make it your own

featherduster

Make it

your own

the

Westlake High School Westlake High School

Volume 43 Volume 43

Issue 4 Issue 4

May 23, 2012 4100 Westbank Drive Austin, Texas 78746 May 21, 2012 4100 Westbank Drive Austin, Texas 78746

Raise your SAT score by 210 points!

Math prep offered by certified math teacher 20 years experience at Westlake High School Using the 2012 Princeton Review practice tests, Katy's list of typical problems and formulas One-on-one sessions, arranged around your summer plans

Contact Katy Orell at kathleen.orell@gmail.com

May

{contents}

Brains + Brawn

7

Tech trendy

Student programmer creates new app to benefit Westlake

People + Places

21 Trends + Traditions 38 Rants + Raves 52 Helping hand

Sophomore assists in Rwandan boy’s recovery after surgery

His own tune

Classical guitarist receives national recognition

What your footwear choices say about you Web Master

Brains + Brawn

Business Manager

Hailey Cunningham Monica Tan

Marco Scarasso Asst. Peyton Richardson Asst. Sara Philips Andy Brown Asst. Emily Martin Asst. Jacob Prothro

People + Places Selah Maya Zighelboim Asst. Caitlyn Kerbow Asst. Rachel Cooper

Trends + Traditions Jessica Stenglein Laura Doolittle Asst. Josh Willis Asst. Monica Rao

Rants + Raves Ben Wallace Catherine Mear Asst. Michael Deisher

Art Director Michaela Moss

Nikki Roop Asst. Erin Armstrong Josh Willis

Photographers Allie Carlisle Katherine Curtis Nikki Humble Ryan Stankard Tanner Thompson

Reporters

Abby Mosing Breck Spencer Brian Wieckowski Christina Rosendahl Elizabeth Emery Jono Krawczyk MacKenna McDonell Madison Goll Martin Celusniak Rebecca Prideaux Sarah Berg Sloan Simpson

Adviser

Deanne Brown

columns that appear in The Featherduster do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the entire staff, the school administration or the adviser.

The staff encourages letters to the editor as an avenue for expressing the opinions of the readers. All letters must be signed to be considered for publication. Due to space limitations, not all letters will be published, and the editorial board reserves the right to edit them for purposes of placement. No material will be printed that is libelous, advocates an illegal activity or which the editorial board deems is in poor taste. The restriction includes letters to the staff, advertising and anything else the board feels presents an inappropriate message.

Cover photo by Shea Wendlandt At Zenith, senior Meredith Trank performs to “I Gotcha.” “My favorite part of dance is getting to dance on stage and sharing my love of dance with the audience alongside my very best friends,” Meredith said.

If the shoe fits

Editors-in-Chief

The Featherduster, the newsmagazine of Westlake High School, attempts to inform and entertain in a broad, fair and accurate manner on subjects which concern the readers. The publication also seeks to provide a forum of ideas and opinions between the staff of the newsmagazine, the faculty, the student body and the local community about issues presented.

All material produced and published by The Featherduster staff is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced without the writer’s consent or that of the editors. Content decisions rest in the hands of the staff, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of Hazelwood v.

Kuhlmeier. Opinions expressed in the

Wizards

Abby Bost Barrett Wilson Becca Burt Brad Dunn Camille Lewis Caroline Hunt Christina Shin Cody Crutchfield Danielle Brown Emily Cohen Emily Mitchell Hannah Kunz Hillary Hurst Hirrah Barlas Jaimie Pitts Jared Schroeder Jenny Messer Julie Dorland Karen Scott Keren Rempe Lizzie Friedman Olivia Lee Shea Wendlandt Taylor Cloyd Taylor Kidd Zelda Mayer

Table of contents photo by Shea Wendlandt Swinging on a rope swing, sophomore Madi Wright participates in an obstacle course at Harambe May 4. Harambe is a team-building trip that the Teen Teachers participate in before taking the eighth graders to Pedernales.

For more, visit westlakefeatherduster.com.

{ westlakefeatherduster.com }

brains + brawn

3

community comes together for annual fund-raiser, Illuminating the cause Eanes walks through the night to find a cure

The annual cancer research fundraising event, Relay For Life, took place on April 28 at Chaparral Stadium. Relay is a worldwide grassroots movement that began in 1985 to help educate people about cancer and raise money to find a cure. Many students and teachers were involved in the event, whether they were on a team the planning committee.

“My first year of involvement I had a student whose father had been diagnosed with cancer and we knew he was not going to live through the year,” committee member and Peer Assistance and Leadership teacher Mitch Lasseter said. “He died a month before Relay, so I became involved in support of him. I’ve also had many family members who have had cancer and are now survivors. Just knowing that cancer affects almost everyone is something we really need to support.”

Teams fundraise through different methods such as bake sales and car washes. The Westlake Relay has raised $120,223 so far this year.

“We raised less than last year,” Lasseter said. “Our goal was $170,000. We are about $50,000 short, but the money this year is still coming in. I don’t know if we’ll make it to our goal, but we will probably go up another $5,000 or $10,000.”

For the past two years, Westlake Relay has changed from an overnight event, starting at 7 p.m. and ending at 7 a.m., to a format with a carnival which takes place from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m.

“I think we could set the bar higher and do better by going back to overnight,” Lasseter said. “It represents the stages that someone who has cancer goes through and it’s very symbolic. The wee hours of the morning

A matter of taste

Katherine Curtis

On May 1, seniors came to school donning shirts featuring the logos of the colleges that they’ve committed to. Students made their way to the College Center and proudly signed the college banner, “I took a long time deciding between two schools so I didn’t sign the college banner until May 1st,” senior Julie Dorland said. “Since I committed to UT, I was nervous that there wouldn’t be enough room for my signature. Now that I’ve finally decided, I can’t wait for UT next year. Hook ‘em horns!”

When students visited the cafeteria last semester, they noticed a change in the typical preparation of the school’s pizza, a menu item that students would dub “re-pizza.” The process, as reported by students, went as so: every once in a while, the pizza served by the cafeteria appeared to be covered in a thick, white layer of cheese. Some curious students, perplexed by this change, choose to peel back the new layer of cheese. What they found was what had appeared to be pizza from earlier in the week. The underlying cheese had now reportedly turned brown.

“Upon buying my pizza, I noticed that it had an unusual, wax-like texture and sort of a weird coloring,” sophomore Bethany Beago said. “As I went to pick it up, the cheese and pepperoni fell off to reveal another pizza.”

The Eanes child nutrition department reported its rational behind this procedure.

“During the fall semester, when we would have leftover Pizza Hut pizza, we would immediately refrigerate the product,” said head of Eanes child nutrition department Steven Stracke.

“Then, the next day, and only the next day, the staff would add fresh, grated 100 percent mozzarella cheese to the top of the pizza, re-heat the pizza to melt the cheese and offer it during breakfast.”

At first, Stracke made no mention of the “re-pizza” being served during lunch hours, but later admitted that the pizza was also sold during fourth and fifth period. “[The pizza] was served a few times at lunch, but not regularly,” Stracke said.

Shea Wendlandt

are when you think you can’t go on and you find the strength to do it.”

There are many different ceremonies that take place in the event including the Survivor Lap, the Luminaria Ceremony and the Fight Back Ceremony.

“Relay is a great event and I love participating in it,” Luminaria co-chair junior Tiffany Nguyen said. “Being a part of the committee this year was a huge responsibility, but completely worth it once we saw the bags lined up around the track and lit during the ceremony.”

The Relay will be on April 27 next year.

“I hope that it’s bigger and better,” Lasseter said. “I’d like it to be more of an event to show the community’s support. I want something that says ‘We are Westlake. We are together.’”

—Jessica Stenglein

Head of child nutrition department reveals truth about school’s pizza Concerning the browning of the original cheese, Stracke brushed off any claims that questioned that the browning was due to spoilage.

“The brown color mentioned was the natural browning of the cheese from the oven,” Stracke said.

Despite his defense of the brown cheese, Stracke made it clear that the process stopped last semester.

“Since early December, Mrs. Whalen, [the head of the Westlake cafeteria,] and her staff have discontinued this practice, due to several factors [that were] improved — accuracy in ordering, the use of pizza prepared in-house and a concern for the quality of the product,” Stracke said.

Stracke seemed surprised that they had not received complaints about the re-pizza while the procedure was going on.

“Oddly, we have not received any negative feedback from students or faculty regarding this product prior,” Stracke said.

Some students are still uncomfortable with the idea of melting new cheese on the day-old pizza.

“Even though the lunch staff is very pleasant and the school tried a creative way to save money, I still find [the process] unsanitary and disgusting,” sophomore Olivia Barrett said.

This has prompted students to question Westlake’s budgeting.

“I think it’s strange the way Westlake is making their money choices,” Bethany said. “How can we afford iPads, but not fresh food?”

—Ben Wallace

Let’s get

together

From May 3-5, a select group of Teen Teachers and select students packed into a bus to head off to 7A Resort in Wimberley for Harambe. Harambe is overnight trip full of tradition where the students team build and practice the same activities that the 8th graders will be doing at Pedernales, a team bonding experience for incoming freshmen scheduled for May 21-22.

“Pedernales is an awesome two days that really bond us while also allowing us to be strong role models to incoming freshmen that they can respect and look up to,” junior Christopher Bybee said.

Christopher is among the 126 students who were selected to be part of Pedernales. The young leaders are organized into squads that will each serve as mentors to assigned groups of eighth graders.

“My favorite part about getting ready for Harambe is getting to bond with the other people my squad,” sophomore Kendall Meyertons said. “I’ve absolutely loved getting to know everyone.”

Since Kendall is a sophomore, this is her first activity with Teen Teaching. She’s thrilled to get to partake in the event that made the class what it is today.

“The whole idea [of Teen Teaching] really was founded around Pedernales and the process of looking for good leaders,” Teen Teaching sponsor Mitch Lasseter said.

Lasseter has taught leaders, organized Teen Teaching activities and

Leaders return from Harambe, program sponsor reflects on experience with program taught the class for 15 years.

“When I first came to Teen Teaching, I had maybe 25 first year students and eight second year students, so we’ve grown a whole lot since then,” Lasseter said.

The class was founded by Karen McGill, who started it with the idea of training leaders who could lead during Pedernales. Since then, the students have become leaders not only at Pedernales, but also at Live Oak with elementary school kids, and through a buddies program, in which Teen Teachers leave school to teach lessons. The influence of Teen Teaching can be seen throughout the Eanes community through elementary and middle schools.

“I think it’s allowed students who want to be positive role models and leaders an avenue in which to do so,” Lasseter said. “For some, it’s given them an excuse to not pursue the pressures of high school and not get into the drinking scene. I also think that working with younger students, especially at Live Oak, definitely influences some of those kids’ lives.”

Lasseter plans to retire within the next few years and will hand the job down to his successor Tres Ellis. However, he plans to stay with this year’s junior Teen Teachers and the Epicosity classes until they graduate.

“Lass has turned Teen Teaching into a highly respected and successful program that has forever changed Westlake,” junior Bril Flint said.

—Elizabeth Emery

Junior Nat Franke and senior Leah Weidman participate in a bonding activity called “Force Fields,” one of the many team building exercises.

Shea Wendlandt

5

Fish food for thought

Seniors pass on nuggets of wisdom from experiences quotes compiled by Peyton Richardson

What is one thing you would change about your high school experience if you could go back in time?

Are there any classes you would or wouldn’t recommend to underclassmen?

"[I would] take Economics and Government during the summer. It's the best thing you can do."

—senior Silvia Melo

“Definitely don’t take P.E. through correspondence because it’s actually fun to take the class if you’re a fun person.”

—senior Celeste Bergeron

“I wish I took AP Chemistry so I could get through Organic [Chemistry] before college.”

—senior Angela Horton “Don’t just try to load up on AP classes just for the points because some of them are pretty hard, and you can get overloaded with work. Consider taking regular classes as well.”

—senior Alex Stiurca

“Take Anatomy as a science. It’s a lot of fun if you plan on going into medicine. You learn a lot even if you’re not planning on going into medicine.”

—senior Ben Chabala

Are there any good classes to help your GPA and class rank?

“There are some AP electives that are very interesting.

I took Psychology, and that’s an AP class that I found was very interesting. It’ll also boost your grade with the AP multiplier.”

—senior Web Elliott “Comp Sci 1, 2, 3 and 4. All AP.”

—senior Nick Frawley

unn

dD

Bra

What do you wish someone had told you when you started high school?

“Try more extracurricular activities and don’t limit it to just one because you might regret it.”

—senior Ruby McMahon “Your freshman grades do matter because that’s a fourth of your GPA. So don’t screw off freshman year because it will come back to hurt you later.”

—senior Arun Natesan “If you think you know where you want to go to college now, it’s probably going to change.”

—senior Maggie Martino “I wish someone had told me to relax a little more. I was so nervous starting high school and I thought that this would be too much to handle, but it turned out to be a lot more fun than I thought it would be.”

—senior Web Elliott

What advice would you give to students who struggle with their homework load?

“Get together with groups of friends and study groups, because they motivate you to get stuff done. Having a group will help you get stuff done faster. Also, if they keep the iPads, then it’s hard [to focus] because you want to play a game. Put the iPad away. Hide it or something.”

—senior Bri Friedman “Try not to be around a computer while you’re doing homework unless you’re typing up a paper because I know when I have Facebook open every two minutes, I get sidetracked.”

—senior Mikayla Waters

There’s an app for that Young programmer, media company owner creates first ever Chap App

When on your iPad at school, whether taking notes or shooting Angry Birds, you don’t usually think about the process of how Apple apps are made. In fact, creating an app and getting it on the App Store is tedious work and takes several months to accomplish.

Since the beginning of the year, junior Thomas McNair has been working to create a new app specifically for Westlake students.

“When I first heard that [the school] was giving us all iPads, I got the idea for an app,” Thomas said. “I worked on it for about eight months on the weekends. For the Chap App, it took about eight days from when I uploaded it to when I got a response [from Apple].”

When he sent the app to Apple, it got denied twice before it was available to the public.

“First, they wanted to log into Skyward to test the Skyward functionality,” Thomas said. “But what was I supposed to do, give them my Skyward username and password? So that’s what I had to do. The second time they wanted it to rotate [vertically], so I had to resubmit it.”

The Chap App compacts the Westlake website on a format optimal for the iPad. “The original idea was to make everything on the school website more easily accessible from the iPad,” Thomas said. “On the school website, you have to hover your cursor over the menu before it pops up, but if you hover your finger over the iPad it doesn’t pop up.

Teacher websites, which can be hard to get to on the school websites, are broken down into categories. So you can go to ‘math,’ and you can see all the math teachers very easily. Hopefully [the app] will be able to alleviate some problems.”

The app has a home screen with panels that link to Skyward, the teacher websites and a bulletin board with relevant school notices such as ads for prom and AP registration. A simplified bell schedule and calendar are also available for students and teachers.

“The schedule counts down, so if you’re out to lunch you can see you have however many minutes before the bell rings,” Thomas said.

“It counts down each period. On the days we have a modified bell schedule, I can replace it. I’m still working on getting the calendar set up with everyday events like baseball games. The different district days, early release days and first days of semesters are color coded.”

Thomas also made it easier for teachers to access their gradebooks with the app, as they are able to update their roll calls and students’ grades right from their iPads.

“It’s basically easy access for teachers,” he said. “All these [features] are hidden links on a separate menu on the school website, which is

Junior Thomas McNair sits at the computer, examining the app he created for Westlake, the Chap App. Thomas spent several months developing the application and towards the end of production, he often worked up to 15-20 hours every weekend.

<

hard to get to from the iPad.” An addition to the app not found on the school website is a schoolwide chat room.

“It’s kind of an experiment,” Thomas said. “As far as moderation goes, there’s not much. It’s completely anonymous, and you can choose whatever name you want.”

The Chap App is not the first app Thomas has made. Since 2007, he has been working under his programming company, 84 Media, and has created many applications.

“I’ve made mostly little games,” Thomas said. “The most popular is called Reaction Time. I made an app for when the swine flu was big, and people were freaking out about it. It had maps and statistics on it.”

Since the dawn of his business, there have been 105,000 downloads of his apps. He is constantly striving to build on his work and to further develop 84 Media.

“I hope to grow and expand it,” he said. “I want to hire people and get bigger offices. I’ll probably spend a lot of time working on it in college, too.”

Thomas is always seeking to add new content to the Chap App, so he has made it easier to update it in real-time.

