JagWire | Volume 6 | Issue 4 | Jan. 2006

B e Th eat Annapolis (PG-13) Opens Jan. 27 Starring: James Franco, Tyrese Gibson

AN OPEN FORUM FOR STUDENT EXPRESSION

When a Stranger Calls (PG-13)

Seattle Thunderbirds vs.

Prince George Cougars The Veronicas The Crocodile Cafe Jan. 30 $10

Aerosmith/Lenny Kravitz The Tacoma Dome Feb. 15 $35-$125

Funk Night The Showbox Feb. 18 $15

Aquire the Fire The Tacoma Dome Feb. 24-25 $20-$60

Some By Sea Club Impact Feb. 24 Price TBA

KeyArena Jan. 29 $12-$20

Seattle Super Sonics vs.

Atlanta Hawks KeyArena Feb. 10 $10-$200

Opens Feb. 3 Starring: Camilla Bell, Katie Cassidy, Brian Geraughty

Something New (PG-13) Opens Feb. 3 Starring: Sanaa Lathan, Simon Baker

Silent Films: The Scar of Shame Opens Feb. 6 at the Paramount $12

IFMA Freestyle Motocross FMX The Tacoma Dome Feb. 11 $18-$30

WIAA Mat – wrestling The Tacoma Dome Feb. 17 $20

The Wedding Singer Jan. 31-Feb. 29 5th Avenue Theater $16.50-$58.50

The Good Woman of Setzuan Jan. 29-Feb. 8 Meany Studio Theatre $8-$13

Driving Miss Daisy Feb. 16-March 5 Tacoma Actors Guild $15-$28

Giving you the low down on the South Sound EMERALD RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL 12405 184TH ST E SOUTH HILL, WA 98374

VOLUME SIX ISSUE FOUR JAN 2006

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Lauren: Oh yes, simply listening the wonderfulness of this band makes me have such a passion for music, that words can not describe. They aren’t one to sing about stupid things, like one of those “Oh my girlfriend broke up with me, I think I’ll go write a depressing emo song now” bands. They sing about things like abuse and trying to make it in the music business, while still holding a nice upbeat tempo.

The Academy Is…, is easily the most awesome band I have ever listened to in my life.

JANUARY 2006

Nick: Here we go again. Another punk rock, emo, whatever band, that sounds literally identical to at least 853 bands that are “in” right now. I actually thought of about 50 bands right off the top of my head that these guys sound like and was going to write them down, but due to the limited space I will spare you. The point is that if people came to a concert to see a certain punk rock band, let’s call them band X, and these guys came on stage instead, and no one could tell the difference, then we have got a problem.

13

14 >> Tech @ ER

Technology

Tyler: If a bunch of babies who couldn’t form complete sentences all got together, and drooled on a few instruments, this is what it would sound like. I’m not wasting more paper on these guys.

Jenn: As if things weren’t bad enough, I felt my depression level raise significantly just through the first song. If I ever hear the words our time is almost there, I think I might scream. Two of the songs I wouldn’t even know they were different if I hadn’t had the names right in front of me. If you’re looking for songs which have never ending repeating choruses than you’ve hit the jackpot. “The Academy is” needs to go back inside their garage and close the door.

Nick: How could you not like, no love, Coldplay? I mean seriously everyone has got to like them at least a little bit.

You could be the most die-hard country or rap fan and you know what? You probably still listen to Coldplay. That’s how good they are. They are easily on of the most talented and just plain awesome bands out right now. Their songs are just plain high-quality music and everyone, no matter what you prefer to listen to, has to appreciate that.

Tyler: I like Coldplay, well at least I did in their “Yellow” days, but this CD is just one song. One song, relentlessly copied and pasted. He must have used up all his songwriting energy thinking of a name for his kid. Good thing he settled on a good old fashioned name like “Apple”.

Jenn: I have to agree with Nick on this one, ColdPlay is so awesome it makes me want to close my eyes and ignore the entire world forever.

The voice of Chris Martin soothes to the bones. I don’t care what anyone says, every song does not sound the same, some people just don’t know good music if it fell on their head as a safe does in a cartoon clip. “The Speed of Sound” just fills you with motivation to get up and do something, anything.

Lauren: Um, is it me, or do all of these songs sound exactly the same?

I’ve never been a big fan of Coldplay. Sure, they have a couple of quality songs like “Speed of Sound” and “Clocks” (which also sound like the same song, I can never tell them apart on the radio), but other than that I could easily live without this band. The airy voice of the lead singer and repetitiveness of the lyrics makes the little voices in my head go, “Yuck, stop, what have I done to deserve this torture?”

So, to put simply, there is as low as you can possibly go with music, 50 feet of crap, and then this CD.

15 >>

Computers, Televisions, MP3 players ... ours is a world of ever-changing and constantly improving technologies.

JagWire takes a look at technology and all the ways it shapes our lives.

Tech-savvy Freeborn

Tyler: If a band of beautiful golden angels mated with a soulful deep south gospel choir to create the best music in the world, it would be ALMOST as good as Sonia Dada. In it’s entirety, this CD is one of the best that I own, mainly because it is so eclectic. Every single song is different, like a box of delicious assorted chocolates.

Jenn: It’s that kind of tune that just gets stuck in your head for days, that real annoying one that drives you crazy all through your math test. I’ve never heard uhmmm bop so much in one song since Hanson. If they kept to letting the instruments make the music, the songs would be much better off. Someone should get the singer a doctor and quick, I think he has a frog in his throat.

Between biochemistry and test-prep, Jessie Roy has a lot on her petri dish. And it’s not everyone who scores 223out of 240 on the PSAT.

05 Gifts from Guatamala

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After a year-and-a-half of waiting, Cami and Brian Devereux welcomed their adopted Guatamalan children to their home.

12 Jessie Roy: Genius

30 MLK returns

For the sixth year, students have come together to inspire the collective student body with the story of the AfricanAmerican struggle for civil rights.

Lauren: The utter confusion of this CD really scored low on the Lauren music scale. The song “Last Parade (Crazy Lady)” at first annoyed me with a passion because of the constant lalala-ing, but then just scared me by the man with the very frog-like voice. That voice just makes me want to say, “Excuse me Kermit, but when did you get a record deal?”

This CD is not one I feel the need to add to my play list, mainly because it is so different with each song, that you get to hear a man going through every stage of puberty twice.

Nick: At times this group can sound very smooth, soulful, and just overall enjoyable. But then something bad happens.

The man with the raspiest, lowest voice in the history of song comes in and ruins everything. The songs usually have a pretty nice flow going and then he comes in and pretty much just kills everything. A word of advice: If you want to sound good, don’t let that guy sing.

Jenn: Ahhhh…. Dave Matthews, who doesn’t love them? It’s always a good choice no matter what mood you’re in, no actually, it’s the best choice. The music has a way of helping you relax, but at the same time, keeps you upbeat. In each song the guitar is amazing and always with a little something extra thrown in. It’s a little bit of everything put into one, not to mention that he can actually sing, instead of being a so called musician who gets put on the radio because of their “catchy lyrics.” Call it love, passion, I don’t care but Dave Matthews is one man who is definitely a keeper.

Lauren: Now, this one is definitely hitting the happy chord on Lauren. It’s not in my normal wave of music, but it’s definitely got a nice beat to it. Songs like “Rapunzel” just make me want to get up and dance like there’s no tomorrow. And then the song “Stay (Wasting Time)” is just amazing with its acoustical awesomeness. I think I could really grow to enjoy this band, props to Jenn.

Nick: Is the Dave Matthews Band really still around? To be completely honest I have never really been a big fan, but I do admit they are a talented band with a very unique style, and they have a variety of interesting and quality songs. Each one of these songs has its own sound and style. They have found a way ot stay in the music scene for quite a while now and this is one of their better records.

Tyler: Well, I was mad at the Dave Matthews Band for dumping their sewage in the river... but I think that after hearing this CD, I’m willing to forgive them. They’ve been around for a while, and I think that they’ve still got a touch of that new-age hippie creativity about them. Hang in there, DMB!

1/25/2006 10:07:31 PM

NEWS

A&E

District searches for thieves

students honor

Burglaries leave three high schools and one junior high in the area to question their security measures and replace expensive equipment

Martin Luther King, Jr. The first completely student-run MLK assembly went off without a hitch, and despite a few disgruntled students, the general reaction was extremely positive

BY

VERONICA TORNQUIST

REPORTER BY

THAYER LAFLEUR

REPORTER

Three unidentified, at-large suspects burglarized four Puyallup School District schools, including Emerald Ridge, over Winter Break, stealing more than $100,000 worth of technology equipment.

Rogers High School, Puyallup High School, and Stahl Junior High School were also robbed. Emerald Ridge, Rogers, and Stahl were all raided on Jan. 1 while Puyallup was broken into the next day.

All of the burglaries showed no sign of forced entry.

The suspects avoided being caught by covering their faces when in sight of security cameras. The mystery behind the burglaries is how these people got the ability to access entry

The yearly Martin Luther King Jr. assembly took place Jan. 16 like it always has. Starting from the depths of slavery and ending with the triumph of Dr. King’s demand for equality, it certainly wasn’t anything shocking or new. But upon realizing that this is the first time it’s been completely student-run, one can appreciate the truly strenuous work invested.

Condee Holbrook and Cindy Watters were the original forces behind the assembly that’s as old as Emerald Ridge itself. They scheduled the auditions, practices, more practices, and managed to create something both enlightening and provocative. Holbrook even wrote the three plays that circulate and keep the assemblies fresh from year to year.

But at the end of last year, both teachers uprooted from the Jaguar community. It would seem that these well-run assemblies would become merely a thing of the past.

Enter senior Tyler Quinn. At the same time Holbrook and Watters were saddling up and waiting for the sunset, Quinn, then a junior, was filling out the proper paperwork to make the MLK assembly his senior project – which he did.

“You can only plan for so much,” Quinn said, “and then you leave it up to your ability to think on your feet. I knew it would be a lot of hard work. It was, of course – more than I imagined.”

Auditions were held Nov. 21 and 23, and everyone who tried out got a part. Practices were held off and on until the winter break, during which there were two practices, and after break, practices were held every day until the big performance.

“I was really impressed with the dedication of everyone involved,” Quinn said. “For some of these kids MLK was their first time on stage, but they gave their all.”

The assembly was as dazzling as ever, with an enthusiastic and diverse cast of 75-plus sophomores, juniors, and seniors. The assembly was acted out well, with some new faces gracing the Emerald Ridge stage. There were multiple additions to the play, including a fifth act that advised students to take action if they saw any acts of discrimination.

“We all felt that adding that fifth act was important,” Quinn said. “With it, there was a call to action that I felt would shift the focus from the past to the future.”

Still, an alienated minority believes that the assembly should have been less about the African-American struggle, and more diversified. Seniors Drew Dresdner and Kayti Weaver, the former and current Gay-Straight Alliance presidents, respectively, expressed this opinion, although neither has ever seen the performance in its entirety.

“The main thing in the assembly is racism,” Weaver said, “but not recognizing everything else. …They have broadened that assembly to so much more than race. The school just doesn’t want to take chances with a sensitive subject.”

Dresdner, however, was more concerned with the assembly as a whole.

“I get the feeling that people are living too much in the past – too involved in spreading word of the discrimination of the past that they are blind to the discrimination of the present,” Dresdner said.

However, in Quinn’s opinion, broadening the assembly to more than the actual struggle of Dr. King and the history that led up to his drive for civil rights would be counterproductive to the overall message.

“It’s called ‘Martin Luther King Day,’ ” he said. “The celebration is about Dr. King and the African-American struggle for civil rights. This script, in particular, is focused on the entire African journey. We wanted to keep that the focus.

If the GSA wanted to put on an assembly, or do something like ‘The Laramie Project,’ I would definitely support them in that.”

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The fact that these people broke into the schools is not only upsetting but it also causes a feeling of insecurity.

“I felt violated. You feel violated when someone goes through your stuff. You realize anything can be stolen if people really want it,” Osborne said.

Even as the Pierce County Sheriff and Puyallup Police departments continue to search for the intruders responsible for the stolen items, the Puyallup School District has decided to take certain measures.

“The school district is changing security codes, Puyallup Police Department are on campus, and the Pierce County Sheriffs Department is going after the people by offering a $1,000 reward,” Lowney said.

The school district has three goals it would like to accomplish: Find the people responsible, get back all that was stolen, and avoid this event from happening again.

If students know anything related to this crime they can receive up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the burglars. Call 253-591-5959 with any information; all callers will remain completely anonymous.

WASL test split up to keep students concentrated Administrators believe that new testing strategies will raise scores, but results in June will measure effectiveness BY

CHRISTY FOSTER AND JESSICA RITCHIE

REPORTER AND EDITORIAL BOARD

Everyone’s heard of the WASL. Everyone’s heard that starting with this year’s sophomores, it’s required to pass in order to graduate high school. But not everyone knows that this year, the WASL will be divided into two different weeks in two different months.

The first part will begin on March 13 with section one of reading, and section two will be taken the next day. The writing portion will start with section one on March 15. Section two will be handed out the following day.

After testing in March students will have about a month of time before testing will begin again. April’s schedule is like March.

Testing will begin April 18 starting with math with tools (calculators, rulers, and protractors). Section two of math is done without tools and is to be completed the next day.

Section one of science is April 20 and section two is April 21.

Students were of the same mind when they initially learned of the change “It’s kind of bad,” sophomore Alyssa Christensen said. “You want to get it all Photo by Kassie Green

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

into the schools. Police enforcement, along with the school administrators, think the thieves may have had a master key, but that is not the final word.

“I have no idea how they got in, but there was no sign of forced entry,” Lowney said.

At Emerald Ridge, three staff members had things either stolen or had their offices disturbed. Video productions teacher Gary Osborne had the most equipment stolen from his editing room.

“Two projectors from the media carts, one flat screen television, and eight mini DVD-VCR decks were all stolen.

That’s about $14,000, not counting the two projectors,” Osborne said.

As if that wasn’t enough, they also rummaged through the offices of Principal Brain Lowney and librarian Doug Stull.

“My office was open and had been gone through but nothing was missing,” Lowney said.

The same could not be said for Stull’s office.

“They stole my LCD projector and my sense of innocence,” Stull said. The projector its self cost $800.

done at once.”

Sophomore Kirsten Allen agreed.

“We get all prepared for it during that first month,” Allen said. “Then you get a break and it seems like you wouldn’t be in the right state of mind.”

It is crucial for students to attend every day. If even one of these days or sections is missed, the whole test will not be counted.

Not only would a huge amount of time be wasted, but one of the four chances to pass the WASL would be gone.

Records show that Washington’s math and science scores are much lower than the reading and writing scores. So this new strategy will give students more time to study. Staff members at ERHS have faith in this new system and how it’s going to benefit the sophomores this year.

“I think that by having separate weeks for WASL testing, students will have enough energy to perform their very best on each WASL subject area test,” Building Learning Specialist Nancy Drew said. “In addition, students will receive their WASL reading, writing, and math scores back in June so that they can make plans to get help before retaking any WASLs in August.”

This information changed things for Christensen.

“I think that’s better because they normally release test scores a long time after, and you pretty much forget what the test

was about,” she said.

The WASL schedule may seem a little odd, but it was specifically designed to help the students. One of the problems with the old schedule was that everything was too cramped and that students were too stressed.

This not only relieves many students of the pressure of testing but gives them more time to study.

“It used to be more a test of endurance,” math teacher Craig Fredrikson said. “Hopefully this will break it up and make it a test of knowledge and not endurance.”

If the WASL is not passed the first time sophomores are required to take it next year.

If any further help is needed as far as practice or just more experience in certain subjects, there is the option of summer school. This is an option even if all classes have been passed for the school year because the WASL is offered at the end of the course.

During the next month, teachers will teach more along the lines of the WASL. Skill building is also a key subject that will be discussed.

Students will want to know how everything went and if it was passed before summer so they can find out if signing up for summer school is needed. For that reason, test scores will be sent back June 6.

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A&E

NEWS

Allen takes the road less traveled with ‘Match Point’

Science Week focused around natural disasters Science Week has students learning about, and preparing for, Mother Nature’s worst BY

DANNY CANHAM

REPORTER

It is time for another Winterim week, that time between the first and second semester that alternates between Business Week, Science Week and World Week, with next week being the second tri-annual Science Week.

“Science Week has only happened once before, so this will be among the top two,” said chemistry teacher Doug Reis, one of the staff who has been working on coordinating Science Week. “It will be better than the first.”

Aviation teacher and Science Week planner, Jeff Coleman, said, “Some problems (with previous Winterim weeks) were not enough activities for students, which we’re working on trying to change. We’ve added more stuff.”

A student in Coleman’s sophomore advisory, James Knight, said his older sister had thought the experience boring, but he has taken the responsibility of being a community leader for his class.

“I’m excited for Science Week and excited to see how our team does,” Knight said.

According to Reis, being excited about Science Week like Knight is what can make the difference between a good

week and a boring week.

“They’re what you put into them,” Reis said. “The kids that want to get involved and find stuff interesting will find it interesting.”

Some students do not see the point. They see Science Week and other Winterim weeks as a waste of time.

“People don’t come because there’s really no point,” said junior Devin Head. “It doesn’t count for a grade.”

Reis, however, does not agree.

“That’s a rumor that is not true,” he said. “Attendance actually goes up.”

During the week, each advisory will be expected to complete a series of tasks relating to science. Unlike the previous edition, this Science Week is specifically themed to the study of and preparation for natural disasters.

Each advisory, having become a scientific research station positioned somewhere on the Ring of Fire, will be “hit” by one of three potential natural disasters: a tsunami, a typhoon or an earthquake. The Ring of Fire is the area located around the outskirts of the Pacific tectonic plate that has a history of active volcanic activity. The type of natural disaster may or may not be affected by the advisory’s location in the world.

Every morning, ER time is scheduled for students to read material pertaining to disaster relief. Time will be set aside for reflection at the end of each day for advisories to com-

municate with each other what they have learned.

Of the many tasks to be finished by the end of the week, some include: building a house resistant to a tsunami, earthquake and/or typhoon out of Popsicle sticks; constructing a balsa wood airplane model to fly; and preparing a Disaster Kit. At the end of the week, students will present what they have learned.

“There will be navigation (orography), DNA profiling, airplane construction, home construction; close to 30 different tasks (and) math challenges,” Coleman said.

Each advisory’s activities will be conducted primarily by student leadership. Community leaders were chosen on Jan. 11, and attended training sessions after school on the 18th and 25th and Jag training sessions on the 24th and 26th.

Each is expected to represent their community and help to motivate their classmates.

Students need not have a strong background in science to excel in Science Week.

“Students need to know how to work together to get things done. They need to know how to use the Internet.

It’s a good resource (for this),” Reis said.

For weeks, all the science teachers and others involved have been busy planning for next week. Assistant Principal Troy Hodge took charge of finding a suitable keynote speaker. Due to conflicts of schedule, Hodge was unavailable for comment.

Director Woody Allen diverts from his norm and delivers a fantastically engrossing tale of deception, lies, obsession and guilt BY

EDITORIAL BOARD

Woody Allen is best known for his quirky love stories, his keen sense of dialogue, and interesting cinematography. His vast repertoire of movies (he’s made more than 40 titles since his directorial debut in 1966) is evidence enough of Allen’s prowess in filmmaking. In the last five years though, Allen has hit a bit of a slump. “Anything Else,” “Hollywood Ending,” “The Curse of the Jade Scorpion” and last year’s “Melinda and Melinda” all underwhelmed critics and filmgoers alike.

So what did Woody do? He pulled a David Bowie and “reinvented” himself.

Enter “Match Point,” his most recent foray into the world of relationships and love – only this time, it’s sugar-coated with a nice layer of passion, betrayal, deceit, temptation and infatuation. It’s everything you love about Woody Allen, but with two times the spunk and three times the infidelity.

Chris Wilton (John Rhys-Meyers) is an Irish athlete who, at a turning point in his life, decides to become a tennis instructor at an exclusive British country club. He hits it off with Tom Hewett (Matthew Goode), a wealthy young man who invites him to the opera. There, he meets Tom’s sister, Chloe (Emily Mortimer). They start dating and Chris soon falls in love with her. But Chris becomes conflicted when he meets Tom’s sensuous fiancée, a struggling American actress named Nola Rice (Scarlett Johansson). The two become romantically involved and begin a sordid affair behind the back’s of their significant others, even amid marriages and pregnancies.

Where “Annie Hall” was quirky, cute and loveable, “Match Point” is gloomy and violent. I hate to compare it to 2004’s “Closer” (directed by Mike Nichols), but the two films are definitely similar in their themes.

The difference is, “Match Point” doesn’t present us with hollow characters and shallow situations and expect us to sympathize – it’s a much more likeable film. “Closer” looked at cheating and lies with the depressing mentality of an angst-ridden teen; “Match Point” is a vastly more mature film, and it handles the story with grace and charm.

The performances are excellent all around. Scarlett Johansson is one of the more charismatic actresses working today, and she lives up to her “Lost in Translation” expectations with dazzling proficiency.

There are also strong supporting roles from British talent, Brian Cox and Penelope Wilton among them.

Viewing human life from the bedside of the dead BY

BRIANNE SHANNON

REPORTER

Anatomy teacher Carrie Swanson and 25 students went to the pathology lab (or morgue) at Madigan Army Medical Center (MAMC) at Fort Lewis on Jan. 11. Accompanied by Chief of Pathology, Dr. Stephen C. Groo, the students visited autopsy suites, held different organs, and heard stories about crime scene cases similar to those on the TV series “C.S.I.” The field trip was interactive and the students learned about many things, including cadavers, hearts, livers, and even robots.

Senior Tobi Johnson enjoyed herself.

“The visit was really exciting,” Johnson said. “I was going crazy. I only wish I could have stayed longer.”

Swanson hoped students would apply what they’ve learned in class and compare it to real life. As they toured the facility, the students were involved. They asked and answered questions of Groo about different body parts, and what they do.

“This trip made things real to them,” Swanson said. “They were totally into it.”

Many of the anatomy students are thinking about a career in medicine, and this field trip gave them a lot to think about.

Johnson is a student considering medicine as an occupation, and the trip only fueled her interest in this line of work.

“There were so many things that motivated me,” Johnson said. “I really liked the cool scrubs and badges the staff gets to wear.”

Among the organs the students got to explore was a liver. They saw both a healthy liver and one that had been affected by alcohol. The same went for the lungs; students saw a healthy lung and one diseased with cancer. They also saw arteries clogged with cholesterol and a heart coated with plaque.

As most of the sickly organs were consequences of smoking, drinking, or other unhealthy ways of life, students had to think about their own lifestyle choices.

“This is real life,” Swanson said. “Everyone has a body, and the choices they make affect them later on in life.”

A vision that seemed to stick out in

everyone’s mind was the aorta – the main artery that carries blood from the heart to the arteries of all limbs and organs, excluding the lungs. The students were shown an aorta with an aneurism – a disease characterized by a blood clot resulting from a weakening of the wall of an artery or blood vessel.

“The blood clot was big,” Swanson said.

“It was like the size of a tennis ball.”

Students saw diseased reproductive systems, including an ectopic pregnancy – where the fetus is implanted and developed outside of the uterus, as in the fallopian tubes. The students learned the fetus must be removed in this situation and can cause death to the mother, the baby, or both.

To assist in their studies, MAMC uses cadavers – deceased bodies – for training and practice. Though they weren’t allowed to touch it, the students got to examine a cadaver at the medical center.

“It smelled so bad,” Johnson said.

On the technical side, Swanson and the students had the privilege of finding out who does the dirty work. Though they’re never seen on the patient floors, the hospital has robots that help them. These robots weigh about a ton and are used for lifting, transportation, and even take care of laundry.

“These robots are smart,” Swanson said.

“When their batteries get low, they plug themselves in to charge.”

-S S &

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Beauty & Barber College

Haircut $3.99

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12020 Meridian East Suite K Puyallup, WA 98373 253-848-1595

5239 So. Tacoma Way Tacoma, WA 98409 253-473-4320

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04

Photo courtesy of Dreamworks

Students learn about the human body up close and personal at the morgue

MATT CLICK

FILM REVIEW But talented actors are nothing without a good screenplay – and that’s where “Match Point” truly shines. In my favorite scene, Nola and Chris run into each other on the street after meeting for the first time and decide to have a drink in a local pub. The dialogue in this scene is so unyielding, so concise.

It’s quick, it’s gripping and it feels natural.

“Men think I may be something special,” she says between sips of wine.

A beat, and Chris leans forward, intrigued. “Are you?”

She smiles teasingly. “No one’s ever asked for their money back.”

Allen, as a screenwriter, is in superior form in “Match Point.”

“Match Point” is immensely different from Allen’s earlier films in every way. The unique Woody Allen style is there – you can see it in the angles and in the direction. But the dark tone of the film, and the violent turn it takes three-quarters of the way through is definitely something new. I’m reluctant to call the climax of the film a “plot twist” (a term used by studios to promise an “I did not see that coming” moment to bring in the big bucks), but it does come completely out of nowhere.

In fact, I found myself questioning the direction when the moment occurred. I lost interest in the film for a good 10 minutes before it pulled me back in.

Stick with it, because for a while it seems like Allen seriously jumped the shark – but it will all make sense eventually, and the movie is stronger for it. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed the film as much had the “twist” not occurred.

My only gripe (and it’s a very minor one) with the film is with the editing. It seems sluggish at points and some scenes felt extremely superfluous to me. One scene in particular seemed completely needless to me. Chris runs into an old friend on the street and they swap phone numbers and plan for lunch. The character appears once more in the film (in yet another useless scene), and we hear no more of him after that. I didn’t mind too much, because I was enjoying it a ton – but I felt that some of the excess plot points could have been trimmed down quite a bit.

“Match Point” isn’t exactly in wide-release, but it’s worth the trek to find it (I had to drive an hour to get to a theater that was showing it). If you’re not up for it though, check out “Match Point” on DVD in a few months. Woody Allen has showed us his darker side, and I like what I see.

29 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:08:32 PM

A&E

NEWS

‘Piano’ found in good tune

Devereux finds happiness in kids

This fiction book captivates readers with the lovely story of a piano turner who travels to Africa

After a long adoption process, Luigi and Heiner are finally at home with the Devereuxs in the United States

MARISSA MOODENBAUGH

BY

REPORTER

Searching through the stacks of books that have come to permanently reside in all available crevices of my room, I am unsure as to what I am looking for.

Nothing seems right and as the discarded pile of books begins to accumulate, I begin to fear that my search will prove to be futile. My hopes begin to

BOOK REVIEW fade, until my fingers brush across the cover of “The Piano Tuner” by Daniel Mason.

Though I myself have never been musically talented, I have a deep respect for those who are talented or like myself, have a love of listening to music. That is perhaps what could have made me feel inclined to the fictitious story of a man that loves music, yet struggles to create his own.

The year is 1886 when a rare Erard piano belonging to the eccentric army surgeon, Dr. Carroll, comes into dire need of repair. Edgar Drake, a distinguished piano tuner known for his deft skills in tuning and repairing Erard pianos, is commissioned to travel far from the “civilized” cobbled streets of London, to the heart of war in the precarious jungles of northeast Africa.

Edgar’s expedition is a discovery of an entrancing culture rich in history, knowledge,

and beauty. Unusual acquaintances, like the Man with One Story, leave Edgar enlightened to the mysterious ways of these foreign lands and curious music of the natives.

