Spring Woods has been getting killed in football for as long as most can remember, but as far as who is doing the killing seems to change. "Every two years, the UIL does a realignment," Building Principal Lance Stallworth said. In the 2010-2011 school year, Spring Woods was moved down to 4A, the clas-sification used by the University Interscho-lastic League to deter-mine who plays who in all competitive events between schools. This ranking is based on each school's popula-tion. "They [the UIL] take a snapshot of every high school in the state in October, and they submit your enroll-ment count as of Octo-ber 13. They then use those numbers to decide the different categories," Stallworth said. So is Spring Woods near enough in the stu-dent count to qualify for a 5A upgrade?

"I am 99% confident [they] will keep us in 4A. The number has been around 2050 to go to 5A, and we're not close to that," Stallworth said. When the last realign-ment came around, Spring Woods was grouped with schools in-credibly far away, places like Brenham and Waller. "I don't know what the

logic is when they draw their maps, but we are requesting to not have to go so far in our travels as we do now," Stallworth said. Other members of the staff and faculty share the opinion of not want-ing to drive as far to par-ticipate in UIL events.

"I see a problem in hav-ing to go an hour and a half away to compete for district, or an hour and a half away to compete at region," Debate teacher Victoria Beard said. "I would be very excited if we could go back. I feel like we're competitive enough to do well in the old 5A that we were at." Band director Jeff

Munger shares her sentiments. "I think that the band is getting increasingly bet-ter every year and it wouldn't be a problem ei-ther way," Munger said. While our Fine Arts departments might feel that a step up to 5A would not be a big deal, they are not

the only clubs being af-fected by switching. Ath-letics Director and Head Coach Keith Cripps knows that all too well. "If we did go to 5A," Cripps said, "it would af-fect in some way good for some sports and not good in some other

Spring Woods to stay in 4A

By JACK RODGERSEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

UIL district change will not happen this year

Senior year is the year that every high school student looks forward to. For some seniors, it is a time to remember your high school experi-ence; join clubs that you have always wanted to join, and do things that will leave your mark on your time here in high school. That is the very definition of what the senior women at Spring Woods are. "Senior women is an organization of senior girls who get together and do community service and they partici-pate in social func-tions," senior teach-er Christa Wilson said. "Mrs. Wilcox and I have been the sponsors for the last four years and we feel that this class is the most involved out of all the years." They meet the first Wednesday of every month to interact with one another and plan activities that they can do throughout the school and for the community.

Recently, on the 13th, the senior women joined together with the senior men in what they call a "mixer" at Fuddruckers off of I-10, in which the senior men and women interacted outside of school. The funds from Fuddruckers went to-wards the senior class.

This event was set up by the senior women event coordinator Rebecca Diaz. What they want every-one to know, especially the seniors, is that any girl who is a senior can join senior women. The senior women tea party was a way for the girls to have fun and inter-act with each other in a fun and creative way.

The girls were dressed in elaborate costumes where they enjoyed tea and got to know one another better. It was held on October 28th at Spring Woods. "The Tea Party was where all the senior women got together and we all had tea and we all

dressed up in our fancy dresses and big hats and we all got together and just had fun and socialized with one another," Diaz said. "This was ultimate-ly just for fun, like bonding time since we're all going to go our separate ways after high school." The idea of the senior women tea

party has been passed down from previous classes. "The senior women class three years ago came up with the idea of having a tea party amongst the girls," se-nior women president Hannah Speck said. "It has basically become a tradition that the senior women class of 2009 set for us."

By BRITTANY MOORESTAFF WRITER

AP classes provide many benefitsStudents should weigh pros and cons before dropping advanced courses.

AP classes. Chances are you know at least one person who has them. AP stands for advanced placement and those are the classes you take when you're ahead of the academic classes. “I like AP classes be-cause they don't baby you like they do in aca-demic classes. You have to motivate yourself to do your own work because

the teachers won't,” senior Laura Cazares said. Some would say the change of atmosphere from an AP class is negative, but there are some good benefits that come with it. “The benefits for AP classes are that they are designed to help you prepare for col-lege,” English teacher Andrew Helminiak said. One particular class

is really into getting students ready for col-lege. “My specific class, language and compo-sition, prepares you to write college level papers,” Helminiak said. “So when you go to college, you will be able to write that three, four, five page paper that you weren't really trained to do in your normal academic classes. So the work-load is more akin for

By JENIFER MENDOZASTAFF WRITER

Tea time for TigersSenior women bond over last year of high school .

CIAO TIME: Senior men and women enjoy burgers and conversations at Fuddruckers.

.

what you would expect in college” Once you get to college, you'll be so used to doing all the “heavy lifting” that the classes won't be so hard on you. “Although they seem very difficult now, they have huge dividends when you get to college because you're so used to working in that load. You're used to reading 100 pages a week for your reading assignment and stuff like that and

you're much better pre-pared for college,” Hel-miniak said. While benefits outweigh the negatives, there are a few reasons students enjoy academic classes. “There is less home-work and less studying that needs to be done. The work is so easy. It's like common sense. But unfortunately you have no friends and it looks bad on your transcript,”

Continued on PAGE 3HIGHER LEARNING: Chemistry teacher Jamie Flint works a prob-lem on her ActivBoard.

POCKET PRESENCE: Sidney Mc-Bride remains calm in the face of danger as he drops back to pass.

4A/5A Continued on PAGE 3

Discrimination. What does one think of when hearing that word? At first thought, one would most likely think of discrimination as the obvious: racism or sex-ism because those are the forms of discrimina-tion that are talked about most. Now consider height discrimination. Take it further and consider short people discrimina-tion. Height discrimination is not really talked about, nor is it noticed for that matter. For most people, being short means that

you're not really looked at, but that you're looked over. “Whenever I go out with friends they easily lose me because they can't see me in the crowd and when I go shopping I can't reach the shirt on the top rack,” junior Mari-ah Uribe said. Because of the social expectations people live by, those that lack height are not looked at in a se-rious manner. “My friends usually say, 'You’re a midget' or call me a 'dwarf' and ask 'How do you drive if you are so short?” sopho-more Shannon Olson said. The cruel things short people hear about their height may be “taken to heart” on some oc-casions. Although it is probably hard to realize, it is harmful to be called a name like “gnome” or something along those lines. But not all jokes are too bad. Some jokes are intended to be what they actually are: jokes. “Of course I crack the short jokes with my friends as they do to me about being big,” senior Rachel Palmer said. “It works both ways. I actu-ally feel like tall people may be more a victim than short people. Tall people don't meet 'the standard' and are not just 'average'.”

