Highlights April 27, 2012

Sweeney Todd Photo Essay

page 12

Still Her life is like a road map

page 6+7

April 27, 2012 Kingston High School, 403 Broadway, Kingston, Ny 12401 www.kingstonstonhighlights.com Volume 81, Issue IV

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Cyanotype was the first photographic process. Cyanotypes use a combination of Feric Amonium Oxalate and Potassium Ferriagade. The two solutions are mixed and the and applied to the surface. When the solutions are mixed and exposed they become light sensitive.

When Cyanotypes were first used, they were used as negatives to document botony. The first ever cyanotype was algae by Ana Atkins, better known as the first woman photographer.

Now years later into the future, the world record for the worlds largest cyano-type has been set. The Cyanotype done by the Chemistry for Artist class is a massive 25 feet long, by five feet wide.

To see this impressive work of art that focuses on Emily Dickinson’s poem The Soul Selects Her Own Society as it relates to Midtown in Kingston, you can go to City Hall the 27th through the 30th. After that you can see its new permanent home in the high school, on the second floor of the main building.

Chemistry for Artists sets World Record!

Highlight is back with another issue. Aside from bringing you another exciting issue of every-body’s favorite High School newspaper, we have some news to share about some upcoming events.

On April 28 High-lights is having a book fair at Barnes and Noble in Kingston. Apart of the book fair will be a panel in which the staff of Highlights will be discussing modern jour-nalism trends. If you are interested in Journalism, our panel and the book

fair are at 3 p.m., Satur-day April 28. If that’s not enough to interest you, maybe the fact we’re raising money will.

Highlights will get a percentage of the sales that occur during the book fair and the panel we are doing. The money we raise from our book fair will be donated to the American Cancer Society at the Kingston Relay for Life, Saturday May 5. Highlights will be supplying the other half of our goal if we are unable to reach it at the book fair. Every penny

helps, come buy stuff at Barnes and Noble!

Speaking of the Relay for Life, Highlights will have a booth at the event! Come stop by and visit the booth. Highlights will be spending the day covering the event, the

individual booth activi-ties, and more. Come out and not only support the Relay for Life and ACS’s hope for cancer, but stop and say hello at our booth behind the visitors bleachers.

2 EditorialHIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012

HIGHLIGHTS

Editorditor Cody NaccaratoCody Naccarato

StaffStaff William Barton Alexis Parkhurst Nate Ring Robert Pugliese Joe Pugliese Caroline Seche John Villielm

Club President John Villielm

Club Treasurer Robert Pugliese Adviser Ted Leach

Editorial Policy: Highlights is a free and open forum for student expresseion edited entirely by stu-dents. The views expressed here do not refl ect the views of the Kingston City School District. Letters from readers are welcome. All letters must be signed. The staff reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity. Letters may be sent to Highlights, Kingston High School, 403 Broadway, Kingston New York, 12401, or be delivered to Room 204.

Memberships: Highlights is a member of the National Scholastic Press Association.

Advertising: To advertise in High-lights, please contact us at the above adress or telephone (845) 331-1970, extension 7686.

Some content courtesy of Ameri-can Society of News Editors/ MCT Campus High School Newspaper Service.

visit us online atKingstonHighlights.com

Editorial: the cost of being niceIt doesn’t cost you

anything to be nice.People have bad days

and in the end, how you handle yourself on your bad days can sometimes be the truest form of yourself.

If you are in the hall-way, and you somebody asks you if you could please take your ear buds out. You could simply smile and say, “okay, thank you.” It doesn’t cause you any pain or grief to simply be polite, even if you feel they’re being rude.

People in general won’t be all milk and honey polite to you all day. You won’t be able to go out into the real world, and be treated with the upmost kind-ness and politeness. This sours people and makes them think that they need to put up a tough outer shell. This is not the case, a simple smile and

a little compliance will be perfect.

Don’t mutter things under your breath. Teachers and staff who you think “might be an-noying” are actually just trying to do their jobs. Part of their job is to make sure that the rules are upheld. All of them, even the ones you think are dumb or pointless, need to be followed.

Being rude and im-polite doesn’t get you anywhere. Rudeness escalates a situation. Impoliteness can get out of hand and before you know it, you’re sitting in your AP’s office ex-plaining why you cursed out a lunch monitor.

What you think of the school, the district, and its rules is your opinion but remember that your opinions are of the school. Calling the staff names, or being rude will not get you

anywhere because they cannot do anything to change your opinions. Only you can, and being rude is not how to go about it.

If you have an issue in the school, you can attend Student Govern-ment meetings and air your complaints. They will either respond to your complaint, or look into it and see what they can do. Student Govern-ment is the voice of the students, and you can let them hear your voice every Wednesday, 9th period in the Audion.

If you aren’t all about going to Student Government meetings, or maybe want to ad-dress the principal directly, you can attend Student Town Hall, or predetermined Thurs-days. Listen to the morn-ing announcements for the next Student Town Hall. It provides you a

place to ask your ques-tions, and Adrian Man-uel, the principal, will answer you.

Maybe try going to your class officers. The class presidents, may be able to help you in the right direction with your issues, and might be able help you more than you may think. You elected them, and to an extent, they have a service to help you.

If neither of these suits you, get a group of students who share how you feel. Get to-gether, and get a petition or some other peaceful solution going. You can make a difference, you just have to try. Fair warning, nobody will take you serious if curse, kick and scream your way around the school. Do it right, and follow the rules and you can try and make a difference.

Corrections

Taylor Alexander is a sophomore not a junior.Jonathan Vincent’s name was spelled wrong.Christian Pavlov’s name was spelled wrong. Nate Ring’s name was on the staff list twice, and Caroline Seche was not.

Highlights upcoming events in the spring

News 3 HIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012

by Robert PuglieseHighlights Staff

“We get to kill a melon”-Shane Donnelly

The catapult launch in all of its glory has re-turned for a second time this year!

With two classes be-ing enthusiastic enough, he is able to squeeze in the construction of two catapults in one year.

