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Nathaniel's VOD Essay 2008

[VOD Gallery Index]

Voice of Democracy

Some of the benefits which the youth of today's America possess are given to them only through the service and sacrifice of Americans in the military. Freedom, peace, and giving back are such benefits.
Our veterans serve and fight for the very thing that the fathers of our nation did. Freedom is something that man craves, and even stronger is the desire for religious freedom. The men of the colonies of America fought for freedom from England. To what end did they desire such? It was for a place with religious liberty and for a place better to raise their children, and for them to raise children of their own in a country free for them to serve God and enjoy Him, not just a random uprising for the sake of pointless revolution. Slavery was abolished in our country following the sacrifice of many lives in the Civil War. Americans currently fight to ensure the freedom of Middle Eastern nations from terrible regimes. Americans serve so that the children of the oppressed may have freedom. It is not just Americans that America fights for.
Had not our men served, would we now be the United Colonies of England? Would we all be forced to be in the Anglican church, not allowed religious liberty? Would the colonization of America have been slower, the harvest of such rich resources put on hold? Would Russia and China have made conquest into America? We cannot be sure of all such futures, but there are some things in history we can be sure of, such as an attack against America from Nazi Germany; such as huge chunk of America being under French control. We can be sure that if no action was taken against Japan, they most certainly would have further assaulted America. To let such things pass would be a watchmen opening the gates to the enemy, allowing them free reign to pillage and murder.
But we did not, and hopefully do not do such things so that youth can sit idle. We did it to give them freedom and peace, so that they could continue building such a country as we have today. We do it so that our youth may have an education, may have a career, may learn and appreciate art, may bless others, and may live a full and fruitful life. We do it to combat those who would take away such freedoms.
The service of America's veterans also benefits youth in another way; that they themselves may serve. Our youth will learn selflessness by giving to their country in this way, and even in giving to other countries, as young people of our military do at this very time. We may look up from our occupations, see and serve others, and remember why our fathers gave their service. America has been blessed greatly by God, and is it too much to be thankful for His grace?
It is altogether too common, and too easy in the minds of the young to forget the stories of their fathers, to not give a thought to their history, and to stumble blithely on. Freedom is not a right. Freedom is a gift. As a catchphrase for the war in the Middle East says, "Freedom is not free." It is without our history, and without our heritage that we crumble. It is my hope that the service and sacrifice of America's veterans will open the eyes of our youth. I hope that they will truly see what our fathers fought for and what we fight for now; it is not our fallen and corrupt and democracy. It is love. If the youth of our once great land would learn to love their brothers in Christian sociability, and make such a great sacrifice as those who have served our country, I hope that we would seek the forgiveness of the God we have violated, and that our beloved homeland would be spared.

laying WikiProv to rest

It is PAN Day again, our three year anniversary! I was reminded when I opened Sunbird while working on this post, and remembered I wanted to finally make this post today. So here it is.

WikiProv never did get a proper shoving off, so I've decided to finally do it. What WikiProv looked like was a hierarchy of folders containing WordPerfect documents, pictures, freeware, and the whatnot. And of course, there was the PAN archive, which I guess I could upload and link to. I don't really feel like uploading all of WikiProv, and some of it is actually illegal to upload, I think. So, here is the final WikiProv, a collection of links to replace the original and finally satisfy you.

I'll sort it by folders in the root folder and give you descriptions of the old folder followed by the current stuff.

Christ
Let's see… there wasn't really much to this folder… here's some current good stuff for you:
Need Him - an evangelistic site, companion to the telephone number, 1.888.NEEDHIM
The Point - the blog of the Breakpoint radio program, hosted by Mark Earley
Just Another Blog in the Wheel - Pastor Steve Schlissel's blog; be prepared for fire. In other words, really really good stuff.
JP's Mind - the blog of Pastor John Piper a certain JP… *not* John Piper
a broken mold - Matthew and I's blog… we started it this year, and we are NOT afraid to break the mold

freeware
This folder had freeware tools and games.
Best Free Software for Windows - if you need a free program for Windows, here is a list I recommend checking out. It is compiled by a guy on a forum of which I am a member.
The Maximus Decim USB drivers - This one was actually in the original WikiProv. I include it because it may, by some chance, still be useful. This little package was awesome when I used it. I suppose any of you who used a flash drive with your Windows 98 computer remember having to install drivers first. Install this package and it should cover any USB storage device you can through at it. As I remember, you still have to get each new device to use the driver, but still a lot less painless and a lot more flexible.
Download.com games - a good place to check out for free games and demos
Google - Yep. Use your search engine. It works wonders.

