RHS award-winning entertainment unit united RHS

VII
October 2008
II
RHS students choose
Obama in election
Getting in
the spirit
Senior Lindsey
Kightlinger shows off
her school spirit with
her unique Spongebob
Squarepants pj’s.
In the days leading up
to homecoming, students demonstrated their
school spirit by dressing
up.
We kicked off the
week with bunny slippers
and robes on Monday,
dressing up like our
favorite nerd, Steve
Erkel on Tuesday and
coordinated outfits with
our twins on Wednesday.
Everyone put on their
best attire for Thursday
and we ended the week
in our best green, white
and black RHS colors
Friday.
By Alexa Alejandria (’09)
Photo/Zac Meyers
If RHS students could vote, the vast majority would cast their ballots for Democratic
presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama.
It’s true that most of RHS can’t legally
vote, but that can’t stop them from having
their own opinions about the 2008 presidential candidates; in fact, nothing can. Curious
as to where RHS students stand when it came
to the controversial Obama vs. McCain, the
entire Stampede staff embarked on a candidate vote round up.
We printed up thousands of short, sweet,
and to the point voters’ ballots, cut them into
strips and pitched them into as many classrooms as possible.
The results are as follows: out of the 1,600
ballots distributed, 1,028 Mustangs favored
Obama to hold office, 271 preferred Republican Sen. John McCain, and 301 voted for
other figures including, Hillary Clinton, Will
Smith, Kevin Kirk, Ronald Reagan, Jay Leno
and miscellaneous others.
The most often stated reason for support-
by the powerful EU. The band plays, flowing from formation to formation, flags slice
through the air, sabers and rifles soar dangerously high, as the audience sits in anticipation.
In competitions, drum line literally takes
your breath away. They play with such energy you not only hear the drums pounding,
but you also feel the vibrations. It’s no wonder that the drum line took first place in the
sweepstakes hosted by the Northern California Band Director’s Association last year. At the same competition, color guard was
awarded champs, beating every other guard
in their division in Northern California. The only thing tighter than the Entertainment Unit’s routine is the bond that holds
these players together. At the core of this unspoken bond is a love to listen to and perform
music.
ing Obama was “because he’s black.” Others
said he was more likely help middle-class
families, he’s young and good looking, and
Continued on page 16
Students: Cast your vote
in for the 2008 election
Mustangs, get ready to cast your vote
because the 2008 general election is being
brought to RHS.
All sophomores, juniors and seniors of
RHS, if not convicted of class or school suspensions during this time, will be eligible to
vote in a simulation of an actual California
general election after they undergo the registration process, which started Oct. 13 and
will last until Halloween, Oct. 31.
Freshmen will not be able to register due
to not meeting the grade requirements and
mainly for not having a social science class,
said government teacher Mrs. Lona Adams.
However, all other eligible voters will be
able to vote on actual Election Day, Nov. 4.
RHS award-winning entertainment unit united
By Natalie Pancicia (’10) and
Re`anna Morris (’10)
Drum Major Rachel Clawson carries
the whole of the Rodriguez Entertainment
Unit on her shoulders, leading the massive
110-piece corps in practices and competitions. The members are striving to live up
to its accomplishments from last year when
they earned 50 awards. At football games, audiences are awed
Strum
along with
the guitar
club
Foreign
exchange
students
join RHS
Page 5
Page 4
New
superstar
quarterback for
varsity
football
team
Page 14
Sophomore AJ Richardson, who plays the
saxophone and bass drum, joined the EU because of this love.
In junior Tina Wong’s case, it was the desire to join color guard that attracted her to
the EU. Every player joined the EU to fulfill
a passion — to play music and to entertain.
With this devotion, special kinships have
Continued on page 16
Index
School News… Pages 1-5, 16
Entertainment… Pages 6-9 Opinion… Pages 10-13
Sports… Pages 14-15
Rodriguez High School
October2008
More new teachers join the RHS team
Mukesh Jain
By Jerron Herman (’09)
Let’s face it, for some students, math can
be dull. That shouldn’t be the case for students of new RHS algebra teacher Mukesh
Jain.
“I like working with high school students
because I think they are the future,” says Mr.
Jain.
“I want them to fulfill their dreams like I
did.”
Born in Bombay, India, his first job was
as an algebra consultant for school districts
in California, such as Contra Costa. He holds
a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from University of Bombay with a minor in math.
He later attended the University of Akron in
Ohio. There, Dr. Jain got his master’s and his
doctorate where he specialized in polymers
science.
Along with having his back wall full of
algebra expressions and explanations to help
his students, he also helps his students by
drawing from his family members like his
daughter for inspiration in how he should
teach. This helps him to connect with his students as well, he said.
“I have the same expectations of my students as I do my daughter.”
Mr. Jain takes great pride in how he teaches. To prepare his students, he makes assessments of where his students are in the course
and then creates an active blueprint of what
they need. This teaching strategy is also successful with the help of other math teachers.
“When you’re a new teacher you need help,
like training. It can be very daunting without
help.”
One of his goals is to remain at RHS for at
least five years.
“Ultimately, I hope my work here will influence students in a positive way and they
will become the ambassadors of my goals in
their own way.”
Kelly Thomsen
By Audrina Miranda (’09)
“If I could go back in time, I’d want to be
an ancient Egyptian.”
History teacher Mrs. Kelly Thomsen has
the kind of outgoing personality that keeps
students interested. in her world civilization
class.
A Southern California native, Mrs. Thom-
sen lived in Pasadena, near Los Angeles,
until she recently moved to Dixon with her
husband.
Mrs. Thomsen graduated from Azusa Pacific University in Pasadena, with a bachelor’s degree in education and history, and a
master’s degree in education.
“I’ve always known I wanted to be a teacher,” she says.
Mrs. Thomsen decided she wanted to teach
at the high school level when she herself was
in high school.
She has been teaching for five years.
Although Mrs. Thomsen is married, she
has no children. In her free time, she enjoys
reading, writing, cooking, and watching
movies. Her favorite movie is “Breakfast at
Tiffany’s.”
Mrs. Thomsen said she loves to travel. After college, she traveled to Ghana in Africa.
She’s also spent time in Europe, and even
taught in Mexico for a year.
Mrs. Thomsen said she likes the diversity
of RHS, which is much different than the last
school she taught at.
“I like how the staff and students work together like a team, and the encouraging, positive environment.”
Theresa Alexander
By Megan Bonilla (’10)
Mrs. Theresa Alexander is a new English
11 and 12 teacher who lives and breathes the
subject she teaches. Mrs. Alexander didn’t
always know that she would one day become
a teacher.
“I always knew I wanted to do something
with English, but I wasn’t sure what.”
That answer came from her excellent teachers at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. Majoring in English, her teachers inspired her to go
into teaching.
Although Mrs. Alexander is new to Rodriguez she is not new to teaching. This is
her third year with her own class. She also
substituted for three years. Mrs. Alexander
came to RHS from Visalia when her husband
got a job in Benicia. Before moving here, she
taught 8th grade in a Central Valley school.
In fact she had attended the very same small
middle school — Green Acres — years before.
That RHS is so much larger that Green
Acres took some getting used to, she said.
She enjoys the change.
“It’s better than teaching 8th grade. I remember what I was like then. It was scary,”
she said, laughing.
Mrs. Alexander got married in June. She
has twin 5-year-old boys of her own in addition to two step-children, a 7- year-old boy
and a 5- year-old girl.
Although Mrs. Alexander loves teaching
English, she enjoys a variety of other hobbies
as well.
Her other interests include mountain biking, taking classes at the gym, and spending
time with her kids. She also loves to read,
modern and contemporary literature being
her favorite.
Breanna Izatt
By Krysta McCullough (’10)
How many of you have been embarrassed
in front of your crush, or were thrilled when
your team won the big game? New biology
and conceptual physics teacher Brenna Izatt
says she can relate.
Her high school experience wasn’t much
different than today’s RHS students.
“I liked it a lot,” she said of her high school
years. “I tried getting involved in clubs and
sports, and I made many good friends there.”
This dynamic teacher is 28 years old,
lives with her dog named Aciao, and graduated from Utah Valley University where she
earned a master’s degree in biology.
“I loved college because you could focus
better there than in high school. It was like a
clean slate,” she said.
One of her goals is to go back to college
and get a degree in biostatistics.
2
In order from left
to right:
Mukesh Jain,
Kelly Thomsen,
Theresa
Alexander, Brenna
Izatt, Anna
Atuatasi
Although Ms. Izatt has only been teaching
for two years, she has plenty of experience.
Before her teaching career, Ms. Izatt was a
swim coach for a local team in Utah for seven
years.
She doesn’t swim for a team anymore, but
she occasionally enjoys playing water sports
with her friends.
Before moving to California, Ms Izatt
taught at Dixon Middle School in Utah where
she lived for 15 years.
She said she is happy to be teaching a different age group.
“It’s nice to be at a school where the students are older, more fun, and more goal oriented.”
Anna Atuatasi
By Elise Boersma (’09)
Anna Atuatasi always wanted to be a teacher. After five years of being in the banking
business and the births of her two older children, she decided to fulfill her dream.
Mrs. Atuastasi said her inspiration for the
pursuit is her sister and her mother. Enthusiastic about her new found calling, Ms. Atuastasi was soon hired at RHS.
This is her first year ever teaching.
“I didn’t really pick Rodriguez, the school
picked me,” she said when asked why out of
all the schools RHS.
She has a psychology degree from the
University of San Diego. She is earning her
teaching credential through Chapman University.
She is the vocational education teacher,
which is part of the school’s special education program.
“I basically teach life skills. So in math, I
teach balancing checkbooks …in English, I
teach how to look up …. things that would
be useful in the workplace.”
