A&E

FALLING FOR FALL FILMS

Movies that embody fall

During this time of year, holiday spirit is a big topic of conversation. With all of the most-favored holidays of the year coming up, people are rushing to watch their favorite seasonal entertainment. However, these celebratory flms’ themes can get quite repetitive. Whether you don’t celebrate traditional festivities, or you’re sick of the holiday cliches, it’s always a good idea to celebrate the coziest time of the year: fall.

The same love and nostalgia you get while watching traditional holiday movies can be achieved with these fall movies as well. It’s time to honor this loving season with flms that embody its most admirable attributes.

While there are no movies that explicitly celebrate fall time, there are ones that perfectly enhance the beauty of the season. ‘90s movies seem to perfectly capture the fall aesthetic.

With the fashion of the time period consisting of lots of layers and dark colors, most of these movies set in the last fourth of the year compliment the current season’s styles. With style icons of the ‘90s such as Jennifer Aniston in Friends, Winona Ryder in Reality Bites and Alicia Silverstone in Clueless, we see very common factors in each of their fashion. These consist of lots of muted lips, darks, plaids, and heavy sweaters or leather jackets. Each of these components are staple pieces in the chilly midwestern falls. These styles and settings of the movies perfectly capture the ambience of fall with its calming atmosphere and style inspirations.

One of the movies that exquisitely falls into this category is The Silence of The Lambs. Although The Silence of The Lambs lacks the comforting feelings of fall, it’s perfect for this time of year with the movie being flmed in the midst of one of the many beautiful falls in Pennsylvania. Plus, with the lead being the adorable and stylish Clarice Starling, her essence fts the setting of the flm incredibly well. Another movie that represents this time well is When Harry Met Sally. There is no other movie that matches this season so well. With an adorable love story being told in front of the pleasant scenery of fall in New York, it makes for a very cozy viewing experience. Plus, with the soundtrack mainly consisting of pleasurable jazz, Story, Design and Graphics by Emma Tyler

it really ties the flm together.

Dark academia is another aesthetic that embodies the feeling of fall very well. For a movie to fall under the category of dark academia, a subgenre of flm, it must consist of a few factors. These include a setting at a cozy and vintage high school or college, a color palette with lots of gloomy and dark colors, layered and preppy clothing, and the main characters being students.

With most of the extravagant and vintage boarding school buildings being in the North, many of these movies take place in colorful and brisk falls which adds to the aesthetic of these flms’ color palettes and style.

Not only do these movies capture fall with their overall aura, but the time of the year as well. With these movies usually beginning at the start of the school year, they are the perfect thing to watch as we are in the middle of our frst semester.

As many high school students yearn to attend a pretentious private school in a cozy small town, with the right movie it can seem as if you are getting the full experience.

Two movies that ft well into this category are Dead Poets Society and the Harry Potter series.

With Dead Poets Society taking place in a beautiful old boarding school in the middle of Vermont from September to December, there is no other setting that captures the season better. Plus, with the plot surrounding literature and poetry, it’s a very cozy flm to watch on a rainy fall day.

I would never call the Harry Potter movie series fne flms by any means. However, they are the perfect thing to watch if you really want to feel the dark academic vibes. The set design and colors of the movie really bring a warm feel to the flm. Between the beginning of the school year, fashionable dark and classic uniforms, and the comforting feel of Hogwarts, you are sure to feel the cozy fall love as soon as you start it.

Honorable mentions that are from more recent times include Knives Out, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Little Women. Although none of these particularly fall into the two categories listed, they are there for the comfort they give. Even though they all still follow the ideas behind fall-like set design, color palettes, and style, a true fall movie leaves the viewer with a sensation of ease and love.

The beauty of fall is all that it represents within people. To many of us it may represent time spent getting closer to friends and family in this season, and to many others it may just be the cleansing feeling they receive when seeing the leaves change colors or inhaling the crisp fall air.

Whatever this time represents to you, it’s an amazing time to bond with those you love over cozy movie watchings of your favorite comfort flms. At the end of the day, there’s nothing more fall than watching movies with people you consider your family. Just like the time of fall, watching movies with those you’re close with is a time for connecting and celebrating the beauty of the simplest things in life. With just the right movies, you can truly enhance this experience to relive these nostalgic and cozy memories of fall growing up.

Fall brings out the best feelings for everyone, so live in the moment and celebrate. The beauty of this magical time of year is that it’s short; get the most out of this cozy time while you can.

A&E 18 NO TURKEY ON TURKEY-DAY

Enjoying Thanksgiving as a vegan

Almost all holidays are known for the food they inspire, but Thanksgiving is perhaps the most food-centered holiday of them all. With the turkey, stuffng, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and much more, this food concentrated holiday sounds like one of the least vegan-friendly holidays out there.

However, there are many different alternatives for vegans to make and enjoy on Thanksgiving day. So for any vegans out there, or people who are simply curious, let me answer your question of “what food is out there for me?”

