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02.24.2012v42.718111 Cumberland Rd. Noblesville IN, 46060QR code provided
by kaywa.com
mill streamJenna Larsoneditor-in-chief
Navar Watsonproduction editor
Ainee Jeongdesign editor
Sidney Huberbusiness manager
Jace Hodsonfeatures editor
Madi McNewopinions editor
Kendra Foleysports editor
Abraham Echarryphotography editor
Drew Musselmancirculation manager
Anna Kreutzweb master
Alejandra Coarweb editor
Brooke Dennyphotographer
Adam Reedartist/cartoonist
Sophia BorzabadiKennethia ChappleMacy CobbKeegan FischerPete FreemanCarlie JordanSkye ParksKelsey PenceAlex Shelleywriters
Krista Shieldsadviser
www.mill-stream.org
2011-2012Mill Stream Staff
When it comes to flexibility, principal Mr. Jeff Bryant emphasizes the importance of being able to adapt and change schedules unexpectedly, especially when it comes to possibly having two high schools and switching to a balanced calendar.
Seniors sign to schools for
sportsPage 6
Knitting for Africa
Page 7
Achieving awesome abs
Page 2
Photos by B. Denny and J. LarsonGraphic by A. Jeong and A. Echarry
Students anticipate changesKelsey [email protected]
Story continued on page 5
As they leave school, senior Evan Dreyer strikes up a conversation with junior Jonathan Kroh. With a lot of tentative changes in its future, NHS may become a much different school in a few years than what these students see now.
Schoolstuck Huck
awayPage 3
Mill Stream is published by Block 7 journalism students and distributed free of charge. The staff will publish 12 issues during the 2011-2012 school year.
Mill Stream is a student newspaper, run for students, by students. We provide a public forum to serve as an outlet for student ideas and opinions; we work as an agent for change and provide credible, objective reporting to inform, entertain, educate the reader and better serve the reader.
We welcome both signed letters to the editor and guest columns, which cannot exceed 350 words in length.
Mill Stream reserves the right to correct grammatical errors and ask for the au-thor’s assistance in editing. Mill Stream will not print letters that attack individuals or that contain obscene language. Letters may be submitted to room 505, the Mill Stream mailbox located in the commons or via www.mill-stream.org.
The staff reserves the right to reject advertisements that are political in nature, false, promote illegal substances to minors, misleading, harmful, or not in the best interest of its readers.
Mill Stream is a member of the Indiana High School Press Association.
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18111 Cumberland Rd. Noblesville IN, 46060
2 opinion Mill Stream02.24.2012
[the way we see it] Mill Stream staff editorial
Pastries, fried foods, candy bars, bacon, doughnuts, hot dogs, and potato chips. Super-man did not eat these artificial abominations, nor does NBA star Dwight Howard, health teacher Mr. Nick McKinney, or the chiseled guy from those “Old Spice” commercials, Isa-iah Mustafa. And with 29 days left until the winter solstice retreats and the spring equinox takes reign, no one should eat this synthetic slop, either.
Yes, there are 29 days until lifeguards grab that red two by four, formally known as a “flotation device,” and ascend to their watchtower, or “obser-vation chair.” Spring is rapidly approaching. For-sake cleaning, allergies, weather, and other spring-related phenomena, and give the lifeguards at the beach something to talk about. It is transformation time, and where better to start than smack dab in the middle?
Everyone has abs, or rectus abdominus. Re-gardless of origin, skin color, weight, or age, each human being on this planet has a “six pack” of abs. Though, for some, these muscles are covered up by layers of belly fat. This belly fat, or excess visceral fat, is the fatty tissue that lines the organs and is produced by the body as a result of one of two main causes: overconsumption and sedentary living.
The major contributor to stomach fat is over-consumption, a sizeable word fit for a sizeable gut.
The old adage, “It’s not what you eat, but how much you eat” is part fact, and part myth. Overconsumption, how much you eat, certainly contributes to an enlarged stomach by supplying the body with more calories than it can burn off. Nonetheless, what an indi-vidual eats is equally if not more important than how much he or she eats.
