The Forge, Volume 100, Issue 4

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FORGE

Volume 100, Issue 4

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February 13, 2014

Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2014

Santa Barbara meets Hollywood

California’s drought levels as of February 4th. Photo Courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center.

California drought conditions worsen Sandy Campbell Editor-in-Chief

On January 30th, 2014, The National Drought Mitigation Center released a report which placed Santa Barbara County under the “D3 extreme drought” classification, the second highest out of six levels, with 67 percent of California’s landmass under either the D3 or “D4 exceptional drought” classification, the highest level possible.

A drought in the D3 classification is characterized by major crop and pasture losses, along with widespread water shortages or restrictions. Impacts of a D4 drought are “exceptional and widespread crop/pasture losses; shortages of water in reservoirs, streams, and wells creating water emergencies.” (the National Drought Mitigation’s drought severity classification).

California is currently in its third consecutive year of what hydro-geologists are calling a “mega-drought.” In 2013, the driest year in the state’s recorded history, California received less than half its average amount of rainfall. Trends predict that 2014 will be even drier.

Earlier this January, Governor Jerry Brown declared a drought State of Emergency, stating that “we are in an unprecedented, very serious situation.”

Governor Brown instructed officials to make all necessary actions to prepare for the drought and urged California residents to cut water usage twenty percent.

That same day, Santa Barbara County declared its own water emergency. The Department of Water Continued on page 3...

Faith Ellington (Coco/Sadie) and Johnny Lowe (Huck) star in short film A Canine Affair, written and directed by Harrison Gilman. Photo courtesy of Harrison Gilman.

Kate Burrows Freelance Reporters

The Santa Barbara Film Festival is an enticing eleven-day commemoration honoring more than 200 films at several local theatres. Each year over 75,000 people including filmmakers, actors, and Hollywood talent flock to Santa Barbara to watch and review professional and student produced short films.

Being a part of the MAD academy has broadened my interest as well as my appreciation for this landmark event.

You may not be surprised to hear that I jumped at the opportunity to write about this festival. Perhaps it was the possibility I might run into Leonardo DiCaprio at the theatre, or that I could “accidently” sit next to Katy Perry and John Mayer at lunch (yes, this one actually happened!). Whatever the reason, I’m sure I’m not alone.

This past Sunday my friends and I went to the Arlington theatre to support our peers’ films in the 10-10-10 Competition.

What is 10-10-10, you might be wondering? 10-10-10 is a Student Filmmaking Competition where local students produce ten films over a period

of ten days and are judged on both their Filmmaking and Screenwriting skills. To be honest I wasn’t expecting the quality of the films to be so incredible. The films ranged from comedy (lots of off-color humor!), to romance, and everything in between. You would have never known these were high school and college films! Harrison Gilman, Patrick Hall, and Daniel Feinberg represented the Santa Barbara High School filmmakers.

Harrison Gilman ended up winning Best Film for his short movie, A Canine Affair, which is a humorous account of two amorous canines who captive the crowd with their convincing portrayal of two dogs in love. “Coco” played by Faith Ellington is a beautiful adopted dog who catches the attention of “Huck” played by Johnowen Lowe.

“Coco’s” owner, a little old lady, is repelled by the thought of the love-crazed “Huck” and her “Coco” together. But as we all know, a dog’s nose is the strongest of all the senses, which is why Huck has no difficulty in tracking his sweetheart down. A Canine Affair is filled with wit, romance, and skillful acting. Even my dog Max was

What’s Inside?

News: MLK assasination Editorials: Should honor classes come back?

Entertainment: Music of the night Sports: BOYS Basketball wins Channel League

barking at their dog-like behavior on the computer screen. Check it out online on Harrison Gilman’s YouTube account.

You don’t want to miss out!

Harrison Gilman is a talented, up and coming filmmaker from Santa Barbara High School. His unique filming style and distinctive choices of music are enticing for all audience members. Harrison said viewing his movie in the Arlington theatre with a crowd of over 500 “was really exciting but frightening at the same time.”

“The big screen shows every flaw, but when everyone in the audience was laughing and enjoying it I had goose bumps and I couldn’t stop smiling.”

Harrison also added, “I want to hold an Oscar in my hand one day. I’ve been making short homemade movies since I could navigate a computer. I used to make them on the built in camera. But it wasn’t until the beginning of this school year that I really realized it was my passion. Now I’m trying to go to film school and make as many movies as I can. It’s making me go crazy, but in a good way.” Congratulations on your success Harrison, we look forward to seeing more of your films in the future.

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February 13, 2014

The Forge

Room 27, 700 E. Anapamu St. Santa Barbara, CA 93103 805.966.9101 ex. 243

Staff Editors

Mian Laurain Sandy Campbell Editors-in-Chief Sky Ulep Managing Editor Edoardo Kaplan News Editor Emma Cisek Entertainment Editor Blake DeVine Sports Editor Beau Lettieri Website Editor Nicola Freeland Business Manager

Staff Reporters Emmanuel Gonzalez Tyler Greenwald Mark Gross Mckenzie Malek Alonso Martinez Alyssa Mendibles Autusa Pardisi Sean Perez Gabriel Reali Ciara Tolliver

Freelancers Kate Burrows Ahtziri Hernandez Will Howard Sydney Iverson Sierra McNeil Natalie Ochsner Olivia Ranson Jessany Rodenas Andrew Tighe Alida Siegel Matthew Wallock Ashlen Weddington Maisie Zimmerman

Advisor Otto Layman

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Contact Niki Freeland Business Manager ads.forge.sbhs@gmail.com

News Santa Barbara Arts Fund: The future is now Emmanuel Gonzalez Staff Reporter

In 1983, the County of Santa Barbara Arts Fund was created as an independent nonprofit dedicated to enrich today’s youth with art, education, and culture. They offer mentorships for aspiring teen artists ages thirteen to eighteen. There are several classes available including printmaking, drawing, bronze casting, graphic design, and painting. Students will

learn how to properly master the skills learned in the class that they choose with the help of their mentor. One might ask a few questions like: How does one qualify? How can one afford this? Where is the Arts Fund located?

How does one apply?

To qualify all one needs to do is have taken at least one year of art studio coursework or freshman English. The cost of tuition is paid in full, but the materials cost is $100. However fees

may be waived based on demonstrated need. Individual mentorships take place through Santa Barbara in artist studios, college campuses and at various other venues. To apply one must submit an application and artwork or writing samples before February 22nd at 5pm to be considered. Selection is based on talent and commitment. There are currently two sessions open spring and summer. To submit an application visit their website at www.artsfundsb.org.

U.S. government charged with MLK assasination Alonso Martinez Staff Reporter

On December 8, 1999 in Memphis, Tennessee, the U.S. government was charged with the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. For many years, the government hid this information from the public. It was thought that James Earl Ray was responsible for the murder of Martin Luther King.

It wasn’t until the trial of Loyd Jowers, owner of restaurant Jim’s Grill, said that the shot was heard behind his restaurant.

Therefore, it was impossible for Ray to be the killer because he was renting a room directly above his restaurant in the Lorraine Motel.

Jowers proclaimed that Ray was a scapegoat for the real killer, a Memphis police officer by the name of Lt. Earl Clark. The U.S. Justice department painstakingly tried to dismantle the claims

of Jowers, until Jowers explained how a Memphis produce dealer, gave him (Jowers) $100,000 to hire an assassin and assured him that the police would not be at the scene of the shooting.

Jowers also confessed that he hired a hitman to shoot Dr. King from behind his restaurant. Jowers further maintained that Ray did not shoot Dr. King and that he did not believe Ray knowingly participated in the conspiracy. As a result of the civil case, the King family was awarded 100 dollars, which they donated to charity.

This trial however, gained very little publicity as it was not covered by the mainstream media. To this day, the information is constantly being suppressed and hidden. The outcome of the trial is known by less than ten percent of the American population.

Martin Luther King Jr. spoke on issues regarding racism and civil rights. Photo courtesy of www.biography.com

Polar vortex ravages East Coast

Alyssa Mendibles Staff Reporter

Since January 6th, 2014, the continental United States, from the north east across the plains and as far south as Louisiana, has been besieged by the coldest temperatures in recent memory. It has been as low as sixty below zero in the hardest hit region (when the wind chill is factored in).

This winter storm, which is being referred to as a polar vortex, is a bitter blast of arctic air that began in the north east and brought strong winds and snow to the East Coast. Recorded temperatures are in the single digits, with the temperature in many places dropping as low as zero degrees. According to The National Weather Service, Monday January 6, 2014 was ranked as the 40th coldest day on record since 1900 for the continental United States, with an average temperature of 17.9 degrees for the lower 48 states.

States like Massachusetts have seen up to fifteen inches of snow, and New York has seen over a foot, with more on the way

by Valentine’s Day. The East Coast has been warned by authorities that it will be experiencing heavy winds and dangerous conditions due to this winter storm.

The cause or the severity of this activity is unknown, though some people believe it has to do with global warming and

East coast resident bravely walks through sub-zero temperatures.

Photo courtesy of Jim Young. pollution. Others think it is natural to have this type of weather during this time of the year, and that “unusual” weather is not all that unusual. Weather has become politicized, and (pardon the pun) polarized, with each side intractable and accusing the other of obtuseness--and these heated arguments fall on the deaf ears of families

threatened by the cold. They don’t really care why-they want to know how they will be helped. Unfortunately it will only get worse before it gets better this winter--and in California, where we would welcome a winter storm, we can only watch the rest of the country from the comfort of our beach chairs.

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February 13, 2014

News

Vaccines: The last line of defense

Continued from front page

California’s drought

Sandy Campbell Editor-in-Chief

Resources announced that the State Water Project would not be making any deliveries in 2014 in an effort to conserve water, meaning that municipal water customers and farmers will not be receiving the state water they rely on.

This arid weather and lack of state water deliveries means higher fire dangers, increased electrical costs, severe crop and pasture losses, and, consequently, a rise in food and water prices for the coming months.

“We can’t make it rain, but we can be much better prepared for the terrible consequences that California’s drought now threatens, including dramatically less water for our farms and communities and increased fires in both urban and rural areas,” Governor Brown stated.

“I’ve declared this emergency and I’m calling all Californians to conserve water in every way possible.”

