Last Blog!

Hello! 

I just got to Pemba Mozambique last night and after two days of traveling I can only say that I am exhausted! 

The place is beatiful and the people that I will be working with are very nice people.  My goal is to come out of Pemba almost fluent in portuguese :D  Let's see how that goes... it might be a bit too ambitious but a sincere attempt will be made :D

I'm just glad that finals are over and that I can now fully concentrate on my IEDP project. 

In this last post I definitely have to say that coming to Upenn was (hands down) the best decision that I've made in my life.  I've met incredible people that have challenged and changed me in many different ways.  I have grown so much as a person and as a student.  Though I am glad to be done I must say that I am also very sad to leave such an intellectually supportive community.  I love this place... depending on how it goes I might do my PhD here or attend law school here at Upenn. 

I am still fixed on living in California but with the financial crisis that is happening over there right now, I must realize that I may need to stay out for a bit...

I don't know... I love California and I might just go back just for the heck of it ( despite the job prospects).  lol 

I don't know if maybe I'll stay here in Mozambique... I seriously doubt this though... but at this point I don't know... :D

Questions that I've received from Prospective IEDP Students

-Outside of the financial advantage to participating in a one-year program, what are some of the pros and cons of Penn's condensed
schedule?

Okay,  the one year component of the program was one of the things that made this program so attractive for me.  Nonetheless, I really wish that this program was longer.  Not because I think

that I will graduate without having acquired the preparation necessary for the field that I want to go into but because I feel that there is just so much to learn here.  It's an incredibly intellectually

stimulating place.  Here at Upenn, they really push for you to not only take courses in the IEDP department but also outside of the graduate school of education.  It's a challenge but one that allows

you to see how to look at things through different points of view.  In turn, this further feeds your curiosity to know and learn about different subjects and through different points of view and see how

this ties with your educational interests.  In short,  I wish it were a longer program just because I feel that there is so much to learn here...

 

- Does the curriculum lean toward a particular theory/school of thought?

Most of the students are very liberal here.  I am more of a moderate... I like to think things through and really make a practical and sound decision in matters.  Having said this... I have found that the

environment is very friendly to people's different opinions ( be they conservative, liberal etc.)

For the IED Program in particular I don't think that we have a particular school of thought.  As for the greater Upenn Graduate School of Education there is a social justice theme that it puts forth. 

This is advanced not just in the curriculum ( touching on issues of school overcrowdness, language issues etc.) but also through the work that many of the students in GSE do.  There are a lot of opportunities

for GSE students to volunteer and get involved with the Philly community.  I volunteer and I know that a lot of people do.  We are highly encouraged to be involved in the community which goes with the

social justice "theme" of Upenn's GSE. 

 

-Did you pursue (or do you know of any) collaborative projects with other students across programs or schools and/or research
opportunities with faculty

I am a Graduate Assistant and I opted to work for the Admissions office .  I think that masters

students that want to do research need to contact the professor that they want to do research with.  I am guessing that you want to do research so I will advice you to contact the professor that you might

be interested to work with and see if they would like to work with you etc.  It just takes a quick email.  Contact the professors that you might be interested in working with. 

-How would you describe the make-up of your class/program? As someone from a political science and external affairs background, I'd like to get an idea of Penn's point of view on non-traditional education students.

How would you describe a "non-traditional education" student?  The recent IEDP class is very diverse.  There are people who are fullbright scholars, students who just came back from abroad (Peace Corps) and so on...

It is required that all students have some type of international work experience...

-What were your deciding factors in choosing Penn?

The program was definitely the deciding factor (internship component, curriculum, professors etc.).  I received financial aid from other programs as well but Upenn was my top choice even before I submitted my applications.  I liked that Upenn didn't charged for

the application.  This showed that they were truly looking for "the best" students.  I also liked the city, its history and how responsive the professors were to my emails. 

-Any applications tips or suggestions you might have would be greatly appreciated!

Just remember that it's rolling admissions and the sooner it's in, the sooner that it'll be read.  Submit it!  If you need an extra pair of eyes to give you comments on it.  I'll be happy to look through it.  I owe it to you since I took forever to reply. 

Just keep in mind to send your application when you think that it's a good reflection of yourself, your passions/interests and your past work. 

 

Healthcare Reform, Just Around The Corner?

 

For those of you that may not be aware about the Health Care Reform Act that passed in 2010, I wanted to share some information I learned from watching a town hall style forum that took place at the White House earlier this month.

