Manzano Paw Print April Issue

Discover the appeal of Longboarding See Page 5

April 2013

One of Manzano’s very own is crowned Miss Rio Rancho 2013 See Page 2

See Page 4

Manzano High School

Volume LIII Issue V

Super Students For SuperSAC Hayne Arismendi 2014 Everyone seems to have an opinion on the state of the education system, but seldom are the students’ opinions heard. Superintendent Brooks is trying to change that through the APS Student Advisory Council, or SuperSAC. Once every month, two students from each high school meet up with Superintendent Brooks from APS to discuss anything from budget problems and school schedules to bullying and classroom materials.

SuperSAC has been around for four years.

“It’s more about providing input and being asked for their opinion. Students are important stakeholders in my decision making process.

Decisions have been influenced on Board policy on student related topics,” said Superintendent Brooks.

Most schools have two students in SuperSAC, a junior and a senior. Manzano is the exception having three students. Manzano’s students are Lucy Smith, Tess Walker, and myself.

Students who are in SuperSAC are chosen by their school’s principal and are normally in SuperSAC for two to three years.

“It’s a joint decision between the existing SuperSAC students from the school and the principal,” said Superintendent Brooks.

“Being in SuperSAC has allowed me to see what really goes down in APS-- all the policies, problems, and strategies used to address them,” said Manuel Marquez, senior at Early College Academy.

Students then take the information they learned in SuperSAC to their teachers, friends, administration, or student government.

The meetings last about an hour and a half, from 11:30-1:00. The students arrive and lunch is provided, then they converse with one another until the Superintendent gives the agenda for the day. Then they discuss issues that the Board of Education discussed, and at times a guest speaker gives a presentation and members of the Board of Education listen in on the students.

“Being a representative in my school’s Student Advisory Council and student government gives me many opportunities to bring back issues, ideas, or skills I learn from SuperSAC,” said Allie Arining, junior at Nex+Gen Academy.

SuperSAC students get a chance to be heard and put their input on things like budget or the calendar for the upcoming year. Reports from SuperSAC are given to the board monthly.

“The best thing about being on SuperSAC is being able to say my opinion about different things and being able to bring new ideas,” said Alexis Pino, junior at Albuquerque High.

One does not have to be in APS all their life in order to be in SuperSAC; a lot of the students have only been in an APS school for a few years.

Students who are in SuperSAC are chosen because they are seen to be good representatives for the student body and good future leaders.

“I didn’t know SuperSAC existed before I was told about it, but the idea that I would get to talk to See “ SuperSAC” page 5

Katherine Cordwell (middle row, second from left) with the President and other Intel STS finalists. Photo courtesy of Katherine Cordwell.

Manzano Senior Finalist in Research Competition Heather Fisk 2013 Katherine Cordwell is a senior at Manzano who is best known for her notable hard work and dedication towards school and the potential it provides. This dedication has led Cordwell to many different places including a recent trip to Washington D.C. where she was a finalist in the Intel STS competition and had the opportunity to meet the President of the United States.

Cordwell has a particular interest in science and math and has regularly attended various meetings and summer camps in relation to these subjects in hope of furthering her knowledge.

It was at one of these summer camps where Cordwell first got connected with her research mentor.

“The camp was the Research Science Institute or RSI, an amazing program to which high school juniors can apply.

Held at MIT, the goal of the program is to provide students with the opportunity to do research. The camp is free of charge, and all expenses except travel to and from MIT are paid,” remarked Cordwell.

The mentor became an extremely helpful source of guidance when Cordwell first began her research in the summer of 2012 for an upcoming competition. The amount of time and effort put into her research is astonishing. The overall amount adds up to over 300 hours.

The competition Cordwell participated in was the Intel Science Talent Search (or the Intel STS). This is a competition in which over 1,700 young scientists across the nation apply to in hopes of sharing their work with distinguished scientists and possibly even being awarded money to continue their research. It is the “nation’s most prestigious pre-college competition” as quoted from Intel’s website.

“Only seniors are eligible to apply, and many students enter projects on which they have been working on for all four years of high school,” Cordwell said.

After highly regarded scientists review the large amount of applicant work, a group of 300 semi-finalists are chosen.

Upon further review, 40 students are chosen as finalists.

Being chosen as one of the 40, Cordwell packed her bags for Washington D.C and prepared to present her research and undergo the rigorous judging interviews.

Along the way, Cordwell met a number of interesting people, one of which was President Obama. She also became good friends with many of the people in the competition such as Sara Volz, the overall winner of the competition.

Cordwell did not make the final 10. However, the experience is one of many for Cordwell that contribute to making her so extraordinary.

“One thing that I would like to add is a note to anybody who is interested in doing math or science research and/or entering competitions: DO IT. It is absolutely worth it; not only do you gain valuable experience and knowledge, but the people you will meet are amazing and will likely become some of your best friends,” Cordwell stated.

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PAW April 2013

Kayla Snitches on Snitch

Kayla Vandever 2015

How far would you go to save someone you love?

John Matthews (Dwayne Johnson) wouldn’t let anything stop him when his son Jason Collins (Rafi Gavron) irresponsibly agreed to have drugs sent to his home. Jason’s friend sets him up to help himself out, which leads to a group of undercover cops at his doorstep. Besides Jason letting his friend send drugs, he is innocent and his dad knows that. Trying to help his son get out of prison, John goes undercover for the DEA to try and reduce Jason’s minimum 10 years sentence.

Looking for insights, John finds Daniel James (Jon Bernthal) who works for John’s construction company. Together they involve themselves in drug deals with one of the biggest drug dealers in the area and eventually with a drug cartel in Mexico.

Based on true events, Snitch is definitely an emotionally dramatic film. When I watched the previews, I expected a hard-core action movie, which is not a bad thing, but I walked out of the theater more satisfied than I thought I would be.

Johnson plays an emotional, guilty father who seems almost typical for “The Rock.” The latest films that Johnson played a main role, he was either a caring father or just a sweet guy. You wouldn’t normally expect that from a former pro wrestler. Don’t get me wrong, Johnson is a great actor and he uses his intensely large body in movies like Faster and Fast Five. What it comes down to is that “The Rock” did a phenomenal job playing a caring father and showing the soft heart of Johnson once again.

Bernthal plays Daniel James, a man who is trying to clear his life up for his son and wife. He’s a new face to me, but I was definitely impressed on how well he acted. When I was watching Snitch I couldn’t help but love the character of Daniel James more than John Matthews. He portrayed his character very well. I hope to watch him in other movies.

Susan Sarandon plays a strong attorney, Joanne Keeghan, who runs a drug campaign to up her election votes. Sarandon is a wonderful actress. I enjoyed every scene she was in; she definitely knows how to play a character with full confidence. I was also impressed with Gavron, who does a great job playing a helpless, scared teenager. Though he was in the movie very little, he knew how to take over any scene he was in with his emotional acting.

This movie was filmed with great camera angles. There were close-up scenes that made the movie more real, which made every close-up scene more dramatic. I love when movies are filmed with a hand-held camera because it gives the movie a feeling like the viewers are actually there or watching actual footage.

