Entry #8: Behind the Scenes Part 3

*Final Thoughts*

The school days I found very educational because they were reciting exceptional pieces of literature. It being part of literature also makes it a part of history and just the entire experince is educational in itself. The entire festival is eduacational because they have the jolting, jewlery making, music, dancing, and so much more. It shows the different ways music used to be during that period from playing bagpipes to tamborines.  It also showed the difference in characters, it showed what barbarians, fairys, kings, queens, and gypseys wore.  

Durning the judging my duty was dealing with some of the braty children. They kept talking excessivley during the students perfromacne and John(main judge) kept getting irrated because he could bearly hear them. I kept getting annoyed myself because I kept having to walk over to each of them personally to have them quite down which they didnt want to do. It was a very long day from me having to walk back and forth to the front of the fair to drop off the score sheets from the Hacinda building, watching some dreadful performances, and just paying attention because I have the shortest attention span.

In the end I had a blast and wouldnt of had the opportunity if it wasn't for Mrs. Q. Thank you and I will definatly go again and maybe ill even try out in May now so I can take part in next year.

Entry #5: Participate in a RE-enactment

*Particiaption*

I went two days to the festival and the first time I went I was dressed as a pirate. I tried to speak as pirates would with a raspy type voice. I think I sounded like a man who just got done smoking a pack of cigerattes. It was fun though becasue when I would talk to people I'd be like Aye aye Captin, Ahoy!, Arrr. Towards the end of the day I had googled some slag words and ways to make people laugh. I went up to a woman, trying not to laugh, offered my hand and said "C’mere, me beauty" and danced with her for like 4 seconds. She had fun and I was way too hyper off cotton candy, cokes, and my medication from the morning. But I wanted to do it because usually I keep to myself and dont like to act/perform or anything along those lines. I ended up realizing its a bunch of fun. The next time I went on the last Sunday and I pretended to have an enlish accent which I found out im pretty awesome at it. I kinda cheated though because I have a best friend, Jamilah, from england and she taught me a few things. She laughed at me the entire time because she said I sounded like I was from Northern Europe and it was a tad different from her accent. Jamilah came along with me the second time. Yes, I was drinking the second time I came which made everything hilarious to me because Im a light weight and had a few too many by 4pm. We took full advantage of our states of minds and just let loose and played around. Next year we are planning on going and dressing up in the huge puffy gowns with the corsets and our hair did all up in braids!!! I can't wait!

Entry #7: Behind the Scenes Part 2

All in a Days Work

       I arrived at the festival ready to start the day.I had never been to the Renaissance festival before as I walked in I felt like I was walking into a hidden place. The building were colorful and there were people everywhere from the English, Germans, and Scottish in kilts. Myself and Rosie were paired up with the drunk, John, but that day he was in regular clothes. He was so nice he even bought us breakfest and he told me he used to run the school days back in the day. John has been working at the Renaissance festival for over 10 years. He told me he loved being able to do this every year and he looked forward to next year already. While I was there I saw how much hard work each worker/actor/cast at the Renaissance festival put into their character and making it all come together. They all perfected their accents and outfits; I imagened how difficult it was to work all day all weekend for 8 weeks straight. EXHAUSTING! They workers/actors/cast seemed determined to give their best foot forward and they do it because they love it. They didn't hold anything back and thats what I liked because they didnt half ass the performances. When everything finally comes together it takes alot of people, money, time, practice, and hardwork to get the function going to its full potential.

Entry #6: Behind the Scenes Part 1

Judges Assistant!

