Granger high school
Tri-Color Times
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december 2012 LV-2
Journalism students visit the U of U
Opinion by Katie Lee On FRIDAY, November 16, some journalism students and I went on a field trip to the University of Utah to attend some very cool classes on writing and photography. We left at 7:45 and arrived around somewhere around 8:20. Students chose from classes with titles like: Headlines: Forget the Playbook, Tackle the Quarterback; Interviewing: Asking Questions and Getting Answers; Finding Stories All Around You; What to Do in High School and College to Be a Journalist; Basics of News Design, Basics of Photojournalism; and Writing Breaking News on the Web, Six Steps to Better Writing. Many Granger students attended Basics of Photojournalism, which taught things like how to become a good journalist or how to make
good stories using pictures. Other students went with Mr. Carlisle to Basics of Newspaper Design. After the first class finished, we were supposed to go to the next. And so on, and so on, with lunch in there somewhere, too. In the second session, Casey Owens (12), Krissy Peck (11), Chauntel Lee (11), Cheyenne Weber (11), and I went to Finding Stories All Around You. It was really interesting. Some kids from other high schools in Utah had some really cool ideas. They liked how our newspaper writes about what students have on their iPods. Another school’s paper even had a story about a young girl surviving breast cancer. Next, I went to a Multimedia class that just explained about a bunch of different things about the newspaper. By then, I think
most of the kids were thinking about lunch. It started at 11:30 A.M. -- sub sandwiches plus sodas, chips, cookies, bananas and apples. Delicious. During lunch Owens, Lee, Peck and I explored the Union Building. We found a bowling alley that was right by the snack bar and the lunchroom. There was a TV room with pool tables and air hockey tables. And in another back room, we found Xboxes and Play Stations that were locked up and couldn’t be played without permission from the guy at the snack bar. In the lunchroom – it’s really cool – soon there will be Panda Express in one of the lines. After we explored, we went upstairs and looked around and heard something hilarious. These college guys walked past us going to the elevator, and one of
them said to the other, “Hey guys, did you know I have the voice of Taylor Swift.” When we were walking away, we laughed so hard they heard us laughing, and then they laughed at themselves because it was funny. When we got back, it was time for the last class. We went to Newspaper Photo and Layout Critiques. Jim Fisher from the U of U went on and on about how newspapers should look and how to make them more interesting and things like that. At the end we took a group picture and got on the bus and arrived at school in time to hear the bell ringing right when we got off the bus. In the end this field trip was really helpful and interesting and fun. Journalism students who didn’t go totally missed out on a good field trip.
Journalism students get the chance to go to the University of Utah to learn about different writing and photography styles.
Saving the best for last By Victor Martinez Seniors of 2013 are doing everything they can to make memories from this year at Granger count. Though many seniors are involved in activities, try to be remembered as part of the old school, some think that just graduating from the old Granger is good enough. “Graduating from the old school is good enough for me,” Charley Lewis (12) said. While younger students talk about the new school and how cool it will be, Lewis doesn’t mind not getting a spin in the new building. Lewis has only been here a year, but she already thinks Granger is great and wants her old school memories to live
on.
“I am going to miss the old school because of all the memories,” Ray Sanele (12) said. Almost all of our seniors are going to miss the memories that they made at the original Granger. Sanele predicts the memory that’s going to stay with him the longest is the breathtaking football field being revealed for the first time. Being on the football field meant a lot to Roger Taliulu (12), along with the rest of the football team, who has been fighting on that field every Friday night to go to State. Along the way, people have come and gone and helped make memories that will stick with Taliulu for a long time.
“I am stressed and relieved,” said Shelby Wolfgramm (12) said. He has worked hard for the three years since he has been here. From hitting the books to hitting the weights, he has striven nonstop to be successful. Wolfgramm is glad to be part of the last class to graduate from the old building. Being part of football has made his Granger experience all the sweeter. 2013 isn’t all about graduating. It’s being the last from the original school. It’s the fun times walking these old, unique halls every day, from the football hall to the art hall. It’s all been a blast, especially the memories that have been made to last forever such
as posters or campaign signs for class officers. Most of all, it’s the people who have made it happen and created those memories – that’s what has made this year special to everyone. “Being an SBO is good enough for me. It has made my senior year awesome and fun,” Student Body Officer Janeil Barney (12) said. She’ll cherish her experience in student government. The original Granger has meant a lot to the seniors, and we’ll always remember the first day we saw it – walking through those doors as sophomores. Hopefully the new school will carry our old school traditions and carry on with Lancer pride.
