Members of the club volunteering at the blood drive will be guiding donors in the gym throughout the day as well as offering refreshments such as cookies, water and juice.

Red Cross encourages all students that are eligible to donate blood.

“We want people to donate blood to support and give back to their community,” said Red Cross co-president senior Jeffrey Liu.

Some students say they realize how important donating blood is.

“I’m a little nervous because I’m afraid of needles, but it’s good to donate and we should do it more often,” said senior Gerardo Aguilar.

The blood drive is set to take place Nov. 5 in the gym from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Anyone interested in donating blood can sign up with any Red Cross member.

REGISTER HERE - Parents sign in before the meeting in the den, Tuesday. Topics covered were tailored toward freshmen.

A student from a competing school conducts as their school band marches and performs during the Golden State Field Classic last Saturday. Schools from all over California participated.

Volume 41 October 31, 2008Number 12 WWW.PAWPRINTSWEEKLY.COM

Glen A. Wilson High School Hacienda Heights, California 91745

the INSIDE story

Students to practice democracy in mock election

PHOTO/PAULLA VANGCHAROEN

Club optimistic for first blood drive of school year

EDITORIAL | Although intended to boost education, laptops and promethean boards actually detract from the learning process. pg 3

The University of California Irvine will be sending an admissions officer to Wilson on Nov. 3 to speak to students interested in applying.

Cat Tracks ENTERTAINMENT| The last installment of Disney’s fan favorite musical franchise fails to live up to the previous two movies. pg 6

By MELANNIE POLIDANOSTAFF WRITER

“I want to suck your blood!” This line doesn’t belong to vampires anymore.

The Red Cross club will be hosting their first blood drive of the school year next week. The club’s goal is to raise at least 150 pints of blood. Each pint can save up to three lives.

“We just want to raise as many pints as possible and include a lot of teachers and staff and students,” said Red Cross co-adviser Patricia Branconier.

In order for students to donate blood they must meet certain requirements.

“Students should weigh at least 110 pounds, have had their piercing in a sterile environment if pierced within the last 12 months and must not have had a tattoo done within the last 12 months,” said Red Cross co-adviser Ann Hanson.

Since 2008, 16-year-olds have been able to donate blood, although they must fill out a special permission packet. 17-year-olds must have their guardian sign a permission slip. Both the packets and permission slips must be turned in on the day of the drive.

PHOTO/VIRGINIA TANG

Freshmen Parent Night

By BRANDIE WONGNEWS EDITOR

Statistics show that as generations pass, more and more people are answering the call to vote. Now, here at Wilson, student will get their own chance to join the democratic process.

Next week, students will receive the opportunity to vote for either Barack Obama or John McCain as president in Wilson’s first mock election.

“The purpose of the election is to begin instilling a sense of civil duty in students so they will see the importance of voting,” said assistant principal Ben Webster.

The idea of a mock election stemmed from a statewide project called MyVote.California Secretary of State Debra Bowen and Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell invited middle and high schools across the state to participate. The statewide MyVote Day was yesterday, but Wilson will not host theirs until later.

“We are just deviating from the project [date]. Every school in our district will also be holding a mock election,” said assistant principal Jamie Millan.

In the real national election, citizens have the choice to vote for a president as well as on state propositions. However, for this mock election, students will only be voting on presidential candidates. Voting will be done by computer.

Some students say they are disappointed with the way the system is set up. “I think it is unfair that we do not get to vote on propositions because we

have our own opinion and should be able to express what we think,” said junior Katie Yada.

Other students have a more positive view.“In two years, I will be able to vote, so the election should prepare me to

think politically and encourage others to vote,” said junior Karina Pimentel. The faculty encourages all students to participate in the election.“Maybe by voting now, students will vote for real in the future and become

part of the democratic process. The young generation can make a difference,” said Associated Student Body (ASB) adviser Liz Orth.

The mock election is set for Nov. 4 in the den at lunch. Students who wish to vote must bring their ID card. Results will to be announced the same day.

“It will be interesting to see how the student population will vote and if the results are similar to or different from the nation’s vote,” said Webster.

SLIDE TO THE LEFT - Dance team members, senior Tina Chen, junior Corliss Liang and sophomore Elyssa Pak rehearse their dance rountine, yesterday.

October 31, 20082 News

Drama to debut lunchtime performance

PHOTO/FION LING

Dance practice

By YUHUA WANGSTAFF WRITER

Sometimes showing school spirit can be as simple as a change in fashion.Students can soon come to school in various outfits as the Associated Student

Body (ASB) hosts its first Spirit Week of the year in preparation for the upcoming football game against Los Altos HS.

Each day of the week was given a specific theme that students should follow. The themes were decided upon by members of the House of Representatives during their monthly meeting.

