TIGER TIMEStexas high school . volume 50 . issue 2 . 10/29/10 . 4001 summerhill rd . texarkana, tx

Basketball season preview

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visit us online at www.tigertimesonline.com

Band member chronicles the end of an era

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Student chooses pirate life, gets friends onboard

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Substitute teachers. Students have those they dread, those they tolerate, those they make fun of, and, rarely, those they love and respect. Until recently, if asked about their favorite sub, many stu-dents would immediately respond, “Mr. Walmart.”

“Those who had Mr. Walmart know how great of not only a man, but also a role model he was,” senior Braydon Jones said. “Whether it was walking down the hallways or at any Texas High athletic event, Mr. Walmart could bring a smile to anyone’s face. He was not just a substitute, but was a friend, character, and most impor-tantly, a true Tiger Fan.”

William Terry Henderson, 67, died Friday, Oct. 1, in a lo-cal hospital. Henderson was the grandfather of three, the father of two, and the husband of 45 years of Deanna Henderson, who works as an English teacher here.

Henderson, fondly known as “Mr. Walmart” by the students he taught as a substitute, worked at the school after retiring from his position as Community Develop-ment Coordinator of Walmart. During his time at Walmart, Henderson worked to donate thousands of dollars to schools in our district.

“He was the liaison between the schools and Walmart,” Eng-lish teacher Jeanie Nutter said. “Walmart gave him a lot of money that he gave not only to Texas

High, but to all the schools in our area.”

Henderson was known not only for his kindness and generos-ity, but also for his dependabil-ity and enthusiasm for helping students any way he could.

“Terry Henderson was a man that you could always depend upon,” leadership teacher Susan Waldrep said. “When I needed extra chaperones for a student council trip, Terry and Deanna were right there. When, at the last minute, I needed an extra driver to go to San Antonio, Terry immedi-ately volunteered.”

Henderson first became involved because his daughter, Jamie, was a student at the school, when the family first moved to Texarkana.

“I got to know Terry first as a parent, because Jamie was on drill team,” Nutter said. “He was most supportive. He went to all the football games, in town and out of

town; he was an avid fan.”When Henderson retired and

became a substitute teacher, he

See Walmart on page 3

Mr. Walmart brought smiles to facesEmily Hoover

news editor

Science teacher looks to adoption to expand family

Four years ago, 10-year-old Cody Hunter considered himself a misfit. He was living with his mother, sister, and disobedient

little brother in Phoenix, Ariz. He was prone to running away from home, and was once picked up by the police. His drug-using father had left their family years before, and his mother was struggling to keep their family in tact.

Cody’s living situation was the epitome of “parched ground,” and although he didn’t know anything different, his mother was thirsty for her children to have a better life. Through her social worker, she connected with Watersprings Ranch, a Christian-based long-term residential home for children. Located in Texarkana, Ark., the Ranch appealed to Cody’s mother because the organiza-tion is faith-based and requires no tuition or fees on her part. Cody and his younger brother, Zac, were soon enrolled. Their young minds had no idea the opportunities awaited them.

The new family created at Watersprings Ranch has provided Cody and his brother with an overflowing of happy times. Flooding needy children’s lives with love is the desire of David and Carla Whatley, who founded the organization in 1989, abiding by the scripture Psalm 107:35-36: “He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings. And there He maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation.”

The ranch is currently home to 34 children of all ages who have been abused, neglected or abandoned. Complete with five group homes, an on-grounds school, and an unending supply of love, Watersprings Ranch rehabilitates children with structure and discipline.

See Hunter on page 7

Freshman makesranch his home

Ellen Orrviewpoint editor

FAMILY matters

Freshman Cody Hunter holds a photo taken of him the day he arrived at Watersprings Ranch from Arizona. photo by John Dukes

Science teacher Meagan Martin and her husband, Russ, are hoping to adopt soon. submitted photo

Meagan Martin waited, hope building with every passing second. Maybe, just maybe, this time would be different.

As she looked down at the pregnancy test, the glimmer of hope faded into a deep disappointment.

“Over the past couple of years, there were four or five times when I thought I was pregnant and used a pregnancy test,” Martin, a science teacher, said. “With each negative result, it was like a dream was shat-tered.”

Meagan and her husband have been married for about six years and

have been trying to have children for four years. In 2006, they moved to Texarkana and she started her career as a teacher.

“At that point, we decided that we would like to start a family,” she said.

However, their dream of having children was postponed.

“A year went by and nothing had happened; two years and still noth-ing,” she said. “It had been about two years and I asked my doctor if there was a reason that we were not successful.”

See Martin on page 7

Terry Henderson, also known as Mr. Walmart, is pictured here with his daughter, Ja-mie, and wife Deanna Henderson, an English teacher. Henderson died Oct. 1 after a lengthy illness. submitted photo

The Pulse

Oct.29 SulpherSprings AwayNov.8 Meeting 7:30Nov.9 SeniorPanoramicNov.8-10 SeniorsbuildbonfireNov.11 ClubpicturedayNov.11 Warm-upsday SpiritdayNov.11 Play-offPepRally 7:30Nov.12 Play-offGame Home

In Remembrance

Formercommercialphotographystudentand2010graduateMarianHillwonaGoldCircleCommendedMeritAwardfromtheColumbiaScholasticPressAssociationforherportraittitled,“GraveyardShift.”

Congratulations

Teacher BarbecueThePhotoClubissellingticketsforabarbecueluncheonforteachersNov.9inRoom64.ThelunchwillincludeSmokeyJoe’sbarbecue,potatosalad,beansanddessert.Ticketsare$5inadvanceor$7atthedoorandcanbepurchasedfromanycommercialphotographystudentorcontactClintSmithinRoom61.

Win a Trip

The Debate Club is selling raffle tickets for $20 to win an all expenses paid trip to Branson, Mo. Tickets are on sale now in the cafeteria during all lunches. The drawing will be live on TigerVision on March 1. All proceeds will go to the Debate Club Senior College Scholarship Program. The winner off the raffle will receive the following :

• 3 Nights Hotel Stay (2 adults, 2 children)• 4 Tickets Silver Dollar City Theme Park• 4 Tickets Showboat Branson Belle Dinner Show • 4 Tickets Legends in Concert

To find out more information, contact debate club president Riden Reiter, vice president Brian Escriche or sponsor Brandi Burrow. Special thanks to Marc and Nancy Reiter at Unique Travels and Tours.

Yearbooksarenowonsalefor$55,andstudentsareencouragedtopre-orderbeforethepricegoesup.ThepriceofthebookalsoincludestheDVDproducedbyTigerVision.OrderformsareavailableinRoom50orfromyearbookstaffmembers.Thosewhowishtopurchasewithacreditcardmaygotowww.yearbooksforever.com.ThedeadlinetoorderbeforethepriceincreaseisDec.17.

Order Yearbooks

SergeantKyleStout,2003graduateofTexasHigh,waskilledFriday,July30,whileservinginAfghanistan.InStout’shonor,therewillbeadistrict-wideeffortinthenextfewweekstosendcarepackagestotroopsoverseaswhoservedwithhim.GobyWaldrep’sroom(room23)tofindoutmoreaboutthiseffort.

Student Council

Band CompetitionThebandcompetedintheNortheastTexasInvitationalMarchingContestOct.9,receivingfirstdivisionawardsinallcategories:band,colorguard,percussionanddrummajor.“Ithinkit’sgreat,”seniordrummajorBassDeesesaid.“WeworkedsohardleadinguptotheinvitationalatMt.Pleasant.”

Coffman fundraiserKeychainsandorangebraceletsarebeingsoldfortheCurtisCoffmanScholarshipfundfor$3each.Orangeisnotonlyaschoolcolor;itisalsothecolorthatrepresentsleukemia.Togetone,contactMorganorBrittonPatton.BothareavailableonFacebook.AfundraiserwillbeheldonOct.30at8a.m.atApplebee’s.

Debate club raffles Branson, Mo., trip

The Dollar Jewelry Store, located in Richmond Plaza, offers a selection of affordable jewelry in every color

and style.“The store is constantly changing,”

senior Kara Saulsbury, an employee, said. “We get shipments in every week. It’s refreshing to not sell the same thing everyday.”

Located in the front of the store are all kinds of rings. All around are bracelets, necklaces, and earrings in color-coordinated rows.

“Almost everything is a dollar. There is some more ‘expensive’ jewelry,” Saulsbury

said. “The purses and sunglasses and wallets are more than a dollar, of course.”

In the middle of this rainbow jewelry are racks of purses and handbags for $20 each. Another corner contains sunglasses and wallets for $5 apiece. It can be especially helpful at the last minute.

“I bought an outfit because I was going on a date with my boyfriend the next day,” senior Karrah Gilbert said. “I went in there and got a ring and a pair of earrings. It was perfect [for the outfit] and really cute.”

The store has been well received; they have racks of colorful, unique jewelry, but the jewelry itself is inexpensive.

“I got five bracelets for $5,”sophomore Madeleine Russell said. “It’s worth the price.”

Julia Hurlburtstaffwriter

New $1 jewelry store

UIL team places at meetThe UIL Math and Science teams

participated in a meet against the “best of the best” in North East Texas Oct. 23.

Sophomores Allye Prather and Dustin Thomas, coached by math teacher Lisa Zach, both placed. Prather received eighth place in math and Thomas finished fifth in Calculator Applications.

Junior Michael Elkins, coached by science teacher Bob Harris, also placed eighth in science.

“For their first time out our math and science team did a wonderful job,” UIL coordinator Elaine Harrell said. “They competed against teams who have been going to practice meets since the beginning of the school year. Coaches Lisa Zach and Bob Harris are doing an amazing job with the math and science teams.”

For more information on participating in UIL competitions, see Harrell in Room 41.

Pictures scheduled Nov. 5Picture retakes for grades nine through

eleven and faculty have been reschedule for Friday, Nov. 9.

Order forms are still available for those who want to order their pictures. The forms are located in the front office. These should be turned in to the photographer when the photo is taken.

Pictures will begin at 10:30 a.m. in

Room 50 and will end around 1 p.m.Other picture days include the senior

panoramic on Nov. 9 at 8:30 a.m. The location for the picture will be announced at a later time.

Club pictures will be taken Nov. 11 all day in the multipurpose building. A schedule will be sent out about a week prior to the picture date.

TigerVisionannouncementshit the web

For those who missed the daily live announcements from TigerVision, they can be viewed online as part of the newspaper’s website.

Other additional content includes stories, pictures taken at school events and videos.

The last pep rally and senior night are topics of new videos that were added this week.

Content is being added daily and can be viewed at www.tigertimesonline.com.

Submit lettersto the editor

Want to voice your opinion? Submit a letter to the editor in Room 50. All letters must include the student’s name and grade.

03newsFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

The library is not overly popular among students, but librarian Emily Ransom is doing her best to change that. From adding newer, more modern books to rear-ranging the library’s furni-ture, Ransom is hoping to make the library more ap-pealing to the student body. “I hope that the library will be more interesting to stu-dents,” Ransom said.

Most of the books that line the library’s shelves aren’t what the average high school student would con-sider entertaining reading material.

“I try to go through and see which ones are not really interesting anymore ... and order things that students

have put in the suggestion box,” Ransom said. “I’ve gone to some book sales and gotten some popular books like Maximum Ride, Twi-light, Tolkein, Harry Potter.”

Ransom is also working to make the library a more enjoyable and accessible place.

“We’ve added a couple of comfortable reading areas with a couch and chairs,” Ransom said. “I’m rearrang-ing where some of the books are located so that the fiction is closer to the front, near the door.”

Students can also con-tribute by donating recent and popular books to add to the growing collection on the library’s shelves.

“We’re trying to make the library more accessible to all students,” Ransom said.

Take a seat, get comfortableRansom hopes to expandselections with donations

Abigail O’Gormanstaff writer

Muralsprovidecreativeflair

When it comes to getting students interested in read-ing, Texas Middle School librarian Teresa Bennett is adding a creative flair.

“I love being the librarian at TMS because I am lucky enough to combine my two favorite things–art and lit-erature,” Bennett said. “I wanted to make the library more kid-friendly with an atmosphere that would en-courage kids to read.”

