January 2015

A BERLIN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT OPEN FORUM SINCE 1924

The

Red ‘n’ Green

VOLUME 47, ISSUE 5

FRIDAY, JANUARY 30, 2015

Studentsjugglemultiplelabsatonce by

Hannah Trochinski

Students having multiple projects going on at the same time is not unusual. However, having more than a single project where one must interact with an animal might be, especially when they both happen before lunch.

Seniors Bryce Dretske and Anna Falk are in both first hour Advanced Genetics and second hour Advanced Biology.

“In Genetics, we are getting mouse chromosomes and breeding fruit flies,” Dretske said. “In biology, we are dissecting sharks.”

The science department has been doing the shark lab for many years.

“We have been doing this lab since 1987,” biology teacher Dave Reich said.

Students in the classes are used to doing labs, but the size of these projects are different.

“In the past we’ve done smaller and shorter labs,” Falk said. “Now, they can last up to seven or eight days and have full lab reports.”

In most science classes, teachers will plan out labs to engage the students.

“Students are interested in hands-on learning,” Reich said.

“Those going on in science are then able to compare the shark to other organisms.”

Despite the daunting challenge of large, complex labs, some students still took the plunge.

“I took the classes to challenge myself,” Falk said. “Science has

Kiersten Williams

Just as the forensics team competes at different schools, they also host their own tournament here at Berlin High School.

“It was our yearly tournament,” Head Coach Cory Willhite said.

“The performances were judged and the students were rewarded for their efforts at a rewards ceremony.”

A tournament for forensics consists of things that do not happen at a regular meet.

“Students will perform against one another in three rounds with one judge per round,” Coach Nicole King said. “Each round has a new mix of students and a different judge.”

The tournament is a way for the students to better themselves for future forensics meets.

“It was a pretty easy tournament so it helped me transition back into the season,” junior Alesha Guenther said.

Issue

- Alumna Erin Grenier travels world pg. 3 - Maintenance staff pg. 4-5 - Winterfest proposals pg. 7

Students, faculty live life in the 80s by

Photo: S. Klawitter Seniors Briann Eagen and Bryce Dretske start dissecting their shark, which they named Wilda. The class started the lab Jan. 15 and finished on Jan. 27. never been an easy subject for me and I know it will only get tougher in college.”

While many students would shy away from this type of task, others embrace it.

“It’s fun because it’s a different kind of learning, but it can be stressful,” Dretske said.

Even though the biology class has and will dissect other animals, this is the first big project.

“The shark is a bigger animal than usual,” Dretske said.

In Advanced Genetics, students are stripping the DNA from mice

to look at the chromosomes.

“With the mouse, we are looking at the chromosome so we are ‘digging deeper,’” Falk said.

As with all hands-on learning, doing something new helps students grasp more difficult concepts.

“There is a lot of learning that comes out of the labs,” Dretske said.

But, working with animals and chemicals has its hazards.

“I was bitten by a mouse in Genetics,” Dretske said. “I also had acid that corrodes your skin drip on me.”

The students are not the only

BHS hosts forensics tournament by

in This

Even though it was a way to practice for the season, preparing for a forensics tournament takes a lot of effort.

“To help students prepare, we look for speaking pieces, distribute binders, listen to practices and provide as much information about each category that they can compete in as possible,” Willhite said.

Forensics can be suitable to those who like a challenge with memorization, public speaking or acting.

“There are several different categories students can choose from, whether it be individual or group,” King said. “Students could be in congress, interpreting and acting categories or speech categories.”

Since they have this choice, students can excel in the categories that interest them the most.

“With the choice, you can become very knowledgeable in your category,” Guenther said. “It is very fitted toward your talents.”

Guenther plans to put this knowl-

edge and practice to use when she tries to qualify for nationals.

“I have been to National Forensics League, National Catholic Forensics League and nationals twice,” Guenther said.

Qualifying for a national meet is something to be proud of, but qualifying for multiple national meets takes it to the next level.

“I hope to qualify for NCFL and nationals again this year,” Guenther said.

Berlin Tournament Participants -Junior Alesha Guenther competed in four minute speech and extemporaneous speaking

-Freshmen Jacklyn Jor-

gensen and Alexandria McClelland competed in group interpretation

ones who can have mishaps in the lab.

“I was almost hit with the fluid from the shark’s eye,” Reich said. “I was walking through the lab and it whizzed right past my shirt.”

Even with all that is required for a major lab, the students say they do not regret accepting the challenge.

“It’s definitely a big challenge,” Falk said. “I almost have to readjust my brain when I leave the lab. It stinks having to be so focused for three hours straight, but I know it’s good to challenge my brain.”

Garrett Steinbrink

The Berlin High School Student Council put on 80s Day on Wednesday, January 14, approximately the 80th day of the 20142015 school year.

This was a day where students, staff and faculty could break away from the 21st century for a few hours and live/relive life nearly three and a half decades ago.

Many teachers, including math teacher Shawn Erb, partook in the festivities.

