Inklings Nov. 1

Inklings

November 1, 2013 Founded in 1933

inklingsnews.com

Early Decision is no guaranWILL MCDONALD ’14 & SIMON STRACHER ’14

MARGAUX MACCOLL ’16 & GRACE MCCARTHY ’16 Staff Writers

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f you walk into Staples any day, you see students sprawled around the library, textbooks and notes scattered.

The tables at the end of each hallway are a chaos of studying as students fevorishly flush, dip their heads toward their books and write quickly. After school, students rush to conference with teachers who squeeze in student after student.

The hard work has paid off.

Last month, Staples High School was one of 286 schools nationally granted the Blue Ribbon Award, specifically recognized for its overall academic excellence.

“I think it’s a great honor, and is a testament to both the hard work and achievements of the students and teachers here at Staples,” math teacher Lenny Klein said.

Many students cited the faculty-student partnership.

“A lot of schools are strictly just about teaching,” Emma Laney ’15 said, “but teachers here care about you and want you to do well.”

Principal John Dodig attributes the success additionally to Westport families.

Francine Sinay, who works in the academic support department, agreed. “Obviously in Westport, education is valued very highly, and that comes across to the kids who are looking to replicate what their parents have done, and even surpass

GRAPHIC BY NATE ROSEN ’14

Staples named a Blue Ribbon School

that.”

In Westport, education is valued at a very young age.

A warm smile spread across the face of Aileen Coyne ’16 as she described her mom reading Goodnight Moon to her and playing with math puzzles.

Coyne said her parents in general fostered innovation.

“When I was young, I would invent things like a rock sifter made out of clothing hangers,” Coyne said.

Students across Staples had similar nostalgic stories of education that occured before they even set foot in the high school hallways.

Nick Ribolla ’16 remembered positive reinforcement.

“When I was young, and I got a 100 on my spelling test, my parents would say, ‘oh that’s so awesome! That’s great!’” Ribolla said, throwing his arms up in exaggerated enthusiasm.

Parental support for education helps define Staples, all agreed.

“In a lot of other school systems a child might be failing a class, but the parent doesn’t call to ask why,” Physical Education teacher Jeffrey Doornweerd said.

“Here you don’t tend to see that.”

Whether it’s the culture supporting education, or the collaboration between the diligent students and staff, students said they were proud of the award.

“When you say Westport, everyone thinks of a good school system,” Lexy Lannacone ’15 said. “That’s really something to admire.”

Managing Editor & Social Media Managing Editor

For decades, late March to early April has represented a pinnacle in high school life – when seniors hear back from colleges they have applied to and decide which school they would like to attend. However, in order to seek what they perceived to be an edge, more and more students have opted for a different path for admission -– Early Decision.

Offered by roughly 18 percent of colleges and universities, Early Decision is a binding agreement whereby students agree to both apply early only to that school and to attend the school if they are admitted. According to Guidance Counselor PJ Washenko, students considering applying early have to weigh several factors before reaching a decision.

“When students look at their academic profile, and it matches up well, and they couldn’t imagine going anywhere else, and it’s a good financial option for them, and they won’t have to explore other options like lost uncles you haven’t talked to in forever in order to pay their tuition, I recommend using Early Decision,” he said.

One incentive to committing is the fact that, on paper, applying early offers a statistical advantage. For example, Duke University accepts 29.6 percent of early applicants compared to only 11 percent regular. In a list of acceptance rates for over 40 of the most elite institutions in the country published this spring by “The New York Times,” each school that offered an early plan had a higher acceptance rate compared to the regular decision acceptance rate.

While several factors can partially account for the higher

acceptance rate, such as the fact that Early Decision tends to attract recruited athletes and students with legacies, private college counselor Kim Freudigman agrees that any students’ chances are higher if they apply early decision. However, there is a caveat.

“If you’re a qualified candidate, and you really love the school, Early Decision is the best way to increase your odds of getting in,” Freudigman said.

“However the key phrase in that last statement is that the student needs to be a ‘qualified candidate’ for that school.”

For past students who have had the combination of passion for a school and statistics that aligned with their dream school’s averages, deciding to apply early was a logical choice.

“In hindsight, applying Early Decision was the best choice I could have made – I knew I had Continued on page 3

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

According a national survey by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Reported Cases of Drinking and Driving Among Age Groups

KATIE CION ’14

Percentage

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Editor-in-Chief

12 10 8 6 4 2 0

Adults pose a bigger threat on the roads than teens

16 17

40 44

45 49

50 55

Age (Years) GRAPHIC BY CLAIRE LEWIN’ 15

Inside the Issue

The scariest moment of her life happened in the car coming home from a family wedding.

Her father had too much to drink, so her mom offered to take the wheel, having only had a couple of glasses of champagne herself.

But those couple of glasses made a noticeable difference.

“The car was swerving, and we were going way too fast. She was straddling the line in the middle of two lanes. It really freaked me out because I didn’t

The cutest kids at Staples

know what to say because she’s my mom, but I was terrified the entire time,” she said.

The girl, a senior, who asked to remain anonymous, said that overall her parents have a dangerously cavalier attitude toward drinking and driving.

Although teenagers are often the targets of public service announcements and educational programs concerning risky behavior such as drunk driving, in Westport, at least, it appears to be the adults in the community who are getting behind the wheel

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while intoxicated.

Of more than a dozen students interviewed, the majority had witnessed an adult drunk driving, and over half said their parents drove drunk regularly.

“Personally, I have never stopped a teenage drunk driver,” Officer Ned Batlin, of the Westport police department said. “It is much more common for the operator to be an adult.”

Though Batlin concedes that this may be accounted for by the greater number of adult Continued on page 5

Rachel Doran and her pajama line

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PHOTOS BY NATE ROSEN ’14, BAILEY ETHIER ’15 AND NED HARDY ’13

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LOOKING BACK Hurricane Sandy wreacked havoc across Westport at Staples, Beachside Ave., Pequot Trail and Saugatuck Shores.

Remembering Hurricane Sandy, one year later ANDREA FROST ’15 Features Editor

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n Oct. 25, 2012, Hurricane Sandy journeyed up the Northeast coast, decimating everything in it’s path. Westport was one of many towns that faced power outages and flooded buildings after the hurricane hit.

While many have been able to recover, for others, the storm’s impact still remains one year later.

According to Nathan Luce ’15, as the storm passed through Westport, Luce’s backyard became a river and his basement a swimming pool as it flooded

with two and a half feet of water. Although the water has been drained out, the impact still remains on his family as they lost many valuable items stored in their basement: baby clothes, old toys and books.

“It’s really hard because a lot of my childhood memories were destroyed in the storm, let alone the cost that it took to repair our yard and house,” Luce said.

While Luce’s basement and yard were cleaned up within six months of the storm, others, like Amy Liu ’15 and her family, still need to reconstruct damage on their homes due to Sandy.

“My house was so damaged from the storm, so my family decided that it would be better and easier to rebuild it,” Liu said.

“While I’m excited to have a new house, it’s annoying that one year later my family is still facing problems from Sandy.”

Liu’s house, located near the beach, was flooded with over seven feet of water during the storm.

The powerful rush from this water was able to push the foundation of the house up, leaving as Liu described, “a literal tree in my basement.”

Along with the many houses, downtown Westport was also

flooded as the Saugatuck River overflowed onto Main Street. According to Aris Iqbal, the manager at Sunglass Hut, his store was flooded out 32 inches, destroying lots of merchandise. Due to the damage, Sunglass Hut was closed for six months after the hurricane and lost $350,000 in sale revenue he explained.

Iqbal said that stores such as Chicos and Kate Spade were also badly affected. In fact, Kate Spade had so much damage that it was unable to reopen.

While Sunglass Hut is no longer facing problems from the storm, Iqbal is worried that, if

another hurricane hits due to the location, the damage to the store wouldn’t be different.

However among all the destruction done by Sandy, David’s Tea was among the few stores that escaped the storm without damage. Joseph Dejesus, a salesman at the store, explained that Sandy taught them a lot. They were lucky then, but that may not always be the case.

“We now have special procedures [involving] sandbagging and taping the window in case another hurricane hits,” Dejesus said. “Now we are much more prepared.”

GRAPHIC BY ELLIE GUZEWICZ ’16

The bias effect When political views collide CLAUDIA LANDOWNE ’15 News Editor

Teachers, particularly social studies teachers, occupy a complicated position regarding their own political perspectives. Educators must balance their point of view with the opposition and decide whether biases have a place in education.

Social studies teacher Eric Mongirdas, acknowledging the feelings of many in his department, said that teachers are human and approach topics from different points of view.

“It’s hard to just be straight-laced down the middle,” he said.

But some students feel teachers do not want to hear multiple sides of issues.

Young Republicans Vice President Ian Palmer ’15 described writing a pro-Romney paper on the 2012 election, which he felt was graded harsh-

er than the Obama-supporting classmates.

“My teacher told me that I needed to have some kind of source of my opinions, as if I could not have my own, unique viewpoint.”

Experiences like this have led students to write papers that they think will please teachers. However, Palmer noted that sometimes this gives him an opportunity to learn more about the “other side.”

In a roundabout way, learning about opposite sides is what many teachers want to instill.

“It’s important for students to be able to see that no event, even ones that are largely agreed upon, is historically good or historically bad,” social studies department chair James D’Amico said, complementing the ability of teachers to choose sources representing multiple perspectives.

However, most teachers

prefer that students learn about these perspectives through honest debate, not by obscuring their beliefs.

“I tell the kids all the time, ‘I will listen to any argument you want...within reason,’” Mongirdas said. “As long you have rationale and evidence to go one way or the other, I would be more than happy to listen to it.”

Unfortunately, students who are in the political minority may be hesitant to speak up.

“When I first got to Staples and started developing really distinct political beliefs, I felt a little awkward,” Libertarian Shelby Cataldo ’15 said.

According to Cataldo, Westport has a liberal majority, making it hard to find people who share her beliefs; only one of her close friends identifies as Republican; the rest reflect Democratic views.

“I met another Libertarian

the other day and got way too excited about it,” she said.

The trend at Staples seems to be that students with more conservative views feel uncomfortable in class.

Palmer has felt awkward expressing his beliefs in front of peers who disagree with him. He described taking a political spectrum test and having to raise his hand, indicating where he had been placed.

“I think I was one of two people who were categorized as conservative,” he said.

Young Republicans Vice President Trevor Penwell ’15 described watching a documentary made by House of Representatives Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s daughter in government class. The teacher went out of his way to clarify the video’s bias.

Penwell said, “...but I wish we watched a similar documentary on liberals.”

“Occasionally I will come across a teacher who seems so passionately liberal that I just keep my mouth shut,” Cataldo said.

Liberal-leaning students, on the other hand, do not seem to have this problem.

“I am rarely hesitant to speak up in class,” liberal Will Haskell ’14 said.

D’Amico noted that, in his nine years as department chair, he has received only one complaint of bias. Mongirdas and social studies teacher Daniel Heaphy agreed they have never received complaints.

“Kids usually trust their teachers, which is good,” Heaphy said. “Sometimes they’re aware we have biases in certain things but [that helps in regards to] critical thinking...If you’re aware of it, it forces you to compensate and to go ‘Oh, I have to show both sides.’”

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Here’s the scoop on Shmoop ELIZA LLEWELLYN ’14 Web Managing Editor

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t’s a site that combines Victor Frankenstein with a hipster, refers to George Orwell “ROFL-ing” and suggests that Lady Macbeth try a little hydrogen peroxide for her damned spot.

Shmoop, an online learning resource that provides bulleted summaries and reference pages with a thorough dose of academic sass, has gained popularity with students, incorporating itself into the internet canon of Sparknotes, Gradesaver, and Bookrags.

“Who doesn’t want their English books to be joked about by a website that also teaches you so much?” Nathan Francis ’14 said.

From its name–which comes from the Yiddish saying, “move things forward”–to its format, the site, founded in 2005, is unique.

“It was created so that people can have fun learning,” Christina Park, Vice President of Marketing at Shmoop, said in a telephone interview. “It’s where you can go when you want to bang your head against your textbook.”

The site’s book summarizing bullet points are imbued with snarky voice. The unique format of the site appeals to students, including Francis, who used it as a resource while reading “Jane Eyre.”

“I went on Shmoop because Charlotte Bronte was killing me,” Francis said.

Marcel Massarani ’16 appreciated Shmoop’s compressed format. “Sparknotes is too long,” he said. “If you’re too lazy to read the book, you’re also too lazy to read Sparknotes.”

Despite Shmoop’s bulleted summaries, users noted the thoroughness of the site, which of-

ten includes more specifics than other sites, providing minutiae of conversations and direct quotes from books. “Shmoop has every single detail,” Julia Schorr ’16 said.

Some teachers felt that Shmoop’s analysis was actually superior to points made on Sparknotes. “Shmoop is a much better resource than Sparknotes, if it’s used properly,” English teacher Barbara Robbins said.

Shmoop is gaining users, growing at a rate of about 50 percent each year and with 7 million unique visitors per month. “Increasingly, kids are finding it,” English teacher Meghan Scheck said. “But Sparknotes is still the old standby.”

Scheck said she felt that Shmoop was the next step in an evolution. “In the 90s to 2000’s there was a shift from CliffsNotes to Sparknotes. CliffsNotes were dry and teachery and boring, and Sparknotes was a little different. Shmoop is like the next stage,” she said.

However, many students have either never heard of the site or are still steadfast Sparknotes users.

Some preferred the more linear organization of Sparknotes’ summary and analysis compared to Shmoop’s separation of plot and theme. “I feel like everything is in one place,” Emma Tangel ’16, who is loyal to Sparknotes, said.

Scheck said that she would use Sparknotes as a supplemental resource for a student who was having more trouble with a book academically, as the old staple has a more objective voice and can have longer summaries. She would use Shmoop as more of an interest hook. “Romeo and Juliet

might not sound so boring if it has snarky comments built in,” Scheck said.

Some, however, are not so hooked by Shmoop’s voice. “I was reading ‘The Odyssey’ and there was this awkward scene where they kissed. Shmoop was like ‘eww,’ and it wasn’t very mature,” Julia Ethier ’17 said. Ethier found the side comments “annoying.”

Although students may have a strong preference, some teachers feel that the two sites’ usage should be limited. “Both can be

InBrief abused,” Scheck said.

Robbins encouraged using in-class resources and discussion to persist through a tough reading. “Rather than turning online, trying to push through confusion and coming up with your own questions is preferable,” Robbins said.

“I’d much rather have students come in confused than come in and regurgitate information,” English teacher Kim Herzog added. “It’s important for them to learn how to persist through that.”

Sports Editor

Coffee, sunlight, and stress.

In moderation, all can have benefits. But can there be too much? For Staples students already stressed out, that’s the question.

Stress is very prevalent within the Staples community.

Math teacher Bill Walsh allows kids to reschedule if they have more than three major tests in one day. He said that at every test, out of a class of about twenty-five students, at least one or two students reschedule.

