Another Snowy Day at Barstow

December 17, 2008 - Another Snowy Day In Barstow.

My Dad sent me pictures and a video of the snowy day in Barstow. I still can't believe that it snowed in Barstow. A small desert town which is usually very hot during the summer months. But then it gets really cold during the cold winter months. Usually after rains and when the sun sets, it gets to the freezing point where all you want to do is stay indoors and cuddle up in a blanket. Usually, at my old home town in the house I grew up in, we stand by those old heaters that we all take advantage of to stand there and stay warm.

With Christmas around the corner, I always knew that someday Barstow would have their White Christmas. Another storm is on the way, and it might snow again. Unbelivably, through the view of my Dad's camera, he showed me the thick snow, and all around the ol' house on Vernon Drive of Barstow, California, it was indeed a Winter Wonderland. I watched this video with awe and was shocked to see the white snow everwhere and the desert hills I couldn't see for the snow was still falling and the clouds covered the far distant empty space of the brownish desert. Emptiness, but only whiteness all around the neighborhood. Even my Grandmother's house across the street look welcoming for you know there waiting for you is some hot chocolate, and the warmth of a Grandmother's love to stay and visit and talk with her. Even looking around the yard of my old house, you could see the two dogs running around, knowing that they were welcomed inside the warm house where I grew up in. Sometimes, I wish I was there to see the snow, but thanks to my Dad for sharing this viewpoint of Barstow during a snowy day in the middle of December. Around the corner is Christmas, and soon hopefully, Barstow will have its very own "White Christmas."

Snowy Day in Barstow!

Ah, December, and Christmas is around the corner. My hometown of Barstow, California had a surprise: Snow! It snowed in the high deserts of Barstow, California. My Dad emailed me and told me that it was snowing in Barstow. I went on the Desert Dispatch website and found an amazing video of all the snow. It was indeed a White Christmas over there. Check out this link for the video from Desert Dispatch of the snow in Barstow:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155838736/bclid1173338216/bctid4886270001

Also, I recall back in 1980's when I was a little boy, it indeed snowed in Barstow that year of 1985. It was actually in the month of December 1985 and Christina and I woke up to a snowy day. It was pure white everywhere with flurries of snow falling down constantly. Christina and I bundled up in our coats, scarves, and gloves -- we ran outside and played in the snow. My Dad even played with us and we had a small snow ball fight. We actually built a huge snowman, topped with one of my Dad's caps. It was such a vivid and wonderful memory of our "White Christmas." Even though it was early in December, it was still a blessed sight and rarely in Barstow would we ever see snow like this. So, yesterday's Snowy Day at Barstow brought back those wonderful memories and I am sure for all of those still living in Barstow, they will look back and remember that wonderful year of 1985. Here is a video of this lovely snowy Day back in 1985:


To all of those in Barstow, stay warm and enjoy your White Christmas. Love to all and Merry Christmas to all. Thank you for reading my Blogs, and yet, there is more to come in the Chronicles of Gilberto Garcia

Holiday Party at Disneyland - 2008

December 8, 2008
Disneyland Holiday Party was a fun evening for Candice and I. We walked down Disney's Main Street where all the Christmas lights and decorations were beautiful to look at. It was a chilly and wonderful evening out. The Park was closed but only the the cast members and their families and/or friends were frolicking about the park. Candice and I went straight to Sleeping Beauty Castle and saw the beautiful light show with the snow falling during the holiday music playing. The sight of the Sleeping Beauty Castle was breathtaking.



Then after the show, we walked into Fantasyland and headed straightaway towards "A Small World" and stood in line and eating our Candy Canes. We enjoyed looking at the light display of A Small World - Holiday Style. It was beautiful to look at. Standing in line for this was worth it because inside the Small World Ride, the holiday decorations were beautiful to see.




As we walked the park and went and took in all the sights, we stopped at Haunted Mansion and it was a must because Candice and I are huge TNBC fans. We love the Haunted Manison with a twist of The Nightmare Before Christmas for the Halloween season and Christmas. It was a quick line since and we got on it and went straight to eat at a Mexican restaurant and had a great dinner. Then we went to a store to buy our Christmas hats for our pictures with Tinkerbell.



After the long exhausting line to take a photo with Tinkerbell, we went to the store I worked at: the Emporium on Main Street and did all our Christmas Shopping there. With bags filled with toys, we finally headed home and thus ended the night of our first Holiday Party of the year at Disneyland. I had a wonderful time at the Cast Holiday Party at Disneyland and I was glad to spend it with my love. Candice and I were both exhausted but we had a wonderful evening at Disneyland. It was indeed a Merry Christmas!

Disneyland: The Emporium - Main Street

Hello! I am back and I am at the Happiest Place on Earth. Yes, that's right. I started my first days of work at Disneyland. The place: The Emporium, the biggest and most fantastical Disney store on Main Street. I love this store for it has everything! I started my training on the cash registers and now soon this week will start regular day of work. I am enjoying myself for the Main Street is the nostalgic memory of Walt Disney's hometown and it's decorated for Halloween. Check it out!

Here is a picture of me in my work attire and I just got off on my first day of the job of training and I am filled with enthusiam standing in front of a Mickey Jack O' Lantern. These are everywhere! We are getting off from work on Main Street and noticed that no one is around. It's after closing time. Pretty neat to see the park with no one walking around -- Except for the workers who were setting up for Miley Cyrus aka Hannah Montana Birthday Bash the following day.