Junior Shane Donnel-ly is in Karliners second principles of engineering classes and is ecstatic to build his catapult. The only problem that his group is having is that they keep getting all the leftover wood that no

one wants. So they are left with

some wood but not enough. Shane also men-tioned that he is working extremely hard not only for a good grade but so he ability to “kill a mel-on” during the launch. When asked how he will benefit from this project, Shane said “ Friendships lasting lifetimes, better problem solving, and I enjoy drilling.”

Another junior that was happy to share his thoughts on the project was Allen Kozlowski. Allen said that this proj-ect is “a great learning experience.” Also, he spoke of several require-

ments a group needs in order to do a task such as a catapult. “Well, it helps having past knowl-edge or experiences with Google Sketch, and also it takes past experiences working with wood. But more importantly, it takes patience.” he said. Allen’s main motiva-tion for doing well on this project is in order to “beat my brother’s score.”

Karliner also had a tremendous amount to say about the project. I asked him why he would do a project like this twice and he told me that “This is the first year with two classes. There

was such a great number of students wanting to take the class that I now have two classes full!” The requirements that

Kar-liner asks of his stu-dents is to dis-cover how

catapults and trebuchets function, understanding exactly what materials are necessary, how to use design, and to provide a scientific method for it.

When asked if our class will do better than last semester, Karliner said “We will have to wait and see.”

All wood mentioned in this story has been donated by Herzogs.

Catapult construction under way

by Cody NaccaratoEditor

“Starting with the fourth quarter” said Joe Pugliese, student government president

“students will be al-lowed to bring food back on campus, when they get their fourth quarter privilege cards."

In March of 2012,

the privilege card hold-ers at the high school received a shock. The students were told they could no longer bring food back on campus.

The issue in ques-

tion was a dispute in the contracts of the custodial staff and their responsibility for outside garbage. Students were not throwing their trash away, and leaving their garbage from off cam-pus on the tables and floors of the cafeteria, as well as other places around the school.

It was explained by Adrian Manuel, principal of the high school, at the March 15th student town hall, that the official rea-son that food was not

being allowed back on campus was because of a dispute between the custodial staff in the school and the stu-dents. Student Govern-ment's hard work paid off.

Pugliese also had another note to this an-nouncement.

"Remember, this is a privilege. Just as easy as it is given to you, it can be taken away. So please, be respectful."

Eat it here!

Watch as the melon leaves the frame! Rob Pugliese/Highlights

Paul Polk taking notes during Student Government’s meeting. Cody Naccarato/Highlights

HIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012 4 News

by Joe PuglieseHighlights Staff

Let the games begin, as men’s fi tness once again starts their Superstars unit.

This means that over the next few weeks we will be sure to see the fi nest athleticism as teams from all periods compete for the number one spot.

“We split the class up into teams that face off in a variety of events,” said Thomas.

Loughlin, one of the men’s fi eld house phys. Ed teachers, “Team points are then given based off the group’s overall achieve-ment.”

According to Lough-lin, this event has been a springtime tradition that

has been going on for nearly twenty years.

However, this year Su-perstars has started a few weeks earlier than previ-ous years.

“We wanted to make sure that we could get

every event in.” Loughlin said, “ Last year we ran a little short with time, so we decided to fi nish the year with our softball unit, and start Superstars earlier on.”

They also plan on

bringing back previous ac-tivities that were removed from the list years ago, such as the all-popular bench press.

“We have to modify it to keep involvement, if something gets kids to

participate, we keep it on the events list,” Loughlin said.

They also have to account for the classic Superstars events.

“The tire toss has got to be my favorite,” sopho-more Dylan Bonesteel said. “I didn’t really get to compete in it last year because I was a freshman, so my team hated me.”

However, the tire toss is just one example of the “not normal” activities Superstars has.

When asked to de-scribe the new activities Loughlin said, “Crows and cranes. I’ll leave that up to you to fi gure out what it is,” as he chuckled.

Men’s gym: superstars in the making

5th period men’s gym preparing the run the mile fi tness test. Joe Pugliese/highlights


It’s that time of year again, which means that Reason and Rhyme is in the midst of creating their an-nual issue.

A club that is all about literary and the arts, Reason and Rhyme is an expression of how the students feel, through both image and writing.

According to the club

adviser, Scott Royer, you do not have to be a member of the club in order to send in pieces for the publication.

“We’re open to submis-sions, but members of the club critique all the work that comes in,” Royer said, “The kids have a vote on what “lives or dies”, and whatever the majority says, happens.”

Currently, the members are designing the layout for the issue, which comes out

on June 2nd. “You can expect to

see utter perfection,” Said senior Samuel Shippee, “The work submitted for this year’s edition brings out the magnifi cent qualities of Reason and Rhyme.”

Anyone is open to join the club, whether it is because they feel they’re strong at art and writing or because they have an ap-preciation for them.

The club meets every Friday in room 203, but currently holds meetings in the art lab, where they are producing the issue for this June.

“Being a member of the club is a nice feather in your cap for college.” Royer said, “You learn how

to critique, and also how to take criticism of your own work.”

Being both an art and literature production, you meet students with very

similar interests and many of the same ideas.

“I made a lot of my friends here.” Said senior Kelli Sillik. “It’s a good place to be.”

Art magazine to start another year

A sample from Reason and Rhyme. Cody Naccarato/Editor

Features 5 HIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012

by Alexis ParkhurstHighlights Staff

Two of my brothers have autism, and I grew up knowing the diffi culties the children diagnosed and their families have to face. Years of trying different therapies, diets, and programs, waiting for results. Learning to deal with their quirks, and even worse those who feel the need give an opinion on it. Even more than that however, I remember the positives. Learn-ing to love them the way they are; watching them little by little rise to the occasion, and realizing just how intelligent they are even if they couldn’t communicate with me. All my life I’ve wondered what makes them the way they are, and why we haven’t discovered more effi cient ways to help them, but I love them just the way they are and think they along with the countless others with autism deserve the world.

Ever heard the phrase “Light it up blue”, or seen blue lights around town and not known what they were for. April is Autism Awareness month, and April 2nd was the of-fi cial “Light it up Blue for Autism” day. Many building from the local Center for Spectrum Services to the Empire State building displayed blue lights that night to show their support for the disorder. What exactly is autism, and why is it so important?

