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Hood River News, Wednesday, April 8, 2015
A5
The changing response to the familiar question, ‘What Do You Do?”
Imagine yourself at a
gathering, surrounded by
mostly unfamiliar people.
You enter into a bit of po-
lite conversation with
someone close by. In-
evitably, one of the first
sentences out of your
mouth, or
theirs, is
“What do
you do?”
The ex-
pected an-
swer must
be what
you do for a job. Any
other answer would most
likely label you as some-
one eccentric, lazy, or un-
employable.
These days, I answer the
question with “I’m an ele-
mentary school teacher.”
Any further probing from
the questioner leads to a
more complicated answer,
as I have an unorthodox
job within the framework
of “elementary school
teacher.” I’m a specialist,
meaning I see every K-5th
grade student, once a
week, for enrichment ac-
tivities that support litera-
cy.
Come June, my employ-
ment in this capacity will
come to an end, as I am re-
tiring from my position.
I’m excited about what is
forthcoming, but nervous
about what I will answer
when I’m asked the “What
do you do?” question.
CASCADE
Observations
■
I have three months to
figure out a good answer.
I’m already laying the
groundwork. What DO I
do, right now, that defines
me? Every Sunday I pick
up donated bakery prod-
ucts from Safeway and de-
liver them to the FISH
Food Bank. Every night, at
9 p.m., I call my 92-year old
friend to check on her. I’m
good at scrubbing toilets,
and even better at prepar-
ing dinner. I like washing
dishes. I enjoy long walks.
What would I like to do
come June? All of the
above, plus more. I
haven’t painted for 12
years, but hope to find the
creative energy to work
again in my studio. I’d
like to help teachers inte-
grate the arts into other
subject areas in their
classrooms. I plan to hone
my skills as a writer, and
maybe make a quilt or
two.
I’m determined to stay
involved in kids’ lives, es-
pecially those students
who are underserved. I’d
By PEGGY DILLS KELTER
like to be on the Arts In
Education of the Colum-
bia Gorge roster of teach-
ing artists, a job I did for
many years before my ca-
reer in the public schools.
I hope to reconnect with
my first classroom of
kindergarteners, who will
enter their senior year in
high school come Septem-
ber, and will likely need
help navigating the world
of post-high school. I plan
to volunteer for SMART
reading, and spend more
time aiding families at the
food bank.
fied by an eight-digit num-
ber and a plea agreement.
Luckily, some in the penal
system saw beyond those
definitions, offering him
job training, counseling,
and an early release for
his exemplary behavior
and a guaranteed job wait-
ing for him. My friend no
longer has to be identified
by what he did, but rather
by what he does (a job he
loves), and what he will do.
In that capacity, he hopes
to counsel children with
similar histories of grow-
ing up in violent homes.
■
■
A former student of
mine was recently re-
leased from prison. For the
past four years he’s been
incarcerated, defined not
by what he does, but by
what he did, an act that
many would suggest was
justified. Until a few
weeks ago, he was identi-
Once a week I join a
group of other like-aged
folks for an hour and a
half of yoga. My teacher
has the spirit of a young
person even though she’s
considered a “senior citi-
zen” by the government.
In her class, we do some
“doing,” what she calls
from Easter Island to
Bhutan and Ethiopia to
Los Angeles Airport…For
twenty years he’s been a
constant contributor to
The New York Times, The
New York Review of
Books, Harper’s, Time,
and scores of other maga-
zines and newspapers
across the globe.” In the
closing paragraphs of the
book, however, Iyer writes
“In an age of
speed…nothing could be
more invigorating than
going slow. In an age of
distraction, nothing can
feel more luxurious than
paying attention. And in
an age of constant move-
ment, nothing is more ur-
gent than sitting still.” If
Iyer found himself at a
party with strangers, how
would he answer the ques-
tion “What do you do?”
In my job as a teacher in
the public school arena, I
often feel like a hamster in
a cage, racing around the
revolving ring, unproduc-
tive, but unable to jump
off. In my new life, I hope
to occasionally answer the
question “What do you
do?’’ with “I go slow, pay
attention, and sit still.”
