daysleeper’s Neighbors

So fresh and so clean

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 02:31:08 -0500

So since I got back from China I have a new man in my life. I know I didn’t go on this trip with any thoughts of romance at all and after I met the crew I knew that it wasn’t going to happen. I was not attracted to anyone; in fact I didn’t look at G.G. (his name for blog sake) at all. Actually the whole first half of the trip we barely spoke, he had just come in from Hong Kong after a meeting with the world trade center (he’s the VP in the University’s chapter on the island) and he was with the masters in international business crew, (M.I.B.) I swung with the MBA’s. The gangs rarely intermingled, not trying to seem like a sequence from west side story, to top it all off, we physically could not be more different. You see the boy is half Irish; tall, white, with blue eyes and I am pure Latina; Black hair, brown eyes and tan skin.

It all started on a weekend trip through China, a break from classes. When we got to Xi’an with no plans, no hotel and no train tickets to Shanghai I took hold of the situation and got both gangs a place to stay, transportation to the Terra-cotta soldiers the next day and the tickets to our next destination. He later told me that this was the moment he took a liking to me. He was the only one out of the whole group to come up to me, and as he looked me straight in the eyes he said “in case no one has told you this, thank you very much for everything.” And just like that he left to his room and that was that. The next day in the Terra-cotta soldiers for some reason we found ourselves alone together, the rest of the group had forged ahead after what seemed like an eternity of buildings with no soldiers. When we entered the shelter he said “when are we going to see the actual dig,” just as soon as the words came out of his mouth there we were surrounded by 6,000 soldiers of Shi Huan Di. My response was “my mother would love this.”

At the emperors mausoleum when the group was poking fun at a newly formed couple overlooking the Chinese country side the talk turned to marriage. GG jokingly gave me a flower a proposed, all in good fun. We all had a hardy laugh and were on our way. That night we all had the culture shock of our lives. You see when you get overnight train tickets in China you buy soft or hard beds. Soft beds are four bunks in a small space. Hard bed are six bunks without a door in a closet… there were not enough soft bed tickets for all so we said fuck it, hard beds it is. We all imagined that the tickets for all would be in the same “closet space” when in fact all we had purchased was only the top bunks that are assigned by numbers so the group was scattered throughout the wagon, two Puertorricans per four random unknown Chinese.

I have to be honest. Every one freaked out at first especially the girls. Sleeping with four unknown men of any race is enough to make the common girl squeamish. GG remained cool and solved the problem. We switch tickets and a boy was to stay with every girl. After that was settled everyone calmed down, viewed the experience as an adventure, brushed their teeth and went to sleep. That’s when I started to de him with different eyes, the guy that kept his cool when all hell broke loose, now that’s attractive to me.

Shanghai was amazing, Yiwu not so much, just business. But GG was never far; on the train to Yiwu there was a passenger that could not keep his eyes off me. You have to understand we were very different, the only foreigners on the train. GG sat facing me and made sure no one made me uncomfortable in dishonest ways. Now I am a very independent woman but I have to admit in this instance I liked being watched out for.

When we finally got back to Beijing the whole group went out to this club called Propaganda. It was really wonderful; everyone was having a great time dancing and whatnot. GG turned to me and said some of the most simple and insightful things any man has ever said to me, not stereotypical or cheesy, just sincere. I really wasn’t expecting it but I didn’t have to give it much thought. Later that night I just leaned in and kissed him, the rest is history. The rest of the trip we spent together getting lost in Lama temples while wondering the streets of Beijing and talking to random strangers. There was not a day I did not laugh by his side. And just like that the trip had ended, we were delayed to the point that we missed our connecting flight and decided to stay an extra day in New York. On our plane he turned and said to me “I don’t want this to end here.”

And it hasn’t. We’ve seen each other every day since we’ve been back. It’s just so weird, it feels so comfortable; it feels like it has always been like this. Our conversations flow like water and at the same time there’s no anxiety, no faking anything, I can truly say I am myself with him. After all, the boy has already seen me without a drop of makeup, without sleep, without a shower and cranky…

I have been in so many crappy relationships that this is a bit scary. Where’s the drama? Where is the “dark side”? Two people can’t get along this well its just not possible! Where is the catch?