President Obama is scheduled to visit Fresno this Friday to discuss steps that can be taken to manage the drought.

For water-saving tips and more information about water conservation, visit wateruseitwisely.com.

Ed Kaplan News Editor

Numerous viruses that have wreaked havoc and killed millions worldwide were thought to have been contained and almost eradicated in recent decades. A recent trend of avoiding vaccines, however, has prompted a resurgence of deadly viruses.

Some of these life-threatening diseases include the measles, whooping cough, the mumps, and the bacterial infection HIB. Measles, a highly contagious virus which can lead to painful symptoms and death, was almost eliminated from America in the 2000s, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

However, the disease has been slowly making its way back onto American soil from abroad.

People are avoiding medicines and vaccines for a variety of reasons. Some forget, others are tight with money and prefer to spend their livelihood elsewhere, while others believe that vaccines have no major effect on diseases and can lead to other serious medical issues such as autism. In an age with so much corruption, many become

Local MAD activities Sky Ulep Managing Editor

From January 18th to the 22nd, in addition to a trip to Mexico, the Multimedia Arts and Design Academy held two different local options for students to give back to their community.

On Saturday January 18th and Sunday the 19th, MAD students worked at Franklin School and Bohnett Park picking up trash around the area as well as restoring and rebuilding a vegetable garden nearby.

On January 21st to 22nd, students formed teams of ten to create a Public

Service Announcement encouraging healthy living for the Teen Coalition and supported by the Orfalea Foundation.

Each team worked over the two days to create a 30 to 60 second video as well as an informational poster. Though the MAD Academy had never set up an event like this, the students and staff were pleased with the results. “To see kids go from nothing to a polished final video-poster project was impressive,” commented Assistant Director AJ Henning. Overall, the events seemed to be a success and the MAD Academy hopes to run similar activities in the future.

Eight-year-old boy dies saving family in house fire Ciara Tolliver Staff Reporter

On January 22nd, 2014, Tyler Doohan rescued six relatives from a burning mobile home in East Rochester, New York. In a last-ditch effort to save his disabled grandfather, the boy lost his life.

It was approximately 4:30 am when the fire sparked. Tyler woke up his family members, including two small children, and led them out of the burning home. When returning into the blaze, officials say they found Tyler lying on a bed next to his grandfather.

It appeared he was trying to pull up his

grandfather from the bed when they both were succumbed to the smoke and heat.

“Tyler and his grandfather were best friends,” said Crystal Vrooman, Tyler’s Mother. Tyler’s family is extremely proud of him, and they wish the end wasn’t so devastating.

An online fundraiser has raised more than $28,000 for Tyler’s family and his funeral costs. The superintendent of the Tyler’s School District, issued this statement: “In bravely and selflessly giving his own life, he was able to save the lives of six others -- and he truly is a hero.”

Vaccines help protect against harmful diseases such as the measles and whooping cough.

Photo courtesy of DailyRecord. co.uk

disillusioned with “the establishment” and now believe that vaccines are nothing but a money-making con by major pharmaceutical corporations.

The resurgence of these diseases has had an especially heavy toll on infants too young to be vaccinated, as they have a greater risk of developing complications and dying.

The future of disease prevention and health is becoming increasingly uncertain as the number of people refusing to be

vaccinated continues to rise.

“We don’t vaccinate just to protect our children. We also vaccinate to protect our grandchildren and their grandchildren,” says the CDC. “If we keep vaccinating now, parents in the future may be able to trust that diseases like polio and meningitis won’t infect, cripple, or kill children. Vaccinations are one of the best ways to put an end to the serious effects of certain diseases.”

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February 13, 2014

Opinion Redefining Honors Classes Do you want honors classes back? success Maggie Light Guest Contributor

Recently, Mar Romero, makeup artist and hair stylist extraordinaire, a guest speaker in my Freshmen Seminar class, reminded me of a life lesson. Despite finding success in the top 10% of her field, Mar refuses to call herself the best. As she put it, “when you do that, you stop learning.”

It seems a lot can get in the way of learning. It’s not always laziness or apathy. It’s not always a bad home life or bad habits. Sometimes pretense, ambition, status, even opportunity can corrupt intellectual integrity because learning is no longer a process; it’s merely a product to get one someplace or something.

Is an ‘A’ evidence of real learning?

Or has the student who struggled just to maintain a ‘C’ exercised more brainpower than the student who does the work but doesn’t let the work move him/her intellectually, emotionally, or morally? Do we learn so as to develop character and person or is learning merely an educational portfolio?

I don’t remember a time when I wasn’t hungry to expand my awareness and knowledge of the world I live in and the people who inhabit it with me.

I never needed a grade, a career, another person, or the promise of an opportunity to feed my insatiable need to learn. I was willing to grind through it knowing my view only got better the more I persevered, and this was enough reward.

You see, the grade, the career, other people, and opportunity came my way and recognized me as worthy because what each saw was a hard-working individual willing to learn with reflection and humility. They did not see a person who avoided what was difficult, who worked only for the grade or paycheck, or who was willing to compromise integrity for opportunity.

I am not proud of everything I have done in my life. But I am proud of how I was as a student. I didn’t always get an ‘A’ – I’ve experienced a couple of Ds. But I know I put my heart and soul into learning then and commit to doing the same today.

Submit letters to the editor at forge.sbhs@ gmail.com!

150 Santa Barbara High School students were surveyed for this data.

Survey compiled by Sean Perez.

Mian Laurain Editor-in-Chief

In junior high I was a “GATE” student, my freshman and sophomore years of high school I was an “Honors” student, and now I am an “AP” student. This year you are either a College Prep student or an Advanced Placement student (unless of course you’re taking English, which still offers Honors level classes). This isn’t so much of an issue for juniors and seniors; but what about the under classmen who aren’t ready for AP classes but aren’t being challenged enough in CP classes?

What purpose is served by removing

Honors courses? More diversity? Are we talking about educational diversity or racial diversity? It’s no secret that there was a racial divide between College Prep and Honors classes. Although that divide still exists between AP and CP classes, I will report that I’ve seen more diversity with removal of Honors classes.

The main goal of removing Honors classes was to encourage the more “middle of the road students” to reach the Advanced Placement level. The students who are being most negatively affected by this change are the students who fall on the cusp between the two categories. With

only two placement options, students who were pushed up to Advanced Placement are now enrolled in college-level courses, while the other students that would be in Honors are now in College Prep courses.

This strategy of challenging students to take AP classes might work for some, but many students’ GPAs are suffering because of this transition.

Some Advanced Placement classes are being slowed down to accommodate students who are not necessarily qualified to be in those classes, and students who don’t qualify for Advanced Placement are not being sufficiently challenged in their College Preparatory classes.

I personally think more levels of class difficulty better caters to the academic needs of students, and that Honors classes should not have been dropped. Instead of trying to include more diversity (Hispanic students in APs) in high school classes, the Santa Barbara School District should be focusing their energy on making elementary and junior high schools more capable of preparing students for these demanding, higher-level classes. I would love to see more racial diversity in the classes I take, but don’t think high school is where this issue will be best attended too. By the time students reach high school, they have developed so many study and work habits that it’s far more difficult to change their academic course.

Marijuana should stay illegal Mark Gross Staff Reporter

Contrary to the beliefs of those who advocate the legalization of marijuana, the current balanced, restrictive, and bipartisan drug policies of the United States are working reasonably well and have contributed to reductions in the rate of marijuana use in our nation. Even as we speak, the amount of abusers lowers a bit every day.

The rate of current, past 30 day use of marijuana by Americans aged twelve and older in 1979 was 13.2 percent. In 2008 that figure stood at 6.1 percent. This 54 percent reduction in marijuana use over that 29 year period is a major public health triumph, not a failure, as many people would have you believe.

Marijuana is currently the leading cause of substance dependence other than alcohol in the United States. In 2008, marijuana use accounted for 4.2 million of the seven million people aged twelve or older classified with dependence on or abuse of an illicit drug. This means that about two thirds of Americans suffering from any substance use disorder are suffering from marijuana abuse or marijuana dependence. This is due to the fact that people continue to push for its legalization, believing that the benefits outweigh the harms.

An often-touted fact is that legalizing pot will lower its usage. That is false.

Just because gambling is illegal in most

states does not make the rate of illegal gambling go down, in fact it usually increases it. Likewise, legalizing pot will make the rate of usage go up, not down. And we do not want an increase in illicit drug consumption.

If the U.S. were to legalize marijuana, the number of marijuana users would increase. Today there are 15.2 million current marijuana users in comparison to 129 million alcohol users and 70.9 million tobacco users. Though the number of marijuana users might not quickly climb to the current numbers for alcohol and tobacco, if marijuana was legalized, the increase in users would be both large and rapid with subsequent increases in addiction.

Important lessons can be learned from those two widely-used legal drugs. While both alcohol and tobacco are taxed and regulated, the tax benefits to the public are vastly overshadowed by the adverse consequences of their use.

Alcohol-related costs total over $185 billion while federal and states collected an estimated $14.5 billion in tax revenue; similarly, tobacco use costs over $200 billion but only $25 billion is collected in taxes. These figures show that the costs of legal alcohol are more than twelve times the total tax revenue collected, and that the costs of legal tobacco are about eight times the tax revenue collected. This is an economically disastrous trade-off.

The costs of legalizing marijuana would not only be financial. New marijuana users would not be limited to adults if marijuana were legalized, just as regulations on alcohol and tobacco do not prevent use by youth.

Another byproduct of legalization will be the increase of incidents of people driving while high. Once again, this will cause obvious problems like an increase in traffic accidents and deaths related to driving accidents.

In conclusion, the legalization of pot would lead to the falling health of Americans, an upsurge in use, and more economic damage than benefit due to the nature of the activities that people do under the influence. So for the sake of our countries future, we must not legalize this drug.

The views and opinions published in The Forge newspaper are not necessarily those of The Forge or any of its affiliated organizations, including Santa Barbara High School, advertisers, and so forth. Each editorial represents only the views of the specific reporter(s).

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February 13, 2014

Opinion Radical feminism 101 Isabel James and Olivia Ranson Freelance Reporters

What do you think of when you hear the word Feminist?