A “normal height” does not exactly exist. People just know the difference between tall and short. But how often does one see a tall person being made fun of because they are incapable of reaching something? Being tall usually means being superior or domi-nant over people. Dominance is defined by height in some cases. And due to the stereo-typical society we live in, it is thought that being a certain height deter-mines your capability of doing various high tasks. “My being short is one of the reasons I don't do sports and I would have

wanted to play some sports like volleyball, but I cheer instead. It makes me feel like I can do good as a flier and taller girls can't do that so that makes me fit in,” fresh-man Kerry Mendez said. For girls, it may be easi-er to “fit in” because they can get the extra height with high heels, but for guys, that is not the case. “One universal thing that height tends to get in the way of is dating,” junior Edwin Conde said. “For guys, a small stat-ure can be troublesome because it diminishes our confidence when we like a girl, but we feel we cannot compete with the bigger and taller guys she can choose from.” It is bad enough those whom lack height are reminded of it every day when they look in the mirror, but constant tor-ment from peers does not make the situation any better. “People generally like to remind me how tall I am as if I don't have a full length mirror,” junior Les-lie Cavazos said. “And let's not forget the nick-names like 'fun sized'. It's not cute. It's demeaning and rather irritating. Also, the short jokes, I can ap-preciate a good one, it's the bad ones that offend me.” What is considered to be a “regular” height is

usually about 5' 2” and up, but not everyone has that privilege. “All I want is to hit the five foot mark. I can't even get that pleasure without out wearing god awful heels, and that's even if I can find any in my size,” Cavazos said. Although there are some down falls, there are also some perks. “I think being short is a privilege. You get to ninja around and look cool. People get to pick you up and spin you around. I think it's fun,” senior Stephanie Martinez said. Looking “cute” may be a good feeling when one lacks height, but the real-

ization of being cute and adorable just because of your height can take a toll on one's emotions. “I want to major in the-atre arts and I know that because of my height I will forever be type cast-ed. Meaning that I will get roles based to my ap-pearance, like a little girl or mouse or something... small,” Cavazos said. The thought alone of being short is hard to deal with for someone that lacks height. To add to that, there are the constant reminders at school, work, and even for the future. “I work at Pappasitos and I can't always reach something like in storage or the cooler and I have to go out and ask some-one to help me, in the restaurant industry, time is everything and also people under estimate you or judge you based on your height,” Uribe said. For the time being, it is not too bad to be short in high school, but when the thought of college comes up and future plans, it becomes a wor-ry for some. “I probably won't get many chances to ex-pand my characters past the age of 12. This also means that if I audition

By SAM LOPEZASST. BUSINESS MNGR

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:Jack Rodgers

CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:Cade Bundrick

BUSINESS MANAGER:Jessica Jones

ASST. BUSINESS MNGR:Sam Lopez

STAFF WRITERS:Carly Batterson, Jazmine Clark, Lilya Gehman, Brittany Moore, Alisan O’Quinn, Haley Schild, Jazmine Cantu, Odalis Garcia, Jenifer Mendoza, Scott Moore, Lorelei Shannon, Jaroslav Unar, Stephanie Vargas

ADVISOR: Pam Karter

The Regit is published every six weeks by the newspaper staff as a public forum for the student community. The staff reserves the right to choose the content of the stories. Final decisions involv-ing all written and pic-torial content shall be made by the staff and advisor. The Regit will strive to present news in a fair, impartial, accu-rate, and truthful way. Editorials represent only the staff writer’s view. Letters to the editor are welcomed from any Regit reader.

Letters will be checked for grammar, accuracy, and punctua-tion. To join the Regit staff, contact one of the grade level counselors. ADVERTISING: The Regit retains the right to reject advertisement not in the best interest of its audience. Advertising space may be purchased by calling the journalism department at (713) 251-3239.Advertisement may be faxed to the Regit at (713) 365-4474.

Words hurtDiscrimination against short people takes its toll

.

“...height tends to get in the way of dating”

Continued on PAGE 3

The Tiger Band has been through a lot since 2001, the new direc-tors, and reclassifica-tion from 5A to 4A has changed since then. Donald Zurbriggen, the head band director has learned from the years past how to improve the band each day. What is different about this year from a decade ago is that Area comes every oth-er year normally, but every time the classifi-cation changes, UIL re-counts the years so the tigers were never able to compete. “After last year’s suc-cesses on what was sup-posed to be a rebuilding year, I’m convinced this band can do anything,” Zurbriggen said. “I be-lieve this band can ac-complish anything they

set their minds to.” According to Zurbrig-gen, challenging the ti-ger band is for the best. “I chose the show Cha-os Theory because it is a challenging show that is very musically reward-

ing,” Zurbriggen said. “Last year, we did have the best band in the dis-trict!” Once the band students head that they have the chance to go to Area this year, the hard work be-gan.

“In order for us to get to area we need to keep working as hard as we can, and push through any obstacles that get in our way,” junior Chris Perret said. As time starts ticking

down, the Directors keep pushing the band forward through all of the tough condi-tions. “Mr. Munger and I are so proud to be a part of this amazing organization,” Zur-briggen said. “Our students are top notch and we suc-ceed because of the dedication of the en-tire Tiger Band Fam-

ily.” One thing is for sure, when its time to get the job done, the tiger band does what it needs to do. “We just need to buckle down and get to work,” junior Rudy Caballero said.

Band strives for higher goalsDirectors push for success, all “ones” achieved at UIL .

By ODALIS GARCIASTAFF WRITER

STRAIGHT ONES: Seniors cel-ebrate after annihilating the com-petition at UIL

Fashion: Fall LooksGuys VS. Girls

CONTINUED DROPPED AP CLASSES:

Anibal Hernandez- he mixes classy with old school, making the outfit something totally of its own. He wears a sweater vest, chuck taylors, a simple but-ton down with folded sleeves, which makes him look sophis-ticated.

Emanuel Juarez- he wears typical colored skinny jeans with

vans, but pulls off the no sleeve jacket with many

accessories that help make the outfit- like the g-shock

and his pen-dants. Thus making

his style appealing to others.

Tushea Love-wears an ivory blouse with brown cargo

shorts. What makes her outfit “pop”, is a gorgeous pearl

necklace.Topping the

outfit off is her hat with a big pink and purple

bow.

Mercy Bullen-goes with a simple but-ton down black and white shirt

with medium size hoop ear-rings. Black jeans go with everything.

CONTINUED DISCRIMINATION:for a certain part that's older than a person taller than me, I wouldn't get the job. So in the field I'm hoping for, my height would have a lot to do with me getting paid or not,” Cavazos said.

The harmful words spo-ken from a taller person to a shorter person or even just the reminder or being short may make a short person feel even smaller than they physi-cally are.

Cazares said. Students are known for dropping out of AP class-es because the work is more challenging. They want an easy A or pos-sibly they're spreading themselves too thin. “I decided to drop the classes because it's my senior year,” Cazares said. “I want to have fun as well as manage good grades. I wasn't trying to stay up all night to do homework. That's more for college. I also dropped the classes because I have a lot of other stuff to do as well. I work, play volleyball, am in senior women, and I am in FFA.” Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. So naturally, there would be some students who think dropping AP classes could be a mistake.

“Think of your future first. It really makes a dif-ference,” senior Brenda Sandoval said. If you like the classes or not, you should at least put some effort into them. “If you're not going to even try in the AP class-es, then you're taking the easy way out,” sopho-more Marissa Clark said. All teachers whether academic, Pre-Ap, or AP, are available to help you in whatever you're hav-ing trouble with. “Well if you need help, I'm here for tutorials pretty much all the time during my study halls. I'll work with kids during lunch. I'm here almost every day until about four o'clock. So I have people drop by all the time,” Hel-miniak said. There are some reasons

for why students would get out of AP classes, but for some teachers there is only one really true reason why someone should get out of them. “The only time some-one should really get out of AP classes is if they're really struggling. If they really are unable to keep up with the work because they are taking four or five AP classes, they just can't possibly keep up with them and with the work,” Helminiak said. While the decision is ul-timately up to you, think twice before taking ac-tion. “People should think before they either enter or leave,” Sandoval said.

