Issue6

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t VOLUME #54 ISSUE 6

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SHOULD TEENS BE HAVING SEX? As teen pregnancy rates increase by 3%, the question over whether or not teens should have sex safer or at all continues to fire

ANNANDALE HIGH SCHOOL 700 Medford Dr. Annandale, VA 22003

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2007

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Michelle Ishmail discusses her life as a transgender, a girl caught in a guyʼs body.

Despite the conflicts that arise, Michelle is proud of who she is.

Partly Cloudy

Possible snow flurries High: 37 Low: 25

LUNCHTODAY

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ETCHING THE EARLY STAGE

TAKING A STAND

WEATHERTODAY

703-642-4229

PUTTING SOME FEAR IN CHEER

Photo takes snapshots of the building blocks of basketball and swim

I Am Legend and other films openning over holiday break frighten as well as entice viewers

Filters limit Internet access Students deal with increased security on computers in classrooms

Cheese Quesadilla, Veggie Burger with or without Cheeseon Wheat Bun Oven Fried Chicken with Chicked Flavored Rice with Cranberry Sauce Pizza Line , Deli Line, PB&J, Salad

Department displays expertise in production

NEWSBRIEFS

BY LOGAN MILLER Staff Writer

Grad celebration in need of volunteers

ESOL drama provides a theater production experience to AHS students in the English as a second language program. “It’s so diverse, it’s not just theater from one country, but everyone is from a different country and brings a different energy to the show,” explains fourth year ESOL drama veteran Anastasia Franjie.

This diversity was reflected in the most recent

The AHS PTSA is looking for parent volunteers to help facilitate the AHS All Night Graduation Celebration to be held all night after the graduation ceremony on June 12. A meeting for potential volunteers will be held on Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. in Clausen Hall.

Please contact Randa Mayassi at randa.mayassi@verizon.net if you are interested.

LOGAN MILLER

Choral groups perform in area PAUL MATHIS

Groups of the AHS Choral Department have recently performed and will perform at various functions in commemoration of the holiday season. The AHS Choral Concert will be held in the auditorium at 7:30 p.m. The AHS Men’s Chorale will perform at the Lincolnia Daycare Center on Dec. 20 at 2:30 p.m. The Annandale Singers will perform at the Brook Brothers Store in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

Sophomore Ben Wilson, a computer science student, constantly uses school computers but explains that Internet filters do not hinder him from completing school work.

BY PAUL MATHIS Co-Editor in Chief Any frequent user of school computers for Internet access will have noticed something very significant lately: proxy sites no longer work. Now, when Fairfax County and AHS personnel block a site, they mean it, and there seems to be no other way around the fact.

Ever since the introduction of the Internet in public schools, school systems and individual administrations have been trying to restrict access to sites that are a hindrance to the educational process. Likewise, students have tried to find ways around the filtering. In recent years, students have been

Social Studies Honor Society to be created The Social Studies Department is organizing the creation of a Social Studies Honor Society, co-sponsored

by Meghan Saladino and Joel Jepson. The society will be open to all juniors who have a 3.5 social studies GPA and an overall GPA of at least 3.0 and all seniors who have at least a 3.25 social studies GPA and a 3.0 overall GPA. All candidates will have to obtain two recommendations from social studies teachers, and one recommendation from a non-social studies teacher.

able to bypass restrictions by using proxy sites, which allow access to blocked sites through a simple step.

However, the demise of proxy sites is in the making, as Fairfax County has adopted a new Internet filtering system, Websense, which has replaced the old filtering system, Symantec.

“The new system, Websense, is an entirely new system, not an evolution of the old system,” said Bret Phillips, AHS computer engineer. “Its capabilities are 10 to 20 times the capabilities of the old system.”

As proxy sites spawned numerous opportunities for students to access blocked sites, Phillips’s job and the jobs of many others became exponentially more difficult.

“FILTERS” continued on page 5

Acceptance reassures some, wait-listing increases the suspense for others

“PLAY” continued on page 6

This survey was distributed on Dec. 12 during A, B, C, and D lunches. Of 500 surveys distributed, 379 were completed and returned.

Senior Grant Black was accepted Early Decision into Virginia Tech, and he feels “secure in his decision.”

Senior Amy Fleming tried to keep the nagging thought of a college acceptance notification waiting for her at home out of her head as she sat in class, but the stress still got to her.

“I have so much work to do besides worrying about college,” she said. “If I get in it’s good, but if I don’t, it will definitely be a time crunch. I have to send off all of my other applications really quickly if I don’t get in.”

Fleming is among many students who jumped on the college acceptance/rejection stress train early this year, participating in an early notification program (in her case, it was Early Decision) for Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania.

Students who are accepted through early notification receive

the benefits of getting into a college of choice four months early; however, those who are rejected stress over the fact that the deferral may be an early indicator of the foreboding outcome of many more notifications.

Even students who are accepted through early programs have reasons to stress out. Mohammad Mian, who was accepted to the College of William and Mary through the college’s Early Decision program, explains that the experience is bittersweet. “I wonder if I could have gotten into a better school,” he said.

Mian is caught in the web created by the ramifications of Early Decision. He was notified early of his acceptance, and his mandatory attendance, which allowed him to blow off some pressure and steam. But with Early Decision comes a new breed of reconsiderations, the likes of which include whether or not an individual will be able to pay for college, whether or not the college acceptance is right for the individual, or whether or not an individual could have been accepted into a better school.

“EARLY SPOTS” continued on page 5

Teachers bring new life to community

BY NATHALIE SPITA News Editor Her eyes were drooping heavy with fatigue, her body sluggish as she stepped into bed. She had finally drifted off into a deep dreamful sleep, her eyes finally at rest only moments later to be wakened by a baby’s cry.

This was the typical night of two teachers who have recently become new mothers, ESOL teacher Kate Schaefer, and Meredith Hedrick. Schaefer deliveredAbigail Elizabeth Schaefer, Abby for short, on Nov. 5 at 8:15 p.m. Hedrick’s child, Noah Lee Hedrick arrived on Oct. 29.

“Everything has changed, my daily routine and how I schedule my day, said Hedrick. “Now I put the baby first and

organize my life around his eating and sleeping schedule.”

The arrival of a new child has drastically changed the whole aspect and routine of these two teachers lives. “Everything I do revolves aroundAbby’s schedule,” said Schaefer. “[Now] it can take me an hour or two to get ready to leave the house.”

“It’s still a bit of a shock when you bring the baby home and adjust home and adjust to life as a parent,” said Schaefer. Though becoming a first time parent has been a difficult adjustment, being ESOL teachers has helped them both adapt to the stressful life of being a new parent. “From my students I learned about the learning process and that each person has their own unique learning style,” said Hedrick who hopes to remember this as she teaches her son through

COURTESY SCHAEFER AND HEDRICK

13.3% UNSURE

Are you satisfied with the temperature in school currently?

BY PAUL MATHIS Co-Editor in Chief

PAUL MATHIS

The annual College Freshmen Panel will be held on Friday, from 8:55 a.m. to 10:20 a.m., during W8, as FLEX has been moved to the end of the day on that day. 2007 AHS graduates will be returning to tell current seniors about college, and to advise them on the college application process. Please sign up online in the College Visit section of the Family Connection website.

56.9% NO

“The old system, Symantec, was simply not powerful enough to handle the evolution of computer needs,” said Phillips. “It was a reactionary program rather than a proactive program, and Mr. Martin and myself would have to identify sites that needed to be blocked or allowed, such as proxy sites, and we would have to manually restrict or open access to them.

“With the advent of proxy sights, the old system required us to identify every proxy site and manually take care of it. There were tens of thousands of proxy sites out there. I think that the blocking of proxy sites alone would have taken the full time jobs of ten people.”

Kamara

achievement of the ESOL drama department, the full production of, More from Story Theater, a play of short folk tales and traditional stories from around the world. These tales ranged in origin from Ghana, as in The Tar Baby, of the first act, to the Middle East in The Dream of Good Fortune, and The Sleeper Awake, in the third and fifth acts.

The play was pulled off successfully despite the deadline crunch experienced by the actors, actresses, crew, and directors. “Consistency was difficult,” stated director Lelsie Chekin, “we were literally trying to get kids just to come in and learn their lines. I mean at just four this afternoon, some of the students still didn’t know their lines, but I think we managed to get by this.”

Students snatch early admission spots

College Freshmen will advise through panel

29.7% YES

ESOL drama puts on play

Schaefer and Hedrick look out on the world; more pictures on page 5

the coming years. “I learned a lot about language acquisition in graduate school when I got my masters degree in Secondary Education, so I’m excited to observeAbby as she learns to speak,” said Schaefer.

Schaefer plans to return to teaching around the beginning of February and Hedrick has already resumed teaching at AHS. “It is very different from what I had expected, it is actually harder than I thought it would be,” said Hedrick.

2 Letter to the editor The Brink of Chaos The articles in the Editorials page talk about a lot of topics ranging from several countries in the world and at home in the United States. However, there is one important country that you always miss. It is not only in the Editorials pages, but in all the pages of the A-Blast even though a lot of students in Annandale High School are from this country. This country is Ethiopia, and as a student from Ethiopia I feel obliged to discuss this country.

It has been yet another week of destruction in Somalia. Somalia is a country that is100 per cent Muslim.

And Somalis are deeply religious; Islam a defining characteristic of their national identity. There are other Muslim ethnic groups in the Horn of Africa, such as the coastal Swahili people of Indian Ocean Rim East Africa and many of Ethiopia’s ethnic Oromo and Afar people and other minorities, but Somalis have traditionally been the most zealously Muslim of all the ethnicities of the region.

These days, any- Somalian flag thing in the Muslim world seems to be about militant Islamism. There are several groups of people fighting for control in Ethiopia.

The Islamic Courts party, the warlords, and the president, Abdullah Yousef.

The most famous political party, the Islamic Courts has a lot of popular support in Somalia, even through according to the Somali people, they look defeated.

The power of the warlords remains fragile, but they are battling to gain control through violence. Then, there are the forces of the government controlled by the Somali President who will most certainly break apart and be weakened if there is a militant Islamist insurgency. Hopefully, for the sake of the Somali people and the people of Africa, a miracle can occur so that violence does not unleash.

—Iyann Mohammed junior

An F for Annapolis The Annapolis conference is destined to fail for the same reason all previous attempts to negotiate Middle East peace have failed: the double effect of any decision taken.

In other words, taking one action to please one country, results in the discontent of the others. Israel’s intimidating stockpile of nuclear weapons is made more threatening

by Israel’s refusal to join the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty or allow international inspection of its nuclear facilities.

By ignoring this hidden threat while insisting that Iran abandon uranium enrichment, the United States emphasizes its bias toward Israel and mistrust of the Israeli prime minister Arab Ehud Olmert world.

In such an atmosphere, peace talks are unlikely to succeed. Nonetheless, the international community cannot stand idly by when human rights are trampled. The Palestinians have been tormented by abject poverty, desolation, and home demolitions.

Yet, Israelis also have suffered from rocket attacks and suicide terrorism, which has undermined their national and personal security.

However, ignoring the problem, and strictly favoring one side will not solve the problem. On the contrary, it is bound to sow the seeds of enmity and radicalism for future generations to reap, and provide a pretext for those who feel that the international community lacks impartiality in the confrontation between modernists and extremists.

—Sahar Mahmoudi junior

EDITORIALS

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Dec. 19, 2007

Headwinds of democracy in Venezuela

BY AMINA MOHAMED Editorials Editor

The poor and underprivileged voted for Chavez, however. It is vitally important to understand this phenomenon. Perhaps not many people outside the country realize that Venezuela, buoyed by soaring oil prices, is the richest country in South and Central America. Venezuela enjoys a per capita income that far exceeds that of Chile, the continent’s second richest country. Venezuela’s GDP per capita might be poor by Western standards, but for Latin America and the developing countries it is impressive.

Even so, there are dangerous uncertainties that face Venezuelans, like most other LatinAmerican and developing countries. The wide disparities of income threaten the blossoming democracies of the region. The underprivileged of Venezuela want to see radical changes to the way the

There you have it: the ingredients of democracy at work. The referendum in Venezuela was free and fair and more importantly it exonerates the Venezuelan leader from charges of dictatorship and tyranny. The referendum results, even if they did not go the way the Venezuelan leader had hoped (49-51 per cent against), provided a fillip to the popularity of the embattled symbol of hope for many of the world’s disadvantaged.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is a hero for many in the underdeveloped countries of the South. He is the refreshing antithesis to the sleaze-prone mediocrities that masquerade as “Third World leaders.” His intransigence is widely seen as both a function of his strength and a contributor to it. And, the results will not detract from his popularity in the developing world.

A referendum as the word intimates must offer a choice. Venezuelans voted this week in a referendum of tremendous importance, not just for Venezuela, but for the entire Western Hemisphere and the developing countries of the South in Africa, the Arab world and Asia. Chavez gave his people the choice, and obviously the country’s middle classes rejected his reforms.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez gives a speech discussing the importance of economic reform prior to the referendum.

The result of the Venezuelan referendum proves beyond doubt that the country is a vibrant democracy under Chavez

economy is run. Until Chavez came to power, they had not profited from the country’s vast oil wealth. Worse, they had not been permitted to have a say in the way the country is run, they have not had a say in the decision-making process. They were economically and politically emasculated. Chavez gave them a chance to do so. Moreover, he has pledged to create a “socialist economy”, that is to say one in which the main beneficiaries are the neediest and most vulnerable socio-economic groups in the country.

That is why, even after the referendum results, he came out boldly in favors of his agenda.

However, Venezuela, like Chile, has a large middle class and it is obvious that the majority of them, not to mention the powerful business elite, understand fully that Chavez favors the poor. The referendum in Venezuela can only be understood in the context of a class struggle. The middle classes and the disadvantaged know all too well what is at stake. They fully comprehend the implications and are not prepared to budge.

And herein lays the explanation for the results of the elections. Chavez has not been humbled, because he still strongly believes that he is fighting a just cause. His powerful opponents, too, are determined to fight to the bitter end. He has accused the United States of blatantly interfering in the referendum.

For all its talk about dictatorship and authoritarianism in Venezuela, the United States cannot deny that democracy was very much in evidence. The question in Venezuela, however, is not about democracy Westernstyle per se.

The fight between Chavez and his opponents is not a political or personality contest. Chavez is prepared to withstand this setback, and above all his forward flight to socialism will not be daunted by the turbulence, headwinds or tailwinds of what he pointedly terms “imperialism”.

Return of the repressed in Russia Recent elections were either a triumph of the will or a confirmation that Russia has found itself

BY AMINA MOHAMED Editorials Editor If Time magazine had a “country of the year,” it would surely be Russia, despite its colorful competition, Iran and Venezuela. All three have dominated headlines, tripping up the United States in its 21st century drive for world hegemony. Venezuela held a referendum which failed by a whisker, while Russia held parliamentary elections the same day confirming its transformation from a weak plutocracy, servile to U.S. wishes, into a vigorous and confident opponent of the U.S. The triumph of President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia, winning over 60 percent, paves the way for the consolidation of Russia as a “sovereign democracy,” a combination of directed democracy and nationalism, and an antidote to the dangerous combination of populist pressure from below and international pressure from above that destroyed the other post-Communist countries.

In the regime of directed democracy that Putin inherited from BorisYeltsin, the newly formed post-Communist elites managed to control the electoral process without the usual governing party of directed democracies, such as in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Egypt and many other similar regimes. Their moral authority derived solely from their allegiance to the liberal democracy of the U.S. and the

international community, through various aid programs and pretences to “democracy building”.

But this could hardly last forever, certainly not for a country that inherited the heavy mantle of the Soviet Union. The backlash to the crony capitalism and phony democracy of Yeltsin gave his appointed successor a chance to wrest control from the powerful oligarchs, restore the power of the state as the engine of economic and social development, effectively nationalizing the remaining elite power centers. Yet, windfall oil revenues have been the key to Russia’s rise from the ashes.

Putin’s genius was to be able to articulate the resurgence of national pride, the return of the repressed, as people rallied to the Soviet-style anti-imperialist standard which he hoisted. Unlike the boorish, dipsomaniacYeltsin, who welcomed U.S. advisers to help him dismantle the once powerful Soviet Union, Putin sent them packing and tapped into the subliminal desire of the people to re-identify with a powerful state. The Soviet national anthem was reinstated and people began to take pride in their history.

Western liberals have reacted with feigned horror at the elections, pointing at government control of the media, pre- election intimidation of the liberal opposition and Soviet-style rallying around Putin. There is some truth and a certain irony to the argument that the return of the repressed has brought with it Soviet-style repression for those who continue to embrace Westernstyle liberalism.

But the 1990s experienced much worse intimidation and violence during the reign of the robber barons. The difference was that it was private and mostly went unpunished. Putin seems to thrive on populism, but it is a top-down populism. People are sovereign here in as much as they identify with the sovereign and vice versa, and in

MAking the GrAde

Lifeguards save 200 people in three hours

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In Shepherd Park beach, Florida, lifeguards were forced to save nearly 200 people between 12 a.m. and 3 p.m. The heavy surf had punched holes in the sandbars along the Central Florida coast which allowed rip currents to funnel through the holes and pull swimmers far out to sea. Shepherd Park beach was later closed after the numerous rescues.

Democratic activist acquitted of improper use of feces Kathleen Ensz, who placed a campaign brochure covered in dog feces on the doorstep of U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave of the 4th Congressional District, was found not guilty of criminal use of a noxious substance. Ensz, who defended her actions using the First Amendment, claimed that the feces represented how she felt about Musgrave’s politics.

School employee charged with fraud

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A technology manager for District of Columbia schools who stuck school children with his tabs for thousands of dollars worth of lavish restaurant meals, and nightclub jaunts was charged yesterday with filing fraudulent expense reimbursement requests. The city’s attorney general charged Emerson Crawley with 17 misdemeanor counts of false representation for claiming that personal meals, drinks and adult entertainment expenses were for school-related

Japanese Minister of Agriculture committs suicide

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The Minister of Agriculture of Japan, Toshikatsu Matsouka died in a hospital after attempting suicide. The major impetus which is believed to have caused him to hang himself is the scandal surrounding misappropriated funds. Matsouka was scheduled to answer questions in front of the Parliament in Japan regarding the scandal.

as much as the ruling elite in league with him is perceived as embodying reason and the national welfare. Putin’s enormously popular phone-in meetings with citizens are clearly a way to make sure the people have a chance to actively identify with their sovereign.

Elections are not so much an instrument for expressing conflicting interests as for demonstrating the identity of the governors and the governed; not so much a mechanism for representing people but for representing and legitimating power in the eyes of the people.

The problem, of course, is how power changes hands.

So far Putin has refused to pursue a constitutional amendment to allow him a third term though there is pressure for him to do so. However, the placement of power in Putin’s hands could cause Russia to become corrupt once again.

