Yes folks, it's time to post....again. This first post will be about the previous semester. Sometimes it's good to look back and reflect on the past. Not many people do this, I must admit that I include myself in this group, but it's really not such a bad idea as we can learn a lot about ourselves.
Last term, I was still in San Francisco, finishing up my program (in Anthropology) and thinking that the last semester at San Francisco State University would be easier than the others. Boy was I wrong. During the last year or so, I had been working on my thesis film, a documentary about a community in northern Chile (La Negra), traveling back and forth from California to Chile taking advantage of the summer and winter vacation months in order to complete the project. By the way, I spent a lot of my own money to do this; I hope one day someone will give me money for at least part of my film projects! So anyways, everything was going relatively smoothly until I showed my advisor what I thought was my "almost finished" film.
Although he had watched part of my material before, this was the first time he had seen a complete version....and he wasn't too pleased with the result. In other words, he hated it. He thought that the film lacked focus since I had merely mixed together the different stories (the stories of the different community members) without finding some sort of device to link them in an intelligible way. This was not good. There were only three weeks left in the semester and I had to finish everything and get my advisor's approval in order to graduate. Thinking that we wouldn't be able to finish the film in time to graduate, my advisor "suggested" I stay for another semester. I almost had a heart attack. Luckily, I convinced him that we could work on the film for two weeks straight and hope for the best. He reluctantly agreed and for the next two weeks I edited and edited and edited and edited..... I ignored everything else in my life in order to finish the film.
I went to my advisor's office every other day, dragging myself over to the campus with my hard drive in my backpack, weak from malnutrition and considerably over-caffeinated. We managed to make considerable progress at each meeting, and luckily he ended up loving the film (and couldn't stop talking about it to the other members of the faculty). I don't know where I got the creative energy to finish (maybe it was the coffee?) but I was very happy when my advisor finally signed my certificate of completion papers. And when I finally graduated, I was all the more proud of myself for finishing what I had set out to do just two years earlier. It was a good feeling.... I recommend it.
So, that's just one thing I remember from last semester....there were other things but this story is a good one for me since it had a happy ending. I have another story but that one didn't end so good and I don't want to bore you with the details.
But I do want to hear a story from you....so get to work!
These are the official instructions...
Write about your experiences during the first term of 2010.
Describe:
- the relevant things you learned/studied
- the sports and free time activities you did
- the challenges you had to face
- Others (family, friends, etc..)
- Word Count: 200
Also, remember to leave comments in at least 3 of your classmates` posts.
Hey, and why not add a photo or video to spice it up a little!!!!!
(I would have added a photo of myself but they are all crap)
wooow it´s a great history! i admire your energy to do this so good in so little time!
ReplyDeleteteacher!
we have to add the story here?
(sorry for my writting)
natalia azua.
THE FIRST STORY OF POCHI
ReplyDeleteThe last semester was a very good period, especially about the life experiences that I had in the University.
I’m studying archeology, in 4th grade, but I’m not so tense as my classmates because i will graduate the next year (I hope so ), and I’ve decided take the life easier and embrace a lot all of the subjects that I must study for the remainder of the year.
Also, the last semester i had a subject that I liked very much, because it was about the geographic area that i really enjoy study, I’m talking about the Big North of Chile (el norte grande, as like as the professor, this subject was called “etnología andina” (andean ethnology). Within the structure of this course was included a filed trip to a town called Camiña, located in the first region of Tarapaca. This is a small andean village where where they are mixed Chilean, Bolivian, Aymaras and other ethnicity. The target of this filed trip was assist to the Corpus Christi celebration, in june and analize the religious sincretysm between the catholics roots strictly Andean. after completing the field trip, I arrived to the conclusion that really exist a great mixture between both cultures (catholic and andean), I’ could see this mix in the people, the music and many other things.
If I must rescue something about the last semester in the academic aspect, without a doubt it is my flied trip to Camiña.
In my free times, especially on weekends, I play Soccer in the campus team, it called Juan Gomez Millas. We have training every thuesday and Friday at the afternoon. I really enjoy playing soccer, In my free times, especially on weekends, I play Soccer in the campus team, it called Juan Gomez Millas. I really enjoy playing soccer. althought the last semester was really particular, because we haven't been succesfull in the championship, but i hope that this semester our game can experience a improvement.
María Olga Lagos H, Antropología