A school of many nations

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2400 Lindbergh Drive Minnetonka, MN 55305

A school of many nations Tuesday, November 17, 2009 Volume 28 Issue 4

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page photo by Paul Webber

The musical Wizard of Oz wrapped up this past weekend at HHS. Highlights included flying cast members, pyrotechnics, and a real dog starring as Todo. HHS theater puts on productions three times a year.

The Royal Page

2009-2010

Editors in Chief Nate Gotlieb Danny Mann

Managing Editor Rosie Mann

Content Editor Scott Gannis

News Editor Rosie Mann

Opinion Editor Dylan Browdie

Feature Editors Zahra Bashir Amy Gallop

Centerspread Editor Tsana Allen

Varitey Editor Kent Wee

Sports Editor Bill Gregg Emma Peaslee

Back Cover Editor Naomi Litman-Zelle

Contents cover story 8 A School of Many Nations Exploring HHS’ foreign born students

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news 4-5 School Dances Inappropriate dress called into question Ghost Bikes Memorials created for biking tragedies

opinion 6-7 Irrational Fears Gannis, Dorshow take a look

6

Gas Tax Would be BeneďŹ cial Reducing carbon footprint necessary

Copy Editors Tom Guthrie

Webmaster Ben Jolson

Head Photographer Ben Jolson

Business Manager Danielle Fink

Staff Reporters

Meg Burnton Saxon Dorshow Michael Frey Jasmine Geschwind Eli Goldaris Andrew Herzog Ari Lederman Lindsey Kaufmann Elana Kravitz Lissa Martinez Katia Tonge Alex Schneider Elissa Weis-Engelen

Adviser Jeff Kocur The editorial represents the opinion of the newspaper staff. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the administration, the student body or the adviser. Signed viewpoints represent the view of the writer. The Royal Page is an open forum newspaper, where students decide editorial content.

Advertising information available by mail, fax and phone. Annual Subscriptions are available for $20.

The Royal Page encourages letters to the editor. Letters are not guaranteed publication, are subject to editing for content and length, must be signed and meet deadlines.

Compliments and suggestions are also welcome.

feature 10-11 Persevering Through Batten Disease John Magnum lives life to the fullest

10

Japanese Club Student group explores Japanese Culture

variety 12-13 The West End A new mall in SLP ready for buisness Glee Throwdown The Royals Page discusses this new show

sports 14-15 Fall Sports Wrap Up A look at the fall season through photos Viewpoint: A Lambeau Leap for the Vikings QB Farve has done wonders for team

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news

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Lewd behavior may change future dances The promiscuous dress and dance behaviors exhibited at school dances, have led the administration to seek new ways to ensure that future dances foster a safe and comfortable environment for everyone Danny Mann Editor in Chief

T

he comment,“can I put some more clothes on before you call my dad?” uttered by a girl as she was removed from the HHS homecoming dance for inappropriate dress, sums up the brewing controversy the school administration has regarding future dances at HHS. After the recent homecoming dance, Student Government and other student groups approached the administration about holding a dance. However, citing inappropriate and uncomfortable dress and dance styles that occurred the night of the homecoming dance, the administration is acting with caution in regards to future dances.

After homecoming, a lot of kids had a lot of fun, so we brought up the idea of another dance, but right away the administration shut it down,” said Willie Versen, senior and President of Student Government.

“The administration was definitely concerned with what happened at the last dance. We want to fix the problems of the last dance for the blacklight dance before we think about new dances,” said Ms. Patty Johnson, Assistant Principal.

Johnson is not the only one who has a problem with what happened at the homecoming dance. “I wouldn’t categorize myself as an ultrastrict teacher, but I was uncomfortable seeing so much flesh,” said Ms. Sara Garcia, AP & Exceptional Learning Programs Coordinator. She was one of the chaperones at the homecoming dance and had to ask seven students to leave due to inappropriate dress.

“Even the DJs who were HHS graduates and recent graduates of college couldn’t believe what was going on at the dance,” Garcia said.

Photo by Danny Mann

The school has been looking seriously into ways of handle the inappropriateness that occurs at dances. One option being considered is the possibility of canceling future dances.

Although the dance generated controversy, depriving students of future dances might not be the best solution. “I wouldn’t agree with canceling the dances because I certainly don’t think everyone was guilty,” Garcia said, “I think the administration has to find a better approach to this issue,” she said. but there is a more realistic solution than simply canceling future dances. “We want to work with students to create a better dancing environment,” Johnson said. “The administration is not against dances; we don’t want to have to cancel

Seductively dressed seniors walk into the Homecoming dance. Outfits such as these have the administration looking for better ways to enforce the dress code at dances. them, we just want to make sure dances are comfortable, safe, and fun for all people,” she said.

An idea Minnetonka High School (MHS) used to deter inappropriate behavior at school dances is also being considered. Dave Adney, the principle at MHS, decided to create humorous yet educational videos that aired during morning announcements to fix their problem with inappropriate dances.

“We began a five-part [video] series on ‘the

Dangers of Grinding’…all of the scenarios were humorous… [and] all of the episodes ended with an intimidating picture of grandma shaking her finger as if to say ‘don’t make me come out on the dance floor and talk to you!’” Adney wrote in an article titled Dance Like Grandma’s Watching.

While cancellations, talking with students, and creating videos are all being looked into, at least one HHS student feels the administration is focusing too much on this issue. “The way we dance and act at dances is just the way our generation expresses itself. This overreaction from the administration is the same thing that happened in the 1920’s when swing dancing became the new way of dancing,” said Joe Marshall, senior.

However, Garcia thinks recent complaints are different. “There’s always going to be a generational push, but we are at the point where there is no where else to push. The next step, I’m afraid to say, is sex on the dance floors,” she said.

This “next step” is not far from reality; in fact it might be happening. On October 7, an episode of Dr. Phil aired titled “Teen Trends,” which highlighted the issue of sexual acts being performed on junior high and high school dance floors. According to the show, it’s not uncommon for students as young as junior high to participate in oral sex and sometimes even vaginal sex on the dance floor.

The administration admits that times have changed but still feels students are responsible for their conduct at dances. “Things have changed a lot, but I think no matter what age there’s still bottom line on what’s appropriate and what’s not. I think the dress and the dancing style that is happening now is inappropriate for a school setting and should be stopped somehow,” said Johnson.

Honor roll students reach out to local community Saxon Dorshow Staff Reporter The life of a HHS senior can be stressful and anxiety-ridden.

Between applying to schools, completing homework, and attending sports, many seniors feel that there are simply not enough hours in the day.

However, approximately 140 seniors of National Honor Society (NHS) take time out of these busy schedules to do their part to help the community. The entire group meets once a month, with five officers meeting weekly.

NHS’s main focus is on civil service. For each quarter of its schedule, NHS focuses on a different area of community improvement. This quarter, battling hunger in the metro area has been the main focus.

“Working with food is kind of a tradition for our chapter,” said Maddie Johnston, senior and NHS chapter President. “We feel it’s a really good way to give back to the community.”

Battling hunger has certainly kept the students of the HHS chapter of NHS busy. On October 24, 2009, the chapter participated in a food drive at Feed My Starving Children. “It was a huge

success. We fed around 52 kids that day,” Johnston said.

“This quarter, we’ve been working a lot with ICA Foodshelf off of Minnetonka Boulevard,” said Dawn Hansen, Adult Advisor for the HHS chapter. “We also always collect canned food at all of our meetings.”

While they are currently working diligently to combat hunger, the chapter has even bigger plans on the horizon. “We are doing a big event at the Chanhassen Feed My Starving Children on November 24, from 2-4 pm. This event is our main chapter project,” Johnston said.

However, the project with the most local impact figures to be the food drive that the chapter is planning to have at HHS in mid-November. Students will have ample opportunity to donate canned goods and other food items to fight hunger around the local community.

While the chapter has been spending a large amount of its time on food, it is not their only focus. “This summer, we volunteered at the PGA Championship golf tournament at Hazeltine,” Hansen said. “Also, next quarter we will be working to assist the Priyanka Organization, which serves to help cancer patients in India.” In the spring, the chapter plans to work with the Adopt-a-Highway organization.

Students affiliated with the organization tend to find the ex-

peri-

Photo by Lindsey Kaufmann

NHS participants learn to make mittens for those in need. ence of providing services highly rewarding. “National Honor Society has been very fun,” said Anna Dieter, senior. “I would definitely recommend it to future seniors.”

However, not anyone who applies for NHS can get in. The applicant must be a junior, so that he/she serves in the program his/her senior year. Also, a grade point average of at least 3.667 is required along with proof of service and leadership since freshman year.

news Success at Royal Corner leads to front door addition

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Global organization creates bike memorials for crashes in metro Ghost Bikes created a memorial for Nik Mortan, a local teen that was killed in a biking accident.

Ari Lederman Staff Reporter After six successful months of operation, the Royal Corner, HHS’s student-run retail store, has made some crucial changes to its business model. In mid-October, the shop was retrofitted to encourage customers to enter, browse, and purchase merchandise more freely. The construction was funded entirely from last year’s profits.

In February of the last school year, after receiving a five-thousand-dollar grant from the Park-Nicollet Foundation, Business Management students, supervised by Mr. Jesse Theirl, Business Ed., brought their classroom learning into the real world by opening a retail store in the old Attendance Office.

Students are entirely responsible for all management decisions that go into the day-to-day and big-picture operations of the enterprise. All of the profits made from last year’s sales have been invested in new merchandise and store improvement, as well as five new paid positions.

Theirl sees the first year of the Royal Corner as an educational success.

“It serves as a good model for a business that kids can actually touch and see,” Theirl said. He compares the store to a chemistry lab, giving students in business classes a hands-on perspective on the abstract ideas that they learn. Theirl regularly uses examples from the Royal Corner in his lectures and classroom activities.

Changing the layout of the room will finally make it a “fully operating store,” according to Theirl. Before the change, students would buy merchandise from a counter that opened onto the Mall. With that configuration, some smaller items were out of sight and neglected by customers. Now, the counter has been replaced with a double door that will allow customers to enter the store and browse the merchandise.

