An unforgettable Christmas (dinner)

Hi people, how are you today?

I think this post will be easier for me because this Christmas, in particular, was very special. And why? Because it was the first time in my life I spent it without my family (parents and brothers). (I’m not from Santiago, but I didn’t travel this time because it would have been very sad for me to say good bye them just the next day of Christhmas, and I specially hate farewells).But I have to say it wasn’t so terrible, I mean, I missed them hard (especially my parents), but I had a great time, anyway. I wasn’t with them, but there were my uncles and my cousins with me. I like them very much too; they’re like my second family. Although my uncles are old (the younger have 57), we’re very close.

I was very tempted of eating stuffed turkey this year, so my uncles and I agreed to cook that meal. I bought all the ingredients (except the green apple, I didn’t want to pay three thousands pesos for 8 apples, but now I regretted that). I was so excited, I thought it would be a very good meal, but I was wrong. L I mean, everything was perfect, a lot of salads, good drinks, everybody happy, until we tasted the turkey. Actually the turkey was fine, but stuffed was awful. And I got very sad, everybody watched me like saying: “thanks, but no thanks” and I realized that that stuffed turkey would be the last for, at least, a long time. But I was well-intentioned. Anyway, I think it wasn’t enough.

So, piece of advice: Never, but NEVER try to invent a new recipe if you don’t know how to cook. A single ingredient can be very good by it’s one, but put a lot of “good” ingredients into a single paste could be a disaster. Trust me; I know what I’m talking about.

Bye J

The power of language.

Hello partners, today is a great day. The topic for today is language.

All of this began when we saw a long, but very interesting video about language. I really enjoyed it because “illuminate me”. Really, I hadn’t thought about that, although is very clear. We have evolved thanks of language, it’s one of our biggest tool to communicate and to learn. One of the most striking Mark Pagel’s sentences was: “Language is a piece of social technology for enhancing the benefits of cooperation”. Social Technology? Brilliant. I mean, let’s think a case: we have to get food from the supermarket…but, we are in another country, with another language. What do we do? We can’t just talk to the people and say: “Hi, I need a chicken”. They won’t understand us because we don`t speak the same language! It’s like a “bird without wings”, like Pagel said.

The power of language is really amazing, we can “implant our thoughts in other people minds”, for example, “language is the voice of our genes”.

That makes me think about my own language: “Chilean Spanish”. I mean, we are nothing in the global community. That’s the reason because I want to learn English, I want “to be part of the world”.

Mark Pagel was finally right (again): Our destiny is to be a one world with (only) one language.

I think that language is already well-defined: ENGLISH.

Bye.-

What a nice discover.

Hi dear colleagues, today I found such a great website (thank you missJ). It was probably on the English program, but I have to recognize that I hadn´t see it until now. But well, the question is that the BBC learning English website is really nice. I mean, it´s easy to use, it’s interactive and very, very useful. And is also entertaining (I loved it games).  

Actually, the only thing I did here was just play. But it isn’t bad, I mean, they aren’t just simple games, they’re “educational games”. I learnt a lot, in just a few minutes, it’s great. Quizzes (and quiznets), flatmates, crosswords, etc. I’ll definitely spent some time on this website from now on. And I’ll definitely recommend it. Although I didn’t get the best results at the beginning, I’m sure I’ll improve my marks.

Why English people are so clever? We should be like them. Damn it. I’m so envious right now.

I can’t believe I said that, it’s supposed that we’re good just the way we are. Anyway, I don’t know why I’m saying this, maybe is just to complete the 160 words (I’m not feeling very inspired today) and, yes, I already did it.

So, bye =)

Say hello to this new term

Dear partners:

Hi everyone, today is my first legal class and I’m really excited, but not for this reason exactly (I’m going to my house, my real house in Talca, yeah!, but it isn’t the point). Well, we are beginning a new term and is kind of hard to believe it. Last year I was preparing my self to give a good PSU, and actually I was in my house, no classes at all. But today, beginning december, I’m starting the second semester and I feel very tired. I really don’t know why, I had 6 months of “vacations” (that isn’t the right word, I know) but my mind is already “weary”. It’s wear, but I’m afraid that I’ll have to get use to it. And, what are my expectations for this new term? I really don’t know, maybe it’s obvious, I want it all, to learn a lot, to get good marks and not to die in the attempt. But it will be hard, I know, noone said it would be easy.  However, this semester ought be “easier” in the sense that I’m taking only 7 subjects, not 8 like in the past term. And especially because I don’t have to “fight” with philosophy (of the social sciences) anymore, that subject was totally awful for me. I liked it, but I’m definitely not good for that.

Anyway, I only expect that this will be a good semester, for me and for all. Sincerely.

Well, I already did my 150 words so….bye for now.

Good luck J

Are we asking for something posible?

What a subject to close this part of the course! Chilean’s Education System.