homework reference material
Contained…. um…. homework reference material. There was a WordPerfect document with the school Homework Philosophy and Guidelines, which was taken from the school policy. Also some material from Microsoft Encarta 2003 intended to help with homework, one doc on bibliographies, one on making speeches. And… I had an idea to collect VOD essays for the inspiration of future writers. Alas, only Matthew's speech from some past year ever made it in. But, we don't have to let it be that way… I introduce to you the Official PAN VOD Gallery! And now, the links…
Wikipedia - The famous user-edited encyclopedia. Yes, teachers may not like you citing it. But, even so, you can check out the References section to see who Wikipedia is citing in the article. You can also take a look at the See also section, which links to related Wikipedia pages. And finally, the External links, linking to pages that are not on Wikipedia.
Citizendium - You may or may not have heard of this project. It's a lot like Wikipedia, but authors are required to give their real name, and articles "in draft" have a disclaimer until the are approved. If you're teacher doesn't trust Wikipedia, this may be a good alternative. Unfortunately, it does not have the vast amount of information Wikipedia has yet, but that will change through the hard work of people like you and me (that is assuming we join).
EasyBib - this site will help you to get your bibliography formatted correctly, and can fill in book information for you from ISBN. You can compile your bibliography, and even save it online, if you create an account, which is free. Pretty sweet tool. See ya, MLA Handbook.
MLA Auto-Generator - a nice Windows program you can use when you don't have internet access to get you bibliography straight in MLA style. Just fill in the fields, press a button, and it spits out a nicely formatted bibliography entry for you. At least I think so… Mr. Buck seems to have issues with its formatting. Supposedly you can enter an ISBN number, and if you're online, it will grab the information for you from that… though I tried it and it couldn't get info for my book. It might have just been that book, I don't really know…

misc
This folder had, miscellaneous stuff in it. Yeah. Like the famous bad day video. And how to make a CD case out of a piece of paper. And a folder called proofread for students to proofread each other's documents. And the Providence Academy computer FAQ, which answered common queries to Matthew, Mr. Buck, and I. And a PAN business card in a WordPerfect file. And a bit about flash drives. And a list of "essential stuff" to check out on WikiProv. Woo-hoo. And I shall not list links, for the very fact that it was a miscellaneous section.

PAN Archive
What more can I say? The original Providence Academy News. In its entirety. Download here. It's not very big (201 KB, around 40 seconds on dial-up), so it shouldn't take too long to download. Then use an archive program, like ZipCentral, or the built in Windows ZIP program, to extract the files and then proceed to enjoy their gooey goodness. If you just want to read the original news file, then click here for the PDF version.

policy
Contained docs regarding WikiProv itself, including the official policy, a Welcome to Wikiprov document, and a statement written by me, in which I declared I didn't "want "raising the bar" to be a cellphone advert only." It's amazing what we find we have said if we look back a few years… anyway, we don't really have much a of a policy anymore, so use your right to freedom of speech if you so wish.

quotes
Here I republished the old PAN quotes section in the WordPerfect doc Old PAN Quotes. A new Quote Central Page was started, which stretched about a page and a half. I ponder starting another one now… what do you think?
Wikiquote - a wiki that collects quotes. I have been there a little, but not much. I would guess they have a huge collection. So, search away, and see what your heroes had to say. Or your enemies. Or your president. The list goes on.

short stories and poems
A collection of short stores and poems. Included some from the original PAN, such as the Grayson Series, the GUM Series (still to be completed), and the #29341 series by Elliot. These series are available in the above mentioned and linked-to PAN Archive. Also present was the beginning of The Secret HAH Files, which I may continue one of these days… I think I actually did start to write a second episode.

tools
A collection of shortcuts to perhaps useful tools on the school computers, such as 7-Zip, Calculator, Check Print Jobs, Freebyte Zip, Internet Explorer 6, Paint, WinZip, and WordPerfect 10. Also contained files for 7-Zip, Freebyte Zip, and a copy of Paint renamed to Iexplore.exe so as to get around the program block in effect on the computers.

