Losing my carpool buddy to kindergarten.

As kinder-round up approaches this April I am a bit saddened by the loss of my constant morning companion and carpool buddy Sofie. Let me clarify. I am losing her to the public school system. She has been with me for the past five years. She has had to be flexible with the surrounding economic crisis of the past couple of years. She was enrolled at the school across the highway from my old office. I had to withdraw her from that school when my job relocated. I hated to withdraw her because it was such a good school.

The new office that I relocated to has a preschool associated with the company. Sofie adjusted to this new preschool with ease and made plenty of new friends. She has been there close to two years. As this school year closes I am saddened that I will not have a little one to ride with me each morning. I will not have a little one to ask me a lot of questions every morning like:

• Will I get bigger?
• What are those cows doing?
• Can we stop by McDonald's for a drink?
• When will I go to the big school?
• The kids in my class are mean to me. Why?
• I'm scared of going to the big school. Can I stay where I am at?

I will miss my carpool buddy. I know I will have her spirit with me every morning in the car with me. In the mean time. I still have a couple of months before we part ways and she goes on to higher learning . I know she will grow into the "big girl" that I know she can be. She will probably be one of the oldest kids in kindergarten since she missed the cut off last year by a couple of weeks. She will do great in school. I know it. As my eyes start to swell and a couple of tears start to flow I just look forward to seeing her and the rest of my daughters after work. I look forward to meeting her and Mia for lunch on my days off. I look forward to helping Sofie with her 'big school " homework. I look forward to going with her on her first field trip and holding her hand. Below are her favorite flowers. We have been seeing lots of these on our commute to work.

The life and times of a barrio dog- forward (sneek peek)

Here is the forward to the book I am helping my dad write tentatively titled "The life and times of a barrio dog." This is a rough draft. Hopefully I can give you all more excerpts of his book in the future.


“Life is without meaning. You bring the meaning to it. The meaning of life is whatever you ascribe it to be. Being alive is the meaning.” Joseph Campbell


My life at this point seems pretty ordinary. I’m not sure if my life has even started yet. My life is a series of calculations. Every situation I enter is calculated ahead of time to give me the desired outcome. I guess you can say I am cheating myself of life. I know life is very unpredictable and can be very overwhelming. I know there are setbacks and victories. I have had my share of both. Half of my life is gone already and I know there is a lot out there for me to experience. By my age my dad had already lived a full and exciting life.

My dad grew up in the roughest part of San Antonio which is in the deep westside of the city. There is nothing luxurious about living in the westside of San Antonio in the 1950's. It was a constant struggle back then. It was a struggle to pay the bills and put food on the table with whatever means necessary. You did what you had to in order to stay alive. There was no fluffy outdoor malls back then. I have grown up in the safe suburbs of far Northwest San Antonio. My dad held several minimum wage jobs with just a GED education supporting a family of nine. It was not until later that he had time to continue his college studies. He later became self employed and then moved on to the corporate world. I have worked a few minimum wage jobs while in college obtaining my degree and have really worked in one industry for the past fifteen years. I have been supporting a family of four daughters which is a completely different story itself. My dad has told my that I have gone through similar struggles that he has gone through. I don’t really believe that. My struggles are minuscule compared to him.

My struggles are sometimes financial but that is usually just panicking and thinking worst case scenario on my part. That is about as bad as it gets for me. I had no "turf wars'' to deal with or guns pointed in my face or knife scars to show anyone. He struggled learning to speak English in school. He struggled to help his mom and dad with money whenever he could. He struggled to keep out of the “turf wars” growing up in San Antonio with little success. He has told me that sometimes the “turf wars” go looking for you. He struggled with personal demons when he had to go rescue his dad from a bar fight while getting a gun pointed in his face. He struggled with himself not to go back to that bar with his buddies and shoot the place up. He knew that was not the right thing to do. That is not what his parents taught him.

My dad has lived more than I will ever live. He has lived that life so all of my brothers and sisters can have a safe, predictable life. His parents passed down the hard work ethic to him so he can pass that work ethic down to us. I hope to pass my work ethic down to my wonderful daughters. In a way I am helping my dad with this book for my daughters and my brothers and sisters so they can cherish this book for eternity. Hopefully my daughters will read this book when they get older and understand the life that my dad had to live in order to give me my values and pass those values and work ethic down to them.


Rene

Mashable

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Thanks Blogger!

Thank you Blogger for adding these new templates. The new templates look great. I will be experimenting with different templates in the future so I hope all of my readers don't mind.

