Talisman

TALISMAN VOLUME 102 ISSUE 2

NOVEMBER 27, 2019

p. 10

ORCA CARDS p. 7 THE SCHOOL FIRE STARTER p. 14 ADVICE COLUMN p. 19

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02 EDITORIAL

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November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

2020 TERROR: WHAT WE’VE DONE AND WHAT’S TO COME

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Corrections

A photo on pg. 6 was miscredited, Zev Golden-Zagorski took the photo.

In the photo caption on pg. 17, Lilly Grey Rudge was misidentified as Lilly Rutledge. That same photo was not credited, Skye McDonald took the photo.

In a photo caption on pg. 9, coach Neal Howard’s name was misspelled.

Cover art by Ian Davino

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he undercurrent of fear that consumes politicians, economists, activists and anxiety-ridden teens about the new decade is sure to be washed away with every drink as they party into the 2020s. People around the globe can expect many exciting years of recession, nativism and consumerism to take the next ten years hostage.

Arriving into the new year, it feels like the world has come raging in, slamming the door open to a new decade and splintering the walls. We entered the 2010s with the devastation of Hurricane Mathew in Haiti and the Gulf Coast Oil Spill and will end it on the brink of climate disaster.

In our own nation, citizens seem to hold the belief that as long as we forget or feign ignorance about the problems blockading us in they’ll go away. To accomplish this Americans might just have to forget the rest of the world, although certain politicians seem to achieve this well enough. Every year seems to bring a new disaster into perspective, 2020 promises not to be anticlimactic.

With all the fiascos that have plagued the last ten years, it’s no surprise that people have drawn comparisons to the “Roaring Twenties.” One of the most unique and pivotal periods in American history when the youth cried out for freedom, women basked in the chance to explore independence, revelry and consumerism were at an all time high.

According to the Digital History website, the 1920s was an “orgy of consumption and speculation,” a

Cartoon by Sam Rainville

herculean struggle between old and coming decade seems to have the markings new, much like today. The country was of “Roaring Twenties 2.0,” or as some have embroiled in a battle of race, immigration, labeled it, the “Screaming Twenties.” gender politics, and sexual morality. As Here we are again with hundreds of young men and women left the rural and Americans naive to the disaster spotted traditional lifestyle for hedonistic and just beyond the horizon. Famous immoral life in the city, they were leaving philosopher George Santayana once behind the Victorian era of America’s past. quipped “those who cannot remember It feels appropriate to say that history is the past are condemned to repeat it.” repeating itself. Here we are with millions Remembering the past may not seem as of youth across the nation struggling important when our planet is heating to step away from the gloom left by our up and the amount of time we have left forefathers decisions and construct lives is dwindling, but it bears to remember centered around our own characterization America’s gloomy history. of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of Yes, the last decade has been one of happiness.” prosperity. We’ve made technological leaps Even still, the materialistic Americans in progress around the globe, legalized couldn’t know that one day their stocks same sex marriage and normalized general were going to stop short and nosedive tolerance of fluid self-identity till they had disappeared; the Great Hopefully 2020 terror will never come: Depression hit hard and took no survivors. here’s to health and a happy new year.

The decade of prosperity and dissipation led people by the hand into economic devastation, they Editors-in-Chief Staff remained hopeless and Ian Davino Editor-in-Chief Sam Rainville Staff rtist their faith in capitalism Piper Sloan Editor-in-Chief Peter Brown Staff Re orter was left shattered.

Eli Campbell Staff Re orter Economists are Cooper Staff Re orter Editorial Board Adria Frances Kleinsmith Staff Re orter predicting a recession Tess Petrillo News Editor Alex Montes Staff Re orter before 2021; the Paige Anderson Sports Editor Christian Moran Staff Re orter wealth gap has been Samantha Swainson Features Editor Lukas Ramakrishnan Staff Re orter preserved and we Elliot Armitage A&E Editor Brett Richter Staff Re orter live in a society that Dhani Srinivasan Opinions Editor Will Shepard Staff Re orter Hannah Weaver Copy Editor worships materialism, Zev Golden-Zagorski Staff Photographer Skye McDonald Photo Editor isolates immigration Lila Gill Business Manager and involves gender Adviser and race politics in Michael Smith every political spat. The

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Everything to know about impeachment What’s happened, what’s happening, and what comes next Piper Sloan Editor-in-Chief

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ver since Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced the star of the impeachment trial on Sept. 24, it’s been hard to venture online without being bombarded with buzzwords about Ukraine this and whistleblower that, making it difficult to gain a clear picture o what’s actually going on.

Social media usage, by politicians and opinionated citizens alike, coupled with instant access to information, has caused some of the important details to be obscured.

History teacher Gregory Feise comments on the way this information overload has made it difficult to distinguish the important from th irrelevant.

“It’s certainly hard to just sift through all the external noise of everybody’s opinions,” he said. “You get [the information] instantaneously and you have multiple people commenting on it, so I think a lot of stuff that probably is not so important becomes important.”

Right now, the House Intelligence Committee has just recently wrapped up their public impeachment hearings. The goal of these hearings is to gather evidence so that the Judiciary Committee can later draft articles of impeachment, explicitly stating how Trump violated the Constitution.

The Constitution states that a president can be impeached for “treason,” “bribery,” or other “high crimes and misdemeanors.” The ambiguity of this phrasing is what generates much of the debate involved in drafting articles and trying the president.

“We’ve seen more or less the ‘smoking gun,’ ” Feise said, referring to the proposed trade agreement between Trump and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. “It’s just a matter of interpreting.”

After the conclusion of the hearings last week, there are three things known for certain: one, Trump asked a foreign government to two investigations that would benefit him politically; two, his aides allegedly told Ukraine that this trade would gain them U.S. government concessions; and three, that officials believed this to be Trump’s will Specifically, several witnesses have testified about a quid pro qu in which Trump promised a White House meeting for Zelensky and resumption of U.S. military aid in exchange for investigation into his political opponents. The question remaining is whether these actions should be considered “bribery” or “high crimes or misdemeanors.”

Though the Intelligence hearings have come to an end, the Judiciary Committee has announced that they will be starting their own public hearings on Dec. 4. The road to impeachment is a long and winding.

We can examine party composition of the House and Senate to make predictions as to how to voting will proceed, but ultimately it’s a matter of waiting and watching.

“I am so fortunate to be teaching American government as this is taking place. It gets to the very foundations of our country.”

- History teacher Gregory Feise

Graphic by Piper Sloan

04 NEWS

November 27, 2019

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New freshman ambassadors were recently elected for the class of 2023.

Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

ASB welcomes newly elected freshman officers Students excited to represent the class of 2023 as ambassadors Paige Anderson Sports Editor

T Cassidy Sylves

John Gibson

Hugo Bieniawski

he freshman elections allow ASB to ensure that all students have an opportunity to use their voice within the school. This year’s election was declared a victory for freshmen Hugo Bieniawski, Cassidy Sylves and John Gibson.

Bieniawski has been appointed as ambassador and is very excited to input his ideas and experience something different within the school.

“I wanted to bring what I have to the table,” Bieniawski said.

“I have some friends on ASB and it sounded like a new, fun thing.”

ASB welcomes all classes and is a great way for students to expand their social circle and interact with other grades.

“I get to meet a lot of new people and have an influence on what it means to be class of 2023,” Bieniawski said.

ASB focuses heavily on the connections between students, staff and the community as well.

“I’m looking forward to building stronger bonds with people on ASB and the freshman class as a whole.”

Although Bieniawski knew he wanted to run for a while, and why, it’s a different story for freshman John Gibson who ran sporadically. But he got the majority of students votes and is

now the ambassador.

“My goal is to listen to what the freshman class has to say and try to implement that,” Gibson said. “I like having a role to play within the school.”

Freshman Cassidy Sylves is also a new ambassador for her class and wanted to be involved in ASB so she should help build the school’s community.

“I ran so I could help bring Ballard into a more family environment,” Sylves said.

Most students are interested in ASB because they want to make an impact or help the school grow.

“The people in ASB all have the motivation to make a change,” Sylves said. “I’m looking forward to helping Ballard grow in the class of 2023.”

Students practice civic engagement for the second year Mock election teaches the act of voting to high schoolers Dhani Srinivasan Opinions Editor

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n November 5, as Washington voters visited the polls, students were able to practice voting on their own at an election booth set up near the main office. This was the secon time that mock elections were held in school after they were started during last year’s midterms.

Students cast votes both in person and online on contentious races and issues.

In the school students voting in favor of Dan Strauss with 62% of the vote for District 6 of City Junior Hou Ming Ge submits his ballot during the Council and for School Board mock election. (Skye McDonald) District 1, Eric Blumhagen won with 56% of the vote. Referendum 88 was rejected by 63% of students, Initiative 976 was also rejected by 70% and the advisory votes on the tobacco tax and petroleum products tax were both maintained by 74% and 70%, respectively.

Junior Isabella Crone-Baron, one of the leaders of the mock election committee, became interested in civics during her freshman year and helped run the pilot program last year. There, she saw how important it was to educate students on how to vote.

“When you turn 18, voting is your civic duty,” Crone-Baron said. “By learning about how to vote in the classroom, it gets you prepared on how to do it in the real world.”

Mock elections do not just introduce the act of voting to students but also the research that goes behind it.

“When you are learning about the initiatives in a mock election it teaches you to get more informed about the issues,” Crone-Baron said. “If you are researching these things now, in the future you will be better prepared to become a more informed voter.”

Junior Cameron Donnelly, another mock election committee leader, emphasized the importance of getting students used to the ballots.

“It’s important to see the type of language they use,” Donnelly said. “No one really teaches you how to read [ballots]. It’s just like you’re 18, you can vote now, you can do what you want.”

Donnelly also noted that many students were excited at the prospect of

voting, even if it wasn’t real. Simply introducing elections allowed students to become more involved in politics.

She noted and was pleased that two people were discussing who to vote for in the election.

Junior Kyla Ulibarri said the election forced her to assess her personal values and the needs of her community.

“You need to think about all the different impacts that a vote can have,” Ulibarri said. “For the car tabs it is really important to remember that, yes, it will lower the cost for cars which is really important because you have to take into account different economic classes but you also have to balance the importance of funding for roads and transportation.”

