On Friday, the 9th of November, Joan Fabian, who is a visual and graphic artist, came and spoke to our Humanities class about her works. She truly believes that art is trying to make you think differently, and each and every person, deep down has their own opinions that are unusual. Art is obviously very important to her and she says that each person is unique, meaning that no other person can be like another, so therefore no one has their experience and it won’t ever come again. She enjoys meditating, which is a time when you are cleansing the mind, having a moment with God, and it allows her to gain acceptance with images that suddenly come to her mind. Shapes are used as a means to her vocabulary, and she is interested in what they convey to both her and the viewer. Many titles, convey her humor, reaction, and overall, how she feels when she is totally through with a picture, from beginning to end. She feels that when you are building something up, it’s more like a relationship and she has to feel good about the picture and feel very confident because millions and millions of people throughout the world can look at her art work. When staring at fabrics, she can picture thousands and thousands of different images and can totally look at things differently from other people and see new things. She totally believes that artists are political and more aware, and she said she always has to share and read between the lines. Also, in education, you approach new people with new ideas.
Joan, also told a very interesting story about a young man, where his dad had taken him to the Dallas Museum of Art, so that he could learn how to appreciate. Seven years ago, she had visited Pakistan and she had said that absolutely everything is different over there. For example, here we drink iced tea; instead, in Pakistan they always drink hot tea. While staying there, she had to be driven around by a driver, because the traffic along with the animals being in the road ways was extremely bad. She was in Pakistan for a total of six months, and while she was there, her husband came and stayed with her for one month, just so he knew what she was going through and how different the world was. She then came back in 2000 and it’s inspired her and now she looks at things completely different.
Her story was a complete attention getter, because of the fact that you don't find many people very often that are willing to get up and leave their family and friends just to go and visit a different country. I found her speech to be very eye catching, because I have never had the chance to sit in class and listen to an individual talk about having the chance to go and teach in another in Pakistan for six months. Another reason was because her pictures were very fascinating, along with the way she expressed her feelings about art in general.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Historic Building/Home... What a Thriller!!
Falls City is a very small community which has a population of only 591 people and this is the reason why not many people know about this small society. When passing through on 181, all you see are two small gas stations, along with the local bank. But if you actually make an attempt to drive down some of the side streets, you will find a ton of small houses with people sitting outside on their front porches and children or parents either riding their bikes or running or walking up and down the streets. In Falls City, there are very few places that are considered to be historical and there is only a small amount of artistic landmarks, because almost everything in the community, are houses that are newly built, or old buildings that are extremely ugly looking and need to be torn down.
However, there is one building, in particular in Falls City that I consider to be historical, modern, and an attraction to not only the community, but visitors who are passing through. This is because it’s very appealing and it seems to stand out, rather than just looking at the usual houses that are seen in communities, such as Falls City. This grown-up building/home is located right in the center of town, which has two stories, and has circled arches in the front, which I consider to be very elegant and appealing. The reason for this is because you do not tend to see this very often, especially in older buildings. This was once a home that an elderly man had lived in, but after losing his wife and having all of his children grow up, he had decided to sell it. This historical home/building, now serves as the Justice of the Peace for the community.
The white color on the outside is very boring looking, but as you are passing by, you tend to realize the red roof that stands out, and cannot be missed. There is a very large courtyard that is filled with green grasses and on the left hand side of the home, there is an enormous amount of colored flowers that have been known to have been here for decades. Directly in front, there are large green oak trees, that seem to cover the entire building, but if you make the block around it, it is more noticeable and can be seen clearly.
After viewing this home, and having the opportunity to have lived in such a small society for the last nineteen years of my life, I am likely to find land, homes, or personal belongings that are noticeable and find myself to be more appreciative. However, when I travel to San Antonio, or any of the surrounding areas, I tend to pay more attention to older communities, historical buildings, and the way that buildings, homes, or stores are being put together. I find this to be very attractive because we should tend to appreciate historical places, because they are not always going to be here. The main reason is because after so many years they will began to fall apart and as an ending we will have to tear them down.
Word Count: 534
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Touching Points in "Losing Ground"
“Losing Ground”, which is an article located in the San Antonio Express News, focuses on a law where real estate developers, go in and around the city and touch other organizations or people. In other words, this can be called the grandfather clause, and it basically talks about the vested right laws. AGUA is the organization which protects the Edwards Aquifer, and one of the most important parts of the aquifer is the aquifer’s recharge zones and this is where water is put back into the aquifer. In 1995, this ordinance was made, because many people believed that they could get around this vested rights issue. From reading this article, I concluded that many real estate developers are benefiting from the vested right issues because they don’t have to go to city council meetings and so this ends up making their job more straightforward and simpler.
