The

RAILSPLITTERABRAHAM LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL | 2600 S.W. 9TH DES MOINES, IA | Vol. 90 | RS #2 | October 16, 2013

“Covering the Pride of the South Side”

WELCOME TO FALL! TAKE A LOOK AT ALL OF LINCOLN’S FALL ACTIVITIES & EVENTS

Congratulations to lHs marCHing band

for plaCing 1st at tHe nortH Centralio-wa marCHing festival

And so much more...take a look inside!

FALL sports• Football• Volleyball• swimmingetc...

Take a Look-back

atHomecoming

Look into KEY Club

Look into the mind of the

writers...

Railettes!Cheerleaders

Getting to know your Drum Majors

STAFFon line

“Congress shall make no law respecting anestablishment of religion, or prohibiting thefree exercise thereof; or abridging the free-

domof speech, or of the press; or the right

of the people peaceable to assemble, andto petition the Government for a redress of

grievances.”

@TheRailsOnline

Jordan Bryson

Maddie Wright Anthony CaligiuriAlex Louw

Carlie McClearyRebecca Rodrigues

Marissa Signor

Amy Luong

Editor-in-chief

Brandon Searcy

Advertising Coordinator

Advertising Coordinator

Tanner Smith

Kenzy Cooper

Taking a Closer L o o k Getting to know our drum majorsMaddie Wright Staff writer

Lincoln’s drum majors are two of the most important people in the band (besides the band members themselves of course) and without them, our band wouldn’t be complete. Each year, the senior drum majors pick two new band members to take their place. It’s a very big honor. This year, Rachel Amadeo and Nick Parker have the honor to represent Lincoln’s band. Rachel Amadeo is one of the first juniors to be chosen to be a drum major. “I was really excited and shocked,” said Amadeo. “I didn’t even audition and I was picked out of all the other band members.” Being chosen to be a drum major is a shocking and exciting thing and usu- ally unexpected. “Well, it was somewhat unexpected,” said Nick Parker, senior. “I didn’t even want the position until recently so it was a little nerve rack- ing but overall it was good.” Practice al- ways makes perfect! So the drum majors need to make sure the band is focused and ready to go for games and competi-tions. “We basically warm them up and then we bring them to attention,” explains Amadeo. “We prac- tice salutes and then the whole entire show.” Getting the band prepared during practice and before a game is very impor- tant, but they also need to prepare themselves. “I pretty much just try to reenact what we do in practice,” says Parker. “I show up, get in my uniform, and mentally prepare but other than that it doesn’t take too much. Games are a big deal to the band but winning competitions is what proves that all the hard work really does pay off. The band hasn’t had any competitions yet this year but the drum majors don’t seem nervous at all and are prepared to be focused. “I work ten times harder to prepare to competitions than I do for a football game,” said Amadeo. “It’ll probably be a little different,” says Parker. “I’ll need to know what I’m doing and if I’m doing something other than conducting.” The band members and the drum majors are working hard to make this year a fun and successful year!

tHe Railettes are off to StateThe Railettes have a lot of pressure this year preparing for State

Kenzy Cooper Staff writer The Railettes are busting their booties pre-paring for State. They’re staying busy and have a lot of pressure to place at State. Between prepping for pep rallies and working on their State routines, the Railettes are staying super busy. How do the Railettes prep for State? “I’m getting the team prepared for State by making sure everybody is on task and we are all working hard to be our best,” says Senior, Courtney Kokemuller. Even though the seniors have the biggest re-sponsibilities, how the dances look depend on the whole team. The Varsity Railettes do three dances at State Competition and a Co-ed dance with the JV , Varsity Railettes, and Railmen. The Railettes learned their Pom dance in the beginning of summer and have been cleaning and working on that throughout the summer. “It was a long and tiring three days. We were all very annoyed with each other but it was

worth it now that we don’t have to stress about learn-ing our Pom dance,” says Junior, Anto-nia Mihalov-ich. Along with preparing for State they have also been working on Pep Rally

dances and keeping busy with volunteer work. At State there is a “Volunteer Award” given and the Railettes do what they can to earn that every year. The Railettes will begin learning their lyrical routine in the beginning of Octo-ber and begin their hip hop routine in the end of October. The Senior Railettes will compete in State solos in November and the seniors are busy getting themselves ready for that competition. Senior Raven Sharp talks about how she is preparing for State Solos, “I’m taking the support

from my teammates and working as hard as I can!” Schools around the Des Moines area hold showcases where dance teams can perform their State Routine’s and receive feedback. After these showcases the team will have a few weeks to use this feedback and perfect their rou-tines. They will perform at Ames, Norwalk and Dowling beginning in November. The Railettes practice 4 times a week. They’re staying busy and are getting ready to take on State.