 

As of now, in 2014 every American will be mandated to purchase health care insurance (well... the supreme court hasn't finalized its opening on this mandated health insurance part). For some of you, this will means that your health care premiums could fall for others it means an extra expense. For the majority of Americans it means access to affordable health care.  This is good news especially for people who do not have the option of purchasing a health insurance for reasons such as pre-existing conditions, limit-caps, and others.

 

I guess it all started around 1987 when our nation became a “compassionate society” which means that those that had the ability to help would not deny medical care for those that could not afford medical care. Needless to say, this came at a cost.  Those that were uninsured made emergency rooms of hospitals (ER) their primary care homes and have adversely affected those with health insurance—basically, hospitals pass along the costs of treatments of the uninsured through high treatment costs to the insured and their insurance companies—resulting in increasing premiums.  

 

However, the insured are not the only people affected; patients without health insurance often are not given adequate health care treatment with respect to their overall general health.  As Dr. J. Nadine Garcia, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Minority Health & Director of the Offices of Minority Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (U.S DHHS), points out, physicians at ER’s are often only able to treat the patients’ most threaten conditions, which often is more severe than it should have been, if treated sooner. Dr. Regina Benjamin, Surgeon General, U.S DHHS, assures that preventative care remains the most viable method to treat the most dangerous and deadliest conditions such as heart disease, obesity, and cancer.

 

While we wait for the Supreme Court to make a decision on the Health Care Reform, the Obama Administration remains confident that after 70 years of precedent the Act will withstand the Supreme Court fully in tacked.  As the year 2014 nears, states are preparing with the creation of insurance Exchanges to provide individuals and small business with same private insurance choices that the President and Member of Congress have, and to foster competitions in hopes to lower the premiums for all. These Exchanges will make comparing plans and prices easier.

View the meeting at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mFOxrMSGpQ&feature=plcp&context=C49a5dedVDvjVQa1PpcFPBQfVfevZ1f7IhYzLOsY2Jee3y1l 6l4ag%3D

http://www.healthreform.gov/

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/s/supreme_court/affordable_care_act/index.html

Should I invest?

As I wonder about how the recovery of the economy is coming along (or if its recovering at all), I cannot help but wonder if its now a good time to invest? I would like to invest in a "green" company.  I don't know much about stock but whether we like it or not people are looking for alternatives to oil.  Hence, they are going to be investing in these types of companies...

 I am interested in a small penny stock company located in Boulder, CO that is in its development-stage as a company.  Apparently, this company is creating methodologies to capture static electricity from the atmosphere. Once captured, the kicker is to convert the energy into a useable source for utility companies such as mining, constructions i.e.

 

As I began to track this company two weeks ago, the price of common stock was $1.66 per share. I was surprised to see its fluctuations within a weeks’ time.  It almost hit a 52-week high of $2.96, but quickly fell to half that value. It also concerns me that the stock does have a 52-week low of 32 cents. I am left with the huge possibility (who would have know right?) that any money I invested could end up lost—which would suck. On the other hand, if this company can just bring to market one, just one, usable product then I would feel good that my money is being invested in a worthy cause, and I’d be rich. ;)HA ha ha ha just kidding :D

 

But having a worthy cause is an import part of investing. Those that believed in a concept of linking computers with wireless routers and fiber optic lines twenty years ago are now reaping their rewards for believing in profound concept—at that time. However, I have been told that investing emotionally can also be traumatic to one’s health.  As your investments go up and down on a week by week, day by day, minute by minute, second by second basis, so does your stress level.

 

The important thing I have come to realize is that the stock market on a short term basis can either bring you much financial success or a devastating loss.  Investing in something that you believe in can alleviate some of the "hurt" from losing money in the stock...  sort of...

 

SAVE JESSICA!!!

SAVE JESSICA!!!

In the midst of my academic sprint towards graduation I have recently gotten hooked to American Idol.  After so many years of watching not one episode ( except for youtube clips of William Hung’s “She Bangs” performance )  of this show I find myself drawn to it by one of their contestants.   Her name is Jessica Sanchez.

