Issue 10

Harbinger the

ISSUE 10 / SHAWNEE MISSION EAST / PRAIRIE VILLAGE, KS

FEB. 2, 2009

LOOKING FOR THE

Sophomore copes with rehab for bipolar disorder and struggles to rid herself of past problems // CAMILLEKARRO

// ANDYALLEN

Enveloped in her queen sized bed, then freshman Anousha Shirazi seems to shrink within her petite frame. Tears rush uncontrollably down her cheek and wet the cell phone she clutches firmly to her ear. She clings desperately to the phone, as if it contains her life’s value. Her profound depression sinks to an even darker place.

On the other end, her boyfriend, a former East student, shouts at her relentlessly. She just sobs. He threatens to break up with her. The thought of losing the first boy she loved breaks the built-up stress bank.

“I don’t want to live anymore,” Anousha thought at that instant, “I don’t want to have feelings anymore.”

That Sunday, at 9 p.m., she swallowed 20 of her daily antidepressants.

It was Anousha’s first week of high school. *** Anousha survived that night, and returned to school with the same glint in her cocoa-colored eyes. She stands out as an exotic beauty with wavy black hair and caramel skin. Walking briskly down the hall in her gold, monogrammed Coach boots, Anousha holds her head up high.

“Back in sixth [through] eighth grade, I would sometimes walk with my head to the floor so no one would see me crying, asking myself ‘would anyone notice if I were gone? Would anyone care?’” Anousha said. “I’ve overcome that. I have become so strong. I will succeed.”

As a sophomore, she maintains her grades and is headed for I.B. next year.

It’d be easy to think she’s made a comeback. However, her healthy facade covers a psychological issue deeper than a trip to rehab. While battling her issues with drugs, Anousha endures the real battle -- learning to cope with manic depression, also known as bipolar disorder.

“There’s a difference between being in rehab for alcohol or drug abuse and going because of bipolar [disorder],” her mother, Stephanie Shirazi said.

“She will always be dealing with that.”

Anousha has always been a tiny girl, smaller than most her age at 5 feet, 100 pounds, but her size is undercut by her sharp mind and no-nonsense understanding of social networking among the cattiest of girls. Bubbly and fun, but never to be mistaken for a ditz, she is scarily mature and cognizant of the benefits of having older friends. Anousha’s cousin, senior Rachel English, noticed her tendency to gravitate towards kids at least two years older.

“She would start hanging out with my friends and she was so much younger than me,” English said. “I kinda considered my life with her and my life with my friends separate, and then when they merged, it really bugged me.”

How Anousha came to be an adult so quickly can be puzzling and even enviable, but after observing her stone-like attitude toward her past, it’s put into question whether something is missing.

A childhood, Anousha thinks. She’s missing a childhood.

Continued on page 12

NEWS: SHARE credit card created >PAGE 4

FEATURES: WPA on the cheap >PAGE 11

A&E: Spring movie preview >PAGE 23

PAGE 2 NEWS / FEB. 2, 2009

briefs There will be no school Feb. 13 for parent-teacher conferences.

Enrollment will be finalized this week.

Counselors will be meeting with students as follows: Freshmen: Enrollment already finalized Sophomores: Tomorrow and Wednesday in world geography classes Juniors: Thursday and Friday in US history classes The Sweetheart dance is Feb. 14 in the gym. The dance starts at 8 p.m. and students are supposed to enter the school from the junior lot near the receiving room entrance.

Seminar Update: The Sweetheart pep assembly will be this Friday during the first half of seminar. Students will be allowed to visit teachers during the second half of seminar.

Elections for Sweetheart King and Queen will be held Feb. 10 during seminar periods.

Registration for AP tests starts Feb 19.

Students can sign up in the counseling office and for more information. AP credit will only be awarded on student’s transcripts those who have taken the test There will be no school on Feb. 16 because of Presidents Day. Spirit week is next week. The themes for the days are as follows: Monday: Concert T-shirt day Tuesday: Farmer day Wednesday: Movie character day

The remaining Frequent Fridays for second semester, which take place in the Little Theater at 3 p.m. are as follows: Wraye Sewell......................... Feb. 6 Alison Meagher-Manson..... March 6 Alec Hyries............................. March 27 Griffin MacDonald................. April 27

E L B U O R T G HAVIN ING

R A SH ATION FORM

IN

LERROSTE

Parent-teacher conference night will be Feb. 13. Parents are invited to have fiveminute informal meetings with teachers in their classrooms. If a longer meeting is necessary, it can be done so by arranging a conference with the teacher for Friday.

by TY lustation

The SHARE Down syndrome dance will be Feb. 9 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the cafeteria.

files and I’ve got a copy of an e-mail to that person ‘who was never called’,” Kaufman said. “Also, it is high school, the calling goes two ways. If they were never called - did they call or e-mail me or stop by the SHARE office?”

Chairs also believe that students come into SHARE Fair and sign up for any project only depending on the amount of candy that station has. This leaves chairs with too many volunteers, not enough dedication from volunteers and not enough help to contact everyone.

Kaufman wants students to sign up for SHARE only if they will be dedicated to volunteering. Chairs are put in a bad situation if volunteers back out last minute because they are left with little time to contact other volunteers.

“The projects i signed up for were projects i believed in,” Hynes said. “It’s disappointing that I only got the chance to participate in two of the projects I signed up for.”

According to Kaufman, communication is a problem every year and she doesn’t understand why it is portrayed as such a large problem this year. Kaufman said students are either not contacted and never come to her or they are contacted, but are unaware. She thinks it doesn’t have to be complicated for volunteers, but wants students to sign up for SHARE only if they will be dedicated to volunteering.

“Since SHARE is student-led sometimes projects are terrific and sometimes they’re not so terrific,” Kaufman said. “Sometimes people commit to things and then it just doesn’t work out for them.”

Kaufman believes students, mainly freshmen, are confused as to why they haven’t recieved any i n f o r mation about the project they volunteered for.

“If there are any communication issues with a chair and a volunteer then the volunteer should come to me,” Kaufman said.

“SHARE Saturdays are also a good way to volunteer without having to receive information from a chair because they are open to everyone. Volunteering should be easy for students. In SHARE, we try to make it fun.

Volunteering should never feel like work.”

// Photo Il

Thursday: Lancer day

// KENNEDYBURGESS

The SHARE fair was a montage of upperclassmen dressed in tutu’s and bright accessories, the soundtrack from the motion picture “Mama Mia” blasting in the background, students piled in the gym in packs of four and five. SHARE chairs held colorful signs as they danced in front of their SHARE stations, signs that read ‘RECYCLE CLUB’ and ‘ART FOR THE HEART.’ ” That was in September when SHARE was welcoming freshmen to East. It is February now, and some students, the majority freshmen, who signed up to participate in SHARE have not received calls or e-mails with information regarding projects from their SHARE chairmen or have received them late.

There are 80 activities SHARE offers to volunteers year round, including delivering meals to seniors at homes such as Brighton Gardens, providing birthday parties for inner city youth and sponsoring a school dodge ball tournament to promote organ donation.

“SHARE has a long known reputation at East,” SHARE Director Pat Kaufman said. “Our goal is to start students on a lifetime of volunteering.”

According to SHARE chairmen junior Jake Davidson and senior Sara Pavulu, SHARE had difficulties getting projects organized at the beginning of the year because the SHARE room was moved to room 225. Due to the sudden room change, SHARE was forced to start later in the year than expected. The shift due to construction created a communication breakdown that trickled down to chairmen and their volunteers.

Pavulu helped with organizing the SHARE Garage Sale in October. She said they had problems organizing the location of the garage sale because of construction, and the sale was held in the senior parking lot.

“A lot of the communication issues were because we had to start later,” Pavulu said. “We had to pull everything together in a shorter amount of time than last year.”

Project Iraqi Children was originally scheduled to happen earlier in the year, but has been put off because of the difficulty communicating with volunteers, as well as finding locations for meetings.

“It was really hard to get ahold of everyone,” SHARE Chairman Jake Davidson said. “A lot of people signed up, but it was difficult to pull all of the volunteers together.”

Six student executives in SHARE supervise chairman who call their SHARE group to let them know what community service activity their group will be a part of. This year compared to previous years, there has been a storm of frustration from students like freshmen Casey Hynes. This frustration has been caused by SHARE’s disorganization in contacting volunteers.

“I was only contacted by two of my SHARE chairmen,” Hynes said. “I signed up for a lot of projects and the projects that I was contacted for were late. I think the chairmen are being lazy. It’s not fair to people who signed up.”

Freshman Ellyn Gunya joined SHARE because she liked the idea of becoming a volunteer through her school.

“I signed up for two projects, ‘Center for Disabled People’ and ‘Pet Pals.’ ” Gunya said. “I never got any information about either project so I don’t even know if I’m in SHARE anymore.”

Gunya believes that freshmen are not being contacted more than anyone else because they are underclassmen. She knows at least five of her freshmen friends who have not received any information from their SHARE chairs.

“It is harder to get freshmen involved because they’re new to the atmosphere at East,” Kaufman said. “Freshmen usually come into SHARE fair, overwhelmed by everything and end up signing up for 30 projects at once.”

Both Gunya and Hynes wanted to be a part of the SHARE program for the same reason. They wanted to contribute to the community in a positive way.

Kaufman is aware of the amount of students who complain about the lack of communication between chairman and volunteers. She believes that it isn’t a problem at all. Chairmen are aware of this as well and try their hardest to contact all of their volunteers, but admit that some projects tend to be put off much like Project Iraqi Children was this year.

“You’d be surprised at how often I look at my

Students complain about lack of communication from SHARE chairs

PAGE 3 NEWS / ISSUE 10

Lack of driving restrictions in Kansas results in adequate traffic safety reports

CAUTION BEWARE OF DISTRACTED DRIVERS

// BILLYKIRKPATRICK

Junior Ben Jensen talks on the phone while he drives.

He drives on late weekend nights. Under the current laws, a teenager using his cell phone while driving or driving home after 10 p.m. would not be an act considered to be illegal. But this could be the cause of a ticket in the future, as a certain group has cracked down on Kansasís lack of vital traffic safety laws.

“We advocate for a complete prohibition on cell phone use for new drivers,” said Jenny Cheek, a representative of the Advocates for Highway & Auto Safety (AHAS) and the Director of Safe Roads for Teens Coalition. “For driving at night, we advocate [a restriction] from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.”

In a recent annual report given by the AHAS, the state of Kansas was graded as performing average in traffic safety. However, the report also stated that Kansas was one of 14 states that was ìdangerously closeî to being rated poor in the study. This hurts Kansas as it comes from a wellknown, well-respected traffic safety group.

The main goal of Advocates is to make advances in overall highway and auto safety. They have earned the praise from many well-known people, including Arizona senator John McCain. McCain told Advocates: “You should be proud of reducing deaths on our nation’s roads. I have often turned to Advocates for advice on how Congress should address highway safety matters.”

The report pointed out one key reason for Kansasís grades in the study: Kansas has only eight of the 15 laws that the report considers as necessary to improving overall traffic safety. Included in the list of laws that Kansas lacks are a night driving restriction for teenagers, a restriction on cell phones while driving for teens and a primary seat belt law.

East SRO Detective Brady Sullivan believes that a restriction on cell phone use would help reduce traffic accidents.

“Almost all of the traffic accidents that I work are caused by a lack of attention, and of those, most are because of cell phones,”Sullivan said. “I think restricting teenís cell phone use during the permit and learning stages would help.”

However, Alex Holsinger, an associate professor in criminal justice and criminology at UMKC, thinks that

DON’T BE CAUGHT ON A CELL PHONE *

WHILE DRIVING IN... (under possibility of fine or inprisonment)

CONNECTICUT NEW YORK NEW JERSEY

banning the use of cell phones while driving would be extremely hard to enforce and would not stop people from using their cell phones.

“For better or worse, cell phones have become so integral to our culture and way of life I donít think laws will have an appreciable effect on the rates at which people use them,” Holsinger said. “In addition, I think that a law prohibiting cell phone use would be extremely difficult to enforce.”

Jensen believes that a restriction on cell phones would make sense, but thinks that the restriction should apply to adults as well.

“I would understand why they would do it, but I think it would make more sense for them to do it for everyone because there are definitely some adults who use their phones while theyíre driving for business reasons,” Jensen said. “I guess I would think its unfair that it would be only for teens because we still pay as much attention when weíre not on our phones driving as they do.”

Holsinger believes that a law regarding teen driving at night would not be appropriate.

“I don’t think thatís a good idea, all things considered,”Holsinger said. “With all the activities that teens are involved in, I think that there would be so many exceptions that the law would become moot or pointless.”

Sullivan also does not see a big problem with teen nighttime driving. He believes the bigger problem lies in the fact that teens drive with friends in the car, which takes their attention off the road.

One thing Jensen, Sullivan, Holsinger and Cheeks all have in common is their belief that a prohibition on cell phone use while driving would reduce the number of traffic related injuries.

“People need to learn that driving is the first responsibility for the driver,” Sullivan said. “When you are in a vehicle you need to pay attention to driving first and foremost and you shouldnít be doing anything that takes your attention away from driving.”

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ILLINOIS** MASSACHUSETTS**

NEW MEXICO** OHIO** PENNSYLVANIA**

** HANDHELD * ALLOWS LOCALITIES TO BAN CELL PHONE USE

Inconveniences lead administrators to reconsider seminar timing // BERNADETTEMYERS

As East has transitioned into block scheduling for the first year, students and staff alike have found problems with its timing.

Now, according to asssociate principal Steve Loe, it is possible that seminar will move to the end of the day next year.

Loe has tested seminar at the beginning, middle and end of the day at Shawnee Mission West. According to Loe, the morning is the best time for academic productivity, so putting a class such as math or World Geography in that slot would make more sense.

“At West, when seminar was in the afternoon, students were more productive overall in their morning academic classes,” Loe said.

“I think that could be applied to East, too.”

Replacing seminar would also help with early releases, pep assemblies and students who have to leave early for extracurricular activites.

According to associate principal Heather Royce, Broadmoor students are will also ben-

efit from having seminar at the end of the day.

Loe also that attendence would go up with a changed seminar schedule. Students would be less likely to skip other classes in the middle of the day.

Computer and business teacher Diana Shanks sees the benefits of putting seminar at the end of the day, but also feels students will not use it wisely.

“Now students actually do their homework and study [in seminar],” Shanks said. “But at the end of the day this won’t be the case.”

Second semester seniors in good standing at the end of first semester will have the option of dropping their seminar class, allowing them to leave school early.

“We allowed seniors at West to do this if they had good seminar attendance for first semester and were using their time wisely,” Loe said.

The seminar schedule change is only a possibility and will be decided by March 1.

SOPHOMORE DREW AUER

JUNIOR BEN JENSEN

“I think the move can be good. By the end of the day, we all will have a collection of homework to work on. But if it was at the beginning of the day, it would really help students to be able to study more for tests and maybe get help on homework.”

“Moving seminar could be a good and bad thing to do. Having anytime during school to work is great. But I like having the ability to study between classes on even days. I could get a head start on my homework.”

ART TEACHER JASON FILBECK

“I think it will be a good switch for two reasons. One, if a kid is just assigned homework, then maybe they’d be able to finish it before they go home. And two, I think kids might take more advantage of their time and use it. They might be able to get homework done before they go home.”

“I think that seminar moving would be chill. It would benefit students academically.”

FRESHMAN TYLER NELSON

// DANSTEWART

Profit non-profit PAGE 4 NEWS / FEB. 2, 2009

for

// HALEYMARTIN

When Shawnee Mission East parent Trish Marken looks through her wallet she finds an American Express card that can get her plane tickets, a WellsFargo credit card and an ATM card. But there could be a card that gives money to a non-profit volunteer based organization.

This February, The Bank of Prairie Village will offer a credit card where any money the bank collects from the card will go to SHARE. In order to get a credit card you have to be a member of The Bank of Prairie Village and an adult or have a parent or guardian sign you up for $15. Also, at the end of the month a certain percentage of the left over balance on the card will go to SHARE. That percentage is yet to be decided.

The card, mainly aimed towards adults, will give extra money to the SHARE organization. Dan Bolen, a banker at The Bank of Prairie Village, says that they have checked for any hidden fees, or “I gotcha’s,” and he thinks that they have all been removed.

“The idea was to have [a card] with identity for SHARE in our community where the parents would have a safe credit card where its use can support SHARE,” Bolen said. “And if they want to teach the kids how to handle a credit card responsibly this would be a good card for them to do it.”

Right now, SHARE uses all money raised from fund raisers for supplies, projects and the sponsor’s salaries through fund raisers. The SHARE office, this

year is located in an extra orchestra practice room on the second floor. Because of construction, they are packed into a miniature-sized room, with a small computer table, a computer, two comfy chairs and a stool. The walls are covered with shelves, full of pictures and sprinkled Mardi Gras beads.

With the extra budget SHARE will to be able to buy t-shirts for projects, and much more.

The two SHARE sponsors, Pat Kaufman and Leslie Multer, don’t know what they will end up doing with the extra money, but they do have some ideas.

“If it’s a little, then it will go into the general fund to pay for general expenses,” Kaufman explains about the extra money. “If it’s a lot then we’ll have a wonderful problem of figuring out what we’re going to do with that money.”

Freshmen Meghan Spivak, a SHARE chair for TLC’s Groundhog Run, thinks that SHARE is a great program and that the more supplies the better for getting people to volunteer. She also says that, in general, chairs email the volunteers. So having more supplies can only help.

“No amount of paper is going to get you volunteers that really want to help out,” Spivak adds.

Both Spivak and the SHARE sponsors agree that with the money from the credit card, they will be able to make a greater impact on the community.

