Citoyen du Monde

Going Healthy

2010-03-11T14:00:00.001-06:00

I got an email a while ago asking me to come back this summer to the camp I worked at last summer (let me know if you're interested in working there). Of course I said yes. Thinking about it however reminded me how unhealthy and out of shape I am. Well, I have a shape, I would just prefer it to not be round in nature. Regardless, I began to think about my lifestyle and propositioned myself to lead a healthier lifestyle.

I've been on a diet since the end of January, and it's actually working. I've lost some weight. Yay. I thought, it's not enough to just starve myself, I should be doing exercise as well. I've always enjoyed running, but I've never been able to do it properly. I always pushed myself beyond my own capabilities. I would say, "Alright, I'm gonna wake up Monday morning and go run and run every day this week." Of course I would push myself more than I should and wake up Tuesday morning barely able to move from how sore I was. I would still be sore on Friday and find that I hadn't run at all. Boo.

So, of course I was excited when I discovered the Couch to 5K Running Plan. I across the program by accident on the Apple Store. It was one of the apps listed for the iPhone/iPod Touch. I did some research on the program and it seemed brilliant. It's basically designed to condition your body to be able to run. It makes you run 3 days a week for 9 weeks. Perfect! I realized there were more than one app offering the program, but I later found a podcast that gave it to me free!

Last week, I started Week 1. I ran Monday and felt exhausted. I ran Wednesday and felt alright. I ran Friday and felt brilliant. I can only say that I was excited about doing well.

This past Monday, I started Week 2, and then I threw out my back. The funniest thing is that the only thing I was upset about was not being able to run on Wednesday. I'm still not 100% and I'm still upset about not being able to run, but I am still dedicated to becoming a runner. So, yeah. Hopefully, by next week, I can pick up where I left off and get back on track.

I even ordered some running shoes. I used this cool search engine on Runner's World to find the appropriate shoes to use. I wasn't willing to spend crazy amounts of money, so I got the cheapest ones. I just got them on Wednesday, and I'm super excited to use them.

ASICS Men's GEL-Foundation 8

So yea. The whole point of this is that I want people to be aware of the fact that I am trying to get in shape and stop going on eating binges. Please feel free to slap food away from me or to motivate me to run.

I'll try to update often on my progress, but I'll definitely be tweeting about it at @ctrejo86.

Peace & Love.

Moderatism, Same-Sex "Marriage", Grayness

2010-02-01T19:20:00.004-06:00

The Illinois state primary election is tomorrow, and in lieu of that, I've been doing my civic duty and researching all the candidates. I was originally planning on voting Republican just to support a certain candidate, but after he dropped out, I decided to vote Democrat. It was a difficult decision to make. I don't really identify as Republican or Democrat, left or right; I would consider myself an independent moderate centrist. I understand primaries are set up to choose a party's candidate, but I always have a hard time voting in them because as a moderate, I'm not always in favor of one party's policies over another.

If you are overly curious about the candidates I like, here is a Twitter list of the Democrats I am endorsing: @ctrejo86/illinois-cook-etc-2010

The reason I started writing this post, was mainly because I found something in my political research that I thought was beautiful. It all started when I thought I would take a look at the Green Party's candidate for governor. I dismissed the idea of possibly voting green as soon as I opened the webpage, but I did some exploring and I came across something that stopped me in my tracks. Below is a direct quote from the issues section of Rich Whitney's campaign site:

Do you support same sex-marriage?
The short answer is yes, I would support and sign any legislation that gives same-sex partners the same rights and privileges as different-sex partners. My actual personal preference would be to get government out of the "marriage" business altogether. In a perfect world, the government would only recognize "civil unions" for everyone -- gay and straight -- and "marriage" would be the word strictly used to describe religious ceremonies, not state-sanctioned contractual personal relationship. But if I can't accomplish that, I have no problem just supporting "marriage" for all, on an equal basis. ( http://whitneyforgov.org)

The reason this stopped me is because he has managed to communicate my thoughts in a way that I never could have. The "issue" is a very complicated one, and I tend to avoid discussing my view on it, because in my experience, people jump to conclusions before you even finish your first sentence. I recognize that when I share my views, I try to avoid saying the wrong things so much to the point that it becomes hard to follow. I love Mr. Whitney's answer because it is short, succinct, exactly what I believe, and it falls into place on a spectrum that is often ignored by society. So often people choose to look at an issue as if it were only in black and white, when the reality is that life is not that simple. By choosing to look at the world in terms of left and right, good and evil, right and wrong, yes and no, we fail to see the intricacies and complexities of the universe around us.

People may judge and say that I'm indecisive or that I over-complicate a simple thing, but when has life ever been simple? I won't apologize for living my life in shades of gray.

Getting to Know Me

2010-01-15T17:20:00.001-06:00

Dear Viki,

You were right. I would be more likely to respond. I'm also taking the chance to fill out another one of these that I caught from Rocio on my newsfeed. Also, I generally enjoy filling these out.

