GoodLife Youth Journal

Summer 2012

Price: Free COVER CONTEST WINNER Photo by Chloe Brovitz

Interview with Mike Hein * Family Farming One Voice for Laos * Saying No to Hunger A FREE journal written by young people for young-minded people

Publisher’s Letter

Reading for Summer Enjoyment!

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hhhh…..summertime, lazy and free! A great time to read for enjoyment, even if you’re working a summer job! Time to relax and enjoy the fruits of your imagination or satisfy your curiosity with a good book or literary publication like GoodLife! We must always remember to give ourselves a well deserved gift of “me” time and read.

When deciding on a book to read, be picky…you don’t want to get stuck with a time-waster! Your local library can give you information about all the good books; just ask the reference librarian. Talking with your friends can be very helpful too, because they know you and might be able to suggest a book you might really like. The web has lists of best sellers for each age group, too. And don’t forget to check out the review pages for books on the online booksellers’ sites.

Once you start reading, you won’t want to stop. Books help you to travel to new and undiscovered places. I like the idea that I can find a comfortable place, start reading, and experience the feeling of being in two places at the same time. It makes life much more interesting.

As you read more and more, books will also broaden your interests, and these interests can always be turned into an advantage later on in life. Your adventures in reading will naturally increase your intellect and help you to become who you dream you want to be.

Cathy McNamara, Publisher

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TOC/Masthead Contents

News and View.................................................................................p. 5 Environment..................................................................................p. 6-7 Opinion..........................................................................................p. 8-9 Advice..........................................................................................p.10-11 Fiction................................................................................... 12-15 & 20 The Wall......................................................................................p. 16-17 Adventure &ARTBUYYOUTH..............................................p.18-19 Music.................................................................................................p. 21 Food............................................................................................p. 22-23 Local Ulster.................................................................................p.24-25 Reading & opportunity..............................................................p26-27 Sports..........................................................................................p.28- 29 In Memory.......................................................................................p. 30

EDITORIAL

Editor-in-Chief........................................................ Cathy McNamara Art Director...............................................................Grey Ivor Morris Copy Editor...................................................................... Julie Schmidt Associate Editor...........................................................Kevin Cristiani

Sales

Carolyn Handel..................................... goodlifejournal@gmail.com

Distribution

Throughout the Hudson Valley GoodLife Youth Journal is published by GoodLife Publishing 20 Mountainview Avenue Woodstock, NY 12498

Refuse to be a Victim!

News & Views Alexa Cappola, age 18

The Freshman fifteen: An expression commonly used referring to an amount of weight often gained during a student’s first year at college.

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“I hated the way my body looked and would start to compare myself to other girls.”

Photo by Alexa Cappola

et’s talk about the big freshman fifteen. This is a terrifying ordeal for some young adults; when the pounds seem to creep up on you until it has gotten so out of hand that you feel you can’t stop it. When I was growing up I was always on the heavier side of the scale. I got picked on by a group of very immature teenage boys for a large period of my life; which lowered my self-esteem and made going to school a living nightmare. Once I got into high school and Thanksgiving rolled around my family decided to make a home video. The second I saw what I looked like on that film and how out of hand I let my weight go I said, “Enough is enough”!

I am a very tiny person, so standing only about 4 foot 10 and weighing over 160 pounds was extremely dangerous to my health. My doctor had been telling me for a few years that I had to lose weight, but shrinking down from 160 lbs to about 125 lbs seemed like an impossibility at the time; and my perception on how fast I could shed the weight was very unrealistic. I let a few months go by and I noticed I was always afraid to participate in gym or on my team because I would get tired after about ten minutes. I also hated the way my body looked and would start to compare myself to other girls. This led me into a depressive state where I cried constantly and was scared to even look at myself in the mirror. Psychologically, my parents were beginning to think I needed to see a therapist. I became mad at the world and hardly ever seemed to be in a good mood. My mom finally couldn’t take seeing me like that any longer and took me to my first Weight Watchers meeting.

You would think I would’ve been motivated to be around people who had the same problems as I did; but being the youngest person there made me feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. I really didn’t want to go back but my mother decided to join with me and pushed me to keep going. After a couple weeks my nerves began to ease as I listened to other people’s problems that were identical to my own.

When I lost the first 10 pounds I was ecstatic and felt good about myself. I noticed my clothes started to feel looser and soon I even felt comfortable wearing my dreaded jeans. I kept up with Weight Watchers for about two years until school started getting hectic and practices started getting lengthy to the point where I didn’t have time to go anymore. I lost about 30 pounds on Weight Watchers and feel amazed that I accomplished so much.

Even though I should have kept up with Weight Watchers, once I turned 17 I was a woman on a budget and couldn’t afford to pay for meetings each week with the small part time job I had received. But from Weight Watchers I have learned to maintain my weight and have become a more active and healthier person. This made me realize it is important to have a healthy lifestyle, especially when one is attending school. When you feel good about yourself you tend to do better in class, on tests, even socially. Once I started losing weight my grades went up a little bit because I was focusing more on studying than how I looked. It also helps with your awareness during school. I had more energy to stay awake during class, get through a full fencing practice, and even go out with my friends after.

I must sound like a Weight Watchers ad but the truth is that even though I liked the program, there are so many other programs and ways to keep your body in shape. I realized through the years. (especially during my high school years) that being a healthier person betters your life physically and psychologically. When you feel better you do better and in my first year of college I plan on doing my best.

Even though I’m not on Weight Watchers I will still be watching my weight. I refuse to become a victim of the traitorous freshman fifteen!

This article generously sponsored by Karen Samet

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 5

Environment

: e t A Serious Problem s a E-W M

“According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than 4.6 million tons of e-waste ended up in U.S. landfills in 2000,”

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Photo by Rebecca Schackne

ost people these days are familiar with the rules for recycling common materials such as paper, plastics, metals, and glass. Yet very few people know how to safely and correctly dispose of electronic waste like old computers, cell phones, televisions, stereos, toys, and other household appliances. “E-waste” is a term used to cover almost all types of electrical and electronic equipment that has or could enter the waste stream. Hazardous electronic waste is accumulating rapidly and becoming a serious problem. We must come up with solutions for dealing with this problem soon, for our own sakes and for the sake of future generations.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than 4.6 million tons of e-waste ended up in U.S. landfills in 2000, and the amount of ewaste continues to increase daily. Toxic chemicals in electronic products can filter into the land over time or release into the atmosphere, which impacts nearby communities and the environment. Many countries have tried to ban the dumping of electronic waste into landfills because it contains hazardous chemicals like lead, cadmium, and mercury, yet the practice is still continued. When released, these substances can accumulate in the food chain, especially in fish, and eventually be consumed by the public.

Europe, Japan, and some of the U.S. states set up an e-waste “recycling” system during the 1990’s, but most countries do not have the capacity to deal with the amount of e-waste they generate or its toxic aspects. For this reason, e-waste has generally been exported or “recycled” to developing countries illegally because it’s easier and cheaper to do so. It is estimated that 50-80 percent of the waste collected for recycling is being exported in this way in the U.S. alone. Developing countries are willing to accept e-waste because in addition to various hazardous materials, e-waste also contains many valuable and precious materials. At least 60 elements from the periodic table can be found in complex

By Megan Stack, age18 electronics. Scrapyards in East Asia and India are able to extract valuable metals like gold, copper, iron, nickel, and silicon from the e-waste during the recycling process. Unfortunately, countries that accept ewaste usually do not have many enforced laws in place to protect the environment and workers. Even when such laws exist, the explosive amount of e-waste has made it nearly impossible to safely and efficiently extract materials of value and decompose the remainder of the waste.

Electronic waste is only going to increase. Recycling and reusing electronic materials is a temporary solution, but it is an ineffective way to dispose of them in the long term. That’s why I feel that minimizing the hazardous materials and waste should be an important part of electronic product design. I think the only option left is to force electronic manufacturers to design cleaner electronics with longer life spans that are safe and easy to recycle.

Alternatives to hazardous materials do actually exist! Variants of tin-silver-copper and tin-copper can replace lead, and scientists have developed copper alloys with cadmium free options. Bio-based plastics, toners, glues, and inks can be made with plant-based chemicals rather than petro-chemicals. LCD panels and plasma screens contain little or no hazardous materials. Solar computers and other solarpowered electronics also exist, although they may be expensive to manufacture.

Also, if the companies and organizations who constructed these toxic electronics have the ability and facilities to do so safely, shouldn’t they also have the appropriate materials to recycle the e-waste once their products have reached the end of their life cycles?

The need for change is urgent. As the demand for electronic products continues to rise, the irreversible negative effects on public health and safety and the environment will increase. As a society, we must increase public awareness of this problem and support acts and laws constricting the use of these toxic, hazardous materials.

Environment

Compost Heating: When Decay Saves the Day!

