New Years Eve. Some years it's a blast. But this year, all I can think is "eh." Hopefully dinner will be nice with my family.

I remember when I was a kid, New Years was as simple as spending a night with my cousins while our parents went out. We'd bang some pots and pans around the neighborhood at midnight, watch fireworks on TV, and be excited over staying up so late. Some years it was at my great-grandma's house in Santa Clara, other years it was at a hotel.

For a couple years it was a big dinner at a Benihana style restaurant and a movie with various members of my extended family. During high school years it was a big family party at my Aunt Rosemary's and Cousin Lisa's that we could invite our friends too. Those years were some of the best New Years I remember.

For 2000 and 2002 it was parties at my house with some of my family and my high school friends and big count-down celebrations in Downtown Mountain View. For 2003, it was a family trip to Monterey, a laid back evening enjoying all the "First Night" festivities they had going on.

This year, all my high school friends are doing their own thing. Various members of my extended family are too. It's been a rough year for many of their families. It doesn't seem quite as easy to get together as it used to, at least for this year.

Even my brother might split and go hang out with his friends. So what it comes down to is I might be counting down to midnight with my folks and maybe and aunt or uncle or two. I can't complain too much, at least I'm not completely alone.

But anyways....here's to 2004!

Community Development in Europe

Summer Abroad program through UC Davis. Anyone else interested?

All things considered, Christmas went well.

Feliz Navidad.

All right. Random history update.

My family has lived in Santa Clara County since 1917. At least the Portuguese half of it. I always say we've been here since the 1930s. But that's just my mom's side. My great-great grandparents left the island of Madeira off the coast of Africa for Hawaii in 1909. They lived in Kahuku, Oahu for eight years, then took a ship named the Wilhemina to San Franciso which arrived on March 17, 1917. They settled in Santa Clara and lived in a house that stayed in the family until I was a kid. Spent quite a few lazy summer days at that house. Lot's of good childhood memories. If I ever win the lottery, I'm buying that house back.

That's all for now.

The Result of Studying for my Southern Border class too much....Southern Border dreams:

For some reason, the Big Game was in Mexico. At least I think it was Mexico, but my subconscious was getting all the Latin American countries I've been studying mixed up in my head.

Anyways, the Big Game was in Mexico out near the coast but also near the desert. It was indoors for some reason too. Anyways, we were all really scared about going because Mexico was having a revolution and angry mobs of Mexicans were coming and hunting down any Americans that were in the country. So we all had to be REALLY quiet inside the stadium....no cheering at all. But being Berkeley, people didn't follow the rules and starting cheering against Stanfurd. And then all the sudden huge mobs of Mexicans and their military storm into the gym throwing tear gas. Everyone runs for their lives, I make out of a revolving door.

Then I embark on a journey through the desert, trying to make my way home to the US border. I'm tired and thirsty, I pass skeletons of others that have tried to make the same journey. Things seem impossible but I make it! I'm at the border. It's a lush forest, and wouldn't you know...the White House is right there. I don't know why. It just was. I safely make it across the border and everything is fine.

So....let's dissect the meaning of various things in this dream:

Big Game: Don't quite know, but that bonfire rally poster is still on my door. Maybe I'm thinking about Chris and his Spirit-building drive at Saint Francis.

Indoor Stadium: The bowl game Cal is playing will be in BankOne Ball Park, indoors, which I found strange so it must have come up again in my dream.

Angry Mobs of Mexicans: All right, this has nothing to do with any issues I have over my ethnic identity. Rather, I've been studying bloody revolutions in Mexico, Guatemala, Haiti, and Cuba for my Southern Border Class. In Cuba, one of the countries I was reviewing after going to bed, and Guatemala, people were trying to end US domination. Hence the mob attacking us at the Big Game in Mexico.

Revolving Door: One of the terms I've been studying is the US's "revolving door" border with Mexico. People make it across, get captured by the INS, get sent back, and do it all over again.

Journey through the Desert: The militarization of the border pushed Mexican immigrants into remote deserts near Arizona.

Bones in the Desert: As a result of being pushed to the desert, many die during the journey.

White House at the Border: No clue. Really. Could be a lot of things.

So there you have it! My dream was a review session for my final today! Thank you subconscious, thank you.

Back in Berkeley.

Time to study. I'll start tomorrow. (I've been saying that since Sunday) Oh well. Let's not think about that, ya? Let's think about all the fun stuff I did this over-extended weekend. Ya!

On Friday, I hung out with Matt and Kim! I can't believe I haven't seen Kim all semester. We went to Peggy Sues and walked around Christmas in the Park....happy that it was a crisp night and it wasn't raining on us like the weather channel said it would. Then we came back to my house and played a game of "let's see how many faces we can identify w/o looking at their names from our senior class yearbook!" We all did pretty bad....but I think I did the best. Hehe.

Saturday....I saw Saint Francis loose it's CCS Championship game to some school from Salinas. 17 to 13, the other team scored in the last 2 minutes. It was pouring rain, but the stands were full on both sides at San Jose City College. Chris and his Yell Leaders did a good job getting the crowd into the game considering the weather. But the band....the band left at half-time. No, they didn't just put away their instruments to avoid any water damage, they got up and left the game on a bus for no good reason. Typical Saint Francis apathy rears its ugly head. The Cal Band would NEVER do something like that. I wonder how the band would feel if the football team left their Winter Concert half way through.

Sunday...I started putting Christmas Lights on my grandparents' house. I also saw Elf with my parents and grandma. A Christmas Classic! Go see it. Also...I think on Sunday I went on a drive with Chris. We checked out the new McCafe at Mountain View's McDonald's (McDonald's is trying to be all hip and Starbucksy...and it looks like they've succeeded in MV) and took a drive to Shoreline.

Monday. Walked to the Little Store around the corner with grandpa for some Tamales and Pan Dulce. That was really nice, especially since he treated me. Can't wait until I have some of our family's homemade tamales in a couple weeks. At night I was on my way to Berkeley with my parents, Hayward to be exact, when I called Erik and realized the review session I was driving back to Berkeley for was on Tuesday. After some debate, we turned around and headed back home, but had a great dinner at the Spaghetti Factory in Downtown San Jose. I also finished putting the lights up that night.

Today I had lunch with my dad at the new sandwich place in Downtown MV. I then went to City Hall to drop off a letter and report on preservation in SF I did for one of my classes to the City Council in Planning Dept. I got to review a plan for a historic building and catch up with some of my old co-workers. It was really nice to see them. Then I went across the street to Kaiser Hospital where my Auntie RoseMary, Marisa, Lisa, Angelica, and David were for a check up. Since it was pouring and I didn't have a car, my Auntie Rosemary offered to drive me home. I got to talk with her, and she read my Mixed-Race paper which I had interviewed all of them for last week.

Now I'm back in Berkeley. Watched some weird-ass movie with Ryan, Erik, and Lauren instead of studying. Put up some of my mom's old Christmas decorations here and just wrote possibly the most boring blog entry you've ever read on this page. Sorry. I'll do a witty and short post next time. Promise. Maybe.

Woah! Portuguese-Azorian pride in the main stream media? Awesome.

I have a new found respect for Nelly Furtado and her new single, with people in Azorean costumes dancing in the video. Haha. Sweet.

Paint my face in your magazines
Make it look whiter than it seems
Paint me over with your dreams
Shove away my ethnicity
Burn every notion that I may have a flame inside to fight
And say just what is on my mind
Without offending your might

Cuz this life is too short to live it just for you
But when you feel so powerless what are you gonna do
So say what you want

You tell em Nelly.

She had a crush on Him since She was a little girl. He didn't know who She was. In their small mining town, Santa Rita, New Mexico, her family was considered poor, his more well-off. In reality, both families were poor compared to people living on the Anglo side of the segregated town.

He went to California with his family, to work in the fields after His father was kicked out of the mines by Anglo management for trying to organize a Mexican mineworkers union. She stayed in the town with Her family, went to high school, and blossomed into a beautiful young woman.

He enlisted to fight in World War II, was almost engaged to another woman before leaving, but was sent a 'Dear John' letter while he was in the Pacific.

Meanwhile, She waited for Him, tried to catch a glimpse of Him whenever He came back to New Mexico. She became determined to eventually catch His eye.

His mom's prayers to the Virgen de Guadalupe were answered, when He came back safe from the War. His family made a pilgrimage to Mexico City, as His mother had promised the Virgen before He shipped out. But on the way they stopped in Santa Rita.

She found out He was in town. She was fresh out of high school, one of the prettiest girls in town now, chosen as its Queen. She put on Her makeup and Her best dress, and decided to walk by where He and His brother were hanging out, under the pretense of visiting a family friend.

And finally, She caught His eye as He saw Her walk by. His brother said "WHO is that?!" Saying She would be his. He said "No Way, She's going to be mine."

And with that, He began to court Her. He made the pilgrimage to Mexico City with his family. He went back to California. She stayed in New Mexico. They started writing to each other.

In 1948, He went back to New Mexico, proposed to Her, and married Her in a whirlwind trip. He brought Her back to California, to Mountain View, where they started a family.

55 years later, my grandparents are still together. Their relationship is far from perfect and things have been rough at times. But their love for each other has not grown old.

I heard a lot of things today, good and bad. But that's one story I don't want to forget.

Oh....it looked bad for a while. Yes it did. That first half had me "looking like I was gonna throw up" according to Kat. Awful flashbacks to freshman year when the Cal football team was under Coach Holmoe, and it sucked. A lot.

But after halftime, the Bears came back from a 0-10 and showed the packed Cal section and the embarrassingly unpacked Stanfurd home-crowd who really deserved to have the Axe this year. Final score, 28-16.

2 Years in a Row! A win at Stanfurd Stadium! Bowl Eligibility! This hasn't happened for our school since the early 1990s. Last year was NOT a fluke. Who knows, maybe this is the start of a new era of greatness for Cal football. As long as we can keep Coach Tedford here.

