2014 GHS Voice Issue 9

voice the

psychology of colors in-depth page 4/5

art showcase

Volume XI, Issue IX

hockey players

The Voice

sports page 7

senior scholarships news page 2

April 2014

news page 2

deputy dale

feature page 6

@gretnamedia

Essays and Info and Money Oh My!

Plethora of Local Scholarships Plague the Senior Class Schmidt / Copy Editor One may jump up and down after receiving an acceptance letter from the dream college he or she has always wanted to attend, but then question themselves again after seeing the price of tuition. If only there was a quick and easy way one could shave off some of

that tuition to attend their dream school.

Gretna High School has invested in a local scholarship application website called myappcentral.com for seniors wishing to go beyond high school education. This unique website takes away the struggle of repetitively filling out information that has already been given out once. By typing in all

Photo by Liz Schmidt Piles of “Money”: Stacks of local scholarships are on top of Mrs. Doolittle’s desk in the Career Center after seniors turned them in. Local scholarship recipients will be announced at Honors Night on Monday, May 12 at 6:30pm.

of the student’s personal information, academic achievements, major interests, community service and honors just one time, the website does the rest by searching the best local scholarships the student is eligible for.

Once the website finishes searching, it is then the student’s job to take the responsibility to fill out the remaining application which usually includes a short essay or personal narrative. Fortunately, like other scholarships, there is no more filling out your name and address five different times for each scholarship.

Essays can also be used more than once for different applications.

Although this application process is easy as pie, counselors sometimes remain concerned about the few number of applicants towards the beginning of the scholarship process. After the applications were all due, a total of 18 pages overall were filled out with students taking advantage of this process.

“It always comes down to the last minute, said Mrs. Anita O’Neill, GHS Counselor. “We always remain concerned at the beginning, but you kids busted it and we made sure we had the parents aware of this opportunity as well.”

Starting this program about six years ago has been a huge benefit to GHS

students and help them receive a little more financial aid to assist them with the cost of college tuition. GHS counselors emphasize the fact that the website is extremely flexible and easy for students to use. The main reason students use this tool is to aid them with expenses and not have to go into huge student debt. Every little amount helps, they explain, and stress to leave no application undone that one is eligible for.

“Start early,” said Mrs. O’Neill. “Late fall is generally when institutional scholarships are due. That is where you get most money directly from colleges.

We have many generous donors who contribute to local scholarships in the community and try to spread money around to students in need. Pay attention to criteria and always send a thank you note. Also, educationquest.org has Scholarship Quest that juniors should look at every week until they graduate next year.”

Over $30,000 worth of scholarships were available to GHS students this year. Local scholarships recipients will be announced at Honors Night on Monday, May 12 at 6:30pm. Institutional scholarships will be announced that evening as well when students turn in their award letters .

Picture Perfect Paintings and Drawings Three Esteemed Art Students Show Off Their Masterpieces Booze / Staff Writer Art has been a pleasing thing to the eye for many centuries. Gretna High school houses many talented artists. A wide range of art is created at GHS. One artist at GHS is senior Alison Kessler. Kessler has been taking art lessons at the age of 6. She would walk down the street and take art lessons from her neighbor, Ms. Penny. Kessler likes to sketch or draw the most.

“I like sketching the most.” said

Kessler “I love the way my sketches look before i put color on them.”

When Kessler paints, she puts her own artistic style into it. Kessler just does not paint exactly what she is trying to copy. Kessler only likes to paint in art class she does not find enough time for herself to paint outside of school.

Junior Emma Eitzmann is another artist at GHS with inspiring artwork.

Eitzmann is currently in Mrs. Amy Oliver’s art class and she enjoys every part of it.

To find what she wants to paint on her free time Eitzmann usually just goes

online and finds things that inspire her.

“I put my emotions into my paintings,” said Eitzmann, “I just put on music and express my artistic freedoms.”

There are many of students at GHS that are talented with painting and drawing things that people see on a daily basis, but for sophomore Alexis Polivanov she is talented with a less known kind of artwork. Polivanov is big into anime and manga drawings. Manga and Anime drawings originated from Japan, they are a little different from realistic drawings that we see here in America.

