Alexita's Noticias

The Month of Blessings

2010-07-27T19:21:00.000-04:00

Big noticias to share today...I am now the newest Assignment Editor at NBC6 and Telemundo 51!

It's really humbling how quickly God moved in making this a reality. It still hasn't fully hit me yet...I'm getting paid to do something I love! Whaaatt? When did that happen? Two months ago I was a full-time student and an intern! And now... I'm a full-time NBC employee. Awesomeness.

As far as school goes, I only have 15 credits (about 5 classes!) left, and my original plan was to finish them up in the fall and graduate in December. But, God had other plans (obviously), so for now I'll just be taking two classes (one in person, one online) so that I don't overdo it with school and work. At this pace I should be walking in May (to make my mother happy) and taking one more class in Summer A....aaand I'll officially be DONE! I can't wait for that day. Seriously. I'm so over college. But that's for another blog entry. ;)

The job itself has its stressful moments... I'm still getting used to the different responsibilities, personalities, and schedules I have to work with on a daily basis. It's tough, and I've wanted to curl up in a ball and disappear on more than one occasion. But I know that God placed me here for a reason, and this is really such a great learning experience for me.

Thanks for everyone who prayed and thought of us these last few months! Your continued prayers are very greatly appreciated!

Happy Birthday Gabby!

2010-07-01T11:00:00.000-04:00

Today is my hunny's 23rd birthday!

I'm so very blessed to have him in my life. He's so generous and kind, but most of all, he puts up with me on a daily basis (I think he deserves an award for that alone!). He's my #1 supporter and encourager, and has this innate ability to be positive when I'm down or negative. I don't know how he does it, but he does!

He's also so intelligent. I mean, seriously. He knows all the U.S. Presidents and basically everything about American Colonial History. The man is a walking encyclopedia. Nuff said.

More than anything, Gabby is my best friend. Over the past six years, he has been my rock in some of the most difficult times of my life. He has hugged me, laughed with me, cried with me, and most importantly, prayed with me. God has done such an extraordinary work in his life, and I am so proud of the Godly man he has become.

After six years of hopes and dreams, our prayers are finally being answered one by one, and we're starting to grow up little by little. It's so exciting to see your dreams become a reality right before your eyes, and it's so much better to have someone to experience them all with. I can't imagine a better partner to spend my life with. And I can't wait to see what God has in store for us!

Happy Birthday baby! I love you!

Jackie.

2010-06-10T17:26:00.000-04:00

Anyone who know me knows that I've been Jackie Nespral's number one fan since I was like 10. I know. I'm a huge dork.

I grew up watching NBC6, and I was always drawn to the making of a newscast, and I just always loved her because she seemed so down to earth. She was the first person that I wanted to mold my career after, and she's been one of my role models for such a long time.

Since I started my internship there, I've been slightly starstruck from seeing all these personalities I grew up with face-to-face. But I've always wanted to meet Jackie.

Today I got that chance!

She usually comes in after I leave, so I'd never seen her in person before. But today she had a story to edit, so she came a little early. For the record, the woman is flawless. She doesn't look a day over 30. I want to look like that when I'm older. Before I left, I mustered up all my courage and stopped by her office. The conversation went a little something like this (with my thoughts for extra kicks):

(knock on door)
Jackie: Come in...
Me: Hiii. I'm Alexandra, I'm one of the interns this summer. It's great to meet you. (shakes hand. heart stops.)
Jackie: Hi Alexandra! Welcome aboard, it's great to have you.
Me: Thanks! I just wanted to let you know....(how do I tell her I love her and admire her without sounding like a creeper?)...you're awesome. (What did I just say??? I look like a fool. Good job. She thinks you're an idiot now.)
Jackie: (laughs) Aw, thank you so much.
Me: Well I really wanted to ask you... I wanted to know if you would be willing to look over my tape sometime and give me some pointers?
Jackie: Sure! Of course. Just drop by anytime and I'll be more than happy to look it over for you.
Me: Great! Thank you so much! It was great meeting you.
Jackie: Same here! Bye!
(leave office. legs shake.)

I'm so happy right now!

That's all I wanted to share. :)

Great News!

2010-06-09T14:26:00.000-04:00

I want to thank everyone for all of your prayers!

Gabby got the job! :D

I'm so excited/proud/happy for him to start not just a new job, but a career that he is passionate about. God has been so good to us, and we have been patient in waiting on His will.

In our small group we've been studying the book of Genesis, and something we discussed (a few weeks ago in fact) was praying specifically for things. I argued that I wouldn't be able to tell God specifically what I wanted, just because I'd feel like I'm telling Him what to do for me, when He's the one who knows the plans He has for me. But some of my friends mentioned that they had prayed specifically for certain things, and in doing so were able to more clearly see God's answer to those prayers. That is definitely true in this situation. Gabby wants to teach at the university level one day, and I mentioned to him that teaching an AP course would probably be something he would enjoy.

Well, the position he is being considered for is to teach AP American History for 11th and 12th graders.

Seriously. How perfect is that?

Only God can make things work out so beautifully. Thanks again to everyone for all your prayers! :)

Naples Vacation

2010-06-07T19:22:00.000-04:00

For Memorial Day Weekend, my family and I took a much-needed getaway to beautiful Naples. It was just what we needed after a crazy Spring semester! We stayed in my uncle's apartment on Vanderbilt Beach, and did absolutely nothing but lay out by the beach and pool. It was glorious.

Here are some pictures:

my cousin & uncle love gourmet cooking, so for dinner one night they grilled some salmon fillets on cedar planks! So good. :)

As you can see, Naples has some pretty awesome sunsets. On our last night (Sunday), we walked over to the beach to take some photos. It's actually pretty crazy, but you can see the sun moving over the horizon! The coolest part about it, besides the sheer beauty of it, is that after the sun faded over the horizon, everyone on the beach started cheering. It was almost like they were giving a round of applause to God for the marvelous creation He made. The only thing I thought about was this verse from the book of Psalms:

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they display knowledge.

--Psalm 19:1-6

Keep Them Prayers Comin'!

2010-06-05T17:25:00.001-04:00

I've already been so busy this summer! Spring classes went well for me (2 B's and 2 A's! Yay me!), but only a week later Summer A semester began. I'm taking Judicial Process and The Presidency, which Gabby is helping me with since he's my designated history nerd. Summer goes by so fast! I only have two weeks left of classes, then I'll have the rest of the summer off of school. Freedom!

On top of school and work, I'm also currently interning at NBC-6 up in Miramar. So far, so GREAT. I'm loving every minute of this internship! My schedule is Thursday during the day and Saturday/Sunday from 2-11pm. I'm crazy, I know. But I'm getting so much experience, and hopefully I'm leaving a good impression for the managers here. Pray for me!

Speaking of prayer, please keep Gabby in your prayers as well! He's been searching for jobs ever since he graduated in December, but hasn't heard anything. He recently submitted his resume to literally EVERY middle school or high school in the area, and he has an interview on Monday at Archbishop Coleman Carroll High School! We have been praying for patience in finding a job, and God has definitely challenged us to trust in His plan. Hopefully this is part of that plan. If not, that's fine too.

So things are definitely looking up for us right about now. We're both very grateful and very excited for what God has in store for us. Continue to keep us in your prayers, and I promise I will try to keep the blogging up to date.

60 Minutes: Deepwater Horizon Blowout, Part 1 and 2

2010-05-18T10:18:00.000-04:00

Another excellent segment on this week's "60 Minutes". The blowup of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico led to one of the worst oil spills in history. Mike Williams, the rig's Chief Electronics Technician, told his harrowing story of what happened in the days and weeks leading up to the explosion, and how he survived.

Part 1:

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Part 2:

Watch CBS News Videos Online

What NOT to do...when saying "penis" on Live TV

2010-05-15T19:35:00.002-04:00

I've lived in Miami my entire life, and never have I seen anchors lose it on live TV! At least until the other night. This new installment of "What Not to Do" is pretty funny. It's not really something you can help, so I hesitate a bit in categorizing this as a TV 'no-no'. In any case, it's hilarious.

In high school, during our morning news show, if we lost it on the air we got the wrath of our teacher. But some things are just too funny to NOT laugh at. Case in point: WFOR-CBS4's Shannon Hori and Antonio Mora losing it after mentioning the male genitalia in a voice over. What ensues is a whole bunch of awesomeness.

Miami Lighthouse Soundslides Project

2010-04-20T20:09:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago I had the privilege to spend the morning with an inspiring group of people at the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. This rehabilitation center is close to the heart for me. My dad has been going there for a few months now, since his vision has dramatically deteriorated over time. He always told me how great the Lighthouse is, and when I had the opportunity to cover a story of my choice in my Broadcast News Reporting class, I decided that there was no better place to cover than the Miami Lighthouse.

This is the project I did using Soundslides. Tell me what you think!

(View the larger version of this slideshow)

For more information on how you can help the Miami Lighthouse, click here.

Special thanks to everyone at the Lighthouse for being so welcoming and gracious!

60 Minutes: The Lost Children of Haiti

2010-03-22T14:02:00.000-04:00

For my broadcast reporting class, one of our weekly assignments is to watch the newsmagazine 60 Minutes each week. We're supposed to point out our favorite segments and discuss why they are important: Is there compelling video or audio? Is there a compelling narrative? Is there an interesting way the reporter interviews?

I thought it'd be a good idea to start a feature for this format, since 60 Minutes is a great way to see how real journalism is done.

So for my first 60 Minutes feature, I give you "The Lost Children of Haiti."

The narrative is so compelling, I literally stopped what I was doing when I was watching it and just took it all in. It's heartbreaking, yet still very newsworthy. The way the story is told, the descriptions, the compelling characters, their stories... it all blends together in a way that shows why 60 Minutes is the best newsmagazine on television.

Watch CBS News Videos Online

What NOT to do... on-air

2010-03-12T15:44:00.000-05:00

This video literally made me laugh out loud when I saw it!

Knoxville's WVLT reporter Gordon Boyd lost it in a live shot...but I think the funniest part of it all has to be the anchor's face when they came back to him!!!!

I think "What NOT to do" will be an ongoing feature on this blog. I just love laughing at people.

Seriously, though, videos like this definitely remind me how important it is to maintain your professionalism in front of the camera at all times... you never know when you'll be the latest YouTube sensation! Note to self: If you mess up a live shot, wait until you're cued out to get upset.

Enjoy :)

Opportunities Abound

2010-03-11T17:31:00.002-05:00

Nice header, eh? I'm proud to say I did it all myself. This blog is finally shaping up. :: Pat on the back:: :)

Anyway, some incredible opportunities have been coming my way. First of all, the Liberty City Link is about to print its first few articles in the South Florida Times! Here is the Times' announcement from last week. Four or five of my classmates will be published reporters by Friday! How exciting!

As for my story, where do I begin really? It started out as a relatively simple story, about the Hot Spot program and its impact on the Liberty City community. Eventually, though, my professor and I noticed some irregularities about the organization which sponsors the program. Needless to say, I will be writing the Liberty City Link's first investigative piece! My professor is giddy with excitement. As am I, but I'm just really intimidated by the whole thing. I really need to make sure I report everything as accurately as possible!

Reisner (said professor) told us the other day in class that the Times is even considering hiring some of us as interns over the summer, so that we can continue reporting for the Link and, in the fall, be able to be "editors" for the next batch of students coming in (who have NO idea what they're getting themselves into!). As heartbroken as he will be, I'm not sure about taking an internship at a newspaper. It's not personal or anything. It's just that my major is in broadcasting, so I want to be able to put together an impressive resume tape before graduation, so that I can increase my chances of being hired as a reporter soon after college.

I already got several opportunities! I applied a while back for the internship at NBC6 (or NBCMiami...or whatever they're called nowadays), and I am scheduled for an interview with them next month! Also, Reisner loves me as an investigative journalist, so he told me that he could hook me up with some of the investigative reporters at Channels 4 and 6. ALSO, my broadcast news professor told me she would be willing to hook it up at Channel 7, since one of her former students is currently a reporter there. I could tag along with her and get clips for my tape :)

All this is really exciting to say the least! God has really opened so many doors for me, and I'm so grateful for the wonderful professors He has placed in my life. They're great mentors and they're so willing to help! It's so refreshing and humbling.

This week is Spring Break (yay!), and after we get back we'll have just about a month to wrap things up. I'm praying God gives me the strength to deal with everything on my plate, both now and in the two (two!) semesters I have left. I know it'll be a long and busy summer, but I'm pretty confident that I can do it. :)

Coming Soon...

2010-01-27T23:42:00.000-05:00

Liberty City Link

We are all so excited about this project! More to come soon...
(You can follow my experiences here)

Retail Therapy!

2010-01-24T21:30:00.000-05:00

So, yesterday I was having a pretty "blah" day. I was super emo and angry at the world for no apparent reason... I still can't put my finger on what it was! Anyway, I decided to do some studying for my Consumer Economics exam at school. After a couple of hours of that, Gabby surprised me in the library and asked if I wanted to do anything later. I said yes, so I headed on home while he went to church for mass. On the way home, I passed by the Goodwill Superstore. I remembered a friend of mine telling me that she had bought a super cute and chic jacket there for just $3! And since: 1) I was in the area, and 2) I'm a broke college student with barely enough to pay the bills, I thought, what the heck. Goodwill it is!

Let me just say, it's my new favorite store.

I walked (skipped?) away with:

Abercrombie & Fitch jeans ($4)
Michael Kors pants ($3!! I still can't believe it!!)
Vintage boyfriend blazer ($7)
Mossimo for Target T-shirt ($3)

All that for a total of $18.73!! That definitely made my college-student's heart oh so happy. Considering that I haven't gone shopping in ages just because I never have any money and clothes seem to be getting more and more expensive, I am SO excited to have discovered the beauty of thrifting!

That literally made my day. Retail therapy really exists, and its name is Goodwill.

I still can't stop raving about it! {Well, that, and we ended up watching The Book of Eli. AMAZING. If you haven't seen it, GO. Right now.}

"As Haitians Flee, the Dead Go Uncounted"- NYT 1/19/2010

2010-01-24T20:52:00.003-05:00

This is an article by Damien Cave that ran in the New York Times on January 19. My journalism professor sent it to us to show the power of excellent writing in news, and so I wanted to pass it along. It really is a beautifully written story, and I think it conveys so much emotion.

See it online here.
---------------------------------------
January 19, 2010

As Haitians Flee, the Dead Go Uncounted

By DAMIEN CAVE

TITANYEN, Haiti — A few miles north of the busted-down buildings in Port-au-Prince, up a hillside where cows graze, an empty hole awaits the dead. Rectangular, 20 feet deep and wide, 100 feet long, it is one of the newest mass graves, but there are many more.

The government’s dump trucks have been dropping off bodies here since Friday. No one counts, takes pictures or searches for names. In some places, legs and arms of strangers are knotted together in a frozen dance, but here the ground has been leveled by a backhoe that has erased all but the tiniest scraps of life.

Look and see: a torn photo of a mustached man in a silver tie; a canceled American passport for an infant born in Stamford, Conn.; and a shred of purple pantyhose never to lure a lover again.

“They have buried so many people here,” said Voissine Careas, 60, a farmer chopping brush nearby with a machete. “And now, they are digging holes for more.”

Along with everything else stolen by last week’s earthquake, Haitians must now add another loss: the ability to identify and bury the dead. Funeral rites are among the most sacred of all ceremonies to Haitians, who have been known to spend more money on their burial crypts than on their own homes.

It is the product in part of familiarity with death — the average life span of a Haitian is 44 — but also the widespread voodoo belief that the dead continue living and that families must stay connected forever to their ancestors.

“Convening with the dead is what allows Haitians to link themselves, directly by bloodline, to a pre-slave past,” said Ira Lowenthal, an anthropologist who has lived in Haiti for 38 years. He added that with so many bodies denied rest in family burial plots, where many rituals take place, countless spiritual connections would be severed.