// PHOTO COURTESY OF TOMOLTJEN

In partnership with Prairie Village Bank, SHARE has created a new credit card to help raise more money

ABOVE A front and back visual of the SHARE credit card. The front features The Bank of Prairie Village logo. A percentage of each purchase made with this card will go directly to SHARE.

CollegeBoard changes policy regarding turning in SAT scores // KATHLEEN IRELAND

Beginning this spring, the CollegeBoard has decided to launch a new SAT score-reporting policy called Score Choice.

Current high school juniors will be able to choose which SAT scores are included in their college applications.

Before Score Choice, all of a student’s standardized test scores would be sent to the college together. Students can now take the test as many times as they want and choose to only send in their top scores.

“I think it’s sweet!” junior Ben Jensen said. “If I do bad the first time it’s nice to know they can still see my best score.”

The policy was created to help reduce stress around test-taking and college admissions time according to a College Board associate. There is also no charge for the use of Score Choice, no matter how many times a student takes the SAT. Once the policy has begun in March, students can sign up over the phone or online.

The policy applies to every standardized test current juniors and seniors have ever taken. This includes specialized tests and tests from previous years.

Unfortunately, current seniors are not eligible to use the new policy if they have already sent in their applications, but senior Gina Legrotte has accepted the slight disadvantage.

“I wouldn’t have taken that horrible test more than once even if I had the option,” Legrotte said.

A main concern that has risen from the policy change is the fairness between low-income students and ones that can afford to take the $45 test as many times as they want.

Students with free or reduced lunch are eligible to take the test free up to two times, but not all low-income families have that opportunity.

“I think everybody should be given the same opportunity regardless of money,” junior Alexandra Ferlas said.

East guidance counselor, Terri Archer, sees two different

“One student has perseverance and the other has natural ability,” Archer said, “both great qualities, but colleges can’t see which one they’re getting.”

Another concern about the new policy is the possibility of forgetting to turn in scores. With the old policy, scores from every test taken were automatically reported during admissions. But with the new policy some students store all their standardized test scores and then forget to admit them with their applications.

The catch with Score Choice is that all scores from a • Before students would have to send in every test score they ever single sitting are kept together. The SAT consists of three received from taking this test, and now students can pick which, sections: critical reading, writing, and mathematics, with and how many scores, they send in.

800 points possible in each section. A student may not use • One of the only negative effects this has is that lower income famia math score from one test and combine it with a writing lies who can’t afford to take the test as many times may have a score from another. disadvantage. The test costs $45 each time to take it.

There is also a debate with how certain colleges will • Colleges have no way of knowing whether or not students have react to the policy change. Some highly selective colleges used this choice policy. recommend students send in all of their scores regardless • If seniors have already turned in their test scores, they are not able of how good or bad they are. to use the new rules created by this policy. // COLLEGEBOARD “They don’t have a guaranteed way of knowing if a student has hidden scores, but they can probably guess,” sides of the new policy. On one side, it presents the student Archer said.

Some are worried that the new policy is just a marketing in the best light. It shows that they have the ability to reach a certain score, and the initiative to improve. But on the scheme. Competition between the SAT and ACT, which other hand, a college is unable to tell how many times it has already offered Score Choice for a long period, makes took to get that score. It is different for one student to get some wonder if it is just for funding, or to truly assist the a score of 730 on their English test their first time than for student. another to get the equal score on their sixth try.

Major Effects of the Change

TAKING IN THE PAGE 5 NEWS / ISSUE 10

BREAK-INS Students face multiple thefts in the sophomore and junior lots // TAYLORHAVILAND

//

The

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY DAN STEWART

BREAK DOWN on BREAK-INS

STUDENT DRIVERS’ REACTION TO BREAK-INS: something “ ItothinkpreventEastthis,shouldlikehave surveillance cameras or something. [I’ll] just make sure [my car’s ] locked and nothing’s visible.

SOPHOMORE COURTNEY BOYD

”

at my mom’s office across “ Itheparkstreet because I don’t want to deal with the hassle of trying to find a parking spot in the morning and trying to get out at night, and because I would be worried about break-ins.

”

JUNIOR DANA LEIB

TIPS TO PREVENT BREAK-INS: - Park in well- lit areas - Don’t park next to larger vehicles. They block the view to your car and provide hiding places for thieves.

- Don’t park your car on the street.

Park it in the garage, if you have one.

- Lock your doors, roll up your windows and take your keys with you when you turn off the car, even if it’s just a short trip.

- Never leave spare keys in your car.

Experienced thieves will find them.

- Get an alarm system for your car, and activate it when you leave. //

San Diego Police Department

Junior Lois Wetzel walked toward her red legedly been reported this school year; the day Volkswagen after a stressful day of PSAT test- of the PSAT multiple cars in the junior lot were ing. She reached for her iPod and grasped robbed. Junior Lois Wetzel had coins and her only air. Her eyes glanced down and her eyes iPod touch taken from her car while she was scanned around the front seats. taking the test, and junior Michael Stolle’s iPod East students are experiencing this feeling was stolen from his car. as multiple thefts from cars, lockers and backSo far there has been nothing done to prepacks have been reported. According to Lo Jack vent these crimes beyond current security.

Car Security, every year 1.1 million cars are bro“It’s not that much of a problem so there ken into or stolen on average per year. is nothing to spark a proactive attack against One of those cars was sophomore Cole Mor- these crimes,” Sullivan said, “There have been gan’s. very few reports this year of car break-ins.”

“I didn’t see the broken window because According to Wetzel, the cameras in the juof the snow,” Morgan nior lot are far away, have said. “But it was one a very select view and are of those situations very low quality. Also, where you just kinda East’s camera system is look at it and think, not capable of adding any you’re kidding me, new cameras. New camera right? Like you hope models can zoom and are you’re gonna blink triggered by movement, yet and see that your it’s out of the budget. mind was playing “Our camera’s can’t do tricks on you.” very much,” Principal Karl But it wasn’t a trick.

Krawitz said. “The best we However, Morgan did can hope is that they are find some humor from -Sophomore Cole Morgan wearing a very identifiable the break-in. sweatshirt, but facial fea“The funny thing tures are out of the quesis even though they broke through my window tion.” the door was unlocked,” Morgan said.

The police have not found anyone guilty for Only two cars in the sophomore parking lot these thefts but the investigation is on going. have had windows broken in and items stolen.

“This absolutely is an issue, but what can Sophomore Elizabeth Ward had her radar de- we do about it? We’re not able to purchase new tector stolen. cameras and our only option is to have the “At first I was shocked and confused because SROs patrol the parking lots more often,” Dr. I had no idea what had been taken, until I got Krawitz said. home and realize,” Ward said.

According to Carinsurance.com the top four Sophomore Carter Kerr had money stolen ways to prevent car theft are to have an antifrom his car. theft system, always lock your car doors, keep “At first I thought I knew who had stolen your windows up and keep personal items out money from my car, but I was wrong and so far of sight. we haven’t found anyone,” Kerr said.

“I think students should know that their car The sophomore lot is not on East property, isn’t a safe place, hiding their valuables doesn’t so the thefts were reported to the Prairie Village do anything,” Dr. Krawitz said. “Take your stuff, Police Department. carry it with you, do whatever, its just safer.”

Yet, more thefts have occurred and have al-

“

“It was one of those situations where you just kinda look at it and think, you’re kidding me, right?

Like you hope you’re gonna blink and see that your mind was playing tricks on you..”

”

With many volunteers and so much enthusiasm, all that’s needed is more accountability to help SHARE continue to. . .

C

ommunity service is one of the easiest ways for people to make a difference. It’s free, a relatively small time commitment, and you can be with

friends.

With over two-thirds of the student body in SHARE according to their Web site, East has the ability to give a great deal back, both to our own community and to less privileged ones. But both SHARE chairs and volunteers feel that the organization hasn’t been as effective as it has been.

The primary issues center around lack of communication and project completion.

While volunteering can undoubtedly be fun, it’s also a serious commitment. The need for it arises out of people having real problems. Projects such as Habitat for Humanity or the blood drive involve issues that have a significant effect on other peoples’ lives.

With all the potential SHARE holds, we need a system of accounting to ensure that all the good that can be done is done. Chairs should stay on top of their projects, and execs should check in with them regularly. Additionally, chairs should make it clear to volunteers that they only want people who are dedicated. Finally, potential volunteers should be able and willing to attend all projects they sign up for.

Co-director Pat Kaufman feels SHARE chairs do an adequate job of contacting volunteers and notes that the burden for staying informed is on students. However, chairs have no formal accountability. While execs encourage and support projects, there is no record kept of whether groups communicate, volunteer show up or projects are completed. In fact, besides forwarding e-mails to Kaufman and one exec, chairs are autonomous in planning and completing projects. Even though chairs may have good intentions, without any sort of accountability, there is less motivation to actually complete projects.

With school and extracurricular activities, students face a lot of pressure. Kaufman believes that, under this stress, the first activity to be given up is often SHARE. Closer monitoring by execs could make sure that, if a chair is unable to complete a project, a replacement can be found or arrangements can be made. At the very least, volunteers can understand what’s going on with their project. Though letting students learn responsibility is a great goal, someone needs to step in when students don’t, and people who need help are affected by it.

Junior Jake Davidson, chairperson for Operation Iraqi Children, feels like chairs could be more responsible.

“I’ve heard people joking around about it,” Davidson said. “I feel like for a lot of people it’s a status symbol and they don’t really care about the project.”

Harbinger the

a publication of shawnee mission east high school 7500 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS 66208

feb.2, 2009 issue 10, vol. 50

The Harbinger is a student-run publication. The contents and views are produced solely by the staff and do not represent Shawnee Mission East or the SMSD faculty or administration.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/ STEPHENNICHOLS

ASSISTANT EDITORS/ BERNADETTEMYERS PAIGECORNWELL

ART AND DESIGN EDITOR/ MEGSHACKELFORD

HEAD COPY EDITOR/ TIMSHEDOR

NEWS SECTION EDITOR/ MICHAELSTOLLE

NEWS PAGE EDITORS/ ANNABERNARD CAMILLEKARRO

PAGE 7 EDITORIAL / ISSUE TEN

PERFECT ITS PROJECTS

To properly function, SHARE cannot simply be a nominal organization but it must follow through with what it promises. A combined effort- volunteers, chairs and execsis necessary.

Junior Natalie Hine, Sock Drive chair, also feels like some chairs didn’t follow through on their duties.

“In past years I’ve just gotten tons of e-mails for stuff I signed up for, but this year I hardly got any,” she said.

The Sock Drive was grouped under the larger Project Warmth, which included several other projects. Project Warmth chairs agreed to meet during seminar, but Hine says other chairs rarely or never showed up. With a documentation of these meetings, this problem could have been avoided. Even a simple roll call reviewed by an exec could ensure student presence.

“I’d like to think that [chairs] would do their job because it’s community service but with an accounting system, we would be able to make sure that people actually do their job,” Hine said.

However, she also believes improving other areas of SHARE would also be helpful. Hine and junior Hannah Copeland, first time chairs this year, originally applied for 1000 Villages and felt like they didn’t receive enough information on how to conduct the one they received.

“We had no idea what to do or how to set it up,” Hine said.

Again, encouragement is good, but what would be more effective would be an actual inquiry. Questions that have specific answers (e.g., “When are you guys going to the site? How many volunteers do you have?”) can determine whether or not a project will actually work.

Moreover, a better training system would help chairs know what to do. While a SHARE camp exists, it doesn’t adequately prepare chairs for their responsibilities or give them enough information on their project. The solution is to simply provide more information at the meetings- suggestions for running a project, or maybe have experienced chairs train newer chairs.

Finally, it’s up to all students to be responsible in signing up for projects. One of the benefits of SHARE is its flexibility in projects, which puts trust in volunteers. The volunteers then need to step up and be accountable. While the excitement and optimism of the SHARE fair may make signing up for 15 projects seem like a good idea, it actually gives a false sense of security to chairs and can cause confusion. The problem is not getting enough volunteers in the first place but making sure they actually go to the project.

“I haven’t heard anyone say that not enough people signed up for their project,”

FEATURES PAGE EDITORS/ DUNCANMCHENRY KATHLEENIRELAND

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A&E PAGE EDITOR/

TAYLORHAVILAND

ELIZABETHMCGRANAHAN

BILLYKIRKPATRICK HALEYMARTIN JEFFCOLE

MACTAMBLYN

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PHOTO EDITOR/

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PHOTOGRAPHERS/

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TYLERROSTE

MACKENZIEWYLIE

GRANTHEINLEIN MAXSTITT KATIEEAST PATRICKMAYFIELD DANIELSTEWART

Davidson said.

The task, then, is to follow up on e-mails with project information. And if information isn’t given, volunteers need to seek out the information, either with a simple e-mail, or even making a trip down to the SHARE office. Communication is a two-way process, and chairs need to know that volunteers interested and actually want them to organize projects.

The bottom line is that SHARE is an excellent program and the enthusiasm displayed during the SHARE fair is exactly the type of thing that should be respected and encouraged. Having guidelines that place checks on accountability could make SHARE an even stronger organization. With a little effort on everyone’s part, SHARE can be all that it can.

1 10 0 ABSENT AGAINST FOR ote

SHARING THE

NUMB3RS— 1 director -

Pat Kauffman

of special projects1 director Leslie Multer

6 SHARE ExecutivesAmy Esselman Cara Heneger Jenny Howard Lucy O’Connor Kyle Sitomer Abby Weltner

over 100 chairs 62 projects 3 yearly fund raisers GAILSTONEBARGER CCCREIDENBERG ANDYALLEN JACKSONO’GORMAN-BEAN

COPY EDITORS/

SAMKOVZAN KEVINSIMPSON ANNIESGROI ANDREWGOBLE PHOEBEUNTERMAN MICHAELSTOLLE

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STEPHENNICHOLS BERNADETTEMYERS PAIGECORNWELL MACTAMBLYN ANNIESGROI SAMLOGAN GRIFFINBUR MICHAELSTOLLE PHOEBEUNTERMAN TIMSHEDOR MELISSAMCKITTRICK

STAFF WRITERS/

MOLLYTROUTMAN SARAHMCKITTRICK LANDONMCDONALD GRIFFINBUR ALEXLAMB RAINAWEINBERG JACKHOWLAND

STAFF ARTISTS/ KENNEDYBURGESS TAYLORHAVILAND

ADS/BUSINESS MANAGER/ RAINAWEINBERG

EXCHANGE/SUBSCRIPTION MANAGER/ MOLLYTROUTMAN

CIRCULATION MANAGER/ KENNEDYBURGESS

ADVISER/ DOWTATE

PAGE 8 OPINION / FEB. 2, 2009

the good, the bad and the

an opinion of

valentine

chocolates for him

flowers for her

It took eight straight hours of hairpulling, an entire tank of gas and two terrible trips to the mall to find the perfect dress. But none of that mattered when you had finally found it. The dress screamed classic

Valentine’s Day; fiery red

with a neckline that would leave your envious. Although your mom looked at you like you were trash, you remember that she was the one who suggested you wear her dress, the knee-length yellow one with green flowers.

It’s Feb. 12 and you have procrastinated way too long. You need dinner reservations desperately.

You take a chance and call the best restaurant in town.

The man on the other end of the phone laughs when you mention reservations for Valentine’s Day. Then a light bulb goes off in your head. That’s when you call back the restaurant, tell them your party of two for Smith is canceled and gee, just your luck, there happened to be a Smith party. Feeling no remorse, you jump up in excitement.

Caramel chocolates are your boyfriend’s favorite. He refuses to eat any other kind, so you come up with a plan. After a quick trip to the store, you come home with an empty wallet and ten boxes of chocolates. Your brilliant idea is to take out enough caramel ones to fill an entire box. Your boyfriend will think you’re the best, and maybe he will even splurge for that necklace you have been wanting. After an hour of poking little holes in the bottoms of each chocolate and eating every coconut one you come across, you have 20 caramel chocolates, enough to fill the box.

Your supposed to pick your Valentine’s date up in exactly one hour and the only thing you have left to do is pick up the flowers. You walk into the flower shop and the worker says “we’re out of flowers, out of chocolates, all we have left are garden gnomes.” You explain how you made an order and then a little color drains out of her face. Apparently all of the orders got misplaced. You rush out and speed to the nearest grocery store. You run in and there it is, one more arrangement of flowers. In seconds, you’re in the car racing down the street to get to her house on time.

On the morning of Valentine’s Day you notice your dress is missing and your little sister is the culprit. To your disgust, she has put it on your dog, the same dog that has fleas and reeks of mildew. You leap at your dog but she slides through your legs and the next part you see in slow motion. she goes out the back door where she rolls around in the grass and just when you think you have her, she dives to the left, into a patch of mud. In your mom’s attempt to comfort you, she says “don’t worry honey, you can wear this!” (holds up yellow dress with green flowers)

You and your date arrive at the restaurant and things go bad when the hostess says your name isn’t in the computer. It turns out that you made reservations at their other location. As you’re about to leave, you see your parents, they happen to be eating there. Your mom waves you over and asks you to join them. If you don’t, you’ll never hear the end of it, so you go out on a limb and sit down. Three embarrassing stories and one spilled drink later, you’re wishing you had left. To add to the great night, the waiter has been flirting with your date, and the only thing running through your mind is, “I wonder what the Smiths are doing.”

Your room is a mess with chocolate boxes and you have an ache in the pit of your stomach. It probably wasn’t the best idea to eat 10 coconut chocolates at once Despite all of that, you feel good about the effort you put into the gift. When you travel back into the kitchen to see if anyone in your family has seen your great work, it’s a horrible scene. Your dad has your chocolates. Each has a bite or a little poke in it and he looks up and asks, “why are every one of these chocolates caramel?”

Your date opens the door with a big smile and when you hand her the flowers, it fades a little but she thanks you for them. During the drive to the restaurant, you notice that she keeps sneezing. Great, a sick date. When you arrive at the restaurant your date’s face looks a little swollen and that’s when you realize something is wrong.