After a time he finds himself reluctant to journey home and unwilling to relinquish the discovery of the world his eyes have beheld.

In the heart of war, though, it may be difficult for him to ever return.

“The Piano Tuner” is not just a fictional tale of one man’s life-altering journey; it is a deeper, artistic display of the profound love of music felt by many, and expressed by few. Letters of heart-rending sentiment confirm that though separated by distance, Edgar and his wife Katherine, like so many, are connected by a shared passion.

Mason’s vibrant characters, like the tender wife Katherine, enmesh the readers into the daringly original story Mason has created.

He challenges himself linguistically with each turn of the page, portraying his own masterpiece with vivid pictures of sapphire blue waters, lush exotic plants, untamed life,

and golden sands.

Intoxicating beauty is found in the painted faces of men, women, and children, the bold colors of the garments and veils that flow as if part of the wind, and the eluded melody, a mysterious spirit lingering in Mason’s words.

At times, however, the melody of the book is interrupted by moments of dull unintelligible nonsense. The wordy government documents that are incorporated to provide depth and understanding instead are tedious, leaving the reader feeling piqued at the interruption of the plot.

Though “The Piano Tuner” is at times flawed and out of tune, it beautifully depicts the love one man has for music and the journey his love takes him on.

The novel itself is like listening to a favorite genre of music. There will always be flaws, but one cannot help feeling the captivating moments that leave us awestruck, wondering if we will ever see or hear anything as beautiful again.

BY

In the Summer of 2004 while traveling on a mission trip to the country of Guatemala with their church, High Pointe Community Church, Spanish teacher Cami Devereux and her husband, Brian, were very eager to care for the children of the orphanage, Hogar Temporal.

They didn’t expect to fall in love with two boys that would change their lives forever.

After one and a half years of nitpicky international paperwork and other types of adoption documents, 13-year-old Luigi and his 8-year-old brother, Heiner, were brought to their new home in the United States as members of the Devereux family on the evening of Christmas Eve. Coming off the plane and stepping into the terminal at the Sea-Tac Airport, the boys and their new parents were welcomed with lots of balloons and heart-warming signs.

“We expected to have biological kids first, and we’ve always wanted to adopt, but I guess God had different plans for us,” Devereux said.

From Luigi and Heiner’s mother passing away six years ago by the cause of cancer, to living with an abusive aunt, the boys had no other place to go but to an orphanage, where they lived for two years.

La Costa brings fresh Mexican culture to Tacoma Mexican restaurant takes Azteca’s place as the new and improved Spanish dining in downtown Tacoma BY

KAYTI WEAVER

REPORTER

Come and try the hottest Mexican restaurant, La Costa, conveniently located and in the heart of downtown Tacoma right in the nightlife. Though the building was once an Azteca, La Costa gained its own name by taking the old ways of the Azteca and spicing it up in their own masquerade.

Also, La Costa has a very talented chef, Jorge. This is one restaurant you don’t want to skip on your night out.

With all the wonderful choices of tacos, the taste of spicy enchiladas, shredded meat like burritos, or even nice and tasty soup there isn’t one choice that would be a wrong

R E S TA U R A N T R E V I E W one I myself ordered Carne Asada. A semi-spicy grilled steak marinated in lime – popular in the Latin culture. The plates were huge, and on it were two huge Carne Asada meats, two large spoonfuls of rice, a side of refried beans, and a dab of guacamole. This, in my opinion, is the most recommended plate at La Costa. There are plenty of dishes to choose from and if the one I recommended may not be your style then don’t be afraid to be picky because La Costa has even more to offer.

With the great, friendly service and reasonable prices it’s like eating in the comfort of your home, but out, Latin style.

The customer service was a constant help. There was not one time that I needed to ask them to refill my glass of water.

It was nice to have somebody constantly wait on you with no question. Not only do they take great care of your dining needs, but they go beyond their required tasks to ask how you are and give you some of their time.

La Costa’s multi-level dining and Friday/Saturday nightlife gives their customers a comfortable feel of friends and family.

Every Friday and Saturday La Costa gives a dance/drag/singing show. So while enjoying an exquisite meal you can enjoy a show a la mode.

The chef of all these wonderful dishes is very accommodating. A friend of the staff and a close personal friend of Jorge had an operation that didn’t allow certain foods to be eaten. So because of this Jorge made a special soup just so their friend would return. It is now known as “the Eric special”. It’s not listed on the menu but can be ordered personally. This is what I call great service. So come and try the hot, spicy, sweet tastes of La Costa Mexican restaurant.

BY

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Photo by Shailey Wilkinson

M-F: 9AM-7PM * SAT: 9AM-6PM * SUN: 11AM-5PM 13414 Meridian, E #104-Puyallup, WA 98373

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“We weren’t planning to adopt, but when we met these two, we just fell in love.

They are really special, special kids. By having lost a lot in the past, they are very resilient, good and kind,” Devereux said.

“It was awful and really hard to wait for them. Because when you’re pregnant you know you’ll get your baby in nine months, but when you adopt, you never know how long it will take.”

Going through six and a half years of marriage with a simple routine, the lifestyle

Nodia Van Rosendale passes away shortly after being hit by a van on a school day like any other

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Heiner and Luigi Devereux express their excitement and happiness about being in America after such a long wait from when they met their new parents

of the Devereuxs has changed a lot.

“We now have two grown boys. With four people and two bedrooms, life is changing,” Devereux said, laughing.

Both Cami and Brian Devereux are able to fluently speak Spanish, but they are still working on Luigi and Heiner’s transition to English, saying they are getting better and better at it each day.

Even though the boys say they are going to miss their friends in Guatemala, they keep themselves occupied by learning the

aspects of a new childhood. Luigi quickly picked up a new sport – football – while Heiner befriended the Devereuxs’ golden retriever, Baxter, and enjoys playing with him greatly.

“Things are better here,” Heiner said, translated by Cami Devereux. “I like the houses.”

Overall the boys really like it in the United States, and are very blessed and happy to be able to experience a different way of living and the love of a new family.

ERHS responds to tragic death of Rogers student

Frank & Terri 253-848-3576

Wreck Amended

KIRSTEN BABAUTA

REPORTER

Rogers High School sophomore Nodia Van Rosendale died Wednesday morning after being hit by a van at approximately 7:20 a.m. while attempting to cross the street away from a crosswalk near her bus stop on 160th Street East and 88th Avenue East.

Detective Ed Troyer, spokesperson for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, said that their fatality team was sent to the scene and remained there long after for peers in mourning.

“It’s a hard lesson to learn,” Troyer said. “The accident

was tragic, and from my understanding she was a good, responsible girl.”

ERHS principal Brian Lowney is working hard with the school’s leadership and crisis teams to make sure that everyone is available to grieving students and staff. Lowney is keeping a line of communication open with the sheriff’s department and Rogers administration, and continuing to inform the ERHS staff.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with this young lady’s family,” Lowney said. “Our priority now is for the care of our staff and students and to help Rogers out any way we can.”

Though she did not have to cross any streets to get on her bus, the 16-year-old former Stahl Junior High student apparently saw some friends and wanted to ride to school with them. Despite the warnings of parents and other kids

at the bus stop, Van Rosendale, who was wearing dark clothing, stepped in front of the van in a non-lit area, according to Troyer.

As for the driver of the van that hit her, Troyer states there was no alcohol involved and excessive speeding was not a factor. The driver was devastated, but there was not a lot that she could have done. At this point, she is not being found at fault and Troyer does not believe any charges will be filed.

“There’s a reason bus routes are the way they are,” Troyer said. “The routes are made so that kids don’t have to cross any streets. I just hope that other kids will look at what happened and learn to pay attention to their surroundings.”

Plans for a memorial service had not been announced as of JagWire deadline.

05 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:31:02 PM

A&E

NEWS

Seniors sweat the hours out Many start to feel the pressures of the Culminating Project as the deadline for community service hours draws near and they adjust to the many new changes BY

KELLI SKEIM

REPORTER

The progress continues with Culminating Project, as the seniors strive to get their community service hours in before the Jan. 31 deadline.

This year, the staff and culminating project committee have made a big impact on the students. Being brought together early this year for training, the English department, counselors, and culminating staff have made it easier for students to be supported and get motivated.

“Our advisers hold us accountable. Our advisory makes sure we are getting everything done,” senior Amanda Pisetzner said.

This year there are many changes to the Culminating Project, such as the writing component and presentation.

The writing component is easier this year. It consists of completing a paper in class, and having it graded by an English teacher.

“With the new writing component it makes it easier on

students. It is less stressful and more meaningful for their curriculum,” Culminating Project Coordinater Patti McMullan said.

As the writing component has been one of the big changes to the Culminating Project, there is much that students can express through their writing.

“I really liked how it was real from the students. They didn’t have help from any of their family members or friends.

It was truly their writing. I liked it because it is authentic,” senior and junior English teacher Donna Carstensen said.

Along with advisories staying on top of things, all students need to take the initiative to complete the project on their own terms.

With more guidance from advisers, students, and staff will soon see the reflection and completion in the spring time.

Principal Brian Lowney said, “It’s going slow so far, with (the) first year of changes. It’s hard to tell where we are, as far as how good we are doing or if we are behind.”

According to McMullan, with this year having all of the staff, such as advisers, it is making it easier to keep the students on top of their Culminating Projects. As there have been Culminating Committee meetings with the staff and English depart-

“

Too many remakes, too little imagination in films 2005 showed us a lack of creativity in Hollywood with its overabundance of remakes, sequels, and adaptations. This year isn’t looking much better

ment, the staff has really come together this year to help support and motivate the students. These meetings have helped the staff to become better trained and more prepared for the students. For the English department, especially, these meetings have made it easier for the students to get their writing components done.

“There were more students last year that finished the project than graduated,” McMullan said.

Time will tell how many students will be completed with their job shadows and community service hours. There is no exact number on how the seniors are making headway, but as the culminating board states that the seniors are progressing satisfactorily.

Only about 10 percent of the senior class has not turned in their project reports. Those 10 percent are being targeted by the staff.

All students will be able to — Principal Brian Lowney complete this project and the staff is here to help.

“I see a lot more students in the career center working on their Culminating Projects during jag now. I have never seen this before. It is so great,” McMullan said.

Even though there are procrastinators there are many students who want to get their projects in on time.

Business and Marketing teacher and senior adviser Randy Walden said, “Procrastinators will pull it off. Just about half work on the Culminating Project and the other half don’t, they just sit and talk. I’m not too worried. I have confidence in my advisory.”

T

IT’S HARD TO TELL WHERE WE ARE, AS FAR AS HOW GOOD WE ARE DOING OR IF WE ARE BEHIND.

”

McCutcheon’s Studio

120 West Main Ave. Puyallup, Washington 98371 253-845-2101 Located next to the Liberty Theatre

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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06

Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight

Just ask Lynn

here’s a fad sweeping Hollywood right now – one that seems to manifest itself every couple of months in the form of big-budget, highly marketed blockbusters.

In its beginnings, the Matt Click Commentary fad seemed fleeting and nobody thought twice about it. “It’ll pass,” we thought. “It’s just in vogue right now.”

But this fad has reached such cataclysmic levels that it’s beginning to seriously worry critics and film fans alike. It’s a troubling fad that begs this question: “Are there any original ideas left?” It’s the obsession Hollywood has seemingly obtained for no reason – remakes. Film studios now find it utterly necessary to remake any film that they feel will make money at the box-office.

Now, I’m more than aware that I’m being a bit of a hypocrite, seeing as how I just got off a “King Kong” kick and praised it as “pure, cinematic bliss” last issue (and it holds up pretty well to a second viewing, to boot). I stand staunchly by that review; “King Kong” was an exception. Why? Because it was a fantastic film, that’s why. I have no problem with remakes if they’re well done.

But the minute they start being terrible is when I shake my fist in the general direction of California and declare, “No more, Hollywood!”

I mean, the number of remakes in 2005 was astonishing: “The Producers,” “The Fog,” “War of the Worlds,” “Yours, Mine and Ours,” “The Amityville Horror,” “Assault on Precinct 13,” “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Guess Who,” “Pride and Prejudice,” “Fun with Dick and Jane,” “The Longest Yard”… the list is extensive and somewhat discouraging it its scope. Granted, not all of these films are as atrocious as some of the others (“War of the Worlds,” I’m looking in your direction), but the fact remains that Hollywood is going through a serious drought in creativity. The last truly original film I saw was 2004’s terrifically imaginative “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”

And the fad doesn’t end at remakes. Oh

Foreign films, like the modern-fantasy Russian flick “Nochnoi Dozor,” offer some originality for fans amidst the endless, suffocating tide of American remakes

MATTINEE Matt Click at the Movies no, the strain of banality stretches well beyond that. My list of remakes didn’t even include horrible adaptations like “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “The Honeymooners,” “Bewitched” and “The Fantastic Four.” To make matters worse, “Wedding Crashers” was the only flick in the top 10 grossing films of the year that wasn’t a remake, sequel or adaptation.

When the only significantly profitable film of the year based on an original idea is Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson sneaking into weddings to get laid, that’s a major crisis in cinema.

And if you think remakes are “soooo 2005,” you’re going to be pretty disappointed with the new year’s lineup. Remakes on the 2006 horizon include “The Wicker Man,” “Oldboy,” “Revenge of the Nerds,” “Pink Panther” and my personal least-favorite concept for a remake, “The Omen.” Maybe the appeal of an “Omen” remake is lost on me, but I found the 1976 original to be adequately frightening and not in any need of rehashing. Hollywood executives begged to differ, apparently.

There’s also a slew of adaptations

preparing to muck up our theater screens, including “Miami Vice,” which is being directed by Michael Mann (and features Colin Farrel sporting the most ridiculous mustache I’ve ever seen).

You know, it wasn’t too long ago that Mann was making good films (anyone remember “Heat” or last year’s “Collateral”?), so why did he suddenly decide to involve himself with a “Miami Vice” film? Oh, right - it’s because he was the producer of the TV show for like six years. It’s like everyone in Hollywood is playing a giant practical joke on the theater-going public.

And we’re all falling for it.

The 2005 remakes together grossed nearly $1.2 billion at the box-office, and that’s not including the millions they’ll earn from rentals and DVD sales. The stats are there – remakes garner big bucks and the film industry knows it. No film is safe – disturbing news has reached my ears of a potential “Night of the Living Dead” remake … in 3-D. Until these things start flopping at the theater, there’s no end to what they could do.

But where do we turn, if not to our own cinema? Well, we could look overseas for our creative-film needs. The British family film “Millions,” the Russian vampire flick “Nochnoi Dozor” (known as “Night Watch”

stateside), and the Chinese martial-arts comedy “Kung Fu Hustle” were three unique foreign films that really caught my eye this year.

“Millions” and “Kung Fu Hustle” are both readily available on DVD, but “Nochnoi Dozor” is currently only accessible on Russian import or through NetFlix. There’s also no word on a U.S. theater release, and the film has been repeatedly delayed even for a limited release in major American cities.

But, if you’re hankering for a good horrorthriller with interesting camerawork and cinematography, it’s worth adding it to your Netflix queue. Blind-buying the imported Russian DVD isn’t a bad idea, either (yes, it has English subtitles).

Sit tight, everyone. This fad will blow over eventually. But board up the windows and stock the basement with Top Ramen and canned goods. Eventually, Hollywood will regain its artistic integrity, but it might be a while until the barrage of crappy remakes ceases.

By the way, I hope you enjoyed my column – because in 15 years it’s going to be remade with the beautiful stars of the time, a bigger budget, CG special effects, a car chase, and a superior marketing strategy that will earn far more box-office winnings than its predecessor. It’ll be awesome.

27 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:11:33 PM

NEWS

A&E

G’day USA brings Australian students to ERHS

T he Cu C u r i oous us S Saav vage

Glen Wilgus coordinated a program allowing Emerald Ridge families host 23 Australian exchange students BY

NIKKI SEADER

REPORTER

Over the last month, Emerald Ridge has been experiencing a little taste of the land Down Under.

Fifty-five Australian students arrived in Washington State on the night of Jan. 6, 23 of which were hosted by Emerald Ridge families with the other 22 staying with Rogers families.

Special Education teacher Glen Wilgus organized the group of Australians to come to Washington through a program called G’day USA. Last year, through a friend involved in the program, he volunteered to find

nine Emerald Ridge host families for another high school that could not provide enough families and Wilgus became involved in the program once again this year. He and his wife hosted two girls.

G’day USA gives Australian students the ability to come to different states and experience their unique cultures and attributes.

On weekdays, the students toured the Space Needle, EMP, shopped at various malls, went skiing in the Cascade Mountains, and attended school with Emerald Ridge students.

The weekends were free time with families.

There are numerous differences when comparing Australia to the United States, but the Aussies agreed that apart from Americans driving on the wrong side of the road, the biggest difference is how big everything is.

“When we first got here we all thought the school was huge compared to our school,” 16-year-old Australian Lauren Walker said.

Australian schools have more grade levels,

but fewer students.

“We have 900 students from grades seven to 12,” Australian Christopher Oxenham said.

They also commented that our light switches are flipped in the opposite direction in order to be turned on and off, and that we have several more fast food restaurants.

“She thought it was weird how we actually had hamburgers in the house and how much we eat,” sophomore Samantha Campbell said of Australian student Lauren Jones.

Besides the fact that Emerald Ridge is a lot bigger, Walker said that another big difference is that at her school they are required to wear uniforms. Oxenham noted that they don’t have a school newspaper.

“We have a newsletter,” Oxenham said. “I just use it for drawing paper, though” On the other hand, the Aussies are similar to Americans in other ways. For example, they participate in a lot of the same sports.

In fact, from Dec. 27 through Dec. 29, an Australian basketball club came to South Hill to challenge the boys basketball team to a game.

“We play more fundamental than them,” senior Kyle Gossler said. “It was interesting to see how people from another country played. They play with the international rules.”

The Jaguars won the game, but basketball is not a very popular sport in Australia. The trip was mostly about experiencing a different culture for the Australians.

Some will be disappointed to hear that, with a few exceptions, the Australian students do not have kangaroos jumping around in their back and front yards and that Australians are not upside down all the time, and they never say, “put another shrimp on the barbee” because they call “shrimp” prawns.

“Kangaroos aren’t everywhere,” Oxenham said.

Pop machine future unsure Vending machines turned off during Jag sessions may be removed next year BY

school has been about the vending and pop machines staying at Emerald Ridge High School next year.

“

POP MACHINES ... ARE TURNED OFF TO ENCOURAGE PROMPT ATTENDANCE DURING JAG SESSIONS.

KIMBERLY ANGELLO

REPORTER

Since the beginning of the year, administration has been turning off the vending machines during Jag Time, due to students arriving late to class.

“Pop machines – really, all vending machines – are turned off to encourage prompt attendance during Jag sessions.” said Brian Lowney.

Another issue that has come up in many conversations around the

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The production of The Curious Savage started Thursday and runs through Saturday. Admission is $6, $5 with ASB. Photos clockwise from left: senior Amanda Pisetzner plays eccentric Ethel Savage, top right: as Mrs. Paddy, sophomore Melissa Stilman observes the action silently. Her character hasn’t spoken in over 20 years. Bottom right: This is sophomore TJ Hart’s first production at ERHS.

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“With regards to pop machines next year, there is a district committee examining healthy options throughout the district for food services. So, no real answer on pop machines next year, yet,” Lowney said.

Some say that it would be a

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volumeSIX.issueFOUR

”

— Prinicpal Brian Lowney

fair to some of the students to take away the only junk food they get.

If the school takes away the vending machines, the ASB will lose money. The vending machines bring a lot of money in for students, more then any other source in our school now.

The warnings on vending machines haven’t stopped students from spending.

Coupons:

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With Haley or Erin (call ahead and schedule) for February special with ASB card

26

Photo by Matt Click

Safer Drivers for the Future

really bad idea, because school is a place for junk food, and not for carrots and celery. It doesn’t seem

07 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:29:43 PM

SPORTS

OP/ED

Give AP the credit W

interim is quickly approaching and is striking fear into the hearts of Advanced Placement students everywhere.

The Winterim weeks are cool. It’s a chance to work in a completely project-based environment. It’s a chance for advisories to come together (or, in some unfortunate cases, grow apart).

Most of all, it’s an opportunity that that most people don’t get. And we appreciate it, especially as Puyallup and Rogers have tried to follow in our Winterim footsteps, but their attempts have paled in comparison.

But, as the second Science Week approaches, we are a little more hesitant than we have been in previous years.

Business Week was a program created outside of Emerald Ridge, and the real “eureka” moment came when someone decided to apply it to all 1,500 students in the ERHS body.

World Week is just a take off of the model United Nations theme with some variations of our own. They are both strong premises, and we feel that they have, for the most part, been executed well.

Science Week, on the other hand, seems like the “lumpy” cousin. It feels somewhat like Science Week’s creators needed a third week and, understanding that technology will play a huge role in our future, threw something together. The impression we get is that it is a little weaker at the seams than its predecessors. From teachers and students who took part in the previous Science Week, we know that there were a few bumps along the way. And based on what we’ve heard so far, this year’s week won’t be much different.

But our concerns aren’t based on what we’ve heard about science week. We had heard horror stories about Business Week and World Week also, but they turned out fine. This trepidation is based on some recent developments related to Science Week credit.

In a year where approximately 500 of our about 1,500 students are taking Advanced Placement classes; in a

year where teachers and administration pushed for a raise in Advanced Placement enrollment; and in a year where Advanced Placement enrollment did rise an exceptional 30 percent; it has been announced that students won’t be able to put the five percent earned from Science Week toward their AP classes. As previously stated, we like the Winterim weeks, both in idea and in actuality, but we are afraid that this AP issue might end up being the nail in an already weak week’s coffin.

The national AP audit is the reason for this change. The AP audit is an attempt to create a single AP standard across the nation. It is supposed to make sure the material covered in an AP class is worthy of college credit – and, evidently, the AP teachers and administration feel that Science Week won’t make the grade.

We find this position slightly hypocritical considering that we’re constantly bombarded with the message that Science Week is an educational experience worthy of everyone.

We know that this decision involves an AP bureaucracy out of the control of Emerald Ridge teachers and administration, but we can’t help dreading the possible ramifications of this action.

If a student swimming laps around their non-AP required classes and only barely treading water in the usual AP drudgery, what good is it going to do for them to eclipse the 100 percent mark in a perfectly simple class when they could use the boost to keep afloat and hopeful?

Let us use the points in our lowest-scoring class, AP or not; let us use them in AP, but cut in half; heck, give us a $10 gift certificate to Subway – at least that’s something that we can use.

This decision, whatever its cause, has the potential to drastically harm Science Week’s prospective success. It has effectively alienated a third of the student body. We don’t want Science Week to fail, but are afraid that now it might.

Editorials are composed by, and are the opinion of, the JagWire editorial board

Swimmers dive into trouble

STAFF EDITORIAL BOARD ....................................................MATT CLICK .....................................................................................KAITLYN GOLDEN .................................................................................................NICK KAJCA ................................................................................ KATINA MATHIESON ............................................................................................. TYLER QUINN COPY MANAGER ..................................................JESSICA RITCHIE PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR .....................................KASSIE GREEN BUSINESS MANAGERS.............................................. LISSY BRYAN ............................................................................................ DARRIN JONES CIRCULATION MANAGER ..............................JENN WHITHAM REPORTERS ......................................................KIMBERLY ANGELLO .................................................................................... KIRSTEN BABAUTA ......................................................................................... MIMI CAGAITAN ..................................................................................... DANNY CANHAM ........................................................................................MARILYN DIXON ............................................................................... BRITTANY ESPINOZA ........................................................................................CHRISTY FOSTER ...................................................................................BRITTANY GENTILE ...................................................................................................LORI JONES ....................................................................................... THAYER LAFLEUR .......................................................................................... ROBERT MCRILL ....................................................................MARISSA MOODENBAUGH .....................................................................................ELAINE RAYMOND ............................................................................... BRIAN SAMADUROFF ..............................................................................................NIKKI SEADER ..........................................................................................BRIE SHANNON .................................................................................................. KELLI SKEIM ............................................................................................LAUREN SMITH ................................................................................................ ALEX STOBIE .......................................................................... VERONICA TORNQUIST ....................................................................................... ASHLEY VINCENT ............................................................................................ KAYTI WEAVER .................................................................................... MICHAEL WHELAN ................................................................................SHAILEY WILKINSON .................................................................................GRANT WOODRUFF .............................................................................................SUMMER YATES ADVISER..............................................................................JEFF NUSSER

Swim team sends six to districts but remains disappointed in performance BY

Despite their hard efforts and occasional two-a-day practices, the boys swim team is still falling short. Having goals of sending over six individuals to districts and winning more than one meet (against Beamer), they have only accomplished one of them.

“We’re sending more people to districts than ever before. That’s something we said we wanted to do this year. Last year we only had three people qualify for individual events,” senior Orval McKenzie said.

Along with two relays, the 200-yard freestyle and the 400 free, senior Ty O’Bryant is swimming the 100 butterfly; McKenzie swims the 100 breaststroke; junior Robin Stoyles qualified in 500 free, the 200 individual medley and the 200 free; sophomore Steven Washburn in the 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley; Tyler Kain swimming 100 breast; junior Nick Humlick qualified in the 50 free; junior Trevor Clark in the 100 back and sophomore Ryan Renggli, who

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Strong-minded bowling team continues to strike

Corrections

Bowling girls take win second in the SPSL and hope to take their game to the state tournament

In Issue 3, the story, “Boys basketball starts slow; hopes for improvement,” contained errors. The story should have said that the Jaguar basketball team defeated the Rogers Rams on Feb. 1, 2003, and that the Jaguars played a playoff game against the Decatur Gators at Auburn-Riverside on Feb. 12, 2002. JagWire regrets these errors.

BY

After a tough start in its inaugural season, the bowling team has since overcome many obstacles and taking second in the SPSL and league tournament.

Courtney Crane achieved a total score of 462 during the league tournament. Rhiannon Hughes scored a total of 433, and Jessica Dolan finished with an impressive score of 570.

The final team score was 2891, right behind Graham-Kapowsin who scored 2896. This achievement places the team in first seed for the districts tournament. The top four teams from the league tournament advance to districts. Following districts, the top seven teams from there will move on to the state tournament.

The team won a match against Spanaway Lake on Jan. 19, 16.5 to 6.5. Also, the girls pulled out of close matches against Yelm on Dec.20, 14 to 9, and Graham-Kapowsin on Jan. 10, 17 to 6. With losses to Puyallup and Curtis, the girls still maintained great attitudes.

LETTERS POLICY JagWire will accept unsolicited copy from students, staff and community members. Only signed and dated letters with address and phone number from community members, or grade level from students, will be accepted. Letters should be limited to 300 words and will be published as space is available.

All letters are the sole opinion of the writers, and the staff reserves the right to edit any letter for space and/or clarity.

We will not publish material that may substantially disrupt the school process.

Letters to the editor may be submitted by mailing them to

JagWire c/o Emerald Ridge High School, or by e-mailing them to jdnusser@puyallup.k12.wa.us.

ADVERTISING MISSION The JagWire publication staff accepts advertisements for most products and services available to the public. However, the staff reserves the right to reject, edit or cancel any advertisement that the staff deems offensive in light of normal public standards.

Ads identifying students as athletes by photo or text (WIAA 18.20.0 and 18.20.1) also will not be accepted. The staff will not accept advertising for material that is racist, sexist or illegal for high school students.

