Issue 5, the Black & Gold, Volume 91

Sports Ending the skiing season with a splash, Mt. Holiday hosts their annual Slush Cup. Also, Lisa Taylor, coach of girls’ cross country and track, was one of twelve coaches at the Brooks PR invitational in Seattle.

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March 20, 2012

Volume 91

Black Gold

Issue 5

2011 MIPA Spartan Award Winner

Photo: S. Hutchiso

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Newsline

Traverse City Central High School 1150 Milliken Drive, Traverse City, Michigan 49686

Robotics rumble

A&E

. Hilden

Photo: A

Photo: S. Hardin

DJ Danny Madion ‘14 spins some sick beats, and Line 3 redefines “high school band.” Also, Central may see a fresh new auditorium – construction is scheduled tentatively to start in 2014-15. Page 3.

Hats help Key Club

Photo: K. Stanton

On Thursday, Apr. 5, Key Club will host a Hat Day. The club will sell stickers on Apr. 2-4 and students who purchase them can wear hats on Hat Day. “We thought this was something different that people could get excited about,” Key Club President Clare O’Kane ‘12 said. The money will help fund service projects. “Through us, your donations benefits our community and other parts of the world,” O’Kane said.

The Lion King on ice

Photo: A. Hilden

Photo: S. Hardin

Feature Youth Union takes Traverse City by storm and empowers Central students to make a difference in the adolescent music community.

Also, snazzy bedrooms spice up kids’ lives and living spaces. See page 8 for details.

Spring Breakers take off from TC Hanna Simmons ‘15, Alex Anderson ‘15, and Jonathan Shank ‘14 work on their robot, Ares, in their team’s pit between rounds of the competition that Central hosted. The Raptors, Central’s robotics team, were runners-up at their own competition and were awarded the Chairman’s Award at the Kettering district competition. “I’m really proud of our team,” Anderson said. The Raptors will continue on to the State Competition in April because of the Chairman’s Award victory earned earlier in the season.

“We’re going to States for something we really earned,” Anderson said.

Central’s absence epidemic

It’s no secret that students don’t always go to their classes, but when Principal Rick Vandermolen told the Black & Gold that 7-10% of the student body skips at any given time, we were intrigued. Beyond consequences to the skipper, cutting class carries ramifications for teachers, administrators and even the school budget

Gretchen Twietmeyer

A Staff Reporter

Photo: K. Raymond

March 9 and 10, Danielle Landowski and Kayla Harley, both ‘14, and Savannah Rancour and Emily Cain, both ‘13, played roles in The Lion King on ice. Cain played the role of Nala.

“It gives you a bunch of energy because there is such a big audience,” Cain said.

She added that another fun part of performing was seeing her co-stars so happy and excited.

Student-help hotline

Photo: J. Myers

Students now have a progressive, anonymous option for alerting adults about situations they need help with. The hotline will connect students to a Google Voice account, and their messages will be anonymously forwarded to Principal Rick Vandermolen’s cell phone.

“I’ve seen students remain silent, even in some bad circumstances, Vandermolen said. “It’s just another way for students to get help when they need it.”

To access the student hotline, call or text Briefs: J. Murray & N. Mulvaine 231-735-8342.

As spring sets in, the warm weather entices students to ditch class and enjoy the sunshine. But the warmer weather isn’t the only factor that plays into the number of students skipping class. With 7-10% of the student body receiving an “unverified absence” for any given hour every day, skipping is clearly an issue at Central, as it is in high schools nationwide. While administration, teachers, and parents are doing what they can to keep students in class, attendance is still a work in progress.

“I would think that one of the main reasons people skip is that maybe they’re taking a course they’re not interested in, but it’s one they have to take because it’s required by the state of Michigan,” Principal Rick Vandermolen said. “It’s easy to skip something that you don’t like.”

Even though skipping is a constant concern, since the switch to trimesters, Vandermolen believes that the rates of students skipping class have probably decreased.

“When we had semesters, the skipping rate was higher because there were more classes in a semester and students probably figured that it would be easier to spare a class every once in a while,” Vandermolen said. “With trimesters, there are students who say that they can’t afford to skip a class because they’ll become so behind.”

On the other hand, Bryan Burns, now in his fourth year as vice principal, says that his “feeling is that attendance problems have increased since trimesters. I have kids who are failing a class largely due to attendance and they tell me, ‘I’ll retake it again next tri.’” Burns added that the number of students who are returning for

Photo: K. Stanton

a fifth year of high school is also increasing. “We have an obligation to educate students until age twenty.”

Wing office secretaries Tamie Olshansky and Brenda Mortensen, who monitor attendance, concur with Burns about unverified absences increasing over the past few years.

Both Vandermolen and Burns said that the percentage of absences in advisory is the same as other classes.

Skipping students impact the school in many ways: an obvious issue is grades.

“Once the student gets in the habit of skipping, the first thing that starts to suffer are their grades,” Vandermolen said.

“They get further and further behind, and they continue to skip because they don’t want to be overwhelmed. They get to a spot where they can’t even go back to class because they can’t catch up with everything they’ve missed, and it starts to become a downward spiral.”

Math teacher Hal LaLonde has compiled data on the correlation between attendance and grades of his own students, and his findings confirm that students’ skipping impacts grades.

“I wanted to do the study because I saw kids who were missing a lot of class,” LaLonde said. “What I found was that there is an association in general between students missing classes and grades going down. I looked at students in both AP and regular classes, and you have to remember that all kids are not the same, and all classes are not the same.”

Although some students have found clever ways to get away with not going to class, it is not a matter that should be taken lightly.

It may seem that one student skipping a class every so often is insignificant, but with the percentage of students who are skipping daily, the numbers add up and impact not only the student, but their classmates, teachers, and our school’s funding as well.

Count days are crucial to the school because they determine state funds allocated. “On count days, if students aren’t there and they don’t show up in the next ten days after the count day, we lose one-fifth of the amount of funding we would receive for that student,” Vandermolen said. That empty seat on our two annual count days can cost our school

continued, page 3

Vacationers share travel plans and viewpoints on controversial new body scanners at Cherry Capital

Sophie Hutchison Staff Reporter

Photo: S. Hutchison

Whitney Fulton ‘12, Brittany Bell ‘12 and Grayson Lowe ‘15 will pass through Cherry Capital Airport’s new body scanners during Spring Break 2012. Fulton and Bell are prepping for a trip to the Big Apple. “My favorite part is going to be getting away from everything and spending a week with my best friend, Whitney,” Bell said. “It’s going to be a blast,” Fulton said.

As Central students are getting ready for Spring Break 2012, Cherry Capital Airport is also gearing up for the flock of travelers flying in and out of Traverse City.

Cherry Capital recently installed new millimeter wave body scanning security devices. These hightech machines have drawn criticism for heir invasion of privacy, and now vacationers even in small, innocent Traverse City must brave body scanners to leave by air.

The Millimeter Wave full body scanners have replaced metal detectors in every major U.S. airport and are now being installed in small community flight bases. If someone wishes to not be scanned they have the option to step aside and endure the ‘advanced pat down.’ Peter Jacobson ‘14, following the sun all the way to Florida, will pass through the new airport scanners for spring break.

“The scanners are kind of weird but I don’t mind them too much,” Jacobson said. “I don’t see too many benefits because the metal detectors worked just fine.”

Amanda Burns ‘13 is taking her first voyage overseas this spring break to Paris, France. Since Burns is traveling internationally, she must also pass through a tight, multi-layered airport security process.

“I’ll feel uncomfortable going through the machine, but I’d rather do that then opt for a pat down,” Burns said.

Burns is concerned about her privacy but feels scanners are a good compromise for her safety.

She is still looking forward to her European getaway.

“I’ve always wanted to go to France,” Burns said. “I can’t even picture everything we’re going to do.”

She hopes her French classes will help her navigate through Paris, although she and her mother will have the help of a family friend who currently lives in Paris.

As students from Central fly out of Traverse City this spring, because of the high-tech safety system, they will have to choose between being scoped or being groped. These circumstances don’t seem to be affecting Burns and Jacobson’s patterns of travel, but for some, avoiding major airports that use the Millimeter Wave system is worth protecting their privacy. But under the Federal Law, soon every airport in the nation will have shiny new body scanning machines.

2 Opinion

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder braved the wintry weather to visit Traverse Heights Elementary on Mar. 2 to tout the benefits of TCAPS’ farm-to-school food program and read a story about healthy living to students. Mar. 2 however, was a day off for students, as designated by the district calendar released over six months ago.

While one can appreciate Snyder’s busy schedule, his office had plenty of time to find a date that worked for both parties.

Expecting the district to fund transportation to a short-notice story-time session is nothing short of laughable, especially after the governor has stripped the state’s education budget to its bare bones. The irony wasn’t lost on anyone. Snyder’s scheduling snafu – inconveniencing students who stood as props, parents who had to shuffle them and employees who had to “make it work,” all in the name of his own convenience, reflects his attitude towards schools in Michigan over the past year – they can make do.

Thanks to poor timing, the governor’s visit to compliment our district on an innovative program felt more like a slap in the face than a pat on the back.

National – Wild Weather:

the Black & Gold

The weather report – yawn. It is rarely buzzworthy. But when the entire country, is hit with wild weather, people are bound to listen, to tune in – assuming one had electricity, that is. And such was the case this month as deadly twisters ravaged southern and western states and springtime tornadoes happened in the far off land of Indiana. So we thought we were safe. But two weeks ago, TC had a snowstorm for the records books.

We are used to torrential snow storms and we have the plow fleet to take care of business. We are prepared, but we do not expect buckets of cement disguised as snow to fall from the sky.

Missing school the first day meant the usual snow day fun, but when we missed days later again, right before our three-day testing bonanza and deep into the chaos of final exams and new trimesters, and then had to waste a good snow day sitting in our home, freezing, with none of our electronic creature comforts, things weren’t so fun.

“Provocative is in right now.

The media promotes getting busy.”

Victoria Krajenka ‘13 “I think people can wear whatever they want. It’s a dance, go nuts!”

Marco Marcote ‘14.

“It was weird to dance in the cafeteria, but we still danced the night away.” Clare O’Kane ‘12

Managing Editor

Arts & Entertainment Editors

News Editor

Joe Murray

Opinion Editor

Katie Stanton

Adding to the political theatre of the contraception issue, Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke, testified at a Democratic Congressional hearing. Fluke, who is on scholarship, claimed that the significant cost of birth control hinders women’s reproductive rights and should thus be paid for under the new healthcare mandate. Since Georgetown is a Jesuit university, a Catholic order, it does not cover birth control. Right-wing extremist Rush Limbaugh told his audience that a graduate student at such a prestigious institution, already there at taxpayers’ expense, and about to enter a lucrative profession, should not whine.

He should have stopped there.

He “satirized” Fluke to an insulting level, calling her a “slut” and a “prostitute.” After national outcry, he issued an apology, which Fluke did not accept. The absurdity is still unfolding. family planning.

Politicians do what politicians do and that is their game. Money is important but their arguments are short-sighted.

In the case of religion, we respect the Catholic Church’s doctrine and especially respect the church’s officials and their advocacy of their flock. But we think that because ninety-eight percent of their female parishioners ignore their tenet on birth control, the good Bishops need to gather in Vatican City and reevaluate their edict against birth control.

Constantly crossing lines, teens experiment with clothing choices

Feature Editor

Emma Beauchamp

and taxpayers substantial sums is invalid, as the consequence of limited access to contraception is astronomical. Babies cost society far more than birth control. Children born to impoverished parents cost taxpayers billions annually. A study

by The Week claimed the federal government spent $6.5 billion on the birthing costs of unintended babies. For years, Republican representatives have preached the good Word of fiscal responsibility.

So the contraception mandate will save the government and taxpayers money--lots of money. If the families had been provided with contraception, and if none of the urian chud “whoops” . Ka M : phic babies Gra important had service to families who been can’t afford to raise would multiple children and protects them conceived, it lighten our already from becoming wards of the state. monumental financial For these reasons, we at the Black responsibility by over 1.8 & Gold support President Obama times the average and the mandated coverage of con- million birth control traception for all women. Although cost of pills for one year. we recognize that contraception Birth control is also used for adis not supported by the Catholic ditional maladies such as irregular Church, women’s access to birth menstrual cycles, cramps and control should never be comproacne. The Week also claimed fortymised. two percent of women use the The argument that the mandate birth control pills exclusively for will cost the federal government

Graphic: M. Kachadurian

Last Friday night: school dances bring sexy to the cafeteria

Editor-in-Chief Joe Murray

Women’s rights or religious doctrine?

are morally against any form of contraception to turn their backs on their religion.