wallpaper
This may have actually been the most popular folder in WikiProv, containing photographs from the Robertsons, and pictures I had gathered for the collection. I think I can point you to much better now…
InterfaceLIFT - a website that feature high quality photo work and other picture. Often enough, the stuff on there is quite good. A favorite of mine. Submit your work if you think you're good enough…
WallpaperStock - a website with a good collection of wallpapers. Also, if you see a popular wallpaper and like it, you might find it here.
Wallpaper on deviantART - the wallpaper section in a community of amazing and dedicated artists. Enjoy. You might also enjoy looking around the rest of the site.
Lostine Photography - my photoblog, including the picture from Fort Rock featured in WikiProv, which I still like.

root
This means the WikiProv folder itself, not in any subfolder. Here was located a a shortcut to the "essential stuff" file, a readme stating "WikiProv recently went through some big changes, so if anything is strange, just tell Matthew, Elliot, or Nathaniel and they will fix it Tan Pronto Como Sea Posible (TPCSP[ASAP])." Finally, there was a WALLPAPER NOTICE, which told that there was a report of wallpapers not sticking on students desktops', and which instructed to "talk to Mr. Buck about it, if you really want to bother with it."

Well, I hope you enjoyed it. Please do leave comments.

Rest in peace, WikiProv. And happy PAN Day, everybody.

Official PAN VOD Gallery

This is an index of Voice of Democracy essays by Providence students that are posted on the blog, filed by year. Please single space if you post! And if you're not an admin, just comment or message me and I'll link to your essay post.

2007

Matthew

2008

Nathaniel

Voice of Democracy and Calendar

Today our Rhetoric class piled into the Buck van and headed off to Enterprise, specifically to KWVR. We recorded our Voice of Democracy speeches at the station. It was pretty smooth. Isaiah and Dusty didn't hit the required three minutes (+ or - 5 seconds), though. And…. they gave us cookies, except Isaiah, because he was recording his speech. I guess that's what he gets for going first. Heh.

The other news is: now we have a real online calendar. You know that Calendar of Events link on the Providence webpage? Now it's actually useful. It's got a Google Calendar embedded in it, and teachers will be posting at least some stuff on it, in addition to the events Mr. Buck already put on there. I think I might link to it on the top of the blog. And you can access it through the Calendar of Events link in this post.

policy is online…

…but do you know where?

It's in a protected directory on the Providence website called protected. So… http://providenceacademy.net/protected/
Note that you will have to enter a username and password to access the folder. Call Mr. Buck or me if you don't know them.

And… the direct links to the policy:

web page
PDF format

Cheers. Don't know if anybody has or will look at it, but it's there.

it snowed!

Yay!!!! The first snow during school! You could see it coming down during Old Testament, which is the first period on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

will you keep up!!?

Just so you know, it's really a snap to keep up with the blog. Might I recommend following the 'subscribe via email' link at the top of the page. It's quite easy. And I can vouch that you will get no spam by giving out your email address here. So might I prod, er, suggest that you waste no time?

Photos!

Here you are. =)
Leave comments.

My post

Following the suggestion to POST. . .

Do your homework and turn it in!

Hey!

Where's the First Day of School post?!?! For me it's just another day of work. =(

Oh, by the way, does everyone know how to post new posts with the new layout? Go to "Blogger" at the top of the page; it's what was previously the Dashboard link. From there you should be able to contribute to any of your blogs.

Cheers!

-Matthew

how's this?

OK... new look. It's dark. I like it. Comments? And, I did not design this template, by the way. Nope. Hehe. =^)

Will work on it some more later.

in transition

OK... the blog looks funny, but I'm working on it. Back from vacation. I will post later.

Praise the Lord!

My little brother, Andrew, almost drowned today, but he's alright.

A Big arrival!

I got my Bass this morning! It's great!

The first local concert is Jan 11 in Joseph. If you come to that concert, you will get to hear the Bass! Or, if you can stand the wait, April 5 in Wallowa.

There and back again

We took a trip to see our oldest son be ordained as a pastor and also installed to the church where he is being sent. This church had been without its own pastor for about a year and a half. They were so excited to have Ken there.

Our son originally wanted to be a pro-football player. Then for the longest time he wanted to be the principle tuba player for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He went to college to study tuba performance. He majored in Tuba Performance. He sang in a very up scale choir. He thought music would be his life. At first he thought the call of God would take his music away.

