THINGS I WOULD DO IF I HAD A TIME MACHINE

What would you do if you had a time machine? (As inspired by my brother's blog)

1. Invest in the stock market

2. Wow cavemen with matchsticks and baked goods

3. Prevent the invention of box cutters

4. Perform Johnny B. Goode at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance

Please add comments...

What others are thinking about our school...

Second semester is already 3 weeks over and some major changes have been made. Starting today, every student will receive one of the electives of their choice. The detention policy has been slightly modified. And of course, students have been going to advisory. (Many students have already come up to me to tell me that advisory is cool.) So, this is a great time to reflect about how our students are maturing as students and leaders.

Let me start with the positives... It's great to see how so many students have focusing their energy to not messing up second semester academically. (While it's still early on, GPA's are higher than they were at this point first semester. Let's keep working hard to move the grades up!) And of course... last Friday, it was inspiring to see ASB put together such a successful school dance for their peers.

And there are even the little things. One student walked a fellow student who had to leave the school dance early through the dark from Broadway's auditorium back to our school. Another student who lost his temper during a situation stopped to relax and reflect. Even another returned a stolen item to a fellow classmate. All these little things also matter!

As many of you may have noticed, we've been getting a lot of visitors on our campus. There are a lot of people who are interested in what is going on at our school and I'm always so proud to show off our students to people who visit our campus, it's literally one of my greatest joys as a principal.

However, lately, I've also noticed some troubling trends that's giving our school a bad rap. There's been graffiti on school property, students are leaving their shirts untucked and messy, there is gum and trash all over the place (especially after lunch), couples are acting inappropriately on campus, etc.

Students... always remember that you are being watched. Parents are watching, community members are watching, other schools including Broadway Elementary are watching, LAUSD is watching.... we are constantly being judged! When visitors come to our school and hear cussing, see students making-out, notice half-eaten sandwiches on the floors, they leave thinking bad things about our students.

Always remember... it is about perception. You way people SEE you influences the way people TREAT you. Don't ever forget that. So, let's all be more conscious about how we are acting and how we are treating our school. Each of you play a vital role. Everyone DOES MATTER. When one person decides to pick up a piece of trash after lunch that does not belong to them, other people notice. When one person decides to stop before entering the classroom to fix their shirts, people notice. When one person decides to check their friends about cussing on campus, people notice. Each of you needs to think about this... what will your contribution be to our school... HOW WILL YOU MATTER?

Rising Gas Prices

With rising gas prices, some people are going to the extreme...


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050905/ap_on_fe_st/horse_commute

That was awesome!

Once again... way to step up Animo Venice! Yesterday afternoon, nearly 150 Animo Venice parents, students, and staff arrived at LAUSD's board meeting to witness a vote of confidence for our school. The vote of 5 yes's and 1 abstain allows Animo Venice to proceed with Phase I of the construction project. The final construction will create a 2-story building, housing the eventual 560-580 students that will make up Animo Venice's 9th-12th grades.

Thanks again to all the parents who took time out of their busy schedules to come downtown on a Tuesday afternoon. Thanks to all the staff and students (Shouts out to Katherine, Jennifer,and Yazmin) who helped organize the event and called family after family. And, of course, thanks to all the students who showed that they care enough for our school to act responsibly and maturely during the entire proceeding. I am so proud of 95% of you!

(Yes, there is still that 5% of you that need to grow up soon because your actions could have ruined it all for us. Acting a fool only proves to those around you that they should not expect much from you and before you know it, your opportunities will be LONG GONE.)

Also, shout outs to Mr. Tuck, Mr. Romotsky, Ms. Martinez, Ms. Talbert, and KAYA for speaking... that is definitely not a fun experience....8)

Lastly, shout out to Dan Chang for all the hard work he put in to ensure that the board made an informed vote.

Inner Tubing Pic

The river that nearly ate up Bao Wao....

Inner Tubing

The ongoing epic of my dear friend, Bao Wao...
(Names have been changed to conceal identity)

In the not-so-distant past....

