POKES AND POSTS - MR. LEAS 4TH GRADE CLASS

Dear Class,

Good to hear from you.  As I suspected, most of you were interested in the Winchester Mystery House and the baby.  I will do my best to answer your comments.  Some of you failed to put your name on your post, so you are addressed as Anonymous in my answer.  So a gentle reminder, put your name on your entry so I know who asked or commented.

The Winchester Mystery House:  to Lori, Davion, Alex, Enya, Rontaja, Nakeya, Javontae, Lora, DeWayne, Niguel, Tajmia, and Anonymous.  First, let me make it very clear, this house is NOT my house; I do NOT live in it!  The Winchester House is very big, pretty, and overwhelming.  While it was nice to take a tour and see part of the house, it is way too big for one person.  The house is so big you could get lost in it?  Think about living in a house with 160 rooms, 40 bedrooms and all those windows - do you want to clean them all or any of them?  I bet most of you are answering "No way!"  Well I wouldn't want to clean all those rooms and windows either!  

If you go to this Wikipedia.com link, you can learn more about the house.  At one time, the house sat on a plot of land approximately 160 acres in size.  Over the years, the land was sold and today the house sits on a plot of about 4 acres.  I do not know if there was ever a swimming pool on the property or not. My guess would be NO, because she was too busy building her house and did not have time for a pool. 

The earthquake of 1906 did do some damage to the house.  As a result, part of the house was closed off for years.  Mrs. Winchester however, did not die in the earthquake.  She lived for 16 more years and died in 1922. 

The Baby:  to Georgene, Nakeya, Javontae and Anonymous.  We do think that Sydney is beautiful!  She is still very small, but boy can she cry when she is hungry or needs a diaper change.  She definitely knows the sound of her father's and mother's voices.  I've posted a new picture of Sydney taken just yesterday (8th) and I also posted a picture on the Pokes and Posts Entry for Mrs. Bowen's class.  Go take a look.

The Golden Gate Bridge:  to Georgene.  Yes, the Golden Gate bridge is very pretty, especially on a sunny day.  It's orange color makes the bridge stand out against the blue sky.  It is a very busy bridge and is a major means of access to San Francisco and the Bay Area.  Before the bridge was built, there was a ferry service.  Can you name a place in North Carolina that uses a ferry to access the land?  Take a look on a map at the Outer Banks and Ocracoke Island?  What does the map say about access to the island?  Let me know what you discover.

Junior Standing Watch
for the Dogs

The Dogs and the Cat:  to Anonymous.  The dogs, Buddy and Scrounge, are learning to get along with the cat, Junior.  Junior is a little instigator.  She tries to antagonize or annoy the dogs, especially when she thinks no one is looking.  Junior is not allowed outside.  When the dogs are outside at the door waiting to come back into the house, she goes to the door and bats at the window and raises her back.  She runs at the dogs in the house and hisses at them.  So far, we have not had a fight.  The dogs tend to run the other way.  Buddy has already been swatted once by Junior.

Buddy and Scrounge also LOVE the baby!  Every time Sydney makes a sound, the dogs are right there watching, especially Scrounge!   Take a look at the two of them standing guard over the baby!

Buddy and Scrounge have not yet been introduced to Shiloh and Bella.  That will probably happen in a couple of weeks.  This is still new to them and they are learning a new schedule and way of living, especially with a cat!

See you soon!  Caio!

POKES AND POST - MRS. BOWEN'S 3RD GRADE CLASS

Good morning class.  Actually, it is afternoon in Middleburg, but still morning here in California.  I enjoyed reading your posts this morning and will do my best to answer your questions.  A gentle reminder, some of you failed to post your name, so please do not be upset when your name doesn't appear with the answers.  You are not forgotten though, you are the Anonymous in my answer. 

A Very Tired Sydney!

The Cute Baby: to Asia, Traon, Tajmia, Symaj, Ahbria, and Anonymous.  The baby is definitely cute and we do love her.  She is my great niece and her name is Sydney, the new baby of my niece Jamie and her husband Wil.   She is being spoiled by all of us, to include Ms. Virginia. 

The Winchester House:  to Alyssia, Autumn, Vondarious, Alexis, and Anonymous.  The Winchester House is indeed very cool - big, lots of rooms and one could get lost in the house there are so many rooms.  The gardens surrounding the house are beautiful and it very relaxing to sit outside and listen to the water fountain and the birds. 

We did take a tour of the house and it was very interesting.  It might be fun to live in the house for a couple of days, especially with 40 bedrooms. Think about this though - if you live in the house, you have to clean the house.  Do you want to clean 160 rooms?  I sure don't!

The lady who had the house built was very wealthy.  She had a great deal of money that she could spend on building her house.  I think I would have rather used some of that money to help people, not build such a big house for one lady!  Seems kind of selfish to me to be so wasteful.  No one can use 160 rooms!

The Fog:  to Alexis and Destinee.  The thick fog is wild!  It can be scary when it is so thick and you cannot see in front of your face.  This can be very dangerous if you are driving a car or walking outside.  I've seen the fog come rolling in like a big wave rolling onto the beach.  It is overwhelming! 

