Author: anele25

300 Writing prompts Number 7: What is one of your greatest blessings?

Posted on by anele25

7 prompts into the 300 writing prompts and this one popped up for me and I would say that the greatest blessing is having family in your life. It’s funny you’re born, your parents have this thing called a child and they somehow have to dress it up. My family has been there for me to give me many things and you just wonder if sometimes it is luck of the draw. I know of friends and family where they struggled early on to gain any sort of familial support in their journey. I can say in my recent years that my family has supported with my decisions. The two things that I wanted to accomplish in the last ten years was to buy a car and finish school. I ended up accomplishing both in the last year and I could have done both without their support. I also recently noticed that no matter things may get or if you end up upset at each other at the end of the day, they will be there for you to welcome you with open arms. One example I can think of where they were there for me was when I had been going through my transition of going from community college to upper division at San Jose State.

 

I mentioned this earlier but I think what happened along the way was that they gave me the motivation to be better than I was. I needed the extra push from my family to do well because I saw them struggle when I was younger. I saw sometimes how my mom would come home sometimes at 6 at night from work taking the bus or my dad who would come sometimes at midnight from work. I would see the little sacrifices made here and there so we can enjoy a better life one day. Every year we would save up and go to Mexico to enjoy the family we had over there. This is before everyone had kids and had obligations and before the world started moving so fast. I felt that back then that my parents wanted to give their own blessings a little taste of who and what their families were like. I can remember every summer we would spend at Grandma’s and everyone was just free and on their own.

 

To me, this was a blessing behind a blessing because every summer we would see the same cousins and people we knew. I could see that my family wanted us to bond with our family so they can see that expanded family was also a part of us as well. My fondest memory of us all being together was back in 2004 as our time was winding down and me and my cousins were bonding over random conversations. You can see from the beginning that our family wanted nothing but the best for us. I’m grateful for these memories and many others. The human body is susceptible to certain illnesses and one that comes to mind was when my dad was going through a skin disorder and I had to take him and back and forth to appointments. The hardest part was knowing that this person was in your life and now you had to care for them. I bonded with my dad at that point because this was the period in his life when he was still going through his restaurant job as well. We would stay up and watch wrestling together on Mondays and now in some ways that was being taken away from me. He would ask me how and why these wrestlers were fighting and I would need to explain it to him. I was so happy about this whenever we would get the chance to do this but like I said now it was being taken away from me. The moments when I would see him struggle reminded me of the times when I would see him come home late after work and he would still be there to go along with his kids and enjoy their time together. Recently, I also remember my dad would say that he had nowhere as time has gone on, my mom has also started to show some signs of slowing down and this is the impending kidney dialysis that she has with her. I can see her struggling little more now and as time goes on I want to learn as much as possible within the next few years. My brother has given me one of his best blessings which his ability to guide me about various topics. I can remember growing up and the one line that always sticks with me is when I had gotten upset because I was unable to pass my DMV test and he gave me encouragement that day to continue forward. I’m sometimes grateful for him becoming my friend because I learned about how to talk and speak up to people.

 

Before, I was shy and didn’t know how to take things with people. I often credit my brother for helloing me finish my schooling as well because he didn’t finish school and often we look to our brothers for advice as well. As I go through my older years, I eventually want to be that blessing to my sons as well because the greatest gift you can give to a child is a life full of adventure, warmth, love and understanding of living. Blessings give us the ability to see that life works in a funny way. You’re stuck with your family and you learn to function with them every day. I can see as I get older that I am going to stare at whoever, somebody that I have next to me and see my own family growing right before my very eyes. These are the reasons I think we have blessings: To be able to show us that life can be a fun and exciting time as we grow and learn from each other. I also think the experiences we can provide each other as time goes on to talk about and laugh at these times are the wonderful times we can have. Till next time everyone.

300 writing prompts #6 Write about your first day at your current job:

Posted on by anele25

The current job where I work at is doing coordinator work for a research study at Stanford and it was almost exactly 3 years ago that I started my job there. I started working there first as a research assistant and slowly worked my way up to be a coordinator. My first day, however, I would describe as nerve racking because it was right before midterms were to happen. I had been studying frantically for 3 midterms that I had that week and I was also wondering if I would like the job at all. The night before, I had worked at Target and was a little tired because I had stayed till 2-3 in the morning talking with a friend of mine. We were talking about the changes that were happening at the store and what would happen now that I was leaving Target. The new position at Stanford had me wondering at what I would be doing and how I would be doing it. I got up pretty early day because I did not know how my first day would go. I got up and sat in traffic for a bit and walked in to see where I would be sitting. I asked the receptionist where to head to as I was confused as to where I should go. I remember the first I saw was a nice older lady who pointed me to where I could go and one of the people I still talk to to this day helped me out. I remember looking through something called a “screening form” and looking at all the details of that screen. I was excited for the opportunity but once I saw the form, I kind of hesitated because it was something new for me. The first day I remember doing some trainings about HIPPA compliance and looking through modules about different types of research that were examined through history. I also remember taking my time with these tarinings because it was something that was new to me at that time. The desk where was sitting at also

 

The one that sticks out in my mind were the experimental functions and the kind of research that we did actually did have some sort of impact upon people. I also remember getting told by my colleague that recommended me for the job that we were getting ready to go on a mini field trip. I also remember my boss telling my colleague to not take me on any joyrides while we went along on that field trip. That day during the ride I remember eating some burritos because I had not yet eaten lunch.  This mini field trip I feel was more of an introduction to what we were getting ready to do at these community centers that we were going to be at.