In order to accomplish her goals, she has painted about 50 feet of murals that stretch around the library.

“I took many things into consideration before paint-ing the murals, and so far I have made three of them,” Bennett said. “My main in-spiration ended up being the fact that I wanted kids to feel comfortable in the library.

Bennett hopes the mu-rals and overall relaxed at-mosphere in the library will inspire others to strengthen their reading skills.

“I miss the high school

atmosphere and the ma-turity level that came with it, but I love the role I play now,” Bennett said. “I have begun planning a ‘chill zone’ where kids can come and prop their feet up to read, and I will start putting it together with the money we make from the book fairs.”

Bennett’s hard work has not gone unnoticed by the students of the Middle School. “The murals are beautiful,” eighth Colleen Russell said, “and they make the library bright and wel-coming.”

Bennett, who taught ninth grade STEM English

last year, said she started to think of ways to improve the library when she was hired.

“When I found out that the position for librarian was open, I emailed my applica-tion in,” Bennett said. “I de-cided when I got the job that I wanted to make the library feel more modern yet be ap-pealing to kids.”

Out of the three murals, Bennett enjoys the one with a Texas Tiger floating on clouds the most.

“I plan on the murals wrapping all the way around the library so that it fits to-gether,” Bennett said.

Her murals will be tied

by the squares she had con-necting them, and she has plans for more.

“I paint the murals early in the morning and some-times on the weekend,” Ben-nett said. “I plan on painting behind my desk, and I want it to be about expanding one’s thinking.”

She hopes that the art will encourage the students to expand their minds.

“What I’m doing now suits me better and it’s really great,” Bennett said. “The library was already a really great place, but I’m glad I could put my own touch into it.”

John David Goinsstaff writer

Texas Middle School librarian Teresa Bennett stands by one of the murals she painted in the library. photo by Kayla Cigainero

was immediately well liked and respected.“Mr. Walmart was my favorite sub,” junior Falisha

Folks said. “He made class fun, but we still did our work. Everyone respected him. He definitely made his mark on Texas High.”

Henderson had his own method for teaching the classes that students really appreciated. Instead of ignor-ing the class or yelling, Henderson told stories from his life and gave the students riddles.

“Mr. Walmart was just an overall amazing person as well as a substitute teacher,” junior Larkin Parks said. “The most memorable things about Mr. Walmart were his clever riddles. Not only was [working them] fun, but it got our brains working for that class.”

His positive attitude on life kept the classes fun and added to the students’ appreciation.

“He was my favorite sub, I guess because he always had a smile on his face,” junior Claire Howard said. “He always told funny stories to make us laugh.”

Henderson also had a big heart for those who he felt had been treated unfairly. Money was not important to him; people were.

“Coming back from lunch, the entire class was in their seats quickly because no one wanted to miss what Mr. Walmart might do,” Jones said. “Mr. Walmart comes in and says, ‘I hope you all had a great lunch’. One kid replies ‘I wish I could have eaten’. Mr. Walmart replies, ‘You didn’t eat...cat got your stomach?’ Laughing the student replied, ‘No, I didn’t have any money in my ac-count’. Without hesitation, Mr. Walmart reached into his wallet and pulled out some cash and said to the young man, ‘Lunch is on me. Go grab you something to eat’.”

Henderson believed that everything and everyone should be treated with respect. For him, this was common sense.

“As a teacher it was nice [to have Terry], because you didn’t have to worry about class discipline when he was subbing,” Waldrep said. “You also didn’t have to worry about anything being out of place in your room, because he was a man of character, and he treated everything like his own.”

Henderson worked hard to be the best parent, hus-band, teacher and even neighbor, that he could be. His family meant everything to him, and he considered the world his family.

“I really miss Terry, because many times when I was in my back yard I would hear him over the fence calling, ‘Howdy, neighbor!’” counselor Ann Hoover said. “He was a wonderful addition to our neighborhood family, always looking out for my kids and my puppy dogs.”

Henderson cer-tainly had a sense of humor, but he didn’t appreciate conflict. He worked hard to keep out of problems by using his carefully rehearsed exit strate-gies.

“Terry brought fried chicken every Friday for the football team,” Waldrep said. “One time two of the boys got in a fight, and he was like, ‘See ya!’ and hightailed it out of there.”

Henderson was well loved by his students along with everyone else he ever met. For him, making people happy was second nature, and he will not easily be forgotten.

“He was truly a genuinely nice man,” Parks said. “He was loved and will certainly be missed.”

In an effort to make the library more comfortable, librarian Emily Ran-som hangs a Twilight poster. Ransom is currently accepting donations for books. photo by Hannah Patterson

HENDERSON from page 1

Deanna and Terry Henderson on their wedding day 45 years ago. submitted photo

Evergreen Christmas Tree FarmCut your own live Christmas tree!

6702 Richmond Rd. Texarkana, TXOpens Friday after ThanksgivingCall 903 733 4333

NEWS FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201004

As Texarkana grows, more and more ser-vices are being introduced that could pre-viously be found only in larger cities. One such service is the new business of Texarkana Takeout.

Texarkana Takeout is a project a long time coming for owners Sergio Sencion and Cyenthia Page. Page first got the idea from a friend who was setting up a Restaurant De-livery Service after using one in Oklahoma.

“The idea has been brewing for about two years and I started to get more serious about the idea eight months ago,” Page said. “It wasn’t until May 2010 that I finally told Sergio, ‘Let’s do this.’ We started almost im-

mediately, pulling out my notes and research and sketching out the beginning of the busi-ness.”

Though still growing steadily, the one thing Texarkana already offers are restau-rants; however, before now, the only real delivery option was pizza. Page and Sencion saw opening a restaurant delivery service as a smart business decision as well as an op-portunity to provide service that would be beneficial to Texarkana.

“We are not inventing the wheel. There are many locally-owned restaurant deliv-ery services all over the country,” Page said. “Texarkana allows for great growth in all as-pects… the high demand of food and ser-vices in this area, and the overall attractive market for this type of business.”

Sergio has been the face of Texarkana Takeout. He has done an interview with Jan

Morgan on Channel 10’s Hometown Maga-zine and an interview with TISD Assistant Superintendent of Student & Community Development, Jo Ann Rice, on Out and About. For right now most of the business’s marketing is done through Facebook and fly-ers but they are working on new marketing and promotions.

“We do our own graphic design, on all flyers and business paperwork,” Page said. “We have a few promotions that we are working on now, offering discounts on or-ders. We have a coupon code in Menu Quar-terly and we have just debuted a Loyalty Re-wards program online that will let customers earn points for every dollar spent to cash in for gift certificates.”

Delivery typically takes an hour or less and there are minimum requirements for or-ders. The additional cost for delivery within

a five-mile radius starts at $5.99.“All restaurants have the same require-

ments–$15 for lunch and $10 for dinner,” Page said. “Customers are encouraged to tip the driver--the mobile waiter, like they would any other driver, waiter or service provider.”

Ordering is available online at texarkan-artakeout.com. Business hours are from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. and 5-10 p.m., Monday through Friday. Right now deliveries are available from 15 restaurants and Page and Sencion plan to add more in the future.

“Our goal is to grow to become one of the first things that crosses your mind when you are hungry, but don’t want to leave the house or office,” Page said. “We will achieve this by adding more restaurants, having variety, and gaining the loyalty of customers through our outstanding customer service and profes-sionalism.”

Takeout service offers fast food alternativeCicely Shannonco-editor in chief

order online attexarkanatakeout.com

For sophomore Kelly Burnett, the daily dose of school activi-ties and personal duties were not enough. She wanted to make a dif-ference.

“I felt I should be more in-volved in my community,” Bur-nett said. “I wanted it to be fun and to be able to do it with my friends.”

This led to the creation of the Young Philanthropists group.The group meets once a month, where each member donates $10 earned.

“I usually just babysit, wash the cars, or walk the dogs around the neighborhood,” sophomore Mad-eleine Russell said.

From there, they take the col-lective money and give it to a char-ity chosen and voted for by secret ballot. The amount that they do-nate each month varies between $180 and $300. Some of the char-ities they have given to include: Toys for Tots, Harvest Texarkana, CASA, Pennies for Patients and Opportunities. In addition, at the end of the year they give a 500 scholarship from the money raised over two months to a high school senior that applied from either T-High or Pleasant Grove.

“Elizabeth Stark and I were

the ones to win the case for the last two years,” Russell said. “We go over all the facts and then sum up why that person should get the scholarship in a two minute speech.”

The club has been going for almost two years now, starting in 2008. This is why the group consists of sophomores and fresh-men. Currently the group has 35 members. However, not everyone can get in; prospective members have to be chosen by the original charter members and voted in by secret ballot. Some of the original charter members are Anne Marie Hilborn, Mary Claire Boudreaux, Haley Rushing, Meagan Hunt, Riden Reiter, Alli Clayton, Melis-sa Minter, Wynne Tidwell, Macy Shirley, and Riley Rogers.

Being in the group affects it’s members by giving them on-hand experiences that they have not had the chance or resources to do before. It also benefits them by looking good on resumes and college applications. The main af-fect, however, is realizing the need there is in their hometown.

“[It] has really opened my eyes to all of the organizations in Texarkana,” sophomore Claire Norton said. “I didn’t realize how much local charities needed help.”

Julia Hurlburtstaff writer

New club focuseson giving to localcharities

The Little Theatre Company is set to perform the new fall musical, Hairspray, on Dec. 5-6. With the play right around the corner the cast is hard at work rehearsing.

“We’ve been rehearsing prac-tically everyday,” senior David Thompson III said. “The rehearsals have gone really well.”

So far, the rehearsals have had a less stressful atmosphere than some productions The Little Theater Company has put on in the past.

“We are learning at a steady pace,” Thompson said, “so nothing has been rushed.”

The cast is busy learning all of the dances from the musical, espe-

cially since some of the numbers can be long and complicated.

“I’m not the best dancer,” senior Alyssa Hudspeth said, “so I’ve had some problems catching on.”

With having constant rehears-als the cast is sure to become fast friends and comfortable around each other.

“The cast has been great,” Hud-speth said. “[They have been] help-ing me get all the dances right.”

Hudspeth was nervous about being in front of the cast since this is her first school production with a substantial role.

“I’m nervous about being on stage,” Hudspeth said. “I hope I don’t mess up when I’m singing.”

The Hairspray cast has become a close-knit group, and they will

support each other before and dur-ing the show.

“Even though I’m worried about my role in the play,” Hud-speth said, “I know all of my new friends in the cast will have my back.”

The lead cast members include Kelsey Townsend as Tracy Turn-blad; David Thompson as Link Larkin; Jared Davenport as Wilbur; Aly Hudspeth as Edna Turnblad; Candace Nelson as Motormouth Maybelle; Emily Speer as Penny Pingleton; Gentry Mitchell as Sea-weed; Emily Rankin as Amber Von Tussle; Sanna Groven as Velma Von Tussle; and Taylor Coleman as Corny Collins.

Tickets will be $10 and sold at the door.

Jen Hickmanstaff writer

Hairspray opens Dec. 5Candace Nelson, Jasmine Camp, Gentry Mitchell, Brianna Wesson, Kelsey Townsend, Tracy Henderson, Rose Gregory, Skyya Collins, Latojah Hooker, Stephanie Austin, Roshane’ Traylor and Mrs. Robinson taking a break while practicing the dirty boogie dance. photo by Duncan Stanley

05VIEWPOINTFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

co-editors in chiefCicely ShannonDuncan Stanley

photo editorHeather Ellis

news editorEmily Hoover

feature editorCarlye Hudspeth

viewpoint editorEllen Orr

sports editorElizabeth Cook

entertainment editorAllison Fahrni

webmasterJennifer Hickman

staff writersNatalie Banks

Mary Claire BoudreauxMary Faith Covey

Ashley DiggsJohn David GoinsCeleste HendersonCasey Hitchcock

Julia HurlburtAbigail O’Gorman

Davis PayneDylan PitmanAutumn SehyBrianna SellersScarlett StussyWynne Tidwell

photographersRuth ArnoldKate Beltson

Kayla CigaineroTaylor Coleman

Cari CunninghamJohn Dukes

Allison FahrniAlex Garner

Kandis HarmonMackenzie MorrowHannah PattersonDuncan Stanley

Jacee Stewart

adviserRebecca Potter

photography adviserClint Smith

principalPaul Norton

Texas High School4001 Summerhill Rd.Texarkana TX, 75503

( 903 ) 794 - 3891F ( 903 ) 792 - 8971

MembersILPC, NSPA, CSPAThe Tiger Times is the

official student publication of Texas High School. The primary purpose of the Ti-ger Times is to inform the students of the school, while practicing the ethical canons of journalism.

