Quite Possibly My Finest Spanish Sentences..Ever!

If you can't toot your own horn on your blog, I don't know where you can. I'm in the midst of writing an essay about the poem "Biografía" by Gabriel Celaya.

My thesis is that the poem illustrates how socialization can bring alienation. In other words, if you try to do everything that the world tells you that you "have to do", you will begin to lose your own identity and feel like you don't really exist. That's because not every message the world sends us is to be obeyed. We should not all buy SUV's, all women should not weigh 120 pounds, and drinking beer rarely causes attractive women to fawn all over you. Oh, yeah, and not everything that your mother tells you to do is always the right thing to do,(except you Mom, you're the exception, and I'm not just saying that because I know you will read this).

Here are the sentences I'm so proud of with English translations:

"Las órdenes de socialización son ruedas dentadas en una máquina designada para facultar la supervivencia de la raza humana, y nada más."

Which translates...

"The commands of socialization are wheels in a machine designed to enable the survival of the human race, and nothing more."

Here's another sentence that sort of adds another perspective to the first:

"Socialización intenta a formar la sociedad con la sutileza de un escopete..."

Which translates...

"Socialization tries to form society with the finesse of a shotgun..."

Now, I know that makes no sense out of context. But in context, the idea is that the messages we hear from school, family, mass media and our peers are not always values and instructions that apply to us specifically. Society does not have a plan for each person, even though God does. The important thing is we can't allow ourselves to forget that society has a one-size-fits-all perspective. All of the voices telling you what to do, and how to act are in conflict with each other. It's impossible to follow them all, and if you do you will lose what makes you special. You will be a clone, trying to be everything to everyone and never learning what you are supposed to be, never bringing to full potential all that makes you unique and valuable to the world.

Juanito

"Crazy" By Gnarls Barkley

I can't get enough of this incredible video. The album is still on pre-order at Amazon.



Juanito

My Dirty Little Secret...

I always hoped when people got to know me they would think I was a very culturally sensitive, "international" kind of guy. You know, the kind of guy who knows which fork to use, who has the manners of a diplomat, who blends no matter where he goes, whose charm is legendary.

As with most things, intention and reality are entirely different. I'm really not that guy. Don't get me wrong, I'm not the uncouth redneck I was in my youth. I actually feel at ease in most settings. I rarely pull the kind of faux-paus that I was legendary for before I got married. Still, I have pretty much accepted that I will never be the refined gentleman I would like to be.

I still try to learn about culture as much as possible, especially Hispanic culture. One part of Hispanic culture that I have tried to excel at is learning about food. I know a lot about Mexican food in particular. I make a pretty good frijoles negros con chorizo from scratch(refried black beans with sausage). I still cannot make a Chili Relleno to save my life. I have tried every kind of food I can possibly find in the US. I've read books, hung around Hispanic supermarkets, schmoozed with short order cooks at taquerias, anything to understand food. I've tried all kinds of snacks, desserts, soft-drinks, anything different.

I really appreciate a good taco. I'm not talking some gringofied Taco Bell taco, I'm talking Carne Asada, onions and cilantro, lime, crumbly goat cheese, and sweet crema fresca. Add to that a nice, hot red or green salsa and wash it down with a Guava flavored Jarritos soda and we are talking a fine meal, the only thing better would be to complete it with some flan and strong coffee with cream and sugar.

I said all of that, to make this shocking confession. When I make tacos at home, I generally like to top them with cold Del Monte ketchup...


I know that's pretty sad, and hardly haute cuisine, but it still tastes good. I've eaten them this way since I was a little kid. I'm not going to change now. Now my lack of fine taste actually goes farther than just, "it tastes good". When I put ketchup on my tacos, it tastes like home. It tastes like I'm back in Bend,Oregon at 405 NW Federal street, having tacos with my Mom, Dad and sisters. It reminds me of when we would go to my Aunt Marilyn's house every New Year's day and have tacos and enchiladas with the whole family. It reminds me of the other holidays when my Mom would make her famous enchilada pie and we would all put sour cream on it, and eat it with saltine crackers, a green salad and wash it down with Sun Tea.

Food is not just part of culture. The sights, smells and tastes of food remind us of who we are. Food is history and food is family.