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By Rachel Schackne, age 17

Illustration by Megan Stack

magine an efficient heating system that doesn’t destroy the environment, isn’t made in China, isn’t radioactive, and doesn’t cost a dime. It isn’t magic, people, but it sure is close. Our generation’s substitute for propane-decomposing organic materials!

Compost heating has just recently been developed in certain areas of the eastern hemisphere. Even with raw, undeveloped technology, people have been able to utilize the heat produced from compost to heat homes and water.

Compost produces heat because of what resides in it. Millions of tiny microorganisms thrive in the decomposing waste.

While eating the waste and producing fertilizers, these tiny organisms constantly move and produce heat, just like you and me. The only difference is that as long as there is decomposing material to eat, they will never stop moving, and so the heat they produce is constant and can be easily channeled.

Anyone in the world can use a compost heating system, as long as they have access to the proper amount of waste, and the time to set up a proper system. The Permaculture Research Institute of Australia constructed a completely compost heated two-story building that could reach 80 degrees F on a cold day, using an aerobic compost pile the size of a football field. With further research, compost piles could potentially be harnessed to produce heat at temperatures of up to 90 degrees F! Though compost heating technology is not yet well developed, it shows major promise. We could easily get off this oil dependent, climate changing, pollution increasing path that we have been walking down for the past century. Your own dinner scraps can eventually show us the way to a more sustainable, compost heated world.

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Movie

On the Set of an Indie Film

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Story and Photo by Zev Vel, age 16

or the last year and a half I have worked on independent film sets. Although I am only 16, I find working there more enjoyable and welcoming than almost anything else that I do. The constant work, pressure, and deadlines keep you on your feet and working for hours on end in order to get that one perfect shot. But this pressure also makes the job one of the most amazing places to work; it is my life.

In early December, I was invited onto the film set of Persephone, a short film directed by Laurent Rejto starring Academy Award winning actress, Melissa Leo. The film focused on three different seasons and had to be shot in three different parts. I was able to work on parts two and three as the key grip and gaffer. The key grip leads the team of grips, the department in charge of setting up equipment and assisting the camera team in order to achieve the shot. The gaffer is in Lindsay Andretta on the set of local film “Persephone” charge of lighting the set and works resort. I was invited back to help assist the skeleton crew (a small crew with the grips and the director of photography in order to bring the of just the key personnel) on the slopes. This winter wonderland was director’s vision to the screen. necessary to stage the last scenes of the film and introduced a whole The first day ended early for the actors, but not for my department. new experience to me: skiing on a film set, and working with ski boots We spent the next five or six hours lighting the space for the next day. on a film set. It was one of We had to run power lines to different circuits, ensuring that all lights those things that most peoworked properly, and that the end product would look how the direc- ple don’t even imagine, but, tor had envisioned it. as it saved time and helped The following day, I woke up at 5 in the morning, once again ready move equipment quickly, to go for a full day of shooting. Film shoots can go for hours on end, it was the most efficient sometimes starting before most people awake, and ending after many means of transportation. fall asleep. Although these hours test your endurance and willpower As a teenager, working to continue, the enjoyment that I get out of filmmaking brings me can be tough. When I enter back the next day. a new environment, I am A few months later, the third part of this film started shooting. The often overlooked or ignored scene required a wintry look, so it had to take place in the only lo- because of my age. It takes cation where the Hudson Valley experienced winter this year - a ski a lot of effort to show those who work with me that a teenager can actually be a valued part of the production. Inserting yourself into that role is one of the toughest jobs but pays off in the long run. One of the many hard parts about being a student in this environment is that you will inevitably end up in a situation you have never dealt with before. Situations like these, however, are learning opportunities. In one day on set I learn more than I do in a week of school, simply because the speed at which information comes flying at you requires you to adapt and fill the gaps.

Working with so many amazing crew members and actors on Persephone was an invaluable experience that I can only hope will lead me to more in the future. Persephone has now finished production and is in the long post-production phase. More information, photographs, and news can be found on the website, http://persephonethemovie. com/ Written by Zev Vel http://zevimages.com

“I am often overlooked or ignored because of my age.”

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Opinion

Peace

War Interviews

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By Brianna Palmer, age 12 the eyes and shoot them, because that person is there fighting for their country just like you, and they have a family just like you? Tell me, could you kill them? It gives you something to think about. It makes you appreciate our servicemen and women more because they are standing up for your country because you can’t, or you won’t.

All the stories I heard were different, but I noticed a pattern. Every person I interviewed had the same answer for this question: Do you ever regret serving? They didn’t even think--they just jumped to the answer before the words finished slipping out of my mouth. No. They absolutely did not regret serving. In fact, one person said, “If anything, I would have served longer!”

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Photo by Rebecca Schackne

ecently I have been interviewing people who have served or are serving in the military. I’d like to share some of the stories they’ve told me.

I heard a lot about boot camp and how they break you down, get into your head, and build you back up the way they want you. I also heard about the pranks they pull there. One person told me a story about someone who got one eyebrow shaved off. It was inspection day, so the guy put sunglasses on to hide the eyebrow. The sergeant told him to “take them sunglasses off,” so the guy did. The sergeant saw the eyebrow and said “put them sunglasses back on”! Another person got drawn on with a sharpie after he fell asleep. I for one would not like to be them at all!

I asked the people I interviewed if the military affected their faith in God. They all had different answers, but one person said that he was not sure. He said that while he was in the military, he kept thinking about the sixth commandment, you shall not kill. So, is it good fighting for your country or is it a sin? Could you really look someone in

reach me?

When you do this, you get to know a person. And now you can recognize them in that endless sea of random faces. And the same happens with imagery.

You learn a little something new about a certain artist or product, and now you can recognize their paintings or specific advertisements.

What’s more, you can now go to a museum and show off your smarts about everything you see or have a cultured conversation with your friends (or total strangers).

Start learning a new language, and all of a sudden you can recognize some of those scary sounds the foreigners are making. Speaking from personal experience, the more languages you study, the easier it is to learn even more.

And that’s how it is with everything. Get into something, and it just becomes easier and easier.

Once you start, it’s like a rolling stone and unless you force yourself, you can never really stop. The same goes for music, art, and dance.

You learn, you recognize, you understand.

You start to see everyone’s face in the crowd and you start to realize that we’re all the same, that there are brothers and sisters in that crowd, parents and lovers. They could be your own, they could be someone else’s, but what does it matter?

Hate and judgment come from the unknown, at however small a level.

But when you realize that people are all the same, you start loving the unknown, just as you would someone you’ve known for a long time.

Now all you have to add to that is the excitement of getting to know them and knowing you’ll love them the second you meet them. You’ll forgive them their mistakes and truly believe that they can be thoroughly good inside and out. And if they believe that too, if everyone believes that, then we can have peace worldwide. No more fear. We have a website, it’s LivePeaceInternational.org and we also have an extensive facebook network that includes many countries. The nearest one is at “Live Peace Woodstock”. Go to: Livepeaceinternational.org or FB:Live Peace Woodstock Photo by Dylan McNamara

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ello, my name is Kseniya Kapytka, and I am Live Peace Belarus.

My name might seem a little bit hard to pronounce, but believe me, it’s the best and most Americanized version that I can come up with. I understand completely if it sounds like organized noise and a bunch of random syllables placed together. After all, doesn’t all foreign language sound like organized noise? Doesn’t all music you aren’t accustomed to fall under that category also?

What are paintings, drawings, and murals but organized colors and lines?

Aren’t all of the images we are bombarded with daily simply visual noise? And what of the people that we see in the street and on television everyday? They are simply random people, right? A demographic. The “population”. Those are harsh words, and we live with them daily. We not only start to see life through those words, but we become them.

I try to view it differently. I try not to take such a distant stance. Let me tell you how: We all agree that we are living, breathing individuals, yes? We all agree that we, within ourselves, have lived a life filled with story-worthy moments... with ups and downs that have taught us how to navigate life’s harsh terrains, yes?

Try looking at another person…preferably someone you’ve never met before (looking at someone you’ve known for a while is cheating.

I want you to know virtually nothing about this person at all.) I want you to shamelessly stare them full in the face, to feast upon their eyes.

And now I want you to understand that that person is a living, breathing, individual. With so many stories to tell you that it would make your mind spin.

They have had their ups and their downs, completely different from yours. They have learned lessons about life and answers to problems you might have never known existed or you might have never even known possible.

Ask yourself, what can I learn from this person? About the world?

About life? And about how to deal with problems before they even

By Kseniya Kapytka, age 19

Advice

Ask Sushi

Fluffy Advice by Griffin Stewart, Brooklyn age: 11

Hey Dogs and Doggettes!

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Now for some nice and crunchy questions!

Q: How can I deal with unfair parents?”

A: Well, sometimes life isn’t fair, I have no-

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even grandpas and grandmas or even babysitters can be unfair, but the main thing is to stay CALM! What happens to me when I am not calm? I get put in the box for barking too much. So that’s my sushi wisdom to you.

