Table of Contents

Table of Contents My Dear Reader Letter Introduction to My First Trip to the U.S. My First Trip to the U.S Introduction to my writing the Monastery of Montserrat The Monastery of Montserrat Introduction to my secret childhood place. Secret Childhood Place Introduction to my wma # 3 How to process your own pictures at home. How to Process Your Own Pictures at Home

Introduction to My First Trip to the U.S.

I chose this wma because was something great that happen to me long time ago, and was also very descriptive and narrative. And I talk about my first experiences here in the U.S.

Introduction to my writing the Monastery of montserrat

I chose my WMA#2 the Monastery of montserrat that I wrote on may 2010 because it need to be a place that we have been and to be real. very descriptive with the surroundings and senses too .

Introduction to my secret childhood place.

On this exercise I chose my journal #3 I wrote it on may 2010 and it was a descriptive senses writing , I have chose this one because because I talk about my secret hide in my childhood back in Mexico, and all the things that I liked there when I was a child.

Introduction to my wma # 3 How to process your won pictures at home.

Well in this wma that I wrote on may 24 I'm talking about a process of digital pictures , I'm taking this course right now, I wrote about it because it's something that I like to do and I know the process. The process is a little bigger but I compressed enought to the basics so it will be easy to understand.

My Dear Reader Letter

Dear Reader ,

Hello , my name is Enrique and as I write this letter my mind starts to fly back on time ; to be more specific to the fall quarter of 1979 . This was the last time that I attended school in Mexico. I’m from Cuernavaca, Mexico and I arrived to the U.S on the summer of 1981, but I have never been enrolled in any type of classes here in the U.S.

And as you may ask, why after so many years am I going back to school? Well, all started just suddenly on March of 2009; when the company that I worked for so many years decided to move their business of making Printed Circuit Boards to China . Then, I and another 299 coworkers were officially unemployed. It wasn’t my first time to be laid off , but it was the first to be in a very difficult situation with the Country’s economy in bad shape . At this point is when the State and Federal Government offered us an opportunity to change careers or start a new one. So, here I am.

Perhaps, one of the most difficult decisions in all these years was going back to school then choosing the right career. At this point almost everybody told me to go for the best paid career which I did at first , but I started to think back in my working years , always working more for the money rather than because I liked to do that particular job . So, I changed my mind and I decided to enroll in Photography. I have always loved to express and share my point of view, so for me it is thorough Photography.

Photography, Art and English 097 were my first real college classes for the spring quarter of 2010 here at EVCC, nevertheless I have to admit that the hardest class has been English. Sometimes I feel that I’m a tiny ant floating down in a big river full of words , but as I look around me I see hundreds of more ants just like me trying to reach for a saving stick , softly handed by our wonderful savior … our Teacher .

At first , English was not my favorite choice for a class but as I go deeper and deeper into other classes , I realize that the only way to understand and be understood in any topic it is by having a good structure in the English grammar . I think you can take one class of anything in one hand and in the other your English class and then everything will go smooth. I remember when I watched lots of movies and T.V. shows I understood perfectly every single word they said but if I was reading a book there was a lot of extra words , that didn’t make sense to me . Now thanks to my class of English 97 I can see why the writer uses the commas and the quotes and just the whole mechanics . Is like before I was just reading in English and now I’m reading and understanding in English; Furthermore , now I can write at least a decent essay .

Finally I can tell you that it has not been easy at all, but after you tried you feel better, even if the results were not that good, because you can try as many times you need until you succeed .

So my friends , to show you a little bit more of myself and what I accomplished in English 97 I will include in my e-Portfolio some of my writings , I have chosen these ones because they are the most descriptive and the ones with my best memories.

How to Process Your Own Pictures at Home

Remember the old style cameras? was a very long process, from buying the film finding the right way to install the film and taking the pictures until the end of the film , rewinding the film and taking it to the nearest Kodak picture center and waiting for at least a week to get your prints back . And with a little bit of luck all of them will turn great right? Not all the time that is why today , taking hundredths of pictures with the digital cameras and its advance technology is a breeze ,it is really fast and accurate and in seconds you can verify your own results so you do not need the services of a big photo center anymore ; Instead , all you need to star is a digital camera , a personal computer , software and a printer . With this in hand you can learn how to process your own pictures at home.