Mrs. Atuatasi says she enjoys poetry and
nature walks in her free time.
Rodrigeuz High School
October 2008
New kids on the block
Chriss brings 15
years of experience RHS freshmen say it was tough at the beginning of the school year
Ellis (’09)
to Rodriguez High ByDoLamisha
you remember your first day of high
By Lamisha
Ellis (’09)
Verdell Grace
Chriss
has
been
around
Rodriguez
a
couple of times
before — as
a
substitute
teacher.
This year
she’s back as an
official English
Photo/ Lamisha Ellis
t e a c h e r.
Miss Verdel Grace Chriss
She
has
been teaching for 15 years. She also taught
history for three years at Franklin Middle
School in Vallejo.
“I’ve been in the district for three to four
years, and the position came up. I applied
for it and I got it,” says Mrs. Chriss when
explaining how she got to Rodriguez.
“I graduated from San Francisco State. I
got a B.A. in Journalism and I was set up to
be a reporter to work for the Examiner in San
Francisco.
Then I started as a substitute teacher to
make a little money and I liked it and I have
been doing it ever since,” said Mrs. Chriss
explaining how she got in to teaching.
She’s been married for 36 years, and has a
grown son who is married.
She has no pets.
“I’m not in to them, you got to take care of
them,” she said, “and you got to be home.”
Mrs. Chriss likes RHS’s students.
“I like the students. They’re good kids, a
few behavior problems, but you know they’re
teen-agers. I expected that; I’m ready for it.
Chriss’s hobbies are singing, acting, going
to church, and spending time with her young
granddaughter.
“I just love her!” said Mrs. Chriss.
Correction
The Stampede incorrectly reported last
month that math teacher Noreen Santos
taught at Armijo High School. She did not;
her children attend that school. She formerly
taught at a private school in El Sobrante.
The Stampede regrets the error.
school? Scared, nervous, and excited? That’s
how most of our new freshmen felt on their
first day.
“I felt nervous…all those big grown lookin’
dudes. I was real nervous,” says Armanise
Carr. Some were scared by all the upper
classmen. “Oh my god, they’re so scary!”
said freshman Miranda Mckeeber.
But they soon get use to it and adjust.
“Rodriguez is a pretty good school. There
are a lot of cute boys and I’ve got easy
classes,” says Ashley Simmons.
What do they think of the teachers? “They
are OK, could be better. But my favorite so
far is Dr. Jain, my math teacher,” said Nisha
Tidwell.
“I like my teachers a lot,” says Jordan
Oglesby . “Mr. Day is my favorite teacher.”
Other freshmen recalled being confused
about where their classrooms were located.
“I got lost on my first day. I still do,” says
freshman Jordan Oglesby. Alejandra Chavez
Spend Halloween at
Discovery Kingdom
Freshmen girls just trying to adjust to high school life.
says she was nervous to start high school,
but it helped knowing some people here
beforehand.
A few seniors offered some advice to the
class of 2012.
Photo/Lamisha Eliis
“Be nice to upperclassmen,” said Ali Jones.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff,” said Sharman
Bruni.
“Take each day one at time because high
school is like a stepping stone.”
By Lamisha Ellis (’09)
Trick or treat, Halloween is almost here.
How do you plan to get in the spirit? There
are plenty of things to do around your own
neighborhood, you just have to find them.
Here’s something that I thought will be fun:
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom presents
“Fright Fest.” Six Flags has turned its theme
park into a full zombie zone, which is sure
to get you in the Halloween mood. While
this terrifying event is fun and exciting
to us, it may be a little scary to your little
brothers and sisters. For all your younger
siblings, Discovery Kingdom has a “Twicka-Treat Trail” and a handful of Halloween
shows throughout the daytime including
the Shouka and Dolphin Halloween show,
“Super Spooky Sea Lion” show, and
“Dracula’s Magic Show.” They also have
daily costume parades. By night, they have
two haunted mazes, Harley Newman’s side
show, a themed “Scare-Zone,” a “Twilight
Funeral Procession Parade,” and Halloweenthemed live stage shows. Fright Fest is every
weekend through Oct 31.”
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Rodriguez High School
October 2008
4
Foreign exchange students invade campus
Hails from Holland
By Rita Manikhong (’09)
You may have seen him around campus
— short blonde hair, dreamy blue eyes, about
5’10. No, I’m not talking about that German
boy who was so last year.
Senior Douwe van den Bogaert is one
of several foreign exchange students attending RHS this year. He arrived from Holland
to check out first-hand, the American high
school experience.
Douwe signed up for the student foreign
exchange through an Internet program and
was chosen by his host family, The Reese’s,
to spend a whole school year at Rodriguez.
He’s involved in after school programs,
such as the varsity soccer team and he takes
the fit-for-life class. He’s a normal teen, despite growing up across the Atlantic for 17
years of his life.
Like any other teen, Douwe plays sports
during his leisure time and likes to stay active. He is the youngest of his family, which
consists of one brother and one sister. Surprisingly, most people in Holland listen to
all types of American music, but the senior
prefers listening to different types of reggae,
hip-hop and R&B. He also enjoys watching
American movies.
“Everything is huge here; like if you buy
a drink it’s a big bottle,” said Douwe about
the differences between the United States and
Holland.
Although he’s eligible to get his license, he
prefers not to drive.
“At home, everyone rides bicycles and
walks everywhere. Everything is in walking
distance and we don’t really rely on cars as
much as here.”
And unlike America, the driving age in
Holland is set at 18. Also, the drinking and
smoking age in Holland is set at 18. Many
people slip by the radar and are allowed to
buy cigarettes and alcohol at an even younger
age, he said.
Something else that is different is the
school system. School in Holland is set up by
how intelligent you are. The smarter you are,
the longer you stay in high school. Usually,
high school ranges from four to six years, but
they don’t call it high school in Europe.
Photo/Rita Manikhong
Photo/Re’anna Morris
Douwe van den Bogaert
Charlotte Luriot
Besides Fairfield, he has already seen
much of Northern California already and has
been to San Francisco and Sacramento. Later
in the year, his host family is planning to take
him to visit Southern California, which he is
very excited about.
So why did he pick California? “It was
probably for all the celebrities, tan people
and surfer dudes,” he said.
“I was chosen to go and I’ve always wanted to go.”
with SpongeBob and Barbie on them here…
Yeah, we don’t do that in France,” she adds
with a laugh.
Along with French, Charlotte is also fluent in Italian and English. “In France, I took
English for six years, and Italian for three or
four. A lot of things are in English in France.
French teenagers listen to American music,
we barely listen to anything in French; we
watch American TV and movies. ”
Although she is far from home, Charlotte is
still able to speak French here with her French
teacher Mr. Sebastian Remy-Drysdale and
fluent French-student Roman Robinson.
“It’s fun. I help him with French, he helps
me with English.”
Charlotte has only been to a few California cities so far, but plans on visiting San
Francisco and Disneyland in Anaheim later
in the year.
“I do miss home, but I really love California.”
Bonjour RHS
By Re’anna Morris (’10)
After being raised in Nice, France for
17 years, you would think American customs
would be difficult to adapt to. But according
to foreign-exchange student Charlotte Luriot,
things aren’t that different here.
“The sizes of things are bigger here. And
there is a lot of fast food. But other than that,
we do things the same way. We go to the
movies, read, we go to the beach.”
However, she did note that the school system is different here. “In France, we go to
elementary school until we’re 10, then ‘college’ from 11 to 15, then high school for three
years.” And unlike most teens, Charlotte already knows what career she would like to
pursue after she graduates.
“I want to work in the infirmary, the medical field, as a nurse.”
While life isn’t too different in America,
the senior has noticed a few new things here
at Rodriguez.
“People carry around little backpacks,
Back in the USSR
By Chelsea Ramos (’10)
He loves to eat pizza, listen to techno
music, goes to parties, and is on the JV soccer team. Sounds like your average American
teen, right?
Wrong. Dmytro Grynyuk, 15, is one of
a handful of exchange students at RHS this
year. Dmytro (he goes by Dima) is from
Nikolaev, Ukraine.
He discovered the exchange program at
the private school he attended in Nikolaev.
He was chosen for the program and soon
was welcomed by a host family in Fairfield.
Dmytro Grynyuk
Photo/Chelsea Ramos
Grynyuk will be staying for the entire
school year.
“I’m here to learn and experience new
things,” he says.
Dima wakes up at 6:40 a.m. and rides his
bike to school every morning.
“I would rather ride my bike that only
takes 20 minutes, instead of taking the bus
that takes about an hour,” he says. Dima is
still getting used to the American lifestyle.
In Ukraine, he went to a private school
where there were only 700 students, all wearing uniforms.
They have school six days a week but start
at 9 a.m. and get out at 2 p.m.
There is no lunch break in Ukraine, but
only short breaks inbetween the eight classes
they have each day.
“I love that we have a long lunch time. I
gained about 6 pounds in less than a month,”
he says.
He also speaks Russian and studied English for five years.
Dima keeps in touch with his family by
webcam and talks to them every chance he
gets.
He is enjoying his time here, meeting new
people and going site seeing. So far he has
been to San Francisco and is excited to go to
Los Angeles soon.
Dima said he is amazed at the diversity in
America, especially in California.
Back in Ukraine it is unlikely to see someone other than Ukrainians.
America is so different from what he is
used to but he is here to experience and have
fun.
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
Guitarists strum to their own sound in club
By Krysta McCullough (’10)
In the diversity of music, there is one instrument that plays a common role: the guitar. It is celebrated by aspiring rock stars as
the bread of life and is romanticized as the
modern instrument of love. In the guitar
club, students come together to recognize the
value of the guitar and to enjoy its beautiful
sound.
