Musings, Updates, and the Unclear Future

On a whim, I applied to CSUN's MA program. I had much encouragement from my professors and classmates. One--because I truly think that these people believed that I could succeed in grad school. Two--I still felt I had much to learn about my writing: the art, the literary value, and the theoretical approaches of it. I know many people think it's crazy, to go the same undergrad for grad, but I have only been at CSUN for two years and only spent about half the time truly concentrating on creative writing.

For me, this is simply a continuation. I will continue to grow as a writer in this time. Grad school will be a challenge, but I feel that it would be more on my level. I enjoy a challenge myself. I'm ambitious. In undergrad, I always liked to go the extra mile just so I could not only test my boundaries, but also so that I could set myself apart and show that I have merit. Something beyond the workshop story, but an actual literary and artistic piece that may be perhaps be a cut above, or a potential contender for greatness.

With that said, I am accepted as a conditionally classified student. I am enrolled in one class, but it's a 400-level undergrad creative writing class. O.o I haven't been able to register in any grad classes because (and here's why I mentioned I applied on a whim) I applied so late, so last minute that by the time I was able to register, all the classes were full. Now it is time to do the sit-in, beg, plead, and hope for an open spot somewhere.

In other news, I have had a short story accepted for publication. Tayo Literary Magazine is up-and-coming and is geared towards Filipino-American youth empowerment. I think it's great that this magazine coming up. It's great to read literature, see photos and artwork by Fil-Am youth. Somehow, I think that Filipinos in the arts are rarely highlighted. We exist. We are there. This magazine, though it is still fledgling, is a novel (no pun intended :P) idea because it showscases Filipinos in a way, that perhaps prior, we haven't been seen before. I'm proud of the beliefs of the editors of the magazine, what it stands for, what it is doing for the community.

In other editorial news, perhaps I've not mentioned this, but I am the co-head editor of CSUN's literary magazine, The Northridge Review for the Fall 2009 issue. We are nearly complete with the magazine, and are expecting to have a release early in the upcoming semester. :D

Now for the future. I'm not sure what will happen within these next two months. Two friends of mine have thrown a curveball into my life. They are going to Korea to teach English, as part of a special program. I'm excited for them and I want them to succeed, especially because not only is an excellent opportunity to travel, immerse into another culture, and on a humanitarian note, to teach children...but it's also a great alternative to being thrust into the capitalist real world that we call an economically faltering America. I won't lie and say to myself that I applied to grad school so that I could postpone diving into the real world because I couldn't find a job. (However, this is a topic I will further elaborate on, in terms of my longer-term future goals) I can't even get hired at Barnes & Noble, for crying out loud, despite the fact that my resume is looking pretty good now.

In any case, Myra and Jenny, are off to Korea within the next two months, and they will fulfill a year's contract to teach. They are two of my closest friends and I will miss them terribly.

And so they are persuading me to go to Korea and teach as well. -_-

Now this is going to be tricky. Stay tuned...

Dystopic Observation (updated to include reading)

I spent about an hour on Sunday afternoon, driving around my neighborhood in Eagle Rock. I stopped at a red light, just a mere half a block away from my apartment. I was in the middle lane and there were a few cars in the right lane. When the light turned green, the first car wasn’t moving, so the driver behind honked their horn, probably thinking they didn’t see that the light had turned green. The driver signaled for them to go on ahead. So the first car stayed stuck there at the light and turned on their emergency lights while everyone behind them passed by.

We have all had instances where we’ve passed someone who has car trouble and/or is stuck on the side of the road. What I think is dystopian about the actions of the drivers, and the point that I am trying to make is that here is just one example of our society. We can be more or less selfish; and care about our own actions and our individual selves—not necessarily a Good Samaritan type of world. I know that we’ve been talking about socialism and the egalitarian types of societies in dystopia, but this is the opposite of that. No one is really equal. Some people can afford to have their cars running in tip top shape. Some can’t afford to keep their cars reliable.

In a true dystopian society, I think that’s citizens might be; in fact, they may be even worse tenfold because under a totalitarian government, you would do everything you can to stay on the good side of the law, and disregard everyone else. There’s no equal ground. You’re out to save yourself from getting chained and to achieve your own individual success.

This is related to our reading in 1984, particularly the portions that describe the citizens of Oceania. They watch the beheadings and are completely desensitized by it. It's more like sport or entertainment. That's how we react to traffic accidents on the side of the freeway. It's just another thing that makes us spectators.

Why I Like and Don't Like Hooters

I will say I don't like Hooters because of reasons that aren't so obvious. I'm not bothered by busty women clad in short shorts and tennis shoes serving sallivating men. I have a lot of respect for those women. Being a server is hard enough, so that can't be an easy job and I'm sure it's taxing not only physically, but mentally as well. I can't imagine having to sit down and flirt with men I'm not particularly fond of, or find attractive.

