Life is what happens when you are making other plans~ John Lennon
An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind~Gandhi
The time is always right to do what is right~ Martin Luther King Jr.


Showing posts with label foreign languages. Show all posts
Showing posts with label foreign languages. Show all posts

Friday, March 15, 2024

20 You May or May Not Know About Carlos Sainz Jr.

Carlos Sainz Jr. is a Formula 1 driver on the Ferrari team, opposite Monaco-born driver Charles LeClerc. Like all people, there are things you may or may not know about him. According to Facts.net, here are 20 facts you may or may not know about Carlos Sainz Jr.

1. His father is a legendary racecar driver

-His father is Carlos Sainz Sr. Whenever the camera at Formula 1 races shows the pit area for Ferrari, who Carlos Sainz Jr. drives for, his father, Carlos Sainz Sr. is always seen there, supporting his son. Carlos Sainz Sr. is a world famous World Rally Champion

2. 2015 is the year he made his debut in Formula 1

-Carlos Sainz Jr. entered the fast paced world of Formula 1 in 2015. He was just 20 years old. The team he started out on was Scuderia Toro Rosso. His good skills and determination won him the respect of fans and experts in F1

3. Not surprisingly, he's raced for several teams

-It's not surprising to hear he's raced for several teams. Most Formula 1 drivers have been on several teams. Carlos Sainz Jr. is no exception. He's raced for Scuderia Toro Rosso, Renault and McLaren, before finally settling on Ferrari

4. His first podium finish came in 2019

-While driving for McLaren, Carlos Sainz Jr. got his first podium finish in 2019, four years after he first started. He secured third place at the Brazilian Grand Prix

5. Overtaking is his specialty

-He's known for his impressive overtaking skills. He outmaneuvers his fellow drivers and overtakes them in ways that might be considered risky, but fans love watching the excitement of his overtaking skills

6. The fans love him

-Because of his humble, down to earth personality, his ability to engage in conversation and exciting racing skills, the fans love watching him race. He's one of the more popular Formula 1 drivers

7. He can say that he raced in the world famous 24 Hours of Le Mans

-This legendary 24 hour race is not for the faint of heart. This is a world famous race that does last 24 hours. Besides Formula 1 racing, he has undertaken endurance racing, including the world famous 24 Hours of Le Mans

8. He is close with his father

-Their bond goes beyond father and son. They both support each other with valuable guidance and share a love of motorsport racing

9. He is multi-lingual

-He can speak multiple languages. In addition to being an excellent racecar driver, Sainz is fluent in Spanish, English and Italian

10. He is competitive in esports competitions

-Carlos Sainz Jr. has competed in esports competitions. His passion for racing is strong both on and off the track

11. He does charity work

-Carlos Sainz Jr. also supports charities. He firmly uses his position as a Formula 1 driver to help make an impact on global society

12. He's highly visible on social media

-He's able to support and communicate with fans through various social media platforms, like Instagram and Twitter. He usually gives updates about his racing career and what's going on with him outside of racing

13. His work ethic is beyond belief

-He has a strong work ethic. He's continuously dedicated to training, improvement and pushing his limits farther and farther

14. While under pressure, he's known for remaining calm and composed

-Unlike some people who would explode from high pressure, Carlos Sainz Jr. is known for being cool, calm and collected during times of high stress

15. He's an ambassador for several companies

-He is known both on and off the track for his partnership with several companies because of his popularity and good marketing skills

16. He's earned the respect of his peers

-Fellow drivers and competitors hold the highest respect for him. They recognize his talent, professional demeanor and sportsmanship in the highly competitive world of Formula 1

17. He has a strong support system

-From his father to the dedicated team members at Ferrari, he is able to reap the rewards of a strong support system who provide support and also belief in his success

18. He loves other sports as well

-Besides being in Formula 1, Carlos Sainz Jr. loves other sports as well. He plays tennis and golf, showing his talent for other sports and a love of other sports

19. His future looks bright

-With him being not only a popular driver, but a successful driver with a humble, engaging personality, the sky is the limit for him

20. He's determined to make an impact in Formula 1

-Carlos Sainz Jr. is determined to have his name put into the history of Formula 1, to be up there with such luminaries as Jackie Stewart, Nikki Lauda, Ayrton Senna and more

Sunday, September 12, 2021

Revenge is a Dish Best Served Creatively

We've all wanted to get revenge on someone who may have wronged us. In this case, it's the service industry. You are basically the servant of the public, whether it be behind the front desk at a hotel, food service, etc. Here are a few examples of how people got a little sweet payback.