And speaking of coaches, dinner was a lot of fun. Eric, Erik, Wycee, Kat and I met up with my high school friend Sarah (born a Stanfurd fan) and her friend Ross at Kapp's Pizza Bar and Grill in downtown MV, and were soon joined by Kay, Candice, and Dan who drove all the way down from Berkeley just to spend dinner with us, in honor of my 21st...thanks guys.

Since high school, Kapp's has been my favorite restaurant in downtown, for a lot of reasons. But ever since I started going to Cal, and realized that it was owned by Joe Kapp, a former Cal Quarterback who took the team to the Rose Bowl, and who came back and coached the Bears, with a claim to fame as the coach that orchestrated the greatest moment in college football history, The Play in 1982....the restaurant took on a whole new meaning. (Oh, he also was the QB for the Minnesota Vikings in the 1970s)

I met Coach Kapp with Eric when we were freshman. A waitress saw we were wearing Cal stuff and took us down to meet him. He told us to go steal the axe from Stanfurd after having lost the Big Game. (This year, there was no need to steal anything.) Tonight, the place was filled with celebrating Cal fans. Before it got busy, Coach Kapp came to our table, and I invited him to sit down and talk for a while. He talked about what he thinks of Howard Cosell, Sarah's Stanfurd sweater, and of course, the game. What a better way to celebrate our team's victory, then to sit with one of Cal's greatest living legends? Awesome! The table next to us sang a really good version of the Cal Drinking Song with him, never heard that song before. Good times!

It's hard to believe next year will be my last Big Game as a student. At least, that's how its supposed to work out. It'll be at Memorial Stadium, home. 3 in a row? Can we do it? I think so.

But now the focus is on a bowl. And if the timings right, I hope to be there.

The Bonfire Rally was awesome, the best one I've been to.

I'm so psyched about tomorrow! Go Bears!

Well, I'm back. For a little while. I need to start writing papers, or my Thanksgiving Break is going to be hellish.

I don't remember being this busy since I had studio. Every weekday I'm trying to do work or thinking about doing work. If you haven't heard me complain about it yet, I have three term papers to worry about, and until today I had a midterm too. Midterm is done, the papers are left.

The research is done for two of them. The research hasn't started for one. I need to start writing but I'm kinda burnt out. Things have been crazy, especially with my Historic Preservation group back home. We had a big city meeting yesterday that I couldn't go to, but was working like crazy to prepare for between Sunday and Wednesday. An opposition group has formed that has complicated things a bit. Things worked out from our POV, but it's just one step in a process that will last all year. (yay...) But it's okay, Mountain View is worth it.

And of course, I turned 21 two weekends ago. I spent that weekend, Veterans Day weekend, with my parents in Reno (cool), with a side trip to Virginia City (way cool). Sorry, didn't win any money, and sorry, didn't get very drunk.

But....I did get VERY drunk last Saturday. Yes, I, Nick, got sloshed. My parents and older cousins had been planning my birthday for weeks. I thought it was just a normal family party for my grandma and I in honor of our birthdays. So, I had no problem fulfilling the requests to take shots with my cousins, or uncles. I thought I'd be in bed by midnight.

But then the surprise limo pulled up at 9. And it was time to REALLY go out. And boy, what a night out. Basically almost all the 20-somethings (family and friends) at the party made sure I had a great time. Thanks guys. And thanks to my brother for video-taping me when I got back. Oh, and thanks to my parents for showing that video to my grandparents. Ah well...it's all good!

Oh, Friday before my birthday, my high school, Saint Francis, beat those damn Bell Boys, our big rival in football.

And I'm hoping that Berkeley will pull off a similar defeat against the Furds on Saturday. I should be writing my papers, but all I can think about is the Big Game. I'm really looking forward to it. If anything, it'll be a nice stress reliever for me, especially if we win, and win big. It realy is a big game this year, the first time Cal would win 2 in a row since the early 90s, and we would become bowl eligible, which could equal a group road trip if the timing is good. Lauren and Leo expected my hair to be dyed blue this week. I'm not that bad guys. Almost, but not that bad.

But the Campanile sure is purty when its lit blue with Cal logos on it. A nice new touch.

So, Fiat Lux, Stanfurd Sux, Go Bears!

Maybe it's just that time of the year, but this house creeps me out. This neighborhood creeps me out. It's so cold in here. Maybe if the heater was on I'd be less wound up.

But for the second time, I've heard screams coming from the area behind our backyard. Loud screams...full of anguish. Not playful, short, high-pitched screams...blood curdeling. Tonight they sounded like a man. The windows are all closed so they were faint, but I heard them once and thought it was the TV in the other room. Heard them again and I knew it wasn't.

First time I heard them I looked towards the window and saw a huge spider on the floor. That's another thing. The spiders. Why so many spiders? I hate spiders. Killed that mofo. Maybe the scream was an omen for me to kill the ugly spider.

Anyways, it wasn't the first time we heard screams from that area back behind the house. The first time they sounded like a woman, and we all heard them. Tonight is was just me. But that time they were loud, and went on for a while, and we almost called the police. But didn't. ::shudder::

To make matters worse, behind our backyard is a city-owned pumping station/open space area. Behind that is this abandoned two story pink house. Looks like no one has lived in there for years. It's falling apart, the windows are broken. Anyone could break in there pretty easily I guess. I wonder why it's empty? It's right on Euclid Avenue...one of the busiest streets in the neighborhood, across from the park. Prime real estate. Why is it just sitting there like that. Ack.

Leo suggested the screams might be from in there....that maybe it's a crack house. For some reason that's a lot more comforting then my thoughts of restless spirits that could be roaming just outside our backyard.

It's nights like these that I miss the comfort of La Loma.

Now that I've got that stupid Astro midterm out of the way, I can happily look back at this past weekend and say it was lots of fun.

Friday, Halloween, started with a field trip to San Francisco for my SF Architecture class. The weather had suddenly shifted from record-breaking heat earlier in the week, to a blustery, cold, and rainy weather (woohoo!). It set just the right mood for a walking tour of the city's waterfront. We walked from the Ferry Building, down the Embacadero, and all the way up Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower. Quite the walk, but well worth it. After that I took BART to Caltrain and headed to Mountain View to finish up the preparation for the haunted house.

What would Halloween be without the Perry family Haunted House? I couldn't let a seven year tradition disappear, if even just for one year. While my dad, mom, brother, and his friends were at the SFHS Homecoming game.....myself (tour guide), Mikey (the king of buttnuggets), Sabrina (creepy girl in the wall), Kat (coffin/foot grabber), BJ (coffin/foot grabber), Erik (leaf-blower/guy that makes little girls cry), and Joella (candy giver outer) successfully scared about 150-200 people! It was great. To everyone who reads this and was there to help out; I thank you, dozens of kids thank you, Mountain View thanks you.

It's hard to describe Old Mountain View on Halloween night. I feel like it's what Halloween should be like. The neighborhood embraces the holiday. It's not just for kids, but for families and adults as well. People congregate at the haunted houses like my family's that pop up throughout town. Neighbors actually talk to each other, catch up...act neighborly. Kids roam the streets, treating the neighborhood like its a gigantic playground. It feels like a Norman-Rockwell painting come to life, except quite a bit more multi-cultural.

I decided to go back to Berkeley on Halloween night. Couldn't miss another of my house's own parties. Joella decided she wanted to see Berkeley and came up too. The party was a lot of fun.
The highlight came towards the end, when the remaining guests spent a few hours in the dark telling true ghost stories. And for the first time in a while, I wasn't the only one telling them, which made it more fun (and frightening) for me. We also looked at the 'evil' Ouiji board I took down from my grandparents' attic, too creeped out to risk playing it.

Next weekend, I turn 21. My family is taking me up to Reno to celebrate. The following weekend, my grandma and I will share a birthday party with the extended family. Then the next weekend it's the Big Game at Stanford. The following weekend will be Thanksgiving.

Which pretty much means from now until the end of the month I'll be in Mountain View every weekend doing something fun. Which sounds great...only until I remember that within the same span of time I need to finish THREE term papers. Gag. Wish me luck.

Tonight I felt like,

I am not as fun as a cornfield in Hollister.

Whice may be true.

But...I feel slighted, almost insulted.
Not so much because old plans were broken,
(I'm used to that)
But because I was left out of the new ones.
And I wonder if they ever planned on telling me.
Or if I would have been left hanging come next Friday.

Few actions can hurt me more than being left out.

So, yes. I went to LA this past weekend. I guess a good way to describe the trip is laid back and low key. Some good conversations, some good food, and a lot of hours spent in a car on the freeway or in LA traffic.

Highlight was Eric's mom's cooking, especially the homemade lumpia.

Almost-highlight was almost seeing Cal beat UCLA in overtime at the Rose Bowl. But that didn't happen, so it kinda ended up being a low-light, which sucks because it was the whole point of the trip, at least for me.

The weather didn't help either. Candice and I (even the SoCal guys at times) longed for the crisp cool October weather of the Bay Area. ("Where's the fog!") The middle of October and it's pushing 100 in LA.....It's just not right! I refused to pay $3.50 for a medium coke at the Rose Bowl, the result was I was thirsty for the rest of the day. No sunburn though. Woohoo.

