~Let’s Play Pokemon~
So, today I was in the mood to play pokemon for some reason; I suppose I just craved the power of controlling little animals. However, being the busy senior I am, I needed to assuage my conscience for playing. Thus, I said, "Why not make an article about it?" So here it is! This is a "Let's Play" which is basically screencaptures of the game with funky captions and stuff. It's a good excuse for me! Here we go!
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Gasp! A man! What do you think he wants from me?
No no, the pleasure is all mine 
Wait...where have I been? Welcome?!?
in bed? that's dirty! Oh, so you're not a pornstar...
I like Pina Coladas and getting caught in the rain? I thought you were a scientist? you can't tell?
I'm a girl named francie! He looks like a little delinquent....
well, this it's no wonder he's a deliquent We be callin him Rodney where I'm from. if you can't even remember his name!
woops. looks like I forgot a few slides. but...mooom just one more level! we're playing video games in a video game?!?
ahh, the home. it's where the heart feels good to be. This sounds like a dirty movie!
...potential dirty movie? what kind of conclusion is that?!? MOOOOM TV wants me to do dirty things!
what?!? is this really what girls dream of? NOOO NOT YOU TOO!!! Curse the media!
:O I'm your daughter! how could you be doing this?!? good metaphor, Shakespeare.
yeah, I bet it is, Fatty. Only Francie!?! learn some manners you hoodlum!
let's go wander into that shady patch of grass! yaay! my knight! protect me!
...why can't you do it? -Gasp- so this is why you tried to save me?!?
-cries- somebody help me! ack! DISCIPLINE YOUR GANGSTER GRANDSON!
...I'm human, you sick pedo! O_O....SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!
yeah, I bet they are you sick S.O.B. ....I'm watching you Wazowski...always watching...
oh come on! That kid needs a whipping!
decisions decisions.....
I b'lieve so. Courtesy of Anna!. he looks like a William!
sure, you get the plant you drug-addict! aww...he's lonely! :'( we'll have to get him lots of friends!
but...I am..... Oh, when you say "check out" you mean "battle", gotcha.
come on! tell this hooligan off! This battle was pretty much a lot of tackles.
HA! Good always prevails, you gangsta thug! woop woop! -celebratory dance-
NO! I'S NOT CRACK COCAINE! woo, that was an ordeal. Think I'm done for today.
Alright, so that was the first installment of ~Let's Play Pokemon~ there might be more if I get positive responses from this! Or maybe if I just want to play more video games.
-Konlin Shen
Thanksgiving: Your Unstereotypical Post
Alright, so it's Thanksgiving. I realize that you've probably seen tons of things like this: people saying how thankful they are and all that jazz. So you know what? Instead of talking about things I'm thankful for, I'm going to talk about things that I'm NOT thankful for.
1. AIDS/HIV. Seriously, who let this retorvirus mutate? It's not cool. Think about all the babies who have AIDS due to breastfeeding. Or what about all the people who want to donate blood, but they can't because they have AIDS. There are people who are in need of a blood transfusion and cannot get one because the guy with AIDS can't donate. Thanks a lot AIDS, you ruin everything. It's such a party killer, too.
"Hey everyone, let's play musical-hypodermic needles!"
"But I have AIDS!"
"-record scratch-.....I think I'm going to go cry in a corner."
2. Locust Swarms. Locust swarms are like the AIDS of the agricultural world. If you get a locust swarm attacking your crops, you might as well just give up now. You just can't recover from the locusts. And Locusts + Drought? Man, there's no way you're feeding your hungry cattle/children. That's why I'm thankful for hungry birds and storm clouds, 'cause hungry birds eat those locusts straight up and the storm clouds are like "yo, imma rain down on you!" Oh, I mean, that's why I'm not not-thankful for hungry birds and storm clouds. Almost ruined my unstereotypical post here, jeeze. Cull-Oce-Won! (close one)
3. Smelly people on crowded buses. There is nothing worse than being crammed into an overly full bus and having to be squished next to the dude who smells like he just defecated a flaming dead mouse. Well, there are things worse (such as AIDS. Grrr!) but this is defintely something I'm not thankful for. I mean, I guess I could understand if you were coming back from sports practice and didn't have time to shower, but considering the size of the smelly guy I was stuck with...you ain't no athlete, buddy. And stop eyeing my lunch box.