I loved going to Renaissance Festival and helping out on the school day. I was a judges assistant with my classmate Rosie. We had a bunch of fun watching the students from all over perform group acts. Some were your everyday stories like Little Red Riding Hood and then there were spin offs such as Hamlets Rap. All the students who performed showed courage and tremendous talent. Some completely blew me away and others were entertaining. I was so surprised by the levels of their talent, they were all gifted. I couldn't stop laughing on some of the acts and others I felt like time would never end. It did make a difference to me when groups were unorganized, didn't know their lines, and if I could hear them or not. Some of the groups came with tables, pots, instruments, the whole nine yards which I thought made their performance more intriguing and it caught my attention more. A group that I saw in the beginning of the lineup was interesting because instead of dressing up as people they were animals, they looked like brown aliens,which was weird but then when they began they acted in dance and few words. I thought it was flawless because they were all in tune and I could tell they had been practicing for a long time. One of my favorite acts hands down was the very last act and it was the Children's Group. It was already 3:30 pm when they arrived and I was exhausted already; we had been going since 9:45 am, act after act. I was ready to leave but once they started performing I took it all back. They were even better than the grown students I had seen earlier in the day. It was like they put their everything in their performances and had so much fun doing it. They were all rising stars and they worked hard to compete against one another! I really enjoyed doing this and I would definitely do it again next time I hope its on the music day because I love hearing people sing!

Entry #4: Costume (dress up)

I was a Pirate!!!

Making a decision on which costume to go with was a tad difficult. My finalist were a cute fairy, pirate, and a witch. I was afraid that I would be freezing in a fairy outfit, and I already had a few accessories that would go perfect with the pirate costume.My forgetful self then remembered that my professor, Mrs. Q, was going to be a witch so I laid that idea to rest. The decision maker was I wanted an excuse to go buy a kid sword and hook and just to be able to have a great time. I visited many retail shops and Halloween stores after Halloween passed to try and get a great deal on the top. Everywhere I went I couldn't find any in stock for a reasonable price. I ended up at Party City and had to get a shirt that was 2 sizes too big but I went home and played with it a little bit to make it presentable. I absolutely fell in love with the pirates mask because it was almost mascaraed, which is one of my favorite themes. I choose to not straighten my hair or wear makeup to create the natural look. The women wore men's clothes anyway because it was said that if a woman was on the ship it created bad luck. Pirates have been around for thousands of years stealing and robbing others at sea sometimes using violence. They were of course around during the Renaissance period doing what they do best and piracy spread throughout the world even to our modern day. I had so much fun dressing up I like being able to act like a kid still and just have a play day with others my own age. I was like a huge play ground for adults and we were all different characters! 

All the students who dressed up looked awesome! I loved the girls outfit with the Renaissance dress!



Entry #3: Going to a re-enactment

The Renaissance Festival




He had a funny accent and somehow reminded me of a Christmas Disney land! 



I had a total blast at the renaissance festival. I went on the final day of the festival with my boyfriend. It was the first time we went,  besides the day I volunteered. I felt like I was walking in to another world which i loved. Everyone was dressed up and in character all having a great time. Some were fairies, barbarians, witches, pirates, and so much more! It is an educational experience because you get to see how things were in the past like how they dressed, ate, talked, and entertainment. We couldn't decided where to go first. I ended up going to try to shoot a bow and arrow and lets just say I'm not that great! Take a look.



We walked all around looking at all the shops and checking out the diversity in food. I like how it was split of in different cultures. I went around looking at the spectacular dresses that they wore in this period. I actually think sometimes that I should of been born back then because I would love wearing the dresses with a corset. The women wearing them always carry this beauty and elegance with them. We finally had to take a break from all the walking and sat down to watch a dance show which was AMAZING! She had so much talent and put her all into it.  My favorite part of the day was the AWESOME elephant ride. I absolutely adored it and never will forget it. It was so much fun i had trouble getting on and I found it hilarious because my boyfriend was scared. The elephant is strong and powerful; being up there, in the trees, with just the right breeze is a memory in itself. For some reason it makes me want to go to India. I took a picture with the little money April too it was like an exotic petting zoo. All in all the day was just a wonderful day.  

