The Viking Voice
Archbishop Wood High School's Student Newspaper
Around Campus
Holiday Cheer at Wood
Abby Rosenbaum '26
Each year during Christmas, the faculty and staff have a holiday hallway decorating contest. Each hallway was nicely decorated with their own theme and decorations, but in the end, there was one hallway that came out on top.
The winning hallway was Candy Cane Lane, on the 2nd floor of the North Side. The hallway was decorated by Mr. Tancredi, Mrs. Kasperski, Mrs. O’Grady, and Mr. Benecke. The winning hallway had lots of decorations, including a balloon arch, candy cane wrapping paper over the walls, and a board with Bitmojis and a quote from each of the teachers who decorated that hallway. They also had different color lights and snowflakes hanging from the ceiling. To top it off, they had candy canes hanging above all of the doors and lockers. Some pictures of the winning hallway are below as well as the other hallways and doors.
Although Candy Cane Lane was the winning hallway, there were many other nicely decorated hallways throughout the school. Each hallway had a lot of colorful and fun decorations.
Alyssa’s Interviews
Alyssa DiNezza '26
This month, I decided to interview Miss Schwartz, an American Government and World History teacher here at AWHS. Without further ado, let's get into the interview
Question 1: How was it like being a student here? Were you involved in any clubs or sports?
"I loved being a student here. We had a lot of school pride, I would say my favorite part of being a student here was going to all of the football games, and I was a part of athletes helping athletes, and I was on the softball team."
Question 2: How is it like being a teacher here?
“It’s good, it was a really easy transition, coming to teach at a school that I attended myself. I love seeing kids in the seats I was once in, and knowing all the tricks up their sleeves!”
Question 3: Does attending this school have an affect on how you teach?
“I would say no, but I would also say yes. Because everything I see you guys do, I did myself. So sometimes I catch myself wanting to tell kids to stop doing something but I have to remind myself that I did the same thing 4 years ago, so I have to find a way to reinforce it in another way.”
Question 4: Did you choose you wanted to teach World History, or were you assigned it? If you choose it, why did you choose it?
“Growing up, social studies was my favorite subject in high school, and I knew I wanted to be a high-school teacher so that's why I chose social studies. American Government was my top choice in which that was my dream job and I do teach it, I have two classes. World History was my second choice so it’s awesome to be teaching my top two dream subjects.”
Question 5: If you could choose any subject and grade to teach, what would it be and why?
“I would teach the American Government, and if it aligned up that way, I would love to teach seniors. Although the curriculum doesn't line up that way, in a perfect world, that would be my choice.”
Miss Schwartz, if you are reading this, thank you, for taking the time to answer these questions!
2022: A Year in Review
Genevieve Adamow '25
As 2023 begins, Archbishop Wood looks back on their jam-packed year of 2022. Filled with excitement, joy, sadness and anticipation, we remember the past year and how it impacted our school community.
In January, the second quarter of the 2021-22 school year came to a close, and students began the second half of the academic year. The award-winning Archbishop Wood robotics team, the 2607 Robovikings, also had their beginning of the season kick-off event, where their league announced the game that they were to compete in that year. By the end of the month, students were ready for a day off in February!
In February, Catholic Schools Week rolled right through, and Archbishop Wood took extra time to appreciate the amazing education, educators, and students that help make the school a wonderful place. By the end of February, the students and staff were finally given a day to themselves to celebrate Presidents Day.
In March, Wood hosted its annual spring open house, where seventh and eighth graders toured the school building, mingled with students, and introduced themselves to the clubs and sports that Wood has to offer. Wood also held the Mr. Viking pageant, where senior boys were able to participate in several categories to be crowned Archbishop Wood’s 2022 Mr. Viking. Joe James was the lucky winner, gracing the audience with humor and poise the entire evening. Wow, what a month!
In April, the Archbishop Wood’s performing arts department put on their spring musical, Godspell, the first of the year with their new director. As well as the school musical, performing arts also held their annual spring recital, featuring performances from the band, strings ensemble, jazz band, and choir. Junior Prom was held at the end of the month at the Fuge in Warminster, as well as the Senior prom at Normandy Farms in Bluebell. Wood very much enjoyed the month of April!
