Sam Spina Portfolio 2 by Lori Hart

2015

Yearbook, gosh what can I say about yearbook. It has had a major impact on my life. It has made me into the person I have become. I remember the beginning of my sophomore year, being terrified of interviewing anyone for a story or mod. Now I interview people to the point where they no longer want to be interviewed. I have developed skills in indesign, writing, public speaking, time management, and teamwork. This was my first year using indesign and it clearly showed. I had no background and I needed a lot of help in the process. Thank goodness for Clara being located right next to Mr. Adamson. My design skills were weak and needed to be improved. All the pages that I did design were mediocre and even the ones I was proud of got changed. It was kind of disappointing, but I knew it was nothing personal. We wanted the best book there could be and in order to do that, elements had to be changed. Writing was a struggle this year. I was more focused on getting the elements that my team was weak in done. My team was not the most skilled in writing headlines or second decks. They had a lack of imagination that I seemed to contain. I left the big writing objects to them and the smaller details that were more likely to be noticed to myself. Thank god for Chloe Hislop for when the deadline was approaching and I needed a story to be finished. Public speaking was really never my forte and I never thought it would be. First joining yearbook, I was never one that just went to people just to talk to them. I needed a purpose. I was shy and was always worrying about what others would think of me. Now I couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t give a hoot. I know who I am and where I want to go with my life and I really wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t let anyone get in the way of that. Time management has never been a strong skill of mine. I get distracted very easily and wait until the last possible second to get a job done, such as this portfolio. I waited until the day before it was due to start my writing. I hold myself back and this stupid time management problem is actually going to kill me. I have to work on it because it has created so many problems for me.

For deadlines, I waited to start finding photos right before the deadline was. I also waited to do my assignments until way after they were due. I will fix this problem because it has given me some mad anxiety. I cannot say that my team and I have really worked all that well as a team. This semester was better than the last. They aided me in finishing the work I had not completed and also getting photos that were needed on the spread. Getting captions and headlines was a struggle, but in the end, it would always get done. One way or another. Sales and advertising has been my weak suit. I have not really done anything in this category except when I told some seniors to buy a senior ad or reminding the classes to attend yearbook palooza. My team was in charge of fundraising this year for yearbook palooza and I really do not know how that went. We attempted to sell those bags, but I do not know if anyone except Lauren Haggar bought one. In hindsight, they were a cute idea, but no one seemed to enjoy them as much as I did. Yearbook ethics and dedication took a major fall and for the worse. I am not dedicated to yearbook any more and I wish I were. I really love yearbook, but my heart is just not in it anymore and it does make me sad on the occasion. I will miss all the things that make up yearbook, but I am just not in a place where I can give my all to yearbook. I will always be here if you need any help, so do not hesitate to ask.

Hard work and dedication is what it takes to achieve a goal. There will always be obstacles that seem to stand in the way. Some may take some time to overcome, but in order to do that, you have to never give up. Have I lived by this philosophy this year? Well in a sense, the answer is yes and no. I have endured a great deal of issues that have come into my life, but nothing that I havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t already encountered. I believe that the problems I normally face always have some sort of effect on me, but this year I began to let everything slide, I did not have a care in the world, even when I should have. All my emotions had been drained out of me and that left me with nothing. I had no motivation and nothing seemed to bother me. I had become a blank slate. I needed to be molded again, but there was no one there to aid me in my journey. With the minimal motivation that I had, I could not mold myself. My life began to slip away. The things that mattered to me the most began to decrease and slip away. I was losing myself and I could feel it. I had a constant feeling in my heart that would not and could not be relieved. It was more than an emotion, it was something that I could not shake. It was now something that I had to live with and I was not prepared. The constant sadness took a hold of my heart and began to develop in waves, even if there was no purpose. The life I want to live has always seemed achievable. Recently though, I have had my doubts. With those surrounding me always filled with only doubts I have lost hope. Hearing that I could never have the life I want or even the job I want, has strengthened my doubts about myself even more. I know what I want and I believe that I am willing to do whatever it takes, but I have doubts in myself and that is what is dragging me down. I am a hard-working person when I want to be and I do have my flaws. Everyone has something that is holding them back from their dreams and things that prevent them from moving forward, I just have a harder time overcoming these fears. My dream job is to be a pediatrician. Many have told me that I would never be able to become a doctor due to certain factors in my life. I desperately want to prove those people wrong. I have been thinking about my future a lot and I only know one aspect, I want to be a doctor. Doctors have to be the best and brightest. They hold the life of others in their hands and can do whatever they please with them. Many do not have faith in me that I will ever make it. I know I can and I will, but lately it has dawned on me that there are many items that I have to figure out, such as what kind of doctor. I know that I am self-determined and have a specific personality. I am able to get along with most people and with a job like this, I would need one. Also, a sense of humor in order to cheer those around up would be a plus and thankfully, I think I have that, or so I am told. This job interests me because I do love children. It intrigues me that we were all once a child and as the years pass, we grow, not just physically, but emotionally and mentally. We learn and develop and are shaped into the person we were meant to become.

My favorite piece of work that I have done this semester or even this year was page 90-91. This spread was designed beautifully by Alyssa and Maddie. I loved the design that i had before, but they made it even better. I love the adventure mod that was on it. The picture are beautiful and really tie the page together. It is really relatable and designed in an engaging way. We did have a struggle to put this page together. For this page to fall into place, we had to find many things. We all had a general idea of what we wanted the page to have and what it should look like, but getting there was what was standing in our way. Latte poetry had yearbook pictures, but they were not the best quality. They were dark and when brightened, they did not contain the same quality. Nicole took pictures, the only problem was that we did not know where they were located. It took days to find these photos, but when we found them, the story came together. We had one main photo at the beginning, but the final submission that was worked on by the editors contained many small pictures that was place in a neat way. The adventure mod, we had no pictures, so we had to ask family and friends for photos. I ended up using one of my own photos. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s of my dogs and I at fossil creek and I love that picture. Even though it was a struggle to make and we had literally no pictures at all, the page did fall together and I am very proud of it.

