Winter Classics pg. 8

UC tuition increases 32%

pg. 2Cross Country girls go to State pg. 10

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 16, 2009

What we secretly want for Christmas pg. 5

2 Wolf Pack Press

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 16, 2009

News Editor, Jency James

Jency JamesNews Editor

They took numerous AP/Honors classes, studied for the SAT and ACT extensively and indulged in several ex-tracurricular activities; all for the sake of receiving the big envelope in the mail. However, due to the state’s economic crisis UC bound college students will have one more obstacle to clear: the 32% increase in UC schools’ tuition.

Students of the UC system ada-mantly protested the decision. While the University Of California Board Of Regents were debating the idea, hun-dreds of students gathered at UCLA to protest. “The protests were mainly organized outside of where the UC Re-gents were meeting at UCLA. Students were chanting, picketing, and blocking the exits of the building in which the regents were voting,” said Woodcreek alumni and UCLA freshman Gurneet Pannu. After the Regents’ meeting, students staged a sit-in in the parking lot to prevent the regents from escaping in their cars. “It was organized to be a peaceful protest, although a few stu-dents became violent, so the riot police along with the LAPD were brought to the scene,” said Pannu. 14 people ended up arrested. Other campuses had their own protests (150 students refused to vacate the administrative building at UC Davis) and those that didn’t made

buses available for students to protest at UCLA.

The measure forces many new changes for students. The first fee hike will take place in January and raise tu-ition by $585 per semester and by next fall, raise tuition by another $1,344. The tuition increase is projected to raise $505 million for the UC System; ap-proximately $175 million of that would serve as financial aid for low-income students. But since many students fall in the middle class category, they do not qualify for enough financial aid. “To the regents, this is just a necessary evil, but students are affected by the tuition increases at an individual level. And as UC students, we believe it is our right to affordable public education, which is what the UC system is built upon,” said Pannu.

The new policy also leaves UC bound high school seniors scrambling to fund their education. “I plan to take out loans and apply for numerous scholar-ships, anywhere where I can get some money for college,” said senior Diana Gonzalez.

However, there are some ways to cope. “I think now more than ever kids should be mindful of financial aid op-portunities and apply for scholarships,” said College and Career center techni-cian Terri Griffin. “The last thing I want to see is someone giving up their dream of education. Kids just have to be dili-gent about researching their options.”

Tuition increase causes much trouble for UC bound students

Johnson hopes to make a difference in the world one student at a timeZachary Tyler BredbergSports Editor

In his 12 years of teaching students here at Woodcreek, Government and Economics teacher John Johnson has perennially been a student favorite. His drive to get all students involved and interested in conversations over social issues always keep students interested, and his stories about his trips to Africa to help orphans and teens never fail to amuse.

Mr. Johnson grew up in San Jose and went to Oak Grove High School where he played on both the school’s basketball and volleyball teams. His time playing High School sports were, he says, his favorite part about high school. He would go on to college at both Westmont College and Santa Barbra University to get his undergraduate degree.

Johnson had a number of jobs be-fore becoming a teaching. As a teenager, he worked in the book/gift shop that his parents owned. He was also a driver for UPS and a Youth pastor for Covenant Church . It would be when he worked for his church that he would decide to become teacher. “I had to work with

High School students for 15 years at my church,” said Johnson. “I enjoyed work-ing with High School students and saw that what I was doing was very similar to being a teacher, so I decided to go into teaching.” Johnson went to San Jose State to get his teaching credential.

Johnson began teaching in 1990 when he first taught at Fremont High School in the bay area. In 1997, Johnson began his first year teaching at Wood-creek where he would, as he’s done in each of his 12 years, teach the Govern-ment and Economics course.

“My favorite part about teaching,” said Johnson. “Is being able to discuss social issues with students and help-ing them become more aware about the world. Also, when students finally catch on about certain subjects that we’re learning.”

During his time at Woodcreek, Johnson has coached freshman girls vol-leyball, which he still currently coaches, and JV girls basketball. In the 2000 season, Johnson had an embarrassing moment during practice. “I had tried to jump off of a chair to grab the rim in order to replace to net,” said Johnson. “But I was wearing street clothes with long sleeves so I had barely grabbed

the rim and slipped and fell off of the rim. When I slipped off I fell down and smashed the chair as I came down. All of the girls couldn’t stop laughing.”’

Johnson has also been very busy in helping aid the African community and children in trips he takes with his church. “My biggest accomplishment is leading a group of t e e n s i n Kenya , Af-rica ,” said J o h n s o n . “We worked in building projects to give them homes and we helped f e e d o r -phans.” He has gone to Kenya three times so far in his life-t i m e a n d will go for his fourth t r i p t h i s summer. He

took his last trip to Kenya this past summer.

The one thing Johnson wants other students to know is to never take your-self too seriously. “You have to laugh at yourself,” said Johnson. “Otherwise, life would be too serious. You need to laugh at what life brings you.”

PHOTO BY NICK NGUYEN

DEDICATION: Johnson connects his life experiences with his lessons in the classroom to enrich students’ learning.

Katherine GriffinNewbie Reporter

Forget the usual Monday Night Football plans, this Monday people were setting their tivos and packing up to watch the fierce competition in Mr.Woodcreek! The cafeteria was transformed into a runway where seven of the finest senior boys flaunted their charm, talent and ability to work the crowd. Although ordinary beauty pag-eants are based upon looks or the sin-cerity someone can say “World peace”, Mr. Woodcreek had an actual meaning and went farther than skin deep.

ASB students got creative and made boxes for each contestant. In these boxes students put money for their favorite senior boy who had al-ready chosen a charity he wished to donate the money to. There were also different themed raffle baskets that included coffee, winter goodies, sweet things, and movie night. Other goodies were a yearbook, a prom photo package ($70 value), and a class ring 12K ($450 value). Raffle tickets were sold to get the chance to win one of these baskets and keeping the giving spirit of the holidays in mind, the money was given to charity as well.

The charming contestants were Kevin Brunner, James Friedrich, Jared Huddle, Mike Prinzing, Adam Richards, Anthony Schimke, and Nick Stephen-son. The boys filled the cafeteria will laughs with crazy swimsuits consist-

ing of dragon floaties and stereotypical macho men poses. Mike Prinzing ,who was crowned Mr. Woodcreek, stole the crowd with his stand up comedy in the talent portion and Kevin Brunner literally danced off the stage when his front flip landing him a little further than planned. More musically gifted contestants like Adam Richards who played the piano, Jared Huddle who brought up on stage and serenaded Shannon Nipper with his guitar, James Friedrich who improvised nervously but comically when his Eminem music kept skipping, and Anthony Schmike AKA Mr. Congenialtity 2009, enlightened the crowd with busting some moves and raised $750 out of $800 for charity. Anthony also earned his title when he gave a tear jerking speech about how he feels so lucky to go to such a great school where everyone is accepted, melting everyone’s heart in the audience. Nick Stephenson unfortunately didn’t get to complete the pageant due to a disquali-fication fro his comedy act which was a little too risqué for the event. Ties, bow ties, and even pajamas with slippers from James Friedrich walked the stage during the formal portion. The assorted raffle baskets were won by lucky teach-ers and students. The total amount of money raised was over $1,000.

Mr.Woodcreek proved itself not just wildly entertaining but absolutely ben-eficial and we are all looking forward to what new surprises next years event will bring.

Mr. Woodcreek is a winner

NewsDecember 16, 2009

News Editor, Jency James Wolf Pack Press 3

Students show off generosity with charitable works

Mary GitihaNewbie Reporter

The love was felt throughout cam-pus and it was not even Valentines Day. Thursday, December tenth various students were seen wearing “I’m loved” stickers after receiving their vaccina-tions that day.

In the theater second period the placer county health provided free h1n1 shots and nasal spray for five hundred students. It was originally planned to happen between second and fourth pe-riod with 150 students per period and 512 students all together but the pro-cedures moved quicker then expected. The plan was changed to include most students during second period and 112 students during third period, who were no shows. Kelly Mulligan said “the lines were pretty fast with nurses at each station.” Seasonal flu viruses change from year to year, but they are closely related to each other.