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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08

Photo by Lori Jones

EDITORIAL MISSION As an open public forum for student expression, JagWire seeks to cover a wide spectrum of relevant and overlooked topics, while upholding the highest of journalistic standards.

JagWire also serves as a communication link between Emerald Ridge High School and its surrounding community. This year, the publication hopes to build upon the precedents previously set by attempting to give voice to all Emerald Ridge students

in a manner that is fair, balanced and accurate.

BRITTANY ESPINOZA

REPORTER

THE FINE PRINT Emerald Ridge High School 12405 184th St. E. South Hill, WA 98374 253-435-6300

LORI JONES

REPORTER

has qualified for districts in the 100 butterfly and 100 free and for state in the 500 free, 200 individual medley, 100 back and 200 free.

Even having accomplished their goal of sending eight individuals to districts, they boys weren’t done fighting. They still needed to beat more than one other team. In their meet against Rogers, they got the closest they ever have to doing that with a final score of 96-89.

“This season’s gone all right.

There are a lot of district qualifiers and Ryan, who is only a sophomore and is going to state,” senior Evan Ikerd said.

“I’d still like to make districts in the 100 backstroke.”

Senior Ty O’Bryant competes the 100-yard butterfly race during the match against Beamer, which the Jaguars won.

There are a lot of things the dence,” senior Matt Vangunda said “We beat (Belixa) more,” O’Bryant said. team still needs to work on, With the non-qualifiers meet happening such as dedication. The fact that they are a Beamer and some of our new swimmers have really stepped it up.” today, the boys have one more chance to younger team just shows that they still have Confi dence isn’t the only thing the team make districts.

In just one week it’ll all be a lot of growing to do. Many of this year’s is lacking. over for the majority of them. Ryan Barker, team members have never swam competi“We need more self-discipline. I think Tyler Wells and Vangunda are a few who are tively before.

“I think we need to work on our confi- everyone needs to listen to Coach Raymond still working on qualifying for districts.

“We are having lots of fun and our team is doing great for being a first-year team,” coach Matt Mueller said.

Senior Jessica Dolan is very proud of her team and how far it’s come.

“I’m glad we are a new team because at the beginning of the season we were really separated,” Dolan said. “But

“

WE ARE HAVING LOTS OF FUN AND OUR TEAM IS DOING GREAT FOR BEING A FIRST-YEAR TEAM.

”

— Matt Mueller, coach

we’ve grown together and come a long way.”

In Mueller’s opinion, the girls have been performing well for their first year, not only as a new team but as a new sport, as well.

“Our whole team has improved,” Mueller said. “There are a few, the top seven or so, that have remained consistent

throughout the season, but there are a few players who have taken big strides in their performance.”

Practices consist of individual drills and working on strike shots, swings, and approaches. Each player has their own approach to the pins so the girls’ constantly put effort into improving themselves to be the best that they can be.

During the league and district tournaments, the Baker System is used for scoring, along with head-to-head competition. The Baker System is when each team selects five players to represent them and they compete against the opposing team’s five players. Then the final score for the entire team is the ending score. The Baker System is much more team oriented than regular scoring, which mostly focuses on the girls’ individual scoring.

The girls have met many goals and have accomplished a lot in the past few months.

Courtney Crane’s biggest achievement is one of the obvious: “I’m really proud of making varsity.”

Jessica Dolan has been bowling for a very long time and has also met many goals in all her years of bowling.

“My biggest personal accomplishment was when I bowled a 268 during Saturday League,” Dolan said. “Saturday League is an out of school league that I’ve been doing for 15 years, ever since I was three.”

25 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:12:14 PM

Ao t M

OP/ED

thlete f he onth

Seahawks, ER: Eerily similar I

n case you haven’t noticed yet, the Seattle Seahawks are in the Super Bowl.

It’s kind of a big deal.

OK, actually it is probably the biggest thing that has ever happened to the state of Washington. And as the days to the big game draw closer, the media attention surrounding the SeKaitlyn Golden ahawks continues to grow and grow.

As members of the media ourselves, we also began to take notice of the growing phenomenon that is the Seahawks … but probably in a different way than most of our larger press associates.

Here is what we noticed: There are of a number of eerie similarities between our very own sports programs Nick Kajca and the Seattle Seahawks. Now, I know you might be thinking that there are some slight differences from a 4A high school program and a member of the National Football League. And you are right. But you will find that the uncanny similarities vastly outweigh the differences. Let’s start out with some little things: • The Seahawks have green and white in their uniforms; green and white are also in our school colors. (Don’t worry we are just getting warmed up – they will get better.)

• Their biggest rival in the NFL is the St. Louis Rams. Our biggest rival in the SPSL is the Rogers Rams.

• The wrestling and girls golf teams were league champs … and so were the Seahawks.

• Their head coach, Mike Holmgren, has a mustache; our head football coach Kelly Susee has a mustache. (It can also be noted that coach Susee is a diehard Pittsburgh

When did you start gymnastics?

When I was doing dance at Suburban (Dance Studio), there was a gymnastics class that I started taking when I was 6.

I switched to the YMCA and tried out for the competitive team when I was in 4thgrade. I did that until 8th-grade. I joined the high school team in 9th-grade and have done it the last three years.

What are your goals for the season?

To make my routines harder so they’re worth more and I can get better scores.

What is your favorite event?

Beam-it always has been.

Who is your favorite pro athlete?

I don’t really know. Any Olympic gymnast, because you have to be strong and graceful at the same time.

Describe yourself in one word.

Exciting.

What has been your biggest accomplishment?

Making the competitive team because I was so excited.

24,09.indd 2-3

Steelers fan, which happens to be the Seahawks opponent in the Super Bowl.)

• Their star running back, Shaun Alexander was first-team all-league, and so was our star running back, Neko Doy. • Obviously we have cheerleaders and so do the Seahawks, but it gets better than that. They have a cheerleaders named Anna, Jennifer, and Shelly and we have sophomore Anna Anderson, junior Jennifer Newkirk, and junior Shellie Cox (close enough).

• The Seahawks play their home games at Qwest Field, which also happened to be the location of our senior ball last year.

• The Seahawk fans are considered to be some of the loudest and rowdiest fans in the league and our fans are without a doubt some of the loudest and rowdiest in the SPSL. • The volleyball team serves up big hits and so does the Seahawks’ defense.

• Also sticking with the volleyball and defensive themes, the Seahawks defensive coordinator is John Marshall and our star volleyball player is Kylie Marshall.

Be honest now, you are starting to get a little impressed aren’t you? You didn’t think we could go this long.

• The Seahawks constantly get disrespected and ignored by the national media. Our sports programs also do not always get the most attention and respect with the local newspapers.

• Their No. 1 receiver, Darrell Jackson, missed significant time this season due to injury and our No. 1 receiver Brent

“

Dammeier also missed significant time with injury.

• Our choir, cheerleading team, and dance team participated in fundraisers selling tee-shirts at last Sundays Seahawks game.

• Before his job here at Emerald Ridge, coach Susee was an assistant coach at Puyallup High School. In a playoff game, coach Susse’s Vikings played against Wilson High School and Seahawks star Marcus Trufant.

• And, finally, last season their was a ton of hype surrounding our football team. Many people predicted it would be the best season in school history and that the team had a shot at the playoffs and possibly state.

But the season ended up being a disappointment as the team did not even qualify for the playoffs. There was also a ton of hype surrounding the Seahawks last season. The team was predicted to have one of the best seasons in team history and make a run at the Super Bowl. But things ended up going badly and the team lost in the first round of the playoffs.

It is similarities like that which have us drawing the following conclusions: • Next season, our football team will follow in the Seahawks’ footsteps and play for the state championship.

• Also, Susee will replace a retired Holmgren as Seahawks head coach. The deciding factor will be their remarkably distinguished mustaches.

• And, our final conclusion from all of this remarkable information is that the Seahawks will defeat the Steelers in Super Bowl XL. Go Hawks!

THEIR HEAD COACH MIKE HOLMGREN HAS A MUSTACHE AND OUR HEAD FOOTBALL COACH KELLY SUSEE HAS A MUSTACHE

”

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Dear Editor:

J S

amie agdahl Photos by Ashley Vincent

As a former JagWire staff member, I am impressed with the work you are doing. Second place nationally is amazing. But there is always room for improvement. I think that the sports section of the paper can really lack sufficient and interesting info.

I was very deterred by the mistakes in the Basketball story. In the story the writer said that “no team in the history of this school has made the playoffs,” which turns out not to be true. In February of 2002 the team played in the playoffs.

Now this is only one mistake so it wouldn’t be that bad except this isn’t the only mistake

in the story. The writer also wrongfully said that the varsity team had never defeated the Rams before. They actually beat Rogers in February of 2003.

Most of the reporters do well, but sometime it seems like they don’t even talk to the team. Now I am not just talking about the Basketball story, even though it didn’t include any quotes.

I also think that many of the stories follow the same theme. “The team isn’t doing too well, but they are improving” or “but they are working hard” or my personal favorite “but they are having fun.” I am not saying these things aren’t true, but not many people want to read these stories over

and over again about a different sport. It is slightly dull and depressing to only hear the bad things about a sports season.

Reporters should talk to the team, find a more interesting angle, and try to make readers feel like the sports are at least interesting even if they aren’t doing well.

I do not see how the plain old, drab story of a failing team’s effort can possibly raise any one’s spirits. There is always something interesting even if it takes a little searching to find.

Talk to the players, the coaches, and maybe even the fans. Find something more worth reading, like the “Polo Shark” story in last issue. It talked about how the team

did, but also included the more interesting piece about an out of nowhere all-state goalie. That was fun to read. Even though Evan Ikerd has had a pool his whole life, contrary to the article, and he is anything but quiet when he plays. He actually yells, a great deal, while in the goal.

I hope too see some improvement in the sports section and I hope the JagWire continues to thrive. The JagWire is a wonderful establishment in our school that may sometimes be taken for granted. You know you are good, but I hope you can improve on these things, so the paper can be even better.

Robin Stoyles

09 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:25:24 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

Girls basketball struggling The team is a on a nine-game losing streak that has put an end to their playoff hopes BY

NICK KAJCA

EDITORIAL BOARD

LAUREN SMITH

REPORTER

1 coupon per customer for first

Tan: 1 month unlimited $13.99 Nails: $25 full set $13 fill Hair Cuts: $13.99 Perms, color, and up-do’s available Interested since age 6, sophomore Eric Gregory invests much time to his dream of flight.

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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main factors behind their losing streak. The team dropped games to Rogers, Thomas Jefferson, and Spanaway Lake, all of whom have league records below .500.

“Losing has made us fall apart,” Sas said. “Hopefully we can get back on the winning track.”

Losing so many games in a row can make it difficult to remain positive, but the Jags believe they have found some ways. One way would be to get a victory over cross-town rivals Rogers, whom they play tonight. Although the game counts as just one win, it means much more than that to beat a rival.

“It is always great to beat Rogers, because they are rivals,” Sas said.

Another positive is that the team has gotten solid production from their underclassmen. On a team that has only three seniors, this has definitely been a plus and has shined a bright light on next season.

“We have good production from our younger players and good experience,” Sas said.

Junior Cami Medlock dribbles the ball past a Thomas Jefferson defender.

10

Photo by Brittany Gentile

As Ernest Hemingway once said, “It is appearances, characteristics and performance that make a man love an airplane, and they, are what put emotion into one.”

Sophomore Eric Gregory has the same state of mind about flying as Hemingway did.

“I feel so free in the air,” Gregory said. “The sensation of being able to go wherever you want is overwhelming.”

When he was only 6 years old, he was taken by his grandmother to McChord Air Force Base to watch the planes.

“It was the most amazing thing I had ever seen,” Gregory said. “I was instantly hooked.”

With this new interest, Gregory immediately began to take private piloting lessons and dove into the wonder of flying.

Today, Gregory flies every chance he gets. Being only 15 years old, he has already flown seven different kinds of planes (Cessna 210, Turbo 206, Turbo 182, Turbo 172, Piper Cherokee 180, and Maule Mx-7) multiple times.

Gregory also is involved in the Civil Air Patrol, and performs many search and rescue missions for the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, and counter-drug missions for the Drug Enforcement Agency, as well as any local agencies.

“We were up in the Cascades a while back looking for a guy who was smuggling marijuana,” Gregory said. “When we finally found the plane, it was in the woods, and we went inside, there was marijuana everywhere. We couldn’t find the guy who was piloting it, so we called the police, and they eventually found him.”

Gregory also works in satellite training through the Satellite Digital Imagery System program.

“Basically what we do is use satellites to track earthquakes and tornadoes, and any other kind of natural disasters that are affecting the world,” Gregory said.

Although Gregory invests much of his time in flying, it does not take away from his performance in the classroom.

“He’s very motivated and driven to succeed in class,” aviation teacher Jeff Coleman said. ”When he can, he spends extra time to achieve his goals.”

This summer, Gregory plans to spend much of his time teaching piloting classes, and also at camps to further expand his knowledge in aviation.

He plans to attend a satellite training camp at Peterson’s airport in Colorado Springs, Colorado, also some flying encampments, and possibly some private piloting lessons.

The love Gregory shows for flying is not only admired by those around him, but the hard work he puts into it has made him a very strong pilot.

He has also been named the most qualified Communications Officer in the state because of his technological aircraft skills.

“It’s very rare at his age to find someone so sure about the direction they want to go in life, but he is absolutely positive,” Coleman said.

After high school, Gregory plans to attend Central Washington University, and get a minor in aviation and a major in history to broaden his horizons. When he finishes college, he plans to pursue a career in aviation as a commercial pilot for Alaska Airlines.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Eric can achieve any goal he sets for himself,” Coleman said. “With his drive and ambition, I believe he can become a great commercial pilot.”

photo By Shailey Wilkinson

BY

The girls basketball team has dribbled itself into a minefield that has left its players battered, bruised, and on a nine-game losing streak.

Unfortunately for the 3-11 Jags, the minefield that is the SPSL South does not end for another three weeks. But things were not always this bad for the Lady Jags.

Although the team did not exactly fly out of the gates, they began their season with a solid record of 3-3. But after a 51-23 win over Decatur on Dec. 20, the Jag’s season came to a screeching halt, and the team has not tasted a league victory since.

“This season has been tough,” coach Greg Farias said. “Our goal was to have a better record at this point of the season. We continue

to work hard but at the present time we cannot pull all the pieces together.”

With such a long time since their last win, it would seem like there might be a lot of blame to pass around and fingers to point, but that is not the case. The Jags believe their woes are team-related and not individual.

“Our defense continues to cause us problems,” Farias said. “We work very hard on the offensive side getting baskets but we give up points way too easy.”

The Jags have suffered tough defeats against the likes of league leaders Puyallup, Bethel, GrahamKapowsin, and Federal Way. The team was not upset about losing to the league’s top teams, and instead focused on winning the games they thought were capable of winning.

“We needed to win all of the games we should, and some others,” senior Stacey Sas said.

Unfortunately, the team has not been able to win the games they believed they were capable of, and that has been one of the

23 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:14:29 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

Boys strive to make playoffs

When Majia Thiel isn’t surrounded by computers, she spends her time in the great outdoors kayaking, hiking and volunteering to help those in need

With the season finally coming together, boys basketball hopes to battle its way to one of the five playoff spots available BY

BY

Maija Thiel may appear to be a teacher who just loves teaching computers and everything that goes along with them. However, this computer fanatic also has many other passions, including the great outdoors and lending a hand to those in need.

The San Juan Islands are her favorite destination for kayaking, but Thiel also can be found spending the day at the Nisqually River or American Lake when she finds the time.

One of her favorite parts about it is the paddling.

“It’s really fun once you get into a rhythm with your arms and keep going,” Thiel said.

Aside from kayaking she also is a big fan of hiking.

Her first time kayaking was in the San Juan Islands, where she got partnered up with a girl who couldn’t swim.

“She was so terrified every time we would hit a wave, that she would make us paddle really hard which made us get ahead of the group,” Thiel said. “I loved it though because I got to paddle more and faster.”

Her husband, Curtis Thiel, accompanies her in the outdoors, though kayaking is more her sport than his.

“We actually went kayaking in Canada together and we go

NICK KAJCA

EDITORIAL BOARD

On paper the boys basketball team does not look that impressive. Their 5-9 league record and eighth-place standing does not exactly scream playoff contender.

But looks can be deceiving.

With the playoffs looming only four weeks away, the Jags believe that they are finally starting to play the way they know they are capable of and are looking to go on a playoff run in the second half of the season.

“We are playing our best basketball of the year right now,” coach Bob Horton said. “The kids have a lot of confidence and it is all starting to click.”

Unfortunately, the team has a bit of an uphill battle staring them in the face. Although they are finally clicking, they still must win the majority of their remaining games if they want to make the playoffs. The top five teams in the league qualify for the playoffs and the Jags trail Decatur, Bethel and Rogers in the hunt for the final spot.

“In the beginning of the season we did not shoot the ball well. We are shooting the ball well and more consistently,” Horton said.

One problem the team has not fixed, however, is the problem of playing to their full potential the entire four quarters of the game.

“There have been several games we should have won but ended up losing,” senior Jordan Thaanum said.

Against Decatur, Bethel, and Puyallup, the team had the lead at halftime, but fell apart in the third quarter and ended up losing all three games. Not coincidentally, these are three of the top six teams in the league, which means that if the team could have held on for the win, their season might look substantially different.

The team believes that they were good enough to win those games, and is using that frustration to fuel them on in their quest for a playoff spot.

“We know that we have a chance, but we must continue to work hard and play as a team,” Thaanum said.

John Richardson, owner Bruce Tiley, owner

One thing the team has going for them is each other.

Despite the rocky starts and narrow losses, the team never pointed any fingers, and has remained a tight-knit group.

“All of the guys get along and like playing with each other,” Horton said.

It is a good thing the team gets along because they have put in a considerable amount of time in the gym this season with practices, summer league, and pick-up games.

“I think we are playing with a sense of confidence. All of our hard work last season and over the summer is paying off,” Horton said.

The team believes all of their hard work will be a key contributor in their late-season push towards the postseason, but in an unlikely way. In sports there is such a thing as a good loss, and the Jags believe that their Jan. 14 matchup with the Federal Way Eagles was exactly that.

“Federal Way was our best game of the year in terms of

team basketball,” Horton said.

The team was defeated by the Eagles, 85-75, but proved that they could compete with the league’s top teams (Federal Way is in second place). They also solved the issue of folding in the second half. In the game, the Jags were down at half time 51-35, but battled back in the third quarter, outscoring Federal Way 23-13, and narrowing the overall score to a much more manageable 64-58.

“We showed that we can play and if we actually come together we can make things happen,” senior Nathan Losch said.

Unfortunately, the team cannot afford any more good losses and must start converting their improvements into wins. But Horton is confident that his team is up to the challenge.

“They know the situation they’re in; they know the games to win,” he said.

Alex Weisser

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where Thiel worked full time prior to deciding to take on teaching. Hard @ Work Computers is a computer consulting company which helps small- to medium-sized businesses that cannot hire their own information technology staff.

Her original plan growing up was to become an author and write books.

“I never knew that I wanted to go into teaching at first.

Then there was the opportunity to teach something I love.

I always liked computers and this way I could share it with others,” Thiel said.

Her husband also encouraged her.

“She has the love and passion for young adults, and it’s hard to find technology instructors who have people skills which she has,” Curtis Thiel said.

Long before becoming a teacher, Maija Thiel’s first job ever was as a telemarketer for a carpet cleaning service.

“I hated that job so much. What I thought the job was, and what it really was, were two completely different things.

I ended up quitting after my first day,” Thiel said.

Being a new teacher this year and coming in with an advisory who has already been established was easier than she expected.

“The people in it are really great, I felt like I was invading their space at first, but they really just made it easy for all of us. They are just so kind to each other and allow me to be human just as they are human,” Thiel said.

This advisor has found ways of connecting with her students.

“Every month she brings a cake to celebrate the birthdays we have in that month in our advisory,” junior Kayla Savannah said.

She also helps students when they’re feeling down.

“Whenever you have a bad day, she somehow makes you smile,” junior Krystal Bjork said.

WISER WORM FARM

22

Photo by Kaitlyn Golden

gardenofedennursery@msn.com

Junior Torey Wambold searches for an open teammate in the game opposite Puyallup. The Jags led throughout the first half, but lost 56-49.

Photo by Ashley Vincent

1903 Shaw Road East Puyallup, WA 98372 (253) 845-7027 Fax (253) 845-7029

JENN WHITHAM

REPORTER

hiking up in Mount Rainier,” Thiel said.

“I absolutely love hiking, that’s probably my number one thing,” Thiel said. “I just like doing anything outdoors, things even like gardening. I just like being in the fresh air, with nature, it’s just so green and clean. It rejuvenates me.”

Thiel has had many opportunities to travel and has visited places such as Hong Kong and Japan. The visit to Japan was a summer-long student exchange program.

“I think that trip changed my view of traveling the most. It opened up my mind to the rest of the world,” Thiel said.

While in Hong Kong, she did volunteer work.

“I worked with a Vietnamese refugee camp there and also a heroine drug addict recovery program,” Thiel said.

She likes to shed light on those who aren’t recognized as much by others.

“I like to help groups within society which aren’t looked at maybe enough, even people such as single moms, or those whose needs aren’t met by the wider society, and just to help fight the discrimination directed towards some groups of people,” Thiel said.

Every year Thiel helps out in the Special Olympics summer state games. She has helped with assistant coaching and also chaperoning.

If given a million dollars she would help organizations around the world.

“I would find organizations that are helping other people and give to them,” Thiel said. She has always found herself needing to volunteer, she can’t help, but help others.

Thiel and her husband began their own computer business, Hard @ Work Computers,

Growing up, Majia Theil didn’t plan to be a teacher. Originally, she dreamed of becoming an author. However, her first job was working as a telemarketer for a cleaning company, which she quit after just one day.

11 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:24:21 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

SWIMMER EXTRAORDINAIRE

BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

EDITORIAL BOARD

BY

ASHLEY VINCENT

REPORTER

The average student scores around 150 on the PSAT which can serve as a good indication of how to prepare for future success on the SAT. Junior Jessie Roy went above and beyond simply getting ready for the SAT – the motivated junior scored 223 out of 240, putting her in the 99th percentile and giving her a leg up on scholarship opportunities.

“I took the test because if I didn’t, my mom would’ve killed me,” Roy said.

Every year sophomores and juniors sign up to take the PSAT. Some do it for the practice, others out of pure curiosity at their testing ability. Fewer still, such as Roy, are there for scholarship opportunities. Roy now is eligible for a number of scholarships through the National Merit Scholarship Program.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is a scholarship fund directly attained by juniors who score well on the PSAT. According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, out of the approximately 1.3 million students nationwide who take the test every year, 50,000 students with the highest scores are selected as National Merit Scholars. Approximately two-thirds of these students will qualify as Commended Students, and the remaining third as semifinalists. Commended Students are then eligible for further scholarship opportunities and a Letter of Commendation for outstanding academic promise. Semifinalists continue in the program and on to finalists, and from there are eligible for one of 8,200 scholarships available through the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Roy is dedicated and spends much of her time on her school work and other learning-inspired pursuits. She is most interested in science and even spent the summer working with microbiology at the Madigan Army Medical Center in the Department of Clinical Investigations.

“Biology is fun,” Roy said. “It is just a subject that is very interesting to me. Chemistry I do not like quite so much because I’m not very good at math, but I like how

predictable it is. For instance, with math, if you’re going to add two and two then you always get four, and in chemistry if you’re going to add water and hydrogen cyanide, you’re going to get this.

“Actually, you would probably get water and hydrogen cyanide, but you get the idea.”

After high school, Roy plans to take her love of science and become a biochemist. She is planning to take the SAT in April and is working her way through all the prep material she can find.

Along with her academic pursuits, Roy is involved in the Debate team.

“Debate is fun. I went into it because I’m not very good at talking in front of people and I just wanted to get better.

So I was going to practice and practice and get a lot better at talking to people because I know that’s something I need to know how to do, and then it was really fun,” Roy said.

Roy works hard towards her dreams and someday wishes to take her love of science and become a biochemist. She is excited for college, but like most her age doesn’t yet know where she wants to go. Roy has plans for her future and her score just may help her reach them.

12

Photo By Ashley Vincent

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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With exceptional talent and drive, sophomore Ryan Renggli has demonstrated his abilities as one of the best young swimmers in the area.

Despite 10 years of competitive swimming, Renggli has personal struggles to overcome.

Last summer, while in Hawaii for a swim meet, he punctured a hole in his lung.

“I hadn’t been certified to scuba dive and I dove in a little too far,” Renggli said. “I came back and right before my big sectional, I was in the car and felt like I was having a heart attack.”

What actually happened to Renggli is called a spontaneous pneumothorax – when there is a sudden collapse of the lung resulting from a tear in the lung tissue. Typically, this happens after strenuous activity, and thin males are at the greatest risk for one. This has caused difficulties in his swimming.

“It makes it extremely hard to go under water longer,” Renggli said.

Renggli began his swimming career at Emerald Ridge by making a name for himself in the pool. However, his scuba diving accident has come back to haunt him.

Photo by Kassie Green

By scoring a 223 out of 240 on the PSAT, junior Jessie Roy has posted one of the top scores in the country and qualified herself for several scholarships

Sophomore Ryan Renggli suffered a spontaneous pneumothorax last year due toscuba diving in Hawaii. Despite that, he has currently qualifed for state in four events and districts in six.

“My chest started to hurt in choir (a week and a half ago) and my girlfriend, Brittney, told me to go to the nurse,” Renggli said. “I said I was fine, but when I got to lunch it just got worse and worse. Finally, in Spanish, I caved and my friend Nate carried me down to the nurse.”

Renggli experienced a small pneumothorax in the same lung. Currently, the doctors are not sure why it happened.

“I might not be able to swim the rest of the season,” Renggli said. “But, hopefully, I’ll be back for districts and state.”

Renggli made his comeback in the Jan. 24 swim meet. Though he didn’t break any records, he put forth an excellent effort.

As a member of the Emerald Ridge team, he already has already demonstrated his talent by qualifying for districts in the 100-yard butterfly, 100 freestyle, and multiple relays, and state in the 500 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 individual medley, and 200 freestyle. So far, if Renggli has swam an event, he is either going to districts or state in it.

However, Renggli isn’t looking towards state.

He instead hopes to be there for his team.

“My goal for school swimming is just to

help my fellow swimmers out as much as I can,” Renggli said.

Renggli also swam club for many years, but quit just last week.

“There’s been so much to deal with in getting hurt,” Renggli said. “I mean, my lungs are vital to living, it’s really hard to go underwater longer, which is what wins races.

It is just so taxing on the body to swim for four to five hours a day.”

Renggli began swimming at the age of 4, when he took lessons at the Boys & Girls Club next to his house, because it sounded like fun. At about 5, he began swimming competitively.

“When I was younger, they took out the 6-and-under swim division, but when it was still there I held the record for the 50-meter backstroke, which was cool,” Renggli said.

Sophomore friend Jeff Paine feels that Renggli earned all the success he’s had.

“Ryan is a great swimmer because he tries really hard and he’s so motivated,” Paine said. “He deserves it.”

Despite his noticeable talent, Renggli feels that he is just the same as any other member of the team.

“I don’t feel like I’m special so I don’t want to be treated like I am,” Renggli said. “I’m a normal person.”