Like any retail enterprise, the Royal Corner and its student management team face some business challenges.

Last year, the hugely popular slushies were the store’s largest source of income. Slushies alone brought in 125 to 175 dollars per day, constituting five to seven thousand dollars of its yearly profit.

But this year’s hall sweep policy limits the times that the Royal Corner is allowed to sell the beverage. Administrators were concerned that the sale of slushies was making students late for their next class. This year, the store will only be opened before school, during all lunches, and after school, closing two minutes before class starts.

This change has had a dramatic effect on business this year.

In nine weeks under the new policy, the store has made about a 900-dollar profit, what the shlushie machine could have made in a week last year.

The management also anticipates that the new design of the store may attract theft. A five-person maximum occupancy policy has been instituted so that the employees can keep an eye on the customers.

The profit from last year’s sales allowed the Royal Corner to add two front doors.

Photo by Ari Lederman

by the numbers 90% of cyclists killed on U.S. roads in crashes with motorvechicles.

540,000 bicyclists vist emergency rooms every year.

85% of all accidents are protected by bike helmets.

Information from www.bhsi.org

Photo provided by Matty Lang

Danielle Fink Staff Reporter

W

hile most HHS students use motor vehicles as transportation to school, Phil English, senior, is different. English has been riding his bike to school since sophomore year.

“When I don’t have any transportation.

I will ride my bike to school… I wanted to try something new,” English said.

English’s daily route is about one mile to and from school. He also bikes to work, which is around two miles away from his home.

There are many precautions English takes in order to ride safely. “I wear a helmet [and] look both ways when turning to make sure the road is clear. I bike on the right side of the road, or if there is a sidewalk, I will bike on the sidewalk,” English said.

He hopes to continue biking in the future. “I will get sick of driving, and I am planning on being a tri-athlete,” English said.

Although many bicyclists practice safe use on the roads, some still end in a tragedy. Nik Morton, an 18-year-old bicyclist in Minneapolis, for example, was killed on Sept. 23, 2008, from a bicycle-truck collision. “[Nik] biked everywhere, year-round.

He could be seen biking to school every winter through two feet of snow. His bike was his pride and joy; he loved working on it, painting it, and riding it everywhere. He even named it Odysseus,” said Emily Due, Morton’s friend.

Ghost Bikes, an organization that supports safe bicycle riding, found out about Morton’s collision and wanted to do something to both honor his memory

and educate others about biking safely.

Ghost Bikes holds memorials all around the world for bicyclists who were killed on the street. Through this organization, a white bicycle along with plaques, flowers, and pictures was placed near the crash site to honor the fallen bicyclist.

The memorial is locked into place in 100 different locations around the world.

The idea of Ghost Bikes started in St. Louis, Missouri, in 2003.

“I first saw a Ghost Bike in Boston, which had a profound effect on me. I wanted to evoke the same feelings in others: that a car/bike crash had resulted in a needless death that might have been prevented through better awareness on both sides,” said Jana Stow, Minneapolis Ghost Bike Volunteer. Ghost Bikes was brought to Minnesota in 2007.

The memorial for Morton was the last ride in Minneapolis in the past year.

The bike ride was for any participant who wanted to honor the fallen bicyclists or to raise awareness of safe biking.

The bicycle ride consisted of going to each memorial in the Twin Cities to pay respects and promote safe riding. The ride began on Summit and Snelling Ave. where the first memorial was held. The ride then continued to Lake St. to another crash site.

The last part of the ride went up Excelsior and then to northeast Hennepin, the site of Morton’s memorial. “[Morton] was cremated, so his ghost bike served as a place of mourning and a place of gathering for those who loved him. We all went there after the funeral and were invited to place something on the bike or write something to him,” Due said.

Unlike Morton’s bike-truck collision, there are also many accidents from bicyclists hitting other bicyclists. Mr. Dan

Roden, Tech Ed, for example, lost his wife due to a collision on a bike path.

Roden’s wife, Lisa Roden, was biking with a few friends on a path in Hyland Hills Park in Bloomington, on Aug. 28, 2009. The three of them were heading into a tunnel when another bicyclist ran into Lisa. When bicyclists reach the end of the tunnel, the path immediately curves to the right, which causes a blind spot.

“Lisa was coming in, a guy was coming out…the tunnel is dark, I think his eyes were adjusting to the light,” Roden said, “He was probably going a little faster, swinging out a little to make that turn and their bikes hit, their faces hit, helmets came off, and she fell to the ground.”

“The tunnel is just poorly designed…

When you come out of the tunnel there should be a straight path for 15 feet,” Roden said.

Roden hopes that Three Rivers Park will change the tunnel to make the path safer for other bicyclists.

Some of the direction signs on the path were worded incorrectly. Since the accident, those signs have been fixed. Also, the lights in the tunnel only came on at night; now the lights are running all day.

“I would enjoy seeing a ghost bike placed at the tunnel where Lisa lost her life; it would be one more way that she could help people, which is what she did all the time,” Roden said.

There are many ways for drivers and bicyclists to help themselves and others on the road. “Use designated bike paths if you can, because they are there for you and only you and cars tend to be territorial on the road. Minneapolis has a great network of bike trails for you to use. Remember that although you may have the right of way, they have several tons of steel on their side,” Due said.

opinion

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Hopocalypse now: irrational fears at HHS Let’s say HHS is going to end on a certain date.

It’s just going to end for no significant reason.

We’ll also have to assume that it’s going to end because the calendar of an extinct group of ancient people ends on that date. Some medieval scholar vaguely alluded to it, as well.

This is pretty much what the Dec. 21, 2012, apocalypse theories are based upon.

First of all, I don’t see any reason why the world will just inexplicably end. It’s not like the earth is an enormous carton of Half-and-Half (although that would make everyone’s coffee more delicious) that just goes bad after awhile.

The people on earth could do something that will make it end, but this 4.5 billion year old rock isn’t just going to go rancid one day because some calendar ends.

Every calendar ends. That calendar in the kitchen at Grandma’s house with all the birds? Yeah, that calendar ends on the last day of the year.

The Mayan calendar had to end at some point. It either goes on forever, like the Gregorian (Western) Calendar, or some man who was supposed to write it all down got tired. Writing for an eternity is a bad gig (almost as bad as writing for a high school newspaper…)

Additionally, the great Mayan civilization fell apart itself. Mayans still exist, but if they’re so smart with their pre-Colombian written language and architecture and stuff, they should’ve dipped out of the earth before it ends, not just

live in villages in Mexico and Northern Central America.

Many people cite a Nostradamus “prediction” of the end of times as indisputable proof that our planet will cease to exist as of 2012. After all, he predicted World War II, right?

Well, not exactly. In truth, Nostradamus’ writings are vague poetry that are only “proven” to predict an event after the fact.

For instance, many say that the following excerpt from his work predicts 9/11: “In the City of God there will be a great thunder, two brothers torn apart

by Chaos, while the fortress endures, the great leader will succumb. The third big war will begin when the big city is burning” People believe that the “City of God” is New York, that “two brothers” are the towers, etcetera.

However, the two brothers may just as easily be Nick and Joe of the Jonas brothers.

The City of God obviously refers to Owatonna, as it is a well-known fact that Owatonna has the least debauchery per capita in the contiguous United States.

Besides, if he was so darned smart, why didn’t he predict the swine flu?

The world is probably not going to end on Dec. 21, 2012. If it does, there is nothing anyone can do about it, so everybody needs to chill on that panic mode.

Scott Gannis is the Content Editor and Saxon Dorshow is a Staff Reporter for the Royal Page

This is a compilation of three fears with similar absurdity and irrationality to the 2012 apocalypse. Just like Dec. 21, 2012, it makes no sense to fear these three things.

Photo by Ben Jolson

Scott Gannis, Content Editor for the Royal Page, drowning in 3 inches of water.

Photo by Ben Jolson

Drowning can almost always be avoided.

There are a couple of simple options when one thinks he or she is drowning: flap, flap those arms like there’s no tomorrow (because if one doesn’t flap, there might not be). The other option is do nothing. Humans have the unique capability to just float if they decide to post up. The key to not drowning is either flailing wildly while keeping a cool head or completely mellowing out and cooling one’s jets.

Scott Gannis, Content Editor for the Royal Page, protects himself from alien brainwave transmissions with his trusty nonmicrowavable tinfoil hat.

Aliens probably aren’t coming to earth. Why not? Why would they? If they are advanced enough to travel to earth, there is nothing we can do or show them that they don’t already know. It makes no sense for extraterrestrials to hike it all the way down here simply to flirt with humans.

Besides, even if they do show up, they’re going to be so exhausted from the trek down here that humanity will get a free pass. It’s like a human passing over an anthill: there’s nothing the human can possibly gain from approaching the ants because ants aren’t on the same cognitive level as humans. In terms of intelligence, if Aliens can get here, they are lightyears away from humans.

Photo by Ben Jolson

Scott Gannis, Content Editor for the Royal Page, nearly falls to excruciatingly painful and humorous death in The Mall.

Don’t panic. Please don’t panic. If one turns heights into a big deal, it will become a big deal.

It’s important to take a little caution when very far off the ground, but not to panic. When one’s mind worries about falling, the likelihood of such a terrible thing happening increases. So take a little caution when overlooking The Mall, but don’t let the thought of falling and dying to a terrible death cross the mind. Visualize success, not failure.

Everything will be splendid with a deep breath.

Scott Gannis is the Content Editor for the Royal Page

Needless hadron collider causes conCERN The theory of the Big Bang is a big deal, almost as big a deal as a television show about a group of stereotypical teens competing in dances and sing-a-longs. If it happened, no, not Glee, the Big Bang, it is responsible for the creation of everything. If it didn’t, a group of pompous windbags are going to recreate it in an attempt to explain from where everyone and everything is derived.

It’s called the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), and it serves no practical purpose other than to amuse a very particular type of person (like Glee). Except this type of person is aroused by quantum physics instead of poorly written and acted television programs. But I digress: this is a really bad idea for a number of reasons.

