November 2008 - East High School

Proust Questionnaire
by Grace Liu
The Proust
Questionnaire
was popularized
by French author
Marcel Proust in the
1800s. The answers are
supposed to be revealing
of someone’s personality.
Each issue, Tower Times
features a prominent person
in the East community, or
someone we think will
give good answers. This
issue we sat down with
morning announcement
extraordinaires,
DomDa-Bomb and Cha Girl
H-Con. Dom-Da-Bomb
spits in Spoken Word.
Cha Girl H-Con plays
guitar, piano and violin.
Both can also be seen
dazzling audiences during
Show Choir and East Side
Players perormances
The quality you most
like in a man?
Dom-da-Bomb
and
Cha Gurl H-Con: Heath
Ledger.
The quality you most
like in a woman?
D: We like Horror Show
Grodies.
H: Speak for yourself!
What do you most value
in your friends?
D&H: Sincerity, honesty,
and humor.
East High School
2222 E. Washington Ave.
Madison, WI 53704
Editor
Hannah Eisen
Assistant Editors
Abby Buechner
Grace Liu
The stars of our Purgolder Time announcements are also known
as Hannah Conley and Dominic Dharam. Photo by Grace Liu
D: Dude, I’m a
compulsive liar, or am I?
H: Yes, I agree. Makes
him difficult to work
with!
What is it you most
dislike?
D: When the ratio test
equals one!
H: What a nerd! I dislike
What would you like to Dom.
be?
What is your present
state of mind?
D: Legal!
H: Sarah Palin.
D: Voluptuous.
H: Crunchy, it’s the
What is your favorite
height
of awesomeness!
color?
D: Brown.
H: Firecracker, it’s the
color
of my room!
What is your principle
defect?
Tower
Times
What do you regard
as the lowest depth of
misery?
D: If my pet goat dies.
Contributing Writors
Grace Liu
Gillian Tomasini
Terran Tout
Nellie Mitchell
Amber Feldbruegge
Wes Aniel
Mara Lynch
Abby Buechner
John Primm
Ian Olson
Maggie Moore
George Otto
Photo Contributors
Grace Liu
Barb Patch
Advisers
Beth Torrison
Greg Rittman
Cover Design by
Grace Liu
What’s Up at East
“The Sound of East” sounded like success
by Gillian Tomasini
This
y e a r ’ s
Homecoming
was an event
to remember.
The idea of the theme,
“Sound of East,” was to
celebrate the sounds of
life at East. These sounds
range from music playing
on a student’s iPod to the
new bell, to the cafeteria
at lunchtime.
The week leading up
to Homecoming was busy.
Each day had a different
theme,
encouraging
students to have fun and
show their creative side.
Underclassmen wore their
clothes inside out, dressed
as nerds, walked around
with a twin or wore
their favorite athlete’s
jersey. Seniors had their
in purple and gold.
The Homecoming Pep
Rally was a success. Senior
Congress put in long hours
to paint signs and decorate
the gym. Senior Congress
revamped the Pep Rally’s
usual style to make it
more interactive. Students
participated in games and
a t-shirt toss. East’s Cheer
Team and Pep Band,
Kojo, Spoken Word and
Show Choir performed.
Captains of fall sports
teams updated students
on their exciting seasons.
At the end, Homecoming
Court was announced. The
ladies looked stunning and
East students celebrated at the Homecoming Pep Aud.
their escorts did a fine job
Photo by Grace Liu
own themes including Friday, the theme for the of escorting!
Superhero Day, Animal entire school was “Unified See Homecoming,
Day, Past Vs. Future and By the Eastside.” Students continued on page 4
Flashing Lights Day. On came to school decked out
You are now free to move around the building
A n
elevator, the
dentist’s office,
an airline. These
places have been
compared to the new bell.
Despite what you think it
sounds like, it is the new
tune ringing through the
building each day. It has
drawn staff and students’
attention, leaving many
with questions.
After three months
of tearing apart East’s
ceilings, workers installed
a new intercom system
by Terran Tout
to meet safety standards.
Before the $292,666
replacement,
not
all
classrooms could hear
announcements, including
those made about Code
Red lockdowns or bomb
threats. In the new system,
the intercom is heard in
every classroom, and
outside the building.
”Not all students could
hear the announcements,”
says Principal Alan Harris.
“It would be dangerous
if they weren’t informed
of an intruder inside the
building.”
