In years past, Arlingtonian has financed each issue by supplementing our regular ad sales with subscription fees and bake sales. Yet, the state’s recent elimination of bake sales and the staff’s decision to provide free issues to all students has left the publication struggling to finance each issue. However, I am happy to share with you that Arlingtonian recently received a generous grant from the Upper Arlington Education Foundation, equating to $2000 worth of funding. While their grant helped the fund this 32-page issue you are now reading, they played no role in the editorial selection of its content, and do not endorse any of the positions taken by the Arlingtonian staff.

In response to this generous grant, I would like to educate our readers about the significance of such organizations in the community. The UAEF is an endowment supported by community sponsors, donors and beneficiaries. Each year on the Sunday evening of Labor Day weekend, they host the Golden Bear Bash, which allows interested benefactors to fund raise for the current school year. In 2010 alone, the foundation accumulated nearly $70,000 to support various school programs and equipment, and it awarded over $20,000 in scholarships to seniors during May’s honors assembly. In the past, the UAEF has partnered with other high school booster groups and helped financed the lighting in the auditorium, provided T-shirts for Club Sudan and, most recently, purchased TI-Nspire calculators for the math department to test, helping the teachers decide whether or not they wanted to incorporate them into the department’s curriculum.

According to UAEF director Joanie Igel Dugger, the foundation’s role in the school community has expanded due to the downfall in the economy. In order for the foundation to sustain its development, it is vital that all readers comprehend how important the UAEF is to the high school. Their work touches all students, funding programs and equipment that enrich both scholastic and extracurricular opportunities at the high school.

The staff of Arlingtonian would like to sincerely thank the UAEF for its extremely generous support for not only our publication, but the many other student-run co-curricular organizations which it has funded as well. If you are interested in learning more about the foundation, or you wish to apply for a grant, please visit www.uaeducationfoundation.com or e-mail director Joanie Igel Dugger at bearalums@aol.com.

Happy reading!

Victoria Slater

Columnist reflects on Valentines day

by Aly Gordon ‘13

Ouch!”

You feel i­t, that sudden yet oh-so-familiar prick, stinging the back of your neck with a burning intensity. Fuming, you turn around, though the feeling fast subsides as you lock eyes with a random stranger. In this very moment, the birds begin their ebullient chirp, an orchestra plays its a tune, and everything somehow smells of roses: You’ve been hit.

Cupid, armed with his famous golden arrow and rather revealing ensemble, is out on the prowl, targeting you and me, and the entire student body, for that matter. Though certainly brimming with good intent, his goal­—to aid the high school’s hopeless romantics in their quest for love— has gone awry: students have begun to take Cupid’s work one notch too far, subjecting innocent bystanders to what is commonly referred to as “PDA.”

For all the hermitlike folks out there, PDA stands for Public Displays of Affection, ranging from the subtle holding-of-hands to full-on hallway make out sessions. Because of this variability, a line must be drawn: What is appropriate for school and what is not?

You see them all the time­­—those adorable yet envy-inducing couples, happily strolling with hands clasped, eyes full of a tender lightheartedness. This variant of PDA is generally accepted, but is often overshadowed by another, far more extreme form of PDA—a form which often puts average students in sticky situations.

For example: With textbook in hand and backpack at the ready, you plan on quickly swapping binders between third and fourth period, an ordinarily simple task. However, you soon find that your locker is a hub of activity. A pair of canoodlers are somehow—whether it be by some bizarre gravitational pull or by your own bad luck—drawn to your locker, unaware of your presence. We’ve all been there, done that, forced to choose between two equally-awkward options: You must either maneuver around the couple, inconspicuously squeezing around their compressed bodies, or utter a polite yet assertive “excuse me,” hoping they get the picture.

Don’t get me wrong. I love those cheesy, yet oh-so-addictive ’80s romance flicks as much as the next gal; however, I often wonder if our school’s oblivious couples are trapped in one such dream world, unaware that they are not, in fact, characters in a Jon Hughes movie. Sure, I understand that he or she is the apple of your eye, the peanut butter to your jelly, the Rogaine to your Nicolas Cage. That’s simple. What I don’t understand, though, is why this infatuation cannot wait until after school or when you go home. Would you not agree that any other venue, whether it be a quiet Italian restaurant or a quaint coffee shop­, is much more charming than the loud, crowded hallways? But hey, what do I know— maybe some see fluorescent lights, staphylococcus bacteria and linoleum floors as romantic.

