Puerto Rico, Isla de Encanto

Hé llegué a Puerto Rico en las once en la noche, en viernes. En sabado, Daniel y yo, fuimos a Fajarado para surf un sitio que se llama la pared. Despues del surfing, nosotros regresemos a la San Juan para encontrar mi padre. Entonces nosotros comimos en un restuarante a lado de Daniel’s apartamento, que se llama Bebo’s Café. Luego, mi papa fué al hotel, y Daniel, yo, su prima, su novia, y su hermano fuimos a un disco, se llama pal cielo. Nos gozemos hasta temprano en la mañana. Domingo, despierté a las ocho, y fuí a la primera communion de un amigo de la familia. Luego, fui a la Casa de Daniel, y we chilled and surf con mi papa en la tarde. En lunes, yo fui a Viejo San Juan, exploré este sitio. En la tarde vuelvé al hotel y surf con mi padre, en Pine Cove. Esta noche, Daniel, mi papa, y yo comimos a un pizza place muy rico. En la mañana mi padre y yo levantemos mi temprano y salimos por Isabella. Ahorita, las olas estan much mejor aquí. Este parte de la isla es mas or menos 2 hours de San Juan. Llegemos a un lugar se llama Jobos primero, pero las olas fueron muy grande y parece como una lavadora. Entonces fuímos a mas playas para mirar las olas. Miremos, Surfers Beach, Table Tops, y Wilderness, y todo fueron así así, pero no feuron buenisma. Yo piensé que las olas estarían mejor en Rincon. Por eso, mandemos a Rincon, y aquí las olas feuron buenisma. Las olas rompieron a una punta y fueron 4-8 pies. Corrimos las olas aquí por 3 tres horas. Despues, cansadismos regresemos a San Juan. Para ceña esta noche, comimos a una restuarante Cubano (Ropa Vieja), y comé el mejor ropa vieja del todo mundo. Hoy, diesperté a las nueve y corré las olas en Pine Cove. Despues de eso, salimos el hotel y llegemos al aeropuerto, y lastimamente mi vaccione se acabo :(. Sorry its in all spanish, I figured most you all can read spanish, but if not there is always goolge translate, ☺. Hasta proxima vez.

Flight to PR

I am on flight to PR and decided to write a post while on board. To my left I have a kid who plays golf at bowling green (nice kid) and to my right I have this old Puerto Rican guy just offered me some pringles. He is most definitely a spaz, and he is for sure trying to read my screen, awkward. Haaha, anyways I super stooked to be on board to PR, gonna surf the outer reefs of San Juan en la mañana. I hope to update my blog frequently while in PR, but I don't want to make any promises. Daniel will be picking me up from el aeropuerto en San Juan a las once, but I am not sure what los planes are. Es posible que nosotros vamos a la placita, and enjoy the true Puerto Rican nightlife. If you have been to San Juan and want to go out that it is place to go, el viejo San Juan is good too, but is very touristy and has less latino flavor. Ps swag surfing is legit isn't it? Maybe it is a little dated, but it still sounds good to me. Enough rambling I will post again soon.

Zu goes on CNN

This past (Friday) 2/25/10, Lucas (Zu) was asked to be on CNN. Ali Velshi, the news anchor invited several students to be on a panel of what is a broken government and how do we fix it. Instead of butchering what transpired, here is some of the transcript from cnn.

Ali Velshi: What do you think about government? Is it broken? And how do you fix it?

LUCAS PUENTE, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA: I agree with Tracy. I think there has to be a balance though between the effectiveness of our policies and also immediate action.

Obviously, Congress has been slowed significantly in the past year and a half with some tactics employed by both parties, but I think we can get over this and come up with some wise, pragmatic policies that can have long-term success while also getting to a short-term fix as well.

VELSHI: You worked with Barack Obama when he was in Congress. Is that correct?

PUENTE: Yes.

VELSHI: And what did you do with him?

PUENTE: I worked as an intern, so sort of the usual tasks.

VELSHI: The usual stuff interns do?

PUENTE: The usual task of answering phones, giving Capitol tours, et cetera. But I also did some substantive work with the economic and financial team.

I am a proud of my brother, and wanted to share it will you all. Hope you enojoy.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Tonight I was motivated, and I decided to make a chicken casserole. The last time I tried to make something from scratch was when I tried to make my very own loaf of bread. The bread never rose and was most definitely a failure experience. My confidence that I could make something from scratch that required more than 3 steps was extremely low. Even though I did not have any confidence in my chéf skills, I decided to try and make something a little more substantial tonight. As a graduate student all I ever eat is pizza, pasta, PB&J, tacos, or the occasional restaurant meal. Tonight, I decided to fix up a chicken casserole and as you can see from the photo it came out great. I was quiet proud that I actually made a meal from scratch and so I decided to make a post about my success experience. Anyways, thanks for the viewing and if you have any suggestions for meals I should try and make please let me know! Hopefully I can broaden my horizons in the cooking world.

