The CATalyst

Volume 17, Issue 8May, 2013

1102 Wildcat Ave.Fruita, CO 81521

Fruita Monument High School

News Pg. # 3

Waco fertilizer plant explodesThe aftermath of the explosion.

A&E Pg. # 4

Iron Man 1 vs. 2 vs. 3.Which was the best?

2013 yearbook reviewStudents perspective on this year’s yearbook.

Managing Editors: Alyssa Urban. News Editor: Noah Turner. Business Mannager: Keaton Brown. Commentary Editor: Lyric Fortson. Fea-tures Editor: Madison Wittman. Sports Editor: Taylor Scofield. Arts & Entertainment Editor: Alyssa Urban. Reporters: Adrienne Chiapuzio, Taylor Eatwell, Josephene Owens, Melissa Murphy, Sam Cyphers, Kat Bird, Megan Hunter, Nicole Twardowski, Rikeisha Cunningham-Byrd, Ian Sage, Teague VanPelt, Ian Golba, Ariel Eckhart, Gabby Nilsson, Jake Gulden, and Whitney Wanswrath.Staff Adviser: Trent Wuster Trent.Wuster@d51schools.org (970) 254-7280

The Catalyst is a publication of Fruita Monument High School, 1102 Wildcat Avenue, Fruita, Colorado. The Catalyst is published twice per quarter and is distributed free to Fruita Monument High School students and staff. Advertising rates and deadlines are available via e-mail at fruitacatalyst@gmail.com. Content of the student newspaper is an expression of 1st amendment freedom of speech and press rights and do not represent the position or policies of Mesa County School District #51 or of Fruita Monument High School’s adminis-tration or staff. As stated in School Board policy, school-spon-sored publications are a public forum for students as well as

an educational activity through which students can gain experience in reporting, writing, editing and more in the effort to promote responsible journalism. Content of school publications may reflect all areas of student interest, which may include topics about which there may be dissent or controversy. Comments, questions, suggestions, or letters to the editor are welcome. Unsigned editorials will not be printed. Letters may be edited for length and grammar. Some material courtesy of American Society of Newspaper Editors/MCT Campus High School Newspaper Service.

The Catalyst Staff:

What is the “Nerd prom”?All politicians, gather around.

Commentary Pg. # 12Senior campoutA tent, a sleepingbag, and the FMHS football field.

Lays flavs: hit or miss?What do you think about all the new Lays flavors?

Features Pg. # 10

13 ways to fend off boredomHow to keep busy this summer.

Pick-up paloozaCheck out the various trucks that inhabit the parking lot.

Diving into summerA student reflects on her skydiving experience.

Coffee signs as a sophomoreSee what Courtney Coffee is planning for her future college career.

Sports Pg. # 14

Playoffs (on ice!)What’s the word on the NHL playoffs?

Motocross rocksThe latest on motocross in the Grand Valley.

Photo courtesy of Lindsey Burenheide

The CATalystWho loves their cats? FMHS students do! Read on to find out a little more about students and their cats.

Pg. # 8

Cover photos courtesy of MCT campus and Flikr Creative Commons

Photo by Alyssa Urban

Waco fertilizer plant explodes

President Obama speaks at a memorial service in Texas for the firefighters that died in the aftermath of the explosion.

By Melissa Murphy, Reporter

Photo courtesy of MCT Campus

A loud explosion left many west Texans with ringing eardrums and shaky nerves when a fertilizer plant exploded with no warning.

The small town of Waco, Texas experienced a strange explosion from a nearby fertilizer plant. It left thirty five people dead including ten responders, hundreds seeking medi-cal attention, and an evacuation of more than 2,600 people from the community.

Many people are suffering “blast injuries” such as burns and deep wounds. Although many of the injuries are minor, there are some very serious injuries that are still being treated.

“It was like a huge bomb went off,” the locals told CNN reporters.

This massive explosion occurred when one of the tanks blew up at the plant.

This ten billion dollar fertilizer industry has got the rest of the agri-cultural community talking.

The fertilizer industry is growing has been growing since the early 2000’s. With more people comes more food, which means more farming and harvesting which in the end means more fertilizing to keep the plants alive.

Now that the United States has access to cheap natural gas, the industry is growing faster than ever.

The West Texas plant stored and blended a toxic gas known as anhy-drous ammonia. This gas is perfect for fertilizing, but can be risky to mess with.

“From what I know from chemistry, anhydrous ammonia is a dangerous substance,” said Lindsey Cookson, junior.

Another commonly used gas in fertilizing is ammonium nitrate. Al-though it is the most dangerous in-gredient, it is the best crop nourish-ing nitrate there is out there, making the risks usually worthwhile.

Although it is not entirely certain of how this explosion occurred, investigators have some clues.

Back in 2006, the Environmental

Protection Agency fined the facility in West Texas $2,300 for not having a risk management plan that was up to federal standards.

After the citation, West Texas Co. vowed to meet the standards for its ammonia storage tanks. The operators at West Texas saw an explosion as an impossible event.

Operators at the facility say they did everything possible to prevent an explosion.

The Dallas Morning News was able to obtain a copy of the facili-ties internal safety review and found some of the following information:

“The worst possible scenario would be a ten minute release of ammonia gas that would kill or in-jure no one,” reporters from a local news station in Waco thought

This frightening explosion has got many people on edge and will most likely negatively impact the agricultural industry because of distrust from the people.

Many people will be pointing a finger at the agricultural industry. It is not the agricultural industry that people should be blaming. This is a freak accident that comes along with working with dangerous chemicals.

“It is not the agricultural industry fault for this,” an anonymous junior at Fruita Monument commented.

“Don’t start pointing fingers, we don’t know everything yet,” anonymous.

The residents of the tiny town of Waco were evacuated when the explosion occurred, but have finally been able to return home.

A sign of relief is not yet to come because there has been word that there is another intact tank at the plant that could possibly explode.

Fire officials fear that the number of casualties could rise much higher in just a matter of time.

Mayor Tommy Muska is trying to remain positive but it’s hard.

“We still are holding out some hope, but right now we’re just try-ing to get a hand around it and see,” Muska told CNN.

The White House Correspondents Association Dinner, or, recently coined, the “Nerd Prom,” has been a tradition since the presidency of Calvin Coolidge in 1920. Starting in 1924, the annual correspondents dinner began to be organized by the association, and until Bob Hope in 1944 decided to turn the dinner into more a roast, the dinner was a formal gathering for reporters and political figures in the Unit-ed States. Ever since then, the White House Correspon-dents dinner has been hosted by famous actors or comedi-ans almost every year since 1944. People like Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel have all hosted the event.

This Year the Dinner recorded a stunning 3 mil-lion viewers, more than the new episode of “The Office” showing earlier that night. Conan O’Brien set the stage for a second time and made it possible for the 99th annual White House Correspondents Dinner to be a memorable one. Conan Roasted President Obama and it was all good fun for the viewers and attendants, but behind the curtain many political media sources were offended.

CNN was one of them after Conan made comments about the station like “Fact is, I admire their commitment to cover all sides of a story… just in case one of them actu-ally happens to be right.”

Some Media sites and stations the next day criticized Conan’s performance as inappropriate, but he lured 3 million viewers to stations like MSNBC, FOX and CBC. The

dinner’s success was partly because of the many celebrities attending the dinner and performing. The well-known “Duck Dynasty” real-ity star especially stood out in the crowd when arrived in a bandana and a tuxedo. “Surprised I’m the only person wearin’ a bandana” he later tweeted. Other big names like Steven Spielberg, who considered

President Obama to be a personal friend of his, or Katy Perry who got her picture taken with the president. Politicians and journalists were surrounded by an overwhelming amount of stars and celebrities.

Not only did Conan O’Brien host and spit out his political roast, the President himself went up on stage and made a few jokes about recent events. Some of the most notable joked were mocking the new George W. Bush legacy library. Obama presented cut outs of him posing in front of the Bush legacy library and said that he would be starting his own library in memo-rial to himself and his presidency.

“These days I look in the mirror and I’m not the strapping young Muslim socialist I used to be,” Obama said before he left the stage.

While ceremony seems like just a comedy skit, it is really about the journalists who worked hard out in the field.

The President and First lady have handed the three Awards out beginning since 2000, which are The Merriman Smith Memorial Award that recognizes news coverage under an intense deadline, The Aldo Beckman Award that recognizes correspondents of journalistic excellence and The Edgar A. Poe Award that recognizes the best stories covering national importance.

Each award has one to four winners, which take part in the Broadcasting side and the Printed side of news coverage. The Merriman Smith Memo-

rial Award went to Julie Pace and Terry Morgan in association press. The Aldo Beckman Award went

to Ryan Lizza for his work with The New Yorker. And The Edgar A. Poe Award went to Jim Morris, Chris Hamby, and Ronnie Greene with the Center for Public Integrity.

While “Nerd Prom” seems like it is filled with major celebrities and is just another political roast hosted by a famous comedian, it commemo-rates journalist making deadlines, writing brilliant news stories and covering national news.

It is nice to see that the corre-spondents across the United States were noticed for their work by over 3 million viewers and hopefully the tradition of honoring these journal-ists will continue next year.

What is the “Nerd Prom”? By Jake Gulden, Reporter

Photo courtesy of MCT Campus

There seems to be a common nightmare that everyone shares; a deadly disease that could spread and infect the entire human race. This nightmare could become a reality if we don’t take action now.

The World Health Organization has recently confirmed an avian influenza virus in humans known as H7N9 as a possible epidemic. At this point in time, the virus exists only in the Republic of China.

“I had no idea such flu existed,” Valeria Garcia, junior said.

There are many strands of influ-enza that have been discovered, but the World Health Organization has recognized this strand of influenza as the most lethal.

This virus has symptoms of normal influenza such as headache, aches, chills and sore throat, but it also attacks the respiratory system causing severe pneumonia and blood poisoning. At this point, the virus is fatal.

H7N9 is not new, it was discov-ered in 2003 but wasn’t a threat

until now after 35 people have died from it.

According to researchers, the virus is linked to poultry. Infected poultry can transmit the disease to humans very easily. Those that are researching the disease have settled on the fact that it is zoonotic (Spread from bird to human).

The virus could easily take a turn and be transmitted from human to human, creating a pandemic.

According to the World Health Organization, 40% of the people in-fected have not been in contact with poultry. This means that this virus is spreading through different means that we have not yet figured out.

What makes this virus so fright-ening is that we are not ready. We have the ability to make a vaccine, but we may not have the time.

If the epidemic keeps spreading at this fast pace, there will be more infected places than just the Repub-lic of China.

Luckily, researchers and sci-entists have figured out that the

virus is not spread through cooked poultry; meaning recalls on meat will not be an issue.

“It’s a good thing poultry won’t be affected because that would cause a huge problem in the food industry,” Garcia explained. In the past, bird flu cases have decreased during the summer due to warm weather.

Many people are hoping and praying that warm weather will drive the virus out.

The thought of a serious virus spreading from one person to an-other until the entire human race is infected, is a disturbing thought that most people would like to put in the back of their minds.

“I don’t even want to think of this madness,” Nichole Moss, sophomore said.

This is one thing that cannot be pushed to the back burner. The question is not whether there is a cure or not, the question is when we are going to find it?

