April 2008 - Abington School District

abington.k12.pa.us
April 2008
Vol. LXXXVII, Issue 7
The Abingtonian
Abington Senior High School, Abington, PA 19001
Leo Club and friends dance the
night away at Dance-A-Thon
By Nikki Hess
A wise
man named
Mr. T. always
said, “I pity
the fool.” It’s
hard to argue with a
man
who
appears as
though he
could take
my five-foot
self out with a
mere flick of
his fingers, especially when
it comes to
the Dance-A-Thon. In truth, I do pity all those who didn’t attend the
Dance-a-Thon, (a service event hoping to benefit children in Nicaragua and purchase seeing eye dogs for the blind) that was sponsored
by Abington Senior High School’s Leo Club and Building with Books
on Friday, March 28, 2007 because it was truly a night to remember.
As you walked into the gym, you could almost feel the excitement bubbling within you as the DJ’s music resonated in your mind
and everyone was scurrying around in desperate attempts to find
their friends as soon as possible so they didn’t have to stick it out on
their lonesome for the night. Not that having a buddy there would
have truly mattered because it was difficult to worry about something as trivial as that between the dance-off and the glorious screening of one of my particular favorites, John Tucker Must Die. Everyone
was milling, munching on donuts and hoagies after their tiresome
and intense sports games or cooling off after dancing non-stop for
two straight hours. Needless to say, the very thought of boredom
seemed impossible at the Dance-A-Thon.
Perhaps one of the funnier moments of the night was when
someone kicked a soccer ball at the ceiling, which triggered the fire
alarm and led us all to stand outside in the not-so-pleasant cold. We
all saluted the firemen as they double-checked the building for any
sort of fire as a precaution then reassembled in the gym to continue
our partying. Although most people were well-equipped with pillows
and blankets for sleeping, some of us troopers toughed it out the
entire night and remained awake for all twelve hours, which I must
add, is no easy task.
The bottom line is this: if you ask anyone who attended the
Dance-A-Thon, I sincerely doubt they would tell you they had an awful time. For those of you reading this that went, you know what I’m
talking about. As for the people who didn’t, I truly recommend that
when the Dance-A-Thon rolls around next year, you grab a permission
form and some sponsors and hop on the bandwagon so you can
have as great as a time as we did. On that note, see you next year!
April 2008
Anything Goes on the
Abington stage!
By Maeve McDermott
From February 28th to March 1st, the actors, singers, and dancers
of Abington Senior High gave their regards to Broadway, performing
Anything Goes, a musical farce written in the 1930s by the famous
composer Cole Porter. The show takes place on a luxury ocean liner,
and features a droll cast of characters that includes a second-rate
gangster, an evangelist turned nightclub performer flanked by her
eight Angels, and a beautiful ingénue, engaged to a stuffy Brit, who
is perused by her lovesick former one-night stand. Got all that?
Anything Goes was an enchanting, witty, and fun musical which
featured many terrific performances by the leads - Tara Bowler, Andrew Smith, Maria Pfender, Lee Slobotkin, Ian Sparks, and Alyssa Kress.
The impressive set of the Abington production was a faithfully-rendered luxury liner made by the set and stage crews, which allowed
for exciting crowd scenes as well as affording intimate spaces for the
show’s more tender moments. The musical score consisted of many
dance numbers in which the Angels could show off their dancing
prowess. The chorus numbers were fantastic as well; the entire cast
put on their tap shoes for “Anything Goes,” a musical number featuring dynamite tapping by all. The whole cast’s hard work truly paid off
in the three wonderful performances. Congrats to everyone who was
involved with Anything Goes - you did an excellent job!
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
-A visit from “Mama Obama” - Page 2
-Point/Counterpoint - Page 3
-Reception Destiny - Page 4
-How learning has evolved - Page 4
-José González - Page 5
-Chuck Taylor - Page 5
-Word Link - Page 6
-The Glory of Two Wheels - Page 7
-Phillies Pitching Problems - Page 8
-Boys’ Track Team - Page 8
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A visit from the future First Lady of the United States
By Alex Kuczynski-Brown
Unless you were regrettably absent, or just
plain oblivious, you probably noticed that on
Thursday, March 13th our high school paid host
to Michelle Obama – wife of presidential
hopeful (and current Democratic frontrunner)
Senator Barack Obama. Not only did her imminent arrival have all the administrators on
edge, as intimidating Secret Service agents
patrolled the halls, but it was also contingent
on the school board voting to temporarily suspend its policy on political campaigning on
campus. Not having heard many details
about her upcoming visit, I walked into the
auditorium wondering if this speech would
be 45 minutes of Mrs. Obama rehashing
clichéd facts/statistics about our school and
telling us how privileged we are to go here
…or whether it would be a full-blown rally to
get us fired-up for the upcoming Pennsylvania primary on April 22nd. I am pleased to report it was most definitely the latter.
1100 students and Montgomery County
residents alike filled the auditorium, with 500
more occupying two overflow rooms. There
was a palpable excitement in the air that only
heightened as a man whose name I can’t
remember came forward to announce something along the lines of, “Please join me in
welcoming…” This was followed by an awkward moment of recovery in the crowd as it
became apparent that Superintendent Amy
Sichel was coming to the podium and not
Michelle Obama, whose arrival we were all
eagerly anticipating. Dr. Sichel reminded us
why we are so fortunate to attend Abington
Senior High School (you figure someone was
The orchestra hits
the stage in New
York
By Alina Szuch
For weeks, our orchestra has been
practicing tirelessly, shopping for that elusive black floor-length dress, and fearing
a Mrs. Voigt explosion. But after March 10th,
we could finally relax.
In February, the orchestra students
were invited to play at the Thirteenth Annual Tri-State High School Young Performers Festival Showcase Concert. The orchestra preformed in the gorgeous Avery-Fisher
Hall at the Lincoln Center. Groups such as
the New York Philharmonic and the
Juilliard Orchestra perform on this very
stage. Nine other orchestras performed
different pieces, forming a diverse and
enjoyable program. The Abington orchestra performed Mozart’s Symphony No. 25
in G minor and Dances for Orchestra with
solos performed by Paul Kim and Dan
Safford. As the largest of the groups performing, with ninety-seven students, a
unique sound was produced and
Abington’s talent was evident to all who
attended. It seemed the weeks of preparation and rehearsals paid off. Sitting under the bright lights of the famous hall and
walking the same stage as so many musicians have walked before us was something words fail to describe. Being able to
say you’ve performed at the Lincoln Center is quite an achievement. Thank you, Mrs.
