We have a new language arts teacher, Mr. Elrod, who is located in room 417 next to Ms. Carroll’s room. He has just joined Harbor City’s faculty for the second semester. 

Q: How long have you been teaching?

A:  I have been teaching since 2008 so at least 15 years.  

Q: What made you choose HCIS?

A:  I’d say it chose me, I was working at a job from home and wanted to find a new job, something more fulfilling to get back into teaching, and this job magically opened up. I really fell in love with the space and how different it feels than a conventional highschool, which can feel like prisons but this feels very relaxed and trusting.

Q: What do you like most about being a teacher?

A: My philosophy, don’t quote me, but my goal as a teacher is to make myself unnecessary. In the way that it clicks for the student so they know they can do the work on their own and not need my help.

Q: What is your favorite or most memorable video game?

A: The last gaming system I owned was the Nintendo 64. My favorite game was probably Zelda Ocarina of Time, so either that or Banjo Kazooie.

Q: Have you taught anything other than high school?

A: Yes, I have taught university, in a PhD program at the University of Michigan in television and media studies. I taught courses in television history, fantasy film and television.

Q: What is your favorite pastime or activity?

A: If I'm being honest, probably watching TV like sci-fi fantasy shows, but that's not all I watch. I really also do enjoy hiking, skiing and just being outside.

Q: What advice would you give to your high school self?

A:  I would tell myself to be less narrow minded, and not just in like the traditional sense but instead being willing to explore all of the options that are out there for careers or experiences and not limiting yourself to what you know.

Q: Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself?

A:  I think what would be most interesting would be that pizza rolls were invented in my house. You can ask if you would like to know the story. I am also obsessed with my cat and I almost have an 800 streak on Duolingo learning Spanish. 

SELF CARE TIPS

From The National Institute of Mental Health 

• Get regular exercise. Just 30 minutes of walking every day can boost your mood and improve your health. Small amounts of exercise add up, so don’t be discouraged if you can’t do 30 minutes at one time.

• Eat healthy, regular meals, and stay hydrated. A balanced diet and plenty of water can improve your energy and focus throughout the day. Pay attention to your caffeine and how it can affect your mood and well-being—for some, decreasing caffeine can be helpful.

• Make sleep a priority. Stick to a schedule, and make sure you’re getting enough sleep. Blue light from devices and screens can make it harder to fall asleep, so reduce blue light exposure from your phone or computer before bedtime.

• Try a relaxing activity. Explore relaxation or wellness programs or apps, which may incorporate meditation, muscle relaxation, or breathing exercises. Schedule regular times for these and other healthy activities you enjoy, such as listening to music, reading, spending time in nature, and engaging in low-stress hobbies.

• Set goals and priorities. Decide what must get done now and what can wait. Learn to say “no” to new tasks if you start to feel like you’re taking on too much. Try to appreciate what you have accomplished at the end of the day.

• Practice gratitude. Remind yourself daily of the things you are grateful for. Be specific. Write them down or replay them in your mind.

• Focus on positivity. Identify and challenge your negative and unhelpful thoughts.

• Stay connected. Reach out to friends or family members who can provide emotional support and practical help.

MIXTAPE: 01

By Anonymous Harbor Citizen

Past month has been heavy on peaceful stream sounds and warm acoustic guitar songs… Enjoy!

Ballad of Big Nothing - Elliot Smith

Wild Horses - Rolling Stones
Certainty - Big Thief

Northern Sky - Nick Drake

Trouble - Yusef / Cat Stevens

Blue Sunday - The Doors

Dirty Work - Steely Dan

Knocking on Heaven’s Door - Bob Dylan

Simulation Swarm - Big Thief    

HEALING

By Anonymous Harbor Citizen

Linear and lengthy, long lost in time.

Longing for peace, but questions know no mind. 

The past and the present continuously coincide.

Fate and fear left me to waste time.

Lofty moments of questioning, answers far away.

No more time to wander, none left to delay.

Start the process daily, leaving time to tell.

Leave the past behind, let fears fall behind as well. 

Healing follows no pattern, no manual, no instruction,

Simply healing of the heart, reversing any destruction. 

Letting go of all upheaval, gone with residual pain, let in all prosperity, peace with ever flow,let the healing guide you, there is no manual to a soul.

SPRING

By Anonymous Harbor Citizen

Sun in the morning 

Pain washed away

Rain drains it down

In every best way

Gaining and waning, and cleaning our days. 

