Pimpin Michelle Herrera Mulligan

As most of you know, The Rooster doesn't tend to pimp people's work...except my own. Being that I only tend to the A-Lister's of the world I thought I would post this book that was just released by my friend and comadre, Michelle Herrera Mulligan. This is her second collaboration with her own book coming out very soon...or so I hope (I just crossed my fingers). So if you have a chance you might want to check it out and pick it up at your local book store or just ask your local book store if they carry it...maybe they will pick it up.

Real Quick: Michelle is without a doubt one of the sweetest and most hardworking girls I know. She is always caught up in about four projects and three of those do not pertain to her, she just likes to help out good causes. So if you like good reading and would like to help out one of the good people in the world I suggest you pick up her book.



Juicy Mangos, the first ever collection of erotica stories written by and for Latinas, is out this week! It's been a labor of love for seven incredible, award-winning writers, and critics and authors are taking notice. The book is edited by Michelle Herrera Mulligan, the co-editor of Border-Line Personalities: A New Generation of Latinas Dish on Sex, Sass, and Cultural Shifting, and features Sofia Quintero, Elisha Miranda, Mayra Montero, Mayra Santos-Febres, Yxta Maya Murray, and Adriana Lopez.

As best-selling author Zane says, "Do not read this in bed or your sheets just might catch on fire. It is that hot!" And it's not just sexy: Pulitzer-Prize-winning-author of The Mambo Kings Sing Songs of Love Oscar Hijuelos called it an "amazingly well done collection of stories...not only a tantalizing read, but a deeply rewarding one as well."

So get out to your local bookstore or go to amazon.com or bn.com and order your copy now! (If you do order the book, please review online. Each review and comment counts, I swear!)

If you are based in New York City, get your copy signed at one of the following exciting events, all of which are absolutely free!

1) August 8 Sofia Quintero, Elisha Miranda, and Michelle Herrera Mulligan will be reading from their stories at this amazing independent bookstore: Starts at 6 p.m Hue-Man Books, 2319 Frederick Douglass Blvd., Between 124th and 125th Streets. Take the A, B, C, D, 2.3 to the 125th street stop or take the West Side Highway (9A), 125th street exit. Hue-Man bookstore is next to Magic Johnson Theatre.

2) August 9 Sofia, Elisha, and Michelle will be reading at Barnes and Noble in the boogie-down Bronx!!! 7 p.m. at Barnes and Noble in the Bronx, Barnes & Noble, 290 Baychester Avenue, Bronx, NY 10472, 718-862-3945.

3) August 15 Elisha and Michelle will be featured as part of the hot In the Flesh series! Here are the details: From juicy mangos to sex on Fire Island and more, August's In The
Flesh takes into the bedroom and beyond with steamy stories from some
of New York's naughtiest (plus a visiting guest from Minneapolis).
Featuring John Blesso (Sharehouse Confidential), Perry Brass (Carnal
Sacraments), Catherine Lundoff (Crave), Elisha Miranda (The Sista
Hood), and Michelle Herrera Mulligan (Juicy Mangos). Hosted by erotic writer and editor Rachel Kramer Bussel (He's on Top, She's on Top, Caught Looking). Free candy and cupcakes will be served and authors books will be available for sale. IN THE FLESH EROTIC READING SERIES. 8 PM., AT HAPPY ENDING LOUNGE, 302 BROOME STREET, NYC, (B/D to Grand, J/M/Z to Bowery, F to Delancey,
http://www.happyendinglounge.com) Free admission
Happy Ending Lounge: 212-334-9676
http://inthefleshreadingseries.blogspot.com

4) August 16 Juicy Mangos selected for Las Comadres Book Club! Join us at Borders books at 10 Columbus Circle for a discussion on the themes raised in Juicy Mangos diverse, complex stories. Starts at 6:30 p.m. Take the A, B, C, D to Columbus Circle.


5) August 23 Are you an aspiring erotica writer? Come see successful, published erotica writers Rachel Kramer Bussel, Sofia Quintero, and Elisha Miranda for advice on how to write amazing love scenes and to break into the world of erotica writing. Michelle Herrera Mulligan moderates.7 p.m., Blue Stockings bookstore, Lower East Side of Manhattan at 172 Allen Street between Stanton and Rivington, wwww.bluestockings.com.

6) September 13 Watch professional actors perform scenes from Juicy Mangos at our book release party! Co-sponsored by Sister Outsider Entertainment. 7-10 p.m Lava Gina, 16 Ave C (betw. 7th & 8th Sts) - New York NY 10009, 212-477-9319 - f 212-982-0489.

For more info about the events or the book, visit myspace.com/juicymangosbook.