You mention her face and she looks embarrassed. “The flowers were really nice and all,” she says, “but I’m allergic.” All that work for nothing.

Keep everything that’s precious to you in a safe place; dresses, shoes, jewelry etc.

Leaving things out in the open is definitetly not a good idea especially if you have little siblings or pets that aren’t house trained.

It’s Valentine’s Day. DO NOT put off making reservations. No matter how many restaurants are in your area, don’t think calling two days in advance will land you in a five star restaurant. Call two to three months in advance, just to be safe.

If you take the time and effort to do something, make sure it’s safe. if you leave a box of chocolates lying out, any one could mistake them for whoever wants one. Keep all gifts in your room and in a place you won’t lose them. And keep it away from the edge of any table where your dog (or dad) could snatch it.

When a store gets your flower order wrong, you have to realize that these things can happen and, instead of getting mad, have a backup plan. Maybe it seems over excessive to order flowers at two stores but when one store falls through, you’ll be glad you did. And make sure your date doesn’t have any allergies to flowers. Or anything else, for that matter.

how to avoid it

the scenario

the dinner reservation

unfortunately...

the perfect dress

/ RAINAWEINBERG

It’s the day of love, so what could go wrong?

Plenty. The perfect Valentine’s Day may seem like an easy thing to accomplish but factor in all of the details; you forget to make reservations, ruin your outfit and your gifts take a turn for the worst. Try having a backup plan so you’re not left dateless on Valentine’s Day.

Growing up around debate and now as a participant, one junior has found...

E ACK

//M

A home away from home

PAGE 9 OPINION / ISSUE 10

NZI E YLI EW

an opinion of

Growing up, I was constantly surrounded with debate in all aspects of my life. My parents often judged debate rounds, met up with old college friends or just It started the day my parents met. reminisced over old At the time, my mom was a debater for stories. Debate was Fort Hayes State and my dad was a debater clearly a large part for Kansas State. They met facing each other of their lives. My in a college debate round. My mom won that mom even used to round, but my dad won her heart. Two years joke that her high later, they were married and three years af- school coach was ter that I was born. From the very beginning a second mom to one thing was certain about my life: I would her. Her coach did become a debater. everything for her, My parents were very much involved in including cutting the debate community, so it was just natu- her hair. ral that their first-born child would follow in Unfortunately, their footsteps. After all, it was in my blood. my parents met It was very much a second family for my arguing and never parents. At their wedding my dad’s best man stopped. They diwas his former debate partner, the wedding vorced when I was in fourth grade, but they photographer was one of their assistant de- both never strayed far from their days as debate coaches and another assistant coach baters. They still keep in touch with many of cut the cake. Their wedding was a complete their old friends and thanks to debate they family affair. know people all over the nation.

Most have put their debate skills to good use by The United States Federal Government should substanbecoming debate tially increase alternative energy incentives in the United coaches, teachers States. or attorneys.

I stood by for all of it, taking it in and secretly -Wind: providing incentives for those who wish to invest in/put up hoping one day I wind turbines could be just like them. The boxes -Solar: providing incentives for those who invest in/put up solar panels filled with plaques -Algae: providing incentives to companies who produce algae biodeisel and trophies from their glory days -Cellulosic Ethanol: providing incentives for those who produce celwere enough to lulosic ethanol inspire me to de-Flex Fuel Vehicles (Elizabeth’s affirmaive case): requiring that all new bate. Little did I cars sold in the United States be flex fuel capable, meaning the car can know, just like run on not only gasoline but also ethanol, methanol and butanol. my parents expe-

/ ELIZABETHMCGRANAHAN

THIS YEAR’S DEBATE RESOLUTION THIS YEAR’S TOP AFFIRMATIVE ARGUMENTS:

rienced, debate would become much more than a hobby to me. It would become my second family.

When enrolling for classes my freshman year, I automatically signed up for novice debate. No question. Thankfully that was a decision I didn’t regret. Going into novice debate I already knew most of the basics, thanks to my parents, so I managed to stand out as a novice and was allowed to travel to better tournaments. At first, the debate room was extremely intimidating to me but after spending time in the room I started to become closer with the rest of the squad. We started forming bonds and friendships due to our similar interest in debate. As a squad, we look out for each other. We share evidence, strategies and tips to help each other succeed at tournaments.

These past three years of high school have been filled with debate camp, varsity tournaments, late night practice rounds, squad dance parties, winning, losing, hundreds of highlighters and thousands of pieces of evidence. What started out as simply fulfilling tradition soon became habit for me. I fell in love with the intellectual plea-

sure of beating an opponent by simply using my words. I jumped at the opportunity to research such a wide variety of topics and I can honestly say debate has taught me so much about not only politics but also world issues. I’ve learned so many valuable skills including an improvement in my arguing abilities, which my parents don’t exactly appreciate.

My interest in debate has brought me closer to both of my parents. They understand how it feels to debate and sometimes I swear they are living vicariously through me. Reliving the glory days. For them, having their daughter share their talents is one big flashback. I’ve made them proud by simply following in their footsteps and I aspire to someday be better than they were at debate.

Debate was everything my parents talked it up to be, and more. This is what I spend every weekend doing. This is what I work on for countless hours after school each day.

This is how I met my best friend and my current boyfriend. This is where my friends are.

This is where I spend all of my free time. This is the place I spend more waking hours at than my own house. This is just like home.

PAGE 10 OPINION / FEB. 2, 2009

Not serving up to

standards Junior discusses problems and possible solutions in the restaurant industry

// ALYSSA J

OLITZ

an opinion of

/ JEFFRUTHERFORD

In front of my parents were plates stacked high with delicious looking food, a burger in front of my dad and a piece of salmon in front of my mom. But in front of me was nothing more than an unused knife and fork.

“Your food will be out shortly,” the waitress assured me.

No problem I can wait a few minutes. I told myself “It’s not as if I’m starving, haven’t eaten all day, and have looked forward to this meal since I woke up.”

Oh wait a second, I am starving.

But I figured I was just going to have to suck it up.

Five minutes. No food, no waitress.

Seven minutes. No food and still no waitress- she didn’t stop by at all.

Ten minutes. Much of the same. And now I felt bad for my parents because they were being unnecessarily kind by waiting to eat.

Fifteen minutes and finally my food was in sight. It was set in front of me. By then my parents food had gone cold.

“Sorry about the wait,” she said.

But it wasn’t a genuine sorry. It was more like one of those sorries you give your parents when you know you’re right, but you say it anyway just to make the rest of the day bearable.

My food was below par but I enjoyed it nonetheless. As I ate my good ole steak and potatoes, I couldn’t help but think about the experience I just had.

What all went wrong?

The wait was well over half an hour.

The server showed a true lack of concern.

The manager never once came by to check in or apologize.

And then I thought: this isn’t the first time.

This happens time and time again. The food was slow, the server couldn’t have cared less, and instead of checking on customers, the manager was having a laugh at the bar with regulars.

That’s not how it should work.

Now I know your kindergarten teacher would tell you, “We all make mistakes,” and “Kindness is Contagious.” However, whenever it comes to business, those elementary rules are thrown out the door.

At Homecoming this year my group went to a fancy Italian restaurant, and in general the service was good. But still one thing was unsatisfactory. Our reservation was for 7:15 p.m., but we weren’t seated to until just after 7:30.

A fifteen minute delay…that doesn’t seem so bad, and by the usual standards it isn’t. But the standards need to be elevated.

My expectations may seem high but this is really how it should work. People have been accustomed to bad service, and that’s the problem.

During that 15 minute wait, I kept making up possible excuses for the employees, like “it must just be a busy night” or “they’re short on workers.” So instead of actually trying to solve the problem, I just took it.

Which I now realize is not how I should roll; people shouldn’t just accept it.

In all walks of life perfection is the ultimate goal. In most, if not all cases, this goal is unattainable. But by striving for excellence you (the restaurant industry) can rest assured that failure will happen less

often.

I might sound a bit like a spoiled brat saying, “I want my food to taste good, and I want it now!” But by having a slow kitchen, the restaurant and its cooks are failing.

When you go to your job, you go to perform well, just like an athlete. So, if it helps a cook to pretend he is throwing TD passes to Terrell Owens instead of flipping burgers, great.

But if for some reason Tom Brady is having an off day, his star running back (the server) needs to step up and deliver the goods, or just do their best to compensate.

The server needs to make it their goal to be extra attentive. They just have to do their job by doing the simple things: refill the drinks with tremendous frequency, ask if there is anything they can do, and if it is so slow to warrant an apology, make it legitimate (or at least make it sound good).

But if it just a really bad day for the whole team, the coach (manager) has got to step up his game. Make some big calls and take some risks.

Simply show that you care. Get back in the locker room (kitchen) and get the team inspired, tell them to raise up their performance level. Have a one on one talk with the server and tell them your new expectations in this specific situation. And then finally go to the fans (customers).

Apologize for the poor performance.

Maybe offer to pay for the meal, at least some sort of gesture to soften the blow of the loss.

No fan wants to see their team lose. If their like me they look for to the big game (meal) all week. So when the team doesn’t do well I’m really disappointed.

So, what can we do as patrons to improve this problem? Because it’s a recurring one.

The first is to simply point out the mistakes. Talk to the manager after the meal and explain what you were unsatisfied with.

The Restaurant Industry by the Numbers Restaurant industry sales on 1.5 billiona typical day

9 percent- The percent of the U.S.

workforce working in the restaurant industry Nearly half of all adults have worked in the 1/2restaurant industry at some point during their lives

33-

Additional jobs are created for every one million dollars generated through restaurant sales // restaurant.org We’re often too nice but if you want the team to get better the coach has to know about the problems.

And if you really want to be harsh you can pull a move my grandpa used to do.

When leaving a tip for your server, just leave a nickel. But this is only if the server is of poor quality, not just that your food is slow coming out.

This way they know you didn’t simply forget to tip but rather that you were so displeased his performance you took the effort to stuff it in his face. This way the player will know he’s lost a fan and might even improve his game.

A restaurant is a place to go and relax, to enjoy good food and good company. A place that I go to forget about whatever is happening in my life and just spend time with my family and friends and eat good food. So when the team under performs, it’s disappointing. And I leave hoping the next game will be better than the last.

wpa ...

them because they’re really obnoxious, they can be gawdy, big and bright, but they also go with everything. Forever 21 has the best rings if you’re looking for some for this WPA, you have to really search for them though. I spend so much time there.

flowers dates boutonnieres pictures creative asking party buses decorations afterparty tickets jewelry

// TOP SHO

strange stuff on there, I had to search through a million pages to find them. The two best thrift stores I go to for nice stuff is Half of Half in Lenexa and DAV on Wornall.

IEWYLIE

Shoes are essential to an outfit so they might as well be really cute. I found my current WPA peep-toe zebra pumps for $12 on amiclubwear.com. They had some really

// TYLERROSTE

21 M , FOREVER

ALON, H& ’S, SOPRA S A C S E C N A R P, F

the accessory kit—straight from amy’s closet

Rings are my favorite, I started collecting them in 6th grade when I lived in England. I just buy them everywhere when I see them for cheap. Random gift shops, costumes shops, on the counter at stores and toy stores sometimes have really cool ones. I just like

shoes

esselman

While on a college visit in Philadelphia , I got this dress I wore to Homecoming at H&M on sale for $20. At that time I wasn’t buying it for any specific reason, it was just really cheap. I think it’s really fun, I’ve never had a dress or seen someone wear one with fringe on it. The shoes are Jessica Simpson’s line at Dillard’s, they were kind of expensive. It didn’t matter to me since I didn’t pay a lot for my dress. When I was walked at halftime for this year’s Homecoming, I wore another dress I got at the DAV [Disabled American Veterans] thrift store. I bargain shop like this all the time, I just like it because you can find different things that no one else has. They don’t have to be for a million dollars either, and you can pair them with other things in your closet.

// MACKENZ

dresses dinner shoes limos winter

appetizers dessert corsages dates valentine’s day

“

shoes dresses

“ “

“

amy

“

// ALDO

“

cook

I first spotted this dress I wore to Homecoming because it wasn’t your typical dress, it has sleeves, it’s not spaghetti strap or stapless.

The color really caught my eye, too. I got it at Haught Style for around $80, it was marked down a lot, more than 50 percent off. Haught dresses are normally expensive, but if you’re in the mood for a bargain they have a sale rack in the back which is where I went. You have to be open to being creative and not getting the most expensive dress.

These shoes I wore to drill team ball this year, I wanted a different look to pair with my dress which was kind of different itself. They’re from Forever 21 for$20, I liked them because they weren’t something I had seen before. When I bargain shop, I look at everything in the store first, then make it a point to go to the sale rack because sometimes there is even cuter stuff there than in the whole store.

“

gasaway

Last year for WPA, I was looking through some old dress-up clothes and I found some of my parents’ random stuff. I saw this dress and it happened to fit me perfectly. It was my mom’s from the 80’s, I think she wore it to parties. My shoes are from BCBG, I always buy new shoes for dances. I actually made my prom dress last year in my fashion class at Broadmoor.

We were learning how to make patterns then and I chose nice fabric for mine and ended up getting it done by prom. As far as bargain shopping, I love going to the Westport area. I shop at Run-Ons, Revue, Boomerang, and Arizona Trading Company for vintage stuff. When I go out of town, I love finding boutiques. I went to Los Angeles this summer and found my Homecoming shoes on Melrose Avenue where they had all kinds of thrift stores and neat little boutiques. I also like to shop online, shopbop.com has a lot of good designer sales.

johanna

“

“

hannah

PAGE 11 FEATURES / ISSUE 10

to bargaining your

“

a quick expert’s guide

PAGE 12 FEATURES / FEB. 2, 2009 //CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

In sixth grade, when most girls were flooding Limited Too and trading lip gloss, Anousha smoked her first joint with the older neighborhood kids. She continues to smoke, dismissing concerns as unnecessary.

“I don’t consider [marijuana] a drug,” Anousha said. “I feel like it’s a way to relax...I can function on it...and I can handle myself.”

Kids her age didn’t interest her; she found their behavior childish and irritating.

“Before she was about ten years old, she was the most confident kid I’d ever seen,” Stephanie said.

At ten, Anousha ran into psychological issues that she didn’t fully understand until recently.

“We didn’t get the bipolar diagnosis until last year,” Stephanie said. “I think [the psychiatrists] are reluctant to put that label on someone.”

But her behavior matched the standard symptoms of bipolar disorder. She had three levels of mood, each one triggered by nothing in particular: manic happiness, normal, manic depression, with emphasis on the latter.

Before she had touched a drug, Anousha noticed she was having unusually deep and depressing

fighting the

thoughts and was overpowered by a feeling of emptiness. Unable to pinpoint her unexplicable pain, Anousha cut herself in an attempt to create a more tangible kind of pain.

“Since I was young...when something really bad happens, I can just block it out,” Anousha said. She attributes her depression, in part, to genetics and the lack of a “solid friend.”

“The girls either get fed up with her outrageous behavior or they don’t understand her depression and they shy away from it,” Stephanie said. “It’s easier to stay away than get involved.”

English, knowing Anousha her whole life, learned that nothing was easy for her cousin and always tried to help her. She was always there. English and Anousha grew up playing dolls and became inseparable, like sisters. Until two years ago.

When Anousha’s depression and mood swings increased, their strong bond eventually buckled under the weight.

“She didn’t understand who I was and my illnesses,” Anousha said. “I felt like she couldn’t accept it....I would tell her I didn’t want to live anymore and she’d be like ‘why?’”

English tries to decipher Anousha’s confusing behavior, and even when she fails, there is a common understanding of permanent support between the two.

“Sometimes it’s hard to tell if she’s doing something that’s selfish or just mean to me or herself...if that’s her personality or if that’s just her disorder,” English said. “I feel like I pushed her away...but I want it to be better.”

Anousha finds few that can understand and feel what she’s going through. So when she met a girl with similar problems, she latched on. Marisa Stevens, a junior at the time, became quick friends with Anousha.

“We had heard stories about each other that other people thought were crazy,” Stevens said. “But we understood and we clicked immediately.”

Stevens said they became friends because they “were just both depressed.”

Anousha and Stevens shared many problems, like depression and addictive behavior, but they had not one solution between them.

Neither of them had a close girl friend at the time, so after giving Anousha a ride to school one day, Stevens picked her up in her black Mustang every day following. While they were simultaneously sifting through therapists in search of a good match, the two leaned on each other for support.

real battle

After three attempts at rehab, student deals with manic depression and relearns how to love herself

// MACKENZIEWYLIE

“Once, in my car, something had really upset her and she started crying,” Stevens said. “I remember telling her that I could just tell by looking at her that it wasn’t fake. You could see the depression.”

Stevens said she was never angry with anyone but herself.

“There’s so many bad qualities about me I can list,” Anousha said. “The happy me is falling away.”

Anousha has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, depression, ADD, an anxiety disorder and scoliosis. Although she thinks marijuana and alcohol cause no problems for her, other drugs prove to be harmful.

*** She’s vowed to put her past with cocaine, oxycodone, and Xanax, behind her.

Therapists explained to the girls how cocaine would make them feel elated by raising their seratonin levels that amplify happiness. However, by producing seratonin, the drug weakens the body’s ability to produce its own. Thus, when off the drug, the body cannot produce its own seratonin, and it craves the happy high cocaine produces.

“It felt good while doing it,” Anousha said. “Then I’d go down, and then I’d be craving it to get to that good point again.”

A month later, her best friend was sent to the KU rehabilitation center after overdosing. While visiting her in the hospital, Anousha promised never to do coke again.

“I valued her a lot and I though I might have lost her,” Anousha said. “And then I realized how my parents felt.”

Anousha almost lost someone she loved, and she remembered the night she put her parents in that same position.

It was Anousha’s first week of high school.