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t Annandale High School 4700 Medford Dr. Annandale, Virginia 22003

Vol. 53 No. 6 (703)642-4229 December 19, 2007 email: thea-blast@thea-blast.org fax: (703)642-4299

Editors In Chief: Mohamad Elbarasse Paul Mathis

Webmasters: Erik Vu Matt Camilli

Managing Editor: Sarah Waiter

Graphics Editor: Adam Kasdorf Video Editor In Chief: Gus Nielsen Videographers/Editors: Amy Steinbuechler, Michael Craig, Tim Reynolds, Kyle White and Evan McGurrin

News Editors: Kelly McGarey Nathalie Spita Editorials Editors: Amina Mohamed Lara Coulter In-Depth Editors: Shriya Adhikary Aya Saed Sports Editors: Walter Smith Greg Young Sports Xtra Editors: Lyndsay Jacobs Marisa Tordella People Editors: Waliha Gani Weekend Editors: Claire Bui Caroline Merz International Editors: Bewketu Tamir Annika Jessen

Photography Editors: Matt Johnson Laura Simpson Copy Editor: Kyle Knoche Ad Manager: Meredith Rutherford Circulation Manager: Kyle Knoche Adviser: Alan Weintraut Online Staff: Stacey Irwin Staff Writers/Photographers: Laith Abu-Taleb, Daniel Fishman, Jerry Solomon, Adeel Shams, Charlie Simpson, Tanya Bellingham, Aleena Afzal , Omar Mayassi, Carlos Garcia, Joseph Ingberg and Brooke Barlow

Entertainment Editors: Jeff Dean Avery Adcock Health Editors: Vanessa Cerro Rachael Burnett Academics Editors: Jackie Silva Laura Ambrosio Trophy Class Pacemaker Virginia High National Scholastic School Press Association 2005-2006 2005-2006 The A-Blast is an award winning newspaper that strives to inform, educate and entertain the student body and community. Published every three weeks, The A-Blast will not print any material that is obscene or libelous; or that which substantially disrupts the school day, or invades an individual’s right to privacy. The A-Blast is an independent, open forum for discussion that is printed at the Springfield Plant of The Washington Post. Signed letters to the editor of 250 words or less may be submitted to room 262 or mailed to the school. The A-Blast reserves the right to refuse advertisements. All submissions become property of The A-Blast, Copyright, 2007.

Art Editors: Nena Buck Tigist Tamir

CSPA Silver Crown 2004-2005

EDITORIALS

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Dec. 19, 2007

CIA acts above the law Central Intelligence Agency destroys tapes that were intended to be used in court

Mo’s

Mindset Opinion

By Mohamad Elbarasse

The suspect is strapped to an inclined board with their head pointed towards the ground. A continuous flow of water is poured onto the subject’s head. If the suspect can tolerate the first stage, a rag is stuffed into his or her mouth and more water is poured. And if the suspect is strong enough to last through the second phase, a sheet of plastic wrap is then placed over his or her mouth with a hole poked in it and water is again poured over the suspect’s head.

There are two more stages following the previously mentioned that have not been disclosed to the public. Many have argued that water-boarding violates the ban on cruel and unusual punishment insured by the U.S. Constitution and also the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This torture tactic known as water-boarding or as former Attorney General John Ashcroft described it, an “enhanced interrogation technique,” or better yet described as unverified torture by our currentAttorney General, has once again found itself under public scrutiny. The CIA implemented the “enhanced interrogation technique” on suspected Al-Qaeda members in Guantanamo Bay and

then destroyed the tapes that were to be used in military trials.

Water-boarding dates back to the time of the Spanish Inquisition, it was most actively utilized from 1480 to 1530. When the water is poured over a suspect’s head it simulates drowning, but unlike forcing a suspect’s head into a bucket of water, water boarding elicits the gag reflex. Although it is contested that it does not inflict any long-term physical effects, the mental distress caused by the feeling of imminent death can have long-term effects on the suspect’s psyche.

In November of 2005 rumors surfaced that the CIAwas implementing the torture tactic. Controversy surrounded the tactic because of its damaging psychological effects; the tactic imposes the “threat of imminent death” in a controlled environment, which violates many international humanitarian laws.

As if the CIA is not already shrouded in mystery and cast in a negative light, they had to destroy evidence that was ordered by U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy Jr. to be safeguarded by the Bush Administration. CIA Director Michael Hayden told reporters that the tapes were destroyed to protect the identities of the agents involved and that internal reviewers of the tapes did not believe the tapes were relevant to any court cases.

Kennedy was quoted saying that any evidence that related to water-boarding or to any torture suspects would be entirely relevant to the cases that are currently under litigation.

The CIA cannot act above the law. Granted, we allow a certain level of confidentiality to the government, but members of the CIA are citizens of the same government as all of us, though we entrust them to protect us from unseen and unknown forces, they are not to use affirmed torture tactics, let alone destroy tapes of alleged torture that was to be used in a federal trial. Hayden is adding to the duplicitous reputation that mostAmericans, or at least this American, have regarding the CIA. I am not the most informed source on the inner workings of the CIA, but I sincerely hope that they do not believe

Issue 5 (Dec. 5) Corrections • On page two under the Man-on-theStreet question “Do you believe firing Jen Chrusniak was justified?,” Lauren Barnard was incorrectly labled as Angie Harden.

• On page seven under the Man-on -the-Street question “What is your greatest talent and expertise?,” Tobias Willis was incorrectly labled as Tobias Wilson and Nico Vivero Augliere, freshman, was incorrectly called a sophomore • On page nine, Emily Fruchterman was incorrectly unincluded in 1st Quarter Straight-A Students.

• On page 13, under the Man-on-theStreet question “What do you do in the morning before school?,” John Jenkinss, freshman, was incorrectly labled as a senior.

• On page 16 in Wrestling optimistic about season, Marques Perez was incorrectly labled as Jerry Childes.

Waterboarding is an interogation method which simulates drowning by pouring water into oneʼs mouth, eliminating the gag reflex.

that they will not face any repercussions. We do not live in a society where government officials are not held accountable for their actions, even if these actions are to gather information to prevent terrorist attacks.

Humans are humans, alleged terrorists or not, and they should abide by the same laws we do. If the CIA expects to hold people accountable for their actions, they should expect nothing less of themselves.

It is still dark when the alarm sounds and you pull yourself out of bed. You somehow manage to locate your clothes and make it to school in time to fall asleep during first period. This is sadly the routine of many high school students throughout the U.S. It is not a new idea that high school students require more sleep than other age groups, but it is finally being substantiated with scientific studies. A lack of sleep in teenage students has been directly linked to lower grades, ADHD and depression. Studies have shown that people from ages 14 to their early 20s require about 9.2 hours of sleep each night to perform optimally; whereas, people outside of this range require only 7.5 – 8 hours.

It has also been shown that when adolescents enter puberty, they experience a shift in their internal clock, causing them to stay up later. This has been attributed to the production of melatonin, which triggers sleep. Melatonin production in teens begins later in the night than in their preteen years, hence the desire to stay up later. This means that teenagers are going to bed later, but are still required to wake up earlier than in their preteen years.

A University of Minnesota study was done on a group of high school students who were attending a school that had just changed the starting time from 8:25 to 7:20 am.

The study showed that about 50 percent of the students surveyed were “pathologically sleepy” which is often seen in patients with narcolepsy, a severe sleeping disorder.

LARA COULTER

BY JONAH WILLIAMS Staff Writer

Many AHS students like Angel Ortiz suffer from a lack of sleep caused by the early high school opening time.

This evidence spurs the logical question: why not move the starting time of high school later in the morning? It is proven that students who are tired are less likely to learn or retain new concepts, but so many students suffer from severe fatigue and cannot learn as well as they could had they had more sleep. This lessens the effect of school teachings and a student’s capability to learn. It is the job of the school board to find the more effective way to teach students while preventing anything that would heed their learning. So why hasn’t the most obvious and easily solved problem been resolved?

The school systems argue that the administrative costs of reorganizing the schedule would be costly and students should simply alter their sleeping habits. This

Do you agree or disagree with using water-boarding for interogation?

“How is waterboarding not torture? It definetely causes physcial pain.”

—Jessica Camilli freshman

mohamad.elbarasse@thea-blast.org

Sleep deprivation takes heavy toll High-school students across the nation suffer in school studies from a lack of sleep

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is flawed since to get nine hours of sleep and wake up at 6 a.m., the teen would have to be asleep by 9 p.m.. This is unrealistic since teenagers are biologically prone to sleeping at a later time.

Only minimal attempts to save teens from sleep deprivation have been made. In 2001 the “Zzzzz’s” to “A’s” Bill was introduced into the U.S. House of Representative.

It would have granted school districts up to $25,000 to compensate for the administrative costs of changing the schedule, had it been passed.

Fortunately, smaller yet more successful strides have been made. Connecticut’s legislature is reviewing a bill that would make it illegal for public schools to open before 8:30 a.m. This is the first step towards making healthier, more attentive teenagers.

In an attempt to educate teenagers on the importance of sleep, the National Center for Sleep Disorders Research has created a supplemental curriculum for high school biology classes. This curriculum covers several aspects of sleep, including the effects of sleep deprivation and other sleeping disorders.

These important steps are merely the beginning of the crucial changes that must occur. More states need to embrace the fact that students cannot learn when exhausted and pass legislature changing the opening times of public schools. Additionally, the U.S. Congress needs to reconsider the “Zzzzz’s” to “A’s” Bill in order to make the change in high school starting times more manageable for states.

If students in the U.S. are ever to be expected to be able to keep up with students from around the world, then they need to follow in step with European schools and give students time to sleep. Without sleep, teenagers cannot learn. Therefore, it is imperative that the U.S. take notice of this problem and address it accordingly.

“I disagree with it because it is against my faith. I don’t think the U.S. should use waterboarding.”

—Jack Velazquez sophomore

“I disagree, because it’s not an appropriate kind of punishment and it’s not neccessary to use. Plus, it’s a waste of water.”

—Derek Amoaful junior “I strongly disagree because water boarding simulates drowning and could injure someone, so it is really torture.”

—Amanda Krause junior “I disagree because drowning is a really disturbing concept and even simulating it isn’t right.”

jonah.williams@thea-blast.org

Studies on teen behavior reveal new findings

BY LARA COULTER Editorials Editor The nearly simultaneous publications this past month of groundbreaking studies concerning teenagers have rocked the previous traditional assumptions that have been held standard toward adolescent behavior.

Yet the release of this information has the potential to misinform and mislead teens into an overload of dangerous activity.

A recent study conducted by Swiss scientists has discovered that moderate users of marijuana may function better and be more socially successful in contrast to tobacco-users and those who choose to abstain from both substances.

It was also found that moderate users of marijuana are more likely to play sports, be more socially active, and share good relationships with others than non-users. Although marijuana users are also more likely than non-users to skip school, however, they were found to consistently have the same if not better grades.

The study considered the behavior and characteristics of more than 5,200 Swiss teenagers ages 16-20. About 500 subjects used exclusively marijuana, nearly 2,000 used both marijuana and tobacco, and over 3,000 were non-smokers of either substance.

The study also revealed that marijuana-only users share a very similar profile. The large majority were male and were more likely to participate in athletic activities, live with both parents, receive good grades and less likely to have been intoxicated in the last 30 days.

This study shares several connections with another recent examination of teenager behavior by UVA clinical psychologists, who discovered that teenagers who have sex in their early teenage years are less likely to show delinquent behavior than those teens and adults

who began having sex when they were older. Teens who had sex at an early age were proven to be more socially healthy in their adult years, were less likely to exhibit behavioral problems, and showed a smaller tendency towards using drugs.

This study monitered the behavior of 534 same-sex twins over a 7 year period. In doing so, any possible genetic and environment-related factors that would have otherwise altered the behavior of the test subjects were eliminated, as a previous study on the effects of early teenage sex failed to do.

Leaders of the UVA study realize that in order to fully comprehend their findings, they must further explore whatever factors could explain the reasons for young teenagers to engage in sexual activity as well as what scenarios in which sexual activity was engaged specifically led to later social advantages. Later studies are planned to closely examine the details of early teenage sexual encounters, such as whether the relationship shared between partners was casual or serious, the age of the partner, and what place and for what reason sex occurred.

The release of these findings has shaken the ultra-conservative ground that supports parental expectations and long-held beliefs. Both studies have challenged previously held assumptions towards teens. Teens who engaged in sex at a young age were commonly assumed to suffer from later emotional problems and turn towards drug use, however the opposite has been proven true for many teens. Marijuana had long-maintained a reputation for being a gateway drug, or the first drug experience that would lead to further drug experimentation.

What these studies both conclude is that some risktaking behavior isn’t always bad. The reason that those teens that smoked marijuana or engaged in early sex were so successful in avoiding other delinquent behavior is because they managed to get that sensation-seeking urge that comes with being a teenager out of their systems. This therefore allowed them more time and drive to become successful in various aspects of their lives.

Yet the risks from participating in these behaviors carry overshadow any proven positive. Teenagers cannot ignore that there are also proven risks in using drugs and

—Katherine McDermott junior

“I disagree because it is the wrong way to interogate people. There are other ways they can use.”

—Heyla Asrat senior LARA COULTER

New data should not encourage teens to participate in dangerous behavior

I disagree. Like my teacher said, I think that we want the government to represent us, and if we ourselves wouldn’t perform torture, then the government shouldn’t either.

A new study has proven that early teen sex leads to fewer behavioral problems and a smaller tendency towards using drugs.

engaging in sex.

Marijuana is extremely dangerous because of its affect on the brain. And to a developing adolescent brain, the damage can be colossal. Marijuana is also illegal in the U.S., and discovered possession of marijuana can lead to jail-time and a tarnished record.

The dangers carried by sex can be even more detrimental. Sex carries the high possibility of life-altering and even fatal STDs, along with the potential of pregnancy and emotional risks.

Teenagers should have the opportunity to experience life to the fullest and to take chances and learn from their mistakes. But more importantly, teens must also keep in mind that risks should be taken in moderation while maintaining some sort of sense of responsibility, consequence and self-awareness. lara.coulter@thea-blast.org

—Tyler Nguyen senior “I vehemently disagree. I think it is torture.”

— Ann Harper art teacher

NEWS

Dec. 19, 2007

Chilly lessons

NEWS BRIEFS

Students bundle up to combat cool classroom temperatures

BY KELLY MCGAREY News Editor

FCPS Band Directors receive scholarships

The Atom branch will raffle off two tickets for the Pack-the-Pit wrestling match and two tickets for the Dec. 21 boy’s basketball game on Dec. 19 during “D” lunch. All those who do business with the branch will have their names entered into the drawing.

Students honored for acceptance into Division I schools

On Dec. 7 a ceremony was held to honor two AHS athletes who were given the special opportunity to participate in athletics at two Division One schools.

Erik Etherly received a full scholarship to play basketball at Northeastern College and Mary Bermingham received a $6,000 scholarship to play lacrosse at Old Dominion University.

A celebration was held in the principal’s conference room where Mary’s parents and grandfather, and Ericks parents attended.

Additionally, Principal John Ponton, Director of Student Activities Angelo Hilios, and their respective coaches, Anthony Harper and Cindy Hook were presented.

Bermingham has been a four-year member of the varsity field hockey team, the varsity girl’s lacrosse team, and the varsity girl’s basketball team. Last year for lacrosse, Bermingham earned 1st team All-Patriot District honors and was 1st team All-Region.

My family has always been around athletics and my parents’ expectations are high for me, it’s hard sometimes but I’m glad to have it,” said Bermingham.

Etherly, who will be attending Northeastern next year, was very excited to receive his scholarship, but was overwhelmed by the process.

Members of the orchestra perform in the winter concert. The chorus offered a preview of tonightʼs show.

Seasonal melodies

Winter orchestra concert features spirited tunes and lively preview of choral concert, to be held tonight

BY EMMA WHITMYRE Staff Writer “A Winter Performance” was not a typical orchestra concert.

Unlike the usual assembly of violins, cellos, bases, and violas, this event was an inspirational and refreshing combination of three music groups. The concert, which featured the entire Annandale music department, featured an unexpectedly rich variety of sound.

The surrounding blue, snow-like lighting and festive red poinsettias that adorned the auditorium got the audience into the holiday spirit.

The Orchestra began by treating the crowd to a few well-known holiday tunes, such as “Let it Snow,” “Sleigh Ride,” and “Jingle Hoedown.” They performed several classic pieces as well, including “Symphony No.7 in D Major K. 45” and “In the Bleak Midwinter.”

Director Stephanie Lewis later took the stage to praise the work habits of the musicians, compliment her students on their success in District Orchestra.

Now that auditions for this

event have been completed and preparation of district music is no longer necessary, the orchestra will be switching their focus to new music in the upcoming months. According to Lewis, “festival season is upon us, more diligence will occur” within the

assistance of the chorus, and a group of percussion, brass, and woodwind instruments.

These pieces drew positive reactions from the audience.

After the concert, sophomore Desmond Lee who had been in attendance, said that “the variety of sounds combined to form a different level of music that captivated me as a listener.”

Audience members were not the only ones who felt the effects of the musical variation.

Freshman Katie Panther, a member of chorus described the concert as “a very adrenaline rushing experience.”

Members of the musical groups generally came to the same consensus, despite the fact that there were adjustments they had to make from their own group concerts.

In addition, some performers felt disrupted by the change in instrumentation and amount of people playing and singing. “It was pretty good, but pretty loud.

I couldn’t hear myself playing some of the time since everyone was working hard for their part to be heard,” said sophomore orchestra member Henry Ngo.

EMMA WHITMYRE

Atom Branch to host raffle

EMMA WHITMYRE

COURTESY OF KAREN EPLEY

AHS Band Director Jack Elgin, and Lake Braddock band director Roy Holder have been selected to receive the Wolf Trap Foundation’s 2007 Scholarship for Performing Arts Teachers. The scholarships, worth $2500, Elgin are designed to support artist residencies, commissions, master classes and technology in the arts in order to improve student performance skills.

As winter begins, staying warm seems to be on everybody’s mind. From the slippery snow to the icy roads, braving the outdoor chill can prove to be a hazard as well as an inconvenience. As students don their down jackets, scarves and gloves to make the trek to school each morning, many look forward to getting inside the warm building. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. The temperature within the school has been known to vary significantly from classroom to classroom, day to day, and even hour to hour.

Many students and teachers have experienced the unpredictability of classroom temperatures. As they fluctuate from freezing to comfortable to scorching at seemingly random times, so do attention spans and attitudes.

Sophomore Manal Elhak commented on her frigid English class, saying, “Sometimes I get really cold, which makes it hard to focus.”

“My geometry class is the coldest. It makes me fall asleep and makes me feel sick,” says junior Ashley Lawrence.

Sophomore Caroline England agrees, because her chemistry class’s temperature, makes her “think about being cold instead of listening to the

teacher.”

Overheating can also be a problem, even in the chilliest of weather. Sophomore Inie Rivera is often frustrated by the balmy temperatures, calling them “annoying and distracting.”

However, students may be getting too picky about personal comfort. An example of such a situation is John Hawes’s classroom in the history hallway.

“I sit right next to the vent, and no matter what setting it’s on, it’s always freezing! I shiver, and it’s hard to concentrate on anything besides having a jacket,” said sophomore Torie Deible.

Hawes disagrees, saying, “I usually find it to be hot. My preference is for it to be cool.

Students complain about it being cold, but I complain about it being too warm.”

Such disputes have many wondering what the source of the problem may be. Building engineer Al Tosh offered his professional opinion on the situation, saying that “it was a problem with the heat. We drained the chillers, which helps as it mixes with heat and keeps it from freezing.”

Another problem is the age of the system. “Even though we had a renovation, the heating system was not replaced,” said Tosh. “Also, parts of the ceiling are going bad.”

Freshman Cellist Georgia Garney performs in the combined choruse and orchestra winter concert.

orchestra.

The Full Orchestra’s performance followed with traditional Christmas classics. “Elijah 29.

He Watching over Israel,” by Mendelssohn, and “Hallelujah Chorus from Messiah,” by Handel were played with the

KELLY MCGAREY

4

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t

Sophomore Samantha Dade struggles to learn in her cold history room. Fellow classmate Torie Deible shared her view, saying, “Itʼs always freezing. I shiver, and itʼs hard to concentrate on anything.”

