I Can't Believe This Is It…

Between a rock and a hard place…

I can’t believe that in about 12 hours or so, I’ll be sitting in a plane waiting to take off from Chile. These past several months have been filled with their share of ups and downs, lefts and rights, and turnarounds. However, all things considered, the experience has been well worth it and I feel like I’ve learned a lot about myself, and others, in the process.

I was always working, so I still haven’t seen many of the things that I would like , nor have I experienced all that I want to. However, (1) regardless how long you spend in a different place, it’s rare that you do EVERYTHING that you would like, and (2) I have accomplished my main goals for coming out here: meet and learn from interesting people; learn more Spanish through immersion; step outside of my comfort zone and grow as a person; help others reach career goals by teaching them English; open future doors through new personal and professional experience abroad. Back home, I spent 4 months trying to find a new job. Here I had two within a month, one of which at an international law firm. I guess I can’t complain too much.

The main question people are asking me is: Is there anything that you will miss from Chile? So with no further ado:
Things I Will Miss From Chile (in no particular order)

1. Ramitas de Queso (Chips)
2. Frugelé (Gummy snacks – this will be no surprise for those who know me)
3. Mote con huesillos (Peach drink with wheat grain in the bottom)
4. Bread (funny how the first things that come to mind are food)
5. People (Seriously, people are #1, but I’m working on a specific post for that)
6. Geography (volcanoes, ocean, mountains, desert, forest…it’s all here)
7. Being able to walk EVERYWHERE
8. Being able to buy anything I need off of the street within block of my apartment
9. The view of the Andes mountain from my apartment window
10. Being compared to Will Smith or Michael Jordan every time I walked outside.
11. My Chilean family (I love you guys)

Thanks, Chile, for opening up a completely different world.

It's Official, I'm A Chilean Resident

It only took about 7 months, but I finally got my legal identification card for Chile. With a “carnet” anything is possible. That RUN number you see under my name is the tax identification number you need to get anything accomplished: Internet, cell phone, bank account, etc. I picked it up last Thursday. I know I don’t have a very long time to enjoy the doors that it opens now, but on the bright side, I have a souvenir I can keep in my pocket…

Does Anybody Buy CDs Anymore?

I know there have to be others, but sometimes it seems like I’m the only person left on earth who still purchases CDs. And yes, I mean actual CDs, compact discs…the ones that typically come in those hard-to-open plastic cases. In fact, I truly prefer vinyl records to CDs. If I could throw a vinyl in my car stereo, then I’d stick to those. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my digital formats. I constantly have music playing on my MacBook Pro, I have a few albums on my cell phone, and work out with an MP3 player. Yes, I do know about iTunes; I actually use it to encode all the CDs I buy into MP3 files. I know I could pay a small fee for services like Napster and have a seemingly unlimited selection of music, but I still prefer the actual physical discs.

Maybe I’m old fashioned, but I still prefer buying my music on physical formats to downloading them or paying for a subscription service. These methods are often cost-effective, quick, and easy, but I’m a sucker for physically owning the music. I like getting the booklet that comes in the case, the cover art on, and the actual CD. I do like using the Cover Flow feature on iTunes, but for me it still doesn’t beat looking at a stack of CD cases or a crate full of vinyl records to find inspiration on what album to listen to. I enjoy going to Best Buy on Tuesdays to pick up an album on release date. I like going to local record stores and looking through old used albums. There’s something about the atmosphere of those local record stores. Each has their unique clientele, style, and feel. Besides, I always find an album I should have bought several years ago whenever I go to one. With today’s releases, where many artists are more concerned about selling ring tones than making good music, it can be pointless to buy all your music on CDs when you can pay for individual tracks, but I normally find some hidden gems that don’t make the radio.

I appreciate the higher sound quality that you can get from a physical CD over a compressed digital format. While some digital formats are lossless, they often take up so much space on a hard drive or media player that it’s impractical to use, unless you’re an audiophile or music professional. When I really want to hear something sound good, I still feel that you can’t beat the sound of a clean vinyl record and a quality turntable. I know that carrying around a bunch of CDs when traveling or working out is not convenient. For these purposes, I definitely think a portable digital media player is the way to go, whether it’s an iPod, Zune, Zen, whatever. But when I’m sitting at home and I want to really enjoy my music, there’s nothing like thumbing through my vinyl and CD collection and listening to my favorite tracks.

Are there any others out there that feel the way I do?

Warm Farewell To Reading Rainbow…You'll Be Missed

Below you will find the email I received moments ago as a response to a petition I signed and sent to PBS in regards to the end of Reading Rainbow. The show aired from 1983 to 2009, making it the third longest running show on PBS behind Sesame Street and Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. I, like many others in my generation, loved and still love Reading Rainbow, and appreciate the impact that it has made in our culture. I am saddened by the loss of the show. However, all good things must eventually come to an end, and the true value of something is based on its legacy. Help keep the spirt of Reading Rainbow alive by doing what you can to promote literacy.

Lavar Burton and Reading Rainbow, thank you for the years of teaching us how to learn to love reading.

Dear Mr. Maine:

Thank you for contacting PBS about READING RAINBOW. PBS and member station WNED, the producer of READING RAINBOW, have been contacted by a number of individuals inquiring about returning the series to our schedule. Unfortunately, we are not in a position to do this.

Production ended on READING RAINBOW several years ago, viewership for the show had declined dramatically and now broadcast rights have expired. Off-air educational rights for the series are still currently available for the classroom and remain in effect for a year following the last broadcast of each episode.

Nationally-recognized stories authored by children for the “Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest” will be available online until December 2009, at which point the READING RAINBOW Web site on pbskids.org will end. PBS and WNED are discussing plans to continue the contest on a national level as well as plans to build a literacy Web site for school age children.

PBS KIDS continues to be committed to leveraging the power of media to further children’s development cognitively, socially, emotionally and physically. As a non-profit media enterprise, our limited financial resources are focused on new and current productions that promote literacy education as well as math, science, the arts and overall healthy living. Series such as SUPER WHY!, WORDGIRL, MARTHA SPEAKS, the all-new THE ELECTRIC COMPANY and others encourage a love of reading and books and help guide children through literacy skill development.

We are proud of the success of READING RAINBOW and the way in which it touched the lives of so many children and adults over its 26 years on the air. PBS, WNED and all PBS member stations are dedicated to building on its legacy in the 21st century.

Thank you again for contacting PBS. We appreciate your interest in our programs.

Sincerely,
Mackenzie
PBS Viewer Services

Resources:

Publicadministration.net

Literacy.org

The International Reading Association

National Adult Literacy Database

LiteracyNet

National Center For Family Literacy