For my final blog, I would like to talk to you all about my favorite
thing in the world: Music. I really love music. I even enjoy writing
the word itself all over my belongings. It’s an everyday thing for me
since I listen to it on my home stereo, car stereo, iPhone and
computer. I must be listening to my favorite tracks everywhere I go
because the songs are always on my mind.

What I really enjoy about music are the lyrics. Lyrics give a song its
meaning and its mood. Ever since I realized which music genre was my
favorite, which happened my senior year in high school, I became
addicted to the radio. I began to listen to Spanish and English radio
stations that played my favorite songs and began to learn about
different singers. I remember I would get home from school and turn on
the radio and leave it on until the music would put me to sleep.

Still today, music rocks me to sleep. My favorite genre is Spanish
pop. I only listen to Spanish music. I feel more attached to Spanish
music since Spanish is the language I first learned. Besides,
sometimes I don’t even know the names of some objects because I never
learned their names in English.

My passion for music has grown after high school and has brought me to
a point where I dream of becoming a famous singer and songwriter.
Sometimes it seems impossible since it is a hard industry to get into
and because first I want to earn a college degree to rely on.

Photo from flickr user uncledave981

Due to my interest in the music industry, I enjoy attending concerts
as well. I have not attended as many concerts because most of my
favorite singers do not really visit the city I live in. Though, I’d
like to share with you the different areas in my city where most
concerts take place.

One of the most popular arenas in Fresno Calif., is the Save Mart
Center located in California State University, Fresno. This arena was
opened in 2003 and has had many performers like Britney Spears,
Madonna, Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift and other famous singers and
performers.

Another popular arena in Fresno is the Fresno Convention Center
located in downtown. This arena brings popular singers as well, but
this arena is more known for hosting community events and other
conventions.

The Saroyan Theater, which is located in the downtown area of Fresno,
is a popular place where mostly the concerts hosted there are those of
emerging artists. I’ve never been to that theater since most concerts
are English music, but my friends have told me it’s a pretty cool
place for concerts.

The Rainbow Ballroom, is the most popular for Spanish music concerts.
This room usually gets very occupied with many fans. The most popular
genres played in this ballroom are Duranguense, Banda and Corridos.
The ballroom does very good at advertising their events so they tend
to grab most of the Latino community in Fresno to attend their events.

I wanted to attend more concerts this year so I applied for a position
at the Save Mart Center. Thankfully, I was hired as an usher and I
must admit I loved the job. What I loved most about the job was
getting the opportunity to see some of my favorite English music
singers for free! I had the opportunity to see Keith Urban, ACDC,
Rascal Flatts, Kelly Clarkson, Jonas Brothers and Jordin Sparks.

Flickr image by me

Music is a big part of my life. I don’t know what I would do with out
music because when I feel depressed I play and sing to my favorite
songs and it soothes my feelings. I plan to travel to South California
and audition for Spanish music networks and begin my singing career.
I have uploaded an audio clip of myself singing one of my favorite
songs, in Spanish of course, so feel free to listen to it. I hope you
enjoy it.

Click here to view the locations of these concert arenas located in Fresno.

Here’s me singing.

As a person with a wide variety of interests, there are many actvities that seem a bit difficult yet interesting to me. I have always tried to accomplish many tasks and have succeeded in many. I’ve always been curious about different things around me and my creativity plays a role as well. Artistic, has been a word others use to describe me. When it comes to art and creative activities, I like to make sure I add the last touch of perfection.

photo from myhairstylingtools.com

As a mass communications and journalism student at California State University, Fresno, all my time is spent at school, work and  organization meetings. There is no room in my schedule to watch TV, read a good book or begin a hobby. At my current age, 20, I would like to get my hands on different projects and activities so that I can experience many different things.
I thought about some of the closest options I had so I could try something new. I decided to give hair styling. Two of my sisters-in-law are professional hair stylists and I decided to visit one of them at her workplace to take a glance at what she does.
When I arrived to my sister-in-law’s hair salon, she was giving a haircut to one of her clients. I had already let her know that I’d be visiting. I observed as she trimmed hair. It seemed very difficult at the beginning, but I could already see myself using the hair clipper.
“It’s really simple Tony, you just have to pay attention to the way you move the clipper and to what angle you’re cutting.” said my sister-in-law Edrina.
I admired her patience and the passion she put into her work. After finishing up with her client, I spoke to her about her career. Edrina has ten years of experience in the cosmetology industry. She explained how nervous she would be as a cosmetology student. It took hard work and dedication since she wanted to someday be a professional hair stylist. She knew that if she wanted to succeed and become a well-known hair stylist she would have to impress judges the day of the final test. After high school, she attended Milan Institute of Cosmetology; where she obtained her license of cosmetology. She was hired by Planet Hair, a high end hair salon located in Fresno’s River Park shopping center.