In May, Wood prepared for the end of the school year. The student body held their upcoming year’s student council election, where students from each grade ran to be elected onto the Student Council, which plans school events and keeps Wood looking as festive as ever! Ran by Mr. Mach and his team, Wood also held its yearly Viking Night, which hadn’t happened since 2019. Viking Night is an evening of school spirit and competitive fun, as the student body splits into two separate teams that compete against each other in sport-like games, as almost an extended field day. Dominating most of the categories, the gold team, aka the “Surfers”, won this event by a mile. The seniors also had their last hoorah in the classroom, and celebrated their graduation at Arcadia University. May was a very exciting month!
In June, students of Wood took their final tests, and ended the school year. Free of the school work and long days, they enjoyed the next months of July and August off campus in the summer sun.
In September, the new school year began, and returning students shifted back into the school grind. Incoming freshmen experienced high school life for the first time, and everyone joined and returned to their clubs and sports. September may not have been the most exciting month, but it was a relaxing fresh start to a new school year.
In October, the Archbishop Wood football team played many exciting and tough games, with some incredible victories and losses. As the month came to an end, Wood held its annual homecoming dance, where students dressed up and enjoyed a night of dancing fun. What a fun end to the month!
In November, Archbishop Wood’s performing arts department started their theater season with a brand new show of Descendants the musical, setting the bar high for the rest of the year. Almost selling out all of their shows, the outcome of their performances was incredible. The first quarter of the school year also rounded to an end, giving students a fresh slate for the second quarter. The students and staff began to look forward to an exciting December!
In December, the Wood community prepared for Christmas by decorating the hallways and selling hot chocolate. An extended break was even given to the students due to inclimate weather on the very last day before Christmas break, and just like that, the year of 2022 was finished.
Glancing at the past year, we see that Archbishop Wood had its fair share of excitement and glee. As a whole, 2022 at Archbishop Wood was successful in its ability to keep the students and staff happy and healthy, and we hope the year ahead is the same, if not better, than this one past. Cheers to 2023!
Cece's Recipes
Cecelia Boag '26
This Christmas season, try out some of these festive recipes! The link to these recipes is in the image. Check out the blog that has these recipes, and a lot more!his blog also shows step-by-step what you need to do to make these delicious treats! The First Year Blog
Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
All-purpose flour
Dutch processed cocoa powder
Baking soda
Salt
Cornstarch
Unsalted butter
Granulated sugar & brown sugar
Eggs
Corn syrup
Andes peppermint crunch baking chips
Eggnog Ice Cream
Heavy whipping cream
Eggnog
Nutmeg & cinnamon
Vanilla extract
Sweetened condensed milk
Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Unsalted butter
Mini marshmallows
Vanilla extract
Salt
Rice Krispies
Christmas M&Ms
Christmas sprinkles
No Bake Peanut Butter Pie
Oreos (blended into a fine crumb)
Butter
Cream cheese
Powdered sugar
Peanut butter (creamy)
Cool whip
Heavy cream
Vanilla extract
Reese’s peanut butter cups (for the top of the pie, and the best part!)
Sports
Angela's Monthly NFL Notes
Angela Lafond '24
It’s the end of November which means another edition of monthly NFL notes! I will be recapping November in the NFL, reviewing hot takes from October, and creating new hot takes. I am writing this as the NFL season heads into week 13.
This season has been very unpredictable to say the least. Let’s get into some recaps from November. First off, Jeff Saturday, an NFL analyst, became the head coach of the Colts earlier in November. This news was shocking but he did win the first game he coached them for. However, after that they did lose the next two games. I guess we will see what he does in the future with this team. Another thing that happened in November is the Eagles lost their first game. They did bounce back and won the next few though so they are 10-1. They are looking like strong Super Bowl candidates. Next let’s talk about the Thanksgiving games that were played. The three games were the Lions v. Bills, Giants v. Cowboys, and the Vikings v. Patriots. Out of these games, the Bills, Cowboys, and Vikings won. It was an eventful Thanksgiving day slate of games. Another huge headline in November was Odell Beckham Junior. He is cleared from his injury and is looking for an NFL team to be on. So far he has visits set with the Giants, Cowboys, and Bills. Lastly, the current playoff picture as of this week includes all four NFC East teams. This division is the best right now which is insane since they were the worst last year. So I guess you can say this November was a semi eventful one in the NFL.
