tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4205358117217201152024-03-12T17:21:52.426-06:00A Funny TruthThese are the unanticipated, nonsensical and ironic moments that demand investigation... the stories that tie our lives together. And for some mysterious reason remain memorable. And finally, deserve in some way, to be laughed at afterward.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger78125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-40706207580311667852012-11-20T21:01:00.003-07:002012-11-20T21:03:27.025-07:00A College Campus Without Eyes....<!--StartFragment-->
A college campus
without eyes is a photo and audio essay that explores the lives of those
whose personal experiences with the blind community can open the eyes of
sighted students. Blindness is often associated with a walking cane, or a
seeing-eye dog, however it isn’t often one will trip across a blind college
student reviewing a calculus book sans brail. However in the Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-22456373887359529522012-01-26T12:04:00.017-07:002012-01-26T16:30:37.381-07:00WAKE UP AMERICA: Newt Gingrich? SERIOUSLY?Last time I checked Jesus wasn’t an advocate of infidelity? Warning: The following contains curse words, unadulterated opinions, and direct insults to the majority of the male species. So if you will be offended by any of the above, I recommend you stop reading now. It is snowing outside this window and the traffic passes slowly. Two men are bantering about the presidential primaries. Their Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-83585979085629887502011-12-13T23:15:00.010-07:002011-12-30T23:26:44.161-07:00Why you should write something too.Writing is nothing more than tossing experiences onto a page, with the solitary hope that those words will help one person feel a little bit more understood. I urge you to toss vulnerability to the wind and share your days with the world. I promise, they will not fall on deaf ears.It is still dark outside. Surgery was scheduled for early that morning. We were told that surgery could last from Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-14882515466317253702011-11-22T11:46:00.001-07:002011-11-22T11:48:35.848-07:00DécolletagéAt 3:10pm I was a healthy, carefree 26-year-old. And around 4:10pm I wasn’t. One week ago… “Do you see lines, or at least that one line? Can’t we Botox that?” I lift my chin and point to my throat and say with excitement!“The imaginary lines, right?” She laughs. “You’re not getting old, I promise.”The large mirror is reflecting a woman with green eyes staring out from a thick, white, gooey Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-56535628035324118482011-11-19T02:50:00.004-07:002011-11-19T02:58:57.590-07:00Green, Green GrassYou know it’s going to be an awesome night when your surgeon leaves his cell phone number on your voice mail.It’s hard to call yourself a writer, if you don’t write anymore. At some point, I’ve sold myself to magazine articles and then to term papers. Somewhere in the process I’ve forgotten about creative grammar, spelling errors so ridiculous they can only be made past 3am, and the words spilledUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-66322970300972326682011-08-16T00:50:00.007-06:002011-08-16T01:24:56.903-06:00The Climb
4:27:01
My body is sucking lactic acid like it’s water. It’s scorching and muggy, late August afternoon. The tendons, the muscles are screaming out in agony. I’m thirsty, I’m angry; I’m out of shape. My right foot pushes the pedal; my left knee pulls the pedal. They work in unison. They hate each other. My back, which is drenched in sweat stretches over the gears. I ascend. My ass hurts. I Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-36401699008789137662011-08-03T23:33:00.002-06:002011-08-03T23:40:40.424-06:00The Pillow“You’re going to wake up the girls.” I squeal.“Then maybe you shouldn’t be so loud.” His fingers tickle me relentlessly.Ducking under his arms, I point to the other side of the room, “Hannah? Sweetie. I’m sorry. Did we wake you up?”He turns toward the staircase.The penalty of arousing slumbering toddlers would be more bedtime stories, and they preferred that he narrate the fairy princess voice. Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-89019989865026538912011-04-21T11:19:00.002-06:002011-04-21T11:22:29.054-06:00Hello Beautiful...“When you have big eyes, you shouldn’t roll them so much.” He says.“Why?” I ask.“Because it makes people feel stupid. You make me feel dumb Auna.” “How am I supposed to respond to that? Thanks for the advice?” I laugh.“You’re welcome.” He smirks.