Comparable to a car, the human body must take in high quality fuel for optimal function. The bigger the car, the more fuel needed to run it. However, the body’s ability to metabolize food at varying rates defies the car-to-human analogy.
This exception to the comparison is the key to melting away visceral fat and achiev-
ing lean, cut, springtime abs. In order to stimulate the metabolism, one must follow the fat loss formula.
First, never, under any circumstances, skip breakfast. This meal is called “breakfast” for a reason, because the body is breaking its fast and kick starting its metabolism for the
day. Second, replace the “three-a-day” meal routine with six smaller meals every day. These meals should be flushed with essential fatty acids, such as egg whites and nuts, vegetables, and green tea. Third, exercise with weights. Cardio is great for the heart, but burns next to no fat and even flat lines the metabolism after a workout. This flat line effect causes the body to immediately enter a catabolic state after a cardio workout, in which the body does not burn nearly as many calories as if it had just undergone a workout with weights.
The three tier fat loss formula works for everybody. Not only is it a powerful ap-proach to rev up metabolism, but the formula also works to shed fat off of the midsection and cater to ab definition.
Transitioning from overconsumption, a sedentary lifestyle is specifically what the third tier of the fat loss formula counteracts. What common characteristic do Superman, Howard, McKinney, and Mustafa share? All four men are active. Whether fighting crime, playing basketball, or madly flexing their pecs, these men live incredibly active lifestyles.
Though sedentary living is taken for granted as easily avoidable, a mere 25 percent of teenagers in grades 9 through 12 exercise for 60 minutes every day, according to lives-trong.com. This means that an astounding 75 percent of all teens are exercising for less than the minimum amount of time suggested to live a healthy life.
Whether it is a sedentary, a slow metabolism, or a hankering for food filled with pre-servatives and chemicals, the quest for super abs is often impeded. Thankfully, the three
tier fat loss formula is a surefire method for melting away visceral fat, unearthing a per-fectly preserved six pack, and grabbing that lifeguard’s, or any beach-goer’s for that matter, attention. Now, get up! With the time spent reading this article, the average teenager could have burned 29 calories playing ball with Howard, or four calories flexing every muscle in his or her body with Mustafa. As for fighting crime with Superman … well, the kryptonian calorie-crusher prefers to fly solo.
For more calorie crunching craziness, log on to mill-stream.org to find out the five wackiest ways to burn calories while sitting down!
Super abs: conquering personal kryptonite
Little old Noblesville. It would be hard to believe about ten years ago that we would even consider splitting into two schools but that is not the case here in 2012.
As of now, Noblesville has around 2,700 students and in just two years, Noblesville main campus is said to reach its maximum capacity at 2,100 students without the freshmen. So the school board has two options: we jump on board with Carmel and just keep expanding the school building, adding on piece by piece by piece, or we follow Fishers’ example and split the school into two buildings and divide them- two completely different schools with their own pep bands, sports teams, and clubs.
Students at the middle school level are already being split. Starting next year there will be a Noblesville East and Noblesville West middle school, not only start-ing the split of our fine town, but also costing the people of Noblesville a “small” chunk of change.
Like there always is with change, both options bring pros and cons. The pros of expanding could be anywhere from a better sports team with greater funding to a more diverse educational experience and therefore, more teaching positions.
The cons for expanding would simply be getting started with the task of building more classrooms. And similarily if the board was to just add on. Adding on means temporarily cramped space, the same kids you have always known- could be a good or bad thing- but still we could eventually run out of space.
The majority of the Mill Stream staff is in favor of splitting schools, welcoming a fun and friendly rivalry and ultimately embracing change with a good outlook for the lovely students of NHS.
Pete [email protected]
Fuzz & Hip by: Adam Reed
3reviewsMill Stream02.24.2012
Green’s novel delivers faultlessly
“The characters in this book become your friends and everything they go through, you do too.” - junior Anna Krukover
The existence of broccoli, in any way, does not affect the taste of chocolate, as stated by Hazel Lancaster.
