November 2011 - Wallingford-Swarthmore School District

Panther Press
Strath Haven High School
HAVEN HAPPENINGS
page 3
Turn to the Haven Happenings
section to hear about anything
and everything related to our
school! Ian Anderson shares
an exclusive interview with the
Panther mascot, Holly Buhler
reviews spirit week and homecoming, and Tyler Gallagher
spotlights one of Strath Haven’s
newest clubs, The Birthday Club!
DETOURS
page 5
In Detours, Anna Jaoudi covers
the loss of one of technologies
biggest figures, Steve Jobs. Literary expert Christian Belanger
reviews the book Wolf Hall and
Dylan Van Duyne discusses the
WES construction project with
principal Dr. Ellen Milgrim.
Puzzle master Ian Everbach
is here once again with a new
crossword!
November 2011
Bringing Back Relay For Life!
By David Lai, ‘12 & Ashley Hoyle, ‘14
Staff Writers
Each year, 863,950 Americans
will be diagnosed with cancer. Chances
are, you may know one of those people.
Of those people, 569,490 will die. On November 5, 2011, the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District valiantly fought to
bring that number down.
SHHS graciously hosted a
twelve-hour Relay for Life in honor of
the cancer victim we all love and miss:
Diane McCormick. Teams from the school
district joined up to raise money for the
American Cancer Society (ACS) and the
Diane McCormick Scholarship Fund.
Through the hard work of the Relay com-
henna tattoo services. Attendees stayed
active and warm with Dina Dormer’s
kickboxing class, the flag football tournament and relay races. People gathered
to watch the hilarious pie eating contest
(congratulations to the winner, Alex
Hu!), video game tournaments, hypnotist
and Quizzo show. With all the activities
and competitions, there was never a dull
moment. A huge thanks to Liz Walk and
James Haxton for their fantastic work as
activities co-chairs.
At 7:30PM, all activities stopped
and Relayers gathered around the stage
for an incredibly touching Luminaria
ceremony. Mr. Rothenbach and Mr. Babcock, two of Haven’s very own survivors,
shared their experiences and wisdom with
resumed and the snack bar’s famous – or
perhaps infamous – Ms. Gaur enticed the
Relayers with steaming cups of hot chocolate and 1 buck dinners (a hotdog, drink,
and candy…for $1! Who could resist??).
Her best business pitch of the night was
“You see Nico [Mesyngier] and David
[Lai] do the Bernie?! You give me dollar
for food!” It still doesn’t make sense to us,
but her charming accent won the hearts
(and stomachs) of the Relayers every time.
(We love you Ms. Gaur!)
Whether people came for a minute or for the entire twelve hours, each and
every person had something to be proud
of. Though Relay did not reach its former
6-digit mark, the event more than doubled
its original goal of $20,000. It was a
A&E
page 7
Turn to the Arts & Entertainment section to hear all about
11/11/11, otherwise known as
National Metal Day. John Kopsick delves into the most recent
coffee house. Tyler Gallagher
has two favorite things: Parks
and Recreation and the Wu-Tang
Clan. Turn to page 8 to hear his
thoughts!
OPINIONS
page 9
Junior Chad Maguire compares
some of the best diners around.
Josh Kauffman discusses the
newest eco-friendly cars, the
Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf.
Cheese Master Kirsten Wise is
back with another cheese corner column, and check out the
Haven Art section!
SPORTS
page 11
Do you like college basketball? Well, Kyle Floyd has you
covered. Turn to page 11 for a
complete preview. Sophomore
Samantha Snyder talks about
another obscure sport, bog
snorkeling. This combination
of swimming and snorkeling
is pretty unique...And for your
complete coverage of Haven’s fall
sports seasons, check out Junior
Billy Ripley’s article on page 12!
Participants run in the relay races, one of the many activities that took place at Relay for Life! Image courtesy of Susan Spina.
mittee over $41,000 (donations are still
coming in after the event) was raised for
the ACS and over $2,100 for the scholarship fund.
It was a beautifully coordinated
event; everyone enjoyed the Boing! obstacle course, Team Hope’s face paintings,
and Lela Meunier & Emily Benenhaley’s
the entranced crowd. After their speeches,
Relayers walked a lap in silence around
the dark track – observing the lit Luminaria which lined the track. Each Luminaria
bag, dedicated to a loved one, burned
brightly in the dark for a very special moment.
After the ceremony, activities
fantastic surprise to see such passionate
support for the event – new format and all.
On November 5th, in just 12 hours, the
WSSD community proved that it is indeed
possible to give over 110%, if not more.
these jobs, it puts even more pressure on
finding work. Many SHHS students have
struggled to find even part time work to
give them a little extra spending money on
weekends.
Speaking of extra spending
money, students at SHHS and across the
country have had less and less of it since
the beginning of the recession. With fewer
part time work opportunities available,
disposable income among high school
and college students is down dramatically.
Students have not enjoyed themselves
through the lavish purchases or expensive
nights out that they once had. The students
at Strath Haven are not immune from this,
as across the board SHHS students have
seen their disposable income dip. Senior
Grace Magerr says that “I have had less
money to spend on nail polish.”
As a senior going through the
college admissions process, I think that
I can speak for the entire senior class
headed onto higher education when I say
that the application-process by itself is a
significant investment, not even factoring
in the cost of tuition, books, and housing.
Students’ financial situation is one of the
foremost factors in deciding which college
or university to attend. But with investment portfolios tanking across the board,
SHHS students and their parents have had
to reconsider their plans for furthering an
education. Many families are considering
cheaper state colleges and universities as
alternatives to private colleges and universities that often sticker price at north of
$50,000 per year. And while these schools
often offer generous financial aid packages, state schools such as West Chester,
Penn State, and the University of Pittsburgh are becoming more appealing options for SHHS students. As Senior Mike
Henderson remarked, “It (the economy)
made me decline MIT’s generous invitation to attend their prestigious university.”
As the weakest economy in our,
and our parents’ lifetime has set in, the reality for families across America has been
tough. In many cases students have had to
take a job just to support their respective
families. This recession is clearly one in
which high school students are not immune from, as students continue to suffer
is all sorts of ways.
The Impact of the Economy on SHHS
Students
By Nick Shields, ‘12
Staff Writer
Ever since the stock market
collapsed in the fall of 2008 the global
economy has been in tatters. The resulting recession has affected the majority
of Americans, rich and poor, black and
white, male and female. There are very
few Americans who haven’t been affected
by the “Great Recession”; although some
high school students watch the news and
continue to believe that the economy has
no impact on them, many Strath Haven
students are feeling the pains of the recession.
Most Strath Haven students have
had some type of job by the time they
leave to enter the world as adults. By the
time they turn eighteen, nearly 65% of
American teens have already had a payroll
job. With the unemployment rate still
hovering at around 9%, companies are
reluctant to hire. In addition, with many
adults also out of their jobs, older, more
experienced workers look to take a temporary, part time job while they search for
work. Since young people typically hold
Editors’ Page
November 2011
Page 2
The Leditor
By Aaron Jacobs, ‘13
Editor-in-Chief
Editor-in-Chief Jacobs
When I think of the month of
November, Thanksgiving immediately
comes to mind. Every year, millions of
Americans gather with friends and family
to celebrate a successful harvest, and acknowledge those Native Americans who
taught us the necessary agricultural skills
to survive. Yeah, so maybe the origins of
this annual holiday don’t exactly apply to
today’s festivities. Regardless, modern
day Thanksgiving is a great opportunity
for guilt-free binge eating, joyous family bonding, and a fabulous four (and a
half) day weekend. Instead of the serious
stresses that bog me and others down day
after day, the biggest concern for many on
Thanksgiving is whether or not post-meal
drowsiness (caused by tryptophan-laden
turkeys) will arise. What a relaxing and
awesome holiday!
I think that an overwhelming majority of Aside from election day, which,
people love Thanksgiving because of its depending on the year either brings reacconsistency. I mean, people don’t fret over tions like, “What election day?” or “OMG
whether they’ll like the food because it’s ELECTION DAY!” November is also
the same
the time for
items evBlack Friday,
ery year!
the shopping
For most,
equivalent of
there will
storming the
be turkey,
beaches
of
mashed
Normandy on
potatoes,
D-Day. If you
s t u ff i n g ,
enjoy waking
and pie,
up obscenely
and peoearly and havple like it
ing to deal
that way.
with immense
With all of
crowds, conthe unpregratulations,
dictable
you
saved
things
some money!
that
go
I think that
on today,
I’ll sleep late,
it’s nice
turn on the
to
have
song “Black
something
Friday”
by
that
we
Steely Dan,
as Ameriand avoid gocans can
ing within a
c o u n t
one mile radion. Who
us of any mall
w o u l d
or department
have prestore.
History teacher Dr. Pagnotto loves the Panther Press! Imdicted
November
age courtesy of Jack Huemmler.
the recent
wouldn’t be
Penn State scandal? Who would have complete without another issue of the Panknown that unemployment would be so ther Press. So, if you’re like Dr. Pagnotto
high for such an extended period of time? and love to read the Panther Press, you
What if a terrorist attack is lurking? The should write for the Panther Press. You
Detroit Lions will play the early football can write about almost anything, so talk
game on Thanksgiving, followed by the to us (the editors) by emailing shpantherdreaded Cowboys. There will be a Bart [email protected].
Simpson float at the Macy’s Thanksgiving
Day Parade. The world is a completely Best,
unpredictable place, but Thanksgiving is Aaron Jacobs
completely predictable day.
Charlotte Jenkins
Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.
Lolcats.com: Lol.
About catz.
320 Market Media:
Who knew? Pico de
gallo and amazing frozen pizza are coming
to Media.
Abby Lowe
Editors’ Picks
The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs- I am a
cooking-show addict. My new favorite is a spin
on the ol’ Food Network classic, Iron Chef.
If you haven’t had the privilege of watching
the original Japanese version (it’s usually on
around 2 A.M.), then I am very sorry for your
loss. The beauty of this new show is that it has
the intensity of the original, while also the stupidity that we all have to come to expect and
love from American cooking shows. I’m placing my bets on Chef Marcus Samuelsson, but
I’m open to other viewpoints.
Dan Ziring
Psych: The USA network comedy is one of
the most infallibly funny shows on television.
If you haven’t seen it before, you’re in luck:
Hulu has almost every episode from all six
seasons available for free, right now. So go.
Panther Press Censorship: For all those
times when your editor’s picks are too forward
thinking and you can’t run interactive experiments through them.
Milena Williamson
CharlieIsSoCoolLike: An awesome vlogger/
musician on youtube. Plus, he’s got a British
accent. ‘Nuff said.
The Four and a Half Weeks Between
Thanksgiving and Christmas: All the joys
of holiday shopping combined with the stress
of the end of the semester. Who doesn’t love
an adrenaline rush that lasts that long?