Voigt, for giving us a rare experience that
will stay with us forever.
bound to do it), worked in a Bill Cosby quote
that left many of us just a tad perplexed, and
proceeded to introduce an actual delegate
for Senator Obama. She led the crowd in
chanting, “Yes, we can!” which over the
course of the past few months has become
a sort of rallying cry for Obama supporters nationwide. The
delegate was
followed by the
always-dynamic
State Representative
Josh
Shapiro, who left
us with little
doubt as to who
he was endorsing for the presidency, introducing
Michelle
Obama as the
“future First Lady
of the United
States.”
Now I’ve listened to Barack
Obama speak
on numerous occasions, both live and on
television, but I had never before heard
Michelle address an audience. Let me just say
this: she is his equal when it comes to public
speaking and oratory. I don’t think there’s any
political couple around that can match the
tag team effort of the Obamas. I am in perpetual awe of their ability to engage a
crowd, with nothing but words and a firm
belief that we, as a country, can do better
than the current administration.
Throughout Mrs. Obama’s speech, I kept
looking over to my friend sitting next to me,
as he and many others clapped and nodded
in agreement – he who before that day could
care less about the political process. And that
is something that has distinguished this election season…the fact that our generation is
finally taking notice. We’re breaking the mold
of “apathetic teenagers” that the media has
made us out to be, and instead are getting
involved in grassroots efforts and speaking
out. Michelle Obama herself mentioned how
we are witnessing “Young people
engaged…Folks bringing their kids to rallies,
folks sitting around the table talking about
pledged delegates – when was the last time
people sat around the table talking about
pledged delegates?”
In addressing her background, “Mama
Obama” (as our school took to nicknaming
her) offered this commentary: “The beauty of
my childhood was that there was nothing
special about it.” Her father, who battled multiple sclerosis, worked a blue-collar city job
that afforded him enough money to support
his family of four and send both Michelle and
her brother to Princeton. In her speech, she
frequently referred to a shifting bar, commenting that a long time ago, a single income
was enough to provide for a family, save for
retirement, and send children to college.
However, this is no longer the case. What has
become apparent to Mrs. Obama is that
“most Americans want the bar to be still. They
want to know that if they get up and go to
work every day and work hard that they’ll earn
enough to take care of their families.”
From there Mrs. Obama spoke of her
husband and how he was brought up by a
single parent, ‘’an 18-year-old white woman
who was raising a black kid in the ’60s.’’ She
mentioned the opposition Barack encoun-
tered following that fateful day in February
2007 when he stood before the Old State
Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois and
announced his candidacy for President of
the United States. Michelle went on to explain how her husband defied the pundits
who claimed he was too inexperienced,
wouldn’t raise the necessary money,
couldn’t win in Iowa, that the country was
not ready for a black president…the list
goes on. On the topic of Barack’s experience (or lack thereof according to critics),
she addressed his work as a community
organizer on the South side of Chicago,
work he did “in the shadows…when no
one was watching.” That is where character is written, she clarified; it is what you do
when no one is looking.
Though not referring to her directly by
name, Mrs. Obama acknowledged Hillary
Clinton’s decision to run an increasingly
negative campaign. Barack refuses to follow suit, his wife alleged, because who
knows when they will require the support
of their opponents in the future. Although
outnumbered, there was a fair amount of
Clinton supporters present, all of whom
tried to show the rest of us how cool they
were by wearing their Hillary tee-shirts and
buttons to a rally for Barack Obama. I can’t
help but think back to the delusional Red
Sox fans I wrote about in the beginning of
the year – you know, the ones who show
up to a Phillies-Nationals game sporting a
Manny Ramirez jersey.
In addition to being very eloquent and
inspiring, Michelle Obama’s speech also reflected a sense of humor. When mentioning student loans, an all-too-relevant subject for us college-bound seniors, she joked
“The only reason we’re out of debt is because Barack wrote two best-selling
books.” After the speech, those of us in the
front row had the opportunity to shake her
hand and exchange a few words, as did
many others who braved the sea of humanity that soon congregated around her. She
complimented our exemplary record of
community service and asked us if we were
registered to vote, to which we of course
answered in the affirmative.
Regardless of your political affiliation,
you can’t argue that Michelle Obama’s
speech was well worth the morning parking lot conundrum and 48 hours of intensity on the part of the school administrators. To my fellow Obama supporters, I hope
hearing Michelle Obama speak only solidified
your reasons for wanting this family occupying
the White House, as it did for me. To the undecided voters out there, I hope her speech encouraged you to consider leaning toward
Obama. To the Hillary backers, I hope it made
you more receptive to the idea of an alternative Democratic presidential nominee. And to
the diehard conservatives, I don’t even know
if you were in attendance, but if you were, I
hope you came away with something besides
extra credit in your social studies class. No matter who you are, just don’t tell me and other
Obama devotees that we are only influenced
by powerful speeches and charisma, because
frankly, it’s insulting. We’re not that naïve, and
have enough common sense to realize when
someone is being genuine. And that is what I
feel distinguishes the Obamas from other politicians, the fact that they speak from the heart
instead of blindsiding the American public. Forget First Lady, Michelle Obama should run
alongside her husband for Vice President of the
United States. Consider this my endorsement.
abington.k12.pa.us
April 2008
The Abingtonian
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Point / Counterpoint
Topic: Healthcare
Take two government run public sectors, and
call me in the morning
By Shannon Fairorth
America has often been criticized for the gluttonous excess that
she so brazenly displays to the rest of the world. Fossil fuels billow from
our exhaust pipes, torrents of water find their way down shower drains,
sinks, and garden hoses, and billions of increasingly worthless dollars
have been wasted fighting a war against an intangible sentiment.