“We are all

working hard to be our best.”

“I was really excited and shocked!”

Now that it’s over, let’s see how it

went. During the week of September 16-21, Lincoln students got their spirit on, par-ticipating in various Homecoming activi-ties leading to the big dance Saturday, Sep-tember 21. Monday started bright and early with Neon Day. Students showed up in their neon colors to kick off spirit week. Later that night 14 teams stormed the fields at the Lincoln Baseball/Softball complex and competed in the annu-al kickball tournament sponsored by student council. It was a long, cold night but by 8:30 p.m. the Tweeters took the title of champions. The tournament was a huge success and a great way to kick off the week. Tuesday, students saddled up and put on their good overalls for Country day. Every-one had a rootin’ too-

tin’ time! Senior Citizen Day was Wednesday and instead of a school, Lincoln looked like a retirement home. Eve-ryone busted out their grey wigs and big

booties to make the day hip and funky, (as the old folks say). Thursday Lincoln went classy for Dress up day. Suits, ties, dresses and dress pants were all worn and students looked their Sunday best. While Thursday day was pretty high for

students, Thursday evening was a low. Severe thunderstorms rolled in the area right before the annual Powder puff game was about to begin. The game was cancelled,

but was resched-uled for the follow-ing Monday. Students were disappointed but it was all made up for when they TPed the school later that night. Friday was Spirit Day! Everyone decked out in their Lincoln gear and got pumped for the big game that

night. Coronation and a Pep assembly were held that after-noon and the school learned of their new Homecoming royalty, King Phi Nguyen and Queen Taylor Little.

Coach Campbell gave a short, but motivat-ing speech that got the entire roundhouse ex-cited for the hopeful victory against East. That speech must’ve worked because Lin-coln had their very first victory 39-7. Eve-ryone agreed it was a great way to end the

week. Saturday was the day everyone was waiting for. Lincoln’s Home-coming Dance “Light up the Night” brought in a record attendance to the Roundhouse. It was a huge success for all and everyone is pumped for next year.

Recap of Homecoming Homecoming 2013 was a huge success! See how students and staff ‘lit up the week’ with all the spirit week activitiesAnthony Caligiuri Staff writer

LHS students TP the school on Thursday after the thunderstorms died out.

The LHS Leadership class looked more like a retirement home than a high school classroom on Senior Citizen Day.

Juniors Lynzie Miller, Ma-son Downing and Kaytlyne Macvilay keep it bright on Neon Day.

Seniors Sivani Parsa, Olivia Simpson and Emilie Skartvedt bring out their country side.

Junior cheerleaders perform during Junior vs Senior powderpuff game

LHS throwback

Discover opportunities New Officers. New Year.

If you’re looking for a club to join this year Key club will start recruiting its new members and rejoining their veteran members as they continue their volun-teer and fundraising activities. This year’s possible activities will be decorating the football stadium

for homecoming, raising money for charity and candy cane sales before Christmas break. What is key club, you ask? Key Club, or Kiwanis Educating Youth is part of the Kiwanis international organization, is a worldwide student-led club which gives its members opportunities to provide service, build character and develop leadership. At the Lincoln chapter the faculty advisor is Mrs. Mary Berry and also includes the senior officers, Key Club president Amy Luong, Vice President Skylar Davis and treasurer and Secretary Al-lison Rodish. Together they make the 2013-2014 Key Club officers and are in charge of meetings and the activities the club does.

We Cheer From Bow to ToeThe Cheerleaders Preparing for State!