“It is a violation of everything these people hold dear,” Mr. Lowenthal said. “On the other hand, people know they have no choice.”

In and around Port-au-Prince, the usually high standard for memorials and burials has been upended. The streets have fewer bodies now but the morgue is overwhelmed, and funeral parlors — those that have not collapsed — have more bodies than they can possibly embalm.

The wooden coffins seen in the first few days after the earthquake, lashed to trucks and station wagons, have also become harder to find. In the narrow streets behind the national cemetery where most of them are built, carpenters said they lacked wood and electricity to make more.

“They bury you like a dog,” said Pegles Fleurigine, 51, in an alleyway where he has built coffins for more than a decade. “They don’t bury you in caskets.”

Wood chips hung in his wide mustache. Thin and tall, with a white mask on his forehead, he stood next to a blue and silver coffin, lacquered like a souped-up Cadillac.

“The people this belongs to, they are trying to get money so they can come and get it,” he said.

An even starker contrast between death as it was and death post-earthquake could be seen through a fallen wall leading into the national cemetery a few blocks away. Far into the distance, there were above-ground crypts freshly painted powder blue, with elaborate crosses and poetic names like Famille Leonon Maxi. Up close, there was a hole with the teeth marks of a backhoe and a half-dozen decaying bodies dumped and left.

Some were too swollen to be recognizable, but at one point on Sunday, a young girl in a white flowered dress stared at a dead young man. He had the frame of an athlete, and he wore designer jeans with a wide stylish belt.

Asked if she knew him, the girl turned away.

In the hills of Titanyen, on the outskirts of the capital, there are no young girls wandering. The low-lying swampland here smells of sulfur on a good day, and was once the preferred dumping ground for political opponents of the Duvaliers, Haiti’s brutal rulers from the 1950s to the ’80s. It is considered cursed ground by most Haitians. Only a handful of people live nearby, and on Monday most seemed to be climbing on buses to get out.

Indeed, the name of this place is so notorious that it has been a threat doled out by parents for generations: “If you’re bad, you’ll go to Titanyen.”

Now it has become the home for Haiti’s latest victims. It appears that at first, the dumpings occurred haphazardly. By the roadside, small piles of rubble sit on the grass near horses, looking innocent except for the sight of a human limb poking out.

Farther up on the paved road, and up a dirt road into the hills, the operation looks more organized. Here, there is a backhoe with a goateed driver unwilling to talk. A pole with two large lights, giant glaring eyes, allows for work at night.

The farmers say at least six trucks arrive with deliveries at all hours. Workers paid $100 a day to collect the bodies from the streets of Port-au-Prince said in interviews that they were given no guidance beyond where to go.

After the 2004 tsunami in Asia, aid groups and governments established a system in which people were photographed before being buried so loved ones could search for them. Here, all the dead are anonymous. Mr. Lowenthal, the anthropologist, said this did not reflect callousness on the part of Haitians, but rather an unprecedented catastrophe that has overwhelmed the country and the aid groups.

“This is worse than the tsunami,” he said. “Look at the concentration of destruction.”

The hills of Titanyen are a place no Haitian wants to go, he added. Now, once again, they are filled with hidden horrors.

A long walk down a windy path led first to a mound of rubble filled with passport-size photographs of children, probably from a collapsed school. Over a hill, there was a clearing with dirt piles the size of parking lot snowbanks, all covering the dead. A farmer in a red shirt who acted as a guide stayed a safe distance away from the stench.

At least 35 bodies were clearly visible. Women with shirts stripped off, men with their faces caught in odd grimaces, and near the back, a young child with his arms on the ground above his head.

Some were probably related, others were strangers, maybe even enemies. But in death they shared what for Haitians amounts to the most elemental insult: the lack of a dignified goodbye.

New Title!

2010-01-18T22:42:00.002-05:00

Shout out to Anne Marie for my new cute, witty blog name! Yay!

Thank you, friend! :)

Release

2010-01-18T00:02:00.003-05:00

I literally felt my heart break today.

I've felt a terrible sense of loss since Tuesday when I learned about the devastating earthquake in Haiti. I'm not Haitian. I don't really have a lot of Haitian friends. But for some reason this disaster moved me immensely. From the minute I saw the pictures, I felt compelled to go there, not just as a journalist to report, but as a human being to help.

Every time I eat a meal, I think of the little girl who has none. Every time I take a shower, I think of the elderly man who hasn't had one in nearly a week. Every time I hug my mother, I think of the little boy who lost his entire family in a few seconds.

Today at church we sang a song about how there will be no weeping, no hurt or suffering in our final destination, heaven. It was already moving, and at the end a slideshow came up of all the different images I had seen earlier this week. No suffering. No dying. No sick or lame. I looked up and literally sobbed for those people who, right now, are dying or have witnessed some of the most horrific scenes you could ever imagine. I thought of all the suffering they have endured over the last few days, and thought about all that God has in store for us in eternity. And it was so liberating. I know there are amazing things in store for the next life, and they are so much better than all the pain and suffering this world has to offer.

I'm continually praying for all the people of Haiti and for those who might know of someone who was affected, and I hope that God would be with those who were left behind.

Development

2010-01-15T16:23:00.001-05:00

Last night, I watched Julie & Julia with my mom. It looks so easy writing and maintaining an interesting blog in the movies. So, I decided that I need a new focus for this blog, and a new, catchy, witty title.

Any suggestions from any creative folk out there?

Also, I'm pretty excited about this semester and all it has in store. For one of my classes, I'll be heading out to Liberty City to cover the Social Services beat for my journalism class's as-yet-unnamed online newspaper (The Liberty City Link? The Liberty City Wire? The Grid? We can't seem to decide). It's something new and exciting and fresh, and I can't wait to get out and start telling people's stories. Stay tuned, I'll be posting links to my articles as well as the newspaper once it's up and running.

For another journalism class, Multiethnic Reporting, we are to focus on an area that we would otherwise be scared of going due to prejudices or bias, and then we have to go there! And just hang out. Another cool class. It promises to be politically incorrect and never dull. We have to create a blog to journal our experiences, so if you wanna check that out, click here.

:)

Perspective.

2009-12-29T12:29:00.002-05:00

This video was shown yesterday at church (click through to the link, because embedding is disabled). It moved me so much that I wanted to share.

The pastor's message today was about getting rid of those worldly things which give us a temporary feeling of happiness and instead focusing on the greatness of God. This has been an area of weakness for me lately. I've been letting things get in the way of my relationship with Him, and, I have to admit, I've caught myself relying on worldly things rather than on Christ to make me happy.

The video made me realize how perspective can change everything. I mean, here I am, healthy and happy as a clam, and I take God's goodness for granted so often. But for this man, who is facing the reality of death, all he wants to do is praise God. Amazing.

Merry Christmas!!

2009-12-26T00:19:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope your holiday was full of fun, food and family! We really had a great time today (and yesterday as well). Yesterday was, of course, Noche Buena, which is really a Hispanic's pre-Christmas celebration spectacular. We had the family over for dinner and I was in charge of decorating the table! I totally ran with it, and I just love how everything turned out. I had to give myself a pat on the back. ;)

It was great to have all of my mom's side of the family together for Noche Buena. Gabby's family stopped by as well for some yummy dessert! After dinner, I went with my love to his church's Midnight Mass. Beautiful service, and most importantly, a beautiful message of Love! Overall- great night. Noche Buena indeed.

After an extra long night(by the time mass finished and I got home and finished cleaning up, it was 3 a.m!), I woke up bright and early at 8 a.m. to head on over to Gabby's for the opening of the presents. His sister wakes up at 6 a.m. every Christmas morning (mind you, she's 20) and I usually go over and bring gifts and open their gifts with them there. I was pleasantly surprised! Gabby bought me a beautiful Coach wallet that I'd been eyeing for some time! I totally wasn't expecting it, but then again, he wasn't expecting getting an awesome GPS system, yet he did! Santa was kind this year. ;)

After opening presents at the Medinas', I headed on home to wake up my mom and brother for our own Christmas morning! I was, again, pleasantly surprised! Mom got me an awesome camera, which I was in dire need of. I will definitely be wearing it down! ;) Also, my brother got me seasons 1 and 2 of the greatest show ever, which totally made my morning.

After gift time, we went to my cousin's house in Pinecrest for our traditional family brunch. Each year we have Pan con Lechon, yummy cinnamon rolls from Knaus Berry Farm, and my grandmother's traditional manzanitas. All that food, plus a huge family and a ton of kids, makes for a great day!

I was reminded today just how blessed I am. I can truly say that, even if I didn't recieve one thing that I wanted, I would still be so grateful for just having everything that I already own. I have a great family, a wonderful boyfriend, health, food, shelter, and a means of transportation! Seriously, what more can someone ask for this Christmas?

YES!

2009-12-23T22:02:00.002-05:00

I'm soooo excited for this movie! <3

Im Ba-aaack!

2009-12-20T21:26:00.005-05:00

It's been way too long since I've updated this thing... my sincerest apologies to anyone who still has interest in this little blog! The semester got pretty crazy, and with all my deadlines and assignments, plus my crazy work & school schedule, I barely had time to do anything at all.

Big News to announce!!! My awesome, amazing boyfriend Gabby graduated from FIU this week!!!

I was so proud to see him walk across the stage. He has worked SO hard the past three and a half years, and I'm so happy that all his hard work has paid off. Now, off to grad school! We're still praying on that one, keep Gabby in your prayers as he makes this big decision!

Last night I hosted a surprise get-together for him to celebrate with his friends. We all had a great time, and his surprised face was priceless! ;)

I also did extremely well this semester and I must say I have to give myself a pat on the back! I had this Spanish professor from hell who would assign a truckload of work from one day to the next. It was terrible!! I honestly thought I would fail that class, but luckily, I ended up with a "C". I've never been so happy to achieve mediocrity!! Hah. I'm just really happy it's over with.

Anyway, I've been meaning to revamp this blog for quite some time. Hopefully I can maintain it for a while! I've been getting a lot of inspiration from a bunch of different little blogs lately, so now that I have some time on my hands I will try my best to blog more.

All the Single Babies

2009-09-30T16:06:00.001-04:00

I can't get enough of this kid!

Support Systems

2009-09-29T23:09:00.003-04:00

It's been a rough couple of days.

My dad had a seemingly routine surgery last week to repair a herniated muscle in his stomach. On Wednesday he was re-admitted to the hospital because apparently something went wrong with the original surgery and he wasn't able to use the bathroom. He underwent a second surgery on Thursday, and is currently recovering. But my dad's an old man (no really, he's 73). Having two surgeries in one week in the exact same place is not a walk in the park, and I would imagine the older you are, the harder it is to deal with these complications.

Yesterday my dad was transferred to the ICU for shortness of breath. Since he's not able to use the bathroom, all the gasses in his stomach were pushing up and against his lungs, causing him to have trouble breathing. I was scared. I was scared this whole week. But God has a way of showing us that He's always there, and He always provides.

I don't talk much about my half-brother, but the truth is he's almost a carbon copy of my dad, which is probably why we get along so well. At the beginning of the week it was just me and my dad; now it's me, my dad, my half-brother, and my brother, which lifts such a huge weight off my shoulders. I know I don't have to go it alone, and I can ask and consult my half-brother (since he's much older and has more life experience) on what to do or how to best handle a situation. We can go months without speaking, but talking to him is so easy, when we reconnect it's as if we never stopped. We can openly discuss differences we experienced growing up with our dad as, well, our dad (he is my dad's second child from his first marriage, while I'm the second child of his last marriage), and we understand and truly know our father as the person he is, not as the mean old guy who wouldn't let me out past 10 p.m. on weeknights.

Then there's my small group. God has truly blessed me with these people! It's so refreshing to be able to connect with people who have an active passion and love for God and to be able to talk about everyday issues from a Christian perspective and even discuss questions that we may have about these issues. They are an excellent support group, simply because it's so laid back and unpretentious; I never feel ashamed or embarrassed to say something, even if it's something mean (because we are all haters, haha). ;) To have people who pray for you, even when it's about everyday needs, it's powerful. To be able to give and take Godly advice is powerful. My small group is exactly what I needed after this week.

Throughout this whole ordeal, God has never been far from me. While I waited by myself in the waiting room during my dad's second surgery, I knew I wasn't really alone. I prayed and read psalms and lifted my dad's life up to God, and I didn't feel scared. I was liberated. All my worry was cast upon Him, and it was exactly what everyone talks about at church all the time. I felt a wave of comfort over me, and I gave glory to God as I sat next to my father when he came out of surgery. I just watched him sleep, and thought, Thank you, God, for this man's life. Thank you for choosing him to be my father.

It's not over yet, but I'm praying for God to guide me and my brother and my dad through the next phase, which is his recovery. Please pray as well.

It's so humbling to see God in action.

I lift up my eyes to the hills-
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
--Psalm 121:1-2

The Home Stretch

2009-08-02T20:59:00.003-04:00

So this is my last two weeks as an intern at CBS4. Time seems to have gone by way too quickly, but I wanted to give whoever reads this an update as to what's been going on lately.

Next week (Saturday, to be exact) is our Intern Newscast. Basically this is a full thirty-minute newscast produced and performed completely by the interns at WFOR. Obviously, this includes anchors and weather/sports talent. The interns who wanted to be anchors had to submit an audition tape to the intern supervisor, Stephanie. The day I taped my audition, I woke up late, was stuck in traffic and was having an overall bad morning. I wanted to blow dry my hair the night before, but I simply didn't have the time, since I didn't get home from the station the night before until midnight. So that morning I blowdried just the front of my hair (hey, it's all you folks see anyway!) and went over the script about a million times before going in to tape it (we were only allowed to tape it once).

I was "OK" with the outcome. I tried incorporating all the things that Stephanie told me to work on. Let me tell you, anchoring is really not all that simple. You have to constantly be aware of what you're saying, how you're saying it, how your face looks, how your inflection is, and how you're interacting with the viewer. It's exhausting trying to remember all of it! Anyway, I was looking over my tape and I was able to catch one of the photographers, who has been so helpful to me over the course of this internship. He's no-nonsense, in-your face, tell-it-like-it is. I love him. Anyway, I knew he would tell me if something wasn't right..... well, he loved it! I took his word for it, left it up to God and pushed my tape into Stephanie's mailbox.

The following Friday, Stephanie commented on how much she loved my tape. She said she was so impressed with my audition and she thought I did a good job. I'm actually very quiet around the newsroom, so I think this made her even more surprised. The next day I got an e-mail... I made anchor! :)

I was so excited. My hard work had finally paid off! The newscast is on Saturday, and to be honest, I'm a little eager to get it out of the way. I'm pressured to do a good job, because a couple of days after the newscast, there's a watch party which everyone in the newsroom is invited to (this includes, reporters, anchors, and managament...eek!). They'll be able to critique our work and give us pointers on what to improve on. It's so exciting! I still have a lot of work to do on my resume tape, and I'm polishing my resume so that I can give it to the Executive Producer tomorrow. I'm nervous. I really, really need this job. Please continue to pray for me to finish strong and be able to show everyone what I'm capable of. Most of all, pray for this job opportunity. I can't tell you how awesome it would be.

Inspiration

2009-07-14T00:08:00.000-04:00

"Along the way someone will tell you that you can't do something or be who you want to be. When that happens, remember to think, 'Oh yeah, watch me.' I did and I showed 'em. I bet you will, too."
-- Ann Curry

Not Enough Hours In The Day...

2009-07-13T23:38:00.000-04:00

My weeks have been pretty crazy lately. Last week at CBS, the intern supervisor asked me to help them out at the assignment desk and with producing on Sunday nights (it's been tough for them lately with budget cuts, and I figured it would be a great way for me to get some experience in other parts of the newsroom, not just reporting). I had my first day yesterday, and I enjoyed the experience, as I always do when I'm at the station. I never let myself forget about the fact that I'm extremely blessed to be interning at such a great station with great people who have a tangible passion for what they do.