“I always loved dress-up days while I was in high school, so I imitated early 80s Madonna,” Erb said. “My outfit consisted of leggings, high heeled boots, a tutu, a leather jacket, tons of jewelry and a classic 80s bow. It was tons of fun.”

Some students, like junior Alyssa Rhode who wore her mother’s letterman jacket from 1988, also thought the idea was great and decided to bring out her inner 80s spirit as well.

“I thought it was a great idea to have a single dress up day in the middle of the year,” Rhode said.

“We’ve never had anything like it before. It was a creative way to inch us closer to the Winterfest dress-up days.”

Newsbriefs Junior class fundraiser raises greatly needed funds

For the month of December, the junior class sold chocolate bars to raise money for junior prom. This fundraiser was organized and overseen by advisor Angela Femali.

“I sold five boxes of chocolate bars and I did not even have any myself,” junior Dylan Bortz said.

With contributions from 84 juniors, the amount of money raised came to $2,500.

Academic Decathlon team competes in Stevens Point

Academic Decathlon students traveled to UW-Stevens Point on Jan. 9 and took fifth place in the regional qualifiers.

“The team was completely new to the decathlon. The team all pushed hard and did their best, especially with no experience,” English teacher and advisor Susan Roubidoux said.

Berlin finished in 21st place overall, just outside the top 20 teams who will go to the state championship.

Student competes in video game championship

Junior Nujerry Vang traveled to Los Angeles, California and took third place in a tournament for the game “Call Of Duty: Ghosts.”

“For third place, I won $2,000,” Vang said. “It did not feel like much, but that’s probably because I’ve won a lot already.”

2

Opinion

Friday, January 30, 2015

Editorial Restless students need lighter transition back into daily schedules With a longer than usual winter break and a cold day the following week, many students were feeling disconnected upon returning to school.

80s Day, which was a dress up day to represent the 80th day of school, gave a fun and bright atmosphere for students who had been feeling a little dazed after coming back.

Although this is just a small, fun day, why not have more days like this? We start the year with backto-school assemblies, homecoming, Halloween and then winter break. The entire school is busy for a few months and then everything goes dry.

From winter break to spring break, the days are long and it feels as if the next break will never come. Waiting for spring break to arrive is not the only dreaded time.

Another difficult transition is the week we come back from a break.

To solve this problem, the first day we come back from any break should be a fun day. The transition would ease students back into the

seven-hour schedule. A significant issue is that when students come back, we have dry lectures, a review for a test or an actual test. Maybe the lesson plan could include a fun activity instead.

Having a day to enjoy coming back to school would make it less dreadful for students to return.

Having an easygoing day could even lead to a more energized student body instead of a tired and “whatever” minded school population.

As we all begin the countdown to the next break, senioritis will only grow and the impatience of other students will increase as we all slowly go stir-crazy.

Having a few fun days like dressup days and assemblies where there is student interaction here and there would be a tiny break from all of the stress caused by the many more tests and lessons to come.

Thank you to those clubs, organizations and faculty members who try to spice up our school life occasionally with fun ideas.

Mel’s Memoir:

The Red ‘n’ Green Berlin High School 222 Memorial Drive Berlin, WI 54923 920.361.2000 redandgreen@berlin.k12. wi.us The Red ‘n’ Green is printed monthly by Berlin High School and circulated free to students.

The purpose of the Red ‘n’ Green is to be an open public forum for our staff, students and readers. We want to create close ties between the administration, faculty, students and the Berlin community. We will give readers the opportunity to voice opinions. The Red ‘n’ Green will accept only signed letters to the editor, although names will be withheld upon request. We reserve the right to return letters for corrections before publishing. The staff will not print any material that is libelous, obscene or malicious.

Editorials are unsigned as they reflect the majority opinion of the staff. Editorial topics will be covered in a fair manner. However, controversial topics will be covered.

Subscriptions are available. Please contact the business manager at the above email address or phone number.

Editor-in-Chief: Taylor Greening

Evolution of school dances

Business Manager: Hannah Trochinski

by

Melanie Haedt

The two weeks of square dancing for three years in elementary school never prepared me for middle and high school dances. After my first middle school dance, I realized no one dances the way we were taught.

In middle school, everyone looked forward to the Friday night dances.

Friends would go to each other’s houses after school and get ready for the dance. Girls tried to look their cutest; wore make-up that they did not ever wear to school and wore the flirtiest clothes, like a tank top, even if it was mid-December.

The dancing in middle school is so... awkward. Between dancing in circles when “Chicken Fried” came on, to slow dancing while everyone was staring, or one girl plotting to fight another girl because she stole her lifelong love, the dances are something I hope to not remember forever.

High school dances are much differ-

ent, I cannot emphasize that enough.

Homecoming is a much more laid back dance since we are not forced into fancy outfits, but that just means the dancing can get all the more wild.

The preparation for Winterfest and Prom is much different than for middle school dances. Winterfest and Prom take more than the four hours after school to get ready, talk about two weeks worth of prepping and the day of requires about eight hours of hair, make-up, nails and whatever else is needed to transform into a wanna-be Beyonce.

