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The Foreigner and Baby Driver a tale of two Films

Posted on October 15, 2017 by anele25

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One of the few topics I have not had the chance to write about is my love for movies. I’ve in particular been watching Jackie Chan movies since I was younger and he delivers in his films about action. I recently went to watch The Foreigner on Thursday evening with a friend of mine. The film was unexpectedly one of those films that combined family, loyalty, and action all into one. The premise of the film is that Jackie Chan’s character, Quan, is a retired veteran from the Vietnam special forces. His daughter is killed in a bombing by terrorists. Early on, the film touches on family and how much of an importance it is. We learn as the film goes on that Quan’s daughters were murdered by a group of bandits. His wife died while giving birth to his daughter who is eventually murdered in the process of the bombing. We are also introduced to the film’s lead antagonist, Liam, who is one of the politicians linked to the IRA and the former terrorist organization. Quan early on is very distraught by what has happened and he knows he has to go out to find who has done this evil deed. We get scenes of Quan going to authorities and asking who may have done the terrible deed of killing his daughter. The film’s early scenes deal with Quan investigating on his own (including one scene where we see Liam on TV and Quan researching who he is) and eventually we get Quan and Liam coming face to face for the first time. Once again, as we get into the film’s core we learn that Liam is deeply loyal to his maternal family. We also meet Liam’s wife, Mary, and we get the feeling that there is some tension between them because Mary never really forgave Liam for letting her brother die a few years ago in a terrorist bombing as well. This comes into play later on when we learn about Mary and how much that may play a role in their relationship. Quan, after having met Liam is intent on getting the names of the terrorists who killed his daughter.

He calls Liam after having set off a bomb and we get an intense scene where Quan demands answers. What really kicks the film into gear is the action scenes between Quan, Liam’s henchmen, and Quan’s ventures into the forest. You may be asking yourself, why is Quan just hanging out in the forest? Well, Liam gets smart and he heads to the farm. Little do we know, Quan is always ahead of the competition and he starts setting traps at Liam’s farm inside and out. There are some pretty unique traps such as leaving bombs inside the horse stall and leaving some traps outside the farm when the henchmen fall on spikes. Quan is eventually wounded and we get a little more into the backstory of Liam and his family. We eventually learn that one of Liam’s comrades, McGrath, knows who ordered the bombings and we get the big reveal that is was Mary, Liam’s wife. Liam is also seen in the film fooling around with Maggie who was (assuming by the connection) hired by Mary to also investigate into how Liam functioned and possibly frame him in the process. McGrath is eventually executed by Liam and we get more scenes where it gets deeper into actually set off the bombing. We are also introduced early onto Liam’s nephew Sean. He plays a critical role in the film because we also see him hunt down Quan when no one else is successful in hunting him down. After Quan gets his comeback against Sean (in an excellent scene where we see Quan practically only use his hands to take down Sean), Sean lets it out that it was a gentleman named Patrick O’Reilly who set the bomb that killed his daughter.

Eventually, we also see Maggie (the woman who was fooling around with Liam), sleep with a reporter to plant a bomb inside his laptop so that it can go off inside a plane. We also see her in a previous scene where she sets off a bomb inside a London bus. The film at this point has pretty much wrapped up its main storylines and all that is left is for Quan to go and get his proper revenge. We see him do something rather unique. Quan arrive to where Patrick O’Reilly and Maggie holed up inside their apartment. We also see the authorities trying to get a shot of the group of terrorists. Anyway, back to Quan and his plan. We see him gather up his ‘tools’ and disguise himself as a gas repair man. He is escorted inside the house by the manager of the property and we quickly get an intense scene where we see Quan knock someone out with a TV. Quan eventually takes them all out except Maggie. Maggie is eventually questioned about the attacks and she also confesses that the bomb that is about to go about go off is on the hands of the reporter named Ian Hood. Maggie in this process is killed by the authorities. We see Hood at the airport and he is quietly doing his work on his laptop. Little does he know, the laptop is packed with a bomb. We get a scene where a bomb expert runs as far as he can and he throws the bomb inside a corridor without harming anybody. Quan after all the craziness occurs, leaves with his head held up high and ready for one last task. We get one scene where Sean goes and hands Mary with her death. Quan also comforts Liam one last time and he figures out that Liam is connected to Maggie. Quan, having gotten his justice, is at peace and can return to his normal restaurant life. We get some peace at the end knowing that Quan got his vengeance settled.