Students glimpse NBA lifestyle DECA and Sports Marketing students head to the Verizon Center for unique experience “I had 15 or so offers, but it got stressful in deciding which school to pick. I got accepted to all the schools in the Patriot League, and even got accepted to Princeton and James Madison.” said Etherly, “I went to visit Northeastern and I felt like I was at home. I met the coaching staff and I got along with them very well, and that contributed to why I chose to go to Northeastern.”

Etherly has been a three-year member of the AHS varsity basketball team and was a starter on the junior varsity team as a freshman. Last year, he earned AllPatriot District honors, averaging 19 points and 9 rebounds per contest. Etherly was also nominated to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game.

Besides athletics, Etherly has maintained a solid 3.0 GPA and been a participant of theAnnandale Leadership Council for the last two years.

–By Greg Young Sports Editor

Students selected to perform in district band

The following Symphonic Band members were selected to perform in this year’s District Band.

Patton, Jenni Cummins, Abby Waters, Joel Walter, Melissa Transue, Wesley Schaedel, Ryan Davis, Anna Huynh, Jeff Epley, Peter Berg, Kari Miles, Elise Miles, David Bittner, Jessica Qabazard, Sammy Volk, Connor Rosenstein, Michael Stowe, Matt Mansaray, Yakuba Hardbower, Mitchell Jurenas, Eric Bernfeld, Paul Fajardo, Alex

BY SCOTT PLUNKETT Staff Writer Washington Wizards point guard Antonio Daniels stepped onto the court, but this time it was for something other than a basketball game. Daniels was speaking as part of the Wizards fifth annual Sports Career Day. DECA and Sports Entertainment and Marketing classes attended the career day as well as the game against the Phoenix Suns, which followed. This year over 4,000 DECA, Future Business Leaders of America, and other marketing students from around the D.C.-Metropolitan Area attended the event. The marketing Director of the Verizon Center, where the Wizards play their home games, and the Chief Business Director of the Wizards organization spoke to the students about their marketing careers. Then Daniels, along with other high-profile players, spoke about how they got to where they were and answered questions.

“I asked Antonio Daniels how hard he had to work for this career. He told me he had to work hard everyday of his life to get where he was” said junior Sports Marketing student Sibtain Raza.

Daniels, a first round pick in 1997, is known throughout the league for his exceptional passing ability and incred-

Volk

”

—JessicaRaynor DECA advisor

ible assist to turnover ratio, which helps explain why he is currently leading the Wizards in assists. Perhaps most importantly, Daniels is also known for his astounding sportsmanship on and off the court.

The objective of the event is to support the development of marketing and inform students on skills needed for a marketing career. After the presentations the kids were able to attend a superb college fair in the Verizon Center.

DECAand Sports Marketing students attended this event

Band members audition for districts Twenty-two symphonic band participants selected to play for annual county-wide honor

BY KELLY MCGAREY News Editor

Qabazard

“

The presentations really opened the kids’ eyes to other careers in sports business other than professional athletes

because many of the students are planning on pursuing a marketing or business career later in their lives.

“I think the presentations really opened the kids eyes to other careers in the sports business other than professional athletes, which there are very few of,” said DECA advisor Jessica Raynor.

The DECA and Sports Entertainment and Marketing students returned to the school at 4:30 p.m. to attend the career day presentation at 5:00 and the game against the Suns. The optional trip cost $30 per student. The student’s fee provided them a meal ticket, Metro pass, tickets to the game, and passes to attend the Gregame career night.

The Wizards lost the game 107-122 behind Phoenix Sun’s guard Steve Nash’s season-high 19-assists.

“After the game we waved at Steve Nash and he waved back” said Raza. “It was really fun especially since it was cheap.”

The trip allowed students to get to know each other better as well as talk with many other students from around the area that are also interested in future business careers.

“It gave the students a lot of good bonding time and a chance to meet other DECA and FBLA students,” said Raynor.

It has been an extremely busy month for the Symphonic Band. Between the Mary Read benefit and winter concerts, this group of talented musicians has been working unusually hard to keep up. This frenzy of activity hit its peak when all members were required to audition for this year’s District Band.

Many directors and students alike see this as a very important event, that can seriously impact musical careers. “[District Band] provides an opportunity to work with guest conductors, and be part of an all-star group,” saidAHS band Director Jack Elgin.

The annual affair, held at J.E.B. Stuart High School on Dec. 7., is often regarded as highly-stressful.After being separated into groups by instrument, students headed to secluded classrooms for their individual try-outs. In order to keep the auditions anonymous, judges sat behind a curtain, and performers were prohibited from communicating. The

process began with a basic scale test. The musician was then asked to play a sample of his or her prepared piece, and then sight-read a previously unrehearsed composition.

The last requirement proved to be the most challenging for the majority of participants.

“Sight reading was definitely the hardest because they give you 30 seconds to process a new piece, while you’re freaking out from all the stress,” said sophomore Melissa Walter.

Finally, after a long day of grueling auditions and weeks of practice, band members awaited their scores and rankings to see if they placed high enough to qualify.

Of the 60 auditioning band members, 22 were selected.

This unusually high number was second only to West Potomac, which had 29 members selected.

Of the 22 selected, six were chosen to participate in the ultra-competitive Wind Ensemble. Seniors Elise Miles, Yakuba Mansaray, and Eric Jurenas, juniors Michael Rosenstein and Joel Waters, and sophomore Melissa Walter qualified because of their district scores, and are

KELLY MCGAREY

Seniors Mary Bermingham and Erik Etherly honored in Dec. 7 ceremony.

Freshman flutist and Symphonic Band member Rebecca Hoghe practices her prepared piece for district band.

now eligible to audition for the Virginia State Honor Band in February.

Dec. 19, 2007

NEWS

A

t

New system blocks sites

NEWS BRIEFS

Popular sites blocked by AHS

BETA holds fundraiser

The Business Education Teachers Association of Farifax County is raffling out a weekend trip to Smith Mountain Lake.

The tickets will be ten dollars and proceeds will go to student scholarships. If interested in purchasing a raffle see Helen Silberminz, Ruth Butler, and Monica Bentley.

1. www.facebook.com 2. www.myspace.com 3. www.scoobidoo.net (proxy site) 4. www.limewire.com 5. www.xanga.com

PAUL MATHIS

“Internet filter” continued from page 1 Now, however, the Websense system does the job for Phillips.

“The new system is proactive in that a proxy site that has never been used before can get through and be effective for a short period of time,” said Phillips. “The system is able to recognize that the proxy site has been used to access a blocked site. It sees the other half, where the proxy site is taking you to. It will block the proxy site immediately.”

This has made life much easier for Phillips and computer engineers around the county, and has allowed for the engineers to spend less time worrying about tunnels around Internet filters and more time on making the computers in AHS more effective. Students perhaps might have been somewhat disquieted when mathtunnel.com and scoobidoo.com were blocked, but in retrospect many seem to understand the benefits of such filtering.

“There hasn’t been a time for me when Internet filters have prevented me from gaining information that I needed for class,” said senior Derrick Featherstone, who noted that he often uses computers in class at the teacher’s instruction. One of the sites that was unblocked when the new system was put into place was Youtube.com, the popular video-sharing website that has allowed for both the discovery of international talents and the interment of political campaigns.

“We have received positive feedback regarding the fact thatYoutube has been unblocked,” said Phillips, “so I have not made an issue of that. If that becomes an issue it can be blocked at the principal’s discretion, but the staff has noted that Youtube is useful.”

Some students expressed discontent with the idea of filtering itself, not just the new filtering system.

“It’s unfair how they block everything,” said senior Dalia Faris, who works consistently with the Internet as she is on yearbook staff. “Everyone is going to find ways to find the other sites anyway. I don’t think the filters are needed.

Even if students cannot look at certain sites in school, they will be able to access them at home, so it’s not like the filters are protecting anyone from accessing prohibited material altogether.”

Conversely, Phillips noted that the filters are in place to propel the educational process, not hinder it. The new system, in his eyes, will benefit the academic environment of AHS to an even greater degree than before.

“I would say that is has been beneficial to the student in that there are fewer distractions available to the students now, and they can concentrate on their assignments,” he said.

If a teacher finds that a site that is blocked could help the educational process he or she can appeal to Phillips, who in turn can allow for the site to be unblocked.

“The teachers can come to Mr. Martin and myself, and

Senior Dalia Faris works long hours on the Yearbook staff during deadline. “Itʼs unfair how they block everything,” said Faris who works consistently with the internet.

we first judge to see if the site should be unblocked,” he said. “If it is not immediately clear to us, we will go to Mr. Ponton who makes the ultimate decision. By default, the default blocked sites are the same county-wide. Exceptions can be made at the school level, and those are the principal’s prerogative.”

Instead of a pretext for anger, Websense in this regard has stood as somewhat of a reality check.

“I understand why some sites need to be blocked,” said senior Deba Hussein. “When you are in school you need to be doing school work, and I know a lot of people who use the computers for non-academic reasons.”

BY CHARLES SIMPSON Staff Writer

COURTESY OF KATE SCHAEFER

NATHALIE SPITA

The Annandale Neighborhood Center will hold an open house on Wed. Dec. 19 and Thurs. Dec. from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. For more information call 703-642-7400 or email neighborhoodcenter@gmail.com.

Attendance office with Esther Kang left Annandale High School on December 13 to pursue her career in nursing.

She will depart to Los Angeles California to work a nursing position at the children’s hospital located in L.A. Kang studied health information system management as a major at George Mason University. She has worked at Annandale for exactly one year and eleven months. “I will miss the most at Annandale is the people, the whole staff, my co-workers, and the students.”

Said Kang. “I will also miss the interesting excuses students make for arriving late to school.

I can’t decide what my favorite memory is of Annandale because there were so many good things that occurred when I was a student and as a staff.”

“I will really miss Ms. Kang, she was not just a colleague but a good friend. We worked very well together, and I do wish her the best of luck at her new job, and I will miss her” said Attendance co-worker Jennifer Sharp. “ What I liked about her was, she was very dependable, and she had an even temper ability for working as an attendance worker, and she also had the ability to handle types of situations that comes in the job description. We do plan to keep in touch after her move to L.A.”

disregard the fact

COURTESY OF MEREDITH HEDRICK

ESOL teacher Kate Schaefer holds her newborn baby , Abigail Elizabeth Schaefer who was born on Nov. 5. “Itʼs still a bit of a shock when you bring the baby home and adjust to life as a parent,” said Schaefer.

For your planner!

TODAY

ESOL teacher Meredith Hedrick and her husband spend quality time with their newborn baby, Noah Lee Hedrick, who was born on Oct. 29. “Everything has changed, my daily routine and how I schedule my day,” said Hedrick. “Now I put the baby first and organize my life around his eating and sleeping schedule.”

The pros of early decision Relieves stress: This doesn’t mean developing “senioritis” just because you’ve been accepted early. But not knowing what college you’ll attend is often a maddening experience. Early admission can have definite psychic benefits.

Let’s you plan ahead: Early admission enables you to get a head start on housing accomodations, financial aid, and preparing yourself for college life.

Saves time and money: If you get accepted to you chosen college, you can save untold hours and literaly hundreds of dollars in filing applications to your schools Source: princetonreview.com have to pledge to that college, which is sometime in the spring. Thus, a student may get in to a school Early Decision and to another school Early Action and go with the Early Decision school with no conflicts.

Under a Rolling Admissions plan, a student is able to apply to a college anytime between when applications are accepted (usually starting in September) to the final due date for applications (usually sometime in the late winter).

RollingAdmissions plans present no conflicts: even if a student were to apply to a school under a Single-Choice Early Action plan, that student could still apply to a school under a RollingAdmissions plan, as RollingAdmissions plans fall under the regular decision marker.

Recently, the benefits and drawbacks of college early plans have been put under increased scrutiny in the wake of Harvard College dropping its Early Decision plan and thus its early admissions program altogether in fall 2006. Soon

• Collaboration Day • Sophomore Vocational Program in History classes • Choral concert in Auditorium (7 p.m.)

• FBLA meeting in Clausen Hall (2 p.m. to 4 p.m.)

Thursday

• Sophomore Vocational Program in History classes

Early notifications has pros and cons “College notification” continued from page 1.

Most students though, at least at the immediate reception of early admissions notification, identify the benefits, especially in terms of relinquishing the chokeholds of pressure.

“The benefit of Early Decision is that you do not have to fill out any other applications, and that you are not scared anymore,” said Grant Black, who was accepted into Virginia Tech through an Early Decision program. “You have gotten into college and it’s as if all the pressure is off. Tech also gives a time to orient Early Decision candidates with the school in January, and you get to go down there and know more about the school.”

The process of Early Decision demands that a student identify his or her college of choice months before regular decision candidates have to decide. Unlike regular decision candidates, Early Decision candidates only get one chance to choose the college that they believe is a fit for them, and must weigh their options in the summer or fall before applying, whereas regular decision candidates have until the spring of their senior years. Thus, Early Decision candidates often feel very passionate about the schools they apply to.

Early acceptance programs are generally broken down into four different categories: Early Decision, Single-Choice Early Action, Early Action, and Rolling Admissions. Each of these categories represents a distinctly different admissions option.

Early Decision is a binding system, in that if a student applies Early Decision to a college, he or she must attend that college. Obviously it would be pointless to apply to two schools Early Decision, in that if accepted to both a student would have to attend both universities.

However, a student is able to apply Early Decision to one college and Early Action to another or many other colleges.

Under Early Action, a student is provided with an admissions decision on a distinct early date, but that student does not have to pledge to that college until all students

ANC holds open house

Two year staff member departs from AHS

Are lockdowns for real? Babies on Though safety drills are board at AHS important, many students Following Sept. 11, 2001 public school districts across the U.S. including FCPS began increasing security and preparing for a potential disaster.

This increased security has proven to be of more value than thoughtless consternation with the recent rise of violence.

From the massacre at Columbine, to the teen During lockdowns teachers are instructed to secure rampage in Utah, to the Virginia Tech shootings, students in classroom and lock doors. which resulted in the death of an AHS graduate, senior Joseph Ingberg. “Everyone was laughing we have witnessed the reasons why security has and kidding around the whole time,” he describes. been forced to increase.

One example of the increased security measures MostAHS students agree with Ingberg and provide here at AHS is the institution of the lock down and a similar description of events in their classroom during lock down drills. practice of lock down drills.

Senior Lien Vu believes people would not follow Students are asked to take cover in a corner of the room away from windows while a teacher the instructions of teachers or remember the drills secures the door. When first instituted, this drill in the event of a true emergency. “I don’t think was taken extremely seriously. The date of the most people would follow the drills. They would just panic,” she says. recent lockdown drill at AHS was Oct. 10.

It is clear that many students are not confident AHS graduate Zach Sykes recalls the first time Annandale conducted a lock down drill, “we did a that the abundance of security cameras, personnel, lock down one year, that was my senior year so it and drills would keep them safe in the event of a would have been 2005, the year they started doing true emergency.

“I think it’s an ugly nescessity,” said English it [the lock down drill]. People and teachers took teacher Nikki Holmes. “If the world were a less them really seriously.”

When the drills first began teachers were sure violent place we wouldn’t have to worry about it to cover the window of the doors, to lock the doors, but because it is I take it very seriously.”

Some at AHS however, believe that a lock down and to keep students quiet and secure for the duradrill would be effective at preventing violence. “I tion of the drill.

Students were eager to follow teachers and think lock downs are good to have practiced but if would keep quiet and huddle in the corner of the there was a real killing then they could still get in,” agrees freshman Emily Fruchterman. room.

“It can happen anywhere and its only ten Recently, however, despite the continuing trend of increased violence, students and teachers alike minutes of seriousness to prevent all the anxiety and worry that we have because the reality of our have reduced their sincerity towards the drills.

Students joke around and laugh while walking world,” said Holmes. around the room and teachers rarely cover the door window or check if it is locked.

“I think that they’re pretty pointless now,” says

5

after Harvard, Princeton University and the University of Virginia dropped their Early Decision programs, and did not replace the programs with any other early programs.

All three of these universities cited that the main drawback of retaining an Early Decision program was that it disadvantaged poorer applicants. An editorial in the Daily Princetonian on September 18, 2006, which at the time urged Princeton to drop its Early Decision program, stated that “Perhaps the biggest problem with the early admissions process is that it tends to favor wealthier students at elite high schools. Many schools – Princeton included – tend to accept a higher percentage of students who apply early. Yet, students in need of financial aid have a huge discentive to apply early because it prevents them from comparing financial aid and scholarship options.”

Traditionally, all students accepted under Early Decision are only able to see what aid package they are going to receive after acceptance.

“The problem with Early Decision is that it doesn’t give less wealthy kids the chance to get financial aid packages,” said Mian. “Before you apply the colleges let you get an account, which sort of estimates how much aid you will be given; but there’s no telling that if you get accepted they’ll give you the money that was estimated to be given to you.”

However, many elite colleges such as Yale, Dartmouth, Stanford and UPenn retained their early admission programs. Yale and Stanford, each of which employ a Single-Choice Early Action program, stated that the disadvantaging of poorer students is completely eliminated from the early equation under Early Action, as students are not bound to a college and thus do not have to worry about comparing aid packages.

“You have to be prepared,” said Fleming. “If your family can’t afford the college that you want to apply Early Decision too, then you have to be prepared to take out loans. You just have to know the consequences of your decisions.”

Friday • Winter Spirit Day/Pep

Saturday •

Rally during R5 flex

First day of winte r

Mon. Dec. • Winter Brea 24 - Tues. Jan. 1 k!

Wed. Jan. 2

• SOL retakes in Caferteria/Cla usen Hall • Robin Hood Rehersal in Au ditorium (2 to 5 p.m.)

• Transitional Hig Clausen Hall (7 h School meeting in p.m.)

Thurs. Jan. 3

orium • IB Recognition Ceremony in Audit (Both Flexes) Hall • SOL retakes in Caferteria/Clausen (2 to • Robin Hood Rehersal in Auditorium 5 p.m.) ng in • College Partnership Program meeti Clausen Hall (Both Flexes)

Fri. Jan. 4

Hall • SOL retakes in Caferteria/Clausen

Mon. Jan. 7

Hall • SOL retakes in Caferteria/Clausen

•Robin Hood Re hersal in Audit orium (2 to 5 p.m.)

• NFICEP Traini ng in Library (5 p.m. to 10 p.m.)

Tues. Jan.

8 • SOL retakes in Ca •Robin Hood Re ferteria/Clausen Hall hersal in Audit orium (2 to 5 p.m.)

Wed. Jan. 9

•Collaboration Day • Varsity Math Meet in Cafeteri a •NHS meeting in Orchestra roo (2 p.m.) m (7:20 a.m.)

NEWS

Dec. 19, 2007

Filmmaker instructs IB hopefuls

NEWS BRIEFS

MOHAMAD ELBARASEE

Junior Victor Portillo watches as a nurse prepares to draw his blood.

Deadline for purchase of AHS Spirt Wear Dec. 18

Spirit Wear items will be sold on Tuesday, Dec. 18 in the Athletic Lobby from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

This is the last time that Spirit Wear items will be sold before the holiday season, and all orders for Spirit Wear must be placed by Dec. 18 to ensure for holiday delivery/pickup.

DREW FLOWERS

DREW FLOWERS

The Leadership Class collected 105 pints of blood on Dec. 17. Out of the 127 student donors and the 20 expected faculty donors, 24 were deferred.

Donors can be deferred for a number of reasons including iron deficiency, extended periods of time spent in certain countries and a donor can be rejected if they are ill. An average of one out of every four donors is deferred.