Spring is Blooming : Senior Allison Kessler applies particular shading to her flowers to show a more dynamic appearance.

Breaking from the Cacoon : Junior Emma Eitzmann uses a special technique to allow for her beautiful butterfly to emerge.

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“It is a complicated process on how i come up with ideas to draw, it mostly just ends up working out for me.” said Polivanov.

Polivanov has been drawing realistic things from the time she was little.

“I don’t remember exactly when I started drawing, but when I was little I would draw animals and realistics things.” Said Polivanov.

GHS has many talented academic students along with talented artistic students.

Drawing the Lines of Love : Sophomore Lexy Polivanov tediously sketches out the characters Haruhi Fujioka and Kyoya Ootori from the shojo manga hit series Ouran High School Host Club in an anime style.

April, 2014

News

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The Oxford Comma

Relevant, Necessary, and Esthetically Pleasing Holman/OpEd Editor Jambalaya, pugs and arson. These three things clearly do not belong together. However, without the presence of a comma before the ‘and’, it looks like pugs and arson are grouped. What do pugs have to do with arson? Unless a gang of them got together and burned down the old folk’s home, they are not supposed to be paired. Coming to you live from your local grammar nazi, a rant about the Oxford Comma.

What is this you may ask? The comma before ‘and’ in a list is called the Oxford Comma. A comma marks a pause when reading, and infers a separation between subjects. Lack of this can result in all sorts of unnecessary confusion.

For example: I went to Canada with my parents, Mark and Janet. Mark and Janet can be read as appositive describing the names of the parents, but that may not be the case. Mark and Janet could be separate entities altogether. Who knows, maybe Mark and Janet are my weird neighbors. An Oxford Comma is a simple solution to a serious problem that bothers me much more than it should.

The Oxford Comma is clearly a high point of controversy. It is used mainly in American writing, excluding journalistic purposes. This is to save space in print.

However, as a newspaper editor, I have never personally been inconvenienced by this essential punctuation. The Oxford Comma eliminates confusion and goes with the natural flow of the spoken sentence. The only argument against it is that it is redundant. I choose to err on the side of caution and avoid discrepancies in what is written and what is meant. Not using the Oxford Comma is risky business and could lead to anarchy.

The Oxford Comma is quite possibly my favorite as far as punctuation goes. It separates items in a list and eliminates confusion. If I say “For breakfast I am having bacon, eggs, hashbrowns and cereal.” The lack of comma insinuates that I am having hashbrowns with my cereal. That is just nasty. I do not know why using the Oxford Comma is even a question. Long story short, play it on the safe side and use the Oxford Comma.

Cartoon by Jade Naber

Staff Editorial: Education or Useless Info?

Math, Science, and History, Oh My! We Need Adult 101 Students have been trained since first grade that school comes first. They arrive at school, they take notes, they go home, they come back to school, and test over the previous day’s lesson. But this is not really learning. Sure, in grade school kids are taught the alphabet and basic math and science and six-letter words, but high school is a different story.

Students are cramming seven subjects into their heads they know so little about while worrying about how well they test on them and what college they are going to go to and what their major will be. This does not include financial problems. Students are told to get a part time job, volunteer for local parks and soup kitchens, be social with friends and family, get good grades, and make life decisions as a teenager.

The idea is just so bizarre to me that adults treat adolescents like children throughout all of their teenage years but then at around the age of seventeen, they pull a full 180 on them and expect them to decide in a few years what they want to do for the rest of their lives. They are told that their entire future relies on how well they test. Testing may be one of the most stressful things in a student’s life. Some people are good test takers, but others are not. And sadly, the grade a student receives on a test is generally their overall grade. They might have aced their homework and hands-on projects, but if the stress of a test grade is too much, they end the quarter with a D on

a failed test.

