Chris Ward
Human Ecology Essay - Draft 2.1
Fall 06/07 - September 15th 2006
Sustainable Education: Human Ecology, Science, and Technology
“The impending destruction of mankind…man cannot violate or transgress the bounds of his humanism, or his human limits without tragic consequence.” Karel Čapek - Utopian R.U.R. (1920)
            I will get straight to the point. If we are to avoid the bleak, resourceless, polluted and war-torn future that many suspect awaits all of our future generations (if they are even to exist), there must be some significant changes made in how our educational system of today operates at the most fundamental of levels. One significant, but so far unappreciated formula to revitalize and remake positive once more the potential fate of the humankind, is the manipulation of the tendencies of the masses by way of injecting a dose of a Human Ecological approach to education into the standardized education models of the world. With Human Ecology becoming a fundamental source for the education of the future generations, it might, just maybe, still be possible to reclaim our children’s future for them once again.
            Currently the public school education system churns through hundreds of millions of students each year, each one destined to be an active citizen of the world in one way or another. Each individual has millions of opportunities in his life to work toward sustaining a world of abundant natural resources, clean water, and calm and negotiable relations, of which are the three most fundamental elements of the human species survival. While on the other hand, each individual has an equal number of opportunities to bring destruction upon his own world and destroy the chances for survival of the future generations too. It is truly “each unto his own,” but the effects are communal.
            It is without a doubt that the choices each person makes throughout their lives are highly influenced by the education received during the first 16-25 years of their lives. It also seems reasonable then, that the education of the people can be analyzed and corrected where errors in logic, or the right’s and wrong’s, relative to the morals we must have to position our choices more in favor of our ultimate survival, and to keep the more consistently on the side where the ultimate survival of the future generations is valued over personal gain and competitive arrogance. Otherwise, choices which are self-centered and destructive are likely to continue dominating the lives of the masses in full-force, as we see they are now across the globe, and they will do so at the loss of the unborn generations to follow. We must exploit this knowledge that we have then of our ability to influence through education to create a natural tendency amongst humans to draw a larger proportion of our choices from the former way of thinking rather the latter.
            Honestly though, there is a lot of work to be done. However regretfully, I can only say that even after an incredibly simple and superficial analysis of the current state of public education, I have to admit to myself that its state is quite pitiful. The reality is that, although it might quack like a duck, it slithers like a snake, and drains the lifeblood from us all like a leech. It’s a horrible contradiction in terms to even call the average public, tax-funded school “a house of education.” When really what it is, is a perfect example of an oxymoron.
            The public school system is (in America at least) built around a tradition to teach how to follow orders, and not how to learn. Very rarely do we leave the catch phrases on posters, synthesized and summarized text-books, uncreative exams and quizzes, and incredibly monotonous and mindless motions of copy, paste, and memorize, except for, of course, that really cool fifth grade science fair project!
            It also lacks a sense of what is right and wrong, relative to how the human species must live in order to continue surviving on this earth through the infinite possible generations we still have to come. Although however, it does in fact talk a lot of the “right’s, wrong’s” and other morals of student conduct such as keeping quite unless spoken to, asking permission from an authority to use the restroom, no missing school without an authorities permission, keeping your shirts tucked in, ceaseless competition against all others, and no sharing information! And this of course is followed up with a full range of uncreative and rather harsh punishments for any “misbehavior.” Of which none of the rights or wrongs actually correspond truly to either the nature of humankind or the nature of the world in which we inhabit. Instead however they correspond to a false nature of authority and dominance that expects absolute submission and control. This is not human ecology.
            Another interesting, but unfortunate fact is that the average education models of today demand that all humankind respect their authority without question, while claiming their own thrown as the most important thing in our lives. Saying loudly and clearly, if we did not have “them,” (the education systems and the authorities within the education systems known as teachers) we would be as good a dead. This, in my opinion, is a completely ignorant, arrogant, disrespectful, and a horribly destructive and violent lie. We are human. We have survived millennia already without any formal or standardized school systems in place. In fact, it is my belief quite to the contrary, that the school system itself, as it has developed and come to be over time what it is today, is a major cause (if not the root cause) of why we are in the rather gloomy place we are with respect to our future chances of survival on this planet as is. It is all the contradictions that that can be found in and around what is today the standard education model, which brings me to say “it might quack like a duck, but it sure ain’t one”. Garbage in, garbage out.
