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The Palm Valley School Student Blog

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Mr. Jue’s Journey as an Art Teacher

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Part of thebirdonfire.org feature series on Art Live!

By Middle-School Bloggers Sarah Alnabelsi and Morgan Richardson

Our art teacher Mr. Jue this year joined the PVS community. Inspired by our art topic in Blog class, we decided to learn more about our new faculty member Mr. Zack Jue. After all, I, Morgan, have taken part in his art class for almost a full semester. Mr. Jue teaches lower, middle, and high-school students. We each interviewed Mr. Jue about his experiences and journey that led him to be an art teacher at PVS.

Mr. Jue’s education led him through a path in art. “I took Art and Psychology at Claremont Graduate University,” said Mr. Jue. This key decision increased his knowledge of the arts. Mr. Jue tends to lean towards the region of “Lowbrow art” as well as 3D sculptures and street art. Lowbrow, as Mr. Jue explained, is “what people tend to call cartoonists and people who aren’t considered fancy.” 

Mr. Jue had a childhood full of art: “My mom is an art teacher, and my uncle was a relatively popular Chicano artist.” Mr. Jue’s sister also has a similar passion for art. She currently teaches at College of the Desert and paints realistic abstract portraits. Mr. Jue was inspired by many artists growing up and continues to be inspired. When naming his favorite artists, Mr. Jue includes, “David Cho” and “Doze Green from reading his magazine, Juxtapoz.”

After graduating from College of the Desert, Mr. Jue went on to California State University San Bernardino to earn a Bachelors in Psychology. He continued his education at Claremont University where he obtained a Masters degree in Fine Art (pvs.org). Mr. Jue had many career paths to choose from. He decided to pursue his art path. And here he is, sharing his art passion with the people at Palm Valley School. “This is home to me,” he says. Mr. Jue wants to give back to his “community.”  He adds, “I feel I have to.” Why is art his contribution? What was his path to art? Mr. Jue said, “I went to high school, graduated early and then went to college and took art classes for easy A’s.” Then, he added, “I fell into it” and loved art.

Photo Credit: Morgan Richardson and Sarah Alnabelsi

The Story of Rain 

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By Middle-School Blogger Morgan Richardson

Here in the desert, rain is not ordinary, but back in my home in chilly Oregon, rain comes on a regular schedule–like every day. All year long, the droplets would haunt my window. Now that I’ve become accustomed to the dry hot desert, rain is a blessing. From what I used to see as a warning of winter, I now see as a little glimpse of home.

A Rainy Day in the Neighborhood

Look through the window

Tears running down the glass,

The breeze has become

A wave of home at last.

My sister grinning and stomping her feet

Above the cherry tree, our eyes meet.

Slippery steps and squeaky boots,

The swings are soaked and of no use.

Snuggled up in my mermaid pajamas,

I hear the loud whistle of the train horn’s gallops.

I rest my eyes and drift to sleep 

With the comfort of knowing

The rain drops will guide me through my dreams.

How to Become The Alpha 101

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The Bird on Fire blog staff voted to explore Power and Leadership as their second theme. Soleil and Sarah took a balanced, high-road approach. Now, it’s time for darker, more scheming, . . . more Machiavellian perspectives.

By Middle-School Alpha, Morgan Richardson

Alphas get a bad rap. But, somebody has to lead the way. There are alphas all throughout the  natural world and in just about every group gathering. This is my step-by-step guide to becoming the infamous alpha. As an experienced alpha, I know the craft well. I’ve practiced on friends, family members, classmates, dogs and cats. I believe that everyone should be able to lead when called upon to be The Alpha.

Step One: Bark or meow to allow other species to know you’re the Alpha. You need to assert dominance loudly.

Step Two: After you’ve claimed your domain, deliver a continued sassy attitude to let others know you are the one-and-only Alpha and you’re here to stay. For instance, you could meddle with the property of those you want to dominate: rip their pencils in half, and “acquire” their lip tints. Another option, laugh at side characters incessantly until they run away. 

Step Three: Optional, but you can urinate on the floor to let people know you own this realm. It works with dogs and cats and some say jellyfish.

Step Four: Never act scared around bigger alphas, even when you’re cornered. Always make sure you don’t appear inferior. Puff yourself out; wear claws; wear your attitude BIG.

Step Five: Call people out on little things–like them stealing your favorite chew toy . . . or best friend.

Step Six: When necessary, don’t be afraid to lie.

Step Seven: Drop throwaway ambiguous lines to keep the less dominant on their toes. Saying “six seven” can mean various things, but since it’s nonsensical, it mostly shows power and dominance and sometimes produces advantageous confusion.

