VOL. 4 ISSUE 6

HATRED OF HEELS : Sophomore Naje Bryant hates heels.

Hates them.

Really, really, really hates them.

Pg 19.

DESIGNED, SIZED AND DOUBLEKNOTTED: Bad shoe puns to get you warmed up for 10 pages of kicks: my sole hurts / Chuck my All-Stars / shoes speak in tongues / ties that bind / the perfect pair / no strings attached / heeled in minutes / you’re a shoe in / knot to be / don’t flip-flop / too boot / UGGGG! Pg 10.

COACH SCORES: Boys’ soccer’s assistant coach becomes new head coach.

Pg. 9.

RAISING THE BAR: ‘Top 12’ featured for their academic excellence and extra curricular activies.

Pg. 5.

DREAM SHOES: Students create the shoes that they have always dreamed of.

Pg. 16

ROMEO & JULIET: A behind-the-scenes look at the play performed April 27 and 29 in the IPAC. Pg. 3

STRIKE A POSE: Seniors Chris Robinson, Chessy Jourdan and junior Dasia Bacani-Altheimer strut down the runway showing their American culture during the four Multicultural Week fashion shows Mar. 17-23.“In the beginning it was very unorganized,” Robinson said, “but we buckled down and got things together.” During the preparation, the biggest problem was finding people to replace those who dropped out. “It was really stressful, but it was fun,” Jourdan said. “There was so many people, and we wanted to make sure they had their clothes, and make sure the music fit perfectly.”

Dauvee Keith photo

blueprint The Word

Dear readers, Let’s kick off with a riddle.

I am treated as an accessory by some, a need by others. I get tied up around boys and girls. I have a tongue but not a mouth.

What am I? If you guessed shoes, you win this amazing 20 page issue dedicated to our beloved Multicultural show, spring sports, news and - in the last ten pages - shoes.

The latter sit on mini pedestals in malls, stores, and our own garages.

Americans worship them for their aesthetics and comfort, athletes view them as a vital part of their training.

Coach Andrea Anderson stepped into the previous boys’ soccer coach’s shoes. Read about how she fit into her new job on page 18.

Soccer, being outside could put horrible stains on one’s “kicks.” Luckily, special sprays and sponges are made to take out the grass and dirt stains after a good game. For Tristan Cawagas, each of his Jordan Flights need 30 minutes of cleaning. His OCD is also on page 18.

OCD is a known acronym. So let’s learn a new word.

Chopine: A woman’s shoe with a thick sole worn during the 16th and 17th centuries.

The Drama Club may not be able to snag a few chopines for their rendition of “Romeo and Juliet” but they’ll make use of their acting chops and props this Friday and Sunday.

Check out behind the scenes just one page over.

Let’s not forget the footprints we’ve left behind in our lives. With or without shoes, risky but memorable steps are taken.

Mindy Saeteurn’s footprints may not be on Campbell Hill Elementary’s field but her experience will stay printed in her mind for a lifetime. The back page holds her story.

Enough with the puns. I’m sure all this talk about shoes makes the hands holding this issue feel neglected.

Use them for this free spring reading. Unlike shoes that are carbon copies of millions of models, this issue is a limited edition.

MUSIC FOR READING

We have playlists for studying for tests, warming up for big games, bumping in the car when Mom is in the passenger seat. Copy Editor Vanessa Abenojar found a total of seven songs that incorporate the theme “shoes” into their lyrics and, here, offers her opinion on each. Feel free to download these tunes and slip on your earphones. We guarantee that this playlist and the next 18 pages make the perfect pair. Warning: This is a teenager’s playlist.

“Air Force Ones” by Nelly

“Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster the People

Nelly describes how shoe consumers pick “All the other kids with the pumped up kicks / their weapons. He’s referring to how much people you better run, better run, outrun my gun” really want Air Forces and how nothing else can compare to their desire.

This Foster the People song is sort of startling. Kicks can be another word for shoes.

“My Adidas” by Run DMC It seems as though the lyrics mean, “If you have those shoes, you better run away or I’ll kill you.”

Run DMC raps about the reasons he wears Adidas. It’s kind of pointless. It’s almost impossible to understand what was so special about these shoes. It’s like there’s no reason why he would even make a song about them.

“With You” by Chris Brown “You’re like Jordans on Saturday / I gotta have you and I cannot wait now” Chris Brown makes a good point here.

Jordans coming out on a Saturday is a must have for many shoe-heads. People actually line up very early to get these, and some go crazy waiting for that weekend to get their shoes.

“Vans” by The Pack The Pack is trying to make the brand, Vans, bigger than other brands by using peer pressure through song. A very clever way to get a trend going.

“Watermelon Sundae” by Dom Kennedy “If you wasn’t into me I’ll prolly date yo shoes” Dom Kennedy uses a pick up line basically saying he really likes her style.

“Wings” by Macklemore “A hundred dollars for a pair of shoes I would never hoop in” Many people buy expensive shoes but then never actually wear them because they’re so valuable. Not just because of price, but because of what they mean and represent. Shoes can be more than just shoes.

Naje Bryant photo

Queenelle Gazmen has set the bar too high because of unrealistic expectations...................Editor-in-Chief Joseph Varnadore can see his big toe right now...............................................................................Managing Editor Vanessa Abenojar is addicted to Little Caesar’s cheese bread...................................................Copy/Intro Editor Farid Ahmach is selling his new iPad and his Beat studio headphones..........................................Art/Ads Editor Mindy Saeteurn is excited for her trip to Cali................................................................................................Cover Editor Katie Reynolds thinks you should only die once..............................................................................Know More Editor Naje Bryant wants people to turn their stuff in for Play Hard!.........................................................Play Hard Editor Ksenia Ivanova drank the glass while you were arguing if it was half full or half empty.......Portraits Editor Alyssa Antonio can’t wait for prom! :]...............................................................................................................Faces Editor Kevin Chung wants a thick, dark skinned woman...............................................................................NUM83R5 Editor Tristan Jay Cawagas values his Jordan Flights more than his injured knee......................Perspectives Editor Andrea Buenbrazo is worried for her own safety..............................................................................Back Page Editor FINE PRINT

Every issue, the editor-inchief explains the magical and maniacal torture behind the ARROW scene. If it’s less than (or especially) magical for you, let her know at rhsarrow@gmail.com

arrow 123

ARROW is an open forum produced by post-it note covered, pun addicted, sleep-deprived zombies fresh from a third place win at the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention. Awesomely enough, they all go to Renton High School at 400 S. 2nd St., Renton, WA, 98057. The editor-in-chief is Queenelle Gazmen. You- can contact her at 206-554-1692, no text messages, please.

ARROW is printed eight times a year

by Pacific Publishing Company in Seattle, Washington. Word processing, graphics and layouts are created on Microsoft Office 2007 and Adobe Creative Suite 3 programs.

ARROW has a press run of 2,000.

The staff welcomes letters to the editor and will publish letters which meet our standards of good taste (as space permits). Letters must be signed. ARROW reserves the right to edit letters, though every attempt

Amanda Dyer loves vanilla wafers.........................................................................................................................Know More Staff Dauvee Keith is awesomely sexy...............................................................................................................................Play Hard Staff Rafael Agas knows that Joseph is a psycho maniac and not the cute one...................Photo Editor/Play Hard Staff Andrea Dyer thinks life is complete....................................................................................................................................Intro Staff Queneshia Lee is living on the edge...........................................................................................................................Portraits Staff VyVy Nguyen is currently plotting to take over the world.......................................................................................Faces Staff Marisol Mora misses the people from Nationals :(......................................................................................................Faces Staff Annie Kwan likes to beat people in KOF.................................................................................................................NUM83R5 Staff Alex Kalinin thinks he’s fast like a Dodge Charger, strong like a Dodge Ram.........................................NUM83R5 Staff Tony Nguyen <3’s Frosted Flakes. They’re GRRRRRREAT!!.........................................................................Perspectives Staff Abigail Cetino wants to lead a revolution against Queenelle...........................................Photo Editor/Back Page Staff Derek Smith hopes it all gets done..........................................................................................................................................Adviser

will be made to preserve original content. Unsigned editorials and editorial cartoons represent the majority view of ARROW editorial board and do not represent the views of the Renton School District or RHS. Opinions, commentaries, satires, and perspectives are the views of the writers and artists, not the Renton School District or ARROW editorial board.

ARROW is financed by advertising.

These range from $20-$80.

Know more

234arrow

SPRING SPIRIT: Shimmying, outfielding and pie, oh my! Leadership classes gather students for a ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ in the main gymnasium on April 20.

“We decided to wear all those different outfits because it’s one of the last assemblies and we decided we should dress spirited. Whatever was Renton gear, we wore it,” cheerleader Jessica Glenn said. The team danced to “Pretty Girl, Shake It” by The Rangers (feat. Fat Man Scoop); the routine was choreographed by the cheer coach’s niece, Marisa Villarino.

Andrea Buenbrazo photos

ROMEO & JULIET: Actors in William Shakespeare’s play prepare for Friday’s show.

Romeo (Tyrelle Bowser) and Tybalt (Phillip Threed) rehearse their scene as they prepare to go into battle.

Even with practice, sword props can be dangerous. Several people that have used them hasve experienced this. “It’s like a paper cut to the extreme,” Bowser said.

Juliet’s caretaker (Janessa Durden), the nurse, relays the news to Juliet that Romeo has just killed her cousin.

Christine David tries to recall one of Juliet’s lines. ”I am dying! There are just so many words compared to a musical.”

Amanda Dyer and Katie Reynolds photos

Set in Verona, Italy, but performed in the IPAC, the stage turns into a booming city sometime between the 1300s and 1600s. Under the direction of Mathew Milton; Christine Marie David and Tyrelle Bowser become star crossed lovers from warring families, Juliet Capulet and Romeo Montague. See this transformation - what Milton calls “the Ferrari of Drama” happen before your eyes on Friday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 29 at 4 p.m. Tickets are five dollars with ASB and seven dollars without.