After dinner, at around 8:30 p.m., Stephanie took the dogs for a walk and came back to her bright yellow house on Mission Road.

Her husband, Ali, was there. Panicked and crying. The polished, porcelain white door to Anousha’s room was swung open. Ali had unscrewed the locks after being informed by her boyfriend that Anousha had threatened to kill herself. He found his daughter passed out on the bed, unflinching. Ali rushed out to the car with her unconscious body hanging limp over his shoulder. Stephanie and their ten year old daughter Isabella followed in a hurry, and the four drove to St. Luke’s Hospital.

In the middle of the night, Anousha woke, puking up a grainy black liquid. A tube was inserted through her nose, pumping charcoal down to her stomach to absorb the drugs and toxins. At 1 a.m., a psychiatrist came in to tell Anousha she would be sent to the inpatient rehabilitation center for adolescents in the morning.

In rehab, Anousha lay on her bed and looked at the polished, porcelain white door. She knew better. She wouldn’t share her feelings with the prodding counselors, either. Although she went to group therapy where she played communication games with other patients, Anousha felt she was immune to the help offered.

“I don’t believe in rehab,” Anousha said. “You’re the one

that changes you, not someone else...I was very careful not to let emotion show because I wanted to get out of there early.”

Most of the time, Anousha was isolated.

The room was a cross between a jail cell and a hospital room, she thinks. There were no windows. Shoelaces and belts were considered illegal weapons in the facility.

Anousha charmed her parents and counselors with claims of recovery. She was better, she was changed, she said, and then she waltzed out of recovery to the mall with her mom.

But she knew she wasn’t better. Since then, Anousha has attended rehab two other times to work through her disease. The second time, she agreed to attending outpatient rehab, where patients go after school and come home for dinner.

“I didn’t get along with any of my therapists,” Anousha said. “If you’re going to tell someone all your secrets, you have to get along with them.”

At the rehab facility, Anousha confided in the counselors. After hearing about her mental state and current drug abuse, the counselors would not allow her to leave.

She was held for a week after being promised release within a couple days.

After each rehab visit, Anousha said she came back to school. She felt unchanged and unwelcome.

She understands what her peers think when they hear “rehab.” They jump to conclusions. They don’t understand the underlying issues behind the drugs, she thinks.

“They don’t get the mental part of it,” Anousha said. “People think you’re a coward if you have problems like that.”

Anousha started doing drugs for a temporary release from her sadness. However, the drugs were a bad addition to her thick mixture of problems.

“Most of the time when [people with mental disabilities] do drugs, it just escalates their mental issues, makes them worse,” a St. Luke’s rehab center RN said.

“When you’re bipolar, everything’s moving really fast. You’re just so happy and then you just go down. You’re depressed. You may not want to sleep or eat. You don’t want to do anything. But on drugs, you may be suicidal, wanting to hurt yourself. You may become aggressive and angry.”

Because of her bipolar and anxiety disorders, being productive becomes very difficult without her medicine.

Anousha swears by her Adderall for concentration purposes, and although she thinks she “acts like a robot” when on it, she says the lack of emotion it produces is not as important as the focus it gives her.

“I think school is the most important thing,” Anousha said. “Well, not really. Happiness is the most important thing, but if I’m not doing well in school, I’m not happy.”

Anousha is seeing an effective therapist who helps her tackle her emotional issues by uncovering their roots. She accepts her disorders and is learning how to prevent them from taking her under.

“I am relearning how to love myself.”

PAGE 13 FEATURES / ISSUE 10

From coffee shop to hip hop East graduate Alex LaPrade finds success as a marketing manager for rap artists // KEVINSIMPSON

A bow tie is all it took.

Alex LaPrade, East graduate ’07, was preparing to speak to a large group of media members for the grand opening of the coffee shop, Columbia Brew, Black and White, on Nov. 1, 2006.

LaPrade and Ben McNamara, two of the three student founders of the coffee shop, decided to wear bow ties. The tie gave LaPrade the extra boost of confidence he needed to follow through on his speech, and he says that is the day he turned the corner on his fear of public speaking.

Fast forward two years and three months later, and LaPrade is now in charge of his own marketing group, Web site and has big plans for the future.

Founded last year, the LaPrade Marketing Group promotes clients in the fashion and music industries.

LaPrade became interested in marketing after taking two years of it at East with marketing teacher Mercedes Rasmussen. His entrepreneurial side has led him on various money-making paths, culminating in what he says is his most successful venture yet.

The group’s first client, Dorsh Deans, has signed with TMG, a record label owned by Bad Boy Records. LaPrade’s clientele list also includes Jamal Robinson, TMG president, and rapper L.O. LaPrade started the business all on his own, with funding from small projects in the past, including launching two Web sites.

The Web site, called XUBookSwap.com, was a place where students could buy and sell textbooks without the hassle of a third-party. LaPrade compared the site to Craig’s List. However, the school threatened LaPrade with a lawsuit, and he shut down the site. He has since started a site selling graphic T-shirts.

LaPrade hadn’t always planned on this career path. He went to Xavier University to play soccer. After a year and a half, he quit. He saw the business opportunities ahead of him, and when he had to make a choice, LaPrade decided to follow through on a dream he didn’t think he’d follow through on until he was 40: starting his own marketing group.

LaPrade said he wasn’t worried about how the group would turn out. He points to his success with the coffee shop and soccer, as well as his hatred for losing, as indicator’s of his business’ promise.

The group is based out of Cincinnati, but LaPrade has plans for expansion.

“Nevada is the best place to start a corporation in,” LaPrade said. “They don’t charge state income tax. After I graduate from Xavier, I plan on setting up at least one corporation in Nevada.”

Before LaPrade moves on to the future and develops his marketing group nationwide, he returned to East to speak in the room where his interest for the business began.

His marketing teacher at East, Mercedes Rasmussen, said that LaPrade has made huge progress since he first walked into her Marketing 1 class as a junior.

“Alex was a very bright kid,” Rasmussen said. “But he used to get a little nervous when it came to actually speaking in front of people and personal one-on-one communication. Now, he’s meeting people from all over the world.”

However, LaPrade hasn’t forgotten about those that helped him at East. According to Rasmussen, he keeps in touch with e-mails every couple of months. In addition, LaPrade spoke to her Marketing 1 classes when he was in town over his winter break.

“I’m sure anyone’s reaction after hearing him talk is

phenomenal,” Rasmussen said. “I always knew that he had an ambition to want to be successful. He’s very much an entrepreneur; he likes to try new things.”

McNamara saw the improvement from LaPrade before and after he went through the marketing program.

“He definitely became a lot more ambitious,” McNamara said. “When he joined marketing, things just took off for him. Everyone who was at East during that time just knew he was always trying to sell T-shirts. He was always trying to make a profit. His ambition was evident.”

This ambition that began at East soon led to LaPrade signing on artists to join his group.

Deans and LaPrade met through a mutual friend that had played soccer with each of them. After the two of them signed on to work together, LaPrade unexpectedly worked out a deal with L.O. The pair were at a party where Deans’ music was being played.

“When I go to parties, I’m talking to everyone there,” LaPrade said. “I’ve got my phone in one hand, just networking, swapping numbers with everyone that I can.

I thought [L.O.] was very marketable.”

LaPrade and L.O. exchanged contact information, and the next day, L.O. was the third client of the LaPrade Marketing Group.

“I get a lot of [aspiring artists] asking me to do their marketing for them,” LaPrade said. “I was a little bit hesitant [to sign L.O.]. But once I sat down and listened to his music.

I decided that I’d be interested in helping and it would be beneficial to both of us.”

L.O.’s musical style, according to LaPrade, is strictly hip-hop. He pulls musical influence from Jay-Z, Outkast and Lil Wayne. Deans, on the other hand, can be described as reggae mixed with hip-hop, R&B and soul. “[Deans] is very musically talented,” LaPrade said.

“He does everything. His music is so diverse. People have compared him to Sean Kingston, Chris Brown ALEX LaPrade with his client L.O. at a recent photoshoot. L.O. is one of three artists that the and Bob Marley.”

LaPrade has marketed L.O. and Deans in a LaPrade Marketing Group manages. // COURTESY OF: ALEXLAPRADE multitude of ways, including putting their music on MySpace.

LaPrade’s marketing creativity has its roots at with them. I get e-mails everyday from musical artists East, where he started the coffee shop with McNamara asking me to market or manage them.” and Kristin Simpson. LaPrade says that the job taught him

LaPrade said he will keep expanding the group as entrepreneurial skills and leadership. long as he has full control over it. Even with an increasing Besides the coffee shop, LaPrade was able to show clientele, he hasn’t stopped thinking of ways to keep his creative and innovative side in other ways during his expanding his group. time at East. His senior year, LaPrade made T-shirts about In March, LaPrade will launch Amour Modeling using McNamara and his involvement on the varsity basketball L.O. and Deans as models. The list also includes models team. The shirts read “Mac Attack,” and they were initially from Biore, Sports Illustrated swimsuit, Abercrombie and just a way to support his friend.

Sean John.

LaPrade’s clients have roots running thick in the music With all his marketing work, LaPrade has to mix in school and fashion industry. Deans’ great-grandfather Eric started as well. He said that at the beginning of each semester, he a music school focusing on reggae. The school, based in explains his business to his teachers. LaPrade said that Kingston, Jamaica, boasted many young artists as its they generally allow him to send e-mails and answer phone students, including Bob Marley. Robinson created the calls during class, and some offer him advice as well.

Desiar sunglasses made famous by Soulja Boy. “Right now, I do my best to handle both [school and my As LaPrade’s client list continues to grow, Rasmussen business],” LaPrade said. “I also try to live a normal college believes he is an example that anyone can be successful in life. It is a lot of time, but eventually this is what I want to the marketing world with the right attitude. do when I graduate in two and a half years.”

“He wanted this for himself,” Rasmussen said. “He took Rasmussen isn’t surprised to hear of all LaPrade’s it upon himself to get out there and get moving. He’s got success. that self-motivation that is just phenomenal.”

“He had big dreams and big hopes,” Rasmussen said. “I This self-motivation that pushed LaPrade to start his knew if he actually started, he would follow through with own marketing group is now helping the fledgling business anything. I didn’t realize it would be so soon, but I knew he grow. He is always looking for new clients. would do well. He wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

“I meet people all the time,” LaPrade said. “I swap digits

PAGE 14 FEATURES / FEB 2, 2009

Drawingfromculture

Senior Laeden Galicia creates a mural on the south ramp of the cafeteria

BEHIND THE MURALS Galicia explains motivations for his drawings // ANDYALLEN

// MAXSTITT

// MOLLYTROUTMAN

“I’m just trying to bring a little of Mexico to Kansas City.”

After visiting the Aztec pyramids in Tenochtitlan on one of his annual visits to Mexico with his parents, the idea for Hecto en Mexico was born. Through his mural, Galicia tries to show the similarities between the U.S. and expresses his appreciation for different cultures and countries.

“The one thing I have enjoyed most [out of all my works] is probably this one because it’s something that will be remembered for a long time and it’s actually for a good cause,” Galicia said.

The cafeteria bell rings and kids stream onto the crowded ramp shouting and pushing past tightly-packed mobs.

Among the commotion, senior Laeden Galicia stands on a chair, streaking black lines on the south ramp wall with a lumber crayon.

Studio Art AP teacher Shelly Trewolla asked her students to do a 12-piece concentration (art work with a focus on one subject), and while most chose to work on paper, Galicia chose to work big.

“I wanted to break the tradition of doing typical art on canvas and do something out of the norm that’ll be remembered,” Galicia said.

Galicia is creating a mural on the south ramp for his project. When pep club sponsor Nick Paris and fine arts teacher Jodie Schnakenberg saw Galicia’s sharpie graffiti on the north ramp, they encouraged him to do a mural on the entire wall of the south ramp. In the mural, the cultural expressions of Mexico and the United States are depicted in similar images. Despite his efforts, construction plans include destruction of the mural during the summer.

Outside of school Galicia mixes in different genres of art, designing tattoos for friends, making his mark on the buildings of Westport and the Plaza with graffiti and remodeling houses with his dad.

“I don’t really think about it [graffiti] as being illegal- I just think about it as another form of art,” Galicia said. “I’m not throwing up my gang symbols or repping my block. To me that’s really childish.”

With the exception of Jewelry, Galicia has taken all elective art classes at East and enjoys a variety of creative works. Jeremy Williams, class of ’07, once suggested to Galicia that he sketch something for the pep club t-shirt contest. The design was presented to Paris who asked Galicia to design the pep club shirt for this year and last. Galicia will also create another design for next year’s shirt before he graduates and enters the KC Art Institute.

Only needing English and science credits, the majority of Galicia’s classes are artistic, allotting several hours a day towards the project.

Taking aspects from projects done in fine arts teacher Jason Filbeck’s watercolor class to graffiti seen on the street, Galicia forms his own original style.

“I like putting in a lot of feelings and I try to say a message or just something different in it rather than just doing it just to do it,” Galicia said.

Galicia’s unique style is evident in his 110-footlong mural on the south ramp wall. Stretching along the wall, Galicia imagines a colorful scene in which six images from both his Mexican heritage and his home, the U.S., depict the likenesses between the two cultures.

“Made in USA” and “Made in Mexico” banners are placed at each end of the wall in hopes of bringing his heritage and his home together in the concentration. A Kansas City skyline will fall between the Mexico and USA flags in the center of the wall and Lady Liberty and the Independence Angel will stand together, each representing their country. The entire image will show students a new side of Mexico that’s not so different from their own culture.

Working for as many as nine hours a week, Galicia hopes to finish the mural before construction workers tear the wall down in the summer. The wall enables construction workers to replace the windows behind it without disturbing students. While it’s too cold now to do the necessary concrete work near the ramps, weather improvements will allow workers to finish the area and tear the temporary sheetrock down sooner.

“It’s kind of like when people build those big sand castles or [draw] the great big sidewalk chalk art, the rain’s going to take it away one of these days,” said Aaron Cave carpenter foreman.

Cave suggested cutting the mural into pieces to spread throughout the school as an alternative to demolition. Photos will also be taken of the finished product to send to the Art Institute for a competitive scholarship and to preserve the memory.

“I love doing [art] so much,” Galicia said. “It’s to a point where if you tell me to sit down and write you a paper about my whole life story, to me it’d be easier to draw you a picture.”

// MAXSTITT

PAGE 15 FEATURES / ISSUE 10

Sophomore’s incidents with a stalker leaves her suspicious about any car // KATIEEAST

DRIVINGby

// AUBREYLEITER

A car drives up and down along the street.

Sophomore Amber Atha is peering out the window of her house, taking in reality. It is too dark outside to see a face or even a license plate number, but light enough to know that it’s him.

Since July, Atha has been dealing with a stalker.

“I never thought something like this could happen, or at least go this far,” Atha said.

According to the Stalking Resource Center, one out of every twelve women is stalked in their lifetime, and the average duration of the stalking is 1.8 years.

The legal definition of a stalker, according to United States Legal, “is a person you intentionally and repeatedly follows or harasses another person and who makes a credible threat, either expressed or implied, with the intent to place that person in reasonable fear of death or serious bodily harm.”

Beginning in the middle of summer, Atha received phone calls from a restricted number every weekend. According to Atha, the person on the line would tell her details he knew about her, like who her friends were, where she was at the time and other details about specific people in her immediate family. He would also say perverted comments that Atha would just reply to with “okay, whatever.”

Once school began, he would call to tell her what she wore to school that day and would tell her he knew her schedule. This led Atha to the assumption that he goes to East.

As time went on, he would on a weekly basis drive past her house. But one day he took it too far.

“He said he’d beat up my boyfriend so that he could be with me,” Atha said.

Atha’s boyfriend, freshman Andrew Long, first reaction to the threat was anger but then realized that the consequences for the stalkers actions would maybe be for the best.

“He would obviously give away who he was [if he beat me up] so that would seem stupid,” Long said. “It bothers me that he threatened me but if he actually does what he says, then he will cause more trouble for himself than me.”

Since the stalking had gone on for nearly half a year, Atha decided in late December to go to the police with the case. The police gave the case to the SRO Brady Sullivan at East to handle, because Atha believes the stalker goes to her school.

“At first I thought it was kind of stupid because I didn’t think [the SRO] would do much,” Atha said. “But I talked to Sullivan, and he is going to try to find him.”

Sullivan, the SRO in charge of the case, is going to try to help figure out who the stalker is but is limited to how far he can investigate.

He can only talk to people around school and ask them questions about what they know.

If Amber and her parents decide to make this a criminal investigation, Sullivan could go more in-depth with the case. He could do “anything and everything” such as looking at the phone records to see what number has been calling Atha.

“Typically in these sorts of situations, it’s a friend of a friend of a friend sort of thing, and that’s how they ended up getting a number,” Sullivan said. “Most of the time, especially at this age level, it’s more of a prank or a joke rather than something that’s serious.”

Sullivan says it could be a joke, but it can’t be known if it’s a joke until the stalker is actually caught.

According to the Stalking Resource Center, of 56 percent of females stalked, were stalked by someone who wants/had an intimate relationship with them. Sullivan knows when it changes from a teenager with a crush to a serious crime.

“It crosses the line when it is made clear to the person that it is unwanted and they continue with their actions regardless,” Sullivan said.

Atha’s friends and family are very concerned for her safety. Her best friend, sophomore Amy Wilson, is shocked and is realizing how real the situation is.

“It freaks me out a lot, especially for her safety,” Wilson said. “It scares me because you hear about it in like movies and news and stuff but you would never think that it would actually happen.”

Atha says that her being stalked has is affecting her life dramatically, dealing with it makes her worn out and she also loses sleep because of this situation. Atha doesn’t ever feel completely safe.

“When I get the calls, I can’t fall asleep afterwards,” Atha said. “The whole thing is just really scary.”