John Green writes books for young adults: Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, and, most recently, The Fault in our Stars. Hazel, the protagonist in The Fault in our Stars, has many quirky, canny anecdotes about life, some revolving around the existence of broccoli and some merely about the purpose of existing, all of which make for an excellent, surprisingly amusing read.
Green begins the novel with a group of cancer stricken teenagers living in the Indianapolis area. Green, a resident of Indianapolis, describes the environment perfectly com-plete with a plethora of bipolar weather and an abundance of obesity. While he does commend some of the finer parts of Indianapolis, he humors readers with a list of attributes lost to Hoosiers: namely, culture and topography.
Hazel, a recipient of cancer, has drudgingly become one of many participants in a cancer support group. Since Ha-zel is a teenager and this errand is her mother’s demand, Hazel is less than delighted with her participation in the group. Her relationship with her parents throughout the book is quite comical and relatable to high school readers.
(Within the first ten pages, Hazel loses an argument to her mother when she declares an illegal fake ID is fair compen-sation in exchange for her clash with cancer.)
Hazel’s adventure is set into motion at the support group when she mets Augustus “Gus” Waters, who is sup-posedly cured of cancer, and simply attending the group for moral support for a mutual friend. Issac (mutual friend) has an unfortunate cluster of eye cancer; his struggle with blindness later in the novel is very amusing as he attempts to egg an enemy’s car.
The adventure commences with a book Hazel loans Au-gustus, The Imperial Affliction by Peter Van Houten. After some semi-thorough research, it’s likely that neither the book nor Peter actually exist in real life. Despite this, the book is extremely influential for both Hazel and Augustus, and the need to meet and interrogate Peter Van Houten is nearly an obsession.
On the surface, Van Houten’s novel is bringing Hazel and Augustus closer, and that is the primary plot; but re-ally the relationships Hazel maintains throughout her af-fliction with cancer is the more interesting story. She has a heartfelt, selfless need to limit the pain her premature death would cause on those closest to her, and Green’s take on cancer makes The Fault in our Stars profound and heartbreakingly poignant.
Anna [email protected]
Navar [email protected]
Is any “classic literature” really that fun to read? Well, no, not most of it, anyway, but it’s classic for a reason. Those ages-old books that teachers pass out year after year have stood the test of time not for their gripping action scenes or intense dialog, but for the lessons that benefit students now as they did students de-cades ago.
Sure, go ahead and grumble at that paperback. Scribble notes about utter boredom in the margins. Then, after getting over that childish indignation, start over. Try to read the novel and actually gain something from the experience. Believe it or not, teachers don’t intend those yellowed pages as torture devic-es; they’re learning tools.
Take Mark Twain’s Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn, for example. It’s been a staple in NHS Eng-lish classes for who knows how long, and now talk is surfacing that may lead to the novel’s disappearance as a required reading.
It’s a coming-of-age tale about mor-als, deceit and the flaws of “civilized” society. When tak-
en at face value, however, readers only see naïve, quirky Huck and his boyish adventures, failing to pay attention to Twain’s message.
People tend to get so hung up on the use of the dreaded “n-word”, which Twain sprinkles throughout the novel’s pages when referring to Afri-can Americans. While its use must be
addressed, it doesn’t need hours of dis-section.
Yes, today the word is extremely offensive, but Twain wasn’t trying to make a statement by inserting it into his text. It simply reflects the termi-nology of the era. Whether pleasant to think about or not, slavery did play a major role in the United States’ history. Twain was just painting the most ac-curate depiction he could of American life before the Civil War.
So, if the “this novel is oh-so racist and offensive” attitude is being used to help remove Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the curriculum, it’s time to find a better one. The “this novel is oh-so eye-opening for students” attitude fits much better, and the book should stick around as a required reading staple. Plus, couldn’t students learn a thing or two about judging books by their covers (and people by their col-ors)?