So there you go, a film I would recommend going out of your way to see. The film’s strengths are that it is logical and there some twists which make sense. The performances by Chan and Brosman deliver as they are two of the actors who can still knock it out of the ballpark. The film’s weaknesses are that the plot about Quan’s past could have been done a little better and we could have gotten a little more emphasis on the subplot of trying to find the terrorists. A sold film. 7/10.

Another film I saw recently was Baby Driver. This movie, I must say, is my favorite of 2017. The film’s premise is simple, easy to follow, and understandable from the main character’s perspective. The film deals with Baby, a 20 something year old who from what we know has tinnitus. This is dealt with by him having to wear ear buds constantly so that the ringing in his ears will not be constant.

Baby is forced by Doc, a heist man, with a lot of power, to work as a wheel man with different crews to do jobs to rob banks. Doc, we learn, was robbed by Baby early on and Doc tells Baby that he owes him. Once he finishes his debt, they will be even. The first two crews that Baby works with consists of Buddy, Darling, JD, Eddie, Griif, and Bats. What we gather from Baby is that he does these jobs because of the thrill that he gets from driving, the scenes in the film that sold me on how great is are the driving scenes where Baby’s inner character is shown. We can see that his motives are that so he can earn a living but we also see his decisiveness and his music keeps him going. We also get a look into Baby’s real life.

We see him communicating with his foster parent, Joe. Joe is deaf so he must communicate with him via sign language. At first, I was confused as to how they were speaking but it made sense after the first exchange. Joe is not aware that Baby leads this kind of life but eventually he catches on. Baby, once he has paid off his debt, starts to notice a girl around town. Her name is Debora and he falls for her when he visits her at the local diner where she is employed. This is where the film starts to get interesting. Baby, knowing that his debt is paid off and he has plenty of money, asks Debora out on a date at the finest local restaurant. What we don’t know is that Doc wants Baby to do one last job.

He offers him the job after he finishes his dinner. Doc once again knows that Baby is somewhat of a good look charm for him. Doc gathers his crew of Darling, Buddy, and Bats to do one last job. Doc’s idea is to rob the local post office. One thing I didn’t mention is that the film’s tension is not necessarily built on the scenes where the crew (minus Baby), robs these places but on the fact that Baby is in an uncomfortable position. We can see that and his strengths is being able to drive fast and furious (cheap plug). Anyway, Doc robbing the post office is first put into play when Doc sends Baby (along with Baby’s nephew) to check out how many employees were present, how many cameras, how many armored guards, and what kind of glass was on the location of the post office. The idea behind the robbing of the post office would be to use almost blank checks (close to 250 of them) so that each of the crew could be just a little richer. We also see Baby’s past dealt with as well because his mother used to work as a waitress where Debora is working currently. We also see that Baby’s mom was in an abusive relationship and his mom was a singer as well. Baby’s tinnitus is a result of the crash that happens with his parents passing away. Baby also records some of his conversations, one of which is quite creative where he is told he is slow. Now, what exactly does he do with these recordings? He mixes up the recordings and he makes his own mixtapes. Back to the film, we see Doc set up Bats, Darling, Buddy, and Baby with some arms dealers. Of course, the scene where we see them meet up with the arms dealers turns sideways as a result of Bats going crazy and shooting one of the arms dealers. Eventually, we see the crew of Doc taking out the dealers. Before they can return to Doc’s hiding out spot, we see Debora working and the crew heads to where she works. Because this is a movie, the scene is tense and I was one of the few that believed that something would go down. Baby jokingly says that the place wasn’t very good to eat at and Bats once again loses himself quite a bit. Debora is ironically enough the one serving the table and she tries very hard not to give away the fact that her and Baby have some sort of relationship. The scene ends with Bats walking out and almost shooting Debora but Baby stops him in his tracks. Baby hands Debora a note that says “road trip 2AM”. We see the crew heading back to Doc’s spot and we start to get the idea that Doc wants to drop the whole idea of robbing the post office. This is because now the cops will definitely be after the crew of Buddy, Darling, Baby, and Bats. We also get the scene of Baby eventually getting cold feet and going to get Debora so they can head out of town. Bats and Buddy stop Baby from going out and asking him where he is going. We get some humor here as Baby says he is going to grab some coffee. Bats finds Baby’s audio recorder and asks him to explain himself. Baby, as honest as he can, says that he likes to record conversations.