“I wasn’t actually thanking you; it was hypothetical gratitude.” “One day when you’re talking to an important person with a low IQ, you’ll thank me.” HisUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-32858835247064715902011-01-06T14:25:00.002-07:002011-01-06T14:27:45.941-07:00The Intangible Asset: HollywoodThe Intangible Asset: HollywoodWhile the world is running to our movie stars, they’re running away from our financial systems. What gives?“Inside Job” narrated by Matt Damon was a film I saw several weeks ago at an Arts theatre on Broadway. I found it surprising that Matt Damon would take the time and energy to create and produce a documentary, abundant with facts and interviews exposing the WallUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-72574829395669784262010-12-05T15:20:00.004-07:002011-01-20T11:45:39.927-07:00When wrong makes right?Until a restless leaf flutters to the ground, it’s quiet. Instead of luscious green with lively veins exhaling oxygen into a suffocating world, it’s now cracked and dry. Yet even at its death, the burnt orange and raspberry color is stunning. Then my eye catches something else. I sit on the concrete bench at the Botanic Gardens. Today is my birthday. Gravity beckons the fallen leaves, but like a Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-68884801020022890352010-11-15T16:23:00.004-07:002010-11-16T09:16:08.257-07:00Selling Heartbreak on Ebay!How starving kids in Guantanamo can benefit from your heartbreak. Two weeks ago in Dallas. “Just throw it. Pretend it is a football. It was cheaper than a football anyway.” I encourage my Emma, my dearest childhood friend, who is clutching a cheap porcelain figurine like it’s the crown royal. “Auna, that is harsh. It’s just so, so, I don’t know….” She stammers, racking her brain for any excuse Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-10609062468938922752010-11-01T00:42:00.010-06:002010-11-01T01:56:56.085-06:00Wonder Woman for the night?“If death meant just leaving the stage long enough to change costume and come back as a new character...Would you slow down? Or speed up?" -Chuck PalahniukIDENTIFY THEFT I’m jealous. Wow. It has taken me twenty-plus years to finally admit that I wish I had the guts, creativity, chutzpah to pull off that flawless, “no you didn’t” “that must have cost a fortune” Halloween thing, but I’m lazy. Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-47248648631897103002010-08-25T11:45:00.002-06:002010-08-25T11:53:46.569-06:00DEVIL's advocate....God, Politics, Sports teams….Those “American” things that either rip us apart, or bind us forever… but in reality, albeit Sunday morning church, Sunday afternoon football and what percentage of taxes come out of your paycheck, what gives?Oh the internal struggle? Prayer, which plays in an integral part everyday for some. Does how we celebrate our GOD, recognize that omnipresent, omnipotent chunk Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-14908863874760271632010-08-17T16:11:00.005-06:002010-08-17T16:22:09.470-06:00Redeye: Denver to Boston...Month seven on crutches, two months out of the hospital. I was finally allowed to travel.I apologized to the blond, balding security officer for my overstuffed bag; he was unfazed by the magazines, un-capped lipstick and sticky receipts. But his jaw dropped when he reached the clear zipper bag. This was where I kept my orange bottles of prescriptions, fourteen in total. Each night I’d brush my Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-84255950398551577342010-08-11T03:32:00.005-06:002010-08-11T03:58:23.439-06:00IRONY'S ugly cousinIrony’s ugly cousin…. You’re 100 yards from the entrance of Starbucks when you spot a tall, masculine, seemingly gorgeous man reading a newspaper. Even though he is turned away from you, you notice a baseball hat and what appear to be glasses, which screams Wall Street Journal. All near-sighted people are geniuses. Even from this distance you recognize that laid-back look, sporting a button-down Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-87659571949247128182010-07-07T17:28:00.011-06:002010-07-07T17:59:42.304-06:00Dodging DestinyI struggle to understand why the children, with their tattered clothes beg us to take pictures of them, with them… Sure, their innocent smiles warm even the most frigid of travelers, and similar to the American 7-year-olds, they have few missing teeth, but no tooth fairy in El Crucero, there aren't even pillows. Maybe they assumed we needed photographs to prove of our benevolent efforts; parade Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-43653796945353085012010-07-02T16:35:00.009-06:002010-07-07T14:44:54.313-06:00Is falling in love an American luxury?In America we're blessed with deodorant and toothpaste, regular showers, and time to