Walk into room D-203, and you are immediately plunged into a space of music.
Students are huddled in groups playing together with their various types of guitars
while laughing and having a good time. The
students are diverse; some students from
the school band strum their acoustic guitars.
Others who have formed their own bands,
are jamming on their electric guitars. This is
why the Guitar Club was formed — to bring
students together who enjoy their guitars.
The atmosphere of the room during meetings can’t be described as anything other than
high energy and chaotic. It is that much fun.
“Everyone wishes lunch was longer,”
said club president Claire Rosenfield, while
watching two students play on the same guitar at once. Usually, each meeting has 30
different members, all playing their guitars,
most playing different songs from the person
next to them or teaching other members new
songs.
Sophomore Somers Barto has been playing
the guitar for nine years and also plays in the
school band. In addition, he also plays the
banjo, mandolin, and bass guitar. He joined
Guitar Club to have a place to play with his
friends.
Freshman Thomas Norris has been playing for about five years. His hobby, apart
from playing football for the Mustangs, is of
course, playing the guitar. He has been an
original member of the guitar club and comes
because the school doesn’t offer any courses
with guitar lessons.
Whatever their reason, all the students who
come are loyal to their club. Some students,
like Somers, are here to have fun, and other
students, like Thomas, are here to improve
Some members of the guitar club “Jamming”
their talent. The members urge anyone with
interest to join the guitar club. The only requirements are that you own a guitar and you
bring it to the meetings which are held every
Don’t be afraid of this ‘Casper’
Photo/ Krysta McCullough
Thursday during lunch. Why wouldn’t want
to come?
“It’s awesome!” said freshman Natalie
Leighton.
New VP brings
European flair
By Audrina Miranda (’09)
When walking into the student parking lot,
you see a lot of trucks, especially big ones.
The first one that caught my eye, however,
was a lifted ’75 Chevy, belonging to RHS junior Randy Munson.
Randy’s truck “Casper” definitely sticks
out when driving on the streets. It sits on four
35’s, and it’s painted a flat gray.
He also has “Thing 1” tied to his grill, and
“Woody” hanging from his rear bumper, adding his own touch of distinctiveness.
Randy bought the truck a year ago. It cost
him $2,500, and he paid for it himself, which
makes him especially proud of his Chevy, he
said.
He’s been driving it since he got his license, about four months ago.
Although “Casper” basically only has a
heater and a stereo, Randy has done a lot of
alterations.
He installed the stereo, painted the body,
and freshened up the motor.
He even added under glow. Besides that,
“There aren’t that many old Chevys driving around anymore.” Randy’s friends like
By Alexa Alejandria (’09)
Casper always attracts attention
his truck. They say it’s an “awesome truck,”
mainly because when they go mudding and
get stuck, he can pull them out.
He also likes playing “bumper cars” with
his friends, which cost him a broken head-
5
Photo/ Vicky Laren
light.
When asked if he’d like to add anything
else, Randy said, “Don’t cut me off. I can’t
always stop.”
Ask her to the Greek restaurant, the Athenian Grill, some time, maybe she won’t give
you a referral; though the restaurant may not
be as authentic as her family’s Greek cooking.
Some upperclassmen may remember this
familiar face because she used to be a teacher
here a few years back.
Ms. Angie Avlanitis is back at RHS as an
assistant principal.
Born and raised in Germany for the first six
years of her life then having lived in Turkey
until her freshman year of high school, Ms.
Avlanitis brings various forms of European
flair to the RHS administrative team, including a huge Greek flag hanging on the back
wall of her office, representing her Greek
heritage.
Having the ability to speak German, Greek
and English, she can punish any student in
the language of her choice, although many
students can vouch that she does it pretty well
in English.
Rodriguez High School
Man on the street
Question: What was your
scariest experience?
By Vicky Laren (’09)
Ricardo Garcia
(’09) – “My scariest
moment was at Six
Flags during Fright
Fest with all their
costumes.”
Denzel Nelson (’10)
– “One time I was
behind Round Table
and a homeless man
stole my bike. Then
he told me it was
his.”
Jesus-Jesse
Mariques (’11) “I was on top of a
steep hill and started
to run down it, but I
fell. Luckily someone caught me.”
Andrew Tejano
(’12) - “My first
time on a roller
coaster was really
scary.”
October 2008
Check out fall’s new TV shows
Oldies but goodies also worth another viewing
By Jerron Herman (’09)
Like the varied colors of the fall leaves,
audiences can expect a great assortment of
new autumn shows this year. Whether you
go back in time to a famous zip code or hang
out with a fake physic, bring the dead to life
again, or simply find a hill with one tree, this
fall will not disappoint.
After a lack luster Emmy Awards, including
bad hosts and all, it is only befitting primetime equal Showtime. The three network giants, NBC, ABC, and CBS, are stepping up
their time slots to compete. Though they’ve
been the standards in good television, the networks better watch out-it seems the CW is
catching up very quickly.
Like to gossip? Well, some love it. The
CW’s cult classic “Gossip Girl” may be a
channel changer for some, but is a guilty
pleasure for most. The show, which comes on
at 8 p.m. on Mondays, follows the rich lives
of Manhattan teens. Sex scandals and secrets
ensue every week.
The CW also flaunts its “new” take on
“90210.” It is just a recycled genre: teen
angst and drama, though there is still room
for surprise. If you like the secret lives of rich
kids, then this will be a show to watch at 8
p.m. on Tuesdays.
They may be old pros in the game of TV,
but NBC has a hot primetime lineup. Sure
their money-maker is “Saturday Night Live,”
but an old pro can still learn new tricks to
boost their audience.
“Kath and Kim” is the story of a daughter
coming back home — permanently. The zany
sitcom promises laughs from a comedian veteran, SNL alumna Molly Shannon. The new
series airs at 8:30 on Thursday.
The new show may create laughs, but NBC’s
golden cow is the double threat “The Office”
and “30 Rock.” These powerhouse comedies
have brought in the ratings. Though they both
follow the hilarious hectic life in an office,
both are equally outrageous. The third season
of “30 Rock” premieres at 9:30 p.m., Oct.30.
“The Office” may seem like a boring British import to some. Its slow and hard to catch
inside jokes are always prevalent. Others hail
it as a comedic masterpiece. What is the definition of an incompetent boss? Meet Michael
the manager of Dunder Mifflin, a paper distributing company. The daily escapades of
the co-workers make up a weekly episode.
Nevertheless what they do, you’ll be in for
a laugh with their antics. Catch it at 9 p.m.
every Thursdays.
Don’t like to laugh? TV fall dramas are in
full abundance. So if you don’t fancy “Ugly
Betty,” try these nail biters on. “CSI:” is the
classic to the other spin-offs like “CSI: Miami” and “CSI: NY” but the original is always
better. To catch up, Warrick (Gary Dourdan),
a troubled but recovering pill pushing gam-
bler got shot in the neck at the end of last season. By who? That’s what’s in store for CSI
leader Grissom and his team. It airs 9 p.m.
Thursdays on CBS.
“Law and Order” is one show the previous position cannot stand to: sometimes the
original isn’t always the best. “Law and Order: SVU” follows cops in New York find
sex predators and missing prostitutes in the
highly charged one-hour TV show. Catch it
at 10 p.m. every Tuesday on NBC.
Rounding out the mainstream TV shows,
there is promising media on other cable networks too. BET’s newest show, “Sombodies”, follows the lives of an almost graduated
college student, Scottie and his college graduate friends. The show chronicles his road
to maturity and the lengths he still has to go.
“Somebodies” comes on every Tuesday night
at 10 on BET.
“Nip/Tuck” began FX’s risky business.
The show follows two surgeons in Miami.
Their surgical and sexual escapades round
out the show’s energy and plot. It is TV-MA,
so parental advisory is a must for those too
immature. The show is on hiatus for the moment but is sure to return soon.
Whether you are swamped by classes this
first semester or you are leisurely flicking
away on your TV set, this fall season has a
lot to offer. All that is left for you to do is pick
a show, get a snack, and enjoy.
Are all American teens having sex and
getting pregnant?
Do we all fall stupidly in love with a guy
we just met and have sex?
Sure, it is true for some, but why make it
seem like one guy can control every girl in
his school without anyone saying no.
This show just doesn’t seem to reflect
Americans in a positive way.
They want parents to take this information
and turn it around and teach their children not
to do these things.
Is this fair? Some parents prefer a certain
way of teaching their kids, but ABC family
switches it around and parents may have to
backtrack and fix it.
All this show does is make teen pregnancy
stand out; there are many more problems a
teenager will encounter.
Getting into college, grades, keeping with
the trends, and of course drinking are some
examples of common teenage issues.
Another shows on this channel is “Greek,”
which is about college kids having parties and
doing the so-called “normal” college thing.
Even though many teens may find it interesting to watch while dreaming about in
their future college plans, this show is not too
family-oriented either.
What has America become?
Just partiers and teens who get pregnant?
There is plenty more we can talk about or
have shows about.
ABC family does educate us in many ways
about things that do really happen — maybe
not on a regular basis, but they do happen.
Even though they have a harsh or very
blunt way of going about it, they do in fact
make many good points.
The name may make sense if you look at it
a certain way, but not all parents do.
Little kids have access to watch this station and parents may not want their children
to be watching all these things and think it is
real life.
It does not set a good example for the young
ones and they may think getting pregant at an
early age is normal.
They are taking it too far with all of it.
They should calm down.
These shows portray American teenagers
as terrible kids. It’s not reality for everyone
ABC channel not so family friendly anymore
By Ashley Rogers (’10)
Teenage pregnancy, wild college partying,
sex, drugs, and alcohol. Are these just occasional events or do they happen every day?
We hear about these sorts of activities once
in awhile.