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December 2012, page 2
Seniors of 2013 will make it happen
By Brianna Bauer ATTENTION all you seniors out there! Are you showing all your spirit as the last graduating class of the old Granger High? If not, then you should start! Being the last graduating class of the old Granger high is probably the biggest deal to most seniors this year. To some seniors though, they are just excited to get out of high school and start their lives as college students or in the work force. Tiffany Hoy (12) feels sad about being the last graduating class and feels like she should be going to the new school with everyone
else. “I did go to a different school for most of my junior year but I would never regret coming to Granger; it’s where most of my friends from junior high go. I just like how Granger is different from most schools in the district.” Hoy is sad she can’t go to the new school, but she is happy that they are getting a new school because she thinks we deserve one to show everyone that Granger isn’t ghetto, and it is a very great school. Many seniors are starting to get stressed about finding colleges and scholarships to help them get
into the college they want. There is word going around that there is a big case of senioritis and it is causing a great number of students to not want to go to class or not do their homework. In many ways some seniors find it harder and getting harder, as the months go by, to get to graduation. Some haven’t gotten all their credits, and some are just getting tired of the same old routine and just want to sluff and be done already. But for some students they are already getting their acceptance letters and are starting to buckle down and just go to class and get
Opinion by Kelly Sanmiguel MANY OF us learned about the causes of the civil war in history classes. Lincoln’s election, South Carolina’s secession, and the attack on Fort Sumter all fueled the tension. It is crazy to think that history may be repeating itself, yet instead of just one state wanting to secede, citizens from all fifty states want to. Did you know there is a White House website with over 200 petitions and a third of those are from states wanting to leave the union? Well if you answered no to both of these then I bet you
didn’t know that Utah had a little fewer than 16,000 signatures on two petitions. The votes have not been verified, yet, but that’s still enough to make us think. “I think it’s silly. People don’t know what they’re asking for,” Mrs. Atkins said. What will we be asking for if we want to become the State of Deseret once again? “If we had an ocean, maybe, but we’re pretty land locked,” Atkins said. When you think of her reasoning it makes sense why Mr. Johansson said “its ridiculous.” Yet everyone has their own
opinions as we can see from the more than 100,000 Texans who signed a secession petition, which is four times the number needed to receive government attention. It would only be right to try and figure out what good could come out of seceding, but Eyvin Mendoza (11) said “nothing good can come out of it because a country should work together.” It’s not all that likely that we’ll have to worry about Utah being its own country anytime soon. Yet considering we’re the next generation to be affected by what could happen, we’ll need to stay updated as always, Lancers!
glance, but even a brief conversation with her will reveal her eccentric and interesting personality. One of the coolest things about Garramore is that she was named after the Greek goddess of wisdom. Garramore and her friends
are founders of one of Granger’s more interesting clubs – to be in the club, you have to draw and name an imaginary animal. If you need to spice up life, Athena is the right gal.
Misty Garlick poses for a photo.
Atheena shows off her holiday spirit.
Deja vu times 50
Meet two charming Lancers
By Chauntel Lee ONE MAY think Misty Garlick (11) is an ordinary girl, but she is very motivating person. She loves to say big words, like nonchalant and essential. Garlick, a bubbly and energetic student, always has something to say when it comes to speaking freely. “I like to make everyone smile when [they’re] upset…it makes me have a great day,” she said. Garlick is agreeable, approachable, and fashionable. When talking with Misty Garlick, one really gets the sense that one can just go up, talk to her, and become friends with her almost instantly. Athena Garramore (11) appears sweet and innocent at first
their work done to get the credits to be able to walk with their fellow classmates. Fernando Herrera (12) is happy to say that he is part of the last graduating class, and finds it to be a great privilege. “I don’t see why so many students are already getting into the bad habit of sluffing when they know they should be focusing and getting everything done cause when March and April hit, it’s going to hit them hard, and then they won’t have enough time to make up missing classes. They will definitely not be able to walk at graduation like everyone is try-
ing to do,” Herrera said. Herrera would have never changed coming to Granger He has loved Granger since his first year and will always love Granger and being a true lancer. “The new school to me shows that even though we aren’t in the best neighborhood or have the best things going on around us, that we all care about where we come from and how hard it took us to get here and building a new school is showing we deserve it and everyone who is lucky enough to go will be happily blessed and shouldn’t treat it like trash,” he said.
Chardonnay is eagerly waiting to go inside and watch the movie.
Learning at the movies By Matias Caceras Mr. Clark invited several students, including his AP United States History class, to go and watch Lincoln at the Megaplex. The bus was very crowded and students had to scoot over so other students wouldn’t have to sit on the floor, but they all seemed thrilled once they got on the bus. After the students arrived and found their friends, they got in line to buy snacks. “I’m going to try and get a bucket of popcorn and a drink. It’s not a movie without popcorn, said Payten Jensen (11). Jensen enjoyed the film. “Stephen Spielberg did a great job, the casting was perfect, the script was perfect, and I loved the cinematography,” he said. He wasn’t the only student who liked Lincoln. “It was good,” said Kesaia Aiono (11). “I liked how they portrayed Lincoln, but I thought the ending was sad.”