If Renggli sticks with swimming, he believes he should get some kind of college scholarship. However, college plans are not in the forefront of Renggli’s mind.

“Swimming is such a hard and rigorous sport,” Renggli said. “Sometimes it’s hard just to get in the water.

Also, it takes up so much time that there’s none left for anything else – that’s really hard.”

21 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:17:20 PM

SPORTS

Boys soccer coach resigns BY

BRIAN SAMADUROFF

REPORTER

Boys soccer coach Wayne Farris has resigned his position on the team, due to personal reasons.

“Farris sent out a letter to all of the team members telling them that he has resigned from his position due to family and personal reasons,” Dittus said.

Dittus gave him a three-day weekend to think it over and see if he really wanted to resign. He didn’t change his mind and continued to resign his position.

The position is yet to be filled and the season starts on Feb. 27.

But if there is no one to take the spot by today, the season will still go on as scheduled; only assistant coach, Moe Orcutt, will be in charge until a new coach is appointed.

According to Dittus, no team member has

“

come and complained or said anything about the coach’s departure.

Ideally, they are looking for a coach who works in the building,This will result in better relations with the players and students, because of easier access to their coach.

There already are three candidates for the position, one is English teacher David Rosdahl, who formerly coached at Rogers.

Dittus has not to announced the other two candidates until a further time.

Players seem to be taking the news of

We encounter it every day, and steadily, it continues to grow and expand its power over our lives.

From cell phones to laptops to iPods, technology is all around. In this issue, JagWire examines just how caught up in this web of technology the Emerald Ridge student body really is. Do computers help or hinder our education? Are they taking away from family life? Do they open up a world of possibilities, or open us up to new weaknesses?

Just how much do we rely on technology?

IT IS SAD TO HEAR ABOUT HIS LEAVING AND IT WAS PROBABLY A GOOD REASON FOR HIM TO MAKE THAT DECISION

”

— senior Tommy Ciocca

their coach’s departure well.

“It is sad to hear about his leaving and it was probably a good reason for him to make that decision,” senior Tommy Ciocca said.

Senior Sara Belvill performs her beam routine at the Auburn Riverside meet on Jan. 18.

SPSL reconfiguration finalized Gymnastics building year Final decisions leave SPSL divided into three eight-team leagues, with surprises in placement of schools BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

EDITORIAL BOARD

New coach in place causes much improvement while team sets goals high for next year BY

NIKKI SEADER

REPORTER

With Emerald Ridge being a fairly new school, it is only expected that it take a few years for the athletics programs to fall in place.

The gymnastic team has had a rough few years trying to figure out how the team should be run. This year; however, with a new coach, the team is improving at a rate that has never been seen.

“I think this year has been by far the best year, just because we have two new freshmen and a new coach that is a big influence,” junior Jamie Sagdahl said.

The team is also using this year as a building year and hopes to even better their scores next year.

“We have a lot of potential,” coach Bobbi Jones said. “With only three seniors, we have a very young team.”

This is Jones’ first year as an Emerald Ridge gymnastics coach. She moved here from PHS as assistant coach.

“She’s really nice, she’s a lot better than last year’s coach and she knows what she’s doing,” senior Sara Belvill said.

Jones wants to stay as coach as long as it stays fun.

“She’s a lot more experienced,” Sagdahl said.

This year, the Jags made it to second place in one of their meets, which is the best they have ever placed at a match.

“Our highest score is about 156, and Rogers, as an example, is in the 160’s so we are getting up there,” Jones said. “Our team goal for this year is 161.5.”

Rogers is known for their talented gymnastic team and was first in state last year.

At the all-city match coming up on Feb. 1 against Sumner, Puyallup, and Rogers, Emerald Ridge expects to take third or fourth.

“It might be pretty close between us and Sumner,” Sagdahl said.

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

20,13.indd 2-3

20

Photo by Ashley Vincent

Final decisions have been made regarding the SPSL reconfiguration for the 2006-2007 school year, which are ultimately different then what was originally proposed. The SPSL has been divided into three eight-team leagues, returning the division to the original plans, though there are some surprises in which schools are in each league.

Emerald Ridge plays in the SPSL South, which will be very similar to what was originally intended.

The 4A South division will consist of Emerald Ridge, Puyallup, Rogers, Bethel, GrahamKapowsin, Spanaway Lake, Curtis, and one Federal Way school. Beamer, Thomas Jefferson, Decatur, and Federal Way high schools all will be 4A, but it has not yet been determined which one will stay in the SPSL south.

Originally, Decatur, Federal Way, and Beamer planned on moving down into the 3A class, but both Beamer and Decatur received 4A classifications and Federal Way elected to opt up. Also, all the Auburn schools intended on being 4A, but after receiving 3A classifications, they opted to stay down.

The Auburn schools staying 3A will have the largest impact on the North. The 4A North league will consist of Kent-Meridian, Kentlake, Kentridge, Kentwood, Tahoma, and three of the four Federal Ways Schools.

The new 3A division will consist of Auburn, Auburn Riverside, Auburn Mountainview, Emunclaw, Sumner, White River, Bonney Lake, and Franklin Pierce.

Initially, the 4A North was supposed to consist of the three Auburn schools, the four Kent schools, and Tahoma.

These new classifications were brought on by the realignment of the state classifications.

The SPSL elected to be proactive to shifts that might occur by realigning and creating a new 3A league.

These changes will not go into effect until the 2006-2007 school year.

1/25/2006 10:21:46 PM

SPORTS

Second straight SPSL title clinched BY

n o i t a – 19 consecutive n i e c m league varsity wins Dot a Glan(haven’t lost since 2004) a – SPSL South championsRogers for the

MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

pensive class in the school,” said Gary Osborne, video productions and broadcast journalism teacher. “Most of it was purchased when the school started six years ago: Cameras, TV’s – like this,” he points to the large 46-inch flat screen TV in his main classroom that is used for displaying his PowerPoint presentations, clips of movies to analyze, and students’ work. “It’s expensive, but it’s better to spend a bit more and have it durable than to spend a little and have it break down.”

Many classes don’t just implement technology into their curriculum, but rely on them heavily to carry out their tasks.

“We try to mimic the (film) industries so that (students) know what it’s like in the real world,” Osborne said.

Newspaper and yearbook production are other classes that are entirely reliant on technology; the JagWire staff uses the 11 computers in its room for several tasks: Reporters use them for typing up stories and checking information on the Internet; designers use them for designing pages; photographers use them to upload pictures from the digital cameras; editors use them to monitor, follow-up on, and constantly edit and re-edit stories. A handy printer in the room itself provides designers easy access to their designed pages, which later are turned in for editing as well.

Chemistry teacher Doug Reis uses his equipment everyday.

“I use my laptop and ICS cart daily,” Reis said. “I like the ability to be able to find sites on the internet for class, especially things that are really visual.”

ASL teacher Kathy Underhill’s classes also depend on technology.

“I teach a visual language,” Underhill said. “(Using technology) is the only way to test and instruct without your voice. Students are used to being taught (by listening) – we don’t do that.”

She uses PowerPoint daily to display assignments, give tests, and to visually display what it is she’s asking without the use of words. Her students, in turn, use televisions, digital cameras and video cameras to record and monitor their signing. The technology in the ASL classroom is essential to the students learning process.

“Teaching is just easier and more exciting (with technology),” Underhill said.

Students’ access to technology needs to be vast; it’s where the future is heading.

“We live in a technology-based society. It’s in our houses, cars – when (students) learn, they learn about technology and will take the information with them,” Osborne said.

But although our society is already saturated in technology, Loveland believes that there is still more to learn.

“Our goal is for students to be successful with technology in the 21st century,” Loveland said. “We’re a 21st century school that’s for sure.”

second consecutive season – School record of most points scored in dual meet: 71 points against Bothell (set in Jan. 2006) – Only team to defeat the Jags in a dual match this season is Auburn (7-0 in North)

Above: In the final match against Rogers, senior Brandon Martin pinned senior Zach Hulse after one minute, 32 seconds. The match clinched the ERHS victory. Right: Senior Justin Timothy defeated Jeff Eaton, 8-4.

BY

14,19.indd 2-3

JENN WHITHAM

REPORTER

Photo by Kassie Green

Emerald Ridge is blessed with many innovative technological tools, doing well with keeping up with the times as it pertains to technology and its availability for students.

The school has computers, cameras, televisions, laptops, projectors, and other brand-new equipment that are more readily available compared to neighboring schools, and students, according to teachers, take it for granted. “(Students) don’t realize how much time goes into keeping (the equipment) up-to-date,” digital photography and yearbook teacher Jim Meyerhoff said. “I spend a week ahead of time (planning out the agenda for the classes). Look at (Network Technician Doug) Bragg – his whole job is keeping this school up and running. Students grew up with technology. They just see it as something to use.”

While dealing with numerous upgrades, system crashes, and other computer-related problems, the biggest peeve of Bragg is the vandalism of the computers at the school. “(There are) lots of broken mouses in project areas,” Bragg said. “I replace about five mouses a week. (There has been) lots of keyboard damage this year too. Students get the impression that, ‘If I break it, oh well. It’s not mine.’ ” Students should be aware of the importance and impact that technology has on the school.

“It’s better than anything I ever had at my high school,” said Lisa Loveland, digital photography and graphic design teacher. “Compared to other high schools that I’ve been at, students here are very blessed. The student-to-computer ratio is good.” The current ratio is three students for every one computer.

The cost of purchasing the equipment at the school itself is a hefty number that students need to be mindful of.

“The equipment itself costs about $600,000,” Director of Career and Technical Education Shelly Calligan said. “With all of the career pathway-related programs, teachers, computers, cameras, software, hardware … it comes between $800,000 to as high as a million.”

Creating a realistic production environment is essential to the education of those pursuing the video productions field, but the cost of such privilege is staggering.

“I have the most ex-

The Jag wrestlers are SPSL champs for the second consecutive year, once again spurred on by a close victory over previously undefeated Rogers.

The team also should be able to claim its second consecutive 10-0 SPSL dual meet record if matches versus Graham-Kapowsin (1-7) and Bethel (4-5), taking place after JagWire deadline, go well.

“We should win, but Bethel has some guys that match up pretty well with our guys, and Kapowsin is a brand new team,” coach Jim Meyerhoff said. “The boys know we still have a job to do, we just have to make sure we don’t overlook anyone.”

Senior captain Keith Schlecht feels the team is well equipped with the skills to be successful once again.

“I think we’re a better team than both those teams and we train harder and have more experience,” senior captain Keith Schlecht said.

The match at Rogers on Jan. 13 was perhaps the biggest obstacle to the Jags continuing their SPSL winning streak, which now stands at 19 matches.

In a gym crammed with Jags and Rams, the match started well with Emerald Ridge winning four of the first five matches. Senior T.J. Smith, wrestling at 215 pounds, pinned

his opponent in the second round. Sophomore Bryce Horey and senior Nick Webster, each wrestling a weight class lower than usual, won their matches at 103 and 112, respectively, by pin in the first round.

Rogers methodically chipped away and eventually took the lead, winning six of the following seven matches, giving the Rams a 28-24 advantage.

A crucial match followed, one that could have ended it for the Jaguars. With six seconds left in the third round – and just seconds after tying the match on a stalling call on Rogers wrestler Joe Temus – senior Jordon Smith scored the decisive point with an escape to win the match, 3-2, bringing the overall team score to 28-27, Rogers.

The Jaguars finished off the night when ERHS senior Brandon Martin quickly pinned senior Zach Hulse in the first round. During the match, Hulse struck three times for a takedown, and all three times Martin overpowered him and placed him on his back for a nearfall, the third time resulting in the pin.

Jaguar fans jumped in the air as the Rams side fell silent. After the teams finished shaking hands, the ERHS students fled the bleachers and stomped onto the mat in celebration.

In the end, some Jags were not so surprised by the 33-28 victory. Junior captain Kevin Wills was confident going into the last two matches.

“I knew Jordon and Brandon would get

the job done,” Wills said.

Martin, wrestling only his second varsity match ever, was expecting to pin his opponent, just not that quickly. “(Coach Jim) Meyerhoff kept telling me I was going to pin him, but he told me to expect to go six minutes,” Martin said.

The Jags claimed another victory earlier in the week during their match against Puyallup, which also held an undefeated record.

They had little doubt before the match of what the outcome would be.

“Even though we weren’t really supposed to, we were more focused on the Rogers match – we were more worried about it than the Puyallup one,” Wills said.

Six wrestlers won their matches by decision including Smith, Webster, senior Justin Timothy at 125, sophomore Gabe Weber at 130, and juniors Jade Anderson at 135 and Wills at 140.

Although the Jags held the lead, they clinched it in the final match when Schlecht, wrestling at 160, overcame his opponent with a pin in the first round at 1:59, winning it for the Jags, 34-24.

Earlier in the month, the Jaguars took on Curtis, winning 42-31. Four wrestlers took their matches by pins and six won by decisions.

This past Saturday, the Jags set a new team record with six wrestlers winning their

divisions while placing second in the Fifth Annual Jaguar Invitational Tournament held at ER on Jan. 21. Division winners were: Webster (112), Timothy (125), Schlecht (160), Smith (171), Weber (130), and Anderson (135).

BROWN WON’T RETURN THIS SEASON – In the midst of all this glory, junior Aaron Brown – who placed fourth in state last year at 171 pounds – will continue to stay out this season because of a knee injury.

“My doctor said he thinks it would be safer to wait nine months rather than six for me to recover,” Brown said.

Brown was not at all excited by the decision.

“I was really disappointed because I thought that I would be rejoining this season, and I had to miss the football season too,” Brown said.

He doesn’t think that his absences these past seasons will reflect on him next year in terms of college scholarship potential.

“I don’t think it will matter that much because I’m still working out and still training,” Brown said.

Schlecht feels Brown not participating this season has not affected the team negatively.

“He still comes to practice and trains.

He’s still part of the team, he’s not gone.

We just have to step up to fill in for him,” Schlecht said.

19 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:18:32 PM

1910– Talking motion pictures demonstrated 1922 – First 3-D movie is released 1925 – Mechanical television invented 1940 – Color television invented 1941 – First computer controlled by software invented 1946 – Microwave oven invented 1947 – Mobile phones first invented by AT&T 1967 – First handheld calculator invented 1970 – Floppy disk invented 1971 – VCR invented 1972 – Word processor invented 1979 – Cellular phones invented; walkman invented 1984 – CD-ROM invented; Apple Macintosh invented 1988 – Digital cellular phones invented 1995 – DVD (digital video disc) invented 2003 – iPod invented by Apple

BY

SUMMER YATES

COMMENTARY

The past several years have seen an explosion in Internet use by teenagers. Along with the growing online presence of adolescents, digital media has emerged that informs, entertains, educates and connects teens to one another. This “virtual mall” has become a place for teens to socialize with friends, do homework, listen to music, keep up with their Venezuelan pen-pal, window shop, and stay up-to-the-minute with the latest trends. We pretty much have the world at our fingertips.

Although I completely agree that the Internet is a vital necessity for education and becoming a valuable contributor to society, I can’t help but think we’re unintentionally setting ourselves up for harm.

Aside from the everyday “Internet coma” (a state of deep and often prolonged unconsciousness from surfing the internet for too long)

18,15.indd 2-3

that we warp ourselves into, I think we have forgotten that what we put online can be seen by anybody.

First, it may be that I’m old fashioned – or it may be that my mother has made me deathly paranoid of the unknown in a cyberspace environment – but I think that we’ve grown completely ignorant in our innocence to think beyond the miles of our seemingly untainted Puyallup.

It’s bad enough that 60 percent of our age bracket responds when confronted by strangers via Internet (according to Focus on the Family), but when I read that one in five teens has arranged to meet an online stranger, I was disturbed. Haven’t we all heard enough stories about that one night that one girl met that one guy and was brutally murdered? Now, clearly, I’m exaggerating, but are six out of ten people really naïve enough to think to themselves, “Hey! It’s totally Kelly Clarkson! I mean, she even has her picture up. Of course I’ll meet you in a dark alley to discuss advancements of my music career!”

I mean, when did our generation escalate from a/s/l (age/sex/location – which also really has no business being told to a complete stranger) to emails, phone numbers, and secret rendezvous? Are

we really that blasé to believe that nothing bad can come from a quick chat about our everyday life? In case you are unaware, there’s more than enough websites to find a person’s address, phone number, school and work, and all it takes is one slip of the finger for predators to find you.

I’m not trying to convince you that every person you encounter will be out with a vengeful hate to obliterate you (and your little dog too), but for goodness sake – watch your arse.

And don’t get me wrong; I, myself, enjoy the occasional net-surf and window shopping with Relient K streaming from my speakers. Things like myspace.com, xanga.com, and LiveJournal.com, are all well and good in theory, allowing teenagers the use of connecting and expressing via the Internet. But when a few creep-like people decide to go on a stalking spree of wam, bam, thank you ma’am, I think it would behoove most of us to think twice before we pour out our hearts, minds and angst to an unknown audience.

So have fun online – take advantage of the opportunities you have. Just don’t waste your life staring at a screen, and bear in mind that what you put online can be viewed by anyone on the Internet – don’t become a statistic.

BY

MIMI SISON

REPORTER

Most teens don’t like being told what to do, how to do it, or what to say and how to say it – especially if the one in command happens to be a close peer.

But if a person enjoys acting, and he’s acting for one of senior Ryan Freeborn’s movies, he would love it like so many of Freeborn’s friends do.

“It’s a lot of fun because Ryan’s really good in shooting and editing,” senior Lynn Iverson said. “People like to work with Ryan because they know the video is going to be good and they know it’s going to be worth it.”

Freeborn began his filmmaking career in the seventh grade, and while other people’s passions dissipate over time, it doesn’t seem like the passion and its possessor are sick of the other as far as anyone can see.

“I kind of discovered filmmaking haphazardly and I fell in love with it,” Freeborn said. “It’s something now that I hope to do for the rest of my life.”

The video productions room, with its numerous advanced technologies, is nothing short of paradise to his ever-conscious imagination and unending vision. From there, Ryan and his peers work together in producing the Jag TV News where he presides as an associate producer.

He praises the incredible people – along with the reliable equipment he works with – to no end.

“The best experience is when I make a movie. What I love about it is just being on the set with my friends, and the actors and the actresses,” Freeborn said The moments when they are all together, unified by the main goal of creating something special, is Ryan’s favorite part in the whole movie-making process Not only does he appreciate his friends, but also the school’s firstrate technological resources.

“We have really good computer systems at this school … and the kind of great equipment that you would find in any Hollywood studio,” Freeborn said.

His combined vigor and grit might just fling him as far as the movie capital of the world.

Ryan had known for a long time now what he wanted to do with his life and has done a remarkable job in preparing and honing his skills

for the future. He is hoping to attend either the University of Southern California or Chapman University, both located in California and among the top film schools in the country.

“I’ve strived to get good grades and take tough classes so I can get far in life,” Freeborn said. This young man has long admired Steven Spielberg, the filmmaking giant whom he hopes to someday emulate.

“I respect people like Steven Spielberg who have made movies like ‘Schindler’s List’ and ‘Munich’ that actually speak to suicidal problems and the common cause. In the perfect world, my future job would be to become a film director and have the power and influence to make the films I want. I really hope to make films with strong messages that address problems in our society,” Freeborn said.

Though he lives in a world that is far from perfect, Ryan’s chances of succeeding are heightened, nonetheless, by the support he gets from both family and friends.

“Everyone wants to say this but I think I have the best friends in the world,” Freeborn said. Oftentimes, his friends would sacrifice their weekends to go shoot videos with him, even staying up well into the night just to help him see his projects through.

“I think (their support) is just awesome, and I’m incredibly grateful for that,” Freeborn said.

As Ryan continues to stand behind the camera, directing, and telling people how to act and what to say, his parents are, in turn, standing behind him, ever-supportive despite the risks that come with their son’s passion.

“Going into film school is really risky. I might not get in, and once you get in, only the top two percent will ever make it anywhere in the industry,” Freeborn said.

Despite risks, Freeborn can count on his parents being there every step of the way. They know filmmaking is what their son loves to do.

And besides, he gets so busy, it keeps him out of trouble.

“I think (making films) keeps him out of trouble because his camera allows him to view things from a different perspective,” Ryan’s dad, George Freeborn, said.

He is very confident in his son’s ability to make a positive difference in the movie industry.

“Ryan is a very focused person and has very challenging goals, but has the drive to make those goals a reality,” Freeborn said.

1/25/2006 10:20:29 PM

BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN AND KASSIE GREEN

EDITORIAL BOARD AND PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Throughout the year, many computers at Emerald Ridge become infected with viruses, mainly because of students downloading music, games, videos and other applications, which can slow down affected computers or all network computers in general.

“We’ve had three or four instances (of computers) with several different types of viruses,” network technician Doug Bragg said. “Usually, when a computer gets a virus it gets several.” Although the ERHS network has Symantec virus protection, some viruses still get through.

After finding a computer with a virus, Bragg usually does a few hours of research about it to see how it will affect the computer and the best way to get rid of it.

He does this through the Symantec Anti-Virus Research Center (SARC). Typically, Bragg can download a program to get rid of the virus.

However, SARC doesn’t always work. During winter vacation, Symantec anti-virus software identified a nonexistent virus on Emerald Ridge computers.

“It was a valid virus, but something happened with Symantec that falsely identified us as having the virus,” Bragg said.

Bragg downloaded an application to remove

the alleged virus from the system, which should have taken only a couple of days to make the fix, but for unknown reasons, the problem was still present when students returned from winter break. The problem has since been fixed.

While Emerald Ridge has never suffered from any extreme viruses, other schools in the past have taken hits that have knocked out their entire system.

Because of its virus protection software, ER is not expected to develop any; however Principal Brian Lowney saw a virus knock down the entire server while working at Rogers High School.

While there is little set punishment for downloading unauthorized material, students rarely escape penalty. The student server gets scanned weekly for music, applications, and movies which slow the server down. Typically one of the technology teachers will check which accounts have excessive programs and will disable that student’s account. This happens to a couple of accounts a week.

“The multiple violators are the kids in technology classes,” video production teacher Gary Osborne said. “It usually has an impact on their grade.”

After an account has been disabled, students

BY

have to talk to an administrator to re-enable it. Normally, first time violators will just get a warning. Osborne said he often will delete unnecessary files without ever informing students.

“Usually we just watch what is going on in the classroom,” technology teacher Maija Thiel said. “The best way to prevent it is to keep an eye on what the kids are doing.”

Aside from downloading, students sharing login names is another technical difficulty. More often than not, students who share their accounts and passwords are never penalized. Yet, if caught, teachers and administrators can revoke accounts. Some concerns about account sharing include plagiarism and students doing inappropriate things on the computer, like deleting files off the server or downloading.

Bragg is most worried about students being forced to take responsibility for others actions.

“The biggest concern is that student A gives student B their account and password,” Bragg said. “A is responsible for anything that B does to the computer or on their account.”

Having technology can cause undue problems if students aren’t aware of the risks.

LISSY BRYAN

BUSINESS MANAGER

In junior high, students were beginning to get cell phones, and bringing their portable CD players to school. Now in high school, there is a competition to see who has the best camera phone, and whether or not they can play video on their I-pod.

Now, teachers are projecting exact pictures and, for fun, their hands on the overhead.

Technology in and outside of education is evolving at more than just a steady pace. The technical aspect of student life is hard to keep up with, but the effects that technology has at Emerald Ridge is influential in both positive and negative ways.

Class of 2005 alumnus, John Crosby, was asked to continue to be a part of the Emerald Ridge technology team and he now works with most of the

16,17.indd 2-3

school’s technology.

“Other than using technology at The Brick City Project, I work for the school doing sound, lighting and audio recording,” Crosby said.

Examples such as students getting jobs right out of high school in the technology field shows how important the use of technology in school can be.

Drama and American Studies teacher Steve Glass, uses technology in his classroom for students and the presentation of musicals and plays.

“Technology changes very, very fast,” Glass said.

With all of the recent improvements of technology moving so quickly before students’ eyes, it is important for schools to keep up with the newest trends and updates.

“I am pleased at the school’s advancement, because technology prepares students for what is in the real world,” Glass said. “Technology tremendously compounds the effect for learning.”

When students are as advanced with technology outside of school, they will have better knowledge of where the world is going. Whether in entertainment, communication or business careers, students these days will be the generation that truly makes a difference in how the world lives. It seems as if teenagers know more about the progression of technology than their parents, and sometimes more than teachers and administration.

Recently, two older women were in the city library trying to file for tax returns through the computer. One

women struggling talked of how she used to do her taxes by phone, but is now forced to use the computer because phone services are no longer offered.

The librarian then tried to calm her and help her use the program to file her taxes. Unfortunately, she too did not know how to use the internet. She consoled the woman by saying that she hated computers and did not know how to use them.

With some teenagers having jobs, the use of filing taxes is important to some and having grown up with the ability to use technology; teens would find this process easier than an older generation would.

“Technology increases the ability to create more technology,” Glass said.

In 1950, only 10 percent of people owned a television set, making them the technologically advanced Americans of their day.

Today, according to Nielsen Media research, 99 percent of Americans have at least one television set in their home, 54 percent of children have a television set in their room, 66 percent of people own a cell phone, and approximately 22 million people own an MP3 player.

These statistics continue to rise, as technology continues to invade everyday life.

Not many people think of the effects all of these new technical gadgets have on everyday life and families. Technology has become such a big part of everything that the conveniences it creates just seem to be making some daily lives lazier and more distant.

“Technology has affected my family a lot,” junior Kayla Gilbert said. “My mom used to have to come

*Taken from a survey sophomore, junior, and senior advisories.

downstairs if she needed me, but ever since we got our cell phones, she just calls me when she needs me. It’s been a positive effect because if I ever need her and didn’t want to get up, I could just call her.”

Computers are another way technology has hindered the activity of everyday life. Many teens today spend hours upon hours talking to their friends online and playing games rather than engaging in physical activity.

Sophomore Samantha Fikilini says she uses the computer most.

“You can go on and talk to your friends, play games, do homework, etc.” Fikilini said.

Technology is thought of most commonly as computers, projectors in the classroom, multiple televisions in the home, MP3 players, cell phones and digital cameras, to name a few. The fact is that technology consumes life in

a very obvious way. Most find this technological world a positive way to live, and a few find it negative, but junior Kyle Mikkelsen has his own views.

“I believe it isn’t really the new technology that affects my family most. It is as simple as the dishwasher, microwave, and cars.

They are all technology that makes our lives easier, I don’t know what I’d do without the microwave to make my corndogs after school,” Mikkelsen said.

One of the major positive affects that technology has had on Americans is being able to communicate with loved ones who are overseas. Communication by phone is possible, but not always an easy task. E-mail, while less personal, is fairly easily accessible by most active duty military.

Pamela Bates from Georgia, the wife of a sergeant in a field-artillery unit, created a Web site designed

BY SHAILEY WILKINSON REPORTER for families, home and at war, to correspond and to feel a little more connected. The Web site has attracted more than 30,000 people to communicate with loved ones thanks to Bates.

There are many more stories like this where families have stayed connected through technology, such as the Dilg family, whose 4-year-old twins Robert and Elizabeth Dilg can just sign online to view photos of their dad, and listen to recorded bedtime stories.

“It’s nice to be able to show them what daddy is doing over there so that it can really get into their heads,” said their mom, Lisa Dilg.