New virus threatens planetBy Melissa Murphy, Reporter

May 2013

3The Catalyst

News

The Catalyst4A&E

May 2013

By Gabriella Nilsson, Reporter

Everyone has been through an awkward situation before, but noth-ing like Jenna Hamilton has been through.“Awkward”isfinallyashow

that focuses on today’s teens and doesn’t have any singing or dancing involved.

“Awkward” is about a teenage girl named Jenna Hamilton who becomes a “school celebrity” after people mistakenly thought she at-tempted suicide. Now, Jenna has to deal with being “that girl” for the rest of her high school life. Only be-ing a sophomore when this situation happens, Jenna’s bought herself a one-way ticket to hell.

Besides being “a walking distraction” as Jenna mentioned in her blog, Jenna faces many issues. She is known as the girl that tried to kill herself- while dealing with her crush on Matty McKibben, that mean girl Sadie Saxton, her weird guidance counselor, her parents that just don’t get it, her two best friends Tamara and Ming and the letter she received early on in season one.

Throughout the season, Jenna losesfriendsasshetriestofindoutwho wrote the letter. The letter gets passed around at school, leading Jenna to think it had to be someone at school that wrote it.

Jenna, As you are now, you could disap-

pear and no one would notice. Below is a list of suggestions you should take into serious consider-ation:

#1: Stop being such a p***y.#2: Your instincts suck. Second

guess them.#3: The only people more pa-

thetic than you are your friends. Drop the dead weight.

#4: When you’re pretty, you’re happy. And clearly you’re not happy.

#5: Pull your head out of your *** and stand out.

#6: Nobody likes the pitiful. Stop being such a drag.

#7: You have to be cruel to be kind.

-A Friend

As the season came to an end, Jenna found the stack of paper that her letter was written on. Unexpectedly, her mom was the one that “ru-ined” Jenna’s life.

Awkward plays out to be very funny, but very raunchy at the same time. During the summer, Jenna has a brief affair with Matty and the af-fair resulted in Jenna losing her V-card. The only issue is that just like Jenna, a lot of girls at her school are going for Matty. He does ap-pear to have genuine feelings for Jenna but doesn’t want to take their relationship public.

Jenna meets a girl names Olivia that she suspects is Matty’s new

girlfriend. When Olivia invites Jenna to skip out on detention, she findsthatOliviaisrathersweet.Jenna was talking indirectly about Matty to Jake and Jake thought it was about him. She tells him that she likes a guy who’s already taken and Jake later approached Jenna and says that if the guy she liked didn’t have a girlfriend he would be all over her.

He kisses her and Jenna leaves quickly and confused. In the meantime, Olivia turned out to be Matty’s “girlfriend-in-law”, consid-ering she’s dating his older brother.

Then, a mock DUI event was held at the school, and Jenna played the cast as the victim, Dead Stacy. Jake took on the male lead and began to develop feelings for Jenna during the play. To no surprise, this made Matty jealous.

Jenna threw a wild keg party that her mom and her mom’s best friend, Ally, helped her with. The next day, Jennaisfightingthroughherhang-over to reconstruct the events that happened that night. She later came totheconfigurationthatshelec-tured Jake, hurt Matty’s feelings by kidding Ricky, which was Tamara’s crush, and ended up having Tamara throwing Jenna out of her life; along with their best friend picture.

Jenna went over to Tamara’s to apologize and it ended with Tamara saying, “I’m so glad I wrote that letter”; even though we came to the conclusion that her mom actually wrote it.

The next day, it was Jenna’s six-teenth birthday. Matty showed up to her house at the exact time that she officiallybecamesixteenandtoldJenna he wanted to be more than friends.

Jake told Lissa he kissed Jenna. This causes a weird conversation between Jake, Lissa and Valerie about how he can make up to Lissa. Elsewhere, Jenna tries to reconnect with Tamara with help from Ming. Jenna is forgiven, but Tamara con-fesses she didn’t write the letter and just said it because she was hurt. Moreover, Tamara voices her theory

that Matty wrote the letter. This causes Jenna to rethink her

“relationship” with Matty while complications arise when Matty wants to take Jenna out for dinner in a secluded area. It turns out to be Matty’s family’s restaurant, and Jenna’s concerns are resolved when Matty’s uncle comments about how Matty has never taken a girl there before.

When they get back to Jenna’s home, Tamara and Ming bust their date with games and confessions but are soon won over by Matty’s true words. Before leaving Matty and Jenna alone, Tamara whispers that she doesn’t think that Matty wrote the letter anymore. In the meantime, Lissa and Sadie team up to make Jake break up his friend-ship with Jenna but he ends up apologizing to Jenna for the earlier fight,andbreaksupwithLissa.

Matty and Jenna have a barbe-cue with Jenna’s parents and they discuss the upcoming formal dance. Matty doesn’t actually ask Jenna to the dance and Jenna isn’t too en-thused about this because she sees several boys going to great lengths to make a “big ask.”

Jake then asks Jenna to the dance by giving her a mix CD, which has “Will you go to the dance with me?” printed on it. She tells him that she can’t go with him because she already has a date. Matty and Jake talk about the Formal, and Jake tells Matty about being turned down by Jenna.

Matty almost tells Jake about going with Jenna, but chickens out, and later asks Jenna if it would be okay if they skip the Formal so that he doesn’t hurt Jake, but he never tells Jenna that.

Sadie manages to steal Jenna’s file,withtheletterinit.Jennaissurprised to be nominated for Soph-omore Princess, but then discovers that the ballot has her letter printed on the back of it. Jenna decides that she deserves more than Matty has offered, and tells him that she won’t go out with him that night, to the Formal, or anywhere. Jenna ended up going to Formal with Jake.

Jake talks to Matty about Jenna since he doesn’t know Matty and Jenna were a thing. Matty gets jealous and she is forced to pick between the two; will it be Matty or Jake?

It ended up being Matty and currently if you’re tuned into season 3, Jenna and Matty are still dating. They have faced many awk-ward situations like Jenna’s parents

confronting Matty’s parents letting them know that

their kids are hav-ing sex. Ming is able to hide her “boy toy” from theAsianMafiaand Jake and

Tamara are dating also.Awkward is an amazing, raun-

chy,drama-filledteenshow,andifyou’re not yet tuned in, then there is something wrong with you, You’re welcome.

Awkward.Summertime is slowly creeping up on us, each passing day. Many of us

have plans for the summer, but even if you’re jam-packed, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to jam out at one of many different concerts in places surround-ing the Grand Valley. Here’s a list of some concerts you could catch:

Hit the stage!By Rekeisha Cunningham-Byrd, Reporter

May 1. Escape the Fate, Black Sheep,

CO Springs2. Trapt, Mesa Theater, Grand

Junction 3. Artic Monkeys, Ogden, Dever4. Juicy J, A$ap Fer, Cervantes’

Masterpieces Ballroom, Denver5. Ice cube, Belly Up, Aspen6. Dropkick Murphys, The Fill-

more Auditorium, Denver

June 1. Pitbull, Ke$ha, Fiddler’s Green

Englewood2. Cartel, Marquis Theater,

Denver3. Hillsong United, Red Rocks,

Morrison4. Fall Out Boy, Ogden, Denver5. Thousand Foot Krutch, Ameri-

ca The Beautiful Park, CO Springs 6. Hinder, Summit Music Hall,

Denver

July1. Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Blue-

bird Theater, Denver2. Big Country, Belly Up, Aspen3. Andy McKee, Boulder Theater,

Boulder4. Blues under the bridge- John

Hammond, The slid brothers, CO Ave bridge, CO Springs

5. Winter Park Jazz Festival- Hideaway Park, Winter Park

6. Six Feet Under, Decrepit Birth Cannabis Corpse, Marquis Theater, Denver

7. Wiz Khalifa, A$ap Rocky, B.o.B, Tinidad James & more, Fid-dlers green, Englewood

And of course both Country Jam and Rock Jam will be here again. “I’m not really a fan of Rock Jam or Country Jam… it’s too hot. And plus, I grew up in Ouray so I just go to Bluegrass concerts in Telluride.” Explained junior, Sarah Baker. Rock Jam is August 23-24th but those performing haven’t been announced yet. Country Jam is June 20-23rd and the people that will be there include:

•MontgomeryGentry•LeeBrice•LoCashCowboys•Parmalee•OpenRange•PistolAnnies•GaryAllan•FloridaGeorgiaLine•DustinLynch•McKenziesMill•CharleyJenkins

•KidRock•UncleKracker•RandyHouser•TheCadillacThree•ChaseRice•CharlieWorsham•RascalFlatts•SawyerBrown•WesternUnderground•&More…..

Bronte Hayward and her sisters were able to meet Lady Antebellum and her band last summer at the 2012 Country Jam.

Photo courtesy of Bronte Hayward

By Noah Turner, Reporter

Eric Greitens is a man who has travelled the world and seen its many atrocities. As an aid worker he travelled to Croatia, Rwanda, Albania, Mexico, India and Cambo-dia to see first-hand the devastating effects of genocide and hatred. As a Navy SeAL, he fought to rid the world of the very evils he witnessed as an aid worker. The Heart and the Fist is the autobiographical story of Eric Greitens as he learns the meaning of being a humanitarian, and the importance of living every day with a balance of courage and compassion. These teachings are seen throughout the book, no matter where he is, he learns messages of ethics and strength.

As a child, Greitens learned a passion for service work performing charity functions with his church. When it came time to choose a college, he was com-pletely unpre-pared to choose a profes-sion. He won a grant to conduct and inde-pendent study overseas, in China. While in China he met with many students who had survived the government ordered massacre of peaceful pro-testors at Tiananmen Square. These students allowed him to glimpse at what courage truly is. He was touched by their refusal to give up, he saw that one way or another, and they would not stop until they got their rights.

From China, he returned to America to attend Duke University. While there, he took boxing les-sons. In his training he learned the importance of working hard, and he became much stronger. From there he travelled to Croatia and Cambo-dia where he learned that aid work is helpful, but having the strength to protect the innocent is better than simply helping those marred by war and hatred. The same message was taught to him in Rwanda where he helped in refugee camps. Finally, he won a scholarship to Oxford. While at Oxford, he won many boxing championships, and became an advocate for feeling compas-sion for the abused, but also using force to stop the abuser. However,

in saying this, he felt he was saying that someone else should protect the innocent. Finally he decided that he needed to step up and defend the weak himself. He decided to become a Navy SeAL.

If he was going to join the military, he decided he might as well test himself. So he chose to complete the most rigorous military training in the world, and applied for Basic Underwater Demolition/SeAL (BUD/S) training. After six months of training so difficult no single word can describe it, he joined the honorary line of men who have served the U.S. as Sea Air and Land (SeAL) operatives.

As a SeAL he travelled to many different countries, and fought many battles beside many brave men. But then he hit the maximum age for

a Navy SeAL operative, and he was faced with a new choice, what to do next? After spending some time visit-ing with different wounded veterans, he real-ized that these men not only needed help, but hope. He realized that they needed a reason

not to give up on their now broken body. They needed something to help them look past the fact that they can no longer serve their country as they had been. They needed purpose. He explains how he learned that after veterans have been serving their country for so long, they are shocked and de-pressed by the fact that they can no longer continue to serve. As the end of the book draws near Eric Greitens depicts how he founded The Mission Continues Foundation, where wounded vets are given op-portunities to serve in their commu-nities, and know that they are still needed.