“One thing that’s unique about [the app] is that every time you open it, it goes and checks with my servers to see if there’s any new content,” Thomas said. “I can post fun messages on the home page, like ‘Happy Friday!’ I can update anything in the app. Instead of sending new content to Apple, having it approved and making it available on the app store for people to update, I can do it [on my own].”

One new feature he is in the process of making available on the iPad is the Chap Recap. “[The Chap Recap] is on Vimeo, which is blocked by the school’s Wi-Fi, which is a little counterintuitive,” Thomas said. “I was thinking on Fridays, I could put the Chap Recap in place of an ad, but no one would be able to watch it at school. Until the school un-blocks Vimeo, I can’t put it on. I want to talk to the film teacher and see if we can work out a solution or negotiate with the school to get Vimeo unblocked.”

The Chap App is constantly evolving, and through suggestions from its users, Thomas wants to make it appeal to the Westlake community in a fun way.

“There are a lot of places where you can submit feedback,” he said.

“I listen to all the feedback to make [the Chap App] as great and fun as possible.”

—Abby Mosing

<

The Chap App aims to make school news and information accessible for students and teachers. Junior Thomas McNair incorporated several features when designing the app, including a school-wide chat room.

Hannah Kunz

7

1990

Girls singles State title

Boys doubles State title

1994

1981

Double trouble

Girls singles State runner up

Team of Sutton, Meek beat San Antonio Churchill to win first mixed doubles State title in school history

T

his spring the mixed doubles pair of junior Casey Sutton and senior Ryan Meek capped off a recordbreaking season by winning the mixed doubles State championship at Lakeway World of Tennis on May 1. The team won the match by a score of 6-4 and 6-3 to claim the victory against Churchill, becoming the first mixed doubles team to ever win a State title for Westlake.

Ryan and Casey, who joined forces in the fall for the first time as a mixed doubles pair, credit their success to the teamwork they had built on and off the court throughout the fall and spring season.

“It was an amazing year and I will treasure it forever,” Ryan said. “[Casey] truly was an incredible partner.”

Before making it to the State finals, Casey and Ryan took out Clements High School by a score of 6-4 and 6-2 in their first round match. The team then won a controversial match against Southlake Carroll where one of the opposing players hit a ball into the crowd out of anger and

2007 Fall team State Champions

received an automatic default, eliminating them from the tournament and sending the Chaps into the State Finals.

“Beating Southlake Carroll was by far our biggest win of the season,” Casey said. “We were both speechless after the match — it was unreal.”

Casey and Ryan met the lofty expectations of the team this season by clinching the State title and finishing the season with an overall record of 37-1.

“Before the Final, Ryan and I were both so nervous. We wanted to win so badly,” Casey said.

“Afterwards my entire body was numb. Words cannot describe how happy I was. Ryan and I have both wanted to win a State Championship for so long, so it feels great to finally achieve that goal.”

This championship marked the first time (while coaching at Westlake) that Kim Riley had ever had a girl win the State Championship.

“I cannot think of two people more deserving,” Riley said. “On that day, hard work plus opportunity equaled State Champions.”

—Allie Carlisle and Cody Crutchfield

Russel Bader wins the boys singles State title

2010

photos by Allie Carlisle

Doubles partners senior Ryan Meek and junior Casey Sutton took first at both the Regional and State tennis tournaments.

2012 Mixed doubles State Champions Ryan Meek and Casey Sutton

9

Spring ball for the boys of fall

2012 Schedule The team gets ready for the game against Lake Travis on Aug. 27, 2011 at Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium. This year the game will be played on Nov. 2 at Westlake.

Aug. 31 Cedar Park Sept. 7 at Temple Sept. 14 at A&M Consol.

Sept. 21 Cibolo Steele Sept. 28 Bowie

Oct. 5 at Akins Oct. 12 Anderson Oct. 19 at Del Valle Nov. 2 Lake Travis Nov. 9 Austin High Shea Wendlandt

Changes evident as football team starts spring practice, looks toward 2012 For the football team, 2012 will be a season of adjustment.

Running back Brice Dolezal, linebacker Lance Duran, quarterbacks Lewis Gilbeau and Blake Box and defensive tackles Brayven Hager and Spencer Smith are all set to graduate in June.

All will be playing on Saturdays for their respective universities except for Lewis, who will take his baseball talents to Texas State.

Replacing them will be stand-out players such as juniors Keith Carter and Justin Miller and sophomores Luke Womack and Jordan Severt. Together they form the core of a team that has great potential. “[In 2010] we were trying to answer the question how to replace the guys that started in 2009,” coach Darren Allman said. “That team stepped in and now they’re the guys that we’re talking about. This year you will see a new group of players emerge, just as that group did.”

Besides the previously mentioned players, keep your eye on the class of 2014, which has been hyped up by Rivals.com and Dave Campbell’s Texas Football.

“They’re a good class, and what encourages us the most about them is that they are a well rounded, close knit group,” Allman said. “But there are classes across Texas with that kind of potential and not all of them live up to the hype, so it’s our job as coaches to make sure that we fulfill our potential.”

Jordan is one of the most notable of the upcoming junior class. As a sophomore on the JV Red team, he led them to a 10-0 record. He is expected to compete with junior Carter Tomsu for the starting job as quarterback.

“We have high expectations for Jordan,” Allman said. “He’ll be the starting quarterback at some point in the next two years.”

As for the running backs, the Chaps have no clear starter heading into spring, although Keith, junior Elliott Condos and sophomores Ben Slaughter and Alex Chavez will all be competing for spots.

“We’ve got a couple backs that’ve seen some time on varsity, and we’re hoping that they’ll do well this year,” Allman said.

Defensively, the Chaps lose some starters, but most of the secondary is returning and several players will vie for the vacant positions.

The team will start the season with Cedar Park, and then will face Temple, A&M Consolidated and 2011 state runner-up Cibolo Steele in non-District play. All of those teams are in the top 50 in the state (according to Dave Campbell’s Texas Football) in their respective classes, but perhaps the most anticipated game will be against Steele, which will be played on Sept. 21 at home.

“It is the toughest non-District schedule in the history of the school and in my coaching career,” Allman said.

The district has been altered this season with the addition of Lake Travis, who will make the trek down to Chaparral Stadium on Nov. 2.

Other notable district games include a home game against Bowie on Sept. 28 and a trip to House Park against Austin High on Nov. 9.

Despite the hard schedule, the Chaps’ goals haven’t wavered.

“We hope to play all the way until Christmas,” offensive coordinator Jeff Rhoads said. “By that, I mean the State title game.”

—Jacob Prothro

Higher level challenges Junior makes Texas National Team, continues lacrosse career

This year, 40 players from across the state were chosen to play for the girls lacrosse 2012 Texas National Tournament Team, including junior Audrey Allen.

Audrey has played lacrosse for four years as part of the girls varsity lacrosse team, a select team called the Texas Outlaws and now the Texas National Tournament Team.

This season, she even received the Division 1 All-State Award for Central Texas high school girls lacrosse.

The tryout for the Texas team, consisting of various drills and scrimmages, meant to test the girls’ stick skills and overall ability, took place in College Station on April 2.

“I was really stressing out about it at first, and I had been sick the week before,” Audrey said. “So I texted my friends and told them about my tryout and asked them to pray for me. Loads of my friends texted me back and told me, ‘Audrey you’re going to do great!

I know you’ll make the team!’ It was all so heartfelt.”

To bring the support with her, Audrey copied their messages onto index cards, which she brought to the tryout and read

throughout the day. She also gave herself a piece of encouragement.

“Sometimes before games I’ll write stuff on my arms,” Audrey said. “But [in the tryout] you couldn’t have anything on your body or clothes that made you stand out. So instead, I wrote Phillipians 4:13 on the top of my shoe in permanent marker. It says, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ I just kept referring to that verse throughout the day. That’s why I didn’t stress about it. I just had to trust in God.” To be eligible for the tryouts, players had to be members of a high school varsity lacrosse team and freshmen, sophomores or juniors. Players who made it received emails congratulating them the next day.

“I found out that I made the team on Monday during lunch when I was checking my e-mail on my phone,” Audrey said. “I ran out to my friends and screamed, ‘Oh my gosh guys, I made the team!’ I was so excited because I had worked so hard just to get to the point where I could try out.”

Members of the Texas Team will represent Texas in the National Tournament on May

Katherine Curtis

Junior Audrey Allen plays for the Chaps and the Texas National Team.

26 and 27 in Stony Brook, N.Y. They will also be able to showcase their skills to college coaches and watch the women’s lacrosse Division 1 Final Four games. But for Audrey, the most important thing is getting to play.

“I’m just doing something that I love because I love it, not because I’m looking for praise,” Audrey said. “God gave me the ability and strength to play lacrosse and I’m just using the gift that He gave me. I’m really working on playing the best and hardest that I can.”

—Christina Rosendahl

Junior verbally commits to UPenn

Tanner Thompson

Junior Cedar Slovacek has already committed to UPenn. “I can’t even describe how excited I was the first time I knew that colleges were actually interested in me,” Cedar said.

It all starts during freshman year. Softball players start attending showcases through club teams where college coaches come out and watch. At the start of the season players email colleges their schedule and hope for the best. However, recruiters are not allowed to email back until Sept. 1 of players’ junior years. On that day, players get to see which coaches are interested in recruiting them.

“It’s kind of like Christmas morning,” first baseman junior Cedar Slovacek said.

“The first thing I did that morning was run downstairs and check my email.”

That day Cedar had ten schools email her: Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Iowa State, UPenn, Bucknell, Lehigh, South Carolina and Princeton.

“I can’t describe how excited I was the first time I knew that people were interested in me and had been

watching,” said Cedar, who was named to the second team All-District her freshman and sophomore years and who earned All-tournament honors at the Corpus Christi tournament this year.

In eighth grade, Cedar started a binder of all the colleges she wanted to attend that also have great academic programs. In order to be recruited by great schools, it is important to make good grades and score well on standardized tests.

“I took my ACT for the first time in the beginning of my junior year and again a couple months later to boost my score,” Cedar said.

It was also important for Cedar to feel good about the campuses and programs and see them firsthand.

While traveling to tournaments with her club team, the Houston Power, Cedar visited the colleges that were interested in her. During her

visit to UPenn she fell in love with the feel of the school.

She pursued the coach, Leslie King, even more than before by emailing and calling her almost every week.

King then invited her to stay with a player and attend their camp in mid-January as an unofficial visit.

“I did that, and again I loved everything about the school, and I played well at the camp,” Cedar said. “I was really excited afterwards.”

Two days after she returned, King called and offered her a spot on the team.

“My parents wouldn’t let me automatically accept and made me wait a couple days to do so,” Cedar said. “It was so painful to wait because I just wanted to say yes.”

After a few days Cedar verbally committed to UPenn and is extremely excited to play for the Quakers after graduating.

—Emily Martin

11

Playing hardball

Team looks to build off of historic run The softball team entered the season ranked top 25 in the state, with a roster chock full of future college players including juniors Stephanie Wong and Cedar Slovacek. Expectations were high for the team, and it responded by winning their first district title since the 1990s.

The team continued its historic run by smashing Westwood in the bi-District playoff round before falling short to Conroe-Oak Ridge in Region action. Despite the setback, softball coach Hailey Gaddis was more than satisfied with how the team fared this year.

“I do feel like we fell short of how deep a playoff run we should’ve made, but that in no way is a reflection of how special this team has been,” Gaddis said.

“Although we made an earlier than expected exit, it doesn’t take away from what these young ladies have accomplished.”

The team was lead by sisters freshman Lindsey McLeod and

junior Lauren McLeod, who were staples on the mound and at the plate this year. Lauren, an outfielder and pitcher, came up with several big hits this season.

“Lauren was a great pitcher and one of our top offensive players as well,” Gaddis said. “When she wasn’t on the mound she was in the field, because we needed her bat in the lineup.”

Meanwhile, Lindsey, who was playing her first year in high school on the varsity team, pitched in several games during the season and enjoyed success at the plate.

Lauren is looking forward to coming back out to compete for a final time in her senior year.

“It’s not going to be as easy to win a District title since we are losing a lot of talent, but I think we can do it,” Lauren said. “Playing with my sister is always fun and I’m glad I get to do it for one more year.”

—Jacob Prothro

Nikki Humble

Junior Lauren McLeod warms up before a bi-District playoff matchup against Westwood. The Chaps took the series from the Warriors and moved on to the Area round against Conroe Oak Ridge High School where they lost.

Baseball falls short in first round

To learn more about Nicole’s run at the State pole vaulting championship, scan this.

Ryan Stankard

Freshman flies into State meet Freshman Nicole Summersett practices pole vaulting after school May 8. After placing third in Regionals with an 11’6” vault, she advanced as a wild card vaulter to the State competition at UT May 12. “It’s very exciting for me to be representing Westlake at the State meet,” Nicole said. “We have a great track team and it’s an honor to be a part of it.” Nicole has been vaulting long before her membership on the Westlake team, practicing with a pole vaulting pit in her backyard. “My dad used to pole vault at UT, so he really got me started in [vaulting],” Nicole said.

Varsity baseball racked up another solid regular season, maintaining the tradition of excellence to which fans have grown accustomed over the years. But in a defeat all too similar to that of last season, the team fell in two games to McNeil in the bi-District playoff round.

“Our offense was hitting the ball well all year long,” assistant coach Jeff Montgomery said.

“McNeil is just a salty good team and some days the bats come alive and some days they don’t.”

Despite the early exit, there are quite a few positives that the team can take into the offseason and the pring of 2013. The team was only half-filled with seniors this year, which gave several younger players opportunities to step up and contribute in starting roles, including third baseman junior Gordy Taylor. “[Head baseball coach Jim Darilek] let me start because I was performing well in [the Laredo Border Olympics],” Gordy said. “So there was a little extra

pressure but I thought I could handle it.”

The Chaps capped off the season at 24-8-1 on their way to a second place finish in District behind Anderson and entered the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season. The season came to an abrupt end on May 5, and the 11 non-seniors on varsity this year vow to amend that.

“I plan on the team going deep into the playoffs,” second baseman junior Aaron Black said. “We don’t plan on another first round defeat.”

As for the prospects of next year, Montgomery and the team are looking forward to avenging their defeat through highly motivated hard work.

“Even this week, we’re going to start scrimmaging and looking for pitching and depth headed for next year,” Montgomery said.

“There are a lot of people who are going to get out there and try to make a name for themselves and get a position nailed down.”

—Andy Brown

audition notice

middle & high school student summer productions Full-Scale Play Production

Monty Python & the Holy Grail

Full-Scale Musical Production

The Velveteen Rabbit a contemporary musical

schedule your audition time today!

Call Jazmine at 512-905-4392 or email jazmine@kidsactingstudio.com For more information about each show visit www.kidsactingstudio.com

A long drive

to success

Boys, girls golf place 2nd, 3rd in State

O

n April 15-17, the boys golf team garnered the Region II Golf Title, paving its way to the State Tournament. During the Regional competition at Twin Rivers Golf Club in Waco, the team shot a 292 for both days, collectively earning the lowest score of 584 and beating The Woodlands by 12 strokes. Individually, sophomore Matthew Perrine was recognized for his two-day score of 75-72. The scores of senior Wehman Hopke and junior Andy Germann were also pivotal for the team winning the Regional golf title.

“At Regionals we had [junior] Stratton Nolen finish second, Matthew tie for seventh and Andy and I finish in a tie for ninth,” Wehman said. “[Senior] Charles Neel White also posted a first day score of 74 to help us to our victory.”

At the State 5A Tournament on April 30 - May, the boys fell to The Woodlands by 8 strokes, and finished with an overall score of 579. At the Onion Creek Country Club, Wehman ended the competition individually in fourth place after a heated three-hole playoff.

“At State we only ended up playing okay,” Wehman said. “Our guys played well on day one, which gave us the four-shot lead. Unfortunately, we just didn’t play our best the second day. It was heartbreaking to see The Woodlands holding that trophy up instead of us. We all worked so hard and put so much effort and heart into the tournament.

All of us wanted it so badly.”

Additionally, junior Stratton Nolen achieved the State Boys 5A Individual Golf Title after winning a one-hole playoff by shooting par, finishing play with a score of 140.

“It felt great winning the individual title,” Stratton said. “But it’s not really what I wanted. I wanted the team [to win the] State tournament more than anything. Winning the individual [title] helps ease the pain of losing the team portion of State. I have to tip my cap to [The Woodlands]. They got hot in Regionals, and they carried it through to the end of State. We did too, but the difference being we did not carry it to the end.”