Discrimination takes on many shapes and sizes. There is really nothing to be done to “fix” this issue, but it is an issue none the less. “I get it that I'm short; I don't need to hear it ev-ery day,” Mendez said.

sports, football included." When the last change occurred two years ago, Spring Woods, Strat-ford, and Northbrook all stayed together. How-ever, with this upcom-ing shift in districts, one member of that group might not stay linked with

its fellow SBISD schools. "The one that's kind of on the borderline, ac-tually, is Northbrook," Stallworth said,"They're much closer to be-ing on that borderline than Stratford or Spring Woods." All things considered,

Spring Woods will most likely stay in 4A following the upcoming change in districts. As for where Spring Woods will go when the next shift comes, who knows? Just like the EoC's, only this year's freshmen will be affected by it, so, honest-ly, it doesn't really matter.

CONTINUED 4A/5A

Siblings differ in all shapes and forms. Most often the difference is in their personalities, which can be explained by the Birth Order Theory. The Birth Order Theory can affect all aspects of your life, from everyday relationships to how in-terconnected you are with your family. It can affect whether you are a natural born leader (typical first born child), a social butterfly (middle child), or even influence your inner show-off (of-ten the baby of the fam-ily). The traits often found in the oldest born child are that they are self-reliant, accountable, leaders. These characteristics usually go into play when they are “dethroned” and younger siblings come in and the older are some-times expected to help care and look after their younger siblings.

The first child is often the experiment child, so “being the oldest isn't al-ways all that great. You are constantly put under

a microscope with your younger siblings copying everything you do,” old-est of three, junior, Brit-tany Trevino said, “they

are expected to live up to their parents high stan-dards and they tend to be more independent and responsible because

of that”. In comparison, the middle child tends to be more people oriented, indecisive, and compro-

mising. The youngest and oldest will both have time as an only child, but the middle child will al-ways have someone to

steal the spotlight from. This can easily explain why they are so people oriented, because they have to learn to please

One recent form of bul-lying is through Face-book. Before all of the new technology that has come into student's lives, bullying was more of a face to face thing. For the most part, there was name calling, and maybe hitting. With the popular-ity of Face-book, texting, and Twitter, bullying has become less verbal. "I think that cyber bul-lying has made bullying easier," head principal, Mr. Stallworth said. When teenagers get home, they are afraid to open their computers to go on Facebook for fear that a snide comment was posted on their wall. This summer of 2011, a Facebook page was made up called the burn book. As seen on the

By LILYA GEHMANSTAFF WRITER

Birth order influences personalityDiffering traits showcase sibling lineup

Burn Book affects teenagersFacebook creates easy access for cyber bullying

.

getting onto the page. So they got insight from other viewers. "Why are you doing this?" and, "This is pa-thetic!" where some of the comments that Stall-worth was able to gather

up. The b u r n b o o k was for-tunately s h u t d o w n after a day or so when the issue came to their at-tention. "I think

cyber bullying is a hurtful way to damage some-one's self esteem and is likely to leave a wound behind. What you post never goes away," 9th grader Isabella Ramon said. Luckily Spring Woods has a low profile on bul-lying and it's something to be very proud of due to the leadership of stu-dents.

movie "Mean Girls", the burn book was owned by a group of “queen bee” girls. The burn book had pictures of people and the girls would write comments about that person.

It was a bit different on Facebook though. On Facebook, it was opened to everybody who was invited to be a part of it. The people that where invited could post nasty comments about the per-son in the picture. Many did but some Spring Wood's students stood up against the leader of the page. Stallworth and other teachers had trouble

By ALISAN O’QUINNSTAFF WRITER

.

their parents in order to get their attention. Many believe that they are good compromisers be-cause they have to learn to get along with the dif-fering personalities of the youngest and oldest. They also have to be the mediator between their quarreling siblings and are therefore good at solving problems. “Well, usually my broth-ers are fighting,” third of four children, and the only girl, Michelle Bal-sara said, “and I have to come in and be the negotiator and tell them who is right and wrong. So, yes, I am the com-promiser and social but-terfly!” Balsara said. In stark contrast to the oldest and middle chil-dren, the youngest is the attention seeker, bad decision maker, and art-ist, and can also get a feeling of inferiority be-cause they are often too protected. This happens when they realize that they are the youngest

(and will remain so) and they test limits to see what they can get away with. For some younger sib-lings, it can be difficult to make your own way on a path which older siblings have traveled before. With the limitations of the youngest child added into the equation, “most of the time it is hard try-ing to go about in your own way when people think you have to be just like your older siblings,” Martha Caballero, the youngest of three chil-dren, said. These characteristics can vary depending on the gender and number of siblings and also the parenting style enforced on the children. “Overall it doesn't mat-ter who was born first, middle, or last it is up to the child to create their own personality,” Cabal-lero said.

HANGIN’ WITH MOM: The three youngest Balsara children, Josh, Michelle, and Joel, sit with their mom and enjoy the sunshine.

Looking at Spring Woods’ list of famous alumni, Roger Clemens, Chris Snyder, and Cindy Dinh, success is nothing new to the school. For one former Houston local, however, his success has stretched to great length. Alum Roberto Orci, of Spring Woods, is one of the lucky few to have made it far in the entertainment b u s i n e s s . Orci, class of 1991, pursued a career in the movie b u s i n e s s early on in his life and was able to stick with it. In the last five years alone, Orci has written and produced many Hollywood blockbusters, such as “Cowboys & Aliens,” “Star Trek,” “Transformers,” and many more. While attending Spring Woods, Orci participated in almost every event the Speech and Debate team had to offer and achieved Special Distinction in the Nation Forensic League. Although he did not make his career decision because of debate, he did say that it taught him more than he expected. “Although that is not what I ended up pursuing as a career, I can unequivocally state that I learned how to think in debate,” Orci said. “I

have never learned more in any other setting. And since pitching stories is part of my job, learning to speak confidently also turned out to be invaluable.” For his senior year, Orci moved to Los Angeles where he studied film and met his future film partner, Alex Kurtzman. He then attended the

University of Texas at Austin where he went into the Radio, Television and Film program. As he was just getting adjusted to the college life, he got a job writing for a television show. “We wrote screenplays steadily for years,” Orci said. “We finally had the opportunity to show one of our scripts to a production company where we were assistants. The writing sample was decent enough for us to be hired to write one freelance episode. That lead to another, and then we were finally hired as staff writers.” Orci’s preservation has

Alum reaches hollywood fame

made him somewhat of a role model. Being able to come from the Spring Branch area and move all the way to Hollywood fame is no easy task. “This not only shows what someone from Spring Woods can do, but also what someone in the Speech and Debate program can do,” Debate Coach Victoria

Beard said. “It shows that Debate is a real p r o g r a m with real s u c c e s s and really p r e s e r v e s the idea of what a person can accomplish if they just apply their self.” Orci was lucky e n o u g h to get the opportunity at the

best time in his life, and be spurred into a career from that. Once reaching Hollywood, Orci was named as one of Hollywood’s “Top 50 most powerful Latinos,” and has even won several awards for his writing. His job as a writer and a producer has grown rapidly ever since. And although he did not finish college, it did land him in a business he would not have expected to be in. “A gig is a gig and you never know where any opportunity may lead,” Orci said. “And never stop being a student. Life is school, and you are never done.”