Another Picture Dump

My Family Part 3

This first picture is of a Burro. We tend to get these things at the local market or on trips to Mexico when we drive across the border. There is nothing more that says you are Mexican than if you have one of these in your front lawn or in your garden.



I took this picture in my father's moving F-150 truck. As you can see...my hometown is just beautiful. If you click on the picture you can probably get a better view of the rolling mountains that are located in my town. But if you are wondering if all those hues of green were done with photo shop...nope...that is just home being home.



This picture is three prong. First is the rolling mountains again. Aren't they just beautiful? Nuff said. Then if you look real close you can see a white line at the foot of the mountains. Those are flower green houses. Our area is well known for its flowers also. These companies tend to be run by Japanese families that have lived in the area since they were released from the WWII camps. Then you see raspberry fields. I grew up working in these fields and I worked in the fields until my second year of college. I know, I know, sounds odd but there was no fancy internship for me...just good hard labor.



This is one of my favorite pictures. Yep, the good old nopal tree. Every home or side of the road has to have one. This was taken on the side of road but we do have one of these at my home. A bit smaller but none the less...and like the Donkey above, no Mexican home is complete with out at least one cactus. And if you have a Mexican friend who doesn't have at least one cactus plant at their home....well then they ain't really Mexican. Not a stereotype...just speaking the truth people.



This picture is my mother with her comadre, Cindi. Cindi is a wife, 3rd grade teacher, social activist, community activist, artist (both theater and paint), and she is family. Cindi and her husband David have been married for many years and have settled in this little town called San Juan Bautista. A cute little mission town where their home has been deemed a state landmark. I obviously can rant and rave about both David and Cindi but in the end what I can say is not only are they friends but they are family and nothing trumps that. In any case, this picture was taken at Cindi's birthday party.



Yes, it is true...country folk do tend to pull out the violin at parties. For those of you who are thinking of learning Spanish. The guy on the violin is like 100% white and he sang Cindi an old Mexican Folk song for her birthday...yes, in Spanish. OK so he grew up in a Mexican town and all...but there is hope if you want to learn Spanish.



Here is my Mom and some guy in Cindi's acting troop raising the roof. Yes, we party morning, noon and night.



Oh, I took this picture for Pauly Drama. But Did I mention that Cindi and David are also Dead Heads.



I saved this picture for last for several reasons. But the first and most important is that you know that you are at a Mexican birthday when the Virgin de Guadalupe is the candle on the cake.

In closing, I hope you have gotten a glimpse of my people and what makes me...well...The Rooster. Good family, good friends, and love. I wanted to thank my Mommy and Daddy for putting up with me on my visit. Uncle Joe for driving up from LA to keep the family bond strong...and also all our family friends who have known me since I was a kid and always take time to make the trip to my parents to see me to say hello.

A Night with Change100, Pauly Drama and Derek

I got a text from Derek informing me that Pauly Drama and Change100 were coming into the city for the weekend. Of course I was rather pumped because I had some bad beats to talk to about with PD, Change100 and Derek. I was hoping that they would be willing to post them on their blog so people could add in the comments what they thought of the hands I played and how I played them. Wait, I have a poker blog, maybe I will put my beats up here...haha!

In any case, since Pauly Drama is now bi-coastal I figured he needed to close some business and pick-up his mail. If case you were wondering, yes, this is how the jet-setters or other half live. I just get the close up camera view, but in the end I'm on the outside looking in. Yes, I'm a monkey in a suit that sits in a cube.

The good thing about PD still having roots in the NYC is that I know when he comes to town he always sets aside time for a few drinks with the A-Lister's (cough!cough! and I raise my hand). But even better than that is that PD enjoys grabbing some beers in my hood and he’s a bar troll like me. Viva The DP!! I always find it rather odd that PD enjoys hitting a lot of places in one night...I always figured him to be that strange guy sitting in the corner writing in his little book. But I'm happy PD is a bar troll and I was even more happy to hear that his hotel was right around the corner from the one and only, YOGI’s.

So I head off to Yogi’s and I arrived a few minutes late and I see Derek, Change100 and PD as I enter. DP asks me if I want to stay and have a beer there. As if you didn’t know the response to that question? Twist my arm and make me yell uncle...but of course. So we order a round and I think to myself, Let The Drinking Begin!!

