Costumes!

I've always loved costumes. Particularly, I love the process of creating a costume- coming up with the perfect idea, the possible approaches I could take towards its construction, and creating the finished product. Being from New Orleans and having performed ballets throughout my childhood, I have high expectations of my costumes. They should be detailed, clever works of art. Most importantly, costumes need to be personal.

My first costume memory began on a Halloween day, when I was five years old, and my brother was three. For months leading up to this day, all Michael wanted to be for Halloween was Batman. He loved Batman so much, my mom couldn't get him dressed in the morning without turning on the TV so that he could watch Batman. So it was a surprise when he came into her room on Halloween morning and announced that he did not want to wear his Batman costume that night. Now, under any other circumstance, my mom is very adamant about making my brother and me live with the outcomes of our decisions. But she had given up the battle of dressing either of us. When Michael insisted on going as "101 Dalmatians," my mom just started to think. She picked up two pillow cases, a pair of scissors, and a Sharpie marker. She cut one of the pillow cases into two long ovals and colored one of them black. She cut holes in the other pillow for his arms, legs, and face, then she drew black Dalmatian spots on it. Finally, she sewed the long oval "ears" to the spotted pillow case. Michael had no more complaints, and enjoyed trick-or-treating in his Batman tennis shoes and make-shift 101 Dalmatians costume.

After watching my mom make Michael's costume that day, I never approached the selection of my costume the same way again. Costumes are not just festive outfits; they are future memories and displays of creativity.

A San Miguel Education

At my internship at San Miguel School, I'm taking advantage of the opportunity I've been given to do many different activities. I can't express enough how much I enjoy working here. I support the cause of this non-profit, to provide 6th-8th grade education for underprivileged Latino boys, but what gets me out of bed in the morning is the people with whom I get to work. This includes Laura, even though we are constantly around each other. They make the best combination of supporters and teachers, as well as occasional comics. It's a very positive atmosphere, and the boys and their parents are inspiring. My boss is great- he’s a down-to-earth person, who is easy to talk to and offers good advice. (He graduated from the MSBA program, as well). I’ve learned a lot from him since I began interning here in May. He is also very generous with the work that he allows us to do. We get to undertake important projects that require a variety of skills. As interns, we have gotten exposer to event planning, database usage, marketing, and demographic research. He also plans to let us assist him with the audit process this year. Not surprising to most of you, but I’m actually excited about the audits… As interns, we also do tedious and miscellaneous tasks. It’s easy to stay engaged in this job because there is always something new to look forward to. I can honestly say that I hope I will have this kind of enthusiasm about the other jobs in my future. 

Commonalities in Contrasts

I enjoy watching peoples’ reactions when, after they tell me I look like a ballerina, I tell them I do kickboxing, too. I have a difficult time getting people to understand why I chose to begin kickboxing after ballet. Truthfully, I've always tended to seek out opposite experiences. I like to challenge my ability to think from multiple perspectives, adapt quickly, and perform under unfamiliar circumstances. I especially appreciate the “people traffic” I’ve encountered.

I’ve never fully abandoned the mentality that was instilled in me during my ballet training, and I feel like it almost naturally prepared me for kickboxing. It emphasizes a methodical (borderline neurotic) approach to learning and practicing, as well as the “no pain no gain” mantra. In both kickboxing and ballet, I trained my body to move in unnatural ways by spending hours upon hours perfecting each portion of a step. You can’t skip steps. Everything needs to be secure in its place before you move on. Once you master the technique, however, there’s a considerable amount of freedom in which you can develop and manipulate the technique you’ve mastered. At this point, creativity is an asset.

I feel like I’m attracted to a business environment because it provides opportunities for both the meticulous and creative to create something with a purpose. Through the numerous encounters with people and exposure to unfamiliar environments, there is infinite potential for success and growth in the business field.