Former debate student becomes A-List writer.By CADE BUNDRICK CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ON THE RED CARPET: Roberto Orci with Star Trek star, Zachary Quinto, for Comic-Con 2010.

Some people don’t like to go to their school dances, but Homecom-ing is the dance that is rarely missed in the high school years. It will be the first dance that the fresh-men go to and one of the last plac-es to make m e m o r i e s for the se-niors. This year’s Homecom-ing, though might sound fun, has to live up to a few expectations. “I’m expecting my last Homecoming to be the best by far,” senior Kay-lub Chevalier said. “I want to enjoy it with all my friends since this is the last one.” Even though H o m e c o m i n g might seem like no big deal, it is a big deal for the seniors especially the ones run-ning for King and Queen. The guys who were nomi-nated were seniors Jorge Moreno,Emanuel Juarez, Jerome Bell, Ru-ben Rincon, and Kaylub Chevalier. For the girls, there are seniors Tracy Mockler, Amoreana Carr, Nancy Gamez, Marissa Breuss, and Brook Fritts who were also nominat-ed. “Most of my friends are

running, but we decided just to make this a friend-ly competition,” Mockler said. For the freshmen, they would like to know what the true feeling of high school really is. “I’m going to go with a

group of friends, which in my opinion I think is a lot more fun,” fresh-man Viri Carmona said.

“We’re just going to try to make it a memorable first Homecoming.” There are many things that lead to the Home-coming dance. There’s the parade, tiger fest, the pep rally where the king gets crowned. Then at the football game, the queen gets crowned at half time. The following

day, on November 5th, begins at 7pm “Tickets are sold during lunches or even at the dance,” junior Sandra Carmona said. Mums and garters are a big part of Homecoming as well.

“I want to make one be-cause I want to go all out since this is my last y e a r , ” Corona-do said. “My mom actua l ly w a n t s to make m i n e ,

since I’m the youngest. This is her last year be-ing able to make it,” Cart-er said.

Stu-d e n t s h a v e their own e x p e c -t a t i o n s , whether they are f r e s h -men or seniors, but at the end of the day high

school memories were in the making. “I strongly encourage everyone to go to Home-coming at least once in your high school years and I promise you won’t regret it,” Carter said. “It’s a great experience to share with your friends that you can always look back on in the future.”

Seniors make Homecoming memories

By ODALIS GARCIASTAFF WRITER

. Spirit week activities provide fun, remembrances for life

Student Spotlight

Name: Alondra Martinez

Grade: 9th

Gets A’s and B’s

She is not in any sports or clubs, but she wants to

get involved by being in soccer or basketball. After

school, she likes to attend tutorials and hangout

with friends and family.

“Next year I am going to be in Pre-AP so it will be

more of a challenge,” Martinez said.

“Alondra is a very hard worker. She is very helpful

in class and she is always open to trying new

things,” math teacher, Brenda Guzman said.STUDY HARD: Alondra Martinez works on English homework in the courtyard.

VOTE FOR ME: Seniors make posters hoping to get Homecoming King or Queen.

For the 14 that made it to the next round, the work only gets more dif-ficult. “I practice my music non- stop, everyday,” junior Bradley Whitten said. Region is the next step and competition is much tighter. Only the top 12 move on to the next round, so stress is defi-nitely on the rise. “I at least want to make it to pre- area or even area,” junior Noel Her-nandez said. District alone was stressful for some. “For district, the com-petition was fierce- more fierce than last year,” ju-nior Mary Quinones said. Personal expectations are high and the work

gets more intense for those competing. “I expect to go to all- state,” Whitten said. As the students get further into competition, they learn to self- teach. “I'm doing private les-sons, multiple camps, practicing at home/ in class, and I listen to the music as I sleep,” Qui-nones said. This process brought together the choir stu-dents whom have dedi-cated themselves to choir outside of class. Several of them attend-ed at least one or more camps in preparation for both district auditions and region auditions. Anyone in choir knows that when they are in choir, they are not just in-dividuals singing togeth-er: they become a family.

But having friends within their own choirs and from other schools can be a bit of an emotional tug on the singers. Their big-gest competition could

very well be one of their closest friends. The students are not

bitter about helping out their fellow classmates, though. “Our choir director, Ms. Cuddihee, helped me by taking the time to help

me individually and Mary also helped me with pro-nunciation,” Eva Zapata

said. Usually when one feels completely ready for something, there is some sort of occurrence that seems to get in the way. “I was nervous for dis-trict because I was get-ting sick and I was afraid my voice would crack, which it did, but I ended up doing better than I thought,” Quinones said. The bunch that made it is a differing one. Some have been doing this process since middle school while for others, this is their first year. “I was so nervous. It was my first time since 8th grade to go through the district process,” Hernandez said. This is all a learning process that is to be taken seriously by these

By SAM LOPEZASST. BUSINESS MANGR

Will you go Trick or Treating this year?

Candy Corn

75%

Chocolate

25%

What is your favorite Halloween Candy?

H a l l o w e e n

students. They quickly learn what habits to keep, which to throw out, and what to do better. “I've been practicing more and have upper-classmen who made dis-trict help me,” Vega said. With help, a ton of prep-aration, and dedication, the comfortability has risen in the singers. “It's a really fun process over all. I love the idea of being able to perform at my best and compete with great singers across the state,” Hernandez said. Most students in choir are involved in more than one elective that they care about, but all are the same when you look at the big picture. “Baseball and choir are similar; you work at it to get better,” Whitten said

Choir students sing way to topCompetition gets tighter when singers come one step closer to all- state

Everyone needs vol-unteer hours for high school. Why spend your time on the highway in the afternoon on a Sat-urday picking up trash? There are hundreds of charity organizations that would be ecstatic if you gave some of your time for them. Find a char-ity that matches what your interests. Volunteer hours are not bad when you are having fun. “I enjoy helping people, so when I volunteer to help people, I feel good about how I spent my time,” Butt Ugly Dogs Co-founder Cassandrea Lyon said. You don't only have to volunteer to help people. If you decide you don't want to work with people, you can volunteer at a lo-cal zoo or animal shelter. If a dog or cat sits inside a cage all day long, its first reaction to a person wanting to play with it is pure happiness. Or, you can do something more, and take care of an ani-mal like a foster parent. “Butt Ugly Dogs is a charity organization that saves dogs from over-flow shelters, and cleans them up while finding them a good home,” Lyon said. If you don't want to

spend your time playing in pools cleaning dog's ears, you can work with the less fortunate of your area. There are many soup kitchens, or home-less shelters that would be willing to let you spend time there cook-ing pancakes for some-one's breakfast. Or, pour a nice hot bowl of chick-en noodle soup. “”It is important to give back to the community to keep it strong and safe,” Humanitarian Society sponsor Lora Clay said. Another choice is the Humanitarian Society, which volunteers at vari-ous community events. All you have to do to join is go to room 266 and pick up the forms. The Humanitarian Society is a great chance to volun-teer in your community and help others. “I love volunteering to help others,” senior Jordan Tovar said. “It just makes my day a lot brighter if I get to help someone that is down.” If you want to make someone else's day bright, here is a list of charities. Pick up your nearest Google, and search one of them up. It might be just right for you.

VS.