‘‘Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” — Norman Vincent Peale.

During the holidays, these cliché sayings expressing wishes of holiday hope and love plaster the covers of greeting cards, television commercials, songs, storefronts and even food packages. It’s during these weeks that giving time, gifts and money to charity becomes commonplace. In these high spirited weeks, Americans give 24% of their charitable donations of the entire year, according to a 2007 survey conducted by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. People’s hearts seem to open as they care for their neighbors, all seemingly in the spirit of the season.

It is this glossy and idealistic idea of what the world should be like during the holiday season that drives advertisements and greeting cards. But is it really the true intention of people during this time? Even as pleasant visions of man helping man run through the public’s mind, advertisers are busy at work bombarding consumers with endless commercials, sales and announcements.

Beginning with Black Friday straight through to the end of the year, Americans run to department stores across the country to snatch up gifts. It is this rapid consumerism that makes one wonder if the “spirit of Christmas” is really so spirited after all. Shoppers become so crazed in the hopes of grabbing the latest iPhone or X-box off the shelf that they forget the generous spirit they are supposed to have.

In extreme cases, individuals have even died in the madness of Black Friday shopping. One such instance was in November 2008, when a Wal-Mart worker died after being trampled by a mob of shoppers, according to Joe Gould of the NYDailyNews. It is this insanity that counteracts the vision of worldly peace and love that is sold to Americans every year. How can both advertisers and the public-at-large claim that a new sense of universal love is present during the holidays, yet then act so crazed and trample someone to death in the pursuit of this year’s Tickle Me Elmo? The two ideas are not compatible.

While the admirable hope of people coming together through generosity during the holidays is an optimistic idea, in reality humanity is far from that kind of love. Instead, we are stuck in this horrid cycle of holiday consumerism madness. If people want to truly take part in the “spirit of Christmas,” then the extreme consumerism that takes over in December needs to stop. Instead of becoming obsessed with hitting the last sales of the year in order to buy this year’s must-have gifts, people should focus on what actually is “the true spirit of Christmas”—the people they love and care about.

Two years ago, on a chilled November night, I visited Ground Zero in New York City. At the time, I could just make out the base of what is now the new World Trade Center nestled in the dark abyss beyond me. Where the original World Trade Center once dominated the city skyline, there existed virtually nothing. Yet, the energy dwelling there on that winter’s night was enough to fill Ground Zero’s gaping hole with a mixed ambiance of despair, angst, power, wonder and love.

What occurred at that spot 10 years ago is beyond human comprehension It was destructive and despicable. It was also a complex demonstration of how the actions of a small few can affect so many. In retrospect, Sept. 11 is a genuine portrayal of resilience: empowering a city, a nation, a world to grow and flourish from fire and ash. Where death and destruction once shattered the globe, the tallest building in America, One World Trade Center­‚ reigns in the sky. A waterfall flows. Flags ripple in the breeze. And life— joyous, sad and bittersweet — goes on.

Death is inevitable. Wars are relentless. Evil is invincible. Yet so also is life, love and virtue. Sept. 11 is just another illustration of humanity’s ability to thrive in the face of adversity.

In an interview conducted for the Spotlight story of this issue, English teacher Meridith Niekamp reflected on her visit to Ground Zero only a few months after 9/11. She told us that, there, she read the most poignant display of poetry she had ever seen.

“People had been writing poetry with their fingers in the dust on the buildings,” Niekamp said in the interview. “It was such a moving way to express your love for common man, leaving those messages of hope and love and grief in such a medium. And it was so powerful that it was in the dust of the wreckage.”

What touched me most about Niekamp’s story was her hope that the carpenters of the new World Trade Center will harness human’s strength— not combative strength, but innocent, natural strength— in their designs.

“That’s all we are on this planet,” Niekamp said. “It’s not about buildings and planes and bombs and money, it’s about people. That’s all we are.”