Autism is a neurological disorder that is generally developed at a young age. It is characterized by three main criteria.

1.Impairment in social interac-tion- This could mean an inability to make eye contact , understand sarcasm or facial expressions, and easily create relationships with peers.

2.Impairment in communica-tion – This means having a delay in or lack of ability to use spoken lan-guage, and for those that do develop the ability, diffi culty in holding conversation with others.

3.Repetitive and Stereotyped patterns of behavior- These can range from an obsession with an object, to a repetitive movement the patient does, to an overly intense focus on a hobby

Although these criteria have to be met, autism has a huge range in severity of the disorder. Children with autism can be incredibly good in school, have friends, and just have a few small quirks about them, or need constant one on one atten-tion in order to succeed. The 3rd criteria stated above can cause some

children with autism to be prodigies with talents such as drawing, play-ing instruments, and math, but for a larger number of them it’s a huge problem that they can’t control. In any case, children with autism have trouble getting by in our world be-cause social aspects that we quickly adapt to are a mystery to them. The biggest problem with autism is that every case is different, making it diffi cult to fi nd ways to quickly as-sist those with the disorder.

Cheryl N. Engel is a psy-chologist and head of the clinical department at Center for Spectrum Services in Kingston., where chil-dren are evaluated and put through therapies to help them cope with their autism. Engel runs many of these evalutaions and creates be-havior plans for each specifi c child. She was asked to work at the center while at the evaluation of her son, who has Asperger’s (a less sever type of autism). She told me “My son is now 8 and working here has helped me so much to work with him.”

On the topic of causes of autism, it’s clear that not many specifi cs are known, but consists of a combination of genetic and environmental factors. “. There may be a genetic vulnerability whether it’s in the womb or conception or during childhood. I think that plus the environmental factor is what’s causing autism and ASD to be more commonly diagnosed.” We also do not know which children are suscep-tible to autism, and therefore there is little way to prevent children from developing it.

What’s the problem though? Children with autism aren’t sick or dying, so why is fi nding ways to help them so crucial?

Think of an adult you know that has developed Alzheimer’s. They are unable to perform daily life tasks by themselves, and their dependency makes them extremely unhappy. Children with autism share the same dependency as adults with autism, but for their entire lives. Many children with autism don’t get to grow up, move out and make their own lives, because they are stuck with a disorder that doesn’t let them.

Many people see others with autism similar to a dog, who is taken care of and doesn’t really know what’s going on. People diagnosed are aware of the world around them. They know they are different and want to fi t in, but their ideas and abilities are stuck inside of them because they cannot communicate.

If treated properly, those with

autism have the same potential as those without, maybe even more be-cause of their focus. A person with autism could be the next Beethoven, or even fi nd a cure for cancer.

When I see a child with au-tism, I see a sweet, eager mind that wants to learn, and just needs the help of those around him. Children with autism have to work ten times as harder than we do to deal with daily life situations. They deserve to be treated like the intelligent people they are, and given as much attention as other diseases harming us today.

So what can we do to help these children? Engel says that we can start by keeping an open mind. “I think we just need to increase awareness that there is such a broad range in autism, and more people need to be willing to help those with it and close to those with it. You have to treat every kid different, and that is what is especially challeng-ing.”

It is important that as we fi nd cures for diseases that hurt us as we go through life we also look into those that ail us from the beginning. Although April is coming to an end autism should continue to be recog-nized. If you come across a person with autism, remember they are not just what they seem and if you can, help them and be their friend.

Two of my brothers have autism, and I grew up knowing the diffi culties the children diagnosed and their families have to face. Years of trying different therapies, diets, and programs, waiting for results. Learning to deal with their quirks, and even worse those who feel the need give an opinion on it. Even more than that however, I remember the positives. Learn-ing to love them the way they are; watching them little by little rise to the occasion, and realizing just how intelligent they are even if they couldn’t communicate with me. All my life I’ve wondered what makes them the way they are, and why we haven’t discovered more effi cient ways to help them, but I love them just the way they are and think they along with the countless others with autism deserve the world.

Ever heard the phrase “Light it up blue”, or seen blue lights around town and not known what they were for. April is Autism Awareness month, and April 2nd was the of-fi cial “Light it up Blue for Autism” day. Many building from the local Center for Spectrum Services to the Empire State building displayed blue lights that night to show their

support for the disorder. What exactly is autism, and why is it so important?

Autism is a neurological dis-order that is generally developed at a young age. It is characterized by three main criteria.1.Impairment in social interaction- This could mean an inability to make eye contact , understand sarcasm or facial expres-sions, and easily create relationships with peers.

2.Impairment in communica-tion – This means having a delay in or lack of ability to use spoken lan-guage, and for those that do develop the ability, diffi culty in holding conversation with others.

3.Repetitive and Stereotyped patterns of behavior- These can range from an obsession with an object, to a repetitive movement the patient does, to an overly intense focus on a hobby

Although these criteria have to be met, autism has a huge range in severity of the disorder. Children with autism can be incredibly good in school, have friends, and just have a few small quirks about them, or need constant one on one atten-tion in order to succeed. The 3rd criteria stated above can cause some children with autism to be prodigies with talents such as drawing, play-ing instruments, and math, but for a larger number of them it’s a huge problem that they can’t control. In any case, children with autism have trouble getting by in our world be-cause social aspects that we quickly adapt to are a mystery to them. The biggest problem with autism is that every case is different, making it diffi cult to fi nd ways to quickly as-sist those with the disorder.

Cheryl N. Engel is a psy-chologist and head of the clinical department at Center for Spectrum Services in Kingston., where chil-dren are evaluated and put through therapies to help them cope with their autism. Engel runs many of these evalutaions and creates be-havior plans for each specifi c child. She was asked to work at the center while at the evaluation of her son, who has Asperger’s (a less sever type of autism). She told me “My son is now 8 and working here has helped me so much to work with him.”