By SCOTT MOORESTAFF WRITER

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Volunteer Hours Required.Local charities long for help in Houston

AREA BOUND: Students that made it to the next round and region choir. From left to right: Nicolas Knoerzer, Caitlin Luper, Bradley Whit-ten, Mary Quinones, and Christopher Love.

From the producers of “Glee” comes a spine chilling new series: “American Horror Story”. This show revolves around a not-so-typical family moving from Boston to Los Angeles trying to make a fresh new start. Their encounters before were disturbing and dramatic, but now that they have moved, the dis-turbance has become way worse for the family.

The show stars Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton of “Friday Night

Lights”, Taissa Farmiga, Academy Award Winner Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, Denis O’Hare, Alexan-dra Breckenridge, and Jamie Brewer. The show is very creepy and chilling to watch. I think the concept is magnificent because of the twist and turns the fam-ily members encounter. The romance and drama of the show are comparable to “Vampire Diaries” and its comedic events are a reminder of “The Adamms Family”. It’s confusing and thrilling to watch week after week. I think the series is well written even though it may be obscure at times, but that's what draws me to watch it. The creepy presence of the the show is distributed throughout evenly. This series is one of the weidest show I’ve seen ever on televison. The suspense is “to die” for. It re-ally gets your mind spinning. I can’t wait for season 2. This is not only the American Horror story but it’s kind of like the ultimate scary story no one wants to happen to them. “American Horror Story” airs on Wednesdays at 9:00 PM on FX

Zooey Deschanel is a blast to watch. She plays the normal every-day working girl in the comedy se-ries “New Girl” Jesse (Deschanel) had a bad break up and is looking to move out of her ex-boyfriend’s apartment. She finds an ad online for a new roommate. But what’s in store for her is not to be expected. She soon finds out her new room-mates are three single guys. This series I think is comparable to “Friends” the calm funny aspect of

a group of friends living together and getting into hi-larious situations. The series explains the lives of the four characters. “New Girl” stars Jake Johnson, Max Greenfield, Lamorne Morris, and Hannah Simone who plays Jesse’s best friend. Is this a start to a new relationship for Jesse with one of the guys or is this the beginning of dysfunc-tional friendship? The plot of the show is classic be-cause of the boy-girl relationships. This comedic cast is quirky and overall hilarious to watch, This explores the lives of young peoples, and I have to say the way we young people do things just happens to be pretty funny. Deschanel is funny in a calm, relaxed way. But when the guys come in and act, the show is bumped up a notch because of their humor and manliness. “New Girl” is a series that is meant for everyone. It has funny moments and unprediclable moments and this show is just very relatable to everyone. “New Girl” airs on Wednesdays at 8:30 PM on FOX

Fall 2011 TV Series Review “Two Broke Girls” has millions

laughing during the week. Kat Den-nings and Beth Behrs are hilarious together. These two girls feed off each other's humor. The show is based around the situation of a rich girl turned poor girl and a poor girl, well, staying poor. These two have to find a way to make ends meet. They work at a dingy diner together and get into some crazy situations. The concept of the show is bril-liantly planned out. Max (Dennings)

has a hidden talent for baking and despite Caroline's (Behrs) blonde moments, she has a talent for busi-ness. They put their minds together and come up with a plan to create a cupcake shop. The adventures these girls endure are just as com-parable to the silly actions of Lucy and Ethel In “I Love Lucy”. This is what makes the series a laugh fest. Dennings and Behrs work together to create this comedic way of looking at life for the better-not for worse. I think these two girls have great chemistry on and off the set of the show. The show has a lot of adult humor, but I think teens will understand what's going on. The show is based on a female perspective so it's understandable that guys might not like it as much as girls, but it is really funny and I look forward to watch-ing it every week. Along their journey together, will these “Two Broke Girls” create a recipe for success or will the cake fall flat? “Two Broke Girls” airs on Tuesdays at 7:30 PM on CBS

By STEPHANIE VARGASSTAFF WRITER

School is hard e n o u g h for some students, but imag-ine hav-ing to jug-gle both s c h o o l

and after school activi-ties. Sports, band, work-ing, it all can interfere with school, more spe-cifically, tutorial times. Tutorials are offered after school and some-times before school to help those students who seem to show signs of struggle in their respec-tive classes. As a player on the volleyball team here, I know how hard it is to find suitable times to attend after school tutori-als. If there were a time that I needed to attend tutorials during prac-tice time, I would have to make the choice of missing some of practice which would ultimately affect my playing time. To students in this pre-dicament, this is a huge dilemma. I feel that as a student with extra ac-tivities outside of school, that are of importance, it is hard to balance them all along with school, es-pecially if some teachers here are not prone to compromise. One student who shares the same philos-ophy with me and knows what it is like to have to juggle numerous activi-

ties and school is senior Jamie Meeks. "It was hard to have to manage Junior Achieve-ment, band, work, and school because I had very little time to do homework," senior Ja-mie Meeks said. "I never really got a chance to go to tutorials, especially last year, which is why I was failing three class-es." When teachers see that their students are strug-gling, their solution is for the students to attend tutorials despite having sports or work. Some-times we are left to won-der if the teachers even care that we have other obligations that are im-portant to us. As a stu-dent first, we try to do our best to balance school work with other activities, but we need teachers to understand that and try to work with us. One solution, the hard-er one, would be to de-cide which of the two are more important. "If I had a conflict then I would skip band practice or something, but get in trouble, or if I didn't go to tutorials, then I would just continue to strug-gle and ultimately fail," Meeks said. "It's really a lose-lose situation." On the other hand, I can understand why teachers are adamant about stick-ing to their tutorial times. I get that teachers also have other obligations as well and believe that we have to decide between after school activities or failing, but sometimes it's just not that black and

white. There’s always that gray area that is never understood by the opposing side and for us students, it is frustrating yet understandable at times. For some students, it is more about time man-agement as opposed to teachers. One student manages to deal with having to play sports and attending tutorials with little to no problem. “I don't really feel that playing sports affects tutorials," junior foot-ball quarterback Tram-mell Weilnau said. The coaches give us time to do what we need to do in order to be passing." For some of the teach-ers here, offering tutori-als after school is the only thing that they can do. “My reason for not having tutorials before school is due to the fact that I live far,” physics teacher Deborah Wilkes said. “I would have to get up really early and leave my house early to have morning tutorials. I get to school at 7:20 which isn’t enough time to offer morning tutorials to stu-dents.” With conflicts such as this, I believe that it is up to the students to get the help that they need regarding school. We cannot always put the blame on the teachers, even though, at times, it would seem easier. I do believe that the solution is compromise between teachers and students, a mutual agreement to an arrangement.

By: BRITTANY MOORESTAFF WRITER

Tutorials vs. activitiesStudents struggle with decision between athletics and academics.Into the Mind of JGK.An interview with SW’S local genius

By: JESSICA JONESBUSINESS MANAGER

~Jim Kirkwood has been teaching physics/random knowledge at Spring Woods for over a decade. His lec-tures, consistently mind-blowing, give him the reputa-

tion of smartest man in the world.

Q: You have been teaching at Spring Woods for over a decade. What changes have you seen over the years?

A: Some of the changes havebeen from the outside as in the federal, state governments, andthe school district. Specifically, No Child Left Behind. The emphasis is now on strugglingkids and school evaluations are based almost entirely on how they do. The kids who areon top aren’t ignored, but the resources are being diverted away from them. It’s good tohave an overall educated w o r k force, but if the top end can’t be made b e t t e r , how can wec o m p e t e w i t h India and China?

