THE JET GAZETTE
“We’re all jets here”
Volume IV, No. 4
Staff
Editors-in-Chief
Adena Baichan
Brandon Diaz
Gabriella Vukelic
Samuel Berger
News Editors
Melanie Zerah
Kaylin Wood
Michelle Furman
Features Editors
Jackie Roughan
Aliyha Gill
Alissa Andreoli
Editorials Editors
Jessica Brass
Zainab Nathani
Arts
&
Entertainment
Editors
Alissa Andreoli
Carmon Saffiotti
Brandon Diaz
Tasha Riddle
Gabe Diamond
Sports Editors
Samuel Berger
Brandon Callagan
Advisor
Mary Kudla
Business Managers
June 2014
Put it in Park, But Where?
by Kaylin Wood
The morning of April 28th,
all the students were hushed by
their first period teachers to listen to the announcements. That
morning the students listened as
Mr. Howard delivered the news
on the new parking restrictions.
Nottingham Road, Erma Drive,
Jane and Florence Court are now
off limits to student parking.
The restrictions went into
action on May 1st and have
caused an uproar within the
high school, especially for the
eleventh graders, some of who
have their junior licenses and
are under the impression they
can drive to school. They think
it’s unfair, because there is nowhere for them to park. When,
in fact, they shouldn’t be driving at all. According to NY Department of Motor Vehicles, one
with a junior license is not allowed to drive to school, only to
an education course via college. students who are responsible
One junior stated, “The park- for getting themselves to and
ing restrictions are unnecessary from school, especially when
the school doesn’t provide buses
for all students.” Similar students are outraged by the new
rules and how unfair they are.
The reason these new rules
were put in place is because the
Town of Hempstead has decided
to give out parking permits to the
residents of some of the streets
surrounding the hospital. This
has to do with people from the
hospital parking on those streets
and the resident frustration.
As the students are forced
Photo Courtesy of Sam Berger
to adjust to these new regulabecause the people who live there tions, the frustration has shiftchose to live where there are go- ed from the residents to these
ing to be parking issues, due to young drivers. As the dust
being so close to the school and on this issue settles, it is clear
the hospital. They have experi- that student drivers will need
enced this for years and should to educate themselves about
be used to it. It shouldn’t affect where and when they can park.
The Journey of Journalism
by Dipen Khanna
The 2013-2014 school year members of the panel reprehas been a fun journey for the Jet sented journalism as it is today.
Gazette staff. On March 12th,
Two weeks later, the JourJournalism students went to the nalism class went on another
Adelphi “Press Day” and Jour- field trip to LIU Post where
nalism awards. Fourteen
students from the school
went to this event, and
one student came home
with an award. This student was Senior Harrison
Price, who wrote the winning article “The Things
I Carry” in the Best Editorial category. Not only
Photo Courtesy of Dipen Khanna
was there an award ceremony, but the field trip program there was a tour of the school’s
included a journalistic panel journalism program and its
where the students heard from classes. The Jet Gazette staff
speakers including E.B. Jones, on this tour were able to get
Rich Forestano, Tia Brown, So- an inside look at C.W. Post’s
phia Rosebaum, Brandon Rob- radio station, gaming develinson, Cecilia Capers, Mark opments, and news room. The
Grabowski, Garrie Mason, students were then able to exand Dr. Salvatore. Each of the plore the equipment in the T.V.
studio such as the green screen
controls, the blue screen, and
more. Concluding the tour was
another award ceremony. An
Honorable Mention for Best
News Story was given to
Senior Nathan Siegelaub.
The final trip of the
year was the tour of
Channel 12 news station. Its highlight was
meeting Rich Hoffman,
a meteorologist who
works at News 12. “It
was a great experience
where we learned what it
takes to work in the newsroom
and had a lot of fun as well,”
says senior Adena Baichan.
After a great year, the students enjoyed their educational
adventures which included winning awards, meeting a T.V. professional, and having the chance
to visit Channel 12 Studio.
June 2014
Alyssa Williams
Zainab Nathani
Dipen Khana
East Meadow High School
NEWS
NEWS
Letters from the Editors
2
Congratulations to the new staff and good luck to the old!
Dear Readers,
I can’t believe it has come to the day
where I must sit down and write this letter. It blows my mind to think that this
is the last time I will be writing for The
Jet Gazette as a student at East Meadow High School and Editor-in-Chief of
the paper. I couldn’t be happier than I
am today to say what a successful year
it has been, and I couldn’t have done
it without the help from my amazing
Co-Editor-in-Chief, advisor and staff.
First, I would like to thank everyone on The Jet Gazette staff for
all their hard work and dedication
and for giving me the opportunity to
work with you all. Without all your
hard work, the paper wouldn’t have
looked the way it does, which is amazing. Sam and Brandon, I wish you
both the best of luck next year, and
I am so proud of you guys. I know I
am leaving the paper in good hands.
To the new staff, make the paper even
better than it already is. You all are extremely talented writers, good luck!
Adena, it has truly been an honor
to work with you as my co-editor. I
couldn’t have asked for a better part-
June 2014
Dear Readers,
As I sit here twiddling a
pen between my fingers, trying to find the right words to
express myself correctly for
the last time I can, I find myself reflecting over the past
four years, wondering where
the time went. I remember first
joining The Jet Gazette as just
a writer three years ago, and
it amazes me to see how much
both the paper and I have grown.
While it saddens me to be
writing this as a “goodbye,” I
feel confident leaving the paper with such devoted, hardworking people, just as I feel
confident leaving high school
with all it has taught me. Being a part of The Jet Gazette
these past years has been amazing. I couldn’t be more proud
of what it has become, and I
would like to thank all those
who have made it happen:
To the incredible staff,
thank you for all of your hard
work and dedication. You’ve
all played such an important
role in the ascension of this
paper, and I’m so proud of all
we’ve accomplished together. It has been such a pleasure working with you all.
To our advisor, without
whom none of this would’ve
been possible, Mrs. “Kudla,”
you have taught me so much
more than what hard news is
and what it takes to be a great
writer. The bond we have developed is amazing, and my high
school experience wouldn’t
have been the same without
ors and couldn't be any more
proud of them both. Thank
you guys for everything.
Wi t h t h e t w o o f u s a t t h e
helm, we have no doubt in
our minds that we will help
continue the great strides this
paper has taken in becoming
w h a t i t i s t o d a y. Yo u m a y n o t
remember or notice, but having dealt with the paper issue after issue, it is clear to
see the great deal of progress
i t h a s u n d e rg o n e o n i t s w a y
to reaching its full potential.
We h a v e h e a r d t h e s t o ries, as well as witnessed it
firsthand, about all the hard
work that goes into being
t h e E d i t o r- i n - C h i e f . L o n g
days, longer nights, working on weekends and during
the summer may be intimi-
you. Thank you for everything.
To my Co-Editor-in-Chief,
Gabby, I don’t even know
where to begin. This year with
you has brought us so close.
Never before have I worked
so well with someone, and I
couldn’t be more proud of how
far we’ve come. From our late
nights at school perfecting the
pages, to our Starbucks dates
preparing for the next issue,
I’ll cherish all of our memories
and the friendship we’ve developed over the years. You’re
an amazing writer, journalist, and an even more amazing
partner-in-crime. I wish you
nothing but success at the University of Arizona, and I know
you’ll experience nothing less.
To the upcoming staff, I wish
you nothing but the best. Continue to push the limits of our
paper and make it better than it
has ever been. I feel so comfortable leaving The Jet Gazette
in the hands of such a talented,
committed group of people.
To our readers, thank you
for all the support you have
given us over the years. We
hope you’ve enjoyed reading
The Jet Gazette just as much as
we have loved creating it. To
the underclassmen, enjoy the
years you have left here at East
Meadow. Take every opportunity that arises and continue
to work towards your dreams.
To the class of 2014, we did
it. These past four years with
you all have been the most memorable yet. Congratulations to
you all; let’s go out swinging.
Sincerely,
Adena Baichan
dating but we are ready to
face all the ins-and-outs to
make this paper exceptiona l l y p r o f o u n d . We f u l l y u n derstand that this will not
be easy or “smooth sailing,”
b u t t h a t ’s n o t w h a t w e s i g n e d
up for as we welcome all the
challenges that await us.
We p l a n t o t a k e T h e J e t
Gazette to new heights and
put our own personalities
into the crafting of the pap e r. We f o r e s e e a n e x c e p tionally great year for The
Jet Gazette and cannot wait
to put in the time and dedication to make next year's
issues not only possible, but
the best they've ever been.
Sincerely,
Brandon Diaz and Samuel Berger
Global Village
by Melanie Zerah
While watching the travel channel, you may find yourself craving
something that is pertinent to the
culture being displayed on your
television. Getting on the next plane
to this alleged cultural mecca and
forsaking all of your responsibilities is not much of an option considering that the wife and kids may
start to wonder where you've gone.
After this possibility has left the list
of ways to spend your day, there is
always that Thai restaurant down
the street, that Punjabi antique store
in the next town over, or maybe that
French bakery a few exits off the LIE.
