Old Friends, New Friends

Seeing as I’m the only person from my grade school, which by the way I’d been going to since first grade, who ended up here at Stevenson, I didn’t have many friends. I knew a couple girls from my neighborhood, a few from LJAL, and one from my friend’s school. I now talk to a lot more people like Kristen, who was my first new friend. I eat lunch with Batool H, Hannah W, and Katarina V, all fellow Globies, and Madi W, who is also a Globie. I had heard awful stories about the people who go here, but so far everyone’s been alright.

SHS Activities Attended

The first event I attended at Stevenson was the Freshmen Dance. This was huge eye opener for me because at my old school, no one could dance . . . . at all. I have also gone to a Choir Concert, called the Best of Broadway, because I am in choir. For three hours straight, while watching the last Star Wars movie surrounded by Marching Band people, I attached flowers made out of garbage bags onto chicken fence at a float party for the Music Department. I plan to go to Homecoming, both the game and the dance.

Funniest, Weirdest, Scariest Moments

On my first day here at Stevenson, me, a wide-eyed freshmen, got shoved into a wall by some very impatient seniors trying to get to class. Even though I wasn’t the source of problem, I still was in the way, so I got shoved.

Hardest, Easiest Assignments

One of my easiest assignments is due Friday. I have to bring in a nutrition label for science. The assignment I probably stressed the most about was the Cultural Event paper I wrote. Another group of easy assignments was the pages Ms. Van Horn Walkabout. We were only assigned about fifteen pages at a time to read.

Top Five Current Events

The current event that, in my opinion caused the most controversy, was Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Balloon boy was in the news for about a week, first because of his disappearance, then because of everything being a hoax. The Olympics are in Rio de Janeiro, Granholm is cutting millions from our school budget, and they discovered water on the moon.

Popular or Memorable Songs

The song I heard the most for the past two months or so, was ‘I’ve Got a Feeling’ by The Black Eyed Peas. Another song that always gets people either singing along, or covering their ears, (mostly the boys) is ‘You Belong With Me’ by Taylor Swift. The week Michael Jackson died; all you would hear on the radio were his songs. Teen singers are really popular right now. Taylor swift, Justin Bieber, and Miley Cyrus are on the radio more and more every day.

Advice for a Freshman

I came from the smallest school ever. I went from 100 kids to 2100 in my school. So I know a lot about adjusting. There are many unwritten rules at Stevenson. The one you must follow every day to not get killed in the hallways is ALWAYS WALK ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE HALLWAY! Another one that you only need to be aware of during homecoming week is never wear the Burger King crowns. These are only for seniors. If a senior sees you wearing one, good luck. Make sure you are caught up on homework . . . teachers can be patient, but you don’t want to be on their bad side.

Popular or Memorable Movies

Well, at the moment, I’d say the next movie that people will buy out all the tickets a week or two before it hits theatres is This is It, the footage of Michael Jackson’s rehearsals and such before he died. Another movie people are very impatient to see is New Moon, which I don’t even think I need to tell anyone what that’s about.

Interesting New Words

I have to say; probably the weirdest word I have ever learned here was akimbo. I’ll let you keep on guessing what that means. Another strange one, that I had only heard a few times, was palpitate. It means intense apparently. I learn many interesting little tidbits in science with Sherbs every day. Like today I learned what a Rocky Mountain Oyster is. . . . I recommend not looking up what that is and knowing that people actually eat that.

Rumors and Gossip

Well, I am sorry to say I am not that well informed on the latest rumors because I didn't come into SHS with a huge circle of friends to gossip with. Sure I know all my friends’ business, like how so and so likes her but she likes him, you know basic love triangle crap. Right now there are a whole bunch of rumors going around about who has swine flu. But I what I really wish I knew is what teachers, if any, are getting laid off because of budget cuts.

Fads and Trends

Let's see . . . . here at SHS, everyone still has their Ugs. For the most part, I see people wearing jeans or sweatpants with a cute t-shirt. Moccasins are in right now. Girls and guys wear them all the time.

First Cultural Event

For my first cultural event, I went to the Taste of Greece Festival. The food was delicious and the band, Enigma, had some fun songs. It was interesting watching everyone dancing to their music in a big line wrapping around the dance floor.

Faces in the news

Last week on our news quiz, Hilary Clinton, Hamid Karzai, and Dimitry Medvedev were a few faces we had to know for last week's quiz. we also had to know Ban Ki-Moon from the UN a few weeks ago.

Homecoming

Homecoming was so much fun! First of all on Friday, we kicked Churchill's booty in football. We got a touchdown returning the kickoff. There were some amazing plays, like where a Spartan stopped the ball from going into the end zone on our kickoff by doing a cool little flip thing. But the dance, no offense to the football team, was much better! The DJ played great music, I didn't see too many girls mad at the boys they like, and not as many drunk people as I expected.

What I'm Looking Forward To

I'm looking forward to the Globie party, Haunted High, tonight. It should be loads of fun. We get to pig out then watch Ghostbusters 2. Even though it's about a month away, I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving break just so I can get out of my daily routine and shake it up a bit.

Achievements/Events

Nothing really comes to mind about recent achievements except that I have all A's in my classes. I also wasn't completely horrible at dancing at Homecoming, I mean I'm not saying I'm good, but I wasnt horrible!

America is a vibrant country full of life and love. When I think of America’s culture, I think classic cars and apple pies. I think of all the people preserving history by collecting classic cars. That to me is what America is all about. Our culture is not defined by one race or religion. Our culture is always becoming richer. Our culture becomes brighter and better every time we tolerate and respect those whose cultures differ from our own. To me, America’s culture is the freedom to choose. We are a melting pot of cultures all thrown together to create a beautiful, vibrant country.
My own culture is not so different from what I described above. I know how to bake an apple pie, and my grandpa collects and restores classic cars. My mom’s family is a hardcore, old school, German, Lutheran family. My mom and dad made sure their children were in church every Sunday, just as my mom was when she was growing up. We all eat a lot of German potato salad at every family gathering, excluding Christmas. My dad’s side is different. He grew up a Catholic Chreaster, that is he only went to church every once in a while, mainly on Christmas and Easter. His parents were both born in 1929, the year the Great Depression started. I grew up on stories about Boblo, jumping over the drunks passed out on the sidewalk on the way home, along other interesting tidbits about how to have fun during the Great Depression, and later, working with the Teamsters. My family is an all white family, except my cousin’s husband and three of her children are Mexican. I cannot say that I have been affected by their culture, seeing as I have met them two times. I would love to learn more about their culture.