            Take for a concrete example the average public school cafeteria, which I use as a simplified analogy to represent the base standards that the rest of the education system can be assumed to abide by. It is a disgraceful image of the nature of what we face.
            The food is of some of the lowest quality available ever in our history. Mostly manufactured, mass produced, and frozen, it occurs very often that students complain of horrible stomach cramps after consuming it. Students are also left with few alternatives to choose from, except for those who are lucky enough to have parents who have the time, money, and patience enough to prepare food for them everyday to bring on their own, and teach them on their own that eating healthy is one of the first most fundamental aspects to be appreciated in life.
However, even with outside influence, enduring 16 or more years in inescapable close proximity of this “food” and environment influences and teaches even the most health-minded students to except and expect the low quality standards of food and health for the rest of their lives. For everyone else, fast-food diets and candy bars unquestionably become the new standard for which they will live with the rest of their lives, and face all of the consequences too.
            Alternatives that are often available in place of the standard “tray lunch” are also much of the same, horribly fattening, and sweet, fried, or worse still, generally packaged and branded. Therefore it is not only unhealthy for lack of nutritious value, loaded with sugar, preservatives, or lacks in the color green or any natural flavor, it is also purchased from non-local, branded manufacturers at the lowest price possible. A lesson in economics that teaches the future leaders of the world that cheating consumers out of quality and investing outside of ones own community for a higher gain in personal economy are standard and acceptable choices to make. It also teaches the consumers that these qualities are of little or no importance at all. The negative consequences are hardly even made known. And it unfortunately also draws acceptance from an early age to the corruptive techniques of marketing and branding, causing mindless purchasing and consumption of goods by name and brand alone. If it is what they grow up doing without vision of alternatives, it becomes an accepted standard of life. “We are what we eat,” as the old saying goes.
            The social environment of the cafeteria is also an interesting and pitiful example of how the public school system teaches our children how to act with arrogance and disrespect towards our own kind. Consider how natural it is for us to look at a cafeteria worker (cleaner, cook, cashier, etc) and see them as something of a lower class. It is natural because this is how the school system itself treats them by way of lower wages, less respectful treatment, and fewer choices for how to creatively work or improve upon their own work for the benefit of their clients, who in fact are their own, and our own children. They are not respected in positions of authority, but instead they are basically given position of mindless laborers, and nothing more.
            Even leaving you with only a few examples of how even in the environment which our public schools provide their students, we can easily see how it denies to the growing generations the ability to see and vision choices that might invite greater opportunity to grow and create a world which acts to sustain life rather than constantly increase mindless consumption. Instead, it teaches that it is best to leave consumption unchecked and unthought of, and the responsibility of any consequences should be left to be dealt with in the distant future rather than the present.
            This leaves us with the famous philosophical “chicken or the egg” question too. It is hard to blame the destructive consequences on the consumers when there are few viable alternative choices given. It seems only natural to get accustomed to expect nothing more than the weekly lunch menu, or the treatment of the workers, or the standards of destructive economic models when we are forced to endure them for so many years without choice. Plus, since self-responsibility, self-reflection, autonomy of choices, respect, and individual and communal health are not made to be priorities in the place that hails itself to be the house of learning, who is to blame in the end, the person being forced to live in the system, or the owners of the system itself?
            The answer to this question, as with most philosophical questions is mute. It does not really matter in the end because what matters is what is happening today and the prospects of the future. If we are to continue into the future for many more generations to come, an integration of responsibility into life itself and the empowerment of the growing minds of the future as both creators and consumers in the ways of sustainable and responsible living for the future must be made. If we are to avoid the pitfalls of exhaustive and destructive consumption, I believe it is essential that responsibility and mindful sustainability must be reconnected throughout all aspects of education on a personal level, rather than being isolated into some general category such as Ethics 101 or as is in many cases, left out completely. We can not continue to abstract responsibility and sustainability into course themes. It must become the fundamental basis of the education system itself.