On the topic of causes of autism, it’s clear that not many specifi cs are known, but consists of a combination of genetic and environmental factors. “. There may be a genetic vulnerability whether it’s in the womb or conception or during childhood. I think that plus

the environmental factor is what’s causing autism and ASD to be more commonly diagnosed.” We also do not know which children are suscep-tible to autism, and therefore there is little way to prevent children from developing it.

What’s the problem though? Children with autism aren’t sick or dying, so why is fi nding ways to help them so crucial?

Think of an adult you know that has developed Alzheimer’s. They are unable to perform daily life tasks by themselves, and their dependency makes them extremely unhappy. Children with autism share the same dependency as adults with autism, but for their entire lives. Many children with autism don’t get to grow up, move out and make their own lives, because they are stuck with a disorder that doesn’t let them.

Many people see others with autism similar to a dog, who is taken care of and doesn’t really know what’s going on. People diagnosed are aware of the world around them. They know they are different and want to fi t in, but their ideas and abilities are stuck inside of them because they cannot communicate.

If treated properly, those with autism have the same potential as those without, maybe even more be-cause of their focus. A person with autism could be the next Beethoven, or even fi nd a cure for cancer.

When I see a child with au-tism, I see a sweet, eager mind that wants to learn, and just needs the help of those around him. Children with autism have to work ten times as harder than we do to deal with daily life situations. They deserve to be treated like the intelligent people they are, and given as much attention as other diseases harming us today.

So what can we do to help these children? Engel says that we can start by keeping an open mind. “I think we just need to increase awareness that there is such a broad range in autism, and more people need to be willing to help those with it and close to those with it. You have to treat every kid different, and that is what is especially challeng-ing.”

It is important that as we fi nd cures for diseases that hurt us as we go through life we also look into those that ail us from the beginning. Although April is coming to an end autism should continue to be recog-nized. If you come across a person with autism, remember they are not just what they seem and if you can, help them and be their friend.

Autism awareness; light it up blue

HIGHLIGHTS www.KingstonH

6 Features

by Cody Naccarato and Joe PuglieseEditor/Highlights Staff

Linda Still is a teacher. She is a mother, a daughter, a sister, a devoted friend, a colleague, a public speaker, a can-cer survivor, a wife, a great help, and a good listener. Still is all of these things now, but she wasn’t always. Still’s life was not a straight path, and lead her to places she may never of thought it would take her.

Still was born and raised in Schuylerville, New York. The village was home to about 1200 people in the time Still lived there, and was named after Phillip Schuyler, an Ameri-can war hero.

The quiet little village wasn’t all great though.“Looking back now, things weren’t really that great.”

said Still. “We didn’t have very much money. I had three old-er brothers, and two younger sisters. My dad was a drinker which of course, is a euphemism for an alcoholic.”

“When I was younger, the biggest trip we ever went on was we got to go to Vermont for a picnic!” laughed Still. Schuylerville is only about an hour or two from Vermont.

“If you go back to my really early years “said Still. “I was inspired by a teacher who lived near me. I used to help grade spelling tests in her little apartment. I think I always really dreamed of being a teacher.”

Still’s journey to become a teacher had to start some-where. Still started by taking home the extra work left over from the end of the year for the summer. “I liked to play School during the summer. I always admired the pointer that Ms.Likely used in Social Studies.” said Still.

“My father had an 8th grade education, and worked at the paper mills. He always urged for me to get an education.

So I did.”School wasn’t always so easy for her though.“I loved the logic of math. I loved Algebra, and I loved

Trigonometry.” said Still. “But I hated Geometry! I tried to drop out of it but my teacher, Mrs. Pickett, wouldn’t let me!”

“I hit a rebellious point in high school.” said Still. “It must’ve been around 10th or 11th grade. I’m not sure why I was like that back then. I was a good student. I had a group of nice friends. I was bound for college and I even liked school! I just wanted to be a rebel.”

“Looking back now, I’d have to give credit to Mrs. Cole-man my history teacher and Mr. Frail my English teacher as well for where I am now.” said Still. “And also I give credit to Mr. Hicks, all for helping me graduate. Frail had a lot of outside the classroom advice.”

“I was living in Nebraska when my [high school] class graduated, and I had already been married at that time.” said Still. “I got married in senior year, and had my fi rst child in senior year.”

It wasn’t just her father she credits for ending up as a teacher though.

“I always liked being a teacher, always thought I was going to be one.”

Still moved from Texas, where she lived briefl y, to Nebraska, and then spent a year and a half in Ankara, Turkey.

“We lived on “economy”, not on base; in the city. The American group was a very tight knit community” said Still.

“The big thing [for Americans] was sports; everybody played sports.” said Still. Sports and donor kebabs, and that’s what Americans do in Turkey; Sports and Donor kebabs. That’s what you eat!” said Still.

Donor kebabs are made up lamb cooked on a vertical

spit.When asked if lamb tastes

doesn’t taste like Chicken. It taIt wasn’t all smooth sailing“If I know now what I didn

learned more of the simple vocthings about living in Turkey, olanguage.” said Still. “Also, wemost of the American families;speak English.”

Her bumpy roads turned inable to start traveling a little m

“While in Turkey, we were(military transportation). I was Athens! Visited my brother whGermany, and our friends who Spain.” said Still.

“[My husband] went to coHe got his associates degree at lege, and then a bachelor’s degSUNY Potsdam.” said Still “Hing at IBM when he got a job owanted to be a teacher but I wa

Still also had the added obwhile going to school. While graising her kids and working a didn’t fret though, no matter ho

Still started at Ulster Coungot a two year degree in individStill went to New Paltz with thEnglish or Math teacher. “I justlanguage has. Even though I lik

LINDA Still K

Layout by Cody Naccarato

Features 7Highlights.com April 27, 2012

like Chicken “No, no it astes like lamb.” said Still.gs for Still in Turkey though.n’t know then, I would’ve

cabulary. One of the hardest or any foreign country is the e lived a little ways away from ; most of my neighbors didn’t

nto clear skies when Still was ore.e able to take Military Hops able to go to Greece, I loved

ho had been stationed in had moved from Turkey to

llege fi rst after we got back. Adirondack Community Col-

gree in Computer Science at e always dreamt about work-

offer from them. I thought I asn’t sure.”bstacle of raising her kids oing to college she was also job all at the same time. She

ow bumpy the road got.nty Community College and dual studies. After Ulster,

he goal to either become an t liked the expression that ke the sense and logic in math,

I guess the words are art.” said Still. As it were, Still ended up choosing English.

