I remember growing up on 18th Pl and Damen. I used to hear people say it was called “little Vietnam. Sometimes I’d sit on the corner of the block at night and watch the sparks of gunshots go off at the park . At the time it just felt normal. Didn’t this happen in everyone’s neighborhood?  It was just another day in the hood. Every so often I’d get threats by the local neighborhood gang to either join, or they’d beat the crap out of me. There were a few close calls, with fists and bruises. I managed to stay out of the way, and not look for trouble.  I am sure everyone had a different experience in Pilsen, but days like this were mine…

There were tons of people you’d hear about that lost their life in the street as a result of gang violence. You often heard street stories of people that were shot, burned, tortured…locked up for life…It was crazy.  But it was just the norm of any sunny day in our hood. I remember playing arcades at the local corner store when someone told me the rival gang of the neighborhood was driving by shooting. I remember exiting  the store  quick and running home as fast as I could, cause that is what you had to do I guess.  All I could hear were cars screatching in the background as I tried to make it home without a bullet hitting me… I look back now and I think it’s crazy and scary. I remember walking to a birthday party and seeing a lifeless body on the other side of the street waiting for police and detectives to arrive. To think this was really happening everyday in the neighborhood I grew up in…I am just grateful I managed to stay away from a life of gangs, considering I was exposed to it nonstop. These are just a few of the stories from the hood…

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Here are a few actors that started their acting careers in tv commercials, enjoy…

Morgan Porterfield Freeman, Jr. (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, film director, and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won in 2005 for Million Dollar Baby.

William Bradley “Brad” Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one. He has been described as one of the world’s most attractive men, a label for which he has received substantial media attention.

Keanu Charles Reeves (pronounced /keɪˈɑːnuː/ [kay-AH-noo, often mispronounced as kee-AH-noo]; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Reeves is perhaps best known for his roles in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Speed, and the science fiction-action trilogy The Matrix.

Now here is my brief appearance in a commercial… Hey, you never know!

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I’m just sayin…

One day my kids will open up this book filled with stories, thoughts, triumphs, failures,prayers, songs, ideas, photographs and sketches. They will sit around the fire place and tell these stories to their kids. It’s the story of our lives. The memories of their fathers, the lessons they learned and the most amazing adventure we had together. I keep this in mind everyday when I wake up and tuck them into bed at night.

What will your book say one day?

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Creating culture begins at home. Every evening, me, Reina and the boys have dinner together. For Reina and myself this is new. It wasn’t common for us to have dinner with our families at one table and all together when we were growing up. I remember when my Mom cooked dinner, everyone ate at different times. Sometimes I ate dinner watching TV, ate dinner outside but it was rare to have everyone together at the table. Unless it was a family gathering or party.  When Reina and I got married, we wanted to start a new culture in our home. One being that we would eat together at one table with our kids.

So every evening  right before dinner, the TV goes off, we all set the table together, Diego prays for our meal and we dig in. We play music while we dine, we laugh and we watch Zion make a mess with his food. It’s amazing. It is something new for us, but normal culture for the boys. One day our boys will grow up with memories of dinner at the table together while the songs of Ruben Blades serenaded us. One day our boys will pass on this new culture to their children and share stories of their childhood.

I look back and remember many things from my childhood. Some are great memories and some are not so great. Regardless of it, it’s part of my past but doesn’t necessarily have to be part of my future. I can sit here and complain about how things could have  or should have been…But instead I choose to create a new culture in my home.  A new foundation. You can do the same. This can be the case for many areas of our lives. Don’t accept things for what they are…You have the power to create a new culture in you and those around you.

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Back in the day, my water-park was the fire hydrant. It was the greatest time ever. The sidewalk gutter filled up with water and there we chilled all day long till either the sun came out, or the firefighters shut the hydrant off.  Back in the day I didn’t have swim shorts, I would take  a pair of sweat pants or jeans and cut them into shorts. Back in the day if you made it to the shower first, you had a full warm shower…the last person ran out of hot water half way thru. Back in the day ice cream(Popsicles)  came to you, a man would shout ” Paletas!!”, you’d run out and buy your fruit Popsicle right in front of your door step. Back in the day .50 cents bought you 50 pieces of gum or 50 water balloons. Back in the day, block parties were the best! Back in the day we played kick the can, hide and go seek ( bubble gum, bubble gum in the dish…”), football, catch one catch all, till late night on the block…we’d come home safe and sound! Back in the day, there was no need for an actual hot dog bun to enjoy it, any slice of regular bread would do. Back in the day, I couldn’t wait to own a pair of British knights. Back in the day, if we got thirsty outside there wasn’t a bottled water, just a water hose.  Back in the day, my birthday party entertainment consisted of my uncles singing and playing their acoustic guitars to old Mexican classics…until the beer started singing then we knew the party was ending.