The
new
Code
Red “siren” is easily
distinguishable
from
regular announcements
enabling students and
staff to react quicker to a
potential threat.
“After we installed
everything, they asked us
to choose the new sound,” says Harris. “The bell
came with the system.”
After
eliminating
obviously
undesirable
rings, the bell was
narrowed to two choices.
“I just asked the first
student I saw in the hall
which sound they would
prefer,” Harris explains.
“That’s the one we went
with.”
Many students are
concerened that the bell
is hard to hear, which
could result in tardiness.
However
adjusting
the volume of the bell
increases the volume of
announcements. A balance
will soon be reached, and
students will have to find a
new excuse for tardiness.
Politics
Barack Obama’s win offers hope for the future
If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a
place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the
dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
Barack Obama, Acceptance Speech, November 4, 2008
by Amber Feldbruegge
On November
4, 2008 history
was made. Our
country elected
the first African American
president, Barack Obama,
Just decades ago a
man of his color might not
have been able to vote.
The 2008 presidential
race had two very different
candidates, Barack Obama
and John McCain. The two
had contrasting outlooks
on running a country in
crisis.
President-Elect
Obama, a Democrat, took
a moderate view when
campaigning, stressing the
importance of education
and adequately funding
schools.
He also believes in an
economic plan that creates
Homecoming, continued from page 3
Once the rally was
over, girls from each grade
headed out to the football
practice field to play
friendly games of Powderpuff football.
Purple
new jobs, provides tax
cuts for the middle class
and poor while raising
taxes on the rich.
McCain,
the
Republican nominee, had
different plans to repair
the struggling economy.
However, his ideas didn’t
differ from President
Bush’s economic plan
strongly enough for voters
to see McCain as an agent
of change.
Early on the night
of November 4, it was
clear that Barack Obama
would win. His campaign
strategy was forceful and
well organized.
It kept states that
previous
Democratic
candidate John Kerry had
won, and also swung some
traditionally Republican
states his way.
Obama won by a
landslide 365 electoral
votes to John McCain’s
162.
Afterwards
John
McCain gave a gracious
speech,
congratulating
Obama
on
his
accomplishments.
Obama’s
campaign
established a new set
of standards and a new
perception of what a
campaign should be.
President-Elect
Obam’s acceptance speech
thanked his wife, Michelle,
two daughters, Malia and
Sasha, and running mate
Joe Biden.
Keeping his speech
short, Obama made it clear
that the United States was
a people’s America, that
each of our votes and
opinion counts to make
one whole and united
belief.
At the end of his
speech Obama stated, “…
this is our moment. This is
our time- to put our people
back to work and open
doors of opportunity and
promote the cause of peace;
to reclaim the American
dream and reaffirm that
fundamental truth that out
of many, we are one, that
while we breathe, we hope
and where we are met
with cynicism and doubt,
we will respond with that
timeless creed that sums
up the spirit of a people:
Yes We Can.”
As the crowd chanted,
our forty-fourth president
gave us hope for a new age
of change, making us once
again believe that we our
not defined by anything
but the similarities that we
share.
and gold clad spectators
looked on as the Senior
girls secured a victory.
That night, our football
boys played Verona at
Lussier Stadium. Before
the game started, East
students
tailgated
in
the parking lot. By the
time the game began,
the stands were bursting
with East students. At
half time, Homecoming
Queen was announced.
Congratulations to Tenzin
Yiga!
At the conclusion of
the night, our Purgolders
fought a tough battle but
lost to Verona.
Homecoming Week
demonstrated that we
truly are “Unified By the
Eastside.”
Politics
Michelle Obama campaigns in Madison before victory
by Nellie Mitchell
On September
22, about 1800
people gathered
near Camp Randall to
listen to Michelle Obama.
After opening speakers
and
introductions,
Michelle took the stage.
She appealed to the young
audience by talking about
issues like the economy,
healthcare, and education.
She touched on her own
life story, which she also
shared with the nation at
the Democratic National
Convention.
Michelle’s
primary
target was getting more
women involved with the
campaign. She received a
chuckle for her line, “We
paid their tuition with
student loans.
“The college students
won’t like to hear this,”
she told the crowd, “but
Barack and I just finished
paying off our student debt
a few years ago.”
Her tone was downto-earth. It wasn’t a loud,
roaring speech, but more
of a personal talk. Her
main message was that she
and Barack “get it”. They
understand the struggles
Michelle Obama spoke in Madison at GAR Park by Camp
of the average American.
