Volume XXII Issue 4

La Cañada High School Volume XXII Issue 4 Wednesday, December 21, 2011 lcspartan.com

All I Do Is Wind

By Coleman Monroe Opinion Editor I am the 99%. The 99% that had to suffer the inconveniences of the awful weather phenomena, called the Santa Ana Winds.

Nature has not invoked its wrath on humanity with such unrelenting ferocity since the Black Plague.

Our community has been shaken to its core and we have come out of this ordeal unscathed, or have we…

When the wind first began to pick up, I had no idea how strong and unusual the swells were. Luckily, I had well over fifty Facebook statuses telling me what my own five senses could not. (I guess it’s human instinct to write your own anecdotal, meaningless story about how loud the wind is after thirty-five people have already said the same exact thing.)

Then, all of a sudden, my power went out!

The fear and uncertainty that washed over is nearly impossible to describe in print, but I shall attempt to do so anyway. It was as if I was stripped naked; I could not check my emails, write meaningless things on a social networking site, or charge my smart phone, which was low on battery.

I knew that if my phone died, I would be cut off from the outside world and would have to wait at Extra Mile for hours on end, in order to find people to “hang out” with. Luckily, a neighbor of mine had a back-up generator, so like any good member of the 99%, I walked down the street for a free handout of electricity.

As I drove around La Cañada, searching for destruction on the lawns of my fellow citizens, I observed utter anarchy. All of the streetlights had lost power and I had no idea what to do for I took my DMV test two years ago, therefore I know no rules of the road. On my way to the Starbucks near the movie theatre, which had retained its power, I ran nearly four intersections, which was accompanied by incessant honking. When I arrived at this mocha paradise, I was astonished to see half of La Cañada in line to get their daily dose of caffeine.

Humor continued on page 4

This fallen majestic oak tree, on Georgian Road, makes for a landscaper’s dream.

La Cañada Endures Windstorm, Power Outages SoCal Edison slow on returning power to residents

By Andrew Kim Spartan Staff

O

n the night of November 30, La Cañada was nearly blown away by unusually strong Santa Ana winds that caused widespread power outages.

La Cañada did not face the same magnitude of destruction seen in cities like Pasadena and Temple City, but students and residents were still affected. Schools and businesses closed for two powerless days, and there was significant damage to properties.

The extent of the damage ranged from minimal to severe. For example, Starlight Crest Drive experienced only minor damage. Sonia Cwik, a junior and resident along Starlight Crest, had some roofing fly off her house and had a glass table shatter.

Her neighbors lost some shingles and guttering from roofs, but luckily no trees collapsed.

For some local residents, like Blanche Palmigiano, the storm did not fail to leave its mark. As she

was watching TV on the night of November 30, she heard a loud crack. She immediately realized that the tree in her front yard, which had been treated for disease, had fallen onto her van, shattering the windshield and folding in the roof.

Another car parked next to it had its antennae snapped off.

City contractors then came to cut up the felled tree on Thursday.

With the winds came the resulting power outages.

Some students were spared from the power outages. Leeho Lim, a junior, lives along Chevy Chase Drive, where part of the neighborhood still had power during the winds. His less-

fortunate friends came over to enjoy his electricity.

“Because we thought there would be school on Friday, everyone just came over to use my power to study” Lim said.

Most power had been restored

by Saturday, but some students did not get their power until much later.

According to Southern California Edison, six areas of town were still without power until Wednesday, December 7. Hannah Yoho, a junior, lives along Alta Canyada Road, one of these lagging areas. Her entire street, save two homes, was without electricity when school restarted.

In frustration, Yoho said, “I’m

really mad. I want power back now.

It’s really hard to do homework.”

Some, however, went through the outage with relative ease.

Elizabeth Whitfield, a junior, enjoyed the archaic feel of the situation, but said that her brother “got really mad that he couldn’t play video games”.

Her father works in a Montrose computer company, and although it was difficult work rebooting the computers and getting power from the generator, there was no damage and power to the business was restored on Friday.

Vivian Na, a junior, liked the power outage as well, even though her family had to weather some difficulties.

“My dad rigged the car battery to work the shower heater, and I went to Starbucks to charge my phone, but there were too many people. I just went to a boba place to charge it since there were less people,” Na commented.

Clean-up operations lasted through the month of December.

City contractor West Coast Arbors cleared most of the felled trees on city properties. Southern California Edison was responsible for clearing branches from electrical wires. The Windstorm continued on page 3

Branches around La Cañada caused roadblocks.

Former Student Arrested in Burglary Case Message in a Bottle

By Campbell Taylor Spartan Staff After several weeks searching, the fourth of five suspects allegedly involved with the theft of $17,750 worth of electronics from La Cañada High School on the night of October 30th was apprehended. An LCHS graduate was arrested Monday, November 28th on campus in direct connection with the burglaries.

The graduate was handcuffed without resistance. The exact

intentions of his presence on school grounds or reasoning behind revisiting the scene is still unknown.

Local law enforcement and administration officials allege that Freeman obtained a master key to the school during his time as an assistant in the school’s office. He then gave this key to a group of four or more people who used it to break and enter six classrooms and a supply room on campus. They then stole thirteen laptops from the computer carts in Mr. Traeger’s room and Dr. Ewoldsen’s

room, two projectors from Ms. Hayes’ room and Ms. Moore’s room, and $60 from Ms. Hong’s room.

Though limited measures were taken to avoid detection through traces of fingerprints, security cameras that were installed the previous summer captured the faces of four men involved. David Pinnell, 21, and Erik Howell, 20, have been detained along with the graduate and a juvenile who face lesser charges. The juvenile,

Dear Seniors, As we approach the midpoint of our Senior year, we must not forget our Senior motto:

“Live Like There’s No Tomorrow!”

Remember that December 22 is Senior dress up day and Senior Toast! Meet in front of the North gym during STEP for a Senior celebration.

Sincerely, Kevork Kurdoghlian Senior Class President

Burglary continued on page 3

News

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Los Gringos Locos

Opinion

4

Wind: Big Deal?

Sports

10

Soccer

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News

December 21, 2011

Yosemite Institute Faces a Decrease in Sign-Ups

By Tammy Hsu Spartan Staff

E

very year, La Cañada students are given the opportunity to participate in a life-changing experience, Yosemite Institute.

However, not as many students have signed up for the Yosemite this year, and the entire trip is at risk. Fliers are being printed and announcements are being made in hopes to get more students to enroll.

The Yosemite Institute is a fiveday trip from February 19 to February 24, 2012 which involves daily hikes, cross country skiing, team building exercises, and evening programs.

Mr. Traeger, LCHS’s geology teacher explained, “The Yosemite trip is an outdoor education program totally related to science.”

Students who participate in the trip will take outdoor hikes every day as well as “challenge hikes” that include trust exercises.

The hiking groups usually consist of twelve students who learn about the ecology, geology, biology,

natural history, and Native American history at Yosemite. Mr. Traeger even teaches the students astronomy and meteorology while they are there.

There are up to thirty spots, previously forty, available to the students to play.

Mr. Traeger commented, “We lowered the number to thirty because we didn’t have enough enrollments.”

The decrease in available spots was a result of the low number of applicants this year, currently only about fourteen students have registered to attend. AP Biology teacher, Ms. Compeau, and English teacher, Ms. Calhoun, have been working together to lower the cost in hopes of enticing more people to sign up.

Students are not required to take an exam at the end of the trip, but simply reflect in a journal about the day’s activities. Some past students mentioned that the Yosemite trip was life-changing and that they had never felt more at peace with themselves.

The chaperones of the Yosemite trip have been helping to promote the

Photo by Mr. Powers Mr. Powers’ hiking group from last year poses for a quick photo in a part of Yosemite’s scenic forest. enrichment program.

Mr. Traeger and Ms. Compeau have shown their classes slide shows of past trips and shared some experiences and memories students can expect to experience during the trip.

The official meetings for Yosem-

ite Institute take place every Wednesday at lunch until the participants depart. Information about the trip as well as paperwork and trip gear is addressed at these meetings.

Yosemite Institute is a way for students to get away from the stress

of school and have a chance to relax in a peaceful environment.

Mr. Traeger noted, “Philosophically, scientifically, it’s a wonderful trip that just makes a person whole.”

Administration Considers Changes to Extra-Curricular Policy

By Jennifer Kim & Michael Belcher Sports Editors Photoby

by Michael --Photo Bishop The decorated gazebo and trees light up La Canada’s Memorial Park.

Holiday Spirit Stirs LC

By Gemma Sokol Spartan Staff La Cañada is known for its community spirit, and this holiday season our December festivities are getting kicked into overdrive.

“Spending time in La Cañada is like spending Christmas in Heaven,” explained junior David Bywater.

Everyone has been enjoying the events so far. Starting the season off right with the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Memorial Park on Friday, December 2.

Elementary school students from

Iraq Troops Finally Come Home Although the last American troops will leave Iraq by the end of the year, U.S. aid will remain as promised by President Obama. He and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki met at the White House and held a joint news conference formally declaring the war of eight years over now that U.S. troops are completing their withdrawal from Iraq this month.

More than 4,400 U.S. troops were killed and thousands more were wounded in the war that began in 2003 and Iraqi casualties are estimated to exceed 100,000. Some U.S. conservatives oppose the end of the Iraq operation, arguing that the withdrawal of American forces leaves Iraq vulnerable to political instability from internal forces and neighbors such as Iran.

Information gathered from CNN

Paradise Canyon, La Cañada, and Palm Crest Elementary did not give the only performances. La Cañada High School’s chamber choir also sang carols. Next year’s Miss La Cañada Flintridge Court was announced, which concluded the evening.

The Montrose Christmas Parade followed on December 3. Many members of the community were shown off in various muscle cars while wishing the crowds of viewers happy holidays and a wonderful new year.

As 2012 looms ahead, everybody is making the most of this December and all the joy that the holidays bring to La Cañada.