The Heart and the Fist by Eric Greitens is the memorable story of a man who learns the meaning of being a humanitarian. It is the inspiring description of how to live your life with compassion and cour-age, and how to positively touch all of those around you. If you have the time, pick up a copy, and learn these ethics and many more from a man who helped lives and saved them.

Book review: The Heart and

the Fist

May 1st the yearbooks had finally arrived just in time for spring fling. The yearbook staff had been worked so hard to finish and complete the yearbook in time for the seniors to get them before they graduated. The yearbook staff was pleased of how it turned out, but what did the students of Fruita Monument think of the yearbook?

“My favorite page is 128-129 because we get to see all of the teachers looked like when they were our age, “sophomore Karli Myers stated.

Many students were very pleased to see the “Living in the past” page. Getting to see some of their teachers and what they looked like in high school. Some teachers there was a real difference and a real shock to what they looked like back then. Some teachers didn’t really change that much over the years. It was also nice to see which teachers went to Fruita Monument and how much the school has changed.

“Try minimizing the typos,” sophomore Octavia Martinez said as a suggestion for the yearbook staff next year.

There were a lot of mistakes in the yearbook such as misspelled names, correct grammar or wrong

name with the wrong person. Some mistakes were harder to see than other mistakes. The most common mistake in the yearbook was the misspelling of names. A lot of the names that were misspelled were pretty obvious to some people especially the ones whose name was misspelled. It’s just one of the many things the yearbook staff will work hard to get right next year.

“It was well put together ev-erybody was equally represented sports, music, drama, and so on. Thought it was well worth my money,” sophomore Colton Snyder said.

The staff did a very good job of getting students in the yearbook more than one time. They also did a good job of getting the seniors included as much as possible in the yearbook. The sports section was nice to see the seniors interviewed a featured for the last time on the page. There number one goal at the beginning of the year is to make sure students are in the yearbook more than one time. That includes there student picture, maybe a sports or club picture, and any other pages that they may be involved in.

“It was nice to see all the events that happened this year in the year-

book. It’s nice to be able to look back and see what happened this year,” sophomore Randy Hurshman said

This year the photos for the pages were very consistent and made the pages look better because you were able to see who was who. The pictures also showed the highs and the lows of what happened this year from winning games to losing games. The yearbook staff really showed the positive points and the disappointing moments in a season or at a school event. But with those highs and lows, they also showed the fun times students had at Fruita Monument like homecoming events and clubs. The staff really made sure to show the fun side of Fruita Monument.

“I really liked the yearbook the pictures were really good. I really liked the club and sports pages,” said sophomore Sarah Ash

This year’s yearbook had some mistakes but looking over the mistakes and seeing the photos and memories of this year made it worth it to buy a yearbook. Getting to see everything that happened from Homecoming to winning the big game. This year’s yearbook will be one to remember for the students at Fruita Monument.

Since the premiere, the Robert-sons have been busy being Amer-ica’s favorite big-bearded, camo-covered family. “Duck Dynasty” focuses on a colorful Louisiana family who eat together, hunt to-gether and make duck calls together.

Phil Robertson founded the familial empire of Duck Com-mander Call’s decades ago. Phil’s third son, Willie, then turned it into a multimillion dollar business after attending college for a business degree. But for Willie Robertson, the company’s CEO, running a fam-ily operation is tough when all your employees live one distraction after another and find any excuse to leave the warehouse.

The Robertson family, as we know it, starts with Phil as head of the family. He may not look like it, but he played first-string quarter-back at Louisiana Tech University in the ‘60s. He was drafted into the NFL but turned it down because it interfered with duck season. Instead, he married his high school sweetheart, Miss Kay, built a house down by the river and together they

raised their four sons. Miss Kay is mother of the family

and what she says, goes. She was 16 when she married Phil, and since then she’s been keeping the boys from spending too much time in the woods. She brings the family together every night for a civilized and home-cooked meal.

Uncle Si, Phil’s brother, is often known as the Vietnam veteran who seems to be a little crazy and always has weird wisdom to share.

Alan, the oldest Robertson son, is not featured on the TV show because he received a call for full-time ministry in 1988. Jase, Willie and Jep each add their own sense of personality to the show along with helping the business however they can. Each of the boys got married and now has their own families with three or four children each.

The Robertson family may be living the rags-to-riches American dream, but they’re just as busy staying true to their outdoorsman lifestyle and southern roots. Of course in this family, even the most ordinary gathering is met with a

special Robertson twist of practical-ity and humor.

Before watching “Duck Dynas-ty,” many believe it to be a point-less show which entertains us with unwise redneck millionaires. But after viewing just a few episodes, the viewer can see that it’s just a co-medic show about a southern family who pushes each other’s buttons in the most affectionate way possible.

More importantly, as you watch “Duck Dynasty,” you may laugh at the family’s oddities – but the Robertsons will have you wishing you were one of them. They often tease and mock one another, but at the end of the day, they help one another and willingly share massive family meals (cooked by Miss Kay, of course). They never shy away from their Christian faith, either. The name of God is used more often in the context of prayer than as a swear. That in itself is probably enough to make the show unique from any other show on TV.

The season 2 finale had 6.5 million viewers, making “Duck Dynasty” the highest rated show in history for A&E.

Duck Dynasty By Jennifer Robinson, Reporter

2013 Yearbook Review

By Megan Hunter, Reporter

May2013

5The Catalyst

A&E

The Catalyst6A&E

May 2013

Photos courtesy of MCT campus

By Sam Cyphers, Reporter

“Every high school kid has to read it.” – Steven Colbert

The Great Gatsby. It is a book many of us do have to read, but few of us enjoy it. It seems that the moment a teacher tells us to do any-thing, it loses absolutely all of its allure and becomes infinitely more tedious and inconvenient. When my sister read the book during her junior year, she claimed, “I’ve read and re-read, and I still don’t even understand who Gatsby is.” It is this sense of disillusionment often associated with high school litera-ture that prevents many students from even attempting assigned reading. After all, SparkNotes is so much easier!

However, assigned literature is assigned for a reason. It has value:; cultural, emotional, and otherwise. The Great Gatsby is a stunning commentary on the sometimes contradictory American Dream and the shallow hollowness of the upper class in America. Unfortunately, the fact that the book is considered the great American novel is often not enough to entice students to read it .

That is not to say literary salvation is impossible for future

generations, though. Indeed it may be at hand. Director Baz Luhrmann recently released his adaptation of the classic story, and many high schoolers have already expressed their excitement about seeing the film. But haven’t Great Gatsby movies already been made? Well, yes. So, why haven’t they attracted students to read such a great book?

Well, the reason is the most re-cent adaptation of The Great Gatsby prior to the 2013 version, was made in 1974. Now, that in itself would perhaps only deter the most shallow film-viewer (which I fear most high schoolers are), but the movie is also just poorly done. The movie stars Robert Redford as Jay Gatsby, and while Redford is without question a great actor, this role was not made for him. Redford is one of those rare actors who scarcely says a word, but can still get his emotions across to the audience. However, Jay Gatsby is a rather flamboyant, passionate and hopeful young man, and the sober silence of Redford did no justice to this role. Furthermore, Sam Waterston (you may recognize him from” Law and Order”) was far too silent, weak, and personality-less to play any role, much less

the rather important character of Nick Carraway, who serves to nar-rate the story. Finally, we come to the character of Daisy Buchanan, played by Mia Farrow, who abso-lutely annoyed me to death with her over-the-top and ridiculous portray-al. Overall, the movie was slow, plodding, emotionless, and did not do justice to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece.

The newer movie, though, did a far better job of staying true to the book. Leonardo DiCaprio did a fantastic job as Jay Gatsby and truly portrayed the unbridled hopefulness of Fitzgerald’s original character. Carraway was played by Tobey Maguire and better conveyed the somewhat somber observer that I always imagined Carraway to be. Finally, Carey Mulligan acted out the role of Daisy Buchanan. Mul-ligan did a fantastic job showing the audience just how shallow and amoral Daisy is meant to be. My only complaint would be that some of movie seemed rather unrealistic for the 1920s .

Hopefully, this new and some-what flashy new movie will draw more readers to that fantastic novel written nearly 90 years ago. Who knows? Maybe you’ll even like it.

The Great Gatsby: movie review

Stars behind barsBy Rikeisha Cunningham-Byrd, Reporter

We all know that celebrities are people too, right? So why does everyone make a huge deal when they make mistakes? Everyone makes them, don’t they? Maybe it’s because celebrities are seen as role models... Or maybe it’s because many people think they get “off the hook” too easily and don’t really do, or get, the time they should. “I think that people overreact when it comes to celebrities making mistakes, I mean, they’re people too.” said Morgan Rayside, junior. It seems to be that lots of our “role models” tend to get in trouble, with the law, for drinking and driving, like many everyday people. Many are caught with the plant, marijuana. Maybe they should move to Colorado... The drinking and driving problem can’t be solved, but here’s a list of some celebrities who have been ar-rested and put behind bars.

Throwback• Chace CrawfordWhen: 2010How Long: A few hoursWhy: Caught with less than 2

oz. of marijuana while sitting in a parked car.

• Nicole “Snooki” PolizziWhen: 2010 How Long: a few hours.Why: For disturbing the peace,

disorderly conduct & criminal an-noyance of others

• Robert Downey Jr.When: 1997 & 1999How long: One year Why: Missed a required drug test

during his three-year probation sen-tence that was handed down in 1999 after he trespassed into a neighbor’s home and fell asleep on a bed there while high.

• Kiefer SutherlandWhen: 2007How long: 48 daysWhy: Misdemeanor drunk driv-

ing • Martha Stewart When: 2004 How Long: 5 monthsWhy: Guilty of conspiracy,

obstruction of an agency proceed-ing, & making false statements to federal investigators

• 50 cent When: 1994How Long: 6 months Why: Drug charges• Tim AllenWhen: 1978How Long: 28 monthsWhy: Cocaine possession

Just last year• Fiona Apple: Caught with

hashish & marijuana at border patrol checkpoint.

• Amanda Bynes: DUI, & alleg-edly sideswiped a police car.

• Robin Thicke: He was caught smoking marijuana in his car.

• Russell Brand: Grabbing a photographers’ iPhone and throwing it out a window.

• George Clooney: For protest-ing with the United to End Geno-cide, Amnest International, and the Enough Campaign to call on the U.S & other world leaders to stop violence from occurring in South Sudan and prevent thousands of people from starving.

• Sean Bean: Sending abusive texts to his ex-wife; harassment.

• Jenna Jameson: DUI, & hit a light pole with her car.

• Daryl Hannah: Protesting construction of a pipeline that was designed to bring oil from Canada to Gulf Coast refineries.

• Lindsay Lohan: Punched a woman in the face at a night club.

• Gabriel Aubry, Halle Berry’s ex: For battery after allegedly start-ing a fist fight with Berry’s current fiancé. Both men, Oliver Martinez & Aubry were treated at the hospi-tal.

• Stephen Baldwin: Failed to file New York State Income Tax, authorities claim he owes more than $350, 000 in taxes & penalties.

