Author Archives: STEPHANIE JIMENEZ

At the beginning of the semester I somehow believed that I wouldn’t change as a writer. Not because I thought I was just that amazing but because I truly didn’t think there was enough time to fix myself as a writer. As I progressed through the semester though I came to realize that my issues as a writer were not that unique and was actually something many others shared. This helped in improving myself because I wasn’t “that far gone”. The research paper actually helped me realize this a lot because it was such a long project that I had no choice but to continuously recheck and reformat it. Whenever I did revise it I would use the opinions of not only myself but others around me as well in order to create an unbiased opinion on the paper. I think the opinions of these people really helped open my eyes to little mistakes I continuously made and therefore improving my skills. While the research paper was the assignment that most helped me improve the analysis paper on the other hand gave me the most challenges. I truly was just not confident about the topic and direction I was going in. I had so many loosely put together ideas but no solid direction and that threw me off heavily. By starting with an unstable base I think the rest of the assignment just went down with it. I had trouble at every direction. Writing simple topic sentences became so hard and ultimately killed my confidence while writing the paper. That’s why I do believe it was my worst work.

While I do believe I progressed overall as a writer there’s obviously still much for me to work on. The most consistent problem I came across in my writing was definitely passive voice. At one point I ran my research paper through the premium version of Grammarly and almost all of the comments about my content were about passive voice. So moving on I do want to focus more on how I word things and create a mindset where I can tell when I am using passive voice. Even now I don’t realize when I use passive voice and could possibly have this entire blog post sound like passive voice. I will change this though because I think it will take my writing to a next level.

When reflecting upon the readings we’ve done in class there’s obviously a theme that is consistent and that is identity. Drinking coffee elsewhere has to be one of the most obvious readings where the concept of identity is discussed on many levels. I found that especially interesting because when identity is spoken about especially with young adults it usually involves a “coming of age” moment where they “find themselves” and this just isn’t accurate for Dina in the story. It almost seems as though she constantly progresses and then regresses just as quickly and I found that especially important because its reality. Not everyone has a happy ending and finds themselves. Instead it’s a fight that one is constantly in. I related heavily to this and even now see it within myself as I reflect upon the semester. I myself have not had a happy ending with this ending of the semester as a person. I haven’t dramatically changed for the better in all honestly regardless of what I’ve gone through. Some may even say I’ve changed for the worst but at the same time its all opinions. I personally don’t think I’ve become a bad or good person I just think I changed. Others may have a different opinion and I think that’s the reality of identity. It’s just whatever people make it. The only opinion of identity I care about is my own because I’m the one who lives with it and that’s what I think I got from this course. Just being confident in ones opinion.

My first semester at Baruch was definitely not surprising or anything that was out of hand. Although this doesn’t mean I didn’t have difficulty because I surely did many times. I just mean to say it wasn’t unexpected or unfair. When talking to others about their final exams specifically I found out that many people had five to six exams whereas I only had two. I found this to be beyond fair and something I simply couldn’t complain about. I appreciate though that throughout the semester I began to understand how to organize the work I had to do better. I hope this helps next semester when I begin top juggle two jobs and school. Overall it was a pretty fair semester and I hope to see more progress as I continue on.

For my research paper I’ve decided to write about a topic that is very interesting and real to me. The connection between the Latino community and the Black Lives Matter movement is one that is beneficial to both parties. There are many inequalities that both Black and Latino people have faced because of racial discrimination in America. These include racial profiling, favoring certain students for gifted school programs, and micro aggressions towards the community.

In my essay I analyze how the Latin community is intertwined or related to the Black Lives Matter movement through their struggles and similar fight for freedom. I also discuss the racial discrimination happening within the actual Latino community. This idea of colorism is especially something that needs to be overcome through the BLM movement in order to create a more equal field for all groups. To fight for a bigger struggle one must defeat inner anti-blackness in the Latin community first.

One of the many communities I’m part of is the mixed communities. Which is basically where all the biracial children fit in. Within this community I have met many other people who love their divide in culture just as much as I do. It’s amazing to say that I’m apart of not only one but two different cultures, religions, and customs. Getting to be part of both the Ecuadorian and Guyanese community has shown me how much each had to offer. It also showed me how much each culture can compliment each-other. Since my fathers side(Ecuadorian) is so calm and shy my mothers side(Guyanese) brings such a great light to the Ecuadorian side. When combined together at a party I can truly see how much each side shines through in their food and music. One aspect though that I believe needs improvement is definitely the compassion. Although it may not seem a big deal to others it’s often hard to keep a good relationship with two very different cultures. Don’t get me wrong when they are happy and together it’s enlightening but it’s often hard to get them at that point. It’s often hard to understand another culture from our own because we don’t know where they’re coming from. Which is something that often happens. My mother’s Guyanese side is more outspoken and loud and as such my fathers Ecuadorian side is confused as to what they’re trying to communicate. My mother’s words can often be mistaken as rude and inconsiderate because she’s so loud about it. Although it isn’t a major problem in the community I think the overall empathy that each side gives each other should be more open.  As a mixed child though I could bring more light to this issue in order to improve it. I could be more vocal about it to each separate community so it can be recognized as a problem that should be fixed.

One of the most iconic shows in my opinion is The Office. It has accumulated a lot of fans throughout the years and rightfully so. The Office is basically a fake comedic documentary. It’s set up as if there is a documentary going on about a boring office in Scranton, Pennsylvania so many actors pretend they don’t know they’re being filmed.