Even if a student is a great test-taker, they are still stressed out. Consistent A’s become normal for that student, and anything less makes them feel like a failure. Smart students get so stressed out that they just stop caring about grades. They think about their future and it becomes overwhelming very quickly.

Panic attacks take over, but students conceal them because they do not want to stand out. The heavy stress is visible below their eyes tattooed in dark semicircles. I think a large number of students were constantly complimented on their intelligence at a young age but now they are having trouble coping with the realization that they are at the average intellect at best. It is a psychological fact that the average teenager has the same anxiety levels as a 1950’s psychiatric patient.

When school is over and a student has graduated, they can recite all molecular compounds from memory and tell you that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of a cell. They can even write the quadratic formula upside down.

Human minds are almost like a hard drive.

Information is constantly being recycled.

Eventually, the hard drive becomes full, and old data must be thrown out to make room for new data.

All of this concentrated information has been programed into their brains and labeled as “important” but on their own, when this information suddenly

***Follow us on Twitter! @gretnamedia*** Reporters:

Advisor: Gretchen Baijnauth Editor in Chief: Jeff Glassburner Copy Editor: Liz Schmidt Editors: Lindsey LaMountain/News Editor Kylie Holman/OpEd Editor Amanda Nelson/In-Depth Editor Samantha Hannigan/Sports Editor Jade Naber/Features Editor Charlie Ames/A&E Editor

April 2014

becomes useless and irrelevant, they will not even know how to balance a checkbook. They will not know how much a shirt should cost and they will not know when they are getting scammed out of their life savings. We know the Pythagorean Theorem by heart but we short circuit when asked “How are you?”, because we do not know. It was not on the study guide.

The “learning” aspect of school has become just covering the basics so students score well on standardized tests and provide more money for the school. We are packed to the brink in classrooms.

Twenty-five teenagers squished into a lecture they do not care about is supposedly teaching them everything there is to know. If today’s adult generation wants to leave the world to a calm, organized, and correctly educated youth, they need to reassess the curriculum. For example, the EACEA states that a large majority of Europe’s passing grade is 40% and everything above an 85% is an A. Teenagers do not have to worry about expensive college fees because the government takes care of that for them. Their classrooms have about ten to twelve students and each and every teacher is required to have a Master’s degree in their subject. Each student receives individual attention.

Students are more than a number. They are human beings with real emotions and anxieties. Until our schools realize that, “education” will remain the way it is.

The Voice

Jacob Dart Becca Human Hope Cudly Amanda Minckler Brenna Zollman Annie Sullivan Olivia Kahler-Galloon

Opinion & Editorial

Haley Booze Angel Perina Jake Keyes Nick Mefford Layne Staley Zach Nylin JJ Jungjohann

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Samantha Grossman, Junior

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Purple is asscoiated with royalty. It shows wealth, wisdom, and luxury. Dark purple evokes sad feelings and can casue frustration.

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Gray is an unemotional color. It creates a sense of calmness. and composure. It is the color of marutiry and responsibility. Gray can be both depressing or elegant.

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Orange is the color of harvest and fall. It increases oxygen supply to the brain. It is associated with halty food and stimulates appetite, because it is a citrus color.

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Green is the color of nature. It symobolizes harmony and freshness. Also, it has a strong emotional connection with safety.

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April 2014

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Black is associated with fear and the unknkown. It denotes strength and authority.

It is very formal and prestigious color.

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Meanings of colors Companies that use them Blue is associated with depth and stabillity.

It is considered beneficial to the mind and body. It is also the color of the sky and sea.

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Colors, however, can also be used to improve settings. Schools are where a majority of children spend their time. So what thought process goes into planning colors for schools? For Gretna, all we know is that the green and yellow have been our colors probably due to the mascot of the Dragon. It appears that not much thought went into what green and yellow portrays to other schools, but according to research, green represents peacefulness and yellow represents optimism. Those are not bad colors to be associated with the school.

Green also helps us focus and study the best, because it is the easiest to see in our mind.

Classrooms should all be green, or there should be green on the desks. As for the colors of our carpet and walls, the administration and contractors did not contemplate color as much as they did quality.