Like I mentioned before, I thought I would see more action scenes and, in all honesty, more scenes with “The Rock” kicking butt. In all, there was a good amount of scenes with explosions and car chases. With that said, the action scenes were awesome and that added tension to the movie.

Ric Roman Waugh, a former stuntman, directed this film. I thought he did a great job picking his cast and, of course, filming the big scenes. According to Johnson (MovieclipsCOMINGSOON), Waugh strapped himself on a truck to film a certain scene. If you ask me, a stuntman directing a movie isn’t all that bad; it comes with advantages. To me, that’s good directing, and good directing equals good movie.

I recommend Snitch for those who enjoy films that were inspired by true events, action, but also drama. It was a good movie, but I don’t have the need to watch it again like I do when I really love a movie. It’s a good cast and a good director, but not my absolute favorite.

Explore the Seven Realms Skylar Griego 2014

Have you ever wondered what it would be like if women ruled the world instead of men? Don't get me wrong, I know there's equal rights and all that good junk, but think about it. Society is-- and always has been-- dominated by men. There are still many places in the world where women are viewed with little value. But what if the situation was reversed?

That's exactly how the world works in Cinda Williams Chima's Seven Realms series. In the land of the Fells, the queendom is ruled by descendants of the Warrior Queen Hanalea, known as the line of the Gray Wolf Queens. The series takes place 1000 years after the rule of Queen Hanalea and focuses on the life of Raisa Ana'Marianna, the princess heir to the throne.

Meanwhile, Han Alister, a former gang leader and thief, enters Raisa's life when he steals an ancient amulet from a powerful wizard family and shakes the queendom to its very core.

The Seven Realms series is a very strong story about a young woman who takes on a massive responsibility all while trying to deal with treachery, love, tragedy, and ancient fueds that have burned for a thousand years, as well as a young man who is just trying to keep his family alive in a corrupt queendom.

Chima does an excellent job of telling the story from two entirely separate points of view in two different writer voices, though all four novels are written entirely in third person. Sadly, because they are written in third person, the story lacks consistency in the connection to the emotion of the events happening on the pages. While there were definitely pages in these novels that brought me to tears, there were others that felt highly anti-climatic simply because of the way it was told. I think if Chima had selected to write instead in first person, readers would have been more emotionally invested in the characters, as if they were real people.

However, she certainly did an excellent job with those characters-- real or not.

Personally, I am in love with Han Alister. He is realistic, cynical, and willing to do anything for his mother and his sister-- the only people he has in the world. He never denies who and what he is. Though he has a murky past, he takes advantage of the lessons and skills gained from the experiences. Chima's development of

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Critics’ Corner

Dead Space -- Don’t Turn it Off

Zane Alaniz 2015 “Turn it off.” A single phrase, engraved into my memories because of one game, is something that will plague the Facebook walls of all ten of my friends for years to come. Yet it holds no outward meaning for me, not really. I’m not talking about the meaning of it in the game, by the way. More the literal meaning outside of the game in oh-so-fun reality. No matter how many times Isaac Clarke repeated that phrase in his most unstable mental condition, no matter how many times I crept into a room and saw it scratched into a wall dozens of times, not once did any notion of turning “it” off ever pop into my head.

I sat grinning in my tyrant’s chair (or “throne”) staring at the start screen of Dead Space 3, the latest entry of one of my favorite series since Assassin’s Creed (except for 3, which ruined my day entirely when I beat it). I chose my save file, adjusted my brightness, and went to work on this adventure that would be the at the center of the maelstrom of entertainment that is my mind for the next week-and-a-half or so.

Those moments are long over now, and my friend and I have played through the entire campaign in co-op as well as the Awakened DLC (which not only blew my mind but also my soul). Is it any less intense or fun than my first go? Blazes, no. If you were to be within a hundred yards of my house late on a Saturday night, you’d be greeted by the girliest screams and curses you’ll ever hear (unless my mom’s home. If I cuss around my mom, I’ll be put in The Box).

Anyhow, Dead Space 3. Definitely terrifying. It has an atmosphere reminiscent of The Thing, which is a movie about snow and bad things. Is it anywhere as scary as the first two games? Let’s face it, nothing will ever be the U.S.S. Ishimura and nothing will ever be the Titan Sprawl, just like nothing can be quite like Tau Volantis or the junkyard of Sovereign Colonies ships haunting the frozen planet’s orbit. The gameplay is as tight as ever, with its already well-polished shooting mechanics. The cover mechanics don’t feel unnatural and the rare shootouts between you and other humans add variety from just cutting off limbs and making sure you don’t get your shiny helmet dented.

The Necromorphs are horrifyingly crumbly and relentless in tearing you limb from limb, which makes sense seeing as they’ve been dormant for roughly two hundred. years. They may be a bit crustier than usual but knowing the story behind some of them (they were human once, after all) makes it feel almost as if you’re blasting old acquaintances apart to avoid becoming a nasty alien zombie yourself.

Which brings me to the weapon crafting system, which is easily one of the most entertaining implementations in the whole game. When you decide to test out your new baby and it ends with a red screen and you respawning at the last checkpoint, you know that you’re the only one to blame. But that moment when you discover that the deadly machine in your groovily rendered hands turns out to be a hammer of justice and protection, the most satisfactory of satisfactions make you hear nothing but Living in the Sunshine by Tiny Tim for the rest of the game. Well, that and screaming, but I hear that all the time anyway.

While I’m gonna miss saving up power nodes to make your weapons and armor unstoppable in your seemingly endless struggle against the Necromorphs and the Unitologists, looking at my inventory and seeing several thousand tungsten thingamajigs makes me feel rich. Gathering resources is always fun (I mean, you get to stomp bodies into Spaghetti-Os, what’s not to love?), but why should you have to do all the hard work? That’s when you pull out your little turtleesque scavenger bots to do all the searching for you. They’re one of few things in the Dead Space universe that add a sense of light to the atmosphere, which is necessary when the lasers on your weapons are the brightest sources of light in the game.

In terms of story, I’m pretty satisfied with how everything turns out, especially in Awakened (which has one of the best endings I’ve ever experienced). I felt sympathy for Isaac but sometimes it was difficult to decide if any character was entirely of sound mind at that moment. John Carver’s story is impressive as well, seeing as they only had a few hours to build up his character.

If you missed the hallucinations from the second game then I suggest you play as him for the coop campaign. If you’re Isaac instead, all you see is a large, crazy soldier holding air and hearing things. Figuring out some more of the secrets hidden by the Markers raises numerous questions, and if you’re into reading stuff rather than just faffing about, all the two-century-old text logs in the game are relatively easy to find and you get achievements that earn you absolutely nothing.

At the end of the day, Dead Space is an experience that, quite frankly, changed my life. Maybe not because of the storyline, but because of the circumstances outside of the game under which I was playing. I sat in my room playing Dead Space 2 with my best friend and I switching off every time we got to a save point. I got a lot of the fun parts (namely, the Tormentor) and we both walked away from the game feeling like we were veterans of something amazing. In that sense, it was a co-op experience way before they even put the function in the game. Now, the only difference is that we don’t have to switch off anymore and we don’t have to worry about having more fun than the other. Plus, I feel like a pilot (those headphones, man).

