BLACK & GOLD QUARTERLY (BGQ) March 2019

BGQ BLACK & GOLD QUARTERLY

march 2019 // volume ninety-eight

2 // BGQ // March 2019

a note from your editors

BGQ

A new year has come, and an old has passed. For seniors, the horizon of graduation looms ever closer and the promise of summer will find its way to all of us soon. At the time of writing, it is the heart of winter, a newfound coldness has set in from a previous thaw, and snow continues to dance in its flurry of grace or preserve an old bleakness, depending on your perspective of winter. Rather usual conversations such as one’s opinion on winter, how we are preparing for summer, and, as seniors, being consistently barraged with our future plans, may seem insignificant and without matter. However, they do have deeper implications. Opinions do not grow from nothing. Rather, experiences in our lives plant a seed, which buds and receives emotional significance through thought.

Our mentality profoundly affects our thoughts about ourselves, other people, and ideas profoundly. One’s mental health is of uttermost importance to their emotional state. Happiness arises in its truest forms during times filled with laughter and good company. Other times we face an emotional crisis. The anxious cannot always find true inner-peace. The depressed cannot always feel true joy. Others of us enjoying a healthy mental state can feel anger, grief, and stress, but we cannot truly empathize with those suffering from mental illness. Is it possible that empathy isn’t what we’re missing? Maybe it’s a lack on understanding, a lack of awareness.

Our mentality controls our feelings and perceptions extending beyond oneself, and its important to humanize those around us and recognize their emotions.

Love him or hate him, President Donald Trump’s mentality has the power to emotionally affect all those who hear his words. While some adore his rhetoric, others feel anything but adoration: angry, annoyed.

The media feeds us countless opinions and stories, and whether or not it’s truthful is unknown, yet we still react to what we hear.

As a news staff, it’s important to us that our readers are being fed the most accurate, up to date news that we can find through research and communication. The goal behind our third issue was to touch a variety of topics— to dig deeper into relatable, yet avoided discussions on mental health and politics, as well as providing pictures of cute dogs to put a smile on your face. It’s those kind of simplicities in journalism that encourage us to continue writing, capturing, and telling stories. A smile on a readers face, or a feeling of comfort is enough to ensure us that we did our best.

Oh, by the way, we also spill the tea on Mrs. Shelly-Barnes and her mysterious connections to the late (or is he?) Tupac. And remember, not everything you read in the news is true.

From the pub, Abigail Vannatter

Jack Myers

ATTENTION SENIORS The last May issue is our senior showcase- send us your favorite work of art, whether it be poetry, a drawing, a photo, or an essay. This is where you can leave your final mark on Central High School.

Submit to:

bgq@tcapsstudent.net OR contact Abigail Vannatter or Jack Myers

MISSION STATEMENT: The Black and Gold Quarterly (BGQ) is Traverse City Central High School’s student-run magazine.

Since its conception in 1886, our publication has evolved with the times, frequently changing in style, format, and even name. However, one factor has remained constant—our staff ’s desire to capture the story of our community, to challenge the accepted, and to open our minds to perspectives that we hadn’t previously considered through investigation, research, and inquiry. We are constantly striving to improve our content and artistic elements; after all, the BGQ is a school publication, so educating both ourselves as well as our readers remains one of our primary goals.

BLACK & GOLD QUARTERLY: MARCH TWO-THOUSAND NINETEEN

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MENTAL HEALTH STORY PACKAGE Various aspects

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IT’S A SMALL WORLD

EDITORS Sophie Boyce Paige Conners

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BIKING FROM ONE CONTINENT...

PHOTOGRAPHY McKenna Bak Abigail Vannatter

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QUARTERLY SHOWCASE

By Tre Powis

GRAPHICS Tori VerVane

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STATE OF THE PRESIDENCY

BUSINESS McKenna Bak

Exchange student culture Sami Maldonado

Trump’s upcoming election plans

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AMERICA’S POLITICS UNVEILED

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PAGE BY PAIGE

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STANDING FOR A DRUG FREE TC

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IDENTITY IN TRAVERSE CITY

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REAL EYES RECOGNIZE REAL LIES

STAFF WRITERS Sarah Auger Joie Baldyga Lia Cook Julia Demusky Ava Edwards Niklas Fagerman Sydney Flaherty Maria Linck Madison Marshall Autumn McMillan Mia Moeggenberg Richard Mosley Aidan Reed Lauren Stallman Elizabeth Teesdale Tori VerVane Caelan Wright

THE GALLERY

COVER Abigail Vannatter Tori VerVane

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Trump as a politician Valentine’s Day

S.T.A.N.D. Committee

Dog edition (you don’t want to miss this) Conspiracy theories

A student showcase

INSIDE COVER Tre Powis

local • organic • made from scratch

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260 E. TENTH STREET

|

TRAVERSE CITY

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Jack Myers Abigail Vannatter

| 231.947.0191 |

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Facebook. Youtube.

Twitter. Instagram. These are some of the most popular social media apps that have dominated the internet, with an estimated 3.7 billion active users worldwide, according to Ebizmba. com. Digital worlds that are contained in a small app icon on your phone can be accessed with a single tap, and the possibilities and opportunities that these platforms offer are seemingly infinite. All social networking sites have their own unique properties, yet they all have one common denominator: the power to connect people on a global scale. We have the ability to reach people in different cities, states, and countries instantly and effortlessly, thanks to the mobility that smartphones and laptops provide. “I’ve been able to keep in touch with some of my family members and friends who have moved away, allowing me to get closer to them,” McKenzie Dreves ‘19 acknowledges the benefits of social media. “If I meet someone I can just look them up on Instagram and figure out their interests,” Ethan Davenport ‘20 adds. Social media has become an essential part of many daily lives, but there are some dark consequences that impact the way we interact with not only other people, but with ourselves as well.

Social media can be addicting, especially those designated for enter-

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tainment purposes, such as Instagram and Facebook. Catherine Price, a science journalist, described this phenomenon in her book How to Break Up With Your Phone. The conclusion of her findings is when someone likes or leaves a positive comment on your post, your brain releases a chemical called dopamine. This neurotransmitter can make us feel happy and euphoric. As a result, we begin to associate “likes” and “comments” as rewards, similar to how a dog earns a treat after obeying a command.

Subconsciously, we begin to crave the pleasure that social media can give us, and we ultimately spend more and more time on those apps in order to achieve higher dopamine levels, which

You are more depressed.

You have the worst selfimage issues than any other generation. It’s unbelievable.

”

is exactly what developers want. The creators of such apps are purposely compelled to design addictive apps in order to make more money through ad revenue. Another addictive component to these networks is FOMO: the fear of missing out. Many people are constantly checking their social media in fear that they are missing out on important activities, events, or updates. “The fear of missing out (FOMO)— on something more fun, on a social date that might just happen on the spur of the moment— is so intense, even when we’ve decided to disconnect, we still connect just once

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(anti) Social Media

Is social media affecting mental health?

by LIA COOK Staff Writer

more, just to make sure,”observes John M. Grohol, founder and editorin-chief of the website PsychCentral.