Despite the protests of the elite male members of the church, ninety-eight percent of Catholic women have used birth control to protect themselves and their partners from unwanted pregnancy, as well as to benefit greatly from positive effects of the medication.

Birth control is a necessity for the liberation of women as well as their partners. It provides an

Emma Beauchamp

Jeannie Longton Kaitlyn McLintock

Sports Editors

Ashley Reed Shannon Weaver

Emma Beauchamp Managing Editor

duria n

Local – Snyder’s story time:

B Before there was such a thing as birth control, women were expected to marry, stay at home, and raise children. The Women’s Rights Movement was fueled by the outcry of women who wanted to take control of their reproductive status. So why is birth control such a political grenade in the 2012 elections?

Last month, President Obama announced a new healthcare mandate that would offer “free” contraception to all women, no matter where they work. The only exemptions from the mandate were private employers who felt a religious conflict, and privately funded religious institutions such as churches, universities and hospitals.

This has caused a fervor, especially in the Catholic community.

Church officials have protested the mandate, claiming that compelling people of faith who have moral objections to fund coverage violates their religious liberty. Furthermore, Catholic universities and hospitals are partially funded through the Catholic Church, so they argue that the use of contraception violates their doctrine, as outlined by the Vatican.

Adding to the fray at a congressional hearing with Catholic Bishops, politicians argued that birth control is of little or no cost to women and they should pay for it themselves. However, the average cost of birth control for women who have no insurance coverage is $380 a year, a sum that many people dependent on federal insurance cannot afford.

A later version of the policy still exempted houses of worship, but other religious non-profit organizations, such as hospitals, were included under the new mandate.

Catholic leadership rejected the socalled ‘concessions’ with the argument that it forces employers who

acha

The first two things that come to some students’ minds when they hear about the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition at Central are probably the annoyance of parking at NMC and getting out of class to watch robots from all over the state compete in the gym. No longer.

After Team 1711’s performance this season, all that is changing.

In its first competition at Kettering University, the team took home the Chairman’s Award, the highest honor FIRST bestows, recognizing the team’s community outreach efforts and representation of FIRST ideals. In addition to hosting a competition, Team 1711 helped start robotics programs at numerous area high schools this year and continues to mentor the fledgling teams. The honor qualified the team for the State robotics competition in April.

Despite the award’s prestige, the Raptors were determined to prove that their robot itself, and not just Central’s program, was worthy of recognition. Just weeks after the Chairman’s Award win, the team made it to the final round at Central’s competition and won only the first match in the best-of-three championship round before dropping the second match by a single point and losing the decisive third. Still, this was the first time in seven years that the Raptors advanced to the finals and their second place finish was amazing – who could miss the Raptors flaunting their Chairman’s Award bling all last week?

Despite what some may think, the robotics teams is more than dancing math and technology nerds in safety glasses, mascot costumes and kilts. Team members deserve props for the long hours they log building their robot, organizing the competition they host and spreading FIRST’s message. The Raptors positively represent Central not only in their competition sweeps but in their unrivaled enthusiasm. And if students have to park at NMC one day per year to help facilitate our peers’ crowing moment, too bad.

M. K

School – Raptors Represent:

Fluke v. Limbaugh

Catholic controversy over birth control

hic:

Editor-in-Chief

Our View

Grap

Joe Murray

Provocative dance attire: Clothing optional?

Graphic: J. Murray

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

Say goodbye to gowns and dance cards and hello to strategically ripped shirts, neon tights and bare skin. Hems have been shortening since those trampy flappers first exposed their knees in the ‘20s; with the turn of the century, clothing switched from being about what was covered, to what is uncovered, leaving little to the imagination.

What is it about revealing flesh to the point where we are nearly nude that appeals to our generation?

Many attendees at Central dances attire themselves in outfits that would have grandma blushing behind her white hankie. We’ve all seen the discarded clothes scattered on the floor from the shirtless boys, the jeans without rips and tears draped over a bathroom door like an afterthought, forsaken for a packed pair that isn’t so wholesome.

Sure, dances are a time to let loose, to experiment, but this does not justify baring it all. Dances are school activities monitored by adults you see daily. There is some line crossed when your math teacher who taught you about sine curves must ask you to put yours away. It’s uncomfortable to grind away under the glaring eyes of people who have access to your records going back to kindergarten, in a place where just hours before, you ate a turkey sandwich. Our cafeteria is not Streeters. It’s a scene, a happening, but not an impersonal night club.

Everywhere you look in the media, girls, who seem to get increasingly younger each year, are dressed provocatively. Magazine

Leek Editors

Rico Bastian Patrick Goodney

Business Manager Bryton Lutes

Photo Editors

Autumn Hilden Katie Raymond

Graphics Editor

Maddy Kachadurian

Production Assistant Kennedy Cullen

Staff

Ivy Baillie Jeff Comerford Connor Hansen Sophie Hutchison Hunter Kelly Alex Korson Garrett Kosch Erin Lipp Fiona Muha Nick Mulvaine

racks tout celebrities in various stages of undress with “five easy steps to glitz and glamour.” Television shows focus on appearance and apotheosize sex. Adolescents want to become what they see, so they (un) dress accordingly.

On the surface, the lives of Bristolian teens on the popular British show Skins seems to be a constant drunken orgy, but beneath the glitter, they’re really just trying to figure themselves out. While the attire at dances is no doubt inappropriate, being scantily clad is just another form of experimentation. Like a social chameleon, flipping from one identity to the next is just part of the process of finding one’s niche in society.

Girls are consistently trying to reconcile what they are “supposed to be” over what they want to be. What to wear is a daily battle for girls. For special events such as dances, it’s generally accepted that less is more. Humans are hardwired for sex, and this tendency emerges during the adolescent years as one begins to explore. This is nothing new; Holden Caulfield, the angsty teen from The Catcher in the Rye, was highly dependent on cigarettes and alcohol while rebelling against society to find himself.

These girls’ poor judgement in their tiny tops and barely-there shorts is an in-yourface manifestation of the same rebellion.

Though, these teens have a different idea in mind; they know exactly what they are selling.

Teens love to cross lines, but going to our cafeteria after hours doesn’t make you Ke$ha. There is a time and place to flaunt your assets, but the lunch room doesn’t need to see those types of breasts--let’s limit it to chicken.

Jake Myers David Reinke Elena Rothney Hayley Rozema Allison Taphouse Gretchen Twietmeyer Lia Williams Brianna Worthington

See something that got your goat? Drop off a letter to the editor in F-158!

A&E

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Photo courtesy of: fatdormouse.blogspot.com Graphic: M. Kachadurian

Whether it’s a book made into a movie, or a classic film remake, find out whether or not we think the newest film to hit the big screen is a future blockbuster, or should have been left alone. This issue, we critique the new film The Descendants

Kaitlyn McLintock & Jeannie Longton

Arts & Entertainment Editors Hawaii--the land of white sandy beaches, swaying palm trees and tropical sunsets--paradise.

But not for Matt King, the protagonist of the Academy Award nominated film, and bestselling novel, The Descendants.

Matt, a lawyer and Hawaiian native, has a wife Joanie (Elizabeth in the film), and two dispirited daughters, Alex and Scottie. Seventeen year-old Alex is a recovering drug-addict, while ten yearold Scottie has a feisty personality with some humorous behavioral issues. Matt’s ancestors, who were Hawaiian royalty (hence the title), have left he and his cousins a massive portion of ocean-front land that they have decided to sell to a bidder of their choice. Because of the weight of this decision, and the heftiness of his workload, Matt is a dysfunctional father who leaves the parental role to his wife.

It is easy to imagine his misery when he learns that his wife will die in a coma after a serious boating accident. He is left with Scottie, Alex, and his daughter’s burnout friend Sid, to wrap up all loose ends and tell Joanie’s loved ones about her unfortunate fate. That is, without any arsenal of parenting skills or any idea of how to control his children.

The drama escalates when Matt learns that the now-comatose Joanie was having an affair. He decides to confront her lover and tell him that Joanie will die so that he has ample time to say his goodbyes.

The film version of The Descendants was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, so the movie was considered a work of art by some of Hollywood’s best critics. It deserved the recognition considering the impressive performances

by Hollywood-heavyweight George Clooney, and newcomer Shailene Woodley. However, in comparison with the book, the movie lacked much-needed character depth. Scottie and Sid weren’t their complex and multi-layered selves.

In the book, Scottie is smart as a whip, combative and acts too old for her age.

There were only a few scenes when her movie character reflected the book’s description.

One is when she gives the bird, and another is when she screams an expletive at her sister.

These scenes didn’t encompass the entirety of her emotional tumult and snarky attitude. Sid’s character was a similar story; he has his own burdens to bear and his own dysfunctional family. The movie represents him as a mindless teenager, and only spent a fraction of the time revealing the fight with his own demons.

The film lacked one other critical component of the book, which was in-depth explanation of the King family’s journey from distant and bitter, to close and connected. Unlike the film, their relationships evolved throughout the novel. Matt, Scottie and Alex were so estranged that any affection caused embarrassment. Their family lacked phrases like “I love you,” and “I’m proud of you.” At the end, as the family members are pouring their mother’s ashes into the ocean, the reader can’t help but notice their beautiful progression. Both Scottie and Alex’s emotional wounds are healing and Matt is finally fulfilling his role as father.

The irony is that their mother had to tragically die, her betrayal revealed, in order for the family to love one another easily and completely. This was the comprehensive, poignant, and raw story that was The Descendants.

3

The antiquated auditorium

For some Central students, singing under the school spotlight is not as fabulous as they imagined it would be because of the decrepit look of our theater. Here, members of the music program and the school music staff speak to the exciting possibility of remodeling the out-of-date auditorium

F Autumn Hilden Photo Editor

For years, people have sat in the Central High School auditorium anticipating a great performance that’s about to start, when they’re hit with that strange odor, unique to our antiquated auditorium.

A smell wafts over you akin to what comes out of a box you just opened that’s been untouched in your attic for the last twenty-five years. This smell emanates from the cracked, germ infested seat cushions, the stained curtain’s weight bags, and the carpet that would make a Hazmat team shudder. These are encrusted with the hard work of decades and decades of plays and performances, going back to your grandparents’ days-too much saliva from a multitude of band instruments, too much sweat from costumes worn too long and too much of the stuff that should be on a biology slide.

“I feel like I’m in the ghetto,” Ellen Boyer said. “I’m just embarrassed by the way it looks, it’s inadequate. It definitely has to be a fire hazard.”

Principal Rick Vandermolen said the auditorium is slated for a $12-17 million update, tentatively scheduled for 2014 or 2015.

Lead Custodian Scott Markel is responsible for managing the facility, setting it up and tearing it down for different events, depending on use. Markel says the auditorium is so dysfunctional that it would be cheaper to start over.

“There are so many repairs that need attention that a whole new

auditorium would just save a lot more money and time,” Markel said. “The auditorium and gym are usually what the public sees most, so they should look nice. There are sandbags that hold the screen backdrop. It looks like something off of Gilligan’s Island.”

Sprucing up the walls feted with the stained, tattered curtains is not just for aesthetic appeal, they absorb sound for better quality.

“The sound echoes throughout the auditorium, ruining the quality of all the hard work we put into perfecting our music,” Luke Stenke ‘12 said.

Parents in the audience are squished in closer than an airplane, and seated with a view from nearly floor level. The seats are orange from the second to the last time the color was cool.

“The seats came from the old theater, so they’re pretty old.

They’re just getting really bad and worn out,” Markel said. “It’s really the age of the building that makes it hard to maintain.”

Not only is the upgrade to replace the antiqued seats, but also to expand the capacity. Because the seating is limited to just 500 seats and the production expenses are so high, the Choir Department barely breaks even.

“For each musical we spend roughly $10,000 for royalties, $7,000 to rent lights, and then there are costumes and set construction,” Choir teacher Tami Grove said. “We also pay for sound and stage managers, which cost about $3,000, so we usually meet costs but with little profit. An auditorium that actually functions,

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means we wouldn’t have to pay some of these expenses and we could generate more revenues for choir, if we had more seats for ticket sales.”

