The Purple and Gold Press700 Bell Avenue, Brooksville, Florida Hernando High School News

Volume 10, Issue 1November 7, 2010

Featured Inside : -Campus Voices-Spor ts Schedule-Movie Times

- The Mosque Controversy- Leopard Spor ts Highl ight-Actor Prof i le

Upcoming Events:

Everyone has wondered what it would be like to study abroad; move to another country for a year and experi-ence a completely different culture. This year, ten students from other countries are here at Hernando High doing just that. Eight of the ten foreign exchange students have come to Hernando through an ex-change program named the Council on International Educational Exchange, which also offers scholarships for American students to spend a year in Germany. Every year about 1,200 students come to America through the CIEE, and that is just from one company. There is about 80 more operating throughout the United States, taking the total number of students to 10,000 a year. Karen Beasley is one of the two people that control the exchanges for the southern region of America.

“I go through all of the ap-plications for this region and I try to match up the students with families that have similar interests and lifestyles,” said Beasley. Coming to America for six months up to a year isn’t all clear skies, though. The students have to pass numer-ous amounts of tests in the English language, interviews for a Visa Card and from the company, and pay up to seven thousand dollars to cover

medical care, air fare, and other things that are needed. Also, being away from their families for that long to live with complete strangers takes guts and determination to experience something this incredible. When asked about how she feels about being away from her family, Junior Sona Macurova replied, “I get a little homesick sometimes, and I miss my family a lot.” But with high expectations for this school, none of the stu-

dents have been let down, and they are thrilled to be here. Teachers and administration are excited to have exchange students, too. “It’s absolutely wonderful,” remarks Mr. Gaustad, the assistant princi-pal. “The more the merrier.” And with students from Bra-zil, Germany, Thailand, Czech Republic, and Spain, it’s twice as merry as last year, with twice as many students and cultures mixing together.

Many students at Hernando High School either have a job or are now looking for a job. Has the need for an income in teens grown since the recent downward turn of the econo-my? The average teen wants to drive, buy clothes and eat at restaurants. Unfortunately, that takes quite a bit of mon-ey. According to Teenage Research Unlimited in North-brook, Illinois, the average teen spends about $85 per week, meaning, the current

teen economy tops $141 bil-lion a year. Now, for a teen-ager without a job, that’s a lot of money! Some students have already taken actions to saving mon-ey. Senior, Shanley Carlton, says that she has a planner to stay organized. She’s con-stantly planning her day ahead of time. Her car is her “home away from home”. She lives 15 minutes away from HHS, so she makes sure she has all of what she needs for the day before she leaves for school.

Thankfully, there is always a way to save a buck or two! To save money on gas, friends can meet up at a common place and then carpool to a destination. Then split the cost of gas. Living in a small town like we do, that’s not too hard to arrange. A nice, cheap way to have fun could be going to a County Park, Pine Island, bowling, or even rollerblading and biking down The Sun-coast Parkway. Keep your eye out for events in local newspapers. Now, some of these ideas may seem child-ish, but who doesn’t have fun going back to simpler times? Once the conflict of what

to do is solved, it’s crucial to plan for the most important: food! Food can be a major ex-pense of an outing. As always, there’s a solution. If a restau-rant is what you’re looking for, trying looking for a place where you can split a meal, like Chinese food or pizza. A lot of places have deals for lunch time and also a value meal. Another idea is going out to a grocery store with a group of friends and making your own crazy concoctions! Find the deals and make your own recipes! Homemade food is healthy and a lot less expen-sive.

Across The SeasUp close and personal with the foreign exchange students of Hernando High Schoolby Rachael Jackson

It’s true! Teenagers can save money!Here are some tips to save some hard earned cash!by Jackie Harris

FOREIGN EXCHANGE- Juniors Claudio, Caio, Chanatorn, Sona, Sona, Renato, Marianna , Lucas, and Mathhais are gathered at a picnic table from all corners of the globe smiling for the camera at Hernando High.

11/11/10- HHS Inaugural Sports Banquet 6 PM at Faith Presbyterian

11/2/10- Underclassman picture retakes11/3/10- Senior Panoramic Photo in the Gym

12/1/10- Josten’s Class Ring orders are in!12/15/10- Senior graduation announcement payments are due!