In an attempt to unify the Extra-curricular Code of Conduct, the administration plans to propose a change in an effort to standardize policies regarding drug and alcohol abuse on campus by students and student-athletes. The policies, regarding consequences in the case of on-campus drinking and drug use, will affect a wide range of activities including all sports, theater, drama, choir, band, and ASB. If approved, they will go into effect at the beginning of next year.

Dr. Gold stated, “I noticed the irregularities in the current policies and saw that there were different consequences for people.”

The policies were a collaborative effort between Assistant Principle Dr. Gold, Principal Dr. Luzak, and Athletic Director Mr. Franzen. The sports coaches, newly formed athletic leadership council members, and ASB

all contributed by offering various thoughts, opinions, and ideas.

“There were some inconsistencies in the consequences, and they didn’t apply equally to the students. I want there to be consistent consequences to the acts,” stated Dr. Luzak.

The administration is continuing to work out the exact wording of the proposal.

Photo by Michael Belcher

When it does, it expects to have a policy that is more equitable and has consistent and fair consequences for rule infraction. The new rules will apply to athletes, ASB members, and student performers.

With these changes in mind, the administration is striving to standardize policies and address the problem of varying punishments depending on the time of the incident.

“Some students were very concerned that athletes were held to a different accountability, though playing a sport on campus is a privilege,” expressed Mr. Franzen.

He upholds that sports have additional consequences because athletes represent the school, and such inappropriate actions cannot be condoned.

After the Superintendant approves them, the changes will most likely be implemented in the coming year. They will be communicated through e-mails, announcements, and updates on the school website.

Armen Dingizian In The News ByNewsEditor Dictator Kim Suburban Shooting in Jong-Il Dies Schools Hollywood At Age 69 Score Better Causes Death Kim Jong Il, who has ruled North Korea since 1994, died of a heart attack on Saturday at age 69. Korean news outlets announced his death on Monday, a reported 48 hours after his passing, giving the government time to reestablish order and appoint a successor. Kim Jong Un, the youngest of Kim Jong Il’s three sons, has been declared the “great successor” to his father’s mantle.

News of his death spurred South Korea, which remains technically at war with the North, to put its military on high alert. However, South Korean President Lee Myung Bak stated, “Peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula is more important than anything else.” The U.S. will remain in contact with the South Korean President as the situation develops.

Statistics show that students attending urban schools have lower test grades than students attending suburban schools. Lower test grades in urban schools can be attributed to a higher student to teacher ratio, as well as the economic status of the families that the students come from. Students in urban schools tend to come from low-income families, a group that typically scores lower on standardized tests as opposed to its suburban counterparts. Although urban school districts face many challenges, they have shown a steady incline in test scores, including in math. There have been suspicions of widespread cheating, but a record of steady improvement in most urban schools makes such suspicions improbable.

More Females Enlist in the Military

On Friday, December 9, a gunman opened fire at passing vehicles along a downtown street in Hollywood. The gunman, 26year-old Tyler Brehm walked down Sunset Boulevard wielding a handgun and firing at vehicles, seemingly at random. John Atterberry, shot in the jaw during the incident, died on Monday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Two others suffered minor injuries before the conclusion of the tragic incident.

Brehm was fatally shot by police after he pointed his gun at two officers who asked him to put his weapon down. Police have not indicated that they know Brehm’s motive.

As the United States expands its influence to areas other than the oil-rich Middle East, more women have been joining the fight alongside men. In 2009, more than 325,000 women were enrolled in the military. Twice as many women are in the military now than there were thirty years ago. This movement toward a less gender biased military is gaining ground, but with a larger military comes more people affected with post traumatic stress disorder.

The government and military are prepared to provide women with just as much emotional and psychological support as men receive.

Information gathered from CNN

Information gathered from CNN

Information gathered from CNN

Information gathered from CNN

News

December 21, 2011

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Los Gringos Locos Moves Down Foothill Youth Council to Get More Involved in the City Photo by Michael Bishop

Photo by Michael Bishop

Los Gringos Locos will be moving from their old location (left) at 464 Foothill Blvd to their new location (right) at Plaza de La Cañada next to Vons

By Kevork Kurdoghlian Youth Council Member/ Editor-in-Chief

W

h o a r e w e ? We a r e simply another city commission. We serve many of the same purposes as any other commission in the City of La Cañada Flintridge. We follow parliamentary procedure to a certain extent, and strive to serve the youth of La Cañada Flintridge through different avenues made available by the City.

But at the same time, we aren’t that simple. We are nine commissioners working with $2000 to bring together the students of the four high schools in La Cañada. We congregate in the City chambers once a month to discuss school issues, share personal stories, and have a few good laughs.

When our meetings are called to order, we begin, as any meeting should, with the flag salute. This is immediately followed by the roll call, which is fairly simple for our staff liaison since we usually have perfect attendance.

After the roll call, we hold an open forum for public comments, but 99.9% of the time, we don’t have an audience at our meetings.

Though we are more than delighted to hear from the public, I guess the Youth Council has not done anything controversial enough to draw a crowd of greater than one.

We then continue with the approval of the previous meeting’s minutes and old business. Old and new business usually take up most of our time. This is when we discuss the issues, share our stories, and laugh at comments made by council members as they hold down the mute button on their microphone.

R e c e n t l y, w e h a v e b e e n discussing the initiation of various projects, ranging from establishing a working relationship with the Youth Outreach and Events Committee at the La Cañada Community Center to walking in Relay For Life to raise cancer awareness. We are also close to publishing the first issue of The LCF Youth, which will be a quarterly youth newsletter.

For the past few years, the Youth Council has been all talk, but now it is becoming more actively involved by encouraging students at the four La Cañada high schools to find out more about the Youth Council at lcf.ca.gov and by attending the monthly meetings on the first Friday of every month at 3:30 pm.

2011-2012 Council Members: Anjali Jain (junior, La Cañada High School), Anais Stepanian (sophomore, La Cañada High School), Shant Hairapetian (junior, La Cañada High School), Sierra Katow (senior, La Cañada High School), Nicole Tobias (senior, Maranatha High School), Joelle Dorse (junior, La Cañada High School), Sharon Kim (junior, La Cañada High School), Kevork Kurdoghlian (senior, La Cañada High School), and Alex Keledjian (senior, La Cañada High School)

By Tamar Bessos Spartan Staff

A

fter serving its loyal customers at 464 Foothill Blvd for 15 years, Los Gringos Locos, a popular Mexican restaurant in La Cañada, is scheduled to relocate farther down Foothill at Plaza de La Cañada. The restaurant, moving to where Conrad’s once stood, will re-open in January 2012, kicking off the New Year with delicious tacos,

Continued...

Windstorm from page 1 LA Country Public Works Department had blocked some streets in town to clear debris. Local contractor Clean Street worked very hard to clear the debris, but progressed slowly due to the relatively small carrying capacity of the vehicles and the large amounts of leaves and branches. Trash collectors Athens Service, Allied Waste and NASA Services collected large branches gathered by residents along with the usual trash.

Even though some residents did face misfortune, the city is fortunate to have no reported injuries or casualties. For Palmigiano, even with the damage on her van, she shares the same opinion.

“I do consider us very fortunate,” she said. “There was no damage to ourselves, to the structure of the house. Only the vehicle. It could have been worse.”

Burglary from page 1 whose name is unreleased due to his age, is currently under house arrest in his home in Tujunga.

Tujunga native Joshua Oleas, 21, has yet to be found and is still at large. Police are continuing their investigation of his possible whereabouts.

Senior Sam Whitefield voiced his concern over the ease of access a former student had to a master key saying, “I find it really interesting that he was able to obtain a master key to the school.

I think it shows the administration is more focused on insignificant issues like attendance instead of its own security.”

Contrary to public opinion, measures are being taken by the school to prevent such an event from happening again.

Dr. Gold, head of the school’s security said, “We plan on rekeying every classroom in the school within this school year.

We also want to move towards using digital cards and more secure methods for accessing the classroom.”

All electronics previously taken have been returned, however, two laptops have been minorly damaged in the process. The $60 taken from Ms. Hong has not yet been compensated, but the district expressed their intentions to cover all damages.

burritos, and enchiladas.

Los Gringos Locos will get an upgrade at its new location: a bar, a private dining room, a takeout booth, and even a patio. Most importantly, there will be about 400 parking spaces available to customers. This is definitely a huge improvement from the crammed and narrow parking lot at their current location, which only contains 47 parking spaces.

“After 15 years, we’ve received so many comments on how little

parking we have,” commented Bent Hansen, the co-owner of the restaurant, “And when the opportunity came up to move up the street, we thought, ‘We have to move!’ I mean, there’s quadruple the parking, a patio, a private room, and a proper bar, and the space is perfect for what our clients want.”

With these new accommodations, Los Gringos Locos is hoping to increase the number of customers.

“We expect that our business will increase,” continued Hansen,

“because we have a patio; people love dining outside. Also, our parking is so much better and we have a dedicated take-out area which will hopefully be really convenient for all of our customers. It’s going to be, sort of, the center of La Cañada, we hope.”

Bent and John Hansen, the owners of the restaurant, are working very hard to reach their main goal: to make their customers happy with the new and improved Los Gringos.

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Opinion

December 21, 2011

Blown Back to the Dark Ages

The windstorm wasn’t that bad ...

By Mark Kilaghbian Spartan Staff In the small community of La Cañada, something as simple as the closing of a store is front page news and coffee-hour gossip. I’m willing to say that La Cañada residents reacted more severely to the winds than most mid-west cities react to life-threatening tornadoes. It’s undeniable that the winds caused property damage and endangered civilian lives. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured and the most widespread loss was that of electricity.

I lived without the blessed electrical current for 4 days. I did homework by candlelight and found eccentric ways to charge my phone and keep in touch with people around me. In all the chaos I realized the simplicity of life before electricity.

No Facebook. No Twitter. No Yahoo.

No Distractions.

