Blogging

Well… This whole blogging thing was completely new to me when I started this class. I do believe it is pretty cool to have people in groups, or for instance our class, linked together following similar and the same topics. At first I really didn’t like the idea of having to come home and worry about doing a task such as the blogs. However, the more I did them, the easier they became and the less dreadful I found them. I will be keeping this blog only if people want to stay connected. It does seems unlikely that I will keep it updated.

                I will say that reading blogs from classmates was very intriguing and in some cases very entertaining. Again, in a sense, I will miss coming logging on to D2L and reading what you all have to say on a specific subject. I did not have a favorite blogger in particular, but everyone really had genuine points and valid reasons behind their opinions making it hard to decide who’s work I enjoyed reading the most. So props to everyone in the class(es). 

Good Day

I have many stories to tell, but one that I will truly never forget is the time I landed my first kickflip on my skateboard. I was only 10 at the time and doing tricks on my skateboard was all something new to me. Usually I would just Ollie up curbs, or even shimmy my way up them. So adding difficulty to something I was already a little familiar with made for a great time.

            My friend Joe was with me and we were both interested in doing tricks on our skateboards. Numerous tries later, Joe decided to take a break from trying. More like gave up out of frustration. I was determined to at least get the rotation of the board accomplished and maybe call it quits for the day. Attempt after attempt, I was getting closer each time to catching the trick. By this time it was already mid-afternoon and we had started around noon. I had gone at least three hours of trial and error before I even got the pop and rotation done.

            Finally the time came. I was being drained from the constant up and down motion from my errors. But the time came. I lowered myself to the ground and put my feet into position. I popped my back foot and flicked my front foot out towards the left. The board spun almost perfectly. I caught myself gazing at the image of the underside of my board which happened to be a cartoon-like grim reaper character. Quickly I snapped out of the trance and saw the grip tape coming back over. Instantly I put my front foot out to catch it and I did successfully. Al that was left was my back foot. This was the easy part. I did it flawlessly as if I had done it before.

            My friend Joe was so amazed at the progress I had made by just repeating the same motion over and over. Ever since that day I have been able to that trick effortlessly. It’s second nature to me. This day was a really great day just because I learned something for something I like to do. 

Important People

Each person meets so many people throughout their lives. Only some stick in their memories because they have done something that really reached to the person. For me, I had a friend that had been my best friend all the way from elementary school to high school that decided to part their ways from me. Of course, there was a story behind that but that’s not the point. My friend had long dark hair most of the time, with brown eyes that sometimes looked like beads from a distance. He was very important in my life because all the stuff we did and affiliated with. We became musically talented at the same time; as well as skateboarding. He was very similar overall to me by being quiet in public places, being out of the ordinary, and sharing interests in the same field. Not only did we share some the best memories but also he taught me that I was really a genuine being compared to the rest of humanity. I learned this through our last conversation we had had. At least I know I ended up being content with the mutual agreement.

                The second person that has been truly an important person in my life is one of my teachers from high school. His name is Mr. Magoon, an slender elderly man with big rounded glasses that were probably the style in the late sixties.  He showed me that with a strong effort anything can be accomplished. I was struggling with math at the time and he told me over and over the same thing. Not only did he help me by telling me something, he helped me by showing me exactly what steps need to be taken. Numerous times this man has helped me with more than math, he truly is one of the greatest examples of a good high school teacher.

                Lastly, I would like to briefly explain the last person who has been an important person in my life. My lead worker, but more of a friend now, Paul. He taught me most of what I know about pruning a tree and other maintenance work. Many times from the beginning he has shown me how to correctly do something and with great detail. He is the one making this job a career possibility for me. I just wish others would take notes from him. He is another older man in his fifties, very small, and very fit. He has the endurance of a twenty year old and literally is hard to keep up with during work. He is also one of the most down to earth people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. He and I are the only ones in our company that can have a long-going conversation about whatever it might be. He is well educated in lots of subjects and very good with history. A matter of fact I’ve learned more from him than I did in the four years of history I took in high school. Again, he is great example of role model and has become an important person in my life. 

Gojira "L'Enfant Sauvage"

Gojira, one of my favorite bands released a new CD not too long ago. This new album is a bit different from their previous albums. L’Enfant Sauvage (French), or the English translation, The Wild Child, contains crushing riffs and thick vocals throughout. Gojira, being a French band decided to change things up for their usual norm.