Needless to say, Dead Space 3 is an experience any self-respecting action or horror fan should have. Whether it be by yourself or with a friend, you’re just about guaranteed to have fun (unless you’re some kind of a weirdo). So for those of you who are reading this, cheers. If you already own it or, by a stroke of luck, decide to take my word for it and get this game, have fun. And remember - no matter how many times it tells you to, do not turn it off.

this character was marvelous, and there is not a single thing about Alister that I would change, except for the fact that he is fictional.

As for Raisa, I will admit I didn't love her in the very beginning. I thought she was naive and a little selfish, though not as selfish as her sister and her mother. However, as Chima digs deeper into her character in the second novel, The Exiled Queen, I found that I grew more fond of Raisa. Her character development was excellently done.

Finally, the best part about this series would be the plot twists. Chima strings you along by allowing you to believe you've got everything figured out when you near the ending, and then BAM, something happens that you never saw coming. This series kept me on my toes in every book, and I quickly

became addicted.

I highly recommend that any adventure lovers out there read this series. I suggest, however, that you make sure to clear your schedule beforehand, because once you start the first book, you won't be able to stop until you've read the last page of book four. Believe me, it is worth it.

Miscellaneous Amanda Porter: Abroad in Israel

PAW April 2013

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Skylar Griego 2014 During the first semester of the school year, MHS junior Amanda Porter got to experience life in Israel as a Jewish student. After her third month back in the States, Amanda shared her experience with the Paw Print.

The Family Guy Tries His Hand at Jazz

Q: How did you get the opportunity to go to Israel?

A: Well, it kind of came as a surprise, really. It was mentioned to me in 2009 when I celebrated becoming a Bat Mitzvah, a Jewish adult. After that, I didn’t really think about it again until my mother mentioned it in April 2012. After that, I just decided that I really wanted to go, with the support of my friends and family. I applied for some scholarships, and my grandmother helped pay for the rest.

Meadow Butler 2013 Seth MacFarlane, known for his famous animated television shows Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show, has finally put his talent into a subtle, classical form. “Music is Better than Words” is MacFarlane’s first jazz related CD. MacFarlane was born in Connecticut on October 6, 1973 and has expressed interest in drawing and animation from a very young age. When MacFarlane became a pianist, he started to utilize his talent for his orchestra and composed on a weekly basis to score his three animated TV shows. But when it comes to MacFarlane’s vocal talent, you have to wonder where he learned to sing.

MacFarlane received voice training for Lee and Ally Sweetland. Both worked with Frank Sinatra and Barbra Streisand. MacFarlane has preformed at London’s royal Albert Hall and New York’s Carnegie hall.

“Music is Better Than Words” was recorded in December of 2010 and was released September 27, 2011. This album includes songs from Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe and others from the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s.

When MacFarlane was asked what kind of album he wanted to do, he said, “a classical Sinatra-style album.”

In fact, Seth recorded in the same room at capital records that Sinatra worked in and he used the same microphone that Sinatra used as well.

“That mic is over sixty years old and you can see it, but it has a really nice, dark sound to it. It really plays a significant part on how this stuff sounds. You don’t want it to sound too crisp. We did a lot of recording of this album to make sure it was not too perfect. We recorded with an analog tape as opposed to recording digitally because we wanted a little bit of a hiss,” said MacFarlane in an interview with Joseph Llanes for AOL. Some of the best songs on this album are “The Night They Invented Champagne,” “Music is Better Than Words,” and “Nine O’ Clock.” These songs are uplifting and make you want to dance. One song that isn’t as good as the others is “Anytime, Anywhere.” It’s very slow paced.

Anyone who loves jazz and Sinatra will surely love this album, or the “Rat Pack” for that matter.

Norah Jones and Sara Bareilles perform guest vocals for some tracks.

MacFarlane chose the track listing.

Q: Where in Israel did you go? How long were you there?

A: Oh, do I really have to say all of the places? I guess I’ll just go with the highlights. Jerusalem, the dead sea, the Golan Heights (which I just fell in love with,) I hiked from the Sea of Galilee to the Mediterranean, climbed a famous desert mountain (Metzada), I trained for a week in the Israeli army’s pre-army camp, to the furthest southern city, Eilat, and all over Israel. Oh, and I went to Poland for five days. In total, I was there for exactly 126 days, or just over four months.

Q: Did you have to learn Hebrew prior to going, or did you learn it there? What was that like?

A: I didn’t have to learn Hebrew prior to going, but it sure would’ve helped! Every morning, I woke up, went to breakfast, and then spent two hours learning Hebrew. There were three classes: Alef, the beginners, Bet, the people who knew a little, and Gimal, for kids who knew quite a bit. I was in Kitah Bet. I struggled some in the class because it is not like any other language, except maybe chinese or japanese. You write backwards, with totally new symbols and sounds. But I enjoyed learning.

Q: What made the idea of going appealing to you?

A: I am Jewish, obviously, and I have New Mexican Jewish roots that extend back four generations (I am the fifth). I went to Hebrew school once or twice a week for several years in order to learn more about being a Jew. During my confirmation, I realized that I wanted to know more. And what better place to learn than the home of the Jewish people?

Q: What did you learn while there?

A: As I said before, I spent two hours in the morning from 8:30 to 10:30 learning Hebrew. Then from 10:35 to 1:20 I was in Jewish history-an intriguing class with an enthusiastic teacher who really wanted to teach, and have us learn. Then I went to lunch for an hour, and at 2:10 I started school where I took AP U.S. History, Honors Pre-Calculous, AP Literature, AP Chemistry, and then a PSAT prep course. Overall, I definitely learned most about my history and my connection to other Jews and the land.

Q: Tell us about some of your experiences there.

A: The highlights were definitely those that I mentioned in question two, but there were many, many more things that I did. Another great experience worth noting is the time that I went with another girl to her family friends’ house in Be’er Sheva for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year. The family was modern orthodox which meant no writing on holidays, long skirts for the girls, and praying separately, men and women. It was quite an experience. Ten days later, the group went to Jerusalem for Yom Kippur, a day of repentance and fasting. The city was so quiet. There were no cars on the road whatsoever. We were even able to lie down in the middle of the road. My personal favorite is the mishap when we got locked inside the biggest mall in Tel Aviv.

Manzano has a Fa cebook and a Twitt er! Follow @manzanopawprin t and Like our Manzano Paw Print page! Fe el free to send any questions, concerns, story ideas, and other things to manzanopawprint@ gmail.com

Q: Would you want to live in Israel? Why or why not?

A: That’s a question I’m not sure I can answer. Sometimes I sit back and think to myself, “wow....I was really there. I really did those things. I want to go back.” And then there are other times where I think about my life here in the States, college, and possibly moving to the the east coast. I guess only time will tell what will happen.

Q: Ultimately, what would you say you got out of your time there?

A: This is the hardest question of all to answer. There is no one thing that I can say that I got out of the experience. It was truly life-changing. I guess the biggest thing I got out of the trip was just the change in who I am, cheesy as that sounds. I learned more about myself than I thought possible. I was away from my home, my family, my friends, and choir for a whole four months. That really changes a person.

The Procrastinator’s Guide to the Galaxy

Jahkairah Martin 2016 For a lot of people, deadlines are no problem. Those people get a few assignments and do them right away. As a result, they don’t have to worry about doing anything last minute.