1.) A customer at a liquor store and wants to pay with a big denomination bill, despite having the right amount. She certainly got her exact change-ZeroPenguinParty

-Just happened. Its towards the end of the business day for my bottle shop. I'm running low on certain items of change in the register, so I am asking for people to pay with exact amounts, or by card. Enter Karen. Karen comes in, and purchases a $7 bottle of wine. If she was to pay with a $10 note, that's ok. But she decided she wanted to pay with a $50 note. I asked her if she had anything smaller, and she claimed she didn't...yet I could see the edge of a $10 note in her purse. I could have given her 2 $20 notes, or a $20 and a $10 and 2 $5 notes as part of her change, but I decided not to. I decided to get some petty revenge on her. For while I may have been VERY short on notes...I had plenty of coins...especially $1 coins, as a customer had paid a $20 sale with $1 coins just 30 minutes ago. So I told Karen that I would have to give a few coins in her change...then proceeded to count out $43 in $1 coins. Her face was getting redder and redder, until eventually, at about the $25 mark, she said "Wait, I might have a $10 note", and then proceeded to get the $10 note out to pay with.

2.) 2 year decaf binge-guacamollie19998

-Hey Mister Verizon Man,

You sold my dad refurbished iPhones and told him they were new. They were Hanukkah presents for my brothers and I. My dad was so mad that you sold him used phones— you lied to him. And he returned them. He returned them and he swore off iPhones, and I didn’t get a smartphone until I was eighteen. Mister Verizon Man, I was (nearly) the only one in my class who didn’t have an iPhone because of you. And you made my dad very angry on our favorite holiday. Mister Verizon Man, you didn’t know me, but I knew you. And when you walked into Dunkin Donuts, you ordered an extra-large hot coffee from me. Black. Mister Verizon Man, you ordered that coffee from me every morning I worked for two years. And every morning, after you ordered, I or my friends behind the counter would pour you decaf coffee. Every morning for two years, you thought you were sipping that sweet, caffeinated Dunkin coffee. But you were enjoying some lowly decaf. I hope my subtle revenge has made you a sleepy guy behind the counter lying to customers, selling refurbished phones in place of new. Maybe you pocket the difference in money, I don’t know. But anyways, Mister Verizon Man, screw you.

3.) Steps to looking like a jackass in a card store. 1. enter a store screaming. 2. pick up wrong card intended for lesbian couple. 3. give to happy couple-Marx0r

-Here I am, working a Saturday evening shift at a card and gift store. (Think Hallmark, but not that brand name.) As anyone that's worked one can tell you, a good 50% of the customers are clearly enroute to the event they're buying the card for, and a good 50% of those people think that their lack of planning is your problem. So I'm in the middle of assisting a customer when I see a Very Expensive Car pull up and park in the fire lane outside the store. A man in a Very Expensive Suit gets out of the car and walks in. Upon entering, he heads to the back without breaking stride and shouts "WEDDING CARDS?" I don't think he even saw me, he just figured that since he's the most important person in the world, there must be someone at his beck and call. I'm mid-sentence with my customer, so I finish it before addressing him. Before I can, he actually used a little effort to find the clearly-labelled cards himself, which he politely informed me of with a "GOT IT!" About 4 seconds later, he arrives at the counter, having obviously picked out the first card he saw. Maintaining volume, he respectfully requests to borrow a pen to fill out the card while he's in the process of reaching over the counter to grab one from my pen cup. While he's filling it out, as I ring up my next customer around the space he's taking up on my counter, I look down and notice that he's adressed the card to at least one male name. I also notice that he's picked out the one wedding card we sell that is unambiguously for a lesbian couple. I saw no reason to trouble him with that information.

4.) Drinks are worth the price-dearghewls

-I'm a bartender and the area I work in is upper class and petty as hell. As I tell people all the time “I don’t go out here, I just work here.” One random night not too long ago I’m making drinks at the well for servers to take to their customers at their tables while the other bartenders handle our bar top guests. It’s the middle of our rush and one of my servers comes up with a drink 1/4 full and sets it down saying the customer hates it and was demanding a different drink. Specifically, they wanted a vodka mojito. I was too busy to put up a fight and the poor girl looked run down already from the night, so I went ahead and made it, even though it was obvious the woman was just looking for free shit.

The server runs the drink to the table and it happens to be the table closest to my well so I can see and hear everything. She sets it down and hurries off to another table waving her down and I watch as this woman SLAMS the drink until there is nothing but mint and ice left in the glass, with maaaybe half an ounce of liquid in the bottom, then turns around and grabs the server again. “Uhm, I specifically asked for this with VODKA.” “Yes, ma’am, it is.” “I know what vodka tastes like, this is clearly rum. Tell your bartender to make it right this time, I’m not paying for this.” The server tried to say something but was rudely cut off and told to get it remade again, so she picks up the glass and walks over to me.