Monday will be Superhero Day in which superhero costumes or t-shirts can be worn to school. Students can wear their pajamas on Tuesday for Pajama Day, although shoes and socks are still required. Wednesday will be Decades Day, for which students can dress based on fashions from a particular decade. Thursday is set to be Twins Day and Friday will be Class Color Day, so students are expected to wear their respective class colors. Colors are yellow for freshmen, white for sophomores, black for juniors and red for seniors.

“I think the most successful one is Pajama Day, because everybody has pajamas so everyone usually participates,” said ASB adviser Elizabeth Orth.

The day of the game against Los Altos HS has been designated Spirit Day. Students are encouraged to wear clothing with a Wilson theme.

Points will be awarded to each fourth period class based on the number of participants. A bonus of five extra points will be given if the teacher participates.

The class with the most points at the end of the semester will win an ice cream party while the class with the most points at the end of the school year will win a pizza party.

Some students have responded positively to Spirit Week.“It’s always been fun, especially the part where I can dress up and see all my

friends and classmates dressed up too,” said senior David Yee.Other students have mixed feelings.“I like all the themes except Decades Day. It’s pretty hard to distinguish between

the fashions for each decade other than the seventies,” said sophomore Nicholas Alba.

Spirit week will be held next week starting from Monday Nov. 3. The football game against Los Altos is set for the following week on Thursday Nov. 13.

BY LUBINA KIMSTAFF WRITER

Affordable entertainment will now be available with your lunch.

The advanced drama class is hosting Lunchtime Comedy Hour, a series of short comedic scripts. These short skits will be replacing the traditional fall play, which has been cancelled due to adviser Meghann Kraft going on maternity leave. Drama, however, says that the mood of these shows will be similar.

“I felt really sad replacing the fall play for Comedy Hour, but it’s better than nothing, and it was really fun getting ready for the performance,” said senior Desire Ventura.

The advanced drama class was sorted into small groups of four or five and was required to write original comedic scripts.

“We started short rehearsals in the middle of last week to get everything together. However, it’s been hard juggling the Haunted House and the play,” said sophomore Josh Yue.

Organization plans to build up school spirit

The comedies cover a variety of topics, ranging from a parody of medicine commercials to sportscasts.

“My parody of ESPN is going to be really funny. It’s like a sports cast, but it also isn’t,” said senior Chris Chin.

Drama decided to set these skits during lunch in order to reach the maximum amount of students.

Some students say they feel eager for the idea of a lunchtime play.

“It was fun attending last year’s performances, so I will definitely be watching especially since its comedy,” said sophomore Jacob Plascentia.

Other students say they feel less interested in the comedies.

“I don’t plan on going because I’d be too busy eating my food and it’s such a hassle walking all the way downstairs,” said sophomore Jennifer Sung.

Lunchtime Comedy Hour will begin next Wednesday and go on until Friday. Tickets can be bought at Little Theater for $1.

Recent implementation of two devices—laptops and Promethean boards—on campus has brought focus to the school’s accelerated shift toward technological resources. The mass distribution of laptops to incoming students was instituted last year and continued this school year, and officials began installing Promethean boards in select classrooms toward the end of last year. Now, several classrooms have been equipped with the interactive board and half of the student population tote around personal laptops.

Laptops provide each student with personal computer access, allowing them to complete assignments digitally and utilize Internet sources. But instead of enhancing the learning process, laptops have become tempting distractions. Students try to access non-educational material such as games and social-networking websites by finding ways to dodge restrictions. Promethean boards equip teachers with a more convenient, cutting-edge means of presenting lessons. However, the boards are still relatively new devices and sometimes malfunction. Teachers spend valuable time familiarizing themselves with the board’s functions. Classrooms are being equipped with cutting-edge devices even though they lack basic materials and new furniture. Such irony becomes glaringly-obvious as mroe inconveniences from the new equipment appear.

Each new addition to the school’s resources brings with it certain benefits, but recent trends originating from new techonolgy have highlighted the unforeseen burdens that have come with modern equipment. These inconveniences force administrators to find solutions and restrictions, sacrificing time that should have been saved by the introduction of new technology. When the burdens are weighed against the benefits of many technological devices, it becomes questionable whether modern equipment represents a contribution to our school or just an aesthetic enhancement.

The encumbrances currently faced by students, teachers and administrators are a part of a transition to integrate more technology onto campus. While this shift will eventually prove to be beneficial for future students, the process taken to attain these goals should not interfere with the educations of present students. Technology can augment the learning process on campus by presenting valuable resources, but only if administrators can simultaneously integrate it and utilize its beneficial completely. However, failing to do so will detriment education and will only result in the superficial and curtailed use of modern equipment.

Technology’s burdens overshadow benefits

wordon the

STREET

Paw Prints asks:How do some t e c h n o l o g i c a l inventions and equipment benefit

students?

