What does a straw and cereal have in common?

Every morning you wake up and the most natural thing in the world is to grab a bowl, pour in your favorite cornflakes, fruit loops, rice krispies cereal then add milk and breakfast is served. However, if you really think about it is it not bizarre to think about the fact that we are eating flakes made out of corn and milk? If we were to travel back in time I am sure they would look at us very strangely for eating such a strange combination. All it took was one man and his accidental discovery to revolutionize the way Americans eat breakfast. At the same time though, all it took was his initiative to search for an idea to run into that discovery. 

According to About.com...

"When Kellogg rolled the tempered or softened wheat and let it dry, each grain of wheat emerged as a large thin flake. The flakes turned out to be a tasty cereal. Kellogg had invented corn flakes." 

One idea = one whole new way of life. 

Another thing we never really think about are straws...now you see them everywhere and you would almost say they are a necessity in the food industry as well as for your drinking convenience. Some people like them swirly some like two at a time. Some like them to be funny, others use them to help young children from spilling. It took someone to invent and come up with the idea...

Next time you are looking around at the world...remember that there are ways to make our lives easier it is just a matter of coming up with an idea.

I can't imagine living in a world without straws or cereal, can you? 

An Ally and an Enemy

In this end of the semester battle, survival of the fittest, sink into the underworld, journey to heaven (since you have to suffer a lot to finally see the light), whatever it feels like to you...there is a strong need for a lot of things.

Time

Money

Food

Sleep 

but...most importantly we refuge our desperation and reinforce our strength with the magical need of: Caffeine.

Caffeine is our friend, our buddy...Gently patting us on the shoulder saying that we can do it, that we can push for those 4 extra hours...that our eyelids will not surrender and our brain will not shut down suddenly, or perhaps you see it as a coach yelling at you in your ear keeping that level of motivation above the empty line. Caffeine can be magical...a little fairy with a wand brought down by God that will sparkle and voilá! you are pumped. 

Caffeine can be monstrous...maybe it makes you so scared that it will kick in your fight or flight reflexes...or it can turn YOU into a MONSTER, half mutant half green.

Some call it wings.

Some call it a slap in the face...

But it can kill you...as half of the things on our planet now can too...

Want to see how much caffeine it would take to kill you in particular? Try out this tool calculator and be amazed.

Building our confidence?

Ever since we are little we are told not to do certain things because they will lead to bad consequences or big messes. At the same time though I feel like we are taught not to take risks because they could possibly and most probably lead to something quite undesired...but here is a funny example:

Who says that the boy will drop it on the floor? Yes moms know best...but sometimes who knows like this boy we could surprise our parents...and as a matter of fact we often do (oh yes, I said we, I still consider myself a kid).

My little brother is taking taekwondo classes and one of the main things they teach is confidence of course. Every time they have a belt promotion they have to go through several tests and one of them is breaking the wooden board. In the test they have to choose the amount of boards they want to break and the decision is left entirely up to the child. One time this small kid who was half the size of my brother asked to break 4 boards, which is usually accomplished by kids and sometimes even adults who are in higher ranks. The masters asked him several times if he was sure and the kid persisted and so they let him try and to the surprised gasp of all the audience the kid broke the 4 boards on his second attempt! So yes...kids can surprise you.

I like the fact that they give the kid the option and that they encourage their confidence. Many times parents say "don't do this" "don't do that" because "X will happen". Isn't that a little suffocating? No wonder kids want to grow up so much because they are sick and tired of being restricted and told not to take risks! Don't get me wrong though...risk is not always good for children specially if it gets in the life threatening area, but every now and then it is good to show kids they are trusted and that they can make their own decisions.

Pretty Impressive

Today I was walking around campus and instead of seeing the usual signs along the boulevard announcing the events coming up etc...I saw something that I thought was so simple and creative that it even made me smile as I walked by. 

These piñatas were hung along places where there were trees and a large population of students passing by to promote a "Mane Event Fiesta". They were incredibly eye-catching and not to mention tempting since I am sure someone will attempt to hit them with a stick (I was sure tempted to throw a rock or something). Way to think creatively on alternate media placement!