It was supposed to be a lazy day down the Kern River with good friends, nice sun, cold drinks. My good friend, Bao Wao, prepared for his journey down the 'mighty' Kern by filling his cooler with 9 'cold ones', putting on his new forest-green Oakley sunglasses, inflating his "River Rat" inner-tube, strapping on his sandals & life-vest, and prepared mentally for a relaxing day. The bus took us up the river to the dropping-off point approximately 10 minutes from camp. From there, the plan was to coast down the river to our campus site, a 30-minute journey of bliss and gratification.

Daddy Foster, Pattyballer and I hopped into the river first with our inner-tubes, followed by other excited patrons. Bao Wao took alittle bit longer to get into the 'Rio Grande' for reasons that I'm still unclear about but I would hypothesize it had something to do with his inability to stay afloat. Anyhow, Bao Wao was soon out-of-sight from me, Daddy Foster, and Pattyballer. I opened up my cooler and started sharing brew with those around me, popping open a few cans myself. The river was swifter than last year, with a few tricky rapids, but nothing that would increase one's heart rate one bit.

The 30 minutes passed quickly and as we approached our camp sight, we started paddling towards the edge of the river in preparation to disembark. Daddy Foster jumped out first, Pattyballer and I soon followed, but there was no signs of Bao Wao. We climbed out of the water with all our possessions, dragged them up a small incline, and checked up the river for our dear friend. Not seeing anything, I just figured he must have gotten up further up the river so I started following Daddy Foster towards our camp site. All of a sudden, I heard Pattyballer yell and a crowd of people (fathers, mothers, frightened children) pointing at a certain individual, still floating in the middle of the river, towards the point of no return. It was Bao Wao, unsure where he was, trying desperately trying to figure out Pattyballer's instructions. He realized then that the lazy river of his mind was actually a furious monster waiting to gooble up another life.

"Paddle towards the side! Use your arms! Hurry!" screamed Pattyballer. I dropped my equipment, ran down the side of the river, and witnessed in amazement as Bao Wao flailed his arm in an useless attempt to move towards the side of the river. A couple of humanitarians, also watching this whole fiasco, grabbed a rope and followed me and Pattyballer down the side of the river. Our vision of the river was soon obstructed by trees and nasty bushes. "Bao Wao! Bao Wao! Where are you???" No response. "Bao Wao! Where the f*** are you?" we screamed with increasing nerviousness. Still no response. "Bao Wao!!!" Finally... we hear his voice from behind some brush. The amigos took their rope and stormed through the bushes, cutting themselves as they scrambled to find Bao Wao. Pattyballer and I waited in anticipation. Soon enough, Bao Wao emerged from the brush, holding on to the rope... wide-eyed and silent. Pattyballer and I commenced into a worried and tense laughter. We stared at Bao Wao, still holding on to that rope, scraped up on his face, arms, chest, legs, and feet. His hand was numb as a result of a grabbing to some sort of possibly poisonous plant, desperately clutching for his life. He was without his inner-tube, his sunglasses, his sandals, and his cooler and NINE 'COLD ONES'. I asked, "Where's the beer?" He did not respond. I asked, "Where's the inner-tube?" He did not respond again. "Where's your....???" He had lost all his material possessions in his battle against the 'mighty' Kern, but escaped with his life and most importantly, a new-found wisdom about his opponent.

Mi viaje al Oaxaca

Here's my stab at espanol-

Fui a Oaxaca por dos semanas para aprender espanol y relajar. Vivimos en la casa de una familia en El Centrol. Diario Patty y yo ibamos a la escuela por 4 horas. Despues de la escuela, comiamos en el zocolo y pasabamos tiempo en la ciudad. Nosotros ibamos de compras, mirabamos peliculas, tomabamos bebidas, conociamos amigos, y paseabamos en los mercados. Era bueno viajar lejos de California por algunas semanas. Patty y yo amamos Oaxaca. Asombrosamente, vi a ex-estudiante. El vive en Oaxaca ahora con su tio. Desafortunadamente, era hora de regresar a la casa y mi trabjao.

El mas grande Al Pastor en el mundo.