CALIVIN HAN (12) - Cars give you a sense of freedom, and you can drive them to go buy delicious lunches!

LANORE PEARLMAN - Word processing is useful. The DVD player also helps because we can see what Cyrano really looks like.

GREYSON TANG (9) -Cell phones can be used for calls during an emergency. There are also calculators installed in them.

AUBREE WEST (10) - When you hate the world, you can tune everything out and just listen to the words on your IPod.

ROBIN YIP (10) - Graphing calculators are tight. You can use them for help in math, and there are games too!

CLAUDIA VAN GORDEN - We have access to cable and educational videos that offer cultural and political information.

COMPILED BY FION LING AND VIRGINIA TANG

Editorial 3October 31, 2008

Number 12©Volume 41

Glen A. Wilson High School16455 E. Wedgeworth DriveHacienda Heights, CA 91745www.pawprintsweekly.com

Alyssa RobertsAdviser

Double EaglePrinting

An open forum, Paw Prints encourages the written opinion of its readers in the form of signed letters to the editor or longer commentaries on topical subjects.

While we recognize the individuality of all forms of expression we reserve the right to edit and / or censor that which we feel necessary in accordance with California Education Code 48907 and standards of good taste.

All communications must be signed. It should also be understood that the views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the opinion of individual Paw Prints staff members or the policy of Glen A. Wilson.

Billy LinCharles Tsuei Editors-in-Chief

NEWSCarey Leung

Brandie Wong

EDITORIALStephanie Chang

FEATUREPERSPECTIVES

ENTERTAINMENT

SPORTS VISUALS

Renee TangSabrina Dea

Allison Ko Howard Li

Charles TsueiChris Chiang

Jennifer ChowMichelle GorSonia Tellis

EDITORS

Paw Prints asks:What kind of change has new technology brought on

campus?A sample of 278 students were polled.

COMPILED BY/ CAROL CIRIACO, JENNIFER CHOW, HANNY KISHAWI, JON JON LEW, MELANNIE POLIDANO, VIRGINIA TANG, MICHAEL ZUBIA

Positive

Negative

No change

NO CHANGE13%

NEGATIVE35%

POSITIVE52%

ART/ PETER SUH

Perspectives4 October 31, 2008

Rebelution: the challenge to break stereotypes

Definition of death should be in our own hands

By ALEX CHAOSTAFF WRITER

Rebelution—the word alone sounds rebellious.

Coined by 19-year-old twins Alex and Brett Harris in their book Do Hard Things: a Teenage Rebellion against Low Expectations, this term combines the words rebellion and revolution and means to rebel against the idea of rebellion.

In the book, Alex and Brett challenge young people around the world “to rebel not against social institutions or authorities but against the low expectations of today’s culture and to do hard things for the glory of God.”

The Harris brothers believe that students erroneously think that adolescence is time for goofing around, throwing fits and breaking rules. The youth of today have a mentality of low expectations and leave their futures for their parents to decide. They do not leave their comfort zones and do not think critically on issues such as faith, character, thought and social involvement.

Many young people keep themselves in a bubble during their teenage years. They become drawn into what the Harris brothers call the “myth of adolescence,” or the idea that the teenage years are a time

of freedom from accountability and having fun.

Society depicts the adolescent years as a period of immaturity and irresponsibility. The world expects adolescents between the ages of 13 and 19 to be reckless, uncontro l lab le and rebellious.

D e c r e a s i n g standards cause the teenagers of today to strive for less. There is no serious talk among this generation about impacting the world.

There is no desire to take on hard tasks because they are too difficult to handle. Instead, young people settle for the mediocrity society expects from them.

T e e n a g e r s s p e n d i n g countless hours on the Internet, browsing web pages of no

particular value, epitomize the idleness in our generation.

This idea of rebelling against low standards cannot be taken like a flu shot. The majority of teenagers, including myself, do not constantly

keep in mind the challenge of breaking teenage stereotypes.

We need to be acting now and work hard. Beginning a life of vigor in these early years lays the foundation of how people will spend the rest of their

lives. From the simple

chore of making a bed everyday to the challenge of being kind to others and controlling anger, people can start their own rebelution right now.

Many complain that there is not enough time to make a bed. It takes no effort to keep to oneself and not interact with others. Getting angry and retaliating is an automatic response to mistreatment.

On the other hand, it takes more effort to commit to fulfilling personal responsibilities, to socialize with others, to restrain anger and to forgive.

Will today’s generation continue living the way they are or rebel against the world’s low expectations?

By JACOB EWALDSTAFF WRITER

Death has been redefined.The term has had one of the most complex and

debatable definitions in history. Point of view, religion and many other factors determine when one is considers another dead.

In the scientific and medical communities, the death discrepancy can cause major problems.