“We mostly looked at which carpets could take the most wear and looked the best,” said Mr. Roger Miller, principal.

Whether we realize it or not, color impacts our life. It may be for the betterment of our minds or to subconsciously control us. Knowing marketing secrets and the way our brains work towards different colors, we may be able to take control back from the chromatic experts.

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Try to imagine a world without color.

What do you see? White? Black? Those are still colors, so keep trying. Colors control a majority of our lives. Whether it is color of our skin, matching outfits, or favorite colors, the rainbow is all around us.

In order to understand color, one must know exactly what color is. We have all learned in science classes about our eyes and the light spectrum. To recap, we have rods and cones in the back of our eyes and rods see light while cones see different colors. There are multiple theories about what colors we actually see and what colors are just blends or different hues. The Trichromatic Theory says that we just have three cones that see red, blue, and green.

The Opponent-Process Theory says we see in pairs of red-green and blue-yellow.

After light and color goes through the eye, the brain takes full control over how we perceive what we see. There also seems to be a difference between how girls and boys see color. They may see the same color, but girls have a bigger vocabulary. Men may see pink, while women see salmon or fuchsia or magenta.

“Women have more cones,” said Mr. Matt Johnson, science teacher. “Men have

more rods. Women can see colors better, and men can perceive more movement.”

There have been multiple experiments done that connect different colors to certain emotions and moods. We learn to pair them together through classical conditioning where we associate things because of something else. For example, since a stop sign is red, red is now associated with stopping. Students in art classes learn about color theories to see which ones work together to find schemes that could create the right mood that the artist is trying to convey.

“Using the wrong colors could give a completely different meaning,” said Ms. Jill Janke, Art teacher.

These unconscious reactions to colors can be used to manipulate people, especially in the capitalistic world we live in. For example, black and gold colors are used to make items look more luxurious and expensive, red signs are used for prices on items because it looks like it is a better deal, and yellow is used on signs to grab attention to window shoppers.

“It goes back to the fact that it has been reinforced over time through our media that we associate things while walking through places such as stores,” said Mrs. Kate Craig, psychology teacher.

Taylor Riecken, Sophmore

Kirsten Kunz, Sophmore

s r o l o C of y g o l o h c y s The P LaMountain/News Editor

Q. If you had to describe yourself in one color, what would that color be?

A. Pink because it brings me loving feelings and happiness Q. Why did you pick that color? What’s special about it to you specifically?

A. It means light and fluffiness.

Q. What is your least favorite color? Why? A. Black, because it’s a depressing color.

Cr ea t iv e

What Does Color Mean to You?

Q. If you had to describe yourself in one color, what would that color be?

A. Yellow Q. Why did you pick that color? What’s special about it to you specifically?

A. Because it makes me mellow.

Q. How does that color make you feel?

A. It makes me look up and see happiness in the sky and not saddness, because the sun is bright and happy.

Q. What is your least favorite color? Why? A. Black because it’s dark and sad.

Q. If you had to describe yourself in one color, what would that color be?

A. Light blue because blue is my favorite color Q. Why did you pick that color?

What’s special about it to you specifically?

A. Light blue seems cheery, and I’m a cheery person.

Q. What is your least favorite color? Why? A. Black or brown. They seem dull and not as happy. I like brighter colors

Yellow is the color of sunshine. It is often associated with food and can stimulate mental activity.

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In-Depth

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Whacha’ Gonna do when They Come for You? New Deputy is Here to Stay and Keep Kids Safe Staley / Reporter When most people think of a law enforcement officer, the first thing that comes to mind is an exciting job in which officers chase criminals around and protect their city from total chaos. This may seem to be the case for most law enforcement officers, but there are circumstances where an officer might have to take a break from the thrilling adventures of being on the street and become a school resource officer. Deputy Dale LaSonde is the school resource officer for Gretna Public Schools. He spends most of his time at GHS, where he watches over the students and makes sure no harm comes their way.

“My job is to basically just make sure that everyone is safe,” said Deputy LaSonde.