Another birthday approaches !

I wish for a lot of things. Good health, winning the lotto and also the health and safety of my kids and wife. One thing I wish I could stop would be my birthdays. Yup, I have another one approaching so fast (April 23rd to be exact.) Someone in their forties has just enough life experiences to be considered wise and yet there is still a bit of learning to do.

So the countdown begins.

Who was President of the U.S when I was born?





What else happened I was born?




So I am dating myself. Oh well..What's another birthday.

Women's Health Foundation girls night out

On April 1st The Women’s Health Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to raising awareness and support for issues of women’s pelvic and sexual health, will be hosting an educational girls night out event at the Fort Sam Houston Golf Club in San Antonio. The evening will bring local women together to toast champagne, indulge in chocolate from local bakeries, take part in flirty dance instructionals and learn how to better themselves from the inside out.

The event will feature presentations from local women’s health experts who will offer expert advice on everything from springing into lasting health and relationships this season, to tips for optimal women’s health at every age. Dr. Yashika Dooley, a local Air Force Officer and Urogynecologist will also speak about her personal journey with women’s health. The Foundation’s founder, Missy Lavender, will do the same. Details Thursday, April 1st from 6 - 9 pm Fort Sam Houston Golf Club 2109 Harry Wurzbach. San Antonio, TX Tickets are $15

Date(s): 04/01/2010 - 04/01/2010
Time: 6 p.m.-9 p.m.


Fort Sam Houston
1212 Stanley Rd., Bldg. 124
Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234
Phone: 210/207-3078

Parents having fun with texting

My 70 ish year old parents have discovered the art of texting. My parents are in Las Vegas today and I received several texts from them. The texts are all funny. It is a good way for them to keep us kids up to date on their wins and losses in Las Vegas.

My parents have discovered how to send the same text to multiple parties. I thought they were sending the texts to only me. But after calling my mom in Las Vegas to see if I was special I discovered that they are using the above mentioned technique to send all of my brothers and sisters the same text messages. It is not as personal as them calling us but it is still communication. I will now attempt to describe a couple of text messages that I received today.

1. Picture mail with audio of certain hotels.

2. A picture mail of the winning slot machine my dad was using.

3. A picture of them heading to the Donny and Marie concert.

4. A text message from my mom stating something about my dad's pants falling down from all of the walking they are doing in Las Vegas.(I had to put this text in PG-13)

Overall I am happy that they are able to communicate with us and have fun with technology that was not even available when they were growing up.I still remember playing with my dad's brick cell phone. I wonder what text messages I will get from them tomorrow?

P.S That is not my mom with that I-Phone in the above picture.

I just received a text that my parents Donnie and Marie concert was canceled (1 minute ago)I hope they can go see another show instead.

Health goal 2010

On my quest to increase my HDL cholesterol from .28 to .40 (normal for men) I went to the local GNC today and purchased some Omega 3 fish oil pills. The girl at the GNC was very knowledgeable so I felt comfortable. My game plan is to exercise 4 times a week and take the Omega 3 tablets daily. I am also determined to eat healthier. At some point I want to get another blood test to see my progress.

According to several websites there are foods I can eat to help me raise my HDL cholesterol.

Fruits and vegetables - onions (half an onion a day), citrus fruit, apples and grapes and dark green vegetables.

Grains- Pick grains that are high in soluble fiber such as whole grains, oats, oat bran, brown rice, legumes and lentils.

Oils-Look for oils that are high in monounsaturated fats such as canola oil or olive oil. Canola oil is tasteless, so it will not affect the flavor of the food.

Omega 3 -include fish, cold-pressed flaxseed oil, safflower oil and sunflower oil.

Soy- Two servings of soy products such as tofu and tempeh a day help increase HDL.

So here is to eating healthy for those of us that need to. I guess I can set a good example for my daughters by eating right and exercising. I have to thank my wife and sister for encouraging me to to get a physical. Without a physical I would have been on a destructive path to heart disease.

Thanks Veronica and Rosie!

Eclipse Trailer (for my daughters and wife)

Here is the Eclipse trailer I promised my daughter Monica and my wife. They are huge Twilight and for that matter Vampire (books,movies)fans. So here it is.


Robert Patinson - Edward Cullen
Taylor Lautner- Jacob Black (My daughter's favorite)
Kristen Stewart- Isabella Swan

My daughter also wants me to stand in line at midnight this Friday 3/19/10 for the New Moon video release. I better get some sleep!

So long Mr. Fast Food!

