To be tak en in th e m orning w ith a grain of salt January 30, 2009 Vol. 4 No. 1

Th e R od k e y R e ad e r

Drive n dow nh ill by 70 m ile -pe r-h our Santa Ana w inds across tinde r-dry ch aparral, th e fire h it cam pus le ss th an 20 m inute s afte r starting in a ne arby e state .Stude nts, inte rrupte d in th e ir Th ursday e ve ning routine s, m ove d calm ly to th e fire -proof Gym , w h e re m any of th e m w ould e ve ntually spe nd th e nigh t.Joh n Rodk e y w as on cam pus at th e tim e , and spe nt th e nigh t acting in h is e m e rge ncy re sponse role , m aintaine d com m unication w ith th e out-s ide w orld by re gular update s to th e W e stm ont h om e page .Th is m e ant ve nturing into th e nigh t num e rous tim e s to m ak e th e se update s from th e library base m e nt.

Joh n de scribe s th e fire storm : "You don't re ally unde rstand w h at a w ildfire is lik e 'til you've be e n in one . Tre e s w e re e xplod-ing and h uge pie ce s of flam ing de bris w e re flying th rough th e air-- it w as lik e a w ar zone . Ve ry scary."W e stm ont lost e igh t buildings and fifte e n faculty h om e s in th e fire . W ith ove r 200 h om e s de stroye d, th e Te a Fire is com parable in s ize to th e 19 64 Coyote Fire w h ich cove re d m uch of th e sam e ground.

Sch ool re sum e d at W e stm ont tw o w e e k s afte r fire , w ith just th re e w e e k s re m aining in th e se m e ste r. "It's h ard to cope w ith such de struction in w h at h as be com e our se cond h om e , but at le ast w e 're toge th e r," said a W e stm ont stude nt w h o spok e anonym ously. "W e stm ont is a com m unity, good tim e s and bad. Th e Te a Fire is just a poignant re m inde r of th at."

-- Erik

Se e h ttp://w w w .w e stm ont.e du/te afire

W estm ont Faculty, Student 'Fundam entally Sound' After Tea Fire

Strik e!!York Univers ity, Toronto-- York Univers ity graduate students , or-ganized by th e ir union, w ent on strik e th is Novem ber, bringing clas s e s and norm al univers ity life to a standstill. Th e R e ade r spok e to Elis sa Rodk ey, a local grad stu-dent from York ’s H istory and Th eory of Psych ology program about h ow th e strik e h ad affected h e r sch ool year. “I h ad planned to w rite a spectacular M aster’s th e s is , but now I w ander th e snow -covered stre ets aim les sly, h oping to find m y m otivation,

M ajor Ch anges for ErikErik starte d h is se cond ye ar at W e stm ont by de claring art as h is m ajor, a logical ch oice , give n h is inte re st in film m ak ing. H ow e ve r, afte r e xte nsive soul-se arch ing follow ing th e Te a Fire , in w h ich th e lim e stone sculpture s h e h ad painstak ingly fash -ione d ove r th e course of th e se m e ste r w e re de stroye d, Erik de -te rm ine d th at m usic brings h im both im m e diate and long-te rm satisfaction. Th is January m ark s th e one ye ar annive rsary of h is ce llo le ssons, but w h e n ch oosing a prim ary instrum e nt, Erik pre fe rs one th at h e alw ays carrie s around w ith h im : h is voice - a rich baritone inh e rite d from h is grandfath e r. Alre ady th is voice is in h igh de m and: a m e m be r of th e Colle ge Ch oir and th e Ch am -be r Singe rs, h e sang an e xte nde d solo at th e W e stm ont Ch rist-m as Fe stival. In Fe bruary h e w ill be pe rform ing in th e m usical ‘Th e Se cre t Garde n,’ cast as both Mary's fath e r and Be n W e ath -e rstaff.