The quality of the sound is the first that had caught my attention while hearing the preview track. Meaning the one song they put out before the actual album release to catch the listeners attention. Instantly after hearing the album song, L’Enfant Sauvage, I knew that this album was going to be a complete killer. Every song on the album contains extraordinary originality, which is next to impossible to do in the metal genre these days since standards for music is so low now.

While other Gojira fans may argue that this album was not their best, it was definitely a step from their routine. Honestly, this album gives me even more hope for more albums to come from them.

In addition, Gojira is an environmentalist band, which is heavily influential to their music and usually their songs contain world-like meaning. This album is exactly why I said the album was a step out of their usual.  While in their previous albums such as Flying Whales containing environmental meaning, and The Way of All Flesh containing mostly spiritual meaning. L’Enfant Sauvage combines the lyrical meaning of both the previous albums listed and creates a new atmosphere for the listener.

Gojira, isn’t the average metal band, every member has a great amount of talent and all of their previous work proves it. This new album is just a masterpiece for them to have under their belts. I would recommend this new album to any metal-head or anyone who is simply looking for taste of something new. It’s not too heavy, but definitely has a kick to it. My personal favorite song off the album is “The Gift of Guilt.” Don’t be scared, give them a try!

Fast Food Nation

            Fast Food Nation is definitely a book worth reading. I knew a lot of the stuff that is said in the book that was going on. The only difference between my ideas and Schlosser’s sayings is he first handedly experienced what it is like to walk through a slaughterhouse and see how the slaughter is truly performed. Also he saw the working conditions and heard stories from employees. Luckily, Schlosser publicized the issues and cruelty that happen throughout the meat packing industries and overall fast food corporations. Still, it may not seem like Schlosser has influenced the population with his information, but he surely has changed peoples’ minds about what they might be ordering when they are at the register choosing what they want. I know for a fact I have been passing more often on going to lunch with co-workers when they say they are going to (insert fast food restaurant).

            Any one who actually read the book will agree that it has somehow connected to their personal life. As I have said before, this book is a worth the read. It wasn’t too lengthy, especially since the reading was so spread out over a couple of months. Also, there is plenty of information to the read that much more interesting along with employees personal experiences of being affected by the fast food industry. Overall a good book.

School

I would like to start this blog off with the answer to last week’s truth and lies blog. The truth was “I went on a cruise to Hawaii for ten days.” Crazy right?

            School has been a big nuisance to me the past year, I am trying to get my life going and I look at myself and say I need school. But this past year I went from being in high school to being a full time employee a less than a month after graduation. It has been quite a journey so far. I have taken college classes at Ventura College throughout my years in high school, and now I am taking classes at Oxnard College due to overcrowding in Ventura. This semester has been a bit more stressful due to the amount of amount work needed in the classes and the fact I just transferred to Oxnard, but maybe that will ease up next semester.

            To say the least, I really do think that earning a degree will make all the difference in my future years to come. It will show that I can be committed to finish something and more importantly show that I may even be smarter than the average bear. Right now school seems like repetitive nonsense, but like I said, in the end it will pay off. I guess that’s what someone could say about what keeps me motivated, the pay off. It really is not that far away either. The credits I earned high school were a good boost and now it is all about taking it one class at a time. I hope everyone else is motivated about the pay off earning a degree has. I know many people from my past classes have plenty of potential to complete and succeed in what they started. I know I will be right there with them.

Truth and Lies

1)      I have been to Mexico five times in my life.

2)      I do not have any musical experience.

3)      I have been on a cruise to Hawaii that was a total of ten days.

4)      I currently do not have any pets.

5)      I run a marathon in 2012.

6)      I have no siblings either.

