Piggy bank.

TW

Sweet Dreams

I didn't go into work today because I'm still feeling really yucky. I've had this sore throat, achy body, etc. for over a week. And I keep thinking I'm getting better, and then all of a sudden it hits me hard again. So, I've just kind of been cleaning up around the house today and lounging around.

It's about 1:30 pm, and Jameson is still sleeping. He hasn't woken up once since going to bed around 10:00 pm last night. He's finishing up his finals, and two nights ago he did an all nighter (on top of already being sleep deprived) to get a 25 page paper done. I woke up around 5:30 am on Monday morning and found him in the same position I'd left him the previous night--sitting on the couch, typing away on his computer with a liter of Diet Coke right next to him. I will never understand how he's able to stay awake all night long. I guess lots of college students do this, but it is inconceivable to me. I will never understand. And it totally stresses me out when Jameson does it. I felt anxious all day on Monday knowing that Jameson hadn't had a minute of sleep and knowing that he had an in class final to take at noon that day! (Clearly, Jameson handles stress a lot better than I do!) I am a firm believer that everyone needs 8 hours of sleep a night--hence my bedtime being 9:00pm. ;) I'm going to try to get him to sleep all day so he can catch up on all those missed hours. He's such a hard worker! I love this boy very much!

Big dog.

Video Cowboy

ustream fever sweeping the nation.

Free TV : Ustream

Global Innovation Tournament

My team's entry can be viewed here.

We get points per youtube viewing, so send it to your friends. 

Sad times.

Buster Olney covered the Padres last time everybody was shipped out of town. Here's his take on what is happening now.

Should one man's personal life be able to have such a large (and long-term) effect on an entire fan base? I'm normally for deregulation, but the league should never let something like this happen. But, I'm sure nobody will care. Would the same thing have happened if the umpires would have called Holliday out for missing home plate?

Thanks for the upcoming decade of $2 seats, Mr. Moores. Mark Cuban, anyone?

Day man...

Stanford Daily

http://www.stanforddaily.com/cgi-bin/?p=1091

Pumpkin.

We went to pick out a pumpkin to carve for Halloween. We were kind of in a hurry, so we went to the grocery store instead of a pumpkin patch and they weren't super cheap there. But, Jameson insisted he needed four pumpkins. I convinced him to stop at three. (Growing up, pumpkin carving in my family merely involved drawing my desired face on my pumpkin, and my dad would do the rest. This kept me from getting any pumpkin goo on me ;) Thank you, Dad.) Now, after experiencing this ritual with Jameson, I realize that pumpkin carving is a VERY serious task for him. Here are some photos of Jameson, the skilled pumpkin carver, with pumpkin number 1:

This boy has more pumpkin carving tools than anyone I've ever seen. I didn't even know we owned any...


As you can see in the picture of the two of us, Jameson's pumpkin wasn't anywhere near being finished when I was done with mine. No, he stayed up until some 3 am to finish carving this masterpiece. Unfortunately we don't have the final pictures because all of the pumpkins rotted too quickly. But, Jameson did take me to a pumpkin patch last week in Half Moon Bay after all of this, and he got another pumpkin. We shall see what he creates. This is the magic number 4. It should be good.

'Twas the night before elections...

From my wonderfully conservative grandfather:


'Twas the night before elections
And all through the town
Tempers were flaring
Emotions all up and down!

I, in my bathrobe
With a cat in my lap
Had cut off the TV
Tired of political crap.

When all of a sudden
There arose such a noise
I peered out of my window
Saw Obama and his boys

They had come for my wallet
They wanted my pay
To give to the others
Who had not worked a day!

He snatched up my money
And quick as a wink
Jumped back on his bandwagon
As I gagged from the stink

He then rallied his henchmen
Who were pulling his cart
I could tell they were out
To tear my country apart!

' On Fannie, on Freddie,
On Biden and Ayers!
On Acorn, On Pelosi'
He screamed at the pairs!

They took off for his cause
And as he flew out of sight
I heard him laugh at the nation
Who wouldn't stand up and fight!

So I leave you to think
On this one final note-
IF YOU DONT WANT SOCIALISM
GET OUT AND VOTE!!!!
VOTE!

Teens, sex, and pregnancy

Check out this article from the LA Times.

Here's the link to the original source (Pediatrics).

Dalton's blog

We made a blog for Dalton, to upload his emails, pics, current address, etc.

Check it out:

elderhaslam.blogspot.com

My (Jameson's) thoughts on prop 8

Riots in philly

Bad time to be rays fan.

You're beautiful...

Prop 8

Article in SF Chronicle about Mormons and Prop 8.

My 3am friend.

P-set done, studying for midterm done, last paper here we come. And, the faithful stimulant. Stanford: where Diet Coke happens.

