Issue of October 11, 2002:
Volume 86, Number Two
Click on a story title to see the story text
News
Homecoming stirs spirit of Colton
"Ax of Murder" coming
STAR test results are in, or are they out?
To sell the cell, or not to sell the cell
New teachers join Yellowjacket family
Freshmen, freshmen, everywhere!
Opinions
Both sides now: TNT is working
Both sides now: TNT is NOT working
Is college all that, and a bag of chips?
Combined lunches: NOT!
Homecoming IS worth it, so GO
As I see it (Column)
One nation, under God--except in schoolFeatures
Dating 101: The basics on how to enjoy yourselves
Why are my favorite electives being cancelled?
Politics: Should we care?
Why we love SpongeBob so much
Pepper, Take a BowDiversions
CD review: Lifehouse
Horoscopes
Movie Review: Red DragonSports
Athlete's Profile: Jeff Slackza
Fall Sports Briefs
Football
Homecoming
By Leticia Zamora
October 11, 2002
Fall Homecoming 2002 here at Colton High School was any thing but the norm.
The announcement of court on the Hellowalk was a classic kick off to the spirited week. This year's court was quite the unexpected ballot. Princes were: Mike Chavez, Carlos (CJ) Perez, Robby Pope, Matt Vinzon, and Jesse Zamora. The Princess' were as follows: Starletta Cole, Noelle Navarro, Valerie Perez, Samantha Rojas, and Liz Serrano. Voting for Fall Homecoming King and Queen took place on Tuesday. An interesting sidelight to the courts is that Carlos Perez and Valerie Perez are brother and sister twins.
Things were a little different this year. Tuesdays and Thursday's lunch period were spent doing class competitions rather than the ever-popular Powder Puff games. You all remember powder Puff, right? That special time of homecoming week when the jocks prance around in cheerleading uniforms and makeup, while our females trade in their pompoms for the pigskin. Sorry to disappoint you all, but the rumors were obviously true. Many of our teachers, club advisors, and administrators agree that powder puff was "interfering with float building, and getting homework done that week," as ASB advisor Chris Burner so bluntly put it. Powder Puff games have now been moved to Prom's festivities.
The usual carnival was held on Wednesday. There were changes regarding this activity as well. Food is no longer allowed to be prepared on campus during a regular school day. Despite the new policy, students as well as teachers and administrators were still able to purchase a delicious charbroiled Pepper Bough cheeseburger.
My how time flies when you're having fun. Here it is already Friday, October 11. I'm sure we're all impatiently awaiting the first pep assembly of the year. Hope you all are content with your fourth period class. You'll be spending a lot of time in there today. Tonight at 5 o'clock, we will have our annual fall homecoming parade down Rancho Avenue. Al Shwartz, our school's athletic trainer, is this year's Grand Marshall. This evening our Yellow Jackets will go head to head with the Redlands East Valley Wild Cats. At half time Homecoming Queen will be announced. Hopefully by the end of the night our team will surge on to victory and give us all a reason to be filled with Colton pride.
In the past, "Colton dances have always been fun, but nothing really unexpected," said senior Robyn Cano. This time around, the event is being planned by a professional. The "Living in a Dream," themed Fall Homecoming dance will be held at the Ontario Convention Center from 8:00 PM - 12:00 AM. Tickets were regularly priced at $35 with ASB card, and $40 with out. On October 7, the price went up to $40 with ASB card, and $45 with out. Hope all of you dance goers bought yours early!
Yes, indeed, the 2002 Fall Homecoming week was definitely something new in certain aspects, yet was also extraordinarily traditional.
Ax of Murder…coming soon!
by Lisa Namnath
October 10, 2002A haunted theatre or a haunted script? "Ax of Murder," a comedy murder mystery, incorporates a wide range of comical characters. The Fall production's opening night is October 24, to run that weekend and the next, October 31-November 2.
The laughs stem from characters such as the typical bossy director, the hick cleaning woman and even a Police sergeant who states the obvious. Even though the play is a comedy, the setbacks the cast have been facing are less than funny.
There were many obstacles that the cast has had to overcome, including having to preform in the cafeteria that seats only about one-eighth the capacity of the Whitmer Auditorium. The Auditorium could not be used because of the installation of a heating and cooling unit.
Senior Quentin Rogers, who plays Collin Chamber, the writer of the "haunted script" spoke with remorse about the inability to use the play's usual location, "It proved to be troublesome, because we had to find a place to rehearse, it took time because most of our props are locked in the auditorium." Stacey Jay, the director and resident drama teacher expresses her wishes for the spring play, "hopefully by the spring we'll be back in there." One of the last obstacles the cast faced was that the auditorium being the only availible place to preform, was double booked. Both the choir and play were to take place, on the same days, so an agreement was made and Choir's Spagetti dinner/concert will take place in conjuction with the play on October 25 and 26; for $10 you can get a dinner and a show.
Even though the play will be taking place in the cafeteria, the drama department has compensated by giving six showings instead of the usual three or four. With a cast of over 30 people this play, complete with audience participation will have you sitting on the edge of your seat or rolling in the aisles.
Tickets are five dollars.
Star test results released
By Kerry Ortloff
Oct. 11, 2002The Stanford 9 (STAR) test results for Colton High were nothing to celebrate. In the reading section, 23% of ninth graders scored at or above the national average. Compared to last year, this was a 4% increase, the only increase in all the scores. In the math subject area, only 35% were average or above, there was no increase compared to last year.