I went home and studied the clippers my other brother owned, since he cuts his hair with his own clippers. I felt like I could manage to trim mens hair if I cut it carefully. My younger brother was an option, so I asked him if I can use him. He agreed to accompany me to my sister-in-law’s hair salon. At the salon, Edrina explained what each of the clippers would do. She demonstrated what it was to texturize the hairstyle and she explained how to move the clipper’s guard around the client’s head. It all seemed very difficult to me. In a few minutes after she was done lecturing me, another client of hers walked in. He wanted an average fade. An average fade is when the lower area of one’s hair is trimmed with a short clipper guard and the length of the hair increases to the top of the head as it is trimmed with a longer clipper guard: it’s usually a short hair cut for men. As my sister-in-law trimmed his hair it seemed like a very easy process. She gently trimmed with one guard switching to another when needed. My brother was ready for a hair trim as well, a more styled one. He wanted a fohawk.
Soon came my turn to impress her, a professional hair stylist. My brother was terrified that I was going to be trimming his hair, but he said he believed I could do a good job. Of course I was nervous because I did not want to damage my brother’s hairstyle. Yet, he always had the option of going bald after having a good laugh if I did mess up. I found some photos and videos demonstrating how to trim the smaller things like the hair around the ear and how to trim the sideburns evenly. I’m thankful to have found these videos because they helped me understand the way I should hold and move the clippers. The eHow Web site was awesome help because it had a tutorial demonstrating how to give yourself a fade. After reviewing the tutorial I felt a bit more comfortable about the whole experience. As I was trimming my brothers hair, I took my time and I paid close attention to every move I made. I observed every angle carefully and I managed to use the clippers easily. Of course I was nervous, but once I was trimming she told me where to ease in.
“Try not to press the clipper onto the scalp so much, it may cause you to slip and ruin the shape of the haircut,” she said. I did as I was told and soon enough I was all done with my brother’s haircut. My sister-in-law Edrina just helped me by fixing the fohawk part by point-cutting with the scissors to give it texture. My brother seemed to have liked the work I did. He did not say a word and made no face gestures so I took that as a compliment.
I felt like I could become a hair stylist pretty soon. I already enjoy fixing and styling my hair, including my brother and nephew’s hair just that I’ve never done the actual trimming and point-cutting. I would say I didn’t do so bad for a first time. The hard part could be getting used to different types of hair like Edrina had mentioned to me. She said it could be a bit difficult to adapt to many types of hair. I hope to learn more about hairstyling and hair trimming and learn how to cut my own hair as well. Even though this was just my first time, I learned enough and now my brother has a new hairstylist. It’s awesome to even just imagine that my work can possibly get to be displayed in a magazine where young creative people can show their abilities and talents. Often, people have hidden talents even themselves are not aware of. Maybe being a hairstylist is something I can do pretty well.

Click here is a photo slide of some photos Edrina took with her camera and shared with us!

Click on each of these links to hear a bit from Edrina, she was very shy to speak to the mic so she wrote what she wanted to share with us.

This is a clip from what my brother had to say.

As a small boy living in Guanajuato, Mexico, he saw the hard work his parents went through. The only way he knew about his father, who was always away from home, was by hearing his mother speak about him. Once he moved to the U.S., without the ability to speak English, Raul Moreno experienced childhood and working and living conditions with one of the biggest obstacles in life.

Raul Moreno has great enthusiasm to continue supporting his goals and accomplishments. Today, he works with migrant students who like him share common history and supports them through their college studies. His time contribution has made an impact in cities around the Central Valley of California by providing college information fairs for residents in small towns and by getting students to serve their community.

