Martial Arts are an integral part to any young person’s development in many aspects. It accelerates physical GROWTH in a manner uncommon for kids the same age. It helps to create amazing body ELASTICITY for more fluid movements with even the most challenging kata. Martial arts will not only exercise the body, but also the mind, as superior concentration will begin to manifest upon the weak and fragile. Most of all, the ability to fill out an awesome GI in which you pay $49.95 will make you the coolest kid on the block.
There was a rise in Karate enrollees during the mid 80’s due to the success of a very influential film that dealt with the topic of adolescence and teenage angst. That movie was The Karate Kid. While most people would be proud to make the claim that it was DANIEL LARUSSO who motivated them to join Karate, I was a direct product of the 90’s. So I cannot make that claim, nor would I be proud to. Because as we all know, the 1990’s was a sassier time and it was a much sassier film that gave me the courage to join. That movie was THE THREE NINJAS.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get very far in my martial arts career due to a high roundhouse kick to the nose delivered by SENSEI MIKE’s gigantic black foot. I was so pissed I quit that day. But the great masters would have been let down by my lack of determination to persevere. Would any of the Three Ninjas back down from a challenge? I don’t think so. Do you think that Steven Seagal would have gotten back into that dojo and seek revenge? Probably. Would FABIO let that pigeon get away with rattling his hair? No way.
This video is dedicated to all the martial arts masters I have let down. Especially the greatest one of them all: JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME. I say this because it was really him who not only taught me the importance of KICKBOXING, MMA, GANG BANGING, and ROBOTS, but he also taught me how to be a well-rounded DANCER. Thank you JCVD.
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There really aren’t many words to describe this video. Basically, just sit back and admire the beauty as we did pulling up on our little longtail boat. This was shot in Thailand at Maya Bay. This is where the movie The Beach took place. My Chinese friend Cary is in there somewhere but can’t be seen. He must be hiding. My homey Kevin shot this picturesque moment.
Due to a poor global economy and a lack of tourism around the world, I have been finding these amazing deals to very appealing destinations lately. A few years ago, flying across the world would set you back over $1000. Now, if you look close enough and get in on the deals in time, you can get to the same DESTINATION for around $400-$800. Right now, you must be thinking that I work for CONTIKI TOURS or something. No man, I’m just trying to share with you what is out there.
Unfortunately, these cheap flights are in no way first class. The planes themselves are in decent condition, but you most likely will endure multiple stops with long layovers before you get to your destination. At then end of last year, we went to Buenos Aires for $550. But that came with a 14-hour layover in Mexico City. That wasn’t so bad because we left the airport and checked into a hotel. It’s the five-hour layovers that hurt.
For the most part, there’s nothing better than getting away from Los Angeles. Sure I’m in love with the shiny shirts, the “HILLS” wannabes, and the assorted variations of world class CUISINE that come with LA, but once in a while, I feel the urge to get out of town. And despite the long grueling flights, endless layovers, and people sneezing their nasty mouth molecules on me, there is nothing like finally arriving.
The video below shows tidbits of the 31-hours we spent getting to a remote island in Thailand earlier this month. We started off at LAX and took a flight to Taipei. We had a 3 hour layover in Taipei and got on our connecting flight to Bangkok, Thailand. Three hours later we got to Bangkok but had a 5 hour layover until we could get onto another flight to Krabi. The flight to Krabi wasn’t so bad since I completely passed out. Then finally arriving to Krabi, we had to take a one and a half hour bus ride to some restaurant where we hopped on a boat that took us to Railay Bay.
You can really see the fatigue in our faces, but for me, I prefer taking the road less traveled.
The 2010 World Cup is right around the corner and even though four years ago a few colleagues and I made a PACT to travel to South Africa right after the 2006 Cup, all plans in doing so somehow dissipated. I’m not the football fan I once was when I used to wake up early as crap on a Sunday morning to drive to Pasadena to catch a RED DEVILS match, but I do enjoy watching here and there. I’m already too preoccupied with my fanaticism with other sports like SLAMBALL, and MONSTER JAM.