Often when I tell people I am feminist I get a response along the lines of, “so you hate men?” or “that movement ended when women got the right to vote.” A good majority of the United States population thinks of feminism in its stereotype: a bunch of angry, bitter, unshaven, “ugly” white lesbians who hate men. However, this is not what it means to be a feminist.

Hopefully, by the end of this article, you will have a better understanding of the complexity of feminism and what we, as feminists, are really about.

So what is feminism? Basically feminism

is anti-oppression and anti-hierarchy. While many see the feminist movement as focusing on only women’s rights, in recent years there have been power dynamics within the feminist community. In example, white, middle-class cisgender straight women having all the power, which marginalizes others within our own community. Now we see feminism as a movement that seeks to include everyone and tear down harmful power structures individually as well as systematically. The ideology behind this is that you can’t destroy one type of oppression without destroying all of them, because all aspects of a persons identity are intersectional. For example, a queer women of color’s experience with oppression is going to be different than a straight white

woman’s due to intersectionality. While the white woman may be oppressed because of her gender, she is still privileged by being white and straight, where as the queer women of color will experience racism, sexism, and heterosexism intersectionally.

Overall, feminism is the idea that all forms of oppression should be abolished. Taking it a step further, Radical feminism looks at intersectionality as well as the ways in which systematic oppression is taught, valued, and accepted as normal in our culture through capitalism.

Feminism is needed in order to strive for equality; although we have made progress over the years, our country, and even world still have a long way to go. Racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and more are

still alive and well. Some people may think these social injustices no longer exist because it isn’t as apparent as slavery or not being able to vote, but oppression can be subtle. In the media, the idealized families that are represented are usually white, middle-class, straight, thin, able-bodied, cisgender people. Although T.V shows have been getting more progressive, diversity is still noticed and applauded instead of being seen in the media being as normal. These are what we call micro-aggressions.

Feminism is a HUGE topic and movement that can hardly be covered in a short article. Hopefully people have a better understanding of what radical feminism really is.

Experiences: My MAD Academy trip to Mexico On January 18th, 2014, the MAD Academy headed south to help the impoverished people of Villo Redondo, Mexico. Upon crossing the border, you could automatically tell that we had entered a zone of depression and desolation.

Trash littered the street, buildings stood abandoned, packs of stray dogs roamed about, graffiti covered every available surface; it was a mess. It did however have electricity and running water. As we continued on to the site where we would set up camp, the areas alongside the roads filled up with more and more shacks built precariously onto the cliff side. Eventually, our caravan of vehicles reached the site where we would be staying for the next four days. Upon arriving, we quickly unpacked our gear and set up the tents. After a brief campfire meeting in which we outlined the objectives that we planned to achieve, we

Mark Gross Staff Reporter

went to sleep.

The next morning we woke up early at 7:00 am, and after a good breakfast we rolled out to the site where the houses were to be built. Needless to say, the living conditions were even worse than they were near the border. No running water at all, trash fires everywhere, and even larger packs of stray dogs whose size seemed to grow the closer we got to the construction zone. The work sites were set up on a hill overlooking the small community, allowing a clear field of vision around the neighborhood.

We then began our labors by digging the pit for the concrete foundations that would serve as the floor for the house. It was a tough job, but honest work is good for the human soul. Even when it got warmer out and there seemed to be more rocks than dirt in the ground, there was very little grumbling from our team. The only complaints were that we were falling behind the other teams.

Natalie’s News:

Natalie Ochsner Freelance Reporter

My mom is always giving me clippings from magazines and newspapers, and usually they’re all about the same thing: teens who enter the work force and are confronted with a rude awakening; that they’re not really as “special” as their parents said. In fact, they’re incompetent. I never considered myself to be one of these “coddled” kids until recently, that is.

Here’s what happened: I applied for a parttime job and was promptly contacted by the manager to set a date and time for the interview.

I went to the interview and was hired right on the spot. I found this to be a little strange. I had basically zero experience, and I just turned eighteen, making me barely old enough for the job. After my third day of training they said that I was ready to start working on my own and closing up by myself. The thought of it was kind of scary and I didn’t really feel comfortable. But because they seemed to think I was ready for this I went along with it.

When closing up the next day, I did everything right. I followed their instructions exactly! The day after however, I got a call

After a brief twenty-minute lunch break, we got down to the challenging part: mixing enough concrete to make the foundation. Concrete dust sticks to everything, so by the end of the day most people were covered in white dust, as well as wet cement and sweat from the heavy exertions of mixing concrete.

On day two, we finished building the frames of the house and raised the walls.

The frames themselves weren’t that heavy or intricate, but to get the wiring on them done correctly meant that we would have to hammer in each nail individually; making the overall process very time consuming. It got even hotter than the day before despite the fact that the night and morning of that very day had been freezing. However, teamwork and hard work meant that by the end of the day, we had the frame up and secured to the foundation.

On the third day, it was time for the roof to come on and the walls to be wrapped

in tar paper and stucco. We set to work nailing the plywood boards to the frame of the house and began to roll the tar paper onto the walls of the house. After that, we rolled the chicken wire out onto the hose and nailed it to the frame. We installed the doors, and boom. We had a house up.

Other teams that were farther ahead than us began the process of stuccoing, but at the end of the day, all houses were standing. We waved goodbye to the families that we had gotten to know over the past several days and headed back to camp for the last time.

The last night, we gathered around the campfire to recap on all the experiences we had had on the job. Many of us had bonded with the families that we had been helping and more than a few of us were sad to go.

In the morning we broke camp and packed up our gear before we headed back across the border into the states. Then we broke up the convoy, and we all headed home to recover from the trip.

My horrible job experience

from the manager saying that the computer cash register thing wasn’t working correctly and wasn’t allowing her to make transactions. Kind of a big deal. I told her I had no idea why it wasn’t working. I had done everything right and didn’t have any reason to suspect it would do this.

When I showed up at work the next day, the computer was working, but apparently I wasn’t. I was fired without an explanation.

And to top it all off, the manager wasn’t the one who fired me--no, they left that to the post-college-graduate-twenty-somethingprobably-only-making-nine-dollars-an-hour employee. Too dumbfounded to fully pay attention to what she was saying, I caught the phrase “this isn’t working,” which I’m guessing is a euphemism for they think I’m incapable of using a cash register. When I asked her why exactly I was fired she said she didn’t really know. Clearly this employee had been told what to say.

I came home confused, frustrated, and ultimately crushed. It wasn’t that I no longer had a job; it was my self-esteem that was damaged. I felt like my entire life’s work had been invalidated, every good

test grade, every extracurricular activity, every college I’d been accepted to, none of it mattered anymore because of one thing: according to these people, I couldn’t work a cash register. I thought back to the articles my mom had forced me to read, about the incompetent kids who couldn’t handle the “real world.” Was I one of them? My initial thought was yes, I was, because I got fired from some menial front desk job that pays nine dollars an hour.

The more I thought about it, however, the more I started to suspect that maybe it wasn’t completely my fault I had failed-maybe I had been set up to fail. I didn’t really have any experience, which my employer could have figured out if she’d read my extremely unimpressive resume.

I looked at my paycheck and calculated that I had been given all of seven hours of training before being left on my own, half of which was spent on things other than the cash register.

Maybe I am a little incompetent, but competence comes with experience, doesn’t it? Even if the malfunction was my fault, I should have had more training. Any

inexperienced high school student could have screwed up at this, but does this mean we’re all losers? Based on this particular businesses’ standards, I’m evidently unqualified, but how was I supposed to know this? I thought they knew exactly what they were getting into when they hired me. It was just as much their fault as it was mine! If they wanted someone who could pick up on things as quickly as the other employees had, they should have hired someone with similar qualifications.

I’m not saying I never screw up. I screw up as much as any other teenager. I’m just saying that maybe in this cause, I was just a victim of some seriously twisted business practices.

I wanted to know why I was fired, but I was too much of a wimp to call the manager and ask, so I asked my dad to do it for me.

Everything I thought was right! She said I was a hard worker, and it was their fault for not giving me enough training. She also said that the owner had previously fired three other, also inexperienced, girls! I wasn’t alone! I had learned a valuable lesson-sometimes, it really isn’t your fault!

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February 13, 2014

Features Artist of the Month: Johnny Weger Mian Laurain Editor-in-Chief

Johnny Weger is a senior at SBHS. Photo courtesy of Alina Ibarra-Ruiz.

time is consumed by pursuing his academic career, he always finds time to indulge in his passion for music. He spends roughly two to three hours a week to practicing, and performs two to five hours every week with multiple local bands such as The 805 Experiment, Santa Barbara City College Monday Madness, and the Santa Barbara Jazz Collective.

Johnny, performing with various bands, has played gigs at Soho, Arnoldi’s Restaurant, Country Clubs, and other local restaurants.

Johnny’s Curious about drum transportation,

Johnny Weger (commonly referred to as “Weger” or “J-Weegz”), a well-known senior at SBHS, is a talented drummer for the SBHS jazz band and several other groups in Santa Barbara. “I’ve been drumming for about eight years now, and I became interested when a group of local musicians came to my elementary school and let us try out some different instruments.” Johnny has taken drumming lessons from local musician Craig Thatcher for many years. Although his staple instrument is the drums, he has dappled with other instruments, and is self-taught on the piano.

Although

much

of

Paper Becchio dolls!

I asked Johnny if the locations he plays at usually provide a drum-set.

“It’s always nice when I don’t have to bring my drum-set, but I usually end up having to.” Although he mostly performs varieties of Jazz, Weger plays a wide-range of genres including Pop, Latin, and Hip-hop.

When asked “how many drums could a drummer drum, if a drummer drummed the drums?” J-Weegz thoughtfully responded, “A lot of drums.” Weger will be attending college next year, and says that he will definitely continue to play in college and for the rest of his life.

Drawings by Alida Seigel

For tips on how to make your Becchio doll last, visit sbhsforge.com

bend here

Marching Dons Becchio

Principal’s Luau

Scream Team Becchio

7

February 13, 2014

creative Writing I Hate Everyone Emma Cisek Entertainment Editor

I hate everyone.

That’s my favorite thing to say, with “everyone” being interchangeable with “everything” and “myself.” I say any of those three phrases out loud at least five times a day, and think them to myself maybe ten times or more. I could probably write a dissertation on why I am compelled to think this way, but for the sake of this article I will keep it short and sweet.

