- What is your favorite food? Pasta with garlic bread
- What is your favorite toy / stuffed animal? Webkinz
- Who is your best friend? Louisa
- Did you ever get sent to the principal and why? No
- What do you want to be when you grow up? A second grade teacher
- What is your dream car? Red Prius
- What is your favorite movie? Annie
- What is your favorite music group? Selena Gomez and the Scene
- Who is your favorite actor? Selena Gomez
- What is your favorite TV show? Wizards of Waverly Place
- What is your favorite ice cream flavor? Coffee
- What musical instruments would you like to play? Piano
- Who is your favorite teacher? Ms. Nino and Mr. Hentschke
- Who do you have a crush on? Nobody
- What is your favorite book? The Little House series
- What sports do you want to play? Gymnastics and volleyball
- Where is your favorite place to go on vacation? Disneyland
- What is your favorite color? Orange
- What is your least favorite food? Cooked spinach, coconut soup, fish
- What is your favorite pair of shoes? Cork heels
Sunday, March 28, 2010
SKGP's Favs
Last month was the annual father / daughter girl scout dance. There was a questionnaire that we each filled out. Here are SKGP's answers.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Peanut
Our rat, Peanut, passed away this weekend. She was a good rat, and we are sad to have lost her. We buried her across the street in the open space.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
GUSD Budget Ideas
The Gilroy Unified School District is $6.3M in the hole (PDF) for next year. The Superintendent put up a web page for the public to offer suggestions, so I did:
* I was shocked and dismayed to see the Teacher's Union suggest that closing Rucker was a viable and valuable way for dealing with the budget crisis. The people of Gilroy voted that Rucker was an asset worthy of modernization with Measure P. Also, as one of the larger pieces of land (12 ac), Rucker has great potential to house students.
* Clearly, increasing student teacher ratios will be a part of the new budget. While we parents wish this wasn't the case, it is a logical cost savings.
* Several of the schools (Rucker and Las Animas, I know) have large garden plots; is it realistic to think we could save on food costs by growing our own healthy food? I'm sure volunteers can be found to help.
* You need to help everyone understand that Measure P expenditures are not part of the normal budget. I can see trouble if the public are confused about how we are building new buildings while eliminating teachers.
* Save electricity: Make sure computer labs (and other PCs) are shut down when not in use.
* Can we minimize our expenditures on landscaping? Drought tolerant plantings need less maintenance. Synthetic turf needs no watering or chemicals.
* Base staff assignments on some quality metric instead of seniority (which nearly guarantees you pay the most for any given position).
* I don't completely understand how the elementary school library system works, but it doesn't seem optimally cost effective to me. Does 2 hours per week for a paid librarian actually make an impact, when teachers build their own in class libraries anyway?
* _If_ there are staff members being paid with no duties in the district (e.g. principals without schools; teachers without classes), these positions should be dealt with. [Listen to This American Life's episode "Human Resources" about New York's Rubber Room: http://www.thislife.org/Radio_
* The suggested idea of moving the district office to a rented building and renting out the current one seems optimistic about the fact that there is a lot of vacant space in the area, so rents any rent received would be small.
* Use Measure P funds to dramatically improve energy efficiency throughout the district as quickly as possible. Or more generally, quickly do capital improvements that reduce O&M costs.
* Please don't gut the GATE program at Rucker and the Dual Immersion program at Las Animas (and Rod Kelley) (and any other academic programs like these). These programs are the shining beacons in a struggling academic environment; they give parents something to be proud of, and show the children that there are benefits to being smart and talented and hard working.
* I believe there is some obligation to provide transportation to students, but perhaps charging fees or reducing routes would save money. Perhaps a hub system like public transit (go to station, and bus goes from there to ultimate destination) could reduce costs? [Although I do love that my son's bus stop is right in front of my house.]
* Is milk necessary for school age kids? Perhaps cups for the water fountains is all the beverage they need, since many seem to throw away their drinks anyway.
* A couple weeks ago, I saw a GUSD bus at a tutoring place in Morgan Hill. What is this and is it a program that can be reduced or eliminated?
* What can parents do to help?
* Paper! Teachers use too much paper and are constantly running out. Can we move to a less paper based system? We get 10+ pages a week of homework for my first grader, plus all the in class stuff.
* Does the district recycle cans, bottles, and paper for money? Is composting of food waste a cheaper alternative than trash? (Why did Costco start composting recently?)
* Use open source and free software instead of expensive solutions like Microsoft Office. Google Docs is great! (How much do we spend on LoopNet? Is there a free alternative?)