This can lead to an obsessive or compulsive habit to always be connected online. Unfortunately, spending extensive periods of time on social media can be detrimental to one’s mental health, especially for teens and young children whose brains are still developing. “The things that people post and the things that they say to each other are so beyond okay,” Diane Burden, Central’s social worker, asserts. “I think that it’s having a super deleterious effect on your whole generation; you are more anxious. You are more depressed. You have the worst self-image issues than any other generation. It’s unbelievable. We are constantly seeing these people in happy big friendship groups on beaches, and when this is getting shoved in your face all day, every day, it’s really super unhealthy. It’s seeping in and it’s changing brain development—it’s changing how you guys are functioning in life.” One of the large factors contributing to feelings of anxiety and low-self esteem is when people start to compare their lives to others; people have the power to filter out the imperfections of their lives and present the “best” version of themselves on social media, sometimes setting unrealistic standards of how one’s life should be like. “I have low self-esteem sometimes due to the materialistic posts over [social] media,” admits Dreves. If someone is already experiencing symptoms of anxiety, those feelings can be heightened by the content on social media. The danger of social media

platforms is that we are vulnerable to placing our self-esteem in the hands of others. In other words, how many likes on an Instagram post equates to how many people like you in real life or how many followers determines how popular you are. “We have more anxiety in this building every single year and it goes up every year, and we are like what is going on? Everybody can’t have an anxiety disorder or a panic disorder,” Burden exclaims. “I can’t say that it’s all because of social media, but I do believe that there is a huge social media component that is influencing your generation in a very negative way.”

According to the Child Mind Institute and the article “Does Social Media Cause Depression?,” researchers have seen a correlation between social media usage and depressive symptoms. However, this is not necessarily a causation. Factors of stress, anxiety, and sleep deprivation due to staying up late on social media sites can result in depression or suicidal thoughts. “U.S. teenagers who spend three hours a day or more on electronic devices are 30% more likely to have a risk factor of suicide than those who spend less than one hour,” Burden states. “Those who spend five hours or more are 71% more likely to have a risk factor of suicide than those who spend one hour.”

The profiles that we create on these multifarious social networking sites have become extensions of ourselves, and oftentimes we begin to focus more on what our online identities are than what is happening in real life.

Dr. Shainna Ali, a mental health clinician and staff writer for the magazine Psychology Today, wrote in an article “Is Social Media Making You Lonely?,”

that “individuals who spent more time on social media every day felt lonelier than those who spent less time engaged in social media.” Social media can eliminate face-to-face communication, which helps contribute to the sense of isolation that people may experience. “[Social media] has given me and other people I know bad habits in terms of social skills and being able to interact with each other when we’re hanging out or together

“

dia, coupled with other internal and external factors, may promote social isolation.

Social media has its benefits and drawbacks that influences an individual’s personal health and lifestyle in many different ways. Not all social media usage may negatively affect a person’s mental health, yet it is important to remember to use social media wisely and with integrity, such as limiting the time spent on social

What we know at this point is that we have evidence that replacing your realworld relationships with social media use is detrimental to your well-being.

because I think sometimes we’re on our phones a lot instead of talking as much as we may have used to,” Lilly Prall ‘20 confesses. The more we connect to the virtual world, the more we disconnect from the real world. Has social media made people antisocial?

With our hyper-connected generation, it’s easy to turn to social media as an accessible form of communication while hanging out with friends or family. “What we know at this point is that we have evidence that replacing your real-world relationships with social media use is detrimental to your well-being,” writes Holly Shakya in the article “Feeling Lonely? Too Much Time On Social Media May Be Why” on the National Public Radio media organization. Shakya is an assistant professor at the University of California in the global health department, and acknowledges that social me-

”

media apps. Setting boundaries and unplugging from the online world more often can help with maintaining a positive relationship between yourself and your mental health, as well as offer more opportunities to focus on activities that you enjoy. I’m guilty of sometimes prioritizing my online interactions over the moments that could be spent with friends and family; I have also realized taking breaks from social media has actually helped me appreciate the daily interactions I have with other people. Disconnecting from the digital world every now and then has made me realize the power social media can have over my life. There’s no denying that we are heading towards a more technologically advanced future, but we have the capability to choose whether it will be a more social or antisocial world. //

Graphic: T. VerVane

A

Mental Service With broadened views on anxiety and depression, the past few years have brought a more open view on therapy, especially with some furry friends.

by SOPHIE BOYCE Content Editor Whether you know it or not, pets affect your mental state. Just their presence can affect how a person feels. Playing with or petting a dog can lower stress-related hormones within minutes, according to Newport Academy, a rehab treatment center for teens with mental health issues.

To further that idea, playing with pets helps raise our dopamine and serotonin levels, which relax our nervous system. But aside from beneficial hormonal effects, animals can give someone a sense of purpose in a time of need. The simple act of giving your 8 // BGQ // March 2019

pet attention can help you develop a better sense of self-worth as well as stabilize your emotions. Because of these immediate effects, animal assisted therapy is becoming more and more popular.

According to Psychology Today, animal assisted therapy often happens in conjunction with work from a physiotherapist or social worker, and uses mainly dogs in the form of either a therapy or service dog. There are a few ways this can work; for example, the dog could live with you, or it can act as a visitation program of sorts.

But overall, the final effect is that the animal will provide a sense of comfort, calm, and safety, as well as diverting the attention of the patient from a stressful situation. Studies show that the bond between a person and an animal is also supposed to improve socialization and self-control skills.

Most forms of animal therapy involve either a service or therapy pet, but there is an important difference.

What it comes down to is training.

Tania Santos, an owner of a therapy dog who was a service dog, explained

that to become a service dog, a dog must spend six months on a leash that connects them to their owner.

The purpose of this is to make sure that the dog can get to know their owner, specifically their voice, how they react to certain situations, and their habits. After those six months, the dog goes to a facility for training. They return to the house, where a trainer will come in weekly and train the owner and dog together. Santos points out that not any dog can be a service dog. Because of the work they need to do, the dog must be very calm in nature. Their whole purpose is to calm someone down and take care of them, not rile them up and make a situation worse. Because of their immense training requirments, service dogs are only used in severe mental and physical cases. This brings us back to therapy dogs, which should also be calm in nature, but really only need to be taught commands. They still go through a training process, but it’s much less intensive and focuses primarily on consistency of following commands.

Santos uses her therapy dog, Levi, in her physical therapy office, and takes him to retirement and assisted living homes. Levi helps out with all of Santos’ patients, from little kids to full fledged adults. She explained that Levi greets all of her patients because, “automatically people are relaxed when an animal, not a human comes at them… it’s a good introduction. It makes [my appointments] feel more homey than a doctor’s office.”

While Levi calms her patients, he also makes them more willing to do ac-

tivities. “He’s my goodwill ambassador, instead of saying Taina is doing this, or Taina wants you to do this, if it comes from Levi, people are way more likely to be open to the idea.” When Photo: Courtesy of T. Santos talking about Levi, the Active Physical Therapy dog, relaxing on the job. the effect of Levi on her younger Even though most animal assisted patients, Santos said that it’s incredtherapy involves a therapy dog, that ible for younger kids because they doesn’t mean that pets can’t help don’t really understand therapy and their owners. Animals, more speLevi makes them feel at ease. When cifically dogs, have innate skills for it comes to teenagers it’s a different boosting moods, they don’t have to mentality. They love Levi and dogs in be trained to help their owners out general because, “it’s the one thing mentally and emotionally. There rethat doesn’t give them grief, or bring ally is something to the whole “dog in anxiety or problems like parents is man’s best friend” thing. Santos and other adults do.” But the younger described a time when Levi automatigenerations aren’t the only people cally went into ‘care’ mode. “One day who have deeper feelings connected a patient walked in and she was very to animals. When Santos and Levi visit very anxious, something awful had assisted living facilities, they get rehappened, she was beside herself, and sponses from people that they would she walked in and Levi was immeotherwise never get. “Think about diately at her side. She came in and it, most of these old people love was sobbing uncontrollably, and I’ve younger people because they’ve had not really seen him do this, but I sat children before, they’ve had a dog her down on a bed, and Levi sat on before, and they love music of some her legs to calm her down, almost to kind. It’s all the three things that even say, ‘don’t go anywhere until you’ve if they lose their senses somehow or calmed down’ He did not move until have Alzheimer’s they still remember she had stopped crying - It’s a lot deep things like that. They’re lonely. more than pathology, it’s mental.” So They miss children, they’ve lost their while playing with your dog won’t families or they don’t remember cure depression or anxiety, it can them, or even their families come, but make your everyday problems that it’s different.” much easier to deal with . //

The

Struggle Within The truth of mental disorders is rarely acknowledged and those who suffer fear speaking out.

by MIA MOEGGENBERG Staff Writer Depression. Anxiety. Anorexia. To many of the students at Central High School these are words they hear in passing, not foreign by any means, but not an ever looming part of their life. To others, these words hit all too close to home.

