Up Close With David Gallardo: Interview

Interview

At first glance, David Gallardo seems to be a typical student at Oxnard College. Despite the fact that he has to pay for parking, and the want for an adequate supply of water fountains David really enjoys the location of the school, his friends and classmates at Oxnard College. However, his aspirations differ from those currently attending the college. His family values tend to play a major role in David’s decision to attend college.  “I was raised to go to school to become independent.” Born as the middle child in a medium-sized family, David has strong morals and values derived from his Christian faith beliefs. He tends to give off the impression that he may seem a bit irrational, but that soon changes when he begins an intellectual conversation and displays a significant amount of knowledge (which he seems to be very fond of). His motivation for college is a combination of both obtaining an AS degree and pursuing a long term career in fire technology. David’s daily agenda usually consists of a balance of work, school, video games and sleeping. He manages to balance the responsibilities by dedicating specific time for each task. I asked David did he have a mentor or role model. He simply stated “No mentors or role models. No one has the motivation I have to ensure success.” He is rather unconscious to the thought of him being viewed as a role model. The three words that would best describe David would be loyal, truthful, and determined. As he has displayed, he is a very honest person and his determination for success is unstoppable. As for the future, (next five years or so) David plans to have graduated from firefighter academy and pursuing a career in fire engineer. Even though his journey through college is just starting out, David has expressed excitement in the coincidence that he and his best friend unintentionally enrolled in the same English class. David’s motto for success is “work is fundamental, but not if you don’t come to school to do it.” I completely can agree with his statement by adding if you don’t put in the time, you won’t get the maximum results.

The End of the Road

The End of the Road

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP is the only thing I hear in the morning as I wake to a completely empty and quiet house which is very unusual for a school day. Shutting off the alarm at 6:30 the morning, it was time for me to prepare myself for another dull and boring day at school. Fighting the feeling to get out of my warm bed, I got up to begin my morning ritual. I searched the house and I was completely all alone. After brushing my teeth, washing my face, combing my hair and laying the clothes out neatly on the bed I got dressed and locked up the house to walk to the bus stop. Since I was a little early that morning I decided to stop and get some Starbucks. I ordered a caramel frappucino with extra cream and gave the barista my dollars and exited the coffee shop to return to the bus stop. As the buss arrived, I pulled out my pass and boarded after my fellow patrons. On the slightly long bus ride I pulled the cord to signal the driver to stop at the next destination. When the bus jerked up to the curb I promptly got off and proceeded to walked over to the back gate and entered the school. As I made my way past the soccer field, I received a phone call. I dug deep into my backpack fumbled around and retrieved the mobile device. Glancing over at the caller ID it was my sister calling me. “Why is she calling so early?” I thought to myself as I answered the phone.

“Hello?” I Answered

“Good morning”

“Good morning”

“Are you busy at the moment? I need to talk to you.”

“Eh, kinda I just made it to school but I have a few moments what’s wrong?”

Silence.

“Are you still there?” I responded.

“Yes I am” she faintly said.

The bell for first period chimed and all the students were shuffling in the hallway to make it to their class before the tardy bell rang.

I told her that I would have to call her back because school just started but she insisted that I didn’t get off the phone until she stated her reason for calling. The butterflies were flying around in my stomach as I anticipated her message.

“You can’t go to school today I need you to come to the hospital now!” she blared into the phone.

“What happened? Is everything okay?”

“Don’t hesitate. Just get here.” With that the phone line disconnected.