Also, went to Hollywood on Friday night. Didn't see any movie stars. Almost saw a movie at the Chinese Theatre, but didn't. Someday.

~~~

On a completely different note, the CED almost screwed me again on Friday. Sending me back and forth like a retarded pinball between the City Planning and Architecture offices trying to figure out whether Astronomy counted for one of my graduation requirements the day before the drop deadline. The beaurocracy of the college is something else, a major pain in the ass, but luckily things ended up Ok this time around.

Also, I've done really well on all midterms (except Astro..pass/no pass..so..eh). If I manage to write good research papers, this semester could really pay off.

Also, I'm entering a Disney Imagineering design competition with Leo. It should be fun. Top-secret conceptual design phase right now, so I won't say more than that. Don't want you stealing our great ideas. Ya... you. You stealer you. But, it feels really good to be designing again. This semester, I've realized I can't spent my whole life just writing and researching. I need to have another outlet, I like drawing, making models, and the creativity involved in addressing design problems too much to drop it completely. So, urban design/architecture is now back in the picture some way or another.

That's all for now.

Back when things made sense...the last true Mtn. View v. Los Altos football game - 1981

I finally went to a Mountain View v. Los Altos football game tonight. As I always predicted, my parents stood in the end zone, extremely confused about which school to root for.

You'd think rooting for Mountain View would be a no-brainer for me and my family...welll...this is a bit confusing but let me try to explain...

Once upon a time (when my parents went to high school) there were three high schools in the Mtn. View-Los Altos Union High School District. They went to Mountain View, the district's oldest and most diverse high school (almost 50% minority students) located right in downtown. Then there was Los Altos High, home to mostly wealthy, White students from Los Altos. Finally, Awalt High, located in South Mountain View, with students from the more wealthy part of Mountain View and southern Los Altos.

In 1982, Mountain View High was closed as a cost cutting measure and a way to conform to state mandated racial integration of the district. Each school in a district needs to reflect the district-wide racial composition....this is a problem since Los Altos is a predominantly White and much of Mountain View is around 50% minorities, and we're lumped in the same district together.

Los Altos High and Awalt were integrated by splitting Mountain View's student body amongst the two schools. To help Mountain View cope with the loss of its school, Los Altos lost its old mascot, the Knight, and got Mountain View's colors and mascot, the Eagle. Awalt lost its name and became Mountain View High School, but kept its old colors and mascot, the Spartan. A line goes right down the middle of Mtn. View and Los Altos now, dividing the two cities in half so that each high school is about 50/50 from each city.

So, even though I live in the heart of MV, I would have went to Los Altos. Bleh.

For my parents and other relatives, this is all a very big deal. You have to remember that they came from an era when high school pride and pageantry was a much bigger deal then it is now. And...my dad was a football player and my Mom was in the school's drill team. The racial and class divisions between Mtn. View and Los Altos added fuel to the rivalry. Think of Mountain View as Cal, and Los Altos as Stanford, and you get the picture. They did NOT like Los Altos, and the feeling was mutual. The annual football game between the two schools,was thus, THE event of the year, and held at Foothill College at night.

So, for my parents and their fellow alumni, going to a MV v. LA game now is very confusing. The game is still at Foothill College at night, but everything else is all switched around. Do they root for their former arch-rival Los Altos, since it has their school's colors and mascot and represents our half of MV? Or do they root for their school's namesake, even though it has their other old rival's colors and mascot? Kinda hard to root for either school, since half of each student body is from Los Altos, and the rivarly between the two cities still kinda exists. They found some peace of mind by thinking how ticked off former LAHS Knights must be that Mtn. View kids have now invaded their alma mater.

All in all....the whole situation is absurd. Mountain View residents cheering for Los Altos High, Los Altos residents cheering for Mountain View High, alumni cheering for their old rival's mascots, and half of each crowd cheering against their own hometowns. So, unsure where to sit, we stood in the end zone and just watched the two crowds scream at each other from across the field. A Los Altos High School girl to her friend while walking by us: "I HATE Mountain View (referring to the high school)...but wait...what am I saying...I live there!"

While watching the game, we talked about how maybe the schools should be renamed...but decided that would just result in even more confusion for a new generation. Or, the district should be split by city boundaries so Mountain View students wouldn't need to be used to integrate Los Altos' high school, and each city could have a school of its own again. Fat chance that will ever happen.

But, I guess that in the end, everything worked out tonight. My parents' school's name, mascot, and colors did not loose.

...in other words...the game was a tie.

PPiplani: I agree.
Auto response from Nap98: Since most people in NorCal and the Bay Area did not support the recall, I say we split from SoCal and let them have their Governor Arnold all to themselves.

SarahElizabeth44: im with you nick
Auto response from Nap98: Since most people in NorCal and the Bay Area did not support the recall, I say we split from SoCal and let them have their Governor Arnold all to themselves.

Auto responce from Wahine50: "Nap98: Since most people in NorCal and the Bay Area did not support the recall, I say we split from SoCal and let them have their Governor Arnold all to themselves."

lbthekiller: hey hey...NORCAL is the one that sucks, not beloved socal
Auto response from Nap98: Since most people in NorCal and the Bay Area did not support the recall, I say we split from SoCal and let them have their Governor Arnold all to themselves.
lbthekiller: boo to you for that
lbthekiller: you think youre too good
lbthekiller: you are just blinded by the fact that NORCAL SUCKS

Looks like your out-voted Lesley.

"If it were up to the Bay Area, then Gray Davis would remain in the governor's mansion, early election returns showed.

The recall was losing by wide margins in eight of nine Bay Area counties. Local voters also favored Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante over Arnold Schwarzenegger as the best person to succeed Davis."

Bay Area doesn't follow the state trend / Recall of governor losing by wide margin as 8 of 9 counties vote to keep Davis
-San Francisco Chronicle


NorCal pride! Free NorCal from Conan the Barbarian.

Kimmybob1313: Californians have gone Mad

SarahElizabeth44: I hate arnold

Avengelyne01: save me

Wahine50: California has been terminated

Dotts123: i have never been so disgusted! eewww! I can never again feel proud to be a resident of california. Arnold???? REALLY PEOPLE???????? it is official then- you all are crazy!!! eewwww!

Nap98: movin to New Mexico

...Some away messages as word about the results of the recall sunk in.

Sadly folks, it looks like it'll be Governor Schwarzenegger signing our college diplomas.

But hey, Prop 54 didn't pass. Woohoo!

Also, who else hates that the news calls the election with only 4% of precincts reporting?!

Bleh.

Nap98: sarah, i hate to break it to you, but my architecture friends beat you to getting me drunk
SarahElizabeth44: NOOOO
Nap98: haha
SarahElizabeth44: damn it to hell
Nap98: yeah
SarahElizabeth44: well shit
Nap98: not very drunk though
Nap98: maybe your new goal is to get me smashed
SarahElizabeth44: ah ha!
SarahElizabeth44: i have a chance
Nap98: lol
SarahElizabeth44: that was always my goal

~

SarahElizabeth44: i cant understand wanting to stay in the same place all the time
Nap98: yeah i know
Nap98: even I get tired of mtn. view
Nap98: and thats sayin something
SarahElizabeth44: theres a million things i want to see and davis isnt cutting it
SarahElizabeth44: whoa
SarahElizabeth44: back up the train
Nap98: haha
SarahElizabeth44: i think theres a pig flying outside my window

...it's fun to catch up with old friends. And it's weird to think of Sarah as an old friend now. But hey, time flies by doesn't it?

On a similar note, Lauren P's birthday party was fun tonight. It was great to catch up with Hanah and meet her bf Andrew. Congrats to them on their one month, so glad they could both make it tonight.

...and to connect these two topics further, before I forget, Hanah if you're reading this, Sarah wanted me to tell you she says "hi and that she misses you."

Here's to rebuilding old bridges.

Go to Point Reyes with Lauren and Leo, or the Cal homecoming game? That was the decision of the day. And a tough one for me. But I made the right one, cause the trip to Pt. Reyes was awesome, and Cal ended up loosing.

While Leo and Lauren did a site analysis for their architecture project, I walked down 300 steps to the Point Reyes lighthouse. While goin down the really steep steps, I actually walked out of the fog that was rolling in and on to the edge huge cliff jutting out to the Pacific. There, you feel like your at the end of the world, must have been quite an expirience to live in that lighthouse when it was built in the 1870s. I talked to an older lady visiting from Norway as we made the long climb up to the top of the cliff. She was stunned that we had seals in the Pacific ocean. I like how people are so friendly out on the trails.

After that I convinced Leo and Lauren to go to the Tule Elk Reserve on the other side of the park because I read a whiteboard at the visitor center that said it was "rutting" season for the elk. (Which I guess is when the males fight each other with their antlers.) The prospect of elk locking horns was enough to get Leo and lauren to want to go. We took the 45 minute drive to get to that side of the park, and as soon as we entered the reserve we saw elk. No rutting, but that didn't matter, elk are cool.

At the reserve, we took a long run down to a large beach, there were like two other people there. It is one of the most stunning beaches I've ever been too. Huge rocky crags jutting out into the sea, a wide strech of sand, grayish blue water, surrounded by tall orange cliffs. Awesome. We climbed around the rocks for a while, relaxed, ran around, and just had a great time.

We left the beach after the sun had set, and by the time we got to the car it was dark and the fog had rolled in. As we were driving back to civilization, it was like we were on a safarri, we saw silouttes of lots of deer, owls flying along side the car, a rabbitt cross the street, and lots and lots of cows.

All in all, it was a great escape from Berkeley, I am so glad I went. Yeah.

I voted today!

...and I have the feeling I'm bound to be disappointed come next Wednesday.

grrr.

I'll summarize the amazing expirience of seeing Cal beat U$C as freakin awesome. Wow.

Celebrating my dad's birthday by eating Zachary's Pizza for dinner and Fenton's for lunch the next day....Once again, Wow. Yum.

Today is the first day of October. I've survived September as well as the first flurry of midterms. Now things will slow down a little, but the work will not stop. Three research projects, yeesh. We'll see how that goes.

Halloween's coming up and my family's haunted house tradition may end this year since Saint Francis' homecoming game is on Halloween night, meaning my brother and his friends won't be available to help out. Which means a Halloween in Berkeley?...ehhh. I do not take the death of a tradition lightly.

I have not been home in three weeks. Quite a strech for me. And it looks like I won't be home next weekend because it's Cal's homecoming, and the next weekend because I need to go to an Astronomy symposium for my Astro class, or the next weekend because we're planning on going to UCLA.

Wow. Huh.... That just isn't going to work. I'll get back to Mtn. View sooner. Or else my grandma will start calling and giving me guilt trips.

My brother likes Cal. A lot. Living in the city next to Stanford and going to private school chalk-full of young White republicans, it's not that popular of a place. He's constantly defending the school from people who hate it because someone like Michael Savage told them to.

After telling my brother that Cal only had 'waco' liberal professors and wretched politics...I gave in and decided to have a word with one of his friends.

Nap98: so your dissing my school?
Calhector: who is this?
Nap98: afraid you cant get in?
Nap98: or that you might get brainwashed?
Calhector: lol. no, im pretty sure im not gettin in
Calhector: brain wash does seem to fit berkely rather well
Calhector: good word choice
Nap98: yeah, being taught to think for yourself is sure being brain washed
Calhector: hardly
Nap98: cal is more liberal than stanford for sure, but its not extreme
Nap98: you gets lots of different viewpoints.
Calhector: yeah, cause some of the students are tuff enough to ignore the waco liberal faculty
Nap98: oh have you been to some lectures?
Calhector: no.
Nap98: so dont talk smack
Nap98: sure explains why Channel 2 uses my polysci prof as there political consultant
Calhector: Most of the protesters have never left california. doesnt stop them from complaing bout afganistan and iraq
Nap98: protesters and the faculty are different people
Nap98: and how do you know where theyre from?
Nap98: lots of the speakers ive heard walking by protests are international students
Nap98: i think theyve been outside of the state
Nap98: might have...a broader perspective youd think?
Nap98: you are only regurgitating what youve heard on the radio. think for yourself.
Nap98: no one cares what conclusions you come to, but dont write something or someone off until youve studied it yourself.
Previous message was not received by Calhector because of error: User Calhector is not available.

Hater.

My dad loves the ocean. He can just sit next to the shore and watch the waves crash in for hours. It seems to both calm and excite him at the same time. On every family trip to Monterey or Half Moon Bay, he parks the car next to the shoreline and goes out there and sits on a rocky bluff meditating on the waves. He'll try to get the rest of us out of the car, but my mom, brother, and I will usually say no, content with the view from our seats.

He has told me that it brings back old memories of being at the beach with his own dad; clamming and smelt fishing with extended family and other Portuguese-American people. It is also a timeless reminder of something larger than our problems and our lives, something that’s constant and ever changing at the same time. Looking out into the ocean, life seems to make a little more sense.

The sea calls to him…and with a lighter tug, it calls to me too. We both could not fathom living anywhere too far from the ocean. His grandparents were from small volcanic islands out in the Atlantic, the Azores and Madiera. Some left the Azores for Hawaii, and all eventually settled in California…but never did they go too far from the sea. They kept their heritage with them; they adapted it to new places and times, but never forgot where they came from. American Azoreans, I’ve heard, have very sad music that’s filled with a longing for the place they once called home.

My dad and I talked about this long before I read the passage from La Maravilla that is typed in the previous entry, that so accurately described the way we felt. That’s why to both of us being categorized as “White” feels awkward and untrue. “White” feels empty. It means nothing. It was created as term to distance one class from the other on the basis of skin tone. Portuguese means something; it’s a culture and heritage that is real. Mexican means something; it’s an ancient word that was here before the Spaniards ever were.

