Oh! My First Artist Reception!

I still feel like a star!!!

I got to the gallery at 7:05 and there were so many people there waiting... for me :)
When I stepped into the door somebody said "there she is" and I couldn't stop smiling from that point until the end of... well, I actually woke up the next day smiling!

The Univision cameras were there, I was interviewed for the "De todo un poco" show and it was surprising how naturally it all came to me... I chose three paintings and we talked about those and what they meant for me. I chose "My Fire," my crazy self-portrait and "The Two Berthas" (I apologize because those are horrible pictures, I'll soon have some good ones for you!). Then Noticias 5 (5 News) did another interview and the super 5 news reported was a sweetie (thanks sis!).

So many people came... I was amazed and grateful that so many people support me in the community. There were family, old friends, new friends, professors, university administrators, community leaders, reporters, friends of my mother, friends of my sister, friends of my friends, co-workers... and well... I just felt so wonderful!!! Everyone wanted a picture with me and they were hugging me, saying congratulations (or felicidades) and giving me all these precious compliments!!! Did I already say I felt like a star?! I did!!! SC gave me a card with the sweetest message!!!

I sold three paintings... and that was actually hard because I've never sold any artwork ever before... so putting price to my work was difficult. And JR was telling everyone that he already had a "BG's original" (I gave him "Curls").

Some funny things happened, I had picked a cute outfit that looked very "artistic" if you will. It was black... and that was the problem, since it was about 100 degrees outside and my car doesn't have A/C... so I called my uncle to pick me up in his new truck because I didn't want to get to the gallery all sweaty... but then at the last minute I decided to just grab a pair of gray, dressy pants that I had and get rid of the cute little orange scarf that gave the "artistic" touch to my black outfit... I still felt fabulous ;) but I'm definitely going to have to wear my black, artistic outfit some other time :)

I don't have my pictures yet... I need to go see SH because she took all the pictures for me. I'll post them here as soon as I get them :D

About fashion emergencies, new music, and excitement...

So I've been out shopping this weekend. I went to get a cute outfit and a guestbook and I came back with two books, the cutest notebook I'll use as a guestbook, a couple of nice shirts, and pants... but no outfit yet. I'm telling you... this is a FASHION EMERGENCY!!! It always happens. I'm not very good when it comes to shopping for nice clothes and the part of the brain where trendiness should be has been taken over by some other ability... I still don't know what, though. Really... I always seem to dress the same...
Anyway, my sis went to St Louis, MO and brought me a neat coffee mug from Starbucks, it's a 16 oz and I can create my very own tumbler (it says it like that in the mug) so I'll paint something nice on bristol paper and I'll stick it in there... it'll look sooo good :) She also bought me the new Alanis CD!!! OH YEAH!!!! I have Jagged Little Pill - ACOUSTIC!!!! (she got it at Starbucks too) I have almost all of Alanis' productions now (I don't have "Feast on Scraps")
THANK YOU, SIS!!!!!!



In another note (or is it the same one?!) I'm SUPER excited about the reception tomorrow... super excited!!! I feel like I have butterflies in my stomach... I haven't felt like this in a long time... :)

Getting ready

For my "Meet the artist reception" I need:
- new outfit (FASHION EMERGENCY!!!)
- guestbook
- somebody with a digital camera willing to take pics for me
- keep smiling THIS big! :D

I AM EXCITED!!!

About the last post...

I'm not unhappy. I truly love my family, but I'm not a small-town type of person that's used to runing into people you know all the time. Here where I live, I can't not even go wash my car without somebody calling me the next day sayint he/she saw me and asking me why was I at the car wash the day before... and I'm like "HELLO?!!! To wash my car!!!" and then asking why I was washing my car... :S

So just imagine me, having fun with my friends at a club (I don't go out very much, so when I do go out, I want to have a nice time with my friends) and suddenly seeing my uncle standing in front of me... what do I say?! "Hey, tio. How's it going? Kicking it? Good... Let me go dance now... see ya later!"