The dancing in high school is either club-style-all-up-on-each-other or people just standing around, but that is mostly the boys. Most guys think that they are too cool to dance because they will lose their man cards, but some guys actually dance because they know how to have a good time.

One thing I have learned throughout all these dances is to take Lady Gaga’s advice and “just dance, it will be okay.”

Photo: M. Haedt Typical middle school pre-dance ritual, taking selfies before the dance with friends (L-R) myself, Bridget Freimark, Taylor Greening and Melanie Brooks.

Reporters:

Photo: S. Klawitter

Confessions of a

ke a m t Do nochoose disorder geek me

by

Hannah Trochinski

I hate freaking New Year’s resolutions. They blow. I hate them!

The reason I hate them so much is because I am so non-committal. I can be totally in love with my outfit and the second I leave my room, I will question every decision I ever made.

It is really difficult for people in my life, I would assume, because our plans will change 12,000 times before I commit.

Now, these commitment issues were hard to self-diagnose because every article I clicked on was about commitment issues in relationships.

My commitment issues are all day everyday, not just one part of my life.

But, I found that I have active commitment issues. I like to run away (figuratively, of course) from relationships and decisions. It is also associated with social anxiety disorder, which I am pretty sure I now also have.

Furthermore, I learned why I have these issues. I am very afraid of being judged. In my mind, people are con-

stantly talking about me and planning how to embarrass me, which is super irrational because I can do that all by myself.

So, the reason I very rarely make resolutions is because I know that I will change my mind, like cleaning my room more often -- not going to happen. Be more active -- LOL! Travel the world -- I am so broke that I make hobos look like Bill Gates. In short, all of the resolutions I would make are never going to happen, so I will not set impossible standards.

For those who have ever been in a class with me (as a fellow student or as my teacher), it is usually obvious that I want to be doing something other than what we are doing. (Sorry teachers. It is not you, it is me.) I cannot focus on a single task because I am always convinced that something will prevent me from finishing my train of thought.

This also means that one moment I will be, “Yes, today is perfect” and the next I will be, “No, I hate today with a passion.” I might have undiagnosed bipolar disorder as well.

Emily Beltran Melanie Haedt Sierra Klawitter Tyler Ostrowski Natalie Speers Garrett Steinbrink Alyssa Thiel Lindsey Vang Kiersten Williams

Advisor:

Shannon Kuehmichel

Letter to the

Editor

Dear Editor, The doors nearest to the school parking lot should be allowed to stay open during the day. Since students are required to park in the back, it is a hassle for students who have Aspiring Educators or Work Based Learning to walk all the way to the front of the building to get into the school. Also, during the winter it is dangerous for students to be walking around the building to go to the front. I understand the school safety issue, but if students can have a key card or some way of getting into the building, it would be much better.

-Aspiring Educator Katie Becker

Feature

Grenier travels world, chases dreams

Photo Submitted Erin Grenier, ‘12, completed 27 weeks of Naval Intelligence Specialist Training in Virginia Beach, Virginia in June of 2013.

2012 2013 2014 2015

-

Grenier always kept in mind that someone in the world has it worse than she does. She says her problems do not compare to what some others go through.

“In boot camp I really started to find myself because I was cut off from the world,” Grenier said. “I became scared to do stupid things like not crossing my legs.”

Boot camp showed Grenier how important

July: attends boot camp September: Trains in Virginia September: Begins school and begins work in Minnesota June: visits the united Nations January: Studies abroad in south Africa

Students follow path to specialty schools Photo: K. Williams

by

“Beauty is imperfection. I want to make the world more beautiful one client at a time, “ Mikhayla Luttropp said.

Photo: K. Williams “Madison Media Institute has the best and newest equipment, professors that have received awards and I can get everywhere I need,” Corey Viars said.

Seniors Corey Viars and Mikhayla Luttropp’s career choices have led them each to a specialty school.

Viars is headed to Madison Media Institute and Luttropp has decided to go to Aveda in Milwaukee.

After touring MMI, Viars knew it was the best choice for his career path.

“I chose this school because I want to become a movie director,” Viars said. “When I toured it, the staff was extremely friendly and I loved the creative atmosphere.”

Viars wants a career that will allow him to influence people to do positive things.

“The real movers of nations are not politicians, they are people who can influence the mind,” Viars said. “As a movie director I’ll be able to do that.”

At Madison Media Institute, Viars will be able to complete his degree in Video Motion Graphics and Independent Digital Film in two years.

Viars’ decision to become a movie director did not sit well with everyone in his family at first.

“When I decided to become a movie director, my dad told me that it wasn’t a real job,” Viars said. “After much convincing, he realized that this is what I truly want to do and now he

FFA Presents

Hypnotist Jim Wand Feb. 2 at 7:00 in the auditorium Tickets $7 in advance from any FFA member $9 at the door

Alyssa Thiel

fully supports me.”

