First Year of College is Done!

Yes, so first year of college is finally over!! I am glad, now I can focus on finding a job or go on vacation. Still awaiting the cousin and his news of employment. It sucks holding out right now, it's not like the prices of airfare gets cheaper or anything... The current plan is YVR - ICN - SFO and maybe a modification of YVR - SFO - ICN - NRT - LAX something along those lines. Would be around 2000$ for airfare at this point, but I'm budgeting around five grand. Considering we'll have a place to stay in YVR and SFO, just need to get a place in ICN for a week or two. If the news is no go, I don't know if I should still journey there myself, but Cali is very likely in mid June once the little cousins are done school!

The Innocence

There may not be a whole lot of time each day in our lives. A simple train ride for a single mom with her six year old daughter. The young girl excited to be on the train and to share her wonderful stories with her mom. The mom, hides her exhaustion after working countless tiring jobs to support them, smiles back. The moments. She's smiling, laughing, and just constantly being unable to remain seated for the duration of the ride.  She goes through and shows all the valentine cards she had received at school from her classmates. But there's one, it stands out, on one side its a picture of Barbie, the other a maze. Even if she did not know how to read, she is excited to do the maze. The card was given to her from her best friend. She tries, and tries to complete the maze... time after time, something goes wrong. She's determined to finish it. Why? Maybe she knew if she could do it, she could find her heart through the maze. The moment. She finishes it, glazes at her mom, and smiles...and thinks to herself "I did it..."


Just something I noticed and came up with on the train ride home after feeling miserable. Cherish those moments, as simple as a train ride home, and you'll notice the good around you. I'll end this post with a quote I just heard from a beautiful woman:


"You don't want to be young because you don't like the way things are. I don't blame you, but one day, you'll wake up and you'll be all grown up. It's inevitable." And being old ain't all dandy and awesome.

The Power of the Pause

So another class at George Brown College turns out to be golden. Speaking with confidence, who would have thought this would turn out to be so useful and most importantly fun. It doesn't hurt that our instructor has an amazing talent and ability to share his skills and knowledge with our class. At first, I was hesitant in taking this class as I previously had completed a communications course, but wow, what a completely different style of class. So for our most recent assignment was to tell a story to the class with the storytelling techniques we learned: one of it being the power of the pause, which I took full advantage of. Enjoy. It's based on my true story but altered a bit to have a more deep meaning to the end. I also wanted to highlight the good before the bad (another technique learned) and this was the incident that led me to retire from biking, but I have gone biking once more after this incident.




There I was, about to see the girl of my dreams. The one who’d still give me butterflies even after three years together. You know… the one who you could see as the mother of your children. I knew she was the one in my heart and it didn’t matter that we were just 18 at the time. I knew deep inside, she was the one.


Even without a car, we would still find ways to spend time together each time and this day was no exception. It was a bright day, a sunny day, a warm day, just one of those perfect days to ride our bikes. We had just spent our day under the clouds together, thinking of what lied ahead of us. We were laughing, relaxing, and enjoying one another’s company just like all the many times prior we had shared together. But like with all good things, and by the end of it all; it was time to go our separate ways home.


I hopped on my bike to race home for dinner. Speeding and swerving my way through intersections, around corners, and down a steep hill. Still going uncontrollably fast, an old couple suddenly appeared!!! I was shocked and thought to myself. Why are these old people walking so slowly and in the middle of the sidewalk!!?? With little time to react, my instincts led me to squeeze my brakes with all my might. *Screech* 


Instead of coming to a stop, I felt the air under my ass, and before I knew it, I was flying high above the ground. I close my eyes hoping I could avoid the old couple with my life flashing in front me. *Crashing noise* *Long Pause*


Darkness. It was all I could see. Just pitch black, darkness. My eyes slowing glazed opened and I saw a glimpse of the old couple, as they walked away, leaving me there, lying on the ground with blood around me. I struggled to my feet, but it was only after a couple of steps and glimpses around me to see the traffic light pole I had just flown into, until I crashed back down to earth. My eyes, they closed once again as I lay down on the side of the road. *Long pause*


My eyes open, I shake my head around, lost, confused, and asked myself where I am. I sat up, looked around, and here I was, just sitting up on my bed. Did it really happen I questioned myself or was it just a dream?