Se e "Toronto", pg. 2

See "Key Ch ange", pg 2

inspiration, and incom e – all of w h ich h ave be en stolen by th e strik e .” Sh e added, h ow ever, th at s h e h ad be en aw ed by th e union rh etoric, th e strik e bunny, and th e uni-on figh t songs (i.e Th e Battle H ym n of th e Republic rendered as "Glory, glory, h allelujah ! Th e union m arch e s on..."). De spite th e s e trials, Elis sa pers evere s , consoling h e rs elf w ith th e m em ory of th e aw ard s h e w on th is sum m er at th e Am erican Psych ology As sociation convention for h e r pre s entation on early psych ologist Jam e s M cCos h . Th e lecture , w h ich conte sted th e com m on view of pre -1880 Am erican psych ology as a psych ological Dark Age, carried th e Society for th e H istory of Psych ology's prize for be st student paper. Th is be ing Elis sa's first aca-dem ic conference , th e w in proved w elcom e confirm a-tion of h e r vocation and an encouraging start to h e r s econd year of graduate studie s .

Elis sa's m otivations for attending th e conference w ere le s s th an purely academ ic: th e conference 's location in Boston proved a convenient excus e to vis it nearby col-lege friends . Returning to York , Elis sa re s earch ed th e subject of h e r m aster's th e s is , developm ental psych olo-gist Eleanor Gibson, spending s everal days at th e Cor-nell Univers ity arch ive s . Back in Toronto w aiting out th e strik e , Elis sa enjoys h e r new dow ntow n apartm ent's proxim ity to Knox Pre sbyterian Ch urch , w h e re s h e h as found friends and com m unity. - - Krista

Erik e xpe rie nce d ch ange in h is room ing situation as w e ll: from a spacious s ingle , h e m ove d into a tiny triple w ith frie nds Ch arlie and Jason. Th e Th re e Am igos furth e r forge d th e ir frie ndsh ip during th e stude nt pro-duction of ‘Th e Im port-ance of Be ing Erne st,’ and for m onth s, O scar W ilde q uote s dom in-ate d th e ir conve rsation. Now , h ow e ve r, th e y are w ork ing h ard to ach ie ve th e cove te d 'Toh u Wa Boh u' prize for th e room m ost close ly re -se m bling ch aos be fore Cre ation. -- Je anne

Je anne can h ardly find w ords to e xpre ss h e r joy w ith h e r job at Life Ne tw ork , pe rform ing obste t-rical ultrasounds for at-ris k m oth e rs. Sh e finds particular ple asure in distre ss ing Erik w ith h e r de scriptions of th e day's s igh tings - a baby yaw n-

ing in ute ro or tw ins "bouncing up and dow n lik e a pogo stick !" Ove r-com ing conce rns th at h e r frie ndly de -m e anor m igh t be tak e n as unprofe s-s ional, sh e provide s w arm th and ch e e r to all w h o com e to th e clinic. As th is te m -porary job w inds dow n, s h e h as be e n

pre paring for a possible job in public h e alth by tak ing a class on ch ild de ve lopm e nt at Santa Bar-bara City Colle ge . Th is class offe re d an acade m -ic approach to ch ild de ve lopm e nt, a h e lpful com ple m e nt to Je anne 's prim ary m e th od of re -se arch in th is fie ld: dire ct inte raction w ith ch il-

dre n, a practicum in w h ich s h e h as logge d innum e rable h ours.H e r m ost re ce nt re -se arch subje cts in-clude Ke ara (age 7) and Sie rra (age 3) Rodarte . Living te m -porarily w ith Silvia and Cody, th e bois -te rious and e xube rant girls w e re introduce d to favorite Rodk e y storybook s, re cipe s, activitie s , and acade m ic traditions. During th e sum m e r m onth s, Je anne de vote d h e rse lf to th e obse rva-tion and care of th e se girls. Sh e note d w ith in-te re st th e de ve lopm e ntal im pact on Cody, w ith h is sudde n role as big broth e r. In th e e arly fall, sh e accom panie d Ke ara and Sie rra on th e ir re turn trip to Colorado, w h e re s h e w it-ne sse d th e joyous re union w ith th e ir m oth e r. Sh e look s forw ard w ith anticipation to future s im ilar ch ild de ve lop-m e nt proje cts. -- Joh n