Walsh said three or more tests in a day is too much for stressed out students.

“The students can get too hyped up for the tests and do badly,” he said.

Nurse Libby Russ agreed with Walsh and said that easily

chances at “reach” schools may be higher later in the year.

“My application will be at its strongest during regular decision, since being able to show colleges first semester grades will benefit my application,” Katie Smith ’14 said.

While early decision may seem a boon only for students, there are perks for colleges offering the option as well. In a New

Nov. 2

The test will begin at 7:30 a.m. and run until 11:30 a.m. Staples High School, Danbury High School, Fairfield-Warde and Greenwich High School are all test sites.

Students will have the day off as teachers will be at Staples High School attending meetings all day.

The next staff development day is Friday Jan. 17th.

Special Schedule Nov. 6

Due to an emergency evacuation drill from 8:00 a.m. to 8:27 a.m. homeroom will begin the day where studnets will watch a video and then proceed to Bedford Middle School.

GRAPHIC BY AMY PERLBERG ’15

According to helpguide.org, too much stress can lead to depression. A study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showed that people who went through stressful ordeals were more likely to suffer from

colds.

Stress has also caused elusive sleep patterns for both Samuel Adelmann ’14 and Alexa Davis ’15.

“My breaking point was when I was so stressed out that I came home knowing I had loads of homework to do but instead crashed in my bed and slept for three hours,” Davis said. She then stayed up all night finishing her work.

However, Adelmann said, stress isn’t always negative.

“It’s good to a certain extent because it gets me going,” he said. He explained that stress once resulted in an “A” on his math test because he was motivated to work hard.

“Each person has to understand what is good for them and at what point stress becomes a detriment,” he said.

Students apply Early Decision Continued from page 1 found the perfect school for me, and after I got in, I got to relax and enjoy the second half of senior year instead of just the last quarter” Sam Cohen ’14, now attending Emory University, said.

But some current Staples students are less certain about which school is right for them or may want to compare financial aid offers made by different schools. Others figure their

SAT Testing

Nov. 5

PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY JULIA ETHIER ‘17

50 to 60 percent of kids limp to the nurse’s office for stress.

Russ explained that students often complain of a stomachache or exhaustion, but stress is the actual culprit. “Stress is a very real feeling,” she said.

Local Headlines

Staff Development Day

Stress gets the best of Staples CLAUDIA CHEN ’16

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York Times article published on their blog “The Choice,” Robert Massa, an administrator at Lafayette College, wrote, “Unquestionably, colleges benefit from early decision. The more students it admits early, the closer that college can come to hitting its enrollment targets during the regular round.”

Washenko emphasizes to students the importance of re-

membering that selecting a method of admission is just the first part of a long process, with a successful end result by no means guaranteed. “College admissions are so unpredictable that you don’t know what’s going to happen. You try to do the best in school, do well on your test scores, and try to be a normal teenager, and hope for the best,” he said.

Staples Players Produces “Thoroughly Modern Millie” Nov. 15, 16, 22, 23 at 7:30 p.m Nov. 17 and 23 at 2:00 p.m Staples Players are putting on “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” a musical that tells the story of a smalltown girl who goes to New York City to marry for money, at the Staples High School auditorium.

Shortened Day, Thanksgiving Recess Nov. 27

Teachers and students will get out at 11:40 a.m. and will be off until Monday, Dec. 2nd.

Alumni/Senior College Panel Nov. 27 In the auditorium, students will have the opportunity to listen to former Staples students describe their experiences at their respective college. This will take place at 11:00a.m to 12:00p.m.

For continual updates check www.inklingsnews.com

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Some go beyond school for college counseling HANNAH FOLEY ’14 Editor-in-Chief

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ȃEnglish teacher Heather Colletti-Houde

uring first semester, seniors take on a part-time job—applying to colleges. They must balance academics, extracurriculars and the added pressure of getting accepted into one of the schools on their Naviance list.

Many turn to college counselors, who can assist with essays and the Common Application.

Ian Grimes ’14, who meets with a counselor at Freudigman and Billings, an education solutions group, said he has received helpful information.

“They set up a good plan to get you where you want to go,” he said. In addition, they helped Grimes complete his essays by September.

“It’s really helpful to have a schedule—it motivated me to start earlier in the summer,” he said.

Freudigman and Billings and Andover Prep did not respond to phone calls regarding the role they play in the college process.

Another Freudigman and Billings client, Valerie Fitton ’14, said she found her counselor’s approach to her essay to be one of the biggest advantages of receiving help.

“You start with freewriting about topics of interest,” she said. “You fit the question to the freewrite instead of the other way around. It’s kind of a backwards approach.”

Grimes said his 15 pages-worth of freewrites yielded his main essay.

“My tutor said one of my ideas was original and there was some sort of message that could be brought out of it,” he said.

Tommy Reinhardt ’14 and Justin Donlon ’14 cited flexible deadlines as one reason they chose to forgo a private counselor. Donlon said he utilizes his school guidance counselor instead.

“It’s crazy when you hear about kids whose parents spend thousands of dollars on specialized college services,” Donlon

said.

Reinhardt said he refers to his English teachers whenever he has questions or wants his essays reviewed.

Heather Colletti-Houde, a member of the English department, said many students have asked her to read their essays, including those with tutors.

“I generally start off by asking if they’re working with someone else,” she said. “I don’t want to confuse them with my comments and waste their time when they’re being given adequate feedback by someone else.”

James D’Amico, the head of the social studies department, said he does not see a problem with students receiving advice from counselors, but raised concerns about when counselors influence a student’s course selections, aimed at improving a student’s chances at getting into a specific college.

D’Amico said there has been an explosion in registration for classes such as AP Government and Politics, which went from having one or two sections a few years ago to 10 sections this school year.

Students in Junior State of America, a political activism group D’Amico advises, have raised concerns about this obsession with AP courses.

“Some students fear it’s turning into a system of have and have nots,” he said. “They felt students were taking any course they wanted if they could afford a tutor for that class. I just hope kids are getting good advice from their counselors. We want to fill our classes with students who want to be there.”

Colletti-Houde said she understands the appeal of having a counselor, especially for parents who are going through the college process for the first time, but said they can only do so much.

“You could put a ribbon on and dress up cubic zirconia in the most beautiful packaging, but it still isn’t a diamond,” she said. “You could have the best college counselor in the world, but if you’re not ready to go to Harvard, you’re not going to Harvard.”

Board of Education debates future of Westport Schools MEGAN ROOT ’15 Staff Writer

On Nov. 5, 2013, Westport voters will grant four citizens a spot on the Board of Education (BOE) and the responsibility of managing one of the town’s most valuable resources: the school system.

This is a tumultuous time for schools, as standardized testing and quantifiable achievement enter educational ppolicyy in Con necticut. seven The members of the BOE must decide how such reforms affect Westp o r t ’s schools.

PHOTOS BY JULIA ETHIER ‘17

Four of the seven spots are open, and candidates include three Republicans and two Democrats.

BOE Chairwoman Elaine Whitney said the Board is not split along partisan lines; instead members advocate for student welfare.

Whitney said the BOE focuses on “ensuring that we reach every child in the school system and address their needs.”

This involves taking state-mandated reforms and fitting them to Staples. Students and staff have already seen the effects of the new teacher evaluation system, which Whitney defined as the biggest state-driven reform Westport will see this year. The system encompasses changes, including a new standardized test.

This new test, the Smarter Balanced Assessment, comes from the Common Core, an educational reform that provides certain criteria to help shape curriculum and testing. Connecticut adopted the Core for implementation in the 2013-14 school year.

Some worry that the Core will conflict with Westport’s 2025 initiative, which is centered on 21st century skills like collaboration and problem solving. Michael McGovern, BOE Vice Chair, said that reconciling these two approaches is currently a main concern.

“Our challenge now is really to continue to have a uniquely Westport curriculum while still achieving the objectives of the Common Core,” McGovern said. He is optimistic and doesn’t believe the two are mutually exclusive.

As Westport continues to look to improve its instruction, another question has come up: What place do AP courses have in Staples’ future? ng to McGovern said the Board is trying decide how these courses fit with Westport’s efforts to build 21st century skills nt in and maintain a healthy environment school. mber “One thing you have to remember with AP courses is the curriculum is very prescribed,” McGovern said. There is a possibility the AP curriculum will bee replaced with Westport’s own version of a college-level course. leges According to McGovern, colleges ores, don’t look specifically for AP scores, orous just that students take the most rigorous om to courses offered, so the school has room manuever.

“We need to think about whetherr the rvdesign of our curriculum is really servst ing the needs of the students the best that we can,” McGovern said.

Both Whitney and McGovern noted that “needs” go beyond aca-

demic to include students’ mental health.

“We have to make sure students can really focus on emotional well-being as well as academic achievement,” McGovern said.

He emphasized that any changes to AP courses will take a long time and that the Board would need the community’s support before making changes.

McGovern feels that these kinds of discussions are at the core of the Board’s purpose, and essentially, a school’s.

“How we teach and what we teach. That’s what we are all about,” McGovern said.

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PHOTO BY MINAHIL SALAM ’16

student and thinks that although taking a day off in the spring is acceptable, it’s not in the fall. “It’s the reward for surviving the big, big stress, which you haven’t survived yet.”

Principal John Dodig agrees with Scheck but mentions another angle of the senior skip day dilemma: senior internships.

“One of the reasons we put senior internships in place was to give them an opportunity to get out of school,” Dodig said.

“We didn’t have to do that.” “[Years ago] seniors were here through the whole school year, and there was one skip day,” science teacher Michael Lazaroff said. “Now, we have internships where seniors are gone for five weeks or more. To add another skip day to that is rather arrogant.”

There are also fewer allowed absences for seniors who wish to participate in internships, so two unexcused absences could endanger a student’s ability to participate.

Some seniors view this as unfair, feeling that teachers should be more lenient. “I believe the teachers should respect senior skip day, and I also think there should be no absence recorded,” Tim Schroeder ’14 EMPTY CLASSROOMS Some, like English teacher Kristin Schulz, teach empty classrooms twice a year due to Staples’ two senior skip days. said.

Of course, all teachers have different 2,340 days of school. College admissions the past four years and paid our dues.”

ELLIE GAVIN ’14 Many seniors agree with Polin, feel- policies on the issue, but the over arching aside, graduating high school is a huge Staff Writer accomplishment. Staples’ seniors like to ing that they have earned the time off. feeling can be summed up by Scheck. “I’m t has been a Staples’ tradition for lon- celebrate that accomplishment with one “We’ve all dedicated our lives for the past happy to honor one senior skip day; I will ger than anyone can remember. Some day where they can forget their obliga- three years to school, and I think the se- not honor two.”

Most teachers simply want their stuteachers will even confess to having tions and blow off school together. niors deserve a day off,” Lea Sellon ’14 dents, who are about to go off into the participated back in their day. On a beausaid.

Well, it used to be only one day. tiful spring day, when the sun is out and According to various staff members, Unsurprisingly, this doesn’t sit as world of college and adult jobs, to understand the meaning of actions and consethe stress level is down, the temptation to the last four or five years have seen a trend well with most teachers. switch out textbooks for beach towels is towards seniors taking more time off, typ“I am a big fan of senior skip day. quences.

“The most important thing we can almost irresistible. And so senior skip day ically one skip day in the fall and another Singular noun,” English teacher Meghan was born. in the spring.

Scheck said. “You’ve earned it, but you’ve teach our students is personal responsibility,” Lazaroff said. “People should be able Counting the blissful kindergarten “I think we should take two or three, only earned one.” days, seniors have been in school for al- especially during second semester,” Zac Scheck confesses that she too partici- to [skip], but they need to be willing to most thirteen years. That’s some odd Polin ’14 said. “We have worked hard for pated in senior skip day as a high school take the consequence.”

Senior skip day goes plural

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GRAPHIC AND PHOTO BY RACHEL LABARRE ’14

Adults report drinking and driving more than teens Continued from page 1 drivers on the roads in Westport, according to the results of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in 2010 only 5.8 percent of 16-17-year-olds reported driving under the influence of alcohol in the past year.

At the same time, 13.4 percent of persons of ages 40-44, 11.8 percent of people ages 45-49 and 10.5 percent of ages 50-55 reported doing so, all nearly double that of their teenage counterparts.

Some attribute this difference to the result of generations of progress. Westport students have been thoroughly educated about drunk driving by the time they get their licenses. A few generations back this

was not the case. Only in the 1960s did research emerge demonstrating the correlation between blood alcohol level and reckless driving, which spearheaded national policy and traffic laws that today seem fundamental.

Even at Staples, Saferides was not started until the 2008-2009 school year, and the Teen Awareness Group (TAG) is currently in its eleventh year.

“You guys have had a better education in the importance of [driving responsibly],” head of SafeRides at Staples, Julie Mombello said.

Daisy Laska ’16, a member of TAG, agreed that students are more educated than their parents were, and thus less likely to drink and drive. “[They] think it’s okay to go out to

dinner, have a couple drinks, and drive home,” she said.

One problem, however, is that this scenario is not inherently unlawful.

For those under the age of 21, the legal blood alcohol limit for driving is .02, which would be the equivalent of one drink.

However, for those who can legally drink, the limit is raised to .08, which is high enough that it may not be exceeded even after multiple drinks. Essentially, drinking and driving is illegal for teenagers, but only drunk driving is illegal for adults.

SafeRides executive Will Haskell ’14 said that this ambiguity explains why some adults drink and drive.

“For students, too drunk to drive is

defined as having had any alcohol that night,” Haskell said. “It is a clear lines for students. You’ve either had a drink, or you haven’t. That line is less clear with adults.”

Haskell also said that pride might factor into the equation. While in general students are unembarrassed about admitting that they are too drunk to drive, adults may be concerned with the implications of admitting that they shouldn’t get behind the wheel.

Mombello agrees, saying she wishes her generation was more accepting of the need for a designated driver.

“I think that adults in general do not like to admit that they’ve made the mistake of having too much to drink,” Mombello said. “Kids are usually much more willing to admit they need help.”

6Opinions

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

College Counseling Means War

DRAWING BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

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idn’t your mom ever tell you it’s not polite to discuss college counseling at the table? And yet how many times has the phrase “F & B” been uttered in the halls in the past 24 hours?

We’ve lost count.

Inklings EDITORIAL

In actuality, people do more than uttering where college counseling is concerned.

They rant, battle and fume.

There is an endless debate about whether it is right to get private outside help for the college application process.

The problem with this discussion is that it has no logical resolution. College counselors will likely always exist in Westport, but at the

same time it is unlikely that everyone will have one.

The disagreement may always be present, but it should not be cause for war.

It isn’t hard to understand why people get so passionate.

This issue involves topics that are inherently touchy–college and money. And maybe the future.

Most people wouldn’t disclose their parents’ income, and most wouldn’t choose to disclose where they are applying Early Decision, but for some reason people talk freely about college counseling, even though it, in a way, deals with one and sometimes deals with both.