I’m more of the soccer movie fanatic if anything else. You know like SHAOLIN SOCCER, GOAL, RUDO Y CURSI, and a very underrated film my good friend Matt introduced me to: THE BIG GREEN. Usually I will just pop in one of these entertaining films get my soccer/football fix.
The movie below is not quite the World Cup, but a World Cup qualifier. I happened to be in Buenos Aires during the South American qualifiers and Argentina was in a really bad spot. Just like some of the usually dominant European countries that found themselves in the same position, Argentina was a game away from not qualifying for the 2010 Cup if they lost to Peru. Our hotel gave us a horrible deal on a pair of tickets so we decided to go last minute.
The game was pretty nutty. I’ve never been to a sporting event where people jump and chant, especially coming from LA where the crowds are pretty glum so this was refreshing. What was even more refreshing was the torrential rain that dumped on us during the last minutes of the match. Nobody would have guessed that it would rain that hard with the skies so clear earlier that day. I just have to hand it to my woman for braving the storm with me. She somehow only ends up in situations like this with me. And another thing, there’s a guy in the video sitting right next to me with a rattail/mullet. His name is Joshua and he’s from Echo Park. Also pretty nutty.
For those kids living in Southern California (I prefer to call it SOCAL), we all grew up during our prepubescent years hearing rumors of a fantasy world where you can drink under the age of 21. It was a place where lawlessness is common and if you’re lucky, you might be able to catch a DONKEY SHOW. You can live out all your fantasies in this one incredible place, thought to have existed only in Tommy Lee’s METHODS OF MAYHEM song lyrics. The next morning, it’s not extra ordinary to wake up in a random hotel room next to a girl named STARLA while the VENGABOYS is bumping in the background. You stink of Jose Cuervo, which was pumped down your throat by some dude named Luis with a whistle in his mouth.
I personally was never fascinated by these stories. They sounded horrific to tell you the truth. It sounded like a really big high school party with no sign of parents anywhere. But that’s just because I didn’t realize how fun they were until later on.
The footage below is a glimpse of what my friend Adam and I experienced in some random bar in TJ. This wasn’t one of those bars on REVOLUTION ST. either so that meant not as many tourists. We were on or way down to Mexico City but decided to stop by TJ to visit some friends first. While the drug problem still runs rampant today, this video took place during the early stages of cracking down on the Mexican drug trade. This was around the time when dead bodies of Federali’s were popping up everywhere. Sad thing is, they still are.
The AFI’s would randomly search local bars and clubs by abruptly cutting the music while their dogs sniff out drugs. And as a word of advice, don’t try to pet the dogs and tell them how cute they are. The AFI will rough you up just as they did me.
Being a world-class fashion photographer, I often find it extremely difficult to get the shots I need. My POSSE and I tend to attract a lot of attention and even though I try to be as polite as possible to passers by, you sometimes need to be a jerk if you’re ever going to get anything done. We don’t mind the crowds as long as they stay behind the camera. But once they find out a TIGER BEAT photographer is in their midst, people begin to act giddy and playful.
There’s no situation more apparent than when I took one of my favorite models Pito (AKA LAKAH FAN 69) to Santorini for a day of high fashion modeling. I wanted to take advantage of the beautiful light as much as possible but as you can see in the photos below, nature won.
Five years ago, a boy stepped onto an airplane for the very first time in life and as soon as he stepped off, a Tiger was born. A Tiger with the heart of a STALLION. This Tiger felt the hunger most world travelers never experience. Tiger dove straight into the world of an “immersionist”. He wouldn’t eat at the fancy restaurants. He only drank WINE. Not a single word of English was spoken. Just really jacked up Catalan. Esta noche bailamos? Of course. Only the lovely and poetic words of an admirer can truly encapsulate the essence of this Tiger’s beauty.
Dear Pito,
You are a hero imprisoned because of all the new crimes that you are perfecting.
Like millions of your fans around the world, I can’t help quoting you because everything that you said rings true. And now in my cell, well I followed you. And here’s a list of who I slew. Jon Mora - do you know my name ? Oh, don’t say you don’t. Please say you do, oh, oh, oh, you are the last of the famous. International Boyzone!