Topics surrounding mental health are often uncomfortable to talk about or not talked about at all. One student at Central High School said of her struggle with anxiety and depression, “I feel like there’s so much stigma about mental health right now. I am not less capable as a person and I am not a bad person.” This student prefers to remain anonymous for the very reason she explained; there is a great deal of judgment surrounding mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. “I feel like I have to hide a part of myself from a lot of the school just because I am afraid of what they are going to think of me,” she continued.

Almost everyone can say that they have experienced some form of depression or anxiety, yet the stigma still remains. Anyone can be inflicted by a mental disorder, it doesn’t matter what your family status is like, how much money you have, or what gender you are. Depression and anxiety become true mental disorders if they are ongoing and more severe than the typical sad or nervous thoughts.

Depression and anxiety go beyond 10 // BGQ // March 2019

these initial feelings, there is numbness, hopelessness, indecisiveness, confusion, and the overwhelming desire to escape. The same student explained, “I feel like I need to get out and I don’t even know what I need to get out of. It is almost like when you have some clothes on that are too tight and it’s getting uncomfortable and you feel like you need to take them off. They are metaphorical clothes and you can’t get out, so you just shut down. You just have this all encompassing feeling of I can’t. I need to get out of here.”

The fact that mental health disorders are so encompassing and severe is often not understood. To those on the outside, it may seem like a person just needs to snap out of it. Those with depression and anxiety certainly wish they could. Lily Jenkins ‘22, explained, “People don’t really get it.

Why don’t you just try not being anxious?’ they ask, and I am like, ‘that’s what I am trying to do.’ It is not as easy as just avoiding it. I think people think that it is easy or it doesn’t really count as a real thin Mental disorders are capable of causing a great deal of damage. Traverse City psychiatrist, Sander Weckstein, explained that suicide is “the third leading cause of death in teens.” With this and the fact that they are so present in today’s society, they have become more represented in our media. Anxiety,

depression, and eating disorders, along with some of their causes, are discussed on social media. TV shows and movies, such as Thirteen Reason Why and To The Bone, both address topics surrounding mental health.

These certainly spread awareness for mental disorders, but also add to the stigma by projecting a false image of them. Jenkins explained, “it has become easier to talk about nowadays, but people romanticize anxiety and depression a lot. That is not a good thing either because it is not a good thing to have anxiety or depression, it doesn’t help you in anyway. It is almost like a handicap, an emotional one. I think that people romanticizing it and making it seem like this super cool trait to have, something kind of edgy, relatable… I don’t think that helps.” She continued on to explain that though people are talking more about mental health, they only talk about the parts that are romanticized, not the reality.

The truth of mental disorders is still hidden behind a curtain. There is still a lack of understanding. It is impossible to know what is going on in someone else’s mind. It is impossible to completely understand what internal battles lay within. However, it is important to at least try to understand the thoughts and feelings of others, especially when in regards to their mental health. //

An anonymous CHS student’s experiences with mental illness I first started cutting when I was twelve. I said it didn’t count, didn’t matter, at least that’s what I told myself. It wasn´t like I was holding a knife to my wrist, slitting it to leave deep scars. Yet the scars were still there. In every picture from that first summer you can see the scabs all along my legs. At first it was mindless, using a pair of scissors to cut away my skin, bit by bit. Soon it became a deliberate punishment.

I had an eating disorder and was getting thinner and thinner, though in my mind I was fat. The dietician told me to write down all my food in a notebook so that I could eat a “healthy, balanced diet.” All I ever wrote down was what they wanted to hear. In the very back of that pretty pink notebook tally marks stacked up.

The tallies were for each time I ate something I considered a bad food, a fattening food. Each tally mark was one cut.

I never accepted the fact that I had actually self-harmed. It was not until a year later, when I was at a press conference about suicide during a journalism camp that it truly hit me. The speaker was another student, a senior, who had attempted suicide just a few months before. I vividly remember her saying what I said before, “I first started cutting when I was twelve.”

Would I end up like her? Would I too end up attempting suicide?

Would I die? These thoughts overwhelmed me and made me want to break free of this path, yet a small voice in my head was saying, “that is what will happen, that is where you belong.”

My life is worth something though, no matter how hard that is to believe at times. That must always be remembered: you are worth something.

Mental health is an issue that plagues many, yet very few seem to understand its all encompassing nature. People only think that I am crazy when I say that I have cut myself, that I have thrown up my food for fear of gaining weight, that I have eaten just 200 calories in a day, that I have felt

so overwhelmed that I sobbed for hours over the idea that I am utterly worthless, pathetic, terrible.

I deeply hope that others have not or will not experience this, but, in order for that to happen, more awareness is needed. Mental health disorders are romanticized through social media and TV shows; they are considered an interesting character trait for someone to have while the reality is merely pushed under the rug. Representation is necessary as it sparks a conversation, but it must go deeper than that. This is a pressing issue, not something that is only on the screen of your phone. Many feel that they can not break free of their depression; I remember repeating to myself “I am trapped,” as I cried silently. When this trap becomes so encompassing that a person can not find a way out, they often fall on the final resort, an escape not only from depression, but from life: suicide.

This is not an interesting story line: this is a matter of life or death.

My depression never got severe enough that I got close to suicide, but I am certainly not saying that I never considered it, never thought about how I could carry it out. I feel dramatic just saying that, like I don’t deserve to say those words. That voice in my head creeps up, telling me that I am pathetic and dramatic. That is my truth though. The truth of mental disorders needs to be uncovered if it means that more can get help.

The reality is: I never wanted to die, I just wanted out. I think Thirteen Reasons Why got it right on that count: Hannah Baker didn’t want to die, she tried to talk to others, but she wasn’t heard and that is when she landed on the last resort.

I never got to that, not even that close, because I had those I could talk to, those that could help me. That is what needs to be spread. People should never be forced to talk about their mental disorder, but they should have that option. Until the stigma is cleared away, at least a little bit, many more will not be able to ask for help.

This doesn’t mean that I want everyone to understand what I am thinking.

One thing I have certainly learned is that my mind is my own. No one can truly understand what is happening in the mind of someone else; it is like an entirely different universe, lightyears away. The thing that needs to be understood is that though someone else’s thoughts and feelings might seem absurd and foreign, they are real. They should be respected.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure about writing this, showing others, or even writing it in the first place, but I am glad I stepped over the voice in my head that told me I couldn’t because awareness surrounding mental health still needs to improve. I could have written this as a typical feature article, almost like a report, but real stories need to be attached to the dark, clinical words. Depression. Anxiety. Eating Disorder. Anorexia.