This constant conversation has created a dangerous them versus us dichotomy.

On one side, there are those who do not have college counselors.The college application process is long and

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sometimes complicated. It’s not hard to see why a college counselor, paid specifically to help you get into your dream school, might seem like an unfair advantage.

Maybe people feel jealous. Or they’re conscious they have less. Or that they feel excluded. None of this is helped by the often careless flaunting sometimes characteristic of those with counselors.

There are also those who do not want a counselor at all.

For these people, it is a more ethical concern. We’ve all heard the rumors of people who don’t write their essays or even touch their Common App. To some, this might be called–and has been called– “morally bankrupt.”

To someone who has a college counselor, being described as “morally bankrupt” might not sit well, es-

The paper is a member of the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and the National Scholastic Press Association and supports the Student Press Law Center.

Editors-in-Chief Katie Cion Hannah Foley Managing Editors Rachel Labarre Will McDonald Web Managing Editors Ryder Chasin Eliza Llewelyn Breaking News Managing Editors Sophie DeBrujin Aaron Hendel Social Media Editor Simon Stracher Graphics Coordinato Nate Rosen

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pecially if these rumors are not true. When students criticize college counseling, they might not mean to criticize their peers, but that distinction is lost on many.

When people say “college counseling gives an unfair advantage to the rich,” people hear “you’re spoiled.” When people say college counselors write students’ essays for them, people hear, “did you earn your acceptance?”

At the same time, when people say, “I’m going to my college counselor,” people hear, “I can afford this advantage.” And when people say, “My college counselor is practically writing my essay for me,” people hear, “My college counselor is practically writing my essay for me.”

It’s too casual. It’s so a part of daily life that people forget the implications of what they’re saying. They

Sports Editors Claudia Chen Gabrielle Feinsmith Deanna Hartog Zach McCarthy Web News Editors Ben Goldschlager Jessica Gross Web Opinions Editors Abbey Fernandez Eliza Yass Web Features Editors Jimmy Ray Stagg Caroline Rossi Web Arts & Entertainment Editors Kaila Finn Nicole DeBlasi Web Sports Editors Bobby Jacowleff Kelsey Shockey

forget that not everyone who goes to a college counselor has their essays handed to them. They forget that there are people who would like a college counselor but can’t afford it. They forget that they only know their own situation.

They don’t realize that when you’re talking about college counseling, anything you say can and will be taken the wrong way.

The college process is extremely stressful for everyone involved. We’re trying to figure out our futures, and it probably is and will be one of the most important things we do in our academic careers.

But this is the very reason that friends and classmates should be a support system for students to rely on. Instead we find ourselves in the midst of a civil war. And this is a battle that’s not worth fighting.

Business Manager Elizabeth Camche Creative Director Olivia Crosby Video Editor Grace Kosner Advisers Mary Elizabeth Fulco Rebecca Marsick Julia McNamee Lauren Francese 70 North Ave. Westport, CT 06880 Phone: (203) 341–1994 Inklingsnews@gmail.com Decisions of Inklings are made without regard to race, color, age, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, marital status, disability or any other discriminating basis prohibited by local, state, or federal law.

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every day count.

Or maybe it’s because of the pressure from our parents. If parents work during the day, which many do, perhaps they don’t feel comfortable leaving an ill child alone at home. But if you’re sick enough that they don’t want to leave you unattended, and we’re all old enough that being an unaccompanied minor in your own home for a few hours should not be a problem, then should you really be at school?

Then there’s the stereotypical perfectionist student. I must admit, I’m guilty as charged.

There’s no feeling worse for me then coming back to school after spending time recuperating and feeling like you’ve entered an alternate universe. Schoology and email, which allow me to communicate with my teachers, are my lifeline when stranded on the island of sickness. Falling behind, or failure, is simply not an option.

We’re all under the illusion that there will be some heinous consequence for neglecting school.

What, are we going to be locked in the secret dungeon in the basement? Expelled and sent to juvenile detention?

Honestly, we’re in high school. We’re not world class surgeons or CEOs of major companies. We’re students. Sometimes, we just need those breaks from school, and we don’t appreciate the guilt trip associated with it.

While you’re at it, bulk up on hand sanitizer and vitamin A while you still can.

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DEANNA HARTOG ’16

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As a sophomore at Staples, I lead a pretty busy life. I’ve got places to be and things to do.

I’ve got a plate as full as the one at my first all-you-can-eat buffet. I am always told that my eyes are bigger than my stomach.

Most of the time I feel like a bug in a human’s world, afraid I’ll be crushed by the seniors that resemble mythical giants. But somehow, I divert these creatures and survive. Then, the horrific inevitable happens.

My immune system fails me.

When faced with this catastrophe, I struggle with an internal question. No, not “to be or not to be?” English class hasn’t brainwashed me that much, yet.

The question is, do I do the noble thing and stay quarantined in an effort to prevent contamination, or cover up my red-as-Rudolph nose with as much concealer as possible and drag myself to school?

Let’s be real. No one wants the sick kid in his or her class, hacking up a storm, constantly getting up to use a tissue that frankly, feels like it was the love baby of a cardboard box and sandpaper.

Everyone would just be better off if we, the sick, swaddled ourselves in bed like newborn babies and slept. But then again, while hibernating in our own little cocoons, we are missing out.

When we’re feeling so crummy that pulling a binder out of our backpacks takes too much effort, why do we feel the obligation to come to school?

Maybe it’s because we’re constantly being reminded on a daily basis that we only have between one to four years, depending on the grade, before college. And although that may not seem like it’s even in this lifetime, it goes quicker than expected. We know that we need to make every test, every project, a n d

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Let’s not blow this out of proportion JENNA MCNICHOLAS ’15 Staff Writer

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he sound of me blowing my nose has been mistaken for a couple of miscellaneous sounds. One notable one is a honking car or the sound of a trumpet.

This is all very upsetting to hear. I don’t want to be the cause of other peoples’ lapse in ability to differentiate sounds.

My nose blowing wakes my family up in the morning and keeps my family awake at night.

It has even been deemed a “disruption to the class” by one of my teachers freshman year.

During an allergy season, my nose blowing got so out of hand I was told I had to step out of the classroom whenever I needed to blow my nose.

My teacher thought she was saving me from the embarrassment of having to blow my nose in front of what seemed to be a very anti-nose-blowing class with their demeaning glares, when instead, she was dooming me to an even worse fate.

Once outside the classroom, I was subjected to the judgmental stares of the hallway-wanderers.

It seemed as though there was some sort of mandated bathroom break every time I was sent into the hallway because students poured out of their classrooms.

There I was, standing in the hallway. Alone. Tissue on nose.

I think these people thought my tissue was covering my eyes, and not my nose, because they openly gawked at me as if I couldn’t see them.

When looking back and reflecting on my career as a noseblower, it is hard to ignore the repercussions. It has not only affected the relationship I have with my teachers, but it has also affected the relationship I have with my classmates, who look at me contemptuously for having seasonal allergies.

How can something that brings so much pleasure and clarity to my nasal passageway affect my academic life and reputation so negatively?

We have to understand something here: I cannot

change the way my air flow gets obstructed by the fluids congesting my naval septum.

All I ask here is next time you hear or see someone blowing their nose, pay them the respect they

deserve.

I’d also like a little respect here too, and if you can’t respect the fact that I have irregular amounts of nasal mucus in my nose, you at least have to respect the fact that

I’ve written an article about it that the whole school, and more, will read.

But I’m not complaining.

Because hey, it’s a hard snot life.

PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY OLIVIA LEV ’15 AND NATE ROSEN ’14

8 Opinions Condiments are my worst nightmare Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

JANE LEVY ’16 Staff Writer

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hat do you put on your burger? I'm sure you like ketchup, mustard, or relish. How about your bagel?

Cream cheese, obviously. Toast?

Butter and jam. Sandwich? You clearly want mayonnaise or some spicy mustard.

To you, they enhance the flavor.

To me, they turn a perfectly good meal into a toxic waste.

Yes, everyone, I have a phobia of condiments. There could be nothing more nauseating than having to consume any of them. I don't care if they're on the corner

of the plate, just keep them away from me.

It may seem silly or irrational being afraid of condiments, but behind most food phobias is an explanative story, mine of which is epic.

I was nine. My family went to have lunch at a delicatessen on a Sunday afternoon. We were all enjoying our sandwiches, mine, bread with turkey. But at the table next to us, a kid had an assortment of meats and cheeses, ranging from roast beef, ham, turkey, swiss, american and muenster, stacked high on his plate. Next to his food lay a second plate on which he squirted a full bottle of ketchup at least an inch thick.

The white ceramic of the plate was drowned in a goopy, blood-like concoction. The revolting smell traveled over to my table, and I immediately felt my stomach drop. I tried to ignore it and avert my eyes, I really did.

Tragically, I couldn't help but stare in horror as he took a slimy piece of ham with his hands, soaked it in the plate of ketchup, and shoved it right in his mouth. Ketchup dripped down his fingers and out the corner of his mouth.

He swallowed and let out a satisfied sigh, then

dunked another piece of ham in the ketchup.

I was 10. It was breakfast at camp, and my friend got a bagel.

She had four little containers of cream cheese and she spread two on each half of her bagel, the cream cheese so thick and so viscous. I saw her coming to sit next to me and knew there was no escape. She had braces at the time and as she devoured her bagel, caked in her brackets formed a thick, chunky layer of cream cheese. Even after breakfast, she reeked of it. But wait, it gets worse. When she saw that she had cream cheese left over, she took her finger and spooned it directly into her mouth.

Thus, my fear was born. My family and friends think it’s hilarious to make fun of me for it.

On the weekends if I sleep too late, my little brother takes the cream cheese into my room and holds the container open right in front of my face so I have no choice but to inhale it. I wish I was kidding.

As absurd as it seems, I genuinely am afraid. I'd swim with sharks before I'd let those condiments hit my taste buds. It bothers me tremendously when people try to force them on me or make fun of me for my fear, so please, show some respect when someone reveals their phobia.

No person I've ever met feels this same fear, and there are often many things I stand alone on. If you want to hear more about me against the majority, check out my blog every other Friday for a new entry on the web version of Inklings.

Students fight in the real hunger games JUSTINE SELIGSON ’15 Twitter Coordinator

I never chose to join the wrestling team. I was forced onto it. My place of competition is not the traditional ring, but the cafeteria. That makes my wrestling only more painful.

After 43 minutes of warming up my appetite through deep analysis of my French textbook, I’m famished. But I can’t automatically satisfy my hunger. I must win this fight for that beloved chicken pesto.

I shove. I kick.

There are probably many people in this school who will never talk to me again because of my belligerence in the wrestling ring. Then again, I’m not the only instigator.

I get shoved. I get kicked.

Fortunately, I am the one to push through those freshmen boys. Soon, I’m holding my newly-claimed lunch like a trophy.

“We are the Champions” plays in my head.

However, my joy is rudely

interrupted. I still must pass one more test before I get the gold medal. The referee sassily says that I’m too low in my account for the prize. She snatches my water and replaces it with an apple. I’m all about being nutritious, especially with my starwrestling career. But countless studies show that water is more important in survival than any food. It’s “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” not an apple per meal.

Upon leaving the ring, sweating and even bleeding a bit, I head towards the nearest trashcan to chuck the apple. Inside the can is a whole population of similarly abandoned fruits. Apples provide a tremendous amount of energy. These poor fruits should therefore not be used as punishment for negativity in a lunch account. The refs should save them for students who really want apples.

Then all those kids choosing to eat apples will have enough energy to become champion wrestlers like me.

DRAWING BY AMY PERELBERG ’15

GRAPHIC BY CLAUDIA LANDOWNE ’15

Ten years later High school students miss the days of trick-or-treating ELIZA YASS ’14 Web Opinions Editor

Halloween was once a magical holiday for me. The days prior to Halloween were spent going through racks of colorful polyester costumes, searching for the most unique one that my classmates would envy. Behind me would be my p o o r mot h -

e r t r ying h e r b e s t t o ke e p u p w i th me running down the aisles, gathering every potential costume I saw. Walking into my school in my costume was like walking into a fairytale world.

All the students were clad in every kind of costume, and even the teachers dressed up, giving the day a unique aura of excitement.

PHOTOS AND PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY JULIA KAPLOWITZ ’16

We walked around Coleytown Elementary School in a Halloween “parade,” all the little eyes struggling to spot friends in the crowd.

When night came, my neighborhood transformed from familiar and simple to spooky and mysterious. I have vivid memories of being pulled down my street in a red wooden, Radio Flyer wagon, the sun just beginning to set, my itchy bride costume sliding off of my shoulder. Close friends and their parents would come parade through my little neighborhood , and we’d eagerly hit about ten houses before all the little kids got too tired. Being a heavier child, I always felt extremely proud of my candy assortment collected throughout the night.

The day following Halloween at school was a day of chatter about the night before, the spooky stories helping to preserve the mystical feeling ev-

erybody had.

Even then, at just four or five years old, Halloween was a night I looked forward to (and something that brightened my postbirthday depression).

It would be an enormous understatement to say I miss the old days.

Trick or treating has been replaced by a Halloween party filled with boisterous teenagers dressed in makeshift costumes.

All magic is lost in the stress of finding a house for a party and finding an outfit that looks cute and hints Halloween costume, without scaring anybody away.

I don’t even get candy.

My parents don’t buy it because no trick or treaters have the energy to run up my long driveway.

Depressing, I know.

The day after Halloween night isn’t even fun. Everybody is exhausted from the night before and most likely disappointed with the outcome of his or her costume and/or party. Thankfully, it has become a tradition for seniors to skip the day after Halloween, but my day will probably be spent doing make-up work.

Candy-less.

Halloween doesn’t have to be this unpleasant.

Some students, like Josh Popkin ’14, have more positive attitudes.

Pokin is keeping his costume this year a secret, but everybody can learn a little bit from his Halloween spirit.

“It’s the best holiday. Better than Thanksgiving. Better than Christmas. Better than my birthday. I love it,” Popkin said.

Even Weston is known to go all out for its Halloween festivities. The spirit of their students brings the holiday more excitement than it seems to elicit at Staples.

“A lot of people dress up for school in group costumes and almost everyone goes trick or treating on the night of Halloween.

Then, the older kids have a combined party normally. Halloween gets a lot of hype,” Weston High School student Bari Blitzer ’14, said.

Lets hope Staples can acquire this enthusiastic attitude, go trick-or-treating and make Halloween what is should be: spooky and fun.

Opinions

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

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Slumming in school is an art CADENCE NEENAN ’15 News Editor

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hat I wear to school is all about how much I care.

Freshman year, for some reason, I cared a lot. I flounced around trying to look adorable in colorful skirts; I spent valuable sleeping time straightening my hair almost every morning; I reserved the ever-blasphemous sweatpants for midterms and weekends. Oh, the glory of freshman year.