Being a high school student (obviously), I spend a majority of my time at school, where coincidently (or not), much of my hatred is fueled. I hate the kid with whom I have three classes who volunteers to read aloud all the time even though he has a stutter. I hate the kids who refuses to let my teacher begin class in the morning asking; “can this be a partner quiz?,” “can we just outline this essay?,” “can we have class outside?,” (even though it may be below 60 degrees) – the answer is always no. I hate walking, in the hallways or outside. Why are you stopping here? Pull over. Walk on the right side. Get out of my way. Don’t touch me. I hate seeing the girl(s) who have kissed my boyfriend; why are you the one giving me the dirty looks?

I hate kids who point out my academic faults: “APES isn’t considered an AP class by most colleges,” “I got a 5 on the AP exam what did you get? Oh…a 2?

Oh…” I hate people who get upset when they don’t have an A in every class, FYI a B isn’t the end of the world. I hate people, especially girls, who are better than me in anyway. If you are smarter, prettier, better dressed than me, etc., I hate you. I don’t really hate you, I hate myself, but I also

hate you for making me look bad, and therefore hate myself. I hate people who make me feel secondhand embarrassment.

I hate mean people.

I think that’s it. That is as far as I can go without being too specific and running the risk of everyone hating me. I want to be clear: I am not mean. A vast majority of you reading this most likely have no idea who I am, and will base your opinion of me solely on this article and possibly my Facebook page if you look into it after reading this. So, I want to make sure you all know that I am not mean! Hate is just my favorite word. Even so, when I use the word hate, it does not carry the same meaning every time.

Like some teenagers throw around the word love without thought, I do the same with the word hate; when I say it, in the moment I think I mean it, but in retrospect hate is just an umbrella word used to describe all my other negative emotions because I have a poor vocabulary. I totally wish I could be one of those girls who’s always smiling, saying “hi” to literally everyone she knows in the hall, like Patty Simcox in Grease. Sadly I am the oh-sotypical, Wednesday Addams, Daria-esque, grumpy teenage girl. And I hate everyone.

This article has no moral or punch line; it’s just a 16-year-old girl using her school’s newspaper as a form of therapy (diaries are lame). It’s also a shout out to whoever feels the same way – and since hating people is cool these days I’m sure there are a lot of you – haters rule. And one last thing, if I’ve ever given you dirty looks in the halls, that’s kind of just my face…sorry.

How to use a trampoline correctly Maisie Zimmerman Freelance Reporter

Dear Readers, The best thing to do on a Friday afternoon is to hop on your tramp and go bananas.

Trampolines are one of the closest things Earth has to magic. The feeling of soaring in the air, stomach dropping, hair flapping on your back, adrenaline rush.. all part of the thrilling package.

For the first tip, try pumping up the jam! No one wants to hear themselves panting or the sound of their boobs flapping up and down!

Put on some upbeat tunage and get jumping. Time will fly, just like you will be.

The second tip is too not get on a trampoline with someone who is a show off. I know it’s “really impressive” that they can do a flip, but don’t try doing it unless you’ve practiced. It’s more embarrassing to wipe out, break your neck, and spend the night in the hospital.

Lastly, number three is a biggie. Give your trampoline life! Don’t let it sit helplessly in the backyard! Keep it active, and lively. Some things you can do on a trampoline besides jumping are: sleeping, playing a game, doodling, listening to music, picnicking, or brushing your hair.

Good luck ladies and gents.

Dogs > Humans 1. If you have ever looked into a dog’s eyes, you know their feelings are genuine.

When they excitedly wiggle their butt, it’s undeniable that they are stoked, and when they tuck their sad little tail between their legs, they are definitely unhappy. Besides the obvious fact that dogs can’t speak, there is an evident truth that they also can’t lie.

2. Humans are (or think they are) complicated creatures. That’s because we don’t communicate well enough, so we just end up being confused about emotions. Dogs are very expressive of their feelings; in body language, facial expressions, and even in vocals. It’s always clear what your furry buddy is feeling.

3. Have you ever seen a human get stoked to go on a car ride? Well maybe you have, but I’m sure it doesn’t hold a candle to when my dog sees me walking to my car: tail wagging, ears perked, body-backwards hopping, tongue flopping and a big doggy smile. Things like seeing a cat, going to the beach, smelling a good smelly smell, peeing in the perfect spot, having someone scratch your neck, or even getting the same meal for the thousandth time make dogs euphoric. I wish humans were more stoked on life and appreciated the little things as much. Think about how much happier we would all be.

4. Dogs have no responsibility for global warming. Unlike our canine Mian Laurain Editor-in-Chief

friends, we are greedy commercial consumers and wasters. Dogs only need and only want the necessities (although they also appreciate a treat every now and then).

5. My first dog’s name was Guapo, which means handsome in Spanish. He was a beautiful creature! Overall dogs are far more attractive than humans.

Even the “ugly” dogs are pretty cute.

It’s much harder for humans to be “ugly-cute.”

6. Dogs have very few bad characteristics.

7. They live in the present (though it might be because of lower comprehension of time). Dogs don’t dwell on past events or worry about the future. To them everything is happening now (and it is).

8. They are far more loyal and consistent companions than most humans.

9. Dogs are adventurous, always eager to go, and (unless they are locked in a cage) are not lazy creatures.

10. Dogs don’t get weirded out if I talk to them in a goofy, high-pitched voice, whereas most people would look at me very concerned and think there was something wrong with me. As a matter of fact, dogs like you a lot more when you use a cartoon-like voice.

11. Dogs are never self-conscious.

They enjoy being their naked doggy selves all day, every day. They don’t mind peeing in front of others, or looking gross when they eat.

8

February 13, 2014

Do you feel pressure to date/be in a relationship?

Winter formal: Do you have a date?

Winter Formal, Homecoming, Prom. When first hearing about these events, some questions that come to mind are “Am I going to get a date?,” “Will somebody ask me?,” “Will I ask anybody?,” and most of all, “Does anybody even want to go with me?” An easy solution to these situations that seem to require a date (like Homecoming and Prom) is to go with a group of friends! I did, and trust me, I wouldn’t have had it any other way!

As Winter Formal approaches, some of you may be thinking, “Oh my gosh! I can’t go because I have no date!” I am here to tell you that you are wrong! As a member of ASB, I want to erase the misconception that Winter Formal is a date dance or a girls-ask-guys dance.

A few years ago ASB made “girls ask guys” the Winter Formal theme for that year. Since then, most students have believed that this theme is a Winter Formal tradition, and since then ASB has had to deal with the task of convincing the student body otherwise. Due to this confusion, Winter Formal has experienced low-attendance the past few years. Many students falsely believe that “girls ask guys” is a Winter Formal tradition, when the real tradition is King of Hearts. We all know how important traditions are at SBHS, and for us to not support this dance is wrong.

Winter Formal is not a couples dance or a girls-ask-guys dance; it’s a whatever-kind-ofdance-you-want-to-make-it dance. Go with a group of friends like I am, and I guarantee you’ll have a great time. In fact, not having to stress of being asked or asking someone to come with you can make your night more enjoyable. Seniors especially should come out and support the school! This is probably your last chance to attend this dance. Come with a date or a group of friends. No matter who you end up going with, it’s up to you to make that night memorable!

Ahtziri Hernandez Freelance Reporter

Do you live in a corn field? Cause I’m stalking you.

Santa Barbara relationship This one time I broke up with this guy and then he got really upset and freaked out. I changed to a different school for a semester, but came back in fall the next year and I was walking to lunch and much to my surprise he hit me with a skate board. Like 3 days later he was put on house arrest, and now I have a restraining order against him.

Female (11)

We got back to the house at around midnight. There were three of us girls and four boys. We spent a couple hours just listening to music, talking, and taking shots. I got to the point where I thought I was going to pass out, so I went to an empty bed and got under the covers. It didn’t take him very long to come in. I was almost asleep when he knocked on the door. I told him he could come in, so he entered the room and got in bed with me. We talked for a only a few minutes before we started making out. I then told him I was just too tired, and that he could sleep in the bed, but I didn’t want to continue hooking up. He didn’t listen. He kept pushing.

I thought he was cute, although I had heard some bad things about him. I’ve always been attracted to “tortured soul” type boys. I didn’t get angry, because I thought the alcohol was an excuse for his behavior. He tried to take my pants off. I kept telling him I didn’t want to, I was too tired, and I was afraid. He took his clothes off and tried to force himself on me. He must have heard me telling him I didn’t want to, but he wasn’t listening.

“You’re beautiful,” “I want you so bad,” “Please, I’m so horny.” I almost felt bad for him. I’m not a weak person (mentally) and I would have never let it get this far, had I been sober. I initially was down to make out with him, and may have even been inviting in my subliminal actions. There is sometimes a fine line between “playing hard to get” and not being interested. I said no so many times, and every time I said it, the stronger I meant it.

When he held my arms down, I started to panic. I knew exactly how I felt. I was no longer questioning if I maybe I did want to be with him. I was scared, and I felt helpless. I stopped moving for a minute, and forced my scrambled brain to create a plan. I pushed him, he got defensive, he was aggressive, I pushed him again. He got angry at me, as if he didn’t understand why I was trying to get him off me. I wrapped myself in a blanket and walked to the room where everyone was still sitting.

I sat down and acted as if it didn’t happen.

- Anonymous

I wanna live in your socks so I can be with you every step of the way.

The month of Feb for playing hos Day, a celebrat love that is drea and singles alike Forge sports an of unconventiona experiences, an pertaining to rel lack

Since I was 13, I’ve h me, my boyfriend(at th my parents. I guess it’ wrong time type of th caught making out som been. Both times only I boy. It’s basically all in time ended in a break u started a relationship th Female (11)

I honestly can’t remem into a long-standing arg I do however recall pr argument through the u presentation and sub someone is 100% hon conflict will usually fall a with someone’s true fee however, too many peo strength or confidence conflict evolves into som Male (11)

Do you have a sunburn, or are you always this hot?

My relationship with my sister has dwindled over the past few months, as she has entered puberty. It sometimes reaches a point where for no reason what-so-ever, she will hit me with either her hands or with an object around her.