Juanito

"Change"

My niece Linzi lives in Cincinnati with my sister and brother-in-law. Linzi recently won a nationwide contest for her poem "Change". Congratulations Linzi! We're proud of you! Here's the poem for all of you to read.

"Change"

By Linzi Campfield


The fear of change,
Is something scary yet great,
It’s the beginning of something new,
The start of something fresh

And even though it’s hard,
And it feels like your breaking inside,
The outcome is greater then could ever be imagined

It peels off the patterns that have come to rule our lives,
And lets in something new

It strips away the ordinary,
And lets in the extraordinary

So don’t be scared of change,
But embrace it,
Love it,
Call it your own

Never once be afraid,
But take hold of the opportunities it gives you,
Take hope in it and have courage,
For change is just a part of the beautiful rhythm that is our life

It’s a gift,
And should never be taken for granted.

The Big News

Finally I am in sight of living a personal dream. Ever since the first time I went to Mexico I wanted to go to a language school in a Spanish-speaking country. My professors have always told me that the only way to become truly proficient in speaking Spanish is by studying abroad.

I have tried several times to arrange a trip, but either the money wasn't there or I could not arrange it with the university. But recently I got permission from my job and the university agreed to give me credit for the trip. That means I can put the trip on my student aid, which is sort of important. I will be going to Costa Rica, to a town called Nicoya near the Pacific Ocean, (look at the red arrow on the map).

Here's the website for the school:Instituto Guanacasteco de Idiomas

I will be leaving in the middle of July and coming back in the second week of August. Besides the four hours of Spanish classes Monday through Friday, I will be living with a Costa Rican family, and yes, I am going to go to the beach at least once....

Because the University will be giving me credit, I will have to keep a journal-which I would do anyway. I'm planning on keeping it here-that will keep it safe for the time being. I picked a great time to go,(although it will be hot)-there will be two huge festivals while I am there, a religious one and a week-long patriotic one.

So what are my goals for this trip? Well, besides the obvious one of speaking Spanish better and losing some of my accent there are some other goals. I want to finally feel more at ease around Spanish-speakers. I want to learn those social lessons that can't be learned in a book. I want to get rid of some of those remaining,vague feelings that they are the "other". I know that sounds bad, but if we are honest with ourselves we know thats part of learning language and culture. Truly identifying with a group of people does not come about simply because you can speak their language-there is so much more.

While in some way I wish I could go all around the country and check all of it out-I don't like being a tourist like that, that's the way to get road-ugly and just fill up your camera while only talking to people in restaraunts and hotels. I'm looking forward to being around long enough I can make real friends and really understand this part of Costa Rica.

I've already bought my ticket and my new passport will be here any day-more updates as they become available.

Juanito

Next Costa Rican Entry:Feeling Nervous About the Trip

¿Por qué se va?

Here's a very short story I wrote as part of a composition in Spanish Literature class. What's different about this is that I wrote it in Spanish first and then translated it to English. I think it sounds better in Spanish. It also feels more Spanish, if that makes sense. Click the comments for the English translation...

En mi vida ella era el sol. Cada día se me aparecía, brillante y cariñosa, lista de hacer cualquier cosa que fuera necesario para satisfacerme. Me sentía como un rey, y ella era la sujeta única de mi reino. Ella me cubría con besos, abrazos y se me daba a comer cualquiera comida que me gustaba. Después de un año con ella, pensaba que mi sol saliera cada día para siempre. Como muchos reyes en mi placer y contento me olvidaba que la lealtad de los vasallos no estuviera garantizada.
“Querido, salguemos a un restaurante esta noche, estoy cansado, no quiero cocinar.”
“¿Qué? ¿Piensas que soy un rico? ¡Cállate chica!”
“¿Por qué me tratas así?”
“Te trato en cualquier manera que lo que quiera-eres la mujer, soy el hombre.”
En sus ojos, las lágrimas comenzaban de fluir. Ella me miraba fijamente. No dije nada. Después de cinco minutos que pasaban como un año, ella se fue para siempre. Ahora el rey vive solo con su orgullo y nada más…

-John

Parent Teacher Conferences

Wednesday night I was asked to translate at a parent teacher conference at a local junior high school. It was a great experience, a real down-in-the-trenches translating job. Some of it was very hard, and some of it easy. Telling parents their kids are doing good in school felt good, but explaining to them how their hijos were failing to do their work felt kind of uncomfortable. It was such a change from the world of academic Spanish. I wasn't talking about "larger ways of defining the world around me", but the more everyday things like homework, tests and paying attention to the teacher.