Still, in the midst of all this wastefulness, this needless luxury that has
come to define our very culture, we have neglected one fundamental component of society: our health. This is the land of SUVs and, as
a visiting British friend of mine recently articulated, “bloody giant refrigerators.” Upon whom can the irony be lost that forty-three million
Americans are without health insurance?
The average cost for a family health policy is about $11,000. The
average American household pulls in just over $40,000 a year. It doesn’t
take calculus to compute those numbers. For an ordinary family, decent health coverage means a quarter of their income, which, for an
ordinary family, means an insurmountable financial burden. Even in
the case of those who can afford
some sort of insurance, the most
popular plans are hardly the most inclusive. In lieu of what can be characterized as no less than a social crisis, many have proposed a nationalized healthcare system. Were such legislation to be put into effect, every
American, whether busker or businessman, would have access to the same
medical care. Still, such a solution has
not been found satisfactory by all.
Detractors of a federally-run system of healthcare generally make
the same three major arguments: that
it has, to some degree, failed in the
other countries in which it has been
attempted, that to turn away from
a private-sector complex would discourage competition, and, subsequently, the motivation to uphold
and improve quality, and that it is unfair for those living a healthy
lifestyle to pay for a smoker’s lung cancer, an overeater’s diabetes,
or a hang-glider’s forty broken bones. What is interesting about these
concerns, however, is that they amount to no more than “what ifs.”
Why discount a viable answer to an increasingly ominous dilemma
just because Canada has not been able to pull it off? If anything, the
opportunity to learn from and improve upon the mistakes of others
can be taken as a positive. As for the matter of removing healthy
capitalistic rivalry, consider the public schooling system. Although government-run and, of course, free, federal regulation (with the exception of No Child Left Behind) keeps the program on its metaphorical
toes. Staying with the educational comparison, why not have prep
school as well? For those who can afford it, I see nothing wrong with
allowing privately-owned practices to flourish alongside the public.
In regards to the last complaint, that of the generally responsible
caring for the perpetually stupid, I can offer no other appeasement
than c’est la vie. No matter what the situation, there will always be
people abusing the system; this should hardly be enough to dissuade
one from a change that would so drastically benefit the lives of so
many.
The simple fact of the matter is that the insurance of health is
not a commodity to be bought. It is not a business, and it is not a
privilege reserved for the most financially secure. The right to quality
healthcare should be intrinsic and unquestionable. In a country as
wealthy as the United States of America, no one should go without a
yearly physical. No family should lose their home over medical bills.
No parents should be left wondering whether or not access to proper
doctors and hospitals would have stopped them from burying their
child. To grant each American free medical care is to ensure the wellbeing of our 200 million people. Our health, like our oil, is not a renewable resource, but I’m pretty sure that buying a hybrid won’t fix
this problem.
The thing idealists like to
forget
By Marc Joseph
In a perfect world, everybody has free healthcare. It’s a nice
image, really. Smiling doctors and nurses giving free prescription drugs
to patients in their beds with free IV fluids flowing into them after their
free surgery. Really, it is sort of a shame that it is completely impractical.
While everybody wants to be able to have free healthcare and
not worry about being charged for surgery and other medical needs,
the question nobody can truly answer well is “how.” There is a reason
that surgery costs thousands of dollars, and despite what everybody
is told, it isn’t the greed of the evil, fat, and opulently-dressed
healthcare professionals. Consider how much goes into a basic surgical operation. The hospital needs to pay for the cost of the OR, the
drugs used, the surgical equipment, the time of the professionals, the
skills of the professionals (who, remember, are in high demand), equipment for the surgery…the list goes on and on.
So if healthcare is socialized, who pays for all that? The government. Not even bothering to emphasize the dangers of socializing
large private industries (the Soviet Union comes to mind), people
seem to forget the government is not an omnipotent entity. It is easy
to forget, especially for high school
students who aren’t worrying about
April 15, where the government gets
its money from. Us. I have heard
people say, in all seriousness, that they
don’t care about how high taxes are
because they don’t have to pay
them. To all those who think tax rates
don’t affect them, talk to me once
you graduate college.
Socializing healthcare may
seem like a lucrative choice for those
who do not want to pay for expensive health insurance, until they remember that if healthcare comes
under government control, they will
still be paying more, and it won’t
even be for them anymore, but for
somebody whom they have probably
never met. And even more than that,
government
interference
in
healthcare is hardly good for the patients.
In the United States, if somebody suffers from recurring migraine
headaches, he/she can see a doctor, get a prescription, and have a
cat scan within a week or two. In the United Kingdom, where the
government controls healthcare, somebody with the same problem
will be put on a waiting list and be stuck with their headaches for a
year or more before they can actually get their cat scan, simply because the government is not equipped to handle that kind of industry.
Also, take into account the cost of research and development.
On average, it takes a pharmaceutical company ten to fifteen years
and more than one hundred million dollars to research one new antibiotic or other drug for medical use. And even then, those medications are not always approved for mass production due to the FDA,
lack of success in later stages of development, and a dozen other
things, each of which would mean that all the money and time the
company has put into research and development is for naught. Even
more than that, once the drug finally is approved and released to
the public, current legislation already in effect does not allow patents on medicine, which means the company has very limited time
to make up for its losses. Next time you go to trash the “record profits” pharmaceutical companies “must be making,” consider that little
fact.
Socialize the healthcare industry, and you will be paying for those
hundreds of millions of dollars worth of research. You will be paying
the tens of thousands of dollars used in even the most basic surgeries
for people whom you have never met before, and when you are
suffering from a semi-serious malady that requires testing, you won’t
be able to get it in a timely fashion thanks to poor management and
hopeless overcrowding. Say all you want that issues like this don’t
affect your life in a serious way, but don’t be surprised when you find
your income slipping away like sand through an hourglass if healthcare
is forced into government control.
abington.k12.pa.us
The Abingtonian
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April 2008
E d i t o r i a l s
Meant to be: Reception Destiny
By Laura Pempkowski
Companies like Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint,
Nextel, and AT&T (the former Cingular) all
claim to provide great reception on your cell
phone. And isn’t it just fantastic that when
you’re in your friend’s basement, in the valley, in the back room, and your phone gets
kicked under the couch, you of course still
have all of your bars when your boss is calling
to tell you that you need to work the next
day on late notice? Yeah, exactly. But naturally, the time you get ditched at the park
where all your friends promised to meet you,
you can’t get enough service to call your mom
for a ride, despite standing in the middle of a
perfectly unobstructed park. Just our luck,
right? Well how about the time you plan on
texting your crush something you’re not so
sure that you should be sending, perhaps, “I
like you…a lot?” Or maybe you are considering sending a little rumor about this real catty
girl in your math class. Or maybe even you’re
going to call and tell a little lie to your parents about where you really are. And right
after you press the tiny green send button, up
pops message not sent and you look to your
bars, and realize that it now reads “SOS reception only.” It seems to be unexplainable
because the moment you were typing up the
message or dialing the number you know for
sure you had 100% service. What are the
odds?!?! After much pondering, I think I know.
