Black Friday

My mother and my godmother have a yearly tradition to get together the day after Thanksgiving. This get-together usually involves going to a movie and having lunch or dinner, nothing else. Their tradition is not to buy anything during Black Friday even though they are surrounded by stores with great discounts. Is that so crazy? I asked my mother why she does this and she told me that Black Friday will give you great deals, but she would rather spend the extra money and avoid the frenzy.
This year, a man up in New York was trampled to death by over-zealous shoppers. People were so focused on getting the deal on the flat-screen plasma T.V. that they didn't think about not stepping on the man lying on the floor. And these people actually had the nerve to be upset when the store wanted to close down because of this death. Black Friday brings out the greed in many people. We spend Thanksgiving with our family, showing gratitude for what we have, then the next day we act like greedy animals with no regards for other people. Now that's ironic and sad.

My Best Friend Is Coming Back!

When I was in high school, my best friend and I used to talk about going to college together and how much fun it was going to be. However, that future was shattered when my friend told me, during the summer before college, that she was moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin because life in Miami was getting a bit difficult. I, of course, was crushed and very upset. Not only were we not going to college together like we planned, but the only true best friend I ever had was leaving.
Towards the end of my first Fall Semester, I get a call from her and she tells me that she might be moving back, but not to get my hopes up. Things weren't going that well in Milwaukee, so they thought they might as well come back home. After that, I began to hope for the best. A few weeks later, after I talked to her on the phone again, it became official that my best friend was coming back. After that phone call, I was so happy and excited that I jumped until my legs hurt. I'm an only child, and my friend is the closet person to a sister I've ever had, so it feels like a family member I love very much is going to be nearby again. Now, the things my friend and I used to talk about during high school can still come true.

Beverly Hills Chihuahuas

I haven't been to the movies in a long time. The last movie I remember seeing was "The Dark Knight." That's how long it's been. With everything that's going on with our economy, I'm a little hesitant when it comes spending money just so I can see a movie. But on Saturday, I went to see the cutest movie, "Beverly Hills Chihuahuas." I wouldn't normally go to a movie theater to see that kind of movie (the screaming kids tend to ruin the experience), but my godmother and mother just wanted to go to the movies as a way to hang out. So we just chose the movie we had the most interest in seeing. Thankfully, since it's been out for a couple of weeks, it wasn't going to be completely filled with noisy kids, so it won against the Madagascar sequel. But "Beverly Hills Chihuahuas" was adorable. It's about a spoiled, pampered, chihuahua being left with an irresponsible girl who takes the dog to Mexico. Since the dog is annoyed with the lack of proper attention, she goes on her own and accidentally gets kidnapped. The whole movie is about this chihuahua trying to find a way home while the people who kidnapped her are trying to get her because of her diamond collar. This movie would've been tacky and overdone if it was played by humans, but with cute dogs as the cast, it couldn't go wrong. Anyone you loves dogs will probably love this movie, however, some men won't find it so great.

When A Relationship Should End

On Friday, a friend of mine was going through a small crisis, she and her boyfriend broke up after 2 years of being together. This is the same girl from my previous blog "If there isn't any physical contact, is it still considered cheating?". I'll call my friend Crystal, and her now ex-boyfriend Derek.

At first, Crystal and Derek's relationship was sizzling. I remember times when I felt awkward just being in the same room with them when they started their daily, loving rituals. Sometimes, they were so passionate during their kissing rituals that I was tempted to stand in front of them so the nosy people passing by would stop staring at them. That's how hot it was.
But after several months, the sizzle died out, not completely, but just a bit, which is normal. After that, they were no longer considered a new couple, they were known as a pair.

After about a year into the relationship, the signs that proved that their relationship wasn't going to last started showing up. First, it started with him not wanting to talk about his future with her. Crystal believed Derek was "the one", and she continuously asked him where they would be in 10 years, but he never wanted to talk about it. "I don't think about that stuff," Derek would say, or "I don't want to talk about that right now." That is a bad sign. If a relationship is going to work, both parties should see each other in their future. Crystal says that she wished she had paid more attention to that little part in their relationship.