The Leadership Class sponsored the event with the aid of INOVA. “Usually our goal is to sign up 100 donors,” said senior and blood drive committee chair Laith Abu-Taleb, “this year we bumped it up to 150 because of how well the blood drive went last year.” The Leadership Class beat their previous record held by last years class of 96 units of blood, but did not meet their set goal.

A new feature in this years blood drive was the ALYX system. Donors who are 5’1” and over 130 pounds are eligible to have twice as much red blood cells drawn as regular donors. The ALYX system draws to units of blood and returns one unit of plasma to the donor.

After donating, donors were treated to snacks and drinks. Although non one fainted, many students began to feel light headed and naseous. Registration for the blood drive was held for two weeks during all red day lunches in November and early December.

Donors enjoyed a free shirt, food and knowing that their donated blood would help save up to three lives.

DREW FLOWERS

Blood Drive draws in over 100, falls short of goal

Bonnie Viningʼs English11 class visited the National Museum of the American Indian (left); the innovative design added a touch to the Smithsonian complex, including the entry way (top right); students were able to watch a native American production (bottom right).

Students visit museum Junior English class explores the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

BY DREW FLOWERS Staff Writer Several English 11 classes went on a field trip Dec. 5 to the National Museum of the American Indian. The field trip was organized by three English 11 teachers: Niki Holmes, Bonnie Vining, and Chris Bagot.

The students were able to experience aspects from all types of American Indians. The museum had exhibits of Indian tribes from all over the United States, as well as some from Latin American. In each exhibit, students observed various aspects of American Indian culture.

In the exhibits, there is a grand collection of Native American artifacts, a wide selection of American Indian costumes and outfits, and numerous pictures and maps of Native Americans, their daily activities, and their living conditions.

Native American artifacts would include tools, toys, and other personal possessions. There were also displays that were great resources that depicted how certain Native American looked like, what kinds of environments they lived in, and what kind of objects they had.

“We went to the museum and we broke off into small groups and roamed around the museum for two hours. Then, we went the cafeteria in the museum where we could choose from different tribes’ food,” said junior Taimoor Bhatti.

“We decided to go the museum because it would help the

students expand their knowledge of the American Indians,” said English teacher Bonnie Vining.

The National Museum of the American Indian is located in Washington, D.C., on the National Mall. It is the first national museum in the country dedicated exclusively to Native Americans, so experiencing the museum is a great privilege that few are able to do.

The museum itself is five-stories tall, and is made out of a golden-colored stone that is designed to evoke natural rock formations that have been shaped by wind and water over thousands of years (much like Native American stone architecture).

The museum is also set in a site that is surrounded by simulated to give the visitor a more natural aura and make the experience more real. The museum offers a range of exhibits, film and video screenings, school group programs, public programs and living culture presentations.

“It was a pretty fun trip because I found out that there is so much about all the different types of Native American tribes,” said Bhatti.

National Museum of the American Indian Size of the museum grounds: 4.25 acres Size of the five-story building: 250,000 square feet Total construction cost: $220 million Percent of the cost coming from private donors: 50% Designers of the museum: Douglass Cardinal, a Blackfeet Indian; Johnpaul Jones, a Cherokee/Choctaw; Ramona Sakiestewa, a Hopi; and Donna House, a Navajo/Oneida

LOGAN MILLER

The SGA will hold a toy and book drive for the Ronald McDonald House of Charities in Falls Church beginning on Dec. 10 and ending Dec. 20. The SGA asks the AHS community to donate any new or used toys or books to the SGA table in the back of the cafeteria during Red Day lunches during this time, or to the Leadership room, 59, during R5. Used toys and books need to be in good condition. All questions concerning the drive should be addressed to David Winters, Nomin Bayarjargal, Leu Assefa, or Mya Yetref.

The Young Republicans held a fundraiser on Dec. 10 and 12 in the auditorium and cafeteria to raise money for the Fisher House, an organization that provides temporary housing for the family members of injured soldiers. Members sold doughnuts and hot chocolate.

“I have to pass. If I don’t, my life goes in a negative direction. My dreams will be shattered.”

This statement by Mongamo Tyhala, a senior at Oscar Mpetha High School in Nyanga, South Africa, echoes the fear of many students in his position. Every 12th grade student in his country is required to take the Matric exams, a series of tests based on the subjects they study. Doing well on these exams is crucial to success later in life. Not only do these tests act as a determinant in university admission, but they help the student to gain access to better jobs and future resources. In a country where 52% of the ages 16-25 population is unemployed, higher education is extremely important.

This important process is the subject of a new documentary by Molly Blank, who will be visitingAHS and screening the video for IB film students during W8 today. The film, Testing Hope, follows four South African seniors at Oscar Mpetha High School in the small township of Nyanga.

These teens are undergoing what may be the bigest stress of their lives: preparing and taking for the Matric exams. Passing the exams will result in a Matriculation Endorsement on the senior graduation certificates. Only this endorsement, the minimum legal qualification for college eligibility, will allow access to higher education. Failure will result in a standard diploma, and no change for college or higher-level jobs.

Four members of the IB Film II class recently took a trip to the E Street Cinema and saw the documentary. Many thought that it was a moving movie, with a powerful commentary on the South African school system and life of some of its poorest citizens.

“The movie infoms about the unfortunate siuation of schools in South Africa,” said senior Brad Grabo. “It shows that a lot of people in this country are spoiled compared to those in this film. These people have almost nothing, yet they have so much hope that they can get out and go to college.”

The film, presented by director Molly Blacnk, will be screened today during W8 in the auditorium for several journalism, film, and English classes.

ESOL thespians act decisively

SGA hosting toy and book drive for charity house

Young Republicans hold fundraiser for troops

BY KELLY MCGAREY News Editor

Jhosmar Jimenez keels over in pain in the Story Theatre play “The Clever Elsie.”

“PLAY” from 1 “Some English words getting to pronounce with the accent is hard,” said junior Abby Kamara. Abby, like every other student in ESOL drama, is currently learning English as a second language. Abby originally only spoke Krio, a language found in Sierra Leone in Africa.

The play was presented to an audience easily topping 50 to a nearly flawless degree. The full English script was also presented clearly and effectively despite the language being new to the entire cast.

This success may be attributed to the growth and expansion of the ESOL program over the last few years. The ESOL drama department has expanded and dramatically improved since its start only a few years ago. The department began as a seven member after school club and has become a full length class elective taught by drama teacher Vicki Farish with a 30-plus student body.

“ESOL drama has improved so much since it started. We have so many more members and a class with a teacher now,” says Anastasia Franjie.

“It started with about ten kids and then we had 12, and the next year 14, then 16, and now, literally, we have a full class, it’s just great,” said Chekin.

The rapid growth can be attributed to the fact that ESOL drama is, “giving them [ESOL students] something they’ve never had before.”

The students all love drama, theater, acting, and

COURTESY MOLLY BLANK

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South African students take Matric Exams

having something fun to do outside of school.

“I love everything about theater. I love to act. I like how you get to meet new people,” says freshman Narlyn Gonzalez. Narlyn originally only spoke Spanish, but pulled off her two full English roles extraordinarily well.

Junior Patricia Kanu agrees with Gonzalez about the fun of ESOL drama. “Getting to act on stage man, there’s nothing else like it!” she shouts enthusiastically.

“You’re not uncomfortable or anything,” her friend Abby Kamara adds, “I do regular theater too and with American kids, they’ll notice when you make a mistake or say something wrong, but here we’re all trying to learn the language so it’s okay.”

ESOL drama, like almost everything else in Annandale, is a new experience for our ESOL students. However, judging by the most recent play, this inherent difficulty seems easily surmountable for the department’s participants.

Each donor saves three lives, gives one pint

The Career Center requests that all seniors who have been accepted to a college or colleges share their information to the Career Center. A bulletin board will be posted in the near future celebrating the acceptance of seniors to colleges across America and the world.

PHOTOS BY MOHAMAD ELBARASSE

News about colleges should be sent to the Career Center

After finishing her donation, senior Becca Clayton raises her arm to ensure that her needle incision clots.

Seniors Dylan Volk and Lex Layton enjoy snacks after donating blood.

Senior Mohamed Gaballah completes a required form to participate in the ALYX donation program.

ARTS

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Dec. 19, 2007

7 In the Area Holiday Performances The Nutcracker

NENA BUCK

BYTIGIST TAMIR

Performed by the Virginia Ballet Company At the Ernst Cultural Center Theatre Dec. 27 – 29 2 p.m. & 7 p.m.

Tickets: $15 - $25

Photography teacher Meredith Stevens and senior Jennifer Schwarz take a deep look at some of Schwarzʼs pictures.

Senior IB Photograpy students Erin Huff and Katie Alvarez discuss their pictures.

“The Nutcracker” comes to town!

Performed by the Olney Ballet Theatre At the Olney Ballet Theatre Center Dec. 22 at 7 p.m.

Dec. 23 at 2 p.m. & 7 p.m.

Tickets: $15 - $29

it over and over again you get better. It’s basically a trial and error experience but eventually you’ll get what you want,” said Alvarez.

Students learn how to develop film, work with angles and focus on details in their pictures. Yet the significance is much deeper than the outer perspective of things. In her quest and search to find out who she is as an artist senior Erin Huff said, “Alot of pictures always look the same. You always see a sunset and I always try to make a picture my own and try to mix it up in some way. I try to convey what I feel and my emotions through photography, whether I am happy or feeling kind of down.”

Photography also helps students build people skills.

“The people are the most interesting part of the class,” said senior Arielle Balicki. “Everyone here has a different point of view. There are a lot of people that you wouldn’t necessarily become friends with unless you’re in the photo class, but once you get to know them you begin to realize that art connects us all.”

While Balicki has taken photography for three consecutive years, she does not plan on pursuing it in college. “I love it, but I don’t think I’ll go and major in photography in college. I’ve taken it for all these years because I always feel an urge to grab my camera,” said Balicki. “I feel like I have to go and create something.

It may seem simple to snap pictures but it is not easy to get a good picture out of your camera. I love how you can literally view the world through a totally different lens.”

Students love photography, but not just for the photographing itself; the photos they get out of it; the creativity they can bring out and express; the ways they can make things look; or for showing others what they see. “It is being able to create something out of nothing. It is putting yourself into your work. It is like a piece of you goes into every picture. A picture is worth more than a thousand words,” said Alvarez.

Photography has been important to society in order to preserve a bit of our history and experiences on the face of this world. Whether it is in the dark room or exploring the endless possibilities that the world has to offer, these passionate students will continue to showcase their latest work which has been so finely crafted by the influence of the teacher, the class and their own perspectives. Before winter break the students plan on putting on a show of some of their works. Be on the look out for student artwork in Clausen Hall, Art Gallery, or the Annandale Center.

Students try to portray their ideas through their lenses, and see the possibilities of what the world has to offer

BY CARLOS GALICIA Staff Writer Aim, focus, say cheese and click.You have just captured a long lasting memory. Yet to many, photography is much more than capturing memories. It is a form of expression, a way of being and interpreting what they see through their own eyes. Photography is one of the many elective classes that allows students’uniqueness, individuality, and ability of interpretation to rise to the surface.

The class tries to help students improve their skills while enhancing their creative vision. It also helps them explore other realms of art and photography.

“The entire environment of photography, the dark room, the way it smells, the chemicals and all the funny stuff and things I’ve learned. I need to be there. It is like sports for an athlete,” said senior Erin Huff.

“I encourage students to expand on their own personal vision and ideas and really make the artwork truly their own,” said Photography teacher Meredith Stevens, graduate of AHS class of 1999. While many schools in Fairfax County have a dark room, AHS is lucky enough to have one of the largest. In these classes, students are offered the opportunity to search through a labyrinth of creativity and apply the knowledge they acquire to the interpretation of their own artwork. “Anybody and everybody should and can take the class, as long as they are willing to work,” said Stevens.

“I love it,” said IB photography student senior Katie Alvarez. “I love taking pictures. You get to do want you want. We take pictures, and have fun. We get projects and suggestions but from there you go on from your own ideas.”

Alvarez plans to pursue photography in college.

Photography is a class like no other. “I feel at home, happy and content when I know what I am doing. When I hold a camera in my hands I feel like I can do anything,” said Alvarez. The class allows students to take learning and working into their own hands as well.

“In photography you will mess up a lot, but you just need to be positive about your art. When you keep doing

Performed by the Washington Ballet At the Warner Theatre Dec. 20 – 23 at 7 p.m.

Dec. 21 – 23 at 2 p.m.

Tickets: $29 - $80

A Christmas Carol Ford’s Theatre At the Lansburgh Theatre Dec. 19, 21, 26, 27 at 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 22, 23, 29 at 2:30 p.m. & 8 p.m.

Dec. 21 at only 2:30 p.m.

Dec. 28 at only 7:30 p.m.

Synetic Theater At Rosslyn Spectrum Now – Dec. 24 Thurs – Sat at 8 p.m.

Sun at 3 p.m.

Tickets: $15 – students $30 Thurs – Sun $35 Fri – Sat $5 off seniors

A Christmas Carol

TIGIS

T TA M

IR

Senior Arille Balicki is an IB Photography student,but she does not plan on pursuing Photography as her main career.

“I love it but I donʼt think Iʼll go and major in photography in college,” said Balicki.

Show us what you got . . .

Photography students give us a glimpse from behind their lenses Caroline Dunleavy

Jennifer Schwarz Grade: 12 Art class: IB Photography TItle of Work: Waterfall Work description: “I wanted the water to look like it was continously going over the rock. I achieved this look by having a longer exposure time.”

Grade: 11 Art Class: Photography 1 Title of Work: My First Roll (of film) Work description: “My first roll of film ever! It seemed like forever, but I’m pretty sure it was only a couple of weeks to shoot, develop, and process.”

Erin Huff

Mariam Cheis Grade: 10

Grade: 12

Art Class: Photography 2

Art Class: IB Photography 2 HL and Photography 3

Title of Work: Mary

Title of Work: Grunge

Work description: “It’s a photo of a statue in a cemetery. It took me a week to develop and finish everything.”

Work descriprion: “In each photo I take, I try to represent a story, this one is about a girl who is seen as flawedbut is truly beautiful. It took me an instant and a half.”

Poesía de los estudiantes de último año de secundaria: La Despedida Pronto le diremos Adiós a los colores rojo y blanco De nuestra escuela Annandale; cuatro años han pasado Y en ellos hemos crecido, esforzado y avanzado Y en dimensiones dificiles hemos madurado.

El rojo y el blanco siempre no han acompañado Ablast constanteemente nos ha informado Y los átomos con su rataplán, y la canción de vigilia Hemos pasado y desde los catorce hasta los diecisiete Muchos amigos y conocidos hemos encontrado.

No menos de una B cuando llevamos las notas a casa.

Sin darnos cuenta, varias pulgadas hemos aumentado Crecimos tan rápido como la calabaza Y hoy le decimos Adiós a lo más preciado, A los colores rojo y blanco.

SPORTS XTRA

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Dec. 19, 2007

They ain’t puckin’ around

Local Ice Arenas FAIRFAX ICE ARENA 3779 Pickett Road Fairfax, VA 22031 703-323-1131 Admission Weekday: $6.75 Weekend: $7.25 Skate rental: $3.50 PENTAGON ROW OUTDOOR ICE SKATING 1101 S Joyce St. Apt. 2420 Arlington, VA 22202 703-418-6666 Admission General: $8.00 Skate rental: $3.00

2006-2007 Herndon Hornets team photo

Tyler Coquelin

MOUNT VERNON ICE ARENA 2017 Belleview Boulevard Alexandria, VA 22307 703-768-3224 Admission Weekday student: $5.50 Weekday adult: $6.00 Weekend student: $6.00 Weekend adult: $6.50 Skate rental: $ 2.50

Grade: 12 Years played hockey: 17 Position: Center/Wing Goals scored this season(2 games): 1 Future of hockey: maybe in college

SKATEQUEST OF RESTON 1800 Michael Faraday Ct. Reston, VA 20190 703-709-1010 Admission General: $7.00 Skate rental: $3.00

Traveled to: British Columbia and all around the Northern Atlantic area for hockey.

Awards: Tournament MVP, Captain of the team and fastest skater.

FRIENDS OF FORT DUPONT ICE ARENA 3779 Ely Place SE Washington, DC 20019 202-584-5007 Admission General: $4.00 Skate rental: $2.00 SCULPTURE GARDEN ICE SKATING RINK 7th St. & Constitution Ave. NW Washington, DC 20355 202-371-5340 Admission Adults: $7.00 Student-:$6.00 Skate rental: $3.00

Is Michael Vick’s sentence long enough?

“Yes, because he broke the law, and it’s inhumane.”

Favorite Team: Detriot Redwings and Washington Capitals Favorite Player: Adam Oates and Steve Yzerman

fights and broken bones.

Coquelin switches between two positions wing and center. He usually prefers to play center just likeAdam Oates. When he plays center, his job is to mostly play in the middle of the ice, away from the sideboards.

When he plays wing, his job is the opposite of center.

He plays on the sides and gets rebounds to try and set

BY BROOKE BARLOW up for the center to take a shot. staff writer The adrenaline rush from hitting people and When Friday night comes around, ice hockey scoring goals has convinced Coquelin to continue to games are not on the minds of many students. Not only play when he attends college next year and also in that, but most have not even heard of AHS’s co-ed ice club teams.

The Herndon Hornets have a 1-1 record so far hockey team with Herndon High School, forming the Herndon Hornets. Although AHS is only represented and plan on having a successful season. They meet once a week to practice at Skate by three students, that does not Quest in Reston, Virginia. Their discourage them from putting practices last about an hour and forth their best effort. a half and consist of drills such as Senior Tyler Coquelin is one I got a concussion from an suicides that help with their skatof the captains for the Hornets. ing skills. Coquelin’s least favorite His passion for skating began illegal hit from behind that drill is called rush in circles. “Its when Coquelin was only one when you skate around every year old. During the season, Co- threw me into the board circle in the skating rink with a quelin would frequently watch puck.” said Coquelin. our hometown NHL hockey —TylerCoquelin The team is co-ed, but they team, the Washington Capitals senior have not had a girl player on the with his favorite player, Adam team since last year. When teams Oates. are co-ed, it can sometimes create He quickly learned how to play roller hockey. By the time he was 14 he moved problems with the team. Some boys feel that it is not on to play ice hockey, which is what Coquelin is cur- right to charge at a girl and throw her up against a rently involved in. He plays for two teams in the board at the same speed you would with a boy.

“It is kind of weird,” said junior John Copenhaver.

Northern Virginia area, the Herndon Hornets and “Because they are not normally on the ice and you are the Reston Raiders.

Coquelin travels up north about once or twice a surprised when you see a girl.”

Copenhaver is another player that makes up the month with his teams. They also sometimes travel Hornets.

He was first inspired to play when his dad to exotic places. Coquelin’s favorite trip was to Pentictin, British Colombia, Canada, to compete in a introduced it to him. He has been playing for 13 years.

Like Coquelin, Copenhaver plays one more than one tournament.

Ice hockey is a aggressive sport. It is common for team. His second team, which is the Ice Dogs, has a hockey players to have fake teeth after having their record of four wins, three losses and two ties.

The Herndon Hornets next game is December teeth knocked out by the puck or by a fight. Coquelin said,“I got a concussion from an illegal hit from behind 21, at Skate Quest. They are playing against James that threw me into the boards. That’s probably the Madison and George Marshall High School that is worst injury I’ve had.” For most hockey fans one of another combined/divisional team. the thrills of going to a hockey game is to witness the

Students represent Annandale on the Herdon Hornets ice hockey team

“

”

—Emma Barker freshman

“No, becacuse he is a doggy killer.

