Opinions 

Whether a film, or anything, is good or bad, is generally in the eye of the beholder. Based on the likes or dislikes of the person judging the film, their opinions shape their view of the film. As someone who recently finished the movie, here are my thoughts about whether it was as bad as I thought it would be before I watched it.

The music, as a whole, wasn’t amazing, but also wasn’t horrible. There were some songs that were not really that great, like “This is the Thanks I Get” and “I’m a Star,” and even “Knowing What I Know Now,” wasn’t a favorite of mine. However, there were redeeming qualities to each of these songs in some way. 

For example, “This is the Thanks I Get,” while it definitely isn’t the best villain song Disney has ever written, is crucial to the story because it shows the true colors of the villain underneath the facade he is constantly trying to uphold. Some other songs, like “At All Costs” and “This Wish,” both the normal and reprise, were beautiful with their vocals, instrumentals, and even the raw power behind them and the moments they capture in the movie. 

The animation was subpar, to unfortunately say the least. You definitely can see the vision that the studio was going for, mixing elements from both their 2D and 3D films as a memorial for their 100 year anniversary. However, it just didn’t hit the mark. Instead of working as a nostalgia-inducing memorial, it just makes the film look unfinished. There’s not a lot of depth to the backgrounds, making everything in shot just look flat. 

The shading on the characters is not how it has been with either the 2D or 3D films, and the shading style makes the characters look too flat. Again, you can see the vision they were going for, it just didn’t hit the mark they were aiming at. 

“The story’s alright, but probably not something I’d say is worth watching multiple times. It just doesn’t really have that charm, you know?” says Paige Smith after viewing the movie. Like the songs and animation, while it wasn’t horrendous, the story definitely could have been better. More depth could have added to the villain, considering it seems like his personality, morals, and goals all contradict each other. The main character, Asha, seems very entitled and selfish at times, while her intentions were good. 

Overall, the film wasn’t the worst ever made by Disney, but it definitely wasn't the best.

When talking about the greatest players to touch a basketball, Tim Duncan’s name is typically mentioned. But usually he’s skimmed over, tossed to the side of the convo. He’s always recognized as one of the greats, but rarely does he get the true respect that he deserves. 

People take Tim Duncan’s greatness for granted. He is undoubtedly the greatest power forward the NBA has ever seen. But when it comes to GOAT rankings, Timmy is often looked at as the 8th or 9th player, ranked behind players like Kobe, Wilt, and Larry Bird. 

Avid NBA follower, Isaiah Council states that, “Duncan is great, but is he really top 10 all time?”

But if you really think about it, Duncan makes a strong case for being ranked as a Top 5 player all time. And here’s why:

The guy was an incredible talent. He had the best rookie season ever, had 2 MVPs, 15 All-Stars, and 15 All-Defense Teams. And he should’ve won multiple DPOYs (if it wasn’t such a biased award) but that’s a discussion for another day. 

Most importantly, he was a winner. He won 5 finals, only losing to the Miami Heat in their Lebron Era (thanks Ray Allen). The Spurs never had a losing season with Duncan on their team. They were one of the most competitive teams in the NBA whenever Timmy was on the court. 

He also had the greatest carry job of all time, when he single handedly won the Spurs the title in 2003. He absolutely carried his team to victory, putting up incredible statlines like the near quadruple double he had in Game 6 of the NBA finals. He put up 21 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists, and 8 blocks in a clutch finals game. Absolutely absurd.  

Duncan’s resume, talents, and winningness are more than enough to put him in the GOAT conversation. So why don’t more people talk about him? 

Tim Duncan was never the flashiest player on the court. He’d get his buckets through the mid-range, bankshots, and post moves. That’s why they called him the Big Fundamental. 

And off the court he wasn’t flashy at all. He wasn’t outspoken, wore casual clothes, and never bragged about his greatness. 

This is a main reason as to why Duncan doesn’t get the respect he deserves. People don’t view him in the same light as Kobe Bryant, because Kobe always had outrageous storylines, distinct characteristics, and a flashier game. 

Does that make him as great as Duncan? In the eyes of some, yes. But should the greatness of a player be judged more based on story and flashiness than resume and the ability to win?

Lululemon is a popular sports clothing brand. They sell leggings, running shorts, activewear shirts and even shoes. This brand is known to be very expensive in everything they sell. A simple pair of leggings can go up to $78 and a hoodie is about $110. Since they’re items are entirely expensive they do not charge for shipping. People can be very skeptical about purchasing Lululemon because they arent sure the material is worth the price and will last a long time.

The clothes at Lululemon are made with 87% nylon which is a fiber that helps the feeling of the clothes be more soft and silk like, and 13% Lycra elastane which is another word for spandex and makes the material stretchy and fit right to one’s body. Both these materials are considered to be long lasting when used. Lululemon claims that their clothes feel “Like wearing a hug while you sweat”. The amount of quality and money put into making the clothes are why Lululemon is so expensive, they use the same material in everything they make. 