Then another sign showed up. Crystal and Derek weren't spending as much time together outside of school as they did in the beginning. Derek claimed that he didn't like many of her friends (except me) and that he would rather hang out with his friends than be with her and her friends. Ouch! That's a really bad sign. And when they did get together outside of school, he would tell her to just come to his house. They no longer made plans to see each other and when they did, it was something as easy as "If you want to hang out, then come over." That's another bad sign. When you no longer make an effort to see each other and have a good time, then there is something wrong.

After a while, another sign that doomed their relationship reared its ugly head. Crystal and Derek were always fighting. They would have a argument about something as stupid as a television program and wouldn't speak to each other for a couple of days. This is normal if it happens now and then, but they fought all the time, which is a very bad sign. And one of the reasons they fought was because they were fighting for control. "Why do you always have to hold the remote control?" "Why don't you let me choose what we're going to eat?" "Why don't you hang out with my friends?" These questions about control in their relationship, how ever small, isn't a good sign, and these questions led to arguments that kept them from speaking to each other for a couple of days. Crystal said she would've paid attention to those problems, but then he would call her or come to her with a teddy bear or flowers and apologize, and then she would forget about their former problems.

And another sign that I wrote about in the blog "If there isn't any physical contact, is it still considered cheating?," Chrystal began to compare Derek to a friend she was beginning to like a little too much. That is a bad sign as well. I don't believe she was cheating, but it was a definite sign that she wasn't happy. When you start comparing each other to other people, it means you are finding flaws in your partner that you really don't want and you're unconsciously looking for someone who doesn't have those flaws. That's a bad sign. If they're unhappy with each other early in the relationship, then there is no way they're going to make it in 5 years.

All these signs were in front of Crystal, but she refused to see it. Even though she loved Derek, she was unhappy. She tried telling herself that every relationship has those problems and that it was normal, but it wasn't good normal. Many relationships go bad and those problems are usual, but not good. Just recently, she started to realize that and she ended it. When he didn't fight and just shrugged, she knew she had made the right decision. Now she's going to try to start a relationship with the friend she was comparing Derek to. I hope that relationship will be better than her relationship with Derek.

My Halloween costume

This is my Goth Girl costume that I was unable to show in the previous blog.

My Halloween Costume

When I was younger, I would dress up for Halloween every year. It was something I looked forward to, the whole act of dressing up and being someone or something I wasn't was a lot of fun. But that yearly tradition ended the moment I entered middle school. The last time I dressed up for Halloween was in 5th grade because it was the last time I was allowed to wear my costume at school. What good is dressing up for Halloween when no one will really see you? Ever since then, I stayed home with a bowl of candy for the trick-or-treaters resting on my lap, watching scary movies in my night clothes. Until this year. Thankfully, that dull, stay-at-home tradition was broken when my uncle decided to throw a Halloween party. So, for the first time in a long time, I got to dress up for Halloween.

Since I haven't dressed up in a long time, I had no idea what I was going as. I was planning to stop by Party City or a costume shop and find my outfit. But before I could do that, my mother came home with a red bustier and that led to many ideas. Before I knew it, I had my costume ready, put together with things I already had in my home. I was going as a Goth girl.

I wanted so badly to wear my costume to school on Halloween. I wanted to do what I did in elementary school, but I didn't. I knew that many people wouldn't dress up that day and I'm not someone who likes to stand out in a crowd, I like to blend in. Plus, my costume is a little provocative, and after class I have to take the bus and walk home. It would be a bit embarrassing.
I tried to upload some pictures of me in my costume, but for some reason it wasn't working. So, I guess this is another year my classmates won't see my costume, but at least I had one.

