December Issue 2009

The Review

FIRST CLASS U.S. Postage PAID Houston, TX Permit No. 9081

The Official Student Newspaper of St. John’s School Vol. 61, Issue 5

|| 2401 Claremont Lane; Houston, TX 77019 ||

December 2009

Mark Desjardins tabbed as next headmaster

By ALLEGRA FRADKIN

Photo courtesy of Mark Desjardins

Mr. Desjardins with sons Lucas and Elias at a Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Mr. Desjardins will be the seventh headmaster to lead SJS.

Beginning July 1, 2010, Dr. Mark Desjardins will become the seventh Headmaster of SJS. Dr. Desjardins has taught coached and performed administrative duties at The Hotchkiss School in Connecticut and Cushing Academy in Massachusetts. He has served as Headmaster at Texas Military Institute in San Antonio, TX and at Holland Hall in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Desjardins has done a lot of moving around but said he hopes SJS will be his last stop.

“In my heart I’m a Texan, so I’m very excited to be coming back home,” the Austin native said.

Even with his sense of rootedness in the Lone Star State, Dr. Desjardins said he enjoys broadening his horizons through travel. Whether he is vacationing on Florida beaches or exploring foreign countries, his fervent interest in globetrotting is apparent, so it comes as no surprise that he employs a similar curiosity when it comes

to education. “Experiencing so many schools and environments has allowed me to be like a social and cultural anthropologist. Every place I go, I learn new things and create new experiences. Each school represents a unique country with its rituals, customs and traditions,” Dr. Desjardins said.

An East Asian Studies major, Dr. Desjardins honed his understanding of cultures and history at Bates College in Maine.

A seminar on Cultural Revolution in China taught by an inspiring teacher influenced him to pursue the interdisciplinary major, a compilation of religion, philosophy and history.

“I had a wonderful, outstanding teacher who pushed me intellectually and challenged me to think outside the box,” he said.

Dr. Desjardins has recognized a similar passion for education in faculty members at the schools where he has worked and said he understands the importance of what these teachers have to say.

“Some deeply committed and

passionate faculty members at Holland Hall believed the AP curriculum was stymieing their ability to engage with students in a meaningful way. They made a very compelling case,” Dr. Desjardins said. “Most of the best ideas don’t come from my head but already exist within the community. One of my jobs is to encourage honest debate, discussion and dialogue and come to a consensus about the direction we want to go in.”

“When I sensed that this particular Holland Hall faculty was just so fired up about moving in this direction and committed to doing something so unique and different, I wanted to do whatever I could to make it happen for them,” he said.

Holland Hall now has five AP courses instead of 18. Dr. Desjardins has also changed the mission statement of the school to incorporate different types of intellectual outcomes and emphasize the importance of academic curiosity.

“We don’t want to just reward students who memorize

See HEADMASTER page 4

Girls cross-country, volleyball win SPC

By BHAGWAT KUMAR and SHEILA NEWAR As Mary Ashley Boles (‘10) hit home the final point of the championship match, she burst into tears. After years of injury and falling just short, her wait was over.

Meanwhile, cross-country captain Meredith Gamble (‘10) crossed the finish in secondplace, and watched her team one-by-one help bring home the trophy. Five placed in the top 25.

This fall season was a successful one for the two stars respective sports, with volleyball and cross-country winning SPC Championships.

Though they are among the most decorated team in SJS athletics, it has been a long six years since girls cross-country has brought home a trophy.

Thanks in large part to a silver finish by Captain Meredith Gamble (’10) and a fifth-place performance by Anne Johnson (’12), the wait has ended.

The 2009 girls team took home the trophy by beating their closest competitor, St. Stephen’s, topping their topfive cumulative place total by five points.

Index News...........................2 Features.....................5 Beyond SJS.................8 Photo Spread...........12 Sports......................14 Opinions...................17 A&E.........................21

Photo courtesy of Bob Gamble

Hicks, Gamble and Patterson with the first place trophy.

The championship volleyball team after the championship game.

“I am delighted by the team’s results. We pushed ourselves all season and we finally achieved our goal,” Gamble said.

The team was led by captains Gamble, Sara Patterson (‘10) and Mackenzie Hicks (‘10) as well as their coaches Katherine Van Wie and Rachel Skinner.

The team received contributions from many of its mem-

Reed all about it!

Check out Mark Reed’s new life as Headmaster of Charlotte Country Day School in North Carolina. page 8

bers.

The Mavericks’ top-five was rounded out by Patterson, Nicole Gras (’11) and Jacqueline Dickey (’13), who finished fifteenth, 22nd and 24th, respectively.

According to team members, a large part of the team’s success was the camaraderie and bonds formed during the course of the long, grueling season.

Photo courtesy of Lindsay Paterson

“I have never been on such a close-knit, encouraging and hard-working team,” Gras said.

To prepare for the rigorous competitions in the conference the Mavericks had intense, focused practices, many of which were scheduled before school at 5 a.m. These practices were in addition to time spent after school in the SJS weight room and long-distance runs off-

Not just another distraction Read about some of the strange objects teachers keep in their classrooms. page 6

campus near the bayou and throughout River Oaks.

Though difficult, the time was well spent and was an integral part in the championship equation, the team said.

“Our place at SPC just demonstrated how hard we worked and how much effort we put into running the final meet,” Gras said. “Failure was not an option for us.”

See SPC on p. 14

Restaurants Reviewed Staff writer Megan Rech gives her take on Tiny Boxwoods and Crescent City Beignets. page 23

news

2

The Review

December 2009

Freshmen bond at second annual retreat

By ANDREW VOGELEY

Photo courtesy of Pat Reynolds

A group of freshman boys pose together on the hill overlooking the lake at Camp Cho-Yeh. The freshmen spent three days bonding with their peers here.

The freshman class and thirty Senior Peer Leaders recently spent three days bonding as a class at their freshman retreat held at Camp Cho-Yeh in Livingston, Texas.

After attending a full day of classes on Thursday, the class of 2013 left for ChoYeh at 3:30 in buses. The buses were divided according to gender because the boys’ cabins were considerably further from the girls’ cabins. “I think it will be a great time with a lot of quality bonding,” Henry Shepherd (’13) said.

The retreat, organized by Upper School English teachers Angela Flowers and Rachel Weissenstein, was designed to promote bonding and unity within the freshman class. The retreat motto for this year was “Creative and Connected.”

After arriving at Camp Cho-Yeh, the class viewed a video featuring photos of their peers and then listened to motivational guest speaker Tim Piccirillo.

Mr. Piccirillo talked about overcoming Tourette’s Syndrome and unlocking one’s potential while performing several sleight-of-hand magic tricks incorporating volunteers from the audience. “[Mr. Piccirillo] was really funny and connected with the crowd. He kept me intersested the whole time,” Meredith Lawrence (‘13) said. After the speech, the students were invited to an optional screening of School of Rock.

The next day the class broke into small groups. The small groups rotated through different activities including kayaking, basketball and low ROPES courses that were hosted by the Camp Cho-Yeh staff throughout the day.

After the activities, the freshmen gathered in the main dining hall and participated in making a decoupage wall hanging that will be displayed in the school next year. The freshmen found pictures that appealed to them in magazines and cut them out to paper mache onto a board of cardstock. “I think the collage was a fun art project. I think it’s hard to put together something that is supposed to represent your class in less than an hour though. The funniest things I saw were all of the math and science equa-

tions that people cut out because we go to St. John’s. I mean it’s kind of true, but very stereotypical,” Peer Leader Mackenzie Hicks (‘10) said in an email.

Hicks also said that the peer leaders mostly supervised and then cut out pictures at the end to fill in all of the blank spaces. “We did put thought into what we cut out though, it was just rushed,” Hicks said.

Friday night was packed with entertainment. After dinner, a talent show took place with acts ranging from a comedy skit about waking up in the morning to a dance by the female peer leaders to Aaron Carter’s “Aaron’s Party (Come Get It)”. However, the talent show was marred by controversy because administrators found some of the acts inappropriate.

Despite the controversy, the talent show was a success among the freshmen. “It was pretty fun. Nathan Avery, Jonathan Newar, Matthew Reasoner and Matthew Ainbinder was my favorite talent show act ,” Steven Lukens (‘13) said of the freshman act.

“The Ben Griffin, Walt Baker, Jake Askew and Horowitz memory skit was my favorite,” Ethan Gaitz (‘13) said of another freshman act. After the show, Photo courtesy of Pat Reynolds the class watched the animated Disney The Pink Team participates in a low ropes team-building exercise. film, Up. Saturday was much more laid back They said they based the retreat orga- retreat.

Peer leaders supervised students in the since students had the option to at- nizing off their primary goal: “We really wanted to bring the class together and cabins, which proved to be an excellent tempt the high ropes course or simply [to ensure] that kids had an opportunity bonding time for both peer leaders and hang out. The ropes course consisted to get know each other and make differfreshman.

“I thought the retreat was a of a rock wall climb followed by a zip ent sets of friends,” Ms. Flowers said. great experience for both the freshmen line that touched down by the lake. The Counselor Pat Reynolds and the seand the peer leaders.

I really enjoyed class said goodbye to Camp Cho-Yeh at nior peer leaders also played a major role meeting the freshman class and helping lunchtime, boarding the bus with sack lunches provided by the Camp Cho-Yeh in the retreat. One or two peer leaders them transition into the Upper School,” were in charge of each small group and Peer Leader Jacob Halevy (‘10) said via staff.

Months of hard work went into plan- accompanied them on their activities email.

Overall, the freshman retreat offered ning the retreat. Ms. Weissenstein and throughout the day. “The peer leaders were the ones who were with the freshthe class of 2013 a break from the grind Ms. Flowers, who organized the retreat men the whole time,” Ms. Flowers said. of school and a chance to knock down last year, said that the pressure to plan The peer leaders were selected at the some social boundaries and bond tothe first freshman retreat was high. “We beginning of the year after an intengether as a class.

“Freshman retreat was both felt that if [the retreat] wasn’t a huge success, it might have been the sive application process. Ms. Reynolds a lot of fun. Nothing can be done to imfirst and last freshmen retreat,” Ms. trained them soon after. “They do a six prove it,” Gaitz said. hour, pretty standard training on eth“The freshman retreat was unforgetWeissenstein said. ics, and inclusivity,” Ms. Reynolds said. table,” Haishat Alli (‘13) said.

Not having anything to go on from Ms. Reynolds also put together the slide previous trips proved to be challenging. show presented on the first night of the

news

3

December 2009

Break-ins prompt examination of campus security

By ALLEGRA FRADKIN There is no clear explanation for the recent increase in thefts at SJS, but one possibility is student carelessness.

“Being a criminal is only half the equation. The other half is opportunity,” North Campus Ambassador Carlos Veyna said.

He and Riverdale police officers Bryan Ortiz and Carlos Mendez offered students an obvious but often overlooked piece of advice: hide your valuables.

Between the St. Luke’s parking lot incident and the recent boys locker room break-in, 10 items, including cell phones, iPods and cash, have been stolen within the past month.

Damages have included two smashed windows. The perpetrators remain unidentified.

On Friday, Nov. 13 between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m., the SJS housekeeping staff saw a suspicious-looking group of people leaving the boys locker room and walking toward the track and decided to call the police.

By the time the officers arrived, the thieves had already hopped the fence and were running in the direction of Lamar High School’s gym. The police questioned some Lamar student witnesses, but no one was able to identify the offend-

POOJA SALHOTRA | The Review

Students’ leaving valuables out in the locker rooms makes it easy for thieves to steal. ers. No Lamar security officials or coaches were present at the time of the break-in.

Officer Ortiz said that there is no way to fully secure the locker rooms because they must remain unlocked so students can go in and out to get jerseys and other belongings. However, he suggested students either bring valuables into the gym with

them during practices to maintain constant surveillance over them or leave the possessions in locked vehicles instead of in the locker room.

The locked vehicle idea, however, does not offer complete safety from theft, as two cars have been broken into in the past month. However, both cars did have visible iPods and

therefore were attractive targets to the offender. Officer Ortiz said that keeping valuables hidden is essential.

Officer Mendez said he has observed that, even following the St. Luke’s break-ins, students continue to leave their vehicles unlocked, practically inviting burglaries. He said he believes students need to ac-

cept responsibility and take the initiative when it comes to campus security. Officer Ortiz has been checking student cars to see if they are locked and locating the owners of the unlocked vehicles to warn them of potential dangers.

Both officers are still working to assess the situation, addressing security infractions of the past while also preventing future break-ins. Mr. Veyna stressed the importance of being aware of surroundings and not being unintentionally negligent to possible threats.

It seems that, due to this series of break-ins and thefts, the general attitude toward security at SJS is changing.

Because of the recent thefts, it seems that SJS students are becoming more aware of their environment. “People should be more aware of their surroundings and belongings. Because of the recent breaches of security, I now ensure my car is locked by waiting to hear the beep after I push the lock button on my key.” Scott Wise (‘11) said.

“People should carry valuable belongings with them if they don’t want them to get stolen instead of leaving things in unmonitored areas like cars and locker rooms.” Jenna Lindley (’10) said.

Class Community Service projects in the works

By BRADEN DOYLE The holidays are not only an enjoyable part of the year, but they also provide numerous community service opportunities. SJS is coming up on three major community service projects to help those less fortunate have a good holiday season.

BE A Resource or BEAR, is an annual holiday drive in which the Upper School participates. SJS teams with Child Protective Services to provide abused or neglected children with gifts and an enjoyable Christmas. The drive ended on Dec. 8, and later this week, SAC will drive the gifts to the BEAR Headquarters.

