June 11, 2010

•  PAPA ROACH!!!
  
  

  
  A Y.B. Legend Retires!!!
  The Daily News
  
  

  1   A HUGE congratulations to Paz Rocha on his retirement yesterday!
  
  2   Amazingly, of the four-billion pictures I took at YB, I've been unable to find a pic of the fabulous Mr. Rocha. I probably have pictures of him on a disk, or in a yearbook, but all that stuff is in storage.
  
  3   Ah, vell. I don't think he'd care. WAIT! Found one! YAY! It's up there now. This is a work in progress, folks!
  
  4   Oh, and I DO have ONE other picture of him, but it ain't goin' up. It's one where he has his arm around Ponticelli, but I had Nick Arellano chop of Ponch's head and place a teacher I won't mention's head on Ponch's neck. It's hilarious, because it is a picture of someone that Rocha notoriously despised, smilin' pretty under his arm.
  
  5   I gave it to Rocha in '05. He laughed, but yesterday shared some horrendous stories with me about that person.
  
  6   <in a high-pitched voice: "PSYCHOOOOO">
  

  
  
  

  
  

  
  

  7   There was a TON of people there yesterday. I've known for about a month now that he was retiring, and had to keep it under my hat.
  
  8    Anyway, I would like to thank Debbie Rocha for buying a huge lunch for a bunch of friends and colleagues of both Paz and myself. We had a ball, and it was good to see so many awesome teachers and friends gathered in one place.
  
  9   I did ask if he wanted me to return the canopy...  ; )
  
  10  I was just kidding, of course.
  
  11  Rocha is eternal, people, and a definite Hall-of-Famer.
  
  12  What an amazing collection of people. I won't even BEGIN to name names, but just about every cool teacher in the history of YB was there. It was WAY cool, because the second the final bell rang yesterday, I hopped in the TOOOOOONDRA and flew right down Tully to Chevy's.
  
  13  The past coupla years I have managed to have some sort of party to go to the second school is out, so this was AWESOME.
  
  14   And because the end of the school year was SO positive (It's technically not over until I sign out, hopefully later today) I smiled the whole way to the restaurant.
  
  15   EVERYBODY was there, including ESUHSD superintendent Dan Moser, our former principal.
  
  16    I did have a chance to chat with Rocha for around a half-hour. It was awesome.
  
  17    He will  be missed, but not on the golf course. He was already filling his dance card with golf and wine-tasting events.
  
  18    I wish I wasn't so damned young! Retirement looks pretty cozy, getting paid to lounge around, golf, wine-taste, make films...OH! Mr. Russell-Bob has just directed a full-length film called Uncle Louie, and it is officially "in the can".
  
  19   You can get a peek at it by going to www.UncleLouiethemovie.com. Pretty fun stuff.
  
  20   Moving on, Part the First: My modus the past coupla years is to have one more DN after the Friday one. I think it's because I still have a buncha work left to do, which is true.
  
  21   I have to punch my grades into a computer, and then throw a bunch of benchmark tests into some data site, get signatures from everybody-and-his brother, turn in my gradebook, and clean out my room. This all takes some teachers about five minutes, but it always takes me a few days, just 'cuz I hate feeling I have to break my neck to get something done. It's like those guys who tailgate you on the way to vacation, you know, "COME ON, GET GOIN', I'M IN A HURRY TO RELAXXXXXXXXXX!!!!"
  
  22   Dude.
  
  23   I officially get a little over two months off right now, and we got cut short a week this summer. I clearly have time to turn in that stuff.
  
  24   So I'll write again on Monday. Today and tomorrow will be hectic and emotional, because it is Nicoley's last day of student teaching, so she'll probably come home and break down. She LOVES her students, and saying good-bye can be a killer every year.
  
  25   I got a little teary-eyed yesterday. I LOVE my fourth-period class, and they showered me with gifts. One girl gave me two bags of Verona cookies and a bunch of fruit. Others gave me cupcakes, and they all wanted pictures and stuff. At the end of class, I played Your Song again, as I had for my sixth period the day before. I sang it fine, but my strumming was twangy and too loud, at least that's what I felt. I softened when I reached the line, "Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen..." And I finished it with a line change: "How wonderful life is, now you're in my world..." Huge hugs and good-byes. Just awesome.
  
  

  
  

  
  26   So I'm really anxious to hear about Coley's last day. She worked with a teacher named Joan, who is PHENOMENAL, and she has to say good-bye to her as well, although I think they will be lifetime buddies.
  
  27   And she has to say good-bye to Rose, who changed her life completely.
  
  28   When she gets home, the place is going to be torn apart, because Caitlin is packing to leave tomorrow.
  
  29   So right now, I'm perfectly fine, but I know I won't be.
  
  30   So yeah, I'll follow this with one more DN on Monday. I want to have written "The Rest is Silence" on my board by then.
  
  31    I'd like also to congratulate Thuy Ann, who graduates from UCSD tomorrow. I don't know who else is graduating, so send it to me on FB, or even on my personal email if you're out there! But TA, we are proud, kiddoooo!
  
  32    So that's it for the school year. No emotions right now, just eager to get up to the Chill and close out my accounts.
  
  33    So, be seein' ya soon.
  
  34    Peace.
  
  

  ~H~
  
   
  
   
  
   
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