 

The funny part I remember about that trip is my friend in the back, saying he was tired from the weekend because he had just celebrated his daughter’s birthday. I call him my friend because he is someone from there on out taught me so much about life and the workplace. If it were not for him, I don’t think I would have the position I have right now.  He specifically referenced how much he had to drink and this really made me think how normal everyone in a job setting can be. I also remember having to ask embarrassingly where the microwave was and where the restroom was as well. The whole first day seemed like a dream because I had been used to working retail and moving so much throughout the day. I wasn’t used to looking over trainings or talking about research studies, the whole concept seemed foreign to me and here I am three years later and now people are amazed at how I can remember certain events and timelines of how things have gone. Anyway, the one memory I also have was that my friend who had recommended me was giving me pointers on how I should act around an office and introducing me to as many people as possible just so I could get a feel as to how things went around the place. This idea of networking was also something that was new to me and in retail you just got the runaround on how a store ran and that was the jist of it. That same day I met someone who had been working with my colleague beforehand and once again I got the feeling that this person was someone who was “normal”. I remember ending the day and thinking how amazing it was that now here I was and how awesome my first day had been. Since that first day, I have not looked back because in some way I have changed people’s lives for the better. It doesn’t matter whether it was someone who was there for a short time or someone who was there for a long time but what mattered was what kind of impact they had on my career at that point in time. For example, someone who was there for a short amount of time may have told me some information about themselves that they may otherwise have not told anyone else. The other fun part about that first day was the transition that I had made from working one job to another. The joy of having to not work weekends anymore and not having to leave my family anymore was quite the relief. No more leaving parties halfway to go and work for a few hours and wondering how it was going. The joy was real and this is something to this day that I take as a blessing because not many people get to experience this joy. The first day of my current job was once again something that I won’t forget because you remember many of your firsts and this was one of them.

 

Writing Prompt #5 Imagine you are planning a trip across the continent on which you live: Assuming you have unlimited time, resources and energy, what will be your mode of transportation?

Posted on by anele25

I was digging through the 300 writing prompts last night and came across this prompt which got me thinking: What would be the easiest mode of transportation? What would be the hardest? I narrowed it down to an airplane being the easiest and the car being the hardest. In the middle I would put a train. The continent I live on is North America which consists of 23 countries and I would imagine several dozen states. The continent itself consists of 9 million miles and I would first start out with the local United States and eventually head down south. Afterwards, I would head back up north to Canada. Out of these three options that being the “planes, trains, and automobile” options I would take a car because I would get to see some interesting places that I would not see on an airplane. I get the sense when I am on a plane that I get to see the clouds, the scenery of the mountains, and the rain if the weather permits. On a train, you get the option of seeing the scenery as you go along and you can also tune up some of your music as you go along on the trip. For a car though, you get all the stories of traveling around the continent and not necessarily limiting yourself to one place. The unlimited resources and time would also be a plus because I would not have to worry about spending money. I would be quite fond of also getting to get that unlimited resource perk because you never know when you might need something for the trip such as food and gas. I would also want to go with people that I have in my life so that the trip will be entertaining and I would get to experience many other things with them. There is something fun and exciting about getting to spend hours and hours in a car with the ones you care about. For the most part, I have been in cars with my family on trips. However, I remember a few years ago when I took a trip with a friend of mine to Hawaii and the experiences we had were unforgettable. I can just imagine what it would have been like had we had a car and some other unlimited resources such as money. Another nice thing about traveling with others and having these unlimited resources would be the discussions that people would have. I know friends I have would discuss some interesting topics as well.  I’ve also been on a few trips by myself and it is peaceful but experiencing these things with others would be worth it. I still remember what it was like driving from Tampa Bay to Miami and just remembering how peaceful it was. It rained afterwards but I still remember just thinking, this is a nice life to have and want for the future.

Another example I can think of is if I were traveling across the country and I happened to hit a state like South Dakota it would be nice to stop by some national parks such as Mount Rushmore, Badlands National Park, and the other wonderful scenery. I’ve always wanted to explore some states that I may not know so much about that you hear so much about. There may be nothing there (or so I think) but I feel we are so used to going and going but sometimes we forget that there are other states out there. A few states that come to mind in this case may be South Carolina, Iowa, and Montana. South Carolina is one of those states that also plays host to the coastal resorts and this is something I would also want to explore. Iowa is also host to the Bridges of Madison County. From what I have seen, there are a total of six bridges and these too would be something on my list of must see. The bridges are Cutler-Donohoe, Cedar, Hogback, Holliwell, Imes, and Roseman. These bridges all look like something that would be quite the experience. There is also something about bridges that gets me thinking and also the construction that may have gone into them is also something that is interesting. Another example that I can think of when I pass these states would be to visit the national parks there as well. The two national parks that are famous there are Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park. I’ve also seen someone that was in the wrestling business who now lives in Montana. He lives on a ranch and the more I think about, the more I think that this would not be the worst idea because you would be away from the hassle of the world. I also think having unlimited energy is also something that can be important towards traveling across the continent. We live and care for our houses, work our jobs, and take care of our loved ones. The one thing we forget sometimes is that having energy to even travel is there. We do our routine of getting up, doing our regular grind, and then we go off. The traveling aspect of seeing these new locations can give one the idea that it is such a small world around us and the continent that is around us can be so much bigger. For someone’s job who it is travel, it may get boring and routine but it would be something different because I would actually get to stop and see these destinations.

Sometimes, when people travel all they do is their business and they are just out of the area. For example, one of my friends who was recently here for work said his co-workers just wanted to see San Francisco. I can vouch for one that the Bay Area is much bigger than that and there are many more cool destinations to see around the area. The same thing can be said for the Space Needle in Seattle possibly. I remember going up the hill for Kerry Park in Seattle and thinking the average person most likely not see these places when they travel. These words that I have written are just of the few reasons I would want to drive instead of flying because the accomplishment of actually getting there and seeing it is something for the human eye to see. The car itself would probably the car I have right now because having that wonderful Dodge Challenger traveling across the continent would be awesome with engine revving across and experiencing it along the way. I would also make sure to stay at least one night in every state in the United States portion. As for the other parts of North America, I would definitely be open to exploring the other countries as well however for now I would stick with going here in the United States first and then going to other places as well. This was definitely an interesting piece of writing to write because it got me thinking of the possibilities that would be possible with all the places to explore with unlimited time and resources which is something we can never get enough of! Until next time, I’m really enjoying these writing prompts! Your author Jose.

Writing Prompts #4: Do You have anyone in your life that has acted as a mentor to you? Have you ever helped someone out in this Way?