Despite the tough loss, both coach and players look to the future of

Senior Wehman Hopke lines up his putt at the final hole of the State Tournament on May 1.

Shea Wendlandt

Westlake boys golf with confidence.

“This team was outstanding like many teams we’ve had in the past,” boys golf coach Callan Nokes said. “I think we had a very successful season. I hope the seniors take [away] great memories and enjoyed the journey. I hope the underclassmen learn from their experiences and apply it to the upcoming season so they can play better next year.”

At the Region II Golf Tournament at Cottonwood Creek in Waco on April 15-17, the girls golf team played valiantly against their rival, The Woodlands, earning them a spot in the State tournament. Junior Sierra Sims won a second place individual award after shooting 72-75 for a total score of 147.

“The team has improved a lot this season,” Sierra said. “Everyone knew at the beginning of the year that they had to work hard in order to place at State, so everyone put in the extra time to improve. Everyone has become a smarter golfer with the experience that they have gained this year.”

On April 30 - May at the State 5A Tournament at the Onion Creek Country Club, the girls team finished in third place with a score of 604, losing to The Woodlands and Allen. Sierra shot 67-70 for a two-day score of 137 with three under par, securing the State Girls 5A Individual Golf Title.

“Winning [the individual State title] for the second year in a row feels amazing,” Sierra said. “It was a goal of mine at the beginning of the year, and I was really happy to reach that goal. It is nice to see my hard work pay off.”

The girls are proud of their performance and are grateful for the opportunities Westlake golf has provided.

“This season has been a big success for the girls program from our JV to our varsity teams,” coach Chuck Nowland said. “Everyone worked hard to improve and every player bought into the idea that the team comes first. I think that all of our players have the hearts of champions.

—Hillary Hurst and Taylor Kidd

Coach Chuck Nowland congratulates the girls golf team on third place at the State Tournament May 1 at Onion Creek Country Club.

Shea Wendlandt

D

{ opinion }

irt shuffles beneath my shoes as I stride up to the weathered plate. I toss a ragged ball up and smack it into the tall weeds of the outfield. The trains grumbling along Mopac blow their obnoxious horns in the distance as I survey what I once revered as holy ground: Louis Shanks Field at Northwest Little League. It’s been about four years since I played a game here, and many things have changed since then.

My aspirations have been altered. But as I bask in the nostalgia, I’m overcome with regret. My only respite is the knowledge that, no matter what happened, I was always

Going down swinging

Now a former baseball player, I reflect on what I learned from the game As a young boy, everything seemed magnified. To the average bystander, Louis Shanks might just be dirt and grass decorated with faded white chalk. But from the eyes of a little leaguer, it’s a pristine, cavernous baseball cathedral. Every time I stepped on that field to play under the bright lights, I wasn’t in Austin anymore. The trees and the creaky wooden bleachers disappeared. I was in Yankee Stadium, playing for a raucous crowd whose approval and distaste lay solely in the hands of me and my supporting cast of all-stars.

Each game was Game Seven of the World Series— a matter of life and death. I was Alex Rodriguez, and the pitcher was Roger Clemens.

Each at-bat was a clash of immortals, each pitch an opportunity to capture sweet victory. Whenever I got a hit, I didn’t hear a few parents and siblings clapping and shouting, I heard the lusty roar of 60,000 raving fans. I took that ecstatic energy and transferred it to how I played.The fence seemed to be miles away, and walloping a baseball over it was a herculean feat. I never could, but the few times when I came ohso-close drove me to reach that level of perceived greatness. Just the thought of the intensity I’d bring to every game makes my heart race to this day.

My 100 percent cotton, two-button uniform meant more than my team designation. To me, it represented courage and athleticism.

The writer as a fifth grader while playing for Northwest Little League.

courtesy photo

When I slipped on that uniform, a sense of pride would rush over me. I carried myself differently in uniform. Wearing it made me more confident — like I was part of a highly exclusive group.

Baseball allowed me to assume a different persona. Twice a week, I was allowed to drop my nerd title and become a fierce competitor on a field where brute strength, (which I lacked due to my incredibly scrawny frame), didn’t always determine the outcome. The sport requires wit, cunningness and quick decision-making, and I was well cut out for it.

Back then, baseball wasn’t as much of a rat race. When someone mentioned playing baseball, playing was the operative word. It was a game, not a lifestyle. I gave blood, sweat and often tears for it, but it was a game nonetheless.

However, the trials and tribulations of focusing solely on my baseball mechanics eventually consumed my life and often tested my love for the game. I still had that desire — that competitive drive. I spent hours and hours repeating the same swing and throwing motion, constantly trying to get myself to a higher level. The game I had once loved had become a tedious duty. If I was having fun, it meant I wasn’t working hard enough. But I knew that if things panned out like I wanted them to, the effort would all be worth it. Unfortunately, things didn’t pan out.

This past January, when I failed to make the team here at Westlake for the second consecutive year, I made the difficult decision of abruptly ending my competitive baseball career. I wanted so badly to keep playing, but I knew that it just wasn’t meant to be. But when I stepped back from my disappointment, I realized that my work wasn’t wasted.

Through playing baseball, I gained my undying love for the game. I learned to appreciate the beautiful subtleties of every pitch and to deal with the inevitability of failure. Striking out never got any less frustrating, but the hope that the next at-bat would be more successful never failed to keep me wholeheartedly engaged in each game. Sure, the work I did in order to achieve my goals in baseball wasn’t enough, and falling short was earth shattering. But after stepping into batters’ boxes for eight years and facing off against kids firing hard, stitched balls right at me, I developed the courage to compete. Until I found baseball, I was unconfident and unsure of my abilities in any field. It taught me to take pride in my talents and compete at the highest level possible, which will serve me well in life.

So thanks, baseball.

You might’ve ripped my heart out, but you changed my life for the better.

I owe you one.

—Andy Brown

15

Sky high Pilot-in-training works to obtain flying license

S

Scan for more photos.

taring up into the sky with his father in tow, a 2-yearold boy watched in amazement as airplanes lifted into the clouds at the local airport. The way the planes flew, how they soared without glitches, transfixed him.

Since that experience, freshman Tim Whaling has wanted to learn how to become a pilot. Now, that dream has become a reality.

Tim started a rigorous 65-plus-hour training routine to earn his pilot’s license around two years ago. During the training, he flies up in a plane seated next to his flight instructor who talks him through different exercises for controlling the aircraft. As much as Tim loves piloting, he admits that the training is quite challenging.

“The hardest part [of the training] is actually the communicating,” Tim said. “An air traffic controller is talking to you through a radio, so you need to know what to say and when to say it, really fast. It’s really tough and nerve-racking.”

The training is also stressful and time-consuming. In order to save time and remember the material, Tim condenses his lessons, taking several hours every other weekend. However, in about a month, Tim’s training will get tougher and longer as he enters the final phases of his advanced training.

“It’s a heavy workload,” Tim said. “There are two types of flying: visual flight rules and instrument flight rules. With VFR, you’re basically on your own doing whatever you want, and that’s pretty easy. This is my favorite part — having the freedom to just fly. IFR is when you’re being monitored by the control tower and told what to do, and it’s a lot harder. You have to be on the radio; you have to be talking to the ground controller with the correct terminology. It happens every sum-

Tim Whaling

Sitting in the cockpit, freshman Tim Whaling prepares for take-off.

“Even when I was a few months old, I loved airplanes,” he said.

Shea Wendlandt

mer when [my family and I] fly up to Canada. It’s the most difficult and stressful flight of our year. We’re exhausted after an arduous 13-hour day of flying.”

Despite all of the hard training, Tim enjoys the perks of piloting.

Sometimes on the weekends, he and his father, who is a licensed pilot, go to the Austin Bergstrom Airport to fly their Columbia 350 single engine prop plane. For fun, they sometimes fly to different small airports in the area and grab a bite to eat.

“There’s a pilots’ joke that’s about getting a ‘$100 hamburger,’” Tim said. “You spend $90 to fly to the location, plus you spend another $10 on the burger.”

His hobby tends to surprise people.

“I have to make people believe that I actually do fly planes,” Tim said. “It’s not, ‘I want to fly airplanes,’ it’s ‘I am learning to fly airplanes.’ They’re like, ‘Oh, wow, you can solo an airplane before you can drive a car? That’s crazy.’”

Tim won’t officially receive his piloting license until he’s 17, and he can’t fly solo until next March when he turns 16, but he still has big plans for his future as a recognized pilot.

“Right on my 16th birthday, I’m going to plan to fly the airplane alone,” he said. “It’s going to be awesome. I can’t wait.”

Tim enjoys his time up in the air and couldn’t imagine anything better than being in the sky while piloting his own aircraft.

“You take off, and you’re completely free in the air,” Tim said. “You can do whatever you want. You can swoop right, swoop left, climb and descend. It’s just absolutely free. I’m blessed to be able to do it all.”

—Michaela Moss

How to

punish students American history teacher discusses recent surgery, origins of his jokes

L

Shea Wendlandt

AP U.S. History teacher Tom Conway is known campus-wide for his puns along with his love for presidents.

Last October, as the mailman began arranging the stack of parcels for the mailboxes, he noticed an unusually large number of cards addressed to the Conway residence.

While AP American History teacher Tom Conway was at home, recovering from a recent total hip replacement, letters, e-mails and presents, from fellow faculty members and students alike, came pouring in.

Originally identified as bursitis, an inflammation in the hip, the pain in Conway’s left leg was treated with cortisone shots. Last August, Conway switched doctors, only to learn he had been initially misdiagnosed.

“The pain wasn’t getting better after months and months and months,” Conway said. “The shots didn’t really make me feel any better.

So, they sent me to another doctor, who took an x-ray. Once he looked at the x-ray, he immediately said, ‘You need a hip replacement. You need this surgery as quick as you can get it.’ It was what’s called bone-on-bone, meaning all the cartilage was gone; one bone was rubbing on the other.”

Because of the misdiagnosis, Conway was forced to receive the operation at an inopportune time: halfway through the first semester.

“At first, I was going to wait until December, do it over winter break, so I wouldn’t have to miss so much school, but the doctor told me, ‘You won’t make it to December,’” Conway said. “Plus, I was walking with a cane and in a lot of pain. So, I just bit the bullet, and in October, got it all done. I wasn’t real happy though. I teach all AP classes, and that’s a lot of time to miss for an AP class.

But I pretty much give the students all of the [notes] in handouts, and we just talk in class, so I felt pretty comfortable [leaving]. The sub I had, Ms. Grussendorf, had subbed for me a bunch before, and she’d always done a good

job. I felt like things would be OK if I left it in her hands. And I think everything went well.

On the test, the students did well, so I was pretty pleased.”

Four weeks after his surgery, Conway returned to the classroom.

“During the first week back at school, I was still on the cane, but now it’s gone,” Conway said. “I don’t even notice [the hip] now. The only thing I notice is when I get out of the car, it doesn’t hurt anymore. The pain is gone, and I’ve got much more mobility. I can bend

History Teachers: How to Deliver Punishment to Your Students. It’s going to be for American history teachers, and it’s going to be chronological: colonial era puns, American Revolution puns, Civil War puns and so on.

Then there’ll be just some general puns for the teachers to use. Whenever I come up with a new one, I write it down, so now I have at least several hundred.”

According to Conway, the respite his puns provide is more than appreciated by the both the students and himself.

“It’s fun, and I really enjoy them,” Conway said. “We do a lot of heavyduty work in here, but puns are a kind of relief from that, for students and for me.

They’re just relaxing fun. My favorite one is the ‘Open Note Test.’ That’s the one where I tell the students that they can have an open note test, and I draw an open note on the board. That’s the one that seems to get the best reaction. And then I have a grand finale for [my students], but I’m not going to tell you what it is. It’s for the last day of school, but you’ve got to survive my class to get that one.”

While he was out in October, Conway spent time working on his book, his legendary puns coming just as naturally to him as ever.

“I think [coming up with puns] is in my DNA,” Conway said. “It’s just genetic. I have no idea where they come from. I’m kind of like a schizophrenic, or something, because I can’t stop them; it’s automatic. I don’t really even think about it that much, that’s why sometimes I just kind of blurt them out.

They’re in my head, and they just come. It’s really weird. It’s how music comes to some people, or art or writing, they just pop into my head.”

—Hailey Cunningham

“We do a lot of heavy-duty work in here, but puns are a kind of relief from that, for students and for me.

They’re just relaxing fun.”

—American history teacher Tom Conway my leg much further, and I can put my sock on. I couldn’t put my sock on before because I couldn’t bend my hip because of the pain.

But now, it’s like I’m back to normal. I’m glad I did it.”

However, what Conway appreciated the most from the process was not the relief from the pain, but the get-well notes he received while he was recuperating.

"I got some cards and presents from teachers and students," Conway said. "It was the best part of the process. It made me feel great because it’s nice to know you’re missed.”

One of the presents Conway received was a pun book from junior Ally Villarreal, a perfect gift for the future author of his own pun book.

“It’s going to be a big bestseller, at least I hope,” Conway said. “It’s called Puns for

Anchors away Prospective pilot sets new course for future, joins Naval Academy

“Ex scientia tridens.”

From knowledge to seapower. The United States Naval Academy saw its motto embodied in senior Clara Navarro and accepted her to the freshman class of 2012.

She learned about the service academies through her brother, who joined seven years ago. After her first visit in sixth grade, Clara knew that she belonged at the Naval Academy. Now, that dream is becoming a reality.

“The first time I visited my brother I just remember being awestruck by the campus,” Clara said. “After seeing it I remember saying, ‘I’m definitely going to go [here].”

Though she made this decision in middle school, she wavered on it throughout high school. However, attending Summer Seminar and Stem Camp at the Naval Academy helped to solidify her choice. Summer Seminar is a week when interested applicants can take classes and go through the boot camp aspect of the academy. Stem Camp is an engineeringbased camp that provides the participants a view into the academic side of the Academy.

While there, Clara was given the opportunity to talk to some of the other midshipmen, or students.

“It was a really awesome experience,” Clara said. “Each of them seemed to have their own story or their own point of view to offer you. Everyone was interesting. I guess it’s a very selective, certain type of person who wants to go through all of that, so it was nice to talk to them.”

Once Clara made the decision to apply, a difficult, tedious process followed. In order to be accepted or considered, the applicant must have a congressional nomination. She had to fill out forms, write essays and apply to her congressman and both of Texas’ senators. She received her nomination from Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, and then applied separately to the Naval Academy. She was also required to be medically examined by the Department of Defense Medical Review Board. Though the application process was difficult, the hardest part is still yet to come.

“I’d say I’m most nervous about all the physical stuff,” Clara said. “I’m already trying to get into shape, but it’s a lot of work. There’s going to be a lot of strong guys, and I want to make sure that I’m not the weakling.”

It is a necessity for students in the Naval Academy to go through extensive physical training. For freshmen, the first six weeks of the summer are nothing but boot camp. Then every morning during the school year begins with physical training. However, the amount of mandatory exercise is reduced as students progress from freshman year to senior year.

Though there are several challenges to come,

Clara knows that she has many exciting experiences to look forward to.

“I’m looking forward to just being part of something bigger,” Clara said. “I’m also excited about getting to travel a lot. That was a main priority for me when making my decision.”

Joining the Naval Academy is a big commitment, and Clara has been given a lot of advice on the future and what’s to come.

“I think the advice I’ve heard the most is just to follow the rules,” Clara said. “There’s a very strict honor code and so even lying about the smallest thing can get you kicked out.”

During her senior year of the Naval Academy, Clara will have to decide what career in the Navy she will pursue. A mandatory five years of service are required after graduation unless she becomes a pilot, in which case eight years of service are required. She has the choice of becoming a Surface Warfare Officer, working in Intelligence, going into the Marine Corps or becoming a Navy pilot.

“I’m either going to become a Navy pilot or a SWO,” Clara said. “Being a SWO allows you to be on a ship and travel around, which sounds cool. Right now I’m leaning towards becoming a pilot. I guess it all just depends on how much I enjoy the military. If I’m really into it then I’ll serve eight years as a pilot.”

To most people, serving in the Navy seems like a daunting task. However, Clara is ready for the challenge.

"When it comes to serving overseas in combat, I am more than comfortable with the idea," Clara said. "I love being in new places, and I love adventure, so this seems like a good fit. The rush of military battle is something a very few amount of people ever experience.