Q: How do I get my brother to stop playing the guitar when he doesn’t even know how to play?”

Well, that’s a little cruel but Sushi wisdom must come to all questions- cruel or not, and especially since it is a short and easy question.

Sure he might be bad now and even so terrible that you have to plug your ears but he has to practice even if it is terrible. He has to practice and practice and practice and practice until he is one of the best guitar players in the world. So I ask you, out of grace, if it’s

Photo by Griffin Stewart

t’s me Sushi with another Ask Sushi.

To start out as I usually do I will tell you a little bit about my life and what I have been feeling and afterwards some nice and juicy questions.

We finally got to our new Brooklyn apartment. It is much bigger than I expected. And I met a new pom like me. Now I have got two new friends. He is a pom with three legs. And he’s the same color as me. His name is Higgins Martinez. Well, really it’s three legs and a half. He still has his fourth leg but he just always holds it up and it’s also really strange because he’s as fast as me. He can dig and he can do all the things I do. But he has only three legs. I mean that just shows some real strength. To all those dogs with three legs, I know you can survive. I bet you could even go into the dog Olympics. So don’t give up!

ticed. Like for instance, as a youngster I was confined to the kitchen. That wasn’t fair. But I did eat everything when I was just a puppy.

So really it just depends on the situation.

Parents are a difficult subject. But I will try to give you as much wisdom and information as I can. Well, you have to stay calm and collected. Because when you cry or get really angry and throw stuff they will see that you are still a kid. And if you stay calm and collected and breathe they will see that you can have more respect. Then if its something that they are taking away, calmly ask why, because a lot of times when my mom is taking away a really tasty weird rubbery thing, I am confused why she is taking it away. And after you have asked why, a lot of times you will get a good and reasonable answer.

If they are telling you can’t go to a late party, let’s say, they usually have a good reason. It is the same thing, you being sad or angry then they will just send you up to your room and you won’t even be able to reason with them.

But again, asking why, will a lot of times really help you. I know it is so simple, but trust me, a lot of times the only reason why you are angry is because you are just disappointed and you don’t understand why. So reason with them. Don’t just say no and run away and get angry but reason with them.

But before I go any further, I want to give some advice to the parents. A lot of kids get angry, because they don’t like the quick no… or I have noticed that anyway. In my pack, our mom doesn’t give Griffin a quick no. Instead of giving him a quick no, she explains after saying no, why, and what she doesn’t want to have happen. That way maybe he can still go because he can know what to stay away from and be safe in the long run.

There are so many places where parents, or

really that bad to ask your mom to buy you a pair of earplugs. I think they are really easy to get at any normal drug store. And that is my Sushi wisdom to you.

Thank you dog and doggettes for reading this sushi column. Good luck and have a nice day. I especially say thank you to the first person who left their name. It really helps me answer their questions. Sushi out.

Advice

“Happy Talking”

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he’ll tell me and then I understand that I have to stop or figure a way for the both of us to understand it or work through it. Relationships are checks and balances. We must work it out to get a better effect.

Relationships are also communication. Don’t start World War Three by sneaking around and not getting to the subject, talk about it before you start fighting.

I hope that this can also work towards things that not only involve pet peeves but also smaller or larger subjects. My mom who is also a therapist would say that communication is the key to working out any subject or problem. And because of this I have also come to adopt this motto. So happy talking!

Illustration by Lenora Holler

spend so much of my time giving love advice in these articles.

I love doing it! It’s great to have people walk up to me say how much they love my articles. But when that time comes I begin to think about what I will write about next. Will I write about break ups or what to do when you fall in love? But I decided to write about pet peeves. Many of us have that one thing in our partner we absolutely hate that they do. One of my first pet peeves when I started dating was how he would only type ‘ok’ or ‘yup’ when ever I texted him. He never wrote anything more than those two words. It would drive me nuts. I would constantly bring it up saying that he should write more but he wouldn’t.

Now I would say that wasn’t the worst pet peeve I’ve experienced in a relationship. But I won’t say more. This article is to help not shame. So let’s get to the base question. What do i do when there is a pet peeve in my relationship that I just cannot stand? Well there are many things you can do to deal with it. My way was at first staring down the person or complaining. But take it from me it does not work. We all must figure a way and sometimes it is hard at first.

I have learned talking it out may work. But we also must learn that we too aside from our partners may do something that annoys them.

I sometimes ask questions repeatedly. This annoys my boyfriend but

By Esther Harrington, age 16

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 11

Fiction

Elemental Magic #4

Our story as follows:: The Narrator, Adam, and his friends James, Sasha and Zach are escaping from the magical “Mainland”, from which they have just been banished.

“F

ine! Bring the book!” It seemed we were having this argument... again. James wanted to keep his book that seemed to hold all the information one would ever need. “Can’t you at least make it smaller?”

“That slows it down a lot, but I think I can manage.” He had charmed a book I gave him from the mortal world so he could find any information he needed. It was like a computer, only it worked on magic instead of machinery.

“Adam,” Sasha said, “we have to leave Luna behind, we only need one dragon and we might get in trouble for stealing.” She was right. Much as I hated to let go of Luna, Sasha owned her own dragon, Alastar. I have no idea how or why she got a hold of it, because she can’t ride anything without being afraid of heights. Pretty pointless, right?

“Let me fly him, we don’t want a crash landing in a time like this.” I tell her.

“We’d better start heading out now; we need four hours to get off the mainland.” Zach alerted us. James placed his crammed backpack in his hand and closed his fist over it. The Illustration by Lindsey Gail blue and gold starred ruck sack disappeared, but we all knew that he had some control over where it was. Times like these are the only occasion where I wished I poured over spell books like he did.

We rushed through the halls, our feet clattering on the cobblestonelike floor. The traveling stairs were moving double-quick. A motley assortment of young and old, fine dressed and ragged looking, rode them. A jumble of boxes, bags and valises lay at their feet, as varied

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by Helen Schauffler, age 11 as their owners. One thing in common was among them, the colored cross prominently displayed on coats, jackets and shirts. The clock rang, and a dragon’s voice announced, ‘9:30’. We ran all the faster, knowing it would take half an hour to load our baggage onto Alastar.

The dragon stalls were emptying out fast, many of the only remaining ones belonging to Arcantile. Alastar’s pen was shaking, its contents roaring in rage. Sasha opened the door sneakily. The dragon started to roar, but soon realized that the enterer was not an intruder.

Leaving the others to deal with Alastar, I walked down the passage to say goodbye to Luna. She was sitting quietly in a back corner of her stall, as if she knew I was leaving. I hugged her, thinking as I stroked her delicate wings, ‘I’ll never see you again.’ I heard the doors creak open, and I knew the time had come to take off.

Outside, the landing fields were chaos. Broomsticks and dragons abounded, and it was hard to find a place to take off from.“Adam,” Sasha yelled, “I’ve found a spot, but we have to make it quick. It’s almost ten, we might just barely squeak by.” I mounted Alastar without delay, James, Sasha and Zach already on, with bags on either side of them. Thankfully, the takeoff was successful.

We rode a while, and even though Alastar was riding smoothly at such a high speed, Sasha was still moaning, “This is bad, this is bad, this is very, very bad.” Over and over again, her face scrunched up and black, curly hair blowing back into James’ face.

This continued for hours, and when I spotted a door away from the mainland on the map, I shouted back, “We’re almost there!”

“We’ll make it, there’s 45 minutes to midnight!”

James yelled. Unfortunately, when you speak of the devil, he normally comes to you. High winds soon started blowing, and they weren’t in our favor. It was midnight, and the witching hour had started. I had always thought the witching hour was for little kids, who wanted to believe about beasties and slimes and things that go bump in the night. Hail started pouring down, and ghosts of hags began to float in front of us, as if taunting Alastar to go off course.

I finally caught sight of the door, and urged Alastar to go forward.

We bumped into the entry, and I put my hand to it and whispered the command. The doorway flickered and died. I tried again, to no avail. Fearing we we restuck, I screamed the command at the top of my lungs. All I did was make my throat hoarse. Zach came up to me and whispered in my ear, “They’re coming.” I turned around, and sure enough, men and women with Arcantile robes were coming for us at top speed. I hoped that they were only illusions from the time of night, but I looked at Zach, and his eyes confirmed that they were coming for us, and fast.

We knew that to get out alive, he would have to use magic.

“One, two, three.” We pressed our hands to the door and spoke the opening spell as one. For a second, it seemed to not work. But, then, when the guards from Arcantile had almost reached us, the door cooperated and brought us in to safety.

TO BE CONTINUED

Fiction

The Raccoon Who Fell in Love with the Moon

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here once was a raccoon who fell in love with the moon.

On many a starry night, he could be seen staring up at the sky gazing at his beloved moon.