Just a few months ago my friend told me about someone else who said that he had never met anyone with anxiety, depression, or an eating disorder. That is not true, he knows me and he knows my friend and he knows about five other people that I know have suffered from mental disorders. I do not blame him; we are the ones that didn’t talk about it. We are afraid of the judgment, the stigma.

We feel forced to keep quiet. Maybe you are included in that “we.”

I still am not completely past my eating disorder or depression. To be honest, I don’t think this will go away anytime soon, it will stay with me in some way or another for my entire life. Regardless, I am better than I once was. Asking for help pulled me away from the path I was headed.

Having a mental disorder doesn’t mean that I am crazy or even different in any way. It is surprising how many people have gone through similar things, but just kept it quiet like I have until now.

Now, I share my story in the hopes that I may lead just one more person to ask for help. //

It’s A Small

World After All

Being an exchange student is a life changing experience that spans over not just one year, but the rest of your life. We caught up with past, present, and future exchange students to tell about the experiences that have shaped their high school careers.

by SYDNEY FLAHERTY Staff Writer For some, high school is described as some of the best years of their lives.

With dances, driver’s licenses, tests, friend drama, and more, high school is a time where many start to find who they are. Each year, students from all over the world take this one step further by experiencing all of that in a foreign country in an effort to gain a new understanding of a new country, the world, and even themselves.

They reside there for ten months: accustoming themselves to living with new people, eating different foods with ingredients they’ve never heard of, and learning a foreign language.

This can be seen first hand at Central, as foreign exchange students leave their mark on the school and student body each year. We also have students at Central who will or have already experienced much of what exchange students here are experiencing now.

These students, no matter who they are or where they come from, must immerse themselves in a new and foreign culture. This comes with many challenges but also many happy memories that will last them a lifetime.

Daniella Echavarría ‘19 is currently in Traverse City after having lived her whole life in Mexico. During Echavarría’s experience as an exchange student, she has been able to see both the similarities and the differences in daily life between her home country and her host country. Yet, the biggest 12 // BGQ // March 2019

Photo: Courtesy of M. Failor

Photo: Courtesy of M. Failor

changes aren’t the ones we find most noticeable. Echavarría explains, “In Mexico, we like hugs and kisses, but here, you don’t.” For many exchange students, the biggest differences are in the actions we do subconsciously: the way we interact with one another, the tones of our voices when we meet someone new, the expressions on our faces when we meet a friend.

All of these changes contribute to culture shock, a feeling of disorientation after an overwhelming sense of change from the way things have always been. Culture shock is a huge part of exchange and one of the main things exchange students must deal with throughout their experiences.

However, an exchange without culture shock is an exchange without its true meaning. Exchange students can’t gain new perspectives if everything stays the same. Despite these challenges, Echavarría has been able to embrace her time here and have a great time while doing so. “Being an exchange student is cool! You get to see new cultures and try new things in the country.” She explained, “it was my first time seeing snow! The first time [it snowed], I just played on the ground without socks and in shorts.” The snow has also come with a lot of new things to try. “I just learned [how to ski] a few days ago, so I’m not an expert, but I can enjoy it. I also like snowball fights.”

This is Eschavarría’s first time out of Mexico and traveling here was her first time on a plane.

Six months from now, Eschavarría will be returning home from a year abroad, and although she will be leaving many things that she has come to love throughout the year, the world perspective she has gained will remain with her forever. Throughout this year, Eschavarría has represented her country, making Mexico not just a destination on a map but a place with real, nice people just like her. By showing humanity in a place many of us only hear about, Eschavarría is taking part in not just a physical exchange of students but also an exchange of mindsets.

What Eschavarría is experiencing is something that Matt Failor ‘19 can relate to. Failor is back this year after spending a year in France. “I feel like I learned a lot about myself and who I am in different situations, like how I react when something goes wrong and it’s on me to solve that problem,” Failor recalled. “For me, it was just little things, like how everyone from France eats with a fork and knife all the time.

It’s essentially like chopsticks. If I want to cut something, I typically just use the side of my fork. It’s a thing I didn’t really notice until I was in the cafeteria and there were 300 kids all eating with a fork and knife and I was only using

my fork. It just felt weird.” Last summer, Failor returned to America and he has been re-adapting to American culture. “It has definitely changed the way I think because I’ve been exposed to so much more, and there’s a variety of things a person can do that expands their worldview, but for me, this gave me the chance to make friends from different cultures and get some experience from different lives.” As a result of living independently in a foreign country, Failor’s mindset has changed greatly as he now understands viewpoints from not just Traverse City, but the world.

Failor and many other past exchange students have now taken on a new role of helping prepare future exchange students, including myself for the year ahead. Earlier this year, I applied for the Rotary Youth Exchange program, the same one that both Echavarría and Failor have taken part in. After a lot of research, interviews, and paperwork, I was accepted into the program. Next year, instead of being in Traverse City, I will be halfway across the world in Italy. Over the past few weeks, I have been attempting to learn the Italian language and culture, and I am super excited for all the year will have to offer. Yet, due to what an exchange entails, it is an experience for which no one can ever truly prepare. Being immersed into a completely foreign culture comes with a lot of unexpected twists and turns, which makes many future exchange students nervous.

However, this is also where the excitement comes from. For me and many other future exchange students, the nervous energy is outweighed a hundred times over by complete excitement for this once in a lifetime opportunity. //

Biking from One Continent to Another

Sami Maldonado is one of Traverse City Central High School’s exchange students, but that’s not all she is.

by LAUREN STALLMAN Staff Writer On August 21st of 2018, Sami Maldonado ‘19 left her home in Ecuador, traveling 3,228 miles, to Traverse City. She brought with her the love of cycling and her lovely smile. Despite the major differences such as climate and culture, Sami has found a way to integrate herself into our community.

Her love to be active and her positive attitude followed her across the equator.

Everything from atmosphere to environment was different. Maldonado explains how her day to day routine has drastically changed since the move, “It was very different because my school schedule was from 7:30 in the morning to 2:30 (in the afternoon). And normally we don’t have lunch at the same time as here, we have a brunch at 10:30 and then I used to go home at 3:00 to have lunch, then go to cycling practice, do my homework and get home for dinner at 7:00-7:30.” It’s not all that easy changing routines that you’ve built up your entire life.

Sami has had plenty of support through all of this, “Family back in Ecuador is the engine that keeps me moving.” Her family has always been by her side and they have always been on the move together, supporting her through everything. They gave her a push when she needed it, even if it meant saying goodbye for almost a year.

Sports have filled Sami’s life since day one. “Cycling picked me, instead of me having picked it as my favorite sport.” Her love of the biking led her into national level competitions.

14 // BGQ // March 2019

Before she knew it, her cycling had reached beyond Ecuador. Just last year she was able to lead the Pre-Junior Women’s Road and Track National Cycling Team. Afterwards she could call herself the National Champion with a first place win. When she came to Traverse City, Sami joined Norte, a local team. She participated in the Iceman, a rigorous mountain bike race in November. “We didn’t expect it, but I won for my age group,” gushed Maldonado. Not only does Sami love Norte, but according to Ty Schmidt, the founder and coach of the team, “Norte loves Sami. She’s by far and away our favorite Ecuadorian— and

Photo: courtesy of S. Maldonado

not because she’s the only person we know from Ecuador. Sami rocks. She’s kind, funny, super positive and always up for an adventure.” Outside of her joy for biking, Sami pushed herself to try something new and joined the Nordic Ski Team, which embraced her curiosity for the sport. “One of my favorite moments with the Nordic Ski Team was definitely the State Championships. One day, three competitions, good snow, strong kids, and a lot of

fun!” Sami said. Although she can’t take snow back to Ecuador, she can take the memories with her.

