Season Two, Episode Eleven: Review: “Valentine’s Day”

For the Hallmark-created "holiday" also known as Single Awareness Day, err, I mean, Valentine's Day, I decided to watch Valentine's Day with a couple of my single friends. Coming into the movie, I wanted to keep an open mind since inevitably, I would be comparing it to Love, Actually.

Comparison to Love, Actually is inescapable. In the interest of full disclosure, I happen to thoroughly enjoy Love, Actually, and so I had hopes (though slightly dampened) about Valentine's Day; after all, in my experience, the US adaptations usually falls short of the originals (for example, Ringu (The Ring) , Abre los Ojos (Vanilla Sky) and L'Appartement (Wicker Park) among others).

Directed by Garry Marshall (of Pretty Woman and The Princess Diaries fame) and screenplay written by Katherine Fugate, the whole movie unfolds during Valentine's Day as it follows the lives of several couples, and their stories are told through the seemingly benign interconnections they have with each other.

The movie presents the clichéd conundrums about love that people face; there's the "love-between-two-best-friends-who-don't-know-it-yet", the "we've-been-together-a-long-time-but-I-have-a-secret-that-can-ruin-our-relationship" scenario, the "I-have-a-girlfriend-AND-a-wife" quandary, and the "grade school crush" dilemma.

What was billed as an all-star cast surely is; Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Topher Grace, Anne Hathaway, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, George Lopez, Shirley MacLaine, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts, and Taylor Swift are featured in this ensemble film, which is quite a casting coup for Deborah Aquila and Mary Tricia Wood. And therein lies my biggest pet peeve about this movie: too many stars in one film. This all-star overload at times made me feel like the movie was one long cameo after the other.

Most of their stories are half-baked (maybe even quarter-baked?) and underdeveloped. There wasn't enough time devoted to dig a little deeper into the characters and to engage the audience to invest some emotional attachment; I couldn't care less about most of the characters, even if I wanted to. The movie's attempt to address the commercialism of Valentine's Day falls flat and doesn't register. In some ways, the chosen setting of this movie and the script reflect the stereotypical image of how Los Angeles is perceived as: shallow, disjointed, full of hopes and dreams, all rolled up in a ball of sunshine and smog.

Sure, they try to throw in a few kinks here and there, and I would have to say that there was ONE thing that I didn't see coming, but for the most part, the twists were telegraphic and thinly-veiled.

And I know this is a movie, but the suspension of disbelief can only go SO far. Raise your hand if can fathom for one second that NO ONE in Los Angeles would like to date someone like Jessica Biel's character, Kara Monahan. And while we're at it, can we give Patrick Dempsey a role that doesn't involve him being a doctor? The poor guy's going to be type-casted. And what was Queen Latifah's purpose in this movie? Waste of a talented actress. Same thing can be said about Kathy Bates. And don't even get me started with Jessica Alba's character, Morley Clarkson; I know why she was there, but really?

For what it's worth, the movie was entertaining at its finest moments, dragging (a rom-com should NEVER be longer than 90 minutes) and relentless at its worst. The standouts for me were Julia Roberts as Capt. Kate Hazeltine, Anne Hathaway as Liz, an aspiring writer with a salacious way of paying off her student loans, and Shirley MacLaine as Estelle, a retired actress with an impending wedding vow renewal with her husband Edgar, played by Hector Elizondo. Honorable mentions go to Taylor Swift, who was quite entertaining as the ditzy high school dance student (even with this good performance, she's still not out of the dog house for that Grammy autotune-less "performance") and Bryce Robinson as Edison, the gradeschooler stung by the love bug for the first time.

Is Valentine's Day worth the $11.50 for the movie ticket and the 2 hours of your life? Let's just say that I won't be buying the DVD, but if TBS is running a Sunday afternoon movie marathon, I might be persuaded to sit through it.

 

Grade: C-/C

Season Two, Episode Ten: The World Wide Web of Dating

Beta-max, Sony Walkman and floppy disks: What do they have in common? Marvels in their own time, but pushed out of ubiquity in favor of the newer and better available technologies. Could the "traditional" way of dating be next?

Through the years, the popularity of online dating sites like Yahoo!® Personals, Match.com and eHarmony.com is on the rise. According to a 2003 U.S. News and World Report, in August of that year, 40 million unique users visited online dating sites in the United States, about half the number of single adults in the US, and in all likelihood this statistic figures to have grown in today's time. Successes of the sites like Match.com and eHarmony.com have spawned off copycat sites like Amor.com, Gay.com and Shaadi.com, sites that cater to a wide range of interests and audiences.