But it seems like my weekends have been getting shorter lately... I'd love a day off, but it comes down to deciding between taking paid hours off of work, or taking away valuable experience.

Please pray for me and for God to help me stay focused on the larger goal, which is, of course, a possible job at the station, and in the future, a successful career as a reporter. I'm remembering this passage to help me get through:

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."
-- Romans 5:3-5

iNews

2009-06-23T19:26:00.000-04:00

Friday was an interesting day at the WFOR newsroom. The new iPhone 3GS came out, and a few producers and reporters were excited about getting their new gadget in the mail. The I-Team producer, Gio, had gone to the Apple store in the Falls to pick up his iPhone.

In the morning editorial meeting, a bunch of producers were discussing the new video capability on the iPhone. The News Director, Adrienne Roark, suggested that Gio get some interviews and sound bytes for the story using the phone.

This is the result. (Keep in mind that this was completely shot using the iPhone. Sound was captured using the Voice Memo capability).

The story's been getting a lot of buzz in the industry lately. The Poynter Institute, a school and resource for journalism, brought it up in a recent blog regarding the impact of technology on citizen journalism. Check it out.

PLUS, for all you iPhone junkies out there, Gio posted a new iPhone challenge on his twitter page. Shoot a video response to his story using YOUR iPhone, and email it to him at gbenitez@cbs.com. Who knows-- it might just be broadcast on the air!

Best Day Ever

2009-06-16T22:21:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was probably one of the best days I've ever experienced.

I had the opportunity of heading out on the field with Michael Williams, CBS4's political reporter, a veteran of the news biz (today is his 29th anniversary), and one of my personal heroes in the field. The man is an amazing journalist. But more on that later.

Besides being able to shadow one of my heroes, we headed out to Hialeah Park, where Governor Charlie Crist was taking a tour of the abandoned park. Earlier in the day he signed a gambling bill which hammered out a deal with the Seminole Tribe of Indians for casinos (one of the stipulations in the agreement is that Hialeah Park be revitalized to bring horse racing, and eventually slots and poker, to the historic park.

(Watch Michael's story here)

It was my first real political/photo-op experience, and it was amazing. The energy that this business brings is unreal. Here are some pictures from my BlackBerry:

I didn't really interact too much with the Governor; it was a quick visit. But just watching everything going on around me was such a great experience. And yes, his tan is really that great ;)

I learned so. much... about writing, interviewing, researching, and just journalism and the industry in general. I was so happy to find that Michael Williams is so nice and genuinely helpful; it never felt as if I was bothering him or anything, he was always available to answer any questions I had. As I taped my sign-off for my resume tape, he told me I had a good camera presence, and gave me some tips on writing news stories. Later in the day, he offered to help me get my foot in the door in some smaller markets around Florida, and mentioned that I have a "natural talent". I was floored. This is Michael Williams! I know a lot of you might not know him, but to me, he's huge. I grew up watching him on NBC6!

God has really blessed me in tremendous ways. Just getting this internship was something that I never really expected. But I'm there, and I'm constantly around some of the best talent in South Florida. I'm constantly amazed by the caliber of people that work in this business, and I've gained a newfound respect and passion for the craft of storytelling. If you watched the piece above, note Michael's vivid imagery and use of words. I know, this is the nerd in me. Don't judge.

One of the questions I posed to Michael yesterday was whether or not he suggested starting off at a small market to gain experience, or if I should find a job in a larger market such as Miami. He suggested that I start off small, so that I can make my mistakes and become a better reporter. This is something every reporter has advised me to do during my time so far, and I'm seriously considering it. Pray for me as I make these decisions in the future... I'm excited to see what God has in store.

new look

2009-06-11T16:45:00.001-04:00

What do you think?? :)

the juices are flowing

2009-06-02T16:10:00.000-04:00

if you follow me on twitter, you know that i've been in a creative mood today. I came across my friend's blog, which directed me to this awesome site, which inspired me to create cute stuff again. Thanks, Kristel!

I've secretly been wanting to open a clothing boutique for a while now. Random, I know. But I figured, I love clothes and I'm organized. Why not share it with others? It would be a great business plan, if it weren't for this terrible economy. {Wah Wahhh} Anyway, I think I have it all mapped out. My mom used to be a buyer for Neiman Marcus back in her single days, so she knows a thing or two about merchandising and retail buying. She can be my partner. Gabby's dad is an accountant, so he can be our financial advisor. There's my administrative help.

When I was a girl, I used to love coming up with "fashion lines"... I'd draw little models and create away. Well, I found some inspiration, and I spent a good hour in macroeconomics creating a modified version of my little models. These would be the logo for our store.

The only thing missing (besides a good loan, haha) is a name. I want something cute, fresh, and girly. Any ideas?

Besides that crazy idea, I have some friends' birthdays coming up (including my hunny!) and I've been short on cash flow recently, so in my burst of creativity, I'm thinking up some cute and inexpensive gift ideas. I'll blog a post with pics once they're done. :)

Hooray for creativity!!

While you're here, check out A Beautiful Mess:

jon & kate (plus paparazzi plus cameras following your every move plus possible infidelity) plus 8

2009-05-27T12:24:00.000-04:00

This whole "Jon & Kate Plus 8" drama is depressing.

I usually love watching the show to see the adorable kids and dynamics between a young couple with twins and sextuplets, but lately the only thing the show is known for is the rumors of infidelity on both ends- Jon & Kate have both been accused of cheating on each other with other people.

The rumors of the past three months haven't helped at all. I watched the Season 5 premiere, and it was so incredibly heartbreaking. When Jon and Kate were together, they barely even acknowledged each other. The paparazzi was hiding in the bushes by the park where their children celebrated their fifth birthday. The family has to come up with aversions to distract the paparazzi.

I think the thing that makes it the saddest is the fact that, as a viewer, you watch the deterioration of a marriage and the destruction of a family. As a viewer you feel as if you are part of the family, and you feel invested in the relationship. Watching it all fall apart is just heartbreaking. To add to that, this is no ordinary infidelity situation. Let's not forget that there are EIGHT- count 'em- eight children involved here, all of whom are below the age of 10.

More than anything, I think this whole hoopla is a great lesson. It shows how important communication is in any relationship. Somewhere along the lines, this couple stopped talking, and somewhere further along that line, something happened that has led to this situation they are currently in. Granted, having camera crews and eight screaming children around 24/7 doesn't exactly facilitate this. But setting boundaries beforehand, and understanding your limits, are both great ways to come to a consensus on the issue at hand.

This family is in a serious predicament. On the upside, this show has given them so many financial blessings in the form of vacations, a new home, etc. In a weird way, this show about their life has become their career. But on the downside, it has taken away their chance for a "normal" life.

So where do you draw the line?

Mission

2009-05-24T13:04:00.000-04:00

Over the past 6 weeks, my church has been doing a series called "Boot Camp", which is aimed at helping Christians focus on the basics of our faith. Today's message was about Missions, and the importance of making God's mission to reach others our mission.

Listen to the CF message here.

We cited Luke 15:1-7, and he mentioned that in the passage, Jesus does three things:

- Pursue Us (Luke 15:4)
-Serve Us (Luke 15:5-6)
- Celebrates our redemption (Luke 15:6)

In the same way God pursues us, we are called to do the same to others in our lives. The pastor cited a video blog by Penn Jillette, who is an atheist. Watch this video blog where Jillette mentions the action of a Christian after one of his shows, and his thoughts on the man.
I thought the video spoke for itself, and is a great example of how we as Christians should treat others. What are your thoughts on this issue?

Summer has begun!

2009-05-01T20:38:00.000-04:00

I can finally breathe a sigh of relief! I'm finally DONE with this semester!

That means summer is here!

I'm writing this post from a swanky hotel room overlooking Thomas Circle in the amazing Washington, DC! It's only been one day, but I am completely in love with this city! I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I do. Today's been an excruciatingly long day, but it was all well worth it. We got up at 3am, hopped on a flight at 7am, and made it to DC by 9:45.

First on the list of sightseeing excursions was the National Zoo. And obviously, the number one thing I was there to see was the Giant Panda! This was one thing on my list of things to do before I die, and it was so worth the wait! The pandas were adorable.

Afterwards, we headed to the Washington National Cathedral. This church was. AH. MA. ZING.

Amazing architecture, amazing history, all around amazing. the cathedral takes up about 57 acres, which all includes a girls' and boys' boarding school (very Gossip Girl). President Woodrow Wilson is buried there, and the fact that so many heads of state have sat in this church's pews was just awesome! I definitely recommend it. You MUST see it when you go to Washington.

We've been walking all day, and tomorrow we're heading to The White House and the National Mall. I can't wait.

I promise I shall blog pictures when I get home! :)

The Stigma Stops With Me

2009-03-31T13:01:00.000-04:00

Today I attended a lecture hosted by the FIU School of Journalism & Mass Communications about HIV/AIDS prevention. The school participated in an initiative to bring attention to the local resurgence of the disease (especially among minorities) and a group of students recently traveled to South Africa to observe the disease first hand. Recently, the school joined with the Miami Herald to provide students with the opportunity to publish their work in a major news publication.

A group of students followed the life of Damaries Cruz, an HIV patient who speaks out about her condition and encourages people to get tested. THe students published a web series entitled "The Stigma Stops With Me". The entire 4-part piece is only about 10 minutes long, but it's worth watching. Damaries was an inspiration to all the students in attendance, and her work is a testament to how much HIV/AIDS prevention and research is still needed.

Please watch, and get tested!

Part 1: "This is Your Mission"
Part 2: "This is My Personal Choice"
Part 3: "Stop the Stigma"
Part 4: "Get Tested and Re-tested"

The Halfway Mark

2009-03-17T09:58:00.000-04:00

Spring Break is here! Joy!

Unfortunately for me, I will spend my spring break working on two huge projects for my State Government class & Population class respectively. For the former, I have to get a good chunk of a 15-page term paper on gentrification done. For the latter, I have to start a Census project studying the city of Homestead. You can imagine my enthusiasm.

Gabby went on vacation with his buddies to Orlando, Tampa & St. Augustine, leaving me all by my lonesome here in Miami. ;) I think it all worked out though... I need to work on these projects!

A lot of stuff has been going on lately. My application for UF went through, and now I'm just anxiously waiting to know whether or not I can call myself a true Gator! I also submitted an application for a summer internship at NBC6. I'm hoping FIU will give me credits for the internship, because it would be a great way for me to get field experience. Speaking of FIU, I'm proud to say I made the Dean's List for the School of Journalism & Mass Communication for Fall 2008! Yay! However, I found it amusing that I haven't even been admitted to the SJMC, and yet I made the Dean's List anyway. Maybe I can use that little loophole to get my internship credits, seeing as technically, I'm an SJMC student if I made Dean's List. ;)
FIU never ceases to amaze me.

So anyway, I'm so happy that Spring Break is here! It means I'm almost done with this terrible semester. I can't wait to see what God has in store for the future!

Version 2.0

2009-03-09T23:44:00.000-04:00

As you can see, I totally re-vamped my blog!

Since I had so much fun creating a completely new blog for my Visual Design class, I decided to give my old blog some much-needed TLC. I finally changed that long-winded name (I'm sorry, I couldn't think of anything witty), and took off some stuff that was cluttering the page.

Looks nice, don't ya think? ;)

Anyway, stay tuned. I'll try to blog a little more often from now on.

High Heels & Movie Reels

2009-03-09T18:58:00.001-04:00

I finally decided on a blog idea!

I created a movie review blog. I'm actually loving it! I might just stick around with it after the project is due. ;)

Check it out! Leave comments! Bookmark it! :)

Help!

2009-02-26T20:48:00.000-05:00

For my Visual Design for Media class, we need to create a blog. (I know, big stretch). It has to be on a professional topic, i.e. journalism, photography, artwork, poetry, recipes, etc. It can't be a personal blog like this one.

I was gonna go with a journalism blog, but will anyone really read it? I'm not a photographer, and I'm not a cook. I even thought of creating some sort of LOST analysis blog. A little too obsessed? What do I do?? Help!

Give me an idea for some kind of blog that has journalistic qualities, which I can incorporate a lot of images and visuals, and that people like you would like to read. Your help is greatly appreciated! :)

Valentine's/Anniversary Weekend!

2009-02-16T18:24:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was Gabby's and my anniversary (as previously mentioned in my last post). We had an adventurous, fun-filled day together; literally, though. The entire day.

First off, we went to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. It's so peaceful there, and it was the perfect day for a walk in the park. And it also helped that we were able to burn off the hundreds of calories we consumed at Merari's birthday party the night before! ;) We actually went at the perfect time, because they are displaying sculptures by different artists, such as Botero and Chihuly, in different areas of the park. It was great.

After Fairchild, we went back to my house. I made Gabby and my mom a yummy Mediterranean pizza recipe that I found online. Deelish!

(Sorry the picture is terrible. My camera was acting up!)

The rest of the afternoon was spent being bums and watching movies. Later on, we got ready for our big dinner date. We had reservations at Tuscan Steak on South Beach at 9:45, so we had plenty of time to kill. We went to the Lincoln Road movie theaters to watch Paul Blart: Mall Cop. I know, sooo romantic. But it was that or Taken, and while I would love to see that movie, I preferred comedy over dark action thrillers.

Dinner was awesome. The place seemed pretty packed, but it was to be expected on a busy day like Valentine's Day. Our hostess was hilariously ditzy and seemed lost. It was awesome. Other than that, the place was so cute! It's very chic and modern, and the food is amazing, but comes in humongous portions. Plan to share. Gabby ordered a filet mignon; I went for the snapper. I named him Joe.

All in all, we had the perfect day. It was a great way to spend time with my hunny and celebrate five years of happiness. :)

Five Years!

2009-02-13T23:13:00.000-05:00

Today (well, technically tomorrow) is me & Gabby's fifth anniversary!

Half a decade! Wow.

I can't believe it's been so long! Time flies I guess. God has truly blessed us with an amazing love (and lots and lots of patience). We have been through so much these past years... from high school band to college, fun times and some awful times as well. We have learned to be patient with one another, and I think we've got the art of communication down pat.

Gabby is my best friend. He is the one person I can talk to about anything and everything, and I am so proud of the person he has become in these past 5 years. I have seen him grow in his relationship with Christ, and I could not be more proud to call him my boyfriend. :)

I love you hunny!

Leap of Faith

2009-01-08T21:50:00.000-05:00

This week has been an interesting week for me. Spring semester began, and I've been focused on getting some paperwork in order for a GPA waiver to go through. The FIU School of Journalism requires its students to have a 3.0 GPA and have passed the CLAST exam, as well as take certain classes that they require. I've passed all the required classes, but even after my awesome fall semester, my GPA is just under the required GPA, at 2.96. In December, I took the CLAST and missed the passing score by one point (I know-- I wanted to cry). Anyway, on Tuesday I went to Miami Dade College to register for the next date, which I was told would be January 16 or 23 (the waiver application is due February 1). Unfortunately, when I got there, both dates were filled up, leaving only January 30 for me to take the test.

I was so frustrated, to say the least. This meant that I would have to wait until fall semester to be admitted to the school of journalism! I felt terrible. After some much needed prayer, I woke up the next day feeling content. Yes, bad things happen, but sometimes the worst situations turn into the best.

I've been wanting to go to UF for a long time now- at first I wanted to go straight out of high school, but my grades just weren't good enough at the time. Then I thought of going for grad school, but let's be honest, journalism isn't something you get a practical Masters' degree with. The other day, I decided to give it another shot. The deadline for fall admission to UF is March 1, which would give me plenty of time to submit my application, send my transcripts and finally pass the CLAST. Plus, I would have to wait until fall semester to be admitted to FIU, so why not apply to the school I prefer?

So today I started working on my application for UF. I'm excited. I don't know what the outcome will be, but I know that if it's meant to be, it'll happen. Your prayer and support is greatly appreciated! I need it.