4. my [deleted] class. I hate my [deleted] class. It's almost as bad as my [deleted] class. I'm serious here. You people need to learn how to behave. I know I'm not the model student or anything, but at least I'm respectful (I'm respectful! I really am!), can say sentences without obscenities, and can keep my voice lower than 183 decibels (that's a blue whale humming! those whales are noisy! If fish had ears, they'd be really annoyed!). I don't even learn anything in my [deleted] class. It's just a waste of time. At least in my [deleted] class, I learn something new.
5. light snow. Alright, if it's gonna snow, it's gotta SNOW. Don't give me a little bit of frost, that's just annoying. That's like being shown a picture of cheesecake. It's not really cheesecake, but it gets your hopes up. There's other reasons why I don't like light snow, but I forgot now. I'm not thankful for forgetfulness either. Braaah.
Well, there's more things I'm not thankful for (cancer, spyware, spies, spiders, spitty-talkers, cervical warts, just to name a few) but I think you've heard enough of my complaining, and most people aren't thankful for that.
But on the real, I'm thankful for tons of things. My parents for putting up with all my nonsense and always watching out for me. My sister for being the best example I could have and being someone I can go talk to for anything. My friends, both the old and the new, for being so supportive and always being ready to lend a hand. My teachers for putting stuff in my head - learning is cool! I'm also thankful that they didn't give me trouble for running around in my boxers during school. Umm...there's a lot more I could put, but you get the general idea.
Oh, and I'm thankful for the internet, because without it I wouldn't be writing this post. Also, without it I wouldn't have any music to listen to, ha ha, just kidding! (no seriously. demonoid, I love you.)
Thanks for reading, enjoy your Thanksgivings!
-Konlin Shen
The Power in YOU!
On Tuesday, I was at the "Power in You" Tour up in Salt Lake City. I don't really know why I was invited to go, but I appreciate any opportunity to miss school (oh, you're going somewhere? You need someone to provide incessant and annoying commentary. Take me with you!) so I went. It was interesting, to say the least. Basically, the "Power in You" tour is some inspiring event where students come and listen/watch influential people. From the Power In You website: "Power in You focuses on the emotional aspect of life challenges and at-risk behavior in order to help teens make positive choices and have healthy attitudes on the road to adulthood and beyond. Power in You aims to give teens hope by providing them with inspirational stories from young adults and life improvement by directing them to numerous professional resources that will provide them with support for their challenges. "
As corny as this event sounds, it was actually pretty cool. The music wasn't bad - they had Starlight by Muse amongst other good songs. I can't remember them all, but I recall feelings of happiness. Of course, there were several dance cameos...apparently there was some High School Musical production and they had a few dancers from there. Strangely enough though, I felt like they were trying to include all races or something. They had an asian guy, a black guy, and a native american guy. Probably a hispanic guy too, but I couldn't really tell because I was too far away. I had a bit of a feeling that the asian guy would turn out to be a breakdancer and I was right, too. Kind of weird. I guess I just got a bboy vibe from him - he had pretty clean handhops though. Actually, most of the guys were pretty legit bboys. I think I recognized the white guy as Corey from Angels of Death (met him at the Crimson Nights Jam at U of U), but I'm not entirely sure.
ANYWAYS. So, the high school musical kids did their thing, and an African Dance group did a few numbers. That was really really cool. Honestly, African dance is amazing...I'd love to learn how to do that kind of thing. It's just so funky and spiritual...there were more dance performances, but nothing really stood out in my mind other than these two.