Sophomore year, things began to change. My jeans became my best friends. Days that I spent time wrestling my hair into presentability became a minority. Days that I lazed into sweats popped up more often.

Then came junior year. If I’m wearing a skirt, it’s for either a wedding or a funeral. If my hair is straightened, it’s probably picture day. Sweatpants are a default. If I cared any less, I would probably be wearing a monk’s robe. Or perhaps a snuggie. (Is there really a difference?)

Every day, I sit in bed waiting for some light to streak the miserably dark sky, my eyes generally refusing to open, my dad shouting at me about how late I am and I ponder an eternal question.

“To slum, or not to slum?”

Slum: (verb) to rock a pair of sweats to school, whether it be sweatpants, yoga pants, a sweatshirt or the throwback-to-seventh-grade Juicy Couture hoodie.

(No, really, the little “J” charm does make it better.)

I know the rule is “dress for success,” but let’s be real here – I’m eons more successful if I can lounge in my chair during Physics than if all I can do is check to make sure my skirt isn’t caught in my backpack. (It has happened to the best of us.)

If I’m in my sweats, I might as well be at home. There is no better feeling than when you change into your homework clothes at the end of the day. That feeling during school? There’s a reason I’m always wearing sweatpants on the days I have an AP Gov test.

However, there is one problem. A lot of the time, if I’m slumming, it means I genuinely didn’t have the energy to shimmy my skinny jeans on that morning.

The combination of this overpowering exhaustion and my perfect UGG slippers (I swear I’m walking on clouds) can produce some troubling results.

But I have come to one final conclusion that I tend to fall back on… nearly every morning. The major pro of slumming it: being comfortable in school is probably the best feeling in the world.

GRAPHIC BY AUDREY SEO ’16

They’re fit enough to throw a fit PHOTOS BY RACHEL MORRISON ’16 AND CLAIRE QUIGLEY ’14

All hail Shmoop CONNOR HARDY ’14 Staff Writer

A REAL WORKOUT Student athletes exercise Monday night, after a long day of school, including gym class.

KACEY HERTAN ’16 Staff Writer

Fellow athletes, can you remember the last time you were sore from gym? Or how about the last time you were so tired after gym class you could barely move?

Yeah, me neither.

However, at gymnastics practice, I train until the sweat slides down my neck, and my face turns so red it radiates heat.

When I get home, every muscle in my body begs me to lie down.

But I can’t. The awaiting piles of homework pull me to my desk for a long night of studying.

Athletes who play school sports, like me, spend at least

two hours every day after school training. That’s two hours fewer to do our homework and two hours later that we’re forced to stay up.

Instead of gym, athletes who play a school sport or spend the same amount of time at sports practice outside school, should get to take a study hall or free period to make up for the time spent training after school. Montclair Public High School in New Jersey, as well as several other schools across the country already have a policy where athletes can opt-out of gym.

Let’s be honest, those of us who play sports are undoubtedly physically fit, which is the goal of

gym class in the first place. The intensity of a two hour gymnastics practice where I am constantly flipping on the floor, muscling through a bar routine or sprinting towards a vault cannot even be compared to lazily flopping my arm once a minute to absent mindedly tap a birdy two feet in the air and over the net during a riveting game of gym class badminton.

As much as I love modeling my Staples High Fitness T-Shirt, I don’t find my health benefitting from gym. I’d much rather have the time to do my homework and go to bed at a reasonable hour than burn a few calories in kickball.

Year after year, Staples students are assigned books that never get read. They stay buried in your backpack, collect dust on your bedside table or age next to your abacus until the day you need to return the ancient reading device.

Many of the assigned books are regarded as classics and must-reads. The books shaped society, revolutionized the literary community and have been studied for decades. It’s time that era ended. There’s no need to read those books anymore.

A simple trip to either Sparknotes or Shmoop easily takes care of any reading you may have been assigned. I personally have never read an entire book for a high school English course, nor do I plan to. I apologize to all my past and current teachers who are just hearing this now, but I feel as if they must have known all along from any pop quizzes they may have sprung on me.

The moment you’re handed that pop quiz is unlike any other.

You didn’t know it was coming.

No one is sitting near you to ask what happened in the chapter.

You’re simply doomed. Sadly there’s no way around this.

Unlike pop quizzes, papers are one of the easier assignments one can receive using the shmoop strategy. Some may say that it would be impossible to write a well developed paper without reading the book, but they’re simply incorrect. The ability to write a paper on a book you haven’t read is a true form of art.

Taking two or three pages of a book you attempted to read and turning them into a full length paper should be an Olympic sport, a Pulitzer Prize category and a viable career option. The ability to accomplish such a task is a necessity if you want to pass English while keeping your eyes off the crumpled pages of a school book and glued to the glorious moving pictures on the television screen.

GRAPHIC BY MEGAN ROOT ’15

10Features

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

Cody Johnson is our Einstein

EMIL MILY LY WO OLFE LFE LF F ’15 Staff S St taf aff Writ Writer ter

AMINA ABDUL-KAREEM ’15 Staff Writer

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“The inaugural [Proofathon] competition is on October 26 and 27. And it’s already pretty famous in the math world,” Johnson said.

“He’s very witty. He thinks really quickly and is able to come up with something funny with good timing,” Nick Massoud ’15 said.

Johnson has had a head start on college since his sophomore year when he took Discrete Mathematics at Fairfield University. This year he is taking Differential Equations at Norwalk Community College. Johnson plans to be either a businessman, own a company or create his own invention. If all fails, Johnson’s back-up plan is to work at Google as a computer scientist or work for the National Security Agency.

“I just really aspire to go to MIT, and I know that top-notch grades are essential in this process. I simply won’t allow myself to get bad grades,” said Johnson. “I recognize that getting in is a challenge, and challenging myself is what drives me to be who I am.”

Along with his other talents, Johnson played guitar for the punk band “The Lazy Rivers.” He is now writing a fusion rock solo album called “Class of the Class,” based on his observations of society and punk bands he has seen in concert.

Johnson’s work ethic comes down to, “Competition, motivation, and perfectionism. It’s enabled me to become good at many of my talents,” he said.

PHOTO BY JUSTINE SELIGSON ’15 GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR’ 16

THE NEW EINSTEIN: In 1951, Albert Einstein posed for a photo with his tongue out because he supposedly got tired of smiling for photos. Here, Johnson mimicks that photo.

Wikipedia is the (not so) wicked witch of the web EMILY WOLFE ’15 Staff Writer

Whether you’re looking for an explanation of political efficacy or an overview of “The Great Gatsby,” one website is almost always the top choice.

Wikipedia.

You try to resist the urge to click on that glorious blue link just below the search box, even though it has the exact information, word for word, that you are looking for.

Despite its questionable reputation, Wikipedia is not the wicked witch of the web. According to Staples teachers and staff, it’s not bad at all-- if its powers are used correctly.

“Wikipedia has a tremendous amount of information,” Staples librarian Robin Stiles said. “So it’s a great jumping off point for research.”

Stiles explained that Wikipedia is constantly checked and updated by experts in various fields, and that she has personally never seen or heard of anyone receiving false information from the site.

Dustyn Levenson ’14 agreed that while Wikipedia is not completely reliable, it has gotten much better in recent years.

“I remember when I was younge,r I used to always go on Wikipedia and type in random messages to my little sister under the defi nition of inquiry,” Levenson said, “but nowadays, that would never fly because the content posted is a lot more censored.”

Social studies department head James D’Amico said that it would be simply unrealistic to forbid students from looking at Wikipedia for information.

“Students would use it anyway,” D’Amico said. “It’s a great resource for getting up to speed on a specific topic, but for research, students need to go to the root source.”

Shannon Cardoza ’15 said that she understands why some teachers would discourage students from using Wikipedia, but its overviews are just too convenient to pass up.

GRAPHIC BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

rom playing competitive Yu-Gi-Oh in fi rst grade, to completing AP Calculus AB in one weekend as a freshmen, battling to be on top has always been a part of the nature of Cody Johnson ’15.

He helped Einstein’s nephew research HIV and seized the position as president of the math team.

He has completed five APs, is currently taking 13 and plans to take eight next year so that he will graduate next year with a total of 26 AP classes.

A typical Wednesday morning for Johnson begins at 7:30 a.m. when he learns about the partial pressures of gases in AP Chem. He ends the day learning about elasticity in AP Economics. Johnson immediately starts his homework after school. After that, Johnson does math.

He is currently training for the Worldwide Online Olympiad Training (WOOT), which means he is learning how to solve linear recurrence relations. At 9:30 he goes to sleep.

“It’s a pretty fun day,” Johnson said.

Recently, Johnson and several people from around the world created “Proofathon:” a proof-based math contest.

“I don’t think Wikipedia is a bad source, it’s pretty helpful for me,” Cardoza said. “It gives me all the basic info I need right away.”

But regardless of how many experts check it and how difficult it is to stumble upon a piece of false information, Wikipedia still has a reputation for unreliability.

“Some people don’t like the idea of crowdsourcing,” D’Amico said.

“They think it’s all crazy people. But that’s just not the reality of it.”

D’Amico explained that all sources have bias in them, and Wikipedia is just as accurate as many other nonprimary sources.

Despite the fact that technically anyone can edit it, the image that some people have in their minds of evil Wikipedia hackers plotting to provide false information to world-is just not real.

But that is not to say that Wikipedia is always completely correct.

According to physics teacher Sarah Gifford, cross referencing information is crucial for all types of research. While Gifford is no stranger to the side of Wikipedia that explains the phases of planetary nebulae, she values the importance of questioning the credibility of any resource.

“I think a lot of students take Wikipedia as absolutely factual, which is a problem,” Gifford said. “It would be like a little kid picking up a leaf and saying that they have found what all leaves look like.”

D’Amico said that forbidding students from using Wikipedia for information would be like forbidding them from cracking open an encyclopedia at the public library to brush up on some European history terms.

While it’s not a citable source, it has an enormous amount of information that students can take advantage of.

“Our job is not to say you can’t use that source but to teach you how to use it responsibly,” D’Amico said.

Features

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

11

“

“Get plenty of rest. Everything centers around how well-rested you are.”

- Elizabeth Russ, Nurse

Healthy hints help out

“

“You have to get up every day and say to yourself, ‘I am going to learn to be resilient.’ I find that too many... kids make themselves sick because they can’t face...anything less than what they believe is perfection.”

- John Dodig, Principal

GRETA BJORNSON ’15

“

“Take care of the little things, then the big things won’t happen. When things are not going well, go for a hike, a kayak ride or swim, whatever you like to do. This will allow you time to process the not-so-good things, while doing something that is good for you.”

- Janet Zamary, gym teacher

Features Editor

“

“I would recommend that people try to eat foods from the purest, least-processed source...try to get your foods from nature or meats.”

- Chloe Rosenfield ’15, elite soccer player PHOTOS BY GRACE SUMMERFIELD ’15

Peanut Gallery’s voices are heard JANE SCHUTTE ’16 Staff Writer

PHOTO BY ANNIE HAROUN ’16

Stress needs rest EMMA BERRY ’15 Staff Writer

Homework, tests, projects, meetings with teachers or tutors, after school jobs or sports and college applications. For students, an assignment planner quickly turns from invaluable to dismaying.

When the stress becomes overwhelming, many students recommend hitting pause on school to unwind at home and take a mental health day.

According to a University of California Berkeley blog, a study shows 70 percent of students admit to being often or always stressed by school.

It’s no surprise, perhaps, that some students choose to take days off.

Staples Intro to Psychology teacher Carol Avery said, “Sometimes, it’s worse to be mentally tired than physically tired. I can see why people take [days off].”

Everyone has different ways of crushing stress.

“Last time I took one, I slept in, spent a good portion of the day

watching TV and then worked on my homework that I had to do,” an anonymous student said.

Luis Cruz ’15 said he sometimes needs a serious break. “I go for a quick run (3-7 miles) and watch funny YouTube videos on the internet late at night.”

But sometimes, students said, missing school to recover from stress end up creating more stress.

And in fact, plenty of students are firm believers in working through stressful times. “[I’m] more stressed after missing school because it’s a lot easier to be caught up with the work then have to make up 2 days worth of work,” Liv Smith ’16 said.

Smith is not alone in her opinion. Especially in fast-paced classes, catching up after even just one day can be difficult.

Amy Liu ’15 has many alternatives to dealing with stress so that make-up work is never an issue.

“I really like to nap. So if I come home from school and I’m really stressed, I’ll take a nap first so when I wake up, I feel rejuvenated and I can focus better,” she said.

After many years of trick or treating, eating out, and baking treats, kids with food allergies have learned the hard way that the convenient protection of the peanut-free table is not in your everyday life.

Living with an allergy is “a lifestyle that you have to adapt to,” Morgan Whelan ’16 said.

The peanut-free table was left behind in 5th grade, and kids with nut allergies were thrown into a middle school cafeteria full of pistachios, Nutella and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

“The peanut-free table was really just an awkward experience,” Whelan said. Whelan explained that students never got to sit with any of their friends because peanut butter sandwiches are one of the most common lunch foods. So every day they would just end up sitting with the same kids. It got a little dull.

“The transition from the peanut-free table to a regular table was really easy,” Whelan said. Her close friends helped then and continue to help now by

scanning the table and keeping a close eye out for anyone eating nut products. “They make me feel confident and safe.”

Staples nurse Libby Russ believes that by the time students are in high school, they should know how to handle their allergies. “In elementary school, kids need help navigating what is safe and what is not,” Russ said. Not having a peanut-free table in the high school helps prepare students to deal with their allergies in later life.

However, having an allergy carries large responsibilities.

Anna Violette ’14 said she had to learn at a really young age how to deal with her allergy because it is life-threatening. “I have to bring my EpiPens everywhere that I go,” Violette said. Both the large size of the EpiPens, along with generally keeping track of them, is extremely annoying, she said.

“I tend to leave them in random places or forget to bring them sometimes which is pretty bad,” Violette said. “But overall I’m really safe with what I eat.”

Mimi Burris ’16, Whelan and Violette all agreed that the cafeteria does a great job at sepa-

rating the nut products from other foods. But there are some things that are out of their and the cafeteria staff’s control. For example, Burris said that some people don’t know that foods like pesto contain nuts.

To make the cafeteria a safer place in which to eat, the students made suggestions as to how the cafeteria could better handle this problem: Put signs up on foods that contain common allergies Offer alternatives to peanut butter, like sunflower butter Distribute antiseptic wipes for students to wipe their spot before eating Besides, being cautious of their allergies in the cafeteria, each of the girls had different reasons for what frustrates them the most about having an allergy.

Burris dislikes the fact that allergies prevent people from being able to eat what they want.

Whelan said it’s annoying when she sees a dessert that looks really good, but she cannot eat it -- specifically Moon Pies and Twinkies.

And, Violette joked, “My calculus homework.”