Blessed

I know I've been writing about work and my students a lot lately, but I seriously feel so so blessed to have the kids I do this year. In the beginning of the year (when all the drama was going on with my toe) I thought they were tons of work, but I'm realizing now how great they are. Today we had a small assembly for just the 4th graders at my school and my kids were BY FAR the most well-behaved; they made me so PROUD. There are three fourth grade classes and the other two were OUT OF CONTROL! It was chaos in that room--kids were shouting out, being extremely rude and disruptive, yet every single one of my students (including the few who usually give me some trouble) were angels. They sat there trying to listen to the history presentation the entire time. I made a HUGE deal about it when they came back to class. I was beyond impressed. I know God heard every one of my prayers last year and all of the others that were offered up in my behalf as I struggled. I can't help but feel that he sent me extra special kids this year. ;) I just feel so blessed.

Also, one of my boy's moms keeps bringing me the most beautiful plants. After I was out for a few days from the injury, she brought me an Orchid. This week I received a Freesia. (It smells WONDERFUL!) How special is that?

I Know These Are Hard Times...

...but my students would be so excited to finally have these in their hands!!! If you want a little bit of money to go a long way, please click the link below :)

http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/proposal.html?id=203099

I just feel like sharing.

I can finally say with conviction that this year is better in so many ways than last. (I hope tomorrow doesn't make me regret saying this!!) Not only are my students coming in with a little more knowledge, but I have so much more confidence in what I'm doing. Here are some of the highlights from the year so far:

1) At Back to School Night one of my student's parents told me that she asked who the best 4th grade teacher was (who knows who she asked!) and whoever she asked told her that teacher was me. So, she went to the office and requested me. And she told me that. I'm eating this up!

2) When a parent attempted to chew me out last week because she did not like how I enforced the school uniform policy, I wasn't even phased. I explained to her calmly what the policy is and how teachers are expected to enforce it. That was the end of that and her child comes in uniform every day now.

3) I'm getting so much more planning done, ahead of when I'll be teaching it, so I feel less stressed in general.

4) I no longer cry on Mondays on my way to work.

5) I have some exceptionally kind students who are like miniature teachers to their classmates. There are two boys and one girl in particular who are all so patient in re-explaining things to students who don't understand. And I'm learning a lot from watching the students interact with my difficult students.

6) Instead of every day being a "hard day," I now have decently good days. Most of the days in the week are not "hard ones."

7) I'm differentiating my instruction so much more and I'm able to work with small groups to re-teach the students who don't understand things the first time.

8) I'm allowing myself and my students some time every week to do something fun and enjoyable. We have 2nd grade buddies that come to our classroom every Friday and my students love it! The other thing that happens, which is the highlight of the week for the kids (and me!) is that Jameson comes in to do art. They adore him! I have a hard time keeping them from running over to the window to look if he's coming! When I tell them he's coming in two times during the week they always cheer and clap their hands! Most of my students do not have male figures in their lives, so it is HUGE to have him there.

Things aren't perfect, but they're a lot better than last year. And this year, I'm trying to take the time to notice these things.

I wish I had my camera!

Yesterday I stopped by Trader Joes to quickly pick up a few things and found a bunch of old ladies gathered outside the store. When I drove by I couldn't really tell what they were doing, but as I walked up to the front of the store I saw that they were having a bake sale for Obama! I don't know why this made me laugh, but it did. Whether you like the guy or not, you have to admit, old ladies selling their baked goods in front of Trader Joes for him is pretty darn cute.

caption contest, part 2

This is our softball team jersey/t-shirt logo. I'm not sure what to put in the part where it says "where winning is .....". I was thinking "where winning is more important than family", but I'm not sure if everyone will find that humorous (or rather, realize that it would be meant in that way). Suggestions?

food for thought.

Raising the Bar: How Parents Can Fix Education

By DANIEL AKST
August 29, 2008; Page W9

Everyone, it seems, has a complaint about the schools. Indifferent bureaucracy, change-averse unions, faddish curricula, soaring school taxes matched with mediocre student performance -- the list is long and seemingly unchanging.

At the start of yet another school year, it's time for some radical change in your local schools -- a specific change that only parents can bring about. It's a thing already being done in some far-off countries but that remains strangely rare here in America. It's something I've tried -- and, despite the skepticism of friends and neighbors, it seems to work.

What is this miracle that lies within the reach of nearly every family? It's simple. All you have to do is to start insisting that your children fully apply themselves to their studies -- and commit yourself to doing your part. That means making sure they do all the work expected of them as well as their abilities allow. It also means making sure everything at home stands behind these principles and supports the idea of learning.

These will sound like obvious ideas. In fact, given all the distractions of modern life, it is a radical departure from the normal order of things. Let's face it: More than budgets or bureaucrats, more than textbooks or teachers, parents are the reason that kids perform as they do in school.

If you're interested in reading more, here's the link to the actual Wall Street Journal article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121996426389881371.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

P.S.

It wasn't at all that it was awful; it was just crazy!!! I have an incredibly energetic group of kids! They definitely didn't exhibit any signs of shyness, even with it being the first day of school and all.

P.P.S Jameson and I are headed off to Tahoe for the long weekend and I am SO EXCITED!!!

The First Day of School

I won't go into too much detail right now, but to illustrate how my day went yesterday here's a few pieces of information:

1) After the kids were dismissed at 3:00, I took off my shoes and sat on my floor in front of the whiteboard for 20 minutes in complete silence just taking it all in.