During Advanced Ballard Time, senator Reuven Carlyle and School Board Member Eden Mack came to speak with students on the importance of voting and historical fights to gain the right. “[Carlyle and Mack] talked about how much of a voice you can have by voting and how much effect your vote can cause,” Crone Baron said.

Carlyle and Mack also talked about their duties in order to expose more students to careers and politics.

In addition to hosting high-profile speakers, the mock election allowed the Municipal League to register over 200 students to vote — a new record.

“The statistic of young people that vote is so low,” Crone-Baron said.

“If youth had greater turnout, then political Top: Voting booth in the foyer. Bottom: Junior student leaders outcomes would change Isabella Crone-Baron and Cameron Donelly helped organize dramatically. the mock election. (Skye McDonald)

05 Future of free ORCA cards uncertain with passage of I-976 NEWS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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The ‘car-tab’ initiative is cutting the funding for transit projects all across the state, leading to a cloudy future Will Shepard Staff Re orter

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nitiative 976 passed with a majority of 55% of the statewide vote this past election in Washington. I-976, or the “car-tab” initiative as it is also known, would limit the amount residents in Washington pay per car to $30.

In addition to limiting the amount of money that Sound Transit can raise to expand light rail, reaching Ballard in 2035, the “car-tab” initiative would also limit Seattle-specific funds used to provide free ORCA cards to every Seattle Public High School student.

Seattle Transportation Benefit istrict

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ree ORCA cards exist because, in 2014, Seattle voters passed the Seattle Transportation Benefit District Proposition 1 (STBD), which was created to improve the frequency and quality of King County Metro transit service. STBD was funded by a $60 car tab fees and 0.1% sales tax, so the reduction of these under I-976 is causing uncertainty for the program.

The Division Director of Transit and Mobility, Candida Lorenzana, explained what’s at risk. “[STBD] allows the city to invest in Metro Transit service, so in addition to the ORCA card program we also invest about 350,000 hours [of transit service],” Lorenzana said.“This means lots of more frequent buses, more D-line buses running next to Ballard High School.”

According to the 2017 STBD Performance Report, “In 2016, STBD launched the Youth ORCA Program in cooperation with the Seattle Public Schools (SPS) to provide eligible middle and high

With the passage of I-976, the future of the ORCA opportunity program is uncertain. “We have a contract through August of 2020 with [King County] Metro to buy ORCA passes for high school students, so the current passes are a part of that. We’re still working through what this means from a budgetary standpoint and what the impacts of that look like.”

-Division Director of Transit and Mobility Candida Lorenzana

school students with a free ORCA card.”

This was the creation of the ORCA Opportunity Program, which now provides free ORCA cards to all SPS high school students. This program was created in large part by the actions of Rainier Beach High School students who raised awareness through marches and town halls on the “barriers of transit access.”

“The ORCA Program originated through the efforts of Rainier Beach High School students, which is really important to the story because it’s really because of them that there is an impetus,” Lorenzana said. “Because of them, there was energy to go and do something The Seattle bigger and be able to give Transportation Benefit all high school students District (STBD) Proposition passes.”

1 provides 11,900 ORCA cards to After the program first Seattle Public Schools students. The started, it only supplied proposition was previously funded by $60 car free ORCA cards to eligible tabs and a 0.1% sales tax. (Skye McDonald) students, or students that lived in a household that had an income below 200% their car, of the Federal Poverty Line, or to students who live no one would get anywhere.” more than two miles away from their school. In Because of I-976, less and less money will August 2018, the program expanded to include all be able to be put into buses, Metro, and Seattle Seattle Public High School students, so that 11,900 Transit as a whole. This will result in a decline in ORCA cards were distributed last year. quality and, frequency, and eventually could lead to With the passage of I-976, the future of the overcrowding.

ORCA opportunity program is uncertain. “We “One of the things we think might happen is that have a contract through August of 2020 with [King fewer and fewer people will use transit to get where County] Metro to buy ORCA passes for high school they need to go and they’ll revert back to driving students, so the current passes are a part of that,” their cars which will make congestion and traffic i Lorenzana said. “We’re still working through what Seattle much worse,” Marx said. this means from a budgetary standpoint and what the impacts of that look like.”

Environmental Impacts

Transit Impacts and Damages

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-976 will also do major damage to transit projects and transportation necessities all over the state, with Governor Jay Inslee already directing the Washington Department of Transportation to postpone all projects plans until further notice, and Metro warned that without the funding provided by the car tabs that I-976 slashes, it would be forced to cut bus routes.

“The whole reason that we came up with the STBD and with this suite of improvements and transit services is that transit is critical to the way we move people to and through our growing region,” said Heather Marx, Seattle’s Director of Downtown Mobility. “If everybody had to drive

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n addition to cutting funding for many transit projects, the introduction of I-976 would also have major environmental impacts. “The single biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions is private automobiles, and so the biggest thing that any one individual can do in the Puget Sound region is drive less,” Marx said. “There’s an argument to be made that reducing access to transit has a large impact on our climate.”

Legal Challenges

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he city is contemplating a number of legal challenges against I-976 and it’s sponsor, Tim Eymen, and there has already been a collective Injunction from 10 plaintiffs, including the City of Seattle, to prevent I-976 from taking effect.

06 NEWS

November 27, 2019

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School librarian wins award TuesD Chambers wins Librarian of the Year

Adria Cooper Staff Re orter

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uesD Chambers has recently been recognized for her hard work with the Washington State Teacher Librarian of the Year Award. She was presented with $500, which she plans to buy more book club books with.

Chambers was presented with this award by the Washington Library Association due to the many things she does to service the school and the school district.

She works with teachers to use technology to make learning more interactive.“I do a lot of work with instructional innovation,” Chambers said.

She has also introduced new programs in the district. “I do a puzzle exchange, I do a Rubik’s Cube ambassadorship, when we have holidays and/or heritage months [for which] I promote lesson plans,” Chambers said.

Additionally, she writes a newsletter for the entire school district. Chambers collects articles from all over the district which she edits and arranges into said newsletter that is distributed monthly.

Chambers does so much that she can’t even keep track of it all, “And that’s just off the top of my head,” she said when listing her curriculum. “I love my job!”

Junior Mari White is a supporter of Chambers and her efforts to engage students. “She is trying to change the curriculum for the benefit of students,” White said.

Principal Keven Wynkoop acknowledges Chambers’ hard work as well. “She’s made the library a dynamic learning place that is comfortable for all students,” he said.

The library is not just a place for reading anymore. “We want the library to be a place that is very much the center of the school, and she’s worked really

hard to make it that,” Wynkoop said.

Part of what Chambers is doing to advance reading at school is questioning what literature is traditionally thought of as.

Her work in revolutionizing reading has earned her praise across the district. She was nominated for the award by not just one person, but four.

Her former program manager Marion Royal as well as staff from Madison Middle School, Eagle Staff Middle School and Magnolia Elementary School were the ones to nominate her.

“Normally you have the people you are friends with [nominate you], but mine were like elementary, middle, and high [school],” Chambers said.

Despite all the work she has done, she stays humble about her award. “You don’t get an award like this because of one person,” she said. “You get an award like this because you work with really passionate teachers. You work with students who care and are interested in learning more. You get this award because you have a principal who buys you books.”

She also is aware of the privilege she has working at a school like Ballard. “Part of the reason I am here is because I can.

I have a full-time library assistant.

Nobody else has that,” Chambers said. “I’m awesome because everybody supports me as such.

And that is not happening in the same way ten miles away.”

From book clubs to classroom visits with book carts, Chambers is eager to let students read. She is skeptical of all the tests and tricks teachers use to get students to read, “How about you stop talking about [tests] and let [students] read what they want to read,” Chambers said. “The single best way to get kids to read, is to let them.”

“You get an award like this because you work with really passionate teachers. You work with students who care and are interested in learning more.

You get this award because you have a principal who buys you books,” awardwinning school librarian TuesD Chambers said.

(Skye McDonald)

Cafeteria employee Doug Stowell prepares food for students. Stowell shares his opinions on how the switch in lunches has affected Seattle Schools. (Skye McDonald)

Schools struggle to provide lunches Recent district changes leave schools under-funded Sam Rainville Staff rtist

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ne of Aaron Smith’s first decisions as the new director of the Seattle Public Schools Nutrition Services Department was to switch from prepackaged meals to lunches made daily inhouse. However, this has created a variety of problems for schools throughout the district.

The change was made because of Smith’s desire to return to lunches made daily and from scratch.

Cafeteria employee Doug Stowell explained that these issues were caused in part by the district’s changes.

“It’s my impression that we’re switching distributors a fair amount,” Stowell said. “There’s some miscommunication going on there, but also there was some pretty serious staff turnover.”

According to Stowell, the switch in distributors to fund Smith’s goal of in-house cooking hasn’t been going as smoothly as planned because of issues with contracts.

“He’s been talking grand dreams about returning to scratch cooking, having more food prepared on site instead of at the central kitchen and reformed here, which I think is great,” Stowell said. “But there are definitely some bumps on the roads.

He’s going to a lot of new distributors and those contracts aren’t lining up.”

A weekly update to the Seattle Public Schools Board of Directors from Superintendent Denise Juneau elaborated on this issue.

“One of the district’s major food suppliers underwent a major merger over the summer, which impacted ordering procedures [product numbers, order dates, stocking] and the delivery of ordered products,” Juneau said in the report.

While the return to lunches prepared on-site could potentially be positive for students, the process of making this transition has left some schools behind.

“We’re one of the bigger schools with a bigger kitchen that had refrigerators and

freezers to hold lots of stuff so we didn’t run out of things,” Stowell said. “Some of the schools don’t have that, so if they don’t get what they need, they’re in big trouble.”

However, another update from Juneau claimed that the issue with distribution was from problems starting at the district.

“The district started the 2019-20 school year with lower than normal inventory due to construction on the Central Kitchen freezer over the summer, which required Nutrition Services to draw down frozen products,” Juneau said in the report. “Nutrition Services has worked with the vendor to restock the inventory, including items that will be implemented on the new menu.”

As far as other schools go, the district claims that their issues have been minor, and that most of them have already been managed. In her reports, Juneau mentions issues at Beacon Hill and Olympic Hills, where both schools shared similar distribution issues.

“The kitchen manager noted that distribution issues had lead to menu substitutions at the start of school but confirmed that the kitchen is well stocked and that all orders have been fulfilled during the past two weeks,” Juneau said in the report.