The raccoon was used to getting the things he wanted in life. With his keen intelligence and nimble paws, there were few things out of his reach. But finding a way of getting closer to the moon really stumped him.

Finally he found a way of at least feeling like he was closer to the moon. He had scouted out a pond with perfectly still water. It made a wonderful mirror of the sky. A fallen tree hung over the pond, mere inches from the water. The reflection of the moon was often captured by this pond and its image appeared very close to the overhanging tree.

So on moon filled nights raccoon kept vigil with

(The One Exception) Childrens Author John Covenant his eyes gazing into the pond staring at his beloveds reflection.

For many weeks and months raccoon kept this up. What raccoon did not know was that he had caught the attention of a certain rainbow trout that lived in the pond. When she had first seen raccoon’s head peering into the water, she was concerned that the raccoon was looking to make a meal of her. But as time went on, she saw that raccoon was never interested in eating anything in the pond those nights.

She also noticed the incredible love that was in raccoon’s eyes as well as longing. Eventually rainbow fish grew to look forward to seeing the raccoon gazing into the pond. Until finally one day the rainbow fish realized that she had fallen in love with raccoon.

There came a night on a full moon when raccoon could no longer bear not being able to touch his beloved moon. On that very night, rainbow was so filled with desire to touch raccoon she could no longer contain herself. When the light was just right, the raccoon bent over the moon’s reflection and kissed it. At that same moment rainbow came up from the pond and kissed raccoon. She hurried back to the bottom of the pond filled to the gills with the happiness of her stolen kiss.

Raccoon on the other hand, while startled and surprised by the kiss, always wondered why the moon smelled vaguely of fish.

Raccoon’s song Chorus Please stay Please stay Oh moon don’t go away When your full I feel your pull gently tugging hey I love your light I love your sight And your gentle might Your sweet affection I can see Shining down on me

Rainbow’s song I see your eyes So full of love Lit from high above

You stir my waters up for me With a love that’s free

Illustration by Alison Paton

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 13

Illustraion by Alison Paton

From down below My love did grow And I want you so

The Hobo and the Bottle

By Sammy Corwin, age13

Illustration by Addison Cook

A

ladeen was walking down the sidewalk one summer afternoon. He needed to blow off some steam because he had just been in a fight with his parents about camp. His parents wanted him to go because they thought it would build “character.” Actually, Aladeen would want to go to camp if it weren’t for one small problem. He was basically scared of anything that moved. He thought that he would fall off a cliff or be eaten by a bear if he left the city.

Aladeen was just thinking of getting a cheeseburger to get his mind off his impending doom when he accidentally bumped into something. When he found his bearings, he saw that what he had run into was some bedraggled, middle aged hobo. Aladeen scrambled to his feet and backed against the wall, saying “I’m sorry!” nonstop until the man spoke.

“S’okay, kid, I fall on my bum all the time. The name’s Joe,” Joe said, holding out his hand.

Aladeen was afraid the hobo was hiding a knife, but he didn’t see any bulges in his sleeves, so he reluctantly shook Joe’s hand. Cautiously, he said, “My name’s Aladeen.”

“Aladeen,” Joe said. “It sounds Arabian.”

“A lot of people say that.”

“You seem skittish. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Aladeen lied. “I just wish I could hear when people are coming, so I would know when to run.”

“Consider it granted.”

Aladeen thought Joe was starting to get strange, so he said “I gotta go,” then bolted. He heard Joe shouting after him, but he wasn’t listening.

All he heard was, “If you want to undo it, come back here.”

Page 14 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Fiction & Poetry Three blocks away was where it started. Suddenly, Aladeen heard an ear-splitting scream. He looked around to see where it came from, but then he realized it came from below him. He looked down and saw a mouse. He decided it was his imagination. Mice don’t scream, they squeak.

A moment later, he heard an earthquake. It turned out to be a jogger. Then he heard an explosion of a sneeze that came from his own nose. Soon, Aladeen couldn’t take the eardrum bashing anymore; his nerves were a wreck. He found his way back to Joe. “What did you do to me?” he whispered.

“I granted your wish,” Joe said.

“What are you talking about?”

“If someone says ‘I wish,’ I grant the wish.”

“Well then ungrant it!”

“There’s only one way I can ungrant wishes.”

“How?” Joe tilted his head back and sighed. “I knew fate would bring the one to reverse all wishes,” he said.

“Just tell me,” said Aladeen.

“All you have to do,” said Joe, “is go to the top floor of the old Chuck’s Light Bulbs factory on 32nd St. and retrieve a bejeweled bottle.”

“Is that it?” said Aladeen. “That doesn’t sound too hard.”

“Well,” Joe said, “there is one obstacle. It’s called Jophare.”

Aladeen raised an inquiring eyebrow. “Don’t worry.” said Joe. “As long as he doesn’t notice someone’s there, you’ll be fine.” Aladeen’s eyebrow rose even higher. “Fine, you know what,” Joe said, “I hate to do this, but I’ll even give you my coat. It’ll protect you. Happy?”

“Okay” said Aladeen, and took the coat, which was weatherworn with many holes in it. “But if something happens to me, I’m blaming you.”

“Naturally,” Joe said with a slight bow of the head. And with that, Aladeen turned and headed toward 32nd St.. Joe hoped Aladeen would be all right. There was one thing he hadn’t warned him about…..

-A half an hour later, Aladeen was standing in front of the old Chuck’s Light Bulbs factory. He was trying to muster all the courage he could to enter. He couldn’t see what there was to be afraid of. After all, it was just an old light bulb factory with some random guy standing guard. Finally, he opened the door.

It was dark. The main source of light was the sun. The rest of the building seemed like it was lit by almost burned out light bulbs futilely attempting to illuminate the things that the building contained. Luckily, he had his lucky flashlight keychain (hence the term lucky). From the light spilling out from it, he could see several boxes stacked in large piles, ready for a shipment that would never happen.

On the second floor, he saw tables full of half sealed boxes. On the third floor, there were bulb cleaning/sorting stations. On the fourth there were good bulbs being separated from the defective ones and so on, all the way to the top floor, where the bulb making process started.

He could tell someone was either there now or had been there recently from the recently changed light bulbs and interior decorating. All of the equipment was pushed over by the walls to make room for some kind of makeshift living/bed room. He was about to go over and examine an intricately designed lamp when he saw someone coming. He hurried to hide behind a crate.

Jophare was the most disgusting human being that Aladeen had ever seen. His torso was bigger than the world’s biggest ball of twine. He had too many chins to count, and his limbs looked like giant marshmallows stuck together with lard. In other words, he looked like a much less than pleasant, overstuffed Pillsbury Dough Boy. (to be continued...)

Luckily, Jophare was asleep. Aladeen started scanning the room for the reason he was there in the

The waves and I are neither

By Kennah Robertson

Waves stumble across shaky surfaces,

Before the pursuit there is a state of confusion.

as they rub against the motion of a depthless exterior.

First the waves mirror each other completely,

They run away from the gravity they should be chasing,

until the moment where a material object splits the surface,

their aim focused on themselves.

causing the waves to abruptly change course

In your mind the water is a smothering creature,

and divert in opposite direction.

what you don’t know is that the waves are the extended hearts

The waves, that are like sea scruff, sent off to chase another set.

of this body.

The waves will never meet what they chase,

These waves follow each other through the rough water they

so they roar,

ride on, some how managing to caress the water, each with equal timing.

The unanticipated motions- there is more than one chase.

This chase is a supernatural happening for the water.

a sound that bursts through the external shell and escapes the edges as a violent hiss, causing everything the sound touches to fall silent.

Photo by Lauren PhotoGoldfarb

by Name Here

The second, more powerful and unexpected.

and echo,

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 15

the wall

illustration * art *

Photos by Morgan Wemp

Art by Nija Huba, age 9

Page 16 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Art by Lindsay Rothlein

manga * photo * comics * digital * lifestyle * Satire

Illustration by Monty Stewart, age 16 Hominy T.W. McMahon

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 17

Adventure

One Voice For Laos

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t’s been a little longer than a year since the One Voice For Laos project was introduced to Woodstock by Evelyne Pouget. It’s obvious to me and anyone else who has had a part in this rewarding project that the impact it’s had is not only in a country across the globe. Right here, in our own local community, teenagers of all ages, in many different towns have been impacted. Whether it be a new way to express a specific talent, or the founding of a new one, this service experience has led each participant to learn something about themselves, or about a community.