Alyssa Baker described her pro-cedure as “quick and painless, there were long lines but a quick procedure.” Like other flu viruses, 2009 H1N1 spreads from person to person through coughing, sneezing, and contact with contaminated objects. Symptoms of the 2009 H1N1 include fatigue, fever, sore throat, muscle aches, chills, coughing and sneezing. Other symptoms include diarrhea as well as vomiting. Most people feel better within a week, but some people may develop other serious illnesses.

Students’ reasons for getting the

Christine MurrayStaff Reporter

Starting in the year 1996, our stu-dents have been working extremely hard to obey the demands of custom-ers that dine in the Timber Rock Cafe. Being put on whenever requested by customers, culinary has put on four-teen formal lunches for various groups so far this year. “We mostly serve full luncheons, except for some special buf-fets or catered events,” stated culinary teacher Susie McGuire.

Meals are served for each of the dif-ferent associations such as Woodcreek High School’s Den of Honor, Woodcreek High School Staff, neighborhood watch parties, Sun City residents, different retirement homes, and various local church groups as well as others. There are between twenty-five and thirty stu-dents, of both culinary classes and 49er ROP students that devote several hours of their time contributing to the event. “We serve teachers, students, the elder-ly, and executives from schools,” stated junior Sierra Gribble, “It’s interesting to meet and talk to different types of people and communities because you always learn new things. Just meeting people is always fun.”

Senior Blaine Wickstrom speaks about his interests towards serving in this weekly activity by saying, “I think

Megan HoehenriederStaff Reporter

With the giving season upon us, there is much focus on charitable en-deavors. But some take it upon them-selves to give back to the community by participating in a variety of service activities and unlike others; the gift of giving is year-round.

Junior Kiran Grewal is involved in a vast number of clubs who are active in a variety of community service and outreach projects. One of these clubs includes CSF or California Scholarship Federation. “After school on Mondays, I go to Silverado to help tutor kids in the library, and on December 12th, I’m help-ing out at each library for a program to “read with Santa”, stated Grewal.

She also participates in the Make a Wish club which assembles numer-ous fundraisers to fund terminally ill patients’ dream trips. “I helped clean the marsh land on November 7, and visited care homes to talk and listen to the elderly to keep them company” stated Grewal. She also helps coach a U-10 soccer team.

Grewal sees the importance of help-ing others and even with a busy sched-

Campus hosts H1N1 clinic H1N1 vaccine were varied. The 2009 H1N1 is a new flu virus. It is very dif-ferent from typical seasonal viruses. Most people have little or no immunity to 2009 H1N1 flu, so their bodies are not prepared to fight off the virus. These vaccines are made using the same process as the normal seasonal flu vac-cines, and therefore are expected to be as safe and effective as normal seasonal flu vaccines.

It will not, however, prevent “in-fluenza-like” illnesses caused by other viruses or the seasonal flu. For full protection, students should also get the seasonal influenza vaccine, and don’t forget to eat an apple a day.

Many people do not understand the differences between the nasal spray and the shot. The inactivated vaccine is de-fined as a vaccine that has a dead virus in it. The virus is then injected into the muscle, similar to the annual flu shot. In the live, intranasal vaccine, the nasal spray is live, and attenuated intranasal vaccine is sprayed into the nose. The H1N1 does not contain thimerosal or other preservatives and is licensed for people from 2 to 49 years of age. The vaccine virus is weakened so it will not cause illness although there are side effects which may include fever, nausea, headache, pain/discomfort at injection site, and allergic reaction which causes difficulty breathing- generally occurring within the first few minutes.

The students on campus who received the H1N1 vaccination are grateful for the protection they have obtained against the possibly deadly virus.

it’s a nice thing to do for people- espe-cially the red hatters because some of them can’t make food for themselves.” He is very interested in the considerate aspect and positive effect they all have on the many groups of senior citizens that come for Timber Rock’s assistance. With all contributions depending upon voluntary help, many students enjoy the process of preparation and taking direction from the main cook leading the experience. The routine consists of not only making the food, but also setting up and everything else that is needed to prepare the guests for a comfortable visit.

Many students have yet to be selected to participate in these lun-cheons, such as junior Sean Sandroni. “I would like to be able to take part in the luncheons because it would be kind of cool to help out the other school and communities. Plus, it is always good to be able to get out of book work,” said Sandroni.

Being able to help out other people, whether it is the less fortunate or a favor for somebody else is a rewarding experience for everybody. Culinary of-fers high school students a chance to witness the miracle that comes from contributing to society at a young age. Programs such as these help students to set an example to carry on for the rest of their lives.

Culinary continues to serve up scrumptious cuisine

ule she still manages to find time to serve. “Doing community service brings people together and you get to meet many new people. You make a posi-tive difference in the community and it provides an opportunity to give back

what has been given to you. Af-ter volunteering, I feel like I’ve made an impact and helped out someone who is in need. It’s a nice thing to help and a good feeling when you know you’ve helped make a difference in your community,” said Grewal. Her next act of charity includes involving her friends as they plan to help in soup kitchens this holiday season.

Additional students who

make a difference include fresh-men Ciara Donnelly and Sama-tha Gomez. These students see the importance of serving others and even with busy schedules they make time to do just that. “Every Thursday I work in the soup kitchen, serving food to people in need,” stated Donnelly. When asks why she donates her time, Donnelly said, “I get hours for Key Club and I like to give back.”

Gomez also contributes her time and talents. “I help out with my sister’s girl scout troop. Their troop had a Halloween carnival that I helped plan, set-up and clean up,” states Gomez. She is

making a difference in the lives of her sibling and young girls by being a posi-tive role model for them. “It’s fun to help my sisters troop and I like being able to spend time with her,” said Gomez.

These students are helping make a difference in their school and com-munity, however there is always so much more to do. Other students can also donate their time and volunteer at local food banks and charities and serve others.

GIVING BACK: Sophomore Dean Sobczak reads to kids in the library as part of CSF.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LYKOS

4 Wolf Pack Press

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 16, 2009

Opinions Editor, Irina Levtsenyuk

Britteny AttwoodOnline Editor

Cha-ching. The sound is familiar to everyone, especially around Christ-mas time. Cash registers have always represented money loss, but this year it has more of a toil. With more people out of jobs than ever before, this holiday season brings more worry as gift prices don’t seem to be lowering anytime soon.

I believe that this year will serve as a wake up call to our society. With the realization that money is in a small sup-ply we are forced to see what the holiday season is really about: family.

Yes, I am suggesting the “old school” system of actually investing your time not money into someone. It’s not that hard. Instead of spending over $300 on The Beatles Rockband, maybe you could play a $10 board game, like Pictionary, or watch a movie. It’s a cheaper way to have fun and spend time with your family.

The holidays also yield itself to vacations from work and school. Isn’t it more important to use this time to mend relationships or create life long memories? I think so.

That’s not say that shopping should be completely eliminated from our Holiday routines, but there are so many ways to keep cash in our wallets after

the shopping rush. I mean, there are so many sales around Christmas time! If Black Friday isn’t enough, there are so many more. Whether it is at Macys or TjMaxx, you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars on just a couple of things. As

I said before, the holidays are sup-pose to be a time to show others you care about them, gifts aren’t the only way. You and your family could spend time together volunteering at a soup kitchen or homeless shelter. This way you are saving money during this economic turmoil as well as building healthy re-lationships with your relatives.

Now these harsh economic times might mean that we all get a few less

gifts under the tree this year. However, I believe that this issue has come in just the right time. I don’t think that any of you would deny it when I say our country has gotten a little selfish over the past few decades. People use to put their neighbors before themselves everyday, helping each other whenever we could, and not expecting anything in return.

Now, I’m not saying there aren’t any of those people out their today but, there is for sure less. That is why I believe that this Christmas season will teach us a good life lesson. The holidays aren’t always about the fancy gifts, but about how you are benefiting and appreciat-ing others.

Poor economy rekindles true holiday spirit

Megan HoehenriederStaff Reporter

The following event unfolds on cam-pus every year during the Christ-mas season: “Merry Christmas!” a bright eyed girl with red ornament earrings ex-claims as she hands a bedazzled snowman box complete with a Starbucks card poking out to her friend. Her “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” pin bustles around on her pea coat as she waits for her friends reaction to her handicraft gift. “I made the box myself!” she exclaims. Her friend stands

wide-eyed, staring at the type A gift. “Umm…Thank you,” she exasperates. “Umm…” she wildly searches her bag like a kindergartener looking for Easter

eggs in a batch of weeds. “Here,” she utters, shamefully handing

the Holiday cheer mis-ter a couple sticks of gum. The ques-tion lies; is it proper holiday etiquette to give a gift to your friends, and what is the correct approach to accepting one.

