FOCUS Issue #6

the student newsmag of PMHS

Heroes in the Halls

PROFILES OF THREE SUPER WOMEN AT PMHS PAGE 11

ISSUE 6

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2020-2021 FOCUS staff Krissy Brzycki Co Managing Editor Bryan Aung Co Managing Editor Synthia Davis News Editor Madison Leonard Community Editor Evan Taylor Sports Editor Hannah Hunt Feature Editor Genevieve Holt Entertainment Editor Bawi Zing Page Designer Frederick Seddon Page Designer Lyndsey Spoonamore Reporter Ella Bennett Reporter Blake Hall Reporter Raechel Johnson Reporter Daniel Schoch Adviser Kert Boedicker Principal

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A LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

With the semester ending, we mark this issue as one that holds a nostalgic factor from our first newsmag of the year. Much like our first issue, this edition holds a feature page dedicated to social justice and representation. This time, in honor of Women’s History month, we chose to detail and profile the lives and accomplishments of three prominent female staff members at PMHS. In addition, we’ve brought back our horoscope expose on the last page of the entertainment and

opinion section. And following tradition, the horoscopes remain dryly witted. With every issue we aim to top the former, and this newest edition is no exception.

Your managing editors,

Krissy Brzycki & Bryan Aung

STUDENTS OF THE MONTH

JANUARY

FRESHMAN

SOPHOMORE

VANESSA NEWHOUSE

TRISNIE NGUYEN

JUNIOR ELIZABETH ESTES

SENIOR SUI PAR

To see or not to see: Teachers want cameras on Frederick Seddon Page Designer

By now, every student has had those long, awkward pauses when the teacher will ask a question, but no one chimes in to answer it.

Then the teacher waits… and waits…until the pause is so protracted that a student can’t stand the silence or the teacher picks on a random face in the crowd.

Feedback is an essential part of any teacher’s job. It lets them know how their students are comprehending the lesson and if they need to adjust what they are doing down the road.

Aside from that, it also allows the teacher to connect with students in a limited environment.

English teacher Benjamin Tatum revealed that when these pauses happen after he asks a question, he thinks for a time,“Ben, that was you.

It’s a bad lesson. It’s a bad question. They aren’t engaged.” However, when stu-

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dents engage later on in the day and understand what is happening, it quickly jolts him out of that mindset.

“The look on students’ faces is constant feedback,” Tatum says, “When you offer something for them to respond to, and they don’t, what’s that feedback telling you?’”

History teacher Joseph Cunningham believes that the content he teaches is important because of the sto-

ries imparted.

“I shouldn’t disrespect you by wasting your time, and students shouldn’t disrespect me by ignoring a teacher or not turning in assignments,” he says. “I put turning your cameras off into that category.”

If teachers are actively encouraging feedback in their classrooms through the form of questions or requesting cameras on, why don’t students follow suit?

history. Now, with representatives from the top 38 of the senior class, the doubt cast over virtual learning may be absolved.

Due to the pandemic, the Senior Academic Scholar Program will not be hosting a dinner reception. However, students are being recognized with a YouTube video on March 18 at 6:00 PM. For four years, seniors in the top 38 have strived for greatness. The drive to excel in class has allowed them to maintain a GPA of 4.2 or higher. Now, the majority of the top 38 shows that it is still possible to go out with a bang in an all-virtual envi-

ronment.

Jennifer York, a coordinator of the program, believes there is huge significance in the fact that the representatives of PHMS academics are mostly all-virtual students.

York believes that success in all-virtual learning is possible as long as “students apply themselves...and have the will to succeed.”

Furthermore, Kiara Childs, an all-virtual senior in the top 38, acknowledges how far she and her classmates have come. Childs finds it best to “keep a routine and hold [herself] to the same standard [she] always has.”

Students don’t always want their cameras on during the entire school day, and it’s not always practical to do so.

Senior Aaralon Warfield believes that cameras aren’t a necessity.

“I can understand if you’re doing testing or performative classes, it makes sense,” she admits, but she also points to a student’s environment as a key factor in that decision.

“There’s been a lot of things going on in my background at times that I just don’t feel like I have to have my camera on at that moment. I feel like it should be a personal choice.”