The purpose of the BEAR projects is “to give these toys to kids who otherwise wouldn’t have them for Christmas,” Head Prefect Frank Mace (‘10) said.

Each Upper School advisory was assigned a few children to sponsor. This year SJS is sponsoring 188 children whose ages range from one to eighteen years old. The advisories receive a card that has information about the children. such as their name, age, race, gender and clothing size. Each advisory member will then get a gift for the child. Each child will give a wish list that contains three wishes. The advisory will try to fulfill as many of the child’s wishes as they can.

The gifts shall be packaged in a garbage bag, unwrapped, with the child’s name card on his/her gift. Allie Robinson (‘13) said, “We are putting smiles on the faces of many kids.”

The BEAR organization has been active in the Houston Area for ten years.

Last year, BEAR was able to provide 15,000 gifts to 5,000 children or more during the Christmas season. BEAR is one of 70 such services in Texas.

The sophomore class project is slightly different from the BEAR drive, but strives to achieve the same goal. The sophmores are participating in the “Warm and Wooly” clothing drive.

Warm and Wooly is a project in which gently-used clothes, blankets, pillows and bedding are collected and donated to Service of the Emergency Aid Resource Center for the Homeless.

SEARCH was founded in 1989 and relies

on outside donations and government grants. SEARCH’s goal is to get men and women off the streets in Houston by providing them with necessities, housing, and help to find a job. The organization also helps with child care, medical support and education.

The drive was open to all Upper School students, not just sophmores.

The donated materials are then taken by the sophmores to SEARCH. This drive ended officialy on Nov. 19, but materials will still be accepted and delivered to SEARCH. This is the first year SJS has participated in the “Warm and Wooly” drive, even though SJS has done projects very much like this in the past. Upper School Community Service Coordinator Marci Bahr said, “SEARCH is a wonderful organization and we want to support them as much as we can.”

Elves and More was founded as a way to give children bikes when their family cannot afford one. Since then the project has grown considerably, and this year the SJS Juniors will be helping with the project.

This is the fifth year the Juniors have participated in the Elves and More project. The Juniors go to Dec. 17, after their last midterm, from 1pm until 5pm to provide manual labor for the organization. The project was organized by two SJS mothers, Lynda Irvine, mother of William Irvine (‘11), and Sharon Plon, mother of Claire Nuchtern (‘11). Dr. Plon said “It is real physical labor they need, they need people to build the bikes and we thought that the students would enjoy putting them together and to provide that.”

Dr. Plon said that many of the bikes will have alreasy been built, so the juniors will do a lot of staging. The staging process involves riding the bikes across Reliant Center to a truck and preparing the bike to be loaded on to the correct truck. Another reason for deciding to participate in Elves and More was because, “It is a project that helps children in communities across Houston…which is a good purpose for the Junior Class project,” Dr.Plon said. Cody Rapp (‘10) participated in and was one of the chairs of the Elves and More Project last year

as a junior and said, “I had a great experience at Elves and More. We built tons of bikes and it was a really fun project and I know it is going to help a lot of kids.”

Elves and More is an organization founded in 2000 by David Moore. The purpose of the foundation is to keep children out of trouble and in school.

The organization has gradually grown since then and the project is now located in the Reliant Center. Each year they are able to give 25,000 children bikes during the holiday season. The bikes

are assembled every year by volunteers and then distributed to the schools. The children who receive bikes have to sign a contract with the school. In order to be awarded a bike they have to meet certain criteria pertaining to their dedication in school.

Ms. Bahr praised all the community service projects, “The season of giving is a great time to reflect and make plans for the future. We have such a blessed existence. It’s been said, ‘To whom much is given, much is expected’,” Ms. Bahr said.

4

December 2009

news

JSA debates international issues at fall convention

By STEPHANIE GUO ___The Junior States of America Fall State Convention took place on Nov. 21 and 22, from Saturday morning until Sunday afternoon. This convention was the first of three conventions held each year. The fall and winter conventions just build up to the spring convention, when all of the schools have a mock Congress.

Robby Cowell (’10), the president of JSA, said that the conventions are completely student-run events. This year’s “governor”, the organizer of the conventions, is St. Mary’s Hall Senior Claire Goodrich.

Cowell said that Goodrich organizes most of the conventions, handling all of the speakers, sponsors and hotel bookings.

Cowell also said that the students that are leaders of JSA at their schools are involved in different parts of the convention. Cowell is in charge of the Photo courtesy of Madeleine Wareing quiz bowl.

At the Fall State convention Chris Letsou (‘10), Katie Burdine (‘12) and Tommy Cowell (‘13) pose during a JSA lecture. in Austin, JSA and other political clubs from different schools resentatives lecture and talk Congress to vote for their bills. such as the debates of public simulate a real political con- about multiple political issues. If the bills are passed, then they option as a part of health care vention. Cowell said that they Afterwards, the students dis- go on to be permanently re- reform, Sarah Palin’s worth to debate political issues, listen to cuss and debate solutions to the corded in the JSA constitution. the Republican Party, how to Cowell explained that the con- proceed in the war on terror different speakers involved in issues. Different JSA members propose and sponsor bills that vention is divided into periods and the status of Tibet. politics, and propose bills and are advocated for during the in which there are different deIn the beginning of the conlegislation. mock Congress in the spring. bates and discussions about povention there is an opening asCowell said that different speakers such as Texas rep- The sponsors try to convince litical issues. Cowell said there sembly and at the end there is the other members of the mock were many interesting topics, a closing assembly. On Satur-

day night there were evening activities, such as a dance and the quiz bowl, in which the SJS team placed second.

The sponsors of JSA are Upper School history teachers Stephen Popp and Matei Costinescu.

According to Mr. Costinescu, Mr. Popp handled the “preconvention details, in terms of what the school needed to do” and Mr. Costinescu handled during-the-convention details, in terms of “getting there and chaperoning the students while on the trip”. Coach Isis BarronHutchinson, although not a JSA sponsor, also helped transport students to and from Austin during the trip.

Although Mr. Popp was unable to attend the convention, he said that he worked with Upper School Administration Assistant Rebecca Jay with depositing checks, submitting checks, and other registrationrelated organizing.

Mr. Costinescu said that the topic of the convention this year was ‘Assessing America’s Influence’. He said that the students at the convention debated different aspects of the state of the US at the beginning of the 21st century domestic policies.

Mr. Costinescu said that the convention was successful and that it was a good experience for students. “They seemed happy,” Mr. Costinescu said.

HEADMASTER cont. from p. 1 facts. We want to recognize kids who have a robust thirst for knowledge and want to whittle down an issue because it’s meaningful and important to them, not necessarily because they want to get an A in the class,” he said.

“When a discussion about the ideal Holland Hall student arose, we addressed the Saint Lucian notion that to whom much is given, much is expected. It’s the idea of going beyond yourself and using your gifts, qualities and attributes to make the people and community around you better. We changed our mission statement to encapture the idea of social responsibility and the increasing importance of intellectual curiosity,” Dr. Desjardins said.

Dr. Desjardins defines his outlook on education with a favorite adage: The “I will” is more important than the IQ. “Hard work, integrity, perseverance, discipline and character are all incredibly important, much more so than SAT or AP scores. Education is a combination of the mind, the body and the spirit,” he said.

The new headmaster describes himself as “old school but in new school clothing,” meaning he emphasizes traditional education but is open to innovation.

“I’m a traditionalist in the sense that I believe very strongly that a great education creates habits of mind that will develop in your 13 years at SJS and ultimately carry you into adulthood. SJS gives students the opportunity to shape their values in a meaningful way that isn’t achieved in college or business school,” Dr. Desjardins said. “However, the means of achieving these values can be

nontraditional.”

Dr. Desjardins said he believes the best schools set high expectations for students, especially in the classroom, but also offer a range of opportunities and experiences for students to grow, whether it’s athletics, community service or fine arts.

“The challenge at a place like St. John’s, where you have motivated, engaged, interested students who want to do it all, is teaching students to say ‘no.’ You can’t always do it all.

Knowing how much you can handle as an important part of the educational experience,” he said.

In addition to changing Holland Hall’s mission statement and AP curriculum, Dr. Desjardins has made some adjustments to the school’s college counseling program, including additional college counselors and an SAT prep course.

“We want kids to get away from the idea that there are 20 to 25 right schools and help them to find the best place to use their talents and be engaged in a way that is meaningful and successful for them,” Dr. Desjardins said.

As far as making similar changes at SJS, Dr. Desjardins said he wants to start by just getting acquainted.

“I like to joke that on day one, when I open up the desk drawer of the headmaster’s office, there’s a guide to being a head of school, and it says ‘don’t change anything or you’ll be in trouble.’ In the first year or two, I just want to get to know the St. John’s community from as many points of view as I can.

I promise to be open and accessible. I want to be a student at St. John’s and learn from students, faculty and alums. I

want to find out how we can make the St. John’s experience even better than it already is,” he said.

“It’s hard as an outsider to walk in and, in a brief amount of time, understand the complexity of a school’s culture. St. John’s will be the fifth school I’ll be affiliated with, and I will try as hard as I can to understand the importance of the traditions and rituals and not to change them. In the schools that I’ve led, I’ve created new traditions and new experiences,” he said.

Dr. Desjardins said he has always been extremely impressed with St. John’s. A friend of Mr. Allman’s, he has heard stories for the past 15 years about the wonderful students and faculty at SJS. “I’ve always shared the belief in the level of academic excellence St. John’s aspires to.

I believe very strongly in the education of the whole child.

The values of the school—especially faith and virtue—are very consistent with my own,” he said.

Dr. Desjardins was chosen as headmaster after a rigorous application process, in which he was up against 36 other applicants. The process began with Dr. Desjardins meeting with members of the search committee for a long discussion. They talked about educational philosophy and asked about leadership and management style.

He then submitted written responses to questions issued by the committee. After that, he spoke in front of people from all parts of the school community—faculty, administration, alumni and board members.

This process took around 10 to 12 hours.

“It was a long process,” Dr. Desjardins said. “But it gave me the opportunity to engage the school and the school the opportunity to engage with me.”

The new headmaster also met with current SAC members.

This meeting, which Dr. Desjardins deemed the best part of the application process, included questions about tradition and political correctness, the well-balanced Upper School experience and his stance on the chapel program.

“Chapel is a very important part of the educational process.

It’s great to have a time during the week where, as a student, you can reflect on your personal role in the world. Each person comes with his own set of expectations, and the school day stops to give you the opportunity to hopefully think of something other than what’s for lunch or what you’re going to be studying that night,” Dr. Desjardins said. All the schools he has worked at have had some sort of Judeo-Christian chapel program.

Dr. Desjardins’s attraction to SJS is simple: Members of the community know who they are and what they stand for. There is a really strong core identity.

“I appreciate that St. John’s is very comfortable in its own skin. The few issues that exist are extremely nuanced, but overall, people are very happy and very supportive of the school. The mark of a great school is a comfort in its own identity while, at the same time, a desire to push out the edges of that identity to find ways to become better,” he said.

Dr. Desjardins serves on the executive committee of SPC, where he oversees sportsmanship-related issues and the evo-

lution of the conference. He also is a board member and a chair of the standards committee for ISAS, which is in charge of the accreditation process.

Additionally, he is the president of the Southwest Association of Episcopal Schools, where he makes sure the organization is fulfilling its obligations to its 156 member schools.

Members of the search committee said they were very impressed with Dr. Desjardins’s experience in budgeting advancement and college admissions. Next year the search committee will hand a set of expectations to the Headmaster’s Committee, which is chaired by Bob Graham and is responsible for reviewing the Headmaster’s performance.

A Transition Committee has also been created, chaired by Board Vice Chair Ann Stern.

This committee will help the Desjardins family transition from Holland Hall to St. John’s.

The committee has already sent a care package and plans to have the whole family visit SJS sometime in January.

Mr. Desjardins has four kids that span all three divisions of the school, an advantage that will help him to better gauge the needs of the school.

“I am very excited about becoming part of the St. John’s community,” Dr. Desjardins said. “I hope the student body takes me up on my offer to drop by my office just for a visit. I’m very approachable, and I love kids and teenagers. I’m anxious to immerse myself in the school and get to know as many different students as I can and watch them grow and learn as I become part of their school life.”

December 2009

features The Review

5

Dancing Around G! is in the House

HANNAH DEGNER | The Review

Mr. Girlinghouse strikes a pose in a dance routine.

By LILIANA VARMAN Although known around SJS as “GHouse”, or simply “G!”, dance teacher Aaron Girlinghouse said he once dreamed of having a different title: Dr. Girlinghouse. “I gravitated to the sciences,” Mr. Girlinghouse said. “That was my thing.”

Mr. Girlinghouse said he wanted to be a doctor ever since his freshman year of high school in Minden, Louisiana, where he grew up. However, he said his interest in dance began long before his high school career. When he was young, he would watch variety shows such as the Carol Burnett Show on television and try to imitate the moves of the dancers.

As he got older, Mr. Girlinghouse attempted to pursue dance but was not allowed in the studios because he was a boy. After a male dance teacher moved to Minden during his Senior year, Mr. Girlinghouse was able to take dance lessons in a studio and continued to do so during college.

After graduating from high school, he attended Louisiana State University with the intention of pursuing a premed program and majoring in biology.