Panther Press Staff
November 2011
-Editor-in-ChiefAaron Jacobs
-EditorsCharlotte Jenkins
Milena Williamson
Vidya Venkatesh
Abby Lowe
Dan Ziring
-Staff Writers and ColumnistsDavid Lai
Ashley Hoyle
Nick Shields
Holly Buhler
Ian Anderson
Nicholas Diefenbach
Jack Heummler
Anna Jaoudi
Andrew Lombard
Christian Belanger
Dylan Van Duyne
Ian Everbach
Jill Troutman
Cassandra Kyriazis
Tomer Stern
Dan Haddaway
Tom Mizsei
Peter Gao
Sarah Shulbank-Smith
John Kopsick
Tyler Gallagher
Josh Kauffman
Chad Maguire
Timothy Crouch
Kirsten Wise
Kyle Floyd
Samantha Snyder
Billy Ripley
-AdvisorsMrs. Jennifer Fisher
Mrs. Laurie Bruch
Aaron Jacobs
Rotten Tomatoes: You like movies and you
aren’t looking at rotten tomatoes? It’s the
number one source for reviews around, so get
on there to check to see if the newest movies are rotten or fresh. Alternatively, get the
Flixster App!
Vidya Venkatesh
Failbook.com: best distraction ever: all the
dumbest Facebook posts all on one site.
Winnie-ther-Pooh: the little-known original
name.
November 2011
Haven Happenings
A Night on the Nile
By Holly Buhler, ‘14
Staff Writer
in cheetah, zebra and leopard print. The
end to Spirit Week was Black Out Day in
honor of the huge Homecoming football
Homecoming is one of the more
game that took place that night against
laid back dances of the year with no
Lower Merion. The Haven guys killed
stressing about pictures, dates, and all of Lower Merion with a score of 48-7.
that fun stuff. This probably explains the After a week of fun dress-up
700 plus tickets that were sold for this
days and a pretty exciting football game,
year’s dance. Or, maybe the cause of the the Homecoming dance finally arrived
overflowing gym was the creative theme Saturday night. Student Council spent
chosen this year, “A Night on the Nile.”
the entire day putting up decorations,
The clever Egyptian theme was anwhich renounced
ally paid
at the
off, acpepcording to
rally, a
sophomore
given at
Rebecca
Strath
Robbins:
Haven
“The homeevery
coming
time
decorations
homewere so
coming
spectacurolls
lar I felt
around.
like I was
Most
actually in
pep ralthe Nile!”
lies are
Upon walkthe same
ing into
old,
the gym
same old
lobby you
– an ansaw stick
nouncefigures
ment of
“walking
homelike Egypcoming
tians” hung
court
up on the
(2 boys
wall. There
Student council members and sports captains walked
and girls per
was also black
like Egyptians at the pep rally.
grade, with
paper splatImage courtesy of Jack Huemmler.
the exception
tered with
of 5 seniors
neon paint
guys and girls), followed by students
outlining the walls. Not so sure how that
showing off the following week’s spirit
had too much to do with the theme, but,
day themes (stoplight day was a favorite nonetheless, it looked awesome. At the
this year, despite the awkwardness). This entrance to the gym, there was a huge
year, however, there was a little more
cut-out of a pyramid. Next to that was a
dancsomewhat lifeing insized (plastic?
volved,
I didn’t get too
mostly
close) camel, to
cengo along with the
tered
theme.
around
Almost every
the
dance starts off
willingwith overwhelmness of
ing discomfort,
favorite
and Homefaculty
coming was
and
no exception.
Students showed their spirit with Twin Day. Image When you entered,
staff to
courtesy of Jack Huemmler.
embarrass
you could see little
themgroups of people
selves by
scattered around the gym, nervously
participating in the “flashmob” with all
laughing (freshmen….as well as me) not
of the students. Another slight change
quite knowing what to do. Soon enough,
this year was the start of a competition
more students arrived, filling in all of
among grades. That competition carried the gaps. Almost every girl was wearon throughout spirit week but started off
ing something gold and shiny. “I loved
with the “grading” of each class’s sign
the theme because it was fun to dress
above the bleachers, with the freshmen’s in more of a costume-y outfit instead of
flipped upside down, per tradition.
a normal one,” noted freshman Marga
Spirit Week kicked off with
ret Ohley. Some people went all out,
Stoplight Day. Students wore green if
like seniors Chris Williams and Ryder
single, red if in a relationship, and yelScott who painted their bodies gold and
low if it’s complicated. More students
donned some sort of Egyptian attire. Too
than I expected actually participated
far? Nah. After all, our school president
in the event, wearing their feelings
should be showin’ a little Haven spirit.
for the whole school and faculty to
All and all, this year’s Homecoming
see… so much for privacy? However,
seemed to be a success, thanks to all the
it seemed to be a fun way to start off
SHHS students, staff, and Student Counthe Spirit Week festivities. Next came
cil!
Twin Day, easy enough. Hogwarts Day
was Wednesday. I spotted a few people
dressed up here and there, as well as
some closet HP fans showing their true
colors. Following that was Animal Day
in which students decked themselves out
Page 3
Interview with the
Panther
to dance so well during the games?
Panther: Well, it comes from the
heart, from the stomach, an inspiration of
Have you wondered who that
passion. When you see me cat daddy and
amazingly majestic person under the panshuffle I am being inspired by the Greek
ther suit was? I sure have. We see the panmuses, it is actually quite an out of body
ther dancing his or her heart out at football
experience.
games, inspiring the team and crowd to
Me: You are such a baller. I see
victory. The panther is the unsung hero of
a lot of kids
Strath Haven,
come up to
the only thing
hug you, how
that stops this
do you feel
school transabout that?
forming from
an academic
Panther:
bastion to a
Personally, I
quagmire of
love children.
drug violence
In order for
and gang
America to be
warfare.
competitive
in the global
I went on a
market place
journalistic
they need to
quest to find
step up their
this savior of
personal work
our school.
ethic and it is
I cannot go
my responinto detail
The mysterious Panther shows off his skills sibility to
about how I
with the ladies. Image courtesy of Facebook. inspire them.
was able to find
However,
him, but it involved an illuminati assassin
some young brats come up to me and try
and some very sketchy bootleggers from
to touch my whiskers and curse at me,
Shanghai.
these urchins need to be reprimanded, and
When I finally discovered the
they have failures as parents.
true panther, the prince of pizzazz, I was
Me: I also often see you high five the
awestruck. My hero, my idol (as he/she is
band, what’s the deal with that?
everyone’s) was everything that I wanted
Panther: I like to think that the
him/her to be, a man’s man and a tender
reason there are so many people in the
listener. After staring for a good 20 minband is because they get free admission to
utes I finally wound up the nerve to talk
see me. Although sometimes a bunch of
to the panther. I have here transcribed a
“cool” band members think they are too
record of our conversation.
“cool” to high five me, not a day goes by
Me: Mr. panther, I won’t use
where I don’t think about how they have
your name since you are very mysterious
both failed me and Strath Haven.
and want to keep your identity a secret.
There you have it folks , the
Panther: Yes, thank you, my
one and only enigma, the panther. Will
life has been threatened several times by
we ever know his identity? Probably not,
Penncrest hoodlums and it would be a
since he is known for not talking and
shame if anything happened to me.
never giving away things about his per
Me: True facts, what inspires you
sonal life. Also, ladies, he’s single ;)
By Ian Anderson, ‘12
Staff Writer
Academics Overrule
Haven Teens’ Sleep
By Nicholas Diefenbach, ‘14
Staff Writer
Strath Haven High School senior
Pat Doyle often gets up at 4:00 a.m. to
finish his schoolwork. He goes to bed at
10:30 p.m., which adds up to 6.5 hours
of sleep. Tasnia Jamil, a junior at SHHS,
goes to bed between 11:30 and 12 p.m. on
most nights and gets up precisely at 6:07
a.m. These students are similar to other
typical teens who routinely get about six
to seven hours of sleep a night. According to the Nemours Foundation, however,
adolescents should be getting between 8.5
and 9 hours of sleep per night.
They’re not. The reasons? Homework, preparation for tests, participation
in numerous activities and the stress of
getting into college. All of these factors result in teens substituting volunteer
activities and study for sleep.
Take the case of sophomore
Jack Brake. He needs to be at school by
7 a.m. for practice with the Silvertones.
“Teens tend to cut out sleep to fit in other
activities and homework,” notes freshman
Derek Sonntag.
Experts link lack of sleep to
lower than expected grades and reduced
effectiveness in sports. Sometimes, they
say, studying less and getting a good night
of sleep can get you a better grade than
studying more and sleeping less. The
National Sleep Foundation’s 2006 Sleep
in America poll states that more than a
quarter of high school students fall asleep
in class.
According to Nemours, teenagers’ biology makes it hard for them to get
to sleep early and also to get up early. The
brain hormone melatonin is made later at
night for teenagers than it is for adults or
younger children, scientists explain. Yet
many high schools, such as SHHS, start
their days at 7:30 a.m., which does not fit
with a teenager’s circadian rhythms. Pat
Doyle notes that he prefers a “nocturnal”
schedule, “sleeping during the day and
working during the night.”
Some students say teachers hold
the answer. “If teachers reduced homework, we could get more sleep and would
actually perform better in school,” argues
sophomore Brake.
According to the New York
Times, some elite private high schools in
Manhattan are doing just that. The logic
is that it is counterproductive for students
to stay up late studying. Tasnia Jamil,
however, believes students could get more
sleep if they procrastinated less. Pat Doyle
agrees, noting that students can be “irresponsible with their sleep habits.”
November 2011
Haven Happenings
Page 4
Roving Reporter
By Jack Huemmler, ‘13
Staff Writer
As the sports season closes, we asked, what was your
favorite Haven fall sports moment?
“When the football team
grabbed the ball and then
ran the other way.”
-Jess Urban, ‘14
By Ashley Hoyle, ‘14
Staff Writer
“The Girls’ Field Hockey
Opener. What a game.”
-Nico Mesyngier, ‘13
“Winning the central league
title for the second year in a
row!”
-Alice Roberts, ‘14
“Getting a sweet mohawk for
Cross Country states.”
-Jeff Cialis™, ‘12
Marching Band: Clash of the Centuries
Strath Haven’s 450-piece marching
band rehearses and performs two different
shows during the course of one football
season. The first show is a result of grueling practices during band camp, which
is a week of five-hour mostly-outdoor
practices. The students must persevere
through stinging sunburn and extreme
heat to perform the first show at the premiere football game. Halfway through the
Panthers’ season, the band begins rehearsing for hours at a time at night to learn
the new drill and music. Freezing temperatures and sore legs are no match for
the musicians’ tenacity and Mr. Hontz’s
incredible leadership.
Our 459-person band kicked
off this football season with a phenomenal show. It included “Karn Evil 9” by
Emerson, Lake and Palmer, “We Got the
of us really do prefer the music from our
Beat” by The Go Go’s and “Distorted”
parents’ time. “I like We Got the Beat
from Cirque Soleil.