Injuries

Without a specific topic to write about, I am almost lost without any lead on this blog. But since I have no pictures or any meaningful song lyrics to post I suppose I’ll figure something out to write about. Maybe my previous injuries? Well, when I was in eighth grade I played baseball at De Anza for the Pony League. I played shortstop the majority of the time.  At a practice, I was fielding a ground ball that took a nasty hop and my right middle finger to the impact. This caused it to split open and break the tip of the bone off.  Blood was everywhere from the dirt, my hand, and my face, but I tried to remain calm. But seeing that there was a nasty open fracture I started to freak out. I ended up going to the E.R. and receiving surgery right there and then on my crippled finger. This injury triggered my “retirement” from a six-year “career” of playing baseball. My next injury was just as bad but in another sense. I broke my wrist skateboarding while doing a trick down a set of ten stairs. I fell on it just like any other fall. But hours later the pain kicked in and I could feel the bones in wrist touch each other when I moved my fingers. After x-rays, I was put in a cast and was told to come in every so often so they could monitor the healing process. After three months of being in two different casts, I was told I needed to have surgery in order for the bone to properly heal. Without the surgery the broken bone would have died, which would have brought up much worse issues down the line. Lastly, my most recent accident involves one of my favorite tools in the history of man. The chainsaw. I was cutting a 6 foot trunk and I angled the notch on where I wanted it to fall. But I continued to cut after the stump started to fall over, causing it to pop off of its stump cleanly and not fall over. It pooped off standing up straight, and started leaning toward the street. I panicked and did a scooping motion with my hands to begin a catch, as it may have been natural reflexes. But in this process I still had the saw in my right hand and while reaching, the chain was still spinning from its high RPM and slit my left pinky finger through my glove. Luckily for me, I was wearing gloves. Without them, I would have one less finger. The surgery for this was excruciating to watch. A total of 12 stitches, 6 stitches on the inner layer, and 6 on the outer layer. I hope this was somewhat entertaining to read. If not, then I apologize.

Change

Life is full of changes. Sometimes it is something minor and other times it can be major. However, sometimes changes are so subtle that they change the way a person thinks and reacts to certain situations. In this case, I have noticed that I have been a participant of the change. It all started in my early years in high school. I had my mind on school and sports and nothing more. Everything I did was strictly revolving around the two. But after meeting new people throughout my years there, I gained a new attitude towards everything such as school, people, and other miscellaneous activity. Everything I did was done with a positive outlook and I took pride in what I did. No one saw the difference in me but myself. After high school things became a lot more stressful and having the attitude that I had in high school made it much less stressful making times better than they might have been without the outlook.

                The change was something more than just what I thought about people, places and actions. It was about life in general. I look back to my earlier years of high school and still wonder how I might have reacted to something I didn’t really think positively about now. Then again, I was surrounding myself only by the things I did in that time. To this day I have the same attitude I had gained through my years of experiencing meeting new people, thoughts, and activities. Without my current train of thought I don’t know what I would think about most things. I would describe my change, as a change to open mindedness. 

Interview with Juan Alcala

The first interview I had conducted with Juan Alcala was very informative and full of positive conversation. Juan is Thirty-Nine years old and married with five kids. He himself automatically told me he was a “full time student, full time worker, and full time dad.” From this point, I knew he would have many interesting things to say about himself and his life. After he graduated from Channel Islands High School in 1991, he was already working. In 1995, he had been the Army active duty until 1999. He has several role models but the one that stuck out most was Sergeant Lonnie Crittendon from the time he served in the military. Juan described Crittendon to me as “short guy who had been in the military for twenty-two years, but had so much respect from senior officers and other Sergeants.” To this day, Juan says he still talks to him too. Juan told me that Sergeant Cittendon encouraged him to work for his current employer, which is for the federal government. Currently Juan works for the Department of Homeland Security based out of Santa Barbara. He first started in Phoenix in 2002, but then transferred to Santa Barbara in 2007. Toward the end of our interview, Juan had told me the reason he is earning a degree is so he can transfer to Channel Islands and continue in business. In addition, he had mentioned that he has “topped out and needs that degree to get any more of a promotion.” In the end of our interview, I asked Juan what the importance of school was to him and he replied to me by saying, “How can I preach to my kids the importance of education if I don’t do it myself.” Truly, Juan was a positive individual to talk to and getting to know a bit about. 

Family

Family is great and important to have. Sometimes family members may seem to be in your business every second from the moment you walk in the door to the moment you go to sleep, but most of the time it is only because they care about you. In some cases, it may be seem this way only because they want to be more involved in your life and make sure you still acknowledge them. Having family in your life has its benefits and difficulties for some. The benefits are having good influences to look toward while growing up. For others they may grow up and see that did not have the chance to establish who they are from being who they really are. They are pushed towards believing in such and such and are told that this and that are the right things to do. It can be difficult for some in various ways.