Cunningham thinks that a lesser thought issue with participation in the classroom comes from the virtual format itself.

“This set up cancels creativity,” he says. “When getting creative with technology, it opens doors for things not to work.“

Virtual scholars dominate academic program Blake Hall

Staff Reporter

Author Doe Zantamata once said, “It is only in our darkest hours that we may discover the true strength of the brilliant light within ourselves that can never, ever, be dimmed.”

In the Home of the Falcons, the 38 Senior Academic Scholars for the 2020-2021 school year have not let their brilliant lights be dimmed.

Most significantly, 24 of the 38 are currently all-virtual students.

Teachers have been hesitant with having all-virtual students on their rosters, one of many firsts in PMHS

As the surrounding communities witness a decline in grade success rates, seniors in the top 38 continue to defy the odds. In a year where seniors have lost so much, and a learning schedule that offers all-virtual learning, the majority of the top 38 represent how possible it is to endure the pandemic.

In this dark hour, the senior scholars showcase to every Falcon how to maintain their brilliant light until the very end. Even through the most troubling times, Falcons continue to soar high to achieve their goals.

AP exams renew anxiety amidst pandemic

by Raechel Johnson

It is 8:00 a.m. Students are barely awake as be reformatted last year in response to COVthey are led into a study hall room enclosed ID-19, the online version will be shorter this by white cement walls. As the timer ticks, year. Although the online version of the test pencils tap on wooden desks and students has its perks, brevity will not be one of them. frantically scribble themes and principles on According to the College Board’s website, sheets of paper. The nervous energy rushes “The exams will be as long as paper and penthrough the room. cil exams and test the same knowledge and It is about time for Advanced Placement skills.” . students to tackle the exams yet again. With The benefits of a remote test may be safety exam dates ranging from May 3 to June 11, a and comfortability, but the College Board enlot of preparation and accommodation is ex- sures both versions are equal in difficulty. pected on the students’ end to get ready for Besides the striking difference of both in these monstrous tests. For those who tested person and online tests, AP tests appear to last year, the confusion and frustration that look the same as in the past. The test will be follows hitting that “Submit” button is all too full length, with allotted time for breaks in familiar. between sections. And a full Even though testing may length exam means to expect “Although the look different than usual due any kind of material, from tests won’t be to two different testing enviAugust to April. harder than any ronments and three different But is this fair to students other year, I think in a school year so affected by testing days, it is important to keep up the hard work, even they will be harder this pandemic? behind a computer screen.

“Although the tests won’t be to prepare for...”

While days slowly dwindle harder than any other year, I by, students must think about think they will be harder to the bigger picture, as investing time to study prepare for because we haven’t had the same can lead to great payoff in the future. amount of class time as in the past,” Staf“Will the AP test look different this year? ford says. “The students have worked hard, Can I take it in person? Online?” but we haven’t been able to cover the same Yes, yes, and yes. amount of curriculum. This isn’t making it According to the College Board website, easy for students to make connections bethere are three “Administrations,” or rounds, tween lab work and the content.” of testing. Administration 1 is in school, while The same goes for every subject being testAdministrations 2 and 3 are in school and at ed by the College Board this year. From AP home. However, there may not always be an Language to AP Calculus, a teacher’s curricuoption of taking an AP test remotely. lum is altered when they have to instruct in a “All of the AP Science teachers recommend changing, remote environment. taking the test in person,” AP Biology teachWhile AP tests are moving back to normal, er Kim Stafford says. “Actually, that’s the they seem more stressful than ever. Due only way you can take it if you are a physics scheduling, college planning, and the curstudent.” says. rent of life in general, it is encouraged to get There seems to be a common misconcep- ahead by reviewing now. tion that because the AP test was rushed to

2024

Art Show: Cancelled

Bryan Aung

been a part of the art program since her freshman year and reThe art show has served as one counts its exciting atmosphere.

“I’ve always looked forof Perry Township’s largest community events in recent years. ward to it because I like seeing Students from elementary and everything that all the students middle schools alike gathered in make,” she says. “It’s like a tiny the PMHS gymnasium to view a Perry Township art museum.”. district-wide curation of art. CO- Seddon also recalls the live demVID-19 has curtailed many activi- onstrations from previous years. ties in the 2020-2021 school year, Sculptures, live paintings and and now the art show has made sketches are examples of the talent showcased. the list.

