Blog4

WOW! I’ve never sit and think about it!!!! This is hard!!! Well …. I don’t usually spent a lot of time watching TV during the week because I go to school two days a week (Tues & Thurs) from 1 until 9:30pm, and sometimes I work Mon, Wed and sometimes the weekends! But since the economy is really baddddd, I don’t have the same hours of work as I used to have before! So now I only work a few days whenever they call me from the store (Bloomingdales). Since I have more time to be home, now I spent my time watching Spanish Soap Operas at night. I LOVE THEM!! ;-). Especially one that it’s called ‘‘Without Breasts There is No Paradise.” And a few others! During the day I don’t spent that much time watching TV, lets say about 2 to 3 hrs, and during the night about 4 to 5 hrs! And if I’m not too sleepy I keep on watching movies, documentaries, and so on until 2 or 3am! a total of 45-50hrs.
So most of the time fam are never here, except from grandma who recently came from Colombia to live with us! I am very happy to have her here with me, but to be honest I don’t spent that much time with her! :-( why? Because I’m toooo busy watching TV, surfing and chatting on the internet or just on phone with my friends! Wow!! SAD!!! Most of the time when I’m home my time goes by really quick, because after I do my chores and homework I don’t find anything else to do! I think that most of my time is being spent on the internet! I don’t really do interesting things on the internet, I just love going to shoes and clothing stores online :-) well and also I use the MSN messenger a lot! Approximately I spent 5 to 8 hrs on the internet in a whole day, a total of 50hrs.
Shopping? Uhmmm well not like I used to! I think it’s because as I am more mature now, I have more responsibilities, and so my money has to be spent in bills and rent, and not on shoes or cloths! But sometimes I do an exception, and I call my girls and we go shopping! I LOVE LOVE LOVE shoes!! Especially high heels, so whenever I get paid, I get myself a pair of heels :-)! So I don’t really spend more than 2 hrs when I go shopping.
My favorite activities are dancing, going to the movies, spending time with my family and boyfriend, Going out on the evening for drinks and entertainment, fishing, sleep, eat, and many more…! But unfortunately some of these activities are not activities anymore for me! Because I don’t even TRY on doing them anymore! For example expending time with my family and boyfriend is something I obviously do, but not as much as a should! Also fishing, something I did a lot with my grandpa when I lived in Colombia, not anymore in here! Dancing which is my favorite… uhmmm yes sometimes whenever there’s money to go out clubbing. Eating, sleeping, and movies? I also do them everyday and movies almost every Sunday with my b/f :-)
Many people (including myself) spend their days packed with activities, but earn very little because they are not concentrated in the appropriate things. It's a sad reality!!!
This is an interesting website I found, which explains how men and women spend leisure time
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1549394,00.html

Blog 3

DROUGHTS!!

Please realize that global warming is HAPPENING!!!. It was just a matter of time before it started to become more of a serious matter. The earth is a living thing. It is dying, not slowly but more rapidly then we thought it would be! We all have contributed to global warming, some more than others, but it’s a sad reality! The earth is a living thing and we are “killing it”. Earthquakes, tsunamis, tornado's, etc are just part of what’s happening.
The main concern has to be the increase in the global average temperature. From the earth getting hotter and hotter many other problems emerge. For humans, these changes in climate are particularly dangerous because it increase the number of people who die. For example the Bronx is one the cities with more kids that suffer from Asthma and other lung diseases.
Droughts also impact the economy, obviously the people, and the environment. Human beings cannot survive without water and if they don't have it, bad things happen. Generally, as humans, we waste tons of water every single day. (ME - 1hr showers or even more)! We never know when we are possibly getting a drought but I think that there has to be a plan, a serious plan to prevent deaths when droughts occur. During a drought we have to take some simple water conservation steps such as turning off the sink as we brush our teeth.

I foound a really nice website that includes 100 tips to save water!! This are just a few, but you can go to the website and check them all out :-) by doing simple things like that we can save a lot of water and help our communities get through droughts and water shortages.