Certain holiday gifts are appropri-ate for “school giv-

ing.” Ribbon tied bags of scrumptious candy,

a cute handmade card or

individual wrapped brownies/ cookies all spread holiday cheer amongst your amigos.

Gifts not to buy include anything over the $5 range, such as an iPod head-phones, movie tickets or cheesy ceramic mugs. If you have to restrain a seriously strong urge to purchase extravagant gifts for your friends, you might want to reevaluate your friendship and make sure you’re not buying their love. If you have a lavish lifestyle and can afford to buy excessive gifts and enjoy the act of giving, brighten a child in need’s Christmas by purchasing a thoughtful present for them.

The awkward turtle conversation that follows after your friend presents you with a gift and you have none to give is surprisingly simple. Your reac-tion truly depends on your relationship

status with said friend. If they are just a “Spanish buddy” or chemistry partner and present you a tiny gift, the correct response is to say “thank you” and ac-cept it. Don’t make it big deal by apolo-gizing profusely about not having a gift for them. If this “gift giving” friend is closer, for example you hang out outside of school, thank them for the gift and try to have a gift for them too. This friend took the time to give you a present, show your appreciation by giving one to them also. To know what type of gift to purchase, base the amount of money to spend off of the price of the gift you received.

By following these few simple tips, you can cut the awkward silence in a situation and reduce the stress of trying to crack the complicated code of proper holiday gift giving etiquette.

To gift or not to gift? The proper school etiquette for giving

Hannah LeeNewbie Reporter

We have all kinds of different chan-nels to choose from on our televisions. USA, abc, ESPN, Teen Nick, and so much more. So many choices for every possible taste.

One channel many kids and teens are tuning into these days is Disney Channel, which hosts the popular Suite Life TV show. This show is about two twin brothers, Zack and Cody and the mischief they get themselves into in a hotel, and eventually, on a ship.

With all the millions of kid viewers watching this, we wouldn’t be surprised to see those viewers mimicking Zack and Cody’s antics. But how many of these stunts are actually considered “going too far”?

I know many of us would love to live in a glamorous hotel, order room service, and be close friends with the

heiress of said hotel. Then there are the many acts such as dashing across the lobby on a bellman cart, playing “elevator football”, and army crawling through the air vents. That sounds like an exciting way to pass the time to a little boy, but the rest of us have to think: How mature is that?

In real life, a mother would be in complete terror if she knew her son was in an air vent somewhere within that giant hotel. The fire department would be called just to find them and ensure their safe return, while Zack and Cody would do it and get a simple scolding and grounding.

Now let’s wonder, what do the kids think of this? Many probably believe that they would just end up exactly like Zack and Cody. They wouldn’t even give the fire department having to intervene a second thought. A mother and blogger, Jenny Douglas Vidas, wrote on Cur-rentMom.com about how she regrets ever letting her son watch the Suite

Life. She recalls that a few months after her son started watching it, his backtalk became more frequent and colorful than before. After taking the privilege of watching the show away, she noticed that the backtalk decreased as the weeks went by. She strongly be-lieves The Suite Life was the source of her son’s behavior.

Whether or not the show is directly linked is a matter of perspective, but there’s no doubt that it puts those crazy ideas into kids’ heads.

Of course, there are still those view-ers out there who can see the conse-quences in the actions of Zack and Cody, They realize that they won’t get away with many things the twins do with just a scratch or a wag of the finger.

What many younger viewers need to do instead of copying Zack and Cody is learn from the boys’ mistakes and cre-ate an alternate way to reach the goal, whether it is to pass a test, impress a girl, or just have fun. POSTER COURTESY OF THE DISNEY COMPANY

Kids partake in frivolities of “The Suite Life”

Wolf Pack Press 5Opinions Editor, Irina Levtsenyuk

OpinionsDecember 16, 2009

Cheese of the Month Membership: Everybody loves cheese.

Except the lactose intolerant. And even they can appreciate

the subtle beauty found within a hunk of “aromatic” brie. Who

doesn’t want curds of milk that have been allowed to mold

sent to their doorstep every month? Crazy people, that’s who!

Snuggie: You simply

MUST have one. Does

it matter that it’s just

a backwards robe? OF

COURSE NOT!

DYMO Label Maker:

Admit it. If you had

this, you would

label everything in

sight. Body parts...

pets...boyfriends...

the possibilities are

endless. Perfect for

Alzheimers patients.

LED Light Shower Head: It’s like

a light show for your shower

concert! Red for your steamy

renditions of Marvin Gaye, and a

pale blue for when you just feel

like lathering up to “...I don’t

wanna falls asleep ’cus I miss you

babe, and I don’t wanna miss a

thing...”

“The Art of

Bellydancing” Kit:

Even the manliest of

men desire to learn

to move their bodies

like something out of

a Shakira music video.

Why not give them the

chance?

Brooke BensonStaff Reporter

I’d better finish this story before I’m interrupted by a famous rapper or before Adam Lambert violates me in front of millions of people in an off-hand attempt at becoming a pop-star legend.

From musicians to actors and ob-noxious politicians, it seems we’ve put celebrities on too high of a pedestal, giving them the idea that perhaps they hold the divine right to act out in public without fear of retaliation. The beauti-

fully bi-curious Katy Perry planned to kiss Miley Cyrus on stage during the Kid’s Choice Awards. Kanye West claimed that former president Bush “doesn’t care about black people” after a two minute tirade about the “poor black people” hit by the hurricanes down south.

Whatever was eating Lady Gaga’s face at the VMAS has taken the celeb-rity world by storm, infecting a sizeable amount of celebrities and their already questionable judgment. The countless pages of gossip and relationship drama encircling the worlds’ Brittney Spears

and Jennifer Anniston has taken over the modern age, pushing real news such as the anniversary of Pearl Har-bor into the bottom scrolling tab on the front page of MSN for perhaps an hour. The moment of silence seemed to fade from existence this year. That’s alright because oh no, Paris Hilton’s dog was taken by a coyote and there’s a reward for its safe return. Drop everything, America, the ditzy blonde needs her dog back.

We’ve followed stars such as Britt-ney through their downfalls as they spiraled towards Rock-Bottom, expos-

ing their bits and attacking cars with golf clubs all the way. What can we say? “Brittney Spears is Toxic,” said Lyssa Baker of the buzz-cut blonde’s infamous adventure.

From ridiculous claims made by attention starved stars like Katy Perry to the outlandish costumes by our be-loved Lady Gaga, these celebrities are well aware they’re being flocked by paparazzi, and guess what? They love it. The wackier they behave the more response they receive from the general public and good or bad, it gets them what they want: attention.

Modern Celebrities take advantage of their pedestal

Do you still believe?Dani ButterfieldAssistant Opinions Editor

It was the days of Play Dough and Cozy Coups…the days of playing house and secret agents…the days of running, jumping, singing, skipping, and dancing with glorious self abandonment. It was the days we believed in the magical power of pixie dust, unicorns, fairies, and of course the jolly old man that gifted us toys on Christmas…Santa Clause.

Oh but apparently not anymore. No now kids are too cool to believe in Santa Clause. I know right! What kid is too cool to believe in Santa? I started noticing this fad of not believing in Santa when I asked a second grader I baby-sit what she was going to ask from Santa for Christmas and she replied saying she already new that Santa wasn’t real.

The fact that kids stop believing in Santa at a younger age isn’t really that crazy; however it is a reflection of how in other ways kids are growing up too fast these days. This can be attributed a great deal to the technology and role models of today.

I know everyone always bashes on video games for their violence, but no one ever mentions how they keep kids from playing games that require more than just using your thumbs. Because of technology like this kids are no longer playing house or dress up, but instead they forfeit using their imaginations which is not only a significant part of childhood, but a really fun part too.

