DJ John Michael: Moyle Brain Surgeon of the Dancefloor

you're bored by 9 minute vocal anthems, i can tell.

they're fine after a couple of bumps of...something...or perhaps after a latte' or 4, but when you're in your car or on the bus and you need that quick fix of Deborah Cox or Britney, and the album versions just aren't fabulous enough, what can you do? i'll tell you.

check out this blog.

it's all edits, all the time. not just the standard stuff you usually can find online, from over priced singles...original edits of songs that, before now, have never been edited (ie. Junior's mind numbing mixes of Kristine W's Land of the Living, Casey Stratton's Blood, and Madonna's I Want You; stellar mixes like Almighty's mix of Sheena Easton's Don't Leave Me This Way, Barry Harris' mix of Chaka Kahn's To Sir With Love, and the sublime ridiculousness that is Franklin Fuentes' Mary Tyler Moore). DJ John Michael is one of the most amazing DJ's ever to set foot in a club. there isn't a person alive who knows house music better than he, so there's nobody better qualified to get to the meat of the long drawn out club mixes of DJ's like Offer Nissim and Guido Osario.

check it out, i know you won't be disappointed.

16 Days 13 hours 31 minutes

tonight: meeing with catering hall
tomorrow: meeting with DJ.

i think we're done.

now all i have to do is be prepared for my surprise bachelor party...

Hey Mr. DJ Put a Record On, I Wanna Dance With My Mama

i need your help.
the wedding we went to Saturday night gave us both a few ideas (no, Ryan Charisma, we're not going to sing a duet of You're the Top). the most notable involves the Groom's Dance with his Mother. long story short, we're going to dance with our mom's at the same time. yes it will provide a challenge for the photographer, but if they're worth what we're paying, they can handle it.
here's where you (all) come in:

what are good songs for a guy to dance with is mother to?

i've googled it and this is what i came up with:
the First Time Ever I Saw Your Face~ Roberta Flack
Because You Loved Me~ Celine Dion
Hero~ Mariah Carey
the Wonder of You~ Elvis
That's Amore~ Dean Martin
In My Life~ Bette Midler
I Remember You~ George Michael

is it me or are some of those a little too...Oedipal..?
I'm thinking something along the lines of Wind Beneath My Wings without the cheese factor.
suggestions, please!

Hey Mr. DJ Put a Record On, I Wanna Dance With My Non-Legally Recognized Life Partner Pt.4

i got a call from Tess last night. Remember Tess? she was just perky and fabulous as the last time she and i had spoken (she refered to Stephen as my fiance` and i wanted to hug her throught the phone). Anyhoo...her husband will be DJing our Commitment Ceremony! she's sending out the contract and stuff today; we should be getting them by Thursday. i gotta say...i'm really psyched.that's another weight off my mind.

so, now the Commitment Ceremony shopping listlooks like this:

• Catering Hall
• Celebrant
• DJ
• Photographer
• Favors
• Florist
• Tuxes
• Honeymoon

next is a photographer. i'm a little daunted by this prospect. what do you look for when choosing one? what's the price range people usually pay? how does one judge someone's ability to take wedding photos?

"Take it on my good side, don’t wanna be on my bad side"~Snapshot (RuPaul)

Happy Monday

it looks like it's gonna be a good day...for a monday...

the DJ called this weekend and it looks like he's good to go. it's a little bit more than i had wanted to pay, but he seems really nice and very professional. he also comes highly reccomended by stephen's sister, so that's a plus too. i'm just waiting to get the contract in the mail, along with the Wedding Survey that DJ companies seem to love to send out. wait till he sees my list :)

My albatross, TNG, is out today. i really shouldn't be as relieved as i am, since it seems that his wife took ill over the weekend. this will give me an opportunity to get this desk back into shape. it was no fun juggling my work while also watching him like a hawk. bad things happened last week when i split my attention. i hope she's ok, but i'm glad he's not here today.

Stephen has a community board meeting tonight, so i'll have the house to myself for a couple of hours. as much as i love him, i like "alone time" every once in a while: i'll watch Will and Grace or maybe a movie i know he really doesn't wanna see, like Boys Don't Cry or Trick. plus i finally found the original Legend of Zelda on Gameboy Advance, so maybe i'll play that for a while.

ok it's back-to-work time

Hey Mr. DJ Put a Record On, I Wanna Dance With My Non-Legally Recognized Life Partner Pt.3

the search is over. i've found a DJ. here's the story:

since it clearly means more to me than it ever could to him, Stephen has left all the musical choices to me. no problem. i'd been kicking around the idea of hiring the guy from the previous post, despite my reservations and quite a bit of advice from John and my mom. on a lark, i asked Stephen what he thought of the guy despite his questionable business tactics. long story short? Stephen told me to try the DJ his sister used, last year, at their wedding. thinking "what the hell", i called him.

