Grizzlies Can Be Shallow

I am in my third week of student teaching at (un-named high school) and though I haven't assumed full responsibility for any of the classes yet I have been able to observe much of what goes on in Mr. L's English classrooms. It has been an eye-opening experience. Since graduating high school I have worked almost non-stop as a leader in the high school and middle school ministries at VBC. I had good relationships with the students and I was generally well liked. I was sarcastic and wrestled with the guys. I was a punk and harassed the girls. Turns out things are a bit different as a teacher in public school. The students are the same age but the setting creates certain expectations that have been, and will continue to be, a source of constant adjustments and evaluation. My role is no longer to be the student's friend. My role is to be the teacher, which instantly turns some kids off. It's weird. My favorite part of the observation process has been listening to the not-so-quiet conversations that occur in the class. Here are some of my favorite quotes and situations thus far (female students):
#1.
Student A: Where did you get that? (pointing to Student B's shirt)
Student B: Wal-Mart.
Student A: Wal-Mart?!?!?! Who shops at Wal-Mart? Do we even have a Wal-Mart around here? (Laughter ensues)
#2:
Student C: There's a new junior girl at school. Have you seen her?
Student D: No, what does she look like?
Student C: She has big ----s and a big face. She's kinda weird looking. She plays basketball.
Student D: Eww. Who do you think she'll hang out with?
Student C: I don't know. (Laughter)
Student D: How does she dress?
#3:
San Ramon Target store is pronounced Targe't (said with a French accent)
Dublin Target store referred to as "Targhetto."
Amazing.

I'll save you the rest of the details but needless to say high school can be pretty brutal.

The new campus.
Class of 2026.

61*

I used to be really into politics. I read every book I could get my hands on. Watched the news so that I could be up on the issues. However, I eventually got pretty burned out on on the wishy-washiness and double-speakedness of it all and sort of became indifferent. Not indifferent in that I didn't keep up on the issues and government going-ons, I just became less interested in debating, discussing and being involved in all of the minutia and news on a day to day basis. That is until this presidential season. I have kept up pretty well on the debates and primaries and find it all pretty interesting. One person that has really stood out to me is Mitt Romney. Not because he is particularly engaging or because of his political stance but more so, because of his stunning good looks. I thought to myself one day..."Dan, this guy is pretty good looking for an old guy. But how old is he? I don't know Dan. I should look it up. Good idea Dan." So I did look it up. The Rom-man was born in March of 1947. That makes him 61. A quick poll of some of my friends and family found that he was suspected to be around 42 years old. Wrong. Here are some more of my findings in the form of a Google photo search of other 61 year old gentlemen:

Mitt is really 61.
So is this guy.
Him too.
As is the voice of Homer.
61 to life.
Old man Campbell died at 61.

It's not a bad thing that he is 61. Don't get me wrong. But it is obviously a fact that he and his dapper brown hair, tight chin, and supple pectorals, are not openly advertising. Lets just home I look that good when I am his age. Look me up in 2043.

Monterainy

The weather has been nice down here - better than home for sure. We are heading home today. Mel's grandparents have enjoyed seeing Tate. Herb and I beat the girls in Hand & Foot (card game) today. They didn't stand a chance. I am taking a group of students to Hume Lake next weekend and I heard that it is snowing there which is great news considering last years trip was a weekend of dirt and ice.

Great-Grandpa Herb.

Great-Grandma Arlene.

Monterey

Melissa and I came down to Monterey for the weekend to visit her granparents and to take advantage of this lovely weather. Ok, so maybe the weather isn't all that great but Melissa's grandparents are (get it...great grandparents...oh D-Bo, you slay me!). Yesterday I began my career as a member of the Moxley Team, which is now referred to as the Moxley Team + D. I am going to be making videos for the properties that they have on the market. They'll probably quintuple their sales because of this brand new partnership. Grandpa Herb measured Tate and it turns out that he is 25 inches long now. He is over 2 feet tall and 13 weeks old. Pretty soon he will be playing professional baseball, writing chart-topping songs on guitar, creating award winning films, and accomplishing many other feats that I hope to vicariously achieve through him.

25 inches.

Tate and his best friend.

Funny.

A Cool Link

Here is a link to a quiz and quick poll you can take to determine which politician currently running for president alligns most similarly with your political views. It compares your quiz results with the positions that the current candidates hold. It only took me a couple minutes to take. Post your results in the comments section. It will be interesting to see who you allign with. Turns out my top 3 are Huckabee, McCain, and Obama.

Mr. Bowen Is My Dad's Name Too

I am currently in the middle of my second week of student teaching 3 junior and freshman English classes at Cal High. I will be there until early May. It is weird being back at my old school but it has changed a ton. They completely re-modeled the whole school (technically built a brand new one) a couple years ago and it is super nice and seems more like a college campus than a high school. Today while my dad and I were building a greeting table for the Middle School room I smacked my thumb with a hammer. It honestly hurt-and still hurts-worse than when I broke my wrist and as such this entry will be rather short. My hand is throbbing. I will share some pictures from our weekend hike in Las Trampas and more. Enjoy.

