Spring Break 395 - 2002

Spring Break 2002 I headed down US395. After driving several hours to get to Lee Vining, I recall a deafening silence when I emerged from the car. It was as if sound were being sucked out of my ears, it was so quiet. I visited the tuffs at Mono Lake, then headed down to Lone Pine, where I saw the Alabama Hills and Mount Whitney. I dipped into Death Valley (and got buzzed by a couple of Navy pilots) before making my final run to San Diego.

There I met up with Paul Hewitt, John Suchoki, and Leslie Abrams Hewitt. We gave a talk on the new Conceptual Physical Science Explorations textbook and lab manual. I also met Phil Wolf while at NSTA.

B&GER Entry: I hit the highway for backroad trip through the back side of California. First stop: Lee Vining and Mono Lake. In Late March, Lee Vining is a quiet, quiet town. I got some early and late morning shots of the tufas, had breakfast at Nicely’s, and headed down US 395 to Lone Pine. Woke up to a sunlit view of Mt. Whitney (highest peak in the lower 48). In a quest to get an unobstructed shot of the peak, I drove through the Alabama Hills, an evocative landscape where many of the old Hollywood westerns were shot. But I was due in Death Valley, where I was welcomed by an overhead salute from a pair of Navy pilots from a nearby base. It was a quick in-and-out in Death Valley, as I was next due in San Diego for a professional rendezvous with the authors of Conceptual Physical Science—Explorations. We co-presented a session at the National Science Teachers’ Association convention. Bedazzled by the enormity of the meeting, I stayed too long, and missed my date to see Natalie Merchant in Bakersfield. Oh well, it was an incredible spring break nonetheless.

2002 03 Spring Break 395 Photo Album

iMovie Bonus: Spring Break 395

Jefferson State 2001

Mom planned a trip through northern Northern California and Souithern Oregon. (Did I mention “Oregon” rhymes with “in,” but not with “on”?) This area is often referred to as Jefferson State (even Jeffersonia in fiction, according to my buddy Chris). 

We went to Lassen Volcanic National Park and saw the Sulphur Works and Bumpass Hell in addition to an up close and personal view of Mt. Lassen. Our roadtrip also afforded some nice views of Mt. Shasta. On Linsey’s advice, we diverted east to see Lava Beds National Monument, home to a variety of lava tube caves. I managed to get in and out of Golden Dome Cave. We saw the permanent ice at the bottom of Skull Cave. The Modoc Indians used these caves during their war with the US. We also peered over the seemingly endless Devil’s Homestead, a long hardened lava flow. 

From there, it was on to Crater Lake—a lake of water caught in the caldera of what used to be Mt. Mazama, who blew her top long ago. The water in the lake is as pure and as deep as is it is blue. You can’t really understand this blue until you see it first-hand. Even then, you think someone added food coloring to the nearly 2,000 ft-deep lake. I hiked down the steep trail to Cleetwood Point, where a Park Service-led boat tour of the lake embarks and disembarks. 

From there, we headed west and traveled the Pacific Coast Highway to Patrick’s Point (colleague Nancy Smith’s favorite), Fort Bragg, and Point Reyes. We even managed a stop in Bodega Bay for lunch. We ate where Hitchcock’s The Birds was filmed. But we did not eat crow. We had a day in San Francisco then rushed back to catch Willie and Lobo live at The Palms in Davis. What a trip!

2001 08 Jefferson State Photo Album

iMovie Bonus: Wizard Island


iMovie Bonus: Aqua Jeffersonia

Yosemite - Mono Lake - San Francisco 2000

The Traveling Westerbairdies (Jean, Heather VK, Tyker VK, and Dean) headed to Yosemite and environs to hike some hikes and shoot some sights. We stayed in Curry Village and journeyed off to Mirror Marsh, Yosemite Falls, Glacier Point, Sentinel Dome (and The Tree), Wawona Big Trees, The Ahwahnee Hotel, Tuolumne Meadows, and Mono Lake. The we packed it up and went to San Francisco, where we meandered through Fisherman's Wharf. On our way back to Sacramento, we had a nice dinner with Danielle at Berkeley's Skates on the Bay. Finished it off with a California IMAX film and dinner with Chris & Diana at California Pizza Kitchen.

2000 07 Yosemite Photo Album


iMovie Bonus: More Images ("Mere Images" has been lost to the digital mites)

Merrill Scholar Susan Crown invites me to Cornell 2000

In 1996, Susan Crown graduated from Rio Americano as a top student among its high-flying college-bound students. She went on to attend Cornell University, the Ivy League school in bucolic Ithaca, New York.

In 2000, she was set to graduate Cornell having earned majors in biology and chemistry. But it wasn't as simple as that. She performed at a level that placed her in the top 1% of the graduating class. As a double science major. At Cornell. Go ahead and take a moment to absorb that.

These top students are recognized as Merrill Scholars and there are ceremonies and celebrations to be enjoyed. The scholars are allowed to identify a college instructor and a high school teacher who influenced them most profoundly.

Susan had a lot of outstanding teachers at Rio. And she and I had some nontrivial disagreements during her senior year. I always held her in the highest regard, and felt terrible through these differences.

I was surprised and delighted to learn that she had identified me as her most influential high school teacher.

The named instructors are invited to Cornell for the Merrill celebrations. Travel and accommodations are provided for. A $5000 scholarship is given to an incoming freshman, in the selected teacher's name. The whole affair is unexpected, wonderful, and classy.

I went through Susan's transcript and invited her former teachers to write a congratulatory note to her. I collected the notes and found a handsome box to deliver them in. I try to be classy, too.

And it was high time, I decided, that I get a digital camera. Digital cameras had been around for a few years and were getting better. I found several web-based camera review sites, most notably Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com). After much research, I settled on the unlikely Epson PhotoPC 3000z.

After the wonderful events at Cornell, and catching up with Susan, I was able to pay a visit to my brother, Bryce, and his wife, Mary, in Rochester.

2000 05 Cornell Merrill Photo Album

B&GER Entry: The best student I ever had in AP Physics (earned top scores in the trig-based AND calculus-based physics Advanced Placement exams) went on to graduate in the top one percent of her class at Cornell. Double-majoring in Chemistry and Biology, Susan Crown made us very proud. Cornell’s top scholars are asked to identify a high school teacher who most influenced them. Despite otherwise being brilliant, Susan named me. Cornell flew me to Ithaca along with 30+ other HS teachers to participate in its celebration of Merrill Presidential Scholars. They also gave a $4000 scholarship in my name to a local HS grad matriculating at Cornell this Fall. It was a wonderful, once-in-a-career event.

Colorado Reunion

Jean’s Colorado Reunion 1999 Album

Yosemite and Beyond

Jean’s California Trip with Dena, Dean, and Danielle 1993 Album

Family Reunion: Yosemite 1990

Jean’s Family Reunion 1990 Album