Up to date• Ja Rule: 2011-13 28 months so

far for possession of a weapon & tax evasion

Iron Man is one of the well-known comic characters that Marvel has created. Even though Iron Man started out just as a comic, he has grown over the years. There have been TV shows made about him and his story and even three different movies produced.

The very first “Iron Man” movie came out May 2, 2008.

Iron Man was just a regular man who had inherited his dad’s company, Stark Industries, making him one of the wealthiest people in the world. As Tony Stark went out to the desert to test out a new “Jer-icho” missile, he was captured by the terrorist group Ten

Rings. When Tony was captured, an electromagnet was installed into his chest. If the electromagnet got anywhere near his heart, it would easily kill him. Yinsen had installed a device in the middle of his chest that is acting as a magnet to keep the electromagnet away from his heart.

The leader of Ten Rings, Raza, had offered to let Tony go if he had built a Jericho missile for him and his group. Tony and Yinsen knew that Raza would not keep his word so instead of building him the mis-sile, Tony built himself an iron suit. Tony and Yinsen had everything planned out, when to escape, how they were going to do it, until the Ten Rings group noticed that he was not building them the missile. Everything from then on out was

Movie review: “Iron Man” 1 vs. 2. vs. 3rushed. Raza knew that he could not let Tony have an easy escape. When the building was going up in flames and bombs were going off, Tony decided that now was the time to leave. As he was flying out he crashed yards away from where he was originally and the suit broke to pieces.

After days of walking, a helicop-ter finally found Tony and they took him back home. When Tony gets home he calls for a press conference and announces that his company, Stark Industries, was no longer manufacturing weapons. After his shocking announcement, Tony decides to stay in his house. While not going out in public very often, he builds himself a new suit. He had sent his assistant, Pepper played by Gwyneth Paltrow, to go and grab

By Taylor Eatwell, Reporter

any files and documents off of his work computer so he could enhance the use of his iron suit. While build-ing a new suit, he also creates a new arc reactor for his chest.

Stane, an old co-worker for Tony, tries to make a replica of Tony’s suit from all the broken pieces from his very first suit. While Stane is creating his suit, he does not know that Tony is enhancing his to make it better in every way. Stane soon finds out that his suit needs an arc reactor in order to work like he wants it to. He then breaks into Tony’s home, paralyzes Tony, and takes his arc reactor.

“I think the first Iron Man was the best by far. I liked seeing how he actually became Iron Man and everything that led up to it,” sopho-more, Emma Mace stated.

“Iron Man 2” came out two years later on May 7, 2010. The movie starts out in Russia with a guy named Ivan Vanko. While his father is dying, he tells him that he should have gotten credit for the arc reactor that Yinsen had put into Tony.

After showing what happened in Russia, Tony is shown jumping out of a plane into the Stark Expo. Tony arrives at the Stark Expo in hopes of continuing his father’s legacy. Tony is then ordered to turn in his Iron Man suit to the govern-ment, but he declines the order. After the Stark Expo, Tony sees that the arc reactor isn’t saving him but is now poisoning him. His arc reactor is putting bad chemicals into his blood-stream. A couple min-utes later, Pepper comes down to his working area/ garage and Tony announces that she is now the new CEO of Stark Industries. Tony soon hires Natalie Rushman (Scarlett Johansson) to replace Pepper as his personal assistant.

Tony goes to race at Circuit De Manaco, and he gets attacked on

the track by Ivan. Ivan has arc reactor “whips” that can burn and possibly kill you. Tony fights Ivan for a

long amount of time but soon defeats him. As the police were taking Ivan away, he keeps telling Tony “You Lose”. Tony goes and visits Ivan in jail that same day, to ask how he made the arc reactor. Ivan had told Tony that his family had stolen the idea from Ivan’s family. Back at the prison, Justin Ham-mer breaks Ivan out of jail. Justin is like Tony, he has his own company of inventions and is trying to be better than Stark Industries.

While celebrating his own “last” birthday, Tony has a little bit too much to drink while using the armor. Lieu-tenant Colonel James Rhodes had to step in trying to get Tony under con-trol. While trying to control Tony, they start to fight. After the battle between the two friends, Rhodes

takes the armor to the U.S. military. At the military base, they take out the chest piece that controls the suit. After taking apart the suit, Justin ar-

rives at the base to “take it off their hands.” After Justin gets the suit, he then takes it back to Ivan and asks for Iron Man drones and to program the suit to allow the general of the

drones to wear it. After the fight with Rhodes and Tony, Tony goes to a coffee/donut and sits inside the giant donut sign where he meets

Nick Fury. Nick then asks Tony why it seems that he is giving up. Tony tells Nick that he is dying.

Tony has tracks on his body from the poison that is killing him. Mr. Fury see’s the tracks and sends Natalie to put a type of healer in Tony. They all go back to Tony’s house and Mr. Fury hands Tony a box of his father’s things so Tony can try to find a cure to what is hap-pening in his body. Tony then starts watching his father’s old videos trying to look for a cure but could not find any. Tony finishes watching the videos and goes over to Peppers office and finds a little model of what the Stark Industries is going to look like. While looking at the model he no-tices

a science pat-tern (like the arc reactor) within the building so he grabs the

model and takes it home. He has Jarvis hologram the

model and he takes it apart that way. While taking apart the model, he then finds a cure. As he was mak-ing a device to put into his chest to make him better, Ivan calls. Ivan tells Tony that he is going to take away what his family took from his in 40 years, in 40 minutes. At the Stark Expo, Tony see’s Rhodes and tells him who is in Ivan’s com-mander suit that Ivan had made. Ivan isn’t actually at the Expo but he found a way to control his drones from his home. Ivan orders his drones to start firing because he sees that Tony is there.

Ivan shows up in an Iron Man type suit but with whips in his hands. Tony and Rhodes work together while fighting Ivan and finally defeat him. After Ivan is de-feated, the drones start blinking and that is when Tony notices that the drones are made to self-destruct.

“Iron Man 2 was very good also. The action and fighting scenes are always intense making the movie a lot better,” junior Allisa Hatch claimed.

IronMan 3 starts out as a flash-back of him at a Christmas party. In the elevator at the party, a young man who had lost a leg, told Tony he wanted to talk to him about his new research. Aldrich Killian, wanted to present Tony with his new company M.I.A. Tony tells Aldrich to meet him on the roof in 5 minutes, but never shows up. When the flashback ends, the news is all about a new terrorist, The Mandarin. There have been multiple bombings caused by The Mandarin. When tony finds out everything that this terrorist is doing to places everywhere, he threatens the terror-ist and gives him his home address. While Tony is in his house working

on one of many suits, he is attacked by The Mandarin. Its hit after hit until there is nothing left to his house. While getting bombed, no one see’s if Tony makes it out alive so everyone thinks that he is dead when really he escapes but crashes in a small town. Tony wonders for a while until he stumbles upon a small house and meets a little boy named Harley.

Harley helps Tony get back-ground information about The Mandarin. After finding quit a lot of information, Tony puts two and two together and finds out who the true master mind is behind all the attacks that have been happening. With Harleys help Tony traces the

Mandarin back to Miami.Tony drives all the way to Miami

and sneaks into the building where The Mandarin is staying. When he finds The Mandarin, he notices that he is just a bad actor with a drink-ing problem. While The Mandarin is telling him information Tony gets captured and held hostage. When the master mind walks in, he tells Tony that they are making Pepper and Extremis. An Extremis is not human, they are more like a creature.

While Tony is captured, he calls for his suit and breaks out. While Tony gets captured so does the president at a loading dock. There were over 50 suits flown to the

dock. One by one suits are breaking and Extremis are dying. Tony and Rhodes fight until they have noth-ing else to destroy.

“Iron Man 3 was just amazing. I can’t get enough of it, I’ve already seen it twice,” Jordin Rhode-back said.

May2013

7The Catalyst

A&E

Are you kitten me right meow?

1. Name/ Nickname?Mitsy2. Age?63. What is your favorite thing

to do with your cat? Just hang out and pet her.4. Describe you and your cats

relationship in one word and explain why.

Best friends. When no one else is there for me she is and she loves me all the time and always wants to be with me.

5. If your cat was a breed of dog, what would it be?

I don’t know…6. Cat or dog person? Why?Both I love all animals.7. One story about your

cat… One time while I was lying in my bed Mitsy came up and dropped something wet by my hand. I thought it

was her toy that she likes to play fetch with a lot so I went to pick it up and it squeaked! Turns out she brought a live mouse onto my bed. The last thing I saw was it scamper away into my covers. I ran out of my room into the dark hallway only to run straight into a wall. However I wasn’t mad at Mitsy because she thought she was giving me a gift. It’s how she shows she loves me.

8. On a scale of 1-10 how cat obsessed are you? Explain. Probably a 9! I love my cats.9. What do you love most about your cat? I love how they each have unique personalities and are the best friends you could ask for.10. What do you say to cat haters? They obviously don’t have a cat.11. Can your cat do any tricks? Mitsy can sit on command if I have a treat. Sometimes they like to play fetch and Mitsy used todobackflips12. What makes your cat special? Mitsy is special for a lot of reasons. She has a really shiny and soft coat, she’s very photogenic, and I’m the

only person she likes. She attacks people when they come into my room and will only let me pet her. She only cuddles up to me and she sleeps on top of me every night. However, Mitsy wont go near anyone else. And while I’m at school she just hides in my room until I get back and then greets me happily.

Megan Volkmann Nothing better than loving a cat

By Gabriella Nilsson, Reporter

There are always those people that hate cats, then the ones that don’t care about cats, and the ones that are completely obsessed with cats. But let’s face it; I know everyone has liked cats at some point in their life.IknowasakidyouusedtowatchGarfield,

Aristocat’s, Tom and Jerry, Cat in the Hat, Stuart little with Snowball, Shrek with Puss in Boots and the list could just go on and on. You may hate cats now but at one point you liked one of thesecats.NoonecanpossiblyhateGarfieldorPuss in Boots.

These are only famous cartoon cats though. How about some real famous cats? Most cats became famous through the internet like the fol-lowing have:

A cat wearing a short tie plays music on a cat-shaped keyboard (“Pancake Meowsic Video,” 185,459 views). A woman performs sun saluta-tions with a cat on her back (“Cat Loves Yoga,” 1,539 views). A man slaps two cats on an iron-ing board to the beat of “Atmosphere” (“Cat Slap Joy Division,” 357,605 views; watch this one). (Now, I mean.) Kittens try to keep up with an accelerating treadmill (“Treadmill Kittens,” 3.4 million views). A fat cat walks on an under-water treadmill (“Fat Cat Walking on Underwa-ter Treadmill,” 133,434 views). Two cats cuff at a treadmill in perplexed inquisition (“Cats Try to Understand Treadmill,” 1.9 million views). There are plenty more that YouTube has to offer.

One cat we’re probably more familiar with, Grumpy Cat, got famous the same way. What many probably don’t know is that Grumpy Cat’s name is Tard, short for Tartar Sauce. Tard is nothing like the movie star cats we were used to when growing up, but she got famous for her

facial features. She has her top parts of her eyes slightly bent in and her mouth naturally shaped inastrongdownwardcurve.Tarddefinitelydoesn’t look like the happiest of kitties.