It is important to note that when
Marshall McLuhan coined the
term “global village” back in 1968,
he had been referring to the exact
same type of experience simulated
above. No matter where you are
in the world, there is always a silhouette of the country across the
ocean framed by some cultural
institution in your locality. When
global village is meant in a negative connotation, Americans has
been known as the worst offenders
of the development of this “super
culture.” Super culture means an parison to the 60s, 70s, and 80s,
undefined mixture of where one only because of the fact that we are
culture starts and the other begins. more informed of these happenings
However, as the years passed on because of the many news sources
from 1968,
available
the appellato the comtion “global
mon person.
village”
iPhones
developed
even have an
some extra
alert called
meanings.
Amber Alert,
As technolwhich is sent
ogy has adto an individvanced, the
ual’s iPhone,
speed of inwarning
formation
them about
getting to the
the
disapPhoto Courtesy of brainpickings
public about
pearance of
a particular event that has attracted a child, or suspicious activity happress coverage has greatly acceler- pening in their respected area. Not
ated. If a news worthy incident hap- only this, but if the crisis is serious
pens locally in Istanbul, you will enough, these alerts are sent out to
hear about every known detail with- a larger number of recipients. In
in hours right here in New York. This other words, should circumstancapplies to the newer meaning of the es cause wide spread trepidation
coinage as new theories, backed by among the leaders of a commuits older meaning of globalization, nity, you, as a New York citizen,
are arising. These theories describe could receive an Amber Alert from
how the world seems made out to Utah. As a result, parents are more
be a more dangerous place in com- likely to develop paranoia for the
safety of their children, therefore
causing them to keep their child
indoors and under their watch.
For many adults who grew
up in the 60s, 70s, or 80s, children had much more freedom to
say, “See ya later Mom, I’ll be
home for dinner!” and leave their
house without a way of contacting
their parent, and nary of word of
where their destination might be.
So why is this such a foreign
concept for us kids of the 2000s?
You could blame it on cell phones
as a way of parents to keep constant
tabs on their child’s whereabouts,
or you could simply blame it on the
fact that we are more aware of the
dangers and threats that the world
holds. This awareness causes more
and more anxiety ridden assumptions of what may happen to a parent’s child when he or she steps
out the door. Such assumptions
that may not have even crossed the
mind of a parent with a young child
in the past decades. Regardless of
what reasoning you may have, it
can be extensively admitted that we
all could use a little less bad news.
C om m e m orating the Holocaust
by Michelle Furman
The Holocaust, which translates to “Sacrifice by Fire,” refers to
the Nazi’s persecution and planned
slaughter of eleven million Jews,
Gypsies, homosexuals, Jehovah’s
Witnesses, and the disabled. Six
million of those killed were Jews.
Those who were sent to the death
camps either endured forced labor
or were murdered in the gas chambers. The Nazis used the term "The
Final Solution" to refer to their
plan to eliminate the Jewish race.
On Monday, April 28, the East
Meadow High School Epic Club
held a Holocaust Assembly commemorating the deaths of 11 million people in the holocaust killed
merely because they were different,
and thus deemed to be “inferior.”
The members of the Epic Club
read aloud some horrifying and
gruesome facts about this dreadful
event in history and brought up a
Holocaust survivor to speak to the
audience. Her name was Ruth Mermelstein, and she was one of the
few who survived the Holocaust.
She endured the breakup of her
family as they were all transported
to the holocaust death camps. She
was first transported to the death
camp of Auschwitz, with not a clue
of what may lie ahead. The first
thing she encountered when entering the camp, as many others did,
was the phrase “Arbeit Macht Frei”
or “Work Makes You Free.” In the
camps she received barely enough
food to survive, and she soon was
transported to another camp, Bergen-Belsen, where once again she
would continue to work until the
point of complete exhaustion and
fatigue. These camps did not contain pretty sights as dead bodies littered the ground all around her. One
body on the ground struck Ruth as
unusual; its eyes and mouth were
open. It occurred to her that this
person simply did not want to die,
they had simply wanted to live.
When she told this to her sister, her
sister replied, “We all want to live.”
Everyone who inhabited the death
camps wanted to live; they never gave up faith, as did Ruth, and
continued hoping that one day they
might again be free. Ruth witnessed
the deaths of many around her and
the callous and indifferent nature of
the Nazi soldiers who controlled the
camps. When she spoke about her
experiences in the camps she deeply felt that the Nazis dehumanized
her and everyone else who endured
the mercilessness that the camps
contained. They all were simply no
longer human, just skeletons. At the
end of the war, Ruth was liberated
from the death camps and made a
life for herself in the United States.
She may be free from those camps,
but the memories will haunt her forever. She spoke of a stench that she
will always distinctly remember, the
stench of the gas chambers. Ruth
has gone to many schools sharing
her account of the Holocaust death
camps, and she stressed so importantly that we are the last generation to hear from a Holocaust survivor. Soon all the survivors will be
gone, and we, as a generation, must
carry on the stories of those who
endured the death camps because
the holocaust must always been remembered, lest history repeat itself.
June 2014
Dear Readers,
As the conclusion of
another school year sneaks
up on us, our focus is shifted
from the present to the near
future. Innumerable thoughts
o f s u m m e r, f r i e n d s , c o l l e g e ,
t h e n e x t s c h o o l y e a r, a n d
more flood our brains making
it almost impossible to even
r e m i n i s c e o n t h i s p a s t y e a r.
Looking back from Septemb e r t o M a y, w e c a n s u r e l y
say we've had the most productive and active year in
our eleven years of district
education. Junior year was
definitely a roller coaster
of obligations but nothing is
more satisfying than looking
back and being able to say
we accomplished everything
we needed to and more.
Wi t h t h a t s a i d , w e
ner and best friend.
I’m going to miss
our nights at Starbucks where we
planned out deadlines and meetings, and our long
Friday nights spent
at the high school
working to perfect
the paper and meet
our deadlines in
the best way possible. Working with
you this year has
made our relationship closer than before, and together
we made the paper the best it has
ever been; which was our goal as new
Editors-in-Chief last year. I wish you
the best of luck at Pace University, I
know you will do great in college with
the multi-talents that you have, and
that you will evolve into the independent journalist you are striving to be.
Mrs. “Kudla,” words cannot describe the emotion I have writing this.
You have been by my side since my
first day of high school as a freshman. The bond that we’ve created
is unbreakable, and I couldn’t have
asked for a better teacher and advisor.
To our readers, I thank you for all
the support you have given us through
the years; we couldn’t have done it
without you. You all are our inspiration.
To my graduating class, well, we
made it. It’s time for all of us to come
together as a class, to enjoy the few
days of high school we have left, and to
embrace the memories we’ve created
throughout the halls of EMHS. I congratulate you all on your final college
decisions and wish you the best of luck
in the future. “Once a Jet, always a Jet!”
Sincerely,
Gabriella Vukelic
couldn't begin to express
how excited we are to take
the place of Editors-inC h i e f . We ' v e b o t h s p e n t a
decent amount of time working for The Jet Gazette, are
aware of the responsibility
and dedication it requires,
and honorably accept the
p o s i t i o n . We w o u l d l i k e t o
thank both Gabby and Adena
for their hard work and for
p u t t i n g t h e i r b e s t f o o t f o rward at all times. They've become role models to not only
u s , b u t t h e w h o l e s t a ff a n d
Editors-in-Chief preceding
us as well. Although it's not
quite the end, saying goodbye to them will definitel y b e a c h a l l e n g e . We w i s h
nothing but the best for them
during their college endeav-
3
Remember My Name 27 Club
by Nathan Siegelaub
wash to pay the bills, which puts him
in the humiliating position of cleaning the autos of his own students. His
son, Walter, Jr,. suffers from cerebral
palsy, and soon the elder’s fortunes go
farther south when he gets diagnosed
with inoperable lung cancer. That
this is the same man who had shared
in the Nobel Prize for Chemistry and
had proved instrumental in forming
a billion-dollar company that bought
him out for $5,000 only adds to his
frustration, anger and desperation.
We witness---first with skepticism and amusement---how this rather
mild-mannered, beaten-down individual stumbles upon a former pupil
in the meth-cooking business and fatefully forms a partnership that yields
him a steady cash flow and entry into
the seedy drug trade. Eventually, the
audience is taken on the wildest ride
this side of The Fast and the Furious. Through 62 nail-biting episodes,
there’s Walter White living on the
edge, taking enormous risks, confronting pathological underworld scum,
reshaping himself into a cunning, creative criminal, demonstrating superior
survival skills and instincts, crossing
boundaries between good and evil
as if playing hopscotch, blurring the
lines between morality and immorality, cheating death, defying odds, and
amassing a gargantuan fortune, all set
in the context of a man who has one
foot in the grave and the other firmly
on the throat of anyone who stands
between him and his drug empire.
So why do we sympathize, or, at
least, not get repulsed by this “Heisenberg” who produces the unadulterated
methamphetamine that ruins countless
lives? Chalk it up to sheer entertainment value. White, like Tony Soprano, makes evil and excess highly
attractive; like Jack Black, he “sticks
it to the man”; like Jason Bourne and
Rambo, he lives by his wits and figures out how to keep one step ahead
of his enemies, rivals, and the authorities; like Jack Bauer of “24” fame he
makes his own rules and bucks the
establishment. The viewing audience
never quite figures out what he’s going to do next. The delicious uncertainty of his reckless but pointed actions, and the tightrope act he pulls
off to escape detection are the stuff of
legend. And, in the end, it is his ability to dominate the world he inhabits
and illuminate, like the sun, all the
players in his constellation that makes
Breaking Bad such addictive drama.