            My proposition therefore is to integrate into the current education system an approach such as the one Human Ecology provides into the standard methodology and curriculum of teacher training, faculty and staff relationships to the educational process and to the students themselves, and to the formulation of the education models from which the students will exploit to share understanding and knowledge of the worlds inner-workings across all disciplines. Students should be the masters of their own education, and the human ecological model is an approach which destroys the traditional view of student as learner, and teacher as master. Students are encouraged to cross disciplines and integrate theory and practice using hands on learning methods that enable and encourage students to find and exploit their own personal ambitions and understandings of right and wrong through practical and self motivated experiential learning. While students are as well encouraged through the educational process, the curriculum, and the environment in which they learn, to integrate consciousness and respect of the environment and the people in it, as well the realization of the impact we as individuals and as a community have on the eminent future ahead of us (a future which can not be avoided, but can be destroyed if our top priorities are the budget and concerns of authority rather than the health and survival of our progeny).
            There is little room for contradiction, and although it’s hard to avoid, Human Ecology is a method which teaches by way of representing matters as closely as possible to the ways are, and trusting students to have the capacity to make choices which meet the needs of the future generations as opposed to being a living hypocrisy and walking contradiction. There is no reason to hide reality behind a veil of hypocrisy, we are all human, and we all make mistakes. We must take for ourselves the responsibility for our mistakes that might hurt our chances of communal survival, but we must learn to correct them together.
            I know that to have a education system that models the standard citizen to be full of respect and self-responsibility, so that he might make more choices only after considerable thought has been put into understanding the effects of each choice made to make choices more consistently that are sustainable over the long-term might seem a little far fetched and Utopian. However, please, first just consider the fact that even young children are able to learn such concepts even before they can even read.
            Authors of children’s books around the world have taken the lead in ensuring that children are taught how to be responsible from as early an age as their parents begin to read to them. In even the most simple of bed-time stories and fairy tales have general themes such as proper disposal of and the minimization of waste, cause and effect, staying healthy, respecting others and the like that are seamlessly woven in and out of the texts. Each one teaches children how to simply be responsible and treat the world and all the creatures in it with love in their own way. They also teach them how to live and act sustainably so that we can live together in harmony and work together to keep our species alive. Children learn to take care of themselves, while also taking care of the world in which they live. They learn to eat green vegetables instead of those that come from a can, keep their environment clean, help others, share, treat people in the way they would like to be treated, recognize the effects of their choices and try to choose wisely, collaborate to solve problems, and not make things or say things that could hurt others, etcetera.
            The numerous themes which children encounter on a daily basis in their years before they begin there sentence to schooling and their ability to understand and act upon the simple concepts these texts have in them, leads me to believe that the challenge of raising future generations of youth to grow up with the mentality of sustainable living and responsibility through choice is indeed feasible. We just need to dedicate ourselves to keeping these themes in all the texts we read, whether for night-time tales or mathematical and scientific text-books. Moreover, we need to keep them around the students in all the environments were they learn. Nobody learns what is directly taught while in a state of hypocrisy. They only learn that hypocrisy is the norm, so what is being taught can justifiably be ignored.
            On this note I would like to clarify and conclude that I do not intend to suggest that the Human Ecological perspective is the final solution to the world’s problems, nor a guarantee for the survival of the human race. Rather, I believe that many seeds of possibility lie within Human Ecology for rebuilding a more sustainable world. By exploiting the natural human desire for personal survival along side the natural tendency to be highly influenced by the environment in which we live and the “education” we receive, the new strong, sustainable roots the world needs to disrupt the growth of destructive consumption, and immoral and inhuman technological progress has much more opportunity to sprout and take hold. It is in our children’s best interest to do so, even if we can not yet still know their names of feel the warmth of their skin. Sustainability and responsibility must become part of who we are, and with Human Ecology you can learn to quake like a duck and actually be one too.