Posted on by anele25

The next writing prompt which is outlined above is something that I have never thought about until I saw the prompt over the weekend. Seeing as how today is President’s Day, I thought I would sit down and write a little about someone who served as a mentor for me when I started working at Target almost 10 years ago. How the timeline is doesn’t matter for context of this story because these are just a few of the things I appreciated about this gentleman. I remember meeting this older guy, who for identity purposes, we’ll call Jacob. I remember first meeting him when I was working in the grocery department and some customers were looking for somebody by his name. The catch was that they had to find someone by his name and take a picture with him. I then realized this guy must be really cool for them to ask him that and he takes the picture with them. From there, Jacob started acting as a mentor to me. I remember one particular instance where I got called by a customer and someone had (in a joking fashion) said that their name was Jose and I was freaking out because I had never even spoken to this customer over the phone. I then started asking around and asking if anyone knew who had used my name. Little did I know, Jacob told this person who had used my name to tell me that it was him because I had been freaking out. This person who had used my name then apologized and after that I said, ‘wow that was really nice of Jacob to go up to this other person and stick up for me’. I then realized that I can learn so much from Jacob and his life experiences. He had worked various jobs and he knew what it was like to interact with people. I wasn’t the most social or outgoing person and he taught to just be natural and not act awkward towards customers. I also learned that you can take things personally or not because we were dealing with people all day whether it was with managers, team members, and customers. His advice was helpful because he gave me confidence to advance in life and he also taught me one of the many important lessons in life: work hard and eventually you’ll get your due.  I also started taking a less serious approach over the months as I was working there and I remember in my review for the first year working there, I got told that I was unapproachable and didn’t seem friendly. Jacob gave me the advice that you just need to relax and not take it so seriously.

 

I started smiling a little more at work and giving good customer service as opposed to before because I was not used to being in such an environment. As the years went by, myself and Jacob started working a lot more together and we bonded over the amount of work we would have to do, life advice, and sports. The one thing Jacob helped me with was realizing how much I helped myself out by separating myself from certain people. I remember him telling me that a certain friend of mine seemed different and one piece of evidence was when this friend of mine was switching teams because his team the Broncos had lost to the Raiders (best Football team out there!). I then started realizing my friend was just trying to be trendy by being with winners. He told me specifically ‘you’re in it for the teams and sports he isn’t’. It was one of the few moments I made the analogy between folks switching teams and the friendships they build. The way you drop friends and then decide to switch teams was apparent right there. These moments that I have mentioned above are why this Jacob fellow was one of my first mentors in life. He made you feel appreciated, he listened to you when it mattered, and we also shared some details about our own lives. I appreciated another time me and Jacob had a long discussion about me transferring stores. I had done the decision because I wanted to be closer to home and I was finishing up my final year at San Jose State. He supported me in this choice and I remember feeling pretty sad because I knew that I would not be able to talk to Jacob as much as I used to. I lasted at my new Target store 6 months but I remember stopping by to make a payment to a friend of mine. I saw Jacob there and we started talking about old times. I realized that I missed his advice and I remember I would have situations where I was just stuck whether it was at home, at work, or in life.

 

Almost a year ago, I saw one of my old co-workers and she gave me the news that Jacob had recently been diagnosed with Cancer and I was extremely sad that I never got to connect with him over that. It’s funny because I asked her to give me his number so I could contact him and ask him if I could help out in any way. I never got that opportunity but I would imagine it was hard on him. I would say the second part of that prompt is something I’ve always been interested in doing but it is not something that has come up in life. I would say Jacob taught me to be me most of all and also break out of my shell when it was necessary. I remember some of his classic sayings were ‘I just work here’ and ‘two highs ok with me’. These were some of those moments that just make me smile and think he knew how to have a good time and he wouldn’t seem upset about too many things. He would just keep on trucking without any hesitation. I wonder about getting old sometimes and the wisdom that I would be able to spread to others as well. I would certainly use my old friend and mentor Jacob’s will and humor to work my way through any situation. He didn’t seem like he was angry at the world either as I mentioned earlier which is something I’ve learned to take on as an everyday motto. I also learned from him that no matter how many people you deal with in life, the ones that matter will always be closest by you when it matters. He even mentioned in passing that ‘wouldn’t you like to be my son’. He knew very well that he was sort of a father figure towards me and he would protect me. He would talk about how much his family meant to him and he would speak with glee whenever he speak about his kids as well. He’s one of the main people I think about whenever I have a problem at hand and I take his many words of advice to heart. I miss the guy and I know where ever he may he also remembers what he taught me. Thank you buddy, thanks for the memories and the laughs! Till next Time!

Writing prompts #3: What is your favorite work of art? What do you love about it?

Posted on by anele25

The 300 writing prompts so far has given be 2 topics so far which have been thought provoking and made me reflect a bit on my past. This next one I see as a challenge because I am not the kind of person to express my words about art. This piece of art properly called “The Scream” is done by Edvard Munch. I’ve seen this piece of art before and I wanted to talk a bit about it. The reason I first like this piece of art is because it gives off the impression about a person (sex not described or indicated), who is in anguish or who has some sort of anxiety running through them. I can remember growing up or even through my adult years where I wasn’t feeling my best mentally because I was worried about something that was going on in my life or someone had just told me some shocking news that I had a hard time holding in.

I also really enjoy the painting because of the background that is in the painting. The skies are red with a blue and sort of black water. You kind of get the feeling from seeing the painting that if anything the colors provoke something within the viewer. When I see red, I think of blood or romance and in this essence it could be that it brings these two together to bring some sort of chaos where nothing is perfect in the world. I also notice that the red is mixed in with green as well and from my interpretation that can also be a sign of the green nature that is in and around our world. Now, to get into the characters within the painting itself. I notice that something I love about the painting is that the person that is screaming has eyes and his mouth open while the two characters in the back have no role. The two people in the background could be seen as observers who do not pay attention to what is going on around them. In fact, something that has been theorized about this painting is that artists were becoming more expressive during this time. Hence, this is why I make the connection to these two characters not being able to pay attention to what is going on around them. I can see what Munch means by his painting here is that artists have become afraid to express their opinions on social issues or the well-being of artists. Sometime back, I also read that art at this time was changing and was giving way for new artists in the field. It would be like today when artists from pop culture are starting to collaborate on projects such as movies, music, or even tv shows. I think back in those times it would seem almost impossible to bring so many artists together because everyone wants to have an input on what it is they do. One other thing I enjoy and love about this painting is that it paints a clearer picture of what else may be going in the background of this picture.