So... I love my family... but really, sometimes a girl needs a break :P
I am, however, planing on spreading my wings and flying to a big city where even if I do have a million relatives (I can't do anything about this... I have family everywhere) I won't bump into them at every other place I go to. This will happen after I graduate of course... I LOVE the U of A with all my heart and soul :) I AM a real Razorback!!! (That's our mascot).

I want out

...of this place.

I can't stand living in AR. I can't even go out without running into somebody I don't want to see when I'm out kicking it with my friends (yes, I'm talking about my relatives here).

I'm working so hard, because I want out.

Today...

Friday... I can't remember the last time I was this glad because it's Friday.

It was a long week. I've gotten angry many times this week... they all have been during Chemistry class. Not only because I believe my instructor doesn't deserve to be called a teacher, but because he doesn't respect others... and that gets under my skin and makes me do and feel things I wouldn't normally do or feel. No kidding, when I get angry I have a hard time controlling what I say... I blame it on my dad because he's that way.

Anyway, the instructor mistreats two of my classmates. They're the only two guys in the class and I wonder if that's why he's so freakin impacient with them. He raises his voice to them! And I just want to curse him out when he does that!!! I talked to one of the guys today and he said that he didn't really see any difference in the way he treats everyone, but then he said, almost whispering, "he raises his voice." I know he feels bad... the only thing that the viejo hasn't done to them is called them studip (and if he does... I'm affraid I'll get up and do something crazy).

I'm writing a letter to the academic affairs department at the freakin community college though which I'm taking that class. I'm going to talk to the viejo first, just to be fair. I have a list of things he needs to know... if he doesn't get it together, I'll make some calls and write some letters.

Life... is just life

I remember when I would go to the park with my dad and my brothers and sisters we would play all afternoon... just running around... doing silly stuff.
I remember when I ate my ice cream like the little boy in the pic... it wouldn't matter it half of it ended up all over my face and shirt. It wouldn't matter because it was soooo good.

Good times.

And life keeps going. It's too short.
I think I want some ice cream now...

There is no chemistry...

Between Chemistry and me.
It actually upsets me very much.

Like sand...

A lot of things have happened this week. I can't believe. I was saving for a nice digital camera (Canon PowerShot A510, to be more exact) when my car broke down. It was the transmission... I had to replace it, it was really expensive for me, but I can't afford just to buy a new car. It's not like I love Berthito (my car) so much that I chose not to replace it... That was just not an option.
So... I had to spend the money I had saved for the camera and even some money for school. I've been working all summer and saving for school. Now I'll have to work more hours before school starts on August so I can replace the money I spent on the car.
With the camera, I can wait. I might be able to find a better one (and maybe cheaper) later... or who knows?! Maybe I'll get one for Xmas!

Money is a pain... even more when you don't have it.

On another note, I've been painting. Using acrylics because I can't use oils at home (for all the fumes and the waste -I mean... you can't just dump the pain thiner and the other stuff you use down the drain! I know that fumes can be good for your creativity and all, but they're bad for the environment!!! Fumes are great for artists... We've talked about it with Jacob, many of the great masters in painting seem to have been kinda nuts... and the only thing they had in common was the paint... so the fumes! that's it! he he he). Mmm... I lost my train of thought... Oh, yeah! I wanted to say that I had forgotten how fast acrylics dry. I had a hard time washing my palete and the kitchen table :P

Anyway, I'll go paint some more now. Ciao!

P.S. If you click on the picture, you'll see my favorite photos at Flicker. They're other flickrians' and this one I used today I like a lot :)

All these things!!!

I'm very tired today. It was a very long day. My car broke down when I went to return the overpriced textbooks at the community college. I was planing on going to the bookstore on Dickson St. and getting the same books ($40 cheaper), but then my car wouldn't move; it wouldn't move at all. It's at the shop right now, my uncle went and got me. I missed my meeting, I didn't buy the books and I have homework. And I got no one to talk to. This blog thing saves me sometimes. I wish Pauli was here.

