Michael F. Nuñez

wilsonave:

The first 3/4 of our undergraduate careers have been completed, and just as those fleeting experiences came and went in an instant, so, too, has the summer season whisked by.

It’s June 22nd, and I still feel like I’m settling into the summer!  I’m also approximately 1.5 months away from my Hong Kong endeavor; the reality of the experiment is still pretty abstract to me — let’s leave that subject aside for a bit.

For now, lets focus on the summer, and while we’re on the subject, let me say, “I hope everyone is having phenomenal time, whatever you may be doing.”

As we begin the final quarter of our undergraduate affair, we have each commenced unique and self-fulfilling vocations: some of us have ventured to unexplored hemispheres of the globe; others have returned to familiar locations with familiar personalities.  For some of us, geographical and social environments take a back seat to our own personal or career developments; most of us sit comfortably in the middle of these all these ideas — I currently sit @ Kaldi’s Coffeehouse on 9th St.

I’ve been finding myself here more and more frequently.  Here, it’s quiet, but not as distracting as the deafening silence one would find in the empty lobbies of Ellis Library. Instead, I opt for Kaldi’s: peaceful and right in the heart of downtown Columbia, which is where I found I needed to be to grasp the context and relevance of my own existence during this summer season.

Before I get too much into a personal anecdote of my summer, though, let me start with some universal wisdom (aka philisophical bullshit).

……. I just hyped this up a-bit-too-much, but what I’m hoping to do is encourage everyone to take time for reflection and introspection.  Appreciate the place that you currently find yourself, remember where you’re coming from, and don’t forget where you intend to head.  The 3rd summer of our undergraduate careers has come quickly, and now that we are in the heart of it, it is especially important to respect this reality to a great degree.

… I might just be alluding to the absolute bliss and perfection of my own summer season:  I literally couldn’t ask for anything else, and I’m extremely thankful.  Everyday, I take a few hours to walk around Columbia, enjoy the great aesthetics of campus & patios downtown, I see the sun set everynight, I take deep breaths of clean air (at least much cleaner than one would find in Hong Kong) whenever I can, and I remind myself that I’m living out my summer dreams, and of course, that I absolutely love my life.

If I still haven’t been able to express my utmost respect for this season (of our lives, and of the year), than the video below might articulate these ideas better.

I can remember those summers of my life, and just as this kid has, I would take advantage of my circumstance as much as possible;  I encourage everyone to take advantage of their circumstance this summer as well, though I will suggest trying different activities, rather than dwelling in the same cycle for too long.  Still, if that’s what is most fulfilling, than keep on slippin’-and-a-slidin’.

But enough fluffy bullshit.  I’m certain you’re all having a blast this summer, as are the children (and one old man) of Wilson, and I know that none of our readers would take anything for granted….

so….

this leaves me to ramble on about my own experiences.  And they begin, immediately after finals week, in Hong Kong….

Hong Kong

• Hong Kong was absolutely amazing!  I had an incredible time traveling with my sister, Melissa, and my momma, Norma Nuñez.  We were there for 5 or 6 days, and traveling with my mom and sister, we naturally spent majority of our time shopping.  Still, we got to check out some of HKU’s facilities (which are BEAAAUTIFUL, and are built on top of a big hill that kinda overlook the city).
  • A Few More Tidbits About The University:
    • World-renown professors with Nobel laureates frequenting and teaching at the university.
    • Art Museums on campus:  While we visited, the university was exhibiting lots of etchings, drawings, and paintings from Pablo Picasso (most of which had anthropomorphic themes).  The university’s museum also featured art by Takashi Murakami who is the guy who created the newest Kanye West album art, and he also made the famous Louis Vuitton multi-colored handbag.  In sum, just some pretty cool shit to look at.
      
