Absolute Future (Blog Post #16)

Out of all the skills I have acquired, I cannot wait to display my new tech skills. I have always been interested in working in depth on computers and I am eager to show off what I have learned.

I am excited and concerned regarding how much work I will be assigned. I am excited to finally go out and show what I can do and I and concerned that the work might be overwhelming or I am not prepared for it.

I hope that my maturity and work ethic are recognized and appreciated in my new work environment. I felt that while in Year Up, my role as a student pigeonholed me into the position where I wasn’t kept in the loop of a lot of things and simply, not treated like an adult. I hope I do not experience this at my internship.

Whoever my manager may be, all I hope is that he or she is trusting and does not feel the need to micro-manage. I have worked in places where I have been micro-managed and I did not feel comfortable or able to succeed.

I plan to make a great impression on my manager and the rest of the staff at my internship, to where it influences them to consider me an asset. I hope to get a job offer after my internship is over. If I do not have that opportunity, I plan on returning to school full-time while taking advantage of Year Up’s resources to search for a new career.

"In The Big Show" (Blog Post #15)

Today felt like the best day for football. I love watching football and for the longest time, my retail jobs would not allow me to rest on Sundays and watch football. It does not seem like a big deal, but I feel like my dream has come true. Today felt particularly wonderful because the team I root for, the San Francisco 49ers, ended their regular season with a record of 13-3. They won the NFC West title and are in the playoffs for the first time since 2002. It is an exciting time to be a niner fan.

Another reason today was a great day for football, was because the 49ers local rival, the Oakland Raiders, were practically given an opportunity to advance into the playoffs, but were unable to deliver. In order for them to make their first playoff appearance since 2002, they needed to win their home game and the Denver Broncos needed to lose. Despite much disbelief, the latter miraculously occurred. The Denver Broncos lost, and all the Raider had to do was beat the San Diego Chargers at their home field. Although, they are division rivals, the Raiders were supposed to beat them. The odds were in their favor, and they had even beaten them earlier this season. Unfortunately for Oakland, and Raider fans all over the world, they performed poorly and will have to wait another year for a chance to make the playoffs. As a niner fan, I couldn't be anymore pleased.

"Not The Same Old Show" (Blog Post #14)

On Thursday, I finally took my younger family members out to a movie. I say "finally" because I've had the intentions of making this plan actually happen for too long now. My schedule and poor prioritizing had kept me from solidifying my relationship with them.

My younger cousins, Jorge and Sofia, used to live with us since they were both born. I'm practically their older brother. I had been there for them when their parents couldn't, for whatever reason. They are the only first cousins I have from my dad's side that live roughly close to us. Their parents decided to take advantage of an opportunity to move into their own home that was associated with a new job. Since then, our families have been very distant. Their new home isn't necessarily far, it's just inconvenient to get to. I quickly felt guilt for my lack of visits and inability to make plans with them.

This Christmas was the first time our families didn't celebrate together. We saw each other briefly and that's where I thought I would seize the opportunity to make plans with my cousins to take them out to something they would really enjoy doing. I immediately thought that these kids are growing up too fast. I understood I needed to take advantage of the time I have left, before they become teenagers who are "too cool" to be seen with their older cousin. I needed to act now.

Despite miscommunication, I successfully took my cousins to see a movie. We had a fun ride there, we shared popcorn and candy, and we had some good laughs during the movie. All in all, I'd say my first attempt of reestablishing my relationship with my cousins was a success. This is just the beginning though, and our next event is already in place. We're going bowling!

"Warriors Come Out To Play" (Blog Post #13)

Last night, a group of friends and I went to watch the Golden State Warriors take on last year’s league MVP, Derick Rose, and the Chicago Bulls. To say that the game was fun to watch would be an understatement. In order to understand what we experienced, you need to know the history of both the teams and the people in our group who attended the game.

Vicky and Juan are die-hard Warriors fans, always have been and always will be. My girlfriend and I are fans of the LA Lakers. Although we don’t live in Lakers “territory,” we still support the local Warriors. Now Enrique and Adriana are even further out of their team’s “territory,” because they are Bulls fans and obviously so, in full Bulls attire last night. Now that you are familiar with the attendees, let me explain the irony of the night’s matchup.

The Warriors were the underdog in this game. Why wouldn’t they be? They had just lost to a newly formed team, the Los Angeles Clippers, full of championship potential the night before, and were now up against a team, the Chicago Bulls, who made their presence known in last year’s playoffs, and are expected to only do better this year. The Bulls had just dominated the Lakers in their own house and had every intention of repeating that same punishment to a team that is not that familiar with playoffs and championships as of late. Shockingly, the Warriors had control of the game the entire night, balancing a pretty solid lead and making sure the Bulls fans in attendance remembered whose house it was.