When a photo of Tard was posted on Red-dit in September of 2012, her journey of fame began.Whenthephotowasfirstposted,peoplebelieved that it was photo shopped. To prove that Grumpy cat actually had the features of be-ing grumpy, her owners uploaded a video of her. Tards videos soon went viral and that’s when an actual website called grumpycats.com was set up so that the whole world could enjoy photos of her.

According to the Q&A section on grumpy-cats.com, Tard is actually a very friendly cat and loves to be held and rubbed. In most of the videos they have of her, she seems to be just as playful as any other cat.

Now that Tard was becoming more and more viral, they began to make memes out of her. You cannowfindseveralvariationsofGrumpyCatall over the world featuring different captions. According to grumpycats.com, one of the most famous captions for the meme is, “I had fun once. It was awful.”

By December 2012, Grumpy Cat already had almost 100,000 likes on Facebook; she was only introduced 2 months before. Just a few months after this, Grumpy Cat was introduced to the so-cial web and now has her own T-shirts and was even picked up for a story on NBC.

A grumpy cat seems to be exactly what the internet needs to become a real star. If you want tofindmorepicturesofGrumpyCat,youcanfindheronYouTube,grumpycats.com,andevenTumblr.

Before the internet, before electricity, before there was much of anything to do, there was a different form of entertainment- cats. The an-cient Egyptians thought cats were the best, wor-shipping them as gods and burying them in jars with Pharaohs. Though this might be a bit of a stretch for today’s standards (because worship-ping cats and storing their dead bodies in clay jars is generally frowned upon and probably illegal) there are still an abundance of entertain-ment opportunities that cats canoffer.

First and foremost- lasers. Run them into walls, make them schizophrenic, and wreak havoc throughout the entire world. Lasers are actually harmless fun for cats, and just trigger a biological instinct to chase something small and moving. Having your cat chase a laser for too long, however, can anger or even depress your cat because of its inability to catch its “prey”. Also, refrain from running the laser off of tall structures because, chances are, the cat will blindly follow.

As if humans don’t have enough of a drug problem, your average pet store will sell bags of catnip, which is another great form of entertain-ment for cats. Essentially acting as a psychoac-tive drug for cats, catnip has been known to have medicinal properties for humans, but only for things like curing colds and headaches. Cats can smell or ingest catnip, and will usually feel the effects instantly. Typically, they will stretch outintoanawkwardpositiononthefloor,notmove for the next 15 minutes, and stare intently

Fun things to do with catsBy Keaton Brown, Business Manager

1. Name/ Nickname? Lily2. Age? 83. What is your favorite thing to do with

your cat? I like to just hold it. Cats don’t really play

fetch or anything like that.4. Describe you and your cats relationship

in one word and explain why. Loyal or affectionate because I like my cat

and it likes me.5. If your cat was a breed of dog, what

would it be? Probably a labrodoodle just like my dog.6. Cat or dog person? Why? Both, but cats are my favorite because they

have a lot of personality.7. One story about your cat… Once Lily killed a scorpion.8. On a scale of 1-10 how cat obsessed are

you? Explain. 79. What do you love most about your cat? I love how when I get home they run up to

greet me!10. What do you say to cat haters? Why do you hate cats?11. Can your cat do any tricks?No, its much too fat.12. What makes your cat special? She’s really nice. Never tries to run away or

get feisty.

Luke Goodrich1. Name/ Nickname? Her name is Tiki, but everyone calls her Sharon2. Age?7 years old.3. What is your favorite thing to do with your cat? My favorite thing to do with Sharon cuddle, because she’s not in the cuddling mood very often4. Describe you and your cats relationship in one word and explain why. Extraordinary! we have an extraordinary relationship because she isn’t attached to anyone like

she is to me. As soon as I leave the house, she meows extremely loud. She lays in my room all day until I get home from school and then she follows me around the rest of the day

5. If your cat was a breed of dog, what would it be? She would probably be a poodle because they are very fancy and elegant and so is she6. Cat or dog person? Why?I’madefinitecatperson.I’vebeenacatpersonforaslongasIcanremember.WhenIwas3,

I wanted to live in a pink house with 100 cats. I’m a cat person because they each have their own individual and unique personality

7. One story about your cat…Formy10thbirthday,myparentstoldmeIcouldgetacat.IwasSOexcited.Iwantedtofind

a white cat with blue eyes. Walking in, this tiny little white kitten with bright blue eyes imme-diately caught my eye. I held her and fell in love. We went to another animal shelter to see the others, which is where my mom fell in love with a gorgeous calico cat. She insisted that I get that one, but I refused. We went back and took Sharon home. We’ve been inseparable ever since .

8. On a scale of 1-10 how cat obsessed are you? Explain.I’mdefinitelya10.Ican’tgotoPetsmartwithoutgoingintothecatroom.Istillgototheani-

mal shelter and sit in the cat room for hours at a time and play with all the kitties.9. What do you love most about your cat? Her sassy attitude. One minute you can be petting her, and the next she’s extremely angry and

swings at you wither her clawless paws. Whenever she’s mad though, if you leave and come back 5 minutes later, she’s happy again.

Brooke Waterhouse

10. What do you say to cat haters? I just tell them that they haven’t met Sharon yet.11. Can your cat do any tricks? I taught Sharon how to sit when she was little.12. What makes your cat special?Her eyes are crossed. Sometimes we wonder if she can see many

of the one thing that’s in front of her. It sure does make her cute.

Catz r furryCatz r sweetCatz r sly, and smart, and neat

C a Cat?Pick it up Give it milkIn a cup

Tired of fur?Get a hairlessOr just shave yoursDon’t be careless!

By some catnipFeed your kittyIt will make himWild and giddy

Buy a box, PutYour cat in itIt will make himSchizophrenic

Keep a dogNear your catIt will keep himFrom getting fat

Throw your catUp a treeIt will make himWild and free

Of all the thingsIn the worldCats are the bestIn the world.

Catz r FurryCat poemBy:TaylorScofield

at something in the house. Another time-consuming activity to do with

cats is the world-renowned “Cheez-it Game.” It’s very simple: place as many Cheez-its on top of your cat as you can until the cat wakes up. Currently, according to the original picture via www.reddit.com, the record for the Cheez-it Game sits at 37 Cheez-its. Some tips for setting the new world record: use the largest cat you can find.Notonlywillyouhavethegreatestsurfacearea possible, but usually, the greater the cat, the greater the possibility it has of sleeping through most of the Cheez-it Game.

Some equally entertaining ideas include tap-ing the bottom of cats’ paws or holding them over bathtubs full of water. Cut off a small square of duct tape and simply stick it to the bot-tom of any of the cats’ paws. The cat will franti-cally try to shake it off, walk around with it, and, if it gives up and realizes it’s not that much of a problem, it will probably just go back to sleep. Next,fillabathtubupwithwaterandholdyourcat over it. If the cat is not very fond of water, it will try to stretch out over the bathtub in hopes that if it falls, it will not fall into the water. If your cat becomes angry or does not like these activities, don’t do them.

Cats have always been a favorite form of entertainment for many people. Whether it’s watching the latest compilation of funny kitten videos on YouTube, or drugging your cat with the all-powerful catnip, cats will probably con-tinue to be the entertainment slaves of humans.

The Catalyst10Features

May 2013

By Adrienne Chiapuzio, Reporter

1. The Row-When driving in your car, roll down the windows and start “shadow rowing.” The more people you can get involved the better, but it depends on how many windows you have access to. Make sure you are all row-ing in unison and get the driver to accelerate with every stroke. The facial expressions you will see are priceless.

2. The Employee-Walk in to Best Buy wearing Khaki pants and a blue shirt. Cheerfully agree to help someone when they ask you. Once you have resolved their problem or found their product, inform them that you are not in fact a Best Buy employee. Then put the palm of your hand on their forehead and quietly whisper, “Pass it on.”

3. The Royalty-Next time you are in the drive through, pay for the car’s meal behind you. Give the employee a note to hand to the driver that reads, “It has been discovered that you are of distant British royalty. You may claim the throne if you wish, but we pres-ent you with a deal: we will pay for every meal you ever purchase from this restaurant. There is more where this came from, believe me. Sincerely, the PM.”

4. The “No, not you”- Say hello

gleefully to a stranger and offer them a high five. However, give a high five to your friend who is walking right behind this person instead. Then turn at them with a condescending stare and say “no, not you haha.”

5. The Book Worm- Go to the library and sit next to an old lady. Act like you are having an incred-ibly difficult time reading your superman comic. Over the course of the next 15 minutes, have your reading progress at an unbeliev-able rate. Then look at her and say, “Well I think I am finally ready,” and read the entire first chapter of “Grapes of Wrath” aloud.

6. The Hand Stand- Wear shoes on your hands, pants over your head, and a long-sleeved shirt as pants. Then walk around the closest park. It will look like you are doing a hand stand; so make it look kind of shaky.

7. The Cut- Offer to cut your neighbor’s grass for free. When asked if you need a lawnmower simply state, “Lawnmowers are rub-bish.” Then take out your scissors and begin methodically cutting the grass.

8. The Set-up- Give an identi-cal note to two of your friends (of both genders) that is from a “secret

admirer” and also sets up a meet-ing time. Then watch your friends meet and see the awkwardness unfold.

9. The Timer-Turn every clock in your house and your cars ahead an hour. Only you will know the true time.

10. The Beach Boy- Make your dad a “Beach Boys” CD on a blank disc. However, put hard screamo on the CD instead. When he asks you about it tell him that it’s their later stuff.

11. The Ladder- While your swamp cooler is being prepared for the long summer, there is always cause to get on the roof. It doesn’t matter who is on your roof, simply take the ladder down and watch the hilarity unfold

12. The Work Out- Go in to Sports Authority and do an hour long work out every day. See how long it takes them to notice.

13. The Chocolate- Pick one person that you see a lot, a family member is best. Whenever they are in a good mood, give them chocolate. Continue doing this all summer (this one takes persis-tence). By the winter you should be able to give them chocolate if they are in a bad mood and they will immediately transform.

13 ways to fend off boredom

The death of dances

Dances have long been ex-hilarating and highly anticipated events here at Fruita Monument High School. The fun of cutting loose and enjoying a late night with your friends is an experi-ence that is hard to match. How-ever, these feelings are dwindling among the Wildcat population as school dances become more and more unpopular while private dances and express raves become the preference of many Fruita students.

These express raves are dance parties thrown by the “Express” cheer-leaders. They take place in residential homes with little or no parental supervision. An increas-ing number of students have been attending such raves that typically take place about four times a year. Mostly juniors and seniors participate in these parties as they require transportation to and from the homes, and they usually end late enough so that most parents would not be awake.

However, these raves aren’t the only thing competing with school dances, there are also now private dances being held to protest the lights-on-hands-off policies of the district’s new dances. They have so far been cheaper than school dances, and more fun, according to students. The most recent, and most well-attended, private dance was the Neon Blackout Prom held at the Country Inn on April 26th.

“I think since there weren’t as many chap-erones, kids thought it would be more fun, but it was also safe,” said sophomore Brett John-son. “It was a lot of fun. It was a cool environ-ment to be in,” he added, smiling at the memory of that night.