Now onto hot takes. From October I made some hot takes that were correct and some that were not. The first hot take I made was I said the Eagles would lose to the Cowboys and Steelers but that was not the case. I was wrong on that one. The second hot take was I said the Lions would beat the Dolphins and Cowboys. The Lions came very close in the Dolphins game but lost badly against the Cowboys. So there's another one I was wrong about, but that's why they are called hot takes. Lastly, I said that Carson Wentz would be benched for the Commanders. By the end of October Wentz got hurt and therefore couldn’t play. But then his backup Taylor Heineke came in and played very well and brought the team some victories. This led to Carson Wentz actually being benched in November after he was cleared to play since the other quarterback was performing better. So I was right about that.
Now for some new hot takes! My first hot take is that Nathaniel Hackett will be fired as the Broncos head coach sometime in the next few weeks. The Broncos have been very disappointing this season and it has to do with the coaching and the underperforming Russel Wilson. Since the Broncos are paying Wilson so much I believe the Broncos will get rid of Hackett before him. My second hot take is that the New York Jets will upset the next two teams they play which are the Vikings and Bills. Both these teams have good records and are in the playoff picture so it would be huge if the Jets beat them. With Zach Wilson benched I think the Jets will play better. My third hot take is that whatever team OBJ signs with will win all their games once he joins. No one is positive which team he will join or when but I believe once he joins a team it will be a game changer.
My updated Super Bowl Prediction is the Eagles vs. the Dolphins. I believe that even though the Eagles had an easy schedule, they are pretty good. And the Dolphins have a great team as well led by Tua.
Those are my November NFL Notes! See you next month.
The Origins of Christmas Elves
Ava Oskiera '26
In Germanic Paganism, which was a religious practice from the Iron Age-the Middle Ages, they believed elves were beings/creatures of light that either lived in the heavens or underground. They were also to be believed as magical beings. Scandinavian folklore believed or depicted elves as being who protected homes of any evil spirits. In the mid 19th century was when elves became associated/linked to St. Nicholas. In 1856 Author Louisa May Alcott wrote a book “Christmas Elves”, which never had gotten published to the public. The character Santa Claus became in the 17th century (American folklore). In the mid 1800’s were when Christmas presents became associated with elves. Christmas elves became popular when an image of them appeared on the front cover of the magazine Godey’s lady’s book in 1873. The picture was of Santa being surrounded by presents and elves, and was captioned with something that had referred to preparing for Christmas. In the year 1925, beliefs that the elves lived in Santa’s village located in the North pole changed when it was discovered reindeer actually live in Finland NOT the North Pole.
Christmas Traditions
The seven fishes- On Christmas Eve when we gather with our family at night,normally with my dad's side, we do the seven fishes. We have various dishes of seafood that we eat. The seven fishes stem from Italian-Americans. What my family does is get any dish of seafood not just particular types of fish. This year we are going to have many different dishes including sushi. (California rolls, shrimp tempura, etc)
Gift exchanges- Every year we make sure to see all of our family and give gifts. Christmas eve typically is the day we go around and see both my mom and dad's side. We usually do brunch with my moms side and later that night we go to my grandparents house or some years my house and do the seven fishes, do gift exchanges, and spend time together.
Christmas dinner- On Christmas Day we always have a feast. In the morning we open presents and earlier in the night we’ll do dinner wherever it is for that year. The past few years it's been at our house and my grandparents will come over. My mom makes things like ham, baked mac and cheese, and biscuits. For desserts we typically like to have pies and delicious other desserts. It's a nice way to enjoy your Christmas by sitting around at the table with loved ones and spending time together
Little Freshman in a Big High School
Abby Rosenbaum '26
Freshman year. Everyone experiences it at one point or another. Lots of adjustment, lots of change. Everything’s new. How does one navigate this, you may ask? Well, good thing I’m here to tell you about my experience so far.
The first day of high school was on September 7. I walked into the doors of Wood, not knowing what in the world to expect. I was so nervous. I walked into the auditorium, found a couple of my friends from my old school, St. Thomas More camp, and the freshman picnic (plus some people I hadn’t met yet) and sat with them. We started to get to know each other, then people began to talk. We went through the assembly and went to homeroom. After we spent some time in homeroom, we began to go through our classes. I saw so many new faces that day, it was insane. Honestly, after the first day, I was just happy to have made it through the day.
