The parentals

I'm back from spring break and slowly starting to get back in the groove. It definitely took a good couple days to get back in student mode. Spring break was really good and it was nice to see familiar faces. Played a lot of basketball which was super fun and good for me to get some exercise. Visited family, got to see my dad's work, lunch with friends, late night donut runs, and more. Oh, and i saw jonathan gerrard play music at a coffee shop in irvine. He played really well. I really enjoyed the tunes. His performance had a very intimate and honest feel. The band he opened for was very talented and entertaining too. Before the show i helped bring all the equipment into the venue. It helped me halfway fulfill my fantasy as roadie for a band on tour. it was cool.

Angie's parents have come up for the next few days. Which probably means lots food and things to see and do. I will update more later about what we do. I know they want to check out our school and our place. Everything else is up in the air. Should be a fun next few days.

check this off the list

Last night, after We got our midterms back, (which i got an A on), we went out drinking with our Teaching Asistants! They told us they were going to chevy's happy hour, and i'm not sure how serious they thought we were gonna take their invitation, but we took it VERY seriously! So Angela, Simone, Courtney, and I went met them there and had a few (maybe a little more than a few) drinks with them. It was really fun and also felt so rebellious!

Coming home tomorrow, but got a lot to do today. I need to study for two tests, finish a paper, and pack! So that's all for today, BYE!

2 more tests

I thought i was done with midterms, but apparently not. i got 2 more. i'm not too worried though, the worst has come and past. This past weekend i went to two Tim Barry shows and to mountain view to see a play of willy wonka. The tim barry shows were amazing and i had a really good time at both. he has amazing songs with great messages. A folk hero in my opinion.

Now the willy wonka thing is kinda random, but the program i internship for had a field trip there for the kids. It was a play performed by kids. It was pretty good considering their ages. I just enjoyed getting out and doing something.

One more week until spring break, but i'm going to try and stay focused a couple more days and not get too ahead of myself. With that said, i am so excited to go home for a week and see all the friends and family i love and miss dearly. See you soon!

Here's a little clip of Tim Barry's song "Prosser's Gabriel". It's about a slave who intended to lead a slave rebellion, but another trader slave told his owner and as a result, Gabriel Prosser and lot of other slaves were hung. This all took place in Richmond, Virginia. Above where these bodies were buried, now sits a parking lot.

Mid terms

Yesterday, i finished all my midterms. I had 3 in one day. They got progressively better as the day progressed. My last one was for cognitive psychology. That is the one i spent the most time studying for. Angela and i spent all night studying with simone and courtney the night before. The midterm was exhausting and thorough. We all thought we did pretty well though. It was such a good feeling, to put all that time and effort in, and feel good about the end result, but we'll see.

This weekend, i'm going with the school i internship for to see a play (put on by kids) of willy wonka. Also, i'm going to go see Tim Barry play music friday or saturday.

My days should be relaxing all the way until after spring break. I'm going to enjoy it!

i wish i had a picture or two to post...

Sometimes I Just Like Community College Better

the rules and bureaucracy of a university can be very frustrating. yesterday i went to talk to the program coordinator of the graduate school psychology program to find out more about it. she told me to go to the website and read about it.
Then i asked her if we could go over my classes and just make sure i'm on pace for graduation. she wasn't really helpful there either.

Maybe i'm being a baby about this and should be a "responsible adult" and figure this stuff out on my own. I just liked how in the community college system they had counselors that were specifically there to help you out with these issues.

It makes me want to rush through my undergraduate studies and just get it over with. At the same time, i don't really want to rush, because i don't know what i'm going to do after.

All this is not to say i'm not enjoying this university, as i'm sure these frustrations might and probably do exist at other universities.

Everything else is fine, just needed to do a little venting.

la cumbre

On friday and saturday i hung out with daniel casey and corey holland. It was fun hanging out with them again. Thanks to angela, for sticking through it. Angela auditioned for a student film, got a call back, but then didn't get chosen after the 2nd audition. I'm still really proud of her for being brave and going for it.

Today was a nice clear day so we decided to do our reading in the park. I think that might become a sunday thing. It makes things like reading feel fun and refreshing. You can take little breaks and just people watch and check out all the cool dogs. Today there was a hawk circling over head that i watched until my neck hurt. Some guys were flying one of those remote control planes until they smashed it full speed into a tree. It seemed like the whole park was watching and holding their breathe as it headed straight for the tree. As soon as it crashed, there was a collective "OHHHHHHH!" I way rather be distracted by sights and sounds in the park then the computer or tv at home.

My cognitive psychology class is really intense and involves a lot of thinking (obviously, but you really feel it in this class). The midterm is in a little over a week and i'm pretty scared about it.

My internship with LULAC puts out a weekly newsletter in both english and spanish for the parents. This month, Jen, my program coordinator, asked if me if i could translate the english version into spanish. I said i would give it a try. It's been a fun learning and refreshing process. They said they would reimburse me with a gift certificate, so that's cool.

Tuesday

No internship today, so we took advantage of the free day and did some grocery shopping. Also, we decided to get out of the house and go to Baker Beach and do some reading in a beautiful environment. It was refreshing to feel the clean, crisp air along with the salty, ocean mist. There's something about reading away from the house that makes me feel better and more productive. The beach has a wonderful view of the bridge and marin county. Overall, had a really nice, relaxing day.

Angela's cell phone takes decent pictures, so i will be using that when i can.

Here are some pictures from today: