December 2016

THE BEST NAME IN SCHOOL NEWS SINCE 1922

THESANMATEOHI Volume XCVII, No. 4

www.thebearcat.net

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

Bearcat Alum Victim Over 105,000 Pounds Upcoming in Oakland Fire of Food Collected for Events

Jennifer “Jenny” Morris, 21, was killed by a fire in an Oakland warehouse on Dec. 2. She graduated from San Mateo High School in 2013.

A fire that ravaged an Oakland warehouse on Friday, Dec. 2 claimed 36 lives, including a former bearcat’s.

Jennifer Morris, who went by Jenny, grew up in Foster City and graduated from San Mateo High School in 2013.

On Friday night, Morris, who was a 21-year-old junior at UC Berkeley, headed to an electronic-music concert hosted in the warehouse, which is known as the “Ghost Ship.”

Music was a big part of Morris’s life.

See MORRIS, Page 11

Girl Up Club to Host Charity Movie Night

By Lane Mahoney Managing Editor

GRAPHIC BY ELLEN ZHU

Girls worldwide should have the opportunity to receive an education, right? Girl Up thinks so, too.

Sit in on one of the meetings and find out how you can make a difference in someone’s life halfway across the globe. SMHS Girl Up Club meets at lunch on Mondays in Ms. Rosenthal’s room, A161. The Girl Up Organization is a worldwide group of concerned citizens whose goals are to help girls in third world countries avoid premature marriage, health risks, rape and gain an education that they deserve.

On Friday, Jan. 13, the club will be

See GIRL UP, Page 11

PHOTO COURTESY OF YVONNE SHIU

asked, ‘How can I help you, young lady?’” said Harini Krishnan, a SMHS parent and copresident of the San Mateo High School Foundation.

“He was always A member of the Operations Team, willing to help Mike Masterson was a beloved with any task member of the SMHS community. at hand. The

San Mateo School Plant Operations Employee Michael Masterson, who went by “Mike,” passed away from cancer in November.

“Mike was a truly positive, kind and thoughtful member of the bearcat family.

Every time I saw him over the last five years, he always greeted me with a smile and

See MASTERSON, Page 11

Free Glasses for Students

Close to 40 bearcats took a different kind of field trip Dec. 13, leaving campus to visit Lenscrafters for free eyeglasses. The company is “amazingly generous and super committed to everybody being able to see,” said ELD teacher Elizabeth Cronin, who

helped organize the event with Angela Abruzzese from Lenscrafters. “It’s a wonderful demonstration of holiday spirit that continues year round. They are organizing these clincs all over and have been seeing our kids all semester.”

— San Mateo Hi staff

Every holiday season, San Mateo High holds one of the largest canned food drives in the nation. The 2016 Canned Food Drive (CFD) took place from Nov. 10 to Nov. 28 and the goal was to collect 100,000 pounds. This year, bearcats raised a grand total of 105,664 pounds, beating the goal.

Every year, tutorial classes compete for which class can raise the largest amount of pounds. This year, Ms. Moore’s tutorial, composed of seniors, took first place, with a total of 6106.19 pounds. In second place was Ms. Pappas’s senior tutorial with a total of 4887.26 pounds. Mr. Ikeda, who had a junior tutorial, was third place, with 4597.55 pounds. Fourth place was Mr. Pirie’s mixed-grade tutorial, with 4507.38 pounds, and fifth place was Ms. Seebode’s sophomore tutorial, with 4480 pounds. The top freshman tutorial, Mr. Labbie’s, came in sixth place with 3410.38 pounds.

All of the donations from the drive went to the Second Harvest Food

Bank and the Samaritan House.

The donations help make large contributions to San Mateo County, where according a 2014 study from kidsdata.org, the rate of children living in food insecure houses is 16.1 percent in San Mateo.

Ms. Cowey, who teaches Leadership, is in charge of the CFD. She, like many others, is very pleased with the 2016 results. “We are incredibly grateful for your support of this year’s Food and Fund Drive. There are so many people to thank for the great results this year.

Thanks to all of you for all you did to help so many,” said Ms. Cowey.

Mallorie Jenne, sophomore, was one of the many bearcats who participated.

“I think we did a good job this year in the Canned Food Drive, since we reached our goal this year. It feels good knowing that my donations in the drive are helping someone in need,”said Mallorie.

Overall, the 2016 Canned Food Drive was a success. SMHS got the beat and beat its goal once again. Hopefully, it will continue to do so in the future.

By Quinn Hughes Staff Writer

Escapa, senior and Sponsorship Director, referring to two other high school hackathons. “San Mateo Hacks

Programming is a hobby that can be difficult to get started in, but SM Hacks hopes to help fix this problem, The first hackathon for San by providing mentors and Mateo high schoolers will workshops for those without any take place in January 2017. A experience. The event is open to diverse set of approximately “students from all backgrounds 200 students — all of different and all skill levels” who will skill levels — will congregate “collaborate in teams,” as stated in the headquarters of tech on the website. There will also company Informatica, located be “mentors on hand glad to in Redwood City, on Saturday, answer any and all questions” to Jan. 14 and Sunday, Jan. 15 help beginners. to participate in a 24-hour SM Hacks is completely hacking marathon. free for all attendees, and food, A hackathon is any event wifi and “swag” — t-shirts, where hackers get together stickers and more — will all be to build or create something provided, thanks to the event based on a task or theme sponsors, which include Google, relating to the event. This Sony Interactive Entertainment, particular hacking marathon Informatica, GitHub and IBM. will consist of teams of four, “Come to SM Hacks, it’ll be and, according to their official lots of fun,” said senior Anna website, www.smhacks.com, Zheng, the Outreach Director everyone will be working to for SM Hacks. “There will be create “something awesome.” lots of swag and you can make A team of 11 San Mateo High new friends, too. We can’t wait School students are working to SM Hacks, a 24-hour high school hackathon organized to introduce many more students put on the hackathon, which is by bearcats, will be held from Jan. 14 to Jan. 15, 2017 at to computer science.” entirely student-run. “I saw Informatica in Redwood City. Outreach team members For more information or to the potential of coding in San Maggie Dong and Thomas Weathers, both seniors, sign up, visit www.smhacks.

Mateo after GunnHacks and designed the logo and flyer, respectively. com. Applications close in early Los Altos Hacks and that is is an opportunity for you to tap into January, but will be processed on a something I wanted to see more in the the coding world without any prior rolling basis. schools around us,” explained Samuel experience.”

— Cindy Zhang contributed reporting.

WHAT ARE YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS?

PHOTOS BY LANE MAHONEY

ALL THAT MATEOS

By Maya Rijhwani Web Editor

Bearcats Organize San Mateo’s First High School Hackathon

San Mateo Staff Member Mike Masterson Passes Away from Cancer

By Cindy Zhang Editor in Chief

Canned Food Drive

1ST PERIOD FINAL (1-7 DAY) Tuesday, Dec. 20 2ND AND 3RD PERIOD FINALS (MINIMUM DAY) Wednesday, Dec. 21 4TH AND 5TH PERIOD FINALS (MINIMUM DAY) Thursday, Dec. 22 6TH AND 7TH PERIOD FINALS (MINIMUM DAY) Friday, Dec. 23 WINTER BREAK Monday, Dec. 26 to Monday, Jan. 9 (Teacher workday on Monday, Jan. 9) NO SCHOOL (MLK DAY) Monday, Jan. 16 WINTER SHOWCASE Friday, Jan. 20 during tutorial in the PAC COURSE PREVIEW DAY Friday, Feb. 3 during tutorial WINTER MUSICAL (THE MUSIC MAN) Friday, Feb. 3 and Saturday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 5 at 2 p.m. in the PAC NO SCHOOL (PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAY) Monday, Feb. 6 NEXT ISSUE OF THE HI Thursday, Feb. 9

GRAPHIC COURTESY OF THOMAS WEATHERS

PHOTO FROM SMHS YEARBOOK

By Cindy Zhang Editor in Chief

“Develop a better work ethic and exercise more.”

“My resolution is to try to stick to a stricter sleep schedule.”

“I want to get more sleep next year.”

“I’m going to eat more vegetables in the new year.”

Jason Li, freshman

Emma Lepisova, sophomore

Isabella Jimenez, junior

Nein Cheih (Kelly) Wu, senior

INDEX News ............... 1, 11 Opinion ............ 2, 3 Features ............ 4, 5 2016 in Review ... 6, 7 A&E ................. 8, 9 LEL .................... 10 Sports ................. 12

Page 2

Opinion

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

THESANMATEOHI

BLM is Trump Protests: Above ALM Positive or Divisive?

Let me start by saying I am not a Trump supporter. In fact, I’m almost as far away from supporting the President-elect as the spectrum goes.

That, however, does not mean I can’t criticize the actions of those whose ideologies I do agree with.

The American population has become locked into and married to their political parties, blocking out opposing opinions and refusing to have productive conversations. As a passionate liberal, I know that I would struggle to be close friends with someone whose ideologies I fundamentally disagree with. However, this doesn’t mean that I don’t respect conservatives and their opinions. America is split nearly in half into conservatives and liberals and, in order to move forward as one united country, we need to listen to each other.

In the month following Donald Trump’s election, there have been numerous efforts to protest against him and his policy plans. My question is, are these protests productive or divisive?

Well, the answer lies in the protests’ execution and purpose. According to a CNN article reporting on the protests, Noelle Yasso, an immigration lawyer, explained the purpose of the demonstrations, saying that it is to “tell Donald Trump he can't just deport 11 million undocumented people. They're here to stay and we stand in solidarity with them.” This idea of encouraging unity and safety is beautiful and one I fundamentally agree with. I would have absolutely no objection to a gathering of people supporting one another, celebrating diversity, inspiring peace and love and calming the fear of the many who may be targeted by Donald Trump’s policies. While this was true in some of the protests, it was unfortunately not how all were executed.

From what I’ve observed, some of the Trump protests have been unproductive, hypocritical and divisive.

Chanting “f*** Donald Trump,” disrespecting police and dividing an already divided country even further are not good ways of dealing with the daunting future of a Trump presidency.

As protesters hold signs reading “Love Trumps Hate,” they are hateful to both

GRAPHIC BY SIENNA ROPERT

By Sienna Ropert Opinion Editor

By Ariel Seidman Copy Editor

Yes, Trump is terrible. But should we fight hatred with hatred?

Trump and his supporters. Of course, Trump and a large number of his supporters are hateful and disrespectful to many, but stooping down to their level is not what liberalism stands for, or at least not what I stand for.

I was in Portland, Ore. about a month ago when Trump protests were becoming regular on the streets of the city. My hotel was very near to where the protests were happening and I was able to observe them closely. The Portland protesters were very aggressive, chanting “Whose streets? Our streets!” and “F*** Donald Trump!” while also ignoring police requests to move to areas that were closed to traffic. They even had fireworks they were firing dangerously and bottles they were throwing at the police. While many of them held posters that encouraged love, peace and unity, they were being very violent and hateful. While the Portland protests were definitely not the standard for the mostly peaceful Trump protests across the country, the theme of hatred toward the other side was present in many of them, even in the student protests here.

During the San Mateo, Aragon and Hillsdale protest, a student wearing a “Make America Great Again” baseball hat was bullied by protesters who even threw a yogurt at him. I don’t think I’m the only one who sees the hypocrisy in this act, and others like it.

Trump is going to be president, no matter how many people protest his election (one that, by the way, was won

the same way every other president in American history was elected). It is a frightening and sad America where the voters would elect such a man, but with the system we’ve had in place for over 200 years, they have. If you want to protest something, protest the corruption in the DNC or the Electoral College, something you could change.

Protesting Trump, especially in a violent, divisive way will do nothing but make the conservatives in power more keen to shut down any liberal power left. So, in preparation for what could be a disastrous, hateful, fear mongering, violent, divisive presidency, it is important that we stand together and not ignore the half of the country whose ideology will control Washington for at least the next two years. Although they disagree with most of each other’s opinions, there is one thing that unites conservatives and liberals: they both want what’s best for the country. And if we listen to, instead of hating, each other, we might be able to make some sort of compromise about the answer to this question.

Of course, like many other liberals, I want a government based on the liberal ideologies of equality, empathy and cooperation. Unfortunately, in the situation that we’re currently in, this is almost impossible. In order to avoid what could be a catastrophic presidency, Americans, both liberals and conservatives, need to be united by reason, facts and history, not divided by hatred, violence and anger.

