Jen Porter’s Blog

It’s been a whirlwind week here in Aruba …except there’s no actual wind. Yes, still hot…but I’m used to it, even though I sweat still (you know me).

I started out with a rousing crowd early in the week-lots of $20 tips, etc. We had a great time! Then on Thursday a big crowd from the east coast came in with a few birthday parties…they threw me a couple $100s and were buying shots like crazy. At the end of the night, all drunk and singing, Mike (the ringleader of the group) says he wants to buy a shot for the entire bar….so we pour about 60 shots and have at it. How lovely! This generous man is taking care of a round for the entire bar! It warms my heart to see that kind of generosity…but wait….it only gets better….

So Friday my friends from Chicago, Julie & Bill, arrived. Julie told Bill the only thing she wanted for her birthday was to see me sing….so he booked a week in Aruba ! Could that be any sweeter? They wanted to buy me a bottle of champagne for the night, so I said (TWIST MY ARM), ok! Man, it was a good evening…they also tipped me about $100….again, true generosity revives my faith in the good nature of humanity….they also asked for several of my songs (they have all my CDs), which is also very flattering. I drank most of the bottle, had a few red headed sluts (as always), and proceeded to remain drunkenly going out with Ivo & the crew from Soprano’s until 5 in the morning.

So I’ve already had a stellar week at this point….so now it’s Saturday night (last night), and I see Julie & Bill. I tell them I can’t handle another bottle tonight…I said they could buy my beers, etc. Well, that worked until about 10:30p when they were looser and feeling generous again….and I see another bottle come up to the stage. I give them a chastising look and take a deep breath, ready to do it all again….when I see the east coast group coming….like 30 people at once and I’ve already got a pretty full bar at this point….but now I know the night’s about to get a lot better….I didn’t realize how much better though! So Mike and his brother are competing to see who can take better care of me, basically, and towards the end they were slinging me $100 PER SONG. I said I had to stop at 1:00am and they gave me another $100 each to play another few songs….so already I have a new personal best in tips for the evening - a record in and of itself!! But here’s the kicker: when they paid the bill, Mike gave me an extremely large tip on the credit card.  It was far and away the most amazing night…..in tips…..I felt like a high-priced ho.  LOL  What a lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky girl I am. Both my wallet and heart are bursting - YIPPEEE!

I don’t think I’ll be able to top this story….but you never know. I’ll certainly never forget my first time in Aruba .

I wish I was kidding when I say that I have been drunk for like 8 days straight….. I’m sure I’m getting all soft and mushy just eating and drinking all the time…this is part of the reason I can only do 1 month at a time!!

I’ve been meeting some lovely folks from all over the place….and a few who are talented! Eileen from the east coast played guitar and sang a few numbers… Vanessa from Ireland sang two beautiful traditional Irish songs to her husband….then there’s Chris who did some insane, nasty version of “Like A Virgin”,complete with tying up his shirt so his stomach was exposed….and he’s not gay. TOO FUNNY

I’ve actually met quite a few gay people here in Aruba ….nice to feel a little like home as I’m generally in GLBT company in some capacity back in Chicago . I’ve had a few twenties to do “Go Cubs Go” - and GO CUBBIES!! I’m keeping my fingers crossed….that’s all I’ll say about that.

Ok, so my funny story from last week….There was this guy, John, who tried to walk in and run the room. You know that guy….he wants to rattle me, get attention, etc. Older gentleman but good looking and clearly a strong personality. So he gives me sh*t a couple of times and I tell everyone that we used to be together and I know about his “little problem”…..I can’t give all the lyrics here but basically the song is called “itsy bitsy” (if you’ve seen Chicago Dueling Pianos, you probably know what I’m talking about) - he came up and gave me $20 afterwards and says “Ok, you win….you win”. You’re damn right I win - it’s MY room, it’s MY house, it’s MY show. Good times….he came back 3 nights in a row.

Ok, I’m gonna eat so I can drink - again. Bye for now!

~Jen~

So, I often end up getting a shot or two during my show, as most of you know….I take that opportunity to do dirty toasts. I always tell the crowd that when I drink, you drink. So we raise our glasses together and I say something terribly gross but ultimately funny….anyway, that’s not even the point of the story.

So, it was my 2nd or 3rd night here and I told the crowd I prefer Redheaded Sluts (my favorite shot, for those that don’t know)……..I ended up with about 6 shots in a row!! (part of the reason I love the redheaded slut, other than it’s my namesake shot - haha - is that its not too strong) Still, 6 songs and 6 shots later, I said:

“Alright…now, you know I love shots but I need people to put money in my jar now so that I can go buy some food…I need groceries!”

