Bienvenido!

I want to give a shout out and welcome to the newest blogger (who had no coersion to create this blog, of course). http://ericquintero.blogspot.com Say Hello to him and welcome him to the world wide web, as well as to the United States. His posts are usually in Spanish, but essentially, they are just pictures of some of the interesting and bizarre things we/he see here. It is very reminiscent of my first posts.

Also, here is a question.... What is the definition of a continent? How many are there and what are their names? It's been a big debate today between myself, educated in the US, Eric, from Venezuela, my roommate, educated in Venezuela and Canada, my mother, and whatever info we could find online. It's a tricky one. Give us some insight. I don't want to sway the polls so Im not going to say what the sticking points are yet.

Dear World:

I am sorry that i have fallen off of you. Or at least, given the appearance of it. I am still here though!!

Things are good. The first couple of weeks were stressful... adjustment doesn't come easily when youre alone, let alone when you have other people to consider. It is nice having eric here though. Once i stopped complaining and realized how lucky I am, things improved. We have been doing some important things like watching my recorded television shows and disney movies. Really, we do nothing, and it is so wonderful.

More updates later. I will keep in touch better, people. Sorry

Join the Circus!

Well, Eric is here. And Brandan. And Josh. I have a full house and it's all guys and me. Oh my. Katy - my deepest sympathies for your childhood. Lude conversations, explicit vocabulary, and, of course, moonings. When was the last time you saw someone get mooned? Well... I did. I will say no more than that. I don't want any guilty parties to be offended by my publicly posting this information, but let's just use this example to illustrate the completely different environment from my normal life.

But, of course, I am happy. I have some of the dearest men in my life all right here in the same apartment. Yes, they are difficult sometimes, but they are also wonderful and keep me laughing.

As for Eric being here, I know you are all wondering how it is going, what we are doing, etc. I will post more later, and for any of you that speak spanish, I convinced him to start his own blog. We "still like each other" as everyone keeps asking me. Maybe it is more work than I expected, but it is still well worth it. It is good to have him here.

The Final Countdown...

We are now at 17 hours, and counting..

(Unless you are Eric, then you are at only 5 and a half hours because you are counting down until when you leave your home, not when you arrive.)

But, since the majority of us are not Eric, we are at approximately 17 hours. Tick.. tock... tick .... tock...

I don't know if any of this has really set in as being reality yet. I keep thinking about the English institute that he is going to be attending, next door to the Empire State Building. I think about that area, then I think about Eric. I try to mesh the two thoughts into one and picture Eric walking around near the Empire State Building and I just can't do it. I've had a few different moments where I sit here on my couch and try to imagine what it would be like to have him sitting over there
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on my couch also. Can't do it. So, I will have to just wait and experience it. And, I don't have very long to wait. I remember in that movie "Fallen" with Denzel Washington (the movie where the people always are singing "Time... is on my side...") the narrator says that there are points in your life where you know if you go forward something big is going to happen and to change. I feel like that now. CS Lewis says that every little decision that we make pushes us in some direction. Obviously, some events more obviously steer us or redirect our lives. Tomorrow, with Eric arriving here, will really make my life quite different from last spring (combined with the new job, new car, new roommate, and no college), drastically changed from 3 years ago (when I was still in college), and not recognizable from 6 years ago. From here, decisions become "we" decisions instead of "I" decisions. I am thinking about two people for the holidays, instead of just myself, not committing myself to activities or work things because I dont know Eric's schedule yet.... It is like you lose a little of yourself so that you can gain everything that the other person brings to the relationship.

So, with all that said... to answer the real pressing question for anyone who knows me well... I havent totally cleaned my apartment. It's a lot better, but not perfect. I will do some more sprucing tomorrow before I go to the airport. Now... sleep.

Holy Smokes, Fresh Prince!

My mother has just alerted me that the original few episodes of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air had two extra verses where Will is seen drinking champagne on an airplane. I promptly researched the matter, and found the rumor to be true. The complete lyrics are as follows. Does anyone remember these? I thought I knew them word for word... now I need to practice again.