Now, this story didn’t begin yesterday.  It actually begin a few years ago when I saw a youtube video of a little girl ( not more than 8 years old ) that sang masterfully, unlike any other person that I’ve seen.  She was singing Celine Dion’s “ I surrender” song like a complete pro.   Seriously, her performance gave me chills.  It was THAT good.  This is the youtube link to her performance:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNWkZVobPDg

She also has a youtube page where she posts videos of her singing covers to different songs.  This is the link to it http://www.youtube.com/user/jsanchezfan?feature=results_main

Okay!  So back to the point!  Recently,  I found out that this girl is an American Idol contestant.  She is an incredible singer and I immediately thought that well she had this “in the bag”.  What I forgot about is the fact that “America” gets to vote for their favorite singer.  Despite this I still thought that Jessica would still have it “ in the bag”.  To my surprise, she actually had to recently be saved by the judges.  WHAT!?  Why?!   This is why I will from now and forever on vote for Jessica.  She really deserves it. 

Please Vote for her as well!  Check some of youtube videos if you’re on the fence about voting for her.  Or catch her on American Idol next week.  She’s just so talented… It would definitely be sad if she doesn’t win this competition. 

PICTURE RECAP OF JESSICA BEING SAVED BY THE JUDGES

She SINGS and doesn’t please America

Judges discuss it and….

She’s saved! 

If you missed it… This is also a condensed version of what happened in the latest American Idol Episode.   Jessica gets saved by the judges http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux5Zdsi76oc&context=C471f5a6ADvjVQa1PpcFPFpqyeWw8JXiIkAh-4j3j62hg2LpC1OrA=

The Pope in Mexico!

Mexico is known for its food, its great beaches, the vibrancy of its people and culture. And sadly it is also known for its cartel problems. 

Mexico will persevere through this dark time.  When it celebrated its 200^th birthday ( a few years back), a lot of people criticized it.  To most people a country with that many problems ( both economic and political and so on)should not be spending its money celebrating its 200^th birthday.  But that’s just not Mexico.  Mexico and its people are much more than just a combination of problems.  And hence they just like any other country have the right to celebrate its existence.  

IEDP Internship!

It is now official.  I am going to go to Cabo Delgado, Mozambique for my IEDP field internship. 

          I will be working with the Agha Khan Foundation.  My main job is to evaluate an adult literacy program.  Other students from IEDP are working in different parts of Africa, some are heading to Latin America, Asia and Europe.  Oh!  And some decided to take internships here in the United States (San Francisco, New York, D.C.).  Basically, IEDP students are going to be all over the world this summer.  To my knowledge, the different organizations that IEDP students will be working for are UNESCO, OECD, IDEA, World Vision, and others. 

I think that at this point all of us have a set internship.  I am very happy with mine.  Nonetheless, it was unexpected.  My “forte” is the Latin America area.  And so I naturally thought that I was going to go to Latin America and further strengthen my career there.  Nonetheless, Professor Wagner encouraged me to work in my interest but in a different context.  Since I’m still a student of international development, Dr. Wagner thought that it be important for me to be exposed to as much of the world as possible.  And I agree.

Depending on each other’s schedules we each will be departing on different dates to our specific destinations.  As for me, I will be heading to Africa a few days after graduation.  I’m so excited!  I’ve already started preparing for Africa (e.g. applying for my VISA and vaccinations!)

Speakers on Campus

So this semester I've attended a good number of different events around campus.  Notable among these speaker events is Amartya Sen's visit to Upenn.  IEDP has also brought a good number of professional people involved in international development.  And I've had the honor to meet and even have dinner/lunch with some of the speakers whom I have learned a lot from.

The first one is Amartya Sen:
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1998/sen-autobio.html

 Dirk Van Damme
Head of Division of the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI)
http://www.oecd.org/document/35/0,3746,en_21571361_49995565_44146403_1_1_1_1,00.html

 Eric Falt
Assistant Director-General for External Relations and Public Information at the United nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOu9e7FRjns

 Irina Bokova
Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
http://www.bokova.eu/

 Nerissa Cook
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Bureau for intenrational Organization Affairs, US Department of State
http://www.state.gov/p/io/132821.htm

Mayor Nutter

During lunch on Friday Mayor Nutter addressed all of the Gates Millennium Scholars that were part of this year’s Alternative Spring Break.   I was seated near the podium where the mayor was going to speak from.  When I was making my way back to my seat we sort of made eye contact and he interpret it as if I was making my way towards him, to speak to him or shake his hand.  Glad that to have the sudden chance to speak to the mayor whom I actually admire ( lol)… I scurried through my mind in order to find a “topic” to talk to the mayor about. 