To me particularly it reminded me of the days when I was little and I had those fun birthday parties, the only thing though that I do have to say is...why is it that in Texas all of the piñatas are so small?? Maybe it has something to do with the influence from Mexico...maybe they use smaller piñatas, but I remember the piñatas when I was little were lifesize or the size of a large dog and they were always made of my favorite disney characters. Although I think that sometimes we remember the things from when we were little as being huge since we were much smaller. I will never forget struggling to reach the sink in the kitchen when I wanted to wash the dishes and now I almost have to bend down sometimes.

But anyways, in a wrap...I like to see this kind of creative thinking because it really does leave you with a positive feeling about the event or whatever it is that has been communicated...it made me curious about the event too so who knows I might go check it out. 

Stumbling

Today I decided to stumpleupon since I had kind of abandoned my account for a while due to the clock race syndrome I've been suffering lately...however, if I was hoping to get a little distraction and relief from my stress I was not able to avoid the imposing negativity of slow crushing death with this LIST OF UNUSUAL DEATHS. What in the world! WHY was this the first website to pop up? (Is it because I put dying as my facebook status this morning maybe? I don't know...maybe I should feel a little freaked out)...but instead I guess this is a way to realize that my slow brain death is nothing compared to:

"1920: Ray "Chappie" Chapman, shortstop for the Cleveland Indians baseball team, was killed when a submarine ball thrown by Carl Mays hit him in the temple. He took two steps after being given a walk, collapsed, and died the next day."

Although I do have to say I identify with this man and I am a little bit scared now about all of this work I've been doing lately and the lack of nutrition I've been putting my body through:

"270 BC: Philitas of Cos, Greek intellectual, is said by Athenaeus of Naucratis to have studied arguments and erroneous word-usage so intensely that he wasted away and starved to death."

And is it so crude that I find myself laughing while I read some of these??

"162 BC: Eleazar Maccabeus was crushed to death at the Battle of Beth-zechariah by a war elephant that he believed to be carrying Seleucid King Antiochus V. Charging into battle, Eleazar rushed underneath the elephant and thrust a spear into its belly, whereupon it fell dead on top of him."

Seriously, I can see this so well in my head...and the funniest deaths are the ones that are most ancient and thought to be "apocryphal" for some reason! Maybe because some of the things that happened to these people are things we know better now and would never do...

Although this more recent one does still raise a concern for the improvement of the intellect in our species:

"2010: Robert Gary Jones, 38, was jogging and listening to his iPod when he was hit from behind and killed by a small plane making an emergency landing on a beach in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina." 

Lesson: Don't jog with your iPod volume all the way up...

Another perspective

I work in my university's sound department with the only sound engineer in charge of the theater program. He is an awesome boss. What I love the most though, is the fact that I have gotten to know him so well that he has become a really good friend and mentor I can come to for advice and also for mental relief. We usually use each other as ways to ventilate our stress sometimes.

Official-looking

However, what makes my job so much more special is the fact that I can have a peek at the theater world of our rigorous program here at SMU. I get to see the fights, the tears, the laughs, hear the songs, see the light effects in the works. It is simply awesome! Not to mention the fact that I meet the actors and the directors.

I think this job gives me a great opportunity to expand my horizons too, because as I have become more knowledgeable about the sound engineering profession I have learned what is an XLR cable, a mixer, how to wire headsets for a performance. I even got to be the board operator for one of the shows last year which was an amazing experience.

In my opinion, I think it's good for people to try these kind of different jobs, specially while they are in college, because it gives you a unique perspective to other kinds of professions. I would have never known about all of the neat things I learned about sound design and sound engineering if it hadn't been for this job.

Up for a challenge Indiana Jones?

This Easter holiday my family decided to have a roadtrip to San Antonio with my uncle that was in town visiting. It was great! We rented a little 12 person van and headed off to see Shamu and the Alamo. I think though, that the most interesting part of the trip was the stop we made at Natural Bridge Caverns just 20 minutes outside of San Antonio.  