“I’m so sorry OP,” she starts, and I immediately tell her it’s okay, I saw the whole thing. “Girl, don’t worry. I got you.” So I remade the woman’s drink. One virgin mojito coming up. Nuthin but mint, lime, simple, and soda water. I cannot explain the satisfaction we both felt when that drink hit the table and we watched the woman sip it and go “Now THAT is vodka.” You get what you pay for.

5.) Penny for your thoughts?-throwaway105597

-So I used to work at a now closed-down retail shop in the UK that sold cd’s, DVD’s, vinyl, that sort of thing. We had a lot of regular customers that used to irk us, but in particular was this one guy who used to come in, buy roughly £20-£40 worth of things, and then pay for his entire transaction in coins, mainly pennies, 5ps, 10ps and 20ps. Not even pounds. Each time we’d have to stand there and count each coin individually (otherwise the tills would be wrong at the end of the day), holding up the queue, while he stood there with a smug look on his face making jokes about how long it took us to process the transaction.

Now, I’m not the greatest at maths (I have dyscalculia) so numbers aren’t my strong point. I used to hide when this guy came in so I wouldn’t have to serve him because I knew I’d take longer than everyone else to count up his money and put it in the till and then I’d hold up the queue. This time, there was no one else on shop floor, and the penny guy comes in. So I had to serve him. To my surprise, this time he actually gave me some notes to pay with, and secretly I was thrilled, because it meant I could now take revenge. I processed the transaction and with a smug look on my face, start counting out £12 worth of change in pennies, 5ps, 10ps and 20ps.

He questions what I’m doing and I say, sorry sir, we have too many coins in the till and we’ve been told to get rid of them (a lie obviously). He stands there for a good 10 mins while I count out his change, lose count, have to start over again all the while smiling and putting on my best fake sweet customer service voice. The entire time he’s standing there getting red faced and impatient, tapping on the counter, sighing loudly under his breath until I finished and gave him all of his change. He remained a regular customer, but never paid in pennies ever again!

6.) Closing at 10 means exactly that!-arsenicandoldspice

-Last night I was at work at my Family Owned Beverage Shop. It's not my favorite job I've ever had because the customers are incredibly entitled. The end of the night was approaching, beautiful, sacred closing time. We had gotten a decent rush about 20 minutes before we closed (at 10pm) so we were a little cranky about how behind we were on finishing our tasks for the night. At 9:55, we're finally getting somewhere with our cleaning when the phone rings. Sounds like a youngish boy, I'd say 15y/o at most. He asked what time we closed, and I responded with my usual, "We close at 10 every night, but we'll be open at 11 again tomorrow morning!" That's not working for him. "My friends and I really want some of your drinks but we can't be there by 10, can we come like five minutes after and still get drinks?" I tell him no, the doors get locked promptly at 10. "Oh, well we really want the drinks, what can you do?" I say "You can be here by 10, because I personally will be locking the doors." We hang up. I know he's going to try to come in anyway.

Sure enough, at 10:06, my coworkers and I hear a bunch of banging and rattling on the closed doors. Yep, like three or four high school aged kids. Sorry, we're closed. The chairs are up, the menu is turned off, someone is mopping, THE DOORS ARE LOCKED. Any time they catch one of our eyes (which we all do our best to avoid) they give us what they think are puppy dog eyes, and we laugh and shake our heads at them. No dice. They keep assaulting the doors. It's getting annoying, so I look up at them brightly with a big smile and start walking toward the doors. They start getting excited, thinking they've finally worn us down. I hold eye contact until I swerve to the right to turn off all the lights. I could hear their collective "awwwww!!!" of disappointment through the door. It felt amazing. They left. I laughed. I won. 

7.) What language do you prefer?-AlfafaFloozy

-I'm an American that was born and raised in the south. It's an obvious dialect. Also, English is a 2nd language for most people here. Language barriers are not uncommon. All of this comes into the revenge. Years ago, I worked in a call center. It was a large company with English and Spanish departments. I worked in the English department, but sat next to our Spanish department. I handled billing. No one calls billing in a good mood, but in general they're angry with the company not the rep. You calm them down, fix the issue, and you're off to the next call. Few customers are memorable, but this one I will never forget and I still laugh. This call happened on a busy day with long wait times. This just made the revenge sweeter.The call went like this.

Me: Thank you for calling blah blah blah.

Lady: I want an American on the phone.

Me: What?

Lady: I said I want an AMERICAN on the phone.

Me: Mam, I'm an American.