Innocent animals were being harmed.”

- MJ Jami sophomore

“Yes, he shouldn’t torture dogs like that. Why would you kill a dog? They didn’t do anything worng.”

John Copenhaver Grade: 11 Years played hockey: 13 Position: Center/Wing Goals scored this season(2 games): 1 Future of hockey: maybe in college Traveled to: All over the East Coast from Florida to New York and in Ontario.

Awards: MVP of Congressional Cup Tournament(2004) Favorite Team: Colorado Avalanche Favorite Player: Bobby Hule

Matthew Chiappane Grade:: 9 Years played hockey: 8 Position: Center/Wing Goals scored this season(2 games): 1 Future of hockey: Play for Ohio Traveled to:: Las Vegas and Chicago.

Awards:: MVP and most goals Favorite Team:: Dallas Stars Favorite Player:: Mike Madona

Vick headed to the slammer

-Catherine Menzilla sophomore

Atlanta football player finally sentenced to 23 months in jail for dog fighting and abuse “No, he deserved a punishment for what he did, but it was a little long.”

—Derek Amoafui junior

“Yes, dog fighting is cruel. It’s not something you should do.

Did he get more punishment as a celebrity? Yes, but I’m not completely against that.”

—John Hawes history teacher

BY LOGAN MILLER

BY MICHAEL CRAIG staff writer videographer Last week Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 Michael Vick is a disgrace to the NFL. Vick pleaded guilty months in a prision, more than any of affiliates. to participating in an animal-fighting incident that took place This sentence was 12 to 18 months more than on his property in Smithfield, Virginia. The dogs would fight prosecuter predicted, as part of his plea deal with to the death and sometimes the losing dog in the fight would the court system. be put to death by drowning, hanging, gunshot, electrocution, Vick had changed his story from not knowing or some other method. anything about the dog fighting to pleading guilty I have to admit that I enjoyed seeing Michael Vick play in Sports opinion to the charges of spronsoring these events. The the NFL. He is a great football player. However, it’s hard to judge said Vick played an active role in the killBy Logan Miller say the same about his character. I think that Vick deserves ing of pit bullls at his house in southern Virginia. his time in prison if not more. The maximum amount of and Michael Craig Although Vick was seriously apologetic, it was not jail time for dog fighting is 5 years. Vick is serving less than enough the convince the jugdes and procecutors half of that sentence. Not only did Vick take part in the dog that he did not deserve punishment. Vick has a chance of being released as early as the fighting and executions of the dogs, he was also responsible for the majority of the summer of 2009, on the federal guidlines of good behavior. Vick also has a chance of serving funding. He lied to his team, his fans and even the NFL commissioner. additional jail time, on the charges of dogfighting at the state level.

From the start Vick was headed for trouble with his substance abuse problems Vick has been indefinetly suspneded from the NFL, his 10 year, $130 million contract has and his incident where he flicked off fans at an Atlanta Falcons game. been postponed, and his endorsements are lost. The NFL is seeking $20 million in bonuses I think that Michael Vick should not be allowed back into the NFL. He’s had his from Vick. chance and he blew it. Even though Vick made the NFL millions of dollars every As for the Vick family, they are having to deal with with the law yet another time. Acseason, he lied to the commissioner and if he’s let back into the league he will only cording to the New York Times, although Vick denied allegations of being directly involved add to the amount of criminals who are playing already. in dogfighting he said “I hope I can move forward in my life and make better decisions.” Vick It’s just terrible to think about. He would train dogs to fight one another for fun knew what he was gettting himself into by supporting dogfighting, and clearly deserved the and wager money on it. Vick knew that what he was doing was wrong and now he’s punishment he recieved. 23 months was a bare minimum for the disturbance he has created. going to have to face the consequences. His reputation is destroyed and people will The Falcons franchise is practically wrecked, Vick’s jersey has been taken of the shelves, and remember him for the rest of his life as the speedy quarterback who killed dogs. the team’s coach has given up and left the Falcons.

Match point

Dec. 19, 2007

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Happy Holidays!

12 What are you addicted to?

HEALTH

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Dec. 19, 2007

Is chocolate really addictive?

Experts say there is no real addiction to chocolate but AHS students feel that there truly is

BY RACHAEL BURNETT

“Juice boxes, because they come in all different flavors and also they are small so you can drink a lot of them. ”

Health Editor

—Kelsey Price freshman

“Reading, because it gives you ideas and inspiration for the future.”

—Konnie Coteh sophomore

“Romantic movies, I watch them a lot and it makes me feel good, also how I wish I could be that character.”

—Aurelia Foll sophomore

Is chocolate addictive? Today, production and consumption of chocolate is a global affair. People crave chocolate more than any other food and in the United States alone the typical person eats 11.5 pounds annually.

“I knew that alot of people ate chocolate but I had no idea that I could possibly be eating 11.5 pounds a year. That’s tons of chocolate,” said sophomore Torie Dieble.

What makes people crave chocolate more than any other food? Yes, chocolate tastes good and melts in your mouth, but there must be more to chocolate than just good taste. Chocolate is made up of chemicals associated with mood, emotion and addiction. Some people eat chocolate as a comfort food when they are stressed or depressed.

Deible feels that “Chocolate is definitely what I eat to make me feel better. When I come home from a stressful day of school I eat all my left over chocolate from Halloween.”

One has to wonder, do people crave chocolate because they are addicted to the chemicals in it or do people crave chocolate because they have a imaginary attachment to it?

Although there are similarities between eating chocolate and drug use, generally researchers believe that a chocolate “addiction” is not a true addiction. While chocolate does contain potentially mood-altering substances, these are all found in other less appealing foods such as broccoli.

Research has proven that you would have to eat more than 25 pounds of chocolate in one sitting to get any kind of chemical reaction.

A combination of chocolate’s sensory characteristics — sweetness, texture and aroma — nutrients, and chemicals, together with hormonal and mood swings, largely explains chocolate cravings. We generally crave foods due to external prompts and our emotional state, rather than

“Sleeping, because school is very tiring and I am always in need of some sleep.”

—Billy Pelaez senior

Healthy vs.

Unhealthy

The original artwork used to advertise Hershey Park, the home of chocolate.

Senior Deba Hussain eats a piece of chocolate while working on her homework. “I like most types of chocolates but my favorite is Hershyʼs milk chocolate.”

actual hunger. We could be bored, anxious or depressed, so one way of explaining cravings could be a self-medication for feeling miserable.

“I think that people crave chocolate because it is so sweet. I eat it from time to time, however the people who are addicticted have it way too much,” said junior Pablo Cossio.

Chocolate is seen as a “forbidden” food. It’s tasty, but something that should be resisted. Because of this attachment to chocolate it is suggested that the desire for chocolate is more of a cultural than a physical attraction.

In our media crazed culture one can’t ignore the advertising that is seen with regards to chocolate.

“When people see these cool comercials with the snazzy jingles about chocolate and junk food they oviously are going to want to go out and try them,” said Cossio “This is good for the producers but it not so good for the customer becuase it creates more chances that they will become addictided and eat lots.”

The subliminal message that these advertisements send helps fuel our need for chocolate. This indicates the

human obsession with chocolate is more likely the result of learned behavior and cultural factors rather than the chemicals itself.

Even if the appetite for chocolate sometimes seems very strong and you have a difficult time stopping after the first bite, this is not the same thing as an addiction. To have an addiction you must exhibit some of the following behaviors, have compulsive cravings, have reduced control over the use or consumption of the “drug”, have physical withdrawal symptoms, continue to use or consume the “drug” even after you are fully aware of its harmful effects or exclusive concentration on the use or consumption of the “drug”. So to enjoy chocolate doesn’t constitute an addiction.

“I absolutly love chocolate, I’m not sure if I have a true addiction but I can’t live with out it. I think that people should be able to control their addictions to food because there is no real chemical that makes us keep eating it, its just too good to pass up and eat,” said junior Erica Anderson.

Crazy Cravings Students share their cravings for their favorite foods they just cant put down

Popcorn Why it’s addictive: Popcorn has salt on it and it is sometimes covered in butter .

Why you should eat it: Popcorn contains more fiber than snacks made with refined sugar.

Pretzels Why they’re addictive: Pretzels have salt sprinkled all over them.

Why you should eat it: They contain little calories and can be very filling.

Freshman, Katie Vu What food are you addicted to?: French Onion Dip with potato chips.

What makes you so addicted to it?: Becuase of the flavor, you canʼt just eat one.

How often do you eat it?: Everytime it is at my house I eat a lot of it.

How much do you spend on it?: I do not know because my mom buys it but I canʼt imagine it being a lot becuase it is only dip.

Do you think other people are addicted to it?: Yes, because it is the best kind of dip ever.

Junior, Kadir Mohammed What food are you addicted to?: Citrus Flavored Orbit gum.

What makes you so addicted to it?: I like the taste and it keeps the flavor for a while, also I keep chewing it to annoy my teachers.

How often do you eat it?: Almost everyday in class.

How much do you spend on it?: I usually do not spend much money on it because I get it from my friends.

Do you think other people are addicted to it?: Yes, because almost everyone chews gum.

Pepperoni Pizza Why it’s addictive: Pizza is very greasy and the pepperoni adds spice that people can’t get enough of.

Why you should not eat it: Pizza contains a lot of fat in just one slice.

Twinkies Why they’re addictive: Twinkies are all fried dough filled with vanilla cream.

Why you should not eat it: Even though very popular, they are filled with a lot of fatty substances.

data compiled by: Adeel Shams

Sophomore, Mariam Oweis What food are you addicted to?: Every type of Chocolate.

What makes you so addicted to it?: It is scrumdiliumcius.

How often do you eat it?: At least once a day.

How much do you spend on it?: Probably about $15 a week.

Do you think other people are addicted to it?: Heck yes.

Senior, Holden Drume What food are you addicted to?: Chicken.

What makes you so addicted to it?: It is the best tasting meat.

How often do you eat it?: Mostly once a day.

How much do you spend on it?: A lot of fast foods places have it and I get it from my parents, so not much.

Do you think other people are addicted to it?: No, becuase it is not like coffee or chocolate. data compiled by: Adeel Shams

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Dec. 19, 2007

Swish!

13

Photographer Spotlight Salinna So

The AHS basketball team squared off against Yorktown High School in their home opener. The Atoms managed a dramatic fourth quarter comeback to send the game into overtime, but came up short in the extra period falling 67-60.

-What inspires you to take pictures?

I love how photography is a representation of art. I’ve been interested in art for many years, and this class was a perfect match for me.

-How long have you been taking photo classes?

I’ve been in the photo class for two years, but when I was younger I was always interested in taking pictures.

What got you started with photography?

I have really always loved everything about art and I was in an art class in 8th grade when Mrs. Buzzel came to my class and brought all sorts of pictures in. She really inspired me to take the class in high school.

MATT JOHNSON

MATT JOHNSON

What is your favorite thing to take pictures of?

Taking pictures of people around the school is the most interesting to me because they aren’t posing in any way and it shows them in their natural state, making a really cool photograph.

Above: Freshman Melvin Robinson defends a Yorktown player.

Robinson finished the game with 22 points.

Right: Junior Allen Stalp surveys the defense. Stalp is one of the Atomʼs few returning starters on the team.

What is your best memory involving photography?

My friends came into my work and all had their portraits taken by me to see how skilled I was at my job. The pictures turned out really well and I was super happy with the results.

Far Left: Robinson, starring in his first varsity game, added eight rebounds and three steals to go along with his 22 points.

Bottom Left: Junior Jordan Anderson moved from Arkansas to northern Virginia over the summer and plays an influential role as primarily a defensive specialist.

MATT JOHNSON

Do you think you will continue photography?

Yes, I’ll continue taking photo inAHS and I plan to go to college and do something with photography. Currently I have a job at Landmark Mall where I take portraits of people, but I will get a better job in the future.

“ Salinna is a very hard-working, talented student and I believe that she can go very far with photography,” said Meredith Buzzel, So’s photography teacher.

COURTESY OF SALINNA SO

Left:Senior Erik Etherly goes up for a slam dunk. Etherly finished the game with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Other Swim Pics

MATT JOHNSON

MATT JOHNSON

Compiled by Laura Simpson

LAURA SIMPSON

KYLE WHITE

Junior Rachel Wattenbarger prepares for a start in the water for backstroke at the Hayfield meet.

LAURA SIMPSON

KYLE WHITE

The Atoms swim team has been forced to cut players because of its growing popularity. The team meets every day from 3:30 to 4:30 at Wakefield Recreation Center. The Atoms pummeled the Hayfield Hawks 23580 for the boys and 223-90 for the girls on December 7th.

KYLE WHITE

Splash!

Meghan Saladino scans the pool while the swimmers complete a set. She is the assistant head coach of the Atoms.

Above: The team gathers at the end of their practice for a cheer. The favorite cheer of the swimmers is “OO EE GAWA ATOMS GOT THE POWER.” Right: Seniors David Waiter and Walter Smith get directions on their next swim set from the head coach, Bruce Fisher.

KYLE WHITE

KYLE WHITE

Debbie McCoy prepares for a dive during the dive meet at Lee District against the Hayfield Hawks.

Freshman Katie Panther practices diving off the blocks at a practice at Wakefield Rec Center.

Swimmersʼ practice their dives many times in order to ensure that they donʼt fall off the block during a meet.

What is your favorite holiday ?

“Thanksgiving, because all my family comes and we get together to celebrate.”

—Tobias Willis freshman

“New Year’s, because I get to go to North Carolina, and have fun.”

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Dec. 19, 2007

Home for the holidays Temple to visit France over the winter break

BY ANNIKA JESSEN International Editor The anticipation of the events that are to occur the next morning builds to a level that is almost unbearable, making it very difficult to go to sleep that night.

As night falls, she closes her eyes, attempting to rid her mind of everything and concentrate on sleep. In the next few hours, she will awaken to a day that beats almost any dream. This will be Christmas morning, the morning that most children dream of all year long.

The only twist to this year is that Bianca Temple will be waking up to Christmas in France, rather than Christmas in the U.S. This is the first year that Bianca will travel to France with her father and his girlfriend. They are traveling to visit her grandparents who have recently been employed in Paris. Their Chirstmas will not change

much, only for the fact that they are in France and there is absolutely no chance of them seeing a white Christmas. They will be staying in Aix en Provenc, where her grandparents are currently living. On Christmas morning they will wake up and scramble to the Christmas tree and wait for the whole family to be up. Bianca will open the stocking that has her name on it and enjoy the gifts from Santa inside. Then her family will gather around the Christmas tree and open the presents from the rest of her family.

“After we open presents, we pretty much chill all day with the family. My Grandma’s really into family activities, so she will probably come up with a scavenger hunt or something.”

It’s not going to be traditional, but Temple says she will sitll have fun. This way her family is not worried about traditions and the holiday can be relaxing. “I am really excited to go, because I have a French friend that was an exchange student here that we are going to meet up with. This way I get to see the teen scene and experience France as a teenager,” said Temple.

ANNIKA JESSEN

14

INTERNATIONAL

Junior Bianca Temple is preparing for a big change to her holiday celebration; this year it will take place in France. They plan to keep American traditions over in France, except for the food.

Kazue Watlington travels to Japan, visiting relatives for the Japanese New Year

—Amanda Fouche sophomore

BY BEWKETU TAMIR International Editor

BEWKETU TAMIR

—Vinh Ngo junior

Kazue Watlington is looking forward to her yearly trip to Japan. In Japan, the biggest holiday celebration is New Year, where people put pine trees on every door to keep the evil spirits out. She will endure a 14 hour flight, but the flight will be worth it, because the celebrations are excecptional.

“Thanksgiving, because my family gets together.”

—Helame Salme senior

As we near the beginning of the holiday season, anticipation for winter break is mounting and the excitement in the air is palpable. Counselor Kazue Watlington has good reason to be excited: over the break she will be traveling to Japan to visit relatives.

“It takes about 14 hours. Even though the flight is long it is not that bad because it is a direct flight from Washington, D.C., to Tokyo. It is exciting because you’re visiting your family members,” said Watlington.

Direct flights eliminate complications with luggage becuase there is no transfering from plane to plane.

“The biggest holiday for the Japanese is New Year’s, and that’s the main reason we travel to celebrate,” said Watlington. “It is a time of the year when families get together, even those who have busy schedules take at least three days off from their busy schedules for the holiday,” said Watlington.

Melissa Boyle plans to burn scarecrows as a celebration of the New Year in Peru

Sophomore Annika Jessen to celebrate Christmas customs in Denmark

BY ANNIKA JESSEN International Editor

—Joel Jepson history teacher

World News AFRICA On December 12, 2007, a shootout took place in Pretoria, South Africa, in which 11 gunmen tried to rob a truck transporting money. South Africa, a country with one of the highest crime rates, reacted surprised because there were no police casualties. Recently National Police Commissioner Jack Selebi quoted “We will not hesitate to fight fire with fire in order to protect our people and property.” Usually, in these types of situations, criminals outgun police.

BY BEWKETU TAMIR International Editor “It beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere we go …” these lyrics remind us of the holiday season that comes once every year, and brings joy to many.

The winter break provides manyAHS students with an opportunity to go and visit their relatives in other countries. It is an experience unlike any other for them.

“It takes about eight hours,” said senior Melissa Boyle about her last journey to Peru. “It is actually uncomfortable because the last time I went there the fight was at night-time and it was impossible to go to sleep, the excitement also takes over so the sleep does not kick in.”

She is planning on staying a little over two weeks. “I am going to spend half of the trip in beach house which my family rented, and the other in my grandparents’ house in Lima,” said Boyle, who is excited since she has not seen her family for about three years.

“The celebration of New Year is so

KELLY MCGAREY

“Christmas, because I like opening presents.”

As Danish Christmas carols ascended to the heavens, candles were being lit on the Christmas tree. Suddenly, the chorus of voices was interrupted by a piercing yell that erupted from my uncle’s mouth.

We all turned, our mouths gaping at the scene. He had just knocked over a lit candle and caused a branch of our gorgeous Christmas tree to cackle with flames. The rest of the family screamed, anticipating our whole tree to be engulfed in a matter of seconds.

My uncle scrambled around for a device to put out the fire. My grandfather, Bestefar, ran over to the tree and attempted to blow out the fire, while my grandmother, Farmor, had the sense to grab a cup of water from the dinner table and throw it on the tree. Thankfully the fire was extinguished.

This is just one of the many memories that result from traveling to Denmark for Christmas. My dad’s family lives there; his two brothers, his parents, and all of

their relatives. My dad is a Danish citizen legally living in the United States with my mother. We don’t go to Denmark for Christmas very often, but memories are always made when we do. Denmark is all about tradition; there are so many things that have to happen during our celebration of Christ’s birth.

First we go to church on Christmas Eve, and we listen to a service in Danish. We return home for a Christmas feast where the main course is either cooked duck or goose. After dinner, we are always served Citron Fromage. This is lemon custard type dish, and there is an almond hidden somewhere in the dish. The goal is to eat the dish until someone finds the almond.

Once a family member finds the almond, they get a prize. The prize depends on the giver; it can be something extravagant or a little piece of junk.

After dinner, we proceed on to read the Nativity story from the Bible in Danish. Then we sing Christmas carols while dancing around the Christmas tree and my uncle lights the candles on the tree.

We are able to open presents after the candles are lit.

“I think they should hire more officers to reinforce the law.”

—Min Ha Senior

much different in Peru. There we build scarecrows, and put them in the streets.”