This person doesn't realize how lucky he is

Not that long ago, I got in touch with some friends I haven't seen since elementary school. After getting over the shock of how much these people have changed since the last time I saw them, I asked them what they were up to. One of them, a guy who lives in Coral Gables, had nothing but negative things to say. But as I listened to his sob story, I couldn't believe how spoiled he was. He didn't realize how lucky he was and actually had the nerve to feel sorry for himself.

His family owns a good business that has been successful enough to build another store. So, in other words, his family is rich. Recently, his family promised him a good position as a manager in one of their stores, so his future is pretty much set. The only catch is he needs to go to college before he gets that position, which is understandable. But he whined that he didn't want to go to college, he just wanted to start working and receiving his close to 6-figure salary (his parents are giving him extra money to pay for insurance, rent or mortgage, gas money, etc.). He said that he could do that job with no problems because he's seen how easy it is, and if he had a problem his parents would help him. But his parents aren't giving the job to him unless he has a "stupid" college education. He doesn't even have to learn anything, he just needs the piece of paper that says he graduated. When I asked him how he was paying for college, he said that his parents paid for everything. So, not only does he just have to go to college just to get an education for a job that's being saved for him, but his parents are paying for it too. He doesn't have to worry about keeping a scholarship or anything. All he has to worry about is passing in the classes he chooses. So, this lucky son of a b**** just has to do his 60 credits with a passing grade, get his diploma, then work in a job he'll probably never get fired from. Poor him!

Food traditions

I am a fish out of water when it comes to food traditions in my local area. I live in an area predominantly of Hispanic heritage. There are many food festivals in the local park, but I don't attend them because they have nothing to do with my food traditions. The only food traditions I have experienced that involve this area are of the Miccosukee Indian Tribe.

Every year they have a festival where they display their traditions, including their cooking, clothing, jewelry making, and alligator wrestling. They lived in the Everglades and the Big Cyprus were they had to eat off the land as their ancestors did. Their diet included many wild animals, such as wild boar, fish, alligator, and other game. In the festival, they roast wild boar over an open pit, making an old fashioned barbeque. Their reasons for cooking it this way is because it was the way their ancestors cooked it, and they're honoring that old tradition at the festival for others to experience. Most eat the pork without any sauce slathered on it to enjoy the smoky flavor and can eat it without utensils.

Those attending the festival for the first time would learn how the Miccosukee Indian Tribe cooked their food and how the traditions that comes with it were passed down from generation to generation. They would learn that even now the tribe still finds their food from the wild and prepare it the same way, honoring their ancestors.

What make a dish traditional? I believe one of the things that makes a dish traditional is if the ways the dish is prepared are the same (how it was cooked). Like the Miccosukees, some people cook a dish the same way an ancestor cooked it, and it's mostly only to honor a tradition. When creating S'mores, it would be so much easier to put marshmallow fluff on the chocolate and gram crackers than it would to make a fire, hold a marshmallow over the fire with a stick, and try to put the sticky, blackened marshmallow on the chocolate and gram crackers. But it's done the harder way because it's traditional. Another way a dish can be traditional is if a recipe for a popular dish is passed down to the next generation and is made the same way. It's a traditional meal because it's actually respected and special enough to be passed down. But it has to be the same or it's a different meal. Another way a dish can be traditional is if the dish is reoccurring at a particular event. It doesn't have to be prepared the same way, but the dish must be at the event every time, like hotdogs and apple pie on 4th of July, and turkey on Thanksgiving. That's what makes a dish traditional.

Can a dog person be a cat person as well?

I had a hard time deciding what to write about in this blog, so I decided to write about the creature that's staring at me right now.
I'm a dog person, I love dogs. Whenever I'm around one, the dog and I have a lot of fun playing with Frisbees, balls, etc. Sadly, though, I can't have one. I live in an apartment and it's unfair for a dog to be stuck in one all day. A dog deserves a big, spacious yard to run about, and I can't provide that just yet.
However, I do have a cat. Her name is Samantha, nickname: Sammy, (my mother and I named her after the witch, Samantha Stevens, in the television show "Bewitched."), and she has black fur and yellow eyes. She was given to me when I was 12 years old, so I've had her for 6 years. I love my kitty. I think she's the best cat in the world. She is very loving and very playful, like a dog I suppose, she actually plays chase and hide n' seek with me. When I was younger, whenever I would run she would chase me and jump at my heels. And whenever I got her all excited and ran away to hide, she would actually look around the apartment for me. Is this normal behavior for a cat?
I've had her since she was a young kitten, so my mother and I are the only influences she's had. Is it possible that we unconsciously trained her to have the persona of a dog? Or is she a normal cat and, even though I'm a dog person, am I a cat person as well?