Q : Do you think this generation will change the world for better or worse? How so?

A: It’s like a net full of helium balloons that are released. After a minute, this one balloon is way over here, another one is way over there, one is flying towards the sun, some are floundering along the ground, and some are heading towards the rose bushes of certain doom. I see graduation that way. Some of the students will go on to change things for the better, some will not. Those that do go on will face many challenges and I think there are going to be some bad times ahead, worldwide. The question is, how will this generation handle it?

Q: There has been a lot of changes going on at NASA. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

A: NASA is a national treasure and since it’s only about an hour drive away so if you live here and you haven’t visited,

what are you waiting for? Everyone used to be enthralled with the space program in the Kennedy years, but the program has become unfocused. NASA used to have awesome open houses, but then 9/11 happened. NASA became a target and everything was tighter than a drum. A few years ago, the open houses came back, but they are a shadow of what they used to be. It’s still worth going because you get to see things you wouldn’t otherwise. NASA still has a future, but unfortunately it’s a political ball game right now.

Q: Your rocket’s class was cut this year. Why was that and how do you feel about that?

A: I heard several reasons as to why rockets was cut, but it probably comes down to the budget cuts. It was very unfortunate, because this class was an engineering class where we applied engineering to a real product. The mission of the rockets class was to get a one pound payload up one mile, and other than one incident three years ago, they successfully did this many times and we have the HD video to prove it. My rockets II class actually broke the sound barrier last year and only ten schools in the world can say they have done that.

Q: You’re easily one of the most memorable teacher at Spring Woods. How do you feel about your popularity?

A: I always get emails from former students and they come back and visit.

I run into former students as well, one who ended up being a Marine and thanked me for setting him straight. I display scholarship opportunities along the back wall of my classroom and one year, $30,000 was earned from my display. It’s nice to know that people appreciate me because for years I’ve been building ships and sending them into the dark. Do they make it to the other shore? Do they sink? So, I always go to homecoming because I hope some one will come back which is kind of sad, but I want to know what happened to the ships.

Q: Where do you see yourself ten years from now? Still at Spring Woods?

A: I’m not sure what I want to do when I grow up so I can’t answer that q u e s t i o n [laughs]. I’ll probably be retired.

Q: If you were the principal of Spring Woods, what is one change that you would make?

A: I would realize that there are not enough hours in the day to do what is requested.

Q: Tell me something interesting to close with. One of your Kirk-isms, as the students call it.

A: This weekend I went to Jellystone park. If you ever get a chance to go there, find something else to do. There was an avogadro’s number of little kids painting pumpkins, they are kicking dirt, throwing sticks, and of course it rained. On the brightside, one of holes at the put-put course was a good analogy for demonstrating the difficulty transuranic isotopes have with the neutron capture.

the government from making over-riding, unfair choices that would turn the country into chaos. By giving the people a voice, peace can be maintained and the country can be kept happy..for the most part. Obviously there are complaints and upset citizens, but this is just a part of how society functtion. Seniors must realize that registration is important and should be done as soon as their 18th birthday comes around. Pay attention to politics and news in order to develop an educated point of view. Don’t put voting off. Your opinion is important, no matter how young you are. Senior

Samantha Pollicove realizes the significance of voting and urges her fellow seniors to do so. “It enables us to voice our opinions that are documented in a different way and considered for further action,” said Pollicove. “Voting can influence and change the government in various means and how our country is conducted; not so much a drastic change, but a change that can start out small and eventually morph into something that can impact us.” After many years of watching elections, unable to participate in the privilege of voting, the time has finally come

for those in the class of 2012. Senior principal Jason Ovalle has high hopes for his graduating class. “Voting is a very important right to be taken seriously and I don’t think enough young adults know that. They don’t realize that they have power as a group and if they did, elections would be different.” Ovalle said. While the big choice is over a year away, now is the time to start coming to concise views about where you want America to be four years from now. Voting is a sacred right and should be used. I, for one, will be voting next November.

Continued from PAGE 9

Guthrie s t u d e n t s a r e desperate for a third bus, b e c a u s e they are having to sit three to

a seat. As a student who rides the bus, I strongly feel another bus should be added. These buses are just overly crowded. If there are three people to a seat, then it’s really hard trying to get down the isle. Personally I don’t like to be uncomfortable, so when a third person wants to sit with me it’s like, are you serious? This highly ridiculous. Once having to sit with two other people, I couldn’t get my thoughts together, because I was worried I

might fall off the seat. “I was not aware this was an ongoing issue. Usually we hear from the drivers or students,”Building Principal Joe Kolenda said. So if students and drivers don’t say anything, how would higher the authority know? Someone has to speak up. Teens are rushing to the buses just to get a good spot,and not be stuck out sitting at the edge of the seat with two other students.“I hate having to sit with two other people. It’s just ridiculous,” junior Giovanni Uriostegui said. Students are in need of another bus going to Guthrie. It possibly could be due to budget cuts or lack of drivers. Students shouldn’t be uncomfortable because of these problems.

“No buses have been reduced due to budget cuts,” Kolenda said. “Occasionally if a driver is sick and we do not have a sub, we may run short or sometimes the bus will run late. But our transportation department works hard to get our students here and back as safely and quickly as possible.” Since Principal Kolenda said there is not a problem with budget cuts, possibly it could be fixed. Students just want to have a comfortable ride when going to Guthrie. It might be a short ride, but students just want to be comfortable and not have to rush. So, hopefully something soon will be done.“I will contact transportation and see what’s happening, and check the drivers as well,”Kolenda said.

Fewer buses anger studentsGuthrie principal tries to fix problem.

By JAZMINE CLARKSTAFF WRITER

What do you think of when you hear the words “ h a r m e d species?” C h a n c e s are, it’s not

the Ocelot, one of the most overlooked animals of the Animal Kingdom. Ocelots are commonly unheard of in the feline family because of their extreme rarity. In case you have been living under a rock, much like my opponent here, the Ocelot is incredibly awesome and should be seen as such. But, in order to make this a much more convincing argument, don’t let me do the talking, let the facts do the talking. The sleek, the smooth, the sly and the deceptive Ocelot is seen as a predator to many in the jungle. Living in the South American rain forest, and upper parts o f

Central America and Texas, the Ocelot is capable of hunting down nearly any animal in its reach. Stalking prey at night, the Ocelot is able to lurk in the trees and spot defenseless animals from above using its nocturnal, binocular vision. That’s right, those big beautiful blue ones are made for more than just stealing our hearts. But what animals do the ferocious beasts hunt for? Simple: anything. That is right, the Ocelot eats whatever its heart may desire: monkeys, deer, snakes, ant eaters. For the Ocelot, any meat, is good meat. After tracking prey of any and all sizes, the Ocelot uses its massive razor sharp teeth to rip apart its innocent victims. These teeth, however, were not made for chewing meat, only ripping meat off the bone and swallowing it whole. While Ocelots are a magnificent killing beast of the Americas, they are also one of the most adorable animals in existence. With big, glaring eyes, short, rounded ears, and a soft, fine fur that contains spots and stripes, it is incredibly cute. Yes, it is odd and often times seen as lame to admire a killing machine’s adorable

Point-Counter Point: What animal is best?By CADE BUNDRICKCO-EDITOR IN CHIEF

By JACK RODGERSEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

physical features, but that is what makes it so perfect. Being such an adorable animal, the Ocelot would not at first be seen as a perfectly trained tool of death and destruction, but in reality, it is. When seeing an Ocelot in person, many of its victims first look at the elegant innocence of the creature, before they realize that it is too late. The simple gist of what I am saying, is that the Ocelot is more awesome through subtlety. The Ocelot does not NEED to be some kind of huge mascot for bloodshed and terror, which is what my opponent believes. Instead it is the secret victor in the shadows, the one you would not expect, the one so adorable that once you pick it up to admire its awesome features. It attacks you without a second thought. This, my dear friends, is the Ocelot. I personally don’t know of anything more awesome than an animal quite so cute, that can take down any other animal it may choose.

