Archive for February, 2010
Sunday, February 28th, 2010
The overtly verbose, rough around the edges Norwegian man mentioned that he was going to the ‘Brown Mouse House’ that morning, and I jumped at the opportunity to accompany him. The Mouse House is a learning facility/book donation center that encourages English speakers to come between 9:00-11:00AM to practice reading and speaking with Lao students. My student named Hue was studying economics at the local university. We read a book together that was about a first grade reading level. Reading along with him as he sounded out the words, mispronounced a few and asked me the meanings of many; I really appreciated how difficult the English language is, and regained a new respect for those who learn it as their second language. Studying Mandarin for the past semester, I felt it better prepared me for assisting in his understanding; I don’t know much about linguistics and language learning, but it requires tapping in to a rarely used part of the brain. So often, our brains absorb knowledge and not necessarily skills, and there doesn’t seem to be a level of intelligence associated with language learning. If anything, I have learned that the mastery of a language comes out of necessity; I have always been told that if you didn’t learn a language as a child, date someone who speaks that language, and nothing will make you learn faster…
Where the English learning happens
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Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
The following rather unusual video was shot in Austria in the style of a music video/documentary hybrid. Swaroski Crystal had a very unique museum called the Swaroski Crystal world filled with very artistic rooms and exhibits depicted creative use of crystal and helped to build the luxury brand image desired with the customers.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THIS VIDEO
This summer I was blessed by being able to take the Marketing Study Abroad Program through Mays Business School. We traveled throughout Europe learning about local cultures, international business and the world we live in. This video blog documents our experience and gives you some insight into the adventures we had, the things we learned, and the relationships we formed.
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Monday, February 22nd, 2010
My new years resolutions in order of importance were: getting a 4.o, being healthy and being an overall nice person.
This was before I randomly became sick … It’s been a week and half, and I’m still highly medicated …
Here is something I learned: being healthy goes hand in hand with everything. Thus, don’t take your health for granted!
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Monday, February 22nd, 2010
I like to consider myself a healthy person. I try to eat properly and exercise frequently. Okay, so I’m lying. I don’t look at any of the nutritional information of what I eat. I don’t even have a fixed schedule for meals. During the weekends I usually have a “brunch” and during finals I have been known to have “linners” (lunch/dinners). Usually I can get away with this diet regimen, but recently my body has been complaining. (more…)
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Friday, February 19th, 2010
‘Is it LAO, or LAOS?’ my friend Anna asked me one day. We were planning on meeting (which never happened) in Luang Prabang, a quaint town just south of the border with China.
‘The people are LAO, the country is the Republic of LAOS.’ I answered her. I always do my homework before traveling anywhere. My advice for a good starting reference is www.wikitravel.org.
Checking in for my flight at the Hanoi International Airport, I was surrounded by a sea of red, sprinkled with yellow stars; the Vietnamese National Badminton team was flying with me to Vientiane, the capital city of Laos, for the South East Asian Games. For the next few weeks, eyes in condos and shanties alike would be focused on Laos, supporting their countries and watching ‘obscure’ sports like Pencak Silat, Sepak Takraw and Finswimming. I watched the opening ceremony, completely focused on the beautiful country of Laos (this was their first time to host the games) with the family and friends of some kind Laos people I had met in the night market. (more…)
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Monday, February 15th, 2010
Last year in my Business 101 class I learned the proper way to dine at a formal meal. At the time, I didn’t think the skills I learned would come in use in the near future. Last week I was pleasantly surprised to learn that my accounting seminar class was going to be substituted with a formal dinner followed by a career fair. (more…)
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Sunday, February 14th, 2010
The following video is composed of glimpsed of Haller Textile and Swaroski Crystal, two companies that we visited in Austria. I hope you enjoy them!
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO
This summer I was blessed by being able to take the Marketing Study Abroad Program through Mays Business School. We traveled throughout Europe learning about local cultures, international business and the world we live in. This video blog documents our experience and gives you some insight into the adventures we had, the things we learned, and the relationships we formed.
Posted in Chris | Comments Off
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
This semester has been off to an above average start!
I still find myself stressed every now and then, but find that I’m enjoying life more now that I’ve increased my time management skills …
- I’ve stopped online shopping/online browsing: I can’t believe I used to waste so much time (and sometimes even money) going to a website and loading up my ’shopping cart’ with items.
- I’ve completely cut out ‘television’ out of my life: I never really watched ‘tv’ much via television before … but good-bye hulu.com. I do not know much about the dramatic plot lines of Jersey Shore or whatever is popular these days, am I’m proud of it !
- If I go to sleep early, I wake up early: I think my parents have been trying to instill this concept in my head for years. I get it now ! I really do !
- Cutting Facebook out of my life – since it’s practically impossible to eliminate it completely, I only look through Facebook through my e-mail and Facebook text messages. Mmm .. Less time spent being creepy = productivity.
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Monday, February 8th, 2010
I have a problem. It’s a good problem, but a problem none the less. I have reached a crossroad (actually it’s metaphorically more like a ‘star’ intersection) in my career path. This week I have to choose which track of the Professional Program I am going to take. Each track takes you to the same destination (a Master’s degree and eligibility to take the CPA exam), but the scenery is a bit different along the way. I wish Google Maps could just tell me which direction to go. (more…)
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Sunday, February 7th, 2010
This is another blog about being an in-betweener. I’ll continue with Southeast Asia shortly.
Upon returning to Aggieland, I extended my feelers for some temporary part-time work that would allow me to be in College Station while I prepared for graduation and the elusive ‘real world.’ Wanting more than just a meager paycheck, I sought out ‘experiences’ rather than jobs. Out to lunch with the director of the Business Honors Program, Kris Morley (a gem of a woman who helped me put my life back on track after my dreaded freshman year), she mentioned a professor who might need some research assistance this spring. An hour later, after meeting with Kristi Mora (the Management Department advisor who has supported me throughout my upper level education, indulging me in my every educational whim) I repeated the professor’s name, as she excitedly ushered me into his office just outside her door! Speaking with him briefly, I was surprised at how quickly he was on the phone, trying to dig up money to pay me for my time. Things were looking up… (more…)
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