According to Stowell, we did not experience as many issues as other schools in the district.

“There were a couple of lean weeks at the beginning of the year,” Stowell said.

“We were borrowing hamburger buns from other schools and pulling them out of freezers, so that was less than great, but there’s not much that we need that we haven’t gotten by now.”

Overall, Stowell has mixed feelings on Smith’s plans for school lunches.

“As far as the big picture, you know, returning to scratch cooking, returning to fully staffed kitchens, that’s a long ways off,” Stowell said. “I love that he’s headed in that direction but I think we’ll have to see how successful that is.”

NEWS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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07

Ballard P-Patch may close unless it receives $1.8 million

Staple in community for 43 years may close unless it gets the money it needs Brett Richter Staff Re orter

A staple in the Ballard community, the Ballard P-Patch, is at risk of closing. (Zev Golden-Zagorski)

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he Ballard P-Patch is a community garden that has been part of the neighborhood for 43 years, since 1976. The garden, located at 8527 25th Ave NW in Ballard, hosts the annual Art in the Garden festival, acts as an emergency hub location in times of crisis and provided 2,462 pounds of fresh produce for the Ballad Food Bank in 2019 — almost double the usual amount.

Ballard P-Patch leadership chairperson Cindy Krueger explained how the P-Patch enriches the community.

The first community garden was started by Daryln Del Boca, a University of Washington student. She started the garden with the help of her neighbors, the Picardo family, who provided the land. The “P” in P-Patch comes from the Picardo name.

Since then, the P-Patch program has grown to over 90 patches around Seattle, three of which are in Ballard. Even though the P-Patch program was only meant to be temporary, the Ballard P-Patch is seen by many as an essential part of the neighborhood.

As Ballard and the rest of the city grows more urban, the P-Patches provide some much-needed green space.

“Typically we raise about 1,500 pounds of food for the Ballard Food Bank — this year we tried to do something different,” she said. “We really worked hard on succession planting, which meant we started in April with things that would grow in the cool and we ended up growing 2,600 pounds — we’re really proud of ourselves for that!”

The P-Patch is also part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and offers a needed outlet for young kids and the elderly. They have raised beds for those who lack the range of motion required to use the other garden plots.

In addition, it gives many low-income families an opportunity to have fresh, organic produce.

“We know that about 30% of our gardeners qualify for low income housing,” Krueger said.

“So there’s food security that comes from knowing that they can have organic produce that they can grow themselves and garden year-round to some degree. We also know that half of our gardeners are senior citizens. Senior citizens need connection to community, they need ways to stay fit and gardening, if you’ve ever done it, will definitely keep you fit.

Right now, the P-Patch is at risk of closing down.

Unless the volunteer-run community garden can somehow make up $1.8 million, the half-acre lot

will be sold by Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church, the owners of the plot of land, to make four singlefamily homes.

The church had been leasing the land the garden sits on the city for one dollar a year so that P-Patch could remain open. In 2018, the church decided to redo their 1940s building.

After speaking to the city and realizing just how much work they needed done to get up to city standards, Our Redeemer’s Lutheran realized that their renovation may cost more money than they thought. Money that they don’t have.

“They thought about how they could raise that, and thought this land is zoned single-family housing. They could put four big multi-million dollar homes on this property. That would raise the money that they needed. But they really don’t want to do that,” Krueger said.

The church told the P-Patch about their issue January of last year, and offered them a deal: if the P-Patch can buy the land, they can keep it.

“This isn’t good guy-bad guy, it’s not the garden against the church,” Krueger said. “It’s two communities that are trying to find a future that is beneficial for both.

So far, they’ve managed to raise $54,000 and have received over 3,000 signatures for the “Save The P-Patch” petition.

“It’s a drop in the bucket for what we need, but it feels like that’s been the community supporting us.

It feels really good,” Krueger said.

The Ballard P-Patch is a part of Seattle’s P-Patch Program. This program was started in the 1970s as an effort to both foster community and contribute to a national back-to-earth movement. The backto-land movement was started as many in the 1970s were gripped with the need for rural bliss and freedom, many wanting to move out of cities to return to nature.

Plant sciences teacher India Carlson is a strong supporter of the patch.

“One of the things that, of course, we need in the city is green space. Green space is important for so many reasons,” she said.

Carlson explains how the high school and the P-Patch work together. “We donate some plant starts to all of those groups,” she said. “It’s a way to connect my students to not only what you’re doing in class but then how does it benefit your community. A little bit of leadership and community responsibility.”

Taking botany or other plant science classes isn’t a requirement to help the P-Patch.

Service learning hours can also be earned by volunteering at the P-Patch. The second Saturday of every month, the P-Patch has a work party.

“That’s usually three hours and just kind of whatever needs to be done in the common areas of the garden,” Krueger said.

April through September, volunteers can also help with the Giving Garden on Tuesday nights.

“Every P-Patch garden has a giving garden that’s designed specifically for the food bank. The Ballard P-Patch is no exception to that,” Carlson said.

Krueger encourages as many people as possible to come and help. “The more people we have the more work we can do, and the quicker we can get it done.”

Recent high school graduate Ben Hart is one of the Ballard P-Patch volunteers. “I first started to fulfill my graduation requirements for service

hours but I really liked being there so even after I graduated I just kept going, even now. It’s really calm and relaxing,” Hart said.

With the support of its gardeners, volunteers and community, the P-Patch has been researching where they can get the money they need from.

They have looked into grants on the city and county levels, as well as throwing fundraisers and writing proposals.

“We’re writing a grant for some state money, we’re going to apply for some money under the King County Parks Levy, which also passed in the August election, the CFT money, we’re asking for somebody from the city,” Krueger said.

The Conservation Futures Tax (CFT), takes money from property tax and uses it to buy open land.

Despite the extra work, they remain positive about the future of the Ballard P-Patch. Instead of focusing on the negative, the volunteers are trying to have fun and look at this as a learning experience.

“It’s been fun. With the gnome hats it’s like we’re not angry people, we’re just kind of having fun with it, but having people know that,” Krueger said. It would be heartbreaking to lose this, because once it’s gone, that’s it, there’s nothing else.”

So, what can the community do to help the Ballard P-Patch?

“Follow us, follow our website, come to our events,” Krueger says.

They have a Facebook and Instagram, and encourage others to put up yard signs, which they have, to spread awareness of the issue.

“One of the things [you] can do is [you] can contact city council and Mayor Durkan, and ask them to support buying land that the P-Patch is sitting on,” Carlson said.

Carlson also has post cards in her room for those willing to write to the city council or other local government for the Patch.

The most direct way to help the Ballard P-Patch is to donate to their Mighty Cause campaign, under the support tab on the Ballard P-Patch website.

It’s important to remember that youth is the future. We have to care about the climate, and take action into our own hands. This may be a microcosm of the seemingly infinite issue of climate change, but small actions keep building.

The schedule is available at the Ballard P-Patch website, www.ballardppatch.org. It also helps to email info at ballardppatch.org for any questions or if you’re interested in working at the P-Patch. (Zev Golden-Zagorski)

08 SPORTS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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Volleyball

FALL SPORTS IN REVIEW Cross Country

Girls Swim

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Senior Raven Derouse

Senior Ruby Siehl

Junior Sydney Smith

oys and girls cross country both made state for the sixth consecutive year in a row, which right now is the longest streak in all of 3A. Boys placed ninth in metros, fourth in districts and ninth in state while girls placed third in metros, third in districts and thirteenth in state.

Senior captain Caleb Watson has been on the team for all four years and when the boys only placed ninth in metros, he wanted to ensure that team made it to state.

“None of us have known a team where we haven’t gone to state so we realized we had to step up,” Watson said, “It was all on the line for the legacy of the program to keep that streak going and we knew we could step up because we trained all season for it.”

The team had at least 160 students running this season because cross country is the nocut sport for the fall.

“You get to interact with people from all different grades who you wouldn’t normally interact with,” Watson said. “We’re all running, we’re all doing the same thing no matter where your skill level is.”

he girls swim team ended their season with 4-3 record. The team swam in metros and districts and one diver, freshman Clementine Curtis, went to state.

Senior Olivia D’Arche was excited to experience a new season with new coach, Stephanie Cummings.

“We got a new coach this year,” D’Arche said. “So it was lots of new ideas and coaching styles that we haven’t had before.”

D’Arche is a captain alongside seniors Jasper Swift and Emma Oboy.

“Our goal as captains is to be more involved and making it a welcoming environment,” D’Arche said. “By having fun, we succeed better.”

This season, the program focused heavily on building relationships within the team to improve their performance.

“It’s really a community, no matter what you do there will be someone else in swim who’s doing it too and understand what you’re going through,” D’Arche said.

Football

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Golf

he girls soccer team had quite a successful season with a record of 7-2-1.

Junior Macy Finn, who has been a part of the program for three years now, said that the team managers, juniors Henry Holt and Nathan Dracolby, helped them focus and play better as a team.

As for other adjustments and changes this year, the team has a new coach, Sam Macca. Macca introduced a new slogan, “CHIEF,” which stands for confidence, honor, integrity, effort and fight.

“The slogan got us hyped up before games,” Finn said.

With new managers and coaches, the team has been able to play better.

“He [Macca] gave starting positions to people based on their skill and not their age,” Finn said. “Our new coach has lots of fun slogans like #nolimits and #nomercy.”

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hile the football team went undefeated in the regular season, they ended on a 28-25w loss to Marysville-Pilchuck in the first round of the playoffs with a 9-1 record.

The team may not have won but they didn’t let it affect their bond, according to Head Coach Ross Humphries.

“Everyone was disappointed at the loss because we had the opportunity to win but there wasn’t any finger pointing. It was kind of the opposite with people taking ownership,” Humphries said.

Despite ending on a loss, the season was overall successful. At the mid-season grade check, the program had an average GPA of 3.22.

This is the fourth year in a row that they had a 3.0 or higher.

Junior cornerback, Davyn Waters, who’s been part of the program since freshman year, has been able to notice the team grow.

“This season there was more of a bond,” Waters said. “Everyone on the team was just a lot closer.”

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Senior Sarah Payne

Senior Jarman Hauser

Junior Charlie Wilton

olf ended their regular season with a winning record of 8-2 which was the best record in their division.