New Mentality

Yes. I understand. Yes. I know.

And yet... I still manage to get it wrong.

I am not giving up or anything at the moment, I am not a quitter.

I am trying to hold myself back and take a different perspective regarding this situation.

Maybe a change is needed. Maybe a change of mentality.

I thought it would be different this time around. But not everything in life goes as plan.

There are setbacks. But it's how we deal with the adversities that shape who we are as a person.

Whatever happens, happens. And I will need to continue working to reach my ultimate goals in life. Just may have to try harder. Work harder too.

I can't always fix problems on my own, sometimes a little push or encouragement is needed.

But today definitely helped open my eyes, to see maybe a new path that lies ahead.

Self Update

"Do you remember when I said I'd always be there?" Didn't know it back then, that I'd still mean it today.

Anyways, it's been awhile again, so let's catch up again. Winter break went by just like that (although it was 3 weeks long). Right now? I'm back in school for my second semester at George Brown College's Hospitality Tourism Leisure program. I have begun applying for jobs in hopes of employment with my school schedule only consisting of 17hrs because of my two exemptions from accounting and general electives. Sad to say, but I want the income so I can travel come summer term for at least a month and maybe work for the remaining ones.

I think I have come to the realization that I should involve myself in all the different aspects of the hospitality tourism leisure industries if my ultimate career goal is to be accomplished. This means working for a hotel, airline, restaurant, resort, cruise, and just anything that has to do with tourism and hospitality and even leisure.

But yeah, enough about me, it's past midnight and I've got a 9am morning class tomorrow.

TIme to catch up on things.

It's been awhile since we've had a conversation, so I thought it'd be nice to catch up on things. 
Lots has changed for me this year, 
Everything from pure happiness to profound heartbreak,
Has found its way to my 2011.
And honestly I wouldn't change anything if I could.


One of the biggest changes that this year has brought was a certain experience that taught me many valuable lessons.
I learned that even when your heart is broken and you feel like you can never be happy again, you have a choice.
Sometimes life will disappoint us, 
But we can choose how we react. 
We have the capacity to evolve, 
To develop perseverance and strength, 
Because of the pain.


Heres to 2011! Happy Holidays and Happy New Years!

p.s I am thinking of finally starting my travel blog/vlog about my travels and one about my experiences in Toronto- the restaurants and events.

I`m a HTL-er and I kinda like it

Yes, I know I have failed this miserably but I have good reason, mainly that I have been so busy with college. Who would have thought that college would have so much to do. 

Already finished five weeks of classes, seemed to go by like it was just yesterday that summer was ending... And with assignment after the other, and tests piling up, and group projects once again piling up... this sure ain't a stroll in the park.

Even after just five weeks, I may have uncovered what I might want to do in the future if I were to have a hospitality/tourism focused career (which I will explain later), learned so much about dining, wines, alcoholic drinks- all of which reminds me of my one time goal of becoming a restaurateur. I've involved myself with school and I'm enjoying it, learning new things, having free food/wine samples and meeting new people too. But the food and dining required in some assignments, I have really come to like the classes (except for having to pay for our own meals of course).

So what I think would be an excellent job in the future, although it may be just now, but for my own reference sake, what if I were to be an online travel adviser/tour guide/reviewer working with destination marketers to help tourists experience their vacations as locals and to be able to blog or vlog my journeys around the world. That would be the ultimate- to travel the world as a job. I wake up everyday in a new city. One can dream.

Yep, just a quick update on this blog, no fancy pictures or anything, just me, reflecting on the past 5 weeks of classes so far at the hospitality, tourism, leisure program at George Brown College.