Katie Martucci, a member of the Shandettes, has been one of the project’s most talented and reoccurring preformers. “Organizing the

By Rachel Castellano, age 17

One Voice for Laos cabaret was an incredibly inspiring experience for many reasons. For one, the cabaret showed me first hand how much music can bring people together. It also showed me the power and force of a community coming together. Most importantly, it gave me an experience to use my music to make a tangible difference in society.” Katie Martucci Rio Morales has held an active role behind the scenes of One Voice For Laos. As a supporter of all events and a member of most project meetings, he said, “The project has made me realize there›s something bigger going on in this world. We›re lucky to have the opportunity to make a direct and meaningful impact.” Rio Morales I will be traveling to the orphanage along with Jesse’s mother Evelyne Pouget and illustrator Hudson Talbott. We leave on June 26th and will first travel to Vietnam. When we get to the Deak Kum Pa orphanage, our focuses will be on teaching English, painting murals, teaching games to the kids, and doing any physical labor that is needed.

Our last fundraiser was a teen dance at the Colony Café in Woodstock. Garland Berenzy showed his short film about the whole project.

Multimedia event at the Colony Cafe in Woodstock

ArtBuyYouth

Bayla Laks Riptide, 14 by 18 inches, $700

Page 18 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

A new website for art by youth for sale (under construction). 80% of purchase price will go to the artist and 20% to GoodLife Youth Journal. Purchase can be made through emailing GoodLifejournal@Gmail.com

The Fox and the Goose, 10 by 13 inches, $650

The Newcomer, 9 by 12 inches, $500

Photos -- and stories -- from Deak Kum Pa. Follow the blog at http://www.ideachampions. com/OneVoiceForLaos/ (Clockwise top left) Caleb Rudge, Isabelle La Motte, Jesse Ditkoff and Rachel Castellano with pointy hats. Beautiful islands of Laos.

The mural making a remarkable experience.

(Below) The orphans reading a new book .material. Photo editing by Rio Morales

Addison Cook Untitled, Crayon on paper, 9.25 by 6.25 in.

Price on Request

Laboratory, Pen on paper, 8.5 by 11 in.

Price on Request

3 Girls, Oil on plywood, 27 by 40 in.

Price on Request

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 19

Fiction

A Lesson on the Heart (continued part II ) by Mimi Ngo, age 14

S

he groaned loudly, sighing. “Look, they’re selling heart balloons!” Her friend said enthusiastically, pointing to a couple of seniors holding loads of balloons.

There was a whole line of students crowding around them, waiting to buy their balloon for their boyfriend/girlfriend.

Ah, typical Valentine’s Day.

Photo by Nick Barthel

“I wish someone would give me a balloon,” said her friend dreamily, following after her.

“It’s so cute and romantic!”

She shrugged plainly, not even showing a bit of interest. She sat down at her spot under her favorite tree, “I think it’s just plain cheesy, honestly.” She unwrapped her sandwich, and began taking out the vegetables she didn’t like..

“Aww, come on! Where’s your Valentine’s spirit?” pouted her friend, nibbling on her own sandwich.

“I dunno, I guess I’m just not feeling it,” She bit into her lunch and started chewing before she said, “I’m not much of a ‘lovey-dovey’ person anyways.”

Her friend, with her cheeks filled with sandwich, struggled to swallow her food, “Um… nom…nom, okay! Swallowed! Anyways, you don’t have to be ‘lovey-dovey.’”

She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted when a senior came over to her and smiled, handing her a balloon before trotting away.

She just stared at the balloon, surprised she even had one in her hand directed to her.

“You got a balloon! Who’s it from?” squealed her friend in front of her, clasping her hands together and enthusiastically bouncing up and down on the ground.

She looked at the small tag tied onto the balloon’s stick with a ribbon. She shrugged, “It says, ‘from anonymous.’”

“What? Anonymous? Let me see,” her friend stopped her bouncing and crawled over to bend the tag backwards so she could read its contents. “You’re right. Hmm… that’s weird. It seems we have a mystery on our hands!” she put on a “Sherlock Holmes” face and brought a hand to her chin, and looked around. “Let’s find out who your secret

sender is with my keen eagle eyes!”

She rolled her eyes at her best friend, and chuckled. She wiggled the balloon around until she noticed there was a note on the back of the tag that her bf ’s “keen eagle eyes” didn’t seem to catch.

It read, Sorry again about asking about your… er, non-existent family? I wish I knew about it before I had said anything, but that’s actually the thing.

You just need to learn to trust people and let them in and confide in them. That’s the first lesson of the heart, to learn to trust and confide.

First is to start with your friends, like the one you’re sitting with right now.

P.S. You told me that you didn’t have anyone to love you and that you didn’t have anyone to love. Considering that, I think you should start to learn how to love other people starting right now. And I would gladly be your first ;D. Happy Valentine’s Day ~The guy who sits next to you in lit. A.K.A. Your secret cheesy sender She blinked at the note, and surprisingly, even for herself, giggled.

She looked around, looking for her “secret cheesy sender,” and as if almost immediately, she found him on the roof of the school with his friends, looking right back at her. They locked gazes for a moment, and she smiled genuinely at him, as he did the same.

She mouthed a “thank you” to him, and gave him a quick toothy grin.

Ah… cheesy ol’ Valentine’s Day.

Page 20 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Music

Interview with Drummer Jerry Marotta

by Jonah Martindale, age14

J

erry Marotta is a successful professional drummer who has played with Genesis, Tears for Fears, and Paul McCartney. He currently co-operates Dreamland Recording Studio in Hurley, NY.

Jonah: When did you start your career as a drummer?

Photo by Burrill Crohn

Jerry: I started playing drums when I was 10 years old. My older brother, Rick, was keeping his friend’s drum kit at his house since his friend had been drafted into the Vietnam War. When he wasn’t on the drums I would go up in the attic where the drums were kept and bang around on them. I basically taught myself how to play.

Jonah: What motivated you to play the drums?

Jerry: I enjoyed playing the drums. My older brother got really good fast. He started playing in a professional band. He became relatively successful. I wanted to follow in his footsteps and that’s what made me want to play professionally.

Jonah: What was the first band that got you started?

Jerry: I went to summer school after the eleventh grade. About a week before summer school ended my older brother--who at this point is super successful as a drummer in New York--had done a record with these three guys called Arthur, Hurley, and Gottlieb, and they were going out on tour. They wanted him to come with them but he wasn’t going to go on tour with them. He told them, though, that I was a really good drummer and they should take me. It was an amazing experience for me so I talked to my teachers at summer

school and they agreed to let me take my final exams on the road and I went out on tour. I played with them for about a year and a half and then I got the opportunity to audition for a band called Orleans.

They were based in Woodstock and I had never been there before. I auditioned for Orleans when I was about 18 years old and I got the job. So I started playing with Orleans in 1975 and I did that for 2 years. Then the band leader of Orleans, John Paul, quit and the band broke up temporarily. In that short time I had this opportunity to play with Peter Gabriel who at that point no one had really heard of.

At that time he had a band called Genesis. I toured Europe with that band. After touring and playing with Peter Gabriel I developed into a better drum player and my career took off from there.

Singers And Songwriters

F

What about the cases in which singers don’t give songwriters the credit for their songs? Sean Garrett, a songwriter who wrote songs for Beyonce and Fergie, says that when he was starting out in the industry he wrote songs without receiving credit. Apparently this is common for newcomers to the field.

Sean said, “It bothered me, but I knew it was just a price that I had to pay to continue my career and stay focused on the big prize.” According to another singer-songwriter, Ne-Yo, “If you’re an unknown songwriter and you are lucky enough to get on a superstar’s album and you know that the song is going to be a single, […]I think it’s worth giving up a piece of publishing. You are going to make your money back.”

Personally, I respect singers who don’t write their own songs, because there are a lot of talented singers who don’t write songs and a lot of talented songwriters who don’t sing the songs they write. I have even more respect for those who write the music and lyrics for their songs as well as sing them, because they can do both and have talent in both areas.

Photo by Laney Eccleston

or most of my life, I thought that singers generally wrote their own songs. Being someone who writes songs myself, I was a little surprised when I became aware that most of the rich and famous pop singers don’t write their own music and lyrics. For example, Rihanna, Celine Dion, Christina Aguilera, and Britney Spears usually don’t write their songs. When singers do write their songs, it is often a collaborative effort. Justin Bieber writes some of his own songs, but he has a large team of people who co-write. There have also been times when singers take credit but have actually written little or none of the song.

Can one respect singers who don’t write their own songs? Songwriters do choose to sell their songs to singers, and once a song has been purchased, it is pretty much the singer’s song. For example, Kelly Clarkson sold One Direction the song “Tell Me a Lie”. She originally wrote it for herself, but “it didn’t fit in” with her album Stronger. She made money from it, and now One Direction has the rights and can do whatever they want with it.

By Tessa Ana Flores, age 14

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 21

Food & Nutrition

Ric Orlando

By Leo Lasdun, age 12

N

ing, weeding, and stuff. ew World restaurant serves an array of well Q: Why did you pick the Woodstock/Sauspiced dishes ranging gerties region to open your restaurant? from Blue Corn Crusted seitan, to a cheeseburger with fries, A: We moved to Albany in 1989 from the which, I might add, is killer. I had city, and worked our way down the river a nice talk with Ric Orlando, New until we found a community that had the World’s chef. culture of an urban lifestyle, and the physical Q: When did you start developing an landscape of the country. And at the time interest in cooking?