Six students played in metros and five finishe in districts.

Although the team had a rough end of the season, according to junior Henry Mills, the team had a very successful regular season for multiple reasons.

“The regular season was a lot of fun, we had a really good record and we built a stronger community,” Mills said.

The change of attitude compared to last year and this year led the team to their successful season.

“This season, everyone put in more effort and believed they had a chance,” Mills said. “Everyone started taking it more seriously.”

All photos by Ian Anderson

fter the long season, varsity volleyball made it to playoffs.

The team won a major game against Eastside Catholic on Sept. 17 (3-2), as they were going to play them in playoffs soon after, so this was an exciting game for them.

Throughout the season, the team embraced their strong team chemistry to bring success on the court, both in wins and success with playing their hardest as a group.

Senior Riley Sellers has been playing volleyball for the school all four years and has been on varsity for the past two. She is one of three captains on the team.

“We are super close with each other and have no drama which helps translate to how we work on the court,” Sellers said. “We also have team dinners which make us tighter, rather than just six individuals.”

Girls Soccer

SPORTS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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Cheer gets ready for Nationals

Captains share what made the team more prepared for regionals this year Alex Montes Staff Re orter

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he cheer team is “just like any other sports team,” senior captain Mclaren Hadley said. “A lot of preparation goes into the two minutes and 30 seconds we spend on the mat.”

This year, the team is headed to nationals in Orlando, Florida for the third year in a row. Before nationals, the team goes to regionals where they perform their routine. At nationals, the team goes through preliminaries, semifinals and finals. Th team needs to get a certain amount of points to qualify.

State and nationals are on Feb. 4 and 10 this season, which created a difficult decision for th team to make as they choose between the two competitions, ultimately though, choosing to go to nationals.

“At nationals, we get to do competitions, we get to go to Disney World Park (but that’s not the most important part), we get to practice on a football field, where all the other elite teams practice and we go to an all star gym called Top Gun and practice there, which is super fun,” Hadley said.

The cheer team has made some new changes to give them an upper hand at competitions. They practice four to five times a week, depending on when they have a competition, and occasionally host “exhibitions” where they perform their routines in front of parents.

This year, the team has made great progress in preparation for their season.

Cheer is heading to nationals for the third year in a row, after winning regionals on Nov. 2. “A lot of preparation goes into the two minutes and 30 seconds we spend on the met,” senior Mclaren Hadley said. (Courtesy of Samantha Burnstead)

“Last year we were kind of nervous as a team and we didn’t have a good mentality about going into a competition and staying calm. This year we have been practicing [our routines] in front of parents, in front of the football team, we actually did an exhibition for dance team,” Hadley said. “It has really prepared us mentally so that we can hit our stunts in tumbling and perform in front of people, where we will be really solid.”

Senior Sienna Brockway who has been on the team for three years has seen the team grow closer as a community.

“This year especially, our team is closer than ever.

With only 12 girls on our tumbling team, we have been able to create a strong bond, which has really helped prepare us this season,” Brockway said.

“Knowing that we can count on each other no matter what, whether it be on or off the mat.

This will be the last year competing at high school nationals for the seniors. “I can’t wait to go out on the mat with this amazing team one more time and be able to accomplish our goals that we have worked so hard for all season,” Brockway said.

Through hard work, diligence and a positive mentality, the cheer team has hit the mat, and this season, with a strong start.

Dance team constantly strives towards success together Members speak on what it means to be a part of a fun, competitive group Frances Kleinsmith Staff Re orter

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are able to perform in a safe space. also an important factor, but it means nothing if no ance team is a fun and competitive group “The most important thing to me is making sure one’s heart is truly in it.” of 17 girls who compete at competitions, everyone feels like they have a comfortable, safe The team will perform at their winter showcase accompany the marching band at select place because dance is about having fun and being on Dec. 13. The new team members will be able events and perform at school assemblies and who you are,” Greekas said. “Being a strong team is to experience the excitement of performing their performing arts events. long-awaited routines: contemporary, The team, made up of three hip-hop, lyrical and many more styles freshmen, two sophomores, five of dance. juniors, and seven seniors (three The team is constantly preparing being captains), is a very tightand looking forward to competition knit community who win and lose season, including freshman together.

Alexandra Borsi.

Maddie Greekas, a four year “I’m looking forward to learning Dance Team member and first more routines as well as lots of new year captain, talked about how techniques,” Borsi said. the team manages success during Working as a team is very competitions and in general throughout the year. important to the group and team“Whether it’s simply making bonding is the key to their success. eye contact or even whispering Whether it be their team sleepovers, something to one another,” Greekas practices or assembly performances, said. “We always have some means the team finds it very important to of communication going on at all stay connected and grow together. times so everyone can succeed to the “I think the team is successful because of the hard work,” Borsi said. best of their ability.”

“Everyone participates and helps Greekas and the other two each other when they need help.” captains find it important to make Dance team after performing at the Homecoming game on Oct. 4. “Everyone helps each other the underclassmen feel welcome and when they need help,” freshman Alexandra Borsi said. (Courtesy of Bethany Nielsen)

10FOCUS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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DECADE IN REVIE

Featuring (in order) - Paige Anderson, Hannah Weaver, Samantha Swainson, Piper Sloan, Adria Cooper, Elliot Armitage, Dhani Srinivasan, Frances Kleinsmith, Tess Petrillo, Al

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s the decade comes to a close, it’s increasingly evident that the 2010s have been a time of immense change, and the 2020s are shaping up to be even more eventful.

But in the midst of the unending politics, what about the fun side of life? We all remember Trump’s election and the Women’s March, but we would be amiss to forget the unbelievable abundance of Silly Bandz or the record breaking number-one singles from Iggy Azalea.

It may seem weird to discuss such “serious” issues in the same breath as something as trivial as Silly Bandz, but it’s reflective of our culture becoming increasingly scattered. We will like an Instagram post supporting climate advocacy and just seconds later laugh at a meme about a can of beans.

It’s the nature of capitalism to capitalize on attention, and attention is in short supply today. Everyday, while we scroll through social media

or streaming services, we’re presented with a grab bag of information from which we pick out a few things to take “seriously.”

The last decade has seen the amount of information in that grab bag grow exponentially. We have to be more selective than ever, not because being selective is good, but because it’s impossible to digest everything we see and hear. Corporations are trying to do the selection for us, as they tailor our social media pages to our interests and only show us ads we might click on. It’s very tiring to simultaneously fight against those forces while also fighting our own biases related to selection.

Trudging through waves of information is just one of the exhausting parts of our culture. It’s more important than ever to specifically reserve some time to disengage from all of that information.

It’s 2019, and the last ten years have been packed tight with

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010 started off with the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that devastated Haiti and a blizzard nicknamed “Snowmageddon” that hit North America. But after the release of the first iPad and Justin Bieber’s first album, “My World 2.0,” 2010 made it clear that it would be an eventful year. We were singing songs such as “S&M,” “Firework,” “Mean,” “TiK ToK,” “Love the Way You Lie,” “Fireflies” and “Dynamite.” “Angry Birds” hit the app store, “Toy Story 3,” “Tangled,” “Despicable Me,” “Grown Ups” and “How to Train Your Dragon” were in theaters. Plus, Lady Gaga wore her meat dress which was something no one needed, but enjoyed nonetheless.

blistering action and br corrupt governments, d Here’s a quick recap of about.

*Disclaimer: Some p Supreme Court created value; however, the Ta situations, just to find f

Art by Sam Rainville, g

We interviewed students about their favorite year this past decade.

2016 - 24.6% 2012 - 23% 2018 - 16.4% 2019 - 9.8% 2017 - 6.6%

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year of birth and death. The birth of the first Carter child, Blue Ivy, and of Adele’s career. The death of Steve Jobs, Oprah’s TV show, and Kim K’s (first) marriage. Unless you were a 30-year-old man living in your mom’s basement making YouTube videos about talking oranges, 2011 was not a great year. YouTube reached peak cringe with videos such as Rebecca Black’s “Friday,” Epic Rap Battles of History and Nyan Cat. “Planking” and “Tebowing” were also… things that happened, so maybe they would be best left in the past. In other news, Obama killed Osama and Wall Street was occupied — whatever that means.

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he 2012 End Times, a year of devastation and havoc. While Hurricane Sandy wrecked the Atlantic, the end of the “Twilight” franchise sent wannabe vamps into a hysteria and simultaneously sent the same people into a frenzy at the revelation that Nick Jonas discarded his purity ring. Perhaps the countdown of the Mayan calendar wasn’t as inaccurate as Big Brother would have us believe; with the charged atmosphere to send us off into the new decade, is it so implausible that we now live in a simulated reality?

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t can be hard to pinpoint the major events of 2013, as memories have a tendency to blur with others from the decade, but there’s plenty of reason for nostalgia. Decked out in mustache accessories, we sang to “Let it Go” and Miley Cyrus’s “Wrecking Ball,” Yipping and Yapping to Ylvis’s “What Does the Fox Say?” We watched and re-watched the “After Ever After” parody, teared up at “The Office” finale and laughed Harlem Shake Videos. 2013 might seem to get lost in the great expanse of the decade, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

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he future is just around the corner, and nob change, possible impeachment, Tik Tok, th is looking good. Upcoming movies, games, and side, everything is getting so incredibly expens constantly overexposed to every issue on the pl shooting, the next disaster, the next tragedy. I least cat videos aren’t old yet. Ultimately, wha way we act, and the

FOCUS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

EW

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rain-melting conflict, chilling headlines and danceable beats and derogatory comments. everything else that you might have forgotten

hen thinking of 2014, you are not alone if nothing comes to mind.

For us Seattleites however, the year started off strong with the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl. As for the rest of the year, only a few noteworthy events managed to break through the 24/7 drone of “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, which gained the status of number one on Hot 100 during 2014. There was the Ebola epidemic, the term “manspreading” made its way into the dictionary and the Sochi Winter Olympics took place. While not every event in 2014 was “happy” like its theme song suggests, it definitely was not the worst of the decade.

parts of these reviews are satirical. “The d gay people” is not meant to be taken at face alisman does not intend to make light of serious fun in dark times

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lex Montes, Ian Davino

graphics by Ian Davino

When asked for their reasoning, the following answers were provided.