<3



Entry #2: Menudo with my grandma

History

Growing up I always loved when my grandma Norma would come into town to visit. She came every couple of months, just for a few days, and it was absolutely the best time. My grandma Norma always made delicious homemade Mexican food, which I love, and my all time favorite was menudo. It was our special bonding time with each other, just the family. It was always my sisters, mom, nephews, and grandparents. We would lounge around talking about our most recent activities, school, work, and so much more. I am close with my family because we have been doing this together for so long. It reminds me of the unconditional love we have for each other and the unbreakable bond we share that links us together. We are a family who are strong, faith driven, and determined, and loving.When I was younger I used to constantly ask my grandma Norma to teach me how to make Menudo and she would reply, "I want to teach all you girls at the same time like I learned". So this past Thanksgiving, November 22, 2012, my grandma Norma came into town from Corpus Christi loaded with all the spices, ingredients, pots and pans that we would need. We had a wonderful day spent in the kitchen and the final result was amazing. My grandma always says, "menudo is easy to make it just takes love and patience". Below is the recipe. Enjoy!

Menudo Recipe

Ingredients

• 15 lbs of menudo
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 yellow onion
• Menudo spice mix (fiesta brand)
• Hominy (biggest can)
• Cayenne pepper (optional) 
• A tall/big soup pot

Directions:

1. Cut menudo in little piece make sure to remove excess fat; Bring water to a boil about 2/3 full; make sure stove is on medium high(7/8); cook for 2 hours.
2. Add the sliced garlic, small chopped onion, menudo mix (eye it depending on how spicy you like it); and Hominy.
3. Add optional cayenne pepper; Let cook for 2 more hours; make sure to scrap excess spices off the wall of the pot.
4. Serve and enjoy with corn tortillas, lemons/limes, onion, and cilantro!!

I had so much fun cooking with my grandma and family. The tradition has always been just talking and grandma taking care of all the food preparation but this time it was me doing everything. I enjoyed every moment of the time i shared with my grandma, I will always cherish the moment. I loved finally being taught to make it and being able to one day teach someone else in my family.

"Family is everything. Its the little moments that we will forever cherish"



Entry #1: September 11th 2012

 The horrific event that shocked and changed the people of America has been told in different ways that capture important details and emotions. In "102 Minutes that Changed the World", which is a primary source, the intensity and rawness of the emotions were so real. It was heartwrentching to hear the people and the fear they had not only in their voice but their faces and behavior. As a viewer you can tell the video was put together to show the live footage and the extreme circumstances that not everyone knew actually took place. Especially after the buildings collapsed I had no idea that the streets around the world trade center buildings would be full of dust and debris. It looked like an avalanche of dirt had smothered the streets and the people were running frantically to escape the suffocating trap. The crucial part of what followed once the buildings were actually hit by the planes is not usually shown when watching or reviewing the historic event. In a "Fire Fighter Story",which is a first hand account/single POV, they told more of the stories of the lost fire fighters, how their families dealt with the anticipation, and how they lived that tragic day. It also shows how the firefighters dispersed at the scene and how they were aware of the severity, but still willing to risk their lives to help save others. It also shows how courageous, thoughtful, and strong these men were and how they all worked together to try and rescue others. Toward the end of the "Fire Fighter Story", they also showed us the aftermath of the attack and how the weeks that followed were full of hard work of clearing and removing all the hot debris and locating and identifying the bodies of the people lost in the attack. The final movie shown was "Lets Roll", its a fictionalized movie, and to me it missed that intensity and realness that the other two videos had. It seemed more put together to make sense and go in order. Its not the best way to tell a historic story because some of the information is not the truth or real which changes the event to something that it was not. Overall, "102 Minutes that Changed the World" conveys the true emotions, actions, and details of the historical event that we will never forget in our time, because after all, it did changed our lives forever.

Personal Story: I still have vivid memories of September 11, 2001. It was early in the morning and we were walking in the hallway just as we did everyday to go to next class. The teachers in the hallways started to whisper but they had very serious faces. Things started to feel awkward and different. There was a nervousness and underlying stress in the teachers voices. Time passed by and parents began to show up and sign their children out of school. I remember waiting for my mom to show up and I thought she would never make it but then my uncle shows up and took me to her. When i arrived home she greeted me with such relief, I finally saw on the television what was going on. I realized all day at school they were just trying to keep the event from us. We were all scared and worried about what was going to happen next and how we were suppose to deal with this huge change. As time has passed, recovery from this tragic event has changed us all individually. In our lifetime this was our turning point and realization of what others are capable of. We will always remember those brave men who tried to save us and all the lost lives on September 11, 2001.