Transplant surgeons must make sure that a donor is deceased before harvesting the

body’s organs. A heart must have stopped for

a few minutes before

surgeons are allowed to begin extracting organs from a body and preparing them for transplantation.

However, every second the surgeons stall, the organs lose potential health, longevity and overall effectiveness. Doctors prefer rapid transplants, but in many cases families will cling to their dying relatives’ lives for as long as possible.

It is natural to not want to let go of someone you love, but in this case doing so can put a potential transplant recipient’s life at risk.

In addition, maintaining one’s life under all circumstances is not wise.

Many survivors of near-death experiences do not live very long afterwards, and that small extension of life will probably be painful until the end.

Thus the issue arises of when to declare a person truly deceased.

Biological death occurs when brain function has stopped and the heart has stopped. Biological

death is complete and utterly irreversible. Such an absolute state of death presents an ideal subject to harvest organs from. However, as the body has expired, the organs inside it may often expire as well.

There must be a more efficient way of defining one’s passing. Organ t r a n s p l a n t a t i o n

can help the living, but only if the organs themselves are still living.S

Therefore, doctors have decided t h a t “ b r a i n death” is another form of passing a w a y . T h e body is

kept alive with external machines, but the brain has little or no activity. The victim is likely to remain in a vegetative state for the rest of his life, or death, depending on how one views it.

In brain death, the organs are preserved, so removal during this time is superb for the patient awaiting a transplant.

Relatives may want to extend their time with their loved one by leaving him on life support, but in the long run, this will only be more painful for the family as they helplessly watch their relative “not live” for the rest of his life.

In respect to brain and consciousness capacity, the patient is no longer alive. If his brain is no longer functioning and he cannot feel anything, then there is nothing “living” about him.

ART/VANESSA HO

ART/SONIA TELLIS

Between biological to brain to cardiac death, there is no perfect way to define the term.

The opinion of the majority and the law should not dictate when a person is considered deceased and available for organ transplant. The organ donor should be allowed to tell a doctor under which circumstances to deem himself comatose and when to deem himself dead.

This is not such a radical idea, as it is already in place within CPR. Individuals can sign documents to refuse CPR before any accidents occur if they do not wish to be revived.

Knowing when to “pull the plug” or allow patients to pass away is crucial information for doctors to know. Acting on spontaneous decisions to keep patients alive at painful times will only antagonize the doctors, damage the organs and traumatize the families who are already suffering from seeing their loved ones suffer.

The dying individual, unless the person in question is a child or in some way disabled, should be allowed to make the final decision beforehand. Ultimately, he is in charge of his own life.

Feature 5October 31, 2008

Dreams: bizarre, frightening or simply random

GRAPHIC/JENNIFER CHOW

Paw Prints asks:What is the scariest dream

you have ever had?

wordon theSTREETCOMPILED BY PAULLA

VANGCHAROEN

PATRICK NEAL (11) - I dreamt that I was falling off of Mt. Everest. My mom and my sister were laughing because they had parachutes and I didn’t.

MELISSA HO (9) - My mom was being stalked by this psychopath. He locked me and my sister in the closet and tried to kill us so that he could marry my mom.

NICK BOBLUK (11) - I don’t usually have bad dreams, but there was one when my house was burning down and my cat was trapped inside. I was sad.

B R E A N N A HOUSTON (12) - My family was dead and their bodies were surrounding me. I was the only one who was alive and I didn’t know what to do.

By JACOB EWALDSTAFF WRITER

Just when you thought that Halloween’s horrors were finally over, they won’t stop coming—even in your sleep.

Chances are, most people have experienced nightmares multiple times throughout their lives.

Usually results of stress, emotional trauma or simply fear, nightmares are stressful and painful dreams that cause the sleeper to wake in terror.

“I had a nightmare because I watched The Skeleton Key last Friday and I got really scared. There is a mirror in front of my bed, and in the movie, ghosts come out of a mirror,” said sophomore Aubree West.

Junior Richard Fu also describes a similarly frightening nighttime experience.

“I dreamt I was in a weird society where everybody’s face started disappearing,” he explained. “I ran to find someone who had a face but when I looked in a mirror, I discovered my face was gone too.”

No matter how bizarre or fearful dreams may be, there is always one aspect about them which drives people crazy—they are painstakingly difficult to remember or interpret.

Throughout the years, many dream theorists and psychologists have struggled to overcome this obstacle.

In ancient times, people believed dreams were a second world that could only be entered during an unconscious state.

According to howstuffworks.com , one of the earliest influential figures in the research of dreams was Dr. Sigmund Freud, who believed that dreams metaphorically represented suppressed feelings and desires that were unacceptable in society.

In addition, Freud explained that because these dreams represent m o r a l taboos, the d r e a m e r

Both of these theories support the idea that dreams reveal much information about the dreamer.