However, after two years at LSU, Mr. Girlinghouse said he couldn’t resist the call of dance and made the decision to dance professionally. He divided his time between college and the world of professional dance, alternating years between working in cities such as Chicago and Los Angeles and attending college.

Mr. Girlinghouse spent his first year dancing with a professional company in Chicago that toured in places such as Houston, Washington D.C. and the Bahamas. He spent his next non-college year in Los Angeles dancing for another company and auditioning for commercial work such as movie promos. After he finished college, Mr. Girlinghouse spent two years with a company in Florida, where he also made money by doing “industrials,” live commercials to exhibit products to potential buyers. For instance, “we would be these characters and [for one industrial] we might be dancing with a piece of carpet,” he said.

Mr. Girlinghouse later moved to New York, where attempted to pursue a career on Broadway despite lacking vocal training. “At that point, they were taking dancers that could sing ok… but I was a very small person in height and auditions are very stereotypical. If you don’t look right, it doesn’t matter how much talent you have, so my Broadway

HANNAH DEGNER | The Review

The members of Terpsichore dance during their 8th period class. career was not successful,” he said. He has, however, performed in regional productions of musicals such as The Pajama Game and Evita.

After touring with professional companies, Mr. Girlinghouse returned to his home state and attended Centenary College of Louisiana, where he studied as a dance and performing arts major and later taught for nine years. He also opened his own dance studio and had both a studio and professional company, meaning he and a few other dance teachers taught children as well as professional adult dancers.

Twelve years after opening his dance studio, Mr. Girlinghouse moved to Houston. “Where I was living, there were about 300,000 people, so I was looking to move back to another city again,” he said. Once he was in Houston, he sent emails to various places and was asked by SJS to substitute a dance class.

“The rest is history at that point,” Mr. Girlinghouse said. “I was very fortunate, timing-wise.”

Although Mr. Girlinghouse said he does not think he has really changed the SJS dance department, he did say that he and his colleague Heidi Arouty both emphasize technique and pushing students by not teaching below their level but instead giving the students something to aspire to, a quality his student seem to appreciate.

“What I love about G’s class is he lets you push yourself the amount that you want. It’s just a really good environment,” Tap Dance club President and Terpsichore member Sarah Pendergraft (’10) said.

In addition, Mr. Girlinghouse said he

tries to present current dance thoughts into the classroom, even at times mixing it with traditional dance like ballet. “I try not to get stuck and stale. I let the students push me. If they want more or they get bored, I feel bad if I don’t offer new things,” he said.

At SJS, Mr. Girlinghouse has several roles, teaching not only Upper and Middle school dance but also choreographing the Upper School musical, coordinating the Student Choreography showcase and sponsoring Tap Dance club.

As teacher of six different dance classes, Mr. Girlinghouse has to create a lot of choreography. Mr. Girlinghouse said he mostly plans out his choreography in advance, writing out steps per count.

However, he said he sometimes tries to go to class with a general concept or idea for the dance and then come up with the specific movements on the spot. “[The latter process is] harder for me and it’s also not quite as efficient, ‘cause I can’t flip out the steps, but it often creates something that’s freer and more creative than something that’s been so thoughtout, like an overworked watercolor. If I just do it then, it’s sort of like a fresh watercolor,” he said.

He added that there are some movements that he continually uses in his dances that are part of his library choreography, a term he coined and described as movements he uses to set standards for different levels of dance skill. He also said he tries to incorporate movements or eight counts from dance teachers such as Father of Jazz into his dances.

“I will take [a specific movement] and put it into one of my pieces so that their memory will be passed on to the next

generation. So it’s like storytelling; I’m just putting a piece of their story into my dance,” he said.

Mr. Girlinghouse said that it usually takes him at least one hour to choreograph one minute of dance for a routine.

“And that’s when I’m really cooking,” he added.

Nevertheless, Mr. Girlinghouse said the Upper School dance concert is coming along well and that he only wishes there were more time for dance classes.

The first and last five minutes of each 45 minute period is used for dancers to change, which Mr. Girlinghouse said can be challenging because he has to teach in chunks.

“Not only do you have to teach technique and movement vocabulary, but you have to choreograph a piece in 30 minutes, and that’s difficult. That’s one thing I would say is not inherent to St. John’s, but it’s not a good thing for a dance teacher. We do what we can,” he said.

One thing he said he enjoys doing in class is making up quotes and posting them in the dance room to share with his students. One such quote is “Your talent tells you what you should do; your work determines where you will end up.” Mr. Girlinghouse came up with that in class one day when talking about work ethic.

“I was getting frustrated because sometimes people think their talent is enough. To me, it just tells you what your passion is, what you want…what your life wants to become, and it depends on how much hard work you put into it where you’re going to end up.”

He added, “If you don’t put any work into it because you’re just depending on your talent, well, that’s it, end of the road. But if I keep working, then who knows what little journey my work takes me on to?”

These pieces of advice are just one of many qualities Mr. Girlinghouse’s students love about him. Pendergraft said that she likes that Mr. Girlinghouse makes sound effects when he dances, a trait that she said she has picked up because of him. “You get used to his style,” she said. “I’ve had him [as a teacher] since seventh grade, but he always manages to make things new.”

Terpsichore member Tola Emiola (’10) said she agreed. “My favorite thing [about dance class] is Mr. Girlinghouse actually wants you to improve,” she said.

“He just always tries to give suggestions to help you become a better dancer and a better person.”

6

December 2009

Plastic Dinosaurs, Despair Posters

features

Staff Writer Robert McNiel sorts through teachers’ collections of unusual knick-knacks One of the most riveting facets of any classroom experience is the eclectic assortment of knick-knacks that can be found on the shelves of many SJS educators. These items make for a livelier environment and are often the only thing that allows a student to make it through a particularly boring lecture.

Calculus teacher Ashley Watson’s classroom is plastered with posters depicting various aspects of Italian culture. “I have had visitors walk into my math class and think I was the Italian teacher,” Ms. Watson said.

“The posters were actually made for last year’s International Day,” Ms. Watson said, “but I kept them around because they remind me of my time as a teacher in Italy for School Year Abroad. I love having them in class because out of the blue, every once in a while, they just randomly fall on students. It always provides quite a laugh for the class.”

While some trinkets serve the dual purpose of amusing students and allowing teachers to relive memories, others merely accomplish the latter. History teacher Dr. Richard Doina has an impressive collection of items including a Spice Girl’s poster and *NSync marionettes.

“The students asked if they could bring in posters when I was teaching Modern U.S. History, and [the Spice Girls one] was the only one they actually brought. I cannot name a single Spice Girl, whether it be their ‘Spice Name,’ or their real name,” Dr. Doina said. “As for the *NSync marionettes,

well, they were a great find. I got them at a garage sale for six bucks.”

Along with the random assortment of pop culture memorabilia, Dr. Doina also has a sizable collection of stuffed animals. “The stuffed animals were all a part of a family trip to Sea World. It was one of those games were you pay the five dollars and you definitely win something. We kept paying the five dollars, and after we won all of them my kids decided they didn’t want them, so I just threw them up there,” Dr. Doina said.

Other teachers such as physics teacher Daniel Friedman use their knick-knacks to teach their students. Friedman has a wide array of miniature dinosaurs spread throughout his room. “My son used to collect dinosaurs, so I just started bringing them in a couple of years ago. One of my classes sort of adopted them as class pets, so I just kept bringing more and more in. Then people started giving them to me as gifts, and before I knew it, my room was infested,” Mr. Friedman said.

“I use the dinosaurs for demonstrations all the time. This one right here, on a string, is usually going around in a circle in some way or another, so it’s physics,” Mr. Friedman said, “A lot of the class is about things moving, so why not have dinosaurs moving?”

Many students have no doubt seen motivational posters that echo heartfelt sentiments about subjects such as courage, determination or commitment.

Such posters are nowhere to be

found in physics teacher Erol Turk’s room.

“A number of my posters come from a website called Despair.com. I got them because I was sick of all these success posters, so I thought it would be funnier to take the opposite approach. Not all of them are negative, some are, but some are just funny and cause you to think about things,” Mr. Turk said.

Many of Mr. Turk’s students said they find great humor in these posters. “My favorite poster is the one of a thing of French fries from a fast food restaurant with the saying ‘Potential: Not everyone can be an astronaut’ superimposed on top of it. I cannot help but laugh every time I see it,” Christy Lee JENNY LEWIS | The Review (‘11) said. The Potential poster Toy Justin Timberlake hangs out with his *NSync bandmates. also happens to be Mr. Turk’s favorite. what can only be described as a brought it to prom and gave it Math teacher Bobbie Ann shrine to the Longhorns. to me then,” Mr. Curry said.

Oldfield’s classroom, however, “I didn’t go to UT, but I taught “I taught Patrick Wilkey for is inspirational for some stu- in Austin for a couple years, three years in a row,” Mr. Curry dents. “Ms. Oldfield’s class is and that orange blood spreads said, “Every year him and all of plastered with college pennants like wildfire,” Ms. Oldfield said, his friends make shirts for his representing where her former “To be perfectly honest, I’m not birthday party, and they started students attended. A lot of the sure how my UT shrine started. bringing me one, and putting it pennants are from really good It kind of accumulated over on the poster, ‘the thin Dean,’ colleges, so it gives me a sense time.” as they called it.” of hope, that if I work hard, Another unusual knick-knack But often times, the odd knickI might one day be at one of can be found in history teacher knacks that can be found in so those colleges,” Kara Neumann Ted Curry’s room. In the back many SJS classrooms provide (‘12) said. left corner of the room, there much more than just aesthetic “Years ago, when I had deco- is a life size cardboard cutout pleasure; they give students an rated with UT only, one of my of Mr. Curry, wearing two of outlet for “extra attention.” boys got irritated with me, and Patrick Wilkey’s (‘09) Annual “I can assure you that if he brought that Oklahoma Birthday Bash shirts. it were not for the random pennant. Since then, other “The cutout was given to me knick-knacks that so many of people have put up whatever by the class of 2005, when I was my teachers have in their classthey want. You bring it, I’ll put Upper School Dean. Apparent- rooms, there is no way I would it up,” Ms. Oldfield said. The ly it made the rounds at all of have made it through every lesfact that her room used to be the end of the year parties, and son,” Allie DeLuca (‘11) said. solely dedicated to UT explains then the Head Prefect that year

Hi! My name is ____. Tag! Ich heisse ____.

Students explore the German language during lunch with Ms. Hagerty

By VERONICA CHU

“I don’t have to accommodate different levels of proficiency in German because all of the Every day during lunch, students can be found students started learning German this year,” Ms. doing everything from attending club meetings Hagerty said. “I don’t have the year planned out, to playing ping pong games to getting last minute but we’ll probably just continue to develop constudy time. Every Wednesday, however, a small versational skills and learn some more grammar group of students meets in English teacher Linda and vocabulary.”

Carswell’s room to engage in an activity of decidAs is expected for this substantial commitment, edly unconventional interest: the development of the students in German class hope to make the German language skills. most of their time. “I’ve always been interested “German class”, as the participants prefer to in German,” Reed said. “My older brother Chriscall the lunchtime activity, was started a few topher Reed graduated from SJS in 2004, and years ago by English teacher Ann Louise Hagerty, he’s staying in Germany right now indefinitely. who taught German at SJS for approximately 20 I would like to go visit him sometime and not be years before the language was replaced by Chihopelessly lost.” nese in 2006.

Burkett and Ezelle both said they joined the “People knew that I could speak and teach German class because they were interested in the German, so they asked me to consider offering SARAH WINDHAM | The Review language. “I’m taking Latin now, and it’s quite a lunchtime class,” Ms. Hagerty said. “I started useful,” Ezelle said. “I want to be able to speak a with a couple of boys who met with me twice Patrick Maul (‘12) ponders some German vocabulary words. language that I can use in everyday life, though, a week for three years until they graduated last in a textbook called Genial, which means “clever”. so that’s why I’m learning German. After this, I plan to year. One of them, Patrick Ryan (‘09), was able to “The textbook this year has been a bit problematic place out of first year German in the University of because usage depends heavily on ancillary materials learn more languages.”

“I kind of want to learn Russian,” Burkett said. “I North Carolina.” like films, tapes and workbooks,” Ms. Hagerty said.

The group of students who consistently attend the “All we’ve got is the textbook. I’m trying to focus on really like Russian and German culture.”

Although the students have been learning Gerclass this year include Erica Reed (‘12), Patrick Mauel conversation, but I bring in some grammar too.” man since the beginning of the school year, others are (‘12), Savannah Ezelle (‘13) and Sam Burkett (‘13).

So far, the students have learned basic sentence “Other students come too, but many dropped out long structure and conjugation of present tense verbs. They welcome to join. “They will be behind, but as long as ago because of scheduling conflicts,” Ms. Hagerty said. can also name colors and animals, greet each other, tell they’re willing to make a commitment, our class is open to anyone,” Ms. Hagerty said.

“It’s been difficult to find a time that everyone can time and talk about their schedules.

‘It would be awesome to get more students interestmake.”

Ms. Hagerty conducts the class mostly in German, The students do not earn credit for their work, but driving conversation as she asks the students questions ed in learning German,” Reed said. “I’m really excited they still take the “class” seriously. In addition to hand- with references to the textbook. No homework or tests to learn more, but more than anything, I wish the class was recognized by the school.” outs from Ms. Hagerty, the group completes exercises are assigned.

features

U

December 2009

nhinged

7

...but only slightly

Sarah Koslov ventures into the world outside her comfort zone

By SARAH KOSLOV

Since first treading the storied cloisters, I have expanded my leisure reading beyond the Harry Potter series, incorporated the chick pea into my diet and accepted that I cannot pull off those ever-so-trendy side-bangs: all strong indicators I fully evolved past the socially awkward stripling who went by the name Sarah Koslov circa fall 2006.