~~~~

I am a Perry and a Perriera. I am also a Sias. I have the blood of the Morenos,’ the Lardizabals,’ and Goies’ running through me. I am a mix of a mixture. You could say I’m half & half but when you dissect those halves you find more underneath. I look at the photos of my very dark “Mexican” grandpa’s grandparents and I see a white man with a red moustache and a brown woman with the physical features of one who has always lived here. My skin color and facial features are the product of Portuguese and Flemish blood from the Azores, light-skinned Spaniards, dark skinned Apache, and some other unknown indios, maybe Aztecs, from Mexico. Who knows what else? I am all those things and none of them at the same time.

What I know is that I am from here, a native son of California. But part of me came here from halfway across the world. Another part only recently came from the copper mines of New Mexico. And although it’s likely neither part wanted to leave the place they came from, I cannot look down upon those who are here from somewhere else…if they are here for the right reasons.

But nevertheless, some percentage of me has been here in the Americas for thousands of years. Maybe it is that part of me that grounds me… that makes me care so much for the place I was born. No matter where life takes me, although I doubt I'll ever let it take me too far, my heart will always be here.

~~~

On a trip to San Francisco earlier this summer...I found myself pulling a "dad." I forced my cousins and brother to park at the shore of the Golden Gate in the Presidio so I could take some pictures from the wharf. I didn't actually take any photos. I just went out to the shoreline and then on to the fishing pier, taking in the wind, the waves, and the fog rolling in from under that great bridge while my cousins and brother waited patiently near the car.

~~~
See them depart
the young and the old
in search of fortune
in other parts
in other breezes
among other peoples
the young and the old

See them depart
with moistened eyes
and saddened heart
pack on the back
hope in the hilt
and golden dreams
see them depart
with moistened eyes

They'll return some day
rich or not
telling stories
of far off lands
where sweat
was made bread
They'll return some day
Or not

(An Azorean Song by Manuel Freire)

(Translation by Adiaspora.com)


(a very long post, for the end of the first year of this blog)

“Abuelo,” the boy interrupted, “is it true I am an American? Vernetta says I’m a Mexican but also an American.”

“Yes, you are American, but not in the gringo sense.”

“How do you become Mexican or American?”

This opened the old man’s eyes and the chair froze suddenly in midrock.

“You are Spanish and Yaqui, you are a mestizo from Aztlan, this land, right here where the Nahua people began.” He stamped his foot into the packed earth.

“This is what a Mexican is. But you were born here in America, tambien, and that’s what a Chicano is. You don’t become nothing. It’s only the gringos that become! They are Xipe,” he said, referring to the ancient god of new growth beneath the old, the god the Aztecs distorted into the God of the Flayed Skin. It was Manueal’s word for those people on earth who do not know where they belong.

“They become other religions like choosing a hat and become other names that have no connection to places they live. They become the things they own or the cars they drive. They say that they are one-third this and one-quarter that and their ancestors came from such and such, but they don’t know nothing about them. They have no stories. They have no tribe. Their camp fire is a goddamn television. You” – he pointed at the boy now – “you know where your blood has been for the last ten thousand years, mijo. There are words and songs, palabras y canciones, that tell you and explain to you.

“You do not become American, no, no. Shit, no. American becomes you, mijo.”

He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply through his nose, then pointed over his shoulder.

“Do you smell that, mijo? The tortillas and the frijoles and the chorizo? No matter where you go, to places I know I will never see, when you walk past a doorway or a window and one of those smells hits you, you will come back here to this place and this time. Always. And that is just smell. There are things far deeper than smell.”

“Are you American, Abuelo?”

“No. I am not American. I am not Mexican. In fact, I think I am no longer Yaqui. Shit, I can’t tell you nothin’ for real. I’m nowhere now.”

He leaned back, the anger in his leather face subsiding, and he exhaled slowly, a small hitch near the end of it caused by an old drawn-out affair with Chesterfield nonfilters. Like a ghost, his pain had come into the room. Josephina by the stove felt it and stopped her moving. She stood silently looking for an insect or a snake, on her face a mixture of distress and resignation.

“You see, boy, these people up here around us are so mixed up now that no one belongs, even though this is their country, our country. Do you see?”

“Leave him alone, Manuel,” Josephina said in a hissing voice.

“You can be in the wrong place,” he continued in spite of her warning.

“Your whole life, all of it, you can be in the wrong place and not know it because you’ve lost the power to know where is right. It’s a hard thing to say. I can’t explain.”

He sat back again, composing himself and considering, then nodding to himself. He leaned forward and spoke thoughtfully.

“Someone is in a bus that sways a little on its way up and down the street, and that person is pleased and gets comfort by the swaying.” He moved his dark hand slowly back forth. “It is so comforting that this person takes the bus even when he has nowhere to go. He just rides and rides. Sometimes he stands up and lets the bus roll underneath him.

“Entiendes, hijo? That person, if he had the power, would know that his ancestors were sailors, marineros, and that the sea is calling to him. The sea is trying its best. It’s not just ruts in the road or a bad shock absorber, the sea is calling. The sway of the boat is a small thread of blood, la sangre, that comes up and ties him even when the flesh has fallen away from his dead fathers.

“It’s una brujula en la sangre, a compass in the blood, and it’s a dim command in the blood. And in decades and generations the power to hear it is bargained away in small decisions and small concessions. So he leaves the bus on the street corner and sits at a desk and suffers from something he will never understand. The curanderos will tell him he is depressed or needs a special ceremony or a vacation or something like that, but that’s not it.

“He’ll drink from bottles and sometimes throw things and maybe hit his wife. But at night his spirit throws out a net, and in the morning it’s pulled back torn. And at night the sound of the highway makes him stay awake. It is not the loud rush of the highway.” He pointed the index fingers of both hands at the boy for emphasis. “It’s not the cars or the trucks…it’s the waves, the sound of the sea and the simple people on it. He has forsaken himself by forsaking the sea.”




From: La Maravilla, by Alfredo Vea, Jr.
(I wish I could write like this)

Tonight summer ended with a bang. After years of waiting, I tasted my first Parisian burger.

The Parisian burger is famous in Mountain View gastronomical lore. Once upon a time a burger joint named Linda's served up these burgers with a secret sauce that generations of my family and other Mountain View families greatly enjoyed.

Linda's closed in 85, but you'll still find true-blue (and gray) Mountain Viewers who have spent the past two decades perfecting their own version of the Parisian. One of those people, lucky me, is my uncle.

Word that the Parisian burger was being served at my Uncle Fred and Auntie Rosemary's Labor Day BBQ was enough to bring almost my entire extended family together within a days notice....quite a feat. (As well as some of my uncle and aunts friends from high school who also fondly remembered Linda's.)