Bats links this to the fact that Baby may be some kind of informant. We see Baby blanking out and we next see Doc with all of Baby’s tapes. Baby is in a tough position here and eventually we have Baby declared innocent because the tapes are his mixes. The heist is the next morning and Baby once again is having his morals go through him. We see Bats kill a security guard and with the rest of the crew inside the car, he rams a rebar into Bats and kills him. We see an intense scene where Buddy, Darling, and Baby run for their lives as Darling is eventually killed. Baby and Buddy get away as we will see them square off one more time. As all this is happening, Baby goes to his house to go pick up his foster parent, Joe. Baby drops off Joe and we see Baby going to get Debora so they may flee town. Buddy is waiting for Baby and once again the scene gets intense where Buddy is willing to take out Debora because Baby is in part responsible for Darling dying. The scene gets to the point where a cop comes by and wonders where the bathroom is. Buddy takes out the cop and eventually Baby is able to take out Buddy to save Debora. Baby, knowing his only resource is Doc, goes to ask him for some help. As the Doc and the gang, some arms dealers from earlier come out and start firing at the crew. Doc eventually handles them but wait did we forget about Buddy? Buddy shows up and takes out Doc. Buddy and Baby have an intense square off where eventually Baby gets the upper hand. As the scene fades away, we get Baby hearing his mother’s voice through one of the mixtapes. Baby and Debora have gotten away and are on their way to freedom where they are stopped by the local authorities for the crimes committed by Baby. Baby is put on trial and everyone that witnessed the crimes he committed (allegedly) says he has a very good character. After 5 years of good behavior, Baby is set free. We do get a happy ending to a satisfying movie.

Overall, I would recommend this film based on several things. The performances by Spacey, Elgort, Hamm, and Foxx really sold it for me. You got three world renowned actors and one who got started in the Divergent series really knocking it out of the ballpark. The other things it does well is that scene had a meaning and each character had a purpose behind it. If this doesn’t win some kind of award, I would be shocked because for me that is how good it was. 10/10. That’s all people. Oh here’s a picture of my dinner with my friend from Thursday after the Foreigner

Hockey

Posted on September 16, 2017September 16, 2017 by anele25

Hello again, this is me writing again into this lovely blog. I left off two weeks ago wondering what I would write about next. I’ve decided this time to jot a few notes down about hockey and the impact it has had on me. About 3 years ago, I had a friend of mine try and convince me to get into hockey. I told him that wasn’t the sport for me. Slowly but surely, I started watching the sport more and more. I got into the sport however because I feel I needed something new to watch. The excitement and thrill of the goal horn sounding is to much to turn down folks! I may not understand all the rules still but I do know what an icing call does (this will result in a team getting a face-off in their own zone). My friend told me to pick a team and I went with the Tampa Bay Lightning. What drew me to the team was their style of play and their players looking like stars. I also enjoyed the idea of rooting for a team outside of my local roots. No offense to the San Jose Sharks, just never been a big fan of their logo (if you’ve never seen it, it’s a shark chewing on a hockey stick). Hence, I was drawn to players like Steven Stamkos, Ryan Callahan, Tyler Johnson, and my personal favorite Victor Hedman. My first season was truly an incredible one. I saw the team I had chosen go to the playoffs my first season as a fan. I was thankful about the idea that this team had made it so far. That first round was a stressful one against the Detroit Red Wings.