“Ive bought multiple things from lulu. I do think the material is great and the half zip scubas are so cozy but not too thick so they can be worn in the summer too without you sweating. Although buying it made me legit broke I do genuinely recommend it".  Said by freshman Lillian Stowell. 

Lululemon being worth the money is a common phrase you’ll hear from people who purchase it frequently. However Lululemon has its fair share of bad reviews as well. People have complained that the fabric tears easily, stitches commonly come undone, sizing issues, and shipping issues from online orders.

Sophomore Sophia Vitale states, “When I ordered a shirt from lulu it claimed it was shipped for an entire week, then I had received a notification that my package was lost. I contacted them a couple days ago and I still haven't received any follow ups about my package and I have no clue what to do about it.”

The material of Lululemon might be great but it should be able to last long and not worry about tears and stitches coming undone so easily. For the price of the items Lululemon sells, there shouldn't be common packages lost in the mail. For most people, Lululemon is worth their money and they buy from the company a lot. But for others Lululemon is an absolute waste of money. 

Everybody knows that highschool is divided into 4 classes: freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior. And each of those classes are very different from one another. 

Obviously each student at Auburn High School is different. But with such a large population size, you’d tend to think that these classes would at least average out to have similar statistics.

But that’s not the case. The number of students on high honor roll from each class is drastically different. 

For example, during Marking Period 3, 32.5% of the senior class has achieved high honor roll. Compare that to the freshman class, where only 9.6% of students have achieved high honor roll. Meanwhile the sophomore population has 19.4% of students in high honor roll, and the junior class is at 25.1%. 

Those are pretty stark differences. But how does that happen? Why do they have so many high achieving students in comparison to other classes? 

There are a lot of factors that could influence these numbers. A major influence is the size of the class itself. The junior class has by far the smallest class, with only 256 people in it, while the freshman class has the most students, at 322. The senior and sophomore class are at 287 and 316 students respectively. 

When asked why the class sizes differ in the way that they do, counselor             Steven Crosby responded, “...it must be a birthrate thing for that year.”

He added on to that statement saying, “the typical class is somewhere around 280 to 300.” 

Another factor that could influence class size is dropout rate. By senior year, most students that were going to drop out, have already dropped out, leaving only the students that actively want to graduate.

On the other hand, freshmen and sophomores do not have the ability to drop out, since it is not legal until you are 16 years old. This bloats up the size of their class with students who would not want to make the honor roll. This could be part of the reason that the upperclassmen honor roll averages are significantly higher than those of the underclassmen. 

However, that doesn’t explain why the number of freshman high honor roll students is 30 students less than the number of sophomores with the same regard (31 to 61). To explain this, Steve Crosby offers up this theory: 

“Well I think there is a big adjustment period to the high school.” Middle school to high school is a huge period of transition, and not just educationally, so it makes sense that more students would struggle to obtain the high honor roll.

Despite any differences in class averages, the future is bright for all classes. Mr. Crosby offers up this to say about each students opportunities after high school:

“I’m excited to get folks together to work towards their goals, whether it be trade school, college, the workforce, the military. A lot of new opportunities to stay in CNY after you graduate, from Micron, the Route 81 Project, or the Milk Plant Expansion.”

At the end of the day, your grades in school do not determine your success in life. Being on a high honor roll doesn’t solely determine what college you get into or where you’re going to get a job. 

But at the end of the day one thing remains clear: The class of 2024 is far and away the best class at Auburn High.

Senior prom, an exciting event for many and a symbol for the end of a high school journey. It's our final memory of our entire class coming together to create one last hurrah. But of course our final memory doesn't come without issues and drama. Many of it surrounding the underclassman being allowed to go to senior prom. 

Senior prom should be for seniors only with the exception of juniors if having a senior as a boyfriend or girlfriend,  but sophomores and freshmen absolutely should not be allowed to go. Senior at Auburn High School, Connor Duffy says, “It should only be for seniors as it is a better experience and a special experience to reward kids who completed all four years of high school. Yes, I do believe that there should be an exception for those who have dates in 11th grade but seniors shouldn’t be using a guest pass for a friend to go as they will get the opportunity in the following years".

There are many issues with inviting an underclassman to senior prom.  Seniors are on a different maturity level than their underclassmen. I have to say our underclassmen  are extremely disrespectful.  Another senior at Auburn High School, Anisa Wilkins stated, “Immaturity, being disrespectful, and they cause chaos. With a senior prom, our goal is to enjoy it for our last time, and a lot of underclassmen don’t understand that and could easily ruin it".

We already have enough drama with our own grade during prom season, we don't need any underclassmen causing more. 

It seems as though there is never anything for just the seniors. There always has to be an exception.  I'm sorry but it is not fair to us. We can never really have a day just for ourselves without it being ruined by an underclassman who says it isn't fair because they  have a boyfriend or girlfriend who's participating in this or that event.

 I understand you want to go because you're hanging with “the seniors” but your time will come and you'll be able to experience it with your own class. Everyone will get their chance. Just wait for your  time,  just like we did.