But I have a good feeling about this. :)

Happy 2009!

2009-01-01T22:43:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I last wrote, and what a crazy month it has been! I was so happy to finish fall semester (finally). And I am very proud to say that I surprised even myself and earned straight A's! I wasn't expecting that result at all; I knew I was going to at least get two A's, and two B's. What a pleasant surprise! This is the first time I've received such good grades, and all the glory goes to God for helping me to focus and prioritize my studies. He showed me my potential in a time when I doubted my abilities and proved to me that I can really do anything through Christ who gives me strength.

I was, and am, so humbled by this, and I am so grateful for His faithfulness. :)

After school ended, I started looking for a part time job so that I could make some extra money over the holiday break. I ended up getting a job at Michael's through a friend of mine, Grace. And as much as I may moan and complain about my terrible hours, I realize that I'm lucky to even have a job, especially in these tough economic times. Besides, one of the bonuses at working at an arts & crafts store is that it's really inspired me to be more creative. Every night as I walk through the aisles I get another cute idea. I love it. :)

The holidays this year were especially enjoyable. For Christmas, I participated in MBC's annual Christmas Eve service, singing in the choir with Paula. After two months of rehearsals, I was happy to finally perform for my family and loved ones, and celebrate the birth of Christ. After the service, I made my way home, where we had some family over for Noche Buena. Later on, I went with Gabby to his church's Christmas Eve service.

Christmas morning was exhilarating! I felt like a little kid again. This year, I went to Gabby's house first, because my mom and brother wanted to sleep in a little, since we had gone to bed late the night before. I wanted to get to Gabby's house early, because all of us (his siblings, sister in law, and myself) had a surprise for his mom, and I wanted to be there for the big reveal. Early in December, we took some group pictures with Janet's cousin, Monica, who owns her own photography company. We took some pictures of all of us, put them in a collage frame, and presented it to Gabby's mom, who was caught totally off guard. She started crying, and was so happy that she finally had a professional picture of all her kids. I was glad to be a part of it. :)
Here's one of the pictures from that session:

After Christmas at the Medinas', I returned home and eagerly woke my mom and brother so we could open presents. I was pleased with my gifts this year, not that any of it is really that important or anything. My favorite gift of all though, is my new iPod Touch! My mom bought it because of my good grades. I was so surprised; if you know my mom, you know why. She is notorious for giving typical "mom" gifts, like socks, clothes, and other practical items. Never gadgets. She placed the iPod box in a Nine West shoebox, so I was already excited when I unwrapped it. New shoes! Yay! I opened the box, and I see this bag with an apple on it, and I was so stunned I didn't even know what to say! I thanked my mom a million times over. I was really grateful for all of my gifts, and I was grateful for spending time with family later on that day at my cousin's annual Christmas Day brunch. Her sister in law's son, Rocco, stole my heart. He has these huge grey eyes that are just going to break so many hearts someday. He was teething, so he put almost anything in his mouth. I think I'm in love with him. :)

The holiday break brought a new, albeit temporary, addition to my family: my uncle's
dog, Pisa, came to visit while he was out of town for 10 days. She's a trip. It was great to dogsit, and my uncle just came back and took her home. I told him he could leave her with us whenever he wants.

Finally, for New Years, we went to a party hosted by a family friend of Gabby's family. They have a humongous home, and went all out with the party. The theme was black and white, and I have to admit, I really wasn't looking forward to the party until the day of the event. I bought a white blouse and googled some cute hairstyles and makeup ideas. We had a wonderful time. I was so happy to be rid of 2008! It was a pretty bad year for me and my family overall. Hopefully, 2009 brings much more laughs and fun times than tears and grief. Also, I'm returning to Quick Weight Loss Centers tomorrow! I'm looking forward to what this year has to offer. I can't wait to see what God has in store! :)

Also, I must make this shameless plug for my new favorite show, LOST. Season 5 starts on January 21st! If you haven't watched it, watch it! It's amazing.

Casa Valentina

2008-12-01T12:48:00.000-05:00

Every year at Christmas, my family gets together for a family "project" of sorts. Since my cousins have their children, and buying a gift for each cousin,her corresponding husband, and the kids would be pretty expensive, we collectively decided that, in lieu of buying gifts for each adult, we would contribute a certain amount to a charity of our choice, in order to help those in need.

This year, we decided on Casa Valentina , which is a non-profit organization that helps girls who age out of foster care gain independence. As you may or may not know, once a child turns 18, they "age out" of the foster care system, and are typically left to fend for themselves. Most of them, however, have never really learned how to live an independent life: they are not familiar with budgeting money, buying groceries, and the like. Casa Valentina offers young women the chance to gain independence and to make that transition from foster care to the real world. At the end of the holiday season, after the family has contributed their monies, my cousins go and buy gift cards from Publix and Target/Bed Bath & Beyond for the girls to use towards their new homes.

If you have any extra cash lying around this holiday season, or want to donate to a charity, give back to these young girls here.

Diary of an Indecisive, Frustrated Jouralism Student

2008-11-20T23:31:00.000-05:00

The other day in my Intro to Journalism class, we had a guest speaker, Corinna Zarek, who is the Freedom of Information Director at the Reporter's Committee for Freedom of the Press. What a mouthful. When I got the e-mail announcing our guest, I honestly wasn't really enthused with the selection. I had never heard of this woman or this organization, and for all I knew, this was going to be one boring lecture. But, points of discussion from this lecture will be on future quizzes and the final, so I decided it would behoove my grade to show up.

It was the best decision I made! I loved the subject matter. What the RCFP does is pretty much advocate on behalf of American journalists. They help journalists gain access to public record (such as court hearings, public documents, etc.), and fight on behalf of the journalist for the rights to access that record, as it is in the public's interest. There was a long discussion about a Federal Shield Law that is trying to be pushed through Congress, which would protect journalists from giving up their confidential sources. This is a pretty controversial subject, because in some cases, the reporter should be obliged under the law to reveal certain information. In any case, the topic completely fascinated me. I've never been so attentive in that class! The RCFP is doing something great: fighting on behalf of the little guy. I've always been pretty interested in political science and constitutional law, and while I never quite knew what I could do with that, I thought this would be a good start. In my mind, I thought: Law's really not that difficult, writing briefs and such, and arguing on one's behalf. I like arguing. It can't be that bad.... right?

I fool myself sometimes into thinking that I can be a lawyer, haha. :) But really, this part of law really interests me! So I'm definitely keeping my options open on that front. We'll have to see how the rest of college treats me first, then I can focus on bigger things, like law school and fighting for the underdog. This discussion was what I needed. It reignited my passion for journalism, something which has been missing all this time since high school.

In the meantime, I'm on the hunt for a good internship or scholarship opportunity with any news organization who will take me. It's incredibly difficult to get a start in this business! I checked out the website for the Radio-Television News Directors Association. In high school, I remembered there was this awesome scholarship that was offered every year. I wondered if some form of that scholarshp was available to undergrads, but alas, it's only available to undergrads who have an RTNDA chapter at their J-school. I checked out the list. Guess who doesn't have an RTNDA chapter.

Yep. I don't even have to say it. ;)

Apparently, the RTNDA only has chapters at schools which offer courses in radio and television journalism-- two of the very same forms of journalism which FIU decides not to teach in great detail. It's pretty--nay, very-- frustrating to think that your school only really recognizes one form of journalism as the "true" medium. I sit in class hearing people talk about margins and copy and all the while I'm thinking they're speaking Chinese. Talk to me about camera angles, headroom and lead-ins and we'll get along fine. But what makes it more difficult is the fact that, since FIU focuses mostly on print journalism, most of the scholarships and internships that they offer are through newspaper outlets. In fact, FIU just struck a deal with the three largest tri-county area papers: The Palm Beach Post, Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald, to establish a partnership between the three papers and the School of Journalism. Don't get me wrong, this is a great step for the SJMC! It's a great opportunity for a print major. But I'm feeling really left out here! Where are the opportunities for broadcast news majors? It seems like even Advertising and PR get more opportunities than we do! It's a really frustrating situation. Maybe I'm overreacting... hopefully the classes will get progressively more interesting as the semesters roll by, and as I get more involved in broadcasting and reporting classes.

Only time will tell, I guess. Here's to hoping for opportunity to come knocking. I'm ready!

Four down, 132,8475 to go!

2008-11-14T16:41:00.000-05:00

I'm really tired.

This semester has really kicked my butt into high gear! Even though I had to drop a class (boo), I'm doing really well in my remaining 4 classes. All B's and A's for the most part. There are so many papers to write and quizzes to study for...I'm so ready for this semester to be OVER. Today I received my study guide for the final exam in my journalism class. I was so relieved. It's really almost over! Sure I still have a ton of papers to write, but I'm that much closer to being done with this crazy semester.

And then it will start again in January. Yay.

My enrollment appointment is not till Sunday, but I have a good idea of what classes I'm going to take. It looks like my semester will consist of Media Law and Ethics, Visual Design for Media, State Government and Politics, and Population & Society. It's a decent sized load, and I don't want to over-stress myself with 15 credits like I did this semester. I need to focus on getting my GPA up past a 3.0 and passing the CLAST test(I wish I could get exempt by working at the testing center, but alas, that is not the case).

As for the future, I'm thinking of doing a minor in Marketing. I know, I change my mind a lot, but I wanted to minor in PR and they wouldn't let me, so I have to find alternative things to do! I'm thinking marketing would be good because it (sort of) deals with communication, and would help me if I become a communications consultant or something one day. I'm not too worried, I still have like a million classes left to graduate! That's the thing about college. You get all excited because you're almost done with one semester... and you look at your planning sheet and realize that you still are nowhere near the finish line!

I'm just praying for the ability to focus on the remainder of this semester so that I can do well in it. I'm also praying for some guidance on my future! It would be awesome if you prayed for me too ;)

Election Day

2008-11-04T15:31:00.000-05:00

Election Day is finally here!

Finally! No more annoying campaign ads, no more people pushing candidates on you, no more getting annoyed in general!

If you haven't already done so, go out and VOTE! It doesn't matter who you vote for (well, yes, it sort of does) but the important thing is that you let your voice be heard! :)

Family History

2008-10-28T00:22:00.001-04:00

As many of you may (or may not) know, my grandmother passed away last week at the age of 90. I'm still getting used to the reality of it all, and trying to support my mom through this difficult time for her. She devoted a great deal of her life to caring for my grandmother, finding her a good place to live with people who loved her and cared for her as if she were one of their own. It will be the most difficult transition for her, so your continued prayers are greatly appreciated.

Although I knew that this was inevitable, it still feels very weird to me. I think back on the times I was with her, especially her last birthday. I made her a pretty fondant cake, which she loved. While she had become somewhat emotionless, her eyes lit up, and I knew she loved how it came out. She wasn't exactly the typical grandmother growing up; she never baked us cakes or gave us random hugs and kisses. She just wasn't that type of lady. She was feisty-- and in some cases she was just plain mean. Mean, but very, very funny. But over the past 2 or 3 years, as her health has deteriorated more and more, she became like a child again, and I think this will be the part of her that I will miss the most. Looking back, I know it will be difficult to let go of her memory, but she lived a long and healthy life, and I couldn't ask for anything more.

Anyway, my family held a mass in her memory on Saturday, and I volunteered to create a collage using pictures of her throughout her long life. I dug through old family albums and keepsakes, laughing to myself at how my grandfather never threw anything (and I do mean anything) away. As I searched through boxes, I found a letter that had been written to my grandfather in the 1960s from his uncle, Felix.
Felix was a playwright/poet/songwriter, and wrote the famous film El Derecho de Nacer, as well as a couple of popular Cuban songs. My great-great uncle Felix is still regarded as one of the great creative minds of Cuba, and "El Derecho de Nacer" set the standard for the telenovelas your abuelas (and admit it, you do too) enjoy today. ;)

Anywho, seeing all that history in my family, seeing the long life that my grandmother led, I felt proud of where I come from. Not only from my mother's family, but also from my father's as well. As I looked through old photos of my mom and dad in Cuba, and as I looked at all the great standards my great-great uncle set, I felt like just hopping on a plane and seeing this beautiful country that I have heard such amazing stories about since I was born. I feel like I'm missing a big part of my identity from not being able to visit, but hopefully (soon) I will be able to go and see the places my parents have told me about so many times before, and gain back a huge chunk of who I am as a Cuban.

An Early Thanksgiving

2008-10-16T23:37:00.000-04:00

So today I was checking out some old blog entries, as well as those of some friends. How time flies! I looked at some of the entries from a year ago and laughed at how long ago it seems. It's been one heckuva year, that's for sure. I've experienced so many different things, but most importantly, I have grown so much closer to God, and gained a greater understanding of what it means to live in His word.

In the wise words of Ferris Bueller, Life moves pretty fast sometimes. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you might miss it. How true that is! Life is hectic. We know this. It's day after day of homework, studying, work, projects, essays, and somewhere in there, a social life. It's easy to overlook God in the busyness of the everyday. It's easy to take so many things for granted.

I'm not perfect; I've overlooked God on many occasions. Instead of focusing on Him, and His answers to my questions, I've dwelled on the problems going on around me and looked for my own solutions. I guess it happens to everyone at some point. But God always has a way of showing me who's in charge, and He's great on reminding me of all the wonderful things He has blessed me with.

I have been blessed with wonderful friends.

I have been blessed with a wonderful family (and family-in-law).

I have been blessed with a wonderful boyfriend.

I have been blessed with the gift of life. I have all five of my senses, I am in pretty good health, and I go to sleep every night and wake up every morning.

Sometimes, life can cloud our perception of where God is in our lives. We might not see Him, but He is definetly always there. And even when we are distant from Him, like any good friend, He does something to remind us just how amazing He really is and bring us back to Him. Don't worry about life, it can take care of itself. God will handle it.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
--Matthew 6:34

God is faithful.
--1 Corinthians 10:13

Why I ♥ Sarah Palin

2008-09-22T15:58:00.000-04:00

So I thought I should put my two cents in about this crazy presidential race. For the record, I'm not voting for Barack Obama, and I'm on the fence about voting for John McCain. I loved Obama at first.. I saw him speak at a rally last January and I caught the "change" bug. He promised he was going to fight for a different type of politics, but as the months wore on, I realized that his politics and the old ways of Washington were one and the same. Contrary to popular belief, Obama has, in fact, supported special interests and lobbyists by having them on his payroll (For the record, so has McCain).

But I digress.

The one person I would not hesitate to vote for is Governor Sarah Palin. She has come under attack these past few weeks, which is understandable given that she is undergoing an ethics probe and is virtually unknown in the political world. I recently overheard a couple of old ladies discussing Palin's supposed lack of experience while walking to class. It seems like wherever you look, there's an Obama sign, a table with a couple of idealistic kids asking you if you're registered to vote, and if you're not, they'll suggest you vote for Obama. After all, he's bringing "change". It's really frustrating to voice your opinions (or to not be able to, in my case, because everyone looks down on the fact that you happen to be conservative).

The most frequent thing I hear about Governor Palin is the fact that, before she was Governor of Alaska, she went to school to be a broadcast journalist. They say this as if a journalist, for some reason, can't be trusted with the presidency. I take a bit of offense to this, as I myself am a journalism major, and we have to look out for our "people" (At least I know that I, too, can run for Vice President of the United States). The problem is, isn't this whole election about the "American Dream"? Isn't most of the media hoopla surrounding a man who is from mixed heritage, was raised in Hawaii and Indonesia and is now making history as the first African American to run for President of the United States??
Why, then, is it so terrible that a small town girl from Alaska who happened to go to school to study journalism be running for the VP spot? Granted, she might not have had much experience with politics before her Mayoral run, but she won the election. And she won the election for Governor. And she is now the first woman to run as a Vice Presidential candidate in the Republican Party's history. Why is everyone giving her grief? Just because she is the Governor of a small state, people discount her as having little to no experience. If i lived in Alaska, I would be insulted! They are, after all, still a part of America, and they are being treated as if they don't exist.

