the tale of the not so good shoes

I´ll start off this story by telling you how for my birthday, my generous sister Linda bought me some flip flops that are so cute. So I wanted to wear them as soon as possible and the occasion arose when we all were to venture to the GEM SHOW, OOOO!
Well before we go I show my mom my cool new flip flops that Linda bought for me. Mom tells me how cute they are but then warns me to bring an extra pair of shoes and put them in the car just if the rare occurrence happens that they break. I tell oh, "oh mom, flip flops never break!"
We get to the GEM SHOW, OOOO! and drop off mom and Grandma at the entrance and then we proceeded to find a parking space for the car. Linda finds a parking spot and we start walking to the entrance. Just in these few steps I start to have a hard time keeping my shoes on my feet as I lift my foot up which is funny to me because they fit fine. As I continue to walk my flip flops start to compress like my weight is too much for them with indentions from my feet just after ten steps that most people make in their shoes after ten wears!!!! Suddenly as I lift my foot the shoes falls and catches on the ground pulling the flip flop apart and ripping the back end off from the shoe, yeah and this is what it looked like.
and this....



well we found a payless after searching through the mall for a while....shoe less might I add, with every child looking at me like I was crazy, or with envy! I bought this one pair that I have been wanting to buy, and it was an excellent choice since I spent the rest of the day in very very comfortable non breakable shoes! but next time I´ll listen to my mommy´s very wise counsel!

It´s nice to be back!

So I have picked up my life in a new location once again. I moved down to San Francisco in with Grandma, but most of you who are reading this are well aware that I am here and this is not anything new to you. I guess I just wanted to post this to clear up confusion on what my plans are, as best I can because they are confusing even to me.

So I am looking for a job here which I have a lot of leads and I´m very excited about. I have one term left to finish at Oregon State then I will have my long awaited bachelors degree in Spanish. I´m planning on going back to Oregon for fall term of this year, and then returning once again to Grandma´s so I can work on going on a mission since the stake where the sunset ward is has funds to help me on my mission, therefore I will be leaving from Grandma´s ward (my new ward) to the mission field. I have some debts to pay off that are school related but that is why I´m here living with grandma because she gives me free living accommodations, okay and because I miss her.

After a mission I plan on gaining residency here in California so I can attend grad school at a lower cost, and I´m not sure which one I want to go to, but I do want to certify for teaching down here because then I can teach almost anywhere. Grad school for the teaching program is only one short year and then I can finally start my future career YIPEEE!

Well, I hope you all are doing great and having so much fun in the sun if there is any where you are. I miss you all, unless you are here in California then I´ll see you soon!

A day at the museum with the pleves!

I went to the Museum with the eighth graders of the school, the principle and another teacher. It was very fun and I have to admit, a lot more fun than I thouhgt it was going to be. Usually I don't like going to Museums with a group of people because we always spend way to long looking at things, but this time was perfect. I even thought we spent too little time at one museum. We went to two museums, one was called, museo ejercito y fuerza de Mexico, so it was the prehistoric to now a day history, of mexico. The second was called Museo de Planeotologia, and we got to see bones and fossils that were found here in the State of Jalisco, Mexico.

The statue is of an Aztec Warrior, they wore animal skins when they fought. There are pictures of some boys that I taught and also of two girls in the same class and I. The last picture, is of one of the students who thought it was a good idea to show the depth from of the sand underneath the glass. And of course two boys measuring their arm to a prehistoric femor bone!

the amazing talents of art!

I went to a museum with my friend Daniela. First we saw a photographer who decided to do a project that took two years to do because the camera and the way she develops her film is crazy hard. She was there to introduce her work, and we got to ask her some questions. She was very shy and very very talented. I even got a picture with her, Daniela and I. The only painting is of Carlos Vargas Pons and he was just as amazing, but unfortunately he was not there. Oh well it was fun anyway!

A classical concert!

I went with some friends to two classical concerts. The first one was a pianist, and he was absolutely amazing, and the second was a violinist! The concerts were great and the theater is amazing. It's one of the first in Guadalajara, and Guadalajara is over 400 years old. It's beautiful and we sat on a balcony both times so I get to have a nice view! Yipee for Theaters and concerts!