GRAPHIC BY CONNOR HARDY ’14

12Features

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

PHOTOS BY GRACE SUMMERFIELD ’15

Bikers pose a dilemma AARON HENDEL ’14 Breaking News Editor

N

ew drivers often face a lot of struggles, plain and simple. Here in New England, varied precipitation is a common fear for rookies behind the wheel.

Yet, many feel that dealing with bicyclists, not inclement weather, presents the biggest challenge. The milliondollar question is: should drivers swerve into the other lane to pass and avoid stockpiling traffic, or should they slow down and stay on the right side of the road?

Cara McNiff ’14 finds that when she faces this dilemma, her first reaction is typically ner-

vousness, particularly if she’s on a busy road.

“My instinct is to drive slowly behind [the bicyclists] and let them do their thing,” McNiff said. “But I have found myself in situations where I’m leading a line of cars behind me that clearly want to get by.”

McNiff is certainly not alone; Keleigh Brockman ’14, among a plethora of other drivers, also finds difficulties when dealing with these situations.

“I usually try to wait for [bicyclists] to turn off [the road], but I always end up getting frustrated and going around,” Brockman said.

It’s every newly licensed driver’s nightmare. The bike lanes are so small that they seem

RIGHT OF WAY ΈLEFT AND ABOVEΉ Drivers, especially newly licensed ones, find it difficult to avoid bikers on winding roads like this one— Long Lots Rd. between North Ave. and Post Rd. East. There are many turns, hills, curves and sometimes even horses from the Fairfield County Hunt Club that add to the level of difficulty on this road.

virtually non-existent. On top of that, not all cyclists even bother to stay in the bike lane, and pop out into the roadway.

Westport Police Capt. Samuel Arciola offered his advice on what drivers should do. He first cited the importance of remembering that drivers, bicyclists, and even pedestrians or other travelers share the roads.

“The laws have parameters meant to protect everyone,” Arciola said.

And speaking of the law, the Driver’s Manual for the State of Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles says that “when approaching or passing a bicyclistslow down and allow as much space as possible.”

Not surprisingly, Arciola

strongly recommends following these guidelines.

However, he did acknowledge that drivers often illegally go around cyclists. If someone does decide to pass, he said, the driver needs to “proceed with caution,” and make sure there is no oncoming traffic.

When dealing with a pack of bikers, on the other hand, it is a different story.

Science teacher Michael Aitkenhead bikes to and from school everyday, and, from his experience, understands both sides of the spectrum.

“Even I, a biker, have felt the frustration of being caught behind a convoy of bikers while driving,” Aitkenhead said.

Still, he thinks drivers

should “slow down, wait the extra few moments for a safe opportunity to pass the bikers, and then do so carefully.”

These scenarios are, of course, two-way streets. Bikers tend to have tough times dealing with drivers as well.

“Once, I was riding my bike over by the Hunt Club where there are practically no sidewalks,” Victor Kolbin ’14, who said he always does his best to stay in the bike lane. “An old lady, who I don’t think even saw me, was a few inches from hitting my handlebar.”

The undoubtedly safer, albeit more frustrating method for drivers, is, as Daniel Lehrman ’15 described, to “just be patient and let them proceed.”

Another attraction: Jeeps agree with the weather.

“Theres nothing like taking the top and doors off during the summer days,” Sam Ellinwood ’14, who wanted a jeep because it is perfect for all seasons, said. He rememberd that the first time he took the top and doors off his car, was something you could really only do in a Jeep.

“On the other hand, they’re also great for the winter during snowstorms because they can pretty much go through anything with the 4-wheel drive,” Ellin-

wood said.

“Having a car that so easily becomes a convertible is awesome,” Brockman, said.

Perhaps the only iffy quality of Jeeps: the safety factor. While Feldman has never felt unsafe in her Jeep, she admits that her friends feel like they’re going to flip all the time. But, she admits, that could just be due to her driving skills.

According to car rankings and reviews on USNews.com, the 2013 Jeep Wrangler scored a 6.7 out of 10 for safety and had poor

side impact test results. Brockman can attest to this.”

“The new ones are a lot safer, but my car basically feels like a thin steel box on wheels. I constantly feel like it’s going to literally fall apart.”

Nonetheless, it seems the safety aspect is not the number one feature on students’ minds when it comes to their Jeep.

“You don’t really get a jeep to be safe,” Ellinwood said.

“They have a lot of personality and, in my opinion, only exist because they’re a lot of fun.”

It’s a Jeep thing CAROLINE ROSSI ’14 Web Features Editor

It’s a Jeep thing—you wouldn’t understand.

This is the mantra known

by Jeep owners everywhere—a community of sorts. Over 21 student-driven Jeeps enter the driveway of 70 North Avenue morning, so it is clear that Staples has a Jeep community of its own.

“I literally couldn’t love my car more,” Cassie Feldman ’13, one of the many Jeep drivers, said.

So what is the appeal, ex-

actly? In the rows and rows of vehicles that line the pavement, it seems that Jeeps are in a category of their own. One thing’s for sure: when it comes to the younger generations, they certainly have the “cool factor.”

“They have a reputation for being cool cars for young people,” Keleigh Brockman ’14 said.

“They have loud speakers, and are just fun to drive,” Feldman, who used her car with her friends in this year’s senior Motorcade, added. “It made the experience so fun.”

WRANGLING THE WRANGLERS Starting at a base price of $22,300, Jeep Wranglers are the most popular car at Staples. They come in a variety of colors such as (from left) black, amp’d yellow, flame red, and billet silver.

Features

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

13

Students fail the license test The (not so) fast and the (very) furious INFOGRAPHIC BY JULIE BENDER’ 15 AND NATE ROSEN ’14

KATIE SETTOS ’15 A&E Editor

You grip extra tight, nervous that your grasp of the wheel will slip straight through your sweaty and trembling hands. It seems the man in the passenger seat has mastered objectiveness to the point of being robotic. No “hello.” No “how are you?” Knees quivering and heart fluttering, you try to compose yourself, repeating each step in your head in fear you may somehow suddenly forget.

But just like that, it’s all over with the slightest shift of the wheel or press on the gas.

You shamefully walk out empty-handed having failed your license test.

After 30 hours of classroom time, 10 hours driving with parents and eight hours of supervised behind-the-wheel instruction, Colby Kranz ’15 bombed her test within a mere four minutes of climbing into the car.

“I told the world I failed because I knew it was the dumbest reason,” Kranz said. “I didn’t even get on the road!”

Like many other Staples students, Kranz, who tested at the Bridgeport DMV, failed because she was not able to parallel park, the portion of the test notorious for crushing kids’ dreams of cruising the streets of Westport with music blasting and zero parental supervision.

Given the approximate ten percent of teenagers who fail their license test on their first attempt, Kranz is not alone.

According to All-Star Driver, a privately owned network of driving schools in Connecticut, errors involving parking are the most common culprits for licenseless teens.

Kranz said that her unfriendly instructor made the experience even more unpleasant, as his strict demeanor did nothing to assuage her nerves.

“I had a mean guy that seemed really unhappy and lonely with himself,” Kranz said. “So he [sort of] acted like he was ready to

From the Westport Police

taples Students

In the past year there have been

11 citations

of 16/17 year olds

driving friends within

Driving Friends Illegally

the first 6 months

of having their licenses

3 citations

of 16/17 year olds

driving friends who

have had their license between

6 months-1 year

14 citations

18%No

82%Yes

of 16/17 year olds

driving past curfew

(between 11pm and 5am)

the punishment for all of these violations is a 30 day license suspension by the DMV and an $103 ticket.

fail me no matter what.”

Sydney Newman ’15 agreed with Kranz that where you take your test and who evaluates you can sometimes be the deciding factor between passing and failing.

Like Kranz, Newman also tested at Bridgeport DMV, where she failed twice.

“The first time I failed, I went a bit over the stop line at an intersection,” Newman said. “The second time, I ended up having the same guy who said he remembered me, and [he] ended up yelling at me the whole time, so I panicked.”

Being unfamiliar with Bridgeport, Newman said that the added stress from her very “verbal” instructor, as she put it, made it all the more difficult to focus on the road.

However, on her third attempt

Newman passed at privatelyowned business, All Star Westport, which was a more familiar venue. Her DMV evaluator there was more “business like” and did not talk during the test, allowing her to better concentrate. The change in location and instructor made all the difference, according to Newman.

Though Newman eventually managed to score her license, dealing with the initial embarrassment of failing was not easy.

“I told my close friends [that I failed] and eventually it was clear because I wasn’t driving,” Newman said. “It was frustrating, and honestly, I was angry.”

While any kind of test taking can induce a stomach-dropping sensation, the social anxiety that surrounds failing the license test

Driving Past Curfew

74%Yes

can be dramatically worse. As a result, many students say they try to hide their failure in fear of being judged.

The prospect of freedom filling them with a contagious zeal, often times in anticipation, people make the mistake of telling their friends when they are scheduled for their road test.

But after failing, students say this often entails many awkward conversations as to why to they have yet resign from their position in the passenger seat alongside mom---all the hype over driving ultimately becomes an embarrassing let down.

Nonetheless, dodging the question all together is not an effective approach either. Eventually it becomes obvious who is driving and who is not when you’re still

No26

%

a regular in the back seat of the freshman-inhabited school bus.

Peter Bradshaw ’14 who, like Kranz, failed his drivers’ test after not being able to parallel park, chose not to tell many people.

“I told a close friend, but word gets out,” Bradshaw said. “My friends were really supportive, so I didn’t feel bad.”

For the number of students frustrating over the humiliation of failing, confrontation is nearly inevitable. However, while many point fingers at their instructors and test locations, All-Star Driver instructor Matt Debernardis argues that there is no cop out.

“It’s kind of an easy excuse,” Debernardis said. “If you do everything you’re supposed to do, you should pass, regardless of who is testing you.”

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

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Innocence floods room 1011 ABBEY FERNANDEZ ’14 Web Opinions Editor

W

here in the building are light-up sneakers on size three feet?

Room 1011.

As teenagers gossip about the weekend and meet with their Calculus teachers, one room stands secluded from all big kid things. In that magical room, 15 three and four-year-olds attend Staples as their “play school.”

Thomas, Sienna, Owen, Michaela, Maximilien, Lucie, Julia, Hudson, Ella, Elizabeth, Cora, Claire, Brecka, Autumn, and Annabelle. This is the order of their cubbies where they hang their zebra jackets and heartprinted backpacks.

Next, they gather on the carpet and listen to “Miss Linda,” aka Linda McClary, as she reveals all the fun activities for the day. These include snack time, arts and crafts, reading and outdoor play.

As Miss Linda explains, Maximilien, sitting right up front, brandishes his hand and announces, “I’m brinin’ my dog!”

“That’s right Maximilien, on Wednesday you can bring in your dog for show and tell,” Miss Linda responds.

But Max sets off other children’s unrelated comments.

“In seven birthdays I am going to be ten,” Cora, daughter of Staples science teacher Michael Aitkenhead, said. Then another voice shouts out, “You know, my brother’s going to be seven-and-a quarter.” Miss Linda’s clap pattern garners the toddlers’ attention back again.

It is now snack time so the kids dutifully walk over to the table and wait to be served goldfish on their placemats. Sienna, wearing her everyday hot pink crown, asks, “Can I have some more goldfish please?” Except that every “r” and “l” was swapped with a “w.” Some count theirs, some haphazardly ingest them, but after about five minutes, all goldfish are out of sight and it’s reading time.

This is where the students who are in the “Child Study” course arrive. Each high schooler is assigned a buddy. Elizabeth Colwell ’14 and Cora go off to read “Knuffle Bunny.” (That beats “The Odyssey” any day).

All is running smoothly during reading time when suddenly Autumn, wearing pink polka dot leggings, asks “When are we gonna play?” Multiple children’s faces light up at the word “play” but it’s reading time right now, so Autumn tunes back in to “How I Became a Pirate.”

The group takes occasional field trips, anything from walk-

PICK ME (Above) Miss Linda describes the activities for the day to her engaged audience in the classroom.

STORY TIME (Below from left) It’s time for Taylor Cusa ’14 and her buddy to settle in and read “Knuffle Bunny.” JUST SWINGIN’ Nothing but smiles as Diyab Khan ’15 pushes his buddy on the swing during outside time.

ing through Staples to visiting the Wakemen Town Farm. Julia, in a purple striped t-shirt, explains that when she walks around the building she hears “music” (most likely referring to the music hallway) but then is distracted, points to the wall and exclaims, “I drawed the rocket over there.”

The Child Study class keeps a “Kids Say the Darnest Things” book to keep track of the cute exclamations. McClary said, “I had a child exclaim once that ‘Hey, you didn’t tell me that we had a magic toilet!’” This excitement was referring to the automatic flushing of the toilets. McClary

loves how even a toilet can be considered magical to a child.

Claire, in light pink sequin shoes, said that she doesn’t find the big kids scary, just big. In fact, the little kids don’t find the older kids intimidating at all.

“The children love the high school students. It works beautifully. They each make an imprint on each other’s hearts,” McClary said.

Annie Raifaisen ’14, a student of Child Study, attests to this.

“Taking a break from my day to be with the kids puts me in such a better mood. Their smiles, laughter and innocence make my day,” Raifaisen said.

Smiles, laughter and innocence fill room 1011. Perhaps more Staples classrooms should be modeled after room 1011, including the goldfish. Naptime wouldn’t hurt also.

PHOTOS BY HANNAH MYERS ’14

Junior seizes the moment BELLA GOLLOMP ’15 Staff Writer

“I guess you could say it started with a sensation. An out of body, tripping on LSD (not that I would know what that feels like) feeling. This was seventh grade. I was shopping for a stupid bat mitzvah dress. Then all of a sudden, it happened. This indescribable aura. But to be clear for all you pot heads out there, you’re probably thinking ‘that’s sick.”’Let me tell you, its not sick.

It sucks, a lot.”

Gabi Titlebaum ’15, starts off her blog, “Seize The Moment,” with those words.

Titlebaum was diagnosed with a disease three years ago called Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (TLE), which is a form of focal epilepsy where seizures occur in the temporal lobe in the brain.

A local pediatrician from Willows Pediatrics explained how there are often many misconceptions about epilepsy.

“The biggest misunderstanding about those who have epilepsy is that they can’t carry on the

same lifestyles as everyone else,” she said, “Epilepsy cases vary and depending on the diagnosis, certain precautions should be taken depending on the amount and severity of their heir seizures.”

When Titlebaum aum encounters escribes the first a seizure, she describes symptom as a “weird, scary, out of body feeling,” eling,” that is often referred to medically as an aura.

“Usually, what happens is my hands begin to shake unconncontrollably and then no matter what, I fall asleep,” she he said. “I am nott ashamed of having it, in fact it is something I want people to know about me.”

This year, Titlebaum began a blog that is centered around her life and experiences with

TLE. Titlebaum said that she has always had a passion for writing, especially when it involves come d y , which

plays a big part in her blog.

“Seize The Moment,” is targeted to an audience of, “anyone who is willing to read it,” she said. Her main purpose through blogging is to try to help people out in whatever hard time they are encountering by reading some of her personal incidents.