State is getting closer! It’s almost time! These girls are practicing from head to toe! After cheering the football players on every game and cheering the student section on to support the

Lincoln Rails! “Being able to cheer and support the Rails is really fun, you learn so much about each other and get really close to the team,” said Claudia Jannes, sophomore. “This time is getting a little stressful. Preparing for state and making sure ev-eryone is at practice isn’t easy.” When we prepare for state everything and everyone has to look the same, every arm, and ev-ery move,” said Claudia Jannes, sopho-more. Cheerleading is just like dance. Everything has to be the same and every move has to be together and at the same time. State is only several weeks away. Time is running out and each practice is counting for these ladies. Every single practice counts and it is important to show up and support the team because everyone wants to place and do their best at state. “I am very excited about state this year! My favorite part about going to state is stunting, and winning. The morn-ing of state is when my butterflies start to kick in and I get more and more excited. Being able to go out on the floor

and do what you love to do is really fun. I love show-ing my school spirit, and being able to support Lincoln,” said Cindy Wilkinson, senior.

“After competing at state, the early morning Saturday practices pay off. We practice after school and sometimes come early in the morning. I am excited for state this year and being with my team doing what we love to do,” said Madeline Jannes, junior. “After cheering on the teams at games and supporting Lincoln makes me feel good about myself supporting the school and showing school spirit. I love cheering at pep rally’s, games, the student body

and competing at state. Stunting, placing and winning at state makes me feel good about myself and always being there with my team,” said Madeline Jannes, junior. As the cheerleaders prepare for state, everyone is work-ing hard practicing. Even if there not competing at state everyone is supporting the girls and always cheering on

Lincoln.

Sophomore Carolyn Lo is deco-rating for the homecoming game.

Seniors Allison Rodish, Amy Lu-ong, and Skylar Davis are show-ing off their Key Club shirts.

The Cheerleaders areworking hard on new pyramids this year.

The Cheerleaders perform a stunt at a football game.

“I joined Key Club be-cause I wanted to become more involved in the school and the community and for more volunteering op-

portunities,” said Allison Rodish, senior, a majority of the students in Key Club to get involved in the community. “I joined key club b e c a u s e I needed to get out of my shell and I enjoy h e l p i n g p e o p l e , ” said Sky-lar Davis,

senior and also key club vice president.

This year one of the goals is to recruit new members to increase the amounts of members to be involved in volun-teering activities. Key club is a great club to join if you are looking for possible volunteering opportunities or want to get involved with your community. Also helps with com-munity service needed for scholarships and opens opportu-nities of character and leadership. “I’m feeling really good about Key Club this year. We have a great president and a great group of members!” said Rodish. If you are interested in Key club, there are meetings every Monday that’s an A day after school in Mrs.Berry’s, room

3020, and there is a ten dollar mem-bership fee.

Amy Luong Editor-in-chief

Marissa Signor Staff writer

around school

The Cheerleaders demonstrate a pyramid at the Chicken Bowl.

The Cheerleaders rep-resent Lincoln at their State Competition.

Celebrate My Drive!Help Lincoln win $100,000 and have a private concert with Kelly Clarkson. All you have to do is...

--Log into celebratemydrive.com --Indicate youwant to support LHS --Commit to drive safely!

Log in every day!

Just Keep Running Running Running RunningA first place title and personal records that keep getting betterseason with a team of only seven runners,” said Coach Darin Dowling. Recently earning first place at the Hoover Invi-tational meet, Junior Sam McMichael leads the boy’s cross country team this sea-son. “I felt fantastic. Finally, it was showing that all the hard work I had put in over the summer was starting to pay off,” said McMichael. McMichael trained and conditioned all summer long with Lincoln’s sum-mer running club. They ran Monday through Thursday. This season hasn’t had the most cooperative weather

with hot temperatures, making it difficult for oth-ers, but that hasn’t stopped McMichael from making this one of his best seasons ever. State is something that he’s been looking at, but it isn’t his first priority at this point. “This season so far has been a success. My times have shown that I’ve im-proved a lot from last year. As for state, I don’t know. It’s tough. It may not be this year but there’s always next year. I’m expecting to make it to state for the mile in track, not necessar-ily for cross country,” said McMichael.

Have you seen all the runners on S.W. 12th?.