The Music Department’s expenses are primarily for getting away from our own ghetto auditorium.

“If we go elsewhere I end up paying around seven-hundred dollars,” Boyer said. “A lot of our fund raising goes to getting different venues. Although this year we have been playing more here at Central, it’s convenient and also hopefully, it’ll raise awareness about our auditorium.”

play, it definitely feels like an accomplishment,” Madion said.

Madion has shown off his unique talent at many different events, including an end of the year party and a surprise Sweet Sixteen. So far, his most popular performing experience was when he spun the tunes at Whiteout.

“Performing at Whiteout was a blast,” Madion said. “I had a lot of fun because everyone came to Photo: A. Hilden dance and was ready to feel the music.”

As his play-list pours out of the speakers, Madion received this opportunity Daniel Madion’14 spins his mixes to his raging after pitching his skills to Senate. audience at Whiteout. “The type of music that He knew that no body knows the I play depends on who I’m playing for. Like for scene of Central and the music Whitout, I went with less dub and more house interests of its students better and Top 40,” Madion said. “My favorite style than a student himself. to play is house because it has a driving beat “Whiteout definitely had the largthat keeps people going.” est amount of people dancing that I’ve been in front of, but it was the hardest because there are so many different likes and dislikes,” Madion Arts & Entertainment Editor said. “I knew that I couldn’t please everyone so I had to prepare myself for David Guetta, Afrojack, and Daft Punk negative reactions but the feedback -- considering the rise in Techno music was a lot more positive than I expectpopularity, DJs like these could arguably ed.” Last week Madion also performed be America’s most well-known names. at the Youth Union’s Silent Disco.

Inspired by these DJs, and stemming “The biggest difference about playing from his musicianship and interest in at the Silent Disco was that it was really music, Daniel Madion ‘14 has catapulted hard with the lack of music playing DJ-ing to a whole new level by returning behind me,” Madion said. “I also had to it to the turntable. be closer to perfection since everyone “I appreciate really good quality and could hear exactly what I was playing.” production of music so I prefer vinyl The spectrum of music that disc because the sound and range is much jockeys play for a teen audience is better since there’s less compression,” extremely broad, ranging from Dubstep Madion said. “I also really like how the and Techno, to 80’s classics, and on back turntable has kind of a throwback look. to the 60’s. Although pleasing the crowd Also, the scratch of a record versus the is challenging, seeing students having a scratch of an audiofile is much more good time and appreciating his play-lists authentic.” keeps Madion spinning.

After playing the trumpet for many “When I get a good response from years, Madion decided to put his own the crowd to the music I play, it feels twist on Top-40 and House hits and has like when I’m doing really well on a test been doing so for about a year. or in a game,” Madion said. “You put a “I love DJ-ing because when I can see lot of time and preparation into it, and people dancing and singing to what I it’s just a really rewarding experience.”

Jeannie Longton

continued from front page thousands – moneys that fund necessities such as heat, classroom materials, textbooks, and student programs like sports, choir and art supplies, etc.

Some skippers act ‘spur-of-the-moment,’ deciding to do something other than attend class no matter what they will be missing, or how far behind they are. However, some students are more strategic in their planning.

“There are students who understand the consequences, but

Photo: K. Raymond

3.

Photo: K. Raymond

1) a decrepit auditorium seat 2) a curtain “sand bag” 3) the backstage storage

A new ‘spin’ on music

Attendance

Photo: K. Raymond

they assess the situation and realize that they can get up to three unverified absences, but still end up with a good grade in the class and still get credit,” Vandermolen said. “So they’re looking down the road and seeing the end of the course.”

Consequences go hand-in-hand with skipping, but these alone are often not enough to discourage students. Administrators are doing what they can to keep students in class.

“One thing that helps is we have a lot of principal-parent meetings,” Vandermolen said. “Also, teachers will always notify principals of students who are constantly skipping. Vandermolen added that parents monitor attendance on Parent Internet Viewer and security officer James Brumfield monitors the halls and park-

Sometimes though, there just isn’t enough money to go around.

“The music account usually pays for most of the auditorium fixes,” Grove said. “But, Vandermolen has had to front us money, which we appreciate greatly.”

Vandermolen said the upgrade is important because our students need a class ‘A’ facility to perform.

“It’s not about the venue, but the venue can be limiting to the students’ ability. Our student’s are amazing and deserve the best.”

From the soundtracks One Central student is putting a new twist on the classic high school band

Kaitlyn McLintock

Arts & Entertainment Editor For generations it has been a classic part of the high school experience to start a band with friends. Michael Zutis ‘12, a member of Central’s percussion ensemble, has taken this tradition to a new level. He is the creator and conductor of the large ensemble, Line 3.

“It started out just helping out a friend after school,” Zutis said. “And then we thought, ‘what if this wasn’t just percussion,’ so we got more people together.”

Line 3 officially formed last Nov. and is comprised of twentyfive music students. However, Line 3 isn’t exclusively Central students; there are some members who make the 20-minute trek from West to play with the group.

Line 3 practices music that they either borrow from Central’s music library or purchase. This gives them the chance to play more mainstream music from popular movies. For example, they have practiced a couple scores Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings. Line 3 has their own Facebook page and usually votes for songs they will recreate by posting links so the other members can listen and share feedback.

“It’s a great opportunity to play ‘cool’ music,” Zutis said.

“Usually in band or choir you play classical music, but we get the chance to play music formerly untouched by the school system.”

The success of this large group is due to the synergy of its members. Although a large part is also due to a couple of TCAPS’ music teachers, Peter Deneen, at East Middle School and Dave Hester at Central, who provide the practice facility and direction.

“We literally wouldn’t be able to do it without them,” Zutis said. “They are sponsors of the ensemble. They offer a lot of advice and play with us.”

Zutis is already reaping the benefits of Line 3 by noticing improvement in a few of his musical and life-long skills.

“I understand the music to the point where I could look at a score and have a basic understanding of what’s going on, which I couldn’t say a couple of months ago,” Zutis said, “and it has also really improved my leadership.”

As to the future of the group, Zutis is a senior, so he isn’t sure how the ensemble will function or even if it will stand as an option for high-school music students in the years to come.

“Since I’m graduating next year and going to NMC, I’m going to leave it up to the students who are staying back and I’ll fully support whatever decision that they make,” Zutis said. Graphic: A. Korson ing lots. “We’re trying to do more at lunch to keep students from wandering,” Vandermolen said “and we try to monitor the ninth and tenth graders as closely as we can to make sure they’re not off campus.”

Despite these measures, attendance is a problem for our school, a problem for the individual student, and a big problem for society, as students who don’t graduate cost taxpayers billions annually. Students’ poor work ethic costs.

As Vandermolen pointed out, “Habits in high school begin to play out in the workforce.”

4 Television

Top 3 “holy crap” moments in TV history Snooki gets laid out

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

TV’s two complex villains Lately, the villains of television have evolved into more creative vehicles of deviousness. Writers have estranged the guise of evil by throwing in character twists such as putting the bad guy in the role of the protagonist. We managed to narrow it down to our two favorite mind-altering villains of the small screen

Walter White of Breaking Bad David Reinke

Graphic: C. Hansen

Staff Reporter

At its finest, MTV showcases tanned twentysomethings pursuing partying along the beaches of New Jersey. Reality TV featured one of its most surprising moments on an episode of Jersey Shore that aired season two, when Snooki tried to bring on the party in a bar. Stirring her usual drama, Snooki got in a guy’s face about who cares what. He patiently endured her insults for all of two minutes until he’d had enough. BAM! He slugged the poor little meatball in the face. Down she went. The cameras capturing the ensuing tears.

Walter White, protagonist of the breakout show Breaking Bad, shatters the mold for TV villains.

White began his career as a chemistry teacher, but after he was diagnosed with lung cancer, he started producing

“The man in the bar was such a jerk. Poor Snooki. It was a surprise because she wasn’t doing anything to deserve that.

Snooki’s reaction was perfectly normal. I would cry if I got Photo: K. Raymond punched by a man in a bar too.

The fist pumping, smooshing, Keisha and the fact that they just have Bell ‘15 fun, is what makes it a really funny and entertaining show. I would so be apart of Jersey Shore if I had the chance. ” -Keisha Bell ‘15

“I wouldn’t call him a villain because what he’s doing is good.

He’s doing it for his family and for a good cause. If the ends justify the means, then go for it.”

- Nic Pickard ‘13

Kanye cuts off Taylor

methamphetamine with the help of a former student. White has proven to be a pivotal figure in assimilating multidimensional villains into mainstream TV, and his chemistry on the small screen continues to bewitch audiences.

“Walter’s always thinking ahead and knows what he’s doing,” Nic Pickard ‘13 said. “In the morning he’s a father, and at night he’s a meth chef.”

On TV shows of the past, Walter’s premise would seem utterly bizarre, but Pickard thinks this abnormality sets him apart from the rest of the evil bunch.

“He’s more plausible than other villains on other shows, Pickard said.

“It’s nice watching a show where I can think about what’s happening, instead of just watching it.”

Pickard argues that not only is White a believable character, he’s also principled.

“I wouldn’t call him a villain because what he’s doing is good,” Pickard said. “He’s doing it for his family and for a good cause. If the ends justify the means, then go for it.”

Others, such as Lucas Empson ‘14, disagree, arguing that despite White’s motives, the murders he commits and the drugs he makes just can’t be justified.

“I think he’s evil,” Empson said.

“He got addicted to all the money he made and just keeps on cooking more meth. He also started killing some people which is pretty sketchy.

And what kind of teacher wants to cook meth?”

As “sketchy” and immoral as White may be, Empson empathizes.

“Walter was scared because he has a wife and kid,” Empson said. “The only reason he’s cooking meth is to get money for his family before he dies from cancer.”

A meth chef with a teaching degree may seem a stretch of the imagination for some, but not for everyone.

“There’s got to be one teacher out there that cooks meth,” Empson said.

Graphic: C. Hansen

Graphic: C. Hansen

Having just won Best Female Video at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Taylor Swift began her acceptance speech, when Kanye West jumped up on the stage, snatched the mic from her and announced, “I’m sorry, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time.” Swift’s surprised smile turned to a frown and the audience fell silent, which is a bit odd for a show about sound.

“The moment I heard Kanye dis Taylor in front of the whole world, I was like ‘oh my gosh, that’s so not cool.’ He was really mean because Taylor is ‘saucesome’ and she deserved to have Photo: K. Raymond the time to herself to accept her Becca Stag- award. Beyoncé didn’t deserve it as much as Taylor, but the crowd man ‘14 shouldn’t have done anything to Beyoncé during her song because she didn’t ask Kanye to do that for her. Kanye was out of line because that was so incredibly rude to Taylor.”

-Rebecca Stagman ‘14

Janet Jackson exposed

Dexter Morgan, protagonist of the hit show Dexter, is unlike TV villains of the past. No longer are the bad guys one-dimensional; to hook today’s viewers, villains need to intrigue and appeal to our desire for mischief and mayhem, yet remain realistic. If they are so evil that TV-watchers can’t relate, even the most nefarious deeds seem like nothing but made-for-TV drama.

Dexter illustrates this in his role as a murderer who ironically targets serial killers and serves as the show’s hero.

“Dexter doesn’t seem to have any humanity or any moral consciousness, but he does,” Juline Kotarski ‘12 said. “He knows what it means to be a father and what it means to be a friend and how to be a brother, but he keeps his darkness hidden from the world around him.”

The aspect of dual roles--while all appears fine, evil lurks be-

I think what he’s doing is actually a pretty great service, due to the fact that he’s actually trying to be a public safety officer.

- Juline Kotarski ‘12 to succeed because, even though he’s murdering people who are killers, you know he’s doing it for a good cause.”

It’s unique to find a noble villain with a captivating persona and this

aspect of the character is what sucks viewers in from the start.

“The fact that Dexter is a serial killer but can lead a normal life makes him an intriguing villain,” Alec Chereskin ‘12 said.

Both students feel sympathy for Dexter and don’t see him as a ‘bad guy,’ even though he’s breaking the law.

“Dexter wants to keep his family safe, so he hunts down all these serial killers to get them off the streets, even though he enjoys it,” Kotarski said. “I think what he’s doing is actually a pretty great service, due to the fact that he’s actually trying to be a public safety officer.”

Chereskin agrees, but recognizes that a heroic villain, delivering vigilante justice, is not realistic.