Johnson also attended a school sponsored dance this year. “I went to homecoming. That wasn’t very fun. The lights were on, so that was dumb.” Johnson also claimed there were at least four hundred

people packed into the Country Inn.Johnson wasn’t the only sopho-

more having fun at the Neon Black-out Prom. Jillian Caldwell also attended the private rave and she only confirmed Johnson’s analysis.

When asked if it was more fun than school dances, Caldwell re-sponded, “Absolutely. It was mainly because more people went to it, and there was better music and lights. It was just more entertaining.”

She even shared Johnson’s sentiment about this year’s school dances. Caldwell said that school

dances were just not fun because not enough people went and because the music was “all country.” How-ever, she did also say that the first two school dances this year were enjoyable experiences, but as attendance dwindled, so did the fun.

Allie Johnston, a member of

student senate and an influential figure in school dance-planning, said that she does not anticipate school dances to change in order to compete with these new threats because the whole district would have to change its policies about dances. Johnston said that the only way the district’s dance policies would be altered is if the dances became economically unproductive.

“If it got to that point, then maybe things would change, but I really don’t think it will,” said Johnston. “If the dances continue to be like Wild West attendance-wise, then we may have to rethink how we’re approaching these things.”

Pick-up paloozaFruita Monument High School is

known for its large amount of cow-boys and cowgirls. A whole section of the parking lot, the most popular spot being right by the Ag shop, is dominated by pick-up trucks, mud and horse poop. There are a variety of trucks at Fruita, each a reflection of their owner.

Sean Ulibarri models his truck outside the Ag building.

Tucker Haptonstall shows off his trucks good looks.

Pick-up trucks group together to show the little car who’s boss.

Dain Lewis represents GMC here at Fruita Monument.

Emilio Crespin displays his Ford truck.

By Taylor Scofield, Commentary EditorBy Sam Cyphers , Reporter

Jillian Caldwell and Sonya Lopez get ready for Neon

Blackout Prom.

Fruita will always be known for its mass amount of pickup trucks and the horse poop they’re sure to carry in. Students, watch your step and your parking space.

Two friends show off their battle scars after several games of vol-

leyball.

Flinging into spring

Mr. Stone armed with only a squirt gun and

his moose head helmet, watches a near hit to a

soaking end.

Covered in paint after a game of volleyball,

friends have fun during Spring Fling.

Brook Munch, Megan Kilgore, Sierra White and Kyle Kincaid pose for a group shot after

volleyball.

Spring Fling, originally a reward or an incentive for students to show up for TCAP testing, has become a tradi-tion with a chance to spend our R&R tickets for prizes. This year had more people attend than many Spring

Flings in the past and more prizes were given out. The teachers decided next year’s Spring Fling will be moved to after the seniors’ final day so their last chance to study for AP tests isn’t a shortened day.

“And that’s more of just the warm-up to actually skydiving.”

The experience that Wood had was extraordinary. Not only does she plan to skydive several more times, but encourages those around her to try the exhilarating free fall and not pass up the opportunity because of fear.

“I think it’s hyped up to be scarier than it really is,” said Wood.

She started out by gearing up with a jumpsuit, a helmet and a pair of goggles. They trained her on the ground for the next 30-60 minutes, explaining the precautions as she prepared to get into the plane. Some people may call it “jumping to their death,” but senior Hannah Wood was jumping into the begin-ning of her summer as she fulfilled her lifelong dream of skydiving.

“It’s always been on my bucket list,” said Wood.

In order to legally skydive, the diver must be 18 years old and jump with an instructor for at least the first few dives until they reach a high enough level of experience to jump solo. Wood did not pass up her opportunity as she turned 18 on April 10th and went to Skydive Zion in Utah on April 19th.

She did not undergo this journey alone as Wood convinced her mother, Susan Wood, to skydive as well. The two had to go on different flights, though, because the only people in each plane ride are the pilot, instructor and current diver.

“They taught us the rules before we went into the plane,” said Wood. “I had to learn how to spread my arms when I was in the air.”

At Skydive Zion, the staff gives you the option of having your flight

videotaped. From the moment the plane takes off to the second the diver lands, the entire jump can be documented as the diver flies through the air looking over the canyons of Zion National Park.

Wood’s instructor had a go pro on his arm so she could relive that first jump over and over again.

“I wasn’t even nervous when I was getting ready to jump,” said Wood, I just wanted to go for it.”

Flying through the sky at 120 mph at 1400 feet above sea level may seem a bit overwhelming for some, but all Wood felt right before she jumped out of the plane was a

huge burst of adrenaline. “It just felt like I was floating,”

said Wood. “You really don’t have that ‘drop’ feeling that you get on something like the Tower of Ter-ror.”

After the jump from the plane, Wood, attached to her instruc-tor, was in free fall for around 45 seconds. Once that time limit was over, they were to have been around 5000 feet above the ground and therefore deployed the para-chute.

“After the parachute went out it was like instant peace,” said Wood, “We just slowly glided through the

air until we hit the ground about 10 minutes later.”

The fear of a parachute malfunc-tion should never present at Skydive Zion considering that they have never had any fatalities since the program first opened up in 2000. The act of a parachute success or failure is usually in the control of the diver, anyways. The design, inspection, maintenance, packing, and how cautious the diver is when putting the parachute on are all things that can affect the ability of the parachute and are all aspects controlled by the diver.

Even though some may have that deathly fear of the parachute not deploying, many have the same mindset as Wood does.

Physics teacher Caleb Hicks, for the past few years, has attempted to persuade his senior students to get a group together and all go skydiv-ing.

“I encourage them because they could experience what they learned in class in the real world,” said Hicks. “We learn about things like ‘little g’ and they could actually be in free-fall themselves.”

Hicks himself has never been skydiving, but he is interested in going one day.

“The closest I’ve been to sky-diving is cliff jumping,” said Hicks,

Diving into summerBy Alyssa Urban, Managing Editor

By Teague Van Pelt, Reporter

Hannah Wood prepares for her death defying

dive

May2013

11The Catalyst

Features

The Catalyst 12Commentary

May 2013

By Kat Bird, Reporter

If you’ve been to a grocery store in the past few months, you’ve probably seen a new variety of Lays Potato Chips filling up the shelves. You might have seen the commercial with Eva Longoria in a formal gown shouting about how great these new flavors of chips are. While Lays might have the money to hire celebrities to glorify these unusual snacks, it’s up to the consumers in the economy to de-cide if the strangely flavored chips are worth keeping around.

A big plate of fried chicken and waffles sounds good right now, right? Well how about a bag of chicken and waffle flavored potato chips? No. These chips have had most critics, including me, wishing we could un-taste the awful flavors. Calling these chips a disappoint-ment is an understatement. I love myself some fried chicken and waffles, and I love myself some potato chips, but sometimes putting two things that you love together ends up in tragedy. Remember when you introduced one of your friends to your other friend, and they ended up liking each other better than they liked you? Fried chicken and waffle potato chips are those two friends. They simply do not work well together. If you haven’t got the point, I think that the cinnamon, buttery, crunchy taste these chips provide is awful. Zero out of ten; would not recom-mend.

Your mom is making that glori-ous spaghetti dinner, the smell of the meat balls and tomato sauce is filling the house, but you’re most excited for the garlic cheesy bread. Chances are, if your mom decided to whip out a bag of garlic bread potato chips, you’d be really sad. Not only do the garlic cheesy bread potato chips taste nothing like

actual garlic cheesy bread, Lays got the bright idea to add a tangy flavor, as if to try to replicate fresh garlic. It didn’t work, Lays. The flavor of these chips don’t compare to anything Lays has ever made. The over powering, buttery-cheesy taste mixed with a sour tang will leave you feeling as empty as you felt when your favorite TV series ended. Overall, a very disappoint-ing performance from Lays, two thumbs down.

Finally, Lays decided to end on a good note with their sriracha fla-vored chip. This Asian-esque snack food has a subtle spicy kick that reminds me a lot of their barbeque flavored chips. Everyone that I had tried the chips came to a collective agreement that sriracha was the best out of all of the three. It was the only one that actually tasted like its name. There’s no rant needed for these chips. Although they weren’t the best chips I’ve ever tried, I could swallow them without feeling like crying. Four out of five stars; would recommend.

The three challenging flavors were released by Lays as a market-ing strategy. The chip flavor that everyone likes the best will be the one that Lays continues to make, and stock shelves with. People see these strange flavors and feel obli-gated to try them. After trying the garlic cheesy bread and the chicken and waffles, I was sure that this was a bust for Lays, but even a worst bust for the ones suckered into buy-ing and actually eating them. Even when I enjoyed the sriracha flavor, one out of three isn’t really consid-ered a success. I hope with every-thing I have that Lays steers clear of any more bizarre flavors after this is over. I don’t think I could stand to write a review on a cheese burger and fries flavored potato chip.

Everyone’s heard that there are plenty of fish in the sea. Did you get that? Sea. Fruita Monument High School is not a sea. It’s like, a puddle compared to the rest of the world. But do students realize that? No. Some go and try and wife the girl they met when they were a sophomore. I mean, yeah, I know that high school relation-ships can be incredibly serious, and students who’ve been dating for a year or two may really be in love, but come on. There are only fifteen hundred kids going to this school. Some high schools have more, some have less. And that may seem like a lot, un-til you think about the world you’ll be enter-ing once you leave the world of high school. Los Angeles has three million people in it. New York has eight million. Chicago, two million. Is 1,500 re-ally so vast?

I know when you’re in the thick of it all, high school may seem like

the rest of your life, or it may seem like the entire world, and maybe that’s what’s got some students thinking about the rest of their life with the person they met in health class. And sometimes it works out! I know

a couple who’s getting ready to celebrate their 30th anniver-

sary to-gether. They say it still feels like yes-terday when they first laid eyes on each other in the 8th grade, and have only fallen more deep-ly in

love since their wedding the summer after high school ended, at just eighteen.

But how many of these couples do you know? How many guys end up staying with the girls that they got down on one knee for at their senior

“Why settle for a puddle when you can sail the sea? ”

High School Sweetheart or Ball and Chain?

Lays Flavs: Hit or Miss?

Every school has their own traditions and customs, but one that most schools share is a senior prank. Each year, the seniors come together to do something special to make their mark on the school and town. Over the years, there have been some great senior pranks, like when the class of 2009 welded a car to the flag pole. Each year, it gets harder and harder to be original and memorable, but this year the seniors made many memories.

On Sunday April 29, 2013, the seniors decided to camp out at the school overnight. They all got together and pitched tents and slept under the stars. “The parking lot had been really crowded with sophomores, so we just came and filled it up and spent the night on the football field. There were quite a few people there, probably 40 or 50,” said senior Matt Bear.

Sometimes seniors play tricks or do something crazy, but this year’s seniors were very laid back. “We should have planned more for this year; we just didn’t really have time,” said Bear.

The seniors stayed on the field until early Monday morning. “Mr. Squibb came and woke us up honk-ing the horn on the lawn mower at like 6:30 am,” said Bear. The seniors all cleared out before people started arriving to school, one of the reasons many students didn’t know about the camp out.

Other than some slight sleep de-privation and senioritis, the students were all in good spirits that Monday day at school.