ASB Presidential Candidates

arrow 345

Jordan Bowens and Entesar Mohammed face off for the title of 2013 ASB President. ARROW asked the two candidates questions about leadership skills, school and national politics, potential super powers and more. Where’s your vote?

Q: If you received a big shiny pink box, what would you want to be inside it?

JB: Food. A mini-game paradise with food. Also, games like “Saints Row, the Third” and tacos. Lots of tacos.

Q: What would your response be if ARROW criticized you in a public forum?

JB: I want to be on ARROW. But they are just saying something everyone [else] is saying. It’s something to improve and fix those flaws. I take criticism as long as it’s not attacking.

Q: What spirit days do you want to have next year?

JB: I love this question. I’m sick and tired of colors. Things that make you look spirited like 80’s day, futuristic day, caveman day. Don’t worry about looking dumb because everyone else is.

Q: What do you want to improve about the student culture?

JB: I want to make it more fun make students happy and fit in. Not to increase the number of clubs but the awareness of the clubs we have. I want to make all students happy.

Of course [I’d] make dances better.

Q: How do you plan on using the money you raised?

JB: Homecoming is a big one. New games, powderpuff football, a carnival-bouncing house. [The money] is going to supplies for ASB room improvements.

[I’d] make a list and fix the priorities. Get better decorations for dances, things like that.

Q: What do you want to keep the same?

JB: As fas I can tell everythjing is great.

Multi[cultural] is perfect.

Q: What type of diversity is most important: religion, ethnic, intellectual or economic?

EM: I would say ethnic hand-in-hand with religion because it’s important to know we are all the same at the end of the day. It gets you prepared for the real world.

Q: What do you want to keep the same?

EM: I like our school overall. Let’s keep the respect level the same. It’s important to have a safe place.

Q: How would you go about presenting opposing arguments to Mr. Pattenaude?

EM: It depends on what it is he’s really supporting. I know when he says yes, and I know I would probably find a compromise.

Q: Who would you vote for U.S. President and why?

EM: Obama because he looks out for the common people and does what’s right before the politically popular vote.

Q: If you could have a super power, what would it be and why?

EM: I would be super smart like Einstein and make a lot of money.

Q: How do you plan on raising ASB money?

EM: I hope to reach out to the community and make them willing to donate. I want to hold events that better suit the student body, and not just Leadership.

Naje Bryant interview

Fundraising For Prom |Andrea Buenbrazo |Backpage Editor With just a year until graduation, the class of 2013 is fundraising for one thing: prom.

“One of our biggest fundraisers for prom was the tolo dance,” junior senator Josephine Dantic said about the dance cancelled due to low ticket sales.

“It just really sucks because now

McHearts At Student Store we’re trying to make up some really big fundraisers that will get us money quickly,” Dantic said. “But so far we’ve been thinking about some little stuff like selling brownies.”

“We have over $1,000 saved for Prom,” junior treasurer Hannah Franceschina said.

“Once we decide a location we’ll know how much more money we need.”

“The thing that sucks about it is that we have to sacrifice our own time,” Dantic said. “I have to give up my lunch since I’m the only officer that has second lunch. And we have to be here early in the morning when it’s our shift. But overall it’s really good.”

Dcon Adventures |Alyssa Antonia |Faces Editor At Dcon, Key Clubbers have a chance to bond with each other and those from different schools through officer training, a formal dinner and a dance.

“Dcon stands for district convention,” President Cynthia Fang said. “It’s a way for

|Ksenia Ivanova |Portraits Editor The Student Store has been participating in selling cut-out paper hearts to students and staff for the House of Ronald McDonald for charitable causes.

“You give us a heart and we put your name down,” Marketing student Charlie Nguyen said. “The heart gets put on

the wall and we give it to the charity.”

Students reflect on their experiences selling these hearts.

“It felt really good,” Marketing student Kennedy Garcia said. “I got to help people and meet new people.”

The Student Store also hopes to gain something in return, something they were close to getting before. Raising enough money places them in a competition.

“Last year we entered the [House of] Ronald McDonald competition late. We got third place which is around $400. The winning team only had $700,” Marketing student Alvin Poquiz said. “This year we plan on winning a partnership with them.”

Cafeinated Study Session Key Clubbers to celebrate our achievements for the year and vote for the upcoming district board.”

Although Dcon seems like a fun and exciting weekend, some members weren’t fortunate enough to go. Key Clubber Carol Xie was one of them.

“I really wish I could’ve gone. A lot of my friends from different districts and schools got to go,” Xie said.

Through Dcon, the whole club got to strengthen their bonds each other.

“By going to Dcon, we connected more and it was nice spending time with them,” Fang said.

|Queenelle Gazmen |Editor-in-Chief Ignite’s third Java Cram was held in the Commons on Mar. 28 from 2:30 to 4 p.m.

“Ms. Nadeau really wanted to do it last year,” Java Cram barista Joe Bento said. “She got it rolling for us to take over.”

Java Cram is a study session open to

finish homework, complete projects and receive tutoring from teachers and Ignite mentors.

“I definitely do get some of my work though,” mentor My-Huyen Pham said.

Bento stands at his corner-coffee booth, providing $2.00 drinks to students and staff there.

“I’m the only one who knows how to make coffee,” Bento said. “I didn’t have to volunteer.”

The proceeds go towards the Ignite program.

Java Cram is hoping to return before finals week.

456 arrow

TOP 12 SENIORS

Here they are. But how are they chosen? Secret committee?

Teacher vote? What exactly makes them top of the top?

The Beat

FINALIZED Seng Raw Lahpai

Maninder Grewal

Phe’Shay Locke

Hung Lu

Calvin Chan |Queenelle Gazmen |Editor-in-Chief Twelve seniors were called down to Principal Damien Pattenaude’s office to receive news about the Top Twelve Senior nomination on March 15.

“I feel happy to be a top 12 senior.

I know I do a great job representing the Mexicans, Latinos and Hispanics at RHS,” future high school English Learner teacher Mayra Garcia said.

Based on academics, athletics and activities, a committee of administrators and department chairs decided who these seniors would be on March 14, the day before the students knew.

“It normally takes two hours,” Pattenaude said. “This time it took around two hours and 15 minutes.”

Seventy to eighty names were brainstormed during the meeting.

Pattenaude is aware of who was selected.

“We look at the ethnic makeup and the programs students are involved in,” Pattenaude said. “We wouldn’t want 12

Queenelle Gazmen

Sura Alani

Mayra Garcia football players. They don’t represent everything Renton has to offer.”

Garcia has been involved with the Latino Student Union, Young Executives of Color in UW, Varsity soccer, Ignite, and is a Youth Group Leader.

The board also likes to balance out the genders in their picks. This year, there are eight females and four males.

Varsity basketball player Shaheed Rashid made up one-fourth of this year’s male population.

“I remember looking at photos of the top 12 last year and I didn’t really think I would be one of them,” Rashid said. “I feel good.”

Rashid looks at “Top Twelve” in a different light than Garcia.

“Perhaps it’ll convince me to keep being nice and keep working hard,” Rashid said.

On April 18 the twelve seniors invited their most inspirational teachers to a board meeting and made brief speeches.

Christine David

Millais Tsang

Shaheed Rashid

Lexus Sparks

BITES Police Teacher Congratulations to John Devlen for graduating the Fife Police Department Reserve Police Academy.

Devlen has served in the Marines previously, and is currently the Business Education teacher and DECA adviser, as well as running the student store during both lunches. The graduation was held at Pacific Lutheran University last Saturday, April 21.

National Journalism Convention Arrow newsmagazine was one of many student publications represented at the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention, April 12 - 15. While at the convention, the Arrow and Illahee staff worked about two-hundred and seventy five volunteer hours, as well as winning the JEA Diversity Award and third place in Best in Show for their “98118” special edition.

Shout Out Renton School District was quoted by Republican Rob McKenna, State Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate, as a school district that works. He points toward Renton School District’s impressive graduation rate - a high 94 percent - as an example of a system successful in preparing students for the twenty-first century. Democratic candidate Jay Inslee also quoted Renton School District as being innovative, based off of its partnerships with local businesses, colleges, and universities in the community.

In Memorium The Nelsen Middle School counselor Jim Graham passed away on Saturday night, April 14, due to injuries sustained after he was hit by a car in Seattle.

Graham was a longtime Benson Hill Elementary School counselor who recently began working full time at Nelsen Middle School. He was well loved by students and staff throughout the district. He was a wonderful member of the Renton School District and will be missed.

Nelson Hill PTSA is accepting donations for a memorial for Graham.

|Abigail Cetino |Backpage Staff The Yearbook staff rushed to meet their last deadline on April 20.

“We have to cover all spring sports and make the pages,” Editor-in-Chief Taylor Dejohnette said.

Yearbook goes through a process.

“We work on pages, take pictures, and captions. Then we turn it in to the company and they send it back,” Dejohnette said. “Then we check the errors and make the changes. Then we send it back to the company as an an official change.”

The previous deadline, deadline four, wasn’t completely met, leaving the staff to take on extra roles. This deadline left the staff taking on more work than usual once again.

“A lot of our pages from deadline four aren’t done,” sophomore staff member Taijae Davis said. “We’re going to have more people take on more pages.”

Running Start student Dejohnette does her work after school, supervising everyone’s pages while they make changes.

“Everyone is usually chill,” Dejohnette said. “On the last day it gets really intense but for the most part everyone is calm.”

The staff makes their way into getting pictures and captions.

“We have to get pictures of the teams and action shots of them playing. It can take up to two weeks because we have to shoot different games,” Davis said.

Pressure rose and so did worries.

“If we don’t finish on time then the Yearbook will come out in the end of June instead of May,” sophomore staff member Chejay Roxas said.