On the first day without electricity, I was helpless. I spent the majority of my day staring at a wall and cursing the Dark Ages. As day two crawled past I was so bored that I started doing homework. After that, I started reading for fun and sitting outside. No Call of Duty. No Battlefield. No Family Guy. Without electricity, I can say with confidence, I would have straight A’s. I had never realized the amount of time I dedicated to the internet and the Xbox. It was a strange predicamentone that the privileged children of La Cañada are hardly ever forced

Yes it was

to experience. I felt the irony of the situation as I realized schools like CVHS were in session and doing work by candle light.

Although happy I wasn’t at school, I was somewhat ashamed of being such a slave to electricity. Even our school had decided we couldn’t learn without it. I decided to make the most of the power outage and began to enjoy the freedom from energy dependence. I broke out the Risk board and went on daily runs.

Without technology separating us, my family actually grew closer. We played Christmas music on battery -powered radios and sat together in the only well-lit room. Without the hum of the T.V. and the mind controlling hold of the computer I was motivated to pull my bike out of the shed and experience Mother Nature. I realized how much I missed out on while I was sitting in my room staring at a screen. The people of La Cañada came together as well.

People were helping each other in any way they could; whether that be pulling tree limbs from back yards, or providing hot water for those living in the dark.

While many would argue that the power outage and wind storm was a bleak and miserable time, it was a new experience for me and something people wouldn’t allow themselves to appreciate. It was a momentary break in the busy, electricity fueled life we normally live. Many people lost sight of both the big picture and the message in the caption.

By Campbell Taylor Spartan Staff During the first week of December, a windstorm hit Los Angeles that downed power lines and damaged homes in La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena. Police and officials claim that this is the worst storm in La Cañada since 1997.

Some argue that the winds that swept through La Cañada were insignificant, and merely exaggerated by many citizens of the small town.

This assumption is a false one. The powerful 80 mile-per-hour winds that uprooted trees and downed power lines caused an incredible level of property damage in both La Cañada and Pasadena. In Pasadena alone 45 houses were destroyed and many more were damaged.

Photo by Michael Belcher Trees and debris deny passage by people and cars on Hillcrest Ave.

Photo by Michael Belcher

Photo by Michael Belcher A trash can suffers a blow from a fallen tree on Georgian Rd.

A tree falls on a property along Oakwood Ave.

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Getting Around the System

B

By Will Swanson Spartan Staff

ack in the good old days, if a student wanted to plagiarize a paper, all it took was a little cut and paste and “voila.” There is a report on To Kill a Mockingbird. Many a late Sunday night fellow students and I would spend pounding control-c and then clicking paste. This, however, was before this new-fangled technology got in the way.

Teachers these days use this new contraption called turnitin.com, which foils any hard working student’s attempt to collaborate with online sources. So, with little else to report about, I set out to see how good turnitin.com really is.

I cut and paste from three online sources to create a three-page report on the characterization of Romeo in Romeo and Juliet. I submitted it to turnitin.com and it got a 75% plagiarism rate, essentially an all expense paid pass to Honor Court.

I then changed the paper for ten minutes and re-submitted it and received an insulting 88% plagiarism rate, worse than the first attempt. I had brilliantly forgot that once a paper is submitted it is logged into the conniving turnitin.com database, so the same paper submitted again no matter how original gets a high plagiarism rate.

Recognizing the error of my ways, running low on research grant money, and having exhausted my daily work ethic, I was about to quit when an angelic voice called across the classroom. “Put quotes around the paper and make them white.” Sure enough the paper got a plagiarism rating of 0% and by mixing up the quotes all sorts of believable rates were achieved, 15%, 11%, and 9%.

Feeling like Thomas Edison after mastering the light bulb, I ran out to share the news only to find I was late to the plagiarizing party. Many people already knew the quote trick.

Nevertheless, I still publish my findings to tell those who may still be in the dark, and to more importantly alert teachers that the foolproof turnitin.com is not foolproof and it might in fact be worth grading all papers equally, even the ones that aren’t submitted to turnitin.com.

Why Are We Still Watching?

Humor from page 1 After I saw a sharp-dressed business man curse at an old woman for stepping in front of him in line, I decided I was not going to partake in this cutthroat madness.

For the remainder of our four day weekend, I participated in some Stone Age activities such as, chess, checkers and pool. But I could not take this barbaric form of entertainment any longer, so I ventured out into the dark abyss.

As I drove around this wonderful town, I noticed that some citizens not only had power, but were flaunting it with their god awful Christmas lights. These people were the 1%, and they wanted everyone else to know it.

I debated standing outside these aristocrats’ houses, but I realized that I would get too cold.

Instead, I bottled up my hatred for those who were more privileged than me and talked poorly of them behind their backs. During my daily prayer, I asked why people were more fortunate than I was, why did they deserve power? I pleaded for power to be restored to my household, but it never came… … Until three days later. That very night I went to plug in my Christmas lights to show the world that Fate favored me. I was the 1% and it felt good.

The storm was severe enough that La Cañada High School was shut down for two days due to a broken power line that cut off all electricity on the campus. Massive pine trees that flou rish in Pasadena were uprooted and crushed cars, houses, and power structures leaving some homeless and many without means of transport to their jobs with roads being blocked by the fallen pines.

What will the city do in the case of a more serious disaster?

With the inability and low priority of protecting itself from such events, cities may in fact be blown away by the repercussions of a major fire, an earthquake, or even another windstorm. While La Cañada and Pasadena were not prepared for the catastrophe, we hope that in the future we may better prepare ourselves for disasters.

Plagiarizing turnitin.com

By Sam Frederich Copy Editor

O

n November 18th, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 opened to universal loathing and hatred. Critics excoriated the film, audiences walked out, and theaters regretted their decision to not pass out barf bags to viewers. Even box office analysts seemed to hate the film (you don’t get headlines like “Twilight sucks more money from audiences” from unbiased sources.) Basically, the movie inspired more collective disgust and hatred than Hitler, Judas, and Rebecca Black combined.

It made 138 million dollars on its opening weekend.

Let me put that in perspective.

That’s more money than The Princess Bride, Shaun of the Dead, Blade Runner, and The Shawshank Redemption made in their entire combined runs. That’s about 500 times more money than you’ll ever make in your life. Heck, that’s enough money to hatch a Bond villain scheme to take over the world with cyborg suicide squirrels.

So basically, everyone in the world hated this movie, but we still got herded into theaters in droves to watch it. And everyone knows that this isn’t an isolated occurrence. The same thing happened with Transformers 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean 4 and Alvin and the Chipmunks 2.

Why? Well, ordinarily I’d blame it on a form of mass-insanity, but an interesting event a few days ago made me think differently. My sophomore sister and I were watching TV when a trailer for Twilight came on. We both laughed at the dead-eyed acting and cracked a few sparkly vampire

After the initial shock wore off, I deduced that something far more sinister was at work here. I interviewed several other teens, and got similar answers. Nobody wants to see the movie. Everyone hates it. And everyone is going to see it.

I think it was the glazed

Photo by baselineintel.com jokes, and then my sister said, “Wow that looks really bad. I don’t want to see it, but I’ll probably end up seeing it anyway.”

expressions in their eyes that tipped me off. As soon as the question of seeing the movie came up, it was like all of their free will was stripped

away, and they became mindless zombies for a brief instant. Most of my interviewees couldn’t even remember the conversation afterwards, and seemed confused when I told them what had happened.

Clearly, something unnatural was at work here, and I was determined to find out what it was. I went to the trouble of re-watching that Twilight trailer, and at a glance, nothing seemed amiss. It was only when I reversed the clip at double speed that the true nature of the conspiracy was revealed. Flashing across the screen in dull red was the Illuminati symbol.

And the reversed voices of the deadeyed actors told me to watch the movie twice, and to tell my friends to watch it if possible.

Examination of the trailers for countless other movies – Transformers 2, 2012, Sex and the City, The Smurfs - yielded the exact same message. It became clear to me that the ancient organization had penetrated every level of the movie industry, forcing us through mind-control to watch abominable movies to bolster their insidious plans. Suddenly, the reasoning behind the Magic 8 Ball and Battleship movies became chillingly clear.

I cannot say that I, or anyone else for that matter, understand the full nature of this devilish conspiracy.

I only know this. The Illuminati have returned, and they want you to watch Twilight.

Opinion

December 21, 2011

Why Apple Should Change Its Act

By Anastacia Menemenlis Spartan Staff Dear Apple, Your products are everywhere.

From iPods to laptops, almost everyone owns something made by you.

You’ve grown so large that many people believe you’re going to eclipse Microsoft, and some believe you already have.

I’m sorry that Steve Jobs, your longtime CEO, died of cancer back in October, but that still doesn’t temper my hatred towards your company.

How do you expect to attract customers when all of your employees are rude, your procedures are confusing, and your stores are too crowded inside to breathe properly, or even move? Last time I needed a service from the store, it took me three visits, a long talk with one of your store managers, almost an hour of claustrophobia, and near two hundred dollars (just under the amount it takes to just buy a new iTouch 4G), to replace my iTouch’s slightly cracked screen. Your employees were disrespectful and dismissive, and seemed intent on leading me as far away from my original goal as possible. The first employee I talked to made me believe that they would fix the screen; the second man told me the exact opposite. He proceeded to explain that you can’t just fix the

The Spartan Staff Kevork Kurdoghlian Editor-in-Chief Ailin Kim and David Rhee Managing Editors Sam Frederich Copy Editor David Belcher and Armen Dingizian News Editors Paul Kim and Daniel Rhee Features Editors Jack Finnigan and Ariel Vaisbort Entertainment Editors Jennifer Kim and Michael Belcher Sports Editors Paulina Galoostian and Michael Bishop Photography Editors Coleman Monroe and Carly Moore Opinion Editors

Ben Powers Advisor Reporters Kate Battaglia Tamar Bessos Jinny Choi Sharon Han Austin Hong Tammy Hsu Mark Kilaghbian Andrew Kim Esther Kim Flor Lee Anastacia Menemenlis Gemma Sokol Hannah Stewart Will Swanson Campbell Taylor

screen-you have to make everything as complicated as you can, so no-one but you can navigate the strangeness that you call an apple product.

