Visit to Hafele mobile center

In my plight to install the dopest sliding doors to seal the Nola loft project bedroom elegantly, I went down to Coral Gables to catch the Hafele mobile center. No doubt it will cost a pretty penny but it will best follow the theme in the space.

Ghetto posting

This is me in the process of posting my first blog entry. I'm sitting on my fridge at my loft apartment since it's the best place to jack broadband internet from my neighbor upstairs. The Grundawg strikes again!

LifeBeforeDirty Story

I was born in Boston, Massachusetts as the second of three sons of Peter Grundy Perez and Maria Valenzuela Vuille. Both from Santiago, Chile, my parents had very different backgrounds. My father, from American descendance, grew up with a single parent and mainly in Chilean boarding schools. He pushed himself through college eventually transferring to MIT in pursuit of a Masters in Aeronautical Engineering. My mother came from a typical Chilean family, very extended and warm. Never attending college, she was a dedicated homemaker early on, however later became a successful entrepreneur, establishing many businesses.

In 1981 we moved to Maracaibo, Venezuela where my father accepted a contractor position with the national oil refineries. Together with my two brothers, we attended a small K through 12 private school that satisfied both Venezuelan and American pre-college requirements. I excelled both in and out of the classroom, attaining numerous class scholarship awards, induction into the Honor Society, as well as starting positions in varsity soccer, volleyball, and softball. Outside of school my parents took an active role in exposing us to the history and culture of South America, especially Venezuela. Every vacation involved a road trip to a new destination, initially within the country, but eventually reaching all the way down to Santiago, Chile. These journeys not only allowed me to bond more closely with my family, but also gave me a first hand look at the realities of life in developing countries.

By 1990, the decaying Venezuelan economy took its toll on our family income forcing us to move back to the United States in search of a better life. We lived in Miami, Florida where I completed my junior year at a high school almost twenty times the size of my previous one. Coupled with the fact that both my parents were unemployed, this transition was a difficult and humbling one. I worked busing tables at a local restaurant on the weekends, while maintaining an honors course load during the week. One of the few highlights of that year was my introduction to an advanced programming curriculum not available to me before. It was then when I developed an interest in software engineering as a career option.

At the end of summer in 1991, my father finally found a position with a software company in San Francisco, California. We moved to a small suburb outside of Oakland, called Moraga, where I completed my senior year. The adjustment to a new school was once again a challenge, especially since I was one of only a few Latino students on campus. My differences, such as my accent, stood out more than ever. However, given the smaller student body (less than 1000) and my involvement in varsity sports (soccer and volleyball), I was able to have a positive experience. Unfortunately, my mother did not share the same sentiment. She found it hard to integrate into the 90% Anglo community, attempting to do so through neighbors and the high school parents’ association.

Upon graduation in 1992, I chose to pursue an Electrical Engineering degree at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where I received a full-tuition scholarship. Since orientation, I entered immediately into the Minority Engineering Program (MEP) at UCLA, where I found a warm community of students and staff to welcome me in. It is here that I developed the support network that guided me through the many challenges of engineering and university life. I needed it more than ever after 1993, when my family relocated to Monterrey, Mexico in search for happier and more comfortable surroundings. Committed to paying my way through school, I consistently sustained part-time employment during every school year, secured full-time internships for the summers, and aggressively pursued monetary scholarships through academic excellence. By my third year it became increasingly evident that the MEP familia was vital to my survival at UCLA, and so I took a more active role in giving back to it. I participated heavily in an MEP-sponsored student group, the Society of Latino Engineers and Scientists (UCLA SHPE Chapter), holding various leadership roles (Pres. ’98, VP ’96) and contributing to four National Outstanding Chapter Awards. In 1997, I was awarded the Graduate Engineering Minorities (GEM) Fellowship to pursue my MSEE at UCLA as well. My experiences at UCLA were the most rewarding of my life, teaching me how vital the role of community, mentorship, and support are to the advancement of underrepresented groups.

In October of 1999, Motorola’s Networks and Enterprise Business recruited me to work as a DSP Software Engineer in Plantation, FL. As a professional in South Florida, I have continued to be active in the community by assisting in Motorola’s recruiting efforts at SHPE conferences, giving professional presentations to student groups, and establishing the SHPE South Florida Chapter. These days I am so glad to finally be settled and call Miami my home.

Mission Statement

A friend once dropped it like this: "You're car is sooooo Dirty, casi llega'a Forty!!" That was after being challenged on the spot to deliver a funny comment regarding Miriam Febus' guagua at the time. Rod, thanks for passing that test with flying colors...only one of your dozens of accolades and still counting. And so I have titled this blog as "Life after Dirty" or as you may have understood from the joke "Life after Thirty"...That's right folks, I'm 31 years old and have decided to jump on the blog bandwagon...my life has taken several turns over the years and I have formed a network of people that care about me all over the world...for that reason, I'm sharing my life for all of you to follow, comment on, and possibly guide if you care to take that chance. Like a new friend once put it simply, "It's not the destination, but the journey that makes it worth it..." NOTE: The pic included here took place in Venice, Italy soon after my 30th birthday. It was a big challenge since it was my first trip to Europe and I was traveling alone. I had the best time and discovered a lot about myself...check out all the pics at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vcbcvnp.43mxlgrt&x=0&y=1vyhyf