The staff faced a long Friday pasteup where they put the yearbook together.

Body-Copy Editor Tyler Yorita recalls his first paste-up.

“I remember editing a bunch of double-paged spreads and making a bunch of AP-style errors. It was the other yearbook staff members who told me, the body copy editor, what I was doing wrong,” Yorita said. “I made it my goal to be the one to know how to do anything and everything in Yearbook.”

Although it can be frustrating, they all agree the end product is worth it.

Every month, The Beat explores the latest news going around the school.

Everything from dress-code offenses to school-wide events. Breathe deep.

Clarification on school news has finally arrived.

Multi

arrow567

Food Fair: Tastes From Around the World

In a special forty-five minute lunch, students explore the cuisine of the various club sponsored booths, discovering new sensations and texture along the way CULINARY DESIGN (left): Sporting the largest table among the clubs, Culinary Club sells pastries, fried chicken and nachos. The choice of familiar foods seemed to go over well with students. “We decided for basic foods,” Culinary Club Vice-President Christina Gryniv said. “Everyone else was making Mexican and Asian food, so we thought we would use foods people were familiar with.” The Culinary Club bought their ingredients from Safeway, Costco and Cash and Carry.

HOMETOWN STYLE (below): Representing Somalia, Asiya Hassan, Fathia Sheikh Ali, Shugri Hussein and Sarah Dowd serve traditional pastries filled with meat or with powdered sugar on top. They had a smaller line than the Culinary Club on the other side of the room, but the table sold out of pastries early.

SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM: The sophomore Relay for Life table finds no shortage of prospective customers, serving ice cream sundaes and root beer floats. “I was getting ready to hand off a root beer float,” sophomore Relay member Thanh Nguyen said. The sophomores made a 255 dollar profit. “I wasn’t paying attention to the other tables, but I think we did pretty well.”

THE PAY OFF: Tickets cost 25 cents, while the prices for food range from one to 12 tickets. At the end of the day, tickets were exchanged for money by the club leaders. “Altogether, the clubs raised around 1,800 dollars,” Facilitator Joseph Bento said. “It wasn’t as much as last year. There were five less tables for this fair, so it wasn’t as large.”

Joseph Varnadore photos

arrow678

Diversity Show: Around the World in 18 Acts

Over a hundred students show off moves and grooves in the two hour show.

Among others, Vietnamese, Filipino, and Mexican cultures shined under the spotlight

Dauvee Keith photos

SHOWCASE (from far left to far right): Senior Christine David’s (far left) siren lungs hit the back wall as she sings Demi Lovato’s “Skyscraper.”

Junior Alec Mac (left) struts his finger muscles along his cello strings for the Japanese act “Still Doll.” Senior Titania Lauaki (right) extends her arm in elegance and beauty doing the Tahitian dance. Freshman Holland VanceWright (far right) rocks out on the bass to Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” with his yet-to-be-named grunge band.

Play Hard

arrow789

BONDING CONTINUES DESPITE “FAULTS”

Andrea Buenbrazo Photos

MISSING LINK: Benny Souriyadeth stretches during a game on April 18.

He used to play doubles with his female teammates, but now they are split up.

“I’ve been playing since my freshman year and we’re pretty close,” Souriyadeth said. “We always have fun.”

Andrea Buenbrazo Photo

Though they’ll swing forehands at different times of year, the boys and girls teams remain close. While teams will get more play, they will miss the co-ed volleys |Andrea Buenbrazo |Back Page Editor Clumps of tennis players wrapped tightly in jackets and shoveling handfuls of cereal down their throats watch their teammates play with a hushed sense of excitement.

Tennis can be known for being a quiet sport.

“Tennis is a mind game,” sophomore Cheyenne Virivong said.

And yet, among the quiet one can hear a series of whoops and “Keep it up!” from boys and girls. This is the result of close bonding through a series of games which has forced teams to mingle with each other. Many tennis players agree the team is close, even family-like.

“On the outside, we may not seem like it, but we all come together,” Virivong said.

As strong as their bonds may be, they’re challenged by

a change. Next year, tennis will no longer be co-ed, the boys season in the fall and the girls season in the spring.

“I think it could add a level of competitiveness and more play for both,” JV tennis coach Megan Stith said, “but I don’t know exactly how it would work for the kids because, of course, we have a lot of camaraderie and we like to support each other.”

Indeed, much of the team is unhappy with the move.

“I was really upset,” Virivong said. “Boys and girls bring different feels and finesse to the court.”

The split isn’t just felt by the girls.

“I believe boys playing in the fall next year is a terrible idea because tennis is the only sport where boys and girls actually play together,” sophomore Angelo Ocampo said.

Some see it as a double edged sword.

“It’s bittersweet,” freshman Andrew Galapon said.

“It’s kind of a good thing and a bad thing because it’ll make me a better tennis player because we get more individual time.”

Most distressed about the changes are the boys who run Cross Country in the fall.

“I feel bad for Benny [Souriyadeth] the most,” Ocampo said. “I was about to join cross country too.”

Souriyadeth wishes there wasn’t a conflict.

“It messes up my schedule,” Souriyadeth said. “I had everything planned for my year up until this time, but now I don’t know what to do.”

It’s unclear why the team was split.

“I don’t know how or why it’s necessary because it worked so well here, but apparently people above us make rules and we have to follow them,” Stith said.

Though upset about the change, most of the team promises to go and watch each other’s matches.

“We’ll support each other equally,” Galapon said.

“Like, the boys will go to the girls’ games and they’ll come to our games.”

However, not everyone thinks moving the boys would be bad. A few look on the bright side.

“It’s my first year in tennis so I wouldn’t really know if it was bad… yet,” freshman Koyle Kendrick said. “You never know, change can be good.”

arrow 8910

Old Coach Scores New Goal

Promoted from Assistant to Head Coach of both soccer teams, Anderson starts a new position and aims to win now and in the fall |Queneshia Lee |Portraits Staff For some it may seem that moving up a position isn’t much of a change. However, for soccer coach Andrea Anderson, this was one of the most important changes in her life. She went from assistant coach to head coach of both the boys and girls soccer teams.

“Being head coach comes with its challenges,” Anderson said. “When you don’t have another coach or a team manager it can become stressful.”

Anderson knew from the start she was in love with soccer. She also played soccer for forty years for places such as the University of Washington and coached soccer for twenty years.

“I love the sport because it is physical and the energy is amazing,” Anderson said.

She has been coaching soccer at Renton for five seasons now.

Anderson says she would love to stay head coach and build the program as a whole.

“When I was assistant coach I felt like I wasn’t involved,” Anderson said. “I wanted to get active and make people want to join.”

C

A N I LL

?

N TIO

Even though she is a woman coaching the boys team, the players say she can get a little feisty.

“Coach is mean because she makes us run,” defender Bryan Diaz said.

However not everyone thinks Anderson is strict.

“She is just fine,” soccer player Vladimir Hernandez said. “Some coaches yell too much. If she was very strict I would leave.”

Anderson is not only the head soccer coach at Renton. She is also head coach of the Fierce Girls and Forza soccer team located on Mercer Island.

“If I didn’t like the boys’ commitment and energy I wouldn’t coach at all,” Anderson said.

Anderson believes coaching has made her a better person and opened her eyes to many new things.

“I’m more compassionate and very understanding,” she said.

Anderson has no problem commuting from her home in Kent to Renton. She says even if it was further she would still coach and wouldn’t give it up for anything.

Anderson’s favorite soccer player is Zlatan Ibrahimovic. She would love to see the boys’ team play on his level.

“They have potential to play on that level if they keep it up,” Anderson said.

T NO

T

S

OF S O

A

B T F SO

COACH CHATTER: Junior Varsity Coach Jeffrey Wiser okays changes made to the roster as clouds roll in over practice. “This is where things get interesting,” Wiser said as the head coach of Evergreen’s JV softball team walked back to the dugout.

Dauvee Keith and Naje Bryant photos

The

Sidelines DOWNPOUR

|Rafael Agas |Play Hard Staff Rain is an accepted inevitability here in Washington.

“Wet for sure, and you’re cold,” second baseman Jordan Holland said.

As a player for the baseball team, he and others endure the rainy weather to get ready for their upcoming games.

Holland and the baseball players practice through the rain even though it may hinder their performance.

“I work kind of hard because I’m still trying to benefit in practice and be the best player I can be for my team,” Holland said.

Hurdler Mirecol Brown also experiences the same predicaments.

“It’s just wet,” Brown said.

Two hundred meter runner Jovauni Robinson feels the same. “[It’s] very annoying and hella boring. It feels cold depending on the temperature it is outside,” Robinson said.

Game cancellations are also part of the experience of having rainy days but Robinson and the team are not fazed with the weather conditions. “It’s never cancelled unless it’s snowing,” Robinson said “[You] have to pretty much run in any condition.”

On the other hand sophomore Stephanie Gonzalez of the softball team thinks differently about cancellations.

“I sometimes think it’s stupid because the weather is nice sometimes when they cancel it. It doesn’t make sense. Other times I’m kind of grateful because I don’t want to play in the rain,” Gonzalez said.

She also seems to enjoy practicing in the rain.

“We don’t really practice in the rain but when we do, it’s fun because we get to slide and one day when we were sliding when it started to snow,” Gonzalez said. “I’m pretty sure everyone puts in their one hundred percent.”

When the rain decides to soak the courts, the tennis team takes a different route in combating this problem.

“We mainly focus on conditioning indoors. Work on our hand eye coordination and speed,” Tennis captain, Bobby Tat said.

Tennis player Benny Souriyadeth has two sides to this downpour ordeal. “[I] finally get to work out,” Souriyadeth said. “It feels good to get to work out the muscles.”

Every month, The Sidelines provides a first-hand account of a sporting event or activity with the sweaty, sticky details in tact. Relive the experience with the greatest glory, and maybe a few laughs.