After a while however she will realize her mistake and apologize. The way I try to fix this weird problem is by playing Xbox with her since that’s what brings us closer together at any point in time. Then I will try to take her side in any argument, but only if she was in the right and not in the wrong. Hopefully my relationship with my sister will get better throughout the upcoming months. I honestly love my sister and I don’t want to be on her bad side for any reason what-so-ever.

Male (11)

Surveys compil

9

February 13, 2014

a High School’s kaleidoscope

bruary is infamous st to Valentines tion of romantic aded by couples e. This issue of The eclectic display al stories, advice, nd observations lationships (or a k of).

“If you love a flower, don’t pick it up. Because I you pick it up it dies and it ceases to be what you love. So If you love a flower, let it be. Love is not about possession. Love is about appreciation.” –Osho

had two incidents involving he time), the police, and ’s sort of a wrong place hing but twice I’ve been mewhere I shouldn’t have I got in trouble, not the n the past now. The first up, but the second time hat has lasted over a year.

Are you religious?

Because you’re the answer to all my prayers.

mber the last time I got gument with someone. roving my side of an use of a power point btle propaganda. If nest and genuine the apart. You can’t argue elings. In sober reality ople do not have the to be genuine so the mething worse.

led by Sean Perez

In 7th grade I made a new group of friends and I thought they were the nicest, most trustworthy people ever. Everything was good in the beginning of the year we all were friends and we hang out all the time. We told each other everything. Towards the end of the year an incident happened where the people I thought I could trust hurt me and told lies about me. I lost many of my friends that I had because of that. I just told them how I felt and if they didn’t treat me the right way I don’t want to be friends with them. I lost those friends but gained new ones who I’m very close with today.

Female (9)

If beauty were time, you’d be eternity.

My brother and I get into small little fights a lot, about a bunch of little different things. Usually I give time for us both to cool down, then the next time we see each other or make contact that day I will crack a joke and we both will laugh together. After that we sort of silently know things are good between us again!

Female (11)

You are so beautiful that I would marry your brother just to get into your family.

You better call Life Alert, ‘cause I’ve fallen for you and I can’t get up.

I was asked recently to participate in a survey by The Forge, asking whether I thought lesbian couples are more accepted at this school than gay couples.

Because this is not a topic that is regularly brought up, it made me think; I soon came to the conclusion that gay couples are less socially accepted in high school--or at least at this school.

The survey reminded me of when I went out with another man that went to this school. Many students stared openly at us. We held hands once while walking through the main hall, and at least fifteen people stopped and stared at us, I guess because it is was so unusual to see two men holding hands. I pulled away after a few minutes because I felt uncomfortable knowing that I was getting the death glare by many male students at the school.

At that moment I realized that this school is not as open as I thought it was with gay couples.

A few days later, my boyfriend and I saw multiple lesbian couples holding hands, and no one was staring at them. We thought, “if they can hold hands without other people staring, we should be able to also.” So we decided to hold hands again around the school, and again, people began staring at us right away. We quickly stopped. We felt very uncomfortable after that moment, and felt that we could not be accepted at this school for who we are.

Although on the outside many people seem to be accepting of gay couples, it is hard for me to show that I am comfortable with my sexuality because I feel like I am constantly being judged. I have talked to many lesbians who say they always feel welcome at SBHS and that they do not get the kind of negative reactions from students that I do.

Really, think about it: if you were to walk through campus, how many lesbian couples would you see? I’m betting at least one. The two girls may not even be a couple, but it is still more common to see girls holding hands than two guys. Even I would be shocked to see two men holding hands at this school.

In many situations, two girls can make out in front of a group of people and the guys will encourage them to keep going. These guys might post it on their story on snapchat because they are proud that they were there when it happened. If two guys were to do the same thing however, they would be shamed, and many people would leave the party because they would feel uncomfortable with the situation.

This also brings up the scenario of a straight man dating a bisexual woman and not minding that the woman is bisexual. However, if the tables were to turn and the guy was bisexual, he would not have a girlfriend because many straight girls are not as accepting as they want to appear.

Despite everything that is said about SBHS being an accepting community, I feel that this school has a long way to go in becoming a truly accepting and loving community, especially with regard to gay couples.

- Anonymous I’m a senior in high school and I have never had a boyfriend. Not completely by accident; I was asked out a couple of times in junior high, but I guess I just have high standards. I haven’t had a serious crush on anyone in four years, and I don’t know if it’s because I am not social enough with boys, or perhaps boys are interested in me. I guess I’d rather be single than pretend to have feelings for someone I don’t.

Female (12)

10

February 13, 2014

Features Dear Don...

The Forge’s advice column!

Dear Don, I’ve had a giant crush on this guy, but I’ve never told anyone.

Yesterday my best friend told me he asked her out to a movie on Saturday. I don’t know what to do!

Do I have the right to be jealous?

-Lost Girl

Dear Don, It’s my senior year and I haven’t got any of my community service done. I have so much going on, applying to colleges and just getting good grades. How can I get all my hours and juggle college apps and school?

-Dead Meat

Dear Lost Girl, I understand how you feel. I think you should talk to your best friend about how you feel. If you do this, you can mend your friendship before it’s too late. You do have a right to be jealous, but don’t overdo it.

You should support your friend, even if you are jealous.

- Don

Dear Dead Meat, Community service hours are definitely a huge part of your high school work load!

Without them you can’t graduate. I would say start tutoring underclassmen, or start TA and working sports events. There are some good community service suggestions on page eleven on this issue!

- Don

Dear Don, My birthday is coming up and I don’t know what to do for it. My friends say I should have a party but I’m scared no one will show up if I do. What should I do?

-Worrywart

Dear Worrywart, I think you should do what you want to. It is your birthday after all!

If you want to have a party you should because you’ll regret it if you don’t. Not everybody had to come, it can be just you and your friends. And if you don’t want to have one, then don’t! Don’t get upset over it! It’s your day.

- Don

Need advice from Don? Email us at forge.sbhs@gmail.com!

Things Overheard in the Hallway

Thank you EF International for meeting with The Forge!

be your only focus right now, so put the pedal to the metal. Full fledged school, be every nerdy stereotype you can think of.

Straight-up Erkle from Family Matters: your life. School, school, *pushes taped glasses up your nose* school.

Taurus

You can only be paranoid if people really are out to get you. Recently you may have made some selfish decisions as well as some enemies. Wear the wrong colors, be cautious.

Gemini

Quit making googly eyes at your crush from across the room and actually talk to them. We are still young, and you will look back on yourself with pride, when you remember that time you actually asked your crush out. Confidence is key here. Watch some self-motivation videos on YouTube, and then get to work.

Time is ticking.

Be careful about who you hang out with. One of them will give you a bitter sickness, so make sure you get your flu shot at your nearest CVS.

Leo

You have hit an unfortunate low point. This summer will also be a low point for you, so try and make the next couple months of school really rad.

“90% of statistics are made up on the spot.”

Virgo You’ve made it through the first

semester, and you can definitely make it through the next. This semester you are going to be bold and, like, yolo a lot. Be you. Be craze-ay.

“People always whisper when I walk by.”

Libra

“When we first met, I didn’t think we would be friends. I was right.”

A powerful book will come your way, so life changing that you will have a new perspective on life. Take that piece of literature and engrave it into your lifestyle to feel a fresh outlook on the way you live.

“I overhear people saying ‘cynical’ and ‘sarcastic’ and I automatically think they’re talking about me.”

Scorpio You have been too egotistical recently. Stop worrying about your own petty “problems” and insecurities.

Honestly, wow, grow up. There are children starving in Africa.

Person 1: “Look fool, I’m even late to class for you.”

Person 2: “I know fool, I love you man.”

Sagittarius

Definitely stay inside.

Make your room cozy, stock up on ramen, and go into hibernation. You can come out when the groundhog says it’s okay.

Capricorn

Go out of your way to be nice. Even if the world seems to be against you right now, even if no one is being nice to you - Smile, wave to people, help people, be a good person, and have positive energy. Things will change.

“Since we’re in a drought, why don’t we just make more water?”

Person 1: “You’re a wimp for always complaining.”

Person 2: “Well you’re a wimp for not tolerating my complaining.”

Aeries Get good grades. School should

Cancer

“That gave me chills, but for the wrong reasons.”

“I’m not Jewish, but I love the Jews.”

Horoscopes

  

Aquarius You will get big waves this

month. There will be many large swells.

Much rain will come, but only at night and not over President’s Day weekend.

Congratulations friends.

Pisces Be more comfortable. Make a

conscious effort to be less anxious and stressed. This month is the month you should take the time to organize and destress your life.

11

February 13, 2014

Features Staff Spotlight:

Patrick Murphy

Mr. Murphy teaches statistics at SBHS. Photo courtesy of Autusa Paradisi..

Niki Freeland Business Manager

SBHS statistics teacher Mr. Murphy was born in New Jersey and grew up in Williamstown in western Massachusetts with his mother and stepfather. He attended Mount Greylock Regional High

School in Massachusetts. “I was always a good student in high school. I liked math and english, and generally had a pretty happy childhood,” says Murphy.

“I liked high school a lot. I had friends in school, and then I had a different set of friends outside of school. It was good, I have fond memories.” After high school, Mr. Murphy went to Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where he majored in English.

Outside of school, Mr. Murphy spends most of his time doing things with his son, Hugh. “He’s in the third grade, so a lot of baseball practice, soccer practice, and Cub Scouts,” says Murphy. His family recently adopted their first dog. “Hes a chihuahuacorgi mix from a shelter in Ojai. His name is Andy.” His birthday is on April 4th, his favorite food is pizza, and his favorite color is “midnight blue.”

Mr. Murphy comments on his favorite part of teaching, “I think it keeps me feeling young- being around kids, trying to stay current. I enjoy it.” An advocate of students applying their full effort, Murphy says that his least favorite thing a student can do is refuse to try. “Mischief, I think, is not as bad as when a kid refuses to try.”

Shout out to all the senior slackers!

Ashlen Weddington Freelance Reporter

I know there are a lot of you out there.

It’s second semester and we don’t want to do much of anything (besides turning up, that is). Four more months and we can burn our math notes and sleep in until one.