Maybe I shouldn’t look for one, maybe there is none, maybe this is just nice and maybe I should just sit back and relax. After all, it’s been a while since I’ve felt so fresh and so clean.

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Changes in China

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:16:20 -0500

It never ceases to amaze me how your whole life can change in a matter of days. When the common order that once was your daily routine no longer exists well one can’t help but feel a bit lost. That’s how I feel today, as if I had to do something but I just can’t remember what it was. I leave my apartment and I feel like I left my keys or the stove top on… What changed everything you might ask. Well that’s simple, that I can answer. It was China.

I left for China all by myself. Of course I knew I was part of a group from my University but I knew absolutely no one. 4 hrs to New York and 14 hours to China, I sat by myself thinking of those things I wanted to leave behind on this trip. Like a dead end, on and off again never official relationship, my lack of discipline and my bad habit of recycling boys instead of meeting new ones… But most important of all I wanted to find myself in China.

How pray tell can you expect to find yourself in an unknown foreign country where no one speaks your language? Well I think that most people are self-centered. In life one is almost always worried about their own, the world revolves around them. What is considered “normal,” what is expected of you, all depends on your culture. When you immerse yourself in a different culture you realize that the world is huge and that problems are relative to your reality. But at the same time that world is small, in a matter of hours you can be in a different reality but in the end humans are humans and we feel all the same.

China exceeded my expectations in every aspect. From the country itself, its people, to what was to happen to me while I was there. I made new friends in China, friends I have brought back to the island. I finally feel like I’m a business student from what I learned in China. I got the balls to end what I had to end back home and never look back. I fell for someone in China amongst terra-cotta soldiers, great walls and trains to Shanghai…

So here I am back home and as I lie in this place by myself for the moment I realize that the reason I feel different, like I left something behind is because I did. I left the old me in China and came back a changed woman. With different hopes for my future and bigger dreams, because as a friend from the trip said to me last night “desde que fui para China, nada me sorprende” (more or less translated it means “since I went to China nothing surprises/amazes me.”) It was an unexpected trip that taught me to expect anything…

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Vieques island

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 11:11:44 -0500

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So my weekend getaway was just what I needed to relax and enjoy some time with my friends after all the stress from my studies. It was just the eight of us in an apartment we rented with some beers and rum... The beaches were lovely, the sun scorched my skin and the bio-bay was truly amazing. I feel refreshed and ready for anything ;)

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Weekend Island Trip!!!

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Tue, 27 May 2008 23:01:21 -0500

So this weekend is my friend George's birthday and to celebrate 10 of his closest friends are taking a weekend trip to the little neighboring island of Vieques. Summer is just starting and I need a little surf and sand to remind me. Im really looking forward to staying with the crew in this apartment we rented near the shore. Nothing like cocktails and friends!!!

Vieques is part of Puerto Rico but you have to take a two hour long ferry trip to get there. It has one of the worlds few bioluminescent bays. There are these microscopic organisms in the water that shine at night when there is movement in the water. We plan on taking a trip out there on saturday night, I hope the weather cooperates. Sometimes really amazing things are closer than you think.

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China, here I come?

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:51:23 -0500

The other day, when I went to visit my parents, my mother handed me a letter from my university (I still use their P.O. Box.) It was about a trip to China for MBA students, were you could earn elective credits in advanced international business. Twenty four hours later I had decided this was a great opportunity that I couldn't miss out on and by the end of the week I had signed up and bought the plane ticket. Now all I have left to do is apply for a visa to enter the country. I went to an office that does all the visa work for me only to find that I have to have an itinerary of everything I'm going to do including a copy of my plane and hotel reservations in my name. All I am missing is the hotel reservation because my university took care of that stuff so tomorrow I have to head down to the office to see if they have some sort of copy they can give me so that I may finally finish the application process, and then sit and wait till someone in the Chinese embassy decides If I can go or not... So hopefully China, here I come! If not then I hope all the plane tickets and what I payed in school is refundable...