Youth’s Opinions Disregarded

By Jessica Fetanatnia A&E Editor

Have you ever been very passionate about an idea or opinion but been shut down simply because you were “too young?” Many young people face this frustrating and discouraging conflict while growing up.

Just because you are young in age does not necessarily mean you retain less knowledge. You could have spent years reading books about and researching a certain subject, in comparison to an adult who may have a minimal amount of knowledge on that subject. The assumption that those who are alive longer have more extensive information holds true in some cases, but not all. It is true with experience;

adults have lived longer so of course they have experienced more. However, that doesn’t mean that younger opinions should be disregarded. “Since children have not been in the world as long as adults, it usually allows them to be less prejudiced and more likely to question society,” said senior Amanda Evans. Rather than conforming to what has been taught by society, young people are more open minded and have a different interpretation of the world.

A major problem with ageism is, “if an adult tells a young person that their opinions are not valid, then it is likely that they will learn that it is wrong to have an opinion that deviates from the norm,” said Amanda. It is sad to see young people lose their creativity

See ADULTS, Page 3

The debate between the All Lives Matter and Black Lives Matter movements is familiar to many, and although the fact that this debate exists is entirely controversial, the one thing people agree on is how hard it is to talk about. This is especially true for friends or loved ones who may have opinions that you don’t understand or that may trouble you. Many people choose not to ever talk about this topic. After all, it is much easier to ignore problems in the world that do not affect you, in an effort to avoid confrontation and conflict of opinion altogether. But the thing is, the most detrimental action you can take is to take none at all. People are avoiding the one thing we need most of all: conversation. Although it may be hard, it is the only solution. There are many misconceptions about these two movements in general. But overall, All Lives Matter is a movement created to ignore black issues in black lives — issues that are all too real. Here is a list of misconceptions people have about the Black Lives Matter Movement, paired with logical reason to enlighten any misinformed person.

Black Lives Matter is racist to all other races.

The mere existence of the Black Lives Matter movement is not racist to all other races, just as wearing a Cubs hat is not unfair to all other baseball teams, putting a jack-o-lantern on your porch is not erasing all other holidays and having a Boy Scouts troop is not undervaluing girls. There is nothing harmful about uplifting a marginalized group of people who cannot otherwise do so without a voice or representation in society. Black Lives Matter gives all races a voice and a platform to fight against racism and oppression against black people, who are in the most need of a platform in our society today, since they are the least represented race, and the most misrepresented as well.

All lives are important! Duh! Yes, duh. But think about it this way, if Tim is sick and in need of a lung transplant, not all children should get a lung transplant because “all children matter and are valuable.” Although they matter and are very valuable, Tim needs the most help.

So blue lives don’t matter? Wow. Of course they do. That is why if you kill or assault a police officer, you are prosecuted, without question. Police do not need an activist movement because they are just not oppressed. Certainly, a police officer dying is just as important as any other citizen dying, but the phrase “Blue Lives Matter,” as well as

phrases like “White Lives Matter” and “All Lives Matter,” were only created in response to Black Lives Matter, and were made to devalue and denounce the veracity of the movement. People who go out of their way to say these deviant phrases did not care to advocate anything about police brutality until it became about covering up black lives.

What about black-on-black crime?

Black people don’t even care for each other! Why should other races care for them?

According to blacklivesmatter. com, “Eighty-four percent of white murder victims are killed by other white people.” That number is so high because communities and neighborhoods are still, even in 2016, generally segregated by race, so it makes sense that the victim of a crime will most likely be the same race as their offender. Black people are just as concerned about gun violence as anyone else. Black Lives Matter is about the lack of consequences and recognition for undeserving black lives being excessively brutalized by the police. When a citizen commits a crime, they are usually arrested, tried and then convicted. Not killed for minor offenses, like theft and loitering.

Although both exist, the term “blackon-black crime” should not even be a valid term, just as the term “white-onwhite crime” is neither recognized, nor is it ever used to describe white deaths at the hands of white people.

The term “black-on-black crime” was only created as a distraction from the fact that black people are feared and undervalued by police, and from the fact that this fear is costing the world valuable black lives.

In the world today, it is incredibly crucial to the progression of society and for the passing of impartial laws and rights that people finally wake up.

The world is not going to change just by people screaming their opinions.

Frankly, no one cares unless they agree with you. You can live to see the change you want the world to make by enlightening people with your knowledge and experiences. Give a voice to someone who may not have one. Whether you agree with this article or not, there is progress still to be made by every person, including myself. Whether our country finds the guiding light to make that progress is up to you, and the only way to make progress is to listen to and consider others. Our country is becoming more and more divided every day. For that reason, we need each other now more than ever. The world is counting on you to do something.

STAFF BOX

Editor in Chief: Cindy Zhang Managing Editor: Lane Mahoney

News Editor: Cindy Zhang Opinion Editor: Sienna Ropert Features Editor: Lane Mahoney A&E Editor: Jessica Fetanatnia LEL Editor: Zulma Canahui-Bajxac Sports Editor: Ananya Iyer Graphics/Photo Editor: Ellen Zhu Graphics Assistant: Landon Finn Photo Assistant: Alex Owen Photo Assistant: Jacqueline Kao

GRAPHIC BY JESSICA FETANATNIA

Web Editor: Maya Rijhwani Social Media Editor: Nic Wratten Business Manager: Damian Kaplan

Advisor: Ms. Fergusson Copy Editors: Ariel Seidman Cindy Yan Jessie Jiang Felmon Madronio Lydia Wu Staff Writers: Robert Libbee Tyler O’Reilly Angie Neta Quinn Hughes Teddy Pei Ethan DiNapoli Sydnee Tan

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

EC Should Remain

By Ethan DiNapoli Staff Writer

After the resounding defeat of Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election by President-elect Donald Trump, many Clinton supporters have signed petitions to abolish the Electoral College and have America become a direct democracy. Even one of California’s senators, Barbara Boxer, has proposed laws to abolish the Electoral College through a constitutional amendment. This would not be a great idea considering that direct democracies are not always–in fact, very rarely ever–good things. The only two modern direct democracies in the world are Switzerland and Greece, the latter of which is facing terrible economic collapse and a rise in farright politics with the Golden Dawn party, according to The Guardian. So, according to the fundamental rules of direct democracy, if the Golden Dawn gains a majority, it will become the leading party in Greece. Fortunately, this wouldn’t be able to happen under the Electoral College or under other representative democracies.

One of the major issues with direct democracies is that they lend themselves to mob rule, with the majority making sure that only their interests are heard while the minorities are silenced. If you look at the electoral map by counties, you will notice that even though most of the counties are

red, the islands of blue hold a majority of the population. The Electoral College helps keep these areas in check so that they cannot win every election.

This helps promote compromise rather than rule of the majority. It is also good to remember that having only one party win every election would make us no better than North Korea or China.

Another issue with direct democracy is that it would be impractical to implement in a nation the size of the United States. There are so many people in the U.S. that basing our election on the popular vote would have us see more recounts, longer election processes and an increase in voter fraud. Because 18 states, 19 when you include D.C., do not require any ID to vote, this would only encourage people to attempt voter fraud. Even if we are to assume that voter fraud will never happen, recounts would occur often and they would be long and expensive.

In a time where the US is already having financial troubles how would spending more money on recounting votes in each state help anything?

A microcosm of this would be Florida during the 2000 election. The vote was so close that a recount was mandatory under Florida state law. That recount was met with people claiming that the recount was unfair, as Bush’s brother, Jeb Bush, was governor at the time and the “butterfly ballots” were unfair and confusing. The recount took ages

to complete and was quite a messy ordeal. Now imagine this occurring in several states as lawyers from both sides demand a recount.

Some of the advantages of the College is that it does not allow for regionalism to be the dominant factor in elections. In order to win the presidency, a candidate needs to appeal to people across the country, rather than just in New York, California, Florida and Texas. In the event that the College was disbanded, many states would be neglected because they do not have a large population, a problem in countries like Russia, China and India. The College also makes states matter. States with smaller populations like Wisconsin actually have a voice when voting for the president while still making sure that more populous states have a significant voice as well.

It appears that the only reason that people are complaining about the Electoral College is that their candidate lost; no one cared about the college in 2008 or 2012, but all of a sudden it is now a form of voter suppression. The fact of the matter is that people are just angry over the election, but that anger should not be afflicted onto the Electoral College. As our founding fathers knew when they drafted the Constitution, the Electoral College is necessary to keep America politically stable.

Casey Neistat Ends Daily Vlog

By Quinn Hughes Staff Writer After hanging out of a helicopter to take a 360-degree selfie, snowboarding through Times Square during a blizzard, racing a skateboard through New York to capture a human-sized Pikachu, riding in a $21,000 airplane seat and countless other amazing things, Casey Neistat has ended his nearly two-year-long vlog on YouTube.

Many speculated as to how this would affect the YouTube community as a whole, as Casey has nearly six million subscribers. Others tried to explain Casey’s reason for ending his vlogs.

But in fact, Casey wasn’t, and still isn’t, leaving YouTube. He has only decided to end his vlog, not his YouTube channel.

Casey’s announcement video, titled “I’m ending the vlog,” explained that he no longer felt challenged by making an eight-minute movie each day. Keep in mind that Casey originally started vlogging in March 2015 to push himself to make a movie every day. To most, Casey seemed to be ending his vlog channel at this time solely because he was in a creative rut.

News broke that Casey’s company, a social media app called Beme, was purchased for $25 million and speculation went wild. Fans of Casey called him a sellout. They felt betrayed because his actions seemed disingenuous. Later that week Casey made another video explaining why he sold his company and addressed the speculation saying that he had felt

GRAPHIC BY QUINN HUGHES Neistat has decided to end his popular YouTube vlog channel, for the best.

he needed to end his daily vlogs six months ago, but continued until he reached the next project in his career.

As a fan of Casey’s, I respect what he’s doing. Casey Neistat is a man who, as a teenager, was homeless and began working in a chowder house in New England to support himself.

He worked his way from a chowder house to selling a $2 million TV series to HBO in 2010. From there, he began a YouTube channel that produced occasional viral videos. He created a vlog channel that consistently received two million views per video.

He worked all the way up to nearly six million subscribers on YouTube. Casey is a self-made man, if there ever was one, and that is respectable.

Casey is also a man who aims to be as

creative as possible. I respect that even more. He changed the way vlogs were done on YouTube by implementing professional-level cinematography to a genre of film that was exclusively amateur in fashion. Never before was such quality done regularly in vlogs.

As a creative person myself (at least I like to think so), I envy Casey’s ability to innovate. He has inspired me to take on photography and videography in new ways. I understand Casey’s choice to end his vlog and I see its validity.

Ultimately, the choice was his to make.

A creator shouldn’t be ridiculed for changes in their artistic endeavors, whether they be financially motivated or otherwise, because without changes and without risks, creativity and art would not exist.

Adults Believe Youth Inferior From YOUTH, Page 2 because they have had their ideas rejected. This judgment holds back society and repeats a vicious cycle of misunderstanding. Some of the advice given by adults is not entirely relevant in our current society or community and limits the exploration of new innovation.

Page 3

THESANMATEOHI

Just because someone is young in age, it does not mean that their opinions are invalid. They are living in this world too, they see what you see and can create informed opinions based off their learnings and experiences.

If there is mutual respect for one another’s ideas, young people will have “more respect for adults because they will not be afraid of their ideas

being rejected,” said Amanda. This is a lesson that can be applicable for people of all ages. We will one day be adults, so remember how issues such as these made you feel, and do not make the same mistake.

In the words of Haimon in Sophocles’ Antigone, “If I am young, and right, what does my age matter?”

OPINION

Climate Change is not a Hoax

GRAPHIC BY JESSIE JIANG

By Jessie Jiang Copy Editor It is possible that we have already gone past the point of no return, before some of us have even realized that climate change isn’t a hoax. But, global warming? How absurd― obviously “the concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing noncompetitive,” according to a tweet of your future president, Donald Trump.

I would beg to differ with this statement. Personally, I believe the estimated 97 percent of climate scientists (according to NASA) who do recognize the effects of global warming, over news broadcasters that discredit justifiable scientific research. I’m not asking anyone to blame themselves for global warming, but the first step is to acknowledge that something terrible is happening.