Lady: I WANT AN AMERICAN ON THE PHONE!

At this point, I can only assume I'm not speaking the right language.

Me: Un momento por favor

I put her on hold, transfer her over to the Spanish line, and just giggled to myself.

BUT IT DIDN'T END THERE. The lines were starting to calm down and I was chatting with one of the Spanish reps when his desk mate pops up and says she's got a psycho on the phone. IT WAS THE WOMAN I HAD TRANSFERRED!!! She was going BALLISTIC! The Spanish rep had her on mute while talking to us. I apologized and told her what happened. She started laughing. Then looks right at me and said "I'm gonna put her back in the Spanish queue". The Spanish department had a blast laughing at this crazy b*tch as they kept putting her back in the queue. I don't know if she ever got her issue fixed. Then again, we never found out what the issue was either. She was too busy yelling at everyone. Moral of the story, be nice to phone reps.

8.) Shoplifting don't pay-Erik069

-When I was in high school I worked as a stocker in a grocery store. One hot Saturday I’m stocking the ice cream freezer and saw a young women grab a couple ice-cream bars and shove them in her shorts. Quickly I found my manger and told him what I’d seen. I pointed out the women as she was walking out of the store, he went running. Caught up with her. I watched from the store entry as he chatted with her for a few minutes in the hot parking lot. I wondering what the heck they where talking about. As the manager is walking back to the store I see her reach in her shorts and toss the bars into the landscape planter. His revenge was to tell her the store was doing a survey and had some customer survey questions for her. Probably being scared she cooperated. When he saw melting ice cream running down her legs he finished the interview. Thanked her and came back into the store. We had a good laugh over his creative way to punish this shoplifter.

9.) Troublesome customer has to get her refund...50 miles away-Joelovesbacon97

-Before I start, for some background, I work at customer service as a department lead and I'll say my hardware store practices the rule that says "we reserve the right to refuse and limit any returns for any reasons" very often. With that being said... A Karen slithered into my store with a water heater that was around $800, She hissed at us "I want to return it" I asked if she had a receipt, she ask why does she need one and I said to do the refund, since it was over $50, we would for sure need a proof of purchase, she groaned and dug around in her purse and called me a moron and etc, she was already rude for no apparent reason.

I was kind of already in a pissy mood that day so I decided I'd have some fun with her being an a**hole by being an a**hole back to her. When she presented the receipt, I looked at the receipt to find any possible reason to deny her return and saw it! It was bought at a store 50+ miles away, with items that expensive we normally ask the customer to return to point of sale. So I told her "you can't return this item at this store, you need to return this item at the point of sale, which is the riverside store" when she heard this she hissed at me in anger something to the effect of "NO I WANT TO RETURN IT HERE I AM NOT DRIVING THAT FAR FOR A REFUND!” She proceeded to yell at me and my associates further, calling us rather offensive names and whatnot, until she asked for a Manager, so I got one, but I made sure to call my manager who has the same mindset of denying returns just like me. When my boss came, he saw what was going on, and he was on my side, he told her the same thing I said and she cursed us all out and slithered off to hell. As soon as she went off to the parking lot, we all began to laugh :)

10.) My two cents on this-/jzimm79

-I work retail and part of that is ringing customers up for their purchases. Occasionally you’ll get a total of 9.02 and the customer will pay with a ten. Normally I’ll give them a dollar instead of counting out .98. Today I gave a customer the dollar instead of a handful of change and he asked for another dollar because one corner was slightly torn. Instead of giving him a new dollar I gave him a handful of change. Oh the look on his entitled face. That tiny bit of revenge will get me thru this day.

11.) Waiting is the hardest part...for hard work-lupin_stargazer

-I work a crappy retail job, and we just started putting out our christmas stock (It kills me to say that when it isn't even Halloween yet). I was working the register while my coworker was in the back room handling a delivery. It was a quiet night, no customers for about half an hour, and in walks a woman with her three year old daughter. They start looking in the christmas aisle. I happen to walk by it about ten minutes later, and the aisle is completely trashed. I watch as her daughter pulls three pegs worth of garland off the wall, then as her mother picks out the color she wants and leaves the rest on the floor. This woman had allowed her daughter to do this for nearly everything in the aisle.

She saw me, took her daughters hand and said "Come on honey, lets go check out while this nice lady cleans up." And she leads her kid toward the check out. Well, jokes on you, lady. I'm the only one working them tonight! I start cleaning the aisle (very slowly) while she waits at the register. After a few minutes, the lady looks at me and clears her throat. I look up, smile and say "I'm sorry, but company policy states that I can't leave any obstruction in an aisle unattended. I'll be with you as soon as I can." And I go back to cleaning. Made her wait for a good twenty minutes trying to entertain a bored, increasingly whiny toddler before I came up and wrang her stuff up. I made sure to give her my biggest smile as I handed her her change and said "Have a nice night!".

