eq (nov 2013)

EAGLECRESTNEWSMAGAZINE

Eaglecrest 5100 S Picadilly St Centennial, CO 80015 - EQextra.com - November, 2013 - Volume 22 Issue 2 - [email protected]

STUDENTS GETTING ENGAGED

- PAGE 3

SOFTBALL WINS LEAGUE- PAGE 7

A STUDENT BATTLES CANCER AND BLINDNESS- PAGE 9

HOW FRANKENSTEIN SCARED STUDENTS- PAGE 12

LOOK WHAT’S INSIDE

4BAND TO PLAY AT HALFTIME AT CSU FOOTBALL GAME

8 TOP TWO SOFTBALL PITCHERS IN

THE LEAGUE ARE BOTH SOPHOMORES

9A STUDENT HAS CANCER AND LOSES HIS VISION, BUT STAYS UPBEAT

13A GRAFFITI ARTIST WHO DOESN’T TAG ANYTHING?

COVER PHOTO BY BEAU JAMIESON

NOV. 2013 | EQextra.com | PAGE 3

NEWS

BY DILKUSH KHAN ere’s a rundown on a typical

relationship in high school: you become friends, you’re asked out, you date for 2 weeks, and then you break up.

That’s not the case for some though. Three pairs of high school sweethearts have taken the extra step and have made a lifelong commitment that most aren’t willing to make at this point in life. Take juniors Nolan Manzanares and Cath-erine Gouranson, for instance. They met in a marching band competition two years ago, and noticed that they have “a lot of common interests,” according to Gouranson. “Besides everything, he cares about me and he’s really cute,” Gouranson said, gushing with admiration. After two years of dating, they decided to make things official. “He was talking about spending the rest of our lives with each other, and I felt the same way about him,” Gouranson said, “so then we got engaged.”

Sophomores Nieca Robinson and Matthew Earls met last year in Raptor 101 through a mutual friend, and, though both introverted, “instantly clicked,” Robinson said. “He thought [proposing] was an expres-sion of his love for me,” Robinson said, “and it’s a commitment I’m willing to make.” Senior Sara Leeman* and college graduate Kyle Bernam* lived in the same apartment complex before Bernam moved to Greeley. Five years later, he asked Leeman’s parents if he could talk to her. Her parents, who liked the guy a lot, convinced her to talk to him, and eventually she gave in. “In our culture, when a guy asks the par-ents, that automatically means he’s asking for your hand,” Leeman said. For these couples, the process hasn’t fol-lowed the status quo. Usually proposals are romantic, and take months of planning, but since it was so early, Earls decided to make things official in an informal way. “The proposal was kind of tacky,” Robin-son said. “We walked into my bedroom, he sat me down on the bed, got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.” Manzanares proposed right here at school. “I was waiting with him outside a class-room,” Gouranson said, “and he pulled a ring out of his pocket and gave it to me.” Engaged students face several obstacles:

telling your parents, telling your friends, and having doubts about the future with one another.

“I’m afraid that if doesn’t work, I’ll be alone again,” Robinson said. “I’ve been [alone] my whole life and I love him. I don’t want to be crushed.” Gouranson shares the same concern, except on a different level. “I’m moving to Iowa for college and he’s moving with me,” Gouranson said, “and I’m concerned it’s not what he actually wants, it’s just for me.” As for the parents, some don’t think they’ll be supported; in fact, they didn’t even tell them. “They wouldn’t be exactly happy about it,” said Earls, who plans to ask both his and Robinson’s parents soon. “He’ll ask my dad formally,” Robinson said. “If he asks now, it’s going to be awkward since we’re still in high school.” Gouranson has it even harder since she has two sets of parents. “My stepmom and dad are supportive, but the other two [mom and step-dad] aren’t aware,” Gouranson said. “If I tell [my mom], she won’t let me spend time with him.” The couples have received mixed reactions from their friends and peers, with some ques-tioning their decision and others asking for an invitation. “A bunch of people gave congrats,” Man-zanares said, “but a select few would say ‘you’re too young.’” “They were like ‘oh my gosh, congrats,’” Leeman said. Now that the engagement has been done, the couples face the decision of a wedding, and while most want to wait, Earls wants to get hitched right after graduation. “We’re going to get married as soon as we can,” he said.