    • The campus (or at least the part I toured) was scaled upword.  The stairs and paths connecting campus buildings were surrounded by tropic wildlife, and were escalated up a hill: this left room for incredible views of the ocean and city.
  • A Few More Tidbits About The City:
    • Pretty awesome air pollution: not intolerable, but enough to curb any urges for a cigarette.
    • Pretty incredible water pollution: I read somewhere that close to 70% of the drinkable water in Hong Kong is imported because the pollution is so bad.  This means that I’ll be getting a campers water bottle before I head to Hong Kong again.
    • GORGEOUS sklyine: The architecture is beautiful and the lightshow that most of the buildings display adds soooo much to the skyline.
    • The Western influence: it’s prevalent, but not overwhelming.  I came across many British and Australian personalities, and also people from mainland China.  There are lots of brand name shops, but also plenty of local flavors.  I’m most excited to try some of the fried seahorse on a stick that you can find at many street vendors.
      
    • A Few More Tidbits About That Traveling Experiance
      1. Being on a plane for 15 hours should be universally outlawed.  For the trip to Hong Kong, I was tortured with shitty movie after shitty movie, including films such as: 27 Dresses (which was actually my favorite of everything I saw), National Treasure, Jumper, and others I don’t even remember the names to.  My flight to Hong Kong could be parralleled to Plato’s allegory of the cave:  I was shackled to a middle seat, and forced to watch thee most dull entertainment, projected on the wall of the front row.  Damn.
         
      2. You don’t have to fly over the Pacific Ocean to get to Hong Kong: on the way there, I actually flew over the North Pole….. preetttty cool. (pun intended)
      3. I’m SOOO ready to do some reporting in China.

Home

• After returning from Hong Kong I spent a little bit of time at home.  It was great to be back in the NW suburbs of Chicago with my family, and I found a few great opportunities to hang with some close friends.  It was a really gratifying and helpful to return home. (as it always is)
  
• The Saturday morning after the last Friday of finals week I was in Hong Kong.  After a week in HKG, I was in Chicago for a week. After that I returned to CoMo for a week, but I returned home that weekend for a wedding of a close family friend.  (Conclusion: my brain was scrambled from the traveling.)
  • The Wedding: It was the first wedding I had ever been to where I knew the bride really well, and needless to say, it was beautiful and ultra awesome.  I don’t use the word “holy” that often, but I definately felt like I was in a holy place that night.  Lots of friends… lots of family…. good vibes all around, and watching the bride and groom exchange vows was … well, again, beautiful.

CoMo

• Columbia has had gorgeous weather since I’ve been back.  The city is ultra-relaxed, and my life in Columbia is pretty ideal right now.  I work when I want to work, essentially, and I have plenty of time to enjoy the good weather every day.  This might change a bit when classes start for me in July.
• There are a lot more people in Columbia than I expected, too.  Hanging out downtown, I’ve run into lots of people I had no idea were here for the summer.  I’ve also met a lot of new, intriguing personalities. 
  
• A new vape hose has been ordered…. but it still hasn’t arrived : (
• I also tried something NEW! email me for details about this.

Work

• Work for me is being a token intern for a surveillance software company.  I created my own hours which was great, and the company uses me mostly as a utility player or an idea-guy.  I create website content and help establish a marketable identity. I dig it.
• I also work at the Career Center still, and it’s been pretty relaxed.  This summer I’ve mostly helped high school kids and freshman explore career fields.  It’s a much different dynamic than I’m used to.  I’m working on indentifying information that will impact the students better.  It’s hard to know what’s relevant to a lot of the younger h.s. kids.
  
• I’m also supposed to be producing some sociological research this summer, but I haven’t started anything yet.  I have much to make up for in this category.

In summary, I love my life.  All the goals I set to have a great summer were met.  I’m enjoying my time in Columbia.  I miss all your pretty faces, and I hope you’re having a blast.  Again, sorry for my untimely post.  I’ll keep you updated on any new progressions.

Peace & Love.  Booyakasha!

Post by: Michael Nuñez