“It’s a good idea for a TV show but not for real life,” Chereskin said. “People might accidentally get facts wrong and start killing innocent people. People in real life would make that slip.”

: C. H

Staff Reporter

neath-- is not a new theme, but Dexter puts a twist on the alterego shtick.

“Other shows are more focused on good beating up evil,” Kotarski said. “You’re like ‘oh, of course the villain should get caught,’ but in Dexter, you want him

Grap hic

Brianna Worthington

ansen

Dexter Morgan of Dexter

A battle of evil: Stewie vs Cartman

Since the inception of crude cartoons, audiences have argued over the epic topic of animation. Who is more evil: Stewie or Cartman? We decided to let Central students choose

Eric Cartman- South Park Stewie Griffin- Family Guy

ney

“Of course I was surprised.

I was watching it and thinking, ‘Whoa. ‘Did that really just happen?’ I had to watch it again to confirm it. After that I just continued to watch it and watch it. It was sweet. I was nine and I had never seen boobs before.

Kyle Hubschneider ‘12 Plus, it’s Justin Timberlake. He’s the kind of guy who would do that on purpose.”

-Kyle Hubschneider ‘12

d Goo

Accompanied by Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake featured his song “Rock your Body” during the 2004 Superbowl halftime show. As he and Jackson danced, Timberlake cooed, “I’m gonna have you naked by the end of this song.” He wasn’t kidding. As the song concluded, to the crowd’s amazement, Timberlake ripped off the breast plate part of her corset, from which Jackson’s full, pierced boob sprung forth. All in prime time.

Parents across the nation grabbed the clicker, and punched the off button.

c: P.

hi Gra

Graphic: C. Hansen

Photo: courtesy of Google

Photo: courtesy of Google

“It would have to be Cartman because his crimes have actual consequences, like in the episode where he made this kid eat his own parents in a bowl of chili just because he owed Cartman sixteen dollars. Cartman gave Kyle AIDS and built a ladder to Heaven just to win a free candy spree. The episode that mainly comes to mind is the one where he enters the Special Olympics just to beat all the handicapped kids and win a thousand dollars. Stewie never did anything that bad.” - Kenneth Merica ‘13

“I think it’d be Stewie because he’s a little genius bent on destruction and Cartman’s just Cartman. Stewie has all this technology and he could probably destroy Cartman because he’s nothing like Stewie. Stewie’s a little more intelligent. He’s a strategizer, unlike Cartman. In one of the episodes Stewie planned on killing Lois, he thought he succeeded but it turned out Lois was still alive, he hacked into the CIA and became ruler of the world. Wanting to be ruler of the world is bigger than just being a dink, like Cartman.” - Cody Wingo ‘15

“Eric Cartman, definitely, as opposed to Stewie, because he has feelings for Brian. Cartman just looks after himself and doesn’t care. He kills people. In one of the Family Guy episodes, the one where Stewie and Brian get locked in a bank, it shows Stewie as nice and a little softer than Cartman. In one of the new episodes of South Park, Cartman kills everyone with a giant monster of his.” - Peter Pappas ‘13

“I would say Stewie because he’s a baby and he hates everything, and tries to kill his mom. Stewie kills people, and he beat up Brian so he’s insane. When the Griffins were sitting at the dinner table, a laser gun almost shoots Lois. They all turn to Stewie and he has a gun coming out of his sandwich and he pokes it and the gun goes back in and he’s like, ‘Nothing. It’s tuna fish, and nothing else.’” - Gwen Stricker ‘14

Television

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

5

On air: TV shows through the decades

TV shows are cultural glimpses that reveal who we are. In high school, we used TV to escape from the doldrums of teenage life. In the ‘60s, we cast charms with Jeannie, in the ‘70s, we went back to the Korean War with M*A*S*H, in Staff Reporter the ‘80s, we fell in love with the Cosbys, in the ‘90s we chuckled with Seinfeld, and in the ‘00s we helped detectives solve crimes in Law and Order. Now students indulge themselves in hot vampire romances and live vicariously through Workaholics

Ivy Baillie

‘60s

‘70s

‘80s

‘90s

‘00s

now

1972-1983

Gilligan’s Island 1964-1967 “I watched the reruns after school. I would come home and totally veg out in front of the TV. Gilligan was my favorite. He was always trying so hard to do the right thing and it always ended in some sort of disaster. They would make all of these contraptions and somehow were always stuck on this island. It was just brain candy.”

“It was about a group of men and women operating a field hospital during the Korean War, their ups and downs, love interests, and what war was like. I loved the characters and their interactions with one another.

They were all just trying to survive the trials of war.

The best episode was the final episode, a goodbye of sorts to all those characters that I’d watched for so many years. The final show drew 121 million viewers, more than both that year’s Super Bowl and the famous miniseries Roots. It still stands as the most watched finale of any television series.”

1990-2010

Dukes of Hazzard 1979-1985

“Daisy Duke was my favorite part of the show, of course.

I was a young boy and she was a beautiful brunette who wore short jeans.”

- Scott Moore

- Betsy Gratiot

1982-1993

- Amy Pflughoeft

“I loved the slap-stick comedy, and the dynamics between each character. I loved singing the lyrics to the theme song too, because they were pretty relevant to my life at that time. Me and my friends wanted to build our own ‘Cheers’, but in a library, not a pub.”

Three’s Company

- Patty Baers

1976-1984

I Dream of Jeannie

- Missi Yeomans

- Paige Paul

Seinfeld

“Three’s Company was mindless humor in the daily lives of Jack, Chrissy, and Janet who were living together in a time when men and women living together was taboo.”

Workaholics

1990-1998 “Kramer was my favorite character on Seinfeld. I just thought that all of his mannerisms were really funny.

He was always doing ridiculous stuff, always had these crazy ideas, and was just very unpredictable.”

- Mike Gle

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 1990-1996

2010-now

ER 1994-2009 “I really loved it because of the great cast. The reality of the show made it believable, along with their great acting.

The show also reflected the issues of developing innercities. This was during a time when gang violence was on the rise, which played a key role in the show.”

- Sophie Legault

2005-now “All of the characters have completely different personalities. Barney is my favorite because he has so much confidence and provides a good sense of humor for the show. He makes it really dynamic.”

The O.C.

1984-1992

“I liked The Love Boat because there was always a new cast every week. Life on a yacht seemed so glamorous. I even had a suit just like one of the characters, Julie McCoy.”

“I enjoyed the family interactions because they reminded me of the sense of humor of my family, my parents and how a strong family unit can mean so much to kids growing up regardless of race, class or creed. The good natured humor that reinforced family values and morals was something that really connected with me when I watched The Cosby Show.”

- Brenda Meindertsma

- Cody Inglis

1977-1986

Beverly Hills, 90210 1990-2000 “The first year it came out I was a junior in high school. I thought it was a crazy show because one of the kids in the show was having sex and I was horrified. It was one of the first shows that I saw teen problems being talked about.”

“I guess The O.C. was a guilty pleasure because a girl I liked was watching it so I started watching it with her. I thought it wouldn’t be good but it turned into something I really enjoyed. It ended up being really popular my senior year. People would get together and watch it.”

- Ben Berger

1987-1994

The Vampire Diaries 2009-now “I was so addicted to watching it, I couldn’t stop.

I feel so connected to the characters. I think that teenage girls look for TV shows with romance and boys with pale skin- boys that chase after the girls and not the other way around. Having an above average boy fall in love with someone is so alluring to viewers.”

“Mork was my favorite character because it was funny watching him get used to his new planet. Robin Williams [who played Mork] had a good sense of humor that was goofy and far out.”

“My favorite character would have to be Jean-Luc Picard. He had an answer for everything. He could get out of impossible situations. The show really focused on the importance of being a wellrounded individual, being well-cultured and appreciating the differences of others.

And he was very iconic in that role. Whereas a lot of characters nowadays are very stereotypical of certain paradigms, he really embodied what you’d want a leader to be, someone who knew a little about everything, someone who could lead a group of people in a way that was believable and wasn’t too far-fetched.”

“Everybody in school wanted to have Rachel’s hair. I would watch Friends Thursday night, and then Friday at school my friends and I would get together and talk about it. In high school it was alluring because it was about a group of friends who were out of high school and were living on their own.

I even watched it through college--then it took on a whole new meaning for me.”

“JD’s inner monologues, and his passionate bromance with Turk, mirror a lot of things in my life. Scrubs has some of the best writing ever to grace television and the janitor is one of the greatest characters ever created. I live my life based off of the life lessons at the end of each episode, because living your life based off a TV show is a totally smart thing to do.”

“There is a group about six of us from the school that get together every Tuesday and make a party out of watching Glee. We eat junk food and crush on all the attractive, singing men. I like Darren Criss the best.

He has the sexiest hair and voice.”

- Holly Glidden

- Dave Hester

- Courtney Mazurek

- Scotty Hardin ‘14

- Haley Pierce ‘14

All in the Family 1968-1979

- Konrad Visser

- Erin Cover ‘13

2003-2007

- Amy Harper

“I liked watching the evolution of the characters.

Archie Bunker was a bigot and it was interesting to watch him evolve and interact. Edith’s character also changed from her always saying yes to Archie, to becoming more independent near the end of the show.

All in the Family took place during a time of change, and I think that was presented very well.”

- Andrew Machelski ‘14

How I Met Your Mother

- Tami Grove

The Cosby Show

“My favorite character is Blake. He has this crazy ‘fro and a nasty dirt ‘stache.

He likes to do insane stuff with his friends just like me. I would tell you all the stuff he does but you probably wouldn’t be able to print it.”

- Erin Kosch

“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air incorporated a lot of issues students might be going through such as moving out, getting an apartment, going to college; it highlighted the struggles dependant teenagers go through to become independent adults.”

1965-1970 “Jeannie wore this provocative little harem outfit. She was always working her magic. Jeannie wishes to try and please her astronaut master, and he was always afraid someone from NASA would discover that he had a genie. That producers worked an astronaut into the plot shows you a lot about our moon obsession in the 1960s. That he was her ‘master’ and that she wore a bikini top all the time, tells you all you need to know about women’s roles.”

“It was so interesting, especially from growing up in Traverse City where nothing ever happened. There was all of this human psychology and I liked figuring out who the murderer was.”

Mork and Mindy 1978 -1982

- Cheleana Chaney ‘13

Friends 1994-2004

Scrubs 2001-2010 2009-now

6 Ads

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

Graphic: P. Goodney

Graphic: M. Kachadurian

Graphic: N. Mulvaine

Graphic: P. Goodney

Pets

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

7

Central’s own zoo: students’ unique critters crawl, hop, and fly into the spotlight Lia Williams & Hayley Rozema Staff Reporters

Carly Francis ‘13

Grace Stanton ‘15

Reactions: “The first thing people want to do is hold him. They get really excited and want to get a picture because they’ve never seen a ferret before.”

Quirks/Habits: “He bites, plays, and Photo: S. Hutchison hides the grip on mechanical pencils.”

Favorite thing about pet: “His personality; you know what he’s thinking. If he’s mad at me I’ll pick him up and he’ll look away and won’t kiss me. If he’s happy, he’ll jump on my legs. He’s like another person. He’s got more spunk than any animal I’ve ever met.”

Pet: Hairless cat Pet name: Harry How acquired: Breeder Reactions: “When we first got him, I wasn’t used to having a hairless cat walking around my house.

People think he’s really cute, or really ugly. Some people say he Photo: K. Raymond looks like Yoda from Star Wars.”

Quirks/Habits: “When I lay in bed, he tries to sleep on my head. When you try to work he will try to sit on the keyboard.”

Favorite thing about pet: “When you’re making your bed he will jump in the sheets and attack them. It’s really cute.”

Lily Stackabke ‘15

Brianna Podsaid ‘12

Pet: Ferret Pet name: Seymour

How acquired: Friend

Photo: S. Hutchison

Pet: 20 saltwater fish Pet Name: Nemo and Dory, rest unnamed How acquired: Online and pet store Reactions: “People think it’s cool and ask us about them.

They think they’re hard to take care of, but

they’re really not.”

Quirks/Habits: “They each have places in the rocks they like to go, like territories.”

Favorite thing about pets: “I think it’s cool that our fish come from all different places in the world. They’re all different.”