On my last break, I had just met this very tall, thin Dutch man named Ivo, pronounced “ee-vo” (pics to come…I just received my camera battery charger shipped from home!). Well, Ivo disappeared when I said that and I went on and played another song. No sooner had I finished the song but Ivo comes up to the piano and drops a loaf of bread in my jar….everybody cracked up, including me!! Some people are so clever…..needless to say, Ivo and I are great friends now.

That’s my story for the day….I’m off to the supermarket to get ingredients for my fabulous potato salad….there’s a barbeque at Martyn’s house (the manager at the bar) on Sunday and that’s my contribution.

Ciao for now!

So I was going to upload some more pics and write another blog last week….but I ran into a snag. The camera battery was dying. So I went to my closet to find the charger…nothing. I looked in my suitcase….nothing. I checked in the desk drawer where I have the cords for my phone, etc….nothing. DAMMIT! The only thing I forgot was the charger for the battery. Ok, no problem, I think. I’ll go downtown and hit up an electronics store and get a replacement charger. I went to three - yes, three - different electronics stores….they have universal chargers for Sony, Samsung, etc. Nothing for HP. that’s right - NOTHING!! AAARRRGGGGHHHHH!! So I’m having Mercer (my roomate) send me the charger for $50 via FedEx. Consequently, I haven’t taken pics since last Thursday and I can’t get the other ones off yet either! Leave it to me to get a camera that won’t charge through my computer, only via the proprietary battery charger that I can’t seem to find to save my life. SIGH

Anyway, all’s well. The staff and I are having a blast….the patrons and I are having a blast. Everyone is having a good time, which is all that matters.

So I met some Italians from New York & Philly and they asked if I could do something italian: Frank, Dino, whatever. I said I didn’t do any of those artists and they were flabberghasted! Joe from Philly had a $20 in his hand and was saying “But you work at Soprano’s! What do you mean you don’t know it?” He promptly put that $20 back in his pocket and walked away from the piano.

I took a break 10 minutes later and went over to their table. I introduced myself and when Joe told me his name, I shook his hand and said “Piacere”, which is “nice to meet you” in Italian. I knew if I spoke the tiny bit of Italian (and more importantly Italian-American) I knew, I was going to be in. So I gave them my list of songs and asked them to please take a look and see if there was anything else I could do for them. They chose Bon Jovi, by the way, which is fantastic. Joe was very appreciative of the fact that I came over to try and work something out. That’s what I do!! I try to please everyone….I know I can’t always do that, but I try, dammit!

That’s my story of the week - Ciao!!

Ok, I’m feeling a little better….at least I’m not sweating 24/7….just every night at the club, which is what I do anyway! You all know I’m a sweaty mess on stage…lol

Anyway, the staff are all great! I gotta get pics of the girls tonight but there are new pics of Derrek & Bradley, the boy bartenders. Then there’s Kathy & Luoi (pronounced “Lou-ee”)….and Martyn, my Dutch boss. I gotta get a snap of him too. But the point is everyone is great…having good people to work with makes SUCH a difference, right?

So I went to Arashi beach yesterday…it was gorgeous, of course. There’s more of a breeze at the water, so that helped, but the water itself isn’t all that refreshing. I mean, again, it helps, but it feels like a warm bath. Seriously. But it’s just lovely. There are a few areas on the beach that are barricaded off (see pic). It’s for sea turtles that have made nests. If anyone sees activity like this they are to report it so that the area can be protected. I hope I see a sea turtle….

The club is going very well. I’m surprised to be making JUST as much money as I was in January in St. Maarten. Maybe I just work the crowd, maybe they just want to give me all they’ve got. tee hee - I’ll take it. No, seriously, I’ve had wonderful people in already and I expect more of the same…in a good way! I’ll have to start taking some pics with fans to post.

So there we are - 3 days in and everything is going great. More later!

I made it to Aruba

Oh….my…..gawd. It is SO….FREAKIN….HOT. But that’s what I get for coming down in September. Everyone here is telling me this is one of the hottest, most humid months on the island of Aruba . Since the hurricanes don’t really come here, the worst they get is that their trademark tradewind isn’t really blowing. Uh huh - not enough breeze. So the air is still and hot. On top of that, it’s almost NEVER humid here - they average 8″ of rain per year - except in September. So I feel safe and warm….really, really, really warm. But just like last time, I’m sure I’ll get used to it and not be quite as affected in a week or so. Time will tell.

