Juan of Words

Mexi-Vocabulario: Arrullar

Bien arrulladito...

Arrullar.  To put one to sleep.  Or in this tertiary definition on WordReference.com, which by the way is my favorite, it means to enamorar con palabras dulces (to make one fall in love with sweet words).  ¡Ay caray! ¡Qué románticon!

In reality my reason for selecting this word is much less on the amoroso side.

Last night while running my mouth, somehow we ended up talking about falling asleep in front of the television.  Or more appropriately, having the television put one to sleep.  ¡Arrullarnos!  This always happens to me these days!  I’m convinced that it’s because I’m getting older.  Before I used to be able to stay up until all hours of the night, sometimes not even going to sleep until after 48 hours of being awake… but now, as soon as 1:00 a.m. hits, my body is ready to roll over and fall asleep.

Seriously!  It doesn’t even matter where we are anymore.  I can fall asleep just about anywhere!  Sitting down, laying down, standing up, in the bed, on the sofa, in the car, in a stranger’s home… anywhere!  My body is in complete control these days!

I will say though, being the big baby that I am, getting arrullado really does feel great.  Even if it is only by the television sometimes.

Only in Texas: Rodeo Round Up for the Lunch Hour

So RodeoHouston is right around the corner.  If you’re not familiar… the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is the world’s largest live entertainment and livestock exhibition.  It takes place here,  every year, for 20 consecutive days at the end of February and the beginning of March, and features some of the music industry’s biggest acts.  No, we are not simply talking country music here!

Beyonce, Selena, Enrique Iglesias, Mary J. Blige, Justin Beiber and Selena Gomez are just a few of the big name acts who’ve played RodeoHouston… although country music is the big star at the mostly sold out concerts.

In any event, yesterday the city of Houston was hosting a kick off or “Rodeo Round Up” to once again welcome RodeoHouston.  As soon as they said they would be giving away free bar-b-que sandwiches, I was sold!  ¡Pa’ya vamos!

Where else but Texas will you get a rodeo in the middle of the day in downtown?

Obviously I wasn’t the only one with bar-b-que on my mind!

¡Creo que sí!

I do believe that sign may be correct…

Real Life Texas Longhorns!

Wow!  The Texas longhorn in front of City Hall was awesome!  I really wanted to ride the thing, but the line was way too long.  Les viera dicho ¡Quitense!

It was pretty packed at the Round Up!

That’s the mob that was waiting for their turn to ride the longhorn!

Volunteers from various RodeoHouston committees were on hand sharing info.

So instead I decided to scope out some of the booths being hosted by RodeoHouston volunteer committees.  Don’t know which committee this is, but that cowgirl looks pretty country-glam.  Yeah, that’s an actual style here in Texas!

These were really, really soft... kind of creepy though.

These decorative rugs or throws are made from some type of llama fur.  They are so soft!  Too bad I’m not much of a fur or decorative anything fan.

This guy was just having a great time!

I think this guy is one of the clowns who tries to distract bulls from attacking their riders during the bull-riding portion of RodeoHouston.

Saddle up, y'all!

Only thing missing is the horse…

Hardly anyone could lasso that there bull...

Lasso that bull!  My dad was actually pretty good at this when we were kids.  We grew up around animals in the Valley so there was plenty of time for practice.

Get in my belly! Once I had the bar-b-que I was good to go.

And finally I got my hands on a Texas style bar-b-que sandwich!  It was totally worth the wait in that long line… if only they would have given me another one.

For more information visit RodeoHouston.

I’m Speaking at the 26th Annual Career and Education Day

This weekend I’ll be participating in the Houston Hispanic Forum’s 26th Annual Career and Education Day by serving as a panelist for the first-of-its-kind Bloggers Panel.  I am a little nervous and very excited about taking part in this event because, on the one hand, I’ve never actually explained what it is that I do to a group of young people exploring career options, and on the other, because it’s very thrilling to me personally to know that blogging and social media are finally being recognized as viable career options for young people.  Who knows what is going to come out of my mouth?

Whatever it is, I hope it makes sense!

