As I said...

...I love posters.
On a different note, I finished my box! It looks very nice. I'll talk a picture of it and post it soon.
I'll be 21 in 10 days. Wish list: "Blue like Jazz" by Donald Miller & Alanis Morissette's "Feast on Scraps"

Poem 02-25-06

I wrote this on Saturday. As I read it over and over I feel like it'd sound great for a slam poetry open mic night.


I love art.
I cry art.
I feel art.
I see art.
I jump art.
I crash art.
I scream art.
I smell art.
I live art and the life of it consumes my senses and takes the rhythm of my heart and changes every boom-boom-boom, and it pounds like a single star in the heavens shines and the room lights up to the sight of your smile.

And we are
what we say we are
for we choose
what we say is right
when we live
what we say is life
and we love
what we cannot save.

BEGutierrez

Sunny outside

It's such a beautiful day!!! It's sunny and fresh... Spring might be just around the corner. I see the sky and it's blue, I look around and I see art everywhere.
Life is art.
Thank YOU.

Friends

I found this:

and it made me think of how bless I've been with so many great friends. I wrote to Nelsito the moment I found la semilla de mango seca that he gave some time during my time at the Liceo Getsemani. He wrote back.

Some people will stay in your heart forever.
Not other old, dry mango seed will mean so much to me.

A Barnes & Noble moment!!!

"Are you following me?!"

.......

About a box...

In my 3-D design class I've been working on the "A box as a metaphor of self" assignment. I have to confess... I'm having too much fun with it... after all, how much fun can you really have doing an assignment of which you don't even know how or where to start?!

After a bit of thinking and sketching I knew what I wanted to do, but I didn't know how to begin. I wanted to make my own box (that will eventually look like a suitcase) and so a couple of girls and I went to buy some wood. Well, we didn't know exactly how much we needed so we ended up with a bunch of wood left after cutting what we needed. I heard we'll use it for other assignments, so we're ok on that after all. Then when I was making the box (with the help of my professor) I really didn't think it'd look good, but at the end it did... and I was so happy when I finished it. It was a big satisfaction... like the one that comes after you make a box for the first time! I don't know how to explain it. I was pretty proud of the box, even if it was quite simple.

After making it, I've been spending my time covering it with canvas and painting the inside with gesso. I ran out of tacky glue today, so I didn't finish with the canvas... but I already went and got more glue!!! So I'll finish that tomorrow night, after classes... before I go and finish the other assignment I have pending.

The inside is going to be pretty nice. I have the whole thing planned out... It's just a matter of doing it (and getting a couple of things I still need... like an old clock that has all the interesting clock parts inside).

And well, enough with the box. I need to finish some sketches.

I'll be 21 in 18 days. Wish list: "Blue like Jazz" by Donald Miller & Alanis Morissette's "Feast on Scraps"

Andiamo a giocare!

I might be getting too old to play in the snow, because I woke up this morning with a cold. I'll be 21 in 19 days.

I couldn't go to school to finish my design assignment... I'm a little afraid of driving on icy roads.

And yesterday I didn't go out either (except to play for a while) so I had time to finish a book I had been reading since the year started and to organize my room.

The book I finished was "The Coldest Winter Ever" by Sister Souljah. It was great! I borrowed it from a friend of mine after I asked her about Souljah. I had heard she was good, but had never read any of her books. I'll start "Playing with Boys" either today or tomorrow.

My friend Roo has my copy of "The Dirty Girls Social Club"... It was funny how that book came into the conversation. We were talking about what she's planning on doing after she graduates in May; then she said that we should meet every other year in a different country to catch up and visit a new place... that was what reminded me of the book and I jumped and asked if she had read it before. The next day, I was leaving the book in her inbox with a note "Let me know if you need any help with the Spanglish. -- B"

It's nice reading fiction. Gives me a nice break from the news and the textbooks.

Snowy Snowy Snowy

A stormed hit the area last night....


And when I woke up this morning everything was beautiful outside...


So we decided to play...


And we were not the only ones...

Wow, I'm tired.

I'm tired today... and sore. I have no clue why.

In my 3-D class I'm making a "box as a metaphor of self" and I'm pretty excited about what I'm doing. I got to MAKE my own box!!! It was nice when I had it done, of course, I didn't do it by myself... my professor helped me a lot (especially cutting the wood... I'm kind of afraid of those wood-cutting machines!). I also got to smell like wood after that class... you know, like a woodshop somebody. I changed shirts later.

I also got to present with one of my good friends on a leadership series. Our topic was "Impacting your Organization" and it went reeeeeeeeally good. I was very happy :)

With the drama of me, snow, and a rusty nail... wow... I had to get the tetanus shot because the last one I had gotten was in 1991. The cut didn't get infected, though. Looks like I've done a great job taking care of it cause you can barely tell I had a rusty nail pierce my foot on Saturday... it's almost gone. I think I won't get a scar from this nail. And well, since I've been looking at my feet a whole lot after Saturday, I'm convinced I need a pedicure before I dare to put on flip-flops to go out in public.

Last week I sent my application for the Glamour's Top Ten College Women contest. I think I have pretty good chances of getting the award... so I'm hoping.

I have to do stuff for tomorrow before I get to sleep, so I better get away from the computer NOW!

