SPECIAL MUSIC MOVIES AND RECIPE

LET ME PUT YOU ONTO SOMETHING:

This year may have been awful, but at least the music wasn 't.

Bali C-M (12)

For me, and I think everyone on this planet, 2020 was not the best year ever. However, one thing that helped me through it was music. I love music, dare I say more than your average person does, and listening to my favourite artists and discovering new ones was both a source of comfort and joy this year. Music is a great way to connect with people, and I did that this year by making playlists for my friends around the world, to share what music I'd been enjoying and receiving their music recommendations in return. I wanted to do the same for you all, so I compiled a list of my favourite albums that came out this year, and collaborated with some of my music-loving friends to give you a list of our favourite not-so-mainstream (alternative) artists. I hope you find a new artist that you like!

punisher by phoebe bridgers best songs: garden song, saviour complex, chinese satellite down in the weeds, where the world once was by bright eyes best songs: one and done, forced convalescence, pan and broom, stairwell song chip chrome and the monotones (deluxe) by the neighbourhood best songs: stargazing, the shining, over the influence zeros by declan mckenna best songs: be an astronaut, saggiatarius a* , rapture what could possibly go wrong by dominic fike best songs: why, vampire, politics and violence fetch the bolt cutters by fiona apple best songs: I want you to love me, under the table, shameika folklore by taylor swift best songs: mirrorball, seven, my tears ricochet, august, the lakes ungodly hour by chloe x halle best songs: ungodly hour and do it plastic hearts by miley cyrus best songs: gimme what i want, WTF do i know, midnight sky after hours by the weeknd best songs: after hours, escape from la, faith, in your eyes, and snowchild man on the moon III: the chosen by kid cudi best songs: tequila shots, sad people, solo dolo pt. 3, elsie’s baby boy ctv3: cool tape vol. 3 by jaden smith best songs: rainbow bap, cabin fever sin miedo by kali uchis best songs: aqui yo mando, telepatia miss anthropocene by grimes best songs: delete forever, violence en garde by ethan gruska best songs: enough for now, blood in rain, dialing drunk sawayama by rina sawayama best songs: xs, bad friend beginners by christian lee hutson best songs: athiest, lose this number, get the old band back together

Baking was another activity I got more into in 2020, and I made this recipe a ton when we did school online. The coconut and pudding mix make it unlike any other banana bread I've ever had. Ingredients: 5 mashed bananas 4 eggs 2/3 cup canola oil 2 cups flour 2 cups white sugar 2 1.7oz boxes of chocolate instant pudding mix 1 teaspoon baking soda 1.5 teaspoons sea salt 1 cup shredded coconut 1 semi sweet chocolate bar cut into fine-ish chunks

Method: 1.Heat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour a Bundt pan. 2.In large bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs and oil. 3.In a separate bowl, combine the flour, sugar, pudding mix, baking soda and salt as well as the chocolate and coconut 4.Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine gently, folding it with a rubber spatula 5.Pour the batter into the pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes from my experience if not longer. 6.Let it cool for a few minutes then flip that bad boy over onto a plate. 7.Let it cool more and slice.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies!

I spent a lot of time on TikTok too, and found many creators that I enjoyed. This recipe is is from Jeremy Scheck who makes cooking videos. Check him out @jeremyschek! Ingredients: 1 cup (2 sticks or 226g) softened unsalted butter 1 and 1/2 cup (300g) white sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups (260g) all purpose flour 2/3 cups (65g) cocoa powder 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 package Guittard

Mint Chips, or other baking chips

Method: 1.Preheat oven to 350° F. Take out two half-sheet pans, line with silpats or wax paper. 2.Cream the butter with the sugar for 3 minutes, until very creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract. 3.Whisk the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Add to the wet all at once and mix on low. 4.Add most of the mint chips while mixing on low, saving a few to press into the tops of the cookies. 5.Use a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop to drop 12 cookies on each sheet pan. Press 3 chips on top of each mound of dough. It'll look nice when they bake. 6.Bake for 10 minutes, one tray at a time. When the first batch comes out, puffed and dry on top but still not quite done in the center, let cool on the pan for 5 minutes before using a metal spatula to carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

After you do this with the first batch, you can reuse the tray for the third.

By: Cedar Zulkoskey 6SM

A new family moves to the city of Vancouver, into an old dusty mansion on the side of the city. The middle child of the family, Alex Johnson, wasn 't so impressed. The high tech crazed teenager hated the odd smell of the new old house she had to live in. On the other hand the oldest kid, Ben, was loving the rusty vibes this house had. The youngest child, Jess, was too shy to say anything.

