The Daily News

1  Booooooooooooooooooo!!!!

2  It’s Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeen!!!!!

3  Well, first things first. Congratulations to the Seniors for a fun victory this Spirit Week. We all thoroughly enjoyed the schooling, and as I reported to Helen on Friday, I’m now a gangsta. You took us all to school, but you also showed what class is all about. Great job, great show, and what a fun time!!! At last!!!

4  And to the other classes, you guys ALL did a great job!!! Without those sorts of activities, this place would be a ghost town, indeed. Thank all of you for putting your hearts into your class, and by association, to your school. Thanks also to Mr. Rocha and to the advisors for putting in so much work!!!

5  Kudos to the Band and to the Colour Guard for making us all proud on Friday! Evan, you are an awesome drum major!!! And Ms. Hooper, excellent job with the Band!!! Band, I stood right there on the sidelines, proud as ever!!!

6  You guys ROCK!!! And ladies…you looked wonderful!!! Jenny, you are a wonderful coach! It was colorful and just perfect. And I’d like to thank the Creator of the Universe for the clouds!!! That could have REALLY been disasterous! Nothing like the afternoon sun blinding you while you try to read music, or throw flags up into the air and try to catch them!

7  I wound up somehow doing concessions for the dance this Saturday night. I had forgotten that ATFNL had the dance concession, so once again I was at the school. Don’t ASK me WHERE I got a coat and tie, but hey, miracles happen.

8  Open your arms to miracles. Trust me, they happen.

9  Well, now, it’s Halloween. I LOVE Halloween!!! It’s so…Halloweeny!!!

10  Every year something weird happens on Halloween. I remember a few years ago when a gorilla driving like a thousand miles an hour almost sideswiped me on Halloween.

11 Halloween, I swear.

12  Hey, does anybody know what time it is?

13  Excuse me. Let me rephrase that so that it is in
YB-ese: does anybody know what time is it?

14  Oy.

15  Moving on: For the first time EVER, YB will stage a Haunted House ON Halloween!!!! We call it Nights of Terror, and the admission is simply a donation. Now, if it’s a donation, you ARE expected to donate. It’s going to the ATFNL club to help with cessation programs, counseling, and with getting kids to help people who are having problems with drugs, alcohol, relationships, and a lot of other things.

16  I am the co-advisor to the ATFNL, which stands for Anti-Tobacco/Friday Night Live Club, along with Mr. Michelon, who started the club on campus.

17 Anyway, come on out and enjoy the Haunted House tonight from 6-9. The Haunted House really is going on just to help promote our program. It’s also a whole heck of a lot of fun!!!

18  So come on out and enjoy it.

19  And finally, the Cast for the Fall One-Acts is now posted, both at my room, as well as in the usual location outside the door to the amphiteatre. Congratulations to the Cast, and to everyone who auditioned.

20  So it all happens tonight.

21  Happy Halloween, everybody!!!! I hope you get lots of treats tonight!!! And go to the Haunted House: Nights of Terror!!!!

22  See ya later.

23  Oh, and thanks.

24  Heidi says hello.

25  Peaceout.

 

Come to the Haunted House.

~There’s nothing like…School Spirit…~

 

Peace.

 

~h~

 

 

CAST LIST

An Evening of One-Acts

Supreme Beings and Period Piece

Kalekidon Kebede
Jamie Nguyen

Medea by Christopher Durang

Medea………………………………………..Kristine Ternura
Jason………………………………………….Joey Flores
Messenger………………………………….Dennis Vanta
Angel………………………………………….Ellen Nguyen
Chorus Member  #3…………………….Misty Tran

Chorus:
Elizabeth Alemayehu
Sarah Brooks
Cam Bui
Linh Lam
Ngoc Le
Tu Ngo
Jennifer Perez

On the Edge

Gene……………………………………..Robert Chandler
Samantha………………………………Trinh Le

Ferris Wheel by Mary Miller

Dorie…………………………………….Cindy Nguyen
John………………………………………Shane Kintner

Once Upon a Time by Bud Harrington

HE………………………………………..Paul Phu
SHE……………………………………..Trinh Le

Sorry if I didn’t get your name completely right; all the info was locked in my room all weekend!!! Soooo sorry!!!!

