Bubble-head Nightmare Nurse
Destroyed head prosthetics
Halloween 2017
Category Archives: School
Total Solar Eclipse
August 21, 2017
We’re kind of seeing (with special glasses) a total solar eclipse. It’s too foggy to see it well.
Some ad-hoc photos. This is as good as we got.
Beauty And The Beast
Opening March 17, 2017 at the new Palo Alto High School Performing Arts Center
Halloween 2016 – Night Terrors
October 31, 2016
This is by far AMS’ darkest and most frightening costume. She came up with the idea and we then found bits and pieces of material, foam, yarn, polyester fill. The mask came from a street vendor I ran into in San Francisco while attending a conference.
A vision of a waking nightmare and paralyzing terror in the suburbs.
Halloween Contest
AMS wore her costume to school for the high school Halloween Contest. She didn’t win a prize but most of her friends thought she should have gotten it.
Inspiration
This was the source of inspiration for AMS’ costume. A more benign bug-like representation.
Omg… I’m Finally Driving!
Part of the journey to adulthood is being able to drive – onward to the future [Baba].
October 8, 2016
First driving lesson with a licensed driving instructor. 2 hours of practice driving. AMS is signed up for 8 hours of behind-the-wheel driver training with a licensed instructor. Then she needs to drive with a licensed adult for a minimum 50 hours (with 10 hours of night driving) before taking the driving test. [Baba]
May 24, 2016
DMV Appointment – passed the written test! Now I needs one hour minimum professional training before I can start driving with a licensed driver at least 25 y.o. (Dad?) in the passenger seat.
Next Step
The next step is to start in a professional driving school program for beginer’s.
http://www.californiadriveracademy.com/service/
Steps to the Provisional License
- Sign up for driver’s ed
- Turn 15 1/2 years old
- Fill out DL 44 Form
- Get the school to certify on the DL44 that you’re enrolled in the program
- Go to the DMV and get a vision test, finger prints, pay fees, submit the DL44 application and pass the driver’s written test
- Provisional driver’s license is issued
- Get 6 hours of driving with the school
- Get another 50 hours driving with 10 at night with a licensed adult
- Turn 16 and go back to the DMV and pass the driving test successfully after 6 months
Maker Faire 2016
May 21, 2016 @ San Mateo County Event Center
Amelia, myself and Maya all went to the Maker Faire together by train.
Scenes from the Faire
We ended up eating tocino at a Filipino food truck “Jeepsilog”. Expensive but yummy!
Camp Unity
April 19 – 22, 2016
“Camp Unity is a requirement for the social justice pathway since it is great camp that focuses on social injustice of all types that help students become leaders within the school. This goal ultimately aligns with the Social Justice Pathway’s (SPJ) goals for our students as it serves as foundational understanding for our students in terms of discussion, understanding of leadership, and our perspectives when considering social justice issues.
Furthermore, this camp will help unify the students within SJP as a shared experience. Ms. Evans and I find that this will be such valuable experience for Amelia because it will give her a platform to explore issues she is interested in as well as allow her to bond with other classmates beyond her immediate friend group.”
Day (Evening) 1:
We arrived at Camp around 7:00 PM after a long and windy trip through traffic to Boulder Creek, in which my friends and I pretty much just slept the entire way, as comfortable as we could get in the cramped bus seats, one torso piled on top of another.
First things first; bags out of the buses, and we entered into the main lodge with our duffles piled on a lunch table outside and newly made nametags secured around our necks.
“Rainbow!”, someone called, and we learned that “Rainbow” meant the whole room shuffled around seats, actively trying to sit with people not of the same race, gender, or friend group. One of the best traditions of camp, as I don’t believe all 60 of us would’ve gotten half as close if we hadn’t been forced to sit and eat and talk to everyone else we didn’t know.
It was here we first met Richard, the lead counselor and adult of Camp Unity. Not so tall, not so short, bone white hair and a grizzled, tanned face. I remember one of the first things he said to us, an order to enjoy the food of our first dinner, to clean our plates because of how good the pasta bake was. I jokingly replied, “we’ll try,” and he clapped me on the shoulder and chuckled.
After dinner, it was bunk assignments and I got to meet my cabin mates. Luckily, they put me in one closer to the main hall so I didn’t have so far to go in the morning.
Back at the main hall, we all sat in a huge circle and introduced ourselves and “built community”, until the main event of the evening; tackling racial stereotypes. No notice, just straight “hey kids while this particular ethnic/racial group steps out of the room, please come up with every derogatory term/slang/stereotype for them you can think of, and we’ll bring them back in and make them look at them.”
Peer Comments
“Ace Emelia Straight”
- strong sense of self
- not afraid to talk about it
- educator & tolerance
- fearless spirit
- always looking out for others
- a voice for those who can’t
- voicing your opinion
- you know who you are
- strong and courageous
- gorgeous
- teach and educate
- passionate
- very unique
- born leader
Conclusion
In the end the entire camp became friends and started talking about their shared experiences, triumphs, failures, successes, preconceptions. And the world moved forward one little step in one small way.
5th Kyu Aikido Test
March 19, 2016 @ 2:00 PM
AMS takes the 5th kyu aikido test (highest level blue belt). She passed with flying colors! She’s now the highest ranking teen in the teen class.
15th Birthday Celebration at Buca de Beppo
November 14, 2015 (Saturday)
Halloween 2015 – Mad Max
October 30, 2015
Mad Max : Imperator Furiosa
Winner of “Best Costume in the Solo Category”. $50 prize.