One article I read is that the person in the picture could be screaming at the horror of the slaughterhouse that is nearby. The main character that we see could be shouting at the horror that is going in during the actual proceeding where they are crossing. It goes back to what I said in the beginning, the main character is somewhat worried as to what is happening around him as he crosses the bridge. The artist also originally meant this to be a piece of how his friends had left him behind and he stopped to gaze at what was the red sky. Yet, he somehow stayed behind and he gazed on in fear. One other thing that needs to be pointed out about this piece of work is how Munch takes apart his work by not clearly explaining what gender the person in the work is. This is one of the parts of the painting because we who are viewing the painting could be in this painting. I sometimes think when we are not feeling our best we could be crying out for help. The sounds that is also covering up inside the main character is quite something to view as well because of how we may want to block out everyone else out. We may do this along these lines because we may cover up our ears with earphones when we are on the bus, airplane, on the train, or at our jobs. The idea of sound is also something that we tend to ignore in our lives because sounds can sometimes tell us something that we may or may not want to hear. When we hear directions, cues, or when we see something on a screen we tend to look for sounds that may trigger a certain emotion. I also feel the sounds when I may be reading a book that I really like.

1200px-The_Scream
The Scream

Once again, this idea of how we take sounds may sound far fetched, but sounds make a profound impact on our lives and it is one of the final reasons I really enjoy this piece. I sometimes wonder what one’s perspective may be about slaughterhouses or being near some sort of thing that they may dislike. For example, I am not the world’s biggest fan of people that are having drinking issues being near a bar.

I can imagine having them resist a drink is something that is difficult for them to resist. Anyway, these are just a few reasons I really love this painting because of the amount of effort that is put into the detail. One thing that I think I forgot to mention is that Munch does a fantastic job of expressing with this painting with the bridge that is covering apart of the painting. This was definitely one of the most difficult pieces to write because of how I had never written about a piece of art but I am happy to get this one in because it felt like I was back in school. I’d be curious to get across what this painting maybe meant for other people back in older times but now I will never get that chance because time travel does not exist. Anyway, this does it for this piece. I will continue on with this 300 writing prompts piece until I can no longer write about the awesome prompts in here. Till next time, signing off!

300 Writing Prompts: What was the first thing you ever saved up your money to purchase?

Posted on by anele25
IMG_2838
My TA Challenger (aka Dino)!

Per my last blog, I want to write about topic number 2 from 300 writing prompts. This time the topic is something that has been on my mind the past few days which is “what is the first thing you ever saved up your money for”? People save up for little things such as books, toy cars, toys, and crafting materials. In my case, I want to talk about my first ever big purchase that I have made. I have never had the inkling to say “I’m going to save my money to buy X item…” and I think still to this day that I am not that type of person. I do however have the inkling to say that I would save up money to buy two things: a car and a house. A car is needed for going to and from a location and I said to myself this is my dream car. The house is something I would love to own one day and like I tell myself sometimes it is a process. I also said to myself it would be really nice to have something I would be proud to call my own. I saved up my money almost a year ago and purchased (almost a year ago actually) a new Dodge Challenger.

A few months before the actual purchase, I started going over in my head what I needed to do to purchase my car. I said I needed to get rid of certain expenses such as cutting out eating out so much and only focus on saving up money for that final end goal. I also said in order to do this I needed to look at what I was spending my money on. Like any young adult, I usually pay for internet, rent, streaming services, gas, and food. I decided the two most important were gas and food. The gas was simple because of how much gas my car would guzzle throughout the week. I also figured that not eating out as much saved me so much money. As I went along in my process, I started thinking I really want this car because of how cool and niche the product was. As the months started progressing, I started seeing that I was getting close to my original goal of putting down a 7,000 dollar down payment. However, as I was getting close to my goal I realized that something was off. I had a weird feeling the weekend of March 5th as my brother asked me if he could borrow my older Toyota Corolla. I remember him, his wife, and his 3 kids were hauling off in my car as he needed it the next morning to go to work. I clearly remember walking towards Lowe’s as my brother called me and said he was sorry. I started thinking in my head what could have happened? He said he had crashed the car and he wasn’t sure what had happened. The first thing I asked him if he was ok and that’s all I cared about. Once again, he apologized and I said well time to get a new car. I saw what my account looked like and it was enough to cover the down payment (at least for what I wanted). As I started looking through the cars on the Dodge website from Fremont, I said I really wanted a car that will stand out. I remember driving a Yellow Mustang, in Florida and I said let’s go for Yellow. I also enjoy Yellow because it is the color of my favorite Baseball team the Oakland A’s and the color of some of the coolest things is Yellow (bees, leaves, zucchini, flowers, etc.). I saw it and headed down two weeks after to check it out with my family because I knew I wanted them there for that experiences .

I was determined to pick out this car and there were several other options. I also enjoyed this basic model they had of the challenger which was green and SXT but the one I wanted was a Challenger TA which was one of those special edition Challengers. After taking a few test drives, I realized this was the car that I wanted to settle on. Besides the usual paperwork and the talk between all the payments, I started thinking in my head about how much cooler and nicer this car would add to my everyday life. I always wanted to roll around in a sports car and now my life would be this. After a while of thinking about this, I also pictured what my life would be like if I didn’t have this car. I guess in a way I wondered about how the more expensive luxuries in my life would be exempt for a few years. I remember the conclusion to this argument in my head was that this is something I wanted and I worked hard to get the car. I also thought about the times I heard about parents buying their kids cars and how my parents had never sacrificed that kind of money on cars that were given to me. I always find a way to tie this back to my parents but in a sort of humbling way I’m glad I didn’t grow up with a car in the family. We would ask our neighbors or family for rides. If we didn’t have this luxury, we would take the bus to local places. Those experiences of never having to be indebted to a car was something I was very thankful as I grew up and I’ll never forget all those times we rode the bus.

Anyway, the two cars that were given to me as hand me downs were so great that I never forget the moments, memories, and the times I had in those cars. I also won’t forget that those kind of cars made me humble and thankful for what I had in my life. The last thought in my head during the whole purchasing process was that sometimes it’s ok to give yourself a little treat for the blood, sweat, and tears that you had sacrificed. Once I drove off the lot, I said this is new and exciting for you and enjoy this opportunity now. For the last year, that car and myself have taken quite the journey. We have been to Salinas, Watsonville, San Jose, Fresno, and Oakland. I’ve also noted how nice it is not to have to worry about my car breaking down in the middle of the road. The lesson here for me is that saving your money is not the easiest thing to do in the world but if it means that much to you to save up and buy that nice thing you’ve been itching for I feel you should go for it and be patient. I know that now with myself this car (appropriately named Dino), that we will continue to wreck the mean streets of the Bay Area and we still have many more adventures to take throughout the bay area. Till next time to see what I write about on ‘300 writing prompts’.