These first few
weeks were full of
speeches referencing a musical time
most of us could
not relate to. We
often were told
that these songs
were not from our
time and that we
wouldn’t understand the adults’
inside jokes. We
had to listen to
Mr. Jeremiah Wood, former band student teacher. Image courtesy
many accounts of
of Jack Huemmler.
what music was
like ‘back in the day’ from our parents and better,” states Danny Woods, tenor saxorelatives who got a rush of nostalgia from
phone player, “and yes, I don’t like a lot
watching our marching band show. Some
of modern music…”
After we took a blast from the
past, though, we began playing some very
modern music. The second band show
consists of “Mr. Roboto” by Styx, “Poker
Face” by Lady Gaga and “Distorted”
from Cirque de Soleil. This modern
mash-up has been grabbing the attention
of the crowd -- and the band. “I listen
to Lady Gaga all the time…it’s the only
music I like. She’s my idol. I want my
own meat suit,” says first trumpet Jacob
Hoyle. The second show is very relatable
and exciting to watch. All the Haven fans
from elementary up to high school are in
love with the second show, and come to
the games week after week to support us.
All in all, there’s something in
the marching band shows for everyone.
Starting in the playoffs a ‘hybrid’ show
will be performed, featuring the tunes
from both shows. Watch out for this special event and go Panthers!
Club Spotlight: Birthday Club
By Tyler Gallagher, ‘12
Staff Writer
I bet I know what you’re thinking right now. “What’s the most fun club
in Strath Haven High School?” Right?
I’m so good. The answer might shock
you: it’s the Birthday Club. One of the
newest clubs at Strath Haven, it is also
undoubtedly the best and most fun in
Haven history. Created by four men of
genius IQs under the careful supervision
of part-time teacher, part-time “Goddess of Awesome” Reagan Lattari, the
Birthday Club will celebrate anyone’s
birthday. The members of the club do
this by bringing a boom box to the cafeteria during lunch and dancing around
the birthday boy/girl. When asked why
the Birthday Club exists, co-creator
Tyler Gallagher simply smiled. “It brings
joy to everyone,” he proclaimed proudly,
“everyone likes celebrating their birthday, especially with a cafeteria full of
high schoolers.”
The Birthday Club chancellors,
seniors Tyler Gallagher, Eric Teofilak,
Phil Host, and Jake Summers, came up
with the idea in Ms. Lattari’s new-andimproved Creative Writing elective at
SHHS. The boys were chattering one
day in September of 2011, when the idea
struck them all at the same time. Ms. Lattari looked up because she knew something incredible had occurred, and just
like that, she was the club sponsor. After getting the necessary
signatures and talking to the necessary
administration members, the Birthday
Club was officially legit and full of swag.
Everyone loves happiness. Everyone
loves birthdays. Join the Birthday Club,
you will love it.
*To contact the Birthday Club
to plan a birthday bash for your friends,
e-mail Tyler Gallagher at twig1994@
aol.com with your friend’s name, lunch,
and birthday AT LEAST A WEEK IN
ADVANCE.
DISCLAIMER
The Panther Press is first and foremost a reflection of the opinions and interests of the
student body. For this reason, we do not
publish any anonymous or teacher-written
submissions, and we do not discriminate
against any ideology or political opinion.
While we are bound by school policy (and
funding), we will not render any article
neutral, athough individual points may be
edited for obscene or baselessly inflammatory content, with the consent of the author. Finally, the articles published in the
Panther Press do not necessarily reflect the
views of the editors.
Strath Haven High School
205 South Providence Road
One of the Birthday Club chancellors,
Erik Teofilask, rocks out at the Coffee
House like he will on your birthday.
Wallingford, PA 19086
610.892.3400
November 2011
Detours
Losing a Visionary
By Anna Jaoudi, ‘15
Staff Writer
“The world has lost a visionary.
And there may be no greater tribute to
Steve’s success than the fact that much of
the world learned of his passing on a device he invented.”
President Barack Obama made
this statement shortly following the death
of Steve Jobs. On the evening of October 5, I was sitting at my desk using my
MacBook. I was working on an essay, doing some research in Safari, iTunes was
in the background, iPhoto was uploading
pictures, iMail was sending messages... As
I opened another tab in Safari, Apple.com
opened to a huge picture of Steve Jobs.
Earlier, it was boasting the new iPhone 4S,
released the day before, and I was wondering why suddenly there was nothing
there about it. Clicking on the picture, I
soon found out that Jobs had lost his battle
with cancer that day. Thinking back, I realize that Jobs and his multimillion cooperation, Apple, had a greater impact on my
life than I’ve ever actually known. Back in
the late ‘90s, we got our first Mac IIsi. We
used to put those little floppy disks in it to
play various games and programs. It had to
be the coolest thing in the world, but then
we got the iMac. It was light blue, had an
awesome round mouse, and it was the first
iMac Apple ever released. This was the CD
generation, and we loved those computer
games that you’d install from disks. We
had that iMac for a while, and as we got
older, Apple starting releasing the MacBooks, which we all have and use way too
much. Floppy disks and CDs seem prehistoric now, and it’s pretty funny that we’ve
had Macs my entire life.
Yet, computers aren’t the only Listening to music on the go was easier,
thing that Apple has changed throughout and more often than not you’d see people
the years. Remember cassette tapes for with those little white earbuds in their ears.
listening to music? The little plastic rect- Suddenly the iPod became a world pheangles we put in the boom boxes? Yep, nomenon, but Apple wasn’t done yet.
and when everyone had enough of my four In 2007, Apple released the
year old fine music taste, I had a Walkman. iPhone, and suddenly the days of flip
Soon enough we were just using CDs for phones and buttons were inferior. The enmusic, and that was pretty epic because tire user interface was a touch screen, and
we didn’t have to rewind them like tapes. the need for a keyboard to take up half the
Yet there was no repeat, no shuffle, and phone was now unnecessary. The “Home
no creating playlists. One CD, one album, Button” did it all, giving the iPhone a cerand usually one artist. You had to be really tain elegance and simplicity. Starting at
careful when taking them out of the CD $299, you could not only listen to music,
player
because
but you could also
if you scratched
make phone calls,
them, and put
watch videos, and
them back, they’d
use Applications.
just play that one
Around a year later,
note over and
the iPhone became
over again. Thank
known for its App
goodness for ApStore, making it
ple, and the invenunique and function of the iPod
tional compared to
soon
following
the already presJobs’ return to the
ent phones, includcompany. I didn’t
ing the Blackberry.
actually have an
Apps made so
iPod until a while
many things sudCourtesy of Google Images
after it was first
denly become exintroduced,
betremely
simple,
cause I had my awesome Walkman. With causing iPhone sales to skyrocket. Games,
the iPod came the next generation of mu- information, photo editors, maps, news,
sic. No CDs, no boomboxes, and even the social networking... Here came the newest
decline of the radio. With the round wheel, statement “There’s an app for that.” Hey,
you could easily flip through all of your I want to find this game score. There’s
songs, playing and replaying any favorites. an app for that. I want to chop fruit with
I think the first album I enjoyed on my su- one finger. There’s an app for that. I want
per compact iPod nano was a Jack Johnson to launch turbulent aves at things. There’s
album, which was smaller than even that even an app for that. As the app world prosingle CD was. Many people around the gressed, we can now shut off house lights,
nation and world were amazed at this ‘pod’ lock car doors, and track where your phone
Jobs and the team at Apple had created. has been. Needless to say, there is an ex-
Thanksgiving Around the
World
Different traditions, but a shared sense of gratitude.
By Andrew Lombard, ‘15
Staff Writer
Thanksgiving. It’s probably the
only day of the year where you can stuff
your face and not feel guilty about it. In
America, we celebrate Thanksgiving to remember that famous feast in 1621 at Plymouth, where the pilgrims sat down with the
Native Americans to thank God for guiding them safely to the New World. We are
all familiar with the American holiday,
but Thanksgiving is actually celebrated in
many other countries. In Canada, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday
of October. It is celebrated to acknowledge
the end of the harvest and thank God for a
good crop. It is basically the same as the
American holiday, just in October.
But two completely different
Thanksgiving celebrations are in Croatia
and Grenada. Thanksgiving in Croatia is
celebrated on August 5th to commemorate
the day that the city of Knin was captured
in the Croatian War of Independence,
which won Croatia its Independence.
Thousands of people gather in the city of
Knin for parades and concerts to celebrate.
Grenada’s Thanksgiving Day is celebrated
on October 25th to commemorate the day
the US invaded Grenada in 1983 to restore
order to the island after former Prime Minister Maurice Bishop was executed. Shops
are closed in the cities, and that is the only
place you can see it observed because rural
regions do not give it much importance.
These two countries celebrate Thanksgiving for very different reasons than we do,
but it just shows you how important it is to
give thanks.
Answers to the October Crossword
Page 5
treme amount of possibility in that iPhone
or iPod touch.
Along with the progression of
iPods came the social networking phenomena, which I, like the other millions of
people, have become widely involved in.
This most likely helped with sales of Apple
products, since it meant having Facebook or
Twitter available to update on the go. From
a personal perspective, Facebook on my
iPod is an extremely simple way to connect
with friends, making the App a must. Soon
enough, the iPhone, iPod, and most recently
the iPad seemed to gain more hoopla than
that ever present Blackberry, which had
come before all this. Now even Microsoft
and Google are trying to make a phone and
App Store like Apple. Smart phones seem
to rule the world these days, and I recently
got one and joined the million people who
seem to be all connected. Jobs seemed to
make it his goal to connect the world with
technology, as well as music, video, and
app sharing. All this is widely available to
people these days, as more and more ways
are discovered to keep people in touch with
everything. Back when we had our Mac IIsi
and Walkman, we thought that was high
tech. Now with the Apple phenomena, we
think it’s as advanced as it can get. Yet if
it has changed so much in our lifetime, it’s
bound to only get more advanced soon.
Jobs leaves behind not only a more
connected and technologically advanced
world, but the start to move forward and do
better things using computers. So working
on an essay, listening to music, and doing
a million other things would be possible
to the world, like it was to me that specific
October evening and still is. Who knows
what will happen next? As time progresses,
so will technology. So keep thinking differently, Apple.
Book Review: Wolf Hall
By Christian Belanger, ‘13
Staff Writer
Hilary Mantel’s 2009 novel, winner of the prestigious Man Booker Prize
(an award also given to that staple of summer reading, Life of Pi), is a historical
novel set in 16th century England at the
court of King Henry VIII. While the title
of the book is, nominally, a reference to
the home of the squabbling Seymour family, the place is hardly mentioned until the
end of the book. Instead, the real wolves
reside at court, where backstabbing, deception, and intrigue are jocularly accepted
and encouraged, often ending in imprisonment and execution. At the heart of the
book, however, lie two main threads. The
first is that of the main character, Thomas
Cromwell, the son of a poor, drunk blacksmith, who, at a time when social mobility
is actively discouraged, manages to overcome his humble beginnings and become
a fixture at court and a key advisor to the
king. While the first part of the book is
mainly concerned with his ascendancy, the
second part deals with Henry VIII’s desire
to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragorn
(forbidden by the Pope), and marry Anne
Boleyn, a conflict that would, over time,
lead to a schism with the Catholic Church,
and the establishment of the Church of
England. It’s impossible, however, to accurately describe such a complex plot in just
a couple of sentences, and the only way to
get a real sense of it is to read the book for
yourself.