The juniors performed even worse then the ninth graders. In reading, 24% scored at or above the national average, and this was a 4% decrease from last year. Then in math, only 26% were competent, and this was also a decrease of about 8%.
The Stanford 9 is a standardized test all ninth through eleventh graders are required to take. It is supposed to accurately show how much we are learning, and if we are learning what we are supposed to. The results were given only for ninth and eleventh grade.
As bad as the scores were, when compared to Bloomington High we actually did okay. Only 33% of their ninth graders were average or better when it came to mathematics, and in English only 18% were considered passing. The juniors actually did better then us in Math with 28%, but when it came to English we were on top. Only 22% of Bloomington juniors were considered average.
In comparison to Redlands East Valley, we were put to shame. 70% of their freshmen were average or better when tested in math, and they did well in English, with 48% doing ok in that subject. 59% of juniors knew what they were doing in the math section and 49% knew what they needed to on the English test.
Why did we perform so miserably? One theory is that we really don't care, not that we are complete idiots. "All we do is fill in little bubbles and guess, so we can get back to sleep," said senior Paula Kassouf. Some students have suggested this year we need some sort of motivation to actually make us try. Of course it's always possible we just didn't know what we were doing. "On some of the tests, I had never even seen what they were talking about," says senior Daniel Pedrosa.
Principal Jerry Almendarez thought the test scores, "could have been higher." Almendarez also thinks that our biggest concern is the high school exit exam, and we should focus our energy on passing that.
Sell the Cell
By April Valteni
Oct. 11, 2002
"No school shall permit the position or use of any electronic signaling device that operates through the transmission or
receipt of radio waves including, but not limited to, paging and signaling equipment, by pupils of the school while the pupils are on campus, while attending school-sponsored activities, or while under the supervision and control of school district employees, without the prior consent of the principal or his or her designee. …"
I'm sure all of you are familiar with this California education code 48901.5 making cell phones as well as pagers against state regulation. This was originally a rule designed in the 80s to control and minimize the drug dealing among the youth.
On August 28, 2002 Governor Gray Davis, passed senate bill 1253, starting a new policy for California already existent in states such as Kentucky, Illinois and Maryland. Although this did not reverse the current Education Code, it did put the responsibility of deciding whether a student can bring a cell phone to school up to the individual school district. Which brings us to Colton Joint Unified School District: what will they decide? Mardi Linane, a member of the communication department, told me that she doesn't believe there will be a meeting to discuss a change. They plan on keeping and enforcing the existing policy.
Governor Davis said "by allowing school districts to let its students use cell phones and pagers, families can communicate better and students can feel a greater sense of security while at school." This obviously suggests that he is partial to giving kids this right but why doesn't our school district agree?
All of you remember the morning of April 20, 1999 when a horrifyingly tragic event occurred in Littleton, Colorado. Cindy Cline, a supervisor at the Jefferson County (Colo.) Sheriff's comm center said, "One of our dispatchers was on the phone for over two hours with a group of students and a teacher who had been shot at least two times. We kept them on the phone, talking to them as they were barricaded in a class room." Many attributed some of the success of rescuing students to the cell phone capability between the students and people out side the school. Linane responded both to Governor Davis's quote and the Columbine issue with: " I think we have a lot of safety measures. Staff can address safety measures better than parents at work or at home."
Linane expressed that the cell phones on the Columbine campus were more of a set back than a help. She felt that so many people called for help that all the different versions of what was going on was to much of a negative aspect to consider the cell phones a necessary safety tool.
A senior student who wished to remain anonymous said "even if the school district doesn't change, I plan on continuing to bring my phone to school anyway. It's not like I sit in class on the phone, but it makes me feel safer to know I, personally, have a consistent link to my family and others outside of the school campus."
Not all local schools are keeping their bans in place. San Gorgonio High School, for example, has decided to take actions different from what is being done here. A vice principal there told me the attitude they have towards the situation is "yes you can bring it to school, but we don't want to see it, we don't want to hear it." In a search for more details about our district's choice of action, Linane directed me to the Department of Administrative Services, but due to unknown circumstances the representative was unable to touch bases with me.
New Teachers join Yellowjacket family
By Raylene Carrillo
Oct. 11, 2002
Every year new teachers arrive at Colton High. This year was no excpetion, as we welcomed twenty two new ones this year.
Brian Bascom came to this school from Terrace Hills Middle School, where he taught World History for nine years. He taught everything from the fall of Rome to the 1700's. Before that he taught the same subject at Bloomington Middle School for two years. Now, he is still teaching World History, from the 1700's all the way to the present. He wants to teach students "history has a value." Bascom came to Colton High to teach a different time period and when he came to Colton High he was "overwhelmed by the population."
John Gulas is a graduate of California State University. He is teaching physics for his first time. Some of the things he wants to accomplish with the students are to prepare them for college and get them excited about physics.
Michael Gill came from North Riverside. He teaches freshmen Natural Science I. This is his first year teaching his own class. For a year he was a student teacher at Ramona. One of the things he wants to achieve with the students is to get them comfortable enough to raise their hands and answer questions in the classroom.
For Rachel Loyd's first year teaching, she chooses to teach freshman and sophomore English. She has substituted in the Ontario District, were she also attended high school. Rachel's goal this year is to get the students prepared for next year.
Noe Montesinos is teaching Spanish I. He has taught and substituted in the Lake Elsinore district. He really likes it here and feels comfortable in the Colton district being a Latino. He grew up in L.A. One of the things he hopes to teach the students is how to succeed.
Each of the teachers feels that they like the administration and students, as well as the schools environment. They are all looking forward to their first year at Colton and what this year will bring.
Freshmen Taking Over School?
By Kristin Hinshaw
Oct. 11, 2002
Have you ever thought about how there are a lot more students attending Colton this year? Have you wondered why our lunches are so packed or why some classes have more students in them? Is it more freshmen or everyone in general? "There are too many freshman!" says senior Cristina Garcia.
This year, Colton High started with 3,036 students, most of which are freshmen. Class 2006 started off as the biggest class currently at our school, with 1,000 students combining from Colton Middle and Terrace Hills Middle, but now has dropped down to about 911. After talking to the Records Office, this has been a continual growth, every year we are getting more and more freshmen.
We have 100 more freshmen this year than we did last year. There are some that think it's not the freshmen, it's people in general. Campus supervisor Anthony, 'Big T', says, "No, there are more people in general, not just freshmen."
After talking to counselors and students, many of them had different opinions such as, not only do we have more freshmen, but we also have a lot of others such as exchange students and new upper classmen.
Problems from having so many students is getting harder and harder to deal with, due to the full classes.
Counselor Joey Mercado thinks we should build a new high school, which is a good idea but, Art teacher David Salas says, "We need to get some two story portables, because the new high school will help, but will not be ready for a while."
With all these new students it has been hard for the counselors, teachers, and even administrators to take care of everyone. Mercado says, "It's kind of hard, there are just so many kids and so many changes that need to be made, but I love seeing all the students and their wonderful smiling faces." Due to no counselors over summer, the counseling office was full of students needing to change their schedules. Students were getting the same classes they took over summer. Now, instead of students going in to the counselor's office to change classes, they have to go and get out the classes they took over the summer. So the counselors had more work to do. Having too many freshmen isn't always a bad thing. That just means more people to meet and it's a good way to keep our Crimson and Gold traditions going.
TNT is working
By Liliana Agular
October 11, 2002Yes, TNT is definitely working. It's been getting me, along with many of my peers, to class on time for fear of getting Saturday school. At this time last year I more than likely would have had a few Saturday Schools on my calendar.
Besides, people should be getting to class on time in the first place. In the real world, being late could cost you your job, or looking bad in front of someone. If more people would get to class on time then maybe the administration wouldn't have had to resort to these measures.
I understand if once in a while you're running late in the morning or something comes up and you're late to second period, because in reality it happens to everyone. There is a problem when you walk into every single class late. Then you're just screwing around. There is nothing wrong with going and talking to your friends during passing period, but there is something wrong when you're stopping and having long conversations with them causing you to be late to class. You have lunch, after school time, and weekends to talk to them. Besides it's not like your going to die if you don't stop and talk to them.
Ever since TNT has been enforced there have been many changes. In my classes alone hardly anyone has been tardy, and if someone does walk in late it's just one or two people at the most. It's less than the numerous people who walked in late to classes last year. Also there are fewer people roaming in the hallways walking around disrupting classes, which helps us all out by creating a better learning environment. Also teachers don't have to take the time to mark people late and giving us that special speech on how it's important that we make it to class on time.
One of these days when we go out into the real world we're not going to have people holding our hand giving us a yellow slip and telling us to get to class. We're going to have to do that on our own, and imagine walking in late every single day to work. What's your boss supposed to do? Just tell you that it's o.k. and to not let it happen again? Wrong! No boss in their right mind would ever do that, and one who does doesn't need to be there.
Now the lesson to be learned from this is due to the irresponsibility last year and our excessive tardies we now have to face a strict tardy policy, face referrals, Saturday school, and maybe even the discipline panel. It shouldn't have gotten to this point but unfortunately it has. Now our last resort it to suck it up and get to class on time, and do what you have to do to get to class on time to make sure you're not late.
Or unless you don't have anything better to do on a Saturday and you would actually enjoy coming to school on a Saturday.
That's just up to you.
TNT is not working
By Shauna Pardo
October 11, 2002Reasons why I think TNT isn't working: 1) It's a safety hazard having students running to class, especially those with untied shoes because we're just not coordinated enough, 2) When you could end up one minute late, instead you are swept up, taken to the Macintosh gym, where you wait twenty minutes for a slip, then get back to class and miss far more class time, 3) Students that were stopped in car traffic don't bother coming to 2nd period because they don't want Saturday school, 4) Students are finding clever ways to avoid being swept up.
Now I'm not trying to jump on people's back because I have been swept up several times, I mean who hasn't. I was only two minutes late but instead got swept up and was thirty minutes late. Other students have similar stories to share.
"Half the school was out there this morning!" complained sophomore Claudia Tobing.
I understand the administrators' point of view. Tardiness has been a real problem here at Colton High. With TNT, tardies have decreased, but Saturday school has gone up quite a bit. Now teachers come to school six days a week to be at regular school hours and Saturday school. Some students do have reasonable excuses why they are late to class some days. In second period, you could have been delayed by family reasons, traffic, or simply because the train was extra long and slow. In all the other periods, a teacher could have made you stay a while longer because the books weren't stacked perfectly and then you can't get to your class on time because it is clear across campus. Or PE got out late and you lost something in the locker room and you can't decide to ask a teacher about it or run to class. Either way you probably won't make it on time. One of the most common reasons: you have to go to the restroom but you know you won't make it to class if you go or if you go to class you have to wait 10 minutes and you can't hold it that long. So what do you do?