Another fact that has been stated is that the lands in the Hill Country have been torn up into pieces and there is not much left of the lands. The main reason for this is because of country development, and along with this, much of the pastures have been bulldozed. Other things, such as grasses, that could not have been bulldozed, have been ripped up, as to where there is not much left to the land itself. This is not only happening here in San Antonio; it is also being done in places around my community, which consists of about 500 people, and this is because more and more people are moving from the cities into the country and are starting to build homes. But I feel that if people want to experience the country life, let them because it is filled up with pastures, grasses, dirt roads, tons of places to hunt, and thousands and thousands of trees. Overall, I believe that the Hill Country is a bulky and stunning place. But yes, I do believe that people want to live outside of the city, but I do not see a need to be tearing up this place outside of San Antonio that seems to be enjoyable. If families or individuals want to live in the country, move to the country, where it’s filled with pastures, so that we don’t have to be tearing down these things just for country development.
In conclusion, I believe that many people in and around San Antonio, do not know what is going on with our lands, so this helps them to develop and understand, what is happening to our lands in and around the Hill Country. But, more importantly, from reading “Losing Ground”, it is talking more and more about how the real estate developers are getting around city ordinances and the vested right laws. The article itself, gives out a vast understanding, because of the fact that it is explaining exactly what this law is, and how many developers are basically using it. As I was reading this article, at first I had absolutely no idea what the vested rights laws was, along with AGUA and its recharge zones, but as an ending result and reading “Losing Ground”, I found it to be extremely useful. I also believe that the citizens of San Antonio should stick together because many developers and individuals, who live in and around the San Antonio area, do not seem to care what is going on. So therefore, I believe that most people should either read about it or talk to neighbors or friends about this.
Word Count:591
Another fact that has been stated is that the lands in the Hill Country have been torn up into pieces and there is not much left of the lands. The main reason for this is because of country development, and along with this, much of the pastures have been bulldozed. Other things, such as grasses, that could not have been bulldozed, have been ripped up, as to where there is not much left to the land itself. This is not only happening here in San Antonio; it is also being done in places around my community, which consists of about 500 people, and this is because more and more people are moving from the cities into the country and are starting to build homes. But I feel that if people want to experience the country life, let them because it is filled up with pastures, grasses, dirt roads, tons of places to hunt, and thousands and thousands of trees. Overall, I believe that the Hill Country is a bulky and stunning place. But yes, I do believe that people want to live outside of the city, but I do not see a need to be tearing up this place outside of San Antonio that seems to be enjoyable. If families or individuals want to live in the country, move to the country, where it’s filled with pastures, so that we don’t have to be tearing down these things just for country development.
In conclusion, I believe that many people in and around San Antonio, do not know what is going on with our lands, so this helps them to develop and understand, what is happening to our lands in and around the Hill Country. But, more importantly, from reading “Losing Ground”, it is talking more and more about how the real estate developers are getting around city ordinances and the vested right laws. The article itself, gives out a vast understanding, because of the fact that it is explaining exactly what this law is, and how many developers are basically using it. As I was reading this article, at first I had absolutely no idea what the vested rights laws was, along with AGUA and its recharge zones, but as an ending result and reading “Losing Ground”, I found it to be extremely useful. I also believe that the citizens of San Antonio should stick together because many developers and individuals, who live in and around the San Antonio area, do not seem to care what is going on. So therefore, I believe that most people should either read about it or talk to neighbors or friends about this.
Word Count:591
Monday, October 22, 2007
Special Guest Speak's Out
Last Friday, the 19th of October, Speaker and Technical Research Director of AGUA, Elyzabeth Earnley came and spoke to our Humanities class. One of her main focuses was the City Council in San Antonio and how it represents who we are, the passing of ordinances, and how the budget pays all employees here in San Antonio. The City Council has a variety of decision makers which are located in San Antonio and their job is to decide what exactly goes on. These members meet every Thursday during the day and all of the meetings that are held by the council, are always open to the public so that everyone has a chance to speak their opinion and to see what goes on. There are ten different districts that can be found in San Antonio and the council itself, gets help by Developmental Services and a review by the San Antonio Water System (SAWS), in which they ask a variety of questions.
Her second key point was the 1995 Water Quality Ordinance (WQO). This group preserves recharge features, such as buffers and has limited impervious covers in the Recharge Zone (ERZD). An impervious cover is the covering of the natural land surface and is a good proxy for the intensity of development. The Water Quality Ordinance also mandates detention, sedimentation, and filtration for commercial and multi-family developments, which has over 15% of the impervious covers. She also mentioned the recharge features which are normally located, beneath the surface or on top of the surface. An example would be an enormous cave or possible sink holes.