12.) The change-man strikes no more-PM_YOUR_PRETTY_FACE

-I work overnights in a gas station in a particularly bad part of town. So from 11pm-6am I use a pass through drawer to make transactions so I don't get shot or robbed. This one a**hole shows up a couple times a week and gets at least 20 dollars in gas, and maybe 10-15 bucks in other stuff. How does he pay? By just dumping a handful of change into the drawer, making me pick it all up. Even if I have my hand out, he'll go under my hand and throw it in the drawer. That pissed me off like you wouldn't believe, so I started being rude back to him. I don't give him his stuff until I pick up each coin piece by piece and then count it all out and put it in the drawer. I'm talking like $30 in quarters and dimes and nickels so it takes a good five minutes. One time I was doing it, he says "Come the f**k on man, I'm in a hurry!" I just said "Yeah?" and kept going while he huffed and puffed and swore and paced back and forth. After 5 or 6 times of this, he started paying only in bills. I win :)

13.) Today was your last "free meal comp" from us-blobley

-I'll start off by saying that I take pride in cooking customers orders to perfection, and I strive to always make the customer happy. It's hard to do that when the person calls back every time no matter what and says that we messed their order up in some way. Well today sir, today was your last meal from us. I deleted your account and blocked all of your numbers that you have ever called us from. When you call, you will get a never ending elevator music tone. I also took the liberty of emailing every pizza place in a 3 mile radius of our store to inform them of your selfish habit. I told them what you do, and how many times you have done it to us. Hope you like Chinese food from now on f***er.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Travelling: The Next Great Confidence Builder

We all may or may not have issues with confidence. Some are happy go lucky, confidence off the charts. Others may be more reticent, shy, not a lot of confidence. Did you know that travelling can build up that confidence? Here's how.

1. You develop better financial skills
-When you have those destinations in mind, you tend to start saving up. You become more financially savvy. Everyone knows that to travel, you need a lot of $$$$. If you can budget yourself on vacation, odds are high that you can budget yourself back home. When you're away on vacation, it's probably a knee jerk reaction to buy anything that looks cool. The most important thing is to know how much money you are going to need to survive the trip. If you can carefully manage the money you have to be able to get everything you need for your trip, you will be good and you can transfer these skills into everyday life. One piece of advice-when travelling through Europe, Australia, Asia, there are no such things as "all inclusive". This term refers to something that a lot of tropical destinations engage in. It means everything is paid for. The only money you bring is for tips and souvenirs.
2. Learning a foreign language
-Everyone at one point or another in their life has been interested in learning a foreign language. I know I have and I know I am. It's said that through learning a foreign language you are looking at the world through a new set of eyes. Taking a class on foreign languages is great, but what is even greater is talking to the locals, engaging in conversation with them and asking them what words mean in their language. They will be more than flattered that you are taking an interest in their culture and language and be more than willing to help. Learning a new language helps you learn how interact with your surroundings in new ways. You will have an increased capacity for action and doing things and as such, you can tackle challenges easier
3. Independence
-There is a vast world of difference between travelling as a group and going solo. When going solo, you essentially have to become a jack-of-all-trades, a sort of Bear Grylls-type person to survive. Not to the extent of Bear Grylls, but you will need the skills necessary to solve problems should they come your way. Knowing how to do basics such as sew, cook, fix a bike, camp or even drive will boost your confidence ten fold and let you know you can survive

4. Meeting new people
-For some, the shy people mostly, meeting new people is a daunting task. What do you say to start the conversation? Unless your itinerary is camping in a wooded area, odds are high that you will be meeting other people. It's mind blowing the way humans interact with other humans. Anthropologists would have a field day studying humans and their interactions with other humans, rofl. If you are travelling to a country where English is not the primary language, it could look like a jumbled mess. It'll be almost to the point of frustration to reach some point of understanding between you and the other person, but the reward is worth going for. Getting to know others and their way of life shows that person you are taking interest in their culture. Most if not all people are flattered when people take interest in their culture. Talking to others and meeting new people can help you recognize the sensitivities and desires of other people. You can even have the confidence to help change someone's life for the better. And in the process, even make a new friend or two

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

The Mask of Zorro (1998)