“It was phenomenal, the acting was great, and the actors really matched the part they were playing,” said James Holland (11). “It was good and very informational. The acting was very good, everything fit into place, and the information made sense. The movie also showed you the biggest perspective on what [Lincoln] went through and why he went through it,” said Chardonnay Barlow (11). When the movie was over, the field trippers discovered that their bus had already left – they had to walk back to school. Overall, “Lincoln” is a great movie. Even though most viewers entering theaters know how it will end, the thrill of watching a great story unfold is unspoiled. The actors played their parts excellently. Daniel Day-Lewis, the actor who played Lincoln, did a great job. And the war scenes were both realistic and gory.
Checkers vs. chess in the library
By Tatyana Carrillo THINGS are getting loud in the library due to new board games spread on the tables. As soon as anyone walks into the library, he or she will notice many students playing chess or checkers. “Oh yes, it is definitely louder in the library when students are playing,” said Ms. Judy. “I prefer playing checkers because it is harder than chess. In checkers, there may be a double jump that you did not see. If you are losing, you can use multiple jumps to even out the game,” said CJ Peterson (11). Peterson
likes to challenge other students to checkers so he can improve his game. Of course, most of the students in the library prefer to play the games in which they are better practiced. “I like chess because I actually beat someone at it,” said Devan Kinnear (11). Kinnear can back this statement up easily: he’s game to thrash anyone – from fellow chess junkies to passing school newspaper reporters. “With so many kids playing on all the new boards, it encourages the other students to use our old-
er board games,” said Ms. Judy. “The library has a few games that were never even touched, but they are starting to come out again.” Out of all the games we have the students enjoy playing with the massive chessboard the most. “I found the big chessboard online. They had a even bigger one, but I thought it would be too big for the library,” she said. If you have not yet checked out these board games, go take a look at all the fun happening in the library. Just remember – food and drinks aren’t allowed in the library! CJ making his next move while Khomison PAWNders which one he’ll make next.
December 2012, page 3
VOL. LV Issue 2
Dance students check out old moves
By Tariah Hathale STEPPING out of class to watch a dance performance is an idea any student would love. A few students from the dance classes took this recent opportunity to go on a field trip after getting their teacher’s signatures, turning in the permission slips, and getting on the bus. Of course they would have to make up any assignments they missed for their classes. Once everybody got comfortable on the bus, it was time for the students to be on their way. “I really liked it! It was an awesome experience especially because we were recently talking about the same topic in dance class,” Crystal Gutierrez (11) said. Her favorite performance was when three dancers chose a
body part and didn’t move any- their theatre throughout the year, senia Henriquez (11) said. She thing else but that specific one. and the speaker covered styles of felt the timing was sometimes long and sometimes short, This dance revealed the but she still loved the way it ways a certain part of the all turned out. body can move in a creative Henriquez’s favorite part way. was when four girl dancers Other schools from the and one guy danced with district came along to The a big white sheet. They all Repertory Dance Theatre for this performance made the sheet a big part of of “A Century of Dance”, the dance and had perfect which gave education about control over it. “I’m more dancers through time. The interested in dance now bespeaker sat on the side of cause of how they motivated the stage and talked about me with their moves,” she different styles of dance said. She will definitely be from the past. While the watching more performances Crystal loves to dance; it makes her very happy. speaker was talking, dancfrom this theatre. ers on stage performed several dance from over a hundred years Discussing the different movestyles of dance as the speaker de- ago to modern day dancing. ments with your body in dance scribed them. The dancers did a magnificent class excited more than one of the The Repertory Dance presents job on their performances. “Dance students who attended. different styles of dancing in is not as easy as it seems,” YesThis performance was a good
experience for another Granger student. “I’m more interested in dance because it’s interesting how dancers move differently and it’s pretty,” Katie Gutierrez (10) said. She thinks the styles the dancers do is different from what you see in today’s dancing. The modern dancing she sees at events is more revealing than they were back then. Her favorite performance also was the big white sheet the dancers presented. She was excited for this field trip ahead of time because she wanted to see what kind of dancing was taking place in earlier years. “I was a bit surprised and amazed by the dancing styles back then,” Gutierrez said. Dance can definitely change throughout time in any category or style that’s taken place.
Teen Pregnancy declines, but doesn’t vanish
Even teachers enjoyed dressing up for the Masquerade.