The speakers were pretty good. There was a guy who talked about being "emotionally paralyzed" and how that blocked the recovery os his paralyzed arm. There was another story about an ostracized kid who killed himself on his fourth day of high school. That was a bit disturbing. Although, I wonder...not to sound like a jerk or anything, but there's usually a reason why a kid is ostracized. Think about the kids you ignore...there's usually a reason you do it, right? They might be super obnoxious, or super creepy...iono...I did feel pretty bad about the ostracized kid. I'll try to stick up for the weird kids more often, I guess....
There were more sad stories, but I don't really feel like writing them up. Basically, a lot of deaths were involved. On a more positive note, however, I did get to see Governor Huntsman and his wife. They talked a bit - pretty cool stuff. I gave the "Governor's Oath" which basically proclaimed that I would be the best I could be and make good decisions, etc. Like I said, pretty cool stuff.
Anyways, that's my report on this. After going to the Power In You Tour, we went to eat at the Training Table, where I stuffed myself on the school budget. Yes yes, hello Cheesy Fries!
Speaking of greasy foods, I saw Grease Tuesday night as well. It was amazing. If there's anyone reading this who was in Musical, big props! I loved it!
Oh, and the SBOs are awesome. And the Senior Class officers. Except the Boys' Senator. That kid's a freak. Hopefully you guys can use the Power in You to be his friend.
Konlin uses the power in him!
-Konlin Shen
Grizzlies open season right
Basketball season is upon us. The weather gets too cold now a days to be sitting outside doing anything. That attracts many indoors to watch some great basketball action. Tuesday night was no exception.
The Logan Grizzlies basketball team opened the regular season Tuesday by posting a 62-55 win over the 4A Roy High Royals. The Grizzlies were led by senior Darrick MacIntosh, who had 18 points, 17 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 2 assists on the night. Senior Omar McDade chipped in 17 points for Logan, while Sky View transfer Jordan Roblyer, a senior, scored 16 points, 14 of them coming in the first half alone.
"I owe a lot to my teammates, who push me in practice and my coaches who push me everyday in practice," said MacIntosh. "I couldn't have done it without them."
Logan was without Zach Skabelund because of an injury sustained in the football game against Juan Diego. Coach Brimhall said that he will be out "about a week and a half." Logan was also without sophomore Sage Nyman who played last year for the Grizz as a freshman.
Logan came out aggressive to start the game, scoring 11 of the first 13 total points between the two teams. Brimhall commented about the game, "The energy was amazing. I thought our teamwork was tremendous."
Logan never trailed in the game to Roy, although the Royals made it interesting a couple of times. A 27-15 run for Roy pulled the Royals within 3 of the Grizzlies with just under 3 minutes left in the game. Logan, however, would pull it out through clutch free-throw shooting, an Achilles heal for the Grizz last season.
The next game for Logan will be on Wednesday, December 3rd at home against the Park City Miners.
An Interlude….
So, I realize that I was supposed to make this post a good one. But...I'm still kind of out of strong opinions (err...I'd rather not voice my strong opinions) to write about. Thus, I'm just going to write out some of my thoughts and hope they form something coherent.
For some reason, often times in real life, I have thought to use internet slang. It is quite bizarre, but sometimes nothing really captures the essence of a strange incidence than a good "lolwut". Not that I really know how to pronounce any of the cyber-jargon. I don't know if I've gone over this or not, but I have terrible pronunciation abilities. For example, I say "el-O-quent" instead of "elo-quent". I guess I'm just putting the emphasis on the wrong syl-LA-ble, or whatever folks are calling it these days. Anyways, as I was saying before. I don't really know how to pronounce the internet terms I want to say (note that I am NOT saying them however. That would be kind of lame.). I think I'm using the standard vocalization though. LOL is tranlsated into "lawl" and ROFL as "roffle". Now that I really stop to think about this, I realize that I actually use the phrase "o rly" in real life. That shouldn't be too bad though, because "oh really" is a pretty common response for emotionless bitter people like me (why am I emotionless and bitter? only an exodus will reveal my inner-self. or cupcakes!).