-----

What time did you get up this morning? Noon.
Diamonds or Pearls? I could really care less.
What was the last film you saw at the theater? Avatar.
What is your favorite TV show? I have way to many. But right now I've been watching and enjoying both Eureka and Sanctuary.
What do you usually have for breakfast? Coffee.
What is your middle name? Alberto
What food you dislike? Ham.
What is your favorite CD at the moment? Better Days from Tom Frager
What kind of car do you drive? I don't, but I would buy a hybrid.
Favorite sandwich? Turkey, Turkey Bacon, Chips, and Lettuce.
What characteristic do you despise? Ignorance.
If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? EVERYWHERE.
VIKI! THERE WAS NO QUESTION 13!?
Favorite brand of clothing? Express, H&M, Zara
Where would you retired to? I would buy a farm.
What was your most recent memorable birthday? Last birthday was great. Lots of great friends!
Favorite sport to watch? Baseball, International Soccer.
Furthest place you are sending this? Poland?
Person you expect to send it back first? Don't care.
Random fact? I secretly like math.
Are you a morning person or a night person? Depends.
What is your size? 11.5
Pets? Dog named Smokey.
What did you want to be when you were little? Archeologist, Astronomer, Doctor, Lawyer.
How old are you today? 23.
What is your favorite candy? Chocolate.
What is your favorite flower? Chrysanthemums.
What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Halloween and Thanksgiving.
What is your full name? Carlos A. Trejo
What are you listening to right now? Baby When the Light by David Guetta and the sound of my mom cooking.
What was the last thing you ate? Chicken nuggets and a burrito.
Do you wish on stars? No.
If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Blue.
How is the weather right now? Cold.
The first person you spoke to on the phone today? No one, yet.
Favorite soft drink? Root Beer.
Favorite restaurant? I always have a good time at Cafe Iberico
What is your true hair color? Dark Brown/Black
What was your favorite toy as a child? Lincoln Logs.
Summer or winter? Winter.
Hugs or kisses? Hugs.
Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate.
Coffee or tea? Both.
Do you want your friends to email you back? No.
When was the last time you cried? Don't remember.
What is under you bed? Boxes and dust.
What did you do last night? Cleaned.
What are you afraid of? Being normal.
Salty or sweet? Salty.
How many towns have you live in? Calling Chicago a town is an insult.
Do you make friends easily? Yes and no.
How many people will you send this to? No one.
How many people will respond? Hopefully no one.

-----

Here's the one I caught from Rocio.

-----

100 Things You Might Not Know About Me

One of your scars, how did you get it? I fell.
What is one the walls in your room? My hat.
Do you snore, grind your teeth, or talk in your sleep? Yes, no, maybe.
What type of music do you listen to? All.
What time were you born? 6:38am.
What do you want more than anything right now? Insane amounts of money.
What do you miss? Money.
What is your most prized possession(s)? Umm.... my Jules Verne anthology?
How tall are you? 5'10.5".
Do you get claustrophobic? Only in my dreams.
Do you get scared in the dark? Yes.
The last person to make you cry? Brother?
What's your worst fear? Being forgotten.
What kind of hair/eye color do you like in the opposite sex? Red.
Where can you see yourself proposing? I don't.
Coffee or energy drink? Coffee.
Favorite pizza topping? Eh.
If you could eat anything right now, what would it be? Pad Thai.
Favorite color of all time? Blue.
Have you ever eaten a goldfish? No...
What was the first meaningful give you've ever received? Don't recall.
Do you have a crush? Hundreds.
Are you double jointed? No.
Favorite clothing brand? Express, H&M, Zara.
Who is your favorite female/male celebrity? Any sci-fi actor.
Do you have a pet right now? Yes.
What kind is it? Dog.
Would you fall in love knowing that the person is leaving? Probably.
WHAT'S WITH THE MISSING QUESTIONS!?
Say a number from 1 to 100. 24.
Blonds or brunettes? Red heads.
Favorite quote? To many.
Favorite place? Chicago.
Have you been out of the USA? Yes.
Your weakness? My pride.
Met anyone famous? Yes.
First job? Umm...
Ever done a prank call? No.
Do you think everyone out there has a soul mate? With 6.2 billion people on Earth, statistically, the chances are pretty good. However your chances of finding them are pretty low.
What were you doing before you filled this out? Filling out another one of these. Prior to that, I was reading.
Have you ever had surgery? No.
What do you get complimented about most? Dress.
Have you ever had braces? No.
What do you want for your birthday? Winning the lottery would be nice.
How many kids do you want and their names? Can't picture it.
Were you named after anyone? My dad.
What is the biggest turn off of the opposite sex? Dirty living arrangements.
What is one thing you like(d) about high school? Friends.
What kind of shampoo do you use? All kinds.
Do you like your handwriting? No.
What is your favorite lunch meat? Turkey or Roast Beef.
Any bad habits? Yes.
Are you a jealous person? Yes.
If you were another person, would you be friends with you? Maybe.
Do you agree with friends with benefits? By definition, you stop being friends with someone when you sleep with them. I believe you can have a strictly sexual relationship with someone, but friendships are and should be strictly non-sexual.
Do looks matter? Yes, and no.
How do you release anger? Active activities.
Would you rather gain or lose 58lbs? LOSE.
What's your main goal in life? Be remembered.
What was your favorite toy as a child? Lincoln Logs.
How many numbers are in your cell phone? Not that many.
Were you a fan of Barney as a little kid? Yes.
Do you use sarcasm? YES.
Mashed potatoes or macaroni and cheese? Mashed potatoes.
What do you look for in a guy/girl? To much.
What are your nicknames? None.
Favorite super power? Telekinesis.
What's your favorite TV show? To many.
What the best way to deal with your enemies? Avoid, but if necessary, hurt them indirectly.
What's your favorite ice cream flavor? Mint chocolate chip.
Do you have all your fingers and toes? Yes.
Do you have a computer in your room? No.
Plans for tonight? No.
Where do you want to live when you are older? London.
Do you want everyone to answer these questions? No.
What are you listening to? Alexandra Burke - Bad Boys.
Last thing you drank? Green Tea.
Last person you talked to on the phone? Don't recall.
The first thing you notice in the opposite sex? Hair.
What do you like to do in your spare time? TV.
Favorite thing to hate? People.
Favorite season of the year? Autumn.
What's your favorite type of candy? Chocolate.
Have you ever really and truly had a best friend? Yes.
What is your hair color? Black/DARK brown.
Eye color? Brown.
Shoe size? 11.5.
Favorite fast food place ? McDonald's.
Favorite restaurant? Cafe Iberico.
Do you like sushi? No.
Watch TV today? Yes.
Favorite day of the year? Halloween or Thanksgiving.
Play any musical instruments? Used to play the clarinet.
Republican or Democrat? Independent moderate.
Kisses or hugs? Hugs.
Relationships or one night stands? Both, not at the same time of course.
What was the last thing you bought? Breakfast.
Would you ever be a housewife? If I got to work at home, then sure.
What book are you reading? Michio Kaku's "Physics of the Impossible: A Scientific Exploration Into the World of Phasers, Force Fields, Teleportaion, and Time Travel".
Describe your love life? Lacking.