Woodstock was the only place like that, and A: Long story. I always like food.

The author with chef Ric Orlando it was great because I know a lot of people When I was in high school some here. of the part time jobs I got were in sandwich shops and delis, but it wasn’t until I moved to Harvard Square in Cambridge in pursuit of Q: What’s your favorite thing about cooking food, and food itself? playing music and writing that I got a job at the harvest, which was A: My favorite thing about food is that no matter where you go in the kind of a legendary place in the 80’s and 90’s. It was really inspirworld, people of very little means are really proud of their food more ing because they had a daily menu, and they were doing farm to than anything else. When you travel, everyone says, “Taste this, try table long before that was a term. I realized that I could do this not this.” It’s cool how food is an identifier of not just culture, but little because I need to make a few bucks on the side, but because it’s microcultures, and communities. something I could really be motivated to do.

Q: How many meals would you say you cook an average night?

Q: You have a passion for sustainable and local food. Could you talk A: The restaurant cooks anywhere from on a slow night 50, and on about that a little bit?A: When I see a farm, I need to stop. I’ve always a good night 300 meals. About 50,000 a year out of Woodstock, and been like that. Whenever I came to the Hudson valley from Boston, about 70,000 out of Albany. where I lived, I would like to take the back roads and look at the farm stands and things like that. My uncle had a farm, and when we were You can sample Ric’s food at: New World Home Cooking, 1411 RT kids, all the cousins had to do at least two weeks on the farm, and 212, SAUGERTIES, NY 845-246-0900. New World Bistro Bar, 300 had to work from about 6 to 11 in the morning 5 days a week, pickDelaware Ave, Albany, NY 518-694-0520

E

ach day, across the globe, billions of people wake up and go about their lives. From the high powered business exec in Taipei to the high school student in New Jersey, one aspect of our lives is shared and understood by all- the need to eat. Perhaps the oldest profession, the work of a farmer is a quintessential and integral part of any community. In America, we leave the monumental task of feeding our 312,780,968 citizens to a mere one percent of the population. Since the early 20th century, the number of farms in America has plummeted and is posed to decrease further as factors like land value, overseas competition, and even the ageing of the farmers take a toll on the sustainability of farming as a way of life. Here in the Catskills, a resurgence of farmers markets, local products, and family farms has begun, and trends like the slow food movement and “buy local” initiatives are sweeping across the country. Due to its rich soil, mild climate, and pastoral topography, our region lends itself especially well to farmland. With the help of organizations like Farm Catskills and Pure Catskills, small, sustainable farms are springing up throughout the area.

The perfect place to witness this new abundance of broccoli raab and brown speckled eggs first hand is of course, at your local farmers market. A handful of vendors congregate on Wednesday afternoons at the small market held in the Houst parking lot in “downtown” Woodstock. Whether its organic seedlings you’re searching for, or fresh strawberry shortbread, the farmers market is your one stop shop.

Page 22 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

By Violet Lesdun, age 17 Nearly all the products sold here were produced locally. Taking center stage is the large produce tent from Migliorelli Farms in Tivoli, NY. The farm has been family run since 1933, and now produces more than 130 different crops. If you’re in the mood for a cool summer treat, stop by the Lazy Crazy Acres ice cream booth. This 40 cow dairy farm is located on 100 acres in Arkville, NY. Jake Fairbairn, who runs the farm with his wife, says being a part of the local farming community and running Lazy Crazy Acres is “fun, exciting and exhausting.”

There are many reasons to support the local food movement. In your typical supermarket, the produce has traveled an average of 1500 miles. Preservatives and chemicals are used order to keep it fresh, and the transportation leaves a huge carbon footprint. In an effort to get food to the stores in good condition, crop varieties are picked not by what tastes best but by what doesn’t bruise or rot quickly, resulting in those beautifully round and flawless tomatoes that taste like sand and shiny brobdingnagian strawberries that have less flavor than spring water. The global food market has virtually eliminated genetic biodiversity, and today almost 95 percent of vegetable production is allotted to a mere 10 crops. All of these problems and countless more are solved by supporting sustainable local agriculture. And of course if you are simply looking for the freshest and most flavorful fruits and vegetables, artisan jams and cheeses prepared by hand, or delicious eggs laid by happy hens, the source is sure to be close by.

Photo by Dylan McNamara

Family Farms

Saying No to Hunger

W

By: Rachel Castellano, age 17

here do you go when you’re looking for food? Your refrigerator? Your pantry? What if those two things were empty? Would you go hungry?

The Queen’s Galley, a not for profit organization, makes sure this answer is no. The Queen’s Galley provides awareness, education, relief and prevention of food insecurity in the Hudson Valley. During the winter, this organization goes above and beyond to make sure no child goes hungry. The Queen’s Galley teams up with the Kingston YMCA and the Boys and Girls Club to provide snow day lunches.

For most kids, snow days are the best kinds of days. However, for others, it means going hungry. No school means no school lunch. In some of our local schools, more than 70% of students receive free or reduced price lunches. Children who live in a household where the parents are struggling to make ends meet rely on these meals. Any child who attends the YMCA on snow days can receive a free lunch, thanks to the Queen’s Galley. This year their collaboration with the YMCA will mean that they’ll also try serving hot foods like a vegetar-

Kim Prottas, Director of Culinary Operations, prepares some delicious chicken.

Photos by Dylan McNamra

“About one hundred kids will receive the lunch that they provide each day.”

Fresh vegetables are a large part of the Galley’s menu

ian farmers’ chili, mac and cheese and turkey sliders. There are six scheduled snow days for the Kingston School District. That means six hundred lunches. Volunteering and donating to this worthy cause is highly appreciated.

Another aspect of this organization is the soup kitchen it runs on Washington Ave. in Kingston. The unique thing about this soup kitchen is that one does not need to show proof of poverty to eat there. Therefore, they receive no government funding, and rely on donations as the source of income. The soup kitchen serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, 365 days of the year. Volunteers are always welcome to greet, cook, serve, clean, and organize.

The educational arm of the Queen’s Galley runs an outreach program titled Cooking Matters. Cooking Matters is an educational program that teaches nutritional based cooking to people who are on a limited budget. This program empowers families with knowledge, confidence, and the skills to successfully change their diet. It is a platform of Share Our Strength (a national nonprofit that is ending childhood hunger in America) and nationally sponsored by ConAgra Foods Foundation.

For more information on this charitable organization, visit http:// www.queensgalley.org/. If you’re interested in volunteering for The Queen’s Galley, please email volunteer@thequeensgalley.org. As Winston Churchill once said, “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”

This article generously sponsored by Aspects Inn & Spa

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 23

Local

Shaping Up Ulster County

Let’s Move Ulster

By Alexis Parkhurst, age 16

expected to attend this event; however; over 800 showed up. The event was repeated again et’s Move Ulster” is an ongothis year with the same success. ing program inspired by MiDrew has enjoyed watching the program chelle Obama’s “Let’s move” excel. “I grow through seeing other people initiative to help fight childgrow and having the opportunity to help hood obesity. This program collaborates nurture that.” He hopes that this program bewith Ulster County Department of Health, comes an annual event in our community, and school districts, and other local organithat these types of movements spread not only zations to provide free opportunities for in the United States but internationally. physical activity for the youth and commuDrew stressed how movement through nity of Ulster County. dance and music can help our community, Drew Andrews, head of the local dance especially our youth. “It provides a voice for team “Energy” and the Center for Creative young people. Sometimes I feel like society Education in Kingston, is a leader of “Let’s doesn’t allow for it. You guys should be seen, Move Ulster”. Drew feels that “It promotes heard, and have a say in what happens here physical activity in a fun way and is not inin our society.” timidating. We’re just focusing on move“Let’s Move Ulster” is a perfect example of ment. That could mean boxing, walking with the kind of impact a movement can make on friends, and just taking some time out from Ulster County Executive Mike Hein and Drew a community. Drew is an inspiring, positive, what we call “screen time” (meaning video- Andrews, Director of Let’s Move Ulster and CCE highly motivated person, and talking to him games, TV, etc).” was a great experience. As a dancer, singer, in Kingston Last year, Drew’s daughter showed him a and fan of any art, I join Drew and many othYouTube video of Beyoncé’s song Move Your Body that was created ers in encouraging everyone to take part in “Let’s Move” programs and to promote Michelle Obama’s initiative. Inspired by the video, Drew any other type of movement that will make you happy. organized the first “Let’s Move Ulster” event. About 400 people were

“L

Page 24 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Photos by Caleb McNamara

Mike Hein

M

By Audrey Malloy, age 17

any politicians just want to get his or her paycheck at the end of the day, but Hein wants more. In fact, Hein is currently aiming to make Ulster County the healthiest county in New York State. And after an interview with him, it’s safe to say he’s the man for the job.