* In this real estate market, counting on selling or leasing vacant school sites is unlikely. The real estate development company where I work contacted the District early last year about one of the sites and the price quoted was completely unrealistic for current market conditions.
* Does the District have a grant writer? Perhaps there are private, federal, or state grants that can help.
Sorry for my long, rambling, semi-coherent ideas! Good luck.
* I was shocked and dismayed to see the Teacher's Union suggest that closing Rucker was a viable and valuable way for dealing with the budget crisis. The people of Gilroy voted that Rucker was an asset worthy of modernization with Measure P. Also, as one of the larger pieces of land (12 ac), Rucker has great potential to house students.
* Clearly, increasing student teacher ratios will be a part of the new budget. While we parents wish this wasn't the case, it is a logical cost savings.
* Several of the schools (Rucker and Las Animas, I know) have large garden plots; is it realistic to think we could save on food costs by growing our own healthy food? I'm sure volunteers can be found to help.
* You need to help everyone understand that Measure P expenditures are not part of the normal budget. I can see trouble if the public are confused about how we are building new buildings while eliminating teachers.
* Save electricity: Make sure computer labs (and other PCs) are shut down when not in use.
* Can we minimize our expenditures on landscaping? Drought tolerant plantings need less maintenance. Synthetic turf needs no watering or chemicals.
* Base staff assignments on some quality metric instead of seniority (which nearly guarantees you pay the most for any given position).
* I don't completely understand how the elementary school library system works, but it doesn't seem optimally cost effective to me. Does 2 hours per week for a paid librarian actually make an impact, when teachers build their own in class libraries anyway?
* _If_ there are staff members being paid with no duties in the district (e.g. principals without schools; teachers without classes), these positions should be dealt with. [Listen to This American Life's episode "Human Resources" about New York's Rubber Room: http://www.thislife.org/Radio_
* The suggested idea of moving the district office to a rented building and renting out the current one seems optimistic about the fact that there is a lot of vacant space in the area, so rents any rent received would be small.
* Use Measure P funds to dramatically improve energy efficiency throughout the district as quickly as possible. Or more generally, quickly do capital improvements that reduce O&M costs.
* Please don't gut the GATE program at Rucker and the Dual Immersion program at Las Animas (and Rod Kelley) (and any other academic programs like these). These programs are the shining beacons in a struggling academic environment; they give parents something to be proud of, and show the children that there are benefits to being smart and talented and hard working.
* I believe there is some obligation to provide transportation to students, but perhaps charging fees or reducing routes would save money. Perhaps a hub system like public transit (go to station, and bus goes from there to ultimate destination) could reduce costs? [Although I do love that my son's bus stop is right in front of my house.]
* Is milk necessary for school age kids? Perhaps cups for the water fountains is all the beverage they need, since many seem to throw away their drinks anyway.
* A couple weeks ago, I saw a GUSD bus at a tutoring place in Morgan Hill. What is this and is it a program that can be reduced or eliminated?
* What can parents do to help?
* Paper! Teachers use too much paper and are constantly running out. Can we move to a less paper based system? We get 10+ pages a week of homework for my first grader, plus all the in class stuff.
* Does the district recycle cans, bottles, and paper for money? Is composting of food waste a cheaper alternative than trash? (Why did Costco start composting recently?)
* Use open source and free software instead of expensive solutions like Microsoft Office. Google Docs is great! (How much do we spend on LoopNet? Is there a free alternative?)
* In this real estate market, counting on selling or leasing vacant school sites is unlikely. The real estate development company where I work contacted the District early last year about one of the sites and the price quoted was completely unrealistic for current market conditions.
* Does the District have a grant writer? Perhaps there are private, federal, or state grants that can help.
Sorry for my long, rambling, semi-coherent ideas! Good luck.
Craigslist
I am now the book keeper at work. This means I have had to learn how to use QuickBooks to process bills, write checks, and create reports for the Boss. It also means, I very recently learned, that I have to deal with some tax issues, specifically sending IRS Form 1099s to consultants.
Luckily, I found how to do it in QuickBooks, but you need to have the OFFICIAL form. I went to Staples and found a pack of paperwork. Once I printed a bunch of forms, I realized that I needed two more copies of one of the forms. Staples would have forced me to buy another $25 pack of too much stuff, so I turned to Craigslist.
I posted an ad to the Morgan Hill community. A few hours later a kind person in Oakland replied that they had the form I needed. On Tuesday I sent a self addressed envelope, and the forms arrived today, two days later.
I don't care if this is a boring story; I'm impressed with the speed and generosity that the Internet gives us access to. Thanks, Internet!