Keeping Huck floating along
Huck Finn is debated again
Jenna [email protected]
Illustration by A. Reed
Photo by A. Kreutz
Referred to as “one of the greatest masterpieces of the world” by H. L. Mencken as well as the basis for “all modern American literature” by Ernest Hemingway, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, which celebrated its 127th birthday last Saturday, has been in the curriculum for sev-eral years and is again being debated over its appropriate-ness in a school setting.
According to the American Library Association, Huck Finn is one of the most controversial, debated pieces of lit-erature in the United States. Also among the top ten most “challenged” books are several others that Noblesville stu-dents would recognize.
The Kite Runner ranked number nine in 2008, Catcher in the Rye number six in 2009, To Kill a Mockingbird number four in 2009, and Brave New World number three in 2010.
As of late, Twain’s classic novel is again being challenged by school boards across the nation, though not at Nobles-ville, and many students and staff have come to an agree-able opinion.
“By removing Huck Finn from the classroom, freedom of speech is removed,” junior Abby Root said. “If freedom of speech is prevented through text, then as a result students will consequently be restricted of freedom of speech.”
“It is a chain reaction that starts with one small book but could end with significantly negative consequences,” Root said.
Last year, as a way of maneuvering around the act of removing Huck Finn from the school curriculum, Twain scholar and professor Alan Gribben printed and distributed a new edition of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn which inserted the word “slave” in place of all 217 uses of its de-rogatory counterpart, according to The Daily Telegraph’s of-ficial website.
Root believes that removing all politically incorrect terms throughout the novel may be even worse than remov-ing the book as a whole from the curriculum. She states that publishing a politically correct Huck Finn would be “lying to numerous generations of readers” not only about the lan-guage of Mark Twain but also about the nation’s history.
Senior Jessica Turner also believes that the politically
correct copies of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn have “ruined the book.”
“Yes, that word is in the novel, but that is just because that is the way Mark Twain wrote it, and this is the way it was meant to be read,” Turner said.
Turner, in fact, believes that the book’s controversy is key to its role in the curriculum. She stated that controversial books in the classroom “teach the generations of today how things used to be and why they have changed.”
“There is a reason for reading controversial literature,” Root said. “That reason is to display each and every aspect of a particular subject. Unfortunately, America’s history is filled with the good, the bad, and the ugly. Negative aspects of America existed in the past. We as citizens need to accept our wrongdoings not by forgetting them completely, but by acknowledging these faults.”
4 the focus 02.24.2012
Band and orchestra mergeAlejandra [email protected]
From the start of sixth grade, band and orchestra have provided an outlet for those interested in music. From that point all the way to senior year, the two classes have been separate but equal, giving students two different opportunities to learn a musical instrument. However, music department chair Eric Thornbury may make band and orchestra one and the same, and this has caused quite a stir in recent weeks.
The plan, according to Thornbury, is to create more opportunities for all music students, regardless of the instrument they play.
“Next year, the band is going to separate into three different classes, depending on whether the students are interested in participating in marching, pep, or concert band,” Thornbury said. “This change gave [the band program] the ability to try to provide the students with unique opportunities, and this will extend to the orchestra as well.”
An email was sent to the parents of orchestra members last week, stating that the wind and per-cussion students in the orchestra class would all instead be in the concert band class, leaving the orchestra with only string instruments. According to the letter, the goal was to provide the wind/percussion students with more focused instruction with their instruments, as well as to provide the
orchestra with a fuller instrumenta-tion for music contests and concerts performed throughout the year.
“A true orchestra has more than just strings—it is meant to have flutes, clarinets, French horns, trum-pets, and so on,” orchestra and gui-tar teacher David Hartman said. “In a few years, the players who choose to audition and are selected from the concert band will be asked to play for the orchestra when their instrument is needed for certain pieces, in hopes that we will have a fuller sound with diverse instruments.”
The change may have come as a sudden surprise to wind players in the orchestra, but Thornbury assures that the plan will be effective and beneficial for all parties involved.