This movie is one of those 1990s movies you may have watched, at one point or another, in Spanish class in school. I know I certainly did. Me and my sister suspect that the reason we always watched this movie was because our teacher, Bertha Garcia-DeBurke, who hailed from the Mexican city of Guadalajara, had a major crush on Antonio Banderas.
Summary
-After his brother is brutally murdered by an Army captain, a young thief seeks revenge and is trained by the once great hero of the people, Zorro, who is seeking revenge of his own










Cast
-Diego Sieres: young Joaquin Murrieta
-Jose Maria de Tavira: young Alejandro Murrieta
-William Marquez: Fray Felipe
-Stuart Wilson: Don Rafael Montero
-Tony Amendola: Don Luiz
-Anthony Hopkins: Don Diego de la Vega / Zorro
-Antonio Banderas: Alejandro Murrieta / Zorro
-Julieta Rosen: Esperanza de la Vega
-Victor Rivers: Joaquin Murrieta
-L.Q. Jones: Three-Fingered Jack
-Matt Letscher: Captain Harrison Love
-Jose Perez: Cpl. Armando Garcia
-Catherine Zeta-Jones: Elena

Did You Know?
-Joaquin Murrieta was not only a historical figure, but was also thought to be the inspiration for the literary character Zorro
-At first, Anthony Hopkins refused the role of Don Diego de la Vega because of massive back pain. But after undergoing a laser treatment, he was able to take the role.
-Professional sword trainer Bob Anderson, who trained Errol Flynn, remarked that Antonio Banderas was the most talented sword fighter he has ever worked with since Flynn. It also helps that Banderas trained with the Spanish Olympic team for four months
-In the scene where Elena and Zorro are fighting in the stable, Elena's dress falls off after being sliced by Zorro's sword. To pull this effect off, a wire was attached to her dress to pull it off
-Antonio Banderas was strict about performing his own stunts, to make it more authentic
-The Addams Family actor Raul Julia was originally supposed to play the role of Don Diego de la Vega, but he died before casting begun.
-Catherine Zeta-Jones was cast because Steven Spielberg enjoyed watching her in the 1996 Titanic miniseries and suggested her
-If you look close enough, there are subtle differences in the Zorro costumes worn by Alejandro Murrieta (Antonio Banderas) and Don Diego de la Vega (Anthony Hopkins). The costume designer for the movie claims that de la Vega's costume reflects his Spanish heritage while Alejandro's reflects his Mexican heritage
Anthony Hopkins
 
Antonio Banderas
-Three of the possible considerations for the role of Elena was Latina pop singer Shakira, Latina actress Penelope Cruz and actress Salma Hayek
-In a nod to the Zorro series, Antonio Banderas voices a character called Puss in Boots in the Shrek series. Essentially, this character is a feline form of Zorro, who wears a hat, boots and fights with a sword.
-Only when Alejandro dons the Zorro mask does he use one of de la Vega's swords. Up to that point, he had been using his own sword
-Three of the considerations for the role of Alejandro Murrieta were Mark Anthony, Joaquin de Almeida, Andy Garcia, Elmer Figueroa Arce
-Giancarlo Giannini, Lance Henriksen, Sam Shepard, Edward James Olmos, Scott Glenn were all considered for the role of Don Rafael Montero
-In the movie, Sir Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones play father and daughter and in real life are actually Welsh-born. They are the only Welsh-born actors present
-Welsh actor Sir Anthony Hopkins plays Spaniard Don Diego de la Vega while Spaniard Antonio Banderas plays Mexican Alejandro Murrieta
-Ironically, Antonio Banderas is Spanish in real life instead of Mexican. He has more in common with the antagonists than the protagonist
-The characters Joaquin Murrieta, Alejandro Murrieta and Three Finger Jack were all real-life bandits from Northern California during the 1849 Gold Rush. Joaquin Murrieta was Mexican, born in Sonora and moved to California to find fortune with gold. After American gold miners beat him and robbed him, he swore to see vengeance. He found a group of bandits and lead them through the California wilderness, killing anyone who posed a threat. Americans saw him as a reason to hang anyone who spoke Spanish while Mexicans looked at him like a folk hero. Three Finger Jack was a Mexican named Manuel Garcia, who was Murrieta's sidekick. He was supposedly killed on July 18, 1853 by Captain Harry Love, who preserved Murrieta's head in a jar of alcohol and Three Finger Jack's hand as proof they were dead.
Captain Harry Love
Joaquin Murrieta
 

The Legend of Zorro (2005)

This is the second movie in the Zorro series.
Summary
-Alejandro de la Vega, also known as Zorro, has made a promise to his wife Elena to stop wearing the mask and take on duties as a father. He breaks it and Elena leaves, falling for a French count. When a threat to California's statehood turns out to be linked to a mysterious explosion in the desert, it's soo discovered this mysterious French count might be related to that case