“Where my family lives, all the houses are connecting like townhouses. It is really cool, because in the U.S. houses are neutral colors, but in Peru the houses have diverse color,” said Boyle. “ Unlike here [U.S.], in Peru whenever we pass someone we always greet them it common to do that,” said Boyle. “Everyone is either burning scarecrows or doing fireworks, unlike this country, every person is allowed to set off fireworks. When the time reads 12 o’clock we light up the fire works,” said Boyle, remembering the celebration.

“It is warm at this time of the year in Peru, it is summer time, and the winter is not that cold,” said Boyle while talking about the different climate of Peru. “My best experience in Peru is being with my parents, because I don’t usually see them.

The best part is we have fun and make jokes on each other,” said Boyle. “The unique thing about parties in Peru is that they start at night, and go on until the next morning.”

BEWKETU TAMIR

“Christmas, because you get to take presents, and give presents.”

“I have always gone to Japan for Christmas except two times. The first time was because I got married to an American and I had to wait for my papers so I could not get out of the country since I came here as a student,” said Watlington. “The second time was due to Y2K. Many people were worried that computers would stop functioning properly so my mom got scared and she said to not come fearing it might affect my flight. ” As with many cultures that are different from our own, the Japanese “have a completely different way celebrating the New Year’s. Unlike here, in Japan, we put pine trees on every door which is believed to stop evil spirits from entering,” said Watlington.

Another tradition is that people eat noodles because they believe that eating them will lead to a long and healthy life.

“Kids are given money on the holiday in lieu of presents like here [in the U.S.],” said Watlington trying to show the difference in cultures.

Senior Melissa Boyle is traveling to Peru to spend some quality time with her family, as well as celebrate the New Years in a unique way.

Sophomore Annika Jessen is traveling to Denmark over the winter break, where she will be participating in Danish Christmas

SOUTH AMERICA

“I guess making a treaty that will prevent other countries from getting involved in other countries affairs will stop Hugo Chavez from getting involved with other countries.”

—Shan Tan Senior

I am originally from Vietnam and I came here a year and a half ago. The reason I came here is because my parents wanted me to get a better education.

It is the hope of better life that brought me here to the U.S. The first day, I went to school I had no idea what people were saying, so I had to guess what people were saying, it was difficult to understand things that the teacher was saying.

It was embarrassing to that because I usually end up making a mistake in a lieu of what they want me to do.

My life in Vietnam, was a lot different because of many reasons, one of which was education. The education in Vietnam was a lot harder because I had lots of homework, and the tests were difficult.

I have not yet went back to visit my country, but I am planning on doing so after I graduate from college. There’s definitely a big difference in terms of income between here and Vietnam because educated people get equitable payment here.

I want to be an engineer because I like solving problems; part of the reason is that I am good at Math, and Physics. In general, I am good at Science and Math.

BY NITHIN PAI Senior I am originally from New Delhi, India, the country’s capital. This is my third year living in the U.S. The main reason I came here is because my dad was in the Indian Air Force and he was sent to Washington, D.C. His job is to take care of the air traffic that goes to India from the U.S. and from the U.S. to India.

The first day of school was confusing for me because the schedules are so different back in India. In India we had no red days, and white days. We would have eight periods in India. I did not have that much trouble with the language because we learned English in India, we learned reading and writing. The only difference we had was the system because the India system of education was the same as the British system, which is harder than school here.

When we compare India to the U.S. in

terms of job opportunities, the U.S. is a lot better because I am planning on being a software engineer. I say this because many Indians want to work in the field but there is lack of jobs in India and there is little variety of jobs. The U.S. has a variety of job field to choose from.Also, the main office of Microsoft is found in the U.S., it is a great opportunity by itself.

I have not year gone back, but I am planning on going back, and getting my Bachelors there. The main difference I see between India and the U.S. is the culture although we can say U.S. has diversity, India is richer because it has more than 500 languages, 300 of them are written.

BEWKETU TAMIR

BY KHA TRAN Senior

BEWKETU TAMIR

Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez’s government has been accused of secretly funneling almost $800,000 to promote the campaign of Argentina’s newpresident.TheU.S.hasannounced that it has evidence of this scandal and four men have been arrested for trying to cover up this illegal contribution.

Chavez has been previously accused of illegally tampering in the political affairs of his neighboring countries, and this allegation offers proof of his meddling.

PEOPLE

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Dec. 19, 2007

15

When is lying justified?

Students express their perspectives on people’s poor habit of fabricating lies

BY CHARLES SIMPSON STAFF WRITER We are told before we can speak never to lie. Dishonesty, fabrication, fraudulence, deception, and every synonym of the word is frowned upon. Courts have us pledge not to do it, religions preach against it, and our parents taught us to avoid it, however virtually everyone lies.

Not only do we all lie, but we lie frequently. By the time you are reflecting this information . This is the way of the average American, and the average AHS student.

“I lie all the time,” says junior Nate Kaegi, and he is far from alone.

“I lie to stay out of trouble,” said sophomore Joey Stoll. “I think it [lying] is extremely common.” According to the facts, he’s right. A recent poll of nearly 300 confirms that the average AHS student will lie on average, three to four times

every day. However, these are only the consciously registered significant lies.

We lie numerous other times without even recognizing the fact that we have lied. This behavior, it is said, exists because of the subconscious desire to benefit yourself or protect others from harmful information. This type of sub, or semiconscious lying accounts for a large portion of lies we tell every day.

The majority of AHS students agree that these small white lies are not significant, and no problem admitting to them. They also tend to have no moral issue with telling them.

“I don’t have the slightest guilt,” said Stoll.

Nate Kaegi agrees.

When asked whether he has a moral dilemma with lying he responded, “Not at all.”

However, what constitutes a significant lie is still debatable. Most AHS students believe that small lies created in the interest of avoiding minor trouble or protecting another individual are acceptable.

“I usually just lie if a friend asks me something and I know the truth would be mean,” said sophomore Michelle Kinzer. She believes lying is acceptable if it is only in the interest of helping someone and does not create any further problems.

Most would agree with Kinzer. They refrain from lying unless put under a situation such as this and often forget they have lied only minutes later. The effects of these lies are small, and the moral repercussions of the lie are often unnoticeable.

However, often a lie is far more significant, say for

example, with politicians. Politicians are often cited for lying heavily and in regards to significant information. More often than not, a lie made by a politician will have dramatic effects, be it positively or negatively, on a large number of people.

Politicians often defend themselves by stating that lying is a necessary evil in their line of work. The people that they govern often disagree. Here at AHS the situation is much the same. When asked whether politicians should be allowed to lie, School Class President Ngan Hoang said, “Yes and no. It’s kind of like having integrity. Politicians should be honest to citizens and individuals should be able to trust their government, but little white lies don’t matter.

It’s hard to explain.”

Freshman Will Cameron has a more definitive answer, “Absolutely not. When a government lies a big mass of people are given wrong information so decisions are made wrong.”

To many at AHS, lying like a politician is a commonality. Lying for them is just as frequent as telling the truth.

“The only time I don’t lie is when there’s no point in lying. I just think it’s fun to manipulate people. I like to be in control of people,” said junior Kate Salpini.

Although she lies extremely frequently, Salpini does not believe this lying has broken any of the trust between her and others. In fact, she believes the contrary. “People trust me so much more. The way I lie makes it seem like I’ve got everything under control.”

Having, “everything under control,” has lead to another ironic result. Kate does not believe lying has ruined any of her personal or professional relationships; in fact, she believes that lying has improved her friendships.

“If I stopped lying, just completely, I honestly don’t think I would have any friends,” she reflected while chuckling to herself. Salpini enjoys the irony of her lying where trust

is gained through manipulation, and negative actions result in positive ends.

“Lying,” she says, “prepares you for the real world. “You can’t just tell your boss, ‘oh I didn’t do this,’ you need to find a way around it,” she believes.

“Like if I didn’t do some work I’ll make up some good stories,” she says. “I think lying enables you to get things done. You need to lie to get by, but it definitely makes things more complicated.”

Freshman Ndidi Obasi is another of the many AHS students that admits to frequent lying. “Sometimes I’ll do something like mess up or break something, so I come up with a long story to get out of trouble.”

“Another time, I didn’t have a project done so I told the teacher my printer was not working and she gave me a couple more days to get it done.”

While Obasi admits to frequent lying she does not believe it accomplishes much. “I do it to get out of trouble, but I usually just end up getting myself into more.”

“If I started telling the truth the whole time though, I don’t think it would change that much. I guess it’s just a bad habit I can’t kick,” she confesses.

While frequent liars are common atAHS, others avoid lying as much as possible. Senior Emily Ainsworth believes, “It [lying] is never justified.” “I don’t know,” she pondered, “I’ve just always been taught not to lie.”

Despite her moral choice to avoid it, she does admit to lying on a few occasions, but will “always feel really guilty after,” and believes that lying is, “not necessarily good, but it isn’t really that bad either. There’s worse things than lying.”

The commonality of lying, at AHS and across the globe is solid fact. Whether the world would be a better place without lying and deception however, remains a debatable issue.

“Yeah it would probably be a better world without lying because then we could trust each other,” believes Stoll. Others disagree.

“I don’t think it would be better without lying. I don’t think people can handle the truth,” says Obasi.

Senior Kevin Won agrees, “We need lying. Lying makes the world go round.”

Often times we find ourselves in situations in which lying seems the best option.

These answers might help in sticky situations where you might be compelled to lie.

Scenario: Your teacher asks you why you did not do your homework.

The wise way: Instead of raising doubt in your teacher’s mind, just tell her you did not do it. He/she might respect your honestly and integrity to tell the truth instead of fabricating an excuse.

Scenario: Your friend is extremely happy about the new prom dress that she just bought. She asks you for your opinion, but you really do not think it looks beautiful at all.

The wise way: You could easily lie to spare her feelings, but someone else might belittle her feelings later. So, it is wiser to give her your honest opinion and advise for a better dress that would be more suitable for her.

“I think you should not lie about but if it is a little white lie that could help someone else feel good, then it is okay.”

—Vanessa Webb sophomore “ I think that it is okay to lie in order to save a life.

I usually don’t lie because I am bad at it.

Lying on a daily basis is not justifiable.”

—Amanda Krause junior

“Lying should not be morally justified. Lying is lying, I do not believe in white lies or lies for the common good.

—Rebecca Takale junior

“Lying is justified only when it does not hurt anyone else’s feelings and it does not cause any harm.”

—Seemal Awan senior

Ways to detect hidden emotion 1. The person in question acts sullen or uncooperative, and is less forthcoming than usual.

2.

The person who stutters and stumbles through their sentences and avoids eye contact.

3.

Last Issue’s

Who am I?

• I have taught at AHS for 13 months • I attended University of Virginia

4.

The facts of the story changes and the teller seems oddly removed from their story.

5.

The subjects breathing may become short and quick and their face may turn red or white.

• I majored in english

• I have traveled to England, Italy, and the Caribbeans

—Lauren Barnard freshman

He or she uses a voice that sounds higher or lower in pitch and talks at an abnormal pace.

Who am I?

• I like to listen all types of music

“I do not believe in lying, unless it is under life threatening circumstances.

Definitely not on a daily basis.”

Scenario: Someone asks you out on a date, and you are clearly not interested, what do you do?

The wise way: Instead of fabricating an excuse, just simply be honest and tell the person that you are not interested.

Though she admits that like many, she lies, junior Kate Salpini said, “Lying helps you get by, but it definately makes things complicated.

• In my spare time I like spending time with family and friends

Under what circumstances is lying justified?

6.

wood science

The person stalls in order to avoid seemingly simple questions.

water polo

7. The suspected liar may use them in unnecessary situations.

• My motto is “Be kind to everyone.

You never know what theyʼre going through.”

8.

They are lying about not cloning something. Things such as body language, head nods ands shrugs can be dead giveaways of a liar

• My favorite season is spring.

• I was born on Birmingham, Alabama.

• My favorite part about teaching is interacting with students everyday.

Compiled by Aya Saed If you know the answer to “Who am I”, come to the publications lab in room 262

Leavenworth, Kansas are the students summer; cats are a worthless animal

source: www.washingtonpost.com Neal Jarvis

SPORTS

16

Boys Varsity Basketball Lake Braddock

3-0

Hayfield

2-0

Robert E. Lee

4-1

T.C. Williams

2-1

West Potomac

2-1

South County

2-2

West Springfield

1-3

Annandale

0-3

Girls Varsity Basketball T.C. Williams

4-0

West Potomac

3-0

Robert E. Lee

2-0

West Springfield

1-1

Lake Braddock

2-4

Annandale

1-2

Hayfield

1-2

South County

1-3

CoEd Swim and Dive Annandale

6-0

West Springfield

6-0

Lake Braddock

4-2

Robert E. Lee

4-2

South County

2-4

Hayfield

1-5

T.C. Williams

1-5

West Potomac

0-6

Wrestling shows youth in loss to Hylton 0-4. This record haunts the players on the varsity wrestling team as they attempt to fall asleep at night; so far, their team is winless through their first four matches. Failing to come within more than 23 points of their opponents, the season has been far from a success.

The team had an inauspicious start to the season on Nov. 30 when they lost to Fauquier 969. Following three more losses, the team looks forward to jumpstarting their season at Pack the Pit against Paul VI tonight at 7:30 p.m.

In spite of the way the season has gone so far, the players remain optimistic.

“We’re having a bit of a bumpy start but everything will hopefully turn around,” said senior Zach Sharp.

Last year, the team finished with a record of 18-9, but they lost several key players to graduation including Wade Akridge, Patrick Elliot and

James Godbout. In fact, the Atoms only feature one senior in the starting lineup, Jesse Kruse. The Atoms have a sophomore and two freshmen in the starting lineup.

“This year is our rebuilding year. In a couple of years everything will be fine,” said head coach Keith Sholders.

The team remains optimistic that their performance will improve throughout the season.

“We have no worries about the end of the season,” said Sholders. “We fully expect to suprise some people at the end.”

The team hopes that the boisterous audience they expect to draw tonight will help turn the match in their favor against the Paul VI Panthers and propel them to their first victory of the season.

After Pack the Pit, the Atoms begin their conference play against the rest of the Patriot District.

GREG YOUNG

BY JOEY PANTHER Staff Writer

Junior Shane Doty works on technique with junior Victor Njomo in practice. Doty and Njomo both compete in the top weight class.

Girls play hard, but fall to Langley Saxons

BY WALTER SMITH Sports Editor

Varsity Girls Head Coach Cleveland Williamson guides his team in practice.

Girls basketball fell to 1-2 after a tough game against the Langley Saxons, which they lost 36-41. Atoms standouts included senior Jenna McRae and junior Alexis Williams, scoring a combined 25 points. The girls played tough, but the 36 points was not enough to overcome the larger Langley team.

Langley girls basketball had the same record as the Atoms did last year. However, there was a noticeable size advantage for the Saxons, helping them win a very close game.

This is the second loss for the girls this season. TheAtoms lost their first against a strong Yorktown team, but bounced back against a weaker Stuart team. Head Coach Cleveland Williamson believes that the girls have not played up to their potential. “[The girls] need more hustle. We’re built for speed, but we haven’t shown it yet,” said Coach Williamson.

Players recognized the room for improvement.

“We didn’t play to our potential against Yorktown,” said senior Jenna McRae, an integral part of the team.

The Atoms are looking forward to the game against the West Springfield

Spartans on Dec. 21. This will be the first Patriot District match-up for the Atoms. This is also the last game before the winter break and the Bulldog Bash Holiday Tournament. The tournament is played at Westfield HS and will have eight high schools competing. Among the high schools will be Annandale, Washington and Lee, and Patriot District opponent, Robert E. Lee. The tournament begins Dec. 26 and lasts until Dec. 29.

The Atoms placed fourth in the same tournament last year and will try to improve their place as well as their record this year.

Boys Basketball loses third straight in close game Boys basketball falls to Langley 70-74, drops to 0-3 on season with TJ on the horizon

BY GREG YOUNG Sports Editor As senior Erik Etherly slammed down his chair in the third quarter after receiving his fourth foul against Langley, the feeling around the stadium was that the Atoms were finished. Their star player, their D1 prospect, was finished for the vast majority of the game.

“It was a frustrating game,” said Etherly. “I was double and triple teamed the entire game. Also, the ref had made a really stupid call. I didn’t even mean to kick the chair, I just wanted to stop halfway.”

However, apparently this team did not receive the memo that they were supposed to falter when their star left.

The Atoms came fighting back against a heavily favored Saxon team, but fell short, 74-70. The game was close throughout, as the Atoms only trailed by 8 at halftime after leading for much of the first quarter. The loss dropped the team to 0-3 on the year while the Saxons improved to 3-0. The Saxons are favored to win the Liberty District and already have key wins

against Oakton and Robinson.

“I think that defensive rebounding cost us the game,” said Varsity Head Coach Anthony Harper. “I had to call timeouts because they were getting 3-4 rebounds a possession.”

“I think that we lost the game at the free throw line and because we forced passes,” said Etherly.

The Atoms shot the ball fairly well throughout the game, including several made three-pointers by Jay Washington.

However, there were several problems with transition defense throughout the game, as Langley was able to take advantage of 15 AHS turnovers.

The loss has forced the Atoms to regroup and refocus on their pre-season expectations.

“Going into the games, people thought that we were going to go 4-0,” said junior Brian Ma. “We just need to take it one game at a time.”

Ma was also reflecting the Atoms loss on Dec. 7 at JEB Stuart, 49-62. Traditionally, the Raiders are an underachieving team, as they finished 4-17 last year.

“Our offensive effort just was not

GREG YOUNG

Patriot District Standings

Ever since Bruce Fisher started coaching varsity swim atAHS, one of his goals has been moving up in the tough Patriot District, and, this year, theAtoms are definitely closing in on the two-year reigning district champions, the Lake Braddock Bruins.

“We’ve been getting better every year,” said Fisher. “I’m hoping we’ll be in the top three this year.”

TheAtoms’improvement this year can be attributed to new talented freshman scoring for the team as well as upperclassmen swimming for the first time. “[senior] Nick Crumpecker has been a strong addition [to the team] and really improved our depth on the guy’s side,” said Fisher. “Freshman Anna Smith helped our medley and freestyle relays qualify for regionals,” added Fisher.

Other first year swimmers contributing to the boys team’s strong start are freshmen Kyle Tyrell, who specializes in the backstroke and butterfly, fresh-

WALTER SMITH

The Atoms competed in a meet at Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Arlington on Dec. 14, winning the meet by a close margin of 6 points. The win was theAtoms second straight victory, but the team still has some of its biggest meets of the year yet to come.

At the meet, the Atoms were able to defeat Robinson for the first time in recent memory. Among the winners at the meet was the Atoms 4X4 relay team of senior Daniel Ejigu, sophomore Michael Ejigu, sophomore Daniel Blasser, and junior Ki Lee. “We’ve done a lot better than last year,” said Daniel Ejigu. “We are actually winning meets this year. Our JV track team has also done a lot better then last year as well.”

Among the Atoms’ strong events this year are the 4X4 relay and the 4X8 relay. Individually, the Atoms are expected to compete well in the 1600 meter and 3200 meter races with junior Scott Plunkett, the 500 meter and triple jump with Ejigu, and senior Tim Hepburn in the 300 meter race.

“Hepburn has really stepped up for the team,” said Ejigu. “We can put him in almost every event and he can score points.”

TheAtoms have a big meet on Dec. 29 at the PJ Sports Complex in Maryland. The Atoms will be practicing for the meet throughout winter break, and have a practice scheduled on the day after Christmas.

BY SCOTT PLUNKETT Staff Writer

breaking 53.93 second 100 yard freestyle win by junior Rachael Burnett. Burnett broke her previous school record of 54.29 seconds and met the time qualifications for the regional and state meet. Sophomore diver Sean McKinney continued his dominance in the Patriot District by easily winning the one meter dive to continue his undefeated season.