Throughout the entire night, my friends and I shared some pretty memorable moments. We laughed, we cheered, we yelled, we got nervous, we got upset, and some of use even got saddened by the outcome. In the end, we all had fun. I absolutely had an amazing time with my friends at the Warriors game last night.

"Attitude Reflects Leadership" (Blog Post #12)

To be internship-ready means to exemplify successful qualities naturally. A person who is ready for success will always be on time and they will most definitely be early, because the person who is early will always be prepared and organized. Organization refers to time management, as well as scheduling, and file management. A person who has their files, documents, and assignments filed properly will always be on top of things and will be the first person considered for more responsibilities. When you are internship-ready you will be the type of person who is driven and shows initiative when it comes to potential opportunities. They don’t wait for chances to come, they go looking for them.

For the next module I will own the qualities I already have and continue to hone them. Rather than putting the majority of my focus on the traits I am already excelling in, I am going to concentrate of the growth areas that I have been given by my advisor, my peers, and my own self-assessment. I have demonstrated that I have a good ability to learn but I need to find a method that will allow me to become a better teacher. I want to be able to help my peers by bestowing my newly acquired knowledge onto them in a way they can learn the material and I can reassure my understanding.

I have been given feedback instructing me to relax a little more often when it comes to our class. I tend to take my work more serious than necessary and that might give the impression that I am unapproachable, which is the opposite of what I’d like to accomplish. I feel that I have pretty positive attitude when it comes towards Year Up, but I need to show more positive energy when it comes to the class and I want it to be infectious. Taking transportation that will get me to class 30 minutes before it starts, and completing assignments immediately after they’re assigned, are routines and methods that have been working for me and I will continue.

"How Would You Like to Pay for That?" (Blog Post #11)

Working at Best Buy could possibly be the best job I ever had. It should be made cognizant that positive and negative experiences collaborated to make my time at Best Buy memorable. I worked in the Mobile Phone department, and my primary responsibilities consisted of sales, consultations, repairs/maintenance, and all while providing the best customer experience possible. What I enjoyed the most was being able to help people. The job was more than just selling mobile phones; it was providing people with the best solution to meet their needs.

I was often sought after by customers and developed a sound clientele because of my ability to provide honest, non-bias, and thorough solutions. During my time there, I learned how to read people via their body language as well as verbal language. I also learned how to properly listen to people and what to specifically accomplish in order communicate successfully. Because of these skills, I acquired an immeasurable amount of patience. I also discovered the absolute value of honesty and how it can culminate a trust between complete strangers. Best Buy was my opportunity to establish myself and further my development as a person.

Not all experiences at Best Buy were positive. In several occasions, my character as a trustworthy salesmen and a tactical problem-solver were questioned by customers, simply because I still had to put my company’s priorities before theirs. In other words, I did not enjoy having to coerce people into buying additional and mostly unnecessary products and services with their original purchase. I had to be constantly reminded that Best Buy is a business, and in order to be a successful one, we needed to make sure that all our customers were recommended every, and any, additional solution. My inability to conform was perhaps the motive for my inevitable departure.

The Great Repetition (Blog Post #10)

The people who had fallen victim to the Great Depression were naïve and led to believe they could trust the banks with their money and that their government was protecting them. As a result, the market crashed, the banks failed, the people had everything taken from them, and government couldn’t do a single thing to help. Now unemployed and without money, they were left to survive on their own.

The damages of the Great Depression taught us, as a country, many valuable lessons. Unfortunately, the people today have grown naïve and dependent on their governments’ protection. Before we repeat the same mistake, the Occupy movement has organized themselves to proclaim their message, and remind the people that we cannot, and will not fall victim to the corrupt banks and our bought government.

In the glass house of the mural lie hundreds of people, probably unemployed or homeless, sleeping and being overseen by a policeman. This image can easily resemble the protestors, the 99%, that occupy cities and are being overseen, and at times disassembled by police. The people in the subways represent the lower and middle class workers who are the foundation of this country and economy, and are still victims of modern day slavery. In the bank are a few wealthy people, who can be translated as the 1% of today, that have heavy influence on the banks, the government, and the rest of the country.

When I look at “Frozen Assets” by Diego Rivera, I cannot help but to feel as if it was a warning for the people of present day. “Do not repeat this history,” he’s exclaiming to us. As much as it is a depiction of the darker times during the Great Depression, it ironically and clearly holds the same truth for us today during the Great Recession.