The phenomenon that is Walter H.
White has reached cult status in America. It’s rather ironic that the final season of Breaking Bad is entitled: “Remember My Name.” Judging by all
the attention and talk emanating from
around the land heaped on this show and
that man, how in hell can you forget it?
by Tasha Riddle
The 27 club is one of the most famous, yet creepy, things about rock
music, with so many amazing talents
meeting their end at age 27. The number of musicians who have died at this
age and the reasons for many of those
deaths have given the idea that premature death at this age is unusually
common. It wasn’t until the death of
Kurt Cobain, about two and a half decades after the last death occurred, that
the idea of a “27 Club” was spread.
Robert Johnson, a famous blues
singer, died at age 27 in early August
of 1938. It was said that he started
the trail of deaths. Sadly, many of
the deaths resulted from unnatural
causes. Members of the 27 club include: Kurt Cobain, the lead singer
of Nirvana, who ended his life at age
27, famous guitarist Jimi Hendrix, and
Brian Jones, the founder of the famous
band The Rolling Stones. The reasons
for their deaths have caused much
speculation along the years. Another
member, Jim Morrison, famous singer
from The Doors, died of heart failure,
and his girlfriend also followed in his
steps and died at age 27. Lead singer
of the ‘70s rock group Badfinger’s,
Pete Ham, also ended his life, age 27.
In late September 1970 an accidental overdose took the life of Canned
by Alissa Andreoli
Heart’s Alan Wilson. Grateful Dead’s
Ron McKiernan died of cirrhosis of
liver, ulcers, and other health problems
from uncontrollable drinking. Kristen
Pfaff, member of Courtney Love’s band
Hole, died from unnatural causes. Lead
singer of the psychedelic rock band
Big Brother and the Holding Company
Janis Joplin died at 27. Famous singer
Amy Winehouse, who has been quoted saying she still wanted to do things
with her life, died from alcohol poisoning. Shockingly this isn’t the complete
list as many other famous musicians
have died at the mysterious age of 27.
One of the most outstanding facts
about this club’s history is the white
lighter myth about why they are unlucky, based on four famous and revolutionary musicians of the second half
of the 20th century. Jim Morrison,
Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Kurt
Cobain were all left-handed, all died
at the age of 27, and all their autopsies
reported that a white bic lighter was
found in their pockets. This is why it
is said that white lighters are unlucky.
The song “28” by John Craigie off
his album Montana tale is about the
club. The three verses refer to the
deaths of Jim, Janis and Kurt Cobain. This club will forever be a
club you really don’t want to join.
You may know that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is coming out
soon, and there is a lot of action
packed into it. This includes the
new villains portrayed by Jamie Fox as Electro and Dane
DeHaan as the Green Goblin/
Harry Osborn. This film is said to
be comical and
include
drama
through
characterization and
development
m o r e Photo Courtesy of beliefnet
than all
the Marvel films combined! The
movie goes from hilarious moments to extreme drama that
makes this movie a “must-see”.
There are amazing performances
from Andrew Garfield as SpiderMan/Peter Parker, Emma Stone as
Gwen Stacy, Sally Field as Aunt
May, and more well-known stars
and their parts in this new movie.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
takes place in New York and within Times Square. Peter has to overcome an internal battle between
concealing his identity as SpiderMan and being himself along with
protecting the city from these new
Artist Spotlight:
Raeqa Muhmud
by Gabriella Vukelic
As Albert Einstein once said,
“true art is characterized by an
irresistible urge in the creative
artist.” Can she get a drum roll,
please? … And the artist spotlight
goes to Raeqa Muhmud, a junior at
our East Meadow
High School. Raeqa started her artistic career when
she was just a little
girl in preschool.
Finding a hobby
she enjoyed, she
drew her first piece
of artwork then.
Raeqa
likes
sketching the most
and gets her inspiration
from
her mother. Her
mother isn’t an
artist;
however,
her mother’s creativity captures
the eyes of many. Following in
her mother’s footsteps, Raeqa
strives to be as creative with her
artwork by adding lots of detail.
Her extremely artistic talent
was honorably entered into several All-County and All-District art
shows. When she was in elementary school, her artwork was put
in a museum along with the work
of other young students; however,
she was the youngest of them all.
Raeqa finds art to be both a hobby also a really big stress reliever.
When she sketches, she feels all her
worries vanish as
if it were just her
and the paper she
draws on. She always draws during
her free time and
is thinking about
minoring in art.
Depending on
what she draws,
many things come
to mind as she focuses on details.
What Raeqa enjoys about her
artwork is that
she always draws
something that interests her at the
moment such as people and food.
Her artwork may not have any
true sentimental value to Raeqa, although her work makes her proud
as an individual, and with the creativity she has, she will succeed
tremendously in her future. Congratulations Raeqa, a well-deserved
spotlight for such a talented person.
villains who have one thing in
common, Oscorp Industries. One
of these villains includes Peter’s
old friend Harry Osborn who is
avenging his father (as known
from previous movies and the
comic). Harry blames Spider-Man
for his father’s death and he later
becomes
known as
the Green
Goblin.
Electro
will not let
anything
stand in
his
way
f r o m
getting
what he
wants
from
Oscorp
along
with
the
Green
Goblin.
Jamie Fox plays Oscorp’s electrician, Max Dillon, who has an accident at the Oscorp building and
is transformed into Electro. With
this new enemy and the returning
of Peter’s old friend Harry, who
has many hidden secrets, Peter
starts to learn more about why his
parents have disappeared so suddenly and discovers what is actually happening behind the doors of
the Oscorp Industries. What will
become of Spider-Man, and what
do these new threats/ villains want
from Oscorp and Peter himself?
Hits of the
Summer
by Kaylin Wood
Summertime
is
finally
here and with that comes great
times, great people, and let’s
not forget, great music. Wheth-
er you’re hanging with friends,
at the beach, or just simply relaxing, these songs will make
this the best summer yet!
Summertime Sadness- Lana Del Rey
Beverly Hills- Weezer
Classic- MKTO
Back Home- Andy Grammer
Cruise- Florida- Georgia Line
Fancy- Iggy Azalea
Stacy’s Mom- Fountains of Wayne
Royals- Lorde
All Summer Long- Kid Rock
She Looks So Perfect- 5 Seconds of Summer
5
The Fault in Our Stars
From Book to Big Screen
by Olivia Asarian
A new movie is being released
before summer 2014 starts, and
there is a lot of excitement about
it. Whether it fails or succeeds,
it will definitely be a topic of
conversation
this summer.
The Fault
in Our Stars is
a young adult
novel by John
Green
that
was published
in 2012. Now,
two years later, its movie
will be released
this
June. Going
from a book
to a movie in
two years is a huge accomplishment. So why has this story been
such a success? For starters, the
plot line has something to do with
it. It’s a tragic love story about
two teenagers, Hazel and Augus-
tus, who fall in love during their
fight against cancer. But this story
doesn’t just give you something
to cry about; it makes you laugh,
gets you to relate to the characters,
and makes you
think. It’s safe
to say that John
Green executed
his fifth book
to
perfection.
Some lucky
TFIOS fanatics,
who were able
to see the movie
a month in advance on May
3rd said they
loved it. But
don’t just see
the movie, read
the book! It’s a story you definitely should not miss out on. And
you know what they say, the book
is always better than the movie.
Don’t
miss
the
movie in theaters on June 6th!
Does music have an
expiration date?
by Carmen Saffioti
Most of our generation
listens to music that was created in the last ten years, but
what about the kids who listen to music from twenty or
more years ago. Most of popular music tends to get either
old or irrelevant and is never
played on the radio again.
Some music is more than a one
hit wonder, some music means
more than a catchy beat, some
music still speaks to us even
though it is from a different
generation
or
place
in
time.
This music is frozen in time
because
everyone
can relate
to it, and
it wasn’t
just written for the money.
Classic rock still seems to
be a popular genre of music
even though its golden age was
in the 50’s and 60’s. Rolling
Stone and Led Zeppelin shirts
are still seen in abundance all
around school. Surely these
bands were very popular at the
time, but why are their songs
still sung by teenagers now?
“I believe it is better than music today,” said Erin Grant, a
freshman who listens to Hole,
Nirvana, The Beatles, and
Aerosmith. “Despite the generation gap between teenagers now and the artist then, the
lyrics still relate better than
music in the top 40’s.” She believes that censorship might
be the issue. Art is becoming
dull because we are trying to
“play it on the safe side” and
appeal to everyone, while also
making a
quick buck.
Another
interesting
question is why
are teenagers unsatisfied with
the
music
of
today,
and why do they resort to music from 20 years ago? Will
music from today survive?
It’s no doubt that songs go
as fast as they come, and only
get 15 minutes of fame, but
what music will last? I believe
if the music was written as a
creative expression. It can have
the power to relate to people no
matter when they were born.
June 2014
June 2014
No matter where you go in these
United States, the name of this particular person keeps coming up. You can
hardly escape hearing about his exploits
or eavesdropping on conversations
about him. You can be at a ballgame,
music recital, board meeting, frat party,
supermarket, museum, school cafeteria, 7-Eleven, bowling alley, car wash,
baby shower---you get the idea---and
this certain individual seems to be on
everyone’s lips. Late-night hosts banter about him, politicians of all stripes
acknowledge him, teachers engage
their students in animated dialogue
concerning him. His celebrity inspires
great emotion and passionate outbursts in people from all walks of life
He goes by the name of Walter
Hartwell White, a.k.a “Heisenberg,”
and he springs straight from the fertile
imagination of Vince Gilligan, writer
and executive producer of the recently
concluded, wildly popular American
television drama series Breaking Bad.