“Yan” yoga – poses that
strengthen—and an even
greater amount of “not
doing,” or Yin poses, when
we shape and settle into
non-moving poses for sev-
eral minutes, breathing
slowly and gradually let-
ting go of all the “doing”
we’ve done all week. The
final pose, as in all yoga
classes, is Savasana, also
called “corpse pose.” Re-
gardless of the type of
yoga one studies, every
class ends with this pose,
the ultimate moment in
non-doing. Breathing
slows, the brain quiets,
and the body sinks into
total relaxation. When I
was younger, and more of
a “do-er,” I found Savasana
to be difficult. Today, it’s
my favorite part of the
whole class.
■
In addition to teaching
us yoga, my teacher also
loves to read to us, and we
love to be read to. Recent-
ly, she shared excerpts
from Pico Iyer’s new book
“The Art of Stillness—Ad-
ventures in Going
Nowhere.” The “About the
Author” page in the book
states “Pico Iyer has been
traveling the world for
more than forty years now,
PARKDALE NEWS
Health Fair comes to Parkdale on April 23
By TAMARA EMLER BALL
Parkdale community columnist
The new Parkdale Health
and Wellness Committee is
hosting a free Health Fair for
the Upper Valley community
on Thursday, April 23 from 6
to 8 p.m. at Parkdale Elemen-
tary School.
Residents of all ages are
welcome to come get their
blood pressure and vital
signs checked, learn about
healthy cooking with diet
and nutrition information,
sign up for reverse 911 emer-
gency calls,
lear n about
the impor-
tance
of
smoke detec-
tors,
and
much more.
M a n y
agencies
from around Tamara Emler
the
Hood
Ball
River Valley
will be on
hand to provide families
with health related informa-
tion.
Presenters are still being
finalized, but will include A
Kidz Dental Zone and The
Hood River Health Depart-
ment, providing information
on immunizations, OHP and
Wic, as well as Community
Education opportunities for
Parkdale.
The Health Fair was creat-
ed to support the health and
wellness of the entire Upper
Valley Community.
If you are interested in
presenting, or would like
more information on the
event, contact Alison Betzing
at 541-370-5644.
■
Each year I write about
the Lions Follies show in
Hood River and the Upper
Valley residents who help to
make it a reality, but al-
though both of those reasons
are great, neither are the
real reason you should buy
tickets for the show.
One night before a perfor-
mance last year, Doug
Thompson, Executive Direc-
tor of the Oregon Lions
Sight and Foundation, told
the cast a story about a
young girl who was, at that
moment, in Providence
Memorial Hospital in Hood
River.
He said she had just that
day received a new hearing
implant provided by the
Lions Sight and Hearing
Foundation, the foundation
we were there to raise money
for, which would allow her to
finally hear.
As I felt a lump in my
throat, I looked around at the
cast and noticed I wasn’t the
only one having a huge emo-
tional response to the news.
Some of us wiped away a
tear or two because in that
moment, all of us under-
stood that all our hard work
and time put in for the show
is worth it if we could help
even just one little girl to
hear again.
The Lions Follies show is
the single largest fundraiser
for the Lions Sight and Hear-
ing Foundation in the state of
Oregon, as the profit from
performances is donated to
the foundation.
We see that money at work
in our community each year,
when the Lions provide free
vision testing to students at
Parkdale Elementary, to spot
any potential problems that
may interfere with their abil-
ity to learn.
“(The Lions’) state of the
art work conducting vision
screening is our primary
method for identifying early
vision needs for children,”
said Parkdale Principal Gus
Hedberg. “In addition to the Road in Parkdale.
The Grange will also hold
screening, the Lions Club
often provides support for its annual Chuck Wagon Din-
doctor’s exams and eye glass- ner fundraiser dinner on
Blossom Weekend, April 18
es.”
The Lions also provide and 19, from 11 a.m. to 5:00
sight and hearing help to p.m. on both days.
Dinner is your choice of
anyone, of any age, if they
need it, so I encourage every- ham or steak, mashed pota-
one reading this to buy a toes and gravy, wieners and
ticket, or many, even if you sauerkraut, many different
can’t attend “Follies in the salads, homemade desserts,
Ozarks,” a Ma and Pa Kettle and coffee, tea or punch for
just $10 for adults, $5 for ages
story.
Performances are Friday 5 to 12, and free for children 4
and Saturday, April 10, 11, 17 and under.
■
and 18 at 7:30 p.m. and Sun-
The Parkdale Garden Club
day, April 12 at 2 p.m., with
advance tickets available at will hold their annual
McIsaac’s Market and Jim’s fundraiser sale on Saturday,
Market in Parkdale, Mid Val- April 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
ley market in Odell, and at the Parkdale Grange Hall.