OkCupid is another dating website, a site the Boston Globe calls "the Google of online dating," and New York Post declares "a perfect example of the Web 2.0 revolution." In many respects, it's a bit similar to other well-known dating sites like Match.com or eHarmony.com in that it tries to "match" its users. The way they do this is by having each user answer questions, both generated by the site, and by its own users. The big difference between OkCupid and other sites is that they rely HEAVILY on mathematical algorithms and analysis as the basis for their match percentage calculations. And it takes into account basically everything that a user does on OkCupid, from the number of messages sent and replied, to how often and when a user logs in, and the way the user answers the questions to generate a match percentage. And the best part of it all is that most of the site is FREE!

With this in mind and in the interest of full disclosure, I myself have partaken in this societal exercise. Come to think of it, I was a bit hard pressed to think of the last person that I was in a relationship with that I have met NOT using the interweb (for the sake of completion, we were in the same dance group when I was a senior in college).

The way that OkCupid works is that like other social networking sites, you have your profile, and it lists your basic information, hobbies, favorite books/music/food, the six things you could never do without, and other pertinent information. Then you can peruse other peoples' profiles, and if there is a connection there, you can either contact them via email, or if you're a bit reticent, you can send them a "wink" to try to get a conversation started.

I guess, subconsciously or consciously, we put our best foot forward when we write our profile pages. Many people have different ideas and different interpretations of what that phrase, "best foot forward" actually mean. Some people use the opportunity to show off their literary or artistic prowess, while some opt to show off their adept skills in sarcasm.

One of the advantages of online dating is that in theory, it makes the whole process a little easier. In many ways, sites like OkCupid streamline the whole dating process. This statement may come across as if I think this makes the whole online dating process more sterile and devoid of sentiment; that's not what I'm saying. You get to look through people's profile and see if there's anything there that piques your interest. For the most part, for me, it's not so much that I "know" if I'll get along with the other person. It's more that I'll "know" if the person has interested me in any level , enough to cross the threshold and warrant an email or a wink. In theory, it's a good allocation of precious resource (time). Pharmacy school surely has not helped in this regard. The tough curriculum and other school-related-extracurricular activities (and many more self-imposed forms of masochism) have left me with virtually no time to branch out and just live. When I can "weed out" potential non-matches, the likelihood of waddling through bad dates after bad dates is, in theory, dramatically decreased. It's just good allocation of precious resources. Now, there does exist the risk that I can disregard a particular profile when in fact, he would be something that I would greatly get along with. For now, that's the risk I'm willing to take.

The last couple of dates that I have had from people that I've met online have both been successful to an extent. Successful in that the first dates had lead to a second date, which led to a third date, but I guess after that, online dating can only take you so far? There are things that don't come across from an online profile that you can only ascertain from having a face-to-face interaction. "The game" is not just played out on cyberspace, but lived out in real-life as well.

The verdict? The question is not "is online dating the wave of the future? " because it's already here, and more and more people are getting in on it, but rather, has the time come to where online dating will be the predominant. Methinks that for now, online dating works for me and where I am in my life right now and in the near-term, but the "traditional" dating is not going out by the way of cassette tapes just yet.

Season Two, Episode Nine: Running Away with the Circus, Part Deux

Last year, I wrote a column about Circus Center; that time, I (partially) overcame my irrational fear of heights and was mesmerized by the instructors as I glided through the air and learned a few trapeze tricks. This time around, I got to do a little bit of a behind-the-scenes look into Ovo, the Cirque du Soleil show that concluded this past Sunday here in San Francisco.
 

Another reason why being a Synapse editor rocks: aside from the modest monetary compensation, one-of-a-kind opportunities present themselves from time to time. Those, and comped tickets! I mean, how often would you get a chance to go backstage to an event?
 

Fredericka was our tour guide for the day, and she's got that lively and bubbly personality fit for a PR person. She showed us around Cirque du Soleil's version of a self-sufficient mini-village; they bring everything with them, even generators to power the entire village. She dutifully informs my entourage other Cirque trivia tidbits, like the number of pieces of costumes the designer, Liz Vandal, and her team have created for Ovo (1500), to the number of Trampoline Olympiads they have as part of the cast for Ovo (Two).
 

