Cultural Assignment!

This semester my organization S.M.A.R.T (Student Minority Recruitment Team) required that I attend a program called S.M.A.R.T Talks. S.M.A.R.T is an organization composed of minority student who recruit other minority student to attend Penn State University. This is done through large events such as Spend A Fall Day and Achiever’s Weekend. This specific S.M.A.R.T talk was held on a Monday in the Shields building where our general body meetings take place.

            During the S.M.A.R.T talks we place our seats in a circle so we are facing each other. No one is allowed to sit in the middle. After all of this is set up a member felicitates questions. This was a second time I attended an event such as this. I knew what to expect and the specific direction the talk could take. After the SMART talks I was walked away pondering the several questioned asked during. They are never a disappointment. I especially liked that during these talks I got to interact with our members. Also it was interesting to hear other perspectives of the transition into the Penn State University community.

This specific talk was focused around how it feels to be a minority at Penn State University. During this talk I learned several facts for instance there is a high percentage of Hispanics on this campus than there are Blacks. It was also interesting to hear how others classified them selves. For instance when applying to colleges on my applications I was told to but my race down as what my fathers race is.  However I don’t classify my self as just Black. I classify my self as both Hispanic and Black being that my Mother is from Ecuador and my father is an African American. During this talk I found there was a grey area in the statics because in which category do I fall under. There was another girl is from Jamaica born and raised. She considered her race Jamaican. Thus furthering the confusion between the race and ethnicity. Although I learned race is classified, as the color of your skin and ethnicity is your cultural background. Another topic that came up during the talks was the issue of tuition for minority students. That hit home for me as well because my parents are basically paying the full out of state tuition for me to attend Penn State University.

To further enrich my experience I would have like the S.M.A.R.T talks to be longer than hour. Toward the end of the talk I felt like those who were talking were rushed and did not fully get to express their opinions. Also I think it would great to involve other organizations with members of other ethnic and race back grounds.

            Overall I enjoyed my experience. SMART talks will be something I will continue to attend in the future.  I really enjoyed hearing other minority stories and knowing I am not the only one who had a hard time adjusting.

*Handed in a hard of my other Cultural Assignment. Which was about Vagina Monologues. 

            

My Last Blog!

When I heard you are required to take a basic English class. I thought to my self “oh lord” I am going to have to a read a bunch of books and learn vocabulary. To my surprise how ever English 15 ended up not being anything of the sort. At first I was really nervous about writing my first paper I had never written a paper in college before and I wanted to make sure the language was prefect and the grammar was pristine. I thought if have those two qualities I would do more than “ok” in the class. However I learned quickly a paper whatever topic it maybe research or a memoir requires several other qualities. For instance my writing has always been unorganized, jumping from thought to thought. So to better my organization I started to write down all my ideas and then rearrange them so they make sense. I also learned that paragraph and sentence structure is very important when trying write a masterpiece. I found it interesting how just rearrangement of words could make a story or fact more intriguing. Personally I believe my writing has evolved immensely over the course of the semester. I learned several new techniques that I make I sure use throughout my writing process. English 5 was also very helpful throughout the semester. My tutor and I only met once a week to review the assignments I was given in English 15. It was nice however to be able to pick someone else’s brain for ideas.

            The project I love the most was the memoir assignment. That assignment for me was the most fun. It forced me to be more creative with my writing and look at the person who I was. The blogging assignment was too on my other favorites. It was nice to be able to write in a more relaxed tense while having interesting topics to discuss. My least favorite assignment is the research paper. I have never had the experience of writing a research paper for an English class. I struggled mostly with who to write the paper and how to organize it. Because throughout high school the research papers I wrote were mostly factual based.

            Overall English 15 as course taught me several things. I am more than happy that I am walking away with a new perspective of writing and language. In the future I would love to take another English class so I can further my writing skills. 

The Fairy Tale New Year's Eve!

The boring movie “New Year’s Eve” consumes about two hours of your time. It depicts a fun and optimistic night in Time Square.

While most New Yorkers stay in their comfy homes and watch the ball drop. This movie shows the melodramatic lives of different characters and their path taken on this “magical night” on New Year’s Eve in NYC.

There is not one drunk fool and the cops are quite nice. We New Yorkers like defining New Year’s Eve as amateur night. In the picture perfect make over however the glitter and sparkles take over the evening and everything falls into place. Confetti falls when clock strikes 12. Forgiveness and new beginnings are on the rise. New Year’s Eve becomes a life changing night.

Where have we seen a similar plot with a different holiday you might ask? Well in last years film “Valentine’s Day” which was too directed by Garry Marshall. The two films coincide with the different points of view of the same night and intertwined events.

What would New Year’s Eve in Time Square be with out the ball dropping? Claire (Hillary Swank), the new vice president of the Time Square Alliance will be fired if she doesn’t fixed the ball before midnight.

“New Year’s Eve” has it all. There is drama, love, and even some comedy.  A couple goes neck and neck in a race to have the first-born baby in 2012 for a prize of $25,000. On the other hand the rock star Jensen (Jon Bon Jovi) is performing a concert and trying to win back the love of his life Laura (Katherine Heigl). A little love drama is always necessary on New Year’s Eve right?

We then see Randy played by sexy (Ashton Kutcher). He seems to be the Grinch of New Year’s Eve. He hates the holiday and all things associated with it. Randy gets stuck in the elevator with Elise (Lea Michele), who is Jensen’s back up singer.  The two fall in love how practical.

Lastly, the old draw out story of a teenager begging her mom to let her roam and party alone.  Kim (Sarah Jessica Parker) who plays the mom that won’t let her daughter Hailey (Abigail Breslin) party alone and get her kiss on midnight.

At last for the fairy tale ending! Sam (Josh Duhamel) is determined to reunite with a girl her he met the year before on the same day. She leaves him a note like Cinderella leaves her prince her shoe. Her note states they are to meet in the same restaurant a year later.

Michelle Pfeiffer plays the character Ingrid as an assistant who has access to the hottest New Year’s Eve party. Paul (Zac Efron) a bike messenger makes a deal with Ingrid to make her list of dream come true in exchange for some party tickets.

There is then the sad tale of a cancer patient Stan (Robert De Niro) who has a nurse (Halle Berry). She sits by his side and tries to make his last wish come true. Which is to watch the ball drop from the rooftop. How ironic?

Would I drag my self out of bed to pay almost $12 for this movie? No. It is quite cliché. There was a unique plot. There were how ever a few good laughs and Cinderella stories always touch your heart.