America. Fuck yeah! Land of the free, home of the world’s biggest burger. Sometime this summer, I’ll be celebrating my 10-year anniversary on this piece of paradise we call the U.S. of A. I’m not exactly sure when, so I’ll just celebrate it at the Hobbs’ annual 4th of July block party. Isn’t it crazy though? Less than a decade ago I couldn’t read this… let alone write it. But look at me now! Reading, writing, and even speaking this wonderful language: “Picture one is a duck.” I’m still amazed by how much moving to this country has taught me. Not only about America, but about Mexico and the world as a whole. Sure, I don’t have any friends that I’ve been close with since childhood (I’ve only known my best friend for five years), I’ve missed out on a lot of my current (U.S.) friends’ early life experiences (ie: green eggs and ham in kindergarten, rainbow parachute day in gym class, and the D.A.R.E. program in 5th grade), and I didn’t know what the electric slide was until senior prom (in Mexico, we were all about the Macarena). On the other hand, living in each country has familiarized me with both cultures, while giving me an outsider’s perspective on society. This is what I’ve learned from that.

America is all about you. It’s about independence, it’s about being the best that you can be and the best at what you do; there’s a reason this country has dominated the world in so many fields. But while I smile at America’s strive for excellence, I frown upon its strive for excess. Take the cups for example, the first time I visited Mexico after moving to the U.S., I felt as if everything had shrunk. The sky, the trees, houses, buildings, it all seemed smaller! The cups that used to quench my thirst now took a few refills to get the job done. You might point out how everything seems bigger when you’re smaller, but this first visit took place less than a year after I moved. In just a few months, I got accustomed to America’s super sized standards. In a nutshell, America’s the place to be if you want to achieve your dreams of grandiosity. While Mexico may give you a bigger sense of freedom and the idea that you can do anything, America gives you a better opportunity at actually doing anything.

Mexico is all about us. It’s about family, helping one another while depending on each other. If you look at American history, you might see where their deep-rooted obsession with independence comes from: the people who escaped Europe, kicked out their British rulers, and abolished slavery, are bound to want to move out of their parent’s house by 18. But Mexicans aren’t looking for independence, they’re after unity. Most children don’t leave their families until they’re ready to start families of their own. In my opinion, Mexicans are not as demanding as their U.S. counterparts; but as a negative side effect of this, they can be quite complacent. I’ve never been to a house in all of the United Mexican States that didn’t have something odd or something broken: be it a faulty faucet, an unpainted wall, or something far too ghetto even for an American ghetto. Mexicans learn to live with their problems instead of fixing them. The way they make the best out of everything is both my most and least favorite thing about Mexico; which is ultimately (in my opinion), a great place for a simple life. While Americans love to get things, Mexicans prefer to enjoy them.

With that said, the greatest thing I’ve come to learn from living in two different cultures, is that everything you just read is not absolutely true. At least not absolutely. You see, these are just the opinions I’ve formed based on the experiences I’ve had. Of course, you’re better off taking my word for it than going by what someone who has never lived in Mexico or the U.S. says. But just because I perceive things one way doesn’t mean you will as well. If you really wanna know what Mexico and America are all about, you’re gonna have to live it for yourself. And I do mean live it. Visiting a place may give you a better understanding of it than just reading about it, but it doesn’t compare to living in it. It’s like meeting someone as opposed to getting to know them. It’s not the same. You can’t go to Paris for two weeks and expect to have France figured out.

I had a very strange morning, but this definitely made my day; thank you! ♥

someeforceofnature:

Thirty two years ago today,the world lost an extremely influential man to suicide at the age of 23. In his short time on earth, he managed to create a legacy that contributed to the birth of so many incredible musicians, from Radiohead, Smashing Pumpkins, The Smiths, and Placebo to Arcade Fire, !!!, Bloc Party and The Horrors. I am eternally grateful for this person, and it is so sad he felt he had to go so soon. Rest in peace always, Ian Curtis. May your legend live on forever.

Yeah, that’s why I don’t wanna watch it yet. But I would like to see it on IMAX 3D, I just don’t know if I’ll be able to catch up with all the prequels in time. I wonder if they have ‘em at the Redbox? o.O

I really wanna watch The Avengers, but I really don’t wanna watch it until I’ve seen Captain America, Iron Man 2, and Thor. Which seems like an awfully big adventure just to get to one movie. Besides, I feel like I’ve already seen half of it via memes and animated gifs on tumblr.