-----

Well that took a lot longer than I expected. Don't expect to see any more of these on here any time soon.

Peace and Love.

Dream Log 1

2010-01-04T09:34:00.001-06:00

It might be cool to start sharing my wacky dreams. Cause they get pretty wacky. So here it goes.

In last night's dream...

Apparently, in my dream universe, my house has been relocated to northern Wisconsin. As we pull into the back driveway, a bird that look like a cross between a kiwi and a kookaburra almost flies into my head. It then proceeds to start flying around us and sing a song no one has ever heard. I think, "That bird looks prehistoric." It didn't have feathers, more like hair, and it had a hard looking crest on its head. I was sure I had seen it in a book somewhere. Skip forward to the part where I've my basement has been converted into some secret science facility and we discover that someone's father has messed with time (I have a habit of dreaming about the TV shows. I've been watching, Sanctuary in this case). Rip in time = animals are slipping through? We go outside and see this bird flying around, and some owls on the power lines that are pretty bothered by some other animal. And fireworks because apparently it's close to July 4th. Although I could have sworn it looked like an explosion in space. My dad actually catches the crazy bird and comes across this dog like animal (looked like the one from Avatar) which tries to snatch the bird away from my dad as a meal. I tell my dad to feed it to him cause we have to destroy all life that doesn't belong in our time (even I'm rolling my eyes at that). He doesn't want to but the dog thing ends up taking a bite out of it and kills it, so he just feeds it to him, splattering blood in our doorway in the process, which I refuse to clean up seeing as I didn't make the mess.

So as exciting as this all is, the next scene is the next day and it's the first day at Camp Thunderhead (hence my house in no. Wisco?). There's a lot of running around, but cutaway to a scene where this guy and I are cutting our toenails (sigh) and I decide I have an extra on each foot, though don't feel to sure about it. I actually remember counting six toes. I say something about having to cut one off like it's no biggie, and the guy in front of me chops off two toes with nail clippers which I of course CANNOT watch! Blood and toe bits everywhere. I turnaround to not face the scene and stand at a window that looks onto Roosevelt Road, with a view north to the Loop (my dreams tend to shift location easily/instantaneously). Back to camp and I'm finishing up some work only to be late for lunch, and to discover that apparently I have to teach the next day.

Then I woke up.

Ok maybe not...

2009-12-19T09:20:00.000-06:00

Dear Universe,

I got my computer fixed a while ago, but as usual, I've failed to consistently write. I promise (to whoever will believe me) that I will renew my attempts to consistently write.

As stated before, I tweet more frequently than write. @ctrejo86

Love,

Carlos

Attention

2009-10-19T14:13:00.006-05:00

Dear Universe,

My computer crashed, causing me to be non-existent on the internets.

Please pardon my untimely disappearance.

I will return shortly. Until then, I tweet frequently on Twitter.

Love,

Carlos

Summer 2009: Part 2a

2009-09-04T20:45:00.013-05:00

I'd like to begin this post with a brain fart. Why is it when I tell people I went to France, their responses are always along the lines of "That’s awesome!", "How cool!", etc. But when I tell people I went to Ecuador, their responses are, "Do you have family there?", "Are you from there?” Why is it hard to believe I may have French origins, or that I went to Ecuador for something other than possibly visiting the other brown people that live there? I don't get mad, I just think it's funny how we sometimes unintentionally make assumptions about people on a daily basis without realizing it.

In my last post I spent some time detailing the events leading up to graduation and the week or so afterward, followed by a brief reflection. As usual, I get lost in the details and don’t reflect as much as I would like. I hope that I can work on that. I want this second part to be a reflection on the five weeks I spent in northern Wisconsin as a camp counselor as well as the month right after.

Sometime in June, I was going through my emails, and I re-read a newsletter I had gotten from SLI (my former place of employment). Towards the bottom there was a blip listing opportunities. It read:

General Leadership and Involvement Opportunities

Camp Thunderhead

Camp Thunderhead is a five-week residential summer camp for the students of Nativity Jesuit Middle School. Nativity students are low income Latino boys on the south side of Milwaukee. The summer camp is held in northern Wisconsin. The students take classes in the morning and participate in typical camp experiences in the afternoon, like sports and woodshop. Each summer, we rely on responsible and hard-working counselors who have an interest in teaching, coaching, or working with kids. Nativity graduates point to the summer camp as a critical moment in their academic, social, and emotional development. Camp counselors view their experience as an inspiring and meaningful time with kids.