INtro

91011arrow

arrow 101112

Des ign

Dou

“My niece was born just this year, 2012.

Whenever I’m holding her it’s like nothing else matters. Her name is Meleyah Mae, and I’m Michelle Mae. They kind of named her after me.”

[Junior Michelle Voluntariaso]

J u d g e

a

S h o e

b y

I t ’ s

L a c e s

Walk, run, and leap through thes e pages with the soul you were given. Listen to the different tong [converse]ation with the owners ues. You will knot believe their vo of worthy pairs. Keep your storie ices until you’ve engaged in s wear-ever you are. Keep extra support on your feet, and an op en toe in mind.

141516 ARROW

Sneaker-Freaker

NUM83R5 - PAGE 15 Ever wonder what’s important to high school students?

Food, video games or dating?

NUM83R5 editor Kevin Chung explores why shoes are both an obsession and a necessity for the student body.

num83r5 The

The graphs below display our students’ thoughts on shoes, as determined by a sample survey and represented (below) by shoeboxes and laces.

Pairs of shoes owned by students

Meaning Meaning

HUSTLE

43%

30% 22% 4%

1-6 pairs of shoes

7-14 pairs of shoes

15-25 pairs of shoes

26+ pairs of shoes

What students consider most when purchasing shoes? sale

25%

fashion

47%

practicality

28% Kevin Chung graphics

| Kevin Chung | NUM83R5 Editor Although 53% of students receive free and reduced lunch, approximately 70% are eligible. (The missing 17% didn’t complete the paperwork.) It makes me wonder how our students afford these pricey kicks while on or qualifying for a free and reduced lunch plan.

Sneakers are a necessity / practicality. Twenty-eight percent of our students buy shoes for solely that reason and that seems reasonable, but with a percentage of about 47% purchasing shoes for fashion I can’t help but wonder how so many who receive or qualify for free and reduced lunch stay up to date with the latest trends from Toms, Uggs, Quickstrike Nikes, Jordans, and other limited realeses. They can’t afford school nachos on the regular but they’ll save for a pair of deadstock ‘03 sneakers.

I’ve seen shoes sell for anything from $80 - $1000. That’s right, 1G. It might be a pair of ‘01 Black Cement 3’s priced at $400 or a pair of GR (general release) Nike SB dunks priced at $70. Something seem off? Especially for a high school student struggling to pay 2.50 a day on lunch.

Given our other survey result - that 44% of students own seven to fourteen pairs of shoes - calculating the total amount of money we spend can be a depressing act. A minimum of seven pairs priced at an average of $70 comes out to about $490. For a little collection of shoes.

And that’s just a start. The list of expensive collector’s fashion shoes goes on and on: Nike SB Paris’s, Yeezy’s, Air Mags, Asics x Nice Kicks, New Balance x Undefeated, and any OG 1-7 Jordan. Compiled average prices for these easily over $4000.

Of course, the same argument can be made for our iPods, fancy phones, and diamond studs. How do we afford these? Saving? Gifts from relatives? The occasional parent indulgence? Personal debt?

Then again, maybe the shoes are worth it and the lunch isn’t. Maybe the school is cheating students by charging $2.50 for microwave Costco burritos, jojos, milk, “and a trip through the salad bar.”

Our margin of error is 5.30% The Meaning offers the interpretation to the numbers you see to your left. The percentages you see are based off of surveys given out during advisories and have been mathematically calculated.

Faces FACES - PAGE 16 Sometimes, the shoes you want are out of stock. So sometimes it’s up to you to get by with a lesser pair. In Faces, 14 students design their dream shoes. From tree shoes to invisible footwear, something is obvious; we all want personalized kicks.

My dream shoe would have high heels with studs in the back, and the colors would be teal and peach.

-senior Yva Ladera

My dream shoe would have jetpacks but not as an air plane.

It’d be really comfortable, extremely hi-tech, and all black except for the metal zippers instead of laces. It would only be sizes five through ten and a half - because big shoes are ugly.

-senior Tyrelle Bowser Shoes that look like a tree. The branches would cover the top of my foot and go all the way around my foot. Leaves would grow off of them.

-junior Nursalam Ibrahim

I would want shoes that look like Spartan style sandals. They would change color like chameleons and have an invisible shield around them for foot protection.

-junior Jennifer McDowell I would want flyimg shoes.

-sophomore Aaron Mendes

I would want shoes that can glide and the colors would be gray, blue, black and a bit of purple for style.

- sophomore Abduwali Abukar

My shoe would be all black and white. Keep it plain.

-freshman Tony Pham

ARROW 151617

We All Have an Ideal Shoe

and

D o n ’ t

ized

“I get to the point where I kind of feel down, like when I remember my past. I had a lot of good memories with friends I never even talk to anymore. It’s kind of disappointing because I thought we would always be friends but things happen in the future that change everything.

What kept me strong and inspired is music beca use music is a big thing in my life.” [Sophomore Jay Ruiz]

tted kno

“During my freshman year my home caught on fire and burnt down.

I was homeless for a couple of weeks. Yet a couple of weeks after I bough t Rihanna’s CD ‘Rated R’ and I was able to find my own voice and personality and it gave me inspiration.”

[Junior Patrick Tolden] “When my friend died, I had a hatred of life because he didn’t deserv e it. My parents and friends both told me I should not be angry, that I should be happy with the memories we had.” [Sophomore Alex Garcia]

S ed,

ble-

“My dad left me to go to Hawaii. He just abandoned me and my family. What helped me was keeping myself busy by playing sports and focusing on education.”

[Freshman Shenzi Gomera]

Graphic by Andrea Dyer and Vanessa Abenojar

Untied

181920 arrow

arrow171819

Basketball shoes with ankle supports and football cleats. Also, a rocket on the back so I can dunk.

-senior D’Andre Johnson-Katz I would have a high top Nike with velcro because I like velcro a lot.

And I’m too lazy to tie my shoes.

-senior Tawni Halfon My dream shoe would be a type of boot that has socks inside it, and on the outside it would be the kind of shoe you can glide with but looks like actual boots.

- junior Roedah Mansour I would have floating shoes.

-junior Christian Plancarte

Jordan shoes with some zebra print in my favorite colors, purple and black.

-sophomore Jennifer Orellana

I would have running shoes with my name and different colored shoe laces.

-freshman America Kruse Jordan shoes customized with my name in black and yellow.

-freshman Viviana Sanchez

PERSPECTIVES - PAGE 18 Shoes can be deathly. We all have our little opinions on what is best for our feet. Our health is questioned by one heel hater.

For all you heel lovers, listen to her rants about how much she doesn’t understand why you wear those extra inches. You might just question it yourself.

Heel Hatin’

|Naje Bryant |Play Hard Editor What makes you taller, kills the lower half of your body and looks pretty? Heels. They pretend to be a girl’s best friend, but in reality are her enemy. Does this chick not feel her back, knees, and ankles screaming for mercy?

BALANCE VS.UNSTEADINESS At least twice a week while I’m walking down the hall during passing time, I hear a group of girls talking about their latest trip to the mall. “Omg!” one says.

“Check out these new heels I got!”

What, is she floating on thin air? Does she have invisible people holding her up? If so, I want to know where she got them.

How do you chicks amble through halls in heels? How do you go up and down stairs? Just walking normally is difficult for me. I don’t get how some go through the day in heels with out falling at least five times on the ground floor alone.

I was randomly searching high heels and the first thing that comes up is “High Heel Races.” These things happen all over the world and it’s not just girls who do this, it’s guys. Seriously, what is happening to the world? What do you do, spend half the year working out in four inch stilettos? That takes motivation and drive ‘cause I’m sure out of the hundreds of people that participate at least 55 percent of them get some type of injury.

PLEASURE VS. PAIN Heels should have a warning label on the box that says: “WARNING: MAY NEED HOSPITAL VISIT IF WORN FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME.” If you want to sacrifice your well being so you look two inches taller, be my guest. But while you’re soaking

your feet in an ice bath, I’m out walking around without pain. Well, maybe a little pain, but not from my shoes.

It’s from all the walking I’m going to be doing it without you!

I have worn heels. Once. I wanted my vans, and I hated the experience. My feet hurt days afterwards.

I thought it was ‘cause I had never worn them before but then I tried them on again and the same results happened. Only my calves hurt as well.

Pain is all I felt. It’s like when Frodo got stabbed in the arm in the first “Lord of the Rings” movie. Through the next two movies he would feel the pain in the same place again and again, like it was fresh. Weird, right? Thats whats it’s like wearing heels. Maybe I should be a hobbit. They don’t wear shoes anyway.

Over my freshman year I went to Homecoming and my mom made me wear heels.

“They give you back problems,” my mother said, “but they’re stylish.”

The whole time in my mind I was thinking “Ouch!

Ouch! OUCH!” every time I took a step.

When did looking “hot” necessitate pain?

I am all for dressing up for a formal event like Homecoming but heels make me either wanna sit the whole time, which is really boring, or walk around barefoot.

Which is gross. Who knows what is on the floor?

Doing something fun shouldn’t have to end with pain.

Like when you’re playing basketball in your new J’s. You don’t want to have your foot broken after the lay-up.

Whoever invented heels wasn’t anywhere near doctor material because he or she must have not thought about the pain. They were probably thinking, “I’m short and need to get taller and look good at the same time.” Well, they accomplished the “get taller while looking good” part but I’m sure they didn’t expect the rest.

COMFORT VS. CONFORMITY Recently I was wearing my totally awesome Jordan TE II Advance White, the shoes I got for Christmas. They’re white and gray, mainly white. Both have scuff marks from playing basketball and soccer in them but other than that they are super clean.

They are MY best friends throughout the day (when I wear them). They are comfortable and since they are white they go with practically everything. They never give me any type of pain. Why? Because, they keep my feet firmly on the ground. Well, actually, the sole of the shoe is on the ground but you get the idea. My heels are not defying gravity while my toes are doing “pointe work.”