THE GARBAGE PLATE

By Corey Lindsey

Ingredients

One and one-half cups of cooked macaroni

One-fourth cup of mayonnaise

2 tablespoons of diced celery

1 tablespoon  of carrots 

One-fourth teaspoon of salt 

One-fourth teaspoon of pepper

1 large potato, baked or cubed

1 tablespoon of butter

2 hamburger patties

2 slices of cheese

Mustard 

Ketchup 

Hot chili sauce

3 slices of Italian bread   

Directions:

1: Mix together the noodles, mayo, celery, seasoning, and carrots and place into a large square container (or plate)  

2: Fry potatoes in butter until very crispy.

3: Cook hamburger until well done, and top off with cheese 

WHITE DAY AND BLACK DAY

By Anonymous Harbor Citizen

Did you know that while we celebrate Valentine's Day on 14 Feb of every year for someone to confess love to the people they choose, other countries actually have two other days too. The other two days are White Day and Black Day.

White Day is on March 14 every year, and it is a day that follows Valentine's Day in some countries like Japan and South Korea. It is a day that people who received gifts or chocolate on Valentine's Day return the favor, typically with white-themed presents like chocolates or jewelry.

And Black Day is on April 14 of every year; it is a unique observance in South Korea. It is a day for single people to come together and hang out to show their single status. People are often marked by eating black noodles known as jjajangmyeon, symbolizing their solitude and singleness.

ALBUM RECOMMENDATIONS

By Jocelyn Petrovffsky

The Magic Whip - Blur

A groovy and ballad-focused switch from the rest of Blurs catalog I think even non-britpop enjoyers can vibe with some of the material here. If you’re a fan of Gorillaz, one of Damon’s other projects, I think this is the perfect starting point when looking into Blur.

Preachers Daughter - Ethel Cain

This album is brilliantly gorgeous and needs endless amounts of recognition. It follows the complex, frustrating and depressing story of the life of the “Ethel Cain” character. Each and every song has purpose and some of the most brilliant lyrics ever written. Incredibly potent work of art.

So Close To What - Tate McRae

From the words of Ethel Cain herself, “most solid pop album I’ve heard in years.” And she gets it! All around a lot of fun, dynamic production and some nice lyricism. 

Mercurial World - Magdalena Bay

Speaking of solid pop albums, Magdalena Bay are killing it! I know Imaginal Disc is all the rage right now (as it should be) but I’ll always be partial to Mercurial World and I urge you all to listen to them both if you haven’t! Upbeat with incredible and unique production. 

Wake - Hail The Sun

If you’ve ever wanted to check out swancore then start here! Great instrumentation and, a Hail The Sun guarantee, insanely well-crafted and complex lyrics.

DOOM THE DARK AGES AND MICK GORDON
By Soren Brown

Who is Mick Gordon? He’s only the wondrous composer of the Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal soundtracks that have become an absolutely massive hit among some groups, although some may find the Doom games violent for their tastes there's no denying Mick had a talent for game music especially since a variety of another companies have hired him for his recognized talents. Doom The Dark Ages is the newest title in the Doom series meant to be a prequel to the games Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal set in a medieval hell with demons running rampant in this FPS fast-paced action shooter. Now with Mick Gordon not receiving his full payments from his work on the Doom Eternal soundtrack, he is unwilling to work for them again and ID Software has hired a group named Finishing Move who’ve worked on various popular game series now. Through all this, it is disappointing to see Mick go from the Doom series, but I’m sure he’ll keep making amazing music for other game series.

ADOPT DONT SHOP!

CATS FOR ADOPTION AT ANIMAL ALLIES HUMANE SOCIETY:

Address: 4006 Airport Road. 

STUDENT ARTIST OF THE MONTH: TIRZAH MCGILL

You may have seen her beautiful portraits or bird paintings up around school :)

By Calliope

Q: How long have you been an artist?

A: I have been making art for as long as I can remember really, but I started taking it more seriously around 8th grade when I decided I wanted to start drawing people. Before then I mostly just drew horses. 

Q: What is your favorite medium?

A: I like to dabble in all mediums and am always trying out new things, but a staple for my art would be just drawing. 

Q: Where do you find inspiration?

A: From a lot of different things; birds, nature, things I enjoy such as Star Wars or my own stories. 

Q: How often do you make art?

A: I draw everyday and I'm always doodling all over my papers. I make full art pieces slightly less often but I usually always have a project I am working on.

Q: Do you tend to like more abstract or realistic art?

A: I tend to go more realistic for my art but I do appreciate abstract art and drawing something realistic and adding an abstract background. 

Q: When is your favorite time of day to create? 