First, you will need your digital camera. It could be a very basic camera even most of new cellular phones come with a digital camera installed. Or you can lean to the professional side and get a top of the line digital camera. Have in mind what kind of project you will need to work on. Planning this first will tell you what type of camera to use. Like a basic school project and a regular party or something that you don’t need to see in its most minimal detail, then a basic camera will do the job just fine. But if the project it’s more formal like a wedding, professional portraits or main events then you will need professional camera equipment.

Second, after you have all your pictures taken, the next step is to transfer them to your personal computer. You will use the USB cable that came with your camera to connect the camera to your pc. When you turn on the camera the transfer program in the computer will start automatic. Next it will ask you where you wanted the pictures to be saved. You should make a new folder and named. Third , once you have all your pictures in the electronic folder , and after check everyone of them , you will need to decided if they need to be fixed for irregularities or maybe you want to add some effects . You will use the basic software that came with your camera or if you need something more professional and with a greater variety , the software market is full of programs ; However, one of the most used by the photographers are “ Adobe Photoshop Program .” This program also sells in different categories, from beginners to professionals. This type of programs are wonderful to fix or light up any irregularities that can occurred when you were shooting the pictures and the ambience was too light or too dark , also you can change the background the color of clothes , etc. The choice is yours.

Fourth and last , for this part you will use your printer , and here is where you are choosing which pictures are going to be printed and which are going to be saved or transfer to a C.D. The size of the pictures to be printed and what kind of paper you will chose; however, today printers are very good in printing good images in most kind of papers.

In conclusion, we can say that with just a digital camera, a computer, software and a printer, you can do almost any project and be able to process your very own pictures at home. So finally you can kiss the old long picture process goodbye. Say cheese.

Secret Childhood Place

Every time I Smell fresh baked bread , it remains me the bakery that was very close to my hideout , a small park from where I was able to see my house , down the road about one block way.

From my secret place , I used to ear my mother called for me and also my dog’s barks. I remember touching all the big old trees that offer me a good fresh shadow during the hot summers.

One of the best things ,in my secret place was the taste of the wild fruits within the park , the fresh water in the creek and the colorful birds singing happily all day .

even now after many years passed by , that smell of fresh baked bread still bring those old happy memories , again and again.

The Monastery of Montserrat

The Monastery is located at the cliffs of some high mountains , just above the small town of Montserrat , north of Barcelona , Spain . Built by the Benedictine Monks around the year 900’s; the Monastery is divided in two parts , the West wing that is the Monks living quarters which are closed to the public access , and the East wing ,this part of the Monastery is also wide open in the edge of the mountain , where you can smell and feel the fresh breeze coming down from the top peaks and passing by to the bottom of the mountain which is hard to see within the naked eye .

There is cable box car going up and down taking people from both sides , but once they are at the bottom they look like tiny ants. In the East wing of the plaza is where the Monastery Basilica is located , the main entrance is through a series of deep arches with lots of carved stones and wall paintings , all the way to a big plaza that as you are walking through you can see all the emblems and religious signs on the marble floors , then when you look up front , there is the huge main portal of the church with more carved stone figures that you just get tired of looking at all the magnificent works .

Once you walk inside you think that you are maybe in heaven , there is absolutely not empty space left alone in plain form , and you can smell all kinds of spice fumes . The Architectural works inside the building are just incredible , and if you walk all the way to the bottom of the church and look at the very top and carefully pay attention , you will see the throne with the Virgin of Montserrat looking at you as you are getting closer and closer .

My First Trip to the U.S

The first time that I traveled to the United States was on the summer of 1981. This trip was very special to me because it was my first time to fly in an airplane and be out of Mexico. My friend Jorge that I knew since we were toddlers moved to Los Angeles, CA, to study and work he had live there for 5 years and he have always invited me to come over but he knew the very long process to obtain a U.S .visa.