Now, to you it may seem like complete
stupidity, but I was looking for an explanation for this reception craziness. I really think
that I am not the only person this happens
to. And I was bound to prove that this reoccurring event is not just a coincidence.
Being a believer in fate, I came up with
the idea of Reception Destiny. Call it silly, call
it wrong. For me, it seems to be a fine explanation. The definition of destiny is the “predetermined, usually inevitable or irresistible,
course of events.” And I’m a true believer in
that as a perspective on life. I really think that
what could be and what should be will be.
So texting that cutie “I like you,” may not be
the right thing to do. If you did, maybe he
would laugh in your face the next day in front
of your whole gym class. Spreading that rumor about that girl could and would have
started so much unnecessary drama unless the
Gods of “Raising the Bar” didn’t divinely intervene and block your reception at that
moment. It’s an explanation, right?
Remember that scene in Bruce Almighty
when Jim Carrey asks God for “a sign?” And
the next second a truck with road signs reading “wrong way” and “do not enter” and
“stop” all appear with flashing lights? It’s like
that. The Gods are saying, “It’s in your best
interest if you don’t send this text or make this
call.” The initial reception rejection is just a
sign. Take a step back and say, maybe I
should not say this, or I should at least rephrase
it. For whatever reason. I think you can still
send the same message, or call with the intention to say the same thing you had in mind
the first time, but just reconsider what the repercussions could be.
So are cell phone companies really,
“raising the bar?” Maybe it’s only when they
want to. Maybe it’s only when it’s truly meant
to be.
How learning has evolved
By Sarah Nyirjesy
Although most people would agree that
school can be pretty boring, who is to blame
for it? Some people might say it is the teachers, others would say it’s the students. Personally, I would say that it has to do with our
government, most notably George W. Bush.
Even though No Child Left Behind has
been around for many years, and this might
not be the best time to complain about it, I
have recently noticed its effects to a greater
degree than before. As our teachers begin to
prepare us for the PSSAs, our learning becomes
more focused on limited concepts and ideas.
In fact, we basically only study and learn for
this one test. I feel that because of No Child
Left Behind, most learning has been reduced
to merely just getting the grades when it
comes time. Maybe it is just me and my own
approach, but I think school and learning
have become pedantic. The only reason why
I even know a word as sophisticated as “pedantic” is from studying for the SATs. (“Pedantic” means being overly-concerned with book
learning). The SATs seem to bring about the
same consequences as the PSSAs. Math and
reading have lost their appeal to me entirely,
especially learning new vocabulary. I feel as
though it is all for the
score and not because I am motivated at all.
In the same
sense, intellectual curiosity has all but disappeared. My math
and physics teachers
each have websites
with articles relating
to their subjects and deeper approaches to
understanding. Because of the lack of intellectual motivation, these resources go unused. I will admit, although guilty of ignoring
these resources, I am more of a liberal arts
person. Still, I think it is a shame when my motivation to learn, write, and read comes solely
from wanting to get good grades on tests,
or eventually do well on the AP test, not to
expand my smorgasbord of knowledge.
Unless Hillary Clinton is elected president,
nothing will change. The only hope is that this
new style of learning and lack of intellectual
effort will not affect us as the leaders of
America when we grow up. Until then, thank
you George Bush.
There’s “A Sight
To Behold” in
Eisley
By Jill McCoach
What makes a band: is it the instruments
or the lyrics? Do they even matter when it
comes down to the foundation of the members of the band? How do groups stick together, and make it big? You hear of bands
that have started out as great friends that
were almost like family, who don’t feel that
fame will get to their heads, but as soon as
they are in the public eye, they fall apart.
Maybe if they actually were family they would
stay together and enjoy the limelight with
each other. Hopefully, this is the case for Eisley.
Eisley is a rock/indie band made up of
four siblings, Sherri, Chauntelle, Staci, Weston
DuPree and their cousin, Garron DuPree. Originally from Texas, the group has been together
for their whole lives but has been an official
band since 1997. Sherri and Chauntelle first
initiated the band by writing songs together
and playing the guitar. Staci, as the younger
sister, was ignored and not allowed to participate in the creativity. She decided to prove
her older sisters wrong and write her own
songs. Chauntelle and Sherri couldn’t say no
to her after that. Later, their brother, Weston,
joined the group as the drummer. They had
trouble finding a permanent bass player for
years. After three bassists left the band, they
finally found one who would last in their
cousin Garron. Eisley first got its start in a local café where the siblings’ parents worked.
Warner Bros. Records signed them in 2003.
Since being signed they have toured with
many bands, including, Coldplay, Brand New,
New Found Glory, Taking Back Sunday, and
Mute Math.
In 2005, they released their debut album,
titled Room Noises. And in 2007, they released
their sophomore album, Combinations, for
which they are going on tour in April. This album is very mellow and relaxing. The band
has a soft sound, but it makes an impact. The
instruments aren’t very intricate or difficult, but
this emphasizes the lyrics and vocals because
they aren’t overpowered. The way they bring
them is very subtle, but without them the
songs wouldn’t be nearly the same. In the
song “A Sight to Behold,” the instruments do
play more of a role, really making the sound
explode. The vocals are unique, and throughout the songs, the girls show off their range.
Each track has something different to it,
whether it is in terms of lyrics or overall sound.