According to psychology teacher Claudia Van Gorden, “dreams reflect our inner fears and emotions.”

Students, such as freshman Cheyanne Zavala, agree that dreams express their passions.

“I had a dream I was in the Harry Potter movie and I killed Cho Chang. Then I went to the Yule Ball with Cedric Diggory,” she said. “I think it means I am obsessed with Cedric Diggory.”

Like Zavala, other students notice that contemporary entertainment has a great effect on their dreams.

“I was a soldier in the video game Metal Gear Solid 4. I shot at random people. I think I had the dream because I played that game before I went to sleep that night,” said senior Luis Lopez.

In a more eerie sense, dreams have been said to foreshadow possible future events.

Students share their experiences with dream foresight.

“I had a dream that my sister ate me, and then the next day we got into a huge fight,” said sophomore Shannon Goto.

Senior Jessica Park can also relate to such odd coincidences.

“I had a dream that I went to a café that I had never been to. A few days later I really went to that café. I think that was a premonition,” said Park.

Not all students, however, are convinced that their dreams foretell their futures.

“I dreamt that I was completing a linear regression problem in math, but I could not solve it because I lost my graphing calculator. The next day I was late for school, but I don’t think my dream had any

connection,” said senior Jacob Huang.

Other students b e l i e v e

that religious and spiritual forces use dreams to relay

messages.

subconsciously wants to forget these thoughts.

However, Carl Jung, a student of Freud, had his own opinions on the matter. Jung believed that dreams were a method of helping your brain solve problems and deal with issues while asleep. The dreams are then forgotten because they become less important than waking memories.

“I believe that sometimes God speaks to me through my dreams. Most of

the time, my dreams are pointless, but every once in a while, they are meaningful,” said senior Pauline Tai.

In other cases, some students, like sophomore Pablo Ramirez,

have found themselves physically portraying the actions taking place

in their dreams.“I was going up these never-ending

stairs. When I was getting to the top, I slipped and I wouldn’t stop falling down the stairs,” said Ramirez. “When I woke up, my dad told me that I kept twitching in my sleep.”

Although dreaming can be a common nighttime experience, the content of our dreams can vary—and with Halloween’s ghosts and ghouls lurking around tonight, beware, as your worst fears just might come true.

CHELSEA CHA (9) - I was about to wake up, but all of a sudden I felt paralyzed and I couldn’t move at all. When I heard banging on the door, I could move again.

By ALICE WENSTAFF WRITER

They have it all: fame, glamour, attention.

But for some celebrities, this is apparently not enough.

Hollywood has traditionally been composed of those who excelled in one particular area—actors were obviously trained in the field of drama and those good at singing were, well, singers.

Things have changed.Nowadays, celebrities feel it necessary

to add to their fame by touching on every single facet of the industry.

Actresses now search for record deals and singers try their hands at comedy—despite their less than perfect voices or inability to be funny.

What’s worse is that we, as viewers, fall victim to these “experiments.”

Why do we keep watching, listening and reading despite the fact these celebrities more or less lack talent in fields irrelevant to their expertise?

The answer is that we are swayed by the effect of exposure. In other words, the mere recognition of a well-known name is all we need to compel us to listen or watch, and continue doing so.

For example, Lauren Conrad is a name that has been gaining stardom in the past few years. Her popularity on MTV’s Laguna Beach drew audiences in for its spin-off The Hills. Her increased role in Hollywood circles then gained her respect as a fashion designer.

But it doesn’t end there. Conrad recently announced that she

will be writing a three-book series for young adults titled L.A. Candy about “a girl who moves to L.A. and stars in a reality show.”

EntertainmentOctober 31, 20086

Celebs exploit publicity to broaden careersWait, what? Déjà vu

much? This “fiction” sounds suspiciously like a self-obsessed autobiography of the star herself.

Not only is this young woman becoming an author, a profession in which I question her competence, but she’s also writing three whole books on her own life when she already has her very own reality show.

The point is that amidst all the doubt towards her skills as a writer, I can’t say I will be surprised when young girls rush to purchase Conrad’s first installment come next February.

All it will take is one glance at the predictably flashy cover and the author’s name. The

looks like a horse, but all that matters is the mentioning of her name in the tabloids, TV shows and simple word of mouth.

The effect of exposure, however, is not limited to those who typically grace the red carpet.

Any American is bound to be familiar with champion swimmer Michael Phelps, whose recent surge of fame can be attributed to the 2008 Olympics Games.

Phelps’ talent for swimming is unquestionable, but eyebrows raised when he tried his hand at comedy.

Fresh off his record-breaking success at Beijing, Phelps hosted a very hyped thirty-fourth season premiere of Saturday Night Live last month.

Needless to say, fans and critics alike agreed that his performance was more than disappointing.

