Diary/Diario

   May:

  Week 5 

Monday – 5-30 

      Wow, it's been awhile since I've updated.  I have a speech that I'm preparing for and that's pretty much all I can think of right now.  Except, in my literature class I found out that I now have a paper to write, but there won't be a final.  I guess that's why it's so much work.  We first have to define a topic, then write a one page abstract about it, then write a 3 page paper with more detail about what we're going to write, and finally write a 12 page paper!  aaaaaAHHHHH!  16 pages is a bit overkill I think.  I just can't think of what I want to write about.  I know what book I'm going to write about, and that's Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo.  A long time ago I started to read his other book, but I never got far because I had just finished spanish 102.  hahah, anyways, it's a book very different from most others at the time.  The main difference is that no one person is the main character.  The town is the main character.  There's also ghosts and living people....it reminds me of the Divine Comedy a little bit in how they let ghosts trancend time and space.  Dante was living and somehow he got to walk through hell, purgatory, ascension and paradise.  Anyways, it's a very unordered book and that's why I find it interesting.  

Tuesday – 5-31 

      I'm preparing my speech even more.  And we're supposed to meet with the teacher to practice.  It seems as thought we've been trying to do that forever, because one of the group members keeps picking the date to meet with the teacher first and not the group so we have to keep canceling....Here's a hint.  Ask us first and then go tell the teacher when you want to meet.  I guess I'm a little stressed.  I found another building with internet and it's so much better than the library.  It's a classroom building with wireless G internet.  I thankfully have a G card.  The thing that's nice is that I can just go into a room and it's like my private office and much much quieter.  I can get more done now.  The only problem is I have to move if there's a class.  My computer also got some spyware that I couldn't get rid of easily so I had to reghost it.  I didn't have internet for a little while either.  oh well, thank god i ghosted it in the first place.  Now it's all ready to go if i have another problem.  

Wednesday – 6-1 

      Well today is the day before my speech.  We practiced with the teacher and I felt better.  The others pretty much read off of their notes, but I really didn't want to do that.  It took me longer to get everything out, but I just didn't want to read what I had...even the Chileans read and the teacher didn't like that.  It's almost like they don't know how to present here at all.  When they make powerpoints, they use those pre-made backgrounds which are ugly and boring.  I don't do that anymore.  I have to make my own.  I already made one for our next presentation on the 25th or so.  Hopefully that will inspire them to make better powerpoints...but I doubt it.  

Thursday – 6-2

      Today is the day, and thank god the week is over, that i have to present.  I was nervous.  Since it was a nice day I walked in the park and practiced what I had about 3 times.  Then I went to class and presented.  I think I did ok.  It was a group speech about planned linguistics in the U.S.  Basically that's what the government does to promote a language and discriminate against other.  The U.S. is strange though because it doesn't have an official language...bet you didn't know that.  Basically it wasn't good what we did to other groups...but that's the U.S. for ya....I'll explain one thing....at first we didn't have problems with bilingual laws and classes in California...but when we found out there was gold there, and the mexicans inhabited the land with gold deposits....we made laws to take away their land....court trials were held only in english so they couldn't defend themselves and they had to sell a lot of land to pay for their lawyers....hmmmmmmm that just doesn't sound right.  Anyways, we're behind in the world when it comes to knowing other languages.  Countries in Europe have declared 1-3 official languages and usually those citizens are tri-lingual.  What I don't understand is that we discriminate against minorities speaking other languages here and then we go out and promote our students to learn those languages...no tiene sentido...............

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