A day before that he had presented the new city budget and you I could definitely tell that defending/presenting the new budget had taken a toll on his “spiritual strength”. 

Fourth Day of Community Service

On the fourth day of community service we went to the People’s Emergency Center (PEC) and to an affiliated organization with PEC called Children’s Safe Harbor (CSH).  These are PHENOMENAL organizations.  The PEC website is:  http://www.pec-cares.org/

And the Children’s Safe Harbor (CSH) is:  http://childrenssafeharborinc.org/

The PEC helps homeless people get back on their feet.  They feed and train people so that they can eventually fend for themselves and maybe even be homeowners, someday.  The children’s safe harbor specializes in helping formally abused children.  Both are phenomenal organizations.  I just cannot stop saying that.

Our task was to evaluate the efficiency of a program in the CSH.  The program was a computer class.  We interviewed both members of the staff that implemented the program and participants of the program (which were all women).  We asked questions like:  What do you like about the program?  What do you think could be worked on?  What do you think needs to be added to make this program work even better for you?  Why?  Etc.  But for me… the most important question was the last question.  Has this program helped you be more involved in your child’s schooling?  Any change before and now during your participation in the program?  I was surprised to hear how being computer literate had helped the women feel more “sure of themselves” and with enough confidence to check their children’s homework.  Through the program they had learned some English and had learned how to navigate the internet and Microsoft ( and other software) that gave them the skills to give their input in their children’s school work.

I was very move by this experience.  I just can’t believe how efficiently run these organizations were.  And how noble were the goals that they set out to do.  It’s very moving…

WEB Du Bois (Dr. William Edward Burghardt Du Bois) and Upenn

As a graduate assistant working for the admissions office, one of my tasks is to give tours to prospective/accepted students who request it.  The Upenn campus is not as big as I thought that it was going to be.   Nonetheless, my tours only cover parts of the campus.  Since, the tours are often limited to thirty minutes I basically give students thirty minutes worth of the campus.  This, I think limits both the visiting student’s scope of the entirety of the Upenn campus and my own as well (since I don’t have to learn about any other buildings on campus other than the ones that I cover during my tour).  Hence, I am ignorant to the history and location of many other buildings on campus, including the WEB Du Bois College House here on campus. 

All of the students and staff involved with ASB came to Upenn for dinner today ( Wednesday March 7^th).   The dinner was held in the Wharton Building which I was familiar with, because of its proximity to the Graduate School of Education.  Nonetheless, after the dinner we were supposed to go to the WEB Du Bois house, which I was completely unaware of.  I didn’t know that it existed.  Since, I was a student from Upenn people were expecting me to know where it was at and I just didn’t know.  It was quite embarrassing…

Of course!  As soon as I was able to get a hold of a computer I researched the house and its history.  I will not go over all of the history but it is definitely worth reading.  Here is the link:  http://dubois.house.upenn.edu/house_history.html  It is a housing building open to all and has a strong history of catering to African American issues.  Even today, “the House continues to be a center for Black scholars searching diligently for an African identity and perspective within a historically White institution of higher learning.” Again, I highly recommend the one page brief history of the house. 

As if this wasn’t enough… I also found out that WEB Du Bois was just (Mid February of 2012) given a posthumous recognition as an honorary Emeritus Professor of Sociology and African American Studies.  In 1896, WEB Du Bois was hired to be an assistant lecturer here at the University of Pennsylvania.  Because of the “times” he wasn’t given a full professorship.  At the end, this most recent recognition of WEB Du Bois as a professor Emeritus serves more as an award to the University than to the late WEB Du Bois. 

Read more about it here:  http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/news/penn-conference-mark-honorary-emeritus-professorship-sociology-and-africana-studies-web-du-bois

Second Day of Community Service

Today we are going to Aspira charter school… I believe that it’s in North Philly.  Here is their website:  http://www.aspiracyber.org/Bilingual-Model.31.0.html

This school is special in the way that it chose to empower its students.  It is located in a predominantly latino community (Puerto Rican and Dominican communities).  It teaches half of its curriculum in Spanish and half of its curriculum in English.  It’s aim is to create bi-cultural, bilingual, biliterate students.  It is a fairly new school (four or five years old) so it’s academic effect cannot be readily measured yet.  Nonetheless, its social effect can definitely be seen by just talking to the students.  The students are very aware of their community and  how special it is to speak two languages with perfect fluency.  In turn, this empowers them.  They know who they are and what they want to keep ( as in language and heritage) throughout their life.  I think that this is phenomenal.  All throughout the United States, there are various campaigns to erase the “Spanish language from the children” to give the children only English, to basically steal a very strong component to “who they are” from them.  It is cultural genocide and it’s happening everywhere.  This is what makes this charter school special.  It’s trying to help the kids keep a very strong component to their family’s identity.