On this album, they bring a lot of different
techniques together, but overall, it’s Eisley.
abington.k12.pa.us
April 2008
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The Abingtonian
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Chuck Taylor: then and now
By Jill McCoach
When walking down the halls, it’s hard not to notice the multitude
of students wearing Chuck Taylor Converse “All-Stars.” It seems like
everyone has a pair or two these days. With all the different patterns,
colors, and styles, they’re almost irresistible. However, these sneakers
didn’t always appeal to such a variety of people.
“Chucks,” as they are often referred to, started out as a basketball sneaker in 1917, and were produced as the “All-Star,” a simple
black and white, canvas athletic shoe. In 1918, Chuck Taylor, a basketball player, chose the “All-Star” as his preferred shoe, which helped
the canvas sneaker earn popularity. Soon enough, basketball teams
endorsed the sneakers. Eventually, the Converse Company even
began producing the sneaker in different colors, along with patterned
shoelaces to match the team’s uniforms. Chuck Taylor had proposed
a few alterations for the sneaker and became a leading salesman
for the company, earning him the shoe’s name, Chuck Taylor’s, and
his signature on the ankle patch. Throughout the decades since the
sneaker was first produced, it has changed and become a popular
fashion trend.
Considering the price of these shoes today, although still rather
inexpensive, it may be hard to believe that in the 50’s they cost around
$6.00. In 1966, after consumers demanded more variety, “Oxford” or
low-top, high-top and even knee-high versions were created. The
price then began to rise, up to $10 by the 70’s and $25 in the late 90’s.
Today, for a classic hi-top it costs about $40, but for different styles
the price varies all the way up to almost $100.
In the 1950’s, the shoe gained popularity within the greaser subculture, and among fans of “rockabilly,” a combination of “rock”
and “hillbilly,” referring to the country music that influenced the early
style of rock and roll. In the 1970’s, punk rock aficionados took on the
fashion trend, and bands such as The Ramones have sported the
trend by wearing the black and white sneakers.
The “All-Stars” popularity dwindled, but made a comeback in
the 90’s grunge culture. The sneaker trend no longer belongs to one
specific group but to a diverse population. “Chucks” now appeal to
a vast number of groups and individuals, not just those originally
interested in the rock scene. They are becoming more popular in hiphop and pop music scenes as well as fashion in general. Since 2005,
they have become more and more popular. Chuck Taylor’s come in
almost every color and pattern imaginable, from striped to plaid to
checkered to create-your-own design. Basketball players are rarely
seen sporting the simple sneaker, but rather a more modern, advanced sneaker.
Chuck Taylor Converse “All-Stars” are considered to be the most
successful shoe in history. By the start of the 21st century over 750 million pairs had been sold all over the world. Now geared toward the
typical teenager and with a variety of sneakers from which to choose,
it’s hard not to have a collection of this historical shoe.
Abingtonian Advice
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González does not disappoint
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By Travis Pollen and Daniel Lee
The Eighth of March. You remember. 3/8. You thought the world
was ending. The weather turned violent, the streets dangerous. Yet
all these foreboding signs merely marked the return of Swedish singersongwriter José González (and Friends, as his current tour is called) to
World Café Live in Philadelphia. On a night like this, a performance
of epic proportions was in order. José delivered, executing his effortless yet intricately crafted tunes gracefully – except for one of his openers, for which he botched the ending. Unfazed and in his typical laidback style, José mumbled an excuse to the packed crowd, which,
mesmerized by the act, hardly grasped his muffled, accented apology.
After several solo guitar
songs, two friends came out to
sing background and play assorted instruments including the
congas, keyboard, melodica (a
wind piano), and various small
percussion instruments. The
show continued on, and the
crowd remained in awe of
José’s extra-mellow yet intense
style throughout. No one could
look away as José’s eyes closed
gently and his head tilted towards the neck of his guitar and
swayed to his melodies.
The set, just over an hour
in length (including one callback), was mostly comprised of
songs off his latest release, In Our
Nature. Highlights included
“Down the Line,” by far the
crowd favorite for its climactic ending, “Killing for Love,” and
“Lovestain,” which got everyone clapping to the groove. Song structure varied little from album the version, but the sound quality was
inevitably far superior in person and fifteen feet from the source.
The duration of the concert was indeed a disappointment but
could be expected, as José’s two major CD’s combined total just
over an hour. Nor did José dillydally between songs, except to provide insight into their meaning and to explain that this was his “green” tour
to the crowded room, placing the blame squarely on the fans for the harmful emissions that result from attending his concerts. Also unfortunate were
two glaring absences from the set: “Time to Send Someone Away” and the
Joy Division cover “Love Will Tear Us Apart.”
Quiet, thoughtful lyrics accompanied José’s sensational and diverse
guitar work, which included playing finger-style, slap with percussion on the
guitar body, and occasional strumming. “Love is a verb/love is a doing
word,” José explains in “Teardrop” and asks “What’s the point if you hate,
die, and kill for love?” in “Killing for Love.”
While naysayers argue that all of José’s material sounds the same,
that it puts them to sleep, it simply takes a more seasoned listener to appreciate each song’s singularity and brilliance. The general softness of José’s
music, in fact, makes the crescendos and fortissimos all that much sweeter
sounding. On March 8th, anyone in attendance wondering what the big deal
was about an afro-ed and bearded Swedish guy with a guitar and smooth,
albeit sometimes unintelligible, vocals found out firsthand.
By Sara Small
Q: I recently just got my license, and I’m so excited about driving! I love to drive, and usually I’m the
one driving around with all my friends on the weekend. The problem is, my parents are really tough on me
with borrowing the car. I have to borrow my mom’s when she is not using it, and it’s such a hassle to do!
My parents tell me that I can’t have the car all the time, and recently when I’ve gone out , my parents
have been bothered. What should I do? Should I buy my own car?
A: Getting a license is one of the most exciting experiences of a high school career. But not having
your own car can definitely rain on your parade. Having to borrow your parent’s car is a hassle, but talking
to your parents about it may help.
Try talking to your parents about borrowing the car. Explain to them that since you don’t have a car
of your own, you can’t just take the car out and go wherever you want. Try to come up with a reasonable
decision that both you and your parents can abide by. I’m sure your parents understand how excited you
are about getting your license, but they need a car, too (unfortunately). Once you talk to them, hopefully
they’ll see how responsible you are trying to be with having your license and compromise to better meet
your
needs.