For those of you that don’t know the history behind one of my favorite drinking places in NYC known as Yogi's. Well basically it is the only bar that plays country music 24/7. So we are sitting next to two guys who are chewing tobacco and spitting it into a shot glass (I found the practice rather odd myself). So I’m singing along to every damn song that comes on and they ask me who’s singing the song. So I’m telling him who singing the song that is playing, what album and the year it was released. Of course Derek and PD have seen this routine before but they always get a kick out of it and are standing on the sidelines laughing as I go into my Billy Martin rant. I think Change100 is a bit in shock...poor-poor Change. Maybe she thought the rumors of me being a country boy are a joke or maybe she was hoping they were. Either way, now you know, Change100! The Rooster is a hick...thank you Baby Jesus for that.

I digress. So one of the young bucks asks me about how much of the music box I know. I spout off 90% and he calls BS. I rattled off who was singing the current song playing and what year it came out. I gave him the HMIC (Head Mexican In Charge) cadence so I think he believed me. I probably know about 95% come to think of it...cough!cough! Yes, that does include Country Rock which is still country music in my book. I'm an expert in that area also...and I will take G-Rob and my good buddy Todd Jeffcoat on in a heads-up Country Rock Trivia game. Wait, both guys have families and so I don’t want to take their money. Here are the young bucks that I had to school on country music.



So off we go in search of more bars. The next bar we head over to is around the corner and is this Latino Fusion place. I wanted to go there because from what I read about Change100 is that she likes to try new things and they have this great white sangria there. For those of you who are looking for eye candy on the UWS I highly suggest you hit this place. I was happy that Change100 liked the drink and we were off and running to the next bar.

We hit the next bar which has about 50 beers on tap. One night my roomie and I stumbled in there and we then proceeded to try and drink every beer on tap. He started at one end and I at the other. By the time we had drank five beers the bartenders were betting on us and who could go the furthest. Of course I got up on the stool and started to yell at the bar to bet on me because everyone wanted action on my roomie. I had to get the crowd on my side and what better way to show them how agile I was on the swivel chair. Shortly after they asked us to leave after my outbreak. In any case, we had a quick two beers there and we were off to the next bar.

Well this is where is starts to get ugly. If you don’t like sad stories and see me as an angel stop reading here...thanks Mom.

Well we are sitting outside because it is a beautiful night in the city at the Dead Poet Bar. This bar is an Irish Bar where they have poems and saying by Irish poets on the wall (On a side note, my friend Julie is the first girl to have her name on the wall for 100 Guinness’s drank at the place). This is also a place where another time Pauly and I met an aspiring actress who had just done a dog food commercial. Nice girl, to bad I called her a B-Lister for her representation.

Moving on...o.k. so we are sitting there and I see this little kid walking by with a book in his hand. Yep, the new Harry Potter Book had just been given out to him. I looked at my watch and it read 12:30am.

Conversation as follows:
Me: Hey, hey, did you just get the HP Book.
Kid: With huge smile nods yes.
Dad in Excited Voice: Yeah, we just got it around the corner at Barnes and Nobel.
Me: Hey, let me take a picture of you with the book.
(Dad nods to kid that it is ok)

Here is the kid and his new book:



Me to Kid: Hey, I have to tell you something.
Kid Looks at me with a smile.
Me: I illegally downloaded the book for free and read it and let me tell you, Harry Potter and Hermione die.

Kid looks and me and face goes all wrong and I mean all wrong...he starts to cry right there on the spot. I look over at PD, Change100 and Derek for help but I get none (Mo Rivera where are you...I'm in a jam). The father is pissed off and people around me are telling me obscene things that I can’t type here. I was a bit in shock that this went all wrong. The Dad just grabs his kids hand and says, “Thanks Jerk.”

Needless to say that put a damper on the night. We left the rest of our beers and headed out of dodge. The people next to use were really pissed that I upset the kid. I don’t know, I thought I was doing a service to kid so he wouldn’t go through all the shock of reading it. I was trying to lessen the blow.

After that we called it a night. We figured that we should just cap it.

Coming next…my last night out with A-Lister’s at an A-Lister’s place. I'm even going to Live Blog It!!

Photo Dump

I thought I would do a photo dump since it has been a while since I have done one. I wanted to write a bit about every single one of these events but I thought by write ups might not do the time and pictures justice...thus, I will just post them.

Harry Potter

I just completed the new Harry Potter Book which I downloaded from online. You thought the Sopranos ending was odd…Poor Harry and Hermione die. What was the writer thinking?

My People II

As aforementioned I am going to break up my post into 3 parts when it comes to giving you, the reader, a little glimpse of my family back in Watsonville, Ca.



This is my cousin Tony. What can I say, it is a blessing that he's with us today. Tony was and is one of my favorite cousins. As a kid he use to put on gloves on me and let me throw leather at him while he just tried to slip punches. Take note that I said, tried to slip punches....haha! He is married to a beautiful woman and if you see my cousins from my previous post...the taller one is one of his two beautiful daughters.