Welcome to the Masquerade
By Brianna Bauer BOO! DID I scare you? Yes? Good I was hoping so! The passing of Halloween was a great sign showing us that haunted masquerade has happened. Going to the dance were dead football players, masquerade goers and everything else that goes spooky in the night. “I think the dance was good, I got to go with my girlfriend which was amazing!” Wyatt Gehlen (12) said. Gehlen went as a dead football player while his girlfriend went as a dead ref. “I also think that having a stomp every month is a great idea, because they aren’t formal so you don’t have to spend tons of money on dinner and flowers and dress clothes.” Many students attended this stomp because...well it’s a Halloween dance of course and also because you were able to dress up as anything and be someone you normally aren’t every day. Like for Kelsie Morandy (11), she dressed up as a cheerleader which is very unlike her, because
she is a very big tom boy. “I would have dressed up as a football player, but my boyfriend decided he wanted to be the football player instead.” But even though she went for only a short while, she said she still enjoyed the dance but she had to say she had a lot more fun getting scared at Nightmare on 13th. For many students, the dance just seemed to be another lonely dance without a large group to go with or a date for that fact. Like Kassie Wakefield (12), she would normally never be caught dead going to the dances because she just didn’t find it to be fun. “I liked this dance because you didn’t have to dress up all formal, all you had to wear was pretty much some blood to look the part and still have the best time ever.” Wakefield feels that having dances every month shows that we all have more school spirit than most schools by actually participating in more extra curricular events outside of school hours. She plans on going to all the
stomps with her boyfriend and a large group of close friends. Many of the dance members went to the dance like the cheerleaders dressed up as dead football players and the excaliburs dressed up as masquerade goers, but some students just prefer to not go at all like Chris Morse (12). “I’d rather spend my money on taking my girlfriend out somewhere special than spend money on costumes and only wearing them once or twice before getting rid of them,” Morse said. He and his girlfriend considered going to this stomp, but didn’t have time to find costumes, or have money at that point in time. To many students, this shows that we are showing more pride in our school, and that we want to go to dances. If this enthusiasm continues, Granger might have to have more than three or four dances a year... maybe even have two stomps in a month just for no better reason than to get all the student body together.
By Karla Cordova IT SEEMS to be much harder these days for teen parents, because teens are supposed to be out having fun instead of stuck staying at home taking care of a child. It’s really hard for a teen mom to get up and get ready for school while struggling to graduate and make a living for herself and work really hard to buy her kid’s food, clothes and diapers. The U.S. has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates of more-developed countries – almost twice as high as in England or Canada, and ten times higher than Switzerland. Perla Barajas (11) is a teen mom. She said that it’s pretty hard being a full-time mom and also being able to come to school and keep up with homework. Her mom watches her daughter when she comes to school. Barajas doesn’t work, but she still deals with buying diapers for her daughter. In the past five years teen pregnancy rates have declined in the
U.S. Declined, but not vanished. Teen moms still have to get up and go to school and take care of their children while they are still kids themselves. A baby is a wonderful thing, but because teens are still so young, raising babies becomes even more challenging. Especially if they’re doing everything alone, it’s easier when they’re married and committed. Teens don’t really know how to take care of a child. Most teen moms get babysitting help from their parents. Barajas has gotten married already, she’s also planning on graduating and she’s on track for graduation. She hasn’t gone out a lot since she had her baby. “It’s harder to keep up with school when you have a baby,” Barajas said. After a long day at school, she still goes home and takes care of her baby. It’s a lot of work. But at the end of the day, she thinks it’s all worth it because she studies hard so she can graduate and get a good job and work hard for her baby.
Tri-Color Times Staff Editor Taylor Bailey Online Editor Vanessa Quiles Copy Editor Naomi Newton
Photo Editor Casey Owens Print Editor Alyssa Hendry Social Media Editor Valeria Chavez
Journalists Celeste Anguiano Briana Bauer Sandra Bounthisane Matias Caceres Tania Camacho Sandy Carrillo Tatyana Carrillo Karla Cordova Daisy Cristalinas Rosie Dinh Marisa Foote Keaolani Gaui Tariah Hathale Daven Hintgen
Journalists Chauntel Lee Katie Lee Miranda Lopez Tyler Mitchell Mikaila Morrill Alexander Page Taylor Rambo Josseline Rendon Kelly Sanmiguel Jazmine Saucedo Seida Severiano Diego Silva Semaje Tillman Enrique Torres
The Tri-Color Times serves as a student forum for student opinion and student expression. The views expressed herein reflect neither the opinions of Adviser John Carlisle and Granger High School, nor those of Granite School District. The Tri-Color Times invites and publishes letters to its editorial board; all letters will be edited for taste, length and legality. Granger High 3690 South 3600 West West Valley, UT 84119 385 646-5320
December 2012, page 4
VOL. LV Issue 2
Masquerade ball
December 2012, page 5
VOL. LV Issue 2