After the weekly call, she’ll tell her mom that he called again and she will talk to her friends and boyfriend about it. Atha doesn’t stay in on the weekends or is afraid to leave her house because of it though. She just wants to live a normal life and go where she pleases.

But her friends also have to be careful about what they do.

“He hasn’t made any contact with me but Amber has told me that he knows who I am, which is just really creepy,” Wilson said. “It really scares me a lot and really makes me want to be aware of who I’m talking to and giving my phone number out to.”

If the stalking continues, Atha is thinking

about changing her phone number and going to talk to the police again. Atha isn’t sure if the stalker would ever try to hurt her physically.

“I don’t think he would [ever try to hurt me] but he has surprised me before, so he might,” Atha said.

According to Sullivan, if he finds the stalker, chances are that he won’t get in much trouble. But if Atha decides to make this a criminal prosecution then the circumstances are different. It could be a Telephone Harassment Case, which is a misdemeanor crime and usually receives some kind of court supervision as a result of a conviction.

But according to US Legal, a person may be charged with aggravated stalking if they commit the crime of stalking while subject to a temporary restraining order, injunction against trespass, or similar order.

Sullivan thinks that Atha and other people who are in similar situations need to take steps to make situations like this stop.

“She should make sure the person knows that she does not want his actions to continue,” Sullivan said. “Then go about with normal safety precautions that everyone should be aware of, like be aware of your surroundings, don’t go out at night, etc.”

As of right now, Atha is just going to try to live her life as cautious as possible and she realizes that she has the support of her friends and family by her side to help her through this tough time and give her advice.

“I’ve been helping her talk about it and telling her what I think she needs to do to stop it. [She needs] to stop answering his calls and totally ignore it.” Wilson said. “I love her to death and don’t want anything bad to happen to her.”

POLAR

PAGE 16 SPREAD / FEB. 2, 2009

PREDICAMENT MYTH

The Harbinger investigates what goes into a snow day decis

QUESTION: What makes a snow day?

Senior

CHRISTINA DAVIS “I think a snow day depends on the amount of ice on the road and the wind chill temperature.”

Junior

DAVID TOWSTER “If seniors can’t have open lunch, then there should be a snow day. Also, if it is unsafe for high school students to be driving.”

Sophomore

REBECCA CALLSTROM

versus

REALITY STEP 1

District Operations and Maintenance manager Bruce Kracl notfies the maintenance crew the night before a potential snow day. They are instructed toSenior start plowing if a snowstorm does Senior enter the area.

District custodial crews drop sand and salt on all district roads, sidewalks and parking lots to prepare them in case school is in session the next day.

“If the amount of snow is more than three inches, the road conditions are bad and it’s too cold for people to wait outside for the bus.”

Freshman

BEN GARTEN “When it’s too cold for the buses to heat up the kids inside it.” // KATIEEAST

// SARAHM

The district makes their offical decision around 5:30 a.m., just in time for early morning newscasts. Parents and students should check the SMSD website and school closings listings on local news stations to learn if school is cancelled.

The district administrators talk to neighboring school districts Blue Valley and Olathe to compare decisions and conditions. They also consider forecasts by the National Weather Service and local news stations.

As early as 4 a.m., Kracl talks to associate superintendent Bill Frick about the road conditions.

Frick holds a meeting with district administrators as early as 4:30 a.m., where they will make the decision whether school will be cancelled. They base this decision on whether the roads, parking lots and sidewalks are safe for both students and teachers to travel on.

On a cold Tuesday morning durin of finals, where snow fell and tem dropped below zero, Junior Qi Chen w to school from his house that is in the B Northwest Area, what he calls “sub thought he was being careful as he d 2003 silver Camry in the accumula Chen turned left off the ramp from Roe Avenue.

He took the turn slower than h would, to avoid fishtailing, when su felt his car slide beneath him.

Chen moved the steering to c spinout. His car came out of the sp was able to regain control of his vehi “It was so slippery,” Chen said. “I normally do and cars started to slide Chen was among many stud experienced difficulties in traveling for their first hour final on Dec. 16. **** As soon as the district administ a storm coming, as was the case o they start to prepare right away. are watched, radars are monitored maintenance crew is called in to roads.

According to Lee Ann Neal, the Mission School District’s Director Information and Communications, of storms is crucial in making decisio The main issue that the district whether the roads, parking lots, and are safe for both students and teache on.

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“There isn’t an exact formula for making the decision,” Neal said. “Each storm is unique... first and foremost we want people to be able to arrive safely.”

Bruce Kracl, the district’s Operations and Maintenance manager, makes sure that this occurs by checking that the roads are safe.

Kracl is in charge of notifying the maintenance crew in the evening to start plowing for the next day if they see a storm approaching.

As many as 20 vehicles and drivers will come in to plow district building’s parking lots, sidewalks, and circle drives. The crew will also drop sand and salt on the roads and parking lots to clear them.

According to Kracl, if there is three to four inches of snow, it will take the crew approximately six to eight hours to complete the plowing and potentially longer depending on the amount of snow. This means that if the snow doesn’t stop until 2 or 3 a.m., the parking lots won’t be plowed in time for school by 7 a.m., which generally results in a snow day.

“If we make the commitment to start plowing, we’re aiming to make that day of school happen,” Kracl said.

The third shift custodial supervisor is also on the streets throughout the night, driving around the entire district from building to building to check on the road conditions.

After comparing notes with the custodial supervisor, maintenance crew and bus driver assessment of the roads, Kracl discusses the situation with Bill Frick, associate superintendent, about the road conditions as early as 4 or 4:30 a.m.

Frick will then convey the information from Kracl to the administrators who hold a conference as early as 4:30 or 5 a.m., where they make the ultimate decision whether or not to cancel school.

After gathering information about the roads from Kracl, the administrators look at various other things. They talk to neighboring school districts, Blue Valley and Olathe, to hear their assessment of the weather. In addition, they will also continue to watch the radar and forecasts of both the National Weather Service and local stations in order to make an educated decision.

After careful consideration of all of these factors, the district makes their final decision around 5:30 a.m. in order to notify the news as early as possible.

Once the decision is made, Neal relays the decision through news, the district website, as well as alerts via text messages and emails.

According to Neal, these methods are most effective in distributing information because they give parents plenty of notice so that they may plan their days accordingly.

Depending on when the storm is forecasted to arrive, the decision also might be made at night to cancel school.

Kracl says that even though deciding to have a snow day at night is rare, it will be done if there is a substantial amount of snow or ice on the ground already. According to Kracl, they don’t start to plow the streets until the snow is over with because they don’t want to waste all of the time and effort of replowing.

Although they can’t always get the job done and have school be in session, Kracl and his crew do the best they can.

“We can’t make everyone happy,” Kracl said. “But we try our hardest to make the best decisions that we can with the information.” ****

Neal says that even more unique than calling a snow day at night is letting students out of school early for inclement weather or having a “cold day.”

While many students might wonder if school will be released early because of snow and ice, Neal says this is not very likely.

“It’s one of our greatest challenges,” Neal said. “There are so many things we have to coordinate.”

Many times, if the district were to release school early, the roads would not be in good enough conditions to be driven on at the time.

However, by waiting until the normal release time, the roads will have had time to be cleared by road crews so that they may be more suitable for driving.

Both Neal and Kracl stress the importance of the nature of the storm as well as its timing in the district’s decision to release class early so students can get home.

“We try and put down the salt and sand so that a normal school day can occur as often as possible,” Kracl said.

When thermometers show temperatures below zero, but the snow or ice is absent, rumors of a “cold day” begin to spread. But at what temperature and wind chill?

According to Neal, there are no parameters set for a “cold day” because the district does not have such a thing as an official “cold day.”

“Extreme temperatures may also be considered as a factor for [snow days],” Neal said.

“But there is no set temperature or wind chill on which a decision to cancel school is based.”

Neal says that the cold temperatures would be more likely to cancel an elementary school’s recess than cancel school for the whole district.

The cold temperature would be a greater factor in other districts where more students walked to school or had to wait at bus stops, but since this isn’t the case in SMSD where more parents are able to drive their kids to school, there are hardly ever “cold days.”

“The cold is a factor in deciding about school days,” Neal said. “But we usually look at other factors a lot closer.” **** NBC Action News meteorologist Brett Anthony has never been asked about canceling school by district officials. However, after noticing that the districts mainly rely on the National Weather Service for their forecasts, Anthony thinks that local meteorologists should have their opinion heard.

Although he mostly agrees with the decisions districts make, Anthony has been surprised a few times when school was not canceled. This usually has occurred when more snow fell than forecasted the night before. He says that ultimately it is up to the driver to travel safely when the district does make a decision to have school.

“We tell everyone to slow down and allow extra time and space between you and the car in front of you,” Anthony said.

Anthony believes that the districts should primarily look at the safety of the roads and the amount of precipitation expected by the start of school. According to Anthony, they have to pay close attention to the precipitation because even a little freezing rain or snow can cause big problems and create accidents.

“It’s got to be a combination,”Anthony said, “of getting an accurate forecast, checking the roads and luck.”

&

PAGE 17 SPREAD / ISSUE 10

with bus driver

ANGEL GREEN

// KATIEEAST

Q. How does driving in the snow affect your ability to drive kids to school?

A. Actually, because the buses are so heavy, they’re really safe. Its not much of a difference, you just have to remember to take your time and give yourself extra room to stop and always be considerate of others when you’re driving.

Q. How much extra time do you allow to drive in inclement weather?

A. At least ten to fifteen minutes. You need to give a little bit more time than usual for the bus to warm up and then, after that, you also need to give a little more travel time so you can allow for more stopping distance.

Q. How do you eliminate distractions when you drive in the snow?

A. You always have to eliminate distractions, you always have to pay attention, keep your eyes focused on the road and drive for yourself as well as others.

Q. Do you ever have trouble starting the buses when it’s cold?

A. No, luckily we have the mechanics to start the buses for us in the morning, especially when its sub-zero weather. So we really aren’t bothered by that, the only thing we have to do is give a little extra time to let the bus warm up before we pull out and do our pre-trip.

Q. Do you see an affect on the kids after you pick them up from the cold?

A. Yeah, they’re usually glad to see us and because it’s colder in the extreme temperatures, I usually try to run a few minutes earlier than usual so they won’t have to stand out in the cold that long.

Q. Do you ever disagree with the district’s decision to call a snow day?

A. No, we’re needed when we’re needed and if they don’t see fit to cancel school then we’re here.

Q. Do you think there should be such a thing as a “cold day?”

A. Well, there are always certain improvisations that can be done as far as the children are concerned. They can put on extra clothing, we can run a few minutes early and there are always things we can do to accommodate the students on the cold days if the district does not see fit to cancel school.

Q. Have you ever tested the roads before you go on your route?

A. Not directly on my bus, I pretty much test it, so to speak, driving on my way to work in the morning.

PAGE 18 FEATURES / FEB. 2, 2009

// TYLERROSTE

BACK IN BRASS

Senior teams up with her father to play trumpet in church choir // ANNABERNARD

One day in the fifth grade, senior Elizabeth McDonald arrived excitedly at Briarwood Elementary. This was the day she would finally choose her band instrument.

That day, her father Mark McDonald was waiting eagerly too. As a former band member, Mark thought Elizabeth would be assigned to the flute or the clarinet because she was so small.

When they talked later that day, Mark was surprised at the instrument Elizabeth had ended up with. She would be playing the trumpet- his old one, to be precise. The band director liked that it was available for Elizabeth to play, lying unused in their basement.

Now as a senior, Elizabeth participates in East’s Symphonic Band, Blue Night Jazz Band, and District Honor Band. Her jazz band was named Grand Champion at the Winter Park Colorado Jazz Festival. She was also one of the few band members selected to go to the Kansas Music Educators Association State Festival.

The same trumpet that started Elizabeth’s musical career was Mark’s when he played in the fourth grade. He continued playing through his freshman year at KU, but after he decided he wasn’t going to major in music, he quit to focus on photography. He didn’t pick up the trumpet for another 29 years.

Last summer, Elizabeth and Mark decided to join the Village Church Brass Choir at Village Presbyterian Church. They had always been interested in playing together, and this seemed like a perfect opportunity. What was once two solo acts transformed into a father-daughter performance.

Still, it wasn’t as easy as picking up the trumpet and blowing out a song in perfect harmony for either of them. According to Elizabeth, the brass choir plays some pretty difficult adaptations in weird key signatures.

“Trumpets are used to playing in [key signatures with] flats,” Elizabeth said.

“We’ve had some pieces with four or five sharps, and we aren’t very good at that.”

Playing these pieces was even more difficult for Mark. After such a long break from playing, he has to essentially relearn to play the trumpet and read music.

“It’s hard,” Mark said. “When you’re learning the first time, you don’t know any better. When you’re learning the second time, you know you should be better than you are.”

Despite this obstacle, the two have managed to get into a pretty steady rhythm.

They play different parts in the choir, so at home they’ll run through their parts separately and then practice them together.

They try to do this for at least an hour at a time, once a week. Elizabeth practices an additional 30 minutes for her three other bands.

“Mark’s a little out of shape,”

Elizabeth’s mother Debby McDonald said, “but he’s okay with that. It’s just a fun, onthe-side deal. He has a little catching up to do.”

During these practices, Elizabeth and Mark will work together to figure out the best way for their parts to blend.

“We have to tweak our style,” Elizabeth said. “Sometimes we’ll play soft and sweet… or we play something staccato. It’s mainly about articulation.”

In addition to playing together, they both practice with the whole brass choir for an hour and a half every Wednesday. The brass choir is comprised of about 20 people with all sorts of musical backgrounds.

“It’s a fun mix of people,” Mark said.

“There are some who are retired, people who teach choral music at elementary school, all the way down to Elizabeth. She’s the youngest.”

The brass choir’s director, Stephen Casurella, says members usually arrive early so they can tune their instruments.

They will then play through each piece they’re practicing for 20 minutes. The brass choir is now rehearsing for services in February, March and for four Easter services. They’re currently practicing a minuet by Joseph Hayden and a sonata by Johann Pezel. “[Mark and Elizabeth] are fabulous,” Casurella said. “They’re great together and work really hard. They’re both a lot of fun.”

One of the best things that Elizabeth and Mark think came from the brass choir was the time that they’ve gotten to share.

“We’re both really busy with school and work,” Elizabeth said. “Now we have an hour and a half every week, just spending it together.”

While both father and daughter are happy with their shared activity, it may not continue for much longer. Elizabeth will be going off to college next fall and won’t be able to actively participate in the brass choir any more. She plans on continuing with the trumpet, but just for fun.

Though Elizabeth’s brother Jamie also plays the trumpet and is planning on joining the brass choir, he’s only in the seventh grade and won’t be joining for another three years. Mark wants to keep it up, but, due to the time commitment, doesn’t know if he’ll be able to. After all, he says, the main reason he joined was Elizabeth.

Elizabeth and Mark are content with playing together for now, and they both are grateful for what the brass choir has given them: time together and time playing the instrument they love. “[The choir] helped me pick [the trumpet] back up, and it came back fairly quick,” Mark said. “I also learned some humility, because my daughter’s better than me now.”

acting like a

gal radio

Teacher Jeanette Bonjour balances family, teaching and love of performing

// MADDYBAILEY

English teacher Jeanette Bonjour saunters out on the carpeted stage with a coffee cup in hand. She dusts the old-fashioned furniture on set in a cheerful manner.

“On the air!” a voice calls out.

She hurries over to the microphone stand.

“Good morning, Cedar Ridge! This is WGAL, the radiophonic voice of Cedar Ridge, Arkansas! This is Hazel Hunt speaking. I have just come on the air, and I want to know if anyone is listening.”

Bonjour is rehearsing for her upcoming show, “Radio Gals,” at the Chestnut Fine Art Center, a small community theater in Olathe.

She spends her free time doing what she loves--- performing in plays. In her real-life role as a mom and an English teacher, Bonjour’s dramatic nature is always present.

The four other Radio Gals burst out from backstage and join Bonjour’s character, Hazel, for a song on their radio show. Together the middle-aged, southern ladies sing exuberantly, in an attempt to get the local listen-

ers out of bed.

“Wipe that sleep from your eyes! Now it’s time to harmonize!”

Bonjour’s grand, soprano voice stands out from the rest. She finishes the number at center stage and bangs two cymbals together.

“If that didn’t wake you up, then I don’t know what will!” one gal playfully remarks.

The Radio Gals then make themselves comfortable in their living room and begin to knit. The set is decorated with charming periwinkle wallpaper, quaint light fixtures and a couple of old paintings. There is a coat rack garnished with top hats and colorful feather boas.

Bonjour, an East graduate, has been involved in theater her whole life. From high school to now, she has never stopped. When she first came to East, she wanted to find her spot in high school. She discovered theater.

“I was the trainer for the sophomore girls basketball team, “Bonjour said. “One time I was at practice with the team and I was watching the drama kids rehearsing ‘Sound of Music’ in the auditorium. I remember thinking, ‘That looks like fun.’ ” Bonjour wanted theater to be her place in high school. She got involved in drama and eventually performed in almost every school production.

Bonjour remembers her first performance on stage. She had a small part in “The Man Who Came to Dinner.” The stage was covered with props, so it was easy to bump into something. When she walked out on stage and knocked over an ant farm.

As if it was part of the script, the lead actor said to her, “Walk much?”

She replied with a giggle. She was mortified. It was only her first play.

Bonjour went on to study drama in college, receiving her Bachelor’s degree in performing arts at KU. She started to think about a career for herself. She had always been in-

PAGE 19 FEATURES / ISSUE 10

terested in teaching, but theater had always been her strength. After graduating, Bonjour decided to combine teaching and acting. She became a drama and English teacher in Lawrence.