Which leads me to my next point.

If you’re not going to make a product that’s easily fixable, you should at least try to ensure that your products aren’t going to break when they’re nudged by a pinky or dropped from three inches onto a bed. Almost every iPhone or iTouch I know of that’s older than a couple months has at least a couple noticeable cracks running across the screen. Cracks that could possibly give the owner glass splinters.

You, Apple, should be held responsible for your poorly made products; they don’t break solely because the owners are irresponsible and therefore not deserving of your help. Those ‘bumpers’ you make for iPhones look stupid and provide nextto-no protection anyway. Buying a good case from an outside company costs a good twenty to thirty dollars.

If you were to sell cases, they would be sold for just as much, if not more, adding to the cost of the iPod or iPhone itself and bringing in more revenue for you.

Plus, I hate you for helping to bring about the demise of actual, made-of-paper, books and bookstores like Borders. Any store that picks up on that trend of digitalizing books that are meant to be read on paper has instantly lost my respect.

Even though I adore my newlyupdated-to-iOS5 iTouch a lot, I’m never going to surrender her to your hands ever again. If she cracks one more time, I’m throwing her away and buying a PC. Sincerely, Anastacia

On Internet Blocking

By Sam Frederich Copy Editor It’s Media Arts class, and I need a few pictures for my documentary project on ghosts. I hit up Google images, find the perfect picture, click on it, and…it’s blocked. Rats. I try another picture. It’s blocked too. So is the next one, and the one after that. I try wording my search differently, but all of the good pictures are still blocked.

There’s nothing I can do. After half an hour of fruitless excavation, I’m left with nothing but a few low-resolution pictures of Casper. So much for the “A” I was hoping for.

It’s a story that any La Cañada student can relate to. Whether we’re looking for a current events article for Government class, finding song lyrics for English, or getting pictures for Photography class, we are constantly confronted by the obstacle of internet blocking. LCHS has carpet-bombed

Living In a Barbie World

By Sharon Han Spartan Staff

A

s humans, we are constantly altering ourselves to fit the image of the current societal trends. Due to such standards, many are obligated to “enhance” their beauty in order to eliminate reoccurring ghosts of imperfection. These haunting images and thoughts lead us to dangerous territories such as bulimia and anorexia.

The cliché line, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” makes perfect

Beyond the Battery

By Mark Kilaghbian Spartan Staff “Hello ma’am. Can I interest you in our new 2012 Toyota Prius?”

“Well, I’m trying to find a car for my son, actually” “Then, boy do we have the car for you, 40 MPG, silent under 5 MPH and Eco Friendly!”

“Sounds great!”

“Just sign here, here, and have him sign away his manhood on the dotted line.”

In the 1960s, American muscle cars dominated the testosterone fueled market. Nothing was more humbling than the roar of a Mustang’s V8 engine, the raw horsepower of a man’s car. This was when buying American-made cars meant something. Foreign Imports like Toyotas and Hondas were mice in a field of cobras. American muscle cars like the Chevrolet Camero, Ford Mustang, and Dodge Challenger were respected, well made, and a worthy investment.

A mere 40 years later, the car market is unrecognizable. The

men of the past would look down in shame. Foreign imports, cheap manufacturing, and rapidly changing politics have feminized the car industry. As inexpensive alternatives to American cars materialize from foreign companies the American car manufacturers have been forced to reduce the quality of their products.

To accompany declining car quality, American cars took a second blow as the green movement took hold. Now cars are not only cheaply made, but have to adhere to strict environmental regulations. A grave was dug for well built, fast, loud, menacing, muscle cars.

Sadly, this grave was dug in vain.

While hybrid cars are advertised as environmentally friendly, the process of making these cars is anything but environmentally friendly. The foreign plants used to make car parts are often unregulated and release harmful pollutants into the air. The batteries used in the cars run on nickel and take fuel to mine and eventually manufacture. As a result environmentally crippling byproducts are created. The batteries themselves can have devastating effects on the

environment if cheaply disposed of.

Even the recycling of the batteries uses immense amounts of energy, which eventually leads to the release of pollutants. If you think you’ll be saving money on gas in the long run, you’re right.

If you think you’ll be saving money in the long run, you’re wrong.

Replacing a hybrid battery costs at least $3000. If you do the math, that money could go towards two years of unleaded gas. The fact is that being “Green” isn’t only an attack on the masculinity of America but is also a scam. Manufacturers constantly try to make the environmentally friendly image cool and, sadly, many have fallen victim to the bombardment of propaganda. Personally, I would rather be the guy passing the ugly car with a half electric motor. A little extra at the pump is a small price to pay for the ability to set off all the alarms in a car garage with a rev of your engine.

No matter how you look at it, your car says a lot about you. Don’t let your car broadcast your sensitive side to the world, and don’t let car companies make a fool out of you.

Photo by blog.caranddriver.com Foreign and hybrid cars dominate a once American, masculine industry. huge blocks of sites, rendering them inaccessible to students even when their information is necessary. All web sites that are designated “adult,” “forums/ blogs,” and even “entertainment” are instantly recognized and blocked by school servers, meaning that innumerable sites of potential value for research or school projects are impossible to access.

This means that if you need a Youtube clip for your student film, or a Facebook page for your article on social networking, you’ll have to bring it to school yourself. But even that is becoming increasingly difficult for students. Email sites are inaccessible due to the school’s blocking policy, and flash drives are now confiscated if they are found at school. If you don’t have a mybigcampus account, which has been quite unreliable in my experience, you’re out of luck.

But in a way, I can understand why teachers would want this kind of blocking. After all, if students could access any site they wanted, they would spend all their computer time playing games and watching porn instead of studying. And if school officials have to block a lot

of potentially valuable sites to keep this from happening, well, that’s a necessary evil.

Oh, wait. Did I mention that the three groups sitting behind me were having a slime games tournament while I hunted for pictures?

Yes, it’s common knowledge that many students have found ways to bypass the internet blocks in order to play online games. So in many cases, you have hard working students being inhibited from accessing important sites while less, ahem, industrious kids are still goofing off. So the internet blocks fail to serve their primary purpose and are only hampering the studies of LCHS kids.

I’m not saying that the internet access should be completely uninhibited for LC students, only that blocking should be narrowed and concentrated on less broad topics.

Game sites and porn sites should certainly be blocked, but not the thousands of pages pertaining to “entertainment” or “adult” topics.

Because nuking the internet can sometimes get rid of the bad sites, but it can also cause a heck of a lot of collateral damage.

sense. However, society seems to disagree. Beauty is represented by three-sizes-too-thin models and machine-molded plastic Barbie Dolls, which give women an altogether tainted view on what to look like.

Our nation’s perception of beauty is represented by women who fail to acknowledge the rest of the population who cannot possibly live up to size 00’s and measurements similar to those of a Barbie.

We are all also surrounded by a diverse group of people. Ethnic, short, tall, skinny, curvy, hot, not, these are all names that we give others, and these given titles are simply unnecessary. What’s wrong with being different? We satisfy good ole’ Hitler’s old hunt for a “perfect race,”

by throwing unique characteristics out the window.

In addition, an uncomfortable situation comes about when thin girls are obsessed with their weight, claiming they need to diet, while bigger girls are completely mortified by the statements they hear from their thinner friends. Why does “being skinny” automatically enhance one’s beauty?

We all strive towards this unnecessary goal of fitting into “those jeans.” I see most women as individuals, unique because of their size and personalities.

However, due to standards, many women spend their time trying to make themselves something they’re not. This tainted perception of beauty is undermining the very purpose of individuality.

Hey Spartans!

Have Opinions?

Submit your story ideas to room 203 or go online to LCSPARTAN. COM Quick Response

A Modest Proposal

5

scan with a smartphone In J.K Rowling’s article, “Stupid Girls,” disdain is dripping from her every word, and I could not agree with her more on every single one of her points. Anorexia is glamorized by media, and many women focus on being thin instead of focusing on “unimportant things” such as education. Why do we need to be smart when we can be pretty?

Not every woman you see walking down the street is model thin, and quite frankly, it doesn’t matter.

Beauty isn’t defined by what you are− it’s defined by who you are. Society says one thing, we feel as if we need to oblige. But what good is beauty without brains? What is so beautiful about looking just like everyone else?

If anything is beautiful, diversity is.

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Entertainment

December 21, 2011

“BREAKING DAWN”

Male and female perspectives on the widely anticipated movie Gentlemen, Two Thumbs Don’t Watch Down and This Movie a Couple of Laughs

By David Belcher News Editor

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By Tamar Bessos Spartan Staff To start with, I would like to say that I am not an obsessed, delusional, or psycho thirteen year-old girl who is desperately in love with Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) for his ability to sparkle in the sunlight. I am far, far from it. His little bouffant and pea-coat does not appeal to me, whatsoever. But let’s get to the point, shall we? Last month, I went to see The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 in theaters, and let me tell you, my friends and I were laughing so hard that we could hardly breathe.

The die-hard, somewhat psycho fans told us to “Shut up!” and “Stop ruining the movie!” from time to time. But we couldn’t help it; the movie was just awful.

Sure, there were a few moments when I thought, “Aww, that’s so sweet!” But those rare moments only lasted for about ten seconds and they were soon overshadowed by the cheesy, “romantic” lines or the poorly-designed CGI werewolves.

Basically, the movie, an adaptation of the novel by Stephanie Meyer, was centered around three major events: the wedding, the honeymoon, and the birth. In my opinion, it seemed as if this all happened within a five-minute span.

The truly important scenes, such as the wedding, were cut too short, clearly missing some important aspects of the book that many fans were dying to see. The movie skipped from one unrelated scene to the other. Maybe, just maybe, if the scenes weren’t so short, I would have found the movie

a little more bearable.