Forget all of what you just read and take a look at this. This, boys and g i r l s , is the

honey badger, which is basically the greatest animal who ever lived, ever. It's a combination of anger, teeth, ferocity, claws, rage, and domination. The honey badger's African name actually means "the destroyer of souls" [citation needed]. The honey badger is such a boss that its only predators are lions and leopards. That’s right, taking down a honey badger is only done in nature by a nine foot long cat that weighs 400 pounds, which, for those of you keeping score at home, is about 11.5 times larger than a normal adult badger. Honey badgers also participate in something called “surplus killing”, which involves digging underneath henhouses that are made of stone and thick wooden boards and ripping out the

foundation of the coop. In one instance, a single honey badger got into a henhouse and killed 17 Muscovy ducks and 36 pullets. And if you are out in the Sub-Saharan African wilderness and are unfortunate enough to be armed with only a razor sharp machete, then you’re going to be out of luck as the honey badger’s skin is so thick, it can withstand machete blows, as well as being almost impervious to arrows and spears. You could even send your pack of dogs after it,

wouldn’t m a t t e r ,

the honey b a d g e r

would rip those things open with teeth and claws that would make the world’s strongest man go crying for his mother. As its name suggests, the honey badger has a sweet tooth for nectar, and will stop at nothing to get it. You know African Killer Bees? The ones that swarm and destroy and kill grown men in Georgia?

The ones that invade the hives of the sissier European honey bees and stomp the trash out of them, pillaging and plundering? Honey badgers eat those things for breakfast. The honey badger will just waltz up to an unsuspecting African Killer Bee hive and jam his face into it. The bees can swarm and sting all they want to, the honey badger doesn’t care: he keeps on eating like it’s Thanksgiving, trusting that his quarter inch thick skin will protect him from the puny stingers. The Guinness Book of World Records even has the honey badger listed as “the world’s most fearless creature”. The National Geographic Channel airs a show called “Honey Badger: The Meanest Animal in the World”. Now, can anyone really think that some kind of super angry house cat, the ocelot, would possibly be a match for the honey badger? So, if I’m ever walking down a dark alley for some unexplained reason and I happen to come across a honey badger, I think that I would go ahead and run away like a little girl. Or, I would go running away like the pansy that the ocelot is.

Use the right you are given. Seniors to vote in next presidential electionBy JESSICA JONESBUSINESS MANAGER

For the past seventeen years, we have seen the election p r o c e s s h a p p e n four times with all the

debate and anger that surrounds it. We have listened to our parents discuss and complain about politics without really knowing or caring what the true issues are. Some seniors who are going to turn 18 only seem to think about the devious things you can do at this age. They should instead focus on one of the most important tasks American citizens can perform every four years- voting. I believe it is extremely important that we all register to vote as we come of age because the opportunity to give your

opinion is not something to pass up. Voting is a civil responsibility that Americans should perform as soon as they can. For the class of 2012, an election is coming right in time for us to make our voices heard. Voting allows you to have an opinion. You cannot complain about political leaders or the choices they make if you were not a part of the decision in the first place. While many have announced intentions to run as GOP presidential candidates, a few stand about above the rest. Current President and democrat Barack Obama is planning to run against one of many republicans including Herman Cain, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, and our own governor, Rick Perry. Seniors need to begin formulating an idea of what kind of leadership our country

needs in its current state, thus deciding on a leader who would make the choices that fit their views. Senior Jordan Cabrera has already begun this process, speaking highly of Ron Paul. “He wants to minimize the federal government and emphasize the state government so that each state can focus on their specific needs regarding education, business infrastructure instead of following the same laws that might not be best for them,” Cabrera said. Some may feel that voting is unimportant or something they can do later in life. America is characterized as the home of the free because citizens are able to be a part of the decisions that effect them. Voting prevents the government from Continued on PAGE 8

The Renaissance Fes-tival, home of Turkey Legs and fun times was sieged by fire during the wildfires. The only thing that kept the festival from burn-ing down was a 20 foot wide dirt road holding the m e m b e r s of the fes-tival family. The work-ers banded together to defend their home from the rampant fires, and won. “People were posting constant updates on Facebook and Twitter throughout the entire crisis,” festival work-er Debra Abnail said. “Workers that were 1200 miles away had a play by play update on what was happen-ing, and how they could help.” With this play by play update, the worker could

tell where they could help at at all times. There was never an unattended fire that. There was always a worker there to watch the situation. Their reports were relayed through

Facebook to whoever was willing to help. “We in-c r e a s e d our Face-book fol-l o w e r s by 5,000 people in-side of 3

days,” Director of Mar-keting Gina Rotolo said. “We also coordinated donated supplies and emergency crews, and acted as an emergency crew staging area.” The workers at the Re-naissance Festival didn't only relay information for others, they gave up their homes as refugee shelters for the affected people. These shelters were set up all around the area by caring work-ers.

“I felt a bit worried for the people around the area who were going to lose their homes. I of-fered storage space and sleeping arrangements for people who lived in the effected region,” TRF actor Stephen Dodd said. “I knew that deep down, even if TRF had b e e n burned, I don't think it would've s t o p p e d anything,” Dodd said. “If there's one thing I’m certain of, it's the perseverance and com-munity of our faire-mily.” Workers weren't the only ones to help. People that have gone to TRF their entire life offered a helping hand in what-ever way they could. Some people donated items to help, and others changed their lifestyle to try and prevent this from happening ever again,

“I was very worried about the grounds and a beautiful venue being de-stroyed,” TRF patron Re-becca Verde said. “I even promised myself that if the grounds remained untouched by the fires, I would quit smoking cigarettes so that when

I visit the f e s t i v a l , I will be one less p e r s o n who could potentially harm the grounds.” In the end, with all of the efforts of

the people of the area, the fire was defeated. The blaze came within 100 yards of the prop-erty, and right up to the edge of a 60-foot fire-break the crew cleared around the festival site. The Renaissance Festi-val is open right now and ready for you to have a great time there.

Renaissance Festival sieged by fires. Community commits to help defend the FaireBy SCOTT MOORESTAFF WRITER

SPOOKY EVENING:Faire goers enjoy All Hallows Eve.

FIRE FLIGHTER:Community combats fire in helicopter.