Imagining you are with your old school friends….

Posted on by anele25

“Where do you see yourself in ten years?” is something I would hear often during my high school years and tonight I wanted to sit down and write about a topic that I have hardly thought about. I have had some changes in the past twelve years since High School and I want to reference high school because that was the time when we all transitioned from childhood to High School. A great friend of mine recently gave me a book for Christmas that has 300 writing prompts and I intend to write as many as I can before I die or perhaps before the one day comes that I will lose my passion to write anything (I highly doubt this). One of the topics in the book asks this “Imagine you are at your next high school reunion. How do you think your old school friends would react to the person you are today?” I don’t think anybody is the same person they were five or ten years ago. Experiences, goals, and relationships change us all. High school for me ended on June 8th 2006 and on that day I remember not really waving at anybody or seeming excited that high school was over.

I just looked it at as another phase of life that had ended for me and I was ready to move on with my life. I wasn’t the most popular person or most outgoing person. I wouldn’t go to parties or hang out with the in crowd. I would say if I were to meet my old school friends they would treat me exactly the same but we would be different in our lives. I remember hanging out with one of my friends from high school in 2015 and we did what guys usually do: go hang out and talk about life. One thing I remember noticing about my friend is how much he had changed from being super funny and outgoing to being a former shell of who he is. No longer was he the fun loving guy people would gravitate towards but he had become more serious in the way he acted, the way he thought, and the way he approached people. I felt that when we hung out we had almost reversed roles. I was now in a position where I had gone through certain experiences and was now in control of my emotions. Before I would be irritable, angry, and somewhat moody. Now, I saw my friend in this position and there was no way I could change him because you can’t change anybody’s perspective in life on where he was. However, going back to the original question I would say if my old school friends saw me they would ask how things changed, what do I think was the best way to do this, and would start asking me about my career and where I was. One other thing that has never been steady in my life as well would be my diet and exercise.

Recently, I have started watching my diet because of the surgery that I have undergone (more of this information available in an earlier blog post). I would say they would be shocked because my diet in high school wasn’t particularly great as I would eat like crazy in high school. I also remember I took a strength training class in college and this is when my life was in flux on whether I should continue to work out or not. One of my classmates commented on how good my stamina was because we would take weekly runs on stairs or outside on a track. This is something I would point out to my friends because of how much a statement I like to make with this. I would also say my friends would be surprised because I was never the most athletic in high school and I never played sports either. I also would dare say that people would start asking about the type of motivation I have behind this. I have believed that in the past few years that my motivation is to live as long as possible and the experiences and memories we make are based off of this. I can wake up tomorrow and not be motivated but one thing that gets me is the ability to know that every day is a new opportunity, a new challenge, a new hello, a new morning, a new something to look forward to.

Sure, we all sit in traffic on the way to and from work but this is a part of what life is. I would think if I were to tell this to my friends they would start laughing at me but I truly do believe that this does motivate me to achieve something greater every day. I also sometimes wonder if they would even recognize me because in High School you have your one or two friends that you stick close by with. I remember sitting in a row full of strangers that I had never met in my life. This is something I fear because of how diverse and far the field has gone in terms of how big of a class we were. But, I know I would have my friends that would be there to support me in how I am doing and how I have changed. I also have documented in how I think having a pet of some sorts has made me a nicer person. The dog I had before, Paloma, really made me appreciate life and the many intricacies of how to care for someone that is your own. Before, I didn’t have that somebody or something I could care for. Now, I have Zorro to care for and I also would say people would be surprised that I became a dog owner. Overall, I would say there would be some process for me to let it out because I don’t tell many people about my love for my dog. Once again, I think having a dog is like having a child because you have to make sure he or she is cared for and that he has his regular checkups at the vet or what have you. So there you have it, overall I would say that others would have kids, maybe other people have moved out of the area, and me I’m still the same person in mind but I have made a few adjustments. Change is good for all of us and time tells who will come out in front. To me, I would say I have been pretty successful with my life and where I am financially. I hope it is the same for everyone else and if it’s not hopefully I can have some profound impact on people.Till next time….

Something to wrestle with and my memories of Bret Hart’s 1996-1997

Posted on by anele25

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The land of wrestling podcasts has recently taken over my life. The craze started not too long ago and needless to say, they help when you are washing the dishes, washing the car, or doing laundry. This is beside the point however; I want to cover today a recent podcast done by Bruce Prichard of something to wrestle with fame. The topic for this recent podcast was Bret Hart. If you don’t worry who that is, do not be alarmed you will by the end of this post. My memories of that time are quite extraordinary and full of joy. First, I’ll go through some major points that Bruce Prichard covered and then I’ll give some of my perspective.

 

The podcast does a very good job of painting Bret at this time as someone who could have an excellent match with anyone during that era. He worked with a who’s who of wrestlers. His matches included excellent storytelling, great selling, good flow, and a way of sucking you in so you could believe it. One of those matches was Bret Hart vs Steve Austin from WrestleMania 13. The match did a good job of telling the classic story of the cocky upstart who is being a rebel vs the proud hero who stands by his morals. Hart of course, was the hero who stood by his morals. The fans at the time were clamoring for a change and wanted something new. In storyline, the idea was to do a double turn and have one guy go ‘good’ and another go ‘bad’. Bret at this time was portrayed as being good and Austin as bad. The fans saw how much Austin clawed and scratched to try and win but to no avail. The fans by the end of the match knew that Austin had given it his all in the match and Bret was just being a bully by beating down on a limp body. That is why that match is (by those days), considered a classic. It works because it was believable and it gives credit to the performers that were out there. The match was bloody, full of hard hitting action, and kept you on the edge of your seat. More on these excellent feuds later on. One of my favorite pieces of the podcast included the insights into how the Montreal Screw job came about. The incident famously known as the Montreal Screw job was orchestrated in 1997 as a way to get the belt off Bret Hart so he wouldn’t walk away from the company with the belt.