Cast
-Julio Oscar Mechoso: Frey Felipe
-Gustavo Sanchez Parra: Guillermo Cortez
-Adrian Alonson: Joaquin de la Vega
-Nick Chinlund: Jacob McGivens
-Antonio Banderas: Alejandro de la Vega
-Catherine Zeta-Jones: Elena de la Vega
-Rufus Sewell: Count Armand

Did You Know?
-Adrian Alonso, who plays Joaquin, didn't know English. He learned all his lines phonetically, just as Antonio Banderas had done for his role in The Mambo Kings
-Between The Mask of Zorro and this film, Alejandro had changed his name from Alejandro Murrieta to Alejandro de la Vega to avoid using the name of a wanted criminal

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Trendy tattoos

Who ever thought a tattoo could be trendy? Apparently the people at Tattoo Artist Magazine think tattoos can be trendy

Tribal art
-This is one of the more popular types of tattoos. They include tribal arm bands and leg bands, which wrap around the arm or leg. It's simple in design; the lines are bold and curvy, with only black as the color. They are good on the body, as they follow the way the body moves
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Portrait
-This is a very intricate type of tattoo. This is usually the most difficult type to do as most artists can't do it justice and if they can, it's not gonna be cheap. Most of the time, when someone wants a portrait, it's a very therapeutic process, meaning that the portrait they are getting is of someone very near and dear to them, like a mother/father, husband/wife, loved pet. And also, people like getting celebs tattooed on them for some strange reason
Script designs
-This usually refers to some type of writing, whether it be a quote from the Bible or another holy book, a quote with a strong meaning, a person's name, etc. Also, related to this, are tattoos in foreign languages, such as Chinese/Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew, etc. These types of tattoos can honor the subject of the artwork or serve as a memorial. They can even show how proud that person is of their heritage

Friday, February 27, 2015

Top 10 Reasons to Study Abroad

Something I wished I could have done!!!
Study abroad, for those who may not know, is when you go to another county and attend school there like the locals. You can absorb the local culture and also gain an experience that not everyone can experience. According to social media site Playbuzz.com, here are the top 10 reasons to study abroad

1.) Makes your resume more attractive
-Everyone wants a resume that is going to turn heads. Studying abroad shows that you are driven, independent, definitely one that can be trusted and able to jump right into new situations. An employer would be crazy not to want to hire you!

2.)Scholarships go long!
-For students looking for international education, scholarships help out! And grants, scholarships and loans often take off the burden of paying for that awesome experience

3.)Personal growth
-While it's daunting at the thought of picking up your entire life and going to a foreign land to learn, there is some excitement in it. You can pick up a new language, absorb the local culture, even make a friend or two. But the biggest reward is confidence in yourself and feeling more independent

4.)Making new friends
-This is the biggest and best reward. If you take interest in local cultures, you're bound to make friends in no time!

5.)Opportunity to travel
-Everyone loves travelling. Europe tends to be a popular area for study abroad experiences. You can learn about so many cultures within a certain area

6.)Getting in to another culture
-Understanding the culture of the country you study abroad in makes the experience so much more rewarding. It makes you more employable and you can learn the language

7.)Your perspective grows
-Like the song "A Whole New World" from the Disney movie Aladdin, this perfectly captures what studying abroad can do. It can open your eyes to the many vast and interesting cultures of our fine world

8.)The food
-Need we say more?

9.)Managing finances
-This one can be hard sometimes. Taking on the responsibility of managing your finances can be a daunting task, but it's a learning experience!

10.)The time is now for action!
-Sometimes life can get in the way of something like this. Whether it be family, mortgages, or a job, this may not be high on your priority list. It's good to take the bull by the horns and run with it!

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

My new and improved "Bucket List"

You know what this means if you've ever seen the movie The Bucket List. Starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, this movie tells the story of two terminally ill men who, while strangers at first, become friends over the years and try to accomplish a list of things on their "bucket list", a list of things to do b4 they "kick the bucket". Ever since seeing that movie, it gave me the idea to come up with a bucket list. Here are some of mine, although I've had to change it a few times here and there!