Just hold on, and breathe; we’re almost there. Maybe you’re finished with credits and are ready to graduate; but have you made sure you have finished your fifty hours of community service? Please check with your counselor or the career center, because it would be incredibly embarrassing if you didn’t graduate due to your lack of community service hours.

Community service is seriously the easiest graduation requirement to complete.

Fifty hours go by so quickly, especially if you’re volunteering for something you enjoy. You could potentially discover what you’re passionate about, and figure out what you want to do with your life.

Coaching Special Olympics sports has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my high school career.

I planned on only doing fifty hours and stopping, but have now completed one hundred and fifty hours and I am coaching the track team this season. The Special Olympics athletes are some of the most enthusiastic and determined individuals I have ever met. Everyone shows up to

practice with a smile on their face, always excited to learn and play their sport.

Despite their disabilities (many of the athletes have Down’s Syndrome, Autism, or Asperger’s) the athletes have a great time and lead a very active lifestyle. I’m super stoked to go to practice because I get to hang out with an amazing group of people who always put me in a good mood. For the spring season, we really need coaches for track, basketball, bocce ball and swimming. Practices are only an hour and a half on Saturday, and I promise you won’t be wasting your time.

If Special Olympics doesn’t sound right for you, there are so many organizations that would love to have you as a volunteer.

Right across from our school is the Boys & Girls club, where you can help coach a sport or teach music. Ask Jose, the environmental science teacher, about helping maintain the Arroyo Hondo trail.

If you’re not a fan of being outdoors, you can volunteer at Art from Scrap, the Museum of Art, the Museum of Natural History, or the public library. You can even ask a teacher if you could assist them if you want to stay on campus. There are less than four months left, so just get it done!

Visit www.newspress.com/npsite/crisis_ cnp.html for a complete list of community service opportunities!

Trending now: What’s hip at SBHS? Matthew Wallock Freelance Reporter

Not Eating Gluten

used-car.” But it’s a cheap price to pay for warmth, casual Patagonia-related You do not small talk, and a sense of controlled need to have celiac disease or gluten adventure. After all, there’s an Yvon sensitivity to starve yourself of most Chouinard in all of us… right? carbohydrates! This diet, popularized Overpriced Juice by highly competitive athletes I was recently admonished for (i.e.: Serbian tennis star Novak describing a certain type of juice as a Djokovic and Canadian runner Nate puree. “You don’t puree juice, Matthew, Brannen), paranoid fitness freaks, you press it,” quipped one SBHS juice and orthorexics (people who have aficionado as if I had offended any an unhealthy obsession with eating non-blended beverages within earshot. “healthy”), is permeating the halls of At local juiceries, boutiques, and even Santa Barbara High School. While the some grocery stores, you can pay an science behind gluten-free eating is absurd amount of money for a few controversial, this diet is undeniably ounces of liquefied fruits and veggies! becoming more and more popular.

Why would you want to make an On your next lunch date make sure to affordable and delicious smoothie in bring a few extra bucks to cater to your the comfort of your own home if you friends’ unnecessary-but-potentiallycould just drive to the nearest juice beneficial food restrictions. For people retailer and pay somebody else to serve who are genuinely gluten-intolerant, you a nearly-identical, underwhelming however, this is not exactly a New product? Even more confusing is the Year’s resolution or a passing fad. fact that the Pressed Juicery website reads: “GUILT-FREE SWEETS.” “Lulu’s” At Santa Barbara High School Nothing complements an overpriced alone, there are hoards of females (and jacket like an overpriced cup of spinachprobably some males, too) who are infused OJ. Yum! crazy about wearing the same skinStaring at Your Lap in Class tight-stretchy-pants for all occasions.

Many of you stare intently at your No further explanation needed. laps on a daily basis. I don’t know who decided that the best place to text in class Overpriced Outerwear is as close to your genitals as possible, As all of you know, Santa Barbara is but this behavior is quite popular at a frigid place come February. Whether SBHS. If you are going to use your you are trying to survive extreme phone in class, you may as well just put winter weather or extreme social it on your desk. Seriously. If I were a pressure, Patagonia is calling your teacher, I would much rather know that name (and I am not referring to the my students are texting than have to land conservation in Chile). REI is a wonder why they are simultaneously Patagonia hotspot, and these pseudostaring at their laps, smirking, and outdoorsy jackets range in price from holding a suspicious object in their “wow-that’s-expensive” to “are-youhands. serious?” to “maybe-it-comes-with-a-

Ten photos you should stop posting on social media 4. The beach 5. Poolside pics 6. Starbucks 7. Food 1. Sunsets 2. “Just got my liscense/car” 3. Selfies

8. Quotes 9. Animals 10. Plane wings

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February 13, 2014

Entertainment The Secret Review of Music of the Night 2014 Life of Walter Mitty Andrew Tighe Freelance Reporter

It is important to live your life to its fullest and to know who you truly are. To perform something significant in your life that you will look back on and be happy you did it.

Most times you can only dream of doing something as exiting as scaling a volcano or travelling across the world, but with the right motivation you will find that anything is possible. And it is this philosophy that is discovered by the protagonist in the newest movie from New Line Cinema, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

An enchanting film produced by and starring Ben Stiller, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty tells the story of lonely daydreamer Walter Mitty (Stiller), a mildmannered photography manager at Life magazine who frequently distracts himself from his banal duties by fantasizing of epic adventures and pursuing his coworker and secret crush Cheryl (Kristen Wiig). After being informed his magazine will be printing its final issue before being converted to an online editorial, Walter becomes alarmed after finding the photograph that was meant to be the cover picture of the final magazine is nowhere to be seen among the mail sent to him by well-known photojournalist Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn). Threatened with being fired early by his overbearing superior Ted Hendricks (Adam Scott), Walter finds himself abandoning his quiet lifestyle to embark on an adventure of epic proportions in order to find O’Connell and the missing photograph.

Mitty’s adventures describe an ordinary man leaving his comfort zone to live an adventure he had never believed he would experience. And it is this adventure that will teach him that when something he cares about is in jeopardy, even someone like him can do the impossible to protect it.

Emma Cisek Entertainment Editor

Music of the Night is a student directed Broadway Revue that is put on each winter by the most talented students our school has to offer. This year’s show was the fourteenth annual Music of the Night and was directed by senior Grace Apostolopoulos and juniors Claudia Fanaro and Malcolm McCarthy. There were twenty-one other cast members including Nicholas Blondell, Grant Bower, Blake DeVine, Bradley DeVine, Andrew Gutierrez, Sofia Hsu, Colton Ingraham, Drew Janssen, Anaia Laskin, Mian Laurain, Sable Layman, Barron Mainz, Nolan McCarthy, Alessio Morello, Gabe Reali, Ciara Tolliver, Hailey Turner, and Camille Umoff. Many of these students are dedicated members of SBHS Theatre and several are members of The Forge staff. The Broadway Revue included fifteen musical numbers from fourteen different Broadway musicals including some of my favorites: Grease, Hairspray, Matilda, and The Book of Mormon.

In every number, the cast brought to life each musical and character with

incredible ease. Whenever I attend an event put on by SBHS Theatre I am always pleasantly surprised by the astounding voices and dance skills of my peers; Music of the Night was no different. Every number went off without a hitch: no audio problems, no wardrobe malfunctions, and no one tripped or skipped a beat (not even Grant in his six inch heels). Although every song had my undivided attention, a few of my favorites were Summer Nights, Sherry/Big Girls Don’t Cry/Walk Like a Man, and Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I’m Falling.

Another huge highlight of the show was a short video parody of The Newlyweds Game, made by Alessio Morello with actors Aaron Linker, Andrew Gutierrez, Sable Layman, Gabe Reali, Claudia Fanaro, Grant Bower, and Barron Mainz. It brought a smile to everyone’s face and the theatre boomed with laughter. To say the least, this year’s Music of the Night was MotN cast performs Wild Wild Party a hair short of perfection, and I encourage from The Wild Party (top). everyone to attend SBHS Theatre’s next Rio Salazar (front) sings Bring on the production in the spring, How to Succeed Men solo from in Business Without Really Trying. You Jekyll and Hyde (bottom). will be blown away by the massive talent Photo courtesy of Beau Lettieri. you never knew was at our school, and you won’t regret it.

Santa Barbara Teen Star 2014 Gabe Reali Staff Reporter

On Saturday February 8th, twelve talented singers took the Granada stage for the fifth annual Santa Barbara Teen Star Singing Competition.

Teen Star has grown year after year while still keeping its primary goal to provide money to local theater programs.

Joe Lambert, founder of Teen Star, is dedicated to giving back to all the local theater programs including our very own.

The show opened with a high-energy group number that featured all the singers and the two alternates. They performed a pop mashup of songs including Jessie J’s “Price Tag” and Pitbull’s “Give me Everything.” The three judges included casting agent Wendy Kurtzman, radio

personality Catherine Remak and Grammy winner Randy Spendlove.

Freshman Brandi Rose and sophomore Grant Bower represented SBHS at the event. Powerhouse Brandi got the crowd fired up with the first upbeat song of the night. She sang “Mamma Knows Best,”

by Jessie J, and was critically acclaimed by the judges for her big voice. Grant Bower brought down the house with his elusive and perfectly executed version of “Valerie” by Amy Winehouse. Other notable soloists that performed in the second round included country singer Dylan Ortega, R&B singer Luana Psaros, soul singer Mary-Grace Langhorne, and country singer songwriter Karlie Mack. Dylan’s quirky, subtle personality

contradicted his pleasantly manly voice.

Luana impressed with Alicia Key’s “Some People” in the first round and was ready for the second round. Mary-Grace Longhorne channeled Whitney Houston in the first round and wowed the crowd on “feeling good” in the second round.

Karlie Mack graced the second round with an original song and accompanied herself on the guitar.

Twelve-year-old Mary-Grace Longhorne, the youngest in the competition, took home the crown and has several opportunities coming her way. She has a long journey ahead of her, and we will certainly be hearing more from this young artist. Jason Paras, who performed an original song, took home a $1000

scholarship for songwriting. Grant Bower rightfully received the $1000 scholarship from the Triple Threat Program in Los Angeles. Grant will also be performing during the final Spotlight awards in Los Angeles (a very big deal).

According to Joe Lambert, media plays a big part in the success of Teen Star.