“I was in a toss up between English or Math, but after the fi rst class I took in SUNY was an English class. My teacher was such an infl uence on me, that I decided to go for English.” said Still.

Still took classes over the course of 16 years between Ulster and New Paltz. “I worked very hard for my educa-tion” said Still. “and part of that is because of my father.”

In the summer of 2005, Still was diagnosed with Mantle Cell Lymphoma a type of blood cancer that affects the lym-phatic system. This type of cancer is rare in it of itself, but it is also most common in older men. Serving as part of the immune system, the lymphatic system helps to protect the body against infection and disease.

Still was told she had only fi ve years to live.“I went through three rounds of high dose, chemother-

apy. I was into the hospital for three weeks. It was amazing just how little energy I had.” said Still.

Still underwent stem cell transplant procedures as a means of to help her overcome cancer. Still says that going through procedures like this, especially when cancer is your ailment, that it

makes you face your own mortality.“You end up viewing things with a lens that makes

things clear. Every day that your healthy, is a good day.” said Still.

Still started eating healthier in an attempt to get better, however Still learned that to get better, she would have to start down a more spiritual route; she started meditating. “I think you need to be open to different ideas, and always get a second opinion. You also have to be prepared to live with the

consequences.” said Still.Still also found she was suddenly having problems

concentrating.“I read some books, and I was able to get some easy

crossword puzzles. I couldn’t go out, I couldn’t eat out. It’s amazing how much I can do, as compared to then. “ said Still.

“Because of the different medications I was on,” said Still. “I had to drink lots and lots of water;

bottled water. I used to be able to taste the minerals and different chemicals that they put into water. Desani water uses salt. Fiji is the best bottled water; it doesn’t taste like anything.”

Duff Allen said that when Still was sick, he noticed a sort of realization in her.

“When she was sick, she underwent a soulful awaken-ing.” Allen said. “She saw what mattered, the heart of things. Developed a focus on what mattered most, forgot the mean-ingless idle chatter. The importance of what matters most is a good lesson for all.”

Allen, an English teacher at the high school as well met Still around 12 years ago. They’ve been both colleagues and friends since then.

“She brings a seriousness of purpose to the school, Candor without sacrifi cing play. And she also tolerates my personal behavior.” said Allen.

Still’s life is one of interesting tales and adventures. It has its high points, and its low points. Still, having been through a lot in her time, has some advice for people.

“Life is precious,and time is precious. In my life, I ac-centuate the positives, and kick away all the negatives,” said Still. “Its good way to think about life.”

STILLKickin’

HIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012

8 Opinion

People deal with the rise in gas pricesby Robert PuglieseHighlights Staff

Does it ever blow your mind when you think of gas prices and how expensive it is getting per gallon? Some say that it might even reach 5 dollars a gallon during the summer! Gas prices have become an extreme pain in the rear to everyone.

One student that is outraged by the absurdity of these gas prices is senior Demetri Leris. It used to take Demetri only 50 dollars to fi ll his tank a several months ago, now it takes 100 dollars. When asked if it scares him that it may be 5 dollars a gallon, he had this to say. “Its getting so expensive I’m considering selling my truck!” The truck, getting a minimal 10 miles to the gallon, is costing Demetri half his paycheck to fi ll. The compromise he decided was “Soon we will have to bike ev-erywhere, and if you drive, you

ain’t going no where without a job.”

Another student to explain to me the amount of stress that is put upon him when he is forced to stop for gas is senior Shane Peppard. Paying for in-surance, and gas is taking a toll upon Shane. It has become such an issue that he is considering getting a second job. His car, getting 20 miles to the gallon, is putting a hole in shanes wallet along with other things he must pay for. Shane’s solution to this problem is “In order to cope with the constant increases, you can only go where needed.

The last interesting person to share their voice with me on this topic was librarian Kathleen Swarthout. “I have to be very conscious when I go out. I have to make sure I get every pos-sible thing done while I’m out in order to conserve money.” When she was telling me about the increase and how much of

a pain it is, she included a very interesting point. In 1987, when there was a gas shortage, people were only eligible to get gas ac-cording to the even or odd num-ber on their license plate. The United States did this because they had to conserve energy as effi ciently as possible.

Confl icts in Iran were caus-ing the shortage and it was a bad time for gas users. She made an interesting point in saying “How far have we gone?”

Increases in gas prices have brought most of America into a state of anger, where they do not understand why it is so high and why they must suffer for it. Some may argue that it is the trickle down theory where the money put into it will eventually all sort itself out and some sim-ply say that it is big business be-ing corrupt as usual. But in all essence, think before you pump, every coin builds up in time.


Should the S.A.T be viewed as heavily as it is?

This is a question that has run through high schools for generations and has run through mine for many years, but has come up a lot more since I will soon be taking the test.

According to the College Board, the S.A.T, formerly known as the Scholastic As-sessment Test, is used as the measuring stick for how well a particular student will do in their freshman year of college.

This test also comes in handy for accepting college applications, according to guid-ance counselor Mary McClellan.

Looking at a raw score of anywhere from 600-2400 points to determine acceptance is much easier than reviewing three years of a person’s life, espe-cially when a college gets over 20,000 applicants a year.

It’s a great way to thin the herd, narrowing your applicants down from 20,000 to 6,000 makes the time spent on indi-viduals much more.

It also helps in teaching students responsibility.

Taking the time out to sign up for the test, study for the test albeit the fact that it’s virtually impossible, and to then take your scores and ship them out to any college you desire does certainly elude to what goes on in the real world.

The test also serves as a stepping stone to college.

It’s the warning signal that high school is almost coming to an end, since most juniors take it towards the end of the year.

While it also attempts to predict how well you will do in college, which is what makes the test so valuable in the eyes of colleges and students alike.