I don’t know about you, but I’m surprised. Really. More than the article itself, which I thought was most important and most impressive were the comments. Seriously, I think at first were quite offensive and even a little ethnocentric, if not racist (characteristic of the West). But suddenly everything changed and became something serious (thanks in part to ‘apumaric’…and yes, I read all the comments). 

It’s interesting, entertaining and captivating to see how other countries think about our situation, it's like feedback. All this time I've been watching what the national media said about education, but I had not noticed what people from the outside thought.  And I could identify several positions on this issue in our country, from funny guys with nothing better to do than to annoy people to others with very good arguments. 'Apumaric', for example, caught my attention. In addition to his comment was quite large (and longer in fact), I was surprised by the certainty with which he was referring to the situation of education in our country. At first I thought it might be someone who had been in Chile for several years (because he know us enough), but then I realized that he was actually a Chilean. He seems to be a very educated person (and he may be studied in Chile, funny!)

Anyway, the comments made me realize something I already knew but didn’t want to see. This situation is common in many other parts of the world. A Colombian, for example, said this was exactly what was happening in their country. An Englishman said that he looked very familiar item description. In short, we aren’t alone in this and we aren’t the first. This is the same situation in which students were nearly 30 years ago and today we are experiencing the same thing. Our ideals and our hopes not allow us to realize that they failed a lot. Moreover, if today we are in this situation is because almost nothing has been achieved in all these years. Are we trying to really accomplish in a few weeks which hasn’t been achieved for over 25 years? Don’t we realize that this is just started?

I have many ideals, but I have specific goals too. Of course I want this situation to change, but there are powerful people behind this. I feel that the only ones that lose here are we, students. While private universities continue their classes and still charge the same tariffs, we are on the street asking for something that, although is fair, no one is willing to allow.

And the only thing that comes to mind with this is the thing that we have become. While some people want more and more at the expense of others, those others are resigned to work because they can’t do something better. Have we been like this from the beginning? Or is that something went wrong and come to this?

I really don’t know what to think, I am very disappointed on us.

No place for the soul.

Mr. Robinson’s TED talk is really interesting and yes, he´s right. Our education systems encourage anything but creativity. It seems that we all should know and do the same and there is no place for innovation. What a shame, but that’s what’s happening and what is being promoted in many countries (including ours). And no wonder, because Western thought promotes capitalism, which has as one of its bases to prepare a homogeneous production workforce to work and work and think as little as possible. That’s what the education system is doing to the children (and also probably what they made us).

In short, what Mr. Robinson means is that education promotes the fall of the innovation and creativity. For example, most of children aren’t frightened to be wrong; they just say what they think. But what happens is that our system punishes mistakes and gradually the children will lose the ability to improvise to avoid faults and, ultimately, become adults to be afraid of making mistakes.

In the other hand, he’s especially right in two points:

-The education system all over the world, promotes the idea that work-related issues are most important. For example, mathematics can be used for business; sciences allow us to advance in new technologies, etc. But we left out, and even have stigmatized, the arts, 'because these are good for nothing' or 'because you're not eating that'.

 

–All the world's educational policies seem to be designed to lead students to universities. Which isn’t bad, of course, but this means that all those who aren’t in universities, in fact, don’t have talents and set aside all their artistic abilities, or even sports, which not always enable them to go to the college.

In the next years titles are not going to be much use because there will be many people with college degrees so we will need for greater specialization and have even more titles and fill in our curriculum  with different degrees in various specializations to show the rest, according to these roles, that I have more capabilities than the rest.

Anyway, what will happen is that in the future there won’t be a place for open minds, those devoted to art, the expression of self, music, dance, etc. There won’t be a place for the soul.

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Damn criminals!

Hi partners, today I will talk about my opinion of the demonstrations, especially of violent demonstrations. I was inspired by a TV report I saw today rather than what we see on the national news about the student demonstrations. My problem isn’t with them – students- (which also includes me), but with the damn criminals and thieves who take advantage of these circumstances to commit a crime. I think they are the scum of society, they shouldn’t exist. I hate them. And sorry to be so direct, but that's what I really feel. It’s unfair that they appear when there are people who really want to express their discontent with public policies. I mean, what do they really want, manifest or only do harm to the others? Are they saying something? Are they discontent too? Or do they just have something inside that compels them to commit crimes? I really can’t understand them.

The other thing that comes to my mind when I think about this is that there must be something that men have (and I don’t mean to humanity, but specifically to men), I don’t know, something in their head that makes them do bad things. And why do I think this? Because, if we see or think who these people are (demonstrators) we’ll realize that they’re mostly men. And it isn’t a bias, it’s true, we can see it.

And finally, I feel sorry for what we have become, for all the hate and evil that reigns in our world. Because we are governed by powerful that lie and because we have the eyes covered by a cloak that prevents us from seeing this reality. If we have reached this is due to ourselves. Please don’t blame someone else. 

Hi everyone.