lollygag, and tenderly stare into each others eyes… Generally we're not worried if we'll be stopped at gunpoint, or a harmless influenza strain will kill us…. In America we fight over the remote control, and when it comes to food should get Mexican or Indian, or takeout… Generally, our lifestyles afford us the Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-60860089822187069132010-06-21T14:46:00.007-06:002010-06-22T22:41:09.463-06:00Happy HourA waitress in a cocktail dress sets a steaming pepperoni pizza in front of three women, two are wearing sneakers and sweatpants, and the third is touting a dainty black dress with three inch nude heels. Retelling escapes from the workday, they’re clinking glasses; watching the rain through the large glass windows. Twenty-something and thirty-something’s are perched flirtatiously, the restaurant Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-49431214579344823162010-03-11T02:33:00.017-07:002010-04-16T12:01:23.446-06:00You Write?Like drool. Vowels and consonants slip off my tongue splattering on the page. I love it.His blue eyes are glistening like polished glass, reflecting a youthful energy. A small man with a hunchback and a khaki beret is sitting at a corner table. He can’t be younger than 75. Sipping on his coffee, he is devouring the sophisticated dialogue around him with a blue felt pen and a black leather Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-17309601434444025802010-02-16T10:54:00.026-07:002010-02-25T16:53:43.801-07:00The wrong type of luck...Ralph Lauren’s model Nacho Figueras can be spotted weekly, Madonna vacationed here last summer; there are stories of Prince Charles, presidents and movie stars. A whole gammet of influential people really. It’s invitation only when cameras and gossip columnists are permitted at 3667 120th Avenue South. The address belongs to the International Polo Club. My naked toes sink into a thick carpet of Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-6750507215097723122010-02-14T15:59:00.018-07:002010-09-26T16:04:23.399-06:00The phone rang too early... for it to be good news.Crawling out of bed about to face a day, which I’m fully aware will be comprised of phone calls and emails, conversations with family members with whom I haven’t spoken to in years, repeating the sad details, planning the services. And then the long silences shared with my immediate family, holding hands, an empty tissue box, unsure what to say or mumble, because wordsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-17359266683266171292010-02-05T09:37:00.014-07:002011-12-07T20:10:20.815-07:00An Empty SuitcaseThe war in Afghanistan, the unemployment rate in America, and the never-ending battles men and women endure to somehow find “the one”… all of these subjects intrigue me greatly, but I’ll admit however dismal a theme; I want to stick with “life”. Notice I don’t say heaven or hell, choosing the life of a pagan or a religious zealot, or death. I’m a person who inherently doesn't believe in putting Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-13181017403768098392010-02-03T00:03:00.038-07:002012-02-15T14:24:11.342-07:00A Simple PrayerThe sound of a pin drop echoes throughout the corridors, against thewhite sterile walls, where doctors and nurses try to heal sick people.Families and friends sleep in uncomfortable chairs, holding onto thehands of the people they love, the people lying in the hospital beds,riddled with IVs and fear.The polished floor is cold, my knees are curled up against my chest,my eyelids are tightly closed,Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-38214068360981741612010-01-27T10:22:00.003-07:002010-02-18T11:00:23.305-07:00NAKED WARSThe impetuous process we call “Dating”The game between man and woman dates back to our homo sapient era, when our ancestors were apes and bonobos. The ape is a violent and aggressive mammal – and the bonobo is the more physically affectionate. And somewhere several hundred thousands of years ago, the two species collided and thus born was the mutt: Aka: the modern day human. And what are we? WellUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420535811721720115.post-71502432404781792812010-01-04T16:27:00.013-07:002010-02-18T10:57:57.799-07:00PLOT SPOILER - AVATAR - WHY I REALLY LOVED IT!!!Okay before you read be warned: I discuss the ending to this AMAZING movie, but let’s be honest what producer can spend $500 million on groundbreaking technology for 3-d animation, and glorious cinematography to boot. And then have a depressing ending? Nope. Optimistic and broke America won’t have it... Nor will The Academy (ak: Oscars). At the very least (after the trashy, violent and Unknownnoreply@blogger.com