My Double 3 years

Today is my Double 3 Day, meaning I am now 33 years old.

And as part of a mini-series of positive blog posts, I will write about the greatest memories in my Double 3 Years.

Youth

Early Childhood  -- most of remember early childhood as the great time before all the drama of adolescence and adulthood.  We think that way, even though we didn't really have much control of our lives at that age. But it was a more care-free time in which you didn't think much of  major responsibilities nor major insecurities.


My favorite memory from early childhood was going to parks and beaches with my father. Sometimes my brothers would come along. I really cherish the beach memories of early childhood, since that was before the body hairs started growing and became an unfortunate distraction (learn more at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2006/02/body-hair-this-is-from-advice-column.html)

My dad also used to take me around the island to explore how things are in different communities in other parts of Oahu. That might seem like a minor thing to some, but later in life, I have met people from the Honolulu area who didn't know much about the other parts of Oahu because their parents didn't take them around the island. I find that to be sad and unfortunate! 

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At home, my interest was looking through the books on the bookshelves. I especially loved reading the atlases and encyclopedias.  Both instilled a love of learning geography and history. I also loved reading about animals too. 

Some of the books weren't even my age level. They were just there. I read them as best as I could. Of course, I may not have understood them on the same level as I do now, but just the exposure was important. 

I think it is tragic when children grow up without books in their home. Parents can't just rely on school to teach their kids about the world. If the parents can't afford more books, they should get a library card.

I also remember back in 2nd grade, while I was at the store, I saw a pack of flashcards of the US presidents. I wanted it and got it! Then I memorized the flash cards. Then later that year, in  a class lesson on "what is a president", me being the show off, said "I know them all". Well, apparently, the word spread and this whole thing got a life of its own. It led to random students coming up to me asking me about the presidents.  This went on for years. In fact, even in adulthood, I hear  former elementary classmates mention about me reciting the names of presidents.  All this because I was a show-off back in 2nd grade!  But at least I'm known for knowing something :)



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Another thing, I used to live in Lanakila Housing (called Puahala Homes by housing bureaucrats) which is considered a ghetto by outsiders. But it didn't feel that way growing up, in fact back then, I thought it was just another community. Maybe because we had basic sanitation and electricity so we didn't feel poor.  But anyways, I still remember the red bench in the backyard, the grassy area (which looked like a swamp when it rained) and always bouncing a ball in the backyard. I wasn't bouncing a ball to practice a sport, I was just bouncing the ball for the fun of it! 



I also used to remember some of the neighbors in Lanakila Housing. Unlike the stereotypes of "scary ghetto housing", our neighbors were mostly good people. Just because many of them didn't achieve higher levels of education nor a prestigious job, that doesn't make them bad people. 

With all that, I was devastated when my family had to move out because their income was "too high" to stick around. Some people didn't understand my pain when we left because they were too caught up in the stereotypes of "housing bad, suburbs good".  But that's not how I saw my community when I was growing up, it was just a great community to me.




my 5th grade year  --- that was my favorite year in Lanakila Elementary School. I mentioned about it in previous blog post http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2012/09/myself-2-decades-ago.html

 The first half of 1992, I was completing my final year in elementary school as a 5th grader at Lanakila Elementary School.

It was my favorite year at that school!

Unlike earlier school years, I didn't have much problems with my classmates.

Even though there was still cliques amongst us, there was still a sense of brotherhood among us.

The guys who used to pick on me were now guys who I got along with.

And still remember when I was sitting in the back of my homeroom, next to Oscar and Jeff. Me and Oscar used to tease Jeff the previous year, but in 5th grade, we were all friends.  We had fun times talking to each other, one of the funnest times in my life!

I also remember winning the school's Geography Bee (though Christine came a close 2nd).

I also remembered the cop from as the DARE program, and the field trip to Camp Pupukea.  Fun times.

While the teachers were usually impressed with my academic side, they were irritated by the ridiculous things I would occasionally say in class. 

Yeah, the ridiculous things I said. It was usually "dirty jokes".  I still remember the boys who taught me those things. Well, I'm not going to mention their names but they know who they are.


Middle school   --- It was at Kawananakoa Middle School.  It was not as great as elementary but there will still a few fun memories.

I still remember the 2 Big Island trips where we get to explore the volcanoes.

I remember 8th grade homeroom, where we watched MTV. Back then, it played music videos, and in the hour we were watching, they were showing MTV Jamz which was mostly hip-hop/R  & B videos. You should've seen David Nahinu's reaction to Adina Howard's "Freak Like Me" video, it was classic! 

I also remember 8th grade computer class, in which I was classmates with Jeff (from the elementary days). We used to partner up for projects, and laughed along when other kids say funny stuff!  That was my favorite class in middle school. 

I also remember hanging out with Russell. When he asked me what music I liked, and I mentioned "heavy metal and rap", well, the heavy metal part got his attention. That started a friendship and lots of conversations about "Beavis and Butthead", "Headbanger's Ball", and all the bands like Metallica, Guns N Roses, Pantera, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and more.  We did talk about rap music too, but we did more of that when we went to high school.

Another friend that I made in middle school was Terence. We used to always talk about the NBA! I didn't really follow the NBA until middle school.  In elementary, I was aware of Micheal Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and the other mega-stars. But I only started watching the games and reading books about the players in middle school. 


High school -- McKinley High School   ----  Home of the Tigers.  it was better than middle school, and I won't have time to go over every great memory, but some stick out in a major way. 


 My favorite was  Lunch recess in 11th grade.  It was mostly at shop building. It was me, Russell (who I met in middle school), Brian Anderson, Orlando Holbron and Justin Gonda. There were other visitors as well.  If you saw us separately, you wouldn't expect us to be hanging out. Russell was the guy who tried all the rock trends, Orlando was the hip-hop guy with the baggies, Brian was the conservative-looking white guy, Justin Gonda was the Marrolyn Manson wanabee. I was the guy with facial hair in the group. While we all looked different, that didn't stop us from having fun. We were basically the leftovers that didn't fit other cliques, but that didn't stop us from having fun.