I would be making history, and that excites me. Killing someone would be tough, I'm not going to lie, but I have faith in my country's ability to enter wars for just causes. A command from higher up has to be respected, or the entire system would crumble. I also expect that in the heat of battle, a kill or be killed instinct kicks in, making it easier to pull the trigger."

Acceptance to the Naval Academy takes a very unique person. Joining is a life changing decision, but for that select group of people, it can prove to be one of the most rewarding.

“I joined the Navy because my brother went through it and had an amazing experience, but also because of all the opportunities that the Navy can give you," Clara said.

"There’s a moral air on campus with everyone living by the same code of conduct. You're definitely part of a real brotherhood and sisterhood."

—Monica Rao

photo by Emily Cohen art by Michaela Moss

A new life

Rwandan boy visits Austin for life-changing medical treatment; Westlake student gets involved

E

Eight-year-old Jovanus was living in a place where doctors aren’t available, a place where running water is almost nonexistent.

Having a congenital condition in his legs that makes mobility hard and living in a refugee camp in Rwanda have added up to a very eventful eight years and, recently, a miraculous few months.

Africa New Life helped sponsor a trip to America for young Jovanus. Sophomore Mckenzie Kendall and her family friends, the Gerries, have been very involved in Jovanus’s recovery. The Gerries are hosting Jovanus while he is in the U.S. Mckenzie has been a part of Jovanus’s story and she feels like her own life has changed because of it.

“Jovanus was born normal,” Mckenzie said, “but his mom noticed as he was growing up his legs weren’t forming properly. His knees were pointing backwards. His feet are still normal; it’s just that his knees are reversed. He had absolutely no muscle in his quads; there wasn’t any tissue that he was able to build up because he wasn’t able to walk properly. Living where they live, they didn’t have any way to get him medical help.”

An Italian doctor volunteered to come in and help. He looked at Jovanus’s legs and decided that surgery would be the best option.

“It was a really long surgery with a hard recovery,” Mckenzie said.

“Since he was malnourished, it made it harder.”

Once the surgery was over and he was mostly recovered, more problems came for Jovanus.

“After the surgeon left, he didn’t have any physical therapy,” Mckenzie said. “His legs were really stiff. He had to use his hips and his lower back to swing his legs around in order to walk. The [people in his village] had a random chef do some physical therapy in his kitchen. They tied bags of beans and potatoes to his legs and tried to bend them. It ended up ruining some of the work that the doctors had done.”

The Gerrie family was contacted by Natalie Green, the U.S. representative for Africa New Life. She takes Jovanus to all of his doctor’s appointments and makes all of his medical decisions. She suggested that they take a trip to Africa and meet Jovanus to see if they would be willing to host him on a trip to the U.S. “The Gerries were really moved by Jovanus,” Mckenzie said.

“Families all over the U.S. started wanting to help. There was this idea proposed where they could fund a trip to the U.S. and see if he needs another surgery.”

Once enough funding was available, Africa New Life proposed the idea to Jovanus’s family and they were excited about it. Jovanus flew Jovanus stands with his family before his trip to America.

courtesy photo

to the U.S. in February. His first time in a car was the trip to the airport in Rwanda where he got on the first plane he’d ever seen.

He had just developed typhoid fever when he arrived, making it an even more difficult trip. He also speaks a different language than the people he is constantly around.

“When he came over, he had a translator,” Mckenzie said. “She was only here for two weeks.

Jovanus celebrates He does not speak English. He his miraculous reunderstands things like ‘Are you covery in America. hungry,’ but only the basics.” courtesy photos In March, a decision was made to put Jovanus into an American school for the rest of his visit. That way he could learn English and have some social interaction with kids his age.

“They put him in Casner Christian Academy where he’s doing everything in English,” Mckenzie said. “He was in a little spring play and it was so cute.”

The cultural differences for Jovanus are extreme. In the refugee camp, there would be days where he went without food. When he did eat, it was always very little and very simply. It’s hard for him to adjust to the American food and way of life.

“He hates ice cream but he loves ketchup,” Mckenzie said. “It’s really weird how different he is in ways like that. I remember Mrs. Gerrie would tell him that he could have all of his food or that something was all for him.”

Now, he’s at the doctor multiple times a week. He only has a limited time left in America, and the doctors have a lot more to do for his condition.

“He does physical therapy two to three times a week,” Mckenzie said. “[The physical therapists] put him in and out of casts. They bend his leg a little, and even though it hurts him, they put a cast around it.

When they take the cast off, he can move a little bit more. They’re only doing it a week at a time though because it’s so painful for him.”

The work that the physical therapists do here won’t be enough.

They’ll also have to send braces for him to wear back home. He’s leaving on May 27 with Mckenzie and Green.

“He says that he’s having a great time in America but he misses his mom and dad and all of his siblings,” Mckenzie said. “He’s looking forward to going back. He’ll go back with the leg braces and all of the clothes we’ve given him. He’s also gained a lot of weight, which is really good. They’re also putting him in a different school than he’s in now [at home]. Even though it’s an hour and 15 minutes away from where he lives, it’s a much better school.”

Mckenzie has been thinking about how much she should be grateful for.

“He’s just such a happy kid. I’m constantly thinking about him whenever I’m in the worst of my moods. It makes me think, ‘What on earth am I doing?’ He’s constantly smiling and giggling even if he’s in pain. It’s shocking to see that he comes over here, and he doesn’t expect anything. It makes us feel like we’re snobs. He didn’t have food some days and he’s still so happy about how his life is going.”

—Caitlyn Kerbow

21

Fun in the

Activities to brighten up your summer in Austin School is out. You’re stuck at home, wasting the day away and wishing you could be somewhere else. But Austin has more to offer than you may think, and there are many fun excursions to go on this summer to beat the heat and have some fun, all within the area. So get off the couch, grab your friends and visit one of these perfect “staycation” places.

—Rachel Cooper

Austin Bat Tour People who live in New York don’t always visit the Statue of Liberty, and people from Spain don’t always run with the bulls, but Austinites should definitely take advantage of the opportunity to see our city’s bats. You can take a formal boat tour complete with a witty tour guide, rent a kayak on Lady Bird Lake or be one of the hundreds who line up every night between March and October along the Congress Avenue Bridge to view the unique spectacle. Bat season peaks in the summer, and it’s said that when they come out just after sunset, the bats look like a giant cloud sweeping over the water. You’ll know the time is near when you hear the

Location: Congress Avenue Bridge Cost: free from land; by boat $10 for an adult, $7 for children 12 and under; kayak rentals range from $10-$15 per hour Visit lonestarriverboat.com or call 512-327-1388 for boat information and times. high-pitched squeaking as there can be up to 1.5 million tiny bats under the bridge at one time. Seeing the bats come out really gives you a sense of the community Austin embodies as everyone cheers them on. And, if you’re fortunate enough to be hit by some guano, you’re promised five years of good luck.

Peter Pan Mini Golf It’s hard not to notice Peter Pan Mini Golf with its signature Tyrannosaurus Rex towering over the site, along with other eye-catching, freshly-painted figures scattered among the two 18-hole courses. Keeping mini golf weird since 1948, it is a great place to spend some time perfecting your hole-in-one stroke. From big whales and shoes to quirky rabbits and Peter Pan himself, the course looks like it came straight out of a

Location: 1207 Barton Springs Road Cost: one course $6; both courses $9 Visit peterpanminigolf.com or call 512-472-1033 for details.

fairytale book and has plenty of perfect photo ops. Because competition often gets heated, Peter Pan Mini Golf offers snow cones and other refreshments for around a dollar to cool you off. Mini golf is a classic game that provides lots of fun for all ages. Who doesn’t love a good game of putt-putt?

sun Playland Skate Center

Deep Eddy Location: 401 Deep Eddy Avenue Cost: $3 for an adult; $2 for ages 12-17; $1 for children 11 and under Visit deepeddy.org or call 512-472-8546 to find splash movie showings and dates.

On a hot summer’s day, when the crowded neighborhood pool won’t relieve the 100-plus degree temperatures, take a dip in Texas’ oldest swimming pool, Deep Eddy. Deep Eddy has been an official pool since 1915, earning a rightful title of a historic landmark. Located in Eilers Park, the newly renovated pool has spring-fed, non-chlorinated waters which stay between 65

and 75 degrees Fahrenheit and provide a perfect place to splash around with friends to escape the heat. The pool also hosts “splash movies” in the summer, starting at dusk and featuring familyfriendly films from classics to new hits. The park provides plenty of surrounding shade, so take a swim, enjoy a movie and make memories at Deep Eddy this summer.

Location: 8822 McCann Drive Cost: $5.50-$8 Visit playlandskatecenter.com or call 512-452-1901 for details.

Walking into Playland Skate Center, complete with fog machines, lasers and other disco-style lighting, is a blast from the past. You’ll find people of all ages and walks of life roller skating and dancing around to music choices that range from “Dancing Queen” to “Cupid’s Shuffle.” It’s a fun place to let loose and to get in touch with your coordination as you attempt to circle around the rink.

Prices and hours vary, but you can bring your own skates and soak up the nostalgia. If you want to take a break from roller skates, they offer arcade games and prizes as well. Rollerskating is perfect for burning a few calories in a way that’s enjoyable and exciting.

aela

h y Mic art b

s

Mos

23

I am who I am

He is who he is

We are who we are Something was wrong, but he didn’t know what.

Freshman Echo Frnka just didn’t feel like himself. He didn’t feel like he was in the right body. He didn’t feel like a girl.

“I think I always knew on a level,” Echo said. “But for a long, long time I just thought I was gender queer or something in between.

For a while I thought I was lesbian, and then I figured out that’s not the case. I was going through all these different phases where I would have these thoughts in my mind, like, ‘What am I? What gender am I? What sex am I? What sexual orientation am I?’ It was an eye-opener for me when my uncle, who is transgender, female to male, said that he felt like a different gender than his body was telling him. That’s exactly how I feel. It’s like having a different soul than your body is telling you to be.”

Echo worried about what others would think, especially those closest to him. As time went on, he found himself trapped by even more confusion.

“I was afraid my mom wouldn’t understand it,” Echo said. “She’s always told me that she doesn’t care if I’m lesbian or bi or whatever else, but she’s never talked to me about being transgendered before. It was upsetting. It was hard to hide, but it was also hard to tell her.”

Eventually, Echo’s secret became too much to bear. Despite his mixed feelings, he felt the need to finally be honest with his mother.

“I was going through a month when I was

just so mopey over this entire thing,” Echo said. “I had to tell somebody. [The day I told my mom], we were having a big argument over why I was upset. And I kept telling her, ‘I don’t know why I’m upset.’ And she, being the average overprotective parent, kept asking, ‘Does it have something to do with sex?’

‘No.’ ‘Well does it have something to do with drugs?’ ‘No.’ And then I said, ‘Well, it has something sort of to do with sex.’ And she said, ‘What did you do?’ I said, ‘It has more to do with gender.’ And she said, ‘Are you transgendered?’ I said ‘Yes,’ and then I started bawling my eyes out. She was just hugging me and kept saying, ‘It doesn’t matter who you are. I’ll always love you.’ And then after I stopped crying, she said ‘Are you sure?’ ‘Yes, I’m sure.’ And she said, ‘This doesn’t have to be a permanent thing.’ I was like, ‘Yes, it’s a permanent thing.’”

Although her initial response was shock, Echo’s mom has an open mind and is willing to accept him for who he is.

“My mom was surprised,” Echo said. “She was supportive, but she was very skeptical of the whole situation at first. Now, I don’t think it matters to her. As long as I’m happy, she’s happy. It was a big weight off my chest when I told her.”

Although he felt relief after telling his

mom, Echo still had one more major concern: his boyfriend. He knew this revelation could change how they both viewed their relationship, their sexual orientations, even their own identities. He was right.

“He wasn’t surprised at all, like most of my close friends,” Echo said. “At first it was a little confusing for him because I don’t think he really got the idea that someone can be trans and gay at the same time. He had to go through an identity thing because he had to figure out, ‘Am I gay? Am I bi? What am I?’ He had to reconsider who he would fall in love with, regardless of gender identity.”

Although his mom and boyfriend showed compassion when he came out to them, some of Echo’s friends weren’t so understanding.

“Most of my very close friends were not at all surprised about me being transgender because I’ve always been a very masculine person,” Echo said. “But a few of my friends just stopped talking to me altogether because they were weirded out by the situation. It was hurtful. But if they’re not going to deal with it, I’m not going to deal with them. One of my friends — or one of my friends who I don’t talk to anymore — when I came out to him, he just denied that transgender people exist or that people can be transgender. That’s why I don’t talk to him anymore.”

She is who she is

Echo Frnka comes to terms with gender identity, deals with others’ reactions

Karen Scott

Echo faced even more intolerance when his discovery went public.

“When I came out in middle school, people started calling me stuff like she-male and dyke,” Echo said. “It was very hurtful. Being called names in general is hurtful. I started correcting them, but after a while, I started ignoring them because I knew it wouldn’t make a difference. Just dealing with all of that in middle school was supremely frustrating.”

Although he doesn’t face this bullying in high school, Echo still feels resistance from his teachers.

“I came out to most of my teachers on the very first day of school,” Echo said. “One of them does use male pronouns when referring to me, and two of them don’t use pronouns at all when referring to me. They just say, ‘This is Echo.’ However, most of them completely ignore my requests and use female pronouns.

It makes me feel like they don’t respect me.

I correct them, but usually they ignore me because they’re in the middle of a lesson. It’s annoying, but I can understand they’re just trying to get their lessons done.”

This opposition has had a negative effect not only on his personal well-being, but also his academics.

“I definitely talk to people less often, mainly because they’re confused about what I identify as,” Echo said. “If I correct their pronoun usage, they get really confused. And I actually participate less in class because it’s miserable being referred to with the wrong pronouns.

If I say, ‘The answer is such-and-such,’ then they’ll say, ‘She said the answer is such-andsuch.’ Then I feel embarrassed when I have to yell out in class to correct them.”

Echo must also endure this pronoun mis-

usage outside of the classroom.

“People [use the wrong pronouns] a lot; I guess mainly because they don’t know and because I look like a woman,” Echo said. “I can’t blame them for it. But I tell them that’s it’s really frustrating and disrespectful. One of the first things I do now when I make new friends is come out to them because they’re constantly using the wrong pronouns and that just annoys me.”

To combat his irritation, Echo relies on the support of his friends.

“It’s made me a lot closer to my friends,” Echo said. “I’m doing a lot better in [the classes I have with my friends] than in the classes I don’t because I can be comfortable talking with them in class. [When I feel frustrated], I talk to my friends in a really loud voice. I use my friends as a ventilation space, and they can sympathize with me.”

Echo finds solace in the community that the GayStraight Alliance provides. “[GSA] is an environment where I can be myself and not have people look at me weird or call me names,” Echo said. “One week, we did trust-building exercises. We partnered up, and one of the partners would place their hands on the other person’s shoulders and close their eyes, while the other person would lead us around. That was fun because my partner made me crash into a bunch of stuff. It was kind of fun seeing all the things my friends made their partners do, like walking up and down that flight of stairs. And we did trust falls, which I

only did once. It was scarier than it probably should have been for me because there were, like, 20 people hooking hands. I knew there was no way I could fall. I knew that the people underneath me were going to catch me.”

Echo has seen tolerance and intolerance, respect and disrespect, love and hatred. After his self-discovery and the reactions of those around him, he now understands the importance of compassion.

“Love is equal no matter who is falling in love,” Echo said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a man falling in love with a man, a woman falling in love with a woman or a man falling in love with a woman or whatever else. Love

“I was afraid my mom wouldn’t understand it. She’s always told me that she doesn’t care if I’m lesbian or bi or whatever else, but she’s never talked to me about being transgendered before.”

—freshman Echo Frnka is equal across all boards and should stay that way. I’m grateful for people who are already respectful of different sexual orientations and other such LGBT issues. [I want people] to understand what others are going through.

And for people who aren’t very respectful, to understand why this is an important issue.

Just respect, mostly, is what I’d like. Just be respectful.”

—Zelda Mayer

25

SUP3RFLY Westlake DJ

djsup3rfly@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/DJSUP3RFLY

Taking your off season training to the next level!

