Winter Break (to be continued)

Winter break has been amazing so far. I'm pretty much worry free and baby free. Although I miss my son so much its a relief not to have to tend to my motherly duties every day. Christmas was great. I ate lots of delicious food and relaxed most of the day. To top it all of I got more gifts than I expected. The only thing I wish that I could change about my break so far is that I have not been able to sleep in as long as I would like to. My body is programmed to wake up early because of Year Up and now I can't sleep in to save my life! I wold love to sleep in until 12 o'clock just one day of this break!

Internship Readiness

I think that the qualities of someone who display internship readiness are dependability, honesty, and a positive attitude. In module 3 to demonstrate imnternship readiness I need to be at Year Up everyday on time prepared and ready to learn. Also even when I may be in a good mood I tend to sometimes look like I'm not. People often ask me whats wrong or if I'm okay so this tells me that I need to smile more or appear to be in a good mood.

Best/Worst Job

The best job I’ve had would be being a parent to my son. I love this job because it is both paid and voluntary. It’s voluntary because I chose to do this job even though I knew from the beginning that it would be a struggle. Also I am paid on a daily basis by seeing that my son is healthy and happy. My primary responsibilities are to feed, clean, and teach my child right from wrong. What makes this job enjoyable is seeing my son smile and laugh, because it shows me that he’s happy. Some skills that I have developed doing this job that will serve me well in internship are patience, listening, and being thorough. Some lessons that I have learned parenting are that you can’t solve every problem alone and that nobody is the perfect parent but if you are worried about being a good parent you generally are one because you are showing care. My worst job was volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club in Hayward. My primary responsibilities were to watch over a assigned group of children, plan and execute daily activities, assist in serving snacks and lunch, and keep my designated area clean. What made this job enjoyable was that I got to sit down for the majority of time I was on duty.

Public Art as Social Protest

The Rivera Frozen Assets Mural created during The Great Depression connects a lot with what’s going on today with The Occupy movement. In the mural there is a scene that shows a bank that is empty with people that look depressed. I think that the bank situation is very similar to what is going on with our bank systems today. During The Great Depression people were not able to take their money out of the bank because the bank had used their money for purposes other than the intended. Now people are being charged to use the money that they have put in banks, which most likely causes a lot of people to remove their money from the bank. I believe that the less people who use bank services the more fees the bank has to charge in order to maintain their business. Also in the mural it shows a shelter like place with a lot of people sleeping on the ground with a guard watching them. I think that this connects to the occupy movement because the people who are protesting are sleeping outside with police watching. The only true difference is that they are choosing to sleep outside and be watched because they are choosing to protest. Another portion of the mural shows people waiting in line for something. This is a connection because just like people were waiting around during The Great Depression for thing to be resolved and improve people protesting for The Occupy movement are doing the same. I do believe that the Rivera mural is a direct connection to situations that are happening today with The Occupy Movement. If someone were to make a mural or even just a painting to illustrate what is happening with The Occupy Movement I don’t think that the pictures would be alike but I do believe that the thought put in would definitely be similar.

My Inspiration

My Inspiration is my son. Every since he was born he has changed my life in so many ways its crazy to me. People often look down at me because I am only 19 and I have a child, but I consider me being a mother a very good thing. My son began to inspire me way before he was even born. When I first found out I was pregnant I was a highschool drop out with barely any intentions of returning to school. However when I realized that I would be having a child I told myself that I couldn't have a baby and not have a highschool diploma. Really what kind of role model would I be for my child? I wouldn't be able to stress the importance of eduacation to him when I hadn't even completed my own. Beyond this instance my child inspires me in a variety of ways on a daily basis. He inspires me just to get out of bed on mornings when I really don't feel like it. When deciding to apply for Year Up

Community Essay Prewrite

• Sorensons Ranch School (SRS) is a disciplined learning community built up of teens who were struggling academically or emotionally, or both
• Members are all considered students. They communicate through group therapy and day to day during various activities
• Students are generally sent to SRS with little or no notice

Plus/Delta for Module 1

Plus:

• ·         Arrived to Year Up on time

• ·         Gave good feedback

• ·         Did well on Tech Midterm

• ·         Did well on Elevator Pitch

• ·         Dress professionally within means

• ·         Used professional language

Delta:

• ·         Meeting assignment deadlines

• ·         Taking personal days

• ·         Study skills/habits (specifically for final projects and exams)

• ·         Time management

• ·         Professional language/tone

My Neighborhood

Before living in Utah I spoke so differently that many people would assume that I grew up in the “ghetto”, which is somewhat true. However you don’t have to live in a certain place to speak a certain way. My family and friends influenced my speech, not my neighborhood. I was born in Sacramento, CA and raised in Hayward. Hayward is primarily Hispanic, but other minorities live there as well. I lived specifically in South Hayward, which I guess you could consider the ghetto of Hayward. It was lower income, but the properties were all still very nice. The apartment building I lived in was based of income. My mother and I lived in a 3 bedroom, and since my mother worked a decent job she was paying the highest rent. However there were families paying $250 for the same 3 bedroom. As a minor with no real responsibilities, this amazed me. I felt as if I didn’t need to push myself to do any better, because I could live in a nice place for cheap. Addition to our apartments being affordable for everybody it was in a pretty nice neighborhood. It was clean, quiet and safe. I never once felt like I was in danger or uncomfortable. I don't think that my neighbor