2) When I got home, I ate dinner, talked to Jameson for about 15 minutes, took a quick shower (it's been in the upper 90s--and my classroom was no exception--so I was all sweaty) and fell right asleep. I slept from 6:00-10:15 pm. I didn't mean for that to happen! When I woke up at 10:15, all I did was brush my teeth and ask Jameson to transcribe my agenda for tomorrow since our printer is broken--and he, being the wonderful husband that he is, did this for me without even questioning why I wasn't doing it myself. And then I went back to sleep.

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy...

Last week I received a small package from my older sister in LA with a darling little new dress in it mailed with a sweet note attached: "Mom and I were shopping last weekend and each bought one of these dresses. We thought you'd like one too!" (That was before my little accident). Then today I had another package at my doorstep (again from LA)--a care package from my mom and older sister Jenn--with a bunch of my favorite things in it, including Johnson's 'no more tears' baby shampoo. My mom used this on us girls when we were little. The smell still brings me back to all of my bathtime fun and reminds me of my mom's tenderness and care. The message is appropriate. No more tears, just "sunshine and happy times" as the Care Bear on the card tells me are coming my way...

I love my family. "Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom."- Marcel Proust

OW!

I don't know if it's because I grew up in a house full of girls, or if my parents did a really good job protecting me from harm, or if I've always just been very cautious--perhaps a combination of all three--but I've pretty much gone my whole life without any real injuries that have inflicted too much pain upon me. And I am so so grateful for this. But, if I believed in luck, I'd definitely have to say that this summer I've had my fair share of bad luck with injuries and painful things.

Stop reading here if you are easily grossed out. This could get graphic. Last week I went into my classroom to get everything ready (school starts in a few days) and I was organizing desks, pushing and pulling things to get it looking just right. I got my hands on this huge, heavy table and started pulling it out of the way so I could put something else where it was. I yanked it really hard and the leg of the table caught underneath my big toenail and ripped it off, in addition to cutting up my toe. (It looks like it went through a lawn mower). There was blood everywhere. I was in my classroom alone. No one was around. Naturally, I was freaking out. I crawled over to the sink area, bawling my eyes out because of the pain, got some paper towels, put pressure on it and called Jameson to come and save me. And of course he did.

We were in the ER for a few hours as they investigated the 'toe injury.' After being given 6 shots in my toe to fully numb it, they were able to ascertain that the toenail was in fact still attached by a thread in the corner, and they proceeded to shove it back in its place (to ensure that a new toenail would grow back). Ouch is right! The doctors have told me to completely stay off the foot for another week--so I'm back on crutches--which is super hard because I start teaching on Thursday. How do I do that? (Insert sad face). I'm on Vicodin. You're probably thinking: 'For a toe?' But, if you've never had something like this happen to an area where there are so many nerves, all I can say is that you have no idea! I have never felt such acute pain in my life. (And yes, I know I just admitted that I haven't had too many painful things happen to me in my life, but I don't think this is hurting so bad because of my pain tolerance). On a side not, I got a tetanus shot on one of the doctor visits and it was NOTHING compared to those six shots in my toe or the constant throbbing I feel at the tip of my body. The night we got home from the ER I cried tons--I kept pleading with Jameson to take me back to the doctors and let them cut off my entire toe. He wouldn't consent though.

I go back to see the doctor on Friday and I am really scared. I think he said he's going to try to fully remove the toenail (and this will probably make the pain subside at least a little because the nail wont be moving around on the nail bed). He was going to remove it the other day, but wanted to wait since "the shots hurt incredibly bad." Trust me, I know.

My mom gave me some good advice the other day on the phone: The best thing about you feeling that pain that day is that you know you felt it and you never have to experience that exact pain again. I hope she's right. No more owies please!!!

Janie and Jack

A friend of mine is having a little baby girl soon and her shower is coming up so I thought I'd go down to the Stanford mall and pick the little one out something cute from Baby Gap. I was really excited about this because I love love love baby clothes! Especially girl ones! (I blame this on my mother!) Today I am really supposed to be making long-term plans for the school-year, but that's neither here nor there! Can you tell I'm really distracted?!

Anyway, I was walking along trying to find Baby Gap when I stumbled upon what looked to be a darling boutique baby store. Of course, this is the Stanford Shopping Mall we're talking about! I really wanted to see what they had, knowing ahead of time that it would probably be too expensive, but I went in anyways--since I did have the perfect excuse!

And, oh my goodness, this was the CUTEST little place I've ever seen. Expensive, yes--but they had a bunch of darling things on sale, especially for 0-3 month olds! Perfect! I bought a cute little outfit AND a matching hat for not very much money for my friend's baby. The worst part of this little escapade (or the best, depending upon how you look at it) is that I couldn't decide between these two little dresses for my friend's baby, so I bought one for my friend and one for me! No, I'm not actually pregnant, nor am I planning to be anytime soon, but I couldn't resist this little jumper! (It's the one above).

I never did make it to Baby Gap because I found everything I needed (and more!) at Janie and Jack. Moms-beware! This store is addicting--even if you're not a mom!