The rock formations where simply amazing and for someone who had never been in a cave, the experience was pretty spectacular! And not to mention a bit of a work out since we walked and climbed 3/4 of a mile.

What I loved the most was the creativity of the names that we encountered for different rock formations along the way such as Sherwood forest named after the forest in Robin Hood. According to the tour guide the 4 college students who had discovered the caverns in the early 1960s, liked to read a lot and they named all of the rooms and rock formations for different philosophers and famous characters in literature. When I was there, however, I was honestly thinking about the entrance to the Underworld of Greek mythology the whole time...I'm glad that nothing like Hades came out to greet us though...Also when they said the giant slabs of limestone surrounding us were billions of years old I couldn't help to flash back to the good old days of biology. Around where we were standing some of the formations glittered and looked like a big pile of sand that had been mixing itself and chemically compounding itself with water for billions of years...and I couldn't help to feel goosebumps when I thought about how, a long time ago according to our tour guide, where I was standing there was actually an ocean.

I do have to say, cave explorers are some pretty courageous people. I can't imagine crawling into a small hole in the earth without knowing exactly what to expect at the end of the other side, if there is one...and not to mention the claustrophobia! Thanks to these courageous men though, we can enjoy and study the beauty of places like these and it is definitely worth it.

Sharpies can be intimidating...but you have to risk it to leave a mark

It all started with a picture...it was Christmas and I had bought a cheap little kodak digital camera back when they made them the size of half a brick. I was walking around the park with my brother and my mom, and I had been taking pictures just for fun because I was starting to really get into photography. My brother decided to throw a fit and he sat on his knees in a moment when the sun was just starting to go down. I couldn't resist the poised and concentrated look on his face and the way the shadow seemed to project how grandiose he will grow up to be in the future.

In high school I started getting into some photography classes...but I had always been in art. We got a new assignment and although I was afraid about whether or not I would be able to pull it off, I risked it and decided to draw my favorite picture I have ever taken...

I realized that I had a way with sharpies and paper and honestly I love the way this technique creates an illusion in your eyes, just as Rembrandt discovered early in his career. He is one of my favorite artists and this is one of my favorite ways to draw. I think the shapes that I have loved using the most are smiley faces and little stick figures because then people get up close to the drawing and they start laughing.

When I draw these I really do get the feeling of "Flow" that Mihály Csíkszentmihályi describes in his approach in psychology. In fact, it is so strong that I will spend the whole day drawing and I will finish the drawing in one day!

Believe it or not this one of Charlie Chaplin took me one day! And people always ask me how long it takes me but I don't want to sound like I'm bragging when I say the truth. But yes, this only happens when I have nothing else to do...and when I am throwing in a little bit of procrastination into the inspiration.

Pounding in my chest

Last night I had such a powerful dream that it shocked me when I woke up to actually feel the dampness around my eyes. I hadn't had one of those dreams in a long time and in reality it wasn't even that meaningful.

To make it relatively short...I will start at the point where I was in the car with two of my cousins. They got out to go buy a movie ticket or something of the sort and I stayed in the car. Suddenly two men got into the car and started threatening me, saying they were going to kidnap me. I told them I had money in dollars (which are really hard to find in Venezuela right now) and that if they wouldn't kidnap me I would give it to them. They started driving but I decided that it was not a good idea for them to know where I lived so I told them to drop me off at the police station that we were passing. I threw the money at them and got out of the car running towards where the police chief was. I saw my grandmother there because she had been worried about me and I began crying and telling the police that I had been kidnapped. 

For some reason he refused to believe me and I got extremely frustrated and told him I just wanted him to take me home with my grandmother. He told me he had to open an investigation and he made us all go back to the places I had been before I was kidnapped to check if people had seen me. Finally after going through all of that he realized it was true and he took my grandmother and me home. In the car I turned around and touched my grandmother's knee crying saying how glad I was that she was there. 