Blog Post #5 Reflection On "Poverty Business"

After I read the 'Poverty Business" I believe that these companies destroy the opportunity divide. They manipulate ignorant people and make it so they are stuck trying to pay back money they already owe, on top of becoming in debt with the company that claims that they will "help". However, I look at it both ways. The companies are definitely being scandalous, but at the same time you can't completely blame the company. Some of the blame lies on the customer. As a customer you need to know who you’re dealing with. If you don't understand something it’s your job to ask questions. Ignorance will not save you. Nobody is going to be sympathetic about you not knowing. Also, everybody should know to never sign a legal document without reading it, fine print and all. You could be selling your soul and not even know! These companies are doing only what everyone in the world wants to do, which is make money! It’s all a hustle, if you get caught in it that's your fault. It’s morally wrong, but obviously its legal so you can't be too upset. You can be scammed by anyone at any time; these companies aren't doing anything new.

Blog Post #4 (Bio)

My biggest motivation is my son Khalil. Although I'm only 19, I am not different from any other parent. I still want nothing but the best for my child and I want him to have everything that I didn't have, plus more. Before becoming a mother making the most out of my life wasn't really on my agenda. I knew that education was important, but in my eyes it wasn't urgent. Now that my son is in the picture my education is not only urgent, but VERY important. I know that in order for Khalil to have everything he needs and everything I feel he should have, I need to be successful.

Got Milk??

I recently read an interesting article called, “ ‘Don’t Have a Cow’: Dad Goes on All-Breast-Milk Diet. “ This article is about a blogger named Curtis, who is documenting an experimental diet about how long he can sustain a diet of only his wife’s breast milk. Curtis and his wife do have an infant daughter, but his wife is not longer breastfeeding and has a surplus of milk. Generally his wife donates her milk but she hadn't found a needy mother, so the milk remained untouched in the freezer. Thus Curtis sparked his idea for the breast milk diet. When reading this article I was a little disturbed mainly because I am a mother who breastfed, but the thought of someone other than my child drinking my breast milk is unimaginable. However I must admit Curtis made an interesting point he said “I mean, cow milk was made for baby cows, why not drink human breast milk that was made for baby humans.” I believe that this statement is valid. It would make perfect sense that we would drink milk from our own species. Personally I don’t like milk in general, but I have tasted my own breast milk and I must admit that it is a lot tastier than cow [milk]. However, the only problem is that breast milk can only sustain a human baby for so long therefore an adult human can definitely not be sustained by milk alone. Also the main component of breast milk is fat, which is why it is so nurturing for a baby. Clearly an adult male shouldn’t be on any diet that is mainly fat, unless he wants high cholesterol.

My Source: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/dad-breast-milk-diet/story?id=14571860

Blog Post #2

I attended a very interesting school in Utah called Sorenson’s Ranch School (SRS). This is a private boarding school/behavior modification center. First off let me say that this school is literally in the middle of nowhere, mainly to keep students from running away. You can take being sent to SRS as an opportunity or a punishment, being that it isn’t really a school you willingly choose to attend. Some would say that SRS is like boot camp, because if you don’t cooperate and follow the very strict policy your consequences will almost always be physical. However if your focused on your education SRS would be a great experience for you. Small class sizes make for more one on one help, even though the classes are primarily independent studies. Although you teach yourself the curriculum, there is a high expectation in the quality of your work. SRS only accepts A’s and B’s for graded assignments anything less than that is an ‘incomplete’. I feel that because the school has such high expectations it actually motivates you to set a higher standard for yourself, because you know exactly what your capable of. Attended SRS was not the best experience, but I have to admit it was a blessing in disguise.

Blog Post #1

When I speak I often mix a bunch of lingo, because of where I have lived and the people I have associated with. Generally I believe that the people that I associate with have influenced the language I use. I have never really spoken “proper English” per say, always using some kind of slang. For instance I was sent to Utah for 2 years, for schooling. Everyone in Utah told me I spoke “ghetto”. Mainly because I used many slang terms that they had never heard of.  However when I returned home my family and friends told me I spoke like a valley girl, because I was pronouncing all of my words completely (i.e.  Instead of saying “goin” would say going). Luckily because of this experience I now know how to code switch when I am in different settings. When I’m with my friends I speak freely. If I’m at church or with elders I clean up my language a little so that I can be understood.  Being at Year Up is a new experience and I’m still working out the kinks so that I can effectively communicate with staff and my colleagues. My slang slips out every once in a while, but I’m sure that with due time I will have no issue.