What I found to be extremely interesting, was when she had put us into groups and gave us a variety of handouts, in which I was absolutely clueless as to what many of these things meant. The different forms that she had given us were a zoning staff recommendation, SAWS staff recommendation, zoning codes and a water quality ordinance. The main task was to review the rezoning cases and make a recommendation for the City Council, in regards as to what we had thought that it had meant overall. The main idea was that it was about the approval of land in which each group had stated their own opinions.
Now that she has told us about the city council and the districts in San Antonio, Elyzabeth Earnley has taught me what she does for a living as being a director of AGUA and what she focuses on. She showed us pictures of where many of the Recharge Zones were to be found here in San Antonio, along with directions on where the City Council holds their weekly meetings. Overall, this does not seem very important to many people, including myself at first, because I was completely lost and had absolutely no idea why zones like she has mentioned are even important. So all I can say is hopefully people might actually take some time out of their busy lives to read some factual articles about AGUA or possibly attend a City Council meeting.
WORD COUNT: 508
Her second key point was the 1995 Water Quality Ordinance (WQO). This group preserves recharge features, such as buffers and has limited impervious covers in the Recharge Zone (ERZD). An impervious cover is the covering of the natural land surface and is a good proxy for the intensity of development. The Water Quality Ordinance also mandates detention, sedimentation, and filtration for commercial and multi-family developments, which has over 15% of the impervious covers. She also mentioned the recharge features which are normally located, beneath the surface or on top of the surface. An example would be an enormous cave or possible sink holes.
What I found to be extremely interesting, was when she had put us into groups and gave us a variety of handouts, in which I was absolutely clueless as to what many of these things meant. The different forms that she had given us were a zoning staff recommendation, SAWS staff recommendation, zoning codes and a water quality ordinance. The main task was to review the rezoning cases and make a recommendation for the City Council, in regards as to what we had thought that it had meant overall. The main idea was that it was about the approval of land in which each group had stated their own opinions.
Now that she has told us about the city council and the districts in San Antonio, Elyzabeth Earnley has taught me what she does for a living as being a director of AGUA and what she focuses on. She showed us pictures of where many of the Recharge Zones were to be found here in San Antonio, along with directions on where the City Council holds their weekly meetings. Overall, this does not seem very important to many people, including myself at first, because I was completely lost and had absolutely no idea why zones like she has mentioned are even important. So all I can say is hopefully people might actually take some time out of their busy lives to read some factual articles about AGUA or possibly attend a City Council meeting.
WORD COUNT: 508
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Small Radius, Bold Core
Approaching the green population sign with the all too familiar name, immediately gives a sense of comfort and safeness. A small change to the recognizable faces, cars, and houses in town is immediately apparent. Falls City is a small, friendly town and so much more. It is an extended family, a support group, a warm smile and a friendly conversation. Not all communities offer the same support system; because most towns do not have fewer than 600 people. Everyone in some way, shape, or form is connected; whether it be family or just generations of family friendships. When a crisis occurs, it hits close to home with everyone in town, and the pain feels as if it were someone in your immediate family. Nothing is more comforting than knowing that someone is always going to be there for support; whether it is a crisis situation or a celebration in your life.
However, in small towns such as Falls City, everyone is always aware of either the towns or an individual’s business. In a town that has 3 family-owned restaurants, 1 grocery store, and 2 gas stations, everyone knows everyone’s personal lives. People feed off of the trials and tribulations that life throws in our paths and enjoy speaking of these over coffee at the Palace Café. Walking into the doors you can feel the heads turn and the conversations begin firing up. What is she doing now? Who is she? Have you heard? There is a 99% chance anyone can guess what is on their minds. Those same faces and same looks can be linked to those same conversations.
There is one prominent religion in the town, Catholic. Everyone sits in the same pew week after week. It is certain if someone is passing through from out of town and decides to stop for mass, sits in a “reserved” seat, and did not want to move, they would be given a very unfriendly welcome. It is extremely humorous how hypocritical people in the town are about small things, such as the story just mentioned. There have been many times, incidences like this have all occurred and all one can do is laugh. Church is not the only area people are territorial about in Falls City. Community members will always drink coffee at the same time, same place, same table, leaving the same tip. It does not matter what the satiation may be, Falls City is full of creatures of habit. Change is unwelcome, regardless of the situation. This past year the athletic director made a decision to accent the football teams jerseys with a black border. Many parents demanded a school board meeting because they felt the athletic director was changing the school colors from traditional blue and white. Changes have to be made or that have been made have to be slow, to give everyone the opportunity to adjust.