High school has come with many other unexpected things. First off, compared to grade school, the amount of homework is crazy. At my old school, we’d barely get any homework. Now I’m spending at least an hour or two a day on homework. Another thing I didn’t expect was how crazy changing classes would be. As a little freshman that’s very short for her age, changing classes has been absolute chaos every day. I’m always trying to move around people and end up getting pushed or shoved around.
Even with some of the crazy parts, there have been many fun things and moments that I’ll remember, like when someone flipped a table at lunch. I’ve found classes to be pretty enjoyable (well…for the most part). Times with my friends, even if I just met them about 2 months ago, have been amazing.
It’s only been about two months, and I already feel that I’ve adjusted super well. I’ve gotten used to my classes, gotten involved, and met a bunch of new people. I’ve been enjoying it so far, and I’m glad I decided to come to Wood.
HOMECOMING
Genevieve Adamow '25
On October 22, 2022, Archbishop Wood held its annual homecoming dance. Themed “Casino Royale”, the dance was held from 6:30 to 9:30 pm. The location of the dance was in the south back parking lot, and around 620 students and outside dates attended the dance.
The week of the dance was filled with school spirit and happy faces. By purchasing five dollar wristbands, students were able to wear shirts and socks suitable to the theme of each day, and wear full dress down on Friday. The week’s themes included USA, Neon, Wood Spirit, and many more. On Friday morning, during the M-Bell, a homecoming pep rally was held for the students and teachers of Wood and Our Lady of Confidence, who conjoined with Archbishop Wood last fall. A game of musical chairs was played, and Wood junior Matt Miller took the win. Archbishop Wood’s fall varsity sports teams were introduced, and the Varsity Girls’ cheer leading team gave an exciting performance. The pep rally seemed to be a big hit with the students, as it was the first of this year.
Homecoming courts from each grade were also brought back this year, starting as a tradition at Bishop McDevitt high school, which closed down the Spring of 2021. Nominees for the homecoming court were voted for by their classmates, and were presented at Friday morning’s rally. At the dance, football player Mikey Oberholtzer was crowned homecoming king and Wood Wackies’ president Shaina Klos was crowned queen. As a privilege this year, senior Wood students were permitted to bring outside dates.
Decorating for the dance was done by Wood’s very own Student Council, with the help of Mrs. Newlin, Mrs. Martin, and Mrs. Kasperski. Decorations included a roulette wheel, hanging lights, and giant playing cards scattered throughout the light poles. Like last year, the dance was held in the south back parking lot and southside courtyard. Having the dance outside was the popular choice of the Student Council because of the airflow and space that the students could have to dance. With a stellar DJ and plenty of water and snacks to go around, Wood’s homecoming dance had exceptional ratings from students.
Overall, Archbishop Wood’s homecoming was a huge success! Next up: Prom!
Holiday Review
Catarina Guerrero '23
Overstuffing the Turkey and Yourself
I understand the concept of having a day to celebrate thankfulness and in fact I am actually for it. But a day devoted to overeating sits wrong with me, and not just because I ate too much. To me it feels wrong that people overstuff themselves with food just for the sake of it. I feel like I speak for most people when I say this, that I have a love-hate relationship with Thanksgiving.
The beauty of Thanksgiving is actually quite complicated. Not many people list it as their favorite holiday. It's not quite as bad as Valentine's or Ground Hog Day but it's usually quite ruined by Christmas and Black Friday. At some point after you wake up from your food coma you realize how much you need to get up and move but it's a holiday so you don't. Then everything after the meal seems so abysmally boring. There was so much build up, a whole year's worth, for that great meal that leaves you stuffed, sick, and stuck with leftovers to think of. What fun!
Another example of its jumbled nature is that the Thanksgiving stereotypes are either very extreme and rare or extremely commonplace. There's always that one person who worries that there won't be enough food, even though there's enough to feed everyone for three days. Now you might be wondering, what rare ones are you talking about? I'm referring to the pedantic planners who plan everything to the tee to make sure they can eat, or should I say, overeat, the optimal amount of food. I never realized those people existed until about 5 years ago when I was reading Reader's Digest. The author wrote about a person they knew who would meal plan and pregame to a completely different level. That's just on example of the rare stereotypes that just ruin Thanksgiving.