The burgers were indeed quite good, as were the fried tater-tots (also a Linda's staple), chili beans, fresh cookies from my Auntie Becky, and watermelon. The company was even better. I'd say there were about 40 or so people there, with at least half being my family. We chilled until sunset, my cousins and I caught up on each others lives, the older generation talked about days gone by. The burgers brought out old memories and stories from those who were alive to eat the originals. Everyone by the end of the night was full and happy. And that was a great way to end a good weekend.

Hello September.

I don't care very much for this month. It's not a bad month...but there just isn't much to it except school starting. And who likes that?I think we should get rid of September and add 10 days to October, November, and December. With all those holidays we could use the extra time and gaps between them.

The last week of summer and the first week of school have come and gone since I last wrote. Lot's a good memories and little trips filled those last days of vacation. A visit from my cousin's Mikey and Vanessa resulted in a random trip to San Francisco. We made Chris drive....only a week after getting his liscense (and a few days after knocking down a part of the neighbor's fence while backing up) He went up and down those hills, including Lombard Street, pretty well. Went to the city again to visit the Asian Art Museum with some of my studio friends. Lot's and lot's of Budhas. And...spent one last evening with my high school friends before going back to Berkeley.

The first week of school has been pretty good. ...except that I signed up for 23 units. Dropping Econ...so down to 19. But that's still a heavy load. I'd like to drop more, but the problem is all my classes seem really interesting and am worried that with the state budget, they might not be offered again. Still gotta figure that out.

Went home after the football game on Saturday (go Bears!). Ended up going to Great America (for free!) with Lesley, Erik, and Dan yesterday. Had a fun time. Tonight there will be a family barbeque over in Roquero-ville (The three-house property where about 11 members of the Roquero branch of my family live) One last hurrah before summer really ends and I start hitting the books.

Summer is quickly coming to a close, and just when things are starting to get good. For almost every day of the past week, I've spent the evening at Martin's house hangin out with various combinations of my high school friends. While Martin's knee surgery has kept us from going anywhere, we've had a great time just hangin out....like 'old' times. It's felt really good to be able to spend my evenings with such good company, making new memories instead of thinking about old ones.

I'm really glad summer is ending this way. If it had ended two weeks ago, it would have probably left me bitter and disappointed. But I feel like the cup of summer funness has quickly filled up the past week or so. I'm really happy and relieved that the ties to my oldest friends have been strengthened before another college year of being away from each other.

Today was also my last day working at the Stanford Theatre, as the pic above signifies. It seems like only yesterday that I was being trained to work there. What a big change for me this job has been. I did things I NEVER wanted or thought I would do, like cashier...but I did them anyway and overcame my fears. The job had its down sides, but they were FAR outweighed by the upsides. (I know my family certainly enjoyed the free passes & food) It was a good summer job and I met some nice people through the process.

Sadly, except for my arch buddy Phyllis, none of my friends made it to the theatre. But because I'm so nice, here's a picture I took tonight to give you an idea on what you missed (for free!) But hey, you might have another opportunity come next summer of maybe winter break...or I'll take anyone that wants to go (hint hint).

This is the theatre auditorium from the top of the second floor balcony:


This is the lobby from the balcony lounge, the snack counter I worked at is on the left


...and this is the auditorium from the stage!


....I'll miss workin in such a cool old place. But anyways....here's to the last week of summer!

A good mini-vacation to San Francisco over the past two days. Visited familiar and new places with both friends and family on two beautiful (fogless!) summer days in the city. And what a city it is. At times, it feels worlds away from the rest of the Bay Area.

There's just so much to do and see there...and a lot of it is free. First stop was Mission Dolores/San Francisco. Right there in the appropriately named Mission District. I've been to many missions with my family, San Juan Buatista, San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Juan Capistrano, San Luis Obispo, San Carlos/Carmel, Santa Clara, San Jose, San Miguel....and so on....but we have never gone to Mission Dolores. It's really neat, apparently the oldest intact mission c. 1791, (the older one's have been rebuilt) with a beautiful old cemetery next door.

After the mission we decided to drive through the Haight-Ashbury, which was bustling with neo-yuppie-hippies and tourists. Cooler than I thought it would be. Then we headed to Golden Gate Park, and wandered into a 1:00 concert by the Golden Gate Park Band in the parks' big promenade. We just relaxed for about an hour in the sun, eating popcorn, and listening to some good live music. Then we strolled over to the Botanical Gardens, which were a pretty fantastic site to see. Hard to believe we were in the middle of the city.

Then I met up with my high school friends for lunch at the Rain Forest Cafe, and spent the early evening in Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, and Ghiradelli Square with them. Family met up with me right after, and before we went back to our hotel, we stopped at Crissy Field where I took some twilight shots of the Golden Gate. That night we played a mean game of Scrabble....I won. Ha.

After a good brunch at the hotel, I explored the Financial District by foot with my dad. Walked to the c. 1909 Palace Hotel and saw it's pretty amazing interior courtyard atrium. Then we headed down Market to the newly restored and reopened Ferry Building at the Bay. I gotta say, it's now one of my favorite buildings in the Bay Area. Before the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate, it was our Grand Central Station, and it looks like its well on its way to once again being a must-see for visitors and locals alike.

Before leaving the city, we took a drive up to Twin Peaks to take in the fog-free view of the entire city. We then headed down the Peninsula and spent the rest of the day at the San Mateo County Fair. A nice throwback after witnessing the Santa Clara County Fair earlier this month, which has been reduced to a shell of its former hokey-yet-loveable-in a homey & nostalgic way-self. Sheep, pigs, cows, petting zoos, (and the smell that goes along with all those things).....weird gizmos to buy, bad food that tastes great, crazy collections of locals, displays of local goods, ranging from pies, to photos, to bonsai plants, and a performance by a hypnotist and an actress/singer from the Disney Channel.

Lot's of stuff for such a little trip huh? Felt like a week instead of two days. That's what summer's about.

Okay, so make it 10 days spent with my high school friends this summer. I would not allow myself to be stuck at home on one of my few friday nights off from the theatre. So I called Martin and ended up going to his house to see his new 2-month old puppie from the pound. Super cute lil dog she is. And Martin invited some of our other friends over. We were there till 12:30, just chillin, listening to music, watching TV, talking about stuff, and playing with the puppy.

So, my wish from last night's blog entry was filled! At least for tonight. I want to squeeze as much quality hang-out- time as I can out of what's left of the summer. Tomorrow I'll have another chance; I'll be in SF with my fam for the day, and hopefully with my friends at night. So, this weekend is shaping up to be pretty good.

Hi there. How are you? I'm okay. Doodeedoo. No I'm not drunk. I don't do that....not yet at least. I'm just in a funny post-work-wind-down mood.

So I had plans made with a friend and then canceled tonight. That's okay though, it was for a good reason. And...I think I'm getting used to it. I've had plans with friends canceled this summer as much the number of times I've hung out with friends. Well maybe not...but close, since I've only spent time with my high school friends 9 days out of the whole summer.

Why? Mostly my job I think. I work during prime hang-out-time. But also because my high school friends seem to be not doing much, and if they are doing something, they're too tired to still hang out by the time I get off work. Once upon a time, we'd hang out into the early hours of the morning...1am...2am...even 3am. I thought I'd be doing more of that as I entered my college years, not less. I guess I should just get used to it and stop complaining. But it's hard to give up on something that I miss so much.

But anyways, my co-workers invited me to dinner after work, which was cool. It felt good to be just hangin and talkin with people late on a warm summer night in a busy Downtown Palo Alto in a restaurant filled with lots of other people my age doing the same. Only wish I had more time to do that with my friends.

Well, it was the chloramine that killed the fish. Chlorine evaporates by letting the water sit. Chloramine does not. How much smarter do you feel now? Quite the learning expirience.

Three new fish are now swimming in the tank. They seem happy now, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they survive the "cycling" of the tank over the next month.

Anyways...I've ticked off three of the five things I wrote I wanted to do this year in the East Bay. I briefly visited 4th Street in Berkeley. Cool downtownish district you would never know was there. Hopefully I'll get a chance to explore it later this year. I saw a Seabiscuit at the Grand Lake Theatre in Oakland with my parents. Good movie, and a really cool theatre with an ornate main auditorium. Much bigger than the Stanford, but it's a first-run movie house, so it isn't the museum-like time warp that the Stanford is....but almost. I'll be going back. After that we drove by Fenton's Creamery in Oakland, but have yet to try it. Looks like a fun place. Any place that's been open since 1894 is a must do on my book!

So the list still stands, even though I've done three things (including the slide at Cordonices). Once was not enough.

Reject #1, Reject #2, and Reject #3 have died.

A week of research has proved unsuccessfull. Those three Zebra fish died so quick, I never had time to name them properly.

I don't know what happened. I'm hoping the culprit was something simple, like cholorine in the water. I didn't treat the water, I read somewhere that letting it sit for 24 hours would do the trick. Guess not. It also could have been that the temperature was set way too high when I brought the fish home, so they had to wait longer then they should have in their bag for it to cool. Other culprits, like Ph, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, etc....were all fine....I think.

But whatever it was, the depressing evidence of my failure is there, floating belly up in my new aquarium as I write this. I was going to stay overnight at the house for the first time, to moniter the fishs' health, but since all three have gone to fishy heaven, there was no need to stay. Besides, I didn't want to wake up in the middle of the night to find ghost fish nipping at my feet. Not only have I killed three fish, their ghosts might haunt my house. Ugh.

Six dollars down the toilet.

By tomorrow that will be a literal statement.

Regardless, a fun night in Berkeley with Leo and Lauren. A great pizza from Zachary's enjoyed in the living room before it became a fish morgue. Then, while waiting for the temperature of the aquarium to go down, we walked around the corner and explored Cordonices Park at twilight. The slide there built into the hill is awesome. We all went down it twice. The swings and teeter-totter are also fun. They seriously should build playgrounds for college students. You don't need to be under 13 to enjoy sliding down a hill on a piece of cardboard. The poor-man's rolllercoaster!