Students at highschools also sometimes create traditions that years following them even pick up. For example, it has become a tradi-tion for students to paint Redlands

Senior Campout By NicoleTwardowski, reporter

parkway each year. Although a risky task, it has always happened and Fruita Monument High school stu-dents have never been disappointed in their seniors.

At the end of spring break, they decided to take on the task. “The first time we went out there were about ten of us and the second time there were about eight,” reported an anonymous source from Fruita Monument high school.

“We met at 1:30 in the morn-ing and it took us like 2 and a half hours that night. Then we went back the next weekend for a good hour. We used a total of 22 cans of spray paint,” said the same source.

Holding down a spray paint can for that long is a feat in itself. “It was a lot of fun. Our arms were so sore the next day. It was scary. We had to hide behind the guard rail when cars came by. You would think there wouldn’t be any at three

in the morning but there were so many. I was scared we were going to see cops and get caught, but we never did.”

Although the senior campout isn’t very well known among Fruita Monument students, it was a clever idea and it sounds like it was a fun time. Spray painting Redlands Parkway proved to be a great

bonding experience for the seniors and is something they may remem-ber even after they have left Frutia Monument.

By Lyric Fortson, Commentary Editor

prom? Not very many. Because once high school ends, and you’re married to your sweetheart, reality hits. The world and jobs. College if you decide to go, which might mean a long distance relationship. There’s housing if you don’t, bills and living together. And what’s more than all of those, you’re exposed to people of different mentalities and different ways of thinking, differ-ent than your home town filled with people exactly like the one you’re suddenly regretting marrying. You meet people who introduce you to new ways of being and acting. They challenge you in ways no one in your home town did, many times, in much more conducive to the person you are. You just didn’t know, because you were only surrounded with the people of that small town, like Fruita, or Junction.

Even when you’re legally an adult, you’re still a teenager. That’s why they tack on the ‘teen’ to eigh-teen and nineteen. Your brain is still growing. Your thoughts are expand-ing. You’ve not quite yet reached your full potential. You’re not the person you’re going to be just yet. And the person you’re with may be perfect for who are now, but not who you will be in the next couple years.

Marriage straight out of high school is a straight terrible idea. Your ideas, your mind, your life, are much more expansive than the 1,500 people in the high school you attend. Much more expansive than your girlfriend or boyfriend. It may seem like love now, and though it’s going to hurt to say goodbye, the love to come with people to come will be so much more exhilarating than any relationship you could pick out of the fifteen hundred people you grew up with. Why settle in a puddle when you can sail the sea?

By Whitney Wanstrath, Reporter

Have you ever been on a vacation where you felt what you would imagine true happi-ness really felt like? Many of the students and teachers at FMHS have experienced this remark-able phenomenon.

Kristin Gross remarked that the best trip she has ever been on was to Key West because it has a “different culture “, that is all their own, along with being “just gorgeous down there”. Her husband and she visited the incredible place for a family reunion – most of the family being from Florida, which is “cool in itself”. Key West also

has “such a different ecosystem”, and it is “so green there”, with “kudzu” growing “everywhere”. Another of her favorite vaca-tions was when her husband and her traveled to Las Vegas. She believes that “If you go to Vegas and all you do is gamble, you’re just, ‘Well, I could have used that money somewhere else, on better stuff.’” However, this trip was different from her others to Vegas, considering she went zip lining about an hour outside of the actual city. They “take you up, outside of Vegas” on a “series of them for 45 minutes”. Her husband and her also ex-perienced the “Cirqdue Sol Lei Mystere” and another Cirqdue Sol Lei. They “had a blast” and also got to watch “America’s Best Dance Show”. Since Gross and her husband had “booked their stuff online”, they were able to stay in “these towers in the back” of Planet Hollywood. Because her husband doesn’t want to fly, they flew to Vegas and Florida to get him used to it. He’s “not big on traveling”, but Gross loves it.

The worst vacation Gross

ever came across was her honeymoon, believe it or not. First of all, her sister-in-law, her bridesmaid was unable to make it to the wedding. Then, Jeff (her husband), came down with “the stomach flu.” Kristin and him still took a trip down to Colorado Springs, booked the hotel online. After asking her “Was it rough?” she responded with “Oh yeah.” They went home early because he had the stomach flu.

Sophomore, Jillian Caldwell, is especially excited for the school trip to Spain she has the pleasure of going on at the very beginning of her summer vaca-

tion. Last summer, she went to Hawaii for a different school trip. It was her favorite because they “camped out on beaches and went hiking.” So they “didn’t do any tourist stuff.” The group “cooked” their own “food on the beach”. They also “got to see beaches that most people wouldn’t.” She couldn’t think of a vacation she did not enjoy.

Josh Schweigart, junior, considered his best vacation “Fort Lauderdale, Florida” because he went snorkeling. He recounts that he “saw fish and ate barbeque and basically everyone on the beach was naked”, which he thought was a negative. Yet, the overall experience was amazing!

His worst vacation was in Moab because he “hates it cause it’s hot”. Josh recalls that his “mountain bike broke”, and then the trip just went downhill from there.

Junior, Katie Klene, traveled to Italy the summer after her freshman year with a group from the school. She visited the Lean-ing Tower of Pisa and Pompeii where she “saw all the ancient

Best vacations ever

buildings and the volcano”. The ruins were “really cool”, along with “a person and a dog that were petrified”. The fresco paintings were beautiful in the supermarket. There were “amaz-ing marble buildings all over Italy”. Katie also experienced her first “Gondola ride!” which she described as being “amazing”. She “kind of wanted to live there just so I could take one to my house every day”. He didn’t sing though, which was “kind of dis-appointing”. An Italian stole her hate while she was in Italy. Wait, what? “Yeah, pretty interesting story. We were walking back to the hotel, from a beach, and two

guys on a moped were talking to me in Italian, so I couldn’t under-stand them. They just took my hat right off my head.” Well, that’s not some-thing you hear every day.

Ka-tie’s worst vaca-tion was

when she “went to Florida and it rained the whole time. We had no um-brellas, no raincoats, no warm clothes, no jackets.” When asked if she went home early, Katie responded with, “No. We just bought some sweatshirts.” How-ever, it “wasn’t very fun cause we were miserable since we couldn’t do much”. Hey, at least Italy made up for it!

Mackenzie Schuller’s favorite vacation was when she went to Disneyland in seventh grade. She explains, “It was a surprise. Dad surprised us on Christmas Day and gave us all gift cards. It was really spontaneous.” Her favorite rides were ‘Screaming California’ or ‘Indiana Jones’ because they were “exhilarating”.

Her worst vacation was the time she “went to Yellowstone and stayed in a cabin”, consider-ing she “got sick on the car ride up there” and was “throwing up the whole four days” they were there. Her family gave her “ev-erything” she “needed”, but then, left her to go off and do fun stuff.

So wherever you find yourself, make good choices.

Teachers are some of the most patient people in the working world. Their job is to teach mate-rial to hundreds of students that all learn in different ways. Some students get really good grades and some…not so much. So, how do teachers know if their methods are working? One way to help teachers understand if they are doing a good job is to let students grade their teachers at the end of each year.

Some teachers may think this is a terrible idea that puts too much pressure on them, but others like the idea and think it can help them personally become better at their job.

The way students are taught in high school affects the rest of their lives. If they do not have the ability to get good grades in high school, they may be limited in ca-reer choices. That is why it could be beneficial for teachers to know how well they are getting their messages across. A reason teach-ers begin teaching is to improve the life of children and teens and give them an opportunity to do what they want with their lives.

“I think it is a good idea because then you will help out the people coming in next year so that the teacher knows if they can do anything to improve and the new students won’t get stuck in a bad situation,” said sophomore at Fruita Monument High School, Sarah Benton.

Other people think it could be a good idea, but with limitations. “I think you should be able to

grade your teachers but it should not affect their pay or any of the bonuses they receive so kids won’t try to sabotage teachers. But I think it could help improve them as a teacher and it will help them under-stand where the kids come from,” said sophomore Ty Taylor.

This idea also has its downsides. For example, there could be some-one that is a great teacher but mean and not understanding. Students could grade that teacher poorly for a job that was actually done very well.

“I think that this idea is unfair because if students like a teacher but he is an awful teacher, they will grade him well, whereas a good, strict teacher could be graded poor-ly for actually doing their job. It is all subjective and you never really get an idea of how well a teacher is doing their job,” said sophomore Nicholas Chaffee.

This idea would likely cause problems and anger teachers. There are already teachers unions and this proposition could set them off the edge and create more problems than a simple grade is worth. Teachers would likely strike and demand the end to it.

Whether this is a good idea or not, you decide. There are several different sides to this argument and many different ways to think about it. To some, it could be offensive and threatening, but to others it could be helpful. Eventually, this could possibly work, but right now, it would create more problems and chaos in the education system.

Should students grade teachers?By Nicole Twardowski, Reporter

May2013

13The Catalyst

Commentary

The Catalyst14Sports

May 2013

The Golden State Warriors’ Harrison Barnes (40) dunks against the San Antonio Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard (2) in the first quarter of Game 6 in the Western Conference semifinals.

By Megan Hunter, Reporter

It’s that time of year again where bets are being made and history is being changed. The NBA playoffs are here at last! This year it has new teams fighting for a chance to be the NBA Champions. This year the teams are eager to win and bring home a championship.

Oklahoma City Thunder vs.

Houston RocketsThe first game went to the Okla-

homa City Thunder who played at home and won 120-91. The second game was a little more intense and was a close game at home for the Thunder who ended up win-ning 105-102. The third game was another close one again the Rockets lost at home by three 104-101. The series was then looking bright for the Thunder leading the series 3-0. But in the fourth game things were starting to turn around for the Rockets. They ended up winning at home 105-102. The Thunder only needed one more win to advance to the next round. But the fourth game they ended up losing at home 107-100. But finally in game six at Houston the Thunder came back and ended up advancing to the next round winning 103-94.

Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets.

Things were looking bright for the Nuggets who won sixteen straight games before coming into the playoffs. But the Warriors never back down from a fight. The first game was a close win for the Nug-gets at home winning 97-95. The Denver Nuggets had the best home record in the league and still do. The second game Nuggets ended up losing to the Warriors 131-117. The series was then tied 1-1and could have gone either way for either team. The third game Golden State ended up winning 110-108 on their home court. Things were

not looking good for the Nuggets. The fourth game rolled around and they ended up losing again to the Warriors 115-101. The series was then looking like the Nuggets were not advancing with the Warriors leading 3-1. The fourth game was at home for the Nuggets and they won 107-100 breaking the serious to within one 3-2. But on the sixth game the Nuggets would fall short and lose 92-88.

“I wanted Golden State Warriors to win because I like it when the underdogs make it to the finals,” sophomore Randy Hurshman said.

Chicago Bulls vs. Brooklyn Nets.