Randall. Photo by Barb Patch
Of course, she strongly
encouraged
everyone to
all love the fellas, but let’s
When talking about
get
out
and
volunteer.
As
face it, the ladies know economic issues, Mrs.
how to get it done.”
Obama explained how she said, we don’t want to
She stressed that both she and Barack had wake up the morning after
Obama will push for equal to work for college and Election Day and think
wages and a woman’s right took nothing for granted. “what if” or “we were so
to make choices about her They both came from close.”
We didn’t.
body.
struggling families and
Referendum to save schools passes with 2-to-1 margin
by George Otto
N e w
Superintendent
Daniel Nerad
faced a difficult
decision.
To
fix the $8 million budget
deficit for the 2009-10
school year, Mr. Nerad
created a “Partnership
Proposal” to solicit funds.
This proposal asked
taxpayers to pay $5
million while the district
would cut $3 million from
existing programs.
Madisonians
voted
on the proposal in the
referendum that appeared
on the November 4 ballot
alongside the presidential
election.
Voters passed the
referendum by a two-toone margin. The new plan
will extend into the next
three years, and allows
for an extra $5 million the
first year and an additional
$4 million each of the two
years after that.
While $5 million seems
like a lot, the numbers are
a lot friendlier when you
break them down.
The average taxpayer
in Madison will pay an
extra $27.50 in 2009,
$43.10 in 2010, and
$20.91, according to
Madison Teachers, Inc.
The
referendum
requires the district to cut
programs. Superintendent
Nerad was fully prepared
to cut the full $8 million
dollars,
should
the
referendum have been
voted down.
He had laid out a
tentative plan that would
have cut $750,000 from
elementary schools, over
$2 million from High
Schools, and almost $3
million from special
education.
As much as $600,000
could have come out of
teacher salaries, which
would have meant cutting
even more teachers from
the district.
E m e r g e n c y
referendums for education
funding are often shot
down because people are
unwilling to pay the extra
money.
But what people don’t
consider is that, for a few
extra dollars a month, we
can protect our education
system, which is in danger
already.
Madisonians
voted
yes to the MMSD budget
referendum and voted yes
for our public schools.
Sports
East girls swim to victory with Junior Becca Soderholm
by Mara Lynch
Are there any hobbies
B e c c a or sports that you
Soderholm is a participate in outside of
girls swim team school?
captain.
Nothing other than
club swimming, but I love
What sports do you badminton.
participate in? I’ve been a part of East What is your favorite
Girls Varsity Swimming stroke?
for the last three years.
Butterfly
Would
you
rather Do you have any rituals
practice or compete?
before meets?
Compete, because it is
Stretch on the block,
an adrenaline rush.
play with my goggles,
and mean mug the other
When I am swimming I swimmers. And sometimes
feel…
when I am super hyper
Excited for my next I make animal noises to
race.
freak the other swimmers
out.
What have you gained
most from doing East
sports?
I gained great, lifelong
friends and unforgettable
memories.
Becca has been on Varsity
three years. Photo by Grace
Liu
Until this season, what
was
your
proudest
moment
in
East
Athletics?
East winning State last
year in swimming.
Who inspired you most
to excel in sports?
My dad, Joe Soderholm
because he believes in me
and pushes me to do my
best. Also my cousin Erik
Soderholm because I like
beating him in sports.
What goals did the team
achieve for this swim
season?
We won second in state
again and I improved my
time from last year.
Coach
Cleveland leads star Boys Volleyball players
by Wes Aniel
“Bump,
Set,
S p i k e ! ”
Madison East
got the point,
and the set against Fort
Atkinson!
East was
two points from saying,
“Game, Set, Match,” but
the players weren’t able to
pull out a win.
The final score was
3-2, but East was still
competitive with some
excellent plays. Many
players
didn’t
have
any experience with
volleyball, but their hard
work and dedication paid
off with a couple of wins
in the season.
The stars of this year’s
squad were seniors and
co-captains James Bartelt,
Jake Page, and Stafford
Park. Bartelt was on the
All-Conference Team last
year, and shot for a higher
status this year by trying
to make an appearance in
the State Tournament. It
was a tough goal that he
nearly reached, and he had
some key players helping
him. James led the Big
Eight Conference in kills
and blocks.