Conformity to me is like cake to a health-nut: they don’t get along. So me wearing heels on a regular basis like it’s normal is a definite NO. I mean they are pretty to look at through the window at BossWear Girls or Coach but that’s about it.

Even though I am a girl, wearing heels like a girl won’t happen. Nobody can pay me enough money to wear heels.

You could be the Queen of England and I would still say no. I am going to stick to my Airwalks, Chucks, Jordans and Vans.

HONESTY VS. TRUTH I was watching “Drop Dead Diva” recently (it’s a funny TV show) and while Jane Bingum (the main character) was asleep she had a dream. She was getting a coffee and totally over detailing her order. After she was done ordering, a different version of herself came behind her. Normal Jane was shocked because the Other Jane was shorter. “You’re wearing four inch heels which are impractical [and] cause lower back discompression,” she said. “... while I am wearing comfortable shoes that don’t hate women,” Other Jane snapped back.

And it’s true: heels really do seem to hate women. They hurt feet, ankles, backs, and women’s general well-being.

They might be cute and make you look taller and have strappety straps in the back, but they just suck.

They. Just. Suck.

PERSPECTIVES - PAGE 19 A pair of running shoes takes one hiker a long way. Follow one adventurous young reporter as she gets lost in the mountains, stripping clothes to cross a stream with that same pair of shoes tied around her head.

MID-DAY STROLL IN MY ASICS SHOES |Ksenia Ivanova |Portraits Editor I originally planned on joining cross country during my junior year, and after a whole summer of running with the team, I ended up not joining.

What I intended these shoes to be for was most practical, but I instead stumbled across an adventure I hadn’t expected.

I threw on my Asics running shoes on a mid-summer morning and left home.

My twenty year old sister, her friend and I set out on a hiking trip to Mt. Rainier. Her friend was in his early twenties, a Stanford graduate, now working at Microsoft.

He considered himself a city boy and it was his first experience going out into nature.

We chose to hike to Green Lake. The road was closed off so we had to hike three miles to the trail. It was a secluded area with some hikers who came a long way to get there.

The trail wasn’t a difficult task, instead it was beatiful—we were sightseeing. A lovely view of mountainous terrain stretched out in front of us. It was no match, I thought, for my Asics running shoes.

When we made it to the fog and mist covered lake we ate our Subway foot long sandwiches we bought on the way and took photos of the magnificent nature view.

My sister and I tend to make stupid impulse decisions and we decided we should hike around the lake.

Going off trail didn’t seem too bad.

We made it three-fourths of the way around the lake: jumped down a few logs, walked around, climbed a bit, nothing too dramatic, but it would be hard to turn back.

The whole way, ever since my sister blasted “I’ll Make a Man Out of You”

from Mulan in the car, being the dorks that we are, we all kept making senseless remarks about how we were man enough to handle anything on our path.

We then came across a minor dilemma; you know, minor, like a cliff side with thorny bushes covering the whole thing. We couldn’t see the ground unless we neared the crumbling rock edge.

We were so close to the trail. We couldn’t turn back.

Besides, it was no match for “men” like us, and so with our “man sticks” (don’t take this the wrong way; they were walking sticks we picked up from the ground to support us) we set out on a journey to kill ourselves, a journey where our overwhelming overconfidence would inevitably get the best of us.

It wasn’t that bad, I guess. I only had cuts all over my legs by the end.

My Asics, a thin sweater, a backpack, and some shorts protected me from the unidentified thorns; I swear we inched our way through them for at least thirty minutes.

Then my attitude changed for the worse.

“It wasn’t so bad.” We only had to make our way over massive fallen logs nearly my height in circumference.

It wasn’t so bad. We only had to cross rickety bridges made from those fallen trees. We only had to throw out our “man sticks” and climb like monkeys.

Once we got out of the cliff area we made our way down toward the water.

It wasn’t so bad at the water. All we had to do was strip to our underwear and bear walking through an ice cold mountain stream. The fact that we couldn’t seem to get to the other side due to mass vegetation on the shore? I don’t know. It wasn’t that bad. My Asics were tied to my backpack by their laces. I couldn’t feel my toes, and my legs were covered with wounds from thorns.

Yeah, it wasn’t bad... Well, at least when it was over. Disregarding the nearly five mile hike back to the car, and disregarding the several hour trip home, and disregarding the thorns, the massive logs, the ice cold mountain water, and the fact that we stripped to our underwear, it wasn’t that bad.

When we got back we went and swam in our friend’s apartment’s pool, ate pizza, and watched Toy Story. Taking off my Asics and thornridden socks after that hike when it was all over wasn’t that bad. But it was definitely memorable.

Ksenia Ivanova photo

The Heat

CURSED

|Joseph Varnadore |Managing Editor I haven’t worn these red and black shoes for over two years. The red reminds me of rust.

My trunk is full of useless mementos: squirt guns, a traffic cone, a cricket bat, memories of past friends and past times. And a spider.

But these shoes. They’re special.

Quick flashback to the mess of freshman year. My first year of track.

I was the biggest nerd, the whitest dork in the school. I had an afro (an afro!), black glasses, and those “ironic” silk screened shirts that “clever” people wore. I listened to music ten years older than me.

Like I said, I was the definition, image, and example of a nerd. I was the alpha and omega (nerd).

In track, I wanted what everyone wanted. I wanted to prove I was just as tough and strong as anyone else.

Now that I think about it, these shoes never felt fitted for my feet.

They would dig and grind at my feet, like a predator without its teeth.

They made the skin on my heel rough and beaten. They made me want to try harder.

They still felt like they weren’t made for me.

I mean, well, they weren’t. They got pulled out of the back of some closet of the gym. It’s not like I could expect them to be perfect. They weren’t even paid for. They didn’t need to be what I wanted, just what I needed.

So I go to practice, lace them up, and start running. Sit on the blocks.

Run the race.

Feel the wind in between gritted teeth, that taste of iron sinking from my gums down under my tongue.

Tasted like hard work.

Till I lost.

Then I just felt like a fool.

They’re cursed. They’ve never won a race. The question is just “Why?” Why can’t they support me, why can’t they let me win, why can’t they do exactly what I want them to do?

Is it because they weren’t made for me? Or is it because I wasn’t ready for them?

That, or I might just not be that good at running.

Each month, The Heat showcases the opinions and thoughts of a reporter willing to tell her personal truth. Or make your lower lip tremble. Enough reality to inspire action in you, our reader.

UNTIED - PAGE 20 An inspired student goes on a barefoot adventure and gets aching feet from walking around the park with no shoes or socks.

Kick your kicks to the ground, turn to the back page and smell the chicken poop.

ARROW 1920

Inspired by the A Day Without Shoes movement, Cover Editor Mindy Saeteurn steps out of her shoes, peels off her socks and goes shoeless for one whole day. Crossing dirt, lawn, rocks and chicken poop, she absorbs her surroundings and gains a new perspective of those who roam the world every day barefoot.

ning. The rday mor to avoid house Satu near my feet, and I tried I the park my y step through soles of With ever dog walked imprinted the ch me.

My shoes, I e or scrat ground undings.

Without ss of the stab, scrap e of my surro pebbles built bumpine what would field as walk more awar became me around the . I started to erent toes pulling ht on diff een my pain. up betw I shifted the weig ease the funny as my foot to parts of , a lady the track past through ed right ing at Halfway walker zoom was look all I power d tell she vision, and the me. I coul peripheral back at the her right in me was stare asian lady with s. shoe could do d Cauc Balance frizzy haire t and New my outfi running to finish in. about me aga all was I behind when and Right she came up ind me don t stare beh s true. I first lap feel her , Yeah, it lem?

I could a prob think was er I could es on. Is that id Pow have sho n to avo Was e back. t directio differen did was starI wished she a es I headed Lady. All she staring? no sho my Walking bution for ask why I had a few laps r if she this retri e up and staring. Afte com thought, would of constantly surprised, I her car. of instead I wouldn t be the inside feet n my she left. ing at me from l dow and to coo dried out was star feet grass up k in the n t end against my grass wal did to es y d the I decide ke sure theof lawn leavas parts of y feeling and ma The brush sensation ishy, slim squ feet. rough. tinglingar and a of my me a ing as gave to disappe bottom harden the then began d around skin and wrappe to my king r the e stic e afte I sat on king hom gone like glu mud, It felt wal I had gh d. dening I began after it drie nged the rou r of har d about. a laye ere had cha and eased with and ent ks ed like a t cak dog me l of the cem pair of soc ? It felt a as my My fee curious The fee ed like ound e they they passed. playgr the park. mud act n as care? Wer r at The me an hou the grass.

Did they e slowing dow said to es on. wer ugh sho me. She no waited thro I had liked they . stopped r shoes?! I noticed seemed you ground my mom ing by because it inside e? Where are pass step ld . mor d if cars e noticing re I cou to stop on any I wondereof them wer nagging r, but befoto put shoes few t, for the the doo how , chicken for silen opened don t know ision, se and cat poop my hou little kid? You ponsible dec ding the of avoi s e irres the step back way, you som about my ugh the . g I reachedangrily, Are walk thro backyard ramblin n, I had to al poop in my in Mie to stop owing off, house, mom pebbles fl for my r my own and other anim y water, and le to ente poop of grass, mudd g unab the pieces So me bein staring at day. stood there do this every and I just people can g my feet how some started washin wondering hose and I got to the Andrea Buenbrazo graphic

PORTRAITS

ARROW 111213

Jordans Impact Today’s Generation

Michael Jordan was sophomore Andrew Saechao’s favorite basketball player.

“I have owned more than twenty plus pairs of Jordans,” Saechao said.

He has recently sold the majority of his shoes because they were getting old to him.

“Jordans define your whole entire outfit,” he said. “If you have a fresh pair on then it says you have swag.”

Out of all the Jordans in the world, Saechao says his favorite pair is the “Year of Rabbit Sevens.”

