So far...

My semester is not going so good. I have a lot of things going on even though I am only taking four classes including women's soccer. I never thought college was going to be like this, so many things to do and you have to keep up with everything or else you fall behind quickly. That's were I am now, I have too much things going on that I cant deal with everything. I currently work in the Oxnard College Financial Aid office and play for the Women's Soccer team. There isn't a lot to like since I know that I have to do good in school and when I see that I am falling behind then that makes me stress. Hopefully my second semester of college is better due to the fact that I know I can do a lot better than how I am doing now.

The few things that keep me motivated are the following my future, family, and soccer. I know that I have to do good in school so that I can get a good job and that will have a huge impact on my future. Then I think about my family specially my mom, she has always helped me succeed in life and I don't want to let her down. Soccer is something I like to do, I need to be a full time student to be able to play and I need good grades. If I want to play I have to do good in school since school is always first.

And the truth is...

I have two Chihuahuas. =)

Can you spot the truth from the lies?

1) I play soccer with knee and elbow pads.
2) I go to Europe every year.
3) I live with both my parents and older sister.
4) My older sister broke my clavicle when I was 8.
5) I have two chihuahuas.
6) I drive a geo metro with all spare tires.

"My Boo"(feat. Alicia Keys)

[Usher intro:]

There's always that one person
That will always have your heart
You never see it coming
Cause you're blinded from the start
Know that you're that one for me
It's clear for everyone to see
Ooh baby ooh you'll always be my boo

[Alicia intro:]
I don't know bout you all
But I know about us and uh
It's the only way
We know how to rock
I don't know bout you all
But I know about us and uh
It's the only way
We know how to rock

[Usher Verse:]
Do you remember girl
I was the one who gave you your first kiss
Cause I remember girl
I was the one who said put your lips like this
Even before all the fame and
People screaming your name
Girl I was there when you were my baby

[Chorus (Usher):]
It started when we were younger
You were mine my boo
Now another brother's taken over
But its still in your eyes my boo
Even though we used to argue it's alright
I know we haven't seen each other
In awhile but you will always be my boo

[Alicia:]
I was in love with you when we were younger
You were mine my boo
And I see it from time to time
I still feel like my boo
And I can see it no matter
How I try to hide my boo
Even though there's another man who's in my life
You will always be my boo

[Alicia Verse:]
Yes I remember boy
Cause after we kissed
I could only think about your lips
Yes I remember boy
The moment I knew you were the one
I could spend my life with
Even before all the fame
And people screaming your name
I was there and you were my baby

[Chorus:]
[Usher:]
It started when we were younger
You were mine my boo
Now another brother's taken over
But its still in your eyes my boo
Even though we used to argue it's alright
I know we haven't seen each other
In awhile but you will always be my boo

[Alicia:]
I was in love with you when we were younger
You were mine my boo
And I see it from time to time
I still feel like my boo
And I can see it no matter
How I try to hide my boo
Even though there's another man who's in my life
You will always be my boo

[Usher:]
My oh, My oh, My oh, My oh, My Boo

[Alicia:]
My oh, My oh, My oh, My oh, My Boo

[Chorus (Usher):]
It started when we were younger
You were mine my boo
Now another brother's taken over
But its still in your eyes my boo
Even though we used to argue it's alright
I know we haven't seen each other
In awhile but you will always be my boo

[Alicia & Usher:]
I don't know bout you all
But I know about us and uh
It's the only way
We know how to rock
I don't know bout you all
But I know about us and uh
It's the only way
We know how to rock



[Thanks to lilswtpnoi@hotmail.com for these lyrics]
[Thanks to JahaiArace@aol.com, ariesangel491@aol.com, buttacakes9@yahoo.com, mager_hotty2004@yahoo.com for correcting these lyrics]

SNAP!!!

The articles I choose was the one about soda being excluded from foods food-stamp users or not. I think that soda should be excluded due to the fact that many children are consuming a large amount of soda. Even though one of the articles states that this wouldn’t be the complete solution, I think it can contribute in making it easier for parents to keep their children at their normal weight. Obesity is being seen a lot in young children. Also dental problems are being affected by all the sweets being consumed by the children. The children need to change their eating habits and this can help. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was made with the intention to help low - income families. They want to support them financially so that they can provide their families with food. There are exceptions towards what they can buy but still it’s not enough. Non food things, alcohol beverages and restaurant meals are things you can’t buy with SNAP. I think that they should a lot more things to that list for example: candy, chips, soda, as well as any sweets or foods with a lot of fat. SNAP needs to be a lot more strict about what SNAP users can buy. I think that if a few more items were added to the things they can’t buy we would see a big difference in the health of all those families who use food stamps. Not only the children but the parents will also be in a better health status. If the families really depend on food stamps to buy food, otherwise they can use their own money to buy all of the excluded products. This way SNAP will also be able to see what families are really needy of their help.