Contact Veronica Rodriguez for your FREE evaluation TODAY! 281-723-6982 or email: coachvrod@gmail.com 路 One-on-one individual personal training 路 Two-on-one personal training 路 Group training (4-10 people)

art is . . . the expression of human creative skill and imagination, the production of something beautiful or extraordinary, something that changes a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective in such a way that not everyone will understand.

. . . everywhere { westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 27

a

Karen Scott

change of art Veteran teacher retires after 37 years, expands skills through evolution of course

Looking over the shoulder of an Art IV student, teacher Dale Baker advises her on the colors and shading of her pencil drawing. She turns around on her stool and they discuss the direction of the project. As she turns back to incorporate his suggestion, Baker takes a few short steps to his other room, immediately switching gears. He walks over to one of the computers lining the walls where another student raises his hand. Baker takes the mouse, showing him how to add shading to his graphic animation. While both of these students have their own creative ideas, they still eagerly take Bakerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experienced advice. After almost four decades of teaching, Baker is planning to retire this year.

“At the time I first started teaching, there were a bunch of different classes all mixed into one small room,” Baker said.

“I could have ceramics and textile kids in there with drawing and painting kids.”

Walking into Baker’s state-of-the-art computer lab now, students may not realize that he originally taught classical art.

He taught for a year at Westlake before transferring to Hill Country Middle School.

After nine years, he came back to Westlake where he currently teaches Studio Art IV AP and electronic media, a class about computerized art.

“Over the years, I have kind of reinvented myself as far as the tools that we use in art,” Baker said. “I developed one of the first electronic media courses in the state. The University of Texas did an article on me a few years after I started. They called me a pioneer and, of course, when my sons heard that, they thought that just meant I was old. I had [a computer] at Hill Country; we played around with computers and graphics. The computers weren’t very good. You could fill in circles and squares and colors but you couldn’t really do much.

As the computers got better and software got better, we were able to do a lot more.”

While he spends a lot of his time at school teaching art on a computer, Baker enjoys completing more traditional art projects when he wants to create a piece of work.

“My favorite type [of art] is watercolors,” Baker said. “I enjoy the instant gratification of it. I can finish a watercolor in a couple of hours. I did colored pencil for many years but my projects would take around 80 hours to complete one piece.”

He has enjoyed art since he was a kid, but it wasn’t until college that he had the chance to take a class.

“We didn’t have an art class in high school in Corsicana, Texas,” Baker said.

“We didn’t have any kind of official art training, so I didn’t take my first art class until I was a freshman in college. When I was in high school, I did all the cartoons and stuff for the newspaper, but I really started getting more serious about art when I got to college. I got an Associate’s Degree from Navarro College in Corsicana in Technical Illustration, which is kind of half-drawing, half-drafting, and apparently, I was pretty good at that because I won the departmental award for technical illustration. I started taking private painting classes on my own and then I decided to go back to school and try to get my [Bachelor of Fine Arts].”

Even though he hadn’t planned on becoming an art teacher, this career became Baker’s favorite.

“This has been my ideal job,” Baker said. “I’ve had other jobs — I’ve worked for

newspapers in Virginia, and in Corsicana.

I was a staff artist and photographer and worked in advertising. I did that for about three years and then I went back and got my degree. [The University of Texas at Austin] said the only openings they had were [for the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art Education degree]. I said if that’s what it took to get me into UT, that’s what I would do. And I knew I wanted to do something with art anyways. I thought teaching art would be great. My wife was a teacher, and when I started this job, it was the perfect place. I just never wanted to go anywhere else.”

Baker loves to teach, but he also fills his time with multiple side projects, many in the fields of graphic design and animation. He is still able to work with Westlake students on some of these projects.

“I have designed almost every logo at Westlake,” Baker said. “In terms of the Jumbotron, the District was kind of caught between a rock and a hard place when the person they hired didn’t come through to teach a class. I jumped in and fixed that — it turned into a major thing. I started working with the video crew broadcasting the football games, which I really like.

I’m one of the people who works with the graphics.”

Though he will retire this year, Baker still plans to complete outside jobs, continuing some which he has been working on for years.

“I have a lot of projects to do,” Baker said. “There are all kinds of little commercial jobs that I do in graphic design. Now, I’m working with Mr. Rawlings, [principal] Mrs. Rawlings’ husband. He’s a space artist, and I’m helping him do animations for [National Aeronautics and Space Administration]. He basically gets the jobs and he subcontracts parts to me. For the past four years, I have had one student who has worked for him during the school year part time. This year, he had so much work to do that he just asked me if I would help him out. But basically what will happen is the guys at NASA will create a lot of the models and send them to me, and I’ll put them together and animate them. Right now we’re working on a project called Robonaut which will be the first robot in space.”

Even though Baker has an impressive résumé, his family and his students are the largest and most important parts of his life by far.

“My proudest moment was when my son, [JV soccer coach and English II PreAP teacher] James Baker, got a job here,” said Baker, who himself coached JV soccer for 14 years. “James loves it, and this is exactly where he needs to be. I’ve always thought that [Westlake] was where he was going to end up. My family [is made

up of] teachers — my wife, Mary Ann, is a teacher, I’m a teacher, James is a teacher, James’ wife, Ashley, is an [English II] teacher at Westlake. My older son, Jeff, is a lawyer in Dallas, and that’s what he should be doing because he’s good at that. There are no drawbacks to James working here.

There were some drawbacks when he was a student here though. He kept coming to me for hall passes for being late.”

After 37 years working in Eanes, Baker felt that this year was the right time to step down from teaching to spend more time at home.

“Part of [my decision to retire] had to do with my wife being retired this year,” Baker said. “It’s kind of hard to go to work in the morning when I see she’s sleeping in. It seemed like everything fell into place for me to retire this year. Part of me would like to go another 37 years, and part of me would like to leave tomorrow. I’ve made a lot of good friends, and I enjoy working with the staff here. It’s one of the best staffs ever. Even though we have a small department here, with newspaper and yearbook, we all work together.”

Baker feels more responsibility to his students than just teaching them art, wanting to help them mature into adults who will be successful in any field.

“It’s just a matter of developing good work habits,” Baker said. “If you work hard enough, things are just going to fall into place. I was not the best art student in school, but I worked hard at it. I see a lot of kids that are not very talented, but they work hard. I know that if it’s something that they are passionate about then they can do it. I get students that come back that are working in the field of graphics, painting or drawing professionally, and these are some of the kids that sat in the back of the room that never said a word.

They come back and say, ‘I really liked your class because you got me inspired to do this.’ So you never know where it’s going to come from. Some of the best art students may turn out to be insurance salesmen. The ones that work at it are the ones that are able to be successful. You get out what you put into it.”

Baker’s favorite part of teaching is seeing his students discover and develop their talent.

“I just like working with the kids,” Baker said. “I like watching them develop and grow and helping them over some of the rough spots. With my experience in graphics and studio art, I just add my two cents. They can take it or leave it. I just like working with the kids and seeing them become successful. All my efforts are geared towards trying to make them better.”

—Julie Dorland and Jenny Messer

{ westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 29

Scan this to read about another student who designs her own clothes.

Senior Leah Rush gets ready to work on her next fashion project.

“When I get time off and get inspired, I just decide, oh I really want to make something and then I’ll do it,” Leah said.

material girl Hannah Kunz

Fashionista pursues passion through design Senior Leah Rush’s love for clothing design grew out of a childhood surrounded by an appreciation for art.

Her mother, a professional interior designer, designed their home and often takes Leah to museums.

“I think [my mom’s] love of art and design really rubbed off on me,” Leah said. “She thinks fashion is also really cool. [My mom] almost majored in fashion design, but she decided to switch majors. She’s always had a love for it, even though she didn’t pursue it. She’s helped me along and tried to encourage me.”

Leah started making outfits for her dolls when she was about 5 years old, but now, she makes clothes for herself and occasionally her friends. She has made many dresses during her high school career, including all of her Homecoming and Prom dresses since sophomore year.

“My Prom dress last year had a wrap-around skirt, which was shorter in the front but longer in the back, and an underskirt, which was just a pencil skirt,” she said. “My Homecoming dress had a skirt with an emphasis on the hips, so it had weird pocket detail. They were both strapless. A lot of it was a reflection of my personality. They were feminine but also strong.”

The hardest project she has ever made was her Prom dress last year. After she decided on a design, the dress took her another month and a half to complete. “[I made the dress because of] my need to push myself to do

something different than a pleated skirt that flows out,” she said. “The silhouette was a hexagon, and it was very different from what I had done [in the past]. My goal when I make clothes, is to try new things and add different things that I haven’t done before.”

Besides the challenge, Leah likes to create her own clothing in order to ensure that they’re well-made.

“You can go into a Forever 21, and the clothes will be really in style, but if you look at the quality, the hem might be crooked or it might be cut strangely,” she said. “It’s things like that that just really bother me, so it’s nice to be able to go and make things the way I want them to be made. Even if they’re not perfect, I can at least say that I made it, and I didn’t pay for somebody to do a bad job. I did it myself.”

Leah plans to continue her love of fashion as a design major next year at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

“I think that [pursuing fashion] was inevitable because I’ve been around design my whole life,” she said. “It’s just been very present. I think that, with fashion, I’m able to connect with women on a more emotional basis. When you put on your clothes in the morning, it makes a difference in whether you feel good about yourself. Obviously, some people feel fine in just a t-shirt and shorts, but if you’re going to be job searching, and you want to feel powerful, then you put on whatever it is that make you feel that way, like the stiletto heels and cool, black dress. If that makes you feel good, then that’s what it’s about — feeling strong and powerful being who you are.”

—Selah Maya Zighelboim

GO CHAPS Fresh baked cookies, made from scratch and delivered right out of the oven while they’re still warm. Visit our location in the West Woods Shopping Center at Walsh Tarlton and Bee Caves.

$2 off any order of $15 or more Coupon code: WF215 Expires 8/1/12 Limit one coupon per customer per day. Cannot be combined with any other offer/special. Must mention coupon when ordering. Offer not valid on “walk-in” cookies. Offer only valid for “call-ahead” pick-up or delivery orders”

Central Austin (512) 473-2600 | North Austin (512) 349-2200 | Westlake (512) 519-3300 |

cookiedelivery.com

July 31, 2012

8-20-12

June 30, 2012

Bring in this coupon and receive a at the Village at Westlake or Barton Creek Square Mall.

Closed Sundays.

Offer expires September 30, 2012 © 2012 CFA Properties, Inc. Chick-fil-A Stylized® and the Chick-fil-A Cows® are registered trademarks of CFA Properties, Inc

Zenith

Ryan Carlisle

Dance students, technical theatre, musicians showcase talents in annual performance

Becca Burt

Senior Lucy Welch, senior Nicola Hibbard and junior Maggie Rogers kick during “Last Dance.” Hyline wore their field uniforms instead of the traditional pink leotards, black leggings and sequined leg warmers to accommodate a larger team. The traditional choreography was also changed to appear more modern.

Shea Wendlandt

Becca Burt

Shea Wendlandt

Becca Burt

Performing at the dress rehearsal on April 18, senior Lauren Gier dances to “Home.” “The best thing about Zenith was getting to perform on the stage for the last time and having all of our hard work pay off in an amazing performance,” Lauren said.

Second Lieutenant senior Kylie Brewer pirouettes during her solo “Watermark” on the Thursday night performance of Zenith. Kylie is a three-year member of Hyline.

Dancing to “Sexy and I Know It,” senior Spencer Smith performs at Zenith on April 21. Gyline has long been a Zenith tradition. “Gyline was an amazing experience and gave us guys a chance to show off our moves,” Spencer said.

Hyline leaps during their team modern dance, “What the Water Gave Me.” The team brought in choreographer Mishay Petronelli for this contest piece. “Zenith is a great way for us Hyline girls to express our love of dance and passion for performing,” junior Maddie Settle said.

{ westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 33

Graffiti is a style of art which gained fame as a subculture in the 1980s. Since then “graffiti” has grown into a representative term over different types of street art. Modern graffiti isn’t just spray paint on walls, even though that is a large part, but rather a style of art that has expanded in popularity. There has been a long debate over whether graffiti is vandalism or art. Either way, damaging public property has severe legal percussions. But not all graffiti is illegal. A new trend of setting up legal walls, or walls open for graffiti artists to display their work, has opened up a way for artists to showcase their art without hassling with the law. So when you’re walking down streets like South Lamar or E. Cesar Chavez, keep your eyes open for the many different styles of graffiti.

—Danielle Brown

word on the street Graffiti gains recognition as a medium of art

Karen Scott

Wheat pasting is a type of street art that involves glue made out of a mixture of flour and

water, which is used to seal paper to a surface. The glue acts almost like a wallpaper sealant,

Graffiti is a style of art which gained fame legal repercussions. But not all graffiti is illegal. it is debated whether less damaging spray“grafpaint. Wheat pastes, or pastes forof short, as asosubculture in theit is1980s.

Sincethan then, A new trend setting up legal walls, or walls fiti”come hasingrown into asizes. representative term forbegraffiti artists to display their work, has many different Some can cover up entire over walls whereasopen others can extremely different types artists of street art. Modern a way for artists to showcase their art small. Different have different styles, butgraffiti pastes can be printedopened out imagesup or hand isn’t just spray paint on walls, even though that without hassling with the law. So when you’re painted, and can be put up on basically any flat surface. is a large part, but rather a style of art that has walking down streets like South Lamar or East expanded in popularity. There has been a long Cesar Chavez, keep your eyes open for the many debate over whether graffiti is vandalism or art. different styles of graffiti.

Either way, damaging public property has severe —Danielle Brown

Karen Scott

Danielle Brown

Wheat pasting Wheat pasting, a type of street art that involves glue made of flour and water, is used to seal paper to a surface. The glue acts like a wallpaper sealant, so it is debated whether it is less damaging than spray paint. Some pastes can cover entire walls whereas others can be extremely small. Pastes can be printed images or hand painted, and can be put up on basically any flat surface.

Stenciling A stencil is made from cutting out an image from a piece of plastic that is then laid on a surface and sprayed with paint, so that the image is left behind. To create more intricate images, stencils can be layered on top of one another.

One of the most famous stencil artists is the United Kingdom’s Banksy. His notoriety stems from his complex, controversial political stencils that have gained world-wide fame.

Taylor Cloyd

Tagging Tagging is done with a paint marker or spray paint. A “tag” is just a name or a word the tagger chooses to go by, almost like a signature. It is by far the most popular form of graffiti, but is also the most opposed type. Tagging is found almost everywhere and is very recognizable. Tags are seen as more of a form of expression rather than an art form.

Karen Scott

Yarn bombing A new kid on the block of graffiti, yarn bombing has gained fame for large displays of knitted or crocheted statues, trees, street signs, or other objects in urban settings. Yarn bombing is eco-friendly and not damaging to a surface. Most displays are brightly colored and can last for years. Urban knitting is technically considered illegal but tends to not be harshly prosecuted.

Texas’ legal definition of graffiti is: A person commits an offense if, without the effective consent of the owner, the person intentionally or knowingly makes markings, including inscriptions, slogans, drawings, or paintings, on the tangible property of the owner with: aerosol paint, an indelible marker, or an etching or engraving device. { westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 35

picture perfect Making people float through the air is senior Lucy Ellis’ specialty.

Many of the photos she takes, and later posts on Instagram, an app that lets you edit and share photos, are levitations in which the person in the photo appears as if they are floating in midair. She started creating levitations after seeing a post on the fashion website lookbook.nu. “[When I saw the post] I thought it was so cool, and I wanted to try it out for myself,” Lucy said. “Levitations are just so fun to do.

When it turns out right, I feel really proud.”

With all her posts on Instagram, Lucy has amassed more than 41,000 followers.

“It feels kind of undeserved,” Lucy said. “I’m just me pretending to be artsy, and trying to work out how to use Photoshop. I’m incredibly grateful for all my followers, but it feels like they should be someone else’s followers. Everyone I look at has better ideas than I do and knows how to shoot better than I do. It feels like a joke if someone tells me that I inspire them.”

Lucy has loved art her whole life, but became interested in photography when she was 12 years old, and began taking photos of her cat and flowers. After discovering Instagram, Lucy started thinking about how she could use photography more creatively. She began posting her creations under her username maudemoiselle.

“During this winter break, I really got into photography and started coming up with ideas and planning shoots,’” Lucy said. “Since then, that’s what my ideas have been centered around. I still love traditional art, but photography just speaks to me more.”

For her photo manipulations, Lucy has been awarded a Gold Key from Scholastic and first place in the Association of Texas Photogra-

Photographer gains Instagram notoriety with unusual images

phy Instructors competition for photo manipulation.