“The color on those shoes just goes nice with what I’m wearing,” Saechao said. “The Sevens were also the first pair of Jordans I ever bought.

His love of Jordans will never fade away.

Instead of wearing Jordans every day, sophomore Vincent Servito chooses to wear them on special occasions.

“I don’t find it necessary to wear them all day every day,” Servito said.

His love for Jordans started in the third grade when he was researching them on the computer.

He has been buying them ever since.

“I think Jordans are the best shoes ever because there is unique design and style for every shoe,” Servito said.

This is clearly evident in his collection.

“I own about 37 pairs,” Servito said. “They are a part of my life.”

Out of all these, his favorite pair are the OG Hare Sevens.

The OG pair of White Cement Threes was a crowd winner.

For freshman Melvin Inthavong, they were his favorite shoe.

“Words can’t even describe how dynamic that shoe was,” Inthavong said.

Over the course of his life, he has owned more than one hundred pairs of Jordans. Just like Saechao, he chose to sell a majority of his sneakers.

He is currently down to three pairs.

“I wanted to start my collection over again,” Inthavong said.

No matter what pair of Jordans Inthavong wears, he’s says they’re fly.

“You know that thing everybody calls swag,” Inthavong said.

According to him he’s just keeping it real.

When junior Brandon Rubalcaba hears the name Jordan, only one thing comes to his mind.

“The best player ever,” Rubalcaba said.

His favorite pair of Jordans is the Carmine Sixes because they were the first pair of Jordans that caught his eye.

“I don’t have a pair [of the sixes] because they are so expensive,” Rubalcaba said.

Even though the shoe is expensive, he says he will not let that stop him from owning a pair.

“I’m currently working on getting a pair of the Carmine Sixes,” Rubalcaba said.

For those who do not know, the Carmine Sixes are colored “Black Varsity” and red.

For senior Anthony Hill, shoes have not always been one of his focuses.

“I didn’t get into shoes until a girl told me she liked Jordans,” Hill said.

We all have certain things we look for when it comes to a good quality shoe. For Hill it is the design and the material.

“I own about twenty plus pairs of Jordans,” Hill said.

Hill matches his clothes to his shoes because he feels the shoes are what make the outfit.

“Most shoes are just shoes,” Hill said. “Jordans are collectables but to me they are my babies.”

The Doern Becher’s Threes, are one of Hill’s favorite pairs. The only thing that’s keeping him from having a pair is the expensive price tag.

Queneshia Lee, Brittney Nguyen and Ksenia Ivanova graphic

121314 ARROW

Circle of Life

Though Galban’s collection consists of various brands, Nike Air Jordans are the ones he has most of. This visual shows Galban’s most prominant shoes in his collection: 4 in the first series, 2 in the third, and so on.

Many shoes have gained popularity upon release and due to popular demand have gained names like the Jordans 11’s “Space Jam” which are colored “Black Varsity” and “Royal White.”

|Ksenia Ivanova |Portraits Editor Galban has boxes of shoes to his ceiling.

Out of the many shoes in his collection, on the right are only a few of his favorites.

Hundreds of people stood in line at one store for the new ‘Concords’ in December.

Senior Chris Galban was in line then, and it was insane: cutting, pushing, and hours and hours of waiting.

“People wouldn’t stand in line for 12 hours for just any shoe,” Galban said. “They were worth it.”

But this addiction didn’t start over night.

“Even as a kid I wore sneakers. I managed to keep them clean,” Galban said. “There were so many variations and styles.”

Collecting shoes isn’t just a hobby; he has over 50 pairs of shoes ranging from kids’ size 12 to size 11 in adult.

“I display them throughout my room on shelves, boxes and my desk,” Galban said. “It’s more than a shoe, it’s a lifestyle.”

In all, these shoes are worth a fortune, but he avoids selling them.

“They’re too valuable to me,” Galban said.

For Chris Galban, collecting Nike Air Jordan shoes is a lifestyle Ksenia Ivanova graphic

SAT, ACT, AP Test Prep Available Writing BestInclassEducation.com

Private Tutoring Renton Center

4820 NE 4th St. A107 425-333-7333

Biology English Bellevue Center

13427 NE 20th St, #150 425-453-9532

Literature

Math

Chemistry Physics History Issaquah Center

1505 NW Gilman Blvd, #6 425-272-1328

131415 ARROW

Works in Progress

Student uses shoes as a canvas for her mind, taking each step in her work |Andrea Buenbrazo |Backpage Editor Shoe artists aren’t uncommon in pop culture, but here they’re pulling a disappearing act. According to a survey, 88.9% of our students do not draw on their shoes. Though about 14% used to draw on their shoes, about 55.7% haven’t even thought about drawing on their shoes.

Freshman Celine Schleifers is among the handful who still draw on their shoes.

Her hobby began the summer of seventh grade.

“I spent most of that time inside, reading. The books I read always had these amazing graphic scenes that I wanted to illustrate,” Schleifers said. “I liked the idea so much, I wanted to be able to show off my drawings and not just keep them all kept up in a notebook. So I grabbed a pair of my Airwalks and started drawing.”

Schleiffer’s friends were witnesses of her drawing on her shoes.

“I would see her drawing on her shoes a lot in middle school,” freshman Nalika Virachi said.

Why shoes? Was it predetermined fate?

“It just felt right,” Schleifers said.

Using a Sharpie and sometimes fabric paint, Schleifers draws on an estimated three out of four shoes she encounters. “[The] only shoes that are fun to draw on are Toms, Vans, and sometimes Uggs. If I’m lucky enough to get my hands on some, Airwalks and Converse too,” Schleiffers said.

Currently, her favorite shoes are a pair of scribbled on Airwalks.

“My cousin helped design these,” Schleiffers said.

For an artist, no shoe is ever finished being illustrated.

“When I draw on shoes, it’s never really a sit down and draw session type thing. They’re always works in progress,” Schleiffers said. “Like, I’ll start with one thing - a quote or doodle - and I’ll base everything else off of that. Like, a motive for the shoe.”

Andrea Buenbrazo photo

Out with the new and in with the classic, Converse works for the retro and simple sole |Abigail Cetino |Back Page staff Before the sixth grade, freshman Norlene Tejada would only wear Vans. It was an uncomfortable commitment.

“They hurt the back of my feet,” Tejada said.

However, Tejada quickly found a new substitute by noticing her cousin’s choice in shoes. “My cousins always wore really old dirty Converse,” Tejada said. “They were similar to Vans at that time.”

Upon slipping on her first pair of Converse, Tejada was aware of a subtle change.

“I noticed they were comfortable when you wear a new pair. Unlike Vans where they hurt for the first couple days, Converse just fit comfortably whether [they’re] new or not,” Tejada said.

To this day, Tejada’s cousin still exemplifies his loyalty

to the Converse brand.

“Right now, he’s been wearing the same pairs of Chucks for the past 3 years,” Tejada said. “They’re all dirty and gross and such but still haven’t fallen [apart], which means that they’re durable.”

Tejada looks at her shoes’ durability as an advantage. “‘Hey! Shoes I can’t mess up!’ This is considering I do everything with one pair of shoes.” Tejada said. “Like in softball practice. No running shoes, [so] I have to use my Converse inside.”

She recently favored using Converse for practice.

“I remember using it for basketball tryouts last year and I had a lot more control with my feet than if I used other shoes,” Tejada said. “If I didn’t have any shoes to practice with then I would just use my Converse, and they’re actually way more comfortable than my regular shoes.”

Freshman Alina Tarng has a different opinion.

“The way it’s made and the texture makes it seem like her feet are hurting her. I would rather want to take it off

and run barefoot,” Tarng said.

The durability and comfort provided by the shoes has strengthened Tejada’s loyalty towards the brand.

“I’m pretty loyal to the brand in general. If another company made that type of shoe, I would still go for the brand. Unless the other one was cheaper, then it’d be a different story,” Tejada said.

Although Tejada is content with the design, the appearance is nothing she worries about.

“I’m not concerned with fashion because I grew up with guys, so I could really care less about my appearance because being ‘fashionable’ isn’t what I grew up to be,” Tejada said.

Tejada’s Converse let her speak for herself.

“I think that it shows that I can be a different kind of person or at least stay out of all the hype like Jordans, Toms, and others. I can stay loyal to one brand of shoe, the type and color range,” Tejada said. “My shoes don’t have to match my outfit due to the fact I wear mostly black, white and gray anyways. I can care less if I match or not.”

141516 ARROW

Sneaker-Freaker

num83r5 The

The graphs below display our students’ thoughts on shoes, as determined by a sample survey and represented (below) by shoeboxes and laces.

Pairs of shoes owned by students

Meaning Meaning

HUSTLE

43%

30% 22% 4%

1-6 pairs of shoes

7-14 pairs of shoes

15-25 pairs of shoes

26+ pairs of shoes

What students consider most when purchasing shoes? sale

25%

fashion

47%

practicality

28% Kevin Chung graphics

| Kevin Chung | NUM83R5 Editor Although 53% of students receive free and reduced lunch, approximately 70% are eligible. (The missing 17% didn’t complete the paperwork.) It makes me wonder how our students afford these pricey kicks while on or qualifying for a free and reduced lunch plan.

Sneakers are a necessity / practicality. Twenty-eight percent of our students buy shoes for solely that reason and that seems reasonable, but with a percentage of about 47% purchasing shoes for fashion I can’t help but wonder how so many who receive or qualify for free and reduced lunch stay up to date with the latest trends from Toms, Uggs, Quickstrike Nikes, Jordans, and other limited realeses. They can’t afford school nachos on the regular but they’ll save for a pair of deadstock ‘03 sneakers.

I’ve seen shoes sell for anything from $80 - $1000. That’s right, 1G. It might be a pair of ‘01 Black Cement 3’s priced at $400 or a pair of GR (general release) Nike SB dunks priced at $70. Something seem off? Especially for a high school student struggling to pay 2.50 a day on lunch.

