Windsock

Pictures from Teacher "Stereotype Day"

On Friday, October 30, the teacher's social committee planned a teacher "Stereotype Day," for which teachers were to "dress up" in a stereotype based on their content areas. Later, the directions were amended to read "the sky's the limit!" What made it doubly interesting is that the committee was offering a reward for the best outfit. Let the craziness begin... editor

 

Mrs. Johnson as Cat Book Woman

 

Mr. Stutzman's winning costume: Teacher Man

 

Mrs. Hostetter as... Safari Woman?

 

Mr. Eberly: There's a new sheriff in town...

 

Mr. Bauman. No title can do those teeth justice.

 

Mr. Stoltzfus: Nerd Man!

 

Mrs. Alger- yes, that's a squirrel on her leg!

 

Mr. Bixler as Dwight Shrute

 

Mrs. Bender as an EMHS teacher circa 1917 

Senior Reflections: An Editorial

 Though I am not an EMHS "lifer" I'm currently, as a senior, in my sixth year, and trust me, it has been a long road. The road has been painful and joyful, calm and crazy, but I wouldn't have wanted to spend it anywhere else. There are many lessons to be learned in your time in school, and I thought that, as a senior, I would leave behind some advice.

Though it sounds cliche, be who you are. Your reputation will follow you, whether from day to day, year to year, or from middle school to high school. Do not pretend to be someone that you are not, especially if your reason stems from feeling unaccepted by your peers. Especially in middle school, being different is difficult. High school, while still known to be petty and dramatic, is on a completely different scale than middle school.  What is popular when you are younger won't necessarily follow you throughout your education, however; your reputation always will... So be YOU!

Secondly, how many of your class or schoolmates do you really know? Be honest, you have probably taken the time to really talk to about a fourth of your class. And honestly, sometimes life is so crazy that you don't want to reach out. As humans we tend to find a niche and stick to that, because that is where we are comfortable. Though it is challenging, I encourage you to look beyond yourself and your close circle of friends. Friendship is often found in unexpected places, but someone must be looking before it is found. Also, through reaching out, you never know whose day you will impact in a positive way. Even on days when you are immersed in your own troubles, remember that everyone struggles. And often by lightening another's load, you will find that your own has been lessened.

Lastly, a challenge. Faith is a struggle, especially when it comes to sharing your personal beliefs. I feel that though EMHS is a Christian school, we are lakcing, as a whole, our Christian attitudes. I challenge you to find your beliefs; they don't have to be exactly the same as anyone elses', but FIND them, and stick by them. Make your faith your core, and base your other decisions on that, there are no exceptions. Life should not merely be about "talking the talk" or "walking the walk". Faith must include both.

High school can be a positive experience, but there will be trials. It is said that "it is what you make it", and that is completely accurate. Ultimately, stay true to your faith, be open, and at all times remain true to yourself.

- Jenn Leaman

Twilight: A Book Review

As we (well, some of us) gear up for the premiere of the Twilight movie this weekend, Kaitlin Torres, along with some help from Janie Frazier and Kathleen Leigh, has outlined why she so dearly loves this book. Ed. 

Twilight. Number one on the New York's best seller's list. The number one romance book read by girls and guys across the nation. The addicting book that might cause clumps of girls to squeal in an animated debate over whether Jacob Black or Edward Cullen is the better man for Bella Swan... or maybe that's just Janie, Kathleen, and me. The main character, Isabella Swan (Bella for short), is an average 17 year old girl who is a bit on the clumsy side. The story begins just as she is moving to Forks, Washington.

This move is her personal nightmare.  What could there possibly be in Forks that there wasn't in Phoenix?  And who would want to live in that sleepy, overcast town in Washington anyway, when you could be living in the beautiful sunny city of Phoenix?  Her father for one.  And since her mother got remarried, she exiled herself from Phoenix and moved to the perpetually green Forks.