Some teachers do agree that it is quite difficult to do this "Tolerate No Tardies" policy in second period because the students miss more class then they would if they just walked straight to class. And some teachers I know won't go back and explain what they taught in the beginning of class. All I'm pointing out is this new policy is such a hassle on all of us. I agree with some students that they should extend the time before they sweep so that people don't have to run to class and worry about Saturday school. I agree that tardiness is a problem. But the cons out number the pros. Maybe they'll keep the policy because of the drop of tardies; maybe they'll demolish the policy because of the amount of students in Saturday school. Who knows, that's for them to decide.
College …all that?
By Lauren Young
October 11, 2002
College! A really big thing on seniors and most of the juniors minds right now, but is it over exaggerated? No, college is not over exaggerated. People just think that it is because when you are a senior you stress and then people begin to think that they are putting to much pressure on the students but that's not true at all. All the counselors and teachers and maybe even some students want is to help you reach your highest goals.
When you start your senior year your constantly thinking about classes and what you need to graduate and even if you are going to graduate. Now maybe some of these things could stress you out, but nobody is trying to add any stress to you. If anything they are trying to take some of that stress away by helping with the whole college thing. Because college is nothing but a choice and if you chose to make the right decision then you will have people behind all the way.
Dr. Ken Clark , the college counselor, says that there is no pressure; they just want to be there to help the students reach their highest dreams and if giving them a little push is what they have to do then they will be more then willing to do it. So in my opinion if you choose to go to college then you have people behind you all the way. College can be something good or something bad but whatever way you choose to go there may be some pressure but nothing that you can't handle. And if it does get to hard somebody will be there right behind you to left you back up. when people think about college and the responsibilty that goes along with it, you may start to get a little stressed. But then you think about all good things that are going to come with it, so maybe if you do stress there still is going to be a good thing that goes along with all that stress. so don't rule it out just yet because all you have to do is remember that you have people behind you all the way. so don't even think for one minute that college is over exaggerated, because it is worth it.
Combined lunches not a good idea
By Narmin Shahin and Nicole Miller
October 11, 2002
As many of you already ask why don't we combine lunches? It seems like a good idea, right? You get to have lunch with all your friends and it would be a whole hour instead of 30 minutes. I don't think many of us actually thought this through enough. Can you even imagine the chaos at our school? There would be about 3,070 kids trying to get lunch and talk to their friends. Our school would have no complete control over anything that happens it would be unsafe, more than it already is.
It's true it would be a lot longer, but you will need the whole hour and many will not even be able to get lunch. Where would anyone sit? We only have so many tables for people to sit at, a lot would be sitting on the floor or spending their lunch standing. I know that it does seem like a lot of fun to have lunch with all your friends everyday, but the risks to be taken by doing that is much too high. This year we have a bigger class of students going over 3,000 and that is a lot of people to handle.
Don't get me wrong, there are also a lot of good points to combining the lunches. You would have lunch with everyone you know. All the teachers would also have lunch together. There would be no more fifth period confusion as to where you go and when. The schedule itself would be all together simpler and easier to get through. This would also decrease the amount of truancies of students trying to go to both lunches. This would also be easier for the nutritional staff in the cafeteria, to only serve once instead of having to restock in between lunches. This way they only have to do it once instead of twice.
People participating in lunch time activities would not have to miss their fifth period class or do the same thing twice because there would only be one lunch to do it in. Everyone would get an equal opportunity to see and participate at the lunch time activities. When they announce homecoming court it will be at one lunch, class competitions only at one lunch, and carnivals so the food won't run out by the time you get there will all be at one lunch. These things make combining lunch a lot easier, but it's all in how you look at it and what you want to do. Since this is our opinion we believe that it should be combined lunches it makes things all together easier, and if we the students are willing to deal with having a crowded lunch with all our friends then why not enjoy our 50 minutes of the day the way we want to.
Homecoming is worth it…so GO
By Adelina Avila
October 11, 2002
What is homecoming? For those of you who do not know it is the first dance of the year, a dance where students have a chance to meet new friends and hang out with their old friends. However, going to homecoming takes a lot of preparation and a lot of money as well. There are also a lot of decisions to be made before doing so, for example, consider the following, some students, especially girls, like to go out and buy nice attire so that they can look their best. Doing this takes money and time than there is buying the ticket itself, accessories and extra spending money.
When all is done and you are ready to go you might stop and ask yourself was all this money and time truly worth it for it just being one night? Yet put aside all that I, feel as though homecoming gives students an opportunity to go and enjoy themselves with their friends and for some it is a special night with that special someone. I feel as though whenever people have a chance to go and make memories with other friends it is always worth it regardless of the work and effort it took to make it happen.
"One nation, under God" (except in school)
by Victoria Tuey (special to the Pepperbough)
October 11, 2002In 1954, former President Eisenhower O.K.'d, through an act of congress the addition of "under God" placed after "one nation" in the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. In 2001, thousands of lives were lost in a terrorist attack on September 11, resulting in a massive turn towards God and the answers related to an afterlife. It seemed that prayers filled the minds of every senior, adult and more or less, every child. On June 26, 2002, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco made a decision that may affect the nation like a wave of suicide bombers in our "War on Terrorism."