Lincoln’s cross country teams are getting bigger. A larger team creates more inter team competition and allows the Lincoln runners an opportunity to score more points at their meets. In the past, they’ve had smaller teams just because long distance running takes commitment and determi-nation. “We had twenty-four peo-ple signed up to run cross country this season which is a huge number for Lin-coln. It was only a couple years ago that I finished the

Swimming to State The Rails Varsity swim team is off to a good start. So far they are 6-2 overall and are spend-ing hours in the pool perfecting their strokes. Junior Valeria Santiago, who has been swim-ming for 9 years and has been on varsity for 3 years, is having a good season herself and is excited for what the rest of the season has in store. “So far we are having a good season and we are winning most of our meets, I person-ally need to work on my butterfly stroke,” said Santiago. Senior captain Olivia Simpson and her team-mates want to send 12 girls to state this year

Varsity girl’s swimming off to a good start

Alex Louw Staff writer

Stepping in the right directionThe girl’s cross country team is creating a dynasty for the Railsplitters

Jordan Bryson Staff writer

The girl’s Cross Country pro-gram is moving in the right direc-tion with the most girls participat-ing in Coach Dowling’s 7 years at Lincoln. The girls are at the mid-point of their season knocking out 5 meets so far. Junior Alex Louw set a personal record of 19:16 in her meet at Ankeny. The girls know that practice makes perfect. “We have to work a lot harder in practice so we can reach the goals that we set before the season,” said Audrey Klein, sophomore. The girl’s goals this season is to win a meet and get a few girls

qualified for state. “It’s not going to be easy but I know we can do it,” said Louw.

Junior Sam McMichael

and wants the end the sea-son with a bang! “We’ve all been working really hard this year and its paid off so far because this is our best record in my four years but we still have work to go before the district meet,” said Simpson. The Varsity Rails’ next big meet is the Conference swim and dive on October 23rd and 24th at Lincoln.

Tuesday, October 15th at 5:30 at Des Moines East

Wednesday, October 23rd at 4:30 at Des Moines Lincoln - Metro Conference Diving

Thursday, October 24th at 4:30 at Des Moines Lincoln - Metro Confer-ence Swim

Brandon Searcy Sports writer

Thursday, October 10th at Ewing Park at 4:30

Thursday, October 17th Conference Meet at 4:00 against Indianola, Des Moines East, Des Moines Hoover, Des Moines North, Des Moines Roos-evelt and Ottumwa

Junior Valeria Santiago

The cross country team has already had several large meets this season involving suburban schools, which usually means tougher com-petitors for McMichael. “Well, luckily this year, I’m at the point where I’m part of the front of the pack in most meets. My main competitors are those kids from the suburbs, mostly Johnston, Valley, Dowling, and Waukee,” said McMi-chael. McMichael isn’t only lead-ing the team with his times and places in races; he also leads the team as a captain. “I am a team captain and it’s due to my hard work ev-

ery year I’ve been out. I’ve gotten better each and every year because of my work ef-fort,” said McMichael. McMichael focuses more on personal records and bet-ter placing for himself and his team overall.

sports spots

DISTRICT CROSS COUNTRY MEET LOCATION TBA

Juniors Alex Louw, Lynzie Miller, sophomore Audrey Klein, and junior Kaytlyne Macvilay

The 9th grade vol-leyball team started the season off well. They won 14 games and only have 4 losses on the season. “The team is working well, we just need to work on defense a little more,” Freshman Ali-son Sheesley said when talking about her team. The Freshman team is putting in the work at practice and it is show-ing when they are dom-inating their opponents on the court. The team will face

Des Moines North on Sep-tember 24th, in hopes of con-tinuing their domination on

the court.

9th Grade Volleyball

Young and Gettin’ It By Tanner Smith Staff Writer

The 10th grade Rails football team is starting off slow, by losing their first 4 games heading into conference play. “The team just needs to work together, we just need to focus up and work on the little things,” said Sophomore Jordan Lewis. The sophomore team has lost to some good quality teams, including Johnston and Ankeny. The team also has lost some close games against Roosevelt and East. Their team has been improv-ing week after week, and put-ting in the time at practice. The scoreboard just hasn’t been in their favor. “You know, the final goal for the season is to work together and start winning games” The Rails face Urbandale Thursday September 26th, and then have a week to recover and get ready for Valley Octo-ber 11th in hopes to pull their season together.

By Tanner Smith Staff Writer

10th Grade Football

Rough start for long season

The Varsity Rails football team is coming off an exciting win over their cross town rival Des Moines East 39-7. They head into conference play 1-3 and with optimistic hopes on the rest of the season. The team finally pulled together and played well, and looked unstoppable. The Rails put in the work at practice following a loss against Roosevelt that easily could have been a different outcome. The Rails had the ball on the

ground 17 times and just couldn’t put it together on offense.