Sadly, I am the complete opposite of those people. I identify more with procrastinators. These people, more often than not, will wait until the very last minute to do an assignment or run over deadlines. A procrastinator’s actions can hinder or destroy future success.

There are so many changes that can be made to help get rid of bad habits such as procrastination, but be sure you’re not trying to move too fast while switching bad habits to good ones. Too much too fast will most likely lead you to destruction. My theory is that in order to change something you must start subtly and in time you will start performing only good habits on a regular basis.

Take these steps to have a successful transition: Step 1: Make a list of possible things to change.

Step 2: Choose your favorite thing from the list.

Step 3: Write down on a piece of paper who, what, when, where, why, and how this could better you. (keep the paper for future motivation) Step 4: Start slowly adjusting your lifestyle.

These steps can be modified if nessessary. I advise you to also speak with other people-- people who don’t procrastinate-- and ask them questions about how they make it to deadlines. As I said, there are many ways to transform this habit like the one above such as: create or join a study group, but actually do your work, practice better orginizational skills, whether this be cleaning out your backpack regularly or making a specific place for everything and, asking about joining AVID, the strategies could help. Even just scheduling a specific time to do your work, preferably somewhere where you have no access to any electronics that get you off task, can help. These actions can help keep you up to date and organized.

I can relate to this in many ways because I procrastinate and am using more than one of the tools above. I know now from experience that these methods do work but a few slip ups are to be expected. Messing up shouldn’t discourage you or make you want to quit. This goes back to your who, what, when, where, why, and how notes. This is when that motivation and understanding come in handy. Now you also know that even though you messed up, you have been doing something to try and change.

You can apply these steps to anywhere from middle school through college for any unfavorable bad habits. Anything helps if you are going down the road that I was.

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PAW April 2013

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School News

ID Policy: Three Years Later Bella Sisneros 2016 You walk through the halls of Manzano and see kids in different clothes of different colors and different brands. But one thing that almost everyone wears is the Manzano issued ID. The ID policy for Manzano has been in effect for years now, but it has changed slightly every year and there are still mixed feelings about it. Some people like IDs, some don’t, and some just don’t care. Where do you stand?

“The decision to require IDs to be worn was in conjunction with other measures to increase safety and security over the last five years. With the number of adults and students moving in and around the facility daily, we looked for a means to ensure everyone here on campus belongs here,” said Principal Therese Carroll.

Each student gets an ID, protective sleeve, and lanyard at registration and it is expected to be visible on a student at all times of the day.

“I don’t really mind wearing IDs, but it is pretty annoying when you forget it and you have to get lunch detention,” said freshman Alisha Paz. This semester, things have been tightening up and referrals are being given out for those who don’t wear their ID. “I walked around the other day and...asked them [students] why they weren’t wearing their IDs. I got things like ‘I’m on the basketball team and I have my jersey on so you know I go to school here’, or ‘My girlfriend thinks it looks stupid.’

It’s not about the rule, it’s about a person’s own personal opinion as to why they don’t want to wear their ID,” said softball coach Art Samora.

School safety has been a big thing in the media in the past couple of months with the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary.

IDs do help at times. Manzano students aren’t always aware that kids are escorted off of campus because they don’t actually go to Manzano, and it’s more than just a few.

“Yes, there are several times each year when I see a person I don’t recognize who can’t show their ID and are usually on campus for the wrong reasons,” said Ms. Carroll.

“We escort anywhere from fifteen to twenty students a year off campus because they aren’t supposed to be here. Those are the ones that are just reported, there are some that we catch right away and send them on their way before they get into the school population,” said Mr. Samora.

One might wonder what good IDs would do if someone who really means harm came to this school.

“I feel that IDs are unnecessary. They serve a purpose, but a little plastic card isn’t going to keep a psycho with an assault rifle out of the school,” said freshman Daniel Gugliotta.

“The IDs are okay. I see the purpose of them and to a degree I agree with why the school makes us wear them,” said freshman Stephanie Gonzales.

One thing that students have on their mind is getting off campus for lunch. Showing your ID is a requirement for getting on and off campus. Replacement senior IDs are twenty-five dollars while underclassmen IDs are only five dollars. There is a reason for this.

“There are a lot of reasons why senior IDs are twenty-five dollars. Seniors are smart; they would give their ID to their friends and then go buy another one for five dollars. They would flash their ID real quick and then get off campus,” said Mr. Samora.

Manzano is second to none, and administration wants us all to be safe and happy.

“Good people do things the right way when people are watching, great people do things the right way when people aren’t watching,” said Mr. Samora Manzano is one of the few schools in APS that has an ID policy in effect. At Sandia High School, students are also required to have an ID with them. If they are asked for it then they must produce it, and if they don’t then actions are taken.

Manzano is lax compared to a school in Texas that puts RFID tracking chips into school IDs in an effort to keep track of students.

Beauty Queen of Only Seventeen Samantha Landavazo 2014 Recently, MHS senior Gabrielle Torres won the title of Miss Rio Rancho 2013. Aside from this glamorous lifestyle, Gabrielle goes above and beyond most teenagers’ intake of extracurricular activities.

“I’m captain of the MHS Swim Team, I’m in Student Senate, and I love my music,” said Torres.

“I’ve been taking private piano lessons for 9 years, and I play violin for the MHS String Orchestra,” she continued. “Outside of school, I work out on a daily basis, I work at Boba Tea Company, and I do a lot of volunteer and service work for the Miss America Organization by promoting my platform Fighting Youth Obesity.”

However, Miss Rio Rancho 2013 was not her first title.

“I’ve been in three pageants,” said Torres. “I won the Miss Las Vegas teen pageant, and that was my first pageant ever. Then I competed last summer for the Miss New Mexico Teen Pageant in Ruidoso and I was first runner up and won the talent portion.

And the most recent, Miss Rio Rancho. It was my first time competing in the ‘Miss’ division, which is women 17-26 years old.”

Representing the state is a big responsibility, but it can also be rewarding. Who knows, maybe one day Gabrielle will be a role model for young girls everywhere.

“It’s definitely exciting because I was born and raised in New Mexico. Also, to be representing the Miss America Organization is a great honor,” said Torres.

Though competition can be hard work, the places to go, the people to meet, and the many great opportunities to be had are numerous for people like this.

“My least favorite part would probably be the preparation process and the stress that comes along with it, but that is very minimal and it just adds to the excitement of everything,” said Torres.

Torres has already been accepted into UNM and plans on majoring in Mass Communications and Journalism. Of course, she would also like to continue pursuing her dreams.

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Dear Leona Dear Seniors Graduating in May of 2013, April 2013

What’s going on? Graduation is only about a month away and I’m starting to see my classes getting smaller and smaller. Now, I know that the work is coming to an end, it’s starting to get warm, and you want to hang out with friends and whatnot but you need to stay at school during the day so you can graduate. How about those who have dropped out in the last month? It makes me so sad to think that they got so far just to throw it all away right before graduation. Come on seniors, you’ve made it this far, don’t throw it away now! You can do it, so buckle down, finish up this last month, and I guarantee you’ll be proud of yourselves.

-Love Leona

Do you have a problem? Leona is here to help!