Mosque At Ground ZeroEditor Tyler Mcbee There has been quite a bit of debate about the building of a Mosque just two blocks from Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center collapsed on Sep-tember 11, 2001. Many believe that the construction should not be approved, but should we punish all Muslim people for the actions of an extremist group? Is it the American way to deny someone their freedom of religion? Presi-dent Obama does not think going against the Constitution is very American at all, and so he ap-proved the Mosque’s construction, and I agree with him. Did every Muslim in the world plot against America? Is every Muslim an extremist? The answer to both of these questions is “no”. So why punish the entire popula-tion for the few that went too far? There were Muslims in those tow-ers when they fell as well. They mourned for their families just as much as any American did on that black day; they cursed Al-Qaida just as much as all the other people that lost loved ones in that attack. I know some Muslims person-ally, and I’m proud to call them friends, they are good people, and most definitely not terrorists. But,

for those that believe all Muslims are extremists, wouldn’t that mean when extremist Christians bombed an abortion clinic on Christmas Day in 1984, calling the bombings a “gift to Jesus on his birthday”, that all Christians are extremists? So we shouldn’t lump everyone into a group because some of them decided to do something they shouldn’t have; it’s just not fair at all. Every American citizen is given the freedom of religion by the Con-stitution. The Muslims that wish to build the Mosque, as Americans, also have that freedom. Sure, the spot they chose may not have been

the best one, this is true, but there is no law stating that they cannot build a place of worship on that spot two blocks away from Ground Zero. President Obama recognizes this undeniable fact, and does not put his own personal opinion into his decision; he simply goes by the Constitution. Every American should be able to swallow his or her personal beliefs and realize that being American means you live in America, you work for America, and you support the American cause. In America, Muslims have the same right to build a Mosque that any other religous group has to build their House of Worship.

Campus VoicesWhat is Hernando High thinking?

What do you think of the gym?NAME: Malea Kalina

CLASS: SeniorA: The gym is really nice but

the ceiling needs to be cleaned.

What do you think of the new schedule?

NAME: Krista BlommuCLASS: Senior

A: I think the new schedule is not so good. The classes are too

long.

What do you think of the new marble floor?

NAME: Taylor ButtermanCLASS: Freshman

A: It looks okay, but its a waste of money.

What is your favorite TV show?Name: Rashaad Hart

Class: FreshmanA: Everybody Hates Chris

What is your opinion of the two lunches?

NAME: Jacob BehmCLASS: Junior

A: Too packed. Last year we had more time.

Does the student body partici-pate in Homecoming week as

much as before?NAME: Tyler Keegan

CLASS: JuniorA:Yes, we have more events to

participate in.

What do you think the out-come of the football season is

going to be?NAME: Cleve Pope

CLASS: JuniorA: State Championship with a

15-0 record

The heavy metal genre is a genre of music typically associ-ated with headbanging, screaming vocals, wailing guitars, and lunacy in general. It began in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. Heavy metal developed a thick, massage sound, character-ized by highly amplified distortion, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats, and overall loudness. Within the 1980s and 1990s subgenres of metal music began to arise, and of these was symphonic metal. Symphonic metal is typically characterized by a metal band that has accompaniment of a full sym-phony. Its symphonic elements are either borrowed from classical music or create a style reminiscent of it. Bands in this genre typically feature a female lead vocalist most commonly in an operatic style. Sometimes, there is a second, male vocalist, creating a “beauty and the beast” vocals effect. Occasionally, a full choir will provide additional backing vocals. Symphonic is typically more melodious in music than other metal subgenres, and there is usually the use of key-boards for various effects, more than in other genres, as well as the use of guitar, bass guitar, and a violin or other stringed instrument. Also unlike other metal subgenres, elements of classical music is often present. Of the first metal bands to ex-plore the use of symphonies was Swedish heavy metal band The-rion. Beginning as a death metal band, they later turned to combin-ing orchestral elements with their music, employing heavy use of choirs and classical musicians. Therion is the first metal band with fully live orchestra being featured. It is also the band which originat-ed, popularized, and influenced the symphonic metal genre, cited as “the most adventurous metal band at present”. Rain Fell Within, After Forever, Epica, Haggard, and Edenbridge, all featuring the characteristic keyboards and female vocals, made their appearance in the early 2000s. The Norwegian band Trista-nia, though typically classified as gothic metal, has many character-istics of that of symphonic metal, or opera metal, particularly on their 1999 album “Beyond the Veil”. Virgin Black is another metal band with many characteristics of symphonic metal, though its main vocalist is a male, Rowan London, but the manner of use of his vocals is in classical styles, and there is a common use of the cello.

