College

If I could describe college in one word, it would have to be freedom. In college there are no parents telling you what time to go to bed or what time to come inside or even telling you to do your homework. Its all the freedom you could ever dream of having, but with all this freedom must come a world of responsibility. There's also no one there to wake you up on time, let you know that your grades are slipping, and no ones there that cares that your grades are slipping. Pretty much, this is my first taste of what the real world is going to feel like. I have so much free time sometimes that I don't even know what to do with myself sometimes, and the rumors about the freshman 15 doesn't really have the same meaning anymore. I'm so hungry all the time its not even funny. It would be a miracle if I gained 10lbs. I'm majoring in Athletic Training, but the Hartavalyon clothing is still in full affect. I'm hoping to have the first run of t-shirts by this spring. Stay tuned for more updates.

A son, a brother, a cousin, a friend.

On Friday the 13th of May I was rock climbing with some of my fellow classmates at this camp when my best friend Larry came over to me with this strange look on his face. I asked what's wrong and he replied, "Dave is dead." Now there's so many people I know named Dave that I had no clue who he was talking about until he said the last name Rivera. In my head I'm thinking there's no way that David Rivera, the tall lanky pretty boy I grew up with could be dead. I went on facebook and all I saw was "rest in peace Dave", "missed but not forgotten", "why did you have to take him God?" Even after all that I was in denial. I grabbed my phone and shot a text to his cousin Marisol who's a good friend of mine. "Is Dave okay," I said and she replied,"he's dead." I froze. My fingers shook and it was like I couldn't move. Almost instantly every memory I had with him flashed before my eyes. Dave was always the one coming up with the "get rich quick" schemes when we were younger. I swear he had to be the only kid in the 6th grade that sold candy and knew how to make a profit. I didn't even know what a profit was before I met Dave and now all of a sudden he's gone. Every since then I always knew he'd pursue a career in business or basketball. He was so skinny but he could shoot the lights out of a gym. I always told him he looked like spaghetti noodles on the court. He'd laugh and make some corny joke back that was never funnier than mine. It seemed so unreal to think that Dave was actually gone. So many questions rushed to my head but I knew God had the answer to them all. When I got home later that night I laid on my bed. All I thought about were more memories I had with Dave. I remember Dave's cousin had a sleep over for his birthday and Dave and I stayed the night. We went skating earlier that night. None of us could skate, so don't ask me why we were there. Dave had to have fallen 20 times. It was the funniest thing I've ever seen. We had so much fun that night and I couldn't believe that we'd never be able to do it again. I cried out of anger that night. I was so angry that he'd left all of us. Only God knows why he took David from us, but he'll always and forever be truly missed. Everything happens for a reason and maybe God chose Dave to open the eyes of everyone around him. This tragedy should have made everyone realize that life is too short to have words unspoken to someone. If you love someone, let them know each and everyday because you never know when God will call them.

Who's my Audience?

Over the break I had a meeting with Mr Colon. It was probably one of our most productive meetings. We talked about the steps that should be taken to get our t-shirt line up and running. First and most importantly is to get the design finished and on the computer. That way it saves us money in our pocket because if the guy whose doing the t-shirts has to format it himself, he'll most likely charge extra and we don't want that. The price of the shirts is somewhat important but, who I plan on selling my shirts to is a question I don't have an answer to. Of course people in my age range for now until it grows into something much larger. Then and only the will we be able to market the shirts to everyone. The first run of shirts is always the hardest from what I hear, and I think we're going to do phenomenal. 

Making Moves

A marketing plan is to be built by me for my 45 min. presentation at the end of the year. The market I'm attacking is track, but how can I take this and use it for my own personal goals. Recently Larry and I met with Curran Swint, who became a huge connect for us, and during our meeting he told us about another guy named Brandon Jones. He's basically a member of Curran's team. I'm not to quite sure of what he actually does for a living. All I know is he specializes in making heat bond accessories with beads like the ones people use to iron when they were younger. He's taken that simple design and is making a profit off of it. Mr. Jones has also become a connect of ours. Larry spoke with him on facebook and told him about what we're trying to do and he said that he would actually be looking  forward to doing a collaboration with us. His accessories are called "Succesories." We were told that if we wanted a customized "HartavaLyon" successory pin that it would be possible. I plan on making a marketing plan and perfecting our design so that when we meet people that could help take us one step further, we'll look professional and serious about our work . Here are some successory pins.

Becoming King of the Jungle

What does it take to become king? In order to become king you must first know what a king is. A king is a gentleman who is highly respected in some fields, carries himself with the utmost dignity and holds a preeminent position among competitors(Curran Swint). Growing up I never wanted to be a king, but my minds recently  become changed. A king is more than just wearing a crown and ruling your territory. It's a lifestyle choice truthfully. In this life there is so much that I plan to obtain and that can only be possible if I become king of the jungle. There are so many different jungles out there, so becoming king in your field will be a competition among many. I'm not going to sit here and act like it's going to be easy because it won't be. The thought of this doesn't discourage me in the least bit. I'm on a mission to be on top and I can't stop for anyone. I've got so much riding on me to make it that failing isn't an option. Some people choose to think about what happens if they don't make it and there's nothing wrong with that, but I guess they'll be calling me a fool until the day I die because the thought of me not succeeding will never cross my mind. Ambition is what's driving me, but at the same time humbling myself along with surrounding myself with people that have similar mindsets like myself will also help me get to my paradise.   

Kings Rule Together.!

Life on Top

Today I went over to 8th and Market with Larry and Mr. Colon to meet Curran Swint. He's not a photographer but he does photography,not a party planner but he plans events, not a consultant but he does give advice, not a model but he does model, and he's a stylist. All I can say is what a life. From the article of him I have hanging on my wall and the many photos of him all over the web, I was lead to believe that he was this older guy, probably about my fathers age, that has been involved in the world of social networking for quite some time, but oh was I wrong. In his photos he looked about 5'11'', a little taller than the average male size, so when this fly 5'7'' guy approached us, I was somewhat shocked, but surely don't let the size full you because the knowledge he holds is probably worth millions. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I'm sure I received far more than I bargained for. To begin with, he's a very cool, humble, and down to earth kind of guy. He plays in two basketball leagues and does entirely too much dribbling, unlike myself. In other words he's a regular guy. His head isn't blown up because of all of the exposure he recieves. He surrounds himself with people that are focused on achieveing similar goals to his own and that can bring something to the table. I thought I'd be star struck, but it turned out to be the exact opposite. I didn't have many questions because everything that I would've asked had already been answered in his explaination of what got him to where he is today. A semester of community college was all that he has completed, but don't think college is the only way to make it. Without a degree he is still at the same, or even higher, point in his life as his peers that also have similar goals that went to college. Everything he was saying was so inspirational and monumental to my everyday life. It was like speaking to the big brother I never had. Did I mention he's only 24. His life is really on track right now and where he is right now is where I'd like to see myself when I'm his age. Hopefully when my clothing line launches we can work together someday.