 It was mostly jokes about what's going on the campus. We were fans of hip-hop and rock so we talked a lot of the latest gossip from those genres. I used to buy monthly copies of The Source (hip-hop magazine) and showed it to my friends.

I remember trying to take a picture of them for photo class, but I still remember Gonda running as soon as I took out the camera.  It was too bad we didn't have a group picture because I would've post it right here.


The group broke up in 12th grade. Justin Gonda alienated everyone. People found new cliques. I was still hanging with Russell and a few other guests, but things just weren't the same.

But what I enjoyed about 12th grade was the school activities  It was our last year, and it was time to enjoy the festivities. It meant yelling SENIORS at pep rallies. It was the bonfire! There were campus club activities (ie. martial arts club practice, drug-free club service activities, Leo Club service activities, Spanish Club activities)

And of course, the talent shows. Those who left McKinley before my senior year MISSED OUT BIG TIME! I never sang at talent shows before that year. But this was my senior year, and I wanted to go out with a bang!

The first one was the Senior Luau. I didn't tell anyone (except for those organizing the Senior Luau) that I was going to sing there. But the word got out anyways and everyone was surprised, even my friends. I sang Usher's "Nice and Slow" a capella.  For those who don't know the song, well the lyrics were expressing love & lust at the same time. Some were surprised the song got past the censors, but there was no profanity. But yeah, the performance got a few laughs from the audience but it was all in good fun, it was all from the classmates that I got along with. 

But that was just talent show #1. That was just a seniors-only event. That was just a test-trial. That was only a warm-up.

The major show was called "Brown Bags to Stardom" and it took place in the auditorium and was open to the whole student body after-school.  For that one, I chose to sing Nate Dogg's "Never Leave Me Alone".  It was manly enough song to appeal to the inner-city crowd, but safe enough to satisfy the censors.  And this time, I sang along with music in the background, making it more challenging than doing it a capella.

The performers were told to lift up their head to let the equipment person to play the song. Well, it took a while for the song to start playing, so I lifted up my head a few more times. Some in the audience thought I did it to show swagger, but really it wasn't.

Anyways, my performance got a positive reaction from the audience. I became famous campus-wide. People I didn't know before were now calling my name when I passed by.  I earned a lot of respect by staying humble even with all the recognition.

Unfortunately, it was all before YouTube was invented.  You just had to be there!

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And then there the year-end activities that are sacred to every teenager. There was the prom, that I got a last-minute hook-up. I even got my prom bid paid for by someone else (freeload!). The funniest part was when one of the MCs said "dance tastefully, no freak-dancing" but people ignored it and got away with it!  There was a mix of teen pop (NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, Britney), booty music (2 Live Crew, Uncle Luke) , ska (Reel Big Fish) and some other stuff. But mostly the teen pop and booty music stood out to me :)  :)  :)  :)    They should've added some Limp Bizkit, but understandably they didn't since that would've been a safety hazard with the mosh pits!

Then there was the graduation.  There was the speeches, there were the songs. But then the special moments came

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2009/06/10-years-ago-today.html

The turning of the tassels!

Yelling out "99!" and "TIGER PRIDE" as a group!

And the ultimate --- walking through the oval!

For those who don't know, there is an oval in front of the school's Administration Building, with William McKinley's statue on it!

NOBODY is supposed to walk on the oval! You're supposed to walk around the oval! ALWAYS!

But there is ONE exception!

Graduation time!

After all the speeches, songs and ceremonies, the graduates walk through the oval (once in a lifetime moment) and on to the lawn to meet proud relatives!

When I got off the oval, my dad gave me the graduation ring! A real special moment!

Then there was Project Graduation. Project Graduation is an all-night party sponsored by the school for the new graduates! It is supposed to be the last time we spend time together before we go on with our lives! It is also meant to give the new graduates a drug-free, alcohol-free celebration!

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2009/06/10-years-ago-today.html

We had the dance floor open, we had the karaoke room open! I was known as the talent show guy that year, and I felt like I was in heaven with those things going on!

I was going back & forth between the dance floor and the karaoke room! Dancing, singing, rapping, having fun! And I just graduated! ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING MOMENTS IN MY LIFE!

As the night went on, some of our fellow graduates were falling asleep on the chairs! It was funny to see!

I was dancing on the stage even when others were too tired! One graduate who I didn't get a chance to know during the school years gave me a high-five when I was one of the last on the stage!

Then we had our breakfast when night turned into morning!

Then we got our official diplomas!

Then we got into the bus back to campus, for our parents to pick us up and go home!

Then I finally went to sleep in the morning after one of the funnest night of my life!

 Adulthood

Adulthood shouldn't mean the end of fun. It's just a different type of fun.

Here's a few examples

Reason Club - It was an HPU club I was associated with, even though I was a UH undergrad when I was hanging out with them. I got introduced to them via a UH classmate David Parker. I was only friends with Parker for a few months (too much drama) but his intro to his high school classmate at HPU (Stuart Hayashi) was more than enough to impact me in a positive way.

Parker and Hayashi introduced me to new political insights that were the alternative to the usual Democrat/Republican, liberal/conservative nonsense. Through them I learned about libertarianism and objectivism. And with hanging out with Stuart, I meet HPU economics professor Ken Schooland, as well as Hayashi's classmates. (I still remember Geo, Titus, Tali, Jason, Roosevelt, Ryan and that cute Japanese girl whose name I forgot.)  Though we discussed political, sociological and philosophical stuff, it was done through an appropriate sense of humor. 

As we got older and got jobs, we no longer had the time to hang out like we used to. I still see Titus around. And I'm still in contact with the Reason Club folks via facebook.  So even though we're not talking in person, we are still talking online.