Ugly sweater dance
December 2012, page 6
VOL. LV Issue 2-
Follow me on Twitter: hashtag GHS
By Brianna Bauer ATTENTION tweeters and tweetettes! From being followed to unfollowed and favorite and retweeted, this is the world of Twitter. Every day you see students tweeting about how they don’t want to be at school or how they don’t want to get out of bed, but yet no one really complains. But did you know you could follow Granger on twitter? No? Well you can! Mr. Wessman is the man behind the computer updating you on upcoming games, live scores and big events happening at the school. Aside from that useful information, when it comes to our school and community surrounding our school, Twitter is usually where you can easily find out if someone was being threatened or abused. But Mr. Wessman isn’t on there to tweet about just sporting events or dances, he is also there
to help students if they think there is a threat or they are being harassed. “The administration deals with any type of abuse toward a student or any staff member,” he said. “I have gotten a few DMs (direct messages) from students just needing someone to talk to, and I try to do my best to help them,” he said. “I don’t think I have had to block a student, because I can usually tell if they are a student at Granger. Usually if they are one of the spam pages, I just end up marking them as spam.” Mr. Wessman isn’t always on Twitter reading every tweet, but he quickly scans through many of them. If he likes one, he tends to retweet it. If it looks like it would cause an issue, then he tries to talk to that student and see what’s happening. “If I see any laws being broken, then we involve officer Randall on anything from threats to gun
issues to any sort of fighting that could cause big issues with the school,” he said. So pretty much, if anything bad is happening, Mr. Wessman will know so don’t be doing anything bad! “I think you should just personally watch what you’re putting on Twitter or Facebook, because everyone can see it as soon as you post it. So future employers, parents and family members can see things students shouldn’t be posting at all.” To some students, they feel as if now that a principal is on twitter that they can’t tweet about what they would have tweeted bout before he was on. “I try to tweet about every upcoming dance or game that is a pretty big deal, or even our assemblies. This way we have more students participating in extracurricular events that keep them busy with friends and out of trou-
Skills USA hosts barbecue to welcome new members
By Jasmine Saucedo SKILLS USA and G-House Customs are groups for skilled students that want to learn more in technical areas such as plumbing, electrical, automotive, and welding. “This club is all about advancing our knowledge in industrial skills,” Chayton Petersen (11) said. They also have socials and service projects. The members in the clubs also get a chance to compete in district and state competitions. “On December 15th, we will be having our first service project. It’s a paint-over-graffiti event,” Edgar Torres (12) said. He and some of the other members will be competing at Weber State on December 6 in the automotive category. “I will also be competing in electrical somewhere in the year,” he said. Other members are not sure if they will compete. “If I do compete, it will be in automotive because I love working with cars,” Petersen said. As the only girl on Skills USA, Belith Rodriguez (11) enjoys it. “Learning about all of the different types of cars and their parts is
my favorite part of being in Skills USA,” said Rodriguez. G-House Customs members sometimes goes to car shows. They learn about how cars work and how to fix them. G-House Customs wants to have a fun fundraiser where people can pay to beat a car. They hope to host this fundraiser soon in the year.
By Tariah Hathale SHOPPING for a good gift for someone can be tough sometimes. The day after Thanksgiving is a perfect day to get almost everything you want at a low price. Christmas is coming up, and it’s nice for everyone around the table to get a present. Even though you may have missed Black Friday, it’s still a good idea to shop for gifts at affordable prices. The lines at big time shopping centers can be extremely long when you just want to buy your items and get out of the crowd. Waiting outside for the store to open involves quite a bit of standing around, especially on a cold
night It’s best to know what you want to get on Black Friday before stepping inside the store. At times there will be quite a few people pushing and shoving just to get what they want. Standing around will not do you any good, especially if there’s something you really desire. If you see an item you want, go for it, because it may be the last one in the store. Wal-Mart was a big hit on Black Friday. When entering, one would see hordes of customers waiting by their prizes like ravenous wolves. As the clock ticked closer to 8:00 A.M., the time when the employees took off the plastic,
ble,” he said. Also there was a rumor going around about how there is a file cabinet full of tweets that have been printed out, but that rumor is very much false.
“The only reason any administrator would have to print any out would be because of issues going on in the school, so that [cabinet full of tweets] is of course only a rumor,” Mr. Wessman said.
Mr. Wessman checking his Twitter and catching up on his tweets.
Take your family to 2012’s last dance
Lancers who want to learn more about cars, welding, plumbing or other technical areas should consider joining Skills USA. Get dirty while working on a project or compete or learn more about interesting careers. Talk to advisors Mr. Johnson or Mr. Ballew or to G-House Customs president Edgar Torres.