Jess hadn 't said a single word since she was 2 years old. As the Johnson family trots into the house, dust flies up… nobody had been in there for years. The kids run around finding their rooms, but Jess somehow finds herself lost in the attic. Jess notices a bright splat of paint, and carefully she wanders over to an old canvas. She is amazed when she looks at all the outstanding colors splattered on the canvas. Her eyes fill with joy as she picks up a new canvas. Painting was Jess ’ s favourite thing. She couldn 't talk so her art talked for her.

Dipping the old dusty paint brush into the new neon colors felt so alive. Her paintbrush danced around her canvas, making a magnificent picture. Her phone rings, so she puts her paint palette down to glance at her phone. She is texting her friend back when she hears a noise. Jess tucks her phone into the back pocket of her jeans, and she walks over to the other end of the attic. A little brown kitten pops out from a box, surprising Jess. She scoops up the little brown cat and thinks in her head I’ m gonna call you Ginger..Oh shoot. Mommy is allergic to kittens, oh well I will just hide you extra well! Jess tucks Ginger comfortably under her arm and shuffles into her big fluffy coat hiding the cat.

She slowly walks down stairs and into her room. Closing the door silently, Jess pulls out the kitty and slips her into her bed. Jess slides into bed next to Ginger. Kissing her secret pet on the head, she falls into a deep dream. The next morning Jess is at the table stuffing her pockets with cheese. She didn 't know if Ginger liked cheese, but it' s all the 7 year old could get her hands on. Later that day Jess was up in the attic painting away, when all of a sudden she hears her mom scream. She bolts down stairs to see her mom standing on the table while Ginger is licking her paws at the door. Jess runs up to Ginger, scooping her up. She knew she was in big trouble, Jess started to cry, she didn ’t want to be in trouble.

“Put that cat away!” screams her mom. Jess puts Ginger back in her room, and then she goes to talk to her mom.

“What were you thinking, Jess Johnson!” asks her mom. Honestly, Jess just wanted a friend.

As her mom gets down from the table, Jess stops crying and, trembling she speaks,

“I’ m sorry mommy. ” She hugs her mom and they both smile. Jess runs to the attic and grabs her latest piece of art. “For you. ” She whispers.

The End

A SPY KIT

BRIINNNGGGG! The school bell goes off. Ashley jumps off her chair with a loud thump. She grabs her backpack, and rushes off to art class. She swings the door open: all she sees is a rusty old table, and dust on every inch of the classroom. What happened to the art room? She silently closes the door, and tip toes over to the principal’s office with a frown. “Hey, Principal Funly!” she says frustratedly. “Hello Ashley. What may I help you with?'' he says excitedly. “Oh, well, um, never mind. Sorry. ” she says nervously. “Okay, ” he says curiously. Ashley leaves. Her face is bright red. She gallops over to her homeroom, grabs her notebook, and starts to solve this crime, one step at a time. But it all adds up to nothing. She can’t figure out what really happened. The final bell in the day goes off, and Ashley runs over to her locker to pack up. Jill, her best friend, hops over. “Hey, Ash. ” “Hey, Jill. ” Jill walks away and Ashley walks over to her mom's car. “Hey, Ash, ” says her mom. “Hi, Mommy, ” says Ashley The car starts, and Ashley pulls out her notebook to think more. They get home. Ashley hops out of the car and runs to the house. She then goes to her room and studies. She hears a weird sound up in the attic. She climbs up the swirly, rusty, old ladder and jumps up on the final step.

The attic was clear and nothing was up there. An old green blanket is sitting on the floor, and Ashley holds it up. A bunch of dust flies through the air, and Ashley coughs. She takes a few steps back, and moves her hands to get rid of the dust on her plaid shirt. She sees a weird box that looks like a treasure chest. It’s brown and made out of wood. She opens it and sees a spy kit!

She leaps in the air and holds the kit with pride. She jumps up and down. This will help me solve that crime. With one last jump of joy, she climbs down the ladder and jumps to her feet. She puts the kit down on her desk and decides to wait for tomorrow to investigate further.

The next day, she gets to school and opens up the kit. She takes the magnifying glass out and takes a peek. Dust, dirt, and sawdust is all she can see. She jots down in a notebook. She finds out so much new information. She comes to a conclusion, and realizes what happened.

With a smile on her face, she reaches out and grabs her notebook. She then runs down to the assembly. She steals the mic from a teacher and yells loudly, “the art room was destroyed because ” . The teachers looked curiously at her and the students did too. A small kid yelled “Why?” “Because when that rain storm hit, the room collapsed and it made the art room fall apart. ” Everybody cheers. She had solved a crime! With a smile on her face, she feels proud. Very proud.

BY: HANNAH C (10)