Three or four times a week I get people who call the call center but don't speak English, but I don't get as much opportunity to speak to real native speakers every day as often as I would like, not like I did when I worked ten hours a day with native speakers.

On my way to the event tonight, I felt a little nervous. I was thinking,"It's been about six months since I did something like this, I hope I do ok." When I have doubts like this, I remember the only way anyone gets better at translating is to simply do it. Sure,you can go to school and drill verbs and vocabulary for hours on end. But unless you put yourself in situations where you have to stretch yourself, situations where there is a real possibility that you could end up looking dumb, without that kind of stress, you will always be stuck at the same level.

I think it's that fear of looking dumb that keeps many of us from improving beyond what I call, "Restaurant Spanish", ("¿Donde está el baño?" and "Más cerveza por favor"). As uncomfortable as it feels at the time, there is no substitution for real conversation. It's messy, it's a little confusing at first and it can be uncomfortable, like the times I had to tell parents why their child wasn't a good student, but even that was rewarding in a way. It was rewarding because they understood what was expected of them and their children. It was rewarding because my translation helped them to be a part of their child's education. I remember one lady I spoke to, she had a look that came over her face when she realized that her son had been less than truthful to her when he said he had no homework. This sly little smile that came over her face that unmistakably said, "Now I understand what's going on around here, and things are going to be different!" The look on her face made all the other uncomfortable feelings worth it.

-Juanito

"Dear Native Spanish Speaker"

Dear Native Spanish Speaker,

I'm almost afraid to write this. I don't want to hurt your feelings. You were one of the main reasons I decided to learn Spanish in the first place. I remember when I worked with you in the frozen warehouse at Troyer Foods in Goshen,Indiana . I remember memorizing all of the words for chicken and chicken parts in Spanish, pecho, costillas,piernas . I remember sharing lunches with you and the other guys in the lunchroom. You were a such a kind and patient Spanish teacher, except for the time you gave me a Habanero pepper and told me, "¡cómelo-es como un tomate!". I think my stomach lining has finally grown back from that day when I felt like I needed to swallow a fire extinguisher...

I remember the first time I went to Mexico and how everyone was so patient with me and helped me learn more. I always felt like you were happy that I was trying to learn your language and about your culture.

It's been about 10 years since that first trip to Mexico. I know a lot more Spanish, but my accent is still a little rough. I realize that many of you are second-generation immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries. I know many of you are as proficient in English as I am.

But I have noticed something negative about you lately that I need to tell you about. I've noticed this on more than several occasions, so I know I'm not just being over-sensitive. When I come into your place of business where Spanish is spoken, you will only answer me in English when I speak Spanish to you. When you call the call center I work at, and you hear I'm not a native and have an accent, you will only speak broken English to me. You know, it's ok to mix the two languages in order to communicate, no matter what our Spanish and English teachers told us. Some of you have as thick of an accent in English as my accent in Spanish.

Now I know my Spanish is not perfect, but it is understandable. I've interpreted for groups and even spoken before groups of people without an interpreter and have been understood. This is not just the rant of a bruised ego. I expected that you would know what its like to want to learn a new language and have people talk down to you when you try to communicate in your new language.

I can identify with your desire to not be pigeon-holed as only a Spanish-speaker. You have every right to be proud of your accomplishment in learning Enlish. I truly understand that it took a real effort to learn a language that has more words than other languages, is not phonetic, has hundreds of rules and a thousand more exceptions. That said, only speaking to me in English is leading to a different problem.

How will America ever become a multi-cultural society if we only speak English in public? More specifically, if no one is willing to speak to Gringos with less than perfect Spanish,(or Mandarin or Vietnamese or whatever), how will we ever change? How will White America ever change from the culturally-myopic society if you only speak English to us? Gringos will continue to tell everyone "y'all need to speak Amahericuhn only, y'hear?" as long as they are able to walk through their day-to-day world only hearing English as the only language spoken.