Entrepreneurship Club - This one was at UH-Manoa. I joined this group towards the end of my undergraduate years. I wasn't a business major, but I still decided to join in anyways. I wanted to meet new people and discuss ideas in case I wanted to start a business in the future. We had guest speakers and social activities. Loved it!


Parties  -- the high school activities I mentioned earlier was good practice for parties in adult life.

I did a few night-time talent shows at UH. My favorite one was in 2003. I did Ludacris "Southern Hospitality". I was actually sick with the flu that day but screw it I still went on stage. People loved the performance.  I remember Ho'onua was performing later that night. I wanted to join the dance floor, but I was seriously drained of energy from the flu!

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I host a karaoke party every year around my birthday since 2010. Since this year, my birthday (today) falls on a Tuesday, I decided to delay it until Saturday.

The past ones I had usually just had 4 people (including me) but it was still fun! The first one (my 30th birthday) we were singing Micheal Jackson songs as well as girly songs (Cindy Lauper, Katy Perry) and manly songs (Limp Bizkit).

But when my older brother came in for my 31st and 32nd birthday ...............oh shiiiiiiizzzzzzzzzzz......... we start to have a more hard-rock/heavy-metal edge to our karaoke parties. Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, System of a Down, Guns N Roses, Quiet Riot, POD...... .... and more. We still did other genres too, even slow songs.

Not sure how many will come to the next one, but I'm ready for party .......

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I go to the clubs a few times a year. I've been to Rumours (the cages!!!!!!!!!), Pearl Ultralounge, Senor Frogs [dancing on stage with my Santa hat :) ], Lotus, The Loft,  Playbar (tiny dancefloor --- squished!), MadDogg (slightly larger dance floor but still squished), Villa, Oceans 808, the Maze, and Fashion 45!    Some out of business, some still going strong!

Sometimes I go with a friend (and see a few friends there too), sometimes I ride solo. Sometimes, I find a few ladies to dance with (and maybe more).  But so far, I left without incident. I enjoy the parties, but I don't drink alcohol!

But the funnest parties are the New Year's parties.  I went to the Aloha Tower parties for the countdowns to 2011, 2012 and 2013. Multiple stages, foam pits and more!  The funnest one was the countdown to 2012!As soon as the clock striked and the fireworks popped, the ultimate party  song of 2011 was playing  --- that would be LMFAO's Party Rock Anthem! Oh yeahh!!!!!!! Then it was Afrojack w/ Eva Simons "Take Over Control".  Just hearing those 2 songs right when the New Year started brings special joy to my heart and my spirit!

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 UH games -  I'm a major fan of UH sports, though I only go a few times a year. I mostly attend football, though I been to a few basketball, volleyball, softball and baseball games too!

My favorite one? In 2004, the last game of the regular season. UH played Michigan State. It was the end of an up & down season.  and if UH wins this one, it makes it to the bowl game. If it lost, it would've been a sad ending to Timmy Chang and Chad Owen's UH career.  Well, no sad endings this time around! It was a close game and UH won!!!!!

My other favorite one -- 2006--- UH vs Nevada! My dad got free tickets for me and my friend Aaron G.!  We saw 2 assistant coaches arguing. We saw a really close game that went back & forth. UH defense stopped Nevada near the end zone! VICTORY!!

I went to this year's game between UH and Fresno State. Earlier that week, a Fresno State alumni on my facebook list was boasting and taunting (in a fun natured way of course). Then, the game. First half, UH just sucked. 3rd quarter, Fresno made a touchdown and a large exodus of UH fans were leaving. I decided to just stick around and chill. Great decision because the UH defense was on a roll, and the UH offense finally played like they existed! All UH had to do was make a last-second touchdown. Fresno State intercepted the ball :(    However, the comeback attempt was the most fun I had in a losing effort. Well, at least it wasn't as bad as the 2004 UH-Fresno "game"!


As for the other sports, the most fun I had was watching a men's basketball game with Terence. It was UH vs Nevada. UH won! Me and Terence also laughed at the spectator's comments.  I haven't talked with Terence in a while but hopefully, we can reconnect and watch another basketball  game again! 

Volleyball, baseball and softball -- I dont really watch those sports on TV. But being at the game (especially a UH game) is much more fun!

Work -- 

work is fun?  Some workplaces can be! 

 Libraries -- I was a student helper at several libraries during my undergraduate years at UH-Manoa. My favorite one was at the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (LBPH). I was at LBPH from July 2002 to August 2004. I was mostly organizing the stacks of braille books, audio cassettes, large-type books and other materials. I loved the family atmosphere among the staff! Unfortunately, the pay was low and was a higher paying job that was offered at the UH campus that semester (Marine Option Program student librarian). 

 Now I'm in the Library and Information Science (LIS) program at UH-Manoa. I look forward to fun times being a full-time librarian in the future.  

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recovery @ Macy's  -- Recovery means re-organizing the items on the selling floor. I re-folded shirts and pants. I made sure the dresses fit back into the hangers. 


My first Macy's job was a holiday seasonal job at Kahala Mall in 2010. My mentor was Andrew. He was the recovery expert as well as the expert in the different styles of pants.  We had tons of fun folding and organizing stuff as well as talking story among ourselves as well as with the customers. 

I did join the Ala Moana Macy's staff in summer 2011 as a salesperson. But I later switched to recovery for the winter time. While recovery at Kahala Mall was fun, recovery at Ala Moana was even funner!  Mostly because it was a bigger store and we had a larger recovery team  there.   We went around to different sections of the store and re-organized the stuff! We also had very fun conversations and we all had an appropriate sense of humor.  This was one of the funnest group of people I had ever worked with and they all have a special place in my heart.

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work leading the youth - The main job was being a substitute teacher for both public and private schools.

For the preschools, I enjoyed the outdoor recess, indoor play and nap-time. I used to do that level more often around 2007-2009.