Opinion by Chauntel Lee IT’S CHRISTMAS, Granger Students, and I recently joined dance students and Granger’s Dance Company to see the famous Nutcracker ballet. You would think that everyone would get tired of it, but I guess not, since it has been running a very long time. It was amazing. My favorite part of the whole dance would be The Queen (at least I think she was the Queen) when she is performing for the little girl and the nutcracker. Her dress was so beautiful and it sparkled a lot. Everything they wear is so sparkly and pretty. The only thing that really confused me about the ballet was that all of a sudden the Nutcracker turns into a real person. And don’t say, “Because he just does,” because it’s weird, OK? A toy nutcracker suddenly turning into a real person is so weird. The dances in the play are so pretty and beautiful. Sometimes I wonder how they get their legs that high or go way up on their tippy toes. I know I would never be able to lift my legs that high ever. Ballet West did a great job. I always like to see the Nutcracker during Christmas. For
some reason, it gets me in the jolly spirit of things. I recommend all Granger students go see it. Girls, I really suggest you go see it if you’re into the ballet and other traditional things. And boys, there are times were you might want to fall asleep, but if you like watching men dance or seeing women beautiful dance, then I suggest you see it as well. The only thing that really really bothered me was the no speaking part. They could at least sing a little. The Music doesn’t even have any lyrics. Then again, I like some of the music, and my favorite song was when the queen danced to the Nutcracker. If I a ballet could earn stars like movies, I would give it five stars. I challenge Granger High students to go watch this ballet. It’s a great thing to see as a family – try something fun and new this holiday. I dare you. If you haven’t noticed, I have been saying ‘The Nutcracker’ many times in my review. I really want you to go see this ballet it’s awesome. It’s my new favorite ballet. Actually, it’s the only ballet that I have ever seen. The Nutcracker. Maybe that’s why I like it so much.
customers were gathering up around the merchandise. As soon as the plastic was unwrapped, it was a free-for-all. Everyone ran for whatever they could grab. It got so intense; several police officers were needed to keep the peace. Thankfully, the checkout lines weren’t long, because Wal-Mart has a lot of checkout stands. Target was just as big a madhouse as Wal-Mart, with the entry line visible from the parking lot. This line of customers started at the front of the store and went into the back of the building. There were the gates to lead everyone in the right direction from
the back. Once you entered the store, the Black Friday sale items were each in different black boxes. Most of them were empty just a half hour after the store opened. Getting a PlayStation 3 at Target was impossible, since they were all gone so quickly. Pushing your cart closer to the cashiers through the crowds took fifty minutes. Black Friday at Urban Outfitters had a few customers trying to steal. Luckily, nobody got away with it. One of our Granger students stood outside Urban Outfitters for forty-five minutes until the store opened. “There was a taco stand outside selling tacos and hot cocoa,” Kimberly Nguyen (11)
said. Nguyen also shopped at the Fashion Place Mall in Sandy with a friend. “Fashion Place wasn’t crazy, because I went late – like, at 2:00 P.M.,” said Nguyen. She waited at the checkout line with her friend for an hour and thirty minutes. “When JC Penney’s opened, people were running towards the items they wanted,” Daniel Martinez (10) said. At JC Penney’s, there were people screaming and running for the things they wanted. Martinez and his mom saw the pancake makers disappear instantly because they were on sale for only $8. Martinez waited in line at the checkout for an hour.
Belith is just wanting to get the party started already.
Being thankful for the sales
December 2012, page 7
VOL. LV Issue 2-
Weeks of practice make for a great talent show
By Daven Hintgen ON NOVEMBER 30, Granger High hosted a talent show with many enthusiastic performances, and first place went to Orlando Sanchez (11). “I want to redeem myself from last year. I want to get first place.” Sanchez said before the competition. “I performed last year, but I was with my brother, and this year I am going solo.” Well congratulations! He reached his goal and earned 1st place. Of course, a lot of the other competitors wanted first place and even had really cool acts.
One of the flashiest performances on stage came from Drake Trane (10) and Monuel Amaral (?). These two friends have magic fingers they used to perform a rave technique called gloving, and they wore white masks to add to the effect. With gloves that had glowing fingertips, these two put on one of the coolest light shows Granger High School has ever seen. Roger Taliulu (12) also came very close to winning first place. Taliulu’s amazing dance moves made the audience roar. They cheered so loud, it seemed that he was going to win first place.
Roger said that his “performance was easy to do, but the issue was finding good music to dance to.” “I just want to show my talent to Granger,” he said. “Performing on the stage isn’t a problem. I get nervous at first, but after it starts, it goes away, and I can show the talent I have.” Another amazing dancer was Diego Pelaez (12). He did a special lyrical jazz dance that was very shocking, Pelaez did many twists and turns and drops. All his moves were fluent and just fell into each other and were very entertaining to watch. It was very cool because Pelaez would be
on the ground and then suddenly move up almost as if he were a puppet being pulled by a string. “I want to show Granger talent, and show that boys can dance, too,” Pelaez said. He was nervous performing because he had never been on stage before, but for his first time on stage, he did an outstanding job. A very nice show was one played by Daniel Sua (12) and his friend Siope Pilivi (12). Sua performed last year with a group called fire lance they were a singing group. Pilivi said he did not perform on stage last year but he doesn’t care about stage fright. Pilivi played
the guitar when Sua was rapping. Sua said “we want to aim for first place and show are talent to the whole school. ” Sua said he “likes to be on stage and feel the adrenaline rush that it gives you.” Sua and Pilivi did an amazing job with their performance, but they did not win first place, although they did “wow” the audience with their amazing show. This year’s talent show at Granger High School was a complete success. There’s only space for a few, but there were a lot of people with a great voices and dance moves – even a magician with unusual tricks.
