So I wanted to let you know that I'm no longer at 100.5 The PEAK. I'm now in pursuit of a whole new adventure. While this is an exciting and scary time for me, I'd like to wish 100.5 The PEAK (and 93.7 JRFM) all the best, and to all my peeps, you'll be deeply and truly missed. Rest assured that I'll remain a faithful listener, after all, these are 2 BEST stations in BC! (Am I biased? Maybe... ;)
So what's in store for me next? More radio? A TV gig? Writing? Making plastic toys in a factory (BPA free, of course!)?
I'll keep you posted.
Above all else, I look forward to having you join me on my new journey. Twitter, facebook and message me whenever you like.
Since my last Carmen vs. Carmen update , here's what's happened so far...
I ventured onto Carmen Cruz's website **use caution when taking a look at this one. Not at work at not in front of the kiddies!!!**
Here's how the 'communications' unfolded (I'm in blue, she is in red):
On Mar 1, 2011
Hi Carmen!
My name is, yes, Carmen Cruz as well. I work on air at a radio station in Vancouver, Canada. I've spent years being teased about the fact that I share my name with the worlds most famous transsexual adult film star. You know what? I really and truly don't mind it. I have nothing but respect for who you are and what you do. It takes an amazing amount of courage and self awareness. Seriously, you've gotta have balls to be who you really are (no pun intended! :).
So I'd like to do an over the phone interview with you. I'd like to talk to you about who you are, and what it means to be the most well known transsexual adult star in the world. I also want to talk about what similarities we have, and above all, what music (songs, bands, albums, etc.) is your absolute favourite (I work in radio, so music is always a topic of conversation). This interview will air on our radio station (100.5 The PEAK) and it would also be posted on our Soundcloud account, as well as being posted on our station's facebook page, my facebook page, and my blog.
If this is something that you feel you would be interested in, please feel free to contact me at this email address at your convenience.
Muchas Gracias for your time and consideration.
Carmen Cruz
p.s: Now that you own the domain name, I'm screwed... ;)
RESPONSE: March 2, 2011 Carmen Cruz ***********@aol.com
I think this is so funny. You sound pretty cool. I want to meet you. Maybe I should fly to Canada and do a face to face interview. That would be hotter. But if a phone interview would be fine too. Are you Mexican? I am
Sent from my iPhone
RESPONSE: March 2, 2011 Carmen Cruz ***********@aol.com
Sent from my iPhone
RESPONSE: March 2, 2011 Carmen Cruz ***********@aol.com
Sent from my iPhone
RESPONSE: March 2, 2011 Carmen Cruz ***********@aol.com
Sent from my iPhone
On March 2, 2011
Hola Carmen,
AWESOME!!! Thanks for getting back to me so quickly! If I worked at a TV station, I'd definitely love to have you come down... but sadly it's just radio. I got the pics you sent me, which will be awesome for me to use (if that's ok with you, of course!).
Me? I'm Chilena. My mom & dad are from Chile and I'm the first one in my family to be born in Canada. Do you speak Spanish? We may have to show some of this off on the air when we chat :)
So I'm hoping that we can chat sometime next week. When are you free and what time??? I'll also need a contact number from you.
CoooooooOOOOOOOooooooo!!!!. I'm pretty pumped about this!!!
Let me know what works for you and I'll make it happen.
So I haven't heard from Ms. Carmen Cruz since. I've emailed her a few times, trying to set an interview date, but.... nada. After she sent me a few pics of herself, that was it. Am I giving up? Nah.
I'm going to keep trying to snag this interview. The AWESOMENESS potential of this interview is through the roof!
Yes. I'm totally aware of this. I've spent years being teased about this important fact. I've taken it all in stride...
I'm not the only Carmen Cruz out there. Some of you may know this and some may not. Sure there might be a Carmen Cruz who's a stay at home mom somewhere in the U.S.A, or a real estate agent in Uruguay. There might even be a 'Carmen Cruz' working in a laboratory somewhere, analyzing blood and urine samples. Who knows?! But no. I share my name with someone much more notable than that.