It sounded like something I would be interested in. Unfortunately, the newsletter was from April 14th, camp began on June 25th, and I emailed the director on May 28th. Talk about late. So I emailed to ask if they were still looking for counselors and got a positive response. I received a copy of the application, which had a deadline of March 31st! I did a phone interview and got hired the next week. At that point in time all I could think was, "Carlos, you lucky S.O.B." Talk about a break! Seriously, my whole life I've been able to get away with certain things, gotten some extra slack, an extra chance, certain privileges, and here I was again getting a job a month past the deadline. Granted, these extra chances that I get aren’t of my own doing, but in retrospect, I realize that I take them for granted. I’m not as grateful as I should be, and I certainly do not reflect on them as much as I should. I often fail to realize that a lot of my success is mere happenstance. Not to discredit the hard work I have done, but I always remember the A+ I got when I know I should have gotten a B-. Of course I would remember that grade, compared to the ones where I put a lot of time and effort into earning. I guess it’s just a matter of reflecting on my success more often and recognizing what went into them. I shouldn’t take for granted that I’m in a good place in my life.

So about eleven days after graduation, I was off to Milwaukee. Counselors had a two-day orientation prior to camp. We all met at the school, gave introductions, then got on a minibus and made the six hour drive to Mercer, WI.

I had never heard of Mercer, WI before in my life, and being the urban snob I am, I wasn’t a big fan of the state of Wisconsin either. The ride up was long, and most people slept, making it hard to get to know them. The camp itself was actually ten miles from the town of Mercer, down some long winding roads. It was really pretty. Lots of natural nature. Now, I’ve never had any sort of camp experience (just wasn’t necessary), and I certainly do not appreciate nature as much as I should (I’m very comfortable being an urbanite). I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was pretty cool. Facilities wise, the camp consisted of a main building uses as a cafeteria and kitchen on the first floor, with an office, classroom, and library on the second floor. There was also a deck on the second floor that served as the meeting point for everything. Across from that building was a soccer field, volleyball courts, and a building called the Caretaker’s. The ground floor of that building was used for storage for sports equipment, and there were bathrooms and showers for the swimmers. The second floor was an apartment where the director stayed. Near there were about five cabins intended for the female counselors. They were cool, kind of apartment style cabins. Some ways off were the main cabins. There five in total, named after different saints; Arrupe, Javier, Marquette, Miguel Pro, and Pacheco. One of them was brand new. The cabins basically consisted of six bunk beds and two separate rooms for the male counselors. The five cabins formed a semi-circle around a bigger building called Ignatius. Ignatius was the location of the chapel (that doubled as a classroom) a larger gathering room that could be split into two, and another room with a big fireplace. That’s pretty much where camp took place. We were bordered on one side by a lake, and on all the others by nature. There was also a guesthouse called Loyola down a path that was used by visitors as well as by counselors during the day as a place to relax and get away from the kids. This guesthouse was pretty sweet. It was nicer than most homes. The kitchen was stocked; the living room was full of couches and had a TV. There was a deck that overlooked the lake. The basement was basically more couches and a ping-pong table. The kids weren’t allowed in Loyola, which was nice. It was definitely the place to be if you were tired and needed quiet time. There was a basketball court (where the kids played) and a garage full of bicycles right there too. Again, I’ve gotten lost in the details. Simply put though, we were surrounded on one side by the lake, and on all other sides by nature. How ever did I survive?

So after we arrive, we were sent on a quest to find the cabin we would be staying in and/or be responsible for. I was giving a color, and had to find the cabin with that color on the door. I got confused because all the cabins had multiple colors (for multiple counselors, duh Carlos), but eventually I found my cabin which was Miguel Pro. To this day, I have no idea who Miguel Pro, but I put my things away and went back to join the others.

Spent the next two days learning more about the camp, what we would be doing, our responsibilities, how to handle certain situations, first aid type training, etc. Probably the most important thing we learned was how to deal with bears (little did we know at the time) [Foreshadowing?]. So it was a beautiful two days that we spent doing things I don’t remember (because it’s been over two months, not because they weren’t important). Those two days the counselors all got to know each other better. The kids arrived that Saturday and we were ready to greet them, sort them, and take them to their cabins. Each cabin had about twelve kids or so. My cabin had four 6th graders, four 7th graders, and four 8th graders. It was strange at first because I had been used to seeing all the counselors 24/7 and from that point on it became a delight and privilege to have some time to talk to them. If you were on duty, you’d be busy with your cabin. If you were off duty, everyone else was on duty.

So what goes on at this camp you may ask? Well, the kids take classes in the morning, have activities in the afternoon, followed by an all-camp activity in the evening. That was pretty much the routine Monday through Saturday. Sundays were the “Zone Days” which was basically a big field trip to different locations. Some kids went to an indoor water

park in a town an hour away, others went fishing, others went to Lake Superior, some played tennis in town, etc. On the right is a copy of a typical schedule.