Most people have very mixed feelings about Thanksgiving and that is why I'd say it's the most lukewarm holiday of them all. Even the weather is lukewarm. It was set up to be good and bad from the very beginning and has kind of tepidly tumbleweed-ed its way through the centuries. Hopefully you were able to enjoy your holiday! I kinda did.
Movie Review
Dan Harris '23
The Scream Franchise, now encompassing 5 movies, is known for its meta humor and whodunnit nature. The original Scream (1996) is my favorite horror movie and turned the genre on its head. The characters know all the classic horror villains and tropes that we do which leads to more intelligent characters and more twists. Ghostface is such a good villain because he’s just a regular guy. In some ways that’s a little scary since he’s the most realistic horror killer, but it also leads to a lot of comedy since the characters, mainly Sydney Prescott, constantly get the better of him in fights. He’s just a dude, like if you throw a bottle at him he’ll get hurt and he’ll run away. Scream 2 is a sequel that does the series justice as the didn’t miss a beat with the kills and the comedy. The only bad thing to say about it is that Ghostface lacks a little depth compared to the original. Scream 3 was laughable in all the worst ways. The kills were unrealistic and the plot device in this installment legitimately angered me as it makes no sense. Ghostface can mimic other people’s voices in order to let the plot progress and give a cheap reason to have characters collide. They also tried to have a profound ending and it simply didn’t work for me. Scream 4 was a return to form for the series but not entirely. The stupid plot device from Scream 3 is no more, but the red herring characters have escalated to an unfathomable level. Characters will do the creepiest thing just to make them suspicious and never bring it up again. I was very worried when Scream 5 was coming out as I was scared of another Halloween reboot that didn’t live up to expectations, especially since the original director, Wes Craven, had died years earlier. I thought this would really hurt his series of movies but it broke my expectations in the best possible way. It really felt like the original two installments in tone and the reveal at the end was very shocking, easily better than the last two movies. I’d give the original 4.8/5, an amazing movie to rewatch over and over every year. Scream 2 is a 4.5/5 for me. It does well what the original does well but Ghostface was lacking a little. Scream 3 was a large dip in quality, a 2/5 if I’m being honest. The voice device really bothered me and the killer wasn’t very compelling. Scream 4 is a 3.5/5, it is a good horror movie but doesn’t do anything that makes me love it. I did think the twist at the end was good though, definitely better than Scream 3. Scream 5 is a 4/5, it defied my expectations and gave a compelling cast with compelling killers. Overall the series gets a 4/5 for me, it redefined what the horror genre would be for years to come and still holds up well to this day.
TV Review
Scream Season One
Vinnie Tate '23
In 1996, Wes Craven wrote an astounding movie which managed to both be a satire to the then overworked horror/slasher genre and yet, still stay honest in its portrayal of slashers at the time. A movie that spawned four sequels, one of the most iconic slasher killers in history and is generally regarded as one of the best horror flicks of all time. This review is not about that movie but it’s distant cousin of a tv show: Scream: The MTV TV Series.
Before starting, it needs to be known that this show which spanned between 2015 and 2019 is not a continuation of the Scream movie series. No, Scream: The MTV TV Series, or STS, is a reimagining of the original movie’s story. Instead of Sidney, there’s Emma. Instead of Casey, there’s Nina. Instead of Randy, there’s Noah and so on and so forth. Only a few characters are wholly unique, such as Audrey, Emma’s childhood friend who was bullied because of her sexuality, Riley, essentially just a love interest for Noah and Emma’s mom who’s a coroner. More characters who are more unique and based on characters from later entries in the movie series are introduced in the later season but this review will only encompass season one because… we'll keep reading.
