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Contrary to belief (and what I have told students),
I do not actually sleep under my desk at school and pop out
when the bell rings, nor was I born with a grade book in my
hands. I am a teacher, and I love what I do. Yet my life is
never contained by the four walls of my classroom.
I have been a resident of Ventura for 28 of my
32 years and I am familiar with its ways. I love the scent of
the ocean
air
on
calm evenings.
I despise
the increase of traffic in recent years. The surf picks back
up in the fall only to be eclipsed by tranquil, summer beach
days. I love Santa Barbara and appreciate the culture of
Los Angeles. Having traveled to many countries around the world,
I am grateful for
the
pleasant summers and mild winters that we have here in Ventura.
I love this city, yet growing up here and living here are
only part of what has made me who I am.
I attended three VUSD schools growing up: Junipero
Serra Elementary, Anacapa, and graduated from Ventura High
School in 1993. When
I was younger, there were key people who reached out to me
to give me advice and wisdom. They mentored me and they molded
me. Because they had such a huge impact on my
life, I chose to teach,
with
the
hope
that
I
would someday return the favor, albeit indirectly.
Who am I now, after all these years (all 32
of them)? I thought one of the best ways to reveal the real me is to let you in
on my top five lists. Here goes:
Five things I love: my wife, my son, when I write a new
song and I’m happy
with it, the sun on my back, a good day surfing (any day,
for that matter)
Five things I loathe: my own hypocrisy,
intolerance in the name of “tolerance” (duh),
bad drivers (of course, I never fit into this category),
the question, “Is this going to be on the test?”,
being late
Five favorite places that
I have visited: 1.
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe 2. Salamanca, Spain 3. Beirut, Lebanon
4. Antalia, Turkey 5. Hanna Village, Papua New Guinea 6.
Machu Pichu, Peru (I know that is six, but I couldn't help
it! I just took a group of FTHS students there last spring.)
Five places that I want to visit: 1.
Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia (where my wife was born and
raised) 2. Pyramids in Egypt
3. Patagonia, Argentina (big influence
from my Argentinean vecino, Hector) 4. Costa Rica
5. Jerusalem, Israel
Five favorite authors/poets: Rubén
Darío,
J.R.R. Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, John Eldridge, Khalil Gibran
Five favorite movies: Les
Choristes, The Natural, Motorcycle Diaries, Amelie, Amazing
Grace
Five
favorite musicians/bands: U2, Jordan Frye, David Crowder,
Switchfoot, Damien Rice
Five favorite artists: Picasso, Da Vinci,
El Greco, Monet, Diego Rivera
Five things I like to do when I have
free time:
play with my son, bike (road and mountain), read, surf, and
work
on my 1927 house
Five questions I want answered: What happened
to my dog when she ran away? Why doesn’t Ventura take
better care of its beaches and roads? Why is the US still
so dependent on oil? Who killed the electric car? How much
wood could a Woodchuck chuck?
Five favorite cities in the US: Boston (very
cool city…reminds me of Europe), Chicago
(I went to Wheaton College, just outside Chicago), Cambria,
San Diego, Ventura
Five people I would like to meet: David Crowder,
Carlos Mena (the boy from El Salvador we’ve sponsored
through World Vision)...uh...I need a few more heroes
Five dreams I have: To raise my son to have
a good heart, live in Europe, backpack part of the ancient
Roman Road through Turkey, record a CD
of my music, and look back on my life when I’m old
and know that I have made a difference
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