Back in the day it was about going to the corner store to play arcades.  Double dragon, Ghost and Goblins, Kung Fu, Gunsmoke, Rampage, Contra, Mike Tysons punch out!.. Wow! I’m totally having flashbacks… Back in the day we waited in line just to play these arcades… Back in the day we were in a rush to grow up, sometimes I wish I could go back to them days, just for a little while! I have so many amazing memories from growing up in Pilsen. (a few popular words and phrases that I remember are… “that’s jive”,  “making out to a girl was referred to as, rapping to her”,  “I’m gonna clip you”, ” I gotta jet”,  “that’s bad!!!”-(actually meant something good)…

Do you have any Back in the day memories? or popular phrases?

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Not sure who wrote this…but its interesting.

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn’t get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.

As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank koolade made with sugar, but we weren’t overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING !

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day and we were O.K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo’s, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD’s, no surround-sound or CD’s, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or chat rooms…….

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned

HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

-author unknown…

One of the many reasons I came to Nashville was to make music and write songs. I can’t really imagine my life not doing that, it’s encoded in my DNA…Whether it be professionally or not, it will be something I do till the day I die.  It’s been tough surviving here In Nashville so far… Landing a job has been a constant mission. With a Communications Degree and proven experience in the creative and broadcast world, it’s still challenging? Though I have landed random temp gigs and promising interviews, I am yet to land a solid and stable job. I’ve done a few acting gigs in town that have helped make ends meet, but as you know, in the world of entertainment  it takes time and lots of patience. Yeah times are tough, but it all comes with the package of the journey right? Nevertheless, writing music doesn’t stop, dreaming and planning doesn’t stop, our joy doesn’t stop.  It keeps going no matter what. Reina and I constantly remind each other, ” no matter what happens, we keep going”…I look at my two boys and the passion burns even more inside my heart to go for it. We are humbled by the constant support from our close friends and family! I am looking forward to taking a design class starting next week at Watkins,  courtesy of our friends…I have no words to express our gratitude!!! Sometimes other people believe in us, more then we do  ourselves… I have recieved random emails from people believing in us and in our journey…It’s awesome.  Reina returns to school this fall with a full ride! That is a HUGE blessing! Soon she’ll be designing homes for the world…  It’s awesome to see many things fall into place, while we work on getting the rest of the pieces together and finally make this city our home… So now what? Well it goes like this…1. I am finalizing some of the songs I have been writing for my solo EP, in preparation to hit the studio this fall with this amazing song writer/producer. I am super excited about it! This will be the first EP of a few in the making. With works in Spanish and some other cool stuff to follow…I won’t spill all the beans.  I will share this though, me and the fellas in TSP are taking off a weekend and heading to Atlanta for a writing session, stay tuned for updates and the scoop on that!

As far as the solo EP goes, this will be the first time that I venture into a music project as a solo artist without a band. The creative process will be an adventure in itself. This project is going to mean tons for me and my family.  It will reflect this journey we have taken, in pursuit of our passions. It will also be my  first project out of  Nashville, and a road towards becoming a better songwriter.   I am reaching out to all my faithful supporters to thank you and hope you guys will join me on this musical journey that has begun and will build up some momentum.  I have tons of music for you. Now the task is to get it recorded and out to your ears. We’re working on raising support for these projects and  many other creative endeavors.  We’re Looking for designers, film makers, photographers and more…If you want more info and feel you wanna be part of the creative chaos and help us with support and get this first of many rockets off the ground, please feel free to email me at jessesantoyo1@gmail.com. Thanks again.

Yours truly,

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“hasta la victoria siempre”

There is a war in me, between the corporate duties at hand and things my heart is on a creative rampage to achieve. Right now both are important, but one will prevail…

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So here are a few of the pros and cons of relocating to a brand new city that we have experienced and are experiencing. Some say we’re crazy and honestly I agree… It just feels so right in our hearts. Erwin McManus said it best, “when we are passionate about God, we can trust our passions”.