Honing life skills such as accepted high school social protocol and Facebook maneuvering took both time and a perceptive eye; yes, I’ve grown up a lot since freshman year. ...At least I thought so until acting as a peer leader on this year’s freshman retreat.

Once a self-conscious new freshman from a random (ie not SJS) middle school, I managed to find my niche within the class of 2010. I feel a certain level of comfort among my peers and a general connection with those in my grade.

I’m in my element goofing off in Senior Country with the sound of Mario-Cart ringing in the background. But somewhere between the grassy quadrangle and Camp Cho-ye, I lost my groove.

The first blow to my confidence occurred on the bus; I knew not a single lyric to the numerous Miley Cyrus tunes blasting from the iPod speakers.

Ben Marek (‘10) could easily distinguish the differences between Lady Gaga and Ke$ha, and its never good news when a boy upstages your pop-savviness.

My own freshman year flashed before my eyes as I wandered under the Cho-

Dome. I watched several uncomfortable fifteen-year-olds try to break into groups of friends that had been together since Lower School. Then I realized their reality differed little from my own.

As I tried to reach out to the freshmen, I likely appeared as some babbling upperclassman who was clueless as to the

first time in many moons, I found myself playing sports and sprinting down a field yelling, “I’m open! I’m open!” I got in the thick of basketball, dodge ball, and ultimate Frisbee with the freshman class, and I came out a little battered and bruised from the ordeal. Despite getting tackled to the ground in kickball

more uncomfortable moments remain where I may not immediately fit in or feel unsure where to go. It’s the manner which we attack the scenario that indicates our progress. As a freshman, I doubt I would have approached complete strangers to play some Little Sally Walker. Rather, I know I would have waited for somebody to reach to me— do their thing and switch. I realized that not letting flickers of doubt intimidate me spoke to some maturation between grades nine and twelve.

Next fall, peers and I will scatter across the nation. None of us will initially possess the same support system and bond that we’ve developed over the years. As disheartened and shocked as I felt as an outsider for about an hour with the freshmen, I enjoyed the obstacle of getting to know new people.

Whether in high school, college, a new job or new surroundings, it’s about getting in the game and taking risks. I am indebted to the freshmen who challenged my sense of contentment, and Photo courtesy of Rachel Weissenstien I admittedly had to do some research Sarah Koslov (center) grins with Robby Rybarczyk (‘13) and Lexi Duncan (‘13). to hop back on the pop-culture bandgoing-ons in their lives. Was I just a (which is not conventionally a contact wagon. But with these lessons learned, n00b trying to force some quality bond- sport methinks), throwing myself out I realize part of me will never stop being time? It’s easy to forget the difficult there was worth it: I now can identify ing that goofy, lost freshman walknature of breaking in, whether we did and sing the chorus to both TiK ToK and ing around campus with a map of the it in elementary school, middle school, Rockstar. Whew. school held upside down. This inevitahigh school, or all of the above.

However, those initial moments of ble period of social gracelessness could I argue it’s good to get rattled every so uneasiness on the bus and in the Cho- be discouraging as college lurks in my often—thrown out of our comfort zone. dome still haunted me. Perhaps I am not not-so-distant future; however, I gain I know myself better than to let these quite as evolved as I thought; the pros- confidence remembering that comfort little snafus hold me back, and as the re- pect of remaining the same person I was zones are merely perceived boundaries treat progressed, my purpose on the trip four years ago, only slightly taller and that can always be extended just a little and connections with my cabin-mates bangless, alarmed me. bit farther. and teammates came naturally. For the After some reflection, I suppose many

8

beyondSJS

December 2009

The Review

Enjoying a Country Day Former Assistant Headmaster Mark Reed flourishes in his first year at Charlotte Country Day School said that her school prides itself on passionate school spirit.

CCD Spirit Week is much more anticipated than SJS’s.

Each grade picks a theme for the week and constructs “themehouses” in the quad accordingly. This year’s Senior theme was Alice in Wonderland and they built a maze. Weeks before Spirit Week begins, each class of about 130 people, starts practicing and rehearsing their spirit dance. The dances are performed in front of the rest of the high school, usually in costume.

The Spirit Week also provides an opportunity for what Mr. Reed calls “JK-12ing,” which is administrator-speak for promoting unity between students from all grades. During Spirit Week, lower school students get to explore the “theme houses” in the quad; Mr. Reed said, “The lower school kids think

Photo courtesy of Lee-Anne Black

__Academically, CCD is structured differently from SJS by offering (Advanced Placement) AP classes and the (International Baccalaureate) IB. He said the two systems coexist well at

pionship this year. The CCD campus is about three times the size of SJS’s and has four sports fields the size of Caven field.

Mr. Reed said he is excited about the idea of a SJS-CCD

Photo courtesy of Lee-Anne Black

Mr. Reed invites Lower Schoolers to his office for a surprise visit.

CCD; a student can choose IB sports exchange, and plans to and have a full course curricu- talk to Athletic Director Pat lum in all his or her classes or Krieger to see if SJS could bring

“SJS was and is home to me. The twenty years I spent [at SJS] were absolutely incredible. I have so many stories.”

Mark Reed greets Lower Schoolers on the first day of school.

By CAROLINE GIBSON __After a 19-year career at SJS, former Assistant Headmaster Mark Reed has begun a new life as the Headmaster of Charlotte Country Day School in North Carolina.

“I love what I’m doing,” Mr. Reed said as he recounted the incredible energy during Spirit Week before the big football game against CCD’s biggest rival, Charlotte Latin School.

Though the CCD team’s success is enough to get anyone excited, Mr. Reed was much more enthusiastic about his ability to

er at this school is committed to helping students,” likening their devotion to that of SJS educators.

When asked about the differences between CCD students and their SJS counterparts, Mr. Reed said, “that’s hard because I love SJS, but I’m growing to love CCD students too.” He said that he chooses not to compare the two student bodies because of the high regard he has for both.

Mr. Reed’s experience with the students at CCD is also markedly different from his SJS tenure because he lives on campus and

it’s awesome.”

The Seniors at CCD this year printed photos of Mr. Reed’s

choose a few challenging AP courses. __Athletically, though, CCD is

some SJS sports teams to Charlotte to play CCD or vice versa. __Though Mr. Reed’s image at

I’m focused on being [the] best head of school I can be, [and] everything else will come with it.” help the student body have the best experience possible.

Mr. Reed said that CCD is similar to SJS. The student to faculty ratio is 15 to 1. The school offers a 13-year program starting with Junior Kindergarten.

Mr. Reed said one similarity he cherishes is that “every teach-

drives a golf cart to work a few days a week, usually giving a student a lift from the parking lot on the way to his office.

When there is a field hockey game, Mr. Reed walks to the field with his Jack Russell Terrier, Pearls.

CCD Junior Molly Gardner

Photo courtesy of Molly Gardner

Students at CCD wear Mark Reed Masks to welcome their new headmaster. face and put them on popsicle sticks to celebrate their new Headmaster shortly before Spirit Week.

on par with SJS. Along with the football team, their field hockey team has also enjoyed success, winning the State Cham-

SJS partly consisted of his status as a former athlete, his stu-

See REED on p. 10

beyondSJS

9

December 2009

SJS alumni check into the library

Siblings Ben and Laura Moser enter the publishing world as first-time authors

By POOJA SALHOTRA

SJS graduates and siblings Ben and Laura Moser (’94 and ’95) have both broken into the world of writing.

In August, Mr. Moser published his first book, Why This World, a biography about the Jewish Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector.

Ever since Mr. Moser was a child, he said he knew that he was going to be a writer. After graduating from Brown University, he went to New York City,

that would keep him busy for a longer period of time.

Mr. Moser first heard about Clarice Lispector in his sophomore year of college when he was studying Portuguese.

“I became greatly dazzled by her, and I sort of fell in love with her. I thought that she was a really great writer who was not as recognized as she should be, so I decided to change that,” Mr. Moser said.

around the world and his main audience is to people who are interested in

do you find a place for yourself in the world?” Mr. Moser said. These ques-

“I became greatly dazzled by [Lispector], and I sort of fell in love with her. I thought that she was a really great writer who was not as recognized as she should be, so I decided to change that.”

-Ben Moser

Jewish Brazilian literature. By spreading the word about his book, however, Mr. Moser said he also hopes to gain a larger audience.

“I like to think that people who are interested in questions will read my book.

[Lispector] asks a lot of questions about what people should do in a world without God. In a world where things are random and things just happen, how

Photo courtesy of Jane Moser

For siblings Ben and Laura Moser (‘94 and ‘95) the future is so bright, they need shades. where he worked for Alfred A. Knopf Publishers. Although he said he really enjoyed publishing, Mr. Moser decided to follow the writing career path instead. He started out writing essays and later wrote for Newsweek and other magazines.

“The thing about [essays and articles] is

For this reason, Mr. Moser decided to write the biography about Clarice Lispector and in 2004, he began the long process of research that is necessary for writing a biography, which included traveling to the various places that Lispector lived.

“It was a lot of ground to cover. I had to talk to hundreds of people and read and organize massive amounts of stuff. It was like running a marathon because I just had to keep going,” Mr. Moser said.

Throughout this process, Mr. Moser said he learned everything that he could about Lispector, including some things that he does not even know about himself.

“I know her blood type, for example, but I don’t know my own,” Mr. Moser said.

Mr. Moser said he achieved his goal of spreading knowledge about Lispector and has recently been touring all around the world talking about Clarice Lispector.

“If I hadn’t written this book, not so many people would be talking about her,” Mr. Moser said.

Right now, Mr. Moser said he is completely focused on promoting his book, Bobbie Richardson | The Review and in fact recently traveled to Ben Moser’s book in the Taub Library. Brazil to do so.

“In America the story is ‘Who is Clathey are really fun, but they take a lot rice Lispector?’, but in Brazil everyone of work. And then when you are done knows about her, so the question is with one piece you have to start all over ‘Who is Ben Moser?’ It’s going to be inagain,” Mr. Moser said. teresting to see how people who know Mr. Moser said he decided to write her work react to [the book],” he said. more lasting works, such as a biography, Mr. Moser is promoting his book

tions give rise to the title of the book: Why This World.

While Mr. Moser is busy promoting his new book, his younger sister, Laura Moser (’95) is living in Washington D.C. and is continuing her career as a writer.

Like her brother, Laura said she has al-

See MOSER page 10

beyondSJS REED cont. from p. 8 dents at CCD know little of his athletic background and are reportedly curious to know more. But Mr. Reed said he has chosen to invest all his energy in his headmaster duties and said “you have to

10

December 2009 MOSER cont. from p. 9 years I spent [at SJS] were absolutely incredible. I have so many stories.” __ Since Mr. Reed has been at CCD, numerous ties to SJS have emerged within the student body and beyond, so he has not

ways known that she would become a writer.

“I grew up around books, and it was sort of like my first love. It was the thing that [my brother and I] loved and respected,” Ms. Moser (’95) said.

When she entered college at Amherst,

Ms. Moser said.

With her husband’s busy schedule and the responsibility of taking care of a baby, Ms. Moser has had to set a fixed schedule to get her work done.

“I have gotten pretty good at waking up at 4 am and going to the computer

I grew up around books, and it was sort of like my first love. It was the thing that [my brother and I] loved and respected.”

-Laura Moser

Mr. Reed with colleaugues at the Faculty Breakfast. focus on whatever you’re doing at the time. When I was high-jumping that’s all I focused on. Right now I’m focused on being [the] best head of school I can be, [and] everything else will come with it.” __That is not to say that Mr. Reed does not have an athletic outlet: “The golf is incredible. I’m playing on hills,” he said. Apparently the Houston humidity wasn’t the only thing Mr. Reed was happy to leave behind; Mr. Reed said he does not miss the flat Texas land. He is enamored with the “mountain golf,” as he called it. __Mr. Reed said he does miss SJS, and the friends he left in Houston. “SJS was and is home to me,” he said. “The 20

Photo courtesy of Lee-Anne Black

left SJS behind completely. This year he has seen many former SJS students who now attend college in North Carolina such as UNC student Patrick Ryan (‘09) and Hannah Smith (‘09), who attends Duke University. Additionally Jackson Smith (‘08) recently contacted Mr. Reed to inform him that his roommateis an CCD graduate. __Despite the distance, Mr. Reed’s role at SJS has not vanished. __“The bottom line is that I will always love SJS,” said Mr. Reed, but CCD will soon make an impression to rival SJS in his life.

Ms. Moser said she decided to pursue writing, despite its challenges.

“In the last year of college everyone was gearing up to go to law school or medical school, and that’s when it became more clear to me that I wanted to be a writer,” Ms. Moser said.

Ms. Moser’s poetry professor had a house in London that he was not living in, so he offered to let her stay there so that she would have the opportunity to pursue writing. Ms. Moser took up this offer and stayed in London for three years.

“That [experience] really allowed me to try to make it as a writer, to not have a full time job but just write,” she said.

As a dedicated member of The Review at SJS, Ms. Moser said she was more into the journalistic style of writing when she was in high school. In college, however, she veered towards literary writing. Ms. Moser has written literary articles as well as product reviews and has ghostwritten.

Although Ms. Moser said she is currently busy taking care of her sixmonth-old baby, she has still managed to continue writing. She is working on a young adult thriller, which will be released next summer.