Veganism is when people stop using animal products. Whether it is for cultural, dietary, or morality reasons, there are many factors as to why people choose to be vegan.

I am a vegetarian, but in an effort to push my limits, I decided to try to fnd a homemade vegan turkey recipe. As I looked, I was only fnding store-bought options or recipes that were far too complicated for someone who isn’t an incredible chef. My recommendation would be to fnd a vegan turkey that you can just go and buy without too much hassle.

Keeping this in mind, I looked for some still well-loved, but lesser known Thanksgiving foods, and found vegan stuffng and mashed potatoes.

At frst, I questioned how many of the ingredients in the recipe would be different from the usual way of making it. However, I was curious when there were a few odd things that I had never worked with before.

Vegan butter, for example, is made by combining water with a type of plant-based oil. Yet, I would never have gotten that from the taste. Vegetable broth played a large part in the stuffng, as I used it instead of chicken broth.

Another, and possibly the strangest ingredient, was a fax egg. While wanting the stuffng to keep its shape without being able to use an egg, the recipe called for ground fax seeds and some water. I was skeptical as to how well this would work, but after a few seconds of mixing, the water and fax seeds began to form an egg-like consistency. It was a shocking discovery.

The neat-egg is another type of egg replacer recommended by vegans. It is an easy-to-mix replacement that can be used as a binding agent, made of chia seeds and garbanzo beans.

These two egg replacements, along with vegan butter, coconut oil, spices, sweeteners, and apple or pumpkin butters are highly recommended for vegans to use in their

cooking.

I made gravy while the stuffng was cooling. The recipe I was using recommended using miso gravy, but one trip to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s resulted in no fnds of miso paste, the main ingredient. Other vegan recipes also called for miso paste, and it was beginning to look hopeless.

Giving up, I decided to wing it. Using vegetable broth as an alternative for bacon grease, I added what I thought was a reasonable amount of seasonings, ranging from onion powder to cinnamon, and ending it off with salt and pepper. To thicken it up, I started slowly adding four to the mix, and continued adding more until I could feel it start to thicken as it stirred.

That ended up being a mistake. As the gravy heated up on the stove, it got thicker and thicker until it resembled something more like wet cement. It tasted good, surprisingly, but it was too thick to use on the mashed potatoes. I ended up scrapping it. For the future, wait until the gravy is hot before adding four, as it thickens up pretty quickly once it gets warm.

The mashed potatoes were less complicated, but used more ingredients I wasn’t used to. I have always used butter and milk in my potatoes, and those two things were off the table. I decided almond milk would be the best alternative, and found vegan butter at Trader Joe’s.

After making the potatoes, I tasted them and was slightly underwhelmed. There was not as much favor as there is in regular potatoes. I knew there would be some difference, but after the stuffng, I was a little disappointed. In spite of this, I managed to save it by adding lots of salt and pepper, which brought the favors out a tiny bit more.

The mashed potatoes and stuffng together were delicious, and I was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out. The recipe showed how to make the stuffng in little muffn tins and top it with the mashed potatoes, having it resemble a cupcake. It was perfect for eating it together, but my personal opinion was that each dish tasted better separately.

So for my vegans and curious people out there, this simple recipe is a good place to start. Not only will you learn more about this way of eating, but you will have the satisfaction of presenting something to your table for your family to appreciate.

Story by Zoe Rector, Photo by Kiera Ginn and Design by Emma Tyler Humans of Westside: What are your Thanksgiving traditions?

Tommy Connelly, 12

“My family comes to town and we celebrate with them coming over to our house, and eating a bunch of food and playing card games. We play Apples to Apples, Cards Against Humanity, pretty much anything you can think of.”

Jackson Ingvoldstad, 11

“We alternate every year between going to my mom’s side of the family or my dad’s side of the family. Different members of each side of the family, depending on whose side we celebrate on. Everyone just makes a different kind of food, like my aunt will make sweet potatoes, [my] uncle and my dad will cook the turkey, my grandma will make the stuffng and then me, my aunts, my grandparents and my cousins eat dinner together.”

IMC REVIEWS

Instructional Materials Center, IMCs, are a crucial part of Westside High School. These unique spaces give students the opportunity to meet and collaborate with teachers and other students, as well as studying. These centers at Westside are a great place for students to go during their open mods. The following IMCs have been ranked based on environment, crowdedness, and productivity. Environment scores are based on the rules in the IMC, the seating and the students that often hang out there. Crowdedness scores are based on the busyness of the IMC versus the amount of seating. A productivity score is based on the quietness of the IMC and how easy it is for students to complete their work. The IMCs will be ranked on a scale of one to ten. IMCs with the worst environment, least crowdedness, and hardest to be productive in will receive a lower score and IMCs with the best environment, most crowded, and easiest to be productive in will receive higher scores.