Page 10-11 is shit. I had not done the basketball story. Lexi said ng to do it, but why would I give Lexi any responsibility, especially when she is no longer in the class. I should have written the story myself, and even when I attempted to, it turned out to be a piece of shit. We ended up having to take the basketball story from newspaper. I felt so bad that that story had not gotten done and the package does not really fit the theme of the page. Also, we did not have any photos for BLT. Not only did we not have photos, but we also did not have any interviews. When I attempted to conduct interviews, none of the members answered very well. They did not really know what the club they were in was about. They gave very vague answers and they all seemed very similar to one another. We ended up having to use those interviews and also I attempted to make a BLT on indesign which ended up looking mediocre so we took two of the members and made them eat an actual BLT. In the end, the page ended up looking fine. The only thing that I do not really like on the page is the basketball story, but I am really grateful that we could use the story from newspaper. I learned that we cannot wait to do anything. Procrastination will be the death of everything. To further improve the page, the story can be written and also different pictures could be used instead of the exact spread from the newspaper. I really do like the final outcome and I really want to thank the people who designed the page. So thank you.

The picture that I was most proud of is the picture of Mr. Sweater with an umbrella in the rain with another man. I forgot what his name is and I really donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how to spell it. It is my favorite picture because they both look so happy and I love when it rains. The sky is such a deep grey and the clouds all form in a way that is so cool to me. I love that kind of weather and to have my picture as a divider page is even cooler. Rule of thirds is used due to the fact that the picture is in the first two quadrants and not the last one. Both the people are looking at each other with these funny faces. The picture is focused on the people and the background is full of green trees and there are no other people in the picture, so they are the main focus.

My greatest weakness is procrastination. It has literally ruined my life. I do not understand why I continue to do it, but I do. I get distracted and tired and sad easily and that leads me to having a lack of motivation. I can barely get up in the morning without wanting to cry. I hate waking up. My bed is so comfy and warm and I just feel at home when I just lay there. There are no problems in my room except all the garbage that is laying around, which I am too lazy to clean up. I really need to get my act together, but do you know how many times I’ve told myself that? I’ve been saying that forever, I just never get to it and it just gets me even more depressed than I already am. How can I fix this? I could see a doctor, but that’s too much work. But see that right there I don’t want help even though I clearly need it. It’s a psychological thing that I have that makes me think I can do this on my own, but I can’t. That’s what I need to do. I need to ask for help.

I honestly love my all about me project. I did a Hey Arnold! Theme and it was so cute. It was a little dark, but to be honest, I love the story I wrote and all the mods I did. My photos are of those I love and I did a lot better on the design than I would have thought I could do.

How was I an asset to the staff? I mean I was sort of an asset to the staff. I tried to be at least. I was kind of not myself for this final semester. I had been preoccupied and I did not do a lot for anything. I wish I had done more because I love seeing my work in the final product. I should have written more and not procrastinated so much. I did take pictures this year, but I was also sort of the photography editor for student council, so I believe I put too much pressure on myself. I never knew where to put the photos and that was a problem. I am deeply sorry that I did not do more.

I did have a lot of problems and hardships this year. Not only in this class, but with all my other classes and also personal problems. I had recently discovered that I may suffer from anxiety or depression. I know a lot of people jokingly say oh Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m so depressed or Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m so anxious, but for me, this is a serious problem. Every morning I woke up with this ache in my heart and I could not shake it. It did not last all day or even occur every day, but when it did happen, nothing could make me any happier. I tried to deal with it by myself, or I subtly hinted that these things were bothering me but no one understood. When I did ask for help, I did not really receive any. If anything, it made it worse. I again had to deal with it by myself. Any ways, problems I had in yearbook. I had lost motivation and I again let procrastination get the best of me. I did not take pictures as much as I should have and I let other activities get in the way. I learned that I do sometimes need to ask for help. Even with the simplest things. I also need to ask for help ahead of time. If I have a feeling that I will need help in the future, I should ask for it ahead of time. Help may not always be what I need or want, but in the end, it is better for myself and everyone else if I ask for it ahead of time. Overall, I believe that I could have handled the situation a lot better than I did. I could have asked for help many times before it became last minute, but for me, this is a problem for me. I do not like asking for help. I do not understand why, but I feel like I can do it all on my own, even when I understand I cannot. This is something that I need to work on in upcoming years.

Last year, I had no experience in indesign. I did my portfolio in a binder, just like every other first year staff member did. When I arrived this year, I needed so much help. I had no idea how to do the most simple things on the program. Now, at the end of the year, I have developed so many skills. I love using indesign and most of the time, when others need help, I can usually help them. I have grown in this class. Both my skills and my personality have changed and it is because of yearbook. I have grown for the better and I am so happy that I have gotten to meet so many more people due to yearbook. Friendships have been made and I have developed and broken out of my shell. I am no longer a turtle. In my past portfolio, I had no theme. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s start from the beginning. I had written all my reflections and attempted to stick them in protection and in a binder, but even that looked terrible. The next semester, I had to search my room to find that disappointing binder that I had stuck in a corner and left there dormant until I realized I actually needed it again. This year was my first time using indesign to make my portfolio and I can honestly say I am so proud of them. They have a constant theme and are so fun and so me. Sam helped me with using photoshop and thanks to him my portfolio came out just the way I wanted. This portfolio I am also very proud of. It has a constant theme and I will be hanging it on my wall.

