Obits

Por que es asi mi pueblo?


I know it ain't right to question those who have left this earth to enter another plane, but Laredo's obituary section is always fascinating.  Whether it's the odd nicknames that people stick on the last testament (like "La Naranja" Lopez) to their loved ones, or whether it's the choice of attire (or lack thereof) that really makes me wonder about my fellow Laredoans.

Take, for instance, the photo above.  It has now become my wish that when I pass on, I also want to appear shirtless in my obituary.

The Death of Video Stores

One common theme of DeLaredo Blog has been the acknowledgment of the slow, painful death of Laredo's video stores.  I have to admit--it often brings a tear to my eye to realize that the video stores are dying.

Why?

Because I am a nostalgic at heart.

I like things to stay the same.  I fondly recall driving towards the Calton Road H.E.B. and checking out the dozens of VHS (!) tapes on the shelves of the Hollywood Video store right next door.  Then, later, as I grew older, I recall going to the many Blockbusters throughout the mighty city of Laredo, whether it be on McPherson or elsewhere.

And now there only remains a Redbox machine here, or a Redbox machine there.  It's so sad.

It's been a couple of years since the disappearance of these video stores and more.  But there are still some reminders of an era gone by out there in Laredo.  Oh, they may not have had VHS like the old days.  But, they did have DVDs.  And, more  importantly, "Exotic" View videos too.  Orale.

Carne, Cruda and Cascarones

For a million and seven reasons I have been unable to post anything new in the past couple of weeks. I could say it's due to lack of time, but that would be a lie. Or I could try to spin it and say that my lack of updates is due to not having any material to post, but that would be both pathetic and false. Even more so, I could throw a curve-ball and say that I haven't updated due to my pressing social life, however; anyone that knows me could smell the bullshit from eight tamales away.

In the end, it does not really matter why I haven't updated; I just haven't.

 But yesterday, Easter Sunday, while munching on my carne asada tacos and dodging cascarones and water balloons, I came to a realization and one that I will share with you very soon.

Resurrecting my personal life, and by extension this blog, has not being easy, but I'm certain that I have found a blueprint, and now I'm ready to use it.

Untitled

Oh

Bigwigs

Bigwigs waving at the crowd

Waiting for the parade to begin

Standing by the Coffee Dolce and still waiting for the floats to appear. I should have stayed in bed. #Laredodowner

The Future

Many men know for certain when The Time finally arrives. And it has nothing to do with wedding bells.
Rather, it comes from inside the soul.
Maturity finally strikes full force and it makes men jump into the arms of eternal commitment. I know it for certain that my time has arrived. That's all I was waiting for.

From Laredo

Don't forget to visit our new sister site, FromLaredo! More information soon.

Hal Holbrook in Laredo

As soon as I heard Hal Holbrook was coming to Laredo, I jumped in glee at the possibility of meeting one of my favorite actors and an icon of both cinema and stage.

For those of you who might be unaware, Hal Holbrook will once again reprise his role as Mark Twain at the TAMIU Fine Arts Hall as part of the Sanchez Lecture series. No doubt, Mr. Holbrook is known for his role as Mark Twain as well as a long list of credits in countless other films, but I could hardly care less about any of those.

To me, Hal Holbrook is that old guy that appears in one of my favorite awful slasher films from the 1980s', "Girls Nite Out" (originally titled "The Scaremaker").

Girls Nite out is not just a horrible movie, it's a terrible slasher film with a confusing plot, ineffective acting and quite possibly some of the dullest kills ever imagined. One almost has to ask: What the hell is Hall Holbrook doing in a movie like this?

And that is just what I plan on asking him, if I get the chance to go. That is a big IF. How can I pass up the chance to meet a horror/slasher legend (Creepshow, The Fog)?

So, just in case, I plan on taking my VHS copy of Girls Nite Out in the hope of getting it signed by Hal. Well, still not convinced in the awesome-badness of this film, check out Final Girl's review here.

The Legend of Billy Jean (movie)

    Growing up, we hardly ever had HBO. Come to think of it, regular cable was a luxury hard to come by as well. However, every now and then, HBO would offer those free weekend promotions where they featured their programming in an attempt to sucker people into subscribing

It was on one of those magical Saturday mornings, when my older brother and I, lounging around the house and having the time of our lives watching  the movie "The Legend of Billy Jean", made one of the most important discoveries of our then-young lives; the movie actually mentioned "Laredo"!

"What about that school in Laredo? Did you burn it down?"

You might have seen this movie 1,000 times back in the day, and to be completely honest, one of the only reasons to ever watch this movie is not only for to cool pop 80s soundtrack, but also for the cool way that Laredo is briefly mentioned in the film.

Supposedly, many scenes from the movie where filmed in and around the Corpus Christi area, and every now and then I still get a kick watching it on late night cable (yeah, I can afford cable now, Thanks Obama).

Nonetheless, if you have never enjoyed the 80s fromage that is The Legend of Billy Jean, click the YouTube link below. It's uttered at minute 59:50.

Walking through Laredo

Some of you might have noticed that recently my blogging output has slowed down to a trickle. That is due to several factors with the major reason being that I have recently moved from one residence to another. Because of the move, most of my time has been absorbed in that transition. Now that I am beginning to be firmly settled down once again, I can begin to sit down and blog about my city like I have for the past three years.

However, it was during this move to my new "home" that I came across something that once meant the world to me: my Sony Walkman with MegaBass.

similar to my trusty Walkman, but in better condition

 You see, back in the late 80s and through out the 90s, whenever I would jog or run through the dangerous streets of south Laredo, my trusty Walkman was always hanging off my belt clip, like a can of police-issued mace. Also with me I carried various music tapes, usually the home recorded-off the radio variety. I loved my Walkman and off course I took it to school for boring French class with Mr. Jacobs, rocked it on Saturdays at the old RiverDrive Mall, and carried it with me on the rare Sundays that my primos took me cruising to La Sanber (er Sanbe to some).

Sometime in the late 1999, I lost track of my battery draining Walkman and it did not resurface until 2009. I was at my parent's house going through an old box of mine when I spotted my closest friend since the time of Zack Morris and Kelly Kapowski. Time was not kind on my trusty Walkman, but after putting in fresh batteries and sliding in my old copy Grupo Mazz's "No te Olvidare", the Megabass shook my body, like a visit from Monica Lewinsky.

I slapped on my warm-ups, grabbed my Walkman and trotted out into the stray-dog filled south Laredo night, as if the the past decade had never happened.

I just now this is going to be a great new year, even if it's not 1995.