Step Eight: If necessary, step outside your kindness; for example, you can become like Bluey or Peppa Pig. Peppa Pig is mean to her friend Suzy Sheep; Bluey is a dog (and dogs are always alpha), and she is a sassy big sister.

Step Nine: Ignore people; especially side submissive characters. Side characters are irrelevant compared to you. Do we mourn the Star Trek “away teams” we know little about when they’re lost in space? No. Who was King Henry VIII’s brother? We don’t care. Who dated Travis Kelce in high school? Whatever.

Step Ten: Start your villain arc: throw trashcans; wear a shock collar (‘cause shocks intimidatingly don’t faze you); start wearing a black cape. Consider joining Nevan’s Villain Club on campus.

Note: thebirdonfire.org does not support the throwing of trashcans. Morgan’s on her own here.

Step Eleven: Remember: You are the main character and the alpha; if this guide does not work, bark until people listen.

Step Twelve: I am the Lorax, Guardian of the Forest, and I say, in the words of The Lorax movie, “LET IT GROW LET IT GROW you can’t reap what you don’t sow plant [The Alpha] seed . . . I say LET IT GROWWWW.”

Source: The Lorax (film) song:chrome-extension://ehnniokiiebpinnfegpkdlcamgdcaaje/block_screen.html?id=ad1169d5-65a7-4a4c-bb32-89c058fcc547

The Power Of Pee

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By 8th-Grade Blogger Morgan Richardson

Morgan’s not just click-baiting you here. Think of elephants traversing the open savannah . . . pooping.

In those droppings are seeds and nutrients. The elephants are literally dropping the seeds of growth in that habitat. Well, Morgan looks to the effects of animal urine, on sea and on land.

“Animals have the power to destroy our earth, or preserve its beauty.”

–Morgan Richardson

Most people couldn’t imagine the wonders urine does for our world. 

Elephants have huge bladders that can hold 18 liters of urine (livescience.com). Weirdly, it’s not the elephants that pee the most. Blue whales and fin whales pee 260 gallons a day (nationalgeographic.com). Whales are one of the world’s greatest animals that do wonders for our planet using their urine. Whale pee is healing our oceans. The nutrients inside whale urine help shallow waters become healthy. Whales transport nitrogen and phosphorus from their pee; it helps areas that lack those chemicals become healthier by creating phytoplankton growth. Without whale pee, many marine species wouldn’t exist.   

While some animals protect our planet with their pee, others don’t. Cows produce the most polluting pee of all. Their farts, burps, and urine all contain methane. Methane is 25 times more damaging to the planet than CO2 (epa.gov). 1.5 billion cows pollute our earth with nitrous oxide emissions and water pollution (m.farms.com). Though it may feel like there is no solution to this problem of too much methane, others find a way. A herd of cattle in Germany was potty trained to lessen greenhouse gasses. They were only allowed to urinate in one designated area (bbc.com). This experiment lessened ammonia emissions and the unlikely event of water contamination, while also enabling easier collection and treatment of the urine for potential use as fertilizer. If we keep trying to save our planet from these toxic gases we may create a healthier planet Earth. 

Urine has a huge impact on our world. It acts as a natural fertilizer to plants and the ocean, but can also leave us with pollution which can damage nature globally. Animals play a key role in saving the planet, and destroying it.

Photo Source: World Wildlife Fund

My Favorite Villain in Literature: Captain Hook

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By 7th-grade poet Morgan Richardson

A couple weeks ago we had a creative-writing prompt: Who’s your favorite villain? Morgan liked Captain Hook–so much she turned her affection into a poem and a full-blown post. Enter . . . Captain Hook.

My favorite villain is Captain Hook. I remember the movie Peter Pan from my childhood, and Captain Hook always made me laugh with his many shenanigans. His many adventures and hunts to track down Peter make up parts of his evil nature. The Captain is always angry, but what really pushes his buttons is the tick tock Crocodile on the hunt for his blood. I decided to write a poem about Captain Hook and his many quests. 

Deep in Neverland 

His boat rocks among the sand

A silver sharp hook on his right hand

A kinky mustache and eyes grim.

A frightful frown after losing a limb.

His anger reaches over the brim.

A mighty crocodile slithers in the sea.

Tick Tock, Tick Tock the rhyme of a bumble bee–

Must escape by climbing up a tree.

Stalking and waiting to use his claws.

Was that Peter Pan I just saw?

Stuck in Tick Tock the crocodile’s jaws

The Captain will never track down Tink.

His planned takedowns have their kinks.

Peter is gone before Hook can blink.

Always followed by the first mate, 

Threatening crew members, 

deciding their fate.