This book is delightful, in large
part because of how well Mantel manages
to explain the historical events surrounding the plot without actually slowing down
the pace of the novel. It can be confusing
at times (with twenty or thirty characters
regularly being referenced in the book,
the list that is provided at the beginning is
helpful), and the writing style is somewhat
dense, but the world that is created for the
reader feels incredibly authentic. Mantel
also does a good job of conveying the duplicity of the many characters, and I was
often reminded, while reading this, of the
cynical political posturing
on
Capitol
Hill that we
see so often
nowadays.
Interestingly, the most
emotional
and fascinating character is Henry
himself, perhaps because
Courtesy of
he is the
only one
who is al- Google Images l o w e d
to fully
reveal
himself
to others.
For this reason, he often acts childishly,
alternately crying or throwing tantrums,
sometimes causing the cooler Cromwell to
lament his foolishness. Yet at the heart of
the book lies Cromwell, and the story of
how he pulls himself out of the gutter to
become a trusted advisor and, improbably,
a sort of friend to the king is both compelling and inspiring.
November 2011
Detours
WES Construction
The latest update on the transformation of the beloved Wallingford Elmentary School
By Dylan Van Duyne, ‘14
Staff Writer
Most of you have driven down
Providence Road and seen the piles of dirt,
pipes, steel, and construction vehicles at
WES over the past couple months. This
month I had the pleasure of sitting down
with Dr. Milgrim, principal of Wallingford
Elementary School, and asking her a few
questions concerning the construction.
Q: How long has the construction been
taking place?
A: The planning discussions started about three
years ago. The actual
planning and working
started one and a half
years ago, and the construction itself started
about May of this year.
Q: When is the construction projected to
end?
Courtesy of
A: By the beginning of
next year, September of
2012
Q: Have the students experienced any
changes to their school day because of the
construction?
A: Sometimes. For example, we have had
to have indoor recess when construction
might be dangerous, such as when the steel
was shipped in. In a battle between the students and the steel, the students would lose
every time.
Q: What new assets will this construction
bring to the classrooms?
A: The classrooms will be bigger, and the
teachers won’t have to share classrooms
like they do now. Almost every classroom
will have a Smartboard mounted in it, and
we will have enough small rooms to accommodate all of our specialists. We will
have new caseworks and furniture.
Q: What improvements will be made in the
cafeteria and gym?
A: The gym and cafeteria will be bigger,
and the gym floor will have an athletic padding.
Q: Will there be any improvements in the
music facilities?
A: Yes, the instrumental music and vocal
rooms will be where the gym is now, and
the gym will be split in half. The entire
orchestra will be able to rehearse in the
instrumental music room, but not the band
because of its size.
Q: What will you
miss most about the
old WES?
A: I will probably miss this front
lobby the most, because there won’t
be something quite
like it in the new
school. Instead of
the main entrance
Google Images
being in the lobby
like it is now, it will
be in the back.
Q: Will there be any changes made to the
playing fields?
A: The fields are going to be smaller, because the gym and cafeteria will be expanded onto part of where they are now.
Q: What environmentally friendly additions will be made to the new school?
A: There will be more efficient lighting
and heat insulation. I would say those are
two of the main ones. We could not put
solar panels on the new roof because we
don’t get enough sunlight.
Q: Lastly, what part of the new school are
you most looking forward to?
A: All of it. I’m most looking forward to
reliable systems such as heat, plumbing,
and sewage disposal.
November Crossword
Page 6
Horoscopes
By Cassandra Kyriazis ‘12 & Jill
Troutman ‘12
Staff Writers
Scorpio (October 23-November 21): You
will celebrate your birthday this month. It
will be marvelous and grand in mysterious
ways you could not even fathom. Make
sure to dance on Thanksgiving in order to
ensure your pet’s safety. Happy birthday.
Sagittarius (November 22-December
21): The weather’s getting colder...and
so is your second block teacher. That paper that you have due near the end of the
month? Don’t try and get an extension
or forget to cite your sources. The teacher
may turn into a frost-bitten dragon and eat
you alive. Or, like, you know. Fail you.
Capricorn (December 22-January 19):
Beware of bald men. And skulls.
Aquarius (January 20-February 18):
Let the sun shine in. Stop being gloomy
about your crush not liking you back. I
heard they’ve got mono anyway. Instead,
begin an obsession with One Tree Hill. We
promise there is eye candy for all on that
show. P.S. Bring a box of tissues and possibly some ice cream. P.P.S. This is mainly
directed at boys.
Pisces (February 19-March 20): Stay
away from the gazebo. There have been
recent reports of negative energy and bad
feelings emanating from the ominous
brown bars. It may collapse on you or your
friendships at any moment.
Aries (March 21-April 19): A babysitting
offer is in your future. You will be tempted
by the good pay and lovely parents, but do
not yield! Frightening ginger ghosts and
their girlfriends are on the prowl. Seriously, do not take the job.
Taurus (April 20-May 20): Take your
friends to Sher-e-Punjab in Media. It
rocks. Media may be best known for secret government documents which were
illegally seized there by activists in 1971
and distributed nationwide. On March 8
of that year, the Citizens’ Commission to
investigate the FBI raided an FBI “resident agency” in Media. They later released
thousands of documents to major newspapers around the country. These documents
revealed controversial and illegal FBI tactics, like the recruitment of Boy Scouts as
informants, and confirmed for the first time
the existence of COINTELPRO, an FBI
program to “expose, disrupt, misdirect,
discredit, or otherwise neutralize” dissident groups in the US. So, if you go on
November 8, you can celebrate the thirty
and a half year anniversary of this!
Gemini (May 21-June 20): You farted in
front of your crush. Find someone new.
Cancer (June 21-July 22): You went to
Relay for Life and had a blast! Also, that
math test coming up? It’s going to be hard,
so study up!
Leo (July 23-August 22): You just realized you are going to be one of the last
ones to turn 18 out of your friends. We
apologize. On the bright side, you cannot
be put in jail for a longer period of time!
Additionally, you will be the one to turn 40
last! Happy birthdays to come!
Virgo (August 23-Septermber 22): You
have become, since the summer, incredibly pale. People are constantly suggesting to you to just get some self-tanner or
hit the tanning bed or do SOMETHING to
veil your ghostly complexion. Do not listen, your paleness is a deciding factor in
your awesome personality. Go out and buy
some SPF 4,567 instead.
Libra (September 23-October 22): You
live on a street where dancing is illegal.
Your entire life your foot-tapping urges
have been suppressed by the Neighboorhood Watch President Shaw Moore. But
you will take it no more! Inspired by your
cute neighbor’s dancing ambition, you’ve
learned to indulge your impulses to pop
and lock and jam and break. Hip-hop is
your passion! You should never wanna be
anybody else, you’re just beautiful you!
By Ian Everbach, ‘13
Puzzler
Across
1. Toiletry case
5. With 15-Across, social function
10. Nervous tissue
14. With 17-Across, scraps
15. (See 5-Across)
16. (See 19-Across)
17. (See 14-Across)
18. Driving lane
19. With 16-Across, perjuries
20. Muslim rulers
22. Secreted
24. Dress shirt accessories
27. Sir Percy’s nickname
31. Straightened
32. ___ and outs
33. 29-Down, for short
34. Breakfast biscuit
35. With 39-Across, bogey
37. Hanged
38. Forms
39. (See 35- or 39-Across)
40. Stomach absorbers
41. Osiris’ wife
42. With 39-Across, eagle
43. Natural oil
44. “Psych!”
45. Projectile Ph.D.
47. Inspire
48. Aged
50. Rebuffed disdainfully
51. See 1-Down
52. Painting base
53. With 62-Across, quickly and steadily
56. Vital
58. (See 64-Across)
62. (See 53-Across)
63. (See 66-Across)
64. With 58-Across, winter drawers
65. When repeated, boring talk
66. With 63-Across, plant
67. Ends of the line
Down
1. Brownie
2. Ltd. or Inc. in Ireland
3. Subject of sci-fi movies
4. “Perhaps…”
5. Verizon competitor
6. Dens
7. Sahara dunes
8. Biblical ending
9. Comedy group Monty
10. Olympians’ aims
11. Medieval French poem
12. Biblical ending
13. Emotional expressions
21. Underground bombs
23. Often-confused posessive
24. Ivory-hunting
25. Canine relative?
26. Hard black rubber
27. Holy prefix
28. Can opener, of sorts
29. Hawaiian guitar: var.
30. Hooked up again
35. Went for
36. “I’m fine.”
37. Homes for neon tetras
40. The only planet that rotates clockwise
45. Female parent
46. Llama cousin
47. Leaflet
49. 2D factor
50. Most likely dice roll
52. Buckle
53. Composer Gilbert
54. Afflict
55. Secret CIA
57. Exponent abbr.
59. Telecom stop
60. Santa ___
61. Cartography ctr.
November 2011
Arts & Entertainment
Page 7
11/11/11: National Metal Day
An overview.
By Tomer Stern, ‘13
Staff Writer
Dan Haddaway, ‘13
Staff Writer
On 11/11/11, metal fans around
the world will be paying tribute to the Spinal Tap sensation and raising the amps up
to 11. Vh1 Classics is celebrating national
metal day with “11 Days of Metal”. The
eleven days leading up to November 11
will include concert coverage of famous
metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Metallica, Motor Head, Motley
Crew, and more. This all leads up to three
unique premiers of “Behind The Music Remastered: Megadeath”, “Metal Evolution”,
and the season nine premier of “That Metal
Show”.
The first premiere will start off at
9 o’clock. “Behind The Music Remastered:
Megadeath” will show you the struggles
and pains that Megadeath has gone through
on their way to becoming one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite addictions, lawsuits, and internal conflicts with
band members, Megadeath still kicks butt
and takes names. Their ultimate goal is to
be remembered as a greater band than Metallica and to finally end the dispute that
has been going on since the golden age of
metal music.
This will be followed by Banger
Productions’ newest documentary “Metal
Evolution”. Banger Productions is best
known their previous documentaries “Metal: A Headbangers Journey”, and “Rush:
Beyond the Lighted Stage”. “Metal Evolution” will be an eleven-episode documentary on the evolution of metal music
covering the 26 sub-genre family tree
starting with hard-rock all the way up to
modern day metal music. The first episode
will begin with “Pre-metal” and the hard
rock influences such as Jimi Hendrix, Deep
Purple, and Led Zeppelin. Even if you are
not into metal music, definitely check this
documentary and the first episode in particular. This will not just cover metal bands,
but also the bands that greatly influenced
this important genre of music and created
a distinct subculture of America.