If you assess the issue of global warming, you would see that it seems to have a domino effect. One fact that you may have heard is that glaciers, sea ice and ice sheets are melting. Because of this, the amount of infrared radiation deflected by the ice back into space is also decreasing, which makes the atmosphere heat up more, and ends up melting a greater amount of ice. Sea levels rise and affect waterfront communities. The hotter the atmosphere, the more moisture it can hold, and I theorize that this is why we’ve received so much rainfall recently. According to the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) 2001, “There will always be uncertainty in understanding a system as complex as the world’s climate.

However there is now strong evidence that significant global warming is occurring. The evidence comes from direct measurements of rising surface air temperatures and subsurface ocean temperatures and from phenomena such as increases in average global sea levels, retreating glaciers and changes to many physical and biological systems.”

The oceans, which cover more that 70 percent of the Earth’s surface area, do their part to help keep the atmosphere’s carbon dioxide levels down. However, in doing this, the oceans also must take a hit. When carbon dioxide levels rise, more carbonic acid is formed and the pH levels of oceans become more acidic.

According to National Geographic, this can lead to developmental and/or reproductive disorders in certain marine animals. Speaking of animals, animals, plants, people and even ecosystems alike will suffer.

A common misconception about global warming is that since overall temperatures are rising, it doesn’t make sense for it to be colder in some places.

Does this mean that global warming isn’t real, since it’s supposed to be hot?

Not necessarily― there are narrow bands of strong winds encircling the earth called jet streams, according to Live Science. These control masses of warm and cool air and are affected by temperature. When the jet streams are

warmer, the weather becomes more extreme― this includes flooding, stronger hurricanes, prolonged drought, heavy rain, etc.

“Before the Flood,” a documentary

by National Geographic, is one of the sources that convinced me of this: climate change is definitely caused by human activity. Who else? We are the most dominant creatures on planet Earth, and we make the decisions to combust fossil fuels for daily necessities such as energy and production, transportation and agriculture, according to National Geographic. We create the loss of forests and many other parts of nature. Yes, these are things that we depend on, but is it so difficult to opt for a cleaner form of energy (one that doesn’t contribute to greenhouse gases) to rely on?

As a generalization, about half of the Republican politicians have been said to deny climate change. Also, many companies that make profit at the Earth’s expense, such as petroleum companies, will deny global warming.

No one wants to be called a hypocrite if they believe that climate change is an issue, yet they still invest. Also, according to Huffington Post, certain Republican politicians will choose to credit skeptics, rather than scientists. In saying this, could Trump’s reasoning be more personal than we thought?

President-elect Donald Trump has appointed Myron Ebell, the director of Global Warming and International Environmental Policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, to head the Environmental Protection Agency transition team. The appointment of Ebell will lead to many major changes (as Trump promised); whether good or bad, we do not know for sure.

According to a quote by Ebell, and cited from The New York Times, he said that he hoped the elected president would “undo the E.P.A. power plant regs and some of the other regs that are very harmful to our economy.” Ebell is more concerned with the economy than the environment. Depending on who you are, opinions on his statement will vary.

Freshman Nicole Hong said, “Global warming makes it harder to grow crops, which is hard on farmers. This increases the price of crops and affects the economy.” So, global warming does in fact affect the economy. The issue is that Ebell does not believe in it.

A climate contrarian and the head of the Cooler Heads Coalition, Myron Ebell disagrees with Barack Obama’s policy to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions (yikes).

While some claims to support climate change will be false, there are always claims that ring true. Climate change is real, and it is no longer some distant fantasy. If we don’t act now, what will future generations have left to enjoy of the earth? The effects of global warming are disastrous, and those who cannot see this are turning a blind eye to what matters, to what gives us life and daily wonders: our beloved planet Earth.

Features

Minor Majors at SMHS twice, rigorously attends vocal training in the city, and can often be seen in advanced dance numbers throughout the year.

Animated movies have

Business Administration.

Communication Studies.

Psychology. These tried-and-true majors are a popular c h o i c e for many collegeb o u n d seniors, seeking access to a variety of careers in their postgraduate l i v e s .

H o w e v e r, s o m e students are much more Dannie Wang and Dominique DeFelice pose in their classes. specialized, knowing exactly what they want to do, and where they consistently molded Dannie into the person she is today. When not want to do it.

Two notable examples of this fawning over the films of Hayao phenomenon are seniors Dannie Miyazaki, or illustrating the latest Wang and Dominique DeFelice. senior class council poster, Dannie Unlike their fellow San Mateo High finds tranquility in drawing, a talent classmates, their laser-focused she’s carried with her all her life.

These remarkably talented career goals (and subsequent major choices) stem from lifelong bearcats are choosing to further their artistic abilities through a passions.

Dominique has long loved college education -- Dominique is theater, performing in a variety majoring in musical theater, and of shows that have included Dannie is majoring in animation.

If you think you have a hard time “West Side Story,” “Urinetown” applying to schools, think again. and most recently, “Evita.” She’s taken the musical theater class In addition to submitting the basic

application, those with specialized majors are often required to provide proof of talent. For Dannie, it means slaving away over a portfolio, sketching for hours on end. For Dominique, it means flying across the country, encapsulating years of talent and hard work into two (truncated) audition songs.

Even if they shine, as they will, the odds are stacked against them - they are for anyone.

Musical theater and animation majors are notoriously competitive, a fact Dominique frustratingly finds overlooked. Several musical theater programs are extremely hard to get into. To provide individualistic attention, Carnegie Mellon admits only two percent of those who audition — that’s three times as hard to get into as Harvard.

Wherever Dominique and Dannie end up next year, you can be sure they’ll be doing what they love, following their dreams, and making the world a more artistic place in the process.

GRAPHIC BY TEDDY PEI

Winter Break Destinations

Although we don’t get snow here, many wish there were snowflakes to see.

By Teddy Pei Staff Writer There are a lot of opportunities in San Francisco for you to enjoy winter break to the best of your ability.

You can go to tour Alcatraz Island.

It’s one of the most visited historic tourist attractions in San Francisco.

The federal prison used to store the most infamous criminals including Al Capone and “Machine Gun” Kelly. There are more things that you can learn such as the history of the island. While learning of the rich history of Alcatraz Island, you enjoy the beautiful scenery which includes the beautiful view of the San Francisco Bay and skyline.

Visiting a food factory is fun such as the Jelly Belly candy factory located in Fairfield. Scheduling a tour is not required as the factory is available to be toured any day and is free to the public. Free sampling of the candy is also allowed. The tour

is self-guided and is about a quarter of a mile long and gives a bird’seye view of the entire factory. The Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City is amazing as it shows you the process of the movie-making and sets of famous TV shows such as “Jeopardy!” Reservations are required for this tour with tours only available from Monday to Friday.

The SFMOMA located in San Francisco is a museum of modern art. Many important artists are featured here including Andy Warhol. It’s open every day except for Wednesdays and holidays. If you don’t like art that much, maybe a you should try a bit of science.

The Exploratorium, a museum of science, has over 600 interactive science exhibits. It is open from Tuesday to Sunday and sometimes on Monday for holidays, the museum of science is a place to go to re-explore the cool science

Honoring our Veteran Teachers

In our October, November and December issues, we have profiled teachers that have been with SMHS for 20 or more years. Be sure to look for our final teacher profile on Ms. Burke in our February issue!

Ms. Micheletti: Our Spanish Superstar

PHOTOS BY NIC WRATTEN

By Nic Wratten Social Media Editor

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

THESANMATEOHI

experiments that your high school science teacher couldn’t even do.

Want to get into the holiday spirit? Ice skating in Union Square is located in San Francisco. These events all start on even hours and last for 90 minutes. Bringing your family and friends to skate -- it is just plain fun. This event will end on Jan. 16, you better hurry.

If you want to do something more intense in your winter break, paintball is your choice. Santa Clara Paintball is located in San Jose and has a number of paintball fields.

Rentals are available for you to rent such as the protective gear and paintball guns that are required to participate in a game. This activity would definitely be fun with friends and family as you fight with or against them. Besides paintball, there are other activities at Santa Clara Paintball such as laser-tag, virtual reality, and various forms of paintball for smaller ages.

Having an urge to go to an amusement park? Well, Great America is here. Located in Santa Clara, this park has 11 thrilling rollercoaster, big drop rides, and rides that spin you around. Great America also includes a great number of family rides in the park.

Food is everywhere from hot dogs to Twinkies. Be prepared to spend money to get a delicious tasting ice cream filled churro or a fudgedripping ice cream sundae.

Winter break is a great time for students to enjoy their family and friends, but also the area they live in. San Francisco is a perfect place to explore, especially during the holidays.

PHOTO BY ALEX OWEN

Page 4

Ms. Micheletti hangs out in her classroom during lunch time.

By Lane Mahoney Managing Editor

Ms. Micheletti is one of San Mateo’s greatest teachers. To many, a perfect teacher is one who has the ability to change students’ opinions of a subject, and that is just what Ms. Micheletti does. Teaching at SMHS for 25 years, Ms. Micheletti has taught Spanish to thousands of students from beginning to AP language levels.

“I think Ms. Micheletti is really good at explaining difficult concepts and making class interesting by giving us dichos at the beginning of every class,” said Nicole Xu, senior.

“I’ve always enjoyed San Mateo, as it has always felt like a second family to me,” said Ms. Micheletti.

“It has always been enjoyable to come to work.”

“I want to keep making Spanish interesting and appealing to students. I also want to get kids excited about traveling and using Spanish in the real world,” said Ms. Micheletti.

“I absolutely loved researching the chispas culturales in Ms.

Micheletti’s class because it gave me a newfound appreciation for the diversity and intricacy of spanish and Hispanic culture,” said David Haner, senior.

Not only does Ms. Micheletti care about her students’ understanding of the technical aspects of the language, but she also helps them learn more about the cultural backgrounds of Spanish-Speaking nations. Every student in AP Spanish is required to conduct two research projects through the year about some social aspect of a spanish speaking country, and all of the writing tests are applied to reallife cultural norms.

“Sra. Micheletti is easily the best Spanish teacher I’ve had in my high school career because she actually taught me spanish. Before her class, everything I learned was just memorization and repetition, but in AP Spanish I learned and fully comprehended the grammar and mechanics of Spanish,” said Yadira Veamatahau, senior.

Ms. Micheletti is a gem within our language department, whom we hope to have for many more years.

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

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THESANMATEOHI

FEATURES

By Nic Wratten Social Media Editor

With the voice of Tom Hanks, the humor of Mark Twain, and the knowledge of Encyclopedia Britannica, it’s no coincidence that Nels Johnson has had a successful 21-year tenure here at San Mateo.

Officially, he’s an English teacher.

Unofficially, he’s a college advisor, a foreign rock aficionado, an enemy of birds, a high-end coffee consumer, and above all else, a mentor in wit.

On any given day, you can witness Mr. Johnson in his natural habitat-strolling down the B-building, almost late to class, sporting a pair of his signature spectacles. Having

taught each and every section of English, Mr. Johnson has seen firsthand the remarkable diversity of San Mateo.

“There are kids in your class with perfect SAT scores, there are accomplished performers, there are second-language learners.

That’s what’s cool, and sometimes challenging, about San Mateo.”

No matter their academic stratum, Mr. Johnson always find ways to individualistically connect with the student. Whether it’s discussing the merits of Colombian coffee, offering counsel on the UC application, or speculating on the point spread of the next college football game, he makes it a point

Ms. Mitchell: Spectacular at Spanish Ms. Mitchell, known at San Mateo as the native Spanish speakers teacher, as well as an instructional coach for other teachers, has been working at San Mateo for 20 years now. For this time, Ms. Mitchell has been expanding the representation, and inclusion of the school’s Latino community by making all of her students feel a part of the San Mateo community with the successful integration of their own Latin American cultures into her curriculum. Ms. Mitchell’s deep passion for teaching is what has kept her at San Mateo for all of these years to continue her pursuits.

Ms. Mitchell has been teaching long enough to have witnessed many teachers, students, trends and school customs pass through San Mateo. But, one thing that she says has always remained, and still has yet to even slightly diminish, is the undying spirit of the bearcats.

“I would say what has stayed the same [throughout the years] has been the spirit of the school. People who come to San Mateo tend to love San Mateo, like me, as well as the students, and I feel like there is an appreciation to be apart of this community that not everyone on the outside necessarily understands until they get here”.