“Lucy is an extremely talented art and photography student,” art teacher Dale Baker said. “Her sense of design and composition is evident in all her work. She spends a great deal of time outside of the classroom perfecting her skills and it really shows. She just gets better and better with each new project.”

Lucy is planning to attend the University of Texas as an art major; however, she is unsure if she will continue to study art all four years.

“In a dream world, I’d snag a job working for a fashion or documentary magazine, but the competition is really fierce for that,” Lucy said. “I think it’s definitely going to be something that I continue doing as a hobby, no matter what.”

For now, Lucy attends art class every day, doodles constantly and spends her weekends taking photos. As she plans photo shoots and other projects, Lucy draws inspiration from other photographers by looking on Flickr, Instagram and browsing through books and the Internet.

“Everyone thinks about things differently,” Lucy said. “When someone can create a photograph that shows their perspective or thoughts, it can be really powerful.”

Besides drawing inspiration from other photos, Lucy is also influenced by surrealism and ethereal qualities.

“I love it when you look at a photo, and you know it’s physically impossible, but you can’t work out how the photographer did it,” Lucy said. “If I can make people feel like that when they look at my work, then, that’s it, that’s what I want to achieve. Mission accomplished.”

—Jessica Stenglein

photo illustration by Lucy

lighting up the stage Performer shows talent through musical theatre

G

oing to see a musical brings to mind thoughts of beautiful singing, exciting dances and a long night of entertainment, unless you’re the one entertaining, like junior Sarah Nichols. She knows theatre from the perspective of the stage.

Sarah has had a love of performances since she was young, when she had her first encounter with musical theatre.

“I remember I saw Alice in Wonderland when I was in second or third grade," Sarah said. "Ever since then, I’ve been bitten by the musical theatre bug."

Before she began performing, Sarah had to overcome her initial nerves of auditioning for a show.

“I was so nervous [the first time I ever auditioned],” Sarah said.

“But you just have to go in there and realize that the people looking to cast you are looking for you to be successful. Once I got that idea across my mind, I became less nervous. As long as you’re prepared enough, there’s nothing really to be nervous about.”

Sarah has been in several musicals, including Into the Woods, Standardized Testing, The Sound of Music, and the Zilker Summer Musical Annie.

“Doing the Zilker show two years ago was really exciting because of the number of people who showed up,” Sarah said. “One night we had over 2,000 people who came.”

In addition to acting, Sarah is one of two juniors in Madrigals, the choir's elite group of singers.

Junior Sarah Nichols performs in the musical Call It Courage.

“My favorite part of theatre is connecting with people on stage through characters,” Sarah said.

“Everyone [in Madrigals] is really professional, and they all want to be successful at singing,” Sarah said. “I wasn’t expecting [to get in] this year, but I’m glad I did. I think that doing musical theatre helped me get into Madrigals.”

Sarah has earned respect from peers and teachers, including Madrigals director Edward Snouffer. "[What made her stand out] was the way that she works in class,” Snouffer said. “She is very focused and serious on the study of music and has a mature, nicely developed voice.”

Sarah takes lessons in voice, acting, piano and dance. She hopes to pursue a career in musical theatre after high school.

“The ultimate goal is to be on Broadway, but there are steps to take before getting there, such as getting your equity card,” Sarah said.

“There is an elite group of actors who have been awarded a certain number of points based off of a code that the Actors Equity Association has published. Once you get a certain number of points, you can get your equity card and are allowed to go to auditions that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to go to.”

Sarah looks towards the future with excitement. Musical theatre is a passion of hers that is unlikely to go away. She looks to singing as an artistic outlet.

“I feel like singing lets me express ideas in a creative medium,” Sarah said. “If I didn’t have that, then I don’t know what I would do. It has become part of me.”

—Sara Phillips In the 2010 Zilker Summer Musical, Sarah stars as the famous redheaded orphan Annie.

In this scene from Annie, Sarah sings the song “Maybe” on a radio show in order to find her parents.

courtesy photos

{ westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 37

not-so-fine Inept painter attempts to bring out creative side

O

“Okay class, draw Abraham Lincoln on this paper plate,” my second grade teacher said cheerily as she placed a portrait of the man on the overhead, “You have until recess.”

I gulped; art was anything but my forte.

My unsure hand quivered nervously as my black marker drew out a fairly accurate outline of his cheeks, nose and eyes. As I began scribbling out the beard, my somewhat decent rendition of the President’s classy portrait quickly began to resemble that of a man who had only chosen to shave certain areas of his facial hair with a dull razor.

Enraged at my artistic futility, I tore the paper plate into pieces and threw a fit. (Needless to say, I received a failing grade on that project). That was the last time I ever put effort into a piece of art. From then on, I’ve latched on to the smooth sailing simplicity of stick figures.

Therefore, when I was asked to write yet another disaster story about my inevitable failure at something that I know nothing about, art quickly came to mind.

My assignment was simple enough: go to a painting class and see what happens. After seeing several favorable reviews on Yelp, I picked out a two hour class in a place off of Burnet Road called Painting With a Twist.

From the moment I walked in, I felt way out of my element. My “classmates” were almost all middle-aged women who were drinking cheap wine and snacking on pita chips.

The only guys in the room seemed exasperated that their significant others had dragged them there and were convening near the free Oreos. This was more than just a painting

{ opinion }

art

class; it was a social event, and I was acting the part of an introverted awkward teenager as I sat dubiously on my designated stool.

As the class members slipped on their aprons and set their canvases on their easels, our instructor stepped up onto a podium at the front of the room.

“Who’s ready to paint?” she asked loudly.

A half-hearted cheer erupted from the mostly adult crowd.

“Fantastic,” she said. “My name is Christine, and I’ll be your instructor this afternoon.

That guy with the earrings and the goatee is David, and he’s my assistant.”

All necks turned to the corner of the room where a man who fit that description greeted us all with a brief obligatory “Sup.” She then placed a completed version of the

blend smoothly. I took a break from my work and looked around. I was astonished at what I saw. Mine was just as good if not better than the majority of those around me. There wasn’t much to it besides the sky and the horizon line, but I was proud of my progress.

After we rounded out the top with black to emulate the waning night sky, we began to fill in the bottom with a reddish-maroon. I then realized that painting doesn’t have to be all that complicated. The colors were doing the work for me. We put a couple of artsy little black strokes in the bottom corners and took a short “drying” wine and cheese break. But since it would’ve just been a cheese break for me, I just sat and pondered my masterpiece in the making. I shook my head in disbelief; maybe I’d be able to pull this off.

The first order of business after the break was to fill the horizon with trees. The largest group of women was gossiping loudly about their dating lives, but from what I could tell, Christine wanted us to make all the trees look like tall green teardrops, which turned out to be rather difficult for me. The tops of my trees had no shaping whatsoever and the bottoms were abnormally circular.

I flagged down David to try to save my trees from ruining the painting, and although he did help, he left saying, “looks like you’ve got yourself a forest of cucumbers, bud.”

Spectacular.

We did some light color shading on the inside of the trees, and then it was time to paint a creek on the bottom. That was plenty simple, but the trees were still really bothering me. They didn’t have a whole lot of structure, and the shading was a bit messy. But the class was due to end right at 5 p.m., and I could already see traffic piling up on Burnet entering Hwy 183 as the hour drew near. Time wasn’t on my side, so I quickly found myself two steps ahead of Christine.

I put shadows and trunks under my trees, added reflections in the creek, and signed my

“There’s no such thing as being bad at art.

Some people are much better than others, but everybody has some reserve of artistic talent.”

—sophomore Andy Brown painting — a red landscape with trees and a creek — that we were going to be copying on an easel and set up her own canvas next to it so we could see the finished product and follow her as she guided us along.

After Christine had briefed us on the guidelines of the class and what colors of paint we’d be using, we began putting down a background on our canvases under her direction. This was somewhat of a relief; the tall blank slate had been somewhat intimidating.

Splattering a tan mix of honey mustard yellow and white about halfway up the canvas was a small moral victory for me.

Before I knew it, I was dabbing bits of red and brown just above the tan to form an “apocalyptic sunrise.” Christine encouraged us to not worry about where the colors transitioned and that we should try to make them

Sophomore Andy Brown shows off the painting he created at Painting With a Twist.

Then the clock buzzed and Christine told us to lay down our brushes and line up for a group photo.

As I smiled for the camera, I surveyed my classmates’ work. Those ladies had finally caught up to me. Who taught them how to paint trees? But if this was a competition, I’d definitely creamed the group of disgruntled boyfriends. Not bad for a beginner.

We were told we could stick around for some final detail help with David, but as soon as Whitney Houston came over the speakers and the women, lightly buzzed at this point, decided to have an impromptu sing-along, I decided the details weren’t worth the suffering, so I got out of there to beat the traffic.

As I walked out to my car, I looked at my work. I’d just spent more time working on one piece of art then I had total over the past eight years. And what did I have to show for it? A mediocre red landscape. It rode shotgun on the way home.

While I was toiling in the monotonous start and stop of MoPac evening congestion, I looked over at the painting. It was growing on me now. Sure, the trees were messy, the shadows looked contrived and the creek could’ve been interpreted as a misshapen boomerang, but it was my painting, my creation.

It may have been based on a model, but it was my brushstrokes that made it look the way it looked. I felt an overwhelming sense of pride.

There’s no such thing as being bad at art.

Some people are much better than others, but everybody has some reserve of artistic talent up their sleeve. It just sometimes takes some assistance to realize that. I’m no Van Gogh, but I was able to put together a painting that I could be proud of. I walked into Painting with a Twist with an apprehensive outlook on anything involving art, but I left more confident, knowing it was within my ability. Self-proclaimed masters of stick figures, I encourage you to not lose hope. Believe it or not, you’re all capable of making sunrises over a cucumber forest. You just haven’t given your (albeit paltry) artistic side enough room to grow.

—Andy Brown

Karen Scott

To read more about other students’ ventures with art, scan this code.

{ westlakefeatherduster.com } trends + traditions 41

Bagels

Study & Save at our place.

OSU Campus West Woods Shopping Center Follow us on 1630 Neil Avenue FREE 3267WIFI! Bee Caves (Neil Road—Next and 10th betweento the Meat House CVS and the Aveda Institute) Mon-Fri 6-6 Sat 6-4 Sun 7-4 614-429-6042 512-394-7174

BREAKFAST SERVED ALL DAY! OUTDOOR PATIO! Soups Salads Sandwiches Desserts

Hunger Dismissed!

Soups

614-429-6042

(Neil and 10th between CVS and the Aveda Institute)

1630 Neil Avenue

Follow us on

PATIO! Desserts

and a

Coffee

Followus uson on Follow

Study & Save

FREE FREE WIFI! WIFI!

614-429-6042 614-429-6042

(Neiland and10th 10thbetween between (Neil CVSand andthe theAveda AvedaInstitute) Institute) CVS

1630Neil NeilAvenue Avenue 1630

FOR A

FOR AA FOR

$1.99 FREE

MBBBEEERRR OOONNNLLLYYY DDDUUURRRII NINNGGG DDOEECCCTEEOM

Onecoupon couponper perperson, person,per pervisit. visit.Not Notvalid validwith withany One coupon per person, per visit.

Not valid with any other other offer. offer.

One Onlyoriginal originalcoupon couponwill willbe beaccepted. accepted.Prices Pricesdo donot Only original coupon will be accepted.

Prices do not include include tax. tax.

Only 6-30-12 Validat allparticipating participatinglocations. locations.Valid Valid11-1-11 11-1-11tototo10-1-11.

12-1-11.PLU PLU3242 858 Valid atatall all participating locations.

Valid 9-1-11 Valid 12-1-11.

PLU 858

with the purchase of a Bagel with Cream Cheese

Bagel with Deli Sandwich Cream Cheese on aa Bagel Bagel on

FOR AA FOR

$3.99 FREE

DDDUUURRRIIINNNGGG SNN EOOPVVTEEEM MBBBEEERRR OOONNNLLLYYY M JUNE

Onecoupon couponper perperson, person,per pervisit. visit.Not Notvalid validwith withany anyother otheroffer. offer.

One coupon per person, per visit.

Not valid with any other One Onlyoriginal originalcoupon couponwill willbe beaccepted. accepted.Prices Pricesdo donot notinclude includetax. tax.

Only original coupon will be accepted.

Prices do not include Only 7-31-12 Validatat atall allparticipating participatinglocations. locations.Valid Valid12-1-11 10-1-11to 11-1-11.

PLU 590 Valid all participating PLU 405 Valid 10-1-11 toto1-1-12.

11-1-11.

PLU 590

with of fountain drink withapurchase an EggSandwich Sandwich purchase with an Egg purchase and Small Coffee or Soft Drink

FOR A

Bagel with Fountain Drink Small CreamCoffee Cheese

$1.99 FREE

I NNGGG DJULY OOECCCTTEOOMBBBEEERRR OOONNNLLLYYY DDDUUURRRI IN

Onecoupon couponper perperson, person,per pervisit. visit.Not Notvalid validwith withany anyother otheroffer. offer.

One One coupon per person, per visit.

Not valid with any other Onlyoriginal originalcoupon couponwill willbe beaccepted. accepted.Prices Pricesdo donot notinclude includetax. tax.

Only Only original coupon will be accepted.

Prices do not include 8-31-12 Validatat atall allparticipating participatinglocations. locations.Valid Valid9-1-11 9-1-11tototo10-1-11.

10-1-11.

PLU 3242 Valid Valid all participating locations.

Valid 11-1-11 12-1-11.PLU PLU3242 858

withthe thepurchase purchaseofofaaBagel Bagelwith withCream CreamCheese Cheese with

Bagel Bagel with Deli Sandwich Cream Cream Cheese on a Bagel

universitytowers.com

OSU Campus Campus OSU

Coffee

Get great deals all quarter long! $3.99 FREE

08.15.11 OSU Campus Coupon Ad 8/29/11 10:05 AM Page 1

Get great great deals deals all all quarter quarter long! long!

Get

Sandwiches

AUGUST

Upgraded security system

Salads

Study & Save at our place.

DDDUUURRRIIINNNGGG SSNEEOPPVTTEEEM M MBBBEEERRR OOONNNLLLYYY

Exterior painting, landscaping, lighting and patio remodeling

Bagels

BREAKFAST SERVED DAY! OUTDOOR 8.15.11 OSU Campus Coupon Ad 8/29/11 ALL 10:05 AM Page 1

FREE WIFI!

Study & Save at our place.

OSU Campus

Get great deals all quarter long!

Improvements to the pool area and furniture, with outdoor study lounge overlooking the pool

with of fountain drink withpurchase an Egg Sandwich purchase

Modernized elevators, lobby, lounge area & university-style study center with collaboration rooms

One coupon per person, per visit. Not valid with any other offer.

Only original coupon will be accepted. Prices do not include tax.

9-30-12 PLU 590 Valid at all participating locations. Valid 10-1-11 to 11-1-11.

Because we care!

FREE

Resident Life Program with newly hired Resident Life Program Coordinator

Fountain Drink Small Coffee

Choose from an innovative menu with new, fresh, and healthier options!

D U R I NSEPTEMBER G OCTOBER ONLY

New food program with retail food vendors

One coupon per person, per visit. Not valid with any other offer.

Only original coupon will be accepted. Prices do not include tax.

Valid at all participating locations. Valid 9-1-11 to 10-1-11. PLU 3242

Fully remodeled cafeteria space with unlimited-meal meal plans

8.15.11 OSU 08.15.11 OSUCampus CampusCoupon CouponAd Ad 8/29/11 8/29/11 10:05 10:05AM AM Page Page11

FREE

Bagel with Cream Cheese with the purchase of a Bagel with Cream Cheese

DURING SEPTEMBER ONLY

Regularly scheduled community events -

08.15.11 OSU Campus Coupon Ad 8/29/11 10:05 AM Page 1

A legacy restored.

We’re excited to announce the following for the 2012-2013 lease term...

Rooftop sundeck with breath-taking views of Austin

New and expanded state-of-the-art fitness center and equipment

Female-only and Male-only floors as an option

Hallway and building unit interior improvements U NIV E RSI TY T O WE RS

and much,much more!