Consistently making the front page of local papers has certainly made this event more known by the general public. As more and more teens are audition for Teen Star, it’s impossible to predict how big this event could become. Mary-Grace’s win may even encourage younger kids to audition. We will see what the coming year has to bring to these young artists.

Until next time!

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Entertainment Upcoming Movies Andrew Tighe Freelance Reporter

February

1. Vampire Academy: A teenage halfvampire girl is sent to a training academy to protect her royal best friend.

2. The Lego Movie: Emmet (Chris Pratt), an ordinary Lego mini-figure is thrusted into an epic adventure to save his world from a corrupt business tycoon (Will Ferrell).

3. Welcome to the Jungle: A group of unsuspecting office workers find themselves stranded on a desert island when a corporate retreat led by a demented former Marine goes horribly awry.

4. Robocop: A remake of the 1987 film, a dedicated officer (Joel Kinnaman) is critically injured in the line of duty and remade into a crime fighting cyborg.

5. About Last Night: New love is found for two couples as they journey from the bar to the bedroom and are eventually put to the test in the real world.

March

1. 300: Rise of an Empire: This intense motion picture explores the story of 300 from the battle at sea between the Greek general Themistocles and the Persian Naval Commander, Artemesia.

2. Mr. Peabody and Sherman: A supersmart talking dog and his foster son travel through time after the latter disrupts the course of history.

3. Need for Speed: A street racer framed for a crime he didn’t commit partakes in a cross country race with vengeance as his only reward in mind.

4. Divergent: Set in a future world where people are divided into factions based on personality. A young girl with a special gift uncovers an ominous plan to destroy her society.

5. The Muppets Most Wanted: The Muppets embark on a world tour from theater to theater, unwittingly coming into conflict with an international criminal with a striking resemblance to Kermit the frog.

April

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier: Following the battle of New York, patriotic super-soldier Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) tries to adjust to his new life in the modern world, only to be brought back into action when a deadly conspiracy comes into fruition 2. Island of Lemurs: Madagascar: A spectacular documentary that takes audiences to the lush jungles of Madagascar to view the lifestyles of the agile lemurs.

3. Rio 2: The sequel to the 2011 film by Blue Sky studios, Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) and Jewel (Anne Hathaway) travel to the amazon to rediscover their roots and meet new friends.

4. Heaven is for Real: The film adaptation of a small-town father who struggles to find the courage and conviction to share his son’s extraordinary, life-changing experience with the world.

5. The Other Woman: After realizing she is not her cheating boyfriend’s main lover, a woman (Cameron Diaz) teams up with his wife to plot their mutual revenge.

February 13, 2014

Spring fashion with Natalie Ochsner, a savvy teen with a passion for fashion Natalie Ochsner Freelance Reporter

This year’s spring fashion can best be described as eclectic. Plaid skirts are totally back! It’s actually kind of weird that they’re just now coming back in style, isn’t it? Almost twenty years later, Cher from Clueless is still a total trendsetter! It’s only a matter of time before her wardrobe is resurrected by American Apparel.

Collared shirts and other preppy stuff will also be making an appearance. I actually tried out the collared shirt and plaid skirt look the other day; it was kind of similar to Britney Spears’ outfit in the “...Baby One More Time” video (minus the weird braid/pigtail hairstyle she was sporting) except that unlike her, I actually know how to use buttons. So if you’re going to do a collared shirt, a word of advice: please use the buttons instead of just haphazardly tying the shirt in a knot above your midriff!

Floral print anything is also back, especially if it’s belted at the waist. If

you want to be really edgy, you can try the cropped biker jacket trend in basically any color you want (according to the spring catwalks, pastel colors are going to be a big deal this season). There have been a lot of long, full skirts on the runway in both pastel shades and vibrant reds and blues.

Although these trends sound great, how many of us would actually wear a biker jacket to school? If you want to try a more school-friendly spring fashion trend, I would suggest something like a tight sleeveless crop top and a high waisted floral skirt. This look could be worn with high overthe-knee socks and boots or platform sandals, also a big deal this season.

Or socks with sandals, which sounds weird but just the other day I read something in a magazine about how socks and sandals are actually a thing now. Looks like my grandpa knows what he’s doing!

A young girl sports a plaid skirt and platform sandals. Photo courtesy of Tumblr.com.

Super Bowl XLVIII Commercials: What’s Your Pick?

Tyler Greenwald Staff Reporter

Every year, the Super Bowl brings over 60 percent of Americans into their living rooms to watch the most televised event in the U.S. However, people watch the Super Bowl for many different reasons. Some people watch because of their love of the game of Football, some to satisfy a severe craving for chips and beer, and some maybe for the halftime extravaganza.

But for many, the best part of the Super Bowl is the commercials.

To us, commercials have come to be nothing but a dreadful burden as we power through an intense episode of “Lost.” But every year around early February on Super Bowl Sunday, commercials come to life--sometimes to such an extent that bathroom breaks and trips to the fridge become formidable challenges. This year was no exception as marketing managers once again delivered quality, comedic, and often peculiar commercials for America to enjoy.

I’ll start with the one everyone has been talking about. It was nominated #1 for this year’s Super Bowl as well as the #1 on top of my list, the Budweiser commercial, “Puppy Love.”

Budweiser, as everyone predicted, once again touched the hearts of Super Bowl viewers by introducing a oneminute love story about an irresistibly adorable relationship between a Golden Retriever puppy and a

Clydesdale that refuse to be separated.

But Budweiser didn’t think one tearjerking commercial was enough, so they tacked on another about a soldier named Chuck Nadd returning home from military service for the first time. This was no ordinary arrival; almost everyone in the town gathered in respect to honor this man. It was touching, quintessentially American, and a home run in the annals of Super Bowl commercials.

There has been a lot of controversy over the funniest super bowl commercial of 2014. Most people argue that the Doritos commercials were the funniest and although that may be true, I think the “Wonderful Pistachio” commercial takes the cake.

The “Wonderful Pistachio” commercial was a combination of two 15-second

scenes with a different commercial inbetween. This ad ends with Stephen Colbert cracking his head open to reveal a pistachio version of himself, which left me hysterical.

Along with the numerous amount of entertaining commercials, came some bad ones. The most horrendous in my opinion, was Turbo Tax. It literally compared the Super Bowl to watching the girl you like go to prom with another guy, as well as claiming that doing taxes is better than watching the Super Bowl. Who airs a commercial like that during the Super Bowl?

But despite Turbo Tax and several others I would grade a “C” at best, the Super Bowl XLVIII commercials were thoroughly enjoyable. The game wasn’t great, but those commercials certainly were.

Budweiser’s “Puppy Love” was a big hit at this years’ Super Bowl.

Photo courtesy of Budweiser.

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February 13, 2014

Sports Dons cheerleaders prepare for Nationals after Regionals victory On the weekend of January 25-26th, the Dons cheerleaders won 1st place in a Regional Competition held in Agora Hills. The team competed against ten other schools while their stunt team also won Regionals against eight schools. Their stunt team consists of five team members.

“It was definitely a group effort,” says cheer captain Indi Garcia. “Everyone had to put 100% into doing their best for the competition.”

This year, the Dons cheerleaders were moved up a division in the regional competition. Due to this, the team was presented with a stiffer challenge. However, they were able to overcome this obstacle on their way to victory.

There are twenty-nine girls competing on the competition team and they commit to ten months of training for these competitions. The Dons cheerleaders won Regionals for the second consecutive year and are looking to defend their title as they prepare for Nationals.

As a result, practices have become even longer. In order to prepare for the competition, these cheerleaders have been practicing for hours each day.

Coach Jennifer Lemons has pushed the team to do their best. She has had them working on lots of conditioning.

Autusa Paradisi Staff Reporter

The cheer team poses for a picture before the Agoura Hills Regional Competition.

Photo courtesy of Grace Burford.

In order to improve upon their skills, some cheerleaders have started to take tumbling classes.

They have also been working on their stunting. “Right now, we need to

work on showmanship and back hand springs for stunting,” said Indi.

This team is currently ranked in the top ten for CIF. These Don cheerleaders have been working hard

and are glad that they can represent their school. Nationals will be held in Anaheim, California on March 28th through the 30th.

Rising Athlete: Jessica Gaffney Mckenzie Malek Staff Reporter

After playing four years on the varsity girls water polo team, Jessica Gaffney is extremely grateful for the years that she has had at Santa Barbara. A utility player who leads the team in both assists and steals, she is now ready to embark on a new life after high school. However,

this is not before wearing those olive and gold colors a few more times. Gaffney is looking forward to finishing her final season with a bang.

Barbara Swim Club. There, I met Betsy Hendrix who really encouraged me to play water polo. I remember going to practice and scrimmaging against the older girls.

At the time, I did not even know how to When did you first start playing water tread water and was deathly afraid to polo and who or what inspired you to come back. However, with a little bit of start? encouragement from my Mom, I kept I first started swimming at Santa coming back and getting stronger. From that point on, I just kept playing club polo until high school.

How has it been playing on the varsity team for all four years?

Freshman year was great. I got the opportunity to play on the varsity team.

This was along with my friends Betsy Hendrix and Anna Brummett, who are now seniors. This was amazing because there were about seven seniors our freshman year. Due to this, it was a really big honor for Coach Walsh to ask us to play varsity. I have been really blessed to able to play for all four years.

Senior Jessica Gaffney has played on varsity water polor since her freshman year. Photo courtesy of Blake DeVine.

club was fun but I did not get the camaraderie that you get from playing at Santa Barbara High. Our girls work really well together, especially since it is a smaller team. We only have eleven girls on the varsity team. While this is a struggle sometimes, it can also be an advantage because smaller teams are closer. I think that the team aspect, such as building friendships has kept me with the sport.

Do you have a favorite water polo player? If so, who and why?

If I had to pick a favorite I would definitely say Kami Craig. She went to Santa Barbara High and has played in two Olympics now. She won the silver medal in Beijing and won gold in the London Games. Kami is really a huge inspiration on our team. Every now and then, she comes back and plays in our alumni game. Coach Walsh says she always pushed herself and stayed after practice. Kami is just one of those people What aspect of water polo do you enjoy so dedicated and determined that she the most? became what she wanted. She followed I love water polo mostly because her dreams and is now playing water of the team aspect. Being on the swim polo on the Olympic team.

