Fast Food

             Since my mother would always cook, it was rare if my parents would ever take my sister and me to any fast food restaurants. I can still remember my first time at Jack in the Box; I was about twelve years old and I ordered a Jumbo Jack. After my first bite of that big delicious hamburger, I knew it was love at first sight. From that day on my parents would take us to Jack in the Box every other Sunday or for special occasions only. When I was about 16 years old I got my first job as a cashier at a grocery store. I had more freedom and money to go out and eat with friends. That’s when I first got introduced to McDonalds. Their food was delicious and convenient in time, price, and quality. A whole year straight I ate McDonalds almost every day. I knew almost every McDonalds worker in town. I can remember ordering two double cheeseburgers, a side order of chicken selects with fries, and a drink. Can you imagine a 16 year old eating all that food? I’m 22 years old today and can’t even finish two cheeseburgers. That was the reason why I had gained about 20 pounds in less than two years. At that time I didn’t realize how fat I had become, yet no one bothered to let me know. When I was about 19 years old I realized how fat I was and stopped eating fast food every day and just had it occasionally. I also began to work out and lost about 15 pounds.

           Even though I know fast food is very unhealthy, I still continue to consume fast food at least three times per week. During my lunch break at work I try to make homemade food the night before to avoid eating out, yet I find it very difficult at times. Since I don’t always have time to pack a lunch, sometimes I’m forced to stop at the nearest drive thru. Another problem that I have is that I live far from my job and school, which makes it very difficult to eat healthy in between work and school. Eating out has become a habit. There are times that I will not eat fast food for weeks straight because it just does not look appealing anymore. Sometimes I will not eat until after school so I can get home to leftover of my mother’s cooking. Eating homemade food has become much more delicious than the nasty taste of greasy fast food. Being a full time employee and student has increased my eating out habits. I’m hardly ever home which causes me to eat out more often. Even though I’m tired of fast food, I still consume fast food on the weekends because it’s just so addicting. Fast food has strongly become part of life. I sometimes wish that I was born in the era where fast food didn’t exist, since fast food is the leading cause of obesity and many other health problems. I wish I could just stop eating fast food, yet I don’t stop because it’s everywhere. 

Past, Present, and Future

                Even though many years have passed, I can still remember my childhood like if it was yesterday. When I was a couple months old we went to live in a small ranch in Somis. In that small ranch is where all my past childhood memories are. I never had neighbors or any kids to play with that were my age. I can only remember having my older sister to play with. Later my two younger sisters were born. I attended a small School a few minutes away from my home from Kindergarten all the way to 8^th grade. After graduating from 8^th grade, I attended Camarillo High School. By the time I was done with high school, I had got a job at Fed Ex where I worked for almost two years. I then quit my job at Fed Ex after realizing that I didn’t have a successful future working in a warehouse. I knew then that in order to have a better future I had to return to school. I had always hated school and wanted a fast career, so I then began attending Medical Career Services to become a Medical Assistant.

                Today I am 22 years old and I still live in that small ranch in Somis with my family. I have a wonderful boyfriend that I appreciate for always being there for me. Also, I am working full time as Medical Assistant for a Podiatrist. Even though I love working as a Medical Assistant, I have returned to college for an even better future. It is my second semester as a full time student at Oxnard College. Sometimes it gets very difficult for me since my job does not work with my school schedule, yet I don’t let my job interfere with my goals. To this point, every morning I wake up very proud of myself for all that I have accomplished and for never giving up or settling for less.

                Although I have many plans for my future, I am still indecisive on which career to pursue. I know that I want to continue working in the medical field but I’m still not sure if to either become a Registered Nurse or Radiology Tech. In my future I can see myself happily married with three kids and a great career. All I want is for my kids to have everything I didn’t have as a child due to financial issues. I know life is not perfect and maybe everything will not happen like I plan, but for now I will continue to fight with life’s obstacles and I will never give up on my dreams.