her videos is how at ease and carefree she seems in front of her webcam. I would like to be that comfortable in front of the camera myself, but the only thing I ever show on online is my hairy hand. :)

Back to Jennifer and her  Makeupjunkie18 alter ego. A quick visit to her blog reveals her love for creams, nail polish and even cotton swabs. Her blog has a clean, smooth layout and it even had me reading some of the reviews for the various skin creams. (Yes, I use skin creams.  The hot sun damages my skin OK!)

After poking around her blog and viewing several of her video reviews for a while, I shot her a quick email to see if she would be willing to answer some questions for a written interview.  I had seen that her channel had over 3,000 subscribers so it was a little bit of intrigue and jealousy that drove me to learn some more about this local girl producing her own makeup reviews for the web. I asked her some questions to learn about her hobby. 

Questions and answers are found below the page break.

Tweety's Upgrades Sign

It looks like my favorite snack shack upgraded to a brand-spanking new sign to lure customers zooming by on Loop 20. They even spelled Tweety's right this time. Yeay!

West Express Closes

Some days are just death to your heart.  They splatter your soul over the scorching concrete with the hatred of a thousand Confederate soldiers.

 I lived through one such day just several days ago when I learned that my personal Mecca of movie mayhem, West Coast Video, had officially shut down its doors after more than two decades of proudly serving Laredo. With the advent of Netflix, Redbox and rampant pirated dvds, it was only a matter of time before most video stores were forced to shut down due to dwindling traffic and business. Locally,

both Movie Palace and Hollywood Video closed down several years ago, and now with the passing of another video great, only Blockbuster and the automated Video-Matic are left standing.

Throughout the 90s, West Express Video was my second home.  It was a place where I could aimlessly wander the aisles for an hour on Friday nights in a futile attempt to choose between the latest Wesley Snipes action flick or the absurd acting found in a Stevan Segal film.  Other than my other main temple, Movie Palace Video, West Express was my go to place to rent the latest comedy releases or choose from their extensive selection of 70s slasher horror.

The best thing about West Express is that for a long time they were located adjacent to the Mr. Donuts/Dunkin Donuts on Guadalupe. How closer to heaven could it have been?

 It was the perfect combination: videos and donuts. Many times, my brother and I went down and bought us a dozen donuts and rented several flicks to enjoy at home. The 90s were a great time and West Express Video was the perfect spot to rent a good time or two.

Now, I ‘m saddened to see it go the way of the VHS. Nonetheless, thanks for the memories, West Express Video. It's just too bad we can't rewind the years.

Follow me Around Laredo

BluePimpnChick, a video blogger and budding movie director, has apparently watched one too many "Jersey Shore" episodes and decided to chronicle her life on the digital landscape. She takes her camera phone, POV style, and films everything she encounters around her city as she drives " her tia and her Grandma's sisters" to the store.

Along the way, we are treated to some informative nuggets as BluePimpn and her 'lil sis share their insights as they make their way down the busy streets of Laredo.

Sample dialogue from the video is found below.

Things I learned while watching this video:

1)      “Walking down stairs, this is where my grandma fell.
She fell all the way downstairs”

2)      “its payday, but we aren’t allowed to cash our checks till Monday”

3)      “For all your Mother’s out there, happy late Mother’s day”

4)      “You know how they say we Mexicans have big families..well everything is bigger in Texas”

5)      “Oh my God, my ex BF works at HEB”

6)      “Look Tony’s truck, que aguite en el bank”

7)      “In a little bit more, I’ll take you guys to your favorite section, the makeup section. Holla!”

BluePimpnChick may be on to something here. Watch her follow-up video, here. She ventures downtown and even encounters some prostitutes walking the West Side.

In her words, "Im not kidding there's sometimes  prostitutes here. I don't even know if I'm supposed to be saying that or not".

Wow, gutsy! Good for you BluePimpn, keep saying it like it is y no te aguites. Someone had to say it.

The Jolly Ranchers

Everyone's favorite local cover band, The Jolly Ranchers, did a nice photo layout with the good people at TheNightScene. Stop by their site and check out some of the pics.

Disconnected

The last several days have been torturous for me. Several days ago, or what seems like eight blue moons ago, I inexplicably lost my 'smart phone'. Apparently, while my phone is "smart", I still remain the same-ol' clumsy and forgetful person of always.

I did not know just how much I depended on my phone, how addicted I am to it, or how my life is intertwined to it to such a degree, that I feel lost without it.

Since I misplaced my phone last Friday, I have been "out of touch" with the "outside world". I have missed texts, forwards, tweets and Facebook updates. I'm always on it checking scores and highlights, especially during boring dinner conversations. Heck, I have even missed several important phone calls and have needed to resort to making calls from a dreaded payphone outside seedy convenient stores, like some third rate pimp circa 1991.

Not only do I have to make calls from a payphone, but I have to be fumbling around, looking everywhere for phone numbers of my contacts. Since all my contacts' phone numbers are stored on my cellphone, I don't have to dial anymore, hence I don't have anyone's phone number memorized, except for my mother's house because she's had the same number since the dbc*.

I've been feeling disconnected without my cellphone. I haven't even been able to take pictures of silly things around town to post up on this blog.  I use my cell phone camera for that. What's worse, I been forced to listen to local radio instead of my TuneIn Radio App on my webOS phone. That is just cruel punishment.

For now, I still don't have a cell and can't really get one until about a week from now.  Until then, I will remain disconnected from reality and might even have to resign myself to actually make pleasant conversation during dinner.


*dbc = days before cellphones