2017 2016 was the worst and 2017 meant it was over 2016 Freshman year was slaps

body really knows what to expect. Climate here’s a lot on our plate. On the bright side, art d music releases are promising. On the down sive. The world is heating up. It feels like we’re lanet. Every day is a bombardment of the next It’s an uphill battle, looking for good news. At at 2020 holds is up to us; the way we vote, the decisions we make.

t least compared to the other years of the decade, 2015 was relatively quiet. The Supreme Court created gay people, Kendrick Lamar ended racism with “To Pimp A Butterfly,” and the World ended climate change with the Paris Climate Accords. Both “Jurassic Park” and “Star Wars” were reincarnated, Justin Bieber and Adele dominated the airwaves, and The Weeknd burst onto the national stage with a series of hits. Paris suffered two tragic terror attacks and Europe was inundated with Syrian refugees; overall, 2015 felt like a stepping stone to the monumental 2016.

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016 brought many tragedies: the deaths of Prince, David Bowie, Alan Rickman and Harambe, the breakup of Brangelina, but most importantly (aside from the election of Mr. Cheeto), the mugging of Ryan Lochte. Not. In better news, “Lemonade” dropped to worldwide acclaim, Kim Kardashian exposed Taylor Swift, Leo Finally won his Oscar (#sowhite) and the beloved “Stranger Things” debuted. For some reason, clowns were lurking around forests, people kept acting like mannequins and everyone could think of nothing but gyms of the Pokémon variety. Oh and Brexit was, if you can believe it, actually passed. Still waiting on that one.

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017 was an eventful year; there was a total solar eclipse, hurricane Irma, the huge hit of “Despacito” by Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, and Justin Bieber, and “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran. In addition, the #metoo movement made its first mark, Horror movie “Get Out” broke box office records and Beyoncé brought her long-awaited twins to th world.

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018 was revolutionary as much as it was painful. Marvel released “Black Panther,” who soon reappeared in Marvel’s “Infinity War. Beyonce was the first African-American woman to headline Coachella.

Kids were eating Tide Pods and IHOP became IHOB for a minute.

Pete Davidson and Ariana Grande got engaged, only to break it off a few months later. Tristan cheated on Khloe, again. In the rise of the #MeToo movement, Dr. Christine Blasely Ford testified against Brett, only for him to remain unconvicted. We lost Aretha Franklin, Anthony Bourdain, Mac Miller and Kate Spade. Toys R Us closed. 2018 was needed in many ways, but it was not pleasant.

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019: This year brought many wonderful things from live-action “Dora” and “The Lion King,” to “IT Chapter 2” which turned out to be way worse than the first one, the rise of Lil Nas X through his hit single “Old Town Road;” Ariana Grande’s new album “Thank U, Next” shook the internet with her 2000s-themed music video that got 448 million views, and the long awaited fall of Donald Trump through the whistleblower complaint and the impeachment inquiry hearings.

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12ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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Disney remakes are unnecessary

Recent trend in remaking films sh ws how Disney lacks creativity Tess Petrillo News Editor In the past five years, Disney has released many remakes of their classic movies, from films as old as “Alice in Wonderland” and “Cinderella” or as new as “Aladdin” and “The Lion King.”

In order to appeal to the more progressive palette of now, Disney wanted to release films with the same story, but without the offensive allusions or terminology that could pass in the 90s.

In the original “Beauty and the Beast,” Disney was accused of glorifying and romanticizing Stockholm Syndrome, a psychological term used to describe the case in which a person falls in love with their captor.

Disney recently came out with a new “Beauty and the Beast” that followed the same story but had Belle portrayed as more independent than in the original.

While “Beauty” did succeed in avoiding topics that brought up previous controversy, they severely lack the enchantment that Disney promises.

Senior Addison Lepse is very passionate about animation and is currently part of the film program.

She explains how the remakes cannot do justice to the originals, even if they are created in good intention.

“Animation and live action are two vastly different mediums, trying to translate one to the other is like trying to recreate a Monet with Crayola,

it just can’t translate well,” she said. “They create this whole universe with magic and animated expressions that just doesn’t translate to the live action.”

It is understandable why Disney wanted to appeal to the increasingly progressive audience with more politically correct movies, but instead of attempting to recreate the beauty of past films, why don’t they just create new movies with new stories that would still achieve their goals?

However, not all the films were recreated in order to combat controversy. Many were redone for no reason.

The original “Alice in Wonderland” and “Cinderella” were incredibly beautiful and revolutionary for their time period; their live action remakes were completely unnecessary and absent of the animated charm that the original films possessed.

“Disney isn’t ambitious anymore, they’re just doing what’s easy and what makes them money,” Lepse said. “When making “Alice in Wonderland” or “Peter Pan,” the creators studied the movements of real people when drawing the illustrations, they’re so well made because there’s thought put into every corner and piece. Taking away that consideration turns the film into a packaged product, not a work of art.”

Despite the lack of need for these films, the directors did make one good decision: no CGI (computer-generated imagery) talking animals.

The classic 2-D animation of these Disney films is The original, hand-drawn Simba (right) what gave them so much character, was recently reinterpreted as a CGI Sim- and it is part of the reason they are classics. Lepse speaks about ba (left) in Disney’s “The Lion King.” (2019) the importance of the style of

animation that was crucial for the success of these films “Animation creates a world where [singing and dancing animals] are tangible and real, so when you take a real-life medium and add CGI, it doesn’t have the same magic,” she said. “It creates this fantasy that people can identify with, and now it just seems so clunky and awkward.”

CGI takes away the character of the original film, and it just makes it look wrong. I mean, if I wanted to watch and observe the beauty of animals in the wild, I’d watch “Planet Earth.”

Disney is so big that it has the power to control almost everything we watch. New yet unoriginal and uncreative content will only deteriorate the movie industry.

“In all this we haven’t acknowledged that Disney is a monopoly, they own everything from Marvel to National Geographic, and when one company owns that much, it’s harder for independent artists to bring out their stuff,” Lepse said.

“You can’t have one company managing what everyone watches because it’s just lackluster, and it cheapens what we watch. The media is an art medium, it’s a way for us to express ourselves and tune into human emotions and true beauty, and when someone just cheapens and homogenizes it, it falls apart, and I think that’s what Disney has been doing lately.”

Pushing against the norm: ‘Death Stranding’

The first game f om Kojima Productions is a long trek through isolation Ian Davino Editor-in-Chief I don’t think I can ever fully explain my thoughts you pack your cargo determines your balance: if on this game — at least not with words. Possibly all your weight is on the left, you’ll have to steady with wild gestures, noises, a finger pointed at the yourself constantly to avoid toppling over. screen as I say “look, look!”

As you make deliveries, you connect sections of “Death Stranding” is one of the most divisive the map to the “Chiral Network.” Once online, you games in recent history. Having played it, this isn’t can view the structures other players have built and exactly surprising. Set in the United States after a the amount of “likes” they have. deadly “extinction event,” civilization is divided — The path you’ve made to your destination harsh, metallic shelters and cities juxtaposed paves the way for other players. Not against sprawling landscapes. only do your deliveries connect the The main gameplay loop, rather than communities in game, but connect with other players online. the traditional instant gratification of The game manages to combine nonstop action, consists of long, charted meditative walks and grandiose, walks through the desolate remains of the dramatic set pieces with relative ease, United States. This is the surface. neither ever feeling out of place. The Below the surface is the journey before lull of the indie soundtrack rising after each destination. You play as Sam Porter an exhausting trip up the mountains Bridges, (fantastically portrayed by is a pure ecstasy no other game can Norman Reedus) who delivers cargo to capture. the remaining cities and bunkers dotted “Death Stranding” is a game across America. about isolation. The survivors of Each delivery begins in a terminal, the apocalyptic events that left with a simple instruction: here’s what the United States shattered are you need to carry, here’s where it needs introverted, distant and to go. The rest is up to you.

Norman Reedus stars as Sam Bridges in Hideo broken; the story and Every detail counts. The way Kojima’s new game “Death Stranding.”

gameplay reflect this in perfect harmony.

There’s a sense of unrelenting hope in the optimistic goal of “Death Stranding.” That connections can be made, that despite everything that may face us, human beings will in the end find a way not only to survive, but thrive. This optimism never crosses the line into naivete. It’s acknowledged that the same tools that connect people can also drive them apart, and characters, ambitions and goals are never two-dimensional.

In an industry that praises cookie-cutter games that lack innovation, I honestly hope “Death Stranding” represents the future of video games.

Making the bold choice, pushing the medium rather than remaining stagnant. “Death Stranding” is divisive. Good! Having a passionate, polished game that doesn’t necessarily capture every audience isn’t a bad thing. What it stands for more than makes up for its flaws.

It’s slow, strange, and oftentimes breathtakingly beautiful. “Death Stranding” isn’t for everyone — but it’s undeniably a game with heart.

Death Stranding (2019) 

SPORTS

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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UCLA recruits varsity athlete to their team Junior baseball player will join the program after high school Adria Cooper Staff Re orter

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unior pitcher and third baseman Nate Leibold is set to head south to Los Angeles. He recently made a verbal commitment to UCLA. While Leibold will not have a contract until his senior year, he has started the committing process.

While UCLA is the school that Leibold decided on, there were many more recruiting him, including University of Washington, Oregon State and University of Southern California.

With all these school after him, Leibold had some serious thinking to do. He

Junior Nate Leibold pitching at a game against Franklin on April 1 of last season. The Beavers won 6-5. (Shingle archives)

came to the conclusion that he would attend UCLA. “I just felt like I fit in best there and I know the reputation it has for baseball and academics in general,” Leibold said.

The UCLA baseball team historically is very highly ranked, and they are currently ranked sixth in the nation for the 2019 season by the NCAA, making them a worthy pick.

Kelan Scanlan plays baseball with Leibold and has known him for three years. He himself has had experience

Batting Stats

Batting Avg Plate Appearance At-Bat Run Hit

.245 61 49 9 12

Earned Running Avg Innings Pitched Swinging Strikeout On Base Average

3.97 24.2 26 .247

Pitching Stats

with the recruiting process and agrees with Leibold’s decision.

“It’s a great school, a great program. I think he knows he made the right choice,” Scanlan said.

Doug Montgomery is the school’s head baseball coach and has been able to watch Leibold develop as a player for three years and supports Leibold in his decision.