Sami spends lots of time with her much adored host family here in Traverse City, Jen, Jordan, and Tessa.

“They are active, funny, creative, and healthy. They made me a part of their family. They care about me and share high quality time with me.” As some may imagine, exchange students like Sami aren’t always able to sit back and relax. Lots of them find plenty of ways to stay busy, just like Sami. “If I was going to put you in my shoes as an exchange student in Ecuador, life with my family and friends would be thrilling. Hyperactive is the word that best describes my people.” Whether it is meeting new people here in Traverse City, or meeting new people back home in Ecuador, Sami proclaims that she is always very busy. She adds that she has been able to try so many new things as an exchange student.

She claims that life with her family in Ecuador is never boring, there are always an endless amount of things to do. Her family and friends in Ecuador have definitely been exposed to life around the world with the exchange students that they have met and taken in. “Their main goal would be to keep you happy and support you as much they could,” Sami points out.

She believes that life is never boring when around them. With all that it is going on it is hard to believe she has time for anything else. Life in Sami’s shoes can be described as anything but boring.

Sami has truly made herself a part

of Traverse City. “I think that my view of the world has completely changed since I came to Traverse City. Travelling as an exchange student has been one of the best decisions that I could have ever taken in my life,” she says. She is almost more a part of Traverse City than many of the people who live here. She is a joy to be around and hopes to continue being active for the rest of her time in Michigan. Even with all the wonderful things like biking and skiing that Sami enjoys, Sami says that, “the thing I love most about living here is the people.” Even though Sami says that being here has affected her, she seems to have influenced plenty of the people here as well. //

Graphic: T. VerVane

EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA

Quarterly Showcase Photographer: Tre Powis ‘19 16 // BGQ // March 2019

by AIDAN REED Staff Writer

With the 2020 Election drawing closer, the pressure is mounting on President Trump to ensure his reelection.

State of the Presidency Graphic: T. VerVane

Amid pressures from the upcoming 2020 presidential campaign as well as renewed infamy from the recordbreaking government shutdown, President Trump delivered his 2019 State of the Union address this past January.

Repeated calls for unity were largely drowned out by the president’s famous rhetoric, lambasting his enemies and touting his achievements two years into his term.

Between the repeated references to his self-proclaimed diplomatic success with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as well as a supposed military victory over ISIS, Trump used his platform to renew calls for border security, namely his long-promised and equally delayed southern border wall. Since early on in his initial campaign, the president’s base has fanatically rallied around the idea of said wall, placing relentless pressure on the President of The United States (POTUS) to actually deliver on his primary campaign promise. As the 2020 presidential race draws ever nearer, Trump has begun to focus heavily upon his border wall campaign, seeking a tangible success to show to his base. This has most recently been shown by the president’s hotly-contested state of emergency along the southern border, allowing him to circumvent Congress in appropriating funds for a wall. Though this recent move is being sued and contested by many states, upon reaching the Supreme Court it will likely be approved due to the current conservative and pro-Trump politics of the court.

Far from the standard and unrelenting “fire and fury” of the POTUS’ political speeches, the 2019 State of the Union address contained numerous messages of unity and hope for bipartisan action. Ranging from calls for healthcare reform to foreign military intervention, this uncharacteristic shift towards campaign issues popular with the Democratic Party represent part of the “new” Trump that we are likely to see in the coming months running up to the 2020 election, seeking to retain his conservative base while also trying to obtain moderate liberal voters through bipartisan 18 // BGQ // March 2019

action and progress.

Despite an apparent shift towards bipartisanship, the president has always maintained his classic speech tactic of fear-mongering, and the State of the Union was no exception. This rhetoric centered around border security, with numerous references to human trafficking, drug smuggling, and violent crime committed by illegal immigrants.

While consistent fear-mongering has kept Trump’s base energized, hyper-fixation on border security has done and will do much to maintain popular support for the POTUS in the coming months as his “state of emergency” border wall will likely face a gauntlet of constitutional and legislative challenges.

While the 2020 election is little more than a year and a half away, national politics is already gearing up for the electoral battle. The Trump campaign has begun strongly in 2019, maintaining focus on its successes while continuing his aforementioned rhetoric, and smear campaigns.

If the president’s attempts at bipartisan action and fulfillment of his campaign promises prove fruitful, the Democratic Party will have an extremely challenging election ahead of them.

Historically, over 70% of incumbent U.S. presidents seeking reelection succeed. Combining this statistic with the current turbulence within the Democratic Party gives the POTUS outstanding odds of reelection in 2020. As the field of Democratic hopefuls currently stands, save Bernie Sanders, there is very likely not enough substantial difference between the candidates and Trump to offer true opposition and draw leftist votes. No matter who does eventually obtain the Democratic nomination, the president will assuredly run a smear campaign against them consisting of anti-socialist accusations and rhetoric, as we saw even in his 2019 State of the Union address. Such a campaign would likely bring in more independent votes, and win Trump the election. //

American politicians have long been hailed as stalwart and charismatic, baby-kissing men who know how to play a crowd and buy votes. While Donald Trump undeniably has his own force of personality, his primary draw to his base has long been his unorthodox style of campaigning, straying away from traditional suaveness and civility in favor of unabashed critique and calls for action. This has led many to criticize the president for a lack of civility or presidentiality, but it also begs the question of how different Trump truly is from past politicians. Is the 45th president truly a shake-up of the American political system as he claims, or has he simply lifted the veil of our country’s political system and laid bare what has always been true?

Trump critics are often quick to wistfully harken back to the presiden-

to sugarcoat his actions is a point of pride for his base, supporting their view of Trump making real change as a political outsider.

American politics has never been a pretty stage; cutthroat electioneering by the 1% for the benefit of big business has ensured that. Those rare few elected to office upon a platform of promised reform rarely get to see their ideas realized in full, instead having their time and energies drained through bureaucracy to the point where the end result is a lifeless husk of what was once promised. The American political system does this not only to politicians, but also to the electorate as a whole, channeling rebellious energies and calls for reform into a sluggish election system set up to let us choose our new masters every two to four years. In this sense,

agenda within a divided government, which isn’t likely to end anytime soon.

Utilizing his razor-thin legislative and judicial majorities, the president has been able to pass a travel ban against many Muslim-majority countries through a court injunction, reform federal taxes so as to provide massive breaks to the wealthy elite, and secure funds for an “emergency” border wall.

These supposed successes, no matter how much Democrats fume at their passage, are not substantially different from those past presidents who were more popular among independents, such as Obama and W. Bush. While Trump put into place his infamous travel ban, Obama was responsible for the injuries and deaths of thousands of Middle Eastern children and civilians with drone bombings, while W. Bush staged a hostile takeover of Iraq

America’s Politics

Unveiled

cies of Barack Obama and George W. Bush, longing for their character and presidential demeanor; yet the substantial difference between Trump and his predecessors is that Trump often refuses to hide behind a veil of bureaucracy, preferring direct and incessant action to further his agendas. While Obama did truly have a professional demeanor and comforting character, his policies are near identical to those of Trump, particularly in economics and foreign policy.

Where Obama would make eloquent speeches to justify corporate bailouts and drone bombings of foreign civilians, Trump instead lambasts his opponents and shifts attention towards new scandals and or policies.