“At this point in time, some of the wind players in orchestra are playing parts that are for different instruments because they are not needed in that specific piece. With these students being in a band class and doubling in orchestra for performances, they will be given the chance to work on music just for their instrument, as well as be challenged with the prospect of learning twice the music,” Thornbury said. “I am hoping that those who choose to play in both groups will be looking for a chance to push themselves musically; and those who don’t want to won’t have to. That will be the freedom the students will have when they are part of the concert band class in the future.”
The music department teachers seem to be optimistic about the eventual outcome of changing classes, and the interest seems to be split among the students involved.
“I think [being able to play in both band and orchestra] would be really cool. It’s a new experience and something that I would be interested in trying,” sophomore band student Mandy Shell said.
However, not all students are looking forward to such a drastic change. Sophomore orchestra member Brooklyn Penn expresses concern about the shift.“It feels good to be a part of a single group every day [with people you know],” Penn said. “It could be challenging to have new instruments come into that only every
once in a while at rehearsals.”Despite all the recent talk about the change, the band and orchestra collaboration is still very much in the works and, according to Hartman, may not come into play for
a few more years.“The orchestra needs quite a few select instruments, some of which don’t currently exist in the band class,” Hartman said. “I think it will take a few more years to figure
out exactly how this is going to work and what the orchestra will need, and we will have to take into consideration the types of instruments the students choose when they start in sixth grade.”
The advanced symphonic orchestra plays “Overture to Ruslan and Lyudmila” under the direction of Mrs. Elizabeth Jackson without the wind instruments. Next year, this orchestra will no longer have the name of “symphonic” since there will be no regular/permanent wind section.
Photo by A. JeongAccompanying with their flutes, senior Ashley Car-many and junior Salena Liu follow their sheet music. If the music department decides to take the winds out of orchestra, these separate practices would be different classes altogether.
Throughout the school year, as the final 2:35 bell rings, students gather in the hallways as they prepare to leave school. The Commons becomes a heavily populated area during this time when most students move to the parking lot. As the school’s population grows larger each year, the school is quickly becoming more and more crowded.
The NHS building opened in 1996, and the exterior has changed little since then. However, the population has significantly expanded and the school is projected to reach its maximum capacity of 2,100 students in the next two years.
While the orchestra practices in their room, senior Robby Boland leads the winds in their own practice. He plays the clarinet along with sophomores Brooklyn Penn and Kara Latham.
Photo by A. Jeong
Photo by A. Jeong
the focus 502.24.2012
Kelsey [email protected]
Photo by B. Denny
Throughout the school year, as the final 2:35 bell rings, students gather in the hallways as they prepare to leave school. The Commons becomes a heavily populated area during this time when most students move to the parking lot. As the school’s population grows larger each year, the school is quickly becoming more and more crowded.
Photo by A. CoarThe NHS building opened in 1996, and the exterior has changed little since then. However, the population has significantly expanded and the school is projected to reach its maximum capacity of 2,100 students in the next two years.
Students anticipate changes
(continued from cover)NHS splits?
“In 7 to 10 days residents in the Noblesville District will receive a survey that asks them whether they have a child who is a student at Noblesville and whether or not they would prefer a second high school,” Bryant said on Friday, Feb. 18.
The last survey that was sent out in 2007 asked the same questions; however, those surveys failed to have numbers at-tached with cost.
“This time the surveys will have numbers attached to them. It will ask if they [the residents] will want to pay taxes for a new school,” Bryant said. “A new high school will cost in the upper $100 million.”
“If my parents have to pay for that, then we will move,” freshman Claire Ziegler said. Eight out of ten students surveyed believe the quality of staff will decrease if another high school is built. “I think it would cause a lot of problems, because it would mean getting another set of staff members which would
cause money issues. Our budget has already been cut, we don’t need to stretch ourselves thinner,” sophomore KateLin Doyle said.