Not long ago, Obama was battling another female looking to take over the White House (only she's a lot less good looking, let's be honest). He too was fighting claims that he is inexperienced. So I find it hypocritical of him to be bashing Palin on her experience (or lack thereof). Palin, after all, has executive experience, which significantly dwarfs Obama's record of legislative experience in Congress.

Secondly, I constantly hear how Sarah Palin, for some reason, is not a "real woman". Forgive me if I'm wrong, but Sarah Palin has all the same anatomical parts that I and every woman (one would hope) has. So how is she not a "real" woman?
Many liberals cite her pro-life views as a major issue, as something that "real women" are opposed to.

I guess I'm not a real woman either, because I happen to support her views on abortion and family 150%. Under no circumstances is abortion ever ok, in my eyes. This woman should serve as an inspiration to other women, just because of the fact that she has five- count em- five children, and who recently gave birth to a special needs child. Many question whether she is a good mother, what with all those kids and that high profile position. But these are the same people who are saying that killing an unborn child is wrong! So how can they have any validity to what they're saying? Palin is a great example of a woman, and while she may not be pro-abortion, she should serve as an inspiration to women everywhere for her family values.

Another contentious issue is that of Palin's daughter, Bristol, having a child out of wedlock. It seems like everyone likes to pick on this moral dilemma, as if they are really the ones who should be judging others for their personal issues. Might I remind you that our last Democratic president was gettin' frisky under the desk of the Oval Office... but everyone seems to discount that for some reason. The fact that this woman's daughter made some bad decisions (just like our former President made some bad decisions in the past) does not make her any less of a formidable candidate for VP.

As for McCain, I'm not 100% sure I'm going to vote for him this election. The only issue I really have a problem with is his Iraq policy. It scares me a bit, to be honest. I'm definetly no Bush fan, and I have thought that Iraq was a mistake since before we invaded. I was set on voting third party, but to be honest, I'm really thisclose to voting for McCain, because, let's face it, the man might not make it to 2012 (cynical, yes, but you know you've thought about it too). In that case, there's nobody I could think of who would make a better First Female President than Sarah Palin.

And so it begins!

2008-08-26T15:37:00.000-04:00

Was it just me, or did summer go by too fast?

Yesterday I began my fall semester at the wonderful(haha) FIU. I'm taking 5 classes this semester, so I definetly have a lot of work to do. My classes so far consist of:

Sociology
Intro to Journalism
Writing Strategies for Reaching a Mass Audience
Creative Writing
Interpersonal Communication (I'm taking this one online)

I liked all of my professors; they all seem pretty friendly and helpful. I'm pretty confident I can get decent grades, considering I hunker down and focus on what I need to do. I calculated my GPA, and I would need to get straight A's this semester to get a 3.0! Eep!

I'm so sick of school already. I just want to graduate and get it over with! I already told everyone (and I guess I'm telling you, dear reader) that if you're looking to hang out this semester, the answer will (more than likely) be no. I have way too many papers to write, books to read, etc. Sorry to disappoint.

Anyway, I came to the realization today that people are stupid. I know, what an obvious statement, especially since I happen to work in the hub of stupid, FIU. But today I realized how truly stupid people can be. Before you go on to call me cold and heartless, let me explain.

My office (the University Testing Center) is located on the first floor of the library (GL 120). Across from the main doors of the library, there's an auditiorium that's usually used for large classes (GL100). Yesterday, everyone and their mother came by OUR office to ask where GL 100 was. It got so ridiculous that my coworker made a (very LARGE) sign to post on the door, which reads (in BIG, bold, red letters):

"IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR GL 100, GL100A, GL100B,
GO OUT THE FRONT FOORS OF THE LIBRARY AND WALK
STRAIGHT THROUGH THE GLASS DOORS ACROSS THE BREEZEWAY."
::GIANT RED ARROW POINTING PEOPLE IN THE DIRECTION OF WHICH TO GO::

There are not one, but two signs, posted on our door and on the window directly next to the door.

And still, people walked in and asked where GL 100 is.

Go figure. :)

Ah, life as an FIU employee. Never a dull moment.

Home Sweet Home.

2008-08-21T11:15:00.001-04:00

So, we're back from our lovely trip to New York & New Jersey!

We had a fantastic time. We accomplished most of what we wanted to (especially the Yankee game), but unfortunately we were not able to check out a Broadway show. Boo.

Anyway, the Yankee game was a fiasco! We hadn't previously bought our tickets ("It's a Yankee/Royals game... who's going to go?"-Gabby), and the game ended up being sold out a month before the actual game. Go figure. So we had to take our chances on the many scalpers outside the stadium. At first, they were asking for $150- FOR BLEACHER SEATS (usually, bleacher seats go for about $15)!!! My crazy and desperate boyfriend was actually considering it, but I refused to pay five times the cost of a ticket to sit in bleachers. So we walked around a little more, and were approached by some dudes who were offering us $100 for field-level tickets(A little more reasonable, considering these particular tickets are usually about $80). The only thing was, the seats weren't next to each other. Anyway, we ended up finding an empty seat next to where Gabby was sitting, and sat together next to left field (pretty great seats, I must say).

In the meantime, our host, Johnny (a family friend of Gabby's family) was sitting outside listening to the game. He wanted us to enjoy our first Yankees game, but he wasn't going to pay double the price for tickets that he could easily buy on any given day for the normal price. He was approached during the sixth inning by a scalper trying to get rid of his last couple of tickets. The guy was going to sell him a ticket behind home plate for $80. Being the New Yorker that he is, he refused, and told the guy, "I only have $40. Take it or leave it." The guy got mad, since he apparently paid like $90 for the tickets. But Johnny told him, "ok, that's fine. I'm good just listening to the game from here, but $40 in your pocket is better than nothing." So the guy gave him the tickets for $40! (Let me emphasize- Behind HOME PLATE).

Later on, he called us and told us the story, and said that there were two seats next to him. And so, we ended up watching the Yankees beat the Royals- behind home plate. And we got great pictures of Jeter and A-Rod, too. :)

It was a great day. :)

I uploaded most of the pictures to my myspace photo album, you can check them out there.

Reasons Why I Love New York (and New Jersey, too)

2008-08-15T23:56:00.000-04:00

1) Everything is within walking distance. If not, they actually have reliable forms of mass transit that will get you exactly where you need to go.

2) Flying in at night is absolutley breathtaking.

3) Historical buildings in a modern city.

4) The roads (in Jersey, where we are staying) are on hills! This is amazing to us Miami folk!

5) Central Park, and all its fantastic photo ops.

6) White Castle burgers. Yes... We ♥ Murder Burgers.

7) They give tours to the NBC Nightly News Studios! To be in the same space as some real-life news hotshots (or at least the producers that were stuck in New York while the talent was living it up in Beijing)......AH. MA. ZING. (Don't hate on my inner news geek.)

8) H&M.

Only one day here, and I'm having such an amazing time! We walked for it seems like a year, all around Central Park and hitting such great attractions such as the Rockefeller Center, Madame Toussad's Wax Museum, and others. I'm exhausted... tomorrow we're hitting the Yankee's game and hopefully a Broadway show. I'll post some pictures when I get around to it. :)

Any other suggestions for New York sightseeing?

<3

Prayer Request!

2008-08-05T10:56:00.000-04:00

I have a HUGE prayer request for everyone!!

Yesterday, Gabby sent me a link for auditions being hosted for the CW network's new South Florida Morning Talk Show. They're hosting open auditions for talent and even off-camera work.

The auditions are this Saturday, and semifinals are Sunday. Getting any type of opportunity here (even off-camera) would be such a tremendous step for me career-wise. Please keep me in your prayers!

You Know You're A Cuban When...

2008-07-20T23:42:00.000-04:00

I saw this on a website and thought it was epecially true for my crazy family.
Enjoy, both Cuban & non-Cuban friends! :)

- You grew up scared of Bichos and una nalgada
- If you know the meaning of "esa chica esta de madre"
- If others tell you to stop screaming when you are really talking.
- You have told your kid not to walk the floor barefoot or they'll catch a cold.
- If you light a candle on the night of the Lotto drawing.
- If dinner usually consist of rice, beans and some kind of meat.
- If you have ever used your nose or lips to point something out.
- If you ever drop food on the floor, picked it up, ate it after saying "lo que no mata engorda."
- If you constantly refer to cereal as con flei.
- If you've ever gotten yelled at by your abuelos for spending mad money and then gotten a "Cuando llegamos de Cuba..."
- If you have ever been hit with a chancleta or papi's cinturon
- If you know your mom is near because you hear an "OYE!"
- You know your mom is sneaking up on you cause you can hear her "chancletas" flapping on the linoleum floor.
- If you can get to your house blind folded because of the smell of chuletas is so strong.
- If your grandparents still have plastic on their couches.
- If you just can't imagine anyone not liking Cuban food.
- If you have at least thirty cousins que todavia viven en Havana or its sister town, Hialeah
- If you consider platanos to be a food group.
- If you live in Elisebe (Elizabeth), Junion Ceety, (Union City) or Wes Nu Jor (west NY) or even know where they are
-If your abuelos are constantly comparing things here to things in Cuba and affirming Cuba was better.
- If your family reunions consist of all types of food, dominoes, political talk, music and lots of people and screaming.

I ♥ New York

2008-07-07T13:38:00.000-04:00

This weekend, Gabby and I booked our flight to fabulous New York City.

I couldn't be more excited! On our itinerary so far:

-Catching some Yankees baseball at Yankee stadium (This is the main reason we're going- Gabby wanted to see Yankee stadium before they tear it down at the end of the year).

-(Hopefully) catching a Broadway show, bank accounts willing. We're trying to decide between Spamalot, The Lion King and Wicked.

-A trip to the Big Apple wouldn't be complete without some bargain shopping in Chinatown! I found this cute little blog that gives bargaining tips.

New York is, by far, my favorite city. I love the fact that you can walk just about anywhere in the city- the accessibility is a refreshing change from all the Miami craziness.

Also, this will be my first time in New York in the summer! The last time we went, it was the dead of winter (early January, to be exact). I'm sure it will be a completely different city this time around, and I can't wait! :)

Happy Birthday, Paula!

2008-06-12T12:57:00.001-04:00

I thank God for blessing me with a friend like you! :)
And I dedicated an entire blog to yoU! Feel special!!
;)

<33

Changes..

2008-05-27T00:00:00.000-04:00

I've become fed up with saying I'm going to go on a diet and not doing it... So I'm making it official.

I'm going on a diet! :)

I'm praying for willpower, something of which I (greatly)lack. Please pray for me too!! I haven't really decided on a specific program... for now, I'm just going to try to stick with eating more salads and proteins, and cutting back on bread and pasta and the like... and I'll definetly be writing everything down. That always helps. Maybe I should create a special blog to vent about the frustrations that come with eating right (i.e, not eating when I'm angry or bored!)? lol

I've been telling myself that I would start eating right for months now, but I always end up telling myself that I'll do it "tomorrow". That inevitable tomorrow that never seems to come!!!
But I saw some recent pictures of myself, and I've been noticing a change in my self esteem and general body image... and I decided it's time for a change. My goal is to lose 20 lbs. by my birthday (September 18th), which, I think, is a pretty sensible goal... I can do 20 lbs. in 4 months! :)

The only obstacle I see in my way is the issue of exercise. It's the most important aspect in weight loss, but unfortunately, I'm not registered for any summer classes at FIU, so I won't be able to use the gym there until the fall semester. I don't want to spend money on a gym; times are tough!! Have you looked at gas prices?? I'd much rather spend $40 a month on my gas than $40 on a gym.

So, if anyone is interested in joining me for a daily jog or workout session, I'm available ;)
I get out of work at 6:30, so holler if you need a workout buddy! :)

Forgiveness

2008-05-19T14:09:00.000-04:00

I've been thinking a lot about forgiveness... when to forgive, who to forgive.

I came across this devotional, which is e-mailed to me daily by Rick Warren (The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotional.. check it out!)Here's a little excerpt:

We have to forgive the people who’ve hurt us, and it has nothing to do with whether or not that person deserves forgiveness. They don’t deserve forgiveness, but then, we don’t deserve it either.

we should forgive knowing we will need God’s forgiveness sometime in the future. Jesus said, “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15 NIV).

Carrying a grudge just keeps us stuck in the past, and when we’re stuck in the past, we’re controlled by the past. Our unforgiveness can control us. The Bible says, “Surely resentment destroys the fool, and jealousy kills the simple” (Job 5:2 NLT).
The Bible also says that only the foolish harbor a grudge (Ecclesiastes 7:9). Accept forgiveness from God and give forgiveness to others.

Forgiveness is a powerful thing, but it's not always the easiest thing to do.
I wonder sometimes if we, as Christians, are obligated to forgive those who have done wrong by us. I wonder if turning the other cheek is always the best policy, or if fighting back will solve any of the problems we had in the first place.....

What do you think?

The Wedding of the Year!!

2008-05-17T12:21:00.000-04:00

Last night was the night!!!
Gabby's oldest brother, Luisi, got married!

It was a beautiful ceremony held at St. Kevin's Catholic Church.
Everything went perfectly... the only thing missing was Janet's mom. But I know that she was there in spirit. :)

Of course, I cried. I love weddings. I'm a sucker for all things romantic. But knowing the bride and groom so well made it even MORE romantic, and a little surreal. To think that this is just the beginning of their life together! It's such a beautiful thing.

I'm so happy for them both! It's so amazing to see life in action. To think that these two have known each other their whole lives, fell in love, and are off to create their own family is so amazing. God is truly at work, and I pray that He blesses their life together in the years to come.

In the meanwhile, here are some pictures of the night :)

2008-05-15T14:23:00.000-04:00

Small group will be held at my house this week! Yay!
We'll be discussing and dissecting the book of Job, and how the lessons from this book pertain to our every day lives.

Should be interesting!!
Please come!
(BYOF- Bring Your Own Food!!) :)
E-mail me for the address & information ;)

What a Weekend!

2008-05-12T17:43:00.000-04:00

This weekend was definetly eventful. My (future) sister in law, Janet, had her much-anticipated bachelorette party at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. What a BLAST!!

The hotel was beautiful, and we had such a great girl bonding time by the pool the next day. Of course, I can't elaborate on the details... you just had to be there ;)

In all seriousness, though, I was so happy that Janet was happy that night and that she had an amazing time. And I was even MORE happy that she's marrying Gabby's brother!!!
I remember meeting her wayyy before they began dating... and it's really cool to see their relationship blossom in such a beautiful way. I can't believe the wedding is almost here! It's this Friday.. such a big day in Gabby's family's life, but I know that it will only bring good things. A happy marriage, babies (my future neices & nephews, I might add!)... I couldn't be happier for them. :)

After the party, of course, was Mother's Day. I felt pretty bad, since I had been putting off buying my mom's gift until I got paid (on Friday, the day I left for the bachelorette party..go figure). I never actually got around to it, so I woke up early on Sunday morning and told her that I needed to go to Publix to get some "feminine care products".. wink wink.

Anyway, I went off to Publix and picked up some stuff she needed for the brunch that she was preparing for some family members who were to stop by later. I wasn't sure she would like it, but she absoloutley loved her gift!

My cousins and aunt came over for brunch, as well as my uncle. Mom made a delicious egg casserole thing.. It sounds nasty, but believe me, it was amazing. Afterwards, we went to visit my grandmother. I was so happy to see her in such a good mood! She had trouble pinning the names on me and my cousins, but sitting there looking at her grandchildren talking and laughing together, she said (in Spanish), "I'm so happy that you are all here!" It pretty much made my day. I know she might not know what's going on all the time, but she still had a wonderful time with us. And we were just as happy to see her up and about. :)

All in all, it was a terrific weekend! (Pictures from Mother's Day to come) ;)

ahh, work distractions...