Austin

One coupon p Only original c Valid at all par

with the pu

C

One coupon p Only original c Valid at all par

Sm with

$3

De

One coupon p Only original c Valid at all par

$1

One coupon p Only original c Valid at all par

C

kipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #f ment #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #h nRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KO book #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #a er #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral 12 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #govern #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #Egyptian a #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebo ngress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #b olution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 # are #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #h t #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia # EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congre sts #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evo hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share # ONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #g ctivism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #Eg kipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #f ment #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #h nRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KO How the Internet is book #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #a er #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolutionchanging #activism #hacktivists the way we#facebook #share #viral 12 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viralchange #wikipedia the#twitter world #hacker #blackout #govern #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #Egyptian a #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebo ngress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #b olution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 # are #viral #wikipedia #twitter #hacker #blackout #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #h t #government #congress #KONY2012 #SOPA #EgyptianRiots #evolution #activism #hacktivists #facebook #share #viral #wikipedia #

THE

SOCIAL REVOLUTIONARY

WAR:

T

he birth of the Internet followed a similar path as other new inventions that have assimilated into society. It started off as somewhat of a controversy, small amounts of people began using it, and then it integrated itself into our societal makeup so much so that we can’t live without it. The radio, television, heck, even the wheel probably went through the same process.

But what makes the Internet different is that almost like an organic entity, it is constantly evolving and changing. Social media is a large component of the Internet that links people to each other. It’s entering a new phase of usage: social media activism.

Facebook has proved to be a valuable tool to mobilize large masses of people. Just look at the success it had in organizing the Egyptian riots. Since Facebook added the “Share” feature, photos to raise awareness of issues, wrongdoings or heartwarming stories have flooded users’ newsfeeds. It has created a new trend of instant virtual awareness where someone can share with his or her friends the photo of a starving child in Africa or photos with “not safe for life,” content. Photos on Facebook have the capability of being shared with millions of people.

Some believe it’s an ineffective form of activism, but others argue that if someone’s point is to solely raise awareness, it does its job.

I hesitate to bring up the perfect example that flooded the media in late March this year just because of the strong emotions attached to it. Kony 2012 became a firestorm on Facebook and other large social media outlets like Twitter and Reddit. It took social media activism to millions of users’ front page. Status updates, mass fundraising and a 30-minute long video went viral overnight. The film began to gain infamy when debunkers arrived on the scene, shooting holes in some major factual points of the film and the integrity of the charity Invis-

ible Children itself. It didn’t help that the co-founder was arrested on charges of…well, you saw the news. But it also brought up questions of the effectiveness of a status update or a “share” on Facebook. Many retorted back at the Kony 2012 campaign, stating along the lines of, “If you want to help, get off the Internet and go do something.” Mass awareness might be more effective than some think. True, the Invisible Children video did gain a significant amount of negative attention, but there are hundreds of thousands of people who now know who Joseph Kony is as well as the atrocities committed by the Lord’s Rebellion Army.

More aggressive forms of Internet activism have also surfaced recently around the topic of Internet censorship and control. “Hacktivists,” like the hacker group Anonymous, have taken drastic measures to get their point across – mainly to the government. When Congress introduced the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, protests erupted on major websites, on the streets, and hacktivists began to retaliate.

The self-proclaimed “defenders of the Internet,” shut down or slowed down the servers of many U.S. government websites. Their Internet attacks affected SOPA supporters’ websites as well. Their attacks were accompanied by Internet “black outs,” of anti-SOPA companies that shut down usage of their website for one day during the heat of the SOPA controversy. Large websites like Reddit and Wikipedia blacked out their pages for one day featuring a statement about their opinion on SOPA. Social media activism has a large spectrum of effectiveness. Some activism has the potential to start grass-roots movements and overthrow governments, while others have the potential to make people go “aw, that’s too bad,” and the message gets lost. But whether or not it reaches millions of people, social media activism is an interesting trend to watch evolve with the growth of the Internet.

—Danielle Brown

43

Meals on wheels Entrepreneurs set up their food trailers on Bee Cave Road

Speeding down Bee Cave Road at 45, or let’s be honest, 55 mph, it is easy to miss the accumulating batch of food entrepreneurs that have parked their trailers in a small drive next to the entrance of County Line.

Lately food trailers in general have been getting a lot of buzz, and why shouldn’t they? They’re usually fast, cheap and you can’t deny that they’re just plain fun.

—Catherine Mear

The owner of Whatataco, Ray Gonzalez, puts the final touches on a sirloin taco, folding it over, getting ready to serve it to a customer.

1. Whatataco photos by Catherine Mear

B

Being a native-born Texan, I was immediately drawn into the Whatataco trailer by the mouth-watering smells of Mexico. Unlike most trailers, I was able to venture inside and actually see where the magic happens. The tiny place consisted of a single small grill, a medium-sized refrigerator and one Native Regio (meaning from Monterrey, Mexico) with a big heart, ready to welcome you into his trailer and treat you to his delicious tacos. Ray Gonzalez, the lone operator of the trailer, makes all of his tacos fresh. Yes, that’s right — I literally watched him make my sirloin taco and watched as he customized it with all the

ingredients I asked for. While the process might take longer than it does at, say, Taco Bell, the flavor and fresh taste are worth it. Each ingredient was perfectly blended together with no part more flavorful or prominent than another. Even the salsa (one of nine choices offered) was superb, with a rustic original flavor made by Ray himself. After paying $3 for a regular-sized taco, I was left with money in my pockets and a satisfied feeling in my stomach. In my eyes, the trailer-taco monopoly previously claimed by Torchy’s has been broken. Move over Torchy’s, there’s a new taco conquistador in town.

2. Frozy’s

I

I knew something was wrong when I wanted to stop eating. Having a stomach with the capacity a champion hot dog eater could match, I looked down, perplexed by the sight of the bright yellow snow-cone mush scraping the lid of the Styrofoam cup. Something was wrong. The flavor was wrong.

I ordered a “Fuzzy Navel,” a taste I was accustomed to after previous outings at the downtown Sno Beach.

I expected tangy, orange pizzazz; I got drab, sickly-sweet peach. How one can mess up a snow cone, I have no idea. It is ice and syrup. That’s

it. Luckily one of those ingredients managed to muster up my approval.

The ice. The ice was soft, not crunchy.

A nice change to the crunchy crud usually sold to Texans melting in the summer heat. However, the ice wasn’t enough compensation for the bizarre taste or the lack of picnic tables and shady areas to relax around the Trailer Park. During the summer, if you feel the need to indulge in a snow cone, I’d skip Frozy’s and travel down to Sno Beach where the flavors are delicious and the umbrellas providing shade are plentiful.

3. Chez Remy La Sandwicherie

A

At Chez Remy, gourmet food meets trailer park grub. Authentic French cuisine comes in the form of a variety of sandwiches sold by people with heavy French accents so you know you’re getting the good stuff. You can either build your own with the many fresh ingredients or choose one of the elaborate Chef-Selection sandwiches.

This place is a little bit on the pricey side, but it seems to make up for that with the quality of the food and the size of the portions. The build-your-own sandwich is served on a whole baguette

about a foot long. The bread was light and crispy, and the ingredients were plentiful and succulent.

For the adventurous type, the Chef Selections, served on airy croissant bread, (notably the MontBlanc which I tried) are interesting and traditional, some using gourmet cheeses. The Camembert cheese on the MontBlanc was creamy and added a perfect rich taste to the sandwich along with the tart cornichons, or mini pickles. I would say that Chez Remy La Sandwicherie is definitely worth a visit. Bon Appétit!

45

A whole new world

Hugo’s fuses cultural cuisines into a delicious experience If Latin America, Texas, Italy and Thailand could make a baby, their practically-perfect-in-every-way offspring would be Hugo’s Restaurant Y Tequila Bar. Located between P. Terry’s and Schlotzsky’s at 300 South Lamar, this new addition to the Austin food scene is a gift from the fusion cuisine gods. Tantalizing your taste buds with their unique dishes, Hugo’s prides itself on creating a melting pot of different ingredients from across the globe, specifically focusing on Latin American flavors.

Our waiter, who was totally rocking a mohawk, brought us our water, chips and spicy salsa as soon as we sat down on the outside dog-friendly patio. As we literally stuffed our faces with the appetizer, he offered insightful recommendations on the most popular dishes. He even admitted that he didn’t understand why people still eat shrimp and

grits, which is actually a frequently ordered item on the menu. He recommended the tacos and the duck cigars which essentially are flautas. We decided to be adventurous, so we chose The Capitol and the Tamale a la Hugo.

The Capitol, a homemade flatbread crust topped with pesto, spicy pecans, fig, roasted garlic, brie, parmesan and mozzarella, was a unique flavor blend that immediately caught our attention. When the plate came out, we also noticed that the chef added thin slices of pears. Hugo’s took a new approach on a flatbread pizza that was light on the palate, yet flavorful. The pears and fig added a fresh taste to the dish, and the brie and pesto helped make it a balanced combination.

Tamale a la Hugo is a twice cooked mashed yucca stuffed with pulled pork, wrapped in banana leafs, topped with curry coconut sauce and served with field greens

and rice that was a pleasant Brazilian surprise. The flavors of the pulled pork blended nicely with the creamy coconut curry sauce, and the fact that it was served wrapped in a banana leaf made it taste incredibly authentic. The side of rice was average, but the field greens were lightly dressed in a tangy vinaigrette that complimented the dish.

Overall, we came with the hope of finding another Tex-Mex restaurant and instead found a fusion cuisine gem, deep in the heart of hipster central Austin that wasn’t too pricey. The friendly and attentive service, vibrant and eclectic atmosphere perfect for a hopping weekend night and the intricate combinations of flavors left us in a food coma. We give Hugo’s Restaurant Y Tequila Bar our blessing. Next time, we plan to bring our dogs, Mia and Ivor, for a doggie date.

—Caroline Hunt and Hannah Kunz Barrett Wilson

These renowned Austin-based international and fusion restaurants are some of the most buzzed about places in the local food scene.

Australian:

Ethiopian:

Boomerangs 3110 Guadalupe St.

Aster’s Ethopian Restaurant 2804 N. I-35

French tradition meets Austin flair in Justine’s Brasserie

photos by Shea Wendlandt

J

Justine’s Brasserie is the love child of French tradition and the funky Austin dining experience. That much is obvious in just one glance.

Outside, white Christmas lights hang from the trees, illuminating the metal, round-topped tables. To the side, a neon sign of a burlesque dancer blinks, which I somehow found both charming and extremely annoying.

A Beatles song plays from a small speaker, immediately setting the mood as hip yet classy.

After hearing so many rave reviews for this casual French bistro, I decided to check it out for myself, and after that first glimpse, I was already glad I did. Started by Pierre Pelegrin, a former waiter at Chez Nous, and his wife in 2009, Justine’s is situated in East Austin, providing old-fashioned, authentic French dishes at a reasonable price.

Unfortunately, when I arrived with my family at 7 p.m., the restaurant was already packed, so the only spot available was indoors. Walking inside, I immediately felt overwhelmed by the noise — a combination of conversations and café music amplified by the crimson walls. However, the classy decorations and old black and white photos lining the wall helped continue the pleasant ambience from outside. As we were being seated, I noticed that the crowd consisted of both young hipsters and middle-aged Francophiles, adding to the eclectic ambience.

Maybe it was the bowling shirt or the silver hoop dangling from his left ear lobe, but our waiter and his New Jersey accent were very jarring to me. By that time I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised, but each time he came around, I snapped out of my French experience.

However, the food more than made up for the lack of authenticity of our waiter and the atmosphere. First,

we ordered an appetizer of artichokes, which I deemed perfect, although my knowledge of artichokes is severely limited. The two steamed artichokes were served with lemon wedges and melted butter for dipping. Although this is just an appetizer, the portion is very large, and it’s a wonderful option for vegetarians, since selection in the main entrees is slim. Along with this appetizer, we split a side green salad. The flavorful lettuce was fresh and buttery, covered in a thin layer of vinaigrette dressing that didn’t overpower it. I enjoyed the salad, though it was not extraordinary and certainly not worth its hefty price of $5.

By the time we decided on our main course, the restaurant had quieted down and we already felt pretty satisfied, which is fortunate because we experienced an abnormally long wait time. Apparently, the gourmet hamburger takes forever to prepare because of its one-inch-thick patty.

Of course, if the time it took for my father to devour it is any indication, the hamburger was worth the wait.

I went with a more standard dish of seared cod. While the fish, which is always fresh rather than frozen, itself was tasty, the accompanying vegetable medley of leeks, garlic, tomato and fennel was the star of the dish.

A creamy spinach fondue topped the cod and complemented the tomato flavor, leaving me near comatose by the end of my meal.

Overall, the food was prepared in a minimalist style, with simple and fresh ingredients. Although the dishes were slightly too salty for my taste, Justine’s gave me one of the most authentic French food experiences I’ve had in Austin. With prices of entrees ranging from $10-22, a trip to Justine’s is definitely not the cheapest endeavor. Just look at it this way: East Austin is sure closer than Paris.

—Zelda Mayer

Brazilian:

S. Korean:

Greek:

Indian:

Fogo De Chao 309 E. 3rd St.

Korea House 2700 W. Anderson Ln.

Opa! 2050 S. Lamar Blvd.

Whip In 1950 Hwy 35 South

47

Westlake dopplegangers These students get this a lot while walking down the halls, around the mall or on The Drag. How would you feel about being constantly compared to suave celebs and cartoon characters? These look-alikes take it as a compliment and have fully embraced their alter egos.

—Sarah Berg, Olivia Lee and Keren Rempe

“Hey, you kinda look like….”

Nastia Liukin

Fred

“Back when the 2008 Summer Olympics were happening, I literally got [compared to her] every day.”

—junior Jacqueline Brustkern Shea Wendlandt

“My dad gave me ‘the talk’ with his girlfriend in the car yesterday.”

—senior Shea Wendlandt

Keren Rempe

Shea Wendlandt

“[When it comes to unmasking a monster], the closest I’ve ever come is knocking someone’s helmet off in football.”

—senior Spencer Smith

Emily Mitchell

Shea Wendlandt

Steve-O

Shy Ronnie

Sid

For more look-alikes scan this.

“[Senior] Tom Ostertag got a blow dart gun and my friend [senior] Jackson Grimes got a prize if he let me shoot him in the butt.”

—senior Hayden McCarty Shea Wendlandt

“I was shooting off fireworks and I lit my neighbor’s bush on fire.”

—junior Jono Krawczyk

Troy Summersett

Selena Gomez “You know how they say ‘I would do anything for a Klondike Bar?’ Well, I would do anything for a date with Justin Bieber.”

—sophomore Bleakney Bissett Shea Wendlandt

New

bagels on the block

I

At the new Bruegger’s in Westlake, senior Chris Duke makes a blueberry bagel with peanut butter.

The bagel shop is open Mondays through Fridays 6 a.m.—6 p.m., Saturdays 6 a.m.—4 p.m. and Sundays 7 a.m.—4 p.m.

NewYork-style bagel bakery brings its flavor to Austin Karen Scott

I wouldn’t say I’m a bagel “snob,” per se, but I am quite the Picky Polly when it comes to breads and stuff. I was excited to see that Bruegger’s Bagels, which recently opened next to Howdy Donut at the intersection of Walsh Tarlton and Bee Cave, has added an authentic new taste to local restaurants frequented by Westlakers. Bruegger’s offers a very different experience compared to other Austin bagel shops such as Panera Bread and Einstein’s Bagels mainly because it serves gourmet New York style bagels and sandwiches.

The ambiance at Bruegger’s is welcoming. The aroma of warm bagels and cream cheese is appealing and inviting, yet not too strong, and the booths are spacious. Bruegger’s has a certain vibe that feels new and fresh, probably because it is, well, new and fresh.

The selection of bagels and other meal options such as paninis, sandwiches, soups and salads is extensive. However, on my first visit to Bruegger’s, I was disappointed to see that they were sold out of “everything” bagels, probably because they had opened less than a week before. On the plus side, I was presented with an interesting alternative: the “softwich.” I was reluctant to order it at first, mostly because it sounded more like a soft sandwich than a cross between a bagel and a sandwich, and this troubled me. I didn’t want to get myself into anything I would regret, especially something as life-altering as that.

In spite of my reluctance, I decided to let Bruegger’s give me its best shot and ordered a softwich. It was much thinner than a bagel, and slightly more chewy. After it was toasted and spread with my reduced fat plain cream cheese, I was pretty pleased with it. The service was

a s y s Ea pie

If you’re like me, then you probably have a sweet tooth, a craving that any tasty dessert has the capability to satisfy. Whether it is a piece of chocolate or some ice cream, I’m there with a fork and bowl, ready for a serving. So when I heard a new pie shop, Tootie Pie, was opening in The Village of Westlake, I was ready to take one for the team and try it out to make sure the pies met my high standards of delicious desserts.