The almost overwhelmingly spirited atmosphere, along with a welcoming staff and students makes San Mateo so easy for teachers to keep coming back year after year to grow as a person, as well as to grow with the school as a whole. For Ms. Mitchell, San Mateo is like a second home. She is especially appreciative of the bright and compelling teacher community she gets to be a part of, describing her coworkers as “dedicated, smart, fun and creative teachers who love their students and love to teach.”

Although coming to work

Ms. Mitchell smiles in her classroom as she waits for her next class.

everyday for Ms. Mitchell is enjoyable, there are those fleeting times when the pressure to maintain a fulfilling class environment for her students can be a bit intense.

“It is stressful sometimes because I think it’s one of those jobs that you get out of it what you put into it,” she explains. “Since we get to work with the same group of students day after day, you can build relationships and you can sort of see the learning.” The fondness for working with teenagers, as well as for the material she instills into her students are the founding pillars of her motivation to succeed as a teacher, and so far she has done a gracious job of it. “She’s a very charismatic person and has a good sense of humor. I don’t remember a time when she wasn’t smiling.” said one of her former students Cesia Lopez, senior.

Ms. Mitchell’s goal throughout the years has been to satisfy her students’ needs. Starting about 10 years ago, this goal has been progressively met through the formation of the native Spanish speakers classes. “When we started the Spanish classes for

Ms. Casco: ELD Diva

PHOTO BY ARIEL SEIDMAN

By Ariel Seidman Copy Editor

basically all the levels of English.” Mr. Johnson was the chair of the English department for seven years, the District English coordinator for five years, but a couple of years ago he gave that all up just to be back in the classroom doing what he loves, helping students thrive.

Even after teaching here for 21 years, Mr. Johnson has managed to thrive.

Mr. Johnson poses in front of grammar posters.

Nate Johnson is a man who is always looking to improve,

By Landon Finn and SMHS is just the place to do it Graphics Assistant A mentor. A man with a passion because,“This is a place that feels for writing, language and learning. like it constantly inventing itself…

A teacher who cares about his this is a place where everyone is students’ success and growth. collectively always doing that, These are only a few of the ways we’re always asking ourselves one could describe Nate Johnson, a ‘how do we do better?’

“The teaching staff has always man who has dedicated 21 years of his life to challenging, teaching and been great and though the administration has changed, guiding his students through life. they’ve always been focused on Mr. Johnson has seen the school the achievement of every student,” go through many changes, from the complete reconstruction of he said.

Mr. Johnson is loved by students the school, to the ever fluctuating teachers and faculty but, and teachers alike, and his passion “Fundamentally, San Mateo has for language makes his class a fun, always had that San Mateo spirit safe environment to learn for all. and it’s always been a place that has Mr. Johnson has left a lasting mark had an identity, and it’s the same on the school and his students that identity that it always has been... will remain for years to come, and It’s a place of challenge, diversity he hopes students “View their life as under their control...because and complexity.”

Nate Johnson was hired in 1995, success isn’t handed to anybody, it’s and “over the course of the last only achieved if you see something you want and you try for it.”

PHOTO BY LANDON FINN

to know you as a person in addition to as a student.

Despite his easy-going personality, Mr. Johnson teaches a formidible curriculum. Challenging students to look beyond the plot, he’s adept at teaching the skill of nuance, or subtle complexities in the text. “Why is Hero named Hero? Why did Shakespeare choose paint over illustrate? What’s the connotation of concrete as opposed to pavement?” These shades of language are critical to Mr. Johnson’s teaching philosophy--a philosophy that values the artistry of the literary craft.

Having two recently-graduated sons of his own, Mr. Johnson understands the stress of the high school student, and attempts to ease his challenging curriculum into more approachable waters.

To understand the notion of the tragic hero, for example, he gives a sample presentation on the life of Eazy-E. To understand the use of clowns in Shakespeare, he plays a clip from Parks and Recreation. To understand the concept of hubris, he brings up Kanye. He’s not trying to be hip, either--he is hip. “He’s like the intellectual dad that’s actually really goofy and sweet,” said Natalia Diaz, senior.

If you’re lucky enough to be taught by the iconic Mr. Johnson, you’ll not only receive a worldclass education, but a smile on your face, and that’s why San Mateo is lucky to have him.

native speakers, we were finally able to recognize and try to serve the needs of all these wonderful students we have that come with Spanish as either a language that they grew up speaking, or that their family speaks.” Initially, the standard Spanish classes at SMHS were structured to fit the needs of beginning learners of the language.

The difference with the native speakers class is that the format is built around the preconception of the students knowledge of informal Spanish, just like a formal English class for native English speakers.

Out of all the lessons Ms. Mitchell teaches to her students, there is one special thing she hopes they will retain in the long-run.

“A loving curiosity of different languages and cultures. I’m not worried if they don’t leave my room fluent in spanish or ready to read Don Quijote, but I hope that they understand what a gift it is to speak another language and to consider the perspective of other cultures.” Ms. Mitchell’s care for her students is appreciated by all who have crossed her path, and those who will.

PHOTO BY LANDON FINN

Mr. Johnson in his classroom wearing a t-shirt from his alma mater.

PHOTO BY NIC WRATTEN

Love Mr. Johnson: Our Own Tom Hanks Mr. Johnson: English 20 years or so I’ve done

Ms. Casco smiles outside in her stylin’ sunglasses.

By Landon Finn Graphics Assistant Though not many students know her name, she plays a huge role in the San Mateo High School community. She is a caring, selfless member of the staff who helps ELD, or English Language Development, students who struggle with English succeed in class and in life, as well as helping administer testing the ELD students.

Ms. Casco came to the United States in 1997 from Nicaragua, and she didn’t speak a word of English, so she attended Skyline College in San Bruno to help develop her English skills. In 1997 she got a job at San Mateo High working instructionally to help support her two children. “I was so happy when they called me and said ‘yes, we accept you,’” she said.

Ms. Casco is now the ELD coordinator at the school, and her duties include placing students with the California English Language development test, or CEL, talking with the students who struggle with English when they need help, and

communication with parents who only speak Spanish. “I try to be the link between the school and the parents,” said Ms. Casco.

“I analyze the student’s grade. I let them know step-by-step, especially the ELD students because the Latin American system is so different from the American system,” said Ms. Casco Often, foreign students have trouble in school just because it’s just so different from what they are used to. In most Latin American schools, students pass from one grade to another no matter what, unlike in America where students need a certain number of credits.

Most importantly, Ms. Casco makes sure that Spanish speaking students are doing their best and happy. “When they don’t speak the language well, they think they are not good enough. I tell them ‘no’ if you are good. If you are doing your best, nobody is better than your best,” said Ms. Casco. She has made a world of difference on the ELD program at SMHS.

19

Cleveland Cavaliers defeat Golden State Warriors in NBA Finals

AUGUST

Failed military coup d'état in Turkey causes over 300 deaths

The deaths of the two black men, in Louisiana and Minnesota, respectively, led to nation-wide protests. Three days later, on July 9, a gunman killed five police officers in Dallas, saying that he wanted to "kill white people — especially white officers."

15

JULY

Alton Sterling and Philando Castile are fatally shot by police

25

Fashion photographer Bill Cunningham, 87, dies

6

23

Britain votes to exit the European Union in a referendum

Prime Minister David Cameron announces his resignation the following day.

Alexander Hamilton (Ron Chernow)

Michael Phelps (U.S., swimming) wins five golds

Chicago Cubs win World Series

Usain Bolt (Jamaica, track), the "World's Fastest Man," wins three golds in his final Games

Denver Broncos win Super Bowl

events

rio de janeiro

Awaken, My Love (Childish Gambino) Homegoing (Yaa Gyasi) Imagine Me Gone (Adam Haslett) Blackstar (David Bowie)

22, A Million (Bon Iver)

The Girl on the Train (Paula Hawkins)

When Breath Becomes Air (Paul Kalanithi)

Views (Drake) Illuminate (Shawn Mendes)

The Underground Railroad (Colson Whitehead)

read

Doctor Strange

Captain America: Civil War

Deadpool

Finding Dory

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Moana

watch

Collage (The Chainsmokers)

Hamilton (Broadway soundtrack)

Blonde (Frank Ocean)

A Seat at the Table (Solange)

Anti (Rihanna)

Starboy (The Weeknd)

Coloring Book (Chance the Rapper)

The Life of Pablo (Kanye West)

Lemonade (Beyonce)

listen

: 2016 review

year in

THESANMATEOHI

At one point, the Warriors led 3-1. But Draymond Green's suspension and Andrew Bogut's injury allowed the Cavaliers to rebound, and ultimately win.

12

Shooting at gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla. kills 49

The Class of 2016 graduates from SMHS

26

3

EgyptAir Flight 804 crashes into the Mediterranean Sea, killing 66

16

MAY

Sadiq Khan becomes first Muslim mayor of London

8

Boxer Muhammad Ali, 74, dies

JUNE

Famous in the '80s for “1999” and “Purple Rain,” Prince made over six movies, recorded over 40 albums and received seven Grammy awards.

21

5

San Francisco first U.S. city to require paid parental leave

Singer-songwriter Prince, 57, dies

3

SMHS Interact Club builds a playground for the Yurok Tribe

31

Panama Papers, exposing offshore accounts, are published

APRIL

President Obama visits Cuba, first U.S. President to do so since 1928

20

The two spent 340 days in space, setting an International Space Station record.

Singer Frank Sinatra, 72, dies

MARCH

16

28

Leonardo DiCaprio wins Best Actor in 88th Academy Awards

Former First Lady Nancy Reagan, 94, dies New SAT is unveiled by CollegeBoard

19

Harper Lee, 89, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, dies

6

15

Winners of the 58th Grammy Awards announced

Astronauts Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko return to earth

13

Associate Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, 79, dies

2

11

Gravitational waves detected, supporting Einstein's theories

Scalia studied law at Harvard University and was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan.

1

A zinnia becomes the first flower grown in space to bloom

16

World Health Organization declares Zika global emergency

FEBRUARY

Actor Alan Rickman, 69, known for his role as Severus Snape, dies

Bowie's first big hit was “Space Oddity,” which reached number one in the UK. His music emphasized artistic expression and freedom of creativity.

14

JANUARY

Winners of the 73rd Golden Globe Awards announced Singer-songwriter David Bowie, 69, dies from cancer

A&E recap

10

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SPORT

AUGUST

OCTOBER

Cuban-American baseball pitcher JosĂŠ FernĂĄndez, 24, dies

Former Israeli President Shimon Peres, 93, dies

25

28

25

Chicago Cubs beat Cleveland Indians to win World Series

Over 300 bearcats walk out in protest while promoting unity

Former Prime Minister of Cuba Fidel Castro, 90, dies

Plane with Brazilian Chapecoense football team crashes, killing 71 Bearcats collect over 105,000 pounds for the Canned Food Drive

15

25

28

3

5

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9

Malta is first European country to outlaw conversion therapy

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi resigns after referendum

South Korean President Park Geun-hye is impeached

Blurbs by Felmon Madronio, Sydnee Tan and Cindy Zhang // Graphics by Ellen Zhu // Spread by Cindy Zhang

Donald Trump defeats Hillary Clinton in the presidential election

8

2

Singer Leonard Cohen, who composed Hallelujah, 82, dies

NOVEMBER

The two hope to "cure, prevent or manage all disease by the end of this century."

7

U.S. Army says it will not pursue Dakota pipeline access

One of the 36 victims was Jennifer Morris, who graduated from San Mateo High School in 2013. See page 1 for more information.

Oakland warehouse "Ghost Ship" catches fire, killing 36

DECEMBER

Natalie Babbitt, author of Tuck Everlasting, 84, dies

31

14

30+ students participate in SMHS's first "Coming Out Day"

The underdog Cubs came back after trailing Cleveland 3-1 to win the 112th World Series, ending a 108-year-long title drought.