We got also got a sneak peek into the performers' practices; we saw the adorable ants perfecting their craft as they spun blown-up piece of kiwis and corn using their feet. At first, they appeared to me as spectacularly solid, but not necessarily amazing; they definitely blew me away come game time. We also saw the trapeze artists practicing on stage; they were definitely a treat.
 

She showed us around the artists' lounge. This is where we met and interviewed Robyn, one of the characters in Ovo. Here, she plays the black spider, and she describes her character as being "reclusive" and "a little bit sexy, a little spicy, kind of evil, like the evil quirky stepsister" (to the red spider). "This is my character that I've created. It's really me. It's who I am, but a little bit exaggerated," Robyn adds.
 

This is Robyn's first traveling show; her former Cirque performances have been permanent residency shows (Mystère, Zumanity, and Love), all based in Las Vegas. Any positives and negatives on life on the road? "On one hand, life is a more simple; no worries about having to pay rent," she replies. On the other hand, she misses the amenities of Las Vegas, like showers in her dressing room, and extra space for her toiletries and products.
 

One of the many things that I fancy about her is her unique background. I would've thought that most performers come from ballet, or that they're former Olympiads (which are the cases for some of the Cirque performers). Yes, she did have formal training in other dance disciplines (salsa, African, swing, etc), but what captured her attention was breakdancing. She was living in Fort Collins at the time, attending Colorado State, and what drew her to breakdancing was the "free-for-all" atmosphere that it provided for her. She also radiates this reserved confidence without appearing smug or condescending. That's something that I aspire to do.
 

If there is anything that a pharmacist and a performer have in common, it's the fact that we're both in a no-mistake business. When I do see them mess up, more than anything, it just reaffirms to me that after all, they're still human, and what they're doing out there is outrageously out of this world; it makes me appreciate their show a bit more. "People look at us like we're these robots and inside this box, but dancers and performers are some of the zaniest, wildest people out there," Robyn answers. But just like a pharmacist, performers are bound to make gaffes from time to time. She said that she's had her fair share of them, ranging from a falling headpiece to "wardrobe malfunction" (she's forgotten her shorts on her dress). The difference between her and me is that for the most part, if she messes up (or thinks she messed up), she can play it off as an artistic flair; mine plays off as a medical malpractice claim.
 

Also, like some pharmacists, performers can go through monotonic and repetitive periods at work, like when they do shows 6 days a week, two shows in one day at times, as in the case for Robyn. How does she deal with this? "That's actually one of the big challenges: to keep it fresh. There's always room for improvement. I analyze my performances, and I find that there's plenty of stuff to work on."
 

Another thing that I relate to Robyn with is that she and I are both surrounded with extraordinary talent. How does she deal with this? "If you're in Cirque, it means you're really something. It's pretty cool to be around such talent. We do get used to it, like 'Oh he's just hanging from one finger. That's just what he does.' But it's pretty important to remember that we are special," Robyn answers.
 

I would think working in such close quarters for a prolonged period of time with the same people would breed either animosity or amorosity. "Whether there is drama or not, we still have to come here and perform the show," Robyn quips. She's also got the amorosity covered; she met her fiancé during her stint in Zumanity, been together for 5 years, and just got married this past Tuesday!
 

Towards the end of our interview, I asked Robyn if she would be willing to teach me a sequence. She happily obliges, and gracefully gets up in the practice wall. The first sequence that she did went way over my head; I didn't even attempt to do it, the fear of falling down from the wall and being crushed like a squished bug was a bit much to overcome. The second sequence was a little better; it involved using my (nearly non-existent) arm strength to prop myself up from the rocks while doing some neat leg sequences.
 

If you didn't get a chance to see them here in San Francisco, it's not too late! They're still here in the Bay Area; you can catch Ovo under the Grand Capiteau at Taylor Street Bridge in San Jose. Performances run from February 4^th to March 7^th.

Season Two, Episode Eight: New Year, New Beginnings

"Hope springs eternal in the human breast; Man never Is, but always To be blest: The soul, uneasy and confin'd from home, Rests and expatiates in a life to come" – Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man.