2626 Half Dome Place, Carlsbad, CA 92008

I was planning on doing a write-up about the hike, but decided just to link to my friend's blog instead. Here's the text of his entry:


"The stars aligned a few weeks ago when I got an email from my friend Jameson asking if I wanted to hike Half Dome. Melissa’s is in SLC this weekend, so the timing could not have been better. I finished packing after work on Friday, picked Jameson up at 7:30 and we were off. We drove through the night and finally made it to the trailhead around one o’clock in the morning. We definitely took our time driving, but we were in no hurry.

The hike itself was pretty brutal, mostly because it was steep and rocky and Jameson was feeling a little sick. We hiked with headlamps despite the nearly full moon. We were too deep in the trees to hike by moonlight. The trees also did a number on my GPS reception, so I couldn’t record the lower part of the hike.

The thin air started to get to me as we made the final approach. I live at sea level, so 7,000 feet is rough on my lungs. We dragged ourselves to the base of the dome just as the sun broke over the mountains and lit up the the summit.

We eventually struggled up the cables in our oxygen-deprived state and discovered that the top of the dome had been overtaken by hippies. Aren’t hippies supposed to spurn physical exertion? Why did they bring up the bongo drums? Why is some guy playing his hippie tunes on battery powered speakers? Why aren’t the women wearing bras? These were just a few of the question running through my head as we unfurled our sleeping bags and started into a two hour nap.

The sun got hotter and hotter on the top of the dome until I couldn’t take it any longer and had to get out of the sleeping bag. We had to get down eventually, so we took our time packing up and started down the cables. Those cables are STEEP! Some lady at the bottom asked us to take a survey about the cables experience to help out “our park.” I liked how she made the park ours. Whoever wrote the survey seemed set on gaining popular support for more park rangers on top and more regulation to keep crowds of people from crowding up the cables. I understand the need to keep the cables safe and uncrowded, but they don’t need permits and rangers and time limits. People just need a sign at the bottom telling them to keep plenty of space between climbers or someone might just fall off and die.

We actually ran out of water midway through the descent. Jameson had the forethought to pack a water purifier, so we were ok. I have a feeling that lot of the people we passed were heading straight for dehydration with their lousy water supplies. We hiked up ahead of the 90 degree heat, and I still had no problem burning through my 100 ounce Camelback. Thank you Jameson for keeping me hydrated.

We finally stumbled past the hordes of Yosemite tourists around three pm and took off. I desperately wanted to take a shower and get some sleep, but I had to settle for a half hour nap to keep my eyelids open for the ride home. We rolled in around 8 pm, over 24 hours after I pulled into Jameson’s driveway." (Chris Esplin, via melissaesplin.com)

Here's a link to post with pictures and other content, etc.

...

Funny conversation with a friend from southern California who doesn't seem to be too politically informed:

j1: What about Obama?

friend: Isn't he the Muslim one?

j1: Oh boy.
-

Turns out, one in ten Americans believes that. The Washington Post reports the rumor that "is a possibly gay Muslim racist who refuses to recite the Pledge of Allegiance." Nice. And did you hear the republicans almost put a MORMON on their ticket? Hot buttered popcorn.

Here's a great podcast from an NPR interview with the new head of the AEI (American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research), an uber-conservative, pro-business think-tank whose ideas I like. It's worth a listen. Debate question raised by moderator "has the conservative movement lost its way?" Don't tell William Buckley: he's already rolling over in his grave. Plus the English language is failing in his absence.

Something brought up in the discussion w/Arthur Brooks (head of AEI): we know that corporate America is handicapped by taxes to the point that we are no longer, and can't hope to be competitive on the world stage. Brooks points out that Obama is actually better poised to bring America back to the competitive front by cutting taxes because of the party image. Think about it.

Liberation!

Ever since I can remember knowing how to write, I prided myself on being so good at thanking people for what they had done for me with thank you notes. Every birthday party I had, thank you notes were written without delay. This feeling of needing to write everyone a thank you note came from my mom who instilled in me at a young age the importance of all of this. My sisters would make me tell them when I had written a relative a thank you note around Christmastime and such, so they wouldn't run the risk of looking ungrateful by not writing one at the same time I had. I laugh about this now.

For the past 7 months of being married, I have been working on our wedding thank you notes. And this whole time, I have felt so guilty to have not thanked people for their gifts in a timely fashion. Every time I would run into someone who I knew I didn't yet thank, I'd get this horrible feeling inside my stomach. I don't know what took me so long--if I was just overwhelmed by the sheer number of notes to write, simply the lack of time I had as a first year teacher, or my stubbornness in not letting Jameson help me write them because I thought he wouldn't do as good of a job as I would, but it took FOREVER to finish! I finally came to my senses and realized that being so overwhelmed and not letting Jameson help was ridiculous, and that's when this process sped up a bit! Most of the thank yous got written and sent out within the 3 month etiquette timetable, but quite a few still had to be written. However, tonight is the night: I am proud to announce that WE ARE DONE! Jameson and I are finished! And I am so grateful for his help! And, it turns out (after checking a few of his cards, hehe!) that he's way better at writing them than I am, so I should have wanted his help all along. Ooops!

