Live Oak Beefcake

I never understood the Walt Whitman poem that begins "I saw in Louisiana a live-oak growing."

If it's growing, then it must obviously be alive, so why not just say "an oak growing."

Turns out that live oaks are several species of oak trees that keep their leaves all winter, like evergreen trees, so they look "alive" while the other oaks look "dead."  Natural mistake of our primitive ancestors.

The Southern Live Oak, quercus virginia, is the state tree of Georgia and, according to Wikipedia, "an emblem of the old South."

Looks kind of creepy to me, with all those branches jutting out at all angles, like tendrils reaching out to grab you (image copyright Pat Turner).

But it's used in names throughout the South:

Elon University in North Carolina has a Live Oak School of Communication,  perhaps because the tendrils reach out everywhere.

There's a Live Oak Yoga Studio in New Orleans, perhaps where you learn to contort your body like a live oak.

There's a Live Oak Church of God in Hinesville, Georgia.

There are two Live Oak High Schools in the U.S.

1. In Morgan Hills, California, a small town in Silicon Valley, one of the most expensive in the U.S.  Of the two high schools in town, Live Oaks High is the oldest, and (relatively) poor    Its teams are the Acorns ("Go, nuts!")





















2. Watson, Louisiana suburb of Baton Rouge. It's got a Live Oak Middle School, Junior High, and High School for some reason.  Live Oak High's team is the Eagles.















Pop Quiz: Which high school does this wrestler attend?

Answer: He's an Eagle.






Ok, this one's harder.

 Give up?  The Eagles again.




















I couldn't find any other beefcake photos of Live Oak athletes, for some reason, so here is a bodybuilder from Baton Rouge