I was curious about the name, where it started and most importantly, what types of pies they carry, so I decided to do some research. Tootie Pie became a business in Medina Texas after Ruby Lorraine “Tootie” Feagan was discovered by Don Merrill, the current president of the company, in a newspaper article that praised her amazing pies.

Now the store is open all over Texas, includ-

quick and my food was fresh, hot and delicious. However, (sorry to be a jerk about cream cheese), I wasn’t so satisfied with the thick, overlycreamy, and slightly bitter-tasting spread. Perhaps I am too used to the fast-food style bagels and cream cheese of Panera Bread; I guess it was time to try something more authentic.

I recommend trying just a regular bagel at Bruegger’s. I had never tried a New York-style bagel, so when I ordered my toasted plain bagel with reduced fat cream cheese I was ready to be blown away. I found that my experience with the bagel was similar to that of the “softwich.”

It was a little too dense for my tastes.

The next time I went to Brueger’s was just to stop in and grab a drink. I ordered a “Brueggaccino,” an original frozen blended coffee.

I was a little dissapointed in the ice-to-coffee ratio, but the overall taste was alright. After drinking about half of it, I looked down to see a clump of mushy ice and a sad attempt at blended coffee. The ice, although it was crushed, was still so big that it was pretty much impossible to drink the rest of it by scooping it out with a large spoon. Keeping in mind the price and quality, the blended coffee at Bruegger’s is not comparable to that of Starbucks or even that of Panera Bread.

I recommend Bruegger’s to anyone open to trying a special bagel experience. It will be different, but satisfying. Though the bagels are a bit more doughy and chewy, they are closer to the New York style than anything else in Austin and are pretty delicious. Considering the amount of options, you are bound to find something you like.

—Hirrah Barlas

New store caters to Westlake’s sweet tooth

ing Austin and San Antonio. And the rest, as we say, is history.

As soon as I walked into the store, I was engulfed by the sweet aroma of baking pies.

When it came time for me to choose a flavor, I was overwhelmed and didn’t know which flavor to choose. Tootie Pie carries a variety of pies, ranging from the classic apple to exotic key lime margarita pies. They even carry a unique creation of their own called “pie on a stick,” a frozen pie coated in chocolate, served, of course, on a stick. The pie shop definitely has a wide enough variety to please everybody’s tastes. Did I want to try a more exotic flavor? Or did I want to stay within my comfort zone? I decided to play it safe and ordered a slice of my favorite — coconut. It was a little on the sweet side, but nevertheless delicious. It had a chewy toasted coconut

layer on the top with a custard-like filling; for any coconut lover this was a dream come true. Tootie Pie sells pies by the slice as well as full pies. A relatively small slice sells for $5, a bit on the pricey side considering its size. An entire pie costs $30 to $35, the fruit pies being more expensive than custardfilled pies. Though Tootie Pie is known for its pies, the shop also serves hot and cold sandwiches, making it the perfect place for a quick lunch stop.

In the end, I would definitely go to Tootie Pie again. It’s a good pick-me-up when I’m craving something sweet, with a host of flavors. Although a bit expensive, it is a nice place to try, because after you choose your dessert, the next five minutes will seem as easy as pie.

—Anika Hattangadi Ryan Stankard

Ron Byrd, M.D. Carol Lynn Langer, P.A.-C

2765 Bee Caves Rd., Suite 201 Austin, TX 78746 512-328-2752 www.ronbyrdmd.com

A Family Practice in Austin, TX

It’s party time Students reminisce about childhood birthday parties

K

Juniors Christina Rosendahl, Julia Caswell and Josh Willis try out one of the numerous trampolines at Jumpstreet.

Katherine Curtis

oss

We stepped up on the curb and walked to the doors. As the first pair slid open, the feeling of humid, sweaty air along with the vile stench of feet greeted us. To our left, there was a mechanical bull, a foam pit and stairs leading up to a slide, and to our right, there were several tables for parents who sat and talked, observing their bouncing, yelling children through the clear plexiglass wall.

la M

Bouncing off the walls

hae

Emily said. “I had this really tall fence, so we all sat along the top of it, and my mom turned the sprinkler on and we got sprayed.

Then we had a big whipped-cream fight and sprayed each other with the hose. We went inside, got re-dressed, played Barbies, ate a totally awesome Power Puff Girls cake, opened presents and played Pokémon on my triple bunk bed.”

We remember the good old days, but through the years, we’ve put down the Barbies and picked up a more “big-kid” friendly form of celebration. Some people prefer to leave their homes to celebrate their birthdays. Restaurants and recreational activity centers are popular destinations. “[For my birthday] we drove to Blazertag, played about three games, and I lost every time,” freshman Mitchell Beckage said. “Well, I actually didn’t lose the last time: I got third place. [Blazertag] is a really fun place because they have a cool arcade as well. We went to a

Mic

ids are running left and right.

Food is splattered on every corner of the backyard. Laughter and giggles explode from the bellies of every child. What were once beautiful party decorations are now torn down and strewn across the limbs of trees in the lawn.

Most of the outdoor furniture is soaked from the hose held in one of the kid’s hands. A little girl in a pink princess outfit runs by and screams, “Best. Party. EVER!” You know that stereotypical elementary school birthday party — all of your friends come over to your house on a Friday afternoon, you play some games, eat some cake and then play more games before going upstairs to giggle until you fall asleep. Sometimes, these parties end up being the ones you remember the most. For freshman Emily Hill, the birthday that is glued in her memory is her eighth birthday.

“Pretty much every girl in my grade came to my house and we played dress-up, and went outside, still in our outfits and jumped on my big trampoline with the water hose,”

movie afterwards, and then everyone went home.”

You may not have gotten the pony you wanted and your party may not have been at the most expensive place around, but when it comes to memorable birthday parties, it doesn’t matter what you get or where you go; it all comes down to who you’re with.

—Michael Deisher

Despite trampoline burns, loud children, fun-seeking teens enjoy outing to Jumpstreet

Welcome to Jumpstreet.

With several Texas locations including one in Cedar Park, the indoor trampoline park has become increasingly popular. Because we went on Friday Teen Night, the promotional price was $12 for two hours, compared to the normal $12 per hour weekend rate. After paying and storing our things in one of the coin-operated lockers (which required four quarters each time we needed to open it), we found our way to the back and began our highly-anticipated jumping session.

Forty minutes, several front flips and a couple of trampoline burns later, exhaustion had kicked in. But we mustered up the last of our strength to try out the infamous dodgeball arena, on a trampoline, of course. Against a line of children, we fought long and hard but lost each and every time. One ball to the gut, and we knew it was time to move on.

Battered, bruised and defeated, we returned back to the more relaxed atmosphere of the open trampolines. Despite the screaming kids and a few excessive rules, such as not being allowed to sit down on the trampolines, we found that we were actually enjoying ourselves. Even the lengthy drive there was worth it.

Those brave enough to venture out to Jumpstreet and experience the fun for themselves should know that a parent-signed waiver is required for anyone under the age of 18 (it can be printed beforehand from their website). We also highly recommend wearing socks and please: arrive on an empty stomach.

—Christina Rosendahl and Josh Willis

51

Sho

es

d Bra

nn

Du

Toe Shoes

Description: They’re really just gloves for your feet that let feet be feet in all their dynamic, sensational glory, or whatever.

But, news flash: you just look ridiculous.

What it says about you: Our guess is that you have some strange obsession about always checking to make sure all your toes are there. So you wear these shoes to be able to always take attendance of your 10 toes.

Shape-Ups

Description: They are those weird shoes with the round soles. Even if you think they help you “tone” and they feel like walking around on an elliptical, we can almost guarantee you that’s not happening.

What it says about you: You’re one of those people who try to do everything physically possible to stay in shape.

That or you’re just lazy. Either way you photos by Tanner Thompson seem to think wearing some ridiculouslooking shoes is equivalent to taking a jog around the block.

wise

Flip Flops Description: Flip flops are somewhat of a classic in the world of footwear.

They’re a basic for the beach and the easiest shoe to slip on and off. Although running in them can prove to be a challenge.

What it says about you: You seem to be a laid back person, or you just didn’t have the time or care to put on socks and a normal shoe that morning. But it’s all good, we’d much rather see your nasty toenails anyway.

Sperrys

Description: Got your yacht waiting out in the harbor? These classic boat shoes are the epitome of preppy (aka Westlake).

What it says about you: Congratulations, you are the 99 percent of Westlake.

Whatever though, right? But you’ll look classy no matter where you go, so that’s a plus.

Barefoot

Description: Shoes are way too mainstream, man. Like, they’re just the establishment trying to contain your spirit.

Don’t let The Man get you down, man.

Just, like, let your little piggies roam free.

What it says about you: You let out your inner Huck Finn. You are one with nature, and probably live deep in the woods.

You know, far away from Big Brother and whatnot.

ly

u o y t u o b What your footwear says a Cowboy Boots Description: The unofficial shoe of Texas, the cowboy boot is a favorite among many. Some are simple, and some are crazy, but for the most part, they are all country.

What it says about you: You love your country, and by that we don’t mean the United States (although we’re not saying you don’t like the U.S.). Sweet tea, barbecue and cobbler frequent your dinner table, with no complaint.

High Heels

Description: For girls (hopefully only girls wear them) this shoe is an essential piece in looking “supermodel sexy” or whatever. P.S. Everyone can hear you clanking down the hallway.

What it says about you: You are okay with sacrificing comfort, shortness and the ability to walk quietly for just a little bit of attention. You strut down the halls to the beat of “I’m Sexy and I Know It.” Work it girl.

Converse

Description: The Chucky T’s. They’re the old school original.

What it says about you: You “keep it real” and like to keep things simple and original. You’re also probably a secret hipster by wearing these retro kicks, because they’re pretty “anti-mainstream” if you ask us.

Crocs

Description: In the age old battle between alligator and crocodile, this shoe was the deciding factor. The croc lost all credibility thanks to the Croc.

The alligator just got lucky.

What it says about you: Putting on shoes is the least of your worries, and so slipping on these cozy beauties is just how you roll. Rock out with your Croc out.

Scuba Flippers Description: You know those things scuba divers wear on their feet in the water? And look like frog’s feet? Yea, those. And when you wear them, you totally look like a fish out of water (pun intended).

What it says about you: Why you wear them at all (in the water or not) is a great mystery to the world. Our best guess is that you wish you were a mermaid/fish/aquatic creature. That’s cool, we guess.

—Tanner Thompson and Madi Goll

53

A walk on the

wild slide After recovering from a traumatizing experience on Lazy River, senior encourages others to conquer fears

E

Christine Schulz

ver since I was a measly little sixth grader, I’ve been living with a burden — one that has restricted me from days of “fun in the sun” for as long as I can remember.

One that has prompted others to point and laugh, in a way you never truly understand until you witness it. One that has caused my mother to hang her head in shame whilst chatting with the other parents whose kids happen to be... normal.

I’ve been dealing with a crippling fear. A fear of water parks and everything in them.

It makes me shiver just to think about that forsaken field trip in sixth grade, when I hopped on to the Lazy River ride without a clue of what was to come or a care in the world.

Though my coping mechanisms have blurred the whole incident into a fuzzy memory that I prefer not to re-visit, I can still picture my little ol’ self, dressed in glasses, a bathing suit and Eeyore pajama pants (why I was wearing pajama pants at Schlitterbahn, I do not know), sliding on and off that dang tube that was just so slippery. I couldn’t help but notice the way the older boys pointed and laughed.

At some point, I took a wrong turn and was separated from my field trip group and chaperone. I was pushed into a huge lagoon of water, where the sun refused to shine, full of old people and those mean boys (I tried not to let them get to me because I knew they would be the ones to grow up and lose all the girls to nice, sensitive guys). When it dawned on me that I was lost and alone, my palms began to sweat.

My eyes darted from side to side, searching for an escape, but no such thing existed in the pool of lost hopes and dreams. My purple-framed glasses were covered with little droplets that imposed on my already iffy vision. I couldn’t see, and I couldn’t think. I had nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, as I found myself lost on the Lazy River.

Then, it hit me. We had planned to meet back at the buses. Oh no.

Oh no. Oh no! How much time had passed? I hadn’t the slightest clue.

All I knew was that I was wet, alone, scared and stuck on the flipping Lazy River.

The buses would leave without me; I just knew it. I pictured my own lonesome self spending the night in the gift shop where I had bought a disposable camera. But the camera was of no use now, because I never wanted to remember the living nightmare of my dreadful day at Schlitterbahn.

It’s a mystery to me how I finally made it to the end of that dang

Lazy River without bursting into tears and just giving up and closing my eyes, thinking myself into my mother’s warm, dry embrace, but I did. I strolled around the park, in my soaking wet Eeyore pajama pants and awkward purple glasses, dodging abandoned ketchup packets and smashed french fries until I ran into a bald man with a round belly and blue shorts. I had been trained not to talk to strangers, especially bald ones, but I figured I had no other choice.

He probably sensed my panic as I managed to squeak out words that somehow formed a sentence which helped him figure out where I needed to go. Thinking back on it now, it’s a shame I never got his name, because I’m almost positive I owe him my life and mental wellbeing. Who knows what would have happened to me if he wasn’t able to guide me back to my group?

Next thing I know, I’m back with my peers, who, by now, are wondering if I should even be allowed to be left alone.

“Where were you?”

“Oh my gosh, Hirrah!”

“You must have taken a wrong turn...”

“Where did you go off to?”

“Are... are you okay?”

No. I was not in any way okay at all. In fact, I haven’t felt at ease in a water park ever since that day, and I don’t know if I ever will.

However, in light of the fact that it is the second semester of my senior year, and next year I’ll be a “big girl” with “big girl problems,” I’ve decided to venture into as many water parks as I can when the opportunities arise. It’s time for me to live on the edge and face my fears, no? At least that’s what my shrink says.

Just kidding. She didn’t say that.

Kidding again.

So, I urge you to go out there and do whatever it is you’ve been wanting to (or not wanting to) do, because now is your time. In the words of a very wise former Westlake student, “You have the rest of your life to play it safe. You’re in high school. Just have fun. Go out.

Have a ball.”

Afraid of gorillas? Get yourself to a zoo. Terrified of girls? Ask one out. Scared of water parks? Then grab your floaty and SPF 50 and venture out into the gigantic abyss that is Schlitterbahn, because if you don’t, you’ll regret it.

—Hirrah Barlas

Rain At times, the movies tend to glamorize the rain. We often feel like we may be the only people in the world who watch the kissing scene from The Notebook and, rather than admiring how romantic it is, wonder how Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling can simply stand there while their hair, faces and clothing become drenched in the falling water. We will never understand why kissing in the rain is considered romantic. We can think of nothing more unpleasant than being cold and wet while looking at a guy who’s equally cold and wet.

Wet doesn’t look pretty.

One Direction The first step to liking One Direction is hating One Direction. The second step is hating yourself. Follow up with a dose of outright denial, and you’re well on your way to becoming a Directioner. With their unfortunately infectious pop songs, you’ll see them soar to the top of your most played before you even finish watching their original X Factor auditions and muttering “what beautiful angels” under your breath. We love One Direction, and we’re not sorry. Okay, we’re a little sorry.

Neil Patrick Harris 3-D Nowadays, nearly every movie to hit theaters besides indie films and rom-coms comes out in 3-D. Titanic was great the first time around, and we aren’t saying that we didn’t enjoy Leonardo DiCaprio during his prime years in three dimensions, but it’s time the film industry realizes that too much of one thing is bad. Like, bad, bad. It’s tacky.

And gives everyone headaches. And it’s not worth the $3 more than the already expensive ticket price. It’s just a way for the suits in the entertainment industry to make more money off of kids and middle-aged thrill seekers.

Whether he’s breaking into an evil song in Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, up to his perverted antics in How I Met Your Mother or stealing a car in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Neil Patrick Harris never fails to entertain.

He’s everyone’s favorite musicallyinclined actor. One look at the familiar blond hair and goofy grin, and you’ll remember him from somewhere, considering he’s been everywhere. What will NPH do next? Conquer the world with his golden pipes and golden hair, or just continue to be amazing? Whatever he does, the world will be watching.

art by Danielle Brown

55