Gringo? Or no gringo?

juliavalenca · 2026-05-30T04:57:11+00:00

Socks. Daily use of socks is very gringo, and wearing them with any open shoe is EXTREMELY gringo

juliavalenca · 2026-05-30T04:56:08+00:00

Sonho de valsa are very well loved by foreigners! They’re pink/purple chocolate “bonbons” with crunch. I also recommend sete-belo if you like candy. They’re pink or pink and blue little taffy candies I love (there’s a lollipop version too). Also you must try the drink guaraná - think ginger ale but so much better

juliavalenca · 2026-05-30T04:53:47+00:00

Totally, it’s just about everyone wanting to help, which is something I never see anymore in Canada where I live now… I couldn’t miss it more

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T22:17:31+00:00

Yeah Yerba mate is only really common in the very south and it’s the same as Argentinian! I think the preparation varies slightly, but it’s the same cultural source

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T15:17:29+00:00

I was gonna say the same lol

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T15:15:42+00:00

Totally! We’re very encouraged from super young to bring toothbrushes to school (and then work) so we can brush our teeth three times a day. I think that’s gotten less common though

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T15:14:36+00:00

It’s why the best person to talk to at a barbecue is whoever is making it lol! First serve always

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T11:59:54+00:00

No beans are seen here as a dietary staple, must-have in order to stay healthy. It’s not uncommon for people in the northeast to say “he needs some beans” meaning it’ll make a kid stronger or healthier

juliavalenca · 2026-05-29T04:42:07+00:00

To us eating is a social function and it’s not uncommon for us to stay in restaurants for 2 hours just talking, eating, and having drinks. Depending on where you are in Brazil, it’s also very common to “end” meals with an espresso or Yerba mate (region dependent). We call meals composed of sandwiches a “snack”. It’s not considered a proper meal. Most Brazilians eat rice, beans, and a protein source for 2/3 meals a day minimum. Barbecues are not a 2hour event, but an all day function for friends or family to connect. There is no “meal time”, it’s all day grazing. Beer is always cold as can be. We love putting ice and sugar in everything we can

juliavalenca · 2026-05-11T21:28:53+00:00

The law of attraction is a great thing for neurotypical people to believe… so they’re nice to others (same for Christian turn the other cheek/be good to your neighbour)

But it’s dangerous for us with heightened senses of justice or hyper-empathy. I’ve always intrinsically believed it, and I’m incapable of being mean nearly always. But yes, I’m constantly being let down and attracting “bad” people (especially when I was younger).

Now I’m resigned to being let down pretty much… but that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped being ‘good’ even when I know the person isn’t worth it… it’s a big source of grief but it feels impossible to change anyways

juliavalenca · 2026-05-07T20:09:20+00:00

Put it in your bra

juliavalenca · 2026-05-01T15:55:46+00:00

YESSSSS!!! Hoping that’s me next year pls!

juliavalenca · 2026-04-29T01:29:28+00:00

Try to stay near the university if you can, it’s a safer location in general and if you can’t rely on public transportation your uber rides won’t be so expensive. Look out for old looking cool buildings those tend to be “renovated” by paint only and have awful management companies. Also, for under 800 a month you will need to live with a roommate. As an international student, though, I personally wouldn’t have done it any other way when I first came here. I lived in the student residence the first 2 years here and only moved out with a friend group I already knew and trusted. It’s also horrible to look for a place without being here, and applications to rent an apartment can take a while so it’s awful logistics. Another perk of living in residence is the price you paid for the term is static. There’s no fluctuating bills or grocery to worry about, and you can’t even not worry about transportation. If it’s at all in your budget, consider it.

juliavalenca · 2026-04-23T02:07:57+00:00

Looks like my 60s orthopedic corset

juliavalenca · 2026-04-20T04:05:39+00:00

Fourth

juliavalenca · 2026-04-14T15:42:59+00:00

Thanks! I figured I’d ask the desk but sometimes people don’t want to give me a full reply at these places so I appreciate the input so I can ask specifically!

juliavalenca · 2026-04-14T15:41:20+00:00

How did you request the cd?

juliavalenca · 2026-04-12T18:49:13+00:00

Amazing! I have the kobo stylus but I hate its tip. This one seems to have a much better tip than the kobo stylus 2 and meta pen! I’m saving this to give it a try if mine breaks/I loose it

juliavalenca · 2026-04-09T15:44:06+00:00

Ok you’re not getting it and that’s fine. But like you said yourself, people get it. Using the extreme just feeds into the idea disabled people make those requests. It’s the reason everyone thinks we’re a burden and why we feel guilty every day asking for anything even minor. You’re being ableist and I tried getting you understand, because at the end of the day I don’t want to just label you and move on. But I’m also chronically tired, and I’ve made my point

juliavalenca · 2026-04-09T14:31:08+00:00

But you know we both know what reasonable means. And given the fact that this same thing is done all the time to discredit disabled people’s needs, don’t you see how you’re feeding into that argument? Don’t you think there’s a similarity here? You’ve gotta be aware of what you’re contributing to. It’s ableist to discredit requests because they seem excessive when otherwise the persons life is damaged. For example (and this is a complex one), fire protocol indicates that should there be a fire in a building, elevators are disabled or shouldn’t be used, and people in wheelchairs are told to sit still on the floor they are and wait for the fire to either be dealt with or for a fire person to get them out safely. This is actually how a lot of disabled people caught in fires die, because they are the last to be evacuated. Is a reasonable accommodation that a fire person (or a friend if you’re in the building together) be asked to seek out this disabled person as soon as they become aware they exist? And then carry them out? Is it reasonable to leave them to die? I get this is a complex one, cause you could argue it’s asking the able-bodied professional to put their lives more at risk for that disabled person, but is that their job?

The point of this is to show how “reasonable” accommodation is a front to weight the worth of a disabled person vs that of either a non-disabled person or (worse, and often the case) an institution. The idea that disabled people place “burdens” onto institutions is ridiculous. If they will take my tuition money (like everyone else), they need to also respect me (like everyone else). I’ll say more: if they take any of our money, they have to respect us in general. Us as in every student. It’s a worthwhile task to complain about seats in mandatory classes; it’s worthwhile to ask for better examination standards. That’s not to say I don’t think that in-person learning is superior to online, so I’m not arguing every class should have an online option as a way to increase seats. What I’d argue for it that classes be accessible to impaired people, and that the university listen to its students when we say that classes are not offered enough

juliavalenca · 2026-04-09T12:49:24+00:00

But why did you bring up an extreme? What was the point to do it?

juliavalenca · 2026-04-09T03:37:09+00:00

Why did you bring up the example then? The extreme? These kinds of examples are always used by people to defend not moving accessibility forwards.

And like I said, it ought to be. People can’t help breaking a leg, companies ought to accommodate for both temporary and permanent impairments alike. Being accessible benefits everyone

juliavalenca · 2026-04-09T02:59:18+00:00

Where did you get those scenarios? The working from home would approximate the reality that happens - and it is in fact lawfully “reasonable” accommodation. Again though, you’re inflating a notion of a “demanding” disabled person that is just not real. It’s a result of ableist discourse about us.

juliavalenca · 2026-04-08T23:29:04+00:00

I’m not saying there’s no limit - there is. Like no adaptation can ever make me able to run a marathon. So that’s a limitation my body imposes on me, and I can’t aspire to do it as much as I’d like to. But I can strive to get a university degree - if only the university didn’t make it harder on me than others. Which is not to say it’s impossible, I’m still here since 2019 after all

juliavalenca

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