The Lightning were about to go down 3-1 in the series. I knew that something was about to change because I wasn’t used to winning in sports. I had gotten used to my local teams, the Oakland Raiders and the Oakland A’s lose time after time. The fun part about being a sports fan is the sheer joy of winning and losing. You stick with them when they lose and you stick with them when you win. That game 4 changed everything as the Lightning pulled off a overtime win. They went on to win the series and the next two as well as they made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. We eventually lost (yes I said we) to the Chicago Blackhawks in the final 4-2 and this did make me think, the incredible joy of seeing a team win and lose all in the same season make me a fan because of the emotions it brings. It can either make or break your day depending on how much you are invested. I can say after that I said no matter how good or bad my teams may be you always have to support them. They work their asses off to stay competitive and to me hockey is that one sport where you can feel the energy of the fans. The next year, I caught as many games as I could on my NHL package and once again the Lightning played some competitive games. I had the joy of once again seeing my team play until the Conference final against the eventual champions Pittsburgh Penguins. However, these playoffs were truly incredible. They were missing their top player in Steven Stamkos and lost goalie Ben Bishop in the 1st game of the conference final. In theory, this team of players should have won the Stanley cup with those two players in the lineup. I once again told myself, you are now committed to a team that you have invested time and money in. Last season, I had the honor and privilege to see this team up close at home in Tampa. I had seen them two previous times play here in my hometown of San Jose. Both times, we had been successful in winning 5-2, and 4-3 respectively. These two games in December of last year were truly incredible. I told myself I did not come to Tampa just to see these group of players lose. Low and behold, I was greeted with two excellent games against the Red Wings and the Blues. The 2nd game was my favorite I have been to so far in my short time as a hockey fan. The final score of that game was 5-2 as we had gone down 2 goals early on. Eventually we came back and won the game 5-2.

Ever since then, I have been telling myself man if it weren’t for this I’d probably lose my mind. The nature and idea that there is a small puck that players battle for is incredible. I also enjoy the idea that players are on the ice anywhere from 90-120 seconds at a time. The shifts that players go between seems rather stressful and having to remember where to be in your zone or when to create a crease so that your teammate can make a shot is also something to ponder. I also enjoy that the defensemen (along withe the goalie) play a much bigger role on how a team performs. If your defenseman on one side is unable to penetrate against the opposition in your zone, you can pretty much say that you are at a disadvantage. As for the Lightning, we were not as successful last season. There were too many injuries and unavoidable games where we collapsed. This season, I’d be curious on how we match up against the rest of NHL. We have our captain, Steven Stamkos back and a couple of upgrades on defense as well. Gone are Jonathan Drouin and Ben Bishop. This season, to me will really depend on depth and how we respond to injuries. The team has young defensemen in Slater Koekkoek and Jake Dotchin. The other young forwards on the teams such as Vladislav Namestnikov and Brayden Point will also be there playing with a chance to reach the playoffs with a team that is rolling with experience at this point. The team is still relatively young and practically made it to the playoffs with half of it’s roster hurt or playing with pains and aches. I can for one say I am excited for the season and don’t be surprised if we are contending once again for a Stanley cup. Let’s go Lightning! Below I added a little link to the season preview 🙂

The winds of 2011 until the present:

Posted on September 2, 2017September 2, 2017 by anele25

This blog, Just Another Day, has been on a hiatus for 2+ years now. I didn’t do it on purpose nor have I forgotten that the blog world exists. In fact, the original intent of the blog was to document a personal journey of sorts. Here I am 2 years later, you could say a different person. No longer am I young and rebellious (that is up for debate however). For myself, I could say I have grown more discipline and aware of the fact that I grew because I wanted to help myself. I have several avenues of people and ideals which have helped me along the way. School, well that ship I jumped on and finished with a BA in Psychology. The long tireless hours of writing papers, figuring out formulas, and generally socializing with classmates has come. It’s funny because I wrote a few years about how each year has taught me a lesson. This was back in 2013. jump in 4 years later. School took up a bulk of those years from 2013-2017. Now in the present I am a professional in the research world as a coordinator for a study which focuses on physical activity and nutrition. I asked myself this week, just how in the heck did I go from Sales Floor Team Member at Target to Social Science Research Coordinator at Stanford? I present to you the journey that all started back in 2011. That was a pivotal year in my growth and to this day I don’t know where I would be without it. Here is my story in 2011 and how it led me to today:

I was sitting at home one evening in 2011 after coming home from work, exhausted and getting ready to watch Monday Night Raw. This was during the buildup to WWE’s World Series WrestleMania. The Rock dazzling the audience, had just returned saying he was back. I had just finished a shift at Target where I was outside talking to a friend about life at work and life at home. The next day after being super excited from my conversation with my friend and the Rock’s return, I realized something was terribly wrong. The pain in my kidneys had returned and I knew what it was. I had kidney stones from a very early age. I made a doctor’s appointment for the next week and they referred me to a specialist thereafter. The nephrologist (name for a kidney specialist) had broken the news to me that I would need to just watch my diet and focus on exercise. Then she told me I had polycystic kidney disease. That day I learned the lesson that telling the brutal honest truth (even if it is coming from a doctor) to someone can be very heartbreaking and can do wonders for the unknown. This has helped me in my journey because I don’t want to be seen as being dishonest whether it is with a professional colleague, if it was during my time in school, or with any of my friends. Ever since, I have focused on keeping my diet steady and working on my physical activity.

I have never been shy also in the idea that I do not like asking for help. That year was also when I looked at myself in the mirror and said I had to bunker down and finish school. I have one or two friends who still to this day say “I want back to school” or “school is too hard”. There is that one famous Fight Club scene where Brad Pitt and Edward Norton go into the liquor store and the clerk says he wanted to become a veterinarian. The guy says there was too much school and Brad Pitt’s character says if he wants to die on his knees in the back of a liquor store. I watched that movie over ten years ago and it still sticks with me. The point is, I had nowhere to go but up. I always afraid of math. I would never ask professors for help. I said to myself all you have to do is ask for help. I talked to counselors, friends, and family on what I should do. That one friend who did end up helping me was Ricardo. I had met him almost 3 years prior. To this day on September 2^nd 2017 we still talk. I talked about my decision to step away from school for a semester. I wrote about it in detail in the archives available here. The idea that he helped me is why I am forever grateful to him. I didn’t know where to go and how to do it. I know this isn’t the time or place to say so but I almost felt that him helping me on which classes I should take or where I should take those classes are why I succeeded, was almost like a calling card that this guy was meant to help me. I took the necessary classes at San Jose State all the way down to Mission College. To him, the important lesson I learned that it is ok to ask for help even if you don’t necessarily want it. Will you fail? Yes, and accepting that you tried with every bit of your willpower is what got me through. To this day, I have to remind myself that it is ok to ask for help at work, at home, or even from friends when I don’t want to seem pushy with them. I asked from help from a variety of sources that year and without them I am forever grateful.

The one thing that I have failed to mention along this long grueling journey is your friends will be there to support you. Whether they choose to see you and hang out with you is a different story. I had a friend named JB not too long ago. I thought the world of him and I can honestly say he knew several things that I did not. He helped me overcome my shyness and how to not be so unapproachable. We have not spoken in 6 years face to face. I’ll never know why or how it happened. I have reached out to him and I have gotten a lukewarm response of “we’ll see” or “I don’t know if I’m going to be busy”. This goes back to friends will see you if they want to see you. Even during this time frame from 2011-2017, I have gained a few friends back and some that I hadn’t heard from in years. I have two friends in particular who I think the world of. I saw them once or twice within this time frame and I never did see them again after. Friends, whether you like it or not have different priorities. One friend may be low priority or high priority depending on how both sides see it. With that I bring to you a story filled with excitement and joy that was brought about by a different source than usual.