“I remember someone did a Visual design teacher and department chair Maria Delon con- splatter paint demo, there were firmed the event’s cancelation art students just painting, and also due to a lack of elaborate content 3D artists making sculptures,” she to showcase, citing the small-scale says“Students can [also] paint a projects being created this year in- piece of furniture in any way, and they are silently auctioned off at stead of more ornate ones.

Senior Alyssa Seddon has the show.”

Staff Reporter

Art teacher Alan Bundza also reminisces on his past experiences ith the art show, especially the emphasis on community.

“It was big, man. Lots of people came out and it was really nice to see people from all over the district. There’s a lot of action and there would be people there the whole time.”

Despite the cancellation of the art show, many of the AP art students, like Seddon, are unwavering and continue to express their creative side through art, encouraged by their teachers: “My art journey at Perry has always been enjoyable due to the support system from the teachers, especially Bundza,” she says.

Students’ Trust in Vaccines

until time passes, but allowing the disease to spread unchecked is far With the world opening again to worse.”

According to the CDC, the Cenvaccines becoming more readily available to allow more freedom ter for Disease Control and Preout in public, there are many ques- vention, some of the side effects tions and concerns on students’ that one could experience after minds: What are the risks of tak- getting the vaccine include fever, ing the vaccine? Who is currently chills, tiredness, and a headache. eligible for the vaccine? Does the These side effects are expected to vaccine really prevent one from only last a few days.

Although the new vaccine brings getting COVID-19?

“Although I think it is a good hope to many, others are more thing to question what we are told, skeptical.

“I feel like it’s pointless,” freshthe science behind the vaccines is sound and it has been tested and man Allison Robertson says. “[COreviewed by multiple boards of VID-19] is going to keep evolving, experts,” senior Elaina Eells says. and sooner or later the vaccine is “We truly cannot know if there are worthless.” State-wide, the numlong-term impacts from a vaccine ber of hospital patients has gone Genevieve Holt Staff Reporter

down steadily since the spike in December, according to the Indiana State Department of Health.

But will there be another spike of cases from people who don’t receive the vaccine? Its purpose is to help slow the spread of COVID-19, but it cannot stop it fully.

With enough of the population taking the vaccine, the virus will potentially be brought under control.

It may be years before the world functions as it once did, but the vaccine is another step closer in that direction.

FOCUS ART SPOTLIGHT

compiled by Frederick Seddon

Eliab Rivera

Alyssa Seddon

Brooklynn Ahnafield

Caroline Odenkirk

Katelyn Eversole

Avi Sherlock

making a SPLASH

Two Falcon divers finish off record-breaking seasons at state Bawi Zing

Staff Reporter

History has been in the making during this year’s diving season. Senior Midori Adams ended her high school diving career as the first Falcon female diver since the 70s to qualify for the Indiana State Finals.

This season, Adams went undefeated at home and placed 2nd in only two away meets. Additionally, she broke both of her 6 and 11 dive records again and ended her season placing 2nd at sectionals, 3rd at regionals, and finishing ranked 11th in the state.

She attributes the inspiration behind her athletic career to her mom.

“From her words of encouragement and little trinkets she gives me, she has never failed to be my greatest supporter,” Adams says. “She constantly pushes me to succeed, and reminds me to maintain my faith

and that greatness comes from within as given through the Lord. She is my rock, and without her, I wouldn’t have become the athlete, nor developed into the person I am today.”

Despite facing challenges, such as crowd restrictions, and frustrations with her performance, there are many things that brought joy.

“We divers came into practice every day, determined to work and become better than the day before,” she says. “My teammate and friend, Kumar, and I created our own little rituals that encouraged us to continue to progress throughout the season. It made diving more enjoyable and productive as a result.”

Adams will continue to dive at IUPUI as well as study Fitness Management and Personal Training. She also plans to get degree in Nutrition & Dietetics as

well.