Then there are the teenage role models that these kids look up to. When these kids see their role models who are 17 and acting like their 27, the kids start to think it’s cool if they act ten years older than their age too. So instead of asking for an art set for Christmas they want an iPhone, and instead of wearing flowery dresses to school they want to wear skinny jeans.

So if kids insist on paying video games and acting like teenagers, I guess there is nothing I can do. However I think that discontinuing believing in Santa is just unnecessary. I wouldn’t want kids to miss out on the thrill of lying in bed and pretending to be asleep that way Santa Clause won’t skip your house, and waking up to find a pile of presents with your name on it beacause you were a good kid this year.

8 Wolf Pack Press Featainment Editor, Carley Higgins

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 16, 2009

CARLEYMAUREEN

HIGGINSThe holiday season is meant to be a

season of family. And of joy. And, most of all, of selflessness.

Giving is one of the most defining factors of the holidays, and yet I find more people expecting to receive than actually concerned with the gifts they could possibly bestow upon others.

Instead of giving just for the sake of giving, our population is now more concerned with what we will be receiv-ing in return. And, though no one is completely selfless, greed and a large sense of entitlement seems to plague our generation specifically.

I think it is because of the feeling of giving expected during the holiday season that I finally noticed this grow-ing sense of entitlement. But now, look-

ing back, I can see that it has been an ominous presence in our population for some time now.

I t s e e m s to be affecting our genera-tion the most. And whether this is due to the fact that a good majority of the people at this school h a v e n e v e r had to truly work for any-thing a day in their lives and have had ev-erything hand-ed to them on a silver platter is beside the point.

For example, thieving has suddenly become a popular pasttime. It seems

as though many of the students at this school have the idea that whatever isn’t being carefully watched over and

guarded is theirs for the taking. This mentality will get them nowhere in life (except maybe prison). And yet, the stealing binge our school is being put through goes on.

This sense of entitlement seems to stem from today’s teens’ jaded mentality that the world owes them something.

What, I ask, have you done to deserve the world’s pity? Can’t think of anything? Neither can I.

So maybe this holiday season, we should take a close look at ourselves. Maybe this holiday season should be a season of change, of reform. Maybe this holiday season we

can finally realize that we aren’t enti-tled to anything. And maybe this season can be the season of giving after all.

Kaitlyn MayFeatainment Co-Editor

Kaitlyn MayFeatainment Co-Editor

Winter rolls around once more, and with a freak snow shower behind us, most everyone is looking forward to the impending Winter break and the holi-days that it represents for everyone.

The school winds down, celebrating the season through decorating with Santa hats, Christmas trees, and candy canes. While this is nice for the Chris-tian population, other winter holidays that are usually left out deserve their fair coverage - whether they are cel-ebrated by the majority of the school’s population or not.

Most students have heard about the Jewish holiday Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights. The celebra-tion commemorating the rededication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem lasts for eight days. Part of the celebration is the lighting of nine candles (four candles on each side and the center lighting candle, the shammus) on the menorah; one for each day of the holiday.

A renowned activity of this holiday is playing with the dreidel. The dreidel (a specialized top with Hebrew letters on each of the four sides) was originally used to disguise illegal gambling, but persists to this day as a children’s game. Instead of money, children bet chocolate coins until one person claims the entire pot, which is then reshuffled so that the game can begin again. Although gambling and religious symbols aren’t permitted on school grounds, changes can still be made to honor this winter holiday. As red, white, and green is as-sociated with Christmas, silver, white, and blue is associated with Hanuk-kah. In addition to paper Santas and Christmas trees, we can add menorahs, chocolate coins, and dreidels to our usual decor.

A lesser known holiday is Kwanza, the non-religious, African celebration of family, community, responsibility, com-merce, and self-improvement. Although it’s fallen out of common practice, Kwanza still holds it’s place in modern society for it’s promotion of good ethics. The colors of the holiday are red, green, and black, and, like Hanukkah, is cel-ebrated by the lighting of candles. And because it is non-religious, our school should not be so hesitant to attempt to include this holiday in both the decor and celebrations of the season.

While some may view this article as trying to be too “politically correct”, the fact still remains that we have become a close-minded society in regards to others. The awareness of other cultures is not only a life-skill, but a respectful habit to get into. While decorating for all holidays in schools is a small token, it does a lot to promote equality in the season of giving. And who knows, the inclusion of other winter celebrations just may make the holiday season that much more festive.

A Pussycat’s ChristmasMargaret Wise Brown

The MittenJan Brett

The Polar ExpressChris Van Allsburg

Perhaps the most unknown of my three picks, this story has been around since 1949. Beautifully illustrated by Anne Mortimer, the reader follows titular character Pussycat through the magic of the season. This book made my top three because of it’s uniqueness. Pussycat is an ordinary housecat with no speaking lines, and despite being a children’s book, the writing is superb.

This secular story hails from the snowy reaches of the Ukraine and fol-lows the events of one particular mitten. Most of us are familiar with this story, having had it read to us in our elemen-tary school days. Its rich and intricate artwork brings back fond memories of the winter season. Rereading the story now is just as enjoyable as it was years ago, and the animals are just as endearing.

The Polar Express makes my list for the sheer magic of the story. Popular enough to be made into a motion picture (and revitalized from it’s debut), this book features strong themes of belief, self-confidence, and teamwork not often found in holiday stories. The idea of entering another world and being able to take a piece of it home with you is a tantalizing concpet for all ages. And the illustrations throughout the book were fantastic.

Carley HigginsFeatainment Co-Editor

Every christmas season since my childhood, the same select few movies have been played in my house. We all know them. They’re the ones that play on just about every channel in the month of December. They’re the classics that you secretly know every line to.

The first, and arguably most be-loved of these movies, is How The Grinch Stole Christmas. The green grouch who lives in a cave on Mount Crumpit nearly destroys Christmas for the citizens of Whoville. This movie is not only extremely entertaining and humorous but also teaches morals of caring, giving, and understanding that

:

will stick with the intended audience for the rest of their lives.

Another Christ-mas favor-ite is aimed at a slightly more ma-ture audi-ence. What A Wonder-ful Life is one of the best black and white movies ever

made. In my household, as in many

other homes during the holiday sea-son, it is a tradition to watch this old-fashioned tale of the meaning of life and Christmas. This inspiring story of a man who is determined to make a difference is a perfect way to start off the holiday season.

The last, but definitely not least, of my “classics” selection is not one movie, but three. Produced by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr. for ABC, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and Santa Claus is Coming to Town are the most enjoyed clay-animated movies of all time.

The holidays simply wouldn’t be the same without these much-loved movies from our childhoods. I know that I, at least, look forward to them with glee.

MOVIE POSTERS BY AMAZON.COM, TEACH WITH MOVIES, AND THECINEMASOURCE

Movies that make Christmas merrySchools lack many traditions

Wolf Pack Press 9

December 16, 2009

Carley Higgins, Featainment Editor

Featainment

Winter Art astoundsColton McPherronStaff Reporter

When I first set foot into the Winter Art Show with the intention of critiqu-ing, I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of impres-sive artwork the show exhibited. It was clear how un-prepared I was for the whole thing. This being my first Art Show, I only hope I do justice to the art and artists alike. I would like to begin by saying how remarkable the art actually was.

I ’m going to start with the ce-ramics. Senior Irina Levtsenyuk made an adorable sculp-ture of an owl that has an ice cream cone fallen upon its head. I particularly found the dragon’s head by junior Breanna Nelson inspir-ing due to the fact that it portrayed the fantasy genre. The Greek-like vase displayed by Lauren Moniz was also exceptionally beautiful. However, all of the clay works were very well done.

Now where I really want to focus is the maze of paintings and illustra-tions. While everything was great and

Brooke BensonStaff Reporter

The Blind Side, a new movie based on a true story, follows the tale of a homeless teenage boy raised in dingy, rural sprawl in the South. He’s picked up by a family of well-off socialites (Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw) and soon becomes an extended part of their family. He strug-gles through school but maintains just the right grades to try out for the school’s football team. The only problem with this is that he doesn’t like to hit people. With his surprisingly great instincts to protect, the young man blossoms as left-tackle and becomes one of the most desir-able picks for the nearby colleges.