Now he is an under-shepherd of Christ. Fifteen other men participated to set him apart as God leads him to a new life. Now he leads the Liturgy (really singing God's Word back to Him). He chants the words over the Lord's Supper. He feeds his flock. He teaches God's Word. He will someday baptize, marry, sit in hospital rooms and one day bury a sheep of his flock.

Te Deum Laudamus!

Pray for many other young men to hear God's call.

(On the trip home, we were one step ahead of the tornadoes that ripped through Iowa and Minnesota. Literally. We also came through Lolo Pass and I really think we ought to take a school tour to follow Lewis and Clark's complete route. So beautiful!)

LOOK!!!!!

Isn't it pretty? It's MINE!!!!! I found it on e-bay and should get it by next Monday. It's a Buffet, the absolute best ever clarinet made and a Bass in good condition is very hard to find! I'm so excited! Can you tell?

Alright, I'm here...

Ok, yes. I know. This blog is dying. Yes. I know. It needs a refresh. Alright. I'm here. Help me get school people interested in the blog, which I think I shall also try to do. And... I'll redo the site. Ta. Will post when the redo is complete.

Picture This

Greetings fellow Providence faamily!

I just wanted to let you know to check ou the video on my other blog.
Eric and I filmed a video with Spokane Masters Commission, based on one of his blogs entitled "Picture this".

The concept of the video is "By His Wounds We Are Healed".
I thought it turned out pretty good, so go check it out! It's on my Music and Love go Together like Milk and Cookis" blog.
If any of the conceopts are left seemingly unexplained or hazy, just look at te two posts below it, they explain Everything.

Salvete!

Ashes

Hey!

I got my license! :D Sweet. I didn't even have to parallel park, which was nice, because I was in our suburban. :p

So, now I can drive myself to work. :)

School countdown. . .

About 3 months and a couple of weeks until school starts, get some sleep!

It was requested...

...that I upload my Valedictory Address, so here it is. =)

Valedictory Speech 2008

Today, in the culmination of years of studies, our class bears testimony to the beliefs of our families and the mission of this school. We are privileged to have families who believe in the importance of a Christian education, and privileged to have seen this school grow over the years. Furthermore, I trust we have all been infused with the love of learning which is so essential to a life glorifying to God. And now, as we raise our eyes to a new vision, a new challenge, let us consider the words of Solomon: “Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.”1 And yes, that verse does apply to young women as well.

Young men and women both, we are the blessed recipients of a Christian education, and not just an education, but a worldview, more than is offered by contemporary public education. G.K. Chesterton once remarked, “The purpose of Compulsory Education is to deprive the common people of their commonsense.”2 In a society where religion is tolerantly suppressed, it is refreshingly beautiful to be part of a school which realizes first of all that it is the “God-given privilege and sole responsibility” of the parents to raise their children, as Deuteronomy 6:6-7 mandates, “in the fear and admonition of the Lord.” In assistance, therefore, to the parents, the mission of Providence Academy, taken from Noah Webster’s definition of the word ‘education,’ is to “enlighten the understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations.” In the preface to his dictionary, Webster states, “In my view, the Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government ought to be instructed...No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people.”3

I want the graduating class of 2008 to realize that the education I just outlined, the education we have received, is one that is well-suited to the biblical exhortation to rejoice in our youth. Regarding teenagers like ourselves, and particularly Christian teenagers, there are, unfortunately, two extremes to which people commonly adhere. It would seem teenagers are viewed as either unmanageable or...unmanageable. Christian situation or otherwise, teenagers are too often regarded as a frustration and a waste of time. The difference between extremes lies in the action that is taken, or lack thereof: on the one hand, abdication, and on the other, hyper-restriction. And yet neither of these fulfills the biblical precedent for youth. But here at Providence, we have been taught both how to rejoice in our youth, and of the judgement for our actions.

Yes, we are a privileged class. Privileged to have godly parents, teachers, and friends, privileged to live in this beautiful county, and privileged to hear Alan freestyle rap day after day. Also, in Mr. Boyd’s rhetoric class, I learned how to speak for long periods of time about nothing in particular. Let’s hope that’s not what I’m doing right now. Seriously though, I’ve learned a lot. I read books, did my math homework, and took notes on the Civil War. But more importantly, I learned to love books, explore math, and debate the Civil War. I learned what it is to be a student and a teacher, a son and a brother. I learned the importance of friends.