If there isn't any physical contact, is it still considered cheating?

How many times have people asked whether they were cheating or not? It’s a very confusing thing to determine because everyone has different views on the subject.
Okay, here’s the problem. My friend has a steady, serious boyfriend. She loves him and he’s very “hot” (I’ve seen him without a shirt on :) ). She really likes him, but there are moments when he’s a BIG jerk. There have been times when she was deep in her tears, wondering whether he was worth her time. That’s when she tells me every bad thing about him (I’m sure everyone has had this kind of conversation with their friends). She tells me that they don’t really have anything in common. She says he does nothing but play around with “stupid” cars, he hates everything but sports, he says the most ignorant things sometimes, and does many other selfish things that would be considered inappropriate to mention in this PG blog.
Then she tells me about her feeling for a friend of ours. She tells me that she loves her boyfriend, but she’d much rather spend her time with our friend. They have so much in common that she values their time together more than her time with her boyfriend. I asked her if she had strong feeling for our friend, and she said that she did and that there have been times when she wanted to kiss him. But she didn’t of course, she’s not that type.
“But would you consider this cheating?” she asked me. “I don‘t want to break up with my boyfriend, but I'm afraid I'm doing something bad that'll make me lose him,” she told me.
“I seriously do not know,” I told her. I really don’t. I always thought cheating involved sex, but maybe cheating involves emotions and sex usually just comes into the equation. But what about times when people have meaningless sex, one-night stands? It’s still considered cheating. So, maybe emotions don’t have to come in the equation. IT’S VERY CONFUSING.
Then she asks me, “What should I do about this?” She wants to know if she should tell her boyfriend. But you see, he’s the controlling, “quit looking at my girlfriend” kind of guy. She’s afraid if she mentions this thing she considers nothing, that he’ll see it as her cheating on him and break it off.
I have no idea what to tell her. I’m usually the one my friends turn to when they’re at a crisis, and I feel bad that I can’t really help her. I hope someone could shed some light on this subject for me.

Showtime's "Dexter"

I have been watching "Dexter" ever since its first premiere on Showtime. I'm crazy about the show. I can't put my finger on the exact reason except that it is great. It's about a serial killer who works in a Police Department as a Blood Spatter Analyst and kills killers on the side.

When Dexter was a young boy, he watched his mother get brutally murdered, and because of that traumatizing experience he has the lust to kill. Dexter was then adopted by a police man who recognized Dexter's urges (Young Dexter was cutting up animals), and when his foster father saw this he taught Dexter to hold in his evil desires and release it only on murderers, people who deserve to die. So, he's sort of a hero, he's killing people who kill innocent people. As Dexter phrases it, "He's taking out the garbage."

In the first season, he finds out why he is the way he is, and discovers interesting things about his past (I don't want to reveal too much or else I'll ruin the surprises for those who haven't seen the show). In the second season, all the bodies that Dexter dumped in the ocean (his way of getting rid of his victims) were found. Ironically, the Police Department Dexter works for is looking for the killer, looking for him (that should get you interested on what will happen). The first season was so great it was hard to believe the second season could top it, but it did. The second season was awesome, and way beyond that.

The reason I'm blogging about this show is because the season 3 premiere is starting today on September 28, 2008, and I can't wait to see how this season will top the last.