Aol.com even went so far as to say: “there’s a big difference between not being funny and just being flat-out unentertaining. Phelps was both.”

Again, we see how people are easily misled by a celebrity’s reputation, and then disappointed to discover the truth about his or her talents (or lack thereof ).

These incapable stars are abusing their fame and merely taking advantage of their faithful fans.

And all for what? To gain a higher reputation and even more followers?

We shouldn’t let the flurry of celebrity names manipulate us into thinking that they are the best of the best.

Quality, not quantity, is key.If we continue to support these

lackluster acts by big-shot names, what we are really doing is encouraging the unoriginal, untalented and uninspired.

Latest HSM installment loses once-fanatic fanBy CAREY LEUNGNEWS EDITOR

Last Friday, all other matters were pushed aside to make sure the afternoon was clear. Studying for the upcoming SATs? That could wait. It was finally the release of High School Musical 3: Senior Year.

I had been one of the many naysayers of the High School Musical (HSM) franchise when it first debuted. A musical about high school life by Disney sounded positively stupid. Luckily, my fanatic friend showed me the light by buying me the DVD. To say that I fell in love with the movie would be an understatement.

It should come as no surprise then that I was greatly anticipating the new movie. It was the finale of the HSM saga and I had been telling everyone that this would be the movie of the year, to which they smartly replied, “For 12 year olds, maybe.”

Intending to prove them wrong, I walked into the theater. The movie starts off with the final championship basketball game and immediately Troy (Zac Efron) bursts into the song “Now or Never,” a catchy pop tune about how this was their last chance to shine—a very appropriate opening to the HSM that I loved.

As the movie progressed, the most noticeable change was the scale of its big screen funds. No longer was it limited by a small cable television budget.

Dance numbers were a lot grander, with a variety of stage sets even within the same song. Of particular note is “The Boys are Back,” in which a brilliant

work of choreography takes place in a car junkyard, reminiscent of Grease’s “Greased Lightning.” Troy and his friend Chad (Corbin Bleu) hopped atop cars and tires, using garage parts as dance props and exuding the energy of teen spirit.

But to my disappointment, my amazement ended there. Music had been the magic of the first two movies, but I found myself disappointed with Senior Year’s soundtrack.

Aside from the opening and closing numbers, each song sounded more generic and forgettable than the last. Instead of singing along, I was just waiting for the song to end, hoping that the next might be less disappointing. Unfortunately, that never happened.

Another unwelcome change was the addition of three more cast members. Because Disney had promised this would be the last of the original HSM cast, three underclassmen were introduced to carry on the series. But instead of being a teaser for future productions, they seemed more like forced additions.

And while the movie does a good job touching on all the highlights of senior year, this is also one of its biggest faults—it tries to fit too much in the allotted time.

By trying to cram prom, graduation, colleges, friendships and romance all into 113 short minutes, viewers are so rushed that they’re likely to forget all that happened by the time they leave the theater.

Disney struck gold when it came up with the HSM franchise, but this ending doesn’t live up to the high standard set by the previous installments.

Watch the first two. Enjoy them. But save yourself from tragic disappointment—skip HSM’s senior year.

SITTING IN A TREE - Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens share a moment in High School Musical 3.

PHOTO/HSMUSICALWEB.ORG

PHOTO/LAUREN-CONRAD.NETFILM TO FASHION - Lauren Conrad prepares to showcase her spring collection during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

digging out for wallets will almost immediately follow.

Another young starlet seen on weekly tabloid covers is none other than Disney’s Miley Cyrus, otherwise known as “Hannah Montana.”

Though Cyrus is hailed as the number-one teenage pop sensation of today, even her most avid fans can say that deep down, they know their idol isn’t perfect.

No, let me correct myself. They know she can’t sing.

So why do we spend hundreds of dollars just to attend her concerts and waste hours of our time to line up for autograph signings?

The answer is really that simple—to have the chance to say: “I met Hannah Montana!”

True, her voice isn’t the most pleasant and her face resembles something that

October 31, 2008 7Sports

By CHARLES TSUEISPORTS EDITOR

Despite losing their league opener to Charter Oak, 42-15, the football team contends that the numbers don’t tell the whole story.

Facing an undefeated team, the Cats scored first

Charger QB hands Wilson’s seventh loss

PHOTO/IRENE CHOU

LET’S DO IT AGAIN! - Moses Vega (10) sets his feet to cutback towards the middle of the offensive line during Wedenesday’s practice. Tonight the team tries to take down Bonita, who is undefeated in league and posesses a 5-2 overall record.

when Tim Gilmore (12) ran 51 yards for a touchdown.

However, Gilmore only played one more quarter as he injured his knee with four minutes left in the second.

“It didn’t affect us that much. We continued to run the ball,” said John Dai (12).