Jake Page was one of
the Big Eight’s greatest
passers, and a great
leader on and off the
field. Stafford Park joined
volleyball this fall and had
great athletic ability. He
was in seventh place in
the Big 8 for kills.
A key player to keep
an eye on is Brad Fraser,
also known as “B-Rad.”
Brad is a sophomore who
played a mature game and
had a sense of where the
ball would go! Spectators,
coaches and players kept
an eye on him as a future
leader of Volleyball at
East.
And the final piece
to the puzzle was senior
Zach Daveler. At the start
of the season, Zach did not
know if volleyball was the
right sport for him. After
discussing it with some
other players, he knew he
would be a key player to
the Purgolders success!
A new coach was
hired in May: Coach
Cleveland! No, not the
Varsity Boys Basketball
Coach Cleveland, but
his son, Tyler. Tyler was
a standout athlete in his
years at Stoughton High
School, and coaches
basketball, baseball and,
of course, volleyball.
Tyler set a record when
he stood behind the
bench. That record is the
youngest to be named
Varsity Head Coach in the
state of Wisconsin, at the
age of 20.
The volleyball team
gave it their all and really
respected the game. They
played against tough
teams like LaFollette and
Middleton, and remained
competitive.
Relationships
Gabby Abby
dishes the hots and nots of the East halls
H e y
by Abby Buechner
E a s t
Siders, this is
your monthly
dose of gossip.
I give the entire
dish and dirt of these
hallow halls.
No worries, this is a
school newspaper so my
dish and dirt isn’t exactly
dish and dirt. Everything
that I write is positive, and
nothing mean will slip our
editor.
What’s Hot!
Each issue I will spotlight a hot new couple. If
you would like to make
an appearance e-mail me
at
abbybuechner123@
hotmail.com.
For my first column, I
chose Jake Bergstrom and
his new boo Sam, AKA
Mrs. Bergstrom. The
two met through senior
Kennan Stoker.
Their commitment to
each other is what makes
this couple the hottest.
Though Mrs. Bergstrom
lives forty-five minutes
away, it didn’t stop her
from supporting her man
at his football games.
Plus Mrs. Bergstrom is
way cute. They have looks,
love and commitment.
What else could you ask
for?
But, Jake, a word to
the wise: you might want
to lock the new Mrs.
Bergstrom high in a tower.
There were some other
boys eyeing her up.
B e s i d e s
relationships, this writer
is all about new trends.
As many of you know, the
hottest new thing is the
Green Movement.
There
are
many
ways to follow the
Green Movement: Skip
straightening your hair,
or recycle that homework
assignment you never did,
or, even better, carpool or
walk to school.
Caity Murkve and
Kari Myers follow the
movement by switching
off driving to school.
Julian Irwin bikes and
Reed Gaines walks to
school. Way to go! Plus
carpooling makes more
parking spots!
What’s Not!
I know I said this
would all be positive, but
I’m going to share some
general rules that some
people don’t seem to get
quite yet.
Regarding the Green
Movement, I have to talk
about witch parkers. There
are a good number of
people who clearly don’t
know how to park.
If you get the first spot
on 4th Street, don’t park
five feet from the yellow
line. If you pull up behind
someone, leave enough
room so a car bigger than
a VW Beetle can squeeze
in.
You witch parkers
limit our scarce parking
even more. If you can’t
park your car, don’t drive
your car.
So, witch parkers,
change your ways before I
start calling you out.
Moving on to business
inside of our school, I love
couples that hold hands
and kiss in the hallways.
But I hate couples that
take two minutes in the
middle of the hallway to
have a full on make out
session.
No one wishes to see
you and your significant
other shoving your tongues
down each other’s throat.
I propose an idea to
those who are annoyed
by the make out sessions.
Instead of walking around
them, walk through them.
Annoying
couples
beware, you just might
have people walking
right through your little
passionate good-bye.
Until next time,
Gabby Abby
State Street offers East students romantic getaways
by John Primm
As
Mr.
Harris
would
put it, the grass
is green, the sky
is blue and the birds are
chirping. Only, the grass
is dead, the sky is turning
wintery gray and the birds
flew south. With drab
weather and most of the
school year ahead of us,
we look to dating to keep
us awake in class.
It’s not quite that easy
though, with homework,
jobs and school to work
around. When are you
going to find the time to
take anyone out on a date,
let alone trying to figure
out where to go? Let’s
face it: Most of us can’t
go to L’Etoile for kicks
and giggles.