All editorials and articles are the opinions of the news-paper staff and do not reflect the opinions of the school of-ficials of the TISD Board of Trustees.

Letters to the editor are encouraged and may be dropped off in Room 50. Each letter must be signed and include the student’s grade. Letters are subject to change.

The Tiger Times also ac-cepts advertising. For more information, please contact the publications office at 903.794.3891 ext. 2050. Advertising is sold for $5 a column inch. All ads must be received at least two weeks prior to publication.

TIGERTIMES

staff editorial

Ability to go off-campus for lunch should be allowed

Open Up

Let’s revisit the past. Prior to 1989, area schools had open campuses for lunch, which allowed students to leave school premises in order to eat. However, because of traffic accidents and a large number of tardies, the practice was eliminated.

Now, consequences for going off campus can result in ISS. Yet as our school grows, it is time to take another look at the possibility of reinstating the open campus policy.

Having open lunch gives students time in a stress-free environment. After hours of working hard, kids need a break, and our lunch break is the perfect time. Cafeteria food can only be so good and it’s easy to get tired of it. If students were allowed to leave, it would give them a much better selection of what to eat.

Our cafeteria is overcrowded, and classes late to be dismissed aren’t guaranteed lunch. The lines are so long that some spend the majority of their time in waiting. For the students who finally do get their lunch, they do not have enough time to sit down and enjoy their meals. By having an open lunch, the number of students who wait in line would be cut down so more people could eat.

Everyone has experienced the forgotten homework problem. You

ask your mom to come up to the school to bring it to you. If she does, then you’re in luck, but if she doesn’t, then you’ve wasted time, and your grade will suffer. If students were allowed to leave, they could get their work during their lunch break, a much more efficient solution.

In college, students have more freedoms than in high school, which is understandable. However, if students don’t even have the privilege of leaving school for 30 minutes, then how will they be prepared to handle the freedom they will be granted in college?

Open campus was eliminated because of tardies and traffic accidents. However, the tardy policy that’s in place will encourage students to make sure they return to class on time, and teens are more prone to getting in car accidents before and after school due to worse traffic.

The majority of students who actually care about doing the work and excelling deserve the reward of leaving the school for lunch. A possible solution is to have the off-campus lunch as a privilege for kids when teachers notice improvements in the students’ work habits or grades. It would get people to work harder in school

and put more effort into acting right. If students saw that they might have the chance of getting to leave campus for lunch, they would try harder and work a lot more efficiently.

Another solution is to have it as a privilege reserved for juniors and seniors, something lowerclassmen could look forward to.

Overall, the students at Texas High are well-behaved school. We deserve this privilege, provided that those who venture off campus remain well-behaved. Our population has increased since the 1980s, and it’s time for open lunch to be back in session.

There are three things that nobody ever wants to hear. One: “We need to break up.” Two: “You can’t do it.” Three: “We need to talk.” The talks I’m used to are usually about me getting in trouble or something about grades. I had no idea that this “talk” was far more serious.

As I made my way upstairs to face my parents, I thought to myself, “What did I do this time?” My mom and dad called me and my brother into their bedroom as soon as I got home from church. I was certain that I was about to get chewed out for something I did or didn’t do. When I walked inside, my mom’s face was crimson red. Cheeks stained in tears. I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t want to know what.

My parents went to Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, Ark., with my 5-year-old brother Bryce on Sept. 22. We had known that something was wrong with him; he had never been able to run, jump or climb–things that kids his age should be doing. My family had been to numerous doctor appointments and therapies in the past, but nothing seemed to work or help. Everything kept getting worse. We thought that maybe he was just a late bloomer and that he would develop those things later. The more we tried not to worry, we ended up worrying more.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. Neither of my parents wanted to speak first. Finally the

words came out of my mom’s mouth. My baby brother had been diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy. My dad is always the tough one out of my family. The look on his face was miserable–heartbreaking. He tried to hold it all back, but nothing stopped those tears. Not once, had I ever seen this look on his face. I had never seen him completely breakdown.

The strange part was that I wasn’t able to cry. I felt like I needed to, though. It just, hadn’t exactly “hit” me yet. I wasn’t sure what Muscular Dystrophy was, but I definitely knew it was something extreme.

Muscular Dystrophy is not something that someone can catch. It is not something that can be cured. There is no way to stop it. It is a weakness in the bones and a loss of muscular tissue that tends to get worse over time. There are nine different types of the disease. My brother has Duchenne, the most severe kind. Doctors predict that he will not live past his mid-teens, but it could be less than that, depending on how much worse it gets. On the

rate it’s going now, it doesn’t look too good. He’s already having trouble walking, which will soon result in leg braces, and eventually a wheelchair.

Bryce has never been a “typical kid,” but he might be one of the brightest ones his age. He could read, write and draw before most of the kids in his class, and he always wants to learn new things. He gets frustrated too easily, though. He knows that he can’t do things that other kids can do. He tries so hard to do simple things, and every time he fails, he gets discouraged, a reason why he keeps himself secluded from most kids. Though to most people he is different, he is normal in my eyes. He has his difficulties like everyone else. He has two eyes, two feet, and a heart of gold. He will brighten a day and is full of love. Maybe he does things a little differently; everyone does. It’s what makes him unique.

It absolutely breaks my heart to know I don’t have much longer with him. It may seem like a long way away, but in reality, it’s close enough

to touch. I’ve realized that time is precious, and you have to spend it as wisely as possible. It’s overwhelming because everything is happening at once and makes me want to cry all the time. I know I’m supposed to stay strong and lift him up, but at times, it’s hard. I always ask myself, “What did my family do to deserve this? Why is this happening now?” After everything my family has been through, I don’t understand why problems keep piling up. It seems like there is always, something. Though, I have to remember that this is just as painful for him.

From now on, there are going to be more and more talks. Most of them are going to be those “talks” I won’t want to hear, but I have to realize that they’re part of life. Bad things happen to good people, and you have to learn to face those bad things, head-on. I have to trust there is a reason for all of this and keep loving him. No matter what, Bryce will leave an imprint on my life–forever.

Brotherly

Brianna Sellers

staff writer

love:Illness makes sophomorecherish time left

photo illustration by John Dukes

I remember the first practice. I was a quiet, awkward 15-year-old in this room full of loud, joke-cracking 16-years-olds who seemed to know everything. Three years later, I look back with a different mindset. I’ve grown up so much since I joined the band Day In Day Out. Now that it’s over, I’m left with one question: What the heck am I going to do now?

I remember the last practice. We had all grown up since then. We gained members, but we lost some as well. Looking back at this scene, I see something different from the six boys I saw in the beginning. We were six men. We’d grown so much since our first meeting. We seemed tired of our songs, not so quick with telling jokes but just as hungry. We just sat there and ran through our set list. It was different from when we first began, when practice was a treat, not an obligation.

I was given an opportunity through Day In Day Out when I was a freshman. All I ever wanted to do was play in a band, and this was my shot. We started off as a five piece: Dylan Carlton on vocals, Eric Sonson on guitar, Austin Bush on drums, Jonathan Revels on guitar, and myself slapping da bass, mon. It was a match made in musical heaven. Five guys who all shared a love for playing music and spreading the name of Jesus Christ. It was perfect.

I remember our first show. I was so nervous that I couldn’t stop shaking. Austin counted off for us to start, and it began. Of course, I looked like an idiot who didn’t

know what I was doing, but my spirits were so high. I was playing a real show, and it was amazing. “This is definitely the start of something special,” I thought.

We played show after show and could do no wrong. After two recordings and the addition of a new member to play the synthesizer named Colby Feemster, we were unstoppable. This is where our bad attitudes and immaturity started to take over, though. In June of 2009, Jonathan left the band because he didn’t like how the sound was one night (Of course we played without him. The show MUST go on.). It just went to show how selfishness and pride can take something good and turn it around.

It continued to go downhill from there. Playing with just one guitar player got to me, and for some reason, I left, only to return a few months later. Nothing could keep me away from what I loved to do. It started going great for awhile, playing shows at I Love Evelyn frequently. Jonathan had even rejoined, after a change of heart. It got to the point where we were getting offers from people who promote bigger bands, asking to represent us. But problems with money and egos didn’t help our chance to make it out of this town. It got to the point where we didn’t care about the band anymore. I remember Eric saying “This band won’t last it after the summer’s over.” He couldn’t have been more

right.That was it. The band was

destined to be over before it could ever get bigger. What a shame. Our purpose and representation of Christ’s love wasn’t present anymore. It wasn’t about God anymore; it was about making money and making it big. We weren’t acting like good disciples of Christ off-stage at all. We were hypocrites, plain and simple. Plus, Austin and Dylan were college-bound, so there was nothing we could do anymore. All we could do was play one more show.

I remember booking that show. I felt more like I was the manager of the band toward the end. I worked my butt off to put one last show together, and here it was. Oct. 16, 2010. I remember what was going through my head as we prepared the stage for our performance. Where did all these people come from? Is this really the end? Can I make it through this without tears? With everything in place and our intro playing the first notes rang through the speakers of our amps. I looked at my brothers, and the show began.

It was the greatest night of my life. We gave it our all and had the crowd in full excitement up to the last minute. During the last song, the tears began to flow. This was the last show. This was the end of my high school life. Despite all of our problems, I loved each person on the stage. Those guys were

my brothers. This was all that I’d known for the last four years. Now it’s gone.

In the end, I couldn’t have asked for a better band. Playing music that we loved as the brothers we truly were (and still are) fueled the greatest years of my life. I’m always going to have those memories and the feeling before and after every show. We made a difference in each other’s lives and killed many bears in the process. We made it out the best way we could.

Being in this band taught me a couple lessons about music and life in general: Stay true to your beliefs, and don’t be lazy because then you won’t work toward your dreams. Just be yourself, and play music that you love. When you stand for something, really stand for it; don’t just say you do. I made the mistake of not practicing what I preached in Day In Day Out. Although I messed up in the end, I had the time of my life. And God has bigger plans for all six of us. We’re all going in different directions, but I know that there’s something for each of us out there. I’m going to miss the band like crazy, but I’ve got better opportunities ahead of me. I’m not that 15-year-old awkward boy anymore, but an 18-year-old man, ready to show the world the power of God, day in and day out. Always.

If you want to hear some of Day In Day Out’s music, visit tigertimesonline.com.

VIEWPOINT FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201006

Speak

What is the worst thing that could happen on the day of a Zach test?

Out

“For Ellen Orr to not be there to motivate me.”

Maggie Minter, 11

compiled by Ellen Orr

viewpoint editor

“NASA’s planned space flight to Mars is inter-rupted when a giant cyclops bear throws the space shuttle over 1,000 miles, hitting the school, killing multiple students, including me.”

Michael Elkins, 11

“Either drowning or failing, since that would mean I’d studied nearly 20 hours for nothing. The best thing would be if Jesus come back and we all got to leave.”

Darynn Reddell, 11

“Come in on the day of the test and discover I had studied the wrong sections.”

Sam Benefield, 11

“The worst thing that could happen would be for me to spontaneously combust, then I’d get a zero.

Ashley Diggs, 11

Bittersweet endingsBand leavesimpact dayin, day out

Plane failure leads to lessons learnedThe GPS flickered on and off.

The radio cut in and out. My dad and I looked out at the wings of the plane.

“We’re flying blind,” he said.It was Sept. 11, and I walked

into the hangar with my cousin, uncle and dad. We were all going to go to a Baylor Bears’ football game, and since my dad and uncle had both previously earned their pilot’s licenses, we decided to fly to the game.