Falls City is a place I would prefer not to make my home and a town not to raise my family in. Many people grasp the idea of a closely knit community and all the benefits it has verses a larger community. As in every situation people do not always see the downfalls to situations or the “bad” side of things in regards to small towns. Because of the lack of activities that go on in the community, most of the townspeople resort to sitting at the local gas station/bar most days of the week. Many families in town are broken marriages, which relate back to alcohol being the underlying factor in a majority of them. This, of course, can occur in any city, regardless of the size, but from a personal standpoint in small town allows its members to get away with it. There is not one police officer in the town, only a county sheriff. This is important because many people feel they can consume alcoholic beverages with no limit, because there is a very slim chance that they will receive a violation for their actions.
Word Count: 672
However, in small towns such as Falls City, everyone is always aware of either the towns or an individual’s business. In a town that has 3 family-owned restaurants, 1 grocery store, and 2 gas stations, everyone knows everyone’s personal lives. People feed off of the trials and tribulations that life throws in our paths and enjoy speaking of these over coffee at the Palace Café. Walking into the doors you can feel the heads turn and the conversations begin firing up. What is she doing now? Who is she? Have you heard? There is a 99% chance anyone can guess what is on their minds. Those same faces and same looks can be linked to those same conversations.
There is one prominent religion in the town, Catholic. Everyone sits in the same pew week after week. It is certain if someone is passing through from out of town and decides to stop for mass, sits in a “reserved” seat, and did not want to move, they would be given a very unfriendly welcome. It is extremely humorous how hypocritical people in the town are about small things, such as the story just mentioned. There have been many times, incidences like this have all occurred and all one can do is laugh. Church is not the only area people are territorial about in Falls City. Community members will always drink coffee at the same time, same place, same table, leaving the same tip. It does not matter what the satiation may be, Falls City is full of creatures of habit. Change is unwelcome, regardless of the situation. This past year the athletic director made a decision to accent the football teams jerseys with a black border. Many parents demanded a school board meeting because they felt the athletic director was changing the school colors from traditional blue and white. Changes have to be made or that have been made have to be slow, to give everyone the opportunity to adjust.
Falls City is a place I would prefer not to make my home and a town not to raise my family in. Many people grasp the idea of a closely knit community and all the benefits it has verses a larger community. As in every situation people do not always see the downfalls to situations or the “bad” side of things in regards to small towns. Because of the lack of activities that go on in the community, most of the townspeople resort to sitting at the local gas station/bar most days of the week. Many families in town are broken marriages, which relate back to alcohol being the underlying factor in a majority of them. This, of course, can occur in any city, regardless of the size, but from a personal standpoint in small town allows its members to get away with it. There is not one police officer in the town, only a county sheriff. This is important because many people feel they can consume alcoholic beverages with no limit, because there is a very slim chance that they will receive a violation for their actions.
Word Count: 672
Thursday, October 11, 2007
True Facts Spoken Aloud
On Wednesday the 10th of October, Heywood Sanders came and spoke to the class about San Antonio and its background. In the early 1800’s San Antonio was not a very important place, but in general it was considered a very ethnic place. The Germans built this city, but they had benefited from building things cheaply, and so this is why sidewalks are not in places where they need to be, along with having gutters for drainage and not all road conditions seem to be drivable. But suddenly in the 1920’s is when new streets and new businesses were beginning to be built. San Antonio is considered a massive place for manufacturing thunderstorms and in 1913 there was a major flood downtown which led to billions and billions of dollars in damage.
The aquifer in San Antonio is an underground limestone that holds billions of dollars in refreshed water and it is extremely unbalanced. The more people that are living here in San Antonio, means that we need more water which results in buying it from various places. Overall, this means that water bills are radically rising because we are tempted to be looking for more water. We are a very divided and separated city and this is reflected on how we are operated and how each and every individual looks upon one another. Here in Texas, Austin is number seven in the ten most educated cities and Austin-San Marcos is the tenth in the highest increase in manufacturing. During the election, all Hispanics had voted for Ed Garza, but comparing it with the Anglos, he did not do as well because Hispanics vote for Hispanics and Anglos vote for Anglos.
Word Count: 280
The aquifer in San Antonio is an underground limestone that holds billions of dollars in refreshed water and it is extremely unbalanced. The more people that are living here in San Antonio, means that we need more water which results in buying it from various places. Overall, this means that water bills are radically rising because we are tempted to be looking for more water. We are a very divided and separated city and this is reflected on how we are operated and how each and every individual looks upon one another. Here in Texas, Austin is number seven in the ten most educated cities and Austin-San Marcos is the tenth in the highest increase in manufacturing. During the election, all Hispanics had voted for Ed Garza, but comparing it with the Anglos, he did not do as well because Hispanics vote for Hispanics and Anglos vote for Anglos.