The LHC does not mean any harm. Rather, it is trying, but admirably failing, to find its place in society just like Mike Vick.

Both have made some mistakes (the LHC hasn’t functioned properly since its creation along the Swiss/France border) and both are looking to find some closure to their respective pasts by putting a new foot forward.

CERN, the international group of scientists responsible for LHC, plans on having LHC running soon. This means it will start accelerating particles in an attempt to find the Higgs Boson, or theorized particle responsible for the make up of the particles

that make up everything.

Yeah, I know this sounds stupid (which is right) and boring (which hurts my feelings because I’m slaving for everyone here) but bear with me.

The beds HHS students woke up in this morning are made up of molecules. These molecules are supposedly made up of something, and the LHC is going to find that thing (also called the God Particle). The problem with this is that to find this thing, the LHC is theoretically recreating the Big Bang.

A lot of bad things can happen from playing God. This bad boy might cook up a heaping mess of black holes that could suck the world into oblivion or cultivate a new particle that just blows everything up. I don’t know what these CERN scientists are ingesting, but they don’t drink milkshakes, I assure you.

Even if we do figure out how everything got here, what will change? Humanity is here. For the most part, humanity is cool with the idea of still being here.

Since humanity is fine with being here, and most of humanity does not care about this article, I mean, this absurd conceptual particle, there is no point to drop 10 billion dollars on this thing. I know the U.S. does not have one yet, but as soon as someone other than us gets a shiny new toy, we’re quick to follow. What is troubling is that

Large Hadron Collider: An overview -Located deep under the French-Swiss border -The entire project $3,937,500,000

is

expected

to

cost

-The project hopes to simulate the “Big Bang” that is theorized to have created the universe -Skeptics fear that the collider will create a black hole that would destroy the earth this shiny new toy could annihilate everybody and everything in the name of science (not even in the name of love).

This is all theoretical, anyway. We’ve gotten this far without knowing about the God Particle, so I have trouble seeing the point in risking everything for what could very well be nothing. I guess that’s why I write for a high school paper while these geniuses risk the future of humanity.

Scott Gannis is the Content Editor for the Royal Page

opinion

7 page the ROYAL

New gas tax would benefit environment Here at HHS, Earth Club, an environmental action group, is one of the more popular student organizations, and its large student base promotes “green” initiatives around the school, much like larger-scale environmental groups promote similar initiatives around the nation. One of the main targets of these groups is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global climate change.

Initiatives meant to curb greenhouse gas emissions have included encouraging carpooling, walking, and biking. This sort of endorsement, though, yields weak results because real incentive is absent. Initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions need to have built-in incentives so participation is widespread and results are more assured.

If America wants to reduce its carbon dioxide output, sacrifices need to be made, and if American citizens use less gasoline, as a sacrifice, greenhouse gas emissions will fall.

The simplest way to get the average person to drive less and carpool, bike, walk, and utilize public transit more is to make it costly for that average citizen to drive. The initiative that environmentalist groups should be pushing on governments, an idea that gets far too little attention, is a higher tax on gasoline.

A new gas tax would have a larger and more immediate impact than many other ideas currently being considered or implemented. For example, government-mandated fuel efficiency standards exclusively apply to newly produced cars, and since there are different standards for

different types of cars (the fuel efficiency demanded of an SUV is much lower than that demanded of a sedan), there is no incentive for car buyers to switch from SUV’s to more compact and efficient cars.

A new gas tax would reward every driver for every mile he or she choses not to drive, and carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles would surely fall. Additionally, having fewer cars on the roads provides other benefits as well. For those that still choose to drive, the roads will be less congested, and it’s likely that there would be a decline in traffic accidents.

This sort of proposal would surely encounter political resistance. Many politicians and citizens don’t like the idea of any new taxes regardless of circumstance.

There is a very legitimate reason why people don’t like to pay taxes and especially don’t like to add new ones (all taxes take money away from regular people). However, it’s not a reasonable idea not to pay any taxes at all; governments need money to function.

The best way to offset the harmful effects of a new tax would be to take the revenue gathered from the gas tax and use it to reduce the tax on labor (or some other tax that hurts everyone). So, with the new tax, the taxes on the average citizen could remain essentially the same, and America could add the benefit of fewer cars on the roads to the big picture.

Some may argue that the new gas tax would be regressive (taking more from those will lower incomes and less from those with higher incomes).

Country United States Germany France

Labor Supply 1970-1974 24 hrs./wk.

25 hrs./wk.

24 hrs./wk.

Tax Rate On Labor .40 .52 .49

Country United States Germany France

Labor Supply 1993-1996 26 hrs./wk.

19 hrs./wk.

18 hrs./wk.

Tax Rate On Labor .40 .59 .59

It is a common misconception that the difference in length of the average work week in different countries is the result of a difference in culture. People everywhere respond to incentives in all areas. When taxes on labor rose in Germany and France, people worked less. When taxes on labor were lower in Germany and France, people worked more. The same pattern would be seen in the United States if we chose to raise the tax on gasoline.

Data Courtesy of Professor Thomas Holmes, University of Minnesota

This, however, is not the case.

The new tax would impact everyone that drives on a regular basis, so much of the middle class would feel the effects of a new gas tax. The richer the citizen, though, the more likely he or she would be to simply pay the new tax and continue driving. Thus, a larger amount of tax revenue would be collected from the rich than from the middle class.

Also, it’s fairly clear that the lower class would benefit from a gas tax. Truly poorer citizens already don’t drive cars (often, at least). Public transportation would see a boost in overall use, so with more buses and light-rail added to the system the lower class would find it much easier to get around.

A new gas tax would be felt by everyone, but if America wants to curb greenhouse gas emissions, serious adjustments in behavior need to take place, adjustments that will only be made when each person has something real at stake. If implemented properly, a new gas tax could help curb greenhouse gas emissions while making the cutback as painless and as efficient as possible.

Dylan Browdie is the Opinion Editor for the Royal Page

Fantasy football: therapeutic or pointless?

As I walk into the office, close both doors on either end of the room, sit down in front of the clean white Mac, and log on, my face glows, rife with exuberance. The sheer beauty before my eyes is overwhelming.

There is no better way to escape from the woes of the day than to revel in the glory of my fantasy football lineup.

I undergo this process every week, submersing myself in the digital confines of my computer. I agonize over every single position and pour every ounce of my mental ability into the task at hand, which is second in importance to nothing besides the final score of the Vikings game.

Sure, one may suggest, understandably, that I need an intervention; a hobby has become an omnipresent obsession. However, many people, like me, rely on hobbies for sustenance and personal satisfaction.

Football is a prime outlet for many people, males especially, not only because it is a genuine escape from the drudgery of everyday living, but also because it quenches the competitive thirst and machismo that abound in so many men.

“Fantasy football is the measure of a man’s greatness,” said Jack Burmeister, senior. Burmeister is one of several HHS students who devotes substantial time to the hobby.

The game itself is both bizarre and unique when one considers the attention people devote to it. People in fantasy leagues draft players from real National Football League (NFL) teams based on projections and intense analysis. The teams’ successes depend on the exploits of the players they have. A practical point system is the blueprint for the scoring process.

Sure, projections and analysis can be useful, but ultimately no one can predict what will happen on Sunday. There are always unexpected incredible performances from largely unknown

players. Conversely, players that typically garner boatloads of points sometimes grossly underachieve.

The concept of the game, competing against others in a system that is dictated by the actions of athletes who themselves are competing, is peculiar. What’s more odd is the level of emphasis I, along with many others across America and the world, place on the game. The

“

It’s funny how the outcome of the game is out of our control yet we still associate self-worth and personal success with it.

“

success of my fantasy team definitely influences my feelings; if my fantasy team does well, I am proud and satisfied; on the other hand, if my squad doesn’t succeed, I am disappointed and frustrated.

It’s funny how the outcome of the game is out of our control yet we still associate self-worth and personal success with it. We are, in essence, living vicariously through our teams. The sheer passion and emotion some inject into the game is unbelievable.

“When game-day rolls around, nothing else matters but fantasy

football and football games,” said Ari Hillman, senior.

Fantasy football is an extreme, direct example of people living vicariously and channeling their energies into an entertaining outlet. However, it is very similar to other forms of entertainment in terms of the way people depend on it.

Of course, sports in general is a prime example; fantasy football is simply an elaboration of the sport of football.

For example, television shows are very effective in allowing one to escape from commonplace problems and pretend he or she is living alongside the fictional characters that exist in the world of entertainment. The stress brought on by complex, deep predicaments is easily assuaged by simplistic, juvenile humor, prevalent in shows like “The Office.”

Movies, music, and other diversions are also great ways to escape from the complexities of everyday living.

The reason people enjoy extreme entertainment, like heavy metal music and gory horror films, is that the severity of it makes it more enjoyable. Because it’s farther removed from reality, it is more effective in making us forget about our normal circumstances, and thus it is an even more genuine escape.

In this way, the wide range of diversions people spend their time with is conducive to a therapeutic escape. Sure, one may call a band “stupid” or a sport “pointless,” but this is irrelevant.

What matters is that these things are very curative for the human mind.

Whatever the outlet we choose, we will go to great lengths to find a source of escape from the normality of our everyday lives. I don’t care what you choose to do with your time, but it better not interfere in any way with my fantasy football team.

Tom Guthrie is a Copy Editor for the Royal Page

Olga Yerm

Many Americans learn about the Soviet Union and its collapse from teacher. Olga Yermakovich, senior, witnessed the effects of that historic She was born in the country of Belarus, located in Eastern Europ viet Union collapsed. But when her uncles, grandparents, and cousins America, her parents decided it was time for them to make that move.

In the summer of 2004, Olga, her parents, and her sister Katia, boar nesota and left their home country where they have been living for over here because of religious reasons,” said Olga, “we didn’t have much relig home].”

Olga and her family are devoted Gospel Christians and they atten Eighty percent of the religious the Belarus population belong to the Church, with members of the Gospel church only accounting for a s Belarusian population.