The fact that many immigrants only speak their language with each other only helps this ethnocentric ideal of a one-language-one-culture country. Many people in the rest of the world regularly speak two or three languages. They can comprehend more ways of speaking, thinking and seeing the world. If other Gringos were to start hearing their fellow Caucasians speaking something besides English-maybe they would start to doubt this idea. Maybe they would start considering that speaking more than one language is important for everyone, not just academics.

I know this is idealistic, but that does not make it any less true. Real social change in the dominant ideas of a society are not always changed by some large government program. Sometimes the government is the worst way to fix society's problems. The idea that each of us can be the change we want to see in society is still valid. The changes in how individuals relate to one another on a micro-level will eventually cause changes to society on a macro-level.

Sociological gobbledy-gook aside, we need to break down these walls between us and relate like we are all Americans, no matter what language we speak. America is like any physical organism, our diversity will make us stronger and more vital. That diversity is what makes us a great culture. Don't cut off the rest of America from participating in all that the Latino cultures have to contribute to our nation.

Su Amigo,

Juanito

Twistie the Reindeer

I find myself wandering towards thoughts of Christmas now and then. It manifests itself in the strangest ways. My wife Laura says I become 9 from December through January(my birthday), but I think there's nothing wrong with that.

-John

Speak for America: Work for the National Security Agency!

This week at campus, the NSA was on campus recruiting. They had signs all over campus that said "Speak for America: Work for the National Security Agency." . They were looking for people that spoke other languages.

They were giving away free pizza, soft drinks, and even gifts for those who came to interview or turn in a resume. Those of you that know me think I would have been the first in line to check this out. Even if I did not get the job, free pizza and pop is on my list of cool things in the world. But as much as I want a job where I get paid to speak Spanish, I'm not interested in "speaking for America". At least, not the way we have been talking lately.

With our lack of real policy at the border with Mexico, and the allegations that our military and intelligence forces torture in the name of freedom, I'm not interested in being a mouthpiece for that kind of message.

I know every job we take makes us do things we don't like. There's no perfect job. But I've always said I wanted a job where I could be a bridge between the two cultures. I don't want to help someone else blow that bridge up...

-John

Click here to read a very interesting article on Torture from the Washington Post

Good News From Mexico

Latino countries have never been known as bastions of equality for women, but things are changing for the better in Latino America, just not as often as we hear on the news. Mexico, being such a large country, seems to always be receiving bad press about their record in this area.

Its no wonder, with all of the bad news we have been seeing coming out of Mexico. 431 women have died in Ciudad Juarez in Northern Mexico over the last 12 years in what appears to be sexually motivated murders (Prensa Latina). Many of the women in this same part of Northern Mexico work in Maquiladoras. Maquiladoras are factories owned by multinational companies who use Mexico's cheap labor to increase profits on items sold in the U.S. and other countries.

Many of the Maquiladoras like to hire young women, citing that they have nimble fingers that are suited this type of work and are good workers. The truth in reality has a lot more to do with the idea that some managers believe that these young women are easier to control and are not as likely to organize as a male workforce.

There are many other examples of inequality in Mexico, but I want to talk about something positive. I met a woman that exemplified some of the positive changes in Mexico on my last trip. Her name was Marí­a. She is a dentist in Ciudad Victoria.

We were all stuffed in a van on the way back to our hotel in Tampico after a grueling day of working in the free dental clinic in a village on the Gulf of Mexico. The van was bouncing and dodging rocks and the occasional cow, then came to a complete stop because of a valiant skunk in the middle of the road that threatened to spray the van if we moved any closer.

I started talking to Marí­a about my research paper that investigated the conditions in Maquiladoras. She seemed interested, and then she explained how there were positive changes going on in Mexico in the lives of women. She owned her own dental practice, managed it, and had a good business. Amazingly, her husband stayed at home and took care of the house. There is evidence that this is becoming more common, especially in areas where a lot of women work in the maquiladoras.