Ever since the unfortunate passing of his 22 year old brother because of a heart attack caused by poor health habits, Hein has set out to make the world a safer and better place. And so far, there are no complaints – Ulster county has gone from one of the unhealthiest counties to one of the best in the short time span of just 18 months.

Hein clearly isn’t afraid to act for what’s right. He stresses the importance of a new form of government, where problems are solved more swiftly. In the past, a great idea went to the legislative to committee after committee, and before you know it, that same idea has been completely changed. But with Hein in office, he’s working hard to keep politics clear of corruption or confusion. He deems this new form of government “innovative and reform-based, but within reality.” What else can the people ask of the government?

Hein is a proud husband and dad, and his family is what motivates him to achieve his goals. He’s very concerned with the future of our youth – rightfully so. This past generation is the first generation whose predicted lifespan actually decreased. Hein recently supported the Healthy Ulster County program this summer, which raised awareness to end child obesity. He also has developed healthy initiatives during his time in office such as Vaccines for the Vulnerable, Anti-bullying

Webinar, Ulster County Against Domestic Violence Month, Tobacco Free Association of Ulster County, and Healthy Ulster Week, in which local businesses worked to teach residents healthier ways of living. But health is just one part of preserving a future for the youth.

“I work to protect the environment so that there’s something for the next generation to have.” Fracking, for example, is one issue he’s currently working to prevent in our Mike and some future voters area. Another vital segment is education. “Education is part of health.”

Hein wants to ensure that today’s children, like his own 12-year old son, will have more job opportunities close to home. He also recently shared his tax plan known as S.T.R.I.V.E., or Shared Taxpayer Relef through Innovative Visions in Education. As county executive, he hopes to be a model government and set a precedent for others. So far, Ulster County can’t complain.

It’s refreshing to know that there’s someone out there who is dedicated to providing a future for the youth. In a time where kids spend more time on Facebook or retweeting Kanye West’s Instagram pictures than riding a bike or taking a walk, it isn’t an easy feat to keep teens healthy – but Mike Hein won’t stop until the job is done. www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 25

Books

Esopusupose: (Onterora High School)

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hile getting a bunch of hormonal, stubborn teenagers to submit his/her work for the entire high school to see isn’t an easy task, Onteora’s literary magazine, Esopusupose, proves that the effort is well worth it. Being selected as editor-in-chief of Espopusupose for the first time this year has given me the opportunity of a lifetime. When the announcement calling all artists or writers forward was first delivered over the loudspeaker a few months back, there wasn’t much reception.

Frankly, we started to panic a bit. However, over time, as a group, Literary Club worked together to collect all the pieces we could. If we heard through the grapevine that you had a knack for poetry, you could bet you’d be hearing from us. If we saw your watercolor hanging in the hallway and were impressed, you could be sure we’d find you in your art class. We never could

By Audrey Malloy, age 17

have guessed how many talented writers and artists studied among us in Onteora. Though the writings were random and unrelated, the magazine created a sense of unity throughout the students. As editor-in-chief, it was awe-inspiring for me to witness students’ reactions to see his or her own work in a published format. There’s nothing quite comparable to the joy of seeing one’s name in a table of contents. That’s undoubtedly the best part of the entire process. I couldn’t have begin to compile the magazine without the help of the Literary Club and our leader, Elaine Conroy. She devoted much of her time to help not only me but all of the students accomplish their goals. Without her, the Esopusupose wouldn’t exist. I can take responsibility for interjecting semicolons and double checking for oxford commas, but Onteora’s literary magazine is a joint collaboration I’m proud to be a part of.

Battering Ram

Kingston Highlights

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(Woodstock Day School)

By Pia Struzzieri he Battering Ram journal is run by students at the Woodstock Day School, under the direction of JD Louis. Inspired by the young talent in the Hudson Valley, The Battering Ram compiles the work of high schoolers across the nation, focusing on local submissions. The journal is diverse, with an acceptance process that is blind and unbiased. Submissions are read by an editorial board with no specifications in mind, and submissions are accepted based on merit.

The result is a journal that publishes artwork, photography, and writing spanning multiple genres and styles. The biannual publication has published two issues so far and is looking for submissions for its summer edition. Submit or contact us at thebatteringramwds@gmail.com

(Kingston High School)

By JoePugliese

ingston Highlights is one of, if not the best sources of information for the 2,195 students at Kingston High School. We report on all of the changes going on in the high school, the clubs and activities offered, and a wide variety of other things. In the upcoming year we are going to be moving more towards an internet based publication, but will be distributing three 16 page paper issues over the course of the school year.

Alongside the help of our adviser, Ted Leach, Kingston Highlights will not only continue its current success but will expand to a new atmosphere of journalism as well, not only in the school but throughout the entire Kingston community. Essentially doing the job of a newspaper, which is to supply information to the people of the community.

Showing not only the importance of Kingston Highlights, but also the impact that high school journalist can create.

Youth Opportunity: Bridge The Gap TV is a youth-run, youth-driven production company with a pilot episode, Bridge the Gap Pine Ridge coming out on PBS this fall. You can find out more about Bridge the Gap TV and their non-profit partners by going to www.

BridgetheGapTV.com or visiting them on Facebook at https://www.facebook. com/BridgeTheGapTV or contact Philippa Biddle at pippa@bridgethegaptv.com In you are a high school student or above and interested in interning with Bridge the Gap TV please email info@bridgethegaptv.com Page 26 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Books

The Kingston Library

By Alexis Parkhurst, age 16

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Photo by Dylan McNamara

he Kingston Library, conveniently located right in the middle of the town, is the largest library in Ulster County. This library has room for many different programs and group meetings, and of course has a large selection of books for any age reader.

Unique among libraries in the area, the Kingston Library also contains an area where visitors can learn about the history of Ulster County. The center also has an outside garden and picnic area for those who enjoy reading outdoors.

The library offers reading and writing workshops throughout the summer to children of all different reading levels. For every book a teenager reads and writes a review on, he or she receives a raffle ticket offering a

chance to win an iPod Touch or a Kindle Fire.

Smaller children receive gift certificates for Barnes and Noble and other small rewards.

Programs at the Kingston Library are very diverse, ranging from story hour to jewelry making to meeting and learning about llamas. There is something for every age group and interest throughout the summer. Information on these workshops can be located at www.kingstonlibrary.org.

Summer for students is all about having fun, but it is important to continue to learn and grow outside of school as well. The Kingston Library gives the opportunity to do both of these things, not only through reading but through hands-on experience. If you’re looking for something to do this summer, check out the Kingston Library.

Library Calendar Phoenicia Library: Sats: Story time11:00-12:00 Come and hear a story, and maybe do a craft, do a dance, or have a snack! Visit the new Teen Room too! call 845-688-7811/ or visit on the web Olive Library: Tues: Story Hour 10:00-11:00 Call for other activities for children, teens, and adults! 845-657-2482/ or visit on the web

Woodstock Library: Tues: Pre-school story time 4:00, Wed’s. Toddler story time 10:30 Call Lesley Sawhill 845-679-7149/ visit on the web

Kingston Library: Tues Toddler Story hour, 3:00-5:00, 2nd Sat of mo. Origami 10:30-11:30 w/Anita Barbour. Call 3310507 x7 Stephanie Morgan/or Web

West Hurley Library: Mons: Pre-school story hour 10:30, Weds: Knitting Group 6:00-830, 4th Mon. of every month Movie Call 845-657-2482/ or visit on web

Poughkeepsie Library: Aug 21 Trip to Norman Rockwell Museum. Aug 29 Summer Reading Award party 1:30-2:30 Youthevents@poklib.org

The Day That Didn’t Exist

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agny had always wanted to be a detective. She had been studying codes her whole life. Her friends always looked up to the girl with the big brown eyes and deep dimples to help solve their problems. This time, it wasn’t Dagny’s friends who had a problem. This was the biggest mystery she had ever tried to solve. Dagny’s neighbor, William Hines, had been murdered.

Dagny’s two best friends were Scotia and Kelly. Luckily Kelly’s father, Thomas, was a police officer and was always glad to let them see the clues to the local mysteries. After Hines’ death, Thomas took them to see the place where it took place. There was debris of glass and blood on the carpet in his living room.

“Was it a bullet?” asked Dagny. Thomas nodded. “What part of his body shot?”

“Around the knee. He must’ve fallen and broken something made of glass.” Thomas replied. Dagny nodded, staring at the shards. “Any suspects?” she asked.