To be completely honest, I think this is all that's in my head as well. I'm not really thinking about much other than college, which, I guess I could expound upon. I don't really want to though, because I don't really have anything good to say on that tip either. I should be getting my result from Caltech (a private college in Pasadena) back pretty soon though. It's nice that Early Action is fast.
Okay, so this post was really bad. Maybe next tomorrow I'll have something good. Or at least reproduce a joke or something.
-Konlin Shen
For the Sake of Updating
So, my original plan was to be able to write an article every day for this - like a normal...not-blog. But, I was not able to write anything for the past week due to busy-ness (wow, did you know that busi-ness is business? I didn't even realize that until just barely) and the fact that I enjoy hanging out with the lower-classmen. To be completely honest though, I don't really have any profound insights to share. Therefore, I'm updating for the sake of updating. Perhaps there's someone out there who has nothing else to do and needs to pass the time.
Part 1: I'm Busy, but My Busy-ness is More Interesting Than Your Busy-ness.
Last week was a very stressful week for me. I represented Logan High in the Academic Olympiad on Wednesday and auditioned for Concerto Night on Friday. I also worked really hard to make a pie-chart and a bar graph for the front page of the Grizzly (but Elizabeth mastered it and got it to look nice so...go Elizabeth!). Now, you might be thinking, "That's not much. I had tests/sports/musical/other stuff everyday of this week." Well, let me complain for a bit. Do you know how much there was to study for the Academic Olympiad? I had to learn Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies, as well as current events. What did you have to study for? An Algebra 2 test? Yeah, well I had to study Algebra 2, Trigonometry, Geometry, and Calculus. I had to learn where every African and South American country is on the map and its capital (did you know that the capital of Burkina Faso is Ougadougou? Ougadougou!). I had to learn the history of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, along with how to find the pH of a buffered solution. I was doing as much work as a construction worker, except mine was all mental. I had to be a mental construction worker! You think you had it bad? You probably did. But I'm writing this article and you aren't so I'm exponentially more interesting than you.
Part 2: Of Greetings and Goodbyes (please tuck me in, make me invisible)
While I was at the Academic Olympiad competition, I noted that the Skyview Team had a girl named Brooke Siler on it. I realized that I knew her from sixth grade cluster. I distinctly remember her because she made fun of my poor drawing skills and noted the inaccuracy of my eyeball illustration. I think I saw her too, but I'm not entirely sure because time changes people. I did have a thought to seek her out, just to see if she still remebered me or could recognize me, but I never had the opportunity. Logan Team then reared its saw-tooth mandibles and destroyed the opposition. We set fire to all the remnants and pillaged the buses. I was then crowned King Adonis and later impaled by the tusks of a wild boar. Artemis was pleased. I never saw Brooke.
Part 3: Let the Muzak Go/ Your Heart is Cold/ French Fries are corrupted Potatoes
I wrote and recorded a song yesterday; I call it Sunset. You can listen to it here. I don't believe there are any naughty words, so you can listen to it with your parents in the room. I have posted the lyrics on my myspace (myspace.com/highwind331) so you can interpret all the meaning there. It's a very profound song. Right now, I am listening to a band/group/robot? named Free the Robots. They are souper-cool. You should definitely lend them an ear, their EP is only five or six dollars on Amazon.com or iTunes.
I'm about done now. Sorry about all the recalcitrance in Part 1; I was feeling a bit angsty. My grammar and sentence structure in this post are really bad. I also use relatively simple sentences, most of them starting with "I". Hopefully you were not reading this with the assumption it would be the next Great Expectations. I remember Mr. Emmett once told me that "hopefully" is not correct grammar. Sorry about that. The next installment should be much better.
-Konlin Shen
Standardized Testing
Now that school is back in session, many students are spending time studying for the many standardized tests coming up in preparation for applying to college. Many different standardized tests are offered, but the two main ones used nationwide for college admissions are the ACT and SAT. However, students are subjected to many other standardized tests throughout their schooling, such as the Iowa test and the Utah Basic Skills Competency Test, or UBSCT, which all high school students must pass in order to graduate with a standard diploma.