I was finishing my senior year at San Jose State and during the week I had gotten a text from a friend of my brother’s. My brother had kept in contact with him from time to time. His name is Aldo and he had texted me about an opportunity to work at Stanford School of Medicine. It would be a temp position as a research assistant. I didn’t think much of it. I texted him back the next day that I would love the opportunity. That same weekend, I got the news that my Grandfather had succumbed to Parkinson’s disease and had passed away. I thought the world of him and I never got the chance to say goodbye. I remember driving to the airport (in Sacramento mind you), and my mind was racing with the idea of something new and fresh. A few months prior, I had transferred stores to another Target. The idea behind it was to first be closer to home and to finish out school easier. I also wanted to be close to a friend as well that had recently transferred there. The school year was coming to a close and my college endeavor as an undergrad was as well. Target does prepare you to deal with guests and personalities only a kindergartner could dream of. I still remember the many guest complaints we would get or the occasional obsessive personalities from one manager which I still admire to this day. However, I digress and say I was excited at having a chance at the idea. I fixed up my resume and filled out my application and sent it to my friend Aldo. I got the news the next week I didn’t get it and someone else had filled the position. I had started going to job fairs at school and said maybe that would be the answer. I couldn’t find anything that excited me (although that Walgreens manager did a really good job at selling me on the idea of being a shift leader). That year started off terrible with me being rejected at Stanford and the death of my Grandpa. But, the will of one never resists temptations to move on up. I got a call from Aldo that said I was being called up and I would need to freshen up my resume for an interview. I fixed that up and it was the first time I realized that it was going to take some courage to do this. I nailed the interview (or so I think) and the one thing that helped me was that how well you get along with others will take you far. You can be the smartest guy in the room and even that can get you some heat. I talked about some of the things that make me a good team player as well as the idea that I would need to be on board to help out. I said yes and off I went home. I didn’t think much of it and I went to my brother’s house. I got the e-mail right away that I got hired. I was elated and surprised at the same time. Two days later, I put in my two weeks at Target. As for the departure from Target, it was an experience that I’ll never forget and everybody (even if it’s for a few hours) should work retail. As a research assistant, I had the chance to recruit participants for a physical activity study on the telephone. It was really all about learning the ins and outs of eligibility. We had certain requirements (activity levels and little to no health issues). I did that for nine months and after I graduated I applied for a full time job with the same lab. I was more nervous for this position because of the added responsibilities and extra work load. However, that was not to be and I went in to interview for the position and I was told that I had gotten it a week and half later. For almost two years, I have been working on this study (with 338 participants) and now with the added knowledge that I have, I feel that it has been fulfilling, exciting, and I have made a few friends out of it. I have also gotten to see that help comes from the unknown sometimes and you may not even realize it. To my friend Aldo, I tell him from time to time that if it weren’t from I wouldn’t be where I’m at. I ultimately did it but help comes from the unexpected. Thank you my friend.

As I wind this down, I do want to touch on something that has brought me here from 2011 to 2017. My dog Paloma was also instrumental in helping me get here. Last year in July, she was run over and I could not save her. It was a Saturday night and I had decided to for a walk by the 101 freeway by my house. I had crossed the freeway for cars and I was very close to being hit. I barely dodged the car and I looked behind me to see her bloodied from the car that had just passed. My other dog Zorro was behind me and he thankfully survived. I remember being devastated and one person stopped to help. I did not get her name and for all I know she might have done it out of the goodness of her heart. To her I say thank you because she helped me get Paloma off the road. I vividly remember calling everyone from my mom and dad to my brother. My brother was devastated because he brought her in first to the house. She eventually had her son Zorro and I think I see so much of her in him. After I called everyone letting them know what happened, an ambulance stopped by to let me know that Paloma was no longer breathing. This was the hardest day of my life. My dad buried her the next day and I remember seeing a Paloma in the air that day and Zorro staring at it. RIP girl I miss you every day. If there’s anything that helped me get through that year of 2011 in my decision making it was that dog and her ability to cheer me up when things weren’t looking the brightest because of where my head was in terms of finishing school. She was my motivation to be loving and caring to those around me. It also helped me get outside more as well. I was close to her and I think it does help to have pets in your life. Zorro has carried on her legacy fairly well and I cherish that dog every day. I leave you with this everybody