About buying your own car, that’s a lot of hard work. And it can take many, many months to save
enough money. Also, all of the expenses that come with a used or new car can really burn a hole in your
pocket so to speak. Once you buy the car, you need to pay insurance, gas, inspections, etc. Think very
long and carefully on whether you want to buy your own car or not. You may be surprised at your decision.
Good Luck!
Sara
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Transcending the label of “game”
April 2008
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By Kieran O’Shea
Congressional Award
By Julie Powers
Word Link
By Laura Pempkowski
Hey, word puzzle-lovers! Frustrated by Sudoku? I’ve made
a new labyrinth of letters to discover. You play by creating a link
of compound words from the first word all the way to the last.
The first and second words link to make a compound word, like
in the example: Guitar and string connect to be guitar string.
String links with band to make a string band; then band and
camp make band camp. Some of the words even have letters
filled in to help you out.
Answers to last month’s puzzle: Sun - Tanning - Oil - Lamp - Post
- Office - Work - Clothes - Shopping - Mall - Rat
PIRATE
___ ___ E ___ S___ ___ E
___ H ___ ___ T
___ ___ I ___
C ___ ___ P
___ O ___ R ___
___ E ___ T ___ ___ G
P ___ ___ ___ ___
S___ T ___ ___ N ___
___ ___
T ___ W ___
H ___ ___ S ___
PARTY
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Start a new and exciting club. Hold a leadership position. Join a
sports team. Take the most challenging courses. Raise your SAT score.
These are all the typical suggestions offered by articles and guidance
counselors as to how to secure your position at the college of your
choice. But there is one thing that most people don’t know about:
the Congressional Award.
The Congressional Award is a distinguished and respected award
delivered to a select number of students throughout the country.
And the best part is that anyone can earn it, especially since Abington
has such a strong service learning program. There are six levels of
awards. The “easiest” to earn are the Bronze, Silver, and Gold certificates. The more competitive recognitions are the Bronze, Silver, and
Gold medals. In order to receive the award, one must earn a specified number of hours in each of the following categories: physical
fitness, personal development, volunteer service, and an expedition.
Many students at Abington probably already qualify for at least
one of the certificates. The physical fitness hours can be logged in for
sports teams, and only 15 hours (a week of practice) is needed for the
Bronze certificate. The personal development category includes parttime jobs, instruments, or any other goal you have simply to improve
your skills. Fifteen hours are needed in this category as well. The service category requires 30 hours for the bronze certificate. Half of these
are already obtained as a mandate for school, leaving only 15 more
to obtain alone. Finally, the expedition category can be done on
your own or (sometimes) through Mrs. Rodgers’ office. It must be a
learning experience that you plan while challenging yourself. More
details can be found at www.congressionalaward.org.
Students at Abington were recently rewarded for their accomplishments by receiving a Congressional Medal at the Constitution
Center in Philadelphia. Out of the entire state of Pennsylvania, the
majority of students receiving awards were from Abington! This certainly says a lot about Abington and our service program. The Congressional Award is a challenging yet reachable honor that many
students are capable of receiving. Since this award is only given to a
select number of students throughout the country, the Congressional
Award looks great on an application, and is very attainable.
to add various layers of texture to character models and environments one
layer at a time, which causes the game to pause while loading. While this
can be annoying for many, getting over this isn’t a big deal, though it keeps
the game from being perfect. The musical scores that are strewn throughout the game blend in perfectly with the background, and while there are
no true memorable numbers, they work perfectly in adding to the game’s
atmosphere. Overall, these three aspects make Mass Effect a good game.
However, Mass Effect has one truly defining characteristic: its sheer
depth. Almost as easily as you can get lost in creating Commander Shepard,
you can get lost in the galaxy, looking at each planet and reading up on
each alien species. Everything has a history, and almost every planet has
something going on that requires the player to explore or investigate,
whether it is a missing person or a rogue special ops unit. What makes Mass
Effect so beautiful is that each of these side missions requires many choices
on how it is handled. Should you forcefully take out the enemy leader, or
should you try to persuade him or her to give up their cause and work towards peace? These decisions affect not only the overall story but also how
you perceive the characters, because like the various worlds in Mass Effect,
almost every character has a distinctive personality. Your party members
gradually unveil more about their true nature and slowly develop how they
feel about Shepard. Each character requires a certain kind of diplomacy to
communicate with him/her, and there are many moments when the player
must carefully choose what they do next, lest they kill off one of the main
characters for good.
In addition to the depth to the world, the main story of Mass Effect is
truly beautiful. Every character has more than one side, and the player will
even think twice about how evil the main villain is. Nothing in this game is
black and white, and nothing is there just for the sake of being there. Almost
everything in Mass Effect has a purpose, and everything contributes to the
overall effect the game has on the player, and that is why Mass Effect is truly
deserving of the label “piece of art.”
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By definition, a game is meant to entertain, please, or pass time. Therefore, a video game is meant to accomplish the same task, only by using
video and images upon a screen to do so. However, many video games
over the past few years have gone many steps further and taken the industry to what one could call an art form. At their core, these artistic games still
entertain the players who play them, but there is much more to these games
than that. These aspects of art can be found in many areas of the game,
whether it be in the game’s story, graphics, music, or the overall environment that the game creates. These facets of the game, when all of them
are done correctly, will leave the player with a feeling of amazement and
awe like no other. In recent memory, one game truly delivered on this front.
That game is Mass Effect, which came out in November of last year. Mass
Effect, in gaming terms, is a third-person (meaning you can see the person
you control on screen) shooter with strong Role-Playing Game elements
(while most games require you to play a role, RPG generally means there is
a leveling system of some sort that allows you to improve your characters’
various attributes as you move through the game and will usually indicate
the game will be fairly plot-driven). Mass Effect is one of the few games of
last year that truly delivered what it set out to – and gave so much more
once you finished it.
Mass Effect, while having a few flaws, brings to the table such a grand
gaming experience that just about the only people who wouldn’t be able
to enjoy it are people who don’t like shooters and/or role playing games.