And most of this class has been working on those friendships since this school was started. We watched the school grow physically, moving from the apartment building across from the Enterprise courthouse to this beautiful building here, planting trees and grass, remodeling old rooms, compiling a computer lab, and countless little repairs and improvements. We have seen teachers come and go, leaving us with a firm conviction, a well-written paper, a biblical aesthetic, a Latin phrase, an understanding of the Pythagorean theorem, or (of course) a map of the Middle East. And we’ve watched older students leave their mark, and then pass on into a new field of study; we’ve seen younger students follow in our footsteps (and that’s not always a good thing). But now our time has come to take our experience to a new level for the glory of God.

And here we are. We’re finally graduating! The temptation is to think, “We’re free!” but that attitude implies a bondage or imprisonment. Is that how we view our time here? Were we just doing time? If so, we need to take another look at Ecclesiastes 11:9, where we are told to rejoice in our youth. I would propose that this applies to school as well, even particularly to school. In Proverbs 3:13-14, Solomon stresses the importance of wisdom and discretion: “How blessed is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding. For her profit is better than the profit of silver and her gain better than fine gold.” School is not a chore.

So what do we do now? Money, college, adventure...yes, that’s all good, but there are a couple of principles that should guide us in our endeavors. First, “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.”4 There is blessing involved there if you honor your parents, and, looking back at Ecclesiastes 11:9 again, we see that we will be judged for our actions, for the impulses of our hearts and the desires of our eyes. This judgement is not limited to punishment, however, but includes blessings if we glorify God in these things.

According to the Westminster Shorter Catechism, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” But it is only when our trust is in Jesus for our salvation that we can fully enjoy God and serve Him. Elsewhere, we are exhorted to present our bodies a living sacrifice, to let our lives be a pleasing aroma, and to offer a sacrifice of praise.5 In his famous 1630 sermon, John Winthrop likened the Christian community to a “city on a hill.” To the future graduates, I want you to understand that you are a city on a hill. Essential to the Christian community is Christian education, and we want the world to be jealous. And so the catechism answer might be rephrased, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God by enjoying Him [and His creation] forever.”

To conclude, I stand here with a privileged class, a class that has been blessed with a Christian education, and has grown along with this school. We have inherited a love of learning, but remember that it is the fear of the Lord that is the beginning of knowledge.6 As we move on in life, we seek to glorify God by rejoicing in the life He has given us, and thank Him for the education He has given us. From show-and-tell Legos with Isaiah to Cody biting the heads off of his gummy bears, from rapping with Alan in the talent show to wearing a kilt to the Patriot’s Ball, our class has been eternally bound together. Joy, Cassie, Alan, and Shannon, you have all meant a lot to me, and I thank God for the plans I know He has for your lives. As “Stonewall” Jackson boldly stated, ours is the duty, while consequences belong to God. Thank you.

1 Ecclesiastes 11:9
2 ILN, 9/7/29
3 Providence Mission Statement/Webster’s 1828 Dictionary
4 Exodus 20:12
5 Romans 12:1, Ephesians 5:2, Hebrews 13:5
6 Proverbs 1:7

Woot

It's the second to last day of school. The weather is cloudy and the lawn in green. Dandelions are everywhere. And we do have an assignment in literature. Grr. :o

Ta for now, people. 10-4. See you all tomorrow for the Last Day of School. And see you Friday for Graduation.

woot!

Well, this is it.

The last week of school. Of course, us seniors are already out of school, but...

So, yeah. Have fun, you guys. Don't goof off too much. I hope there's nice weather on the last day of school for a frisbee game. =D

Patriots Ball 2008: Icing on The Cake

Alright. Yes. It's true. I confess. I got high off the ball.

*clears throat, shifts into professional mode*

Lostine, Oregon - The Providence Academy Gymnasium was the sight of a lively ball last night. Though scheduled to go from 6:30-9:00 PM, the dancing went on past ten o'clock. This year was an amazing success, with a big hand going to Julie Tollefson, Mrs. Tollefson, and Mrs. Bomberger. Mrs. Tollefson even found an old Patriots Ball banner in one of the rooms upstairs in the school.

*shifts into normal mode*
Here are some pictures for you enjoyment. :P I'm claiming that I took the most pictures (over 300), so if anybody claims more, tell me. And no, I don't use Facebook. :P

Two things...