 

The scenario was in place so that Shawn Michaels (the incumbent champion) and Bret Hart could have a finish even though one person was not clued in. Essentially, the original plan was for the match to end in a disqualification and there would be members of the Hart Foundation (Bret’s group and faction) that would run in and have the match end in controversial fashion. However, at the end of the match Shawn put Bret Hart in his own hold (the sharpshooter, which is where Bret would put his left leg in between his opponents’ two legs and turn the person around and sit on the person’s back until they gave up). The finish of the match saw Bret not give up and the referee rang for the bell. Needless to say, Bret was very upset at the end of this and realized he had been double crossed. After this, he left upset and even had the guts to punch his former boss, Vince McMahon. There has been quite a bit said as to the different scenarios that would have come into place if this situation would not have happened. I also really enjoyed the 1996 portion of this podcast because you also got an insight into Bret taking a leave of absence for his TV shows and to take a break. I also heard the first time that he got a call to come back in 1996 and he flat out said no. It was almost as if Bret needed time to recharge his batteries at time to be with his families. I also learned from this portion of this podcast that Bret was a very smart man when it came to negotiating for his contract and for what he felt was right. At this time, it was rumored that Bret would jump to the rival company, WCW.

 

He would have been one of the members of the newly formed New World Order. The spot that was originally meant for Hart went to one Hulk Hogan. It’s funny because if that would have happened he would not have as a successful run as he did.  Bret however, knew that he still had an opportunity to work with one of the new stars in the WWF in Steve Austin. I remember at this time also that the podcast mentioned on how Bret was always keen on making his opponents look good and how he worked hard to make sure that everything made sense. One of these times where this was true was where Bret did a USA vs Canada angle and he was very successful at having the USA fans hate him. I have gone off the rails a bit and I am going to just cover what I remember from this time period of 1996-1997. It may be bit scattered but for me it is how I remember it. Anyway, getting back to the USA vs Canada angle. I had a sense at the time that what Bret was doing was fairly interesting because he had fans on one side of the border hating his guts. In another country, he had fans still cheering him as their hero. I still vividly remember Bret saying ‘we don’t shoot each other on the streets and we still care for our sick’. Ironically enough, this was done in Canada. Meanwhile, in the USA the fans still hated his guts for being pompous about pimping his home country. It would be as if I went around from country to country and I would be liked or respected only in one or a few. I also remember the summer of 1997 was awesome because this was where Bret Hart famed one of my favorite wrestling stables in the Hart Foundation. Bret Hart essentially went ahead and gathered his family members to start this group. It was composed of four great wrestlers (actually three) in Owen Hart, Davey Boy Smith, and Brian Pillman. The other member was Jim Neidhart. All five men ran roughshod over the federation. The pinnacle of the group came when they ran up against Steve Austin’s team of himself, Goldust, Ken Shamrock, and the Legion of Doom. I still remember this match as being emotional for me because my hero had come back from injury in 1997 after having that great run with Steve Austin. Just to backtrack a bit, Bret Hart had finished his series of matches with Steve Austin (including the classic at WrestleMania 13) and he had run an angle on TV where he was out injured due to some complications with his knee.

 

As he was coming back, I remember this promo Hart was cutting with Shawn Michaels in May of 1997 where Hart was calling Shawn all kinds of names and questioning his manhood. At the time, I was not smart to what was happening and realized that the TV time was running out. As the show was going off the air, I realized that the show did not officially end. Little did I know (according to the podcast with Prichard), Bret forgot the cue and he kept talking. All these later, I still felt that was how the show was supposed to end. Anyway, back to the match where they went up against Steve Austin’s team. The event took place in Canada in Calgary. The crowd that night was electric for the show known as Canadian Stampede. As the match was starting, I was in awe that all these people jammed into one arena to see their fellow countrymen do battle. The Foundation ended up winning after about 20-25 minutes of some hard hitting action. The time during my life at that time was also when my family and I would go to Mexico on vacation. As the time was rapidly approaching for us to leave, Summer slam 1997 was also happening. I remember watching Bret Hart’s championship match against the Undertaker at my mom’s work. Some of these times are priceless as I remember being a little kid and being excited for what was to come next. I think that was one of the magical things about Bret Hart’s 1996-1997 run. I remember after each Bret match, promo, or appearance I would ask myself what was next for the Hitman. One of those that I could remember was when before he left for his hiatus in 1996, he had a one-hour match with Shawn Michaels. The match was famous for going one hour without pinfalls or submissions. I also remember that the match went sudden death and about a minute in, Shawn Michaels was able to get the win with his superkick. After the match, Bret took his time getting back and the cameras followed him back to get his reaction and needless to say he was visibly upset. I know from this incident, I knew from there he was someone who could hook my interest from the beginning of a match or from the end of the match because he made you believe it was real. One of those times where I first got a peak behind the curtain was when the film “Wrestling with Shadows” was released.

 

The film showed us the intricacies of wrestling and how deep his belief went into wrestling. You also saw how much he cared about his family. His immediate family he cared about because you saw that what he grew up was almost like a sport that you had to take into account. If you not have seen the movie, I would highly recommend the film because you see the ins and outs of what it is like to be a wrestler and how one of the best wrestlers ever got to where he was. I’ll leave everything with this as one of my favorite memories of that run in 1996-1997. I remember when Bret had come back in 1996 and Bret came back and said how loyal he was to the WWF and how he wasn’t going anywhere. I was so happy at that time because for one he said he was staying and he also for the first time accepted Steve Austin’s challenge for a match at Survivor Series 1996. The idea for me at that time was that Bret would always be a WWF guy. In 2002, after Bret had officially retired full time from wrestling I wrote a paper about his time in wrestling. I remember I got a decent grade on the paper actually. I also was so happy when Bret Hart returned in 2010 to the now known WWE. He had a memorable run in 1996-97 but I believe here it warmed my heart that he let old wounds heal after the Montreal Screwjob and he was able to show the new generation of fans his skills.

 

Well, there you have it. I just wrote some great memories and some of my favorite times of my favorite wrestler, Bret Hart. Over the next two weeks I will be traveling on some weekends to Los Angeles and then after that I will be having some surgery to heal up some kidney stones. What I want to do for my next blog is include some little journal entries on what these trips were like and I’ll probably write them in my tiny moleskin that I was recently given as a gift. Till next time, everybody be on the lookout!