The rags-to-riches tale based on the Balti-more Ravens’ Michael Oher is a truly inspirational movie. If you go to the movies not to watch sparkly vampires or cheap horror flicks but to actually see a story unfold, this is the movie for you. A spectacular acting job by all members of the cast highlights the fluent charac-

Justien MatsuedaStaff Reporter

The Woodcreek theatre is dark, but you can hear the sound of people conversing. You can hear children mov-ing around in their seats, impatient for the show to begin. Looking around the audience, you think “Wow, this is a good turn out”.

All of a sudden Lidya Viduya’s voice comes out of nowhere. Every sound comes to a halt. The talking has stopped. You could even hear the sound of a pin drop. The Woodcreek Lets Dance Winter Spectacular has begun.

On December third through fifth, the dance team as well as both the Beginning and Advanced dance classes performed in their annual winter dance show. After weeks and weeks of hard work and preparation, it finally paid off in the show.

With twenty numbers to perform, there was obviously a lot of prepara-tion for this. “During the week I would sleep a lot because we wouldn’t get any sleep during the days of the shows. And I would listen to music every time I could,” said Junior Eric Stephens. All the practice they put in showed in their performances.

After each dance number, you could hear a roar of cheering and clapping. However, there was no specific name hollering. “It’s not like a school rally,” explained Viduya. The dance show was wonderful, extremely entertaining and

Zachary BredbergLast Page Editor

When I think back to the best television show from my childhood, the answer is easy and comes without hesitation: Thomas and Friends. This show was one of the best of all time and even after 25 years has still kept its brilliance.

While this was a kid’s show, it was filled with s tars as the narrator. Such names as Ringo Starr (drummer for the Beatles), George Carlin ( C o m e d i a n ) , Pierce Brosnan (Actor), and Alec Baldwin (Actor) graced the show with their leg-endary voices.

Each charac-ter brought their own special attributes to the table. There was, of course, Thomas who was a very optimistic train but was sometimes stubborn. Then there was Percy, the loyal best friend of Thomas’ who was always there to help Thomas. As well as Gordon, the ar-rogant and stubborn train who always seemed to find trouble and get into arguments with the other trains.

The earlier episodes of this (back from the year of 1984) were definitely

the best. To this day, when I want to watch Thomas, I go straight to the old school Thomas. Ringo Starr did a better job narrating than any other narrator by far. His British accent not only intrigued me as a child, but still does to this day. Other than Starr, my favorite would be the famous actor Alec Baldwin. He was always cheerful and

upbeat which gave the show its true identity.

Thomas has been running with more new episodes for 25 years and has never fallen off of their level of brilliance. They’re still fun and enter-taining for chil-dren. The most re-cent Thomas and Fr iends movie , Hero of the Rails, still had everything that was expected

from a classic epi-sode of Thomas: mischief, an intrigu-ing problem, barrels of laughs and an important lesson for all ages at the end. This movie even introduced a new character who still fits in with the other trains perfectly.

When it comes to kids shows, Thom-as was no doubt the best. With its star power of narrators, the fun episodes, and everything in between, I think it’s safe to say that Thomas will go down as one of the greatest kid shows ever.

terization and depicts the modern day family of five with perfection. The movie seems not to focus on just one particu-lar aspect of Southern life, but blends together Southern aristocracy and the squalid lifestyle of those on the other, less desirable side of town.

The Blind Side underlines the classic issues that face modern society with the struggles of today’s youth,

especially those that come from lower-class neighbor-hoods and whose chances at respectable futures may be tainted by their rough pasts and the reputations of their hometowns.

At times the movie does seem almost to shift focus from ‘Big Mike’--the true inspiration here, to Sandra Bullock in all her “No bull” glory. Sandra Bullock takes no prisoners in her harsh inter-pretation of the overprotective mother, comically portraying ‘Big Mike’s’ foster-mother

with grace. With a superb supporting cast backing her, she and the relatively new talent Quinton Aaron take the world of inspirational sports movies by storm, allowing them to be ranked with such football movie-masterpieces as Radio and Remember the Titans.

MOVIE POSTER BY FILMOFILIA

I could right a story about every single artist who had works up for display, there were a few who stood out in this category. Right away, I noticed junior Richard Gage’s artwork, specifically his hilarious depiction of a part wal-

rus Mr. North. ‘Misery Loves Company’ by se-nior Shannon Nipper was one of my favorites as well. I was particu-larly moved by senior Jordan Meuer’s works and senior Nick Ste-phenson’s ‘Bitter Sweet’. Disturbingly excellent pieces from Rook Free-man and Justin Mendez seemed to draw a bit of the crowd’s attention and are also certainly worth mentioning.

Another thing I did not expect out of the art show was the innovative displays put to together by our

school’s photographers. There were a couple of in-

teresting ways to convey images including a large scene or portrait

with several smaller photos that mag-nified details. There were also photos with ridges that displayed two related images like sophomore Rory Nathan’s wolf.

The show itself was basic yet en-joyable; the works displayed simply in a way that allowed them to speak for themselves.

funny at the same time. Laughter came from the audience while Kyle Tenazas and Aaron Capilli did their number “Sister.” They lip synced the song, danced, and dressed up like girls.

Even beginner dance did an out-standing job. With so many people on stage it can get very difficult to move in sync with a good result, but the dance shows never fail us.

All of the dance productions always get a good turn out; and with good rea-son. “The dances are always entertain-ing, and my children love attending all of Woodcreek’s productions,” said Natasha Schaefer.

All in all, going to the next dance show would be a good idea, it’s worth the time and money.

ART COURTESY OF WOODCREEK ART STUDENTS

Let’s Dance proves spectacular

PHOTO BY JOHN RAYL (WoodcreekPhoto.com)

OTQ Decemer 16, 2009

10 Wolf Pack Press OTQ Editor, Courtney Force

Matt Russell, JuniorQ: What’s your favorite holiday treat?

A: Cookies and milk.

Heather Zoucha, JuniorQ: What’s your favorite Christmas song?

A: “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”

J.J. Nourth, JuniorQ: What’s your favorite thing about Christmas?

A: Seeing Santa at the Mall.

Amber Marshall, SeniorQ: What do you want for Christmas?

A: I’m asking for mittens.

Jesse McWhirk, SeniorQ: What’s your favorite thing about Winter?

A: Food, family and snowboarding.

Nick Poon, SophomoreQ: What do you want for

Christmas?A: New snowboard bindings

and boots.

Skyler Rader, SophomoreQ:What’s your favorite Christ-

mas gift you’ve gotten?A: My favorite gift was a TV.

Andrew Howes, FreshmanQ: What’s your favorite Christmas movie?

A: The Christmas Story

Terry, Campus monitorQ: What’s your favorite Christmas gift you’ve gotten?

A: My first bicycle when I was a kid.

Santa’s Helpers gives Aero Haven a Christmas to rememberMegan HoehenriederStaff Reporter

The Santa’s Helpers party far exceeded it’s goal of bringing happi-ness to the students of Aero Haven elementary school. The NHS club did an absolutely amazing job decorating the cafeteria with Christmas trees and holiday décor. They even rented a horse and sleigh that the kids adored taking pictures with.

The Aero Haven students also enjoyed the dance and cheer teams performing, and loved singing carols with a few members of the choir.

When the gifts were all passed out and Santa counted down from three, a wave of happiness swept over the caf-eteria. The students opened their gifts and smiles immediately sprung to their faces. One little boy received a football and football gloves and instantaneously tried them on. He was ecstatic to have

this gift and kept the gloves on the rest of the party.

The students were all incredibly grateful, they high-fived, hugged and thanked the participants for all the work they had done. One little girl even said, “This is the best day of my life.” The NHS club did an astounding job planning the party and their hard work was greatly appreciated.

It’s not every day that you get to make such an incredible difference in young kid’s life and the NHS club gave these children a perfect Christmas.

It’s incredible to see so much of Woodcreek high school give their time and money to people in need. There were so many people who participated in this event, students who donated gifts, students who planned the event, students who attended the event and students who worked the event. Every effort was greatly appreciated and made the Santa’s Helpers event that

no one would soon forget.

It’s very pos-s ible that the Woodcreek High School students were just as af-f e c t ed by the event as the Aero Haven students were. It’s so in-credible when you get a chance to change other peo-ple’s lives and your life is changed in the process.