There she is introduced to Jacob Black and the famous Cullen family. Jacob Black is a childhood friend of Bella's that she reconnects with in Twilight. He is a Native American that loves to work on cars. She also meets the mysterious Cullen family.  The family consists of nine inhumanly beautiful vampires.  Carsile and Esme play the role of parents in that family. The “children” are Rosalie and Emmet, Alice and Jasper, and, most importantly, Edward. And there is the reason of why the Twilight books are so amazing. Describing him is a bit tricky; in the book it says that he has bronze hair, perfect lips, and flawless skin; however, he looks different in every girl's head... including mine in which he has black hair. Edward ends up falling in love with Bella. He is constantly worrying about Bella, and often ends up protecting her from some crazy thing that could only happen to Bella. He is also able to read minds; well, all except Bella's mind. I personally like this book because of the relationship between Bella and Edward. She is so clumsy and always putting herself down, yet Edward is always there to tell her how beautiful she is and "catch her if she falls."  Stephanie Meyer is amazing at portraying all of the different sides of their love:

"I vividly remembered the flat black color of his eyes the last time he’d glared at me — the color was striking against the background of his pale skin and his auburn hair. Today, his eyes were a completely different color: a strange ocher, darker than butterscotch, but with the same golden tone."
Bella Swan, Twilight, Chapter 2, p.46

"It was impossible… to stop. Impossible. But I did. I must love you."
Edward Cullen, Twilight, Chapter 24, p.460

"If I could dream, it would be about you."
Edward Cullen, Twilight

And so many more quotes. Although most of my friends that have read the Twilight series are girls, I know of a couple of guys that have read this book. They all gave it a great review. However they did say that they liked it for the car crashes and fights that had happened in the book other than, well, Edward Cullen. Stephanie Myers is also extremely funny and talented at building inside jokes within the book. A couple of the guys' favorite quotes were:

"An IV needle! Oh, a demented vampire intent on torturing you to death, no problem! She runs to meet him. An IV needle on the other hand...."
Edward Cullen, Twilight, Chapter 24, (not an exact quote)

"You fell down two flights of stairs and through a window. You have to admit, it could happen."
Edward Cullen, Twilight, Chapter 24, p.459

Guys, we strongly encourage you to read this book just as much as the girls. If you need a reason to read this or just support the cause, you can go to a site called TwilightGuy (twilightguy.com, although the site disappeared recently). It changes almost every day but it consists of the author of the site's thoughts on the chapter he just read and testimonies of other guys who have read the book. (Yes, I called them testimonies, this is deep and amazing stuff here, people!) An excerpt from this site:

"You’ve seen it before. Maybe you’ve stumbled upon your girlfriend penciling portraits of some guy who is Certainly Not You, while she swears it’s ‘just Edward’. Or perhaps you’ve tried to call a girl on the phone only to have her mom say she’s busy reading a book whose title has something to do with moons or various stages of light. Or maybe you overheard a chattering, giggling crowd talking about some new guy named Jacob Black, and thought it must be a rockstar or actor; and then you hear them say how much they would love to have their boyfriend bite them, and you run from the room as fast as you can, only to find that you are completely wrong, in the dark, and very behind on the times.
For, fellows, the thing the girls are all talking about is a book.
Once you found out about all this frenzy, you may or may not have cracked open a copy of Twilight (in secret, of course). Either you wanted to know what they were crazy about, or you wanted to know How To Become The Living Edward Cullen. No matter why you got to it, somehow Stephenie Meyer has cast a spell over this planet, and now us guys are starting to feel the bite as well." 

As if you haven't guessed by now, I strongly suggest you go out and buy the book this very second. 

- Kaitlin Torres (with Janie Frazier and Kathleen Leigh)

A Midsummer Night's Dream

“The play is about mishap and love potions and people chasing each other around in the dark. It’s really one of Shakespeare’s plays that is just pure fun.” This is Pam Mandigo describing A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a play that she is directing at EMHS this fall. Approximately six weeks ago auditions took place and the cast list was posted. Now everyone involved with this production is working wholeheartedly, with a determination to be admired, at finishing up the details to make this play a success. 

This version of the original Shakespeare play will still be spoken in the traditional language; however, the setting will be in a junkyard. Also known as Athens’s Tire and Auto body, this set will enable the different classes of characters to be shown clearly. There will be the elite class, represented as the owners of the junkyard, the kids who just hang out around the junkyard, along with others.

Four of the main characters of A Midsummer Night’s Dream are known as the “lovers.” They are played by Victoria Clymer, a sophomore, Andrew Hostetter, a junior, Leigh Jackson, a junior, and Caleb Martin, a junior. Throughout the play they are put through many ordeals because of their problematical love for each other, proving the quote from the play that “The course of true love never did run smooth.”
 For Mandigo the best part of directing this play has been, “watching the light bulbs come on.” She loves being a part of helping students really understand what Shakespeare has written. 

The performances will take place in the EMHS auditorium on November 20, 21, and 22 at 7:30 p.m. Mandigo feels that the production is on schedule and that all of the cast and crew’s hard work will pay off during these three nights.