What happened when… Jose went to Tampa Bay Florida

Posted on by anele25

About two weeks, I wrote that I wanted to cover my trip to Tampa Bay in long form. The story as to why I went is simple. I had two weeks off from work and I’m also a huge fan of the hockey team the Tampa Bay Lightning. The goal was to catch two games from the Lightning on a Tuesday and Thursday. Last year around this time, I started planning out the trip and lo and behold, this is what happened when I went to Tampa Bay Florida.

 

The day of the trip is usually the most anticipated because you have to everything in order. First, you have that damn itinerary ready just in case you forget which airline you’re flying and which terminal you’re going to. Second, you have to have all your necessary items that you’re going to carry with you. The day of the trip I had everything ready. The night of December 19th 2016 I left wheels up for Tampa. I remember the majority of the flight I slept because it was a red eye and I was listening to the now highly acclaimed Something to Wrestle with… Bruce Prichard. We landed early that morning and I also had a connecting flight from Atlanta. The connecting flight, (known little to my knowledge) was on final boarding and I now rushed over. I just missed the flight and I felt rather devastated. I had never been in this situation and I was lost as to what I should do. I asked around and someone pointed me to services from Delta. I was gladly handed a new boarding pass and there I was on my way to Tampa Bay. I landed about 1 hour later than my original time. Once again, when I’m in a new city I try to look for new things to do and see. I’ve found that planning out a trip detail by detail beforehand can end up backfiring on you. Built on spontaneity, a trip can have so much more adventures and elusive stories.

 

Nevertheless, I went over to my rental counter for my car and asked which kind of car I had reserved. Knowing me, I said yes to upgrade a sports car. I ended up driving a Ford Mustang and that thing at first was hard to navigate. I grabbed my car and eventually went exploring around the city. The first thing I did was grab some food and I went shopping for some groceries as well to have for the next few days. I did that and also explored a little around the city. The city had some nice harbors and the beaches were wonderful to look at from afar (more about this in a bit). I ended up checking in later that day to my hotel. Whenever, I go to hotels I make sure that they are a Days Inn because usually they are pretty reliable. After some relaxation, I ended up making my way towards my first game of the trip. The first game was against the Detroit Red Wings and the atmosphere from Amalie Arena was quite interesting. I had heard that perhaps Tampa wasn’t a hockey town but it was quite a fun experience. I saw the passion in the fans and the amazing amount of support for the team was awesome. I went by myself on this trip and I was practically up on the top of the rafters. I was able to observe the game more closely and able to appreciate how shifts are happening and how the defensemen are able to guide the game for their team.  I had some Red Wings fans seated next to me and even there I said that hockey has the ability to bring fans from anywhere. This makes Hockey one of the premier sports for me because of the excitement, competiveness, and grit in the players. I had fun at my first hockey game in Tampa and we ended up winning 4-1 after some crazy plays happened involving the goalies going down for both teams. Afterwards, I came with the idea in my to head down to Miami. The Miami idea came about from the fact that I wouldn’t know when I would come back. I woke up the next day at 7AM ready to head out by 8AM. Once I headed out, I had little idea about the famous tolls in Florida.

 

As I went about on I-75, I had no cash and I saw the signs for the tolls. The drive itself was rather relaxing because I saw the swamps, could feel the humidity in the air, and was surprised that it was not raining as much as I thought. As I was going along paying my tolls, I wondered about what I would do on the way to Miami. I told myself I would probably catch a movie because the drive was quite long (about 4 hours to be exact). I ended up seeing Assassins Creed and the movie was great because I was curious as to how they would adapt a video game into a movie. The movies (if you have not seen it) had to do with Michael Fassbender’s retrieving the Apple of Eden which is being researched by a scientist because he wants to see wars and what not continue into the 21st century. It was panned by critics but I rather enjoyed it because it took the idea that revolutionaries can be created by going up against the system. After that was over, I decided to sit in traffic for a bit to head to Miami beach. Previously, I had been in South Miami but the trip to Miami Beach was worth it. I stopped by Miami Beach for a few hours and just sat on the beach taking in the time and effort I had put into making the trip happen. Everything that happened and everything that was to happen in the next few months had not come into my head. I think that’s what we forget sometimes is that we have to breath everything in. The ocean air and the sound of the ocean are enough to send me into a frenzy because that’s where I become one with the Earth. I sat on the beach for close to 20 minutes and afterwards headed back to where I was parked. Little did I know, it started raining and I said what the heck I’ll walk around in the rain. I just stopped by and saw all the little shops that were around. These shops give me the idea that someone will shill out enough money for a Miami Beach towel or a Miami Beach surfboard. The destination cities do a remarkable job at marketing these products and you can say they do well deserve it.

 

Afterwards, I headed back to Tampa around 6:30 in the evening. I found this drive to be much more adventurous than the first one. When I was driving back, I drove with the top down for a part of the drive. I just let the breeze blow through what hair I had left. I remember from some of the drive I had a semi-truck in front of me and I could feel the breeze getting colder. I wanted to drive with the top up again but the breeze was just too tempting to resist. I also remember when I was driving earlier in the drive that I was just zooming in and out of the lanes just trying to stay awake from all the driving that was happening. Once I got close to Tampa, I got a little bit more relaxed because I had done my driving and was ready for the next day’s adventure. The next day, I asked myself what else I could do? On this day, I decided to head up to St. Pete beach. Of course, the drive once again was wonderful and once I arrived I just laid on the beach for a few hours reading a book called ‘The Arm’. The book deals with Tommy John Surgery and what pitchers go through during the process. One pitcher in particular I remember they talked about in the book was Jon Lester. Lester himself talked about the mechanics of having to recover from Tommy John and what kinds of recovery that pitchers have to go through. I also found Todd Coffey’s comeback from Tommy John to be one of the most compelling pieces because of how he tried to come back and got hurt right away when he threw and he felt pain up his elbow. The author himself details how much money and how much stock into how these pitchers are developed from a young age into sensations at 19-20 and it all depends whether or not they can throw a 90 mile per hour fastball. I also found it fascinating while reading this that pitchers go out there every 5th day and are depended on for a 1 win or one quality start. It kind of reminds me of when a horse may just be gearing up for some races but he comes back on that day to run and he wins the big one.  If you’re not familiar with a quality start it’s usually 6 innings pitched, 3 earned runs, and maybe 5 or 6 strikeouts. I remember in particular on how kids in high school or in high school are scouted at a young age and eventually they are drafted into an organization. The development from these pitchers is worth looking into and I would be interested to see if another book such as this one dealing with maybe infielders or outfielders. The position players I feel can have just as a compelling story with pitchers because they understand what it takes to succeed. What I mean by this is that they have to have a good arm to throw out a runner or maybe even be willing to hit for power.