After attending first through sixth grade in Mexico, Moreno was brought by his parents to the United States. Not long after he moved to the States, Moreno and his family began to work in the farms. His parents were able to buy their son the bicycle he always wished for. This object brought a huge change to Moreno’s life. After being struck by an automobile, he lost his eyesight, and would not regain it until after college.

Moreno developed his career after attending Merced College. After his father realized Moreno could not continue working in the fields, he decided that the best thing for Moreno to do was to continue his education. What Moreno really wanted was to continue working in the fields with his brothers, but he could no longer function and complete the tasks correctly.

A short time after, he got another opportunity to finish high school and graduate from Merced College. He continued on to college where he met people who guided him. He could not speak English, could not see anything and ended up quitting three days later. Moreno made a few friends who helped him through college.

After making connections and getting an interview to enter California State University, Fresno, he got the chance to enroll in classes. In his classes, the school offered him tutors and tools from the department for students with disabilities. When he’d get to the classroom, teachers already knew he needed special attention. He graduated Fresno State with a 2.97 grade point average in Linguistics with an emphasis in English and Spanish. However, having no experience, he could not find a job after college. Moreno returned to farm work in order to be financially stable. After college, things were a bit easier for Moreno. With the help of doctors, Moreno regained his vision.

Currently, Raul is a program director and has recently released two books. He founded the Education and Leadership Foundation, where today he serves as the president of the foundation. The purpose of the foundation is to find more resources to help migrant college students. “My number one purpose was to find scholarships for the students through donations and through fundraisers, was my number one reason,” said Moreno. The foundation has joined other organizations and state programs that allow students who apply through the Education and Leadership Foundation to have a job working with younger students and with other programs. This foundation also gathers funds and provides university students with the opportunity to apply for scholarships. These scholarships are available from funds given by companies who contribute to the foundations so that students can provide community service and apply for these scholarships.

“Ronald McDonald House of Charities told me they needed people to help clean the house. We send them people and the next thing we know is they sent us a donation of $3,000,” said Moreno. “The foundation has opened doors to many students who are undocumented residents as well as to those who are documented.

Raul Moreno makes it possible for students to apply to join the foundation and find those resources available to them. This makes it more possible for students to attend college, pay their tuition and have a job. The Education and Leadership Foundation has been very successful, and this has inspired Moreno to write about people’s accomplishments, especially focusing on Hispanic farmworkers.

After learning enough from his students, Moreno was motivated to write about farmworkers dignified work. The desire of creating literature about farm workers is what really encouraged him to write. He said newspapers and most books relating to farmworkers life and lifestyle depict negative aspects of farmerworkers. He began his own press called Education and Leadership Press. The profit goes to scholarships for students to receive, once they have met a requirement of serving their community.

“I’ve always realized that there is not enough literature that truly tells the stories of our people,” said Moreno. “It is our job to document to document our history. Nobody else is going to do it for us. Later on we are going to complain if someone writes about our history and we’re not going to like the way they portrayed us,” he said.

When speaking about his students and his job, you can see the hope and angst to know what else may develop with the foundation. As a counselor for University Migrant Services in Fresno State, he works with migrant students and helps them with college difficulties.

“The thing about our program is that we have U.S. born citizens that are children of farmworkers, but we also have a large number of immigrant students, so we always try to make a special effort to help undocumented students,” said Moreno.

In 2002, the Welfare Reform Act took place and he lost many undocumented students who could no longer afford tuition. “That became my challenge, to get them back. I told myself I’m going to do what ever it takes, but I’m going to get them back,” Moreno said. Raul continued to look for resources to help his students. He found scholarships for students and helped students to continue their education.

Moreno’s advice for today’s students is for them to be open-minded, documented or undocumented, in order to succeed. “You have to accept who you are, accept yourself with your weaknesses and strengths and build on those weaknesses, appreciate your parents, appreciate your country and develop those goals,” said Moreno.

In the future, Moreno would like to find a way to perpetuate what he has created. He wants to push students to help their community and help people develop professional skills. Calmly, Moreno says fear tends to be the biggest challenge for humans since it only holds us back: “Don’t be afraid to be who you want to be, and start today.”