Also, she said to not take things too seriously and most importantly, laugh.

Inspired by a comedic spin on a not-so-funny disease, Titlebaum determined that she owed it to everyone to share her experiences.

Titlebaum said her case of epilepsy has helped shape her into who she is today, “I see everything in a whole new light and it has made me mature over a very short amount of time. Since it was a drastic change to my life, it was hard to accept and be

comfortable with at first, but now I learned to find the humor in it.”

Longtime childhood friend Noa Wind ’15, has always supported Titlebaum in everything she’s done.

“It’s amazing to me how through her ups and downs, she’s always had such a positive outlook on her situation,” she said, “She’s no doubt the funniest of my friends and I’m so happy that other people are now getting to experience her wittiness and compassionate nature.”

Titlebaum said she has received nothing but positive feedback on her blog of one entry so far. There’s no doubt that she will continue to thrive through her comical and honest approach.

“Humor is a great thing,” Titlebaum said, “It is how I coped with my journey and I want people to know that things always get better and work themselves out. If I can laugh and make fun of epilepsy, then people can laugh about pretty much anything.”

PHOTO BY ZOE BROWN ’15 GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHOOR ’16

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16A&E

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STITCHING TO SUCCESS Rachel Doran ‘15 works on sewing a pair of her Rachel’s Rags pajama pants, sold in Sweet Rexies and Dress Code and online at Etsy.

Student designer stitches in time JUSTINE SEGLISON ’15 Staff Writer

P

ajama day may only come once a year for most Staples students. But for Rachel Doran ’15, it is a constant celebration; she gets paid for it, too.

At 16-years-old, Doran makes her living by running a pajama company called “Rachel’s Rags.” However, they’re not really rags, but intricately designed pants and shorts from cotton and fleece material that friend, Harley Kowalsky ’15, described as “so comfy.”

Doran was first taught at the age of five to sew by her grandmother. She tooksewing classes in 2007, which would make it a much greater element in her life. These lessons are also where she made her very first pair of pajamas.

A pair that she was very proud of.

She then created another set for her sister’s birthday. Her friends liked what she produced, which is how she got the

idea to start a business.

Doran’s design line started with her making pajamas for family and friends, and eventually for craft shows. “This is when I really started my company,” Doran said.

“Rachel’s Rags” has continued to grow through time, with her, on average, selling 100 pairs each year. Her most common way of commerce is through her account on Etsy, an online program where crafters can display and sell their products.

Doran’s typical selling prices are $30 for kids and $35 for adults. In addition to her self-selling, stores like Sweet Rexie’s and Dress Code have featured her designs.

“It’s fun to see people wearing something that you’ve made,” she said.

Mary Perkins, the owner of Dress Code, attests to the strength of Doran’s business.

“I think Rachel is a true entrepreneur,” Perkins said in an email interview.

Yet being an entrepreneur brings a lot

of responsibility. But because Doran has many years of work experience, she manages her job effectively and efficiently.

That’s why all the measuring, cutting and stitching for one pair now takes her a mere 20 minutes to complete. She has no set schedule in the overall amount of time she spends working. The general trend is that winter and the period before a craft show are the busiest. “Some weeks there will be nothing to do, and some weeks I’ll work for five hours,” Doran said.

Doran’s strength behind the sewing machine was the catalyst for another activity that she’s passionate about: Staples Players’ costume design. Being a crewmember since her freshman year, she’s currently one of the senior managers and has made many of the outfits appearing onstage.

For each show, she prepares almost as much as the actors by watching a movie of the play and studying the plot. Doran explained the show’s time period is the most

SOFT AND SNUGGLY Doran’s products are mostly fleece pants, but the junior also has orders for cotton and flannel pajama pants. She also sews some other items like dresses and tops for herself.

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

important element in getting the clothing styles right.

Upon this initial planning, she extensively collaborates with the other designers on perfecting each costume.

“She’s such a hard worker,” Claire Smith ’15, a friend and member of Players said. Smith referred to the outfit Doran created for the character, Laurie, as being an asset in last year’s production of “Oklahoma!” It was a light blue, lacy skirt/jacket combo with pink buttons.

“I was so incredibly impressed,” Smith recollected.

Kowalsky agreed on Doran’s skills and success. “It’s awesome,” she said. “I wish I was able to make my own clothes.”

Despite her prolific background in design for her company and Players, Doran is undecided about what she’ll professionally pursue. “I don’t know if being a designer is what I’ll wind up wanting to do,” she said.

Smith knows one thing about Doran’s future. “One day, her name is going to be everywhere,” she said.

NOT TOO RAGGY Doran’s label is called Rachel’s Rag, named by a family friend after her stuffed animal bear who at the time was getting to be a rag.

RAGS TO RICHES Rachel’s Rags pajama pants are made for a range of ages, from nine months, to adults and prices range from $15-38.

A&E

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Crop ‘til you drop

17

GRAYSON WEIR ’14 Staff Writer

S

trutting down the hallway with not a care in the world, girls of all ages have been swept up in the epidemic: crop-tops.

A “crop-top” is a shirt. But not really. It’s more a piece of fabric.

It doesn’t quite make it past the belly button. It

makes an effort to cover up, but fails miserably.

The fact is that the reemergence of the 90s crop-top craze is back. More and more, girls are marching down to Urban Outfitters or jumping online to buy the $10-$60 controversy before throwing it over their heads and bounding into school.

Teachers and students alike struggle to come to a conclusion as to the appropriateness of these gutsy tops. There is a significant consensus that crop-tops are fashionable when worn on certain occasions. However, there is an increasing number of teachers throughout Staples High School are finding croptops to be inappropriate for a school environment. For school, the shirt should probably reach the waist.

Staples Secretary, Maryann Garcia, agreed with the overall sentiments of teachers and administrators. “There is a time and a place for everything. School is not the right place for crop-tops,” she said.

Students seeing eye to eye with the administration

is a rare occasion in high school, but crop-tops have quickly become an exception. Many female students also took arms against the glorified belly shirt, stating that it is “summer attire” and “weird for school.” For someone like Sarah Rakin ’17 who cannot stomach crop-tops, there is no holding back.

“I hate crop-tops. They’re too expensive for a piece of clothing that isn’t even that flattering,” Rakin said.

Guys, however, called Rakin’s view to question. Whether a freshman or a senior guy, crop-tops seem to be a fan favorite. In fact, crop-tops are found to be so flattering, that it can cause a girl’s appearance to change drastically. Guys are finding a girl pulling off a croptop to be a magic trick. Someone who may not be attractive becomes instantaneously better looking by putting on these magic shirts.

“It can be a game-changer in how a girl looks. The double-take effect is common practice. They can be a boost or a detriment to appearance,” Alec Johnson ’14 said.

Johnson’s sentiments hit most boys at Staples High School right in the breadbasket.

Yet crop tops have the administration on the prowl. Page 64 of the student handbook states, “Attire should be safe, appropriate to the activity, and not distracting or disruptive of the educational program.” The administration finds croptops more often than not to be a violation of this code.

“Crop-tops become a violation simply because they make a student or even the person who is wearing one feel uncomfortable. With these tops, teachers and students alike have to make a conscious effort not to be misconstrued for sexual harassment,” Principal John Dodig said.

Even so, a long as students are well behaved, Principal Dodig sees no reason to implement a dress code, be-

cause there are other priorities of greater importance; so it looks like crop-tops are here to stay.

“Controversy or not, I guess if you can’t beat ‘em, you’ve got to join ‘em.”

Jason Bernstein ’17 said.

“The wave is here, we should all start wearing crop-tops,”

DRAWING BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

“Catching Fire” flickers WWPT switches its tune DANIELA KARPENOS ’16 Staff Writer

If the upcoming film adaption of “Catching Fire” is anything like “The Hunger Games,” Staples students will flock to theaters on Nov. 22nd.

While many students argue that there has been noticeably less hype around the second movie, some continue to remain faithful to the best-selling book series.

“I’m really excited for ‘Catching Fire,’” Sara Banbury ’14 said. “My friend and I have actually had plans to see the midnight premier for months now.”

Banbury has seen the first movie and found both the acting and directing to be spectacular, especially in terms of staying true to the novel.

“The shaky camera was a little weird.

Other than that I loved everything else, and I hope the second one will be just as good,” Banbury said.

Similarly, Haley Randich ’14 considers herself a huge “Hunger Games” fanatic. On a scale of 1 to 10 in of terms interest in the series, 1 being little to no interest and 10 being obsession, Randich would rate herself an 8. Had it not been for the third book of the series, which most people agree didn’t nearly measure up to the first or second, she would rate herself a solid 10.

Randich is definitely going to see “Catching Fire” the night it comes out, and believes the second movie will be even better than the first.

“There is a lot more for the actors and directors to play with in this storyline,”

“At this point it’s more just people who really liked the series, rather than Belieber-esque enthusiasm.”

- Sara Banbury ’14 Randich said. “Plus, the new arena looks great in the trailer and I’m really excited about all the new characters.”

Yet, unlike Ranich and Banbury, a vast majority of students didn’t like “Catching Fire,” and some haven’t even read it.

Daisy Laska ’16 only read the first book of the series, and while she enjoyed it, her obsession ended there.

“Since the ‘Hunger Games’ phase was so long ago, I’ve basically lost interest at this point,” Laska said. “I don’t think I’ll be watching the upcoming movie.”

Laska believes there has been significantly less exposure and interest for both the second book and film. If “Catching Fire” turns out like most sequels to popular movies, Laska is certain it will be worse than the original “Hunger Games.”

“It would be hard to match the hype of the ‘Hunger Games’ movie,” Banbury said. “At this point, it’s more just people who really liked the series, rather than Belieber-esque enthusiasm.”

Music-centered shows are beating sports coverage in air time on WWPT, lately. But cohosts Brandon Shock ’16 and Brandon Rakowski ’16, believe Staples’ radio station could use a different kind of show. On Shock and Rakowski’s

segment, Ignoramus, they choose a topic and a person, who is unfamiliar with the topic, to try and explain it. “Our show is different. We try to blend dry humor that will appeal to everyone that no other show really delivers on,” Shock said.

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE’15

WORKING THE STATION: Jake Reiser ’14 works Staples’ radio booth after school Friday, Oct. 26. Reiser and Tim Schroeder ’14 are the few left with a sports-centered show.

CHANGING STATIONS: Tune in on Thursdays for Schroeder and Reiser’s WWPT show “Sports Talk with Tim and Jake” where they make the NFL picks of the week and talk about big news in sports.

18A&E Millie thoroughly accepts the challenge Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

CADENCE NEENAN ’15 News Editor

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AN ACCENT OF CULTURE Claire Smith ’15 practices to perfect a Chinese accent for her role of Mrs. Meers, a mysterious and evil character for the upcoming Players’ production of “Thoroughly Modern Millie.” Opening night is Friday, November 15.

or “West Side Story,” Staples Players had to perfect Hispanic accents to portray the saucy sass of characters like Anita and Bernardo.

Throughout “A Chorus Line,” performers had to fine-tune dance skills that they had just acquired.

D u r ing “Into the Woods,” underclassmen like Claire Smith ’15 stepped up into the spotlight in lead roles.Imagine all of these challenges blown into a whirlwind of a show: “Thoroughly Modern Millie.”

Even better, imagine that Players doesn’t seem phased by it.

In the show, often referred to as “Mille,” Nick Massoud ’15, Joe Badion ’15, Will Haskell ’14, Wellington Baumann ’16 and Josh Popkin ’14 have each been cast as Chinese men. They are required by this role to dabble in Cantonese Chinese, a language

most had never spoken before.

(Though Baumann has been studying Mandarin Chinese, a language differentiated from Cantonese by dialectal changes.)

“They have to learn Chinese and use a Chinese accent which I think is really difficult,” Maddy Rozynek ’14, who is cast as Millie Dillmount said.

However, the boys seem to have handled it all right.

“Its actually incredibly easy because we just repeat what we hear on the tape and commit that to memory by putting it to a song,” Badion said.

“Yeah, we beatbox,” Massoud interrupted.

The rest of the five seemed to generally agree. Even their student director Vig Namasivayam ’16 confirmed that they were meeting the challenge with open arms.

“Working with these guys I’ve seen that, even though it may not be the most difficult thing for them, they have put in 100 percent...okay they’ve put in like 50 percent,” Namasivayam joked.

Second challenge: the quite numerous and quite difficult tap routines sprinkled throughout “Millie.”

Yet similarly, it still seems like pretty smooth sailing. Players seem to be looking at this difficulty as a calm horizon.

“Well, it’s not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Tap is a really fun type of dance,” said

Rozynek, “And, like, if you don’t know exactly how to do it, it’s sort of easy to fake.”

Everett Sussman ’15, casted as Mr. Trevor Graydon, agrees that the tap numbers are going well.

“The people who are teaching the tap are great,” Sussman said. “And [with] all the dancers that we have, I was amazed to find all the people who could tap and who were seriously amazing at tap.”

Okay, so then they’re going to leave it to those newbies to the spotlight to screw it up. Right?

Wrong again, disbelievers.

Both Jack Baylis ’15 and Nick Ribolla ’14 were somewhat new to center stage when cast as male lead Jimmy Smith. However, it seems that the limelight is a good color for them.

“I used to be the little dweeb in the audience looking up and thinking how amazing they were,” Ribolla said. “Now that I’m in their position the pressure is on to live up to them.”

And their castmates have few doubts in their ability to step up to the plate.

“I think that they’re both doing great, and I think they really rose to the occasion,” Rozynek said.

So what challenges might actually be challenges for Players? Perhaps it will only be living up to the standard they set for themselves in “Mille.”

Wesport ponies up for Nashville SOPHIE DE BRUJIN ’16 Breaking News Editor

If you listen to the music blaring through the stereos of Staples students’ cars as they drive to and from school every day, what you hear might surprise you.

“Shake it for the young bucks sittin’ in the honky-tonks/ For the rednecks rockin’ ‘till the break of dawn,” or maybe, “Yeah the boys ‘round here/ Drinking that ice cold beer/ Tallkin’ bout girls, talkin’ bout trucks/ Runnin’ them red dirt roads out, kicking up dust.”

The strumming of banjoes, a distinctive southern drawl and lyrics about pickup trucks are not what an outsider would typically associate with the Westport music scene. However, there has recently been a Nashville invasion of popular music in the Staples community with the once wildly unpopular genre of country music gaining new territory in Fairfield County, the Northeast, and beyond.

“I’ve definitely noticed that country has become more mainstream over the past few months,” Dayna Gelman ’14 said. “I’ve been a hardcore country fan since I spent a summer during middle school working on a ranch in Montana, but recently my friends have been getting into more popular country tracks.”

The 2012 NDP Group’s Annual Music Study revealed that Westport is not alone in the phenomenon, with a measured 1 per-

DRAWING BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

cent increase in the percentage of country music fans nationwide.