E-mail your dilemma to manzanopawprint@ gmail.com ATTN: Leona.

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Desert Surfers: The rise of longboarding in ABQ David Jio 2013 As the floral tendrils of summer begin to slowly inject warmth once more into the wintery Albuquerque haze, various changes begin to occur in the exertion and appearance of the inhabitants-lighter clothing and a notable increase in outdoor activity.

One form of transportation and recreation finds itself manifesting smoothly in sync with the increasingly higher temperatures: longboarding, and the warmer it gets, the more apparent it becomes.

Longboarding is an alternative form of skateboarding that has seen a remarkably swift rise to popularity within the last few years in the youth of America, due in no small part to the nature of the boards themselves and several key differences that set it apart from normal skateboarding. The boards themselves appear exactly as their nomenclature would

SuperSAC

suggest-- longboards are elongated skateboards, some even reaching to lengths over twice as long as conventional skateboards.

The fundamental differences in construction result in an altered riding experience-- longboards are heavier, faster, and as a result, longboards see use on paved downhill slopes more so than skateboards. Difficult techniques such as “bombing” (riding as fast as possible down hills) and “dancing” (dancing and moving the feet around the board while moving) share popularity with the longboard’s affinity for calm, relaxed cruising, resulting in equal potential for thrill-seeking and laidback cruising alike.

“Longboarding to me means making friends that love riding just as much as I do,” said Kate Parker, MHS senior. “After all of you trek to the top of the beautiful

road you’re just so pumped to start riding-- that feeling right there is what I love about longboarding.”

The unhindered connection to the outside world that longboarding provides is a large part of the attraction. Many skaters enjoy longboarding for the atmosphere as well as for the flowing, liquid movement style that accompanies it.

“Everything is just so swift and fluid,” said Caelan Fisher, senior.

Fisher is one of the many MHS students for which longboarding has become more than a weekend hobby, but a lifestyle.

“It takes you to a truly spiritual zone; your body and mind work together to create the fluidity,” Fisher said.

Along with its spiritual, calming nature, longboarding also serves as an effective form of transportation

upon which many people rely.

“Longboarding is my transportation,” said Parker. “It’s how I get to school or a friend’s house. If I have to go really far, I ride to a bus stop and go from there.”

“MHS had a much stricter policy in the past prohibiting students from even carrying a skateboard onto the campus,” said Therese Carroll, MHS principal. “After the 2008 recession impacted the number of students using boards as their

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the Superintendent and make a difference in the school system was an awesome thing to me,” said Cameron Rosales, senior at El Dorado.

Some students have been involved in councils or committees like SuperSAC before, Marquez is one of them.

“I have been involved in things like SuperSAC before, such as the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Council and other APS committees for at least two years now,” said Marquez.

“I went to my first SuperSAC meeting during my freshmen year, and I have been going back since. I’m a junior now so it’s been almost three years,” said Arining.

There is a lot more complexity in solving a district wide problem than one might think. One has to take everyone into consideration, not just one specific school or group.

Everything and anything concerning the youth of APS is a matter of interest to SuperSAC. SuperSAC has talked about budget a lot and has advocated for changes. They have requested the state make a statewide Student Advisory Council, and they will be advocating for changes in school lunches.

When SuperSAC students were asked, they all agreed that the one thing they would change about SuperSAC is the frequency of meetings; Marquez, Arining, and Rosales all said that meeting once a month was not enough.

“I really do not think I would change anything about SuperSAC, I like the way everything is ran,” said Pino.

Once students graduate high school, they don’t always go back to a committee on APS, however, according to Superintendent Brooks, anyone who is 18 years or older can run for the school board, including students.

In the last four years, SuperSAC has changed the policy impact to several district wide policies including technology and cell phone use.

SuperSAC and Superintendent Brooks are looking forward to more students being heard and changing more APS issues.

primary means of transportation, my administrative team chose to loosen the original policy to allow students to bring boards to school but still refrain from riding them or carrying them around campus.”

Despite past tension between administration and those who skate, it’s possible that the policies on skating may become more synergetic, agreeable, and integrated in the near future.

“As the number increases, I recognize the need to increase and improve storage available.

I’ve suggested the Woods classes consider construction of a skateboard “locker” to allow for more secure storage in the future.

I would also be willing to help offset the cost of materials for such a project. Mr. Boyd and Mr. Asselin, our Woods instructors, would be the teachers to speak with about next steps for such a project,” said Mrs. Carroll.

“I always hear my friend Elton Hicks ask ‘Why can’t longboarding be just about the love?’” said Parker. “I think it is about the love. If you love riding and love the people you’re riding with, then there’s nothing more to it.”

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April 2013

Follow Your Heart Kayla Vandever 2015

I find it funny that many people think I can do better when I tell them the career I want to pursue. They suggest careers that are phenomenal and major. It’s nice to have the help, but picking a career must be found within the heart. Career lies right in the center of passion and devotion.

I’ve been asked if being a doctor was somewhere in my hat full of careers. Absolutely not! I’m terrified of hospitals and I have a weak stomach. Maybe an engineer? No, I dislike math. How about an architect? I can’t draw. I know, a politician. No way, I’m too shy, and I don’t understand politics. Point being, I can’t pursue a career that doesn’t catch my interest at all.

First of all, we have to go through schooling. College perhaps. According to Classes and Careers, 53% of 1.75 million students have dropped of college starting their academic years in 2008-2009. This may be due to financial problems, and the other could possibly be the lack of devotion toward classes that will set them up to graduate. Finding a career path should be a thoughtful decision and be taken seriously.

It’s best to lay out what you’re good at. Maybe it’s math or science. Consider careers that involve either or both. If there are any careers that appeal to you, dig into them and find out if they are definite options. It’s important that the person choosing the career feels a sense of commitment towards that career.

I understand that many students have people who influenced them greatly and helped them in many situations, but if a person chooses a career solely based off somebody else’s interest, they’re bound to fail or be unhappy. Sure, you can aim to be the best in whatever career, whether or not you enjoy it. It’s easy to set goals for yourself, but it’s hard to dedicate yourself to it. It takes a lot more than intelligence and consistency. It takes enthusiasm and commitment.

Picking a career comes from the heart. It doesn’t matter what anybody may say to influence a person otherwise. I think it’s very important to find a career path that someone chooses and no one else. Find a career you love or may end up loving. The cliche statement “follow your heart” may actually come handy with this decision.

Choosing a career that feels right for you not only affects yourself, but also normal citizens and your co-workers. If I were to choose to be a doctor, that would be bad for myself and also my patients. With that being said, being passionate about the career people decide to choose is very important because they will enjoy their career and excel greatly in it.

Disney isn’t the Same Skylar Griego 2014

Kim Possible. That’s So Raven. Even Stevens.

Lizzie McGuire. I remember learning so many things from these shows. I mean sure, I learned in school, but Disney Channel and Disney movies are what made it fun and entertaining for me. It’s what made me retain the information my teachers and parents were trying to drill into me, and to this day I still use some of the methods I learned from kids’ shows. Sadly, these days Disney isn’t quite the top-notch school of learning it used to be. The lessons have drastically changed.