And our strength is our resilience: Our capability to transform ash into poetry, evil into good and death into a willingness to live and move forward each and every day.

Mattie Stevens, ‘13

Imagine: It’s your first day on the job at the local drive-thru, and your only hope is that you’ll make it through the shift without mishaps or getting yelled at by your coworkers. A car of high school girls pulls up and you offer them their vanilla and chocolate swirl ice cream cones. The driver extends her hands to grab the treats—but then at the last minute, she flips her hands to take the cones by the ice cream side.

How are you supposed to react in this scenario? Should you chuckle and go along with it, stand there awkwardly or should you fight back? As they drive away laughing you stand there, stunned as you realize that you have just become a victim of coning.

Most high school students spend their lazy summer days in the midst of monotony, lounging by the pool or playing video games to pass the time. Once that routine becomes blasé, students hunt for new ways to entertain themselves. The treasure in this summer’s hunt was coning.

Coning is the act of ordering an ice cream cone in a drive-thru. The twist is, you grab the treat by the ice cream, not the cone.

What’s the point of coning? By watching a myriad of videos from Youtube, it seems the reactions of the “victims” were amusing. This may be a reason for people to partake in the messy, yet entertaining activity.

To most adolescents, a coning escapade is simply a way to pass a lazy day of summer. But to fast food employees, coning can be insulting.

Corey Lewis, an employee of McDonald’s, is left confused after a coning experience.

“Some kids ordered a cone of ice cream, and everyone was screaming, ‘No don’t give it to them! They’re going to cone!’ So I told them, ‘You better not be coning,’ but of course they did,” Lewis said. “I just don’t understand what would compel a person to do such a horrendous act like that. I didn’t do anything to them. Were they unsatisfied with the product or something? I just don’t understand what it’s all about.”

Another employee at McDonald’s, Fatimah Fall, feels similarly but chooses to voice these feelings differently.

“[Expletive], I throw it back at the [expletive] [expletive] everytime! Everytime I do it,” Fall said.

Why these employees get so agitated is something coners question, while those employees then question coners. Employees generally feel belittled and taken advantage of. They claim that, as long as they are satisfied, the customers will disregard how the employers feel.

Meanwhile, the coners are confused as to why fast food employees are so taken aback by this action. They aren’t being insulted or harmed. People are simply trying to change things up a bit.

Why should they conform to society and grab their ice cream cones by the cone? The absurdity! Why not try something new and grab the ice cream cone by the ice cream? YOU try spending your entire summer at the pool while trying not to get skin cancer or become a TV zombie. Being a teenager during the summer is so draining.

]]> http://www.arlingtonian.com/archives/3776/feed 0 http://www.arlingtonian.com/archives/4100 http://www.arlingtonian.com/archives/4100#comments Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:52:00 +0000 Aly Gordon http://www.arlingtonian.com/?p=4100 Staff Editorial

Though technically correct, the definition of beauty—a combination of qualities that please the aesthetic sense— is an unsuccessful attempt to give meaning to a hazy concept. The truth of the matter is simple: beauty cannot be defined. As history has shown, beauty is malleable, shifting according to societal expectations.

Beauty in the 21st-century holds a greater weight than in years past, driven by an omnipresent force: the media. Many Americans—whether they admit it or not—are often captivated by “news” outlets, eager to learn of Kim Kardashian’s latest implants or who Justin Beiber is dating this week. Despite their entertainment value, mediums like Us Weekly and People are similar to fashion magazines in that they all promote an unrealistic and unhealthy image of beauty.

In April of 2010, Britney Spears chose to resist the media’s deceptive behavior, releasing an image of herself before and after photoshop. The distinction between the photos was more than apparent, with the latter of the two boasting slimmer thighs, a smaller waist and unblemished skin. Spears showed girls that imperfections are not something of which they should be ashamed. Imperfections are normal, even beautiful.

As of late, some magazines have begun vocally celebrating normal-sized women; however, these same magazines continue to feature stick-thin models. In the September 2009 issue of Glamour, the main story applauded healthy women and encouraged girls to be comfortable in their own skin. While, yes, this- was certainly a step in the right direction, the magazine contradicted itself a mere 35 pages later by featuring skeletal models in the issue’s fashion spread.