H

Putting a ring on itEngaged couples in high school

PHOTO BY DILKUSH KHAN

GETTING HITCHED: Juniors Nolan Manzanres and Cather-ine Gouranson (above) plan on moving in together. Sophomores Nieca Robinson and Matthew Earls (right and top) are planning to wed after high school. PHOTOS BY EMILY ATWELL, LEFT AND DILKUSH KHAN

| EQextra.com | NOV 2013

BAND MARCHES ON TO CSUBY ZACH PARKER

STEPPING OUT: Marching band practices in the east parking lot for the CSU game on Saturday, Nov 9. This is the first time the band will be playing at a Division I game under Maybrey’s tenure.

I f you’re planning on attending or watching the Nov. 9 CSU foot-ball game against Nevada, you might see some familiar faces on the field. This is because the marching band will be performing at

halftime. This comes at a point when their season is coming to end. “It’s different because we are working with other bands rather than competing against them,” senior piccolo player Kayla Stacey said. “This is only our second time performing with a college compared to last year when we were only doing competitions” junior baritone player Alex Park said. Sonny Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium has a capacity of 32,500 and, as one might expect, the band is “pretty excited for sure, playing in front of a big crowd,” Band Director Jason Mabrey said. Stacey said that because she is around her fellow band members she feels more at ease. “If you do mess up, just smile and move on,” Color Guard member Sarah Hughes, a senior, said. The band went through an application process (with an unknown amount of other schools) to get this prestigious honor. The band pre-viously performed at CSU Pueblo on Sept. 21. When asked if practice has changed in any way as a result of per-forming at CSU, Mabrey said that they have “maintained where we’ve been all year.” The festivities will not only include a halftime performance with the CSU band, but will also include playing during the pre-game tailgating festivities before the NCAA Division I game. After those wrap up, the band will venture into the stadium to play along with the CSU band. The band will need to be well rested in order to perform to the best

of their abilities. Their day starting at 6:15 in the morning and ending at 7:45 that night. This is how it has been all season for the band, long practices and long days. And it appears their work has paid off. The only change for this performance compared to other perfor-mances is the substitution of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” instead of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” due to the proximity to Halloween. As their season wraps up, the band’s trip is going to be one of the last times the entire band is performing together. During a mid-practice speech on a cold October afternoon, Mabrey said, “Let’s make all our hard work pay off. You have grown so much since the first day and look at where we are now.” Despite being a major highlight of the season, playing at colleges is not what everyone will remember from this season. Competitions have been where many memories have been made. Park said, “I like competitions more, I love competitions”

“ Let’s make all our hard work pay off. You have grown so much since the first day and look at where we are now.”- Band Director Jason Mabrey

PHOTO BY ZACH PARKER

NOV 3013 | EQextra.com | PAGE 5

nglish teacher Suzanne Canady has had enough. Literal-ly, her recycling bins can’t handle much more. “I had two trash bags full of recycling,” Cannady said. “I took mine home.” Both 39-gallon bags found their way to her driveway for pickup by her personal recycling provider, since the

school had not picked up any of the recycling. Canady is not the only teacher who has noticed that her bins are overflowing. English teacher Tracy Wolfer has had to have a student aide carry it out, and the copy room has several boxes filled with empty paper packages. Why is the recycling not being picked up? What has changed since last year? It began earlier this year when Waste Management, the district’s previous waste service provider, removed the recycling bins that ILC teacher Sharon Cannon’s students would use to gather recycling. Cannon’s students traveled in pairs to collect the recycling from every classroom into one of the dozen large bins that used to sit at the back of the building. “We would hit the whole building within a week,” Cannon said. Some areas, such as the language arts hall, would have to be hit sev-eral times due to the sheer amount of paper used. Beyond the environmental benefits, collecting the recycling offered the ILC students a kind of pre-vocational training. Cannon works with students to gain independence in a working environ-ment. “It worked on responsibility, job skills in terms of how to enter a room quietly, how to request what they needed,” Cannon said. Inde-pendence was also a key factor in the training. When the bins were taken, Cannon was not told why. Questions to administration brought no answers. No one seemed to know why the recycling bins were gone. Terry Osborne, a Waste Management account manager, con-firmed to the EQ that “there has been a change.” Enter Alpine Waste and Recycling. CCSD’s Facilities Operations Manager Bob Hawbaker explained that all contracts with the district are limited to one year. Alpine