It was a routine flight that would usually take an hour and a half. We decided to fly there in two single-engine archer planes, N991TF and N992TF, that were owned by the Texarkana Flying Club. My dad and I we supposed to take N991TF, but at the last minute my dad decided that he wanted N992TF because of the fact that it had a nicer GPS inside it. That was the first mistake.

We all ran through the check-list for preflight, and everything looked great. The sky was mildly

cloudy, and the air was nice and cool. There wasn’t even that much wind. It was the perfect conditions for flying.

My dad lined up on the run-way behind my uncle and slowly pushed the throttle forward. I felt the rush I always did during the take off. The feeling of the plane lifting off the ground. We could see my uncle ahead of us in the distance. My dad, uncle, cousin, and I all started to make jokes at each other over the flight channel. I couldn’t wait to get to the game.

We had flown for about 40 minutes when the GPS shut off. My dad and I were both puzzled about this and made sure that it

was switched on. When we saw it was on we contacted my uncle over the plane’s radio to tell him that our GPS was out. We heard him briefly, but then the radio cut out. I looked at the dashboard and saw that the radio numbers were fad-ing out. My dad looked at me and laughed as he said,” I guess some-thing is wrong.”

My dad and I realized that the battery in our plane was dead and that anything run electrically was out. He quickly turned the plane around and headed back to the Texarkana Airport. He asked me to fly as he tried to contact the tower over a portable backup radio.

As the airport came into sight we made contact with the tower. After my dad told them the situ-ation they let us land immediate-ly. We both got out of the plane laughing and glad to back on the ground. We still don’t know why the battery went dead mid-flight. The two most probable reasons though are that the alternator,

which uses a belt attached to the engine to charge the battery, had a loose connection. The other reason is that the alternator belt broke in mid-flight.

As I look back I can’t say that I really felt scared. The engine was still running and the flight instru-ments still worked. The good thing about the ordeal though, is that it happened during the day. If it had happened at night we wouldn’t be able to see the flight instruments, we would have no general idea of where to go, and other planes would not be able to see us because our lights were out.

In the end, I learned a lot. I learned to be calm and to work under pressure. I also learned that anything can be funny if you just think about the moment. My dad and I were laughing hysterically at the fact that if we hadn’t swapped planes with my uncle, we would have been at the game. All in all it was a experience that taught me a few valuable lessons.

Davis Payne

staff writer

Day In Day Out enjoys one last day together. Members were Dylan Pitman, Dylan Carlton, Eric Sonson, Austin Bush and Colby Feemster. photo by John Dukes

07FEATUREFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

“You’re adopted?” people ask just to make sure they heard me right. They always seem surprised when I tell them. Their eyes widen, and their mouths drop open, like it changes their opinion of me or something. I’ve never really figured that one out. I never lived in an orphanage, or with anyone other than my adop-tive parents, so I’ve never known any-thing differ-ent.

M y a d o p t i o n was open, so I’ve met my birth mom and seen pictures of my birth dad, but they aren’t really a part of my life. My parents have never been hesi-tant about me contacting my birth parents. They never kept it a secret. If I tried to pin-point a time when my parents actually sat me down and told me I was adopted, I defi-nitely couldn’t. I just always knew.

My birth mom put me up for adoption when she was 15 years old. She was way too young, and knew she could not have done a good job raising me. I’m eternally grateful that abortion wasn’t an option for her. An unplanned pregnancy doesn’t really have an easy way out, but my mom and dad were closest to the perfect solution. They wanted kids, but couldn’t have them and had already decided to adopt.

They had gone through the adoption process once before, but the birth mother ended up taking her daughter back before it was finalized. They tried again, and ended up meeting my birth mother this time. They wrote to her, and she wrote back until she was sure they were the right people for me. I was born soon after that, and the adoption was finalized.

About three years after I was born, my mom, dad and I began praying for God to send me a little brother. My great-grandma had made my mom promise not to have an only child, because she knew my parents would spoil me. About a year later, my baby brother was adopted. My mom says I cried and begged my dad to take him back, but I’m definitely going to deny that.

My brother and I are not related by blood, but we might as well be. We fight, an-noy each other, love each other...sometimes, and have thousands of inside jokes just like any set of siblings. I’d even go as far as to say that not having the same mom or dad has not affected our relationship at all. He’s my brother, and I’m his sister. That’s all there is to it.

When I think about the definition of adoption, I always remember the words of some comedian. “My parents chose me, yours just got stuck with you,” he said. It’s kind of brutal, but it always makes me laugh.

For some reason, people like to ask me if I’m ‘mixed’, as if they can’t tell by look-ing. Then they proceed by saying something along the lines of, “Yo momma white, and yo daddy black?” Since I’m adopted, I always tell them both of my parent’s are white. It’s the truth, and I just love the confused look they give me. If I know them, I’ll explain after laughing at the look of confusion. If I don’t, I just walk away.

When I was younger, I used wondered what life would be like, had I not been ad-opted. I guess I didn’t quite understand why my birth mom had given me up. As I grew older, I realized she had done what she knew was best for me. She wanted to ensure me a better life with more opportunities than she could give.

Adoption just seems so logical to me. Much more so than abortion. I can’t under-stand why It’s not more socially acceptable. I guess it has to do with the way people view it. Adoption is not ‘giving your baby away’, it’s really giving your baby a family. It takes more courage, love and selflessness to make an adoption plan, than to have an abortion. Thanks to those qualities being present in my birth mother, I am here, and my future is so bright you might need shades.

“They’re scored daily on responsibility, chores, and at-titude. At the end of the week, if they’ve done everything they have to do, they get privileges,” administrator Erin Allen said.

Each house is decorated with warm colors in order to establish a homey feeling rather than an institutional one.

“We run this house just like a family,” house mom Teena Elrod said.

Husband, Max, agrees. “We treat them like they’re

our kids,” he said. “They are our kids.”

Cody feels like the ranch suc-ceeds in their home-assimilating mission.

“Everybody here is a family,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who you are. You’re cool with every-body.”

When Cody first arrived, his outlook wasn’t so positive.

“I was kind of bad when I got here. No, I was bad,” Cody, now 15, said.

Cody acknowledges that chores and tough love helped him turnaround, but he accred-its most of his success to God.

“He changed my life,” he said. “He brought me [to the ranch] for more chances, more opportunities.”

After three and a half years of attending the Jones Learn-ing Center, a small, on-grounds school, eighth grade Cody was ready for something bigger. He wanted to go to public school to pursue football, a sport that had always captured his time through NFL games or his on-line fantasy league. Also ready

for an academic challenge and more social opportunities, Cody asked his house parents and the administrators to consider his transfer to a public school.

By this point, Cody’s attitude had completely turned around. His behavior was constantly at “A-Level” and he had proved to be a leader on the ranch, through his positive actions and drastic change in conduct. Al-though residents who request a transfer to public school attend the Arkansas school district, ad-ministrators and house parents felt that Texas Middle School and Texas High, would be a bet-ter fit for Cody.

“We were convinced that Cody would excel better aca-demically and socially in the Texas system,” Erin said. The second semester of his eighth grade year, Cody was attending TMS.

Now a freshman at Texas High, Cody is able to live out what he could before only watch

on television or read about on the house’s laptop; Cody is a quarterback in the freshman football program. When asked who his football idol is, he’s not hesitant with his answer: “Curt Warner. He’s a good, Christian guy, and he’s a leader.”

Cody’s case worker, Eric Hollingsworth, is confident in Cody’s success of emulating his hero. “Among the residents here, Cody is a leader,” he said. “He sets something of a standard, and he’s definitely a success story for the ranch.”

Allen agrees. “He’s chosen to accept [his

past] and not feel sorry for him-self or let those things keep him down, but rise above it, move forward, and pursue a positive future,” she said.

As far as post-high school plans go, Cody is determined.

“I’m going to college,” Cody said, matter-of-factly. His dream is the University of Southern California.

“They’ve got a good football team,” he said.

On top of football, Cody is active in Boy Scout Troop 52. In fact, he should receive his Eagle Scout, the highest honor for Scouting, in about two months. He is also planning to be on the track team this spring. Addition-ally, he’s a certified lifeguard, and is hoping to obtain a life-guard-ing job next summer.

Although it’s difficult to live away from his mother and sib-lings [his youngest brother is 3, and he’s never met him], Cody makes the most of the monthly phone conference he and his brother are allowed with them. He admits that he misses them a lot, but he copes by staying fo-cused on the present.

Cody realizes his good for-tune, and his appreciation for Watersprings Ranch runs deep.

“I like that everybody is a big family,” he said. “Your past is your past, and everybody can move forward.”

Hunterthankfulfor newoutlook

Freshman Cody Hunter sits at home with his house parents, Max and Teena Elrod. photo by John Dukes

Glad to be adopted

Mary Faith Covey

staff writer

from page 1

from page 1 The doctor advised Meagan to “just be

patient. It takes longer for some people.” However, when she received a call from her sister last summer saying that she was preg-nant, Meagan didn’t want to wait any longer.

“[When my sister told me that she was pregnant], it was really hard on me,” she said. “I wanted to be happy for her, but it was a bit disappointing as well.”

Shortly after the phone call, Meagan and her husband started talking about adoption.

“The more we talked about it, the more we realized it had been in our hearts all along,” she said. “The realization that I came to was that I wanted to have a child, but it did not matter to me if that child was bio-logically mine or not.”

So began the lengthy, four-step process of adoption.

Step 1: Find an agency.“I did research on the Internet and talked

to many people that have adopted,” she said. “My husband and I found an agency that has all the qualities that we wanted. The agency is Christian-based, and they provide counsel-ing for the birth mother.”

Step 2: Create an application.“The agency has a pretty intense applica-

tion that asks about background, income/budget, parenting styles and values,” she said. “We also had to have references. After the application was submitted and approved by the agency, they required us to attend a

12-hour seminar on adoption and parent-ing.”

Step 3: Home study, fingerprinting and background checks.

“The home study has to be done by a licensed social worker,” Meagan said. “She interviewed [me and my husband] for three hours about our backgrounds, our relation-ship and other topics. Also, she did an in-spection of our house, making sure it would be safe for a child. To complete the home study, we had to be fingerprinted and sub-mit a form for a state and federal criminal background check and a check of the child abuse registry. Last, we had to visit our doc-tor so he could certify that we are both in good health.”

Step 4: Pick a profile.“Our agency uses scrapbooks and pro-

tected online profiles for birth moms to look at prospective families,” she said. “This is currently where we are in the process. My husband and I are almost finished with our scrapbook.”

Meagan and her husband have decided to adopt within the states.

“We considered an international adop-tion, but I started thinking about the fact that there are so many children here in the U.S. that need a home,” she said.

The adoption will be semi-open.“The degree of openness is a decision that

the family and birth mom have to come to as their relationship progresses,” she said.

When Meagan told others that she was planning on adopting, she was shocked to find that she had many friends that have somehow been influenced by adoption.

“We had so many people tell us that their lives had been touched by adoption,” she said. “It seemed like everywhere we went, we would meet someone who was adopted or had adopted a child or someone in their family was adopted. We have numerous peo-ple at our church who have adopted, then someone who works in our doctor’s office was adopted, and the young lady who took our fingerprints was adopted. This was a lit-tle overwhelming, but also made me feel that we were making the right decision.”

Though Meagan is eager to adopt a child, she’s a little anxious.

“I fear two things–time and money,” she said. “I am concerned about how long the wait might be. The agency says there is no such thing as an average wait time. Some couples get matched within two weeks of their profile becoming active. Some couples wait two years or more for a child. Also, I worry about the costs. Adoption is not a cheap process. Agency fees, legal fees, birth mother fees, insurance, etc. Everything adds up quickly. Luckily, it is not all due at one time, because the total was a lot more than what I thought.”

Even though the adoption process is lengthy and stressful and the fees are high, Meagan can’t wait to hold her child.

Adoption seems like right decision

Read more online attigertimesonline.com

What surprise doesmath teacher JackieNix have to tell?