I mostly work with elementary and middle school levels. High schools, I do once in a while.


This year, I went back to my alma mater McKinley High School!  The main thing I noticed was the campus seemed less crowded, as if the enrollment went down. But it was still good to be back.


While people associated "substitute teacher" with "class chaos", it's not always that bad! In fact, when students behave properly and learn something, that is one of life's greater joys!


I also did some para-professional tutor jobs in the past. One year at Niu Valley Middle School, one semester at Palolo Elementary School!

I also worked  2 summer programs at Palama Settlement!  They can be hectic, but there was fun as well. We had swim time, camp time, music performance and field trips. My favorite activity was the "game room" where we played with toys as well as played billiards and ping-pong. Even though I usually loose at billiards, I still enjoyed the games there.



side jobs and volunteer ops  -- I did some side jobs in the past. Some of them include carnival game attendant, election poll worker,  promotional sign waving and being an "extra".

For being an "extra", I was at Bellows Air Force, pretending to be a victim of a terrorist attack, while the National Guard practiced in how to respond.


But my favorite side job was promotional sign waving for America's Mattress. It was 1 weekend a month waving signs in the hot sun! The first time I forgot to put sunscreen. Lesson learned. But I always had water and Gatorades to keep me hydrated!  I tried the "Dre Day dance" (where the "Eazy-E" character held up a sign saying "will rap for food") a few times, but doing so all day took too much energy. 

starting over  --- 

My great memories including what I call "starting all over again", meaning making transitions to new things or going back to the good old classics. 

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Back to the hood - An example of "going back to the good old classics" was when I temporarily moved back to Lanakila Housing after a few years in the suburbs.  That was in my 12th grade year.  I moved to my grandma's apartment. 

I was back to my childhood home. But unlike childhood, I could now walk around the hood by myself. And now that I'm back, I did all the walking around that I missed out on when my parents moved me to the suburbs. 

The summer after I graduated high school (1999) was the first summer since 1994 that I lived in Lanakila Housing full-time. It was the first summer since 1994 that I lived in Honolulu full-time. It was like finally breathing fresh air again. I was happy to enjoy the summer back home again. This is why the summer of 1999 will always be my favorite summer ever.

New apartment --- After the summer of 1999, I was in and out of UH dorms, my uncle's apartment in Makiki and my gradma's apartment in Lanakila. 

But in summer of 2003, it was time for my own apartment. No more moving in and out. 

 This past summer was my one-decade anniversary at that apartment. 

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/07/one-decade-in-my-apartment.html 

So on July 2003, I moved in to my own apartment.  It was walking distance from UH-Manoa where at the time, I was still an undergraduate student.  It is a studio apartment with basic neccessities.  I dont need extra luxuries.

And I get to live by myself .   I can play my stereo when I want and I can have silence when I want.  I dont have to worry about niele room-mates asking stupid questions.  I do what I like when I like. That's the life :)

I continued to stay there, even after I was done with my under-grad years at UHM.  The area has easy to many bus routes.  It's easy to get to my workplaces and easy to get to all the important places in Honolulu. Close enough to Waikiki, Ala Moana, Kahala Mall, and downtown Honolulu.  That's the life :)  

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Apartment make-over

Last year (2012), I was 9 years in that apartment, but there were too many things there, too much disorganization, and there were bed bugs (eek)

my blog posts on the topic

 http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2012/06/my-war-against-clutter.html

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2012/07/my-apartment-gets-make-over.html

It's just about 3 weeks later, and I'm feeling like I'm living in a brand new place, even though it's the same studio apartment I've been living in for 9 years.

A lot of old outdated papers? Thrown out!
Big grey containers with piles of articles? Thrown out!
Old stuff that I haven't used in years? Thrown out!

Some stuff, I kept! Especially stuff I've been looking for that was hidden in a pile of useless papers!

But yeah, you'd be surprised what stuff is still in your house if you haven't had time to clean-out your stuff in YEARS! 

 http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2012/10/32-years-of-living.html

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/07/one-decade-in-my-apartment.html 

 

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Back to UH-Manoa  -- yep, this year I'm back to UH-Manoa, this time as a graduate student in the Library and Information Science (LIS)  program.

I am so loving the opportunity to be back at UH-Manoa.  
Big campus!
Lots of open space,  green grass and beautiful scenery! 
Lots of campus eateries! 
Big libraries with computer labs!  
Places to chill!
Lots of activities going on!

And I'm so loving my classes here.

Learn more at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/05/my-first-semester-as-uh-grad-student.html

and  http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/08/uhm-summer-session.html


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Conclusion

 there's other fun memories as well, but those are the ones that stood out to me in a major way!

So, if you and me had fun memories but didn't make the list, please dont take it personal.  Maybe in the future, I'll add more to future posts! 

Adventures on my new smartphone

I'm not one who just go buy whatever new gadgets are out there.

For one, I don't have unlimited funds

Also, if I'm going to spend money on gadgets, I want something that is proven to be useful.

I got my previous cell-phone the day after Christmas in 2009. Even then, it was a cheap flip-phone.

It was working fine all these years but I wanted more.

I noticed everyone else was able to do quick reference checks on their smartphones and I still didn't have one.

Then in the summer, the professor wanted to us experiment checking a database via mobile device. My  flip-phone couldn't do it and I had to borrow a mobile device (an i-pad) from a classmate. (much praise for that classmate)

But since I wasn't working in the summer, I had to wait before I buy a smartphone.

Well, I'm back to work. So it was time for research.

I prefer pressing keys instead of typing on a finger-sensitive touch screen. Many times I barely even touch a touchscreen and it shows a letter I wasn't even trying to type.

 But I still wanted to be able to do quick reference checks as well as do quick uploads to my  facebook.

Well, the only smartphone that still has buttons to press was the BlackBerry Q10. And it also has a touchscreen. It's the best of both worlds.