Symphonic Metal Editor Katherine Adams

This is a map of Ground Zero and the surrounding area, including the proposed mosque site at 45 Park Place.

OpinionNovember 7, 2010 Page 2

This sports page has football, but what about soccer, basketball, golf, hockey and so forth? I don’t watch any of those sports, except golf when I’m extremely bored. Is that odd? I don’t think so. Basketball has never been an interest to me. It’s simply boring and they just run back and forth on the court, and it feels too repetitive. Yes I know, football isn’t much better on going back and forth. It’s more interest-ing and you can tell what the heck is happening. During basketball, I can’t get interested. I don’t know why it so boring! Seriously, with-out Jordan, it’s boring. Even when it is a game winning shot and K-B (Kobe Bryant) pulls off to pass Denver in a game winner. I don’t understand golf. The guy just stands there and swings a metal club and hits a golf ball. Talk about repetition. No excitement really occurs in golf unless you’re a multi-million dollar man bet-ting $500,000 on a Phil Mickelson birdie or something. Then we jump to soccer and hockey which also perplex me. Honestly, I have never taken time to sit down and watch these sports. Hockey can be interesting, but I don’t know. Hockey… hockey is watching grown men skate around in circles on ice and pass what looks like an enlarged oreo back and forth for hours on end. Hockey might be entertaining for some, but it puts me to sleep, and I can’t help but think of it as the adult version of Disney on Ice. The only inter-esting part of hockey is the fight-ing which makes all sports fun to watch. Try imagining two golfers go at it. (Tiger Woods pun?) Getting down to the point, football, is definitely my favorite sport. The others just don’t provide the spark of insanity, excitement or intensity for me. I’m going to guess it’s just because I’ve grown up watching football and not re-ally any other sports. When I was younger, I did like soccer a little. That interest died quickly.

When Hernando High School football is mentioned, one certain name comes to mind: Will Alder-man. The senior defensive tackle and offensive guard plays a big role in the Leopard’s success. “Finish the mission is our motto this year, and I’m going to do all it takes to finish my personal goals as well as the team’s goals,” said Al-derman, a 6’3 235lb monster. The Leopards have a tough schedule this year including teams such as Nature Coast Tech., Crystal River and Leesburg High. When Alderman steps onto the field, he turns into a different person, a supernatural beast some say, yet off the field he is a caring individual that takes pride in his schoolwork and his faith. “God

comes first for me, then family and finally football,” Alderman said. William was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and moved to Clearwater where he attended Countryside High School. His family then settled in Brooksville several years ago. Will is currently home schooled and said he enjoyed having his instruction at home. During his sophomore year, he had to ride his bike seven miles from his house to practice every day which was “physically grueling,” Alderman said. Although the Leopards had s decent season of 7-3 last year, Alderman says this year is going to be exciting. “Hopefully I’ll make some big plays that help my team this year because all I want for us is to be successful.”

Eagles suffer QB Dilemma while Steelers execute plan.

What do the Eagles do now?Since Donavan McNabb’s depar-ture, Philadelphia hasn’t been as nearly as good as they had hoped with Kolb under center. He hasn’t underperformed, but he hasn’t followed expectations either. Yes, Eagles have a pretty good team, but there 27-20 loss to Green Bay in week one shows a lot about the team. They’re talented if they can get one score from a win to Green Bay with the infamous Aaron Rodgers, but it wasn’t quite enough. Seeing as Kevin Kolb was removed part way from the game with an injury (concussion) which may start with Vick being the number one option in week two. Thankfully the game is against De-troit, Who isn’t too bad this season either. Michael Vick went 16-24 with

175 yards passing and over 100 rushing yards. Not bad for a back-up. Last season, the Eagles went 11-5(win-loss) under Donavan McNabb before being traded to Washington for a 2012 2nd round pick and either a conditional 3rd or 4th pick.

