Day One
[sao paulo]

Oi! Tudo Bem?! Hey! Everything good?
So today was our first day in Brasil. Good Lawd, I'm in Brasil, what have I gotten myself into?! We were able to get to Beca's apartment and stumbled through ordering Arabic fast food. Apparently food is super cheap and super good out here and I'll have to be careful about what I eat.

The trip out here wasn't bad at all. The airplane food left much to be desired. Suffice it to say that I was happy I'd eaten at 360 Deg. Burrito in Oakland when Continental Airlines served a Meatloaf Sandwich the size of my fist. But anyway, I got some rest on the flight and even got to watch The Hours on their high-tech personal tv screens embedded in the back of the seat in front of me.

Indeed, the rest was good. The last seven days have been a whirlwind of activity and I was glad to get some sleep. Hopefully tomorrow we'll do lots more, but until then I've got to work on my Portuguese. We couldn't even tell the waiter that we needed more time before we ordered.

[concord]

me voy
for real. Tomorrow morning my flight leaves at 12pm. Off to Brazil until July 2. Perhaps I might be able to blog from out there, but until then, hasta pronto.

[berkeley]

>>I've acted out my life in stages, with ten thousand people watching...<< Donny Hathaway's "A Song for You"

I'm exhausted. I want to go to sleep, but my days at this desk in this room at this house are numbered. I feel the onset of change and am no longer afraid. Perhaps I will eat my words in a few weeks. Perhaps I will wish I never left California once I'm in Brazil struggling to speak a language in a community that I cannot understand. Nevertheless, it is something new. It is an adventure I must pursue. I think I'm ready.

[berkeley]

That's it
I'm done. Tapos na ako. fineesh.

[Haas Library, berkeley]

Countdown: 3.5 hours
I finished my Materials Science final this morning and am waiting for my Tagalog final at 12:30pm. wait for it...

[berkeley]

Countdown: 26 hours
One final down, two more to go. I needed a break after a grueling 3 hour exam, so Alex and I went to Pollo for lunch. We decided to try a place we'd never been, seeing as our days in Berkeley are numbered. There's just nothing like a bacon cheeseburger fresh off the grill followed by a small cone of Ben & Jerry's Coconut Almond Chunk enjoyed in the sunshine.

Well back to the artificially lit halls of the library. Not much longer now.

[berkeley]

>>It's the Eye of the Tiger, It's the thrill of the fight...<< Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger"

Dead Day 4
Uy vey, i'm closing in on the last few days of college. Study study la la la.

[Moffitt Library Workstation, Berkeley]

>>It's a damn cold night, trying to figure out this life...<< Avril Lavigne's "I'm With You"

Dead Day 1
I've never had such a difficult time studying for finals. Although I recognize the need to play a whole helluva lot of catch-up, I find myself daydreaming about my college experience and wonder what life will be like PB (post-Brazil).

So many things to think about that it feels like I'm studying for finals as though I'm just going through the motions, which makes me wonder if I chose the right major. Shouldn't I be as devoted to my work as i'd been in the past? Where did my motivation go?

I'm finding more questions than answers. Thankfully, I don't find this situation daunting. Nevertheless, I'm still uncertain about so much.

[berkeley]

7 Days 3 Hours 0 minutes
until the end of finals.

Tonight I'll be performing my Final Skit in Tagalog 1B
>> Sa Likod ng Musika: Istorya ng Rice Girls <<

I have to stop by ACE Hardware to buy a styrofoam egg for our skit--we're making a Golden Balut award...

You are all invited. Our skit is the bomb explosive. It's got drama, choreography, singing, laughs, and sass. [raise the roof one time]

Woo, well the end of school hasn't hit me yet. I sat through my last lecture today. From now on, it's just a whole lotta studying. You'll be getting blogs from the library, etc. Goodness gracious.

[berkeley]

Twelve Days
before I take the last final of my college career. (cue Michelle Branch's "Goodbye to You...")

So until then, i've got wall to wall scheduling with studying and fun.

I'm out the door to SFBC (see previous entry), will write more later.

[berkeley]

bikes bikes bikes
Thanks to Nico, I found out about an unpaid web design internship on craigslist at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. I got an email from their Operations Manager this morning saying that I'd been selected for the job. yee-haw.

take me out to the
baaaallgaammme... I went to my first ever baseball game on Tuesday night with the Senior Class of 2003. I had my first ballpark hot dog too. [they're not as good as Top Dog]

Then I spent a good chunk of time working on physics homework in the library yesterday.

Today I borrowed a set of audiotapes for learning Portuguese. I'll go listen to them now.