Get a tattoo
-I'm down to deciding on something 1960s or Asian. If it's 1960s, I would like it to be a Peace Frog, sketch of a hippie girl or maybe a VW Microbus. If it's Asian, I would like it to be either a Japanese cherry blossom tree or a geisha girl

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Graduate from college
-I feel like such a failure for not graduating college while my sister did. I really want to go for Criminology, doing forensic science like on CSI. Either that, or maybe do something like on Criminal Minds, using psychology to analyze the behavior of what makes someone a serial killer or rapist. but I'm bound and determined to go to school for this stuff. Then I'm out of the crap job I'm in, where I have to fight for even one day off!
Meet someone famous
-This list is too long! I'd love to meet: Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) because: if it weren't for hearing Paranoid by them on a local heavy metal station, I'd never be fans of this band. Not to mention, after reading that book by him, he seems like a generally sweethearted guy. Plus, you gotta respect the guy; he overcame the loss of two of his fingers, making him think he's never play guitar. But now he's playing, beating the odds! Awesome! Paul Stanley (Kiss). Yeah, I think he's cute, blah blah blah, but also a good musician. He seems like the kind of guy who does not like to put himself out there, like if he can avoid getting into the newspapers or gossip mags, he does. Kate Winslet. She's always been my favorite actress. She's smart, beautiful and just a good actress. Maggie Smith. Everyone knows her as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter series. When I look at her, I honestly can't believe she's still acting. She's smart, funny when she needs to be, and actually very beautiful for her age. I especially loved her in Keeping Mum; she was hilarious in there! Sharon Osbourne: in addition to being very beautiful for her age, she's funny, sarcastic and just plain awesome! How many other women can you name who could say they're the wife of "The Prince of Darkness?"

Paul Stanley, aka Starchild

Sharon Osbourne


Maggie Smith

Tony Iommi


Kate Winslet

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Get my license to drive
-Ooooooh, I'm so close to this I can taste it, mooooohahahahahahahahahahaha!
Travel to England, Japan, Australia. Italy
-The cultures of these countries is what draws me to them. Not to mention such sexy guys, lol. I swear, I'm not sure what is making English guys sexy, but good God! There's some real hotties coming from there ;) Plus, the local sights in these countries. I'd love to see a football game in England; hopefully the Tottenham Hotspurs will be playing, either them or Arsenal

Tottenham Hotspurs

Italy


Japan

Awww! A kangaroo!


London!

Learn to read, write, speak Chinese, Japanese, German, Russian and Italian
-After learning Spanish in high school, this sort of started a fascination with other languages and the cultures associated with them, although my mom says I want to learn all the "hard to learn" languages

Chinese

German


Italian, obviously, lol!

Japanese


Russian
Have a slight cosmetic surgery
-I have this small mole on my arm that I sometimes worry about when laying out in the sun; I honestly don't want skin cancer and I worry about that. So I'd love to have it removed

Fall in love
-Sometimes I think this will never be possible. Sometimes comprehension kicks in and makes me think "Who would ever love someone like me?" Sure my family loves me, but then again, aren't they supposed to?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Write a book
-I know this sounds stupid, but I think this would be interesting
Go rock climbing
-I think this is cool. But I'm not sure what I'd do about my lungs; I've had asthma since I was 16 and plus, living with a smoker for the first 20 years of my life has probably turned my lungs as yellow as a sunflower or black as Ronnie Wood's hair
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Go to a concert for the following people:
Aerosmith
-These guys are awesome!! I'm surprised that people haven't started calling them "The Boston Bad Boys" because of how they're supposedly like The Stones. These guys make some good hard rock, but if they had to have a name, I'm pretty sure it would be something like "The Bad Boys of Boston" or something!
The Rolling Stones
-These guys rock! I saw a concert last night of one of their shows from 2013, in Hyde Park. They played "Jumpin' Jack Flash". It still amazes me that, at 70 years old, Mick Jagger is still strutting stages, belting out those songs. Those guys are all in their 60s and 70s and they're still rocking? Amazing!!
Black Sabbath
-This one is kinda new! Ever since hearing "Paranoid", I've been thinking about and hoping to go see these guys
Judas Priest
-These guys were my first favorite true metal band. These guys are not the glam metal of the 1980s; no these guys are true, all out power metal, the kind of music people dubbed "headbangers" listen to! And plus, how can you honestly argue with a band whose singer rides out onto the stage on a pitch black Harley Davidson?
Kiss
-Yup, gotta see these guys! In addition to their music blowing the minds of its fans, you get an additional show when their bass player, Gene Simmons, shoots a fireball into the air, or when their rhythm guitarist, Paul Stanley, smashes his guitar Pete Townshend-style, when their lead guitarist, Tommy Thayer now, plays a guitar that starts smoking, or when their new drummer, Eric Singer, is up there on his riser, playing drums and it suddenly starts rising/levitating
Bad Company
-"Shooting Star". It all started with that song! For me, all it takes is one good song and I'm hooked on the music. I would love to see these guys put on a concert. I mean, how can you honestly doubt their music or ability of putting on a good concert? Plus, at whatever age he's at now, Paul Rodgers somehow still makes wearing leather pants look good!