Rebuttal: in defense of my uber-manliness

I'm not a huge Brett Favre fan, but we'll get back to that.

Among other things, I spend my time at work* listening to various podcasts, including but not limited to those found on ESPN.com, NPR.org, and WSJ.com (who am I kidding, I don't listen to the wsj- still too boring. Give me 5 years and I'll be there). Anyways, I get the condensed radio show done by Mike Greenburg and Mike Golic - Mike and Mike in the Mornings. It isn't amazing sports journalism, but they are pretty entertaining and have a good dynamic going for them. Anyways, the sports world has been consumed as of late by everything Favre. If you didn't know that, you're probably missing the Y chromosome. If that isn't the case, well...

So anyways, they were playing that song because Mike Greenburg is a Jets fan etc etc and it was stuck in my head. I'm not saying I don't like the song. I mean, who wouldn't want hair like Michael Bolton?

*I'm extremely productive at work. I like to think of the podcasts as PED (performance enhancing devices).

Love Songs

After years of making fun of me for my fondness of all love songs (that is all songs on KYXY in San Diego and KOIT in the Bay Area--both at 96.5), Jameson just confessed to me that his new favorite song is Michael Bolton's 'How Am I Supposed to Live Without You.'

For someone that thinks most of my love songs are over the top cheesy, this is really revolutionary! [Insert big smile here]

Caption contest

Needs a caption. Please leave comments. Suggestions already received:

"television's longest-running commercial ever"

"endorsed by MLB superstar Fred McGriff"

"Playing ... is a job that gives you a lot of fame. But I don't play for fame. I will always do my best, because I love the game."

"The guy's messing with my cake. Whatever it is, he better have a great excuse."

"My love for him is different than any other guy in the locker room."

"The nonsense has reached a point where it's just not worth it anymore."

"[They] don't deserve a player like me"

On fallen heroes...

In light of the concurrent Tour (yes, it is still happening), some links on the subject of a once-captivating persona:

texas playboy? It's not about the bike.

ESPY's w/Lance & Dwight Shrute. You'll have to scroll through and find the video entitled Rainn Wilson, "Lance Is A Jerk".

+1 for 'bajo la misma luna'

you sleep like a terrorist

j2 says to j1 (after losing her share of the covers)

You'll Laugh

JUNE

As many of you have already heard, when I was in Havasupai with Jameson and family, I fell off a rope swing and sprained my left ankle. If you're laughing, know that I'm laughing with you. It was quite sad, in a comical way. From the looks of the above picture, though, it's a miracle I didn't sprain an ankle on the hike down since that pack weighed about 30 pounds! (Jameson, I think, will roll his eyes when he reads this because he kept telling me how light my pack was, but trust me, it was HEAVY!) As you can see, I was even struggling to get it on, let alone walk 10 miles with it! But I did it, and I feel proud!

Today, I find myself sitting at home elevating the ankle that got twisted around, cooking in the sauna that is our Palo Alto apartment, wondering what to do with myself. I'm not used to sitting around doing nothing at all, so it's a little frustrating--but it's teaching me how grateful I should be for having had both feet and legs (and everything else for that matter) working as they should for all these years. Fortunately, I can still drive since I didn't hurt my right ankle; but since it takes me about 6 minutes to hop down our apartment stairs and about 12 minutes to hop back up, I'm just a bit discouraged from going too many places. (Okay, that's a little bit of an exaggeration, but it takes forever). Not to mention, I'm not all that good on crutches because of my lack of any real upper body strength. So I'm strategic about where I go... Today, I decided that since I've neglected our blog for some time, this is the perfect opportunity to reflect on the last month.

June was the best month of this year for me. I know that much of that has to do with the fact that my 1st year teaching came to a close (whoo hoo!!!), and I had so much fun with my students during those first two weeks of June. All of the 4th grade classes took a trip to the SF Zoo, which was loads of fun. (If I get really bored today, you might see pictures of this little adventure!) My parents came to visit during the last week of school, too, which was a great help to me because I had to pack up everything in my classroom just in case my class gets vandalized over the summer! We (mom, dad, Jameson and I) also took my class to the local park and had a really great party--think water balloons, pinatas, beach balls, football, soccer, chips, candy, etc. I also had the best birthday of my life, because Jameson made it really really special (maybe we'll put up pictures) and we did a lot of celebrating between my parents and Jameson's Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt and Cousin who all live locally.

Also in June, Jameson's mom and brothers came to see us and we did touristy things in San Fran (which I love!) and went on a couple short hikes to get in shape for Havasupai (which, truth be told, never really happened for me! Oh well, I survived!) We got to spend time with some of my mother in law's relatives in the area, who are really special. I've had plenty of time to read good books (non-teaching related!!) and catch up with friends from Berkeley. So, it truly was a wonderful month, and I'm looking forward to July because we have a few little trips planned. Hopefully I will be more attentive to this blog now that I have a lot more free time on my hands! And, for those of you that want to hear more and see more Havasupai, Jameson's all over that one I'm sure!