Pet: Geffy the pig How acquired: 4-H Reactions: “A lot of people are surprised, because I guess I don’t seem like the person who would have a pig. When I first told my family I wanted one, they were afraid that it would be too much to handle.”

Photo: courtesy of Brianna Podsaid Quirks/Habits: “My dog goes out in the back of my yard and starts barking, then the pigs make loud noises that sound like they’re barking. They mimic my dog.”

Favorite thing about pet: “They’re really easy to get along with. It’s just fun to take care of them.”

Weston deTar Pet: ‘13 Tarantula

Logan WoodsPets: ‘15 3 dogs, 3 cats,

Trevor DeShasier ‘13

Taylor LathropPet:‘14 Parrot

Pet name: Tarantula How acquired: Dad’s colleague Reactions: “When you see a spider, then you see one ten times that size, it’s shocking. I honestly did not want it in our house. I thought it was going to Photo: K. Raymond get out, but I’ve grown to like it. A lot of people are so freaked out they won’t even go in the room it’s in.”

Quirks/Habits: “It lays on the side of the glass and looks at you. Once, we went over to look in the cage and it looked like there were two tarantulas. It molts its whole layer like a snake.”

Pet: Tom Fulton the rat How acquired: Aunt Reactions: “I just thought a rat would be a cool and kind of unusual pet.

People always act scared and ask me if he bites.”

Quirks/Habits: “He likes to hang upside down on his Photo: A. Hilden cage. When I feed him, he’ll come outside of the cage and grab his own food.

Also, if I sit on the ground and call his name, he’ll come up to me. If he knows you, he’ll climb all over you.”

Favorite thing about pet: “He’s quiet. He’s not very needy.”

8 fish, 2 guinea pigs, 4 hermit crabs How acquired: Online Reactions: “People think we have a zoo.”

Quirks/Habits: “One of our cats is obsessed with those magic worms you pull on your fingers; she likes to Photo: K. Raymond eat them.”

Favorite thing about pets: “The cats are there to keep you company. The dogs, just being able to give them love and affection. I like being able to hold the guinea pigs. They tickle your hands.

The reason I love the hermit crabs is because they live a long time and they crawl in shells.”

Photo: courtesy of Taylor Lathrop

Pet name: Teeka How acquired: Pet store Reactions: “They’re a lot more intimidating in person than people think. It’s probably two feet tall. When we first got him, I was deadly afraid, but every day it gets easier and he gets more

comfortable.”

Quirks/Habits: “He actually has a tendency to swear, but when he hears something it won’t instantly click. He’ll say it a couple days later.”

Favorite thing about pet: “The fact that I don’t know anybody else with one.”

The Tarsas’ animal house Fiona Muha Staff Reporter

On a cold Christmas morning, Graceanne Tarsa ‘15 crawls out of bed, but instead of running to the pile of presents and bulging stockings under the family’s brightly lit tree, she heads out to the barn to feed the animals. Although this is all part of Graceanne’s daily routine, today isn’t just business as usual. The rabbits and goats she and her brother Nicholas ‘13 feed every morning are awake and alert, but something is different. Graceanne is flabbergasted to discover her “first big animal pets” – llamas.

“The llamas were the first things I saw,” Graceanne said. “I was a little bit scared because they were so big, but was excited to have them.”

The Tarsas had previously borrowed their neighbors’ alpacas to show at Fair, and were intrigued.

“We have llamas for the same reason other people have dogs,” Graceanne said.

Over the years, they have raised two other llamas, three goats, three sheep (which they raise in the summer), turkeys, and several rabbits.

Nicholas and Graceanne both say llamas are their favorite animals.

“They live forever,” Graceanne said. “They don’t get butchered. They’re soft. They seem kind of standoffish at first, then they come up and give you kisses.”

Nicholas likes llamas for their quirks.

“If we move their fence line, they won’t cross where the fence used to be,” he said. “They can be running down the road, but if you shake a pan of grain, they come running back.”

Even though llamas are unconventional to some, Graceanne doesn’t view her family’s pets as unusual because they participate in 4-H, so taking care of animals, then showing them at Fair, is what they’re used to. Despite the downside of having to scoop manure, Graceanne says they’re pretty normal pets.

“They’re not strange at all, compared to my siblings,” Graceanne said.

In addition to the Tarsas’ five llamas, they

have two cats, and a steer named Legacy which Graceanne won in an essay contest. Each year a veterinary business buys a young steer, also known as a junior beef, at auction and the businesses gives it away as a contest prize at Fair.

“I thought ‘Oh yay! I got a steer’,” Graceanne said.

Because of the variety and the number of their pets, the Tarsas’ daily schedule is rigorous and restrictive. Since their animals require regular care, they can’t go on vacations longer than a night.

“I get up between six and six-twenty and we get into our barn clothes and go outside and we feed them and give them fresh bedding and water,” Graceanne said. “We go through the rest of our day, and when we come home we do the same thing. On some days we have to walk them too. Even when it’s cold, and you want to snuggle down in your warm bed, you still have to come out and feed them.”

Nicholas said that because of their animals’ bigger needs, he and his sister are learning life skills such as responsibility, dedication and work ethic.

“It’s so hands-on,” he said. “It’s fun to take care of them, then go to Fair. I like the competition and performance because I’m competitive and I like to perform.”

Although there are definite negatives to having farm animals as pets, there is never a boring moment at the Tarsa household.

“The second day we ever had our llamas, they escaped,” Nicholas said. “We got them all in, but were chasing one around forever.”

The Tarsas get a kick out of them every day, and the llamas are full of surprises.

“When we came home one day, we found a baby llama. We didn’t know that one of our llamas was pregnant, and we didn’t know who the mom or the dad was,” Graceanne. “We still don’t know who the dad is.”

Although they may be a handful at times, through all the sweat and manure Nicholas and Graceanne continue to adore their pets, and couldn’t picture their barn being empty.

“If we didn’t have our animals, it’s a big section of our life that wouldn’t be there,” Nicholas said.

Photo: S. Hutchison

Preparing their llamas for competitions at Fair, Nicholas Tarsa ‘13 and his sister Graceanne ‘15 enjoy participating in 4-H. They have raised animals for their entire lives and llamas specifically for six years. “I like the competition and performance because I’m competitive and I like to perform,” Nicholas said. “It’s so hands-on.”

Cats

OR Dogs?

Illustration: A. Korson

The furry feud of paws and claws continues as students asnswer a vital question: cats or dogs?

Hayley Rozema Staff Reporter

“Cats are a lot cleaner, don’t smell or bark, and are better to cuddle with. Dogs are more intimidating, especially bigger ones, and dogs tend to be dirtier than cats Also, cats are more self sufficient.”

-Kaitlyn St. Charles ‘12

“Dogs are more loyal than cats.

They listen more, and can protect you. You can train them to do a lot more. Unlike cats, you can actually play with dogs, you can play catch and wrestle around with them.”

“When I got my first cat, I started to like them more because I always grew up with dogs. Dogs are way messier than cats. They require more taking care of. I like that you don’t have to consistently pay attention to cats.”

-Cady Lewis ‘12

“I never really liked cats. Cats are boring and just sit there.

You can’t show off your cat.

Dogs don’t just sit and sleep, they play with you. They’re cuter and more active.”

-Alie Little ‘15

“Cats are smaller and soft.

You don’t have to take cats outside for walks, and you can actually hold them and they don’t bite you.

-Landon Adams ‘13

-Jordon Sabin ‘14

“Cats are losers. They’re sassy and like to bite you without warning. Dogs just love to snuggle. I feel like you can’t have fun with cats because they’re such independent animals. Dogs are more like a friend than a pet.”

-Anna Poertner ‘15 All graphics, except where otherwise noted: C. Hansen

8 Feature

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

Youth Union arts program takes over TC

With advisor Sam Porter, students hold Traverse City Youth Festival featuring Apr. 20 Archnemesis concert; youth-led program gives students hands-on event-planning and arts industry experience

Y

1.

Katie Stanton Opinion Editor

Youth Union (YU) leader Emma Beauchamp ‘12 serves up a frothy glass of root beer to a discogoer as the faint sounds of Skrillex pulse from headphones dangled around the student’s neck.

At YU’s recent fundraiser, selections pumped from four different DJs through headphones, rather than speakers. The “silent” disco was attended by students from many different area schools.

“We want to hang out, drink root beer, talk about ideas. We’re planning big events,” YU advisor Sam Porter, of Porterhouse Productions, said. YU is a new student-led program stewarded

by Porter that offers students creative opportunities in the arts and event planning industries.

In YU, students, not adults, lead, plan and host their own community projects.

“I’ve learned that it’s possible for students to be in charge of and run a show,” YU member Alicia Minore ‘13 said. “It doesn’t have to be adults – we can do it with just one advisor.”

YU’s first event will be a weekend long festival at Central Grade School. Dubbed the Traverse City Youth Festival (TCYF), it is the first large teen-led event.

Headlining band Archnemesis will rock out Lars Hockstad on Friday night, featuring amped sound, a light show and dancing, and a separate silent disco. Saturday will be oriented towards families, featuring a pancake breakfast, a performance by Ralph’s World, a national touring

Events like this are spaces where students from all walks of life can create and celebrate together. The next day of high school is like a giant high-five.

- Sam Porter Disney show, and an expo featuring local businesses and youth initiatives. Saturday will close with a talent show produced by Central High’s Fine Arts and Communications Academies, featuring students hailing from many different area schools.

“We’re researching everything, from where to order one-hundred beach balls, to who is going to manage the DJ silent disco dance gym, to who might assist Archnemesis,” Porter said.

The event is backed by Porterhouse Productions, but students are fundraising and looking

2.

Photo: S. Hardin

Photo: K. Raymond

for sponsors to offset production costs. Despite Porter’s substantial production investment, he believes in the students’ ability to make YU viable.

“I’m investing in you guys. This festival is a huge monetary risk,” Porter said. “I want to help teach how to produce an event that creates a return, with the ultimate goals of fun and learning.”

TCYF and YU present many volunteer opportunities for high schoolers.

“I’m trying to listen to their interests to create the space for them to learn about everything, from marketing, pre-show, organizing, creative design, to technical production, like sound boards and lights,” Porter said. “There’s also the culinary aspect.” Student leaders have been crucial to YU’s success.

“My role has been to get the word out and get people excited about this seedling of a project,” Beauchamp said.

Samie Kaufman ‘12, an aspiring graphic designer, has designed the YU ad, logo, and TCYF’s poster and tickets. Because of the varied skill sets needed in event planning, YU attracts students with many different interests and talents.

“Events like this are spaces where students from all walks of life can create and celebrate together,” Porter said. “The next day of high

1. Chris Hall ‘14 breaks it down with fellow sophomores Daniel Madion, Allison Taphouse, and Abigail Palisin. Hall thought that the Silent Disco topped school dances. “The silent disco was really fun,” Hall said. “When you wanted to talk to someone, all you had to do was take off your headphones. Plus, there was free food. 2. Youth Union leader Emma Beauchamp ‘12 plans the Traverse City Youth Festival with YU members Charlie Trubac ‘12 and Justin Moore ‘12.

“It’s exciting to be able to reach teens with an event that Traverse City doesn’t have right now,” Beauchamp said.

school is like a giant high-five.” Porter hopes the TCYF will help YU gain more recognition.

“This first event will be the kick-starter to hopefully get more community support and involvement from young people.”

Scott Hardin ‘14 hopes YU’s endeavors will attract national-caliber talent. “I want to make Traverse City a million times more fun to be a high school student,” Hardin said.

YU is a place where students’ ideas are put into action. “Some would call it youth-empowerment. We call it pizza, root beer and fun,” Porter said.

YU meets every Tuesday, 4:00 p.m. at the Good Work Collective on Union Street. All students from any local schools are welcome.

Contact YU leader Emma Beauchamp at 231632-3662 with questions. Better, just show up.

Graphic: B. Lutes

Bedrooms: the palace of kings As a high schooler, bedrooms are the only place that students can truly call their own and escape from the pressures of daily life. The Black & Gold explores the most unique high school cribs.

On the tidy side of the bedroom spectrum, Jami Chung ‘14 keeps her Parisian-inspired bedroom immacuStaff Reporter late.

“The main colors of my room are Some people can’t stand clutpink, white, black and gold,” Chung ter, while others like the fact that said. “And I have some things that they can’t see the floor of their resemble the Eiffel Tower.” bedrooms. But no matter where With her bed in the center of the someone falls on the spectrum of room partially built into the wall, it organization, our bedroom is an is the focal point of her room. The expression of our personal style eye-catching wall color, and an extension of however, also draws ourselves. attention.