Posted by drpoo as College Of The Atlantic, Peace Works!, Personal Endeveavors at 2:45 PM PST

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Alright guys, here are some photos of last night in Merida. Carnival is happening now all around! And i just came to see what was happening in Merida. But after i post this, i´m on my way back to Baca, and i´ll take some photos of what carnival is like there.

Enjoy

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as College Of The Atlantic, Photo Album, Peace Works!, Personal Endeveavors at 2:58 PM PST

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A few more photos (and 2 short videos, maybe) for you all to enjoy. By the way, you should be able to download the Video files and play them in your media player…i don´t know why it wouldn´t work that way…i´ll check it out anyway to see what can be done about getting things to work.

Well, the photos of the Maya Internacional…it´s hard to tell but these women are old! I mean, it was really incredible. The women on the right hand side of the photo is almost 90 years old! And she jams out on the saxaphone, violen, percussion, and she dances too! hehe. That was a fun concert. These women have been impressing the people of Yucatan and the people all over the world for over 40 years now! I bet some of the old men that were in the audience still have crushes on these women as they did when they were teenagers!

Then…there are the cave photos. All that stuff you see us pointing to is pieces of cermics, dating a anywhere from 500 to a thousand years…it´s hard to say. At the end of the 2 hour trek in the cave, there are well preserved large ceramic pots, that were also used by the Mayas way back when. Pretty neat stuff. It was 4 of us that went caving that day. It was a semi dificult route we took, nothing impossble, but i definately felt at times that i was being “reborn” and i laughed to myself and the others thinking about how it would be that we could return through the same way we entered. Hehe. Somehow though we did, and got damn dirty doing it.

Then there are the photos of the family i´m staying with in Baca, and some photos of the library i´m helping out while i´m there. Right now is Carnival time, so everyones making their costumes…and there are no computers in the library, as can be seen…hopefully there will be soon.

…

That´s all folks!

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as College Of The Atlantic, Peace Works!, Personal Endeveavors at 2:47 PM PST

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I will be posting even more pretty soon (i´ll be getting photos from other peoples cameras!) Yes, i killed a chicken (the one hanging on the right, all bloody), but the photo of me doing it will have to wait because someone else took it with their camera. Quite an experience. Slice Slice Slice…WRAA!!!flap flap flap. dead. drip drip. FLAP FLAP FLAP!!!!! drip drip. really dead.

And sorry….for all the blurry photos….the camera i´m using (thanks by the way ryan, i appreciate you letting me borrow it!) doesn´t take very clear photos….or well, let me say it is very termpermental and only really likes to take pictures of things that are not moving…and only in very bright lighting…otherwise they´re almost always blurry. I´m working out how to customize each shot to adjust for not-so-perfect conditions, but it´s sooo picky. None the less, with the memory card i bought i was able to take like 150 photos! and still have room! BUT I RAN OUT OF BATTERIES! hehe.

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as College Of The Atlantic, Photo Album, Personal Endeveavors at 12:10 AM PST

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Ahhh, so i´m hanging out in Mexico, and i realize that, shit, after this term i only have one year left. And it left me thinking about a whole bunch of stuff.

Truthfully, i´ve been thinking about the fact that i have a senior project i need to do soon a lot. And well, i have a ton of ideas, but the tuff part is choosing which one and sticking with it. Please, READERS of this blog (mom, dad, … hehe… ryan.) Help me decide.

Okay. So here go a few. The latest first.