Junior Kumar Mar finished his junior year of diving by qualifying for state for the second year in a row after securing a win at sectionals and having success during regionals. “This season has been amazing,” Mar states.

Mar had a winning score of 440 at sectionals and went onto regionals, where he broke his personal record by 22 points.

In doing so, Mar came 13 points short from breaking the school record.

“The thing that impacted me the most this season was to keep trying and keep going no matter how many times I fail,” he says.

“I loved that I got to see myself progress. Next year I hope to dive again and hopefully get that record.”

Mar still has one more season left and is a face that has constantly been one to look out for.

What will next year’s diving season look like?

The future is unknown, but Kumar Mar is a force to be reckoned with.

heroes in the halls

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March is Women’s History month, a time to recognize progress created by women around the world.

We honor some of our school’s most inspiring and driven women, women who have defied expectations, overcome obstacles, and exemplified power throughout their lives.

They are our superheroes who make PMHS and the world a better place: Jan Cooney, Viridiana Rivas-Vidal and Rebecca Shull.

You may have seen her “OKGO” license plate zooming around the parking lot. You may have heard Bob Dylan playing from her room.

But if you haven’t had her class, you may not know the fiery spirit of English teacher Jan Cooney.

Cooney She’s no stranger to the halls of Perry. A member of the class of 1985, she was a member of the yearbook and newspaper staffs.

PMHS was also where she met retired English teacher Craig Potter, who she credits with helping her focus on her future.

“He gave me the confidence that I needed in order to think that I could go to college and get a real job someday,” she reflects. “In a way, he kind of saved my life.”

Another piece of her life that she feels rescued by? Her love of music.

Posters of different bands are plastered

on her walls, as well as pictures of her with different musicians. Cooney’s voicemail message is personally recorded by members of the band OK Go, and she is a proud “fanson,” or fan of the band Hanson that students may know from their song, “MMMBop.” She keeps track of every concert she’s attended through a Facebook photo album that she uploads pictures of her ticket stubs to.

Even she’s surprised by the final total.

“241, that’s more than I thought,” she chuckles.

Music isn’t just a personal hobby for Cooney; she uses it to inform her curriculum.

Bob Dylan’s songs and experience with Perry’s bussing caused her to develop a great interest in the Civil Rights Movement.

This summer, she signed up for a National Endowment for the Humanities institute about

the civil rights era that she hopes to incorporate into future lessons.

“I want to thematically teach American literature next year with [activism] being a recurring motif,” she says.

Outside of the classroom, Cooney is a selfdescribed “free spirited adventurous soul.”

She’s ridden dog sleds in Alaska and jumped up on the stage of an OK Go concert. She’s sung karaoke with the oldest Hanson brother and appears in the liner notes of multiple studio albums for different groups.

But at the end of the day, she’s an individual deeply devoted to her students and her work.

“Young people have their futures wide open,” she remarks. “Their dreams and hopes and all these ideas. I want students to see themselves as the person that can be in control of their lives.”

Power is found not only in Viridiana RivasVidal, tutor and translator, but in the echoes of her actions as well. On a day-to-day basis, Rivas works with Perry students of low English proficiencies to understand their lessons and engage in their classes.

This is not Rivas-Vidal’s only impact, however. She is also a role model and leader within her community, working at local domestic violence shelter, The Julian Center, during the summer, and supporting small businesses around Indianapolis.

Additionally, Rivas-Vidal not only pushes her students to succeed, but has exemplified motivation and dedication in her own life. She is currently training to run a mini marathon.

Rivas-Vidal, a Perry graduate, initially envisioned herself caring for others as a nurse.

However, after taking initial courses, she decided to alter her direction of study, working

to earn her Associate’s Degree in Human Services at Ivy Tech.

Rivas-Vidal appreciates the opportunities that Perry has given her.

“It is nice to have a job and give back to the township that I grew up in,” she acknowledges.

“It was here that I really realized that I had a passion for working with kids, teenagers, youth.”

Helping students with a variety of needs and abilities is Rivas-Vidal’s talent, but that does not mean that it comes without challenge.

In addition to providing language support, Rivas-Vidal finds herself helping students in their classrooms, connecting with parents and providing support to administration.