13

3

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan pledge $3 billion for illness

16

Trend of the Year Dabbing

Person of the Year President Barack Obama

Moment of the Year Election 2016

App of the Year Snapchat

THESANMATEOHI

Song of the Year Closer (The Chainsmokers)

Movie of the Year Finding Dory

journalism superlatives

"RISING" SEARCHES (Largest increase in search frequency in the past year) pokemon go (+2,950%) slitherio (+2,150%) hurricane matthew (+1,800%) 123movies (+1,100%) polls (+550%) trump (+500%) finding dory (+450%)

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#Rio2016 #Election2016 #PokemonGo #Euro2016 #Oscars #Brexit #BlackLivesMatter #Trump #RIP #GameOfThrones

google

Andy Murray

LeBron James

Kobe Bryant

Peyton Manning

Colin Kaepernick

people

Leicester City wins English Premier League

Cleveland Cavaliers win NBA Championship

twitter

Daniel Dias (Brazil, swimming) wins four golds, three silvers and two bronzes in the Paralympics

Kadeena Cox (Britain, track/cycling) wins two golds in two separate sports in the Paralympics

Brothers Alistair and Jonny Brownlee (Britain, triathlon) win gold and silver, respectively

Simone Biles (U.S., gymnastics) wins four golds and one bronze in her first Games

Neymar (Brazil, soccer) scores the winning penalty kick to give Brazil the men's soccer gold

Katie Ledecky (U.S., swimming) wins four golds and a silver while setting two new world records

and a silver medal in his fifth and final Games

TS recap

King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, 88, dies

Singer-songwriter Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize in Literature; Harvard professor Oliver Hart and MIT professor Bengt Holstrom shared the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science; Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos won the Nobel Peace Prize; University of Strasbourg professor JeanPierre Sauvage, Northwestern professor Fraser Stoddart and University of Groningen professor Bernard Feringa shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry; University of Washington professor David Thouless, Princeton professor Duncan Haldane and Brown professor Michael Kosterlitz shared the Nobel Prize in Physics; and Tokyo Institute of Technology professor Yoshinori Ohsumi won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Nobel Foundation begins announcing 2016 Nobel Laureates

Winners of the 68th Emmy Awards announced

19

Albee's dozens of works include Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and The Zoo Story.

He won three Pulitzer Prizes for Drama, two Tony Awards and a Special Tony Award.

Playwright Edward Albee, 88, dies

16

SEPTEMBER

15th Summer Paralympics begin in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

31

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is impeached

2

29

19

13

Actor Gene Wilder, best known as Willy Wonka, 83, dies

Henderson led a decade-long effort to eradicate smallpox in the world.

Epidemiologist Donald Henderson, 87, dies

San Mateo welcomes the Class of 2020, its largest ever

Gymnast Simone Biles and swimmer Katie Ledecky each win four gold medals. Swimmer Michael Phelps wins five golds for a total of 23 gold medals. The 2016 Games also sees the first Refugee Olympic Team.

5

TRENDS recap

31st Summer Olympics begin in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016 Page 7

A&E

Living Without Social Media Quinn Hughes Staff Writer Instagram is gone– well from my phone at least. For the past 30 days, I have not used the app at all; it’s been a total blackout.

Instagram, as you probably know, is an app with over 500 million monthly users as of October 2016 according to statista.com. It seems like everyone and their mother has an Instagram account. The originally iOS-based app (now on almost every OS) is great for documenting life’s adventures, sharing photos and videos and for contacting and communicating with people all over the world.

I was a heavy Instagram user. As one of the few teenagers at SMHS who doesn’t use Snapchat, Instagram was my only social media. In the four years I’ve been on the app, I’ve posted over 1,000 photos and videos.

It was great for someone getting into photography like myself and it allowed me to share shortfilms that I’ve made in my bedroom. As a creative person, the platform is phenomenal for sharing creations with others all over the globe.

I’ve collaborated with people from Virginia, Maryland and Wisconsin, just to name a few. One of my favorite uses for Instagram was daily photo challenges. For the month of October, I took a photo each day and posted it to the platform from a really old camera.

I think this really emphasized the creative side of the app.

Though Instagram is great for sharing creative works like photos and videos, it’s also one of the greatest timewasters available today. I found myself

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

ENTERTAINMENT

THESANMATEOHI

ART S

Page 8

spending at least an hour each day on the app. I was getting sick of seeing people’s selfies and pictures of their Starbucks in my feed. Toward the end of October, I decided to delete the app from my phone for at least a month.

For the first few days after doing so, I had withdrawal. I would open up my phone and look at the spot where the little purple icon used to be and, as pathetic as it is to say, feel almost lost.

I would consider just abandoning the commitment, but I knew it would be a rewarding experience in the end.

About a week or two later, I forgot about the app. I had no desire to check up on people’s artificial portrayals of their lives through a highly selective, filtered lens. I found I actually had more time to do things that I enjoyed.

I noticed that I was, in a small way, less stressed than I was previously.

Now, 30 days later, I have few plans to go back to Instagram. As a photographer, I may want to post my work because it is a great way to see progression, but as for mindlessly scrolling through my timeline that’s cluttered with people who I barely know, I hope to end that and spend that time more productively.

To anybody who thinks they waste their time on social media, I strongly recommend doing a “cleanse” of sorts by deleting those apps from your phones. Spend about a month without checking your social media. See how you feel after that period. You may feel less stress; you may feel you’ve gotten a new perspective on what’s important in life.

P.S. But if you want to know, peep me @quinnmaster

Movie Releases in December Incarnate Things to Come Man Down Jackie

Nocturnal Animals Miss Sloan Office Christmas party

Jessie Jiang Copy Editor Looking for an exciting new movie to watch this December? Check out the following titles for some win-spiration.

Begin your movie-marathon with “Things to Come,” or “L’Avenir,” a French drama about a philosophy teacher, Nathalie Chazeaux (played

by Isabelle Huppert). Nathalie goes through several losses —the death of her mother, a divorce and being fired from her job. Though at a loss, Nathalie soon discovers how free she is, and the many opportunities that await her.

In the mood for a scare? “Man Down,” a thriller starring Shia Labeouf as U.S. Marine Gabriel Drummer, is a good candidate. Along with his best friend and another survivor, Drummer hangs onto hope as he searches for his wife and son. Next, “Incarnate,” a supernatural film, follows a scientist who can enter the minds of the possessed; he is determined to free a boy from a demon with unusual powers. Both films were released on Dec. 2.

The following movies were released on Dec. 9. “Nocturnal Animals” has received quite the hype. An art gallery owner is haunted by the relationship she once shared with her former husband in this mysterious and vengeful romantic thriller. “Jackie,” a biography and drama, describes the struggles that Jacqueline Kennedy had to face following the death of her husband,

Rogue One Collateral Beauty Fences

President John F. Kennedy. Talk about drama in the court, am I right?

Not to mention, an intense political drama, “Miss Sloane,” which packs a powerful punch. Lobbyist Elizabeth Sloane, known for her winning streak, is thrown for a loop when facing her most powerful opponent yet. If you hear anyone saying, “I’ll be watching ‘Office Christmas Party,’” like senior Jason Lopez, then you’ll know that you won’t be the only one. “Office Christmas Party,” a holiday comedy featuring many well-known actors (including Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, T.J. Miller and many more) is set in motion when the branch manager of a company throws an extravagant Christmas party in an attempt to convince a big client. However, the party soon escalates beyond control.

Star Wars fans can watch the stand alone action film “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” airing Dec. 16. This movie tells of a group of heroes who seek to steal the plans to the Death Star.

A hopeful tale with a deeper message, “Rogue One” is certainly high up on the bucket list. Also premiering on Dec. 16 is “Collateral Beauty,” starring Will Smith. After losing his daughter, protagonist Howard Inlet writes letters to the cosmos — Love, Time and Death — and soon finds how they fit together.

“My favorite movie genre is action,” said freshman Jenna Choe. If you can agree, then prepare for Dec. 21: “Passengers” is floating out into

Passengers Assassin’s Creed Sing Hidden Figures

cyberspace. Anticipated by many, the fantasy/sci-fi film starring Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt follows two passengers on a spacecraft who wake up 90 years before they should. A nod to the gamers out there, “Assassin’s Creed” hits theaters Dec. 21. According to ign.com, executive producer Pat Crowley said, “We essentially did the (artifacts and characters) all on our own because we wanted to have an original script. It’s a movie that’s based on the game, but it’s not a movie that is the game.”

Warm up your vocals for “Sing,” a family-friendly animation film, due for Dec. 21 as well. Koala Buster Moon, the owner of a theater, hopes to put his theater on the map by hosting the world’s greatest singing competition— and anyone can participate.

To conclude December with a powerful message, check out “Fences” or “Hidden Figures,” or both, on Dec. 25. Both movies depict moving storylines and star AfricanAmerican leads. “Fences” is about a father’s struggle to raise his family in 1950s America. “Hidden Figures,” a drama, describes the story of the African-American women working at NASA who helped make the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit a success.

No matter which genre you prefer, there are plenty of impressive new films available for viewing this December.

So grab your popcorn, and sit back for the show of the month.

Count Down of Five Popular Games This Year Teddy Pei Staff Writer As winter break approaches, it might be time for excited gamers to get back in touch with the gaming world.

The list below is a compilation from the opinions of SMHS students and several online game reviews. The three consoles mentioned in this review include the Xbox One, the PS4 and the PC. #5) Judging from all of the gaming sites people have commented on, “Superhot” is number five on this list.

Although this game can’t be accessed on the PS4, it’s still available on the PC and Xbox. The first-person shooter’s motto applies to the game: “Time moves when you move.” This is shown when you stop in the middle of a room full of opponents; the bullets that are shot from their guns stop in midair, but if you make any movements, the bullets and the people continue their paths.

“Superhot” is also available on the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset, which requires a PC. Several journalists at the Electronic Entertainment Expo of 2014 described playing in virtual reality as an experience similar to playing the characters of Neo or Morpheus from the film “The Matrix.” I personally loved this game, as it allows you to stop

and think, since the player doesn’t see the game unfold in front of their face, like most other first-person shooters.

Instead, the rush of instantaneous combat is replaced by the calculating process of planning your next move. #4) “Hitman 2016” is an open world sandbox, third-person shooter stealth game, which casts the player as an assassin, who, in every mission, has to eliminate a new target. The fun things about this game are the puzzles it contains within every level; these puzzles encourage you to think about your next move. You see, this is no ordinary stealth game, as you must steal the outfits of the people around you to blend in, so as to not be detected by your enemy while in the process of eliminating your target. There are more complicated techniques as the level progresses. You must be watchful of people who might see through your disguise; or, when needing to reach your target, you are blocked by an obstacle.

The stealth employed in this style of gaming is truly sophisticated. Even now, it introduces more interesting factors, such as more creative ways to assassinate in the gameplay as you progress through each level’s unique situation. The game just dares you to formulate interesting strategies to put forth in a mission. #3) “Titanfall 2” was suggested by

Benjamin Lui, a freshman, as third place on this list. He said, “The number of titans in the game have increased, and with new pilot classes, this game is gonna get interesting.” “Titanfall 2” is a first-person shooter game that is the sequel to the original “Titanfall”(2014).

The war machines or titans and the weapons look somewhat like the future. IGN said that “(‘Titanfall 2’) could rival “Call of Duty.” Some major differences between the new and the original “Titanfall” include: having a complete campaign; it is available on the PS4 now, instead of only on the Xbox One and the PC; and more classes than the original to choose from.

The campaign is supposedly six hours long, and as you progress through it, new mechanics are introduced to you, ranging from puzzles to the mastering of the complicated movement in the game. In multiplayer, there are new opportunities that were not present in the original game. There is more space for customization, weapons, boosts and titans. #2) “Overwatch” is a first-person battle arena shooter game that features a six vs six group-based combat.Asimilar first person arena shooter game is the free to play “Team Fortress 2.” There are a few key differences between the two games with “Overwatch” being more focused on team coordination and

positioning rather than the “Rambo” style gameplay that is more commonly associated with TF2. Overwatch also has more versatility than TF2 allowing for more flanking routes and faster paced action than TF2. Another aspect that differs between the two games is that Overwatch has a whopping 23 playable characters with more coming along in each update, these characters are split up into four categories: Offense, Tank, Defense and Support with each class having to fill a different role in order to complete the objective.

Overwatch also features a competitive mode in which you must work with your team to climb in the ranks much like CS:GO’s own competitive mode however is much less punishing for disconnecting or suiciding. Also, each character has their own set of abilities and an ultimate that will give you and your team an advantage when you face off against the enemy team.

The game’s story has been mostly removed from the game, excluding some in game dialogue and an opening cinematic, and can be found in comics, animated shorts, and background information that call all be found on Blizzard’s website. This game has been really popular ever since its release in May 2016. #1) “Battlefield 1” is number one on this list. A freshman, Emmanuel

Duarte said, “The best game this year was definitely ‘Battlefield 1.’”