On behalf of his daughter, Rev. Michael A. Newdow, of the Universal Life Church, claimed that she should not be subjected to the pledge each morning. Bringing forth the First Amendment and its rights of "respecting an establishment of religion" as his defense, Newdow willingly admits to raising his daughter to be an atheist, as himself. His beliefs rely upon rational thought as the guiding light of life on earth, instead of God. The five year old girl and her mother are born again Christians. Why didn't we hear about this? These truths don't exactly strengthen his case. Newdow shares, "Every lawyer I spoke to told me that it is clearly unconstitutional, and it is also clear that I will lose." Maybe they were wrong. Newdow's suit was dismissed in December, and reopened this last spring. The court has decided to side with Newdow and remove the term "under God" after "one nation" in our pledge of allegiance. The court's decision has not taken effect but been forwarded to the appellate court. The challenging of the pledge on religious grounds is not new; there have been as many as 50 cases brought to courts similar to this one, so it would appear that there are some who agree with his stance, but how many disagree with it? If this decision stands, it will mean that every person that resides in the nine states affected that continue to recite the pledge of allegiance in its traditional form will become a criminal. It's time that the students that have to deal with the change take responsibility and decide for themselves.
Whether America acknowledges it or not, God is written over everything that this nation is built upon. Another case in Massachusetts prevented seven year old Laura Greska from reading a passage from her Bible, explaining the birth of Jesus, as an example of her religious beliefs upon Christmas. In Michigan, an 18 year old was told to hold her tongue about her beliefs on homosexuality because they dealt with religion. Many similar cases each year are brought to the courts banking on the fact that Congress states that public schools are "religion-free." The truth is that when you have people, you have religion. A god could range from their television sets to an idol in the form of a statue. How it appears physically does not interpret it, but how we lift it up. America can deny what we know to be true as much as they please, but this nation is under God. Which God, is not defined. It's like saying that just because God doesn't have a name tag, He's not there. When will America realize that you can't take God out of everything?
AS I SEE IT (COLUMN)
BY PRISCILLA MONTGOMERY
OCTOBER 11, 2002ALLRIGHT. I'm a list person. Whenever I need to think, I make a list to stay organized. And since this is my column, I've decided to give my list, a list of things to think about when there is nothing else to think about.
1. The lady or the tiger?
This dates back to freshmen year, from a story in our textbook. One such story was called the lady and the tiger. Its about this girl, a princess, and a guy, a peasant, who are totally in love. This doesn't work well with her dad who, obviously, is the king. In an effort to keep them apart, he declares that the guy must be thrown in the pit. In the pit are two doors, one which the princess must open. Behind one door is a lady, the enemy of the princess, and if opened, the guy must marry her. Behind the other door is a full felgded flesh eating tiger. So the question is do you let your love die from a tiger, or marry your enemy. No other options, just die or marry. Don't ask my opinion, I've been thinking about it for four years.
2. Why don't people in TV shows and movies ever talk about what happened in the past?
Like in Smallville. All this cool stuff happens in an eposoides and no one ever says a word about it later on. Like Clark could be sitting around talking to Lana, "Remember that guy that turned into a bug and tried to attack you?" Or maybe it is like that in real life only my life is so horribly boring I tend to talk about each event like its the only one.
3.Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of a bottle?
It would make sense, right?
4. How do they get the peanut chunks out of creamy peanut butter?
Maybe they have some random guy standing over each jar picking them out, but that is just gross. And my last question is
5. Why doesn't anything rhyme with orange?
Morange would, if only I could add it into the dictionary as a word.
So this is what I wonder about. Issues? Oh yeah. But whether you're alone or talking over the lunch, I know that each of these questions will give you something to talk about.
Dating 101: the ins and outs of courtin' and sparkin'
by: Wendy Quinonez
October 11, 2002
Same old movie theatre, small crowded malls, and even eating at the same restaurant. Who would want to go on a date like that? People need excitement, something different, especially teenagers, when it comes to dating. There are lots of places where people can go and have fun, but are skeptical about it. However if you feel you're daily outing is a ritual or it seems like a re-run then you should have second thoughts about changing your dates. How about chilling at University Plaza in Riverside where there are a lot of stores to look around in or it could be a nice place just to relax in. also in Riverside there a place called The Mission, it's like a plaza with a lot of stores and if you're hungry there's lots of food places you can grub at. The one place where teenagers probably won't mind going is none other than Chuck E. Cheese's, where a kid can be a kid and not have to worry about making a fool out of yourself. The pizza's great and a whole lot of games to keep you entertain. How about a picnic if you want to get a little more serious? Explore new horizons and go to a club you never been to and dance, who knows you might meet more people and have fun all together in one big group. Instead of seeing the same romance movie, go see a funny or different movie, so after you'll have lots of things to say to each other.