The final premier of the night is
the highly anticipated start of the ninth
season “That Metal Show”. The first episode will feature notoriously insane Axl
Rose and the current lead guitarist of Guns
n Roses, D.J. Ashba. After the seventeen-
VP Tom Mizsei says some more about metal.
By Tom Mizsei, ‘12
Staff Writer
Do you brag about your personal
injuries on your favorite holiday? No? Go
reconsider your life. November 11, 2011 is
National Metal Day, a celebration of loud
music, bloody knuckles, screaming, Satan
worship, and generally everything parents hate and
don’t want
their precious
Yale bound
children exposed too. A
few of you
more observant readers
may notice
that most of
the T-shirts I
wear are emblazed with
imagery that
makes small
children soil
their trousers.
You
may
ask
yourself, where
do you get
such majestic
clothing? Response: Go
The
holiday’s
excellent
logo.
year wait of the disappointto some $%#&ing
image
courtesy
braingell.com
ing album “Chinese Democshows. There reracy”, we are hoping to hear
ally isn’t much
about their latest projects and tours. Guns
better in this world then going into a venue
n Roses’ first three successful albums made
roughly the size of a garage with a group of
a huge impact on metal music. Hopefully
like-minded individuals and beating the tar
their future albums will help them reclaim
out of one another while listening to peotheir title as one of the most celebrated
ple stretch the limits of what plebeians call
hard rock bands.
“Music”. Many people have a preformed
November, 11, 2011 will be reopinion of these head bangers, which is,
membered as an important day in music
admittedly, about half right; the other half
history. In later years, people will ask,
of this black, rusted, blood soaked coin is
where were you, when National Metal Day
a touch more interesting, however. People
was airing? Hopefully you will be tuning
who listen to metal are a community; no
in along with us.
Alternative Advertence: You Just Can’t
Get More Cutting-Edge Than Nickelback
A tribute to the virtuosity and ingenuity that some have thought to pen “Nickelbach”.
By Peter Gao, ‘13
Staff Writer
themselves every album like Coldplay.
They’ve simply mastered the intricate nuances of songwriting. With so many hits
Some people claim that there are over the years like “How You Remind
Me”, “Photograph” and
no true artists in music to“Rockstar”, it’s clear
day. Others profess their
that Nickelback are here
love for vapid, meaningless
to stay, something that
artists like Lady Gaga and
we should all be thankful
Radiohead. To those people,
for. I still remember the
I must insist that they turn
first time I heard fronttheir attentions elsewhere.
man Chad Kroeger’s
To be specific, I am speakgravelly voice over the
ing of the most esteemed
radio. As he crooned
band from our neighbors
“Look at this phototo the north: Nickelback.
Intense Nickelback.
graph/ Every time I do
Since they burst onto the
image courtesy kovideo.net it makes me laugh”, I was
indie music scene in 1995,
instantly enraptured by the
Nickelback have had an imunique
groove-based
chemistry Kroeger
measurable impact on modern music. With
shared
with
his
bandmates.
Over the years
their unique take on “hard rock” and “altmy
friends
have
introduced
me to many
metal”, they’ve truly changed how people
bands,
but
none
of
them
have
ever really
listen to music. But that’s not all: On Nocaptured
the
post-grunge
artistry
of Nickvember 21 they will release their seventh
elback.
With
their
melodic
guitar
riffs and
album, Here and Now, a record that’s sure
gorgeous
arrangements,
Nickelback
has
to stand as one of 2011’s best.
proved
they
are
musicians
of
the
high
While some haters say Nickelback is “cliché” and “repetitive”, it’s un- est order. As Entertainment Weekly raved
deniable that they don’t need to reinvent back in 2003, “Nickelback’s new CD, The
Long Road, is a ripping good spin”. High
praise.
While Here and Now hasn’t been
released yet, I have faith that it will stand
among Nickelback’s finest. To be honest, Nickelback could remix ”How You
Remind Me” twelve times and put them
on an album and I’d probably still buy it.
However, change is always welcome, and
after listening to the first single, it’s clear
that Nickelback haven’t lost their edge.
As Kroeger shrieks in the thumping club
banger “Bottoms Up!”, “Another round,
fill ‘er up, hammer down, grab a cup, bottoms up!” It’s a woozy of a tune and it is
firm proof that Kroeger and the boys are
still as dynamic as ever.
Finally, one of my favorite things
about Nickelback has always been their
ability to carefully maintain their artistry
while also giving into their commercial,
radio-friendly side. As frontman Chad
Kroeger cheerfully sings on “Rockstar”,
“And well, hey, hey, I wanna be a rockstar!
Hey, hey, I wanna be a rockstar!” But having won his way into millions of screaming
fans’ hearts, it’s clear that Chad already is a
rockstar. He just doesn’t know it yet.
one is really left out unless you are doing something blatantly against code.
Celebrities of other genres are hunted down, followed by paparazzi and
blogged about where as metal band
members are treated with respect and
barely acknowledged. This is in part
because members of metal bands look
pretty much like everyone at the show;
dressed in jeans, another band’s shirt,
and wearing beards ordinarily reserved
for Scandinavian warriors of old.
They’re usually pretty cool guys who
are after nothing more than bummed
cigg and someone to help them unload
gear.
Metal, like LEGOs, comes in
all shapes and sizes. The uninitiated
may believe that Heavy Metal consist of
one single genre titled “Heavy Metal”;
this couldn’t be further from the truth.
You’ve got the Classic Metal bands,
such as Judas Priest or Black Sabbath,
Speed Metal like Helloween, NeoClassical Metal like Yngwie Malmsteen, Hardcore, Crossover, Black Metal, Thrash Metal, Power Metal, Crust
Punk, Viking Metal, Death Metal, Tech
Death, Deathcore, Grindcore, Melodic Death Metal, Math Metal, Mathcore, Folk Metal, Stoner Metal, Doom
Metal, Groove Metal, The Visual Kei
movement of Japan, and the New Wave
of American Hardcore… to name a few
of the more prominent subdivisions of
the genre.
If you’ve ever been curious as
to why you should risk hearing loss and
broken bones to go see what the scene
is all about, seek me out. I go to shows
every week or two and someone dope
is always coming around to Philly. If
you’ve got ten dollars for a ticket, you
can witness the pure wonder that is The
Metal.
A Sad
Season For
Indie Love
By Vidya Venkatesh, ‘13
Editor
In only a few short months, three
of indie rock’s high-profile couples have
publicly split. First, this summer Jack
White and his wife Karen Elson threw a
“Divorce Party” celebrating their separation, but no one got too sad over that…
probably because Elson is an ex-model,
has no connection to The White Stripes,
The Dead Weather, or the Raconteurs, and
didn’t seem too torn up about it herself
(see “Divorce Party”).
The next one was heartbreaking:
Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon and Thurston
Moore announced their divorce in October, after 27 years of marriage and mutual
awesomeness.
Lastly, everybody’s favorite indie
chick Zooey Deschanel and Death Cab For
Cutie’s Ben Gibbard split in late October.
Guess he no longer possesses her heart.
Maybe he’ll write an eight-minute twentyfive-second song about it. Oh wait…
Arts & Entertainment
November 2011
Sarah’s Pop Culture Tidbit
A cappella, all day.
By Sarah Shulbank-Smith, ‘12
Columnist
only Nick Lachey. Firstly, I don’t think he
has actually ever done anything to become
famous excluding his marriage to Jessica
Simpson…correct me if I’m wrong. Also,
he has not failed to wear the same exact
outfit to each show: tight black pants, and
Though I admittedly often write these
articles to make fun of things that are stupid, I am writing this particular article to
expose the Strath Haven public to
a great new show…and make fun
of it a little bit. The basic premise
of The Sing Off is a talent competition for a cappella groups. That
may sound awful, but it’s actually
awesome. The groups have many
different styles, including futuristic, pop, jazz, and more. Personal
favorites include Delilah (because
they’re all girls but have a bassist who can hit notes lower than
most men), Pentatonix (because
there are only five of them but
they manage to make every song
awesome and futuristic), and Afro
Blue (cause they’re jazzy and
incredible). They perform songs
that adhere to a theme, including
Host Nick Lachey, metallic and unbuttoned.
popular music, hip-hop, and 60’s
image courtesy xfinity.comcast.net
hits.
Another reason to love
this show is the judges. Ben
some sort of metallic-y button up shirt
Folds is always there to provide musical
with TWO buttons undone. That’s just
information and be adorable and nerdy,
embarrassing. All in all, though, The Sing
Sara Bareilles provides musical inforOff is very much worth watching…tune
mation, ridiculous voices, and serves as
in Monday nights at 8 p.m. for some good
the crush of all of the gents, and Shawn
times!
Stockman…he was in Boyz II Men.
Mixed in with the high-energy, deeply
impressive performances is some lessthan-impressive hosting by the one and
Page 8
Coffee Houses: Haven’s
Best Entertainment
Monthly music festivals: moshing may occur.
By John Kopsick, ‘14
Staff Writer
There are many ways for students to
express themselves at Strath Haven.
Whether it’s through acting in drama performances, participating in clubs or sports,
there is always some way for students to
apply themselves. Something almost all
students can admit to doing throughout
their high school experience at Strath
Haven is making their way up to the
library during lunch and hearing students
performing with local bands within the
school at Coffee House. Almost all people
that have been in a Coffee House think
that it’s a very fun thing to do. It’s easy
to sign up, and anyone can perform. Joe
Gesualdi from the twelfth grade said,
“The last Coffee House was awesome,
the swag was through the roof! The next
one should be even better!” Susan Spina
from the eleventh grade commented, “Not
only am I having fun with my friends,
I’m so close to the awesomeness they
are creating by being crazy and letting
loose and having fun, while still playing
great music. I also get to make them look
ridiculous with the
funny faces they make.” Angela Wang
rom grade eleven remarked, “Even
though I couldn’t make it, I heard it was a
big success.”
If you’re thinking about performing in the next Coffee House, which
is said to be in the beginning of December, listen to the announcements for dates
Coffee House action shot.
image courtesy Facebook
and other
information. To
sign up,
ask one
of the
librarians for a
form. We
hope to
see you at
the next
Coffee
House!
Tyler Gallagher’s Two Favorite Things
The miraculous union that is Parks and Recreation, and the Wu-Tang Clan.
By Tyler Gallagher, ‘12
Staff Writer
There are very few things in the world that
I can honestly say I love. I love my friends
and family. I love food. I love Philadelphia sports teams. But above all else, I
Parks and Rec’s frontwoman.
image courtesy sharetv.org
love two things: the television show Parks
and Recreation and hip-hop collective the
Wu-Tang Clan.