Not only will the school cost large amounts of money, it may also cost students some of their education.“If they build a school that’s over $100 million it’s going to be much more technologically advanced than the current one
now,” junior Jake Johnson said.Trying to find the balance between the negatives and the positives challenges Noblesville students everyday. Not only
will students have schoolwork, but students will also have more pressure to do better athletically, compared to the other high school.
“The rivalry would intensify over the years between each Noblesville school because of the splitting,” sophomore Cris-tina Spear said.
The splitting of schools could take a hard toll on current athletes now, like Johnson and Spear. “The split of talent would hurt each school athletically. If the split happened right now, you could barely fill any athletic
teams,” Johnson said. “It’s going to come down to if our parents want to pay for it or if they want the younger generation’s education to suffer.”
Junior Adam Simcox stated that although Noblesville’s sports teams might suffer, so might extracurricular events.“I think that two high schools would be very ignorant and bad, because all of our sports teams would suffer. Also,
school events like prom and homecoming would be very changed,” Simcox said. “All around it’s not a very good idea, in my opinion.”
Bryant noted that the current NHS has a capacity of 2,100 students; NHS will be at that mark in two years. “The freshman campus was supposed to be a temporary fix,” Bryant said. “If we were to put the freshmen in the main
campus now, there would be 2,800 or 2,900 students here.”Johnson noted that since the freshmen are not with the upperclassmen anymore their maturity level has decreased.“Since the freshmen aren’t here to be around the upperclassmen, they come in acting like they are still in eighth grade,”
Johnson said.Conversely, if two high schools were built, the freshman campus would not be used as it is now. The two schools would
aid for a higher maturity level of all students, not only the freshman. Balanced calendar
Along with the splitting of NHS, the topic of a balanced calendar will occur at the school board meeting on March 6. A balanced calendar is essentially having two weeks off in the fall, winter, and spring, then having six weeks off in the summer.
“It would be harder for students with summer jobs,” Spear said. Agreeing with Spear, Ziegler and Simcox commented about the adjustments to a new schedule.“I want a really long summer, and I’m used to how it is now,” Ziegler said.On the other hand, there are is also the upside about having a balanced calendar. “It would help with all around GPAs and it would help students remember schoolwork over the summer,” Johnson
said. Many students may find themselves in a bind over what should be done, but ultimately it is up to the school board and
the parents of each student. “As long as the people I don’t like go to the other school, I would be fine with any of the changes,” Johnson said.
Illustration by A. Echarry
6 Sports Mill Stream02.24.2012
Helen Willman: cross country and track; Ohio State“In college, I aspire to compete at the NCAA nationals for
cross country with a team. Also, by the time I graduate, I want to be an All- American in outdoor or indoor track.”Coach Dennis Scheele: “She’s the school reocord holder for the mile and the 5000m. She’s two time state cross country podium finisher and a four time track podium finisher.”
Aubrey Hauenstien: soccer; Ball State“I chose Ball State University becuase I wanted to stay close to home and it’s not an
overwhelmingly big campus. Plus, it’s division 1.”Coach Mike Brady: “I’ve watched Aubrey develop as a player and student over the years, which she will continue to do at the collegiate level. She will blossom in both areas as she accepts the challanges of a college course load and while balancing it with her soc-cer career.”
“It just felt right both academically and with swimmming. I re-ally liked the team, location, and the programs it offers.”Coach Rich Wolfred: “She’s actually a better meter course swimmer than she is yards but meters is what the Olympics are swum in so that impressed the coaches. Cora has a big upside to her career if she remains focused.”
Sam Pearce: football; U.S. Air Force Academy “I chose the Air Force Academy becasue I wanted to be a part of
something bigger than myself My family has a military background, and I believe that it will make me a better and stronger individual.”Coach Lance Schieb: “His size, his frame, his work ethic, and his abilities all helped him get the offers. Sam recieved 15 division one offers.”
