By Angelina Veal

On January 20, 2009, the world witnessed the first African-American President get sworn into history. Barack Obama became the 44^th President of the United States and I was there. The sun was high, and the wind was cool. The crowds were enormous but my mood was unsettled. My hands were so cold that I had to buy warmers for my feet and hands. I was bundled with a scarf, tucked away in a borrowed fur coat and I was still cold. Yet, I was going to witness history.

My bus ride from Lancaster, Philadelphia to Washington, DC was a little over 2 hours. I slept most of the way. People on the bus were so excited that some could not rest or even shut their eyes for a minute. When I woke up it was still dark. Needless to say, it was 5 o’clock in the morning. The journey to history was an interesting one. I started out on a chartered bus and ended up on a shuttle bus. We were being transported from RFK Stadium to the Capitol Mall. This is right in the heart of DC!

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By Analicia Mejia

When I went home on winter break this past holiday,  I started to see things a bit differently. It was odd but I didn’t realize how much of a bubble I live in when I am away at school. At school my life is revolved so much around class and work that I rarely get to pay attention to what is happening in the outside word. But going home really made me see how hard the times are right now. I mean, people are really struggling to make ends meet and so many families just don’t have the money. It was cold then, too and so many people take for granted the things they have. It broke my heart when  my cousin asked my mom if she could buy her a nice jacket because she only has a couple sweaters that she still gets cold in, and her mom just couldn’t afford a jacket right now. It’s really hard for me to see my family struggle like that, and it makes me think about other people who are going through hard economic times.

By Analicia Mejia

Having 2 jobs on top of school can be so stressful at times. There’s days when I get home and all I want to do is crash… but then I remember I have studying to do and it just sucks. My mom tries to remind me that I have to remember the reason I am up here in the first place… school. But everything is just so expensive, I have to have these jobs or else I wouldn’t afford my school. And I know my parents try to support me as much as possible, but they just don’t have the means to pay all my school for me. I still have 2 younger siblings at home and they still have to provide for them too.

For now, I am just glad the quarter is almost over and I will have break to relax and refresh myself before the next quarter starts.

By Analicia Mejia

Hey everyone… so I am going to give this blogging thing a try. I have never done anything like this before, so bare with me. For the most part I will be writing about general things that are going on with me, or just things that are running through my mind. Right now there is a lot of stuff going on with the economy so I will probably have reflections on that too. If you have any comments, questions or concerns please feel free to leave your comments. They are much appreciated =)

But before I get into my thoughts, here is a little bit about me… My name is Analicia, born and raised in Long beach California. I am currently living in Santa Barbara wand going to school at UCSB. Right now I am in my 3^rd year of college as a psychology and sociology major. I work as a resident assistant in the dorms of my school [it pays for free housing and food =)] and also work at a children’s center where I help look after a group of infants. On my free time I like to go home and visit family, hang out with friends, get some exercise and rest.

Those are pretty much the basics about me… again, ask questions, leave comments, and if you read this, tell me about yourself.