There's something about a new year that energizes people: perhaps it is the feeling of optimism at its peak, a feeling of starting anew with a clean slate, or a sense of a renewed opportunity to become better versions of themselves. But too often, these expectations are set so high; that in itself is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it's good to push ourselves to the limit, but on the other hand, expectations are set so high that ultimately, are we leading ourselves into disappointment or failure?
And you know what else accompanies the end of the year/the beginning of a new year? Top ten lists. And as if we needed to be bombarded with more top ten things (even more obnoxious ones since we've just ended a decade), I'm stoking the flame even more with my own version. About.com has a Top Ten New Year's Resolutions, and you had your garden variety of the most common resolutions taken up by people like you and I. Let's see how I stack up against these resolutions:

1. Spend more time with Family and Friends
   

   This one I can definitely relate to. I rarely see my family in San Diego. The last time I went home before the holidays was the summer prior. Now that rotations are right around the corner, it would be a little bit harder to come home (no more skipping school to get an extended stay in San Diego), but what I will try to do this year is call and check in more.
   

   For the past two and a half years I've been a bit neglectful in the "friends" category as well, especially those friends that I've had before starting UCSF. Pharmacy school tends to be a sucking vortex of time and energy, and it was hard at times to coordinate schedules, since we run on what it seemed like different calendars. Plan of action: set aside at least three Sundays a quarter for my bffs and call them more often.
   

2. Fit in fitness
   

   Check and Check with this one. Since last summer, I've been actually quite good with making sure I've made time to exercise. Even during winter break! I did a 7-day free pass at a 24-Hour Fitness near my house, and I went almost every day. Now, with rotations looming in the horizon, I'm not sure if I can still do the everyday thing, but this would be one of my resolutions for the upcoming year.
   

3. Tame the bulge
   

   I'm ok in this department, though I'm sure I'm still carrying a bit of the holiday weight around. I can stand to lose a few holiday pounds, or as my friend calls it "a human evolutionary adaptation to inclement weather." Weight goal: lose 10 lbs of fat and gain 5 lbs of muscle. And don't even ask how much I weigh… lol… I look deceivingly thin.
   

4. Quit smoking
   

   I'm a student pharmacist… I can definitely help anyone quit smoking if they're willing and able ;)
   

5. Enjoy life more
   

   This one is a very Chinese-fortune-cookie kind of resolution. What does that even mean? Don't answer that, it's supposed to be rhetorical.
   

6. Quit drinking
   

   Does drinking wine count as drinking? Lol… Seriously, ever since I've lived in Paris, I've always associated a nice lunch/dinner with a glass of wine. Does that make me alcoholic? Sophisticated? I'd like to think the latter.
   

7. Get out of debt
   

   Good luck to me on this one. I just took on a mortgage debt! Though as one of my friends have pointed out, it's not REALLY debt; I would be paying someone's mortgage anyway if I were to rent. But other than that, everything seems to be in order financially; the credit card debts are manageable, but will be paid off soon, I hope! Though the holiday shopping season was exceptionally brutal for me (in that I spent a bit more than I would normally), the incurred debt was nothing that I wouldn't be able to pay off in a month or two.
   

8. Learn something new
   

   I'll give this one a whirl. Over the break, my friend and I threw around the idea of sharing a Rosetta Stone CD and try to learn Chinese! Maybe we'll be successful.
   

9. Help others
   

   Check and Check with MHC's monthly clinic. I'm super excited for our first clinic day this Saturday, January 9^th.
   

10. Get organized
    

    Ha! on this one… I'd like to think that I have my own way of organizing things. What may look like a pile of mess is really an intricate labyrinth; organized chaos, I call it.
    

Aside from these ten, I have a few ones that I'd like to try out
 

1. No new shoes in 2010
   

   I feel like I'm approaching Imelda Marcos-status with my shoes. It needs to stop. Or at least take an extended hiatus. I have a few of them still in boxes waiting to be worn.
   

2. Try to be punctual
   

   Double Ha! on this one. But seriously, I'll try to be less late. Latest example of my fashionably-late act: over the holidays, my high school friends and I scheduled a dinner date at a Thai place in Hillcrest at 5:30. A few of them showed up a little earlier than 5:30; I showed up at 7:15. I know, bad… At least I told them I was running a bit late, and as a sorry-for-being-late gesture, I did buy the table tom-kah soup.
   

Season Two, Episode Seven: The Tales of Black Friday Shopping

What would possess someone to wake up in the crack of dawn or to camp out outside a brick and mortar store? It's the prospect of getting a "great" deal, or getting that elusive and must-have "IT" toy. That's the allure of Black Friday, one of the biggest shopping days of the year. I saw a news story on TV during Thanksgiving dinner of some people camping out at Best Buy a DAY before Thanksgiving!