While I do not doubt that it is effective, I do feel that it isn’t exactly fair to judge a student’s three+ years of work on one test. There are too many factors that contribute to it to make it as accurate as it should be.

I’m scheduled to take the test May 5th. Now, I could spend the next eight days study-ing nonstop for the test, or I could spend them playing Call of Duty.

The fact of the matter is, regardless of what I do, one bad day could ruin my entire scoring on the test.

Vice versa, one good day could make me look like one of the greatest brains since Ein-stein, when in reality I could’ve not even known the answers to the questions and just got lucky with a couple multiple choice questions.

How a student does on one exam cannot properly represent that student the same way that the students work throughout their high school career can.

The logic of someone work-ing their entire lives to rise to the top of the educational lad-der, just to take one test and do bad, leading to their dream of getting into the college they’ve always fascinated attending get shattered makes me sick.

There is however a second alternative.

The S.A.T’s counterpart, the A.C.T or American College Testing is also offered.

The difference between the two is the A.C.T covers a much more greater range than the S.A.T, for the A.C.T has math, English, history, and science while the S.A.T is just math and English.

They are very similar as well in the sense that every quality that the S.A.T has, either

good or bad is also relevant for the A.C.T. The A.C.T is just another shot for glory.

You cannot be marked just by one test, and ever so slowly more and more colleges are starting to realize this.

While granted the S.A.T will never be eliminated, nor would I want it to be for that matter, it is being viewed as less important by some colleges.

These select colleges have rather decided to look at the student as a whole, which overall is the better choice to begin with.

Similar to the way that the S.A.T score is used to thin the herd of applicants, the student’s overall G.P.A for their fi rst three years of high school could be used as a greater supplement for it has a wider range.

However

McClellan also said that some schools, such as the Ivy League colleges or four year SUNY schools will always view the S.A.T as the measuring stick.

This isn’t the end of the world, although the student’s overall should be weighed tre-mendously more than how the student does on one test on one particular day; because anyone can get lucky, and anyone can have a bad day. Luck doesn’t last for three years though.

SAT THROUGHOUT HISTORY

- First SAT was developed in 1901 as a means of de-termining intelligence without systematic bias (much like an IQ test) - SAT originally stood for: “Scholastic Achievement Test” - In 1941, College Board changed the name to “Scho-lastic Aptitude Test” - In the years between 1941 and 1994, the scores steadily decreased as more and more unqualifi ed students began to take the test - In 1994, the test mean was re-centered and the test re-named to simply SAT (no abbreviation)- So, SAT doesn’t really stand for anything! - In 2005, the SAT was modifi ed and a new “Writing” section, complete with an essay, was added - Before the re-centering in 1994, only about one student in every administration earned a “perfect” 1600 score. Now, multiple students per administra-tion receive such a score

SAT: Are they helping students prepare or hurting?Gas prices climb at this shell station. Andrew Meager CC BY-SA


Blogs 9

After the tragic breakup of blink-182 in 2005, vocalist and guitarist Tom DeLonge formed Angels and Airwaves with guitarist David Kennedy (who previously played with DeLonge in the side project Box Car Racer in 2001, as well as Over My Dead Body and Ha-zen Street), bassist Ryan Sinn (The Distillers) and drummer Atom Willard (The Offspring). Using a set of songs originally intended to be the next blink album as their starting point, the band created a unique blend of U2-esque stadium rock with elements of pop-punk and space rock. Angels and Airwaves are a highly am-bitious band, creating concept albums with themes of war, conflict, rebirth, love, human consciousness and the effects of isolation. They have also re-leased two films: the documen-tary Start the Machine and the feature length Love, released as the companion to the album of the same name.

Recorded at DeLonge’s home studio with producer Jeff “Critter” Newell, the band’s debut We Don’t Need to Whis-per came out in May of 2006. After the song “The Adven-ture” leaked onto the internet the band decided to release it as the first single, followed by “It Hurts”, “Do It For Me Now” and “The War”. The album became one of the most highly anticipated releases of the year, mostly due to statements made by DeLonge, saying that it was “the best music made in decades.” The documen-tary Start the Machine shows the recording of the album, DeLonge’s drug addiction and recovery, the effects of blink-182’s breakup, and the results of DeLonge’s statements to the press.

Alexis Parkhurst Nate Ring Caroline Seche “How to” blogsArtist Spotlights Blogs Media Review Blog

For the last 24 hours, I have been contemplating what my topic should be for this blog. How to write essays? Boring. How to get through high school? Similar to everything I’ve done. I couldn’t think of an interesting topic for the life of me. Then I real-ized something. I bet none of you have ever written a blog like this before. I write these constantly, but how? Going over the key components of a how to blog could help me improve as well, so this week I am telling all of you how to write a how to blog.

The first step to writ-ing a blog like this is picking a decent topic. This is something that I failed to do this week. I feel a topic should be interesting, new and important to your read-ers. I also try to pick something that matters to me. For example, my very first blog was “How to prevent sick-ness”. During the entire winter I was sneezing and coughing. When the cold finally went away I was sick of being sick. My friends seemed to share this problem with me, and I figured I could help by figur-ing out how exactly you can keep yourself from becoming ill. If you can’t come up with any-thing yourself, I suggest checking out ehow.com which will give you a place to start research.

The All American Re-jects. A well known name for the past nine years since their debut with their self titled album release, but on judgment day on March 26, did this once small town Oklaho-ma band live up to their fans expectations? The consensus is yes.

Possibly most known for their 2008 hit “Gives You Hell” which ranked number four on the Hot 100 chart, the All American Rejects rarely disappoint and “Kids in the Street”, now album number four in the bands history, might be the best yet.

It has the perfect balance of new and old. AAR somehow managed to do it again, though many fans were nervous of what kind of sound might come out of AAR’s four year production break, they came out on top. There is this perfect mixture of noise and serenity that is this bands sound; with songs so filled with raw emotion as “Affection”, yet not too slow or stilted to bore. Though the top three personal favorites have to be “Heartbeat Slow-ing Down”, “Beekeeper’s Daughter” and possibly the most show stopping, “Someday’s Gone”.