            While family can seem annoying to some, to others family is the most important in their lives. If a person were to get in a situation, they would have their family to help cushion the pressure from whatever it may be. Family is usually there for any kind of problem. In addition, other family members are bound to have the experienced something you may encounter. This makes life much easier and less stressful for some. Family is also a great way to get educated in some crucial day-to-day problems and morals. These can vary vastly depending on what way a family raised someone. Examples could be anything from how to jump-start a car, to choosing how you want to live a decent and bearable life. Luckily, family is there for these particular kinds of issues since schools (Elementary-High School) do not teach any of this.

            For some family is good, but from experiences with people they feel that they aren’t truly who they are because they were influenced with religion and other beliefs and morals. Some feel that they weren’t given the free will that they are recovering because they are slowly departing from home life to their own life. Although some may see these as problems, others will see these as a blessing. That’s for the individual to decide not anyone else.

            Personally, family is the most important thing in my life. Although we argue or disagree on issues, we don’t take it extremely personally. At the end of the day, we all sleep under the same roof and wake up like whatever it might have been never happened. They have always been there for me and I will always be there for them.  

           

            

Significant Event

Four Wheels, For Life

            April 2, 2011. A beautiful and breezy sunlit day. Another perfect day to do what I love which is the semi-extreme sport, skateboarding. The whole day was filled with awesome skate sessions and classic shenanigans with my good friends Joe and Theo. We were all riding all around the city of Ventura until we reached one of our many regular skate spots. This one in particular happened to have everything we liked; stairs, rails, gaps, ledges, pads. The one peculiar thing about this spot was the fact it was a school, Portola Elementary School. We would often be told to leave by stressed and aggravated teachers who came in to do their paperwork on the weekends. In some cases we have even had the cops called to kick us out. However, April 2, 2011 there was nothing that got in the way of a great day of skating. The only thing that could have made the day a bummer would have been a broken board from the gratuitous amount of skating we got in.

            Being sixteen at the time, I was still stepping my skate tricks up to the next level. As I warming up, I was doing faster and cleaner flip tricks as time progressed throughout the day. We were having a great day and decided to start doing tricks off the set of stairs they had in the main entrance of the school. A set of four that was perfect for doing simple flip tricks off. Every time I would roll down the hallway entrance I followed the sketchy wheel marks from previous skaters just because it was just the routine way to hit the stairs. The echoes from are boards were getting louder each time we would each get a trick off because the skate session was getting intense. Finally, I made the decision to make this the day I really pushed my skills on the skateboard.

            Although I was decent at doing stairs on my skateboard, I wanted to do something big that would show some of my skills built from my years of practicing. I rolled up to side of my friend Joe and told him I wanted to do the monster stair-set. He knew exactly what I was talking about since he and I were the ones who gave that specific stair-set its infamous name. The reason for it having this monster name is the fact it has ten stairs, each about one foot in height. He replied to me with, “I bet you can nail that by now.” However, he had this look of doubt after when he looked toward the monster. I was fully motivated and determined to do something as notorious as this; since at the age of sixteen I had been taking skating seriously for about five years.

            Moment after moment I looked down from the top of the stairs. I was looking for good landing points and looked at all of my surroundings to see if there were any poles that I could potentially hit out of carelessness or obliviousness. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon now and the clouds became a bit denser than they were earlier giving me a bit more of an uneasy feeling about doing the trick. This stair-set was by far the biggest obstacle I have ever had any thoughts about doing. The time came as I put my board down roughly fifty feet from where the leaping point was. My front foot was on my board feeling the sandiness of the grip-tape hugging the waffle grip of my Nike’s. I boosted forward as I pushed with my back foot only hearing the sound of the uneven wheels of my skateboard rubbing the concrete at a high speed. The thought ran through my head of my friends’ expressions on their faces, giving me a little more confidence into doing the trick. By the time that I finished that confidence boosting thought, it was time for to bend my knees to prepare to pop my board up from the top of the monster.