FINALS FROM HELL

This is one of those bait and switch approaches that you're not supposed to use in writing. Or are you? I can't remember which elementary school teacher taught me what. My brain is popcorn.

I'm done with finals. Worst quarter ever. I produced 55 pages of text in about 5 days for my soul-consuming slave masters. My semi-hallucinatory, sleep deprived scholarship also produced a number of ancillary existential gems that I could quite fit into the papers. So, for your enjoyment...

Thought 1:

Somehow, at one point during one of the nights when I should have been sleeping next to Jessie, but instead was enjoying my couch and the comfort of a bluish LCD, I was given (for a snap moment) a glimpse of how my mind used to work as a kid. I'm not really sure how this happened, but it was cool. I'm not talking about the recollection of an childhood experience from an adult perspective. This was remembering exactly how I thought about things as an 8 year old (age approximate).

Anyways, my dad used to be salesman of sort. I never really understood what he did, and (duh) couldn't therefore explain it to anyone either. We later came up with the hypothesis that he somehow worked for the CIA or some similar government agency, and that the reason we couldn't understand his job description was because he was required, upon inquiry, to dole out a vague combination of adjectives and other sentences fillers that left you too confused to probe further. He fit the profile: up early, suit and tie, always carrying a briefcase, grueling travel schedule. No guns in the briefcase though (I checked), which didn't fit with our hypothesis. Only this dumb calculator that didn't even work in the right order that calculators are supposed to work.

 (time out: imagine my surprise years later when my accounting professor pulls out the same dumb calculator and tells us about all of its virtues, how it still holds the gold standard in finance after years and years, etc. In jr. high, when I got my first graphing calculator, [which of course was better than my dad's dork calculator because A) you could see what you typed, B) it was bigger, and C) punching the keys in the correct order gave you the right answer], I tried to sell my dad on it because his really sucked. I ate my words on my way to the bookstore after that day in accounting when I went to pick up my very own HP 12C. I actually wrote about this whole experience in my cover letter to Goldman Sachs - they loved it! It was the first thing they brought up in the interview. time in)

 So my dad worked for an insurance company and he was a salesman in the earlier years (or an assassin, still not sure about that one).  Anyways, here is the memory. He would go to these "meetings" (today Jameson realizes that the meetings were probably much more random and irregular than previously thought) and come home with cool trinkets, like tshirts, pens, sticky notes, little balls, and other random SWAG that people give out at conventions with their silkscreened logo. Bringing that stuff home was the best viral marketing those businesses ever had. Anyways, in my 8 year old mind, I thought that each time he left for a business trip, he was going to the same meeting. And, after one of these meetings he brought home a mini Swiss army knife. I thought it was the greatest thing ever! I was just about to get into boy scouts, and I think my dad told me that when I earned my Totem Chip (sp?), which is the knife certification thingy for Boy Scouts or maybe even cub scouts, I don't really remember, he would bring me one of those knives from his meeting. 

(time out: giving me the Totem Chip turned out to be the worst idea ever. I was a pretty awesome boy scout. I could tie basically any knot that was ever invented, and some that weren't, and I got my eagle scout by the time i was 13. But, I also managed to stab a kid, cut my hands several times, and embed an axe in my knee. Guess which one necessitated a trip to the emergency room?)

This story doesn't have a blockbuster ending. I just remembered how stoked I was at the prospect of getting a knife, and my perception of what my dad did at his "meetings"  (if he did really well at work, they'd give him a knife. what a cool job!). I think I did get the knife at some point, but it was after my intense anticipation had worn off and I'd found another way to occupy my faculties. I wish I could remember what it was like to be a kid more often. I'm going to really need that as a parent. I'm already too darn out of touch with that important stuff. I never wanted to be the grouchy old guy - that's why I hold on to as much "immaturity" as possible (yes, it is a conscious choice, sweetheart).

Thought 2:

I miss Scout. Jessie doesn't think she's that "cute". I think she'll have a hard time making that argument when she comes home one day to this:

Shazzaam!

Thought 3:

Stayed tuned.

More often that not,

the conversion story of Alma the younger becomes a personal guide for the process of repentance, change, and forgiveness. Just as the relationship with the Book of Mormon, and God by association, begins at a very micro level, the young man Alma connects, individually, to each of our life's stories. Each of us has been endowed with an enormous amount of promise, we all live in this world (together with all of its challenges), and we're all trying to make our way forward into an unsure tomorrow. And, at one time or another, we mess up. So, Alma speaks to us, at least in some degree.

On another micro level, we see the love of a parent, or a dear friend, and the desire to project upon another the understanding of the only  course leading to happiness, peace of mind, and fulfillment. 

We taught the story today to our kids in Primary, and I learned a new way to look at the account. This time, the lens wasn't so myopic: I saw a little bit of what Alma meant, on a macro level, to the advancement of Heavenly Father's Kingdom on earth. Instead of thinking about the impact that the course change had on Alma, or what that means for me, the HUGE impact that the rest of his life had really hit me. This event was so important for the future of an entire civilization. It affected the salvation of thousands and thousands of souls. Not only did Alma's father worry about his son for his son's sake, I'm sure that he understood the immense potential footprint that could have been lost. Because of the course correction (and probably a million more daily decisions on Alma's part), the stagnant child really became something.