One store in particular—Modcloth—has begun displaying its clothing on beautiful, yet healthy-looking women, who, unlike the models of most other stores, do not fit into size 0 jeans. If the media follows Modcloth’s lead then perhaps men and women will begin to accept themselves as they are.

Students are bothered by the requirement to purchase expensive new calculators

By Mattie Stevens, ‘13

By the end of the last school year, rumors were circulating that the UA school district was going to require every middle school and high school student to purchase a brand new calculator. The catch: these calculators would cost $130.

I asked myself, “What could possibly be the reason for forcing every student at Jones Middle School, Hastings Middle School and UAHS to purchase one or—depending on the family—multiple calculators?”

Teachers informed students that the reason for this drastic change was to better prepare students for the calculator technology used in college. I can understand why teachers would see that as a reason to make the switch. However, this kind of advanced calculator technology would be best suited for advanced mathematics courses, which not all students will want to pursue.

The calculator includes new features that were not offered on the TI-84 Plus, including a full color sceen, a full key pad and compatible computer software.

However, a downfall of the new software is that the calculators require charging at least once every three weeks. Compared to the TI-84 Plus, which only requires everyday batteries that last about a year, the N-Spire is much less convenient. Imagine what peril a student would find themselves in when their battery died the day of a test.

I believe that the calculators are an attempt to promote technological evolution in this school district, hereby emphasizing the affluence of Upper Arlington and magnifying the inaccurate assumption that UA families can make ends meet no matter what. This could furthermore strengthen the infamous stereotypes pertaining to UA’s wealth.

Another downside to the new calculators is that teachers are now squandering class time in order to teach students how to use the calculators and software. Not only does this delay learning for days, but this also causes students to spend more time during tests trying to decipher the calculator keys instead of solving problems.

A more demanding issue that arises with the requirement to purchase new calculators is the high price.

For families with more than one student, these calculators can cost hundreds. Some siblings, such as senior Joe Wallace and junior Maddie Wallace, have attempted to share their new calculator, however this is not an ideal situation. Unfortunately, the safest option is to spend the money so each child has a calculator to call his or her own.

The one upside to requiring the district-wide purchase of these calculators is that those just starting out in middle school will not have to purchase a new calculator every year as I did, having had to buy four calculators over the course of six years. That doesn’t even account for calculators that were lost and needed replacing. For those just beginning sixth grade, they may only need to purchase one or two calculators, ultimately saving those lucky families money that could be saved for college tuition, among other things.

In addition to families feeling stressed out due to the price of these calculators, some seniors are refusing to purchase the new calculators. Their rationale is that they’ll only be using the calculator for one year and figure that their TI-84 Plus is doing the job just fine. Seniors should not be required to purchase these TI-nspire calculators, due to the fact that they will only use them for nine months.

I agree with those that claim that the district demanding every student from sixth grade to 12th grade to buy a new $130 dollar calculator is ludacris. Other students and I could be saving that money to pay for more pressing costs, such as college. We have a right to protest, and what will we lose if we never purchase these calculators? Certainly not $130.

By Aly Gordon ‘13

Imagine: As you walk down one of the high school’s many crowded hallways, a peculiar sight catches your eye. A student—sporting an unusual trench coat and a sly expression on his face—hands one of his peers a cupcake, quickly accepting a crumpled dollar in return.

Upon witnessing this curious scene, one question lingers in the back of your mind: Could the high school really have a baked goods black market?

The answer, at least for now, is an unfortunate no. However, with the recent passing of Senate Bill 10 and the subsequent banning of bake sales; sugar-craving students, myself included, have certainly considered investing in this illicit business. The new law, which prohibits the sale of unhealthy foods in Ohio’s schools, will promote nutrition across the state.

Or so they think.

I have faith that students will find a way to indulge in their favorite treats. In fact, I know. “The man” can take our bake sales, our vending machines—but he will never take our cars. Canes, Graeter’s, Donatos– all of which are within 2 miles of UAHS. Do they really think that a simple law will suddenly make us eat healthily? Please, talk to me after I finish my Frosty.