It is important to Rivas-Vidal to emphasize the connections she makes on a daily basis and the admirable qualities she frequently sees in her students.

“We have a very broad, diverse group of students that we work with, and I really enjoy getting to know them and their background and where they come from, and just their stories,” she states.

Rivas-Vidal and her colleagues in the English Language Learning department embrace all students in need of support.

“It’s nice to make that connection so they feel welcome and comfortable and have someone to come and ask for help when they need it,” she says.

The compassionate, driven work of RivasVidal has evidenced to her the necessity of confidence and self-esteem. She advises Perry students to “dream big” and understand their power and potential.

“Don’t be discouraged by comparing yourself with others,” she suggests “It’s important to know that you are enough.”

She is passionate, she is patient, she is Rebecca Shull, guidance counselor and role model at PMHS. Shull grew up in Columbus, Indiana, attending Columbus North High School and beginning her collegiate studies at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus.

“I was more of a small-town girl with a small-town feel,” she recognizes.

There is nothing “small,” however, about Shull’s dedication and admirable talent.

Shull can recall the period in her life where she, like many PMHS students at this time, was beginning to make decisions about her future.

“Like most high school students, I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she reflects.

After taking a psychology course during

her senior year, Shull began to realize her calling.

“I’m a people person. I like being around people, I like talking to people... it wasn’t until I took that psychology class that I realized maybe I wanted to do something more in the counseling [field],” she reminisces.

After earning her Master’s degree from IUPUI, Shull found a position as a guidance counselor at the Sixth Grade Academy before working here at PMHS. Sharon Brown, a former PMHS guidance counselor, served as a huge inspiration.

“She taught me the things that I needed to know to be a good counselor,” Shull reflects.

As a counselor, she may frequently have to “break the ice” with the students she engages

with, but what few people know is that Shull once graced the ice herself.

“I was a figure skater when I was younger, and my coaches were very influential, teaching me discipline and organization,” she recalls.

The “discipline and organization” Shull learned as an athlete still inspires and motivates her today. Her greatest advice to Perry students?

“Just keep going...don’t give up. When things don’t seem to be going your way, just take it one step at a time, because eventually you’re going to get there.”

Whether on the ice or in the halls of Perry, Shull herself has proven that courage, tenacity and devotion to detail makes anything possible.

You start growing some fungi in your garden, but it fails miserably. Obviously, there is “mush room” for improvement.

Spring is rapidly approaching, and everyone knows what that means.

Clouds are consistently vacating the sky; allergy season feels as if it is going to drone on for eons; young children are breaking out their small, yellow rain boots, begging for their parents to take them outside to jump in the poolfilled streets.

But most importantly, people of all ages are coming together to participate in a shared experience: gardening.

Gardening has many benefits on both mental and physical health. For some students and teachers, it is a great way to relieve stress these last few timeconsuming months of the school year. The purple lavender and cucumbers are merely a bonus to the beneficial process.

Engaging in gardening or plant-based activities

for therapeutic purposes is known as horticultural therapy. It’s both an activity that can be done with a trained specialist or on your own.

Senior Environmental Club member Gabriel Means expresses how physical labor in the garden impacts him mentally.

“I’m very anxious and I have a hard time dealing with stress, but things like building with wood and upkeeping plants helps me to keep calm,” he states. “The slow nature of gardening helps to ground me in the present. People move fast and it’s hard to understand them, but plants prosper where they are, and reward your love.”

This stress reliever directly coordinates with Means’ school career. He believes it helps him to focus and engage more in the classroom.

“Being in touch with nature has such a stressrelieving effect on me,” he says. “When I’m not stressed in everyday life, I perform much better in

school.”

Master teacher Sandra Powell began to garden over quarantine and believes that starting a garden or keeping up house plants could positively impact struggling students. “[Starting a garden] would be a huge positive for students struggling with mental health because it’s something to look forward to every day,” she states.

“It’s nice because you pour yourself into it at the beginning and then you get to enjoy the benefits.”

How can a student start a garden? First off, they need to be prepared to work, as there is a lot of physical labor that goes into gardening.

Then they can begin to create an outline of what they would like their garden to look like, planning which plants will thrive next to each other. For example, if planting corn, there has to be an even number of rows in order for them to be successful.