I used to be one of them. Two years ago, a couple of my friends and I did the whole camping-out-at-Best-Buy thing for Black Friday. During Thanksgiving dinner, we were casually talking about the sales and the big savings that we would get, and joked around that we should camp out at Best Buy to get in line for the doorbusters; that year, they had a few good items for sale, and I had my eyes on the $350 desktop package (desktop+lcd monitor+ printer), a $300 laptop for my sister and the $99 camera w/ a 4x6 digital photo frame, final exams be damned.

We got there around 11pm, and already the line at the Best Buy in Harrison St was around the building. We were determined to get our deals, and so there we were, flashcards in tow, studying for our CP final, freezing; we took turns in taking naps, though the naps were very short-lived. Thank God it didn't rain that year, or it would've been a disaster (apparently it was misty this past Black Friday).

Around 4am, they started passing out "tickets" for the big-ticket items and for the doorbuster deals. Alas, all of that waiting, and we didn't get the ticket for the laptop; we did get the tickets for the camera and the desktop package, and for the $99 TomTom GPS.

It seemed like forever, but mercifully, the store finally opened at 5am. Calling it mayhem is a severe understatement. Finding the things that we wanted to buy, trying to get the Best Buy associate's attention and waiting in line to pay were all an "invigorating" experience, to put it nicely.

This year, coming to my senses, I did my "Black Friday" shopping while wearing pjs at the comfort of my own bed; no need for getting tickets, bumrushing the electronics section, waiting in a colossal line to pay or lying awake in the cold pavement, trying to keep warm. From Walmart, I got a PS3 bundle (PS3 120gb Slim, 2 PS3 games (Batman and inFAMOUS), Batman Begins Blu-Ray movie, and a Blu-ray remote control) for $358, including tax and shipping; factor in the Bing Cashback, the price is whittled down to ~ $310. I also bought the Beatles Rock Band Limited Edition deluxe (regular price $249) from Dell, for $199+tax with free shipping ($218.40), and with the Bing Cashback, it became ~$178. Also from Dell, I bought the Ooma Scout (a VOIP service that allows for free calls using your internet connection) for $229+tax+free shipping, and with the Bing Cashback, it came out to about $205. From Ebay, I bought two PS3 wireless controllers for $20+$6 shipping - 10% Bing Cashback, for a total of $24!

So you ask, what's this Bing Cashback that I've been talking about? Bing is Microsoft's web search engine, or as they describe it, a "decision engine", and allows users to search for products and get pricing information from multiple vendors. Bing has partnerships from venerable brick and mortar merchants like Dell, HP, Walmart, Macy's, Sears, and Home Depot as well as online stores such as Buy.com, Overstock.com, and Tigerdirect.com, and the cashback bonus varies from 2-10%; this past Thanksgiving holiday, Bing had a promotion, entitled "Bing Gold Rush" that increased their cashback bonus; AT&T and T-Mobile's cashback bonus was at 35%, while Lenovo, Dell, and HP's cashback bonus was at 20%. That's some serious discount, folks!

I realized that while Black Friday still offers a great discount, it's just not worth all that extra time and effort braving the elements while waiting in line for hours for a store to open. Now, with the advent of Bing Cashback, buying stuff online during Black Friday through Cyber Monday just got a LOT cheaper!

Season Two, Episode Six: Yes, I’ll have an order of that plate of BS

Jed Wolpaw of the LoveDub fame has got to be one of the best column writers that have graced the pages of the Synapse through the years; it's one of the first things that I read when I proofread copies every Tuesday. His last week's column, entitled "As Advertised", is chockfull of his trademark East-Coast-like humor. However, I took a particular "disliking" to his assertion that "we dress, shave, and perfume ourselves up for one main reason (to attract a mate). Maybe it hit a little closer to home, or that I felt that I was being called out. But for me, I like looking good for the sake of looking good.

Just to make sure that I'm not completely off-base, I asked around my friends to try and get a bigger perspective and to make sure that 1) I'm not completely crazy and 2) I am not alone in this thinking.

I usually go out with a group of friends when I go out, and the LAST thing that I'm thinking about is trying to pick someone up. Maybe it's the superficiality of it all, or maybe the dim lighting + the state of inebriation does not make for a good combination, but I just don't think that we are putting our best foot forward when we're out and about at clubs and bars, at least in terms of finding a mate; a mate for the night, on the other hand, now that's a different subject.