Because of a scheduling conflict, I ended up having to teach Algebra with the advanced section of 8th graders. Now, if you know anything about me, you should know that Carlos does not do numbers. I mean, I have difficulty adding. It’s been years since I’ve taken a math class, and there was a reason why I chose a degree program in the social science field. I live in a world of ideas, and numbers have no place there. Basically, I suck at math. Always have. After looking through the book, I realized that I would need to do some studying of my own before being able to teach this class effectively. The book itself was interesting. Apparently the school uses a spiral curriculum, meaning that a typical lesson would include a lesson, practice problems, and a problem set of thirty questions, however the problem set would probably only contain five problems relating to the lesson, and the rest would be on previous lessons. Considering I wasn’t there for any of the previous lessons, I kept running into problems that I had no idea how to solve. Fortunately, there one bright kid in my class who I could always just call up to the board to solve a problem the class didn’t get. There were times when I had to brush off a problem as, “Who wants to show the class how to do it on the board?”, because I had no idea. Regardless though, I had a lot of fun teaching that class. Aside from learning a lot of math, I learned more about my strengths and weaknesses when it comes to teaching and working with middle school students. There were times where my students made me want to pull my hair out, but overall, they were good kids. It was however, very unfortunate that they all did so poorly in my class in the end. I kept struggling with their low scores, blaming myself for being a poor teacher, but it took me a while to realize that many of the mistakes they were making could have been easily avoided by taking their time and reviewing their work. If they remember anything from my class, I hope that it’s that in math, there is no room for error. As I told them in class, “Stuff has blown up in space because someone failed to put a decimal in the right place, or added instead of subtracted, or failed to convert a measurement unit.” The beautiful thing about math, is that there is only one universal answer that anyone anywhere can understand. Those first couple of weeks they blew through their work so fast and made so many mistakes, that after a certain point it just became unacceptable. I couldn’t afford to give them half a point for a question only because they made a small mistake. They wouldn’t learn anything. Yes, in the end they did poorly, and I did notice that many of the questions they got wrong on their tests were questions dealing with lessons we never covered in class, but there was no excuse for failure to review a math problem and making a simple mistake. Did I like teaching? Yes. Do I love math? No. Would I ever teach a math class again? Definitely. I learned that I enjoy not just teaching a new subject, but I also enjoy being a role model for that particular age group. Unfortunately, there aren’t many male teachers in the primary school system, which is regrettable because many young boys in this country lack a positive male role model in their daily lives. From my experiences beforehand, I know that one of the things that makes me happiest is helping the development of others. I was fortunate enough to have a good upbringing, something many people can’t say. I have been given many opportunities, and I have been helped my many. I do what I do because I have the privilege and luxury of being able to give back, but more importantly, because I hope that in the end it makes the world a better place.

I totally just jumped ahead of myself, because those last couple of sentences basically describe my entire experience at camp.

This post is long enough. I’ll finish up the rest of my camp experience in the next post.

Photo Slideshow:

Summer 2009: Part 1

2009-09-03T20:05:00.006-05:00

Well, well, well. It looks like once again I have promised to consistently write and failed to do so. What a shame. The world has been missing out. Needless to say, stuff came up in my life that shifted where my priorities lay. If anything, I have become more impressed by professional bloggers who spend hour after hour dedicating their time towards managing their blogs. Kudos to you. I started writing a post after graduation and right before I left for camp, but I never got a chance to finish. It was to be a reflection on my college graduation, but I am now combining that with this post as a reflection on the summer of 2009. This post is dedicated to Viki Moreno.

Where to begin. The time after graduation was an emotional roller coaster to say the least. Friday, June 12, 2009, was my university's Baccalaureate Mass. I went. I saw. I didn't care. I left. I exaggerate. In retrospect it was good, though I wasn't enthused at the time. I mainly went for my parents, to give them the bells and whistles of their eldest graduating from college. I do recall being upset at the time though. I felt the whole thing failed to be well organized. The only thing we were told was "Baccalaureate Mass at 4pm". No on said, "Graduates meet at 3pm," or "Wear your cap and gown!" No, that would have made to much sense. Thanks to some wonderful people though (Melissa & Marina) I figured out what I needed to do. My mom ended up working that day downtown, so after my dad got home early and got ready, we left for downtown to pick her up, only to get stuck in traffic. We picked her up, got stuck in traffic again, then got to school a couple minutes before the mass started. My parents dropped me off at the Student Center (that's our "student union") and went off to park and go to the church. There were people standing outside wearing their stuff and holding banners, and I was like, "that's it?" Of course it wasn't though. So with my gear in hand, I head in and see a massive amount of people standing in two lines wearing their stuff. I ask someone at the front who looks like they're in charge if there's a sign-in or special order or something, and they say, "Nope. Just get in line." That was it. . Fortunately, I saw my old friend Claudia in line and she pulled me in and helped me get dressed (sounds awkward I know), then we marched off to the church.

I have to admit, the processional/entry part of the evening was kind of awesome. As we walked down the street towards the church, various brass quartets were located along the path playing music for us. I didn't know whether to feel academic or regal. So we march and get to the church, make our way up and head in. I don't know what the band/orchestra/choir was playing, but it was beautiful. Nerd Alert: It kind of had a medieval university vibe to it. At least that’s what I pictured: myself in some medieval academic ceremony. Wearing the gown definitely helped. Long story short: it was alright. the graduates took up half the church and it was pretty much standing room only if you got there late (Sorry Mom and Dad!). The mass was nice. It was bilingual (Spanish) which I thought was really odd (and awkward). It was cool though. I got the feeling that everyone there was Catholic, which I found strange. Now you may say, "Carlos, you do realize you attend the country's largest Catholic university, right?" And yes, but contrary to popular belief, I never had Catholicism shoved down my throat. In fact, in a quest for diversity, my school was always very accepting of other faiths and incorporated other traditions where it could. Not being Catholic, I appreciated that. So when I heard "mass," I didn't think we'd be having an actual religious experience. I was so used to participating in religious events without being religious, that perhaps I miscalculated the religiosity of this event itself. After the mass was a picnic in the quad which was nice (except for the $5 for a tiny cup of wine... LAME!)