One of the creepiest scenes in the movie (there were many) was when good ol’ Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) “imprinted” on Bella Swan’s (Kristen Stewart) new-born daughter Renesmee. If you aren’t aware of what “imprinting” is, then let me fill you in. Basically, it’s when a werewolf uncontrollably, and in this case freakishly, falls in love with a girl regardless of her age, appearance, or personality. Frankly, I found this repulsive as I was reading

the book a few years back, and I still found it repulsive as I was watching the movie. Apparently, Stephanie Meyer believes that being a pedophile is romantic.

I would be lying to you if I said that I wasn’t at the edge of my seat during the birth scene. The sound of bones breaking and blood gushing was pretty gross, but all in all, the entire scene was suspenseful. It was the one moment when I actually thought that Kristen Stewart was a great actor; the way she portrayed

Bella’s death was very convincing.

So yes, I was pretty impressed—the acting in Breaking Dawn, compared to the previous movies of the saga, improved.

But overall, the movie was a huge disappointment. Even though I’m not a die-hard fan, or a “Twihard”, I expected much more from it. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 is set to hit theaters around November 2012. At this point, I doubt the movies could get much worse.

Top5 Songs From “Talk That Talk” Roc Me Out Where Have

Photo by remycelebrityblog.com

Songs On Rihanna’s New Album

“Where Have You Been”- What I

We Found Love Talk Th

Da One Top Five

The princess of pop is back!

Without the chains and whips, thankfully.

Rihanna recently released her new album “Talk That Talk” on November 18th, not long after her previous album, “Loud,” (November 12th). Recently named “Sexiest Woman Alive” in Esquire magazine and the first female pop solo artist to top the charts with 20 hit singles, Ri-ri is definitely one of the hottest women in today’s mainstream media.

Rihanna’s previous albums, “Loud” and “Rated R,” disappointed me immensely; they were laden with dark themes and gratuitous sex, subjects to which I do not relate. I was very reluctant to purchase “Talk That Talk,” but after hearing one of the tracks in the album, “We Found Love,” on the radio, I gave in and was taken by surprise. “Talk That Talk” includes many pleasurable and cheerful songs that truly remind fans about her positive attitude before the abusive relationship with Chris Brown. Watch out boys, Princess Ri-Ri is back!

The following are the standout tracks: “You Da One”- Rihanna promoted “You Da One” as the second single from her album. This song possesses a smooth Reggae and Caribbean melody, much like “What’s My Name.” The chorus is very relaxing and mid-tempo, unlike most of her other raunchy pop songs. (4/5)

You Been

at Talk You

By Flor di Lee Spartan Staff

love about Ri-Ri is that she does not limit her album to a particular genre.

This track belongs to the “Techno/ House” genre. Unfortunately, the upbeat instrumental outshines her vocals, but the track is nonetheless enjoyable. The funky synthesizers and quick-paced beats make me want to get up and bust a move.

(4/5) “We Found Love”- Produced by London DJ Calvin Harris, “We Found Love” is an extremely fun and catchy dance/pop number.

The most appealing aspect of the song is the brief synth segment preceding each verse and following each chorus. Even people who are not fans of Rihanna will find themselves quietly singing along to the repetitive line, “We found love

in a hopeless place….We found love in a hopeless place…” (4.5/5) “Talk That Talk” (feat. Jay-Z)- I hate this track. It is a “standout track” because its trashiness stood out like a sore thumb. For starters, I have been a huge fan of Jay-Z and Rihanna’s duets, ever since “Umbrella” released. Similar to “Umbrella,” Jay leads the song with a rap as Ri-Ri follows in with a raunchy chorus. Jay-Z’s rap was utter filth; I heard nothing but conceitedness and cheesy attempts to be clever. For example, he raps, “I’m flying out to Pisa, just to get some pizza.” …Really Jay? I’m rolling on the floor laughing. That was too clever. Overall, this track did not linger in my mind for too long and failed to make the same

great impression as “Umbrella”.

(1/5) “Roc Me Out”- This track is my utmost favorite song from the album. Much like “Rude Boy” from her “Rated R” album, it exudes female dominance. Regardless of the risqué lyrics and hardcore instrumental, her powerful husky vocals shine. Girls, this is your jam.

(5/5) Rihanna has endured many hardships, but she will always return with a hit single-in this case, a hit album. I recommend this album to anyone who has ever doubted Rihanna’s reign as the princess of pop.

Brief Preview of Drake’s “Take Care”

By Daniel Layton Guest Writer Over the years, we have seen some nice rap albums and songs, but Drake is back with his third album, “Take Care.”

“Take Care” features singles such as “Marvin’s Room” and “Headlines.”

With his new album out, Drake is heading into the entertainment business, playing a character named Ethan in “Ice Age 4: Continental Drift.” Drake says that he is hoping to get a lot more fans from this album. We’ll see if we should thank him now or ‘thank [him] later,’ but we know he “Take[s] Care” of this album.

hen my girlfriend asked me to see the new Twilight Movie with her, my first instinct was to dump her immediately. My second, more reasonable, reaction was to try to maim myself in some way so that I physically couldn’t see the movie.

But, after not being able to find an acid corrosive enough to cause blindness, I settled down. I mean the movie couldn’t be that bad, could it?

Well yes, “Breaking Dawn” was that bad.

For those of you who don’t know, the Twilight series follows the life of Bella Swan, an average girl who is torn between her twin loves of vampires and werewolves.

“Breaking Dawn” features the story of how Bella gets married to her 110-year-old, but for some reason totally-not-a-twisted-pedophile boyfriend, Edward, and eventually gets knocked up. Well, that’s what I think the movie was about. It was difficult to discern a plot from the crappy, and often unintentionally hilarious, writing. The movie also inexplicably featured a feud between the vampire and werewolf clans. The feud, which prevailed throughout much of the movie, culminated with two minutes of the most intense undead shoving matches I’ve ever seen. Apparently the characters in the movie really didn’t like each other, a sentiment I could relate to, because I didn’t like any of the characters either.

Even the most basic elements of the movie were lackluster. The film’s dialogue was contrived, the cinematography was shaky, and the background score sounded like a CD from the Disney Channel. Even the movie’s most interesting scene (and by most interesting, I mean the scene where the fewest number of people walked out), the sex-scene was horrible.

I’ve already discussed the fact that Edward is romantically involved with a girl 93-years his junior, but that’s not even the most egregious occurrence. After Bella gives birth, her ex-boyfriend Jacob walks into the room and immediately falls in love with the baby. You read that correctly.

A teenage boy walks into a room with a newborn and becomes infatuated with it, and that is apparently a romantic gesture in the Twilight universe. Perhaps the next installment should take place in the Penn-State locker-room.

Perhaps the most disturbing element of the film wasn’t the film itself, but rather the message it attempts to send to millions of little girls. It is no secret that the author of the Twilight Series, Stephanie Meyer, is a Mormon. The movie features Mormon ideals that are not just shown, but advocated to the point where it bordered on being a propaganda film. For example, the protagonist alone promotes getting married young, not using birthcontrol, and above all else, being pro-life. Ms. Meyer would have us believe that a person is a person no matter how small, demonic, or murdery.

Twilight Breaking Dawn is a terrible movie with a twisted message and no redeeming qualities. Fans of horrible cinema might be enticed to see it, but if you do watch it, do so at your own peril, and don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Features 7

December 21, 2011

Holiday Do’s and Don’ts

By Sharon Han Spartan Staff Although it seems like Thanksgiving was just yesterday, Christmas season has arrived! Since it is almost impossible to keep up with the plethora of trends, I came up with a “do’s” list of potential gifting options in order to help out my fellow shoppers and a “don’ts” list, which consists of gifts you should try to avoid.

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NEW THIS YEAR..... Sign up ONLINE to work on the La Canada Go to the website: www.lcftra.org You will find all the information you need and the sign-up form. Sign ups for Float Decorators and all other UTB Workers (that’s Under The Bridge) will be online frmo October 1 to December 15. After December 15 just come on down to the check-in counter. If there is work to be done, you will fill out the official release form and be adeded to the work force. Laminated badges will be issued to all those signed up

by December 15

8

Features

December 21, 2011

Behind the Six-Pack World Report: You Are One In the life and times of Carlin Soorenian

By Will Swanson Spartan Staff A wise man once said: “Life is like a bagel, it’s empty at first but you have to fill it with cream cheese to make it delicious”.

That wise man of course is Carlin Soorenian and thus began my journey with the philosopher, retired sophomore basketball player, Hallof-Fame freshman basketball team manager, and true man of the people.

Carlin Soorenian is a true renaissance man. While many La Cañada students choose to focus on a single activity Carlin excels in many. He is brilliant at the Taco Bell “drop-the-quarter-and-win-afree-taco”game; he has an uncanny ability to hit targets with a ping-pong ball and has won NBA 2k11 tournaments solely on his world-renowned ability to shoot three pointers with obscure NBA player Mike Miller.

Of course, to those who haven’t seen him at Taco Bell or wielding an X-Box controller Carlin Soorenian may seem like the average LCHS senior, but that is precisely why this story is necessary. It now gives readers the chance to delve into the mysterious mind of Carlin Soorenian, it goes where no student interview has gone before. It does not just cover the basics or chronicle some semiimpressive talent. It instead truly analyzes the mind of one of the most intriguing men on campus. A mind filled with food, women, future plans and a rocky past that has had its shining highs, and its dark lows.

I decided to start with the easy questions first. The cookie cutter questions seen in every interview; questions like “What’s your average weekend?” In classic Carlin fashion though, I did not get a cookie cutter response.

“I go shopping with Andre Vartan for 20 minutes most Fridays” remarked Carlin. “Then me, Scott and Daniel go to the ‘Crest’ to hang out.”

Already sounding exponentially more fascinating than my average Friday of reading the Twilight series and playing Mario Kart on my GameCube I was dying to learn more.

“Well then we go to Jonah’s house sometimes Mrs. Mahrer makes hot chocolate” mused Carlin, visibly reminiscing of days at the Mahrer Manor.

With such a promising start I decided to leave the cookie cutter questions behind, dig deeper, remove my commentary from the interview and just let you the reader soak in the answers given by Mr. Soorenian.