Sugar deprivation is not the only dilemma facing the UAHS student body, though. Clubs are suddenly faced with an unnerving prospect: we must fundraise outside the comfort of our beloved bake sale tables. This means that as a club member, you must use your brain to unearth new methods of fundraising: a task which at times seems perilous.

Some clubs used to depend heavily upon bake sales; however, others are ahead of the game, organizing events that defy Newton’s Laws of Fundraising. The Sudan Club, for example, has held a chili cook off, a dodge ball tournament and a walk-a-thon, raising a total of $4800, according to the club’s advisor, Mark Boesch.

Even though these events are an effective means to profit, they have one drawback: time. Bake sales, plain and simple, are fast, easy and of course, delicious.

Walking down the main hallway, I used to always look for a table topped with an assortment of goodies. Now, though, all I see is a bare, incomplete space. We, the student body, need to fill this void– this empty feeling in the depths of our grumbling stomachs. What we need, my friends, is a baked goods black market.

Food around the holidays not only adds to celebration, but also around the waist of its consumers

Since the holidays are approaching, I decided to send out a public service announcement within a column. Rather than discussing the lovely songs of Christmas, or the traditional Hanukkah dreidel games, we’re talking holiday smells here people.
Food around the holidays can be dangerous. I know, it’s tradition and everyone can’t have a wonderful holiday experience without diving into delicious meals consisting of carbs and sweet treats.
Holiday foods get the best of us all. Their inviting smells, happy decorations and enticing comfort lure our hungry minds into thinking, “Okay, just another nibble won’t hurt…”.  Don’t get me wrong, I am all for sitting by the fire drinking a big cup of hot chocolate; it’s what this season’s all about. All I’m saying, is we must be careful.
The first holiday during the joyous season consists entirely of eating. Even for those who participate in the Thanksgiving Day runs, don’t be fooled into thinking you can eat whatever you want. .The average American consumes 3,000 calories and 229 grams of fat in one Thanksgiving meal, according to the American Council on Exercise. The average American burns just 384 for a 5K run. You do the math.
The United States Department of Agriculture recently came up with a new approach for healthy eating. Instead of the food pyramid that most of our generation grew up with, MyPlate has come into existence. This new healthy-eating-helper has three main points: Balancing calories, foods to increase and food to reduce—as well as the traditional five categories the former pyramid also had.
It may seem childish to reference this color-organized diagram understandable to a fifth grader. However, it’s actually kind of interesting and surprisingly helpful. The categories are size-orientated, exhibiting portion sizes for each meal. If you want a way to avoid putting on the extra pounds, I highly suggest making this your first step to stay slim.
This really doesn’t have to be that big of an issue this winter. Just stay aware of your intake of festive treats and when you go to reach for one of Santa’s cookies, think twice.Either you put that cookie back and save yourself from a long struggle ahead, or call up the gym right then and there. Holiday foods get the best of us—the only thing we can do is bring in a little self control.

We all remember our experiences at Camp Oty’ Okwa as sixth grade students: taking long hikes in the forest, eating home-cooked meals served family style and preparing our cabin’s skit for the bonfiire on the last night. For most former campers, there are only fond memories of the time spent in Hocking Hills. I recently had the opportunity to revisit Sixth Grade Camp as a counselor and experience again many of those memories.

There was the crunch of wet leaves underfoot and the damp, earthy air you can only find deep in the woods. Nature was living and breathing all around me. There was no cell phones or Facebook in sight.The majority of the day I had no idea what time it was, and I loved it.

The trip in its entirety was quite enjoyable, but that’s not to say there weren’t any challenges. Though I would consider myself highly capable in most aspects of camping, I did experience an unforeseen problem: the bugs.

They were everywhere. Crawling up my legs, biting me in my sleep, and scurrying across the ground. There was no getting away from nature’s array of monsters. I am pretty sure a spider convention was being held in our cabin.

Though I’m kind of a wimp when it comes to bugs, I tried not to let it stop me from enjoying my time at camp and helping my sixth grade kids do the same.

Other than the freakish creepy crawlies, camp was generally smooth sailing. The general attitude of both counselors and campers alike was of fun and friendship. This was especially evident at the camp hoedown on our first night.