An essential in “I last re-did my every man’s life is room in fifth grade, so alone time away it’s extremely pink,” from the family Chung said. “I’m over in his own space. my pink phase now, but Jonathan Asava ‘12 I still like the color. It’s has achieved this really bright and open.” by building a ‘Man Some of Chung’s Cave’ above the favorite aspects of her garage at his home. room are the small Equipped with a couch where she and 56” TV, surround her friends like to hang sound, a drum set, out and talk, and the and a couch, Asava two tall bookshelves on is proud of the living either side of her bed. space he made for “I love to read, so it’s himself.

Photo: S. Hutchison cool to have two re“My TV is probally tall pillars of books ably the focal point Jonny Asava relaxes with his guitar in his “man cave.” Asava right there,” Chung said. of my room,” Asava believes his room is a representation of his personality. “My Offering a piece of said. “I have a bunch room is important because it describes who I am,” Asava said. of ‘60s and ‘70s “My favorite part is my huge TV and surround sound. Whenever design advice from her posters too, because I have my friends over we use that to watch sweet movies and past experience, Chung play video.” suggests to anyone who my walls were kind wants to redo their bedof bare before, so it burn at the head of it,” Creamer room to organize before they start. looks cool.” said.

“If you just go into it, it’ll be chaAsava’s room reflects his interests Creamer’s newly decorated room otic and messy, and you probably in music and his laid-back style, and emulates her more recent style, won’t finish,” Chung said. he uses his room as a place to relax with lots of bright colors and Creamer offered her own exand hang out with friends. pertise, saying that the first thing “I’ve always had a thing for music, some unique accessories, including Chinese lanterns, flags hanging people hoping to revamp their especially classic rock,” Asava from the ceiling, and lots of pillows spaces should do is pick a color said. His interest is reflected in embellishing her bed. scheme. his room’s décor, and he said his “It’s really inviting, and you just On the other hand, Asava’s friends think his room is “pretty go in there and it looks like fun,” recommendation is simple, yet proBA.” Creamer said. “Kind of like I am. found: “Make it colorful.”

Also in charge of her room’s My friends think it’s very ‘me.’” style, Rachel Creamer ‘15 revamped

Gretchen Twietmeyer

her space after having outgrown the old style of her room.

“How I had my room before was a little too juvenile,” Creamer said.

“It was just kind of plain too, and it didn’t have a lot of things in it because I moved into my sister’s old room.”

So she decided to switch up the design. “My bed is on the right and there’s a big picture of Audrey Hep-

Graphic: M. Kachadurian

Graphic: S. Kaufman

With the Internet changing exponentially, and becoming an omnipresent part of our lives, we are tempted by its tools and toys, so much as to make us websick

Maddy Kachadurian Graphics Editor

High-schoolers are master time wasters.

We’d rather explore cyberspace than start our final draft of our English assignment due first hour tomorrow.

As we pass the cosmos of URLs and HTTP codes, we navigate to one of the biggest black holes in this electronic universe: Hulu. We can’t do homework when all is quiet. TV’s no different than music, right?

The quickest way to catch up on important missed television shows, Hulu is our biggest distraction. You think to yourself confidently, ‘I can multi task!’ Three episodes of Castle later, you haven’t started your English paper, but you have learned that Castle and Becket still have not declared their love for each other. You had to know what happened. It’s plot line, it’s characters kinda like English.

TV watching doesn’t take much thought, but it does take serious brain power to rationalize why we have to watch TV shows. So we prioritize our excuses to minimize our guilt about that English essay still staring you in the face. All TV shows featured on Hulu fit into three categories.

1. Must Watch: These are the shows that you follow religiously, regardless of how many papers you have to write or how many tests you have the next day.

You care about these shows’ characters deeply, and you’re not above screaming if something goes wrong in their perfect TV lives, or if the writers fail to deliver on a promising relationship. The biggest reason “Must Watch” shows aren’t viewed on TV is because of a scheduling conflict; you realized that some executive at NBC had the nerve to air Smash in the same time slot as

Castle, so your stomach drops. After the latest episode has aired in all of the time zones, the TV enthusiast can be found mindlessly refreshing Hulu until the show is posted. It doesn’t matter if it’s 2 a.m.

2. Guilty Pleasure: These are shows that you started watching when you got bored. You justify these pieces of brain candy with, it’s only one episode. Can’t hurt, right? Your friends don’t know you watch these, and if they suspect it, you certainly wouldn’t admit it. Your investment in the Guilty Pleasure Hulu experience is just as deep as the Must Watch category, although you would much rather stealthily minimize Hulu and reveal your Spongebob wallpaper than get caught watching Grey’s Anatomy. You know which doctor is McDreamy and which one is McSteamy, but that doesn’t mean you want to publicize it.

3. Skim: These are television shows that you are not attached to whatsoever.

They’ve been demoted from one of the other two categories because there is just one alternate universe too many and you can’t take them all seriously anymore. But something still intrigues, perhaps a character, a relationship, or the songs. Your hand never leaves the mouse as you skip through all the Finn and Rachel drama on Glee to get to the singing.

Hulu doesn’t help with our tendency toward procrastination, but we are never bored. What did we do before Hulu? Watch shows on television?

Read books? Preposterous! I am Huludependent, and that is what makes me Websick.

Graphic: Courtesy of mashable.com

Sophie Hutchison Staff Reporters

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

Int’l Relations

9

Ashley Reed & Garrett Kosch

Associate Sports Editor, Staff Reporter

Nick Mulvaine & Sophie Hutchison Staff Reporters

Autumn Hilden & Katieforeign Raymond Several exchange students were asked two questions correPhoto Editors sponding to their home country: What is the most bizarre thing you have seen Americans do? If you Stafftake Reporters could one thing back to your home country, what would it be?

Lia Williams & Hayley Rozema

From the class schedules to the courses, the academic experiences in Germany and the US have few similarities Erin Lipp

O Staff Reporter

Our German exchange students claim that they do not have that welcome mental break of electives we have, and their classes are harder, but they have more variety each day, among a few other differences.

During one week, Valentin Klüsener ‘12, who hails from Erlangen, has twelve different classes that vary in length and his regular school day ends around 1 p.m. “I like that the hours are shorter and classes are different every day,” Klüsener said. “I also like that school is over earlier.” Klüsener’s weekly schedule stays the same throughout the year.

In Augsburg, north of Erlangen, where Melissa Feutchgruber ‘12 lives, there is even more day-to-day variation with up to forty different classes weekly, each of the six-eleven daily classes is forty-five minutes. “I like having a lot of classes like we do at home,” Feutchgruber said. “It’s just different every day so it’s just not as boring.

You don’t get sick of your classes because you’re not with the same people and doing the same thing every day.”

Feutchgruber said teachers move faster through lessons. “If you don’t get it, you don’t get it and the teachers won’t explain it again,” Feutchgruber said. “You have to find another way to learn it.”

After fourth grade, students are tracked based on ability. “Kids who go to the highest school will end up with a degree that allows you

If you don’t get it, you don’t get it, and the teachers won’t explain it again. You have to find another way to learn it.

-Melissa Feutchgruber ‘12

Business Manager, Staff Reporter

Adele Duby Elena Rothney France & Ivy Baillie Staff Reporters

Photo: K. Raymond

“In France you have to ask and wait for permission to leave the classroom. You can’t just take a pass and leave. When I first got here I was like woah, what is going on, what are they doing?!”

“Lucky Charms! Oh my god, there’s marsh mellows in cereal! It’s so good!”

Photo: K. Raymond

Elisa Stueker, Valentin Klüsener, Melissa Feutchgruber, and Constanze Blum, all ‘12, all hail from Germany taking part in exchange programs that last the entire school year. “I like the teachers here,” Stueker said.

“Their relationships with students are better. Maybe, it’s because our teachers are pretty much all old, but the ones here are just a lot more fun and nicer.”

to go to college,” Klüsener said.

“This school lasts eight years, until twelfth grade. The other two lower schools last six years, until tenth grade.” These graduates go to trade schools.

In Garbsen, Constanze Blum ‘12 has English, German, and Science that are divided into higher and lower levels. Unlike the U.S., they do not have classes with students in other grades.

“I like it here more because you can choose your own classes” Blum said. “That way, you like all of your classes.”

American teachers tend to be more informal than German ones.

“Here you get to know the people better, and the teachers are more friends with the students,” Blum said. “In Germany when you see teachers outside of school you look down and walk by and it’s

kind of awkward.”

In Muldenstein, Sachsen-Anhalt students have different classes each day, according to Elisa Stueker ‘12.

“I like it here better because it is more focused,” Stueker said. “In Germany, it is a lot harder. We have homework for each class, and we have different classes each day of the week. Here, I can focus on my five classes, study for them, and not get distracted with other classes.”

Stueker, Blum, Feutchgruber, and Klüsener all agree that classes in the U.S. are much easier. “In a class like history we just learn more and are more intensive about it,” Blum said. “We would spend about four months just on World War II.” Blum also has classes here that she loves that are not her favorites at home, where she likes English and History. Her favorites here are Sociology, History and Theatre.

“Most times I like classes because I like the teacher and how they do the class,” Blum said. “Here it is that even classes like Chemistry or Math seem more interesting and not as boring.”

It is common in the U.S. for students to finish the school day and go to a school-sponsored sport or activity right after. In Germany, students do not have this luxury.

“For my soccer team we have to travel to the next town to participate,’ Blum said.

Klüsener participated in a private theater club in Germany that put on performances once a year.

Both Blum and Klüsener were able to participate in cross country and track, which neither had participated in before. “It’s a good way meet new people and it’s a good way to stay active,” Klüsener said.

Carly Smith aupairing: the Italian job Breaking the socio-economic norm, Central student, Carly Smith ‘12 aupairs for a family of four in Genoa, Italy, after deciding to travel before college said. “In the community I’m in, I have met many other nannies my age who come from different English Business Manager speaking countries, and we are all living Since the turn of the century, hiring foreigners with pretty well-off or immigrants to nanny has been a status symfamilies.” bol for wealthy American families. However, Most foreign in an ironic turn of events, Carly Smith ‘12 has families hire Englishbeen au pairing since Jan. 12 for a family of speaking nannies so four in Genoa, Italy. their children will “Here, in Europe, it seems to be very trendy become fluent. In the and a sort of status symbol to have an English family Smith is stayspeaking nanny if you can afford one,” Smith ing with, the mother is a junior high English teacher, while the father speaks decent English and works at an exporting firm. Their eldest daughter, who is eight, speaks fluent English because she is attending a bilingual school, and has had several English speaking nannies prior to Smith.

While the parents are at work and the daughter is at school, Smith attends to the family’s two year old Photo courtesy of Carly Smith son.

“It’s like babysitAccompanied by her two rugrats, Carly Smith is pleased with her boisterting for five hours, ous Italian family. “I did not choose Italy, I choose the family,” Smith said.

“I wanted to travel abroad, and Italy was a top choice. I talked with differ- every day, and ent families in different countries until I found one that was a good match.” then staying and

Bryton Lutes

Bryton Lutes & Erin Lipp

living with the kids instead of going home at the end,” Smith said. “At times it seems like an endless cycle of bottles, tantrums and diapers, but the kids are so cute it’s hard to stay mad long.”

In addition to the daily challenges of nannying an Italian family, Smith had to adjust to the cultural differences.

“Italians for the most part are passionate, aggressive, and loud about everything,” Smith said. “So that translates into a very fast paced and vibrant culture.”

Despite their big personalities, Italians live in a scaled-down world.

“The cars, the house, the shower, everything is smaller,” Smith said. “It’s hard to get used to but it’s been a really good experience to see how other people live.”

The idea of traveling came to Smith during her consideration of a gap year between high school and college. However, her parents disagreed. After searching online for ways to travel before college, Smith discovered au-pairing and was hooked.

“It turns out it’s pretty common in certain communities in Europe. I love kids, and I wanted to travel, so it seemed perfect.”

Combining Smith’s interests has made for a rewarding experience.

“The best experience from the nannying aspect has been gaining the trust and love of the kids,” Smith said. “Especially the younger one. At first he would cry so much, but now he comes to me if he’s sad or hurt, and likes to give me lots of kisses.”