The main game play aspect of Mass Effect is to move around in a three man
squadron, shooting various enemies along the way. However, you can do
more than just shoot guns if you so choose. Additionally, you can cast spells
and inflict damage using biotic and tech abilities. When enemies die, you
gain a certain amount of experience, and once you gather a set number of
experience points, you gain a level and are able to boost various aspects
of your character. You also drive around in what can only be called a tank
and wound enemies with that if you so wish. As stated before, you have
three squadron members. One is the main character, Commander Shepard,
who the player is able to customize completely. In fact, before the game
truly starts, you may spend an hour making your Shepard, be it male or female, look exactly the way you want. You are also able to select how Shepard
acts in the game through various dialogue choices and side missions. The
other two members are chosen from an array of about six characters, human and alien, and can also be customized to a degree. The other aspect
of game play in Mass Effect is exploring the vast galaxy in which Mass Effect
is set. Aside from game play, the game has amazing graphics, at least when
it decides to finally load them. The game has many moments when it needs
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Wake up and smell the roses: the
Garden Club is in full bloom
By Erin Metzinger
With the nice weather coming, flowers
are starting to blossom and the cold weather
is coming to an end. This means two things:
say goodbye to the snow and hello to one of
Abington’s newest
clubs, the Garden
Club.
Abington’s
Garden Club is run
by teachers Ms.
Katherine Freeland
and
Ms.
Jill
Sandler-Ligi. Ms.
Freeland
has
worked on exhibits
for the Philadelphia Flower Show
while Ms. Sandler
Ligi is a devoted
gardener in her
free time. Their
goal is to make
the world a more
peaceful place,
one flower at a
time.
They
hold
their meetings in room S102 Mondays after
school. There, members discuss fundraising
projects such as candy sales, t-shirt sales, car
washes, and flower sales. Garden Club also
plans to visit the surrounding elementary
schools on Earth Day and complete beautifi-
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The glory of two
wheels
By Tereza Jarnikova
cation projects around the community.
Recently Philadelphia held its annual
flower show at the Pennsylvania Convention
Center. It is one of the largest indoor flower
shows in the
world.
This year Garden Club presented their exhibit
“Windswept.” After the
first round of judging, “Windswept”
won an honorable mention. After the second
judging, it won a
blue ribbon and
also “Best of the
Blues,” meaning
the better of the
two blue ribbons
of its class.
Hopefully,
Garden Club will
be able to continue its success
throughout the year. Anyone interested in joining can talk to the advisors, Ms. Freeland or
Ms. Sandler-Ligi or talk to a member of the
club. As usual, Abington Senior High School
has another club to be proud of.
When snacks attack
By Allie Baurer
It’s 3:30 in the afternoon. You’re tired
from school, stressing over homework, and
starving because the last meal you had came
from the cafeteria and consisted of two
chocolate chip cookies, a bag of Doritos, and
a Snapple. It’s that time of day – snack time.
Let’s peak inside those cabinets and
cupboards of yours and see what there is to
eat. Half a box of stale cereal, three boxes of
Girl Scout cookies, your mom’s new energy
bars that will help her lose those five extra
pounds, a few tasty cakes, some chips, and
a foreign object wrapped in tin foil fill the
pantry. What to choose? Nothing. These
snacks will not fill you, they are loaded with
sugar and fat, and they offer little nutritional
value. Luckily, there are healthier options.
It’s difficult to change your eating habits, and even if you are willing to change
them, your family may not be. However, if your
family is supportive of your decisions to begin
a healthier lifestyle, then they will do their best
to help get you on the right path. There is always the argument that what you eat does
not directly impact what the rest of your family
eats. If this doesn’t work, then the best thing
to do would be to go to the grocery store
with your parents and substitute the sugary
treats for some healthier snacks. The trick is to
be creative with it. Ask for some fruit, like blueberries, which are loaded with fiber and are
very filling. Another alternative would be 100calorie packs. They offer the same taste as
the regular food (like Chips Ahoy cookies,
Cheese Nips, Oreos, Lorna Doones, etc.), but
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their size is reduced. It’s all about consuming
what you want without going overboard.
When it comes down to it, you’re the
one who makes decisions dealing with your
body, and these decisions really do affect your
life. It’s up to you to try to change unhealthy
eating habits into nutritious eating patterns
so that you can live a long, healthy life. That’s
not to say that a splurge is out of the question. Every so often a homemade cookie or
a handful of potato chips is all right to have.
Balance is the key. You are in control.
If you’re stuck on some ideas for more
nutritious snacks, listed below are some options.
· Low fat Chewy Granola Bars (only 90100 calories and come in a variety of flavors
like chocolate peanut butter chunk, cookies
and cream, etc.)
· Quaker Rice Cakes (range anywhere
from 35-60 calories – come in flavors such as
cinnamon sugar, buttered popcorn, and
caramel corn)
· Skinny Cows Ice Cream Sandwiches
(140-150 calories and are the same size as a
regular ice cream sandwich)
· Baby carrots (around 30 calories for
about 12 and are extremely filling)
· Celery sticks and reduced fat peanut
butter (celery = about 6 calories per stalk and
one tablespoon of peanut butter is 90 calories)
· Rice Krispy Treats (90-100 calories)
· A medium-sized apple (72 calories)
I’m not a fan of mornings. The primordial
groans and unpublishable exclamations that accompany my awakening every morning convey
my unhappiness at being roused from a warm bed.
Lately, however, I’ve found an unlikely way to alleviate the annoyance – my bicycle. I’m a fan of
my bicycle, which affords me both an extra fifteen minutes of sleep and the promise of an exhilarating adventure at 7:20 near the faculty parking lot. It’s a red Schwinn from the seventies,
gifted by a generous friend who seized a trash
picking opportunity when he saw one. It’s temperamental – the random clicking noises and
faulty brakes provide both mild entertainment
and a cause for concern. My morning commute
ends with a game of chicken at the student dropoff zone – a fairly efficient wakeup call.
These perceived inconveniences beg the
obvious question – why not drive? It’s a fair point.
Cars are warm, fast, and grant convenience and
independence all at once. However, the
counterargument is also compelling: cars are
smelly, the situation in our parking lot sometimes
resembles a nest of lemmings on acid, and, perhaps more importantly, with every mile, cars consume precious oil and give off carbon emissions
that contribute to global warming.