There's a certain truth to the saying "you are what you wear". Like it or not, the way that we dress plays a role in how other people perceive us and plays a pivotal role in the formation of first impressions. And the way that we dress is "dictated" by the environment that we are presented with. For instance, I would dress differently if I were going to a charity ball versus if I were to play ball.
When people complement me for what I'm wearing, it makes me feel good. Whenever I have exams, I try to dress up. My self-confidence goes up; I can do anything. Even if I didn't do so hot on the midterm, at least I looked good doing it.

I actually like going shopping by myself. It's one of those solitary moments that I treasure. When I go shopping for clothes, there's three things that I consider; 1) the price, 2) if it looks good on me (good fit, good color, etc), and 3) if it matches with clothes that I already do own. The "This-shirt-should-bring-all-the-boys-to-the-yard" phrase is not part of my vernacular, nor does it influence my shopping decisions.

How about them not so-single ladies and gentlemen? Does the extra effort to get ready, to look nice, a sign of possible mischievous concoction? Does the fact that you have a significant other preclude you from attempting to look your best, especially when you go out with your friends on a night out?

Now, I'm not saying that he's completely incorrect; I'm sure that there are people that do put the extra effort for the purposes of attracting potential mates. Of course, when you have found that potential mate, it is well within reason to put in the extra effort to look your best. I just think that this dilemma is more of the "chicken-or-egg" variety.

I still heart you Jed, aka LoveDub guy, but apparently not as much as I heart myself.

 

Season Two, Episode Five: West Fest Provides Only a Faint Echo of Woodstock

One of the many things that I love about San Francisco are the outdoor festivals that seem to be going on throughout the year. This past weekend, hundreds of San Francisco stars and musical luminaries performed at Speedway Meadows for West Fest, commemorating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock Festival.

I was volunteering for the health fair that was being held at the concert site in the morning, and I didn't think that I was going to miss out on much, figuring that the bigger events will be going on later on during the day. The two things that I was looking forward to seeing was the tribute to Jimi Hendrix, who headlined the festival in 1969 (3,000 guitar players were going to try to break the World's Record for the Largest Guitar Ensemble playing "Purple Haze"), and Ray Manzanek from the Doors; unfortunately, both went on stage while I was volunteering for the health fair.

Serves me right for not looking up the lineup online.

I did get to hear Native American folk/rock artist Jeremy Goodfeather, who's apparently up for a Grammy for Best New Folk Artist. I'm a sucker for acoustic sounds, and he had that rock-star-soothing voice. I also got to listen to some sick afro-beats while I was dancing with a hoop. At first, I couldn't do it for longer than a few seconds, but I got the hang of it as the song wore on.

The weather cooperated quite beautifully with the event. It's the classic San Francisco October, our own version of the summer. While testing people's blood glucose levels, I felt that my face was burning up because our tent was exposed to the always-welcomed presence of the sun.

I also got a chance to look around the festival to see what was going on. One of the more curiously interesting displays they had was a replica of the "Love Bus", complete with a complementary oatmeal raisin cookie! I overheard a conversation with the "Love Bus" owner and one of the inquisitive festival-goer, and it seemed that the "Love Bus" owner had a little bit too much of the "60's experience" to be cognitively coherent. There were a variety of booths catering to the "hippie" crowd: legalize marijuana petition, henna painting, hemp products and the like. There were also some entrepreneurial people selling their home-made brownies, hemp clothing and accessories and drug paraphernalia. There was also a banana-costumed man passing out Jamba Juice coupons, and a tin-man posing for photos with whoever was interested.

For part of the health fair, I had a box of condoms, and I was handing them out to fellow festival goers. If I have to do a hair sample drug test, I'm almost positive that I'll fail due to the immense second hand exposure that I've managed to accrue while I was walking around.

Which got me thinking, to what extent does this festival reflect on the original spirit of Woodstock? How relevant is this festival today? As it is now, the '60s were turbulent times; Woodstock was that pivotal moment of realization not just for that generation but for the country as a whole. Artists were empowered to make a difference and spread that message through the masses through their music. Have we gotten too complacent in the world that we currently live in? As I watched over the crowd as the performers spat out their generic message of love and peace, I saw glazed looks. Yes, I think that festivals like West Fest are great in bringing like-minded people together but I'm not sure the result is what I expected. It's probably too much to ask that the Woodstock spirit be re-captured, even with 3,000 guitars on hand, channeling Jimi Hendrix.