Now this is the story all about how,
My life got flipped, turned upside down,
And I’d like to take a minute, just sit right there,
I’ll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air.

In West Philadelphia, born and raised
On the playground is where I spent most of my days.
Chillin’ out, maxin’, relaxin all cool,
And all shootin’ some b-ball outside of the school.

When a couple of guys who were up to no good,
Started makin’ trouble in my neighborhood.
I got in one little fight and my mom got scared,
And said You’re movin’ with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air.


I begged and pleaded with her the other day
But she packed my suitcase and sent me on my way
She gave me a kiss and she gave me my ticket
I put my walkman on and said I might as well kick it

First class, yo this is bad,
Drinking orange juice out of a champagne glass
Is this what the people of Bel-Air livin' like,
Hmm this might be alright!


I whistled for a cab, and when it came near,
The license plate said fresh and it had dice in the mirror.
If anything I could say that this cat was rare,
But I thought Nah forget it, "Yo home to Bel Air."

I pulled up to the house about seven or eight,
and I yelled to the cabby "Yo homes, smell ya later."
Looked at my kingdom, I was finally there,
To fill my throne as the Prince of Bel Air.

A Great Divide

Week 2

I am sitting on the steps talking to Bob. He was in the Naval Reserves during Vietnam. He has a degree in political science and history. He can name all of the countries and capitals in South America. He hasn't eaten since Sunday, but when someone brings him some food, he shares it.

I spoke to another girl from the church, about my age, who used to volunteer with the homeless on the steps. She said her favorite part of the job was watching the people's faces as they walk past the people sitting on the steps. I decided to make it a point to observe the same during the night.

As I sit listening to Bob, enjoying the stories about communication systems in the 1960's, I am partially turned towards him and partially facing the street and the people passing by my new friends and me. One woman does the sign of the cross on her chest. Some stare forward. Many turn, glance, and continue. Often, I can see a little shudder, a quickening of the pace, or a shift to the opposite side of an empty sidewalk lane.

And much to my horror, one person (and thank God only one person) stops, faces the steps and points. "I can't believe anyone allows this! This is disgusting! How can this be allowed?! People, just sitting all over... uh!! Ridiculous! I can't believe it!"

The steps have rules. They are a community, and probably the best run community in all of New York City. These steps are not a zoo. These steps are not for filthy animals. People live on these steps. People who can hear. People who can see. People who can think. People who feel, deeply.

I never ask for my life to change. I never realize the things that I don't know. I know the places that I have not visited. Two weeks ago, I knew that I had not sat on the steps and talked with these men. Now, I cannot just walk past and I do not quicken my pace. God only needs an open heart to make big changes. After only two weeks, I am excited to see how I will be used throughout my work here.
After the woman walks away, Joe, the outreach coordinator, turn to me and says "A month ago that woman was here, falling down drunk, and trying to get this younger guy to come home with her on the bus."

Who am I?

Week 1

I am standing outside of my church, engaged in conversation with June. Her son lives in Florida, where she has just returned from. She has some family in Queens, but her wallet is missing and it had all of her phone numbers in it. Her biggest worry is that it will begin to rain again, because her coat will not protect her from the water.

As we are talking, a business man approaches us, holding out a ten dollar bill. "Take this and get yourself a bite to eat and some coffee or something." He extends his hand towards me. "Here, take it." I don't move. I'm not the homeless one. But I realize then, we are really no different.

If they made a movie of the story of your life...

What channel would it air on?



I haven't decided for me yet. I have decided not to limit it to the basic channels. Maybe I'd be on the gameshow network. Or TLC.

After you answer that.... what channel would you WANT it to be on?
For me, hmm.... I need to think again, and look at a TV listing. I will post my answer to this one later. Y'all should answer though. Mom and I have been discussing it frequently. We need other opinions.