Heading: Samantha N. Spina 28616 North Hedgehog Way (480) 473-3483 Objective: I do not have many skills, but I am willing to learn. I am open to change, and some are not. Personally I love change due to the fact that I get bored easily. When I get this job, I will work my hardest. In past years I have not worked as hard, but now I am willing to. Experience: I have had -one year of experience with indesign -two years of yearbook writing skills -two years of photography -two years of caption writing -two years of headline making -kinda funny -super sassy -efficient in microsoft word and powerpoint Education: I will be graduating high school in 2017 Activities/ I am an active member of student council, key club, spanish club, quill and scroll, National Technical Honors society. I also volunteer with these clubs. Awards: I am participating in the superintendent's challenge

DETERMINED “Everyone is so determined to win their competition so tensions are high and it’s so competitive but so fun.”

CAITLIN Bickle feels the pressure as a young but experienced varsity team member

ENERGETIC “Every conference has a “fun” aspect to it, like we get a hypnotist for our state competition, ENTREPRENEURSHIP ”[Being] willing to and besides that everyone is in a great mood and understand business and having a passion there to have fun.” for owning a business.” COMMUNITY “I have made some of the closest and COMMITMENT ”Coming to as many most meaningful relationships through DECA and meeting and DECA events as possible as a it’s so awesome because every friend I’ve made has member like-minded motivation and outgoing personalities.” ACHIEVEMENT ”Learning business skills

CAITLIN BICKLE STARTED THIS SEASON ON FIRE. The six foot one sophomore has been playing basketball since she was five, and was a member of this year’s varsity team. “I played varsity last year, which was great but also stressful because I was a freshman in varsity,” said Bickle. Having made the team as a freshman, Bickle is recognized as an up-and-coming powerhouse. “I told her yesterday that I would be scared if I had to play against her. She’s a monster at the game, man,” said Morgan Easterbrook, a senior and fellow teammate. As a freshman, she had a successful season, averaging 14 points per game and scoring a total of 435 for the season. Bickle may be tall, and expected to only play the role of a post player, but she has proven otherwise. She made a total of 23 three-point shots last season. That high an amount of three point shots is normally expected of a guard, making her ability even more unexpected. “Caitlin is a gifted and dedicated basketball player. She is a positive member of the team,” Michael Siwek, athletic director, said. Bickle did not just play for school. She also participated in club basketball during the summer. “I have two coaches, a club coach like outside of school, as well as a school coach. Ben Wade is my club coach and Richie Willis is my school coach,” said Bickle. As a sophomore, Bickle already received multiple scholarship offers to play basketball. GCU, for example, offered her a full ride scholarship for basketball. “She has offers from every school, I think she is 13th in the nation for her grade, which is really good for a sophomore,” said Easterbrook. story by lucas aikin

AT THE SOUTH MOUNTAIN HOME GAME, Caitlin Bickle shows why she is one of the stars of the basketball team. Her height gave her an advantage when it came to rebounds. Bickle has been offered college scholarships for basketball. WITH HER HANDS IN THE AIR, Bickle attempts to block a pass from her opponent. The game was against Mountain View and was held on January 5th and the girls won with a score of 62-37. CAITLIN BICKLE, A SOPHOMORE, leaps above the competition in a game against South Mountain. Standing at 6’1, she is the tallest player on the team. Bickle had a high scoring season as a freshman, averaging 14 points a game. photos by nicole

ASPIRING “Participating in DECA means getting a and putting them to the test at a competition, head start on life because we compete using real life striving to do your best.” scenarios and get a feel for the business world.” Kaylee Hamm, a sophomore Rose Capin, a senior

MAKE ME A BLT

BLT is not just a sandwich that consists of bacon, lettuce, and tomato

Breakaway Leadership Team, or BLT, is a club full of students from different backgrounds and grades that are brought together to learn how to be leaders. Through their actions and mindsets, they search ways to be positive role models to others. “Everyone in the class is really diverse,” said Carlos Paoletti, a senior and BLT member. “You have a bunch of different people and different social classes and we all come together and try to come up with solutions to problems we see on campus.” A friend convinced Paoletti to come to a BLT meeting his junior year and he has been going ever since. “It’s whoever we can see being a leader and helping BLT grow into something bigger and help involve other kids,” said Paoletti.

AMERICAN HORROR STORY

IT TAKES a lot more than most students realize to prepare for Homecoming

“I think it’ll be great. Last year’s Homecoming was fun, and people seem to be pretty excited for it,” said Andrey Carpenter, a sophomore. Named after the popular horror television series, American Horror Story, this year’s Homecoming dance took place on Halloween. All students wore black and dressed casually. Mikenzi Thomas, 9, and Alexis Stoner, 9 Nicholas Antrim, 12

Elizabeth Erb, 9 and Carsen Kenny, 9

PASSIONATE

“BLT has opened up my eyes to involving more kids in a lot of things, because I never really noticed how kids may feel. For me it changed how I view those kids and how I want to help those kids bring a community to our school,” said Zoe Monroe, a senior and BLT member. story by korie kerr

From freshmen to seniors, Student Council members worked hard organizing this year’s homecoming events.

neri

DEDICATION “Being a hard worker and being dedicated to reach your highest potential.”

The week of Homecoming included a parade, a movie night, a basketball tournament, Unplugged, an assembly and the traditional Homecoming football game. Students wore their pajamas on Monday, and dressed like a toddler on Tuesday. On Wednesday they twinned, Thursday was animal print, and they wore Halloween costumes on Friday. “As a freshman it was really exciting to go. It felt like I was really in high school,” said Alexis Brown, a sophomore. HELPING STUDENT COUNCIL PREPARE for the Falcon Horror Homecoming, Maddie Miller, “I feel like Homecoming is one of those things that a freshman, paints the boards that went people hear about a lot, but no one really knows what around campus. The boards varied from scary it’s actually like until they go for themselves. It’s pretty exciting, and I’m sure this year’s homecoming will pumpkins and goblins to monsters and the Grim Reaper. photos by nicole neri be just as great,” Brown said. story by katelyn reinhart

INFLUENTIAL

Varsity Girls Basketball, DECA, BLT, Homecoming

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SHE SHOOTS, SHE SCORES

WHY THE HECKA AREN’T YOU IN DECA?