Everyone who helped with the event was affected and we can be sure it was a Christmas nobody would soon forget. PHOTOS BY ALLISON BAY

Courtney Force, OTQ Editor Wolf Pack Press 11

OTQDecember 16, 2009

PHOTOS BY COURTNEY FORCE

If you’re searching for an area to look at Christmas lights, Pebble Creek is a must see.

This neighborhood features a va-riety of houses with different themes. Most houses in the neighborhood fol-low a different Disney movie, such as “Cars”, “Winnie the Pooh”, or “The Little Mermaid”. The different Disney themes are represented by homemade cutouts in most cases, that go along with the Christmas lights. Some houses have cutouts that display christmas themes, while others display only the characters. You will find a wide variety of displays and decorations all through-out the street.

You can either drive, or walk the

neighborhood, but you will find that the traffic gets crazy. There happens to be a Starbucks close by, so I suggest grabbing a hot chocolate or coffee and walking the neighborhood!

This neighborhood has been my family’s tradition for years and it never gets old. I’ve found that almost every Disney movie is represented and you will be sure to find you’re favorite.

Not every house chooses a Disney theme, however. Some houses have other decorations, such as dancing snowmen, lights coordinated with music, and reindeer. Even if it’s not related to Disney, every house makes an impression.

The Pebble Creek neighborhood is located in Rocklin. It’s not too far of a drive from Woodcreek, and I would definitely reccomend visiting it.

This “lighted gingerbread house” on 4025 Dianne Dr. is by far the best house to see Christmas lights at. The house has 140,000 lights and the owners, Dan and Mary Gromer are always adding more. “People always tell us, ‘we’ve never seen a house that changes so much from year to year,’” Dan said.

There are many different events the couple hosts at their house. The “Santa’s Big Night Fundraiser” takes place on December 20, 2009 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm. At this event there is a lot to do. Along with looking at the lights, you can take a train ride, jump on the two bounce houses, and get your picture taken with Santa. The Gromers also host their own candlelight church service on December 24, 2009 from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm.

The couple also plays Santa and Mrs. Claus at the fountains and corpo-rate parties and has a Christmas food

and toy drive. Their donation barrels are located all throughout Roseville and Antelope.

The lighted gingerbread house was featured on The Learning Channel’s Christmas Special “INVASION OF THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS”. KOVR Chan-nel 13 Dave Bender featured the house on his “The 12 Daves of Christmas”.

They are located in Antelope, but the lights are definitely worth the drive. There are directions on their website and you may also look up additional information at www.christmastyme.com.

The lighted gingerbread house has such a variety of Christmas lights. From candy canes, to snowflakes, from a nativity set, to a blow up carrousel. Whatever your favorite Christmas light decoration is you will find it here.

All the different colors and lights combine to make almost a magical effect that you will not forget any time soon.

You may recognize this court as the one off of baseline, or you may know it as “Candy Cane Ln.” or you may know it by the court’s name, “Striker Ct.”. However, if you do not know this court at all, you should definitely stop by.

The residents of the court are all in it together. They help eachother set up lights and encourage eachother to expand their displays. When asked what his favorite thing about being part of this court was, one resident replied, “I like just getting together with the neighbors and putting up the lights.”

Another neighbor, when asked what her favorite part was replied, “I love just seeing the kids when they come by.” The train encircling a tree, Santa’s sleigh, and the lit up tree are definitely crowd favorites.

The two big trees can be seen from baseline, and that is how most people

discover this lit up court. Other’s have made it a tradition to drive by every year and some are visiting it for the first time. But, every car that drives by and every person that walks by has a look of awe on their face.

One house plays different Christ-mas music that corresponds with the lights. This adds a nice touch to the court and is very enjoyable as you ob-serve the other lights.

Each house is different in it’s own way and each one posseses a distin-guishable quality that sets it apart. Although, each house is different they are tied together well and add to the overall beauty of the court. Altogether the four house contain eighty five hun-dred lights and the all together effect of the court is breathtaking. I would recommend adding it to your Christmas light viewing agenda.

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 20, 2009

Sports Editor, Zachary Bredberg12 Wolf Pack Press

Cross Country goes to state

Steve Nogosek plays for Team USACameron SpahrStaff Reporter

Running every morning even before school starts every day, the Cross Coun-try team has trained hard and fought their way in to the state meet with high hopes. Some runners went there and did what they meant to do. The girls’ leader was senior Courtney Crosta, and for the boys it was senior Tyler Raposa.

Going through this tough season, the team did very well. This was the first time the girls team has ever finished in the top ten. They ran the fastest team time overall for Woodcreek. The girls’ teams had many of its members make it to state. But only one boy made it to the state meet. The girls had their number one runner Crosta be the leader of the team. Crosta finished 19th overall and her time was 18:23. She was the number one senior runner for the girls all year. There were many other girls from the team who made it to state such as juniors Ashley DeVriend and Jenni-fer Romo and Stephanie Romo, sopho-mores Ciara Donnelly and Samantha Gomez, and senior Nicole Krsulic. The alternates for the team were freshman Brooke O’Brien and Jordan Bradford. This is the girls third consecutive league championship and their second consecu-tive section D2 championship.

The guy’s team only had one make it to the state. Raposa was the only one, and he placed 41st with a time of 16:05. Even though he was the only one to make it, he was the top individual qualifier from D2 section champion-ships and he was also the MVP of the SFL.

Through out the season the girls’ varsity team did very well in their league. Even though next season they are loosing Crosta their best runner, Coach Terri McKillop says, “She will be sorely missed next year but the good news is that we have three more run-ners right now that could match her time and efforts next season.”

Crosta holds all most all of the team course records, including top ever finish and time at the state meet. The three runners McKillop was referring to are Romo, Samantha Gomez, and Ciara Donnelly.

The boys’ team took 8th place in the Division II with their leader Ra-posa. They other boys of the top seven were juniors Angelo Ciaraglia and Karl Schmidt, senior Gurp Mann, and sopho-mores Hunter Tyler, Brandon Biando, and Austin Mason.

The girls have run the fastest time they have ever run and they fin-ished in the top 10. They have had a great season, and hope to do even better next year. Without much room left at the top, Woodcreek is moving to domi-nate the division in cross-country.

Tyler HuntNewbie Reporter

The anticipation is finally over. The 2010 bowl game schedule has been set and the controversy has been heating up over the selected teams. There are 5 main bowl games in College Football; The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, The Fedex Orange Bowl, The Citi Rose Bowl, The Allstate Sugar Bowl, and lastly, The BCS National Championship Game. This years BCS (Bowl Championship Series) bowl games feature the top 10 teams in the nation. Here are some of my predictions for the three most exciting bowl games of the upcoming bowl season.

The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: TCU Horned Frogs (12-0) Vs. Boise State Broncos (13-0)

Two out of the four undefeated teams are featured in this BCS bowl game. Last year TCU and Boise State played in the Poinsettia Bowl. TCU won 17-16, handing Boise state their first loss. However, they are playing on the big stage this year with much bigger

hype about the contest. Boise State runs a great program, however I think that TCU has the edge due to their speed, stout defense, and special teams. The final score: 24-17.

The Fedex Orange Bowl: Iowa (10-2) Vs. Georgia Tech (11-2)

The 11th ranked defense of Iowa against the 11th ranked offense of Georgia Tech, this game is set to be a dogfight. Georgia Tech’s option style of-fense has given teams a fit this season, making it hard to get anything going on defense for their opponents. However, Iowa’s Defense led by Adrian Clayborn will definitely test Georgia Tech’s of-fense. These two teams are pretty evenly matched on both sides of the ball, however Iowa’s veteran defense and toughness in the trenches should eventually slow down Georgia Tech’s option game. The final score: 28-24.

The BCS National Champi-onship Game: Texas (13-0) Vs. Alabama (13-0)

It’s the #1 versus the #2 in the biggest game of the college foot-

ball season as the Longhorns take on the Crimson Tide. The heavily favored Texas Longhorns have a very strong of-fense led by Heisman trophy candidate Colt McCoy. While the Tide have a very powerful running game led by another Heisman candidate Mark Ingram. Even though the Longhorns are the favored team, expect this game to be very close throughout the whole game. In the end I believe the Longhorns will come out victorious with the leadership of Colt McCoy, but don’t count the Alabama Crim- son Tide out of this one.