“The team played with a lot of emotion and passion, and it showed when we domi-nated our cross town rival East High” said senior cap-tain Jordan BrysonThe team starts off confer-ence play against Urban-dale, who is 3-1 and in the top 10 of the state.

“You know, if we just do the little things we are capable of anything” senior captain

Corey Glass quoted when talking about the rails future for the season The Rails play Urbandale at home Septem-ber 27th, then the following week play Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson in Council Bluffs.

By Tanner Smith Staff Writer

The volleyball teams at Lincoln have been working hard since their practices started this summer. The teams consist of freshman, JV, and Varsity. Each player strives to make a spot on varsity. Sophomore Talia Marquis, is a member of the JV volleyball team. She loves her team and says volleyball is very important to her. Marquis says the JV team consists of about twenty girls. However, only 15 of the girls play in the tournaments so each one of them has to work hard for their spot. They attend four tour-naments a year, not including State. The varsity team is the only team that is able to make it to State, but they will have to work hard to make it that far. Volleyball is a very competitive sport. Marquis says, “Everyone is competitive, but we are all very respectful about it” about the members on her team. All the teams practice every day after school for two hours. During these practices, they work on strength and endurance, conditioning and training, and specific volleyball skills that will help them earn their spots on the court. They also get into teams and practice against each other so they can prepare each other for what the actual games and tournaments are going to be like. Each team has to work very hard be-cause they each have specific accomplishments they’re trying to reach. The main goal for the JV girls is to get good e n o u g h and ded-i c a t e d e n o u g h to get a spot on the varsi-ty team. A n d f r o m t h e r e , t h e y ’ d try to make it to State. “Making it to State is a huge deal. It’s some-thing that we all work very hard for!” said Mar-quis. The volleyball teams are extremely close. They all push each other to work hard and they give each other great motivation. Marquis says some of her best friends are a part of the team and that’s what makes it so fun. Her favorite part about volleyball season is how close her and her team members get, and how much fun they have on and off the court.

JV VolleyballWhat are they working on this year?

By Carlie McCleary Staff writer

Senior Captain Corey Glass

Sopohmore Jordan Lewis

Freshman Allie Sheesley

Varsity FootballGetting Back On Track

Sopohmore Tailia Marquis

“When you’ve got something to prove, there’s nothing greater than a challenge.” – Terry Bradshaw

sports spots

Senior Sabonis Smith comes down with the catch againt an East defender.

Lincoln’s defense lines up against Ankeny’s offensive line.

“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you

get there.” – Bo JacksonUrbandale Reciever goes out for pass on September 27th against Rails

Marissa’s MomentsKeep Calm and Dance OnWE’RE COMING BACK THIS YEAR…

There is a huge change between this year and last year with Railettes. This team has never been so close to each other as we are this year. We get along, have our ups and downs, but that just makes the team stronger. We all look forward going to State this year because the team is good this year and we

want to place at State. Going to State means something to us this year be-cause we want to represent Lincoln High School as well as we can. Railettes has changed me as a person this year. I am getting along with other teammates and not arguing at each other over where your spot is. I enjoy being on the team because everyone is so much closer this year. Compared to last year, I was the shy one on the team. I’ve socialized more this year and have gotten closer with the team than I was last year. The team means something more to me than it has in the past. Railettes has changed me from my freshman year to my sophomore year. I can’t wait for this year to begin with the team. I have never been so ex-cited to come to practice before. Coming to the practices makes me enjoy Railettes even more because I love bonding with the team and getting to know each other more. I am really looking forward on going to state this year! The team is more into Railettes this year than we ever have been. Having nights where we do team bonding, spending time with each other, and making up dances for fun are the memories that I will never forget about this team. I am very excited to learn all of the state dances for this upcoming year because it makes me a better dancer. Having to learn more than one dance can be very hard but easy at the same time. My favorite style of dance is more jazz and lyrical. I enjoy