A: I like to do it more in the evenings, but I also draw all throughout the day at school. 

THE IMMORTAL JELLYFISH

By Anonymous Harbor Citizen

A cool little fact. This tiny jellyfish Turritopisi can cheat death by reverting its cells to a younger state, essentially starting life over. This process, called transdifferentiation, makes it biologically immortal. Though it won't grant humans eternal youth, studying it could unlock secrets of aging and regeneration.

A TURN IN SUDAN: DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SUDANESE CIVIL WAR

Lucian M. Pianfetti

Raging since 2023, the Sudanese Civil War has seen the Rapid Support Forces, a former government-operated paramilitary group commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (better known by the mononym Hemedti), turn against the ruling military junta led by Abdel Fatteh al-Burhan and former anti-government militia leader Malik Agar, occupying massive swathes of the country in a matter of weeks and turning the capital Khartoum into a slow-moving battleground. Although initial momentum seemed to favor the RSF, recent offensive operations by the Sudanese military both in Khartoum and beyond have seemingly tipped the scales in their favor, threatening to end the threat the RSF poses to the sitting government.

Formed from the Janjaweed militia utilized by the government to combat insurgencies in Darfur, a region primarily populated by ethnic minority groups with little in common with the Sudanese Arabs, the Rapid Support Forces have committed many atrocities against local civilians in their efforts to suppress the region. Their attack in 2023 against the Sudanese government itself was largely due to power disputes and their authority to operate in Darfur. However, The RSF’s attempt to seize control over Sudan quickly stagnated, as they failed to take full control over Khartoum, leaving the Sudanese Army still in control over northern and eastern portions of the country. Since then, the Sudanese Armed Forces have regrouped and reorganized, enabling them to gain momentum against the RSF in the aforementioned counter offensives in Khartoum and abroad.

Despite this, the RSF maintains control over much of southern and western Sudan, and it is clear this largely ignored-in-the-news conflict is far from over, in a similar vein to equally underreported but bloody conflicts in Yemen, the Congo, and Myanmar.

UPCOMING SCHOOL AND LOCAL 

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Jade Larson

March 12th is this year’ HCIS talent show. Come at 6:45 to showcase your own talents or just watch! It’s five dollars at the door. On the same day there will be a soup and salad dinner from 5:00 to 6:30, and a craft sale beginning at 5:00. It’s ten dollars to set up a table. GITM is also taking place in March on the 21st. It will feature analog and video games as well as karaoke and other activities. There will be food and drink as well! There is also an Open Mic at Sacred Heart coming up on March 6th hosted by Rocking Rodents and BRAINWASHED, there will be pizza and a trinket trade there as well. Come enjoy their performances and showcase something yourself if you’d like to. I would recommend going if you can. I've seen both bands many times and loved it!

10 DEEP QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF EVERYDAY

1. Do I wake up and ready to start my day?

2. Do I feel like I am myself right now?

3. If today is the last day of my life, what will I do today to be happy?

4. What is important in my life right now? And what will I do to keep it stay with me?

5. Am I happy today? And What makes me happy today? (can be just little thing like; I eat chocolate and I like chocolate)

6. What is the most important thing that I want to do in my life right now?

7. What are the things I worry about? and what makes me so worried about it?

8. When I wake up in the morning, what is the first thing that comes to mind?

9. Do I make anyone smile today?

10. What am I grateful for today? Am I grateful for myself too?

This month's animal; the Vaquita! They are very cute, but it's likely that they will become extinct within the next few years, even though gillnets have been banned to try and save them, it may not be enough considering their numbers.

 Let's learn some stuff about them! They are the world's rarest marine animal! There are fewer than 20 of them in the wild! They are very endangered due to them being caught and drowned in illegal gillnets. They are the world's smallest porpoise, vaquitas measure up to five-feet long and weigh up to 120 lbs. They have super unique facial markings of a black ring around each eye and black curved lips, they are often compared to pandas. They look a lot like dolphins, but they aren't, nor are they sharks. They are in the same group that are called cetaceans. A porpoise is a small toothed whale with a low triangular dorsal fin and a blunt rounded snout. Vaquitas eat small fish, crustaceans, such as shrimp, and cephalopods, such as squid and octopuses. 