In this school, our job was to help set up a “lending” library.  At the moment, the school only had a room full of books where the students could sit down and read the books in the room but never take them home.  Our job was to classify every single book as fiction, nonfiction, chapter book etc.  bind them, assign them a code and enter them into the database and then shelve them.  It took two days and two teams to do this.  It was a tedious job but very rewarding.  We also got to meet the students and talk to some of their teachers.  To me this was a very powerful experience.  There was a very good quote at the entrance to the library that said “It is easier to build strong children than to repair a broken man” by Frederick Douglass.  And I couldn’t help but compare both the youth build students who had been drop outs to the much younger students in this charter school.   Was Youth build “repairing” their students enough in their one year there?  And is the Aspira charter school, and other schools like it, “building” strong enough children that will overcome all of the obstacles in their communities?

First Day of Community Service!

We were divided into four teams.  Each of the team had about 15 students.  There is the blue, red, orange and green team.  I am in the Green Team J. Our first community service site is a charter school in Philadelphia called Youth Build.  Their website is:  www.youthbuildphilly.org

In the school’s own terms:  “Youth build Philadelphia Charter School provides out-of-school youth in Philadelphia with the broadest range of tools, supports and opportunities to become self-sufficient, responsible, contributing members and leaders in their community.”  And they achieve this by combining both academically rigorous coursework as well as real “in the field” work training in fields like nursing, truck driving, home building/repair, computers and so forth.  It’s a demanding one year program that requires a lot from the students.  They begin with thousands of applicants.  Out of that pool they invite 500 students to come to the school and meet the staff.  During that time, the program is introduced to the prospective students.  What it consists of?  What it requires of them?  What types of services are available?  And during this time as well, the students are expected to be highly discipline to the point that if they ever arrive late to the introductory meeting they are disqualified from participating.  A folder with different options (other than youthbuild) is given to them and they are asked to leave.  At the end, out of the 500 students invited to visit the school about 300 are accepted and they are the new youthbuild cohort.  Though it’s a grueling process,  the program is definitely worth the hype.  The staff there visibly love their job and wholeheartedly believe in and execute the mission of the school and in the kids that they admit. 

We were there from 8 to 4:00pm.  And what we basically did was facilitate two different groups of students.  During each session we basically went through “how to conduct yourself during an interview” and “how to answer certain questions”.  I know that everyone has some interview skills and I think that everyone “on a good day” can “wing” any interview.  Nonetheless, practice is important.  I let the groups of students that I worked with know this.  I also let them know my experience with interviews (which has not always been amazing).  This way we all started like “on the same page”.  Once the students knew that we were “both” practicing and helping each other through this learning process then they were more receptive to my feedback.  It was a really good experience.  I had never step foot in a charter school before this.  I’m glad that this was my first experience with charter schools.  J

Alternative Spring Break Gitters

Today is the first day of my “Gates Millennium Scholar Alternative Spring Break”!  I am definitely not done with all of my packing.  Since, I haven’t received any type of schedule for what exactly is going to happen during this “community service alternative Spring Break”… I don’t exactly know what kind of clothes to pack for the upcoming week.  My best guess is that jeans and nice shirts will do it.  J

I’m so excited to get started!  Basically, the Alternative Spring Break (ASB) is a week of community service here in the city of Philadelphia.  Sixty people were chosen for the ASB.  I don’t know how many applied but the application process consisted of two or three essays (can’t quite remember) in response to two or three prompt questions given by the people who I guess were going to read our essays and select the people from there.  You also had to submit a resume and then hope for the best!  Lol  

I am intimidated by the fact that I don’t exactly know what type of community service we are going to do.  I AM known for misplacing key information about events and my email account does have an infamous reputation for sending everything important to "spam"... Maybe, I just missed the information somehow... (highly likely)  I know that it will have to do with education and library science but not knowing the exact services sort of worries me.  I really don’t want to be outside.  I don’t like the cold.  I am also not the strongest person in the block so if any constant heavy lifting is required then O.M.G.  But whatever, I’ll do whatever is asked of me.  It’s just for a week so how bad can it be?  J 

I can’t wait to meet my roommate!  All of the GMS events that I’ve been part of have been great.  Actually, I’ve only gone to one other GMS event.  But that’s enough to know that whatever is GMS related will be great (and fun)!  Allright!  I’m going to finish packing now.  Peace! 