A Sad Love Story

For today’s blog, I have a true love story I want to share with all of you.
When I was in 9th grade I was a part of this little group of friends that met every day at lunch. Among those friends was a girl I’ll call Karrie, and a boy I’ll call Andrew. During 9th grade, my friend, Karrie, developed a huge crush on Andrew. I remember her being so obvious about it, and I always thought Andrew was a little uncomfortable with it. Whenever Karrie told him about how she felt, he would say that he didn’t want a relationship yet and that they should wait. When I heard this, I believed it was just a nice way to brush someone off. “Maybe he just wasn’t into her,” I thought to myself sadly. I wanted them to be together (even though I had a slight crush on him too) because I wanted Karrie, my best friend, to be happy.
But that little event in her life didn’t stop her from moving on. She was very beautiful and there was always a guy out there who liked her. So, she had a few relationships (some I think were huge mistakes), and her crush on Andrew seemed to go away. She no longer talked about him constantly (which I was a little thankful for); she had other guys on her mind.
It wasn’t until senior year that I spoke to Andrew again (after freshman year, he found new groups to have lunch with). Karrie was in a serious relationship at that time (the word “love” was used constantly to describe Karrie’s feelings for her boyfriend), and Andrew had nothing but negative things to say about it. I thought he was just making his usual jokes, but I didn’t realize they were his true feelings.
After senior year, Karrie and her boyfriend broke up because she moved far away and he couldn't take a long distance relationship. I was so upset when she moved; she was the sister I never had. After that, I called Karrie all the time, and for some reason we seemed to talk more than before. I guess that’s because we were no longer playing video games and watching movies together, we were having long, personal conversations instead.
During one of the phone calls, Karrie mentioned that she speaks to Andrew on a regular basis. I was surprised to hear that. But it turned out that she and Andrew always spoke on the phone, ever since 9th grade. It turns out Andrew really did mean what he said in 9th grade, he just wanted to wait, not brush her off. After she left, he confessed his feelings for her. “That idiot waits until I’m gone to tell me!” Karrie told me over the phone. At first, I didn’t really believe it; I thought Karrie was just telling colorful lies.
So, to prove she was telling the truth, she made a 3-way on the phone so I could silently listen to their conversation. “What is wrong with you?” is the first question Andrew asked when Karrie began to ask him if he really did like her. There was even a time when she asked if he loved her, and after a long time of nothing but “I’m not going to say it again,” he finally said it. “Yes, I love you,” was how he phrased it. “And I always have,” he added later. I must have had tears flowing out of my eyes when I heard him say that. It was so sad and so beautiful to hear. I never thought real life could be like a fairy tale. At that moment I thought to myself “That idiot waited until she was gone to do this!”
Karrie isn’t as bothered by it as I would’ve been if I was in her shoes. All she says is “It sucks.” Yeah, it really does suck! My friend could’ve been happy with the guy she liked for 4 years, and the guy loved her too. The only thing I can say is he waited too long. I feel so bad for them. This story reminds me of the tale where a couple in love is separated by a tall, wide wall and the only thing they can do is talk to each other through the wall.
So, I guess this love story can teach a valuable lesson. If you want something, don’t let time get in your way because before you know it the opportunity door will close.

What Identity Means To Me

My definition of the word "Identity" is who you are. But I'm sure you're asking, "what makes you the person you are?" Many believe it's what you're born with and born into. But I believe it's the choices you make, that's what determines who you are. You may be born with something, but you can always choose to change it; like your name, your religion, your culture, even your gender (with a lot of surgery). But just because you were born with something, it doesn't really determine who you are exactly. There's always a choice, and the choices you make tells you who you are. At least that's what I believe.

Do you believe in ghosts?