ALFREDO RECIPE

By Soren Brown

All required ingredients (1 serving except for the dough being 4 servings)

2 ½ cups of flour

3-4 medium eggs (or 1-1 ½ cups water)

parmesan cheese (1 cup)

Salt

1 tbsp butter

½ noodle water

Dough

Place a mat or board on your cooking surface that grips well. Next, make a well using your flour and place your medium eggs in the center (you can use prepackaged noodles or another noodle recipe) slowly incorporate the flour into the eggs until fully combined and form into around 4 balls depending on your ideal serving size, let rest in the fridge for 30 minutes at the least and you can store overnight. The eggs can be substituted for around 1-1 ½ cups of water.

Noodles

Take your dough once rested and put your one serving worth onto your grippy surface, coat the surface and dough with a light dusting of flour until your dough doesn’t stick, begin rolling it to your desired thickness and make sure to alternate sides and occasionally flipping it to insure an even thickness, roll up your dough loosely into a tube shape with some flour so it won’t stick and cut it into sections with about ¼”

Preparing

Shred a little over a cup of parmesan cheese (or use pre packaged). Next, set a pot of water to a boil and add about a spoonful of salt to the water and let your noodles cook for about 6-10 minutes in it, depending on how you like them. Put a preferably non-stick pan on medium heat and add around one tbsp of butter to it, once the noodles are finished cooking, scoop them into the pan and add you parmesan cheese and around ½ cup of your salted noodle water from the pot and stir continuously until it creates a cheesy looking pile of noodles, if you prefer them creamy you can add as much cream to your noodles as you wish.

YOU GOT THIS: CHANGING A CAR’S OIL

by Enby Baerg

Every 7,500-10,000 miles, a car needs an oil change (or once every 6 months if you don’t drive that much), this can be done at virtually any automotive shop, but it can also be done at home! This might seem intimidating at first, but it’s really quite simple. All you’ll need is: an outfit you don’t mind getting dirty, a rag or two, oil (the correct type for your car), an oil drain pan, an oil filter (once again, the correct kind), a basic set of wrenches, a car jack, jack stands, a funnel, and a can-do attitude. First, you’ll need to jack up your car, and use those jack stands to make sure it’s not gonna crush you. Then, grab your oil drain pan and situate it under the drain plug so that it won't make a mess (some cars have a protective undertray you’ll have to remove first), loosen the drain plug with the correct size socket wrench, and unscrew it by hand, making careful not to spray oil everywhere (which can happen if you don’t put pressure on it). You should now have a beautiful stream of oil cascading into your drain pan, which you can leave drain for a while (some cars have upwards of a gallon of oil) until the stream is a simple trickle. Now, locate your car's oil filter and move your draining receptacle under it (note: some filters can be removed by hand if they haven’t been overly tightened, but some need an oil filter wrench). Unscrew the oil filter slightly so that oil starts spilling out into your receptacle, let it drain until subsided, and finish removing the old filter. You’ll want to make sure that the oil filter gasket, a little rubber o-ring, comes off with it too. After wiping all the oil off, restore the drain plug to where it needs to be (it might need a washer replaced, depending on your model) and install the new oil filter, with a wiping of fresh oil on the top of the rubber o-ring to ensure a proper seal. You’re almost done, now just for the oil! If your car has an undertray, reinstall it, and restore the entire car to the ground. Pop the hood, and refill the proper amount of oil (you can find this in your car's manual) into the oil cap, using your funnel to make sure you don’t spill any. Re-fit the oil cap, and start your car for around 10 seconds to allow the new oil to get all up in there. Turn off your car and check your oil levels to ensure it's where it needs to be by removing your oil dipstick, wiping it clean with a rag, reinserting it, re-removing it and checking that the oil level is between minimum and maximum. Put your dipstick back in and start your car, letting it idle a little before checking for leaks under your car and around the oil filter.

Now, you’ve successfully changed your oil! Congratulations. This needs to be done in another seventy-five hundred miles, but now you can do it yourself!

PROPOSED BILLS FROM CONGRESSMAN STAUBER

By Jade Larson

This week, Pete Stauber, the representative for Minnesota's eighth district, introduced several bills that could cause a lot of damage if passed. One bill proposes stopping the prohibition of lead ammo and fishing tackle. If passed, much more lead would get into the environment, poisoning the water and animals. He also wants to delist the Grey Wolf as a protected species. If a species is protected, as the grey wolf is right now, hunting them is a crime. If they were to be removed from this list hunting them would be allowed again which is extremely disruptive to their packs and causes much harm. He reintroduced another bill called the Superior National Forest Restoration Act, this bill would remove protections for 225,504 acres near the boundary waters and allow big mining companies to establish mines there with little regulation and review for environmental impacts. You can learn more about what's happening with the boundary waters and ways that you can help from an organization called Save the Boundary Waters.