Luttropp decided to go to Aveda because of its prestige.

“I chose this school because it’s one of the best schools to go to for cosmetology,” Luttropp said. “They are known for teaching you about retail and sales, which most cosmetology schools don’t do.”

While taking classes, Luttropp is excited to meet new people.

“It’s going to be really nice to make new friends who share the same interests as you,” Luttropp said.

Luttropp will be able to complete her degree in cosmetology in nine months and is planning to get a job in Green Bay once she finishes her schooling.

“I’ve always wanted to live there and I believe that there are many opportunities for me there,” Luttropp said.

“My family has been really supportive of me with my decision.”

Counselor Matt Willett believes that these schools will put Viars and Luttropp on the right track to graduate and find a career in a short amount of time.

“The benefit of going to a specialty school is that you are able to get into a specific program for your field of interest immediately,” counselor Matt Willett said. “That way you can be done with schooling quicker and begin your career sooner.”

Dress-u p days

PEP Y ASSEMBL

in the pool

FFA WEEK Feb. 23-27

Student of the

Month

Photo: Eagle Studios

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Alumna Erin Grenier, ‘12, is accomplishing many of her life-long dreams. Grenier attended training to be part of the Navy Reserve and is now attending UW-Milwaukee majoring in Satellite and Overhead Imagery, with a Russian minor.

“I took an untraditional route after graduating and after a month off, I went to boot camp,” Grenier said.

Grenier attended boot camp that began with 80 girls and ended with only 40. She believed it was good for her to get away from her small town.

“The hardest part was getting in the right mind set and overcoming the challenges,” Grenier said. “To overcome them, I thought of my mother who passed away when I was younger. I thought of what she would want me to do.”

-

Emily Beltran

human interaction is. She had to use the other 40 women as her support system.

“Not only did I have the other trainees, but I had my family and friends who wrote to me and encouraged me,” Grenier said.

Erin’s dad, Mike Grenier, is retired from the military and was a huge supporter of her decision.

“I was able to put things into perspective for her. Otherwise, I just listened and told her how proud I am of her,” Grenier said.

After completing boot camp, Grenier lived in Virginia for seven months for job training.

She then came back to Wisconsin and went to school on the GI Bill.

“While attending school, I am also working in Minneapolis as a reservist and I love it,” Grenier said.

Last summer Grenier was able to visit the United Nations and is currently in South Africa studying abroad.

“I am on track to graduate in two years and I would like to end up at the National Geo-Spacial Agency, which is spacial imagery for the government,” Grenier said.

Although she would like to end up at the Spacial Agency, she thinks about going the military route. Grenier will decide once she completes school.

“I took a leap of faith doing this and now I travel the world and love what I do,” Grenier said.

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by

3

Friday, January 30, 2015

Winterfestweek dress-up days

Stacie Klika What have you enjoyed most about high school?

“I have enjoyed sports, student council and meeting new people.”

What subjects are you most interested in?

“Med-term was my favorite.”

What college do you want to attend and what will be your major?

“I am undecided on my college, but I would like to become a physical therapist.”

Tips for high school students: “Get involved and try new things.

Enjoy it because it goes by fast!”

Monday:

Twin Day Tuesday:

Favorite Holiday

Wednesday:

Seasons Day: Freshmen - Spring Sophomore - Fall Junior - Winter Senior - Express yourself Thursday:

Red Carpet Ready Friday:

Tacky Tourist Created by Alyssa Thiel

Photo: Submitted

Cody Sondalle What have you enjoyed most about high school?

“I have enjoyed being involved in sports.”

What subjects are you most interested in?

“I am most interested in math.”

What college do you want to attend and what will be your major?

“I will be attending UW-Madison, and I would like to major in premedicine or engineering.”

Tips for high school students: “Get involved and don’t procrastinate.”

Created by Taylor Greening

Winter Wonderland 2015 Date: Feb. 7 Time:

8 p.m.-12 a.m. $8 in advance $10 at the door

4

In-depth series

Friday, January 30, 2015

Maintenance staff k Schmidt adds warmth, friendliness to BHS atmosphere

by Natalie Speers everything from helping with custodial work to maintenance, along with random odds and The difference between an aver- ends that he attends to. age custodian and an exceptional “I like to keep everything workone can be demonstrated by Head ing as well as we can make it,” Custodian Jeremie Schmidt, who Schmidt said. not only is good at his job, but Maintaining a cheerful mood as takes his positive, joyful attitude a custodian in a high school with with him wherever he goes. approximately 600 students and “The people I work with and ev- staff coming and going at nearly eryone else I see every day helps all times of the day, he expects me keep a positive attitude,” to encounter difficulties almost Schmidt said. “You have to care daily. about what you do.”