Many factors are driving colleges, universities, and the government to devote attention to assessing student learning through standardized tests. These factors include government expectations for schools to meet certain standards, public demands for information about what is happening to students, governmental reporting and accountability requirements, and schools’ own evaluation, so they can continue to operate with integrity and continually improve programs at the school.
In order to do this, colleges need to know what students are learning across the nation. Assessing general education learning outcomes is one of the most challenging areas in education. In subjects such as math, there are definable skill levels, which are relatively easy to measure compared to other education subjects, such as social sciences and history.
Not everyone agrees with results of standardized tests. LHS senior Vic Bradley said, “These tests aren’t fair to all students; some students might be just bad test takers. That doesn’t mean we don’t know the subject.”
Standardized testing has become a major part of our culture; almost everyone can recognize its multiple-choice format, including young children. A standardized test is called such because everyone takes the same test with the same questions in order for a relative score to be obtained.
Schools across the country vary greatly, likewise so do their grading practices. A grade for a class at one school might not be equal to a grade from another, because there is not a universal standard across schools to determine a student’s performance or grades. In schools there are issues of students cheating grades, or sometimes grade padding from teachers sympathetic to some students. This causes a discrepancy in the system making GPA an un-reliable source for assessing students, because GPA is a subjective grade based on the school and individual situations.
Standardized tests are in place to offer an equitable measure of aptitude, because there is no grading bias; tests are graded by an outside independent source. Similarly all students take the same tests, so there is no easier or harder tests, as there are in differing schools across the nation. All tests are the same, and are graded the same.
Love them or hate them, standardized tests are here to stay in order to provide equal comparisons of students throughout the nation. LHS senior, Nate Huppi said, “Standardized tests give students a lot of stress because they are encouraged to do well on them in order to give them more education opportunities in the future, but too much unnecessary emphasis is put on them.”
The next test date for the ACT is October 25 and is offered at Logan High School. The next test date for the SAT is November 1 and is offered at Weber State University.
-Mark Burgess
Fry Street visits Grizzly Boulevard
On Friday, September 19, during second hour, the world-renowned Fry Street Quartet came to Logan High School’s Little Theatre to perform Beethoven for the LHS orchestras. The members of the quartet are first violinist William Fedkenheuer, violinist Rebecca McFaul, violist Russell Fallstad and cellist Anne Francis.
The quartet performed the first movement of Beethoven’s second quartet (Opus 2), commonly called, “The quartet of bows and curtsies,” written in the early years of his life. The next segment, one of Beethoven’s shortest, Opus 95 (called “Serioso”) was composed in the middle part of his life when he was completely deaf. After Opus 95 they performed Opus 127, from the later part of his life when his music had a more spiritual influence. The Fry Street Quartet’s final pieces were the Cavatina, a scherzo movement from Opus 18, and a part of Opus 74, “The Harp.”
The performance ended with a question and answer time so the students could find out more about the quartet, their travels, and the music they play.
One student asked what the significance of their name was. The quartet replied that the first time they got together was in Chicago on Fry Street. So they decided to name their group after the street.
The quartet also answered the student’s questions about proper instrument care, like types of strings, bow hair replacement and brands of instruments.
Many of the students enjoyed interacting with the Quartet outside of a formal setting.
"It was cool how they showed the transition of Beethoven from his early to later works," commented sophomore Tammy Rasmussen.
Junior Audrey Lee said, "Watching the Fry Street Quartet was like having a taste of the professional world."
The Quartet will be performing the Beethoven Quartet Cycle at the performance hall on USU campus October 2-11 on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. For tickets you can go online to http://caineschool.usu.edu, visit or call the Caine School of the Arts Box Office located in the Kent Concert Hall Lobby (435) 797-8022 or purchase the tickets at the door.
-Heidi
Common Ground Outdoor Adventures
Common Ground Outdoor Adventures is a non-profit organization that focuses on helping people with special needs and disabilities experience the outdoors. The program was started in 1993 by Kate Stevens who noticed the lack of opportunities for disabled people in Cache Valley.