Waste and Recycling was the lowest bid this year. This company, however, only provided a dumpster, not the bins that made school-wide pickup easier. “[Eaglecrest] will have to purchase recycling totes,” Hawbaker said. “We’ve been contracted to do the trash and the re-cycling for the district,” Al-pine Waste and Recycling’s National Account Manager Terry Chaffer said. There

have been 195 large contain-ers distributed throughout

the district, but the smaller, portable totes must be approved by the school. Hawbaker confirmed that the cost of such totes was not taken into consideration when the district chose Alpine’s services since the cost would be on the individual schools and totes are not considered critical containers. Assistant Principal Shane Snyder said in an email interview that the school plans to purchase six recycling containers. The containers will not be used by ILC students, however. A new group has taken over the mantle of recycling pick-up: the Eaglecrest Environmental Action Team. Recognizing that recycling will only happen if one group takes over transporting it outside, EEAT has picked up rolling carts from the science department to carry it all. “I’m doing it because there are students who are interested in recy-cling,” EEAT sponsor and science teacher Jennifer Edgar said. “Better to do something than nothing.”

RECYCLING TRASHED?BY STEVEN TIBBITTS

E

PHOTO BY STEVEN TIBBITTS

PHOTO BY JENNIFER EDGAR

GOING GREEN: The Enviormental Action Team will help in carry-ing out the recyling boxes to the dumpsters.

PAPERS AND BOTTLES: The recy-cling boxes in Dennine Arnold’s room were overflowing since no one was picking up recycling.

SPORTSNOV. 2013 | EQextra.com | PAGE 6

Bending over backward to get noticedBY ONNIE LUMSDEN Though unknown by many students, three Eaglecrest girls- junior Devin Bundas, sophomore Emily Gray, and sophomore Allie Parker- compete on Overland High School’s joint girls gymnastics team. “It’s not a main sport that people watch,” Gray said. “They don’t say, ‘Let’s go to a gymnastics meet on Friday.’ They go to the football game instead.” Students don’t see posters or hear about meets through announce-ments. The girls don’t practice or compete here, though they do participate in Spirit Bus and pep assemblies. Being on a joint team for Overland, their competition leotards, gym bags, and sweatshirts are green and blue and have the ‘O’ on them. But they also have sweatshirts that say ‘Eaglecrest Gymnastics.’ You might think that because the girls come from different schools they wouldn’t be able to be as close as other teams. But that’s not the case. “My teammates are my family,” Bundas said. “We do things outside of gymnastics together all the time. We are all so close!” Right now, the joint team is ranked 4th in the state. Cherry Creek High School is the only school in the district that has its own gymnas-tics team, they are currently ranked 6th in the state. But the girls don’t do it for the fame. “I love that when I’m doing gymnastics I can just forget about everything and clear my mind,” Bundas said. Gray said that this is one of the last years that the team will be able to have a shot at winning state since many seniors are leaving this

year. “I think if we went out and did our best, and focused on fixing the small things in our routines, I think we could get a pretty high score,” she said.

BALANCING ACT: Sophomore Emily Gray in her Green and Black unitard on the balance beam during a gymnastics competition. She is one of three Raptors on a joint gymnastics team with Overland.