I do want to continue writing on this blog and I just need to get my creative juices flowing again. I want to commit to writing at least once a month on here. Where I am now, I can’t say I am completely satisfied because I still want to travel to other places and also to explore more places. This is something that really gets me on my high horse. This has been a good reflective piece to where I am now. Till next time everyone!

Going Mobile…

Posted on January 21, 2015 by anele25

The fun filled year of 2014 brought me some pain, joy, happiness, and sometimes frustration but I’ve began to discover new things about myself. I finally understand what I want out of life. Not that I have the meaning to life , but I have found some sense of purpose in my life moving forward. It wasn’t long ago that I was content just sitting at home and not doing much other than going back and forth doing the same thing 5-7 times a week. In the past month, I’ve transferred from my old work location and moved to a new store. The store isn’t as well staffed but the opportunity to work with new, younger talent is enticing. My schooling is going great and even though it may not be perfect (why should it be?), I’ve made new friends and have kept some of the same ones from previous years and semesters. I’ve said that being on your own can be kind of scary but when you’re moving from location to location and you know how to navigate yourself, what’s there to be afraid of? Not too long ago, I wrote a paper describing my mom’s struggles and her ability to move to a new country when she was 24. I can’t imagine the fear and the pain that goes through someone’s head when they are going through that phase of their life. I know that my mom was happy enough that she decided to stick it out and settle down here in the United States. Even speaking Spanish, and not any English must have been somewhat of a scary thought because you are thinking in the back of your head that what if I don’t make it here in the United States? My point here being that I’m no longer that afraid to approach new situations and new locations in life. Just in the past year, I’ve gone to places I wouldn’t have imagined I would go to. For example, in June my brother, mom, and niece went to Disneyland for my birthday which seemed out there but we did it anyway. I’ve also been to Seattle which at first sounded like a sedentary place to go on a trip but my friend and I said what the heck let’s give it a shot. The trip as you can see here was awesome:

I found myself in this different type of mode because instead of being in my normal mood, I found it soothing that we were in a different city with different kinds of people. Case in point, instead of being quiet and not really talking to anybody, I was talking with anyone that seemed interested in having a conversation. I would talk to them about wrestling, football, and even baseball. Not taking anything away from the Bay Area, but having the opportunity to talk to people from another part of the country felt right. I told my friend Ricky that doing this was worth it because we got a different perspective from the northwest where I wouldn’t have even dreamed of going in my lifetime.

I also happened to go to Hawaii recently and here are some pictures that prove that our adventurous and raunchy style of living doesn’t hurt anybody in the end:

In a way the trip that took place two weeks ago opened my eyes to a world that I’ve never known. I met people that were funny, witty, and smart. There were those I appreciated for their candid open spirit. I would want to go back and expand upon my social settings because I feel I haven’t scratched the surface yet when it comes to holding a conversation and bantering with people. One day I will go back and I can feel that growth is a part of life that never ends. I started this blog almost 5 years ago and though it has slowed down, I will continue to update with any crazy adventures I may have in the future. I am almost done with school and I feel that I have to focus on finding a real job once I am done. It is exciting yet wonderful because I can begin a career or continue my schooling with a master’s degree. With this, I see that my life has meaning because I have been given opportunities to do anything I want. I sometimes see others that have less than I and I truly am blessed that I am where I am because when something is given to you, you must take it and run with it as fast as possible but at some point you may slow down. Happy new year everyone and keep striving!