“Without this, they would not be able to understand it as well.”

As far as technology goes, it just depends on who is asked. Some say it keeps families together, other say it slowly separates them.

1/25/2006 10:19:41 PM

BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN AND KASSIE GREEN

EDITORIAL BOARD AND PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Throughout the year, many computers at Emerald Ridge become infected with viruses, mainly because of students downloading music, games, videos and other applications, which can slow down affected computers or all network computers in general.

“We’ve had three or four instances (of computers) with several different types of viruses,” network technician Doug Bragg said. “Usually, when a computer gets a virus it gets several.” Although the ERHS network has Symantec virus protection, some viruses still get through.

After finding a computer with a virus, Bragg usually does a few hours of research about it to see how it will affect the computer and the best way to get rid of it.

He does this through the Symantec Anti-Virus Research Center (SARC). Typically, Bragg can download a program to get rid of the virus.

However, SARC doesn’t always work. During winter vacation, Symantec anti-virus software identified a nonexistent virus on Emerald Ridge computers.

“It was a valid virus, but something happened with Symantec that falsely identified us as having the virus,” Bragg said.

Bragg downloaded an application to remove

the alleged virus from the system, which should have taken only a couple of days to make the fix, but for unknown reasons, the problem was still present when students returned from winter break. The problem has since been fixed.

While Emerald Ridge has never suffered from any extreme viruses, other schools in the past have taken hits that have knocked out their entire system.

Because of its virus protection software, ER is not expected to develop any; however Principal Brian Lowney saw a virus knock down the entire server while working at Rogers High School.

While there is little set punishment for downloading unauthorized material, students rarely escape penalty. The student server gets scanned weekly for music, applications, and movies which slow the server down. Typically one of the technology teachers will check which accounts have excessive programs and will disable that student’s account. This happens to a couple of accounts a week.

“The multiple violators are the kids in technology classes,” video production teacher Gary Osborne said. “It usually has an impact on their grade.”

After an account has been disabled, students

BY

have to talk to an administrator to re-enable it. Normally, first time violators will just get a warning. Osborne said he often will delete unnecessary files without ever informing students.

“Usually we just watch what is going on in the classroom,” technology teacher Maija Thiel said. “The best way to prevent it is to keep an eye on what the kids are doing.”

Aside from downloading, students sharing login names is another technical difficulty. More often than not, students who share their accounts and passwords are never penalized. Yet, if caught, teachers and administrators can revoke accounts. Some concerns about account sharing include plagiarism and students doing inappropriate things on the computer, like deleting files off the server or downloading.

Bragg is most worried about students being forced to take responsibility for others actions.

“The biggest concern is that student A gives student B their account and password,” Bragg said. “A is responsible for anything that B does to the computer or on their account.”

Having technology can cause undue problems if students aren’t aware of the risks.

LISSY BRYAN

BUSINESS MANAGER

In junior high, students were beginning to get cell phones, and bringing their portable CD players to school. Now in high school, there is a competition to see who has the best camera phone, and whether or not they can play video on their I-pod.

Now, teachers are projecting exact pictures and, for fun, their hands on the overhead.

Technology in and outside of education is evolving at more than just a steady pace. The technical aspect of student life is hard to keep up with, but the effects that technology has at Emerald Ridge is influential in both positive and negative ways.

Class of 2005 alumnus, John Crosby, was asked to continue to be a part of the Emerald Ridge technology team and he now works with most of the

16,17.indd 2-3

school’s technology.

“Other than using technology at The Brick City Project, I work for the school doing sound, lighting and audio recording,” Crosby said.

Examples such as students getting jobs right out of high school in the technology field shows how important the use of technology in school can be.

Drama and American Studies teacher Steve Glass, uses technology in his classroom for students and the presentation of musicals and plays.

“Technology changes very, very fast,” Glass said.

With all of the recent improvements of technology moving so quickly before students’ eyes, it is important for schools to keep up with the newest trends and updates.

“I am pleased at the school’s advancement, because technology prepares students for what is in the real world,” Glass said. “Technology tremendously compounds the effect for learning.”

When students are as advanced with technology outside of school, they will have better knowledge of where the world is going. Whether in entertainment, communication or business careers, students these days will be the generation that truly makes a difference in how the world lives. It seems as if teenagers know more about the progression of technology than their parents, and sometimes more than teachers and administration.

Recently, two older women were in the city library trying to file for tax returns through the computer. One

women struggling talked of how she used to do her taxes by phone, but is now forced to use the computer because phone services are no longer offered.

The librarian then tried to calm her and help her use the program to file her taxes. Unfortunately, she too did not know how to use the internet. She consoled the woman by saying that she hated computers and did not know how to use them.

With some teenagers having jobs, the use of filing taxes is important to some and having grown up with the ability to use technology; teens would find this process easier than an older generation would.

“Technology increases the ability to create more technology,” Glass said.

In 1950, only 10 percent of people owned a television set, making them the technologically advanced Americans of their day.

Today, according to Nielsen Media research, 99 percent of Americans have at least one television set in their home, 54 percent of children have a television set in their room, 66 percent of people own a cell phone, and approximately 22 million people own an MP3 player.

These statistics continue to rise, as technology continues to invade everyday life.

Not many people think of the effects all of these new technical gadgets have on everyday life and families. Technology has become such a big part of everything that the conveniences it creates just seem to be making some daily lives lazier and more distant.

“Technology has affected my family a lot,” junior Kayla Gilbert said. “My mom used to have to come

*Taken from a survey sophomore, junior, and senior advisories.

downstairs if she needed me, but ever since we got our cell phones, she just calls me when she needs me. It’s been a positive effect because if I ever need her and didn’t want to get up, I could just call her.”

Computers are another way technology has hindered the activity of everyday life. Many teens today spend hours upon hours talking to their friends online and playing games rather than engaging in physical activity.

Sophomore Samantha Fikilini says she uses the computer most.

“You can go on and talk to your friends, play games, do homework, etc.” Fikilini said.

Technology is thought of most commonly as computers, projectors in the classroom, multiple televisions in the home, MP3 players, cell phones and digital cameras, to name a few. The fact is that technology consumes life in

a very obvious way. Most find this technological world a positive way to live, and a few find it negative, but junior Kyle Mikkelsen has his own views.

“I believe it isn’t really the new technology that affects my family most. It is as simple as the dishwasher, microwave, and cars.

They are all technology that makes our lives easier, I don’t know what I’d do without the microwave to make my corndogs after school,” Mikkelsen said.

One of the major positive affects that technology has had on Americans is being able to communicate with loved ones who are overseas. Communication by phone is possible, but not always an easy task. E-mail, while less personal, is fairly easily accessible by most active duty military.

Pamela Bates from Georgia, the wife of a sergeant in a field-artillery unit, created a Web site designed

BY SHAILEY WILKINSON REPORTER for families, home and at war, to correspond and to feel a little more connected. The Web site has attracted more than 30,000 people to communicate with loved ones thanks to Bates.

There are many more stories like this where families have stayed connected through technology, such as the Dilg family, whose 4-year-old twins Robert and Elizabeth Dilg can just sign online to view photos of their dad, and listen to recorded bedtime stories.

“It’s nice to be able to show them what daddy is doing over there so that it can really get into their heads,” said their mom, Lisa Dilg.

“Without this, they would not be able to understand it as well.”

As far as technology goes, it just depends on who is asked. Some say it keeps families together, other say it slowly separates them.

1/25/2006 10:19:41 PM

1910– Talking motion pictures demonstrated 1922 – First 3-D movie is released 1925 – Mechanical television invented 1940 – Color television invented 1941 – First computer controlled by software invented 1946 – Microwave oven invented 1947 – Mobile phones first invented by AT&T 1967 – First handheld calculator invented 1970 – Floppy disk invented 1971 – VCR invented 1972 – Word processor invented 1979 – Cellular phones invented; walkman invented 1984 – CD-ROM invented; Apple Macintosh invented 1988 – Digital cellular phones invented 1995 – DVD (digital video disc) invented 2003 – iPod invented by Apple

BY

SUMMER YATES

COMMENTARY

The past several years have seen an explosion in Internet use by teenagers. Along with the growing online presence of adolescents, digital media has emerged that informs, entertains, educates and connects teens to one another. This “virtual mall” has become a place for teens to socialize with friends, do homework, listen to music, keep up with their Venezuelan pen-pal, window shop, and stay up-to-the-minute with the latest trends. We pretty much have the world at our fingertips.

Although I completely agree that the Internet is a vital necessity for education and becoming a valuable contributor to society, I can’t help but think we’re unintentionally setting ourselves up for harm.

Aside from the everyday “Internet coma” (a state of deep and often prolonged unconsciousness from surfing the internet for too long)

18,15.indd 2-3

that we warp ourselves into, I think we have forgotten that what we put online can be seen by anybody.

First, it may be that I’m old fashioned – or it may be that my mother has made me deathly paranoid of the unknown in a cyberspace environment – but I think that we’ve grown completely ignorant in our innocence to think beyond the miles of our seemingly untainted Puyallup.

It’s bad enough that 60 percent of our age bracket responds when confronted by strangers via Internet (according to Focus on the Family), but when I read that one in five teens has arranged to meet an online stranger, I was disturbed. Haven’t we all heard enough stories about that one night that one girl met that one guy and was brutally murdered? Now, clearly, I’m exaggerating, but are six out of ten people really naïve enough to think to themselves, “Hey! It’s totally Kelly Clarkson! I mean, she even has her picture up. Of course I’ll meet you in a dark alley to discuss advancements of my music career!”

I mean, when did our generation escalate from a/s/l (age/sex/location – which also really has no business being told to a complete stranger) to emails, phone numbers, and secret rendezvous? Are

we really that blasé to believe that nothing bad can come from a quick chat about our everyday life? In case you are unaware, there’s more than enough websites to find a person’s address, phone number, school and work, and all it takes is one slip of the finger for predators to find you.

I’m not trying to convince you that every person you encounter will be out with a vengeful hate to obliterate you (and your little dog too), but for goodness sake – watch your arse.

And don’t get me wrong; I, myself, enjoy the occasional net-surf and window shopping with Relient K streaming from my speakers. Things like myspace.com, xanga.com, and LiveJournal.com, are all well and good in theory, allowing teenagers the use of connecting and expressing via the Internet. But when a few creep-like people decide to go on a stalking spree of wam, bam, thank you ma’am, I think it would behoove most of us to think twice before we pour out our hearts, minds and angst to an unknown audience.

So have fun online – take advantage of the opportunities you have. Just don’t waste your life staring at a screen, and bear in mind that what you put online can be viewed by anyone on the Internet – don’t become a statistic.

BY

MIMI SISON

REPORTER

Most teens don’t like being told what to do, how to do it, or what to say and how to say it – especially if the one in command happens to be a close peer.

But if a person enjoys acting, and he’s acting for one of senior Ryan Freeborn’s movies, he would love it like so many of Freeborn’s friends do.

“It’s a lot of fun because Ryan’s really good in shooting and editing,” senior Lynn Iverson said. “People like to work with Ryan because they know the video is going to be good and they know it’s going to be worth it.”

Freeborn began his filmmaking career in the seventh grade, and while other people’s passions dissipate over time, it doesn’t seem like the passion and its possessor are sick of the other as far as anyone can see.

“I kind of discovered filmmaking haphazardly and I fell in love with it,” Freeborn said. “It’s something now that I hope to do for the rest of my life.”

The video productions room, with its numerous advanced technologies, is nothing short of paradise to his ever-conscious imagination and unending vision. From there, Ryan and his peers work together in producing the Jag TV News where he presides as an associate producer.

He praises the incredible people – along with the reliable equipment he works with – to no end.

“The best experience is when I make a movie. What I love about it is just being on the set with my friends, and the actors and the actresses,” Freeborn said The moments when they are all together, unified by the main goal of creating something special, is Ryan’s favorite part in the whole movie-making process Not only does he appreciate his friends, but also the school’s firstrate technological resources.

“We have really good computer systems at this school … and the kind of great equipment that you would find in any Hollywood studio,” Freeborn said.

His combined vigor and grit might just fling him as far as the movie capital of the world.

Ryan had known for a long time now what he wanted to do with his life and has done a remarkable job in preparing and honing his skills

for the future. He is hoping to attend either the University of Southern California or Chapman University, both located in California and among the top film schools in the country.

“I’ve strived to get good grades and take tough classes so I can get far in life,” Freeborn said. This young man has long admired Steven Spielberg, the filmmaking giant whom he hopes to someday emulate.

“I respect people like Steven Spielberg who have made movies like ‘Schindler’s List’ and ‘Munich’ that actually speak to suicidal problems and the common cause. In the perfect world, my future job would be to become a film director and have the power and influence to make the films I want. I really hope to make films with strong messages that address problems in our society,” Freeborn said.

Though he lives in a world that is far from perfect, Ryan’s chances of succeeding are heightened, nonetheless, by the support he gets from both family and friends.

“Everyone wants to say this but I think I have the best friends in the world,” Freeborn said. Oftentimes, his friends would sacrifice their weekends to go shoot videos with him, even staying up well into the night just to help him see his projects through.

“I think (their support) is just awesome, and I’m incredibly grateful for that,” Freeborn said.

As Ryan continues to stand behind the camera, directing, and telling people how to act and what to say, his parents are, in turn, standing behind him, ever-supportive despite the risks that come with their son’s passion.

“Going into film school is really risky. I might not get in, and once you get in, only the top two percent will ever make it anywhere in the industry,” Freeborn said.

Despite risks, Freeborn can count on his parents being there every step of the way. They know filmmaking is what their son loves to do.

And besides, he gets so busy, it keeps him out of trouble.

“I think (making films) keeps him out of trouble because his camera allows him to view things from a different perspective,” Ryan’s dad, George Freeborn, said.

He is very confident in his son’s ability to make a positive difference in the movie industry.

“Ryan is a very focused person and has very challenging goals, but has the drive to make those goals a reality,” Freeborn said.

1/25/2006 10:20:29 PM

SPORTS

Second straight SPSL title clinched BY

n o i t a – 19 consecutive n i e c m league varsity wins Dot a Glan(haven’t lost since 2004) a – SPSL South championsRogers for the

MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

pensive class in the school,” said Gary Osborne, video productions and broadcast journalism teacher. “Most of it was purchased when the school started six years ago: Cameras, TV’s – like this,” he points to the large 46-inch flat screen TV in his main classroom that is used for displaying his PowerPoint presentations, clips of movies to analyze, and students’ work. “It’s expensive, but it’s better to spend a bit more and have it durable than to spend a little and have it break down.”

Many classes don’t just implement technology into their curriculum, but rely on them heavily to carry out their tasks.

“We try to mimic the (film) industries so that (students) know what it’s like in the real world,” Osborne said.

Newspaper and yearbook production are other classes that are entirely reliant on technology; the JagWire staff uses the 11 computers in its room for several tasks: Reporters use them for typing up stories and checking information on the Internet; designers use them for designing pages; photographers use them to upload pictures from the digital cameras; editors use them to monitor, follow-up on, and constantly edit and re-edit stories. A handy printer in the room itself provides designers easy access to their designed pages, which later are turned in for editing as well.

Chemistry teacher Doug Reis uses his equipment everyday.

“I use my laptop and ICS cart daily,” Reis said. “I like the ability to be able to find sites on the internet for class, especially things that are really visual.”

ASL teacher Kathy Underhill’s classes also depend on technology.

“I teach a visual language,” Underhill said. “(Using technology) is the only way to test and instruct without your voice. Students are used to being taught (by listening) – we don’t do that.”

She uses PowerPoint daily to display assignments, give tests, and to visually display what it is she’s asking without the use of words. Her students, in turn, use televisions, digital cameras and video cameras to record and monitor their signing. The technology in the ASL classroom is essential to the students learning process.

“Teaching is just easier and more exciting (with technology),” Underhill said.

Students’ access to technology needs to be vast; it’s where the future is heading.

“We live in a technology-based society. It’s in our houses, cars – when (students) learn, they learn about technology and will take the information with them,” Osborne said.

But although our society is already saturated in technology, Loveland believes that there is still more to learn.

“Our goal is for students to be successful with technology in the 21st century,” Loveland said. “We’re a 21st century school that’s for sure.”

second consecutive season – School record of most points scored in dual meet: 71 points against Bothell (set in Jan. 2006) – Only team to defeat the Jags in a dual match this season is Auburn (7-0 in North)

Above: In the final match against Rogers, senior Brandon Martin pinned senior Zach Hulse after one minute, 32 seconds. The match clinched the ERHS victory. Right: Senior Justin Timothy defeated Jeff Eaton, 8-4.

BY

14,19.indd 2-3

JENN WHITHAM

REPORTER

Photo by Kassie Green

Emerald Ridge is blessed with many innovative technological tools, doing well with keeping up with the times as it pertains to technology and its availability for students.

The school has computers, cameras, televisions, laptops, projectors, and other brand-new equipment that are more readily available compared to neighboring schools, and students, according to teachers, take it for granted. “(Students) don’t realize how much time goes into keeping (the equipment) up-to-date,” digital photography and yearbook teacher Jim Meyerhoff said. “I spend a week ahead of time (planning out the agenda for the classes). Look at (Network Technician Doug) Bragg – his whole job is keeping this school up and running. Students grew up with technology. They just see it as something to use.”

While dealing with numerous upgrades, system crashes, and other computer-related problems, the biggest peeve of Bragg is the vandalism of the computers at the school. “(There are) lots of broken mouses in project areas,” Bragg said. “I replace about five mouses a week. (There has been) lots of keyboard damage this year too. Students get the impression that, ‘If I break it, oh well. It’s not mine.’ ” Students should be aware of the importance and impact that technology has on the school.

“It’s better than anything I ever had at my high school,” said Lisa Loveland, digital photography and graphic design teacher. “Compared to other high schools that I’ve been at, students here are very blessed. The student-to-computer ratio is good.” The current ratio is three students for every one computer.

The cost of purchasing the equipment at the school itself is a hefty number that students need to be mindful of.

“The equipment itself costs about $600,000,” Director of Career and Technical Education Shelly Calligan said. “With all of the career pathway-related programs, teachers, computers, cameras, software, hardware … it comes between $800,000 to as high as a million.”

Creating a realistic production environment is essential to the education of those pursuing the video productions field, but the cost of such privilege is staggering.

“I have the most ex-

The Jag wrestlers are SPSL champs for the second consecutive year, once again spurred on by a close victory over previously undefeated Rogers.

The team also should be able to claim its second consecutive 10-0 SPSL dual meet record if matches versus Graham-Kapowsin (1-7) and Bethel (4-5), taking place after JagWire deadline, go well.

“We should win, but Bethel has some guys that match up pretty well with our guys, and Kapowsin is a brand new team,” coach Jim Meyerhoff said. “The boys know we still have a job to do, we just have to make sure we don’t overlook anyone.”

Senior captain Keith Schlecht feels the team is well equipped with the skills to be successful once again.

“I think we’re a better team than both those teams and we train harder and have more experience,” senior captain Keith Schlecht said.

The match at Rogers on Jan. 13 was perhaps the biggest obstacle to the Jags continuing their SPSL winning streak, which now stands at 19 matches.

In a gym crammed with Jags and Rams, the match started well with Emerald Ridge winning four of the first five matches. Senior T.J. Smith, wrestling at 215 pounds, pinned

his opponent in the second round. Sophomore Bryce Horey and senior Nick Webster, each wrestling a weight class lower than usual, won their matches at 103 and 112, respectively, by pin in the first round.

Rogers methodically chipped away and eventually took the lead, winning six of the following seven matches, giving the Rams a 28-24 advantage.

A crucial match followed, one that could have ended it for the Jaguars. With six seconds left in the third round – and just seconds after tying the match on a stalling call on Rogers wrestler Joe Temus – senior Jordon Smith scored the decisive point with an escape to win the match, 3-2, bringing the overall team score to 28-27, Rogers.

The Jaguars finished off the night when ERHS senior Brandon Martin quickly pinned senior Zach Hulse in the first round. During the match, Hulse struck three times for a takedown, and all three times Martin overpowered him and placed him on his back for a nearfall, the third time resulting in the pin.

Jaguar fans jumped in the air as the Rams side fell silent. After the teams finished shaking hands, the ERHS students fled the bleachers and stomped onto the mat in celebration.

In the end, some Jags were not so surprised by the 33-28 victory. Junior captain Kevin Wills was confident going into the last two matches.

“I knew Jordon and Brandon would get

the job done,” Wills said.

Martin, wrestling only his second varsity match ever, was expecting to pin his opponent, just not that quickly. “(Coach Jim) Meyerhoff kept telling me I was going to pin him, but he told me to expect to go six minutes,” Martin said.

The Jags claimed another victory earlier in the week during their match against Puyallup, which also held an undefeated record.

They had little doubt before the match of what the outcome would be.

“Even though we weren’t really supposed to, we were more focused on the Rogers match – we were more worried about it than the Puyallup one,” Wills said.

Six wrestlers won their matches by decision including Smith, Webster, senior Justin Timothy at 125, sophomore Gabe Weber at 130, and juniors Jade Anderson at 135 and Wills at 140.

Although the Jags held the lead, they clinched it in the final match when Schlecht, wrestling at 160, overcame his opponent with a pin in the first round at 1:59, winning it for the Jags, 34-24.

Earlier in the month, the Jaguars took on Curtis, winning 42-31. Four wrestlers took their matches by pins and six won by decisions.

This past Saturday, the Jags set a new team record with six wrestlers winning their

divisions while placing second in the Fifth Annual Jaguar Invitational Tournament held at ER on Jan. 21. Division winners were: Webster (112), Timothy (125), Schlecht (160), Smith (171), Weber (130), and Anderson (135).

BROWN WON’T RETURN THIS SEASON – In the midst of all this glory, junior Aaron Brown – who placed fourth in state last year at 171 pounds – will continue to stay out this season because of a knee injury.

“My doctor said he thinks it would be safer to wait nine months rather than six for me to recover,” Brown said.

Brown was not at all excited by the decision.

“I was really disappointed because I thought that I would be rejoining this season, and I had to miss the football season too,” Brown said.

He doesn’t think that his absences these past seasons will reflect on him next year in terms of college scholarship potential.

“I don’t think it will matter that much because I’m still working out and still training,” Brown said.

Schlecht feels Brown not participating this season has not affected the team negatively.

“He still comes to practice and trains.

He’s still part of the team, he’s not gone.

We just have to step up to fill in for him,” Schlecht said.

19 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:18:32 PM

SPORTS

Boys soccer coach resigns BY

BRIAN SAMADUROFF

REPORTER

Boys soccer coach Wayne Farris has resigned his position on the team, due to personal reasons.

“Farris sent out a letter to all of the team members telling them that he has resigned from his position due to family and personal reasons,” Dittus said.

Dittus gave him a three-day weekend to think it over and see if he really wanted to resign. He didn’t change his mind and continued to resign his position.

The position is yet to be filled and the season starts on Feb. 27.

But if there is no one to take the spot by today, the season will still go on as scheduled; only assistant coach, Moe Orcutt, will be in charge until a new coach is appointed.

According to Dittus, no team member has

“

come and complained or said anything about the coach’s departure.

Ideally, they are looking for a coach who works in the building,This will result in better relations with the players and students, because of easier access to their coach.

There already are three candidates for the position, one is English teacher David Rosdahl, who formerly coached at Rogers.

Dittus has not to announced the other two candidates until a further time.

Players seem to be taking the news of

We encounter it every day, and steadily, it continues to grow and expand its power over our lives.

From cell phones to laptops to iPods, technology is all around. In this issue, JagWire examines just how caught up in this web of technology the Emerald Ridge student body really is. Do computers help or hinder our education? Are they taking away from family life? Do they open up a world of possibilities, or open us up to new weaknesses?

Just how much do we rely on technology?

IT IS SAD TO HEAR ABOUT HIS LEAVING AND IT WAS PROBABLY A GOOD REASON FOR HIM TO MAKE THAT DECISION

”

— senior Tommy Ciocca

their coach’s departure well.

“It is sad to hear about his leaving and it was probably a good reason for him to make that decision,” senior Tommy Ciocca said.

Senior Sara Belvill performs her beam routine at the Auburn Riverside meet on Jan. 18.

SPSL reconfiguration finalized Gymnastics building year Final decisions leave SPSL divided into three eight-team leagues, with surprises in placement of schools BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

EDITORIAL BOARD

New coach in place causes much improvement while team sets goals high for next year BY

NIKKI SEADER

REPORTER

With Emerald Ridge being a fairly new school, it is only expected that it take a few years for the athletics programs to fall in place.

The gymnastic team has had a rough few years trying to figure out how the team should be run. This year; however, with a new coach, the team is improving at a rate that has never been seen.

“I think this year has been by far the best year, just because we have two new freshmen and a new coach that is a big influence,” junior Jamie Sagdahl said.

The team is also using this year as a building year and hopes to even better their scores next year.

“We have a lot of potential,” coach Bobbi Jones said. “With only three seniors, we have a very young team.”

This is Jones’ first year as an Emerald Ridge gymnastics coach. She moved here from PHS as assistant coach.

“She’s really nice, she’s a lot better than last year’s coach and she knows what she’s doing,” senior Sara Belvill said.

Jones wants to stay as coach as long as it stays fun.

“She’s a lot more experienced,” Sagdahl said.

This year, the Jags made it to second place in one of their meets, which is the best they have ever placed at a match.

“Our highest score is about 156, and Rogers, as an example, is in the 160’s so we are getting up there,” Jones said. “Our team goal for this year is 161.5.”

Rogers is known for their talented gymnastic team and was first in state last year.

At the all-city match coming up on Feb. 1 against Sumner, Puyallup, and Rogers, Emerald Ridge expects to take third or fourth.

“It might be pretty close between us and Sumner,” Sagdahl said.

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20

Photo by Ashley Vincent

Final decisions have been made regarding the SPSL reconfiguration for the 2006-2007 school year, which are ultimately different then what was originally proposed. The SPSL has been divided into three eight-team leagues, returning the division to the original plans, though there are some surprises in which schools are in each league.

Emerald Ridge plays in the SPSL South, which will be very similar to what was originally intended.

The 4A South division will consist of Emerald Ridge, Puyallup, Rogers, Bethel, GrahamKapowsin, Spanaway Lake, Curtis, and one Federal Way school. Beamer, Thomas Jefferson, Decatur, and Federal Way high schools all will be 4A, but it has not yet been determined which one will stay in the SPSL south.

Originally, Decatur, Federal Way, and Beamer planned on moving down into the 3A class, but both Beamer and Decatur received 4A classifications and Federal Way elected to opt up. Also, all the Auburn schools intended on being 4A, but after receiving 3A classifications, they opted to stay down.

The Auburn schools staying 3A will have the largest impact on the North. The 4A North league will consist of Kent-Meridian, Kentlake, Kentridge, Kentwood, Tahoma, and three of the four Federal Ways Schools.

The new 3A division will consist of Auburn, Auburn Riverside, Auburn Mountainview, Emunclaw, Sumner, White River, Bonney Lake, and Franklin Pierce.

Initially, the 4A North was supposed to consist of the three Auburn schools, the four Kent schools, and Tahoma.

These new classifications were brought on by the realignment of the state classifications.

The SPSL elected to be proactive to shifts that might occur by realigning and creating a new 3A league.

These changes will not go into effect until the 2006-2007 school year.