“UCLA has put several great pitchers into Major League Baseball so it will be a great opportunity for a kid all the way up here in the Northwest,” Montgomery said.

It’s no coincidence that Leibold received all this attention as he dedicates much of his time to staying in shape and getting better. Leibold spends at least 10 hours a week on practices and work outs. He also plays basketball, which helps him stay in shape during the off-season Leibold acknowledges that he couldn’t have gotten where he is on his own.

“My mom and dad have been super helpful just in everything. My friends have all been supportive.

My coaches are super important,” Leibold said. “I wouldn’t be here without any of them.”

Leibold will continue to play for the school team while working to develop further for college.

Montgomery has a plan to help Leibold prepare.

“It’s important that Nate knows how to work hard on his own and hold himself accountable,

Nate Leibold Season Stats (2018-2019)

“It’s important that Nate knows how to work hard on his own and hold himself accountable, because no one’s there to hold your hand in college. You need to know how to prioritize your time and responsibilities, to balance baseball, school, and your personal life. But Nate’s got a good head on his shoulders, so I shouldn’t have to do too much.”

-Head baseball coach, Doug Montgomery

Junior Nate Leibold wearing the UCLA uniform during his official visit o the school. (Courtesy of Nate Leibold)

because no one’s there to hold your hand in college.

You need to know how to prioritize your time and responsibilities, to balance baseball, school, and your personal life,” Montgomery said. “But Nate’s got a good head on his shoulders, so I shouldn’t have to do too much.”

As for his goals, Leibold will not end his aspirations at playing for UCLA. “I’d like to be in the MLB, it’s a dream,” Leibold said.

14 FEATURES

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

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Anonymous student sets trash aflame Exclusive interview with the nameless fi ebug Talisman Editorial Staff

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t started with a spark and ended with a terrible smell. With smoke filling the second floor, dozens o students across the school woke up from their midday naps to the blaring sound of the fire alarm.

Blurry-eyed and alarmed, students stumbled out of the dank halls into the cool outside air in an attempt to escape what could be a burning school.

On their way out, many of the students of the upper floor struggled through a haze of burnt rubber and plastic as security guard Soodjai Kutrakun and custodian Young Wong rushed a smoking trash can to the back parking lot. Students waited awkwardly out in the cold through the final bell before they were allotted time to grab their things and get out.

The school was left drenched in the horrible scent for the rest of the week as administration carried out an investigation into the suspected arsonist. After weeks without notice, the students received no updates. Despite student curiosity about the arsonist and the events that transpired, the case soon faded into high school anonymity.

Unexpectedly, the anonymous firebug spoke freely about his involvement and agreed to give an interview about the spur of the moment decision when he decided expulsion was worth it, and lit a second floor trashcan on fire Continue down the page to read a first hand account of the fire and the plans of the most casual firebug the school has ever seen.

Talisman: Can you describe the scene of the fire? How did the fire start? How many peopl were at the scene? Any other details you feel are necessary.

Firebug: There was me and two other kids.

The fire began by me placing paper towels on top of the trash can, then lighting the top of the pile with a torch.

Talisman: How did you acquire the torch?

Firebug: I bought it. It’s the kind of torch people use to make rigs.

Talisman: How did you react when the fire started?

Firebug: I dipped out the room.

Talisman: Can you say more?

Firebug: Well, I started the fire and left Talisman: How did other people at the scene react?

Firebug: They were very surprised that I said what I was going to do it. They left with me.

Talisman: So, the fire was pre-planned Firebug: Over the course of about two minutes.

Talisman: And what was the goal of starting the fire Firebug: To be expelled from school.

Talisman: You started the fire to be expelled from school? Why did you want to be expelled?

Firebug: Yes, I’ve been thinking of ways to be expelled from school for a while. I want to be expelled because I have been looking at other schools to go to. The way those alternative schools work, they won’t let me in, so I can’t withdraw from here unless I get expelled.

Talisman: So you weren’t expelled, obviously. Did you receive any punishment at all?

Firebug: There are no arson charges, nothing like that. I just had to go to the fire station and go through a program called Fire Stoppers. Which is a safety lesson thing, they kind of just gave me a packet about fires, like how dangerous they are and how to put them out. And I basically just have to do that.

Talisman: So since you didn’t get expelled, do you have any other plans?

Firebug: I don’t know yet.

Talisman: Would you start a fire again Firebug: No, for sure not.

In the spur of the moment, our resident fi ebug took a torch from his backpack before lighting the paper towels in the trash can on fi e. Quickly escaping the bathroom he joined the throngs of students exiting the building. (Cartoon by Sam Rainville)

While students are safely evacuating the school, security guard Soodjai Kutrakun and custodian Young Wong are seen taking the lit trash to the back parking lot where they can put out the fi e without endangering students and faculty. (Skye McDonald)

FEATURES

November 27, 2019

15

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Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

If interested in exploring a new world, contact teen volunteer Lynn Miller at Lynn.Miller@spl.org. (Cartoon by Peter Brown)

The room is filled with pl yers of all ages fig ting orcs, hunting food, tracking thieves and living out whole lives in the span of a few hours. Here players in the foreground debate the next move after wandering into a dragons lair. (Zev Golden-Zagorski)

Community encourages imagination

Ballard Public Library hosts D&D club for middle and high school Brett Richter Staff Re orter

M

y dad has cried twice in his life. Once when I was born and once when his Dungeons and Dragons character died. Needless to say, Dungeons and Dragons, better known by the acronym D&D, means more to people than just any old tabletop role-playing game (RPG).

D&D is different from other classic war games.

It allows for more creativity in gameplay, instead of choosing a character, the player creates their own.

The players don’t focus on troops and larger war strategies, they focus on their own character and how it interacts with others.

The Basics

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he party members work together to solve the puzzle and beat monsters as they move through the fantasy world created by the Dungeon Master (DM), who takes the mantle of master storyteller and referee. The adventures can take multiple days, these long term conferences are dubbed campaigns.

For the more casual player, players host one-off one-shots that are meant to be started and finished in one sitting.

The character grows as you play. They gain Experience Points (EXP) and level up; when they level up, they grow more powerful. They can learn new spells, get better weapons, or gain more health points (HP).

The player can do just about anything the DM allows. Heck, you could get married and have seven kids in your campaign, all while fighting fir breathing dragons and hunting down criminals.

Unless there’s a handy healer capable of revival around, losing all of your HP results in death.

Sam Buck, a senior and DM at the Ballard Public Library D&D Club session, explains why she is drawn to D&D. “You can make them be whoever you want them to be. You can mold a whole new person from some books, paper and dice.”

D&D in pop culture

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f character creation doesn’t sound appealing, storytelling and world creation is a major part of the game. Another DM, Adele, shares her favorite part of D&D, “I think it’s a wonderful way to explore different depths of interactive storytelling — it gives me freedom if I create my own world.”

The game has also made countless pop culture appearances, like the 2007 show “The Big Bang Theory” and the 2016 show “Stranger Things.”

During the 80s, it became increasingly popular to blame deaths, disappearances and generally strange behaviors on D&D; schools and parental units dubbed the game as “devil worship.”

Of course, these allegations turned out to be untrue, but D&D still got a smear on its permanent record. Ghosts of the D&D scare still remain, as seen in the portrayal of a game similar to D&D inciting cult-like activity in the 2017 show “Riverdale.”

Nowadays, it’s hard to come across someone who hasn’t at least heard of it. While researching, it became exceedingly clear just how popular the game was. Even with an estimated 20 million D&Ders worldwide, I still didn’t know there were so many players in the Ballard area.

A warm welcome

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was expecting the classic group-of-guys-sittingin-a-dark-basement vibe from the Ballard Public Library D&D session, instead I was greeted by a much more diverse group of people, in a much brighter room. Everyone was warm and welcoming and seemed excited to participate.

Players range from ages 11 to 19, and all experience levels are welcome. The volunteers teach new players the rules of the game, basics of role play, and character creation. The club meets once a month, though many of the dates have yet to be determined. The next meeting will be Dec. 28, and

volunteers are greatly needed.

The club started out pretty small, both the players and volunteers have noticed attendance growth. One volunteer, William, commented, “I feel like more people have started showing up. The amount does vary, but we started getting a lot more people who regularly show.”

The golden number of people per group is around five. Anything below that, the DM has to work extra hard to keep the story going, and anything above is just mayhem. As the club grows, the DMs have to adapt, “a lot of it is making sure that the volunteers also know how to help with campaigns,” says William.

With such a large and diverse group, some interesting things can take place. One of these is something called being a “murderhobo.”

A “murderhobo” is someone who goes around killing everyone and everything in their path. In a game as open and creative as D&D, killing your teammates is pretty annoying for all parties.

“Murderhoboing” strays about as far away from the core aspects of D&D as possible. Dungeons and Dragons is about cooperation and bonding, the beautiful thing about the D&D club is going there knowing almost no one and leave feeling like you just made new friends. Taking down an army of orcs or solving a medieval murder-mystery helps adventurers form close bonds.

Jay, a new D&D player, summed it up, “it’s just getting to collaborate and strategize with other people, not just alone. You’re on a team with your peers, like your colleges. It’s a sense of bonding.”

16 FEATURES

ballardtalisman.org

High school counselor motivates and supports students

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

Leticia Bravo looks to improve Latinx relations within the Ballard community Christian Moran Staff Re orter

S

tudents often see her with a smile and a face full of joy, ready to help students with whatever issues they might have. Alongside her fellow counselors, she is the only non-white counselor at school, many students aren’t aware of Leticia Bravo’s Latinx culture.

Bravo worked at Chief Sealth for several years as a school counselor, a College advisor for programs under TRIO — a program under The Higher Education Act acting as a support service and talent search — and as a high-risk youth case manager. She worked with kids that were close to dropping out, got in academic troubles, or had court involvement.

Her first year at Ballard was a whole new experience. “I was super nervous, I didn’t know what to expect because the population is much different from Chief Sealth,” Bravo said. “I didn’t know any staff members here, I felt like a little kid going to school.’’

She transferred because she felt Ballard would give her a difference experience working up and close in the classrooms through counseling sponsored programs. It’s well known the diversity factor in our school is not very high; her goals are to “get involved with the school community and improve connections with minority students families.”

She’s had an impact on many students in the school community, including alumnus Carlos Luna.

