On Saturday I woke up to sounds of Mariachi music and Aztec drumming. Turns out there was a Cinco De Mayo parade on my street. There was little notice other than a few no parking signs on Cypress Ave. the night before.

Danza Azteca on Cypress & Roseview

The Grand Marshal was an Elvis Impersonator

Bike Riders: The new people in the barrio wanted to be a part of the parade and to push their agenda
about getting people not to drive their cars and ride their bikes instead. They asked the people watching the parade to join them in a bike ride. Nobody did except the neighborhood loco who rides his bike all day cause he's got nothing better to do. Everyone in the neighborhood knows this guy is crazy, but nobody told them. We all just snickered.

Tamborazos in the back of a truck. A horse follows them.

Vaqueros (Cowboys)

I'm not too big on parades. I usually avoid them at all costs, but since it was right outside my door, I figured I'd check it out. The parade seemed a bit unorganized and thrown together last minute. However, it was cool to hang with my neighbors and scream out a few "Que Viva Mexico!"s. Once the Victory Outreach float came by, I figured it was time to go home. Born-again Christians with megaphones wasn't really my idea of a Cinco De Mayo celebration. Besides, I was doing laundry.

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The people behind saveourtacotrucks.org have organized Taco Truck Night on May 1st. On that day, they encourage people to spend their money at their local taco truck and to raise awareness of the bill. Also on the site is a petition that you can sign in support of the taco trucks.

A taco truck to many is more that just a place to get tacos. It is a part of the community, a place to meet, gossip and pick up some food after a hard working day when you’re too tired to cook. If you don’t eat meat, most trucks can accommodate you if you are polite about it. Some of the best dishes I’ve had at a taco truck were of the non-meat variety. All you have to do is ask.

Behind this ruling are restaurants that blame the trucks for their lack of business. Having tried many Mexican restaurants all over the city, I feel that most restaurants should put the blame on their own menu rather than the taco trucks, especially in L.A. where people will pay a little more for a better product. It’s the same thing Amoeba experienced when it first opened. Many local record stores tried to blame their misfortunes on the presence of Amoeba without looking at themselves and the dump they called a record store. Yeah…I said it!

Back in 2000, when I used to perform at The Temple Bar on a regular basis, DJ Dusk was the resident DJ. I knew him as one of the Root Down DJ's and I heard him spin funk, hip-hop & reggae. On those Temple Bar nights when East L.A. would invade Santa Monica, he would unload the best Salsa, Cumbia and Latin Funk Jams. I figured with with his dark features, musical tastes and his command of Spanish slang that this his was one of us. Turned out he was born Tarek Habib Captan, son of a Lebanese father and a German/Irish mother. I wasn't the only one fooled. In an article in Los Angeles City Beat Magazine, close friend and Root Down co-founder Carlos "Loslito" Guaico didn't know either:

"For the longest time I was convinced he was a Puerto Rican from New York. Not just because of his smooth-operator and accent status, but for his understanding, love, and education for all types of music from hip-hop to house, funk, soul, reggae, and salsa."

Two years later for those who knew him personally or knew him from the music he played, he is still missed very much. The DJ Dusk Art & Music festival is not as much an anniversary of his death as a celebration of his life. The festival is being held at The Mar Vista Family Center, a place where Dusk mentored hundreds of kids that passed through those doors over thirteen years. Also performing tomorrow will be East L.A.'s very own (and Amoeba employee) Ray Ricky Rivera with a full band.