The Seals:  to Ahbria and Javontae.  The pictures were taken from the pier which is where we were standing when we saw the seals.  While the seals are fun to watch and they look like they wouldn't hurt you, they can be very dangerous.  So it is wise not to get too close to them.  If you have ever been to the zoo, the seals are often behind a big fence and often with a large gully between their habitat and the fence.   The barriers are there to protect you and the seal. 

Ms. Virginia Says Hello!

Coming Home:  Many of you have asked when we will return home.  We will begin our trip home on Wednesday, November 16th.   We will be taking a different route home for part of the trip.  We will go through California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas (we traveled through these on our way out) and then we will drop down to Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and then into North Carolina.  Go to the map and see if you can plot out our way home!

See you soon! 

SAN JOSE AND THE MYSTERY HOUSE

About an hour and a half southwest of Modesto is the city of San Jose and a mystery house called the Winchester House.  The house, built between 1884 and 1922, was under construction for 38 continuous years. 

The owner, Mrs. Sarah Winchester, was the wife of the inventor of the Winchester Rifle.  The rifle, nicknamed “the Gun that Won the West,”  was given this name because it was used in settling the West.  Mrs. Winchester was very eccentric and it was said she believed in ghosts.  A psychic told her she needed to move west and build a house to appease or calm the spirits of all the people who had been killed by the Winchester Rifle. 

Mrs. Winchester followed the advice of the psychic, moved to California and started to build her house which was under construction day and night for 38 years.  During the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, the tremors were felt from Oregon in the North to Los Angeles in the South to include San Jose.  At the time, Mrs. Winchester was sleeping in her favorite room.  When the quake struck, the house was damaged and she was locked in her room.  When her employees rescued her, it is said she sealed up the room and supposedly never slept there again.  There are many odd things in the house – to include a stairway that ends at a wall; doors that open into walls, not rooms; steps that are 2” tall; hidden doors and walkways; and a stain glass window that is installed on a wall that doesn’t get any sun. 

The house has 160 rooms to include 40 bedrooms and 10,000 window panes.  For its time, the house also had modern bathrooms and plumbing.  In today’s dollars, it cost over $70 million dollars to build.  It takes more than 22,000 gallons of paint to paint the house, and once the painters finish, they start all over again.  Today, the Winchester Mystery House and the surrounding gardens are open for guided tours.   There is even a “flashlight tour” on Halloween on every Friday the 13^th.     

Next we will head South to visit the towns of Monterey and Carmel.   

FORGOT ONE THING ABOUT SAN FRANCISCO - EARTHQUAKES

There was a small earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday, November 5, that measured 3.2 on the Richter Scale.  Do you remember the earthquake we had in August?  That one measured 5.9 on the scale.

 

We don’t seem to experience many earthquakes where we live; however, in California earthquakes are more common because of the San Andrea Fault.  This major fault runs north and south through the state for approximately 800 miles. The US Geological Society monitors ALL seismic or earthquake activity to include the earthquake we had in August.  In the San Francisco Bay Area between Saturday and today, Monday, Nov 7, there were eight (8) quakes measuring over 2.0 on the scale.  In California since November 1, there have been 325 earthquakes registering over 1.0.  Generally, quakes registering between 1.0 and 2.9 cannot be felt by us.

In April 1906, there was a major earthquake to hit San Francisco.  It registered 7.9 and destroyed a major part of the city.  Do you know of any other earthquakes that have hit around the world in 2011?  Do a Google search?  See what you find. 

California Road Trip – First Stop San Francisco

California has many places of interest to visit.  Thought I would share a few of these with you, places we’ve enjoyed discovering.  So get your maps out and start locating these hot spots.

First stop on our road trip is San Francisco, located about one hour and 40 minutes Southwest of Modesto.  San Francisco is a large city with a population estimated at 820,000 living in 47 square mile area.  Now compare that to Vance County where we live which has a population of 45,500 people living in an area of 254 square miles.  Without even visiting San Francisco, how would you describe the differences between the two locations? 

San Francisco is built on a series of hills making many of the city streets steep and curvy.  Big difference from our flat and straight highways!  The Golden Gate Bridge is a major attraction in the city as is Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39 with a beautiful carousal and the sea lions in the marina.  You can see Alcatraz across the bay.  Anyone ever heard of Alcatraz? 

Found this picture of the bridge covered in fog

The Golden Gate Bridge was built in the 1930s and was opened to traffic in 1937.  One of the world’s largest suspension bridges, the Golden Gate is 4200 feet long.  A suspension bridge uses cables anchored in towers to hold up the bridge.  It has six lanes of traffic for cars, as well as a pedestrian walkway and a cyclists’ path.  According to goldengatebridge.org, “as of April 2011, 1,929,896,448 vehicles have crossed the Golden Gate Bridge (includes northbound and southbound) since opening in 1937.”  That is a lot of cars!  The bridge is painted orange and is often surrounded by fog.  The day we visited, I remember the heavy fog and my inability to see the bridge because of it.