“I don’t regret my decision when I look back on it,” Bonjour said. “Teaching was more realistic, and being a drama teacher was a good fit for me since I like theater and teaching. Plus, I wanted to have a family.”

It is time for Hazel’s solo on the show.

The other gals sit and watch attentively as she stands center stage. Her voice is strong, almost like opera at some points. Midway through, the other ladies sing and dance around Hazel. Bonjour concludes the song by pointing a pistol to the ceiling.

Fifteen years later and Bonjour is teaching English at East and has a husband and two sons, Parker and Mason. She still has time for acting at community theaters, doing one or two plays a year. Rehearsals for each play usually go on four weeks before the show, five days a week from 7-9 p.m. Opening day for “Radio Gals” is Thursday.

“Most of the people involved in community theaters have a day job and do theater in their spare time. They just do it because they love it. It makes it a family environment.”

Bonjour said.

The rehearsals were laid-back. During breaks the Radio gals would sit down, sip on their Sonic slushies and chat.

The director at Chestnut, Brad Zimmerman, has high expectations but never puts on too much pressure, as Bonjour describes.

He sits at the piano playing the accompaniment while counting out the beat, occasionally correcting the performers.

“That didn’t end on key,” Zimmerman says casually.

“Sorry, Brad!” the ladies say at once.

Bonjour’s drama shows through in her teaching. She enjoys teaching Shakespeare and having her students act out plays.

“When we read Macbeth we would read out loud and act it out. She would always explain it in modern language so it makes sense to us,” senior Gina LeGrotte said.

“She is so loud and dramatic. She basically screams, but it’s good.”

Bonjour even participated in the school musical in the fall. She sang “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” from the musical “Gypsy.”

“During class she practiced her part in the musical with Jacob Walters,” LeGrotte said. “It was very entertaining.”

Bonjour has started getting her sons involved in theater. She is taking them to try out this summer for the “Wizard of Oz “at Theater in the Park.

“They want to be flying monkeys. It’s their dream role right now,” Bonjour said.

“And they love coming to my shows. They are definitely developing an interest in theater, especially Parker since he is 12 now.”

Bonjour balances her teaching, parenting and acting with the help of her husband and her mom. They help out by cleaning the house, helping the kids with their homework and putting them to bed. When she has rehearsals and papers to grade all in one night, she just drinks more coffee. Bonjour works hard. She has gotten every part she has dreamed of-- a mom, a teacher and an actress.

The “Radio Gals” carry on with their radio show, frequently using the word “y’all.”

They discuss mayonnaise recipes and analyze daily horoscopes in the newspaper.

They also spend some time beaming over fan mail. One letter requested a picture of the beautiful, famous Hazel Hunt.

“Now, what would anybody want with such foolishness?” Bonjour said. “Well, I believe I have a few extras around here some place.”

TEACHER Jeanette Bonjour (far right) rehearses for her play, “Radio Gals.”

The show’s opening day isThursday. // Photo Illustration by MACKENZIEWYLIE

PAGE 20 FEATURES / FEB. 2, 2009

8

and counting

Meet the

family

With seven siblings and another one on the way, each of the Defeo children stands out in their own way.

Angelina -18

A freshman in college at UCM (University of Central Missouri) in Warrensburg, MO, she is a Vocal Performance major.

Luc -16

Drama teacher Tom Defeo balances family life with life at school

//ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OFTOM DEFEO

// EVANNICHOLS

In and out of school, he’s the man who makes things happen. He sets up light cues, oversees construction of sets, and keeps the east’s productions well-lit. He also changes the occasional dirty diaper.

As the technical director of all East’s theatre productions and the father or eight, soon to be nine, home-schooled children, performing arts teacher Tom Defeo plays the role of manager at school and home.

“I’m the resource,” said Defeo. “My wife likes to look at me as the superintendent.”

Once he has taken care of the Little Theater, Defeo makes the lengthy commute from East to his ranch-style house in Bannister, MO. However, more problems await.

The dryer is broken and the garbage disposal is malfunctioning.

After he’s wired in a temporary dryer, Defeo slides underneath the sink. One of his children approaches to help him. Then another, and another, and another.

“I had four of my kids at different times helping me out, including the two year old baby,” Defeo said. “Imagine me upside down underneath the sink, and I’m trying to do stuff, and she’s handing me tools.”

This situation represents Defeo’s belief of what a family is, and should be. He has always held a traditional view of what family is.

“There’s a lot of modern belief about what family is,” said Defeo.

“I’ve got more of a traditional perspective. Family is children and parents together functioning in a positive nature.”

To keep a balance between work and family, Defeo has to make sacrifices. “I have to say no, that’s the hardest thing, to my family and friends,” said Defeo. “For example, ninth grade enrollment

He works at the Mid Continent Library in Blue Ridge and loves graphic novels. He is the only boy out of eight children.

night. I have to be here as a teacher to talk to future students. Maybe for instance, one of my kid’s is doing a dance that night; I’m stuck in a rock and a hard place.”

With construction in full swing, Defeo is struggling to keep a regular schedule. He considers himself the resource, the teacher by example. Siobhan, Defeo’s wife, handles the children’s formal education.

The choice of home-schooling his kids came in large from Siobhan, Defeo’s wife. Attending both public and private schools as a child and teen, she noticed problems with behavior. This became the initial reason for choosing home school.

“I had a really issue with the way other people treated other kids.

Being picked on, called names, things like that,” said Siobhan.

With all the kids being two or three years apart from each other, Siobhan teaches them in a staggered method. While teaching each child individual lesson, the others will be working on their own assignments or relaxing. “[With] home-schooling, you’re usually on your own, taught by your mother or yourself,” said Luc, the only boy in the house.

Even though Defeo can be stressed from juggling of work, theatre and family, he has no regrets.

“There are no denials; children are a blessing,” said Defeo.

“About four months into marriage, we said ‘Here we go!” We did not want to wait and build careers and start having kids when I was 40 years old or something like that.”

Defeo has not made any plans for future children, but at the same time, he has made no plans to stop. For the time being, Defeo will keep the course, changing lights and changing diapers.

Josie- 14

Sophia-12

Veronica-10

Lucy-6

Her Real name is Josephine, but she prefers Josie. She plays guitar and wants to be a songwriter.

She loves dogs and country music. Taylor Swift is her favorite.

She plays the flute and enjoys sewing.

She takes ballet, piano and is nicknamed the “energy bar” of the family. Loves the American Girl series and “Chronicles of Narnia.”

She takes ballet, piano and shares her birthday with Abraham Lincoln on Feb. 12. Birthday party theme: Abraham Lincoln.

?

Number nine

“I think it is going to be a feisty one,” Siobhan said. She has a contest going with other friends on the sex and weight of the child.

Gianna-1

Shares birthday with sister, Lucy.

“When she was born, Lucy said that she was the best birthday present she got that year.”

Francesca-3

The family babysitter.

“She’s gotten really good at sitting by and listening or playing with Gianna,” Siobhan said.

WEBWONDERS

PAGE 21 A&E / ISSUE 10

New cutting-edge sites offer free songs, slang definitions and more 1

Daytrotter. com is a Web site where users can access tracks from aspiring new artist and popular independent bands alike.

They stand out because they are exclusively recorded at Daytrotter’s recording studio in Illinois. The best part: they’re all free to download.

3 2 1

Are You ready for your season? its time to get fit!

68’s Inside Sports is the place for you.

Only 15 minutes away fom Greatness! www.68insidesports.com Programs for all ages!!

// STEPHENNICHOLS

MSM McHENRY SHAFFER MITCHELL ARCHITECTS ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN INTERIOR DESIGN URBAN PLANNING

WWW.MSARCHKC.COM

2

While traditional newspapers have been struggling to maintain readers, new online media outlets are working to fill the void.

Theprintedblog.com compiles user-generated information from all over the web, which is laid out in a downloadable newspaper format.

3

If you aren’t sure what “third-hand smoke” is or don’t know how to define “iCrime,” wordspy.com can help. The site looks for buzz words that appear in the media and then defines them, even offering the word in a sentence.

The Harbinger takes a look at teachers’ not so successful past Valentine’s Days

“

{allmixedup the page about valentines day

{

PAGE 22 MIXED / FEB. 2, 2009

// PHOEBEUNTERMAN

DID YOU KNOW?

Kim Van Nice

-About one billion Valentine's Day cards are exchanged each year.

That's the largest seasonal card-sending occasion of the year, next to Christmas.

Before we were married, my husband John was taking me out to dinner, and he bought me a corsage and he knew he had to keep it cold, so he put it in the freezer. And it didn’t thaw out so then he microwaved it. And so about an hour into our date, it turned brown and yellow and it was really funny.

-About three percent of pet owners will give Valentine's Day gifts to their pets.

-Teachers receive the most Valentine's Day cards. Children between ages six and ten exchange more than 650 million Valentine's cards with teachers, classmates, and family members.

// DANSTEWART

“

Jason Filbeck

“ Cooking Instructions— In 2-cup glass container, microwave chocolate on medium (50 percent power) until softened; stir until smooth.

For easier dipping, stir in 1-2 teaspoons salad oil.

Use for dipping fruits, pretzels, truffles, etc. Recipe makes enough to dip six cups pretzels; or two pints strawberries Melting times— semi-sweet chocolate......2-2 1/2 minutes milk chocolate...........1 1/2-1 3/4 minutes white chocolate..........1-1 1/2 minutes

Jodie Schnakenberg

“

One year I slammed my thumb in a semi truck door...it was in like second grade, I remember because we were moving.

And I would always take my Valentine’s Day boxes and I’d cut the top off and I’d make like a house or an environment for my little dolls to live in. So I just remember I had this candy container and I went to like glue it down to my Valentine’s Day box and my nail, my thumb nail went ‘boing’ and went flying off and I started screaming...I was mortified.

“

Ingredients— 1/2 pound of chocolate 1-2 teaspoons salad oil

“

SWEET TREATS

I dated this girl in seventh grade for a week... around Valentine’s Day and I didn’t realize it. I got her a Valentine’s day gift, got dumped like on the sixteenth, right. Same girl, me and my best friend liked her in ninth grade. She ended up picking me, and we dated for about a week, and I got her a stuffed animal or something and flowers on Valentine’s Day in ninth grade when you don’t have any money, but I did it anyway. Got some little crappy four chocolates or something in a box...broke up with me on the sixteenth.

Again. And I risked my friendship with my best friend over this stupid girl on Valentine’s Day.

WORD OF THE ISSUE from The Daily Candy Lexicon: Words That Don’t Exist but Should {CRYDAY THE 13TH} n. The day before Valentine’s Day if you’re single.

// KATIEEAST

PAGE 23 A&E / ISSUE 10

MOVIEPREVIEW

SPRING

// LANDONMCDONALD

With the holidays over and Spring Break infuriatingly far off, there’s not much to do right now other than go to the movies. Now, usually late winter and spring are Hollywood’s dumping ground, a convenient place to vomit all their cinematic duds and dead end merchandise. Think mind-numbing garbage like the abysmal “Ghost Rider” and “Kangaroo Jack.” But 2009’s lineup may prove to be the exception. From masked killers to soulful violinists, from a superhero apocalypse to a new Final Frontier, this season has something for everyone. Here’s the best-looking of the bunch.

FRIDAY THE 13TH 2/13 THE SOLOIST 4/24

Normally I’m no fan of any remake, much less a wholly unnecessary reboot of a slasher saga that’s been dead and rotting since the late 1980s. But after watching the gripping trailer and rekindling my grudging respect for the first two entries in the series, I actually find myself genuinely psyched for this hardcore horror revamp. Can frustrated hockey enthusiast Jason Voorhees still make audiences jump and squirm in this modern era of torture porn and American Idol? Will newbie director Marcus Nispel keep that awesome original score? How much sexy underage drinking and fornicating will be permitted before the gory mayhem starts? I don’t know, but I’ll be first in line come opening night.

STAR TREK 5/08

Even though I’m an affirmed “Star Wars” fan, this sci-fi reboot piqued my interest when its director J.J. Abrams (“Lost” and “Mission Impossible III”) said he plans to dispel much of the original series’ monotonous geek-speak in favor of a more visceral, action-packed space opera, one closer in spirit to George Lucas than Gene Roddenberry. More power to him. And full speed ahead with creative casting! The new crew of the USS Enterprise features a young Captain Kirk (Chris Pine), a new Spock (Zachary Quinto from “Heroes”) and the always hilarious Simon Pegg (“Hot Fuzz” and “Shaun of the Dead”) as Scotty. If Abram’s epic doesn’t disappoint the fans, he may have a record breaking blockbuster on his hands. How do you say that in Klingon?

STATE OF PLAY 4/17

Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck star in this political thriller about a shaggy veteran reporter (Crowe) trying to solve the murder of a beautiful intern that worked for a powerful U.S. senator (Affleck), who ends up being the reporter’s former college roommate.

“State of Play,” loosely based on English television’s answer to “24,” should be fun as long as it doesn’t get too bogged down in bureaucratic jargon or the random, obligatory plot twists that today’s weak thrillers seem to thrive on.

DUPLICITY 3/20

Clive Owen and Julia Roberts star in this screwball comedy of espionage and intrigue. An ex-MI6 agent (Owen) and an ex-CIA agent (Roberts) fall in love and decide to pit two corporate rivals (Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson) against each other while secretly extorting millions from them both. With a powerhouse cast and the talent of director Tony Gilroy (“Michael Clayton”), this could end up being the surprise hit of the spring.

Jamie Foxx and the newly resurgent Robert Downey Jr. star in this inspiring true story of faith and friendship. It centers on the life of a homeless, mentally disabled musical prodigy (Fox) and the cynical journalist (Downey) who befriends him. Sounds like “Rain Man” redux, but given the tremendous talents of its leading men and “Atonement” director Joe Wright’s gift for crafting poignant human drama out of banal concepts, “The Soloist” might just be the first Oscar-worthy movie of 2009. And if not, Downey still has the upcoming “Sherlock Holmes” and “Iron Man 2” to fall back on.

WATCHMEN 3/06

It’s taken over two decades to finally bring graphic novelist Alan Moore’s famously “unfilmmable” masterpiece to the big screen. I just hope director Zack Snyder (“300”) stays faithful to the source materials. Thanks to that orgasmically awesome trailer that debuted in front of “The Dark Knight” last summer, “Watchmen” has quickly become one of 2009’s most anticipated films. The plot is beyond complex but I’ll try my best to summarize: in a dystopian alternate reality of 1985, Richard Nixon is still president, America won the Vietnam War thanks to a living A-Bomb named Dr. Manhattan and the earth’s superheroes are being targeted for death. One of these former costumed crime fighters, the brutal vigilante Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley), decides to investigate the mystery, prompting a chain of cataclysmic events. Will this graphically violent, R-rated superhero dirge connect with the mainstream enough to be a success? We shall see.

CRANK 2: HIGH VOLTAGE 4/17

Yeah, I thought that Cockney bruiser Chev Chelios (Jason Statham) died at the end of the first movie too. Anyway, Chev is back in action and so is the gorgeous Amy Smart as his ass-kicking beau. Apparently some inconsiderate bad guy harvested Chev’s heart after our hero’s apparent demise and replaced it with a car battery. Now Chev has twenty four hours to recover the wayward organ. This insane predicament will doubtlessly lead to more frenzied shoot-outs and the kinetic ballads of burning rubber that only a Statham movie can really deliver. Strictly for those who take their action raw and their plots nonexistent.

ANGELS AND DEMONS 5/15 Yes, the original “Da Vinci Code” movie had more than a few flaws to it. But this promising prequel takes on Dan Brown’s best and most intrinsically cinematic work to date, a pulse-pounding religious thriller about ancient cults, human sacrifices and captive Popes. Best of all, someone finally told Tom Hanks to get a haircut.

// PHOTOS COURTESY CELEBRITYWONDER.COM

SMASH

PAGE 24 A&E / FEB. 2, 2009

// ALEXLAMB

Back when I saw “Raging Bull,” I immediately considered it the greatest sports film of all time, following the rise and fall of a flawed athlete better than any movie had before. It’s funny, then, that the sport of the film to finally steal that prestigious title is predominantly fake, even though Darren Aronofsky’s indie gem “The Wrestler” feels more real than any sports movie preceding it.

Mickey Rourke plays Randy “The Ram” Robinson, a professional wrestler still battling it out in the ring 20 years past his heyday. No longer a big-time star, Randy is now over 50, resides in a trailer park (which he can’t even always pay the bills for) and works at a supermarket during the week. But on the weekends, The Ram lives, albeit in small venues staged in empty schools, with a pack of loyal fans rooting him on.

After a savage match nearly kills Randy, the doctors inform him that he can’t ever wrestle again. Since he can no longer partake in the only thing he sincerely cares about, Randy attempts to make a normal life for himself. He does what he can to be the father he never was to his daughter Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood) while she grew up, tries to pursue an actual relationship with the aging stripper Cassidy (Marisa Tomei) he loves, and fills his now empty weekends by working at the supermarket’s deli counter.

Rourke gets everything right in his portrayal of Randy, and he uses his real-life experience in the ring to become this worndown veteran of wrestling. During the ‘90s, Rourke dropped acting for five years to take up a boxing career. He eventually had to get plastic surgery, and has looked more like a thug ever since, hardly recognizable from his ‘80s pretty boy persona.

Over the past few years he has slowly been making a comeback, most noticeably with his role as the hulking Marv in 2005’s “Sin City”.

“The Wrestler” solidifies this comeback. Rourke’s acting here is just remarkable, the best of his career, and his performance is the finest I have seen all year. He’s already won Best Actor at the Golden Globes, and I have no doubt that he will be awarded the same honor at the Oscars.