DECA members explain what the acronym of their club means to them

BREAKFAST CLUB SATURDAY schoolers explain the reason they had to attend the session

“I ditched school. I couldn’t say where I was.” Anthony Beach, sophomore

Alexander Haggar, sophomore

“I don’t drive myself, so my parents drive me. They work really late so sometimes they’re unreliable when it comes to waking up early, so I am always late to my first period class. I was also sick for two weeks.” Orly Katz, senior

FEMINISM HAS NOT BEEN A PROMINENT TOPIC since the late 20th century when women’s suffrage was an everyday issue. It has always been an issue, but the popularity and awareness of it has come in waves over the years. Partially due to social media, feminism has become a discussion topic for men and women around the world. Regan Anderson has personally taken up the discussion of this issue at Cactus Shadows and has proceeded to take a stand. Anderson focused her attention on the dress code and how it relates to feminism, rape culture, and self confidence. Anderson was presented with an opportunity, in the form of an English project, to educate her peers and was inspired by the idea of feminism. “I realized that some people weren’t really aware of what was going on, someone said something in particular, but I really just wanted to bring it to the attention of the people in my class” said Anderson. So far, she has already affected many individuals around her. “I’ve had several people come up to me after words and say ‘I had no idea I could be so in control of like my body, and, like, own it this much.’ And to me that feels like I made a difference,” said Anderson. “Just the body language told me that it made a difference to some people, boys and girls alike. And then some were almost shut down to the whole process. They were ignoring it from the beginning and there was nothing she was going to be able to do to change their mind... and shame on them; we should be open to hearing all sides of a topic, and be willing to be big enough to make those changes,”

said Ronald Richards, an International Baccalaureate History teacher who had listened in during Anderson’s presentation. Even if some individuals are shut down to the idea, a significant number are supportive enough that the negative opinions can be discounted. “I just want people to know that this isn’t just about the dress code. It’s about people being confident in themselves and people recognizing that, not sexualizing them. It’s about a whole other level of self esteem and how it’s all interconnected with feminism as a whole. I just want people to know that feminism isn’t a bad thing, and if they think so they need to research it more. There’s always going to be a group of people that will ruin it, but I feel like people need to really focus on what the message is and support one another,” said Anderson. Anderson plans on eventually bringing her presentation to the school board, and she hopes to push for a permanent change in dress code. story by chloe hislop

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“I cheated on an English test. I’m not exactly sure how I got caught cheating, but one day after English class, one of the security guards was waiting for me and told me to come with them”.

WHO RUNS THE WORLD? GIRLS.

REGAN Anderson speaks out for feminism at school

“I have seventeen un-excused tardies. I like to sleep in.” Julia Diede, junior

“I show up late to math class a lot. I sleep in a lot.” Mitchell Wente, junior story and photos by samantha spina

REBELLIOUS

TROUBLE

Feminism, Saturday School

FOOT-LOOSENING UP

SO LIFT ME UP PRACTICING for the student choreography show, dancers learn to rely on each other. Some of the dances included tosses, flips, and lifts. Lifts can be tricky and require a lot of trust between both the lifter and the person being lifted. Students rehearsed during and after school to prepare for the January show.

FOOTLOOSE is the spring musical Step One: Grab partner on the hips and ready yourself to lift.

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Step Two: Push with your legs not just your back and arms.

Step Three: Hold partner in desired lift position LEARNING TO DANCE WITH A PARTNER IS PART OF STUDENT CHOREOGRAPHY. Samuel Chartier, a sophomore, reassures one of the dancers as they practice a lift for their dance. photo by alyssa grove

STEP UP TO THE BASE

JUNIOR varsity baseball players use different techniques when coming up to bat. Some focus on the coach and others just focus on the goal - getting on base.

1 Zane Arrendale, a sophomore

“I need to do a good job, so that I can help the team and get on base.” Matthew Hall, a freshman

“Just getting a base hit and looking at the position of the players and seeing where the best place to hit it is, where the runners are on base, and try to get them over to get a home run.” Jeremy Valentini, a sophomore

“When I’m going up to bat, I’m thinking, ‘get a hit.’ It kind of depends on the situation; sometimes you have to look at the coach to give you a sign before you step in the batter’s box, so if there’s a runner on first, they might have you bunt or give you a hit and run. But typically, I’m thinking ‘get a hit.’”

BRAVE

2 1 PRACTICING HIS SWING, Valentini, takes a step back after hitting the ball. Valentini had hit a line drive into center field. 2 KEEPING HIS EYE ON THE BALL, Valentini prepares to take a swing. His teammates, including Hayden Parker, a junior, cheers him on.

FOR SOME PEOPLE, PERFORMING on a stage in front of an audience full of your peers could be a scene straight out of a nightmare. Drama Club put on Footloose for the spring musical, and Emily McAtee, a senior, played Ariel Shaw. “When I was little, obviously it was scary to go on stage, but it’s not at all anymore,” McAtee said. McAtee has been performing for 13 years and she has a few before show rituals that prepare her to go on stage. “I put headphones in and I zen, and I have to do my own makeup,” McAtee said. Katie Pusateri, a junior, is playing Wendy Jo and she has some rituals of her own. “Well, we have theater rituals called Whether the Weather, Warriors, Kiss the Nun and Stars that we do before show

time for good luck, but my personal ones are, since I’m Catholic, praying right before I go on stage, and having some kind of caffeinated drink to get pumped,” Pusateri said. Chance McLaughlin, a sophomore, is playing Ren McCormack, and has been performing music since seventh grade. “The musical aspect doesn’t really make me more nervous, just because I’ve been singing for so long and I’ve just kind of adjusted to music,” McLaughlin said. Pusateri agrees when it comes to the musical aspect of the performance. “It actually helps because I’ve been singing longer than I’ve been acting and singing is my strong point when it comes to performing,” Pusateri said.