Meanwhile, Ms. Moser’s husband is working for President Barack Obama.

He has been working for the president since the 2008 campaign, and, after Obama’s victory, Ms. Moser and her husband moved to Chicago and then D.C. “It’s crazy because I know that [Obama’s] winning is a significant turning point in American history, and it just seems surreal because I am so close to the action,”

to write even though as my brother said, there is nobody waiting for you,” Ms. Moser said.

While both Moser siblings said they

Photo courtesy of Laura Moser

Ben and Laura Moser enjoy a vacation as children. would agree that writing has its share of challenges, they both love the freedom of writing. They have both had the opportunities to travel the world and even live in different countries.

“Its tough, but I love it and I wouldn’t do anything else,” Mr. Moser said.

beyondSJS

11

December 2009

A True Renaissance Man

Lenoir Josey brings the past to life with eclectic historical collections

By JESSICA ALLEN What do toy soldiers, wine, Greek coins, and roses have in common? They all occupy the mind of Lenoir Josey (’59), an avid collector and unconventional “Renaissance Man.” Josey’s wide array of interests dates back to his time at SJS, which he attended from the first to the twelfth grade.

At SJS, Josey played football, ran track, and participated in theater. While he claims that academically he was an “erratic student,” he was still a National Merit Scholarship finalist and outside of the classroom he dedicatedly pursued his many interests, allowing almost nothing to deter him. When Josey failed to qualify to be in the school choir, he showed up to practice anyway, singing in choir for over a year until his instructor discovered him.

Josey was most concerned, however, with just staying afloat. “My biggest interest was survival,” he said.

It was during his childhood and teenage years that he first developed his love for collecting. His desire for knowledge began with his parents, and Josey believes SJS furthered his interests. “I don’t know how St. John’s is now,” Josey said, “but when we were at St. John’s we were encouraged to think for ourselves and not just do any-

is not limited to just collecting.

At one point, he cultivated roses, one of which won the Houston Rose Show. He also paints, describing his subjects as “anything that is beautiful.”

Of all of Josey’s collections, he said he cannot choose a favorite, saying that he would probably just name, “whichever one that I’m looking at the time.”

These days, though, Josey said

Lenoir Josey with one of the many works of art he owns. from the University of Texas the finest collections ever.” law school and then a Master’s Wine is another of Josey’s in business from the Harvard passions. When he was youngBusiness School. His first full- er, he never drank alcohol, and time job for Alaska Interstate as only tried wine once he while Assistant to the President. in law school.

Josey never gave up his pro“Whatever it is that I get infessional career to be a full- terested in, I tend to really get time collector, but his collec- interested in it,” Josey said. tions could hardly be called the “You might say I tend to overdo result of “a hobby.” Amassing it and get too enthusiastic.” some of the most impressive After his initial discovery,

“I always loved history…so the little toy soldiers made history a lot more alive and interesting.” thing just because it was the conventional thing to do.”

Throughout his entire time at SJS, Josey said he considered himself a collector. Taking after his father, who was an avid collector, he began collecting items in Lower School. In Lower and Middle School, he collected baseball cards and signed baseballs, which he obtained by writing to teams.

After high school, Josey went to the University of Texas Plan II program. His freshman year, he was named one of 12 “Junior Fellows”, which he said was largely due to his SJS background, 24 hours of testing, and a lot of studying. He also became co-chairman of the 50 Year Anniversary Celebration of the Founding of Plan II. At UT he continued to amass collections of different things.

One year he won a contest for best literary collection. He then went to get a law degree

collections in the world, Josey has built a reputation in numerous collecting circles. If his collections seem extremely diverse, and almost random, it is because he collects “whatever strikes [his] fancy.”

“The problem is,” he said, “a lot of things strike my fancy.”

One of Josey’s most impressive collections is also his oldest: toy soldiers. Josey has collected toy soldiers since his childhood, when his father was fighting in the Pacific during World War II. “When my father came back from the Pacific where he’d been fighting the Japanese, he brought me some toy soldiers.

That’s what started me loving toy soldiers,” he said. “They were actually toy sailors. I was four years old, and from then on I knew I really wanted to get all the little toy figures I could find, and today I have one of

Josey said he became obsessed with learning about and collecting wine. After reading that some people were able to identify wine by just the smell and taste, he set out to see if such a skill was really possible, and became renowned for being able to identify wine in blind taste tests. However, such a skill has its drawbacks, and it got to the point where Josey was reluctant to go out to dinner with people because they would be so insistent on him “performing” for them.

Josey probably had the best wine collection in the world at the time, but he discovered that being a constant collector means having to give collections up. He decided to sell his wine collection, in order to pursue other interests. His collection was the most expensive to be sold at Christie’s Auction House, the world’s first fine art

Photo courtesy of Lenoir Josey

auctioneers. It was described by wine expert Michael Broadbent as “the finest and rarest in the world.”

“If you’re a collector, that’s a good thing to do, because what you don’t want to happen is have your collection own you, where you have so much of a collection that you spend all your time on the collection tending to it rather than really enjoying it,” he said. “It’s a very healthy thing, because you’re constantly parting with things you love, but you’re buying things you think you might love more.”

Another one of Josey’s most impressive collections was his collection of Medieval arms and armor. Josey collected the arms and armor as a form of art, not weapons, and some of the pieces are considered some of the finest examples of late Renaissance art in the world.

Josey also parted with that collection, selling it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These days, Josey is still collecting different things, from English ironstone to Greek

“The problem is a lot of things strike my fancy.” he finds himself busier and busier, after the recession and Hurricane Ike last year. “[After I sold my Medieval Arms collection] I said, well, someday I’ll start another collection, but I don’t know,” he said. “I’m running out of time.”

Although his pace may have slowed, Josey said his intellectual curiosity is as strong as ever. His love of collecting is based upon his love of learning that dates all the way back to the item that began this lifelong pursuit, his little toy-soldiers. “I always loved history… so the little toy soldiers made history a lot more alive and interesting,” he said.

Although he is a prominent figure in the business world, Josey is still very much a student, no different from those who fill the classrooms and hallways of SJS. Collecting allows him to continue to learn, even as he is preoccupied with his job, family and busy life.

“There’s so much to learn, but we have so little time.” coins. He also owns what is considered to be the finest Greek statue of a bust in the world, a colossal head of the Greek god Hermes dating back to 180 BC. Josey’s wide array of interests

“I think learning is one of the greatest pleasures of life,” he said. “There’s so much to learn, but we have so little time. I’m still learning a lot every day, but now I don’t have the pressure I had at St. John’s.”

12

December 2009

snow day

Win Wonde

Photos by Jenny Lewis (

photo spread

December 2009

nter erland

(‘10) and Ann Hewitt (‘10)

13

December 2009

sports The Review

14

Falcons, Mavericks battle in the “War On the Floor”

By SAMUEL DUNN Varsity captain Rush Moody (’10) calls it the “most intense meet of the year” and captain Krishnan Rajagopalan (’10) says that it “feels more important than the other meets.”

The boys varsity wrestling prepared for the second annual War on the Floor, which took place on Dec. 9.

“It’s a pretty big deal” said Captain Will McDugald (’11).

“We’re trying to get more support for the wrestling team.”

The brainchild of Coach Paul, the War on the Floor is the only wrestling event of its kind in the world.Whereas traditional wrestling meets take place between several teams, the only competitors of War on the Floor are the St. John’s and Kinkaid varsity and Middle School wrestling teams.

The War on the Floor combines each school’s Middle School team and varsity team’s score. In War on the Floor, the lowest Middle School weight class, 80 lbs., followed by the lowest varsity weight class, 103 lbs. The events continue in ascending order, first Middle School and then varsity. There is one match for each weight class of the 15 weight classes.

Each match’s outcome contributes points to an overall team score. Points are tallied so that if a match is won by 8 points or fewer the team is awarded 3 points. If a match is won by more than 8 points, the team is awarded 4 points, and if and if a match is won by over 15 points, the team is awarded 5 points. A pin will automatically win a wrestler the match and their team will gain 6 points.

If a wrestler loses, their team gets no points, but a tight match will at least keep the teams’

A Kinkaid wrestler grapples with Ryan Reza (‘13). overall scores close. scribes the Mavericks and Fal“It’s huge if you can at least cons as “equally minded and not get pinned,” said Coach equally matched” teams, last Paul. “If you don’t get pinned, year the Mavericks took home you can lose your match but the trophy, winning in conkeep your team in a great posi- vincing fashion by a score of tion.”

135-42.

Although Coach Paul deThis year, however, the Mav-

Photos courtesy of Gulf Coast Shots

ericks are younger and less experienced. Seven freshman have made the cut on varsity and Rajagopalan attributes that to Coach Paul.

“Coach Paul has done such a good job with the Middle School program that the fresh-

man come into high school really knowing what to do. They have a good base for the next four years.”

The War on the Floor is a different experience than a usual meet according to the wrestlers.

“It’s a totally different atmosphere. It’s just you versus Kinkaid instead of other teams being around,” Moody said.

Having the Middle School wrestlers around makes things different for the varsity, too.

“It’s kinda cool mixing the Middle School and varsity teams,” Rajagopalan said. “The Middle Schoolers look up to us, and we get to support each other as we wrestle.”

“It gives them something to aspire to and shows them what it’s like on varsity,” Moody added.

Wrestling with the Middle Schoolers helps the varsity wrestlers, too.

“It makes us step it up and wrestle even harder,” McDugald said.

“Last year we had a huge turnout, the entire gym was full and the support really helped” Rajagopalan said. “Hopefully we can recreate that experience this year at the meet.”

The matches should provide an intense atmosphere during a strech of the season that tends to lull. The experience should be invaluable heading into the South Zone and Conference meets.

As to being the team that started an SJS tradition “it’s cool to be the team that’s starting this tradition and hopefully I can come back in 5 to 10 years and see the event still going on,” Rajagopalan said.

sports

15

December 2009

Boys volleyball passes, sets, hits its way to second place

The SJS Boys Volleyball team with their 2nd place trophy.

By BEN GROTTA The SJS boys varsity volleyball team won second place at the SPC Tournament. They defeated Greenhill, a primary rival this year, in the semifinal but lost in the final to St. Mark’s, 16-25, 20-25, 18-25.

The tournament capped of a highly successful regular season for the team, which saw the Mavericks earn a number one seed heading into the SPC tour-

nament in Fort Worth. Due to this ranking, as well as top performances against rival competition along the season, high hopes and confidence existed within the team in the days preceding the tournament.

“We were almost sure we were going to win SPC,” Captain Reed Landrum (’10) said, “so losing was a sad turn of events. We kind of fell apart in the finals.

Photo courtesy of Carol Winograd

“I don’t really want to talk about it,” Landrum added.

Despite their successful season, members of the team said that even though they were proud of their finish they still felt disappointed about not winning first place.

“We expected to win since we were the number one seed,” Jared Lichtarge (‘12) said.

Although the year may not have ended the way the team

Photo courtesy of Carol Winograd

Alec Winograd (‘11) sets the ball at the FWCD game. had envisioned, the future still looks bright for boys volleyball.

The team has six juniors, meaning that there will be many returning players next season with experience from this year to help them improve.

“We have a very good chance of doing very well next year,” Lichtarge said. “Our junior class is really good, so next year we will have some good Seniors.”

Because of the number of re-

turning players, a second consecutive number one seed does not seem farfetched for next season’s team.

In total, the Mavericks finished with a 25-6 record, a first place finish at the Greenhill Tournament, and multiple wins against rivals Kinkaid and Episcopal.

The second place SPC finish was its best in years.

Field hockey fights, falters to finish fourth at Fall SPC

By HENRY MORRIS __On Nov. 6, the SJS Field Hockey team bowed out of the SPC tournament in a 2-0 loss to Trinity Valley School. A day earlier, the Mavericks had entered as the top seed.

Backed by captains Catherine Franklin (’10), Paige Hawley (’10) and Krissy Incavo (’10), the squad was looking to protect last year’s championship trophy.

Lindsey Collie (’11) scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Casady to start the tournament. The Mavericks were heavy favorites going into the next game, a match against Ft. Worth’s All Saints.

The game had a promising opening, with Franklin scoring almost immediately to put the

Mavericks up by one.

“In hindsight, it might have been a bad thing, because it was sort of like ‘wow, we’re going to kill these guys,’” Coach Craig Chambers said.

Franklin’s goal would be the last one scored by the 2009 SJS field hockey team, as All Saints rallied to score twice and hand the Mavericks a shocking defeat.

“We dominated eighty percent of it,” said Chambers. “We certainly had an opportunity to win it.”

After the game against Trinity Valley, the stunned Mavericks dropped their next match against Trinity Valley of Fort Worth and went home with fourth place honors.

The tournament was won by Ft. Worth County Day.

Captain Catherine Franklin (‘10) takes a shot on goal.

Photo courtesy of Catherine Franklin

Boys cross-country finish season, look to next year

By BEN GROTTA

The Cross-Country team gets ready to start the race at SPC.

Photo courtesy of Ben Marek

The boys cross-country team suffered a disappointing eleventh-place finish at SPC, running in Fort Worth on November 7. The team, captained by Ben Marek (‘10), Varun Sablok (‘10) and Henry Chapman (‘10), was expecting a better finish at SPC. The Mavericks were without captain Chapman most of the year due to an injury. He was able to come back for SPC but was unable to compete at his highest level. Though Chapman did come back in time for SPC, he “did not run a great race,” Marek said.