What struck me about this conversation was how Marí­a was another example of how preconceived notions about gender and even our prejudices about different countries keep us from seeing the whole truth. Mexico is not inhabited entirely by those outdated caricatures of macho men with big mustaches and dark-eyed, fiery, yet demure women. Mexico is changing like the rest of the world, many times for the better. It just may be hard to see it from the picture the media paints.

Finding who you are and how you fit in society can be such a struggle, no matter what country you live in, but it's not without hope. There are still people who define themselves by more timeless truths, instead of letting their society define them.

-John

To learn more about maquiladoras, visit:http://www.cfomaquiladoras.org

Here's an interesting paper on machismo also:
http://www.fgvsp.br/iberoamerican/Papers/0456_Machismo6-2003.pdf

"Day By Day"

Now you have a reason to visit Casa De Juanito cada día(every day). Even though I don't update everyday, there is something new here every day. You can read one of my favorite political comics,
"Day By Day" here every day. This is a great comic with the biting sarcasm of Doonesbury without the unrelenting Liberal bent, but its not a mouthpiece for Fox News. It knows when to speak out against this administration's mistakes, which seem to be growing worse...

Scroll to the very bottom of the page and it is after the last post.

Thanks,

Juanito

"Disco Queen of South Bend"

You find the funniest things surfing Google News...

Check out this news snippet about our Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice. This is from the Boston Globe,

"...But perhaps the most surprising news came from the editor who introduced Rice, saying the secretary of state once held the title of ''Disco Queen of South Bend, Indiana."

'You've got quite a research department,' Rice responded in the opening sentences of her address. 'I want to assure everybody, it's actually not that hard to be the disco queen of South Bend, Indiana,; Rice said. 'There's not that much competition in South Bend, Indiana.' "

It's official....South Bend is being dissed nationwide as a boring burg.

-John

¡No me ayudas gato!

"You're not helping any, ya know!"
He rolls over on his back and reaches out a soft furry paw. It always appears like he's reaching out in a gesture of friendship, but he's only wanting me to scratch his ears. He doesn't care if I finish my homework or not, rotten cat!

Maybe I'll just scratch his ears for 10 minutes and get back to my Spanish homework...

-John

Visit Sunny Puerto Rico...

I'm really enjoying my new Spanish class,"Spanish For Teachers". We learn to debate, and tell stories, even be rude in Spanish(too cool!). One of the things we have to do for exams is make recordings of ourselves speaking in Spanish.

For the first test I had to make a recording where I read an advertisement for a travel agency in Puerto Rico. I thought it was ok(I still need work on my accenty). Actually, it really struck me as sort of funny. It sounds more like a smooth jazz DJ on Valium. Click below to hear the MP3.

"De viaje a Puerto Rico"

-John

37 years old...

Today is my birthday. I turn 37 years old. It's not as scary as a few years ago when I turned 34. I remember that day, because it was the day I finally made up my mind to go back to school and study Spanish seriously. Growing older isn't bad, when you've got something to work for, as opposed to feeling like you are just swimming in that working-for-a-living numbness that swallows most of us up from time to time.

We had my party yesterday. It was really great. I made such a haul! Here's what I got:

-Three Diego Rivera Art books
-The DVD "Romero" about Salvodoran Archbishop Oscar Romero.
-"Versos Sencillos" by José Martí-One of the classics of Latin-American poetry.
-"Pensées"("The Thoughts")-By Blaise Pascal-great apologetical writing.
-Chocolate!
-Coffee!
-Money!

We had Papa John's Pizza, Chocolate Eclair Cake and Mango Jello Cool-Whip cake, and played cards afterward for a few hours, and I actually won! It was one of the best adult birthdays I have ever had in recent memory.

Here's a picture from one of the Diego Rivera artbooks I got for my birthday. Its called "Night of the Poor".

Marion Fouty

My great Aunt Marion died around 9 am in the morning on Tuesday the 11th of January. She was a teacher for many years near the Mexican border. She taught classes with Native and Mexican-Americans in her classroom. She was extremely intelligent, and one of the most independent women I have ever known. However, I was glad I was never her student, as she was never described as a "softy".