Walter White, brilliantly portrayed by
Bryan Cranston, does not qualify as a
role model or someone who inspires
reverent worship. After all, the man
“cooks” pure methamphetamine with
singular skill, protects his drug turf,
and guards his secretive identity with
ruthless force, lies and connives at every turn, puts his family squarely in
harm’s way, kills when it suits his purposes, and spits in the face of society
and propriety. But, despite his reprehensible acts and penchant for money, power, and violence, Mr. White
thoroughly commands our attention
and earns grudging admiration for
his monumental daring and creativity.
Consider that when we meet Walter on his 50th birthday, he’s teaching
high-school chemistry to unruly teenagers in Albuquerque, New Mexico,
and working a second job in a car
THE SPIDER’S BACK!
A&E
Photo Courtesy of ibtimes
A&E
Photo Courtesy of notshallow
4
6
FEATURES
Guess Who?
by Jessica Brass and Sadie Ilson
The year is ending and that
means that this is the last issue of the paper. We know that
the Guess Who concept only
lasted half of the year, but we
look forward to continuing this
chronicle next year. Last issue’s participants were Mrs.
A. Favorite color is blue
Hopkins, Earth Science, and
Mr. Horrmann, Health. These
next candidates are known
around school for their humor
and stupendous ways of teaching. Here’s to the end of the
year and the guessing of two
new teachers! Good Luck…
B. Favorite color is turquoise
Attended Stony Brook University
Favorite T.V. show is Breaking Bad
Favorite T.V. show is The Big Bang Theory
Likes Shawshank Redemption, The Color Purple,
and Silence of the Lambs
Favorite animal is a dog and also has a dog named Jax
Has one son and one daughter
Enjoys Running
Loves computers and web design
Loves attending Historic Sites
Finds the minion saying bottom funny
Has 2 twin sons
Doesn’t like birds
Huge fan of Elvis
Attended Stony Brook University
Married her high school sweetheart
Part A Answer: Mr Harris; Part B Answer: Mrs. Sideri
EAST MEADOW
FASHION SHOW
by Lauren Riddle
June 2014
June 2014
On March 20th, 2014, East Roxy Semonella, Briana RivMeadow High School held its ers, Adena Baichan, and Jaida
annual fashion show. Each year Zabala. Paul Chavez, David Esthe school’s fashion club fully pinoza, Nick Suchocki, Andrew
plans out the show and every- Romano, Andrew Sahagun, and
thing that is needed from ticket Stefan Imrit were the male
sales, t-shirt
models of
designs,
the evening.
picking out
This
year
the
modthe
show
els, getting
received
the clothes,
clothes doorganizing
nated from
raffles, bake
M e n ’ s
sales,
and Photo Courtesy of photo-collective
Warehouse,
most imporDavid’s Bridtantly, picking out the charity al, and Century 21. The show
for the proceeds to go toward. raised over $400 this year
The show this year was super- for the charity “The Birthday
vised by Mrs. Mohring and was Box.” “The Birthday Box” is
put together by Victorie Lawoo, a non-profit organization that
Zamina Dahlla, Siobhan Furey provides children in need with
and Lauren Riddle. This year an opportunity to blow out
the theme of the show was Val- candles and make a birthday
entino, who is a famous design- wish on their special day. An
er. The show was split into six entire birthday celebration is
sections: Valentino (where the assembled, packaged, and then
models all wore red), Western, delivered in a recycled box.
Sports, Business, Birthday Par- This party in a box includes a
ty and Prom. The female mod- birthday cake, candles, party
els for these sections included plates, a birthday present and
Dana Ciccotto, Daria Heslin, party decorations. The show
Sara Bernardo, Nessa Silva, this year was a huge success!
Congratulations To
Adelphi University
Alexa Charyn
Annemarie Kramer
Hillary Augustin
Jeffrey Gomez
Michelle Mates
Richard Spiegel
Ruth Hernandez
Airforce Academy
Damien Sanders
Eric Gershoff
Alvernia University
Ashley Allred
Apex Technical School
Francis Angerano
Army
Elijah Torres
Bentley University
Madison West
Bergen College
Carolina Uran
Bloomsberg University
Lexus Turrisi
Branford Hall
Career Institute
Ziekias Guzman
Brooks Institute of
Photography
Michelle Chasi
Brown University
Dharsan Chandrakumar
Buffalo State University
David Lin
Deanna Parisi
Carnegie Mellon
University
Sebastien Mathelier
Chestnut Hill
College
Jaida Zabala
Cincinnati State
Technical and
Community College
Nikhil Ghandi
City College of New
York
Kumail Haider
Cornell University
Hassan Alam
Gabriel Diamond
Katrina Bamba
Kelly Kim
Jeff Juarez
June 2014
Angela Caiazzo
CUNY Baruch
Chelsea Bobbins
Isaiah Franky
Kinza Ali
Nishwa Syed
John Gavan
Kayla Bailey
CUNY Macaulay
College
Josh Varughese
Dowling College
Branden Mauri
Drexel University
Dilan Kalaria
LIU Brooklyn
Brandon Glogau
Samiha Chaudhury
LIU Post
Alex De George
Andrea Avila
Charlene Hickey
Chika Ewulu
Claire Travis
Marisa San Antonio
Melissa Bantz
Vicki Bender
East Carolina
University
Lynn University
East Stroudsburg
University
Josh Illa
Kyle MacKay
Jackie Loberto
Erin Masso
Garrett Stromfeld
Electrician - Career
Education
Kevin Miller
Fashion Institute of
Technology
Isabelle Pantell
Fordham University
Kerri Shapiro
Marines
Marist College
Billy Andrle
Melanie Corona
Marymount
Manhattan College
Katie Bent-Koerick
Rachel Tufano
Marywood
University
Jaclyn Fontana
Hartwick College
Massage TherapistCareer Education
Harvard University
Medical AssistantCareer Education
Ryan Lao
Alexis Epstein
Kelley O’Neil
Nathan Siegelaub
Hofstra University
Arianna Massidas
Daniel Wolff
Delsy Padilla
Destinee Semidey
Harrison Price
James Troici
Jenna Borreson
Matthew Hauszpigel
Rudy Rojas
Susan Ingenito
Iona College
Jackie Bracker
Michael Pepe
Irvine Valley
College
Angela Ibasitas
Johnson & Wales
University
Marissa Troici
Johnson C.
Smith University
Porchia Gadson
Keuka College
Tina Hoffman
Lincoln
University
Brianna Rivers
Shari Singh
Tatiana Marcelin
Mississippi State
University
Jacarya Robinson
Molloy College
Daniella Monniello
Odette Peralta
Timothy Carter
Monmouth
University
Ilyssa Cohen
Mount Saint Mary
College
Dylan Walz
Nassau Community
College
Alex Greco
Alexa Velasquez
Alexandre Oliveira
Amanda Giovanniello
Amanda Soldano
Andrea Rodriguez
Andrew Brusca
Andrew Romano
Anthony Iuliano
Ariel Conti
Asad Soomro
Ashley Goncalves
Bikash Mainali
Brandon Cohen
Brandon Gidicsin
Brandon Hedgepeth
Brian O’leary
Briyenna Souter
Bryan Hickey
Cassandra Pyne
Cemil Guleryuz
Chelsea Chennells
Christie Cukro
Christopher Chiauzzi
Christopher Lodati
Dan Wood
David Lo Nigro
Devin Seaman
Diana Mancia
Diego Martinez
Edwin Marcia
Eiko Caquimbo Urrea
Emily Gargiulo
Emily Kuo
Emily McKenna
Emily Stokes
Erianna Gudsowski
Faiza Imranullah
Frank Abreu
Gabriella Fuschetto
Geralyn Pasquelone
Gianvincenzo Buffolino
Giovanni Ambrosio
Gloria Ochoa
Harshil Patel
Heidi Elsokary
Ian Arshad
Ian Torres
Jaimin Shah
Jairo Martinez
Jake Koropshinsky
Jereck Dobladillo
Jessica DiBlasio
Jessica Masoud
Jessica Strauber
Jillian Davis
John Cassar
John Citarella
John Jankowski
John Simendinger
Jonathon Gonzalez
Jonathon Roeder
Jonny Keicher
Jose Ventura
Joseph Gago
Joseph Skaria
Julia Manca
Katelyn Radtke
Katharine Stokes
Kelly Simmons
Kelvin Villegas
Kerry Zaino
Keyla Barahona
Kim O’Rourke
Kristina Bohn
Lathan Lev
Lee Truppo
Liam Fowler
Luis Gonzalez Carrero
Lyle Shwartz
Mario Brusca
Marissa Wachsstock
Marissa Wagner
Marrol Cajoles
Mary Hosey
Matthew Anthony
Matthew Bezman
Maureen Carlin
Melanie Geffon
Melissa Byjoo
Melissa Goncalves
Meshaal Malik
Michael Barry
Michael Rothman
Nicole Moniello
Nicole Escobar
Nick Conti
Nick Dazzo
Nick Pannullo
Nick Ulrich
Nick Zupo
Noelly Taveras
Paige Famularo
Rachelle Flores
Ravneet Kaur
Reyna Briones-Lopez
Rianna Berger
Richard Russo Jr.