1 SET US LOOSE The high schoolers of Bomont resolve officially to take on City Hall and change the law against dancing. photo by nicole neri 2 HEAVEN HELP ME Reverend Moore, played by junior Kameron Moore, faces his sadness over his son’s death and changes his mind, finally choosing to allow dancing after five years of this being illegal. photos by nicole neri 3 BEHIND THE SCENES of the action, Alex Hummel, junior, prepares to return to the stage after intermission. photo by nicole neri 4 SOMEBODY’S EYES Ariel and her friends, played by Julia Horner, Katie Pusateri, and Alex Hummel explain the busybody tendencies of Bomont’s citizens. photo by nicole neri 5 I’M FREE Ren McCormick, unaware that dancing is illegal in Bomont, dances through the school halls while describing his hometown of Chicago. photo by nicole neri 6 CUT LOOSE Wendy Joe, played by junior Katie Pusateri, dances front and center in the opening number. photo by nicole neri

STORY BY CHLOE HISLOP

story and photo by meghan schindler

SUPPORTIVE

spring musical, jv baseball, dance class, unplugged

OH THE PLACES YOU’LL GO

ARIZONA is full of new places to explore

story by madeline jones

Pine

photo by rees bixler

Fossil Creek

Pinetop

1 LOOKING AT THE CANYONS FROM

Grand Canyon

1 1

RHYTHM AND RHYME

LATTE was not the only thing being served at Janey’s LATTE POETRY. The perfect place to share your art with other individuals, whether you are apprehensive and nervous about your first time or if you have played and read your pieces what seems like a thousand times. Shavonne Morin, a junior, played her ukulele and sang up a storm.

“Well I was kinda thrown into it by a friend, and I was pretty unprepared but I just practiced some songs I already knew how to play and bam,” said Morin. Morin also performed at Unplugged just a couple weeks prior to Latte Poetry, “I’ve performed a good amount before so nerves weren’t really an issue.” Logan Larkin, a junior and a member of Literary Magazine, helped organize the event. “First we have to contact Janey’s in order to reserve a night, which is often a challenge because school nights are hard for students to go to, and Friday nights students have other plans,” said Larkin. Latte Poetry is an underrated

event that not many people attend, but there are a plethora of reasons for it to be your favorite. “It is so cool that someone was able to stand up and read something they devoted themselves to, in front of a crowd of peers and friends, and sometimes strangers, and share their passion with the world,” said Larkin. “Generally, the beauty of the event is that new people perform every year, and sometimes freshmen read, and sometimes a senior who has never read before reads.” “I love seeing kids recite the poetry they wrote and receive a positive reaction. It’s such a great environment,” said Lori Hart, the Literary Magazine adviser. The poems recited range from comedic to extremely emotional. Hart said originally that the event was going to be a slam poetry recitation but they believed the students would be too inexperienced and that recitation of the poetry would be less difficult for students to participate in. story by samantha spina

CURIOUS

EFFECT, Blake Bradshaw, a freshman, reads a poem from her journal. This was Bradshaw’s first year participating in Latte Poetry. photo by meghan schindler 5 YUM! Eating a sweet potato french fry, Literary Magazine adviser, Lorraine Hart, listens to the music and poetry performed by the students. “Latte poetry is one of my favorite nights because it is great to see how talented the students are,” Hart said. photo by meghan

3 BRRR To keep warm,

GUITAR, Henry Kenyon, a senior, sings about the objects and people seen around the coffee house. Kenyon sang to “lighten up the mood” at the event. The winner of the competition was Zachary Paul, a sophomore, winning $40 in cash. photo by meghan schindler

meghan schindler

Natalie Beckstrom and Henry Kenyon, seniors, cuddle under the heat lamps at Janey’s Coffee House. The November temperatures were near record lows. photo by meghan

schindler

4 PAUSING FOR

schindler

6 PLAYING THE

Sedona 4 2

Launch Pad

THURSDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

THE NUMBERS show that the junior varsity football players put as much effort into their season as the varsity team

3 JV COACHES 4 QUARTERS 100 YARDS 11 PLAYERS ON THE FIELD

6 PIECES OF GEAR 3-HOUR PRACTICE 6-POINT TOUCHDOWNS

1/2 TIME 2-POINT SAFETIES 5 DAYS OF PRACTICE 4 CAPTAINS DEFENDING HIS END ZONE, Michael Marchica, a sophomore, blocks the opponent from receiving the ball. photo by julia diede

1 STRUMMING THE UKELELE, Shavonne Morin sings Mind Over Matter by Young the Giant. Latte poetry creates awareness for Literary Magazine and raises much needed funds. “My favorite part of Latte Poetry was definitely drinking coffee,” said Morin. photo by meghan schindler 2 RECITING A POEM FROM MEMORY, Keely Doran, a junior, performs a poem she wrote herself. Latte poetry brought in $100 for Literary Magazine. photo by

THIS LINE DEFINES OUTER EDGE OF 1 PICA

Grand Canyon photo by lucille huckery

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE, Delaney Schindler, a junior, stands on her head. The Grand Canyon is a popular day trip location in Arizona. photo by kayla mcqueen 2 JUMPING INTO THE WATER, Samantha Spina, a junior, swims with her dogs at Fossil Creek. Fossil Creek is a part of the Verde River in Strawberry, Arizona. “I love taking trips to beautiful places,” said Spina. photo by meghan schindler 3 AROUND THE RIM, Lindsey Murphy, a senior, hikes the cliffs of Sedona. Near Flagstaff, Sedona is famous for the red rocks and cliffs. “Finding new places to hike is exciting. I try to go hiking every weekend. The prettier the place, the better!” Murphy said. photo by linda murphy 4 ON THE EDGE The launch pad is a hot spot to view the mountains and the Verde River. Located at the top of Humboldt Mountain, there are many students found taking in the scenery. “It was very fun and the road was very bumpy,” senior Emma Kritzstein said. photo by emma kritzstein