Mi Vacación en Mexico

Mi viaje empiecé en la ciudad de Mexico. Primero nosotros fuimos a nos hotel que es muy cerca del aeropuerto. While we were waiting to check into our hotel room this unaccompanied blonde girl asked me, “Tu eres un architecto?” Laughing I replied in English, “No, actually I am a psychology student and these are posters of my research findings that I am going to present.” We conversed off and on while we both completed the check in process. Afterwards I assumed we would go our separate ways, but I forgot that my father was right next to me. My evaluation of what would happen next did not include the possibility of my father engaging los dos and inviting both of us for a drink. Mi padre siempre encourages interactions with members of the opposite sex. Even though I often am embarrassed when my dad does this, it didn’t really bother me because she appeared interesting. Her name is Lone (Lõna) and she was here from Arhus, Denmark, so she could work in a shelter (Casa Alianza), helping the kids of a not so nice section of la ciudad de Mexico. We talked for several hours and then went our separate ways and before I knew it I was on a flight to Acapulco at 8:30 in the morning. As soon as we arrived to Acapulco we first headed to the conference was, and were injected into the neurolopsychological mindset. Attending several early conference symposiums I was enjoying the material but for some reason was not ready for the intellectual world of neuropsychology. I managed to roam around the compound asking people where I could find a surfboard to rent. I met and befriended one of the hotels salvadidas (life guards) named Oscar. We negotiated, and then oddly enough I ended riding a brand new JS, which happened to be one Andy Irons’s (3x surfing world champion) old boards. The next day my father and I wanted to surf, so we rented some boards from a local named Victor. We surfed fun 5-6+ waves until we couldn’t surf anymore. After surfing we attended the conference for the remainder of the day. On Thursday we woke up with rain, strong winds, and blown out surf. I presented both of my posters this morning at 9:30, and then I attended different symposiums with my dad and studied for my upcoming neuropsychology test. Meanwhile throughout these last couple days Lone and I had been corresponding back and forth through emails entertaining the possibility of her coming to Acapulco. Internet was difficult to come by and my cell reception was spotty at best. Long story short she ended coming to see what Acapulco was all about and met up with us on Friday morning. On Friday, Lone and I talked, swam, chilled, and enjoyed each others company. When the night came we went to an all-inclusive UCLA neuropsych. party. After the party we then went to see the clavadistas (cliff divers; sweet video if you want to check it out; http://vimeo.com/5308117) which was an incredible sight. After watching these young men propel themselves from unbelievable heights we headed back to our hotel to get some rest. Before bed Lone and I hung out on the roof of La Orquidea and chatted about many different things. When morning came my dad, Lone, and I headed down to beach. Lone stayed on the beach, while my dad and I surfed very fun 5-6 ft waves. Sadly enough after our session it was time for us to head to the airport for our flight to Mexico city. Although the surfing was fun and the conference was stimulating and productive, the most enjoyable experience for myself in Mexico was meeting Lone. Everything about Lone’s upbringing was extremely different from mine, from the type of government, schooling, location, language, and culture most everything was different. Lone and I connected like none other, but this is not insinuate that we are destined to be together but rather my interaction with Lone made me realize how more there is to any given person than meets the eye. Before this trip, I would never anticipate I would be so interested and connect so well with a girl from a northern European country. Meeting Lone solidified many different things for myself and not only was it extremely fun, but was very insightful to many different aspects of my life. She was a very special person and made my trip to Mexico very enjoyable.