These things are out there, but ABC Family really makes it obvious with its risqué approach to these subjects.
They put just about anything on this channel these days.
If you happened to tune in this summer,
you would have witnessed a teenager’s consequences for her irresponsible sex acts in
“The Secret Life of an American Teenager.”
Now what does this show say about Americans?
6
RHS students
stressed out and
heart-broken
Dear Cat,
I am so stressed out. I have three AP classes, college applications are due in a couple
months, ACT and SATs are on the horizon,
and I have no time to hang with friends. My
life’s a mess.
I come home from school at 3:30 every
day, and in the blink of an eye, it’s 9 o’clock.
I haven’t finished chemistry homework and
I have a lab next week. I haven’t had a real
break so far this year. How do I deal with all
this? How do I manage my time?
— Out of Time
Dear Out-of-Time,
When you get home, the first thing to do is
look at your agenda. As lame as it sounds,
you should be using it.
Every time there’s something you need to
remember, write it in your agenda — even if
it has nothing to do with school.
Then you won’t have the stress of trying to
remember everything that you have to do.
After school, look at your agenda. If there
are a lot of things you need to do, relax.
Breathe. Prioritize.
Put your assignments in a list, in order of
importance and/or the order they are due. At
the top of the list, you should have assignments that are due the next day.
First, you should do assignments due the
next day then work a little bit on assignments
due later in the week or projects. This will
help reduce your stress level.
As you complete assignments you can rest
assured that the most important things are
getting done. The next day you can revise
your list and complete the assignments you
didn’t get to.
An easy solution to your friend-deprivation
would be to hold study groups at your house.
Do your work with your friends. Work on
homework and projects and study with your
friends.
This will help both you and your friends
with your workload while enjoying each others’ company.
Dear Cat,
I finally made it to the top. When I was
younger, I was fat. I decided to change my
lifestyle, so I went on a diet. All I thought
about was calories and fat. It wasn’t fun, but
it paid off. Then at the beginning of high
school, I learned about fashion. I started fitting in.
Last year I liked a couple of guys, but there
was this one guy that I really liked. I was
so excited when he asked me to be his girlfriend. Everything was finally good for me,
perfect even. But, his best friend didn’t like
me and told me lies about my boyfriend. I
believed him and my boyfriend and I got into
a lot of fights. It got so bad that he said either
we be friends or we work it out. I said I only
wanted to work it out if he wanted to work
it out. It hurt him and it hurt me. He started
saying mean things to me and we broke up.
We are not friends. A lot of guys have liked
me after that. I even have a boyfriend now,
but I don’t like him. My ex made me so happy. I can’t seem to move on.
— Stuck
Dear Stuck,
I understand how difficult it can be to move
on from an ex. You need to find closure. If
you think about why you still feel so attached
to your ex, maybe you can figure out how to
get over him. You are probably sad not only
because of the break-up, but also because of
how you broke up. If you apologize to your
ex, you may feel better about it.
I would also advice you to talk about your
feelings with those you trust. Hopefully these
things will give you closure.
Got Questions? Put them in the stampede
box int the library
Horoscopes
By Ashley Rogers (’10)
Scorpio (Oct. 24 - Nov.21 ): You’re motivated to connect with many people in a light
way, not getting too intimate with anyone in
particular.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21): Secondguessing yourself is a bad habit. Get back to
the basics. Take stock of who you are, what
you want and what you’re willing to do to
get it.
Capricorn (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19): The work
that’s required seems draining. Maybe you
haven’t found what’s in it for you. Privately
ask yourself that question.
Aquarius (Jan. 20 - Feb. 18): Who knows
why you sometimes mute your usual personality with unnecessary and mostly borrowed
troubles? You’ll snap out of that worry habit
today and in the process deem nearly all of
your problems as trivial.
Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20) : You’re a giver,
but choose your takers well. Your creativity
and drive will flourish if you avoid unnecessary distractions.
Aries (March 21- April 19): You’re going
to part with your money sooner or later, So
you may as well have fun while you’re doing
it. To be a little frivolous with your gener-
osity makes you feel warm, and loved ones
cozy right up to you.
Taurus (April 20- May 20): You get fired
up by politics and you want to share your
opinions with everyone around you. There is
an opportunity to put some of your ideas into
action, so take advantage of it.
Gemini (May 21- June 21): Considering
all the time and energy you’ve been dedicating to school and home life recently, it’s no
surprise that you need to catch up on sleep.
Maybe you should use the weekend to do so.
Cancer (June 22- July 22): You are tempted
to skip homework or opt to not go to school.
Whatever you decide, at least one thing to
consider is someone will take it personally.
Strongly consider the feelings of others before making a rash decision.
Leo (July 23- Aug. 22): Emotions are only
forceful if they are bottled up. Let it out.
Virgo (Aug. 23- Sept. 22): It’s wonderful
that you can take care of others, but do so
only after you have cared for yourself. Carve
out a few guilt- free selfish hours.
Libra (Sept. 23- Oct. 23): Shopping to
make yourself feel better? It works out only
if you’re buying things you can actually use
or perhaps give away as holiday gifts.
‘Ain’t no Sunshine:’
when he’s gone away
Consider this: What If you were 17 with
no home, a mother who abandoned you at
birth, and you didn’t even know your mother’s name. You are all alone — no friends, no
family. How would you survive?
This is the situation for “Ain’t No Sun-
shines” protagonist Laila. She has been
through a lot, including living in more than
15 foster homes. Laila decide to do things on
her own.
She starts dancing at a club to get money.
That is where she meets David Dubois, whom
she assumes just wants to be entertained. But
after talking they make a connection. David
moves Laila in with him the day she turned
18.
Would they be happy together? So she
thought.
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
8
Depend on Hazel and Vine to lift your mood
If you’ve ever found yourself scrolling
through your mp3 player in search of music
to lift your mood (bands like Jack’s Mannequin or Forever the Sickest Kids), but haven’t
yet found the right band, you could count on
Hazel and Vine to come to the rescue with
songs that are just for you.
Originating in Sacramento, and making
their way out of the garage and onto the red
carpet, this upcoming band naturally captures
audiences with amazing vocals, romantic lyrics and the perfect balance between instruments — a rare quality these days.
Lead singer and guitarist, Kyle Bernstein,
even spruces up select songs with amazing
harmonica solos.
Their mellow yet upbeat tunes have a tendency to stamp themselves in your mind,
constantly replaying the catchy indie lyrics. I
often find myself randomly lip-synching “two
steps to the left to avoid the sunshine…” a
chorus verse from one of their popular songs,
“Fly by Kite.”
The band consists of Kyle as vocals, guitar and piano, Nick on bass, Gary on guitar,
Andrew on drums and Davis on keys, vocals
and guitar. They’ve been a close band family
and making crowds go wild for a little over
three years now.
“I think all of us can agree that it (music)
is our escape from reality. I’m pretty sure we
started playing when people told us to. And
since we all played different instruments, it
kind of just worked out for all of us,” said
lead singer Kyle.
I recently had the chance to see them
perform at Fairfield’s The Base; a ministry through Parkway Community Church
dedicated to transforming the church once
a month into a safe concert environment for
rising indie artists.
Although there were a few technical sound
problems consisting of a faulty microphone,
they didn’t let the matter put their performing
spirits down and kept on rocking despite the
absence of lyrics.
Their optimistic vibe set the place on
fire and unleashed bursts of “concert fever”
among the audience.
Their album, “All Together Now,” is recorded in a live setting and shows off their
excellent skills with acoustics and proves that
the vocals are completely legitimate by the
very little digital audio editing.
The songs from their album, “These are for
You,” revolve around impressive guitar intros and incomparable keyboarding that can
persuade almost anyone to give into a little
“head bobbing.”
Not touring with any other bands at the
moment, they are working on and recording new songs for their latest album, which
they plan to be releasing before the spring of
2009.
peared multiple times on the Vans Warped
Tour, and is featured on the 2008 compilation
with their single “Subscription.” Alesana will
be performing on Oct. 21, at San Francisco’s
Regency Center.
“Where Myth Fades to Legend” is in stores
now. This album is created of 13 songs that
will
have
you
listen
to the entire
CD, start to
finish…and
then put it
on
repeat.
I’d give it 4
½ stars out
of 5.
Pampered, perky, puppies. Those are the
three P’s of the new movie “Beverly Hills
Chihuahua,” a fantastic spin on the life of a
Beverly Hills diva gone wild.
The movie starts in Beverly Hills where
a woman named Viv (played by Jamie Lee
Curtis) lives in a mansion, and owns a little
tea-cup chihuahua whom she has named
Chloe, voiced by Drew Barrymore.
Chloe’s owner spoils her with lavish clothing, jewelry and all the trimmings of an heir
to a thrown. With all of this pampering comes
the diva personality. Soon Chloe’s owner,
Aunt Viv, has to take a trip that Chloe can’t
attend. So Viv has her niece Rachel (voiced
by Piper Perabo) baby sit for her. Chloe does
not like Rachel and causes her much trouble.
After Viv leaves, Rachel decides she would
have much more fun if she were to take a trip
to Mexico with some friends. Of course Rachel takes Chloe along and Chloe becomes
resentful of her and runs off. On her little adventure Chloe gets kidnapped by dog fighters
and attacked by a doberman pincher named
El Diablo (voiced by Edward James Olmos).
Rachel must try to find Chloe before her Aunt
Viv returns. With the help from another Chihuahua named Papi (voiced by George Lopez) and another dog named Delgado (voiced
by Andy Garcia) they find the little pampered
princess. Throughout the movie, little Chloe
learns the true value of life and how everything isn’t about spa trips and nice outfits.
She also falls in love with Papi due to his
help in her rescue.
So all is well that
ends well for the
pampered puppies
of Beverley Hills.