Steelers plan under way...

The Pittsburgh Steelers start the first four games without superstar quarterback Ben Roethlisberger because of a suspension. Dennis Dixon has been claimed starter and hasn’t been very disappointing; their opening game wasn’t very cheerful. It was still a win over a super charged Atlanta defense. For-mer head coach for Pittsburgh Bill Cowher, said this about the Steel-

ers: When asked about the forced absence of Roethlisberger “The Steelers will not let it break them down. They will find a way to win, and they have all summer to get their minds right.” The Pittsburgh plan is officially underway. Dennis Dixon has been named the starter until Roethlisberger returns from his temporary suspension. Coach Cowher also pointed out that Steel-ers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau would turn up the heat even more in an attempt to support the offense. It was LeBeau’s pres-sure on Sunday Sept. 12 in a 15-9 victory in OT against Atlanta -- two sacks, an interception and lots of heat that stuffed the run down to 2.3 yards per carry -- that gave Pittsburgh’s offense the little bit of breathing room it needed.

Sports BashEditor, Taylor Spears

Will Alderman, Senior, works hard to bring HHS mighty Leopards to victory!

Sports Profile: William AldermanReporter, Brooks Timmons

Sports Bash photo, Google Images

Editor, Taylor Spears

Helmets of PIT and PHI w/ their logos. Google Images.

SportsNovember 7, 2010 Page 3

THANK

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Homecoming2010 - 2011Welcome to:

Monday -

Decade TV Show Day

Freshman: ’50s TV Shows.

Sophomores: ’60s TV Shows.

Juniors: ’70s TV Shows.

Seniors: ’80s TV Shows.

Teachers / Staff: Any Decade.

3:30 PM - Celebrity Sumo Wrestling.

7:30 PM - Bonfire.

Tuesday -

Cartoon DayWednesday -

MTV Day

Sophomores Jennifer Goetz and Shee-na Mattern dressing up as Batman and May (Pokemon Trainer.)

Sophomore Alexandra Williams dressed as Pebbles from The Flin-stones.

Senior Amanda Dixon flaunts her Tin-kerbell costume before seventh period.

The Freshman / Senior fire.

Varsity cheerleaders doing a cheer on the long truck.

Junior Kaylee Laplaca IS Lil’ Wayne, posing in Mr. Miller’s class.

11th grader Kevin Dandrige has the spirit of MTV Day written all over.

Sophomore Brooke Murray as Marilyn Manson.

Homecoming2010 - 2011 T.V. Land !

Thursday -

Class Color Day

7:30 PM - Growl.

Friday -

Purple and Gold Day

1:30 PM - Parade.

7:30 PM - Football Game.

Saturday -

7:00 PM - 10:00 PM -Homecoming Dance

Seniors Matthew Clark, Danielle Yea-ger, and Jaime Sherman hold up Junior Dylan Johnston outside of Madame Kee’s third period class.

Julia Orendorf, Rachael Jackson, and Shyann Eppley, Juniors, pose for a pic-ture in their class colors.

Sophomores Meaghan Rollins and Danyelle Roller sport their gray school spirit in the middle of Mrs. Casciotta’s Medical Skills class.

Sophomores Danyelle Roller, Meaghan Rollins, Chelsea Chase, Andre Tu-maniszwili, Jennifer Goetz, Kendall Rainey, Senior Bobby Conway, and Sophomore Jacob Englemeyer crowd together to show off their school spirit.

Hernando High School’s Band march-ing along the street during the first pa-rade of the school year.

A Hernando County firetruck cruising in the parade.

The Homecoming Dance before the ar-rival of Hernando High students.

Sophomore Abigail Austin and Juniors Robert Bryant Aarron Wallace and Ra-chael Jackson take a break from danc-ing to ake a picture.

Sophomore Nicholas Suarez and Ju-nior Caroline Walentukonis standing in line to get into the dance.

October 18, 2010.Photos by Rachael Jackson.