Ok so I mentioned in a earlier post that I had my physical and everything came out great. I gave the two vials of blood and the urine sample. My doctor said that my HDL cholesterol is too low ! I have a confession. Let's say that for the past forty something years I have not been eating the most healthiest food on the planet.

I love fast food. I guess you can say that I used to love fast food because I am no longer going to eat anything I want. From my research the HDL cholesterol, or "good" cholesterol, appears to scour the walls of blood vessels, cleaning out excess cholesterol. It then carries that excess cholesterol -- which otherwise might have been used to make the "plaques" that cause coronary artery disease -- back to the liver for processing.

HDL levels below 40 mg/dL result in an increased risk of coronary atery disease, even in people whose total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels are normal. HDL levels between 40 and 60 mg/dL are considered "normal." However, HDL levels greater than 60 mg/dL may actually protect people from heart disease.

According to my lab results from my blood work my HDL came back at 28!!!!!I need to find a way to get my HDL levels up to par. My doctor recommended exercising which I started doing last month. I have been exercising about 4-5 days a week. I have been on using the treadmill and the weights religiously with the hopes of getting my HDL cholesterol up to par. I am also researching what foods and possibly any over the counter supplements I can take.

I will let you know on my progress. I hope to report my some good news soon. I am already craving Whataburger or Carls Jr!

Iron Man 2 trailer

I can't wait for Iron Man 2. Here is the trailer that appeared last night. The trailer looks good with Robert Downy reprising his role at Tony Stark. Cast also includes:

Don Cheadle: Rhodey Rhodes/War Machine

Mickey Rourke: Whiplash

Gwenneth Paltrow:Pepper Potts

Samuel L Jackson: Nick Fury

Scarlett Johansen: Black Widow

Sam Rockwell : Justin Hammer

Looks like a lot of fun.

Running

I'm excited about running my first 5k run in a couple of weeks. I do and don't want to compete. Ok course everyone wants to win one of these races. I want to run this race for staying fit. If I happen to win a 5k run that would not be a bad thing.

I have been training for about a month. To be honest it has not been too bad. I usually start off slow and pace myself for the first couple of miles and then finish strong. I just had my yearly physical and my doctor gave me the green light to go all out as far as exercise. I will let you know how I do with my first 5k run.

Driving in San Antonio....

I am really concerned about driving in San Antonio these days. I am a conservative driver. I am not aggressive. I am a defensive driver more than anything. I always maintain a safe following distance. I usually drive about five miles over the speed limit. With that being said, I have two major complaints.

1. Following distance. I find more and more people are resorting to tailgating. Why do people tailgate? I don't know. What happens if I have to stop all of a sudden? It is very frustrating. People that tailgate don't care if you have kids in the car or even a baby. These people do not deserve to be in the road and they deserve to have their car impounded and fined.

2. Turn signals. No one uses their turn signals anymore. I am driving and someone will cut in front of me using no signal. Honking at these people is useless.

I am concerned at all of the instances of road rage here in San Antonio. I watch it every night on the evening news. I would hope that these people are educated enough to think twice about what they do on the road. I regretfully think that these aggressive drivers have a high school education. That is about it. Nothing good ever happens from road rage. More than likely a trip to the hospital would be in store for you if you are overly aggressive on the road.

Please be careful on the roads. Watch your following distance and use your turn signals. There are families on the road. One mistake from a self centered driver and a family can be wiped out.

The human family

I finally had some time to sit down and watch the Vancouver Winter Olympics this past week. I was watching with my 7 year old daughter when she asked me "What do all of those flags mean from these different countries? And are these people from these countries different from me?" After thinking about this question for a few minutes I replied.

"No these people from different countries are just part of a bigger family.They are part of the human race which we are a part of. They are all your brothers and sisters." Her eyes lit up. I also went on to say "just because they speak a different language we all call the earth home. We all breathe the same air."

I did not want to get too deep with her on that subject but she understood what I was saying.

1986

I will always remember this year because I spent part of the summmer in Mexico City. I visited several museums and spent a few days wandering the streets of one of the largest cities in the world. Somehow I found my way back to San Antonio. I would like to go back one day and visit the same places like El Museo Rufino Tamayo,

Also the Castillo de Chapultepec

How can I forget Paseo de la Reforma, .

I also went into the Palacio Bellas Artes..

Most memorable was when I was sitting at the base of this giant flag pole with the Mexican flag right next to the Presidential Palace in Mexico city. Called the "Zocalo." A couple of soldiers came rushing towards me with their machine guns . I guess I should have known better.