Well, this task isn´t very easy to me because I don’t actually use the internet much, so I don’t know many useful websites. Anyway, there´s one I often use to download music free. This is called beemp3.com and you can find a lot of music there. I discovered this website like one year ago when I was looking for a song (I don’t remember what). Since that moment I have illegally downloaded a lot of music. And that’s what I like this website, because I can find all kind of music there (to download and to listen). I really like it. I use it like 3 times a week or even more. Here you can find a lot of songs, watch videos, listen to songs, the lyrics of the songs, see similar searches, make playlists, and what is best, download music. It’s very exciting.

Other website that I like (because I think is very useful) is quedelibros.com. Is a typical website where you can find and download a lot of books of many styles (art, philosophy, sociology, psychology, anthropology, mysticism and esotericism, history and much more). It’s really interesting. I found it like one year ago when I was searching a book of Mircea Eliade called ‘The myth of eternal return’ (which incidentally is very interesting)…and I found it! Since that moment I have download a lot of books free (even some that have helped me for college). I really recommend this website.

And other sites that you can check are tuhistory.com (from the Latin History Channel and that is very interesting) or the rae.es (from the Royal Spanish Academy and that is very useful to avoid wasting time looking up words in a dictionary when you’re doing a job).

Egyptology (rocks).

I know is a kind of repetitive, but I love Egyptology!!! That’s one of my biggest passions. And there is more, I would love to be an Egyptologist and travel to the Middle East and know Egypt. Would be great and I’ll fulfill one of my biggest dreams. I don’t know, ‘The Mummy’ has a very persuasive power and when I saw it, I knew that that was for me. Is weird, but is like if I’d have it in my blood. And I love it! I’d love to go the pyramids and discover something knew…maybe an ancient treasure, or human bones, some pieces of pottery, mummies, anything.

I think Egyptology is the perfect combination, I mean Archaeology + Egypt = WOW. Is like a dream!

But I couldn’t choose one topic in particular. I think they’re all fascinating. The secrets of the pyramids, the mummification technique, the pharaohs, the hieroglyphs, everything is interesting to me. And what I like most is the fact that they were like an impossible civilization. The things that they reached, their tech advances…Are a mystery.  Nobody knows exactly how they built the pyramids or the giant limestone statues. Is like a secret. Where the aliens? Did they have some special power?  Were just the fruit of their effort? I’d like to know that.

And yes, all this could sound just like a silly game or very unreliable, but I don’t know way, I just love it.





Just two nice pictures

Well, I chose those pictures because…I really don’t know.  They aren’t my favorite, but I like them. I took this photo when we (me and my classmates) were to the Cerro La Campana National Park. That was my first time. Maybe I chose those because I love hills, mountains, to see the sky and the clouds, the green color of the wood and flowers, everything.  And that is what them shows. It was taken in mmmm….I really don’t remember, but it wasn’t a long time ago. It was our first field work. It was a very good travel to a very nice and quiet place. But it wasn’t so perfect because somebody stole us our money and some things. Is a little difficult to believe but yes, there are thieves in National Parks too, I didn’t know that. But anyway, they are nice pictures, at least for me. But there’s more. This park isn’t just a normal park. It has something special. I don’t know, is just special. The quiet wood, the mist in the morning, the sing of the birds, everything. Is a relaxing place where you can just hear yourself and think…in everything.  Is the perfect option to leave Santiago for a weekend. And it isn’t so far of the city, no longer than two hours by bus. But well, to go back to I was saying before, those pictures remind me that the world isn’t so ugly and bad (like here, at the capital), so sometimes I took the computer and see them, is just ok.  I hope to be there again.  

I just wanna study...

I knew that be at the university would be hard (a lot of study, jobs, stress, eating disorders, etc.) but I never thought that one of most tedious problems that would affect us would be the education system. I mean, we should be learning, working to be better, but not fighting to study. I think this is unfair, there are a lot young people that make a lot of effort to can follow superior studies, and what happens? They can´t because the system select only the “better” ones. That is why students are struggling, that’s what they are trying to change. They aren’t terrorists but people who fight for rights and for future generations of students that will have to face the same troubles.

This affects me directly, because I’m a scholarship student and I could lose this benefit because of the change they want to establish. I repeat again that’s not fair, because I worked hard to be here, like thousands of students who could lose their studies because of issues profit. However, I must admit that I haven’t actively participated in demonstrations, is one of the things that I wouldn’t either because I believe that isn’t the right way. Or maybe it’s a matter of cowardice or rejection to something I haven’t lived in the flesh. Consequently, I didn’t participate in Thursday's demonstration because of the same (and because I had to do a lot of work too).

I think the government should support the students. How they want more professionals if they don’t give a good education? This is a shameful situation. Sometimes I think, will have people from other countries have to fight so hard to achieve a good education? In some places, education is free, but here this is clearly a dirty business.

Anyway, this isn’t the first time and won’t be the last; demonstrations will follow until we get something better. We aren’t asking for anything impossible, we just want to study to achieve something in our lives, doing what we like and enjoy our work. Is that too much to ask?