I started off 2011 next to my family since my uncle was unable to make it out here due to weather conditions. It actually worked out. I was experiencing anxiety, but all was forgotten the moment I saw and got to hug my Senora. And so began the new year, surrounded by my loved ones. A new year, a new semester, and oh, so much to look forward to. Last semester was difficult/complicated. Beginning with the trauma of leaving a life that had been cultivated in Southern California for 24 years and starting fresh in NYC-Harlem. Moved out of Harlem and down to Brooklyn a few weeks after the initial move to the city. In addition to the moving of 10 suitcases from Uptown to Brooklyn, adjusting from driving to public transportation and walking, from home cooked meals to venturing out and eating Thai and Indian food, from working full-time and having money to spend, to being broke and in school again, adhering to deadlines and trying not to procrastinate but somehow doing the complete opposite, to adjusting to the 3 hour time difference but still receiving text messages at 3 AM E.T. since the homegirls are barely warming up the lungs back in Cali with Margaritas and Tequila shots, and to simply being away from my family and friends and not getting enough hugs out here in the big city--it has all been rough, tough, and quite the adjustment.
In addition to the adjustments, my last semester grades were not what I had aimed to achieve. This semester, I gotta bring my "A" game. No if's or but's about it. On that note, the BS will be non-existent and the Cali visitors will have to wait and visit during summer and/or winter break ONLY. I will be taking 3 courses again this term. 2 of which are under my department, Media, Culture, and Communication -- Global Media and International Law, and Media and Spectacle. The other class is under Tisch -- Latin American Performance. I'm very excited for all of them and I look forward to building strong networks with my professors since I would like to study abroad with Diana Taylor, director of the Hemispheric Institute here in NYC, whom will be teaching a course in Chiapas, Mexico (http://hemisphericinstitute.org/hemi/) Luckily, I will also be helping my professor Juan Pinon with his research on publishing his yearly article in the OBITEL yearbook along with another fellow San Diegan classmate Linnete. The research I will be assisting with, will consist of gathering information on Telemundo and Azteca America and seeing what programing was produced in 2010, who produced it, how much money was invested in advertising, ratings, economics, co-production between different conglomerates, and etc. This semester will be busy and exciting. Also, as mentioned previously, I am also looking forward to studying abroad during the summer and there are two classes that I am highly interested in, one being in Chiapas, Mexico with Prof. Diana Taylor, and the other in Buenos Aires, Argentina with Prof. Marita Sturken (Department Chair of Media, Culture, and Communication). It has always been a dream to study abroad and I feel that if I do not do it this summer, then I will not have another chance to do it. I need to make it happen.
To new beginnings, cheers!
-TAC
I miss my little Roxy.