The team had a lot of potential going into the season. “Overall it was a tough season, we did not live up to our potential,” Marek said.

The team hoped to pull off a

top-four finish if everyone ran their best race. They expected to finish behind St. Andrews, St. Mary’s Hall and possibly St. Marks; however, they did not expect an eleventh place finish.

“It was a bit of a letdown,” Marek said of their finish.

The prospects for the future are bright for the Cross-Country team. With major contributions from sophomores and juniors, the team is expecting a higher finish in years to come.

They even believe an SPC championship is within their grasp. Marek said, “I will guarantee an SPC championship within the next four years.”

With such high aspirations and potential, this could team could be one to watch in the next four years.

16

December 2009

Basketball jumps off to a good start

By HENRY MORRIS

CLAY NICKENS| The Review

A St. Thomas defender attempts to guard The Unguardable, William Young (‘10).

What the Houston Rockets lost in size and experience last year, they gained in youth and speed. This year’s Rockets play with an exciting, up-tempo style that has not only been fun to watch, but has contributed to their unexpected 11-9 record.

The SJS Mavericks’ boys basketball team is hoping to channel some of the Rockets fortunes as they progress through the 2009 season.

After the losses of big man Angus Mitchell (’09) and lanky wingmen Ethan Harry (’09) and Patrick Wilkey (’09), the boys team usually has a key disadvantage as soon as they walk on the court. It has been clear that size might be an obstacle in the Mavericks path since the start of the season.

As well as being small, the “post players are young and inexperienced,” Coach Harold Baber said. “If you look at our team, that’s a glaring difference between this year and last year.”

The Mavericks will try to play a fast paced game in order to keep their opponents from overpowering them in the frontcourt. The Mavericks have used this strategy effectively against teams that have an overwhelming height advantage.

“We’ve never played how we’re playing, so this is new for a lot of guys,” Baber said. “Our motion is new this year, and I just feel that it fits our team better than running a bunch of set plays, which we have done in the past.”

The team will rely heavily on its guards (and captains) William Young (’10) and Timothy Otey (’11) to lead the team along the way.

“Last year we got fourth [in SPC], and hopefully we can keep improving as a program,” said Otey, when asked what the team’s goals were for the season. “I feel like we’re faster

CLAY NICKENS| The Review

Josh Winslow (‘11) reaches for a rebound. than we’ve ever been and we’re more athletic then we’ve ever been, especially on the perimeter.”

Because of the time-consuming schedule, the team has held few practices. However, in the sessions that they have had, the team has focused on defense and fitness.

“We’re struggling right now defensively,” Coach Baber said. “We’re going to have gameswhere we don’t make shots. But even if [we] aren’t shooting the ball well we can still hang our hat on our defense.”

Interestingly, the Rockets

have had defensive troubles themselves, but their young energy has kept them on the right side of the win column.

By comparison, the SJS Girls basketball team hopes to use their own youth to win games,.

Captains Jasmine Thomas (’10), Jessica Carroll (’11) and Caroline Gibson (’11) are the only upperclassmen on the team.

The Lady Mavericks, who are also recovering from a number of losses, will be playing the same type of fast-paced ball as their male counterparts, but their inexperience could be a problem. The team lost key post players Shanice Beasley

(‘09) and Nelly Kontchu (‘09), as well as Alex Beckham (‘11), who chose not to return to the team this year.

Coach Pat Krieger realizes that it will take some time for her team to mesh together, but she’s confident in her team’s ability.

“I suspect by the time we roll around to SPC we’ll start getting to know each other, and playing better as a team,” Krieger said.

The advantage to having a large amount of underclassmen on the team is that by the time they turn into upperclassmen, there is a strong core of experienced players heading the team. While Coach Krieger acknowledged this, she expressed a desire to “think day to day.”

Because they will be running a fast-break oriented offense, the team will have to be fit enough to keep the tempo consistent for four quarters. A new conditioning coach, Shawn McDonald, has been added in order to strengthen the team’s fitness program.

“Last year a big problem was that we would get really tired, so hopefully now we’ll tire other teams out,” Carroll said of the new conditioning program.

With the extreme youth of the team, Krieger has said that her team is currently inexperienced, and that theywill need time to develop an on court chemistry.

“I would like all ten people on the team to know what their role is and make that meaningful to them,” Krieger said.

When asked why SJS students should attend basketball games, Coach Baber gave a fitting remark that applies to both teams.

“I think this year, more than anything, it will be more exciting, up-tempo, fast-paced, a really fun basketball style to watch.”

sports

SPC cont. from page 1

The meet was a successful end to a year of growth, friendship and winning for the team.

“We worked so hard, and I am so pleased to see that everything paid off. I could not have been happier with the results of the season,” Gamble said.

“SPC was a dream come true,” she added.

The Mavericks now must focus on the season ahead of them. Though they lose only three seniors, Gamble, their anchor for the past four years, is among them. Martha Daniel (’13) and Megan Lillie (’12), who both just missed the Maverick’s top-five, will look to pick up the slack next year.

The captains for next season will be Gras, Johnson and Jessica Van Sweringen (’11). Athletic Excellence was given to Gamble, while Gamble, Johnson and Patterson were recognized as AllConference runners based on their times.

Newcomer Nicole Gras (‘11) received the team’s Most Improved award.

While the girls cross-country team ran its way to victory outdoors, another SJS team was working hard towards a championship in the gym The volleyball team won the SPC Tournament by defeating the Episcopal School of Dallas, 25-20, 25-22, 2025, 25-19, marking the first time in 22 years that the Mavericks have won the SPC Championship.

The team entered the weekend ranked third seed overall behind ESD, who who entered the tournament undefeated in counter games.

In preparation for the tournament, practice length and intensity were increased and more scrimmaging occurred.

Additionally, the team went through hours of “serve and receive” drills, which are meant to help the team practice receiving the other team’s serves.

The team was led by Senior captains Linsday Paterson (’10) and Mary Ashleigh Boles (’10), as well as coaches James Fuller and Gena Rhodes.

The team improved their play as well as their chemistry throughout the season.

The common goal of winning SPC was a uniting force for the team.

“We really came together at the end of the season. We all wanted to win SPC, so that gave us a lot of enthusiasm and momentum,” Boles said.

Despite a successful end to the year, the team is not relaxing for next season. The captains in 2010 will be Alex Beckham (’11) and Angela Ha (’11). “This year was really successful, and we’re going to keep working hard to win again next year,” Ha said.

“I am so happy and so proud of my team. The season could not have had a better ending,” Boles said.

Athletic Excellence was awarded to Boles. In addition, Boles, Meryl Gibbs (‘12) and Ha received All-SPC honors.

December 2009

opinions

Editorial “Winter Wonderland” free dress day welcomed by faculty, students As the month of December gets underway and the weather (finally) cools off, the morale of students is mixed. Although the always appreciated winter break is just on the horizon, so too looms the stress of synthesis papers and mid-year exams.

With the spirits of the student body in mind, the Editorial Board would like to applaud the administration’s decision to allow an unprecedented “Winter Wonderland” free dress day.

The day, marked by students wearing their finest winter gear (we shall call it sparse, at best), was quite clearly enjoyed by all who chose to participate.

In addition, the anticipation of snowfall, a rare occurrence in the typically infernal weather of Houston, pushed excitement to a new tier. And when the snow fell, excitement soared to heights rarely seen on the North Campus.

The day was highlighted by a schoolwide snowball fight during lunch. Students from all grades converged on the plaza, collected snow off cars, and began the

mayhem. It was an experience that won’t be soon forgotten.

Should global warming allow it, the Editorial Board would humbly suggest that the administration consider making the final Friday of each fall semester a “Winter Wonderland” free dress day, and perhaps even expand upon the basis laid by this year’s event. The event could benefit from winter music during class intervals, a Christmas tree decoration during lunch, or a student and faculty caroling troupe.

Though the event has limitless possibilities, the inaugural day was, without a doubt, a wild success.

It is undeniable that the snowfall and early dismissal helped aid the popularity of the event, but the Board feels as though these were added bonuses in a day that was destined to be well received.

Though any free dress day is met with approval, the Editorial Board would like to express its particular accordance with this specific celebration of the winter season and the hope of some frosty precipitation.

17

The Review

The Review

The Official Student Newspaper of St. John’s School 2009-2010 Editor-in-Chief: Liliana Varman (‘10) Managing Editor: Stuart Dickerson (‘10) Business Manager: Christy Lee (‘11) News Editor Arvind Mohan (‘10)

Features Editor Melissa Yuan (‘11)

Opinions Editor Blake Wulfe (‘10)

beyondSJS Editor Mariam Matin (‘11)

Arts&Entertainment Editor Sports Editor Joe Martinez (‘11) Hudson Duncan (‘10) Copy Editor Bhagwat Kumar (‘11)

Staff Writers

Photo Editor Jenny Lewis (‘10) Clay Nickens (‘10)

Jessica Allen (‘11), Iman Charania (‘13), Veronica Chu (‘12), Josh Dickerson (‘13), Ariana Dickey (‘12), Braden Doyle (‘13), Samuel Dunn (‘10), Allegra Fradkin (‘11), Zach Gaitz (‘10), , Caroline Gibson (‘11), Ben Grotta (‘11), Stephanie Guo (‘13), Avery Hinrichs (‘12), Sarah Koslov (‘10), Robert McNiel (‘12), Henry Morris (‘11), Sheila Newar (‘10), Andrew Perry (‘11), Megan Rech (‘11), Pooja Salhotra (‘12), Andrew Vogeley (‘13) Circulation Manager Meagan Longoria (‘10) Advertising Manager Allie DeLuca (‘11)

Photographers Hannah Degner (‘11), Erica Reed (‘12), Bobbie Richardson (‘11), Sarah Windham (‘12)

Illustrator Caroline Clutterbuck (‘11) Business Staff Morgan Allen (‘11), Lindsey Collie (‘11), Spencer Lepow (‘13), Annabel Massey (‘11)

Advisor Kyle Parrish (‘01) David Nathan

As the student newspaper of St. John’s School, The Review provides a forum for student writing and opinion. The opinions (signed) and staff editorials (unsigned) contained herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Headmaster or Board of Trustees of St. John’s School. Staff editorials represent the opinion of the paper. Letters to the editor and guest columns are encouraged but are subject to editing for reasons of clarity, space, accuracy and good taste. The Review reserves the right not to print letters received. Either e-mail letters and guest columns to review@sjs.org; give them to Liliana Varman, Stuart Dickerson, Kyle Parrish, David Nathan or Blake Wulfe in the office of The Review (Q-210); or mail to Editor-in-Chief, The Review, St. John’s School, 2401 Claremont Lane, Houston, TX 77019.

Letter from the Editor

Dear Reader, It’s 7:24 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 9, and twelve hours ago, I was still working on my synthesis paper for Dr. Raulston (!), which I turned in mere minutes before the 7:45 a.m. deadline. I then proceeded to sleep until 5:50 p.m., missing the entire day of school and almost missing sending this issue to press.

Thankfully, the rest of the Board pitched in to save my rump, and when I called Arvind at 6 p.m. in pure unadulterated panic, I was quickly assured that everything was under control.

As I rushed to school, I attempted to calm my-

self down by listening to The Beatles, and although the voice of John Lennon (R.I.P 29 years ago on 12/8/09) has soothing powers, what truly calmed my frazzled nerves was knowing that the BEST EDITORS EVER had my back.

I know Thanksgiving was last week, but I feel that the time has never been riper to count my blessings than this very minute. Amidst this rush of papers, final exams and college application stress, I’ve grown more focused on my own needs and have at times neglected to acknowledge those who have helped me through this busy semester. My

friends, teachers and fellow classmates have been unbelievably understanding and for that, I am eternally grateful.

The holidays are the best part of the year, in my opinion, and I know that everyone is looking forward to this winter break.

In this last issue of the decade, we take a look at SJS’s newest headmaster, relive this season’s memorable sports moments and remind ourselves of why we love the holidays. Have a great break, and, as always, thanks for reading.

Liliana Varman

Editor-in-Chief

Corrections: November 2009

Letter Policy

In our article Matt Joyce: An Army of One, it was explicitly implied that Matt Joyce is the only active member of the debate team; however, Katherine Morille (‘12) also participates in the SJS debate circuit.

Letters to the editors and guest columns are welcome but are subject to editing for reasons of clarity, space, accuracy and good taste. The Review reserves the right not to print le tters recieved, and all letters must be typed and signed. Give letters, guest columns and classified advertisements to Liliana Varman, Stuart Dickerson, Kyle Parrish or David Nathan in the office of The Review (Q-210).

The Review sincerely regrets these errors, and apologizes to the subjects and readers.

18

December 2009

What a SmashBurger!

An all-American beef patty sizzles atop an egg bun; perfectly melted cheddar cheese oozes out from under a single leaf of crisp lettuce; the smell of warm fries portents the deliciously salty and savory meal to come.

Sound good?

We first ate at Smashburger, the newly christened eating establishment on Buffalo Speedway about a month ago and have become increasingly impressed with the restaurant’s food offerings, atmosphere, and value.

In order to evaluate the restaurant in a meaningful manner, we have chosen to compare it to a SJS food staple, Whataburger.

Admittedly, these two restaurants are quite different. The SJS hangout is centered around

fast service and cheap prices and therefore is inherently at a disadvantage to the more expensive and time-consuming Smashburger.