And then I woke up.

So yes...apparently I have some issues with feeling threatened or something of the sort. 

This dream, however, made me realize even more how strongly my grandmother evokes those feelings of safety and comfort for me. She used to take care of me all the time when I was little, and honestly adoring her is short of what I feel for her. Recently she has been relatively ill and being so far away has made it really hard for me, but I stay so busy all of the time that I get these sudden moments as reminders that I need to take advantage of her presence because it is golden for me.

TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse)

One of the greatest things about Europe is how advanced and practical their public transportation is. It is just amazing to be able to travel through more than 10 different countries in a simple train ride. And to think! Europe is not even the size of the United States! SO why the heck do we not have a train system?? I mean, it is the United States, a country that had managed to launch a spaceship to land on the moon for crying out loud! So why can't we have a better transportation system? 

Specially in Texas...wouldn't it be awesome to say that you could travel down to Austin, San Antonio, or Houston in less than 2 hours? I know it would make a lot of people's lives easier...at least those people that have to travel down to Houston to get their visas at the many different consulates residing there. I have friends that say it is even cheaper to fly to Mexico than it is to fly to Houston or El Paso right now, isn't that crazy? 

Well, the point is we need better transportation...and honestly Texas is not living up to its standards with this lack of facility and specially the war against rising price of gas.

There is hope, however, according to wikipedia "In February 2009, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Congress allocated $8 billion to be granted to states for intercity rail projects, with "priority to projects that support the development of intercity high speed rail service."^[23]

^{I hope they do this soon so that I can actually enjoy it in my lifetime...} 

So close

Apparently a friend of mine got to touch a squirrel recently...but it was only with her foot so, not as great as it sounds. There are so many squirrels here at SMU that it makes spring one the of funnest times of the year to walk around campus. They are simply everywhere. The best part is that they don't seem to mind the people. One time I got so close to one that I took this picture:

So now another friend of mine as well as my jealous self are on the mission to touch a squirrel before we graduate.

These furry friends really add something to SMU. It kind of gives the campus more of a personality and a sense of life. I love walking to class in the morning (sometimes very sleepy) and seeing that these little creatures have long been working hard digging the little holes you see everywhere in the ground to find or hide their acorns. It kind of motivates me to be outside too. Sometimes I just like to sit on one of the benches and watch them because they are pretty funny to see eating so rapidly with their little hands.

Another thing is that they bring in all sort of other animal life into the campus. One time there were these enormous hawks hunting them down (which was sad) on the boulevard and it was simply amazing to see their 3-foot wing span. So, why watch the discovery channel when you can see nature and animals fighting for survival right outside of your dorm?

Drugs and Bradley Cooper

If you haven't gone by to check out the movie Limitless you should definitely do so soon. It is an awesome action film about a simply badass drug that falls into the hands of a man who is smart enough to learn how to use it. The artistic development of the film was also pretty cool considering how vividly the audience could visualize the effects of the drug along with the characters.

 

Oh yes...I wish

At the same time though, (and I will try not to spoil the movie) I couldn't help but wonder when I walked out of the movie theater, what the ethical implications were...because is there not a drug problem in the world? This movie honestly would motivate anyone vulnerable enough to go try a drug. And it would be awesome to have a drug in existence that would optimize your performance, but as of now we know that drugs only do so temporarily and then in the end they kill you prematurely.

I think it's alarming to notice the immense quantity of people that at the very least smoke pot in the United States...and I don't mean to be critical of the country, but it is fact that in at least my country the usage of drugs is not as common among the middle and upper class as it is here.

For example, here in the United States it would be perfectly common to say that you had at least tried marijuana in high school or college. In Venezuela it is not. In fact even my uncle's that party the most or have the most money have never even seen what it looks like. I have also talked to several other friends from Mexico and other latin countries and none of them have ever even tried it...however, I can say that about 50% of the friends that I have from the United States have at least tried it.