Alysa Velez, 12, photo by elizabeth james

EYEING HIS OPPONENT, Thomas Brown, a sophomore, plans his next play, hoping so that the opponents will not score. photo by mia valenza

ADVENTUROUS

Latte Poetry, Arizona Adventures, Junior Varsity Football

Abigail Walker, 12 Rachel Dutcher, 11, photo by nicole neri

Sara Windom, 10, photo by nicole neri

The musical talents of the youth of Cave Creek were showcased on November 21, at the seventh annual Rock the District event. This year, the event was held at the Carefree Conference Resort. The event included music of many different genres, ranging anywhere from country to rock. The night also showcased many different types of musical groups, including rock bands, such as Psuedo Sincere, whose members include Kyle Kelleher and Antonio Marchica, seniors, and duo acts, such as Caity Bonine and Rachel Dutcher, juniors.

STOP, ROCK, I.BE WRECKING IT AND ROLL

BOTH IB and AP programs offer students a rigorous course of study Getting into college has become increasingly more difficult over the

MICHAEL CHMURA PLAYS bass at Rock the District in his band Sunland. This event, put together by Cave Creek Unified Education Foundation, included an outside acoustic performance and inside band performance. photo by nicole neri

“There is more pressure to do well in AP and to actually pay attention and do your homework because at the end of the year you have to take the test so there is no time to slack off,” said Ruditser. She said that taking this course will teach her “...how to prepare and discipline [herself] to study more.”

Madison Owen, a junior, took a different approach and chose to join the Early College Program. “One of our classes actually has college students in it, so we get to work with them. Professors are different from a high school teacher, because they kind of get on you more about your homework and your assignments and your tests,” said Owen. Brianna Goldthwaite, a junior, decided to participate in the International Baccalaureate Program. “As far as workload goes it’s about the same for a regular class, but the critical thinking is higher level,” said Goldthwaite. “There’s a lot more homework in AP, while in IB there’s more analysis of what’s happening; not just facts, like in AP.” story by meghan schindler

RAKING IN THE DOUGH

1 1 CHINESE TEACHER Yang Song reviews

Cheney Courtney’s project. Courtney is a student in Song’s IB Chinese class, which has an advanced curriculum. 2 STUDENTS OFTEN use computers to help with IB language acquisition. Olivia Cristante, a junior, works on translating words from Chinese to English. 3 DURING A HUMOROUS PRESENTATION, Isabella Bingaman and Rose Capin, IB seniors, enjoy a moment of levity in Spanish class. photos by chloe hislop

SQUEAKY CLEAN

SOME students give up their weekends in pursuit of those Benjamins

STUCO member Sierra Slockbower gives a checklist of the needed materials for a car wash Definitely a lot of advertisement Lots and lots of soap Water Hoses Cars are a big necessity

1 HANDLING A JOB AND SCHOOL WORK can be difficult for many students. Tara Welsh, a junior, has found a way to do both. Welsh has been working at Oregano’s Pizza Bistro on Cave Creek road since July. “I’m always scheduled from 4:45 3 p.m. to 8 or 9 p.m, so if I know I’m working later shifts I’ll normally do my homework before I go to work. And sometimes I work in the morning, so I’ll have the whole rest of the day to finish my homework,” said Welsh. Welsh got the job after her sister had to quit, so she already knew everyone who worked there. “Almost everyone I work with either goes to Cactus Shadows or another high school, or they’re in college. It’s really great because everyone’s pretty young and it’s like a big family,” said Welsh. Many students dread answering the phone, but Welsh really enjoys it. “Some of the things customers say over the phone or in person make my day. I always leave work in a better mood than before.”

“This is my first time ever doing a car wash and it was actually really fun. There was a lot of business and we made a lot of money,” said Slockbower. story by samantha spina

1 WHILE WASHING CARS, Kaitlyn

“I love answering the phone, and greeting the guests and getting their orders done because it’s actually really cool to know the whole menu and know everything that’s on it,” said Welsh. Welsh said her favorite things to get are, “barbecue chicken pizza, cheesy bread, Caesar salad, and the Zani Ziti. And don’t forget about the chocolate chip pizza cookie.” story by samantha spina

BUSY

Towels

Moore, a junior, and Ryan Pogemiller, a freshman, look at the unending amount of cars. Starting out slow, it did not take long for the word of the Student Council car wash to get out. After the first hour, StuCo members had lost the ability to stop working and take a break.

1 WORKING THE NIGHT SHIFT at Cherry On Top, Isabella Bingaman, a senior, refills the toppings and straightens the spoons. Bingaman has worked at Cherry On Top and Uncle Louis’s Pizzeria. 2 SCOOPING ICE CREAM, Trenton Smothermon, a junior, makes a double scoop ice cream cone. “I really like working at Baskin Robbins. I have a lot of fun every time I work.”

3 DURING THE DINNER RUSH, Zoe Monroe, a senior, takes an order for pick-up at Pei Wei. “I don’t always eat Asian food, but when I do, it’s from Pei Wei,” Monroe said. 4 ON TACO TUESDAY, Mia Valenza, a senior, chats with a regular at Rubio’s Mexican Grill. Valenza worked 30 hours a week. “It gets tiring working sometimes, but I really enjoy my coworkers,” Valenza said. 5 AT OREGANOS, Tara Prager, junior, enjoys interacting with customers. photos by christina fankhanel

photo by claire musson

2 ASSIGNED A CERTAIN JOB DURING THE CAR WASH, Lauren Busbee, a junior, rinses off a car after other members finish washing. With the temperatures reaching a high of ninety degrees, each group would quickly do their job so the next team could come in to finish the car before the water or soap dried on the car. photo by claire musson

MULTITASKERS

Student jobs, I.B., A.P., Rock the District, Car washes

THIS line defines OUTER edge of 1 pica bleed mar-

“It’s fun to meet people, and it’s just a really fun environment. Everyone takes it seriously, but it’s also a lot of fun,” Bonine said. Bonine has performed at Rock the District for the past five years, making her one of the many returning performers. story by lindsey murphy

many years, and everyone is jumping at the chance to set themselves apart. Many different rigorous options are presented for anyone up to the challenge. One of these challengers is Sharon Ruditser, a junior and a first-year Advanced Placement student.