Deputy LaSonde starts off the day by making sure that all of the elementary students get on their buses. Then after everyone is in class, he checks his emails and secures the school.

Deputy Dale LaSonde has been at GHS for about 4 months now. “The most interesting part of my job has been sitting in some classes and interacting with students,” said LaSonde.

He does this by locking all of the doors and walking around the school to check everything out. He looks for anything that might be out of the ordinary and watches for unauthorized visitors that might be roaming the building. During a normal school day, Deputy LaSonde is free to answer any questions that students or staff might have about law. He is also willing to sit and interact with students, and talk to classes about law and his job.

After school, Deputy LaSonde drives around to all of the different schools in the district. He makes sure all of the elementary students are safe and will take care of any issues that come up.

Deputy LaSonde’s working hours are officially eight hours, but he usually ends up working nine to nine and a half.

“I just picture him walking around during the day making sure kids don’t do bad things,” said Shelby Jones, sophomore. “I don’t think it’s anything exciting.”

A big part of Deputy LaSonde’s job as a school resource officer is keeping the school in check, but it is not the only part.

A major key to his job is being a good role model to students, so that there is a positive influence that they can try to figure themselves after. He can educate students and emphasize the importance of certain subjects such as, drug and

alcohol abuse, texting and drunk driving, and what a job as a police officer might be like. Deputy LaSonde is also there, so that there is an easy accessibility to a law enforcement officer. If there is a problem, then it can be handled quickly. Students know they have someone that they can go to with issues or problems that are happening around the school.

“My favorite part about my job is interacting with the students,” said Deputy LaSonde. “I think that the students here are really good and my job wouldn’t be as easy anywhere else.”

Most school resource officers have had experience with different kinds of jobs besides working with the school.

Deputy LaSonde was a deputy with Sarpy County and was a Marine before that. He has gone through many years of hard work and training to get to where he is today in his career. Even though he has a had exciting jobs in the past, he was willing to put all of the wild chases behind and start a new chapter of his life as a school resource officer. Deputy LaSonde enjoys his job and loves being a part of the students lives.

“Something that I want people to know is that I honestly and truly care about everyone,” said Deputy LaSonde.

“I’m a real person underneath this vest and badge.”

A First-Hand International Experience with a New Culture GHS Student visits Saudi Arabia and the Experiences it Offers Kahler / Reporter When people think about the Middle East, they don’t normally envision amazing sights and new friends.

Freshman Abbie Wesely, recently spent two months in Saudi Arabia, experiencing different types of culture and people.

Originally she took the trip in order to be with her mother, as she taught math and science overseas for a while, however, she was still able to experience the country itself. She has brought back much knowledge and a new understanding of the Middle East.

“I did so much while I was there,” said Wesely. “I spent a lot of time shopping, swimming, and I played tennis every day. I got to see the old part of the city, where some of the buildings were up to a thousand years old. I spent a lot of time helping in my mom’s classroom, and I became really attached to her 5th grade students.”

Wesely spent time in a city called Jeddah, which is located along the West

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coast of the Red Sea. There are over 2.8 million people that live there. Although many speak the native language of Arabic, English is heard quite often.

For Abbie, communicating was not a complication at all, and she was able to meet new people and make friends while away. “ I made tons of friends my age while I was there,” said Wesely. “They showed me around the city, and took me to the malls and restaurants. I became really close with the people I met, and I hung out with them every weekend. It was interesting to discover that we had so much in common; we watched the same TV shows and movies, wore the same type of clothes, had the same social media, and overall had many interests in common. It was neat to get to know people from all over the world. We still keep in contact even now that I’m home.”

There are laws in Saudi Arabia that Wesely had not been accustomed to here. Wesely stated that she had to follow many rules and guidelines that had been foreign to her previously. The

Abbie was able to be with her mother while teaching a class of elementary students. Abbie grew very close to the students on her visit.