Plus, just when you think Riordan couldn’t do any better, he does it again with the smashing sequel, Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters. In this install-ment, Percy returns, only this time, he is all alone with his new cyclops half-brother, Tyson. Their journey is to rescue Grover from an evil monster bent on marrying him. In the third novel, Percy Jackson and the Titan’s

Curse, Percy must face his big-gest challenge yet: facing his old friend turned enemy, Luke, and the villanious Titans. All this culmi-nates into the fourth installment, The Battle of the Labyrinth, where Percy finally faces the evil Titan lord, Kronos, whom is inhabited inside Luke, making the fight all the harder. All escape, but at a price. The real battle had begun. In the final installment, Riordan beau-tifully combines all the features of its predeccessors in one final book, The Last Olympian. If you’re into Greek mythology and fantasy, this book is for you. You will keep reading and rereading these books until the new series comes out in November.

Beautiful Hands: Bringing Sight to the BlindBy: Katie Adams

Blessed By a Broken Heart By: Selena Moffitt

Reporter, Seleena Mof-fitt Blessed by a Broken Heart is not your typical boy band. Blessed by a Broken Heart, known as BBABH, is a Christian metal band. They get crazy and wild with their music. Their shows are amazing and defi-nitely won’t disappoint you at all. They use a lot of lasers and lights and pyrotechnics. Tony does crazy flips off the drum platform, and dives into the crowd from high heights. Their style is glam metal. Some have mullets and very long hair, and just crazy outfits. They are originally from Montreal, Canada. The members’ names’ are Tony Gambino (vocals), Shred Sean (gui-tar), Tyler Hoare (bass), and Slater (drum). Tyler Hoare and Frank Shoo-flar formed this band back in 2003. Hoare named this band after a heart-break from a girl. Their first release,

EntertainmentNovember 7, 2010 Page 6

Every day I allow myself the luxury of observing that time when the sun bleeds into the hori-zon and paves the sky in hues of fire and gold. Had my hands the skill with paint and brush, I would attempt to capture the moment on canvas. Had my hands the talent to breathe life into the clay as the potter’s, I would like to create a model of this earth as it is in that instant of dichotomy between day and night. Had my hands the ability with a camera, I would freeze those fleeting seconds in that super-natural way only the most skilled photographers can grasp. Had my mind and body the aptitude, I would attempt to capture each of these moments each day to last an eternity, so those who are blind to it might see. Instead I am left to simply place the moments to words and harass my family into coming outside to view it with me.

I think of each form of art of others throughout the centuries who have also been so mesmerized by these beautiful moments of our world. I often think how fortu-nate I am that I can see, that my eyes might see the magic of sun-light, and the beauty of the world it illuminates, painting light and shadows as if to define right from wrong. It is a gift of I am mindful of, and interpretation of it is strictly my own, though this world holds so many. I am so blessed that I have the ability to see the beauty of this world, and the fingerprints of the One that created it. I often wonder what this world is like through the eyes of the blind. Through words and music, others bring the beauty of sunset to all those whose eyes cannot see the beauty of it, while these people open our eyes to the beauty of this world, in apprecia-tion of every moment. This is the gift of humanity, that

we might capture those moments by means of our own interpretation in art and preserve it for others to view. We duplicate those moments the Original Artist has given to us, and yet we are more eager to appreciate man’s art than God’s art. We each are God’s artwork, amazingly so, painted in a way that is beautifully flawed, shaped by the greatest Potter’s hands in our mothers’ wombs and given the breath of Life (“spirit” is derived from the Latin word spiritus, which literally means “breath”), and

every moment is precious, fleeting, yet the next has the potential to bring as much beauty. I am not the artist I long to be. I will not leave my mark on this world we each as humans wish to through recognition and great ac-tions. We each are given the ability to view it in our own way as surely as we draw breath, and that is something we must be mindful of, yet the talent to capture those mo-ments are given to a specific few. It is a gift to be treasured and used, as beautiful eyes bringing sight to the blind.