Feliz Día del Amor y la Amistad

Happy Valentine's (or Singles Awareness Day, whatever applies...)

About that snow

It was snowing when I left my house for work yesterday morning. It look beautiful but the flakes would completely disappear as they touched the ground. Everyone says this has been one of the mildest winters in this area... maybe it's time to get conscious and stop cooking up this planet.

Today has been snowy. It's been on and off all day. I left a little before 8 this morning to go the journalism workshop and the sun was shining and the sky was very blue... well, half of it, at least. The other half was gray. I got on the interstate heading south and the gray cloud was right in front of me. I was about to take my exit when the sunrays became snowflakes. Pretty neat. That was not the last I saw of the sun today, though. Every time I looked out the doors of the building there was something different. Sunshine, a couple of snowflakes, a blizzard, someone wearing sandals.... you name it.

I was going to stay in the art department to do some studying but decided to come home and take pictures. When I got back the snow hit *for real* and then I took out my camera, just in case this is the only sign of winter we see this year. Everything around me went from brown to white in less than ten minutes, except for me.

I took a bunch of pics around the house and somehow (I still cannot explain why I do this) I ended up with... *suspense*... self portraits!!!! Some of them are hilarious...

This one's pretty funny. Flakes were hitting me hard. Anyway, in this pic I'm wearing one of my favorite pieces of cloth. That head wrap I'm wearing my sis Lidi got in Mexico city when we went to visit my dad in Dec 2001. *Somehow* it ended up in my hands. I think I traded it for a picture of the five of us (all my beautiful bros and sis... only the ones I count as real siblings... just five... the rest I haven't even met).

And well, last night I went to an artist reception for some of the graduate candidates at the UA Art dept. It was nice and there were some really great works there. I'm a little sad that some of them are leaving... it seems to me that I never get enough time with friends. Either they leave, or I leave, or they die... guess that's life.

Happy note before a tear comes down: I stepped on a rusty nail today. The nail wasn't playing around, I wasn't either... it pierced through the sole of my shoe and then through the sole of my feet. It took me a minute to get it out. It was painful but I didn't scream or anything I would usually do... I kept my cool and got in the house (I had gone out to enjoy the freakin snow!) I went right to the bathroom and washed the blood away (it was bleeding... so it was time to freak out) I yelled my sister's name with out crying, I was still cool, but my tone was serious. When she asked me what the heck I wanted I said "Me meti un clavo oxidado en el pie. Podes venir?!" She came and said "I knew something happened to you cause you got in quietly." I had been messing with her since she came back from work. Then she pretended she knew what she was doing and told me to wash the area, dry it, and wrap it tight with a cloth. I said "that sounds like something Rambo would do" and we started laughing.

I didn't cry.

My inner child did, though.

I hope it doesn't get infected, I really do. It kinda hurts.

SNOW!

IS NEVATING TODAY! AWESOME!!!!

Thursday night... so thankful.

Past couple of weeks have been busy. From birthday celebrations to shows, from application deadlines to presentations, to papers to workshop planning... crazy busy. And I'm such a dork, I enjoy it.

I realized that the fine arts library is one of my favorite places on campus... and I found out why. I wrote an essay on that for my essay writing course. This is the part of my essay I like the most:

The main level is a rather long area with large windows that connect the place with the outside world, with the rest of the university. That hallway with all the study tables and the windows is dangerous. If you sit in one of those tables you run the risk of getting distracted by anything outside the windows. There are tons of things outside that can make you forget about the reading at hand. Among those various things are clouds, people walking to class, and fighting squirrels. Sometimes it’s actually nice to take a break from what you’re doing to look at the world outside. I love the windows because they remind me of my house in El Salvador. The view was quite distinct from my house, though. A volcano can’t be compared to a couple of very aggressive squirrels. So usually when I’m there studying I catch myself staring at the windows every so often – or I see the person in the next table doing that.

Anyway, life has been good.

Just wight

I'm writing an essay about the fine arts library. So far, it has potential. It's due in a week... after a million other things.

Updates in the middle of a deadline craziness

I don't like deadlines. I don't think anybody does. I have tons of them in the next few hours.

On a more happy note, I've been happy.
I'm pleased with so many things that have been going on that it seems unreal. I've been on top of my game and I have to say I'm proud of myself. We had the Women in Politics Forum today and it was great. Not many people showed up, but it was really good. I've also been working on a bunch of graphics... I like it, but my eyes get really tired after a couple of hours in front of the monitor. I got my Communication Arts magazines yesterday and that was exciting. I was looking through all the works there and they made me want to continue on a master's in fine arts. Wants are wants... needs are needs.

I've also been doing good on my classes. I've been reading and stuff. I also love my mentees. I have three of them. It makes me happy to contribute to someone's growth. It makes me happy to get a smile out of them.

On Monday was the 2nd annual Diversity Show and I was MC with a friend of mine. It was fun. We got a lot of good comments after the show. The most memorable part was when we danced the Macarena!

And also... I'm learning Italiano!!! Well, this is step one, I got one of those phrase-a-day calendars and it's fun. I can now say "do you like it spicy?" in Italian.

I have to go keep working on the things I have deadlines for.

And now the question is: Ti piace piccante?