At school, he was an activist and a leader who left a mark with his involvement in the mural project, and gave the Latinx community voice by unmasking the daily struggles of minority students.

“Senior year I wasn’t doing much. [I was] trying to get things done and finish everything right away with nothing to look forward to,’’ Luna said.

Walking down the hall, lost and with nothing to fight for, Luna had never really talked to his counselor until his senior year.

Bravo talked to him and changed his mind. She motivated Luna when she named him president of Latinx Student Union (LSU). He then had something to look forward to, a place where he felt welcomed and loved. She created an outlet for people like him to express and feel welcome to a school where people from Latinx background have a hard time trying to fit in She has experienced many hardships and ended up at summer school every year in order to graduate on time. “High school was rough, I struggled a lot academically and I didn’t make the best social choices; I just kind of fell into the wrong crowd,’’ Bravo said. She went to three different high schools throughout her four years due to her behavior. “The

Pictured here is Counselor Leticia Bravo. Having moved schools from Chief Sealth in the 2018-19 school year she is well known for her active involement with the Latinx Student Union.

toughest year was my freshman [year], I was trying to figure out who I was and where I fit in After high school, everything changed. She went to Yakima Community College completing her Associates Degree, then transferred to Eastern Washington University where she got her degree in social work. “I felt successful, which is something I never felt in high school,” Bravo said. Feel free to stop in and chat with Bravo, with her thoughtful and loving comments, she’s sure to change the lives of many students.

17 Conceptual beauty is non-restrictive, fashion should be too OPINIONS

November 27, 2019

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Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

Everyone deserves representation and acceptance in the fashion industry, why aren’t they getting it?

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Tess Petrillo News Editor

iversity of models has always been something that the fashion industry has struggled with.

In the past decade there has been a significant amount of progress in comparison to that of the 90s and early 2000s, but there’s still improvement needed.

Diversity of physique

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revious decades had popularized the slender, size zero model that still is prevalent in modeling beauty standards today.

While these models deserve the representation they receive, this trend has reduced the opportunity for “plus size” models to be featured on the runways.

Designers such as Becca McCharenTran, Rihanna and Micheal Kors have incorporated “plus size” models into their shows, demonstrating that it is possible to debut a fashion line flattering on all body types.

In the Spring 2019 New York Fashion Week, McCharen’s brand Chromat featured 13 “plus size” models and the most racial diversity that had ever been seen on the runway.

Rihanna’s brand Savage X Fenty and McCharen’s Chromat both succeed in truly featuring every size and shape in their brands in general.

This is particularly rare in a lingerie brand that doesn’t exclusively market to people of a larger size, which both companies do.

Often brands will only feature models of a very large size or very small size and call it diversity, when really this just leaves room for exclusion of the majority of models that are in between.

Model Elianah Sukoenig had a very common experience when attempting to get signed to an agency.

In an interview from an article written by Byrdie journalist Hallie Gould, Sukoenig explains how she was often turned down by agencies because although she was a size two, she had very noticeable hips. After losing weight in her hips and her body in general, the same agency told her that she would never get signed because she was too big.

After losing a significant amount of weight one summer, Sukoenig became a size zero. However, because of her curves she was still put into the “plus size” category. She was signed to a “plus size” specific agency, and because she was so slender she was

often given baggier oversized clothing to wear during photo shoots so that she would resemble a larger size.

In both instances Sukoenig was criticized for her body because it could not be labeled. If agencies didn’t specifically scout or exclude models who fit, or don’t fit into a certai category, opportunities could open up for so many more models. Featuring a diversity of body types on the runway is one step in normalizing every body shape as beautiful and flattering.

The basis of the issue lies in the categorization of body types in itself.

Putting models into separate groups such as “straight size” or “plus size” enforces the ideology that one size or shape is more normal than the other, when really all body types are normal.

A set of measurements should not be a factor when defining someone’s beauty. A person should never be in a position where they want to begin modeling or they just want to feel beautiful, but are unable to because their body shape or size doesn’t fit into a certain category.

Ethnic diversity

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n comparison to five years ago, Spring 2019 was a large step towards greater ethnic diversity on the runway. New York Fashion Week (NYFW) featured a casting of 44.8% people of color.

More than half of NYFW’s 11 most booked models were people of color, such as Sudanese Australian model Adut Akeh and Chinese-Nigerian model Adesuwa Aighewi.

A fourth of the NYFW’s runways casted over 50% people of color. Pyer Moss designer Kerby Jean-Raymond featured an entirely African-American cast to pair with his collection’s tribute to African-American culture.

However, it has not always been this way, especially for the representation of Asian models. From 2016 to 2018 the appearance of Asian models were almost nonexistent on the runway, even though they had been the second most represented race in the years 2014 and 2015.

Cases like these are not uncommon, the representation of different ethnicities often fluctuates with the seasons. Whether this is due to the wants of the designers or a possible decrease in model availability is uncertain.

In Miami’s 2018 Swim Week, a group models were turned away because afros and darker complexions did not “fit the look” that designers were going for in their shows.

Former supermodel Tyra Banks speaks about the issue in an article from Ebony Magazine. “My skin is not

a trend; your skin is not a trend. We are who we are, so we should not go in and out of fashion.”

Representation of Asian and African models is well-needed and well-deserved, but Latinx models were rarely featured on the runway.

Although there has been an influx of Latinx designers that emerged for NYFW, Latinx models still remain the most underrepresented on the fashion runways. When Latinx models are casted they tend to be selected based on how much they can “pass” for being a white or racially ambiguous person, so even when they are being represented, they often don’t truly represent the entire Latinx community.

Models who look more “ethnic” tend to not be casted as often for the same reason that the group of models were turned away in Miami; they don’t “fit the look” that designers claim they are going for.

All complexions, hair types and facial features are beautiful. They should be represented on every designer’s runway all throughout the year, not just for certain seasons.

Cartoon by Sam Rainville

Gender diversity

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epresentation gains acceptance; in a society where people of the transgender community are ignored when they request that people use the pronouns that they prefer, their representation is overwhelmingly necessary.

With the most diverse fashion week runways on record, Spring 2019 NYFW featured 36 transgender women and non-binary models

throughout all of the shows. That is 1.55% of all the models that were casted for that week.

Following along with the issue pertaining to ethnic diversity and body diversity, the look of non-binary models that are casted tend to be very uniform. So, the models that are casted fail to represent the community as a whole.

Non-binary models that are casted are primarily tall, white, thin and have an overall androgynous appearance.

However non-binary people, just like cis-gendered people, come in all sizes and complexions so they should be represented as such.

Moreover, people of the nonbinary community do not all have an adrogynous appearance. Some appear more masculine while others appear more feminine, both are valid representatives of their community.

In addition to representation, the inclusion of non-binary models also allows for much needed experimentation with adrogynous fashion. Not only do people who are non-binary struggle with representation, they struggle with finding clothing that coincides with their identity.

Because brands primarily market to an only male or female audience, people who are non-binary or don’t conform to the male of female gender often have trouble finding clothes they feel comfortable in for this reason.

Gender is on a spectrum, fashion should be as well. People already feel forced by society to conform to one specific gender, they should not feel forced to do the same when they are trying to find clothes to wear Fashion is supposed to be expressive and abstract, it should not be constrictive to opposite ends of the spectrum. Featuring the ways in which gender fluidity can be expressed will with the understanding of the concept of gender in itself.

Above anything, whether or not a person identifies with the gender they were assigned at birth should not be a justification of their beauty. A model’s gender should not taint their qualifications.

(Additional formation provided by GSA (Gay Straight Alliance) President Gavin Eachus and Vice President Danny Edwards) *All of these issues are equally as important, the layout or order is not meant to portray them differently.

18 OPINIONS

November 27, 2019

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Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

The first Thanksgiving and its consequences today

We can’t celebrate the holiday without acknowledging its dark past and our abusive present Hannah Weaver Copy Editor

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or most people within the United States, Thanksgiving means sitting down to a hearty turkey dinner, watching football and celebrating with family. But not all Americans have the privilege for their Thanksgiving to look like this.

The Story of the First Thanksgiving(s)

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he “First Thanksgiving” was a feast shared by the Wampanoag people and the English settlers in the fall of 1621. The typical story of the first Thanksgiving is one of a harmonious gathering between two different peoples, the start of an amicable, mutually-beneficial relationship.

While there is some truth to this story, the context is often missing, and in this case, the context is everything.

As is typical of U.S. history, we’ve been told this story from the white man’s point of view. This point of view focuses on how the English colonists “helped” the Wampanoag, when really it was the other way around.

When the English first arrived, they weren’t met with hostility. In fact, they were welcomed by the Wampanoag as a potential trading partner. Also important to note is the reason the colonists were able to settle in Plymouth to begin with — the Patuxet band of Wampanoag that used to live there had been decimated by a disease brought by European traders years earlier.

Yet Wampanoag from neighboring villages still helped the colonists get through the winter, teaching them techniques for growing corn and

“We will stop protesting when the merchants of Plymouth are no longer making millions of dollars off the blood of our slaughtered ancestors” -Co-leader of UAINE Moonaum James

catching fish. The meal they shared consisted of 90-some Wampanoag and 45 or less pilgrims, and while there was likely some sort of fowl served, there wasn’t any turkey.

It’s important we get this story right, and recognize that, though they didn’t have to, the Wampanoag welcomed the pilgrims.

Jolene Haas, Executive Director of the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center, explained that the Duwamish had a similar reaction when the settlers came to Seattle.

“They helped them survive their first winter, they helped the babies with the clam juice, they did all these things,” Haas said. “They had open arms to help people.”

The colonizers also brought the idea that this newly “discovered” land could be owned, and that they were the ones who should own it. “It became the mindset of the pilgrims was to attach ownership to land, which wasn’t a concept that native people could wrap their heads around,” Haas said. “[They felt that] everything was out there for everybody’s use, to survive.”

They then forced tribal leaders to sign treaties that gave the colonists “rights” to the land. In 1855, the Treaty of Point Elliott was signed, promising the Duwamish and other Coast Salish tribes fishing rights, hunting rights and reservations in exchange for 54,000 acres of land.

rights. “We will stop protesting when the merchants of Plymouth are no longer making millions of dollars off the blood of our slaughtered ancestors,” James said.