Key Ch ange (Cont. from pg. 1) Unconque rable , Cody Continue s to Ach ie ve

Alw ays up for a ch alle nge , th is fall Cody e nrolle d in Coastline Ch ristian Acad-e m y and trie d football for th e first tim e . Football prove d no m atch for Cody’s natural ath le tic abil-itie s , but th e ne w sch ool w as anoth e r m atte r: th e y re q uire trick y th ings lik e cursive and ge o-m e try! But th is too h as be e n ultim ate ly positive ; Cody re ve ls in k now ing all th e stude nts in h is sch ool by nam e and starting e ach day w ith ch ape l. Th is sum m e r Cody affirm e d h is faith in baptism ; ne xt up, piano le ssons w ith Ade lle ! Each of th e se e ve nts raise s th e ine vitable q ue s -tion: could Cody be grow ing up? But th e Rodk e y clan is in no h urry to answ e r th is ph ilosoph ical que stion, pre fe rring to savor th e ir younge st's puns and jok e s w h ile anticipating h is future ath -le tic, acade m ic, and m usical fe ats. -- Elissa

Bunny ExcavationsSoam e s & Ire ne , Esq u ire , w ill uncove r pipe s, cre ate tunnels, and re place your

landscaping w ith taste fully arrange d pile s dirt, all fre e of ch arge .

Book Ends Stats

Th is yearBook s Sent in '08: 1716Recipient Fam ilie s : 62Recipient Kids : 208Countrie s : 24Book Donors : ~ 75Last 6 yearsTotal Book s Sent: 69 9 9Look ing forw ardBook s on H and: ~ 4800Goal for '09 : s end 2000Want to be involve d? Se e Jeanne

Toronto ( Cont. from pg. 1)

Jeanne loves babie s!

New H e igh ts in H um ilityAfte r ye ars of succe ssfully singing h e r ow n Songs of Se lf-Congratulation, Krista h as de cide d to contribute to th e good of m ank ind by

joining h e r ch urch ch oir in Bloom ington, IN. W h e n ask e d if th is w ould conflict w ith h e r graduate studie s at Indiana Unive rsity, Krista re plie d, “Oh , no. I’m q uite brilliant e nough to study Fre ge , w ork out logic proble m s, and com pose ne w songs to m yse lf w ith out m iss ing a be at. I e ve n inve nte d a ne w gam e to play

by m yse lf, s ince no one e lse is am azing e nough to play it w ith m e . Did I m e ntion m y ne w book ?"Sadly, Krista's atte m pts to h ave h e r late st pape r

pe e r-re vie w e d prove d fruitle ss, as s h e w as unable to find any pe e rs. Sh e w as last se e n at a local book store , s igning copie s of h e r book w h ile s im ultane ously h anding out subscriptions to h e r ne w m agazine , “Socie ty for th e Advance m e nt of Ch ildre n’s Lite rature .” W h e n ask e d w h y s h e h ad starte d th e Socie ty, Krista answ e re d w ith a sm ile , “Be cause I care . Pe ople now adays ne e d re m inde rs of th e im portant th ings in life … and I’m only too h appy to sh ow th e m w h at a full life look s lik e .”W ith th e auth or’s ge ne rous pe rm iss ion, w e are re printing a poe m from h e r ne w book , “To Myse lf, O Glorious Th ou… ”

Song of Self-Congratulation, No. 27And I de cre e h uzzah s for m e ;

M y sple ndor ce le brate .I ne ve r fail to loudly h ailM ys e lf— th e truly gre at! -- Erik