If you run you’ll get stuck on his hook,

All the kindness and lives he took.

A story so great it should be in a book.

No one can beat the cruel Captain Hook.

What’s New for Tennis in Indian Wells?

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By 7th-grade blogger Morgan Richardson

The BNP Paribas Open is running now from March 2nd to March 16th in my home town of Indian Wells. The event brings in huge crowds and will hopefully break last year’s record of 493,440 guests (bnpparibasopen.com). The streets of Palm Springs and Palm Desert are filled with visitors eager to attend this annual tennis tournament in our very own tennis paradise. In the past, many celebrities including Tom Holland, Zendaya, P!nk, Bill Gates, Will Ferrell, and Patrick Mahomes have attended, and who knows what stars will surprise us at this year’s BNP. Rumors are Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner have been in this year’s crowds. One of the main attractions, outside of world class tennis, are the many high-end restaurant options like Nobu, Porta Via, Molé, and Ristorante Mamma Gina. Many local favorites including J’s Deli, Tanya’s Kitchen, and even Coachella Coffee in case you need to hide from any bad weather are available at the BNP. To kick off the BNP, a family day is also available for free with face painting, yoga, crafts, and tennis lessons included. 

Fun Facts

  • The BNP has the second biggest outdoor tennis court in the world!
  • The BNP has held the event at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden since 2009.
  • It is the best attended tournament outside of all four Grand Slams, which is why it is often called the fifth Grand Slam.

I was first introduced to the BNP by my father, who attends religiously each year. And, if my father isn’t at the Gardens, he’ll be keeping up with matches via television. My mother is fortunate enough to see the finals every year with Dad, for this reason she’s become smitten with Carlos Alcarez, who has moved up in the ranks recently beating previous champion Novac Djokovic twice at Indian Wells. Some say that Carlos Alcarez is the GOAT of tennis.

I turned to my fellow classmates and asked who their favorite player or former player at the BNP is?

7th-grader Gavin had to go to Google to get an answer: 

“Simone Bolelli is my favorite tennis player.”

Ms. Maguire gives a shout out to her hometown Buffalo girl:

“Jessica Pegula is the best tennis player out there.”

Mr. Satterfield, with little to no tennis knowledge, puts a historic player at the top of his tennis pyramid:

“My favorite tennis player is Roger Federer.”  

Elizabeth Greenwood answers with a popular tennis favorite:

“My favorite tennis player is by far Serena Williams.”

My favorite tennis player is Novac Djokavic, though at a losing streak he has become my tennis inspiration. Winning or losing and still getting back on the court is one of the many valuable life lessons tennis has taught me. 

Sources:

https://bnpparibasopen.com › history

desertsun.com

What Does Valentine’s Day Mean to You?

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By 7th-Grade Poet Morgan Richardson

When wondering how to describe our recent Valentine’s Day, I turned to my classmates for a fresh opinion. I struggled with how to put Valentine’s day/love into one word? Many of the responses were negative and spoke of things such as “Jealousy,” and “Materialistism” ; everyone had a different viewpoint. As I went on interviewing, I kept asking myself the same question: How do you talk about love in one word? I came to the conclusion that Valentine’s Day is celebratory despite what others say. It’s not negative. These poems are inspired by the many opinions and views shared with me on the subject of Valentine’s Day.

I.

Love.

People say it’s an illusion,

Short time comfort 

Filled with jealousy and envy.

Others say it’s materialistic:

Chocolates and candies,

Red roses and jellycat stuffies,

Store bought cards and flowers.

But I think it’s more than that:

A saving grace

Filled with poetic words,

Showing love to the people who matter.

Love–

The meaning of happiness, joy and heartbreak.   

II. 

Cupid’s arrow shot right through my heart,

Blushing and butterflies that’s just the start.

The size of my heart has gone off the charts.

The hair, the face, the voice speak to me like art.

Sweet at first then it’s all tart.

Now it all restarts.

I found someone just my type.

My heart flies like a kite.

This might be the one I really do like.

But there’s a small dislike, tiny and slight;

I know someone better who doesn’t nail-bite.

This one’s not screwed on quite right.

Each one after the next, 

None of them passed my test.

I fear it’s time to reflect.

All this time I’ve spent

Too many regrets.

Now I’ll settle down,

If I can find someone I won’t repent.

What Home Means to Morgan

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By 7th-Grade Poet Blogger Morgan Richardson

Morgan hails from Oregon. She still speaks wistfully of the Pacific Northwest where she spent her early years. So, in our Blog Staff discussion of dream houses, Morgan recalls aspects of her Oregon home.

A house, a home 

A place to build memories

With the people you love.