In short, draw up a business plan and understand all that it would take to start a small business here in Merida making selling dad´s already famous Jerky. *Tironito* Is my prelimanry name for it. *Small Jerk* o *Small Tug*. hehe. Lame! Why? well, because the damn stuff is perfect for Yucatan! I´m seriously saying that it would be a success, without a doubt. It would only be a matter of short time before everyone knew what it was and fell in love it. Put it this way, my host mother hear, who never eats red meat, could keep her hands out of the bag i gave the family! hehe. The fact that it is spicy, plus the fact that it´s meat (dried on top of that..meaning it won´t go bad in the heat for a long time) and the fact that everyone here loves to eat botanas (snacks) everywhere they go, give it´s high scores on the lovable factor. (i´m already having visions of the stuff being sold at all the local events, where there are always a ton of people selling little snack items out of the bag on their shoulder…and there are SO many events here you would not believe. Everyday there is something happening, it´s incredible. Then there is also the open air markets, and the parks, and the street venders…that are just always continuously walking around selling food products and other things…) Really, to say the least, Yucatecans are serious meat eaters! In fact, I hardly ever see green here. It´s a surprise when i do, my eyes are nearly blinded by the bright colors of letuce and fresh tomatoe.

The challenges i would be facing to implement this project are many. Well, that is if i wanted to do it legally and successfully (even then…it wouldn´t be exactly easy…but nor would it be extremely difficult since i´m focusing down to only one thing). Legally starting a small business in Mexico, Production, marketing, vending, etc. etc.

I know (well, i assume) i´m going to be starting my own business eventually and this is an excellent opportunity i believe. Especially because i have a lot of support here already, and i know the language, the area and the people rather well.

Let that one sink in for a few minutes. I know you might laugh…but with your support (i´m talking mostly moral here) it is definately possible. The most that would happen is i fail, have a good time doing it, and put it away in my bag of ´tried that already´s.

Now, the next idea is that i create … hmm…. should i give away my secrets online? Where someone like Microsoft…or hell, google for that matter…could take them before i get a chance to do it myself?? hmmm….i mean i´ll be releasing any software i do under GNU open source terms and anyone will be able to use them how they wish…but i´d like to get the chance to produce them and protect them with GNU liscence first. Let´s say i have an idea to put together a sophisticated online Peer Created Radio station. Think Wikipedia, but rather than text intries, it´s radio program entries. Where you as a user get to post your own home-brewed radio programs, and you as a user get to design your own custom streaming radio station using casts from your fellow users (perhaps some of those users could even be commercial). Yeah, big project, but i could break it down in some way so i could build the first basic prototype / beta system for my sr project and seek support from the open source development community to advance the software to production quality.

Now, another idea. I have many ideas for inventions…i could make a SR project out of one of them. The design, prototyping, production, marketing, and vending…etc. would all be a part of it. AKA. Plus i would look into patenting law..etc. I would start of with the most simple product idea that i have, then if i was successful in reaching my goals for the project, i could then move on to more advanced invention ideas that i have…

Finnally, i still have the idea to come down to Merida again and work on some sort of research project regarding Technology Development initiatives here. Which by the way, i´m working (volunteering) right now for a government organization that works in exactly this department…they are rolling out all sorts of cool stuff and i´m working with them to do it (well, it´s more like i´m observing at the moment, but we´ll see how things develop). And on top of that, i´m likely going to start working with the director of the Yucatan sector of the Nacional E-Mexico project, teaching some computer classes (or helping) and also going out to small villages around Merida organizing for more community computer centers to be setup in the local libraries. … so … if something develops while i´m here into what could be a good SR project, i´ll jump on it. Otherwise i might just end up coming down here to work in the future…perhaps…as a side job while i´m getting my Tironito (jerky) business up and running. :-)

Okay. There are others, but what do you guys think about those? I think these are pretty much the selection i´m going to choose from.

