My career

Psychology. Why did I choose this one? Was exactly what I wanted for my future? Am I taking the right path? A lot of questions, one answer: I don't know.

When I was at school I thought it was a good way to help this world, you know, psychologists things... listening to people, helping them relieving their pain and suffering, etc. Now I'm on my third year on the career and I'm figuring out that maybe, just maybe, this way it's just not how good I thought it was. Maybe sometimes people have so many other problems that the just don't have the money or the time to go to a therapist or maybe that they simply don't trust in the help a psychologist could bring.

Although it was my first option at the moment of deciding my career, I'm not sure if it was what I expected. I'm on third year and I haven't had any practical experience and I'm not really sure if I could develop appropiately at the professional ambit. Anyway, I'm still here and I'm finishing it, alive or dead. Nah, just joking but I think I have to give it a chance first to see if I really like and if I'm going to be helpful for society.

The best movie

Honestly I'm not good at watching movies, I prefer reading a book or watching a serie. 

However, if I'd have to talk about a favorite movie I'd surely talk about Batman trilogy. I just fell in love with the story when I saw it. It's just that it isn't the tipical comercial movie with a ridiculous script and overacted scenes. I don't really know anything about Nolan but I'm sure that the fact that he directed the movie is involved in the quality of the characters. For example, the joker isn't the typical bad guy that does things just for money and power, unlike that he commits crime because he doesn't like the society in which he's living. He seems to be just tired of individualism and materialism and decided to make people figure out that they're living in a society. 

Another important example for me is Bane. At first sight you could see evil itself. He seems to be the bad guy that wants to destroy a city just for fun. But it isn't as simple as that, the movie shows you the story of Bane, his childhood and his human side. I think it's a great thing in a movie by these days, it makes you think and go beyond the evident.  

English Language Challenges

This is my last blog for the subject and I have to talk about English language.
Since I was at school I have ever liked English classes, now at university it is not the exception. I think having this subject it's been a great help for me, my career demands me the capability to understand papers, books, essays, etc. in English and what I´ve learnt in classes it´s been very useful for me at the moment. Blog sessions have made me think and have the capability to express my ideas about anythin, I think it's a good teaching tool.

Although I don't have the need (nor academic or professional) to speak English, that's something I'd like a lot to be able to do in the future. I think besides being a highly necessary tool in these times, speaking English opens a lot of gates to a new culture, from the pleasure of helping a foreigner to the ability to understand a movie or a song. 

After finishing this subject (by the way I hope I approve it) I think I would like to take an English course, but this time putting emphasis on speaking. I think to this day it is my weak point, even when reading it´s easy for me, I feel not prepared to have a conversation with someone in English. 

Finally, I would like to have the opportunity (and the knowledge) to go abroad and experience working as a psychologist in English. Not just for listening people tell me their problems in other language, but to understand how other people from another culture feel and suffer.

Psychology

On my third year of Psychology I think there are some things that have to be changed to make the career better. First of all, I think there are a couple of subjects that are useless, an example of this is "Procesos Psicológicos Básicos", certainly it doesn't have the best professor but not just about that. The subject doesn't seem to be so connected to the Chilean context and it's almost totally based on American research. It doesn't give you a critical perspective about the contents and almost the whole subject it's just about reading and answering multiple choice tests. 

I think the workload is not so bad, but there is a period on the semester in which you basically have nothing to do and there's another period that is like hell. I would like so much that in a future, the workload were more homogeneous.

About the faculty facilities there's not much for me to say. I think one of the few things that are not so good about this is the availability and the size of the classrooms. 

Technology and teaching methods are just fine. This is not a career like Engineering or something like that, you just have to read and write a lot, so a bunch of PC's and internet connection it's fine. 

I think some of the weak points of my career are the evaluation methods, it is boring to have to write an essay for a subject that you don't like about a topic that you don't necessarily like. And it's always the same, sometimes I think university want students that learn to write papers or essays more than students that train to be an input for society. 

Chiloé

I remember being there a couple times when I was a kid and that's a problem. I was a kid, I don't remember anything about that place. I think Chiloé is a beautiful place and I would like a lot to have at least a few days to walk around and know it better than just the stilt-houses or some churches.



In the last months I've been particulary interested in one place called "Muelle de las almas". It is a work made in 2005 by the Chilean artist "Chumono". Not just about the wooden structure but the whole landscape is something that calls my attention. I think it would be nice to be there and even nicer to be with that someone special, looking at the sea as if it was the end of the world and nothing could be more important than just the experience of being there.

About activities I would like to do being in Chiloé, I think I'd like to eat typical food, maybe "curanto". But something that I would really like a lot is to visit some parks, I think I need to lose myself in a forest.

Finally, not everything is beautiful, I haven't made a budget but I'm sure this plan isn't going to be cheap and because of that I've been thinking on working during January and, if I have the money enough, going to Chiloé in February. Well, I hope I'm doing this as soon as possible.