Christmas wishes might come true
By Seida Severiano THE TIME everyone waits all year for is finally here. Families enjoy having fun times together, and who can forget the thrill of Christmas presents? Let’s take a look at the Christmas wishes of our fellow Lancers. Lucas Jimenez (11): “My Christmas wish for this year is for everybody to have a happier and better Christmas. I’ve heard a lot of sad stories over the past year, and I really don’t want that this year. I also have the wish to have a stronger relationship with the girl I like and love. Last year I got what I wanted, which was pretty nice, but I’m hoping this year will be better and happier as well as having a great time with my family.” Joshua Milhomme (10):
“What I want for this Christmas Christmas with everyone.” Christmas I wish for a red 2012 year is an iPhone 5. I want it beGaby Hernandez (12): “This Camaro. I’m tired of asking peocause it looks really cool ple for rides because and also because I need I don’t have a car a phone. Last year I got and I also think I bug what I wanted -- $100 and them as well. Last a brand-new TV. I’m hopyear I got the iPod ing I will get an iPhone 5, I wanted, but I also because if I do, I will be know I can’t have the pretty happy.” car.” Kevin Sanchez (12): Maricela Medina “This Christmas I want (10): “My Christmas to spend time with the wish for this year is people I love and make for everyone to be this Christmas the best one happy in this special ever. I also want to [spend day because I hate time with people] because seeing people sad. that’s what Christmas is all Last year I got evabout. I’ve gotten what I erything I wanted, wanted lately so nothing but I don’t think it’s really changes. I’m just fair that other people grateful to have my famidon’t have happiness Gaby sees that she should have been more specific. lies with me to spend this because they don’t
have enough money for their families.” Jenny Martinez (10): “My Christmas wish for this year is for all my family to get together and be happy, eat dinner together, and just have a nice night, because I’m sick and tired of my parents fighting as well as my other family. Last year I got a white Mustang from my dad and money and clothes from my mom. I have everything I need: family and friends. I don’t really need anything else. I got what I need and I appreciate it.” Ana Diaz (10): “My Christmas wish for this year is to start fresh with a new year. 2012 was really not my year. The past years I got money, clothes and shoes. It was really good, but I just want to start off with a perfect new year.”
December 2012, page 8
VOL. LV Issue 2-
Meanwhile, back at the bat caves
Opinion by Tania Camacho SITTING in a car for two days was a pain -- that was my least favorite things about the whole trip, There was nothing to do but stare out the window. There were times that I just wanted to get out of the car and walk to Mexico, but that was impossible, I was stuck in the car with my mom, dad, brother and sister for 48 hours… those were the worst 48 hours of my life! After the first 24 hours we finally got to the border, I thought that the border patrol were going to make us take our entire luggage out and go through our stuff like every year. Luckily that didn’t happen. “Where you folks coming from and where y’all heading to,” asked one of the officers. “We’re coming from Salt Lake City, Utah and heading to Guadalajara, Jalisco,” said my dad. Bye Bye, U.S. Hello, Mexico. I thought driving through Mexico was going to be rough, but it went pretty smoothly. They have “casetas” which are booths where people pay a certain amount of pesos (Mexican money) just to cross from one city to another; we passed about 15 or more booths. After all the pain my butt went through from sitting in a car for 48 hours, we finally made it to our destination: Estipac, Jalisco. Fiesta patronales or patronage festivals happen every year in Estipac, and in different countries also. The fiestas last for nine days. Throughout the day, they have these little parades where all the kids from the schools and people from different parts of Mexico show their Mexican culture. When night comes, everybody
starts getting ready to go to the plaza to party with their families. They have fun rides like bumper cars, tiny ponies that kids can ride and jumpers, too. There’s also a bunch of stands where they sell things like Mexican candy, toys, jewelry, food, beer, clothes and so
irritated that night because I was wearing tall heels, and I couldn’t walk past everyone in my way, so I decided to go home early. I’d rather be home than be surrounded by so many people that I didn’t know. I ALWAYS tell my dad -- every
was very exhausting; I couldn’t keep up with the tour guide. I learned so many different things, I even learned a ritual dance that everybody in the village would to honor Ehecatl. The tour guide showed me the basic dance steps that represented water, fire, air
much more. My favorite thing about going out at night with my family was getting to eat tacos. These tacos aren’t just tacos -- they are the BEST tacos in the world! Well, to me they are, and they’re simply delicious. The very last day of the fiesta was super-packed; there was literally nowhere to sit down, we could barely walk. I got really
year -- I want to see the pyramids in Mexico, but we never go. This year we finally went. I was super exited! It took two hours to get there. I slept the whole way, so I felt like it only took about 30 minutes. The pyramids, “Los Guachimontones”, are located in Teuchitlán Jalisco. It was so beautiful up there. The walk up to the big pyramid