How big will your footprint be?

Hawaii in the desert...

We're taking a summer trip to Havasupai the week of June 30. I'm really excited. If you go to this map, you can see the exact route and distances.
View Larger Map

Anybody who wants to come along is welcome. So far my family is coming, and hopefully the Brownlows, maybe Bobby and Rachel? The more the merrier, so feel free to invite yourselves along.

I found this website that shows really great photos of the different waterfalls near the campsite. You can click through the photos and it shows you on the map where they are located. 

Jessie and I are planning on driving down to San Diego on June 28. We'll leave the car at my parent's, load up the van, all pile in, and drive (leaving early Monday) to Kingman, AZ, which is the town nearest to the Havasupai indian reservation. 

We'll camp near the trailhead that evening, and then try to get an early start to the hike on Tuesday morning. It starts with switchbacks that look like this:

Its very important to get an early start, temperatures can reach 110 degrees. There is no water in the canyon, so bringing lots of liquids is paramount. We've found that gatorade or other energy drinks really makes a difference. 

Good shoes help too. My dad has a penchant for losing his toenails. I think some of that has to do with the fact that he has a hard time finding shoes that fit his feet well. I've been doing some reading, and there is quite a bit you can do to make sure your feet feel go on long hikes. 

These links are worth exploring, especially if you might do backpacking in the future.

Blisters 

Clean your feet

More tips

The hike in (in and of itself) isn't too bad at all terrain wise. After the first little bit (which looks as barren as the shot above), and you get deeper into the canyon, the walls start to rise above you...

I remember being distinctly reminded of the ending sequence in the Indiana Jones film "Raiders of the Lost Ark" where they ride through the crescent canyon on horses. That scene took place in Petra, Jordan, but you get the idea.

The best part of the trip, of course, is the campground and spectacular waterfalls. About 7 miles in, you get to the Havasupai village, where they charge obscene prices for modern amenities. I didn't partake, but I think some of my troop members (boy scouts) spent the ten bucks for a hamburger. 

From the village, you hike about 1.5 miles to the campsite, which is amazing. At this point, the weather is still hot, but ample foliage shields the weary traveler from the sun. This part of the hike is particularly slow because you have to trek through sand. Ever tried running on the beach? Slow progress. Anyways, you finally get to the campsite (if i recall, you pass two of the waterfalls in the process), and voila!

There are so many fun things to do. Our preferred activites included from jumping off waterfalls and jumping off waterfalls. We did some cliff jumping as well. 

Remind me to bring some rope to build a swing.

Its important to go before the rainy season, because the flash floods come:

Thank you

Today I attended a 'Colloquium for Beginning Teachers' at my district--which was sponsored by the New Teacher Center @ UCSC (our mentor teachers) as well as an amazing foundation, the Ravenswood Education Foundation (who are constantly showering us with love). (Just two days ago, the foundation brought an ice-cream wagon to the staff room to give all the teachers free sundaes and ice cream cones!!) Anyway, back to the colloquium. The President of the Education Foundation spoke and I was inspired. (Actually I was crying, which might not be a big surprise to many who read this). He talked about how someone had told him in his 20s a story about a group of 95 year olds who were all about to die. They were all asked what they wished they could have changed about their lives, or what they regretted. Overwhelmingly, the respondents had three things to say. They said that they wished they would have taken more risks, that they would have spent more time reflecting, and that they would have left something behind (a legacy) that would have lasted longer than a lifetime. I was so touched by this. It removed me from the stress of 'Did all of my students master all of the 4th grade math standards at 80% or above mastery?' and back to the reality of working with real people, real little people that is, and thinking about the ways that I might have helped them beyond math mastery. I realized today more than ever the power of gratitude and appreciation in helping us to keep going when things get really hard. I know I need it. And I didn't realize quite how much I needed it until this year.

I found this quote which really expresses eloquently my emotions of late: "Encouraged people achieve the best; dominated people achieve second best; neglected people achieve the least." Today, after struggling with my students a lot, I felt encouraged--because of the thoughtfulness of mentor teachers and a foundation who are really in touch with what new teachers need. I'm glad there are foundations & experienced teachers who realize that new teachers are fragile and need to hear that their efforts are worthwhile. For a couple hours I was encouraged & strengthened in my workplace. And I am very grateful for that because I've been hanging by a thread this week. Thank you NTC and the Ravenswood Foundation for the very timely celebration :)

A Midsummer Night's Dream

I found this awesome set of video clips called the "Ultimate Killers" on the BBCWorldwide YouTube channel. 

If someday I'm fortunate to make loads of money, I'd like to retire early and become a zoologist. As a kid, I vaguely remember drawing maps of animal enclosures that I had designed in my mind. I loved going to the SD Zoo and perusing the reptile and amphibian areas - and examining each exhibit for quite a bit longer than the average visitor. It must have been much too slow for those who accompanied me (mom). I remember somehow always managing to control the pace. My perceptions of reality may have become distorted with time, of course. 