For those unfamiliar, the WuTang Clan was formed in 1992 in Staten
Island (AKA Shaolin Island), New York
by cousins Robert Diggs (RZA), Gary
Grice (GZA), and Russell Jones (O.D.B.).
They eventually added Method Man,
Raekwon (the Chef), Ghostface Killah,
Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and
after the passing of O.D.B., Cappadonna.
They are still active and are possibly the
most influential hip-hop group ever. To
give you an idea: Method Man was the
only rapper featured on Biggie’s first album. Enter
the WuTang (36
Chambers)
is the best
album ever.
Parks
and Rec is
a show that
airs every
Thursday
at 8:30 on
NBC. It
is based
around the
parks and
recreation
department
of a small
Indiana town called Pawnee. It
has a true ensemble cast including the likes Amy Poehler, Aziz
Ansari, Rashida Jones, and Rob Lowe.
It is truly hilarious, and in my opinion, it
is the best show currently on television.
Only on Parks and Rec will you see a
grown man cry while wearing a Batman
costume (Season 4, Episode 4 “Pawnee
Rangers”). You may also see Roy Hibbert (Indiana Pacers center) in a couple
episodes.
For a while, I thought the two
recommend everyone watch this video,
loves of my life were unrelated, until one
especially if you are a fan of either the
fateful day when my world was turned
Wu-Tang Clan or Parks and Rec.
upside down.
I was so inspired by this
While surfing the internet one
video, I decided to take it a step further.
day, I stumbled upon (not like the website, I thought, what would happen if the
I don’t do that) a video on FunnyorDie.
entire current cast of Parks and Rec was
com. The video was titled “Parks and
replaced by the Wu-Tang Clan? The
Recreation is the Wu-Tang Clan of Comanswer is the world could not handle
edy” and
starred
the coolest man in
the world:
drummer
for the
Legendary Roots
Crew,
?uestlove.
?uestlove
made the
astute observation
that both
Parks
The Wu-Tang Clan.
and Rec and the Wu are “true
image courtesy onethirtybpm.com
ensembles in which everybody
shines”. The video was ingenious. It featured a fake audition in which
the awesomeness and the rapture would
the RZA tries for the part of Leslie Knope, finally occur. I made a list of who would
a role that was eventually given to Amy
play whom, but I was personally visited
Poehler. Eventually, the producer of the
by masters of Shaolin shadowboxing
show commends the RZA for the audition, and the Wu-Tang sword style. They told
but notices one problem. “Leslie Knope
me I could not release this information.
is a 34-year-old woman from Indiana,
And we all know that the Wu-Tang Clan
and you are a 6 foot 2 inch tall black guy
ain’t nuthin’ to mess with.
who is the leader of the Wu-Tang Clan.” I
November 2011
Opinions
Page 9
Let’s go race... Hybrids?
By Josh Kauffman, ‘15
Staff Writer
They speed along their tracks,
gliding forward silently, passing those
around it inconspicuously. These ninjas
are no trained human assassins, but
brand new electric cars, ready to take a
slice through the über-giant that is the
oil industry. The cars in question are the
Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt, and
recently I was a passenger during test
drives of both vehicles. While cars that
get plugged-in may seem like a new
development to some, they actually were
the de facto mode of transport for those
somewhat well-off middle and upper
class during the Cleveland, McKinley,
and Teddy Roosevelt administrations one
hundred and some odd years ago.
From 1895 all the way up to
when Ford’s Model-T set the world afire
in 1908, electric cars were the main
transportation for not only the “one
percent,” but also the middle class as
well. After gas-powered cars knocked
them out in 1939, electric cars did not
return until 1996, when General Motors
released the EV1. The EV1 did not last
long, as GM had them all crushed in
1999 due to various marketing inefficiencies and the supposedly angry oil
industry, who many say felt threatened
by the possible threat it caused and put it
down.
Now the electric car is back and
better than ever, with two top-tier manufacturers – Chevrolet and Nissan— hav-
ing recently released a model of electric
car, the Volt and the Leaf, respectively.
Both are rechargeable, i.e, they charge
their motors by being plugged into an outlet with a cord, just like a laptop or phone.
The big difference is that Nissan has committed to a car that is completely electric.
No oil, nothing except what comes from
your garage electric socket. The Chevy
Volt, on the other hand, runs completely
on electricity only until
headed to a
Image courtesy of Inhabit.com
you run out. Once defixed location in
pleted, you can switch back to gasoline.
Philadelphia, where there were a series of
So, “How much do you get out of a full
tents with TVs and informed sales people.
battery,” you may ask. Well, the Volt goes
We had a spot reserved, so we headed out
35 miles without the gas turning on, while with a representative in the Leaf and took a
the volt can go between 138 and162 miles leisurely drive through the streets of Philly.
on a single charge. Thankfully, I found out I found the ride to be extremely smooth,
Dinner Debriefing
By Chad Maguire, ‘13
Resident Hamburgler
While there is nothing wrong with fine
dining, sometimes nothing hits the spot
quite like the familiarity of an old-fashioned diner. We take a look at three local
diners, and observe the pros and cons of
each
Springfield Diner
Among the most successful diners in the area, the Springfield Diner has
certainly made a name for itself. Since
opening within the past year, the Diner
has prospered, with a menu that keeps
customers coming back for more. The
quality of the food has been praised time
and time again by local reviews, prompting customers to stop by. The large,
multi-room dining area is often seen
packed, reflective of the popularity the
diner has generated. Other diners, such as
the Liberty Diner, just haven’t been up to
snuff compared to this gem. While it can
be safely assumed that the restaurant is
not going anywhere fast, one can’t help
but to wonder if the Springfield Diner will
remain the top contender.
Court Diner
When I’ve asked people about
their opinion of the Court Diner, I noticed
that they are slow to give the restaurant
praise. What is it that people don’t seem
to like about the diner?
Among the reasons students give
for the diner’s presumed unpopularity is
the quality of the food. Looking at the
menu, the Court Diner has a great variety,
serving everything from Rainbow Trout
to Chicken Parm sandwiches. However,
freshman Lucey Maguire believes that
having a large variety of options does not
the Leaf will notify you frequently through
sound and visual reminders throughout the
drive during the test drive. From a price
standpoint, it is a far better deal to lease
both cars because once you turn it in, you
can get the latest model.
The Leaf my family and I test
drove was at an event that Nissan is
scheduling all around the country called
the Drive Electric Tour. For mine, we
replace culinary quality. She admits, “It’s
great that I could order a turkey meal or
a pasta dish, but if I’m in the mood for
a good patty melt, how does that help
me?”Perhaps menu diversity has displaced
attention from the food
The Court Diner also suffers as
a result of its location. Pardon the foodrelated pun, but the Diner is literally
“sandwiched” between eateries such as
Pinocchio’s, McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and
Wawa. Those looking for a quick bite tend
to go with these other choices, while those
anticipating a longer meal head to more
upscale restaurants in Media. While this
problem cannot be remedied easily, the
Court Diner could start trying to it would
certainly reap the benefits.
Among the best aspects of the
Court Diner is the community atmosphere
it offers. The dining area has an open
view of the Baltimore Pike, where one
can easily get lost watching the bustle of
Media. In addition, the Diner occasionally
hosts local artists, allowing customers to
eat their meals to calming guitar strums
or mull over a vibrant watercolor hung on
the wall. These small touches help refine
the dining experience, and make the restaurant feel unique.
Front Street Fountain
While technically not a diner, the
Front Street Fountain restaurant is close
enough. Tucked away in the side streets of
Media, the Fountain is a recent addition,
having just opened this year.
Upon entering the restaurant, one can’t
help but look upward, where a large
model train circles the front counter and
kitchen entrance. The restaurant is not
Continued on page 10
with a deluxe dashboard. My only complaint, though, was the shape of the ride. It
was not a very exciting car, to be honest.
If it were a character from a TV commercial, it was much less “The Most Interesting Man in the World” and more the lady
from the Progressive Ads.
We test drove the Volt at Reedman Toll Auto World in Langhorn, PA,
one of the biggest car dealerships in the
country. It’s so large, in fact, that it has its
own official test track built away from the
town, with its own overpass over the highway and everything. The Volt provided
a ride just as serene as the Leaf. Also, its
shape gave it a far more of an everyman’s
car feel. It was clearly marketed toward
the mainstream middle class, with its marketing slogan “It’s more car than electric.”
To choose between the Leaf and
the Volt is a difficult decision. From a
price point, the Leaf will cost you slightly
more at $27,700 down at lease, plus $369
a month as opposed to the Volt at $25,000
and $350, respectively. The Leaf is for
those who are going all in for the electric
angle, while the Volt is aimed for the
larger demographic of people who just
want a reliable car with a good ecological
footprint. While it is a tough decision, it’s
still a clear step in the right direction. Says
Swarthmore resident Barbara Drebing
who also took a test drive in both, “I feel
like I’m driving into the future. I feel that,
by veering away from such a dependency
on oil, I’m helping contribute towards
world peace.”
Cheese Corner: To Have a
Cracker or To Not Have a
Cracker?
By Kirsten Wise, ‘12
Cheese Expert
think about it is sort of a silly name because many cheeses are deported anyway,
has great rolls of goat cheese that are coatBefore we answer this great quesed with a berry-based creation. The two
tion, let me recount how this all came
flavors I have tried are blueberry, which is
about.
goat covered in a purple paste with little
Momma and Poppa Wise came
berries, and cranberry cinnamon, which is
home with some really excellent cheese,
crushed cranberries and a hint of cinnaplain and simple. Celebrity International
mon. Cranberries and Cinnamon? What?
has a fancy name
The combinanot only because
tion has a sort of
it’s amazing but
“refreshingly
also because
fall” essence. The
it comes from
cranberries give
Wegman’s, the
a fun, tangy-tart
Coliseum of
taste and then a
grocery stores.
warm cinnamon
Wegman’s has
flavor sinks in and
a wonderful
then it goes back
cheese section,
to tart, temptincluding a
ing for another
whole display
serving. Basically,
on Prima Donna,
this cheese knows
which is anhow to work the
other stop on our
taste buds like
Try some goat cheese and crackers.
cheese journey that
a boss. However,
Haven!
we will take soon.
by the third bite, I
Image
courtesy
of Flickr.com
For everyone who
realized that I had
loves the KOP, don’t worry, a Wegman’s
lost the cinnamon taste and the tanginess.
is coming to that area and it will change
It was still very good, but now it had a
your life, or just give you the biggest
softer vibe that I wasn’t expecting. What
shock in chain super markets since you
happened?
first entered a Trader Joe’s (your neighThrough scientific reasoning (see,
borhood location with a bell at each cash
science class does help in real life), I
register and all the kinds of soy milk and
determined that it was the cracker that
Cliff Bars you could ever want).
took the tanginess away. At the time I
Anywho, this cheese is fabulous.
was using Goya Maria Cookies, which
Celebrity International, which now to
Continued on page 10
November 2011
Opinions
Page 10
Haven Art!