“We’re hoping to get all three of our girls relay teams to qualify for states. The boys relay teams should qualify for regionals, but states will be hard,” said Fisher on the team’s relays.

The girls 200 yard freestyle relay, 400 yard freestyle relay, and 200 yard medley relay are all within seconds of qualifying for states and have the potential if their swimmers all swim close to their best. If these relays can qualify for the state meet, than the girl’s team will have easily surpassed sending only two individuals last year in junior Rachael Burnett and sophomore Annika Jessen.

ThatAtoms have a big meet Dive Coach Briggy Imbriglia speaks with the boy divers before the meet against West Potomac. The boy divers this upcoming Friday against scored 23 points in the 201-104 win. The boys team is undefeated against Patriot District opponents. the Lake Braddock Bruins, who men Ryan Keck, and freshmen who specializes in the breast- the boys by 83. finished third (boys) and fourth TheAtoms then showed their (girls) at the VHSL AAA state diver Jordan Aman who placed stroke, and freshman Georgia talent by easily steamrolling the meet last year. Their other diffisecond at the team’s first two Garney.

The Atoms started their sea- Hayfield Hawks on both the girls cult district opponent is the West meets in the one meter dive son with solid wins by both the and boys sides in their season’s Springfield Spartans which the competition.

The girls team has gotten girls and boys teams over the next meet. The boy’s team won Atoms face Jan. 18th as their last help from other first year swim- South County Stallions where eight events while the girl’s won meet before the district meet. mers sophomore Hope Stadulis, the girls won by 39 points and seven, including a school record

GREG YOUNG

GREG YOUNG

Winter Track Begins

Dec. 19, 2007

Perfection in the pool

Atoms keep perfect record against West Potomac

Senior distance runner Ryan Schaedel runs during track practice.

Schaedel runs the mile for the team.

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Coach Anthony Harper instructs his team during the fourth quarter of the game against Langley. The Atoms eventually lost the game to the Saxons, 70-74.

there,” said Ma. “It was loud and hard to hear, and we were not playing defense or talking well on the court.”

The Atoms look to turn their season around on Tuesday against Thomas Jefferson. So far, TJ is 3-1 on the year.

“We have to push the ball and play with more defensive intensity,” said Harper. “We have to execute on offense.

We are much better when we can get out and run.”

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Dec. 19, 2007

Building for tomorrow

Stars Of The Future

AHS plans to rebuild after receiving influx of young talent

A wrap up of the AHS JV and freshman sports

BY GREG YOUNG Sports Editor

Freshman Mens Basketball Head Coach: Kevin Fox Record: 2-0

Cooper

Next Game: 12/21 vs. West Springfield

Players to Watch: Karl Zielger, Ronnie McCory, Henry Cooper

GREG YOUNG

To seasoned Atoms fans, the results may be shocking. The Atoms finished the fall season with no teams recording a winning record, and, with the exception of swimming, there are no winter varsity teams with winning records so far in the season.

However, there is a reason that no one shouldn’t look at the records as the sole indicator of howAHS sports are currently doing as a whole. Several positive trends have sprung up around the program.

For example, the participation in sports school-wide, especially in winter sports, has been on the rise.

“This year, our numbers in winter sports have gone up,” said Angelo Hilios, the director of student services. “We’ve had 80 more students participate in winter sports than last year.”

The numbers are especially striking to the coach of the JV wrestling team, a spot that was recently taken over by Head Varsity Football Coach DickAdams.

Currently, the team has over 45 wrestlers with only a few leaving the team, by far the most in the Patriot District.

“My secret is that I go out and recruit,” saidAdams. “We go out and convince kids that don’t think they are capable of everything to come out and compete.”

Additionally, Adams has recruited record numbers of athletes to compete at whatever sport he has coached, which include football and track & field. The reason for the large numbers is twofold: one, Adams will not cut any athletes so long as they show up and, two, Adams requires that each participant in football play in at least one sport besides football.

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Head JV Wrestling coach Dick Adams instructs his team at practice. The JV wrestling team is one of the teams with an influx of players and is the largest in the Patriot District. Adams coaches the football team and the shotput/discus part of the track team.

“A lot of [the people in JV wrestling] won’t stay involved, but we hope to keep 50-75% of them,” saidAdams. “We do that in all of our sports.”

Younger athletes have been forced to step up into big roles on varsity teams, especially with football.

“It’s a cycle,” saidAdams. “Some years, you have better athletes. This year, we had good people, but not as many athletes as last year.”

“This year has been a rebuilding year for us in a lot of sports,” said Keith Sholders, the head wrestling coach . “In a couple of years, everything will be fine.”

Sholder’s wrestling team has been an indicator of the copious amounts of

youth in AHS sports. As of now, there is only one senior starting, Jesse Kruse, whereas a sophomore and two freshmen are starting.

Another factor in the decline of the records of fall AHS sports has been the toughening of the rest of the Patriot District as a whole. One of the biggest stories has been the rise of South County, who after struggling in its first year as a high school currently, has varsity teams that finished with a winning record in: baseball, football, field hockey, golf, girls and boys lacrosse, and girls soccer.

“The Patriot District is one of the toughest regions in the state,” said Hilios.

“It is not a shame to be in the middle of

the road in this district.”

Hilios also stressed the importance of not only focusing on the record of the teams, but also the skills they’ve learned and the improvement they’ve shown throughout the year.

“The teams need some experience, but the way they play they show no quit.

There is no reason for any team to feel bad,” said Hilios. “They’ll tell you that they have a chance to win every time.

That is what we ask, and it should be a credit to the coaching staffs here.”

Writer E-mail: gsy987@verizon.net

Young Players Impact Records

Player’s Outlook: “The season has gone well,” said Cooper. “We are fairly confident that we will have a record that is above .500 and we are shooting for a 14-2 mark. We have the skills but we aren’t running our offense yet. Our defense is doing fine.”

JV Mens Basketball Head Coach: Daniel Porter Record: 1-1

Turner

Next Game: 12/21 vs. West Springfield

Players to Watch: Joesph Turner, Hasib Iqbal Player Outlook: “I think we are all working on forming a team bond,” said Iqbal. “We need to pick it up in practice, on defense, and improve our ball handling.”

Freshman Girls Basketball Head Coach: James Ynson Record: 1-1

Williams

Next Game: 12/21 vs. West Springfield

Players to Watch: Britney Terry, Jenna Balicki, Adrian Williams Player’s Outlook: “The season has gone pretty well,” said Williams. “We’ve improved a lot considering that some of the girls have never played basketball before. Our offensive drills need work, and we need to work more on passing and moving towards the ball.”

JV Girls Basketball Head Coach: David McRae Record: 1-1

Aman

Mitchell Report changes MLB forever The

Final Word Sports Column

By Greg Young

When I first heard the names listed on the Mitchell Report, the report done by former Senator George Mitchell about the useage of performance enhacing drugs in baseball, I’ll admit that I was completely shocked.

Roger Clemens, Andy Pettite, Miguel Tejada? There were the players that I’d grown up watching and admiring. When Clemens made his announcement that he’d return to the Yankees in June, I was just as delighted as the rest of theYankees fans to have another opportunity to see this legend pitch.

But now, I don’t know what to think anymore.

I am not speaking as a sports columnist or analyst today; rather, as a baseball fan that is just as shocked as everyone else and scared about the future of my beloved sport.

I don’t know what to believe anymore from that “Steroids Era” of the 1990’s.

Some are comparing this to the Black Sox Scandal when the White Sox threw a world series for gambling , or when Pete

Rose bet on baseball. But to me, this is immeasurably worse.

My reasoning for this is simple; I don’t know what to believe anymore when it comes towards anything, statistics or titles, which came from that era. This isn’t even talking about Barry Bonds, who, in my opinion, is obviously guilty of steroid use and whose records should be thrown into McCovey Cove like his artificial home runs.

I’m talking about the records that we see currently as untainted or untouchable, records that we wouldn’t think would be tainted in a thousand years.

Let me give you an example here.

How about a record, as a person living 60 miles from Baltimore, I have a soft spot for: Cal Ripken’s consecutive streak of 2,131 games played.

One of the common defenses of steroids that I have heard is that players have used them to come back from injuries. That is the current defense of Pettite, who said that he used HGH five years ago to recover from an elbow injury.

Also, Clemens appears to have prolonged his career using performance-enhancing drugs.

My question is: wouldn’t this make perfect sense for Ripken to do? He’d been in a clubhouse with known steroid user Rafael Palmeiro and in an atmosphere where he knew that he’d never get caught.

Now, am I suggesting that Ripken is a

steriod user? No. I’m merely making the point that we cannot trust anyone or anything that occurred in that era, no matter how good-looking or believable he is.

As a matter of fact, we can’t really trust anything in this era either. You may recall the story of Rick Ankiel, a pitcher who lost his nerve and control in the playoffs then worked furiously through the minors to become a hitter?

He appeared to be the perfect Clemens story, the classic comeback kid who’d fought through adversity and could lead the Cardinals to the playoffs. But then, he was accused of using HGH. It was as if the air had been popped out of a balloon. Suddenly,Ankiel never existed. He fell into the pantheon of stories that “were almost great, but too good to believe.” You know, the Floyd Landis category.

This is the problem with Clemens, who will probably lose any chance of recognition in the Hall of Fame as a result of being named in this report. It doesn’t matter anymore if the accusations are true, the damage has been done to

Clemens reputation. For Clemens, the charges appear to fit well, too. He has been around a very long, some might say unnaturally, long time for a pitcher. It appears to me, just as it does to the legions of baseball fans, that steroids logically fit into the equation.

Fans will never give the superstars mercy either. For the comeback kids, for the athletes toiling in the minor leagues with maybe one shot left at the big leagues, maybe fans will let them fall peacefully into obscurity. But for the superstars, the players who thought that being a great player simply wasn’t enough and they had to own the record books, the fans will not only show no mercy, they will never let him forget the day that they made these mistakes.

Another amazing fact with the report is that there aren’t just big, bulky, home run hitting players named. There are several smaller, faster players cited as well, such as the Orioles’ Brian Roberts and the Nationals’ Nook Logan.

Yes, I’m not lying. Nook Logan, the 185 lb player from the Nationals, is accused of taking steroids. For me, this epitomizes my shock. If everyone from Jose Canseco to Logan took steroids, not only should suspicion go to the logical places, but it should go everywhere.

The game has changed as we know it. Be ready Bud Selig, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

Next Game: 12/21 vs. West Springfield

Players to Watch Tania Ghods, Jane Aman, Izzt Yaroch Player’s Outlook: “The season has gone well so far,” saidAman. “We have an exciting team and all of the players are working hard.

However, we still need to work on plays and sometimes they just take repetition.”

JV Wrestling Head Coach: Dick Adams Record: N/A Next Match: 12/19 vs. Paul IV Augliere

Players to Watch: Michael Pion, Max Augliere Player’s Outlook: “The team has done really well this season,” saidAugliere. “Almost everyone has won a match so far and we have one of the largest JV wrestling teams in the district. Having a lot of competition on the JV team means that you constantly are fighting for your spot and I think it helps overall.”

All records taken courtesy of www.annandaleatoms.com

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—Kelly McGarey

Grammy Nominations RECORD OF THE YEAR Irreplaceable—Beyonce The Pretender—Foo Fighters What Goes Around...Comes Around— Justin Timberlake Rehab—Amy Winehouse ALBUM OF THE YEAR Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace—Foo Fighters Foo Fighters These Days— Vince Gill River: The Joni Letters—Herbie Hancock Graduation—Kanye West Back to Black—Amy Winehouse SONG OF THE YEAR Before He Cheats—Carrie Underwood Hey There Delilah—Plain White T’s Like A Star—Corinne Bailey Rae Rehab—AmyWinehouse Umbrella—Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z BEST NEW ARTIST Feist Ledisi Paramore Taylor Swift Amy Winehouse BEST COMEDY ALBUM America’s Mexi- Amy Winehouse can—George Lopez Disty Girl—Lisa Lampanelli The Distant Future—Flight of The Conhords I Still Have A Pony—Steven Wright Songs Pointed & Pointless—Harry Shearer

Dec. 19, 2007

I am Legend

Juno

After watching a trailer for Juno, the new indie flick by director Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking), I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.Another movie about the dangers of teenage partying, the fragility of adolescent relationships and unplanned pregnancy? Why see the movie when this ultra-clichéd, mainstream drama is just one remotecontrol click away on ABC or the CW? However, once I heard that it had been called “this year’s Little Miss Sunshine” by several of the nation’s top critics, I had to see what all the hype was about.

The film opens unremarkably with some garage-bandy music, as Juno (Ellen Page), the title character and heroine, has a cringe-inducing flashback on her awkward onenight stand. She soon discovers that she is pregnant by her best friend (Michael Cera of Superbad) and is forced to cope with the realization that her life is about to change, whether she is mature enough to deal with it or not.

However, this well-acted Juno decision-making process causes the scenario to veer sharply from the Hollywood norm. Unlike the summer’s box office successes Knocked Up and Waitress, which also deal with young women who find themselves very unexpectedly with children, Juno doesn’t instantly resolve to keep the baby.

Instead, she seriously considers abortion, still thought of as a taboo subject in American cinema, as well as adoption.

This movie is also singularly unique in the way it is able to remain mostly neutral on the topic of teen pregnancy itself. While it certainly does not promote the practice, it subversively chides modern-day society for passing immediate judgment on the choices made by young women who find themselves in this situation.

I was also impressed by the way it highlighted human emotion and empathy over ridicule and self-discovery over conforming to societal norms. In fact, the main character’s offbeat presence encourages the audience to dare to be different, and harness untapped personal strength to deal with internal problems in a proactive way.

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Will Smith cements his star in Hollywood The

Dean’s List Movie Review

By Jeff Dean Alone has never looked so good. Any car you want is yours, and gas is even free. Free DVD rentals, hello, life complete! If you aren’t drooling yet then the fact that you have a closet full of fire arms should set you over the top.

The A-Blast does not support gun violence, kids, unless of course you are being attacked by a bunch of super human zombies, in which case the earth is your shooting range. All right, maybe the whole super human zombie aspect doesn’t make it a great life, but all these things make a great movie.

I am Legend allows Will Smith to make these unusual circumstances real. Smith uses this movie as a forum to submit his status as a (I hate to sound cliché, who am I kidding, I love to) legendary actor.

While the movie uses fantastic graphics to paint this futuristic world, it quickly becomes secondary to Smith’s

Aside from Smith’s performance and Sam’s (the dog) emotional trauma in the film.

Robert Neville (Will Smith) is the last man on earth. Oscar worthy performance, (seriously when is the Best Living in New York City, which is now half metropolis Animal in a film going to be created?) there was a surprishalf tundra, Neville was the sole man to survive the virus. ingly large amount of suspense in the film. Just to be clear The virus, which originated from what was supposed to there is a huge difference between suspense and most of be the cure for cancer, wiped out most of the human race today’s horror films.

This suspense was created by director Francis Lawand made them zombies. These are not your grandma’s zombies of old who top off at 1 mile per hour, these zombies rence (Constantine) by using shaky handheld shots (note: do not see movie from the front row because can run like lions and can roar like bears. headaches will begin after the first five minutes) These zombies had wiped out all of the immune humans, who survived the virus, except for I am Legend and allowing the zombies to be superhuman.

Zombies of the past are dead and are now used Neville, who maintains his life by staying hidden as comedy like in Shaun of the Dead. at night, when the zombies are protected from The ordeal of these zombies being blood their kryptonite: light. The film follows Neville thirsty killers and the same people that Neville and his trusty dog Sam as he lives alone rememis trying to bring back with his own cure is a very bering his lost family and trying to find a cure interesting motif of the film. for the virus, which was his job before the virus I decided to give this film anAand have sent in my vote wiped out all of civilization.

This movie may seem too “out there” for your liking, to the Academy Awards for Will Smith for Best Actor and the graphics, cinematography and plot are executed so Sam for Best SupportingAnimal, whether they will count that throughout the film, none of the zombies or other them or not. The film deserves this A because it incorpoodd features become a distraction to the real plot: Neville’s rates the macho fighting of zombies, the extraordinary struggle. Will Smith dazzles as he shows how the days of premise of a lonely world and as all good movies do, it ties living alone have caught up to him. Whether it be Neville around tangible human emotion. This lethal combination breaking down and pleading to a manikin or talking to of suspense and Will Smith at his finest is exactly what a his dog, Smith captures the reality of human emotion in deprived box office needed.

The film’s opening weekend grossed over $76 million. an otherwise fantasy world.

Will Smith is truly an underrated actor in Hollywood I am Legend is 101 minutes long and is rated PG-13 for because of his ability to both seize the emotions of the intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence. audience in a film like I am Legend or to make the audience laugh in Hitch.

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Southern Rapper Pimp C leaves legacy

BY OMAR MAYASSI Staff Writer A member of UGK was found dead in West Hollywood, his street name was Pimp C, but his real name was Chad Butler. Dec. 4 was his last day on earth, he died of natural causes, according to the Los Angeles Times in his sleep at the age of 33. He is credited with helping launch the popularity of Southern rap. “[I liked him for his] constant fresh looks, great lyrics, amazing shows, and just a genuine look. I like listening to his music,” said freshman Elisa Figueroa.

Many students at AHS are experiencing a broken hearts due to this horrific tragedy. “He was such a great hip hop artist” said Figueroa, “And he will be missed dearly.” Pimp C was a huge hip hop idol in the country.

Not only was Pimp C a solo artist, but he was also part a group called UGK, which was comprised of Pimp C and his

associate Bun B. This group is known for their great collaborations with many famous artists like Jay-Z, such as in his unforgettable classic, “Big Pimpin’.”

“Big Pimpin’ is one of my all time favorite songs,” said senior Frank Romero, “It is just such a great, up-beat song, I love to rap to it. I just wish UGK could come back and do one more great song with Jay-Z,” said Romero.

UGK is very widely known at AHS for such features like “Front Back” with T.I. and one of their most famous songs “Int’l Players Anthem.”

Pimp C and UGK have elevated southern rap to a whole new level, becaues they gave southern rap newer fans.

“I am just so heart broken,” said Figueroa. “No one will ever be able to replace him, he had so much greatness in him.”

Many might argue that Pimp C’s death can be compared with the Notorious B.I.G.’s or Tupac Shakur’s.

“His death is kind of like a Biggy or Tupac death because he did give a lot back to rap like those two rappers did,” said Figueroa.

Others are very relectuant to compare Pimp C with those legendary rappers.

“The Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur contributed more and they were murdered. I also believe Pimp C was not even on the same pedestal as the other two rappers,” said Romero. “He was good, but Biggy and Tupac were legends, no rapper can or ever will be greater than them.”

Even though he will not be considered the greatest rapper ever by most, his presence will be missed in the rapping community.

Pimp C’s funeral was held on Dec. 13 in his hometown of Port Arthur, Texas. The Houston rapper was buried at Greenlawn Cemetery.

Pimp C will be remembered for his lines and lyrics that brought Southern rap to the top.

Arena Stage’s A Christmas Carol 1941 tive presents on Christmas day – is clearly identifiable in and some of Strube’s past actions include grievances against the state itself, such as sapping the penniless Arena Stage’s version, set in 1941.