Given our other survey result - that 44% of students own seven to fourteen pairs of shoes - calculating the total amount of money we spend can be a depressing act. A minimum of seven pairs priced at an average of $70 comes out to about $490. For a little collection of shoes.

And that’s just a start. The list of expensive collector’s fashion shoes goes on and on: Nike SB Paris’s, Yeezy’s, Air Mags, Asics x Nice Kicks, New Balance x Undefeated, and any OG 1-7 Jordan. Compiled average prices for these easily over $4000.

Of course, the same argument can be made for our iPods, fancy phones, and diamond studs. How do we afford these? Saving? Gifts from relatives? The occasional parent indulgence? Personal debt?

Then again, maybe the shoes are worth it and the lunch isn’t. Maybe the school is cheating students by charging $2.50 for microwave Costco burritos, jojos, milk, “and a trip through the salad bar.”

Our margin of error is 5.30% The Meaning offers the interpretation to the numbers you see to your left. The percentages you see are based off of surveys given out during advisories and have been mathematically calculated.

Faces My dream shoe would have high heels with studs in the back, and the colors would be teal and peach.

-senior Yva Ladera

My dream shoe would have jetpacks but not as an air plane.

It’d be really comfortable, extremely hi-tech, and all black except for the metal zippers instead of laces. It would only be sizes five through ten and a half - because big shoes are ugly.

-senior Tyrelle Bowser Shoes that look like a tree. The branches would cover the top of my foot and go all the way around my foot. Leaves would grow off of them.

-junior Nursalam Ibrahim

I would want shoes that look like Spartan style sandals. They would change color like chameleons and have an invisible shield around them for foot protection.

-junior Jennifer McDowell I would want flyimg shoes.

-sophomore Aaron Mendes

I would want shoes that can glide and the colors would be gray, blue, black and a bit of purple for style.

- sophomore Abduwali Abukar

My shoe would be all black and white. Keep it plain.

-freshman Tony Pham

ARROW 151617

We All Have an Ideal Shoe

Basketball shoes with ankle supports and football cleats. Also, a rocket on the back so I can dunk.

-senior D’Andre Johnson-Katz I would have a high top Nike with velcro because I like velcro a lot.

And I’m too lazy to tie my shoes.

-senior Tawni Halfon My dream shoe would be a type of boot that has socks inside it, and on the outside it would be the kind of shoe you can glide with but looks like actual boots.

- junior Roedah Mansour I would have floating shoes.

-junior Christian Plancarte

Jordan shoes with some zebra print in my favorite colors, purple and black.

-sophomore Jennifer Orellana

I would have running shoes with my name and different colored shoe laces.

-freshman America Kruse Jordan shoes customized with my name in black and yellow.

-freshman Viviana Sanchez

161718 ARROW

Perspectives

My Flights Are Clean and Ready to Take Off

I stand on top of the stairs at my house making sure I’ve got everything for school and every door is locked. I walk down the stairs to the front door and look at the little selection of shoes lined up next to one another.

I pick up my favorite pair of Jordan Flights and take a good long look at them.

I don’t really use anything special to clean my shoes: a white tee shirt, a toothbrush and water. But what I lack in cleaning tools I make up for with thoroughness and cleanliness, cleaning my shoes once a week for more than 30 minutes. I start with the soles using a wet toothbrush, with moderate pressure. Then I rub the toe cap, the sides and the back with a wet tee shirt thoroughly. I then press a wet tee shirt over it.

The small dirt stain and creases on the tips really bum me out as I run my fingers on top of the toe cap but I slip them on anyway

I look in the mirror and put up a smile, eh.

All of my other shoes have bad scratches, dirt and creases on every part of the shoe.

I lock the door behind me and continue my way to school. When I walk I pay attention to where I step and how I step. Because I could be stepping in poop or I could be creasing my shoes too much. I die a little bit inside when I step on anything but a hard flat surface. But I know there will be times when my shoes aren’t as important as catching the next class and I’ll have to run. I don’t want to get the heat from my parents for being tardy. Creasing my shoes is inevitable. It makes my shoes wrinkly and raggedy, and I feel depressed for not taking better care of my shoes. But at the same time I feel Despite their appearance, I keep them and wear them. There’s a lot as though a great deal of responsibility has been lifted off my shoulders. of history underneath my feet.

Alex Kalinin Art

My dirty, grimy and distressed leather SB Janoski’s are ready to rock-n-roll |Kevin Chung |NUM83R5 Editor Opening the box, I smell the deadstock factory scent, feel the brand new smooth leather, and fear the inevitable creasing of the shoes. These deteriorated “Distressed Leather Janoski SB’s” are my day-in and day-out beater kicks.

Waking up to my dad knocking at 5:55 a.m. yelling “Get up! I’m not trying to wait for you!” in an Asian tone, I feel like crap. I’m tired, and mornings aren’t my forte. (Although I do love breakfast.) Getting out of bed in a rustled flurry, I step on my Fender DG-7 acoustic guitar laying on the

ground. (I had been playing a random female to sleep over the phone.)

I hurry into the shower only to be irritated by a sudden splash of searing hot water that leaves red marks on my back. Once I complete the usual rub and scrub down, I head out of the shower; the early morning temperature in the house gives me goose bumps.

The cold feels horrible, and if there’s one thing I hate, it’s the sudden chill after I get out from a hot shower. Oh yeah, and how I nip ‘cause of the frost. When I get to my room, I turn up Funky DL’s “If I hadda day to live.”

“I’m ready to die and nobody can save me,” he raps, spitting out words of truth. Squirming into my skinny jeans, I wonder which graphic tee with a spunky message to the world to wear. “Pishrow Natas”? “Maiden Hell”?

An upside down cross inside a coffin with wings?

My lettermen jacket and flannel fly on and soon I’m

in the garage. There lay my sneakers, a bit dirty, the leather tone looking a bit like wheat in spots. They’ve gone through hell with me.

A honk screeches from outside and I’m off running to the car. As my padre drives, I lace up my shoes and use some spit shine to clean off some of the dirt and grime on the midsole.

In the car, warm air from the vents hugs my cold skin and I lay down calmly on the cloth seat of my dad’s truck.

We arrived and I exit the car. Entering the school, I wipe my feet and the squeaking from the dust free sole squeaks against the hallway tiles. To avoid eye contact with people and the occasional yet “so middle school” handshakes in the hallways, I bump my music and look at my shoes, admiring them while walking.

arrow171819

Heel Hatin’

|Naje Bryant |Play Hard Editor What makes you taller, kills the lower half of your body and looks pretty? Heels. They pretend to be a girl’s best friend, but in reality are her enemy. Does this chick not feel her back, knees, and ankles screaming for mercy?

BALANCE VS.UNSTEADINESS At least twice a week while I’m walking down the hall during passing time, I hear a group of girls talking about their latest trip to the mall. “Omg!” one says.

“Check out these new heels I got!”

What, is she floating on thin air? Does she have invisible people holding her up? If so, I want to know where she got them.

How do you chicks amble through halls in heels? How do you go up and down stairs? Just walking normally is difficult for me. I don’t get how some go through the day in heels with out falling at least five times on the ground floor alone.

I was randomly searching high heels and the first thing that comes up is “High Heel Races.” These things happen all over the world and it’s not just girls who do this, it’s guys. Seriously, what is happening to the world? What do you do, spend half the year working out in four inch stilettos? That takes motivation and drive ‘cause I’m sure out of the hundreds of people that participate at least 55 percent of them get some type of injury.

PLEASURE VS. PAIN Heels should have a warning label on the box that says: “WARNING: MAY NEED HOSPITAL VISIT IF WORN FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME.” If you want to sacrifice your well being so you look two inches taller, be my guest. But while you’re soaking

your feet in an ice bath, I’m out walking around without pain. Well, maybe a little pain, but not from my shoes.

It’s from all the walking I’m going to be doing it without you!

I have worn heels. Once. I wanted my vans, and I hated the experience. My feet hurt days afterwards.

I thought it was ‘cause I had never worn them before but then I tried them on again and the same results happened. Only my calves hurt as well.

Pain is all I felt. It’s like when Frodo got stabbed in the arm in the first “Lord of the Rings” movie. Through the next two movies he would feel the pain in the same place again and again, like it was fresh. Weird, right? Thats whats it’s like wearing heels. Maybe I should be a hobbit. They don’t wear shoes anyway.

Over my freshman year I went to Homecoming and my mom made me wear heels.

“They give you back problems,” my mother said, “but they’re stylish.”

The whole time in my mind I was thinking “Ouch!

Ouch! OUCH!” every time I took a step.

When did looking “hot” necessitate pain?

I am all for dressing up for a formal event like Homecoming but heels make me either wanna sit the whole time, which is really boring, or walk around barefoot.

Which is gross. Who knows what is on the floor?

Doing something fun shouldn’t have to end with pain.

Like when you’re playing basketball in your new J’s. You don’t want to have your foot broken after the lay-up.

Whoever invented heels wasn’t anywhere near doctor material because he or she must have not thought about the pain. They were probably thinking, “I’m short and need to get taller and look good at the same time.” Well, they accomplished the “get taller while looking good” part but I’m sure they didn’t expect the rest.

COMFORT VS. CONFORMITY Recently I was wearing my totally awesome Jordan TE II Advance White, the shoes I got for Christmas. They’re white and gray, mainly white. Both have scuff marks from playing basketball and soccer in them but other than that they are super clean.

They are MY best friends throughout the day (when I wear them). They are comfortable and since they are white they go with practically everything. They never give me any type of pain. Why? Because, they keep my feet firmly on the ground. Well, actually, the sole of the shoe is on the ground but you get the idea. My heels are not defying gravity while my toes are doing “pointe work.”