Plants, crafts, and baked
other locations in Hood
items will all be for sale at
River.
Along with the usual the event.
■
corny jokes, there are amaz-
Parkdale Elementary
ing vocals from country to
classic rock in the show, and School students will present
of course just a lot of good their annual spring music
program
family fun.
event
on
My personal
T h u r s d a y,
favorite is the
April 30 at 7
4-part “Seven
p.m. and par-
B r i d g e s
ents, f ami-
Road,” with
lies and the
Andy Streich,
community
Dave Tallman,
are invited to
Odell grower
attend.
Mike Oates,
The west-
and Follies
er n-themed
newcomer
event will
John Stipen,
feature tradi-
who
blend
tional stan-
their voices so
Bev Bridgewater,
dards such as
well they sound
Follies director
“Home on the
like The Eagles’
Range,” “Five
original.
We look forward to seeing Little Cowboys,” “Git Along
Little Doggies” and “Trail to
you there!
■
Mexico.”
The Parkdale Grange will
All students are required
serve their monthly break- to attend and are asked to
fast open to the community dress up as cowboys and
this Sunday, April 12 from cowgirls.
7:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the
Send items to: uvup-
Grange Hall on Clear Creek date@yahoo.com.
Hood River Weather Forecast
Date
Today April 8
Thurs. April 9
Forecast
Mostly Sunny
Mostly Sunny
Daytime / Overnight
High / Low (°F)
62° / 40°
67° / 43°
Fri. April 10
Mostly Sunny
69° / 47°
Sat. April 11
AM Rain
56° / 42°
Sun. April 12
Partly Cloudy
57° / 40°
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
WHERE ARE the bike lanes and crosswalks in your community? (Bi-
cyclists cross Highway 35 at China Gorge, where crosswalks,
though not bike routes, are in place.) Where are they not? ODOT
“virtual open house” asks for citizens to register their input.
ODOT holds on-line open
house on pedestrian and
bicycling route inventory
ODOT has launched a vir-
tual open house to enlist pub-
lic help in preparing an in-
ventory of “active trans-
portation” (walking and bik-
ing) needs on ODOT high-
ways in the Portland area.
The virtual open house can
be
found
at
www.oregon.gov/ODOT/AT
NI and will be accepting pub-
lic comments until April 19.
The open house is part of
the ODOT Region 1 Active
Transportation Needs Inven-
tory, a pilot project that will
identify gaps in walking and
biking facilities – including
sidewalks, bike lanes and
paths — on ODOT roadways
and will identify areas where
future investments may pro-
vide the greatest benefits.
In the virtual open house
Oregon Weather Map
Newport
53° | 39°
Humidity 88%
Wind Speed E 2 G 4 MPH
Barometer NA
WASH.
Astoria
58° | 40°
Portland
59° | 41°
Salem
58° | 39°
Eugene
56° | 36°
Dewpoint 41°F (5°C)
Visibility NA
Pendleton
57° | 34°
Bend
48° | 25°
Ontario
59° | 35°
Last update on 06 Apr 9:00 am PDT
IDAHO
North Bend
51° | 39°
Medford
54° | 32°
Klamath Falls
45°
| 25°
CALIF.
© 2015 Wunderground.com
Today’s Forecast
Mon. April 13
Tues. April 14
Partly Cloudy
AM Showers
WINTER
CHECKLIST
62° / 42°
57° / 40°
the public may:
■ Learn more about the
project.
■ Let us know what loca-
tions need improvement.
■ Give feedback on crite-
ria to evaluate walking and
biking needs.
ODOT owns, operates and
maintains more than 800
miles of state highway in
Multnomah, Washington,
Clackamas, and Hood River
counties.
Its mission is to create a
safe, efficient, transporta-
tion system that serves the
needs of
Ore gonians
whether they are walking,
biking, driving, or taking
transit. Less than half of
ODOT’s highways in urban
areas now have sidewalks
and bike lanes.
A 20 percent chance of showers before 11am. Partly sunny,
with a high near 61. West wind 7 to 10 mph.
Actual High / Low
AGRIMET HOOD RIVER OR
Lat: 45.6842 Long: -121.5181 Elev: 510
http://uspest.org
Mar
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29
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67/41
70/38
55/42
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57/39
56/32
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Updated Monday, April 6
at 9:00 a.m. PST
Data from www.weather.com
HOOD RIVER
3140 W. CASCADE •541-386-1123