Regardless of your views of drugs...I think it is still important to notice these differences and honestly it does worry me a little bit. There is a reason why it has not been legalized and it always boils down to money and corruption. I think its also funny to see when in high schools here in the United States they have drug-free weeks and other educational programs like that, while in Venezuela at least we never had any such thing. Maybe in Venezuela it is less common because of the different values there are...because people in Venezuela will banish you or stigmatize you if you have any relations to drugs (and yes maybe we do cultivate it but the money is made from selling it to other countries like the US). Here it is more accepted and people are generally more open to it.

Serendipity

Serendipity is one of my favorite words in the dictionary.

According to Dictionary.com:

ser·en·dip·i·ty

/ˌsɛrənˈdɪpɪti/ Show Spelled[ser-uhn-dip-i-tee] Show IPA

–noun

1. an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident.

2. good fortune; luck: the serendipity of getting the first job she applied for.

---

Origin:
1754; Serendip  + -ity;  Horace Walpole so named a faculty possessed by the heroes of a fairy tale called The Three Princes of Serendip

—Related forms

ser·en·dip·it·er, ser·en·dip·i·tist, ser·en·dip·per, noun

There is also a movie called Serendipity and even though it is one of those chick-flick types that I find too predictable and repetitive sometimes, I can say it is one of my favorites and it is worth seeing. 

There is a reason for my madness, though. The reason I like this term so much is because of the experiences I have had that have hit me in the face so many times as a sense of destiny. 

Last semester for example I had an account balance of over $2,000 that I did not know how I was going to pay. After serveral months of seeking out resources and talking with my financial advisor, my family tried coming up with as many resources as possible until in the end the only solution was a credit card. When I logged into the system to make my payment the card was not accepted because it was Visa. Apparently my university does not accept payments from Visa credit cards, which at that moment infuriated me and I wondered...Who the heck does not take Visa? Seriously!? 

On the verge of tears and frustration I went to see my advisor one last time to tell him that I would have to drop out of the school because there was no way to come up with the money...My mom was declined for a loan and there just seemed to be no solution. As I sat in front of my advisor depressed and exploring the possibilities of life in other colleges, he checked the computer one last time to see what could be done. 

Suddenly, he discovered that my mom's income had been counted as double of what she makes, making my financial aid lower than it usually was. He shook his head and apologized for the mental insanity he had provoked inside of me for all of this time, and with a hint of a smile said that the university now owed me $700. I simply could not believe it.

So where does serendipity step in?? 

If SMU had not been weird and accepted the credit card, I would have never gone to talk again with my advisor and not only that, but the interest rates would have been a bit high so in the end I would have been paying a lot more money. The best part was the extra cash I recovered of course! 

So yes, serendipity I am a fan...and this is just one example of the several cases where you have showed me you are around. 

I also read this book called The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho this Christmas break and it has a beautiful story about destiny which teaches you a few things about living your life. Maybe that's why I tend to be so reflective and intense about these topics sometimes. But nonetheless I think that destiny is a funny and interesting topic because regardless of your religion or beliefs...it always seems to show up and bite you to remind you that you don't have all the control.  

Chocolate commotion

Today was my friend's birthday and we went to her favorite restaurant: BJ's

(Just as a side note...I know this is not good for me to be thinking but doesn't anybody else feel a little awkward with the allusion that name makes to other terms? Who comes up with these restaurant names seriously, without thinking it might be related to another inappropriate version of Twin Peaks or Hooters? And they seem to be everywhere too nowadays, but of course they must be making money.)

One of the best things on their menu are the desserts of course. Who doesn't love that Triple Chocolate Pizookie® Made with Ghirardelli®!!

It was the first time I tried it and chocolate heaven was were I was for those brief 15 minutes. I just have to say whoever came up with the idea of a freshly baked cookie with an ice cream scoop on top was a dessert GOD. And of course being a girl I am plainly justified in choosing so much chocolate at one time because I can blame it on those monthly visits. I am one of those people that just loves chocolate though, ever since I was little I have loved dark chocolate. My mom gave me a big bar of dark chocolate one time for my birthday and in another opportunity I even went to a cocoa farm where they had cocoa trees. They are not that good when you eat them by themselves though...