While this statistic may seem insignificant at first, the boost raised the percentage of country music fans to 28 percent, allowing them to surpass classic rock, the genre which was named king in 2011. Furthermore, country was ranked as the most popular genre across every age demographic polled.

“I think country music is definitely more relatable,” Emma Mikesh ’14 said. “Rap and pop music might sing about ‘dropping that thun thun thun’ but not everyone is doing drugs,” she said.

“Unlike pop and rap, country is

not as vulgar most of the time.”

Many country fans at Staples claim that the recent boost in popularity is due to the success of country singers with pop influences such as Taylor Swift and Luke Bryan. Anna Daytz ’16 became a fan after listening to Swift and seeing her live in concert. “I like how pretty much all country songs are happy and upbeat,” she said.

The “feel-good” aspect of country seems to be another motive behind the increase in popularity. Especially for the typical stressed out high school student, country music provides an appealing escape.

“Country is just feel good music,” Natasja George ’14, who’s favorite artists include Florida Georgia Line, Billy Currington, and Luke Bryan said.

“Even when the songs are about sad subjects, they still have a way of making you feel good.”

While many Staples country fans are pleased with country gaining new territory in Westport, some feel that there is a divide between what is popular country and what is authentic country. Henri Rizak ’14 enjoys listening to George Strait, Jason Aldean, and Jimmy Buffet, but thinks that more mainstream artists do not qualify as real country

artists.

“I believe artists like Luke Bryan and Taylor Swift are making country more mainstream, but I don’t think that’s real country,” Rizack said. “I think Luke Bryan sucks.”

For the most part, however, the country music aficionados of Staples are just glad to have the opportunity to play their music without the immediate disapproval of friends. “I have some friends who will turn the radio off when I put country music on, but I also have friends who will turn it up,” Mikesh said.

Others, such as Gelman, have grown accustomed to being rebuked for their preferences and have learned not to care about the opinions of others. “Music has no location,” she said. “I don’t feel like it’s weird to listen to country music in the Northeast because it is so fun and relatable,” she said.

Although there has been a recent increase in the country music audience, the divide between fans and non-fans has always been clear. “A lot of the time, people either love it or hate it,” George said. “I haven’t really come across anyone who feels in the middle about it.”

But, whether you love it or hate it, country has definitely penetrated Northeastern pop culture, not only through music, but through popular television shows such as ABC’s Nashville. “When I first got into country music no one knew the songs I would play,” George said. “Now, it seems like everyone knows them, whether they like country music or not.”

A&E

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

E Encounters with teachers out of school ou ELIZABETH HOGAN ’16 Staff Writer

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ver seen a teacher in a grocery store or downtown?

Did you dive into the closest is isle; did you let them recognize yyou first?

Students S tend to think of teachers teach as only that, teachers, so when wh they see them anywhere other than the classroom most have reactions that stem from astonishment. tonish “I remember being downtown down with another teacher and rrunning into a student who looked looke at me like I had two heads,” heads Holly Sulzycki, Staples High School English teacher, said.

Seeing S teachers outside of school schoo isn’t always a scary experience. rienc “It isn’t really awkward, just unexpected,” u Will Six ’15 said.

Since Sulzycki doesn’t live S in tow town, she doesn’t go out of her way to come to Westport anymore but had visited in the past.

“I ha had situations early in my career w when I would be shopping/ eating in town and a parent would approach me to start discussing appro his or her student,” Sulzycki said.

Science teacher Alexandra S Krubski has a special situation Krub since has been at Staples as both a teac teacher and a student.

“It “ took me a while to adjust tto working with my former teachers teach in this new setting, especially making the transition from calling them Mr/Ms to us-

ing their first names. School is such a structured environment that when we are taken out of this context, it can feel a little weird,” Krubski said.

Depending on the time and the place, Krubski believes it’s okay to see students outside of the classroom, like at the grocery store or at a Players show.

For the teachers who live in or near town it’s different too.

Maggie Gomez, a math teacher who lives in town, brings her kids to Longshore and to the beach just like any other Westport parent. Gomez realizes that living in the same town as her students and their parents means that she could run into anyone at any moment.

She feels that if, as a teacher, she is aware that kids and parents could be where she is going, and she acts professionally, there is no problem with staying in town.

English teacher Michael Fulton, who lives not too far out of town, sees students all the time at the grocery store and places like Chipotle. While he won’t go out of his way for his daily routine, if there was a romantic dinner with his wife, a former Staples teacher, he would stay out of town. He wouldn’t go somewhere where he knows kids hang out outside of school.

“I’m not going to go to the beach on a Friday night or do anything they would want to do.

You’ve got to let kids be kids,” Fulton said.

Here is the skinny on skinny jeans TAYLOR BURG ’16 Staff Writer

GRAPHIC BY AUDREY SEO ’16

A sight worth seeing

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For some, they are fashionable and comfortable. For others, they are restricting, awkward and downright unbearable.

Staples girls constantly struggle to balance beauty and pain. Especially with skinny jeans. Nevertheless, they’re popular. One reason is their versatility. “They can be dressed up or down and are a staple piece of every wardrobe,” Olivia Jones ’15 said.

Skinny jeans are known for being an adaptable style of jeans.

White skinny jeans (before Labor Day, of course) with a decorative top works for any formal event.

With a comfy sweater, skinny jeans and some combat boots the look will still be cozy and classy.

For Maura Delaney, a chemistry teacher at Staples, jeans in general are the pull, since she had to wear a school uniform as a teenager. “Now I like jeans, and I think they’re comfortable,” Delaney said. “I wear them every Friday.”

The issue for some is not the jeans, but the skinny. “They are constraining and uncomfortable,” Emma Tangle ’16 said.

Just squeezing your legs into the fabric is a challenge when you’re wet or sweaty, like after gym,” Emma Finn ’16 said, describing the dilemma as “annoying.”

Even so, both Finn and Tangle said they wear skinny jeans three times a week: looks trump comfort every time.

Staples takes no part in body art GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

JESSICA GROSS ’16 Staff Writer

GRAPHIC BY LILA MEYER ’16

Tattoos are the ultimate form of self-expression. Whether it’s sentimental, religious, or it just looks cool, men and women have been tattooing for ages. They’re extremely popular today, in almost every aspect of pop culture and fashion.

Likewise, piercings, are a unique way to personalize oneself, and there are hundreds of style options for dozens of places on the body. From big, bold hoops, to delicate danglies, to funky, new gauges, piercings can be a key component that completes any look.

So what’s the buzz among the Staples community? Interestingly enough, students aren’t loving either craze. Call it a conservative view or just an appreciation of the simple things, students are leaning towards the “less is more” mentality when it comes to bodily self expression.

This information is from a scientific poll conducted by Inklings.

20 Sports

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

Working out where you should work out JACK ZELDES ’16 Staff Writer

Fitness Edge

DRAWINGS BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

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hat a place. If you are looking for a gym with new and fresh facilities, stateof-the art machines like the “Jacobs Ladder” and the “Tred Sled,” and classes from Pilates to Spinning that will make you say “wow,” then this is the gym on the Westport/Norwalk border for you. There are high-ceilinged rooms with hardwood floors, freshly-painted walls and dozens of mirrors. With brand new turf fields, and even a boxing ring where you can release your anger from a tough day at school, you won’t be surprised to see some of your fellow Staples students working out alongside you. You may even run into your principal? Yes, there have been reports that Principal John Dodig exercises at the Edge. Maybe true, maybe not; some students say they time their workouts just to see Dodig there.

JoyRide

New York Sports First of all, the name is a slight left turn. While we are considered to in the New York metropolitan area, I would not name a club after the city. But that’s besides the point; onto the gym. This gym gets the job done. It has machines from treadmills to rowing machines to even an arch trainer, not extraordinary but above average.

Its open spaced, mirror-covered workout rooms all with private trainers are one of its highlights. Its best feature may come after a long and stressful day at school where you can do a class of pilates and then chill out in the sauna, sweating your worries away.

Southport Athletic/Squash Club

This new cycling studio has brought a fresh new brand of working out to Westport. While this gym doesn’t have the variety that the Edge brings to the table, JoyRide has its own special features. JoyRide specializes in extraordinary classes. With their new and top-of-the-line machines accompanied by world-class instructors, spinning, to tabata classes or even circuit training classes, not only will get you in the shape of your life but also provide you with the thrill of being on a bike. Their classes are made for teens ages 13-19 where you can bring a friend, listen to some new jams, and get a great workout.

For Staples students, this is the gym less traveled by. However, it is a nice quality gym. With a wide range of creative and welcoming classes from their “method rx” to “body pump,” accompanied with variety of innovative machines, there is no reason not go to this gym. If you were wondering if the name has any meaning, it does. This club’s curveball is that it has four international squash courts, and for those of you that are competitive, you can also enter tournaments. Finally, after a long day of being on the grind, there are 11 different kinds of relaxation classes to improve your flexibility and release your stress. In fact, they offer yoga classes for all times of the day.

When running into friends at The Edge...

EMMA MURO ’14 A&E Editor

We’ve all had that moment.

Running on the treadmill, you’re in your zone. Headphones beating bass drops into your ears, energy illuminating from your core, a bead of sweat trickling down your temple, and then you see them. That guy from phys-

Seeing a Fish Out of Water ics, that girl in your psychology class or even one of your teachers. Regardless, it’s someone you know. Someone who’s seeing your growing pit stains, the red patchiness on your face: clearly, you’re in your prime.

This is thought to be, for many students, a worst nightmare come true.

For Taylor Jacobs ’14, an ordinary workout turned awkward when she encountered a teacher in the cardio section. “It's just kind of like seeing a fish out of water,” Jacobs said. “When at the gym, I don't expect to see a teacher, so it puts me out of place.”

There’s a blurred line of what is considered acceptable versus rude when it comes to seeing your schoolmates and teachers in

a setting outside of school. It’s often difficult to decipher one from the other; greeting them could be awkward, but, at the same time, not greeting them could be taken the wrong way.

Social Studies teacher Eric Mongirdas agrees with Jacobs, noting that, while he’ll say “hi” to a student at the gym if the opportunity presents itself, he respects students’ privacy and doesn’t go out of his way to greet them because “they probably want their own peace and quiet as well.”

For avid gym members, seeing people they know isn’t a problem. They’re at the gym to work out, so why should they be embarrassed about how they look?

Katie Smith ’14, who’s been a member of The Edge for over two years, isn’t insecure at all during her activities. “It's convenient if you want to work out with a friend because so many Staples kids are members of The Edge,” Smith said. “It's fun to see people you know. I've found out about great classes to go to from other students.”

Whether it’s the discomfort of recognizing the grunting, sweaty person lifting weights across the room as one of your classmates or seeing a member of the faculty who catches you off guard, skipping the gym to avoid these situations is futile.

PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

IN HIDING In a staged photo, Sarah Reilly ’16 hides behind her sunglasses and baseball cap at The Edge gym in Norwalk Conn. in order to disguise herself from her peers.

Sports

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

Spinning is the new froyo TALIA HENDEL ’16 Staff Writer

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rozen yogurt is the sweet and sugary phenomenon.

Although it may be popular, there’s a new, healthier craze creating quite the buzz.

It resides in a dimly lit room, filled with looks of determination, blasting music and a tangible sense of motivation.

From teens to adults, spinning has recently become a frequent addition or variation to many workouts.

“A large part of why I like it so much is because you can tailor it to how hard you want to work.

There is no minimum to how hard you can push yourself, but there is also no maximum. You are able to make the experience your own,” Maggie Brown ’16 said Prevention.com, a health magazine website, states that the main reasoning behind the workout’s popularity is that it appeals to “people who don't care for traditional exercise classes. There are no complicated dance moves to follow, and since you control your bike's tension, you can stay within a comfortable exercise zone for your fitness level, while still feeling like you're keeping up with the class. Unlike actual cycling, there are no worries about lagging behind the pack.

Everyone finishes together. And everyone gets a great workout.”

One cycling studio, Joy Ride, located on Post Road East

in Westport, offers many spinning classes, both teen and adult, beginning at 6 a.m. and going until 7 p.m. Fifty-minute classes include muscle, endurance, and speed training and provide upper body arm work – all of which is set to a heart-pumping beat of popular modern music such as “Wake Me Up” by Avicii and “Applause” by Lady Gaga.

Also, spinning allows for, and is appealing to, all types of people, from hard-core athletes and avid cyclists to beginners. It is a sure way to burn calories and gain muscle. “I definitely think it helped me a lot with endurance for sports,” Brown said.

While these may be common effects of any type of exercise, many have come to find that spinning is more fun than the average workout or sport, which may be the cause for popularity.

It is also a great alternative to the regular gym workout. “I get bored and I'm too lazy to go to the gym so I tried spinning one day, and I loved it because it's good exercise and when I'm doing it I feel like I’m not exercising,” Ruth Kissel ’16 said.

While it may not even feel like a demanding exercise, there are also many physical benefits of Spinning. “Spinning scorches about 7.2 to 13.6 calories per minute, or about 500 calories per class. All that pedaling is also great for leg toning as it strengthens your glutes, thighs, and calves,” according to Prevention. com.

For many, it is even a form of relaxation compared to the usual demanding and hectic sports practice. One participant in the twice-a-week teen spinning classes at Joy Ride Cycling Studio, Danielle Johnston ’16, says that being a one sport (soccer) athlete, she enjoys the less stressful workout that spinning provides.

Another spinner in these teen classes, Lauren Stefenson ‘16, agrees that it is a different and fun way to workout. “I like how they play music really loudly because it motivates you. I also like how the lights are low because it lets you be in your own world and block everyone else out,” she said.

Joy Ride Studio instructor Emily Kate Swet agrees that the motivation in the room is certainly apparent, not only due to the music - which she says everyone enjoys - but also the encouraging and motivating vibe bouncing around the room. She feels that all the energy in the spin room comes from the amount of people there.“People feed off of each other and I think that’s why it becomes so enjoyable and people like it so much,” she said.

If you’re thinking of jumping on the bandwagon with this new craze but are afraid that you don’t have what it takes, think again.

“It applies to everybody. Everyone can do it. Some are talented at sports and others at dance, but everyone can come in and spin and get a great workout,” Swet said.

$35.00

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22 Sports

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

Maggie Fair lives up to her legacy LARISSA LIEBERSON ’15

for Connecticut premiere in the spring and summer. But this elhe was born into the game. ementary school player had big Practically from the time dreams right from the get-go. she learned to walk, Mag“I’ve always aspired to be gie Fair ’15 has dribbled circles like Maya Moore (a University around the basketball court with of Connecticut team player),” a larger-than-life smile fixed on Fair said. “I get motivated just by her beaming face. And this star watching her play.” player has definitely scored big “Maggie spends endless considering she’s only 16-years- hours in the gym which are not old. just limited to games and pracYoung Fair started her bas- tice time,” Ruby Steinberg, a felketball career in the second low varsity basketball player for grade, and has been playing ever Staples, said. “And she does it all since. She has made varsity since with a smile on her face.” freshman year, and also plays Luckily for Fair, she has another role model living under PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14 her own roof.