Instead of portraying Randy as a “lovable loser”, Rourke plays him as a real man that makes real mistakes. Randy’s life is full of pain and hardship, more so outside of the ring rather than in it. He may get battered by a hillbilly wrestler, but the real poignancy can be seen in his everyday activities, such as when Randy plays with the children of the trailer park, letting them overpower him as he pretends to be an attacking monster. In moments like these, the warmth of a man whose job revolves around beating other men up shines through, and the audience is left wondering how such a kind soul ended up in such a violent sport.

Yet when Randy apologizes to Stephanie for how much he was absent in her life and the terrible job he’s done of being her father, to see this big, tough wrestler quietly crying and

STAR SCALE | |Stay home |

HIT

not asking to be forgiven, just to not be hated, is heartbreaking. Randy’s heart is always in the right place, and he really tries to alter his ways, but he just isn’t able to change his old habits, which only makes him more sympathetic in all the trouble he must suffer through.

Backing up Rourke also with fantastic performances are Tomei and Wood. Cassidy, a mother by day, stripper by night, receives little attention at the club from anyone other than Randy. Because of the depth provided

by Tomei and her world-weary eyes, the audience understands Cassidy’s motives and sees through her stage persona into the scared woman who lies beneath.

Wood delivers a rousing performance in the few scenes she has as daddy’s forgotten girl, and like the rest of the movie, she makes her performance real, without any Hollywood flavor or cliches. When she tears into Randy for his character flaws, her outrage and harshness are absolutely trueto-life for someone in her position.

However, It’s director Aronofsky that gives “The Wrestler” it’s underlying subtlety. In his past movies, drug-addiction masterpiece “Requiem for a Dream” in particular, he effectively used lots of quick cuts and fascinating up-close shots to jolt the senses. But in “The Wrestler,” he has dropped this technique for a more documentary-like approach, using 16mm film and behind-theshoulder shots following Randy around. This works amazingly for the movie, and immediately brought me into Randy’s world, as I felt like I was right there with him.

In any sports movie, the sequences of the sport have to be handled very carefully, and the three wrestling matches are done extremely well. The wrestlers discuss what moves they want to use on each other as they warm up in the back room, and it’s revealed just how fake and how real the sport of prowrestling actually is. The explicit brutality is shown in all its bloody detail, ranging from mangling barbwire to a winceinducing staple gun, but it never feels violent for violence’s sake, always proving that while wrestling isn’t a legitimate sport, the wrestlers themselves are legitimate athletes.

The final moments of “The Wrestler” are achingly beautiful, raw and honest in their pure emotional power. The ending plays out flawlessly, and I left the theater with the most touching film experience of the year, truly impacted by this thought-provoking masterpiece. Any movie that can affect my emotions and pluck at my heatstrings is special, and “The Wrestler” is one for the record books.

| Rental at best |

|

// CELEBRITYWONDER.COM

‘WRESTLER’ DELIVERS KNOCK-OUT PERFORMANCE

MICKEY ROURKE

G N I R E H IN T

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|Worth seeing |

Mickey Rourke wasn’t always in front of the camera. Before making his Hollywood premiere in 1981’s “Body Heat” he was putting up the red gloves in L.A.’s Fifth Street Gym, the same house that saw Muhammed Ali and Sugar Ray train. He faced world champions in an extensive amateur career, and fought his way to a 20-6 record, highlighted by a 12 consecutive first round knock-out streak. He went pro when he returned to the sport in ‘91 after a hiatus for acting, but retired after seven bouts, a million dollars and the cover picture of World Boxing Magazine. // IMDB.COM

|Instant Classic

// movieweb.com

Don’t skip ‘Defiance’

Daniel Craig’s newest action packed flick is one not to miss // LANDONMcDONALD

In a season overflowing with cinematic achievement, I fear that “Defiance” will be lost and forgotten amid the pre-Oscar scramble. That’s a real shame, because director Edward Zwick’s newest wartime epic, a rousing tribute to the Belarusian Jewish resistance during World War II, is one of the better movies in theaters right now.

It may not boast the acting fireworks of “Doubt” or the sobering relevancy of “Frost/Nixon,” but “Defiance” does possess one of the year’s most potent combinations of action and emotion. After years of brooding post-9/11 films, “Defiance” represents the return of the old-school war movie: one that extols the virtues of leadership and survival in the face of an overwhelming adversary. It’s probably the best of its kind since “Braveheart.”

The film opens in Nazi-occupied Belarus, a war-torn nation on the Soviet border where hundreds of thousands of Jews are being rounded up and exterminated by the German Army and Belarus’ own corrupt police force. These atrocities are seen through the eyes of the Bielski brothers, prodigal siblings who return home after months abroad to check on their elderly parents and youngest brother Aron (George MacKay).

After their mother and father are executed, the brothers manage to rescue Aron and retreat into the nearby forest to wait out the conflict.

The levelheaded Tuvia (Daniel Craig), the eldest Bielski and a born leader, quickly takes charge of what’s left of his family and discourages all talk of retribution, saying that their revenge will be to live.

The middle brother Zus (Liev Schreiber) is Tuvia’s brutal opposite, an impulsive firebrand who heedlessly seeks vengeance on the Belarusian officers who led the Nazis to his village. The second youngest Bielski is the meek, awkward Asael (Jamie Bell), who is forced into manhood by tragedy and must often serve as mediator between his constantly clashing siblings.

The brothers’ policy of noninvolvement comes to a grinding halt when they discover their woods are filled with displaced Jewish families in desperate need of food, shelter and unifying leadership. Tuvia and his brothers take up the difficult charge of founding and maintaining a forest community of hundreds while contending with the encroaching Germans and the onset of deadly winter.

STAR SCALE | |Stay home |

Edward Zwick is no stranger to war movies.

The underrated auteur cut his teeth on 1989’s admirable but overlong Civil War chronicle “Glory” and perfected his formula with the Tom Cruise action blockbuster “The Last Samurai” and 2006’s “Blood Diamond.” In many ways, Zwick’s entire career as a filmmaker has led him to “Defiance.”

Zwick’s command of action, especially during the Panzer tank battle and the twilight munitions raid, crackles with power and poignancy. The best scene of “Defiance,” a massacre interspersed with a lilting wedding dance, has chilling shades of the baptism scene from the original “Godfather.”

Yes, the film’s plot drags a bit in the middle, but “Defiance” proves effective even when it’s standing still. This is a testament to the talent of the two main actors, particularly our erstwhile 007.

Daniel Craig, checking all his Bond baggage at the door, imbues the character of Tuvia with a sense of reserved nobility and reluctant valor that calls to mind both Viggo Mortenson in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and Peter O’Toole in “Lawrence of Arabia.” Like King Aragorn and T.E. Lawrence, Tuvia is an ordinary man who becomes extraordinary when called into duty for the sake of his land and people. And Craig gets him just right, balancing out the white horse gallantry with telling pangs of guilt and human weakness. He continues to be one of the most surprising actors of his generation.

Liev Schreiber succeeds on a smaller scale in his serviceable portrayal of reckless hothead Zus. Rendered impotent by his thwarted revenge schemes, Zus is a role that could easily have been overplayed as a hyper-masculine cartoon, a locker room meathead turned Rambo. But Schreiber manages to find the character’s subtle nuances, especially when Zus must choose between joining a group of Soviet freedom fighters or staying behind to help his brothers through the winter months.

All in all, “Defiance” works brilliantly on its own terms. It may not garner rave reviews or be showered with golden idols on Oscar night but it still remains an impressive feat of filmmaking that shouldn’t go unnoticed or dismissed as another face in the awards season crowd.

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| Rental at best |

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PAGE 25 A&E / ISSUE 10

‘Reel’ entertainment Twangy reggae style band from the Sunshine State deliver an album that keeps the listeners attention

// JOESERNETT

Reel Big Fish, a punk ska band from Huntington Beach California, provides true entertainment. Their upbeat ska style songs never cease to enthrall and amaze. Whether it be the twangy reggae style guitar chord, the power chord and horn melody choruses, or just the awesome combination of reggae, punk and horns, they never fail to keep my interest, especially with their newest album “Fame, Fortune, and Fornication.”

Reel Big Fish released their first full-length album in 1995, and since have slowly gained popularity. The band was featured in the 1998 film “BASEketball” and has since tried a number of drummers, trombone and trumpet players, adding their last new member in 2007.

“Fame, Fortune, and Fornication,” has ten songs—all covers. The band puts an upbeat ska spin on many classics such as Poison’s “Talk to Me Dirty” and “Nothing But a Good Time,” Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” and The Eagles “The Long Run.” They also paid tribute to some of the great ska/reggae artists before them with Desmond Dekker’s “Keep A Cool Head,” and The Toots and The Maytals “Monkey Man.” Usually I’m not a big fan of albums that are all covers, because it doesn’t seem to take much creativity to make them. However, this album is an exception. Reel Big Fish did more than just play all the songs on this album; they transformed them from their previous form into ska songs with added trumpet and trombone parts that make the songs much more interesting.

When the band transformed these songs, they kept all the lyrics, basic notes and chords the same, while adding a bit of fun with trombones and trumpets playing along the whole way.

Reel big fish took the hair metal anthem “Nothing But a Good Time,” and put a new punk ska spin on it that makes me want to listen over and over again. The song is very heavy on light twangy reggae style guitar chords, with horns behind them. The choruses are dominated by power-chords and punkesque lyrics, also with horn melodies. The band was even able to adapt a sweet guitar solo, which is a little unusual to hear from this kind of band. However, hearing this guitar solo really made me appreciate the talent and depth of skills this band has, and it shows they can step out of chord progressions every now and again and truly rock out.

The band even took songs from not-so-main-stream ska bands, such as Edna’s Goldfish, and put their own spin on them. However, these songs didn’t sound very different from the originals, and they could have picked a stronger songs. In saying this I mean they could have picked a songs that would have needed more “adapting,” because when they play this song it sounds very similar and they don’t have to rewrite any of it to make it more their own.

My favorite was the band’s cover of “Brown Eyed Girl,” by Van Morrison. It’s a song that I have always liked, and when Reel Big Fish recreated it, it made me just want to dance, which I don’t normally do. This song had the twangy ska/reggae cords like the others, but in the chorus these guitar parts took a back seat to the horns and the “She la la la la’s,” creating a very memorable and amusing song.

The band pays tribute to their reggae roots in tracks eight and nine. The songs “Keep a Cool Head,” by Desmond Dekker and “Monkey Man,” by Toots and the Maytals, are both very well done. “Monkey Man” sounds very similar to its original version, but by having guitar parts as the dominant part in the song, there is a modern twist. The song is also sped up a bit, and the lyrics in the version are more “in your face.”

The album finishes with the band’s interpretation of “Talk To Me Dirty,” by Poison, A song that Reel Big Fish was able to recreate in a “pleasurable” way, by taking a distorted guitar part and making it clean and twangy, creating a more playful feel. However in this song the horns do not show up even once At first I was skeptical about this album. I had my doubts about the band being able to pull it off cleanly and without having too much criticism for trying to recreating so many popular songs. But in the end they did it, and I enjoyed it very much. The variety of songs they covered, and the different ways they did it was very intriguing and I can’t wait to hear their newest original album set to come out in late 2009.

| |Worth seeing |

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|Instant Classic

PAGE 26 A&E / FEB. 2, 2008

// BOBMARTIN

I have never been brutally murdered by a pick axe. It really isn’t high on my priorities right now, but while watching Patrick Lussier’s “My Bloody Valentine 3D”, it seemed like epitome of cool ways to die.

A remake of the 1981 Canadian slasher with the same title, “Valentine” follows the story of a small mining town that suffered the attack of a serial killer named Harry Warden. In a two year span, he massacred several miners. Then, he struck a group of partying teenagers, only letting four teens slip away from him--Axel, Tom, Sarah and Irene.

Now, a decade later, the handful who survived the attack are grown up, only to find that Harry is back in town and doing what he knows best: ripping hearts out.

From here, we learn that one of the teens, Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles), has gone on to inherit ownership of the mine from his father.

Another, the scruffy Axel Palmer (Kerr Smith), is now the town’s sheriff.

Having abandoned the place after his close call with the killer, Tom returns to find that the former “love of his life,” Sarah (Jamie King) is now married to Axel, who dislikes how close his wife is becoming with Tom again.

That’s about as deep as anyone paying attention to the story can really get, or want to get. This is due to the film taking no strides in making the story seem interesting at all. As soon as the first grisly kill springs out of the screen, any bit of concern the audience has for the story quickly fades as it gets consumed in the killings, which are the precise gore splashed spectacles that movie goers seem to love these days.

Casting all of these unheard of actors does nothing for the film and is part of its problem; any pretty young face could have played these roles and made the exact same impact. It doesn’t take seasoned acting chops to run away from something and scream. Granted, working with the available dialogue, almost no one could do the parts justice.

The entire script is choppy too. Characters make the same idiotic mistakes that have been getting them cut to pieces in slashers for years.

Then there’s the token lengthy scene of unnecessary full frontal nudity, and finally, someone who is extremely unprepared inevitably trying to fight the killer. The crowbar vs. pickaxe match-up never seemed like a good idea to me.

But really, none of that matters. The story could be nonexistent and the movie would still warrant a view. Horror, for the first time in 3D. Its remarkable how what appears to be a cheap pair of sunglasses could so drastically change a theatrical viewing. Every waking moment of “Valentine” visually pops out in front of the audience. From characters walking down a street and chatting, to a severed eye ball flying right for us.

At this point, “My Bloody Valentine” becomes more than a film; it’s truly an experience. When a spinning bullet is coming right at your face, there is no longer a disconnect between audience and character.

We are just as much feeling the terror of Harry Warden as every single sad sap with a pick axe through the chest, and that’s what makes this movie great.

“Valentine” has doomed itself in a sense though, because the availability of 3D movies is only at a handful of newer theaters around Kansas City (and the rest of the country, for that matter). My Bloody Valentine was made for 3D and must be watched that way. Certain scenes would seem pointless without it. That sweet extra dimension makes the movie just plain fun, and it’d be a very wise idea to axe out any intentions of seeing it otherwise.

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Ripping hearts out

“My Bloody Valentine” brings graphic horror, but an uninteresting plot

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3-D thrills

“My Bloody Valentine” (2009) was a 3D remake of the 1981 version. // www.allmoviephotos.com

STAR SCALE | |Stay home |

| Rental at best |

|Worth seeing |

// www.allmoviephotos.com “In the first murder scene, someone smashed an ax in the back of someone’s head and it went all the way through the eye. That part was very graphic. At one point, someone threw a gun and it came right at you. I thought it was cool that the 3-D effects were made from live action. Usually the effects are computer generated.”

-Sophomore Vince Parsons

|Instant Classic

PAGE 27 A&E / ISSUE 10 Online Episodes

RSS

http://www.webisode.com

World Wide Webisode Students tune into Web sites to catch their favorite television shows

RECOMMENDED

// COLLEENIRELAND Getting home just minutes late for a TV show could be enough to ruin the entire episode. It can be an annoying feeling. There’s a solution to that stress.

Instead of suffering through a missed episode, you can now watch when you want, even without owning a digital recorder.

As of September 2008, close to one-fifth of homes with Internet access, watch TV online, according to The Conference Board, and TNS. That is twice the amount of online viewers in 2006. Watching TV episodes on the web has become much easier with the addition of several new legal Web sites. Many of them offer full seasons of currently playing shows and also ones no longer running.

Junior Kristina Grandon enjoys watching Roswell on Hulu.com. She likes watching online because then she’s able to watch shows whenever she feels like it.

Grandon has only one objection to viewing shows on her computer, other than the fact that it only offers season one of Roswell.

“They have these ads, and I don’t know why but they’re way more annoying than normal commercials,” Grandon said.

The commercials are usually 30 seconds long and shown only a few times throughout the episode.

Viewers can expect to spend much more time watching advertisements on live TV, with commercial breaks consisting of several minute-long ads numerous times throughout the episode.

Whether better or worse, the short commercials are what allow these Web sites to provide this entertainment to its viewers free of charge.

Junior Matt Mueller watches shows ranging from Comedy Central’s “Scrubs” to HBO’s “Trueblood”.

Instead of choosing a Web site that offers shows from various stations, Mueller tends to visit the TV channels official home page for his show of choice.

Comedycentral.com is a frequent selection. Mueller likes watching online because of the convenience and the fact that he doesn’t have to rely on others.

“When I didn’t have Tivo, and I’d miss the first 15 minutes, I’d have to go watch with a friend who had [Tivo],” Mueller said. “But it’s still wasn’t satisfying because I didn’t watch it on my own.”

Mueller doesn’t have to feel like a moocher anymore but lack of comfort is a negative effect of sitting at a desk for extended periods of time. He’s also not a fan of the commercials, and the fact that it’s close to impossible to watch with a large group of people. He does like how it’s similar to DVDs where viewers have the whole episode laid out in front of you, allowing you to fast forward, rewind or pause.

Computer Applications teacher, Scott Dowis, likes to watch “The Office” online. Being a teacher can make it difficult to make it home for shows or find time outside of other activities. He goes to the NBC Web site to watch if he missed an episode because “it’s available” and there are less commercials.

In exchange for the shorter yet “more annoying” commercials, posture dilemmas, and sometimes limited episode choices, viewers get the opportunity to watch at your own leisure, control what you watch, and even view episodes no longer on TV all for free.

1:02

Name that

One Tree Hill

Gossip Girl

// ALL PHOTOS COURTESY CELEBRITYWONDER.COM, GOOGLE.COM

Here are some free and legal ways to watch your favorite shows online

Hulu allows you to watch full episodes of your favorite television shows, with limited commercials. It even offers full-length movies.

Along with movies and television shows, Sling allows you to watch live television with a simple connector called a SlingBox. Visit their Web site for more information.

SHOW See if you can put these top four online viewed shows from 2008 in order.

House

Heroes // READWRITEWEB.COM

TidalTV and Hulu are very similar, but TidalTV is based more on being an online “TV guide” to help viewers find shows by genre and not just through search.