“It’s especially hard in the winter Schmidt’s jovial personality with the snow and ice,” Schmidt and tireless performance in the said. “Lots of things seem to just workplace do not go unnoticed break for no reason.” by students and staff, who have Spanish teacher Jody Ziemann nothing but kind things to say recalls a time that Schmidt helped about him. her and her class with their Peru “He (Schmidt) is always will- Trip fundraiser pizza sales. ing to help and go the extra mile “The day before the fundraiser, with a positive attitude,” Spanish Jeremie helped us unload the pizteacher Jairo Granados said. zas down at the middle school,” Schmidt’s many duties include Ziemann said. “The day of the

What is the nastiest mess you have had to clean up?

S

F

a Photo: N. Speers Head Custodian Jeremie Schmidt re-organizes after cleaning the commons one last time before it is ravaged by the high school students during their lunch hour.

“I get to meet a lot of new peosale, he unlocked the middle Despite the less pleasant factors ple,” Schmidt said. “It’s also reschool for us and stayed to close of Schmidt’s daily duties, there warding to see everything workup as well. He does everything are many things about his job ing like it should.” with a very happy attitude.” that he very much enjoys.

“In the boy’s bathroom, a kid had severe diarrhea and threw his underwear in the toilet. Before I could even clean it, I had to take the underwear out. You just have to put on gloves and bags and not look at it,” custodian Sue Luscher said.

“The metals shop in the summer is the hardest mess to clean up,” custodian Jeff Eastberg said.

Cleaned

Washed

Vacuumed

Emptied

24,480

518,400

21,600

54,000

toilets

desks

rooms

garbage bins

“I had an apple on the gym wall that was there for about a day,” custodian John Resop said. “It came off like sandpaper.”

“The boy’s locker room is always nasty,” custodian Dale Schmidt said.

Text and photos by Melanie Haedt

By the Numbers: Dale Schmidt Custodian Dale Schmidt has entered his eighth year working at BHS. Every day that students have school, he estimates that he cleans about 17 toilets, washes about 360 desks, vacuums 15 rooms and empties two to three garbage bins per room. After 180 days every year for eight years, Schmidt will have...

Created by Taylor Greening

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In-depth series

5

Friday, January 30, 2015

keeps BHS spotless

Sanitation District clerk goes above and beyond the expected Stats by

From the U.S. Department of Labor

$12.09:

mean hourly wage of a janitor in the United States. Compare this to the mean hourly wage of a childcare worker, which is $10.33.

42,060:

janitors employed in Wisconsin.

125,930:

janitors employed at schools nationwide.

12%:

job market growth in the custodian work field. This makes for a reliable career in the future!

Created by Tyler Ostrowski

Sierra Klawitter

After taking out the trash, checking on the pool at Clay Lamberton and making sure her hair was picture perfect, Shipping and Receiving Clerk Char LaSure was able to sit back, relax and talk about her typical work day.

“According to the job description, I am a Certified Pool Instructor and the Shipping and Receiving Clerk,” LaSure said. “I’ve been working in the Berlin School District for the past 20 years.”

Before working in the district, LaSure was employed at Ripon Jacket until she began the full-time job as a stay-at-home mom.

“I thought I should get a job once the kids went to school,” LaSure said.

“So, I decided to work where my children were, which was here.”

As with all jobs, there are times when the work day is frustrating.

“The most frustrating part is when the pool doesn’t cooperate,” LaSure said. “When it doesn’t work, I have to

re-calibrate it and it can get extremely frustrating.”

Despite the occasional difficulty, there are rewarding aspects to having such a full work schedule.

“My work is mostly done at Clay,” LaSure said. “The best part of my day is when children come up and thank me for doing such a good job, or for finding things that they’ve lost. It’s helping the little ones that makes this job so enjoyable.”

On an average day, LaSure wakes up between 3:30 and 4 a.m. to clean the Berlin armory for CESA (Cooperative Educational Service Agencies).

LaSure has held this job since before starting work for the school district.

But, despite her early mornings and hectic days, she does not plan on changing careers any time soon.

“I’m happy here,” LaSure said. “If a day gets crazy, just go with the flow and get as much done as you can. It’s rewarding at the end of the day to see how much you’ve done.”

When LaSure is not working, she loves taking care of and spending time with her three grandchildren and going to rummage sales in the summer.

Q& A :

District Clerk Char LaSure sorts and processes mail for the entire school district on a daily basis. On the morning of her interview, she had already taken out the trash, checked on the pool and delivered packages, all before 9 a.m. LaSure says most enjoyable part of her day is helping the elementary school children in whatever way she can.

Keeping the school clean with Buildings and Grounds Director Christian Stemler

Red ‘n’ Green Reporter Lindsey Vang: How is the workload distributed among the custodians?

Buildings and Grounds Director Christian Stemler: Each custodian is given a specific work area, plus they must collaborate for certain events and problems that may come up. We have both part-time and full time custodians. Generally, a full-time custodian works eight and a half hour shifts with (two)15-minute breaks and a half hour lunch.

LV: With the middle school currently being built, have there been any added tasks?

CS: At this time, there is not much extra work for the custodians because of the construction, but there was a lot of extra work last summer for phase one of the project that was at the high school and Clay Lamberton.