Pier 39 is a mix of shops, restaurants, and entertainment.  Three things I remember most about the pier, the sea lions, the carousel, and Alcatraz.  The marina at Pier 39 is home to noisy, lazy sea lions.  They spend considerable time basking in the sun watching the world go by. The noise they create is a barking sound, much like a dog’s.

The pier is also home to the San Francisco Carousel.  Have you ever ridden a carousel at a fair or carnival?  The San Francisco Carousel is unique.  It is from Italy and was handmade.  The rides are animals of all sorts.  The Pier 39 website offers the following information about the carousel. “The San Francisco Carousel is intricately hand-painted and depicts scenes from famous San Francisco landmarks, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, Chinatown, Lombard Street, Alcatraz and the popular California sea lions at PIER 39.  It is the only carousel in the country that has artistic renderings of its home city.  Eighteen hundred twinkling LED lights illuminate this carousel, which features 32 animals to ride, including sea dragons, sea lions, dolphins, panda bears, and of course, horses.  Amongst the intricately designed animals are chariots, and for the more adventurous riders there are spinning tubs.”

Standing at the end of Pier 39 and looking across the bay you see Alcatraz.  Ever heard of Alcatraz?  Alcatraz is actually an island with a number of buildings on it to include a prison for hardened, and some very famous, criminals.  It was first used as a federal prison in 1934.  In 1963, Alcatraz was closed as a prison.  Today, it is part of the National Park Service and is open for tours.  Alcatraz was also known as “The Rock.”

Next stop on our tour will be San Jose and the Winchester House.  Take care.

POKES AND POSTS

Hello 5th graders.  My email box was again full with your comments and questions.  Most of you are remembering to sign your name, some of you are forgetting.  So, please do not feel slighted if your name does not appear in the TO line of my response. 

So, this post goes back to:  Destinee, Lidia, Jacqueline, Robert, Brittany, Tar'Naja, Daevon, Demarius and several "Anonymous". 

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First, the Baby:  Thank you for all your very nice comments about the baby.  I shared them with Jamie and Wil, Sydney's mom and dad.  Some of you asked if Sydney was a boy or a girl; Sydney is a girl!! She is our little princess.  Sydney came home from the hospital yesterday, arriving here around 12:00.  She immediately commanded attention from everyone including the dogs.  Scrounge and Buddy have taken a great interest in her, Scrounge especially.  Everytime Sydney cries, or someone gets up and walks around with her, Scrounge is right at your feet.  Even in the middle of the night, Scrounge was found outside the bedroom door.  He is going to be her protector in years to come! 

Scrounge and Buddy Stand Watch
Above:  Grandpa Tib with Sydney
Right:  Uncle TJ, with Sydney

Binkey, the Cat:  Many of you have enjoyed all the animal pictures.  I think the one that has drawn the most laughter and discussion has certainly been Binkey drinking at the toilet.  That's a cat for you, they will investigate just about anything.


Orchard Elementary:  Several of you commented on the school and its technology.  Perhaps some day, Vance County Schools will be able to provide laptops for in-school use for the 5th graders.  That would be exciting.  A couple of you made a very nice comment about the school and the work of the principal at Orchard.  I passed your comment on this morning to the secretary and principal.  They thought it was very sweet of you.  If any of you are interested in becoming a penpal with a student at Orchard Elementary, let me know when I return.


Supermarket Scramble:  Hats off to Robert!  He is determined to be one of the four winners of the Supermarket Scramble.  I hope some of you well take the challenge and join Robert in this activity. 


Well, its time for dinner and I need to finish with the preparations.  Toodles!

POKES AND POSTS

Thank you for all your notes about the baby.  Sydney is really cute and I will share your comments with her mom and dad.  They will be coming home sometime today from the hospital, so we will be adjusting to the new sounds of a baby in the house.

Supermarket Scramble:  I hope that all of you, or at least some of you, will participate in the Supermarket Scramble activity.  This is a great way for you all to learn about the cost of items that we eat everyday, and it is also a great way to put your math skills to work.  While shopping last week at the local grocery store, I was standing at the cheese case and display and a father was asking his two daughters some questions about the cost of buying two different cheeses.  They didn't know the answer or couldn't come up with the answer very fast.  His comment, "What do you do with the math they are teaching you in school? "  My questions to you, "How do you use the math you are learning in school?" 

BINKY, THE CAT:  As I thought, many of you liked the picture of Binky trying to drink water out of the toilet.  Binky was NOT in the toilet and no one threw her in there.  She was thirsty and just jumped up on the open toilet and walked herself into the toilet to drink some water.  Cats are very nimble so she was able to get part of her body into the toilet.  When done, she pushed herself up and out and down!  Maybe you have a cat or a friend who does.  Maybe your cat has done this before.  Ask a friend with a cat if their cat has been on the toilet drinking water.

It is hard to believe that it is November 1.  Just three weeks to Thanksgiving when you all get a couple of days off from school.   We will be arriving home the same time you all get our for your break!  

More to come.  Have a great day!