Thanks to everybody who auditioned!!!! If you didn’t make the show, keep audtioning!!!

Congratulations Cast members. Although we are several different plays, we are still ONE show, so all Cast members are to meet Tuesday after school in the Theatre for a read-around and rehearsal.

FIRST REHEARSAL IS TUESDAY AFTER SCHOOL in room P-61.

Don’t be late.

 

 

 

~h~

The Daily News

’06 u kno!!!

1  Well!!!!

2  Guess who’s turn it was yesterday?

3  The Mighty, Mighty Seniors impressed all of us by taking us to a place called HIP-HOP!!! It was a lesson to be learned, and they took all of us to school!

4  A lot of the fare was pretty mild, but that’s what the judges want and like, so these guys did it just right. The judges continued getting spoiled this year with escorts to and from the sofa that was put out there for us!

5  The skits rocked; the dancing was great, and it is really looking like a classic Spirit Week that will go right down to the wire.

6  So the table is set; ladies and gentlemen, it is Homecoming, even if it IS in the middle of the afternoon at Andrew Hill! No floats today, sorry to say, but all the rest will be there. The game starts at 3:45 and should be a lot of fun!

7  So this has become just a classic battle among four classes, all of whom did some sensational things, but the most sensational thing was that they enjoyed one of the best weeks of the school year.

8  As both judge AND advisor to the Class of ’05 (YESSSSS!!! I still love you guys!!!) I must say that each day had its moments, as well as its memories. As the sophs took off with Willy Wonka on Monday, I was whisked back to our class’s very sweet Jungle. As I watched the Freshmen, I again remembered my own as Freshmen, walking aimlessly through purple balloons, and when the Juniors took us to Outer Space this year, I couldn’t help but remember all the joy of Pirates!!!! In fact, that same day, I went past Spartan Stadium, just thinking about us as Pirates, and the Band was playing Pirates of the Caribbean!!!! I kid you not!

9  And yesterday, when I saw the turnout of Seniors, I remembered our wonderful Circus, and as I looked around, I still saw some of our own there: Kristina, Nancy, Jonathan..saw ya!

10  We all hugged!

11 But it was really all about everybody this year, and the Class of ’06 finished off wearing T-shirts from all four years! What a lovely end to a lovely day!!!

12  Congratulations to all four classes for all the fun and effort they injected back into a sleeping school! It’s been a lonnnng week, a tiring week, a trying week, but a memorable one, and the memories are new, and it’s great to see our lovely school alive once more!

13  May the best team win, and let’s just hope that’s the YB Warriors!!!

14  Am I really SAYING this?

15  Well, yeah!!!!

16  It’s called Homecoming, so let’s pump it up!!!

17  See ya all later; I’m going to go enjoy the week, but I’m also going to go enjoy some wonderful memories…

18  See ya later.

19  Peace.

…and thank you Seniors!

 

 

 

 

~H~

 

 

p.s. Happy Birthday Nicoley Boley Macaroni!!!!!

The Daily News

OUTER SPACE!!!

1  Well, I just got home from school about a half hour ago, and boy, what a day!!! The Mighty Junior Class scored a bullseye with their interpretation of Space, which consisted of aliens who can’t aim, comets striking princesses, and the best bribery of judges since Paula Abdul.

2  Jusssst kidding!!! But these guys put on a show to beat the band yesterday. Along with huge posters on both sides of the Theatre, the Class of ’06 came to play. They had a skit with a great plot, and with intelligence, and with a sense of humor.

3  So it is fun to see the competition getting fierce. Without it, Spirit Week wouldn’t work. After yesterday, this one is clearly ready for the ages.

4  The Haunted House, Nights of Terror, will open tonight at 6 in the Theatre. What a lot of fun, but what a lot of work! Whew! But it all pays off, because the last thing I said as I left the bulding last night was this: “This is the LAST time I EVER try something as INSANE as a Haunted House during Spirit Week!”

5  Ah, who knew? It’s just tough trying to set up anything in the Theatre during Spirit Week….and yet…

6  We also had the Heidi Chronicles.

7  Every year, that story gets stranger and stranger. This year was unique because rather than holding the sessions on stage, I took my classes to the area in the middle of the house, where MOST of the “activity” took place.