The HOT TOPIC

The dresses, the suits, the music. Everything is going great... unless you don’t have a date--or an outstanding dress. And… you came here in your Mom’s minivan?! The pressures of go-ing to a dance with a date that looks like Brad Pitt and a dress made out of gold are endless. Going alone is scandalous and

being the third wheel is awkward. A skirt and a t-shirt won’t cut it. What can you do??? Going to homecoming without a date isn’t as bad as people make it seem. So what if you don’t have a date? Having a girlfriend/boyfriend is not a requirement for high school. And if you really want to go with someone, ask a friend to be your date or go in a group without any couples. Getting stressed out over one little dance isn’t going to hurt you, but you don’t want to get an ulcer because of it. Dances are supposed to be fun and non-stressful. And ladies, ordering a dress all the way from Paris is a little over excessive and a dress from the thrift shop, just be selective. Find a nice dress from Younkers, or JC Pen-ney’s. It’s not that hard. Don’t make a big deal out of what’s supposed to be a fun event or blow all your college savings on a limo rental. Keep calm and to the dance. :) Carpool, take your date in your car, catch a ride--whatever. As long as you make it to the dance, you’ll be fine. And hey, if you have the big bucks to spend on a carriage and four white horses, be my guest. Rides don’t matter. It’s the destination, in this case, that counts. But… what if you don’t want to go to dances? Or any social event? I per-sonally have avoided some high school football games. If you have some-

By Rebecca Rodrigues, Staff writer

thing that night and would rather do that than go to a school event, go ahead. But if you’re free Friday night and there’s a basketball game, go! Support your team, cheer on Lincoln High! Or throw on a dress and socialize at a dance. Go to dances, and enjoy your night. It’s your night after all!

are DANCES stressful?5 stress free

ideas for our winter dance

Marissa signor Staff writerdoing pom because its different and makes me stronger in my arm place-ments. I love Railettes this year and I hopefully will take the same ad-vice that I have been given and pass it on to the younger classmen.

1. Don’t worry about getting a date

2. Do wear a nice outfit to the dance

3. Go in groups

4. Don’t worry about a snazzy ride- just get there

5. Dances are NOT sup-posed to be money spend-ers- spend as little as you can

it’s blog time!

It’s Lady Lincoln Time!The official return of Lady Lincoln...

Amy Luong Editor-in-chief

She’s back everybody! After a year of being lethargic in school spirit, because of her

potential chance of going to BU which has no football program, she’s back. I’m officially announc-ing the return of Lady Lincoln af-ter a year of rest. I just wanted to make the most of my senior year. It’s seems just like yesterday that a sophomore said “by senior year I want to be known as Lady Lin-coln,” and look at where I am to-day, I’ve made it! On top of that it’s my senior year; actually the thought of it hasn’t hit me. It’s a sickening fact of my life currently, I’m a senior, I graduate in May, I go to college next fall, and I need to find a dress for prom!

Coming into senior year wasn’t so easy for me though, the pre-vious year and summer coming in was one of the most difficult, but a time of self-discovery for me. Things happen in life, you don’t do well in classes, you lose friends, and you come across un-necessary drama, but that’s just my own story. But since school has started, I have to worry about scholarships,

senior photos and COLLEGES. I have no idea where I am going after the BU fiasco. Is there a pos-sible chance of going to Iowa or going to an out of state school for me? My acceptance to KU was thrilling because I know I have an option to leave this state. Maybe

I’ll just take a gap year? Also taking the ACTs, the first time was a struggle, now I’ve decided to take it another three times. I wish this year’s juniors luck. Senior year has been wonderful, so far. I couldn’t be happier with my schedule and all my teachers. I enjoy every single one of them, that’s rare. I felt like a freshman walking into their classrooms after hearing all the scary stories there were, but it’s just amazing to have these people as my teachers for senior year. But the students…That’s a different story. The dra-ma that Lincoln students like to stir up is so overrated. The only time I felt the senior class acted as a whole group was when we were getting our summer reading assignment done. If the whole se-nior class worked together instead of subtweeting and asking all these controversial questions on Ask then maybe I would enjoy high school. It’s sad that people are so bored with their lives they’re will-ing to stir up drama. It’s our se-nior year! We should be enjoying

What is the deal with Twitter?People fighting, others expressing their feelings, and then there’s me.

Anthony Caligiuri Staff writer

Every day I get on Twitter just to see what’s going on with my friends. All of the sudden I see people venting, fighting and what not. Whoa there, is Dr. Phil in the room, or am I missing some-thing?