This apparent refusal by the president

Trump strays from his predecessors solely in eloquence, where Obama and W. Bush would make veiled and yet rallying speeches for limited reform, Trump instead floods the news cycle with scandal and surprise to the point where keeping up is wholly overwhelming. The American government always has been and still is made up by and for the wealthy elite, the only recent difference being that these past couple of years we’ve had a shiny orange TV celebrity and business mogul, instead of our typical measured and smiling man in a welltailored suit.

That being said, however, Trump’s approach to the American presidency has allowed him to make unprecedented progress in fulfilling his

years before that. Consider, where Trump’s new tax plan saves the 1% even more money than under Obama, Obama’s $700 billion Wall Street bailout put money and power back into the hands of the wealthy few who had crashed the American economy and sent us into a recession in 2008.

Perhaps Trump’s flash and awe do not represent any true change in American politics, merely a lifting of the veil to show everyone the ugly truth of our political system. Is it possible that anger against or love for our 45th president do nothing to halt his administration or change American politics for the better, but rather siphon energy away from meaningful reform and waste it on an unchangeable system? //

Valentine’s Day. A day in the shortest month of the year that is dedicated to celebrating the ones we love. People tend to have wildly conflicting opinions on the holiday. Some people love it, other people hate it. The biggest reason people tend to hate Valentine’s Day is because they are single and bitter about it. Their distaste is understandable. Red and pink heart-shaped

decorations pop up everywhere they turn. Candies with sappy phrases etched into them are thrust into their faces. Advertisements on TV shift from Superbowl commercials to various jewelry brands promoting their wares to individuals with the funds to buy their significant others overpriced pieces of metal. For someone who is sad about not having a significant other, Valentine’s Day will undoubtedly be less-than-enjoyable.

For fifteen years, my only Valentines have been my parents, who sometimes give me boxes of chocolate, little notes hidden in my bed for me to find, or even a bouquet of tulips, which my father gifted me last year.

This year my mother gifted me a hanging vase filled with Spanish Moss.

There have been some attempts at romance, however. In fifth grade, I anonymously sent the boy I liked a letter, but he never found out it was me who sent it. I remember sitting in the classroom while the sound of nervously giggling fifth graders and paper Valentines being hurriedly opened filled the air. All I could focus on, however, was the boy opening the letter across the room. Upon reading it, I watched him immediately burst into laughter. He turned to his group of friends and asked them, “Which one of you sent it?” For a brief second I considered walking over to him and

claiming authorship of the letter. Instead, though, I blushed, looked down at my feet, and pointedly refused to glance in his direction for the rest of the school day. You know, the typical grade school romance, so it was kind of pointless in the long-run.

In eighth grade, I technically had a Valentine. It was middle school dating at its finest. I “dated” a girl for about a week, the week of Valentine’s Day, and after the intoxicating cloud of romance faded away, so did the feelings we had for each other. We didn’t even really celebrate Valentine’s Day together. We just wanted to be able to tell people that we had a Valentine.

This year, things have been wildly different. I actually went on a date for Valentine’s Day! But it didn’t play out like one might think. This date wasn’t on purpose. When the boy asked me if I was free on Thursday, I had completely forgotten Thursday was also Valentine’s Day, furthermore the phrasing of his question didn’t exactly make it sound like a date proposition.

So, I said yes. It was only later that I found out it was a date. The moral of the story is, I accidentally went on a Valentine’s Day date. Although it was an overall pleasant experience, so I suppose accidents can end happily.

I mean, I got a slushie out of the date, so that’s something. //

by PAIGE CONNERS Content Editor

Page by Paige:

Graphics: T. VerVane

Valentine’s Day 20 // BGQ // March 2019

STANDing for a Drug Free TC

This year Central High School joined a student run club to help prevent underage drinking and drug usage.

Whether it’s peer pressure, curiosity, or the “buzzed feeling,” drugs and alcohol have led to addictive and abusive tendencies in teens. Being addicted to a certain substance means that your brain intensely focuses on that one thing all the time. It almost seems like you can’t live without it.

Consider past generations of teens that were addicted to cigarettes.These cigarette addictions were fueled, to a large extent, by Hollywood, and subsequently, television’s portrayal of smoking as a glamorous and essential part of a “cool” lifestyle. Just watch any old movie for evidence, particularly from the 1950’s. Actors and actresses light up cigarettes continuously in one smoke filled scene after another. Of course that was then, and great strides have been made to make our world “smoke free” in our lifetimes. We can walk into any restaurant, store or other public place, and be assured that the place will be smoke free. In fact, one of the means by which smoking addictions have been reduced has been e-cigarettes.

However, as is often the case, with every breakthrough there are unintended side effects. For today’s teens, a newfound alternative, vaping, seems to be just that– with very scary, perhaps deadly side effects. According to The Center for Disease Control, “current e-cigarette use increased

by MADISON MARSHALL Staff Writer

from 1.5% (220,000 students) in 2011 to 20.8% (3.05 million students) in 2018, among high school students.”

An almost 20% increase in use would seem to indicate teens are increasingly becoming addicted to vaping, not unlike past generations of teens that were addicted to cigarettes.

Nicotine addiction has evolved from cigarettes to vaping, especially in younger generations. E-Cigarettes have been researched by addiction researchers to try and help adults stop smoking cigarettes, but never intended for young adults to use for a nicotine buzz. The National Institute On Drug Abuse website stated that “30.7 percent of e-cigarette users started smoking cigarettes within six months while 8.1 percent of non-users started smoking cigarettes.” According to the National Institute On Drug Abuse website, “Once a minor tries drugs, they can be urged into repeatedly using it, until the point of addiction.” Whether the vape is flavored or looks cool, it can still be addicting and abusing it can result in major health effects.

The underage usage of drugs and alcohol can lead to long term use, which can have adverse effects to a person’s body later on, like liver cancer. Scientists have found a chemical called diacetyl, that is used to flavor some vape juice, which may cause

Photo: A. Vannatter

a condition called “popcorn lung” is the scarring and obstruction of the lungs’ smallest airways. Yale University Health researchers, Jerome Adams and Roy S. Herbst, Yale Medicine’s chief of medical oncology at Yale Cancer Center, studied the health effects of vaping and e-cigarettes.

They agree that vape devices have not been proven to help adult smokers quit smoking. Moreover, vaping increases the risk a teen will smoke regular cigarettes later. Vaping effects due to nicotine include raising blood pressure and spiking adrenaline levels, which also increases a user’s likelihood of having a heart attack. If a minor choses to continue vaping at a young age, these major health complications will arise as well as legal punishments.

In addition to the long term health effects, there still are many legal consequences with illegal underage drug usage. According to the Chicago Tribune Magazine, “the first time someone under the age of 18 years old is found in possession of a nicotine dispensing device, such as a Juul e-cigarette, the defendant may be punished with sixteen hours of community service within a twelve-week period or a twenty-five dollar fine.”

This penalty is the same for most states. If a minor gets caught again and it occurs within twelve weeks of

Continued on p. 31

In our spinoff of Humans of New York, the Black & Gold Quarterly went out into the Grand Traverse community in search of uniquity. Our mission was to find inspiring stories and share them to encourage self-expression. Through a variety of randomly selected people, we were able to find one commonality—passion.

Stories like theirs are what make us believe in the power that comes from expression through journalism. People are art. We feel when combining their words with a visual story, a unique and inspiring message is created. Members of our community have conveyed their identities and inspired us through their words and sense of passion. To us, this is the truest kind of journalism—finding moving stories and sharing them.

identityin

Lucy Cook

traverse city “

If I’m near him on the ground, my dog will come up to me and put his head on my shoulder and it feels like he’s trying to hug me. If he could say one thing it would be, “no I don’t want to get up.