Houston Hispanic Forum 26th Annual Career and Education Day

What I do know is that I would like these jovenes and their parents to take away from our panel – I’m amongst great company by the way – that you can definitely achieve great things when you give your personal education and enrichment the commitment it deserves.  If nothing else, my journey is a testament to what a little blind faith can do.  As a kid growing up, and later in college, even at the beginning of my career, years later, I could have never predicted that Juan of Words would become the main outlet for my creative expression.  Much less that it would open up so many doors, including this one to motivate other young people to pursue their higher education goals.

In any event, the free Career Day activities will take place on Saturday, February 25, 2012, from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the George R. Brown Convention Center.  I will be speaking from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. if you’re interested in coming by.

Here’s some more information on what you can expect:

- Free admission to attend!

- Meet with college representatives

- Attend student and parent workshops

- Learn about careers

- Apply for Financial Aid

- Apply for college admission

For more information please visit http://hispanic-forum.org/.

People En Español Searching for This Year’s 51st “Más Bello”

Austin's own Elizabeth Flores as People En Español's 51st Beauty last year.

You’re sexy and you know it?!  Well now the world can know it too!  People En Español is once again looking for their 51st Most Beautiful Person in the world and you could be among the finalists being considered if you submit your picture before Thursday, February 23, 2012.  This is the 5th year in a row People En Español has partnered with Yahoo! Inc. for their “50 Más Bellos” edition.

What are they looking for?

A previously undiscovered beauty that they can feature in their print and online editions later this year – you can submit a picture of yourself or nominate someone else who you think would be worthy of such a title.  On February 24th the top 25 finalists from all the entries will be announced.  These folks will have about a month to garner support in the form of votes, and on March 23rd Yahoo! En Español will announce the “Bello 51.”

What does the winner get?

The 51st Beauty will share print and online space with this year’s 50 most beautiful celebrities, as well as travel to New York (all expenses paid) to attend the “50 Más Bellos” gala where many of the other super star beauties will also be in attendance, and will partake in a professional photography session for their magazine photo.  A makeover is part of the deal too.  Oh yes, and did I forget to mention the winner also walks away with $5,000?  Now you’re listening, huh?

How do you enter?

It’s very simple.  Just visit 51bello.com and upload your pictures.  You can also visit the Official Entry Rules while you’re there.

Last year’s winner, Elizabeth Flores says the experience of being selected as the “Bello 51” was unforgettable – the mother of two, a third on the way, used part of her earnings to purchase a professional camera and to take acting classes.

“It definitely was a fun 15 minutes (of fame),” she concludes.

If you do enter let me know!  I’d love to keep track of your entry and help you garner some votes.  Beautiful people, go upload your pics! 

Q & A Jose Luis Zelaya: Student Crocheting for his Education

A young man paying for his higher education by crocheting and selling beanies?!   I had to find out more.  This week when NBC Latino ran their story on Houston’s own Jose Luis Zelaya about how the 24 year old has been crocheting to earn his masters degree at Texas A&M, I knew I had to track him down.  I did and what the Honduran-born undocumented grad student had to tell me really connected with me on a personal level.  Zelaya is upbeat and passionate, positive about everything, and very open about his tumultuous journey to get to where he is today.

Jose Luis crocheting.

At the age of five he lost his younger brother because his family could not afford a taxi to get him to the hospital when he suffered an asthma attack.  At seven he began working the streets of San Pedro Sula, Honduras, cleaning windshields and shining people’s shoes for money.  His father was an alcoholic and often took what little earnings the young Zelaya brought home.  At times he’d sleep under bridges just to not come home to his own father.  At 13, his mother and his younger sister immigrated to the United States in search of new opportunities.  That was the same year he taught himself to crochet by watching an elderly lady do the same.  She had refused to teach him because he was a man, not a woman.  One year later he was in Houston with his mother and sister, attending high school and crocheting for an income.  His mother divorced his father.  Fast forward 10 years later and the DREAM Act supporter holds a bachelors degree in education from Texas A&M and is working towards his master’s degree.  He now utilizes this craft to pay for not only his education, but also his 20 year old sister’s.

Beanies by Jose Luis Zelaya

Here are some of the questions Jose Luis answered during our phone conversation:

Juan of Words:  Where do you get your motivation?