Robert Finnegan
Rosa Perez
Saiquan Smith
Samantha Austin
Samuel Molina
Samuel Ochoa
Sean McGowan
Sebastien Janiec
Shane Brennan
Shane Ramlochan
Sherline Valle
Sophia Konstantopoulos
Stacy Medina
Stephen Villani
Tanisha Agatep
Thomas Helmick
Thomas Kirk
Tianna La Rosa
Timothy Pooran
Trisha Ramlochan
Victoire Lawoo
Victoria Pellot
Vincent Abbatiello
Xiao Shi
Yandry Ordibez
Navy
Julien Mazurek
Tiana Lefebre
New York Institute of
Technology
Austin Sanu
Andrew Sahagun
Balawal Qaiser
Exavier Polanco
Jennifer Tello
Rabihah Huda
Rutul Upadhyay
Pace University
Adena Baichan
Joshua Mathai
Paul Mitchell
Cactus Academy
Ashley Zakrzewski
Pennsylvania State
University
Demi Kouvaris
Emily Valdez
Rochester Institute of
Technology
Irfaan Khan
Sanford-Brown
InstituteCosmetology
Kayla Rabot
Southern Methodist
University
Ashley Pancho
St. John’s
University
Abbas Pirmohamed
Billy Thomas
Chirag Gosalia
Eric Golban-Moghaddam
Giovanni Polumbo
Jacklyn Araujo
Jerry Thomas
Josh Ariola
Mike Sualle
Robert Baracca
Shannon Matthew
William Thomas
Yash Talati
Zeeshan Haider
Stetson University
Daria Heslin
Stony Brook
University
Adam Smith
Chuntak Kong
Danny Espinosa
Deeksha Nanda
Hassan Amin
Jeffrey Wang
Josh Oventhal
Lindsey Hoffman
Ryan Connors
Stefan Imrit
Vidya Laljie
Zara Syed
Suffolk Community
College
Devon Rotolo
Kaytlynn Phillips
Maxx Razzano
Michael B. Walsh
Sabrina Kotas
Shanna Konowitz
SUNY Albany
Bobby Bender
Brian Giblin
Christopher Saitta
Jake Kaminsky
Jennifer Ko
Lauren Melandro
Vahe Gemdzian
Vanessa Silva
SUNY Alfred
State College
Adam DeDalto
SUNY Binghamton
Allyson Arias
Angelica Weber
Austin Ovadia
Chris Santos
Dylan Davis
James O’Neil
John Shin
Ola Krol
Prabhnoor Multani
Rachel Lee
Rheba Sam
Ross Wagner
Stephanie Rachaf
SUNY Buffalo
Alyson Katz
Andrew Khan
Franz De Leon
Jared Wolfson
Michael Shallcross
SUNY Cortland
Adriana Guglielmo
Amanda Franzese
Alyssa Williams
Dana Messina
Lauren Kanfer
Kristina Sanicola
Michelle Karwowski
Sara Garrahan
Serena Perez
SUNY Delhi
Michael Natale
Shannon Ring
SUNY Environmental
Science and Forestry
Jason Alterman
SUNY Farmingdale
Anthony Teneriello
Billy Walsh
Edward Wilkowski
Emily Lee
HanKai Shao
Jessica Paucar Guerra
Justin Hatzelman
Lizbeth Gonzalez
Mike Siska
Muhammad Sheikh
Rui Cunha
Tyler Levine
William Walsh
SUNY Fredonia
Christine Ramos
Gianna Sheck
SUNY Geneseo
Amanda Romeo
Pari Patel
SUNY New Paltz
University of
Delaware
Kyle Zaino
University of Florida
Josh Uffer
Rob Khol
University of Hartford
Joelle Soodek
University of Houston
Musa Mansoor
University of Maryland
Amanda Ashe
University of
Massachusettes
Alexa Finkelstein
Andreas Christy
Rebecca Alzfan
University of Michigan
Jared Molesky
University of
New Haven
Jessica Caliendo
Nikko Lima
University of Pittsburg
Ali Francese
Sam Colelli
Tom Dolley
University of
Rhode island
Jackie Roughan
Matt Brass
Melanie Zerah
Monica Marotta
Samantha Steiner
University of Scranton
SUNY Old
Westbury
University of Texas
Aliza Zaidi
Cathy Chiang
Cody Zafran
Marc Berman
Maria Qureshi
Nicole Smith
SUNY Oneonta
Jillian Cruz
Kayla McGrath
Samantha Haimowitz
Sydney Salomon
Gianna Bova
Richard Barniak
Valencia College
Anthony Rios
Vassar College
Mike J. Walsh
Western New
England University
Nick Suchocki
Tyler Nacionales
Arthur Rosen
Westminster
Choir College
Amanda Dominguez
Workforce
SUNY Oswego
Syracuse University
Texas A&M
University
Sami Chowdhury
University of
Arizona
Gabriella Vukelic
Talia Stone
University of
Connecticut
Kimberly Mentryka
Yi Yan
Casey Armata
Dana Hulsen
Danielle Leboter
Franklin Flores
John La Coppola
Jordan Ward
Julianna Natale
Michael Cassar
Michael Finnegan
Michael Kuhne
Michael Sardo
Renegem Mendiola
Undecided
Ali Shaikh
Christine Lopez
Patricia Alves
June 2014
Cosmetology- Career
Education
CUNY John Jay
The Class of 2014
FEATURES
Summer Fun!
by Gabriella Vukelic
Photo Courtesy of imediaconnecion
Summer is the best time of the
year to be outside. Enjoy a nice day
in the park or go for a hike; even
enjoying nature and going camping is a good idea for an adventurous weekend. It’s fun to have
campfires and gaze up at the stars
on a cool summer’s night. Take advantage of the nice weather and go
sight-seeing. How about planning a
road trip and going to all the places
there wasn’t time to visit during
the school
y e a r ?
S p e n d
a whole
day at an
amusement park
or a water park.
There are
multiple amusement parks not
too far away from East Meadow,
such as Adventure Land or Six Flags.
Barbeques are fun for all
ages. Invite friends and family
over and enjoy the nice weather.
Play some sports in the backyard
or cool off in a pool, if you’re
lucky enough to have one. A barbeque is a great way to catch up
with people you haven’t seen in a
while, and just relax at barbeques.
Summer is the one time
of the year that you don’t have
schoolwork to worry about,
so make every day a blast!
It’s finally time to pack away those
sweaters and say hello to that warm
weather. With summer just around the
corner and school ending in a few days,
everyone’s been asking the same question: “What do I wear?” Well, here are
some tips on what to wear this summer
and how you can be a part of the latest
fashion trends just waiting to be released.
Before you buy any clothes, get rid
of those Uggs and tall boots you were attempting to stay warm in all winter and
slide on some sandals or flip-flops. The
hottest shoes to be worn this summer
(besides sandals, of course) are Vans and
Toms. Vans are a new type of sneaker
that is not to be worn to the gym, instead,
to be worn for a casual day out on the
boardwalk and such. Toms are a type of
shoe that have a squishy sole on the bottom, much like a flip-flop, but are closed
shoes that often have a design on top.
Summer clothes are a crowd’s favorite. What a better time to relax, take time
off work and school to hang out with
family and friends? Well, you can be
fashionable while doing it as well. Summer clothes are normally described to be
shorts and tee-shirts. What people don’t
exactly know are the secrets to wearing
trendy clothes in the summer. The biggest secret is wearing bright colors. Shh,
don’t tell anyone, but by wearing these
brighter colors it’ll keep you cooler on
the inside and trendier on the outside.
White is the new black, the hottest color
of the season is going to be worn by men
and women everywhere; white shorts
and polo shirts for the guys and white
shorts or pants with blouses for the girls.
This summer’s hottest trend is going to be patterned or floral printed
dresses and skirts. Maxi dresses and
skirts are back and better than ever
with slits by your legs just like a prom
dress and pattern galore. You can wear
these dresses or skirts casually or even
to a night out with your friends or family, depending on how you dress it up.
Leading to accessories, this summer’s accessory stores are going to be
the next big thing, since fashion is all
about dressing up your outfit. From
watches to necklaces to bracelets, they
will be selling like hot cakes. The two
biggest sellers are going to be gold
and silver jewelry. Depending on your
mood, if you’re trying to boost your
image to a more confident look, gold
jewelry is the way to go. If you are
looking for a casual and delicate look,
silver is your spice to an amazing outfit.
Remember to keep it classy and
never trashy. Be the next summer
“it” and look your best with this helpful guide. “Fashion is not something
that exists in dresses only. Fashion is
in the sky, in the street; fashion has
to do with ideas, the way we live,
what is happening.” ~Coco Chanel
Summer Crossword Puzzle
Across
1. Relax on the beach
and take a dip in the ______
5. Although maintaining that
summer bod is essential, never
turn down the opportunity to ___ !
6. Air conditioned chillin’ __
fun in the sun, the choice is yours!
8. On a hot day, who can turn
down a visit to Ralph’s Italian ____ ?