Whataburger is not the ideal reference point for evaluating Smashburger, yet due to the

opinions simple fact that its food, atmosphere, and overall value are so well known by the SJS community, it provides the most convenient, universal, and, hopefully, most effectual comparison.

Smashburger

Whataburger

By BLAKE WULFE

By BHAGWAT KUMAR components of the burger, such as lettuce, tomatoes and pickles, allows the consumer to focus on the My all-time favorite at Whataburger important aspects of their meal. Douis the double-meat, double-cheese, dry and plain Whataburger on Texas toast bling the meat and cheese and cutting with bacon and grilled onions. The that which is unnecessary ensures that burger draws strength from its specific- the burger revolves around the essenity, as each ingredient blends seamlessly tials and not the fluff that so many other together to form a harmonious combi- burgers tend to depend on.

Finally, the bacon and grilled onions nation of tastes and flavors. add the extra tinge of taste that pushes The first building block of the burger the burger past its competition. The bais the Texas Toast. Too many burgers focus only on what’s between the bread, con adds an extra dimension so that the disregarding one of the most vital parts burger is not too bland, and the onions provide additional ‘kick,’ completing of a burger: the buns.

Switching out regular, sesame seed the burger.

Much like Captain Planet, when these buns with Texas Toast adds a new, exelements all combine into one burger, citing wrinkle to the burger, and the efthe result is spectacular. fects are clearly beneficial.

Next, the removal of unnecessary

The eponymous burger is exceedingly delicious, and while it does not differ a great deal from the generic burger setup, it does have a few unique characteristics that make it so good.

First, for some reason the egg bun drastically improves the meal. I honestly have no idea why this is. Perhaps the denser egg bread is more attuned to my taste, perhaps the specks of cornmeal add an unfamiliar texture to the mix, or perhaps its taste complements the burger better than does the generic bun. I am not sure why, but it’s good.

Second, the smash sauce gives the burger an unexpected twist which, were I a culinary critic, I would describe as adding overall taste and depth of the meal. The sauce is mustard

The Beef Burger

based, and while not entirely off the beaten burger path, it is still unique.

Finally, the technique used to grill the burger and season the beef makes the meal what it is. The Smashburger menu claims that smashing the burger on the grill seals in the flavor. While this seems somewhat illogical considering that applying pressure to the patty must force some of the juice out, the burger does have a sort of pop when biting into it. Sensible or not, the beef is the point of the burger, and as such deserves to be brought into the discussion of what makes the meal great.

Alternative Dining Options Much to my surprise, after having eaten at Smashburger a number of times, I have determined that my second favorite meal there is not a variation on the burger, but rather a Smashchicken.

This thinly sliced piece of poltry is seasoned in a similar manner to the burger and is also delicious on an egg bun. However, its greatest asset is perhaps the fact that it is not beef, and therefore provides some variety to the restaurant patrons.

It is smashed, lightly browned, and cooked in a substantial amount of oil or butter to help compensate for the lack

of fat content.

What I enjoy most about the chicken is that for some reason I like it better each time I get it, partially due to the fact that I have become used to the taste and look forward to eating it as a result, but also because I have recently begun ordering the burger with haystack onions on it.

Haystack onions are essentially Smashburger’s version of onion rings, but very thin, and more attune to being eaten in large quantities. They give the burger a different, crunchy texture and a saltier taste which add to the meal.

When I want a meal other than a burger, the entrée that I resort to is the two-piece chicken strip meal.

Like Smashburger’s Smashchicken, one of the meal’s greatest strengths is that it simply does not contain beef, which provides variety and options for Whataburger’s patrons.

An unheralded advantage of Whataburger’s chicken strip meal is the availability and quantity of dipping sauces.

The customer can choose from ranch, gravy, barbecue and honey mustard sauce, meaning that there is a chicken strip meal for everyone.

In addition, Whataburger’s sauces do not come in tiny, flimsy packets

that scarcely provide enough sauce for one bit. Rather, they come in plastic containers large enough to fit the whole chicken strip in, ensuring that they are always available in abundance.

The final component to any Whataburger meal is the chocolate shake.

Too many times have I seen a customer make the mistake of ordering a soft drink, an error because a regular soda simply does not do a Whataburger meal justice. The chocolate shake, though unspectacular alone, somehow meshes perfectly with Whataburger’s dishes, making it an essential part of any meal at Whataburger.

Thanksgiving Break, long enough?

By ZACH GAITZ Throughout my education career, I have never had the luxury of a week long Thanksgiving break. Instead, the break has always lasted for a mere section of the week. A Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off with school on the Monday and Tuesday before are just not enough though. I feel that Thanksgiving Break is just too short to be the relaxing, family-oriented reverie that it is supposed to be.

Granted, there are reasons for having school on the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving. There are a required number of school days for the school year, and there are many papers to turn in and tests to be administered before the long break. However, these reasons pale in comparison with the potential benefits of having a longer break, especially since the primary consequence would be starting the school year two days earlier or ending two days later.

First of all, Thanksgiving is a time of great cheer, excitement, family and fun. With all the stress that students at SJS have to deal with, they could use a nice “Fall Break” at this time. It is about three to four weeks before midyear exams arrive, and the stress levels are starting to shoot through the roof.

Why not give us a nice long nine day break (that’s the two weekends and the week) to not only finally relax and spend some time with our family, but

happens anyway with the shorter break. Adding a few days would give students more time to recharge after that stretch of papers and tests before they start cramming for finals.

Again, the long break is also more convenient for family time, which is something I think all parents would attest to.

It is quite simple: SJS students spend more time either working at school or locked up in their rooms studying than they do spending quality time with their JENNY LEWIS | The Review family. If the break were longer, it to simply calm down and get our mind would be easier for students to spend off of school for a few days? time with their parents and siblings.

One could argue that making the Whether it means the family can make break too long would be dangerous that trip out to Arizona to see grandbecause students might forget material parents or if it means family is coming or have to cram and take many tests be- in town, the longer break strongly fore the break starts, but honestly, that

favors more family time.

Obviously there is going to be some apprehension coming from the folks in administration when it comes to taking an entire week off school instead of just three days. But if you really think about it…it’s just two days! Why not just give us those days off if it means we will be recharged and refreshed for the following weeks? Isn’t the main goal of any academic institution to shape young minds and educate the youth?

In my opinion, the goal can be attained with greatest success Thanksgiving Break is extended so that kids can have some relaxation time to compose themselves and recover so they are prepared for the grueling December weeks.

While there are reasons to simply keep Thanksgiving Break at its short three days out of the week (five total days off), I feel that the longer break (with nine days off) is actually a better scheduling decision.

There are some reasons why the short break works well, but I would argue that the reasons for having a longer break far outweigh the reasons for having the shorter break. In my honest opinion, the school will benefit from a longer Thanksgiving Break, all we have to do is try it out!

19

December 2009

opinions

Holiday Season Top Five We all deeply enjoy and look forward to the winter break after a long semester of hard work, but the holiday season offers more than an opportunity for laziness. It is a time to watch foot ball, catch up with family, admire Christmas lights, write a few college essays and much more. Among the benefits of the holiday season, which is the greatest? Obviously the answer to this question will differ from person to person, but have tried to once and for all determine the five best things about the holidays.

By ANDREW PERRY

Illustrations By Caroline Clutterbuck

4. Mistletoe

5. New Year’s

Christmas can be the most romantic holiday, even more so than Valentine’s Day. Snuggling, charming gifts and, of course, mistletoe are all trademarks of the holiday season.

New Year’s brings with it a blank slate, a fresh start and a new grading period. If only colleges saw it the same way!

3. Cold Weather Hot weather is fine for fun in the sun, but colder weather allows for hot chocolate to be made and fireplaces to be lit. Once the cold hits, the pants and jackets come out, and an entirely new fashion season begins.

2. Music

Christmas songs are the top genre of songs bought on iTunes, and if you have listened to Harry Connick Jr.’s “Sleigh Ride,” you will know why. They are catchy and uplifting and get you excited for Christmas, which is the best time of year. is the greatest country in the world because of capitalism. In 2008, 457.6 billion 1. Presents America dollars were spent on Christmas presents in the US, which included 14.8 million Tickle-MeElmos, 9.6 million N-Strike Nerf guns, twenty-six thousand jet skis and 28 million iPhones sold as Christmas presents last year. People may say that money can’t buy happiness, but money can buy a jet ski, and I have never seen someone sad on a jet ski.

Freshman Festivities: Staff Writer

Iman Charania opines on 2013 Freshman Retreat Burning marshmallows may seem like a fairly trivial pastime, but considering that it helped me and my peers meet new students and connect with old ones, I have recently developed a new appreciation for it.

On the freshman retreat, I was able to bond with the seniors on the trip while learning more about my friends. They, in turn, learned that when I get cold my hands and that the only way to relieve me of this ailment is to let me rub my hands against their arms.

My classmates and I were at Camp Cho-Yeh for two fun-

filled days. We cheered on our friends in intense rock-paperscissors battles and participated in a low ropes course. We were even split into groups and had to figure out how to get through a maze with no walls without talking. My only regret was the lack of intiative games on the trip.

However, we did have many other opportunities for bonding moments. For example, when the girls in our cabin discovered the outlets in the bathroom, the only girl in the cabin with a blow dryer graciously agreed to let all the other girls

use it.

The only negative aspect of the retreat was hanging out in wet clothing after going kayaking. As soon as my group hit the water, the kayak toppled over. To make matters worse, every kayak group on the lake splashed us and we didn’t even have paddles to fight back! After getting out we drip-dried and created wet spots everywhere.

At the end of that day we settled down to watch one of the funniest “talent” shows I have ever seen. My favorite acts were probably Steven Lukens’

tale about Jake, the skit with the guys starting their morning and Ms. DiPaolo’s rendition of the stanky leg.

We also had a speaker who performed magic tricks for us while teaching us lessons. He made some of our classmates look silly, but that just added to his humor.

One of his magic tricks was to make red balls appear out of nowhere, and what was creepy about it was that when my group was playing Frisbee golf in the woods the next morning we found a red ball in the woods.

Cho-Yeh was a lot of fun and we participated in a lot of activities. The one thing we did not have a lot of, however, was sleep. My entire cabin stayed up until midnight or one every night. Most of us were comatose on the bus ride home, myself included, so I don’t remember what happened on the way back.

Aside these two minor complaints, the ninth class retreat was a fun way for members of the class of 2013 to get to know each other.

21

a&e The Review

December 2009

ERICA REED | The Review

David Friedman (‘12) and Damien Kemfack (‘12) portray Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson, respectively during the courtroom scene.

Going backstage with To Kill a Mockingbird

By AVERY HINRICHS The SJS adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird took a lot more effort than one would expect. To move the story from the confines of Harper Lee’s novel to the real world setting of a play required significant trims to the story as well as the construction of elaborate sets.

For those unfamiliar with the plot, the story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama.

The story is narrated by Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, who lives with her older brother Jem and father Atticus, an attorney.

The first act consisted of the children’s summer adventures, ranging from attempting to meet the recluse Arthur “Boo” Radley to escaping a rabid dog.

However, the innocent nature of the children’s daily activities is ruined by the intrusion of a trial in which Tom Robinson is accused of rape.

The entire second act of the play revolved around the process of the trial, and the racism of the town ensures the jury ultimately finds Robinson guilty, even though the defense presented by Atticus Finch would indicate it was not Tom who beat victim Mayella Ewell but rather her father Bob Ewell.

The final act centered on the reaction of the town to the outcome of the trial. Even though Tom Robinson was found guilty, Atticus Finch ruined the reputation of Bob Ewell, who retaliates by attempting to murder the Finch children, but they are saved by the timely actions of Boo Radley, who reveals himself at last.

Although practices during production week may be a turn-off for those considering participating in a play, cast members said that it’s not as much of a commitment as one might anticipate.

“I really suggest that incoming freshman try out for plays because Mrs. Sanford really likes new talent,” said Kate Clarke (’11), who played the abused victim, Mayella Ewell. “[Acting] was really fun, and it’s a great way to do something that you wouldn’t normally do,” Valerio Farris (’13) said.

The cast members praised director Beth Sanford for her guidance and help.

Savannah Ezelle (’13), who played the protagonist Jean Louise Finch, said she owes all of her success to Sanford.

“I auditioned for Alice in Wonderland at SJS in sixth grade on a whim because all of my friends were doing it, and I honestly wasn’t even expecting anything, but somehow I got the part of Alice. I think she must have seen something in me,” Ezelle said.

“The best part of the play for me was right before I went on stage for the show.

Mrs. Sanford hugged me and said ‘I love you and I am so proud of you,’ and after that all I wanted was to make the show the best that it could be,” Ezelle said.

Although many think the only way to get involved in the theater department is by auditioning for a role, many students like Blair Bou-Chebl (’11) and Daniel Flowers (’12) get involved in the

production through the construction of sets.

There are many crew positions one can apply for such as sound manager, lights manager, fly manager, assistant director and running crew.

Flowers was the fly manager for To Kill a Mockingbird, so he was in charge of around 90 rails on which he can attach lights, curtains and the platform that composed the balcony.

During the performances, Flowers worked during the two 10-minute intermissions with precision and quickness.

His crucial job requires quick changes to scenery and moving and placing sets as needed.

Not all backstage jobs require skill and previous experience, however, and Johnnycake welcomes newcomers.

“Yes, there is work, but the work is also fun,” Flowers said.

Bou-Chebl worked as the backstage

manager for stage right. Her job required attending four to five-hour practices, as well as getting David Friedman (’12) ready with his costume and props for his role as Atticus Finch.