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My travels

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Tue, 06 May 2008 10:36:07 -0500

My Travels

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BTW

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 17:24:46 -0500

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A passion for travel

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:47:29 -0500

Sometimes I feel like continued education is such a waste of life. After all that is the only thing I have done... study... for 19 out of my 25 years of life. I study so that I may find a job with a nice salary at the end of the tunnel that may allow me to live out my true passion... travel. I find myself fortunate enough to say that even though I have lived a mere quarter century I have already commenced to live out my dreams of international experience. I have seen the view of Paris atop the Eiffel Tower, taken class in the Complutense University of Madrid in Spain (one of the oldest universities in the world,) enjoyed a kiss in the Piazza San Marco in Venice, drank a beer in a pub in London, heard the rushing waters of the Niagara Falls, taken a picture holding up the leaning tower of Pisa, eaten chocolate in Switzerland, seen the roof of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican City, had a night out in New York City, felt the hot sun of Miami, experienced the clear waters of the British and American Virgin Islands... in short I have walked the streets of Barcelona, Valencia, Toledo, Madrid, London, Paris, Venice, Rome, Florence, Perugia, Liechtenstein, Vienna, Zurich, Ontario, Boston, New York, and Miami. There is so much left to see, taste, touch, smell and hear! Its a big world for a girl from a small tropical island in the middle of the Caribbean Ocean...

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Islanders point of view

nobody@vox.com(Phoenix) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:27:20 -0500

Well Im back from my trip, it was short but sweet. It gave me time to get my mind off things and just enjoy life. I had been to the city as a child but now I truly got the big picture. May I add that I hate American Airlines... They lost my luggage so the first day I had to buy the essentials and clothes for the night on the town. A friend of mine from high school who lives in the city took us to the village at night for drinks. He's a graphic designer for Mark Ecko for Ecko unltd. Obviously in the city to gain experience in his craft but I couldn't help to notice that he didn't seem very happy. "I miss the island, its too cold up here and Im turning white, I need some sun" He seemed happy to have some puertorrican company. Now I know some people will say, "why? there's like a million Puertorricans in NY" To which I will (very politically incorrect) respond no there aren't, there are like a million Nuyoricans up there. Believe me its not the same at all. We have different cultures, raised in very different realities. Now I'm not trashing them or anything, I'm just stating that we behave and express ourselves differently. On the island people cringe when they see the Puerto Rican day parade, our flag being tossed about as a "fashion statement" knowing that to people that don't even know where the island is, well this will be their point of reference... Now just because I don't wear my flag on a t-shirt that is two sizes too small doesn't mean I'm not proud of my heritage. People on the island are friendly, contrary to popular belief most speak english as well as spanish, we have a high rate of people who continue their education after high school, and very low illiteracy rate. We have good fashion sense as well :P Luis Vuitton, Gucci and Channel all have stores here for a reason (Our mall is the biggest in the Caribbean and you won't find any flag shirts there)

Just like anywhere else we have people of different social-economic status but everyone is friendly always willing to help someone out. In NY there was this lady who's son almost didn't get on the train, she frantically tried to pry the doors open because the 13 yr old was pinched in between and what surprised me was that no one tried to help them out. Just last week I was crossing the street here in PR and a lady fell on the side walk, in a matter of seconds all, and I mean ALL of the people who saw her fall rushed to her aid, even the parking lot worker left his post. They helped her up, asked is she was ok, picked up her stuff... That is what I love about my people. We are very aware of each other, very cordial. Every time I walk in an elevator full of strangers we all exchange a "good morning" or "good evening." Every time you go out you meet new people, everyone is very talkative, we are a very affectionate bunch.

So really I can completely understand why he misses the island. He said that after he acquires the experience of working in NY and has made all the proper connections, he wants to come back and work from home. The joy of globalization and good networking. So yes I loved NY, but I don't think I could live there...

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women in advertising

nobody@vox.com(lemon) — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 09:54:31 -0500

Right now I'm watching a documentary (more like a filmed lecture) called Killing Us Softly 3 which is about the depiction of women in advertising and how it affects all women and all men. Very interesting and super-informative.

You can watch it here.

I think the solution would be to love ourselves, no matter what age, skin color or body shape we are, and to be more critical of what we see or hear.

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