Macy Kootz: soccer; Morehead State University“Being at Morehead will be different because I’ll be living with all the girls from the
team. I’m expecting a close group of girls similar to a family.” Coach Mike Brady: “Macy is a four year starter for the millers. Her contributions to the program can not be summed up in a few sentences. She is the definition of a student/athlete. She is someone who will make soccer part of her college career as she focues on her studies.”
Sam Roudebush: cross country and track; IUPUI“I will have to up my mileage quite a bit. I will probably start
running 70 miles a week instead of 50 or 55. By the end of it all, I want to go to nationals with my team.”Coach Kent Graham: “Sam has a knack for competing when the competition gets hot. He likes jumping into the fire like a fire-man and extinguishing his competition.”
Haley Haffner: soccer; University of Western Kentucky“Comitment and speed of play and two major differences be-
tween high school and college soccer.” Coach Mike Brady: “It was obvious Haley was a division one caliber athlete. She has a tremendous skill and a willingness to be coached; these are reasons she will continue to flourish at the next level.”
Aubrey Kluth: swimming; Miami of Ohio“College swimming will be more intense with a harder practice schedule. I’m basically
owned by theat team and I want to contribute as much as possible.”Coach Rich Wolfred: “She has been a state qualifier and finalist all four years. She set a new school record in the 500 free this season and she has the fourth most points in school swimming history. She is focused on long term goals.”
D1 divides the best from the restKendra [email protected]
Brooke [email protected]
Boys swim past sectionals
Photos by K. Foley
Swimming during the 100- yard butterfly, sophomore Alex Wolfred pushes himself out of the water. In his event, Wolfred placed sixth finishing with a time of 54.20.
During swimming sectionals, senior Spencer Twiehaus swims in the 200 yard freestyle. He swam his event in a 1:52.38 making him tenth place, receiving seven points for the team.
During the 200 yard IM, freshman Luke Conner swims the breast stroke. During sectionals Con-ner placed seventh with a time of 2:04.53.
Cora Meehan: swimming; Seton Hall
Noblesville was the host for the IHSAA boys swim-ming and diving sectionals on Thursday, February 16 and Saturday, February 18. During the tournament, Noblesville placed second with 391 points. While on a fifteen minute break, the team swam to the center of the pool and cheered for a victory.
Photos by B. Denny
7featuresMill Stream02.24.2012
Keegan [email protected]
Skye [email protected]
This one’s for AfricaMacy [email protected]
In a digital age such as this, the strangest thing can become an Internet sensation. Anything from pretending to be a piece of wood to impersonating a football player, it seems like one can do anything to be on Google images.
Imitation is flattery
“You better be cleaning your room!”“I will in just a sec, Mom!”“Now! And you better not be in there on Facebook!”“I’m not, Mom!” I’m on Twitter, sheesh!“My mom is haggling me to go in and clean my room. #whatevssonothappening.”Social networking sites are taking modern society by storm. From tweeting, to pinning,
to posting, to the short-lived tumbling, these social networking sites have a habit of con-suming the lives of some teens.
According to socialnetworking.procon.org, kids between the ages of 9-17 spend on aver-age nine hours a week on social networking sites, merely one hour less than the time they spend watching their favorite TV shows.
“I’m basically on Twitter the majority of the day. I’m always checking it, even at school and in class. Some classes, I’m on it the whole time,” junior Mark Hazzard said.
Hazzard also spends on average about ten hours a week tweeting and on other social networking sites, such as Facebook. However, through his multitudes of tweets about Nicki Minaj, Hazzard was allowed the privilege of Ustreaming with his musical idol. Through a simple tweet of his phone number, he received a phone call from Nicki Minaj, the one and only.
With the use of Twitter, Hazzard, as well as others, are presented with an opportunity to connect to people and peers outside of their close circles of friends.
However, the majority of students don’t tweet in order to connect to their favorite music
icon or celebrity. Sophomore Anna Rowe simply says twitter is now her “thang.”“I’m honestly not on Facebook that much at all now. I’m on [Twitter] all day. Not con-
stantly, just tweeting on and off,” said Rowe. Students like Rowe and Hazzard use Twitter and similar sites as a way to connect to others and as a way to express their thoughts of the day.