Similar events such as Unthanksgiving Day, held on the once-indigenous-occupied Alcatraz Island, occur across the country each year. However, there are almost 600 federally-recognized tribes in the U.S., so there are varying opinions on how, if at all, Thanksgiving should be celebrated.

For the Duwamish, this means focusing on the now and celebrating the heart and resilience of their people. “Getting over it doesn’t mean that it makes it right,” Haas said. “It means what are you doing now to fight for your sovereignty and for the rights of indigenous people?”

This year, the Duwamish Tribe, in conjunction with other local organizations are putting on a public Thanksgiving Feast.

Haas explained that the goal of one of the main event organizers, Al Parisi, is to reconstruct Thanksgiving into a positive celebration for all people.

“What he wants to do is bring that healing and he wants to actually lift up the Duwamish for their initial story and how they helped the first pioneers here,” Haas said.

Taking action this Thanksgiving

T Cartoon by Sam Rainville

Post-Thanksgiving Relations

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rade school lessons about Thanksgiving usually either stop here or imply that they all lived happily ever after. This couldn’t be further from the truth. In typical European colonizer fashion, the “pilgrims” took over the land and claimed it as their own.

As more and more settlers started coming over and they eventually spread all the way to the West Coast, they continued to commit genocide and pushed remaining natives onto tiny reservations. If you’re confused what I mean by “genocide,” consider this: after Europeans spread diseases and the U.S. government initiated over a thousand wars and raids, only 8% of indigenous populations remained. Not only that, but they also suffered cultural genocide in part due to boarding schools and other government institutions that wouldn’t allow speaking native languages or practicing a religion other than Christianity.

The promises of this treaty have never been honored, and the Duwamish have yet to be granted a reservation.

This scenario isn’t unique to the Duwamish. There were hundreds of treaties signed between Native nations and the U.S., none of which have been completely fulfilled.

A day to celebrate?

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hese countless injustices have led some Native Americans tribes to protest on the day of Thanksgiving.

One such protest is the Day of Mourning, which was started in 1970 when anniversary planners for a Thanksgiving celebration wouldn’t allow Wampanoag leader Wamsutta to deliver a speech that detailed the abuse of his people since the arrival of the colonists.

On the 29th Day of Mourning, event organizer Moonaum James and co-leader of United American Indians of New England (UAINE), gave a speech stressing the importance of continuing to fight for indigenous

here is nothing wrong with giving thanks and sharing a meal with loved ones. However, if you as a non-indigenous person celebrate Thanksgiving without acknowledging the broken promises made to native tribes, the genocide of indigenous people across the Americas, and the injustices that continue today, you are choosing to uphold centuries of oppression.

As students, we must educate ourselves about the Duwamish, what they’ve done, and what they continue to do for the Puget Sound area. As teachers, we must teach lessons about Thanksgiving which accurately depict the events and portray Native American points of view. As residents of Seattle, we must acknowledge that we are on Duwamish land.

But our action doesn’t have to and shouldn’t stop there. We can partake in solidarity movements such as the Real Rent project which, according to their flier, “calls on people who live and work in Seattle to make rent payments to the Duwamish Tribe.”

Hundreds of years of wrongdoing cannot be undone overnight, but it’s our duty to try, since our government won’t.

OPINIONS

November 27, 2019

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Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

19

America’s pastime is slowly dying

Baseball’s popularity is declining, but here is how we can save it Will Shepard Staff Re orter

ADVICE: DEAR TESS & PAIGE,

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n 1986, during the first game of the World Series, 36 million people tuned in on their TV to watch.

From all across the nation the tension was building, slowly mounting as the country sat down and opened up a beer to watch “America’s pastime.”

And now? In 2019 the first game of the World Series between the Astros and the Nationals attracted 3.6 million viewers, just one tenth of the viewership that baseball Cartoon by Peter Brown used to command. This, base. when combined with the fact These clips and celebrations that baseball attendance has will get shared endlessly on dropped six of the past seven social media, thus generating years, solidifies the idea that new viewers and people baseball is slowly dying. interested in football. However, Why has the sport which baseball seems opposed to used to be at the forefront of celebrations and drama of any American news and media kind. coverage, which had millions The MLB constantly claims of people rushing home from and shuts down any videos or work every day to catch the content that contains baseball games on at night, began its footage on YouTube. There descent? are also endless articles and If you were to ask anyone commentators that claim that they will most likely all give you bat flipping, the act of flippin the same answer. “It’s boring.” your bat after you get a home I have heard that response run, is disrespectful to the sport hundreds of times whenever of baseball. baseball is brought up. And What? quite frankly it is a lot of the Bat flipping is just the time. So how do we make it not type of drama that baseball boring? needs. Fans love players that

Embrace Drama

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irst off, Major League Baseball has to embrace drama. The NFL, just last season allowed for group or team celebrations. This is because the NFL realized that drama makes people want to watch.

In football, when a team scores a touchdown they can now perform any number of special or unique celebrations and acts of showmanship to infuriate the other team and hype up their own fan

are invested in the game, that trash-talk the other team and all of their actions are just a little bit extra to enrage the other pitcher.

When the players appear more invested and show the pride for their team, so do the fans. I love when players do this and will tune in every night to social media. To create the same type of hype that we see for football and basketball drama, baseball needs to be drawing more people into the action.

Dear Tess & Paige, I have a crush on a boy but he doesn’t have a crush on me. Should I spend time getting closer to him, or should I move on and stop wasting time in senior year?

Oversaturation of the Market

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he second problem in baseball, fundamentally changes the core of the game.

There is too much baseball.

Way too much. Each MLB team plays a total of 162 games per year.

In the NBA and NHL that number is 82. In the NFL they play 16. If there is an interesting match-up in baseball there is no reason for me to watch it, because that same match up will be on the day after it, and the day after that.

In the NFL, when two superstar teams are playing, I know that these two teams most likely won’t cross paths again. This is the one match-up this year, the one time where they will face off on the field. I the MLB that just isn’t there.

There is too much baseball, and in order to create the tension and hype that precedes each Sunday, when Patrick Mahomes takes the field against Tom Brady, baseball games must matter. Right now, with 162 games, they don’t.

I believe that baseball can change, and that it can return to its thriving past.

But it will take effort from its management and fanbase to let this happen. Baseball must change, and quickly.

-Hopeful Romantic DEAR ROMANTIC, if you really think he’s worth it doesn’t hurt to spend time with him. Often you have to tend to the coals before a fire can commence. Spending time with him and having him get to know you better could increase the force of attraction between you two. The power of attraction demands prosperity.

That being said, there’s still a chance that he won’t feel the same way back, no matter what. If you reach that point, you have to move on. It’s your senior year so do you really want to be wasting your time on someone who makes you feel miserable about yourself?

As long as this boy makes you feel good about yourself, you should continue to pursue them as long as you remain respectful. We encourage you to surround yourself with people that make you happy, and know that there is always a chance.

Dear Tess & Paige, I’m a junior but all of my friends are seniors, which means they’re leaving at the end of this year, what should I do?

-Scared of Lonely Dear SCARED, cherish the time you have with them now, don’t dwell on the fact that you’ll have to say

goodbye eventually. High school is a time for living life carelessly and to have fun. Have fun with the time you have, don’t think too much about it. Life is about growing and moving on. Be happy for them that they are starting this new chapter in their lives. Just because you might be miles apart doesn’t mean your relationship with them cannot continue.

Dear Tess & Paige, my boss is really good at graphic design and I really want to date them, what’s the proper workplace etiquette in this scenario?

-Concerned Admirer Dear ADMIRER, please don’t date your boss. If you do love them that much, then it is far better to quit your job and become their sugar baby instead. That way, everyone wins. *Disclaimer: Tess and Paige, the two 16-yearold girls, who wrote this column in response to anonymous questions through their Instagram, are not to be held responsible for a possible rise in sugar babies.

If you have additional questions, submit them to ballardtally@gmail.com or through the QR code below.

20 BEAVERTAIL

November 27, 2019 Ballard High School (Seattle, WA)

ballardtally@gmail.com

BEAVESDROPPING HEARD IN THE HALLWAYS: WE’RE NOT FUNNY ENOUGH TO MAKE THIS STUFF UP

I keep eating whole bell peppers in my driver’s ed class to provoke the teacher

So, I was working undercover to bust gang dealing in Ikea

When the soup comes out, the goats come in

I’ve been lusting after luxury cookware

I have to go to computer science, Coolmath isn’t gonna play itself Is the yeehaw thing real? Cause I respect that ;)

Why is nae-naeing so intoxicating?

Whoever put this banana on my wife’s desk, fear yourself.

You know about stick n pokes but ya heard of slash and pour?!

Christ, I haven’t heard someone say “pwned” since 2008

You have no right to be happy! You’re such a drama queen!

STUDENT POETRY

GOT A KNACK FOR WRITING? SEND IT TO US: ballardtally@gmail.com Dreams

unlife of the grave robbbed Rhea Cron (12)

Elliot Armitage(12)

Chase The Dream Don’t matter the struggle That’s what makes us humble Life is hard to carry You might fumble Skip a few steps we might stumble But we stand up With our fist up Showing our pride That’s something we aren’t going to hide In a society where we are oppressed I feel the weight in my chest I bench press The stress thinking what’s next What’s to come Our journey has begun The path is beginning to set To make it this far we’re blessed

are you here to bury me, to scrape my body across the yard with the flat end of your spade

Sitting on the schoolbus, tightly clutching her lunchbox As tight as her sweater is around her neck Grey sky outside as she sits still Eyes glued to the seat in front and feet glued to the floo Been sitting there for years unmoved She’s still as water under winter sun Sitting on the schoolbus parked in his yard Out of service for a decade and rusting from inside Trees are growing through the windows Vines are snaking up her legs She’s been staring for as long as I’ve been alive Cheek plate fell off in last year’s autumn wind Sitting on the schoolbus, holding on to her eyes

Christian Moran (12)

well, you are too late in doing so. everyone on this earth has taken from me what they value. robbers took my jewels; bankers, my debt. maggots took the fruit between my bones, and catholics took my ribs to pray over. you plan to bury me without a marker? proceed, fool! all you can inter is waste. do not worry for painting a path of what blood i bleed after death, i have no need for it without a heart. there are no diamonds in my halted bloodstream and no streaks of gold in my nails. are you really here for me?

11/1/19