Carmen Cruz is also one of the most famous transsexual porn stars in the world. Lucky me. I'm not trying to insult Carmen #2. In fact, I commend and respect her. A super hot chick with a killer bod, junk in the trunk and.. a shlong. I know that the random public will look at a transsexual and laugh, point or worse, yell out horrible comments. Do you know that balls (no pun intended!) it takes to say to yourself, 'you know what? Despite being born in the body of a man, I feel and know that I am a woman. This is me' (or vice versa). That takes some serious courage, strength and the ability to really & TRULY know who you are. Not many people out there will ever reach that level of self awareness or even try to. Seriously. AND Carmen #2 makes adult films. She does her thang in erotic movies. Ok. I'm totally cool with that. BUT - people thinking that I'm her (at times) can be a little more than frustrating. Yes, people have actually thought that little ol' me has a porn gig on the side... and a penis.
Even though I commend Carmen #2 for all she does, I am my very own Carmen and I'm incredibly proud of that. So where am I going with all this? I've decided to try to contact Carmen #2 and interview her (over the phone). Why? Cause I wanna. I want to know what she's like and what she thinks of the fact that we have the same name, share a Latin background and yes, even what music she likes (hey! I work in radio! It's kinda mandatory). I'm sure she doesn't have the bam-chika-wa-wa porn style guitar music playing on her iPod while she's hitting the treadmill, right? My goal is to track her down and have a chat that I'll eventually be posting on my blog and you might even hear it on 100.5 The PEAK (my job). So how hard it is (hard. HA!) to get a hold of an uber famous porn star? I'm about to find out. Wish me luck!!!
Besos, CC.
P.S: For the record, I DO NOT have a penis. That is all...
So today my adventures took me to the Richmond Ozone.
It was South Asian Day, so it was all about Bhangra dancing and Bollywood movies. Very colourful and very cool!
The Ozone has it's own skating rink, which looks like a ribbon of ice wrapped around green grass. I asked several times how they managed to keep the ice from melting but the answers never really made sense. Ah well. We'll chalk it up to an 'Olympic Miracle'. (FYI: Skate rentals are just $2) See Video.
Next was a stop at the BCLC fun zone, which was pretty awesome. You can try your hand at the Biathalon, taking slapshots for prizes(See video), and experiencing the bobsled in 3D. You can also have an (unofficial) athlete badge made, which was probably the coolest thing we did there. I wonder how many places we can get away with using this? Mind you, I highly doubt that I can pass for an ice hockey player (as stated on my athlete pass). BTW: there's no way in hell that I'm posting a picture of it. It's so hideous that even my own mother would be ashamed to look at it.
Next was a visit to BC street where you can check out all the different regions of BC, including Comox, Tofino and the Okanagan. Did you know that Comox is the oyster capital of BC???? Neither did I. When you stop my these venues, you can try the odd food sample and enter to win a ton of prizes (which I did. Here's hoping they don't sell their email lists!!!).
I also wanted to thank Peak listener Leeann Froese for hooking me up with a yummy Icewine tasting at Inniskillin. Turns out that Inniskillin has an Icewine tasting area there (and has a commemorative Olympic Icewine) . It's not too expensive and definitely worth a visit, especially if you're a wino like me ;)
Last was a visit to the Holland Heineken House. I wanted to find out what the big deal was about this place. Why is the lineup always insane? Why did everyone and anyone want to try to get in there? I got the grand tour and I've gotta say that it's not too bad! Like most places, they have a merchandise and sponsor area (I guess they've gotta pay the bills right?) and a Dutch radio station that airs out of the house ~ straight to Holland. Their beer garden/ restaurant/ entertainment area is nice and big and has an overall good vibe. It also smells like Stamppot - a potato/ sauerkraut/ sausage in a cone combo that everyone tries when they walk in. (FYI: Their money system is different there. Be aware of this). Holland house is known for it's nightlife. This is one of the coolest places to party. In fact, it's so cool that one of the most famous Dutchmen in the world stopped by yesterday last minute; the #1 DJ in the world, Armin van Buuren surprised Holland house fans when he announced last minute that he was going to perform a set (is that what you call it in DJ lingo???). Either way, I found out about this in 'The Daily Dutch International' a daily Olympic newspaper put together by the Dutch and available at their pavilion (in both English and Dutch ~ The Dutch version is longer though). The Dutch consider themselves experts when it comes to their presentation at the Olympics (they've been doing it for a VERY long time) and it shows. Right now, all the Dutch are holding their collective breath and hoping that one of their athletes will help mark a milestone for their country: their 100th gold medal in their Olympic history. You know that's gonna be cause for a HUGE celebration at Holland House! So, the house itself is a blast and if you wanna go partake of a few adult beverages in the evening, I recommend you get there by about 5 o'clock (but still expect a lineup at that time, n'kay?).