Blackberry.com

BlackBerry Q10

It was expensive, but T-Mobile allows for down payments for their customers.  So I ordered one online. (the T-Mobile stores here ran out).

I got it on October 2!

 It's 11 days later and so far, I'm loving it!

I'm finally able to do quick reference checks when I am outdoors and do so with a device that fits my pocket.


I can post photos and videos to facebook live from the event!

I can also watch YouTube videos wherever I want!

I can do all that (and more) while still being able to press buttons :)

 


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As for BlackBerry, it has some struggles lately.  So far, I don't think  the phone is the problem. It's a great phone.

The problem is that BlackBerry doesn't have a real marketing strategy!

A marketing strategy for smartphones isn't just about its usability. 

It's about marketing it as a fashion accessory. 


That's what Apple does everytime they introduce their product. They make it an event, a place to be seen while standing in long-lines. This makes the Apple i-phones "cool" in the eyes of many!


This was from a mass-email from advice columnist John Alanis that I got on March 2012

Here's the interesting thing you should know about the iPad:  every
attempt to create a knockoff of it has been a miserable failure. 

No other company has been able to make a tablet computer that
people want.

Why?  Because they think they are in the tablet business.  But no
one wants a tablet computer--they're mostly useless.  However, everyone wants to be cool, and only Apple realizes they're in the coolness business.

You see,  having an iPad is considered cool. Having a Samsung Galaxy is not.  Apple is cool, everything else is uncool and they've built their whole company around that.  Not only that, but having the latest iPad is extremely cool, while having an old one is not so cool anymore.

Apple has figured it out.  People want to be cool, and will pay for it, even if it involves forking over $700 a year for a mostly useless device (did you hear about the new HD screen on the latest iPad...cool, huh?).

Well, apparently, Samsung had gotten hold of this mass e-mail because they responded with this ad!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJafiCKliA8

That ad made the people who stood in long-line for Apple stuff look like suckers!  The slogan "The Next Big Thing is Already Here"

That ad made the SamSung Galaxy part of the "coolness business" that the mass e-mail was talking about!



And Microsoft must've gotten a hold of the same mass-email because they responded with this ad!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE7AQY5Xk9w

That ad mocked the iPad as "not user friendly" AND for not having a keyboard!


BlackBerry could've done a similar ad promoting their Q10 smartphone!


I checked their ads on YouTube. Most of them are too serious!

The one humor ad just didn't stand out at all https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPbhzmIq9uU
Excuse me, a lame self-mocking ad about what a Blackberry 10  can't do? 

The SamSung Galaxy and Microsoft Surface ads were way more funnier and attention grabbing because they showed what those products CAN do!

Also don't just market as a business smartphone (which was  BlackBerry claim to fame), market it as a fun smartphone too! 

I hope the new people running BlackBerry will get this memo!  They shouldn't let their great Q10 smartphone get lost in the shuffle just because their companies can't market to save their life!

Positive Teachers

Usually, I write blogs about things that annoy, irritate and anger me.
But you know what?

Some positive things do happen in my life.

And there are people who have a positive impact on my life.

I can't put it all on one post, but I'll start a mini-series of positive posts.

For today, it will be about the positive teachers I have had in my life!

Of course, people always mention about how teachers have a positive impact on their students. Some of them had a very positive impact on me.

I'll go over teachers from different levels of education


1) Elementary school teachers 


I am an alumni of  Lanakila Elementary School. Because we were so young at the time, we didn't fully appreciate what the teachers were doing for us. I had academic potential but I did say so many ridiculous things in class that irritated the teachers. Sure, there were students worse than me, but that's not a good excuse on my part.  Some of the teachers were scary (especially the 4th grade teachers, LOL!) but many were positive people.

I still remember Ms Ching (1st grade), Ms Lai (2nd grade) and Ms Komatsu (3rd grade). Unfortunately, I have never seen them since elementary school, so they never got a chance to see me as an older person. 

The 4th grade teachers (Ms Ikeoka and Ms Waiwaiole) were the scary ones who were extremely irritable. And us as kids were irritating with our immature and inappropriate jokes.
 However, I did see those 2 teachers one time when I was in high school. My high school class was on a field trip to Kaala Farms and so were the Lanakila Elementary students at the same time. So yeah, they did get a chance to see me as a more mature person.

5th grade teachers were Mr Kato and Ms Kishimoto. They weren't as scary as the 4th grade teachers, but I did say so many ridiculous things in class to get laughs, which of course, they had to be the disciplinarian. I didn't see Mr Kato since elementary, but I heard he became a fire-fighter. I did see Ms Kishimoto two times as a substitute teacher back in 2005. But I only subbed at that campus again in 2009. That was it!


But yeah, those teachers probably have a trip just knowing karma happening when I became a substitute teacher! But even those who didn't grow up to become teachers end up becoming parents (and experiencing karma at home from their kids).

2) Middle School Teachers

Middle school, a major transition point for every kid. At this point, teachers can have a major impact. 

Here are the most positive ones from my time at Kawananakoa Middle School! 

Mister Nagahisa (middle school social studies)   - This was my 6th grade social studies teacher.  He was a very positive teacher with an appropriate sense of humor. We used to have class presentations about our culture as well as other topics. We had class discussions.

Of course, as a 6th grader, I would say ridiculous things and be sent to sit outside the class. But we talked about what happened, and everything was all good afterwards.



Mister Chung (middle school social studies)    This was 7th grade social studies which focused on Hawaii's history.  We also did quiz games on current events, with the weekly questions were lesson plans from KGMB.  This was my chance to prove to the rest of the class (most of whom under-estimated me)  that I had brains on this topic. I earned some respect through this.

Last school year, I went back to the same middle school (Kawananakoa) as a substitute teacher. Very few teachers left from when I was a student. But Mr Chung was still there. Still the same cool guy that he was. 