This movie is
an overall funny
and cute comedy.
I give it 5 out of 5
stars.
Alesana creates ‘Myth’
destined to last forever
If you are looking for an album that is entertaining and full of dynamic songs, search
no longer. “Where Myth Fades to Legend” is
an incredible album that has already gotten
great reviews and is sure to please fans.
What was heavy and captivating before,
is now even heavier and more captivating, if
ever thought possible. The songs start with
a melodic tune that just might give you the
chills, and develop into vibrant songs, filled
with love, hate, passion, angst, the whole
nine yards.
This album was produced by Steve Evetts.
For those of you who don’t recognize the
name, Evetts has produced albums for other
awesome bands such as Senses Fail, Every
time I Die, and The Dillinger Escape, just to
name a few.
Most of the songs and lyrics are created
from the band’s favorite stories and fables,
particularly from the Brothers Grimm (with
an exception of “As You Wish,” inspired by
“The Princess Bride.”) “Where Myth Fades
to Legend” sort of illustrates that concept
with its title. Alesana has also been known
to put on a pretty decent show. The band ap-
‘Beverly Hills Chihuahua’
filled with cute comedy
9
Where will they go? Anywhere but here
Today The Stampede begins a serial written by staff writer Mandie Gavitt, which will
chronicle the lives of fictional high school
students Jason and Katie and their quest to
find independence and happiness.
shrugged both my shoulders.
Katie looked me straight in the eye and said,
“Jason don’t lie to yourself and don’t lie to
me.” I felt like she was looking to the core of
who I was, not the Jason I pretended to be.
“Well what do you want to do? Runaway?”
My sheepish response was meant to be sarcastic but Katie’s eyes lit right up.
“That’s exactly it.” She retorted.
By Mandie Gavitt (’09)
Jason: Katie and I, well we didn’t really
know what to do. We were seventeen, miserable, and stuck.
Best friends since we attended the local grade school, we had always depended
on each other to carry us through our trials, whether it was a bully at school or later
a bully at home, we took them on together.
Katie held my hand all the way through my
mother’s funeral and when she needed to be
rescued from her father, it was my window
she clamored through.
We clung to each other the way we always
had; however, we were low on stamina, patience was running thin. We had to do something and fast: our lives depended on it.
The day we came up with our plan of escape is such a vivid memory in my mind. I
can still see Katie sitting there, cross-legged
on my floor with her back straight against my
wall. She had her dirty blonde hair in a ponytail, wearing a pink tank-top and jean shorts.
Summer hadn’t started yet and there was
homework sitting in her lap, though I think
even she had forgotten it was there.
Katie absently played with her nails while
I lay sprawled out on my bed.
She looked at me with her head tilted to the
side and asked, “What should we do?”
We had been talking about our predicament, about all the things that were beyond our maturity level to handle. I lifted
myself off of my bed just enough to prop my
head on my left elbow.
I waited several moments before answering, “Maybe we should just wait it out. Maybe this is all just temporary. This too shall
pass? That sort of thing?”
Katie gave me a look that told me she saw
right through me. “Jason, do you honestly believe that?”
I caught myself staring at the purple bruise
on Katie’s arm. Though a week old, her father’s fingerprints still stood out on her fair
skin like neon on black.
A shiver ran up and down my spine: I
knew that our troubles were far from over. I
T-Pain an innovative songwriter
Rap artist/singer T-Pain came into the rap
industry in the year 2005. He won several
awards including “Songwriter of the Year”
and “Producer of the Year” at the BMI Urban
Awards, and he won a BET Award.
T-Pain gets his audience’s attention with
his innovative lyrics and his way with words.
He has recently come out with a new album
called “THR33 RINGZ,” which he got the
idea for from his fans and producers. They
tell him that he is running the game, and he
is the leader. T-Pain compares the rap industry to a circus. In his interview with the web
EJams, he had mentioned that there are a lot
of different acts and animals in the industry,
just like there is in a circus. He has new hit
single on Bet Top 10 LIVE entitled, “Can’t
Believe It.” It features Lil Wayne. In the song
“Can’t Believe It,” he sings about how many
things he can get for a woman
“I can put you in a log cabin somewhere in
Aspen,” is one of the quotes from the song. It
states how there is absolutely nothing wrong
with buying a girl material things. The song
is popular with RHS students.
“This song is just in right now, I love it,”
says freshman JV cheerleader Armanise Carr.
Most people just like this song because TPain and his lyrics are so intriguing and so
fun to listen to.
Katie: I had an epiphany the moment Jason
made his joke: runaway. It just made sense. It
took me an eternity to convince him to do it.
My first attempt was pleading with him,
begging for him to runaway with me. I
couldn’t do it on my own, I couldn’t even
drive. He resisted my begging so I attempted
to bully him into going.
He was able to resist this as well because
I think he knew I didn’t mean it. Finally, I
resorted to not speaking to him at all.
I went three weeks without talking to him
when he tried to get my attention
I walked past him as if he was nothing
more than air. He still didn’t budge.
However, when he did we both knew we
couldn’t go back.
We launched right into the plan we worked
our summers away at our part time jobs. Saving all our money we hid it all in a coffee can
at Jason’s house.
Filling it to the lid with wadded up bills
and every penny we found on the street or
in couch cushions, we kept track of every
dollar, every dime. We understood that if we
were to make our plan work we’d need the
funds. Money was a necessary evil.
Though I had never condoned stealing I
knew that our jobs wouldn’t provide all we
needed thus, we dipped into our parent’s
wallets and pulled out bills we didn’t think
they’d notice.
I managed to get $5’s and $10’s from my
dad’s wallet and $20’s from my mom’s. Jason managed to get $50’s and $100’s from
his father’s.
Rich people, we learned, didn’t tend to pay
too much attention to money.
We saved everything we could find until we
couldn’t fit anything else in the coffee can;
then we crammed the bills down harder and
stuffed more in.
The end of summer was coming and while
our friends were busy buying new jeans and
pencils Jason and I were getting ready to
make our exit.
We were able to save a few thousand dollars.
September was right around the corner, the
start of school and all that came with it. However, we weren’t going back to school. We
were ready to leave.
(continues next month…)
Fall sports rally
The cheeleaders perform during the fall-sports rally.
Photo/TaMika Scott
Rodriguez High School
Editorial
October 2008
Page 10
Timing is perfect for Barack Obama
The time has nearly come for the next
presidential election. Those who are old
enough are left with one question: Should
it be Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois or Sen.
John McCain of Arizona?
The Stampede opinion staff recommends
Democrat Obama.
As his slogan goes, “it is time for a
change”And it starts in our view of the world.
Let’s look at the benefits.
Better healthcare and an economic upturn
are what await us if we trust a Democratic
ticket.
Obama’s universal healthcare plan has
promise and the economy was at its best
when Democratic President Bill Clinton was
in office.
This is an election of gargantuan historical merit in which an African-American man
is running against the oldest man ever to run
for president and the GOP’s vice presidential
candidate is a woman. But age, race, and gender shouldn’t be the deciding factors.
The country needs help and the future president should be somebody who will get us out
of our turmoil.
Houses are being foreclosed more often
and the people are waiting to be rescued. The
alarm is rising; let this not be another Katrina.
We can’t stress enough the power of voting. The founding fathers instituted a way for
voices to be heard through a congressional
outlet. If we do not utilize our voice then it
shall be lost.
If we are given the chance to rear the country in one direction, we should do it.
McCain supporters speak about age and
experience, yet in a way the revolutionaries
of various decades have been the least experienced and sometimes the youngest.
Should this play a factor in your decision,
let it be known that the revolutionary is determined and willed. If a candidate can galvanize a group to vote, he or she can galvanize
the country as well.
Obama has successfully urged African
Americans and other minorities to vote.
Before, minorities were consistently the
lowest percentage of voters in the whole nation. And as McCain uses his Republican
ideals to persuade evangelical voters and
conservatives, he doesn’t do enough to capture the energy a failing democracy needs to
resurface on top.
Nov. 4 will be a famous day no matter the
person who wins. It is up to voters to ensure
our country’s resurgence.
It is not for the benefit of one that you vote
the right man into office, but for the benefit
of all.
To determine which candidate is the most
viable, consider the following:
1. Ensure that your interests are being met.
2. Consider the country’s needs above your
own.
3. And lastly, vote for Barack Obama and
Joe Bidden.
T. Logan Christensen
To dance or not to dance?
By Ashley Rogers (’10)
Dress the way you want? NO WAY! Talk
how you please? AS IF! Good music? YEAH,
RIGHT! So far, the Rodriguez dances are far
from the best time I could have on a Friday
night. Sure, going is a good idea because
some day you may want to tell your kids
that you went. Also, hanging out with your
friends can be fun.
Other than that, the dances are pretty dull.
They are only tolerable because we can actually listen to music and be with our friends.
Nevertheless, dances aren’t as enjoyable as
they could be due to all the rules, especially
the latest one. .
So here it is: Now we can only dance faceto-face. Are the adults trying to help us or are
they just making their jobs harder because
now they have to enforce this new rule? This
rigid attitude about what kinds of dancing
are acceptable is making dances much worse
than they already were. Besides, it’s not going to stop people from dancing front to back.
A face-to-face dance can be considered many
things. It can go from a very dirty grinding to
a nice waltz.
What do adults think they are stopping by
requiring face-to-face dancing? Students will
be as dirty as they want to be whether it’s
face-to-face or front-to-back. I won’t go into
detail of what face-to-face can become. Believe me, it will be much worse. So now that I
have revealed this, are they going to make us
dance the waltz, just so that we can do what?
What is this new rule trying to prove or prevent? Things that they think will happen due
to students dancing front to back (which is
unknown to me) is not going to be stopped by
one petty dance rule.