Sports provide easier transition into high school

The transition from middle school to high school is always hard, but does being on a sports team make it just a little bit less difficult? Entering high school, after middle school is hard r e g a r d l e s s , but many teens say that being on a sports team has made it easer to adjust. It gives you a sense of

The Tex-ans have definitely improved a lot, but they are going to need a miracle to overcome o t h e r

teams in the league with-out their best defensive player. Mario Williams is out for the entire season due to an injury to a pectoral muscle. Arguably the best play-er on the roster, what will the Texans be without Williams? A rookie is to replace Williams for the re-mainder of the season, Brooks Reed. His per-formance at the Oakland game was enough to im-press, finishing with four tackles and two quarter-back hurries. “I know no one is ex-pecting me to produce as much as Mario, but I think it will be a collective effort,” Reed said. Expectations are high for Reed, but he is not alone in that. Derrick Mason was the fourth round pick by the Tennessee Oilers in 1997. He is 37 years old and he says he has still got the kick, and he is coming to the Texans. Mason is the number 12 receiver in NFL history with 937 receptions, and leads all active receivers with 12,006 yards. Houston traded a sev-enth round draft pick for Mason in the next NFL draft to the New York Jets. Mason definitely wouldn't hurt the Texans. The Texans could make it through the next few games with ease, with-out their star players, and with their new play-ers: just not the way they have been playing lately. The other players on the team are going to have to step up and make plays. If they do not turnover so many balls, and make excellent coaching deci-sions and plays, they will do just fine. If they could get Arian Foster to run it a few blocks, all will be good. The problem with the Texans now is that there are too many “what if's”.

The Texans are good...they've got heartBy JAROSLAV UNARSTAFF WRITER

belonging, knowing you have a group of people to hang out with. “I hang out with my volleyball team everyday. They’re my best friends,”

freshman volleyball player Carolina Call said.

Call agreed that it gave most of the players a sense of camaraderie and knowing they fit in. “Being on a team b a s i c a l l y p r o v i d e s you with a group of friends! You don’t have to worry about where y o u ’ r e going to sit at lunch,” freshman football player

Kelly Fields said. For many teens, where you’re going to sit at lunch is a big deal. So

By HALEY SCHILDSTAFF WRITER

Team camaraderie benefits freshmen.

most agree having a special place to fit into is a great deal of help.

“I love my team, we’ve become great friends! We always sit together at lunch,” freshman tennis player Rogelio Bautista

MAKE THE CATCH: A Spring Woods football player runs to catch the ball.

said. The season for football and volleyball is coming to an end. “Our team hasn’t done as good as we had hoped, but with a little improvement we could do better,” Fields said about the freshman football team record. For many of the students on the freshmen teams, it was their first or second time playing the sport. “It wasn’t my first year playing volleyball, but I’m definitely new to playing the game,” freshman volleyball player Bianca Teran said.

SERVE: Carolina Call serves the ball.

The Spring Woods Tiger swim team is gearing up for the upcoming 2011-2012 swim season. The season runs October through February with 11 scheduled meets leading up to District. Over half of the meets are home meets this year which should give the team a good advantage. This year’s team consists of 10 freshmen, 12 sophomores and 15 juniors. There are no seniors on the roster which may be due to difficulty committing to the athletic practice schedule with the new graduation requirements. “I quit swim team after being on the team for

three years because of all of my AP classes,” f o r m e r swimmer K e l s e y C a d a v i d s a i d . “I was a l w a y s up late at night d o i n g s c h o o l w o r k . S w i m team was fun, I just d i d n ’ t h a v e e n o u g h time for it.” The swim t e a m practices everyday except for Thursdays at the W.W. Emmons Natatorium.

Additional practices have been added on the

weekends and on Christmas break. The focus of p r a c t i c e has been to build up speed and strength in all of the swimmers so they will be ready to compete. The team is lead under the d i r e c t i o n of Coach L e s l i e R i e n s t r a a n d Ass is tant

Coach Megan Doby who are dedicated to helping

By CARLY BATTERSONSTAFF WRITER

More home meets provide swimmers with advantage Lack of seniors creates potential downfall.

In the past years, health fitness class has mostly consisted of, running track, doing pushups, climbing rope, playing ball and having a coach blow a whistle in your ear. Now Spring Woods has an aerobics class that has been going on for two years now. It is taught by tennis coach Misty Germer. “I hope that the kids have been enjoying the class and that it will

keep on being a regular fitness class at Spring Woods,” Germer said. Since aerobics isn’t usually a health fitness class held at most schools, most kids don’t know what aerobics is. “I think it has something to do with water,” freshman Carolina Call said. Health fitness director, Rebecca Fox came up with the idea of an aerobics class at Spring Woods.

The idea was formed

when dance, (that was originally made for girls)

was filled up.Fox wanted a class where girls would be interested in it more than the workouts. Some other boys last year got interested in the class too and joined. “It’s a cool class. A relaxing class,” 9th grader Soo Yun Kim said. This year other fitness classes were filled up so the aerobics class

is bigger than usual. Germer is happy with the

Aerobics steps up to the plateNew health fitness credit adds variety to athletics.

By LILYA GEHMANSTAFF WRITER

fact that she can teach even more kids about the class this year. “My goal is to send these teenagers away with good nutritional habits and feeling fit when they leave this class,” Germer said. Aerobics is available 5th and 6th period if you are interested in taking the class next semester. If you have questions, you can go to her office room 130 or the field house.

AEROBICS IN ACTION: Germer adds fun to the usual Aerobics work-out..

GOLD MEDAL SWIMMER: Kayla Loebl finshes after a long practice.

each athlete achieve their personal best. Last

year, Coach Doby came in and provided support

for the team. “It is great to have an assistant that knows the sport. It allows us to spend more time with the swimmers on their skills,” Rienstra said. Last season, the team celebrated six wins and two losses in dual meets. “I expect this year’s team to do well and I am excited by their work ethic,” Rienstra said.

PRACTICE HARD: Pedro Presas kicks hard in practice to get across the pool.

MFAH *(free on Thursdays) - 1001 Bissonnet Houston, TX 713-639-7300www.mfah.comThursdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Discovery Green Park *(always free, some events may charge fee) - 1500 McKinney StHouston, TX 713-400-7336www.discoverygreen.com Events: -Dionysus at the Green [Alice in Wonderland Play] (11/12/11; 6 p.m.) -Fun-omenal Family Festival (11/13/2011; 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.) *You can also plan a picnic in the park, bike rides, family runs, etc.

The Menil Collection (Museum) *(always free) - 1515 Sul Ross St Hous-ton, TX 713-525-9400www.menil.orgFriday – Sunday 11:00 a.m – 7:00 p.m. Events -”Walter De Maria: 'Trilogies' Her First Major Art Museum Exhibition in the United States” (currently ongoing until 01/08/12)

Contemporary Arts Museum *(always free) - 5216 Montrose Blvd Houston, TX 713-526-0773www.camh.orgFriday, 11 a.m. to 7p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Events: -”Artists/Scholars Talk: Doug-las Crimp” (11/05/11; 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.)

Miller Outdoor Theatre *(always free, some events may charge fee) – 6000 Hermann Park Drive Hous-ton, TX 281-823-9103www.milleroutdoortheatre.com Events: -Sing-A-Long Movies at Mill-er: Grease (Rockin' Rydell Edition) (11/05/11; 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.) -Art Car: The Movie (11/13/11; 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.)

Don’t have any money, but wanna have fun?Here are a few free, fun activities to do on the weekends..

By JAZMINE CANTUSTAFF WRITER

The Bully’s Choice By: Lorelei Shannon