Miss Inouye (middle school science)     This was 8th grade earth science.  It was challenging but not overwhelming, and we had some lab assignments and textbook work. Miss Inouye was a great teacher that treated everyone with respect. Students did have their fun, but there was no chaos in the class. It was one of my favorite classes at the school.

 3) High School Teachers

 High School is when we grow from kids to adults. We start to have much more appreciation for the positive teachers, even though we may not admit it to all our peers at the time. 

Here are my favorite teachers from McKinley High School! 

John Newkirk (high school English)     The first class I entered in high school was 9th grade English taught by Mr. Newkirk.  There was emphasis on literature, but unlike some literature classes I had, this class was FUN!  We acted out plays! We read stories as a group. We had class discussion on the stories.

I  learned new things like "irony" and "tragedy vs comedy". We read interesting stories like "Chocolate War" and "Lord of the Flies"

And most importantly, Mr Newkirk was a good person with an appropriate sense of humor. This is extremely important because while you don't want the class to be boring, you also don't want the class to be chaos where people left out. Nobody felt left out in Mr Newkirk's class.

 I'm still in contact with him via facebook. Sometimes, we have differing opinions on social issues (well, especially one, but this is a positive blog post)  but we are able to discuss those things in a civilized manner.



Miss Tamura (high school social studies) -- I had her in my senior year in high school. Back then, seniors usually had one semester of "Behavior Sciences" which goes over the basics of psychology and sociology. It was a study of how people behave and organized themselves. It went over social structures, social control and also social disorder.   Topics included values, mores, family, justice, punishment, nature vs nurture and much more.

While I was already reading a lot about those topics in my spare time, this was the first time I had a concept of "sociology" as a field.  It quickly became my favorite topic, and eventually my major during my undergraduate years at UH-Manoa.

I have heard some students complain about Ms Tamura being "too hard".  It wasn't that hard if you did the assignments. Tamura had high standards, but was a fair grader.

I also enjoyed the atmosphere in the class. We had lots of class discussions and presentations. We had a very vocal group of students in our class, but no rivalries nor drama.  It was one of my greatest classes I ever had and I thank Miss Tamura big time. I have lost track of her since graduation, but I hope she knows my appreciation.




Warren Chee  (high school geometry)- this was the greatest math teacher I ever had. I took this class in the 11th grade. Before that, my math teachers were either sarcastic jerks, screaming maniacs, or folks who didn't put real effort in classroom management. Even worse, math wasn't my top topic.  But this is supposed to be a positive blog post so I won't say more about the previous teachers.

But Mister Chee was the ultimate math teacher. He was able to explain complex equations and procedures in ways we can understand. He was the first math teacher I could really do that.

He also had mind games at the start of many classes. This was a great use of appropriate sense of humor. This kept the class from being neither boring nor chaotic.

We had a great group of students in that class who were vocal, funny but respectful. I will always treasure the memories of that class.





Mister Sekiguchi (high school Algebra II)  I took this class my senior year in high school. It was harder than Mr Chee's class.

But it wasn't that much torture, because this was one of the funnest classes I ever had in high school. Mr Sekiguchi had a great sense of humor, even though some of the funny stuff he did wasn't G-rated!  But he wasn't a bully at all!

Funny stuff aside, I liked it when he had us discuss our homework as a group. This helped us understand our mistakes and gave us opportunities to help each other.

The students in that class were my favorite classmates I ever had and Mr Sekiguchi was the perfect man to teach us.




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4) College professors 

Colleges have a reputation of having professors who come in, lecture a large auditorium of students whose names they'll never know, and therefore not care.

But I usually sat in the front of the class, and I usually ask questions and make comments.  I'm not that easy to forget.


Here are some professors that I remember in a good way




Peter Manicas (sociology)  Sociology 100, the first class I took at UH. He would run around the class and speak loudly. He would rant and rave.  Because of this, people would call him "Dr Maniacs" (notice that the "a" and "c" switched around).


He was opinionated but he didn't take himself too seriously and he didn't take a challenge to his opinions personally.  After I was done in the class, I would see him around campus and we would joke to each other about the opposite opinions we would sometimes have.

Not only that, that guy could sing the school's alma mater. I remember hearing him sing at a graduation ceremony and I was impressed!



Rodney Morales (English lit professor)     For a long time, I was disillusioned with literature classes because some of the the teachers taught it  in an extremely boring way.  But Rodney Morales  made literature interesting.

I had him for "Short Story and Novel". We had many class discussions on the books whereas some of the other literature teachers focused too much on manini details of the story. We read interesting stories like "Blade Runner" and my favorite fiction story "The Tattooed Soldier" which was about a Guatemalan immigrant who escaped civil war in his homeland but ended up in Los Angeles just when the riots were about to happen.

I could also relate to Rodney Morales on a personal level, since we were both Latinos who grew up in Hawaii (yes people, we exist) and not just anywhere in Hawaii, but in Kalihi  -- the land of the public housing projects.  We grew up in different areas of Kalihi (and in a different era, he's older) but we could still talk about many things and compare notes!

Beverly Keever (journalism)   Her class that I took was more of an intro course about journalism and society, rather than a "how to be a reporter" class. She had guest speakers and we did student presentations. She was open to many different viewpoints, even though she felt one question I asked a guest speaker (about public relations) was too blunt (LOL!). After I took her course, she saw some opinion articles that I wrote for Ka Leo, and thought it was good for students to speak up about stuff, even if our viewpoints don't always fall into line.

David Swift (sociology)      I took 3 classes with this guy. He was great. Even though he was already considered "old", he was still sharp and in command. 

My first class with him was "Sociology of Pop Culture". Now everyone was thinking the same thing when he walked in --- are we in the right class? Him,an expert on pop culture? Well, it wasn't just current pop culture but the history of pop culture, from back in the day before we the  students were even a sperm and an egg!  

I also had him in "Social Change" and "Technology and Society". 