The final score: 35-34

Alex AyersNewbie reporter

Letters from collegiate sport coach-es, an invitation to represent your country in an international baseball tournament, and an ability to play two sports at a competitive level while still juggling the challenges of school, are merely a way of life for freshman Ste-phen Nogosek. At such a young and ripe age of 14, Stephen Nogosek embodies the spirit of a true athlete with such ripe and prosperous potential.

Nine years of competing in baseball, as well as eight years of football, are no easy tasks. Yet Nogosek has excelled and accomplished so much in both sports. Baseball however is what has come to define him as an athlete. This last fall, Nogosek was invited to com-pete in an international tournament with the Under 14 National Baseball Team, where they would venture on to battle five nations, before defeating Puerto Rico 4-3 in Portoviejo, Ecuador during the championship game.

It is no surprise that when ques-tioned on what the highlight of his young baseball career was, Nogosek stated, “Making that USA team and traveling to Ecuador to win the gold.” But as mere spectators, when an athlete makes large and successful strides, as Nogosek has done, we beg the question as to who provides the motivational bed-rock for that athlete’s competitive drive. In Stephen Nogosek’s case that mental support derives from both his father and brother. “They always tell me to

not mess up and always keep on the track,” said Nogosek.

Wise words from men who could possi-bly have encountered troubles of their own, as we all do on the road to success, and with such raw talent and determi-nation, that is embodied in Nogosek, “keeping on track” is vital. Al-ready as a freshman in high school, this young prosperous athlete has demanded the attention from collegiate scouts, such as Virginia Tech and the University of Arizona.

“I hope to go to col-lege and then go pro. I want to go to the Uni-versity of Arizona or Arizona State,” stated Nogosek on his hopes and dreams for the fu-ture. Large and worthy dreams for any athlete, but for Stephen Nogosek, many of those in the baseball community are providing little doubt as to his claim. Maybe he will venture on to a Division 1-A college team, and maybe he will one day find himself getting paid to play baseballPotential though, is just that; potential, a set of traits and attributes that derive hope for an undetermined

DETERMINATION: Nine years of playing and praticing baseball has lead him to play on the USA U-14 team.

successful career. So far however, Ste-phen Nogosek has successfully lived up to that potential, and with the support system provided for him at home and the mindset of a determined athlete, potential for Stephen Nogosek can be-come true and pure success.

2010 College Football bowl predictions

GRAOHICS COURTSEY OF NCAA

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEGOSEK FAMILY

Sports Editor, Zachary Bredberg Wolf Pack Press 13

SportsDecember 20, 2009

Wrestling starts year in hopes for state

Badminton Club beginsJessica RobertsStaff Reporter

Of all the sports played in P.E, badminton has always been one of most students’ favorite units. But once the unit is over, no matter how much fun they had, most students rarely ever play badminton again. It’s not that they don’t want to; they just don’t have a place to play it. This year, those students can join the new badminton club.

The club was started by its presi-dent, junior Michael Boyd. “There hasn’t ever been one before,” said Boyd, “and me and my friends wanted to play Badminton in a club setting.” The club is starting out strong with over 70 sign-ups. Of the 70, about 20 showed up to the first meeting.

Since the club is just starting, Boyd is not completely sure what is going to happen and said “If other schools have their own teams it would be great if we could play against them, but for now we will just be competing against each other.” They are still working out all the details for the club, but are encouraging students to join.

The badminton club advisor, Nancy Holt said “We’re still trying to figure out the best time to play. It’s hard to get gym time right now because of bas-ketball. I think the club will do well as soon as we get to playing and word gets out to other students.” For anyone who is interested in joining badminton club, you can talk to Michael Boyd to find out when the next meeting will be. Also, spread the news to all your friends and join today, as this club is sure to be fun.

Football losses 42-7 in playoff game vs FolsomMatthew GeorgeStaff Reporter

As the autumn season passes into another chilled winter, the wolves have crawled back into their dens until next season. Fin-ishing with a four win and s e v e n l o s s season, the wolves have had another good season although dis-appointment l i n g e r s i n their hearts. But not only is it a sad day to players and W o o d c r e e k football fans, but a l so t o James Nunely and the other seniors of whom will never take the field in a Woodcreek uniform again.

Showing little of a threat on the road, Woodcreek was able to pick up all four of their victories at home. Loosing all six of their road games, inclding the playoff game against Folsom, Woodcreek has ideas on what they need to work on for the 2010 season. A bright spot for Woodcreek is its back to back appear-ance in the playoffs. Although facing a tough 7-42 loss they still managed to claw their way in. Folsom finished the regular season with a dominating nine wins and only one loss. Facing the four and six Timber Wolves was not to big

a worry. Folsom dominated almost all sides of the game holding Woodcreek to only one touchdown while scoring six of their own. A disappointing way to end the season yes, but not one to hang you head in shame on.

The record may not totally show it but almost all of Wood-creek’s players played fantas-tically every week. Wood-creek celebrity running back James Nunely averaged 174 yards a game a l o n g w i t h eight points a game. Totally an expected performance from his cali-ber of a player.

Quarterback Matt Mazzuca had a great season throwing the ball, completing 45 percent of his passes and throwing almost a thousand yards for the season. On the defensive side of things, Jason Stewart beat all of his teammates with 62 tackles and 17 assists. Woodcreek’s quarterback nightmare of the season was Cameron Stettener with eight.

All in all, the season was a great one for Woodcreek’s players and they should not look at their record but at their individual performances. Woodcreek is proud of you wolves and best of luck to you seniors in your advancing careers as a dominating football player from Woodcreek High.

POWER: Senior Demitrio Cardenas runs through the Del Oro defense.

Justien MatsuedaStaff Reporter

The body slams against the mat and the ref drops to his knees, “one, two..three.” The merciless beat down is finally over; with only nine wrestlers our Woodcreek Varsity team resulted in third place. as Doug Mason and nine of the Varsity wrestlers traveled up to McNair High School for their first tournament of the year.

The Timberwolves began their season with a fantastic start for the sea-son, with two Varsity players missing for different reasons. Pulling through a long day, five of our wrestlers received first place; Freshman Peter Santos, Junior Corey Butzer, Junior Sean Merigold, Junior Quinn Walker, and Junior Josh Kyser. Walker and Kyser also received the Outstanding Wrestler awards. “I feel very accomplished for receiving the Outstanding Wrestler award. It also makes me feel good since I’m a captain,” said Walker.

“I want our team to win a league cham-pionship in the history of the school,” Mason stated. To train the wrestlers, M a s o n r u n s , drills and pushes the wrestler’s ev-eryday at prac-tice.

“ W e a r e mainly getting ready for the Tim Brown tourna-ment in the mid-dle of January,” said Mason. All of the best wres-tlers in the state will be there and all strive to be there. “To reach state I am working hard in a practice and lifting weights, I also run a lot in the off season,” said Senior Jesse Screeton.

CAPTION: Josh Kyser takes down his opponent in a match victory where he would win an Outstanding Wrestler Award.

With many more tournaments to come, we have a lot of time to im-prove, which means a lot of practice. Mason being one of the coaches, of course the team is going to do well.

PHOTO COURTESY OF COACH MASON

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN HILDEBRAN

Assistant News Editor, Megan Barnett and Assistant Opinions Dani Butterfield Wolf Pack Press

Volume 15, Issue 4 December 16, 2009

Enraged parents gathered outside of the local news station Wednesday to protest the airing of what they deem ‘inappropriate, inter-species contact’. Tuesday evening on the eleven o’ clock news, TV West aired a small segment featuring an animal shelter where cats and dogs have been trained to coexist.

“It was disgusting.” Says Ber-tha Smith, mother of four. “Cats and dogs were playing with each other the entire time—there was a dog licking a cat in the background for at least two seconds! My five-year-old daughter was sobbing in confusion. How am I sup-posed to explain that to a child?”

In response to the violent pro-test, TV West manager Bob West issued a public apology: “The material was not intended to be offensive in the least, and we apologize deeply for any and all pandemonium it has caused.”