Kim Possible was a show that ran from 2002 to 2007 about a cheerleader in high school who saved the world from mad scientists on a daily basis, as well as dealing with high school drama with her best friend (and later boyfriend) Ron Stoppable. The show was all about doing what you can to help the world out (because we can’t all be crime-fighting cheerleaders, right?) as well as how to be a good person in high school.

That’s So Raven, a show about a teen psychic, taught me that it’s okay to be different.

It also encouraged acceptance into children’s subconsciences because the main character was an African American girl with a white best friend. Kids don’t understand the difference in skin color, which is why it’s the perfect time to encourage acceptance of all people. There are a few episodes that address this very issue, though that was not the main focus of the show.

Even Stevens and Lizzie McGuire were shows that were all about family. I was younger than my baby brother, Khayman-- who is now eleven-- when I was hooked to these shows. The morals and themes were always positive, but still entertaining, and every now and then even my mom liked to sit and watch the shows with me. She thought they were a positive influence and, in her words, “just too adorable.”

But these days it’s just not like that anymore.

All the shows I mentioned are no longer running.

They’ve been over for a long time, and Disney Channel doesn’t even rerun them anymore like they did when I was in middle school.

Now, it seems as if the writers of Disney are coming up with a new series every month or so. And they all suck. Seriously. One day, I was spending time with Khayman and we were eating lunch on the couch watching TV. Considering that most of my favorite shows involve violence of one kind or another, I let him decide what to watch. He flipped it to Disney Channel, and some weird show called Jessie

was on. According to my brother, it’s about a teenager that gets a job in a big city babysitting a bunch of kids, and the show is about all the trouble they get into and the tricks they play on her. He thinks it’s funny.

What the heck is this? Where’s the moral?

Where’s the lesson at the end of every episode that you know is coming when the cheesy music starts playing in the background? My little brother and his friends are being influenced by shows like this, and they’re all about being troublemakers, the importance of having a boyfriend/girlfriend, and how much fun it is to be famous. Unacceptable.

Now I know what some of you might say.

It’s not Disney Channel’s job to teach your kids morals. That’s for the parents. And education is from the teachers. You have a point. But come on. Do you remember what it was like being a kid? I never listened to a word my parents or teachers said. I just did everything they said to get them to stop talking so I could go play or watch TV. They were just boring old parents in my mind. What did they know?

Why would the younger generation be any different? The only difference is I had shows that reinforced what my parents were saying, and I actually listened to that. Meanwhile my brother has shows telling him to just do whatever he wants because everything is going to work out okay in the end anyway. I don’t think so.

Another thing that struck me was the commercials between the shows. Every other commercial was of one of the actors from one of the shows singing a song about nothing. Well, if you could call that singing. More like badly lipsinging to bad lyrics that were badly auto-tuned.

No wonder music is getting worse. It no longer requires talent. It’s time someone told Disney that it is okay, not every actor has to be a singer and dancer as well.

I don’t know where they went wrong, but I think it’s high time someone brought back all the old Disney shows I grew up with. At least those actors were talented, if none of my other issues above were reason enough. Or at least make new shows based off of the themes of the old shows.

I’d rather let Khayman watch Spongebob than the relationship driven, teenager-targeted shows that have taken over what used to be my favorite channel. I worry for his generation and how they’re going to handle the real world if they don’t have the power of the media on their side.

Editorials

Generation Lazy Annelise Mendez 2015

It seems that now in our generation everyone is getting lazy. They don’t strive for what they want because it’s “too much work.” We are becoming “the lazy generation.” We don’t like to do anything anymore.

Being lazy isn’t the only problem: it seems as if no one ever tries anymore.

Even coming to school is a hassle for some people. Getting out of bed, getting dressed, eating, and just getting ready early makes most people cringe. As soon as I get to school, it’s easy to tell who did and did not make an effort in the morning.

As soon as I walk through the hall I see pajama bottoms or sweats and messy hair. Making an effort shows what kind of person you are. Getting ready and dressed shows that you make the most out of the day and are a hard worker; you reach for what you want. When all you do is wake up and show up to school in your sleepwear it shows how lazy you are. You look like you just rolled out of bed.

Let’s be honest here, if you went to a job interview and wore your regular normal everyday clothes and didn’t try, you won’t get the job. When you don’t try it shows that you’re lazy and you don’t want it. They will end up hiring someone who dresses for the part. They’ll hire someone who is fit for the part, someone who wants it more than anything, and someone who works hard for it.

That’s the thing, though. If you want something you have to go out and get it.

It’s never just going to come to you. Not everything in life will be handed to you.

You have to work hard for it. I think that everyone forgets that we need to work hard and work on life skills. We need to stop being lazy. It’s completely rubbish when someone thinks they will get somewhere in life not trying and just kicking back and relaxing.

Look back at history at the greatest names like Martin Luther King Jr., Albert Einstein, George Washington, Abe Lincoln, and so many more! They never got anywhere by being lazy. They were passionate about something and they wanted to do something so they went out and did it. They didn’t expect anyone else to do it for them. They had high expectations for themselves. We all should.

I get it, we all get lazy sometimes. I blame technology, but I also blame society.

We have the choice to do something. To go out and reach for what we want. You won’t get anything if you don’t try. We need to change before our generation completely gives up. Before the worst happens.

Vacations: think

More important than you

Heather Fisk 2013 There’s a reason most everyone loves a vacation. A reason why most people crave to just “get away from it all” for a while, and it’s not all sandy beaches and margaritas.

As individuals we have three essences to ourselves, so to speak. Those essences being mind, body, and soul. We not only have an obligation to ourselves but also a natural desire to take care of all three essences.

At a glance, the answer is simple. For the mind, study, research and expand your knowledge. For the body, eat well, and exercise regularly. For the soul, have good relationships with those around you, be at peace with yourself, and believe in something, whether that be a religion, a sport, or a person.

However, with the routine pressure, and constant distraction of modern society, overall health can be a challenge, even seemingly impossible to some people. As a sort of defense system, our personalities become dulled as we get more and more wrapped up in “our lives” rather than actually living them.

This is why vacations are necessary.

After a vacation, or some time off and away from the “normal life,” people start relaxing and reverting back to their natural state, resulting in being more their true selves. They come back happier, healthier, and more motivated.

School and serious careers as a whole take away from our individuality, happiness, and motivation.

Of course, both of these these are essential in order to lead a successful life.

It’s just all too easy to lose a zest for life these days.

There are many studies regarding the demand of modern society’s expectations on the human essence. Scientists have concluded that we are not meant to cope with stress in large amounts. For example, originally the only thing our ancestors would stress about was keeping themselves alive which consisted of making sure they had enough to eat, could survive the climate, and were able to ward off predators. That’s it. There were no grades, salaries, materialism, etc. Today we have over one thousand other things we could be concerned about.

Therefore, we must cope by setting up a mind set that controls our stress level. Hence, priorities are established.

As school curriculum and the work loads in all aspects of life increase, it becomes more and more essential that we pencil in vacation time.

Case in point, those who take more vacations are happier, healthier, and more motivated.

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Pressured for Perfection Zoe Alam 2015

April 2013

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We’ve all been there. Everybody has experienced the stress of trying to measure up to other’s expectations. Coaches wanting you to push yourselves, parents constantly on your back about striving to be your best, teachers wanting you to make the grade, and all of the demeaning TV commercials and magazine ads making you wish you weren’t so “imperfect.”