Other highlights? Seeing a doe and a fawn in the house's backyard. A quick visit from Jen to see my house. Seeing the fog roll in from the bay and into the hills. Cookies for dessert. My first Evans Hall rant of the year (to Ryan's subleaser Madri...it was a good one). And a midnight trip to Wurster to see the courtyard construction site. (To the dismay of the concrete-loving-Wurster-Worshipers, Leo and Lauren, the courtyard will have bricks, lawn, and oak trees. Ha! )

As for the fish....back to Berkeley tomorrow to have the water tested and flush the Rejects, may the rest in peace.

Before I forget, these are some things I want to do this year in the East Bay:

-See a movie at the Grand Lake Theatre in Oakland
-Explore Berkeley's 4th Street District
-Go down the slide at Cordonices Park
-Take a tour of the Paramount Theatre in Oakland
-Get Ice Cream at the famous Fenton's Creamery in Oakland
http://www.fentonscreamery.com/

Stupid Goldfish.

I have a goldfish problem. My aunt made me play a game at the Obon festival where you win a goldfish as a prize. She said we were going to give it to her grandkids, but then decided to let me keep it.

And that's how I got Obon, the goldfish.

I thought..all right, no problem. I'll just put him in Senor Cadburry el Pescado de Alviso's (may he rest in peace) bowl instead of getting another fighting fish.

So I plopped Obon in there, only to immediately find him/her gasping at the water surface.

Why was Obon doing this? Goldfish go in bowls right? Right?!

Apparently not. When all else fails turn to Google for answers. I've been browsing dozens of goldfish keeping pages. Apparently these seemingly easy to care for pets are quite a handful. First thing I learned, Goldfish will not survive in Goldfish bowls, not enough surface area to get the right amount of Oxygen...hence gasping Obon (and the untimely passing of Lauren's fish...Norbert).

So, I decided...I'll get a tank! A 10 gallon tank like we had when I was a kid! It will be so cool, I'll put it up at the Berkeley house, plop Obon in there, and get some cool tropical fish too!

Wrong again. After buying the tank I learn that, it's a big NO-NO to put Goldfish in a Tropical Fish aquarium. Goldfish are coldwater fish and can pretty much only live with goldfish. They eat different food, need different water temperatures, and produce a slimy coating which can damage the tropical fish.

So...maybe I'll just get goldfish I think. Four or five different looking goldfish would still be...kinda...cool.

Wrong again. You see....goldfish get big. An adult "common" goldfish (which is the breed I discovered Obon is) usually grow to about 10 inches. And the general rule is 1 inch of fish to 1 gallon of water. Plus, goldfish were bred to have no stomachs. Food goes in and out....making them one of the dirtiest types of fish to keep. One fish alone will take all the resources of a normal filtration system (another reason the bowl is a no-no)

Which means.....if I keep this damn fish, it'll be the only fish. One stinkin' goldfish in a 10 gallon tank....instead of, say, an angel fish, a catfish, and a three or four neon tetras.

Now if I was a less sensitive person, I could just let this goldfish languish in the bowl until it dies or flush it. But I can't.

Anyone want a goldfish? They're easy to care for pets....

I find myself looking forward to starting school. Not that summer is going bad, not at all. I'm having a great time and I still enjoy my job. But I miss seeing my friends, I miss...learning stuff, I even miss Wurster Hall. Really.

Jen's witty observation tonight at BJ's restaurant:

"Mini Sucker is dating Freedom Swallows!"

Who would have thought that Matt's streetball name and Kim's porno name would go so...ah...'well'...together.

(See Jen, there you are. Immortalized in my blog. Congrats!)

So..back to Jamie's Mountain of Suckiness. Have you noticed that popular music is starting to reflect the current going ons in the world? I like it, cause it makes me feel like I'm not alone with the feelings I have about current events. Plus, I like music that is unique to an era, that represents the times we are living in. So, I humbly submit to you a portion of the lyrics from the Black Eyed Peas' (and...ahh..Justin Timberlake's..shhhh) current hit, "Where is the Love."

I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder
As I’m gettin’ older, y’all, people gets colder
Most of us only care about money makin’
Selfishness got us followin’ our own direction
Wrong information always shown by the media
Negative images is the main criteria
Infecting the young minds faster than bacteria
Kids act like what they see in the cinema
Yo’, whatever happened to the values of humanity?
Whatever happened to the fairness in equality?
Instead in spreading love we spreading animosity
Lack of understanding, leading lives away from unity
That’s the reason why sometimes I’m feelin’ under
That’s the reason why sometimes I’m feelin’ down
There’s no wonder why sometimes I’m feelin’ under
Gotta keep my faith alive til love is found

People killin’, people dyin’
Children hurt and you hear them cryin’
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send us some guidance from above
‘Cause people got me, got me questionin’
Where is the love

First my cell phone broke. Went into the pool with it in my pocket

Then my car broke down from overheating..it's in the shop till friday and will cost $500 to fix.

And now my laptop's battery is dead. Cost to replace it? $149

Bad things come in three's right? Cause this is enough.

TheKatsMeoW137: I wish I had a car over the summer, I would've just driven down by now,
TheKatsMeoW137: even if you weren't free, I'd just frolic in the lovely land that is MV by myself.
Nap98: who wouldn't?
Nap98: no one can resist when MV beckons
TheKatsMeoW137: I know! I'm sure that the only thing keeping the entire earth's population from doing that right now is the immense feeling that true perfection may just be too much for them.
Nap98: yes...yes. that must be it.
TheKatsMeoW137: I'm glad we've figured this out, Nick. hehe
Nap98: it's always perplexed me

Taken out of context, but wise words from Jamie:

"If you think all the bad stuff going on in the world sucks, why not do something simple that will put even a little tiny dent in the Mountain of Suckiness!"

Conquer the Mountain of Suckiness! This could be our generation's motto.

At my uncle's wedding the photographer had my grandparents, and all my aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mom's side come together for our first ever family portrait. In that picture, there are:

14 Mexican-Americans
1 Filipino/Chinese-American
1 Filipino-American
1 Japanese-American
1 Portuguese-American
1 Anglo-American
2 Filipino/Mexican-Americans
2 Portuguese/Mexican-Americans
and 4 Filipino/Chinese/Mexican-Americans

Lots of hyphens and slashes huh? But when you put us all together, in one big family photo, it’s clear that we are all Americans. We are a mix of cultures and backgrounds that you would be hard pressed to find any where else in this world.

There’s lots of turmoil in this country and in the world right now. Divisions seem to have deepened over race, culture, religion, and class. And over the past few years it has become increasingly clear that this country is far from perfect. When someone says, "This is the greatest country in the World!," I can't help but think of the others that have been stepped on to get to that position. I will not allow myself to be ignorant and filled with blind patriotism.

But when I look at that family photo, I can’t help but be hopeful and proud to call this place my home. We are a testament to the ability of people to put aside their differences and come together.

And that's what I’d like to think being an ‘American’ is all about.

Happy Fourth of July.

After two years of going to Berkeley, today was the first day I drove there. Woohoo! Go me.

Took my cousin Tiffany up there to show her around the new house and neighborhood. Really nice weather today. We explored the park around the corner and discovered this awesome slide built into the hill slope that is pretty big. Can't wait to try it out one day. Also....we found a tunnel that goes under Euclid Avenue connecting the Rose Garden/Tennis Courts to the Park. Pretty sweet. My neighborhood up there is pretty darn cool. (Let's see if I'll still think that after walking to and from campus come the end of August)

Work was kinda hectic tonight, but cool. My co-workers make it fun. Work again tomorrow night, but hopefully I can fit in some quality time with my Tio and Tia who are visiting from New Mexico. It's always great when they are here.

So yeah....this blog entry isn't very witty, deep, funny or a good story....just some thoughts I want to remember. So that's all. Move along.

When you have 10 hungry cousins waiting for their table to be called to get food at a wedding...

Fighting desperately over tortilla chip crumbs,

And two of them abandon the rest to cut in line and get food,

It's then you know that Salsa is thicker than Blood.

So a nice day off today. Lunch with Jen at San Jose city hall, lunch meeting with some MVPA people at the county building next door, dinner with Martin and Matt and a quick trip to Downtown Palo Alto after (I can't stay away from that place).

On the way to University Avenue from the parking garage, we encountered a homeless lady pushing a shopping cart, as she walked by us she looked at Matt and suddenly yelled "Fat Chance!!" as we passed her.

It took a while to figure out why she yelled that, but then we looked at Matt's shirt and it said "ROLE MODEL" across the chest.

Ah, crazy homeless people yelling things at you, it was almost like being in Berkeley.

Summer does not officially begin until I spend an evening with my friends hangin at Martin's house. Tonight summer began.

And for another night at work, I was paid $9.50 to watch a movie....I mean..."monitor the theater." Ahhh, the perks of working at a movie theater!

Driving through Downtown Palo Alto after work, and then Downtown Mountain View on the way home from Martin's, you could tell it was summer. Lots of people out late, enjoying the not-so-warm night air, walking around, talking, having fun. The moon was so full and bright tonight, you could see the Santa Cruz Mountains at midnight. Kinda cool for Friday the 13th. I feel like I should be tromping around some supposedly haunted house or the former graveyard behind City Hall with Matt and Martin asking ghosts if they feel like chatting. I need a few more ghost stories to tell the folks up at Berkeley in case of another blackout.

Oh well, maybe some other night, summer has only just started.

To those in the know:

Tonight on my way home from work I was surfing the radio waves and came across a surprise on the Bay Area's alternative rock station, 105.3.

It's a catchy little Danish pop song that goes something like this:

"Everybody, move your feet and get united....woah, wah, ohhh"

And we never thought it'd be on American radio. Maybe my cuz Mikey made a special request.