Dates aren't all about going out either; you can stay home and kick back to see a movie. You don't always have to go out to a public place to have fun. Some activities made up can be different and exciting. Who doesn't like a challenge? Group dating, a book compiled by Blair and Tristen Tolemon, can be a good way to get to know people and enjoy a date in a whole different level. This book has a lot of ideas, actually 301 ideas, where friends can get together a play games. Warning: these games are very corny, but you can make it exciting if you put your imagination to it. With Halloween coming up, a game called "Pumpkin Piñata Party" could be new experience if you never played it. What you do is hallow out pumpkins, fill it with individual wrapped candies and see who can hit it with a stick. Another game called "Tickle" is where a person sits in the middle while the others make a circle around that person. The person in the middle has to see if he can make someone laugh for 10 seconds. If not the person stays in the middle and have to try again. If you're actually bored and absolutely have nothing else to do, a funny game called "Airport Welcome committee" can help. Make a poster out of anything you want with sayings such as "welcome back" or "we missed you". Whatever you decide and go to the airport to show it to total strangers and just watch their reactions. Even though these might seem corny or maybe boring to you it beats staying at home on a Saturday night watching TV. If these ideas don' t seem interesting to you then go and make some of your own. Be creative and have fun doing the
Electives being cancelled…why? Why? Why?
By Adelina Avila
October 11,2002Students have you started to wonder why you can't get into a class that you may have wanted to take. That may be because the class was probably dropped. So why is this, you ask? There were two simple reasons: not enough students signed up for that class, and the lack of teachers for other subjects. For instance Nadine Torres (formally Nadine Kelly) once taught two sections of MultiCultural, which is a class that teaches about racism, prejeduices and other cultures. However Colton High needed more world history teachers so Torres now only teaches one section of the popular class.
This situation makes it hard for some students, especially seniors, to get in that class if they can't work it into their schedule. Torres said, "On a personal note, students are disappointed because they felt like they could share their opinions about racism, prejeduices and other cultures without being judged. I as well as the students was saddened by the fact that they dropped this section, but glad that the district allows this class to be on campus and have been given the opportunity to teach it."
So where are our counselors in all this? Are they working hard to prevent this from happening? Joey Mercado a counselor for Colton High is, that's for sure. Mercado said, "Yes, I did try to prevent [cancelling that section]; the reason I did that is because I am very supportive of the teachers and I feel they are more efficient and motivated when their teaching what they're expert at." So yes, our counselors are working hard to fulfill the needs of our students in retrieving these classes. So if you did not get a class you wanted be patient and hopefully it will be there by next semester.
Politics..should we care?
By Shaun Durdle
October 11,2002
Not interested in politics? Not many students are, but they should be. Even if you are not old enough to vote, it's important to keep track of what's going on. The people who win in elections are the people who affect your future. Different people stand for different parties, and those parties sometimes have opposite ideas of what should be done. It's important to know what the parties stand for, so that you can vote for the person who best represents your idea of what should be done.
There are more than a few parties to choose from, and more elections than parties. Anyone who has ever won an election is only allowed to serve a certain amount of time in office. For example, the President can only serve four years, then elections are held again for a new president. After serving a certain amount of terms in office, the person can no longer run for the position. As in the case of the President again, one person can only be President for eight years, which is a total of two terms.
On November 5, elections will be held in California. Based on the votes of the people, a new governor will be elected. You may have noticed some commercials about Gray Davis or Bill Simon recently. These two people are running for governor and stand for the two largest political parties ever, the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Davis who is a Democrat, is our current governor. He will be running for the position again, which is a four-year term.
So how many political parties are there? There are so many, there isn't enough room to list them all, but there is room to list the most important. The two most important parties are the Republican and Democrat. These two parties have members who make up most of the political world. Combined, they usually hold more than 80 percent of the votes. These two parties usually always win.
Another party that's worth mentioning, but isn't nearly half the size of the aforementioned, is the Libertarian Party. The LP believes in total individual liberty, this means that they support pro-choice, pro-drug legalization, anti government, anti-income tax and even anti-welfare, among many other topics. There are more than 400 LP members who currently hold various government offices, although the majority of these positions are fairly low in rank. The LP has affiliates in all 50 states and even bills itself as "America's largest third party," even though the Green Party has clearly overrun them in size.
Formerly named the Association of State Green Parties, The Green Party, has made quite a spark for itself within the last six years. You may remember seeing Ralph Nader in the 2000 Presidential election. Nader is a member and representative of the Green Party. He ran for President in both 1996 and 2000. Although he lost both times, he still held a good amount of votes.
I know what you're saying, "What do these parties have to do with me?" These parties are just some of the many out there, and each one has it's own agenda. It's important to find out what they're about and take a side. If you believe in a certain idea that a party holds, go join that party and vote for your candidate. Maybe your vote can make a difference.
Spongebob: why we love him so
by Narmin Shahin
October 11, 2002Do you ever wonder why teens watch cartoons and kids shows? Aren't we supposed to be getting older and mature, moving on to shows on MTV? Is it because we are bored and have nothing to do? Or we really do like them, and which ones do teens really like?
According to Senior Leticia Miranda, "Spongebob is the coolest and he's so much fun to watch." Senior Daniel Aguas begs to differ. "Spiderman is gangster," he said laughingly. Spongebob proved to be one of the most popular shows because it's funny and it's out of the ordinary. In real life there would never be a sponge living under water and he has a typical human life. He has the love of his life Sandy, his greedy boss Mr.Crab, his best friend Partrick and his angry neighbor and co-worker Squidwarth. All at the same time it's funny-- it's our typical stressful lives made into a cartoon with all our problems, but made so simple that you just can't help watch it and be amazed. When it comes down to it we like them all, from Hey Arnold to Powerpuff Girls right down to Ninja Turtle . . . but why are they so interesting? "We have enough drama in our lives so why would we want to watch someone else's," says sophomore Samer Yasin.