Yes, we’ve all been there. Is all this pressure beneficial or is it hurting us in the long run?

As kids grow older, they all want to find their own unique personal identity. Finding this certainly takes time and it becomes a bit more difficult when kids are being told from all angles ‘who to be’ and ‘what to do’. Parents, or at least most parents, want their children to strive to be their best, whether that’s pushing them academically or athletically. Is this stressful? Yes. However, sometimes kids need this little extra push to help them reach their maximum potential and help them grow.

Of course, there are extreme cases. For example, those parents who actually want their kid to be the 100% perfect athlete or student. Every kid is going to make mistakes, it’s part of growing up! Parents only want children to do their best, and in most cases this pressure helps build kids’ characters, although sometimes it can be overbearing.

Teachers play the same role. They want you to be your best, and most of them know that a lot of times it’s difficult to get kids motivated. All the homework, criticism, and the stressful pressure that sometimes seems too much to handle; it’s only for our own good. A teacher’s job is to try to prepare us for life outside of high school and of course they want us to succeed and become something more. Yes, there are those students who ignore the pressure and don’t put in the effort, but that’s their loss. As kids we want to please (or at least we should) and we try very hard to be what they want us to-- but it doesn’t always work out that way.

Life is hard enough as it is, so why do kids need the extra pressure? Does it really help in the long run? Well I’m sure hoping it does. I know people who confessed that without the support and pressure to strive they received from parents, teachers, and mentors, they probably wouldn’t have gotten to where they are today.

However, there are pressures out there that have a negative effect on kids. One of the more obvious ones is the peer pressure. It is true that kids do want to fit in, they don’t want to become the odd ball out. Kids are trying to find their social identities and the pressure to conform to their peers around them is very high. We are told that we should be different and being a little different is okay, but then coming to school and being yourself suddenly isn’t okay.

Yet the biggest player in this game has to be media. Media is everywhere and the people most exposed to it are kids. How many pictures have you seen of people posing, acting like they are having the time of their lives, with flawless skin, perfect hair, and perfect bodies? Sounds familiar. Well, most of those people are most likely models and the picture has been photoshopped to get that perfect image.

The media is portraying unrealistic images of how people “should” look and now everyday people are trying to replicate the results causing damage to themselves in the end. Not even the models in the magazines and posters are perfect, so why are we trying so hard to match those standards?

Pressure is all over. The bad pressure that makes it difficult to look past the unrealistic perfection and strive for your own self-uniqueness, and the good (yet stressful at times) pressure that can mold you into a person of character! It’s important to know and recognize the difference and try to never measure up to harmful expectations. Strive for excellence, and never let anybody tell you that you’re less than perfect.

Dogma?

SBA Doesn’t Cerridwen Stucky 2015 You’ve probably heard it before: Dogma. Such an odd sounding word, one that gives no obvious indication of its meaning. This frustrated my childhood, as I could usually find the general gist of a word by using context clues and roots, Measure Intelligence but dogma?meIt towasnoaendsourceduringof baffl ement and befuddlement for me, so I decided to do something like a research paper to discover Victoria Blythe 2014 This March, sophomores and juniors had to take the SBA. Most of my classmates and I believe that APS makes its students take way too many tests.

Last year, APS was told to make passing the SBA a graduation requirement. I suppose they think this test shows how intelligent we are, if we remember what we learn, and what teachers are doing well. That is just silly. Tests do not measure a student’s intelligence or how well teachers teach.

W. James Popham, author of the editorial “Why Standardized Tests Don’t Measure Educational Quality” on ascd.org, made a comparison that agrees with my point when he said, “Employing standardized achievement tests to ascertain educational quality is like measuring temperature with a tablespoon.

Tablespoons have a different mission than indicating how hot or cold something is.”

They force us to take the SBA and other exams without realizing that not every student is good at math, writing, reading, or science.

We all have different skill sets that cannot be measured by testing. It is like they expect every student to be the same.

Tests are also pointless because they put way too much pressure on students. Making the SBA a graduation requirement does not make the students do better or try harder, it just stresses them out. The hormone that stress releases, cortisol, affects a person’s ability to remember things and think straight (anxientyguru.net).

Causing the students stress doesn’t make them perform better; it actually makes them do worse.

Stress can also cause heart problems from weight gain. This just shows that the people who administer the SBA and similar exams do NOT really know what is best for the students.

A simple solution to these problems would be to not make the students take the SBA, or if the SBA is really important, only make students take it once, not twice. They should also not make it a requirement for graduation. The people who make these tests should keep in mind that the students are not robots and school is challenging enough without testing.

People might argue that tests help measure what the students learn and help the test makers revise future tests. This is wrong because not all good students (the ones who pay attention and actually try to learn) are good test takers and not all bad students (you know who you are) are bad test takers.

Therefore, it is difficult to judge who really learns. Tests cannot always measure a student’s intelligence and what they know.

the true definition.

The dictionary defines dogma as “a principle or set of principles lay down by an authority as inconvertibly true.” I find the dictionary boring.

As dull as that definition is, it is essentially correct. A dogma is something that is laid down with authority as indubitably true, especially a religious doctrine such as the dogmas of the church.

Most of the time, when you encounter dogma, it’s in context to a church or religious group. This is because, in essence, dogma derives from faith. Dogma appears in almost every religion, and must be upheld by the people of the faith. Dogmatic beliefs cannot be changed or discarded without affecting the very paradigm or the ideology of the belief itself.

Dogma is a large part of religion, and people who follow most conformed religions have dogmatic beliefs, even if they don’t know the meaning of the word. The belief that whatever god you follow exists is a dogmatic belief. Some of the most basic rules and regulations are dogmatic, and in some cases, the afterlife belief is a dogmatic thing.

Even if you are not part of a religion at all, you still probably hold some dogmatic beliefs; moral codes that cannot be bent or blurred without changing who you are completely. Things like: killing is bad (I certainly hope that’s one of them), love your mother (no matter how much she gets on your nerves), and protect your kid sibling (even if you want to punch them in the face). Maybe these are your dogmas, maybe not, but you must, as a human who has to be assured of something, have one dogmatic belief or another.

There are dogmas everywhere. Religious dogma, personal dogma, social dogma, political, scientific, it doesn’t matter, it’s there.

Even though it is a constant and necessary thing, the word itself seems negative, and this is due to the sense of undue authority or assumption it carries.

So, making use of my own undue authority that I gained though this research, I herby proclaim the fact that everyone has a dogmatic belief to, in itself, be a dogma.

Rethinking the Teen Curfew Taty Amaro 2013 For many teens, curfews can be a pain. Who inputs these curfews? Parents.

Therefore, parents can be a pain. But parents only become a pain when teens come home past their curfews. So, curfews are the real pains. Then again, if there were no curfews set by parents, there would be no pain.

Finally, parents are the pain for giving out curfews. But if there were no curfews for teens... teens would become an even bigger pain!