For the past 15 years, Common Ground has taken people on field trips to Beaver Mountain to ski, to the Snake River for rafting and hikes, as well as other outdoor activities with the help of dedicated staff and volunteers. The organization helps the participants learn, discover new hobbies, and create new friendships.
On October 2, 2008, Common Ground held their annual fundraiser, “Reach for the Stars,” in celebration of their 15 years providing outdoor recreation. The night consisted of a silent and a live auction and a dinner catered by Blackstone Restaurant. The auction consisted of local artwork, outdoor equipment, tickets to the Sundance film festival, and various other prizes. The night was sponsored by local businesses and individuals, and many volunteers helped with the auctions and prizes.
Junior at Logan high, and Volunteer at Reach for the stars Katie Luecke, 16, commented, “The organization is awesome. I am glad to help out.”
Common ground is directed by Sammie Macfarlane, who, when thanking the attendants of “Reach for the Stars” noted that “78% of Common Ground participants obtain an annual income of less than $11,000.” The programs helps nearly 240 people with disabilities a year, while enriching the lives of volunteers who are committed to reducing stereotypes, raising awareness, and exploring exciting destinations.
Troy, a participant with Common Ground, commented, “If I weren’t out canoeing today with Common Ground, I’d be home watching TV. Thanks, Common Ground!”
The hope that Common Ground brings to so many in our community has touched the lives of thousands in the past 15 years and has transformed the meaning of ability. They have given empowerment to those who were without and have inspired people who have taken part in their life-changing activities. To get involved with Common Ground Outdoor adventures visit www.cgadventures.org.
-Gary Bennett Purser
Sports Inequity
Here at Logan High, I think we can all agree that some sports reign supreme while others are not as popular. In the fall, it is football season. The stands always seem to be full of students and fans alike, and the games are fun and exciting. In the winter, basketball rules the court, literally. Although not as many students show up to basketball games as football games, there are still fans there to support the team.
In the spring, baseball season takes center stage. Although the lesser of the three, baseball is still a strong sport here at Logan High. So what about those other sports that we hardly ever hear about?
In the fall, other sports are going on rather than football. The cross country team runs three miles every Wednesday and Friday/Saturdays. The girls’ soccer and girls’ tennis teams have games/matches every Tuesday and Thursday, and both are competitive in region. Not to mention the defending back-to-back region champion boys’ golf team, which is in the running for a state title. Finally, volleyball has been very strong in region play so far, standing in second place in Region 11.
In winter, girls’ and boys’ basketball take control. However, wrestling won region last year for the first time in 22 years. The drill team, also known as the Hi-Los, finished first in region and second in state last year. Some people don’t consider dancing a sport, but try getting up early, as they do, and dancing like crazy. Also a very strong team is the swimming team, which has regularly been competitive in region and state.
In the spring, boys’ soccer has consistently put a good team on the field for hardly anyone in the stands to watch. Last year, the boys’ soccer team was ranked number one in state after winning region. The boys’ tennis team has been strong in past years in competing for region and state. Girls’ softball is on the rise, after just missing the play-offs a year ago. Girls’ golf is the defending region champs and look to repeat this year. Track and field, all 100+ of them, are running their guts out each year for fun, and winning along the way.
How does it feel to be on a team that is good, but doesn’t receive attention? Colton Wiser, a junior on the cross country team said, “I don’t feel upset, but I do feel sad that not everyone would know about the team.”
Laura Price, also a junior and a member of the swim team, explained how she felt. “It’s really not fair because we have a really good team! We work hard and we are just as involved with the school as other sports.” She also added that the team would “love more appreciation and support from both the faculty and the student body.”
Overall, these teams are good and improving. No disrespect to football, basketball, or baseball, because they deserve attention as well. However, there are other teams out there practicing after school every day and competing. All they ask is for a little bit of appreciation.
-Skyler Wilcox