Blog Session 11: English Language Challenges

Well, at first I was excited because since school I haven't been on any English class. I thought it would be very useful to practice my English, most of all my speaking. The classes were entertaining because it wasn't difficult, I understood everything we talked about. The first part of the lesson was sweet because I felt like when I was at school, exercising with the book and exchanging our results with our classmates. The second part was funny too because I have never written in a blog. It's a very interactive way to learn, you can read what your classmates are writing about the same topic and that's always interesting, mostly when you don't know them very well cause they are older or younger than you.

Nevertheless, I think this class must be more difficult, it's English 4! The last one! I haven't been pushed to improve significantly my English. Although I critique this item in every English class I've ever been, even in Institutes. English should be an important class like math, if you don't push the students to learn English correctly, they will never learn the language. We as students hide our mediocrity because we are afraid of failure, but no one is biologically disabled to learn different languages. For some people is easier than others, but this situation is the same in every subject! That's no excuse and as long as teachers don't push a little bit harder, this country will never improve the level of English.

Personally, I have to improve my speaking very very much. When I write I don't have the amount of trouble in my head like when I'm speaking. Maybe the reason is that I don't practice enough, or maybe is because speaking is an instant situation and when you write instead, you have more time to think the verb you want to use and how to conjugate it. 

I am very snob jajaja, I use many phrases and some jokes in English. Mostly because they were funny in a movie, in a series, in a video, etc. My friends have no difficult to understand this jokes so it's funny to everybody. Also, I very much like to sing the songs I listen, so when I don't understand something I search the lyrics on the internet. I am great at imitate British pronunciation so I always entertain myself doing that. I always inspire myself thinking in Mrs. McGonagall (from Harry Potter) having some tea.

Blog Session 10: Good & Bad points

This year was extremely intense for me. My younger sister came from La Serena to study in the University, so my parents bought an apartment for us to live together. We weren't friends 4 years ago when we lived as a family and neither in the years I lived alone here in Santiago. But fortunately, our cohabitation wasn't terrible at all and we finally became friends. 

In May my father got very sick, we went to the clinic and he was admitted for purpura. He was there for almost a week, the recovering process was very very slow, almost 6 months with licence and many medicines. 

My parents are divorced, so when my mother realized she was all by herself in La Serena she was diagnose with depression. That was a lot to take because my sister and me, (mostly me I'm the older one)  had to support both of our parents from here. 

Luckily, now I have a boyfriend  who has been my indispensable support. I am grateful because without him I couldn't been able to get through all of this alone. He gave me the joy and energy I needed in the moment of most need. 

My first semester at the University went very well, but the current has been mediocre. It's my fault because I've been very lazy. I hope it to end with all of my subjects approved. I need vacations now!!!! I want to go to the beach, get up late, and eat many fruits like mango and watermelon.

Even though many bad things have happened, I still think this has been a good year and I am happy. But no happy enough, I have to be like this!!!!!!

Blog Session 9: How I learned to cook

Today I'm going to tell you all about how I learned to cook.
The story begins last summer. While I was enjoying some trance in a music festival, I lost a very expensive friend's camera. I was distracted and I put the camera on the ground, you may think "what a silly girl" but at that moment I didn't realize someone would have the balls to stole a camera that was right next to my feet! I was silly, now I know. My friend was very upset, of course, so I immediately assure him I was gonna pay for it. As the hours passes, he told me not to worry and he offer me a deal: "we'll split the responsibility". Sadly, I didn't had any savings, the only solution was find a job. A friend told me her cousin was the manager of an Hotel in the Avenida del Mar in La Serena, she was needing some waitresses for the Café so I applied. The Café was half a cafeteria and half a restaurant. She asked me if I knew how to cook and I told her that I knew how to like every other girl of my age, not complicated dishes. She said that it wasn't a major problem for her, because the chef could teach me in a week or so. The process was so quick that I didn't realize the job I was accepting, I was going to be the chef apprentice!! I worked whole January there, it was exhausting, but I learn to cook like a chef, I even learn how to cut vegetables very quickly, like those chefs you see on TV! So, a very sad experience turn into something awesome and very useful since I live without my parents.

Blog Session 8: How green are you?