Steve, the guy by him is a family friend who has been around for a long time. We have an annual fund raiser at Steve's house yearly where we have carnitas and a horseshoe throwing tournament to raise money for the local little league. Steve has a beautiful wife, Monica who was getting over an illness and wasn't able to make this event. But they are both staples at my families functions because they are family.



The next picture is of my Uncle Joe. Shit, what can I say about Uncle Joe that you don't already know those of you who know me. Uncle Joe lives in LA and is my mother's little baby brother. He use to take me to concerts as a kid and we still hit one from time to time when we are in the same city. Without a doubt Uncle Joe is one of the main components of our family glue now that my grandmother passed away. He makes it a point to travel to see everyone and calls everyone from time to time which is cool. I sometimes think that Uncle Joe should have a three page post about our stories or his very own chapter in my next book. Not enough could be said nor can my words do Uncle Joe any justice to be honest.

The dog in the picture is my folks dog named, Pepe. He's a good dog and a bit hyper but I think that is because he's young. My folks like this dog which is cool because if you know Mexicans they are willing to give a dog away from one day to the next or accidentally lose him at the park...cough!cough!



This picture is of a flower my grandmother left us. My grandmother had a huge garden and would basically grow these plants from a little stem she would steal from someone else's plants. She would just kindly ask to take a little piece and she would grow it in a cup at first and it would just take off. So although my grandmother is no longer around I look at these flowers and I'm reminded of her.



This last page is what country people do. We just sit out back, drink beers and of course sing Mexican music all night long. That is my uncle Jerry on the guitar and my Dad belting out a little diddly. As kids I remember when my father use to go to my uncle Rudy's (Tony's father) and they would play well into the night and laugh, sit around drinking and playing the guitar. Fond memories that I didn't know would mean so much to me today. I miss those jam sessions.

My People

The following three posts will be about my family and my trip home in early May. It was such a special trip for so many different reasons that the trip deserves at least three posts.

I haven't written in a long while about my people. I really do think that they deserve more ink on my city blog so I am going to post a lot about them and who we are. When you grow up in close quarters where everyone knows everyone there is a code of silence that takes place where one doesn't give away too much information about the inner-circle. It is a code that is known and nobody talks about. I don't think it is just a Mexican thing but maybe more a small town country thing.

The following pictures were taken of my family on my trip home. I hope this might give you a little glimpse of me and where I'm from.



This picture is of me and my folks. What can I say, they have always been there for me through thick and thin. I know that a lot of people say that and it is probably true, most parents will go to no end for thier children. Myself, well lets just say that as a youth I pushed that envelope as far as it could be pushed. Yet, no matter how much I pushed it they were always in my corner.



This is myself, random bar girl, Uncle Joe (sitting next to her) and of course David Rodriguez. I can go on and out about my Uncle Joe but I will get to him in post number 2. But about my buddy Dave...first, we go back...I mean way back. Through all the years there is one thing about Dave that I have always respected above and beyond everything, he respects the sacred oath of friendship. Even as kids Dave was the one guy who really understood this oath...no matter who he was dating, where he had to be, and whoever his newer friends were, Dave never broke that sacred oath. Dave might seem like a guy who might break when under the hot light, but there is one thing that Dave never was and never will be, A Fucken Rat...his bond is thick as blood. Thank you for being my friend, Dave.



Speaking of oaths and friendship. The following picture is of my Dad who recently had to lay one of his good friends to rest. I can't comment too much on this topic because I don't know all the details (and I think I would be out of line by saying too much), but I think my father was rather upset that Big Dave didn't get the proper send-off that he deserved. Big Dave was a long-time fixture at my house and a huge fight fan. On this night of the DeLaHoya v. Mayweather fight, my Dad gathered everyone in the back yard to give Dave the proper 10 count. To those who don't know the significance of the 10 count, well it is kind of the highest honor a boxer can get after he passes.

My father said something to this extent: "As we all know Big Dave passed and I want to give him the proper 10 count that he deserves. Because we were all fans of Big Dave, as we know he was a big fight fan and a fighter in life...and every fan deserves to send off one of their favorite fighters so I would like to send Big Dave off with a 10 count."

My Dad said it much better, but it gave me a rare glimpse of my Dad. As strong of a statement as it was and an honor for him to perform the 10 count, it showed me a softer side of my Dad that one doesn't see on display for the pulic.




These two picture are of my little cousins. What can I say, good looks run in the family. Both of these girls are my heart not only because they are family, but because they just have hearts of gold. I hadn't really seen them in years but they were quick with a hug, quick to catch me up about their lives, and all that I had missed out on these past years.