 

Anyway back to Florida. After I finished reading a good chunk of this book, I headed to look for some pizza and chicken. I settled on something and headed once more over to the hotel. I waited for a bit until the next game was to start. I headed out a bit early to check out the awesome downtown and see the arena and see a bit more. Once I was finished with that, I headed to the game ready for another showdown. This time we were playing the St. Louis Blues. This game I felt was a bigger challenge than the first one. The team of the Blues was much more talented and I was ready to see this one go down. After going down two goals, I said to myself ok we gotta find a way to come back. I also said once again I did not come all this way to see my boys lose. I had also that night bought a Lightning jacket which I really enjoy wearing these days as well.  After that, we never looked back and ended scoring up 5 unanswered goals (something about me and 5 unanswered goals really goes a long way). After the game was over, there is no doubt I felt there was definitely a sense that I would be back. I was planning to go back this year for my Christmas break but at this juncture it doesn’t look like it is going to happen because I have some surgery going on. I’m telling myself at this point that life is extensive and I do want to go back soon enough. I got back on the plan one day later and I sat there watching Jason Bourne and Dogs of War. I told myself there, ‘Life is Good’. I landed just in time for Christmas Day and had a very nice and relaxing rest of my break.

 

Now that I’ve written about my experience about traveling, I want to go back to something I haven’t written about in a while and that is wrestling. Recently, I listened to the Bret Hart 96/97 podcast with Bruce Prichard of Something to wrestle with fame. I am going to go ahead and write down some of my thoughts on one of my heroes and what he meant to me during that time almost 20 years ago. I’ll also take some snippets from the podcast and what I remember during that time. Hasta luego! (A little thing to remember this trip down below). IMG_2793

A life altering experience…

Posted on by anele25

This past Friday I probably had one of the hardest events I had to take in. As I have written in the past, I have medical issues with my kidneys. Some of this is because of poor diet, lack of exercise, and not drinking enough fluids. The other part is mainly just genetics. Recently, I had the displeasure of having a kidney stone once again hit me. I missed a week of work because of it and the pain I went through was excruciating. I even ended up going to the emergency room because of it. I would not wish this upon any other human being and the only thing I would advise is to cut back on certain foods. I would also advise to get plenty of activity into your everyday life. I passed the stone eventually and everything was back to normal. However, when something like this occurs not everything is going to be bloom and roses. I had gotten a CT scan done when I went to the emergency room. The CT scan is done to see where the stone is and how big it is. The CT scan I had gotten done showed that something on my left side was not as it should be and this is where my life altering experience comes in.

 

The day was like any other. I had gotten up and made some food to start off the day. I went to the gym after and listened to my favorite Friday getaway show Figure 4 Daily. This show is generally great and makes me laugh anytime I listen to it. If you’re not familiar with wrestling, it is with former UFC fighter Tom Lawlor and MMA/wrestling journalist Bryan Alvarez. Both men break down the news in wrestling for the week and occasionally talk about the happenings of a  wrestling/MMA show that has passed. I eventually finished the show (and my workout) and headed out to the library to handle some miscellaneous business of looking at some books and printing out something I needed for a later date. Once I was done there, I headed to the doctor and over to the Urology department. I headed to the room thinking this was either going to be really good or really bad. I waited for 5-10 minutes and the doctor broke the news of what is considered surgery for my kidney stones. He first showed me the stones and described in detail the size of them. I have 2 stones in my left side (one about 4 centimeters in length and the other about 1 centimeter). The surgery goes by the name Percutaneous Nephrolothotomy. It is described as the removal of large stones. The procedure requires a sheath to be inserted into the back and a nephroscope is placed near the sheath to remove the kidney stone. This should do the job in terms of removing the stones and to me if this fixes it, I would be all for it. After the procedure a tube or a stent is placed inside the kidney to collect urine to make sure the blood flow goes as planned. As I write this, it is as if I am going through some shock but it also feels therapeutic to write about an experience which will make me feel better. Some of the side effects after the surgery could be blood in the urine, pain in the back, nausea and pain in the abdomen and kidneys. The information I just described is what the doctor told me except this was more of a cliff notes version. I also was told that the appointment would most likely be a month out because my doctor’s scheduler would not be available. I know once again that having to go through this is for the best and I have a great support system. I left the appointment feeling as if this was something that was meant to happen to me and it would test me. It also showed me the importance of cherishing those around me. I talked to a friend of mine after and this person made me feel at ease for the surgery that was to come. I was assured that they would be there for me for anything I needed and for me that was the greatest thing I could ask for out of them. I also talked to my mom and dad not too long after to talk about what was to come. I also got the assurance from them they too would be there to help out in this difficult time.

 

After that was over, I decided to start planning out some adventures the next month. I wanted to head back to Florida (I will cover this in long form in my next post), but if this is going to happen in the next month there is a possibility I won’t be able to afford it. My mom suggested that we head out to LA to Universal Studios which is somewhere I have not been. I also want to head over to the Wrestling Guy Store in LA (something else I would love to cover in long form down the line). I have also been planning to head to a wrestling show for a local wrestling promotion called APW. There are so many events that I would love to get done before this surgery and all I want for this to succeed is good discipline and careful planning. I can only hope that all goes well for this surgery and I know my family will be there to help out when it is all said and done.

 

One event I want to touch on is the recent death of a close family friend’s brother. He was someone I had a few conversations with when I was younger and I can say he taught me quite a bit in those conversations we had. He also helped our family out here at our house. I can remember him as being a kind and gentle soul. I remember the day of his funeral the people that knew him best remembered him as being passionate, hardworking, and someone who would be willing to teach anyone anything. My brother told me after the passing of this friend of ours that he loved me and I told him the same thing. Those little things like that make me know that no matter where you are, your siblings will never let you down as long as you keep them close.

 

As you can see, it has been quite the past few weeks and there is a saying that at the end of the tunnel there’s always that light. I am keeping this in the back of my mind every day I wake up from now on until I have my surgery and even beyond that when situations get tough. Till next time, I will be covering my trip to Florida from this past winter on the next post.