More supporters less critics… let art be art.. (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Oh how the time flies… I recently wrote a blog post, but before writing this one sadly I wasn’t sure if I had posted it… I did… This just means I haven’t been writing enough. Lately I’ve been working on a graduate school application trying to sum up my life in 7 very general questions that don’t seem to ask much about the person I have transformed into through life experiences  I guess that’s life, we have to bend the rules in order to freely express ourselves and still manage to get what we want out of it.

I’ve been doing a decent job of sharing things that inspire me lately on this blog. Last night the Pharrell interview with Henry Rollins really inspired me. It made me feel like I wasn’t crazy. YES, I am not the only one who thinks that equality and justice should be common sense. We are far from perfect beings, but we are slowly moving in the direction of enlightenment.

I am trying to catch myself when blogging in order to find some sort of direction. Inspiration is always nice to find but often times the same things that I post that affect me can affect us all. From the recent Boston bombings to drone strikes. However, this is not a news blog.. If you want the news follow NPR or something, however I do my best to add my perspective on situations. Bloging to me is a form of art. Articulation to me is art. Being able to put together words is important to me, to tell your truth and deliver information. Factual or fiction its all in the delivery. My writing skills are not amazing, but its easier to freely right a blog and not care if it will be broken down and torn apart since there is little consequence for my opinion!

Insert Segway here…

The other day I sat back thinking about all the time I spent as an amateur Hip Hop artist. When I say amateur, I mean nobody really heard it, except for a few of my friends and my family. I thank them for their ears, their criticism, their support, their honesty, and for some their lies. Lol. Recording music was my way to express myself, even when expressing pure ignorance, I was telling my truth as I knew it. I look back on the enjoyment I received when a song was completed and ready to be shared and I remember how much I enjoyed those moments. At some point life got involved and I began to see that I was in too deep and what was once a hobby, and a way to express myself became open for interpretation by anyone who would listen. It changed from a hobby to me to a DREAM that I wanted, and the goal was less about therapy and more about trying to get paid. I’m not sure when that happened; I’m not sure when I realized it wasn’t feasible. One day I just stopped. I became a critic like everyone else examining and dissecting everyone else’s art. It sounds horrible but it’s the truth. Today, art is art to me. I have my opinions, but it’s like religion, your god may not be my god and I’m okay with that. You enjoy what you enjoy because of why you enjoy it. That’s all that matters to me. I will support the art that I enjoy and life will be okay for all of us. On the flip side I will defend the art that I like to the fullest if debates occur, and still think some art is GARBAGE (haha). It’s not that the art I like is better than what you like, but it’s like saying “I have the best mom.” She may not actually be THE best, but shes MY mom… so no doubt I will defend her honor.

I’m wrapping up this grad school app, still on my work out plan, still cooking, and not yet learning my Japanese. The days are going by faster and I’m determined to make the most of the extra day light we have. Stay focused.

-Ambassador

Happy Valentine’s Day (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Happy Valentine’s Day! This week is going pretty well. I am doing my best to keep these write up’s short so forgive me if I ramble. Tuesday night I was able to attend an event aimed to link young black undergraduates with mentors and allies. This was a very good event, and while I have a few complaints sometimes it’s better to keep them to yourself and look at the positives. This was a great networking opportunity for me since I am so new at this institution and really don’t know that many people outside of my department. I am actually following up by having lunch with one of the people I met and exchanging emails with some individuals who are currently in a Master’s Program I am looking into.

Wednesday was a great day. After a great workout at the gym I was able to speak to a co-worker who graduated from the same Master’s program I am applying to. I also found out that there will be a free 3 hour session on using Final Cut Pro X next month!

I will start hiking Tiger Mountain soon with one of the Doctors from our department and some co-workers. The goal is for the group to go on a continued basis, and also to diversify my hiking trips as well. The gym is great, but nothing will prepare me like actually getting up and doing it in the beautiful Washington state outdoors.

I ended the day with a delicious steak and lobster dinner (which I learned was called surf and turf.. lol) with my lady. She works tonight so we celebrated early. She also gave me gifts with a card made of a picture from our first valentine’s day we spent together back in 2007 before we started dating. Of course being an online shopper my gift didn’t arrive in time. I hope she likes it.

Ambassador

Time to Level Up (Written By AmbassadorNique)

I’ll keep this one short and sweat since most of my writings tend to ramble on. I’ve done a decent job of staying committed to my goals thus far, but now it’s time to level up and take it to the next level. The plan is to move to a weekly budget, I should be able to save more money now that my credit cards will be paid off. I would like to start waking up and hitting the gym 3 times a week, and taking my home workout more seriously and be more consistent about the workout and going to sleep earlier. I also need to diversify my dishes and more food uploads. My last GRE Prep class is tomorrow morning and a practice exam has been scheduled for March 9^th (should probably find a sooner one). Time to TURN UP!

I’ve been doing a better job of genuinely keeping a positive attitude at work and going out of my way to take advantage of networking opportunities. I definitely need to find more productive ways to use my free time.

Relationship wise I’ve recognized my girlfriends love languages are quality time and acts of service, but I need to do a better job of not letting small things lead me off course of building the foundation we are trying to build for ourselves. I am also working hard to continue to work on progressing in my personal maturity and communication. A friend of mine told me the other day “I would hate to date you because you always seem like you are thinking 10 steps ahead of everyone else.” A gift and a curse I suppose, but I will try to be sure to use those 10 steps to aim for happiness. (**sidenote** Valentine’s day is next week… hmmmmmm…..)