Junior Jordan Sterner, however, breaks the mold.“I prefer Tumblr. It’s a way to express your personality rather than just your thoughts,”
said Sterner. She prefers writing and blogging to the 146 character Twitter postings, and she uses it not only as a way to connect to others and to get her ideas across, but as an outlet to express her thoughts.
But why are these social networking sites so popular?A reason why these sites are growing in popularity is because they allow teens such
as Sterner, Rowe, and Hazzard to share their thoughts, feelings, and personal opinions to other people in a non-threatening way. It allows students an outlet to speak and release. Sterner feels that they allow students to connect in a way that they normally could not.
“I spend more time with people in real life situations, but still, social networking is a huge part of the average teenager’s, and therefore my, life,” said Sterner.
While it is a way to connect, some students have a slight issue with turning off their computer and updating their studies instead of their statuses.
“Twitter has been the cause of a lot of my homework procrastination!” said Hazard. So while these sites can be helpful for touching base with friends and allow students to
release and speak, just be sure that they do not in fact become a distraction!
In this society, it is
great for a person to want to donate to a charity cause. One way
to be generous and donate to a charity is knit- ting. At the Noblesville Public Library usually on Wednesday afternoon, there is a knitting club called “Knit-A-Square” where the work is happening with
some students pitching in to help from NHS. “I talked to one of the librarians in the youth services area last summer over the
phone, and we got started in October, meeting twice a month to make squares. Our goal is to send 60 blanket squares to Africa, and we expect to hit our goal well ahead of schedule,” hostess Deborah Way said.
“Knit-A-Square” is an organization started in 2008, under the charity name of KasCare (http://www.kascare.org/) intended to help kids and adults in Africa. The main reason this organization started was to raise awareness of the poverty and lifestyles that lead to children
living with HIV/AIDS. Knitting a blanket, hat or scarf could help a child. There are kids who knit that are saving the lives of other kids.
“I started knitting when I was eight and knitting relaxes me and eases some stress. There isn’t a certain reason [why I knit], but the ‘Knit-A-Square’ at the library is a wonderful reason”, sophomore
Hope Reynolds said. Knitting can be a relaxing hobby to take up. It just takes patience and time. As a hobby, inspiration comes
handy to those who knit, whether it is creatively knitting an object or getting the inspiration to start. “I am in the process of teaching myself to knit right now. I wanted to get
another hobby that did not have anything to do with the computer and was creative. Sometimes I see some really cute things that other people knit, and I wonder why I should not learn my-self. The end product can end up being fantastic, and I always love when I can make something and be able to
enjoy it for a long time,” sophomore Erin Runyan said.
Sending the final product of a creation all the way to Africa and knowing that you have helped a child could be a great feeling. Knit-ting for charity is a good goal to try to accom-plish. It benefits a lot of children and adults.
“I think knitting for charity is a great idea. That way people who truly deserve it can have something nice to enjoy whenever they want or need it,” Runyan said.
According to the KasCare website, it is estimated that there are about 14.8 million orphans in Saharan Africans and about 1.9 million in South Afri-ca, half of them living with HIV/AIDS. While other charities
work hard to provide shel-ter and other necessities,
KasCare tries to pro-vide comfort.
Freshman Tessa Fischer demonstrates planking, where the person balances his or her body on a surface and makes it go completely rigid, much like a wooden plank.
Sophomore Chad Pharis is seen Tebowing, where the person gets on one knee, bows the head, and prays like Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow.
Sophomore Luke Sorto is Bradying, where the person sits against a wall, head bowed, hands in lap, like New England Patriots’ quar-terback Tom Brady did after his Super Bowl XLVI loss.
8 caboose Mill Stream02.24.2012
Check out more awesome content, like stories about participating in the Olympic sport of curling and pre-viewing the Oscars, on the web at www.mill-stream.org.
QR code provided by kaywa.com Illustration by A.Reed
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