I started today at the Royal Canadian Mint on Granville and Pender. First of all, there's ALWAYS a long lineup there. From open to close, long lines. You've just gotta accept that if you're headed there. The Mint is...ok. The highlight for me was getting the chance to hold the Olympic and Paralympic medals. (FYI: if you piece all the medals together, they make up a work of art. See the black and white picture to see what it that would look like). The giant Canadian gold coin (worth a million bucks by the way) was kinda cool to check out as well. Other than that, I was ready to go. Sorry to all of you who have a general interest in the Royal Canadian Mint. If it's any consolation, my dad is a coin collector. Me? Not so much. I prefer the spending aspect of it all... ;) See Video
Next Laurie Logan and I headed to the 4 Host First Nations House. There, you have a chance to watch a movie in their dome called 'We Are Here' (lineups aren't too bad). You also have the opportunity to try traditional cuisine and check out First Nations performers doing their 'thang'... rap, hip hop, blues, jazz, rock, etc. You name it, they're performing it. Free shows for the public every evening. There are also giant Coke bottles scattered at this venue, which have all been designed by First Nations artists and are all up for auction with proceeds going to charity. Cool. See pictures.
Final stop was LiveCity Yaletown. The lineup was actually minimal (a miracle!!!) and I've gotta say the the Coca-cola tent was the highlight (no endorsement intended here :P). There was this employee who actually had the word Coca-cola shaved into his head! Talk about dedication! Getting a collectible coke bottle and having your picture taken with the Olympic torch is one of the coolest things to do here, along with finding out about all the environmental initiatives that some of the sponsors at LiveCity Yaletown are involved in. A solar powered cell phone? Yup. Believe it. I also had the chance to see our Mayor (Gregor Robertson) drumming for a band called Bitterly Divine. It was kinda weird/funny to hear the bands lead singer call our Mayor, 'The Mayor of Rock'. See video.
So today, Monday, February 22nd, Laurie Logan and I head out to the Surrey Celebration Site to check out what's hot and what's happening. Turns out that the site is closed on Monday AND Tuesday (FYI!!!!) so we end up going on a tour.
It's a pretty cool layout and I've gotta say that it's definitely a more family friendly zone. With tons of stuff for the kids to try out (curling, tobogganing, skating, PLUS a kids zone!) the little ones will definitely be busy, just bring something to keep them entertained in those long lineups.
The concert lineup for this Saturday is STELLAR!!! Kuba Oms, Jon & Roy, Hey Rosetta!, You Say Party! We say Die!, Tokyo Police Club and Wintersleep. A solid lineup. So if you want to bypass the ridiculous lineups here in Vancouver, the Surrey Celebration Site is definitely where you wanna be. I say you try taking the skytrain there. If you're like me and foolish enough to pick the person with the WORST sense of direction to be your co-pilot (aka: Laurie Logan), then you'll spend a good 45 minutes lost and end up at a place called the 'T Barz'. See video.
It's February 11th. Just one measly little day until all of Vancouver EXPLODES with Olympic mayhem. Am I excited about it? Honestly? I wasn't until today. Walking downtown, it's hard NOT to catch Olympic fever. The city is buzzing with excitement. There are foreigners everywhere, looking confused and asking for directions in grunts and broken English. Art sculptures have appeared in the most random of places. People seem friendlier. You know what? I like this...
Yes, the Olympics are expensive. Yes, it's not always accessible for the 'Average Joe'... but you know what? I'm determined to search out and uncover all the free and fun stuff this city has to offer. I've made it my mission to turn February into 'Free, Fun February!!!!' Thanks to my gig over at 100.5 The PEAK, I get to share all of my adventures with you :D.
Ok, ok.... so having a media pass of some sort might make things easier for me. Then again, it might not. You see, it's all about credentials, and amigos/amigas, just like most of you, I don't have em'.
So here's day one. Robson Square. There's so much to see and do here. And don't forget to wander into any and all stores along the street, because you never know what they have going on right now. Also, The Ziptrek Zipline is an absolute MUST!!! And more importantly it's free :D.