In his classes, there was some lectures (in which some students fell asleep) but the fun begins when we had class discussions. In some of the classes, we had the football players there and they would make some silly and funny comments. 

My favorite memory was the class presentation in the "Sociology of Pop Culture" class. My presentation  was  on ............................... a famous magazine with a rabbit logo. One of the funniest presentations I ever did!


Katherine Irwin (sociology) This one specialized in issues related to drugs and crime. Yes, they are serious topics but it wasn't boring. We would watch videos and have class discussions.

The professor had an appropriate sense of humor! The class had a whole bunch of football players and sometimes an assistant coach would walk in to make sure they were in class. After the assistant coach left, the professor then said "isn't that guy disturbing the class" then all the football players said "yeah" and started laughing!


David Mayeda (American studies)  this class was supposed to be about social movements, but it was almost like a class on sports. No, we weren't just talking about the latest games, but about how social issues and sports intersect.  For example, there were discussions about how racial and gender stereotypes have affected sports athletes and vice versa. Also, about how the pressure on doing well in sports and academics can take a toll of some student-athletes.

This teacher was tolerant of opposing viewpoints and didn't take a challenge to his viewpoint personally.  This was especially important since this class happened around the time the War on Terror was beginning and there was some serious political tension on campus.  You didn't have to worry about tensions in his class.



Dr Ling (linguistics) In this class, we learned about the different languages, as well as the different sounds and syllables. We also learned about different accents as well as emphasized respect of those who speak in a different accents.



Rick Baldoz (sociology) the one memory of I have of this class was on the day the 9/11 attacks happened. He did mentioned about what happened for a few minutes. Then we went on with the planned lesson of the day. I thought this was the most appropriate way to handle this issue -- acknowledge what happen but also continue with what was already planned.

On a more lighter note, I enjoyed the many class discussion on the many issues on race relations, ranging from immigration to affirmative action. Even with a sensitive and emotional issue, everyone was civilized and respectful.

Charles Mueller (social psyschology)     this guy totally reminds me of Tim Allen of "Home Improvement". Similar look, similar funny gestures. Different voice, but still............!  Had an appropriate sense of humor and a respectful person.
I liked it when he keeps saying about people's thinking and behavior "it's not logical .......it's psychological".  Love that quote!



Dr. Dana Davidson (family resource)  This was from my last semester as an undergraduate student. I just needed another upper-level course from outside my major. Davidson was teaching the class on adolesncent development. We leared about that as well  as community outreach programs serving adolescents.



Calvin Endo (sociology) - This guy looked like Ben Cayetano, just with a lighter skin. Even the professors joked to him about signing the pay raise into law when the professors were on strike back in 2001.

But on a more serious note, he was my mentor in several ways. For one, he was the undergraduate academic advisor for the sociology department. He was the guy to talk to when you want to declare sociology as your major.

Also, he was in charge of the sociology Freshman Seminar programs in which senior students teach the Sociology 100 (intro to sociology) to a small group of freshmen. That was my first time teaching, before I became a substitute teacher. 

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Now, I'm a graduate student in the Library and Information Science (LIS) program. Still too early to complete a list of great professors.

My academic advisor is Rebecca Knuth who is also teaching a class I'm taking this semester. A very wonderful, caring and humble person.

For the classes I have already completed, my personal favorite is Rich Gazan who teaches the database class. I mentioned him in another blog post

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/08/uhm-summer-session.html

.........but the good news was the professor, Rich Gazan, is one of the coolest guys around. He is an easy person to get along with and he is very helpful.

Professor Gazan also has tons of knowledge from his previous work experience in online indexing as well as his academic research.

Again, I had other profs and will be taking more classes in the near future. I'd rather wait until I'm done with the program before I make another list of positive professors for the LIS program.



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4) Conclusions and disclaimers

Before anyone gets offended about being left-off the list, please don't be.  There are other teachers that did great things, but the ones listed had the most positive impact.

But thanks to all the great teachers who cared and helped me reach my potential. Keep doing what you're doing!

What is an Adult? (part 2)

(Part 1 of "What is an Adult?"  is at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/05/what-is-adult.html)

Few more thoughts

1) Your former classmates are adults, talk to them like adults

It's always a challenge to transition from adolescence to adulthood.

Some of us want to re-live the times of our younger days. (or in some cases, the exact opposite)

But many of us have grown up into positions of real responsibility. Many of us have kids to take care of. Many of us have jobs which require leadership responsibility.

Many of us have gained life experience in our adult lives that forced us to have a much more mature perspective. Some of it is through trial and error. Some of it is because we now have to be role models. For some of us, it's joining (or re-joining) a religious faith.

Because of these experiences, many of us are no longer interested in making the same inappropriate jokes that entertained us when we were kids or teens.  Also, many of us have learned to become confident adults and are no longer interested in acting like the angst-ridden teenagers we once were.

It doesn't mean we can't have fun. It doesn't mean we no longer have insecurities. It does mean we have to manage our fun and our insecurity in a more mature manner.


For me, when I became a substitute teacher, I had to unlearn some bad habits. I had to distance myself from inappropriate jokes that once entertained me. I had to learn other ways to deal with stressful situations other than the "flight or fight" impulses that most of us relied on as teenagers.  I had to reduce my use of profanities. I had to be super-careful in dealing with the opposite gender.

After having to go through those experiences, it is annoying when I meet a former classmate who expected me to have the same mentality that I did when I was a teenager.

I am in my 30's now.

So I remind those who are my age this ---- when you meet your former classmates , remember this  ---- the person you are talking to is no longer a child, no longer a teenager!

The person you are talking to is probably no longer interested in the same inappropriate jokes you once enjoyed together.

The person you are talking to is probably no longer interested in re-exploring his/her insecurities,traumas or other dramas of their younger years.

The person you are talking to probably has a different opinion than what he/she once shared with you.

The person you are talking to probably has new interests that you don't know about yet.