Raw food diet or not?

As the semester is beginning to get more and more intense (workload wise),  Nigel and I have been struggling with finding time to exercise and to cook (good meals).  It’s such a shame that the weather is getting “Southern California” people friendly and that I am at the same time in the heat of mid-terms ( Oh how hot! Lol).  One solution that we thought of (actually Nigel’s sister suggested it) is maybe going on a raw food diet.  The cooking time will simply just consist of washing the fruits and vegetables.  And because we would be eating so healthy then (I believe) we won’t need to exercise as often during the week.  It’s like killing two birds with one stone!  Perfect J

I know that a lot of people claim that eating raw food (and only raw food) has many advantages to your digestive system, immunity may aid weight loss and often gives an energy boost.  Like many other issues these statements have been contested.  And some also say that the disadvantages of a raw food diet are also plentiful.  For example, not cooking your vegetables above (I think 118F) doesn’t kill food borne illnesses like Salmonella which causes diarrhea and other discomforts… Also, it is said that cooked vegetables contain nutrients that the raw form of the same vegetables just doesn’t have.  So, when a carrot and a tomato are cooked they each give off certain nutrients that they wouldn’t have, had they been eaten raw.    

Having been a very strict vegetarian for four years, I know that a change in diet can have a tremendous effect on the body (and mind).  I think that extremes are always dangerous.  Maybe we’ll do like two or three days a week where we will eat raw food.   I guess that I am fearful of depriving my body of crucial vitamins and minerals that I need.  I’ll think it through… J

LSAT Weekend!

February the 11^th marked the end of a very tense time (3 to 4 months) for both my husband and I.  This last month before the exam was definitely the most challenging for both of us.  My husband enrolled himself in an LSAT prep course.  And for a little over a month, my husband in addition to holding a full time job would attend an LSAT prep course from 6 to 10pm … on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.  Never did he complain and never did he ever show any type of physical or mental withering.  

In our situation, that little saying that goes “you just never stop meeting someone” has been incredibly applicable.  We’ve only known each other for less than a year and I feared that I had maybe rushed into our partnership.  You know?  It’s just natural to always faintly doubt at my age.  Nonetheless, the side of Nigel that I saw during the past couple of months has helped me meet a side of him that has only made me fall farther in love with him.  I sincerely think that I would have broken down somewhere between the second and third week of his busy schedule.  It was very impressive to see his commitment to his goal.

Everything definitely cumulated for me on February the 11^th.  He left to take his test at around 8 in the morning and came back at around 1:30pm.  These were the longest hours of my life!  Meanwhile, at home, I was trying to finish as much school work as possible.  I wanted to clear the rest of the day for pure LSAT celebration.  I got the most pressing work done but I got very little else done.  I was nervous.  First of all, this test is only supposed to take about 4 hours.  I began to worry about him.  What about if someone did something to him on his way to the test?  Should I call someone?  What about if someone did something to him on his way back from the test?  Should I go look for him?  I was creating a million scenarios in my head that lead me to believe that I had to go look for him.  Maybe it was just me panicking? Maybe… I was set on launching my one woman hunt party if he wasn’t back by 2:00pm.  But alas!  He made it home before 2:00pm.  After I bombarded him with all of my questions we began calling our family members to tell them about the test.  Then we watched TV, listened to music and just had good quality time.  Then!  We took off for SushiJ.  It was a great way to end February the 11^th. 

Baptist Church it is?!

Since the International Educational Program, like many GSE master’s degree programs, is a one year program, I have had quite a struggle to find “the church” to go to.  I was raised Catholic and I will always claim myself a catholic nonetheless it has been the norm for me to not necessarily attend Catholic Church when I am out of California.  I usually attend a church that has a warm community of people, regardless of the religion.  

I cannot complain about Philadelphia’s church communities.  I have attended church in many different places and they have all had great community but I didn’t exactly saw myself as being part of any of them.  I don’t exactly know why… But!  I think that my church odyssey has come to an end.  Today I attended a Baptist Church in Wayne Pennsylvania where I was blown away by how progressive everyone was.  They accepted everyone.  They explicitly stated their embrace of all communities no matter your race, sexual orientation/identification, class, etc.  My jaw was on the floor.