Waterpolo’s offense falters in second half

“We still had guys who [picked up the slack].”

The Charger offense, however, was led by QB Chris Allen (12) who Coach Greg Hoyd describes as the most likely candidate of winning league MVP honors.

“He’s 6’4” and he can run. He can throw the ball

downfield and he picked on all our players,” explained Hoyd.

Coming into the game with 12 TD passes, the quarterback threw four more.

However, Charter Oak also had help from their special teams, who scored twice on Aj Powell’s (11) two punt return touchdowns in the first half.

“They have a very athletic group. Our guys would get there, but the [returner] would make three of our players miss,” said Hoyd.

After allowing Charter Oak to score 35 points in the first half, Wilson kept the ball away from the Chargers in the third quarter with five minutes left.

“We stuck to our gameplan so we didn’t give their offense any more chances to score,” said Hoyd.

Even though this is the fourth consecutive game in which the Cats gave up 40 plus points, the team says they are confident on that side of the ball.

“The defense actually did really well. If you take away a couple turnovers and the punt returns, this game would’ve been much closer,” explained Hoyd.

With Bonita coming into town, Gilmore will not miss tonight’s game. How long he plays is another question.

“We’re going to watch Tim real closely,” said Hoyd. “They’re a good team. They can do it all.”

Players say they are ready to take on a team that has won their first two league matches.

“Our offense will be all right. We just have to make our blocks,” said Matt Orosco (12). “Defensively, we look good. They pass a lot, but we got all our playmakers.”

WHOOPS! - Eugene Chang (12) misses the block as the ball flies to the back of the goal in Wednesday’s 11-4 loss to Charter Oak.

By JON JON LEWSTAFF WRITER

Defense wins games. It’s as simple as that.

Unfortunately, the boys water polo team had to learn this lesson the hard way. Wednesday, they suffered an 11-4 loss to Charter Oak.

The Cats were down from the beginning, allowing the Chargers to score four goals in the first quarter.

But the team, with the help of goalie and captain Eugene Chang (12), held off the Charter Oak offense in the second quarter, leaving the score 4-2 at the half.

However, this would be as close to victory as the Cats would get.

“In the second half, we started breaking down with a lot of turnovers. On top of that, our defense just wasn’t aggressive enough,” says Eric Cheng (12).

During the third quarter, the Chargers increased their lead to 7-3.

“We stopped playing as a team; people started doing what they wanted to do instead of working together. Defensively we were shut down,” states Jeffrey Liu (12).

According to the team, by the fourth quarter, the excessive amount of turnovers and the inability to score had crushed any hopes of victory.

While some players attribute the loss to Charter Oak’s defensive intensity and Wilson’s lack of it, others point out different factors.

Chang, who performed exceptionally well defensively with eighteen blocks, believes it was the Cats’ offensive shortcomings that led to the downfall.

“We were getting ejections. We just weren’t capitalizing on the man-ups, the six-on-fives,” explains Chang.

On the other hand, captain Greg Yokomizo (12), who was triple-teamed by Charter Oak, blames the lackadaisical performance on prior events.

“Our team was playing sloppy because the lack of concentration in practice carried over into the game. We need to practice with more intensity if we still hope to win the next two games,” said Yokomizo.

With only a couple games left, the Cats say they hope to pull it together and end the season on a positive note.PHOTO/IRENE CHOU

October 31, 20088 Sports

Cross country excels in closing meets

PHOTO/PAULLA VANGCHAROEN

Cats finish regular season with close loss

By HANNY KISHAWISTAFF WRITER

Girls golf ended their league competition with satisfying results.

Yesterday, the Cats finished League Preliminaries at Mountain Meadows, facing Ayala, La Serna, Troy, Los Altos, Charter Oak and West Covina.

Although the competition seemed intimidating to the Cats at first, some say they believe that they were more than prepared to face the challenge.

“We were ready to take on the matches, especially since we are placed third in league,” said Grace Lee (11).

Although the course was new to the Cats, they faced it without hesitation.

“It was really hilly, but we learned to adapt and play it as if it were any game,” said Heidi Tseng (12).

The Cats put their optimism to the test on Tuesday’s game at Friendly Hills.

According to Gina Lee (12), the Cats played a near effortless game in which each member showed determination, precision and confidence.

“It wasn’t that we knew we were going to win, we just knew that we were able to do our best, which was exactly what we did,” said Tseng.

With returning players Elizabeth Choong (12), Gina Lee, Hana Lee (11) and Tseng, the team was equipped with experience.

OUT OF HERE! - Audrey Auyang (11) hits the ball back forcefuly across the court in yesterday’s loss to Bonita.

CHUGGING ALONG - Stephen Hoang (11) finishes up his run in yesterday’s meet against Chaffey.