Here are some photos to share with you. Click on each to view its audio version.

Feel free to learn more about Raul Moreno and what he does by clicking here.

We make decisions daily. From what clothes to wear, what kind of cereal to have as breakfast, skip breakfast or not, go to school or skip class.  There are many times in life in which we have to make some of the toughest decisions. We come across situations we never expected or even new people we never expected to enter in our lives. Of course, it is all part of life.

Sometimes we tend to be afraid of making choices. We are afraid of what the consequences may be and we begin to think about the positives and negatives this decision may bring. Some people tend to think positively most of the time because they’re optimistic, but others tend to be very pessimistic eventually leading them not to make a choice at all. Those with optimism tend to hope for the best and they face a situation as if they were unbeatable.

Photo from GoodLife ZEN

I have a great example of a friend who has given me permission to write about his story but without displaying any private information. He was finding it very difficult to make a decision towards beginning a relationship or not. He had been talking to a girl his age whom he had met at school. When he wasn’t very busy, they talked on the phone at nights and he found his feelings were developing into something more. It was obvious that the girl whom he was talking to, was also into him as he was into her. He never expressed to her the way he felt towards her and neither did she. Both as respectful, trusting and responsible people, they are the kind of teenagers who would know how to manage a healthy relationship.

This story I’m talking about is happening at this very moment. Still, he has not let this girl know how he feels about her. She has demonstrated interest in him but she has not expressed her self about her feelings towards him neither. He really likes her and is willing to begin a relationship because he has admitted to feel lonely at times and would prefer having a girlfriend. The reasons why he does not want to begin a relationship are because he does not want to lack the attention in the relationship since he is a very busy student and because he is also not wanting to waste time if the relationship were to come to an end too soon.

What could be going on that neither of them express what they really feel for each other? Why should he be afraid? Should he not be afraid? I decided to do some research and help my friend make his decision.

I found that most people struggle when it comes to making a decision and it is mostly due to lack of clarity, fear of failure, lack of structured approach and procrastinating.

Those who do not have a clear plan or have a positive image of what the results may be after making a decision are more likely to give it a try because they have already focused on the choice. If this guy fears failure he will be less animated to making a decision.

Ezine Articles helps us make decisions by sharing tips on decision making.

I ask my friend, “How do we expect to develop our feelings if we don’t share them? How will be be able to learn more from what’s in stock for us in life if we don’t take chances? Nothing to lose and so much to gain.” After all, only by expressing his true feelings would he know if the results were what he expected or not.I see making decisions as a part of life in which we risk our selves. With out taking risks, I believe we wouldn’t know what we’re capable of doing and achieving.

I found other amazing websites that offer tips and descriptions for decision making. Enjoy!

• Decision Making Confidence
• Thinking About Risk
• Management Skills Blog
• Goodlife ZEN

After attending the Roger Tatarian Journalism Symposium at Fresno State, I left the room with angst to read about the war. I don’t get to read the newspaper as much so all I wanted was to go pick up a newspaper and read a report on war, but sadly I didn’t get a chance to pick up a newspaper nor go online. What I did do, though, was analyze information that journalists Gareth Porter and Nancy Youssef shared with us about journalism and their experiences.

Photo by Ciafront graphics

A specific note that stood out to me from Porter was when he said journalists depend on sources. He stated that having a source to receive continual information and developing relationships are like necessary tools for a journalist. It is because as a journalist you write a story that directly challenges with critical information, meaning that the story written must be supported and the information provided should be accurate and credible. I learned in my media ethics class that every journalist should learn how to connect with others and keep relationships and have them as truthful and reliable sources. Just like Wikipedia is not a reliable source, journalist can’t rely on information they can find on a social media Web site unless Twitter is very reliable today.

Journalist Youssef reported from Iraq for four years and she shared her experience of how it was to report during war time. I would say journalist Youseff was more or so her own source. I say this because she lived amongst Iraqis and she felt that  being there, there was no way to understand who was safe and who was not. She stated that she had to depend on herself and having an agenda to follow. She couldn’t rely on people very much so she would always be listening.