2008-05-06T16:09:00.001-04:00

It's true, some of Hillary's Top Ten Reasons why she Loves America had me chuckling.

But I think that Barack's was way funnier!

Hello Lover!

2008-05-06T15:25:00.000-04:00

I am beyond excited for the upcoming Sex & The City movie!

The hype has been building now that there is less than a MONTH before the movie comes out... and I am in desperate need to catch up on my DVD collection! (If anyone has Seasons 3 and 6, holler! I need to catch up!!)
So I want to plan a special outing in honor of this fan-tastical film! Holler if you are interested!! ;D

(Girls-only, of course... unless you're crazy enough to drag your significant other along) ;)

Acceptance

2008-04-29T22:54:00.000-04:00

Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men? For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not mere men?
What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
-- 1 Corinthians 3:1-15

I love when you come across these amazing passages without even really trying. :)

People shouldn't be defined by their denominations... They should be defined by their actions and their professed faith in Jesus Christ. I wonder sometimes why it is that Protestants will be so judgmental towards Catholics.. who believe the exact same thing as we do! It's hard sometimes to get past the traditions and all the man-made things that make religion simply religion, rather than a real relationship with Christ. I find it hard to believe why we can be so callous and rude to Catholics, but so warm and loving to others who do not share our spiritual beliefs.If we can get past the small details of what makes us "different", it would be that much easier to truly accept our differences and become a better and stronger Church...as a whole. Our faith would be stronger and we would be united for one general cause... Jesus Christ.

Isn't that the goal anyway?

:)

the sweet smell of success!

2008-04-24T16:43:00.001-04:00

I'm DONE :)

...with this semester, at least. Yay!

I actually finished on Monday, but I've been busy working. I'm hoping I did good on my math exam, I did the best that I could and I guess that's all I could really ask for... :/

As for history, well, I didn't even have to take the test!
True story!

On Monday there was a "bomb threat" in the Graham Center (I know, surprise... bomb threat on finals week). My exam was scheduled for 6:30pm, and they let everyone into the building again at 6:15. How convenient! So my teacher was about 15 minutes late, and she came in looking upset. She said that, due to the bomb threat, Duplicating Services was unable to finsh making copies of her exam, so we had the following three choices:

1) Not take the exam, but stay with our current class average
2) Retake the exam at a later rescheduled date and time
3) Complete a take-home exam, which would be significantly harder than the original final

She gave us back out final papers, with the grade for the paper and the grade in the class on the front. I was pleased... 94.3, A in the class. :)

Needless to say, I chose not to take the final. :)

So I'm anxiously awaiting my final grades report!!! eeeek!! I know I most likely got A's and B's, but I want to make it official!!!! :D

I should also mention that one of the reasons for my wonderful grades this semester... my mom told me that if I got all A's and B's this semester, she would buy me a laptop. And I was NOT about to let that opportunity slip by. ;)

So I'm looking at a Dell... I know, I know, it's a blah PC. But unless someone can convince my mother to buy me a MacBook, it looks like that's what I'll get.

I've already groveled. Any other ideas? ;)

decisions, decisions...

2008-04-15T00:05:00.000-04:00

So this weekend started out great!

I have officially been accepted to the Certificate Program for Event & Meeting Planning at FIU! Yay me! :) I'm so excited for fall already, I want to start the Event Planning class! Well, I really shouldn't get too ahead of myself... I still have to finish this semester off well. And I'm happy to say, it seems to be turning out pretty well after all. I've worked hard and I have A's and B's in almost every class.. my only "if" is that elusive math class that I just can't seem to get down. But hey. As long as I get my GPA up to a 3.0, I'm not complaining.

Yesterday was Kristel's bridal shower! It was beautiful. The perfect day. The location was adorable, it was small and quaint, but just right for the occasion. Kristel looked lovely, as usual, and I was just really excited for her. This is a huge step in her and Alex's lives and I wish them nothing but the best. :)

Anyway, I've been getting ideas for summer jobs... I love my new position at the FIU Testing Center, but I'm pretty nervous that with all the budget cuts facing FIU, I might get a pay cut or not be able to work 40 hours during the summer (which I need to do). So I'm looking for something in an event planning company.. maybe an internship? Anything that will get me experience! I don't want to get this Certificate for nothing. I was thinking of e-mailing some local party planning places to see if they're hiring, but part of me says its pompous of me... what do you think?

:)

Human Tetris

2008-04-10T19:50:00.001-04:00

Just in case anyone needs a good laugh. ;)

It's a sign...

2008-04-08T14:35:00.000-04:00

Share with God's people who are in need.
Practice hospitality.
--Romans 12:13

Well, that answers that question.

2008-03-23T18:57:00.000-04:00

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
--Matthew 28:5-6

I love the Easter season!

No matter how far I feel from God, Easter is always the perfect time to come back to Him & rededicate my life to Him. Reflecting on such a huge sacrifice always humbles me, and reminds me who is really in control. I am always reminded that, no matter how fast life moves sometimes, God will always be there. No matter how much I may stray from His word, I remember what He did for me, and for all of the world. He loves us unconditionally and gave His life for His flock. His resurrection brings the hope of tomorrow, and the forgiveness of sin for all mankind. What greater gift could we receive than the gift of an eternity with the Lord?

Happy Easter to you and your families. May you all be blessed! :)

The Last Lecture

2008-03-20T11:55:00.000-04:00

Take a look, and tell me what you think! :)
<3

Why does God Allow Cancer?

2008-03-05T15:34:00.000-05:00

I asked this question two days ago.. and I think this is a great explanation.
Sorry it's such a long one, but I felt it was important.

----

My fears mounted as each day passed with yet another set of tests declaring that the cancer is still present. Relatives I hadn't seen for years began parading into my hospital room. They're expressions reflected concern mixed with deathbed goodbyes.

The whole time this was happening to me I just kept thinking, why me? Why did God allow cancer to hold me for ransom? What am I suppose to be learning from all of this pain I am suffering from this disease?

Have you ever felt like your life was perfect one moment and then all of sudden everything changed. You thought your existence couldn't get any better and suddenly something terrible happened. A pain began very small and grew until your whole body cried out in torment.

Running to the doctor, your worse fear was revealed, the big C had cast a web over your life. Cancer had metastasized and the doctor's only plan of attack was immediate surgery followed by months of chemotherapy.

As each day passed and weeks turned into months your once healthy body now was scarred from numerous surgeries. You were swollen and your skin color no longer radiated with its once perfect tropical tan. You look back at how your life use to be and you're astonished at how quickly everything can change.

As you drift in and out of consciousness from your numerous chemo treatments, your mind begins a quest of understanding why me? You were living a good life with a great job. You had a family and sometimes you even went to church. Why do I have cancer? I never harmed or took advantage of anyone! Why am I being punished? Why is God doing this to me? I am a good person!

Romans 8: 28-30, "We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose. Those whom God had already chosen he also set apart to become like his Son, so that the Son would be the first among many brothers. And so those whom God set apart, he called; and those he called, he put right with himself, and he shared his glory with them."

Literally thousands of people are diagnosed with cancer every year. They all go through multiple stages of grief that begin with why me? Those with faith, question God's purpose for making them endure the big C. Others, who have never established faith, begin looking for answers from those who are Christians.

First of all, God did not create cancer! He did not single you out to punish you because of sin in your life. God loves people! Cancer is a result of people falling prey to an evil world.
Look at our present day world! There are injustices everywhere. Sickness and death are wide spread. War and famine are a common reported issue on the world wide news. Nothing about our world is perfect. In order to understand why cancer has grabbed you unaware and held you captive to its torments, you must understand our world. The only way to understand this world is to allow what cannot be seen into your life.

Believing in God is a must in order to survive an imperfect world. You must have faith in what you cannot see in order to understand your present life situation. In the beginning God created a perfect world. But when Satan tempted Adam and Eve with the ability to understand; everything changed!

In order to determine the difference between right and wrong you must be given examples. All sicknesses are evil. All wars are fought not for freedom and justice but for greed and power. Most murders are committed from rage. In order to make just decisions and gain wisdom we must have small to extreme examples for our own judgments of what is right and what is wrong.

We live in a corrupt, evil world that is governed by Satan. An unseen world of spirits come in and influence our thinking. A spiritual world that challenges our belief systems through the experiences we go through in our lives for either good or bad.

While Satan is the great deceiver and the corrupter of the world, God has provided the Holy Spirit to come in and help us when we face uncertain times. This is the reason we must have God in our lives. God takes the pain of cancer and helps us to live moment by moment. He makes us an example of what God can do when we allow Him to work in our present situation.

Sometimes it is God's choice for us to be healed and sometimes it is His will for us to die for Him. All things work together for good when God is in control. But when we believe only in this corrupt world then we only have doctors to pull us through our illnesses.

Having God gives us strength and perseverance, while following the world leads us down paths of blame and hate. Think about the life of Jesus. He did nothing but good for people. He healed the sick and cast out demon spirits who tormented the thoughts of people. Yet no matter how much good He did in His life He was still crucified.

In order to become like Jesus we must understand that suffering is a part of this world. Satan wants to destroy people and to get them to let go of their faith in God. God wants us to surrender our lives to Him and trust that no matter what happens He will be there for us.

Romans 8: 31-33 "In view of all this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us? Certainly not God, who did not even keep back his own Son, but offered him for us all! He gave us his Son-will he not also freely give us all things? Who will accuse God's chosen people? God himself declares them not guilty!"

I cringe every time I watch a television program that deals with cancer or death and the first thing that comes out of the mouths of the actors or actresses are why did God do this? God is not evil. God loves people so much that He showed us through the sacrificial death of Jesus what it will take to fight for understanding in this world. In order to understand good; we must have the example of evil.

Jesus came so we would have the Holy Spirit in our lives. A good Spirit that tells us the truth about our present situation. A Holy Spirit that is our guide so that in everything we go through we might gain understanding through our ability to believe that God can and will help us no matter what cancer might do to destroy our lives.

To have faith in God is to equip us with the ability to fight against cancer. God is our strength. Prayer is our ability to communicate to God freely without hesitation. The Holy Spirit gives us the supernatural power to bring cancer to its knees. The Bible gives us hope and directs us to have faith that God will never let us down or abandon us when it seems that we have lost our health forever.

Why does God allow cancer? God hates cancer! Cancer is the result of Satan's power to hurt people in the world. God is ready and able to help us fight. Even if the fight leads us to death, God promises us that He will reward us in Heaven for the pain we have endured. We are His Christian soldiers. Soldiers who fight against Satan and this evil world.

God takes the evil of cancer and He shows how our determination through everything we suffer is an example to others what God can do in our lives even when the prognoses is bad. God changes the lives of our friends and family when they see that we will not let go of our faith no matter what happens to us.

God takes what Satan did to us and shouts to the world that we did nothing wrong. We did not sin and we are not guilty! He takes the evil of cancer and makes us an example to others of what you can do when you have faith in God.

Romans 8: 34-39, "Who, then, will condemn them? Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right side of God, pleading with him for us! Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death? As the scripture says, 'For your sake we are in danger of death at all times; we are treated like sheep that are going to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us! For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, neither the world above nor the world below-there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord."

We live in a world where we will learn the difference between right and wrong. Cancer is evil. God is good. With God's help we can bring cancer to it's knees and show Satan that even if it means death we will not let go of our faith in God! Sometimes, death is the only way to avoid Satan's wrath. Regardless, God has nothing but love for us, and when we go to Him, He is not going to stand there with His arms folded. He will open up His arms and embrace the child that has come to Him.

God bless everyone here.

In memory of Elsa "Tita" Villar
January 31, 1962 - March 3, 2008

Tita...

2008-03-03T09:39:00.000-05:00

I have a hard time figuring out why God does what He does sometimes.

Gabriel's brother's godmother (got it?) passed away this morning. She had been battling cervical cancer for a good while. I think the hardest thing about her loss is the fact that her daughter is getting married in two months- to said godson. How often does somebody get to say that their daughter married their godson? That's just an amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But I know that she'll be there that day... just in a different form.

I know she's in a better place, and I know that she is better off, but I can't help but remember her and her bubbly and spunky personality.

I wish everyone would meet someone as special as her in their lifetime. She was so full of life. She was always happy and always having fun. New Year's parties were legendary at her house, and that house was always full of laughs, good times and an enormous family.

I spent the entire day at the hospital with Gabriel's family and her family. And to tell you the truth, there's nowhere else I would have rather been. There were people literally packed in her room, spilling out into the hallway. She touched those lives and so many others in her 46 years. I was honored to have known her.

Today has been just surreal. I would have never imagined two years ago when we went to New York that a little more than two years later, she would be gone. I keep on thinking that this is all just a dream. But I remember every detail of it. I remember the first time Gabriel told me that she might have found a cyst, and thinking that she would overcome it. I can't believe this is happening....I don't know why God takes such good people from us, or why He would let such a young person suffer as much as she did. I have been asking Him that question all day long. But I know that, even though it looks bleak right now, God has a plan. And this just happens to be a part of a bigger picture. I have to remind myself of that. Something good will come out of this.

In the meanwhile, please pray for Elsa Villar and her family. And get yourself checked. Early detection really does save lives.

Get informed about cancer research & prevention.
Susan G. Komen Foundation
Liga Contra el Cancer/ League Against Cancer
American Cancer Society
National Cervical Cancer Coalition

Alexandra and the terrible, no good, very bad day.

2008-02-28T18:27:00.000-05:00

Yep. Today was a bad day.

I got laid off. :(
My last day of work is March 13th, so if anyone knows of a good part time position, let me know :)
My availability is Tues/Thurs all day, Fridays after 5, maybe saturday if its necessary :/

Please let me know if you know of something, and keep me in your prayers! :)

Moving at the speed of life.

2008-02-26T10:55:00.000-05:00

I have been SO stressed these past couple of weeks! Ok, maybe not stressed.. just really really busy.

A normal week for me usually consists of school, work, essays, exams, small group, dinner at the in-laws, weight watchers (yes, and its working lol), gym time, and maybe a little study time in between. And let's not begin to talk about weekends! All the time I couldn't fit into the week, I try to make up for on the weekend. This is just not possible.

I'm always going somewhere, I'm always busy, and I think my grades are going to suffer because of it. Granted, being busy is a good thing. But the most important thing to me right now is my grades and my school. I HAVE to get at least a 3.0 this semester to be admitted to the School of Journalism. Most of my grades are good; I got an A- on my first exam for Media & Society, a double A+ on my first paper for American History (totally pulled that one out of my butt), and I have a pretty good feeling that I did good on the second paper as well. I've been getting mediocre grades in my Fundamentals in Management for Hospitality class, but I have a few extra credit points that I think I will benefit from. The worst class for me this semester is Social Choice Math.. It's not necessarily a hard math, like stats or calculus, but it's just very meticulous. The professor speaks at a rate of one word a minute (don't believe me? sit in my class!) and, to be honest, I didn't really study for the first two exams. So, pretty much, I have to get an 80 or above on every one of my next exams (including the final!) to get at least a C+. :(

So I have to start focusing more on my school work and less on my social life. My mom always tells me that I can't be everywhere at once, and that is very true. I have to start learning to say no, as much as I may want to join along. Hopefully, by cutting some things out of my week, I'll be able to focus better in the important things and get to where I want to be.
I have the whole summer to hang out. ;)

"Call us Essential. Call us the College." Campaign

2008-02-20T09:32:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago I had a job interview at Chispa Marketing, a Marketing/ PR firm on Sunset & 98th. Anywho, they are in charge of PR at Miami-Dade College (and at FIU... those "I am a _____ and I am also an Entrepeneur"... yep. that's them). Needless to say, I didn't get the job (bummer), but the Luly, the president of the company, really liked me and gave me a sort of "side-bar" job. The campaign they are running for Miami-Dade is used in the daily newspaper, using alumni. The ad has a picture of the alumnus, their name, year of graduation and their current job. My job is to find these lovely people! All I do is give you a form to fill out, take your picture and send it in. It's all free to you.