Though there is one more recent idea that i thought of…providing telephone services cheap through voIP Voice over IP (internet telephones…such as the one i´ve been using to call all you guys…) With this i could definately give customers a much better price rate than the people here that are using phone cards, cell phones or the Mexico Tel Mex telephony service. I´d likely be one of the first to the market here too…the people here are a little behind in the times still (though…i´m working on catching them up! hehe)

Also, Mom, Dad specifically, i have a question since i´m here….You guys know that i´m off sync for at COA for graduation. What do you think about me taking the spring term (the next term) off to resync myself with everyone else? I think it would make things easier for me, well at least less confusing in regards to deadlines and the like. I´m seriously thinking about it, staying in Bar Harbor probably, working working working, and planning for the Sr. Project, and the likes. Or perhaps for some of the spring term i would come and live in Merida again, to start researching for SR project.

Let me know what you´all´s think.

Peace…and happy new year!

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as Linux / Open Source, College Of The Atlantic, Live Mp3 Streams, Peace Works!, Personal Endeveavors at 2:57 PM PST

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Mis experiencias hasta ahora ha sido muy bien. El programa ya esté un éxito. El grupo que esta acá me gusta mucho, mi familia esté buenísima y por supuesto Mérida esté lleno con cosas mas preciosa del oro.

En el programa este ano, cual es muy diferente del programa del ano pasado, no ha tenido problemas por nada. Una de las cosas me gustan muchas es el hecho de que hemos sido hablando mas en español esta vez in los primeras días que hablábamos durante las primeras semanas anteayer. Además de eso, la gente en el grupo este ano hablan en español conmigo por la mayor parte del tiempo, sino anteayer no me hablaron en español por nada. Es que quisiera en el año anterior, pero era que ocurrió. Hablar español es la razón mas importante a mi estar acá en el programa.

La casa donde vivo ahora me gusta muchísimo también. Realmente Karla hizo buen trabajo seleccionando una familia para mi. Mis hermanitos son buena gente y hay mucho diversidad entre todos de ellos. Mis hermanos mayores son como yo en muchos aspectos como que tipo de música escuchan y que tipos de actividades hacen. También hablan conmigo y juegan fútbol conmigo también (excepto una, que todavía no nos hemos platicado mucho). Mi hermanita Fátima es muy dulce y le gusto mucho. Ya somos buenos amigos. Mis padres son amables y siento muy confortable en sus casa. También mi madre mexicana Carmen cocina comida yucateca que sea muy riquísima!

Finalmente, me encanta la ciudad de Mérida. Si hay mucho polución, y solamente conozco Mérida como sea durante el invierno, pero ni modo me gusta que conozco. La ciudad esta siempre vivo. Hay lugares preciosa para visitar como los ruines y las playas. Aprendo mucho de la gente yucateca y la cultura maya. Y la comida esté muy sabrosísima.

…

Durante los días ultimas, yo ha pasado mucho tiempo con mi familia, también buscando trabajo para mi servicio social y hice tarea para clases de Fernando. Mi horario sean un poco loco porque no estoy acostumbrado todavía a el horario de clases y mi familia. Pero poco a poco sea mejor.

En la mañanas despierto a siete u ocho y como desayuno. Mi madre me da comida en la mañana, y siempre estoy feliz después. Hablamos al rato y miramos los hechos del día. Usualmente después este tiempo salgo, o bañarme y salga. Esto es como esta mi mañanas.

Después salgo a un lugar u otro, depende del día. Voy a la escuela o al centro o salgo y hacer algo con alguien en la familia. Por ejemplo, el sábado pasado, fui con mi padre y mi hermano menor a su juego de fútbol. Yesia, mi hermano menor, tiene una juego cada sábado, y a veces los miércoles también. Me disfrutaba mucho durante la partido. Y me di cuenta de que en cada lugar voy, hay algo nueva para aprender en español. Aprendí varias cosas en español también, como <<¡tirela!>> por ejemplo. No es algo para emocionarse, sino me dio alegría.