10. Keep those skiis and snowboards stored up in the _____ and whip
out your surfboards for these waves!
12. Although school was full
of turns and ______, ___ can finally relax and take it easy!
14. Work to your goal every single day so one day you can
look back and say “_ ____ __”
16. Kindness is contagious, be
a good sport by _______ on the
summer spirit to all your peers!
Down
2. Keep your room nice and ____
so mom’ll extend that curfew for you!
3. Yeah being out doors in
fun, but sometimes the humidity makes everything so _____
4. You can ____ the
winter
goodbye
because
good weather has arrived!
7. Summer tunes are flowing
in so keep your _____ on blast!
9. Keep you’re skin protected
and
moisturized
with some sun tan ______ !
11. Be more social around
the family by ______ the television so you can have undivided
conversations.
13. Make beautiful memories,
and always remember the good _____
15. Keep your head __ and
your windows down this summer!
11
Frankenbook
Summer Fashion 2014
by Aliyha Gill
School’s almost out and summer’s coming up pretty fast. Have
you thought about how you’re going to spend your summer days?
Here are a few ideas on how to make
the most of this summer.
Planning a trip to the beach
with friends and family is always
a good time to cool off in the water
or just relax and sunbathe. There’s
something for everyone at the
beach. Building sand castles with
younger
siblings
can also
be fun.
A picnic on
the sand
is even
a possibility. If you don’t like the sand,
you can still go swimming at the
pool. Another way to cool off in
your own backyard is by having
a water balloon fight with friends.
Another way to spend summer
is away from home. Go on vacation with family or friends. Tropical vacations are fun, but any place
different from home can make
summer more enjoyable. Make this
summer special by going to places you’ve never been to before.
Even if it’s only a weekend getaway, vacations are great ways to
relax after a stressful school year.
FEATURES
by Nathan Siegelaub
How are Mark Zuckerberg, the
father of Facebook, and the mad
scientist Victor Frankenstein, the
father of a monster, eerily alike?
Each created a hideous being
and set it loose upon the world.
When future generations reflect on our times, Facebook will
invariably be mentioned as one
of the defining features of the era.
Many people have seen The Social
Network and witnessed the advent
of Facebook and its humble beginnings. But the real horror story,
the one not covered in the movie,
is what has transpired since Facebook has spread like a plague; indeed, it has not just impacted the
modern world, it has thoroughly
shaped it. Facebook has swiftly,
inexorably, insidiously grown
to epic proportions to the point
where now it has rewritten modern social conventions and mores.
The Facebook Generation operates far differently than any before it, living under a system of
rules and assumptions never before
seen on Earth. Popularity is now
measured by how many “friends”
you amass or by how many “likes”
a certain post gets. Who doesn’t
love the feeling of reaching a certain plateau of likes on a profile
f
picture, or getting a host of new
friend requests in one afternoon?
And don’t think that these blanket
statements apply only to Facebook;
the spawning of Twitter, Tumblr,
Ask.fm, Instagram (well, you get
the picture) follow the same formula of Facebook but with different jargon – “likes” are replaced
by “favorites” or “retweets,” and
“friends”
by
“followers.”
T h e
revamped
rules don’t
end there.
The
explosion
of
smart
phones (in addition to the growth
of social media sites) has made instantaneous communication a reality and commonplace. That is, if
you don’t respond to someone’s
text in the matter of seconds, the
conversation is virtually over. This
new emphasis on being continuously connected stems from the
fact that privacy is a bygone state.
Pictures, comments, and – my favorite – “seen by” on Facebook
(“read receipts” to iPhoners) mean
we can no longer hide behind our
Photo Courtesy of trinityp3
10
495 Newbridge Rd
East Meadow,
NY 11554
Phone:(516) 308-4284
**Coupon: 10% off any
purchases over $10**
Expires: 9/30/14
computer screens and take cover
from the barrage of Internet attractions. Our firewalls are nothing
more than thin veils now; each status we comment on, each comment
we tweet, each tweet we retweet,
each retweet we favor, breaks
down another part of the wall.
It’s true enough we can take action restoring our privacy (the iPhone
comes
w i t h
an option to
disable
read receipts;
as of yet
Faceb o o k
has no such feature) but the pressure to conform and respond remains. I try to exercise my individuality on social media (I only
have Facebook and have yet to
join the immediate world by getting an iPhone) and certainly value my privacy, but I’ve found it
highly difficult to resist the magnetic pull of texts and posts. I feel
I must sneak a peak at a text the
moment it arrives, while not replying instantaneously creates a
tension and anxiety as to how my
silence might be perceived on the
other end. Moreover, I find myself scrutinizing every comment I
make and deciding carefully what
to like for fear of any miscommunication or misrepresentation.
Psychotic? Yes. But I have social
media to blame. And the only viable alternative involves powering
down my electronics, unplugging
my computer, and throwing off
the shackles of Facebook & Co.
I have heard rumors that Facebook is dying and people are beginning to move on. I usually
laugh when I hear such reports.
Much like the villain in any postHalloween horror movie, Facebook, or its like, will never be
killed – perhaps changed, but
never killed.
The generation
born and raised with a tablet attached to its hip will perhaps never
overcome this horrible addiction.
Continuously living under a
new set of social guidelines has
produced some noticeable effects.
One anecdote I heard recently sums
up the situation aptly. My uncle
went to a restaurant and was asked
whether he would mind if next to
the table he reserved sat one full
of young girls celebrating a birthday (the maitre d’ said it might get
loud). However, the table full of
tweenagers turned out to be so quiet you could hear them chew their
food because---you guessed it--each and every diner was on her
cell phone texting away (they all
laughed simultaneously, which, besides being a little creepy, suggested they were texting each other…
at the same table). We seem to have
lost touch with our ability to look
each other in the eye and operate
without touch screen at our side.
Zuckerberg’s Frankenstein is
the not the stuff of fiction, not able to
be contained, controlled, dismissed
or destroyed. His Facebook is here
to stay, in one form or another, to
roam the earth and colonize hearts
and minds, to change the way human beings communicate with
each other forevermore. That’s
why The Social Network, not Frankenstein, is the true horror film.
Board of Education
Joseph Parisi, President
Marcee Rubinstein, Vice President
Joseph Danenza
Corey Fanelli
Brian O’Flaherty
Jeffrey Rosenking
Walter Skinner
1864 Front St East Meadow, NY
11554
(516) 794-0552
Louis R. DeAngelo, Superintendent of Schools
Anthony Russo, Asst. Superintendent for Personnel and Administration
Cindy Munter, Asst. Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction
Mary Ann O’Brien, Asst. Superintendent for Business and Finance
Patrick Pizzo, Administrator for Operations
June 2014
1. Ocean
Eat 6. Or
A t t i c 11 .
Times 14.
A
N
2. Neat 3. Sticky 4. Kiss 5.
7. Radio 8. Ices 9. Lotion 10.
M u t i n g 1 2 . Tw i s t s , y o u 1 3 .
I Made It 15. Up 16. Passing
S
W
E
R
June 2014
Administration
S
12
EDITORIALS
High School Series Finale
by Harrison Price
Well, after four long, eventful
years, it’s all coming to an end.
High school is a very interesting
thing to experience because of
what it teaches you. I’m not talking
about math or science, but something much deeper. I’m talking
about perception. We are taught
how we should regard points in
our lives; whether we should take
something to heart, or just let it go.
Of course, this isn’t taught to us
directly, but through cause and effect. If you have a certain mindset
that doesn’t bring you happiness
in the end, you would most likely
rid yourself of that mindset and try
something else. It’s possible for
this to be for the better or for the
worse, which is part of the reason
high school can be so confusing.
So what should we take from these
past four years and what should
be let go? Here’s what I think.
I believe that the biggest focus
we should have in terms of high
school is on making friends and
overcoming the challenges laid
9th Grade
Reflection
Some of us came into
high school excited and
scared. It was a whole
new experience for us,
and now the year is coming to an end. I was surprised at first by how
many people were in the
school and how much
older they looked. It was
a little hard at first, finding my classes that were
miles away from each
other but I eventually
figured out where everything was. There was also
the responsibility of getting good grades in each
class. For some, it was
very difficult maintaining good grades while
in extracurricular activities. It’s hard to believe
that we started in September, when it feels as
if we only started yesterday. This year for me
went extremely fast and I
wonder if the next three
will be the same. I also
can’t wait to see what
the next three years bring
us. It was a great experience and I’m excited for
the start of 10th grade.
could effectively read people. I’ve
noticed in these past years that
our pessimism usually reaches
its peak in our high school years.
I’m guilty of it. My friends are
guilty of it, but we were able to
realize how idiotic and naive we
were behaving on our own. The
unfortunate reality is that some
people can’t realize these things
on their own, so I would like to
say this: you can’t call someone
“fake” if you don’t know what’s
real. And now to talk about popularity, more specifically school
popularity. All I have to say is that
it isn’t real. Don’t devalue yourself just because you don’t hang
out with the pretty girl or guy. Do
not act like someone you’re not
just to please the crowd. You’ll
most likely not see a lot of these
students after high school, so
why treat what they do and say
like it’s absolute. All I can say is
this: school popularity doesn’t exist. It’s just an imaginary creation
used to make certain people seem
more important than they actually are, and to make others feel
bad for whom they are. If you
believe you are beautiful, you’re
beautiful. It’s as simple as that.