This was the first time the Brooklyn Nets ever advanced to the playoffs because this year was their first season in the NBA since they moved from New Jersey to Brooklyn, New York. The first game was at home for the Nets who ended up beating the Bulls 106-89. It was a good start to the playoffs for the rookie team and it gave them the confidence to go into the second game. The second game was at home again for the Nets and they ended up losing to the Bulls 90-82. The series was then tied 1-1. The third game was at home for the Bulls who ended up winning only by three with a score of 79-76. In game four the Bulls at home beat the Nets 142-134. Things weren’t looking good for the Brooklyn Nets trailing in the series 3-1. But in game five the Nets made a come-back beating the Bulls 110-91. The Bulls just needed one more game to win and advance into the next round. But the Bulls would have to wait until another game because they lost 95-92 on their home court. But in game six they got back at the Nets beating them on their home court 99-93. They then advanced to play Miami in the next round of the

playoffs. “Miami Heat is going to win

because they have the big three; LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh,” sophomore Chris Cordova said.

Atlanta Hawks vs. Indiana Pacers.

The first game was a landslide for the Indiana Pacers beating the Hawks 107-90 at home. The second game was also another huge victory for the Pacers they beat the Hawks 113-98 at home again. The series was looking pretty bad for the Hawks. The third game was a home game for the Hawks and they ended up winning 90-69. The fourth game was another win for the Hawks 102-91. The series was then tied 2-2 and could have gone either way for either team. But the Pacers would then again take the lead winning the fifth game 106-83. The Hawks had one more chance to tie the series and force a game seven. But the Hawks came up short losing game six at home with a score of 81-73.

Second Round of Playoffs Mi-ami Heat vs. Chicago Bulls

In the second round of the NBA playoffs the Chicago Bulls had a rough opponent facing the Miami Heat to advance to the last round of the playoffs. The first game LeBron James received his fourth MVP award which put the Heat in good spirits. But they were soon caught off guard by the Bulls losing 93-86. The Bulls were feeling pretty confi-dent with the way they played. But in the second game they got to see the Miami Heat at their strongest and lost 115-78. The series was then tied 1-1. In the third game the Bulls finally got a home game but then lost to Miami 104-94. Things were not looking so good for the Bulls in game four either. They lost

again at home 88-65. The Heat was ahead in the series 3-1they just needed one more game and they would then advance. That was exactly what they did. They won the finally game 94-91. The Bulls may have gone home empty handed but they really made it a tough win for the Heat and there is always next year.

“I am glad Miami is moving on because Chicago already has six championships,” sophomore MiKealy Thomas said.

Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Memphis Grizzlies

Another match-up in the second round was the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. the Memphis Grizzlies. The first game was a close one for the Thunder win-ning at home 93-91. In the sec-ond game, the Thunder had the lead in the beginning but then lost it in the end, 99-93. The se-ries then wasn’t looking so good for when the star player Russell Westbrook had a knee injury. In the third game, the Thunder came up short again losing to the Grizzlies 87-81. The series was not looking so good for the Thunder as they lost again to the Grizzlies 103-97. The Thunder then lost the last game to the Grizzlies losing 88-84 at home. This was an easy sweep for the Memphis Grizzlies they didn’t really have much of a challenge.

In the playoffs this year there have been many intense games with every team working their hardest to win. The outcome of the game doesn’t always show the intensity level of how hard each team is playing. The upcoming series will be an inter-esting one having the Memphis Grizzlies facing the San Antonio Spurs. It’s been a while since the

Spurs have gotten this far.

“In the end I think that the Spurs and the Heat are going to be the top teams left. I’m excited because they are both re-ally good teams so it should be a really good game,” junior Michelle Hunter said.

Normally they would play LA Lakers but this year the LA Lakers didn’t make it that far. The series has had some under-dogs come out and give the really good teams a run for their money. This year’s play-offs have been an interesting one. It will be surprising to see who comes out on top.

Playoffs?!? Playoffs?!?

There are many sports that are played all around the world but one of the more dangerous ones is moto-cross. It involves a good amount of courage, bravery and skill, maintain-ing a high speed while riding right towards a stationary object with the intent of jumping over it usually does. The word motocross comes from the French term for combining motorcycling and cross country be-cause motocross tracks are made of mostly dirt roads, muddy tracks, and hills and the first ever motocross race was in 1924. Races are measured in time; in motocross getting a low score is okay. According to wise-GEEK the bikes used in motocross are much lighter than motorcycles because the heavy metal used in motorcycles is replaced with lighter metals such as aluminum.

Motocross riders need to be in the best physical shape so they can successfully pull those death-defying stunts and just maintain control on a course that demands high risks. A lot of people get motocross and super-cross mixed up. They have the same concept but supercross is done on a track like the ones used in NASCAR races. Motocross tracks are all usu-ally made from natural terrain and aren’t torn down after each use like supercross tracks.

Motocross is done world-wide and there are numerous tourna-ments and races per year. Riders travel all across the globe to do what they love, and hope they can finish in a low time.

Sophomore Emilio Crespin has been doing motocross for 6 years now.

“It’s an endurance sport that really tests me mentally and physi-cally. I also love the feeling of rid-ing.” Said Crespin. “The best ranking I’ve gotten was third place.” Moto-cross is a hard sport to do profession-ally. Many don’t end up making it.

“I wouldn’t mind doing motocross professionally but it’s really hard to make it into the circuit finals because there are a lot of good riders.”

In order to be the best riders have to practice so much. “I usually ride or practice every weekend.” Said Crespin. There are others in this school that have done motocross but the numbers are dwindling down. It’s lost some of its popularity but maintains to be a really cool sport.

“My favorite part of the motocross track are the jumps, the corners and the wops.” Said Crespin. “But I also love the feeling of being in the air when you go up for the jumps. I feel so free and alive. It’s nice.”

Motocross remains to be one of the most dangerous sports but is slowly being passed up by sports like football and basketball when it comes to the numbers of people doing it. It’s also because motocross requires commitment and money ac-cording to wiseGEEK.

“Motocross is probably one of the best sports out there, and it’s the most fun and exhilarating thing I’ve done.” Said Crespin.

Motocross Rocks

By Adrienne Chiapuzio, Reporter

By Jake Gulden, Reporter

The regular season for the Na-tional Hockey League is over and the playoffs have begun for 16 dif-ferent teams. After a shortened sea-son the players are more energetic than they ever were and anxious to make it to the final. The Stanley Cup, originating in 1926, has been the goal to reach in the minds of every player in the NHL. It is well known that playoffs tend to be very brutal and intense leading to inju-ries, fights and faster paced games. Also, the playoffs are never predict-able. The Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburg Penguins have been unstoppable in the regular season and are the favorites going into the playoffs, but even though they are the best they can easily be stopped quickly in the first round.

Not only are the teams excited to get playing, fans across the nation bicker at one another making pre-dictions and defending their teams. Dreams of winning the Cup can be crushed and fans will never forget the losses, making old playoff rival-ries. The Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers have played each other in the first round for the last three years. The Capitals beat the Rangers first and the Rangers returned the favor in the next year, this year will be the tie breaker and it is seen that fans are already fighting. “I don’t think the Rangers will be able to handle the home ice advantage,” Said Adam Klaich a local Capitals fan. Sure enough the local Rangers fan had to defend his team, “The Rangers have the best goalie in the league, and they won’t

be able to get by them,” Said Schyler Stratton.

Predictions go around as well from all the fans whose teams didn’t make it, some outrageous and some seem likely, but then again nothing is predictable in the NHL playoffs. “I think the Ot-tawa Senators will go far maybe even win” said Bram Heberle, making a bold prediction for the seventh seed team in the east. “I’m pulling for the Maple Leafs, but I think either the Penguins or the Blackhawks will win it,” said Travis Hash making sensible pre-dictions for the top seeded teams in the playoffs. Nothing can be predictable though, last year the eighth seeded team, The Los Angeles Kings, dominated and defiled all the odds to go and win the Stanley Cup, a true Cinderella story.

The Stanley Cup is brutal and intense which is most likely the reason why so many fans return, even if their team doesn’t make it. The sacrifice and selflessness of the players during the playoffs keeps the fans loving the teams. The anxiety to get to the Stan-ley Cup is almost unbearable to many and sometimes the hope is crushed by losses, but when a team makes it the thrilling part of the playoffs sounds when thou-sands of people rumble the very stadium they’re in. whether the ending result is the likely one or completely unpredictable, every hockey fan is waiting for the playoffs to begin.

Playoffs!

For many high school students, getting to go to a Division 1 school almost seems impossible. Whether it is all the requirements to get in, it can be challenge. For one sophomore, going to a Division 1 school is already in her future.

Courtney Coffey recently committed to Denver Univer-sity for soccer. Although she can’t technically sign because she is a sophomore, she did verbally commit.

With many other schools looking at her: ASU, Northern Arizona University, University of Miami, Grand Canyon Uni-versity and many more, Coffey decided to choose a college a little closer to home. There were many other decisions she had to think about such as. The coaches and the players at all the colleges but she found she really enjoyed the coach and every player at DU.

“It was a great fit for me. I loved the coaches and the girls. They play at a very high level, and I get to be somewhat close to home, so it’ll be easier to see all my family,” Coffey stated.

At the start of this year’s soccer sason, Coffey had torn her ACL. Even with a torn ACL, Coffey could never stop playing the sport she loves. No sport injury is easy, but with months of rehab and a surgery, Coffey’s knee is on the road to healing.

“My knee is currently my biggest challenge, just making sure I fully rehab and heal before I can play again. I was so happy to commit to DU with an injury. It was an honor,” Coffey claimed.

With Coffey playing on a national league team, a team that travels to different places to play against high competition, major D1 schools are looking for committed players between their sophomore and junior year in the springtime. High school students change their mind on many things. They could change their mind about what they want to wear, who they want to be friends with and even what college they want to attend. For Coffey, she can’t change her college plans and she is more than fine with that.

“When you have ASU, DU and univer-sity of Arizona offer-ing you close to or a full ride, you aren’t

going to deny them because when you do, you close the doors perma-nently and it’s a great opportunity,” Coffey said.

Many high school students don’t have a clue as to where they want to go until their junior or senior year. There are also students who have a goal to go to a college that they have wanted to go to for a long time. However Coffey had started looking for colleges about two years ago and DU was one of them.

“I’m thrilled to be already com-mitted, I love the school. They proved to me how committed they were to me. They even had the entire team meet me for a brunch on their day off, and I’ve had a great experience with them,” Coffey stated.

When athletes are looking at colleges they are drawn to looking at the teams statistics over the past years. Knowing that the record of the team is good can make the decision easier. With the fact that DU’s soccer team had made it to the sweet sixteen last year in the NCAA tournament and they want Cof-fey, she could not decline the offer.

“The scariest part was making such a big decision right now, knowing I won’t be going to college for another two years and predicting now the path that I will take later. I am young but this was the position I’m in and I feel great about my decision. The soccer, the academ-ics and the head coach are phenom-enal,” Cof-fey claimed.

Coffey had made one of the

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith battles Chicago Blackhawks center Dave Bolland during the first period in Game 3 of the NHL Western Conference semi-finals in Detroit, Michigan

biggest decisions for her future dur-ing her sophomore year. She has an injury but she still got recruited by one of the biggest colleges in Colo-rado. With years of hard work and passion for the game, Coffey could not let an injury ruin her future; she simply went around it and she plans to get right back after she heals.

Coffey signs as sophomoreBy Taylor Eatwell, Reporter

Photo by Taylor Eatwell

May2013

15The Catalyst

Sports

(on ice)

If you got a kitten, what would you name it?