Tess, the woman who answered, was so fantastically sweet that i didn't know what to do. she asked how i heard of the DJ Company, and i dropped Stephen's sister's name. she asked how she was doing, and got terribly excited when i mentioned their new baby. in a very round about way she inquired how she and i were related and i told her that Stephen was her brother, and i was his boyfriend and that he and i were planning our wedding. that totally made her day. she started gushing about how fantastic she thought it was that we were getting committed and how appalled she was at the US government's treatment of gays and lesbians; she kept telling me how supportive she and her husband are of Gay Rights and Equality. it was all i could do, not to cry. she took down all the necessary information and told me that her husband (the DJ) would call me back as soon as he could. as i was about to hang up she told me (again) how happy she was for us and that she truly wished us the best of luck and the longest of lives together. when i got off the phone my co-worker told me i was blushing furiously.

if he's half as wonderful as his wife, i don't care how much he wants to charge (and i doubt it will be more than Dash of Class); he's the one. i'm a sucker for people who support me.

"Gay and lesbian people fall in love. We settle down. We commit our lives to one another. We raise our children. We protect them. We try to be good citizens."California Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica

Hey Mr. DJ Put a Record On, I Wanna Dance With My Non-Legally Recognized Life Partner Pt.2

so i found another DJ.
i checked out their website, e-mailed them and spoke to the owner.
he quoted me a very nice price for our Commitment Ceremony and said he was sending out the paperwork for our perusal in the morning. groovy.
he calls back an hour later to get more specifics:


DJ: What exactly is a Commitment Ceremony?
Me: it's the lesbian/gay version of a wedding.
DJ: oh.
Me: will that be a problem?
DJ: no...it's just that, well, i thought it was to commit someone into an organization or something.
Me: *chuckle* no...not quite.
DJ: ok, then i'm afraid i'm going to have to charge you the Wedding price (adds $100).
Me: oh?
DJ: yeah, you're going to want somebody alot more professional for that. otherwise i would've sent someone who does, like, backyard barbecues or block parties or something. .
Me: um...ok. thanks. yours is still the best price i've heard.
DJ: i'll send you the paperwork today
Me: Great. i look forward to doing business with you.
DJ: Me too!

all of a sudden we're allowed to have a WEDDING? don't tell GW.

Ask Me No Questions

so after much rushing around and defensive driving, we showed up at the DJ's office to find that though the office was open till 9:30, an appointment is required prior to meet with a DJ. the receptionist was only able to confirm that, Yes our date is open and someone would contact us today. why the receptionist (extremely sweet and personable girl; extrordinarily Staten Island [adjective]) was there and what the other two women skulking about the office were doing is anyone's guess; one thing is certain though, they weren't DJ's and could not answer questions about DJ-ing or any of the minutae the craft entails.

"What do you say when you're money's gone? Chaka Kahn! Chaka Kahn! What do you say when you're man is gone? Chaka Kahn! Chaka Kahn!"~ Mary Tyler Moore (Franklin Fuentes)

Hey Mr. DJ Put a Record On, I Wanna Dance With My Non-Legally Recognized Life Partner

tonight, the hubby and i are off to pick a DJ for the Commitment Ceremony. this is the next step in booking the "important people" for the big day. so far, the list looks good(if i knew how to strike out the text i would):

• Catering Hall? done!
• Celebrant? done!
• DJ
• Photographer
• Florist
• Honeymoon? (thanks to MS, this one just got easier!)

we're going to see a DJ company called Dash of Class. they're who my brother used for his wedding. Stephen and i have always found the name...interesting. why just a dash? wouldn't you want more than just a dash? or are they saying that anything more than a dash is just too much class? granted, they're mostly from Staten Island and Brooklyn, but couldn't they scrape together more than just a dash?

i have 3 very simple rules for the DJ:

1. there will be absolutely no theme dances (ie Hands Up, the Electric Slide or the Dollar Dance)
2. he is not allowed to speak on the microphone, except to announce the "dance with my mother" and "couple's 1st dance". if he harrasses anyone to get up and dance, i'll plunge the cake knife in his heart.
3. he will be given an approved song list that he is absolutely not allowed to deviate from. if he does, he'll meet the same end as in #2.

if he thinks Bride-zillas are tough, wait till he sees Bottom-zilla.