As teens we have enough going on in our lives that we just need a break from it all sometimes. The cartoons are like our get away; they bring us back to being young, where the world just made more sense. Maybe we are just bored and want something funny to laugh at but no matter how old we get cartoons will forever keep us young. It could also just be a fad --I mean how many of us will acutally admit to some of the cartoons we watch or even that they watch cartoons or the Disney channel at all? Is it because everyone else is watching it that the rest of us do it too? Through it all you have admit watching cartoon life on TV is much better than thinking about what's going on in our lives. No matter how much we get asked why we like cartoons there is no real reason why all of us like them, but one thing is for sure we probably will never stop watching them.
Pepper, take a Bow
By April Valenti
October 11,2002
It all started with many teen nights at the local club called Gotham. Tim McGinnis filled out a ticket stub every time he paid the entrance fee, which entered him into a "win a car" contest. The rule was that in order to win the 99 Jetta, you had to be present when they pulled your ticket, so on Sunday September 1st McGinnis headed to the club for the drawing. Who would of guessed one of our fellow peers would be the first ticket pulled. After the initial shock and disbelief he said that everyone was pretty excited. After he paid for the tax of the car, Tim McGinnis was a proud new owner of a forest green Jetta.
In order to graduate from Colton High School every student must take two years of Physical Education. So I'm sure you are familiar with the Ken Hubbs Gym, but did you know that the nephew of the great athlete, in whom the gym is named after, is now a freshman attending this very same school. Chris Hubbs says that his uncle died in a plane crash in 1963 so he never met him but has heard many stories about him. "The fact that part of the school is named after my family makes me proud." According to Chris Hubbs he doesn't get any advantages or special treatment, but all his friends know and think it is "cool."
"He asked me, in front of all the donkeys," English teacher Lucy Khairullah stated when explaining the marriage proposal she received from her boyfriend over the summer. After a boat ride in to the desert they sat under the stars when he popped the question.
They are planning to have "the big day" either this February or March, but that is about how far the plans go for now.
She will be changing her last name, so no longer will you hear "but Ms. Khairullah, my dog ate my book report."
New CD Stanley Climbfall rises up the charts
By Leticia Zamora
October 11, 2002"And the world keeps spinning round My world's upside down and I wouldn't change a thing," are the lyrics we will all be singing with time. This is a fragment of the chorus to "Spin," the first single off of the newly released Lifehouse album "Stanley Climbfall." Jason Wade, along with his band mates Sergio Andrade, and Rick Woolstenhuln has done it again.
Compared to their debut album's title, 'No Name Face,' this title is a bit odd. Although "Stanley Climbfall" is a bit unusual, there is reason behind the estranged sobriquet. " Everyone has their ups and downs," states Wade. " And after a lot of word play, a song called 'Stand, Climb, Fall,' was transferred into an everyday character named Stanley Climbfall who goes through those kind of changes."
The DreamWorks label LA based trio has taken its highest endeavor at bypassing the sophomore jinx by offering a set that's as close to everlasting as one can get.
There is a definite contrast in sound with "Stanley Climbfall." Singer/songwriter Wade has mixed brooding burly rock contenders with instantly memorable emotive guitar tracks. From the expeditious first single "Spin," to the emotional "My Precious." Lifehouse has certainly kept things in perspective. Consider this one of the first big hits of the fall season.
Horoscopes
By Kerry Ortloff
October 11, 2002
Capricorn Dec 22 -Jan 19
You know that big test you have coming up?
Well, you are going to fail it.Aquarius Jan 20-Feb 18
This month you will take control of the world.
Be sure to have fun.Pisces Feb19-March 20
Say goodbye to your invisible friend.
This month is the time to let him go.Aries March 21-April 19
All you will eat this month is Twinkies and
gummi bears. Yum!Taurus April 20- May 20
Go trick or treating. The stars show that there is candy
in it for you.Gemini May 21-June 21
You need more spice in your life. Consider changing your
name to Ginger.Cancer June 22-July22
Stop listening to pop music. It is affecting your mental
health.Leo July 23-Aug 22
The Scorpio you will meet on the 25th is your soul mate.
I'm sorry.Virgo Aug 23-Sept 22
Don't do it! I know you want to shave your head, but please don't.
It would signal the apocalypse.Libra Sept 23-Oct 23
You are the mac daddy this month. Just remember pimpin' ain't
easy!!!!!Scorpio Oct 24-Nov 21
Things are a little complicated right now. But lay back because
its all been done before.Sagittarius Nov 22-Dec 21
You will get in a huge fight with a friend, but don't worry it's the
one you never really liked anyways.