PHOTO BY ONNIE LUMSDEN

PHOTO BY DILKUSH KHAN

Junior Jordyn Poulter played for Team USA in the FIVB Volleyball Women’s U23 World Championship Open in Mexico City for two weeks in October, while the EHS team worked to improve itself without her. “She got a call from the national team coach,” head coach Tanya Bond said. “It’s a great opportunity.” Poulter played with the U18 (under-18) USA team last August in Thailand, earning the silver medal. Moving up the U23 team, she was able to help them place fourth against 11 international teams. “It was a blast playing with players six years older than me,” Poulter said. “They were very skilled.” As she was competing with the greats, the varsity volleyball team was trying to play without her, ultimately winning two out of five games. “They’ve been doing fine without me,” Poulter said. “It was an opportu-nity for them to grow.” “It’s been hard to lose three games,”

Bond said, “but it’s been a good expe-rience.” The volleyball team struggled in her absence, but assistant coach Sarah Hancock saw it as an opporutnity to become better. “We practiced with more realistic goals,” Hancock said. “We were geared towards reassuring the girls that they were capable of winning without her.” Senior Alexis Williams said that there was “a lot more expected from us.” “We did things differently since we didn’t have our hitter,” Hancock said. Senior Brittany Geathers and fellow teammates tried to play more as a team. “We learned how to operate with-out her,” Geathers said. Now that Poulter is back, Hancock wants to change the practices yet again. “We need to redefine our identity as a team since she’s back,” Hancock said.

SETTING UP: Junior Jordyn Poulter rejoins the varsity team in a match against Denver East on Oct. 23.

Poulter joins Team USA, varsity adaptsBY DILKUSH KHAN

DEPTH IN SOFTBALL SHOWS PROMISE FOR FUTURE SEASONS

The varsity softball team dominated the 5A Centennial league this season with a 13-1 record defending their league title. Their State run ended earlier than expected with a 19-4 mercy rule loss in the bottom of the fourth inning to Fossil Ridge in the quarter-finals on Oct. 19. At the beginning of the season, the team’s goal was just to win league. They far surpassed that goal, winning two regional games and one championship bracket game, but the loss in the second round of the championship bracket was still devastating to the team. “The girls were focused on winning the whole thing. You could see it in their faces,” Coach Yvette Hendrian said. Junior Taylor Menard made four diving catches to get crucial outs in the team’s 5-4 win against Castle View to advance the team to the Fossil Ridge game, according to junior Brooke Morris. Coach Hendrian took an already strong team and turned it into an elite program, winning league both years she has been head coach. “She’s inspirational and gives us motivation to do our best,” sopho-more Chelsea Gorman said. It seems a league championship three-peat could be on the hori-zon. The team came into the season ranked first in the 5A Centennial League, losing very few seniors to graduation the year before. Next year’s team will be in the same boat. They’ll be young, and eager to make a deep run at State. Only three seniors will be graduating from the team this year, and none of them are pitchers. “This team is oozing with talent,” Hendrian said. She believes she was given more talent to work with than most of the other teams in the region. More importantly, that talent is young. The team has both a right and left handed pitcher, Sarah Bushman and Alexa Romero. Bushman leads the league in ERA (1.60), and she is in the top 5 for strikeouts (77). She leads in wins with 14. Alexa Romero is third in the league in ERA (1.80), and in the top 5 in strikeouts (56).These girls are both sophomores. Hendrian has been coaching Bushman and Romero on pitching since they were eight years old, providing her with a more intimate

connection with this team. “I have so much invested in them,” Hendrian said, also remarking that the junior class is “stacked.” Catcher Michenzie Pace has a fielding percentage of 1.000. Third baseman Mikayla Faulkner is “a beast.” Outfielder Lauren Buckley is “faster than lightning.” Buckley leads the league in stolen bases with 13 and is ranked second in the league for batting average (.547). The only girl ahead of her? EHS senior shortstop Rayle Glover (.559). Hendrian is impressed by the batting of all of her athletes. Pace led league in home runs with 5. Morris is right behind her with 4, and is also number 3 in RBI’s (24). Faulkner is also in the top 5 for RBI’s with 23. “Usually you have two, three, or four good hitters,” Hendrian said. “I have 12 good hitters.” With the talent there, Hendrian worked with her coaching staff to make sure the girls were being challenged at practice to reach their full potential. “My expectations for this program in the future are very high,” Hendrian said.


PHOTO BY CRISTINA TRIMPETEAM PLAYERS: The softball team poses for a team picture prior to the team’s 19-5 mercy rule defeat in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs to Fossil Ridge.

CATCHING UP: Catcher Michenzie Pace had a fielding percentage of 1.000 and led the league in home runs with five.