By CAROL CIRIACOSTAFF WRITER

With the season coming to a close, the cross country team is riding on the wings of success.

After winning first place in the Mt. SAC Invitational this past weekend, the cross country team competed in a non-league meet yesterday.

Although it was only a practice race, Thursday’s meet was the cross country’s last home race of the season. Angela Tu (12) came in first for Wilson’s girls varsity and Ernest Reyes (12) came in first for the boys.

“It’s senior year, and this meet was my last home race, so I was excited when I got first place and a personal record. Everyone was cheering me on and encouraging me, and it got me pumped for league finals,” said Reyes.

Melissa Lopez (12) agrees. “All of the seniors wanted

to get a personal record since it was their last home race. Still,

“They practiced constantly; they were focused on every stroke; and they were relaxed throughout the game,” said Hana Lee.

Confident about their performance on the course, the Cats say they believe that they have reached their expectations of what they call a “good game.”

“All of us tried our best and the satisfying results gave us a better outlook on how we will be competing in the future,” said Grace Lee.

On Monday, the Cats began preliminaries at Los Serranos.

They say they faced off in this match with the same confidence they had yesterday.

“Since we were good enough to qualify as league finalists, there was

nothing to be afraid of because we had the experience. We understood that there was a good chance for us to stand out in this battle,” said Tseng.

However, as experienced members of the Junior Golf Association (JGA), Los Altos’ players stood as the Cats greatest factor.

“They have way more experience than us and play with greater accuracy and preparation on the grass,” said Choong.

League Finals ended successfully with Hana Lee placing third and first team all league. Gina Lee and Tseng placed second in all team league.

Their next game will be a CIF competition scheduled for November 10.

it was just practice for League Finals, where we are going to get first,” said Lopez. “From there, I am confident that we will go to CIF and beat out our competitors.”

According to Coach Scott Fessenden, the meet was indeed a practice run for their next race.

“Thursday was a non-league meet, so it didn’t count,” said Fessenden. “In other words, it was not nearly as important as what is coming up. We used it to tune up for next Thursday’s League Finals.”

This past weekend’s race at Mt. SAC has also helped the team prepare for the end of the season.

“The times at the Mt. SAC race were spectacular,” said Fessenden. “We did better than we had hoped. Actually, the girls varsity did unbelievably well in the heat.”

The top runners for the girls varsity team included Tu, Lopez, Laurie Allred (11), Genny Rosete (11) and Vanessa Plascencia (12). Tu placed

first for Wilson, running three miles in 20:16.

Furthermore, all seven of the varsity girls who ran placed in the top 30 out of 170 runners.

The boys also raced very well, running in their specific age groups rather than in the team races.

With their last race finished, the cross country team is now looking forward to CIF, which is their ultimate goal.

As a result, the Cats say they have high hopes for the end of their season.

“I am definitely excited for League Finals,” said Rosete. “I am sure that we will make it to the finals, where all our hard work will pay off.”

Fessenden agrees with his team.

“Unless some disaster strikes, we will definitely make it to the preliminary races,” said Fessenden. “We hope to go to CIF finals from there. Since the team is working so hard, I really believe that they can do it.”

Girls golf extends year, prepares for CIF

By CHRIS CHIANGSPORTS EDITOR

Though the girls tennis team did not finish the season with as big of a bang as they hoped, they nonetheless put up a strong fight against Bonita before falling short, 11-7.

Singles played extremely well as they finished 7-2. Renee Tang (11) and Meagan Zamilpa (9) swept their opponents, though the latter had some trouble with her adversary.

Meagan and her challenger could not decide upon the score and in frustration, Bonita’s number two singles fired back using foul language.

The problem escalated to the point that Assistant Principal Chris Sweet was brought in.

According to Coach Jerelyn Lopez, Sweet proclaimed that they “had more action than last week’s football game.”

The issue was eventually resolved and Zamilpa won the remaining matches.

Doubles lost 9-0, but their matches were much closer than the overall score reflected.

“We did better this time, but we had too many unforced errors and just couldn’t finish,” said Lopez.

Fortunately, the Cats had an easier time against Charter Oak Tuesday as they beat them, 14-4.

“They were better than before,” said Jessica Chin (12). “They switched up their doubles which cost us games.”

Singles finished 7-2 and were led by Tang and Zamilpa, both winning 3-0.

The doubles had a more balanced offense as they won 7-2. Chin and her new partner Elaine Wang (12) guided the doubles as they swept their opponent.

“I decided to switch up the players in doubles in order to keep the seniors together and to help the juniors develop chemistry for next year,” said Lopez.

With CIF prelims on Tuesday, the Cats are looking to fix a few kinks and improve their overall game.

“We need to play hard, not scared,” said Lopez. “We can’t play with any regrets.”PHOTO/P. VANGCHAROEN