Ever since I was a young girl, I have been fascinated with ghost stories. I have watched many documentaries on haunted houses, and have read about many true ghost stories (I even have an interesting encyclopedia on haunted houses). But no matter how interested in the subject I was, nothing could prepare me for the frightening event I had experienced.
It all started when I was in my room just looking through my things. Then I found an old music jewelry box my great grandmother had given to me long ago. After I winded the box so it could play the music, it didn’t do anything. It was broken. I remember being very upset because my great grandmother had given it to me before she died. It hurt me to see a present and memory from her had died as well. So, I left the box alone and started to do something else. About 30 or 45 minutes later, out of nowhere, the music box started playing. The box only plays music when the lid is open, but the lid was shut and the music was twanging very slowly. After that, I ran out of my room.
I have always felt uncomfortable in my room, and I never understood why. It was always the coldest room in the house (which should’ve given me a hint), and I feel freaked out when I’m in there unless I have something noisy on, like the TV or the radio (maybe to unconsciously drown out the voices of the spirits in my room). There have been countless times when I have woken up in the middle of the night terrified, yet I don’t know why. There have also been times when I wake up on the couch instead of in my bed. That means I unconsciously woke up in the middle of the night and went to another room, possibly to escape something disturbing my sleep. And, now that I think about it, a friend of mine who claims to be slightly clairvoyant had mentioned she felt uncomfortable in my room as well.
Do you think I have a ghost in my room, or have I jumped to conclusions because I'm so interested in ghost stories?

Why Are Some People Bias Towards Rock Music?

My favorite genre of music is Classic Rock and Hard Rock. I love Classic Rock because that was all my parents listened to when I was a child, so I feel like I grew up listening to that music, even though it was way before my time. And I don't know exactly why I love Hard Rock, all I know is it lifts my spirit every time I listen to my favorite songs.

When I tell people what kind of music I listen to, for some reason they seem shocked. Why? I ask myself. Is it so hard to believe that a girl like me, someone who hardly curses because she believes it to be immature, could be a "Rocker?" What kind of reputation does rock music have?

With this question rolling around in my head, I asked a bunch of my friends what they thought about rock music. One of them said they hated it because it wasn't music, it was just screaming and cursing. (This came from a person who only liked rap music.) But then I asked her if she ever actually listened to it, and she replied, "Not really." I didn't understand how someone could judge something they knew nothing about. Do people really believe Rock is just screaming and cursing? And if they do, why? What kind of rock music have they been listening to that would give them that impression?

I wonder.

First Day of College

Like most students on their first day of school, I was very nervous. I was so anxious I couldn't even eat my breakfast. So, I went to school with butterflies in my empty stomach, worrying about whether college would work out for me. In movies, they make college seem like another world or hell, and I had no reason not to believe them. I remember every moment of the long, yet short, car ride from my home to the school. I felt as if I was a prisoner, strapped to the car seat by my safety belt, watching the free world go by. When I stepped out of the car, I looked at my surroundings, half expecting to find people passed out on the floor from a brain overload. Thankfully I didn't, or I probably would've ran the other way. As I tried to find the classroom to my first college course, I saw some familiar faces from my high school, which helped ease a bit of my anxiety. I realized then that I wasn't going to be entirely alone in this new world.

As I was sitting in my classroom, I began to wonder about the kind of teachers I had and unwillingly started to anticipate the worst. Then, my English professor walked through the door with a welcoming smile on her face. I wasn't expecting that. I actually thought the professor would walk into the classroom with a sour look on his/her face, and begin to scare us by informing us of his/her high expectations and how no one has ever reached it. But it was like a breath of fresh air when my English professor walked in. It allowed me to calm down a bit. Then, she introduced herself and told us about the course and what we would be doing throughout the semester. My nervousness for that class seemed to melt away immediately. College wasn't another world or hell, it was just a place with classes that required more devotion than an average high school class.

By the time I was heading to my other college course, I was more confident. I wasn't terrified like before because I saw that there was a chance my math professor could be like my English professor. There was hope this time. When my math professor walked into the classroom, he didn't have a welcoming smile on his face, but he warmed up to us as the class went on.

When I went home, I didn't have the knot in my stomach anymore. It turned out I was worried about nothing. It seems I unconsciously anticipate the worst, and because of that I'm never disappointed. It's horrible to deal with in the beginning, but I have a good, relieved feeling at the end of the day.