So there you have it. We should
understand the importance of success and failure, and let go of the
naïve perception that everyone is
against you and that high school
popularity matters. I consider high
school one of the most important
points in our lives, not because
of how complex the subjects are,
but because of how much we can
learn about ourselves and others.
We begin to question what should
change and what should stay the
same. We form relationships with
people we might have never even
regarded a few years ago. It has
been a crazy four years and I’m
looking forward to college, but
not before I say “thank you” to
all of the friends I have made here
and all of the people I may have
considered enemies in the past.
Au revoir, East Meadow High.
13
by Gabe Diamond
Senior year is definitely a stressful
time- with college applications, planning for prom, coping with the fact
that many of your friends will go their
separate ways in the fall, and struggling with the plague of senioritis. But,
if you get organized, step into school
with a game plan in September, and create the balance of work and play that’s
right for you, senior year could be an
unforgettable experience and a high
note to end your high school career. Below are five simple steps to get you on
this path. Follow what works for you.
Get a head start on the college
application process. If you plan on applying to college in the fall, the earlier
you get started, the better. This doesn’t
mean that all your applications must be
complete before school starts. But there
are a few simple things you can do, like
decide which teachers you are going to your AP test results don’t even have to
ask for recommendations, open a com- be sent to the college you will attend.
Take a fun elective. Chances are,
mon app account when the application
process starts in August, and fill out the there is a lot of room in your schedule
next year. You don’t need to go off campersonal information sections. Challenge yourself. Taking Basic pus for every off period. Why not do
something
Calculus next
year? Why not
enior year could be an fun? For me,
this class was
give AB Calunforgettable
experience
Cabinetmakculus a try?
ing.
Most
These classes
and a high note to end
students in
are actually
your high school career.” this class
scheduled
enjoy it so
during
the
same periods so you have the chance to much that they continue working on
drop out of AB if you do decide that it’s their off periods, even after having
too hard for you. There’s nothing to lose. the class for two periods every day.
The same goes for other classes, such as Other fun electives could be YearAP US Gov. Don’t be scared of the ‘AP’ book, Photography,Journalism, or
in front of the name; it may be a bit more Virtual Enterprise.
Try something new. This school
challenging with a little more work, but
“S
has so much to offer, and chances are
you haven’t discovered everything
for yourself yet. So after your applications are sent out, there’s nothing
stopping you from going to one of
those Foreign Congresses all of the
Model Congress kids keep talking
about. Have you always wanted to act
in the musical or join the pit orchestra? This is your last chance! Go for it!
Coffee. There is no better time to get
hooked than right now. I’m not talking
about about a Caramel Macchiatio or any
other glorified milkshakes. Start using
your parents’ Keurig Machine or French
Press some grinds, and add as much
milk and sugar as you need until you are
tolerant to the acidic taste of adulthood.
It’s the cure-all to late nights, groggy
mornings, double-period tests, and a
great way to celebrate a canceled class.
Time Out
by Zainab Nathani
Wouldn’t it be amazing if
there were a remote to life, one
that would allow you to have the
buttons at your fingertips and allow you to truly control your
life? We would be able to pause
and play at our leisure, giving
us all the time we need to make
those life-altering decisions.
The options of rewind and fastforward would also be possible,
so we could change the past and
be aware of what is yet to come.
One can dream, but for now, we
must live without that remote. We
aren’t able to manipulate time,
but have to simply make the best
of it as it passes. That in itself is
one of life’s greatest challenges.
We see the importance of time
all around us every day, yet we just
don’t realize it. In movies, there
always is that one point where a
millisecond can result in the saving or the loss of life. While in
school, we go by a schedule and
are given time limits to complete
exams and projects. Our whole
existence revolves around time.
Why then do we always struggle
in managing it? Why are we always running out of time? These
are pretty important questions
that, if answered on a personal
level, could change your whole
life for the better. Time manage-
ment is the key to success, as it allows you to be able to juggle both
your responsibilities and your
passions while still being able to
give your full attention and best
effort to both. Many times, time
management problems arise from
pure laziness. The classic example
of this, of course, is doing nothing during the whole break, and
panicking on the last day. Well,
how can this problem be solved?
Though there is no set and definite
way, looking at the consequences
is always a good idea. Writing a
list of everything that you have to
go through when you procrastinate and posting it somewhere noticeable in your room will allow
you to clearly remember the hardship you put upon yourself last
time you let your passions get in
the way of your responsibilities.
Another method to help you
manage your time would be to
make constant goals. These goals
should be reasonable and can be
both short term and long term. If
you can’t bear the idea of sitting
down to do all your homework
on the first day of break, spread
the workload out and make a goal
to finish a considerable amount
of work each day. A goal should
then be made regarding when during the break all your work should
be completed. The reward for accomplishing each goal can be allowing yourself to be lazy or do
something you love for a short
period of time. However, don’t
give yourself the reward too early
or before you even do anything!
This will take away the incentive
to be productive. Although there
are techniques and methods that
will help you better your time
management, self-control and will
power have to be present in order
for anything to work. You have to
be able to think about things logically and make decisions, however grudgingly they may be, about
what plan is better in the long run,
and will allow you to have unlimited fun later, after all your responsibilities have been taken of.
Bettering your time-management capabilities can allow you
to have a more successful present and future. By realizing the
importance of time, one can realize how crucial the proper management of it is. Although the
process of bettering yourself is
difficult, the hardest part is taking the initiative to even try. Once
in a while, take a time out from
the busy going-ons in your life
and take a look at how you can
improve. You might realize the
importance of time in your life.
Things High School Taught Me
by Adena Baichan
1. The clichés are true. The four
years of high school really do fly by.
It’s freshman year and you think you
have all the time in the world, but before you know it, graduation is right
around the corner. So, make the most
of every opportunity that arises. Try
your best and don’t take time for
granted. Work towards what you
want, but don’t over stress yourself.
2. Sometimes, you know what’s
best for you. You don’t have to take a
class just because your guidance counselor thinks you should, or be a part of a
club just because all of your friends are.
You don’t have to take part in something
that you’re not interested in or be around
people that don’t make you happy. Do
what makes you comfortable. It’ll be
better to reflect on your own decisions
later than to regret the ones made for you.
3. Don’t procrastinate. Once you
start, you don’t stop. Senioritis is a growing epidemic that can start freshman year,
an epidemic you should take precautions
against. Once APs and college applications come around, you’ll have no one
to blame your laziness on but yourself.
4. Pick and choose your battles.
You will get a bad grade. You will
lose some friends. You won’t be every teacher’s favorite student. But a
lot of the things that seem so significant won’t even matter in a few years.
Not everything is worth losing sleep
over. While smooth seas do not make
for skillful sailors, there’s no need to
constantly travel on rough waters.
5. There’s something to learn
from everything. Whether it is failure or success, heartbreak or happiness, every experience you endure will
teach you something. You will have
your highest of highs and your lowest
of lows, but regardless of what it may
be, life will go on and you will take
something positive from it. “Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn.”
6. Things won’t end up the way
you expect. Don’t base your success
on the way you’ve expected your future to be. You may plan for things to
end up a certain way, but most of the
time, they won’t end up that way at
all. But just because things don’t work
out the way you hope, doesn’t mean
things don’t work out. You will find
yourself happy in a completely different place than where you thought you
would’ve been. Everything will be fine.
As graduation is right around the
corner, I find myself constantly reflecting on my years of high school
and all of the things I’ve learned. The
friends that I’ve made, some teachers that I’ve had, the obstacles that
I’ve overcome, the opportunities that
I’ve been given- I wouldn’t change
any of it for the world. These past four
years have been incredible, and the lessons that I’ve learned are ones that I’ll
carry with me for the rest of my life.
June 2014
June 2014
by Erika Espinosa
out in front of us. When we focus
primarily on those things, we are
preparing ourselves for the future;
how we are going to handle success. Something that’s also important to focus on is failure. I don’t
mean that we should treat failure
like it will be a part of us forever. What I mean is that we should
make sure we remember what
failure feels like and how to deal
with it so we don’t let it destroy
us when we become adults. We are
allowed to make mistakes as long
as we learn from them in the end.
I think that the most important thing to let go of from high
school is the concept of “enemies”
and “popularity.” Now I will admit that there are occasions when
students give good reasons as to
why they don’t get along, but a lot
of the time these feuds take place
over nothing. I’ve met people that
almost always skip to conclusions
about the people they encounter,
and then act like they are masters of psychology because they
EDITORIALS
Surviving Senior Year
SPORTS
15
Ryan Callahan:Who Do You Think You Are?
by Andrew Weiss
Sather offered Ryan Callahan a 6 yr
$36 million contract. And he turned
it down. Callahan, a player who
scored only 11 goals on the season
at the time this contract was offered
and never cracked 30 in his career,
wouldn’t accept
a contract worthy
only of a 40 goal
scorer to remain
the captain of the
New York Rangers. For 6 years.
As a player he
already was considered ‘broken
goods’ based on
his oft-injured status. Why? He claims it was because
of the lack of a no-movement clause,
something given to the league’s elite.
No-movement clauses are given to
the likes of Alex Ovechkin, Sidney
Photo Courtesy of Zimbio
According to a recent Gallup pole, 31% of Americans today
are hockey fans. Obviously, not
very many people admit to being
die-hard fans of the fast-paced and
violent ice sport. However, any
professional sports fan can relate
to the plight of Ryan Callahan and
his simple idiocy when it comes to
his contract and free agency status.