and earth. Guachimontones was discovered in 1970, they have only found eight pyramids so far. Legends say that the people who lived there decided to move away, so they covered all of their pyramids and belongings so no one could find them. After we took our long tour around the pyramids, we went into the Guachimontones mu-
Nothing lasts forever
Snapchat with is like five people probably won’t Snapchat anytime By Vanessa Quiles THERE are many types of so- at a time. I use it by taking funny soon,” Aylin Angel (10) said. She cial media to use when interacting pictures to send to my friends. I discovered Snapchatting from her with friends, whether Facebook, love Snapchat!” Pacheco said. friends. “I really like that you can’t Twitter, Instagram, or Snapchat. On the other hand, Deanne Wait? Haven’t heard about it? save the pictures that you send Huynh (11) loves Snapchat. “I “Snapchatting” is taking pictures – they only last a few seconds Snapchat with up to ten people and sharing the moment with and they’re gone. But I don’t like at a time, and I mostly Snapchat friends – it’s whatever someone how sometimes people set a time with Trevor Thorup. I found out want to take a picture of. Hav- limit of like two seconds – you about it by my other friends, ing ice cream with friends? Take can’t even see the pictures. I’d and I’ve been Snapchatting for a a picture of it. Send it to lots of tell people who don’t use Snap- couple months now,” she said. “If chat that it’s fun… you just take you don’t Snapchat, you should other friends! The app is free, and friends can weird pictures and send them start. It’s entertaining, but you “It don’t want to send stupid pictures be added through Facebook or cell to your friends!” she said. phone numbers. A time limit is set sucks that you can only see the that could be Snapshotted. The after a photo is taken: from one picture for a few seconds, and I fun thing about it is you always to ten seconds. That’s get funny pictures, even how long friends will when people send you have to see it. After the stupid pictures.” time is up, the picture is To Snapchat, you’ll gone forever, unless the need a newer device like receiving party takes a an iPod, iPhone, or iPad screencap. that has a camera and a Gabriela Pacheco Wi-Fi connection. Snap(10) found out about chatting is a fun and new Snapchat through Twitway to take pictures and ter. “I started Snapchatshare them with friends, ting three weeks ago, but don’t Snapchat when it was the new something that everyone thing, It’s fun, dependshouldn’t see. For someing on who I’m Snapone who likes taking ranchatting with. I Snapchat dom funny pictures with with my boyfriend, friends, this might be a Gaby making silly faces for her friends on Snapchat and the most people I fun app to check out.
seum. There were so many interesting things. In one little room, underneath a glass floor they had a dead body with all its belongings around it. I was kind of scared to walk in the room at first, because it was dark and had lights that twinkled, and I couldn’t see very well. Once you walked out of that room you could see all these little buildings that showed how the village once looked and also these miniature statues that explained how the men would play ball. Right before we left the museum, we went into this theater and watched a video that explained the history about Guachimontones. I thought I was pretty cool so I decided to record it just so I can watch it whenever I want. WHILE I was visiting my family in villa corona Jalisco, we decided to go to “Las Cuevas” (the caves). Right beside it there was “Puerto De Lourdes”, which is basically an underground church built in 1959 by Jesus Navarro Godoy and his two sons, Antonio and Jesus. It took a lot of mental and physical strength for them to accomplish their goal of finishing this underground church. People would go visit the church and take flowers to “la Virgen de Lourdes”. It’s amazing how people have so much faith in her. She has done miracles and helped many families. As we walked out of the church we were debating on whether or not we should go in the caves, it looked dark and scary in there, but we decided to enter anyway. All I could see were bats flying around. And now I’m back.
Alarm bells ring
By Diego Silva MANY STUDENTS argue and say that school starts too early. They say that it’s too early to get their brains going that early. Many kids have jobs at night and get out late and get little sleep at night. “School starts too early, and it should start at least at 9:00 A.M.,” Chris Ortiz (12) said. “I get off from work at midnight. I need more sleep so I won’t fall asleep during second period.” A lot of kids have work after school or at nights every day and get home really late. They need more sleep so they won’t fall asleep during class and also so they won’t be late and marked tardy or absent in their first periods. “If school started at 9:00 A.M., I would be awake in my classes
and pay attention to my teachers more than I do now,” Ortiz said. The more sleep they get, the better they will perform in school. Many students say that school should start later than it normally does. Some students work at night and get little sleep time. They wake up early in the morning to get to school, then get on the school bus or walk or drive to school. Diego Soto (12) agrees with Ortiz. “I say that school should start at 9:00 A.M.,” he said. Many students agree that school should start around 9:00 A.M. because that’s when they are most awake. “I would pay more attention in school and I would fall asleep in my classes less often,” Soto said. There’s no shortage of students who say that school should start later then it normally does.
Chauntel Lee proves that school startes too early by sleeping in class.