1) Here are a few pics from the Math Competition below.

2) We had a WICKED SICK Ultimate Frisbee game today. =^)

Math Competition!

Went pretty well. Kathryn Kemp got two awards, Joella Deal got an award, and OUR RELAY TEAM GOT FIRST PLACE FOR SMALL SCHOOLS! =^)

Providence Academy rocks...

Nathaniel should be in later with some pics. :)

Live Report!

This is Nathaniel Robertson reporting live from Providence Academy. Currently, the cast and crew of A Midsummer Night's Dream (minus Kathryn and Blake, and plus a few guests) is engaged in viewing an excellent recording of the play. Thank you, cameraman!! :D ;)

Just to break the monotony.

Edit: Ashley was gone, too.

Edit 7.18.08: Ashley was not gone. Lol.

April Fools!

I found a great list of good April Fools jokes to try. Enjoy!

Top Ten April Fools Pranks

The girls bill-law video link

Here it is at last.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbhVMqJWaKM

I just noticed that this was the unedited video...oh well. It took too long to upload to change it now.
Dios les bendiga.

Jesus Live! The Victory's Won!

Good Christian Friends, Rejoice and sing!
Now is the triumph of our King!
To all the world glad news we bring:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!

Cyril A. Alington

He is Risen!
He is Risen, indeed!

Spring Break!

Seriously, I'm surprised that no one has posted this yet....

It's Spring Break!!! Woot woot!

Deadness...

Post, people!!!!

Or this blog is DEAD

AAAACCCKKKKK!!!!

(Web Class perk) :p

Second performance!

The second play performance has come off better than the dress rehearsal or the first performance! Lets hope it continues this way! =^)


Oh, and the third one went well, too.

Hurrah! The last performance went fine! We're done! :D

Here are the Youtube links to the government videos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZS4OAbwZ3wI for the boys.
Girls to be added later.

Web class going well....

Ummmm, pretty self explanatory?! Hehe. =^)

Links of Interest

I'm just starting this so if we want to add any other links that aren't school related, they won't clutter up the sidebar.

Teen Saints
Notebookreview

Three Things...

1. School was cancelled today due to sickness on Mr. Buck's part. Poor Mr. Buck. Pray for him.
2. I'm working on installing Ubuntu!!! <(^.^<)
3. Our blog just hit 100 posts!!!

Peace out...

i love typing

k, you might want to click on it and see the original but it will take awhile to load on dial up...

Wireless Up!

It's official. Wireless is now up at Providence Academy!

*cheering in background*

And three of the school computer will have a wired connection!

*cheering in background*

More details:

Firefox with ad and pop-up blocking software will be installed on these computers, as well as Covenant Eyes. Students will be required to sign a sheet for the time period they accessed the computer. Mr. Buck will go over the policy next Monday.

As for those with laptops that have wireless capability, you may have noticed that the network is secured with WPA-PSK encryption, which is fairly secure. However, if you install Covenant Eyes on you computer, you can use your laptop for research and school purposes, such as the upcoming Web Design class. <('.'<)

But you will be required to log this event on the Internet usage sheet just as if you were using the school computers, so don't expect to be surfing the Web during class!

There are some more restrictions involving social networking sites such as Myspace, and your parents will be receiving a form containing many details about the policy, which they will be required to sign.

So, that's the news for today! Peace out....=^)

Talent Show is coming up, Are you ready?

Hello all,
The Providence Academy talent show will be held tonight at 7 pm!
We are very excited and incredibly nerve-wrecked...(At least I am! Anyone else nervous?!? Gosh you guys..)
Last night we had fun setting up the drum set in the chapel and tonight we will be setting up a PA system (I think) and we will test it out, just hours prior to the show.
This is going to be so very exciting. There wil be music, skits, presentations..perhaps a dash of impromptu. New faces and familiar faces will be seen :) I know what some people are doing, but am ecstatic to see what will happen with everyone else!
See you all there!
Ashes

Thursday

I didn't have time to post my after school things last week or this, so here is a composite memoir!

Last Thursday I went to Boise right from school got on an airplane Friday and ended up at a weekend long birthday party for my 30 year old baby in Kansas City, MO. It was fun! Both daughters and I had a great time eating, shopping, laughing and hanging out together. We picked KC because it was easy for all 3 of us to get to and far enough away from Holly's house that she wouldn't plan to go home after dinner with her sister. She didn't know I was coming, thought she was meeting here little sister at the KC airport and the first words out of her mouth when I got off the plane were, "What are you doing here?" SURPRISE!!!!!