1/25/2006 10:21:46 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

SWIMMER EXTRAORDINAIRE

BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

EDITORIAL BOARD

BY

ASHLEY VINCENT

REPORTER

The average student scores around 150 on the PSAT which can serve as a good indication of how to prepare for future success on the SAT. Junior Jessie Roy went above and beyond simply getting ready for the SAT – the motivated junior scored 223 out of 240, putting her in the 99th percentile and giving her a leg up on scholarship opportunities.

“I took the test because if I didn’t, my mom would’ve killed me,” Roy said.

Every year sophomores and juniors sign up to take the PSAT. Some do it for the practice, others out of pure curiosity at their testing ability. Fewer still, such as Roy, are there for scholarship opportunities. Roy now is eligible for a number of scholarships through the National Merit Scholarship Program.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is a scholarship fund directly attained by juniors who score well on the PSAT. According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, out of the approximately 1.3 million students nationwide who take the test every year, 50,000 students with the highest scores are selected as National Merit Scholars. Approximately two-thirds of these students will qualify as Commended Students, and the remaining third as semifinalists. Commended Students are then eligible for further scholarship opportunities and a Letter of Commendation for outstanding academic promise. Semifinalists continue in the program and on to finalists, and from there are eligible for one of 8,200 scholarships available through the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Roy is dedicated and spends much of her time on her school work and other learning-inspired pursuits. She is most interested in science and even spent the summer working with microbiology at the Madigan Army Medical Center in the Department of Clinical Investigations.

“Biology is fun,” Roy said. “It is just a subject that is very interesting to me. Chemistry I do not like quite so much because I’m not very good at math, but I like how

predictable it is. For instance, with math, if you’re going to add two and two then you always get four, and in chemistry if you’re going to add water and hydrogen cyanide, you’re going to get this.

“Actually, you would probably get water and hydrogen cyanide, but you get the idea.”

After high school, Roy plans to take her love of science and become a biochemist. She is planning to take the SAT in April and is working her way through all the prep material she can find.

Along with her academic pursuits, Roy is involved in the Debate team.

“Debate is fun. I went into it because I’m not very good at talking in front of people and I just wanted to get better.

So I was going to practice and practice and get a lot better at talking to people because I know that’s something I need to know how to do, and then it was really fun,” Roy said.

Roy works hard towards her dreams and someday wishes to take her love of science and become a biochemist. She is excited for college, but like most her age doesn’t yet know where she wants to go. Roy has plans for her future and her score just may help her reach them.

12

Photo By Ashley Vincent

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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With exceptional talent and drive, sophomore Ryan Renggli has demonstrated his abilities as one of the best young swimmers in the area.

Despite 10 years of competitive swimming, Renggli has personal struggles to overcome.

Last summer, while in Hawaii for a swim meet, he punctured a hole in his lung.

“I hadn’t been certified to scuba dive and I dove in a little too far,” Renggli said. “I came back and right before my big sectional, I was in the car and felt like I was having a heart attack.”

What actually happened to Renggli is called a spontaneous pneumothorax – when there is a sudden collapse of the lung resulting from a tear in the lung tissue. Typically, this happens after strenuous activity, and thin males are at the greatest risk for one. This has caused difficulties in his swimming.

“It makes it extremely hard to go under water longer,” Renggli said.

Renggli began his swimming career at Emerald Ridge by making a name for himself in the pool. However, his scuba diving accident has come back to haunt him.

Photo by Kassie Green

By scoring a 223 out of 240 on the PSAT, junior Jessie Roy has posted one of the top scores in the country and qualified herself for several scholarships

Sophomore Ryan Renggli suffered a spontaneous pneumothorax last year due toscuba diving in Hawaii. Despite that, he has currently qualifed for state in four events and districts in six.

“My chest started to hurt in choir (a week and a half ago) and my girlfriend, Brittney, told me to go to the nurse,” Renggli said. “I said I was fine, but when I got to lunch it just got worse and worse. Finally, in Spanish, I caved and my friend Nate carried me down to the nurse.”

Renggli experienced a small pneumothorax in the same lung. Currently, the doctors are not sure why it happened.

“I might not be able to swim the rest of the season,” Renggli said. “But, hopefully, I’ll be back for districts and state.”

Renggli made his comeback in the Jan. 24 swim meet. Though he didn’t break any records, he put forth an excellent effort.

As a member of the Emerald Ridge team, he already has already demonstrated his talent by qualifying for districts in the 100-yard butterfly, 100 freestyle, and multiple relays, and state in the 500 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 individual medley, and 200 freestyle. So far, if Renggli has swam an event, he is either going to districts or state in it.

However, Renggli isn’t looking towards state.

He instead hopes to be there for his team.

“My goal for school swimming is just to

help my fellow swimmers out as much as I can,” Renggli said.

Renggli also swam club for many years, but quit just last week.

“There’s been so much to deal with in getting hurt,” Renggli said. “I mean, my lungs are vital to living, it’s really hard to go underwater longer, which is what wins races.

It is just so taxing on the body to swim for four to five hours a day.”

Renggli began swimming at the age of 4, when he took lessons at the Boys & Girls Club next to his house, because it sounded like fun. At about 5, he began swimming competitively.

“When I was younger, they took out the 6-and-under swim division, but when it was still there I held the record for the 50-meter backstroke, which was cool,” Renggli said.

Sophomore friend Jeff Paine feels that Renggli earned all the success he’s had.

“Ryan is a great swimmer because he tries really hard and he’s so motivated,” Paine said. “He deserves it.”

Despite his noticeable talent, Renggli feels that he is just the same as any other member of the team.

“I don’t feel like I’m special so I don’t want to be treated like I am,” Renggli said. “I’m a normal person.”

If Renggli sticks with swimming, he believes he should get some kind of college scholarship. However, college plans are not in the forefront of Renggli’s mind.

“Swimming is such a hard and rigorous sport,” Renggli said. “Sometimes it’s hard just to get in the water.

Also, it takes up so much time that there’s none left for anything else – that’s really hard.”

21 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:17:20 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

Boys strive to make playoffs

When Majia Thiel isn’t surrounded by computers, she spends her time in the great outdoors kayaking, hiking and volunteering to help those in need

With the season finally coming together, boys basketball hopes to battle its way to one of the five playoff spots available BY

BY

Maija Thiel may appear to be a teacher who just loves teaching computers and everything that goes along with them. However, this computer fanatic also has many other passions, including the great outdoors and lending a hand to those in need.

The San Juan Islands are her favorite destination for kayaking, but Thiel also can be found spending the day at the Nisqually River or American Lake when she finds the time.

One of her favorite parts about it is the paddling.

“It’s really fun once you get into a rhythm with your arms and keep going,” Thiel said.

Aside from kayaking she also is a big fan of hiking.

Her first time kayaking was in the San Juan Islands, where she got partnered up with a girl who couldn’t swim.

“She was so terrified every time we would hit a wave, that she would make us paddle really hard which made us get ahead of the group,” Thiel said. “I loved it though because I got to paddle more and faster.”

Her husband, Curtis Thiel, accompanies her in the outdoors, though kayaking is more her sport than his.

“We actually went kayaking in Canada together and we go

NICK KAJCA

EDITORIAL BOARD

On paper the boys basketball team does not look that impressive. Their 5-9 league record and eighth-place standing does not exactly scream playoff contender.

But looks can be deceiving.

With the playoffs looming only four weeks away, the Jags believe that they are finally starting to play the way they know they are capable of and are looking to go on a playoff run in the second half of the season.

“We are playing our best basketball of the year right now,” coach Bob Horton said. “The kids have a lot of confidence and it is all starting to click.”

Unfortunately, the team has a bit of an uphill battle staring them in the face. Although they are finally clicking, they still must win the majority of their remaining games if they want to make the playoffs. The top five teams in the league qualify for the playoffs and the Jags trail Decatur, Bethel and Rogers in the hunt for the final spot.

“In the beginning of the season we did not shoot the ball well. We are shooting the ball well and more consistently,” Horton said.

One problem the team has not fixed, however, is the problem of playing to their full potential the entire four quarters of the game.

“There have been several games we should have won but ended up losing,” senior Jordan Thaanum said.

Against Decatur, Bethel, and Puyallup, the team had the lead at halftime, but fell apart in the third quarter and ended up losing all three games. Not coincidentally, these are three of the top six teams in the league, which means that if the team could have held on for the win, their season might look substantially different.

The team believes that they were good enough to win those games, and is using that frustration to fuel them on in their quest for a playoff spot.

“We know that we have a chance, but we must continue to work hard and play as a team,” Thaanum said.

John Richardson, owner Bruce Tiley, owner

One thing the team has going for them is each other.

Despite the rocky starts and narrow losses, the team never pointed any fingers, and has remained a tight-knit group.

“All of the guys get along and like playing with each other,” Horton said.

It is a good thing the team gets along because they have put in a considerable amount of time in the gym this season with practices, summer league, and pick-up games.

“I think we are playing with a sense of confidence. All of our hard work last season and over the summer is paying off,” Horton said.

The team believes all of their hard work will be a key contributor in their late-season push towards the postseason, but in an unlikely way. In sports there is such a thing as a good loss, and the Jags believe that their Jan. 14 matchup with the Federal Way Eagles was exactly that.

“Federal Way was our best game of the year in terms of

team basketball,” Horton said.

The team was defeated by the Eagles, 85-75, but proved that they could compete with the league’s top teams (Federal Way is in second place). They also solved the issue of folding in the second half. In the game, the Jags were down at half time 51-35, but battled back in the third quarter, outscoring Federal Way 23-13, and narrowing the overall score to a much more manageable 64-58.

“We showed that we can play and if we actually come together we can make things happen,” senior Nathan Losch said.

Unfortunately, the team cannot afford any more good losses and must start converting their improvements into wins. But Horton is confident that his team is up to the challenge.

“They know the situation they’re in; they know the games to win,” he said.

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where Thiel worked full time prior to deciding to take on teaching. Hard @ Work Computers is a computer consulting company which helps small- to medium-sized businesses that cannot hire their own information technology staff.

Her original plan growing up was to become an author and write books.

“I never knew that I wanted to go into teaching at first.

Then there was the opportunity to teach something I love.

I always liked computers and this way I could share it with others,” Thiel said.

Her husband also encouraged her.

“She has the love and passion for young adults, and it’s hard to find technology instructors who have people skills which she has,” Curtis Thiel said.

Long before becoming a teacher, Maija Thiel’s first job ever was as a telemarketer for a carpet cleaning service.

“I hated that job so much. What I thought the job was, and what it really was, were two completely different things.

I ended up quitting after my first day,” Thiel said.

Being a new teacher this year and coming in with an advisory who has already been established was easier than she expected.

“The people in it are really great, I felt like I was invading their space at first, but they really just made it easy for all of us. They are just so kind to each other and allow me to be human just as they are human,” Thiel said.

This advisor has found ways of connecting with her students.

“Every month she brings a cake to celebrate the birthdays we have in that month in our advisory,” junior Kayla Savannah said.

She also helps students when they’re feeling down.

“Whenever you have a bad day, she somehow makes you smile,” junior Krystal Bjork said.

WISER WORM FARM

22

Photo by Kaitlyn Golden

gardenofedennursery@msn.com

Junior Torey Wambold searches for an open teammate in the game opposite Puyallup. The Jags led throughout the first half, but lost 56-49.

Photo by Ashley Vincent

1903 Shaw Road East Puyallup, WA 98372 (253) 845-7027 Fax (253) 845-7029

JENN WHITHAM

REPORTER

hiking up in Mount Rainier,” Thiel said.

“I absolutely love hiking, that’s probably my number one thing,” Thiel said. “I just like doing anything outdoors, things even like gardening. I just like being in the fresh air, with nature, it’s just so green and clean. It rejuvenates me.”

Thiel has had many opportunities to travel and has visited places such as Hong Kong and Japan. The visit to Japan was a summer-long student exchange program.

“I think that trip changed my view of traveling the most. It opened up my mind to the rest of the world,” Thiel said.

While in Hong Kong, she did volunteer work.

“I worked with a Vietnamese refugee camp there and also a heroine drug addict recovery program,” Thiel said.

She likes to shed light on those who aren’t recognized as much by others.

“I like to help groups within society which aren’t looked at maybe enough, even people such as single moms, or those whose needs aren’t met by the wider society, and just to help fight the discrimination directed towards some groups of people,” Thiel said.

Every year Thiel helps out in the Special Olympics summer state games. She has helped with assistant coaching and also chaperoning.

If given a million dollars she would help organizations around the world.

“I would find organizations that are helping other people and give to them,” Thiel said. She has always found herself needing to volunteer, she can’t help, but help others.

Thiel and her husband began their own computer business, Hard @ Work Computers,

Growing up, Majia Theil didn’t plan to be a teacher. Originally, she dreamed of becoming an author. However, her first job was working as a telemarketer for a cleaning company, which she quit after just one day.

11 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:24:21 PM

FEATURE

SPORTS

Girls basketball struggling The team is a on a nine-game losing streak that has put an end to their playoff hopes BY

NICK KAJCA

EDITORIAL BOARD

LAUREN SMITH

REPORTER

1 coupon per customer for first

Tan: 1 month unlimited $13.99 Nails: $25 full set $13 fill Hair Cuts: $13.99 Perms, color, and up-do’s available Interested since age 6, sophomore Eric Gregory invests much time to his dream of flight.

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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main factors behind their losing streak. The team dropped games to Rogers, Thomas Jefferson, and Spanaway Lake, all of whom have league records below .500.

“Losing has made us fall apart,” Sas said. “Hopefully we can get back on the winning track.”

Losing so many games in a row can make it difficult to remain positive, but the Jags believe they have found some ways. One way would be to get a victory over cross-town rivals Rogers, whom they play tonight. Although the game counts as just one win, it means much more than that to beat a rival.

“It is always great to beat Rogers, because they are rivals,” Sas said.

Another positive is that the team has gotten solid production from their underclassmen. On a team that has only three seniors, this has definitely been a plus and has shined a bright light on next season.

“We have good production from our younger players and good experience,” Sas said.

Junior Cami Medlock dribbles the ball past a Thomas Jefferson defender.

10

Photo by Brittany Gentile

As Ernest Hemingway once said, “It is appearances, characteristics and performance that make a man love an airplane, and they, are what put emotion into one.”

Sophomore Eric Gregory has the same state of mind about flying as Hemingway did.

“I feel so free in the air,” Gregory said. “The sensation of being able to go wherever you want is overwhelming.”

When he was only 6 years old, he was taken by his grandmother to McChord Air Force Base to watch the planes.

“It was the most amazing thing I had ever seen,” Gregory said. “I was instantly hooked.”

With this new interest, Gregory immediately began to take private piloting lessons and dove into the wonder of flying.

Today, Gregory flies every chance he gets. Being only 15 years old, he has already flown seven different kinds of planes (Cessna 210, Turbo 206, Turbo 182, Turbo 172, Piper Cherokee 180, and Maule Mx-7) multiple times.

Gregory also is involved in the Civil Air Patrol, and performs many search and rescue missions for the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, and counter-drug missions for the Drug Enforcement Agency, as well as any local agencies.

“We were up in the Cascades a while back looking for a guy who was smuggling marijuana,” Gregory said. “When we finally found the plane, it was in the woods, and we went inside, there was marijuana everywhere. We couldn’t find the guy who was piloting it, so we called the police, and they eventually found him.”

Gregory also works in satellite training through the Satellite Digital Imagery System program.

“Basically what we do is use satellites to track earthquakes and tornadoes, and any other kind of natural disasters that are affecting the world,” Gregory said.

Although Gregory invests much of his time in flying, it does not take away from his performance in the classroom.

“He’s very motivated and driven to succeed in class,” aviation teacher Jeff Coleman said. ”When he can, he spends extra time to achieve his goals.”

This summer, Gregory plans to spend much of his time teaching piloting classes, and also at camps to further expand his knowledge in aviation.

He plans to attend a satellite training camp at Peterson’s airport in Colorado Springs, Colorado, also some flying encampments, and possibly some private piloting lessons.

The love Gregory shows for flying is not only admired by those around him, but the hard work he puts into it has made him a very strong pilot.

He has also been named the most qualified Communications Officer in the state because of his technological aircraft skills.

“It’s very rare at his age to find someone so sure about the direction they want to go in life, but he is absolutely positive,” Coleman said.

After high school, Gregory plans to attend Central Washington University, and get a minor in aviation and a major in history to broaden his horizons. When he finishes college, he plans to pursue a career in aviation as a commercial pilot for Alaska Airlines.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Eric can achieve any goal he sets for himself,” Coleman said. “With his drive and ambition, I believe he can become a great commercial pilot.”

photo By Shailey Wilkinson

BY

The girls basketball team has dribbled itself into a minefield that has left its players battered, bruised, and on a nine-game losing streak.

Unfortunately for the 3-11 Jags, the minefield that is the SPSL South does not end for another three weeks. But things were not always this bad for the Lady Jags.

Although the team did not exactly fly out of the gates, they began their season with a solid record of 3-3. But after a 51-23 win over Decatur on Dec. 20, the Jag’s season came to a screeching halt, and the team has not tasted a league victory since.

“This season has been tough,” coach Greg Farias said. “Our goal was to have a better record at this point of the season. We continue

to work hard but at the present time we cannot pull all the pieces together.”

With such a long time since their last win, it would seem like there might be a lot of blame to pass around and fingers to point, but that is not the case. The Jags believe their woes are team-related and not individual.

“Our defense continues to cause us problems,” Farias said. “We work very hard on the offensive side getting baskets but we give up points way too easy.”

The Jags have suffered tough defeats against the likes of league leaders Puyallup, Bethel, GrahamKapowsin, and Federal Way. The team was not upset about losing to the league’s top teams, and instead focused on winning the games they thought were capable of winning.

“We needed to win all of the games we should, and some others,” senior Stacey Sas said.

Unfortunately, the team has not been able to win the games they believed they were capable of, and that has been one of the

23 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:14:29 PM

Ao t M

OP/ED

thlete f he onth

Seahawks, ER: Eerily similar I

n case you haven’t noticed yet, the Seattle Seahawks are in the Super Bowl.

It’s kind of a big deal.

OK, actually it is probably the biggest thing that has ever happened to the state of Washington. And as the days to the big game draw closer, the media attention surrounding the SeKaitlyn Golden ahawks continues to grow and grow.

As members of the media ourselves, we also began to take notice of the growing phenomenon that is the Seahawks … but probably in a different way than most of our larger press associates.

Here is what we noticed: There are of a number of eerie similarities between our very own sports programs Nick Kajca and the Seattle Seahawks. Now, I know you might be thinking that there are some slight differences from a 4A high school program and a member of the National Football League. And you are right. But you will find that the uncanny similarities vastly outweigh the differences. Let’s start out with some little things: • The Seahawks have green and white in their uniforms; green and white are also in our school colors. (Don’t worry we are just getting warmed up – they will get better.)

• Their biggest rival in the NFL is the St. Louis Rams. Our biggest rival in the SPSL is the Rogers Rams.

• The wrestling and girls golf teams were league champs … and so were the Seahawks.

• Their head coach, Mike Holmgren, has a mustache; our head football coach Kelly Susee has a mustache. (It can also be noted that coach Susee is a diehard Pittsburgh

When did you start gymnastics?

When I was doing dance at Suburban (Dance Studio), there was a gymnastics class that I started taking when I was 6.

I switched to the YMCA and tried out for the competitive team when I was in 4thgrade. I did that until 8th-grade. I joined the high school team in 9th-grade and have done it the last three years.

What are your goals for the season?

To make my routines harder so they’re worth more and I can get better scores.

What is your favorite event?

Beam-it always has been.

Who is your favorite pro athlete?

I don’t really know. Any Olympic gymnast, because you have to be strong and graceful at the same time.

Describe yourself in one word.

Exciting.

What has been your biggest accomplishment?

Making the competitive team because I was so excited.

24,09.indd 2-3

Steelers fan, which happens to be the Seahawks opponent in the Super Bowl.)

• Their star running back, Shaun Alexander was first-team all-league, and so was our star running back, Neko Doy. • Obviously we have cheerleaders and so do the Seahawks, but it gets better than that. They have a cheerleaders named Anna, Jennifer, and Shelly and we have sophomore Anna Anderson, junior Jennifer Newkirk, and junior Shellie Cox (close enough).

• The Seahawks play their home games at Qwest Field, which also happened to be the location of our senior ball last year.

• The Seahawk fans are considered to be some of the loudest and rowdiest fans in the league and our fans are without a doubt some of the loudest and rowdiest in the SPSL. • The volleyball team serves up big hits and so does the Seahawks’ defense.

• Also sticking with the volleyball and defensive themes, the Seahawks defensive coordinator is John Marshall and our star volleyball player is Kylie Marshall.

Be honest now, you are starting to get a little impressed aren’t you? You didn’t think we could go this long.

• The Seahawks constantly get disrespected and ignored by the national media. Our sports programs also do not always get the most attention and respect with the local newspapers.

• Their No. 1 receiver, Darrell Jackson, missed significant time this season due to injury and our No. 1 receiver Brent

“

Dammeier also missed significant time with injury.

• Our choir, cheerleading team, and dance team participated in fundraisers selling tee-shirts at last Sundays Seahawks game.

• Before his job here at Emerald Ridge, coach Susee was an assistant coach at Puyallup High School. In a playoff game, coach Susse’s Vikings played against Wilson High School and Seahawks star Marcus Trufant.

• And, finally, last season their was a ton of hype surrounding our football team. Many people predicted it would be the best season in school history and that the team had a shot at the playoffs and possibly state.

But the season ended up being a disappointment as the team did not even qualify for the playoffs. There was also a ton of hype surrounding the Seahawks last season. The team was predicted to have one of the best seasons in team history and make a run at the Super Bowl. But things ended up going badly and the team lost in the first round of the playoffs.

It is similarities like that which have us drawing the following conclusions: • Next season, our football team will follow in the Seahawks’ footsteps and play for the state championship.

• Also, Susee will replace a retired Holmgren as Seahawks head coach. The deciding factor will be their remarkably distinguished mustaches.

• And, our final conclusion from all of this remarkable information is that the Seahawks will defeat the Steelers in Super Bowl XL. Go Hawks!

THEIR HEAD COACH MIKE HOLMGREN HAS A MUSTACHE AND OUR HEAD FOOTBALL COACH KELLY SUSEE HAS A MUSTACHE

”

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Dear Editor:

J S

amie agdahl Photos by Ashley Vincent

As a former JagWire staff member, I am impressed with the work you are doing. Second place nationally is amazing. But there is always room for improvement. I think that the sports section of the paper can really lack sufficient and interesting info.

I was very deterred by the mistakes in the Basketball story. In the story the writer said that “no team in the history of this school has made the playoffs,” which turns out not to be true. In February of 2002 the team played in the playoffs.

Now this is only one mistake so it wouldn’t be that bad except this isn’t the only mistake

in the story. The writer also wrongfully said that the varsity team had never defeated the Rams before. They actually beat Rogers in February of 2003.

Most of the reporters do well, but sometime it seems like they don’t even talk to the team. Now I am not just talking about the Basketball story, even though it didn’t include any quotes.

I also think that many of the stories follow the same theme. “The team isn’t doing too well, but they are improving” or “but they are working hard” or my personal favorite “but they are having fun.” I am not saying these things aren’t true, but not many people want to read these stories over

and over again about a different sport. It is slightly dull and depressing to only hear the bad things about a sports season.

Reporters should talk to the team, find a more interesting angle, and try to make readers feel like the sports are at least interesting even if they aren’t doing well.

I do not see how the plain old, drab story of a failing team’s effort can possibly raise any one’s spirits. There is always something interesting even if it takes a little searching to find.

Talk to the players, the coaches, and maybe even the fans. Find something more worth reading, like the “Polo Shark” story in last issue. It talked about how the team

did, but also included the more interesting piece about an out of nowhere all-state goalie. That was fun to read. Even though Evan Ikerd has had a pool his whole life, contrary to the article, and he is anything but quiet when he plays. He actually yells, a great deal, while in the goal.

I hope too see some improvement in the sports section and I hope the JagWire continues to thrive. The JagWire is a wonderful establishment in our school that may sometimes be taken for granted. You know you are good, but I hope you can improve on these things, so the paper can be even better.

Robin Stoyles

09 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:25:24 PM

SPORTS

OP/ED

Give AP the credit W

interim is quickly approaching and is striking fear into the hearts of Advanced Placement students everywhere.

The Winterim weeks are cool. It’s a chance to work in a completely project-based environment. It’s a chance for advisories to come together (or, in some unfortunate cases, grow apart).

Most of all, it’s an opportunity that that most people don’t get. And we appreciate it, especially as Puyallup and Rogers have tried to follow in our Winterim footsteps, but their attempts have paled in comparison.

But, as the second Science Week approaches, we are a little more hesitant than we have been in previous years.

Business Week was a program created outside of Emerald Ridge, and the real “eureka” moment came when someone decided to apply it to all 1,500 students in the ERHS body.

World Week is just a take off of the model United Nations theme with some variations of our own. They are both strong premises, and we feel that they have, for the most part, been executed well.

Science Week, on the other hand, seems like the “lumpy” cousin. It feels somewhat like Science Week’s creators needed a third week and, understanding that technology will play a huge role in our future, threw something together. The impression we get is that it is a little weaker at the seams than its predecessors. From teachers and students who took part in the previous Science Week, we know that there were a few bumps along the way. And based on what we’ve heard so far, this year’s week won’t be much different.

But our concerns aren’t based on what we’ve heard about science week. We had heard horror stories about Business Week and World Week also, but they turned out fine. This trepidation is based on some recent developments related to Science Week credit.

In a year where approximately 500 of our about 1,500 students are taking Advanced Placement classes; in a

year where teachers and administration pushed for a raise in Advanced Placement enrollment; and in a year where Advanced Placement enrollment did rise an exceptional 30 percent; it has been announced that students won’t be able to put the five percent earned from Science Week toward their AP classes. As previously stated, we like the Winterim weeks, both in idea and in actuality, but we are afraid that this AP issue might end up being the nail in an already weak week’s coffin.

The national AP audit is the reason for this change. The AP audit is an attempt to create a single AP standard across the nation. It is supposed to make sure the material covered in an AP class is worthy of college credit – and, evidently, the AP teachers and administration feel that Science Week won’t make the grade.

We find this position slightly hypocritical considering that we’re constantly bombarded with the message that Science Week is an educational experience worthy of everyone.

We know that this decision involves an AP bureaucracy out of the control of Emerald Ridge teachers and administration, but we can’t help dreading the possible ramifications of this action.

If a student swimming laps around their non-AP required classes and only barely treading water in the usual AP drudgery, what good is it going to do for them to eclipse the 100 percent mark in a perfectly simple class when they could use the boost to keep afloat and hopeful?

Let us use the points in our lowest-scoring class, AP or not; let us use them in AP, but cut in half; heck, give us a $10 gift certificate to Subway – at least that’s something that we can use.

This decision, whatever its cause, has the potential to drastically harm Science Week’s prospective success. It has effectively alienated a third of the student body. We don’t want Science Week to fail, but are afraid that now it might.