Teacher LeeSurratt continues search for birth parents

08 09

Ashley Diggsstaff writer

Yes

No

Have you had a nightmare that directly relates to one of your concious fears?

A phobia is a fear of something. Com-mon phobias include those of spiders, clowns, heights, etc. What the common person may not know is that there are thousands of scien-tifically recognized phobias. While this com-prehensive guide may be helpful to have for reference, many “official” phobias seem to be quite humorous or unnecessary. Here are ten of the most chuckle-worthy phobias:

1.) Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia- The fear of long words 2.) Euphobia- The fear of hearing good news 3.) Linonophobia: The fear of strings

4.) Pteronophobia: The fear of being tickled by a feather 5.) Francophobia - The fear of France or French culture. 6.) Genuphobia - The fear of knees 7.) Uranophobia - The fear of heaven. 8.) Dendrophobia : The fear of trees 9.) Telephonophobia : The fear of telephones 10.) Peladophobia- The fear of bald people

Phunny Phobias

You try to breathe but can’t. You’ve tried to escape but every door is locked. You try to scream but fear itself has a stranglehold on your vocal chords. You’re cornered and you know it’s coming for you. What is it? You don’t know. It doesn’t matter; it’s clawed its way in. It’s right in front of you, you’re staring death between the eyes. Reach for help but nothing is there, and the creature pulls you into a pit of darkness. Now, you’re in your bed. Sweat is roll-ing down your forehead, but you don’t under-stand how you’re safe. The experience seemed so real. This experience of terror during a dream is called a nightmare. Millions of people suffer from them. In fact some suffer from nightmares every night. In a study presented at the annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies it was confirmed that there is a link between frequent nightmares and suicide. The fear from nightmares may merely be in your mind, but the threat of danger can become real very quickly. The causes of nightmares are fairly sim-ple. Stress, anxiety, side effects of medication, and bad sleeping habits can all cause the mind to create horror movies out of nightly fantasies. The content of the nightmare depends on the dreamer. Content also depends on the dreamer’s age. Children for example tend to dream of creatures or monsters, hence the popularity of “The Boogieman.” The nightmares of chil-dren tend to develop when the child learns a great truth. The majority of nightmares follow a child’s discovery that everything, along with them, will one day die. Death has always been a antagonist of the human mind. The irony is that we as people know death will always be a part of life, yet the mind still tries to fight the inevitable and embeds fears of death deep within the core of a person. As people mature the acceptance of death becomes easier and less predictable fears be-come more prominent. The nightmares of teens and those older tend to be less about creatures under the bed and more about the much more frightening fear of other people. The threat of robbers, murders, and kidnappers become the antagonist of many nightmares. The scenario of being locked within your house while an unknown creature delves much closer into the realm of reality when the unknown creature becomes a masked assailant who has forced his way into your home. A startling fact about nightmares is that It’s not until we wake up that we realize that some-thing in our dream was strange. While we’re dreaming, everything seems normal. What the mind creates also tends to be perceived as real-ity. Junior Sam Vaughn experienced a particu-larly vivid nightmare that has stayed in his mind since it occurred. “The fear was terrifying” said Vaughn. “This utter feeling of no control.” These statements were the only way Vaughn could describe the event. “I’m trapped in this room, covered in bright tiles, there are four doors with each door leading to the same room.” said Vaughn. “After what seemed like hours of running I come across this desk with a note saying ‘The end is at the beginning.’ I try retracing my steps but become even more lost.” said Vaughn. “Just as I begin to have a mental breakdown I wake up in a cold sweat.” Vaughn’s nightmares tend to stray from the norm. Most time he has a hard time compre-hending what has transpired in his own mind. “My nightmares tend to go to the unex-

plained or confusing,” Vaughn said. Through his nightmares Vaughn has developed his own definition of fear. “I believe fear is some-thing our minds don’t want us to accept,” said Vaughn. “We can completely understand every as-pect of our deepest fear,” said Vaughn. “But our subconscious just won’t let us get over it.” Feelings like this, plus the sum of multiple fears, contributes to the most harsh nightmares. For example someone who may fear the dark, clowns, and spiders may lay down to sleep yet immediately “wake up” in a dark setting. This person would have no recollection of going to bed, the person may have no recollection at all. At this point the part of the psyche that is self-aware during the dream state may go into panic, while the puppet master section of the mind does it’s very best to destroy the person’s sense of safety and security. Within the dark-ness this person may scream and plead for a way out, while in the meantime spiders begin to drop from the ceiling. With stress mounting the puppet master begins it’s final act. A door of light opens and the dreamer believes that they are saved, until one single clown emerges from the light dooming the dreamer to an imaginary eternity of fright. Then without warning, the dreamer will snap out of it, safely in their bed. There is no such thing as a nightmare that does not invoke terror. During the day as we pile stress upon stress upon ourselves, or worry about upcoming situations we put our mind through a beating. The misconception is that the mind just takes the beating, the day ends, we sleep, and start over again. As people themselves do, the mind has to relieve itself of stress, even in only tem-porarily. It’s opportunity arises during the hours we sleep. During a nightmare, the mind takes a break from the negativity it is forced to carry by forcing the load upon the conscious state of mind. The roles are inverse, as consciousness be-comes the scapegoat and the subconscious takes a hold of “reality” and delivers it’s own beating. A particularly bad day may result in a par-ticularly bad dream. A particularly good day may result in a bad dream also, as a result of stress that may have been pushed to the back of one’s mind. Nightmares are natural and there is no way to completely avoid them. The com-forting fact about nightmares is that they are in fact dreams, and that dreams are not real. The dream world is indeed almost like another dimension. To dream is to take a journey into the mind, a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. The thought of having a nightmare can at times be scarier than actually having a night-mare. A nightmare here and there is nothing worry about. The intensity of the nightmare can not be determined, So if you happen to have a particularly excruciating nightmare one night, hopefully you’re one of the lucky one’s and completely forget it when you wake. Sadly not everyone has this good fortune, and remem-brance is a quake that has the power to rip the soul asunder. However, worrying is not the so-lution, so rest easy. Take comfort in the serenity of the world of consciousness. But as darkness creeps into your room at night, and all feelings of security dwindle with every bump in the night, do not be oblivious to the fact that every night there is indeed the possibility of becoming a victim of your own mind.

Monsters, goblins, ghouls, and zombies with a hunger for brains. As Halloween approaches one can not escape the images of these creatures. Ghosts and demons capture the imagination of the masses. Through dark tales and horror movies people find entertainment in the terror of fictional characters, resting as-sured that in the real world they are safe from the supernatural dangers. But, what if they’re wrong? What if the world we live in is one where the things that go bump in the night are wandering souls searching for redemption, and the monsters under the bed are no longer just a scary story? In the bustling town of Texar-kana, the worries of unnatural occurrences are far from being a pressing issue, and most citizens are oblivious to the fact that this little town may have more mon-sters under the bed than anyone could imagine.

Bringle lake is a hot spot for activity in Texarkana. From being a family picnic spot in the day to a party haven at nights, Bringle is a place for relaxation and care-free fun. Unbeknownst to the general public is the myth that the lake is haunted by the wandering souls of a mother and her son. About thirty years ago A young mother and her six year old son were traveling from Wamba towards the lake late at night when they were involved in an accident. The events lead-ing up to the accident are un-known, but probable cause was that the woman was frightened by an animal and swerved off the road. Neither survived and with no foul play involved, the case was closed. No later than a few months later, reports sur-faced of traveler’s witnessing a woman and young boy walk-ing hand in hand down Wamba road. Those returning for a second look found no evidence of them as soon as minutes later.

The “hauntings” are not re-stricted to just that road though, as the second string of reports take a much stranger turn than the first. Anonymous posts to Texarkana’s section of ghostso-famerica.com share a disturbing tale. Although there are multiple different reports, the story does not vary. From people fishing on the lake to people just being in the park area there have been sightings of, again, a woman and son walking along the lake shore. More than one post describe af-ter watching for a few moments the two figures, hand in hand, walking down into the lake and disappearing. Identities of the two are unknown, and there are no certain leads. This is only one of many unexplained tales of paranormal plagues pestering Texar-kana.

If you happen to be fleeing a spooky encounter at Bringle Lake a word to the wise would be to take any route avoiding Miller County road. People throw coins into wells to make a wish in hope that it will come true, but on the bridge along Miller County Road, throwing a coin over the side may grant a wish that was never made. In the early fifties a man was walking along the bridge on one stormy night that would turn out to be his last.

A bolt of lightning struck the man instantly killing him and tossing him off of the bridge. Legend has it that the man was carrying a roll of quarters in his pocket, attracting the lightning and attributing to his death. Now a-days, as the story goes, if one throws a quarter off of the bridge before it hits the water an unknown force will toss the quarter right back. There are no instances where an actual figure of a man was spotted but many have had their quarters tossed

back at them with no expla-nation. The “ghost’s” rea-son for tossing quarters? Who knows. But it is just another example that Texarkana might not be the quiet little town it is perceived to be.

Besides sup-posed hauntings Texarkana has more skeletons that most would pre-

fer to believe. In the early 1900s Texarkana had the highest rate of people disappearing without a trace in the United States. Most of these cases have never been solved. Texarkana’s Bi-State Building was built upon the remains of a theatre that burned to the ground causing approxi-mately eights deaths.

Good ‘ole Texarkana. The little town located in two states, characterized by the snappy saying that the city is “twice as nice.” During the day the town can be described as a little slice of simple paradise. But at night, the when darkness run rampant and you’re curled in your little bed cherishing your false sense of security, do not be oblivi-ous to the fact that the ghosts and ghouls that supposedly are “make believe” could be sitting right outside your door.

Senior John Bass Deese goes by the name Bass. “It’s from an old John Wayne Movie called the Sons of Ka-

tie Elder,” Deese said, “One of the charac-ters are named Bass. My dad’s a big John Wayne fan.”

Deese in named after the charac-ter Bass Elder. The movie is about four brothers who are trying to get their fam-ily estate after their dad, Bass Elder, is killed.

He doesn’t plan on changing his name and enjoys the name Bass.

“I do like my name,” Deese said. “It’s really unique.”

CS

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FEATURE FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201010

uccess Blevins–a name given with hope. Hope that he would be successful in everything he did. Hope that he would go further in schooling than his father did. Yet some people don’t look at his name from the same standpoint that his parents did.

“When I was a kid, people used to say stuff like, ‘It’s funny that your name is Success and you’re such a failure’,” Blevins, a freshman, said.

His mother made it to college; unfortunately, his father did not. For this reason, his parents gave him a name to not only signify a bright outlook for the future, but also serve as a reminder that he was meant for success.

“Just having my name gives me a positive way to look [at the future] and a goal to strive for,” Blevins said. “I’ve always loved [my name] because it is unique, but it also shows people what I’m going to be.” Successful.

Success Blevins

he’s a witch! Run away!” squealed the kids on the playground. Freshman Hannah Spell Wren was never sure about her name. On November 16, 2009, she had the guts to change it.

As a kid, things like monsters under the bed, the Boogie Man in the closet, or in this case, a witch on the playground, can frighten some beyond belief. For Wren, kindergarten was a witch hunt.

When Wren was born, a friends maiden name was given in place of a middle name. The name “Spell” was given with good intentions, but turned into an embarrassment.

“When people would ask what my middle name was, I was embarrassed to say it,” Wren said. “They would always give me a hard time about it.”

The teasing slowed down when Wren reached the fourth grade, but never fully stopped until she asked her

parents for permission to change it.

“My mom didn’t know that I didn’t like it that much, so she was surprised that I a s k e d ,” W r e n s a i d . “She had to think a b o u t it for a w h i l e , but she said that she wanted me to be happy.”

Wren’s parents agreed to the name change and even helped her choose a new name. Wren’s mom suggested the name Kate.

“I’ve always liked the name Kate,” Wren said. “Whenever I was a kid and played house, I always wanted to be named Kate.”

Six months later, the Spell faded.

“I finally had a name that was normal,” Wren said, “a name I could say without being self-conscious.”