All is Fair In love and War, was in the metal core genre. After the band added Shred Sean, from New York City, in 2005, the band began to evolve toward a more 80’s/ hair metal/pop sound. When their first re-lease came out, “All

is Fair in Love and War”, they started to tour around the United Kingdom on a sold-out headlin-ing with another band called Enter Shikari. Tony Gambino joined the band in Janu-ary of 2007. In

April, the band spent the whole month starting to record another CD called “Pedal To The Metal” in Vancouver. In August of 2008, they finished up recording in Eu-rope. “Pedal To The Medal” was released sixteen months after recording. The band is now tour-ing around the world and work-ing on another CD in December.

Book and CD reviews

Looking for a good fantasy book? All done with Harry Potter? Well look no further. For a great fantasy series, check out the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series, by Rick Riordan. The main charac-ter, 12-year-old Percy Jackson has never really fit in anywhere. He has been chucked out of so many board-ing schools; he is almost banned from them. All he has is his lov-ing mother and his best friend, Grover. All this changes one day when, on a school field trip to the museum, his pre-algebra teacher turns into an evil flying creature who tries to kill Percy. Although he escapes, none of this makes sense. All is revealed to him when he is attacked by a rampag-ing Minotaur and is saved by his history teacher, who is really the ancient centaur, Chiron. The truth is, Percy is the son of the sea god, Poseidon. He is also the bearer of a prophecy that will either save Mt. Olympus, or doom the entire Greek culture. And all he is thinking is “WHAT!!!!”

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief: By: Stephen Skipper

Photos courtesy of Google Images

Johnny Depp. He is one of the most versatile actors of our day. To many of us, his name is synony-mous for the notorious Capt. Jack Sparrow, and his name brings to mind humor, wit, Tim Burton, and alcohol. To many girls, and a few boys, he is one of the most beauti-ful men. Yet most admirable is the incredible acting he has pulled out of his hat over the years. For all his good looks, he is one who isn’t too concerned with his image. Depp has chosen a wide variety of roles that make him “ugly”, such as the awkward char-acter of Edward Scissorhands, the squeamish role of Ichabod Crane, the transvestite director Ed Wood, and the role that made him popular, Capt. Jack Sparrow. Many also recognize him as the actor that continually captures the imagina-tion of Tim Burton on screen. The striking actor was raised in our very own state. Despite his accents he always seems to de-light in, he is American. He speaks fluent French and loves red wine. What’s not to love about that? Another known fact about him is he is a fan of rock music, and he commonly bases his roles on rock

stars, such as Keith Richards. In fact, he first came to California in the hopes of gaining fame with his rock band, not with the hopes of developing an acting career. Following a move to Florida, and his parents’ divorce by age 16, Depp strayed from his peers and siblings and introverted within a life of drugs and alcohol. Teenage Depp dropped out of school to pur-sue a career in rock and roll music. Over the next few years, Depp fronted numerous garage bands - the most famous was entitled The Kids, opened for Iggy Pop. Per-haps more importantly, the success of The Kids furnished Depp with a rising sense of popularity and accomplishment - ironically shot down by Iggy Pop himself during a back-stage confrontation. In 1994, Depp was arrested and questioned by police for allegedly

causing serious damage to a New York City hotel suite. Since 1998, following a relationship with Brit-ish supermodel Kate Moss, Depp has had a relationship with Van-essa Paradis, a French actress and singer whom he met while filming The Ninth Gate. He was arrested again in 1999 for brawling with pa-parazzi outside a restaurant while dining in London with Paradis. Depp dropped out of high school when he was fifteen years old, yet despite that fact, he is known as one of the smartest people in Hollywood. With his talent in acting, he possesses the possibility of becoming one of the best actors in film history. We never know what he will draw from his hat next, and his audience can continue to expect great things to come from this prolific actor.

Johnny Depp: An Eccentric CharacterEntertainment Editor, Katie Adams

Obviously known for his good looks, Depp is also known for constantly shift-ing, sometimes odd hair styles.

Johnny Depp portrayed the legendary character of Edward Scissorhands in Tim Burton’s 1990 film.

