Thursday, October 11, 2007

Commentary Diana Lopez

Gracie Teniente Humanities 1301 10/11/07

Commentary; Diana Lopez

I had the wonderful opportunity today to attend a book talk/reception with Author, Diana Lopez. It was held in room 206 of the Ozuna Building. She is the author of Sofia’s Saints. I believe an arrangement was made for her appearance, since this is Spanish Heritage Month.
She discusses the hardships she encountered while she was in a creative writing program at Texas State University. To be accepted, she had to submit a portfolio consisting of fifty pages. There were no Hispanic women in her class. There were seven men and one highly strung Anglo woman. She wrote many short stories only to find each and every one of them highly criticized by the group. Her self confidence hit an all time low. She felt she wasn’t making the grade. Her mentor, Digilberto Gil, advised her to take a year off. She complied and started writing for herself.
On her return, her peers applauded her work and noted that the work she submitted had more of herself in it and wondered what brought on the change in her writing style.
She has written several books. The Daily Good Friday is about her experiences at the Community Chest Hospital on New Braunfels Ave., here in San Antonio. New Texas Journal Hot Day at Cool Crest, is about the miniature golf course here in San Antonio. Sofia’s Saints has to do with her Hispanic cultural and religious beliefs. Her book Confetti Girl, ( about the traditional confetti filled eggs) is geared toward the Junior High school crowd, is scheduled to be released in 2009.
Diana Lopez said, “Culture is content- to culture is context.” She went on to say, “The Hispanics purpose is to show who we are, their culture is their content.”
Mrs. Lopez teaches Latin American Literature and Composition at St. Phillips College.

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Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Renovated Leeper House

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Mitchell lake and company

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Bird Pond

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Amphitheatre and Toyota crew

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Beautiful flowers and butterflies

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Audubon Society Center

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Mitchell Lake Wetlands
Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.

Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.

The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.

In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.

Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.

There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.

When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.


Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.


Port of Call, Calling all Birds

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.

Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.

The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while.

MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.

In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.

Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.

There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.

When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.