Tool

Teacher told me I could write about whatever I wanted so...

It is impossible to talk about progressive metal without mentioning them. Evolving from "alternative rock" in their earlier material to a solid progressive metal sound in their two last albums, Tool had become one of the bands that define the genre. They are not just about writing long and mesmerizing songs, they also introduce mathematical formulas to compose the rythm of their songs, Fibonacci sequence in the album Lateralus is a good example.



Their last album "10,000 days" is full of lyrics refering to a "be part of everything" feeling. Since the first song "Vicarious" which talks about living life through others to "Right in two", which talks about a a violent schism (another Tool song, from Lateralus) in human race, the band is introducing that idea of an absolute being that humanity would be. Somehow they try to communicate the idea that we are just the expression of a bigger concept, something that embrace all which exists and also nothing itself.



My favorite Tool song is "10,000 days" from the namesake album. This song is dedicated to Judith Marie, Maynard James Keenan's (vocalist) mom and her long suffering before dying because of a disability. I remember listening to this when I was high... I think I had listen the song a hundred times before that time, but I never discovered so many sounds on it. It was hypnotizing.

Future studies

Philosophy is something I’ve ever liked a lot (sometimes I think even more than Psychology). After I finish my carrer I’d like to keep studying something related to Philosophy, Psychoanalysis or Epistemology. Honestly I don’t think I would have the energy enough to study four or five years more and obtain a PhD, but certainly, a Master is an option for me.

I like the idea of studying subjects related to Politics, Ethics or Metaphysics and I’m sure it would be useful for my professional development.

About the place where I would like to study, I think I would prefer doing it in Chile, because I will be experiencing some of the problems I will be facing tomorrow as a professional.

Although I know I could choose distance learning or blended system, I think the best option for me is to find the time to atend to a full time program, may be in the afternoons, maybe the weekend, I don’t know, but I’m sure that’s the best way for me to learn (and to approve all the subjects).

Finally, I know that studying in Chile is a hard thing, and it is even harder if you don’t have the time of the money enough to do it. I don’t really think scholarship is an option for me, so if I really want that Master, I know there’s a lot of hard work for me to do.

My future as a psychologist

This time I have to talk about my future job.
It is not so comfortable for me to talk about my career and my future as a professional, honestly I think I took the wrong decision. I entered Psychology thinking I could help people relieving their suffering and now, on my third year at University I figure out reality is not so similar to that romantic idea.

Even though I think I'm having a vocational crisis I just can't forget about a possible professional development if I finish my career. I think one of the few areas I like in Psychology is the clinical job. It keeps drawing my attention the possibility to help people overcome their pains, fears, obssesions, etc.

I like the idea of turning myself into that figure people ever want to tell a bunch of things but never dared to. To be the one who's going to receive all they never expected to give and to help them surpass their obstacles. I think sometimes we just need a third hand to help us push harder through life.

I know clinical job is rooted to a box, to work locked between four walls but it is not a problem to me. I think the journey through the depths of mid is more exciting for me.

About traveling, I really don't know. I think it would be interesting to go and experience the clinical job in a Latin American country but I guess I will evaluate that possibility on the road.

About the salary I don't really expect much, I just hope that would be enough to live.

Finally, about major studies, I haven't think about that yet but if I had to choose something now I think it would be a master in psychoanalysis and if I could, I would take it abroad.

Vacations

I don't know if those were my best holidays. I guess not. Anyway those are the only I remember. 

In summer of this year I went to Iquique to visit my brother, he lives there because of his work. 

I was there for almost two months and it was not so exciting. Most of the time I was there in the flat just sitting in the armchair watching rock concerts (I don´t really like watching movies or series) and playing with my brother's cat. 

In February I began to work as a part-time concierge in the building that my brother lives. It was a very relaxed job, just to write a bunch of things in a big book and that's all. 

About other things I did there, I remember go running by the beach a few times and going to a few Muay Thai lessons. I think that was the best thing I did, those lessons were in Cavancha's shore.  

Finally, about how I felt, I think it was a good oportunity to talk about some important things with my brother. But it was the oportunity to have some problems too.

At least, I think I had the chance to breathe another air.  

Among the trees

Sometimes I think about a good place to just be sat contemplating the nature, the trees and thinking about life and death. There's a country that comes to my mind everytime I think about this, Sweden.





Although I think I'm a lonely person that doesn't like to go out of his house too much, I would surely like to be as lonely as I am, but in Sweden, lost somewhere in a forest just to feel how lost I am in every sense of my life. With all this, Sweden seems to be a depressive place to go, but is not just that.

Sweden is known for being the cradle of some of the greatest metal bands like Opeth, Meshuggah, Arch Enemy and Ghost.





Although I like nordic culture, big forests and death metal, I wouldn´t be at Sweden for more than a month, just because I don´t like cold weather so much and I think it would take so much time to get used to the language and people uses.

Just to finish, I would like to share with you a song that makes me think how it is like to be in Sweden.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1KPqet74EI