On Monday, I googled for our alma mater and called the number. I asked if Mr. Steve was there [but asked for his full name] and when I could contact him. The woman said I could try to call after 2:50 and gave me his email address when I asked. Mr. Steve's email is his full name at the abbreviation for our old school system, .org. So, firstname.lastname@[four letter abbreviation].org¹. I sent Mr. Steve this email

I don't know if you remember me, I'm Urs --- A----- from the class of 1999, one of the people that put together that quote site* with Sig-- J-------- (also of the class of 1999). I'm in Northern California right now, but I'm coming back to Rapids tonight for my grandmother's funeral. I am hoping to also use the time to touch base with you and see how you are doing. I'm also supposed to relay a message from Sig that she just finished her MFA at the [UAA].

I hope you'll be available for a chat sometime on Thursday (most likely). If not, I'm available at this email address and I can relay your email address to others. I hope you're doing well and I hope to see you soon.

Thanks,
Urs---

* http://www.funkychipmunk.net/Remakes/LHSQuotes/ is a remake of her site, but I hate it, so I'm working on this http://lhsteacherquotes.blogspot.com/

He replied on Tuesday that he was looking forward to seeing me, and I made mental plans to call the school on Thursday.

On Thursday morning, my dad helped me out by looking up the LHS Science Department phone number, and I actually got to talk to Mr. Steve - he said that the kids were in lab all day, so I could stop by any time before 2:50. If it was after 2:50, I'd have to come by the track².

Thursday was a busy day for me, and between that phone call and when I got to LHS, my dad made me eat steak, then my mom got a rental car, I washed my hair and changed clothes, then I learned that I needed car insurance in California, and ordered some on the phone from a broker in San Ramon, then my mom and I left for Rapids, then Minnesota, and I hugged and said farewell to my dad until next time.

It was about 1:50 or 2 or something, and raining. I knew I'd be there for 7th hour. Mom dropped me off at the front of the school, and I got out and took a picture of the entrance.

I walked in and was taken back in time 8 years, for a second, at least. A group of very young looking girls walked by, talking about something that was important to their lives, but that won't matter in a decade - just some event, club, or sport. I saw a few other people, and wondered what they thought of me. I wore my black skirt and nylons on purpose, instead of my jean skirt and black tights. I wanted to look as professional as possible, and I hope that did come out through my size and my red fleece men's jacket from Target. If it didn't, oh well.

I went into the old stairwell, with the same artwork on the walls, and went up. I walked around that corner that I'd been by a million times, and into that same old classroom. I recognized everything, but it seemed so small. I think I saw the same desks - did I really sit in the second row, or were there more desks back then? I saw young looking students in the seats, two children in the front of the class, and Mr. Steve. I waved and he recognized me, saying, "here is what a college graduate looks like." I came in and let him finish explaining the lab to the students, who I quickly realized were all male. The lab had something to do with light bulbs, and the students were expected to obtain small light bulbs from Simon. I had instantly realized that the two kids were that toddler and infant that often visited Mr. Steve back in 1999, but 8 whole years older.

When the students got up and began learning about electricity and light, I hugged Mr. Steve and told him that I wasn't just a college grad, but had a Master's, and gave him my business card. I first asked him about the huge gender imbalance, and learned that boys take physics and girls take biology. This class was his physics 3 class, and he'd been teaching them for 3 years and was doing his best to make sure they were decent human beings. I remembered what J.Mo said about young boys and sex, and saw that Mr. Steve's goal was enormous, but he did what he could, part of which was teaching them to clean up after themselves.

Mr. Steve said a few things about me to his students, and I'm sure a few more after I left. Lee Ironside once made a comment about my size after I made a remark about making my macaroni and cheese³, and Mr. Steve chastized him. I don't remember the comment, but I remember changing my opinion of Lee Ironside forever, and feeling good that Mr. Steve was on my side. So I was worried about what the boys saw, but I knew that Mr. Steve would set them right. Yes, I was what a college graduate looked like, and yes, I was one of the girls that took physics, and no, they had no right to make judgements about me based on my weight.

I asked if, aside from the gender thing, we looked like these current students. He said yes and made a comment about how aging seems to work - that we'll all be older some day and it is interesting to watch. I also asked if he saw any differences in students from my class and students now, and he said yes again. He explained that students now are even more concerned - obsessed, really - with the present. Parents now can check grades online at any time, and if he didn't get an assignment graded in time, parents would complain. One of the students in his other classes was going to get a tatoo of a giant crusifix, and a bible verse across his back. He tried to show the student that it was a mistake - that the student may not always feel that way, but the tatoo is for the rest of his life, but the student was sure that he would. We shook our heads.

We talked about a few other things - Mr. Steve gets his news from Jon Stewart too, and watches Adult Swim when he can. I talked a little about my career path and my current work. I also mentioned you, Sig, and he does know about your MFA. Students came up a lot and asked questions, they also asked them loudly from the back. He went to the lab area a couple of times to help. I asked if I could take a picture with a flash, because I didn't want it to mess up the lab results [the lights were off], and he went back and talked with the students again.

When he was working with students, I talked to Simon and Savannah. I told Simon about the time I worked at Copps and he was under the grocery cart, hiding from the aliens. He smiled, but didn't remember that, and I said, "yeah, you were only about 2 or 3." I also saw Savannah drawing on the white board - they have white boards, not chalk boards now - and told her about how she and Simon used to come to class when I was in school, 8 years ago, and she was just a baby, but her brother used to draw on the board, and would yell out, "Daddy! Look at what I drew!" and how her dad would turn back and say something like, "That's very nice Simon." She smiled. I can't believe that baby is actually an 8 year old now [8 or 9, I guess].

My mom called, eventually, and I knew that class was ending, so I had to take off. I hugged Mr. Steve again, he told me that he was proud of me, and I thanked him. When I left, I made some remarks about Savannah, and noticed she was slumping. I tried to straighten her up [which may have been annoying], but explained that my company really emphasizes proper ergonomics and that one of the company slogans was "do is safely or not at all" [because it really is], and left. I walked down to the other staircase because my mom was waiting at that end of the school. I realized that the "Beauty and the Beast" shirt I'd seen one of the students wearing was from the school musical that year, and took another picture.

I wanted to take a picture of the stairs too, but I never got a good angle. Not to mention that my mom had been waiting for 15 minutes, by now. I saw the hall where my old locker used to be, and saw that wall with different, but similarly boring and stupid posters. I think one was about smoking. Next time I go back, I want to visit more teachers, and I suggest we all make visits to LHS next time we're in town.

1 - I do that so the bots won't find his address from this site
2 - Would they be enjoying the lab from hell? And Mr. Steve is still supervising jocks.
3 - I think it was about boiling water, actually, but I decided to make my question more interesting by peppering it with a tidbit from my life

All of the pictures are available at the following links in their original size for use by members of the blog and anyone that asks and has a good reason to have them.

• Entrance
• Cafeteria
• Lab
• Hall