"Can't stop...can't stop the beat....won't stop...won't stop my feet"

Oh boy.

All right, so summer! Woohoo! I've done a lot of fun stuff already with my family and with the friends that are here. Explored my Portuguese heritage with Chris on Sunday...we went to the Portuguese Holy Ghost Parade in Downtown MV, to the Portuguese mass (which was really nice), and even tried to fit in at the Portuguese festa. A whole different world that my dad's side was REALLY involved in until my grandpa passed away, and that Chris and I know hardly anything about. Hope to get a little more in touch with that this summer.

Other stuff...celebrated Matt's 20th birthday....saw Finding Nemo with Matt, Kim, and Ili (GREAT movie!)....got the keys and moved some stuff into our new house in Berkeley. Went to Half Moon Bay with my dad and Chris for clam chowder. Had a nice lunch with my grandparents yesterday. And on Memorial Day had a fun impromptu extended family barbecue. But I guess the most important thing (at least according to my mom...who's been hounding me on this topic all year...) I got a summer job!

Today was my first day working at the Stanford Theatre. I know...I know....STANFURD theater...boo hiss etc. But hey...it's a cool place. If you've never heard me talk about it...the Stanford Theatre is a completely restored movie 'palace' from the 1920s in Downtown Palo Alto. It's owned by multimillionaire David Packard (son of the P in HP). They only show classic movies from before the 1960s. The place is like a time-warp, and a lot of people go there for a fun, classy, (and relatively inexpensive) night out.

My coworkers are really friendly and fun to work with. This in a way, is my first REAL job...or at least my first real job in the service-sector. My internship with the city was a very cushy job, mostly research and learning about the field of city planning. Stuff I am comfortable doing.

I was kinda nervous starting today, I had NO idea how well I would do doing things like cashiering, and working in costumer service. Research on a historic building? No problem. Updating a city's zoning map? I can do it. Meeting with city council members? Sure thing. Adding the cost of a box of Milkduds, a large Popcorn, and a medium and small Cherry Coke in my head while getting the order at the same time? Yikes.

But everyone told me..."don't worry about it!"..."cash registers are easy to use." But get this....NO cash register....NO calculator....just me, behind the counter in the lobby, counting in my head, pouring drinks, getting popcorn...by myself for the first 10 minutes are so right at opening. My worst nightmare! Hehe, not really...it was scary and tough, but I got through it. The people are really friendly and patient...which is one reason I thought it would be good to work there. My manager and then the other worker came to my rescue later on, and things ran smoothly after that.

They told me I'd get used to adding up the prices in a few weeks. But come this Friday...I'm brining my own calculator. :-)

Wait....

How'd that happen? ....I'm an upper classman now? Halfway through college. Halfway to some unknown post-Berkeley future. High school was two years ago already. Two years! Have I changed? Of course. How can't you?

Berkeley. Berkeley rocks. I love it here, and seeing people walking around in their caps and gowns sorta scares me, while it makes other people jealous. I hear a lot of unsatisfied grumbling, and some of "I can't WAIT to get out of here!" But that's not me. Maybe that'll change in two years. Maybe I'll get cynical and tired of being here, but I hope not.

I get attached to places...and to the moment I'm living in. I'm not one who always is looking for the next best thing, ready to jump into the future hoping it will be better there. I'm always a little reluctant to take the next step. Nostalgia is in my soul, and it always has been.

So packing up and leaving La Loma is kinda tough. I like my room. It's a nice, big room with a pleasant view. I know I'm going to miss being this close to campus next year. But I'm looking forward to moving into our house. It's exciting to start something new. I guess what's really tough is the thought that I can never come back to this time and place. When I walk out of that door tomorrow, a year will be officially over. I'll be walking into something new ....the last half of my undergrad life. I hope its as good as the first half...I hope its even better.

ihanah: i heard a nasty rumor about you mr perry
ihanah: *gasp*
ihanah: you havent watched the matrix!!!!!!!??????????????????!!!!!!!
Nap98: nope. haven't seen it
ihanah: *smack*
Nap98: is it any good?
ihanah: thats it
ihanah: i disown you!
ihanah: ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh
ihanah: ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Nap98: val kilmer's in it right?
Nap98: or..was it vin diesel
ihanah: *cringe*
Nap98: i know its someone with a V
ihanah: youre kidding me right
ihanah: i can never ... look at you the same way...
Nap98: so...val kilmer right?

Señor Cadbury El Pescado de Alviso has gone to the giant fish bowl in the sky.

Señor was a good fish, he was blue. Blue is a nice color. I hope that wherever he is...he's still blue...because I don't see how anyone would like him if he was some other color.

Time for a new fish!

I think I will name the new fish Señor Cadbury El Pescado de Alviso el Segundo. Or maybe Bob...Bob the fish. Or maybe Finny. The options are endless.

Los Lobos rock....

Hearts of Stone
(David Hidalgo/Louie Pérez)

I travel down this lonely road
To see if I can pick me a rose
But all I find is a handful of thorns
In a place where blossoms should grow

Some hearts are made of stone
Some are cold, made of ice
Some beat all alone
Then there's those made of steel
Ones that don't even feel
Where are those hearts,
Those hearts made of gold?

I wandered down this lonely trail
Some twenty seven hours a day
But all I see are prints in the dirt
Where others tried to find their way

How far will I go,
To leave these fears behind?
Oh, let those tears go dry
Yeah, won't stop until I can find
Oh, that heart of gold

Walking down Broadway in Uptown Oakland, past dozens of empty storefronts, shuttered department stores, and buildings that have certainty seen better days, I felt uneasy. Why? Because I don't like to stand out. I never do. And here I was, one of the only non-African American people in the neighborhood. To make matters more awkward I had to constantly snap pictures with my digital camera, which yells to people passing by..."look at me, I'm a tourist!" I don't like that. It took me years to get comfortable taking pictures in Mountain View.



So as I'm walking down Broadway... I see this older African-American woman in a wheelchair ahead of me. She didn't appear to be all there mentally...but I couldn't really tell. My urge was to walk right past her and continue on my way. But as I approached her she quietly said, "Excuse me Sir, Sir...can you help me?"

I responded..."What's That?"

And she said, "Can you help me Sir? I'm thirsty. Can you get me a Coke?"

"A Coke? Umm. Where from?"

"Over there down the street, the Chinese Restaurant. A Coke in a bottle, please."

And I thought about it, looked at the restaurant, and looked at her.

Maybe she was homeless. Maybe she wasn't. Maybe she had the money to get the Coke herself, and just thought she could take advantage of this obviously suburban outsider timidly walking in her neighborhood. Maybe she had no money, and just really wanted a Coke.

So....I said that ya, I would get her a Coke. I went to that Chinese Restaurant and bought one. I walked back to the lady in the wheelchair, and gave her the Coke. She said, "Thank you Sir, God Bless You Today."

And I continued on my way.

Thanks Architecture, it's been a swell two years. We've been through a lot together, but its time for me to move on. Really, it's not you, it's me.

As of today, I am one of Berkeley's first Urban Studies Majors!

No longer homeless next year!



What a relief. We were choosen out of at least five other groups who wanted it just as bad as us. Saw the house, and got the house within the same day because the landlord liked our group and "wants us to rent there." Great job everyone at the interview, we all said the right things and gave the right impression. The house is almost ours now. I can't wait to make it our home...or second home (mtn view will always be home...hehe)

Negative stuff first: 15 minute walk from campus, we're up in the hills.

Good stuff: It's all downhilll to campus in the morning! Awesome views of the Bay, one room with a view of the Golden Gate and the city. A large back yard and a deck. Good sized rooms, Dining Room, Large Kitchen, 3 baths, possibly a Living Room depending on how many singles, a unique spiral staircase to a double on first floor, scenic quiet neighborhood with little old men that say "Good Evening" to you as you walk by, around the corner from the Rose Garden and a large park with playing fields, basketball court, tennis courts, and picnic areas.

Woohoo!

Some other notes about yesterday:

Alumni Leadership Scholarship Interiviews were fun. It's so cool to talk to potential freshman about going to Cal, and remember being in their position two years ago. Sign me up to be a tour guide! Hehe.

My preservation organization (Mtn. View Pres. Alliance) is on the road to become an official non-profit, which is really exciting. We now have a pr-bono lawyer from one of the biggest law firms in the South Bay. The entire steering committee met today in Downtown Mtn. View and the meeting went really well. Things are rolling.

Today was my Uncle Mike's birthday, what an amazing year for him.....it's so amazing and wonderful that he's here with us alive and well. How blessed we are. We brought my Grandma and him over for the entire day, took them to Berkeley, and threw a surprise party in MV at night. After calling them only this morning, almost all my mom's siblings and their families who live in Mountain View came over to celebrate my Uncle Mike, even though he's my dad's brother. A very touching evening that was enjoyed by all.

What an excellent day.

Addendum #2 to previous gripes:

Ok so today wasn't that bad. My teeth are clean now. My hair doesn't look bad once I comb it.

I went to a meeting of the Mtn. View Youth Advisory Group with my brother. I was one of the founding members of the group back in high school. So weird that the people who were freshman when I was involved are now Juniors! Things have changed a lot for MVYAG, and not for the good it seems. When I was involved we were working on bringing our own ideas to life. I got the local night club to have teen dance nights. Another member turned the city's break room into a teen study center. We all worked to hold the teens first youth festival, complete with a stage for local bands. We did a lot of stuff in two short years, and I had hoped the momentum would push the next set of YAGers forward.

But now it's turned into a group that mainly performs as a work horse for the city's Recreation department. None of the older members seem to happy about that. But it was great seeing some them again, and seeing Chris in action. He's motiviated to bring MVYAG back to its "glory days." Go Chris! We're gonna meet with some of the older members to talk about YAGs future over dinner sometime this week.

