Cars

                   When you hear the word “Cars”, what comes to your mind? Four wheels? Vroom-vroom? That’s how most people view it, but I view it on a broader way. Last night, I went to Car Club at Virginia Tech’s swap meet. First I should define what a swap meet is, it is where car’s meet, and members show off their car. There, car owners talk with other members about new modifications and other improvements they can do to make their car go fast or look better. I must say, it was an experience. It was my first time actually going into a car meet. I have always wanted to go to a car meet but I never got a chance to until last night. I consider myself lucky to be a part of CCVT. Currently I am in the Wheel-Lug nut program. I am currently assigned a mentor (Wheel) and I am the Lug nut (mentee). The idea is pretty cool and creative. My mentor, Kyle, drives a Mazda 3 Hatchback and I was very fortunate to sit in the passenger’s seat while he revs and cut through corners. That is the type of driving I prefer; reckless but careful at the same time.             
                     In my opinion cars are more than just vehicles. It is a lifestyle. The people I met at CCVT eat, talk, and dream about cars. Owners use cars as way to portray themselves. Some keep them very simple, while other cars are flashy. My Ford Explorer had massive tints on it, blacked out headlights and other accessories on it. This car, however, did not pass the state inspection due to the tints and other modifications on it. I guess this shows my rebellious ideas or it just shows my ignorance about the laws and regulations. My passion for cars has inspired me in a lot of ways. It has taught me that hard work does pay off. Also, being creative and innovative would be very helpful in the process of fixing and designing a vehicle. For all of you drivers out there, take care of your ride. 

Engineering Exposition- A new experience

Wow. That was my reaction after going through the 34^th Engineering Exposition here at Virginia Tech. Each year, Virginia Tech hosts expositions for different career fields. The expo, short for exposition, offered many opportunities for business majors, and engineers. I went to the second day of the expo and coincidentally that was the day designed for engineers. I was lucky. I dressed to impress that day, suit and tie, and all that jazz. I was the man who was determined to get an internship. Before entering the expo, I was scared. Scared because of the stories a friend of mine told me; not all of the companies are looking for freshmen. It is a given that it is very hard for freshmen to land a co-op, or an internship, this is due to our lack of experience in the field and as well as the fact they look at your freshmen grade point average (GPA). I was also scared because most companies are looking for U.S. Citizens, which I, an international student, is not. With all these negative thoughts in mind, I still went in and gave it a shot. “You never know till you try” that was the mentality I had going as I entered the hall.

At first, I looked around and observed what others are doing. Make eye contact. Shake hands. Introduce yourself and tell them what exactly you are looking for. I was surprisingly comfortable with what I was doing. I talked to big companies such as Honda, Boeing, and General Electric, along with the 10 other companies that I went to, small companies, but it really doesn't matter, I did it anyways. Compared to what I heard about companies rejecting your resume’s, more than 10 companies offered to take my resume, and even one company did a mini interview about what a science fair project during my high school year about consisted of. They seemed very interested. It was a great feeling. I felt accomplished. I know that the field is very competitive, and I am not really expecting lot from this event, but I was proud of myself because I went it for the kill. I did it anyways, despite the scary stories my peers have told me. This is a life lesson learned, just try because you never know how an event can turn out. If you fail, then you have made a wise decision and you know what to do in case an event of some sort comes up again.

An intro maybe?

I may have forgotten to introduce myself on the first blog post, so here we go. My name is Miguel Comparativo, a freshman at Virginia Tech, majoring in Engineering. I have been an island boy my entire life, hence why the address of this blog was such. I was born in the Philippines, a place composed of 7,107 islands, and lived there for 11 years. I was fortunate to learn enough about my Filipino culture. I am fluent in the language (no I did not lose my native tongue), and familiar with the culture; needless to say, I still maintain my Filipino values most of the time. Fast-forwarding a little, my father got a job offer at this place I have never heard of; St. Croix (pronounced Saint Croy). I looked it up on the Internet, and was very impressed with the place. Crystal clear water, beaches, tourists. It isn’t just another island, it is a place that I would have never thought I would call home. I fell in love with the place, the people and the island life, you know where you can wear shorts and a tank top during December? 

Other than casual beach days and running around in sand, I am also interested in sports. I try to stay well rounded with various sports such as basketball, soccer and sometimes volleyball, that is, of course depending on who I am going against with. I am also into cars. Whenever I see a nice car, my head turns 360 degrees and my jaw drops—it’s true, you can ask my girlfriend. The main reason I am steering towards mechanical engineering, is my passion for cars. I want to be able to work in the automotive field, and one day one a performance company of my own. I have a lot of things that I want to accomplish in life before I hit the oxygen tanks, I know it is possible and it will happen. I will leave you with words from Audrey Drake Graham, “you only live once, and that’s the motto. YOLO.”-- So go on and start achieving your goals.

Transition to college.

Week 2, day 3.

College. Whoa, seems like yesterday we just graduated from high school. You know, all the marching and tossing of the caps? That event was meaningful. I think the point of graduation really is change, and change is scary. Change is the thing people run from; let’s face the truth, change is, and will always be, unavoidable. I still remember myself, awkwardly walking to classes and being pushed around by upperclassmen during my freshman year of high school. I was afraid, afraid of the teachers and especially the girls…definitely the girls.

Now, let’s fast forward to my senior year. I had changed since my being a freshman, I must say. I was the one walking around giving high fives to my friends and talking with the ladies. Things were finally turning out right, and I was getting comfortable. And then, BAM! It was over. Suddenly, I am miles and hours away from home, and my loved ones. Away from the island life, my friends and the relationships I had so tediously built. I look at this experience as a chance to start over, and to change for the better. The journey has just begun, come on, I’m a freshman…again, except this time it will be the last time being a freshman ever. It’ll be a roller coaster ride definitely, especially with my engineering major, but I am determined to tackle all the challenges life has for me, and in the end all the hard work will pay off, literally. I have goals set in mind that I want to achieve, and with great determination, I know it will be possible. Who knows, maybe next year I will be doing an internship or a co-op program? We shall see. I guess the point of college now is to find out who you are as a person, if you haven’t already. To find what you’re actually here for, and set goals. I will leave you with this: take things at your own pace. Don’t feel embarrassed because someone is in a higher math class and you aren’t, or because the guy next to you in the gym is lifting 70 pounds and you only have 25 pounds. There is no need to rush. So lay back and eventually you will find what your purpose really is here in college. With that being said, I wish you the reader, good luck with your future endeavors. Keep ya’ head up.