Movie review : Red Dragon
By Adriane Munoz
October 11, 2002The first and most terrifying chapter in the Hannibal Lector Trilogy, Red Dragon, hit theatres this past week. The movie is in widespread release; it is rated "R" for violence, grisly images, some nudity and sexuality. The movie was the type like a drama and thriller, which made it more amazing for the audience to see and never take their eyes off of it. The movie provides a good 2 hours 20 min of entertainment. The actors and actresses in this movie did a fantastic job. They are: Anthony Hopkins (Hannibal Lector), Edward Norton (Will Graham), Ralph Fiennes (Francis Dolarhyde), Emily Watson (Reba McClane), Mary Louise Parker (Molly Graham), and Philip Seymour Hoffman (Freddie Lounds). The actors and actresses did a fine job and their characters are easy to follow. I would say, in order to understand this movie you would have to watch Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, in order to really focus on Red Dragon. The music to this movie gave you a joy to jump when something would happen. I will give you a small taste of Red Dragon, which is a story about a former FBI agent Will Graham, who was nearly killed by Hannibal Lector, and it includes the initial capture of "The Cannibal." Especially when the character Francis Dolarhyde (Ralph Fiennes) who is obsessed with a picture of the Red Dragon, and thinks he's only a half man. Not to mention, he thinks his mind is being controlled by the picture and also thinks it's actually communicating with him, so he goes around killing certain people, on the night of every full moon. I would say that this movie was crazy! I would go see it again. But I have one question for all of you; can you tell me who's going to be the next to die by the next full moon? Do they catch him on time or do they not? That's for me to know and for YOU to find out.
Athlete's Profile: Jeff Slackza
By Joaquin Carrillo
Oct. 11, 2002
Sports and Position played: Water polo, position of pacer and swimming, backstroke
Birthday: 9-4-85
Hometown: Grand Terrace
Years Played: Since freshman year therefore going on 4 years
Self Portrait: Outgoing, Athletic, Adventurous
Claim to fame: A good pushing coach that pushes us to do better
Inspiration: I feel that the team could use a good leader.
Favorite Quote: "It is better to be hated for who you are, then to be loved for someone your not".
Best game memory: It was junior Olympics last year with a tie game we went into overtime, and three seconds left on the shot clock,
at half tank I scored with a skip shot with a reaction of winning the game.
Hobbies: Snowboarding, Surf, Bicycles
Worst Game Memory: It was two years ago when we were at a game and while
defending a shooter who had did a back hand shot I got hit in the nose to were it was
broke causing me not to be able to play in a very important tournament.
Favorite snack: Toasted, fresh baked Chewbada bread
Favorite sports team to watch: Dallas Cowboys -football
Equipment item you couldn't play without: Water polo cap
Last words: Never quit, and always believe in yourself
Fall Sports Briefs
By Shauna Pardo and Lauren Young
Oct. 11, 2002
Water polo, golf, volleyball, and tennis are only some of the fall sports that people enjoy playing and we have got the scope on how the season is going. Tennis Coach Quentin Marley says his team is going to do well, but needs a little work. He also says that they are working hard and thinks that they will improve. One of his best players, freshman Christine Macias seems to be working to get the team off of its feet, for further information if any one is interested in playing they can try out the first day of school next year. The 14th is their next game where they face off against San Gorgonio.
In good news, the Volleyball team Coach, Tonya Strauss, has started her season out strong, the team had their first game September 9, at Valley College. The varsity record up to date is 4-5. Varsity Football coach Harold Strauss, Tonya's father, says the team seems to be really positive and they had a great scrimmage. Harold Strauss thinks they have a competitive league, with senior Jade Purcell really standing out, and this year should go well. Purcell says, "We should beat most of the teams." Their next game is Monday the 14th; be there or be square.
Water Polo Coach Philippe Rodriguez has been in his season for about a month and their record is 2-5. One of his outstanding payers, senior Adam Welsch, thinks that this team is interesting, growing, and learning. Water polo is not one of the easiest sports but if you want to play you have to be properly conditioned. The water polo team has their next game on the 15th where they will splash it up with San Gorgonio.
The Golf team coach, Thomas Mainez, says the team has managed to learn pretty quickly. Their current record is 6-2. Mainez thinks that the year will take off and that it is truly promising, and with three seniors on the team, the new golf players are going to have some really good role models and a lot of motivation. With returning player Jen Gonzales the golf team should do very well, Coach Mainez sure seems to have a lot of hope. Mainez also mentioned that the team is improving rapidly, want to see it for yourself? Their next match is October 17 against Cajon.
For Cross Country the team is doing quite well. Unfortunately the team does not have records. But they do have speed records, and looking at the records for the meet of Saturday September 28, they had the fastest girl was Cynthia Gonzalez with a time of 21.33 and boy Mario Alzarez at 16.57. On Saturday October 5, Colton took 1st place. Helen Ramer and Sara Albiso have similar ideas about how the season will both saying that the teams are real positive and willing to learn. If you want to see how fast these players are their next Mini meet is on the October 16 at Cajon.
Football faces REV
By Mitchell Rector
Oct. 11, 2002
Last Friday's 35-0 victory against Pacific puts our varsity football team at a record of 3 and 1 and with Pacific being a league game, our league record is 1 and 0. The Yellow Jackets are having a great season so far with such star players like running back Ras Bowen, who had three touchdowns to contribute to last Friday's game, and quarterback Robby Pope, who had this to say, "We feel very confident going into tonight's game against REV (Redlands East Valley). We want to win big for our running back Ras Bowen, who is a transfer from their school to ours. As long as we play Colton football, and execute the way we know how, we should be able to handle them with no problems."
Tonight's Homecoming game against Redlands East Valley here at Colton at 7:30 looks to be merely a railroad tie in the way of the Yellow Jackets' tracks. The team has already shown signs of dedication and progress in past victories. The game with Bloomington, the Yellow Jackets lost, unfortunately, 40-14, but later redeemed themselves with the defeat of Victor Valley with a score of 30-15. The game with Fontana proved to be another outstanding victory with a score of 27-7