The Spartan: “What are your views on Academics?”

Carlin: “I like focusing on academics but also having fun, I actually have a message for the kids too, Stay in School!”

The Spartan: “Did any role models help develop these sound principles?”

Carlin: “Well for one Wiz Khalifa but also Mr. Mohney” The Spartan: “Fascinating, with such a great outlook then you must have a very active love life right?”

Carlin: “Well women these days, it is not so swell” The Spartan: “Fine, if you are going to be so modest about the subject I’ll beat around the bush. If you could play beach volleyball with one sport team at our high school which would it be?”

Carlin: “Hmmm, I’d have to say the varsity girl’s volleyball team” The Spartan: “Can’t say many guys would disagree with you, who is your secret crush?”

Carlin: “That’s easy, Shannon Burt. I would pay money for her to be a Songie again” The Spartan: “Interesting, very interesting, I guess you will just have to bide your time there; while you do that, elaborate on your past. Can you comment on your sophomore basketball days?”

Carlin: “Well I had my dark days even though I would average 20 points a game” The Spartan “Well I will have to check the stats on that one but if that is true why did you not keep playing basketball?”

Carlin: “I was too good; I felt bad taking up a varsity spot when I knew either way I would make it to the NBA.” At that point the exhilarating dance-off in the quad had ended and Carlin had to rush off and touch the lives of another classroom of students but as he rushed off I managed to get one more question through.

“What is your favorite song?”

“Sexy and I know it” he yelled as students parted like the Red Sea to let him through.

I had the absolute privilege of seeing Carlin later that weekend and this time in his natural habitat, the Mahrer household. He began the evening like a true philosopher, eating cupcakes and playing FIFA 11. Unfortunately, his mediocre FIFA skills left a lot to be desired and I dispatched of him quickly and ended his FIFA fun. Carlin Soorenian though is never without fun for long and is a true optimist at heart. He quickly grabbed some Red Solo cups and disappeared downstairs and from the look on his face when he came back up, he was quite victorious in cup stacking. Riding that wave of exuberance he was quick to impart some knowledge to us about the TV series “Breaking Bad” that host Jonah Mahrer and Carlin, crush Shannon Burt, were trying to watch.

“Just because the father deals Meth doesn’t mean the kid does Meth idiots” Carlin preached from the kitchen while carving up an apple.

Spoken like John Locke himself if you ask me. Within a half and hour the Mahrer parents came home and we were forced to scatter, but not before Carlin could shake my hand and give his parting words.

“It was a pleasure William,” he said as he entered his BMW and drove off into the night.

No, Carlin, for the first time in your life you are wrong. The pleasure was all mine.

of Seven Billion Humans

Graphic by Kevork Kurdoghlian

By Andrew Kim Spartan Staff Earlier this year, the UN Population Reference Bureau predicted that 2011 would be the year the world population breaks 7 billion.

On October 31, that long-expected 7 billionth child was born (with 1-2% margin of error).

With the news come the typical Malthusian questions. Can the world sustain seven-billion people? Are there enough resources and space for everyone?

Statistics show that we do not have to worry about such concerns.

The world currently produces 2.3 billion tons of grain each year, enough to feed up to 11 billion mouths. And regarding space, the average human population density of the Earth is about half that of France.

The true concern is the unevenness of this growth.

The United States, Europe and other developed countries have reached sustainable population re-

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placement levels, with each woman having on average 2.1 children or less, enough to replace both parents in the future as they pass on. This is mostly thanks to the western world’s advantage in technological and medical development. Before industrialization, birth rates remained high on average in order to combat high infant mortality and increase chances of children reaching adulthood. But with technological and medical advances during the 19th century, like vaccination, sanitation services and mechanized food production, infant mortality dropped. High birth rates continued to remain until two generations after the decrease of infant mortality. By the end of WWII, population growth in the west has been relatively similar to that of today.

The rising concern in the developed world is an aging population.

Currently, countries like Germany and Japan have about 3 working aged individuals for 1 pensioner, compared to 25 to 1 in lesser-developed regions. This will only cause economic hardships in the future as national economies lose youthful, productive workforces and governments increase spending towards pension services.

In some developing countries, political action has actually offset the high population growth rate usually associated with technological and economic development. China, for example, has maintained the onechild policy for about thirty years,

lowering its female-child ratio to 1.6 today. Brazil has promoted female education, family planning, and free economic opportunities, lowering its female-child ratio to 1.9.

The main cause for the population boom can be found in rural, underdeveloped countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Because poverty persists in these areas, child mortality still is relatively high, and life expectancies are still about 50 years or less. But with the current international aid organizations like UNICEF and the World Health Organization, more children are surviving infancy. Although a step towards progress for these impoverished areas, lowering death rates will add uncomfortable strain on these already resource-strapped areas.

Even with these new challenges, there are signs of optimism. During the rise of industrialization, Thomas Malthus feared the population growth of the period, but still remained optimistic about the abilities of human effort and technological development.

Ban-Ki Moon, UN Secretary General, still maintains this feeling of hope.

“Seven billion will clearly be a serious challenge,” Moon said. “But depending on how we address this, in a comprehensive manner it can be both an opportunity and challenge.”

Information taken from Time. com and Nationalgeographic.com

Smile For Operation Smile Club

By Tammy Hsu Spartan Staff Through the efforts of students at La Cañada’s Smile Club, more kids are able to smile. The club’s aim is to help provide operations for kids with cleft lips.

Juniors Gina Choi and Tiffany Chen, cofounders of Smile Club, first got the idea from a similar group at a different school. Since then, the club has been collecting donations to meet its monthly quota of twenty dollars. All funds raised go to an organization named Operation

Smile.

Operation Smile is a children’s charity that works internationally to support those who are unable to pay for cleft lip operations. Every three minutes a child is born with a cleft lip, which impairs basic functions like eating, speaking, socializing, and of course, smiling.

The La Cañada Smile Club has dedicated its time to work together as a team and collect as much money as possible.

“Every dollar counts,” Tiffany noted.

The club meets on the last Tues-

day of every month in Mr. Powers’ room, room 203. At the meetings, members discuss possible fundraiser ideas and the monthly goals.

Gina commented, “We try to contribute to the cause and out-do ourselves every month.”

Since many people do not know about disorders such as cleft lip, the club strives to raise awareness of such disorders and actively helps those in need.

“We just want more kids to be aware of what other kids are suffering from,” said Tiffany with a determined look on her face.

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Features 9

December 21, 2011

A Must-Read For Fantasy Lovers

By Anastacia Menemenlis Spartan Staff

Inheritance, the long-awaited conclusion to Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance Cycle, was finally released to the public on November 8th. Secrets are revealed, romances are created and destroyed, and Galbatorix finally commits suicide in a huge cloud of magic dust (yes, I am totally serious).

The cover, like the rest of the books, features a dragon. This particular dragon’s name is Fírnen, and he’s the dragon who hatches out of the green egg that’s been so often mentioned in the previous books.

Fírnen doesn’t actually play an important role in the story (he doesn’t hatch until after Galbatorix has been defeated), but he’s supposedly the last dragon left in Alagaësia, so I suppose Paolini thought it would be important to put him on the cover.

Inheritance follows the path of the Varden as they approach Galbatorix’s main city, Urû’baen, and finally defeat him.

It also ties up many loose ends left from when the Ra’zac, a breed of bug-like monsters with humanshaped exo-skeletons, stormed Carvahall in the second book and killed the villagers. Paolini directs Eragon and Arya storm Helgrind and defeat the Ra’zac. In the process, they also purge the city of its cannibalistic, fl esh-sacrifi ce based religion. After Eragon defeats Galbatorix, he almost breaks the cardinal rule of magic and tries to raise Brom from the dead. Paolini’s dénouement is solid, but there are still many relationship threads left hanging.

Nasuada finds a love interest (a certain son-of-Morzan), Katrina has her baby, and Roran almost gets killed multiple times.

My only issue with the book was Paolini’s writing. If you haven’t read his work, you’re not missing out on anything. His writing is stuffy and filled with unnecessarily

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long illustrative phrases trying to explain nasty images even more in depth than any sane person would appreciate. I felt that Paolini ran out of ideas by the end of the book, and so he shoved as many stereotypes as he could between the two covers and popped the book out.

I would recommend this book to you only if you have read and liked the previous three or if you are an avid fantasy reader and have a large chunk of time on your hands.

Otherwise, the enormous length of the book renders it boring and rather

pointless to read. The storyline is a rip-off of the Star Wars movies, and the setting is reminiscent of Lord of the Rings.

Many of the issues presented in the first two books are resolved with very deus-ex-machina solutions in the second and third, and the main source of conflict presented throughout the first three books, namely the impending extinction of the race of dragons, is not something they ultimately end up having to worry about.

The Muppets Are Back!

By Hannah Stewart Spartan Staff

N

one of us grew up watching the original Muppets on television every week. We may have seen some movies with Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie the Bear and Scooter. They remind us that the world is not as hopeless a place as we sometimes see it.

Their most recent movie, titled “The Muppets,” was a big hit on Rotten Tomatoes and was favored by critics everywhere.It starts with Gary and Walter(Jason Segel),who are from Smalltown USA, growing up together as normal American kids, except Walter is the Muppet version of Gary. Walter feels a bit like he doesn’t belong, although he never states that directly. He is infatuated with the Muppets for obvious reasons. Garyand his girlfriend Mary, (played by the truly exceptional Amy Adams) plan on taking a trip to Los Angeles. They invite Walter to come along for the ride.

When they arrive in the City of Angels, their first stop is The Muppet Studios. Walter uncovers an evil plot devised by oil baron Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) who has seemingly good intentions for the renovation of the dilapidated studio, but really harbors ulterior motives. Walter decides to reunite the Muppets in an effort to save the studio. Kermit is initially reluctant to reunify the “Ol’ Gang,” because he fears that no one will

remember them anymore, but agrees to the plan. The rest of the movie is basically the reunification of the Muppets and their efforts to raise 10 million dollars.