“Battlefield 1” is a first-person shooter that has both campaign and multiplayer modes that are complex and fun to play in. The game’s setting focuses on World War I. You play as a variety of characters in the campaign and each level tells the war story the particular individual. The Battlefield series has always been praised for its destructive and vast multiplayer, and “Battlefield 1” has taken the glory once again. The multiplayer features eight classes set up into three groups: “Pickable,” meaning you can pick one of the four classes; “Spawn-based,” which means that if you spawn into one of the vehicles, you will be fighting in that class; and lastly, “Pickup-based,” which requires you to obtain a pickup in the battlefield to wield powerful weapons such as a flamethrower. Adding onto the classes, the six game modes that you can choose from are all fun and contain explosive action. When you enter the battlefield itself, you will be truly experiencing what it must’ve looked like in a World War I battle, as vehicles such as tanks, fighter planes, armored vehicles, horses and a “behemoth” vehicle for the losing team, will all be fighting with or against you.

All in all, these, I believe, are the top five games of 2016.

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A&E

Many Celebrate Winter Holiday Traditions Cindy Yan Copy Editor The winter holiday season is here!

Which means, of course, so are celebrations of all kinds. Ranging from the well-known Christmas to Diwali to Chinese New Year. Many groups of people celebrate traditional holidays that have been celebrated for hundreds of thousands of years, like Hanukkah.

Others have only recently begun to be celebrated, like Kwanzaa.

The most popular and widespread winter holiday is definitely Christmas.

It has been a federal holiday in the United States since June 26, 1870, but has been celebrated all around the world for about two millennia before that, according to history.com.

Most Christians celebrate it as the anniversary of the birthday of Jesus, but many non-religious people also celebrate it as a time for gift-giving and family reunions. The Bible does not mention a specific date of birth for Jesus, which led to some denial of the existence of Christmas. The final date was decided by Pope Julius I in 350 A.D. Early Europeans had always celebrated light and birth in the middle of winter. “Many people rejoiced during the winter solstice, when the worst of the winter was behind them and they could look forward to longer days and extended hours of sunlight,” said history.com. There have been many named holidays that were around Christmastime, including Yule, celebrated by the Norse in Scandinavia, and Saturnalia, celebrated in Rome.

Common modern-day customs include exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals and, for young children, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. “We

light an advent candle once a week, and then the final one on Christmas,” said Trevor Chan, freshman. “Every week, when we light the candles, we recite some passages of scripture.”

Another very well-known holiday is Hanukkah. “From a religious perspective, however, it remains a relatively minor holiday that places no restrictions on working, attending school or other activities,” history. com said. Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish celebration, alternately spelled “Chanukah” It begins on the 25th day of the the month Kislev on the Hebrew calendar, which is usually in November or December. This year, Hanukkah will be from Dec. 24 to Jan. 1, 2017.

This holiday commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem during the second century B.C., where, “according to legend, Jews had risen up against their GreekSyrian oppressors in the Maccabean Revolt,” according to history.com. “A small group of Jews fought against the large army and won,” said Diana Ningen, freshman. “They went back to their temple to find it ransacked, and they needed oil to burn in the menorah.

They found a little bit of oil that should only have lasted for one day but instead lasted for eight days, which was long enough to go get more oil.” Today, “we celebrate the miracles of the oil and the smaller army defeating the larger.”

The word “Hanukkah” means “dedication” in Hebrew. The celebration of this holiday revolves around the lighting of a nine-branched menorah, or candle-holder. “We light the candles each night…and one is the helper candle,” said Diana. “That’s the one you start out with and light all the other candles with.” On each night of the holiday, a candle is added after sundown. Traditional Hanukkah foods are fried in oil, like “latkes” (potato pancakes) and “sufganiyot” (jelly-

filled donuts).

An Islamic holiday that is commonly celebrated during wintertime is Ramadan. However, this year, Ramadan was celebrated from June to July, since most Islamic holidays land on different dates on the Western calendar every year. This year, one holiday during the winter season is called Milad un-Nabi, or Muhammad’s Birthday. This holiday is also known as Id-e-Milad, Nabi Day, Mawlid or the Prophet’s Birthday. It was celebrated on Dec. 13 this year.

“Many Sunni Muslims celebrate this event on the 12th of the Islamic month of Rabi' al-awwal, while the Shi'a community celebrates it on the 17th of Rabi' al-awwal,” said timeanddate. com. Milad un-Nabi is celebrated in a variety of ways. In some countries, there are large street parades, and homes and mosques are decorated, and some donate goods for charity around this date. Some Muslims do not celebrate on this day, however.

“Instead, they may mark the occasion by spending more time to read the Koran,” timeanddate.com said. Since Muhammad is believed to have been born on a Monday, some scholars fast during daylight hours on Mondays to honor his birth.

In India, Milad un-Nabi is a gazetted holiday, which means that the government has made it mandatory.

Government buildings are required to be closed, and banks, post offices, schools and most employers must observe Milad un-Nabi as well.

Another gazetted holiday celebrated in India is Diwali. It is also commonly known as Deepavali, or the Festival of Lights. celebrated every year on the 15th day of the month Kartika on the Hindu calendar. This year, Diwali was around Oct. 30 on the Western calendar.

“The Diwali celebration in India takes place when the monsoon season ends

and the weather is mild and pleasant,” said timeanddate.com.

Traditionally, oil-burning bowls called “dipa” lights are used to light up buildings. More recently, most use artificial lights. “We celebrate Diwali by first making food and offering it to the gods, called Prasad, and then praying to them,” said Mitali Mangoli, freshman. “Then, we begin our lunch by eating the Prasad. We are not meant to eat before this.”

People often pray to the gods later on in the evening. Different gods are honored, varying from region to region. The main reason for Diwali is “ to celebrate the victory of light over dark,” said Mitali. After dark, fireworks are lit, and, if people live near a river, they float lighted lamps on tiny rafts. “Melas” (fairs) are also commonly held.

Kwanzaa, though it is a holiday that is often spoken about, has not been celebrated until fairly recently.

“Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chairman of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach, created Kwanzaa in 1966,” according to history.com. He was influenced by the Watts riots in Los Angeles, which included violent protests, murders, property damage and arson. It lasted for a total of six days, and was caused by alleged police brutality against a drunk African-American motorist. After this, Dr. Karenga searched for a way to unite the African-American community.

Kwanzaa is now celebrated each year from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1. The name Kwanzaa came from the phrase “matunda ya kwanza”, which means “first fruits” in Swahili. Every family that celebrates Kwanzaa does so in their own way. Some often sing and dance, read poetry, and tell traditional stories. One candle on the sevenbranched Kinara candleholder is lit on each night of this holiday. One of the

seven principles, called the “Nguzo Saba” (“seven principles” in Swahili) are also discussed on each night.

Chinese New Year is, by far, the most important Chinese holiday. Though it doesn’t have a set date on the Western calendar, it is always the new year on the lunar calendar. In 2017, it will be on Jan. 28. The entire country of China has a week off of work and school. It is nearly impossible to travel in the country around the new year, for everyone wants to return to their hometown to spend time with extended family, then have a huge celebratory dinner. By midnight of the eve of the new year, everyone is expected to make and eat dumplings together. The Chinese word for fish sounds like the word for surplus, so fish is also an important part of dinner.

“The whole environment in China is ready for Chinese New Year,” said Tina Chang, freshman, who has lived in China for numerous years. “You could see the red lanterns all on the road, and we also played around with firecrackers a lot.” Traditionally, firecrackers were meant to scare away the devils, but, now, most people just play with them for fun. Another tradition is watching the annual CCTV New Year’s Gala, where singers and entertainers come together to perform, act out skits, or anything at all. It is usually hosted by four popular CCTV personalities, and is the most-viewed entertainment show.

Chinese New Year is a time “to celebrate a year of hard work, have a good rest, relax with family and wish for a lucky and prosperous coming year,” said chinahighlights.com.

All of these holidays fall in or near the winter season, and all add to the winter hype. They are all celebrated differently, though some of them have their similarities. Do you celebrate any of them?

Comic By Ellen Zhu

Why does Everyone go Nuts for the Nutcracker?

Lydia Wu Copy Editor Year after year, many of us celebrate the holidays with a Nutcracker performance, but few think of exactly why it has remained successful as a holiday tradition since its first premiere in 1892. There are certainly other ballets that could be considered more creative and innovative, both in choreography and plot (as a ballerina, even I find the plot occasionally cheesy), yet “The Nutcracker” remains as one of the few (the other being “Swan Lake”), if not the only, ballets that most people know the name of. So what makes its success so consistent, even when ballets are often unappealing to younger generations seeking instant gratification? What is the history behind this holiday tradition?

Every year, many ballerinas, including me, hear the music of

“The Nutcracker” endlessly for hours on end; nonetheless, one major factor that I believe is crucial to the attractiveness of “The Nutcracker” is the music. Although some who have heard the music over and over again may get sick of it, it still brings forth a sensation of happiness and a spirit of the holidays so strong it feels almost tangible. Tchaikovsky’s score is undeniably charming, embodying the joyful holiday spirit--even in the first few seconds of the opening scene. (Tchaikovsky is the same man who wrote the score for “Swan Lake,” which is probably the most recognizable ballet besides “The Nutcracker.” Coincidence? I think not.)

When combined with the scenes of simple, but delightful gift-giving and children dancing, it puts the audience in the holiday mood in a snap.

“The Nutcracker” is often the most widely advertised ballet, which also

explains its popularity and wide recognition. This is because for some companies, such as San Francisco Ballet, “the show garners about 40 percent of the company’s ticket revenue each year,” said dance critic Lauren Gallagher in the BBC’s “How Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Became a Christmas Classic.” Other ballets throughout the season are certainly advertised, but not to the extent that “The Nutcracker” is.

There is also no denying that “The Nutcracker” is a children’s ballet; it sparks the imagination and achieves every child’s holiday dreams--a growing Christmas tree, a toy that comes to life, a cany land--in the extremely understandable and quite eventful plot and choreography. It is perhaps one of the ballets where one can understand everything that’s happening without reading the synopsis; this is quite significant considering the

storyline is communicated purely through dance, using no words or sounds other than the music. And while this may precisely be the reason why some find the ballet cheesy, perhaps a little part of all of us enjoy the chance to indulge in childhood dreams.

“It's the tree. It's the juvenile warmth of the excited children in the party scene. It's the familiarity of the whole production, even if you're just seeing it for the first time. It's the ballet's ability to reach out and touch a part of you that triggers a warm holiday memory — that's ‘The Nutcracker,’” wrote Stephanie Talmadge in The Week’s “How ‘The Nutcracker’ became so wildly popular.”

Lastly, there is a secret weapon--kids.

As George Balanchine, founder of the New York City Ballet and creator of the stunning American version of “The Nutcracker” (the original was premiered in Russia) once said: "each

child brings four people: mom, dad, sister and aunt. Multiply this by all the children in the ballet and you have an audience."

While, on the surface, “The Nutcracker” may seem to be nothing special, there are many subtle aspects of the ballet that instill a warm feeling that is unique to that ballet--it is the epitome of every child’s dreams and gives adults a special moment in a child’s world. Even for ballerinas who have performed the ballet for countless years, the holidays are not the same without it. Plus, there are new versions, including some hip hop and jazz productions, that are born every year that offer alternatives for people who have seen the ballet countless times. However, the classical versions will always occupy a special space in many people’s hearts and minds, and hopefully, will remain a holiday tradition forever.

La Esquina Latina Page 10

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

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To read these stories in English, you can visit: thebearcat.net Para leer estas historias en inglés, vaya a: thebearcat.net Visita: thebearcat.net para más informacion

Karen Umaña, Florencia Gaytán, y Marilinn López Escritores Invitados

trabajos, pueden hacer que los jóvenes piensen en lo que pueden hacer de manera diferente. El arte habla universalmente y sólo requiere pensar Un grupo de diez estudiantes de las en lo que significa para uno mismo. clases de español y ELD de SMHS, “Mi parte favorita fue cuando fueron a una excursión al consulado estuvimos en el taller con Torres mexicano en San Francisco. Estaban Ortiz y ella nos acompañados por la explicó lo que su Sra. Adamcikova, arte significaba la Sra. Cronin y para la mujer en la la Sra. Esposto, sociedad Me gusta secretaria de la su perspectiva”, oficina principal, su dijo Takara McGee, hija Katy Esposto Grado 11. Keiry y la Sra. Hardy, Ascencio comentó: una profesora de “Tuve que explorar español jubilada. el mundo con gente Fueron para que aún no conocía conocer a Patricia y con quien me Torres Ortíz, una encontré”. artista mexicana, y “Compartimos ver su colección en con gente nueva de la galería. Patricia diferentes lugares Torres Ortíz es y el primer artista una artista que se nos dio nuevos enfoca en romper Estudiantes de SMHS en un paseo para conocer a varios artistas. consejos”, dijo las reglas que la Belsy Barros, grado sociedad ha puesto para las mujeres.

