My Hood

The place where I live really has no name, and is on the Southside of town. The exact location is 850 Big Oak Drive. It is located off of 281south outside of 1604. Surprisingly, the socio-economic status of my neighborhood is uniquely diverse, with a blend of all three classes. There is much variety found where I live, with a few elderly couples, fairly-sized families, and even single adults. You will find mobile homes, professionally built houses, hand-made houses, and just plains homes. The racial ethnicity, however, is unmistakably entirely Hispanic or of Mexican descent.
The elderly couples are very reserved and don’t communicate with anyone except for their families. They keep their lawns green throughout the year somehow and they never cause any trouble. Now the fairly sized families like my next door neighbors make a little more ruckus. Families like theirs come from all over the country; otherwise they’re pretty much raised here. Lastly, the single adults a lot of times have divorced and are looking to start a new life. With my family it’s a little of everything, which is why I don’t mind living where we live.
Transportation, however, is an issue. Since we live so far out from the city, shopping for clothes and going to the movies is an occasion for us. Major features for my neighborhood would include fast food restaurants, a Dollar General, and some gas stations. Other major features that would epitomize my neighborhood would be family owned businesses. These may include various taco shops, a car shop, and a fruit shop. Everything is spread apart however, making it imperative to have some sort of transportation. There has been a Toyota plant built nearby the High School providing jobs and it hires anyone depending on the position. This plant, I believe, will benefit the neighborhood simply because it will provide more work for the south side area, resulting in population growth and ultimately, a much denser community.
My neighborhood has many weaknesses and few strengths. The highway which runs right through us is very dangerous. It can and has been the cause of many accidents many times resulting in deaths. If I want to pay my friend a visit, I have to drive or walk across the highway, so it’s a risk with the people who constantly speed day and night. Another weakness is how far away EMS is. If an accident does occur, it almost always takes at least five minutes for a response. There’s not much of a food choice without going into town. One strength, rather advantage, is that with the property and the freedom of it we can have any animal we want and as many as we want. Some people have farms in their backyards, literally! It is, overall, a very peaceful neighborhood with very rare cases of disruption or commotion.
I study at Palo-Alto College located at 1400 W. Villaret Rd. approximately fifteen-and-a-half miles from my house. I work at Whataburger located at 4125 S Loop 1604 E approximately eight miles. It takes me about twenty minutes to get to my study place and about 10 minutes to get to work. My friend that lives closest to me lives about five miles away across the highway. Mayfield Park Baptist Church, my “fun” is located at 700 W. Hutchins Pl and is about 22 minutes away from where I live.
I don’t identify very close with my neighborhood other than the fact that I live in it. I do feel a sense of place and community probably only because circumstances force me to. The abundance of Mexican food may be the only thing that appeals to my being there. Yes, it is just a transition point in my life until further notice. I would not like to continue living there simply because of the inconvenience as far as transportation goes. I spend a good hour-and-a-half getting from point A to point B in any given day. This is my neighborhood, this is my San Antonio. -671 words

Historical Fiction

This movie "The Alamo" is quite dismaying as far as being historically inaccurate. John Wayne is a great director/ actor, but the movie seemed to be outside the truth. The superiority of the Anglos in comparison to the Tejanos is offensively awe striking. I don't know how much knowledge John Wayne really had about the Alamo, but I do believe he was misinformed.

In the movie, there wasn't any appearance of a Tejano with a high and honorable status. They are either volunteer soldiers with Bowie or narrow minded natives of the adobe pueblo known as The Alamo. Hardly veiled with valor, Tejanos never acted on courage if the Anglos didn't act themselves. On one account, Jim Bowie kicked one of the Tejanos from behind downsizing him and telling him to saddle up only when told. When Juan Seguin came with valuable information regarding the whereabouts of General Santa Anna, it was quickly shunned by the high-minded authority of Kernel William Travis. The idea of two men quickly fighting off five Tejanos, and in such a nonchalant way, says very little about the Tejanos' fighting abilities. Also, the movie shows all Tejanos in complete and utter opposition to Santa Anna when in reality, there were a handful of them who were for him.

The women were sadly misrepresented as well. Being wooed by white men doesn't suffice for the way they are presented. Neither does teasing table dances performed by the Tejano women only waiting to be danced with. The children were also poorly portrayed... literally! A little Tejano boy carrying a woman's luggage for a bit of gratuity might not have been far-fetched, but it was definitely not necessary. I do want to know why there was no mention of Jose Antonio Navarro. As one of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, it seems incomplete to leave him out. Not only Navarro, but what about Stephen F. Austin? Known for bringing Anglos to Texas in the first place, and known everywhere as the "Father of Texas", why did the film fail to at least mention this man who practically epitomizes a republic of Anglo/ Tejano equality? It does the Alamo no justice and adds on to the inaccuracy of this movie in its entirety.

There were some things that old "Duke" managed to get right however; Crockett did come from Tennessee, he did bring twenty-three men with him, Smitty did deliver the letter, and Santa Anna did greatly outnumber them which did lead to their defeat at the battle of the Alamo. The attitudes of each individual were surprisingly on point as well. William B. Travis was indeed a good "starter of wars" as Bowie would point out in the movie. Davy Crockett was portrayed as an optimistic and adventurous man. He was also political but liked to refer to himself as a "common" man also as the film would point out. James Bowie was a slave trader, which was loosely shown when he freed Jethro of his indentured servitude. The character of General Sam Houston was also rightly portrayed, although not much of him was shown throughout the film.

Overall, I believe John Wayne could have done his research a little more. If anything, this old western flick was just an example of "Hollywood" at its finest. I strongly recommend you not view this movie if you are a history buff, rather, only if your looking for entertainment and some cheap laughs. I hate to be such a critic, but truth hurts. -587 words