Ryan Callahan was the captain of
the New York Rangers, a position
that any self -respecting pro hockey
player would appreciate, because
who wouldn’t want to be the face
of a classy, historical organization
(even if their record doesn’t indicate
such)? To quote Don Cherry, former
coach of the Boston Bruins and current Hockey Night in Canada analyst, “He had the world as his oyster,
and he blew it.” How did he blow
it? Rangers general manager Glen
Crosby, and Henrik Lundqvist. Not
Ryan Callahan. Some will claim that
he listened to his agent too much,
instead of accepting the obviously
great offer in front of him. Some
will claim he tried to bank on the
highest contract
he could based
on the fact that
his style of play
will cause him
to decline relatively soon. In
the end, he was
traded to Tampa
Bay in exchange
for aging superstar Martin St.
Louis, a huge upgrade in scoring
and skill but a decline in toughness
and grit. His status for next year is
very much in the air. He is reported
to be asking for upwards of 7 years
and $45 million, along with a nomovement clause. Should he get that
money? Absolutely not. Will he?
Probably, as the Edmonton Oilers
and his hometown Buffalo Sabres
have reportedly been willing to meet
his demands. These are two teams
that finished in last place in their
respective conferences, two teams
that see Callahan as the center of a
rebuild, not a role player who adds to
a good team, which is truly what he
is. Ryan Callahan will not be playing for a contender if he does not
back off from his demands. He will
certainly not be playing for the New
York Rangers next year, the team
for which he played his entire career
before forcing his way out. Ryan
Callahan would be a welcome addition to any team, but he certainly
seems to think that he’s better than
he actually is. The question is, why?
When Did Sports Become So Controversial?
Can someone please explain,
when did sports get so controversial?
What happened to just going down
to the schoolyard with a bunch of
friends bringing a bat, a ball, a racket, a glove, or whatever was needed
and playing sports for the fun of it?
The biggest controversy then was
what sport was going to be played
that day, who was shirts and who was
skins, who got picked first and for the
unfortunate… who got picked last.
Of course, that’s just some neighborhood kids
playing on
their own
with
no
real stakes
and no real
worries.
Playing in a
school yard
obviously
doesn’t
even begin
to compare
to playing Photo Courtesy of truthdig
in front of thousands among thousands of fans who know every little
detail about you, some things about
yourself you may not even want the
public to know. Professional athletes
making millions of dollars with their
large contracts, endorsement deals,
and well-known name recognition
seem to have lost touch with this side
of sports, the side of sports where
they’re played for the love of the
game, for the pure fun that it brings.
Now it seems everyone’s concern
is what is going on off the field.
When speaking about controversies in sports, one of the first things
to jump into somebody’s mind has
to be the now infamous Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
To know Sterling’s story you don’t
have to be a Clippers fan, an NBA
fan, or even a sports fan, all you
need is any news source possible and
you’ve heard this story. Audiotapes
of Sterling making outrageous racist
remarks to his girlfriend reached the
public atmosphere, and from there it
was game over for Sterling, receiving a 2.5 million dollar fine from
the NBA and a ban for life. By no
means is Sterling’s punishment unjustified. Sterling
made his bed,
and now it’s
his turn to
lay in it. But
the question
that remains
is “Why has
sports turned
into this great
big
media
spectacle?” Lately it’s getting harder
and harder to tell the difference between CNN and ESPN. Was Donald
Sterling a racist? Absolutely. Did
he get what he deserved? Without
a doubt. But why does it seem that
sports is taking the hit for his actions,
that people are saying that aspects of
sports need to change, that sports as a
whole is broken and needs some sort
of savior or some rule to save it? Like
heck sports needs saving or changing. Sports is perhaps one of the purest aspects of society. It allows one
man or one team to go up against another in a battle of strength, skill, and
pure ability; there’s nothing political
about it. Sports should be competitor
vs. competitor, not smart vs. dumb,
black vs. white, or straight vs. gay.
Off the field, court, or whatever
it is that is being played on, there are
different types of people, all containing different views, some, if not
most, different from others, and that
is perfectly alright. In the news it
seems more and more recent stories
have been about an athlete’s sexual
orientation. A person’s sexual orientation is a huge part of life, there is
no doubt about that, and whatever a
person’s orientation is, is perfectly
fine as long as it makes them happy.
That’s just another great thing about
a sport, it doesn’t care: it doesn’t
care about the color of your skin or
your sexual orientation, it allows all,
and all are welcome. Recently, NBA
player Jason Collins has brought
to the public’s attention his sexual
orientation, being gay, and others,
including potential NFL player Michael Sam, and WNBA player Brittany Grinner followed him. What they
did was courageous and without a
doubt made them pioneers, but once
again, a sport doesn’t judge or ask or
even mind what one’s sexual orientation is. So why put out an answer
to a question that was never asked?
Whether you were the captain
picking who was going to be on your
team, or the kid who was hoping and
praying not to be the last one picked,
one way or another, there was controversy. Like it or not, controversy
will always be a part of sports, life,
and just everything. We like to think
that we want to separate the two or
at least try to, but deep down it’s
known that controversy is part of
the reason that people turn on the
television, radio or whatever every
morning. Without controversy, the
story behind the box score, and the
stories off the field, sports would
just be a bunch of grown men playing some sport every day with nothing new; and who wants to see that?
The answer is nobody. Sports need
controversy. To all those big, tough
guys out there who say they don’t
like soap operas, well, they’re lying,
and that’s because sports has to be
the biggest soap opera of them all.
Just ask any fan out there; I’m sure
they’ve dealt with the ups and downs
and mixed emotions that come
along with sports. Looking at it that
way it seems, the question changes
from “When did sports become so
controversial?” to “What would
sports be without controversy?”
June 2014
June 2014
by Samuel Berger
16
SPORTS
On to the Next One
Photo Courtesy of sports.yahoo
This is it, their time as high
school star athletes is coming
to an end. Nine seniors from
the East Meadow High School
graduating class received scholarships to take their sports skills
to the next level. Among these
seniors were Chika Ewulu (football) who committed to LIU
Post, Billy Andrle (lacrosse) who
committed to Marist, Jenna Borreson (soccer) who committed to
Hofstra, Kerri Shapiro (softball)
who committed to Lynn University, Amanda Ashe (track) who
committed to Maryland, Madison West (softball) who committed to Bentley University, Jaida
Zabala (lacrosse) who committed to Chestnut Hill, and Claire
Travis and Marissa San Antonio
(softball) who decided to continue playing together at LIU Post.
Through hard work and dedication these tremendous athletes
are ready to play on the college
stage and are ready for the new
competition. All of these athletes
have shined throughout high
school in their sports, receiving awards such as All- County
and All-Conference; some of
them even helped their team to
win a Long Island championship last year. These athletes are
more than ready to take on the
new challenges and experiences they will come to next year.
Being a freshmen in college is
like starting all over, and every
one of these students will look
to make a name for themselves.
Photo Courtesy of msgvarsity
by Brandon Callaghan
Athlete Spotlight: Claire Travis
June 2014
True Artistry Comes With True Technique
388 Merrick Ave
East Meadow, NY 11554
(516) 489-8795
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Summer Classes!
The NY Dancer’s Studio
by Jackie Roughan
Claire steps up to the plate… The
pitch is good… What a swing! And it’s
out! Homerun by Claire Travis! Captain, senior, and number eighteen on
the Girls’ Varsity Softball Team, Claire
is hitting it out of the park this season.
Claire Travis is on fire this season.
She has a total of five homeruns,
ranking at number one for
the most amounts on her
team, and she’s sure to
keep them coming.
Claire is also captain
along with other seniors, Madison West
and Marisa San Antonio. She says “Being captain with them is such an honor because we spend every weekend
in the summer together at tournaments
with ‘the dads’. As a captain I try to lead
by example and always have a positive
attitude on the field, no matter what the
score is.” When asked what she loves
about softball, she said her favorite part
would be all the friendships she’s made
throughout the years. As a whole, the
girls on the team really respect each other as players and as people. Not to mention, Claire truly loves the competition.
The season this year has been incredibly memorable. “It finally hit me
that I was a senior when there was no
one older than me at the tryouts,” says
Claire. “Hopefully, we’ll go as far as we
did last year and make a run at states.”
Claire won the All County Award last
year and hopes to win the award this
year as well. She finished her regular
season batting 517, with five homeruns.
Claire started her softball career
when she was just four years old, playing little league down at the complex here in East Meadow.
Her dad has been a huge
part of her softball life.
He’s helped her become the tremendous
athlete that she is today, whether it was
having a catch, taking
her to a game/tournament, or just lifting her spirits
up after a tough loss. Not only has
Claire’s dad been a real help throughout
the years, he’s also been her role model. Claire’s dad wrestled for his college
team and had always told her the joys
of being a collegiate athlete. Now it’s
Claire’s turn to feel the same way. When
she started looking for a college with the
right fit for her, the original plan was to
go away. When she visited the Long Island University: C.W. Post Campus, she
fell in love with the campus and knew
that it was perfect for her. Claire’s extremely excited to be going to the perfect college, play her best and make
some great memories along the way.
Good luck Claire and knock them dead!