8  It worked great; most of the discipline problems, or challenges, as I like to call them, disappeared, leaving the stories in a much better condition. I added some things that have happened since, so the day just worked.

9  The Heidi Chronicles.

10  I will be updating the whole story on Halloween night, the same night as our Haunted House!!!

11  Speaking of which, the ATFNL Haunted House opens TONIGHT, donations please.

12  Please enjoy!!

13  That’s about it for today. Thanks Juniors, for just a really classy, fun day!!!

14  And Seniors…well, you know. Is there anything quite like it? NOBODY understands,  dood! Good luck!

15  Peace.

The Juniors Rocked the House!!!!!

 

 

 

~H~

The Daily News

1  I just can’t get used to that date.

2  Spirit Week continued yesterday with The Bay Area, brought to you by our baby Warriors. They did a great job, having a LOT of kids involved and enjoying their first Spirit Day. They added two lovely touches during break: they saluted Mr. Rocha, and then, when everyone began going back to class, they all came down and shook hands with the judges!

3  As a judge, I was impressed, not just because they recognized us, but because it was something new that they brought to the table. That worked, at least to me. Oh, come on! We can spill a little of our thoughts, especially if it’s something that will work for future groups.

4  Meanwhile, back in the Theatre, the auditions became magical yesterday, when we got more kids auditioning than at any time in the past five years!!! None of the directors expected it, so it made casting really complicated, but a good sort of complication. This group instantly reminded me of the very classic Class of ’98. LOTS of talent, intelligence, and humor!!! I LOVED it! My classroom had kids out the door rehearsing, enjoying, and falling in love with acting. What a wonderful scene!

5  And while all THAT was going on, the Haunted House was getting better and better. It’s close, but oh, my! That deadline is right on us.

6  Today I will be doing the Heidi Chronicles in the Theatre, the very fun story of the ghost in our very own Theatre, and all the coincidences that go with her.

7  I now listen to the coincidencs. They are far too many, and far too frequent. I’m not sure exactly WHAT they mean, but they sure give us pause. My belief system begins to incorporate those sorts of things now.

8  So yes, Heidi will be with us today.

9  Heidi.

10  I’m looking forward to the 2005 version of the Chronz. It’s always an exciting day, so it will be interesting, especially since we have a haunted house going on in there also.

11  Yoiks! As I was writing the last item, I fell asleep at the computer (I  TOLD you!) and it did this: kllllllllllllllllllllllllk. As in , “click”.

12  Okay, not so weird.

13  But today is the day. So it should be a lot of fun.

14  And then, after school, we’ll get this haunted house to the next level!!!

15  Meanwhile, JUNIORS, it’s time for your space!!!

16  The JUNIORS are going to Outer Space today, so I can hardly wait!

17  Thank you, everybody, for making this just a nice Spirit Week.

18  Go Juniors!

19   Peace, y’all.

 

Welcome Class of ’09!

 

 

 

 

~H~

 

 

The Daily News WHAT A START!!! 1  So…Rosa Parks walks into a bar, but she sits anywhere she darned well wants. I’ll bet she LOVED the Sophomores!!! 2  So the Sophomores did a GREAT job yesterday!!! What a wonderful beginning to Spirit Week; they set the tone, and it looks like it’s all going to be fun! 3  I can’t say much, except that I enjoyed going through it all. Yesterday morning I had to come down really early to get some stuff run off for auditions and to move some props with my truck, and I saw the pre-dawn mist, and kids in green running round in the lights of san jose yellow, and the balloons reflecting off the lights, and kids on the quad roof, and it brought it all back. 4   Thanks Sophs!!! What a great time for everyone. Your Willy Wonka Wonderland will now be etched in all of our hearts forever. 5  The Freshmen go today, and I know it’s going to be a unique one, because their theme is a fun one. I was born in San Francisco, so the Bay Area is just a great theme to me, as it’s home to me. 6  I love home. I’ve been everywhere, seen it all, and it’s true what they say: there’s no place… 7  So I look way forward to today’s day. 8  Last night I went home, said, “YEAH!” and proceeded to collapse in the corner, exhausted, but somehow having gotten through one of the most insane days ever, and I did it on around two hours of sleep. 9  Not an all-nighter, mind you. But certainly one of the most insane things I’ve ever attempted. Being there first thing in the morning for people, and yeah, thanks Sparky, for the literal wake-up call, judging, teaching, judging, teaching, judging, teaching, doing tech for the haunted house, auditions, tech, and then finally getting home. 10  I fell instantly asleep, and dreamed dreams of pure imagination. Great job, Sophomores!!! You rocked the house!!! 11  And in just a few hours, I’ll be back up and enjoying our Class of ’09′s Spirit Day. 12  So…Class of ’09. Anyone feeling old? 13  Okay,  Freshmen, just write it in your hearts… 14  Spirit Week, 2005.  It’s on.         ~h~