Jose Luis:  Number one, my strength comes from God, but my passion comes from my mom.  Just to see his lady who had the strength to leave Honduras, escape a country, just to save her kids… brother, every time I wake up I call that lady and tell her “thank you so much” for everything she’s done for us…  Whenever we were in Honduras she used to make food, and we were really poor… every Sunday she would make a lot of food and just hand it out to the people that were living in the streets.  She always made me realize how lucky I was regardless of how little we might have had.

Juan of Words:  What is the highest amount you have made selling beanies in one month?

Jose Luis:  About $500… It’s really hard.  I honestly don’t know how we make it sometimes.  A lot of times it’s friends helping us out.  I have a lot of faith in God that he is taking care of us, so a lot of it just comes from people wanting to help us.

Juan of Words:  What do you want your story to be?

Jose Luis:  Whenever I share my story I don’t like to share it in a way that makes people feel pity for me, or think “oh, poor Jose Luis!”  My story isn’t about making people feel bad.  My story is about making people believe that no matter the circumstances that you go through, that you can always search in your heart, and know that if you are persistent and dedicated… that there is a possibility for you to be successful.  It’s been hard.  There are times that I just can’t do it, and I wake up and I cry and I pray, and I ask God to give me the will because I can’t do it anymore… he definitely helps me a lot.

Juan of Words:  Any advice for others out there facing some of the same challenges you have?

Jose Luis:  If you want to go to college, you can go to college!  I used to wake up at six in the morning everyday during the summers and just go and mow people’s lawns.  I’d crochet for 16 hours a day because I wanted to go to graduate school.  That was hard!  But even though it’s been a hard journey I look back and know it has all been worth it.

Juan of Words:  How frustrating is it to not be able to legally work in this country because of your status?

Jose Luis:  Something that no one can take away from me is my education.  That’s something that I have in my mind.  That I have in my heart… I’m always going to be teaching.  I love to teach.  If I can’t work as a teacher I’m still going to teach people, whether it’s volunteering or tutoring others… teaching is a part of me.

You can find and purchase Jose Luis’ crocheted beanies online at Dream Beanies.

Atole de Teja: Sun Flower Seed Porridge

It had been years since I’d had a cup of Atole de Teja!  This past weekend, though, while we were visiting my parents – as I try to do at least once a week – my mother asked ¿No quieres un atolito de teja?  I had to think for a second to remember which one of the dozens of Mexican atoles my mom likes to make this one was.  As soon as I remembered the answer was YES!!

Atole de Teja, which I’m translating as Sunflower Seed Porridge – that’s the closest word I could find to atole - is made up of several ingredients including cinnamon sticks and Mexican powdered brown sugar, better known as piloncillo at our house.  The texture of this just-sweet-enough drink is pretty thick and smooth.  It’s color is usually a dark gray or black.

Girasol (sunflower) seeds are used to make the Atole de Teja.

Now this particular atole de teja was made from fresh Mexican sunflower seeds (semillas de girasol) my mother purchased on her most recent trip to our rancho.  I’ve only seen it made with sunflower seeds from Mexico… not sure if you can make it with other sunflower seeds, but I would think so??

Once it's done it's a little thick and looks like this.

My first instinct was to take pictures and save them for this post, but before I knew it my cup was empty and my lips and teeth were all black.  That’s the thing about atole de teja – it’s kind of messy and probably not the kind of drink you want to drink before an important meeting or get together.

Mmmm... I want some now!

Instead, there are very specific occasions when you’re supposed to have a nice hot cup of sunflower seed porridge.  The lady in the video these pictures are from (Engracia Gonzalez – what an awesome name), who is coincidentally also from San Luis Potosi, says atole de teja is prepared and served at posadas, levantadas (a religious celebration) and the day after Three Kings Day.  We’ve had it at Christmas and funerals as well… or just as a treat when my jefita comes back from Mexico now too.

A little while later that day my younger brother walked in the door.  My mother greeted him with the same offer.  He looked a little confused too for a second, then I told him it’s the black atole.  He said yeah, I haven’t had that in years!  Now my mom is convinced she needs to return to Mexico to purchase more Mexican sunflower seeds.

I may beat her to the punchline if I can find these seeds at the local marqueta first!