Conformity to me is like cake to a health-nut: they don’t get along. So me wearing heels on a regular basis like it’s normal is a definite NO. I mean they are pretty to look at through the window at BossWear Girls or Coach but that’s about it.

Even though I am a girl, wearing heels like a girl won’t happen. Nobody can pay me enough money to wear heels.

You could be the Queen of England and I would still say no. I am going to stick to my Airwalks, Chucks, Jordans and Vans.

HONESTY VS. TRUTH I was watching “Drop Dead Diva” recently (it’s a funny TV show) and while Jane Bingum (the main character) was asleep she had a dream. She was getting a coffee and totally over detailing her order. After she was done ordering, a different version of herself came behind her. Normal Jane was shocked because the Other Jane was shorter. “You’re wearing four inch heels which are impractical [and] cause lower back discompression,” she said. “... while I am wearing comfortable shoes that don’t hate women,” Other Jane snapped back.

And it’s true: heels really do seem to hate women. They hurt feet, ankles, backs, and women’s general well-being.

They might be cute and make you look taller and have strappety straps in the back, but they just suck.

They. Just. Suck.

181920 arrow

MID-DAY STROLL IN MY ASICS SHOES |Ksenia Ivanova |Portraits Editor I originally planned on joining cross country during my junior year, and after a whole summer of running with the team, I ended up not joining.

What I intended these shoes to be for was most practical, but I instead stumbled across an adventure I hadn’t expected.

I threw on my Asics running shoes on a mid-summer morning and left home.

My twenty year old sister, her friend and I set out on a hiking trip to Mt. Rainier. Her friend was in his early twenties, a Stanford graduate, now working at Microsoft.

He considered himself a city boy and it was his first experience going out into nature.

We chose to hike to Green Lake. The road was closed off so we had to hike three miles to the trail. It was a secluded area with some hikers who came a long way to get there.

The trail wasn’t a difficult task, instead it was beatiful—we were sightseeing. A lovely view of mountainous terrain stretched out in front of us. It was no match, I thought, for my Asics running shoes.

When we made it to the fog and mist covered lake we ate our Subway foot long sandwiches we bought on the way and took photos of the magnificent nature view.

My sister and I tend to make stupid impulse decisions and we decided we should hike around the lake.

Going off trail didn’t seem too bad.

We made it three-fourths of the way around the lake: jumped down a few logs, walked around, climbed a bit, nothing too dramatic, but it would be hard to turn back.

The whole way, ever since my sister blasted “I’ll Make a Man Out of You”

from Mulan in the car, being the dorks that we are, we all kept making senseless remarks about how we were man enough to handle anything on our path.

We then came across a minor dilemma; you know, minor, like a cliff side with thorny bushes covering the whole thing. We couldn’t see the ground unless we neared the crumbling rock edge.

We were so close to the trail. We couldn’t turn back.

Besides, it was no match for “men” like us, and so with our “man sticks” (don’t take this the wrong way; they were walking sticks we picked up from the ground to support us) we set out on a journey to kill ourselves, a journey where our overwhelming overconfidence would inevitably get the best of us.

It wasn’t that bad, I guess. I only had cuts all over my legs by the end.

My Asics, a thin sweater, a backpack, and some shorts protected me from the unidentified thorns; I swear we inched our way through them for at least thirty minutes.

Then my attitude changed for the worse.

“It wasn’t so bad.” We only had to make our way over massive fallen logs nearly my height in circumference.

It wasn’t so bad. We only had to cross rickety bridges made from those fallen trees. We only had to throw out our “man sticks” and climb like monkeys.

Once we got out of the cliff area we made our way down toward the water.

It wasn’t so bad at the water. All we had to do was strip to our underwear and bear walking through an ice cold mountain stream. The fact that we couldn’t seem to get to the other side due to mass vegetation on the shore? I don’t know. It wasn’t that bad. My Asics were tied to my backpack by their laces. I couldn’t feel my toes, and my legs were covered with wounds from thorns.

Yeah, it wasn’t bad... Well, at least when it was over. Disregarding the nearly five mile hike back to the car, and disregarding the several hour trip home, and disregarding the thorns, the massive logs, the ice cold mountain water, and the fact that we stripped to our underwear, it wasn’t that bad.

When we got back we went and swam in our friend’s apartment’s pool, ate pizza, and watched Toy Story. Taking off my Asics and thornridden socks after that hike when it was all over wasn’t that bad. But it was definitely memorable.

Ksenia Ivanova photo

The Heat

CURSED

|Joseph Varnadore |Managing Editor I haven’t worn these red and black shoes for over two years. The red reminds me of rust.

My trunk is full of useless mementos: squirt guns, a traffic cone, a cricket bat, memories of past friends and past times. And a spider.

But these shoes. They’re special.

Quick flashback to the mess of freshman year. My first year of track.

I was the biggest nerd, the whitest dork in the school. I had an afro (an afro!), black glasses, and those “ironic” silk screened shirts that “clever” people wore. I listened to music ten years older than me.

Like I said, I was the definition, image, and example of a nerd. I was the alpha and omega (nerd).

In track, I wanted what everyone wanted. I wanted to prove I was just as tough and strong as anyone else.

Now that I think about it, these shoes never felt fitted for my feet.

They would dig and grind at my feet, like a predator without its teeth.

They made the skin on my heel rough and beaten. They made me want to try harder.

They still felt like they weren’t made for me.

I mean, well, they weren’t. They got pulled out of the back of some closet of the gym. It’s not like I could expect them to be perfect. They weren’t even paid for. They didn’t need to be what I wanted, just what I needed.

So I go to practice, lace them up, and start running. Sit on the blocks.

Run the race.

Feel the wind in between gritted teeth, that taste of iron sinking from my gums down under my tongue.

Tasted like hard work.

Till I lost.

Then I just felt like a fool.

They’re cursed. They’ve never won a race. The question is just “Why?” Why can’t they support me, why can’t they let me win, why can’t they do exactly what I want them to do?

Is it because they weren’t made for me? Or is it because I wasn’t ready for them?

That, or I might just not be that good at running.

Each month, The Heat showcases the opinions and thoughts of a reporter willing to tell her personal truth. Or make your lower lip tremble. Enough reality to inspire action in you, our reader.

Untied

ARROW 1920

Inspired by the ‘A Day Without Shoes’ movement, Cover Editor Mindy Saeteurn steps out of her shoes, peels off her socks and goes shoeless for one whole day. Crossing dirt, lawn, rocks and chicken poop, she absorbs her surroundings and gains a new perspective of those who roam the world every day barefoot.

he rning. T day mo oid r u t a S se av my hou , and I tried to rk near t a e p I fe e p y h e t t m s h throug soles of h every walked imprinted the ratch me. Wit My dog I , s e o h d s. sc ts Withou s of the groun tab, scrape or y surrounding t s s e m les buil f ld in b o u p b o e e r m p w a t s bu w a a a h e ld r w e alk e mo d the fi d to w becam e aroun toes. I starte m nt e g r e in ll pu my on diff t n e h e ig w e t pain. he w up be hifted t to ease the s I s a y ot funn f my fo parts o a lady track, e h t h t past g ed righ y throu Halfwa walker zoom s looking at wa ll I power tell she vision, and a ld u o c l the I a r . t e a e h m r perip re right back e h in h the me was sta asian lady wit oes. o d ld c u sh au co Balance aired C frizzy h utfit and New o h my running o finis ain. t t u o g ab d me a I was when me up behin me and all t h ig R ca behind I don’t p she first la eel her stare ah, it’s true. f e I could hink was, “Y a problem?” t t a ld h u t . Is I co Power oes on h s e v o avoid k. Was t ha n io t c ac nt dire e tare b differe e did was s I wished sh a d e h d s s a ? e e ll g o h A in h I . r s g Lady my sta ad no Walkin ibution for ask why I h a few laps tr e er d this re ome up an staring. Aft ought, if sh h c t ly I t ld , n u d a wo rise car. onst e surp of her d of c instea I wouldn’t b the inside m y feet ft. wn m and she le ing at me fro o d l o ar to co d out was st grass d up drie my feet e h t n in st rass walk dn’t e again ed to re they di n leaves ts of the g ng d i c e u Id law eeli par ake s h of sation as y, slimy f and m The brus h n s e i . squ ng s rough e a tingli ar and a f my feet. s e m p e m ing a to o sap gav arden to di d the bot h n n a e g h be roun and t ped a y skin m wrap o t icking the after lue st g e sat on ing home gone k I i l , t d l u k e l d m It f an wa ning er I ha rough d. harde bout. I beg anged aft f e it drie o h t r h a ye eased ered had c h a la d wit og meand e cement f socks and e ea k a c d th et felt lik ro It ? s u My fe und as my he feel of like a pai y curio ed. .T ro ed ere the as they pass playg t the park e mud act W ? e r a a n c w Th ur to me id they ing do an ho the grass. e said s on. D y were slow h e h S o . g h e u s aited e o dm thro I had n med liked th toppe r shoes?!” I w . s d d e m n ic o t u m no ou see gro ide my use it e are y ing by tep ins more? Wher p. rs pass oticing beca s a c ld if u o ered re n to sto n any ore I c I wond of them we hoes o the nagging ut bef s b t , r u o p w o e d f to or n ed the ilent, f w how , chicke d open u don’t kno cision,” for s n a e at poop s c o u e e Y o d h t h ? le y id ing ib little k spons ps of m y, avoid he ste re you some out my “irre ack wa t b d e e h t h h I reac ard. rily, “A rambling ab throug n, ang y backy to walk m d a in h I p in Mie om to stop , o ing off, po use m animal ebbles flow own ho r p y e d n h m a t for my r r, o e te t nd wa en poop a ss, muddy able to ieces of gra eing un p b e th e t a m ng So ry day. there stari do this eve just stood n I a c d n le a p t o e e p y fe how some washing m wondering nd started a se o h e I got to th Andrea Buenbrazo graphic