So if you or someone you know is currently attending, or has gone to Miami-Dade (minimum 30 credits please), and would be interested in this opportunity, please e-mail me at alexita214@gmail.com. I'll try to get a copy of the flyer on this thing so you can check it out. Thanks!!! :)
<3

i hate (radical) feminism.

2008-02-18T15:30:00.000-05:00

I don't hate many things. I don't think I hate anything, really. I'm really a very loving person. But there's one thing that really pushes my buttons, and that is the idea that women can just do whatever they want in society with no objections from society.

Don't get me wrong. I'm all for women's rights and women's equality and all that good stuff. I do believe that women were created to complement men. To help them. To assist them. To be their equal and their companion. Women have the right to make their own decisions and do what they want. But when women begin to want more power than men, and when women want to throw away their femininity because they think that it's somehow "offensive", then I think we really have a problem.

We had a discussion in my Media & Society class today about the objectivity of women in media. There were two videos, one of which discussed how Disney affects young girls' ideas of femininity by portraying all their female protagonists as curvy, eyelash-batting seductresses at one point or another in their movies. This one psychologist (who, I think, needs a psychologist herself) was saying how "Beauty & The Beast" in particular promotes the idea of a strong woman being verbally and physically abused, and how it's portrayed as 'acceptable' for her to go back to someone like this. She also cited the scene in which Lumiere (the candlestick) is getting frisky with the maid (the feather duster chick) behind the curtains, saying that it showed that men could have their way with you even if you say no. She also mentioned how, even though some heroines seemed really strong, they were never really able to save themselves. They always had to have a man save them. Call me crazy, but I must have watched "Beauty & the Beast" about a million and one times when I was a kid. And never once did I ever think that this was the subliminal message. I'm 20, and I turned out just fine, thank you very much.

So anyway, crazy shrinks aside, there was a soccer mom that they interviewed for the video. And she mentioned how she thinks that that kind of portrayal by women was unfair... So this chick in the back of class goes, "Well I think that's kind of hypocritical. I mean, She's saying how she doesn't want her kids exposed to that negative portrayal of women, but she chooses to stay home and leave her career to stay at home. What kind of example is she setting for her children?"

I almost had a heart attack. Thankfully, class ended. But I thought about it.. What makes you think that staying at home to raise your children is a negative thing??? How is it possible that a corporate businesswoman is stronger than a stay-at-home mom? I don't know about you, but personally, mothers are the strongest people on the planet. To be able to create life, give birth to it, and raise it is not for the weak of heart. It takes a certain kind of woman to be a mother. And if you choose to place your career goals over the lives of your children and your overall family, well I think that speaks volumes about you as a person. Not that I'm judging. If that's your choice, then hey, go for it. But for her to imply that mothers are 'weak' women really struck a nerve with me. This is the feminism I'm talking about. The feminism that places everything else above your family. The feminism that demeans men and sees them as lower life forms. The feminism that completely eradicates femininity from their idea of a woman.

A woman should be celebrated, no doubt. If she wants to wear makeup, she shouldnt be ridiculed for it. If she wants to flaunt herself, hey that's her choice. But I refuse to accept the notion that little girls can't watch a Disney movie without thinking that Belle should save herself. That completely ruins the idea of chivalry, of romance and of fairy tales. If people took this element out of Disney movies, what will a little girl have to look forward to? A crappy excuse for a love life? I mean, this is all just ridiculous!

What do you think?

c-a-n......

2008-02-15T21:21:00.000-05:00

So yesterday was me & Gabby's 4th anniversary! Yay us! :)

He told me he had an exciting day planned for me... and it was interesting!!! :) He woke me up at like 7am (which i was not fond of) and told me to go to my door, because he left something there. I went to the door and it was a card. Inside the card was a poem, and basically the card told me that throughout the day I would be receiving these little poems, and they were all clues as to what the "big gift" was. Each poem would have a certain letter that would stand out. There were 5 letters in my gift, and the letters were for me to decode the gift (Are you still with me? lol). The letters would not be in order.

The first letter was A.

"Ok," I thought... maybe "M-A-R-R-Y"? (Note: This was not the case.:/) When I got to work at 9am, I found another letter on my desk: The letter in this one was O.

How irritating!!! I couldnt figure it out!!! lol

Later on in the day, I got an email from Gabby, and it turns out it was another clue!!! This time it was two N's. To be honest, I really stopped trying to figure it out. I'm no good at brain teasers, as I suffer from a strong form of ADD. ;)

Finally, the moment of truth! He got to my house to pick me up for our fabulous dinner at Shibui, and asked me if I had been able to solve the puzzle. I told him I hadn't, and he said, "OK. Last clue. What do Hillary Clinton, (and two other people with "C" names that I cannot recall at the moment) have in common?"

"C! THE LAST LETTER IS C!!! "

"C-A-N-O-N......."

:)

i finally got the camera i wanted!!!! :D
i was so happy. Finally he opened his gift and he loved it as well. :)
And off we went to dinner to celebrate four wonderful years of relationship bliss!!! :D

The End! ;)
<333

The Problem with Che.

2008-02-14T14:44:00.000-05:00

..

Umm... there's something very wrong with this picture.

A Cuban flag (with Che Guevara smearing it) is draped in an office of Barack Obama supporters.

I love Obama. He's the only candidate I support in this race so far besides Ron Paul. But this is more than a little disturbing, both as a Cuban and as an American voter. I don't think glorifying a mass murderer in your campaign office is going to help you get elected. Granted, these women are reported as being just 'volunteers'; Obama's camp has denied that they are part of an official campaign office. But even so- just associating Che Guevara with Barack Obama makes me queasy to say the least.

Read the story on this blog, and see the video in its true context here, and let me know what you think.
I've been looking for this story on some of the major news outlets, but this is not being reported. :(

Interesting. :)

2008-02-13T23:41:00.000-05:00

Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."
- 1 Corinthians 15:33

:)

My To-Do List

2008-02-11T21:45:00.000-05:00

Theres a lot of talk going on lately about risk taking. So I got to thinking about some goals I have for the future. I have taken huge leaps of faith in the past, and they have all turned out to be things I was grateful for in the end. God really does provide, and He is extremely good, if you take Him as your partner and trust in Him to lead you in the right direction. He knows your heart, and He knows your needs, and He will tend to them in His time. You just have to be patient.

So here's my "to do list", if you will.. A list of things I want to do in life. Granted, some are vague, but give me some credit. :)

1) Graduate with honors
2) Get married & start a family
3) Do a study abroad program
4) Fill up my passport :)
5) Get all A's and B's in school
6) Figure out what to do with my life, and be successful at it.
7) Go on a missions trip.
8) Visit every country on earth.
9) Read a good book every month
10) Perfect my spanish skills, and become fluent in another language (french perhaps?)

The one thing I see in common with these things is that, for most of them, I'd have to put my faith in God and listen to what He has to tell me.

And I'm all ears. :)

Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.
(Isaiah 55:22)

The best month of the year!!

2008-02-04T11:48:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited! :)

On Valentine's Day, Gabriel and I are celebrating our 4th anniversary! :D

Yep.. it's been a loooong road to get to where we are today. We're happier than we've ever been, and it has a lot to do with the fact that our relationships with God have grown and matured a great deal. I'm so happy, and watching his brother get married is a great experience, cuz I'll get ideas for my big day! (which will hopefully happen sometime in the near future...........right honey?) ;)

In celebration of our big day, we decided that we'll go to the Rusty Pelican (at last, after a year of begging!!!) on the 8th, which is this Saturday. We figured the restaurant is pretty much already filled for V-Day.. so instead, we'll just go somewhere close by (and relatively cheap) on the day of our anniversary. Maybe something down US-1, so its not such a far drive.. we were going to go with Samurai, but they don't accept reservations, and I'm pretty sure that day it's going to be packed.

Soooo... any suggestions?
Thanks guys! Your opinions are greatly appreciated!!!!
:D

Who Should You Vote For?

2008-01-30T23:59:00.001-05:00

Who You Should Vote For

John McCain: 60%
Ron Paul: 53%
Mike Huckabee: 47%
Barack Obama: 40%
Hillary Clinton: 33%
Mitt Romney: 33%

Who you agree with on the war in Iraq: Ron Paul

Who you agree with on the economy: Barack Obama

Who you agree with on health care: Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Ron Paul and Mitt Romney

Who you agree with on taxes: Mike Huckabee

Who you agree with on abortion: Mike Huckabee, John McCain, and Mitt Romney

Who you agree with on gay rights: Ron Paul and John McCain

Who Should You Vote For?

thanks to merari for posting this! :)
very interestinggg ;)

Tolerance in Politics

2008-01-29T11:14:00.000-05:00

As many of you may know, I'm voting for Ron Paul in the upcoming elections. I just think it's sad that it has gotten to the point that people don't really care about politics anymore. Everytime you tell people who you're voting for, they scoff and make a face... "He's never going to win!", they tell me. Well maybe so, but I thought I had the right to vote for whoever I wanted?

Someone asked me the other day in the car about Ron Paul. Who is he, what does he stand for, etc. I told her, and I told her his policies and how he has voted no on everything he disagrees with, and how he has never taken a stipend from taxpayers as so many other congressmen do. Later on that night, she mentioned that she had asked about him, but I went off on her about him and started campaigning for him. I was a little annoyed, I'm not going to lie. You ask me a question about a candidate, and what do you expect my response to be? It's so aggravating.

Even more so, major "media" outlets don't even mention Paul in any of their coverage of the primaries (even thought he came in second in Nevada. Let's not forget that). How can the American public make an informed decision if they are only being fed Huckabee/McCain/Romney/the occasional RUDY/Clinton/Obama??? The only way to get Ron Paul's message out would be to post blogs like this, or bulletins on myspace. But even then, people get annoyed and tell you to stop posting political bulletins. "You should run for president with all the political stuff you're posting". How else do I spread my candidate's message???

It's so frustrating, because if you say you're voting for Obama (I love the guy), nobody says anything to you.. but Ron Paul??? He's an isolationist! (He's not.) He's a radically liberal conservative (He is DEFINETLY not.) He's racist (He is not.)

Why doesn't anybody focus on the positives? He has fundraised the most of all the candidates; He has the strongest grassroots effort of all candidates; His poll numbers, while not necessarily #1 in all the states, have been respectable; He wants to restore American civil liberties that were ripped from us with the signing of the "Patriot" Act.

Sorry for the rant. It's just really annoying when people are always trying to prove you wrong, or make you think you're stupid. It reminds me of a lot of people who try to tell me that creationism is flawed; that there is no scientific proof that Jesus Christ existed. I can't tell them what to believe, but I know what I believe and I stand by it.

It's the same for politics. I can't tell you who to vote for, but please don't try to convince me that my candidate is flawed. And if I perhaps write something that is not in line with your beliefs, just don't respond. It's that simple.

An Objective look on Ron Paul

2008-01-22T11:01:00.000-05:00

As the Florida primaries draw nearer, Rep. Ron Paul remains one of the most enigmatic figures of the upcoming presidential race.

Paul supporters tell the success story of a humble Constitutionalist OB-GYN who has out-fundraised top-tier candidates in a "revolution" set to return the government back to its people.

Skeptics of Paul point out that his policies are not only out of touch with the mainstream but implausible in today's world climate, and even accuse him of being a racist conspiracy theorist.

Ron Paul is not a savior. However, an objective look at his stances will show that he is a sensible politician whose policies can appeal to a majority of voters.

First off, Paul is not a racist. This allegation largely stems from newsletters attributed to Paul's name published over a decade ago which contained negative comments about blacks. Paul has repeatedly stated that he did not write the comments, and when asked by Wolf Blitzer on CNN if he repudiates the newsletter's remarks, he stated that he did not. In fact, the Austin president of the NAACP has decidedly supported Paul on this issue.

During the Jan. 10 GOP debates on Fox News, Paul urged that America use restraint and reason when dealing with Iran, stating that we must not let our guard down against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Meanwhile, Iowa caucus-winner Mike Huckabee warned that if Iran ever "put their sights on an American vessel," the next thing they will see will be the "gates of hell" in response to an isolated incident with an Iranian vessel.

Paul, on the other hand, simply pleaded for restraint and demanded that we not look for reasons to launch a new war.

Mediator Brit Hume proceeded to ignore the warmongering of Paul's opponents and attempted to rip into his answer.

He insisted that Paul's opponents had just advocated a passive response to Iran, when in reality, Fred Thompson had just stated that the offensive Iranians would be "introduced to the virgins they've been looking forward to seeing" if they had taken "one more step."

The desecration of Paul's cautionary stance comes despite the fact that pre-emptive war with Iran is an unpopular idea nationwide, especially since the release of the most recent National Intelligence Estimate, which suggests that the country's nuclear program has been halted.

Paul would have a profound effect on domestic policy.

His plans center on constitutionality and states rights, such as eliminating the federal Department of Education and nullifying federal drug laws, The U.S. would save countless amounts of money and end Washington's inefficient control of these institutions.

Of course, many of Paul's policies would have a difficult time passing through Congress, but it seems that the buzzword for this year's elections is "change."

A Ron Paul nomination would be a mandate from the people for a new course, and would symbolically do more to spur the change of conventional politics in America than the election to office of any candidate who uses "change" as their platform.

let it go

2008-01-18T09:47:00.000-05:00

By T. D. Jakes

There are people who can walk away from you.
And hear me when I tell you this! When people can walk away from you: let them walk.
I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you. I mean hang up the phone. When people can walk away from you let them walk.

Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left. The Bible said that, They came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us. [1 John 2:19]

People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay. Let them go.
And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when people's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead. You've got to know when it's dead.

You've got to know when it's over. Let me tell you something. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift, I believe in good-bye. It's not that I'm hateful, it's that I'm faithful, and I know whatever God means for me to have He'll give it to me.
And if it takes too much sweat I don't need it. Stop begging people to stay. LET THEM GO!!!

If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to ... LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to past hurts and pains ... LET IT GO!!!
If someone can't treat you right, love you back, and see your worth ... LET IT GO!!!
If someone has angered you ... LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge ... LET IT GO!!!
If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction ... LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents ... LET IT GO!!!
If you have a bad attitude ... LET IT GO!!!
If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better ... LET IT GO!!!
If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him ... LET IT GO!!!
If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship ... LET IT GO!!!
If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves ...LET IT GO!!!
If you're feeling depressed and stressed ...LET IT GO!!!
If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling yourself and God is saying "take your hands off of it,"then you need to ...LET IT GO!!!

Let the past be the past. Forget the former things.
GOD is doing a new thing for 2008!!! LET IT GO!!!
Get Right or Get Left think about it, and then ... LET IT GO!!!

helloooo 2008!

2008-01-15T00:18:00.000-05:00

wooo! my first blog of the new year! :)

well to catch everyone up... its been pretty interesting so far. I started school again... the schedule is hectic but I got my journalism bug back! :) I'm so excited.. a friend of mine from high school is working at a small local tv station in Homestead, and he told me that they really need reporters, regardless of experience. I e-mailed the studio manager and he said he would like me to come in for an interview! yay! :D I've been praying about it and I'm continuing to pray that God will show me where to go. :)

Anywho, in other news, I had quite an eventful weekend! On Friday Gabriel's brother Danny celebrated his 24th birthday at Studio A's eighties night. It was sooo fun! I went with Paula, Merari, Jannell & Jenny and we had a blast! :D It was great to hang out with the girls outside of church/small group and have a good time with them. I needed it! On Saturday was Danny's REAL birthday, so Paula came with me to celebrate at their house. I hadn't eaten all day, and only had about 4 hours of sleep the night before, so I felt terrible and had to go home early :( Apparently lack of sleep/food does not go well with my body! lol.