Luckily, I found how to do it in QuickBooks, but you need to have the OFFICIAL form. I went to Staples and found a pack of paperwork. Once I printed a bunch of forms, I realized that I needed two more copies of one of the forms. Staples would have forced me to buy another $25 pack of too much stuff, so I turned to Craigslist.
I posted an ad to the Morgan Hill community. A few hours later a kind person in Oakland replied that they had the form I needed. On Tuesday I sent a self addressed envelope, and the forms arrived today, two days later.
I don't care if this is a boring story; I'm impressed with the speed and generosity that the Internet gives us access to. Thanks, Internet!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
A Busy Monday
Yesterday started off normally enough. Wake up too early; fight to get the kids dressed, fed, and out the door. I dropped SKGP off at school, and went in to work.
I completed and mailed the state and federal taxes for the Rucker Home & School Club, wrote some work related checks, and checked some other items off my to do list.
From 3:30 to 5:30, I worked with the Rucker (SKGP's school) Principal and SKGP's teacher, Mr. H, to narrow down the list of architects from 15 to 6 for the Rucker rebuild. Then I went to the gym, relieved Nana from EJP duty. I watched SKGP do some gymnastics, and tried unsuccessfully to help the girls do some kind of bar exercise.
I took EJP home and washed the dishes while RCP made calzones for dinner. During dinner, I got a text message and a voice mail from my VIP (police volunteer) team leader. I ignored that for a bit. The phone rang, and it was someone looking for me to run for my state district's Libertarian Party state senator seat, which I declined.
After I finished eating, I decided that this would be as good a time as any to start actually doing something with the VIPs, so I called my leader back and left him a vmail. Then, I suited up, and drove to where the text said the issue was, arriving a few minutes before 8.
Around 7:35, a truck ran into a bike. I gathered that the guy was hurt pretty bad and might die; there was quite a bit of blood in the street, and his bike was broken in half. While we didn't learn anything last night, the newspaper reports that he's going to be fine.
For the next 3.5 hours, I stood in the cold with a little flashlight with a red plastic cone on the end, waving at cars to keep moving. I chatted with some of the other volunteers, and learned some of the basics of keeping a crime scene clear. I learned some things that I need to add to my kit, like gloves and warmer socks. I lit a flare. I watched the Gilroy PD team do a real survey of the area. It was an interesting, if boring and cold, experience.
I got home a little before midnight.
I completed and mailed the state and federal taxes for the Rucker Home & School Club, wrote some work related checks, and checked some other items off my to do list.
From 3:30 to 5:30, I worked with the Rucker (SKGP's school) Principal and SKGP's teacher, Mr. H, to narrow down the list of architects from 15 to 6 for the Rucker rebuild. Then I went to the gym, relieved Nana from EJP duty. I watched SKGP do some gymnastics, and tried unsuccessfully to help the girls do some kind of bar exercise.
I took EJP home and washed the dishes while RCP made calzones for dinner. During dinner, I got a text message and a voice mail from my VIP (police volunteer) team leader. I ignored that for a bit. The phone rang, and it was someone looking for me to run for my state district's Libertarian Party state senator seat, which I declined.
After I finished eating, I decided that this would be as good a time as any to start actually doing something with the VIPs, so I called my leader back and left him a vmail. Then, I suited up, and drove to where the text said the issue was, arriving a few minutes before 8.
Around 7:35, a truck ran into a bike. I gathered that the guy was hurt pretty bad and might die; there was quite a bit of blood in the street, and his bike was broken in half. While we didn't learn anything last night, the newspaper reports that he's going to be fine.
For the next 3.5 hours, I stood in the cold with a little flashlight with a red plastic cone on the end, waving at cars to keep moving. I chatted with some of the other volunteers, and learned some of the basics of keeping a crime scene clear. I learned some things that I need to add to my kit, like gloves and warmer socks. I lit a flare. I watched the Gilroy PD team do a real survey of the area. It was an interesting, if boring and cold, experience.
I got home a little before midnight.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
SKGP Christmas Concert
Here is a clip of SKGP's recent Christmas concert. It's very shaky footage that might make you sea sick, so perhaps you can just listen.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
2009 Level 4 Nor-Cal State Gymnastics Championships
Vault: 9.00 (19th Tie)
Bars: 9.1 (8th Tie)
Beam: 8.425 (17th Tie)
Floor: 8.9 (13)
All Around: 35.425 (14th)
Bars: 9.1 (8th Tie)
Beam: 8.425 (17th Tie)
Floor: 8.9 (13)
All Around: 35.425 (14th)
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