April, 2014

The world’s largest fountain in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

rules that women and girls were to follow were especially surprising for her.“ The only thing that I didn’t really like about Saudi Arabia was all of the rules that the citizens had to follow (especially for women),” said Wesely. “I had to wear clothing that fully covered me, however I didn’t need to cover my face. Also, Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world where women are not allowed to drive.

We had to hire a driver every time we wanted to go somewhere, which was a pain. There were many things that I did like though, such as the weather.”

Spending so much time away from family is bound to take a toll on someone.

Wesely had traveled to Saudi Arabia with her mother, but had to leave behind her many sisters. Although Wesley clearly had a wonderful time in Saudi Arabia, she did miss her loved ones at home. “ Being away for so long was actually the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” said Wesely. “My sisters and I are really close, and it was tough being away from the rest of my family. I stayed in constant contact with everyone back home, and I missed seeing my friends every day. The time difference was also a challenge (9

hours.) I was ready to come back home after 2 months.”

Wesely also said that the Middle East is not what most people think it to be.

Whenever we think of the Middle East, we tend to think of war and violence, but that is not at all what Abbie had seen.

“While I stayed in Saudi Arabia,” said Wesely. “I lived in an apartment on a compound only for foreigners.

Saudi citizens could not enter unless someone from the inside invited them in. It was heavily guarded by the military, and extremely safe. I am so happy and thankful that I had this opportunity to experience another country, and to learn all about another culture and meet so many wonderful people.”

Wesely would love another opportunity to go back and revisit the people she had grown so close to after just two months. Such a distant place is sure to possess many differences than what we are used to in our society, but many of which are pleasant surprises.

Experiencing such a far off country is only a dream for some of us, but lucky for Abbie, she was able to experience it first hand.

Feature

Breakaway, Dangle, Enforcer, Hack, Jock, Goal, Hockey Breven Bennet moves from his home in Kansas to Gretna to play hockey

Zollman/ Staff Writer

Top photo: Breven Bennett, sophomore, and team gather around for words of advice from the coach. Bottom photo: Bennett stands ready for anything to come his way.

Most common high school sports are played on a field or a court. Imagine having to keep balance on ice while trying to play football. Dribbling a basketball in an ice rink is not the most conventional idea. Life for Breven Bennett, sophomore, is anything but conventional.

According to a poll done by Harris, a surveying firm, in 2011, hockey is just as popular among spectators as basketball is in the United States. With its growing popularity, hockey is also becoming a more popular sport for kids to play. For Bennett, hockey has impacted his life in multiple ways. Last year, Bennett joined the Omaha Triple A Hockey Club. He is originally from Overland Park, Kansas, and last year, he would drive up to

Omaha for every practice.

“Omaha Triple A is a really good organization,” says Bennett. “It’s pretty well known. I know a lot of the kids on the team, so I stayed again this year.”

With staying on the team, Bennett had a hard decision to make. Commuting to Omaha from Overland Park for practices takes up hundreds of hours.

Bennett wanted to stay with Triple A, so he decided to stay with a host family for the school year.

“It was really hard to be leave my parents,” said Bennett. “I love hockey so much though, and the organization is really great, so I had to stay. To make it easier on my parents, I decided to stay with a host family.”

Bennett has been boarding with sophomore, Ian Tessier’s family for the school year. He transferred to Gretna a month ago to make it easier on his host family. Imagine not living with your own family, but with strangers. Getting used to new places and personalities is always a challenge, so imagine changing to a completely different lifestyle. Since living with a host family is not like living with your parents, the amount of liberties would be crazy, as some would think.

Bennett says that is not the case.

“I guess I get a lot of freedom,” said Bennett. “I still have my host family to keep me grounded and keep an eye on me.”

The center forward, who has been

playing hockey since he was ten, leaves at the end of the school year.

Unfortunately, he does not know if he will be returning next year to Gretna and his team.

“I would love to come back,” said Bennett. “Gretna has been great and I really love my team. It’s just really hard to leave home for so long and transition into different places every couple of months.”

Bennett looks forward to the future and hopes to play hockey for a long time. There is multiple career choices for hockey outside of high school. Bennett would like to play as much as he can.