I’d call myself a Twitter regular. I like to over-exaggerate my life stories and share them with my fellow followers. But I’ve noticed as I’ve grown and matured, that some of my fellow followers are crazy! I didn’t really recall them being this crazy in real life, but then again I don’t personally know half of my followers. I would like to know when this ‘venting’ trend started on Twitter. People think they can tweet almost anything and they’ll get so much attention for it. What those people should know, is that ninety-nine percent of their fol-lowers couldn’t care less. There are only 140 characters in a tweet, it’s not meant for writing a book. Then there are the people who fight. They always have a bone to pickwith somebody. Yes, I have to admit that it is pretty funny to watch people go at it right on the internet. It’s ridiculously funny. But sometimes people mess with the wrong tweeters, and that’s when the trouble sets in. Things esca-late quickly and before you know it your timeline is a war zone. You’ll see #Team Edward or #TeamJacob everywhere, and the ones who disagree are about to get 140 characters of pure meanness. But really take your drama

somewhere else. Nobody could give a flying care. Isn’t this why anyone cool left Facebook in the first place? We’re in high school, act like it. Twitter should just be a fun environment for friends to connect. Not the community counseling center. All that does is give everybody a reason to talk about you. But then again people are crazy nowadays and don’t mind that. But seriously speaking, everyone on Twitter should be more like me. Nothing about drama, no fighting, just useless funny stuff that everyone will forget about the next day. Save your drama for your llama. Otherwise known as Facebook.

what’s up with that???

the final moments we have, whether

y o u like the people or not. W e are all g o i n g our sep-a r a t e p a t h s n e x t fall, so cel-e b r a t e it. Or just cel-e b r a t e the fact we’re leaving. It’s just nerve racking k n o w - ing that in ten months I move into my d o r m room at either I o w a , KU, or Min-nesota, I won’t be called Lady Lincoln, and I won’t see my won-derful teachers or deal with the cafeteria food. No matter where I end up or what I do, Lincoln has been a part of me. I’m happy to leave, but also sad. What’s to look ahead for this year? Just my jour-ney to the end of senior year and all the mishaps I’ll probably expe-rience. So all abroad the Lady Lin-coln Express!

it’s blog time!

C O M B A T H u n g e r...geT reAdy fOr A BATTle TO feed THe des MOines!Drop non perishable food off in your grade level box located in the commons beginning November 11 through the

22. The class contributing the most food wins a popcorn party during advisory in the commons!

Parking Struggles--Kenzy Cooper Staff writer

If you are a sophomore please do not park in the tennis courts. I un-derstand that you have

a car and you drive to school and that parking on the hill really sucks, but do not park in the tennis courts or the roundhouse. If you are willing to get a ticket or even get your car towed at least park in the 40. Now I mean it, you will get parking tickets and you

will eventually get towed. I got towed on April 1st, 2013. Although, I was the only sophomore to get towed I’m warning

you that it will happen. Ra-chel and Ira aren’t messing around. Not only can you get warn-ings, $20 school tickets, $40 city tickets and you will have upperclassmen hating you. One upperclassman saw that I was parked in the tennis courts and that I did not have a ticket when she did which led me to a $40 ticket. Upperclassman will tell on you because they had

to struggle through sophomore year and parking on the hill so why shouldn’t you? Now there were a couple sophomores that never got a ticket. How? I do not understand. Now don’t think you’re the exception because I thought I was, but I actually became the exception to getting towed. A.K.A me being the only one to get towed. Now sophomores just listen to me and try to take this advice to hear: you will get a ticket, upperclassmen will hate you or you will get towed. Take it from some-body that spent $300 on tickets and getting her car out of impound. My parents were not too happy but hey that’s understandable. Also, please do not try to sneaky and get a parking pass from an upperclassman. Yup, I tried that too. They will search your license plate number with the number of the pass and they will tow you for not only getting tickets but having an invalid pass. You will then get the upperclassman in trouble for giving you a pass and then not only are you screwed but they are too. Just know that there’s no way of getting around trying to park in the parking lots. It might work for a couple of months, but it will all catch up with you when you’re bawling your eyes out on the way to getting your car out of impounding.

Some good advice even it the weather is bad.it’s blog time!