While Bou-Chebl said she had a bit of a panic learning the costume and prop changes, most of the job was quite relaxing.

Production staffers are only required to work during production week, but they too have to stay the full practices, although they said there is a lot of time in which they can finish their homework.

Cast members said joining Johnnycake is worthwhile because, “It’s really fun and you become a family by the end of it, eating together at the cast dinner and having the cast party, and it’s a really great way to get involved with the other classes,” Clarke said.

22

December 2009

a&e

Fascinated by Wes Anderson’s foxy new film

By ARIANA DICKEY Released on November 25, Fantastic Mr. Fox, SJS alumnus Wes Anderson’s newest film, is based on Roald Dahl’s children’s book of the same name.

Fantastic Mr. Fox follows the story of Mr. Fox’s trials as a father, husband and friend. When Ms. Fox becomes pregnant, she makes Mr. Fox promise to never return to the dangerous job of chicken snatching.

Twelve fox years later, Mr. Fox is growing old. He has a son, Ash, as well as his nephew, Kristofferson, who are both staying with the Foxes; Mr. Fox lives in a lovely tree overlooking the valley, and he has a loyal best friend, an opossum named Riley. Despite his seemingly perfect life, Mr. Fox becomes discontented with the journalist job he took up after quitting the chicken-snatching business.

Mr. Fox decides that he needs one last adventure before he dies and chooses to steal from the three meanest farmers in the valley, Boggis, Bunce and Bean. His reckless decision endangers the community, as well as his relationship with his family, and Mr. Fox must fight to return everything back to normal.

In addition to tackling the conflict between the community, Mr. Fox and the farmers, Anderson undertakes the job of examining the communal and familial relationships that constitute Mr. Fox’s life.

A key relationship that is examined is the relationship between Mr. Fox and Ash and the competition Ash feels with his golden boy cousin, Kristofferson.

Compared to Kristofferson’s natural athletic, intellectual and social abilities, Ash feels like a misfit and, for

the first time, doubts his identity. On top of all of that, Ash must now compete for his father’s affection.

The idea that life and people are pretty messed up, yet still enjoyable should one associate with the right group of mess-ups is a theme present in other Anderson films, and it certainly shines through in Fantastic Mr. Fox. The movie has an all-star cast consisting of George Clooney as Mr. Fox, Meryl Streep as Ms. Fox and Wally Wolodarsky as Kylie. Additionally, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman and Owen Wilson, all three of whom are cast in nearly all of Anderson’s films, voice the roles of Badger, Ash, and Coach Skip, respectively.

Clooney did a fabulous job of voicing Mr. Fox, portraying Mr. Fox exactly as the wily, reckless, eloquent and ambitious individual that he is.

The movie, Anderson’s first attempt at an animated film, was not made with the typical computer graphics so common these days. Instead, Anderson chose to use dolls and bring them to life. The use of the dolls sets Fantastic Mr. Fox apart from other recent animated films and contributes to its whimsical vintage charm.

While Fantastic Mr. Fox is an animated film with forest animals as the main characters, this movie is not necessarily a kid’s movie. In addition to the intense emotions portrayed throughout the movie, a few scenes, including the death of a character, may be a bit scary to some younger audience members.

In Fantastic Mr. Fox, Anderson has once again proven his ability to project his wild imagination into a film, only this time in animated form.

Image courtesy of www.realmovienews.com

Taking aim at Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

By JOSH DICKERSON and Guest Writer RIVERS WALLACE The arrival of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a day forever engraved in video game history. What may seem like “just another video game” to some, Infinity Ward’s new war shooter is to others the most important thing of the decade.

Whatever your take on this phenomenon, its figures are hard to ignore: selling 4.7 million copies and earning over $310 million within its first 24 hours in stores and $550 million in the first five days after its release, Modern Warfare 2 has already sold a third of the copies its predecessor, the best selling first-person shooter of all-time, did in two years.

Within its first five days, it has already set an entertainment industry record in revenue.

The single-player campaign picks up five years after the first game ended and continues the same storyline. The Russian public has been rallied against American troops by Vladimir Makarov, leader of the Ultranationalist party, after the death of his mentor at the end of the first game. The player assumes many roles throughout the game, including a U.S. Army Ranger, a member of Task Force 141 and even an astronaut for a brief time. Fans of the last game will recognize “Soap” MacTavish and other returning characters.

The story begins with a deep undercover CIA operative who joins Makarov in a brutal civilian massacre in a Russian airport to gain his trust in order to get valuable information for the CIA. At

Image courtesy of http://xbox360.ign.com

the end of the attack, the terrorists kill multiplayer. the CIA agent and leave his body at the The difficulty of each level is selected scene of the crime, making it look like before the mission starts, giving players an American was responsible. Outraged, a challenge suitable to their level of exRussia launches an perience. This mode attack on Amerigives players an opcan soil, leaving portunity to play the Rangers to the highlights of the defend Washingexcellent campaign ton D.C. from the with a friend. Speterrorists while cial Ops also introTask Force 141 duces some levels seeks to expose not seen in the camMakarov as the paign and revisits mastermind belevels from previous hind the massagames as well. cre in Russia.

Some of the best The story has missions include a few plot holes one player sneaking and the campaign through an enemy can be completed camp at night with in a mere five to his partner giving seven hours, but him air support from it features some of an AC-130 gunship, the coolest, most snowmobile chases heart-pounddown mountains ing moments in and defending BurgImage courtesy of http://i27.tinypic.com er Town from waves gaming history.

You’ll only have of Russian terrorists. time to breathe The final and arguwhen you’re reloading. ably most important of the three gameOne major new addition to the game play modes is the online competitive is Spec Ops mode. This is essentially an multiplayer. The first Modern Warfare abridged version of the campaign for already had fantastic multiplayer and two players. Players can play campaign spawned one of the largest online commissions cooperatively with a friend munities in gaming history. The sequel both online and locally via split-screen. had a lot to live up to and has amazingly This is a great alternative for people improved over the last installments of who dislike the intense competitive the Call of Duty series. First off, there

are almost double the weapons available from Call of Duty 4, all with new customizable attachments.

While new weapon sights were added, returning favorites like the red dot sight and ACOG sight were redesigned. The addition of the new thermal scope lets the player see enemies’ heat signatures in a black-and-white view. Shotguns are now counted as sidearms along with pistols and newly added launchers and machine pistols. As anticipated, one of these shotguns is the fully automatic AA-12, capable of blasting off a full clip of shells in seconds.

Also new to the series is the riot shield.

This portable, bullet-proof barrier deflects any and all incoming fire without breaking but occupies the primary weapon slot, forcing players to switch to their sidearm to fight back. Another great improvement is the many new “perks,” which now feature upgraded “pro” versions that allow for even deeper customization. The matches themselves have also been streamlined to eliminate any bugs from the last game, including new in-game host switching.

Essentially, this game gives players the opportunity to kill terrorists stylishly in many different ways. On a scale of 1100, this game should be a 96.5. However, for all its greatness, it still has no split-screen online, and the campaign does not live up to its predecessors. Nevertheless, it is still a must-have for any gamer.

Illustration by CAROLINE CLUTTERBUCK

December 2009

23

H

Palate Pleasers:

dining at Tiny Boxwoods and Crescent City Beignets

SARAH WINDHAM | The Review

Tiny Boxwoods can be found by searching for 3614 West Alabama.

By MEGAN RECH Unfortunately, the twenty-minute line to the If you ever find yourself in Highland Village on walk-up-and-order counter coupled with the a cool afternoon looking for a trendy place to eat, lack of seating both inside and out briefly dimintry Tiny Boxwood’s, a French café and espresso ished my enthrallment with the pleasant ambibar that is actually connected to Thompson and ance and intriguing menu. Additionally, I was Hanson, a landscape architecture firm. Although disappointed to find the lack of options available some luck and persistence are needed to find the on the menu, as well as the high prices. However, café tucked away on West Alabama and Saint most people who enjoy a variety of foods should Street, and parking spots are limited, your efforts be able to find something suitable, and the pleaswill pay off. antness of comfortably enjoying a meal outside Greeted by a charming ivy-covered white certainly compensates for the limited choices. building and inviting umbrella-covered outdoor When I dined at Tiny Boxwood’s for Sunday seating, I was immediately impressed by the tran- Brunch, I was pleasantly surprised to find that quil atmosphere. Just inside the entrance, a large the service was remarkably efficient and friendchalkboard displays the menu, which changes ly, even if the line to order was long. I was greetdaily, and a refrigerator stores the highly-cov- ed when I approached the cashier, and my food eted bottles of delicious fresh lemonade and oth- was ready quickly. er assorted drinks. An oversized clock occupies I decided to be adventurous and bypass the most of one wall to the right, but generally the typical breakfast options available (parfaits, unassuming décor provides a relaxed atmosphere fruit, muffins and smoothies) for a potato and for guests. egg breakfast pizza. With a delightfully crunchy

crust topped with feta cheese, basil, roasted potatoes and eggs, the pizza was an unusual yet satisfying lunch. I thought my refreshing lemonade and fresh-baked chewy chocolate-chip cookies complemented my meal nicely.

Something to keep in mind when dining is that for many, Tiny Boxwood’s is a place to see and be seen, to judge and be judged. A hint of a presumptuous air among some guests is evident to the perceptive observer, and the snickers and affected laughs of gossipy women chatting about the latest trivialities seem to subtly hover among tables. While the restaurant seems fairly casual, some people I saw were dressed more formally than I would have expected. This social aspect of Tiny Boxwood’s created some unwelcome tension for those caught between the exchanges.

Overall those who do not mind the wait and price but enjoy a lovely meal and cool weather will enjoy a charming dining experience.

SARAH WINDHAM | The Review

Crescent City Beignets is located across the street from SJS on Westheimer.

Situated on Westheimer across the street from I found myself disappointed with my soggy tur- is the made-to-order beignets, which definitely SJS, Crescent City Beignets serves as a casual and key panini and cold hush puppies. I sampled the compensate for the unimpressive entrees. Both convenient lunch spot for SJS students as well as red beans and rice with andouille sausage as well, traditional beignets and beignet strips, which can River Oaks patrons. However this hole-in-the- which was slightly too spicy but otherwise de- be ordered with strawberry, white chocolate and wall New Orleans coffeehouse has seen better cent. Admittedly, I do not particularly enjoy the dark chocolate sauce, are served, and honey is days. The dusty Mardi Gras decorations hanging more traditional Cajun food, however, and others available as well for no extra charge. Dusted – or from the ceiling, the four tables that had yet to may find the menu more appealing. inundated, rather – with powdered sugar, these be bussed, chipping paint on the countertops and The service is decent; I was greeted by the ca- deep-fried delicious puffed pillows of dough will the powdered sugar that seemed to make its way shier who then promptly took my order at the satisfy anyone’s sweet tooth on a cold afternoon. all over the restaurant certainly did not improve counter and did not have to wait long for my food Thus, despite its service and food that occathe overall dinginess of the restaurant that is ap- considering the beignets are made fresh. They sionally can leave patrons disappointed, Crescent parent upon stepping inside. seem to be short-staffed, though; I only saw two City meets the needs of hungry customers cravThe food is adequate and the menu is fairly people working the night I dined, which may ing something sweet by offering more substantial broad, with sandwiches and salads to supplement have been a contributing factor of the overall options as well as beignets. Furthermore, its conmore traditional Creole options. However, for lack of cleanliness. venience makes it a great option for neighborthe quality, most items seemed to be overpriced; The redeeming feature of Crescent City, it seems, hood residents and SJS students alike.

I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

H

Illustrations by CAROLINE CLUTTERBUCK

H

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I

H

a&e

odds&ends Thumbs Thumbs down up Generic Winter Holiday!

Acceptance letters Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Word for Word “Try to get out some paper–just humor me.”

– Government teacher Mr. Popp “I’ll take the latter.”

“What do you need a ladder for?”

– Chas Jhin (‘10) and Math teacher Dr. Sharp “I only run ‘Back Splits’ like every 8 plays.”

– John Bonham (‘10), lying about his offensive tendancies in the N64 game Blitz 2000 “I hope I don’t smell. We’ve been dissecting.”

– Biology teacher Ms. Johnson to headmaster Mr. Hendrix

sixty seconds with Lauren Wilson (‘10)

The Texans Rejection letters Seriously, the Texans

Staffer of the issue Allegra has done great work for the newspaper all year, but this issue, she really set herself apart.

In addition to writing an article about the new security changes our school is implementing, she volunteered to write what could be the most important article of the year: the first interview with new headmaster Mr. Mark Desjardins. She began working as soon as the Search Committee announced its decision, and her Allegra Fradkin (‘11) work was outstanding Thanks Allegra!

Photo of the issue

BOBBIE RICHARDSON| The Review BOBBIE RICHARDSON| The Review

Houston Astros GM Ed Wade discusses the team with students in W205.

JENNY LEWIS| The Review

name lauren wilson grade 12 relationship status single sjs rulz, khs drulz cafeteria item gyros sport to play field hockey sport to watch college football olympic sport rythmic gymnastics professional sports team astros music anything disney movie anything disney tv show friday night lights book pride & prejudice radio station cds restaurant ninfa’s on navigation comfort food my sister’s brownies vegetable cucumber breakfast food anything from buffalo grill Facebook or MySpace? facebook holiday christmas color red drink diet coke hero tim riggins sing in the shower? always when i grow up i want to live somewhere unexpected favorite spot on the sjs campus senior porch motto “sharry” do you read the review? does a bear have hair?