The following Sunday, June 14th, I participated in my university's 111th commencement ceremony (that means graduation). It was what I hope will be the first of three higher education commencements I will attend in my life. Though technically I still had work to complete, I still got the opportunity to walk. I wasn't originally excited about walking; frankly, I didn't care. The honest reason I decided to participate in the ceremony was to please my parents. 5% so they could be proud of me, 95% so they wouldn't disown me.

I can honestly say that I am glad these past 5 years of college life are over. Not because they were horrible, but because I can finally move onto not a new chapter, but a whole new book of my life. The days leading up to graduation were filled with so many thoughts and feelings. I laughed, I cried, cried some more, and needless to say I was pretty much stressed and emotional the entire time. Because I wasn't technically done with my degree, I felt like all of graduation weekend was a bit of a sham. However, as soon as I got on stage and walked across to shake the president's hand, I felt excited and relieved. It's over! I don't consider myself to be student anymore. Though I may have some loose ends to tie up, this loss of an identity is very liberating.

For the past 18 years, I have been and have always identified as a student above everything else. It was fun, but 18 years of the same thing gets repetitive really fast. Towards the middle of college, I was already starting to feel burned out. Yes I am young, but still. At a certain point, I came to the realization that I would rather be doing something else. Now, of course I wasn't willing to quit school, that would just have been stupid. But it certainly accounts for my lack of motivation towards the end of my academic career. To soon, I reached a point where I just wanted to work, and I wouldn't have cared if it were at Target, just as long as it was something else. Something new. New experiences, new people. I felt like I had already achieved what I could have out of DePaul. What I will remember most about DePaul is my experience outside of class. The people I met. My development as a human being. I just didn't feel like there was much left.

So, what now? Now it's months later. I'm in the "real world." What now? I find that I don't miss school, but I'm still excited about going back one day. I just need enough time to do something else with my life. Work a new job. See the world. Do some service. Anything other than be a student. I'm excited about the possibilities. I'm also overwhelmed. No longer do I have a daily routine to dictate life. I wake up in the morning and think, "what do I do now"? So that's the question. With this abundance of freedom, what do I do now? Simple answer: move forward.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Wine is Better than Religion

2009-05-25T03:11:00.003-05:00

Top Ten Reasons Why Wine Is Better Than Religion*

10. No one will kill you for not drinking wine.

9. Wine doesn't tell you how to have sex.

8. Wine has never caused a major war.

7. They don't force wine on minors who can't think for themselves.

6. When you have wine, you don't knock on people's doors trying to give it away.

5. Nobody's ever been burned at the stake, hanged, or tortured over their type of wine.

4. You don't have to wait 2000+ years for a second glass of wine.

3. There are laws saying wine labels can't lie to you.

2. You can prove you have a glass of wine.

1. If you've devoted your life to wine, there are groups to help you stop.

*This is an OLD joke I tweaked to suit me.

Movie Review: Star Trek

2009-05-12T00:40:00.002-05:00

Saturday night I finally went and saw Star Trek. I had been waiting for this movie to come out for over a year now. Confession time: I am a huge Star Trek fan. I wouldn't consider myself a Trekkie, but as a lover of sci-fi, I have to love it. Because I have never been a huge fan of the Original Series, I love that this movie was made for anyone to watch, primarily those with no Star Trek experience what so ever. I didn't feel like I was lost or didn't know what I was watching, which is always great when you pay $9.50 to see something. So how was it?

I thought it was good. To be honest, I kind of expected more. I think I pictured myself walking out of the movie theatre being awestruck, and that's not exactly what went down. I found the movie to be just good, which is where my disappointment lies. I wanted it to be SPECTACULAR! And it was in a sense. The special effects beat any other incarnation of Star Trek to date, and what I appreciated most was that it seemed real. Not realistic (one can dream though), but I mean, the characters seemed like real people. They talked like real people. They looked like (very attractive) people. My favorite scene in the entire movie was in the beginning at the bar, because going out for fun is something real people do. It was little stuff like that that made me like the movie.

I sometimes have a hard time going to certain movies because after spending more than an hour watching some fantastic stuff, I am left wishing I was more than human, or living in a different time, or had magic powers, etc. I am left depressed because I can't do the shit going on in these awesome movies. That was one of my fears going into this movie, and strangely, I left feeling alright. Granted, I would kill to be transported 200-300 years into the future to serve on a starship and see the universe, but I didn't get that urge as a result of the film. And I don't know why, which leaves me very unsettled. It may just be that my inner-nerd was left unsatisfied. I do remember thinking it was short, but I can also see how it could have gone all wrong with dragged out scenes in which interstellar politics is debated. But yea, I wanted to love it, and came out only liking it.

Do I plan on seeing it again? Of course! It was good overall. I thought the casting was well done, and how can you go wrong with Zachary Quinto (Sylar on Heroes) as Spock? I might of just spent the last paragraphs nit-picking, but it is a good movie, and as a promoter of science fiction, I encourage everyone to see it.

