Language Barriers

Personally, I've had issues. Issues regarding the blatant (over)use of sarcasm in American language. People think that I am gullible. Some think I'm dim or something. It doesn't help that they realize that I take things literally too often. So in this sense, I sympathize with Alex and his friend Sebastian. American jokes can be difficult to grasp. Sometimes I feel like this guy right here:

Disgustingly Hillarious

In response to Carly's essay on selfishness and the ability to easily make an enormous difference in somebody's life, I would like to share this video:

It highlights that while it is alright to be selfish sometimes, if it is taken too far, disaster can occur. I do not mean that if you don't tip your waiter, that you will end up in a safe, but rather that if you repeatedly act selfishly, eventually there will be a time when you need another's help, and it will not be offered because of your past transgressions.

Polarized Architecture

Breonna's essay reminded me of a parodized representation of poor distribution of riches that I saw once in a move:

Although the issue here is not an environment ravaged by war or an entire nation suffering from monetary crisis, the parallel can be made. I wonder what the perception of the boy with the red book bag is regarding monetary distribution. I wouldn't think he ponders this very often. I am also curious what his thoughts on this will be in the future, when he is more mature to understand the reality he in which he was raised.

Bubble Breaching

In Tara's essay, I appreciate the fact that she attempts to break out of a comfort zone who's grip is tight on her shoulders. I'm fairly sure that after such an...ordeal, to call it something, she finds it easier to break out of her comfort zone.

In this way, I feel that breaching out of comfort zones thoughout one's lifetime contributes to a more flexible and well-rounded character with numerous skills and experiences. Sometimes we find ourselves stranded in tightly-knit bubbles, claustrophobic and fearful of straying from its boundaries, as was Tara in at the start of her trip to Europe. Other times, we find ourselves in a larger bubble, like college, where the freedom to diversify your skills and tastes becomes highly accepted and encouraged. As one bubble burst, another one forms. Here are two videos of what I would like to be able to say of my own life, some day:

The Russian Dolls in Real Life

Like Roni experienced in the Lakers game in Detroit, I, too experience my hometown's spirit in America despite the distance. The "chiva", or colombian party bus, as I am obliged to describe it, has its place among a combination of American and Latin American decor. I identify with such a harmonization of cultures, as we see the styles compliment the room with their differences. I find myself  living within a simple Chinese box of cultures. Can you identify them all?