I’ve learned that reporting about very important issues can be difficult since you are under pressure and others depend on you to provide reliable facts. We all paid attention to different things the speakers had to say, so I interviewed others of what they understood from this event. One Fresno State student found very interesting that journalist Youseff learned the Arab language in order to communicate and be able to report. I acknowledge several points from the speakers, but I couldn’t resist from asking mass communications and journalism professor Dr. Kelley Campos McCoy about what she thought students should take from this event.

Dr. McCoy (audio)

Student (audio)

I enjoy reading newspapers and magazines, but they have to seem neat in some way. The layout on a page catches my attention quickly and makes me want to read the article even more. A picture surrounded with writing doesn’t grab my attention much, but if the picture was on top of the writing or below a set of paragraphs, then it would be more appealing to me. Nice topography is just amazing to me. That’s one reason I decided to take my first mass communications course because I knew it would involve a lot of reading and writing and I was going to have the chance to read and write about topics within journalism.

All the media writing though, is probably mostly done online. We’re even losing pages in newspapers because the internet has allowed us to receive our news instantly online. We may be able to receive instant news via the web, but I still prefer reading off a newspaper and magazines because i get to hold the hard copy. I feel like it is somehow more original. Truth is, writing online has given journalists, bloggers, and just about anyone who enjoys writing, the chance to be more creative and be able to share their thoughts and ideas with more people. Not that I think it’s a bad idea, but I was quite impressed when I found that a large amount of people like to blog and they rely on bogging for part of their income! Isn’t that amazing?

Believe it or not, more people than ever before, people are making money by the click. According to blogger Michelle Goodman, 1.7 million Americans make money by just blogging. There are literally many ways out there in which you can earn your self some money by just writing, and I hope I can do that sometime soon. Over the winter break, I started a blog on Blogger, but since I wasn’t very familiar with the website’s format, I got frustrated and left it alone.

I have found that writing, not only as a job but as a hobby, can help you get words out to others whom like you share same interests and same points of view. Just like a journalist’s job is to provide a message to an audience, we have the chance to express ourselves online. Not only through socializing networks, but within blogs, online newspapers, and by leaving comments on others’ posts. I definitely will start reading other blogs that interest me and give some feedback. The type of writing I really want to do is writing about friendships, life situations, and little questions people ask themselves but never bother to ask others around them. For example, I can see one of my entries titled, “What to do with a person who…,” and from there develop a connection with the readers. Since this year I told myself to focus more on reading and writing, songwriting is another thing I have begun, so if you like music just like I do,  come back to my blog and soon I’ll begin to share my lyrics. Photos that I’ve captured around the city or around my home, are another thing I will want to share with you through Flickr and this blog. For now, here is one taken from my iPhone!

Photo by me

Photo by Flickr user john_a_ward

In this blog, I plan to write about my thoughts, observations, and ideas about journalism. I’m still working on making time around my schedule to stay updated and read from different bloggers. I plan to discuss my thoughts about today’s journalism and I would also like to compare points of view with colleagues. Broadcasting is my main focus, and since I have a passion for music television, I tend to notice reporters and presenters the most! I will more than likely try to involve some music in this blog as well. I will probably be focusing a lot on etiquette. I’d like to talk about so many things related with journalism and my entrance into it. Personally, I believe the media has changed dramatically and has made it easy for us to learn and become more aware of our surroundings. Throughout my college courses, regarding media, I have learned about issues within the the Media and how people are affected by it. From being ethical, to stereotypes and social issues, I find it extremely important to watch out for vocabulary usage and the way current or future journalist present themselves to broad audiences. I try to pay close attention to journalist’s expressions through their writing and the way they try to send a message to their audience. Since english is my second language, I could admit I feel a bit unprepared to become a writer or reporter because I sometimes find it challenging to use correct terminology or express myself as well, but that’s why I’m taking college courses right?  I really enjoy Spanish journalism as well, so I hope to find bloggers who have that in common- or if you speak spanish, Bienvenido/a!

I’m anxious to learn and exchange thoughts and experiences from others within the journalism industry. I hope to make this blog interesting and I hope you visit this blog often and interact by leaving a comment or question. Let’s Blog! How about vlogs? Those seem fun!

listen to my short welcome audio clip

Quick interview with Devrie, a Fresno State student.

Henry Madden Library’s busy elevator

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