Tyson Ritter, the band’s lead singer, bass-ist, and lyricist, seems to have greatly benefitted from his “life change” he embarked upon two years ago when he left his music behind after the band’s “When the World Comes Down” tour.

Highlights

blogs

So as some of you may know, the newspaper is not the only way that High-lights transmits news and media to you anymore. At www.KingstonHighlights.com, you can read all the information you may have missd in the print edition and some web exclusive content at the same time.

As such, Highlights has a dedicated team of people on the staff to handle web cotent. In a means of bring you consistency, we’ve started Highlights Blogs. Caroline Seche writes re-views about all the mate-rial/merchandise that we get in.

Nate Ring writes Art-ist Spotlights that focus on the new music on the scene for all to enjoy.

Alexis Parkhurst writes How-to blogs that focus on a plethora of topics from how to study, to how to write your own blog!

For the rest of these stories and more, go to KingstonHighlights.com!

by Robert PuglieseHighlights Staff

I felt the wrath over spring break when I ventured to see the movie Wrath of the Titans. Not only was I blown away by the great GSI they had, but it drew me in be-cause it is about mythology.

Perseus, (Sam Worthing-ton) has decided to live a long life as a human instead of a god. When his father Zeus(Liam Neeson) and uncle Poseidon(Danny Huston) are attacked and captured by his brother Hades(Ralph Fiennes) and his son Ares,(Edgar Ramirez) Perseus must ven-ture down to the underworld to stop them from unleashing their father, the great Titan.

Throughout the ad-venture, Perseus meets up with several other charac-

ters that aid him along the way. Andromeda(Rosamund Pike) and Poseidon’s son Agenor(Tony Kebbell) help Perseus in his journey to the Underworld.

They meet up with a man named Hephaestus(Bill Nighy) that provides them with a map of how to get to there.

Throughout the movie, the people must not pray to the god of war Ares or he will discover their location and come to stop them in their tracks. Eventually, one of the girls that are with Andromeda prays to him and they have a fierce battle.

With many dead, the three survive and advance into the maze that will lead exactly to Zeus. After find-ing Zeus and freeing him they leave the Underworld

to prepare for the battle. When all was quiet and the humans prepared for the fight of their lives, the demons came and began the slaughter. The great Titan rose from a volcano and began to destroy the people. Perseus, needed three of the scepters in order to destroy the Titan. Posei-don’s, Zeus’s, and Hades. He had obtained Poseidon’s and

Zeus’s, but needed Hades which his brother Ares had. After meeting his brother and having a strong fight, Perseus was able to kill his brother and obtain the last scepter. Once all three were formed, he ventured to the battle-field and attacked the Titan. With the Titan destroyed, the people began to live in har-mony again.

For me, this was a very interesting movie. Not only did it include many scenes of action and adventure but it also contained several traces of humor. So despite all of the bad-ass action scenes, it also featured some humor to ease the mood!

I have not seen the first movie Clash of the Titans, but not seeing the first movie in this case does not affect you really. The only thing I didn’t understand was the golden owl that popped up. I didn’t get it but I thought it was funny looking.

In all, I believe that this movie was alright. I give it eight out of ten nicknames for Agenor and I strongly recommend this movie for people who love mythology and action.

by Cody NaccaratoEditor

James Cameron is a well established director in the world we know today. Cameron is the highest grossing director of all time, and is responsible for the two highest grossing fi lms of all time. Avatar and Titanic. As if it hadn’t grossed enough in its original box offi ce run, Titanic was rereleased in theaters in 3D to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s sinking. Having never seen the fi lm before, I went and saw it in 3D. I wasn’t impressed.

The Titanic revolves around the maiden voyage and subse-quent crash and sinking of the ship, RMS Titanic. Titanic also focuses on the romance aboard the ship of soon to be wed rich girl Rose DeWitt Bukater and less well off young man Jack Dawson. Rose struggles with her feelings for Jack aboard the ship. Romantic antics ensue, with the ultimate cultivation of their love resulting during the ship’s wreck and failure.

Having never seen the fi lm before it premiered in theaters, I was at fi rst taken back by the length. It was about a half hour

longer than Avatar, which I thought to be an absurdly long movie. My only problem with the time, is that it feels like the last two hours of the fi lm are about the Titanic sinking, and the ship in question really took two hours to sink. I could’ve also done with a montage of Jack and Rose going up and down stairs, I didn’t need to see them do that for two hours.

Also, if the ship you are on is plummeting to the ocean fl oor, in what part of that situa-tion do you ever think it a clever idea to go down into the ship? If the ship is sinking, gravity is clearly winning at that point. Your only solution is to go up. It builds suspense, and it builds emotional responses in the audience. It infuriated me which means it did its job whether I’m happy about it or not.

Not everything needs to be touched and messed with though. For the sake of all that is right in this world, we don’t need to rerelease all of the mov-ies that have been released. We don’t need remakes either. We need somebody to get off their rears and think of some new IP. Then we won’t have room in theaters for Titanic in 3D. If people could think of some new

ideas, then we wouldn’t need to have “NASCAR Oreos” either.

What I will say is that this fi lm does an extraordinary job of making me feel and emote. Which is one of the biggest things that movies should do that they don’t anymore. An ac-tor and an actress need to have on screen chemistry. You need to really feel that they are real. Realism is what this country wants, and has wanted for some time now. By the end of the Ti-tanic, you are either in tears, or within earshot of someone who is. It tugs your heartstrings. I cried, but mostly because it was three and a half hours.

Kate Winslet plays Rose

DeWitt Bukater. This is the fi rst fi lm that I have seen her in, that I actually like her in. It’s odd at the same time too, because normally real roles like this in major movies at least, require an actress that the majority of the people watching will think is at-tractive. The guys have to want her, and the girls have to want to be her. I don’t fi nd Winslet to be attractive at all. And except when she asks Jack “to draw me like your French girls” I didn’t think of her in that romantic light at all. She worked in the role well though, especially with the young Leonardo DiCaprio.