Students will dance the way they wish to
dance — whether it is at a school dance or in
the privacy of their own home. A new dance
rule is not going to stop it. If adults wish to
not see us dance in this way, then maybe they
shouldn’t play the kind of music that calls for
this dancing. You can’t dance face-to-face
and not have it be dirty with hip hop being
the music choice. If it looks as if we’re dancing like we’re pretending to have sex, faceto-face is going to be 10 times worse.
Are all the administrators trying to say
that the way we dance is inappropriate and
wrong? Some believe that it’s because our
style of dancing is uncomfortable to watch
or misleading in our body language. That’s a
bit hypocritical. I’m sure today’s adults were
criticized for the way they danced when they
were kids (“Dirty Dancing” anyone)? There
were many dances that weren’t tolerated in
the past, but look at them now. The swing
and jive weren’t accepted at first because
they were considered “dirty” but were later
accepted and some people still dance like
that. Once Elvis’ hips were not allowed to be
shown on television because of the way he
shook and moved. Why are they trying to be
so hypocritical? Why can’t they just accept it
the way it is? It’s because they want to control every aspect of our school lives. Rules
like this one are too controlling. Dances will
lose money by an attendance decrease if
adults don’t start to loosen up the rules.
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
Should the drinking age be lowered to 18?
Teens not mature enough
to handle alcohol effects
CON
By Ma. Criselda David (’09)
One evening, I got stuck in slow traffic on Lopes Road. As I snaked along, I
saw several police cars patrolling.
Then I saw the ambulance and the fire
trucks. I parked the car and walked over
to the scene.
I learned that a 19-year-old college
student had lost control of his car, and
swerved to the right shoulder of the
road.
I overheard officers say that the driver had a blood alcohol content of 0.12,
which is way over the legal limit.
Of course, this guy was too young to
be drinking legally anyway.
Then it hit me: Drinking cuts your
life in half. How can anyone believe that
allowing 18 year olds to drink would be
a good thing? Why would anyone think
that allowing 18 year olds to drink would
reduce those who binge drink? If anything, it would increase the dangerous
practice.
Once we turn 18, we are considered
adults who are allowed to make our own
decisions. But we are still new to being
an adult.
If the state allows the lowering of the
drinking age, many teens would become
alcohol dependent — alcoholics.
Each and every single one of us has
probably tasted alcohol, but not all of us
know the disadvantages it can give us.
Lowering the drinking age would increase these disadvantages even more.
It would not make the society better, if
anything it would make it worse.
Many unnecessary deaths are due to
drinking and driving. This has become
a huge issue among teens and young
adults.
According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 4,554 teens
died in 2004-05 due to excessive alco-
hol use.
Driving and drinking isn’t the only
hazardous combination. Drinking and
sex is also harmful.
Alcohol can lead to having sex without
precautions, which may lead to unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted
diseases.
Alcohol consumption can cause negligence. Too many teens would disregard
their futures. They would stop studying
or working to indulge in drinking and
partying.
This type of behavior could lead to an
addiction to alcohol that not only could
ruin a teen’s life, but also make life miserable for those around them.
18 year olds are adults;
they can be responsible
PRO
By Megan Bonilla (’10)
The thought of lowering the drinking
age horrifies most adults. They think it
would be absurd to even consider it because they view teens as irresponsible. I
beg to differ. The drinking age should be
lowered to 18 and the reasons why are
indisputable.
Firstly when teens turn 18, they are no
longer children. Rather, they are adults
capable of making decisions for themselves.
Turning 18 also means earning the responsibility to vote. While it is a choice
and a privilege, it is also the duty which
befalls us as an American citizen.
How can people be entrusted with deciding the next president, a decision with
long-lasting repercussions, and not be allowed to make the decision to drink?
After high school, some students will
choose to go on and enlist in the armed
forces. This is yet another privilege and
responsibility to our country.
At the magic number of 18, we can
vote, we join the armed forces and potentially lose our life, yet we can’t drink.
What sort of mockery is that, I ask?
Lowering the drinking age has many
potential benefits which people simply
refuse to consider.
For instance, there is the issue of college binge drinking. If the drinking age
were lowered, these parties would cut
down considerably.
The reason being that: It’s simply not
as cool to sneak around and drink if it’s
actually legal. Also kids in high school
would be less tempted to indulge because
with the drinking age close at hand there
is less incentive for them to partake early
11
on and potentially endanger themselves.
In addition, in other parts of the world,
such as Europe, the drinking age is as
low as 15. If the United States wants to
compare to other countries in other aspects such as education, wealth, and the
like, why wouldn’t we lower the drinking age as well?
People against lowering the drinking
age may read this and bring up the point
of teenage accidents involving D.U.I.
Although this is a valid point, they do
not consider that teens are not the only
ones who get into these types of accidents.
Adults are just as much at fault. However they only choose to focus on the
teenage end and create a mass propaganda of how dangerous teenagers can
be.
They create this hysteria in order to
point the finger away from themselves.
D.U.I. accidents happen regardless of
age so it is illogical to throw this point
into the argument.
While not lowering the drinking age
has its good points, the consequences
of doing this far outweigh the logic and
reason in lowering it. I say give us our
freedom, give us our dues and lower the
drinking age.
‘At the magic
number of 18,
we can vote, we
join the armed
forces and potentially lose
our life, yet we
can’t drink.’
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
12
Are teen-agers too old for trick or treating?
Leave dressing up to
the little kids
treating and collect delicious candy. At night
you can show off or scare other trick-or-treaters with your costume.
But that’s if you go to the good houses. Otherwise you might end up with a
tube of toothpaste or a pencil as your treat.
By Natalie Padilla (’09)
When we were younger, we were told that
Halloween is a scary time of year. Every year
during the month of October parents, would
fill our minds with thoughts of witches and
spooky ghosts.
Then they would dress us up as something
they thought was cute. Then of course there
is every child’s favorite part of Halloween:
the candy! The sweet and flavor able candy that constantly drove our parents up the
wall with the amounts of sugar it contained.
CON
I was once one of these children. Oh, how I
loved to decorate the house and deck it all out
with pumpkins. It was fun while it lasted. I’m
much older now, and I have learned to leave
my childhood behind.
PRO
I’m a senior in high school, and after June
I will be walking into the doors of “the real
world.” Halloween is silly and foolish. It basically consists of a bunch of elementary kids
who dress up in their little costumes to collect
their candy.
There simply just isn’t a point. We don’t
see a bunch of adults running around with
costumes and candy going door to door asking for candy. Do we?
Let’s face it. It’s time to grow up.
Halloween is good
clean fun; go for it
By Karina Cabrera (’09)
Halloween is the one time of year when
you can be whatever you want. You can be
a doctor, a banana, or even your favorite superhero.
By dressing up, you can then go trick-or-
But are you too old to still dress up? No,
you are never too old to dress up.
Yes, you are in high school preparing to
enter the world of an adult, but that does not
mean you can’t have fun, which is what Halloween is about. It’s fun to put together your
scary, cute, or hilarious costume.
You can even dress up with friends and become the ninja turtles or some other popular
cartoon characters.
So don’t be afraid to dress up because it’s
fun and will continue to be fun even when
you’re old and wrinkly you can still dress up
as a banana.
Peace Jam conference energizes RHS students
Editor’s note: An RHS sophomore attended
the International Peace Jam conference in
Los Angeles last month.
By Quoc Ma (’11)
Fourteen students from Solano County
high schools traveled together to Los Angeles
to participate in the International Peace Jam
Conference on Sept. 11, 12 and 13. There,
they met with six Nobel Peace Prize winners and over 3,000 students from around
the world. The six laureates were Rigoberta
Menchu Tum, Betty Williams, Aldolfo Perez
Esquivel, Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, and
Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
During three days at Loyola Marymount
University, Nobel Laureates gave individual speeches to teen-agers and shared hugs.
Nobody has the same styles, but they have
the goal of inspiring peace. With each face
and separate story about the lessons of life,
each Laureate puts the hopes of changing the
world into the hearts of teenagers.
“Sometimes I wonder how God must feel
about his creation of human beings when he
sees Burma, Tibet, Gaza and Darfur,” said
Desmond Tutu, Nobel Peace winner of 1984
for his work in the defeat of apartheid in
South Africa. But then he sees young people like these Peace Jammers, and he says,
Nobel Laureate meets with RHS student, Quoc Ma
“That’s why I created them.”
I was the only representative from Rodriguez High who went to the conference. I was
very happy to be a part of Peace Jam. The
trip gave more than what I expected. I met
with students from Canada, Costa Rica, Tibet, Burma, and England. And even though
we don’t know each other, but we know that
we came together because all of us want to
change this world to a better place, and we
know we can.
Courtesy photo
Peace Jam is a program that helps teenagers to learn peace and make peace. It is
also designed to connect young people from
around the world with each other and the
Nobel Laureates by Peace Jam Conference
where they practiced exercises in maintaining peace and understanding when faced with
human differences.
Everyday whenever you open a newspaper, everything on it is just about death and
war. Some people died because of this, the
others died because of that. I don’t really understand why people want to kill each other,
but I think it’s time for people to stop hating
other people.
Being a part with Peace Jam will give you a
chance to do service projects as part of Peace
Jam’s Global call to Action campaign. The
goal of this project is to complete one billion acts of peace by 2018. The Global Call
to Action also helps students understand the
problems about human rights and do something to support human rights.
“ If you are interested in Peace Jam and the
global call to action campaign, I welcome
you to come to the Peace Jam meetings.
They will be held every Friday at lunch in
room C-209,” said Mr. John Salerno-White,
Rodriguez Peace Jam club adviser.