I stood outside for a few seconds, trying to process all the information. Watching the few latecomers run to class at a track star speed as the tardy bell chimed. I started to make my way over to the gate I had previously entered and the security had just place the padlock and chains around the gate snapping it tightly. He stopped me and told me to go to class and that I was already late. Such as if I didn’t know. I turned around and hurried over to the front gate, which is always open after the late bell. My calves were burning from rushing to get to the front gate as another security guard snapped and secured the lock on the front gate. She stated that if I wanted to leave campus that I have to go through the main office and be released to a parent or contact on my emergency list. I panicked, so many thoughts flashed through my head as I tried to brainstorm about all of the possible reasons of such urgency. Tears began to flood my eyes as I tried to figure out the worst case scenario. I ran to the gate that led to the student parking lot and seen that It was too locked. My only option was the front office which held about a dozen of late students trying to obtain a pass to class. As I entered the side door and seen that all the office personnel was distracted by students and chattering among their fellow colleagues. I snagged a pen off the counter wrote a quick note: SORRY IT’S AN EMERGENCY. I placed the pen and paper along side the receptionist and slowly walked to the door. When my hand grabbed the door, I heard the lady scream “She’s Ditching!” I ran as fast as I could out of the school into the parking lot and hurdled over the gate and down the street to the bus stop. Security took off after me and stopped pursuing me once I jumped over the gate and made it to the main street. Thankfully, the bus was still loading passengers when I arrived. I brushed past a few passengers to board the bus and claim a seat. My heart was beating so loud that I didn’t even hear the bus driver ask for my pass. I flashed it and remained seated to catch my breath. The bus pulled off the curb and we got caught at a red light by the school grounds I just fled from. The security guards were still in the parking lot trying to reenact the pursuit. Other guards laughed at the trained guard who failed to retrieve his prize- the student. I ducked down in the window of the bus to remain concealed. Minutes after I arrive at the hospital and entered the lobby, I see my sister and my other siblings sitting in the waiting room. I ran over and told them what just happened back at the school. They all remained quiet. There was nothing but the laughter of the children in the corner playing with toys obviously not knowing what’s going on as well. I was directed to take a seat and did so. My oldest brother started talking first. Tears streamed down my face as I felt my ears betray me.

“Its mom, she’s not looking too good. She has been diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer and the cancer has spreaded to her liver, kidneys and lungs. ”

“Can I see her?”

“Yes, but she needs rest.”

As I was directed down the hall, my heart felt like it could burst. It seemed so unreal. The same lady that had given me life had an expiration date on hers. I entered the room and seen all the tubes and IV cords entangled around her. I grabbed her hands and felt the same warmth I shared. I began talking to her as if she was awake and aware. I kissed her head and he eyes flickered open. She responded to my prior statements. I told her I loved her and she replied with the same.

 She faintly said “You can never let anybody change who you are, I don’t want my condition to break you, and I want you to continue to live your life and be successful, and never forget what memories we have shared.”  

 “Yes Ma’am”. I responded.

 I exited the room with soggy eyes and returned to the waiting room lobby with my other siblings. My brother held me tight and told me to be strong. I just wept silently. After a few hours the charge nurse tried to get me to leave I refused she asked if I was hungry and I said no she instructed if I needed anything to let her know. I asked her for a blanket since the room was cold. At about three in the morning I awoke in the lobby not in the patient room where I had fallen asleep. I got up headed to the bathroom and splashed cool water on my face. As I was going down the hall to the patient room I see my family walking towards me. I observed a slow and eerie walk with unforgettable facial expressions. I was stopped in mid stride and told that my mother had passed on. I smiled as I thought back to the conversation I just had with my mother a few hours ago. I snapped out of my trance and I noticed a herd of faces with similar expressions. No one spoke but they all were wondering the same thing. I told them all I was okay and satisfied that she doesn’t have to suffer anymore. We all shared a group hug and exited the hospital. It’s traumatic when god calls his angels home. I lost my best friend and mother but grateful that she can finally be in peace. I wouldn’t change this experience for nothing because it showed me how strong of a person I really am. Although I tend to miss her dearly, to this day, she still lives on in my heart.

 

Texting

Ringtone goes off, you search around for it then fumble your hand into your pocket and pull out a cell phone then, you begin to pound on the letters and touchscreens to reply to the message that was just sent. Texting is a more common mean of communication method now than it was a few years ago. Texting is an effective way to rely a simple message.  It’s convenient for when you’re in a quiet setting and do not want to distract others around you and just as good for when you’re in a loud location and can’t hear to talk on the phone. Texting is all around us in class, at home, and even at work. I can especially say that when I’m on my lunch break the first thing I do is break out the phone and begin to respond to the messages I couldn’t respond to earlier. Just thinking back at how technology keeps advancing a few years ago we had just got pagers, and upgraded to cordless phones and now we can text and video chat. The only opposition I have to texting would be the fact that even though it’s against the law that people still find it okay to text and drive. I think you should either pull off the road or wait until you reach your destination. It has been said that a driver that texts is more dangerous than a drunk driver, so we should all be text-friendly.  Texting can be effective for nonverbal communication if used in the right matter.