Hannah Spell Wren

Autumn Jennings

t was a tragedy that inspired sophomore Autumn Jenning’s name.

When a drunk driver killed a teenage girl in 1991, Jenning’s dad couldn’t forget it.

A broken-down car left some girls stranded on the side of the road. Among them was freshman Autumn Nicole Daniel. As they waited on the side of the road, a set of bright lights came swerving their way, gliding from side-to-side on the road. All the girls, except Daniel managed to get out of the way.

“The truck crashed into the ditch Autumn [Daniel] was in, and it hit her and threw her a couple meters,”Jennings said. “My dad and his sergeant were on call that night. They got [to the scene] first and held her until the ambulance came.”

Jenning’s first name came from Daniel’s, who died that night.

“Her grave is on highway 67,” Jennings said. “She had a funeral at Saint Edwards in September of 1991.”

Jennings found out she was named after Daniel when she was 10 years old, though she didn’t know the whole story.

“I never knew the whole story until I was 13,” Jennings said. “People tell me they like my name and my dad tells people about my name, they think it’s cool. I feel special.”

ophomore Roshni Patel’s first name is in one of three different languages: Hindu, Sanskrit or Gujurati. Patel isn’t completely sure which language it’s in, but they are all languages native to India, where her family is from. Most likely it’s Gujurati, the language her family speaks at home.

Even though her name is uncommon in Texarkana, she has met another Roshni before.

“[I met someone] at an Indian wedding,” she said. “The most common name is Krishna, a Hindi god. Mine is semi-common.”

Her name, meaning sunlight, was from the time and day she was born.

“I think [people] can make their name have meaning,” Patel said. “Each person gives a different characteristic to a name. Every word

has a meaning and every person should feel unique in their own way.”

Her middle name Prakash, which means light, is also unique.

“That’s my dad’s name,” Patel said. “Your middle name you always take from your father’s name or your grandfather’s name.”

It’s a Hindi tradition to be named after your father or grandfather. It’s common for families, like Roshni’s, to continue the tradition. Because of the origin of her name, Roshni is often mispronounced.

“People say Runisha, Rooshni and Rochni,” Patel said. “[When they first hear my name], they give me a confused look.”

However, if given the opportunity, she wouldn’t change her name.

“I’ve never thought about having an English name because I like Indian names,” she said. “I think [having a unique name] is awesome because people are always asking what it means, and it’s great knowing

lete? Like the shoe? Woah!” This was a phrase Freshman Clete Norton heard often.

Athletic director Barry Norton was dating his soon-to-be wife when friends found out that they were pregnant. They decided that if their child was a boy, they would name him Clete. However, when Norton’s friend had a girl, the name Clete was up for grabs.

The thought of a boy named Clete stuck with Norton and when his wife became pregnant he realized that it would be sensible to name a coach’s son Clete.

Walking through the halls with his father as a kid, Alexander Clete Norton felt important. Alex, as his parents called him, eventually was around so many football fans that called him Clete, that the nickname stuck.“Sometimes I was made fun of, not only because my name was Clete,” he said, “but also because it’s kind of ironic that my dad is a coach.”

Being a Coach’s son paid off for Clete, he was able to play tons of sports starting around an early age.

“I’ve always been around sports, so I naturally loved them,” Clete said. “But on the other hand, I sometimes felt pressured to play sports because of my name.”

However, Clete thinks his name fits.“My name suits me because I’m a jock,” he said. “I am an

athletic type of guy.”

Roshni Patel Clete Nortonphoto by Alex Garner

page compiled by Mary Claire Boudreaux & Autumn Sehy

staff writers

Bass Deese

For name’s sake

School’s most popular names

NicholasChristopher

WilliamMichaelJoshua

Girls:Ashley

BrittanyJasmineChelseaAlexis

Boys:

Steering the ship toward the wide-open sea with the wind in her face and her crew busily scurrying around, the co-captain of “The Highway or no Way” lives like a pirate. For most peo-ple, this alternative identity would seem to fit that of a 3 year-old boy, but junior Shea Smith embraces her true calling.

“When Wynne [Tidwell] and I were in Mexico, we saw a sailboat which made us come up with the pirate idea,” Smith said. “We realized that’s how we wanted to spend the rest of our lives.”

What started as a fun idea, turned into more than either of the “pirates” expected it to. They soon found that dozens of others wanted to join the alternate world as well.

However, some of those people, according to the captains, weren’t cut out for their ship’s way of life. For this reason, they were not admitted into the crew. A few of the outcasts even started their own ships.

“People kept trying to copy me,” Smith said. “They said they were going to make their own ship because they didn’t meet the requirements for ours.”

As more people began to join their crew, tensions rose and conflict grew.

“The other ships get jealous of ours because we have so many peo-ple,” Smith said. “They bribe our crew members to get people on their ships.”

The “Veggietales” song: “The Pi-rates Who Don’t do Anything” sums up the crew’s life perfectly.

“Well, some of the jobs I can’t talk about, but [we have] people who deal with land, make purchases, and we have a graphic designer,” Smith said. “[We] basically do nothing and what-

ever we want.”The life of a pirate seems danger-

ous in and of itself, but Shea’s life in the real world has often done her more damage than her pirate life.

As a child, she was plagued with a rare disease, Bell’s Palsy, that caused half of her face to be paralyzed for a period of time. She has also had shingles on her brain, spider bites, and several injuries from tennis, including stress fractures in her foot and worn out nerves in her wrist that had to be surgically removed.

“I never mean to get hurt,” Smith said. “It just happens to me. I get really weird stuff.”

During her freshman year, Shea frequently lost her voice. She would go several weeks without being able to talk. After visiting multiple doctors, they found out that her brain had for-gotten how to talk, so she had to go through speech therapy.

“I couldn’t talk and people would

think I wasn’t talking to them because I was mean,” Smith said. “They couldn’t hear me so I got frustrated. I had to go to therapy and blow bubbles and do re-ally weird things [that helped] my voice [come] back.”

Last year, Shea developed a cold that caused her to cough persistently. In fact, her coughing was so constant that it eventually led to a broken rib.

“I had a really bad cough.” Smith said. “I was sick and I was hanging out with some so-called friends. All of a sudden, my side started hurting really bad and I started to yell ‘Guys! Please help me. I think I’m having a heart at-tack or something!’ They told me to shut up. I got home and discovered a bump where my rib was poking out.”

No matter the cause for this way of life, Shea and Wynne have created a means of escaping reality for many people. Everyday is a new adventure for this thrill-seeking buccaneer.

“Long live the ship!”

11FEATUREFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

In the morning she laces up her running shoes; a little later she laces up her volleyball shoes, and in the afternoon, she laces up her pointe shoes. Freshman Lindsey Gore does cross-country, volleyball and ballet. Along with juggling all her sports, she is Clara in this year’s Nutcracker.

“[My favorite sport] is a three-way tie,” Gore said. “Volleyball is a fast-paced team sport, bal-let is relaxing, and in cross-country, you have to push yourself.”

She has been doing ballet the longest, about nine years. She dances at Ju-dith McCarthy School of Dance and she has been on pointe since fourth grade. She has been running cross-country since the beginning of eighth grade and has been playing volley-ball since seventh grade. She would take extra ballet classes during the summer to prepare for the Nutcracker auditions.

“I didn’t expect to be Clara at all, but I had worked hard all summer in hopes I would.”

The Nutcracker is Dec. 4-6. She has been working on her role for three hours every Sunday since September. She gets lots of the strength and endurance that she needs for dance from her running.

“My first track season was in seventh grade, but I really started running fall of eighth grade,” Gore said. “It was my first cross-country season.”

During her eighth grade year, along with a few cross-country meets, she managed to find time to run six 5K’s, road races a little more than three miles long. After cross country season, she found time to run even more 5K’s, and is planning on running the mile and two mile during track season. After she runs cross-country in the early morning, she races to volleyball practice. Sometimes she has no more than 5 minutes to make it to each practice.

“In seventh and eighth grade I was libero [a defensive player who plays in the back of the court],” Gore said. “I am now the ninth grade setter.”

After having volleyball practice, with about two hours of athletics, she goes to school.

Along with that work, she has volleyball games on Tues-days and Fridays, a cross-country meet almost every Sat-urday, and practice for both cross-country and volleyball throughout the school week. Her schedule is more then packed, and she expects to continue with it through out her high school years.

“It would be nice to become a professional ballerina,” Gore said,” but it would require even more years of hard work. I will also continue in volleyball and running and hopefully a run a few marathons.”

It’s the pirate’s life

No time onher hands

Junior Shea Smith looks avast the horizon, searching for possible enemies. photo by John Dukes

Junior takesfantasy lifeseriously

Scarlett Stussystaff writer

Freshman Lindsey Gore stays busy juggling cross country, volleyball and her part as Clara in The Nutcracker. photo by Kate Beltson

Sports, dance keepfreshman busy

Autumn Sehystaff writer

SPORTS FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201012

inbriefGame, set, match

Kentrell Man-ning, 12

“I hope me and my teammates stay involved and keep a pos-itive attitude throughout

the season.”

Khadijah Epps, 11“To get myself ready for this year, I have been doing cardio and strengthening drills to get stronger, and I have also been working on my leadership skills and bonding with the other girls.”

Seroya Jasper, 12“The hardest part of this season will be trying to gain the confidence in ourselves so that we can play comfort-ably against our opponent and together as a team.”

Basketball season is rapidly ap-proaching, and both the girls and boys team are doing all they

can to prepare for the upcoming season. “I’m excited that we will have

another championship-caliber team,” boys head coach Chris Pennington said. “We have really good guards, a good scorer and some young post guys that are smart.”

With just a few weeks left until their first game, the girls team seem to have one goal in mind, which is to come together as a team and win.

“I think this season is going to be a huge success,” junior Khadijah Epps said. “This year we are more dedicated and focused.”

Both teams have had to refill their roster because of the loss of players from graduation last year.

“We lost nine seniors last year,” Pen-nington said, “but I think we will have [the players] ready.”

Even over the summer, the remain-ing players and some newcomers ended their vacation early to begin with a fresh start and work toward a winning season.

“I think we will have a good season,” senior Saroya Jasper said. “We worked hard during the summer to gain more confidence and strength.”

With the unsuccessful record last year, the girls basketball team seemed to understand what they were missing: sisterhood.

“Last year our confidence level was low, we had lost all hope due to our record. No matter what we did, it was hard to win a game because we didn’t know each other,” Epps said. “This year we have bonded into a sisterhood, and no one puts anyone down.”

Senior Kentrell Manning is hoping to not only win district but state.

“First, I want to be better as a team, be better than last season, and I want to be better as an individual,” Man-ning said. “I want to go deeper in the playoffs, because I think we have a good team that could make it to state.”

Girls coach Vince Minter has high hopes for his team.

“Our girls have really worked hard over the summer to develop their skills and have improved tremendously,” Minter said. “We will change our style of play from past years because of our speed and athletic ability. We will press and fast break throughout the game and make it much more exciting for our girls, and for our fans to watch.”

Derrius Gooden, 11“This season we are learning to play as a real team, and I hope that I can be a better ball player in all aspects of the game.”

The tennis team is currently ranked No. 8 in the state and will be playing their regional tournament today.

“I think we’re ready for this tourna-ment” senior Jenni Markham said. “I think we have a great chance of making it to the finals.”

In order to go to state they must beat the No. 1 team in Texas, Highland Park.

“We have a good chance to go far,” ju-nior Shea Smith said. “We are more like a family this year, and we are going to go out there and pump each other up and fight.”

Their coaches are supportive and be-lieve in the players.

“We are looking forward to regional,” coach Ann Tarwater said. “We have a chance to possibly play Highland Park in the finals.”

Hooper looks to future after knee injury

Starting defensive end on varsity, with a full ride scholarship to Rice for football, and hopes to be drafted into the NFL, senior Ed-win Hooper seemed to have life planned out. Everything was falling into place until Oct. 15, when it all came crashing down. He was forced to imagine life without being able to play the game he loved.

“A guy cut blocked me during the game, and he hit the side of my knee with his hel-met,” Hooper said. “It dislocated my patella and tore three out of the four ligaments in my knee.”