En la exposición de la artista 11. “Mi parte favorita fue cómo el Torres Ortiz distorsiona la belleza Eva Perdiz, también tuvieron la pintor defiende a las mujeres con las que usan los medios para hacer de la mujer un objeto sexual. Utiliza colores oportunidad de apreciar diferentes pinturas tratando de mostrarle el valor limitados, video, pintura, dibujo y obras como Kyle Giacomo, Cat Kaley de una mujer. Además, las mujeres McCarroll y Olena Valevska. Allí, somos iguales a las demás, digamos a objetos de la vida cotidiana.

Después de la visita, el grupo cada artista mostró sus obras de arte los demás jóvenes, ya que pensamos fueron a comer, donde compartieron y los estudiantes tuvieron tiempo para cómo nos ven los hombres y piensan cómo nos usan últimamente “, dijo y hablaron mientras practicaban el ver todo en el estudio.

Los artistas enseñaron la importancia Yeimi Bac, grado 11. Al final del día, inglés y el español. “Mi parte favorita fue que compartimos con gente nueva del arte, al transmitir un mensaje en los el grupo tenía un ¡día fantástico!

FOTO POR: LA SRA. ADAMCIKOVA

de diferentes lugares y que el primer artista nos dio nuevos consejos”. Dijo Belsy Barros, grado 11. Luego, fueron al estudio donde estaban presentando a la artista y escritora cubano-americana Cristina García, seudónimo Eva Perdíz.

Comidas Tradicionales de Navidad Hispanas durante la nochebuena, los platos típicos son diferentes. Cerca de la región del Caribe, suele preparar un pavo relleno.

En el resto de Colombia, el plato es lechona o cerdo relleno y horneado.

También pernil de cerdo, pavo asado

Durante la navidad, en latinoamerica muchas fiestas son organizadas. Familia llega a una casa para convivir juntos.

Regalos son intercambiados entre la familia.

Aparte de los regalos que se intercambian, la comida se comparte con todos y es disfrutado. En Argentina, durante la navidad la temporada es verano, las comidas típicas son frías para combatir el calor.

Por ejemplo, ensalada rusa, que contiene papas, zanahorias, arvejas y mayonesa. También el vitel tonné, un plato de origen italiano que contiene carne de res con una salsa Grafico diciendo “Feliz Navidad” de yemas de huevo duro, lomitos de o tamales. Para postre consiste de atún y crema de leche. Al final de la buñuelos, natillas, galletas, dulces cena, se sirve Panettone, acompañado caseros y frutas, especialmente las uvas.

En Guatemala, la cena se come con con una copa de sidra. Bolivia, el plato toda la familia. El plato es tamales, típico es el Picana y se consume en la puede ser tamales rellenos de pasas, nochebuena. La Picana es un caldo que es picante y dulce, contiene carne de res ciruelas, y aceitunas, hecho de pollo, y pollo, zanahoria, maíz, cebolla, papas cerdo, y a veces pavo. Algunas veces la comida también consiste de pavo y tomates.

Depende en qué región, en Colombia relleno o cerdo horneado con puré

de papa, ensalada de zanahoria con pasas. La bebida tradicional, para la nochebuena, es ponche, una bebida caliente que contiene manzanas, piña, papaya, ciruela, pasas, canela, caña, guayaba, azúcar, en algunos casos también platano, coco y ron para adultos. Para Cuba, hay lechón con ensaladas, yuca con mojo, ajo, fricasé de pollo, congrí, plátanos, postres y turrones. Puerto Rico tiene relleno con carne de cerdo guisada con papas con pimiento morrón y envueltos para la concocción en la hoja de plátano y pasteles hecho de masa de plátano verde. La bebida es el coquito, una bebida que tiene leche de coco, yema de huevo azúcar, vainilla, canela y a veces hecha ron blanco o ron cañita para adultos.

Estas son unas de las comidas típicas y tradicionales en partes de latinoamérica.

Lo que hay en común en latinoamérica es de que conviven con la familia entera. Habrá abrazos, comida, bebidas, regalos. ¡Feliz Navidad y vacaciones!

FOTO POR: ZULMA CANAHUI-BAJXAC

Zulma Canahui-Bajxac Editora de La Esquina Latina

Cosas que Hacer en San Mateo

FOTO POR ZULMA CANAHUI

Amor del Español y Arte

Gráfico sobre lugares donde recién llegados pueden visitar en San Mateo.

Zulma Canahui-Bajxac Editora de La Esquina Latina

En San Mateo hay varias cosas que hacer. Ir al parque, ir de compras, ir a comer, or ver una película. Aquí hay unas ideas que hacer durante las vacaciones de invierno.

• Visita el Central Park en el centro de San Mateo.

-Tener un picnic en las mesas -o visitar la pista de hielo.

• Juegue al billar o al futbolín en “The Great Entertainer” -Salón de billar con bar y restaurante y otros juegos.

-2028 S El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA 94403 • El parque de Coyote Point

-Montar tu bicicleta -1701 Coyote Point Dr, San Mateo, CA 94401 • Juego de boliche en “Bel Mateo Bowl” -Bolera con varias de carriles y juegos de arcade.

-Horas: Lunes: 9:00am-12:00 am Martes-sabado: 9:00 am - 1:00 am Domingo: 9:00 am - 11:00 pm • Ir al cine en Century Downtown 12 -320 2nd Ave San Mateo, CA 94401 -Después de las 6pm, los boletos son $12.25 -Horas: Lun.-Dom.: 9:00am- 11:00pm

La Defensora de los Dreamers: A. Navarro

FOTO POR: ZULMA CANAHUI-BAJXAC

Ana Navarro es la defendsora de los Dreamers

Zulma Canahui-Bajxac Editora de La Esquina Latina

Durante un foro de CNN, llamado “The Messy Truth”, Rick Santorum, ex senador de Pennsylvania, y Ana Navarro, estratega republicana y comentarista política, participaron en una discusión. Había temas que los dos podían discutir y ofrecer sus opiniones.

Uno de los temas, era sobre los indocumentados que se llaman “Dreamers” y ellos son protegidos bajo DACA para no ser deportados, ahorita está en peligro porque la administración de Trump ha amenazado con revocarlo.

Elizabeth Vilchis, quien estuvo en la audiencia, es una ingeniera industrial indocumentada y llegó a los Estados Unidos a los siete años.

La pregunta que le hizo a Santorum fue cómo ella debe de prepararse para su futuro. Santorum empezó a responder con su historia sobre su

padre, emigró a los Estados Unidos desde Italia y después dijo, “no se le permitió venir por las leyes de inmigración en ese momento”.

Después el se enfocó en la pregunta de Elizabeth Vilchis, su respuesta no fue tan buena que digamos. El dijo, “Usted tiene la capacidad de ir a cualquier otro país en este momento y aplicar esas mercancías, y tener éxito, y volver a solicitar para volver a América.”

Simplemente le dijo a Elizabeth que se debería de salir de este país.

Ana Navarro rápidamente saltó a su defensa. “Primero que todo, este es tu país”, dijo Navarro, “No importa lo que diga, no importa lo que digan los demás, este es tu país. Y yo, como estadounidense, gracias por las contribuciones que están haciendo a nuestro país conjunto.

Te quiero aquí.” Santorum murmuró bajo lo que dijo Navarro, “Eso no es lo que dice la ley.”

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NEWS

By Jacqueline Kao Photo Assistant

Tokie’s, Foster City’s first Japanese restaurant, may be closing after 35 years of business.

According to a notification posted on one of Tokie’s windows, the San MateoFoster City School District (SMFCSD) unanimously agreed on Nov. 3, 2016 to purchase a fourth elementary school in Foster City in Charter Square, where Tokie’s is currently located.

This decision was made to address an anticipated increased enrollment at the district’s existing elementary schools in Foster City. The construction of a fourth elementary school may require excessive building ground, which, in turn, may cause the closure of numerous businesses, including Tokie’s.

Tokie’s was opened in 1981 by Tokie Onizuka, a self-taught chef from Nagasaki, Japan. She began her cooking career as a part-time caterer and prepared mostly teriyaki dishes. She

later started her own successful catering business and eventually opened Tokie’s Restaurant in Foster City.

“My mother, she is pretty much self-taught,” said Victor Onizuka, Tokie Onizuka’s son. “She is one of those people who, if you ever saw her bedroom, you would see that she lived for cooking; she studied passionately about cooking. When we were just small, she worked in private homes and worked with caterers and that’s how she got fascinated by cooking.”

Victor himself is a well-known sushi chef. He joined his mother at Tokie’s and was taught how to make sushi by the various chefs at Tokie’s. The first special that he made at the restaurant was called “Vic’s Special,” a roll composed of smoked salmon, shrimp, avocado and cucumber coupled with fish sticks.

Some employees at Tokie’s have been working at the restaurant for over 15 years, the Japanese dishes prepared at Tokie’s reflecting Ms. Onizuka’s

“passion and dedication.”

Despite the news about the possible closure of Tokie’s, the community and local clientele have been very supportive of the restaurant. “The City and Chamber of Commerce, they’ve all been very nice and helpful in the process of what’s been going on. We have positive support,” stated Victor Onizuka.

Asked if Tokie’s will permanently close or not: “Not in the near future,” Mr. Onizuka said, although Tokie’s may eventually be forced to close. If Tokie’s at Charter Square does close in Foster City, it seems that there will be another Tokie’s restaurant opening in the near future at another location. “We’ve been looking for places for the past two years and places as close as possible.”

Craving Japanese Food? Visit Tokie’s and show your support and have a great meal!

For further information regarding the possible closure of Tokie’s, contact the Foster City Council and/or attend the

Jammin’ with Oxfam Gear Up for

“I was so happy to donate to an amazing cause in such an entertaining, and communal way. I appreciate Last Friday, Oxfam Jam successfully everything Oxfam does to encourage held a two-hour benefit concert in individuals to join them in their cause to the quad to support the refugee relief diminish poverty and to provide crisis program run by relief throughout Oxfam America, the world,” a non-profit said Hayley organization Schaumkel, founded to sophomore. fight poverty Featured and provide performances crisis relief included ones internationally. by the SMHS The free concert ukulele club and generated funds Improv Team, for the relief along with some program from The Oxfam Jam was held on Friday, Dec. i n d i v i d u a l l y the proceeds 9 to raise money to fight poverty. presenting of concessions such as pizza slices, students. Not only were our own pastries and Capri Suns, as well as a bearcats performing, but a few students raffle for a $20 Target giftcard. Along from Aragon High School attended to with the concessions and the raffle was share their talents as well. an incentive from the Oxfam club to Individual acts included a live the attendees to raise $150 to shave painting performance, singing and the junior Andy Chen’s head. reading of a short memoir.

GRAPHIC COURTESY OF OXFAM CLUB

By Ariel Seidman Copy Editor

Mulan with Girl Up From GIRL UP, Page 1

hosting a movie night in the library, showing “Mulan.”

Tickets will be for sale at lunch in the quad between Wednesday, Dec. 15 and Friday, Dec. 19. If you wish to purchase a ticket online, contact senior and club president Catherine Mahoney via Schoolloop.

Tickets are $3 for one and $5 for two, so bring your friends! Light snacks will be provided for free with real food and Tpumps for sale.

The evening begins at 6 p.m. and will finish around 9 p.m. Everyone is welcome to come in their pajamas, with pillows and blankets. This is a great opportunity for students to donate to a good cause, eat some delicious food and get cozy while watching a classic movie.

Mike Masterson: Thougtful, Kind, Positive From MASTERSON, Page 1 last time I saw him, he had mentioned that he was taking time off to get better, and we had made a plan to go to lunch at the Indian restaurant on Delaware.

It breaks my heart to think that I will never have that chance. I will dearly miss my friend.”

Hired on June 27, 2011, Masterson won the Classified Golden Apple Award in December 2015 and was the 2015 “Operations Employee of the Year.”