So where does that
leave us? We live in
Madison, fortunately, and
opportunities
abound.
All it takes is a walk up a
street to find where to take
your next date. One street
to walk up is State Street.
It may be getting chilly,
but there are lots of cozy
coffee shops and decent
restaurants.
Don’t expect things to
go your way if you don’t
know what’s going on
downtown. However, there
are a number of easy dates
for you. For example, a
good friend of mine often
used to go the Fair Trade
coffee house, Starbucks,
or to one of the many other
coffee houses on State
Street to get hot chocolate
on a cold day. That is
the ideal date for those
of us with not enough of
anything. It’s only a short
ways from East, it’s quick
(but not too quick), it’s
inexpensive, and you’re
pretty much getting her, or
him if you’re so inclined,
chocolate.
Zoroscopes!!!!
by: Ian Olson A r i e s :
Wedges
come with all
meal
deals—
take them or out
run the lunch ladies!
Taurus: You will get better
at humming the little tune
of our new bell—too bad
no one wants to hear you.
Gemini: The beautiful
artwork on a rugby flier
will catch your eye today.
Lucky you.
Cancer: Your principal
will set a new record
while
exclaiming,
“Goooood Morning, East
High School,” with a 4.12
second long “good.”
Leo: An 80% on a five
point quiz will absolutely
ruin your life.
Libra:
“Something’s
going on,” yells your
mother as you come home
at five in the morning. You
have the energy for one
word: “Calc.”
Scorpio: Your birthday
is coming up—here’s to
being less than ¼ as old
as John McCain! (This
applies to you too, staff!)
Sagittarius: Just because
your sign starts with “sag”
doesn’t mean that anyone
wants to see that.
Carpricorn: Reply hazy.
Try again.
Aquarius: There is a
cold going around. Have
fun using paper towels to
blow your nose. (A.K.A.
Teacherswe
need
Kleenex Soft now!)
Pisces:
Watch
your
back, Pisces. Spagett is
definitely going to get you
one of these days.
Virgo: Just because we
don’t have hall sweeps
anymore doesn’t mean
that you can waltz into
first hour whenever you
feel like it
East has a foriegn affair with exchange students
by: Maggie Moore
T o w e r
Times spoke with
three
foreign
exchange
students at East
this year.
George Koop is from
Linden, Germany.
Why did you come to the
U.S. through a foreign
exchange program?
I wanted to meet new kinds
of people.
What are the biggest
differences
between
East and your school at
home?
East is very big, and stuff
is very easy (laughs). East
has a lot of things [clubs,
sports, social events] for
the people. East’s gym
is better. I like it. It is
newer.
How are the sports at
East different from the
sports that people play
where you are from?
In Germany the soccer
is better (laughs). Most
people play soccer in
Germany. Here there
are
more
favorites:
basketball, baseball, ice
hockey.
What
are
some
commonly
believed
stereotypes
of
Americans? Have you
found any of them to be
true?
They say Americans are…
really dumb, crazy, naïve.
No, nothing is true. None
of it is true.
What
are
some
differences
between
German girls and girls
in America?
They are mostly the same,
a little different. Yes,
everything is the same…
No, German girls are
better dancers!
Renata Guerra is
from Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Cristiana Costa is from
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
They were interviewed
together.
Why did you decide to
come to the U.S. through
a
foreign
exchange
program?
Both girls: To learn
English. Also to live with
a different culture.
What are the biggest
differences
between
East and your school at
home?
R: We go to private
school
C: All of the classes are the
same group of students.
The students stay in one
room and the teacher
changes. Our schools are
all ages.
R: Yes, there are all
grades at our schools.
Same school, but different
buildings for different
ages.
How are the sports at
East different from the
sports that people play
where you are from?
C: Where I am from, the
most popular sports for
girls are handball and
volleyball. For boys they
are soccer and basketball.
People play sports outside
of school, not at school.
R: Synchronized swimming
is very popular for girls
where I am from.
What are
commonly
believed stereotypes of
Americans? Have you
found any of them to be
true?
C: Umm, that Americans
are better than us, that they
have more money than us.
They are cold people, not
very welcoming. I think
some people here are very
cold, but some do make
you feel comfortable.
What
are
some
differences
between
Brazilian boys and boys
in America?
R: At home I have a lot of
best friends that are boys.
Here it’s a lot of girls with
girls and boys with boys.
C: Yes, here I don’t see
girls and boys very close
to each other as friends.