With his future riding on his ability to play football, Hooper’s mind jumped straight to the worst case scenario.

“The first thing I thought when it hap-pened was I wasn’t going to be able to play again,” Hooper said. “When I first saw the doctor, I asked him If I would be able to, and he said it wasn’t likely.”

Hooper was at a loss for words. His plans were starting to fall apart.

“After the doctor told me I wouldn’t be able to play again, I was really sad. I just sat

there thinking, and I started worrying about how I was gonna pay for college,” Hooper said. “I didn’t think I could do anything but play football.”

The injury was so serious, that Hooper was transported immediately to the hospital before the game ended.

“I was at the hospital for three days and two nights,” Hooper said. “The first night and morning, I spent most of my time get-ting different x-rays on my leg.”

While Hooper was in the hospital, a lot of his friends and family came to visit him.

“The night of the game, I had about 10 of my teammates come from the school and stay with me until about 2:30 a.m.,” Hoop-er said. “ It meant a lot to me for all of my friends to come see me. ”

Senior varsity teammate Josh Bryant was one of the first people to visit Hooper in the hospital.

“When I walked in, I saw Coach Har-rell and was wondering where everyone else was,” Bryant said. “He looked at me and said, ‘Come on.’ I walked down the hall and saw Edwin in the wheelchair. When I saw him, I felt so sad. I felt like I should have been in that wheelchair, and he should still

play. He had so many offers and so much tal-ent. It made me think a lot about life, not only football. I still get choked up every time I see him in that wheelchair.”

Fellow senior Barry Beam, who is also one of Hooper’s best friends, followed soon after Bryant.

“Edwin was getting his MRI done when I got there. When he came back into the room, I just sat there and didn’t say a word,” Beam said. “The thing is, I’ve never seen him so upset. He pretty much lived, breathed and slept football for as long as I could remem-ber. To see him so silent, even somebody like me, a person who shows no emotions, needed a few seconds to gather myself and find the right words to say.”

Hooper worried about his future for a while, but soon the light at the end of the tunnel became visible.

“When I got my test results back, the doc-tor said I would be able to come back, but it would take a lot of work and about a year of therapy,” Hooper said. “I was excited. I just knew that I would have to work hard for me to be able to do rehab and comeback.”

See Hooper on page 13

Mary Faith Coveystaff writer

Back up plan

Fast BreakOct. 29-30 Region II 4-A Team Tournament at Grapevine

Swim defeats top teamThe pressure was on. Highland Park–

consistently the No. 1 team–had al-ways presented stiff competition for the boys and girls swim team. During their dual meet Oct. 9 at Texarkana College’s Pinkerton Center, the swim team knew they would have their work cut out.

The girls’ team, led by Elizabeth Cook, Kristian Lewis, Mackenzie Morrow, Mary Faith Covey, and Chelsea Albright ended the eight-year reign by defeating them 167-140.

The boys also won 228-67, setting both teams up as strong candidates for a state finish.

Nov. 6 Pearce Dual Meet ThereNov. 19-20 Tigersharks TISCA Here

Junior Elizabeth Cooks swims the backstroke during a meet against Highland Park Oct. 9. photo by Allison Fahrni

Volleyball wins final home game

The volleyball team won their final home game Oct. 26 against Denison.

“Not many people thought we could pull out a win on this one,” sophomore Riden Reiter said. “We showed how much heart we had.”

The win was unexpected for some of the players, junior Cydny Higgins said, because the Denison team was ranked No. 2. Now the Tigers head to the playoffs against Hallsville.

“It felt great to know that we came out and fought hard to go to playoffs,” Hig-gins said. “I know it meant a lot to the seniors.”

Nov. 2 District Playoffs against Hallsville

Celeste Henderson & Natalie Banksstaff writers

UpcomingGames

BoysNov.18, 20 Longview Dr Pepper TournamentNov. 19 Hot Springs, Ark.

GirlsNov. 6 Scrimmage at Mt. PleasantNov. 9 North Lamar

Senior Ashlyn Rybiski at a game. photo by Kandis Harmon

13SPORTSFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

As the sun beat against her face and the wind pushed her hair back, junior Abbey Norwood felt the waves beneath her skis and went for the cut.

Norwood’s dad introduced her to water skiing when she was young and she has loved it since. She practices almost year-round with a small break from late No-vember to March or April.

“I got better and just tried a small com-petition,” Norwood said. “The farthest I’ve been for a competition is Alabama, but normally they are around Texas and Arkansas.”

Norwood competes in slaloming, where you only have one ski, and you are judged on how hard you can cut. The ropes have to be a certain length and there are limits to the width of the ski.

“During the summer, I get up with

my dad at 6 o’clock at our lake house and practice while the water is smooth,” Norwood said. “I like it to be sunny, but not too hot. I don’t like it rainy because it makes the water choppy and not good for cutting.”

Norwood’s dad introduced her to water skiing when she was young and she has loved it since. Her love for the sport soon developed into a love for the competition.

“I got better and just tried a small com-petition,” Norwood said. “The farthest I’ve been for a competition is Alabama, but normally they are around Texas and Arkansas.”

Norwood competes in slaloming, where you only have one ski, and you are judged on how hard you can cut. The ropes have to be a certain length and there are limits to the width of the ski.

“It’s not easy,” Norwood said. “It takes hard work, many hours of practice, and dedication.”

Even through it’s hard work, Norwood is proud of the results. In her age division, she got second place in Alabama state competition several years ago, and she’s won several smaller competitions regu-larly.

Since the competition phase of the sport can take up a lot of time, Norwood has to limit the number of competitions she participates in.

“Some people are home-schooled to al-low them more time to practice and train,” Norwood said. “I still have school and my other activities, so I compete on the side. I train more in the summer. I don’t get to compete as much as some people do, but when I do, I’m pretty decent.”

Currently, she’s planning her next com-petition in May.

“I love the rush you get when you do a good cut,” Norwood said. “I want to con-tinue bettering myself. I want to water ski for the rest of my life.”

Water warrior: Junior enjoys unique sport

After hearing the good news, Hooper had a few distrac-tions from his injury from some friends.

“I told him, ‘Me and you are gonna get through this to-gether,’ and we just started talking about how much hard work we had put in, and how it’s all about over,” said senior teammate Logan Preston, who also received an injury due to football. “Ed kept asking me to sneak him out, so we could go get some food and watch a movie with all our friends.”

Preston wasn’t able to get that done, but help was on the way in the form of more friends.

“Kara and I went there to give him a present with just a bunch of toys for him to play with,” senior Danieya High said. “Then later that night I went back up there to see him and he had colored half of the coloring book we gave him.”

High and senior Kara Saulsbury visited Hooper the first night he was in the hospital.

“We ended up staying for about two hours just talking and joking around,” Saulsbury said. “The next day he told me how much he appreciated it.”

On the last night, a few more of Hooper’s good friends came to stay with him.

“I heard about Edwin, and I decided to go see my boy with Brock and Corey,” Hooper’s friend Drew Winton said. “After we all talked for a bit, we got the idea to break Edwin out, so we found a wheelchair and got him out of bed, and pushed him all around the hospital just having fun.”

While it was clear Winton meant well, Hooper’s escape almost ended badly.

“The highlight of the night had to be when Drew rolled the wheelchair into the elevator,” Beam said. “I was ‘suppose’ to hold the doors open, but I forgot and the doors started to close and almost caught Edwin’s leg. Drew and I were laugh-ing so hard because Edwin screamed like a little girl.”

According to Beam, things are getting back to normal.“I say a lot of funny things to him about his wheelchair

being in the bed of my truck,” Beam said, “or about the fact that now I can get back on him for beating me up all the time, because I can slap the back of his head, and I don’t have to worry about him chasing me down for a while. It’s karma.”

Now Hooper faces more surgery and a long road back to recover; however, he feels like his plans are back on track.

“The plan right now is Rice, unless something happens from now until signing day, that’s where I will go,” Hooper said. “And if I rehab good for the next 9-12 months, I will hopefully be playing on your TV set in 2012.”

Casey Hitchockstaff writer

Junior Abbey Norwood practices for a competition. submitted photo

HOOPER from page 12

English teacher Eric Bilyeu turns as a student ap-proaches him during a football game. Over the roar of students around them, Bilyeu hears the student

yell out compliments about his class, but caught off guard, Bilyeu doesn’t respond. He had never seen the student before. Then, in understanding, Bilyeu smiles and nods his head as the student continues talking. It was not the first time he had been mistaken for another teacher on campus.

“Honestly, it happens all the time,” Bilyeu said. “People always get [Micah] McBay, [Mark] Patrick, and myself mixed up all the time. We all look alike. But people think I look more like Mr. McBay.”

History teacher Micah Mcbay, technical adviser Mark Patrick, and Bilyeu all share strikingly similar characteris-tics. They all have goatees, wear glasses and have short hair. Students often get the three teachers mixed up, despite the subtle differences.

“It’s not uncommon to be called by the wrong name more than once a day,” Bilyeu said. “Even students who have my class will see one of the other teachers and call them by my name.”

Patrick also found himself being mistaken for Bilyeu when students see him in the halls.

“I was passing a student in the hall one day, when the student said, ‘Oh, is your leg better today?’ I honestly thought about it for a second, and I replied, ‘Yeah, I guess it is,’” Patrick said. “I thought that the student was just concerned with my general well-being at first. A few minutes later, it occurred to me that they probably thought I was Mr. Bilyeu. When he first started teaching on our campus, he had a cast on his leg. That student was probably

really confused when they saw that Mr. Bilyeu still had the cast on his leg the next day.”

Many students began to believe the teachers were related as an explanation to how much they look and act alike.

“At one point, I actually heard one student explain to another student, ‘No, that’s not Mr. Bilyeu; that’s his brother,’” Patrick said. “I guess they haven’t thought all the way through that situation since my last name is Patrick, and his last name is Bilyeu.”

However, despite the confusion about how much the teachers look alike, they are all different. Bilyeu teaches English while McBay teaches history. Patrick doesn’t teach a class at all, but is a technical adviser.

“I’m also a lot shorter than Mr. McBay,” Bilyeu said. “Mr. Patrick also has a lighter hair color.”

Students aren’t the only ones who confuse the teachers with each other. Parents also often make the same mistake.

“I have even had parents confuse me with Mr. McBay. Actually, when someone makes the mistake, I feel bad for them,” Patrick said. “When they realize the mistake that they have made, they will be embarrassed, and sometimes I just wish that there was a way out of the situation without making them feel bad.”

Although the three suffer from a severe cases of identity theft, they all treat the situation with a positive manner, jokingly calling each other by different names.

“If I see either of them in the hall I’ll say, ‘Hey Mr. Bilyeu,” Bilyeu said. “It’s our joke. We all think it’s hilarious that people can’t seem to keep us straight. It’s usually the highlight of my school day.”

ENTERTAINMENT FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201014

Fuzzy’s Taco Shop may be new to Texarkana, but it is actually a well-known franchise around other areas in Texas. I recently visited our new Fuzzy’s and ate a feast of baja tacos and two different sauces. I know that trying food from a place called Fuzzy’s sounds weird and gross, but I was willing to take that challenge, and I’ll eat any taco with the word “baja” in it.

The baja tacos, which consist of your meat of choice, lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, cilantro, garlic sauce, and feta cheese which runs at $1.99 plus tax, were packed with tons of flavor. First, I tried the grilled fish baja taco. It tasted good, espe-cially with the regular sauce. The cheese and veggies complimented the fish and it was packed with deli-cious flavor. I prefer the soft tacos over the crispy tacos. The soft tortillas were baked to a beautiful brown shade. The taco shells are nothing special and not fuzzy at all.

Next, I tried the pulled beef tacos. The meat wasn’t too tasty in my opinion. It was just okay. The pulled chicken was well prepared and tasted better

than the pulled beef. The shredded cheese was deli-cious on all the tacos.

There are two different sauces to choose from: regular or habanero. Being the curious eater that I am, I tried both. The regular sauce was very tasty and fit in perfectly with the tacos. The habanero was a mistake. It was way too hot in my opinion. It took 15 minutes for me to regain my sense of taste after trying the sauce with my fish tacos. The taste was good, it was just too hot. The rice was superb and was decently priced at $1.79. In my opinion, I would go just for the rice and grilled fish baja tacos.