The current president, Aleksadr Lukashenko, was elected into office lished a harsh dictatorship in Belarus and created numerous laws restr dom and enforcing his beliefs on the people of Belarus. When the Ye tolerate the restrictions, they decided to take action and file for a visa to “Our family was middle class, but my best friend was lower middle when Olga found out she was leaving, she gave her friend all her toys

Map courtsey of www.gettingaway.com

An international affair Stories by Zahra Bashir and Kent Wee, Feature Editor and Variety Editor In the late 1800s, millions of individuals immigrated to the United States in search of a better future. They came from countries such as Germany, Ireland, and England to flee from crop failure and job shortage. Some chose the U.S. because of the numerous economic opportunities, others for the religious and political freedom. Now, almost 200 years later, people are still immigrating to the U.S. for the same reasons. The English Language Learners (ELL) program at HHS serves as an academic shelter and creates a comfortable environment for immigrant students. Another way HHS celebrates each culture is display the flags of foreign students’ home countries. 11

years ago, Mary Slinde, Associate Principal, was moved by a high school graduation ceremony where the foreign exchange students carried the flags of their country. She was so touched by the aspect of that ceremony that she introduced it to the HHS graduation that following year.

However, she expanded that tradition to include all foreign-born students. Two years later, she decided to further extend this tradition and display the flags all around HHS. Every spring, the flags are changed to represent the upcoming senior class; there are usually 25-45 flags and each one is carried by a foreign-born student.

Edgar & Fer Aguilar, Se

Growing up on a farm with pigs and chickens to moving to a highly suburbanized community is a drastic change to go through. This is precisely what HHS seniors Edgar and Fernando Aguilar had to do when they came to the United States.

The Aguilars came to America in 2002 from Mexico. “I didn’t expect that I would move to a different country, that I would have to adopt a different culture and learn a new language,” said Edgar.

In addition, going to a big school like HHS was not something they were used to. In the Aguilar’s home state of Morelos, three hours away from the Mexico City, they attended a school of 200 students.

Fernando liked the intimate environment, but his school was poorly equipped. “There were only two bathrooms and there were no computers. Worst of all, most of the teachers were unqualified to teach,” Fernando said.

The family lived on a farm and tended to 20-30 pigs and chickens. Since it is rare to find jobs with secure salaries in Mexico, earning money depends on how much one can sell.

According to the CIA, 40% of the population lives under the poverty line. “It was definitely a hard life, but it was the only one we knew,” Edgar said.

It was difficult to feed the pigs or give them medicine to keep them healthy. When 15-20 pigs died of disease, it was a huge financial blow to the family, forcing the family to move to America.

“Our father asked us if we wanted to move to another country. He told us that it would be a dramatic change. He was just thinking about our future,” Edgar said.

Their dad also promised to buy the young boys lots of

things toy, so count O custom Th could ‘Cook actual Bu the he becam sult, w Ec the re make famili Be luxuri of the mortg In nesota have l hard. mone sity to Th than t lieve A there

makovich, Senior

m their world studies hand. pe, the year the Sos began migrating to

rded a plane to Minr a decade. “We came gious freedom [back

nd a Gospel church. e Eastern Orthodox small percent of the

e in 1994. He estabricting religious freeermakovichs couldn’t o the United States. e class,” said Olga. So and clothes that she

couldn’t bring. Although she could not bring many of her belongings, she said she was still excited to come to America. “[When I first found out we got the Visa] I was like ‘yay!’ I thought, ‘oh America’…

It was something different,” said Olga. In 2006, the overall number of people who immigrated to the United States totaled 37.5 million, according to the Migration Policy Institute. “[We chose America] because it’s the most inviting,” said Olga. “Other countries like France don’t welcome immigrants.” Olga and her family moved in with her Aunt in Plymouth. After four months they found an apartment and lived there for one year before moving into their current house.

Once Olga began school at North Junior High in seventh grade, she realized that it would be much harder than she anticipated.

Olga was not enrolled in English Learners Language (ELL), unlike many immigrant students, but put into regular seventh grade classes. “I was just starring at the teacher, I just didn’t understand anything,” said Olga. “And some teachers just didn’t understand that I didn’t know English.”

After living in America for five years, Olga feels a strong connection to her home country of Belarus. “I don’t think, for a long time, I will be able to say I am American,” said Olga.

rnando eniors

s in their new home. “In Mexico, we didn’t have a single o [in a way] that made it all worth it to move to a new try,” Fernando said.

Once they arrived in Minnesota, getting used to American ms would be a rude awakening for the Aguilars.

The first day of school was difficult because neither brother d speak a word of English. “The only word we knew was kie.’ It was our dog’s name, but we didn’t know what it lly meant,” Fernando said. ut they met another Latina, and they got along well. With elp of his friends and the ELL program, they gradually me more comfortable speaking the language, and, as a rewere able to adapt to the culture and make friends. conomically, the family is feeling the negative effects of ecession. Their father works as a cashier, and their mother es sandwiches. Nationwide, 57% of Mexican-American ies earn under $25,000 per year. ecause of that, the Aguilar family cannot afford many ies and rarely gets to visit their Mexico because “most e money we make goes towards paying the bills and the gage,” said Edgar. n spite of that, the Aguilars believe that moving to Mina was one of the best things that they have done. They learned to be grateful for everything they have and work “If we want something, we work hard for it and we save ey,” said Edgar. Both brothers have plans to go to univero pursue a career in Criminal Justice.

They also appreciate that Minnesota is much more secure their hometown in Mexico. “[Despite] the winters, I beAmerica is the best place for people to grow up because are so many opportunities to succeed,” Fernando said.

Khadra Abdi, Senior

Khadra Abdi’s mother doesn’t wake her up every morning to go to school and she doesn’t greet her when she comes back. Her mother doesn’t badger her about finishing her college applications or cleaning her room. This is not because Khadra Abdi’s mother is neglectful, but because she lives half a world away in Somalia.

Abdi, senior, not only has to live a day to day life without the presence of her parents, but has to deal with the struggles of being an immigrant in the United States. Three years ago Abdi moved to MN from Kenya, Africa, a country she lived in for only nine months. She left to Kenya in 2005 with her grandmother and aunt.

Prior to her stay in Kenya, Abdi resided in her homeland of Somalia with her mother and four siblings. “I lived there for thirteen years,” said Abdi, “we left Somalia because we couldn’t take the civil war any more.” Even though she lived in the outskirts of Somalia, the ongoing violence still affected Abdi and her family’s daily life.

The citizens of Somalia have been witnessing a civil war for almost two decades. The war was initially started by anti-government groups that wanted to overthrow former president Mohamed Siad Barre; it later developed into a war between tribes.

Because of the war, and because she was desperately needed at home, Abdi never went to

photo by Zahra Bashir

From left to right: Khadra Abdi, Edgar Aguilar, Fernando Aguilar, and Olga Yermakovich, all immigrated to the United States at difficult moments in their lives. Despite various challenges, HHS has now become their new home. school. For 12 years, she stayed at home and assisted her mother with the daily chores. She also did not participate in religious school, though it was an incredibly common activity in a Somali child’s life.

But one year before she heard of the opportunity to go to America, Abdi began school. “At first I didn’t think I needed to go to school, but then I wanted to learn, and that’s why I began [school],” said Abdi. That initiative was what led her to have a successful academic life at HHS. Abdi moved to America via a visa from her cousin in MN. She received a United States Permanent Resident card, also known as a green card due to its former color; it permits immigrants to legally live and work in the United States. Many immigrants live in America with a green card and later apply to be a citizen of the United States.

Abdi left Somalia because the country does not have a stable government; she needed to move to Kenya in order to participate in the visa.

As the time drew near for her to embark on her journey to America, although she was excited, she

had trouble forgetting her family and past in Somalia.

Abdi is not only the first person in her immediate family to learn English, but also to consider higher education as a valid option. Mr. Ryan Hogan, English, has been her AVID teacher since the beginning of the school year. “I like Khadra,” said Hogan, “She is ambitious, she seeks out help before and after school, and she consistently advocates for herself.”

Abdi loves to read and aspires to be a librarian.

For the past month Abdi has been working on her college applications and believes that without higher education, her dreams of being a librarian won’t be accomplished. “I want to go to the University of St. Cloud, or Minneapolis Community Technical College (MCTC),” said Abdi.

Abdi says her determined attitude is derived from the hardships she faced in the past. “I’m doing this by myself; I do my homework by myself, I wake up by myself,” said Abdi, “there’s no one that told me to go to school. I put this responsibility upon myself.”

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the ROYAL

HHS alumni: a look at where they are now Not too long before I signed up for classes at Normandale, I was thinking of moving out to L.A., where my sister lives, and go to school out there. It would have been cool to be in a different place and not know anyone except for my sister and to just start over. I was flip-flopping all senior year and couldn’t decide what I really wanted to do after high school. That is why Normandale (or any community college) is a great way to start your future. Eventually, or hopefully by next year, I will be transferring to a university.

HHS welcomes student run Japanese Language and Culture Club

Molly Korman Normandale Community College

I’m in Israel on a gap year program. I have been volunteering four days a week, and [taking] classes on two of those days.

[I volunteer] in a day care for Sudanese refugees. Lately though I’ve done everything from construction to community organizing within the Sudanese community. The kids are cute, the adults are hospitable, and it’s very rewarding. I can really feel the impact.

This is Noah’s blog: www.seedtheplow.blogspot. com.

Ruth Goins Harvard University I chose Harvard mainly because of the pressure I felt from my parents and other relatives. I wanted to go to the U of M, because I had so many credits there already from PSEO and AP classes, plus I had a full ride. At Harvard I had to start over with 0 credits. As much as I hate to admit it, having a Harvard degree will help me a lot in the long run probably, although in the short run its going to be a lot of work.

Noah Berman Gap Year Student

I chose to attend a public university (University of Wisconsin at Madison) because there is great school spirit and of people from around the country.

Advice: -Get a good schedule with classes that are interesting and manageable and then study a lot.

-School will never be that easy again, so enjoy it while you can!