Photo Courtesy of: L.Cook

“

The cutest thing my dog does is that sometimes she lays on the ground on her back after a long day and rubs her eyes, like people do when they get goobers out of their eyes, with the back of her paws and rolls around. We call it her happy dance.

If Lucy could say one thing it would be, ‘if I stare at you long enough with sad puppy eyes, will you give me some Cracker Barrel mac n’ cheese?’

”

22 // BGQ // March 2019

Scuppers Ringsmuth

Photo Courtesy of: T. Ringsmuth

”

Lily Robitshek

“

Lily likes to put her head between her paws and cover her eyes. I think that she thinks she’s hiding. She absolutely loves peanutbutter, so if she could say anything she would definitely ask for that!

”

Photo Courtesy of: E. Robitshek

Aspen Hale

“

The cutest thing Aspen does is when he smiles. When he sees people and gets excited he mimics what we call a smile, it looks scary but he’s so sweet and wouldn’t hurt anyone. If he could say anything he’d probably ask to go to the park or for a run. He really likes being active.

”

Photo Courtesy of : L.Hale

Peanut Shaw

Photo Courtesy of: O. Shaw

“

The cutest thing peanut does, is whenever he sees a person he rolls over on his back so they can give him a belly rub. If he could say anything it would definitely be ‘I’m cute, pet me!’

”

??

?

recognize Staff members of The BGQ raise questions about the history of Central High, as well as our very own Ms. Shelley-Barnes.

Photos: A. Vannatter

A plot of our investigative work on Ms. Shelly-Barnes’ relations with Tupac.

24 // BGQ // March 2019

Tupac Shakur: rap legend, social activist, dead. Tupac had a meteoric rise to fame, but in September 1996, Tupac was shot and killed by unknown assailants. My sources say that someone in Traverse City Central was connected to Tupac’s rise to fame. After numerous nights poring over the data, I made one important discovery; Tupac’s silent partner was someone in the Language Arts department at CHS. This brought me closer to my biggest revelation: Ms. ShelleyBarnes was Tupac’s lyric ghostwriter.

To find out why, or if, this is true, we have to go back to the very beginning.

Tupac was born in Harlem, New York, back in 1971 and he attended the Baltimore School for the Arts from 1987-1989.

Baltimore is only one hour by train away from Philadelphia.

Do you know who happened to be teaching in inner-city Philadelphia at this time?

None other than Ms. Shelley-Barnes. . . Coincidence?

How could they have met you may ask? Picture this: a talented youth from the gruff inner-city of New York attending the classic Baltimore school for the arts. Jazz floats down the halls, as he traverses the vibrant school grounds. The youth meets a mysterious new Language Arts teacher visiting the school and is concerned about social issues in Baltimore. Real recognizes real, as the classic saying goes, undoubtedly; Ms. ShelleyBarnes and Tupac would recognize each other’s potential talent. Two great minds seeing each other and being drawn into a discussion would have created a lasting link. Both Tupac and Ms. Shelley-Barnes would have an amazing opportunity to let their ideas grow and reach the masses if they helped each other. The poetic quality of Tupac’s songs have been noted before in many publications, and could have been influenced by this teacher extraordinaire. A young man

with artistic passions who needed just that extra push to rise up, a push that could have been provided by the inspiration of Ms. Shelley-Barnes. These two linguists could have easily kept in touch via the United States postal system or the blossoming new internet.

Consider also that Tupac moved

to the West Coast and Ms. ShelleyBarnes visited relatives in the Golden State. Both writers are overly aware of the issues facing the communities of color. Both are aware of the oppression communities of color have faced. That’s right, and one of Tupac’s most acclaimed songs from his early days is “Trapped.” The subject of this song draws many parallels to a book read in Ms. Shelley-Barnes Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition class, “The Bluest Eye.” Both pieces of work draw numerous allusions to the oppression and isolation of the black community.

In “The Bluest Eye” the protagonist is trapped by the color of her skin, which is the exact topic Tupac cov-

ered in “Trapped” This confinement of the black community is enforced via segregation of neighborhoods and by police keeping them in line.

Both would have seen that the oppressors will not listen to pure reason because as soon as they get blamed because they shut down completely and enter denial mode, so they can have no accountability. Lyrics to Tupac’s “Trapped” include, “can barely walk the city streets, without a cop harassing me, searching me.” This reality was distressing and they needed a way to combat it, so they slipped their messages into popular musical titles. They hoped people could listen to them untethered by their prejudices, helping to ease the oppression and show that the black community is not something to be feared. Ms. Shelly-Barnes’ years teaching in Philadelphia would have also contributed to her ability to craft lyrics that speak to life in the inner city. Tupac declined to comment on whether or not this collaboration happened, but when you look at the facts they all make sense, Tupac and Shelly-Barnes; a dynamic lyrical duo the world wasn’t ready for! //

Tupac x KSB

by CAELAN WRIGHT Staff Writer

A seemingly normal high school becomes suspicious when taking a closer look

by JOIE BALDYGA & MARIA LINCK Staff Writers

The Secrets of Central 26 // BGQ // March 2019

Most people would consider Central High School a pretty normal American high school. Walking around the campus, students go about their daily business: attending classes, hanging out in the halls, and eating lunch in the cafeteria.

However, if you look a bit closer, all may not be as it seems. The keen observer may notice that there are seagulls keeping a close, perhaps too close, eye on things, or students seemingly disappearing from the Writing Studio. Listen carefully and you will hear crows that gather and make a deafening ruckus in the morning. Is everything as it seems at this “normal” school?

There are 1,402 students living out their high school experience at CHS. In Central’s history of close to 150 years, the school has been rebuilt once and many additions have been necessary to aid the growing population of Traverse City. Looking through old editions of the Black and Gold newspapers, we pieced together the story of when and why Central had to be rebuilt. In 1934, a fire burned the school to the ground. Reconstruction took four years and was finally completed in 1938. In the meantime, while the school was being rebuilt, the students went to class in the old Hannah house on 6th Street. Because information about the Central fire in 1934 is seemingly missing from online sources, we can only guess what

caused it. Most likely the fire was caused by a problem with the heater, unless… a student craving a long break set fire to the building purposefully during classes, possibly killing students and teachers. These victims could come back and haunt the building forever, waiting for their opportunity for revenge.

If you hear a suspicious noise while you are alone in the hallway, running for your life would be a viable option because you never know if you are being stalked by a phantom of high school past. . .

Many students and staff at CHS have probably noticed the large pesky flock of seagulls that gather on the roof while we are all confined to classrooms during the day. The true motives of this flock remain a mystery. Do the seagulls just have nests on top of the roof, or are they secretly peeking in through the windows when no one is paying attention? For all we know, the seagulls could have hidden cameras attached to them which they use to discreetly film and follow CHS students when they aren’t looking. Should the seagulls be referred to as a “flock”, or are they actually a gang of spies being paid by the teachers with soggy lunchroom french fries? If teachers want to catch possible cheaters, what is to stop them from employing these suspicious birds? What if you or the person sitting next to you is the next target?

Next time you are “pay-

ing attention” in math class and see a suspicious member of the CHS seagull gang, you should probably ask your teacher if you can close the blinds, just to be safe.

Seagulls aren’t the only spy birds around Central.

The crows also exhibit suspicious behaviors. The calling of the crows is heard most clearly in the auditorium early in the mornings before school.