#1.There are a number of ways to save water, and they all start with you.
#2.When washing dishes by hand, don't let the water run while rinsing. Fill one sink with wash water and the other with rinse water.
#3.Evaporative coolers require a seasonal maintenance checkup. For more efficient cooling, check your evaporative cooler annually.
#4.Check your sprinkler system frequently and adjust sprinklers so only your lawn is watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street.
#5.Run your washing machine and dishwasher only when they are full and you could save 1000 gallons a month.
#6.Avoid planting turf in areas that are hard to water such as steep inclines and isolated strips along sidewalks and driveways.
#7.Install covers on pools and spas and check for leaks around your pumps.
#8.Use the garbage disposal sparingly. Compost instead and save gallons every time.
#9.Plant during the spring or fall when the watering requirements are lower.
#10.Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap for cold drinks, so that every drop goes down you not the drain.

There are poeple who can predict droughts by forecasting two fundamental meteorological surface parameters, precipitation and temperature. this makes it easier to prepare to save water through the drought. because drought is to dry and hot plants cannot survive without water and animals cannot survive without plants, water and other living creatures. so drought has a great effect on the food chain.

http://www.wateruseitwisely.com/100ways/sw.shtml

http://www.drought.unl.edu/kids/whatis.htm

http://www.tag.washington.edu/reasearch/drought.html

Blog 2:

How will I follow my passion?
How will you use my education to make the world a better place?
I never sit and think about my passion, but today I am! Since I was a little girl back in Colombia, I always enjoyed helping others. I enjoy doing that because it was something I learned from my grandparents. My passion is to help people, that way I can transmit a little bit of my love and carrying to others, and by doing so I feel accomplished. I am planning to become a Speech Pathologist very soon. For those who don’t know what the job of a Speech Pathologist is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speech_therapy

I have a 4 year old niece who I love and care about with all my heart; unfortunately she has a speech deficiency. Her speech problem is not that bad, and everyone in the house understands what she’s trying to say. She cuts the words in half and sometimes is hard for her to pronounce some words. We understand she is only 4 yrs old, but she had speech therapists going to my house and teaching her so many things, how to say simple words such as mom, dad, milk, hungry, and so on. I was really impressed with their work, because even though it seems to be easy, I could tell that those therapists were trying their best to improve my niece’s speech. I love kids a lot, and I consider myself to be a very patient person, since then I became really interested in learning more about the job of a Speech Pathologist.

If I become a Speech Pathologist in the next few years I will be able to transfer a little bit of my passion to millions of people who just need a little bit of help. I will also gain Personal Satisfaction, because I will be focusing on doing what I love, helping others communicate better. I really didn’t like seeing my niece struggling every time she wanted to say something, now she has improve a lot, we understand her so much better, and I’ve even become sort of a therapist for her :-). I help her with the homework’s, I read her books, and whenever she says a word incorrectly I try my best to teach her how to pronounce it better. I love doing that, so I am sure that I will stay in school, and do the best of me to raise my GPA so that I can enter to the Speech pathologist program in the college, and work really hard to obtain the license and to have the ability each and every day to make a positive difference in the life of patient.

Blog 1: THE ENVIRONMENT AND ME

Well, today I had to go to work, and I was there all day until 8:30pm. I don’t think I did as much as could have done to help improve the environment today. Well I did take the train instead of asking my sister or mom to give me a ride. I live in Queens and work in the City, at Bloomingdales. I take the bus and train because I think this way I help reduce the pollution, and I also walk a few blocks because is good for my health as well. I work as a sales associate for the fragrance department; which means I have to spray all kinds of fragrances all day long. I try not to spray the ribbons too much because I know that perfumes have all kinds of chemicals and I’m contaminating the environment. I even feel nauseous sometimes at the end of the day for smelling all types of fragrances. Another good thing I always do when someone purchase a fragrance is that whenever I see a costumer carrying a bag from a previous shop, I don’t give them a new bag, I always asked them if I can put the box inside their bags. =) Ohhh, another good thing I try to do as much as I can, is that I always bring my own food to work; I’m not only saving money but also cups, plates, paper, plastic utensils, bags, etc.

To be honest with everybody and to myself, I hardly do something good for the environment. The only thing that I do is recycle, it’s something I know I just have to do, I don’t even think about it. I don’t use hair products as much as I used to, I also try to save paper, I use every single space left on a page, I also try not to use many chemicals at home when cleaning. I don’t really safe any water. I waste a lot of water when I take a shower.
=(… I knowwww!!! I have to change that!!!! But After reading Al Gore's book, I recognize that “WE” should be doing a lot more for our environment. Our planet is really messed up right now, and I will try my best from now on to collaborate as much as I can to save my planet, there will be a day when we won’t have more resources. NOW is the time to change bad habits.