HOPE YOU CAN SWIM

CROSS COUNTRY seniors throw their teammates in the pool for the traditional team dinner initiation

1 PICKING THEIR FIRST VICTIM, Jake Lockett, Zachary Clark, and

THIS LINE DEFINES OUTER EDGE OF 1 PICA

WORK HARD PLAY HARDER Sean Wright, junior

Freshman Friday isn’t a joke to the cross country team. The team gathers at one of the upperclassmen’s house the Friday night before a meet to eat a dinner loaded with carbohydrates and bond with each other. It is tradition at these dinners that the returning members of the team throw the freshmen into the pool.

NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE LOVE PUBLIC SPEAKING, but that doesn’t mean it is not important. Speech and debate class helps students with writing speeches and public speaking. On January 25th in Molly Gum’s third hour, the class decided to take it upon themselves to use their new speech skills to choose their own controversial topics. “I feel more confident giving speeches in class or

STUDENTS in Molly Gum’s third hour Speech and Debate class discuss controversial subjects

presenting projects after this last semester of taking the class,” said Katie Thomas, a junior. Some students may even keep the lessons they learn from the class throughout their whole life. “I’ve never liked speaking in front of crowds. At least if I’m good at it I won’t embarrass myself,” said Thomas. Speech class also encourages students to speak

out and express themselves more. The teacher, Molly Gum, really focuses on the opinions of all her students, pushing them to become better speakers and more confident. “Teaching kids to speak up and do it with eloquence is the goal of this class. I want to teach them what the power of words are and how, if used correctly, can change the world, ” said Gum. story by trenton smothermon

“We threw the freshmen into the pool at the first team dinner, but we got in trouble by Coach Egan, so now we have to do it when she is not looking,” said Lindsey Murphy, senior. After all of the freshman were soaked, the rest of the team followed. Hayden Nobis, a senior, had never been thrown in before. “I always leave the backyard when people start pushing everyone in, and this year people began to notice, so at the first team dinner I got picked up and thrown into the pool,” said Nobis.

THIS LINE DEFINES OUTER EDGE OF 1 PICA

Jack Wilson, seniors, lift Hayden Nobis, senior, to throw him into the pool. At the weekly team dinners, a different member would be thrown into the pool each week. 2 AS THEY SWING, Lockett, Clark, and Wilson, chant “Three, Two, One!” Nobis was the first member thrown into the pool for the season. “I love this tradition because it is a great way to get all of the new runners accustomed to the crazy traditions our team has,” Madeline Jones, a senior and co-captain said. 3 BOMBS AWAY! Letting go of their victim, Lockett, Clark, and Wilson watch as Nobis flies into the pool. The first team dinner was held at Lockett’s house, as well as the dinner before the state meet. 4 FISH BAIT Making a splash, Nobis lands in the pool and escapes the August heat. After Nobis was submerged, all of the other members of the team jumped into the pool. “Not only was it fun to watch, it was also great to cool off after running all afternoon,” Jones said. photos by alyssa grove

SAY IT LOUD AND CLEAR

The cross country team views getting pushed into the pool as a initiation and a way to get everyone excited for the meet the following morning. story by christina fankhanel

BOYS in Rec Sports give their opinion on what activities they prefer in class

1.PE or Rec Sports

2. Warm Up or Cool Down 3.Basketball or Baseball 4. Football or Soccer

5. Sit ups or Push ups 6. Pacer or Pull ups

7. Badminton or Pickleball

story and photos by chloe heslop

Jais Schilcher, junior

Gregory Isho, junior

2. Warm Up or Cool Down

1.PE or Rec Sports

3.Basketball or Baseball

5. Sit ups or Push ups

4. Football or Soccer

6. Pacer or Pull ups

7. Badminton or Pickleball

8. Hudnutt or Egan

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

MICHAEL Chmura, a sophomore, works hours to make sure the theater sound system sounds perfect

Controls which speaker the sound comes out of

1 1 DISCUSSING IMPORTANT topics about politics, Evan Miller, a

Controls levels of volumes, sound tones

Control microphones of people on stage, can mute individual microphones

senior and Adam Braude, a junior, have a debate in front of the class to share their views. “Speech and Debate has helped me gain confidence to be able to present to the class, and share my opinion,” said Miller. 2 DEBATING HIS POINT about gun control, Brett Inman, a senior loves being able to share his opinion about controversial topics. “The class Speech and Debate is a very beneficial class because it allows me to express my opinion in a respectful way and hear other people’s opinions on a controversial topic,” said Inman. 3 DELIBERATING THE WARM UP, Katie Thomas, a junior, speaks with her classmates. photos by alexa dragone

Control volume of different staff and instruments on stage

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Sam oh Sam. We all have our opinions on her and what she does on the daily. We can all say that she has been seen doing peculiar things, but why does she do these things

Snapchat has become a big part of Sam’s life. She uses it to take videos, communicate with friends, take pictures, and use the filters. Sam is very fond of the new filters that come out on the daily and makes sure her friends know that there are new ones to choose from.

Traveling and exploring is what Sam thrives to do, but with a minimal amount of time, she cannot go as far as she wants to, but that will not stop her from exploring her surroundings within a reasonable range. So, where has Sam been so far?

