DESPITE THE OCCASIONALLY BLUSTERY WEATHER, it was pleasant and nice at Irvine Valley College this morning. Things were buzzin'. The sky was stormy-beautiful.After my 9:30 class, I graded homework for an hour or so, but then Rebel Girl had an idea. She insisted that we go take a look at "Kenny the Skeleton" over in the Library. I didn't even ask what that was about. "Sure," I said. Off we went. (The library is about 1 minute from our office.)
We found Kenny—hidden in a librarian no man's land behind a swinging door—and I took a few shots. The lady in charge came around and asked what we were up to. "We've got a campus blog," I said chirpily. "This is for the blog.""Oh," she said. She was dubious. No doubt we were the first persons ever to seek out Kenny. Obvious troublemakers.
We got outa there.
"Let's take a shot of that skeleton in A400," said the Reb. I agreed. Can't say "nope" to the Reb.For some reason Irvine Valley College is, like, the skeleton capital of the freakin' universe. Don't know why.
The A400 skeleton is in a glass case. Very nice. It is cleverly labeled, "Human skeleton." I took a pic. Students were swarming, just getting out of class.
On our way out, we noticed a big dumb sign on the wall. The sign asked, "Nothing to do Feb. 11-15?"
"Gosh, that's a long stretch to have nothing to do," I said. The sign continued: "Go online and vote—HOMECOMING King + Queen."
"Hey," said Reb. "Let's see if we can make these skeletons the homecoming king and queen!"
Reb's like that. Every once in a while, she creates tiny pockets of anarchy. Makes her feel better. Me too.
* * * * *
I told the Reb that I'd try to get away early to take pictures of the snow up in Modjeska Canyon, but, what with classes and grading and letter-writing and all, I couldn't get away until nearly 5:00. I headed over to the canyon anyway to see what I could see. It was getting dark.
No snow, really. It had melted. Still, check out the pics. Especially the trees. Love those trees.
Up on Modjeska Grade, where most everything burned.
Down on the canyon floor.
As I headed home, I caught a glimpse of some snow up on the mountain (Modjeska Peak).
"Whoosh!" goes the Chrysler 300, in the cold night air. Heading toward Cook's Corner—and home.P.S.: Just the other day, I found this old topographic map of our mountains. Evidently, it was produced by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1942. I've added some things in red. (Click on it to make it larger.)
Find: Aldous Huxley's place, Nixon's haunt (the steakhouse), Arden, etc.
17 comments:
Give me a break - Two self-described intellectuals robbing the tax payer's coffers by taking pictures of skeletons and writing meaningless dribble for your childish blog. Yes indeed, exceptional and dignified tenured faculty. If you ever had to work for living you both would be in deep shit.
Yes, yes, it's all very undignified.
8:36, you are an illiterate moron. Go back to your comic books.
8:36, you TWIT, Chunk is satirizing such things as Kenny the Skeleton (good grief) and "Homecoming" dances. He and Reb are in fact very hard-working. Do you have evidence to the contrary? What would that evidence be? That they took five minutes out of their workday to walk two hundred yards across campus? Get a clue, man.
8:36 Our educational system is the ANTIDOTE to crime. There is an incontrovertible inverse relationship between the level of education one has and that persons propensity for criminal behavior.
Los tres amigos...crime fighters!
Yeah! says Rebel Girl - home FINALLY - after a day's work - let's see, it's uh, after 11:30. I guess I should have stayed LONGER so the taxpayers wouldn't feel cheated.
Clearly 8:36 doesn't work for a living at our campus or else he'd see these two bloggers who haven't ever described themselves as intellectuals except in a self-deprecating way working right alongside the rest of us, their colleagues, in and outside the classroom.
8:36 can grade Reb's essays anytime he wants (It IS a HE, ain't it? The fella with issues again?) and mine too. come on over. My red pen is waiting. Come on. I dare you.
Do students WANT a homecoming king and queen?
NO.
What students want: cheaper textbooks; better services (how about evening counselors and staff to answer questions?); more events related to studying successfully -and events at times when students can go; longer library and lab hours.
Kenny for Homcoming King!
Who wanted a Homecoming King and Queen? We never had one before. And isn't Homecoming supposed to be in the fall? With football?
Yo Chunk, have you ever considered putting your philosophy class in podcast form?
You call correcting papers work! What a joke! Get real! You people are retarded in your thinking. You wouldn't know an honest days work if your lives depended on it.
Wholesale change is needed and the first thing to go are you slugs with tenure. Teacher focused learning has to be replaced with learning focused education.
So I DON'T have to grade 72essays this weekend? Whew! Thanks Raghu! I'm going to Disneyland!
Forget it. The man's a moron.
Chunk, the blues and greens on your "canyon floor" photo are exquistely beautiful. I do believe there is a painter inside that photographer.
I meant "exquisitely...."
Helen wanted the Homecoming King and Queen thing - soem kind of wish fulfillment.
Dear God, your District sounds hopelessly broken. I hope for the sake of your students and the taxpayers that you get your priorities straight before your'e all out of jobs.
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