In episode one, we open with Nina and Tyler who just posted a video of Audrey kissing a girl named Rachel on social media. Tyler drops Nina off but immediately starts texting her. This whole opening scene is pretty obvious for most Scream fans. Nina flirts with him, finds out something is up and badabing badaboom “Ghostface” kills them both. It’s a fine scene immediately ruined by the new ghostface mask which looks laughably bad. It’s meant to look more like a surgical mask but unfortunately it’s just stupid and ugly. The original ghostface mask is so iconic because it's just a costume anyone could wear. In the movie, it's meant to show how anyone could be a killer because it's a mystery. The Brandon James mask, as it will later be called, does not have that same effect. The rest of the episode is pretty standard and introduces the cast. Emma is the generic nice girl who is friends with the popular kids. Brooke’s the mean girl, Riley is also the nice one but she’s not the main character so talks less, Will is Emma’s “always do the right thing” boyfriend, Jake is his girl obsessed best friend, and Nina and Tyler were also a part of this friend group. We also meet Audrey who’s main traits are anger and not wanting to be called gay, Noah who’s a nerd but also annoying, Rachel who goes to a different school so she doesn’t matter and Kieran who’s the hot new guy with a mysterious past who’s the sheriff’s son. Immediately, they learn about Nina’s death but strangely, Tyler’s body isn’t found. They have a whole discussion in english class with Mr. Branson who’s just used so that Noah can explain the satire of the story and why it’s really cool. This makes it not really cool and screams, haha, that they wanted Randy Two. I want Randy One. The scene ends and OH MY GOD THEY ARE DOING A RIVERDALE. Brooke and Branson are together, and it’s icky to watch. They all go to a party to remember Nina and it’s revealed that Will slept with Nina while on a break with Emma. Emma feels disgusted that her boyfriend kind of cheated on her, so she cheats on him with Kieran. God I hate Emma. Kieran drives her home and uh oh, the sheriff is sleeping with the mom. Glad the writers room found a way to make this more uncomfortable.
This episode was pretty bad. The characters are all worse than their original counterparts. The only exception is the STS original characters. The STS original characters suck. To not muddy this review down with a summary, the killer keeps killing people, they find out who it is and the show ends. If that sounds interesting to you, check it out. There are three seasons on Netflix and the second season only made me regret this idea twice.
To be completely honest, the show isn’t the worst. Without spoilers, the killer is only incredibly predictable when you watch the first few episodes. In fact, the killer is so predictable that I ranked every character based on their likelihood of being the killer and season two revealed that my second and third place characters were in some way related to and/or helping the killer. Not many of the characters are likable. Horribly enough, the stereotypical mean girl and her meathead love interest are the only ones I really liked. No, not the teacher. Brooke and Jake are genuinely great because their actors are having fun. It doesn’t seem like pulling teeth with every delivery and they’re so bat crazy insane you have to love them. Noah would be on this list too if every time he opened his mouth he didn’t just explain everything like the viewer is a toddler. One positive though, is the kills. They’re creative, they’re bloody, they’re shocking. This is a theme season two drops. Why am I not reviewing season two? Three reasons: One, I didn’t have the time to watch season three and it felt wrong to do two thirds of the show. Two, it was spoiled for me pretty early on and that kinda killed my interest. Three, it’s really bad. The good characters stay great and even a few of the new ones are likable but the original cast makes you want to rip your eyes out and use them to plug your ears. Even in season one they vary from boring to cringe worthy to actively harmful to my state of mind. If you like TV so bad it’s good, check it out. It’s much more enjoyable when you realize how stupid everything is and just enjoy The Jake.
Cece's Recipes
Cecilia Boag '26
Through the dark, spooky aisles of your local supermarket, I was able to find many fun and scary recipes for your next Halloween Bash!
Tap the photos for the link!
“Bubbling Witch’s Cauldron Brownies”
Ingredients:
-Brownie mix plus the ingredients listed on the back
- Buttercream
- muffin pan (depends on how many cauldrons you want to make)
- Green food coloring
- Green round sprinkles
- Pretzel sticks
“Ghost Popcorn Balls”
Ingredients:
-Popcorn
- Mini marshmallows
- Butter
- White candy melts
- Candy eyeballs
“Spider Rice Krispie Treats”
Ingredients:
-Cereal
- Butter
- Marshmallows
- Black licorice
- Candy eyeballs
- Gel food coloring
“Tombstone Oreo Balls”
Ingredients:
-Oreos
- Cream cheese
- Candy melts
- Black food coloring
- Black rocks / chocolate chips
Bus to Nowhere
The Urban Legend Facts
Ava Oskiera '26
1. This one specific bus had NO destination.
2. When the route and the route number were looked into, it could not be found on the transportation maps.
3. The bus didn’t stop for anyone, specifically someone who had a destination.
4. If you were to ask a citizen of Philadelphia about the bus it's most likely that they’ll tell you they’ve seen the bus but some may say that it isn’t anywhere to be found.
5. There were people that had been passengers on this bus and the people are described as suffering when on this bus.
6. If you do want to ride the bus you will need to chase after it and the driver will stop if you seem desperate to ride it. The “driver” would stop and let you in.