The setting may seem boring since it is just a paper company named Dunder Mifflin but  the people within it are what really make the show. The rivalry between coworkers Jim and Dwight continues through seasons and bring comedy to a usual day at the office. They play pranks on each other like putting their belongings in jell-o or creating a fake treasure hunt within the office which leads no where. Since Dwight is seen more on the unintelligent side he is more gullible than most members and therefore susceptible to a lot of pranks from Jim. Other characters such as Meredith are just wild on their own. I mean the lady is quite literally crazy. She is not only portrayed as an alcoholic but in one episode where the characters are celebrating a bridal shower Merediths actual son is a male stripper at that very bridal shower. She then proceeded to be surprised for two seconds and then supported him and told him to “keep going”. The amount of randomness in the show is what keeps it so interesting to me because one would never expect that from a mother.

The Office is just a show that I can even rewatch multiple times. Shows like that are ones that I believe are the best because you can enjoy them multiple times over.

https://www.travelpulse.com/news/destinations/galapagos-tourism-increased-14-percent-in-2018.html

Another thing I am extremely passionate about is the status of my other countries in terms of economic status and how the people are doing. In Ecuador as with many other countries there’s a lot of poverty. Within poverty though many have the false idea that by visiting these countries as tourists it is helping the country with this crisis. This is extremely untrue in most cases if not all. As described in the above article more than 275,000 travelers go to the Galapagos every year. If this is the case then why is Ecuador not more wealthy? The answer is simple. Tourists only come to countries like Ecuador to visit one place like the Galapagos. They pour all their money into that tourist location and leave the rest of the country in the same economic status. The money obtained from this tourist spot isn’t properly distributed for one main reason. Most of the hotels and resorts found on the Galapagos are owned my American companies. So the money never technically even enters the pockets of Ecuadorian. This is a very real problem that is just giving tourists the false idea that they are helping these countries like Ecuador.

Anne Lamott’s take on the phrase “shitty first drafts” is one that resonates with me heavily. I do feel as though she reflects my way of writing quite well. The most obvious reason being that I believe in the first draft being just a flow of any thoughts of the prompt that one has. I don’t relate to George when he said “In fact, I cannot even allow myself to write a shitty first sentence” because I do believe as Lamott suggested that almost no person can casually pour their perfect all into a piece of writing the first time. I believe Lamott connects with a more realistic part of my writing that although I wish was different I cannot change. My college essay for example was drafted about four to five times before I was comfortable submitting it. And that’s okay. My writing was just not where I wanted it to be but by started at my shitty draft I was able to build upon my original thoughts. That’s why I relate more to Lamott’s piece rather than Dila’s.

I’ve realized that everytime I move on to a next part of my life, expectations play a big role in the decisions I make. I believe expectations are really important to keeping a person in check besides other obvious things like relationships between family and friends. Therefore I care about expectations. Expectations can more often than not motivate someone in a positive way to become the best they can be. Through my parents expectations of the great things I can accomplish I have developed great goals and high expectations of my own future. Though there is the possibility that expectations become too much I think there is always a way to keep them healthy and motivational. They are important to who I am today because they are part of my very day to day motivation. I care about expectations and I care when I don’t meet them. Instead of sinking into my own failure though I try to build and become better for next time thanks to my parents expectations. That’s why I care about expectations. I also believe that this can apply to all kinds of people not just me. So many people could benefit from looking at expectations as a constant motivation and incentive rather than crushing pressure. I do get that there can many times be a negative connotation when it comes to expectations but when you look at it from a perspective that applies to a future it can often show the positive effects with it. My friends expectation of me to love myself and them as well helps me look toward being a better person for the future and not only the present. I care about expectations because I ultimately care about my future. This includes how I can improve it and expectations help me keep that vision in check.

 The day I took my picture I was genuinely and honestly excited which I think the picture conveys perfectly.  We were in Ecuador over the summer by a local church my family grew up by.  It had been a relatively hot day for Ecuador and my dad decided that to commemorate the memory of going on vacation that I should take a picture. Although I am generally happy in the photo  some other things were going on at the time. It had been hard to go to Ecuador following the loss of my grandmother and yet it was also a nostalgic experience to be able to revisit the place that so many of my family members grew up in. Besides the happy feelings I was also nervous about beginning my senior year in high school because I knew that that was the time I had to take everything seriously and work towards not only with my present self but my future self as well. So although I was smiling in the picture I was just as nervous as I was happy. I had also been going through the fact that my friend passed away only two days before this picture. It has been a hard experience that I really didn’t want to talk about because it just seems so personal that I don’t think anyone would understand that I didn’t think anyone with anythin I had also been going through the fact that my friend passed away only two days before this picture. It has been a hard experience that I really didn’t want to talk about because it just seems so personal that I didn’t think anyone would understand.  After all who could know my pain. A friend that was just beginning her senior just like me and just beginning to take a step in her new future had passed away without even been given the chance to move on in life or start a new chapter in life. So in this picture besides being happy and nervous I had to take the time to appreciate what I am grateful to have and that was my family and the family trips I have with them.so in this picture besides being happy and nervous I had to take the time to appreciate what I am grateful to have and that was my family and the family trips I have with them. So within my smile and within my  excited pose I was hiding a mix of true and masked emotions. I was feeling them all at once and this picture was the result.