User Profile

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  Lemur

I am allergic to being home. I love the Lakers... like capital L love. I love street food. I hate math and math hates me…that makes us even, right? I am addicted to technology. There, I said it. I judge minorities that vote Republican. I take tons of pictures... all of which end up online. I believe in myself but don’t believe I am better than others. I’m both my biggest critic and competitor. I love to argue and hate to be wrong. I enjoy talking to strangers. I dream of playing soccer all day. I eat out a lot…like…a lot. I don’t make bets I can’t win. I refuse to use a pillow. Great burgers and steaks are a thing of beauty. I research; it’s what I do. I feel my best in a suit and tie as well as in some jeans and a Lakers shirt. If you don’t know I’m from Los Angeles you’re not paying attention. More often than not I am blunt. I plan gatherings. I am extremely competitive but I only compete with myself. I am positive and grateful. My actions will confuse you. I avoid easy categorization. I am a yuppie and live in a yuppie part of town but feel most comfortable eating and hanging out in places that remind me of my decidedly not yuppy hometown. I could care less about seasons; 75 degrees year-round please! I believe in the whine to action ratio: if the number of whines exceeds what you DO to correct the problem, please shut up. I will probably annoy you if you are feeling down. I try my best to focus on what I have rather than what I do not. I aspire to be an Executive Director. I don’t take people seriously who attempt to prove their intelligence by alma mater name dropping. I’m easily annoyed by those who avoid speaking their mind. I seldom believe in forgiveness: you’re an adult; you can be accountable for your actions. I have a deep admiration for the honorable, intelligent and those who do a lot with very little. I hope that when I pass I will be remembered for what I did to make the world a better place. I feel most comfortable at dinner with a handful of friends. More often than not I try to explain my way in and out of situations. I am constantly trying to walk the line between spontaneous and carefully researched and weighted ideas. I seem to constantly explain to people that their worth as people is not the same as their net worth. I make lists. You name it and I have a list for it. Wait – does this count?


Okay this would definitely cut down on a lot of small talk, not that I mind small talk.

a/s/l? I am a 23 year old Salvadorian-American male who born in Compton, California. I attended Fairfax high school in Hollywood, California and was part of the UC Berkeley class of 2003.

I currently live in the San Francisco Bay area in a city called Emeryville, nicely nestled between Oakland and Berkeley. I have held residence here in northern California since 1999.


What do you look like?
A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

How tall are you?
If I’m feeling like lying I’ll say that I am 5’11”

In fact, I am 5’10” ½

While I am at it…

I weigh in at 165 lbs

Hair color: Light brown

Eye color: Light brown

Blood type…actually, I don’t know.

My bad, you’re from Compton, are you going to shoot me?
While I was born in Compton, I have spent most of my life drifting through Los Angeles, though I identify the most with Hollywood. I have lived a pretty rough life. I don’t own any guns, btw.

¿Hablas espanol?
Naci en proximidad a Los Angeles, asi que creci hablando espanol y no aprendi ingles hasta que me matricule en la escuela. Mi madre me crio hablando en espanol y es una lengua al cual le tengo mucho respeto.

I was born in proximity to Los Angeles, so my mother raised me speaking Spanish and did not learn English until I was matriculated in school. My mother only speaks to us in Spanish, so Spanish is a language I respect dearly.

So, do you speak Mexican?
My family is from El Salvador. El Salvador is in Central America. Here, I don’t blame you, the education system here is really bad. Do some reading and get back to me. Knowledge is power. If you want to know about Salvadorian-Americans in particular, you can check out this paper I wrote.

So, you're a schoolboy?
These are the school I have attended and a little bit about them

So what do you do for a living?
I am working at a high school in Marin county. My official position is “Assistant Case Coordinator.” I work with newcomers (mostly Latinos) who need help transitioning to the school system here since most of them have been out of school for a while and speak no English. My job is to help them adapt to the school and provide them with services like tutoring, healthcare, counseling, or even housing if they are lacking it.

What would you like to be?
While I am very happy at my current job my goal is to be:
1) A professor of history
2) An immigration attorney
3) A history teacher at my old high school

In short, I want to teach and help inspire people.

What do you do in your free time?
- Soccer
- Movies
- Read
- Hang out with friends
- Internet
- Fill out things like this on my LJ

Do you have a …[blushes] girlfriend?
Now we’re getting personal aren’t we? I am single as single can be and I revel in that single-hood-dom ; yeah something like that.

While I am enjoying the dating world, but I am definitely more of a relationship kind of guy.

I am looking for...


What kind of music do you like?
Music is a huge part of my life. If you want to see what I am listening to right now, you can
check this out

In general, these would be the albums I could not live without and that represent me.

What kind of movies do you like?
Here is a list of my all-time favorite movies

I am always up for a good movie, particularly if it is drama or foreign (Spanish and Italian are usually what I go for).

What is your favorite…
Okay, I get the drift.

Just go here

Do you like politics?
As a matter of fact, I do. I majored in history, but also take a lot of courses in political science. The first time I registered to vote I was a republican and voted for John McCain. Once Mr. GW Bush won the primaries I became a democrat and have remained a democrat ever since. As you’ll come to discover, I’m a pretty complicated individual. I could be a free-ranging anarchist on one issue and a conservative on the next. In general, I am
Here are some of the things I am for and against:

- Pro universal healthcare
- I have mixed feelings on abortion. On a personal level, I wouldn’t encourage it, but I wouldn’t legislate my thought onto others.
- I am against excessive military spending.
- Pro-gay marriages
- I am into protecting civil liberties
- I am anti-imperialism
- I honestly don’t care too much for environmental causes but I am not *against* them, just apathetic.

I can’t believe you said that!
A lot of my views are somewhat controversial (though it may not seem so from what I mentioned above). I have a lot of opinions that only apply to me, and I don’t expect anyone else to follow them and I don’t judge anyone by them. At the core I guess I only hold myself to my own standards.

Do you know you have lots of typos?
I achure yu dat I kan espell. Onestly, I rather fokus on riting than on cheking for typos.

What is your Livejournal about?
Like the title says, it’s a day in the *thoughts* of Carlos Almendarez. This means that I will usually not bore you with how I woke up, took a shower and went to school. I really try to talk about the things that I am thinking about through the day. This LJ is kind of all over the place when it comes to what I write about, a potpourri of thoughts if you will. I like to mix it up, you know?

Can I add you?
It’s a free country, go for it.

Some things you should know if you add me:
~ I try to post whenever I want to discuss something or have something to share.
~ I’m a very upbeat guy so don’t try to bring me down with depressing stuff.
~ Occasionally someone will respond to something I say and it will be totally off the wall. Don’t worry about them, they’re probably friends or are insane. Don’t take things so seriously.
~ Don’t be afraid to ask me something or disagree with me.

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