            My back foot popped the board up and my front foot helped lift and straighten the board out. My entire body was in the air for a good two to three seconds giving me a lot of time to think of what the fall might feel like. I came extremely close to hitting the ground so I braced myself for the impact. The wheels of my board landed even with each other and I bounced a little and had to catch my balance. That was it; I had done something I thought I could have never done. But with that being said I got overly excited and also did something I had never done before that day too. My mind got the best of me and I wanted to up the difficulty on the already oversized stair-set. The first time all I did was a simple Ollie, a jump. This time I wanted to add a kick-flip. I found myself in the same scenario as the first attempt. My friends were at the bottom of the set; this time probably talking amongst themselves saying what a bad idea it was to add some difficulty to an obstacle that was already difficult. I gained a lot of speed, more than the first time. As I came closer to the stairs I prepared to pop my trick. My back foot went down and my front foot went out toward the air. The atmosphere was so quiet I could hear the sound of my shoe being scraped by the grip-tape. I brought my front foot back to catch the board that had successfully flipped. There was an issue with the way I caught the board though. I had my feet too far apart and when it came time to brace for the impact of the landing, I was not ready this time. I slammed the ground extremely hard making the concrete leave its mark on my left arm and hand. I got up just as if it was any other fall. This fall was like any other, but on a bigger scale. I though all was well, but about three hours later, it was night now,

Instantly, I knew something was definitely wrong. I could feel bones touching one another when I moved my index and middle finger. This called for an immediate hospital run. Soon after x-rays were taken, I found that I had fractured my scaufoid bone. This is a bone in the wrist. The break required surgery after months of examining the healing process. Did this stop me from doing what I love? Absolutely not. Actually, it encouraged me more to continue doing my favorite hobby.

Not only did I only did it overcome a challenge, it fueled my love for skateboarding even more and to this day I still skate when I can. Besides, I have a wicked scar from this accident and a cool story behind it. Some may see this story and may not see the significance behind it, but to me, the trick, the confidence I gained from it, the accident, this break was caused by overcoming something I thought was difficult and to me, gives it significance. 

Texting

            Texting is an everyday of communication these days. Actually, I believe it is the most common form of communication nowadays. It is a great and very convenient way of communicating to other people. For instance, there may be a situation where someone cannot be too loud, but with texting, it makes it possible to communicate with the other person while remaining silent. With that being said, texting does have its downfalls. The responsibility is on the individual that is texting though. Texting and driving is what I am trying to get across here. The fault should be on the person that is/was texting if anything like an accident were to occur. I have seen many times that at more times than others, a younger driver is speeding along the roads with their face pointing down toward the right with their phone in their hand. Some can pull it off; while others start to weave into others’ and even my lane.

            Although texting is a great tool to use a form of communication, it should be used in the right circumstances. I, along with everyone else in this country, am a frequent texter; sometimes it is just more convenient than talking. However, there is always the dos and don’ts of texting. Happy texting.

Reality Television

Reality television is something I do not like to see while flipping through channels. Sadly it's more than half of what's on channels these days too.  Personally, I believe reality television pollutes the mind of the common sheep causing an all out flood of pointless trends and stupidity. It is as if peoples’ lives are so utterly boring that they need to watch other peoples’ personal issues and drama to get some kind of fulfillment out of it. Not only do I despise seeing it while going through channels, but when I heard students in high school talking about certain actions done by one of their favorite reality television stars all I could really do is take the palm of my hand and smack it to my face. I do have some friends that watch shows like these and it does not make me think differently of them. Only do I change my opinion about a person is when they follow the trends of these so-called stars and want to live their lifestyle.

If my opinion on reality television is not clear yet, I will specifically state what I despise about these piece of garbage excuses for television shows.  The fact some people from these shows are praised for being incredibly inconsiderate and belligerently drunk baffles me. Such characters as “Snooki” from the wretched spawn show “Jersey Shore.” I get sick to my stomach thinking about these clowns.  Another example would be any of those Kardashian clowns. The everyday sheep somehow seems to reach my eardrum with their Kardashian talk and other pointless reality television recaps.

As much as I have seen going through high school and being a college student, I do believe reality television does play a factor in harming society as a whole. The fact that these shows, even the slightest bit, plant an idea in one’s head gives them that extra reasoning behind the choice from some of their decisions.  Not all. I could go on for a while talking about how ridiculous I think these shows are but I believe I have made my opinion clear by now. I apologize for the rant, but these are feeling about reality television shows. Maybe one day, a reality television star will say it is cool to not watch reality TV and then people may start to see outside the idiot box (TV).  