Library

Environment: 10; Crowdedness: 8; Productivity; 6 The library is the most entertaining and fun IMC. The library offers private rooms for students to reserve, which are great for students who are doing a school project, or when someone is in need of a quiet space. Featuring tables of Legos and abstract seating, the library provides a comfortable and collaborative work environment for students. Additionally, the library is home to desktop computers for students to use and a printer. The librarians are very helpful with anything you might need. Seating is comfortable, especially the wobbly stools, but there is often a shortage of seats. The library is quiet, but you are still able to talk to other students. The library has a laid-back atmosphere, giving it the highest rating for environment.

Social Studies and Business

Environment: 8; Crowdedness: 7; Productivity: 8 The Social Studies and Business IC is a little noisy, but there is plenty of seating, including very comfortable upholstered benches. These benches are incredible for napping and sitting.

Upperclassmen mainly hang out and chat in this IMC, but there are many small desks and tables that people can study and do homework at. Many of the tables are close together, which makes the space diffcult to navigate. There is also a printer in this IMC that has a clicky keyboard, which makes it a quality printer.

Math

Environment: 2, Crowdedness: 6, Productivity: 8

The Math IMC is known for its sophomore-heavy crowd. The IMC has the same comfy benches like in the Social Studies and Business IMC, but the environment is less laid back. Rules are enforced more heavily in this IMC, which makes it a productive environment. Talking is also kept to a minimum in the Math IMC.

Artwork is often hung up around the secretary’s desk and math competitions take place there. Students are sometimes able to guess the amount of candy in jars and solve “Daily Math Problems” which are fun additions to the IMC.

Little Theater

Environment: 7; Crowdedness: 8; Productivity: 3

The Little Theater is a newer addition to the IMC collection. The Little Theater mainly serves as an alternate IMC to the Courtyard during lunch mods. One of its downsides is that it is not always open due to classes taking place there.

The chairs in this room are some of the best chairs at Westside, because they are comfortable and have wheels. However, there are other chairs in the Little Theater that are plastic and uncomfortable.

The Little Theater has a projector and multiple television screens which serve no purpose during open mods, but add to the room. The paint designs on the walls are colorful and there are different levels within the room. The tables are connected so many students are able to work in rows facing the front of the room.

English and World Language

Environment: 6; Crowdedness: 6; Productivity: 8

The English and World Language IMC is known for being the freshman IMC. The IMC: is a quiet place where students can work. Rules are somewhat strict in this IMC, students need to be working and using quiet voices. The environment of this IMC is nice because of its high ceilings and natural lighting. There are few seats per table, which makes this IMC a productive space. There is a good amount of seating, but the IMC is fairly dim.

Science

Environment: 4, Busyness: 1, Productivity: 5

The Science IMC is located in room 313, also known as one of the biology rooms. During open mods, students are able to sit at the three sided tables in the room, even during classes. The reason that the Science IMC is so low on this list is because there is no actual space for the IMC.

Because science rooms are larger than other classrooms, due to the need for lab spaces, there is not enough space for a Science IMC. Students who do go in the Science IMC can be moderately productive. The IMC is quiet during mods where classes are not taking place there, but often gets noisy when classes are performing a lab or activity.

Courtyard

Environment: 8; Crowdedness: 10; Productivity: 1

The Courtyard is a popular place to hang out,because there is food, and everyone loves food. There is plenty of seating, but the chairs are uncomfortable and ugly because they are an awkward shape and a gross shade of yellow. The Warrior Cafe inside the courtyard is a convenient way to get snacks, but is not always open.

This area is very noisy and crowded, so the productivity of students is often low. Students are often unable to use their iPads during lunch mods, which also makes it hard to get work done.

Engineering and Technology

Environment: 5; Crowdedness: 3; Productivity:7

The Engineering and Technology IMC is primarily flled with Engineering and Technology students, but all students are welcome to use this IMC. The workspace is somewhat quiet, but some noises are heard from different classes nearby. The IMC is very calm and very few students hang out in this IMC.

Sometimes the IMC is musty because of woodworking classes. The secretary’s desk is decorated with seasonal decor that adds to the space. Instead of the teachers’ desks being located inside the IMC, teachers have their own offces, so sounds of students working with teachers, phone calls, and meetings are muted.

CROSSWORD! Read this issue of The Lance to solve 1 the crossword

2 3 4

6

Down: 1. Pennsylvania 2. Florida 3. sodium 4. Front 5. library Across: 2. flax seeds 6. science IMC 7. USDA 8. fourteen

7 5

Across

2. ingredients combined with water to make a vegan egg substitute 6. the lowest rated IMC in the “crowdedness” category 7. the dept. whose National School Lunch program Westside follows 8. the number of cast members in the show Our Place

Down

1. the state where The Silence of the Lambs was filmed 2. the state the Burnetts set off for their boating trip from 3. an ingredient whose amount has been minimized in school lunches 4. the show that Warrior Theatre ranked four out of seven in in 2019 5. the IMC with the highest rating for the “environment” category