Local auth oritie s , contacte d by a conce rne d citize n, inve stig-ate d re ports of a be ach w h ale in th e Ellw ood are a on th e out-s k irts of Gole ta. Upon close r e x-am ination, th e w h ite fis h -s h ape d obje ct prove d to h ave its origins in air rath e r th an in th e se a. Th e auth oritie s inte rvie w e d Joh n Rodk e y, a paint-be spe ck le d m an w h o se e m e d to tak e re sponsibility for th e grounde d bird. “Afte r ye ars of battling force ful w inds, Tack y took re fuge in m y garage . H e ’s spe nt th e last fe w

ye ars re sting h is w ings and do-ing a bit of all-around re cupe rat-ing."Rodk e y tak e s Tack y out onto th e drive w ay for w e e k ly th e ra-pe utic se ss ions, but voice d h is conce rn ove r th e abnorm ally large num be r of turk e y vul-ture s th at circle ove rh e ad. “One sw oop, and Tack y w ould be a gone r!” De spite th e occa-s ional difficulty, Rodk e y fe e ls h ope ful for Tack y’s future . “W e ’ve m ade gre at progre ss to-ge th e r, and I’m look ing for-w ard to re turning h im to h is natural h abitat. Tack y is an odd bird, but a nice bird to h ave around.” -- Ade lle

W h e aton Alum Re turns Trium ph antAde lle 's se cre t plan to infiltrate th e Santa Barbara m usical com m unity h as prove d an unqualifie d succe ss, confounding h e r dism al pre -graduation pre dictions but confirm ing th e th e orie s of Type -A pe rsonality e xpe rts w orldw ide . Pre lim inary ste ps include d a ste llar Se nior Re cital on th e oboe (ce le brate d w ith fudge , frie nds and fam ily), and a trium ph al graduation from W h e aton (using th e sam e succe ssful re cipe as th e re cital, m inus th e

fudge ). Afte r th e obligatory Rodk e y road trip w h ich took th e fam ily th rough Ye llow stone and a Nostalgia Tour of Spok ane , W A, Ade lle re turne d to Santa Barbara inte nt on se tting up a m usic studio in th e Rodk e y abode . Ste p tw o of Ade lle 's sch e m e re q uire d cre ating busine ss cards, le sson plans, and re arranging th e living

room , including th e purch ase of a de s k from w h ich to pre s ide ove r oboe -re e d m ak ing and oth e r such pe dagogical activitie s . Luck ily Ade lle e xce ls anyth ing e ntre pre ne urial and organizational, and h ad ple nty of tim e le ft ove r to ge t a job at Starbuck s, w h e re s h e finds spe cial ple asure in e fficie ntly splash ing m och a sauce and w h ippe d cre am on e xotic coffe e drink s . Not only h as Ade lle attracte d a num be r of loyal piano and oboe stude nts, but th is fall sh e be cam e affiliate d w ith a h om e sch ooling arts group, Artios Acade m ie s , w h e re s h e te ach e s m usic h istory, ch oir, and dram a club. At th e e nd of fall se m e ste r, th e pe rform ance of Ade lle 's ch oir and th e (som e tim e s uninte ntionally) h um orous production of th e Ligh t Prince ss, by Ge orge MacDonald (adapte d by Ade lle h e rse lf) e nth ralle d th e ir audie nce . As a re sult of th e se e fforts, Ade lle now h as nam e and face re cognition rivaling h e r m oth e r's Ch ristian Ce le brity status, and sh e finds s h e can h ardly w alk dow n th e stre e t w ith out be ing m obbe d by adoring stude nts and Starbuck s' re gulars. -- Elissa

Beach ed W h ale Sigh ted on Big Sur

O ne M isty, M oisty M orning...As I pe e k e d out m y w indow at 3:55 am , I w as in-stantly re m inde d of th e nurse ry rh ym e :

"One m isty, m oisty m orning, w h e n cloudy w as th e w e ath e r,I ch ance d to m e e t an old m an, dre s s e d all in le ath e r."