Outside of regular hockey ventures, he would like to play for a Junior League, which would pay him to play right out of high school.

“I’d definitely like to play in college,” said Bennett. “There’s this junior league called UHSL that I’d like to play in. I’d also like to play for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL.” Just like any other athlete, Bennett loves his sport more than anything.

When playing something for so long, getting attached to that sport is a normal thing, like any other passion. It becomes a part of a person, and Bennett is no exception.

“I just all around love it,” said Bennett.

“It’s my passion, I just play hockey. I love the rush; I love the sound of ice under my skates. I just live for it.”

Practice, Practice and More Practice to Make Perfect

Sports do different conditioning during practices to keep their athletes healthy Nelson/ In-depth editor

Top photo: Freshman Maiah Thamm jumps over the hurdles during practice. Bottom Left: Grant Bruner, freshman, prepares to catch the ball. Bottom Right photo: Junior Bella Arkfeld stretches before practice to help prevent injury during practice or a future game.

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Practice makes perfect. One of the most famous quotes known to our generation. The way to get better is to practice. Some would argue perfect practice is what allows athletes to excel.

Whatever the case may be, it is all in the training. Without practice, there would be no goal to get better; everyone would just be average. With spring season in full swing, it is crucial athletes keep practicing to help their team excel and themselves.

“Before the season, it is up to the athlete if they want to participate in practice,” said Mr. Spencer Stednitz, Boys Varsity Assistant Track Coach. “We do cross training with an insanity workout and workout videos.”

When most people think of track, they think of running, which is what track is; however, there are field events like high and triple jump, pole vault, and discus and shot put. As spring season approaches, the optional practices become mandatory. They run and do other drills that focus more on each individual event. The sprinters have block work to improve their starts, and the hurdlers work on technique and position of their leg as they prepare to and go over the hurdle. During practice, the throwers work on footwork and technique.

“I think it’s important to begin training early, because it helps with injury prevention,” said Stednitz. “With long distance, it’s good to get a solid base of running in before the season starts.”

Another spring sport at GHS is soccer.

Starting from December to February, the athletes form teams and play for an hour twice a week. Once preparation for spring season begins, there are three parts to every practice. The first is

component, which specifically deals with injury prevention. They strengthen their core and knees or ACL. The second part is technical. The athletes work on ball skills and body positioning. The final part of practice is tactical, which is the decisionmaking components.

“I do believe early training is important,” said Mr. George Behney, Girls Head Soccer Coach. “Reality is kids train year round with club soccer which is good, because they have to play together to have more success.”

From the field to the diamond, baseball coaches get creative when they have to practice inside because of Nebraska weather. They do stations inside and try to keep people moving.

After Christmas, the athletes can come and practice hitting baseballs after school. In the morning, they do infield and pitching drills. These practices are optional. During the season one drill that is performed is the zigzag drill. Players catch the three balls on the run making the proper turns. This consists of a variety of drills at once.

“Baseball is a repetition sport,” said Mr. Jeff Depue, Varsity Baseball Assistant.

“The more reps the better fundamentals.

We will play better in games.”

With all the spring sports at GHS, including tennis and golf, students are sure to be busy this spring. Practice makes perfect as all these teams are doing well so far this season.

“There is no secret to success,” said Behney. “If the drills are done with high intensity, and the athletes are engaged and working, then there is success. The athlete has to choose to work for it.”

Sports

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5 Things to Do, See, Eat, Hear, & Read Do: Old Market

Eat: Smoothies

ith the weather finally warming up, Downtown Omaha is the perfect place to visit. Right at the center of Downtown is the Old Market, which is the home of multiple unique businesses, perfect for the hipster inside of you. From the vintage clothing store, The Flying Worm, to the underground music store, Drastic Plastic, the Old Market has the perfect variety of stores. The Old Market is located in the area between Farnam and Leavenworth Street and 10th and 13th street in Downtown Omaha.

lanet Smoothie was added to the shops at Nebraska Crossing back in November, but still holds many surprises that not everyone has experienced yet. This smoothie shop is not your average Juice Stop. They have many different kinds of smoothies and drinks, including light smoothies for those watching their weight, energy and protein smoothies, and smoothies with flavors specifically designed for kids.