My Family

My family is very small it only had three people, but just added two not so long ago. The main person is my mom. Then it is my older sister Marlene. The thrid person is Genesis my sisters baby girl. We are used to always being a small family. It has always been three of us until Genesis came and grew our family by two. Adding Genesis and her dad Julio.
My mom is very special to me, she is also my dad. She has always been there for me and i am grateful of having such a great mom. She shows a lot of affection and support to all of us. My mom has struggled in life but has never given up. For that reason Marlene and me have always had everything we have needed. I love her and thank god that we are so lucky to have a mom like her.
The second person is Marlene, she is 19 years old and has Genesis. Marlene and me have always been really close, we are like best friends. Since it was always just us two we became close. What also got us to be so close is that we are only a year and a half apart in age. We both paly soccer and even until now we play in the same team. She is a great sister eventhough she is more like my younger sister. I would always take care of her and still do.
Genesis is the cutest most adorable baby ever. Well at lest to our family she is. She brought happiness to our family when we needed it the most. Her and Julio have been an addition to our little family. We have learned to live together. My mom and I spend a lot of time with Genesis since we all love her so much.
Now that i realize it my family isn't as small as i thought. It has grown by two, and those two people are amazing. Marlene has always been a good sister and I am happy that I have her. As well as my precious mom. Eventhough this family isn't as big as others we all love eachother, and at the end thats all that counts.

One of the hardest days in my life so far was when I found out my older sister was pregnant. She was only 18 years old at the time. She moved out when she turned 18, since my mom no longer had the right to keep her in the house. My mom and she had argument after argument over the most insignificant things. It really hurt when she left; to me she was always my younger sister I would watch over her and took care of her. That's why I was in such shock, when my friend that told me. I didn't know if i should believe her. I had no idea how to react. I had nowhere to seek for help. I didn't know who to ask for advice, I couldn't tell anyone. I was debating whether to tell my mom or not. I remember that night was a really long night for me. I felt so confused and worried. I was in my room alone and all I could think about was how my sister was probably going through a lot. I even thought about going and talking to my sister or maybe my mom. I was too confused to even think straight.

Many things came to my mind that night. The most devastating one that broke my heart was me thinking about how my mom has always worked hard to give me and my sister the best, she didn't deserve my sister doing that to her. My mom has been a very good mom, having to deal with the fact that my dad was never around to support her emotionally or financially. All this was building up to make my decision a lot more confusing and hard for me. I remember that I didn't get much sleep that night; things came to my mind that made me sad and nervous at the same time. My tears came out right after my friend told me and they kept coming until I fell asleep that night. The conversation I had with her just kept replaying in my head. It was very dark and cold outside my house; it was really random how she brought it up. She asked me,"Can I tell you something?" I replied "sure, what is it?" she said"You have to promise me you won't tell your mom." With confusion I replied, "Okay, go ahead and tell me" and that's when she said "Your sister is two months pregnant, I took her to the doctor and they said she was about two months." I laughed and said "Yeah, you are very funny." Worried I said "She can't be, she wouldn't do that." My friend finally convinced me that it was true and that i couldn't tell my mom for any reason.



That night I finally decided to just wait. I realized that it was my sisters responsibility to tell our mom what she was going through, and that she was the right person to tell her. I let time pass; I was feeling really anxious to know what was going to happen. I couldn't wait for the moment that I didn't have to hold it inside me anymore. Not that long after, my sister ended up writing a letter to my mom and explained that she was pregnant and how she felt about it. After she got the letter I read it and my tears came out. It had been six months since she had left the house and I really missed her. She was my best friend, the one I would go to for advice or anything i needed. Nothing made me happier than when I found out about that letter. The fact that she had wrote that letter just made me feel really sad and got me to start crying. A few days after that letter was brought to us my mom got a phone call from my sister. They talked and everything got better not great but better than before. At that point anything was better than me having to hide something so important. I can remember feeling so relieved. I no longer had to hide from my mom so she wouldn't see me cry. Everything was getting better little by little and i was glad.

