Stay humble, Stay Foolish and Stay Disciplined… (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Life is good. Last Thursday I was able to be a sit in photographer for a friend of mine during a Culture Night at an elementary school where he teaches. It is a yearly community event that has been going on for over 10 years. It’s a fashion show with food and outfits, and music. I had a great time and it was nice to see so many different cultures celebrating all under one roof. My pictures were not as popular as I would have thought, but most people didn’t know they were free, and I guess getting your picture taken by a stranger isn’t something everyone runs to get done. Nevertheless I took 50+ pictures. It reminded me of the international fashion show I was able to help start at Central as an undergraduate.

Last weekend I spent the whole weekend with D and we had great adventures. I was able to sit in a 3 hour video editing class to learn more about Final Cut Pro X while she studied for her Anatomy class. I found I knew more than I thought I did but was able to pick up some new tips. Afterword’s, I cooked for her and I bought her a one hour deep tissue massage. Apparently deep tissue is more painful than it is relaxation. LOL Who knew?! Nevertheless her body felt relaxed afterwards.

The next day D and I would hike Tiger Mountain with my co-worker and a 75 year old doctor who teaches in our department. We’d bugged him for weeks about taking us with him on the climb that he does 3 times a week. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. One of the bones behind my knee had been hurting for the past week, but I knew hiking would make D happy so I just pushed through. This was probably a mistake. The mountain was A LOT steeper than any of us would expect. I really didn’t think I would make it, but two hours later it felt so good to be at the top and we all felt accomplished!

It felt like going down took longer than climbing up. We traveled through rain, sunshine, dirt, mud and even snow! All in all it was a great bonding experience. I learned that the only way to train to climb a mountain was the climb mountains. So… That’s what I will do!

All in all I am doing great! I cook all the time now. I have started making connections and reaching out to old contacts to start my Graduate application process. This Thursday I my top braces will be removed. I am SO excited about this! Saturday morning I will go to the dentist to get an x-ray of a dead tooth to see what my options are, and immediately after that around 11:30 I will take a practice GRE exam.

 Apparently If I register for the full time Master program I am applying to the GRE is not required. There is an info session next Wednesday evening where I hope to learn more and be closer to making a decision.

Work is work.. I am learning how to be in control of my own happiness and not let the attitudes of others ruin my day. I am also doing my best to use my spare time wisely.

My relationship is good. Dating someone who is ambitious and goal oriented is not always easy, because the sacrifice is quality time. However, if you love a person you should love them enough to want to do whatever you can to help them reach their goals while reaching for your own. I am still learning and definitely still maturing. It’s a process.

Oh yeah… I BOUGHT MY TICKET TO JAPAN! How could I forget?! Now its just about being ready to climb Fuji. No joke, half way up tiger mountain I was thinking there’s no way I can make it to the top of Fuji. My ticket was really expensive, but nevertheless its an investment. I am determined to make it to the top and it will be the experience of a lifetime!  

Overall life is good. I hope to climb a new local mountain in the near future. I plan to continue to stay disciplined about my finances and focused on continuing my education. Speaking of education D’s younger sister got her acceptance letter from Seattle University. Still waiting for like 9 more schools, most importantly Stanford! Nevertheless her journey inspires me. While many say there is no hope for the youth or the future, I say we’ll just have to wait in say.

Stay humble, stay foolish and stay disciplined.

-Ambassador

“Nothing easy is ever memorable” (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Happy Monday everyone! What an eventful weekend filled with some test preparation, spending time having meaningful conversations with some college mentors and buddies, and of course the SUPERBOWL! What a game, right? I’ll leave it at that, great performances, an unexplained power outage, some decent and very awkward commercials, (I’m still a bit angry at the dodge “god created farmers” commercial). Nevertheless it was a fun game to watch.

Quick updates on my goals. My commitment to the gym is still going strong. It might be time to kick it up a notch and turn up! Also going well is my soda boycott and vow to cook. I haven’t been doing so well on implementing more fruits and veggies and just okay on the whole eating a salad everyday thing. My budgeting and money management is going well with a few minor surprises here and there. Nevertheless my three goals to stay healthy, stay educated and practice good money management are progressing.

 “Ultimately it was about letting all of you have that space to delve deeper into your souls and learn what is it that makes you tick and hopefully awaken some social responsibility. That is what the college experience is truly about.”

This is a quote from a conversation via text messaging I was having with one of my mentors from college. These thoughts stood out to me in my quest to move forward and continue my education. I am so thankful to have had the chance to get this out of my college experience. Since graduating I am able to speak to individuals and find out quickly who did and did not have this opportunity. There’s nothing wrong with still not understanding the social dynamics that make up our society, however it is unfortunate to see college educated individuals say and believe very stereotypical and socially ignorant comments. To me its not about always being politically correct as much as it is facts verse opinion. That is why I love the quote, “Misinformation is a weapon of mass distruction.”

From my experience I received an understanding of the importance of standing up for justice, speaking up for one’s self, demanding equality, and collaboration. These are things that seem easy but in the face of adversity in a setting where you may be close to the bottom of the totem pole, speaking out can be difficult. I am thankful to have been armed with knowledge, confidence and experiences to fall back on for guidance whenever I seem to get lost. In time I gained the confidence to speak up to discrimination, even if it was being done by people around me, co-workers, family, or my own friends. More importantly I’ve learned to check my own prejudice and accept and change my own ignorance. I am far from perfect and nobody will ever be. I am a work in progress, and a student of life.

While it is important to be able to take care of ourselves financially to me it is more important that we feed our minds. We learn as much as we can, network, speak and share with others, travel, taste and experience what this world has to offer.

“Nothing easy is ever memorable”

My goal is to climb Mt. Fuji this August and it will not be easy. I was told “nothing easy is ever memorable.” This was another quote from my conversation this weekend. After hearing it I thought  to myself, that was very simple, however; it made so much since. Those few words in a way, puts everything in perspective. Staying disciplined about my finances, my health, and my education are not easy tasks to commit too. Nevertheless I know for sure that the reward will be the greater than the sacrifice. 

Ambassador Thoughts… (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Life… How time heals all wounds and changes past grudges into old forgotten memories. The beauty of the sunrise is that tomorrow brings gifts that we may or may not appreciate. Many say that you should not dwell in the past and always look forward. On some instances I agree, however… Sometimes in revisiting the past you find old gems once forgotten that bring meaning to the present. Beauty in the moments and small things that made you who you are today. These things make you appreciate the ones you love that much more. The realization of the bigger picture. The realization that our thoughts, our morals and our values were once seeds planted and watered that grew into life. Yes there will always be struggle, there will always be obstacles, but no struggle is forever and as long as we continue to wake up any wound can be healed and any relationship can be patched. Mistakes are made and tempers flare, but in these moments understanding is most important. Always dig deeper than surface level and see an image larger than what is presented. Reality is much bigger than the perception of an outsider. Do what you can to share moments and spend time with the people you love. Dedication and commitment will always be important, but the commitment and dedication one has to his or her family must take top priority. Life is good. Week 2 of work is finished… Pay Day is tomorrow… and today is the birthday of a woman I love dearly. Let me Learn… Let me grow… Let me continue to make mistakes.. Let me continue to stay focused. 

Ambassador