El Vuelo a Mexico

Currently I am onboard an overly crowded Delta flight to Mexico City. On my left I have my dad, Tony Puente, who is sleeping like a baby who just drank an entire bottle of milk. On my right is a random stranger who is using my shoulder as a pillow. I bet that at this very moment you are probably wondering if I am going to tap him or wiggle my shoulder to wake him. For some reason I am choosing to do neither, but rather let this random stranger rest peacefully. Maybe that’s strange and if fact it is a little weird to me too, but selflessness goes unforeseeable distances. Either way you look at it, he will wake up sooner than later and it’s not that bothersome. On a different note it is incredible how far technology in our lifetime, from smart phones, to onboard wifi technology has become ubiquitous in our society. Unfortunately sometimes technology crashes. For example, my and several others’ TVs are not working. I believe that it is human nature to forget life pre-technology; as many of the customers around are complaining that it is unacceptable that there TV is not working and demanding for it to fixed. I abhor such self-centered thinking. Even more intriguing is that all of these individuals are all middle-aged adults. Why is it that once something such as on-board TVs or smart phones becomes prevalent that we automatically assume that they should always work (eg., My iphone is so terrible!) and anything less is unacceptable. Taking a big step back, and evaluating the foolishness of these statements/beliefs is often beneficial. All right enough with my soap box, but if I am describing you, maybe you try and remember when never had cell phones or personalized TVs on planes. If that is not easy then maybe you could consider how life is from a different lens. For example, think about how your life would be if you lived in Port tu prince. Maybe evaluating your life from another’s eyes will strike insight into remembering how privileged we are as citizens of free and prosperous country. Perspective can be a humbling experience and I invite you and I to entertain this point of view to improve your and others lives. By the way if you’re wondering my neighbor has awoke and currently has an embarrassed look on his face, presumably because he just realized he was sleeping peacefully on a random stranger (me). I am not suggesting that we Americans are selfish, but instead that often we lose perspective on what is important and necessary for a fruitful and enjoyable life. And by the way I just got free onboard wifi!!!

A different John

John Edwards, once presidential hopeful, now chauvinistic unfaithful prototypical politician. Mr. Edwards comes a very respectful and humble beginning. His ex-wife's (Elizabeth) parents paid for his law school because he couldn't afford it. He proposed to Elizabeth with an 8 dollar ring. For their anniversary they went to Wendy's because anything else was to expensive. John grew out of "nothing" and became one of North Carolina's most repectable trial lawyers. A beginning that would instill integrity and a moral code hard to be broken, you would think. Two days ago John and Elizabeth ended their tumultuous marriage and publically seperated. Once an extremely repectable man now has lost respect from virtually everyone including his most loyal supporters. Over the holiday break in Wilmington, N.C., Mr. Edwards was mingling in a local bar. Rumor has it that he was in Wilmington visiting Rielle Hunter, his baby's momma. With all that said, I realized how glibness in a politician categorically different than any other individual. He made me quickly forget that he was narcissistic spineless politician with a simple "nice to meet you."

American hopeful John Isner

Hailing from Greensboro, NC, American hopeful John Isner is playing in the round of 16 (4th round) of the Australian Open. John is not only having his best performance at major to date but is currently at a career high #28 in the world. Even more surprising is the fact that John is the second highest ranked American on tour (#7 Roddick). John has made tremendous strides in his game, all while trailblazing a much different path for aspiring American juniors. The typical aspiring tennis phenom attend tennis academies such as Bollettieri and Saddlebrook. Here juniors have more time on court than in the classroom in hope to actualize every once of their ever growing potential. Attending public school and living at home John fostered his foundation in tennis by playing in the USTA. Here John competed at the state, regional, and national level. He competed against all types of juniors, including other successful college stars such as Andy Orban who attended Maryland but also played less well known USTA journeymen like myself who ended up playing at small liberal arts colleges. John's game improved tremendously while he attended the University of Georgia and helped them win back to back national championships (07 & 08). His non-traditional path has fostered the possibility that it maybe more beneficial for an aspiring tennis star to attend an university, improve their game, obtain a free education, and mature as young adults. John's unforeseen success has provided him opportunities only available to high profile athletes. One particular connection John made recently, is with Carolina's all-star receiver, Steve Smith. Steve has been hanging with John and his crew this week in Australia and currently is rooting on John from John's players box. Other notable all-star football receivers in Australia watching tennis is T.O. The unrestricted drama ridden free agent recently sparked a friendship with the other American hopeful Andy Roddick. Personally I would rather have Steve in my box, but that is the obvious choice for any panther fan.
John unfortunately lost to Murray, who is one of the favorites to win the tournament, and will obviously be disappointed, but as a Georgia alumnus he will be surprised and elated to hear that our unranked Georgia Bulldogs men's basketball team defeated #8 Tennessee in Athens this afternoon. In speaking of the UGA men's basketball team, props goes out to Mark Fox for so far silencing the ever boisterous critics such as AJC columnist, Mark Bradley. Maybe the students here will start to attend the never filled up Stegeman Coliseum. Although John just lost to Andy Murray we hope that he continue his unprecedented success as a fellow North Carolinian, Georgia Bulldog, and a four year college attendee. We will be behind the big man for the long haul.

Haiti Relief

Text OXFAM to 25383 to make a $10 donation to Oxfam's Haiti Earthquake Response Fund.