That does not mean that she was not a loving person. There is a memory I have of her that means a great deal to me. When I was sixteen, I dropped out of high school and took the GED exam. I passed the exam and went to some technical classes and later on went to a two year school called Rhema. Now after all of these years, I am on my way to getting a degree. In some ways, Aunt Marion was an impetus to continue school.

After I took the GED, I struggled with a kind of academic inferiority complex for a while. Even though it is the equivalent of graduating high school, some people look down on it. I remember very clearly on several occasions when I was a teenager how Aunt Marion looked me in the eye, and with a very serious tone and said "John, don't you ever feel ashamed about taking a GED! You can still go to college and do well!".

The look in her eyes explained very clearly that there was no discussing the pros and cons of the issue. I had been told the truth, period. For years after that, she was always one of my "boosters". When I graduated from Rhema, when I got published, and other times in my life, she was always there encouraging and supporting me. She was very excited when I started studying Spanish and encouraged me to continue. She always sent hand written cards for my birthday, our wedding anniversary and so on.

Besides her loving actions, the way she and my uncle John presented themselves was always an inspiration to do better. She was an educated person who made the world a better place, and he was a celebrated World War II pilot. They always made me proud to be part of this family. I will miss her very much.

-John

Spanish For Teachers..

Today was the start of my new Spanish class here at Indiana University. It's called "Spanish For Teachers". Its actually a class devoted to oral Spanish and learning how to speak Spanish in different situations, such as to children, or in a professional situation, etc. I really like my professor, she is from Puerto Rico and seems very smart and kind, but also has real plans to make us all work very hard.After class, one of my classmates said "Tengo miedo!"(I'm scared!). I felt the same way.

Fear aside, I really want to put all I can into this class. Sometimes I get sloppy in my Spanish, since I know that Spanish speakers will cut me some slack just because I'm a gringo. But if I truly want to make a living at this, I have to bring my speech up a notch, so I can gain the respect of those I speak to, and not just amuse them with "restaurant Spanish".

-John

My Mission Statement

I hate "corporate-speak". You know what I mean, such as when people throw words like "resource" and "shifting paradigms" into every sentence just so they sound intelligent(most of us can barely spell paradigm, let alone shift one). Multi-syllable words filling vague sentences are not the same as plain, coherent speech.

The company I work for actually has a very succinct mission statement:"We are committed to reducing downtime and repair expense for our customer's trucks." At least that's how I remember it in orientation.

Recently, I was asked in a class we have been attending, what was my personal mission statement. That's a good question. I'm still thinking about it, but here's what I have for now.

I want to be a bridge between English and Spanish-speaking cultures. I want to help the two groups understand the differences between them.

I guess thats as good as I can come up with for now.

-John

My Father..

My father's birthday is this week. I have been trying to come up with something to write about him. It's sort of hard to write about someone that is so important to you and has taught you so much.

The old saying, "When I was young, I thought my Dad wasn't very smart, but I'm happy to say he's made great strides since then." rings very true for my father. I know I have been very fortunate to have such a wise, gentle man for a father.

His name is William Glen Homan, but he goes by Glen. I certainly don't know everything about my dad, but I know more than most people. I know he was born in Southern California. He became a Christian after meeting my mom, and became very active in all the churches he has ever been a part of. He eventually spent so much time studying the bible that he became a Sunday School teacher, and still continues to teach as often as he can. While his bible studies have never been published professionally, he has written and printed many pamphlets and booklets that have been used widely in the churches that he has taught in.

With the perspective that age has finally brought my still slightly flaky mind, I understand a lot more about my dad now. I think he may have wished he could have went to school more, maybe even seminary. I know he may have had a lot of goals and dreams that he could not attain because he was working so hard trying to earn a living.

We all feel like that to some degree, I know I do. But in doing so, we always seem to miss the things that we did accomplish along the way. My dad may not have ever got to seminary, but he has accumulated an incredible amount of knowledge of all things biblical. Even more important than that, he has obtained a Christian philosophy that is both pragmatic and intellectual.

I remember when I finished seminary, I thought I had figured out the entire world and half of heaven. The real world was quick to explain things much differently to me. After that sort of shaking, it was the things that my dad taught me that helped me to make sense of a world that doesn't conform to neat,clean religious philosophies.