Scotia and Kelly looked up at Thomas with interest. “A man named Carl Gaber and a man named George Baldwin.” Dagny knew George Baldwin. She heard of Gaber, but he didn’t come out much. Baldwin lived two houses to the left of Dagny’s house. “I’m going over to inter-

view him. Would you like to come with me?” Thomas asked. All three girls nodded. They exchanged excited glances.

While they were walking over to George’s house, Scotia asked, “So, what’s the deal with George? Why is he a suspect?”

Kelly said, “Yeah, why?”

“Well, Mr. Hines was a quiet man and didn’t have many friends,” Thomas explained. “Mr. Baldwin was the only good friend he had. He knew Hines the best and undoubtedly knew a secret or two.” The girls nodded. Dagny was more suspicious of Gaber, but knew that anything was possible. She would wait to listen in on the interview.

The girls and Thomas knocked on Baldwin’s door. He was very quick and opened and nicely let them in. “Come sit in here,” he said, pointing to the living room. “I’ll make some tea if you’d like.” He was nervous and ingratiating. Dagny sat down at the coffee table and replied, “Thank you Mr. Baldwin.” He brought the tea and sat down.

He appears disappointed to be a suspect, thought Dagny. Thomas asked, “So Mr. Baldwin. I heard you might be able to shed light on your friend’s death.” www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 27

Illustration by Scotia Rollins

Story and drawing by Scotia Rollins, age 11

Local Sports

Woodstock Soccer Club

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Photography by Brandon Remler brandonremler.com

hen you take part in a sport, you involve yourself with it in mental, physical, and personal ways. Sports allow players to learn something about themselves and to grow. The simple yet vastly important messages that seem to be emphasized throughout life are deeply rooted in what sports stand for: teamwork, perseverance, gratitude, selflessness, honor, dignity, pride, and a sense of community.

One world-renowned and especially well-rounded sport is soccer. Games similar to soccer have been played for thousands of years, and today it is probably the most popular sport in the world. Soccer is not only an individual player’s game, but a team game. Playing soccer can nurture your body through movement and activity as well as teaching you how to expand your horizons.

This unique sport finally seems to have reached our nation, and the knowledge of what it truly has to offer has become evident. Opportunities to play soccer have become readily available…including here in Woodstock.

The Woodstock Soccer Club, founded in 1986, endorses the maintenance of health through soccer. By doing so we have been able to create an outstanding

“Games similar to soccer have been played for thousands of years, and today it is probably the most popular sport in the world.” program in which your child is encouraged to pursue not only athletic skills but a healthy lifestyle. The club’s approach to soccer and what it can teach us is simple: we make sure that everyone is actively involved, that there is a continuous influx of positive coaching, and that we build rela-

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Page 28 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

By Kealey Viglielmo, age 16

tionships among players--and above all, have fun. Other townships in the area, such as Shandaken and Olive, have formed relationships with the club, providing more opportunities for young local players to get involved. So, if you choose to play, not only will you get involved in something that you may love, you will also meet hundreds of other kids from the area. Every year, we hold benefit tournaments, fundraisers, and camps so as to promote growth of the club and to spread our message.

To learn more, visit the club’s website, woodstocksoccerclub.com, where you can find dates for camps, soccer applications and seasonal programs. Join us!

For more pictures of the soccer teams, go to brandonremler.com

Skateboarding Reality

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“I met a man once in the city that asked me if I glued my feet to my board, if I was using magic.”

Phots provided by Caleb Kaiser

kateboarding isn’t like anything else that exists in the world, I believe that its truly one of a kind.

Even the concept itself is totally outrageous: zooming down the street on a skinny plank of wood with wheels, flipping it left and right down stairs, railings, and whatever else we can find. I’ve met people that don’t understand how it’s even possible. They don’t believe that what we do with skateboards, the flipping, jumping and grinding, is real. I met a man once in the city that asked me if I glued my feet to my board, if I was using magic. It’s just an example of how very different the real world is from the world that skateboarders live in.

Skateboarding in New York City is amazing. The city itself is in a constant state of change, so new places and things to skate are always popping up at random.

Recently, tons of new skate parks have opened up to the public. Astoria park in Queens, L.E.S. park under the Brooklyn Bridge on the lower east side, and Chelsea Piers park in Manhattan all boast smooth concrete transitions and ledges. If getting kicked out of spots is a problem, you’ll find a perfect alternative inside the skate parks.

That’s just a small taste of what New York City has to offer, if you’re lucky enough to roll through.

For those of us who live in Ulster County, the street skating spots are few and far between. You might have to spend some time searching before you find something you like. Most of the spots that we do find in places like Kingston, New Paltz, and Poughkeepsie are rough, weather beaten, and difficult to skate. Luckily for us here, we do have a few good skate parks to use when the streets get too tough.

By Caleb Kaiser, age 19

Skate Time 209 in Accord NY is an indoor facility located off Route 209, and has the perfect set up for winter sessions. 2nd Nature Skate shop and skate park in Peekskill NY also has fun indoor ramps, and an amazing shop and staff. If you’re willing to make the drive, 2nd Nature is worth the gas money. For those trying to stay local, the Saugerties skate park is free, outdoor, and has some of the smoothest concrete you could ask for. The Woodstock area has a great set up at their local Youth Center also, complete with a perfect outdoor miniramp, and as long as you wear a helmet and pads, you’ve got access.

For me, skateboarding is just another way to interpret reality. Most people look at a large set of stairs and might think about how grueling it would be to walk up them; all I see are hours of fun, and the best angles to jump down them. I don’t have a definition for skateboarding, I don’t think anyone does and that’s totally all right with me. It’s all perspective, really.

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 29

Local Sports

12/19/07 Critical Lense Essay

By Tom Alba, at age 16

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. Oswald Sanders once said, “Eyes that look are common. Eyes “Our Town” by Thorton Wilder. Emily lives in a small town called that see are rare”. I think this means everyone with eyes can Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. Emily doesn’t actually acquire her see but very few people are actually aware of their surround- so called “eyes” until the third scene of the play where she is dead. This happened right after she died and was able to go ings and stop to look at the big picture. back to any certain point in her life. She chose Most people go through their lives without to go back to her twelfth birthday because all realizing what is really important. Most peoof the other dead people tell her not to go back ple are too wrapped up in material objects or to a recent or very important day. As soon as what people think of them. I would have to Emily goes back to that day it is like she has an agree with this quote because I have seen it epiphany and realizes everything she once had proved true many times in my life. Such as in and took for granted. She sees how badly she my school when kids are worried more about misses the things she never really stopped to what they are wearing than anything else. I pay attention to or really think about. have also seen this proved true in certain I think the situation in “Our Town” is very works of literature such as “Our Town” and true in a lot of peoples lives. Most people don’t “The Great Gatsby”. realize what they had until its gone and never In the book “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott really stopped to think about the small things Fitzgerald Nick Carraway is a character who in our everyday lives that we take advantage of. truly has eyes that see. In this novel Nick is the I believe there is a hand full of people in evprotagonist and narrator. He tries to look at all ery crowd who truly have eyes that see, either Tom Alba and Maxwell Storms situations from every point of view with a genbecause they’ve lost something important to erally neutral attitude. His father once told him not to judge people. Nick practically lives by this rule and because them and learned what is really important or they were just naturally of it he is able to notice details about people that the average person given that gift. However you acquire this skill, it is something that will help get you through live with a much clearer open point of view, wouldn’t detect.

Another character who gains eyes that see is Emily from the play which I think is very important.

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Page 30 • www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com

Ashley Ford

Tom, today is the day we always talked about. you always said

how excited you were to turn 21 and now it’s here. happy birthday Tom! hope you’re up there celebrating the way i know you would be. i’ll be celebrating for you! love and miss you! ♥

Advertisers

Emmy Merritt won runner up for our Summer Cover Contest!

A GREAT cover, too!

Fall contest: Send classroom doodle art.

Deadline: Oct 9

www.goodlifeyouthjournal.com • Page 31

SUBMISSION INFO: This journal accepts work done by young people aged 10 to 20.

Deadline: Winter: Jan 9th, Spring: April 9th, Summer: July 9th, Fall: Oct 9th.

Length: Written work should be 300 to 500 words (½ to ¾) of a page no longer!!

Art: All forms Where : Goodlifejournal@gmail.com and we will get back to you.

• Permission: Need an email from you (& your parents if you are younger than 16) giving permission to publish your work & receive payment. Need address.

• Topics Examples: Lifestyle, music, book & movie reviews, sports & fitness, environmental.

• Writing strategies: Reflecting, Reporting, Explaining, Arguing and Humor to engage a reader, and explore ideas, fiction or non-fiction.

Be CREATIVE and send work that you would be proud to have published All articles must be appropriate for ages 10 to 100!

We would like to thank all our advertisers:

Goodlifejournal@gmail.com Cathy McNamara (845) 332-3353 GoodLife Journal

This journal is dedicated to the memory of our friend Tom AlbaPage 32

Illustration by Jesse Ditkoff, age 18

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