PHOTO BY CRISTINA TRIMPE

BY LUKE MEACHAM

| EQextra.com | NOV. 2013

YOUNG GUNS:SARAH BUSHMAN AND

ALEXA ROMERA

Softball’s Junior Class Royalty: four juniors among 5A Centennial League Leaders

Sophomore Pitchers Sarah Bushman, a righty, and Alexa Romera, a lefty, carried the team on their backs deep into the playoffs. They are the top pitchers in the league with an ERA of 1.60 and 1.80 respectively.

Brooke Morris (1B)Home Runs: 4

#2 in league (tied)

RBI: 24

#3 in league

Lauren Buckley (OF)Batting Average: .521

#2 in leagueOn-Base Percentage: .585

#1 in league

Michenzie Pace (C)Home Runs: 5

#1 in leagueFielding Percentage: 1.000

#1 in league (tied)

Mikayla Faulkner (3B)RBI: 23

#5 in league

PHOTO BY BEAU JAMIESON

Sophomore Caleb Stewart was in second grade when he was di-agnosed with Neurofibromatosis (NF1), which caused a tumor to grow on his optic nerve. While starting his first round of

chemotherapy, a nurse commented on how “chemo is like a shark that eats away at the cancer cells.” That comment, while describing his painful battle with cancer that would eventually claim his sight, would later offer him an outlet that would strengthen him for years to come.

BEING BULLIED AND THE EARLY DAYS OF CHEMO “Things hit rock bottom in second grade,” Stewart said. In addition to the diagnosis, Stewart was on the receiving end of bullying. “He was bullied a lot,” Stewart’s mother Cindy said, “and the teachers didn’t really do anything about it. Basically all [the bulllies’] punishments were was to write him an apology letter saying how they were sorry and wouldn’t do it again, but six months later the same thing would happen.” In the early days of chemo, the lives of Stewart and his family were put on hold. Chemo sessions were on Fridays, leaving Stewart sick the entire weekend, sometimes through Monday, forcing him to miss school. “We couldn’t do anything because we didn’t want to bring him out anywhere when he’d be sick,” Cindy Stewart said, “so we’d just stay

home all the time.” Since then Stewart has gone through chemo twice more, ending his third and final treatment in 8th grade, and though it wasn’t as harsh on him each time, it was still far from easy for both him and his family. “He didn’t feel good,” Stewart’s vision assistant, Mimi Schaper said. “There were a lot of times where he would just put his head down in class, but he would stick it out. You’ve got to give him credit, he did have endurance. Even during the chemo he was very cheery.”

WAKING UP BLIND It was the summer between 7th and 8th grade when Stewart went into the surgery that permanently damaged his vision. The tumor was rapidly growing, and the doctors feared that a second tumor was also there, so they chose to perform a biopsy. “At first the doctors came out and said that everything was fine,” Cindy Stewart said, “but when Caleb woke up the next morning he told the nurses that he could not see at all.” As terrifying as this experience could have been, it was made light-er for Stewart with the movie Despicable Me playing in his hospital room. Even though he couldn’t physically see it, the images of the film still ran through his mind. “I could imagine the scenes perfectly because I’d seen it so many times,” Stewart said. “I think that helped take my mind off it.” Over time, some of Stewart’s vision has naturally come back, but

PHOTOS BY BEAU JAMIESON

JAWS OF LIFE: Caleb Stewart is fascinated with sharks and has been since his chemotherapy. He wears his shark tooth everywhere he goes.

CANCER AND COURAGEBY BEAU JAMIESON

PAGE 10 | EQextra.com | NOV. 2013

where it is now is where it’ll likely stay. He carries around glasses that he uses to demon-strate to teachers and friends how he sees to give them perspective on his vision, and while wearing them one sees a blurry haze of color and light with only specks of focus. This is how he’s seen the world for the last 2 ½ years. “[Stewart’s vision] confuses the general public because you’d expect him not to see anything, but he can actually see pretty small print if he gets at the right angle,” Schaper said. “When it comes to movement, he may not see a curb, he may not see a pole, he may not see a dividing chain in a lunch line. He’s got a very baffling eye condition.”