We all have those years when we gaze back and reminisce on the past and realize we did not do much. This was not that year for Sam. Traveling and big changes were made in Sam’s life in the year of 2015-16. What’s it like on the East Coast? Sam would describe it as green, chilly, and way more entertaining than Arizona. Visiting her family over the summer in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Sam did a number of things, such as going to the beach, attending a concert, riding a countless number of roller coasters at buche gardens, and zip lining.

Attending a yearbook convention in Orlando, Florida, Sam traveled to the state that houses her favorite animal, the manatee, with some of her close friends and teachers. There she would gain new knowledge for writing, photographing, and designing that she would return home and share with her peers.

It was a last minute decision, but when she was given the opportunity, she took it without hesitation. It was after school, she had just gotten out of yearbook after being there for an hour after school working on her page, when she got a call from her best friend, Jackie Papetti. She had gotten premiere tickets for the second part of Mockingjay and she had an extra ticket. Sam took no time at all. She hoped in her little toyota camry and drove to the Harkins movie theatre. There she got an exclusive lanyard with a pin. At the end of the movie she cried only a little.

She did not just take that picture! Oh, but she did. Sam continues to snap throughout the day, so much that snapchat uses up to sixty-five percent of her battery.

Attending the past two ostrich festivals, Sam has developed a deep love in watching ostriches race and also eating them. A tradition is watching the ostrich races where people ride ostriches bare back and also in chariots, then after feasting on an ostrich burger. Ostriches are not the only animals that are at the festival. There were also camels, ducks, zebras, and zonkeys.

Money, making money is what Sam is now doing at her job as a cashier at the Target at the summit where every other person works. Sam started her job there in late November and rather enjoys herself when she works there. She knows everyone and even people she did not know before, she has made friends with. Also, that is where she met her boyfriend Juan, while doing go-backs. There is where her paycheck is dedicated to endless amounts of Starbucks drinks and gummy worms and red cards are promoted on the daily.

From having creative nicknames given to her by her family and oftenly called Dora as a child, Samantha Nicole Spina is a human that is not just influenced by those around her, but by her aspirations and dreams. As a great man once said, “I have a dream” and oh boy does Sam have a dream. Having a what would be called a unique personality, Sam often goes against the crowd and does her own thing. For example, after recently developing a slight obsession with Fetty Wap, she bought the entire album and listened to it day and night in preparation for the Fetty Wap concert. “Sam believes that Fetty Wap alleviates headaches,” said Meghan Schindler, a friend of many years of Sam’s. The day before the Fetty Wap concert arrived and Sam had still not purchased her ticket. Desperately looking for someone to go with her, she went to her fantastically awesome boyfriend Juan who said that he could possibly go, but to ensure that someone would go with her, she asked her best friend Tyler Puckett. He responded that it would be sick to see Fetty Wap. It is the day of the concert and Sam wakes up bright and early to buy the tickets and when she arrived at the website, it was sold out. It was one of the most disappointing days of her life. Even after suffering from that awful tragedy, Sam continued to prosper. To keep the Fetty Wap spirit alive, Sam took one of the most used lines from his songs, “SQUAAA” and started to use it to get people’s attention. “I work with Sam and sometimes when I’m at guest service and she’s at her register and we make eye contact we just silently SQUAAA to each other,” said Puckett. It is now used as a greeting and an everyday silence killer. Along with her Fetty Wap obsession, Sam also likes to attend events such as concerts and other things. Sam has attended five concerts in her lifetime, three of which were Fall Out Boy. “Sam is honestly my favorite person to see Fall Out Boy with because we both know all the words to basically every song and we freak out over the same stuff and I hope and I shall forever go to Fall Out Boy concerts with Sam,” said Schindler. Two of the three Fall Out Boy concerts that Sam has attended were in Arizona, the third one was when she went on vacation to Virginia. There, she visited her family and her cousin Sofia. They both have the same taste in music and are very similar to one another. At the concert, they were only rows away from the stage, and at a previous concert taken place in Arizona, two of the band members

Yet another Fall Out Boy Concert was attended by both Sam and Meghan. It has become somewhat of a ritual for the two to go to this band’s concerts together and they always have fun. This time, they went to buy shirts during the opening act. They raced down the escalators and as they stood in line, people saw them and immediately knew they needed shirts as well. The line grew twice as long after they entered and that was when they knew that they left at a prime time.

Sam Quiz What’s my favorite animal? My birthday? I love mexican food, but the only food I ever get is… Worst fear? Am I psychic? Who is the god that sings my favorite song? How many dogs do I have and which ones are my favorite? Favorite movie? Favorite pair of shoes? Favorite holiday? In the future I want to live in what kind of house? Name three of my backup jobs. Favorite drink? If I could ever have a superpower what would it be? Do I believe in aliens? What type of blood do I have? What is my go to show? Do I believe in mermaids? Dinosaur chicken nuggets or regular ones? Last one!

were only feet away from Sam. A picture of Joe Troman and Pete Wentz remains as her phone background for approximately three years now. With people and food around, festivals is an event that Sam enjoys going to. One of her favorites is the ostrich festival. The Ostrich festival has been around for many years, but Sam has only gone to the latest two. They occur every year and Sam intends on going from now on. This year, Juan and Sam went to the Ostrich festival together. There they rode ride, watched ostrich races, and ate food. One of the vendors that was there was selling food made from Ostrich. “Sam had been going on and on about how excited she was to have another ostrich burger because she had gotten one last year and it was really good,” explains Julian Voitek. This was Juan’s first ostrich festival that he attended and Sam had even taken off work to go with him. At the festival, they viewed an ostrich race, and after that, they chowed down on Ostrich burgers. “The races were prime and I enjoyed seeing the ostriches. I would go again as long as it was with Sam,” stated Juan.

Being put to the test, three of Sam’s closest human beings were given nineteen questions to answer and they were then graded on their performance.

First Place- Chloe 16/19 Second Place- Juan 14/19 Last Place- Mother 12/19