Termine

Termine (with an accent) in French means terminated, which is exactly what happened to Dad on July 31st of this year. He was terminated as in "laid off", "let go", "don't come back to work tomorrow". The interesting aspect to his termination was that he received a personal registered letter from the ultimate Terminator, Arnold Schwarznegger. So what does a man do when he is required to remain home all week? Well, he does things like vacuum, iron, mow the lawn, help his wife set up her classroom, and take lots of pictures. Even better, he is able to spend more time in the garage planning new woodturning ideas. Here he is in the shop. What do you think he is making? You know it is going to be something good. He is a prize winning wood turner as evidenced by a few more ribbons that he picked up this year at the State Fair, with prize money to boot. In fact, a gentleman walked up to Dad and said that he has been an admirer of his for years. So, he has a following. How about that!
Well, here it is. Dad's most recent project. It is a whirl-a-gig. We keep it indoors, but when placed outside the propeller turns and the wooden pieces move up and down. Again, he developed this from his own mind, without a pattern. Amazing! Take that Arnold.!!
When life hands you a lemon, make "lemonade", or in Dad's case, turn some wood. Hopefully, the budget issue will be resolved soon and Dad will return to his retired annuitant's job. If not, there will probably be some more amazing wood pieces coming from his shop soon. ( We may also change to a different political party. This is the second Republican governor to give him the axe. )

un souvenir

Last Saturday Dad and I took a ride down the River Road. It was a beautiful day for a scenic drive. We stopped at the town of Locke, an old Chinese settlement, along the way and looked at the interesting buildings. The real reason for the trip, however, was to travel back in time and visit the high school in Rio Vista where I taught from 1970 to 1971. I used to commute from Orangevale to Rio Vista which took about an hour and twenty minutes one way on a good day. (no fog). Part of the ride was along the River Road. As we were driving down the winding road, Dad commented, "I can't believe we let you do this". My sentiments exactly.

We didn't have any difficulty finding the school. I just remembered that it was off the bridge, to the left somewhere and up a hill. Here is what used to be the main entrance. I still remember rushing up those stairs to my box and on to my classroom. Sometimes I made it only a few minutes before the bell rang, but I was never late. This is no longer the main entrance for the school as they share the facility now with a public library. Here is the new main entrance, much smaller. There was apparently more to the building, but it was removed, and a parking lot put in place. I was a little sad to see that the school looked rather worn and tired, but then, it has been thirty-eight years. It happens.

I next was planning to go to my old classroom, and as I looked for it, it was gone. A new structure had been built where my old building used to be. Darn! I was hoping to see that. Here is the view from where my classroom once was.

Below, Madame Bowns, 2008. School starts for me on the 20th, but it won't be here.

Below, Madame Bowns, 1970.

Here is the car that I drove (well, a picture of one like it) that year. 1969 Cougar. Ivy Green. Pretty cool!We got rid of it after that year because it had some major engine problems. Back then, there was no tape or CD player to keep me company during the long commute, but the radio worked fine. On a good day I got to hear, "Jeremiah was a Bull-Frog" at least three or four times.

Thanks for tagging along with me while on my sentimental journey. I loved that year of teaching and was very sad when we made the decision that I couldn't do the drive any longer. It was time for motherhood anyway, a wonderful time of my life.

ENCORE!

It is the end of July and once again time to move Ross. It is becoming an annual event. Ross has moved to the outer Mission District of San Francisco, closer to school. Above, it was time for a break. (me, Ross, Ray, Mary, Jamie, Shannon ). Below, the new place.

But wait! To get to Ross' apartment, you need to go around to the back via the narrow passageway below. We weren't sure the couch would fit through.

Once through the narrow passageway, there were a few stairs. We got everything down, including the couch. There is Dad standing at the entrance to Ross' place.

Et voila, la cuisine. His place is very nice inside-- clean, new flooring, two bedrooms and a huge storage area.

I always thought that the people who lived in San Francisco lived in a concrete jungle. The row houses are so close together, sometimes side by side, and they are only a few feet from the street with cement front "yards". But, what do you know? Behind these houses are backyards with patios and grass; some of them very large backyards. This is the view from Ross' yard. Beyond the small out building his yard goes on a very long distance with probably a half a dozen fruit trees on the property.

Wish you could have been here to help! Perhaps next year when Ross finishes with school. What do you think?

pour le bebe

Rollie and I are looking forward to the arrival of Grandbaby #10. Robert and Andrea are expecting a little girl in early September. All of my grandchildren (and a few of my friends children) have been swaddled in blankets that I have made. Karla's family calls them "cuddlies". I don't know how many "cuddlies" I have made in total. When Karla visited this summer she asked me, while watching me crochet the edging of a new blanket, if it is her fault that I seemed a little burned out on making blankets. Well, her family has definitely won the all time prize of the most "cuddlies" from Grandma, and I don't think that any of my other children are going to challenge her claim. The truth is I am not burned out on making cuddlies, some days I just have that "burned out" look. It comes with my age.

I just finished these blankets for Andrea's baby girl, ready to swaddle her when she arrives. It is a good thing that I have completed them. According to Jack, (who announced to everyone in the waiting room at the Doctor's office), "My baby is coming out of my mommy's tummy in FIVE minutes." I am not sure how long five minutes is for Jack, but I am ready!!!

I really don't mind making these at all. I have seen everyone of my grandchildren kept warm and wrapped like baby burritos, so I know that they are put to good use. In fact, at my last visit to Karla's I noticed one of my "cuddlies" in Jeffrey and Joseph's bedroom. It was faded and about 4 inches wide and 7 inches long. Way to go "cuddly"!

Papa et Maman avec les bicyclettes.

Due to soaring gas prices, it has come to this!!!

une aventure

This week I took a trip out of my comfort zone. I spent the week at a workshop for teachers who are going to teach Advanced Placement courses. I had the hope that perhaps I could offer a French AP class at my school. I spent the entire week in all day classes where the instructor, Christophe, conducted the class in French. It has been a long time since I have been in a French speaking only class, and for the entire week, all day long!! Oh la la! I am still trying to think in English today. We had to give a 10 minute presentation (another step out of my comfort zone), and I got very little sleep the night before.

In spite of the language challenge, I did learn a great deal and made friends with some other French teachers in the area. Their students are much different than the students I teach at Monterey Trail. When I shared some stories with my colleagues, they were greatly amazed. Most of them teach at schools where the students are predominantly very wealthy. I am not undaunted however. I learned that the AP exams can save students a great deal of time and money at college, and my students could really benefit from that option. I have hope that some of them can do this, although the French AP exam is considered one of the most difficult of the AP exams.

I also walked around the campus. It was at CSUS, my alma mater. It was fun to remember the "good old days" and compare the differences between then and now, not only the campus, but the students, the technology. Lots of fun memories.

Today I am greatly relieved to be at home in Elk Grove, back from my trip and comfortable once more.

Bienvenue

Welcome to my blog. After several attempts at creating a title for my blog, I have finally come up with, "Chez les Bowns". What does it mean? Chez is French for "at the house of", so welcome to the house of Rollie and Marsha Bowns.

I have been enjoying reading the blogs of my children and decided to create one of my own. Don't worry, Dad will still be putting out a family newsletter of major events, complete with his unique photographs. I, however, thought this would be a good way to keep everyone informed of our daily life. I am not sure if I can keep up with this on a very regular basis once school begins again the end of August, but I am willing to give it a try. So stay tuned.