Michelle Has a Boyfriend!!!

Here he is: Pete! He's an awesome guy and we are all so happy for Michelle.

Amazing Guitar Solo

Our friends have an awesome band called Deep Water. Check out their music at http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=144646326. Their youngest band member is an incredible guitar player:

Ode to Freshman Composition

Yes, I am actually writing something. Most of you probably don't even read this blog since I update it so infrequently and usually just post a batch of several-months-old pictures. But today, I decided that I actually needed to write something to vent my frustration. (This is Alicia writing by the way...not Paul).

Speaking of writing, there is only so much freshman writing I can handle, so I have to take it in small doses. No, I am not a teacher. I am a teacher's assistant, which means that I get the experience and joy of learning how to grade papers.

I would say that I'm grading freshman papers right now, but the truth is that I'm updating my blog in an attempt to procrastinate the grading as long as possible. Yet there they sit--stacked ominously upon my kitchen table, taunting me with unrelenting fragments, run-on sentences, horrendous slang, comma splices, split infinitives, and yes--even plagiarism.

And so I wait.

Luckily, plagiarism is quite easy to catch these days, since students who are lazy enough to attempt it usually pull it off the internet. A quick google advanced search easily explains the sudden shift between 8th-grade grammar and early 20th century prose. How dumb do they think we are, anyway?

Surely I need to do another load of laundry or put the dishes in the dishwasher before I tend to my stack of papers. I should probably return some phone calls too so that my mind will be clear and focused on grading.

It's 85 degrees right now, perfectly sunny, and the waves are glassy as ever. Paul's surfing and I'm not, which is particularly tragic since the waves are small today and perfect for me. Life is not fair.

Does anyone else relate to this swan song or list of endless excuses? Annie perhaps?

As a student, I never fully appreciated how my teachers must have agonized over our poorly written assignments. Tragically, some students turn in an entire paper without one complete sentence. Oh to discover the unique treasure of a complete sentence! (These are college freshmen we're talking about for crying out loud).

What are they teaching in public high schools these days? Apparently not writing. Annie, keep doing your job. Professors and teachers assistants everywhere desperately need you!

Belabored sigh....

Mr. C, I feel your pain.

Beth's Birthday Lunch

Julia and I got to celebrate Beth's birthday at her place with yummy salads from Cedar Creek Inn, and the best red velvet cake I've ever had (courtesy of Beth's mom). I truly cherish these friendships!

Spring Beach Day!!!

Adrian, Alison, Amy, Anna, Sharon and Gary joined us in San Clemente for a spring break beach day! Although it wasn't the warmest weather, a good time was had by all. Adrian even had a surf lesson and did an awesome job. Here's all of us on the pier.

I can't believe how grown up Amy is!

We also got to see Becca, Sierra and Cathy Strom!

Sierra and Anna dug a huge hole in the sand and collected a massive amount of seaweed. Sierra was so brave--she even tried surfing (without a wetsuit) and the water was freezing!!!

Sierra's monkey face.

Paul's Baja Trip

Potential album cover? Paul and his friend Chris went to Baja for the day on a surf trip adventure. Although they spent 10 hours driving and probably only 3 or 4 surfing, they had a great time. Paul thought this car was really cool.

Baja is beautiful...miles and miles of unspoiled pristine coastline and undiscovered surf spots.

They finally found a spot! Althought the waves were small, they had a great time.

This statue of Jesus is like 100 feet tall--look how huge it is in comparison to those houses!