Done by seniors Maude Kushto (above),
Jake Vangeveld (right), and Morgan
Brawley (below)
WE WANT YOU(r art).
Send ideas and submissions to
shpantherpress
@gmail.com.
Cheese Corner (Cont.)
are an excellent snack and can be found
at Wawa and the super markets that are
inferior to the mighty Wegman’s. However, they seemed to be taking away the
punch of the cranberry and the warmth of
the cinnamon. This inclined me to answer
one of life’s most difficult snacking
questions: To Have a Cracker or To Not
Have a Cracker? That is the question of
utmost cheesiness. See, all cheeses can
be delicious without a crunchy base, and
sometimes you just have to let them fly
free. However, if you’re not by yourself
or with people who won’t judge and are
seen eating a cheese spread with your
hands… you might need a cracker to not
look like a slob. So here is the next question: What Kind of Cracker? ‘Tis no woe,
just look at the cover of the box. I’m serious. If a cover features a Wheat Thin with
meat and cheese, that means the cracker
will definitely not be buddy-buddy with
a dessert spread. If the box mysteriously
goes anti-Facebook and does not suggest
who you should friend, no big deal, just
talk to your iPhone 4S and it will find out
for you. But if you’re having a party and
have to provide crackers for everything
from Munster to Celebrity International
Cranberry with Cinnamon, go with the
Pepperidge Farm variety packs (They’ll
call them “Trio” or “Quintet” to sound
fancy, but do not be fooled – these are
from the same company that puts smiles
on Goldfish). That way, you’re covered
for everything.
So there you have it. You might
remember this information either the next
time you are dazzled in a Wegman’s or
when you’re thirty and throwing a gettogether at your downtown flat, but alas,
the day will come when this cheese article
will be of good use.
Diners (Continued)
only entertaining to train enthusiasts, but
also small children, with a room set aside
for them as families wait for their meals.
It is clear that the atmosphere is specially
designed towards families, but there is
enough sophistication in the dining area to
appeal to anyone.
While the restaurant itself is fun
and uplifting, the food is where the Front
Street Fountain really shines. The menu
finds a near-perfect balance of simplicity
and variety, serving classic entrées and exotic specials. Those looking for the stereotypical diner hamburger will be initially
disappointed; burgers are absent from
the restaurant’s menu. However, in their
place are patty melts and various other hot
sandwiches, which more than make up for
this. The dessert menu is filled with diner
staples such as ice cream sundaes and
milkshakes, ensuring that customers will
leave content.
We’ve certainly given you a
mouthful, so until next time, stay fresh!
Turf Apology
Dear students, teachers, and especially
athletes of Strath Haven,
I am very sorry for the extremely
negative column written by me from
October’s issue in opposition to turf. I
was assigned this opinion article and
viewpoint by the editors of the newspaper
with the understanding that there would be
a corresponding pro-turf opinion article on
the same page.
I sincerely apologize to anybody
whom I have offended by writing this column, and especially to athletes and their
coaches, who are working hard for this
enhancement to our school.
Sincerely,
Tim Crouch
Sports
November 2011
Page 11
A Look Ahead to the Madness of College Basketball
By Kyle Floyd, ‘13
Staff Writer
The 2011-2012-college basketball season is here! The beauty of a financially uncomplicated sport will once again show its colors. For
many college athletes, this is their final stand, and their last chance to win a championship for their school. The future holds extravagance,
and wealth, but also the suffering of lockouts, and other NBA hardships; this is the final year in which they play on passion alone. Though
perhaps most importantly, it is their last chance to taste, and unleash, the madness of March.
Only a few weeks ago, the AP Top 25 polls, as well as the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll preseason rankings, were released. The first five teams in each poll shared no
differences. The list consists of solid powerhouse containing one of the most talented teams in college basketball, debatably the best recruiting school ever, two beasts of the Big East
conference, and Jared Sullinger’s Buckeyes.
#1
The NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS return guard P.J Hairston, Forward John Henson, Kendall Marshall, Tyler Zeller, and, most
importantly, Harrison Barnes. For coach Roy Williams, this may be the most talented team since the 2009 squad, which included present NBA starters Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansborough, and Wayne Ellington, as well as a key player on this year’s team, Tyler Zeller. Only
two years have passed since that dream team, but it’s hard to think that in 2010, college basketball viewers and scouts did not recognize
North Carolina’s name in the same sentence as the word “competitive”. Last year, they fell seven points short of Brandon Knight and
the Kentucky Wildcats in the Elite 8 of the tournament. They have triumphed, fallen, and risen again as one of the most loaded teams
heading into the season. While it’s hard to believe that talents such as Harrison Barnes, averaging 15.0 points per game (PPG), and Tyler
Zeller, with 14.5 PPG and 7.1 rebounds per game (RPG), opted out of the NBA draft, one must understand the drive to win a national
championship. With all five starters from last year’s team, Roy Williams’ NBA ready recruits, and the right mindset, the Tar Heels are
in the perfect position to be tearing down the nets in New Orleans, March of 2012.
#2
The KENTUCKY WILDCATS have a system. This system works. This system has brought them to four Elite Eight appearances in the
last ten years. John Calipari recruits the best freshman the nation can offer, and each year when the end of the season comes, they are
shipping out to the NBA. He does not build a team around four-year players. He wants the best every year in hopes they will be the team
to win it all. Last year, the Wildcats took a trip to the Final Four, a trip they hadn’t taken since twelve years earlier, but the cats are still
hungry. This year Kentucky has a good mix of both returning talent, and the country’s top recruiting class. This balance has not been
present for some time. Forward Terrence Jones, guard Doron Lamb, and guard Darius Miller return as three double digit scorers from
last season. The aforementioned sophomores and senior welcome Marquis Teague, Anthony Davis, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, all of
whom, if they wish to opt out after one year, as goes the status quo, will be likely first-round draft picks. John Calipari and the Kentucky
Wildcats have assembled a potent roster, with which they plan to wreak havoc on the SEC conference, and ultimately the nation.
#3
The OHIO STATE BUCKEYES have Jared Sullinger, who was week after week, called the player of the year as the 2010-2011 season
unfolded. He averaged 17.2 PPG and 10.1 RPG to earn that heading. Sullinger and the Buckeyes rampaged to a 24-0 record before
being stunned by the Wisconsin Badgers. The team continued onto their second straight Sweet Sixteen, where they were topped by
Kentucky, and the relentless Brandon Knight. While they were defeated by a worthy opponent, the sour taste of the loss, and the sting
of an unfinished job still lingers for Jared Sullinger. Sullinger comes from a family where basketball is more than just a game, and being
the best at each level is the ultimate goal. For Sullinger to leave college basketball to pursue the professional world of basketball would
not satisfy him. Sullinger has picked up right where he left off, being named the Preseason Player of the Year, and in addition, his team
is favored to win the Big Ten title. The Buckeyes will be tested in this upcoming season, and after playing no. 10 Florida on Nov. 15,
No. 6 Duke on Nov. 29 and No. 13 Kansas on Dec. 10, the country will know whether or not Jared Sullinger, and Ohio State, are as big
as the hype surrounding them.
#4
The CONNECTICUT HUSKIES won the NCAA Division 1 National Championship in 2011. UConn surprised the college basketball
world winning an unprecedented five games in five days to capture the Big East Tournament championship and then claiming their
third nation title. There is a major void however, as Kemba Walker, the heart and soul of the miraculous Huskies has moved on to the
NBA. Filling the void this season will be the rising star of last season, Jeremy Lamb (10.3 PPG), as well the All Big-East candidate
Alex Oriakhi (6.9 PPG), the only upperclassman on this 2011-2012 squad. It is a young team, with a veteran coach, and when there is
chemisty added into that mix, the expectations start to rise. Coach Jim Calhoun remarked that Lamb has the tools to be “one of the best
scorers in the country” this year. Lamb, alongside 2011 All East Rookie Shabazz Napier, and the lightening-quick true freshman Ryan
Boatright round out Connecticut’s dynamic backcourt; Oriakhi (8.7 RPG) covers the front with Roscoe Smith, and sophomore Tyler
Olander. The young team will look to coach Calhoun to guide them through the pressure of living up to last season’s championship
team. The Huskies are not in the position to replace Kemba Walker, and the pulse he brought with him, but they will have to find a way
to adapt, competing in the perhaps the strongest power conference in the nation, the Big East.
#5
The SYRACUSE ORANGE join five other Big East teams in the preseason Top 25 rankings. What separates them from the rest, are four
returning starters, one Hall of Fame coach, and a diversely talented recruiting class, making the perfect recipe for a 2012 national championship. Among this ensemble is last year’s leading scorer Kris Joseph (14.3 PPG, 5.2 RPG), who should vie for All-American honors
this season. Accompanying him from last year’s team are Scoop Jardine, Brandon Trische, and Fab Melo. To round out the group is accomplished high school forward, freshman Rakeem Christmas. Christams was ranked the 19th best high school player in the country by
ESPN as a recruit. And now, the freshman will join one of the most experienced teams in college basketball for the 2011-2012 season.
Rick Jackson was the leader of the Orange in the 2010 campaign and it will be no easy task to replace all 6’9”, 245 pounds of him. When
asked what the team will do without Jackson, coach Jim Boeheim responded optimistically, stating that they have no replacement on the
team, but that they do have options. Boeheim is correct. Kris Joseph’s 36.6 shooting percentage, and Scoop Jardine’s Big East leading
assist numbers are pieces that Syracuse will work with to retain a solid frontcourt and backcourt. There is no question that Syracuse
faces challenges entering this season, but with their stingy defense, tightly packed Carrier Dome, and dangerously talented core lineup,
they can hope to fend off the rest of the Big East for the conference title, and march on to whatever comes next.
all images courtesy of sportslogos.net
Obscure Sport: Bog Snorkeling
By Samantha Snyder, ‘14
Columnist
Kick! Kick harder! Your thighs
are on fire, screaming in pain. But you
have to go faster. You want to set a new
personal record, beat your own time, and
win the race. You’ve trained all your life
for this. You’ve dreamed of this moment,
and if only you can push through the pain,
you can attain your goal of winning the
championships. You’re about to take the
bog snorkeling world by storm.
No, you don’t need to get your
eyesight checked. You were indeed competing in a bog snorkeling race. You were
at the world championships, held each
year on the August Bank Holiday in the
Waen Rhydd peat bog in mid-Wales. Your
competition for the title was either Andrew
Holmes, presently the men’s world cham-
pion, Dineka Maguire, the female world
champion, or Johnathan Hillard, the current junior world champion.