There will be a lot of extra work next summer when we move the middle school. The school board, school administrators and myself have had a lot of extra work with meetings and going over specifications to ensure that the new middle school is built correctly.

LV: During the different seasons, are there specific tasks needed for only that season?

CS: Yes, the staff that works indoors will change their roles during the summer, as we thoroughly clean the entire interior of the buildings.

There is also seasonal staff that does all of the outside work like mowing

py Joes - Feb. 26: Ham/Turkey Sandwiches

Photo: S. Klawitter

grass and taking care of the sports facilities.

LV: Where is there a lot of attention and focus towards keeping the school sanitary and clean?

CS: We try to keep all the schools clean and sanitary with the resources we have. Special attention is given to areas that can harbor more germs such as desk tops, food service areas, locker rooms and bathrooms.

LV: What is the hardest part of keeping the school overall clean, neat, organized and sanitary?

CS: In my opinion, it is keeping up with 2,000 people between students and staff that use our buildings and grounds every day, as well as the numerous people from the community that either visit us or use our buildings for different things. During this time of year it is especially difficult, since it is flu season and mud, snow and salt get tracked everywhere.

LV: What are other tasks the custodians do that many people overlook?

CS: What some people do not realize is that the custodians not only clean, but do the extra things that always need doing, such as changing light bulbs, fixing and replacing pencil sharpeners, stocking paper towels and toilet paper, picking up after everyone, opening and closing the building, unlocking and locking the doors, turning on and off all the lights and just fixing anything that may need fixing. It is difficult to name all the different things that the custodial staff is required to do.

6

Friday, January 30, 2015

Roving Reporter: What is something you hope to accomplish on a Tuesday in 2015?

“I want to get the club goin’ up,” senior Stefani Danzeisen said.

Arts & Entertainment

‘The Interview’ worth death threats by

Tyler Ostrowski

Only one movie has been the catalyst for terrorist threats and cyber attacks from the dictatorship of North Korea.

Rightfully so, because “The Interview” is a movie about assassinating the leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un.

Not a documentary. A comedy.

Bravely ignoring the warnings, I traveled to one of the handful of theaters in the state to see it.

From the creative minds of Seth Rogen and James Franco, “The Interview” spins a story about late night talk show host David Skylark (Franco) and his producer

and best friend Aaron Rapoport (Rogen).

The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un (played by Randall Park), is reportedly a big fan of Skylark’s show and has his government set up an internationally televised interview with Skylark, with the intention of showing the world that he is not a leader to mess with.

With Kim Jong-un being a brutal dictator, the CIA orders Skylark and Rapoport to assassinate him.

This obviously leads to many laughs and long, overdone bits revolving around duffel bags.

Much like other comedies by Rogen and Franco, “The Interview” features lots of illegal activity and toilet humor.

Publicradioprovides raw entertainment by “I would eventually like to get eight hours of sleep,” junior Connor Nelson said.

“I want to study and get a really good grade on an assignment,” freshman Jose Omar Gonzalez said.

Sierra Klawitter

In my search for great music, I stumbled across National Public Radio Music; a music fanatic’s go-to place for all things music.

Featured in this highly addictive radio station are intimate video recordings with both well-known and new artists.

These recordings are known as Tiny Desk Concerts.

The invited artist and/or band cram into a tiny, claustrophobia-inducing room filled with an abundance of random things and perform.

The best part about Tiny Desk Concerts is that the musician(s) performs without any vocal aids, such as autotune.

Music produced in a Tiny Desk Concert is raw, unfiltered and allows the listener to not only hear, but view a performance in a private setting.

Another kind of video that NPR publishes are Field Recordings.

My favorite field recording would have to be of the Icelandic band, Of Monsters and Men (pictured below), for their song “Mountain Sound.” The band literally performs on a mountain top.

The other video that I found myself watching repeatedly was a desk concert

by Making Movies. Being an American band that incorporates many traditional Latin instruments, they sing in both Spanish and English.

If one is looking for a new band to listen to, definitely check out NPR. There is always something that appeals to even the pickiest of listeners.

Rating out of 5:

Check out NPR’s videos with: • Of Monsters and Men • Banks • Making Movies • Jon Baptiste

However, it is greatly enhanced this time around, being placed against a political background.

I can understand how prudish types may not enjoy “The Interview,” and I am really glad that I am not one of those types.

If one feels comfortable throwing themselves into the way of terrorist attacks, “The Interview” is a treat.

But, if life is truly precious, “The Interview” is also a treat. It would not be wise to pass up this opportunity.

I did my duty as an American and stood up to the terrorists by watching a movie they did not want me to; I suggest everyone does the same.

Photo: Sony Pictures The Korean text reads“Do not trust these ignorant Americans!”

Rating out of 5:

Parking lot disasters

Photo: K. Williams

Students’ “almost” disasters in the parking lot The snowy conditions in the parking lot caused students to lose traction and have near misses with other cars.

“I had to pull into a stall in between a van and a car and I kept sliding so I just couldn’t park there,” junior Haley Polakowski said. “I was so mad because I had to find a different spot to park.”