So in the pictures are of the theater's many floors, the orchestra and Kim and I.

A wedding in mexico!

What a weekend ! I went to a wonderful wedding and it made me remember what a wedding is like. It was so beautiful! I really enjoyed it, and it was so fun to dance with old men and friends! I went with my friends that are sisters, and their family. I even participated in the bouquet toss, which I got a flower or two without force. It was great and we ended up coming home at three in the morning. It's cool that in Mexico many people have their wedding and reception at night, so they last a lot longer.

The bishop and his wife are here in one picture, and yes they are foreigners too from southern California, and the second is the Bride, Daniela, Kim and I. The photo of Kim, Daniela and I are of us just after the bouquet toss, oh how fun.

A great weekend in Mexico!

So I've been able to do some pretty fun stuff this weekend. I went to a neighboring city called Tlaquepaque with a friend from school and her brother. It was nice to go with a friend who is from here and she knows where to go and all the sites to see. Talquepaque had a lot of art and home decore stuff. It was great and I had so much fun.
I also went to the Mana concert later that night. World famous, but many people from the state don't know who they are. The presentation was incredible and I can't believe how many songs I didn't know! They play so well live and with a lot of energy. There is nothing more I hate then going to a concert to see the band preform out of habit and not because they love their fans or what they are doing. Mana is from Mexico and so for their last songs they brought out the Mexican flag and had fireworks. What a show, what a show!
The night before I went to a concert. I thought it was just going to be some guy playing a piano, but it was an actual symphony. The pianist was flown in from L.A. and apparently plays all around the world. He played with an orchestra and percussions. I looooooved it!
I'm really enjoying my time here, more than before. I'm making more friends and I feel so busy all the time. It's nice to have a life here with appointments and things to do. My speaking abilities have jumped, and I feel so much more comfortable speaking now than ever before (in spanish of course). I'm really going to miss Guadalajara!

Guadalajara pictures

So here are some pictures. The first is a street that I was walking on one day, I just thought the color of the flowers were gorgeous. The next is my house, here where I live with Lorena and her family. The last is the Guadalajara Temple, that I live five minutes from. I went for a baptism session and it was wonderful.

Cuernavaca, Mexico

Well last year I went to Cuernavaca, Mexico on a study abroad program. I stayed there from Jauary 3 until July 14. It was the best and the worst! I learned so much Spanish, and I had great teachers, but I missed my family so much.
I studied at the Tecnologico de Monterrey and I took courses in Spanish to improve my Spanish skills. Both semesters were very challenging for me, but it paid off. I feel very comfortable in the language, although I would love to improve even more and plan to.
I got to play volleyball on a team, and it was fun to play against other school. But don't think I'm a star since anyone could join the team. I took an abs class which kicked my butt and I loved it. I learned how to dance Salsa and Banda, and how to get fair prices taking a taxi.
The lifestyle is so different, and I felt that I was truly participating in another culture. I think the hardest thing to get used to was the fact that everything I did there was temporary, and living a temporary life for seven and a half months. I grew a lot and I learned so much!

Guadalajara, Mexico

Hello everyone,

welcome to my blog! I wanted to let everyone see what my life is like here in Guadalajara. I'm enjoying myself at the school, and also with my ward and host family. Everyone I met is great and makes me feel at home here. I sometimes I get frustrated and want to compalian or go home (not happening mom), but heavenly father is really blessing me to enjoy this opportunity that I have to study abroad for the second time.
I'm feeling more and more comfortable speaking spanish, and it's been fun speaking Spanglish with the students at school. the students are great, most of the time, just not when they start to whine about silly stuff. I'm helping teachers in five different English class of all types of levels, and I have my own after school English class. I love teaching and my time here has inspired me to be an ESL teacher in middle school or high school. I have subbed in a few other classes, such as reading, ethics, biology and history. I have an inckling that I will really enjoy teaching reading as well, but we will see.
I hope you enjoy my blog and my updates. I miss all of you, but I sure as heck do not miss the rain!