A very unique sport, bog snorkeling combines swimming and snorkeling in
the toughest of settings: a peat bog. Competitors must swim two lengths of a 60
yard (55 meter) trench, cut right through a
peat bog, with the objective being to finish
in the shortest time possible. And to make
things even harder, there is a catch. The
athletes must wear snorkels and flippers
and are not permitted to use conventional
swimming strokes, being forced instead to
rely solely upon flipper power. While wet
suits are not required, they are often worn.
The genesis of this sport was in
1976 near Llanwrytd Wells, Wales. It came
about as a result of an over-the-bar conversation between a few regulars and Gordon
Green in The Neuadd Arms. The first world
championship took place in 1985. But other bog snorkeling competitions are held
throughout the year, particularly in Wales,
but also in Australia and Ireland. These
events include mountain bike bog snorkeling (where an athlete must pedal through a
bog on specially prepared mountain bikes)
and the Bog Snorkeling Triathlon.
The world championships now
attract over 200 entrants each year, which
is exceptionally pleasing as proceeds from
the events have funded several charities;
all the money raised at a competition goes
to a different local charity each year. These
charities have included the Cystic Fibrosis
Trust and the Motor Neurone Association.
Personally, I find it refreshing to see such a
cutthroat and intense sport take a time-out
at their most heated event to help those in
need.
All in all, this “obscure sport” is
definitely becoming less and less obscure.
Indeed, for those of us who don’t think
swimming is intense enough, bog snorkeling seems to be the perfect solution. For
others who haven’t yet found a sport they
gelled with, bog snorkeling may also be
the sport for you. Though it requires competitors to get more than a little dirty, true
athletes recognize that sports are messy.
Another great bonus of the sport is that you
have only yourself to rely on to make or
break the race. A perfect sport for an individualist athlete looking for an intense
competition, bog snorkeling will soon
prove to be the hottest sport in America.
Super-what? I can’t wait to see bog snorkeling playoffs on ESPN.
November 2011
Sports
Page 12
Strath Haven Fall Sports Take League by Storm
By Billy Ripley, ‘13
Staff Writer
It’s a beautiful time of year as
the leaves are changing, snow is landing,
and fall sports are ending. Yes, it is finally
time for Haven athletes to kick back and
relax; well, at least until the winter season
starts. As we reflect on these many successful seasons, it is the school’s pleasure
to acknowledge the astounding athletic
achievements made during the first quarter
of this year.
league overall, Coach Lawson stood proud
as her team displayed a real sense of team
mentality. The way in which a game flows
is based on the way a team communicates
with and understands their teammates. The
Haven players showed their skill within
these aspects of the game especially during their comeback against Garnet Valley,
which their coach credited as being their
biggest moment of the season. By starting the game with a trailing score of 0-3,
Haven was able to fight back to the top as
they scored four consecutive goals, which
Senior Tom Shiiba races down the field during a 4-0 rout of Garnet Valley in September.
image courtesy eteamz.com
Strath Haven Varsity Girl’s Tennis team was not one to be silent as senior
Robyn Himelstein and junior Victoria
Hammitt helped to show the immense talent within our courts. Robyn, the team’s
first singles player, was credited with holding the most praised moments of the season
as she placed in the Central League Singles
Tournament and also advanced to play
in the District I tournament. The loss of
Robyn will surely be felt on Haven’s tennis team next season; however, her tennis
career is far from over, as she is now interested in playing tennis for Haverford College next year. Despite Robyn’s departure
from Haven after this year, Coach Perella’s
confidence in his team makes “next year
look promising.” Victoria Hammitt, the
team’s second singles player, will help to
lead her team in the season to come. After
competing in the District I Doubles Tournament with Robyn, Victoria has proven
that her success is only going to increase.
With eight retuning varsity tennis players,
and many skilled JV players ready to jump
to the top, there is no doubt that their next
season is filled with promise.
When you hear “FORE!” you
better be hitting the ground, because Strath
Haven’s Boy’s Varsity Golf team was aiming for the green this season. With an
overall season record of 8-5, players such
as Shane Holford, Jared Brown, Nolan
Dirienzi, and Taylor Richardson were truly
hitting for distance. Their victory against
Ridley High School on September 20th, at
the Springfield Country Club, was praised
by Coach Kochersperger as the highlight
of their season. Shane Holford led the
team with a five under par score of 30,
closely followed by a two under par score
of 33 by Jared Brown. Haven left Ridley
in the dust with a phenomenal team score
of 186. Shane, Jared, Nolan, and Taylor
later went on to represent Haven in the
Central League Championships. Coach
Kochersperger has been impressed with
his developing performance of his underclassman golfers and highly anticipates
next year’s season.
Speaking of young talent, Strath
Haven’s Girl’s Varsity Field Hockey team
is one to shine. With an impressive record
of 7-8-1, and with a sixth place finish in the
was enough to give them the win through
a tremendous comeback. The year continued to be prosperous for this group as Jess
Borbee and Rebecca Lucci qualified for the
Central League’s All League, First Team.
While both girls are still only juniors, their
skill and performance will continue to be
highly valued in the following year. It is
unknown whether or not any of our senior
girls will go off to play for college, but
Coach Lawson feels that Alison Caulfield
and Bridget Corey both have the dedication and abilities to do so. By witnessing
all of these types of positive development
within her players, Coach Lawson proudly
awaits another exciting season for next
year.
By having the largest girls’ cross
country team in Strath Haven’s history,
and within the state of Pennsylvania, our
school is proud to present another one of
our successful girls’ team. Coming in at
a total of fifty-six girls, Strath Haven’s
Girl’s Cross Country team literally ran
away with the competition. Whether you
recognize them by the stylish pink hats, the
crazy pinkish tights, or their great dress up
outfits, you will realize that there are too
many of them to count. However, with this
great number of participants also came a
great quantity of triumph. Coach Coren
acknowledged his girls’ greatest moment
of the season as being their incredible
upset over Haverford, Notre Dame, and
O’Hara when they claimed victory at the
Delaware County Championships. Coach
Coren even declared that our sixteenth girl
would have been the 5th girl or better on all
Central League teams, but one. He is also
overjoyed with the many returnees which
he will have next year, eleven of which
have already earned varsity letters as freshman, sophomores, and juniors. However,
there will be some dramatic losses from
this group when this year draws to a close.
It has not yet been confirmed where both
Hannah Grossman and Anna Harris wish to
run in college, but their presences at Haven
will surely be missed. This was an especially remarkable senior year for Hannah
Grossman, as she was this year’s Delco
Champ, Central League Champ, and AAA
District Champ. On top of all of this, she
was also able to qualify and take second
place in States. Her season was also one
for the record books as she established the
best time ever for a Central League runner
at Rose Tree, and the best time ever for a
Strath Haven runner at districts. Next year,
it will be quite tragic to not hear Hannah’s
name on the announcements for a multitude of victorious feats. By having a team
that placed sixteenth out of a total of sixty-five teams at districts this year, Coach
Coren could not have a bigger smile on his
face after this fall’s outcome.
Following behind these girls,
Strath Haven’s Boy’s Cross Country team
will also be found leaving their opponents
behind them. “The success of this season
did not happen by chance.” The hardworking ethics and determination of these
boys is what led Coach Soscia to comment so fondly of his boys. These young
men were able to establish an overall record of 9-2, and claim second in the Central League. The Strath Haven Boys team
was able to maintain its winning streak at
their Bull Dog meet, with a fourth straight
title win with over ten medals claimed by
varsity and JV runners. Some other important achievements made by this team
were through the actions of three particular runners. Jeff Seelaus, Jack Huemmler,
and Dylan (Juan) Butera showed their true
panther power through their high rate of
performance. Jack and Jeff both qualified for States at the District meet at Lehigh, earning their rights to run at Hershey.
Jack Huemmler was named to First Team
All Central and Jeff Seelaus and Dylan
Butera were named Second Team All Central. However, Coach Soscia does not forget the little people as he firmly believes
that “there is success to be found in every
season just by the progress that is made by
each individual athlete.” Through the leadership of Captains Jeff Seelaus, Chris Pfeiffer-Kelly, and Dan Stewart, these boys
were able to complete a devoted summer
workout and preseason training. Through
effective “turnover” and “contact” train-
to commit to racing and a choice to commit to the challenge of Cross Country”.
This “choice” is a legacy which he hopes
to continue during his returning years of
coaching for Strath Haven’s Boy’s Cross
Country team.
On the soccer fields, the men’s
team played to a very successful season.
The team started off the season roughly,
with a 5-1 loss to Pennsbury, but went on to
redefine the season from that point onward,
eventually even having a higher seed and
outlasting Pennbury in District playoffs.
An 11-5-3 record, 7-2-2 in league, was
enough to secure third place in the central
league, behind the nationally ranked teams
of Conestoga and Lower Merion, and a
thirteenth seed in the twenty-eight team
District bracket. After cruising to a 3-0 victory over Avon Grove at home, the Haven
boys went out to Unionville on a miserable, rainy night and persevered to a 1-0 victory over the fourth-seeded team. Thomas
Shiiba scored the team’s lone goal, leading the team to district quarterfinals. Playing against twelfth ranked Central Bucks
South, Haven dropped to a 2-0 scoreline
after just fifteen, but goals by freshman
Will Campbell and senior Thomas Shiiba
evened the score before the final whistle,
causing the teams to go to overtime. Despite a great scoring opportunity for Haven
early in the period, CB South countered
and scored the game winning golden goal
just moments later. Still, the team finished
very well in both league and district, and
has eight of eleven starters returning for
2012.
Fortunately for Haven (though
unfortunately for this article), there are still
three fall sports yet to see the ends of their
seasons. The football team is preparing
for its first round District 1 playoff game
against Marple Newtown on Friday, whom
they lost to in a 24-7 decision during the
regular season. The women’s soccer team
is set to play District 1 Champs Pennridge
in the State Quarterfinals on Saturday after
defeating Abington Heights by a score of
The Haven volleyball team celebrates their win in the Central League Championships.
image courtesy delcotimes.com
ing, Jeff Seelaus and Jack Huemmler were
able to maintain a one-two pack, with
Chris Pfeiffer-Kelly, Dan Pfeiffer-Kelly,
Dan Stewart, Tyler Clapp, Danny Parson,
Parker Sultzer, and Robbie Levis competing for the fourth through seven spots on
the Varsity squad. Mr. Soscia hopes to use
the dedication and motivation of this passing season to “springboard” into the 2012
year, as many returning veterans will remain. Through friendship, respect, honor,
and tradition, Coach Soscia proudly knows
that each of his boys “made a choice, a
choice to commit to the training, a choice
2-0 in the first round last Tuesday. Lastly,
the Haven volleyball team is in the top 8
teams in the state, playing in pool play on
Friday with hopes of qualifying for the
semi-finals. Best of luck to all of our teams
in the rest of their seasons!
Editor’s Note: The football team beat Marple Newtown 31-7 and continues its playoff
run against Pottsgrove on November 18.
The Girl’s soccer team lost to Pennridge,
ending their season. The volleyball team
was eliminated from pool play at states.