Students not only have to worry about their own driving, but all of the other drivers in the parking lot.

“To leave school and still have my sanity intact,” social studies teacher Jennifer Leahy said.

Text and photos by Garrett Steinbrink

“One truck was turning out of the parking lot and started to slide,” junior Jacob Caswell said. “They almost hit me so I started to honk my horn.”

Photo: www.npr.org

Text by Kiersten Williams

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Arts & Entertainment What is your winterfest proposal style?

Straight Forward

Scaredy cat

“FTL: Faster Than Light” takes players to space, skips time by

People who:

People who:

- Get right to the point without any hesitation or thought.

- Do not have a problem with walking up and asking the person.

- Are too scared to ask in person and get turned down.

- Ask over social media, through a friend, or a text message.

extravagant

Sweet and simple

People who:

People who:

- Make a huge dramatic scene for the whole school to see.

- Spend countless hours thinking of something spectacular.

Created by Emily Beltran

- Make it special without going over the top.

- Ask in a way that gets the “aw” effect. It is cute, but not over dramatic.

Friday, January 30, 2015

Tyler Ostrowski

Space: the final frontier. The last resort.

The end. That is how most sci-fi movies depict it. Humans must escape into space because we have destroyed the planet, or the planet is destroying us.

Video games expose a different story.

Many take a “Star Trek” approach, where sectors of space are divided between the good guys, the bad guys and the guys that just do not care if they die.

“Faster Than Light” takes that exact approach and pumps joy, fear and pure excitement into the formula.

The player is tasked with delivering information to “The Federation,” who is at war against an anarchist rebel army.

Unfortunately, the allies are several galaxies away.

Even worse, the player is completely unequipped to deal with space’s hostilities, given just a basic spaceship and basic knowledge of what they are facing.

This is where “FTL” is special.

The spaceship (which can be named whatever one wants. I prefer the name “Raymond”.) is equipped with a “Faster Than Light drive,” giving it the standard ability to warp around the map. Speaking of maps, all of them are random.

Photo: T. Ostrowski Every game starts out with a new galaxy and a new line of progression to get to the allies. While enemy encounters have minimal differences, no two stories are the same.

This is why I just cannot stop playing “FTL,” because the game itself does not stop.

The main point of the game, I guess, is to upgrade the ship while moving across space in order to defeat the Rebel’s flagship, appropriately called “The Flagship.”

I say “guess,” because I have not been able to do it. The game is unforgivingly difficult. It frustrates me, only because I know that I have the ability to finish it.

So I blame the game, not the player. I blame the luck of the draw on the creation of every new game.

All 65 of them.

Rating out of 5:

Food-lover undercover:

Cracker Barrel disappoints home-cooked expectations by

overall impression I got upon tak-

Natalie Speers ing my first bite.

Of all the famous diner-style restaurants claiming home-cooked food, Cracker Barrel takes the cake for most disappointing.

I seem to have a bad habit of eating at famous restaurants after I have already eaten enough food for two people, which is why when I decided to try Cracker Barrel’s cuisine during a recent trip to Alpharetta, Georgia, I ordered off of the southern-style kid’s menu.

When I imagine fresh-steamed broccoli, I usually picture a green vegetable with a little bit of crunch and decent broccoli flavor. I am not sure if this broccoli had been dehydrated and then pumped full of stale water or not, but that is the

The chicken was tasty, but not much can be said about it. It was simply your average grilled chicken tenderloin. I have nothing more to say on its behalf.

The roll, which was sourdough cornbread, was quite horrifying to say the least. My taste buds instantly revolted against the soursweet flavor and I had to find the nearest available napkin to get the atrocity out of my mouth.

I realize my mistakes in my judgement of Cracker Barrel’s cooking, given the fact that I did not order a specialty and also happen to be one of the very few people that dislike their sourdough cornbread.

On a better note, Cracker Bar-

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Photo: N. Speers Awretchedsourdoughrollaccompaniesboringgrilledchickentenderloin with a bowl of abused broccoli. rel’s traditional country store (all Cracker Barrel restaurants have one next to the dining rooms) was warm, cozy and smelled like Christmas. After meandering thoughtfully through the displays,

I came to the brilliant conclusion to never again judge a restaurant by its kid’s menu.

Rating out of 5:

7

You said it, We write it

In Advanced Biology, biology teacher Dave Reich explained why he thinks chocolate improves a person’s mood.

“Coming from someone who’s been dumped on major holidays, chocolate does make you feel better,” Reich said.

“Seriously?” senior Briann Eagan said. “On holidays?”

“Yep,” Reich said.

“Christmas, New Years, Flag Day... Arbor Day in ‘81 was rough.”

In Advanced Biology, senior Josh Mack said, “Hippos are like the horses of the river.”

In General Psychology, history teacher Andrew Kasuboski was explaining how smell can trigger memory.

“Ohhh, I remember your face...I just can’t place it...Just give me a minute,” senior Kiernan Nos said before taking a big sniff.