Jenny Morris: A Tribute From MORRIS, Page 1

She was part of the SMHS choir, led

by Mr. Shawn Reifschneider. “Jenny had a sweet elegance to her. Jenny was the type of person that could interact with almost everybody,” Reifschneider told KRON4. “In the choir, she had everybody as her friend.”

“Jenny was in my APUSH class during the 2011-2012 school year. Her warmth and sincerity put people at ease and her big smile lit up the room,” said Ms. Shoshana Kalinski. “Though her voice was gentle, it carried more wisdom than I think she knew.”

Two other San Mateo High School alumni — Abigal Morales and Jairo Lombera (both in the Class of 2012) — passed away this year, in two separate car accidents.

“Over the past year, Mike Masterson has been a tremendous asset to the San Mateo Operations Department. He works incredibly hard and cares a lot about his quality of work,” read a district newsletter. “He goes above and beyond for the students and staff of SMHS and still manages to get everything done.

Mike sets a great example for all us through his unwavering positivity and strong work ethic. We should all aspire to be like him. Mike is a great

guy and is a pleasure to work with.

Congratulations Mike!”

In Masterson’s honor, a tree will be planted on campus, with a commemorative brass plaque placed at the base of the tree. His services will be held on Jan. 21, 2017, according to Principal Yvonne Shiu. San Mateo staff and faculty donated more than $1,000 to help pay for the tree and plaque.

The leftover funds will be given to Masterson’s family.

PHOTO BY JACQUELINE KAO

Tokie’s, Local Japanese Favorite, May Close

Located in Charter Square, Japanese restaurant Tokie’s may be closed after 35 years to make room for a fourth elementary school in Foster City.

council’s meetings: Foster City Council’s contact information is as follows. Mayor Herb Perez: hperez@fostercity.org, Vice Mayor Charlie Bronitsky: cbronitsky@ fostercity.org, Councilmember Sam Hindi: shindi@fostercity.

org, Councilmember Catherine Mahanpour: cmahanpour@fostercity. org, Councilmember Gary Pollard: gpollard@fostercity.org.

To contact the Foster City City Council as a whole, email council@ fostercity.org.

Career Conversations

By Cindy Zhang Editor in Chief

A Conversation with Allen Lam

Allen Lam is a sound engineer specializing in live sound reinforcement for acoustic and traditional musics, multi-track mobile audio recording and solo finger-style guitar. Lam received a bachelor’s degree in Humanities, with an emphasis on Acoustics and Electronic Music, from Hofstra University.

What do you do as a sound engineer?

Most of what I do is live sound, which essentially means that I operate sound systems to make people louder at various public events. From time to time I’ll do recordings, but for the most By the part, I work live shows.

Numbers

Sound

How did you get started in the sound industry?

I started learning about sound by playing in bands. In those $53,330 Median days, there was no sound industry. Everybody was figuring it out as they went along. In college, I decided to study acoustics Annual Salary (Sound and electronic music, and one day it just came over me like a warm rush. The nature of sound is not unlike the fundamental Engineering nature of the universe, and that has become the basis for Technicians, 2015) everything that I do. But there’s also more than just acoustics.

Sound is really a lot of physics as well — you need to learn +7% about things like signal flow and voltage control and you also Projected need to understand frequency.

Why did you choose live sound instead of studio recordings?

When I first got into the business, recording wasn’t the way it is now. In those days, you needed a half-million dollar installation just to do a decent recording, so it was very difficult to start your own studio. (Nowadays, you only need a few thousand.)

I actually tried to get work in recording studios, but it eluded me. I was young and stupid, didn’t know much about the way the world works and probably didn’t present myself in the right way. I decided to try live sound instead, and it turned out that I actually had quite a flair for it.

National Job Growth (Broadcast and Sound Engineering Technicians, 2014-2024)

+4,300

Projected National Employment What is the most challenging part of your career?

Change I’ve been working as a freelancer since 1980 — 36 years now

— so the technical and artistic parts are no longer terribly challenging for me. Unless the room is really unfit for the type of music (for example, when the organizers try putting a rock band where a choir belongs), I know what to do, and can do it fairly easily, most of the time. The hardest parts are dealing with people and the logistics.

What skills or qualities are essential for your job?

You need good analytical skills and good hearing. And while you don’t need to be a musician or play an instrument, most do. I only know of one sound engineer who doesn’t play an instrument. You also need to know your equipment in and out — for example, the characteristics of different microphones, when to use one over the other and how to use them. In addition to that, you absolutely need strong people skills. You’re going to have to know how to work with others, especially if you work as a freelancer, even if they’re difficult to deal with.

(Sound Engineering Technicians, 2014-2024)

16,000

Number of Jobs in the U.S. (Sound Engineering Technicians, 2014)

1 in 10

SelfEmployed

(Broadcast What advice do you have for high school students?

For the majority of people, forget the art and go for the money. and Sound Engineering Things are changing so fast now, so if you can get an idea for Technicians, what will be in demand for the future, that’s perfect. To do what 2014) I do, you really have to love it. It’s hard to make money and it’s a tough life. (So if you’re worried about your future, you 78% can start to put money away now.) Whatever you want to do, High School whether it’s artistic or technical, you have to be relentless. You Diploma or have to go back and back and back and back. In the beginning, Higher I wasn’t tenacious enough so it was difficult for me to get some (Sound of the jobs that I really wanted. And don’t forget to be nice; Engineering think twice before you speak. Over the years, I’ve lost clients Technicians, for telling people off. You have to realize that there are a lot 2015) of jerks out there, and if you can play them, it’s better than Data compiled from confronting or fighting them. the U.S. Bureau of

Questions, comments or suggestions? Have a career you want to Labor Statistics and see profiled? Contact Cindy Zhang at cindy.zhang@thebearcat.net. O*Net Online.

Sports THESANMATEOHI

Wrestling Season begins with a Slam

By Angie Neta Staff Writer

Wrestling, a competitive, united and disciplined sport is back for the season!

This year’s team has grown much larger than last year’s and welcomes a new coach to the team, Jason Cervantes.

Four new wrestlers placed in their first match, senior Gene Kapel (145lbs) in fifth, junior Jason Villanueva (160 lbs) in sixth, junior Ariel Blemur (220 lbs) in sixth and senior Kelly Mills (189 lbs) in sixth, representing the start of a good year for the SMHS wrestling team and making Coach Cervantes proud.

Cervantes heard that last season “students did not even knew there was a team,” and was determined to promote the sport for a more successful turnout.

He plans on coaching at SMHS for a while and hopes that more people join for future seasons. With his experience of six years at South City, wrestlers have a positive outlook on this season.

Two wrestlers, junior Josseft Hernandez and senior Tristan Helin, who have both been on the wrestling team since last year, agree that the coach is very supportive. “Coach Cervantes is a good leader who is disciplined,” said Helin. “He is a really good coach who knows what he is doing. He helps players by pointing out their mistakes and helping them learn from them,”

added Hernandez. “Instead of last year when wrestlers learned complicated moves but did not focus on them as much, this year’s coach goes around the mat helping wrestlers learn more moves and get them down.”

Along with the amazing coach, the wrestlers have noticed improvement in their wrestling from even the smallest amount of practice. “We learn small techniques that are very useful in a tournament,” said Hernandez.

Helin and Hernandez do not find themselves comparing their accomplishments to others on the team, and are proud to see their teammates succeed. Although the team has grown with several new additions who might lack in experience, they don’t believe they lack in skills. Hernandez said that first year Kapel was able to take him down in the first match.

Even though the sport only has two people on the mat the whole time, unity is important and the team can have a great influence. Wrestlers use the team bond as confidence and as motivation to do better on the mat. “There’s always something to learn and the team always helps you,” said Hernandez.

To Hernandez, being a team goes beyond the physical experience they get from wrestling each other, “we’re always trying to help each other mentally and build a stronger mind on the mat.”

Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016

Varsity Girls’ Soccer kicks off

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDREW WADHAMS

Page 12

Front (left to right): sophomore Kaitlyn Waller, sophomore Aimee Goell, senior Janie George, junior Risa Wadhams, sophomore Maraya Guzman, sophomore Adriana Perez, freshman Leanne Lui, freshman Olivia Williams, sophomore Gina Jackson, sophomore Kylie Galea Back: Coach Natalie, junior Madalyn Delaney, senior Sophia Calderero, senior Kristen Wan, sophomore Kristyn Waller, junior Vida Wadhams, sophomore Jenna Vath, sophomore Maya Angel, freshman Stella Malva, junior Jenna Whitaker, junior Tasia Kravitz, senior Vanessa Rangel, Coach Saucedo

By Ananya Iyer Sports Editor At the beginning of the girls’ soccer season, our bearcats prepared for vigorous tryouts that demanded high levels of energy with over 60 girls fighting for a spot on the team. The team ran the track for 45 minutes straight and battled through intense workouts, drills and stretches. After several routines and scrimmages, the teams were finally decided by Coach John Saucedo. The varsity team consists of 26 players, 11 of which are underclassmen.

Last year, the girls had 11 wins, 4

Interesting Facts about Basketball..

The bearcats won the away nonconference game by a score of 1-0, with a goal scored by sophomore Maya Angel. “We played strong as a team defensively and offensively by keeping a shutout and making plays and taking shots,” said Angel.

As of Dec. 13, the bearcats are 5-1 with 2 ties.

The team members are very excited for their next home game against Half Moon Bay High School on Jan. 10 at 3 p.m. Come out and support our lady bearcats during their intense upcoming game.

Boys’ Basketball Slam Dunk to Success PHOTO COURTESY OF HTTP:// SANMATEOATHLETICS.ORG

“The first baskets were peach baskets and their bottoms were not open until 1913. Before this time, people had to retrieve the ball after each scored, the referee had to climb a ladder to get the ball.”

losses and three ties. This year, senior captain Sophie Calderero hopes to have a successful season and make it to CCS. “All the new players are very impressive and it’s awesome to see all these players come out because when I was a freshman, we barely had enough players for two teams,” she remarked.

“But above everything, I hope we enjoy ourselves.”

A great start to the season, varsity scrimmaged Harker High School on Sunday, Nov. 18 and took the win 6-0.

The first game for the girls’ varsity team was against King’s Academy High School on Thursday, Nov. 22.

“Only two teams in the original NBA teams still exist today. They are the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks. Every other original team has either folded or moved since the league started up.”

Seniors Austin The (front) and George Qobti (back) defend the hoop.

“Michael Jordan is one of the best basketball players around the world, he is also one of the most famous sportsmen in the planet. His total career score is 32,292. The record score of 5,987 (in playoffs) set by Michael Jordan is unbroken in the NBA.”

PHOTO BY ANANYA IYER PHOTO EDITED BY ELLEN ZHU

By Tyler O’Reilly Staff Writer

“Early basketball hoops were nailed to the mezzanine balcony of the court. After spectators in the balcony continually interfered with shots, the backboard was invented.”

“In 1967, slam dunks were considered illegal; nine years later it was legalized again.”

Junior Jake Jeffries and senior Austin The pose.

Fun facts from: http://facts.randomhistory.com/basketball-facts.html http://www.goweirdfacts.com/16-interesting-facts-about-basketball.html

With the cold and the rain in the winter comes the season of Fridaynight basketball quads. Last season, the varsity boys went 11-15 overall but 3-9 in league. Senior Josh Cobillas said,“Last year they did very well in the preseason, but lost endurance as the season progressed and the chemistry was fading towards the end.”

When asked about the last season, senior Austin The said, “I don’t think we played up to expectations last year, especially during league, but making CCS set a really solid foundation for us coming into this year. This year I think we are much more cohesive as a unit, and I also feel that most of us have struck a good balance between focusing and having fun. This year we’ve set a precedent to work a lot harder in practice; hopefully we can

see that translate better into the court this year.”

This year, the team has many strong players to help them improve their season from last year. Cobillas is the point guard who leads the offense.

Junior John Aguilar is the starting shooting guard and starting small forward is junior Viraj Chadha. The is the starting power forward and junior Jake Jeffries is the starting center.

The bearcats are 3-1 in the preseason as of Dec. 13, beating Saratoga, Santa Teresa and Terra Nova with a single loss against Leland High School. This is a good sign as last year they won the first two preseason games as well.

Hopefully they can use these wins as motivation to keep pushing forward for a winning season.

Come out to support the bearcats on Jan. 11 at 5:30 p.m. when they play Menlo-Atherton High School at home in their first league game.