The Reality of the Show

The Reality of the Show

Lying down bored on the couch? Eh, that was me too. With a remote clenched at the end of my finger tips, waiting for the next show to appear on the TV screen. I tend to like watching the reality shows of The National Geographic channel or the Discovery Channel. The shows like “Man vs. Wild”, “Mystery Diagnosis”, and “I (almost) got away with it” are entertaining as well as informative. I like watching “Man vs. Wild” because it teaches you how to survive in different environments and locations. I have always been interested in traveling the world to see something new and I feel like that show teaches survival for the worst case scenario. Each episode is filmed in a new location and faces different situations and methods to use for the same techniques. I say watching that show I probably can name at least 4 different ways to make fire, and have successfully accomplished 2 of the 4. (Still working on the other 2). “Mystery Diagnosis”, is a health reality show trying to find a cure or treatment for an odd medical condition.  “I (almost) got away with it” is just purely amusing watching how the criminals think they got away with the crime but it’s just a matter of time before they get caught. When any of the aforementioned shows are not airing I have a tendency to catch myself engaging in the other reality shows like “Bad Girls Club”, “Basketball Wives”, “First 48”, and “Real Housewives of Atlanta” mainly for the drama of the shows.

I try to break myself of the reality show trend but there aren’t too many shows that are stimulating and beneficial to my mindset. Resulting in me watching the reality shows. I feel as if some of the time the shows feel scripted and rehearsed. Some of the time the reality of the shows can harm our culture by attracting the attention of minors who then misinterpret the true moral of the story. It was a controversy with MTV and “16 and pregnant” show how since it started, the rate of teen pregnancy has tripled in efforts to audition for the show. I would say that the reality show craze could be considered as a guilty pleasure based on the ratings alone. It wouldn’t be something to avoid in the long run because it’s nice to sit back and laugh, giggle, cry or entertain yourself once in a while with a great TV show.  

Fast Food Impact

                                                        Fast Food Impact

            Looking out the window to my left I’d see the local fast food restaurants as we drove by and begged my mother to stop. Often, we never stopped but on some special occasions such as a student of the month award. We called them “snack prize”. It was just the best feeling the world knowing that I was going to indulge in a custom made double cheeseburger with grilled onions, a side of animal fries and a vanilla shake from In-N-Out. Fast food wasn’t really apart of a family ritual since there was always hearty home cooked meals . My mother, being the great cook that she was, felt like there was no point of buying the same meal that she could prepare in her own home. Fast food was treated as a luxury expense so it wasn’t permitted unless earned. The meals we had at home were often time consuming so our definition of fast food was probably just pizza ordered over the phone and it was still convient because we didn’t have to travel to go get it and we still ate at home together as a family . Whenever I spend the night at a relative’s house I was more subjective to fast food. Eating out wasn’t considered a luxury as it was in my household but more of an “I don’t have time to cook kind of thing” with my Aunt. I didn’t oppose to the fast food there because she wasn’t the best cook. She was the one that typically burned water.

            There were plenty of days in my high school life that consisted of overeating. For breakfast I usually had a whole dozen of glazed donuts, for lunch an entire pizza with the buffalo wings, and dinner was along the lines of a hearty meal consisting of fried chicken with green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, and some cornbread. I was known as the “greedy” friend since I never was the one to share food. Getting older and becoming less active, I decide to start controlling my eating habits. I started off with portion control then worked my way over to healthy foods. So now I tend to eat out every once in a while but with the fast food menus there’s not too much of a nutritional value. So it usually results in a side salad, and a small drink. I feel that fast food is apart of the American culture now because everyone is on the go and all wanting their food “hot N ready”. I personally try to not develop dependency for fast food because all the chemicals and preservative put into it are more harmful for you than the actual food itself. I seen a documentary called Super Size Me and it relatively changed my whole perception of the whole fast food industry.