For more pics, go to the following link:

http://www.fotki.com/eldirectore

Click on “Student Activities”

Play some Willy Wonka.

Play the slide show.

Pure Imagination.

Peace.

~H~

 

 

The Daily News

1  I was reading in yesterday morning’s Merc News that in England they are beginning to allow a tolerance level for cussing in the classroom, including the “f” word. Teachers are to tolerate the word’s usages up to five times per day, and even to write them on the board with checkmarks so the students will realize that everybody has an occasional “slip”.

2

3  I’d get writer’s cramp.

4  Well, today officially begins Spirit Week with the Sophomores out there doing the Willy Wonka thing. Somehow, that theme just seems to fit those guys perfectly! I’ve been keeping a pretty fun eye on all the activities, and I especially enjoy that so much is going on over on our side of the school, but it sure is ACTIVE!!! Everybody seems to be charged up and ready, so as a JUDGE this year, I’m really excited, especially watching from this very different perspective.

5  A simple $500 will do it…

6  We ALSO are having auditions after school for the Fall One-Acts. Audtions will take place from 3-6 today and tomorrow, so come on down join the Show. Auditions are open to all students.

7  AND I’m putting together the ATFNL Haunted House, which officially opens on Thursday evening and continues on Halloween Night!!! Nights of Terror, I ask you.

8  What was fun was working on it all weekend. We had people coming and going, and the Theatre got pretty scary! The Haunted House is just one of those projects that took off on its own, and ALREADY is scary to walk through with all the lights on! We’re going to be adding lots of special effects in the next few days, so be ready for a good time.

9  This is one of the most fun projects I’ve ever worked on. On which I’ve ever worked! It’s just magical, every day in the Theatre has been fun!!!

10  So it’s Spirit Week, and all is well.

11  Go Sophomores!!! Think Green. And have fun!!!!

12   It’s your day. Trust me, it will live forever.

13  Embrace it, and love the memory you are making.

14  This will be a week of memories. May it Willy Wonka live forever!

15  Write it in your heart.

16  Peace.

 

 

~h~

The Daily News

1  You know, I’d actually report the REAL Daily News if it weren’t so damned depressing. Who needs that? I worry all day about stuff I can’t control. Why add to it? I’d rather just goof on things.

2  It’s what I do.

3  Like, I was just writing my Dad, telling him about all the goofy stuff that happens in the course of a day, and I remembered a couple of true stories that actually happened to me in the course of teaching.

4  Last year, for example, I was teaching The Raven, by Poe. That’s not easy, considering the fact that he’s a bird. <rim shot> He lived rich, but he died Poe. <another rim shot. the room begins to clear…>

5  No but SERIOUSLY, I got all fired up talking about it, because this poem MUST have been something, because it actually made The Simpsons. So I KNEW I had these guys. I was up, down, in, out, animated, frozen, and filled with perfect timing, when I brought the class to the next level, and finally yelled, “And what does the Raven always say?”

6  “CAW!!!!” came the answer from the stoner in the back.

7  <thud>

8  Oy, vey.

9  Two years ago,  I taught this other guy who thought that if he was eternally in a marijuana haze, that he’d somehow learn through osmosis.  I was teaching the word “shoddy”, which means, “cheap”, such as shoddy merchandise and all.

10  Anyway, as always, the guy was lifted to some level where you choose to stay “afternoonly in a cloud” as I put it, when my voice must have somehow made it through the mist: “And who can tell me what ‘shoddy’ is?”

11 This burst through his hazy cloud, and the guy lit up. The question settled in like a crow on a wire. Clear. Sharp. I know that one, man. His hand shot into the air, and he became electric with the answer. There was no stopping him.