I fit here.  In my mind god can be summarized in two words: love and tolerance.  It’s that simple.  This church completely embodies this. I am very happy and blessed to have found this church.  I hope to start bible studies next Sunday.  I needed this for some time now.  I need to be “spiritually” nourished.  This will definitely help me become a more dedicated student and an even happier person.

Good Weather= jogging weather

It’s January and I feel somewhat guilty about being so happy that the winter has been incredibly light here in Philadelphia.  Is it pure luck or maybe the doings of Global Warming? I really hope that it’s just a random warm winter…

I did my undergraduate degree in the East Coast and every year (no exception), we always had below zero winters.  I am from Los Angeles, California where below zero weather just doesn’t happen.  It’s unheard of.  What? Who?  When?  Uh!  I was so nervous about coming back to the East Coast because of the weather but alas all is warm. Lol  

And specially warm enough to take a nice jog every now and then.  I love running.  In high school running was everything to me.  I ran cross country, track and snuck in a few marathons.  I ate, dreamt, and breathed that sport.  Unfortunately, I fractured my knees and had to stop running competitively after only a few years of running.  I received physical therapy and had different medical procedures to cure my knees but I was banned from competitive running.  It was a huge blow to not just my running career but my ego as well.

I stopped running and then I went through an entire “sport withdrawal” moment.  My body literally ached (mostly my back) because it needed to run.  I went from running 12 to 15 miles a day to nothing.  As I got older I began to sort of just accept the idea that I will never run competitively again.  I then began to look for other ways to keep myself healthy.  And this launched my crusade for “the next best sport”. Lol  It has been a great process :D!

I will list some types of workouts that I found very helpful.  I am not a doctor so I am not saying that these type of workouts work for everyone.  They worked for me.  And so this is why I am posting them in my blog.  Everyone has a different body.  Always consult with your doctor about using any type of exercising routine.  I am not endorsing any of the workouts and I am not responsible if anyone tries them and gets hurt (because I am not recommending them).  These are just a few of the workouts that worked (or did not work) for me. 

PILATES

I think that this was a great workout to tone the body.  I wasn’t in love with this type of workout though.  I didn’t like how it was shaping my body.  I think that I also didn’t like Pilates because a lot of the positions were hard on my knees.  Again, I might be bias because this is the first workout that I tried right after I sort of “recuperated” from my knee injuries.  I didn’t find it very pleasant.  But a lot of other girls did!  So I guess it depends.

CREW

As an undergrad I joined Crew (woke up at 4 in the morning …).  I liked the people and the fact that everyone was very dedicated to this one sport.  Rowing was a good experience.  But again, I didn’t like that it was getting rid of the fatty tissue around my hips (which I personally like).  So I dropped it after I completed the semester.  We had a workout in the morning and then again in the afternoon.  EVERYONE was very tone and had muscle etc.  But this was not what I was looking for…

YOGA

I LOVE Yoga.  It increased my flexibility and strength.  I became tone.  And I could feel how it just shook a lot of stress off of me.  I haven’t done yoga in a while because I’m busy but I do miss it.  It helped me focus more in school etc.  Yoga not just works your physical but also your mind and “soul” (If anyone can believe me. Lol).  The yoga video that I found the most helpful for me was a video called “Yoga for Health” by Jenny Cornero.  I recently saw that it was added to Netflix.  Yeiiii!!

P90X

This is a great workout video.  It’s an intense workout.  I think that there are about 11-12 videos.  Each works out a different part of your body.  It’s quite an intensive workout.  I do it when I feel like I want to be challenged.  Lol  I actually really like this video.  It combines yoga, kempo, cardio and others to give you incredible workouts.  These workouts tone and strengthen you.

ZUMBA

Yes please!  I love zumba.  It’s a really “friendly” workout.  What I love the most of is that you exercise but it doesn’t even feel like if you’re exercising.  It’s like “a night out”.  The music is great and the people are fun.  NOBODY actually gets all of the steps of the workout but it’s fun to try and to see that everyone else is struggling with you.  Zumba is like the “desert” of workouts. 

I will rate other types of exercises in other journal entries.  For the moment, I am still looking forward to maybe going for a light jog tomorrow.  The above workouts are great but running is where my heart is at. J

Let the last semester begin!

