Let's Learn How to Blog

Normally on a Saturday morning, I usually sleep in until 11:00 AM, then I laze about in my bed for about another 3 hours then finally, I am officially awake. Today was different because at 8:30 AM I attended the ILC tutorial. At this tutorial, we learned many things like what we should expect and what we should bring with us when we are going to Chicago. My personal favorite thing that we learned was how to blog.

Before this I knew that we were required to blog but I wasn't sure how to and I was also afraid of somehow destroying our blog site. At the tutorial, I was put at ease when the mechanics to blogging were explained to us and we were allowed to have some practice. I learned what the correct formatting is and how I should change it if the formatting doesn't come out right. 

The Satisfied Look of Someone Who Can Blog

My biggest fear was uploading a picture onto the actual blog post. For most of my past school assignments, when I tried to insert a picture into the text, I would usually mess up and it would take me far too long to fix it. This fear crept up when we were told pictures helped improve our blog post. I came to the tutorial with an open mind and before I knew it I was able to insert a picture into a blog post without any trouble. I am proud to add that this was done without me freaking out or having to fix any disastrous mistake that I made. 

Aside from feeling accomplished in my learning how to blog properly, I am also confident that with time I will be able to master Photoshop. This way I could improve my pictures by either cropping them, adjusting the brightness, or fixing red eye. Don made it look easy when he showed us how to use it. Hopefully I'll have the same success with it when I begin to use it on my own.

I'm really glad that I attended today's tutorial. This tutorial allowed me to learn things that I didn't know how to do and it also gave me a chance to practice what I learned. This was also a very good chance for me to bond with the others who are going to Chicago with me and get to know them even more. We were able to joke around together and work well so that we could all understand what it is that we were doing. After today, I am even more excited to travel with these wonderful people and share my journey with all of you. 

ILC Tutorial

Victoria and I caught off guard

The tutorial meeting went great. Even though it was early in the morning and I did not want to be there, I learned a lot from this tutorial. It was very helpful for me because now I have a more clear understanding of how to blog, use MediaFire, and what to pack for our trip. 

I thought it was going to be boring but it was interesting because Don kept talking and talking, so he pretty much kept me awake. Don kept the subject interesting because he told us stories about the past students that had been in the ILC and faced a few struggles. This stories were funny and reliable because now I know what not to do and how I am supposed to behave. Don showed us a few tips of how can we organize our files.  The thing that I like the most is that Don made so clearly, he went step by step and made it easier for me. Something that caught my attention was when Don talked about that this was not beneficial for him but for us and that is preparing us for the future. A good tip that Don gave us was that we should practice and practice blogging so we can be pros by the time we take off for Chicago.

 Mountain Mike's Pizza was my first time going there and I liked it. The pizza was pretty good but I got full of eating to much of it, so my peers and I with our chaperone asked for boxes to take the leftovers home for tomorrow lunch.

When I got to Mike's place at 5:28 PM, even though I got there two minutes early Alie with Oyin, Dani, and Victoria was already there waiting for me. I introduced myself to everyone and shake hands. Alexa was running late and we waited for her for a couple of minutes until we decided to order before our time together runs out.  When we finished ordering we all sat down and started introducing ourselves one by one. First, You needed to state your name. Second, which school you currently at. Last but not least, what you do for fun or what sport do you play. We also talked about what programs are we taking in Chicago. We discussed about if this is the first time traveling, if we been away from our family as long as a month, and what kind of things we like so we can explore on our journey in Chicago.  

It was a good vibe with my peers but I was shy because I was the only guy there and I did not know what to say to break the ice. Other than that, I think this it event went great. I  got the chance to meet and know more about my peers and Alie. I hope that later my shyness will go away and get to talk to  these nice ladies more comfortably because we will be seeing each other for one month.  I hope that in these few weeks I can be able to get to know my peers more, so that in the trip I can be able to communicate with them and share more about our experiences and struggles. In the trip I would like to have fun with my peers and help each other on homework or personal stuffs and become united like a family.


Well I leave you guys with this picture I took after our meeting session.

An Extraordinary Experience

Well what can I say, this evening has been an extraordinary experience for me.  I did not think that I would be sitting around next to these dedicated students trying to change both their lives and communities.  This has opened my eyes to understand that this is a huge opportunity for me and that I'm not just representing my school and community. I am also representing the ILC and my school district. I was hearing all of the speakers from every program that gave a speech and every one was thankful for this opportunity because we all know that this program is a program that will change our lives completely.

This evening was great because both of my creators were there to support me as always. I would like to say a special  thank you to my parents for everything they have done and their support throughout my educational life. They don't criticize my decisions of who I want to be and become.  They will always support my decisions I make for my future self. This evening was so special to me, sharing it with both of them, knowing that if I look back they will be there in my special moments like this one. If it wasn't for them this picture wouldn't even exist. They have taught me the dedication and courage to pursue my dreams and goals.