Editorials are composed by, and are the opinion of, the JagWire editorial board

Swimmers dive into trouble

STAFF EDITORIAL BOARD ....................................................MATT CLICK .....................................................................................KAITLYN GOLDEN .................................................................................................NICK KAJCA ................................................................................ KATINA MATHIESON ............................................................................................. TYLER QUINN COPY MANAGER ..................................................JESSICA RITCHIE PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR .....................................KASSIE GREEN BUSINESS MANAGERS.............................................. LISSY BRYAN ............................................................................................ DARRIN JONES CIRCULATION MANAGER ..............................JENN WHITHAM REPORTERS ......................................................KIMBERLY ANGELLO .................................................................................... KIRSTEN BABAUTA ......................................................................................... MIMI CAGAITAN ..................................................................................... DANNY CANHAM ........................................................................................MARILYN DIXON ............................................................................... BRITTANY ESPINOZA ........................................................................................CHRISTY FOSTER ...................................................................................BRITTANY GENTILE ...................................................................................................LORI JONES ....................................................................................... THAYER LAFLEUR .......................................................................................... ROBERT MCRILL ....................................................................MARISSA MOODENBAUGH .....................................................................................ELAINE RAYMOND ............................................................................... BRIAN SAMADUROFF ..............................................................................................NIKKI SEADER ..........................................................................................BRIE SHANNON .................................................................................................. KELLI SKEIM ............................................................................................LAUREN SMITH ................................................................................................ ALEX STOBIE .......................................................................... VERONICA TORNQUIST ....................................................................................... ASHLEY VINCENT ............................................................................................ KAYTI WEAVER .................................................................................... MICHAEL WHELAN ................................................................................SHAILEY WILKINSON .................................................................................GRANT WOODRUFF .............................................................................................SUMMER YATES ADVISER..............................................................................JEFF NUSSER

Swim team sends six to districts but remains disappointed in performance BY

Despite their hard efforts and occasional two-a-day practices, the boys swim team is still falling short. Having goals of sending over six individuals to districts and winning more than one meet (against Beamer), they have only accomplished one of them.

“We’re sending more people to districts than ever before. That’s something we said we wanted to do this year. Last year we only had three people qualify for individual events,” senior Orval McKenzie said.

Along with two relays, the 200-yard freestyle and the 400 free, senior Ty O’Bryant is swimming the 100 butterfly; McKenzie swims the 100 breaststroke; junior Robin Stoyles qualified in 500 free, the 200 individual medley and the 200 free; sophomore Steven Washburn in the 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley; Tyler Kain swimming 100 breast; junior Nick Humlick qualified in the 50 free; junior Trevor Clark in the 100 back and sophomore Ryan Renggli, who

AFFILIATES

CSPA, JEA, NSPA, SPJ, WJEA, WSJA

Strong-minded bowling team continues to strike

Corrections

Bowling girls take win second in the SPSL and hope to take their game to the state tournament

In Issue 3, the story, “Boys basketball starts slow; hopes for improvement,” contained errors. The story should have said that the Jaguar basketball team defeated the Rogers Rams on Feb. 1, 2003, and that the Jaguars played a playoff game against the Decatur Gators at Auburn-Riverside on Feb. 12, 2002. JagWire regrets these errors.

BY

After a tough start in its inaugural season, the bowling team has since overcome many obstacles and taking second in the SPSL and league tournament.

Courtney Crane achieved a total score of 462 during the league tournament. Rhiannon Hughes scored a total of 433, and Jessica Dolan finished with an impressive score of 570.

The final team score was 2891, right behind Graham-Kapowsin who scored 2896. This achievement places the team in first seed for the districts tournament. The top four teams from the league tournament advance to districts. Following districts, the top seven teams from there will move on to the state tournament.

The team won a match against Spanaway Lake on Jan. 19, 16.5 to 6.5. Also, the girls pulled out of close matches against Yelm on Dec.20, 14 to 9, and Graham-Kapowsin on Jan. 10, 17 to 6. With losses to Puyallup and Curtis, the girls still maintained great attitudes.

LETTERS POLICY JagWire will accept unsolicited copy from students, staff and community members. Only signed and dated letters with address and phone number from community members, or grade level from students, will be accepted. Letters should be limited to 300 words and will be published as space is available.

All letters are the sole opinion of the writers, and the staff reserves the right to edit any letter for space and/or clarity.

We will not publish material that may substantially disrupt the school process.

Letters to the editor may be submitted by mailing them to

JagWire c/o Emerald Ridge High School, or by e-mailing them to jdnusser@puyallup.k12.wa.us.

ADVERTISING MISSION The JagWire publication staff accepts advertisements for most products and services available to the public. However, the staff reserves the right to reject, edit or cancel any advertisement that the staff deems offensive in light of normal public standards.

Ads identifying students as athletes by photo or text (WIAA 18.20.0 and 18.20.1) also will not be accepted. The staff will not accept advertising for material that is racist, sexist or illegal for high school students.

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

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08

Photo by Lori Jones

EDITORIAL MISSION As an open public forum for student expression, JagWire seeks to cover a wide spectrum of relevant and overlooked topics, while upholding the highest of journalistic standards.

JagWire also serves as a communication link between Emerald Ridge High School and its surrounding community. This year, the publication hopes to build upon the precedents previously set by attempting to give voice to all Emerald Ridge students

in a manner that is fair, balanced and accurate.

BRITTANY ESPINOZA

REPORTER

THE FINE PRINT Emerald Ridge High School 12405 184th St. E. South Hill, WA 98374 253-435-6300

LORI JONES

REPORTER

has qualified for districts in the 100 butterfly and 100 free and for state in the 500 free, 200 individual medley, 100 back and 200 free.

Even having accomplished their goal of sending eight individuals to districts, they boys weren’t done fighting. They still needed to beat more than one other team. In their meet against Rogers, they got the closest they ever have to doing that with a final score of 96-89.

“This season’s gone all right.

There are a lot of district qualifiers and Ryan, who is only a sophomore and is going to state,” senior Evan Ikerd said.

“I’d still like to make districts in the 100 backstroke.”

Senior Ty O’Bryant competes the 100-yard butterfly race during the match against Beamer, which the Jaguars won.

There are a lot of things the dence,” senior Matt Vangunda said “We beat (Belixa) more,” O’Bryant said. team still needs to work on, With the non-qualifiers meet happening such as dedication. The fact that they are a Beamer and some of our new swimmers have really stepped it up.” today, the boys have one more chance to younger team just shows that they still have Confi dence isn’t the only thing the team make districts.

In just one week it’ll all be a lot of growing to do. Many of this year’s is lacking. over for the majority of them. Ryan Barker, team members have never swam competi“We need more self-discipline. I think Tyler Wells and Vangunda are a few who are tively before.

“I think we need to work on our confi- everyone needs to listen to Coach Raymond still working on qualifying for districts.

“We are having lots of fun and our team is doing great for being a first-year team,” coach Matt Mueller said.

Senior Jessica Dolan is very proud of her team and how far it’s come.

“I’m glad we are a new team because at the beginning of the season we were really separated,” Dolan said. “But

“

WE ARE HAVING LOTS OF FUN AND OUR TEAM IS DOING GREAT FOR BEING A FIRST-YEAR TEAM.

”

— Matt Mueller, coach

we’ve grown together and come a long way.”

In Mueller’s opinion, the girls have been performing well for their first year, not only as a new team but as a new sport, as well.

“Our whole team has improved,” Mueller said. “There are a few, the top seven or so, that have remained consistent

throughout the season, but there are a few players who have taken big strides in their performance.”

Practices consist of individual drills and working on strike shots, swings, and approaches. Each player has their own approach to the pins so the girls’ constantly put effort into improving themselves to be the best that they can be.

During the league and district tournaments, the Baker System is used for scoring, along with head-to-head competition. The Baker System is when each team selects five players to represent them and they compete against the opposing team’s five players. Then the final score for the entire team is the ending score. The Baker System is much more team oriented than regular scoring, which mostly focuses on the girls’ individual scoring.

The girls have met many goals and have accomplished a lot in the past few months.

Courtney Crane’s biggest achievement is one of the obvious: “I’m really proud of making varsity.”

Jessica Dolan has been bowling for a very long time and has also met many goals in all her years of bowling.

“My biggest personal accomplishment was when I bowled a 268 during Saturday League,” Dolan said. “Saturday League is an out of school league that I’ve been doing for 15 years, ever since I was three.”

25 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:12:14 PM

NEWS

A&E

G’day USA brings Australian students to ERHS

T he Cu C u r i oous us S Saav vage

Glen Wilgus coordinated a program allowing Emerald Ridge families host 23 Australian exchange students BY

NIKKI SEADER

REPORTER

Over the last month, Emerald Ridge has been experiencing a little taste of the land Down Under.

Fifty-five Australian students arrived in Washington State on the night of Jan. 6, 23 of which were hosted by Emerald Ridge families with the other 22 staying with Rogers families.

Special Education teacher Glen Wilgus organized the group of Australians to come to Washington through a program called G’day USA. Last year, through a friend involved in the program, he volunteered to find

nine Emerald Ridge host families for another high school that could not provide enough families and Wilgus became involved in the program once again this year. He and his wife hosted two girls.

G’day USA gives Australian students the ability to come to different states and experience their unique cultures and attributes.

On weekdays, the students toured the Space Needle, EMP, shopped at various malls, went skiing in the Cascade Mountains, and attended school with Emerald Ridge students.

The weekends were free time with families.

There are numerous differences when comparing Australia to the United States, but the Aussies agreed that apart from Americans driving on the wrong side of the road, the biggest difference is how big everything is.

“When we first got here we all thought the school was huge compared to our school,” 16-year-old Australian Lauren Walker said.

Australian schools have more grade levels,

but fewer students.

“We have 900 students from grades seven to 12,” Australian Christopher Oxenham said.

They also commented that our light switches are flipped in the opposite direction in order to be turned on and off, and that we have several more fast food restaurants.

“She thought it was weird how we actually had hamburgers in the house and how much we eat,” sophomore Samantha Campbell said of Australian student Lauren Jones.

Besides the fact that Emerald Ridge is a lot bigger, Walker said that another big difference is that at her school they are required to wear uniforms. Oxenham noted that they don’t have a school newspaper.

“We have a newsletter,” Oxenham said. “I just use it for drawing paper, though” On the other hand, the Aussies are similar to Americans in other ways. For example, they participate in a lot of the same sports.

In fact, from Dec. 27 through Dec. 29, an Australian basketball club came to South Hill to challenge the boys basketball team to a game.

“We play more fundamental than them,” senior Kyle Gossler said. “It was interesting to see how people from another country played. They play with the international rules.”

The Jaguars won the game, but basketball is not a very popular sport in Australia. The trip was mostly about experiencing a different culture for the Australians.

Some will be disappointed to hear that, with a few exceptions, the Australian students do not have kangaroos jumping around in their back and front yards and that Australians are not upside down all the time, and they never say, “put another shrimp on the barbee” because they call “shrimp” prawns.

“Kangaroos aren’t everywhere,” Oxenham said.

Pop machine future unsure Vending machines turned off during Jag sessions may be removed next year BY

school has been about the vending and pop machines staying at Emerald Ridge High School next year.

“

POP MACHINES ... ARE TURNED OFF TO ENCOURAGE PROMPT ATTENDANCE DURING JAG SESSIONS.

KIMBERLY ANGELLO

REPORTER

Since the beginning of the year, administration has been turning off the vending machines during Jag Time, due to students arriving late to class.

“Pop machines – really, all vending machines – are turned off to encourage prompt attendance during Jag sessions.” said Brian Lowney.

Another issue that has come up in many conversations around the

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The production of The Curious Savage started Thursday and runs through Saturday. Admission is $6, $5 with ASB. Photos clockwise from left: senior Amanda Pisetzner plays eccentric Ethel Savage, top right: as Mrs. Paddy, sophomore Melissa Stilman observes the action silently. Her character hasn’t spoken in over 20 years. Bottom right: This is sophomore TJ Hart’s first production at ERHS.

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“With regards to pop machines next year, there is a district committee examining healthy options throughout the district for food services. So, no real answer on pop machines next year, yet,” Lowney said.

Some say that it would be a

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volumeSIX.issueFOUR

”

— Prinicpal Brian Lowney

fair to some of the students to take away the only junk food they get.

If the school takes away the vending machines, the ASB will lose money. The vending machines bring a lot of money in for students, more then any other source in our school now.

The warnings on vending machines haven’t stopped students from spending.

Coupons:

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With Haley or Erin (call ahead and schedule) for February special with ASB card

26

Photo by Matt Click

Safer Drivers for the Future

really bad idea, because school is a place for junk food, and not for carrots and celery. It doesn’t seem

07 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:29:43 PM

A&E

NEWS

Seniors sweat the hours out Many start to feel the pressures of the Culminating Project as the deadline for community service hours draws near and they adjust to the many new changes BY

KELLI SKEIM

REPORTER

The progress continues with Culminating Project, as the seniors strive to get their community service hours in before the Jan. 31 deadline.

This year, the staff and culminating project committee have made a big impact on the students. Being brought together early this year for training, the English department, counselors, and culminating staff have made it easier for students to be supported and get motivated.

“Our advisers hold us accountable. Our advisory makes sure we are getting everything done,” senior Amanda Pisetzner said.

This year there are many changes to the Culminating Project, such as the writing component and presentation.

The writing component is easier this year. It consists of completing a paper in class, and having it graded by an English teacher.

“With the new writing component it makes it easier on

students. It is less stressful and more meaningful for their curriculum,” Culminating Project Coordinater Patti McMullan said.

As the writing component has been one of the big changes to the Culminating Project, there is much that students can express through their writing.

“I really liked how it was real from the students. They didn’t have help from any of their family members or friends.

It was truly their writing. I liked it because it is authentic,” senior and junior English teacher Donna Carstensen said.

Along with advisories staying on top of things, all students need to take the initiative to complete the project on their own terms.

With more guidance from advisers, students, and staff will soon see the reflection and completion in the spring time.

Principal Brian Lowney said, “It’s going slow so far, with (the) first year of changes. It’s hard to tell where we are, as far as how good we are doing or if we are behind.”

According to McMullan, with this year having all of the staff, such as advisers, it is making it easier to keep the students on top of their Culminating Projects. As there have been Culminating Committee meetings with the staff and English depart-

“

Too many remakes, too little imagination in films 2005 showed us a lack of creativity in Hollywood with its overabundance of remakes, sequels, and adaptations. This year isn’t looking much better

ment, the staff has really come together this year to help support and motivate the students. These meetings have helped the staff to become better trained and more prepared for the students. For the English department, especially, these meetings have made it easier for the students to get their writing components done.

“There were more students last year that finished the project than graduated,” McMullan said.

Time will tell how many students will be completed with their job shadows and community service hours. There is no exact number on how the seniors are making headway, but as the culminating board states that the seniors are progressing satisfactorily.

Only about 10 percent of the senior class has not turned in their project reports. Those 10 percent are being targeted by the staff.

All students will be able to — Principal Brian Lowney complete this project and the staff is here to help.

“I see a lot more students in the career center working on their Culminating Projects during jag now. I have never seen this before. It is so great,” McMullan said.

Even though there are procrastinators there are many students who want to get their projects in on time.

Business and Marketing teacher and senior adviser Randy Walden said, “Procrastinators will pull it off. Just about half work on the Culminating Project and the other half don’t, they just sit and talk. I’m not too worried. I have confidence in my advisory.”

T

IT’S HARD TO TELL WHERE WE ARE, AS FAR AS HOW GOOD WE ARE DOING OR IF WE ARE BEHIND.

”

McCutcheon’s Studio

120 West Main Ave. Puyallup, Washington 98371 253-845-2101 Located next to the Liberty Theatre

volumeSIX.issueFOUR

06,27.indd 2-3

06

Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight

Just ask Lynn

here’s a fad sweeping Hollywood right now – one that seems to manifest itself every couple of months in the form of big-budget, highly marketed blockbusters.

In its beginnings, the Matt Click Commentary fad seemed fleeting and nobody thought twice about it. “It’ll pass,” we thought. “It’s just in vogue right now.”

But this fad has reached such cataclysmic levels that it’s beginning to seriously worry critics and film fans alike. It’s a troubling fad that begs this question: “Are there any original ideas left?” It’s the obsession Hollywood has seemingly obtained for no reason – remakes. Film studios now find it utterly necessary to remake any film that they feel will make money at the box-office.

Now, I’m more than aware that I’m being a bit of a hypocrite, seeing as how I just got off a “King Kong” kick and praised it as “pure, cinematic bliss” last issue (and it holds up pretty well to a second viewing, to boot). I stand staunchly by that review; “King Kong” was an exception. Why? Because it was a fantastic film, that’s why. I have no problem with remakes if they’re well done.

But the minute they start being terrible is when I shake my fist in the general direction of California and declare, “No more, Hollywood!”

I mean, the number of remakes in 2005 was astonishing: “The Producers,” “The Fog,” “War of the Worlds,” “Yours, Mine and Ours,” “The Amityville Horror,” “Assault on Precinct 13,” “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Guess Who,” “Pride and Prejudice,” “Fun with Dick and Jane,” “The Longest Yard”… the list is extensive and somewhat discouraging it its scope. Granted, not all of these films are as atrocious as some of the others (“War of the Worlds,” I’m looking in your direction), but the fact remains that Hollywood is going through a serious drought in creativity. The last truly original film I saw was 2004’s terrifically imaginative “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”

And the fad doesn’t end at remakes. Oh

Foreign films, like the modern-fantasy Russian flick “Nochnoi Dozor,” offer some originality for fans amidst the endless, suffocating tide of American remakes

MATTINEE Matt Click at the Movies no, the strain of banality stretches well beyond that. My list of remakes didn’t even include horrible adaptations like “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “The Honeymooners,” “Bewitched” and “The Fantastic Four.” To make matters worse, “Wedding Crashers” was the only flick in the top 10 grossing films of the year that wasn’t a remake, sequel or adaptation.

When the only significantly profitable film of the year based on an original idea is Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson sneaking into weddings to get laid, that’s a major crisis in cinema.

And if you think remakes are “soooo 2005,” you’re going to be pretty disappointed with the new year’s lineup. Remakes on the 2006 horizon include “The Wicker Man,” “Oldboy,” “Revenge of the Nerds,” “Pink Panther” and my personal least-favorite concept for a remake, “The Omen.” Maybe the appeal of an “Omen” remake is lost on me, but I found the 1976 original to be adequately frightening and not in any need of rehashing. Hollywood executives begged to differ, apparently.

There’s also a slew of adaptations

preparing to muck up our theater screens, including “Miami Vice,” which is being directed by Michael Mann (and features Colin Farrel sporting the most ridiculous mustache I’ve ever seen).

You know, it wasn’t too long ago that Mann was making good films (anyone remember “Heat” or last year’s “Collateral”?), so why did he suddenly decide to involve himself with a “Miami Vice” film? Oh, right - it’s because he was the producer of the TV show for like six years. It’s like everyone in Hollywood is playing a giant practical joke on the theater-going public.

And we’re all falling for it.

The 2005 remakes together grossed nearly $1.2 billion at the box-office, and that’s not including the millions they’ll earn from rentals and DVD sales. The stats are there – remakes garner big bucks and the film industry knows it. No film is safe – disturbing news has reached my ears of a potential “Night of the Living Dead” remake … in 3-D. Until these things start flopping at the theater, there’s no end to what they could do.

But where do we turn, if not to our own cinema? Well, we could look overseas for our creative-film needs. The British family film “Millions,” the Russian vampire flick “Nochnoi Dozor” (known as “Night Watch”

stateside), and the Chinese martial-arts comedy “Kung Fu Hustle” were three unique foreign films that really caught my eye this year.

“Millions” and “Kung Fu Hustle” are both readily available on DVD, but “Nochnoi Dozor” is currently only accessible on Russian import or through NetFlix. There’s also no word on a U.S. theater release, and the film has been repeatedly delayed even for a limited release in major American cities.

But, if you’re hankering for a good horrorthriller with interesting camerawork and cinematography, it’s worth adding it to your Netflix queue. Blind-buying the imported Russian DVD isn’t a bad idea, either (yes, it has English subtitles).

Sit tight, everyone. This fad will blow over eventually. But board up the windows and stock the basement with Top Ramen and canned goods. Eventually, Hollywood will regain its artistic integrity, but it might be a while until the barrage of crappy remakes ceases.

By the way, I hope you enjoyed my column – because in 15 years it’s going to be remade with the beautiful stars of the time, a bigger budget, CG special effects, a car chase, and a superior marketing strategy that will earn far more box-office winnings than its predecessor. It’ll be awesome.

27 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:11:33 PM

A&E

NEWS

‘Piano’ found in good tune

Devereux finds happiness in kids

This fiction book captivates readers with the lovely story of a piano turner who travels to Africa

After a long adoption process, Luigi and Heiner are finally at home with the Devereuxs in the United States

MARISSA MOODENBAUGH

BY

REPORTER

Searching through the stacks of books that have come to permanently reside in all available crevices of my room, I am unsure as to what I am looking for.

Nothing seems right and as the discarded pile of books begins to accumulate, I begin to fear that my search will prove to be futile. My hopes begin to

BOOK REVIEW fade, until my fingers brush across the cover of “The Piano Tuner” by Daniel Mason.

Though I myself have never been musically talented, I have a deep respect for those who are talented or like myself, have a love of listening to music. That is perhaps what could have made me feel inclined to the fictitious story of a man that loves music, yet struggles to create his own.

The year is 1886 when a rare Erard piano belonging to the eccentric army surgeon, Dr. Carroll, comes into dire need of repair. Edgar Drake, a distinguished piano tuner known for his deft skills in tuning and repairing Erard pianos, is commissioned to travel far from the “civilized” cobbled streets of London, to the heart of war in the precarious jungles of northeast Africa.

Edgar’s expedition is a discovery of an entrancing culture rich in history, knowledge,

and beauty. Unusual acquaintances, like the Man with One Story, leave Edgar enlightened to the mysterious ways of these foreign lands and curious music of the natives.

After a time he finds himself reluctant to journey home and unwilling to relinquish the discovery of the world his eyes have beheld.

In the heart of war, though, it may be difficult for him to ever return.

“The Piano Tuner” is not just a fictional tale of one man’s life-altering journey; it is a deeper, artistic display of the profound love of music felt by many, and expressed by few. Letters of heart-rending sentiment confirm that though separated by distance, Edgar and his wife Katherine, like so many, are connected by a shared passion.

Mason’s vibrant characters, like the tender wife Katherine, enmesh the readers into the daringly original story Mason has created.

He challenges himself linguistically with each turn of the page, portraying his own masterpiece with vivid pictures of sapphire blue waters, lush exotic plants, untamed life,

and golden sands.

Intoxicating beauty is found in the painted faces of men, women, and children, the bold colors of the garments and veils that flow as if part of the wind, and the eluded melody, a mysterious spirit lingering in Mason’s words.

At times, however, the melody of the book is interrupted by moments of dull unintelligible nonsense. The wordy government documents that are incorporated to provide depth and understanding instead are tedious, leaving the reader feeling piqued at the interruption of the plot.

Though “The Piano Tuner” is at times flawed and out of tune, it beautifully depicts the love one man has for music and the journey his love takes him on.

The novel itself is like listening to a favorite genre of music. There will always be flaws, but one cannot help feeling the captivating moments that leave us awestruck, wondering if we will ever see or hear anything as beautiful again.

BY

In the Summer of 2004 while traveling on a mission trip to the country of Guatemala with their church, High Pointe Community Church, Spanish teacher Cami Devereux and her husband, Brian, were very eager to care for the children of the orphanage, Hogar Temporal.

They didn’t expect to fall in love with two boys that would change their lives forever.

After one and a half years of nitpicky international paperwork and other types of adoption documents, 13-year-old Luigi and his 8-year-old brother, Heiner, were brought to their new home in the United States as members of the Devereux family on the evening of Christmas Eve. Coming off the plane and stepping into the terminal at the Sea-Tac Airport, the boys and their new parents were welcomed with lots of balloons and heart-warming signs.

“We expected to have biological kids first, and we’ve always wanted to adopt, but I guess God had different plans for us,” Devereux said.

From Luigi and Heiner’s mother passing away six years ago by the cause of cancer, to living with an abusive aunt, the boys had no other place to go but to an orphanage, where they lived for two years.

La Costa brings fresh Mexican culture to Tacoma Mexican restaurant takes Azteca’s place as the new and improved Spanish dining in downtown Tacoma BY

KAYTI WEAVER

REPORTER

Come and try the hottest Mexican restaurant, La Costa, conveniently located and in the heart of downtown Tacoma right in the nightlife. Though the building was once an Azteca, La Costa gained its own name by taking the old ways of the Azteca and spicing it up in their own masquerade.

Also, La Costa has a very talented chef, Jorge. This is one restaurant you don’t want to skip on your night out.

With all the wonderful choices of tacos, the taste of spicy enchiladas, shredded meat like burritos, or even nice and tasty soup there isn’t one choice that would be a wrong

R E S TA U R A N T R E V I E W one I myself ordered Carne Asada. A semi-spicy grilled steak marinated in lime – popular in the Latin culture. The plates were huge, and on it were two huge Carne Asada meats, two large spoonfuls of rice, a side of refried beans, and a dab of guacamole. This, in my opinion, is the most recommended plate at La Costa. There are plenty of dishes to choose from and if the one I recommended may not be your style then don’t be afraid to be picky because La Costa has even more to offer.

With the great, friendly service and reasonable prices it’s like eating in the comfort of your home, but out, Latin style.

The customer service was a constant help. There was not one time that I needed to ask them to refill my glass of water.

It was nice to have somebody constantly wait on you with no question. Not only do they take great care of your dining needs, but they go beyond their required tasks to ask how you are and give you some of their time.

La Costa’s multi-level dining and Friday/Saturday nightlife gives their customers a comfortable feel of friends and family.

Every Friday and Saturday La Costa gives a dance/drag/singing show. So while enjoying an exquisite meal you can enjoy a show a la mode.

The chef of all these wonderful dishes is very accommodating. A friend of the staff and a close personal friend of Jorge had an operation that didn’t allow certain foods to be eaten. So because of this Jorge made a special soup just so their friend would return. It is now known as “the Eric special”. It’s not listed on the menu but can be ordered personally. This is what I call great service. So come and try the hot, spicy, sweet tastes of La Costa Mexican restaurant.

BY

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“We weren’t planning to adopt, but when we met these two, we just fell in love.

They are really special, special kids. By having lost a lot in the past, they are very resilient, good and kind,” Devereux said.

“It was awful and really hard to wait for them. Because when you’re pregnant you know you’ll get your baby in nine months, but when you adopt, you never know how long it will take.”

Going through six and a half years of marriage with a simple routine, the lifestyle

Nodia Van Rosendale passes away shortly after being hit by a van on a school day like any other

15128 Meridian East * Puyallup.WA 98375

(253) 840-2269

Heiner and Luigi Devereux express their excitement and happiness about being in America after such a long wait from when they met their new parents

of the Devereuxs has changed a lot.

“We now have two grown boys. With four people and two bedrooms, life is changing,” Devereux said, laughing.

Both Cami and Brian Devereux are able to fluently speak Spanish, but they are still working on Luigi and Heiner’s transition to English, saying they are getting better and better at it each day.

Even though the boys say they are going to miss their friends in Guatemala, they keep themselves occupied by learning the

aspects of a new childhood. Luigi quickly picked up a new sport – football – while Heiner befriended the Devereuxs’ golden retriever, Baxter, and enjoys playing with him greatly.

“Things are better here,” Heiner said, translated by Cami Devereux. “I like the houses.”

Overall the boys really like it in the United States, and are very blessed and happy to be able to experience a different way of living and the love of a new family.