J.K. Rowling: The Author that Started It AllReporter, Stephen Skipper Webster’s dictionary defines the word fantasy as “a genre of fiction featuring mythological and magi-cal characters,” but in the literature world, there is only one name to describe it: Joanne Kathleen Rowl-ing. Of numerous works in the literary world that devise income of millions of dollars, Rowling is the first and only billionaire author. Rowling was born in England in July of 1965. At four years of age, Rowling moved to the town of Winterbourne, and over time it grew on her. This move also compensated for the death of her loving grandmother, Kathleen, from whom she adopted her mid-dle name. She continued to attend school

in Winterbourne happily, but as she entered her teenage years, her mother grew gravely ill. This af-fected Rowling very deeply. Rowling left school for Exeter University in 1983 to pursue her dream of becoming an author, a dream that, one day, would finally be achieved. In 1990, after a weekend with her boyfriend, she was riding home on a London-bound train, and the idea of Harry Potter, a scrawny, glasses-wearing wizard, simply fell into her head, like milk pouring into a cup. That very evening, she began to write Harry Potter and the Philoso-pher’s Stone. She then moved to Manchester to continue to write the book, but on December 30th, 1990,

Rowling got a call that would forever change her life: her mother had died. She was devas-tated, and she fell into a state of depression that lasted throughout her mid twenties. Desperate to escape her grief, she moved to Portugal to accept a job of teach-ing English there. When she felt it was time to return home, she left with some-thing better than a finished nov- el in her hands: a daughter. She had married a Portuguese man there and given birth to her first child, Jessica. Sadly, the marriage fell apart within thirteen months and a day, but she still had her sister to turn to. She also still had an unfinished novel. Whenever her

daughter slept, she continued to write her book. Finally, the first book in the se-ries that would change the fantasy world, Harry Potter and the Sor-cerer’s Stone (Philosopher’s Stone for the UK version), was complete. It took nearly a year for her agent to find a deal, and eventually, he found one with Bloomsbury. She continued to write the se-ries, adding six more books, also spawning the movies as well. She has worked with many charities, including Gingerbread, a charity to help single parents, and Comic Re-lief, a charity to help provide books to children with cancer. She currently lives in Scotland with her husband and three chil-dren. Although the Harry Potter series is over, all will remember the one woman who started it all.

Crown of FireRule by my side, my king

Share with me this hellThese flames consume all

Thy kingdom comeThy will undone

I’ll take you down with meKnow that together we fall

Our glory shall beOur pyrrhic victory

Together we fallTogether we arise once more

Together we reignForever we stand

Let this promiseGuide our ruling hand

Let these starsMap our way unto dawn

A crown of fireFor a heart of stone

A staff of lightFor a hand in ice reigns

I witness in visions vastThe lands consumed in beautiful

flamesBaptized in these flames

We shall partake in a fiery rebirth

I take up A crown of fire

Flames consume the landIt shall be reborn

Take up thy throne at ZionReign over a world anew

Create in thy perfect imageA world this one but longed for

No serpent to seduceNo Christ to sacrifice

A perfect creation

A crown of fireFor a heart of stone

A staff of lightFor a hand in ice reigns

A throne of gloryFor the lost child

-By Katie Adams

EntertainmentNovember 7, 2010 Page 7

COMICS & GAMES HOROSCOPES BY: YAHOOAries (3/21 – 4/19): Lately you’ve been reacting to things you cannot control. Let go and accept life.

Taurus (4/20 – 5/20): It’s a good idea to socialize with coworkers over food -- it will foster team-work.

Gemini (5/21 – 6/21): There is a difference between being money-wise and being cheap.

Cancer (6/22 – 7/22): Too much high energy could make you run in circles today, so try to stay mellow.

Leo (7/23 – 8/22): Show everyone that you have an honest desire to maintain good will.

Virgo (8/23 – 9/22): You should know that you can always rely on your friends for support.

Libra (9/23 – 10/22): Your usual routine may be disrupted, but rest assured that it will be for the best.

Scorpio (10/23 – 11/21): Try not to control every aspect of an upcom-ing project.

Sagittarius (11/22 – 12/21): A new partnership will eventually work out -- even if your energies are dif-ferent.

Capricorn (12/22 – 1/19): These problems won’t go away. You must deal with them.

Aquarius (1/20 – 2/18): Your routine is finally falling into place. Enjoy flying on autopilot for a while.

Pisces (2/19 – 3/20): The respon-sibility of love is one you’re ready for -- expect it to be given soon.

Heavy Times at HernandoBy: David Dudley (Opinion Editor)