The movie was peppered with great song and dance numbers and brilliant jokes by the two cynics, Waldorf and Statler. The music is what was really got me, with original songs written by Bret Mckenzie, one half of New Zealand’s fourth most popular folk parody duo, Flight of the Conchords. Songs like “Me Party” and “Life’s a Happy Song” express the essence of the Muppets.

Like so many other movies, the soundtrack is what makes this movie special.

Amy Adams also fills her role as the quirky, mechanically inclined (yeah, she teaches mechanics to elementary school children), and spunky girlfriend to a “t.”

James Bobin directs the film, widening its audience from just families with small children to a movie for all ages.

Overall, in spite of all of its flaws, I really enjoyed this film. Its breezy humor and great songs were enough to keep me happy in the theater throughout all 120 minutes of the film. Though the plot was predictable and the acting a bit spotty, the overall script and charm of the characters made this movie very worthwhile.

A Presidential Production

By Gemma Sokol Spartan Staff

Photo by Michael Bishop The Comedy Sportz team celebrates their victory!

Photo by Michael Bishop The team played a lot of games.

“J. Edgar” is a flamboyant film. Starring handsome Leonardo di Caprio and Naomi Watts, “J. Edgar” is an exploratory film into the private hidden life of J. Edgar Hoover.

Directed by Clint Eastwood, this movie has been getting a lot of publicity but not a lot of views.

Eastwood’s somber depiction of John Edgar Hoover brings up questions about our Federl Bureau of Investigation and the credibility that our history holds.

The movie opens with Hoover telling his story to a young agentstenographer because he believes “it’s time this generation learned my side of the story.”

Letters to the Editor

As the story progresses we find that his love of secrecy isn’t only for the government, but for his second best man, Tolson.

As the friendship between them blossoms into a relationship, Hoover keeps it under wraps.

Their relationship is paralleled throughout the movie to Hoover’s investigations.

“We must never forget our history,” was one of Hoover’s most renowned phrases. Eastwood killed it in this incredibly detailed and fascinating story. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and think that anyone interested in our country’s past would like this movie.

Dear Spartans, As some of you may know, our community recently experienced an exciting campaign and election for two of the five spots on the La Cañada Unified School District Governing Board (the “School Board”). I am honored that the community has entrusted one of these seats to me, and I’m excited about serving on this School Board for the next four years.

I am writing to you because it is important to me that our District never loses sight of our ultimate customers: you. I ran in this election because I felt I could be of service to our schools, and- to me- this means being of service to our students. My commitment is to help guide our District towards policies and initiatives that support and advance your experience in our schools. In this endeavor, I know my fellow members on the Board join me.

But there are a few things that cause me to “stick out” on this Board, too. For one, I come to this job at the ripe old age of 20. For another, I return to the District in this capacity after graduating from LCHS not too long ago (Class of 2009—“Welcome to the Good Life”). I am also currently enrolled in Princeton University (Class of 2013).

I mention these things in particular because I hope they might further broaden the ways I may be accessible to you, and in your service. It is my hope that you will always feel free to reach out to me should you have questions, comments, or concerns about your education. My intention is to be a resource. Whether you have an idea for improving our schools, want some college advice, or just need to be heard… please, feel free to reach out to me.

You can contact me in any number of ways. You can call or text me (818-970-0129), send me an email (aj.blumenfeld@gmail. com), or even follow me on Twitter (@AndrewJasonB).

I look forward to working with you to make the rest of your time in our District as productive and meaningful as possible, and to leave it an even better place to go to school for the students that will follow. I hope we speak soon, and I look forward to congratulating you at graduation!

Dear Spartans, As the parent of a current senior and an 8th grader, I was motivated to seek a position on the LCUSD Governing Board by both personal as well as community based objectives.

My older son, Joey, has received a tremendous education at LCHS and he is well poised for success after graduation. But his experience has also put the spotlight on some unique challenges that face our high school community. As a board member, one of my goals is to insure that my younger son, Jack, and all current and future LCHS students, successfully navigate through their high school years, unimpaired by roadblocks or pitfalls that stand in their way.

The role of the School Board is to provide citizen oversight of our district. As an elected governing body, the board shares its responsibilities as a whole. Among our specific roles and responsibilities are: •Set the direction for La Canada schools; •Establish an effective and efficient organizational structure for our district; •Support the superintendent in carrying out the district’s directions; •Ensure accountability to the public for the performance of our schools; •Provide community leadership and advocate on behalf of students, educational programs and public education.

So why should an LCHS student take an active interest in the school board? Quite simply, you are our customer and our primary goal is customer satisfaction. Your input as to your experience provides us with some of the feedback we need to assess student achievement and the effectiveness of our programs. We want to know what you liked, what you did not like, and what we can do to improve our programs. We are currently developing a customer satisfaction survey to formalize this feedback but we would love to hear from you at any time.

School board is unique in that we are the only locally elected officials chosen solely to represent the interests of students. Hence, the more we hear from you, the better we can advocate on your behalf. I encourage you to contact me or any other board member with any questions or concerns that you may have. Let us know of a great experience you have had that we could replicate for other students. Or let us know when we fell short of your expectations and how we could improve. Our goal is that each LCHS student is well prepared for success in college or whatever other path Sincerely, you may choose.

Please let us know how best we can Andrew J. Blumenfeld support you in pursuit of your personal LCUSD Governing Board Member, goals. I can be reached by email at emulSpeaking for myself. tari@lcusd.net.

Advanced Theater 3 Executes a Humorous Performance

By Carly Moore Opinion Editor

R

ecently Advanced Theater 3 put on Neil Simon’s comical female version of, The Odd Couple. The play revolves around the two young women; Florence, the beautiful but meticulous perfectionist, living with her friend, the sport-loving slapstick Olive. Whoever said “opposites attract,” could never see these two coming, for when Olive asks Florence if she wants to recover

from her failed marriage by becoming roommates, everything starts to go downhill. From the fights, to the blind dates, this play is full of laughs, witty dialogue, and most of all, Grade-A acting.

Junior Sarah Price was cast as Florence and junior Hannah Gunter as Olive. Other characters included their quirky group of friends, played by senior Meghan McRae, sophomores Laura Green and Bliss Saleebyan, junior Hannah Yoho, and the Costazuela brothers, played by junior Austin Kenwood and sophomore Alex Bache.

“We got our parts at the beginning of the year,” said Price, recalling the work process of developing the production. “Originally I was Olive and Hannah was Flo. We felt like we more suited for the other parts, so we switched.”

“I wanted to play a character I had never played before,” Gunter commented. “I just thought that it would fit our personalities more. It was an amazing cast to work with!”

On opening night, various problems arose, including the lights that blacked out in the middle of a scene.

“We were in the middle of lines

waiting for something to happen,” laughed Price. “Then the music started, so we had to just move on to the next scene.”

Nevertheless, the rest of the performances ran smoothly, without any mishaps.

In the play the personalities of the two major constantly clashed, leading to rising tensions and escalated arguments.

“In the second act Sarah and I had to fight,” commented Gunter, smiling. “It was probably my favorite scene. I was yelling around the stage intensely and it was fun just not to

have restraints.”

However, even the fights were funny, and the laughs only amplified when the Costazuela brothers stepped on stage. Played by junior Austin Kenwood and sophomore Alex Bache, these Spanish brothers brought down the house with their accent and awkward hilarity that created such colorful characters.

Overall, The Odd Couple left the audiences with smiles on their faces and the satisfaction of a wonderful evening. I can’t wait until the next time that I get to see any of these young actors on stage again.

10 Sports

December 21, 2011

La Cañada Boys’ Varsity Soccer Off to a Good Start

By Daniel Rhee Features Editor

La Cañada – 2 John Burroughs – 0

La Cañada – 4 Village Christian – 0

After a tough loss to Palmdale, the Spartans bounced back to defeat the Indians 2-0 at home. The Spartans took 19 shot at the goal and junior Armand Bagramyan and Garret Apel scored a goal a piece. Goalies Tyler Jones and Graham Labran-Boyd each had five saves and totaled for 10 saves. La Cañada now stands at three wins, one tie, and one loss.

La Cañada dominated Village Christian as each goal was scored by different players. Senior Zaki Khan, junior Marc Kaesler, and sophomores Armaan Zare and Filip Franke each contributed. The Spartans took 19 shots against the Crusaders.

Goalie Graham Labran-Boyd had three saves, protecting the Spartans lead over the Crusaders. La Cañada is now at one win, one tie, and zero losses.

La Cañada – 1 Oaks Christian – 2 Photo by Paulina Galoostian

La Cañada – 3 Maranatha – 1

Freshman Juan Carrasquero gets past his defender.

Photo by Paulina Galoostian Senior Zaki Khan sends the ball flying across the field.

In the first game of the Arcadia Winter Classic on December 9, the La Cañada Spartans defeated the Maranatha Minutemen with flair.

Sophomore Armaan Zare scored a goal from 25 yards with his left foot to put the Spartans at a comfortable lead of 3-0. Junior Armand Bagramyan and freshman Juan Carrasquero both scored goals. Freshman goalie Graham Labran-Boyd had five saves. La Cañada stands at two wins, one tie, and no losses and head to the next round of the winter classic.

La Cañada – 2 Ontario – 0

La Cañada – 1 Palmdale – 5 Handing the Spartans their first loss of the year, Palmdale high school defeated La Cañada 5-1 at the Arcadia Winter Classic. 9 shots were targeted at the Palmdale goalie, but only one was able to score. Juan Covrasquero scored the only goal for the Spartans in their loss. Goalies, Tyler Jones and Graham Labran-Boyd combined for 10 saves. Palmdale had 12 shots on target and five goals. La Cañada is now at two wins, one tie, and one loss.

Photo by Paulina Galoostian Senior Jeff Becker steals the ball from the opposing team.

Photo by Paulina Galoostian Senior Carlos Ruano is focused on his next pass.