Otherwise, it’s beautiful! I moved in to my apartment today (see pics) and I have a lovely sun-facing balcony - too bad it makes the apartment 9,000,000 degrees. *Sigh* The A/C is in the bedroom (thank goodness) and I already have a fan blowing it out into the rest of the apartment…it helps, but it’s probably 85 degrees in here right now as the sun goes down. Sounds like I’ll be drinking LOTS of water this month as I’ll be sweating pretty much constantly! lol

On to other things….the club is totally cute! Though there’s not much A/C in there either - it’s open air, basically, and they have the A/C on but it doesn’t do all that much….it helps but it just can’t keep up. Gee, do you think I’m a little obsessed with the heat right now? HAHA

Ok, tonight is my first night playing so I’ll tell you all how the gig is going in a few days.

Ciao for now!

~Jen~

Last night, Roger Sanchez (international DJ) was spinning at Bliss, one of the clubs here on the island. I went over to meet Rich & my island friends after work. We partied like rock stars, of course! It was a blast….since I didn’t go to sleep until about 8:30a, I’m a tad tired…but this is the day we booked massages on the beach. Christianne, the masseuse I met on my beach the 3 rd day I was here came out to work on Rich & I for an hour each. It was just the kind of bliss I needed the day after the club. What could be more relaxing than getting a rub down under the palm trees, feeling the breeze, hearing the surf crashing in….on top of that, she did really great deep tissue work so I feel like a new woman! Thank goodness Saturday nights can be slower at the bar because it’s moving day. Everyone is either just coming in or getting ready to leave, so Friday is the busy night. We were quite busy last night so a good time was had by all. One more week to go and I return to the frigid winter….ah, Chicago. My sweet home, Chicago, I’ll be back in your arms before you know it.

Rich & I went up to Pic Paradis, the highest point on the island. I love that there are mountains AND ocean here….it’s the best of both worlds, in my mind. In any case, Pic Paradis, on the French side, just past Marigot, the French side capital, is a gorgeous 1,400 ft above sea level. The views were amazing! (see pics) Then Rich & I found out about a company that runs a zip line course. For a mere 35 Euros ($50), we spent an hour in the trees, zip lining around, climbing, monkeying…I was so happy! Those of you that know me know that I LOVE to hike so this was a perfect day! Se manifique! (See pics)So I went to do a newspaper interview with Rajesh Chintaman of the Daily Herald over in Phillipsburgh a few days ago. Today the paper came out and he did a VERY nice write-up of me! There’s also a few pics of me with customers at Soprano’s here: http://thedailyherald.com/outnabout/467

I’m so proud to have taken this place by storm a little bit. I mean, ghetto famous is super fun – I get recognized out at the club, I know the press people (Island 92 Radio, who also posted a few pics of me on their website: http://island92.com/photo4.htm) and I’ve met so many wonderful people that work here as well from all over the world. I’ve definitely made some great friends who I’ll miss when I leave at the end of next week. It seems to have flown by, though I am looking forward to having a slightly less hectic schedule for February….and I’m still working on booking some gigs in Colorado during the first week of March. Mostly, I want an excuse to go skiing. J Yes, I miss winter but only a little bit….I see it’s 12 degrees in Chicago on my desktop weather program. Yeah, I’m still glad to be soaking up the sun.

So as I said, the new crop of folks is in. I had a group of about 10 30-somethings that just whooped it up and had a grand old time singing along with me. I love that I keep meeting so many interesting people from all over the world, though many are Americans and many are from the east coast here. Anyway, I wanted to talk about a new couple that’s in for a few weeks. They look like they starred in the movie Cocoon…so sweet and kind…very amicable older folks. So they’ve been coming a few nights in a row being very complimentary. Since I don’t play standards too often, I always worry about grabbing the attention of the older set. These folks, however, threw my ageist theory for a loop. They were browsing my set list and wrote a request…it was for Tenacious D’s F**k Her Gently. I laughed and asked if they knew the song. They said no, but they really wanted to hear it. It was late enough in the evening for a bit of debauchery, so I said ok. They freaking LOVED it! So now they ask for it every night. I’ve had to tell them that they have to wait until later in the evening when those of fainter constitution have run off to bed. Everything I know is being challenged right now and I’m just basking in the expansion.

So Jordan & Kamelia have left and Rich is now here! He’s so happy playing in the water….he even found a playmate! This cute little French boy (see pics). Just as my guests have changed over, my crowd has changed over. For two weeks, I had Frank & Leslie and Larry & Janice. Every night or every other night, I would see familiar faces, talking, laughing, enjoying. Now, they’ve left and a new crowd is coming in. It’s interesting seeing the changeover and also feeling like I miss my old regulars! It’s making me miss home folks too – though I’m not missing home too much. It’s a wonderfully simple life here. I’m partying just as much as I ever do, but I get to relax on the beach in between. The stress just melts away with the sunshine and the water. The sand and salt exfoliate so well!