Until next time. Peace.
--
P.S. - On a more depressing note, check out this video:

Life's no beach for holiday donkeys.
Shock footage reveals animals are paying the price for cheap rides and overweight tourists.

The Evolution of Carlos: Part 1 - December 2004

2009-05-07T23:28:00.001-05:00

Alright, here begins a reflection on a small segment of my life. I will be quoting excerpts from my old blog in chronological order, followed by a commentary. Let's begin.

Saturday, 4 December, 2004 - 11:31pm

"Ok, so. This is my first post. I feel kinda bad cause I used to give all these rants about how these things were so stupid, but I guess I got really curious."

Of course, I grew to love writing and found it a great way to work out my thoughts and feelings. But I do remember thinking people who wrote out their lives online were stupid, lol. Guess I joined the club.

Sunday, 5 December, 2004 - 2:13am

"... the others, i know they have lives and such, and yet they spend their time writing down every detail of their lives down for their friends to read. gd, just call ur f'n friend. it's not like you don't see them constantly. i mean, not that i don't plan on writing down things that happen to me here, but, i definately don't expect my friends to know what's going on in my life by signing online and cliking a few buttons."

Of course, this is the year before Facebook makes its debut and communication with friends becomes almost entirely dependent on "clicking a few buttons". Funny how things change. Since then, I have become completely addicted to sharing my life online via facebook/twitter/etc.

Sunday, 5 December, 2004 - 10:51pm

"... but the thing is, I want to help SOBER people. And, I don't think I make anyone's life better by giving them passage to booze and football. I don't even like football."

Certain jobs lead us to evaluate our paths in life. I was working as an usher at Soldier Field at the time. Clearly, I did not enjoy it.

Monday, 6 December, 2004 - 11:18am

"Rocio: so que pasa
Carlos: not a lot. just about to write a new post for xanga
... Rocio: you're an addict
Carlos: i knooooow
Carlos: i hate myself."

"moral of the story. always carry your credit card and be wary of naps."

The first quote is an excerpt from a conversation between Rocio and I. At that point in time, I really had become addicted to writing on my Xanga. The second quote is a piece of advice that still applies.

Wednesday, 8 December, 2004 - 3:46pm

"There's one thing I don't get. How do people post all their personal shit on these things? Like, if it's personal, then why are you sharing it with the world? I mean, I am tempted to write what I feel, but, then anyone can read it and that makes me uncomfortable."

See my commentary for 5 Dec. '04 - 02:13

Friday, 10 December, 2004 - 1:07am

"... all I know is that the club chick is into Seth, the new girl like Ryan, Ryan likes her, Julie is hot for her ex, and I think Calben has been having an affair or something, but he has a daughter no one knows about that turned out to be the girl that Ryan likes. It was a good half hour."

Clearly, I was little to invested in "The O.C." on FOX.

Thursday, 16 December, 2004 - 2:14am

Lora: man, you have no idea how many times i've considered killing her in her sleep
Carlos: *** -- *** -- i've always wanted a famous friend
Lora: ... -- BEAUTIFUL FILIPINO KILLS ANNOYING BITCHASS SKINNY RICH WHITE ROOMMATE
... Lora: sounds like regular headline news to me
... Lora: Today, here at Loyola University, we are investigating a homicide -- The funny part about this homicide is that the murderer, Lora *** confessed completely and right away -- She isn't even pleading insanity even though she has full right to -- Chicago Head Police Chief, after hearing Lora's story says "I would have killed the bitch too. The only difference is that I wouldn't have waited so long"
... Lora: As we continue to cover the sotry, we learn that Lora has decided to pawn the bitch's stuff. -- I'm not teling, I got a niceass $400 purse for my wife for only $50 -- What a deal -- We only find out that Lora's roommate had a sick obsession with her own little brother -- Among the rubble inthe burned and gasloined room, we find hundreds of pictures of the victm with her little brother -- Some are cute while others are quite disturbing
... Lora: When asked what her reasons were, Lora keeps it short and aweet saying" I hated the dumb rude naive bitch, and it was the best way to get my own room" -- of course ith a smile on her face -- Well, if you ask me, there is no crime here, except for the pain that Lora has had to suffer until now. She is completely innocent, and her roommate's parents owe her $3000 for Lora having to live with there daughter for an entire semester
Lora: Do you think I should be a journalist?

My old friend Lora on her roommate in college. This was too funny not to share.

Wednesday, 29 December, 2004 - 10:46pm

"i was involved in a conversation about masturbation which was definately a hell of a lot more exciting than apples to apples..."

Thursday, 30 December, 2004 - 2:25am

"i agree. -- yes, if it's a sober party, games should not be played -- if you can't talk and have fun without jenga -- maybe it means you people don't click -- oh wait -- that's the obvious problem -- they all hate each other!! hehe" - Meghan J.

These two excerpts go hand in hand. I was such an arrogant prick.

Well, in retrospect, I was TOTALLY addicted to my Xanga and writing everything down. These have only been small excerpts of longer posts that I had written. What was I on? Where did I find the time? There were so many things I told and shared and discussed in those posts. It's interesting to look back at them because the person who wrote them is now the person I am today. December 2004 to May 2009 is a long time. I like to think I grew up, but it's also scary because I do recognize certain bad qualities that I still have. And this is why REFLECTION is important! So we can examine a situation and use what we learn to make new and better decisions. Here's to better decisions.