There is also a portion of the menu specifally dedicated to the “Acai Superfruit.” Planet Smoothie is located directly next to Auntie Anne’s.

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Brenna Zollman

Olivia Kahler

See: Spiderman

Hear: Pharrell

n May 2, 2014, Peter Parker returns to theaters, featuring in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. In his newest adventure, Peter Parker must yet again face the responsibilities of his personal life and his extraordinary powers. He must confront a new evil called Oscorp that is much more powerful than he is. This villain just might be too powerful for him to face. Peter Parker will be played by Andrew Garfield, and Emma Stone will be portraying his love interest Gwen Stacy.

harrell Williams performed his song “Happy” on Good Morning America April 7th. If there’s one thing that can lift spirits and get people dancing, it’s this guy’s music. “Happy” has been popularized throughout the nation, recently finding its way to GHS. The “Happy” music video features cameras scoured all over the city of Chicago, where random people on the streets can’t help but start dancing to the joyful beat. There is a version of this video that loops the song and video footage for over 24 hours. This video itself is a hit, earning over 100,000 views. It is a must watch.

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Layne Staley

Jacob Dart

Read: Every Day

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Following the unique experience of one very special individual, “Every Day” by David Levithan explores the world of A, a person who wakes up in a new body every morning.

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he world of fiction contains hundreds of novels that follow basic molds. There are the average sappy teenage romance novels, lighthearted high school stories, and twisted supernatural tales. It is rare that one story is able to tie together these three extremely different labels and create a book worth reading. However, this is exactly what “Every Day” by David Levithan has done.

Set in present time, “Every Day” follows the story of one completely unique person known only as A. Every day, A is in a different body, a different life, a different situation. There is never any warning about who, what, or where A will wake up in, but it is always a person and it is always for one day. When A wakes up in the body of a boy named Justin and meets his girlfriend, Rhiannon, they fall in love, and A is desperate to see her every day after that, no matter the body or the place.

The only problem? Sometimes, A is a boy. Sometimes, A wakes up in the body of a girl. Too much attention can put the whole balance in danger, as nobody else is aware of A’s existence. A’s struggle to find Rhiannon on a daily basis and their conflict of whether you can truly love someone who changes every day drives the plot.

David Levithan’s best-selling novel is an interesting and detailed look at an extraordinary idea. It creates challenging mental pictures for the reader, as A is first introduced as a male but is later put into different bodies, situations, and even genders. This forces readers to consider A as a personality, rather than a physical person. “Every Day” does not shy away

from real social issues, such as underage drinking and homosexuality. Because of this, it can sometimes be hard to read; however, the fact that Levithan does not shy away from difficult topics is almost refreshing. He acknowledges that teenagers understand more than what some adults attribute them and, therefore, does not deem difficult social issues too controversial.

Levithan is a nationally acclaimed author, and it is obvious why; his writing style is fast-paced and easy to understand, even with a difficult topic to convey clearly. Although A is a character that is almost unrelatable due to the supernatural circumstances, readers still find themselves invested in the personality that stays the same, even as the body changes every day. Levithan does a masterful job of creating realistic characters quickly, even if they are discarded a moment later. The multiple people that A inhabits all seem to be real and relatable teenagers, and there are many quick yet well-made connections established throughout the plot.

In the end, “Every Day” is a fascinating novel that tackles many issues, whether social, emotional, or personal, all at once.

The book explores dozens of questions, some of which are answered and some of which are left hanging. Why is A in this terrifying situation? What is it like to not have any rooted relationships? Can Rhiannon really learn to love someone who literally changes every day? Most importantly and central to the plotline, can love truly conquer all? While the answer may never be crystal clear, “Every Day” is a new look at this question people have pondered for centuries.

“Every Day” is available for checkout in the school library.

Becca Human

April, 2014

Arts & Entertainment