With that said, I am going to start with why I do enjoy Hooters. I don't eat at Hooters often. In fact, I have only sat down to eat there once. I enjoy chicken wings. I enjoy that man food. I enjoy that greasy, salty, cholesterol saturated mess because it's damn delicious and my tongue sings when I taste it. I don't care that it's deep fried in oil chicken wings, smothered in a mixture of hot sauce and butter. God, that's good. I digress...the point is that that is a delicious wing and though I don't eat it often, it is a sure treat when I do.

I wouldn't say the atmosphere at Hooters is too cozy. It's reminiscent of what would happen if a women's gym met a sports bar and bore a love child. It will do, though. I went there a whole year ago with a friend of mine and we shared a plate of wings and fries. She ordered a beer to wash it all down. I had water, *sigh*. Unfortunately, I hadn't reached the grand ol' age of 21 yet.

Our server was a beautiful brunette lady, buxom and spry. I am confident enough with my sexuality to say that yes she was beautiful, buxom, and spry. She was very nice, and it didn't seem forced, superficial, or fake at all. I can usually see right through superficiality, too. Either that, or she's a pretty damn good actress. I think for her, serving my friend and I was a nice break because she didn't have to go into flirt mode. She could be one of the girls for just a short moment in time. When we left, she even told us that we should come back on Sunday, for a football game.

"All these young, hot boys will be there," she said excitedly. Now this really tickled my fancy and titillated my hormonal insides. How else is a young, single gal in L.A. supposed to react to a statement like that? So it was nice that our server was relatable, she felt human, and she felt, well...almost like a friend.

Here's the real downside. After our nice meal, my friend and I decided to top off the meal and buy Hooters shirts, because we were so impressed with our experience. I decided to buy a T-shirt that was on sale for $9.99. Normally, the shirts cost $23.99, A week later, I looked at my bank statement and noticed that I had been charged $35.00 at Hooters for my T-shirt! I knew it wasn't from my meal, because I had paid for it in cash. They had basically charged me the sale price in addition to the normal price, which is why it cost $35.

I went back to the store to take it up with a manger. She took my name down and said that she would send it over to corporate and that they would give me a call. They never did call me and I never did get a chance to go back to that Hooters.

What could have been a 5-star experience for me turned out to be merely a 2.5. I had had all faith in Hooters, but it was slashed when I never got my money back. The shirt I own is now tainted with the memory. It doesn't say Hooters to me. It says $35 T-shirt. Maybe I'll come back again when I'm not a poor college student and money is no object.

Swindled! Hustled!

Here's a fancy pants trick to pull a fast one on your schoolmate brethren. Watch how a girl wins back her money, preying on the weak and cloudy-headed.

If you go to a commuter school, (which I do), you know that finding a parking spot is an elusive treasure hunt. It's a touch and go situation, where timing, strategy, and hunting, are used to track down a wary student and follow them to their car. Sometimes they'll catch your eye and tell you exactly where their car is, everything down to the type, color, maybe even year (from the car enthusiasts). Or if they're not leaving, just going to the car to refresh themselves, some are courteous enough to wave away the "I'm not leaving finger." Some understand that just a shake of the head means that the student is not leaving.

Conversely, some students will downright give you an evil eye. They might not acknowledge you. They press their greasy ears against cell phones to appear to look busy just so they can avoid you and your anxious need for a parking spot. Or as I see it these days, they talk into bluetooth devices now, which just makes you look crazy, in addition to being slightly bitchy. I've seen all and more of these types of things.

Yesterday morning, I was rushing to school. I had a family emergency to take care of and I left my home a little later than I needed to get to class on time. At my school, parking on the street is available, but there are zones that prohibit parking for more than few hours. So if you need to stay on campus for a long time, you have to park several blocks away. I decided to bypass parking on the street and to pay the ripoff price of $5 for a day permit on campus.

The problem with that was the fact that there was a gigantic car pileup so it was difficult to efficiently drive onto campus without long waiting times. I was already late by the time I arrived at the parking lot. Luckily, I tracked down a girl who was leaving. One of those "on-the-cell-I'm-busy-types" but I really didn't care. When I parked, I ran out of the car to a ticket vending machine to buy a permit when I hear "hey!"

After a few moments, I realized it was that same girl whose spot I had taken. She offered to let me buy her parking permit because she wasn't going to use it. I was already late, I was having trouble with my personal problems at home, I wasn't thinking straight. I decided to take her up on the offer. I only had a $5 bill but I said, brushing her off "Just keep it. I was going to pay five bucks anyway." She just let me have it for $4, so I received $1. As she pilfered through her powder blue wallet for change, I spotted a bulging amount of twenty-dollar bills. I guess it was a win-win situation, but in retrospect, that girl hustled and her win was greater. She basically got her money back for the permit she bought and I was down $4. What a smart bitch! This is an example of how the rich get richer and the poor stay poor in our so-called advanced and capitalist society. I was played like a fool. I have got to work on my hustling skills. I'll bet you're really loving capitalism now.