Till the garden, and then happy planting!

Comedy: How Far is Too Far?

By Madison Leonard Comedy grows and changes throughout generations. Some highly offensive jokes that would be deemed too much now were made to seem fine years ago.

Gen Z has a reputation in the media that they are becoming too sensitive towards what can be considered comedy, and while this may be true for some, it would be absurd to conclude that this is true for all.

Gen Z as a whole is not becoming too sensitive.

Rather, they are just calling out insensitive behavior that was normalized in older generations.

An individual can say prejudiced things toward a specific group of people without actually having any true intent of harm.

The only problem is when the group you make those kinds of comments about says they give them an uncomfortable feeling, and they are ignored.

When a student-organized protest happened at Perry middle school last summer, some students took to Twitter to speak out about some jokes made by a few teachers regarding race and ethnicity that made them uncomfortable. Now while the teachers who made these jokes may not have meant any intentional harm towards the student’s feelings, they should have been mature enough to understand how making jokes like that in a time where young people are speaking out against racism may not be the best

choice.

You are not prohibited from making risky jokes however, that does not mean that people can not ridicule you for the words you choose to say. You can disagree and even find it annoying but that still does not change the fact that you could face backlash.

SNL recently faced backlash for making a joke where they had a heterosexual man pretend to be a woman from a television show, and kiss another heterosexual man, while the audience laughed.

Some people apart of the LGBTQ+ community found this to be offensive and took to social media to call this behavior out.

SNL has made problematic jokes similar in the past

and did not get as called out as much as they did with this current one.

Finding offensive humor to be funny does not automatically make you a bad person. But you should have the decency to at least hear someone out if they think you crossed a line by saying what you said.

With comedy changing so much over the years, predicting what the future will hold for it is near impossible. Maybe offensive jokes will become less of a problem or more of a problem. Either way, we need to be more aware of how the things we do and say can affect other people whether it was intentional or not.

Perry’s Pets Speak Out

By Krissy Brzycki Not being in school full time has certainly been hard for students. But it has been even more difficult for us pets who call PMHS home.

As a beautiful, blue betta fish, I was lucky enough to be adopted by the FOCUS family in November, and I was so excited to see them every day. They would stare and fawn over me, and it felt great to be so loved.

But when everyone

went virtual, I was moved to English teacher Daniel Schoch’s desk for companionship. I only saw the kids through a computer screen. This transition has been very difficult for many of us class pets.

“I miss them,” Eddie, Scott Simmonds’ axolotl says. “It isn’t the same with only a few of them here. Now there’s more barriers between us than just my tank.”

We have been well cared

for by the teachers, but their company gets boring after a while.

“I love Mrs. Knight, but this tank loses its luster after my thousandth lap,” comments Nikki Knight’s Red devil cichlid.

“Glub glub glub,” her goldfish remarks.

But every animal in the school is getting the same love we do.

“It’s been nice not having to scurry around so many feet,” Julius Chees-

er, an auditorium mouse, says. “But I still feel like not everyone wants me here.”

Cheeser does enjoy the peace and quiet that the pandemic has brought to the school.

“Maybe now your publication won’t put a picture of my dead uncle on the cover like they did last year,” he angrily complains.

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LIBRA

Be wary of sketchy oil changes.

We sense that you are interested in health food; have you tried quinoa?

What? No–absolutely not, you can’t do that.

No, not that either.

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TAURUS February is over, yet love is still in the air. Unfortunately not for you, though.

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AQUARIUS

You are a very neat person and very orderly.

Right? No? Too bad, that’s what this horoscope says about you.

Are you really this invested in politics? SAD!

Yes, please keep playing that music really loudly in your car when driving past the Greenwood Park Mall. You look so cool and not tacky at all.

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VIRGO

SAGITTARIUS

Positive financial times are upon you. Invest in GameStop stocks. NOW!

Trust us, dating that person won’t be your only regret this year.

It’s too late to celebrate Christmas. Or is it too early? Look, we don’t know either, but we do know it’s always in season to listen to

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Believe it or not, this year is almost over. Now lets see those grades!

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CANCER

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You’re not going to wear those shoes, are you?

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