Answers: 1. Gossip Girl, 2. House, 3. Heroes, 4. One Tree Hill

PAGE 28 SPORTS / FEB. 2, 2009

DIVING IN TOGETHER Junior swimmer Jack Walker and his freshman sister Elli, a team manager afflicted with Down syndrome, share a common bond through a love for the sport // SAMLOGAN Quicker than most kids can put on their own pair of floaties, freshman Elli Walker was capable of swimming.

And despite having all four limbs, it took her even longer to learn how to walk.

When her muscles weren’t ready to stabilize her for mobility, the water gave her legs movement. When she can’t remember something she smiles and giggles.

Elli has Down syndrome, and because of this, her mental and physical developments are impaired.

Her younger brother was born the same way—the other, junior Jack Walker, wasn’t. He walked before he talked— like most people—but managed to get accustomed to the water early on, also.

They share the same last name, house, mother, father, and sport. They arrive and leave swim practice together.

The only difference, though, is that Elli is the manager, Jack is the state champion.

They really are the same way.

Bonded by a love for their sport and each other, the Walkers get to be with one another at practice—for better or for worse.

Elli finds herself a spot on the bleachers as Jack stretches across the way. It’s just another day after school.

By the time he’s five sets in, she’s five songs in.

Elli brings her iPod to practice everyday along with a pair of boogie shoes in the form of pink and white Nikes. They’re to Elli what flippers are to Jack, getting them through their two hours at the pool, day-in and day-out. On most days, though, you won’t typically see Jack dancing to Lizzie McGuire the way his sister does.

“It’s called ‘What Dreams Are Made Of’,” Elli said with an uncertain laugh as she tried to remember what movie it was from, “and I sing to it, too, sometimes.”

It sounds like a sibling’s worst nightmare, but it’s not.

Elli just likes to have fun at practice, and Jack knows that— even when he might not be in the midst of a 400 meter set or when he’s going for a state qualifying time.

“I’m always initially embarrassed when we’re warming up for a meet and she’s in the corner dancing and I’m just like, ‘Oh my god,’” Jack said shaking his head. “I’ll hide my face and hope no one sees it, but then I think about it, and it’s happened so often I’m just used to it.”

Consider Elli the team captain if singing and dancing won swimming and diving state championships. Obviously they don’t, but it doesn’t bother her. Besides, she has other things to do at practice like organize papers, talk to her fellow managers junior Lexi Mische and sophomore Dana Sherard, or retrieving coach Wright’s mail from the office while laughing the whole way there.

“I like it when Wiley tells stories. He tells funny ones,” Elli said of being around the coach that anybody is on a firstname basis with. “Every time I go to practice he’s like, ‘Do you have your phone?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, why?’ He says, ‘Because I want to call Santa.’ And I’m like, ‘NO! You are not going to call Santa Claus.”

It’s Coach Wright’s fun nature and welcoming personality that is a reason for Elli’s involvement on the team, aside from Jack’s influence.

“She has limited ways to interact with high school kids so she’s going to take the ones she can,” Jack said. “Elli was always going to manage for the swim team just because Wiley’s such a great guy and he asked her if she would long before she was even ready to do it.”

Because she has Down syndrome, Elli will never hold a behind-the-desk job. She will never have a state record

time in the 50 free. Nor will she ever have the chance to compete the way her brother can.

Through swimming and managing, though, Elli’s work around the pool will benefit her in every facet of her adult life.

Fetching mail and delivering water bottles are career skills she will hold with her forever. The life lessons she has observed through having an older brother as a role model, though, will stick with her even longer.

For many summers the Walkers have attended Homestead Country Club where all four of their kids have been on the swim team. Countless times senior Spencer Sherard’s mother and Homestead coach, Marjorie, had to grab Elli and throw her in the pool because she was afraid of the deep end. In reality, she was being just another kid.

Kevin Walker, their father and former JUNIOR Jack Walker prepares to dive into the water as his sister, freshman Elli Walker, times him with her cell University of Kansas swimmer, believes phone. Elli is a team manager and has Down syndrome, and the two share a love for swimming. that, “What your folks expose you to ear// PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MAXSTITT ly on, you usually like.” In the summer, Homestead is where they hang out. Spendgirls’ team. Jack’s is to help her interact with her peers. ing time in the pool, Jack’s three younger sibTo be able to socialize with them. lings watch him in his environment. It’s the same one that To get along with them. belonged to their father, and is now becoming theirs, too.

To laugh with them.

“I’ve learned from a young age to accept what Elli can It’s a short list with a long-lasting effect, and it’s why she do,” Jack said. “When she’s learning to do things like a flip turn it just really makes me realize that when I was in the stays active, Mr. Walker explained.

“If you come home from school every day and sit around same position it didn’t take near as long.” doing nothing, you’re going to set yourself up for a life of Elli’s progression comes at a different pace than Jack’s, getting off work and doing nothing,” he said. but it’s the end result that is a sign of achievement.

And there’s no doubt Elli’s constantly busy; she was When she was younger, it took Elli two years to learn football manager in the fall, swimming manager in the winhow to do backstroke. The same girl who learned to wade before walk was afraid of floating on her back. She eventu- ter and full-time swimmer in the spring. Not much more you ally picked it up, and with it, made Jack realize his gifts can’t can do, because as Mr. Walker continued to say, “Just like be taken for granted. Elli’s lucky to even be in the water, but every other kid at east, if you can find a way to get involved, then it exposes you to more things and makes you a more even luckier to have Jack as a brother.

“If I take things one step at a time I can overcome my well-rounded person.”

Despite being afflicted with Down syndrome, Elli can be challenges just like they overcame theirs. It’s not because a well-rounded person. She participates in Pack of Pals— I can do these things that I do it,” he said. “It’s because everyday I go home and see people who can’t, and in turn, goes ice skating and bowling with them, has the free spirit to sing and dance—even if 50 high school swimmers are struggle with normal, everyday things.” watching, and most of all, is a sister that cares.

Elli’s been told she has Down syndrome.

Elli may not realize she’s progressing at a slower rate It doesn’t change her outlook on anything. If she has a bad day, she puts it aside. If she meets someone who says than her classmates, but her heart is still as big as theirs.

“Having Elli around at practice really shows that there’s ‘Hi’ in the hall, she’s happy. If that same person doesn’t sit with her at lunch, she doesn’t think twice. She focuses on more to life than swimming. Not everything is going to make or break at state,” Jack said of their relationship. “Swimthe good, not the bad. ming, especially, is such a life-long sport that I’m learning Maybe it’s why she’s always smiling.

Sometimes she doesn’t realize she has Down syndrome, lessons from her while she’s also learning things from me though—Jack says they tend to remind her here and there. that will help us long after our swimming days pan out.”

But that day may never come. After all, Elli took her first She’s the same Elli even though she forgets she’s living with strokes before her first steps, and Jack has shown his coma third copy of her 21st chromosome instead of just two.

“You get your satisfaction and pride as a parent in seeing mitment off the blocks with two state rings. Their swimming your kid do the best that they can do because everybody’s days, at this rate, will last forever.

It’s an everlasting friendship that will continue because got different abilities,” Mr. Walker explained on having two children diagnosed with the disorder. “Whether they’re top of the water and what they learn from each other. With in the state, league, or school… Or they’re just participating; Down syndrome, everyday’s a new lesson. Jack’s love for Elli has shown he’s willing to learn them, be it in the water it’s what makes you proud.”

With it come different expectations and goals. Elli’s is to or out of the water.

Aside from learning a new dance step or two, that is. get ready for the spring, when she’ll be swimming with the

WRAPPING UP

THE SEASON With the wrestling season coming to an end, the Lancers are finishing strong

RIGHT: Senior Sam Coen throws his oppenent on his back during his match. So far this season, the varsity wrestlers have a 132-114 record.

Sam Coen and the rest of the seniors have already put together a record of 50-36. // TYLERROSTE RIGHT BELOW: Freshman Blake Hill attempts to wrap up his opponent for a pin. // TYLERROSTE

PAGE 29 PHOTO ESSAY / ISSUE 10 LEFT: Freshmen Jack Hedrick wraps up a JV wrestler from Olathe South. // MACKENZIEWYLIE BELOW: Senior Greg Guthrie waits to begin his senior night match that was held at East on Jan. 22. Each senior on the team got a congratulations and standing ovation before the matches began. // MACKENZIEWYLIE FAR BELOW: Sophomore Chase Woofter, and seniors Brandon Royle and Chris Hasselwander stand for the pledge of allegiance in the East gym on senior night. // MACKENZIEWYLIE

PAGE 30 SPORTS / FEB. 2, 2009

THREE’S COMPANY

FROM left to right: freshman Blaine Hill, sophomore David Hill and freshman Blake Hill. They are wrestling in the JV meets, but consistently practicing with varsity. // ANDYALLEN

// JACKHOWLAND

Sweat dripping off of his exhausted face, sophomore David Hill takes a quick glance to his left; no one. He slowly shifts his head forward, now focusing on every individual stair, regaining his pace. He fires a look to his right. A look of panic suddenly comes over him. It’s his freshmen brothers Blake and Blaine Hill.

As he turns the corner down the north ramp, his jog becomes an all-out sprint. Rounding the turn into the homestretch, he takes one final stride to finish off the daily conditioning for wrestling practice.

Almost as soon as he finishes, he turns around just to make sure that he had won. A grin comes across his face.

The Hill brothers have always been competitive. They still are, their aggressiveness has helped them to move up to the varsity level as underclassman.

“Growing up we were competitive,” David said. “We would play basketball, we’d run, or just wrestle in the house.”

And they’re all doing just fine this season. All three have solid resumes including recent success in meets. At the Northwest tournament, Blaine went 4-0, finishing first. Blake finished second in the same tournament, going 3-1. David’s last meet was at Piper, and he went 3-1, finishing second.

“I would say they all probably have at least 20 wins,” JV coach Jason Filbeck said. “And none of them have more than 5 losses.”

Their chidhood days usually consisted of petty little games, including their personal favorite, wrestling. They had no mats or gear. They had no referee watching their every move, or a coach hollering from the sideline. They had a backyard, a couple of lawn chairs, and each other. That’s all

they needed.

“Any kind of game we could make up we played,” Blaine said.

Although they didn’t wrestle in a competitive league, they had all the experience they needed from their backyard brawls.

These competitive games also helped this trio of brothers find their forte, sport. They were soon competing for local basketball and football teams, their competitive drive as evident as it was during their backyard scruffs.

When it came time for high school, the oldest brother , David, 16, chose wrestling as his winter sport. But just like so many freshman wrestlers, he did not pick everything up immediately.

“I felt inexperienced on the first day,” David said. “I knew no moves or anything.”

But he made up for the initial inexperience with hard work.

“A lot of times he’ll be done a lap before anyone else during conditioning,” Filbeck said. “And he always asks us permission to run another, of course we let him.”

His hard work is the first thing you notice when you see him. His determination to keep going also is one of his trademarks. Even through injury he continues to tough it out.

“Right now David has cauliflower ears,” Blaine said. “It’s when your ears get rubbed and swell up.”

Most wrestlers would take a break after this injury, but not David, he just went to the doctor, got the problem fixed and moved on. This trait in him is one that has helped him to win awards like, “JV Wrestler of the Year” and “Hardest Worker” for the 2007-08 JV team. This trait is also seen in his two younger brothers.

The Hill brothers continue to improve in wrestling through hard work and sibling motivation

“Both Blake and Blaine are very hardworking,” Ufford said. “They’re also very strong and athletic.”

Blake and Blaine are just two standouts among an impressive freshman class.

This year’s class is one that Ufford said is the most promising freshman class he’s seen in a while.

David has helped to inspire this year’s freshman class.

“When other wrestlers see him win a match, we always say, oh he’s in betters shape,” Filbeck said. “And they say well maybe if we worked that hard we could be winning too.”

David’s hard work tends to bring up everyone around him. He has a habit of inspiring his brothers. As a matter of fact, he’s the one that convinced them to wrestle in the first place.

“I was going to do basketball,” Blake said. “But David was wrestling so I wanted to be in the same sport as him.”

With this gut decision, Blake and Blaine joined the wrestling team. But just like their older brother, they started off slow.

“The first day was so confusing,” Blaine said.

Both Blake and Blaine were inexperienced with the concept of a move and nearly everything else that goes along with it. But they caught on quick.

They began to pick up everything in stride. The moves began to feel more natural and the conditioning began to feel easier. They continuously came to their practices, giving every sprint, weight lift and drill their full effort.

All three of the Hill’s impressive showings did not go unnoticed. They were all moved up to practice with varsity, all as underclassmen, creating a unique situation, three brothers competing with the varsity team. A situation rarely seen in high school wrestling.

“I can only remember a couple instances where we’ve had a situation like this,” varsity wrestling coach Chip Ufford said.

Although sometimes the over hyped brother combo can result in a bust. But unlike all brother combinations, the Hill’s consistently show traits of hard work and determination.

“They don’t want to let the other brother beat them,” Ufford said. “They push each other out there.”

And this trait is evident on the mat. Each brother is fiercely competitive, especially with each other. But when they’re not wrestling it is easy to see just how good of friends these brothers are.

“We’re with each other basically all the time,” Blake said.

“On the weekends we’ll stay home and hang out, or play football.”

Instead of spending their time resting from the exhaustion that comes with wrestling, the Hills would rather be playing outside. They would rather be doing anything then sitting inside and gazing at a television screen. They go outside to stay in shape, but they don’t mind messing around once in a while.

“Blaine, um, sometimes rubs boogers on me,” Blake said.

“It can get really annoying.”

Sometimes the brotherly love is friendly, sometimes it’s honest and harsh, but the Hills are there to help each other improve, whether in school or out on the mat. Actually, the Hills have a tendency to help the entire East wrestling team improve.

And hopefully they will continue to improve an already outstanding East team. Last year East took fourth in state with a Regional and Sunflower championship. And with the addition of three outstanding brothers, things are only looking up.

They are helping out teammates, winning matches, and most of all, working hard.

“David always works so hard and his little brothers have the exact same traits,” Filbeck said. “Must be good parenting I guess.”

*

PAGE 31 SPORTS / ISSUE 10

WINN CLARK SENIOR BOYS’ BASKETBALL

ON PLAYING VARSITY FOR THREE YEARS...

It’s been a fun and unique experience. It’s been lots of hard work.

ON PLAYING WITH SIX OF HIS CLOSEST SENIOR FRIENDS...

It’s my favorite part about being on the team. All of us are such good friends that it makes playing hard together just that much more fun.

ON BALANCING AN IB SCHEDULE AND BASKETBALL...

It’s tough and time-consuming. Both just take hard work to make it work.

ON THE POSSIBILITY OF GOING TO CANADA FOR COLLEGE AND PLAYING BASKETBALL...

Going there is definitely an opportunity... Especially academically and financially because McGill Unieversity in Montreal is ranked in the top 20 worldwide.

ON WHAT WENT WRONG IN McPHERSON...

A lot of things happened that shouldn’t have, but most of all we just had some chemistry issues.

buying time with...

Tuesday // MACKENZIEWYLIE

Boys’ Basketball @ SM North- Coach Hair’s brother, BJ, who is at the helm for SM North will meet up on his home court in his third meeting against East. The Lancers took both games last season but can expect a formidable match in the Indians. Just when you thought watching Coach Hair was fun, prepare for a double dose.

Entertaining antics from both benches should be expected.

Sports panel the

ON COACH HAIR’S TENACITY...

He’s a tough coach but gets the best out of us when it matters most... Sometimes he can be kind of scary, though.

ON HIS EXPECTATIONS FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR...

Both personally and as a team, I want to keep competing hard and push through League like I know we can.

ON HIS BEST PERFORMANCE OF THIS SEASON...

Saturday Thursday

the week ahead

Against Lee’s Summit West in the Hy-Vee Shootout, I attacked the rim well and made my free throws.

Varsity Wrestling @ Osawatamie Dual- Last years’ Sunflower League champs lost a lot of key contributors but hope to continue placing well this season. It will take high placings from the likes of junior Tanner Johnson and sophomore Chase Woofter to give the Lancers some added momentum towards state.

Boys’ Swimming @ League- For the sixth season in a row, the boys in the pool will defend their League title as they take on their main state competitors in Olathe East. It will be the first time the two teams go head-to-head while at full strength. Expect big days out of senior Spencer Sherard and sophomore diver Peter Frazell, both returning letter winners. The meet at Prairie Trail Junior High will set the stage for the state meet on Feb. 20 in Topeka.

Giving you the heads up on the sporting down low Boys’Basketball @ SM North

Varsity Wrestling @ League

Top College Basketball Team

SM East

Olathe South

Wake Forest

Todd Haley

Hey, East Lancers

SM East

SM East

UConn

Todd Haley

Bananas

SM East

SM East

North Carolina

Mike Shanahan

Bananas

sam logan

kevin simpson cam smith

Chiefs’ Next Head Coach

Best Basketball Game Cheer

PAGE 32 PHOTOESSAY / FEB. 2, 2009

Environmentally Educated

Over the next two months juniors and seniors will help elementary school students become... // DANSTEWART

// DANSTEWART

RIGHT: Susie the tarantula crawls across senior Hilary Klien’s hand as she passes it off to one of the elementary students.

The students had the opportunity to pet a variety of animals including: turtles, chinchillas and hedge hogs // MACKENZIEWYLIE

// MACKENZIEWYLIE

ABOVE: Students from St. Agnes feel the scales of the snake as East students lay it across their laps. Shwag, a carpet python, was donated to East in 2005. // MACKENZIEWYLIE LEFT: Senior Alex Horvath holds a corn snake as a student from St. Agnes is amazed by the texture of the snake’s scales. // MACKENZIEWYLIE FAR LEFT: Dead before winter break, the environmental ed students still shine a flashlight on the creature to show that it changes color. // MACKENZIEWYLIE