(negatives)

We left everything and everyone we knew behind, so we didn’t have a whole lot of people in this town, or at least no immediate family. We had to learn our way around. Find the right place  and area to live in. Trying to plug into a brand new social pipeline, in our case the arts pipeline…music, design, film, etc… Finding jobs! Dang has it been tough! Finding the right schools, daycares, babysitters for our kids. Make friends. Make a life  in this town, from square one again. Finding Good pizza and Latin food. Finding things to do. Find a church we can call home.

(Positives)

Meeting new people, making great friends, meeting new families. It’s a new town. So we get lost very often, but in the process we discover great things in this town. Networking more then ever to collaborate with other artists, film makers/ talent agents, designers, Songwriters and more…Our communication and network tools have improved for both Reina and I. Jobs? it’s been tough, but we’ve had strong leads and opportunities are here, just need to be consistent on knocking doors and refining my resume and bio’s etc… Schools? they’re here and they sound great. One more year and Diego starts pre-k. Babysitters…Still working on that. Our dates consist of bring the boys along…Watching late movies=the boys sleep…we love this town and really wanna stay here and grow super old here…Once the jobs and school kick in, it will feel a little more secure. Good pizza? It’s not Chi town pizza but we’ve become huge fans of Pie in the Sky pizza. Latin food?…maybe we’ll open one…LOL. Church to call him. Check!

Overall the things that seem like negatives turn out to be positives. We’re growing in so many areas of our life. We’re growing closer as a family. We’re appreciating more and more the things that matter. Faith in God providing is our one and only vital sign keeping us alive. It’s an awesome journey that’s been worth it. In no way has it been easy, but it’s paying off in ways we never imagined. At the end of the day, no matter what happens, we’ve grown, we’ve learned, we’ve lived, we’ve taken the chance to pursue our dreams, and we’re diggn it. CONSISTENCY, INTEGRITY, PATIENCE…remedy for success. What may not make sense right now, will soon…Hebrews 11:6

-fuser and the crew”

“GREATNESS isn’t determined by fame,wealth,talent or education but by how much it takes to discourage you. Refuse to give up!”-Rick warren

It was 1979, my mother was working in a factory in Chicago. My parents came to this country in pursuit of a better future for their children as so many others in this country do.  Sometimes it may seem there is no plan in our lives and we’re part of this planet by chance. It feels like we are no more nor less then an insect. We merely exist for the sake of existing. But I truly believe  that isn’t the case.

So my mother tells me, at that moment and time she was  9 months pregnant. She was only weeks away from her due date.  My mom tells me that many great women as well as relatives worked at this factory to provide a better life for their children, but on that day, life would take a different turn for everyone.  My mom was working at this factory in order to help out my Dad with the bills and everyday necessities.  It just so happens that on this day, the factory would be raided by immigration. Many of her friends would be  arrested and deported, including other women from other countries she did not even know. My mother shares with me that  she patiently waited in a room to either be arrested, interrogated, or deportation. She admits being a little scared, especially being 9 months pregnant.  At the time my mother was still in process of finalizing her US citizenship, so all this made it so much more nerve recking.   All she knew was that she had to do whatever necessary to survive and provide the promise for her kids and her husband. It’s sad how this affects so many people all over the country today…We’ll leave that topic for another day.

The officer walked into the room and saw my mother. My mother recalls the woman looking at her,  she was dressed in her law enforcement attire. The woman looked at my mom’s belly, made eye contact with her and told her to leave and go home. My mother didn’t hide, runaway, nor retaliate. She grabbed her things  walked out the front door and went home. I can’t help to think  God must have had a plan for her, our family and  those women that were arrested and deported.  2 weeks later after the raid, I was born.  31 years later I am here, on a journey towards my destiny.  It’s real stories like this that give me so much hope. It’s stories like this that I enjoy sharing. It’s because of heroes like my my Mom and Dad  that had the courage to take a journey towards a better life that I am here. What maybe seemed as a misfortune at the time, has become a stepping stone into greatness.

From time to time I ask my mom the same question. Just to make sure I got it right… I ask my mom, what her job was at the factory back in 1979?  Her job was to  Sew the inside lining of Guitar cases…

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misfortunes make giants