Anyway, I'm so excited cause this Saturday is my appointment with Miss Merari, Noted Fashion Photographer! ;) Me & Gabe are her muses to help her tune her photography skills! As if she needs to tune them at all.. psshh. I have so many cute ideas and I'm just soooo excited to see how the pictures will come out! :)

Here are some pictures from Studio A on Friday night! :)

Lilly & me :)

the birthday boy & me... don't worry he doesnt dress like that every day.

Another year has gone by...

2007-12-31T20:29:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that this is the last blog I shall be writing in 2007!! :)

It's kind of amazing how fast this year has gone by... and how much I have changed and grown in the process. I think at these times, people think about what they have learned this year and what they can expect in the year to come. It's crazy to think that your life can change so much in just 365 days...

God has taught me sooo many things this year. He has taught me who I can really depend on, and He has shown me how great things can be if you just put your faith in Him.

So, here's to a happy, healthy New Year for everyone! May God bless your life this year as he has continued to bless mine!!! :)
<333

2008 Movies!

2007-12-28T17:20:00.000-05:00

Here's a list of movies I am DYING to see in 2008!! :)
woop woop!!!

-Mad Money (Jan. 18)
-Over Her Dead Body (Feb. 1)
-CLOVERFIELD :) (Jan. 18)
-Vantage Point (Feb. 22)
-The Other Boleyn Girl (Feb. 29)
-Horton Hears a Who! (Mar. 14)
-STOP-LOSS (Mar. 28)
-Leatherheads (April 4)
-THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN (May 16)
-Indiana Jones & The Legend of The Crystal Skull (May 22)
-SEX & THE CITY (May 30)
-KUNG FU PANDA (June 6)
-You Don't Mess with The Zohan (June 6)
-The Happening (June 13)
-Wall-E (June 27)
-HANCOCK (July 2)
-THE DARK KNIGHT (July 18)
- SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS 2 (August 8)
-SAW V (October 24)

And that's about it for now... haha

inspiration!

2007-12-28T00:37:00.000-05:00

I love visiting my cousins.

Random, I know. :) But I really do! We (myself, Gabriel, my mom, brother and his girlfriend) went to my cousin's house in Pinecrest for Christmas Day, and I remembered what I want out of my life. They have a good life... ok they're better off than most people. But its a good life!!!! :)

Her two kids are 5 and 7, and they remind me soooo much of my brother and me at that age! Santa was extremely generous this Christmas and brought them a Wii.... and needless to say, the adults were more into it than the kids. ha! ;) It's just really cool to see these kids grow and learn, and it was so weird because her son was telling me about his mom... and I had to remember he was talking about my cousin for a minute! It's so cool to see a family grow in such a beautiful way.

Even better, I think, is seeing a Christian family grow like that. They are there for each other.. my aunt, my cousins, the kids- they're all there for each other, whenever they need it. My cousin is still very much in love with her husband, who she's been with for about 15 years now... that was so inspiring! :) I started thinking of my future with Gabriel, and knowing that we would still be as in love as we are now, 15 years down the road. And we'd have the kids and the big family and everything to make it better! :)

Ahhh.. refreshing and inspiring!

In other news... I watched "P.S. I Love You" today.
Oh. My. Goodness.
What a SAD movie!!!!!

If you are depressed, I strongly recommend you go see this! Especially if you want to kill yourself!!!
Ok. Not if you're suicidal. That's not cool. But its pretty much THAT depressing. :(
Don't get me wrong.. it was romantic.. but I don't know how I would possibly deal with a loss like that!!! And writing letters to me from the grave?!?! I'll pass, thanks.
It just makes you grateful for all that you have in your life at this moment. And I am one of the most grateful of them all... I have the things I need, the best friends I could possibly ask for, a boyfriend who loves me, and best of all, a God who provides! :)

What could top that?
:)

and now, the wait..

2007-12-17T15:44:00.000-05:00

I'm so anxious to find out my grades for this semester!!

I have a 2.6 cumulative GPA so far... I just need a 3.0 to be considered for UF!! I'm so nervous... I think since today is commencement at FIU, I'm imagining myself at commencement at UF :D
The future is scary.. especially when you don't know what's in store for you! I'm like checking out housing info and student involvement.. even sororities lol! I think I worked as hard as I could this semester, and the one thing that got me through finals was UF. I had that in my mind pushing me forward, reminding me exactly WHY i need that B in math! I really gave it my all this semester. Even through everything that was going on in my life, I knew that school came first, because if not, I wasn't going to UF.

And that, of course, is not an option.

I'm so determined to make it there... just to show everyone (and, most importantly, myself) that I could do it. I felt comfortable with my exams but you never know... I'm thinking positive thoughts and I'm envisioning myself at that commencement 2 years from now... :)

Pray for me through this week and next, people! The moment of truth is upon me! :)
<3333

it is DONE!

2007-12-14T23:43:00.000-05:00

I've never felt this relieved!!!

I feel really proud of myself... I told myself when this semester began that I would do my best, and I really think I did. I was incredibly stressed this semester, there was definetly a lot more to do. But I stuck to my guns and I didn't go out on some Friday nights, as much as I wanted to. :)

Life is good!!! I have 3 weeks to myself with no homework looming overhead!!! :D
yayyyy ♥

Friendships.

2007-12-12T18:35:00.000-05:00

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately.

In between all the craziness of finals week, I just can't seem to get some things out of my head. I recently had a falling out with one of my (now ex) best friends. The falling out itself isn't the problem; the problem is that she drug my very best friend down with her. We hardly talk anymore, and lately I've been the one that has done all the calling, all the texting to see how she was doing. I guess I'm just bummed because I know how she is (or used to be, for that matter), and I know that this is not her. Or maybe it was her all along? :/

I just feel really bad for her more than anything else. As much as I love her, I don't think things will be quite the same anymore. She's obviously made it clear who's friendship she treasures more... and what a pathetic excuse for a friendship! (sorry, I slipped... :x) Every time I envision my future- getting engaged, getting married and starting a family- I think of her, for some reason. I think of all we told each other we'd do (be the maid of honor, godmomma, etc.), and then I think about how there's a good chance she probably won't be a part of these milestones.

You see, she's been becoming more and more concerned with the material things in life (on the outside at least), and as nice as they are, I think she's forgetting the God that put them there. I hate to sound holier than thou, and that's not my purpose. But it's sad when you see someone who used to be so involved with church, and used to be so close to God, just slip away. This goes for both of them... my best friend and my ex-friend. I've reached out so many times to get her to come back to church, but she's always so busy.... work & leisure seem to take precedent.

So I guess what I'm trying to get at is, what do you do when you miss someone so deeply, but don't see things the same way? Do you think that someone like that deserves a second chance? Is the relationship important enough in your walk with Christ?

What do you do when your friends become complete strangers to you?

Sorry for the emo- ness, but I just needed to vent. :(

whew!

2007-12-11T23:40:00.000-05:00

I had my math test today and I think I actually did pretty well! :)
That's 2 finals down, 2 more to go!
I'm so relieved!!! This is like a HUGE weight off my shoulders!

Anywhoo... I am still on the hunt for the missing USB cable for my camera! :( I'll try to get the pictures and video from the concert as soon as humanly possible... in the meantime, I heard this song on vh1 and I love it! I love the Christian undertones, it's great! :)

Matt Kearney
Undeniable

It's undeniable how brilliant you are
In an unreliable world you shine like a star
It's unforgettable now that we've come this far
It's unmistakable that you're undeniable

February 5th, Friday morning, purple dawn,
Broke a yawn, as I stepped through the fog, like I stepped to a song
A moment like a poem, you wish you could hold it
I shut my eyes like it's frozen, it's gone when I open
It slipped past the clouds right there where it lingered
Like your band and a girl could slip through your fingers
My feet hit the ground like a beat for the lonely
On a path beaten down by the crowds in the morning

If only I could touch past the phony
If only they were there now to hold me
As the questions keep droning

You're the only one who stuck it out last night
The only other one who caught the other line
You're the only one when this world collides
The one that I can't deny

It's undeniable how brilliant you are
In an unreliable world you shine like a star
It's unforgettable now that we've come this far
It's unmistakable that you're undeniable

It's my last year here
My first class moved to portable 'A'
Under construction since summer
And it's cold today
I can see my breath, and what's left of the west parking lot
And all the spaces that we fought
And it all seems forgotten, left in the bottom
In past piles of rubble, in puddles of rain water
That hurt last night when I left like that
When I won't come back
Speaking my peace to the past
I can't help but wonder. who is this wind at my back
A whisper to walk on, come on from all that

You're the only one who stuck it out last night
The only other one who caught the other line
You're the only one when this world collides
The one that I can't deny

It's undeniable how brilliant you are
In an unreliable world you shine like a star
It's unforgettable now that we've come this far
It's unmistakable that you're undeniable

How am I gonna take it away in this winter wind
You found me on a summer breeze
How am I gonna run away when the autumn breaks
Now that you found me in the spring
Come on and sing it out

Keith Urban! :)

2007-12-09T01:45:00.000-05:00

sooo i just got back from the BEST concert EVERRR!! :D

Of course, I'm talking about the fabulous Keith Urban! (Nicole Kidman's hubby, if you've never heard his music....) The concert really was amazing! He was so interactive with the crowd and at one point he actually got down from the stage and into the crowd!!! Let me just say that I never wished so hard to be in that section!!! lol.

It was really amazing. He was just so down to earth (and I know its a concert but that's the vibe I got from him lol) and it was just so much fun overall! :)

Except for some old gringas sitting behind me who wanted me to sit down!!!! Excuse me abuelita but my boyfriend paid some good money for this concert and I am going to have me some FUN!!! :D And that I did have.. hehe.

AAAnyway... I have to find my USB cable for my camera!! :( it has gone missing and I need to show everyone my pictures and video!!! :)
As soon as I find it I shall share the sexiness that is Keith Urban with you!! :D
GET EXCITED!! :D
<333

An open letter.

2007-12-06T00:43:00.000-05:00

I just have to get this off of my chest.

To be quite honest... I miss you more than I thought I would. I looked at our pictures today, the old ones, from the good days. And I really missed you. At least, I missed the person that was in those pictures. I feel like I don't even know you anymore. Isn't it scary to think that after so many years of knowing your deepest, darkest secrets, that I know almost nothing about the person I shared so much with?

I hope you remember all the times that I was there for you. When everything happened after graduation, and on the day of prom, who was there outside your house to make sure you were ok? Nope. It wasn't your "wifey". It was me. Who did you call to cry to? When he broke up with you, whose shoulder did you cry on? Do you even remember all the little moments like that? It doesn't (outwardly) seem like you do. But I do, and it kills me inside.

I will tell you just as I have told other friends: God will always be here for you, whether you like it or not. And so will I.

But you have to realize that the way you portray yourself, that wall that you're so scared will crumble, is the image you portray to others. You always have to be doing something. And that's fine, but don't forget that there are more important things in life. Like sisters. And, even more importantly, like God.

Please stop thinking that you can't open up to guys you like. Please do that. It's perfectly healthy. Even if he breaks your heart, you learned something. Move on and move up. That's life. But don't ever forget to take God as your partner in everything you do. That's really the only way you will achieve true success.

I'm not writing this to you for you to get mad. That's the opposite of what I want to do. But I never talk to you, and the times I do, it's extremely awkward. Do you know why? Is there something you need to tell me? Because I have pretty much told you everything that I have needed to say to you.

I really feel like a stranger in your life. Does that affect you at all?

Your actions speak otherwise.

The Golden Compass

2007-12-03T23:47:00.001-05:00

So I've heard a lot about this new movie coming out called The Golden Compass. When I first saw the previews for it at the movies I wanted to see it... until I got an e-mail saying that the movie is based on a book. OK, so it doesn't sound like a big deal. The only thing is, the books (yeah, there's three of em) were written by an atheist author who basically shows the other side to The Chronicles of Narnia- where the children kill God so that they may do as they please.

You read it right. Kill God.

I was obviously disappointed when I read this. I mean, at first I thought it was another chain letter, but when I saw the article for myself, my jaw dropped.

So many children are going to see that movie... I wonder if they know the true meaning behind it?

I was particularly disappointed to know that Nicole Kidman is the star of the movie, since she's known to be a devout Catholic. I love her in everything she does... she's beautiful, she has impeccable fashion sense and she's married to the hottest man on the PLANET! (and i will be seeing him in concert this saturday!! yayyyy!!! ok... i digress...) I was bummed to see that she took part in this, and that they are marketing this as such a great movie. :(

Finals Week...dun DUN dun....

2007-12-03T23:15:00.000-05:00

I've been so stressed with school lately!! Finals are next week and I have one on Thursday... there are so many that i think i lost track of them all! :/

I wish we came with an auto-focus button or something... so I can get everything else off my mind!!!!

So sorry if I'm in a cave this week people, but I'm overwhelmed!

:(

hmmm

2007-11-29T11:03:00.000-05:00

I'm slowly getting used to this thing! I changed the title of this blog... to "Happiness is a Journey, Not a Destination." A lot more appropriate. :)

2007, in a nutshell.

2007-11-28T23:30:00.000-05:00

Somehow, I knew that this year would be better than the rest. I don't know how, but I felt it. As soon as the clock struck 12 on January 1, 2007, I knew this would be a year I would never forget.

And I was soooo right! :)

This year, God has let me experience the highest of highs and lowest of lows, and just about everything in between. I lost 25 pounds (yay!), I changed churches, I re-evaluated the important relationships in my life and I almost lost my dad in the process.

That old saying is true, though- "Whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger." Here we are at the end of November, about to go into December, and I find myself a completely different person than I was a year ago today. My priorities are clear- God, family, school/career (Mary Kay's too!! ha) This time last year I hated myself physically and was about to get a huge paycut. God hears prayers. And he sent me to Quick Weight loss, which, however much it cost me, helped my self-image with a much-needed boost. At the beginning of January I was still working two jobs and getting almost nowhere financially. Now I like to think I just work one and have fun selling makeup on the side. ;)

Speaking of that, being a consultant with Mary Kay has really helped me in so many ways. I will never regret that decision. Having my own business has helped me get organized and set my own schedule for myself. I've met so many successful women who just inspire me to be better, not only at selling a lipstick, but at life. I don't set limits anymore, I set goals. Goals for financial stability, goals for the future. :)

I think the major turning point this year has been one particular four-day ship expedition to Mexico in which alcohol in mass amounts became my best friend. I think you know what I'm talking about. But, however, I will never ever regret that trip. It really taught me how not to act. The only thing I regret is having acted that way in front of Jannelle's entire family.

But a few (OK, more than a few) lessons came out of the aftermath of that trip. I learned to never give up on a friend, no matter how long it's been since you last talked. I changed churches and, in a lot of ways, became a new person. Most importantly, though, I learned that being neutral ends at one point or another. Sometimes it may take a couple of years for your opinions to really be voiced, but let them come out. So you'll lose some friends. But were they really your friends to begin with? And will they help you in your spiritual walk? Think about this next time you tell yourself you don't have an opinion.

The one thing I am truly grateful for this year has been my dad. In June he was hospitalized and it was then, when I thought he might not make it through the night, that I stepped up to the plate. I called my half-sister, who I had never even met before, and told her the situation. She, in turn, called my half-brother, whom I had been close with when I was younger, but for some reason he stopped talking to my dad about 7 years ago. I think he realized just how serious the condition was and came to the hospital. We've been close ever since. I'm grateful for having him come back into my life, because he is so like me it's disgusting. :)

My relationship with the boyfriend is better than it has ever been, mostly for maturity's sake I guess. I will never try to put someone else above our relationship. That backfired. I'm so lucky to have him in my life! We really are a team. We'll go up to bat for each other any day, and nobody is getting in the middle of that again. We're a team and thats how it will be. If you hate him, you hate me. If you hate me, you hate him.

Take your pick.

All in all, I'm grateful for God. God has returned to being the center of my life. This is where he belongs. And I don't think that will change.