Someone who has always played a substantial role in her career has been her father, Matthew Fair. The star of his high school basketball team, he ran the REC league at Williams’ College. Now, he coaches elementary and middle school girls’ basketball in Westport, with Maggie being part of his team up until her freshman year.

“My dad’s always there for me no matter what,” Maggie Fair said. “He’s at every game SLAM DUNK (left and right) Varsity and even if he can’t make it, basketball star Maggie Fair ’15 he will call me before I play to practices at home 4 hours a day in give me pep-talks.”

Opinions Editor

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order to keep up her skills.

However, her father notes that coaching his own daughter was not always easy.

“In the beginning, Maggie would choose to drive home with my wife after her games because she didn’t want to hear my comments or talk about basketball any longer,” Matthew Fair said.

But now that Maggie is older and eager to enhance her skills, the pair bond over the sport, both said.

“When we’re watching basketball together, Mags will make comments now and then about a defensive set or particular press,” Matthew Fair said. “Who knows?

Maybe she will coach one day.”

There’s no doubt that the Fair basketball legacy will continue on for the generations to come, as Maggie hopes.

“Basketball has been a big part of my family, and I would love for future generations to continue playing,” Maggie Fair said.

“My little sister also plays and is really great.”

Fair has plenty of options for the future even though she isn’t sure of what she wants yet. Her courageous, positive attitude is what makes her so successful.

Fair just made a shot, and she definitely scored.

PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY LLIANA SONECLAR ’14

Girls go the (shorter) distance SARAH ELLMAN ’15

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

Staff Writer

Running is running... Right?

It doesn’t change based on race, age, gender, or favorite color; running will always be running.

Not exactly. Just like any other sport, Cross Country for girls is different than Cross Country for boys. But not in the switch order “contact vs. noncontact” or “how much padding you have to wear” sense that applies in sports like lacrosse or soccer. It is distance that makes the two different.

At the Cross Country FCIAC Championship, it is routine for the boys to race a 5k and the girls to race a 4k. However, at state level, both boys and girls compete a 5k. You would think that course distances would be constant throughout the season, but not in Connecticut. So, why do girls run a shorter distance at FCIACs? The Girls’ Cross Country coach, Amanda Parrish said she views the reasoning behind this policy as “dated” and “antiquated.” When women were first eligible to compete in the Olympics, they were prohibited to run over 800 meters because of the worry that they would pass out or not be able to have children in the future.

so obviously that thinking has been de-bunked,” Parrish said.

Members of the Staple Girls’ Cross Country team don’t let this policy faze them or influence the amount of passion and determination they have for the sport.

In fact, it isn’t gender that determines how practice is organized,;it is skill level. “In training, the top group of boys and the top group of girls do the same workouts,” Parrish said.

In agreement with Parrish, one of the Girls’ Cross Country

“Boys are just naturally stronger than girls, and it makes sense to separate them.”

-Luis Cruz ’15 “I just ran a marathon yesterday, and did not pass out. I also have many friends who have run marathons and had children,

Team Captains, Kellen Smithson ’14 said, “Girls like Hannah DeBalsi ’16 who are really fast will run with the boys.”

All-American runner, DeBalsi, holds the national 2-mile record time of 10:16.20 for freshmen girls. She thrives for challenge and speed and has an incredible amount of talent.

Practicing with the boys gives DeBalsi the opportunity to show what she’s made of.

Although there are girls who practice with the boys at practice, they are still mandated to compete a 4k at FCIACs. Student runner views on the 4k vs. 5k

seem to be divided.

One runner on the Girls’ Cross Country team, Caroline O’Kane ’16, does not think the policy needs to be changed because, “boys are naturally stronger and at invitationals we run the same distances.”

Similarly to O’Kane, a runner for the Boys’ Cross Country team, Luis Cruz ’15 said, “Boys are just naturally stronger than girls, and it makes sense to separate them.”

Sexist is a word that comes to mind for some when looking into the policy and these people probably agree with Coach Parrish when she says, “I do think [the

policy] should be changed, mostly because it sends a subtle message that girls can't do as much as boys, when obviously that's not true.”

The girls on the Staples Cross Country team don’t let the 1k difference get to their heads... or their feet. Keeping their confidence high, legs moving fast, and pony tails whipping through the air, the team ends its regular season undefeated.

Boys’ Cross Country runner, Oliver Hickson’15 said. “Regardless of the difference in distance, the girls did an amazing job at FCIACS, taking home second place.”

Sports

Inklings / November 1, 2013 / inklingsnews.com

Teams ready to wreck in the post season

PHOTO BY CLAIRE QUIGLEY ’14

PHOTO BY ALE BENJAMIN ’15

ALL LINED UP The varsity boys’ soceer team dominates the field by taking home a 2-0 victory against Norwalk High School.

Boys’ soccer set to succeed MEGAN ROOT ’15 Staff Writer

S

taples’ boy’s soccer team has had another strong season, at one point winning six games straight.

They are set to compete in the postseason tournaments.

In late Aug. they didn’t have such confidence.

“With the Academy drawing players from many teams…we really didn’t know what the league would be like,” Coach Dan Woog said.

Not only did the team lose their graduating seniors, but some elite players also chose to play with premier Academy teams instead of Staples this fall.

The boys faced another challenge as the team suffered multiple injuries.

“Eight people have been out for at a least one game, a huge setback,” cocaptain Diego Alanis ’14 said.

But Staples has shown its depth and finished 10-4-2 despite such obstacles. Woog said they owe their success to good chemistry, organized defense and strong senior leadership.

According to Woog, among the most valuable players are co-captains Alanis and Jack Scott ’14, as well as forward George Kokkalis ’15, midfielder Michael Reid ’15 and defender Andrew Puchala ’15.

Varisty soccer player Steven So-

bel ’14, agreed with his coach. “They’re all people we expected to be big and they have been,” he said.

With these players at the core, the team looked forward to the postseason.

The Wreckers’ hoped to play in the FCIAC championship but were cut off by a 2-0 loss to Wilton in the quarterfinals.

It was a close game, but Wilton’s Jack Brandt ’16 finished twice, including on his first shot.

The boys now await the first round of states, to be played on Nov. 5. At tenth in the Class LL, they have a good seat, but there are some strong teams ahead of them, including the undefeated Greenwich. The Wreckers dropped a 4-1 decision to the Cardinals in mid-Oct. “Greenwich has shown they’re at the top,” Woog said.

Alanis wanted redemption for that 4-0 loss in FCIACs, but now he will have to look for revenge in states. But Woog also warned against focusing on just one opponent when losing a single match will knock the Wreckers out of the running.

“You can’t look past anybody,” Woog said. “Any team can put together an 80 minute effort.”

The Wreckers don’t yet know who they will play in the first round, but they are eager to hit the field. The boys don’t believe in doing things halfway.

“There’s always one goal and one goal only. Win the last game of the season,” Alanis said.

Boys’’ S B Soccer Year 2010 2009

Result Runner Up Champ

SET TO SUCCEED The varsity Girls’ cross country team begins a meet against Brien McMahon, Stamford, Central, and Fairfield Ludlowe High School. Staples placed first in all four events.

Girls’ XC runs for it all MEGAN ROOT ’15 Staff Writer

Staples girls’ cross country fi nished fi rst in all 14 of their meets this year, took a second place trophy from FCIACs and fi nished fifth in states, thanks to the stellar performances from their top runners.

One girl in particular is a standout.

As Coach Amanda Parish said, “Everyone knows about Hannah DeBalsi ’14.”

Besides sophomore DeBalsi, who consistently takes fi rst place, Erica Hefnawy ‘15 and Elisabeth French ‘15 are also strong, fi nishing sixth and twelfth in FCIACs, respectively.

Captain Kellen Smithson noted the importance of these elite athletes, explaining that only the fi rst five runners from each school are scored.

According to Parish, though the team’s top three runners are outstanding, it’s the depth of the team that has really been key. It’s not always the same runners fi nishing in fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh. Rather several runners compete for these spots and fi nish close together, not only improving Staples’ score, but also beating out the competition and thus hurting opponents’ scores. “[Other teams] don’t go as deep as we do, all the way to the seventh runner,” Parish said.

With such a strong squad, Parish and Smithson were both hoping to win FCIACs. Unfortunately, the Wreckers fell just short, losing to Ridgefield by a tiny margin of five points. To put it in perspective, the next closest team was a full 17 points away. It was still a strong showing for Staples, and the team had some momentum going into the Class LL state tournament on Oct. 26.

Held at Wickham park, the state meet was brutally competitive.

Glastonbury, who beat Staples by 34 points at an invitational, fi nished fi rst by 20 points. With a time of 17:41 DeBalsi was predictably incredible, fi nishing 22 seconds ahead of the second place runner and 1:30 ahead of third place. Hefnway was also outstanding, fi nishing in fourth.

Parish’s comment about depth turned out to be true. Because Staples’ second through seventh runners fi nished so close together, the Wreckers actually had the best average time out of the whole competition. Unfortunately, the number of superstars on teams like Glastonbury and Ridgefield meant the points didn’t fall in the team’s favor.

It was still an excellent performance by the girls, and the highest they have ever fi nished in the Class LL competition.

Girls’ Cross Country Year

Result

2010

11

2009

12

2008

Loss Semifinal

2008

14

2007

Lost 1st Round

2007

11

2006

14

2006

23

Runner Up

S Su I Ro Row c w , Te cess D P Ou Ro Pa a fu EAG r B ge ms l E 23 o 23

N

The Wreckers

I

ports

PHOTO BY RYDER CHASIN ’14

If you aren’t bruising, you’re losing JIMMY RAY STAGG ’16 Web Features Editor

PHOTO BY RYDER CHASIN ’14

Football Team

T

here they sit in a constant crouch, prepared to drop to their knees and take a baseball off the chest; prepared to get pummeled with foul balls on any exposed piece of skin, prepared to jump up and gun the ball down to second base to catch a runner stealing.

“The catching position defi nitely is the most physically demanding position and requires plenty of toughness and sheer will,” the starting catcher on the Staples Varsity baseball team Noah Yokoi ’16 said. “But if you do things the right way, you can defi nitely limit dangerous injuries.”

There are other positions that face similar risks, like soccer or field hockey goalies.

Paradoxically, both of these positions are often considered undervalued.

Dr. Michael Medvecky, Associate Professor of the Department of Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation at the Yale University School of Medicine, interviewed via email, said direct impacts from the ball are the most common causes for injuries, along with head injuries if a player falls.

Mary Bennewitz ’15, Staples varsity girls’ soccer goalie, said that it is also relatively common for a goalie to break ribs when diving, and some-

InBrief The Staples football team has four remaining games on their regular season schedule. The Wreckers travel to Trumbull on Nov. 1 and Bridgeport Central on Nov. 8. Then, the Wreckers return home on Nov. 15 to take on Norwalk and on Nov. 28 Thanksgiving Day the Wreckers continue their Turkey Bowl series with Greenwich at home.

Cross Country Teams On Friday, Nov. 1st Wickham Park will host the boys and girls Cross Country Open Championship. The Open will pit the top runners from the state regardless of conference to determine the best runners and best teams in the state.

Boys Soccer Team READY FOR THE PITCH Varisty catcher Noah Yokoi ’16 warms up with pitcher Robby Valone ’14 at Wilton High School’s baseball field for the Westport 18U league. Westport and Wilton both took home a win in the doubleheader on October 19th.

than Bennewitz.

“I think it can be dangerous if you don’t have the right techniques as a goalkeeper,” Schwaeber said. “But if you know how to protect your“When I walk off the field if self and make saves at the I’m not covered in bruises same time, from the day’s match then I you can stop a lot of injuries know that I didn’t give it my from occurring.” all.”

M e d -Mary Bennewitz ’15 vecky said he focuses on something more than times goalies run the risk of just technique to avoid injury: taking a cleat to the head. equipment. From shin guards “When I walk off the field, to masks to chest protectors, if I’m not covered in bruises Medvecky says the right gear from the day’s match, then I is essential for catchers — and know that I didn’t give it my the gear is only improving. all,” Bennewitz said.

For instance, catchers’ Despite suffering a con- masks today allow for opticussion this year during a mal vision, with fi rm padding game, Noah Schwaeber ’16, to prevent head injuries. Shin Staples varsity boys’ soccer guards are now made of hard goalie, is on a different page plastic pieces connected in a

way that allow easy movement, along with padding on the insides to ease the pain on catchers’ knees when they drop to block a ball. Chest protectors have become more flexible, Medvecky said, and use padding to stop a ball’s momentum.

Ironically, as protective as it is, equipment can interfere, according to girls’ field hockey goalie Carolynn van Arsdale ’16.

“Because of my equipment, it is hard to see everything to the sides of me. This is a disadvantage because the opponent can aim at the places in the goal that are hard for me to see.” Van Arsdale was interviewed through a Facebook chat.

As hard as goalies and catchers work, and as much danger as they face, at times some feel as if they aren’t appreciated.

Sam Reach ’14, a soccer fan, explained why goalies de-

serve praise.

“In high school soccer, goalies are extremely important,” Reach said. They’re underrated, he continued, “because oftentimes defenses aren't as good, and goalies are called upon to carry their team,” Reach said.

Field hockey goalie van Arsdale beats herself up when she makes mistakes, in fact, she said. It’s important for her to remember to keep her head up, she said.

“Staying positive is the key to being successful as a goalie, not just in field hockey, but in every sport.”

Familiarity with sports should naturally lead fans to appreciate catchers, according to Justin Gallanty ’14, captain and pitcher of the varsity baseball team.

“Everyone who knows about the game of baseball understands and appreciates the importance of a good catcher to a team,” Gallanty said.

The Wreckers suffered a tough loss to fifth seeded Wilton in the FCIAC playoffs. However, the Wreckers will enter the state tournament on Nov. 5 as the tenth overall seed.

Girls Soccer Team The Lady Wreckers just missed out on the postseason this year, falling four points behind Trumbull (who grabbed the last seed in the FCIAC tournament). The Wreckers had their Senior Day on Oct. 24 at Loeffler Field in a eight point win against Trinity Catholic.

Field Hockey Team The Wreckers came up one point shy of the FCIAC postseason after posting a 5-8 FCIAC record. However, the Wreckers had a successful season, coming in ninteenth place in the state.

Girls Volleyball Led by an impressive group of seniors, the Wreckers girls volleyball team finished with an outstanding 16-1 record, coming in second place in the FCIAC (the lone loss was to first seeded Greenwich).

The Wreckers also finished second in the state, just behind undefeated Chesire.

PHOTO BY JULIA KAPLOWITZ ’16 NO GOAL Field hockey goalie Carolynn van Arsdale ’16 puts in her best effort on Oct. 17 as Staples faces Fairfield Ludlowe. The game results in a tie score, 1-1.

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