12  “OKAY, yeah, YOU! You NEVER raise your hand!!! Sounds like you KNOW!!! So tell me, my good man, what ‘shoddy’ is!”

13  He wasted no time. “It’s the seat right next to the driver!” he said, and looked to the left and right for approval. All right, Big Dog. One more thud for the road.

14  I loved the time many years ago when I was as usual involved in a million different things, so much so, that one day, when we had a lunch meeting in my room, the group had left a little mess in the room.

15  I arrived late for school the following day. My class was already sitting; someone had let them in. I ran in, only to find the following message on my board:

“Dear teacher,

Please try to clean the room when you leave.

Custodian”

I stared at the board, and just stood there with my mouth open. My class was sitting there quietly wondering what the heck I was going to do, because I really HAD no action plan. I grabbed a piece of chalk, and underneath his message, composed following words:

“Dear Custodian,

Please try to teach English to my students.

Teacher”

And then I set the chalk down and began my lesson, to the bemusement of all.

16  God’s truth.

17  Well, once in a while, it has to be fun to see this whole insane world from the inside. And I swear, it’s stuff like THAT that makes it all happen.

18  I love it.

19  Have a wonderful weekend, everybody.

20  Peace.

 

 

~h~

The Daily News

1  Ahhhhh the DN…

2  Sorta like a nice hot cuppa coffee, or chocolate in the morning. I never really know WHEN people read this stuff, but it sure is fun getting all those nice notes from y’all. It’s like my life is now 50 First Dates, only every five minutes, so I get e-mails about the DN, and sometimes I forget what the heck I wrote about an hour earlier!

3  It’s like, to me,  I just sort of get home and pop this in the oven, like it’s a frozen pizza, then I daydream for a few hours online, and next thing I know, there’s this old familiar Daily News thing staring at me from my computer screen.

4  Sometimes it just says this: fj[efoppqiov'[pg v] jkjag’riojp, and then starts beeping, because I just drooled on the keyboard when I fell asleep in the middle of doing this.

5  It’s a little bit funny.

6  It’s a LOT bit funny.

7  Last night, the ICC Banquet just rocked. We had such fun!!! Everybody got up and sang karaoke songs; Mrs. Maestas and Mrs. Barajas sang and laughed, and it was pretty awesome. Then Beaver came up to me (yeah alumni, we have a guy named Beaver! Go ahead, go ahead!) and pointed to a song on the karaoke cover. He said Ms. Wolcott wanted me to sing it with her.

8  I cleaned my glasses, and took the cover, looked to where he was pointing…then stopped dead.

9  It was Your Song.

10  I really hesitated. I said, “May I see what other songs are on there?” and he brought over like six or seven albums. I looked over to Tracy, looked back, and there it was, staring me right in the face: Your Song.

11 Your Song was our song. It was the anthem of the Class of ’05, and to this minute, it means a lot to me. I sang it to them all the way back to their freshmen year, although some of them never knew it at the time. No song ever worked more perfectly with a class, if anyone were to ask me. The two things were, in my frabjous eyes, intertwined, then, now, and forever.

12 It’s just SUCH a special song, and for so many reasons…I just told Beaver, “Nah, I couldn’t do it man.” But I sat, and I thought about it, and decided, “Hey, why not?” Just then, someone was singing I Believe I Could Fly, and of course, Wolcott got up and flew, and others followed. I stayed low, thinking about Your Song. But soon, even I got caught up in the goofiness, and swooped over to Wolcott, and I just thought, as corny as it sounds, that perhaps, just this night, I could fly.

13  Rocha handed me the mic. I then looked over the crowd out there in the gym, and I said into it, “This goes out to the familiar. I just love the familiar…” and within seconds, the song began. Tracy sang with surprising soul, “It’s a little bit funny; this feeling inside…I’m not one of those who can…easily hide…I don’t have much money, but boy if i did…”

14  She handed me the mic, and I just stepped up, and with all my heart, sang, “If I was a sculptor…but then again, no…or a man who makes potions in a travelin’ show…I know it’s not much, but it’s the best I can do…my gift is my song and this one’s for you…” And I sang it to YB, and I sang it with all my heart.