Another point I would like to add just for reference and to back up my opinion is the movie Idiocracy. This movie depicts what society will be in a few decades if people keep praising the television and fueling reality television. The average IQ dropped about thirty points making the film that much more accurate of what will come.  If you have not seen this movie, I suggest giving it a shot if you are not entirely convinced that reality television shows do not have any negative effect on society. Now that I have that out of my system, thank you for taking to the time to read my rambling but somewhat organized rant.  

Fast Food

Fast Food

Fast food is more becoming more convenient than ever these days. When I was a young child, I grew up with my parents, siblings and grandparents. Because I was living with my grandparents there was rarely nights where we would eat fast food. Actually, the only fast food meal I can recall is the nights when we would get pizza and that was only on certain spontaneous occasions. Therefore, this definitely was considered a treat in my book. Although I stayed away from fast food while I was young, once my parents, siblings and I moved out, fast food became more popular for our meals. The reason for this being was the fact we didn’t have someone at the house all the time, my parents schedules were so strict, and they each got home at a later hour. My mother would still cook but not nearly as much as she did when she got home at our old place. I think the reasoning for this was my grandparents were not there to help prep for the meals or go out and get the supplies for home-cooked meals. My family and I were definitely having fast food two to three times a week for dinner for a good chunk of time. The fast food restaurants were mainly Carl’s Jr. and Jack in the Box. With that being said, when I was in middle school we moved once again. This time we moved to Oxnard somehow making it easier for my both my parents to contribute to making dinners narrowing our fast food visits down to once a week. I noticed the amount of feeling healthier or more “in shape” I felt after losing the fast food habits.

            These days, things are much harder and time is very limited. Everyone in the house works full time and there is rarely time for someone to come home and really feel up to cooking a meal. My father is now the only one who has the time to cook at a decent hour and he does as often as he can, which is very nice. Fast food is definitely becoming more involved with my family again, but it’s all we can really do since the finances and time are so tight and bounded. I honestly despise fast food, but the fact it is supremely easy to get and extremely inexpensive makes it that more enticing. I hope one day I can be less dependent on these disgusting chains we call fast food. Until my family and I get a more open and wide schedule fast food will most likely stay a member of our life. I know that sounds bad but I know some people can relate to my situation. Soon but not soon enough, I will be eating home-cooked meals every night again.

Alex Gonzales

Hello, my name is Alexander Gonzales. I am eighteen years old and throughout my short time living I have lived between the cities of Ventura and Oxnard. As a child, I believe I grew up with the last generation that played outside until dusk. I have two brothers, one being twenty-two, and the other being fourteen, thus leaving me to be the middle child. Throughout my K-12 schooling career, I went to Portola Elementary, Anacapa Middle School, and graduated from Buena High School. During my time going to Buena, I noticed many of my friends looking to go to universities and trying to become some kind of specialist. While they were all thinking far into the future I was worrying too much about what I was going to do since I had no real thoughts on what I could see myself doing for a lifetime.

            Luckily for me, I actually found a job that I would like to turn into a career.  Currently I am working for the City of Ventura on the Urban Forestry crew as a Tree Maintenance worker. Every morning I wake up at six and leave at four. For some, work may be something people might find dreadful or tedious, but for me I absolutely love doing what I do. Just do not call me a tree hugger. Besides work, I am a caring for two juvenile bearded dragons. I recently got the two critters after years of wanting some. These guys are almost as hard as taking care of a newborn child. On top of work and school, I am currently working on my Commercial Driver’s License. It is all very stressful when added one after another, but in the end  I know all my hard work and determination will pay off for me.

            For my not so distant future, I plan on getting an AA degree and putting in the extra time and work to become a certified arborist. As far as going to a university, that is still to be determined… I hope to remain with the City of Ventura and helping the forest grow. However the question, “where do I see myself in a few years?”, is a question I think only a few people can answer. Anything can happen meaning anything can change. I live day by day only to see what opportunities arise and what unfolds. This is just a little information I thought would help you get a feeling of what kind of person I am. Thank you for your time.