I remember that it was a Saturday afternoon when walking into the old building where my family and I lived for long time , that I encountered the postman setting the mail in each mailbox. happily talking and singing I asked him if there was any important mail with my name to which he responded in the same funny tone “As a matter of fact yes I do have some important letter with your name from The Embassy of the United States of America .” I don’t know what kind of face I made that the postman asked me if this was good or bad news which I respond promptly “ could be good or bad .” I opened the letter at once and started to read in a loud voice and when I said, granted for five years! I screamed, jumped ,danced and gave a big hug to the postman who responded to me with a loud tone I think better keep going before you kiss me next he laughed and off he went .

I woke up very early the next morning, and my mother asked me what had happened? I told her I need to go to the bank to withdrawal some money so I could go to the travel agency and pay for the airplane ticket; “the ticket?” my mother asked. Which I responded, mother I cannot believe you don’t know that yesterday I received the approval for my tourist visa, so I can go and visit Jorge in California.”

My mother so sweet as always, responded to me in a calm mood “ son , you were so excited yesterday that I heard you almost kissed Don Juan , the postman .” I laughed, but how did you know all of this? Well, she said I was buying some vegetables at the market, three blocks from here and Don Juan was telling this little story to Maria the owner of the market. So, I see that you told all your friends about the good news and with the help of Don Juan at least a few blocks around the neighborhood. But you forgot to tell the news to the most important person in your life; me. You are so right the whole time mother! I exclaimed, but let me hurry because I don’t want to stay in line for a long time at the bank , you know how that is, to which she responded in a funny tone, don’t you worry, first let me give you a good breakfast then we can talk about it later, o.k. ? But Mother I think that you don’t understand what I just said, Son she said laughing again the one that doesn’t understand it’s you because today is sunday and the banks and travel agencies are closed. Oh boy, you are right again!

So the next morning I did the same circus once again, only this time everything was open for business as usual. As I entered the bank I joked around to the security guard at the entrance when I said you guys forgot to opened yesterday , to what he just replied with an Ugh . Next I went to the travel agency that was just a few blocks away from the bank , all of the businesses were located downtown, fortunately that is where we used to live. Once at the agency; the agent asked all the questions to go on my ticket information , I was so excited and nervous that the question that I still remember is when she asked “ do you prefer your seat by the window or by the aisle? and I replied to her as long as the airplane takes me to California, you can send me with the luggage .”

Finally, I flew to Los Angeles, California; my friend Jorge was so happy to see me at the airport that the first thing he said was , hey you survived the flight which I replied Jorge, whatever you are eating all these years changed you a lot and then he said are you calling me fat?, Oh no not at all you are taller and with big muscles, I replied. Well, I do eat a lot but I go to the gym and run every day.

Before we go home I’m going to introduce you to the best food you ever had, there is a place called In-N-Out he said. And oh boy what a meal I had on that day; from then on we had Kentucky Fried Chicken, IHOP, etc and the rest is history. Just every food place was so wonderful to me because back in then in Mexico the government did not allow the American food chain restaurants to open for business there. So I kind of knew some of the stuff through the T.V. and the movies but to be there and have eaten in real life was like a dream come true. Also one of the new things to me was the cars and the houses, because the cars here in the U.S. came with more options and very nice details than the ones in Mexico, the houses were made mostly of soft materials new to me; thinking that wood will last only a few years, I got surprised that some houses were made long time ago and after a couple of small earthquakes during my visit to L.A, I understood one of the main reasons for the houses being made out of wood.

After trying all the main foods and going to new places called “Malls,” (yes this was also new for me). My friend Jorge told me save some energy and money for the next activity, they are called amusement parks, parks, isn’t that for little kids? I asked. I used to think like you at the beginning; but after we go you will let me know. My friend was right, first we went to Disneyland then Knott’s Berry Farm and finally to Universal Studios, it was so much fun even that at the end of the day we were so tired we still got up on the next morning after a good night sleep, ready for more. Finally my friend asked, “Are you still thinking this is only for little kids, my friend? We laughed for a long time.”

In conclusion , until today I still think that my first time to fly and visit the U.S. was the best experience that I had and I have been very lucky to be with a friend like Jorge, to guide me and enjoy his friendship .