There is a lot more to my dad than just what he knows. I remember in the different churches I grew up in that my dad was much more than just a Sunday School teacher. He was the one that counseled people, who looked out for people, who helped people that were struggling to understand things. This didn't just apply to people in church, he was always reaching out to everyone I knew. He has always presented the type of model of sincerity and caring that I still use to measure all that I say or do.

My dad is an example of someone who may not have achieved the sort of notoriety he deserved, but has accomplished so much in the lives of all the people around him that he will always be remembered.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Love, John

Post Election Let Down...

I have been reading a lot of blogs recently from Democrats that are just really distraught over the election. We're not just talking crying in their beer here, there is some real pain going on in the country right now. Australia, Canada, and New Zealand have reported a huge increase in hits to their sites explaining how to immigrate. I had hoped after the election people would "start the healing", but I don't think that's going to happen. I don't know what the answer is. I don't think there is one answer. People's thoughts and values are very complicated.

I can honestly say that I really understand how the people that don't like, strike that, hate, George W. Bush feel. When Bill Clinton was in the White House, I couldn't stand to hear him talk on the TV. It just made me mad for so many reasons.

I remember my grandma would get real agitated when Reagan came on the TV or radio because she could not stand him. We all knew not to discuss politics with grandma, she was a very "passionate" person. I still miss her a lot.

People are more than political parties and beliefs. There is more that we agree on than we realize. Anyone who wants to leave this country now, well, I would doubt if they "get it". By "it", I mean the ins and outs of our political system. We have survived much worse chasms of differences, even a war between the states. Our political system is messy, its not pretty, and it runs more like a '76 Pinto than a Bentley. But it runs...

America remains the youngest country with the oldest constitution. We will survive and eventually thrive, that is, as long as we stick together.

-John

Third Person Madness

The humble blogger who maintains this site was recently asked by his professor to write an autobiography in Spanish. John was pleased with this because he felt he could handle this, and also the fact that first person verbs are the first ones that all Spanish students learn(Yo estoy, Yo Soy, Yo digo, etc..).

Then, the assignment changed. The professor decided that the assignment would still be a biography of the student, but instead of first person, it would be in the third person. John confided to this writer that he felt a little strange about this. Certainly its not as schitsophrenic as describing yourself in the first person plural, "We are writing a biography about ourselves." or "We felt very strange about this turn of events."

But nevertheless, John struggled with the ideas of trying to define himself as if looking from the outside in. He described it as like losing some inward compass, and finally having to look at yourself as others see you. I started to think that the blogger felt a little lost and insecure at looking at his life through the eyes of others. He could always explain the delays in his dreams, his procrastinations, and the large and small failures in his life through the lens of his good intentions his very typical, yet few personal faults. But without that internal narration that the first person view provides all of us, all of these shortcomings would certainly not be as justifiable through the third person voice. "Don't you see? Speaking of yourself in the first person just seems to justify any mediocrity so much easier", he explained, lifting one eyebrow in that mischevious way we all find so charming about him. This writer believes that John actually fears someone in the world might yet determine he was less than perfect.

But over a cup of John's favorite coffee Henry's Blend(Seattle's Best), (1 Nutrasweet, 1 Sugar-in-the-Raw, Skim milk) in the homey IUSB Cafe, he mused that maybe his reluctance to write about himself in the third person was because it also exposed his own real desire for self-promotion, self-agrandizement. Its a very common, underlying motivation for all bloggers. But not just them, everyone wants to be publicized and celebrated for the individuals that they are. Maybe not with overwhelming fame that takes all privacy, but the idea that everyone knows what is unique about us.

When John considers the two problems of writing a biography in third person, he finally agreed within himself that if he could not change these feelings, he would acknowledge they were real. He told this writer that if he could not overcome this, he would at least not deny that within himself he wanted to promote all the good things about himself to the world, and deny the existence of his failings, delays, and faults.

This seemed to satisfy John, he knew that total transparency to the world was probabally not possible. He also reminded himself it was just one assignment and that he has a tendency to take himself entirely too seriously sometimes...