15  It sort of went out to everybody there; the teachers, the clubs, ASB, and to the familiar, and from my heart, to the spirit of the Class of ’05, and we sang it like there was no tomorrow.”So excuse me forgettin’, but these things I do; you see I’ve forgotten if they’re green or their blue…anyway, the thing is, what I really mean…yours are the sweetest eyes I’ve ever seen…”

16  And we took it home…and you can tell everybody…and all the rest.

17  Quite soulful, almost everything I was feeling, and in some ways that everyone was feeling, I think. We all miss them. How else can I put it?

18  It was, after all, our song…

19  And ASB knew it. And so did Tracy. And so, I think, did everybody.

20  And so did I.

21  And so did I.

22  Peace…

~h~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Daily News

1  So…Bill King walks into a bar…holy Toledo…

2  It was just grand being backstage last night when the Choir performed for the parents. There’s something magical about being off stage right when there is a performance. Suddenly, around thirty nervous voices started right in, and before long, they sounded beautiful. I think the third song they sang was Annie Laurie, but I’m not sure. The only thing i know is it sounded just beautiful.

3  Congratulations Choir! You looked and sounded beautiful, and I was WAY proud to have this department represented with so much style, and with so much grace.

4  I can’t tell you what standing in the wings while a performance happens on that stage is like, but it is always magic, and whenever it’s the choir, it’s borderline angelic.

5 I’ve been there a million times, and I can never quite get enough. Every time I run across the familiar this year, it puts thing back into place.

6  Change, they say, is healthy, but so is normal. It was nice to be around something normal once again. Too much change all at once is insane. Thanks Choir, for bringing performance and song back into the Theatre. It will be nice for everyone to watch you perform at the Winter Concert this year. And yes, you CAN go home again. What a nice night. Thanks Ms.Hooper. That stage is best used for performances. You guys did it. 

7  Moving on:Well, for the first time all year, it felt great NOT being a class advisor! All the Spirit Week activity this year seems to be centered around my room! The Sophomores are practicing just down the portables about five rooms; the Seniors are across the way over at the Science building, and the Freshmen are right outside Worden’s room. The Juniors are down by the faculty lounge, but still are right there. I miss it, for seconds at a time…haha!

8 But I am also hearing all the stresses, stresses about the wind, and about the BIG posters, the worries about dances, posters, ideas, skits, etc. and people are stressing. Hey, been there, done that. Haha. So even WITH all that love I have for the Class of ’05, it SURE is nice NOT having to stress out over all that stuff! Whew! Peace at last!

9  And as of yesterday, I was elevated to being a judge once again!  At least I was asked, and said yes. I’m not even sure it’s official, but it is wonderful to be considered a part of Spirit Week! I’m quite honored, and looking forward to seeing the results of all the hard work, friendships, long hours, and all the rest. I promise to enjoy AND appreciate all the love and spirit everyone is bringing to this wonderful tradition.

10  Suddenly, my life has gone from being relatively dormant to being busier than ever! We have auditions for the Fall one-acts on Monday and Tuesday, after school in the Theatre, Spirit Week, and the Haunted House next Thursday night, and then AGAIN on Halloween!

11  Personally, that’s a full plate! I’ve already been staying late at the school, just planning activities and what not. Now it’s all becoming very real, and VERY fun! And now that there IS a plan, I may even get home at a decent hour.

12  Anyway, today’s DN is just dedicated to our school, and to our traditions, and to all the hard work everyone is putting forth. It’s dedicated to our alumni, and all they have done to make Homecoming truly a homecoming, and what a perfect name for it, even if it isn’t home this year. Make no mistake; the whole YB community dating all the way back, knows that Homecoming will always be just that. Welcome home, everyone. Does the next item sound familiar? Listen…

13  We’re all suddenly jetting into one of the most hectic, insane weeks of the year, and yet, one of the most fun! Streamers, lawn props, dances, sunsets, and just chillin’ with friends; that’s what this is all about.

14  And loving who we all are, and how proud we are of our home, and of our community, and most of all, of Y.B.

15  So let’s get it started!

16  Can’t wait.

17  Good times, everyone. Enjoy them; there’s nothing else like them.

18  Good times. And good memories, in the making.

19  Peace, y’all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

~h~