The Spartans prevailed over the Ontario Tigers in their third game of the Arcadia Winter Classic. The Spartans are now at two wins and one loss in the tournament. Armand Bagramyan was the only scorer in the game as he had two goals. The team took 15 shots and made two goals. Graham LaBran-Boyd had six saves against the Tigers.

La Cañada – 4 Gladstone – 2

Photo by Paulina Galoostian Junior Armand Bagramyan splits through two defenders.

By Michael Belcher Sports Editor

The Spartans will host an alumni game on Friday, December 23 against former team members.

Coming off a win against Burroughs, the La Cañada Spartans visited the famous Thorson Stadium at Oaks Christian high school. In the cold rainy game against the Lions, the Spartans had tough breaks as the Spartans had an own goal, and a very possible save. Armand Bagramyan cracked a shot from 18 yards and split the goalie’s legs for the Spartans’ only goal .The Spartans go into the weekend with three wins, one tie, and two losses.

Photo by Paulina Galoostian Seniors Jeff Becker and Zaki Khan work together to keep the ball away from the opposing team.

Boys’ Varsity Basketball Goes 2-2 in La Cañada Holiday Classic La Cañada: 32 Bonita: 36 La Cañada took a double-digit lead into the locker room, but 16 turnovers let the Bearcats back in it. Bonita shutout the Spartans in the fourth quarter, disappointing the home crowd and Coach Tom Hoffman.

La Cañada: 43 Montclair: 53 La Cañada: 37 Muir: 50 The Spartans looked sloppy from the start, going down 10-0 early.

A lay-up by senior star Buck Miller finally put La Cañada on the board with under two minutes to go in the first quarter. The Mustang lead expanded to 20-45 at the end of three quarters. The Spartans turned the ball over 32 times in the loss. Athletic director Craig Franzen put it best when he said, “This is not typical La Cañada basketball.”

In its last game of the Arcadia Winter Classic, La Cañada defeated the Gladstone high school in a 4-2 victory. Armand Bagramyan scored two goals and Garrett Apel and Filip Franke each scored a goal. Tyler Jones and Graham LaBran-Boyd totaled for three saves as the defense saw little action. At the end of the tournament, the Spartans placed 5th.

Armand Bargramyan leads the team with eight goals and three players tied for second with two goals each.

The Spartans now stand at five wins, one tie, and two losses.

This game went back and fourth for three quarters and neither team could pull away. The Spartans clung to a 2point lead entering the fourth quarter, but gave up 20 points to lose. Senior Connor Boyd led the team with 13 points. Senior Darrel Dansby was not far behind with 12.

La Cañada: 47 Alta Loma: 44 The Spartans edged past Alta Loma in overtime in the first game of the Arroyo Tournament. Senior Connor Boyd led the team with 19 points and 9 rebounds.

La Cañada: 51 Schurr:23 On Tuesday, December 13th, La Cañada rolled Schurr high school. The Spartan defense looked sharp in the rout, holding the Schurr to just 6 points in the first half. The dismantling was a team effort, as eleven members of the varsity team scored. Senior Scott Helbing led the team with 12 assists.

La Cañada: 39 H.H. Wilson: 35 La Cañada took on Wilson in the first game of the season. Senior Darrell Dansby took over for the Spartans, scoring 21 points on 72% shooting. The star also was 3-3 on 3-point shooting.

La Cañada: 59 Arcadia: 45 The Spartans dominated the Appaches in the first game of the Holiday Classic, jumping out to an early 21-12 lead in the first quarter. La Cañada never trailed in the game. Senior Jay Srinivasan led the Spartans in scoring with fifteen points on five 3-pointers.

Senior Connor Boyd had his first double-double of the season, dropping 13 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.

Sports 11

December 21, 2011

An Olympian Walks Among Us Ladies and Gentlemen, LCHS Swimmer Katy Campbell

By Kate Battaglia Spartan Staff

A

La Cañada graduate may compete in the Olympics.

Senior Katy Campbell has recently qualified to compete in the Olympic trials, the first step to the worldwide sporting phenomenon, and has signed a letter of intent to swim for UCLA. Campbell swims on both the La Cañada Varsity team and on Swim Pasadena, participating in the Distance Freestyle races.

“The real beginning was in sixth grade,” Campbell reflected, “when I decided to stop all other sports and focus on swimming for myself, and I went from there.”

Since then, Campbell knew swimming was the path for her. She began extra practices and workouts, dedicating herself entirely to the sport.

The next step was to identify whether she would be a distance swimmer, or a sprinter. But this time, it wasn’t Katy who immediately figured it out.

“My coach once put me in a 500 event, saying, ‘We’re just going to try this,’ and my goggles came off, and it was a really bad race,” she

said with a laugh. While it may not have been ideal, this race revealed her talent for endurance.

“I’m content, and I like my events,” she commented. “I’m really happy swimming for 16 minutes… sometimes,” she joked.

Campbell qualified for the Junior Olympics at age twelve.

She competed in the 500 freestyle, placed in the top five, and made sectional cuts, allowing her to compete in the Junior Olympics. By age thirteen, she had become a senior swimmer.

In order to keep up with the intense demands of competitive swimming, Campbell’s workouts are just as intense.

“Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I’m up at five o’clock, at the pool. Then I swim until seven and go to school, usually smelling like chlorine with wet hair,” she said with a smile.

After school, Campbell does “dry-land” workouts until seven, with a two-hour swim in-between.

For those of you who don’t call the water a second home, “dryland” is a conditioning workout.

On Saturday, Campbell continues her training by having not one but two workouts, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. The dedication Campbell possesses is clearly evident. Even as she was running through her daily schedule, she never displayed a single moment of exhaustion or annoyance at her busy life; she went through each step with a smile.

Somehow, she makes time for

(File Photo/ The Spartan) two different swim teams, Swim Pasadena and the La Cañada High School team. She joined the former after she had switched from Rose Bowl Aquatics freshman year, and the latter when she was finally able to be a member in her first year of high school. She swims long distance for both, and the 200 and 500

for LCHS. Her life after high school was difficult to decide, but she has this mapped out as well.

“I was talking to really great schools and I liked all of them but what it eventually came down to was where I thought I belonged and where my heart was,” Campbell

commented. “I was looking at USC, UCLA, University of Virginia, Texas and Duke.”

In order to decide, Campbell embarked on recruitment trips, where she went to the school for a weekend, saw the campus and met the team. After a lot of debating, Campbell finally decided on UCLA. “Cyndi Gallagher (the head swimming coach at UCLA) is going to be my coach next year, and I’ve just known her for so long, and I’ve always liked her,” Campbell explained. “I really like the girls on the team, and the campus, and the school. It was the right choice for me.”

And now it is possible that we will be seeing Miss Campbell in the next Olympics. During Junior Nationals, Campbell swam an excellent race, but it was two months later when she discovered what that race meant for her. The news first broke to her through a text message congratulating her on trials. Confused, she came home and asked her dad, who appeared oblivious. She then turned to her mom who couldn’t hold her excitement back, and told her she had qualified for the Olympic trials.

“I guess one of them had been checking the website to come out with the time standards because they have to come out two years before, so they checked and I had qualified so my mom went and called all her family,” Campbell laughed again.

“Typical Mom.” It became apparent, even with making the Olympic Trials, she is just as normal as any other teenager, with a mom just as “involved” as the rest of ours.

A few weeks after graduation, Campbell will travel to Nebraska to compete in the semi-finals, and then the finals. If she makes top two in her events, look for Campbell in the Olympics.

Spartan

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By Michael Belcher Backpage Editor

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Correction Box In the last issue, we incorrectly named two students in the Four Play: Rebecca Villapando and Danny Badie. We mismatched their names and pictures. We sincerely apologize for this.

Celebrity Look-a-Like

Mr. Williams

Spartan Advice Column From: Judy Oh my god! I have so many problems with my boyfriend! Like, he wants to take it much fasterphysically- than I do. Like...like, what do I do? I’m like so scared, but I love him!

I hate tennis. ‘nough said. It is boring slow and stupid!

I do not want to play tennis in P.E. ever again. I’d rather hit my head against a brick wall.

Chiever’s Answer:

You should ask yourself why you really hate tennis so much. Did you have a traumatic accident on the courts when you were younger? Get hit in the head with a ball? Try to appreciate the sport.

It is common in teenage relationships that the boy wants to move faster than the girl. If he really loved you, he would respect your wishes and wait until you were ready to take it to the next level. Don’t let yourself be pressured into doing something you don’t want to do.

P.S. You have more ‘likes’ than a good Facebook status. Work on that.

From: Distracted Why are all the girls in our school dressed like they are naked? I can’t stand the mini skirts, crop tops, etc.! Has the dress code lost all meaning? I can’t complete high school with all these naked people.

Please slap some clothes on these people.

Macaulay Culkin

From: Tennis Hater

Chiever’s Answer: First, let me say that most of us guys aren’t complaining. I also wouldn’t recommend “slapping some clothes” on anyone who is naked, since that could get pretty awkward. If you really have a problem with a specific girl, ask to be moved in front of her so you don’t have to look at her outfit. I wish I could help you more, but it is very difficult to change the fashion sense of an entire demographic.

Chiever’s Answer:

From: Shadow There is a girl that I like and we are good friends. How should I proceed and how would you suggest I ask her to winter formal?

Obi-Wan’s Answer: First, you need to make it clear to her that you want to be more than just friends. Girls will continually overlook you as a potential suitor if they only consider you a close friend. However it is possible to change her mind. Being friends with a girl can be helpful if you want to get in a relationship. Chances are she knows you’re a good guy and would be willing to try out a relationship with you. I would advise consulting her friends and letting them know you want to take her to winter formal as more than a friend. Her friends won’t want to spoil the surprise and can help you with ideas on how to ask, and once she is asked they can make it clear to her that you want to go as more than just friends. Make sure you don’t ask last minute, so you aren’t forced to rush and make a subpar proposal or she isn’t swiped by another guy. I would suggest asking her in a way that addresses her personality and interests, and shows that you listen to what she has to say.