El 16 de septiembre

This Thursday was Mexico's Independence Day. 194 years ago Father Miguel Hidalgo gave his grito(cry) for independencia. The picture above is from the Mexican muralist Orozco, one of the "Tres Grandes" muralists of México commemorating Father Hidalgo. Check out this link for more information about this part of México's history: Hidalgo Archive

Giving credit where it is due, I found this link on The Daily Texican".

John

Gmail Invitations

I don't know if you have heard about this, but Google has an free e-mail system called Gmail. It is very cool, you have 1 gig of email storage, no popups, and very smart filing and other assorted cutting edge features. I have 5 invitations left.
If you want one, just drop me a line at :

casadejuanito at gmail.com

Thanks

More Diego Rivera

Here's a link to a Power Point presentation I did about Diego Rivera:

"Identidad Mexicana Por los Ojos De Diego Rivera"

It's all in Spanish, a lot of good pictures and some history of the murals of México.

-John

Travel Journal

Those of you who have not read my travel journal to México, look on the sidebar below the archive and I have managed to put all the entries in by date using my meager HTML knowledge.

-Thanks

Back in the Saddle Again..and already a little sore..

Well, school has started again and I am already in the thick of things. I am a student at Indiana University, specifically I attend IUSB-Indiana University at South Bend.

Click Here for a Photo Tour of the Campus
I like most things about going to school. It was really strange at first, and I felt out of place, but now I feel very comfortable. There are a lot of other older students also. I also have to watch myself, so I don't go into old-guy mode and start talking too much or telling stories.

This is my third year going to school, I have about 36 credits. I'm attempting an Associate Degree in Spanish, and may go farther after that. I've done much better than I thought I could, I have been on the Dean's list three times, but I have only just started taking Algebra after 15 years away-we'll see how that goes.

Besides Algebra, I'm also taking Writing Spanish I. I really enjoy this class, if I have any good papers, I'll put up a link.

My least favorite part of school is.......


PARKING..."
There are simply not enough parking places for all of the students. On Wednesday, I had to feed a meter and was 15 minutes late for class, after I payed $30.00 to the school for my parking permit. I normally love irony, but not this time...

A Dream Come True..

I started learning Spanish in earnest around 1994 or 1995. I had always been interested in Spanish and tried to pick some up when I lived in San Diego. But it was not until I started working with Latinos everyday that I decided to take classes.

I always wanted my level of Spanish to get to a point where it was more than just being able to be polite, make a joke, or flirt with Latina waitresses to get better service and more Guacamole. I had been increasing little by little in my skills, mostly by doing two things, being obsessed with all things Spanish, and speaking to anyone in spanish any time I could, even if I knew I would sound foolish or like a preschooler.

What's amazing is I came to find out that going to school alone will not make you a better speaker. Without diving in and babbling away, you will never become proficient.

It's always been my dream to be able to speak to a group of Latinos totally in Spanish, without an interpreter and know that they understood me. That would mean that I had really accomplished something. Well, that dream came true this last weekend when I went down to see my family in Cincinnati.

My sister Kathi and brother-in-law Dale are the pastors of Love and Faith Christian Center. They have a Latino ministry called Amor Y Fe that meets once a month to minister to the needs of the Spanish speaking members of the congregation. I was invited to speak at this service for 35-40 minutes. I was very scared at first and thought about not even doing it, but then I remembered the other times that I had stepped out in faith when I was not sure if I could do something or not and it always worked out.

The service went very well, and we all had a good time. I spoke about Psalm 103, and how "Dios conoce nuestra condición"-how God understands our human condition with all of it's weaknesses and frailties and still loves us and wants to bless us.
Click here if you want to read my notes-but it's all in Spanish..

The people were wonderful, and they told me that they understood it all. They laughed at my lame jokes, and some of them cried in several places. We had a time of prayer afterwards and several people responded for prayer. I hope I get to do this again, it was a great experience.

Family Reunion

Recently, I went down to Cincinnati to see my Mom and Dad and sisters Kathi and Carol, my brother-in-law Dale, Carol's boyfriend Rick, and all my nieces and nephews. It was quite the occasion because the whole family had not been together for some time. My mom was very happy. We ate way more than we should have, all went to church on Sunday and just had a great time.

The Daily Texican

Check out this blog about Spanglish Culture and language:

The Daily Texican