He sido jugando fútbol con mis hermanos durante el día también en el patio. Jugamos a veces solo con un portero y los otros intentar hacer una gol. O jugamos en partidos, usualmente dos contra dos. Desfrutamos mucho.

A veces miro televisión con mis hermanos. Con mi hermanita más chica, Fátima, quien tiene cinco años, miro cartoon network, o algo así. Con los otros, miro varios cosas, dependiendo con quien estoy. Mí padre mira la misma telenovela cada noche, lunes por viernes. Siempre me dice que esta paseando, y que ha paseado en tiempos anteriores. La telenovela es puro porquería. Me cuentas todo sobre las vidas de todos, tal como cómo esta mujer durmió con este hombre en la semana pasada, pero ahora esta durmiendo con el hermano de ello. Sonreímos juntos muchos por este. Le gusta mucho, pero me gusta pasar tiempo con él mas de la televisión.

La semana pasada temprano, mi padre, Fátima y yo fuimos a la iglesia para donar algunas muñecas, juegos, y ropa a los niños que viven allí. Conocí los sacerdotes, y platique con los niños por unos minutos, y ya, regresemos. Y mi padre me contó mas historias, como siempre. Como cómo hay casi doscientos niños que viven en la iglesia permanentemente, y como ambos sacerdotes son hermanos y solos ellos y pocos madres cuidan por todos.

Mis hermanos y yo jugamos videojuegos también. Ellos tienen una XBOX, y conozco muchos juegos que les gustan. Por este, gano mucho contra ellos. Este es otro ejemplo donde aprender palabras nuevas, en una ambiental muy sencilla y relajado. << Maldito sea, todavía no he agarrado nada >> por ejemplo. J

En estos cases, estoy aprendiendo la lengua coloquial. Es bueno porque todavía falto mucho de este. Ahora estoy en un plano con mi español. Cada día aprender algo nuevo, pero la mayor parte de las cosas que aprender son de situaciones informales. Aprendo pocas cosas cada día en vez de muchas como cuando tengo clases de español, pero estos cosas son muy importante. Cada día puedo entender mejor las conversaciones y preguntas cuando personas me platican.

Casi cada día leo también, y este me ayuda también. Entonces, con las platicas tengo con todos en mi familia y mis amigos, con las hechos y otras show por la televisión, y los libros, estoy solidificando el base de mis habilidades españoles.

Por medio día, siempre como con mi familia grande. Somos 10 cada día mínimo, pero a veces somos más. Todos sientan en la mesa y comer. Platicamos sobre cualquier asunto y contamos historias del día y el pasado.

Después comer, algunos dormir una siestita, otras hacen otras cosas como mirar televisión, jugar fútbol, platicar por Internet, o algo así. Casi siempre yo leo solo, jugar fútbol con mis hermanos, o jugar una videojuego con ellos. De otra manera, duerma al ratito.

Todo esta muy relajado en la casa, relativamente. Hay mucho ruido siempre, y los niños puedan ser loco, pero este tipo de ambiente me gusta. Todos son muy abiertas y no tengo ningún problema con la gente convivo.

Al contrario, es un placer convivir con ellos y asimismo, a conocer las otras partes de la familia también. La noche antes de Navidad, fui para conocer todos. Los padres de mi padre y de mi madre, y lo de más. Tienen una familia muy grandísimo, y muy divertido, diverso y amable.

Hoy, Navidad, juegue fútbol con mis hermanos otra vez, y pasé mucho tiempo con la familia. Era un día muy relajado para todos, porque todos eran muy cansado por la fiesta anoche, incluyendo yo. Leí el libro que me dio mis padres también. Era muy divertido, y corto. Es un libro sobre Mayas. Pronto, voy a buscar por otro libro me recomendó mi padre sobre Bombas Yucatecos. Mi padre me dice muchas cosas sobre México, Yucatán, y sobre nuestras vecinos también. J Como la puta que vive muy cerca de nosotros que tiene muchísima dinero por su trabajo. Sola hace caballeros ricos, como políticos y estrellas, nada más. Y que increíble, su casa sea un maravilla.