SCHOOL TODAY Stewart’s vision has obviously made school hard. “[My teachers] blow things up, making the text on assignments larger.” Stewart said. “They’ll give me printed notes of all the lessons, and I get to leave early to avoid the crowded halls.” A group of support staff has also been assigned to aid Stewart in school. They are SAS English teacher Patrick Quinlan, Visual Impair-ment teacher Mimi Schaper, and CCSD Vision Tech member Lisa Hebbert. “We provide a way for him to be able to be successful in the class-room,” Quinlan said, “so I make sure he has the proper accommoda-tions and Mimi and Lisa help Caleb directly on how to interact with his environment, making sure he knows his challenges, and what to do in order to overcome them.” Stewart has to overcome obstacles in school every day.. Students may have doubts over his ability in class, but he adapts to his settings. “Most people see him having limitations in class, but that’s just their perceptions,” English teacher Keith Proctor said. “In the classroom he doesn’t have limits. Because he self-advocates, thinking about limits is never on my mind as a teacher.” Interactions and perceptions from peers outside the classroom can be awkward for Stewart. Many students might avoid him for being different, and some might take an even crueler route such as talking behind his back. Stewart’s never been directly confronted with this, but he’s still aware that this probably happens. “No one says anything to me about that to my face,” Stewart said, “but maybe behind my back they’ll say stuff.” When asked how he wishes others would view him, Stewart might shy away or be at a loss for words, but he knows he’d like to be recognized as someone other than just the blind kid. “I think I’d like it if they’d notice me a little more,” he said.

SHARKS AND STRENGTH Despite the problems that have arisen from his condition, and the jarring life changes he and his family have had to en-

dure, Stewart has managed sustain high spirits. He looks forward to the future’s silver lining rather than focusing on the dark moments of the past. “That’s just Caleb. He wants to live,” Quinlan said. “He enjoys life, he enjoys his friends, he en-joys school, and he wants to be a part of all of it.” He gets much of his inner strength from the same place many others get their own: his passions. From a quick conversation with him, or from a glance at his sketchbook, it’s clear that his passion is for sharks. Aspiring to study marine biology at North-west Nazarene University, Stewart’s love of sharks has stretched over various aspects of his life. A YouTube channel dedicated to shark videos and a vast number of shark sketches are

among them, but the most ambitious and creative is the book he’s writing titled Shark-A-Topia. “In the book, there are shark characters that can walk and talk, and they have super powers that go with their names,” Stewart said. “A character named Elastic can stretch, Torch can use fire, and so on.” In addition to his love for sharks, Stewart enjoys the little things like a laugh from a Monty Python movie, or a chuckle from a Mel Brooks film. Comedy can help take worries out of life, and that’s what Stewart likes about them. “With comedies you don’t have to worry about anything,” Stewart said. “You just watch, enjoy, and laugh. Comedies help him endure, and those who know Stewart have seen him show incredible perseverance in his efforts to strive forward through troubles and never look back. “I’m used to it, so I just keep on going,” Stewart said. “He is an amazing boy,” Cindy Stewart said. “He has a ton of deter-mination, and he will not give up.”

Going forward in life will be difficult for Stewart as he’s aware of the possibility that his vision may grow to the point of total blindness, but his attitude couldn’t be more upbeat. He may even joke about the idea if asked. Behind the perception of being just “the blind kid,” Stewart’ is a strong-willed student with a drive to keep going. “I think he’s got remarkable inner strength as a kid. I really do,” Schaper said. “Even though there are times when he puts his head down and doesn’t feel good, he just keeps going.” The cancer, the visual impairment, the perception. These are what Caleb Stewart has to face every day, but the strength he gets from his friends, family, and the hopes of being a shark-loving marine biologist more than outweigh them.

The day that Stewart’s strength began was a day that many others’ would end: that first chemo session in second grade when a nurse told him about the shark.

What is it?A defective gene leads to skin spots, as well as noncancerous tumor growth under the skin and in places such as the eyes.