At times it just seems like an endless cycle of bottles, tantrums and diapers, but the kids are so cute it’s hard to stay mad long.

-Carly Smith ‘12

Oliver Fahrni Switzerland

Photo: K. Raymond

“It seems like every family has hunting weapons. Normally, just like my grandpa’s, will have weapons from when they were in the service. Here they have them just for hunting.”

“School sports or athletic programs. In Switzerland there is no school-sponsored athletics, you have to join a private club.

Here I payed like $100 for downhill skiing, at home you have to pay $800.”

Mayara De Aguiar Taglietta Brazil

Photo: K. Raymond

“Here when people burp they say excuse me and make it obvious. People like laugh about it and joke about it. In Brazil, you keep it more private.”

“Mac and Cheese! We don’t have it in Brazil. I tried making it one time and did it wrong. Then my host mom made it for me.

It was so good. Now I just get the frozen kind.”

10 Sports

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

Slush Cup shakes it up

Skiers, snowboarders and tubers get into the spring spirit at Mt. Holiday’s annual Slush Cup with a last hoorah before the snow melts Garrett Kosch Staff Reporter

Graphic: P. Goodney

Graphic: M. Kachadurian

Ever since Title IX, the debated question of “who’s better?” men or women, has dominated competitive sports. “Battle of The Sexes” celebrates the innate differences between male and female athletes

Boxer, Olivia Grielick battles the big boys Sports Columnist

Her heart hammers like the bell that is about to ring. Between the boxing ring’s ropes, every nerve of Olivia Greilick’s ‘13 body is on edge – adrenaline surges as she readies herself to get punched – fight or flight instincts kick in. And she comes out dancing and swinging.

“My mind goes blank before a fight,” Greilick said. “It’s just me and the other person.”

Greilick has been boxing at Trigger Boxing since the summer of 2008 as the gym’s only member with double X chromosomes. She participated in sparring rounds at the gym and fought with the big boys.

“I felt kind of unique that I was the only girl who did that,” Greilick said.

“The guys gave me their respect for fighting them.”

Boxing is one of the last sports to cross the gender boundary. From recreational boxing, to our own weights classes at Central, Greilick is just one of many girls who have crossed the barrier. This year, women’s boxing goes legit: it was added to the lineup for London 2012 Olympics.

We’ve come a long way since Title IX expanded women’s access to sports.

Women are making a bigger impact in the world of sports and proving that they can keep up just as well, if not better, than guys, especially in sports that are mostly speed, strategy and technique.

But there remains the dross of sexism in sports, especially in strength sports. I’m not a feminazi, but I believe that respect for female athletes

My mind goes blank before a fight. It’s just me and the other person.

-Olivia Greilick ‘13 has a ways to go. More respect for women in sports will eventually rid the male-dominated sports world of sexism. Disses like “you throw like a girl” and jokes that degrade women’s sports are tossed around as commonly as footballs.

Hard, back-breaking-aching-musclepulled hamstring work demands respect, no matter the gender. Summoning the courage to step out of one’s comfort zone, especially to the level where one is willing to risk a face pummeling, demands respect. Anytime an athlete puts it all out there in front of spectators, family, friends, or peers, that is heroic. Playing with heart, leaving everything on the field, demands respect. Small steps like Greilick’s at Trigger, are proof that women deserve the same respect. Hopefully, the international cache of the Olympics will resonate and translate. These nonsensical, demeaning gender boundaries need to end with a punch.

Christian Stone ‘12 displays his “slush boarding” skills as he splashes the crowd. “All I am thinking is, I don’t want to get wet. If I fall, I am screwed. One time, when I was little, I bombed the hill expecting to make it across the icy water but fell and the Ski Patrol had to rescue me,” Stone said.

Taking a different approach to the slush cup, Kris Konstanzer ‘14 slides down in style. “Being able to ride down in a tube was what I enjoyed the most and I would love to do it again,” Konstanzer said.

Tubing opens up opportunities to do crazy stunts. This year, Konstanzer jumped off the tube and supermaned into the water.

Gliding across the chilly water, Nate Pupel ‘13, focuses on keeping himself up and not getting wet. “It’s the last chance to snowboard and have fun and it’s a good way to bring summer into winter,” Pupel said. He has attended the event for the past three years and plans to keep up the tradition.

The Slush Cup is a great way to end the winter season. Kicking it back with my friends makes me remember the good times I had.

I’m already looking forward to next year. -Christian Stone ‘12 Photo courtesy of Taylor Favour

Nation’s best runners coached

by Central’s own Lisa Taylor Central girls cross-country and track coach was asked to coach a group of select runners at an elite indoor track meet, 1500 miles away

Ashley Reed Sports Editor

In the past, Taylor has lead her athletes to the following accomplishments: State title in 2008 2 Runners-Up State finishes 8 Top-Four State finishes

Photo courtesy of Lisa Taylor

Lisa Taylor, girls cross country and track coach of 18 years, congratulates 2010 Central graduate, Julia Otwell after a track meet at Central. “She had just finished a great race,” Taylor said.

“Julia is now a standout runner at MSU for the Spartans.”

From a pool of over three-hundred, Lisa Taylor, girls cross country and track coach was one of just twelve coaches selected to coach one-hundred-forty of the nation’s top high school track and field athletes at the Brooks PR Invitational in Seattle.

“I’m a huge fan of track and field and cross country and I was aware of the event the year before, so, I was excited because I was given the opportunity to actually be there,” Taylor said.

Over the course of four days and three nights at an Olympic-caliber training camp feted with special meals, high-end transportation and a fancy hotel, Taylor coached ten 60-meter runners.

“Our job was to make sure the runners had the chance to get their work-outs in,” she said. “And on race day, we were to keep the runners on schedule and make sure they were warmed up, ready to race.”

Photo: S. Hutchison

6 Regional Titles 14 consecutive Big North titles At the invitational, stakes were high and athletes ran to their fullest potential. Seven of the nation’s leading times in 2012, two Dempsey records, and a single high school national record in the boys 60-meter hurdles were broken.

Although most of the seniors at the invitational had been offered full-ride scholarships to big universities, Taylor found it “refreshing” that they were so modest.

“Despite the fact that these students were so heavily recruited, it was just like hanging around my own team,” she said. “They didn’t walk around like they were special, they just acted like normal kids.”

Being a state champion herself, Taylor knew the self motivation and drive it took to be a successful runner, and she saw some of the same attributes in the runners throughout the weekend.

“These runners had prepared themselves through self-initiation,” she said.

“They motivated themselves to be the very best.”

Building core & confidence Two Central females conform to a strict diet and workouts to earn high scores from judges

Shannon Weaver Sports Editor

Graphic: C. Hansen

To prepare for an upcoming body building competition, Olivia Allen ‘12 pushes a two-hundred pound sled up and down the hallways of Centre Ice. She endures her workout and grinds it out.

“When I’m working that hard, I just think ‘Competition, competition, competition’,” Allen said. “I think that if I don’t do this I’m going to look bad on stage and I want to go up there knowing I gave it my all.”

For many, ‘bodybuilding’ conjures images of ultra-tanned musclemen with cartoonish proportions, but for Allen and Jaylynne Cryderman ‘13, the sport is about gaining confidence.

“I don’t do bodybuilding to be big and have muscle,” Cryderman said. “I do it for the confidence it gives me.”

Working out four to six days a week for an hour and a half, Cryderman and Allen both compete in body building, also known as figure posing. Her workouts consist of focusing on one muscle group each day and cardio three times a week. For Allen, workouts are generally two hours long with her trainer.

“The hardest part of training is when you’re not motivated, but you still have to push yourself,” Cryderman said. “What keeps me going when I don’t want to workout is just the goal of the show.”

In this sport of extremes, athletes have to meet many physical and mental restrictions for the competition next month. Two days before a show, contestants dehydrate themselves so their skin tightens around their muscles and they look even more toned. “You can’t get any water in your mouth, even in the shower,” Cryderman said. “It makes me really forgetful and tired.”

Another restriction is the extremely rigid diet. Most high-schoolers wake up in the morning and open the cupboard in a frenzied search for Eggo waffles, Pop Tarts, or a sugary cereal. Allen and Cryderman go for egg whites and oatmeal. They eat healthy meals every two to three hours. “When a certain food is tempting me, I just tell myself that if I eat it, I’m going to have to run a lot,” Allen said. “If I cheat on my diet my trainer will notice it in my body and make me work really hard.”

With an upcoming show Apr. 14 at the Leelanau Sands Casino, Allen is prepared to walk the stage in her three different outfits: a bikini, casual wear, and a club dress.

Judges evaluate contestants on their muscle tone, specifically shoulders and calves, and everyone gets a trophy depending on their result. Cryderman hasn’t competed, but she expects to in the future.

“The show is the goal, so when you set that goal, it’s on your mind a lot and you do your best to get to that,” Cryderman said. “The best part of it all is just having the confidence to feel good.”

Photo: courtesy of Jaylynn Cryderman

Miranda Winowiecki

Photo: S. Hutchison

Jobs

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012

11

That one time at work...

Students share and hilarious mishaps and stories that happened while on the job

Allison Taphouse

Staff Reporter

Mickey Boomer ‘13 — Pebblebrook Fun Park

Graphic: M. Kacha

Page Design: Elena Rothney, Kennedy Cullen, Ivy Baillie

durian & K. Cullen

Students take on messy, sticky, grimy jobs that no one else wants, despite its ever impeding pressence. But the dirt and grunge pays off when hard earned money is used for what they want most Elena Rothney & Ivy Baillie

B Staff Reporters

Busser Freeman Philips ‘14 sweeps through the dining room at a local restaurant, but instead of being greeted with the customary dirty plates and half-eaten hamburgers, he is mortified to find himself cleaning up something that goes beyond the scope of his job description.

“An old man pooped all over the bathroom floor and I had to clean it up in the middle of my shift,“ Phillips said. “It smelled so bad.”

This isn’t the first time Phillips has had to clean up something . . . gross.

“One time a little girl came in with her family and she puked all over the table,” Phillips said. “Her family didn’t even stop eating.”

Workers like Phillips should be hailed as our saviors from grime.

While working at a restaurant may seem like a scene from Iron Chef, the labor isn’t as shiny as the stainless steel knives. A busser is among the bottom feeders at restaurants, which means that not only are they ordered about by waitstaff, but made to do all of the dirty work.

Bussers have to clean up all of that half eaten food thrown on the ground by

screaming devil children, and they have to take out bags of heaving, dripping trash, and they have to work miserable hours while being screamed at by impatient tourists.

“A lot of the time when we are really busy, the wait staff pretends to have ownership of me,” Phillips said.

“They seem to forget that I have other sections I need to clean.

It can get on my nerves.”

“At Pebblebrook, people were on the go-carts, a sevenyear-old boy injured his knee by crashing into someone else.

Photo: K. Cullen My manager made me sign all the paperwork for the injury. The mom who was with him was freaking out at me.”

lettuce heads, earwigs and worms are on the outside leaves and it’s all mushy, gross and smelly,” Perria said. “It makes me never want to eat lettuce again.”

Jobs like these are littered throughout society.

Chances are, most high school students will have to experience taking out heaving bags of trash at a fast food chain or stick their hands in grubby soil. And while these jobs may nag at the gag reflexes, these teens actually work, which is something you can’t say about many high school students.

Having a job, even if it is the dirtiest one imaginable, means independence.

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Jack Hawley ‘15 — The Elk’s Lodge “Two giant trays were filled all around with food and a waitress dropped them after she hit the door and she started crying. The whole kitchen exploded at her. It was pretty funny.”

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All of this backbreaking labor is done for minimum wage, plus tips for minimum appreciation, and maximum hours. Employers don’t seem to understand how nasty it is to stick your fingers into someones plate of half-eaten spaghetti bolognese.

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M. Abbey Perria Ka cha dur ‘12, is also familiar ian with grunge work. In the summer, Perria digs her hands into the dirt at Meadowlark Farms on the Leelenau Peninsula. All summer she is “Dirty jobs suck,” Freeman bent over in the unbearable said. “But in the end, it is Northern Michigan humidity, worth every minute of cleantending to the fields and rooting spit up food on tables. I’m ing up veggies. saving up for a sweet ride.”

“When you pull up old

Morgan Crocker ‘12 — Hannah Bistro “It was my first night of work at Hanna Bistro, we’re supposed to take coats and put them in the back room, Photo: K. Cullen and an old man asked, ‘where can I get my coat,’ and when I went to put it on him, he gave me a hug.”