Lilli Torrison University of Wisconsin, Madison

Simon Gottlieb Transfer Student

photo by Elana Kravitz Ami Yamamoto and Brittany Peterson, juniors, made nori wrapped rice balls, a common staple in the Japanese household

I started out at Drake for busines but switched majors to Spanish and education, and Drake wasn’t right for that. I applied to the U of M for a transfer in spring semester and got accepted, so now I am getting inexpensive, transferable credits from Normandale. I have already pledged at a Jewish fraternity and play ultimate for the U of M team. photos provided by HHS alumni and story by Meg Burnton, staff reporter

Seeing HHS from a different angle Lissa Martinez Staff Reporter

A

retractable cane with a rubber bottom guides John Mangum, junior, through the crowded HHS hallways.

Remarkably, Mangum has memorized the layout of the building, identifying walls, lockers, and sensing a change from carpet to tile. Mangum uses his cane not because he simply is blind, but because he is also affected by Batten Disease.

Batten Disease is a genetic trait. Since it is also recessive, it means that those affected have parents who are carriers of the disease.

“The U.S. Government gives an estimate of one child out of 300,000 has Batten disease. The incidence of carriers will be higher, perhaps as many as one in 12,500,” said Batten Disease Support and Research Association Executive Director, Lance Johnston.

Mangum was diagnosed as a child and, since then, he has been affected by symptoms of the disease. In Mangum’s case, the first symptom was loss of vision. He is now only able to see shadows and some colors.

“When I was five my vision started to go, but in preschool I could see. I still remember it,” Mangum said.

Other common symptoms, which Mangum suffers from, include seizures and epi-

sodes of dizziness. But, even with the consequences of the disease, he likes to keep busy and social.

“John is a very funny, nice, polite guy.

[He] loves to interact with other people.

His favorite thing at school is working at the cash register at the Java Café because he gets to meet so many people,” said Cristin Shay, Mangum’s case worker at HHS. Mangum also likes to spend his time bowling on the HHS team, playing bocce ball, and swimming in the Special Olympics. In addition, Mangum has learned Braille and can even play cards or Tic-TacToe with friends, family, and teachers.

Mangum also attends various conferences that take place throughout the United States that provide support for families affected by Batten Disease. Here, Mangum has the chance to see friends who are also affected by the disease. “I like getting to be with kids who have Batten Disease like me,” Mangum said.

Mangum’s family also participates in a walk that raises money to benefit research for cures for Batten Disease every year.

Even North Jr. High, which Mangum attended, helped him raise money for finding a cure for Batten Disease by selling jewelry and allowing students to wear

a hat for the day for a dollar towards the cause.

Although what Mangum sees may be limited, his outlook is very bright. Mangum and his loved ones have high hopes for his future, although unfortunately, the statistics show that the average life span for someone affected by Batten Disease is only twentyfive.

“Research is making great advances, and we are optimistic that a cure will be found for each form of Batten disease,” Johnston said.

So with a positive outlook on life and a strong attitude, Mangum makes his ways through HHS determined and courageous with his cane leading the way.

photo provided by the Mangum family Mangum. left, being congratulated by Gopher basketball coach Tubby Smith. He won a medal for track and field at the special olympics.

Elana Kravitz Staff Reporter Ask almost any student from HHS the first thing that comes to mind when he or she hears “Japan” and the student probably will tell you Anime. Ask Julianne Queensen, junior, and she could tell you about the advanced technology, the art, the music, the transportation, or the complex language of Japanese.

Queensen’s interest in Japan started at a young age. “I don’t like to give my mom any credit, but she’s probably what got me interested in the culture...she lived [in Japan] for six months during college,” Queensen said.

Queensen decided to pursue her interest in Japanese language and culture. She attended an annual four week Concordia College language camp. “Every day it’s all Japanese except for an hour before bed. It was overwhelming at first but the immersion program was incredible,” Queensen said, “it’s all about immersion...my facebook is in Japanese.”

Her experience at the camp influenced Queensen, along with friend Bethany Wright, junior, to start the Japanese language and culture club at HHS. “[Our goal is] to show kids at school the resources available to them and spread the interest in the language...it’s by no means an anime club,” Queensen said.

Queensen and Wright recruited Ami Yamamoto, junior, who emigrated to America from Japan at the age of five. “They asked me to be the person that provided the information [about Japanese culture],” Yamamoto said. “Other clubs [at HHS], like anime club, are a great way to get interested, but this is a fuller view of Japanese language and culture...pop culture is a part of Japanese culture but not the main focus.”

The leaders of the club feel that learning about Japanese culture is important because it is incredibly different it is from American culture. “[ Japanese culture] is so bizarre...I love it,” Queensen said.

In their first meeting, the students that attended Japanese club talked about their hopes for the club. Ben LeGeros, senior, lived in Japan for five years and is hoping to continue his study of the Japanese language through the club.

Keerthana Shankar, junior, wants to explore the interest she has had since she was little in all things Japanese.

The activity of the day was making Onigiri (rice balls) in the shape of animals. Yamamoto then taught how to say the names of those different animals in Japanese. In the near future they will be watching “Calamari Wrestler,” a Japanese movie about a professional wrestler that after suffering a terminal illness turns into a squid.

Japanese club is for every student at HHS. “We’re welcome to people that already know Japanese and people who don’t know anything and are just interested. We’re open to everybody,” Yamamoto said.

The club meets on Wednesdays at 2:45 in S244. “It’s the best club and everybody needs to come,” Queensen said.

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HHS Theater Director helps kids with nowhere to go Naomi Litman-Zelle Back Cover Editor

M

ark Hauck, director of HHS theatre, first met Sam through his neighbors. Sam, who was 21 at the time, was living in his neighbors’ basement, making it his temporary home.

Sam was a foster child who, after he turned 18, had nowhere to go.

Hauck began spending more and more time with Sam, providing him with mentorship and a sense of belonging that was absent throughout his childhood. After about two years, Hauck considered making a decision that would end up being a major step in his life. “We talked to my extended family, a social worker, and my priest about [adopting Sam],” Hauck said.

“I think I knew from my early twenties that I was going to adopt an older child; [Sam] needed a family he could count on,” Hauck said. After growing up in a home with foster kids, Hauck remembers observing that the teenagers living with his family seemed scared. Because of this, Hauck has a strong emotional connection with this issue.

“For me, it’s something that I’m pretty passionate about because it’s an injustice that isn’t really talked about,” Hauck said. Hauck empathizes with the 600 teens a year that, after they turn 18 are left to go into the world without a true family.

“There are 12 housing units in Minnesota for these kids, but

Photo by Elissa Weis-Engelen Ampersand and Families strives to find support systems for teens in need. This organization emphasizes the importance of supportive adults in a person’s life no matter their age. This image was inspired by the Ampersand and Family website.

since an average of 600 kids leave foster care every year, very few units become available. The next place they can go is a homeless shelter,” he said.

His growing passion for this cause made him decide to welcome Sam into his family. “I told [Sam] he could have time to think about [becoming part of my family], and after some time, he said he’d like to go ahead with it,” Hauck said. Sam was 23 years old when he officially became part of Mark’s family.

For people like Sam, who grow up with lives filled with overwhelming sadness, and often times abuse, it becomes crucial for

people to provide these kids with the care that has been absent in their lives. Hauck has become proactive in helping kids like his son become part of a loving family.

“Imagine being thrown out of the house and onto the streets as soon as you turn 18; your parents would never do that! But the sad thing is, it happens to [a large group of ] kids each year,” Hauck said. Hauck now works for an organization called Ampersand Families that is dedicated to finding adults who are willing to give these kids a home.

The word ampersand literally means “bringing more,” and that is exactly what the agency intends to in regards to finding families looking to adopt a foster child. “Our whole philosophy is that kids should have a say in what happens in their lives,” Hauck said.

Hauck understands these kids’ situations and is always ready to work with them and find them a suitable family.

For Hauck, it’s all about giving these children a family that will be with them for the rest of their lives, which is exactly what he has done for Sam. “Who is going to be there [for these kids] to celebrate important things in their lives?” Hauck said. Hauck is dedicated to creating a place that Sam can call his home well into his future.

“When you grow up in a stable family, you don’t think about the little things that prepare you for the next step in life,” Hauck said.

Featured Artist: Andy Peterson Senior to produce

photos by Meg Burnton and Elana Kravitz, staff reporters

Peterson likes to explore different mediums. Peterson used photoshop and flash for these particular works. He first sketches the picture by hand, then uploads the drawings onto the computer. For the finishing touches, he adds color and shadow. As shown in the bottom two photos, Peterson spends his fourth block perfecting his skills in Drawing and Painting 3

From the looks of it, Andy Peterson, senior, is a normal guy. He wears jeans and sweat shirts, he rides the bus, and occasionally drives when he’s running late. He has a job at the UPS store and a pet dog named Roxy, who he claims is the best dog ever.

Based on outward appearances, Peterson could be the same as any kid who walks the halls at HHS, but if you take look again at him, you will learn he is a remarkable artist.

“I started way back when I was a little guy by watching my sister and, ever since, I’ve been drawing. I think I stuck to it because I like it, now I’m beginning to expand in what I do,” Peterson said.

Peterson’s sister Becca Peterson, who graduated last year, was also one of HHS’ most talented artists, with her various pieces being displayed around the school.

Like his sister, Peterson’s creativity is expressed genuinely through his art. He has had the chance to try everything from drawing with pencil, using paint, and cropping and editing his images on the computer to make graphics.

“He has a really vibrant imagination in creating contrast. He’s very gifted in creating his own ideas and characters,” said Randi Rood, art.

Peterson’s creations, of all mediums, hold a wide variety of abstract pieces and characters. “It can be really anything that I draw, but it’s usually abstract stuff and cartoon people. I don’t really do any realistic things,” said Peterson.

Depending on the frustration level and the size of the piece, Peterson says it can take anywhere from a few hours for a moderate piece, to a few days for a larger, more detailed piece, to create a product that he is proud of.

“It is really just for fun. It’s a great stress relief,” Peterson said.

Aside from two-dimensional arts, Peterson has also been trying out his skills on several larger, mechanical projects, one of which is a homemade, functional, makeshift Smart Board, complete with LED. “I enjoy a little tinkering on the workbench.