Or NF1

Less than 7% of patients with NF1 have a chance of getting cancer because of the disease

About 3000 people have NF1

50% of people with NF1 have no family history of the disease

Neurofibromitosis Type 1

Caleb’s FavoritesMusic: Toby Mac

Movies: Montry Python, Mel Brooks, and Marvel

Food: Bacon


ARTSPAGE 12 | EQextra.com | NOV. 2013

IN THE MAKE UP CHAIR: During the dehumanizing and lengthy process of transformation, junior Joel Bonser relied on other crew members to feed him. “It’s a grueling process and takes several hours,” said senior Alexis Hartung, make-up chief. When the time came, Bonser was ready for it.

UNVEILING: While creating the fall production, the cast and crew had to adapt to a new kind of play. “We use a lot of our theatre magic to make the show work. We’re not used to scary on stage,” Theatre director Neil Truglio said.

“ I was told that I had to shave my head at the very beginning of production when it came around to it, I was really excited for that, but then my head was cold,” Bonser said.

SECRETS BEHIND THE SCARES:

PHOTOS BY BEAU JAMIESON

MONSTERMAKING OF THE

“I think the monster has to be close enough to human for us to relate, and different enough for us to be confused. I think that difference is what makes it interesting.”- Director Neil Truglio

REPORTING BY EMILY ATWELL AND BEAU JAMIESON

FROM CONCRETE TO CANVAS

W hen senior Sam Levy took a trip to New York City, it wasn’t the skyscrapers or the lights in Times Square that inspired him.

It was the graffiti. “I saw the art everywhere,” he said. Since his trip, he has spent years perfecting his art. Although he was originally inspired by spray-painted buildings, he doesn’t “tag up things.” Instead, he does all of his drawings in his “black book” with paint markers. The black book is a graffiti artist’s sketchbook. Many artists use it to sketch out graffiti they plan to tag an area with, but Levy draws in his black book just to create art. He does graffiti purely for the enjoyment of it. The room to have a distinct style and individuality is what makes graf-fiti so appealing. There are no limitations to what an artist can create. “Graffiti really intrigued me because everyone’s is different,” he said. Levy loves that the simplest detail can go anywhere and can say so much about the artist as a person and artist. “The fact that you can draw a line and the line can take any direction is what makes graffiti so unique. Everybody can picture the outcome of the drawing different.” Like all art, graffiti also tries to convey a message. “It takes a good artist to get a message across through their piece,” Levy said. Graffiti artists have dealt with a certain reputation throughout history, but Levy says that it doesn’t have much of an effect on him because it is starting to fade away. Graffiti artists everywhere have been getting more recognition for what they do. It is now common to see pieces of graffiti in respected art galleries all around the country. “It’s becoming a more acceptable thing.”


GRAFFITI KING: Senior Sam Levy first gained an interest in graffiti in middle school. After honing his skills for years, Levy considers is proud of his art, and he doesn’t tag up buildings.

THE BLACK BOOK: Creating art in his black book is one of Sam Levy’s favorite passtimes. Without a black book, graffiti artists like Levy might have to resort to either giving up their hobby or vandalism.

“The fact that you can draw a line and the line can take any direction is what makes graffiti so unique. Everybody can picture the outcome of the drawing differently.”- senior Sam Levy

BY MAGGIE O’DONNELL


OPINIONSLUKE MEACHAM’S WORST ADVICE COLUMN

: Dear Luke,None of the boys at this school like me! I haven’t had a boy-

friend in over three months and I don’t know why. I feel like I’m going to die sad and alone. What should I do?-Jenny Jordan (Junior)

Q

: You’re 17 years old and you haven’t found your life partner yet? You might as well give up now because at this point, it’s virtually impossible. Everyone knows that 98% of people find their soul-

mate before the age of 12. If you’re past your sophomore year in high school and you aren’t even engaged yet, then just accept that your romantic life is over and all of your relationships will be nothing but platonic from now to eternity. In fact, I’d start looking into all-wom-en’s universities to even further distance yourself from any possibility of romance. I’m sorry to tell you, but there’s nothing you can do at this point but become a nun, or move to the desolate, unpopulated province of Nunavut. I wish I could help, but you’ve dug an inescap-able hole, Jenny.

A

Don’t kiss in the hallways!