- Melissa Jantzi

AP Bio and Environmental Science Head to the Bay

Early on Saturday, November 8, two of EMS' high school science classes left for a trip to the Chesapeake Bay. Both Myron Blosser's A.P. Biology class and John Hoover's Environmental Science classes were involved.

Though the classes began their journey together with a four hour bus ride and a ferry ride across the bay, they then went their separate ways. Blosser's biology class was then taken to Smith Island by a smaller boat. The class, consisting of juniors and seniors, was taken oystering, and though the group found many oysters, they were all thrown back. 

When they arrived at Smith Island the group was split into family groups, identified using the islanders' common last names. That night, the group's guides, who are rumored to be crazy, took the class stargazing and pointed out where the constellations appear, though the night was cloudy and no stars were to be seen.

On Sunday morning the students were woken by blaring music and the sight of their dancing guides. They got ready and went out for an early morning of crabbing before church. 

That afternoon the family groups were sent on a scavenger hunt to learn about the island and its inhabitants. Later, when the class reassembled, they took the traditional marsh mucking trip. In the marsh the class bonded through their marsh mucking Olympics, consisting of a variety of games.

After they had cleaned up for the night they ate dinner and had free time. The next morning was once again an early one, as the class packed up and met with the Environmental Science class for the trip home.

Meanwhile, the Environmental science class was residing on Main Island, which belongs to a chain including Big Island and Clump Island. Once the class was situated in their rooms they departed to set up crab pots, used for catching Blue Crab. 

Sunday morning began at 5:30 with the usual, loud country music and dancing. The class then took a canoe tour to Clump Island and back before leaving for church at 8:30. The two science classes met at a Methodist church on Smith Island where they fellowshipped and sang with the locals. After church and lunch the classes again split up, and environmental science had their chance for some marsh mucking.
The next morning brought an early departure for the class as they began the trip home.

Though the trip consisted of many games and fun activities, it was very educational.  "We learned about the water-man's struggle for collecting enough to have a steady income because of the environmental safety bans," explained sophomore Kevin Leaman. "I thought the bans were good before the trip, but seeing the people's struggle showed me the other viewpoint."

- Jenn Leaman

Smeltzer Chosen for Senior Regional Orchestra

EMHS is a school full of exceptionally talented youth, and through music is one of the various ways that this is shown. This fact is especially evident in Meg Smelter, a current senior and outstanding violinist. 

This fall Meg auditioned for the prestigious Senior Regional Orchestra (SRO). The auditions took place at Charlottesville High School and consisted of scales, sight reading, and previously learned song excerpts. 110 violinists auditioned, with only 44 making it in. Meg received the 12th chair out of all of these musicians. When Meg tried out last year she was 57th, which was not high enough to get her into the orchestra, so she was shocked with her very high chair this year.

Meg, along with the other high school students in SRO this year, will all meet Friday the 14th and Saturday the 15th for 2 busy days of solid practicing. Then, on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. at Harrisonburg High School they will perform all of the music that they learned in a concert.

Meg says that she would definitely recommend the opportunity of auditioning for this kind of orchestra to all musicians. “Even if you don't make it, any audition is a great experience, because you get to practice preparing music and getting used to the whole audition process.”

- Melissa Jantzi

EMHS Cross Country Competes in State Championship

At the close of an exciting season of many wins and trophies gathering in the hallway, the Flames Cross Country team competed in the State Championship at Woodberry Forest last Friday, November 7th.

In the warm, sunny weather, EMHS competed against all the other independent schools in Virginia, totaling at 200 runners in the boys’ race and 145 in the girls’. The girls’ team placed seventh out of fourteen teams and the boys’ team placed third out of twenty-two!

Senior Aaron Zook and freshman Jacque Zook were the front runners in States for the Flames, as they have continually been through the entire season. Aaron crossed the line in second place and Jacque finished ninth. Notably, junior Brian Shenk, senior Matt Layman and junior Kierra Stutzman all finished in the top twenty in their races. Brian finished in 6th place, Matt was in sixteenth place and Kierra was in seventeenth.

“The Flames had the best showing that they've had in my entire career,” Aaron said. “For once we had a team that could compete with state competition. It was a perfect way to end my senior year; I was very proud of everybody.”

EMHS’s Cross Country team ended the season more than satisfied with how the entire team performed in the state championship, and the 19 wins and 31 losses for the girls and 67 wins and 29 losses for the boys over the whole season.