“Oh, yeah, Bill!”

In Drawing and Painting, junior Fallon Goetsch said to senior Andrea Chier, “Andrea, remember swimming with the wild beasts?” Goetsch said (referring to swimming with manatees during the Florida Science Club trip in the spring of 2013).

8

Sports

Friday, January 30, 2015

Boys swim combines schools, cooperates for wins by

Melanie Haedt

The boys swim team consists of six boys: three from Berlin High School and three from Green Lake High School. Green Lake has been swimming with BHS since 1995.

“Green Lake does not have a pool and we are the closest school, so they come to Berlin,” Athletic Director Joe Brandl said.

Green Lake students are responsible for finding their own transportation to and from Green Lake. GLHS also gets out of school later than Berlin, so they arrive to practice at a later time.

“I drive myself there, but before I had my license either my parents did or friends did,” Green Lake High School swimmer Andre Dosogne said.

Since the boys swim season is in the winter, sometimes weather conditions can affect attendance for practice.

“There normally aren’t many problems commuting because the guys communicate pretty

Photo: EDGE Photography Senior Jackson Aton swims the 100-meter breaststroke at the dual meet against Oshkosh West. Aton hopes to go to state in the 100-meter breaststroke. well, but if the weather or roads are too bad, we won’t drive to Berlin,” Green Lake High School swimmer William Kelly said.

Running a combined team requires more communication between the athletic directors.

“I have to stay in contact with

their athletic director regarding code violations and their grades to determine if they can swim or not,” Brandl said.

Having Green Lake swim with Berlin also has great benefits including a larger team roster and a chance for students to cooper-

Sportsbriefs

Boys basketball sees big improvement in a year Coming out of a 1-21 record in the 2013-2014 season, the boys basketball team has turned things around this season and are 5-10 as of Jan. 28.

“We have grown as a team immensely,” Captain Erich Mueller said. “Our record may not show that yet, but we are playing so much better than last year.”

some boys that podiumed.

“I anticipate that Jackson Aton will make it to state in the 100 breaststroke and the 200 freestyle,” Clewien said.

Their next meet is tomorrow at Small School State in Shorewood at 1 p.m.

Thiel’s Thoughts: Focus on sportsmanship

Grapplers nearing end of regular season The wrestling team had a rough year in conference action, with an overall record of 2-6 as of Jan 28. However, the team remains positive looking forward to regionals.

“It is tough to compete with teams who are so much bigger than we are,” Captain David Miracle said. “But, we have a few guys who have a great chance of making it pretty far after the regular season is over.”

ate and increase their chances of winning.

“Even though we are a small team, we can still make some noise at the meets,” Coach Bill Clewien said.

At the annual Cedarburg Invite, the team placed 10 out of 16, with

by

Alyssa Thiel

Every school has them. The rude and obnoxious fans who do not know how to filter their mouths.

They show poor sportsmanship, which reflects on our whole student body, making our school look bad to the rest of the people there. Good sportsmanship amongst the fans is key to making any athletic event enjoyable for all.

At athletic events, we are allowed the right to express ourselves by

dressing up in crazy themes and chanting funny cheers. This does not give us the right to curse or boo the referees, players or coaches. All cheers should be kept appropriate, especially the ones we yell towards the opposing school’s fan section. The best comeback is to be the better person, even if the referee made a bad call. We are all human and everyone makes mistakes.

Not only do inappropriate cheers and booing qualify as bad sportsmanship, but so does simply not supporting the team. By bailing on a team when they are

down by 20 going into the last quarter is being disrespectful.

Those who show bad sportsmanship will regret it. Sooner or later, Mr. Brandl will start walking towards the crowd and that person with the duck call will wish they had never brought it to the game.

Continuous bad acts of sportsmanship can ruin the fun of these events. Athletic events are supposed to have a positive atmosphere. Poor sportsmanship does no good. It just puts people down, making things embarrassing for everyone else.

Dance team looking forward to future performances by

Photo: EDGE Photography The dance team completes their pom routine “Emergency” at their second performance of the season on Dec. 23.

Taylor Greening

With several weeks of practice in, the dance team continues to choreograph and perfect their routines for upcoming performances.

“We have already performed a couple times and both times went really well and pretty smoothly overall,” freshman Jacklyn Jorgensen said.

Although the girls have already practiced for weeks, they say that there are always things to work on.

“At practice, we are still working on techniques, flexibility and the overall routines,” sophomore Megan Sobieski said. “It’s especially nice to see how much our flexibility has improved throughout the

course of the season.”

Aside from performing to entertain the crowd, the girls get their own personal satisfaction out of performing as well.

“It’s really fun going out there to perform because we get the chance to show people what we have been working on and how much we have improved,” sophomore Jasmine Boe said.

Nerves are also a factor when going out to perform in front of both parents and students.

“I always get really nervous going out to perform in front of everyone, but it’s also exciting and when we are done it feels really good,” Jorgensen said.

The next performance is on Feb. 5 at the girls basketball game against Winneconne.