I used to be very green last year when I lived in Ñuñoa. Recycling is guaranteed by the local government so every Monday the recycling truck stopped at my house to gather my "green" garbage: plastic bottles, papers, diaries, cardboard boxes and glass bottles. This year I moved to the downtown and I haven't been able to do the same because the administration of my building doesn't recycle. I would do it on my own, but it's very difficult when you don't have a car to transport the rubbish to a recycling center. From this situation we can learn a very important thing: when the government does not support this kind of practices is very unlikely that society could carry on with this alone. 

If the authorities were committed to environmental friendly practices as a national government policy, children would learn how positive it is at their schools and adults at their workplaces. Also, we couldn't say no to recycling if the right to do it was ensured with recycling trucks stopping at your house once a week.

Four years ago I joined Greenpeace as a volunteer until I realize it was a waste of time. Greenpeace Chile is very poor, the budget is ridiculous and if wasn't for the help of Greenpeace Germany, the office here would be shut down. Without the support of Economic Corporations and without the help of the Government the field of action is small. Maybe I gave up too soon, but I decided my actions will came from my discipline, not from volunteering in Greenpeace. For now I make my own wallets, I recycle my cloth and I don't smoke.

Blog Session 7

Hegel said that the alienation happens when you separate object and subject, when you consider the world as something external. He says the reality is only an objectification humans make internally, on the inside of their minds. So, it isn't external at all. If you think about it, is not a crazy idea, it makes sense. It's more of a philosophical theory than the one who says everything is socially constructed, but I think they refer to a similar subject: the power of mind.
It can be associate with theories from very different fields. One of them is quantum mechanics theory of physics. When I was at school, our physics teacher showed us a quantum mechanics documentary. There was a basketball field covered with basketball balls to expose the hypothesis of the theory: things are everywhere, but you choose where you want to put them in space. Obviously the theory is not as simple as that, but I was surprised that this idea was included in a very dogmatic science. 
At the end of the day, this is almost mystic. I think is true that everyone of us create their own world, I'm not saying that poor people have chosen to be poor, but we have the power to choose how we see the world. Thinking makes reality, even the images are created inside us, in our brain!!
Nevertheless, I'm still wondering about the limits of this idea, when you can create your world and when you can't? 

Blog Session 6: African women are blazing a feminist trail – why don't we hear their voices?

220 words minimum.

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/oct/08/community-energy-switching-fuel-poverty-power-bills

Fuel prices has been all over the news because of their constant rising, which has leave people in heavy debt. The community has organized a strike to the system, That's the reason why this kind of plan has been so successful in the comunity. Norwich city council has teamed up with people in fuel poverty, supporting the "Big Switch and Save" plan. The city council used their influences to secure their residents against the energy industry.

I don't understttttand

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/23/african-women-rwanda-feminism

Rwanda's parliament is now almost two-thirds female, while Malawi, Liberia and Senegal have women at the helm. Western feminists, take note!!
Rwanda's parliament is 64% female, according to the latest parliamentary elections. The country joins Malawi, Liberia and Senegal who with their female heads of states had already begin the female crusade of taking the power. 




to be continued...

Blog Session 4: The human need to create and transform things.

I'd like to talk about something I've realized this week: the human need to create and transform material things. 

When I am bored I usually watch movies, series, I chat on Facebook, read blog's or magazines, but always is something I can do online. I can't separate myself from my notebook, it's like I'm going to be alone without it. This dependence makes me sad because I realize that I'm doing NOTHING, just wasting time in things that will not transcend.

The other day, I was sitting in my desk chair thinking about this and trying to figure out what to do about it when suddenly, I find myself playing with an earring in my hand. I pay attention to what I'm doing: I'm transforming it!! I got excited and went to my jewelry box to get my other earrings and I started to transform them all. I combined the parts and create whole new earrings. After that, I felt inexplicable happy and satisfied with my work so I decided that I was going to create things. I cut colorful pictures from abandoned magazines and collage them to built a new wallet. I realized that I needed more light in my room to study so I decided to buy a lamp. I remembered a lamp I built in High School, so I thought: "what if I make one?" I went to Homecenter and bought everything I needed. I haven't started to work yet, but I know I'm going to be very proud to say: "Yes! I've made that lamp!"
I think the satisfaction and happiness I felt with this tiny decisions is only explicable by the human need to transform the environment surrounding us. Is the feeling of knowing that you can create the things you buy -not everything of course-, the knowing that you aren't useless. Maybe that's why we are alienate, because capitalism has taken away from us the opportunity of take care of ourselves without recurring to it. Maybe is and spiritual way to explain why we are so disconnected with the nature, the others and ourselves.