- Gennie Kirk

Senior Election Party

After months of continuous campaigns, ads, conventions, and debates the 2008 election finally took place. The day of November 4, 2008 was filled with stickers declaring who had voted, excited chatter, and much nervous anticipation for the wait which would soon be over.

Shannon Roth, who teaches U.S. History and Government at EMHS, decided to have an election party for the seniors. The class, which has always been social, didn't need to be asked twice before attending the party. The Senior Election Party, which took place in the EMHS commons, began at eight o'clock pm the night of the fourth. The end of the party was set at an indefinite time, as some were eager to stay until all was said and done. 

Drinks were provided, as well as a large projection screen documenting the progress. The class was responsible for providing their own snacks, pillows, and blankets in order to make the wait more comfortable.

Though the class does not share political views, the atmosphere remained positive. Attendees of the party consisted of both McCain and Obama supporters, and there was no segregation between party alliances; the class behaved as though they were at any other party. 

There were many activities to participate in to keep the students from boredom. The activities also combined the social aspect of the party with the educational learning of the election. Some such activities included the coloring of a map of the U.S. as states were won, a trivia quiz about past presidents, and a political scavenger hunt. A laptop, complete with a projector and speakers, was also set up at the back of the room. Using this, a handful of students amused themselves by watching Saturday Night Live skits mimicking the candidates.

Throughout the party the number of attendees continuously fluctuated, as some grew tired and went home, and others continued to arrive. There were a few who stuck it out, including Mr. and Mrs. Roth and their dog, but toward the end of the evening the numbers were dwindling. Those who remained stayed to listen to McCain’s speech. They then waited to hear Obama’s acceptance speech before heading for home around 12:30 am, a time much earlier than that which was anticipated.

- Jenn Leaman

Middle School Hot Dog Roast

On November 6 the middle school held a hot dog roast in park woods after school. They were able to enjoy each others' company as well as have a good time snacking on hot dogs and smores.

At 3:15 the middle school met outside the school and walked the short distance over to Park Woods with several teachers. Supplies for smores and hot dogs were set up on benches and students sat around the fire toasting (and in some cases burning!) marshmallows and hot dogs. There was a fun competion of trying to roast the best hot dog!

After students ate, some participated in a few games of twenty-two scadoo. It was exciting to have all three grades interacting together in the game, as older students were able to get to know the new sixth graders better. Those who didn't participate in twenty-two scadoo enjoyed chatting with their friends or playing in the freshly fallen leaves.

It was a wonderful, relaxed way to get to know students from other grades, and have fun with students in the same grade. It was a nice change from the busy fall schedule to sit down and talk with other students and teachers.

- Carolina May (picture by Monica Brunk)

Caroline Miller Goes to Washington

For the first semester of the 2008 - 2009 school year Caroline Miller, an EMS junior, is working as a page in Washington D.C. The program she is working with involves juniors from around the country. The students live and work together for five months, as they learn the ins and outs of politics as well as independence. The program isn't easy to get into; Caroline (left, with Chris Eberly) was originally placed on the wait list by her father. When a participant failed to show, Virginia's Bob Goodlatte contacted Mr. Miller, through that connection Caroline was selected to fill the open position.

Though she and the other pages are working, they must also receive their education. Caroline's day begins with classes at 6:54 a.m. that last until 11:30. When classes are let out the pages get to work. There are both Democratic and Republican pages working with the program. They spend their days working in the House of Representatives in the Capitol building where they all sit at the center desk. Their job entails answering phone calls from interns who need documents delivered, have questions, or need the pages to run errands. 

Though being a page is hard work, there are also perks. Caroline has this experience to put on future resumes, she is making more money than she could as a working high school student in Harrisonburg, and she has the opportunity to meet many influential people. Caroline has met many congressmen and women including Virginia Foxx, Gene Taylor, and Nancy Pelosi. She even saw Barack Obama, though she was not able to meet him personally.

The experience has been, overall, a positive one for Caroline; however, there are still challenges. Caroline finds the two most difficult challenges to be dealing with roommates and the food. "The food is so bad! Ugh!" Caroline exclaimed during her rant. She continued to explain about the three available, nearby restaurants; outlining which has eatable food, and which should not even be bothered with. She also struggles, as do many, with sharing living space with a roommate. Even though they get along, they have two different personalities, which sometimes present problems.

Caroline has been able to overcome the difficulties and through them she has learned about herself. She has learned more about her likes and dislikes how to deal with different personalities. Most importantly, she has learned how to just "go with the flow."

- Jenn Leaman