I'm trying to figure out how to incorporate a giant raptor aviary into my Alpaca ranch. Harpy eagles can carry away monkeys weighing up to 5 kg, so I'd have to look out for the small children, dogs, and, of course, baby Alpacas. 

Here's a link showing the size of a smaller specimen.

And, this video shows Piranhas in action. 

Started work today. More on that later.

Thanks Malcolm!

Jessie's school district may be the only one in the entire nation that gets Malcolm X day off. Apparently, violence is an attribute to be celebrated, not punished. I always suspected that my elementary school curriculum was missing something.

We decided to take advantage of the free time and whisk away one frazzled teacher to a weekend through San Jose, Berkeley, San Francisco, and Sausalito. The photo essay:

We stopped at Borders to kill time and to look at books/magazines. We learned about the dangers of "pet abuse."

Time has been good to Juanes. There was probably a point where he realized he had enough money to higher a style consultant. I'm not sure if that happened between album 1 and 2, or between 2 and 3. Votes?

A few lucky fans would get to ride with the band to the airport after the show...

There was one moment where Juanes stopped to catch his breath and talk to the audience a bit. This particular conversation went something like this:

> "You know, its great to see all the [latinos] here, but it's really cool to see all of the americans and native San Joseans in the audience!"

> (crowd goes wild... hands waving)

> Juanes turns to, presumably, an asian woman (obviously in the extreme minority): "And you, did you come from Japan?"

>(crowd is as silent as it had been all night)

>Juanes - awkward silent pause. Turns back to band to get guitar and starts next song. Jameson dies laughing.

It would seem that growing up in Columbia doesn't give one much exposure to different Asian ethnic groups. He should spend some time in Peru: I'm sure Fujimori wouldn't mind teaching him a thing or two. And, he could do a benefit concert for the inmates at the same time! Bam!

Hard to believe I know, but the majority of the fans were middle-aged latina women. "They're quite voluptuous," Jess noted. The atmosphere wouldn't have been the same without the excessive amount of makeup and two-sizes-too-small blouses.

Then we hopped on 880 and headed north...

I saw the Claremont each time I drove to Berkeley to see Jessie back when we were dating. She thought it was the greatest thing in the world (i had equated it to northern CAs version of the Hotel Del). So, I found a good rate, and we stayed here the first night. It was fun to be back in Berk-town. Ah, memories.

Next stop: downtown SF for shopping. This was really my favorite part of the trip. Did you know the forever 21 in SoMa has 3 floors? ;)

This weekend just happened to coincide with Bay to Breakers, so hotels were hard to come by. We found a nice (and cheap) place off Van Ness and Lombard, near the church building. 70% of the families in the Golden Gate ward are attending U of P dental school. Wierd.

Walking to the Wharf...

Dinner:

And a movie...

We saw IRONMAN that night at the Metreon. Jessie isn't too used to action movies. She thought it was overly violent. I thought she was going to have an anxiety attack in the theater. My take? good movie.

Part of me would like to steal this street sign. The other part knows that every time I'd look at it, I'd know it was stolen, which would rob me of any joy that the possession thereof would embue.

Much to my wife's chagrin, I made a friend. Here's a close-up of his sign. I couldn't resist. I figured the guy had worked so hard to get so much of the ransom already, he deserved a buck. Plus, contributing the last dollar gave me bragging rights to say that I had resolved a hostage crisis AND simultaneously saved a marriage!

The next morning, we went to church, and then walked around the Presidio area at SF end of the Golden Gate bridge. The beaches were beautiful. I still can't believe I've lived here since 2003 and hadn't explored it.

Jessie said I looked like a tourist. I guess technically I am a tourist. Do I look like a tourist? She says anyone wearing neon shoes deserves the label, regardless of residence.

Can you see the sailboats?:

Next stop, Sausalito. They had this amazing Dr. Seuss gallery. These are some of his "Lost Sculptures." I love this one (Kangaroo Bird). I wanted to buy the replica, but the gallery informed me that it is listed at 3k. Whoops! I settled for a brochure. Maybe i'll pin it to the wall.

Ted Geisel's father was a zoo superintendent. Whenever the animals shed certain appendages (e.g.) horns, beaks, etc.), he would bring them home for his son. As an adult, he used these pieces to create mixed media work of "Unheard-of-Animals." The beak here was from a toucan, the horns from a goat, etc.

Here's the link to the collection.

I think Sausalito was our favorite part of the trip. We just lounged around and walked along the water. It was the perfect finale for a fun weekend. Our hotel (Casa Madrona) can be seen in the top frame of this photo:

I joined a couple of shots from our bedroom window to make this panorama.

This place had awesome icecream. Manila Mango was a hit.

Take a closer look at the bathtub, and the folding of the towels. Not too shabby.

Back to the world of research, writing papers, and for Jessie, crowd control i mean molding minds. I had my interview this afternoon with my (future) boss at Google. It went well, for a job interview.