I have a curfew set for every single event that I go out to do in my life. Whether it is going out for a run, going out with friends or boyfriend, turning off my phone; there is a curfew for all of that for me. It begins to bother me how much it can pile up because I do consider my age and how I have proved to my parents that I am responsible. I realize this. Do they not? I consider myself to be a good, responsible girl.

The purpose of me saying all this is to make my parents see things my way; the right way, the fair way. I do believe that strict curfews are necessary for many teens. They provide stability and limits in whatever it is teens are doing out in the world when not being supervised at home. Too much freedom for a teen can be dangerous, reckless, and irresponsible, but over protection can be just plain unfair. I would say that having the qualities I have as a daughter, a student, and as an overall individual, are reasons enough for my parents to loosen up on the curfews, if not to just get rid of them! Seriously, I am seventeen, and about to be eighteen in three

months! Come on.

My parents’ reasons for why I have a set curfew on some thing are understandable... to a point. They say I must turn off my phone at nine p.m. so that I no longer talk or text or get on the web on my phone. “You had all day to talk to whoever you wanted, why wait till now?” “At night you need to rest because you have school the next day.”

“You just don’t need to be talking on the phone late at night.” “I don’t like that,” simple as that.

First off, I agree with “you had all day to talk, why wait ‘till now?” But the thing is, I don’t want to turn off my phone just so that I can talk or text on the phone. It is the principle that I feel as if I am being treated as a child. Clearly, I am not a child in age or attitude. I am a senior in high school with more than adequate grades who, if asked to others, is mature enough for my age. I mean, I don’t TP houses, I don’t throw tantrums, or even fuss the least bit when told no, I don’t talk back or disrespect my parents, I expect that I was told no and don’t argue with my parents. All I am asking for is to be treated as the young adult that I have proven to be with my actions.

Here is another curfew: be home by nine p.m. on weekends. WHAT? My parents think it is a reasonable time, they have never really told me why-but it’s not like I have ever really asked.

They just say that they want me to be

safe because the world is filled with a lot of crazy people and bad people. If anything happens to me late at night... well, they would just rather avoid that, obviously. I acknowledge all these things yet I can think of reasons why my parents should still not be as strict and/or worried.

Now, to tackle the nine-o-clockcurfew on weekends. Yeah, I don’t like that. But again, it is the principle of the matter. To be honest, I don’t party or even plan to stay out late to begin with so it’s not like I ever have a reason not to “make it on time for my curfew” because I never do anything that would require me to stay out past that time. However, just knowing that I have a curfew that most freshmen and sophomores have bothers me.

I have a good enough GPA to have been accepted into college earlier than anyone else I knew with scholarships that will save my parents a lot of money. All the while I have been a good daughter at home by taking care of my younger siblings, helping around the house, and not causing unnecessary problems.

I think that by considering the above, I should be given much more freedom.

I am young and I need to experience crazy, wild things so that when I get old and am sitting in my favorite rocking chair, I can look back and smile at all I did while I was young and free.

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April 2013

Athletes Joedon Tenorio

(Senior)- Wrestling

How long have you been playing this sport? I have been in this sport for over 12 years and love every second I am on the mat.

What have you achieved from playing this sport? The one thing I learned most was sacrifice.

Where does your motivation from this sport come from? My motivation comes from being the first person in my family to win a state title.

What is your favorite type of weather and why?

The winter. My mom always loved the winter and when the season comes, the wrestling season starts.

Savannah Costales (Senior)- Softball

How long have you been playing this sport? This will be my third year.

What have you achieved from playing this sport?

I’ve learned how to work as a team and how I can’t play for myself, we have to play as a team.

Where does your motivation from this sport come from? I’m really competitive and I have my team to back me up and my sisters are my motivation too.

What is your favorite type of weather and why? I like the cold weather because I like to sit by the fire and watch movies all day.

Clogan’s Monthly Musing: Disappointment

Cloie Logan 2013 I have not thrown a tantrum in a long time.

This year, though, has tested my limits a little bit.

Because of scheduling conflicts, I could not take guitar classes at school this year, and with marching band and newspaper I don’t have time for outside lessons. However, I vowed that I would once again play in All State and Honors Ensemble.

This did not prove to be as easy as I had hoped.

It is something we struggle with from the moment we are born: wanting something and not being able to have it. Through the terrible twos we threw tantrums in grocery stores over a packet of m&ms. At five we refused to go to school until our mothers were forced to drag us screaming into the minivan. At 13, we whined, “This is so not fair!!” when made to attend a great-aunt’s birthday as opposed to a party with the BFFs. Halloween was on the horizon. I knew that band All State auditions weren’t until late November, and as I went to sign up in mid-October I was absolutely crushed to find that the guitar auditions were days away— that I had missed the registration deadline.

Something I had wanted so much had been taken away without a chance of redemption.

However, as I am nearing adulthood, I realize that I couldn’t just walk into the director of the NMMEA’s office and throw a tantrum and beg for an audition. I would have to resort to blackma—I mean, facing the impossibility of this task and accepting the fact that I wouldn’t participate in All State.

That was really difficult, I’m not going to lie. But with college decisions coming out as well as other events happening in our lives,

Students and Staff

Staff Jimmy Schwank (Math)

What is your favorite part of teaching? Being part of the student educational development.

What was your favorite class in high school?

Athletics class.

How long have you been teaching this subject? 5th year.

If you could be a cereal box character, who would you be? The Trix bunny rabbit for obvious reasons.

Mary Butler (Government, Spanish Language Arts, Law)

What is your favorite part of teaching? You guys keep me young and aware of new things happening in the world with music, technology, and clothes.

What was your favorite class in high school? Spanish.

How long have you been teaching these subjects?

Government-7 years, Spanish Lang. Arts- 3 years, Law-1st year.

If you could be a cereal box character, who would you be?

The bee from Honey Nut Cheerios.

this is something that we, as rising adults, need to focus on.

However… It is really difficult. Especially when I found out that scheduling conflicts would not even allow me to play in this year’s Honors Ensemble-something I have participated in since sophomore year and enjoyed greatly. My consolation bargain, per se, for not doing All State was that I would still be able to do Honors Ensemble. The angst was unbearable for awhile. I’m still kind of upset about it.

Some of us won’t get into the college we wanted to, or be able to go on that road trip with friends. But, as always, all we can do is just accept that it wasn’t meant to be and that it’s really going to be okay.

One thing that I’ve found that helps with this is the small technique of counting blessings. It’s a lot harder to feel bad about the things you didn’t get to do if you think about all of the things you do get to do. I might have not been able to participate in guitar this year, but instead I had a blast with the Colorguard. Acknowledging this trade-off makes things seem a little less unfair.

So, as we travel into adulthood, it might be a good idea to resist our tantrums and complaints and simply accept that life won’t always be fair, and there’s absolutely nothing we can do about it.

Contact Information

Advisor: Matt Kraus Editor-In-Chief: Cloie Logan Junior Editor-in-Chief: Victoria Blythe Copy Editors, Lead Writers: Heather Fisk, Meadow Butler, Taty Amaro Layout Design: Cloie Logan School News Editor/Lead Writer: Heather Fisk Critic’s Corner Editor: David Jio Junior Editors: Annelise Mendez, Skylar Griego, Kayla Vandever

Phone: 292-0090 ext. 23413 E-mail: manzanopawprint@ gmail.com