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February 13, 2014

Sports

Pitney keeps playoff hopes alive with gamewinner against SM Blake DeVine Sports Editor

Bailey Wolf and Julie Pitney scored for Santa Barbara’s girls soccer team during a 2-1 victory against rival San Marcos on Saturday at Warkentin Stadium. This was revenge at its sweetest for the Dons, who had suffered an earlier defeat this season to the Royals.

Wolf gave Santa Barbara a 1-0 lead in the first half, and Pitney’s second half goal proved to be the eventual game winner.

“This was a big win for us tonight and the girls played some good football, were dangerous on goal, and matched the physical play of San Marcos. We deserved the outcome as we earned it tonight,” said head coach Jeff Johnson.

Santa Barbara went on the attack early with a goal in the 15th minute. Senior Jackie Lopez served a ball into the box and then Bailey Wolf hammered it into the top right corner of the goal.

The senior captain was a huge playmaker for the Dons, helping create both of Santa Barbara’s goals.

“We had to come out strong for every single minute. Usually, we are only a onehalf team. This means that we play onehalf really well and the other half not so well. Tonight, we maintained good

composure throughout both halves of the game,” said Lopez.

The Royals scored an equalizer with only eight minutes remaining in the first half on a goal from Tasha Wood which brought the score to 1-1.

Throughout the game, the Dons missed a lot of clear chances with breakaway opportunities on goal. In the first half alone, both Lopez and Alea Hyatt had two shots each that narrowly missed the goalpost.

When asked what made the difference in this match compared to the prior defeat to San Marcos, junior Shug Cvitanic said, “I feel like the score of 1-3 did not accurately represent how close the game really was.

Honestly, it could have gone the other way for us. In this game, we were more effective in the first half and played well as a team which made the difference.”

The winning goal came in the 60th minute when Hannah Brisby gave Pitney a nice ball behind the Royals’ defense. Pitney was able to tuck it away against the oncoming San Marcos keeper. From there, Santa Barbara took a 2-1 lead and never gave in.

The game ended after an extremely long six minutes of extra time period. Seconds before the final whistle blew, Dons goalie Kassidy Hession cleared a dangerous ball that was dumped into the box. This great

Julie Pitney looks upfield during Saturday’s match versus San Marcos.

Photo courtesy of John Dvorak/Presidio Sports. save clinched the victory for Santa Barbara.

“So far, our season has been pretty successful even though our record doesn’t suggest it. We are hoping to end the season with a winning record. This would definitely show how successful we are as a team,” added junior center-back Abby Guillen.

With the victory, the Dons (10-5-1, 3-31 league) leap-frogged over the Royals into second place in the Channel League standings.

They will finish league play with Senior Night yesterday versus Buena.

Melgoza’s scoring effort not enough for Dons Tyler Greenwald The fans could Staff Reporter not do it, the players could not do it, and a 10-0 run late in the game could not either.

Nothing could get Santa Barbara’s girls basketball team going last Tuesday night at J.R. Richards Gymnasium during a tough loss against Ventura.

Amber Melgoza put up a miraculous game-high of twenty-nine points but was given little support from her teammates during a 64-47 defeat.

“This was our biggest game of the year so I knew I had to step up and drive to the basket as much as I could. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough,” said Melgoza.

The Dons got off to a brutally slow start as they were outscored 16-7 in the first quarter alone. Ventura dominated Santa Barbara in the paint and was relentless on the free throw line.

“They started the game with an outstanding run and we started to doubt ourselves,” said the sophomore after the game. “They were getting layups after layups and we just went downhill.”

In the second quarter, the Cougars’ height advantage continued to be an immense problem for the Dons defensively as their deficit fell to sixteen points at halftime. Out of Ventura’s 64 total points, 34 combined came from Marki Meyer 5’11, Cassandra McCambridge 6’1, and Barbara Rangel 6’2.

“We only had six defensive rebounds

in the first half,” said head coach Andrew Butcher. “It’s impossible to outscore a talented team like Ventura with a stat sheet like that.”

Despite their troubles, Santa Barbara was able to obtain a little bit of hope at the end of the third quarter with a 10-0 run and a buzzer-beating “and-one” shot by starting junior Jocelin Petatan.

“We always know what’s coming when we play Ventura, they play at a very high level,” added Petatan.

However, any confidence that was redeemed in the third quarter was rapidly put to rest in the fourth as the Cougars answered the Dons with a 10-2 run of their own finishing the game out strong.

“Our effort in the first half wasn’t there,” mentioned Butcher after the game. “We picked it up in the second half but you need a full 32 minutes of effort to overcome a team of that caliber.”

Santa Barbara dropped to 4-2 in league and 19-5 overall with this loss, but their future remains bright.

“Our team always bounces back,” said senior Desirea Coleman. “All this game has done is brought us closer together.”

But Dezzy is not the only player who values the take-away of this game, Melgoza also agrees: “Every time we lose it reminds us to play your heart out the whole game and from there whatever happens happens.”

The Dons have two games remaining

Caption: Amber Melgoza blows by Ventura for an easy layup en route to her game-high of 29 points. Photo courtesy of Blake Devine.

in Channel League as they hope to take home the championship. But their aspirations don’t end there.

When asked about CIF playoffs Petatan replied, “We want to win it all, it’s as simple as that.”

Santa Barbara may now have to hope that their confidence will carry them to success in their remaining games as well as CIF playoffs.

Tonight they will be playing SM at J.R. Richards Gym.

16

February 13, 2014

Sports Dons clinch Channel League title with victory over Royals Blake DeVine Sports Editor

Led by another tremendous individual effort from senior captain Pepe Barron, Santa Barbara’s boys soccer team defeated San Marcos 3-0 on Saturday at Warkentin Stadium. Not only did the Dons defeat the Royals on their home turf; in the process they clinched their first Channel League title since 2011.

The captain scored his team-leading 19th goal of the season in the 12th minute to give Santa Barbara an early 1-0 cushion.

“It was really important to win this game because we have not done this in three years, and that is not what this program is about. We should be winning Channel League every single year. Things have changed, and now it is our turn to make the most out of it. We deserve to be here because of the way we work,” says Barron.

From that point on, the Dons never looked back on their way to victory. Santa Barbara quickly got on the scoreboard again in the 29th minute on a goal from freshman Kyle Marcotte to go up 2-0.

This play took place when Barron took a

shot from just outside the 18 and Marcotte jumped on the loose ball to score.

“We have good players and team chemistry. We played for each other and brought the Channel League Championship back where it belongs,” says senior defender Reggie Gonzalez.

After leading at the half, sophomore Abraham Sierra finished the scoring in the 77th minute to make it 3-0. Peter Ruiz sent him a beautiful ball behind the San Marcos back line and Sierra was able to take it the distance and beat the keeper in a one versus one situation.

When asked about the success of his team, head coach Todd Heil responded “The biggest thing is the number of sophomores and freshman playing beyond what we thought they would be able to do this year. We have a lot of new guys and the biggest reason for our success is them.

They are actually playing at a level were we had only hoped they would get to.”

“Every single year we have three goals.

This includes winning twenty games, having fifteen shut outs, and winning the Channel League Championship.

Unfortunately, by the end of the season

Landon Mullen goes toe-to-toe with a San Marcos defender in Saturday’s match. Photo courtesy of John Dvorak of Presidio Sports. we could only accomplish one. This is the most important one to us because we have not done it in awhile,” added Barron.

Robert Soto was in goal for the team’s 11th shutout of the year. With the victory, Santa improves to 17-5-1 overall and 6-1 in league.

“Coming in, my biggest expectation was

that we did not give up a goal. Continuing a shut-out theme against San Marcos was very important. The other thing we did well was finishing our opportunities in front of their goal,” said Heil.

The Dons, ranked No. 7 in Division 1, will learn their playoff fate next Monday.

Santa Barbara lights up scoreboard in route to victory over Ventura Tyler Greenwald Staff Reporter

Winning the Channel League Championship did not diminish the Dons’ persistence toward victory as Isaiah Tapia led Santa Barbara’s boys basketball to an 80-68 victory over Ventura last Wednesday night at J.R. Richards Gymnasium.

Coming off an important, league clinching victory versus San Marcos, Tapia scored a stunning game high of twenty-three points while Bolden Brace and Chris Wagonhurst combined to tally twenty-six off the bench, as the Dons maintained their undefeated league record which is now 10-0.

“In the first half we were moving the ball around really well,” said Isaiah Tapia after the game. “My teammates were able to find me at the right times and all I had to do was get open.”

From the moment the ball left the officials hand, Santa Barbara was in control, knocking down what seemed like every three-pointer in their midst.

In the first quarter, the Dons spurred up a 9-0 run, enabling them to outscore the Cougars 24-13.

“Most teams we play are much bigger than us,” said senior Noah Burke. “We have to use our speed to force our opponents to play the game we want to play. Tonight it was a team effort from everyone and our shooting off the bench gave us the capability to beat Ventura.”

Santa Barbara’s up-tempo style offense

continued in the second quarter, allowing them to extend their lead to twentyone points at the half. “In the first half everything was falling for us, said Junior Chris Wagonhurst. “When the defense started to close out on our shooters, we dished it inside which is why we were able to jump out with such a big lead early in this game.”

In the third quarter, the Dons began to struggle defensively and the Cougars were quick to take advantage of that opportunity with some jumpers of their own, closing the gap to a score of 67-56. That was the closest Ventura would get for the rest of the game.

“Our defense needs drastic improvement,” admitted Bolden Brace.

“If we want to continue to succeed, we need to start getting stops.”

Chris Wagonhurst put an end to the Cougars’ run with a pair of back-to-back three-pointers early in the fourth quarter.

Shortly after, Ventura was able to put together a small streak but did not have enough time to make anything of it as Santa Barbara closed out on their tenth league victory.

Overall, the Dons sank thirteen out of their twenty-five three-point attempts, five coming from Isaiah Tapia.

Santa Barbara (19-2, 10-0 league) now heads into a rivalry matchup versus San Marcos where they hope to maintain their undefeated Channel League record.

Isaiah Tapia floats a tear-drop over Ventura for just two out of his 23-point game. Photo courtesy of Blake Devine.