The person you are talking to probably wasn't who you thought he/she was and is now finally more honest about who he/she is.

This may be common sense to those who have been on Facebook for a few years already.  But it is not obvious to everyone.

In other words, proceed with caution because you and the former classmate would need to reintroduce yourselves to each other.

2) You can still have fun

Being an adult doesn't mean you have to give up fun. You just have to manage it better.

For example, I remember when I was a substitute teacher in preschool classes. Once the toys are out, I play with some of them. Being an adult shouldn't stop from enjoying toys. 

But once the kids start fighting or getting hurt, it's time to be more serious.

In other words, you better be able to switch from fun to serious in less than a second!  This is considered common sense in the education industry.

You don't have to be a teacher to still enjoy childhood/adolescent activities.  You don't have to give up playing with toys, watching cartoons, dancing to music, doing artwork or playing games.


But jokes are another thing altogether. When we were young, many of us enjoyed jokes that are inappropriate. Those jokes might be sexually graphic, racist, sexist, homophobic or just plain insensitive to people who are suffering!  If you're an adult still making those jokes, you are a truly sad and pathetic person who needs to start acting like a real adult already!


It doesn't mean you stop having a sense of humor, it means you have to develop an appropriate sense of humor! 

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3) Problem Discussion

We all have problems in our life and we don't want to hold it all in forever.

So sometimes it's OK to discuss your problems

But as an adult, you shouldn't be sounding like an angst ridden-teenager! Talk about them like a mature confident adult!

 And more importantly, you shouldn't be talking about your problems all the time. If you do, you end up becoming an energy vampire.

 

From Oprah's website 

http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/Protect-Yourself-from-Energy-Vampires

Some people bring unexpected lightness and comfort to your life. They crackle with energy, practically electrify you with their presence. And then there are those who leave you feeling stressed out. Or guilty. Or exhausted down to your very last molecule. I call them energy vampires, and obnoxious or meek, they come in all forms. The sob sister, for one, always considers herself the victim. The world is always against her, and she'll recount every horrible thing that has happened to her, wallowing in every perceived slight.

 

If that sounds like you, you need to stop!

That doesn't mean you have to act happy every single minute.

 It's one thing to have a breakdown if your loved one died, if you just escaped a collapsed building, you just been assaulted, or just escaped a genocidal massacre. 

 

 But you can't turn into a  big ball of insecurity just because somebody gave you a stink-eye.

 

People need to learn to deal with minor annoyances like mature confident adults. Instead of having stupid long conversations about "i'm hurt, i'm a victim",  talk about how you "won the battle"  OR how you'll handle (or prevent) those annoyances the next time it happens.

 

 Look, I work in the educational industry. Everyone there has "war stories" of students saying mean-spirited stuff to them. Many of us had "war stories" of losing control and struggling to re-gain control of the students.  But you're expected to handle and discuss those things like mature confident adults.  If you react to those things like angst ridden teenagers and discuss those things like energy vampires, you are hurting yourself and everyone around you

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I also think it's severely wrong to discuss personal problems at big festive events

I used to write songs (before I started writing blog posts) and one rhyme that I made that still stood out my mind goes like this

everybody goes through **** sometime

but they put it on the side come big event time

That was in reaction to some guy who wanted to waste my time at a major school event talking about his personal problems with other students.

What was supposed to be fun events turned into a whining session from some energy vampire who drained my energy instead of just focusing on the party and just enjoy the festivities!


A similar thing happened at a nightclub when some guy was complaining about a bartender talking to him in an unpleasant voice (duh, it's hard to talk in a sweet voice when the music is being played at high volume) and a bouncer didn't let him into a  VIP room (duh, it's a VIP room).

Even worse, it was New Year's Eve!  It was less than an hour before midnight, yet this energy vampire just wanted to stay outside and sulk in his self-pity instead of acting like a mature confident adult and just go into another nightclub and enjoy the new year.



What was supposed to be fun events turned into a whining session from some energy vampire who drained my energy instead of just focusing on the party and just enjoy the festivities!

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 Another way to be an Energy Vampire is to constantly ask people about their personal problems and whine "don't be ashamed to tell me" whenever people refuse to tell you everything.

In the past, an Energy Vampire kept asking me questions about my past problems, even though I already answered those questions before. 

  Energy Vampires can claim all they want about how they want to learn about you. But notice that they rarely ask you about good memories from your past.

 You see, Energy Vampires want you to wallow in misery! They want you to join them as acting like angst-ridden teenagers!  They're not interested in learning about your fun memories because they're not interesting in re-living the good times.

Those types of conversations will literally drain your emotional energy and can really leave you emotionally exhausted.  It will cause your mind to wallow in insecurity when you should be working towards becoming a mature confident adult!

If you feel like you're being described as an Energy Vampire, please change your ways!  You are acting like an angst-ridden teenager. Start controlling your insecurities. Start working towards becoming a mature, confident adult already! 

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If you really feel like you have express your emotions and can't hold it in anymore --- do what I do  -  get a blog!

 You don't have to pay anything. You don't even need your own computer, you can just use one at a public library. 

You can express your emotions out. You can choose not to have your real name on it if you don't want to! 

But yeah, write your emotions on your blog. That way, come Big Event Time, you can just move forward and enjoy the festivities.

 

 

4)  Alcohol : It may legal for me now, but I still won't drink it!

And even though I'm legally allowed to drink alcoholic beverages, I don't consider drinking them a "sign of adulthood".

While some people can manage their alcohol intake, others can't. I'd rather not take the risk! 

Real adults don't use peer pressure to get people to drink alcohol!

In fact, real adults RESIST peer pressure, especially when it comes to alcohol!


I have never drank an alcoholic beverage.  Real adults know how to enjoy a party or any other event without alcohol! 


I mean, when we were kids, we knew how to have fun without getting drunk, right? Let's re-discover alcohol free fun! You'll never regret it!