Alone or together 

In these walls 

We will remember forever.

A marble kitchen counter,

Golden hardware,

Wooden floors,

My sister stepping through the door.

Footprints embedded in the cream-colored carpet.

A dog bed with a mountain of hair around it.

The office with a giant chandelier

All my family I miss so dear.

A big deep blue couch,

A hot fireplace and a kid too close–“Ouch!”

Rodents hosting showdowns in the upstairs attic.

Creaking floors made children panic.

Pink mermaids plastered on bed sheets.

A bunked bed where we spilled all the deets.

A six bedroom palace when I was small,

My past–I still cherish it all.

What is the secret to relationships that last over 20 years?

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By 7th-Grade Bloggers Soleil Antle and Morgan Richardson

We’ve been thinking about relationships. We thought the real experts of relationships are the ones that are in them–not just a high school boyfriend/girlfriend or even newlyweds–but more so people who have been through it all with over 20 years of relationship experience. Our parents, Jim and Elizabeth Richardson, Paul and Renee Antle, and Morgan’s family friends Ted and Kate, were the perfect candidates for interviewing on the subject of lasting relationships.

–Soleil and Morgan

Paul and Renee love enjoying date nights at their favorite restaurants every Friday. Photo Credit: Soleil Antle

My parents, Paul and Renee Antle, have been together for 35 years. When wondering how they knew their partner was “the one,” my mom Renee replied, “I knew he was the one because he was kind, and super intelligent, and taught me how to laugh again.” When an argument occurs between the two, they try to understand what may have caused the fight, and try to take responsibility if they were hurtful or in the wrong. Mom and Dad say the secret to a long-lasting relationship is “Honesty” and “patience.”  Dad said, “Don’t expect perfection; that’s not what marriage is.”

–Soleil Antle

Jim and Elizabeth in snazzy outfits, enjoyed themselves at the Palm Valley School Gala.  

My parents, Jim and Elizabeth Richardson, have been married for 20 years, and have two daughters, Louisa and me. Dad, when asked, “How did you know your partner was the one?”  responded, “She embodied all the things that I wanted in one person.” When in a disagreement, they give each other some quiet time and try to put themselves in their partner’s shoes. Mom, when asked for relationship advice, responded, “Pick your battles; don’t ever think you can change someone.” Mom and Dad said the secret to a happy marriage is “Forgiveness.” 

–Morgan Richardson

Kate and Ted in the middle of winter wear cozy sweaters and matching hats to escape the frigid cold and embrace their coupleness.

We interviewed Richardson family friends, Kate and Ted, who have shared their love for 45 years. Kate exclaimed, “That’s 315 dog years!” We saw how much they mean to each other. Ted said he knew Kate was the one at age 27 because he only felt happy and healthy around her. Kate explained what getting over arguments takes.  “Getting over arguments takes compromise, and also, understanding that the other person isn’t wrong; she/he feels differently about the issue and sees things differently. That takes a long time to develop and understand.” The two said, “Do not lose your temper; that’s really scary for the other person. And, don’t live beyond your means because that one thing alone can put stress on everything else in a marriage.”

–Morgan and Soleil 

After reviewing the knowledge from these three couples, we have learned that relationships take effort to be successful. Both partners need to support each other and work as a team, especially when children are involved.

Inspired by these heartwarming responses, Morgan created a love poem. 

I love you, he said,

A big heart painted red

A white gown and golden rings,

Wedding band, one blue thing.

Patient and kind

Love never died.

In sickness and in health,

Your love is my greatest wealth.

My heart will always be with you,

My cheeks turn a red hue.

I love you, he said,

Together forever and till the end

Home

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Our new Spring Semester middle-school team of bloggers warmed up this week with a creative exercise–responding to a Poets&Writer’s “The Time Is Now” Creative Nonfiction Prompt.

Our creatives were asked to write a spatial autobiography of the objects in their home or room, to tour their favorite things while weaving into the passage the memories attached to them. In this week where so many of our LA loved ones have lost the places where they feel most at home, we were moved by the comfort and association Morgan Richardson draws from her special place. The class voted it the spatial autobiography that best captures the essence of the writer.

The loud whistle reminds me of leaping off the starting block

The lane line reminds me of swimming as fast as I can each race

The green field reminds me of warm ups in winter before swimming

The bench reminds me of where I slick my hair and put on my cap each day

The kick board reminds me of challenging myself and becoming faster

The little pool reminds me of when I first stepped foot in the pool

The shallow end reminds me of moving up levels, scared but prepared

The water jug reminds me of jumping out of the water thirsty and parched

The deep blue pool reminds me of the place where I feel happy and most at home