That’s correct. Boyzone has struck again after a five year hiatus. The small and quaint town of Santorini will never be the same again. But before we follow on Pito’s quest for the Greek Adonis, we must travel back to the beginning when Boyzone first started. This video took place in the summer of 2004. After hanging out in Paris for a week drinking in the streets and harassing a salon owner, Boyzone took a trip to Barcelona. Boyzone in Santorini coming soon
I have reservations about helping homeless people. I wasn’t always this way. Back when I used to SKATE, my friends and I would hang out with bums all the time. Not only were we using them for entertainment, homeless people for the most part were pretty neat. A lot of them actually had talents like singing or breaking parking meters so we found them quite useful.
But as I got older driving around town, I notice the same homeless people at the same street corners every day. And every time, I see these “Good Samaritans” offer up some change. One particular time, there was this male prostitute begging for money and then handing it over to this big black dude, who I’m assuming is his pimp.
But I think the final straw for me was seeing this report on beggars on the local news. These guys can make up to $20-40 an hour, depending on the area. No wonder they are lazy! They’re making more than the majority of Americans by just sitting there with a sign with some pathetic look plastered on their face! Screw that. At least collect plastic bottles like the immigrants who risk their lives coming here for an honest wage.
Anyway, while hanging out in Athens with my shorty, we saw this little kid pointing his laser pen into peoples’ eyes. It was pretty funny. But after observing him for a while, it got a little sad.
As he walked around with poo smelling clothes and holy shoes, the novelty of this kid blinding people with his laser quickly wore off. I do see poor people every day living in Los Angeles. I used to live near skin row when downtown was still trying to come up and I saw some crazy things out there. Boning prostitutes in the streets, drug deals in the portables, bum fights over sleeping bags and so on. But witnessing a kid living in this state is pretty depressing. These gypsy kids were born into it.
In this slice of life, you will see this boy pickpocket somebody. It happens really fast so don’t blink. He’s good.
On my way to Buenos Aires, I had a 5 hour layover in Mexico City (DF). For such a short amount of time there, I was really able to capture the essence of national pride that I feel the US sometimes really lacks. I’m not talking about some piece of shit that flaunts his/her confederate flag and wants to secede from it’s union (i.e RICK PERRY Gov. of Texas). I’m talking about people who take to the streets and in the form of protests, make their elected officials give in to their wants. After all, it’s the people that make up the government. So fuck you, you stupid TEABAGGERS. I swear, you people don’t have a fucking clue. Seriously. “Hands off my medicare”. You fucking serious? You mindless drones are the ones who need to secede and go away forever.
Sure big protests may not work (Iraqi War), but I feel that it canmake a difference. The Aznar administration lost their general election after Spain’s 3/11 attacks due to large protests. The French love to protest, even if sometimes their cause is stupid. And of course violence never gets anybody anywhere. But it’s the message and form of communication that counts most.
So anyway, being in Mexico City hanging out at the ZOCALO, there was this huge gathering of some 1000 people protesting the Honduras coup. It was a sight like none other. The type of shit that gives one chills. It was basically one bus with 3 people on it’s roof speaking from a bullhorn. I regret not understanding what they were saying but I could really feel the passion. I could really feel the sense of community. The only way I knew what they were talking about was because they were waving the Honduran flag. It was fucking awesome. I wanted to get on top of the bus with those people speaking. But my girlfriend got mad since we had a flight to catch. But you will see that footage later when I get home to LA.
The video below was taken back in 2006 when one of my best friends ADAM NELSONand I decided to go to TJ. And I’m not talking about the tacky TJ where underaged San Diegans go to get hammered with hopes of seeing a donkey show. This was where my friend James lived and was unlike the general perception of TJ. We took off work for a day just to go. But somehow we didn’t feel satisfied. We wanted to keep going. We said “screw work. How often do we get to do this?” So we ended up in Mexico City. We didn’t know a soul. We didn’t speak a lick of Español. But it had to be one of the best trips of my life. Everything was improvised. It felt like our MOTORCYCLE DIARIES. I will post more video from that particular trip later because we saw so much awesomeness.
BTW, my girlfriend and I just had a crap load of wine and lagers. So excuse the grammatical errors and the lack of focus in this posting.
I have reservations about helping homeless people. I wasn’t always this way. Back when I used to 