I was reading El Diario de Hoy (Salvadoran newspaper) and there were protests today due to the increase on the cost for public transportation. There were at least 25 people injured. At least. There was a line that said:

"The protesters threw stones at the police officers, who responded by shooting."

It's been 13 years since the peace accords were signed. There is still no peace in El Salvador. Don't believe otherwise... There cannot be peace where extreme poverty and extreme wealth exist at the same time. There will always be people suffering while others just get richer. That's life, isn't it? I believe there can be a better world... but maybe I just don't know... I've never had money or power (I shouldn't say power, after all, it comes with the money) so I don't know how's it like to be up there... maybe that's why I believe.

I pray for my patria. I pray everyday for those that are surviving on just one or two dollars per day. And I pray that the people with the power realize that life doesn't have to be like this. I pray that my brothers stop shooting my brothers.

Day at the lake

I spent the day at the lake today with the familia and some amigos. It was fun! I didn't swim (because that water smelled fishy) but I went on the lancha twice with my tio. We ate a lot... a lot!!! I'm afraid that carne asada will come back and hunt me :P

I was hoping to get some color back, specially for my legs. My sister's been calling me palida -pale- for a couple of weeks now. That's only because she's REALLY dark, and she's gotten that tan because she's been going to the lake a lot lately... and I'm mean at least 4 times a week. I've been working, taking classes, and such... no time for tanning. You can now see my white foot in the picture. Anyway, I had fun. It was relaxing. I read and played with my little cousins... they're crazy! Manuelito was actually talking about my future in graphic arts... he said "Man! Berthy's gonna make a LOT of money! She's gonna work in graphic design; she'll be drawing and doing this (pointing to a Gatoraid logo) and that's fun!!!" and then he said to one of his friends "Berthy has her WHOLE career planned!" I couldn't help but smile. Manuelito is so smart (and cute!). He'll be 11 in about a month. I had no idea he thought that way about me.

I've been painting also... but more on that later... I'm actually going to paint some more now.

San Francisco on a rainy day

It's San Francisco... when I went with my friend Pauli~!
For some reason, I didn't remember I had this pic. I like it.

Counting my blessings

I'm thankful for all the opportunities that have been presented to me lately. I'm counting my blessings and giving all the glory to the only One that deserves it. Thank you God.

This week has been crazy... I've been busy with school work, work work, artist work, reader work, writer work, etc work. (You can tell I like how the "work" part sounded!). Great things have happened to me and so I take a moment and see all what goes on... and then I pray. If I don't take those moments in my life... I would miss all the blessings, the little ones and even the obvious ones (if you know me, you know I get distracted easily... I need to keep myself on track).

So... back to the blessings.

1. I have a new brother. He was born on Wednesday, I think (see what I'm talking about! clueless... I'm telling you!). Hopefully my dad named him Vincent... like Van Gogh :)
2. I have been offered a leadership position for next year. A very important one for me. I'm excited and anxious at the same time because I don't want to mess things up.
3. I'll have the opportunity to participate on a presentation at a student affairs deal... more details later cuz even I have to hear more about it.
4. There's an great opportunity for next summer... I'm looking for internships indifferent places. And there is a chance I won't have to look into that any further.
5. MY FIRST SOLO EXHIBIT!!!

Here's the deal with No. 5:
Some of my paintings were supposed to be at a summer student show in the union gallery at school... but then somehow it ended up being a solo exhibit!!! I'm even going to have an artist reception!!! I have never been to an artist reception before... and this one will be for me!!!! (oh, my! I'm feeling butterflies in my panza!). I'm even going to have little post cards for the show... I'M SO FREAKIN' EXCITED!!! I'm so grateful... :')

And I know all this is happening because God's making it happen. He's always been wonderful to me and I have not always given him the credit. I'm blessed. He's put SO many wonderful people in my life... I'm so overwhelmed with this happiness that I'm running out of words, or maybe it's just that words cannot express what I'm feeling at this moment.

There are other things going on... but right now I just want to say thanks for everything.