Ayer y hoy estuvieron muy tranquillo. Juegue fútbol y video juegos con mis hermanos, leí mucho de mis libros en español (Dune y El libro del los porques de Maya), comí, etc, y no mucho más. Hoy mí familia compró un perrito, y jugamos con el hoy también. Esta casa es un zoológico. Pero lo me hace pensar de que me gustaría un así mismo. También en la noche una amiga de mis padres nos visito y platicamos sobre mis estudios y experiencias acá. Finalmente, pienso mucho de la posibilidad hacer un negocio pequeño acá en Yucatán, vendiendo carne de bistec humado y seco que todos que han aprobado y les gustaba muchísimo! Mi madre, por ejemplo, quien hace cuatro año no comió carne rojo, no pudo pararse comiéndolo.

Entonces, cosas sean buenas para mí. No tengo ni una queja, excepto si posible mataría todos los mosquitos en México.

Buenas Noches!

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as College Of The Atlantic, Personal Endeveavors at 3:04 AM PST

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Hey everyone, i´m writing to tell you i´m doing pretty good down here in Mexico, where the sun never stops shining, not even for Christamas (Navidad)!

You´ll see that i uploaded some pictures from the fiesta the other night (xmas eve). It was a blast. I met the entire Navarrete Gamboa familia, and more! We had tons of good food and good drinks. Both sides of the familia were very different too. The dad´s side was pretty darn wealthy, i mean, really darn wealthy. Everyone was dressed really fomally, and this and that. It was interesting to see, but not exactly my style. Everyone seemed cool that i talked to, especially this one guy that worked in the house…he used to be a fisherman, now he´s a house assistant. We were heaping the shit on the table together, talking about all sorts of silly stuff. It was fun.

Then we left to visit mom´s side of the familia, and stayed there until about 2 am. Well, around 1 we left down the street to visit a whole house full of her cousins and other parts of the familia. Drinking, drinking drinking. It was fun there too. More so for sure than at padres.

I also met up with a in-law of madre who works with building out and connecting the computer systems and networks within the government. I think i might work with him while i´m here. For all who don´t know, part of the program this year is to do some servicio social, more or less volunteer work. This is to fullfill our third credit of spanish. Which by the way, i´m really happy with how well i´m doing with my spanish. And i´m excited to think how well i´ll be speaking by the end of this term.

My family is great (i have 7, maybe 8…to many to count) brothers and sisters. My dad curses like a sailor, and my mom is a sweetheart who can cook up a storm! Mom, dad, i´m definately not starving here.

The group of students i´m here with sharing this experience is great. 100% better than the group i was with last year (not to say the people themselves are any better…just that the group dynamics for ME are much better, and i´m getting much more from this group than last years).

The program that Karla has put together is fantanstic, we are all really advancing rapidly with our spanish, and having fun and learning alot doing it! The people we are working with (Fatima and Fernando) to learn about the in´s and outs of Yucatan are amazing people too.

Merida is definately a happening city with ton´s a fun things to do…and beautiful women to see. :-) Wow, it´s hot when latino girls dance…that ass! hehe. Wait, did i say all that out loud?

And there has been a prophacy that i will end up living here for the rest of my life….married to a beautiful yucatan women. Well…who knows. As of now, i´m shooting for the first of the too to come true, but the second…well…let´s just say there´s already someone in my life that might just fill that position. She happens to be all the way across the world right now…but we´re always together were it counts. Anyway…details details.

And well….let´s see, i´d say that is about it for now. Merry Xmas, happy new years, and otherwise…happy holidays!

-Chris

Posted by drpoo as General, College Of The Atlantic, Personal Endeveavors at 2:31 PM PST

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