I’m also making a chair with a few tweaks of my own,” Peterson said.

With many skills in both art and mechanics, Peterson has a lot to consider when planning what the future may hold for him and all his skills.

He has a few ideas when looking for a career in the areas of media, design, and art to find a job using his talent. “I want to have a career in video game programming where I would create the concept art, design art and direction for video games,” said Peterson.

With the future bright, Peterson has many opportunities in his art career not only at HHS, but all throughout his life. “Andy is such a creative guy with such a vibrant imagination. I’m hoping to see him do something great in his life,” Rood said.

Story by Lissa Martinez, Staff Reporter

Usher’s new video Katia Tonge Staff Reporter A camera lens is his pen and film is his paper. Jack Anderson, senior is a teen with a future in filmmaking.

Anderson, and 20 other kids in the nation, has been admitted into a program sponsored by Body by Milk in association with Got-Noise.com. which gives kids a chance to direct Usher’s upcoming music video.

Anderson, along with the others, will have a week of shooting in Hollywood at the Universal Studios, but only a few days with Usher. “We are going to have him for two days, one for rehearsals and the other for shooting” Anderson said.

“It still doesn’t feel real. I found out in May, but a series of events have pushed it back,” Anderson said.

Anderson has achieved plenty in his premature filmmaking career, but he feels as though this opportunity is a learning experience. “Going through this I have learned that although there is a set schedule, things can change,” Anderson said.

Since last May, Anderson and the other participants chose a general theme for the music video. “So far, we know that it is going to be a 50’s style video…the Rat Pack was inspiration for the video,” Anderson said.

“All we have to do now is wait,” said Anderson. “We [used to have] a single for the music video called Rock Band, [after reviewing the content of the song] they didn’t want [teenagers] to produce that song.”

Aside from the program, Anderson is currently working on a couple of projects. One of which is a 30-minute short film with the Young Film Makers Club at HHS. “We are currently casting for the video, and we really want for most of the kids in it to be from Hopkins” Anderson said.

Anderson said he’s looking to learn from the projects and experiences at HHS and apply them to his college and professional career. He’s in the process of applying to a couple film schools.

“My dream college is the University of Southern California,” said Anderson, “they have the best funding and very successful alumni” Anderson said.

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Royal Throwdown Emma Peaslee

G

Sports Editor

lee is America’s latest obsession that I just don’t understand.

Don’t get me wrong; I like music as much as the next person, but forgive me if I ask a little more of my shows than just seeing covers I could find on YouTube. But that’s the thing, there’s not a lot else to Glee. The show is filled with pretty good singers, but the talent goes downhill from there.

Yes, I have watched it. I spent the entire show waiting for the next time they would sing. The entire plot is basically a filler until the next song.

I can sort of forgive the actors for their poor performance because look what they have to work with. Each character is more cliché than the next. The football player who wants to sing (try to be a little more subtle when you steal a character from a movie), the snotty cheerleader, where have we seen that before? Every teen movie...ever.

Why are the cheerleaders always wearing their uniforms? I’ve heard it explained that Glee is supposed to be a social commentary.

Yeah that’s right, Glee is actually making fun of high school. Step aside, Jonathan Swift and Mark Twain; Glee is the new master of satire.

But instead of challenging stereotypes, Glee’s characters rely on them completely. The point of satire is to push the plot and characters over the top. But Glee characters are no more than their appearances and even tend to be mildly offensive. The black girl is overweight and sassy, and the gay guy is flamboyant and always well dressed.

I also don’t find their jokes the least bit funny, but everyone has their own sense of humor. What annoys me most about Glee is its audience. People who watch Glee, self-proclaimed “Gleeks,” are so self-righteous about it.

Its fans say Glee is the best thing to hit television, and that it is so profound. If you’re going to watch Glee, that’s fine. Plenty of people watch worse; for example, who gave the Jonas brothers their own show?

But don’t pretend like Glee is more than just another teen drama.

Editors Emma Peaslee and Rosie Mann duke it out over the surprise hit television series Artists who have been or will be covered by Glee: Usher Journey Rihanna Madonna Artists who have refused to license their music to Glee: Coldplay Bryan Adams 1.7 million Glee songs sold on iTunes since May 2009 8 million viewers a week; 5 million are 18-49 years old Glee was nominated for three 2009 Teen Choice Awards American Idol contestant Adam Lambert to ap pear soon Source: Entertainment Weekly

Rosie Mann

F

Managing and News Editor

or those that don’t understand the value of happiness, it is easy for me to see why you might hate a show like Glee.

Sure, the acting isn’t top notch, and the plot isn’t the most intense, but that’s not the point.

Glee sets out to accomplish what most television shows don’t care to do anymore: make people happy.

The young and talented cast that makes up the program are, by barely any means, actors. However, by almost every definition of the word, they are musicians.

With vocals that could put all current pop musicians to shame, Lea Michele, lead female vocalist, stuns me the moment the first note comes out of her mouth. Her Tony Award for “Spring Awakening” and adorable bubbly looks don’t hurt either.

And while Matthew Morrison’s (playing Mr. Will Schuester) attempt to rap was pretty darn awful, what he lacks in gangster appeal, is made up for with his soothing vocals and complicated dance steps.

An additional asset to the cast that can’t go unmentioned is the comical genius, Jane Lynch, who plays Sue Sylvester, a dictatorial cheerleading coach. Her absurd tracksuits and obsession with ruining Glee Club adds humor to the show.

Adding to the wit are the classic stereotypes about high school.

This jolly show holds something all ages can relate to.

Whether it’s the 40 year old ex-quarterback that’s still living with his mother or the current high school misfit that wishes he found a club he could belong to, everyone knows what it’s like to be a loser at some point in their lives. Everyone has felt excluded at some point, and everyone knows what it feels like when they don’t fit in.

The fact that the acting and plot line in Glee is not filled with drama like a show about fake superheros (for all you Heroes fans out there, that show is dumb) is beside the point. Also, I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time relating to a bunch of people stuck on a tropical island fighting polar bears (for all you Lost fans out there, that show is six seasons past its prime).

My point is that, while there are some flaws to this new hit show, the feeling produced when watching is worth looking past its corniness and enjoying its beautiful music.

With its attractive cast, relatable plot, and fabulous music, Glee just plain makes me, and plenty of other viewers, happy.

A Serious Man: relevant and relatable to HHS community Amy Gallop Feature Editor Spending a couple hours with long-winded rabbis, an obnoxious Talmud Torah, Hebrew School, class, and a dysfunctional Jewish family in St. Louis Park, Minn., may not be at the top of anyone’s “to do” list.

If you are a Coen Brothers’ fan, a Jew, or living in Minnesota—every HHS student fits into at least one of these categories, then the Coen Brothers’ latest production, A Serious Man, is an extremely enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.

The movie opens with a short prologue about a Jewish couple and their encounter with a dybbuk, or ghost, at their home in Eastern Europe. It then jumps to St. Louis Park, Minn., 1967, and focuses in on the Gopnik family.

Larry Gopnik, a physics professor and the protagonist, has thus far spent his adulthood inside of a bubble, blocking out his bad marriage, quarrelling children, and outcast brother. Within the first 15 minutes of the movie, his wife, Judith Gopnik, informs Larry that she would like a divorce.

Along with salvaging his rapidly deteriorating marriage, Larry has to deal with his pot-smoking pubescent son and a teenage

daughter stealing money for a nose job.

Larry’s life goes downhill. He is faced with dilemmas escalating in absurdity as the movie progresses. The overwhelming problems in Larry’s life give this movie a dark yet farcical feel.

Even if you do not consider yourself a fan of the Coen Brothers’ dry, bleak humor, that should not discourage you from seeing the movie. For me, the highlight of this movie was spying HHS students on the big screen.

Not only does former HHS student Andrew Lentz, senior, have a memorable role as a foul-mouthed young teenager, but many HHS students can be spotted in the movie’s classroom scenes. Mari Fromstein, sophomore, Sawyer Franklin, junior, Shai Comay, junior, and Stav Comay, senior and a number of other locals were extras in the cast of A Serious Man. A Serious Man is a superbly made film. The camera angles manage to accentuate the most unsightly blemishes, hairs, bumps and features on each of the characters. This deliberate choice of filming adds to the bleakness of A Serious Man. The Saint Louis Park setting adds to the local appeal of this film. To recreate 1960s Saint Louis Park, the Coen Brothers chose to film in a neighborhood in the South Metro that had been left treeless from a recent tornado.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed watching the Gopnik family handle a surplus of problems when the final credits rolled, I walked out of this movie feeling slighted.

The next day, I realized why; throughout the entire movie, it felt like the Coen Brothers were playing a joke on the audience.

They deliberately did not tie the movie’s prologue in with the rest of the movie; the movie’s messages were mixed—were they scoffing at religion or praising it? The movie’s abrupt ending all made this feel like some elaborate joke that I was not in on.

Regardless, the movie made me laugh and made me think, and for those reasons alone it was well worth my time.

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West End mall almost ready for business Students at HHS Andy Herzog Staff Reporter

share their holiday traditions and food

R

esidents of St. Louis Park and Golden Valley, once familiar with the stretch of Park Place Xenia that crosses I-394 and turns into Cedar Lake Road, suddenly have reason to double-take.

The West End, an advanced and cutting edge shopping and entertainment complex that is the epitome of gentrified kitsch, has hastily moved out of very basic framework stages and blossomed into a nearly finished utopia. Featuring fine dining, a behemoth of a movie theater and artsy shops sure to attract your mother and her book club, The West End is, in many ways, an allegory for Darth Vader’s Death Star: while not yet fully operational, its potential power is obvious to all who lay eyes on it.

One of the first things a new patron to the area will notice is the inescapable Muzak that is piped absolutely everywhere. From the vast, whistling caverns of the underground parking to the quaint, cobblestone sidewalks, one simply cannot distance themselves from soulful renditions of “Danny Boy” and a significant portion of the Whitney Houston catalogue.