DiCaprio plays Jack Daw-son. One of the greatest casting

decisions of all time was to put the 22 year old DiCaprio to play the Dawson character. Upon further research appar-ently, one of the people being considered for the part was Tom Cruise. Talk about your Mission Impossibles. DiCaprio and his on screen presence remind us why we still like him all these years later. And even though he doesn’t play the young heart-throb anymore, he is still a great actor. He made Kate Winslet look great by comparison.

I give Titanic fi ve white stars out of fi ve. If you get the rating star reference this time, give yourself a pat on the back.


10 Entertainment

Cameron rereleases Titanic; impressive

Jack and Rose have an intimate moment during the events on the titantic. Paramount Pictures

Feel the wrath . . . . of the titans!

Perseus has the trident so beware the demi god. Warner Bros.

HIGHLIGHTS April 27, 2012 Entertainment 11

MAD MEN

Television has seen a de-cline. People who make shows don’t really seem to get what people want to watch. People want to feel like what they’re watching is real. That’s why people love reality televi-sion. Jersey Shore and Keep-ing up with Kardashians are some of the most popular shows on television this past decade. The opposite end of the spectrum, is the show’s that people think are real but know are fake are just as great. Time pieces and period pieces are incredibly powerful especially if people can believe the stories and get behind the characters. The king of this crop is by far, Mad Men and as Mad Men enters its fi fth season, one can only wonder how much time this marvel has left.

Mad Men is a television program on the AMC network that has done some extraor-dinary things in its time on the air. Besides being the fi rst basic show to win the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, and winning it for each of their seasons to date, the show focuses on some heavy topics.

On the surface it follows the lift of Don Draper, a cre-ative director for an adver-tising fi rm in the 1960’s. As times progress, the characters

react to the events in the world. The deaths of Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy are just some of the events that have been focused on during the shows time on air. Besides the surface issues of the 1960’s, and the problems faced by people in general, the show takes a stab at some deeper concepts. Among those concepts are Sexism, Alcohol-ism, Smoking, Racism, and Identity. All of which were very real themes in the 1960’s.

Draper is the stereotypi-cal man of the times. Draper had a lovely wife and kids. He had a well paying job in the city. Draper smoked cigarettes and thought nothing of it. He thought poorly of socialism and communism. Draper had three martini lunches. Draper had affairs in his life that he kept separate from his family. Draper also had other types of affairs.

In this way, you can really tackle themes heavy for the times. By using this character as the face of what was go-ing on in the time, the show can really take a stab at the themes. The themes in the show are represented as ele-ments of Don Draper’s life and how he handles and reacts to them is a representation of the times. For example, Draper’s opinion of homosexuals and

blacks at the time is how the times were.

The realism of the show is the major draw for me. The reactions are real. People were crippled with fear dur-ing the Cuban missile crisis, and to represent that time as any other way is not true. The sheer realism is the reason this show has won what it has won. The products are of the time, the people act like the time, and the problems they face are of the time. Add in the elements of great character development, and great plots revolving around real world events, and Mad Men is the best show on television today.

Jon Hamm plays Donald Draper. Hamm looks like he belongs in the 1960’s. If one was to ask me, I’d say that they had gotten into a time machine, gone back in time, and stolen him from the time. With some minor bit credits under his belt, this is prob-ably the biggest role he has assumed. Hamm’s portrayal of the character is perhaps better than the character itself.

Elisabeth Moss plays the go getting Peggy Olsen. The Olsen character is really a character that evolved up from a secretary to a copy writer. Her attitude is that of the over achieving workaholic, and for the time, it was very odd for

there to be a woman copywrit-er. Anywhere. Moss formerly played the youngest daughter of President Jed Bartlett on The West Wing right up until she started work on Mad Men. Moss works the character very well. The strength of the wom-an needed to survive an offi ce environment in the 1960s is translated very well from her performance.

Christina Hendricks plays the expert and sultry offi ce manager, Joan Holloway. Hol-loway is the role that is the opposite of Olsen. Hendricks plays the character you would expect to see in the 1960’s working in an offi ce. Holloway is the attractive eye candy who knows the ins and outs of the offi ce. On more than one occasion, she even has an in-ter offi ce affair. Hendricks may be the most attractive woman on television, and looks like she’s straight from the time.

Mad Men is the best show on television today. AMC has a stranglehold on the big mar-quee shows nowadays with other smash hits like Breaking Bad, and The Walking Dead. The production that goes into these shows and the fact that network television has been good since the 1960’s make these shows outstanding. Mad Men gets fi ve Lucky Strike cigarettes, out of fi ve.

by Cody Naccarato

design by Lionsgate.


12 The back pageThe back page

Sweeney ToddThis years production

put on by the student of Kingston Highschool is Sweeney Todd! The tale of the demon barber of fleet street and his victims of London is one that is not easily performed but was excellently executed. The hard work of the people involved was truly re-flected during the perfor-mances. Here’s to all of you Sweeney Todders!

a Kingston High School theater productiona Kingston High School theater production

T h e D e m o n B a r b e r o f F l e e t S t r e e tT h e D e m o n B a r b e r o f F l e e t S t r e e t

Nathan Matteson’s character before. Adam Dorrian and Nathan Matteson’s character after

Katie DeMattes and Adam Dorrian hand in hand The entire cast of Sweeney Todd takes a bow

Sweeney Todd (Adam Dorrian)(Adam Dorrian) Judge Turpin (Faraz Ardalan)(Faraz Ardalan)

Beadle Bamford (Jake McManus)(Jake McManus) Signor Adolfo Pirelli (Nathan Matteson)(Nathan Matteson) Toby Ragg (Anthony Carl) (Anthony Carl)

Mrs. Lovett (Katie DeMattes)(Katie DeMattes) Anthony Hope (Brandon Kuster)(Brandon Kuster)

Johanna Barker (Nicole Minnielli)(Nicole Minnielli) Beggar Woman (Maria Whitcomb)(Maria Whitcomb)To the rest of the cast/crew/pit Congratulations! Congratulations!

layout by Cody Naccarato . photos by Joe Pugliese.

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Highlights April 27, 2012