The service at Fuzzy’s was pretty good. The employees make sure you feel at home and content with your meal. The restaurant itself has a good atmosphere. It’s not too flashy, nor is it too plain. It would make a good hang out spot as well, with it’s jukebox and neon lights.

Overall, I had a good experience at Fuzzy’s Taco Shop. Most of the food was good, the service was great, and the atmosphere was pretty comfortable. Plus you get refills for 99 cents if you bring your souvenir cup back. However, I’ll go ahead and answer the question on everyone’s mind: Taco Bell is better.

Fuzzy’s Taco Shop: review

Teachers suffer from case of mistaken identity

Dylan Pitmanstaff writer

Senior Dylan Pitman gears up for his first bite of the Fuzzy’s Taco Shop baja taco at its new location in Texarkana on Stateline Ave. submitted photo

Teacher one... teacher two... teacher three?

Allison Fahrnientertainment editor

She’s the Anatagonist’s music has inspired people to think about the way they’re living and has given Tubbs a platform to spread his beliefs and voice to everyone. With catchy melodies, thoughtful lyrics, an out-of-this-world intense voice, and the strumming of his guitar, Tubbs sends the Texarkana music scene in a new direction. I sat down with Tubbs for an exclusive interview about his music, writing and purpose behind what he does.

Dylan Pitman [DP]: How did you start She’s the Antagonist and when?Keith Tubbs [KT]: I don’t know how I started. I was 16 and I played music by myself all the time and decided to actually do something with it.

DP: Who were your main influences when you started writing?KT: Connor Oberst [from Bright Eyes.] It’s changed a lot since then. I listen to a lot of mewithoutYou now. It’s not as much like music inspirations that influence my writing. I read a lot

of books. Shane Clayborn is someone that I read a lot and Rob Bell. Litera-ture is just a lot more influential on my writing I guess.

DP: What is the origin of the name? Who is the antagonist?KT: When I started it, it was more just about relationships, so the name was just about a girl. It wasn’t about a specific girl, it was just about girls. The meaning’s changed now. I can’t really change the name. Cause it’s the name, you know? I’ve wanted to change the name so bad and I almost did it too. But it’s stuck with me now.

DP: What’s your favorite song that you’ve recorded so far?KT: Out of everything I’ve recorded, it’s probably “An Apple a Day.” The melody’s catchy and it’s fun to sing. There’s a lot about what I believe in [in that song] and it gets really emotional in the end. It’s really intense and I like that about it.

DP: How can fans-to-be gain access to your music?

KT: They can go to iTunes. I think there’s a lot of my songs streaming on Myspace right now as well.

DP: What has been your biggest chal-lenge?KT: It’s probably been having to do it alone. When it’s just you, it’s really hard to book shows cause not a lot of people want to book just solo acts so that’s really hard.

DP: What has been your greatest triumph?KT: I got a message from a guy the other day in Little Rock. He said that my music led him to Christ. He said that it was really cool to see someone that was a Christian and was so real about t and wasn’t fake. That’s one of things that keeps a musician going. It’s really awesome.

DP: Do you plan to do this for the rest of your life?KT: I plan on playing music for the rest of my life. I don’t know about She’s the Antagonist, but we’ll see how things work out.

Dylan Pitmanstaff writer

Local music artist Keith Tubbs takes time out of his busy practice schedule to answer a few questions for senior staff writer Dylan Pitman.

She’s the Antagonist is Keith Tubbs from Texarkana. He’s one of few who has actually shown true potential to go somewhere in the music world.

The artist behind the music...Local act She’s The Antagonist shares insight on music.

15ENTERTAINMENTFRIDAY, OCT. 29, 2010

As I stepped onto the plywood walkway, I could hear the “gatekeepers” behind me yell into their talkies, “We got two in the yard boys!” And that was that. The fence behind me snapped shut and everything outside of it imme-diately fell silent. I got the chills. Hon-estly, I wasn’t sure what to expect.

The walk through the yard of the House of Hell was pretty laid back. Well, minus the tight low ceiling and narrow walkway with a less than stable wood path. The utter darkness along with minute ambient lighting set the spooky mood perfectly. However, there wasn’t much interaction between char-acters and victims.

Stepping into the front yard of the house brought back the same creepy feeling as every other year I had been to the House. But this year was different, since our undead guide no longer held us in the yard to tell us the “story” of the House. It was something that had been almost tradition in previous years.

Oh, and be prepared for a seemingly random human to step up to the first person in line and say “We’re going to go through behind you.” This person is key to making the house better. He or she will follow you through the House and gauge your reactions to each of the tricks hidden in the shadows.

Going through the door initially places you in total darkness. The door slams shut behind you and you’re at the whim of what ever is inside. From here you will be introduced to three differ-ent types of rooms: obstacle rooms, la-ser rooms, and trick rooms.

Obstacle rooms aren’t scary so much as they are annoying. You crawl on your hands and knees, set off loud and ob-noxious alarms, and have scary scenes light up in your face. The extra gore is a nice touch, but everything else takes away from the fear and leaves House victims with a headache.

The darkest rooms in the House of Hell hold the best surprises. The effect of fog machines and laser lights make walking through “laser rooms” exceed-ingly difficult. with laser patterns the

only thing visible in the area, it’s almost impossible to see, but as long as you walk straight ahead, finding where you are supposed to go isn’t too much of a scavenger hunt.

The best rooms of the House are the bloodiest, most wicked, and frightful. Trick rooms have eerie ways of making you look one direction, while in a cor-ner, a creature waits to jump out at you. You fin yourself staring at the person who melted into the bed, while in the corner Freddy Kreuger sticks out his bladed hand and catches you off guard.

If you are easily scared, or do not deal with blood, spiders, or graphic scenes, then it would be best not to visit the House of Hell. But if you can handle, then this years haunted house on Seventh Street will make your Hal-loween complete.

The House of Hell on Seventh Street is $10 to go through the actual haunted house. There is a separate “house” as well that is now open to the public, and also costs $10 per ticket. Both haunted attractions are located at 5301 West 7th St.

There have been many horror movies over the years and many people don’t realize that they all have themes, story lines, or scenes in them that originated from earlier movies. There are horror films that were made 40 to 50 years ago that made the original scenes and story lines that are recognized today.

One of the most popular scenes to be created is the shower scene. The shower scene is renowned as a scene where one of the characters in a horror movie is usu-ally murdered. The origin of this scene comes from the 1960 thriller Psycho, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The shower scene was a 3 minute and 50 second scene that was filmed using mostly close ups. Hitchcock used a background composition of screeching violins called

“The Murder,” which gave the scene a melo-dramatic feel.

One widely used story line in the hor-ror film industry is demonic possession. Modern films such as Paranormal Activity, The Last Exorcism, and others use this story line because it deals with peoples different beliefs. The movie that made this story line popular was the horror film, The Exorcist. The Exorcist was made in 1973 and was based off a novel of the same name. The

Exorcist, is the blockbuster of horror movies. This movie is the reason that possession in horror films were brought into the spotlight and are so popular today.

Finally there is the “slasher-horror” genre. This type of horror film has been used throughout the history of film making and has been popular for its duration. There is a movie in this genre of horror films that set the bar for the rest; The Nightmare on Elm Street, a 1984 horror movie directed by Wes Craven. The film revolves around several teenagers who are stalked in their dreams by Freddy Kreuger. The teenagers find out that if Freddy kills them in their dreams, they also die in reality.

This film is prominent to the horror film industry be-cause it was the first film to actually be called a “slasher.” The term slasher film is in spite of the bladed glove that Kreuger wore and the graphic deaths that came from murder by blade. The term was from then on used for films that depicted people being stalked and killed in a graphic manner.

This shows that almost all horror movies have bor-rowed a part from an earlier movie. Whether it was a scene, theme, or even a whole story line. These are just three of many origins that appear in the horror movies we watch today.

Taylor Swift’s highly an-ticipated third album was released Monday, the fol-low-up to 2008’s Grammy Award-winning, six times-platinum Fearless. Taylor Swift’s exciting new album Speak Now with songs solely penned by Swift, shows no signs of slowing down the whirlwind of success.

Swift keeps the tradition of hidden messages in the form of capital letters with in the song lyrics throughout the album. Being just a teen-ager when her self titled al-bum was release, Swift steps into adulthood with Speak Now. While not abandon-ing her younger fans with an album full of familiar songs about love, pining away for that boy that doesn’t notice you, and relationships of a teenage girl, she’s created a new sound.

The album starts out with a tune, “Mine,” about finding love, despite its dif-

ficulties. The title track soon follows with its upbeat tune, about pining away for love. Swift is no stranger to con-troversial songs with “Inno-cent” written about Kanye West’s interruption of her acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards. She makes it apparent with the lyrics, “32 and still grow-ing up now.”

Swift has a gift for de-scribing the feeling of in-nocence and the awkward transition into adulthood, with the song “Never grow Up,” describing the fight to hurry and grow up. Despite being in the eye of the me-dia, Swift is in no way scared to call out anyone who does her wrong. In the song “Bet-ter Than Revenge,” the lyrics “Come on, show me how much better you are, see you deserve some applause, ‘cause you’re so much bet-ter,” is an obvious stab at former boyfriend Joe Jonas’ song “So Much Better.”

Swift isn’t afraid to put her personal life out there.

Her usual upbeat tunes take a turn in the track “Haunt-ed,” bringing a more Evanes-cence sound to the album. After listening to Speak Now in its entirety, it is clear that it’s an open, honest book of Taylor Swift’s life. Proving that she is one of the most promising young artists in music today, the compila-

tion of songs deserves a five-star rating because it matches the experiences and concerns of a young adults while experiencing the joys and pains of life. Speak Now is a new and improved spin on the captivating music and relatable lyrics that have brought Swift millions of fans worldwide.

Jen Hickmanstaff writer

Swift releases new album

Allison Fahrnientertainment editor

Haunted house– fantastically frightful

HALLOWEEN POLLS RESULTSDo you Dress Up for Halloween? 63%

YES

NO37% Top 5 types

of Halloweencandy

Reeses: 26%Snickers: 27%Candy Corn: 15%Kit Kats: 13%

Skittles: 19%

100 polled

Original formula remains effective

Davis Paynestaff writer

PHOTO ESSAY FRIDAY, OCT. 29, 201016

Although the homecoming festivities went on as planned and expected, for the most part, there was one surprise the night of the pep rally when senior Bass Deese was crowned an honorary homecoming king, the first one in the school’s history.

“I was really shocked,” Deese said. “But it was a very good feeling.”In recent years, female drum majors have been elected queen nearly every home-

coming. The “tradition” of a drum major as homecoming queen led a few of the prominent members of Student Council and Leadership (along with sponsor Su-san Waldrep) to declare Deese homecoming king.

“In the past the band has been the only organization that puts all their votes to-gether, and usually they win,” senior Braydon Jones said. “The last three years, the homecoming queen has been from the band, so we decided to make [Deese] honorary home-coming king.”

Regardless of the reasoning, Deese is excited with his title.

“Thanks to Mrs. Waldrep, Stu-dent Council and the cheerleaders for [making me king],” Deese said. “I feel really honored.”

The main honor, however, went to senior Morgan Patton who was crowned homecoming queen during the pre-game activities on Oct. 8

“I was absolutely speechless when they called my name,” Patton said. “It was really an honor to even be on the court because you are chosen by the student body. It’s a good feeling to know that your peers recognize you in that sort of way.”

By Emily Hoover, news editor

Long live the king

Drum major receives honorary title

Senior Bass Deese smiles after being crowned at the homecoming pep rally. photo by Jacee Stewart

Senior Morgan Patton receives the honor of being crowned homecoming queen during the pre-game ceremony Oct. 8 at Tiger Park at Grim Stadium.photo by Allison Fahrni

Members of color guard, drill team and band lead the homecoming procession as the maids are introduced at the homecoming game. photo by Hannah Patterson