Roughly half of the space that has been made is actually currently in use, while the rest of the storefronts remain veiled by heavy plastic sheets that have been painted to represent what will someday be actual doors that open into actual stores. Until then, those creeping along the narrow streets will have to settle for oil painting versions of Anthropologie, Uber Baby, and Creative Kidstuff, along with the lobby of Kerasotes Cinema 14, which is large, intimately lit and comfortable, but unsurprisingly free of any actual movies.

It seems the only businesses that are open and thriving two months past the projected completion date of September 2009 (set in April of last year) are Rainbow

Jasmine Geschwind Staff Reporter

Photo by Meg Burnton

Though the streets are empty, businesses at the West End mall in St. Louis Park, such as Crave, are sure to succeed once it finally opens later in the fall.

Foods and Cooper Pub, the latest establishment opened by Kieran Folliard, owner of Minneapolis institutions like Kieran’s, the Local, and the Liffey. Cooper is also the most student-friendly spot within the mixed-use project. With a menu consisting primarily of classic pub food but spotlighting a few interesting departures, like curry dishes and micro green salads, Cooper is a beautiful place for a hearty meal at a reasonable price any time of the day, not to mention some exceptional Happy Hour deals.

The reason for the delay of grand openings is, of course, an ailing economy. With only about 60 percent of the framed out space being leased at this point in its development, Duke Realty representatives are anxious. They were hoping that they would have had at least 80 percent of their space spoken for before anything opened.

Whatever the reason and whatever the outcome, The West End is here to stay. Such a huge project cannot shrivel up and disappear completely as similar but smaller failed building projects have elsewhere. With an economic rebound in the forecast, it seems logical that if the area can hang on and ride out the storm without racking up too much debt, it will flourish as soon as it is given the chance.

Walker Art Center promotes art to teenagers Andy Schneider Staff Reporter A stroll through the Walker Art Center rarely holds the same experience twice. Unlike many renowned art museums in the world, the Walker has frequently changing displays and galleries. This unique philosophy provides art lovers in the Twin Cities with an affordable opportunity to view a wide range of top class modern art from around the world while never getting bored with the same old displays.

In the same fashion that it rejuvenates its pieces, the Walker is also attempting to rejuvenate another integral part of modern art’s continued appreciation and creation: the teen community. On Thursday, Oct. 29, The Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC) held its 13th annual student open house, a free event with a wide range of activities having to do with modern art. This year’s theme was “School of Rock,” a celebration of the correlation between modern art and rock and roll music.

Witt Siasoco, Teen Programs Manager at the Walker Art Center, is the coordinator of WACTAC, a group that meets weekly and is largely responsible for the event. “We hope to create a fun event that students will enjoy participating in. The Student Open House is designed especially for students, but our hope is that people will realize that we host free films,

art making, and music here at the Walker every Thursday night,” Siasoco said.

The evening began with free admission to the exhibit Dan Graham: Beyond. Graham is a living, influential conceptual artist whose work largely consists of tempered, manipulated glass panels made into architectural models and projections of vintage slideshows/videos.

It’s more of an interactive exhibit than a visual spectacle, featuring many displays that attendees can walk through and look at through multiple angles.

Next was the album cover remix where 20 some odd hipsters sporting thick rimmed glasses and skinny jeans met at a table to color on donated vinyl records with neon sharpies and mix and match bits of album covers with scissors and glue.

About ten A collection of LPs and feet away, vinyl records at the two HHS Walker event. Photo by students, Alex Schneider Sam Segal,

junior, and Andy Herzog, senior, spun the latest in indie music at the Radio K Breakfast Club DJ Booth. Radio K is the publicly funded, student-run radio station at the University of Minnesota, and Herzog and Segal volunteer there every Saturday morning as well as at events and concerts.

“It’s fun to get out and promote “the K,” and hopefully we got some kids interested in music they wouldn’t normally hear. The Breakfast Club is a great opportunity to be exposed to new music regularly, and it helps us build relationships with people involved in the local music community,” Herzog said.

Another popular activity was the Best Buy photo booth, where scores of teens grabbed instruments and put on their best ironic “rocking out” face. “The key to [taking a successful picture] is the rock and roll attitude,” said the black mock turtleneck donning Best Buy employee with no hint of sarcasm. Other activities included a mixtape exchange, T-Shirt screenprinting, screenings of rock and roll documentaries, and a performance by the Icelandic experimental art rock band Múm.

Though the evening was generally enjoyable because it included free admission to a top tier modern art center, some of the student open house activities were campy and didn’t significantly contribute to the promotion of modern art amongst teens.

Thanksgiving is a holiday unique to North America. However, everyone has their own special traditions that go along with it, most of them involving food, family, and being grateful for our country.

Minnesota, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, is the top turkey producing state in America, providing the U.S. with around 49 million turkeys.

Many HHS students have a Thanksgiving, and every one of their families has their own variation of how they celebrate it. A favorite activity of junior Mariah Jones’s family is to play football. Thanksgiving is a time that many families come together and have fun by simply being together.

For a lot of people, it’s not just about the family, it’s about the food. “[My favorite part of Thanksgiving is] the food, because my dad makes it and he’s a chef, so, therefore, most of it is homemade; he makes the macaroni and cheese and the greens,” Jones said.

A tradition of junior Dequisha Thomas’s family is for everyone to contribute to the meal. “We all cook something and bring it to my grandma’s house.

My mom makes the best mashed potatoes!” Thomas said.

Her family has a very laid-back, easy-going celebration. “We dress casual… dressing up and getting clothes dirty… that is funny,” Thomas said.

Lindsey Ribich, junior, goes to her aunt’s house for Thanksgiving. “One of our traditions is, while my aunt is cooking, we hang out and watch James Bond movies on Spike TV, or whatever football game is on,” she said. Mashed potatoes are her favorite Thanksgiving food.

Ribich also enjoys the family aspect of Thanksgiving. “Being able to see all of my family… talking to them and catching up is really fun,” Ribich said.

It has been over 350 years since the first thanksgiving in 1621. However, the basis for the holiday is basically the same, food and family. Some families have created their own variations on the food through out the years.

“My mom makes an apple-stuffed turkey. That’s my favorite,” said Mark Giterman, junior. His mom slices up apples and places them into the turkey before cooking.

Another unique food that many people have for Thanksgiving is turducken. It is a chicken stuffed inside a duck stuffed inside a turkey, all of which are boneless. This allows people to have more food to serve or simply try something out of the ordinary.

Thanksgiving is commonly misconceived to be a religious holiday. However, that is untrue; it is a holiday celebrated by all those who wish to give thanks to our country. It is a time to remember the hospitality of the Native Americans and the beginning of a great holiday season.

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Viewpoint

Favre: The great purple hope Bill Gregg

Five winter sports to watch GIRLS HOCKEY The HHS girls varsity hockey team had a great season last year finishing with a 25-3-1 record and taking second place in the state tournament. They will have 12 players returning from last year’s team and will be lead by senior captains, Ashley Deick, Cara Johnson, Kallie Billadeau, and Bri Stephens. The Royals (25-3-1) will kick off the season against Centennial, (19-3-3) at home on Nov. 19th.

Sports Editor On Aug. 18, 2009, every Minnesotan realized their hopes and dreams had come true, every Minnesotan except Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels.

Upon the signing of Brett Favre, I, much like many Minnesotans, fell in love with a man who I’d sworn hatred to from the first time I spoke the word “Skol”. For years and years, it had been a family tradition to come up with as many demeaning, sometimes even uncouth names for Favre as possible to scream every time he lead a drive down the field. It was the Gregg family’s own Minnesota nice.

Going from hating the man to trusting him with my favorite football team was a joyous, yet sudden transition. But I might not even had to have dealt with that transition if they hadn’t eventually named Favre the true starter.

The depth chart after Favre’s signing read like this: Jackson first, then Favre, and finally Rosenfels. Jackson wouldn’t ever be sufficient in our West Coast Offense, and poor Rosenfels thought that maybe at age 31 he could finally become a starting quarterback in the NFL. Left with a somehow tough decision, the front office would have to get on the horn with the unlucky backups. I wonder what that call would be like for both of them. “Hello Sage and Tarvaris, you guys have been moved from starting quarterbacks to second -and third-stringers. See ya at practice!”

I find it funny that the front office was hesitant to name Favre, one of the greatest quarterbacks ever, the starting quarterback. They probably told Jackson that he still had a chance and that he should work super-dooper hard in practice. The sad thing is he probably believed them.

As the season progresses, it has become more and more ridiculous to me that they ever questioned Favre’s ability to run the offense.

It was as if they’d never seen him perform before and weren’t sure if he’d remember how. Only after the Alzheimer’s test came back regarding 40-year old Favre’s mental stability would the Vikes be comfortable naming him the starter.

It just goes to show the incompetence of the Vikings front office. How are they going to sign one of the best quarterbacks of all time and not name him the starter immediately? It’s sad to me that they gave Jackson and Rosenfels the false hope that they even had a chance.

The real victim in this situation is John David Booty, former USC quarterback and Vikings practice squad starter. Even he had to compete with Favre for a back-up spot because of Favre’s supposed incompetence as a quarterback. Until Favre came, Booty had been wearing number four. “Sorry Brett, but I got number four already. But hey, there’s always next year, bro.” But Favre isn’t Booty’s bro; he’s closer to his pops.

In retrospect, I couldn’t have been more right about the success Favre would bring to the Vikings. Not only is he arguably the best quarterback ever, but he is also a playmaker and team sparkplug which helps the defense out tremendously. It think it’s safe to say that without Favre, our Purple People Eaters wouldn’t be 7-1, as of Nov. 1, with one of the most surprising, potent offenses in the league.

I can only believe that both Rosenfels and Jackson are two of the most gullible people ever to think that they’d have a shot after Favre came. It would lead me to believe that both of them are Packer green with envy.

In my eyes, Favre looks better in purple than he ever did in green.

BOYS BASKETBALL After capping their perfect season with a State championship, the remaining players of the HHS boys varsity basketball team hope to keep the undefeated tradition alive. They hope to play just as well this season and make it back to the state tournament. They have eight players returning from last year’s team and will be led by captains DJ Peterson, senior, and juniors, Joe Coleman, and Marvin Singleton.