The Peace Jam clubs at Solano County high
schools and Solano Community College are
part of Peace Jam Solano/Youth Peace Initiative which is a chapter of Peace Jam foundation in Denver, Colorado, founded by the Dali
Lama and 11 other Nobel Peace Laureates.
For more information see the Peace Jam
Solano website: www.PeaceJamSolano.org
or the Peace Jam foundation website:
www.PeaceJam.org.
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
Think: Are we living the dream?
By Mandie Gavitt (’09)
Several weeks ago many of us signed a
banner vowing that we, as individuals and
as a school, would work together to help our
community live out Matt Garcia’s dream.
We promised we would ban together as a
community to stop violence, and remember
our fallen friend and hero.
But, one must ask: What are we doing
now?
Matt saw each person as an individual with
potential and a story. While we can often
hear adults complaining about the youth in
our city Matt saw us as more than a generation going downhill: He saw us as dreams
worth fighting for. Matt believed in the youth
of Fairfield and our ability to succeed. He
fought for us to have things that would better
our education and better our lives. He fought
for us to have hope.
Sadly, it seems that our way of repaying
him is simply to sign our names on a banner
then forget about the whole thing.
This saddens me. While signing our names
and promising to combat violence is a good
thing it means very little unless there is some
sort of action behind it. We have the option
to either forget about Matt or do something
to honor and repay him for all he has done
for us. I hope that we have the courage to do
the latter.
Honoring Matt may come easier than you
think. Maybe you are holding back because
you don’t think that you can achieve this.
However, the smallest effort counts. All of us
can work at being better people, and make an
effort to be friendlier to the other students on
campus.
We can all pick up a little extra trash we
didn’t drop or put a little extra effort into our
studies. These little things may seem insignificant, but if we all work together as a student body it will have a large difference on
our school community.
Furthermore, all of us should make an effort
on attending the opening of the youth center
Matt fought for us to have. And we should
all take advantage of this center as much as
possible. Make the choice not to indulge in
drugs, as that is the very thing that took Matt
away from us. Or if drugs are already part of
your reality, get the help to quit. I don’t think
that there is any better way that you could
honor him.
A few final suggestions are simply to smile
more; if you’re one of the lucky few with
money to spare donate to a charity, or even
donate your time to a charity and take your
work there seriously.
The point is we all have something to give,
whether it’s time, money, or a smile. Matt
gave us everything he had and we owe him
much more than a signature on a banner or
some memory in the back of our mind.
If we all pitch in to do our part and make
sure that Matt’s dream and memory are not
forgotten we can make a difference.
The point is that you’re making a conscious
effort to everyday remember our fallen and
ensure that our loss is not in vain. It is our job
now to carry out Matt’s dream. He dreamed
of our success. Let’s be the school that lived
the dream—their dreams.
Seniors, it is our time now. After this June
we are taking the next major steps to complete our dreams as we finally become Fairfield’s next adults.
What are we leaving behind us here at
RHS? Will we be remembered as the class
that as freshmen had the first fight at orientation or the class that lived the dream? I hope
that all of us, have matured past that first day
and are now becoming something that Matt
Garcia would be proud of.
Page 13
Matt Garcia
‘Everyday we learn
something new. Take life
as a test and shoot for a
better score each day.
It doesn’t have to be an
“A” the next day, but let’s
hope it improves.’
-Matt Garcia
Finally, remember how much Matt believed
in us. To quote his own words from his first
and final Myspace blog: “I just see the potential in our generation to make things happen.
Some other people in past generations, and
sometimes in my case our generation don't
feel that way but let's prove them wrong.
That is what drives me proving people wrong
when they think, “I CAN'T but then, I keep
making things happen...
“ Everyday we learn something new. Take
life as a test and shoot for a better score each
day. It doesn't have to be an "A" the next day,
but let's hope it improves.”
Matt believed that we could make anything happen. Let’s do just that; let’s make
this happen.
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
Page 14
Rachael Tiss brings water polo team to victory
By Krysta McCullough (’10)
The Rodriguez water polo teams are
making an excellent effort this season, but
one player deserves to be highlighted: freshman Rachael Tiss who is on the varsity girls
team.
“It’s exciting (to be the only freshman on
varsity). I have to work harder to show the
other girls why I earned a spot on varsity,”
said Rachael.
Rachael first began playing water polo
when her mother encouraged her to branch
out from swim team and to try something
new.
Since then she has been on fire.
During the game against Benicia on Oct.
7, she scored three of the eight shots against
Benicia that won the game.
“I want to come out of this season knowing
that I tried my hardest and I did my best.”
She has been playing water polo for four
Girls’ golf team
stands strong
By Megan Bonilla (’10)
Nothing will stop the girls golf team this
year. Like a golf ball, flung with a perfect
put, they are unstoppable. The girls began
the season strong, going undefeated in league
matches. The team has 12 players, none of
them seniors.
“They’re doing a great job,” said Coach
Jennifer Hampton. “They’re all hard workers, all committed.”
An unusually large number of girls tried
out for the team, she said.
“It was good that we had so many talented
people trying out this year because it created a
lot more competition.” So many people tried
out that, for the first time, cuts were made.
Coach Hampton said that much of the talent
can been seen in the underclassmen players.
This focus on underclassmen shows a promising long-term future for the team.
Freshman Taylor Quilling even won athlete
of the month honor for October. She achieved
this on top of being the top player for the girls’
golf team. With much of the teams’ strength
resting with the sophomores and freshmen on
the team, Ms. Hampton said, “they’ll have a
good strong team for the years to come.”
Rachael Tiss
Photo/Natalie Paniccia
years now for the Fairfield Falcons, the city’s
recreational team.
“Water polo is my love!”
Rachael likes water polo so much she
plans to continue playing in high school and
Photo/Natalie Paniccia
Water polo team practices for the big game against Benicia.
would like to play for Stanford, UC-Davis, or
UC-Berkeley after high school.
“I like the teamwork, the intensity, and
how much fun it is. It’s the hardest sport out
there.”
Other than water polo, Rachael enjoys going to concerts, listening to new bands, writing haikus, and hanging out with her friends.
although his last
name, also has larger meaning.
When asked, he simply replied,
“Hard work pays
off,” Junior, Andre
Loafea-Carter,
who is an outside
Photo/Vicky Laren
linebacker, says Myles King
that he feels comfortable that King will lead
the team to win. Andre called Myles an allaround good player who tries his best in every play. “The difference from last season’s
quarterback Michael Johnson and this season’s quarterback Myles King is that King
is consistent at throwing and he controls the
game tempo more,” says Andre. Last season
he started as receiver and quarterback.
“It’s not much different from last season,”
Myles says, but this year he has to be more
of a vocal leader and more people look up to
him. King’s goal’s for this season is to win
the section championship and to be an allleague quarterback. Which means King takes
a more commanding position.
“As being the new quarterback, I have to be
the field general. I try my best to make sure
every things right and I put my team in the
best position to win the game.”
Not only is Myles focused on performing
on the field but he’s also focused on going to
Arizona State to play football and eventually
for the San Francisco 49ers in the NLF.
last year’s winning streak was broken. The
Lady Mustangs are back at No. 1 again after
having beaten everyone in the league once.
Now they’ve begun to go for the second
round. They will ultimately play the other
schools’ tennis teams a total of three times
each before the season is over in November.
The girls’ tennis team has been performing
exceptionally considering they have under-
gone a slight change in lineup. When captain
Mollie Williamson pulled a back muscle,
sophomore Nicole Levin stepped in to play
at No. 1 doubles with Katrina Lapira. This
change in the lineup proved no setback for
the team as they have continued to win game
after game. If things continue how they’ve
been going thus far, the Lady Mustangs will
claim the title once again.
Mustang’s new 2008 quarterback
By TaMika Scott (’09) and
Jasmine Lucas (’10)
Myles King rules on and off the field with
his hard work. The RHS junior has showed
true leadership as the Mustang’s new 2008
season quarterback. King has had years of
experience backing this new position.
He has been playing football for eight
years and playing varsity since he was a
sophomore. His superior ability and untamable work ethic have made him a desired addition to the team, especially in the eyes of
the coaches. However, Myles knows the standards he faces, “It is a big responsibility to
take the place of last season’s quarterback, an
RHS legend, Michael Johnson” who “has big
shoes [left] to fill.” And the nickname “king,”
Girls’ tennis strive to claim title once again
By Megan Bonilla (’10)
The Lady Mustangs tennis team continues
to dominate the courts this season. They have
gone undefeated, winning 9-0 the first four
games of the season. They have even taken
on Vanden in a grueling match at Rancho Solano, which resulted in an 8-1 victory for the
Lady Mustangs. The win was a big relief to
the team that was anxious for a rematch after
Boys soccer keeps winning;
plays to continue the trend
By Josephine Zuniga (’09)
Photo/ Vicky Laren
Girls volleyball is off to a good start
Volleyball serving up success
Josephine Zuniga (09’
The RHS varsity volleyball team is serving
up a season full of victory and success. The
team has been doing better than great this
season with a 4-1 record with its only loss
being to biggest rival Benicia.
“We’re a well-rounded team, and we hope
for a great season,” says captain Samantha
Dean. The drive and focus to succeed was
demonstrated on Oct. 1, when the girls team
faced the only opponent that beat them last
year, Benicia. During the first set, RHS barely pulled through after tying 25-25 with a final score of 28-26. The lady Mustangs kept
the momentum high during the second set
and won with a score of 25-15, comfortably
carrying through to the third game. It was obvious that RHS was not going to let Benicia
beat them at their own game, and took the
whole thing home with an outstanding score
of 25-17 in the last game.
Mariah Christensen helped out with 21 assists, Devin Damelio pulled through with 10
kills and 9 blocks, and KC Scolavino took
home 6 digs and made 10 out of 11 of her
serves. “Best game we’ve ever played,” says
Christensen after fighting net and volleyball
in the mind-numbing game against Benicia.