We also took a neat tour of Disneyland and learned a lot of Disney Trivia about the Park. I love my job for it was busy busy and you know when it's busy, the day goes by fast. The Cast Members are a fantastic joy to work with. I am enjoying every minute of my job. It is sure the Happiest Place on Earth for our guests, but also a great place for a job as a Cast Member. I will keep you posted on my Disney Job as I progress through the days. It's neat.

Love it so much that I am actually looking around the store and thinking my paycheck might buy some Disney stuff.. especially all the neat The Nightmare Before Christmas (TNBC) stuff! Anyway, I am going to class soon, hope that you keep on reading my Blogs and send me a note if anything you want to know. Thanks for reading! See ya next time!

I got the job!

Hello Everyone!

It's been awhile, huh? I am back. I been busy...I have been reading some really great novels and I want to mention that for those who love to read should pick up a copy of Twilight By Stephenie Meyer. Candice has been reading them too and pass them to me as soon as she completes them. I can see why they are so good. We just happened to love the story. It's a saga in the Twilight series. I am right now almost done with the second book: New Moon. After that is Eclipse and then the recent release which as been popular so far on bestsellers list: Breaking Dawn. I recommend these books! They're awesome. Also to mention Twilight has already been made into a movie for release later this year.

Well, as you can tell by my Vlog and my title here I have made it! I got the job at Disneyland! I will be working the sales floor at the Emporium on Main Street of Disneyland Park. I'm so excited and the first "orientation" is this Saturday and I'm looking forward to that as my first paying day. Excited, I am and looking forward to being a part of the Disney magic.

Will keep you guys posted on my events and so forth. Meanwhile check out Twilight and you will love it! You don't have to take my word for it.. duh duh! (that was suppose to be the Reading Rainbow theme after you say that in the show);-) Check out the Vlog.. I used ASL and my voice this time. Hope to write more later on!

Summer Fun

The trip to New Mexico was fun! The Wedding was very nice and I had a great time dancing the night away. The wedding itself was beautiful and heartfelt. It was fun to see all the family and relatives. Visiting New Mexico is itself a big adventure because we hardly go down that way as much. A lot of our uncles, aunts, cousins and others live down that way. The weather was very nice and the hotel we stayed at was very comfortable -- provided coffee and a nice breakfast every morning. Man, I couldn't believe how much we ate over there! Thanks to all the families that provided such lovely homemade food! Can't beat that anywhere else!

This is my newest Vlog about the Wedding, Football, and Wii Fit! (I recommend Wii Fit for anyone -- it's fun and most of all its part of a great exercise program if one needs to find a great system; go for the Wii!) Sure enough I talk about Summer almost coming to an end and you all know what that means! Nope, not school is coming back, but FOOTBALL! The NFL will start a new season and sure enough as a 49ers fan, there is so much to look forward to: A new offensive coordinator - Mike Martz, added power as in Issac Bruce, and so much more! The more reason to join Fantasy Football! Anyway, here is my new Vlog, hope you enjoy it! (Interpretation of my ASL can be provided upon request)

Dorm Life Friends -- The Ideal Advisor

What does one do when someone is away from family and the main communication is not really there? When someone seeks advice from family, but seeks it elsewhere? What does one do when it becomes obvious that the advice is not rapid and not given right away because one has to wait till the weekend to seek that advice from family members who live far, far away? In this case, living in the Dorm of CSDR has given one a sense of seeking advice from dorm counselors and/or teachers. Even the idea of going up to a staff of CSDR has fallacy in any given situation. Living in the dorm, knowing the guy across the room knows your habits, whereabouts and interests. They see you everyday, and in the case of a room mate knowing you better than your own parents goes to show that, maybe then, these are the ones you seek for advice.

One such person I recall in my CSDR years living in the dorms is young in years, but wise in experience of all that happens around him. I seek him as my ideal advisor when I was living at CSDR dorms. This guy who I will call B.A.G. for the purpose of respecting his identity. He joined CSDR a few years after I came. He was an animated but honest sort of character. What we went through going to CSDR as Dorm life friends, and even as school friends, was more than any adolescent could go through. Life filled with happiness, fun, and sometimes pain. (Those pains, which were part of growing up -- broken relationships, discussions about life after CSDR, and even God.) Oftentimes. the dorm life friends were very close for we lived together for 6 days out of the week mainly, and go back to our families during the weekends. Then it starts all over again, living in the dorm. Seeing everyone around us, the close personal events that affected not only the ones going through ordeals, but oftentimes affects everyone in the dorm as well. There were events at CSDR dorms that led us to temptations of experiencing everything growing up -- even getting in trouble, getting caught; but learning from it. These are the lessons of our teen years growing up without our parents around us, but knowing once the weekend was over, there was always our dorm life friends. In a sense, it was sort of like a family. But with time, we each fell farther apart as we get older and time changes. I look back and think about those times of my ideal advisor -- someone I could talk to, someone whom I could trust. This, my dear readers, is what no one can really understand unless they lived in a dorm like that.

Even if it was advice on school, sports, friendships, love and even God -- then that was more than enough because we are able to trust and communicate in a way that bridge the gap that we felt with our own families. This was why living in the dorm and the life we have lived through at CSDR was about education, yes, but it was much more if one was living in the dorm. It was about personal relationships with those we lived with everyday of our lives at CSDR. It was that one person you could count on to get you through your hard days, it was the one person you knew was there understanding the same things they were going through, and that my friends, is the ideal advisor.

Always, the dorms were filled with Dorm Life Friends all around us. But there was a rarity of finding "The Ideal Advisor." As time goes on, and we each know that there are the separated paths that leads us to our dreams. What we always will do is look back at our CSDR school days and always there will be that foundation of remembering our Dorm Life Friends. That too fades with time, but in our hearts we will never forget those who we called our Ideal Advisor.