Scrooge is replaced with Strube (James Gale), who bonus marchers of all they had to eat during the Bonus March of the Depression, and develtreats his secretary and his secreoping a “paper trail” of fixing prices tary’s family harshly and without and controlling markets, all the while leeway, even at Christmas. Strube sucking the nation’s funds out from is guided through his past by three under most people while they struggle spirits named Victory (Gia Mora), to make their way through one of the Freedom (Connan Morrissey) and darkest hours our nation has had to Grief (Bayla Whitten) who are able face. to lead him into an acceptance of Play Review Yet the transposition and the the fact that his past actions were

By Paul Mathis resulting effect is only halfway conof a malignant nature, and that he vincing. Though the play adds the must change. unique dynamic of national and inThe 1941 variation is clearly The great classic, A Christmas Carol, of the 19th Cen- morphed in that it takes place dividual sacrifice, it falters in that the tury literary master, Charles Dickens, is so frequently in Washington, D.C., amidst the revisited characters are over-played, performed and depicted in new forms that it is difficult height of domestic and international almost too near the stereotypes that to come upon a variation that is truly original and presents politics as America was deliberating A Christmas Carol has come to reprea side of the story that has not yet been told, and in fact whether or not to entangle itself in an sent, and thus the ultimate message that audiences need to, or at least should know. of the play is desensitized. overseas war for the second time in a Granted, A Christmas Carol 1941 is an entertain- little more than two decades.

Strube gloats exceedingly over his ing theatrical work, but it fails to provide this evil monopolistic manipulations of the Because of this, there new insight beyond the commonplace themes economy, and when the time comes for A Christmas are of course numerous and expected facets that have been continually Carol 1941 anticipated allusions him to be afraid, especially at the feet overdone. of grief, he pleads with exasperated to the sacrifices that Perhaps it is the angle that the variation is trysuppliance; not a man usually isolatall people are making ing to take. The traditional story of The Christmas ed, without family or friends, begging around Strube, and how Carol – Scrooge, a frugal penny-pincher that plans for his life, but a man out of his place, Strube himself, who on staying home and isolating himself on Christbegging simply for the sake of begging, plans on hoarding all of The classic play A Christmas Carol 1941 mas (while not exchanging any gifts) is guided or because he was told to beg. the country’s pineapples brings Holiday cheer to Arena Stage. by spirits through the events of his past, and his The performance remained and selling them at high possible future. unconvincing, even as Strube faced prices, is diminishing the ability of He discovers the error of his once wretched ways and his nation’s citizens to contribute to the war effort. death; a dicey misinterpretation indeed. he decides to provide all those around him with innovaSo two of the spirit’s names are Victory and Freedom,

Paul on Prose

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Dec. 19, 2007

Gnarly gadget gift guide Rock Band

iKaraoke

Your inner rock star is waiting to emerge with this hugely popular game. Rock Band allows you to form your own band as you create your own music. You can learn to play rock songs from all genres as you navigate through the wild life of a touring musician. Made by the same company as Guitar Hero, Rock Band will surely have as many devoted followers. The perfect gift for any age, Rock Band is addicting for everyone. It is available for the XBOX 360 and PlayStation 3.

Rockband $169.99

The Zune This holiday say good-bye to the IPod and hello to the Zune. This super slim MP3 player can do almost anything. It charges wirelessly and automatically syncs your music and movies. You can get MP3s, music videos, and audio and videopods just by “zuning” with another friend.

There is also a built-in FM radio as well as a recorded television component. All you have to do is tell it to sync to your Zune. You can also plug in your Zune into your XBOX 360. The wireless sharing is the hottest innovation this holiday season.

4GB Zune $149.99

Nike iPod running If you are a runner you cannot simply live without the new Nike iPod running kit. Nike+ allows you to listen to your favorite pump-up music as you track your progress on an iPod. The sensor slips into a Nike+ shoe under the liner. Your iPod will track your progress as it calculates your time, distance, pace, and calories. You have a permanent coach as a voice pushes you in your headphones. When you’re done a summary appears.

Nike+ iPod Kit $19.99

Horoscopes

Mimobot USB Flash Drive

Love to jam to your iPod but wish you could sing along? The iKaraoke will have you dancing and singing to your favorite songs all night long. The iKaraoke sends the music from your iPod to your stereo without the lead vocals so you can sing into the mic. It is easy to pause the music, scan back and forward, and temporarily add vocals. It also comes complete with reverb effects to enchance the sound.

Griffen iKaraoke for iPod $49.95

Pen scanner

There is no doubt that USB drives are necessary for a student. The once boring devices are now in every shape and color. They work the same as their predecesors, but bring much needed flair.

The tiny drives can hold pics, tunes, presentations, documents, and much more. One thing is for sure, you will be working in style.

Mimobot flash drive $69.99

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Take time to give a special gift this season. This act of kindness will be greatly rewarded. Love is in the air for you.

You will receive a gift from an unexpected someone.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Ask yourself if the relationship you’re in is truly worth it. Take a special date with this someone and see for yourself, because you might be surprised.

Laptop and IPod Skins

Tired of taking notes for hours that just end up getting lost? Tired of taking notes that you yourself cannot decipher? Pen scanners have come to the rescue. These handy gadgets read notes and definitions aloud, beam to smart phones as well as to PCs and PDAs, include a dictionary, and connect to your computer. This is the perfect gift for any student who wants to save some time, so say good-bye to highlighters and say hello to pen scanners.

Wizcom QuickLink Elite Pen Scanner $124

Digital camera keychain

Laptop, iPod, and iPhone skins are the perfect way to spice up your favorite gadget. These removable skins come in every color and imaginable pattern. You can even create your own. The skins protect your device as well as make it look great. Skins are available in designs from your favorite sports stars to your favorite painters. The laptop skins come in every size to fit your computer’s size.

Gelaskins Art Print Skins for iPod $14.99 Art Print Laptop Skins $29.99

Mylo Communicator

These cute mini-cameras come in a variety of colors and styles. Perfect for the person on the go, these pint-sized digital cameras take excellent quality shots. The camera stores up to 81 pictures in its internal memory. It can also be used as a web cam and takes 288 x 352 pixel images.

It connects to your computer via USB and it is very easy to access pictures.

Magnavox keychain digital camera $19.95

The Mylo personal communicator is a perfect gift for those who cannot live a day without AIM or email. This handheld device connects to WiFi so it allows you to get online from virtually anywhere. Connecting to the Internet is as easy as finding the nearest hotspot. With this gadget you will always be up-to-date. It also offers multimedia playback as well as VOIP Internet telephony capabilities. The portable device is sleek and fits nicely into your pocket.

Sony Mylo Communicator $199.99 Compiled by Avery Adcock

Hollywood’s DUIs as common as divorces With millions of dollars at their disposal, celebrities could at least afford a driver, right? It seems like every time you turn on the T.V. the newest member of the Hollywood DUI club is making a less than graceful appearance.

Instead of putting down the glass and jumping into the back seat, celebrities are opting to take the wheel themselves. With very little consequences or criminal punishments, Hollywood, as well as the legal system, is sending the message to America that celebrities are, in fact, above the law.

Deviating from the regular “Ave’s Favs” I examined how America considers this harmful act as juicy gossip and great P. R. when the repercussions of such an incident can be fatal. The sad part of the entire DUI phenomenon is that it has become a Hollywood norm.

“Celebrities feel that because they have fame and money they are above the law. They can make bail and they have enough money that the penalties for a DUI are just slaps on the wrist,” said seniorAmy Fleming. “In addition to that, a DUI is no longer tainting their images merely because everyone in Hollywood has one, so it does not really matter if they get one or not.”

Nicole Richie, Paris Hilton, Michelle Rodriquez, Haley Joel Osment, Mel Gibson, Ty Pennington, Eve, Tracy Morgan, Jessica Smith, Ray Liotta, Lane Garrison, Kiefer Sutherland and Nick Nolte are just some of the more popular actors and singers who have recently been convicted DUIs. When I first heard that Lindsay Lohan had gotten a DUI, I could not believe what I was hearing. Looking back, I laugh at the fact that I could have thought anything else.

Lohan now is facing double DUI charges, but if her case is anything like the rest she might stay in jail for a couple of days.

The jail time that celebrities are sentenced to simply does not match the crime that they comitted. Even if they do receive any jail time, they still receive the pleasures of BlackBerrys and MP3 players. Who could forget Paris Hilton’s jail sentence which was lowered to half the time. The

Easy

Medium

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb.18)

This season surround yourself with your best friends.

Good fortune will come when you finally relax, so have a good time.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

Don’t be afraid to tell your crush how you truly feel. Embrace your loved ones regardless of their emotional state. Take someone out for a special date.

Aries (March 21-April19)

You are very self confident and know what you want. Be careful because people might mistake this for arrogance. Take your assertiveness down a notch.

Taurus (April 20-May18)

Take a chance on someone this week.

Don’t presume things based on rumors. Second chances can lead to greatness. You will not be disapointed.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Both happy and sad people will find you this week. Treat them both to holiday cheer. Your kindness will be rewarded.

Don’t take no for an answer.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

You will find great holiday bargains.

Try not to leave anyone out. Take a brother or sister along. They will greatly appreciate this small act of kindness.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)

Stress seems to be building up, so take a break this holiday.

Make goals for the new year and stick to them. Make most realisitic, but make some aspirations.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sept. 22)

Your emotions seem to overwhelm you, but that’s okay. Don’t be afraid to tell someone how you feel. If they don’t agree, then they are not the right person for you.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Remove the clutter from your life this new year. Oranization will help your mental state. Take the bulk out of your life. Don’t be afraid to let go of old things.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Directions

The objective is to fill out all the empty boxes with the numbers 1-9. In each square you cannot reuse any number twice. In each row or column you cannot reuse any number.

WWW.DAILYSUDOKU.COM

Sudoku

AVERY ADCOCK

BY AVERY ADCOCK Entertainment Editor

resident bad girls of Hollywood, including Richie, Hilton, and Lohan, would not have gotten nearly as much press if it were not for their blood alcohol levels.

Richie’s jail time was said to have been shortened due to the fact that she is pregnant. One can only wonder.

AHS students agree on the fact that celebrities get a helping hand when it comes to convictions.

“I think DUIs are so stupid because celebrities only spend half of the time in jail. Lindsay Lohan only went to jail for like 12 seconds,” said freshman Katie Bui. Actors and actresses that were once our favorite Disney Channel characters are now out of control and setting the wrong examples for kids everywhere.

When celebrities continue to get DUIs, kids begin to think that it is okay and not that big of a deal.

DUIs are only one aspect of the entire problem with Hollywood today. Young stars with too much money and not 1st row, from left: Lindsay Lohan, Kiefer Sutherland, Tracy Morgan ; 2nd row, from left: enough supervision think they are Nicole Richie, Michelle Rodriquez, Haley Joel Osment; 3rd row, from left: Paris Hilton, invincible and above the law. The Matt Roloff, Mickey Rourke . fact that a DUI is taken as a joke sentenced to almost three and a half years for vehicular is unbelievable. manslaughter. The 27-year-old actor killed a 17-year-old “I think that is definitely unfair, just because they are on and injured two 15-year-olds after he crashed his Land T.V. and in magazines it gives them the ability to get away Rover into a tree while under the influence of alcohol and with things that everyday people would be punished for cocaine. and it gives them superiority in the law when compared to Even after stars get DUIs, they still book $15 millioneveryday people,” said senior Caitlin McIntosh. dollar movies. It is the job of not only America and law America says it does not condone these acts, however we enforcement, but also of the directors to stop hiring these continue to YouTube drunk celebrities getting into trouble. people.

It seems that the only way that people really start to underWhen stints and rehab are as common as trips to the stand the severity of the situation is when a DUI results in grocery store we have to ask ourselves, why does America the death of another. worship these people?

Recently, Prison Break star Lane Garrison was

WWW.DAILYSUDOKU.COM

Celebrities replace photo shoots with mug shots

19

Make a budget this holiday and stick to it.

Sometimes the best gifts are the ones you make.

Your financial status will be rocky.

PLACES TO EAT Best: •Food Corner •Kabob •Silverado • Dolce Vita

S

Set your eyes on fabulous light shows, take in the aroma of the holidays, tease your tastebuds with local eateries, set your sound bites to some festive music and interact with the winter spirit.

Information compiled by Claire Bui and Caroline Merz

Worst: • Squire Rockwell’s •Mango Mikes •Pho Hot

ZooLights

SEE

MOVIES TO SEE Best: • Spider Man 3 • Transformers • Superbad

MALLS TO SHOP

SMELL TASTE

Worst: • 50 Cent: Amusement Park •Avril Lavigne: The Best Damn Thing • Jordin Sparks: Jordin Sparks

Best • Tysons Corner Center • Dulles Town Center • Georgetown

All Time Low Thurs., Dec. 27 Rams Head Live!

5 p.m, Price: $15

Aly & AJ

Fri. Dec. 28 Rams Head Live!

12 p.m.

Price: $25

HEAR

Upcoming Concerts

Celebrating the holidays with the light is a custom common to people of faith. Lit at the start of Hanukkah, the 30 ft. menorah stands on the Ellipse across from the White House.

Location: The Ellipse, 2110 Leroy Pl. NW, Washington DC

Cedar Forest. Inc.

Botanic Garden

Arties

Memorial Hwy., Fairfax, VA Phone: (703) 378-4970

Choose from a variety of trees to cut down yourself or choose from a wide range of pre-cut trees. Open 10 a.m. to 10p.m. daily til Dec. 24.

Location: 6501 Little River Turnpike, Alexandria, VA Phone: (703) 866-9494

Offers American fare, ranging from seafood, to Cajun.

Location: 3260 Old Lee Hwy., Fairfax, VA Phone: (703) 273-7600

View a display of holiday orchids and other seasonal blooms. Open 10 a.m. - 5p.m. every day.

Location: 100 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC

Carlyle Grand Cafe

Bonefish Grill

A new steak house, from the owners of Outback .

Location:13005 Lee Jackson

“Good for the Jews”

TOUCH

Worst • Springfield Mall • Landmark Mall • Balston Commons Mall

National Menorah Lighting

Best: • Kanye West: Graduation • Justin Timberlake: FutureSex/ LoveSounds • Foo Fighters: Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace

The larger-than-life-size animal holiday light display at the National zoo, 6 p.m., every night through Dec. 31. Other activities include cookie decorating, a huge snow globe, and Meet a Keeper experiences.

Admission is free.

Location: The National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Ave., NW

Worst: • Norbit • Ghost Rider • Daddy Day Camp

MUSIC TO HEAR

enses of the eason

Rob Tannenbaum shares his Jewish standpoint of current events with a humorous and satirical look on things. Fri. – Sat., Dec. 21-22, 7:30 p.m.

Location: Birchmere Music Hall, 3701 Mt. Vernon Ave. Alexandria, VA. Phone: (703) 549-7500

Voted “Best Brunch” in Washingtonian Magazine, 2006 Location: 4000 S. 28th St., Arlington, VA Phone: (703) 931-0777

with guest choirs at the seasonally decorated Capitol Rotunda. Sat. and Sun., Until Dec. 23, 1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Admission is free.

Location: National Gallery of Art, 600 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.

Sin Miedo salsa band

Holiday Caroling

Enjoy sing-along holiday caroling

Enliven your Latin side with dance lessons and live performances by one of Washington’s

Gingerbread House Workshop

Downtown Holiday Market

Take a tour of the Tudor’s place and learn about history and architecture, then create your own gingerbread house to take home with you.

Location: Tudor Place Historic House and Garden, 1644 31st St. NW, Washington, DC Phone: (202) 965-0400

Artists display and sell toys, ornaments and a variety of crafts in front of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery’s F Street entrance. Free admission. Open through Dec.23.Noon8 p.m. daily Location: 750 9th St. NW, Washington, DC

What’s On The Restaurant Guide

By Claire Bui and Caroline Merz

Foxfire Grill Citizen Cope Fri Dec. 29 Rams Head Live!

8 p.m.

Price: $30

Ozzy Osbourn & Rob Zombie

Sat., Jan. 5 Verizon Center

7:30 p.m.

Price: $39.75-89.75

Dec. 19, 2007

In the corner spot of Pinecrest Shopping Center, across the street from the Home Depot and adjacent to Staples and Starbucks, Foxfire Grill occupies the space of two previously failed restaurants: Friendly’s and a Korean bar. The contemporary restaurant, now in its fourth year, specializes in American cuisine and offers a varied menu.

The appetizers were of standard fare, so we decided upon two classics: calamari ($10) and artichoke dip ($9); both were satisfactory but nothing special. The squid came with a jalapeno-cilantro dipping sauce and had a tender inside. A distasteful factor was the excessive oil that its breaded fried outer part consisted. Our artichoke dip was served at the same time and was attractively presented in an actual artichoke. The texture was more on the puréed side than the expected chunky, but the fried pita chips that the dip came with had a crispy feel and kept us munching.

According to the Grill’s owner, Terri Fox, who was present on the night of our visit, what many people come to the restaurant for is the beef.

We decided to take her word for it (and jump on the bandwagon) by getting the signature 18-ounce cowboy steak over fettuccini and mushroom-sherry sauce ($29).

It was chewy and tender, grilled to a medium-rare and ac-

best chacha and merengue groups.

Thursdays, 7:30 pm. to 10:15 p.m. (lessons), 10:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. (live music). $10.

Location: Cecilia’s, 2619 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA Phone: (703) 685-0790

Ice Skate at Pentagon Row

Go ice skating with family and friends at the beautiful Pentagon Row outdoor ice arena. Admission is $7 for children and $8 for adults.

Open everday, visit www.pentagonrowskating.com for times.

Location: 1201 South Joyce Street Arlington, VA

companied by an assortment of vegetables. The pan seared steak medallions ($18) were also a winner. Served with garlic-cheddar mashed potatoes and broccoli, it was succulent, nicely seasoned and made for the absolute meal.

Other popular favorites at Foxfire include Terri’s Chicken Pasta, [Chef] Nadine’s Meatloaf, Parmesan Crusted Chicken and Grilled Spiced Shrimp.

For dessert, we decided splurge the chocolate soufflé. It was light, airy and devoured quite quickly. Priced at $17, the mere piece of beaten egg yokes and flavored fluff was a bit expensive, but well worth it. Creme brulee, key lime cheesecake and chess pie are among the wide selection of sweet treats also available.

As for décor, the Grill features a modern feel, with a candle lit bar and paper lanterns hanging over wooden tables and booths. Greenery decorates the red painted walls, embellishing the view to an open-air kitchen. Here, diners are given a first hand look at the behind-the-scene activities that take place in the cooking place.

Perhaps it was our Saturday night visit, but the restaurant was overly packed and congested when we went.

Granted, the overall space is small and limited.

Service was a tad slow and the room became excessively loud at times, but the staff was still was amicable and warm. Our young, male waiter was especiallyfriendly.

In general, Foxfire Grill provides for a casual, family-oriented atmosphere. The food, though made of high quality ingredients, generous in portions and beautifully presented, does not taste like anything else you could find at another area restaurant for equal or lesser value. A visit to Siverado in aAnnandale or Sweetwater Tavern off Route 50 would provide you with the same experience, if not for a better price.

While the Grill has some kinks to work out in terms of food quality, cost and service efficiency, it would be worth your time to stop in and give it a try.

The dining room is open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday and Monday, with lunch served until 4 p.m. and weekend brunch served till 3 p.m.

CLAIRE BUI

Best and Worst of 2007

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CLAIRE BUI

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WEEKEND

Above: Visitors at Foxfire Grill are given a first hand view of the open-air kitchen and behind-the-scenes activity in the restaurant. Below: Paper lanterns and wooden tables compliment the warm atmosphere.

Food: Service: Decor: out of 4 stars

Location: 6550 Little River Turnpike Alexandria, VA 22312 (703) 914-9280