This situation changed more than one person's life and brought another one into this world. It had an extremely big impact in my life and I will never forget it. I learned a lot from this experience. The biggest one was the fact that I had to learn from my sisters actions. I wouldn't call it a mistake for the reason that I am very happy now. I have a beautiful niece and I adore her. She always brings a smile to my face no matter what. My day can be really bad but I know that when I get home I'm going to see her and that just reminds me that life is great. Everything is better with my sister and mom. We are a family again, and like a family we have arguments but hopefully they will never be as bad as before. I thank god for my niece and for giving me a chance to see her grow up. This experience ended up to be worth me being patient.

hey look its not about me

         The individual I had a pleassure to interview was Leticia Arciga. She was born in Ventura,California, and is 19 years old. She has 3 younger siblings and is the first to go to college in her family. College is especially important to her so she can set an example for her siblings. Leticia school schedule includes Tuesdays through Thursday. Although it can be hard to keep school, work, and family balanced she is able to do so by spending time with family and friends. Her role models in life are her parents due to the fact that they overcame many obstacles and are hard working. She believes that she is a role model to her her younger siblings. Leticia believes that the best words to describe her are: nice, quiet, shy. She can see herself in 5-10 with a BA or masters in biology. She hopes to be married with children and a nice house. Her philosophy is the following; knowledge is power. The things that Leticia likes about Oxnard College are how they are building a new library and that they have a campus full of trees. In the other hand, she believes the classrooms as well as the parking spaces need to improve. The food has to be better and also the textbook have to be less expensive. Her culture influences her decisions by wanting to learn and succeed so she can have a better life than what her parents had.She was surprised when she realized that in college you have a lot more freedom as well as responsibilities.  Leticia is a very good person she is able to manage all of this and she still has time to learn about music After this interview i realized young girl is very interesting, and responsible.

Not My Thing

I can honestly say that I do not watch any reality shows. They do not call my attention at all. I have tried watching a few maybe once or twice butI do not like them. I notice that people get hooked to them but I do not understand why or how that's possible. Some of them are just about people fighting and half of the time they are drunk. Other shows might be full of drama between girls and guys.


These reality shows can be good or bad at the same time, it all depends on what show it is and who is watching it. For example the shows that are about young girls being pregnant and how their life changes completely. This type of shows help young girls realize all the troubles you go through if you become a mother in an early stage of your life. Some other shows can be bad, if they show alcohol or drug use. Teenagers might watch that and think that is the right thing to do to fit in. Which is the complete opposite, teenagers should see it as what not to do. Let them see how ridiculous you can look when you are not in all your senses.

For these reasons I can state my position about reality shows. I do not watch any of them. It doesnt matter if they are good or bad, I just don't find it interesting. If people watch them they should be aware that it can have an affect on them. So I just rather not even bother with them.

fast FOOD

Fast food was never something I would eat often. To me and my sister it was more of a treat. I remember my mom cooking at home all the time. She was the type of parent that thought we should always eat healthy. We would maybe go out to fast food once a month or twice maximum. It wasnt like most kids that go out for fast food almost everyday and some more than once a day. My mom would always make us eat vegetables. For example spinach, I hated how she cooked them and tried to get us to eat it. When we did get to go out we would go to McDonalds. I loved getting the kids meal, i would choose the chicken McNuggets. I think every little kid still likes that.


I think i am so bad with fast food now compared to when i was a kid. I can eat fast food up to three times a week. Something i would never do if my mom was still on my case like before. I don't rely on it because i can eat at home, sometimes i just choose not to. I eat out half of the time, like the last three months of high school i would eat fast food three times a week for sure. That became a habit and it wasn't a good one at all. I don't think it is a good thing specially for my body. I do a lot of exercise but eating unhealthy doesn't help me getting in shape. It just makes it harder and builds up more calories that i need to burn off. If i go to McDonalds for breakfast once a week, only that meal is more than one thousand calories. Those types of food are the ones i should avoid. I should try to eat like before. When i was a child and I ate at home and I had the right diet going on. Fast food sometimes just makes me feel lethargic and it's not good at all. Eating fast food too much can hurt anyone in the long run.

A little about my life =)

My name is Alicia valdez I am 17 years old, i was born October 23,1992. I have lived in Oxnard my whole life. When i look into my past i remember all the wild but yet fun things that went on during my childhood. All the times I went out of town with my mom and older sister. We would go out often to many different places, w would go camping or to theme parks. My mom was always my mom and dad to me and still is. I remember she would always be there for me. I have never lived with my dad, he left our house when i was only three days born. It doesnt really affect me i have always thought that it was his loss. My mom does a really good job being a single parent.


I have many things going on right now. I just graduated from Oxanrd High School in June 2010. I am now a full time student in Oxnard College and i also work at the Financial Aid office. Another thing i do in Oxnard College is play for the women's soccer team. I really enjoy playing soccer, it keeps me active and it sets my mind away from other things while im playing. I recently bought a dog, it is a mixed chihuahua named tinkerbell she is two months old. My life right now is very busy buit I like it that way as long as i can keep up.

In my future I see myself working with kids, im really not sure how but I know that is something I will be doing. I can also see myself having kids of my own in one point. Having a family and trying to be a good mom like the one I have. Teach my children the best things of life and have a lot of fun with them. I want them to enjoy their childhood just like me. I don't see any of that happening any time soon but I know that when the time is right i will make the right decisions for me and my loved ones.