HALLWAY RULES: HOW TO PLEASE EVERYONE

Don’t stand in circles in the hallways! Don’t yell in the hallways!

ART BY LUKE MEACHAM

Don’t text in the hallways!


OUR PERSPECTIVE ON:

When walking through the halls, we sometimes notice a

certain type of couple happily stroll-ing along, hand-in-hand. They’re cute,

with love in their eyes. We hope the best for them, but that stops once we notice the signs of doom they bear: their engagement rings. The concept of students getting engaged in high school isn’t a new trend; it’s been happening for quite a while. It’s probably something your grandparents did, but it’s more problematic for students today. Because divorce is much more common now than it was when your grandparents got together, seeing couples engaged so young gives us doubts. Relationships of even the oldest of couples can fall apart, so teens shouldn’t feel as qualified to sustain a long-term relationship. Given that these teenage couples started dating in high school, there’s no way they’ve

known each other, let alone been dating long enough, to properly figure out if they could spend the rest of their lives together. Another problem arises when considering the future after high school. If they plan on going to college, most likely they’d end up at separate universities, hardly seeing each other. If they survive that, then come career possibilities. One may have big ambitions, while the other may just want to be a stay-at-home parent. These are conflicts that most, if not all, young engaged couples will experience. These conflicts will lead to tension, and that tension can’t be good for a committed relationship. We aren’t saying that couples who get engaged as early as high school are idiots. We understand that one’s teenage years of can be filled with angst, pressure, and insecurity, and that it’s amazing to find someone to connect

emotionally with, possibly leading them to the feeling that this could be the one person for them. Just note that those feelings, as great as they may be, can act as a filter, hiding the more realistic outlooks on the relation-ship. If questioned on their abilities to keep up a serious relationship, these couples may respond with “We may go into married life blind, but that’s ok. We’ll be together, expect-ing the unexpected.” Well, just expect an early divorce as a possibility. As teenagers, most of us don’t know what’s in store for us in the future. We haven’t figured out who we are as individuals yet, so we shouldn’t complicate things further by throwing someone else in the mix. That distorts what teen relationships should be. Young love is a wonderful thing because it shouldn’t be taken that seriously.

HIGH SCHOOL ENGAGEMENTS

LETTER TO THE EDITORRacism is not defined as only whites against col-ored, and it really frustrates me that people see it that way (“Race: Where do we stand now?” Oct. 2013). While I am dancing and having a good time, I don’t want to hear “Ugh she dances like a white girl!” What makes you think white people don’t get offended when they are told they are a particular way because they are white? Just like someone doesn’t want to be called “That black/Hispanic/Asian girl,” I don’t want to be called “that white girl”, because I am my own person who shouldn’t be defined by my race.-Alexis Hartung, senior

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RESPONDING TO EQLetters to the editor are accept-ed and can be submitted to Yoni Fine in his mailbox; his of-fice, W337; or the EQ magazine E-mail, [email protected]. Letters can’t be anony-mous, and they may be edited for clarity.

PURPOSEThe EQ magazine is a student publication distributed to the students, faculty, and staff of Eaglecrest High School. The paper serves as an information source and a two-way communication forum for both the school and the community. Opinions expressed do not neces-sarily represent the views of Eaglecrest High School or the Cherry Creek School District.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFBEAU JAMIESON

NEWSDILKUSH KHAN

IN-DEPTHEMILY ATWELL

ARTSBRANDON DIENER

SPORTSZACH PARKER

OPINIONSONNIE LUMSDEN

BUSINESSCRISTINA TRIMPE

COPYSTEVEN TIBBITTS

WEBVALDI SMIT

ADVISORYONI FINE

REPORTERSJEVONNA CANADALUKE MEACHAMMAGGIE O’DONNELLJACOB SKOGLUND


PHOTO FINISH

ART BUZZ: Junior Shawna Redler works on a painting with a coffee-stained canvas at the AP Studio Art field trip on Oct. 24 to visit master artist Tadashi Hayakawa, who taught and demonstrated this technique before sending the arts students off to paint, and then giving them feedback on their work at the end of the day.

PHOTO BY BEAU JAMIESON

eq (nov 2013)

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