On The Streets With Fati: September 2015

Monday, September 28, 2015

On The Streets: Cultural Awareness at the Bancroft Street Market

As many of you know, the month of September is known as National Hispanic Heritage Month. It's a month dedicated to celebrating the histories, cultures, and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors migrated from different parts of Latin America such as Spain, Mexico, Central and South America, and areas surrounding the Caribbean.

It's also a month filled with festivities and community events that bring people together to understand more about the Latin American culture and its contributions to the United States.

In celebration, I attended a Latin American art exhibition that took place at the Bancroft Street Market located in South Omaha, this past week. It was put together by local student artists such as Hugo Zamorano, Gerardo Vazquez and Alma Becerrill Salas in partnership with the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies (OLLAS) at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. They created a two week exhibition and conversation event to not only provide a supportive outlet for Latin artists and spread awareness, but with the hope of growing the art community in South Omaha.

Hugo Zamorano- a current art student at the University of Nebraska, Omaha- mentioned the importance of creating this event that he and his colleagues have been working on these past few months. In a recent newsletter written by the University of Nebraska, Omaha, he says, "There is a lot of untapped potential that never really translates into talent after high school." The majority of the people living in South Omaha are originally from Mexico and/or other parts of Latin America and are considered low-income. There are barriers such as language, economic stability, education, etc. that make it difficult for families to overcome. With this event, Zamorano, Vazquez, and Salas hope to continue creating opportunities like this for young Latin artists who contribute to and enrich the community as they shed light on their abilities and experiences.

"Nebraska Murica"- by Bart Vargas

While I walked around the gallery looking at the different art pieces, I noticed that this event brought in people of various races and ethnicities, and it was a way to spread a message of cultura (culture), fuerza (strength), and unidad (unity). From my experiences living in Omaha for two years, I've had the chance to meet people from various backgrounds and learn more about their stories and experiences of migrating to the United States and coming to Omaha. I am beginning see that South Omaha is like a giant melting pot of cultures, languages, traditions, talents, and much more. It feels great to be apart of something that is creating an impact now and in the future.

Overall, this event has pushed me to continue appreciating my own culture and other people's cultures and to speak out about it through art, poetry, or even just sharing about it with a friend, because it's something to be proud of!

"My Mama Told Me"- by Alma Becerrill Salas

Artwork by Reymar Barrera

"Center for Worker Justice" by- Fidencio Martinez Perez

For more information on upcoming events at the Bancroft Street Market, check out their website:

http://bancroftstreetmarket.com/

Check out the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies newsletter as mentioned above:

http://www.unomaha.edu/news/2015/06/homepage/service-learning-in-the-community.php

From LA, With Luv

Fati <3

Sunday, September 27, 2015

With Motivation You Can do Anything!

It was 6:45 in the morning when my boyfriend dropped me off in front of TD Ameritrade Park. This was where the starting point of the Omaha Marathon was going to take place, in the heart of downtown. There were tons of people gathered, who were stretching and getting their I-Pod playlists ready for the marathon to start. I felt a rush of nervousness and excitement, because I had been training for this event for the past few months and the day was finally here. As I started stretching I spotted a woman dressed up in a banana suite and tutu getting ready for the race. I thought her outfit looked so cool that I just had to take a picture with her!

As the speaker gave a few words and thanked everyone for coming out on such an early day, the National Anthem began.

"1 minute left" came through the loud speaker and with a BANG!, the marathon began.

At first it was hard to move since everyone was in a tight-knit spot trying to get through the starting line, but all of a sudden the pace started to pick up and people started jogging and running: Some alone, some with partners. I kinda wished I had someone to run with or talk to as I ran but I had my handy dandy headphones and Pandora playlist as my companions for this adventure.

As we passed through the downtown area and into the neighborhoods, I saw groups of family members, friends, nieces and nephews standing and waving on each sidewalk as runners ran by. I felt the rush of excitement as they all cheered, yelling out, "You can do it!" or "Great job stranger!" There is something about someone holding a funny poster like the one below, that makes you wanna keep going.

As I reached the half-marathon turn around and started heading back to the downtown area, I felt a sudden urge to stop because my legs were starting to get tired. I kept telling myself, "you're almost there" or "you can't stop now, you gotta keep going" to keep me motivated. The only times that I found myself stopping was when I had to tie my shoe, so that was pretty impressive.

From afar I could see the buildings of Downtown Omaha which made me happy because I was almost to the finish line. People were still outside of their homes cheering as runners were making their way back. I started to smile because I got to see one of my old co-workers and my boyfriend cheering for me. It made me really happy.

As I approached the downtown area, towards TD Ameritrade Park I noticed that I had picked up my pace and started running faster. I could see more and more people crowding around the entrance of the stadium clapping their hands and taking pictures as we each entered the gates and into the stadium. As I looked up I could see runners being displayed on the jumbo-tron as they entered the finished line. A few moments after, I did, too! With a big hooray, I had made it through!

Overall, I had an amazing experience! I can honestly say that I am proud of myself and the hard work that I had done in keeping myself motivated. I know it wasn't easy training myself and I know there were times where I just didn't want to run anymore because I felt tired or got lazy, but one of the lessons that I learned through this experience was that you can't give up. With the helpful advice from previous runners and running various distances every week, I was able to do it!

What has been your most memorable marathon?

From LA, With Luv

Fati <3

Sunday, September 13, 2015

Stylish Sundays

Happy Sunday everyone!

I can't believe we are already on our third week of September! Time flies when you're having fun...or busy working. I have been working on a few side projects for my full time and part time jobs these past few weeks that I have not had a chance to write, so I do apologize for the delay! But I hope to update you all on what I've been up to soon!

In more recent news, New York Fashion Week is underway and designers are uncovering and showcasing their Spring/Summer 2016 collection(s). It's an exciting time in the fashion world, because this event happens twice a year. Not only do we get to see what's in store for the upcoming spring and summer seasons, but we also get to see some of the chicest and boldest street-style outfits there are. And since I can't be there....well why not celebrate this Sunday in style with an outfit of the day!

A little bit about my outfit: I'm not going to lie, it's been kinda hard trying to find clothing that would go well with my 80's like mini jacket but I am happy I finally got to wear it with my slim-fit, military green, pants from H&M and a red Mock Me Not Marled Tank from Rue 21!

If you have a patterned jacket with lots of colors like this one, I would stick to solid colored shirts/blouses like red, black, gray, or white depending on the colors on the jacket and either black jeans or a colored pant.