Damelio, who has been playing on varsity
since her freshman year said that everyone
played well, giving the support and the aggressive strength needed to win the game.
“We get along better this year,” claims Scolavino. It’s obvious on the court that the
chemistry is there, and hopefully it can help
bring home more wins.
“First place and we’re taking sections. We’re
going all the way,” says Davonte Jack, who
plays defense for the RHS boys soccer team.
They’re on a different type of roll this year
with hopes of taking home the title.
The boys have been hot this season,
and they are letting everyone know that this
will not be a repeat of last year.
“If we keep playing like we are, and even
improve, I’m pretty sure we’re going to take
the SCAC title,” senior Estevan Perez says.
Coach Dale Daniel has been cracking down and working his magic for the team,
and his coaching abilities are helping bring
home wins. “He makes good decisions during game time,” says forward and top scorer
Gino Gonzales.
For as long as there has been a boys soccer
team at RHS, Coach Dale has been coaching
it. The team is used to hearing his famous
line, “If they can’t score, they can’t win.” It’s
what drives the team, and makes them work
harder, players said.
A change this year was the additional faces that decided to come out and play for
RHS. Aside from school ball, the majority of
the team also play together for the Los Amigos, a city team for Fairfield. Playing outside
of school helps them out on the field and has
brought them closer as a team, they said.
The boys can almost grasp the
SCAC title, and will stop at nothing until
they achieve their goal.
Cross-country
gets new coaches
By Natalie Padilla (’09)
This year’s cross-country team had a rocky
beginning.
Adjusting to a new coach and not knowing how things were going to be this year,
the cross country team struggled to stay organized. “Mrs. M (history teacher Sarah
McLaughlin) and I were just asked to coach
the cross-country team under short notice”
said physical education teacher Derrick
Texthal in September.
They have been practicing from 3:20-4:30
p.m. after school. They also started practicing
on Saturdays.
They had their first invitational meet on
Sept. 5 in Danville. Senior Kieren Broussard
won a medal for placing in the top 15.
Let’s hope their work, pays off, on Oct.
22nd when they meet at Rush Ranch, to
hopefully repeat the success in the past, and
SCAC league title again.
Cheerleading: fun, games, and a ton of hard work
By TaMika Scott (’09)
“Five, six, seven, eight. Go Mustangs.” The cheerleaders are bringing school spirit to the stadium and entertaining
the fans with dignity and excitement. While some might
not think cheerleading as a sport, tell that to these girls who
can run, jump, and lift as well as athlete. School spirit is always a must-have in every academic sport, so leave it to the
cheerleaders to captivate the folks in the stands. Their job is
to support the athletic teams by getting the crowds revved
up. The girls do this through gymnastics, dances, and clever
ditties. RHS cheerleaders went to cheer camp determined to
place and keep Rodriguez high on the map. The cheerleaders
placed well; however, the team learned more than just new
cheerleading techniques. “Cheer camp was fun. I enjoyed being with the girls. they are so funny,” said senior Simone Rob-
inson. Camp helped the cheerleaders become more connected
and unified, she said. The experience was “free spirited and we
grew together as sisters,” said captain and senior Dejany Scott.
Practices can be very intense, the girls say. The dancing, choreography, flyers, back spotters and base positions require a
lot of strength. Dejanay Scott and co-captain Bailey Walker
are responsible for teaching the cheer routines. What are this
year’s expectations? “To be the best cheer squad and make Rodriguez High school proud,” said co-captain and senior Bailey
Walker. Cheer isn’t all fun and laughs; it is a team sport and
requires cooperation, and an extremely good sense of rhythm.
Coach Yvette Nanney, who has been coaching cheerleaders for
four years, would like to get more students involved in cheer,
noting that “cheerleaders are real good dancers, ” she said.
“Cheerleaders are going to hit it hard,” Coach Nanney said. Cheerleaders
Photo/Zach Myers
perform a routine during a game
Rodriguez High School
October 2008
16
Volleyball phenomenon takes strides to victory
By Jerron Herman (’09)
The 6-foot-tall blonde bombshell is a
real knockout-on the court. Every volleyball
match RHS can expect a bam and a boom
from senior superstar Devon Damelio, and
she doesn’t disappoint.
“I’m the prettiest girl in the world, jk,”
Devon jokes.
Devon began playing volleyball in the seventh grade because of her height.
“Everything a tall person should do, (my
family) suggested it.”
She tried basketball for a while, but didn’t
like it. Afterwards volleyball came into play
— literally. Though her seventh- and eighthgrade years were slow in action, Devon said
they were good practice for the rigors of high
school sports.
“High school volleyball is way more intense.”
But, like her idols, Olympic champion volleyball players Misty Mae-Trainer and Keri
Walsh, Devon too has a partner in crime on
the court. Senior Mariah Christensen is the
center to Devon’s hitter. When Mariah sets
her up, Devon goes in for the kill. The dy-
Dynamic Duo Devon Damelio and Mariah Christiansen
Photo/Jerron Herman
namic duo work well together, Devon says,
because they have chemistry on the court.
There’s great anticipation, this being
Damelio’s last year to stay strong in rankings.
The varsity team lost to Benicia for the first
time in two years. Benicia is the Mustang’s
biggest rival. If RHS and Benicia continue to
win, they will play each other again in the
finals. Devon says that’s that competition is
where a lot of her inspiration comes.
Surrounded by supportive parents and
friends, Devon continues to kill. She hopes
that some of the colleges scouting about will
take her on through a — what else — volley-
formed, uniting these musicians to one another. “We are the Entertainment Unit or the
‘Entertainment Family,’” said assistant drum
major Christian Ang. “We get really close,”
said junior Nikki Esver, who is in color
guard.
“We all support each other in everything,
not just music,” drum major Rachel said.
This support system resembles a homeaway-from-home for the EU members. “It’s
like a second family to me,” says freshman
Patrick Williamson. His sister, junior Dana
Williamson agrees. “We all love each other.
We definitely have that brother-sister thing
going on. We get sick of each other but we
always make up in the end.”
Each section of the Entertainment Unit is
like a family within a family. For senior Zach
Santos, the drum line is just that. He and the
rest of the members of the band work hard
and for many hours to perform at football
games and for esteemed awards in competitions. Being such a prestigious group, it’s
easy to forget these performers are your average, every day teens.
“We’re just a group of people who love
music, who want to entertain,” says Rachel.
When the uniforms come off, members of the
EU are hit with the stresses that come with
being a teenager in high school, especially
concerning schoolwork. “Whenever I’m not
practicing, I’m working,” says Zach. On top
of the EU and sports, Zach has to worry about
completing all of his homework, particularly
he’ll bring about the change to America.
“Obama is more prepared with a better
healthcare plan and he has a better vice president,” said senior Soloman Brigham.
McCain’s supporters said that McCain
has far more experience than Obama. They
also said that Obama was likely to raise
taxes. Some said they supported McCain
because they liked his vice presidential
candidate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. “McCain offers solutions to problems rather than
just stating the problem and saying we need
to change it,” senior Eric Tarsikes said. Will
the nation follow the lead of RHS students?
We’ll find out Nov. 4 when the general election is held.
from his AP classes.
Patrick also faces challenges with schoolwork. “Whatever extra time I have, I do my
homework, eat, and sleep,” he says. Patrick
plays freshman football and junior varsity
baseball, making his schedule hectic. Every
member is busy with the unit, giving up their
free time even before school started. Members of the EU took time out of their summer
to meet at Rodriguez for two weeks for music
camp from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day.
Now that school has started, they continue
to devote countless hours to the unit. Color
guard and drum line meet every Monday and
Wednesday after school, and the entire unit
comes together for a four-hour practice on
Thursdays. Fridays are chaotic; the band has
to stay after school right up until the performance at half-time during the football game.
Also on their agenda, the EU has eight Saturday competitions this season. During these
Saturdays, everyone has to leave the school
at 6 a.m. and they are lucky to get home by
midnight. Why do they devote so much time
to music?
“Because I love it… It pays off,” said Dana.
“Once you get into a routine, it’s easier to
ball scholarship. She’s visited Portland State
University and UC Irvine already. Devon
hopes to attend a school on the West Coast
so she can “stay near home.” Whatever is in
store for Devon, it’s clear she’s doing something right, right now.
Age: 17
Sport: Volleyball
Awards: MVP-’07 and ’06; Scholar-athlete
award for three years; two-time SCAC
league champ; went to Junior Olympics
with team
Favorite Artist: Paramore and Alesana
Favorite Movie: “Requiem for a Dream”
Favorite Teacher: Ms. Sarah McLaughlin
Favorite Food: Italian
Favorite TV show: “Nip/Tuck”
Hobbies: Getting creative with her mom.
Devon and her mom furnished a room
for decorating and creating handbags and
other artistic ventures.
Music: Anything and Everything
Favorite “Teams”: Misty Mae-Trainer and
Keri Walsh; the Oakland Raiders
Role Model: Angelina Jolie-because of her
free spirit and independence, Devon says.
Rodriguez High entertainment unit continued...
Election continued...
Junior
Chris
Porter
plays his
flute while
marching
Courtesy
photo
cope with school and everything,” she said.
Most of the EU members have found ways to
balance their time between band and schoolwork. For instance, Dana makes a schedule
of schoolwork for herself.
When they are performing, members of
the EU forget all the stresses of school and
life. They are a single entity, creating music
and visual accompaniment for the entertainment of others and for the enjoyment it
brings. United, students from many diverse
backgrounds and with various personalities come together despite their differences
with dedication and hard work to perform
the best that they can. “When we all come
together, everything clicks,” Zach says.