However, parents are im-pressed. An anonymous father of three responded to the apology incredulously. “They just don’t understand the seri-ousness of the situation. A dog and a cat?! Together?! My son now thinks his parakeet and turtle can be best friends. With this kind of filth on the local news, children are going to start to think its okay for two men to be in love!”

Despite the fact that the seg-ment featuring co-existing animals has little to nothing to do with gay marriage, nearly all of the protestors present Wednesday were advocating against homosexual marriage.

“It ain’t right.” Says Buck McBilly, age fifty two, his arm secured around his bleach-blonde third wife. “Marriage should be between a man and a woman. Not woman and a woman or a cat and a dog or a pineapple and a bagel! It’s disgusting how non-she-lant these TV stations are about showing things as stupid as love and acceptance and this getting along foolishness! Ain’t that right, honey?”

“I like Versaci!” Says his wife Apple McBilly, age twenty one, staring in the

opposite direction of the protest.Despite various apologizes from TV

West throughout the day, the protestors’ fury was not quelled. Over time, the pro-test grew to three thousand strong by eight that evening—many were uncertain of what the original protestors were ad-vocating.

“I didn’t hear anything about a cat and a dog.” Says a protestor, who wish-es to remain anony-mous. “All I know is that gay marriage is BAD! And I hate it, too! Watch as I yell angrily at random passerby in my fer-vent passion against it! ARRRRGH!”

Lesbian, Kiki Johnson stopped to watch the mass chaos from across the street on her way back from work.

“I don’t even know what they’re so mad about and I think they don’t even know

themselves. This is getting pretty out of control.”

The above article is a fake satirical piece. A l l n a m e s , e v e n t s , a n d places are com-pletely fictitious and all relation or similarities to existing peo-ple, events, or places is purely co inc idental . As always, I’m not writing this to offend—I’m just expressing my thoughts on the events that made me who

I am. This is my own little side-com-mentary to the world. The Chronicles of Them. Much love; I’ll see you all next issue.

AMANDAL E I G H

NELSON

DANIR A E

BUTTERFIELD

In English we were asked to write a personal statement essay; the prompt read, “Tell us about a personal quality, talent, or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or ac-complishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are. This is what I wrote.

They say a smile can brighten someone’s day.

Most people would consider this well known statement a cliché only used in teeth whitening and toothpaste commercials. While there is some truth to that, I don’t think one can cast this statement into the forbidden pile of clichés until they have seen the perfect smile…I have seen the perfect smile.

It’s another day of VBS (Vaca-

tion Bible School) here in my favorite place to be: Chapultepec, Mexico. I love it here. I love the smell of the dirt roads and the ocean air. I love the swelter-ing heat that makes you sweat all day. I love seeing the sun rise above the mountains, and dip below the ocean. But most of all I love the people here.

The people here most of us would consider poor. And speaking strictly economically they are very poor, pretty much as poor as it gets. However, these people are the wealthiest people on this earth in the fact that they have discovered the deepest riches of life. And today I look forward to learning this secret through Elika…the keeper of the perfect smile.

I see her braids bounce on top of her little head as she toddles in with the new wave of children coming in for a morning of singing and crafts. As with the day before her shoeless callused feet are exposed to the rough terrain every-where she walks. She is wearing a dirt encased sweater and sweat pants ex-posing only the ashy skin of her hands, feet, and face to the hot air. And again

her dirt caked snot is dripping from her nose forming a noticeable line leading toward her perfect smile.

There is something about Eli-ka’s smile. It isn’t just that it takes up half her little face, or that it is always a part of her en-semble. And it isn’t just the way that it makes you shine back an equally large smile the sec-ond you see hers. It’s the reason she smiles that makes it so per-fect. It’s that joyous self-abandonment that causes it. It’s the way she jumps and dances and rolls on the ground with her tiny legs held straight up in the air when she smiles. The way she doesn’t care that her clothes are dirty, her nose is runny, and she has no shoes. In her smile you can see her love and thrill for life and all of its joys. That’s what her

smile means…joy. Elika’s smile revealed to me those

riches of life that are so easily forgotten. It taught me how to abandon all worries and preconceived notions of what life

should be and instead just live it. It taught me to live it with joy. To live it with the thrill of running as fast as you can, jumping as high as you can, and roll-ing down a hill for as long as you can. It taught me to find beauty. To find beauty in the flowers, the trees, and the ocean… the kind of beauty we all take for granted daily. The kind of

beauty I found in Elika’s perfect smile. Her smile reminds me of everything I want from this life. It reminds me of how to live.

So while all those dentists and “words-of-wisdom-for-the-day” writers break cliché boundaries and say a smile can brighten someone’s day, after seeing the perfect smile, I say… a smile can brighten someone’s life.

MEGANNICOLEBARNETT

The whole idea was bittersweet. Coming from my soccer team, the Whirl-wind, our big District Cup first place win the other day to our team party the weekend went along quit well. But at the same time of enjoying my evening with them, it also marked the end of our season.

Going from seeing my wonder-ful, soccer buddies from every Tuesday and Thursday nights and on the week-ends, to maybe once a month will be a

hard transition for me. Ever since the end of summer we have been out there working on improving our skills and just loving life with experiencing all those good times together. Everyday I look to them for inspiration and I look towards soccer to relieve me from life’s everyday stresses.

At our party we each received a team photo; I remember looking at it with such appreciation for everyone. Now I sit here without them, and wish-ing they were here. Every time we get together we have a fun time and the whole atmosphere is filled with our joy. They always brighten my day and make me laugh quite loudly.

I believe that when you work together, and stick together through

those triumphant times and those dev-astating times you become closer than you would have ever thought possible. There comes that m o m e n t w h e n you’re no longer just a team or a group of friends but a family. When we lost we picked ourselves right back up and kept on going and even-tually we found ourselves winning again. Everyone needs someone to count on and I know I have my team, I know they will never give up on the game and I know they

will never give up on me, like I will never give up on them.

To my lovely soccer friends, I thank you for all you give me. Even though you give me a hard time, and I sometimes may give you guys a hard time, I still love you all so much. So we must find time for each other until our next season. And just a reminder I won the COOLEST

kid on the team! And with that I leave you all with the remembrance of my laugh, hahahahaha.

Last Page Editor, Zach Bredberg12 Wolf Pack Press

Last Page December 16, 2009

Santa was jerkin’1 up in the snow, Screamin’, “I’m a jerk; I know. Ho, Ho, Ho!”

While Santa was jerkin’, lookin’ clean,All the elves were smurkin’, lookin’ real mean. Santa had tight red pants and it was all good, ‘til once again, there was trouble in the hood.

The North Pole was a beautiful place. It was full of flava,

And all the elves had excellent behavior. But…what about the South Pole?

The South Pole was not such a nice place, compared to the north, it was a bitter disgrace.

The south is where all the bad elves go when they aren’t nice,

They are big; they are bad like Kimbo Slice. They hated Santa for kicking them out,

Oh, they were mad without a doubt. They made a plan to get him back;

They were sneaky, oh yes, and planned the attack.

A mean old elf from the south named ZackWas the leader of the attack.

He spoke to his fellow elves and he pulled out a little piece of poisoned apple

And said, “This is going into Santa’s Snapple!” Without Santa, Christmas will never happen.

No Christmas music, it just won’t be happenin’!

1 Jerkin’ is a dance that was invented by the Rap duo the New Boyz

T’was the night before Christmas, and everyone was filled with glee,

All the elves were getting ready for Santa’s big party, trying to look real G.

This was suppost to be an amazingly fun night;But little did anyone know, there was about to

be a fight. The south-siders were going to crash the party

and poison old Saint Nick.It was bad. It was evil. It was a horrible trick!

The party was poppin’. Yeah, it sure was greatUntil someone slipped the apple into Santa’s

drink that would decide his fate.A tiny little elf, whose name was Willy,

Saw this happen and thought, “Hmm. that’s silly.”

He looked around and started to see some elves he didn’t know.

He thought about it and screamed, “Oh no!”

Willy ran over to Santa and told him what he saw,

And Santa suddenly dropped his jaw. Santa raised his hand to the smacking position,

And started on his backhanding mission.The bad little elves started to bounce,

running to the door,But they tripped and fell to the floor.

They learned their lesson and went back home,They were all sore from being smacked in the

North Pole dome.