Realizing the cheapness and efficiency of
our two-wheeled friends, people all over the world
have taken to the bike, from skirted grandmas in
Utrecht to Seattle’s spandex-clad police force, a
hallmark of that rainy city as recognizable as
Nirvana’s Cobain. Then there’s Critical Mass, where
cyclists take over the traffic of streets of major
cities worldwide, and the painful-sounding Naked
Bike Rides. Of course, and perhaps most importantly, businessmen, college kids, and schoolchildren alike use the bike simply to carry on with their
lives each day, saving gas and getting exercise
in a heartening display of the power of people to
effortlessly do something positive for themselves
and the world. Consider becoming one of them,
or, at least, please don’t involve your car in an
altercation with my bicycle. I would lose, it would
be painful, and, of course, no one likes an altercation.
ABINGTONIAN
2007-2008
Published by: Abington Senior High
School; Abington, Pennsylvania
Editors-in-Chief: Alex Kuczynski-Brown,
Travis Pollen
News Editor: Steph Smith
Editorial Editor: Laura Pempkowski
Features Editor: Rachel O’Neill
Sports Editor: Jesse Golaszewski
Photographers/Cartoonists: Adam
Glickman, Fränc Luu
Writers: Maeve McDermott, Nikki Hess,
Alex Kuczynski-Brown, Travis Pollen,
Daniel Lee, Laura Pempkowski, Alina
Szuch, Shannon Fairorth, Marc Joseph,
Jacob Feldman, Allie Baurer, Jill
McCoach, Sarah Nyirjesy, Sara Small,
Alyssa Kress, Erin Metzinger, Chelsea
Marion, Tereza Jarnikova, Kieran O’Shea,
Julie Powers, Tony Bell
Advisors: Mr. A. Saylor, Mr. R. Wrigley
Administration: Dr. R. Burt, Mr. R.
McCuen, Ms. D. Heaven, Mr. E. Johnson
abington.k12.pa.us
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Phillies pitching problems
By Alyssa Kress
I jumped up and down on my sofa when
the Phillies became NL East champions. I
called my friend, the Mets fan, and laughed
in his face. I was ready for the playoffs, like
every other Phillies fan. The Rockies had nothing on the Phils. Then we got beat in three
games and all our World Series dreams were
crushed. Not that I ever really thought the
Phillies had a chance at the World Series, but
I had waited almost my entire life for an NL
East championship and to lose in the first
round was quite disappointing. So I started
preparing for the 2008 season. How would the
Phillies improve so they would actually be contenders in 2008? The only answer in my mind
was to improve the pitching. A team record
28 pitchers were used last year. How many
times had I watched a closing pitcher come
in and blow the game? How many times had
I seen a game where there were so many
home runs given up in the first few innings that
it would be almost impossible to catch up?
How many times had I seen an ERA that was
in the sky it was so high? We already have an
MVP shortstop in Jimmy Rollins and a home
run hitter in Ryan Howard, but not enough
talented pitchers.
You would think that, as a professional
sports team, the Phillies would try to fix the
problem, but they didn’t. The three main
pitchers, Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, and Kyle
Kendrick are still around, but they have a combined ERA of just about 4. The New York Mets
acquired Johan Santana, the top free agent
pitcher of the year, who has an ERA of 3.33,
significantly lower than any Phillies pitcher.
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April 2008
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Gold schmold: Boys’
Track Team promises
gold medals this
spring season
By Chelsea Marion
Currently behind the three starters in the lineup
are 45 year old Jamie Moyer, Adam Eaton,
and J.D. Durbin, who have a combined ERA
of 5.00. Closer Brad Lidge, who had surgery
on his right knee on February 25, is now back
in action and just recorded his first save of
the season.
Due to pitching and other factors, the
Phillies had a below mediocre spring training, finishing 12-18. Many people say spring
training doesn’t matter, and as every Phillies
fan knows, the season can come down to
the last few weeks in September. As you read
this, the Phillies might be in first, they might
be in last, but no matter what, stay positive
and hopefully we won’t have to wait another
fourteen years to be NL East champions again.
One hundred and eighty teams, a
couple hundred stretched muscles, and a few
stomach churns and heart flutters made up
what was to be one of the most anticipated
indoor track events of the season: states. The
mere mention of this exclusive event which
took place in late February at Penn State University was enough to create a flooding wave
of both overconfident boasts and apprehensive hopes, which makes sense. After all,
achieving the coveted gold at a state meet
would without a doubt confirm the winning
athlete’s skill. So naturally, when the Abington
boys’ track squad stepped off the bus that
cold afternoon they had their hearts set on
winning; they were going to get that gold.
They were going to get that confirmation. This
was their year. So they thought.
The weekend before the squad made
their way up to Penn State, the team attempted to convince me of their ability,
which I of course had no doubt in. This team
was solid, receiving recognition left and right,
with a special emphasis on the 4x4 relay,
which was said to be the event to watch.
While the runners couldn’t help but admit the
slight nervousness they felt as the meet slowly
approached, Coach Deck, a former
Abington runner himself, had a different take,
“I purposely had the boys go to the big meet
in New York to prepare them for this. They’re
still a young team, but they’re ready,” Deck
insisted. I believed him, too. I saw those boys
run with the desire to win backing their unmistakable talent, and I knew just as well as
they did how hard they worked, so what went
wrong at states?
It all happened so fast. The very important last leg, Chris Morales, was plagued with
a sharp pain to the back of the leg while running in the 800, making him unable to participate in the 4x4, placing all of the pressure
on alternate Eleazar. However, without
Chris’s speed to round off the race, winning
was just a distant dream. The boys landed in
last place. Now, I’d like to think that it wasn’t
their fault. Those boys were meant to win,
born to win; they had that hunger, that voracity to achieve something great. It had to
have been, ruling out any other logical explanation, some cruel twist of fate. Luckily the
outlook looks good for the boys this spring
season, “We’re going to leave spring states
with a
medal,”
assured
4x4 runn e r s
Charles
Peoples
( p i c tured to
the right)
and Tony
Parker.
O v e r
ambitious?
No. Just
realistic.