Central staff’s humble beginnings These three teachers’ first jobs show how they got their start in the work force. Although they ended up as teachers, they didn’t exactly have career-building opportunities

Hunter Kelly Staff Reporter

Graphic: A. Korson

Troy Elenbaas

Courtney Mazurek Joyce Battle

“Paper or plastic?” was the question physics teacher Troy Elenbaas asked every shift, all shift long when he was a bagger at Tom’s Supermarket on West Bay. He was employed there for a year and a half during high school.

“Back then, it was easy to get a job,” Elenbaas said. “I just showed up, filled out an application and took a short interview and a week later I was working.”

Elenbaas had to pay whenever he went out with his friends because his family wasn’t independently wealthy. Elenbaas said his first job as a bagger has helped him throughout his life.

“You get more confidence being able to work with customers and co-workers,” Elenbaas said. “You get a little more confidence every time you get a new job.”

English teacher Courtney Mazurek didn’t begin her work life grading rhetorical analyses of All the King’s Men. Rather, she started out kneading dough and shredding cheese at a pizza shop.

“I needed the job because my parents didn’t give me spending money to do anything outside of school--to put gas in my car or to make payments,” Mazurek said.

“When senior year came around, I started saving my money for college.”

Though Mazurek doesn’t feel her pizza making days impacted her current career, she does think it taught her some life lessons.

“It improved my work ethic,” Mazurek said. “Working on weekends and being a waitress, you learn how to communicate with people.”

Graphic

Photo: K. Cullen

Feelin’ cheesy? Special Education teacher Joyce Battle could help. Battle’s first job was working as a “Cheese-Girl” at the Bowery, now called the Jolly Pumpkin.

For two summers, she offered crackers, fruits and cheeses to guest. The jobs did have lows, though.

“I only made minimum wage, which was not a lot back then,” Battle said.

Battle wanted the job so she could be with her girlfriends, and like every teenager, she needed the money. Having to talk with customers everyday, Battle’s job improved her communication skills.

“That job helped my career in a very odd way,” Battle said. “I have to sell my ideas to kids every day, as if it was the tray. I had to communicate with different age groups, just like I do now.”

Nic Pickard ‘13 — Pirate’s Cove “The waterslide was supposed to open at 9:30 so I went up there and let a kid go down with the fences at the bottom of the slide and I Photo: K. Cullen got in trouble and I was fired in front of fifty people.”

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Graphic: A. Korson

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Taylor Favour ‘13 — Mt. Holiday

“Some little boy came up to me and asked me if he was having an allergic reaction on his neck and I didn’t know what to do! I Photo: K. Cullen told him to go and ask his parents what to do.”

12 The Leek

Traverse City Central High School Black & Gold Mar. 20, 2012 Real people, real stories

Traverse City Central: The Trading Card Game captivates school

A new phenomenon has students dueling each other with ID cards, playing for keeps – and glory

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Patrick Goodney Leek Editor

In the last couple weeks, a sensation has erupted on campus. Our students have been mercilessly dueling one another nonstop during lunch and passing time. Their weapon of choice? ID cards.

Traverse City Central: The Trading Card Game has been occupying the free time of nearly our entire student body. The only bad part is... no one will play with us.

The Leek staff decided to investigate this news lead after receiving the shut-out from our exclusionary classmates. For your reading pleasure, we secured the right to reprint a substantial excerpt from the game’s rule book, The Unamendable Rules Scroll (Revised 4th Edition), to help make sense of this fascinating cultural obsession for aspiring players. Here you go, noobs.

•‌ Player 1 challenges Player 2 to Traverse City Central: The Trading Card Game (TCC:TTCG) battle. ‌• Player 2 can flee at no penalty or accept the challenge. ‌• The challenge is considered accepted when Player 2 shouts “BY THE GRACE OF VANDERMOLEN, I ACKNOWLEDGE THIS CHALLENGE!”. Or, just says, “Sure.” ‌• Players have 10 seconds to present their chosen ID card from their deck. ‌• Power Level of trading card is grade level; individual strengths and weaknesses are determined by attack points, defense points, and hair color. ◦ Black or brown hair x2 attack, blond x2 defense, red or dyed x2 both. ‌• Defense Points are determined by the first three digits of the ID number. ‌• Attack Points are determined by the last three digits of the ID number. ‌• A Sports Pass adds one Power Level. ‌• Student with higher Power Level gets to use move first. Students with same Power Level determine first move by whose birthday is earlier in the year. Students with same birthday play game of “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Steve Cousins.” ‌• If a player chooses “Attack,” their Attack Points value is subtracted from the opponent’s Defense Points value. Attack Points are not depleted during the game, while Defense Points are depleted. Apologies to all for having to do basic subtraction. ‌• If a player chooses “Party,” a brief snack break is observed. ‌• If a player chooses “Bonus Card,” one of the ‘additional cards’ may be introduced (but not used in the same turn): ◦ Jimmy John’s punch card: 10 bonus Attack Points per punch ◦ Driver’s licenses/state IDs: 50 bonus Defense Points per card if they match up with the person on their original card ◦ Previous grade ID card: 100 bonus Attack or Defense Points per card (player chooses in each instance) ◦ An ID Card of another student will restore their original card’s Defense Points if their original card falls in the future, and is good for one use. ‌• A player wins when their opponent’s original card’s defense points are depleted.

It doesn’t matter if it only takes one turn. The winner collects their opponent’s original card. ‌• Game on TCC:TTCGPs!

Graphic: P. Goodney

Avid duel master Tyler Sehysteria ‘12 wields the ID card that pro guides rank as the rarest and most valuable. “I only throw down my level 12 Tyler Sehysteria in serious duels,” Sehysteria said. The ID number is 9990999, meaning he has both 999 attack and 999 defense points, not to mention a January 1 birthday and Sports Pass.

Graphic: P. Goodney

Graphic: P. Goodney

This issue: Snowed in at the School

Rico Bastian Leek Editor

Late one Friday night in February, we were at school working on our next big story down in Vandermolen’s office. We had been pulling an all-nighter extracting some files when the power went out. Pffffft – all of our work, gone. All of the private files we were copying from Vandermolen’s computer, gone. All of our investigative efforts, wasted. Suddenly, we heard what sounded like a little girl screaming. Turns out, it was just Patrick.

To make matters worse, we were snowed in and our cell phones were dead. We shouldn’t have played Bejeweled so much, but we regret nothing. We needed to survive until help came. If help came.

Stone Age technology requires Stone Age tools, and we just happened to have some handy dandy torches in our satchels to light the way. Our first thoughts were to take refuge in the plentiful tunnels, but decided that

wasn’t an option, thanks to our last visit. We were on our own. Survival required sustenance. The cafeteria was all locked up, so no Pop-Tarts for us. We did, however, scavenge some food left from a Spanish fiesta earlier that day. We feasted on tacos, nachos, and what we assumed were... cookies?

Without the heating system, the temperature was dropping faster than our phat beats.

We threw safety out the window and made a bonfire with our old AP Lit reductions and AP Chem labs. We also thought it best to put our smoke signal skills to use, in case anyone could see them.

Then, cabin fever started to set in as the last of our 5-Hour Energy supplies began to wear off. Our eyes began deceiving us, we heard voices that weren’t there, and Shakespeare started making sense. Suddenly, Patrick lost it. His eyes had a crazed look to them. He charged me. I quickly jumped out of his path, but he continued to pursue.

“Get back here you two-timer,” Patrick

yelled. “I’ll teach you not to take the top hat when we’re playing Jenga!”

I had no choice but to defend myself. I used my skills I had picked up as a part-time professional wrestler in Pasadena and placed Patrick in a sleeper hold. Just as I was about to perform a reverse piledriver, we heard a door swing open, followed by a familiar voice. We both looked and saw the silhouette of a man in a large puffy coat, snow shovel in hand. It was none other than counselor Don Freed.

“Hey there boys. Fancy meeting you here,” Freed said. “I couldn’t help but notice those smoke signals coming from the school, and I just thought I’d check it out.”

Patrick came to his senses as he saw the light of day. We were finally free. We thanked our counselor and he took us to grab some breakfast at JP’s. And so the ordeal came to end. It was, by far, the roughest five minutes of our lives.

Global Perspectives Earlier this month, Taco Bell launched its latest creation. The new Locos Tacos are the classic Taco Bell tacos in a Doritos shell. What do you think?

“If they used the taco-flavored Doritos, maybe they could make them taste like tacos.”

Jamie Sowders Animal control specialist

“Tell me when McDonald’s uses buns made of Twinkies.”

Max Debus Psychic medium

“Have they started selling Coke yet?

No? Then I don’t care.”

Darren Goldberger Accountant

News in Brief As a follow-up to their Singing Valentines fundraiser, the Choral-Aires recently finished up their latest holidaythemed fundraiser, Singing St. Patrick’s.

“Singing Valentines were such a huge success, and we just needed to keep up the momentum,” Choral-Aire Jaron Douplastic ‘12 said.

“Then it hit us – St. Patrick’s Graphic: P. Goodney Day. It’s, like, the second most romantic holiday ever, maybe even the first.”

Singing St. Patrick’s recipients received a plastic fourleaf clover, a green paper hat worksheet, and a sweet serenade from a quartet of the C-As. They would perform three classic Irish songs, including “Danny Boy,” “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” and “Root Beer, Beer, Beer,” all while dancing a jig. They also made a point to encourage everyone to show their holiday cheer by pinching, kicking, and punching anyone not wearing green in the vicinity.

Following the success of many other series, A&E has announced its latest series, Wars Wars. The show pits stars of other series, such as Swamp Wars, Cupcake Wars, and Border Wars against each other in battles outside of their realms.

“Let’s face it, wars are huge on TV,” producer Allan Sykora said. “We’ll bring Graphic: P. Goodney all the appeal of shows like Weed Wars and Parking Wars into one half-hour time slot.”

Many big names in the war business like Whale Wars and Shipping Wars have already been confirmed for the show. Rumors have even been surfacing that Robot Wars is going to come out of cancellation to make an appearance. However, sources have denied that the animated hit Star Wars: The Clone Wars would be included in the show.

“Yuuuup,” Storage Wars favorite Dave Hester said.

“Those Star Wars kiddies don’t know what real war’s about. They wouldn’t last five minutes on the auction lot.”

Earlier this month, Tony Baker ‘14 was caught on security camera sneaking a french fry in his mouth while in line during second lunch. Baker’s grift has caused an outcry by Central’s food staff, spawning a lunch lady-staffed investigative team to try to track down Baker to reprimand the thief and issue a warnGraphic: P. Goodney ing. However, the lunch ladies’ investigation has been hindered by their lack of privileges, most specifically, access to his schedule and ID photo.

“We are now calling upon our students to help make Tony famous so we can have a sit-down with him,” cook Claire Jacobson said. “Our campaign is called TONY 2012. We know this criminal is avoiding eating school lunches, so we want our students to unite and spread our posters all over the school. The only image we have of him is a pixelated screen capture from the security camera footage, but hopefully it’s enough so we can find and talk with this shady sophomore.”

The lunch staff is calling on students to buy help kits ($5, by the ice cream) and spread the message on social networks.

After releasing its annual swimsuit issue last month, Sports Illustrated saw a large spike in sales, which has inspired other printed publications to take suit – or take off suit, rather.

Our school’s heralded publication, the Black & Gold, recently announced plans for a spring special edition where their sexy staff show some Graphic: P. Goodney skin in an attempt to increase readership. The B&G swimsuit issue will showcase both its men and women hotties in exotic locations such as the C-building courtyard and the main office.

The issue will feature perennial favorites like Joe Murray and Maddy Kachadurian, as well as up-and-coming stars Ivy Baillie and David Reinke, although many were shocked when the cover model was announced.

“I don’t care what the haters say, I look great in a pair of trunks,” Freshman Staff Reporter Hunter Kelly said.

“I know I just joined the team earlier this year, but I got more swag than even the editors.”

Questions?

Comments?

Concerns?

Too bad.

Lance Mcnelly Dishwasher

“I hear they’re also going to make a new taco with real meat in it.”

Graphic: P. Goodney

Disclaimer: All stories on this page are about as real as Ron Paul’s chance of being the Republican nominee.

– The Leek Photo: P. Banks