ERHS responds to tragic death of Rogers student

Frank & Terri 253-848-3576

Wreck Amended

KIRSTEN BABAUTA

REPORTER

Rogers High School sophomore Nodia Van Rosendale died Wednesday morning after being hit by a van at approximately 7:20 a.m. while attempting to cross the street away from a crosswalk near her bus stop on 160th Street East and 88th Avenue East.

Detective Ed Troyer, spokesperson for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, said that their fatality team was sent to the scene and remained there long after for peers in mourning.

“It’s a hard lesson to learn,” Troyer said. “The accident

was tragic, and from my understanding she was a good, responsible girl.”

ERHS principal Brian Lowney is working hard with the school’s leadership and crisis teams to make sure that everyone is available to grieving students and staff. Lowney is keeping a line of communication open with the sheriff’s department and Rogers administration, and continuing to inform the ERHS staff.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with this young lady’s family,” Lowney said. “Our priority now is for the care of our staff and students and to help Rogers out any way we can.”

Though she did not have to cross any streets to get on her bus, the 16-year-old former Stahl Junior High student apparently saw some friends and wanted to ride to school with them. Despite the warnings of parents and other kids

at the bus stop, Van Rosendale, who was wearing dark clothing, stepped in front of the van in a non-lit area, according to Troyer.

As for the driver of the van that hit her, Troyer states there was no alcohol involved and excessive speeding was not a factor. The driver was devastated, but there was not a lot that she could have done. At this point, she is not being found at fault and Troyer does not believe any charges will be filed.

“There’s a reason bus routes are the way they are,” Troyer said. “The routes are made so that kids don’t have to cross any streets. I just hope that other kids will look at what happened and learn to pay attention to their surroundings.”

Plans for a memorial service had not been announced as of JagWire deadline.

05 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:31:02 PM

A&E

NEWS

Allen takes the road less traveled with ‘Match Point’

Science Week focused around natural disasters Science Week has students learning about, and preparing for, Mother Nature’s worst BY

DANNY CANHAM

REPORTER

It is time for another Winterim week, that time between the first and second semester that alternates between Business Week, Science Week and World Week, with next week being the second tri-annual Science Week.

“Science Week has only happened once before, so this will be among the top two,” said chemistry teacher Doug Reis, one of the staff who has been working on coordinating Science Week. “It will be better than the first.”

Aviation teacher and Science Week planner, Jeff Coleman, said, “Some problems (with previous Winterim weeks) were not enough activities for students, which we’re working on trying to change. We’ve added more stuff.”

A student in Coleman’s sophomore advisory, James Knight, said his older sister had thought the experience boring, but he has taken the responsibility of being a community leader for his class.

“I’m excited for Science Week and excited to see how our team does,” Knight said.

According to Reis, being excited about Science Week like Knight is what can make the difference between a good

week and a boring week.

“They’re what you put into them,” Reis said. “The kids that want to get involved and find stuff interesting will find it interesting.”

Some students do not see the point. They see Science Week and other Winterim weeks as a waste of time.

“People don’t come because there’s really no point,” said junior Devin Head. “It doesn’t count for a grade.”

Reis, however, does not agree.

“That’s a rumor that is not true,” he said. “Attendance actually goes up.”

During the week, each advisory will be expected to complete a series of tasks relating to science. Unlike the previous edition, this Science Week is specifically themed to the study of and preparation for natural disasters.

Each advisory, having become a scientific research station positioned somewhere on the Ring of Fire, will be “hit” by one of three potential natural disasters: a tsunami, a typhoon or an earthquake. The Ring of Fire is the area located around the outskirts of the Pacific tectonic plate that has a history of active volcanic activity. The type of natural disaster may or may not be affected by the advisory’s location in the world.

Every morning, ER time is scheduled for students to read material pertaining to disaster relief. Time will be set aside for reflection at the end of each day for advisories to com-

municate with each other what they have learned.

Of the many tasks to be finished by the end of the week, some include: building a house resistant to a tsunami, earthquake and/or typhoon out of Popsicle sticks; constructing a balsa wood airplane model to fly; and preparing a Disaster Kit. At the end of the week, students will present what they have learned.

“There will be navigation (orography), DNA profiling, airplane construction, home construction; close to 30 different tasks (and) math challenges,” Coleman said.

Each advisory’s activities will be conducted primarily by student leadership. Community leaders were chosen on Jan. 11, and attended training sessions after school on the 18th and 25th and Jag training sessions on the 24th and 26th.

Each is expected to represent their community and help to motivate their classmates.

Students need not have a strong background in science to excel in Science Week.

“Students need to know how to work together to get things done. They need to know how to use the Internet.

It’s a good resource (for this),” Reis said.

For weeks, all the science teachers and others involved have been busy planning for next week. Assistant Principal Troy Hodge took charge of finding a suitable keynote speaker. Due to conflicts of schedule, Hodge was unavailable for comment.

Director Woody Allen diverts from his norm and delivers a fantastically engrossing tale of deception, lies, obsession and guilt BY

EDITORIAL BOARD

Woody Allen is best known for his quirky love stories, his keen sense of dialogue, and interesting cinematography. His vast repertoire of movies (he’s made more than 40 titles since his directorial debut in 1966) is evidence enough of Allen’s prowess in filmmaking. In the last five years though, Allen has hit a bit of a slump. “Anything Else,” “Hollywood Ending,” “The Curse of the Jade Scorpion” and last year’s “Melinda and Melinda” all underwhelmed critics and filmgoers alike.

So what did Woody do? He pulled a David Bowie and “reinvented” himself.

Enter “Match Point,” his most recent foray into the world of relationships and love – only this time, it’s sugar-coated with a nice layer of passion, betrayal, deceit, temptation and infatuation. It’s everything you love about Woody Allen, but with two times the spunk and three times the infidelity.

Chris Wilton (John Rhys-Meyers) is an Irish athlete who, at a turning point in his life, decides to become a tennis instructor at an exclusive British country club. He hits it off with Tom Hewett (Matthew Goode), a wealthy young man who invites him to the opera. There, he meets Tom’s sister, Chloe (Emily Mortimer). They start dating and Chris soon falls in love with her. But Chris becomes conflicted when he meets Tom’s sensuous fiancée, a struggling American actress named Nola Rice (Scarlett Johansson). The two become romantically involved and begin a sordid affair behind the back’s of their significant others, even amid marriages and pregnancies.

Where “Annie Hall” was quirky, cute and loveable, “Match Point” is gloomy and violent. I hate to compare it to 2004’s “Closer” (directed by Mike Nichols), but the two films are definitely similar in their themes.

The difference is, “Match Point” doesn’t present us with hollow characters and shallow situations and expect us to sympathize – it’s a much more likeable film. “Closer” looked at cheating and lies with the depressing mentality of an angst-ridden teen; “Match Point” is a vastly more mature film, and it handles the story with grace and charm.

The performances are excellent all around. Scarlett Johansson is one of the more charismatic actresses working today, and she lives up to her “Lost in Translation” expectations with dazzling proficiency.

There are also strong supporting roles from British talent, Brian Cox and Penelope Wilton among them.

Viewing human life from the bedside of the dead BY

BRIANNE SHANNON

REPORTER

Anatomy teacher Carrie Swanson and 25 students went to the pathology lab (or morgue) at Madigan Army Medical Center (MAMC) at Fort Lewis on Jan. 11. Accompanied by Chief of Pathology, Dr. Stephen C. Groo, the students visited autopsy suites, held different organs, and heard stories about crime scene cases similar to those on the TV series “C.S.I.” The field trip was interactive and the students learned about many things, including cadavers, hearts, livers, and even robots.

Senior Tobi Johnson enjoyed herself.

“The visit was really exciting,” Johnson said. “I was going crazy. I only wish I could have stayed longer.”

Swanson hoped students would apply what they’ve learned in class and compare it to real life. As they toured the facility, the students were involved. They asked and answered questions of Groo about different body parts, and what they do.

“This trip made things real to them,” Swanson said. “They were totally into it.”

Many of the anatomy students are thinking about a career in medicine, and this field trip gave them a lot to think about.

Johnson is a student considering medicine as an occupation, and the trip only fueled her interest in this line of work.

“There were so many things that motivated me,” Johnson said. “I really liked the cool scrubs and badges the staff gets to wear.”

Among the organs the students got to explore was a liver. They saw both a healthy liver and one that had been affected by alcohol. The same went for the lungs; students saw a healthy lung and one diseased with cancer. They also saw arteries clogged with cholesterol and a heart coated with plaque.

As most of the sickly organs were consequences of smoking, drinking, or other unhealthy ways of life, students had to think about their own lifestyle choices.

“This is real life,” Swanson said. “Everyone has a body, and the choices they make affect them later on in life.”

A vision that seemed to stick out in

everyone’s mind was the aorta – the main artery that carries blood from the heart to the arteries of all limbs and organs, excluding the lungs. The students were shown an aorta with an aneurism – a disease characterized by a blood clot resulting from a weakening of the wall of an artery or blood vessel.

“The blood clot was big,” Swanson said.

“It was like the size of a tennis ball.”

Students saw diseased reproductive systems, including an ectopic pregnancy – where the fetus is implanted and developed outside of the uterus, as in the fallopian tubes. The students learned the fetus must be removed in this situation and can cause death to the mother, the baby, or both.

To assist in their studies, MAMC uses cadavers – deceased bodies – for training and practice. Though they weren’t allowed to touch it, the students got to examine a cadaver at the medical center.

“It smelled so bad,” Johnson said.

On the technical side, Swanson and the students had the privilege of finding out who does the dirty work. Though they’re never seen on the patient floors, the hospital has robots that help them. These robots weigh about a ton and are used for lifting, transportation, and even take care of laundry.

“These robots are smart,” Swanson said.

“When their batteries get low, they plug themselves in to charge.”

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Photo courtesy of Dreamworks

Students learn about the human body up close and personal at the morgue

MATT CLICK

FILM REVIEW But talented actors are nothing without a good screenplay – and that’s where “Match Point” truly shines. In my favorite scene, Nola and Chris run into each other on the street after meeting for the first time and decide to have a drink in a local pub. The dialogue in this scene is so unyielding, so concise.

It’s quick, it’s gripping and it feels natural.

“Men think I may be something special,” she says between sips of wine.

A beat, and Chris leans forward, intrigued. “Are you?”

She smiles teasingly. “No one’s ever asked for their money back.”

Allen, as a screenwriter, is in superior form in “Match Point.”

“Match Point” is immensely different from Allen’s earlier films in every way. The unique Woody Allen style is there – you can see it in the angles and in the direction. But the dark tone of the film, and the violent turn it takes three-quarters of the way through is definitely something new. I’m reluctant to call the climax of the film a “plot twist” (a term used by studios to promise an “I did not see that coming” moment to bring in the big bucks), but it does come completely out of nowhere.

In fact, I found myself questioning the direction when the moment occurred. I lost interest in the film for a good 10 minutes before it pulled me back in.

Stick with it, because for a while it seems like Allen seriously jumped the shark – but it will all make sense eventually, and the movie is stronger for it. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed the film as much had the “twist” not occurred.

My only gripe (and it’s a very minor one) with the film is with the editing. It seems sluggish at points and some scenes felt extremely superfluous to me. One scene in particular seemed completely needless to me. Chris runs into an old friend on the street and they swap phone numbers and plan for lunch. The character appears once more in the film (in yet another useless scene), and we hear no more of him after that. I didn’t mind too much, because I was enjoying it a ton – but I felt that some of the excess plot points could have been trimmed down quite a bit.

“Match Point” isn’t exactly in wide-release, but it’s worth the trek to find it (I had to drive an hour to get to a theater that was showing it). If you’re not up for it though, check out “Match Point” on DVD in a few months. Woody Allen has showed us his darker side, and I like what I see.

29 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:08:32 PM

NEWS

A&E

District searches for thieves

students honor

Burglaries leave three high schools and one junior high in the area to question their security measures and replace expensive equipment

Martin Luther King, Jr. The first completely student-run MLK assembly went off without a hitch, and despite a few disgruntled students, the general reaction was extremely positive

BY

VERONICA TORNQUIST

REPORTER BY

THAYER LAFLEUR

REPORTER

Three unidentified, at-large suspects burglarized four Puyallup School District schools, including Emerald Ridge, over Winter Break, stealing more than $100,000 worth of technology equipment.

Rogers High School, Puyallup High School, and Stahl Junior High School were also robbed. Emerald Ridge, Rogers, and Stahl were all raided on Jan. 1 while Puyallup was broken into the next day.

All of the burglaries showed no sign of forced entry.

The suspects avoided being caught by covering their faces when in sight of security cameras. The mystery behind the burglaries is how these people got the ability to access entry

The yearly Martin Luther King Jr. assembly took place Jan. 16 like it always has. Starting from the depths of slavery and ending with the triumph of Dr. King’s demand for equality, it certainly wasn’t anything shocking or new. But upon realizing that this is the first time it’s been completely student-run, one can appreciate the truly strenuous work invested.

Condee Holbrook and Cindy Watters were the original forces behind the assembly that’s as old as Emerald Ridge itself. They scheduled the auditions, practices, more practices, and managed to create something both enlightening and provocative. Holbrook even wrote the three plays that circulate and keep the assemblies fresh from year to year.

But at the end of last year, both teachers uprooted from the Jaguar community. It would seem that these well-run assemblies would become merely a thing of the past.

Enter senior Tyler Quinn. At the same time Holbrook and Watters were saddling up and waiting for the sunset, Quinn, then a junior, was filling out the proper paperwork to make the MLK assembly his senior project – which he did.

“You can only plan for so much,” Quinn said, “and then you leave it up to your ability to think on your feet. I knew it would be a lot of hard work. It was, of course – more than I imagined.”

Auditions were held Nov. 21 and 23, and everyone who tried out got a part. Practices were held off and on until the winter break, during which there were two practices, and after break, practices were held every day until the big performance.

“I was really impressed with the dedication of everyone involved,” Quinn said. “For some of these kids MLK was their first time on stage, but they gave their all.”

The assembly was as dazzling as ever, with an enthusiastic and diverse cast of 75-plus sophomores, juniors, and seniors. The assembly was acted out well, with some new faces gracing the Emerald Ridge stage. There were multiple additions to the play, including a fifth act that advised students to take action if they saw any acts of discrimination.

“We all felt that adding that fifth act was important,” Quinn said. “With it, there was a call to action that I felt would shift the focus from the past to the future.”

Still, an alienated minority believes that the assembly should have been less about the African-American struggle, and more diversified. Seniors Drew Dresdner and Kayti Weaver, the former and current Gay-Straight Alliance presidents, respectively, expressed this opinion, although neither has ever seen the performance in its entirety.

“The main thing in the assembly is racism,” Weaver said, “but not recognizing everything else. …They have broadened that assembly to so much more than race. The school just doesn’t want to take chances with a sensitive subject.”

Dresdner, however, was more concerned with the assembly as a whole.

“I get the feeling that people are living too much in the past – too involved in spreading word of the discrimination of the past that they are blind to the discrimination of the present,” Dresdner said.

However, in Quinn’s opinion, broadening the assembly to more than the actual struggle of Dr. King and the history that led up to his drive for civil rights would be counterproductive to the overall message.

“It’s called ‘Martin Luther King Day,’ ” he said. “The celebration is about Dr. King and the African-American struggle for civil rights. This script, in particular, is focused on the entire African journey. We wanted to keep that the focus.

If the GSA wanted to put on an assembly, or do something like ‘The Laramie Project,’ I would definitely support them in that.”

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The fact that these people broke into the schools is not only upsetting but it also causes a feeling of insecurity.

“I felt violated. You feel violated when someone goes through your stuff. You realize anything can be stolen if people really want it,” Osborne said.

Even as the Pierce County Sheriff and Puyallup Police departments continue to search for the intruders responsible for the stolen items, the Puyallup School District has decided to take certain measures.

“The school district is changing security codes, Puyallup Police Department are on campus, and the Pierce County Sheriffs Department is going after the people by offering a $1,000 reward,” Lowney said.

The school district has three goals it would like to accomplish: Find the people responsible, get back all that was stolen, and avoid this event from happening again.

If students know anything related to this crime they can receive up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the burglars. Call 253-591-5959 with any information; all callers will remain completely anonymous.

WASL test split up to keep students concentrated Administrators believe that new testing strategies will raise scores, but results in June will measure effectiveness BY

CHRISTY FOSTER AND JESSICA RITCHIE

REPORTER AND EDITORIAL BOARD

Everyone’s heard of the WASL. Everyone’s heard that starting with this year’s sophomores, it’s required to pass in order to graduate high school. But not everyone knows that this year, the WASL will be divided into two different weeks in two different months.

The first part will begin on March 13 with section one of reading, and section two will be taken the next day. The writing portion will start with section one on March 15. Section two will be handed out the following day.

After testing in March students will have about a month of time before testing will begin again. April’s schedule is like March.

Testing will begin April 18 starting with math with tools (calculators, rulers, and protractors). Section two of math is done without tools and is to be completed the next day.

Section one of science is April 20 and section two is April 21.

Students were of the same mind when they initially learned of the change “It’s kind of bad,” sophomore Alyssa Christensen said. “You want to get it all Photo by Kassie Green

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into the schools. Police enforcement, along with the school administrators, think the thieves may have had a master key, but that is not the final word.

“I have no idea how they got in, but there was no sign of forced entry,” Lowney said.

At Emerald Ridge, three staff members had things either stolen or had their offices disturbed. Video productions teacher Gary Osborne had the most equipment stolen from his editing room.

“Two projectors from the media carts, one flat screen television, and eight mini DVD-VCR decks were all stolen.

That’s about $14,000, not counting the two projectors,” Osborne said.

As if that wasn’t enough, they also rummaged through the offices of Principal Brain Lowney and librarian Doug Stull.

“My office was open and had been gone through but nothing was missing,” Lowney said.

The same could not be said for Stull’s office.

“They stole my LCD projector and my sense of innocence,” Stull said. The projector its self cost $800.

done at once.”

Sophomore Kirsten Allen agreed.

“We get all prepared for it during that first month,” Allen said. “Then you get a break and it seems like you wouldn’t be in the right state of mind.”

It is crucial for students to attend every day. If even one of these days or sections is missed, the whole test will not be counted.

Not only would a huge amount of time be wasted, but one of the four chances to pass the WASL would be gone.

Records show that Washington’s math and science scores are much lower than the reading and writing scores. So this new strategy will give students more time to study. Staff members at ERHS have faith in this new system and how it’s going to benefit the sophomores this year.

“I think that by having separate weeks for WASL testing, students will have enough energy to perform their very best on each WASL subject area test,” Building Learning Specialist Nancy Drew said. “In addition, students will receive their WASL reading, writing, and math scores back in June so that they can make plans to get help before retaking any WASLs in August.”

This information changed things for Christensen.

“I think that’s better because they normally release test scores a long time after, and you pretty much forget what the test

was about,” she said.

The WASL schedule may seem a little odd, but it was specifically designed to help the students. One of the problems with the old schedule was that everything was too cramped and that students were too stressed.

This not only relieves many students of the pressure of testing but gives them more time to study.

“It used to be more a test of endurance,” math teacher Craig Fredrikson said. “Hopefully this will break it up and make it a test of knowledge and not endurance.”

If the WASL is not passed the first time sophomores are required to take it next year.

If any further help is needed as far as practice or just more experience in certain subjects, there is the option of summer school. This is an option even if all classes have been passed for the school year because the WASL is offered at the end of the course.

During the next month, teachers will teach more along the lines of the WASL. Skill building is also a key subject that will be discussed.

Students will want to know how everything went and if it was passed before summer so they can find out if signing up for summer school is needed. For that reason, test scores will be sent back June 6.

03 volumeSIX.issueFOUR 1/25/2006 10:32:04 PM

Lauren: Oh yes, simply listening the wonderfulness of this band makes me have such a passion for music, that words can not describe. They aren’t one to sing about stupid things, like one of those “Oh my girlfriend broke up with me, I think I’ll go write a depressing emo song now” bands. They sing about things like abuse and trying to make it in the music business, while still holding a nice upbeat tempo.

The Academy Is…, is easily the most awesome band I have ever listened to in my life.

JANUARY 2006

Nick: Here we go again. Another punk rock, emo, whatever band, that sounds literally identical to at least 853 bands that are “in” right now. I actually thought of about 50 bands right off the top of my head that these guys sound like and was going to write them down, but due to the limited space I will spare you. The point is that if people came to a concert to see a certain punk rock band, let’s call them band X, and these guys came on stage instead, and no one could tell the difference, then we have got a problem.

13

14 >> Tech @ ER

Technology

Tyler: If a bunch of babies who couldn’t form complete sentences all got together, and drooled on a few instruments, this is what it would sound like. I’m not wasting more paper on these guys.

Jenn: As if things weren’t bad enough, I felt my depression level raise significantly just through the first song. If I ever hear the words our time is almost there, I think I might scream. Two of the songs I wouldn’t even know they were different if I hadn’t had the names right in front of me. If you’re looking for songs which have never ending repeating choruses than you’ve hit the jackpot. “The Academy is” needs to go back inside their garage and close the door.

Nick: How could you not like, no love, Coldplay? I mean seriously everyone has got to like them at least a little bit.

You could be the most die-hard country or rap fan and you know what? You probably still listen to Coldplay. That’s how good they are. They are easily on of the most talented and just plain awesome bands out right now. Their songs are just plain high-quality music and everyone, no matter what you prefer to listen to, has to appreciate that.

Tyler: I like Coldplay, well at least I did in their “Yellow” days, but this CD is just one song. One song, relentlessly copied and pasted. He must have used up all his songwriting energy thinking of a name for his kid. Good thing he settled on a good old fashioned name like “Apple”.

Jenn: I have to agree with Nick on this one, ColdPlay is so awesome it makes me want to close my eyes and ignore the entire world forever.

The voice of Chris Martin soothes to the bones. I don’t care what anyone says, every song does not sound the same, some people just don’t know good music if it fell on their head as a safe does in a cartoon clip. “The Speed of Sound” just fills you with motivation to get up and do something, anything.

Lauren: Um, is it me, or do all of these songs sound exactly the same?

I’ve never been a big fan of Coldplay. Sure, they have a couple of quality songs like “Speed of Sound” and “Clocks” (which also sound like the same song, I can never tell them apart on the radio), but other than that I could easily live without this band. The airy voice of the lead singer and repetitiveness of the lyrics makes the little voices in my head go, “Yuck, stop, what have I done to deserve this torture?”

So, to put simply, there is as low as you can possibly go with music, 50 feet of crap, and then this CD.

15 >>

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Tyler: If a band of beautiful golden angels mated with a soulful deep south gospel choir to create the best music in the world, it would be ALMOST as good as Sonia Dada. In it’s entirety, this CD is one of the best that I own, mainly because it is so eclectic. Every single song is different, like a box of delicious assorted chocolates.

Jenn: It’s that kind of tune that just gets stuck in your head for days, that real annoying one that drives you crazy all through your math test. I’ve never heard uhmmm bop so much in one song since Hanson. If they kept to letting the instruments make the music, the songs would be much better off. Someone should get the singer a doctor and quick, I think he has a frog in his throat.

Between biochemistry and test-prep, Jessie Roy has a lot on her petri dish. And it’s not everyone who scores 223out of 240 on the PSAT.

05 Gifts from Guatamala

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After a year-and-a-half of waiting, Cami and Brian Devereux welcomed their adopted Guatamalan children to their home.

12 Jessie Roy: Genius

30 MLK returns

For the sixth year, students have come together to inspire the collective student body with the story of the AfricanAmerican struggle for civil rights.

Lauren: The utter confusion of this CD really scored low on the Lauren music scale. The song “Last Parade (Crazy Lady)” at first annoyed me with a passion because of the constant lalala-ing, but then just scared me by the man with the very frog-like voice. That voice just makes me want to say, “Excuse me Kermit, but when did you get a record deal?”

This CD is not one I feel the need to add to my play list, mainly because it is so different with each song, that you get to hear a man going through every stage of puberty twice.

Nick: At times this group can sound very smooth, soulful, and just overall enjoyable. But then something bad happens.

The man with the raspiest, lowest voice in the history of song comes in and ruins everything. The songs usually have a pretty nice flow going and then he comes in and pretty much just kills everything. A word of advice: If you want to sound good, don’t let that guy sing.

Jenn: Ahhhh…. Dave Matthews, who doesn’t love them? It’s always a good choice no matter what mood you’re in, no actually, it’s the best choice. The music has a way of helping you relax, but at the same time, keeps you upbeat. In each song the guitar is amazing and always with a little something extra thrown in. It’s a little bit of everything put into one, not to mention that he can actually sing, instead of being a so called musician who gets put on the radio because of their “catchy lyrics.” Call it love, passion, I don’t care but Dave Matthews is one man who is definitely a keeper.

Lauren: Now, this one is definitely hitting the happy chord on Lauren. It’s not in my normal wave of music, but it’s definitely got a nice beat to it. Songs like “Rapunzel” just make me want to get up and dance like there’s no tomorrow. And then the song “Stay (Wasting Time)” is just amazing with its acoustical awesomeness. I think I could really grow to enjoy this band, props to Jenn.

Nick: Is the Dave Matthews Band really still around? To be completely honest I have never really been a big fan, but I do admit they are a talented band with a very unique style, and they have a variety of interesting and quality songs. Each one of these songs has its own sound and style. They have found a way ot stay in the music scene for quite a while now and this is one of their better records.

Tyler: Well, I was mad at the Dave Matthews Band for dumping their sewage in the river... but I think that after hearing this CD, I’m willing to forgive them. They’ve been around for a while, and I think that they’ve still got a touch of that new-age hippie creativity about them. Hang in there, DMB!

1/25/2006 10:07:31 PM

B e Th eat Annapolis (PG-13) Opens Jan. 27 Starring: James Franco, Tyrese Gibson

AN OPEN FORUM FOR STUDENT EXPRESSION

When a Stranger Calls (PG-13)

Seattle Thunderbirds vs.

Prince George Cougars The Veronicas The Crocodile Cafe Jan. 30 $10

Aerosmith/Lenny Kravitz The Tacoma Dome Feb. 15 $35-$125

Funk Night The Showbox Feb. 18 $15

Aquire the Fire The Tacoma Dome Feb. 24-25 $20-$60

Some By Sea Club Impact Feb. 24 Price TBA

KeyArena Jan. 29 $12-$20

Seattle Super Sonics vs.

Atlanta Hawks KeyArena Feb. 10 $10-$200

Opens Feb. 3 Starring: Camilla Bell, Katie Cassidy, Brian Geraughty

Something New (PG-13) Opens Feb. 3 Starring: Sanaa Lathan, Simon Baker

Silent Films: The Scar of Shame Opens Feb. 6 at the Paramount $12

IFMA Freestyle Motocross FMX The Tacoma Dome Feb. 11 $18-$30

WIAA Mat – wrestling The Tacoma Dome Feb. 17 $20

The Wedding Singer Jan. 31-Feb. 29 5th Avenue Theater $16.50-$58.50

The Good Woman of Setzuan Jan. 29-Feb. 8 Meany Studio Theatre $8-$13

Driving Miss Daisy Feb. 16-March 5 Tacoma Actors Guild $15-$28

Giving you the low down on the South Sound EMERALD RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL 12405 184TH ST E SOUTH HILL, WA 98374

VOLUME SIX ISSUE FOUR JAN 2006

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1/25/2006 9:59:59 PM