GIRLS BASKETBALL Last year, the HHS girls varsity basketball team had a successful season going 26-3. They made it to the section championship game but lost to Minneapolis South. This season they have 14 of 22 players returning. They will be led by senior captains Hana Potter, Tori Joransen, and Megan Westman and junior captains Julia Wiemer, Jill Greenfield, and Brianna Williams.

BOYS HOCKEY The 2009-2010 HHS boys varsity hockey season will sure be an eventful one. Last season the team went 1510-1 and lost their first section game vs. Benilde-St. Margaret’s. They hope to perform better this year especially since they will be playing against the Women’s Olympic team on Dec. 5th. They will also be playing in Hermantown, MN, on Hockey Day Minnesota on Jan. 23rd, 2010, on Fox Sports North as part of Hockey Day Minnesota’s full day of hockey. The team will be lead by senior captains Alex Fons, Archie Skalbeck, and Matt Hazuka.

BOYS AND GIRLS NORDIC Last year, the HHS boys Nordic ski team was unable to win its conference but went on to take second place in state. This season they will be led by senior captains Jack Hinkens and Greg Furlich and will pursue the state tournament once again. However, the girls had a less successful season. However, this season, Lindsey Kaufmann and Anna Lavanger, seniors, will lead a slightly more experienced squad of skiers to hopefully a conference championship and more.

Taking a final look at fall sports

1.

2.

3.

1.Senior captain, Sam Kessler fought through injuries and was a valuable part of the team.

2. Jane Oliverius, se nior, dropped 4.7 seconds on her 100 meter time this season.

3. The volleyball team had a succesful season and took second in their section.

Photos courtesy of Ben Jolson and Paul Webber

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A breath of fresh air for many HHS athletes Lindsey Kaufmann Staff Reporter Wearing knee high, blue tye-dye socks and bright pink LIVESTRONG shorts, Missy (Hofmann) Ayers watches over the girls cross country team making sure the girls finish up all of their 26 pushups. As much as some of the girls moan and groan, she doesn’t put up with any type of “slacking.”

Ayers, a 99’ graduate of HHS and an 03’ graduate from the

Photo courtes-y of Missy Ayers

Ayers, ‘99, still holds the 4x800 meter record at HHS.

University of New Hampshire, is a volunteer coach for the crosscountry team. Last year, she also helped out with the track and field program, and starting this year, she will be a volunteer coach for the Nordic ski team. When she was a senior at HHS, Ayers was a co-captain for all three sports she now works with.

On the outside, Ayers looks like a normal, energetic 28 year-old who loves funky clothing. However, Ayers is unique in the sense that when she was just two months old, she was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (CF).

CF is a genetic disease that affects 30,000 Americans, 90% of whom are Caucasian. It affects a person’s lungs and digestive system. The life expectancy of a CF patient in Minnesota is currently 37 years old.

Even with knowing the fatal consequences of CF, Ayers has always had a positive attitude. And when the girls she coaches get down on themselves, she is the first one to change their minds.

“People ask me if I’m afraid to die, and [I say] ‘No, everyone’s going to die.’ It’s just a matter of who goes first,” Ayers said.

Ayers wanted to do more to help find a cure for CF. She was the “poster child” for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation when she was nine years old. Today, her friends and family walk on behalf of “Team Missy” in the foundation’s “Great Strides Walk” each May. Having CF requires a person to be very aware of his or her body.

Ayers has to do two daily treatments, which consist of wearing a vest that fills with air and shakes the thick, sticky mucus from her lungs. She also has to take digestive enzymes every time she eats.

Even with all of the things Ayers has to do to care for herself, she still finds a way to make sure her athletes are consistently working to become the best they can be.

“In the summer when I had a stress fracture in my leg, Missy would wake up before everyone else on the team had regular practice to go biking with me,” said Hannah Borowsky, junior. “She’s

not afraid to jump right in and finish what needs to get done.”

After the team goes out for their run after school, Ayers hops in her car and drives around where the girls are running. She circles the area and makes sure no one is walking. Her hard work ethics have certainly helped because the girls cross country team recently won their first Classic Lake Conference Championship title since 2003.

Ayers likes to have fun, however. “She still acts likes she’s in high school,” said Selamawit Shannon-Tamrat, junior. “She knows all the music we listen to and is really hip; she makes me want to run that much faster with how happy she is.”

With a positive outlook on life, Ayers motivates people to love what they do. Her positive mentality led her to be a Division One cross-country skier at the University of New Hampshire. “Her enthusiasm is contagious,” said Emily Buck, sophomore.

In addition to the girls she coaches, Ayers is highly recognized by many people, including her old coaches. “She has a real sense of what determination is and what it takes to succeed,” said Jim Rovn, varsity girls cross country coach of 32 seasons. “I have extreme respect for her.”

Ayers’ optimism encourages the girls she volunteers with to work harder, but most importantly, she inspires people to savor life at every moment possible. She defines what it means to take life one day at a time.

“Missy is the kind of coach who cares as much or more about our performance as we do,” Borowsky said. “She brings us to a level where we can succeed in a way that’s more fun than you can imagine.”

For more information about CF or Team Missy visit

cff.org/great_strides/teammissy

Olympic-bound rugby star Eli Goldaris Staff Reporter

compete, something she is willing to do because of her commitment to rugby.

During an international competition in South Africa, she had what appeared to be a career ending injury, as an opponent viciously crushed her ankle.

Described as “hard-headed” and “determined” by her parents, it wouldn’t take long for Johnson to battle back and return once again to the rugby field. “It still hurts” Johnson said, but “Rugby is a violent chess game,” and she hopes to be competing at any level for the rest of her life.

Earlier this year, Johnson received an unbelievable call from USA Women’s Olympic Rugby Coach Peter Steinberg, who asked Johnson if she would be interested in competing in the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, the first year Women’s Rugby is an Olympic event. “It’s unbelievable; we’re just so proud of her,” said Jennie Johnson her mother. Johnson’s brother, HHS alum Nick, will also be competing for the Men’s Olympic Team.

For now, Johnson awaits the chance to compete in the Olympics as she finishes another impressive diving year. Beyond that, it’s unclear where a path for a female rugby player could lead as there is no official Women’s Pro League.

However, Brynn Chivers, U.S.-Womens 20 rugby coach said, “Right now, Katie Johnson is in the top five of high school girls, she’ll be guarenteed many offers from elite colleges around the country.” One thing’s for sure, Johnson will have a bright future in whatever path

In the fourth grade, Katie Johnson, senior, would play around with the high school rugby players as her father, Dan Johnson would coach practice. Most fourth graders playing with the “big kids” would be described as “cute and funny” but when Johnson played there was no laughing, only stares of astonishment.

In sixth grade she was an official member of the high school rugby team, playing in games and breaking out onto the Midwest rugby scene.

Johnson took her game on the road, and she attended camps all over Minnesota. She destroyed her competition; she was a force on the rugby field, and scouts flocked to watch her play.

At age 14, she got her big break, a break that most rugby players of any age would dream off.

Johnson caught the attention of the US women’s rugby coach, Brynn Chivers, who described her as “an unbelievable player to watch, even at the young age, she was stunning.” At age 14, she was officially part of the team. She played in her first international match at age 15, in England, as the youngest U.S. Women’s Rugby player to compete.

However, rugby isn’t the extent of her athletic feats. In middle school, she also joined the Hopkins Swim & Dive team. As a senior, “she is by far the greatest diver Hopkins has to offer,” said Sara Gottlieb, senior and swim teammate.

Nonetheless, rugby is her true passion; the U.S. Women’s team competes every year internationally and she has to miss diving to train and she chooses.

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A look at the

Masterpiece Through the eyes of modern culture Story by Naomi Litman-Zelle

T

he streets of Paris are alive with culture. French fashionistas, tourists with their faces buried in maps, street vendors, and starving artists waiting for their big break roam this bustling city. At the center of all this pop culture and modern energy lies a landmark holding a culmination of the most precious pieces ranging from before the Common Era all the way to the 19th century.

At the heart of this city lies the Louvre, the most visited art museum in the entire world. Thousands of people from San Fransisco to Mumbai journey to this city just to see the treasures being preserved in the walls of the Louvre. However, anyone living in the metro area doesn’t have to worry about buying a plane ticket or making hotel reservations if he or she wish to get a glimpse of the works from this famous museum.

The Louvre has compiled a series of works that have become its traveling exhibit, and until January, this exhibit is showing at our very own Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The exhibit discusses the meaning of calling something a masterpiece and how the criteria have changed with the ages. Each room of the show features different works that illustrate how the meaning of a masterpiece shifts with each movement in art.

Of course, what is considered to be a masterpiece varies from person to person. While some people would pay millions just to own a painting

A work of art can be a masterpiece whether it’s done by a famous artist or an HHS student. These photos are sections of both widely known paintings and student works.

Paintings by Leonardo DaVinci, Frieda Khalo, and Pablo Picasso are featured alongside paintings by Maria Sanchez, 12, and Sarah Svensson, 12.

by Jackson Pollock, others simply laugh at the notion of dumping large amounts of paint onto a canvas and calling it art. On the flip side, there are many people who just aren’t intrigued by the portrayals of biblical or historical scenes.

At HHS, it seems that the genuine appreciation for the works from centuries past has been somewhat lost. Da Vinci’s famous “Mona Lisa” has gone from a revered work of masterful skill and true radiance to just some famous painting where her eyes follow you. It’s very rare to find someone these days whose definition of a masterpiece coincides with what the Louvre exhibit reveals as the original definition of a masterpiece.

But the exhibit is not about trying to tell people what a masterpiece is; it’s about looking at things what were once some of the most admired pieces and understanding why they received so much attention at the time. It’s not an exhibit that is meant as a show, but as a lesson. Through each piece, the viewer is made to question what society deems as a masterpiece while shaping an artistic eye of his or her own.

Whether in Paris, Minneapolis, Hollywood, or Calcutta, art in some form plays a large role in a society’s culture. The Louvre’s versatile collection connects to people from all over, and each work of art within the museum speaks to at least someone as a masterpiece.