7. While you are riding the bus you will be desperate to get off . If there are others on the bus they will feel the same way. Desperate to get off and sit in silence. They say that you will be in your thoughts. You’ll be able to pull a cord and while stepping off of the bus the memories will be left behind and forgotten.
8. The bus ride could last minutes or even years.
9. The people that are at their lowest points in life are able to see this bus.
10. EVERYTHING is forgotten
World News
Grace Rovinsky '23
One of my teachers recently asked our class if they were aware of the protests currently occurring in Iran. One person raised their hand, more asking than telling, to say that they thought it might be about racial stereotypes. I was confused how no one had even heard about what was actually happening, as it seemed to be all over the news. I realized that it is extremely important for young people today to read about and understand what is happening around the world, as it affects all of us, no matter what country we live in.
Mahsa Amini was a 22-year-old Iranian woman who had been arrested for violating the countrywide dress code. She has been wearing her headscarf in a way that went against government standards. Iran’s religious enforcement police, the Guidance Patrol, took her into a police station, where she allegedly had a heart attack and a brain seizure and went into a coma. She was transferred to Kasra Hospital in Tehran where she eventually died. This is the story that was told to Amini’s brother after her detainment. However, eyewitness accounts from people who were also detained with Amini say that she was tortured and beaten in the police van on the way to the police station. She spent two days in a coma before eventually passing away. The story was first posted online by Niloofar Hamedi, a journalist, who was later arrested for posting about Mahsa Amini and Iran’s morality police. Iranian police vehemently denied any allegations of abuse, clinging to the heart attack story.
Since Amini’s passing, women all over the country of Iran have risen up, risking their lives to protest against this treatment. Women have been burning their hijabs and cutting their hair in the street to demonstrate their opposition to the government’s enforcement of a dress code. In response to the protests, the Iranian government implemented shutdowns of access to the Internet and restrictions on social media. Despite the government’s control over Iranian Internet access, the story has been shared and become increasingly widespread on social media. Teachers in Iran have also shown their support for the movement of students by boycotting classes or resigning from their positions. Iranians living in other countries have also protested for the women in their home country, spreading the word about the injustice that Iranian women experience on a daily basis.
This is certainly not the first time Iran has seen a great movement for women’s rights. The Iranian women’s rights movement began most prevalently in 1910 after the Iranian Constitutional Revolution, rising again later in 1979. More recently, the Girls of Revolution Street protests of 2017 took place when 31-year-old Vida Movahed took off her headscarf and waved it in the air. The Mahsa Amini protests have been occurring since September 16, 2022 and are continuing today. As Iran’s police intervene, killing protesters, the movement only grows stronger. Women are standing up for their bodily autonomy and rights, and the demonstrations show no signs of stopping.
Catarina Guerrero '23
British LettuceNot many people keep up with British politics and generally find it either boring or irrelevant. The British lettuce that lasted longer than Elizabeth Truss isn't particularly relevant but it is interesting–at least I found it interesting.
Most parliament leaders last for so long (sometimes too long) but this woman crumpled before a head of lettuce. I think it's weird that someone was able to predict that she would not last longer than a head of lettuce. 45 days in office is not a lot of time to even get used to your job. And how could one quit their job as PM with so many advisors and political aids? It just seems dumb.
Becoming a PM is not a position you find yourself in. Politicians usually have notice and it's not something that is just sprung on you. So why did she quit so quickly if she had time in advance and could have easily prevented herself and Britain a lot of trouble? Having to re-elect a new prime minister could have been avoided had she just understood what the actual job requirements were for being prime minister. She's been a politician for 13 years and should understand the role of prime minister.
After looking into this a little more, I found out that the lettuce did not actually survive longer than Liz Truss's term. It was really annoying to find this out. All of the headlines make it out that not only could she not lead the country but she couldn't win against a head of lettuce. I don't know enough about her actual time in office but it seemed fairly neutral. She is now going to be solely known as the shortest serving Prime Minister of the UK. For being the third female PM disappointment she's honestly a bit of a disappointment. Margaret Thatcher had highs and lows but is known for being a great leader. Theresa May made headlines and mostly bad news because she lacked control. And now Truss makes it even worse by being the shortest serving PM. What a bad wrap for Britain.