Bauer and Izzy.

Ladies, not Las Trampas.

Tate loves hiking.
Tate also loves playing Wii.

TMW

Here is Tyler Moxley's Real Estate commercial for Dublin Ranch. It is quite possibly the most impressive video ever made for Tyler Moxley concerning the Dublin Ranch area. You're welcome.

Tate Missed His Dad This Weekend

Sleeping outdoors is one of my favorite things in life. Each time that I am away from home I look for an opportunity to do so. This weekend was no exception. We had our Winter Leadership Summit (for HSM & MSM leaders) at a 5500 sq. foot "cabin" at Northstar in Tahoe. It was a good little excursion but it was a bummer being away from Tate and Mel. Tate took my absence pretty hard from what I told. He told me he won't even talk to me until he's about 2, which is kind of a bummer. Back to sleeping outdoors...I decided that it would be a great idea to sleep on top of the snow-pack that had formed on the cabin's back deck. I enlisted several other sleeping comrades and we laid down a tarp and made our beds. It was all bad from there. I have a 0 degree sleeping bag and thought that I would be warm. I burrowed in to the powder and created a little den for myself. Much like meat laid on ice in a butcher shop, my back side and particularly, my buns, were rather cold. Ice cold. Turns out that tarps are not the best source of insulation. I ended up getting Chad's sleeping mat after he went back inside (upon being woken up by the chorus of coyote howls at 3:30am) and that kept me pretty warm. I even got comfortable for a bit. However, it began to snow at 6am. At that point, Tony, Rob, and I sought refuge by the fire in the quaint little cabin. It was a fun little adventure. I missed Mel and Tate a ton. Mel's weekend was spent playing Mario Kart, changing diapers and consumed large amounts of Orange Crush. I got home just before she drank herself in to oblivion.

En route to the incredible, magnificent, North Star Village - "the village that never sleeps."
Her guilty pleasure.
Just go to Domino's and ask for the Tate-size. That's was the Meng's did when we ate at their place last night.

The Colbath Report

Yesterday the Colbert Report came back despite the ongoing WGA strike. It was good to see good ol' Steve's silly face and farcical social political/commentary back on TV. On an ever more grandiose note, Tate got another bath. He has had several baths in his 11-week lifespan, but this was especially noteworthy because he was almost entirely submerged in water. Practically a real grown up bath (except for the fact that Mel and I were the ones washing him whereas in a real grown up bath he would likely wash himself). Here is a PG showcase of the epic bathing experience.

A face only everyone could love.
He likes water.
The hand on the rights keeps this a PG-rated picture.

Bass Lake

This weekend Mel and I went to Bass Lake with her family. It was perfect weather to be in a cabin because if you weren't in the cabin you would have likely been washed away by the constant torrential downpour. It rained almost the entire time that we were there. Big drops of rain. Buckets of rain. The second night that we were there the power went out for a few hours. That was an adventure. It was Tate's first big trip and the first time that some of Mel's family got to meet him. He was on his best behavior the entire time. On Saturday we decided to drive up to the snow. Josh was in my car and Mark decided to follow us in his truck with Mel and Tyler in tow. He wanted to follow us in the off chance that we got stuck. It was raining a lot and the higher we drove up the mountain the slushier and snowier the ground got. Anyway, turns out that the good 'ol XTERRA was more prone to getting stuck than Mark's Tacoma. He pulled my car out with a tow rope (not literally him, but his truck). So if you are looking to purchase a vehicle that will endure the weather you should probably take the Toyota, not the Nissan. Tate is continuing to grow and is smiling a lot more these days. He is an enjoyable little critter to have around.

Before we got stuck.
(Ill post more pictures and video of it later)

Feliz Ano Nuevo!

It's 2008! Tate is 10 weeks old today! Last night Katie, Alyssa, Ashley, & co. hosted their annual New Years theme party at the Perry's. This year's theme was "red." It was a gargantuan amount of fun. There were close to 30 people at the celebratory shindig. Bagel bites were consumed, pop songs were played in groups of 2, cards were played, and much fun was had. As opposed to most New Years parties, the only person who puked was Tate. Melissa even pushed her bedtime past midnight to take part in the over-hyped, yet not-to-be-missed countdown. Tate went to bed around 9 pm. Ryan Wool brought his DJ equipment and we had a dance party. Taking a page out of Britney Spears' book, Mel and I danced while holding the baby monitor (being the responsible parents that we are). Tate slept well knowing that his parents were but a cry away. Mel went to bed around 12:30 and I stayed up playing cards with the guys until 3:30 or so. It was one of the better New Year's experiences that we have had in recent years. We are lucky to have a fun group of friends. Today we went to the Conley's to have brunch with our parents, the Perry's and Worgull's. It tasted good. (How's that for a catchy closing comment?)

The last 2007 family picture we will ever take.

Tate insisted that we take a picture of him sitting on the couch all by himself.
Red.
Dancing with the baby monitor.
Holla at your Mel.
Mandie, Stacey, Melly, and Amy.
Dancing queen.
So candid.
Did we tell you that we are parents now?
Proud papa on New Years Day.