Word Count: 280
Monday, October 1, 2007
Holding on to History
-This photo was taken off of the website, google.com-Alamo images.
The movie The Alamo, starring Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie and William Barrett Travis was a very educational movie because this is one of the most important events that took place in American history. The fighting between these three heroes, and the Anglo settlers, Mexican forces and the Tejanos was that they were fighting each other for land. The Tejanos were the first people to settle in Texas and their beliefs of defending had a strong impact in the events and battles leading into the Alamo. Texas was a place full of cattle, water, and timber; this is where fighting was taking place. This film reminds me of the Alamo because they had all of their guns and weapons and rode on their horses to defend the Mexicans. The setting and structure where this is taking place, looks almost exactly like the Alamo itself today, because the way the buildings are built and how everything around it looks.
Davy Crockett had a very inspiring life and he did not want to split the army because he had believed that the war was over. Crockett supposed that he had the chance to fight the Mexicans out in the open with amateurs. But in return, they would end up coming back. He was known to have been a congressman who had wanted to fight only democratically. In the film, Davy Crockett, had stated, “That he cannot sacrifice Texas.” William Barrett Travis was a man who had wanted to defend the Alamo between the Mexican army. He was a leader in Texas, who had fought to keep slaves in Texas. James Bowie has said “I have hope.” He wanted to see what they were fighting for, he truly believed that he could not only go out and fight for himself but fight for other people and loved ones would not get killed. He had also found a mission more than a 100 years ago and many found this as what we call it today, The Alamo. Bowie wanted to destroy the mission.
The church was first built in 1756, but during the battle, the roof of the church was destroyed. Overall, the Catholics had actually never finished building it. These three men also had the courage of defending this fort in Texas with an entire army for only 13 days. This battle had over 200 men who helped fight for independence. Santa Ana himself had only wanted to rule and stand up for Mexico, but the Mexican army itself had to cover around 300 miles. The Mexican occupation in Texas was completely expelled because Texas rebels were able to gain control of the Alamo in San Antonio. General Sam Houston had an army of Texans who defeated Santa Ana’s army, and this is what led to the independence in Texas. All of the Tejano and Anglos were able to fight for both the independence and land from Santa Anna and the Mexican government.
After watching this film, it actually explains in full detail what went on with the Anglos, Tejanos, and Mexicans. This battle that took place is a very important piece of history that every Texan should want to learn about. After my visit to the Alamo, I had noticed both Bowie’s and Travis’s rifles and knives on display still today. The Alamo deserves to be acknowledged and shared because it is a structure that has held on to much triumph and pain.
Davy Crockett had a very inspiring life and he did not want to split the army because he had believed that the war was over. Crockett supposed that he had the chance to fight the Mexicans out in the open with amateurs. But in return, they would end up coming back. He was known to have been a congressman who had wanted to fight only democratically. In the film, Davy Crockett, had stated, “That he cannot sacrifice Texas.” William Barrett Travis was a man who had wanted to defend the Alamo between the Mexican army. He was a leader in Texas, who had fought to keep slaves in Texas. James Bowie has said “I have hope.” He wanted to see what they were fighting for, he truly believed that he could not only go out and fight for himself but fight for other people and loved ones would not get killed. He had also found a mission more than a 100 years ago and many found this as what we call it today, The Alamo. Bowie wanted to destroy the mission.
The church was first built in 1756, but during the battle, the roof of the church was destroyed. Overall, the Catholics had actually never finished building it. These three men also had the courage of defending this fort in Texas with an entire army for only 13 days. This battle had over 200 men who helped fight for independence. Santa Ana himself had only wanted to rule and stand up for Mexico, but the Mexican army itself had to cover around 300 miles. The Mexican occupation in Texas was completely expelled because Texas rebels were able to gain control of the Alamo in San Antonio. General Sam Houston had an army of Texans who defeated Santa Ana’s army, and this is what led to the independence in Texas. All of the Tejano and Anglos were able to fight for both the independence and land from Santa Anna and the Mexican government.
After watching this film, it actually explains in full detail what went on with the Anglos, Tejanos, and Mexicans. This battle that took place is a very important piece of history that every Texan should want to learn about. After my visit to the Alamo, I had noticed both Bowie’s and Travis’s rifles and knives on display still today. The Alamo deserves to be acknowledged and shared because it is a structure that has held on to much triumph and pain.
Word Count: 539
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)