My trip home was less than enjoyable but the time spent with my kids made whatever mess I ended up in worth it.

So, I left KC Sunday evening with plans to be in Boise Sunday night and plans to drive home Monday giving me time for laundry and recuperation after the weekend. Instead I went from Denver International to the Denver Holiday Inn with a rerouted Monday morning flight to Spokane then a flight on another airline to Boise. I got hone 6:30 Monday evening and went to sleep! My Sunday night plane to Boise had mechanical issues and by the time they were fixed, fog had shut down Boise's airport. Flight canceled...


This Thursday, I came home turned on an episode of Monk and took a nap in front of the tv, a good place for me to drift off for a short snooze, then left for Pendleton at 4 to rehearse with the Inland Northwest Orchestra. Good drive, good rhearsal, good trip home, home by 12:30 and there were a bunch of deer in my yard! Sort of a welcome home gathering! They hopped over the fence and left as soon as I opened my car door but it was still fun to see them!

Many thanks to Matt for getting my music and getting it to me in time, now you may graduate! LOL (Yes, another internet abbreviation on the PAN blog! or YAIAOTPANB!)

Sickness Cancels School and a New Website

Today I am taking advantage of our rarely working Internet. The event that brought me to this rare event was too many sick children at Providence. In the interest of everyones well-being we decided to take the day off. I was really surprised when no one complained. As I type I am uploading the latest changes to the school website and I think the new look is a good one. I still would like to see more student pictures on the front page but size is always an issue. The Seniors are hard at work on the Lostine History Project and soon we will have our first five Alumni interviews online (both text and audio).
In other news: yesterday we were blessed to get a wireless internet connection at school (courtesy of an anonymous donation) and by the end of next week we hope to have internet available for student research! What a long awaited blessing that will be. God is very good to provide what we need just when we need it.

If anyone is actually interested...

Here's a further edit of the wedding picture from Nathaniel's post.

Brian Buck's Ireland Adventure

Providence Academy - Friday night was the scene of a blowout success as Brian Buck presented a slideshow of his recent trip in Ireland. He told some great stories, relating one in which he could have potentially been blown off a cliff. There was an intermission at a point, with refreshments. After the intermission Brian resumed his narrative slideshow of his trip.













It had been previously reported that Brian left Ireland with more money than he possessed upon coming to Ireland. This was confirmed at Providence by Brian himself.












It is reported that Brian is currently sick. He was coughing at the presentation, and was not present at Christ Covenant Church today. Poor Brian. Pray for him.

Kiss Crop

Yes, here is the long awaited edit. Well, edits. Lawl.

Anyway, compare against here, and tell me what you think.

The next installment. . .

You've all been waiting for it so here it comes!

After school today I went home with my chauffeur. (The hubby came to get me) and we went to Wallowa to get new snow tires on my car. It took about an hour to get through it and as I was sitting there in my car listening to Piano Puzzler on NPR, semi watching Kevin and the Hubby messing about with the tires, I fell asleep! I was awakened abruptly when the hubby opened the car door and set the 'keys are in the ignition' reminder pinging. I assumed it was the alarm clock and woke confused and searching for the snooze button.

This tells me that I need to go to bed earlier at night!

Then, to make amends, the hubby suggested we stop and get a pizza to take home for dinner, then we needed gas so we went to Gobels. Then headed home but noticed that, as Wallowa doesn't have a Dunkin' Donuts, a Sheriff and a State Cop car were parked in front of the Blond Strawberry.

This tells me that we have 'cool' law enforcement personnel.

As we came to Lostine, we drove through the Blue Banana and I ordered yet another Peppermint Mocha. Loretta laughed at me. She knows what I want when I get there and I just have to order 'the usual'!

This tells me I am stuck in a rut. I like my rut, it's warm and cozy and tastes like Christmas!

Then we came home, did the chores, cooked that pizza and I did a load of laundry, read the paper and sent the Hubby up for his pre-work nap.

Somethings never change!

Here are some photos from the recent Tollefson-Leithart wedding in Pullman, Idaho. I took them using my parents camera, which is an older Nikon. The last one is a modified version of the kiss photograph.