My friend Jamie called today, and let me know I'm not the only one bored at home this break. We decided to get together tonight at the Dana Street Roasting Company in Downtown Mountain View. They have Ghiradelli Hot Chocolate there! Yum. Jamie and I caught up with each other, talked about life and stuff. Good times. Good places.

So today ended up being pretty good. Break might end up being fun afterall.

addendum to the previous entry:

I needed a haircut, so I went to the barbershop today. Guess which barber I ended up with? Yes, my friends, revenge of the Vietnamese Barber. (see my blog entry from 9-20-02). And me, with my only hat, up in berkeley.

It's not that bad...really. Just somewhat uneven....but hey, hair grows back.

(Unevenly this time around.)

Oh spring break. How wonderful you are.

Not really. Gripe time.

My nose wont stop running. My dull headache wont go away. My dog wont stop howling outside at nothing. My mom called this morning, woke me from my sleep to tell me "surprise! I scheduled a dentist appointment for you today!" I'll spend my early afternoons driving my brother around since he continues to not have a license. Tomorrow I have to go to a city council meeting and speak, which is not a fun thing to do even for me. All my friends are somewhere else or still in school, so even if I had none of these other fun things to deal with....I would probably be sitting at home anyway.

Whoop-dee-do

Right around 6:00 today it started raining.

Come on fate....are we living in a freakin movie? Our bombs start falling in Baghdad and the rain starts coming down in Berkeley.

Walking across the campus with the carillion bells of the Campanile ringing some solemn song and the rain falling on my umbrella...it was one of those times when the weather outside reflects how I feel inside.

Now...just imagine. Imagine a Berkeley campus without the truly ugliest building on campus. No. NOT Wurster.

Evans.

Yes. Evans. The giant pale green monster, the portal to hell, with moaning ventilation chasms of doom, golfland fountains and courtyards. The campus' suicide machine. Window-less lecture halls. Ugly. Ugly. Ugly.

Evans, the building that's stuck smack dab in the middle of the campus' Central Axis. What's the Central Axis you may ask? Well, take a look at a map of the campus, and notice the link between all the major public spaces in the historic core. Memorial Glade, the Mining Circle, the areas in front of VLSB. That's not a coincidence. Before Moffett Library and Evans, this was one continuus space, as planned by John Galen Howard in the early 1900s.

Evans screwed it up. In a major way. You used to have a beautiful, straight on view of the Golden Gate from the Mining Circle.

And now, I've seen..the future:



Yes. No Evans. Two smaller buildings linked underground, with a courtyard that reopens the view corrider to the Golden Gate. Beautiful. And this is only part of the plan. I'm giddy over this. Giddy! The campus DOES have a plan for the future, and it's everything I ever hoped for.

You see....I just don't walk to class. I walk to class constantly thinking about planning spaces, architecture, view corriders, paving materials, landscaping. It's built in me, I can't help it. And the Berkeley campus, for someone like me....is frustrating. It has great moments, like the view from Memorial Glade towards Doe and the Campanile. But they're isolated and constantly screwed up by ugly ass paving, ugly ass buildings, and half-assed landscaping.

It's great to know the campus has a plan, a vision...that things like the New Stanley Hall and Music Library are being built according to it. You can go see the web page yourself if you're interested....

New Century Plan

But to save you the trouble...here are some of the best drawings:


Look, this is the view looking east while walking across Strawberry Creek at Sather Gate! They're calling for the creation of a little pond and glade here, as well as some new paving material. Sweet.


Remember those dinky trailors where my studio was last spring? You know, those pieces of crap that are still standing there in what could be one of the nicest courtyards in campus...well they're gone! And a nice new building could complete the courtyard.

Well...that's all I'll show for now. Yes I know......So exciting!

No? Well...you suck.

Over 70,000 people live in Mountain View, but somehow, the place still feels like a small town. The way neighborhoods are built now, it's so easy to live in a world where you just don't know the people who live around you. For so many friends I've met and neighborhoods I've visited, there's no community, no sense of place.

"Who are you're neighbors?" I might ask, and a shrug and confused glance is what I get back. Nothing to ground you to where you live. Your neighborhood is just a place your house happens to be in. Your house is just an investment for 5 or so years, than its time to upgrade and move on. Nothing is constant, place only equals property value.

For me, this weekend was a perfect example of what I value in a community, how it can add an entire other element to life that a lot of American society seems to have lost since the 1950s.

This was my Saturday, this is why home, and my slice of Mountain View, is so great:

For lunch my brother Chris and I grabbed some burgers and took them to Shoreline Park to eat. Got a nice bench right next to the sailing lake looking towards the Santa Cruz Mountains. It was an awesome day weather-wise and it was nice to be outside.

When I got home a neighbor (who lives on the street behind our property) ran up to the car to grab his kid's tennis ball which had rolled our way. Even though we've only met once or twice at my family's Halloween haunted house, he immediately waved and cheerfully said 'hello and how ya doin.' I returned the greeting.

As I got out of the car our next-door neighbor to the north, Tom, walks over. Tom is in the National Guard Air Rescue Squad and was in Turkey from October till January. I say "hey Tom!" Tom says hi to me and "trigger" or some other funny name he calls my brother. (Maybe he's just making up for my dad calling him "Pat" for so long. Pat....Tom...who knows. My dad's has called me "Chris" and "Snickers" in the same breath.) We talk for a little while outside the yard, he asks how school is going, tells me to thank my Mom for taking care of his plants while he was gone. My mom had a big phobia about killing them, and is thrilled they're back at his house.

After that I decided to walk Downtown, take some pictures and do some research in the library. As I walk out the door my life-long "across the street neighbors", the Garcias shout from across the street their normal "howdy neighbor!" and ask how things are goin. The Garcias have always been close to my family. They come to almost every party we have at our place or at my grandparents. Joella Garcia and her sister Jamie and I grew up together, and spent a lot of our summer days as kids hanging out. We stayed friends through high school, and at least once every summer a quick hello turns into a conversation that goes past midnight in my grandparent's backyard. So anyways, I say hello to them and start my walk.

One block down the street another neighbor who just purchased a home in north Mountain View drives by and waves. Her son is my brother's best friend since they were little kids. Get this, we're all Portuguese-Mexican mixes, so for the longest time we could jokingly call our street stub the Porto-Mex ghetto of MV. The house they rented is empty now, but we're happy they were able to afford a home in Mountain View. Another branch of their family is building a new home one house down from my grandparents, so we'll still be seeing a lot of them.

A few steps after that I come across my neighbor Mark with his kid, who was sitting on the lawn of my other neighbors, Peter and Nancy, talking to Peter. All three of them are part of the historic preservation group I co-founded. I stop and talk for a while, ask Peter how things are goin, he recently had heart surgery, and I bug Mark about not typing up our meeting minutes yet, joking that's the reason I came home. They tell me to make sure I don't stay in the library too long...especially on a day like this. I totally agree with them, say "see ya later" and head on my way.

I pass my great-grandma's old house where my second cousin and his family live, but didn't see em' outside so I didn't stop by. A couple blocks later I'm in the middle of Downtown, which is bustling with the lunchtime crowd. It's always cool to see the place so alive, considering that when I was a kid the place was almost a ghost town. One of the best things about living in my neighborhood, the old part of MV, is being able to quickly walk down to the main street. I live five short blocks from one of the best Mexican restaurants in town.

I get to the buildings I wanted to take a pic of, and bring out my big ol' digital camera. Some people driving by in a new convertible see me taking the picture and yell "hey! how many mega pics is that?!....thinking its a NEW digital VIDEO camera. I am reminded that yes, this is still the Silicon Valley. I yell back, it's an old digital camera, and that's why its so big. They say "oh! all right! thanks!" and continue driving down the street.

But anyway, the picture ended up cool. I did a then and now pic of an old photo my great grandma took in the early 1950s. Cool to see how things have changed, and not changed. For those curious, here ya go:

1950


2003

The c. 1920s building with the ugly tinted glass facade is going to be restored to something that looks more like the 50s pic.

After walking home, I got Chris to go on a "half an hour" drive to take a few pics at the city's last orchard. On the way home, Chris got disoriented and asked if we were in Mountain View when we were in the freakin' middle of the city. (THIS is why he still has not passed his driving test, he has no sense of direction. hehe) I pull off on a side road to show him exactly where we are, and we end up going towards the neighborhood a branch of my extended family lives in. On one street alone, I have two sets of aunts & uncles, two cousins, one cousin by marriage, two second cousins, and their extended family to whom I'm not related by blood. Chris decides we should go visit some of them. As we turn on to their street, we see my grandparents turning out of it after visiting them.

My aunt was so happy to see us, she was jumping around the room. My aunt, uncle, Chris and I ended up talking for hours about family history, Mexican-American racial issues, Bush's war, school, Chris' college plans, and then eating dinner from the previously mentioned Mexican restaurant. My uncle even baked cookies. We didn't end up leaving until after midnight. Hehe...so much for "half an hour." It was great though.

Sunday was similar. I got KFC with Chris and my cousin Marisa, and took it to eat at Shoreline. I visited my aunt again to get some advice on a topic for polysci term paper. After that my parents got home from their anniversary trip in Monterey, and we went out for dinner, which was really nice. When I got home I spent a few hours next door with my grandparents showing them the wonders of the internet, looking up whatever they wanted and showing how their club web page used a picture of them in the title graphic. Every time I show them the internet they're amazed. I also showed them a web page I'm trying to get together for our family about our history, they really enjoyed that, making jokes and telling stories about our history. After that I came back to Berkeley.

So that's my neighborhood. That's what I go home to. My small town in the giant faceless suburban blob that much of the Bay Area has turned in to. That's why I'm so passionate about Mountain View. That's what I want to fight to save and work to recreate through an education in Urban Studies. The physical things, the parks, the buildings, the landmarks, are just icing on the cake...they're the symbols that represent what truly matters....the people, the diversity, the community, the history, and my own family.