Th ick fog blank e te d m y back yard, be stow ing it w ith a ne w m yste rious look . I w ouldn't h ave be e n at all surprise d to m e e t an old m an in le ath e r; in th is w e ath e r, anyth ing could h appe n.Ste pping outside , I found th e fog w asn't just m oist, it w as w e t! Be fore I'd bik e d a block , m y glasse s w e re so w e t I couldn't se e th rough th e m . I pe rch e d th e m at th e tip of m y nose , lib-rarian-style , and look e d ove r th e m for th e re st of th e ride , ris k ing a police citation, s ince I ne e d glasse s to drive , and pre sum ably to bik e . Th ank fully th e roads w e re e m pty.In addition to th e fog's w e tne ss, its de nsity took m e by surprise . H olliste r Ave nue , th e m ain road in m y com m ute , is straigh t w ith h igh vis ibility; on a norm al sunsh iny day, you can se e at le ast a m ile . Th is m orning, visibility w as le ss th an 1/16th of a m ile : once I passe d one stre e tligh t, I could bare ly se e th e fuzzy glow of th e ne xt. It w as as if I w as riding th rough a m isty tunne l w ith all re s ide nce s and busine sse s te m porarily re m ove d.H ow e ve r, Starbuck s w as still th e re . Th rough out m y e arly m orning sh ift, I w atch e d th e fog th in gradually and dispe rse . I rode h om e unde r blue s k ie s , but continue d to h e ar fog h orns th rough th e day, re m inding m e of m y m isty, m oisty m orning. - - an excerpt from arodk eylife .blogspot.com

For m ore Rodk e y M us ings th rough out th e ye ar, re ad...h ttp://m ygrow le ry.blogspot.comh ttp://k risticity.blogspot.comh ttp://arodk e ylife .blogspot.comh ttp://m ack e re l-sk y.blogspot.com

Ne w su ite ope ns in Big Sur B & BTh e inte rnationally acclaim e d h ospitality e stablish m e nt, Rodk e y Be d & Bre ak fast, is ple ase d to announce th e ope ning of a ne w ly re novate d suite . Th e ch arm ing gue st be droom cre ate s a ch e e ry atm osph e re w ith its ye llow w alls and prom ine ntly fe ature d Audobon bird prints. Th is suite is but th e late st trium ph of Rodk e y B & B, w h ich is , of course , alre ady re now ne d for its idyllic location: five m inute s w alk from be autiful be ach e s , a sh ort drive from picture sq ue dow ntow n Santa Barbara, and just se conds from th e fascinating Ellw ood Monarch Grove . Paym e nt m ay be w aive d for m e m be rs of th e pre stigious 'Frie nds of Rodk e y' club. Call now for re se rvations!

Arts & Entertainm ent

Th e Anim al Fam ilyTh re e Cups of Te a

Th e Ligh t Prince ssTh e W illough bys

Rodk e ys Re com m e nd

Mode rn Tim e sDays of H e ave n*Band of Broth e rs

De sk se tOnceIt H appe ne d One Nigh t

W atch ing ...

Re ading...

*Not for th e faint of h e art

Cas enote s : a Notew orth y R eleaseJolliburton Picture s re le ase d 'Th e Case note s of Ch arle s Black son, P.I.' to its adoring public in De ce m be r 2008. W ritte n and dire cte d by Erik Rodk e y, th e film follow s private de te ctive Ch arle s Black son (Jason H ubbard) inve stig-ate s th e m yste rious disappe arance of a W e st-m ont stude nt (M ik e Be nne tt). De spite de ce ption by Fe m m e Fatale Blanch e Cartw righ t (Tah lia Me rrill), h e une arth s a con-spiracy involving cult le ade rs, e ndow e d ch airs, k idnappings, and se cre t tunne ls. Th e film noir style m ak e s e ffe ctive use of pre -fire W e stm ont cam pus ve ge tation and arch ite cture . Te ch nical difficultie s de tract som e w h at from unqualifie d e njoym e nt, but a spark ling pe rform ance by Dr. M ich ae l Sh asbe rge r as th e cult-le ade r m ae stro m ak e s th is ge m a m ust-se e . Th e film –w ith -in–a–film w h ich re ve als se cre t plans for W e st-m ont e xpansion is itse lf w orth th e tick e t price . Running tim e : 40 m inute s.

Re asonably price d Quote s for e ve ry occasion!

(m atch be tw e e n q uote and curre nt occasion not guarante e d)Se e Erik .

Th is age ncy not re sponsible for any re sulting annoyance ,

irritation, or de ath th re ats.

Th e Spirit Catch e s You and You Fall Dow n.Th e Se ve n Story Mountain