According to The New York Times, crows are very intelligent birds. A study done by wildlife biologist at the University of Washington, John M. Marzluff, found that crows actually can identify and remember specific human faces. Knowing this information, the fact that the same flock of crows gathers together on the roof of our school every day is a bit unsettling. Are they following specific students before school?

Wearing a mask or hat in an attempt to hide your facial features wouldn’t be a bad idea . . .

Thinking more about it, our own BGQ advisor, Jim Filkins, could definitely have some correlation with these mysterious birds. How else could he find out everything that was going on in the school? A small class of students doesn’t know everything, which is why Filkins would have to resort to other methods to gain much-needed school information. If you have a conversation with him, Filkins may choose to bring up his recent reading material; a book

All Graphics: T. VerVane

about crow intelligence. If this doesn’t solidify the validity of Filkins working with the crows, we don’t know what will.

Searching through past issues of the Black and Gold Newspaper, we discovered an interesting piece of history regarding the school. In the issues from the school year of 1986-1987, they wrote about how overcrowding at the school was a big issue. Plans for renovating the current high school, or even building a new one, were being proposed. Our rival, West Senior High School, was finally built in the year of 1997. With all of the new construction going on, it’s entirely plausible that a more secretive renovation project flew under the public’s radar: the tunnels running under the school.

The Writing Studio is a seemingly calm, innocent place located in a nook of the quiet library. What many might not realize is that located in the dimly lit studio is an entrance to the tunnels.

Is it pure coincidence that the Writing Studio was recently moved to this new room, or did the move actually have to do with the fact that the room was connected to the secret tunnels? When the writing mentors aren’t busy, what is to stop them from sneaking into the tunnels unobserved?

In the slowest hours of the day, mentors could be smuggling items into the tunnels or creating their own space to gather and hang out away from the presence of other students and suspicious stares from the librarians. After they slip away into the tunnels, they could be doing anything, from simply taking a midday nap to plotting to overtake the school. If they

really are plotting to take over, they would need help. Lucky enough for them, the tunnels connected to their new studio quite possibly lead to the fortress of another suspicious group: the theater kids. Could the two groups be plotting to overthrow the school together? With plenty of time to plan their takeover, the school officials might want to pay more attention to the activities of these two mysterious groups.

The auditorium was renovated in 2015. Since then, many performances, assemblies, events, and activities have taken place on the stage.

But do we really know what goes on behind the scenes?

Located in the back of the auditorium, facing the stage, is a booth filled with light and sound equipment and controls. There are two platforms on either side of the theater, only accessible by ladder.

These platforms were made to house the large spotlights that point at the stage. Hidden in the back of a cleaning closet is another ladder.

When you reach the top, you find yourself crouched down on a metal catwalk located high above the audience’s seats. Having a fear of heights would put you in a poor situation if you were the person told to adjust one of the small spotlights hanging from the catwalk. In these hidden spaces throughout the theater, the seemingly innocent “theater kids” must be hiding something behind the renovations of the auditorium.

Are they masking mysterious activities in dark rooms of the auditorium? Storage rooms, which are actually more like caves, only accessible by positioning a ladder precari-

ously against a small ledge to reach the door, provide perfect hiding places for the secret rituals of the theater group. Countless hours rehearsing after school provides perfect opportunities for the stars of the show to engage in their ritualistic activities.

Planning future musical ideas is one thing, but summoning the ghosts of theater past is quite another. What if one of the theater kids was killed in the fire in 1934? The theater kids of today could be summoning their ghastly leader, presenting their tunnel-found intelligence for guidance on how to best topple the CHS administration.

These entirely plausible theories have gone unnoticed by many. Math teacher Emily Howard hadn’t heard of the tunnels running under the school, but she believes they could have possibly sinister purposes. “They could be used to evacuate in case of an emergency... or to let the mole people take over,” conspired Howard.

These conspiracy theories are not totally unfounded.

Walking around the school, you might notice that there are birds looking inside through the windows, weird noises that could be from supernatural beings, and Writing Studio mentors that seemingly disappear during their shifts. Also, what’s to keep people from hiding in tunnels and taking them from class to class? Central isn’t as normal as it seems, which is why we should all be on the lookout for suspicious behavior. //

Artist: Jessica Chapman ‘20 Type: Graphic Art Artist: Hannah Richards ‘20 Type: Mixed Media

Artist: Mollie Baker ‘21 Type: Acrylic 28 // BGQ // March 2019

Artist: Tayler McCaughna ‘20 Type: Watercolor

Artist: Hannah Richards ‘20 Type: Digital Art

Artist: Andy Keith ‘19 Type: Photography

the gallery

a student showcase

PIGGIES

Photos: A. Vannatter

INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

• pre made pie crust dough (can make dough from scratch if desired) • 1 tablespoon shortening • 1/4 cup white sugar • ground cinnamon • flour (for rolling out dough)

• pre heat oven to 425 0 F • sprinkle a small ammount of flour onto your work surface and roll out dough, forming a rough square shape • using a spatula, spread shortening over dough • sprinkle an even layer of sugar on crust, followed by cinnamon • roll dough into a link and cut into pieces, 1/8th inch thick • bake for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned • dust in sugar while hot, allow to cool on a paper towel

30 // BGQ // January 2019

BY EDITOR IN CHIEF ABIGAIL VANNATTER RECIPE: COURTESY OF ALLRECIPIES.COM

IT TAKES

6 HOURS OF PREP TO MAKE A 30-SECOND SANDWICH FREAK YEAH H

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H

1217 E. FRONT ST. 231.929.2999 1294 W. SOUTH AIRPORT RD. 231.935.9355

Cont. from p. 21

the first offense it will result in another twenty-five dollar fine. Lastly, if the user is caught for a third time, the fine increases to an amount between $100 and $500, depending on the court. If a minor gets caught with marijuana, they could face up to $250 in fines and up to forty eight hours of community service. The state of Michigan is trying to prevent e-cigarette users from buying their products for the younger generation by raising the purchasing age to 21 years old. Central High School is also trying to help prevent these problems by taking the initiative of joining a group called Students Standing Against Negative Decisions.

Central has made the effort to try and make a change to help students make healthier and better decisions for themselves and their future. This idea of making a change in our school community has inspired Central to join the group known as STAND. This club can be found at multiple high schools in the area including Benzie, Kingsley, Kalkaska, and T.C West. STAND is made up of high school students that are striving to prevent the usage of drugs and alcohol by teenagers. Any student is welcome to join this club as long as they contribute by being involved and are committed to the values of the club. You can be personally invited to join the club by one of the members or join out of pure intertest just by showing up at one of their monthly meetings, which are held in Tim Odette’s classroom, C253. During meetings, the students take charge by planning and discussing their goals and next projects for the club. “The goal of the committee is to help people make healthy life choices,” stated Odette. the director of the STAND committee. Cade Johnson ‘21, a member of STAND since October, said, “STAND simply wants to help other students make better decisions for themselves that will greatly affect them in the future.” These meetings also include the planning of events and promoting their message, in and outside of school. With the help of Student Senate, STAND is currently working on social media pages and a website “used as place to promote their message and help students outside of school,” Mackenzie Marshall ‘21, member of the STAND committee since October, stated.

STAND is more than just a club that the school put together; it was formed so students could be involved and actually help other students make better decisions.

Odette stated, “The students want to give back to their school to make it a better place.”

This club is not just a symbol that represents the idea of preventing negative decisions. STAND truly wants to make a change in our school community. This committee will further lead to greater accomplishments, like providing the help that students need to make healthier life choices from schools all around Traverse City. STAND wants to help all students have a brighter future by helping them stray away from drugs and focus on their path of success. //