Peace.

Addendum to "Addendum to Numero Uno"

2009-05-07T21:50:00.000-05:00

I meant to start writing frequently back in February, however due to a medical issue with a family member I was unable to commit to writing as frequently as I had hoped. As my last quarter at DePaul comes to an end, I find myself thinking about this blog more and more. I've come to the realization that I really enjoy writing, and would love to have some sort of career where I could do that. Now, I don't have any aspirations of become a famous writer, known across the world for my works of literary art, rather, I want to write about crap, because that's what I'm good at. I'm good at writing crap. I don't mean I write crap, I mean I write about crap. I've tried writing for the school newspaper, but I found it boring. All I did was regurgitate information. I've thought about foraying into journalism, but the truth is, I don't care. I've always enjoyed writing my own thoughts though and reflecting on life. I like sharing what I think with the world, even if no one reads it. It's really just a therapeutic method of organizing my thoughts and feelings. Hence, I write about crap. If I could get paid to do this all day, I probably would, but who wants to read anything by yet another broke American college student living in a large urban setting?

I've been thinking about what I can do with this blog to make it more interesting, and I've decided that I want to use it to review life as it passes by. I know that sounds banal, but that's what I'm good at: talking about what I see. So, to make it more interesting, I thought I would organize my posts into different series, examining different things in different ways. I can write in response to things, I can write about things I've experienced, I can write about things going on in the world, etc., etc. I don't know. The truth is, I change my mind more frequently than I would like, and by next week I may decide to take things in a completely new direction. But, for now, I've decided that next several posts will be what I orginally set out to do, summaries of my past blog that I kept during my freshman year in college. After that, will be something much more exciting.

Chicago is a great place to live. I love Chicago. I am proud to be a true Chicagoan [definition: born and live in the city]. Being a part of such a great city has its ups and downs, but with summer approaching, one can only look forward to a whole lot of ups. In my humblest opinion, no other city has as an amazing summer period as Chicago. There is ALWAYS something to do. This is a bit ironic because summer is my least favorite season [I don't do sun or hot], but I have to admit that summers are when I have the most fun. There are sooo many festivals, you can't walk around without running into one. So, back to my great and exciting plan. I decided, that this summer of 2009, this summer of mine after college, I will go to and do as many things as possible in this amazing city, and write about them here. I've been thinking about making videos too, and posting those on here as well. To me, this will be a cool summer project to keep me busy, allow me to continue writing, and allow me to explore the wonders of the city.

However, I still plan on writing about crap. I am aware of the fact that several people in my life enjoy it, but that pretty much sums up what I have to say for now. As I previously stated, the next couple of posts will be commentaries on excerpts from my older blog.

Thanks for reading.

Note: At the bottom of this blog, is a calendar listing different events I plan on attending. If you will be in the Chicago area this summer, and would like something to do, please come join me. I am going to try to attend as many events as I can.

My Latest Music Obsession: Girls Aloud

2009-04-11T23:11:00.004-05:00

I just had to share this. I came across this band a while ago, and I've been listening to their music via YouTube. I am completely obsessed with them now. Here's a mesh of some of their best videos/songs.

Addendum to Numero Uno

2009-02-02T19:19:00.000-06:00

As I stated before, I exported my old en français blog to here. When I first started this blog, I had intended to write in french as a way for me to practice. Of course, I failed to update frequently, pretty much leaving it for dead. After being inspired by a friend to write about my "life", I gave the blog a makeover and decided I would use it to write about myself in English. I'll try posting in my french blog every once in a while though.

Now, unknown to many, is the fact that for a year, I had a Xanga blog which I updated pretty frequently. I wrote consistently in that blog between December of 2004 and January of 2006. Now, I considered deleting that blog as a form of self-cleansing before re-starting this blog, but I sat up late one night and read through my entire blog that chronicled my entire freshman year and fall quarter of sophomore year at DePaul. Needless to say, it was an interesting read. I wrote it while I was 18, and it was really interesting to see where I was at that point in my life. To be honest, I kind of hated myself after reading a lot of what I read. I know I still have a lot of growing up to do, but reading those posts made me realize how much I've grown since then. I decided I would keep that blog active (unless I find some way to export and save that chapter of my life) and let it serve as a memorial to my immature youth.

Before I delve into my life now though, I would like to share some excerpts from that blog along with commentaries from myself. The next couple of posts will be Present-Carlos commenting on Past-Carlos. It should prove to be an interesting foray into my psyche. Perhaps you will learn something about me which you never knew. Perhaps I will learn something as well. Regardless, it should prove to be an interesting examination of an 18 year old me.

Numero Uno

2009-02-02T18:33:00.001-06:00

Welcome one and all to the new and improved wonderful world of Carlos. I started this blog back in August of 2006 as a place for me to practice my french. Realizing I never really wrote in French, and that the URL was to sweet to delete, I moved all my french posts to a new blog at http://carlos-en-francais.blogspot.com and decided to start anew. I renamed this blog and decided that I would use it to write about my life as a college student who's about to graduate in a few months and join the "real world", all taking place in this wonderful world of the 21st century. Follow me as I blindly seek a path in a life. Will I graduate in June? Will I go to graduate school? Get a job? Do service? Who knows! Maybe I'll join a circus; maybe I'll end up homeless. Only place you can get the exclusive story on my life is here, so stay tuned, and don't change that channel.