Now, one more thing about me: I’m not a dancer. But at this hoedown, you would have thought I was Beyonce. All the counselors were wildly dancing to the infectious music, pulling shy clusters of kids off the walls and onto the dance floors.

Whatever we did, we did together as a group. That’s what made friendships and forged bonds, turning Sixth Grade Camp into something more than just a few days of hiking in the woods. A meandering stroll through Hidden Cave or a vigorous ascent up Backbreaker Hill would not be the same without the people I was with—the other counselors, the kids, even the teachers. Even though my workload upon return was high, and I didn’t see the light of day for the majority of the following weekend, I’d do it all again in a heartbeat.

By Abby Godard

It’s 4th quarter of your senior year. Capstone projects are complete and exams are no longer apart of your agenda. By now, you’re probably suffering from a severe case of senioritis and all you can do is strategize ways to take out your opponents in senior tag. For the past four years, you have been looking forward to this final year of high school and now that it has arrived, life could not be moving any faster.

As you look to the future, a bittersweet feeling sits in your stomach. The thought of not seeing your friends who you’ve built a relationship with for as long as you can remember scares you, but the idea of starting new sounds refreshing. Whether you’re heading straight for the world of work or going off to college, a clean slate follows you in your tracks. Everything has a fresh start and from here on out, life is what you make it. Today marks the era of opportunity and endless adventure. Sayonara curfews and goodbye homework! Your decisions define who you are and you have the power to decide your own future.

If your life was a story, many would argue that this day is the first day of the rest of your life. Here your dreams can become realities and could potentially change the world. Our generation one day will lead the nation and what’s better than starting now?

The next time you may ever see your fellow classmates again could be at the famous ten-year reunion. In the land of opportunity, what will you be remembered for? A lot can happen in a decade. Will the high school sweethearts finally elope? Will the valedictorian find the cure to cancer like she’d always imagined? Is the star quarterback soaking up his glory days, now unrecognizable and wishing he were still running the school?

As you continue to ponder about what the future has in store for you and your fellow classmates, ask you yourself this one question: What will you be remembered for?

My aunt is from nature notoriously curious. If she can’t answer a question or doesn’t know a logical explanation for something, she doesn’t rest until she found the necessary information: Her house is full of dictionaries, encyclopedias and other books of that sort, to just say the least. Luckily technology has given her a new faster and even smarter way to satisfy her curiosity – May I present? The search engine; Google, her best friend. The term “Just ask Google.” now is as common as “Could you please pass me the salt, dear?”
But long since has Google extended its range. What started out as a ‘simple’ search engine is now an Internet empire including email, maps, a translator, in short there is nearly everything one could possibly want to search for to be found.
Especially tempting for us students – Google Translator. It could be so easy one would just type in a sentence, word or expression and Google would translate it for you. But beware, often times the translator isn’t reliable. Sentences will be translated word by word and therefore turn into such a hodgepodge that not even a native could understand what one is trying to say. Sometimes it’ll even miss-translate single words, since many have more than one meaning. In short Google Translator is the worst nightmare of a global language teacher. Reliable dictionaries are recommended if you want to receive a good grade on your paper.

Concerning search engines themselves though Google is certainly far ahead of the others. Yahoo, Bing and others can’t seem to catch up with the racing speed of Google’s further development (Even though Bing’s users are increasing). The Significance of Google in everyday life is increasing daily – Google Translator is used instead of a common dictionary, research does not work without the search engine and Google Street View lets us even see our houses from 6000 km away. Which is kind of scary, because who knows who just spied on your house just this minute. The debate about whether or whether not we should allow our houses to be viewed online. But what both sides forgot in this discussion was the question really is, do we actually need to have Google Street View if it is that controversial? It would just increase Google’s significance in our lives. People would spent more time on using the computer than maybe going to the library or archives to get there research done. Google would more and more take the place of whole branches of our economy. Should we really let this control our lives and let it have this great importance in our lives. The answer is no! Using Google in appropriate amounts is reasonable and helpful, but we should also not forget to recognize other ways of researching. And seriously, do you really want everybody to be able to view your house online at any moment?