My tax return is on its way and will serve as emergency savings only. No big plans to buy anything or take any trips. Paying off debt slowed me down from my savings for Japan but this will start this month! August is getting closer and Mt. Fuji isn’t getting any smaller!

If you’ve made it this far I hope you too are being realistic about your goals. Continue on your marathon, and best of luck to you on accomplishing your aspirations.

-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. 

‘Girls’ Through the Veil

“Invisibility is problematic, caricature is worse….”

This article is from last year but I really enjoyed the analysis of the portrayal of the black woman on television. The quote above made me pose the same question to myself not only about black women but about all people of color. To take it a step further all under-represented groups. At the same time the article was also inspiring in thinking about the importance of creating our own content and holding each other accountable for how we are representing cultures of color. Rightfully so, it is still important to hold larger establishments accountable for their violations. In the age of smart phones I am surprised at the level of ignorance that still exists about minorities. One would think with so much information at our fingertips we would no longer be so quick to assume things about the unknown. I suppose with so much bad content, it’s hard to know where to find the truth. Only time will tell I suppose. 

‘Girls’ Through the Veil

Everything I’m Not Made Me Everything I Am (Written By AmbassadorNique)

Everything I’m not made me everything I am. Well it’s been about a month at my new position and I’m still happy. Things are pretty slow since students are now on Winter Vacation, but it has given me time to learn concepts and understand things before the real fun starts in January. Some big things are coming my way this Winter. My goal is to start a new gym membership in January and start waking up early at least 2 days a week to make this happen. Hopefully I will start an extended learning Japanese class January 8^th where I can learn basic Japanese language and culture. The goal is to be a lot more dedicated than I am about learning the language now. I will also be starting a GRE prep course in February that will hopefully allow me to successfully apply for a Masters program. My goal is to obtain a Masters that will allow me to use Digital Media and Social Networking to progress social and criminal justice.

I’ve recently bought two new books read. The first will be The Five Love Languages. This book is all about communication and understanding in relationships. The second book is Total Money Makeover. This one is all about saving money! These are two things I think EVERYONE should work on. More importantly these are things that I need to work on.

Continuing to educate myself is definitely something that I feel is very important to me progressing in this world. While I know that this will require much more time and much more effort than I’m giving now, I also know that it will be well worth it!

My New Year resolution is COMMITMENT. As long as I can commit myself to my goals and not let anything stand in my way 2013 will be a great year. Living in America we are all given some form of opportunity that can significantly change our living situations no matter what cards we are dealt. Nothing is perfect but every day is a new day to progress. Keep working, keep your integrity and keep smiling.

-Ambassador

Conversations… (Written By AmbassadorNique)

The day after I wrote my last post on Tumblr I was able to speak with a random young lady who had recently graduated from Western Washington University in 2011. We were both volunteering at the Seattle Community Resource Exchange, an event that gave aid and resources to Seattle’s homeless populations and anyone else who needed the resources being offered. Listening to her speak was like listening to a younger version of myself speak. The level of pride she had for her college degree and the hard work that she had put in to receive it felt familiar. I mostly did my best to listen to her speak about her not knowing if she wanted to commit to going to Graduate school or if she wanted to follow her dream of becoming a professional sky diver instructor. Ironically we had both read Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers” and I reminded her of the 10,000 hours that it takes to master anything. After a long conversation there was no concrete answer but she agreed that commitment was something that was definitely necessary in this case. While I believe I helped this young lady, it honestly helped me more than anything. It reminded me that nothing happens without hard work and dedication. COMMITMENT… One can not be successful without commitment.

For many recent graduates upon gradation we were hit with the harsh reality that the real world wasn’t as eager to accept fresh blood. That and student loan payments… Myself and many others returned to the drawing board re-evaluating what direction it is that we wanted to go with the rest of our lives. I personally have returned to this drawing board more times than I’d like to admit, however I am thankful to have had the opportunities to do so. While there are many directions that any of us can go without first committing ourselves to a goal there is no way to get the 10,000 that Gladwell speaks of. While I have returned to the drawing board I only hope that I will soon find what I am looking for. 

Today I received a phone call from an old friends mother that I have neglected to call in quite sometime. I never want to be the person to burden anyone when I am down, but rather share good news, resources, and opportunity. She let me know I wasn’t the only one going through hard times, and reminded me that this economy was effecting everyone. This was something that I already knew, yet I suppose we get so lost in our own world of issues that sometimes we forget. She had told me someone close to us had recently fell on harder times losing possessions much more valuable.

After ending the phone call it made me think how much I have to be thankful for. My health, my families health, my possessions, the roof over my head, my transportation, great friends, my girlfriend. If not having career in the midst of the worst depression since the 1930s is the biggest problem I face on a daily basis, I must say I have a lot to be thankful for.

Peace and Love,

Ambassador

What have you created today?

“The world will beat you up if you let it…” Through it all we must find new reasons to smile, new ways to stay motivated, and new creations to give to the world… All we need is love…

Shocking ‘napalm girl’ photo from Vietnam War turns 40

I thought this was an amazing story! This woman was dealt a hand that would cause most people to fold, yet she still found a way to be ambitious chase her dreams and make her way through the obstacles.

Through patience and perseverance, hard work and dedication anything is possible. Sometimes success in life is about timing and being able to take advantage when opportunity presents itself. Its still sad to think that 1972 was not so long ago. In the words of Marvin Gay(e) “War Is Not The Answer… for only love can conquer hate” 

Shocking ‘napalm girl’ photo from Vietnam War turns 40