Mondays can be thin

Happy Monday from Portland! I almost feel like I'm back on my feet but I'm still trailing a bit of a cold with me, so these days become longer than they are. Today, my visits dropped off a bit which was disappointing as I was ready to go in the new week and wrap up my time here. I'm convinced that this is mainly due to Mondays... students forget over the weekend that we're paying a visit to their school and don't remember to meet up. Ah well. There will be days like these...

My first stop was productive and fun as I met with three students at Sunset High School. Their mascot is the Apollo and I wish I had the opportunity to snap a picture of the school's seal located in the main hallway. I waited until after my visit, though, and it was all I could do to just survive the maddening crowds of swirling teenagers! I was lucky to survive and counted my blessings, so I didn't want to do anything else to attract attention from the sharks! I can't believe I used to go through that on a daily basis. Getting old... anyway, we have at least one student at Kenyon from Sunset and it's always a pleasure to see their terrific counseling staff.

My second stop of the day was a let-down as I ventured down to Tigard High School for a first-time visit. Though we exchanged emails just last week, the new secretary there put me on the schedule for October 21, not September. Oh well... win some, lose some. Still, Tigard will be a place I visit in the future and I look forward to visiting there in future years. I snapped a picture of some ferocious tigers guarding the main office.

And a picture of the exterior of the school so I remember it for next year.


I then moved back to downtown Portland to visit Lincoln High School where the principal is actually a Kenyon graduate. The counseling staff there is always incredibly welcoming. I met with one student and we had a nice meeting--he's a junior and I hope he remains interested in learning more about Kenyon.

When I'm scheduled during the lunch hour, something tells me that food will win out more often than not. That, coupled with the amazing 90 degree weather drawing the students outside into the courtyard, and I didn't expect to see many students. Here's a picture of the school exterior on Salmon Street. The football field sits to the left down below street level--I imagine it would have fantastic energy on a brisk fall Friday night for big rivalry games in the heart of the city.

My last visit was back through the tunnel to Jesuit High School. It's an inspiration and attractive campus, and I particularly enjoy the collection of rose bushes at the school. Hello to the warm and welcoming receptionists at Jesuit, and thanks for being so nice! Here's a shot of the central part of their campus.


I'm getting hungry now so I'm going to head out for some Thai food, I think, for my last night in Portland.

My picture of the day is one of the welcoming murals at Lincoln High School. I did my best to snap a picture without attracting too much attention from the students who were hanging around eating their lunches. This one is my favorite and captures many of the city icons well.


From Oregon for the last night (until the end of October), all the best.
-Noble