I noticed however, that there is a side effect to this fabulous dessert, and that is intense energy. I am now so high on sugar and energy that I can't go to sleep.

Just a bird or something more?

I have always been fascinated by hummingbirds and I think they deserve to have a section of my blog to be commemorated for their amazing qualities...there seems to be something magical about them when you see them...If I could put hummingbirds in a mind map I would think of grace, vitality, humor, intensity, exotic, magic.

I found this video on youtube: 

 

It's amazing to think that we have the technology now to capture that action, every time I see a hummingbird I just like to hear the hum of their wings batting together because it's so intense. We always think of hummingbirds because of how fast their wings flap, but these are also a few facts I found that are the reason I like these birds so much...

• Hummingbirds are considered symbols of love, renovation, and youth. 
• The Mayans and Aztecs used them to depict fertilization and ecstasy in many of their expressions of art, and they are also used as the symbol of the God of War, Huitzilopochtli. 
• "The most astonishing quality of hummingbirds is their ability to broadcast color. Hummingbirds radiate like hot coals in the sun. The color that reaches your eye is created by pigment, which absorbs some colors and rejects others. Like soap bubbles, hummingbird's color comes from iridescence, not pigment. It winks on and off, depending on the light source and the angle of the viewer. This allows hummingbirds to flash colors or hide them which is useful for males who want to impress females or threaten other males." www.humming-birds.com

Wouldn't it be awesome to radiate colors to attract or intimidate others?? What I like the most about the hummingbird is the fact that it is so distinguishable and different from all of the other birds and I use it as a reminder of all of those positive things in life. It's so chirpy and full of vitality that it almost contaminates you with happiness.

 If I was courageous enough to do it this would be an awesome tattoo to get.  

One of my greatest accomplishments

Many times when you decide to take on a challenge, you have people telling you that you can't do it or that the possibilities are very slim...and I think that because of this we get scared and then we don't take the risk of doing it.

One time this happened to me was last spring break when I decided I wanted to go to Guatemela with a group of my friends only 3 weeks in advance, with an expired passport, and a $0.00 account balance.

This event in my life is proof to me that ANYTHING I set my mind to, I can do with a little creativity and luck.

How did I do it?

Well, the Guatemala triumph, as I like to call it...

All started when my friend invited me and a group of others to stay at his house in Guatemala City, Guatemala, where we would be assured of room and board for the trip at least. My first reaction was to reject the idea because I am not one of those fortunate people who can travel any time I please. With a single mom and most of my college education being paid by the government, going on a trip to another country for only a week was a joke. But then I thought about it...

If I worked a certain amount of time and managed to recruit some funds from several aunts and uncles...this whole trip idea might be a faint possibility. But then there was the passport situation. Since I am not a U.S. citizen I would have to travel to Houston in order to renew my passport, and not only that, but I would also have to make an appointment which usually took 3 months to get approved. 

Here is where that little bit of luck played a part...my mom called the embassy nonstop for several days (because she too had been needing to get her passport renewed) and to make a long story short we got an appointment for the next week. I remember sitting in the Houston mall with my mom and my passport permit thinking I have 2 weeks...there is no way I can find the money that quickly. My mom laughed happily, feeling so sure that I would never be able to do it and venture myself into an unknown country with a reputation for danger. 

I did the math over and over again and there was that small possibility still biting at my stomach with anxiety. I even thought about going door to door, asking for a dollar. (50 doors per day for 2 weeks makes $707).

So, I closed my eyes and plunged into the adventure...my aunts and uncles all pitched in about $100-$300 dollars each, even my mom helped. I worked extra hours and in the end of the 2 weeks I was sitting on an airport chair next to my friends waiting to be called on board. 

From this experience I learned A LOT. Now, when I face a challenge I try not to let the FEAR intimidate me. I learned that if you want something bad enough...destiny will conspire in our favor.

o destino conspira a nosso favor