It’s my last semester at Upenn!  My first semester was an incredible experience and I can only be nothing but excited to begin another great semester!  I have so many things to do this last semester.  Upenn hosts incredible events and I will go to at least two every week.  But before I get further on my “Last semester” I have to advertise the “2012 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Symposium on Social Change”.  Just copy and paste this link unto a new window for information about all of the events (www.upenn.edu/aarc/mlk).

This is a three week chain of different events that range from yoga meetings to speakers to documentaries that speak to the issues that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. conveyed during his lifetime (and is still spreading after death).  The event started on January the 13^th and will end on February 2^nd.  I have gone to one event so far and will definitely keep going to as many as possible.  Again, please check the website for more in detail and up to date information about the different events. 

I highly recommend for people to attend these events not just to learn new things but to give your respects to a man that stands as a symbol for so much positive change in our country. 

But going back to my “second semester resolutions”… I’m in my second week of school and I have not gone to two/three of my classes.  Not a great way to start but this was the same situation that I found myself in at the beginning of last semester.  Therefore, there is no need to panic.  Everything will eventually fall into place.  I am excited for classes but most of all I am excited to get my country placement for my IEDP internship.

In my internship application I put that I was open to be sent to any place around the world including Washington D.C.   So in about four to six months I could possibly be anywhere in the world!  I’m so excited!

Oh! Happy Chinese New Years!!!!

Mexican Food Fest!

For Winter Break…

I went to visit my mother and grandmother in Mexico.  I am from a very rural town in a southern state of Mexico called Guerrero.  My flight took off at 5:30am and I got to my town at around 7:00pm on that same day.  I stayed there for about a week.  I will mention just a few of the highlightsJ.

As always, the place is jaw-dropping gorgeous!  I love the ponds, lakes, trees, animals etc.  It’s quite a difference from the city life.  The air is much fresher.  The pace of life, the people, the culture, the music, the food, the language, everything changes over there. 

On the food topic… As soon as I got there I began to eat everything in sight.  Guerrero is a haven for all types of Mexican food some strictly regional (because I have NEVER seen them outside of the state) and some that are more Mexican-typical dishes.  So I (of course) began with tamales.  I had the more well-known meat (chicken AND pork) tamales, some with red sauce and the others with green sauce.  The next day my mom gave me equally delicious (but less well-known) “Tamales de Nejo”.  These tamales have a flat shape to them and are made with banana and avocado leaves and are a side dish to “Mole verde” (green mole made out of seeds, chillies, and other spices plus chicken).  THEN!  I had something called “atole de panili”.  I don’t exactly know how to explain atole de panili.  It’s a drink made of cornflour ( not cream of wheat) and corn and it’s eaten with salsa… After that!  I moved on to atole de elote which is my personal favorite.  I actually learned how to make it as well. 

I also ate “pozole” which is like a stew with hominy and pork/chicken.  It is eaten with avocado, lemon, chili, oregano, lettuce, onions and some people also add radish but not me.  Next on the list was the ever so famous “menudo” dish.  On my birthday ( December 27^th) my mom, aunts and friends made mole, beans and rice.  I hadn’t eaten mole in ages!  Guerrero has a special type of mole and I have been unable to find it anywhere in Philadelphia so I was more than happy to satisfy my almost 6 month craving of Guerrero’s mole.  I was eating day and night (literally) and so the list of dishes that I ate and that I just didn’t have time to eat ( next trip!) can go on and on for pages.  But I just want to mention a very rare dish that does not exist in the United States.  It’s basically a salsa.  The main ingredient is a type of bug that I guess lives in the state of Guerrero and probably in other states of Mexico as well. 

The bug is called “Jumil”.  It’s a spicy little bug.  Every time I ate them I couldn’t help but think of Timon and Pumba and their eating habits.  I hadn’t eaten these bugs in years.  I’m lucky to have visited when they were in season.  I will later post a picture of me and the salsa that I made with “jumiles”.  I don’t think that you can tell that there are bugs grinded in the salsa.  But alas there are! And they make the salsa 500 times enjoyable! 

I had a blast in Mexico!  I’m so happy that I went.  If it wasn’t for all of the cartel activity (and the scorpions and snakes) I would have probably stayed a little longer plus I would have been living with a less tense mother.  lol

One more week and the blogging resumes :D !