Boys captain senior Trevor Love has been pushing the team to success, leading the pack with a lifetime best time of 1:57.93. He plans on not only setting some great times for himself, but to beat records. “I would love to break the 800 record set by Carl Moe back in ’03,” said Love.

One record set this year was by freshman Ari Lavanway, who broke the freshman three kilometer steeplechase record.

Although the season is going well, as it ends, the focus will be on what happens after. “We’re hoping that we’ll have a good post season,” distance coach Bill Sumner said. The post season is after the actual season, when the team goes to Districts and/or State.

Girls captain senior Lauren Saunders has a great team that’s been doing work. “We excel at the 100/200/long jump with Brandi and Britani Williams,” Saunders said. “Cassidy Brown and I have put up some good mile and 800 times, while Rachel Covey has excelled at the 2 mile.”

From the boys’ side of things, the team has been doing well at all events. “We have actually been very well balanced in everything this season,” Love said. “Which is awesome!”

Coach Sumner also thinks the boys have been doing well as a team, “Our hurdlers, sprinters, and throwers are doing well. Actually, the whole team,” he said.

Other than Saunders and Love, some of the strongest team athletes include senior Brandi Williams, sophomore Brittani Williams, seniors Racheal O’Neil, Cassidy Brown and Rachel Covey for the girls, as well as seniors Joe Miles and Devon Larson, and sophomore Maryea Harris for the boys.

The team has done great at their eight meets so far. Catch the teams next weekend at the SPSL sub districts in Kent and French Field.

As the season comes to a close, the athletes try to make the best of their post season. “They’re a good group of athletes,” Sumner said. “Fun to be around.” Hopefully, they’ll do great at State and finish off the season with success.

As of April 19, the girls have had fourteen league games and one gymboree that did not count toward their league games. Out of their league games the Ravens won five and lost nine. Although there were more losses than wins, the girls still displayed an outstanding amount of talent.

According to senior Kamlyn Swanson, some of the team’s goals are to “make it to Sstate, and have our team play to our full potential.”

This is coach Jim Isom’s fifth year coaching water polo here. His goal for the girl’s season is to get second in division.

“The girls water polo team lost nine talented girls last year,” coach Isom said, “and it will be tough to replace all those people, but I feel like we will peak at the end of the year. But we are getting a lot of experience for the new girls and we are getting better, and we are on the right track.”

Even though it is pretty close to the end of the season, the team has bonded well. “We are starting to play as a team,” Kamlyn Swanson said.

Some of the strongest players on the team are Kari Swanson, Karlee Rogers, Lauren Esparza, Charrisa Dorn, Alyssa Esparza, Kammi Helm, Mollie Ridge and Kamlyn Swanson.

The Ravens have been strong and have been playing to the best of their ability. Last Thursday was the team’s last home game.

Before arriving, I had thought it would be super boring and historical like Lincoln, so I bought a ridiculous amount of food, planning on making it a nice dinner and a show instead of a simple movie. The food was quickly put away, however, when I became completely focused on the movie. 42 was not boring in a historical sense, but was a touching movie about the difficulties of racial diversity.

The movie 42 is the story of Jackie Robinson and his experience being the first African American to play for a team, the Brooklyn Dodgers, in the NBL. Through the racism he endures and his struggle to bond with his teammates, he greatly contributes to the success of his team.

The historical movies in theaters can be boring sometimes, like the ones you see in history class; 42, by surprise, was not at all that kind of movie. Despite the fact that it was about racism, a serious topic, the movie actually tended to be a little more light-hearted. In some parts of the movie, it was even a little more humorous.

42

did a great job keeping up with the time period of the 1940s. It was historically accurate and all the actors chosen fit greatly. The movie isn’t weak or gentle when it comes to the topic of racism, which actually is a good thing. It really shows you how much of a struggle it was for Jackie Robinson and it puts you on edge.

The fact that it’s a biography is stunning because it’s so unbelievable and the intensity of the film makes you frequently forget that it’s not just a movie, but a part of history.

It’s important that we know the story of someone who had a huge impact on the Civil Rights Movement, and if you decide to watch any films that greaten your knowledge of that time, make it 42.

According to remember.org, a stereotype is defined as a “generalization about a person or a group of people.” Stereotypes aren’t always true.

There are many generalizations about being Asian. Sophomore Brianna Herron gives us an idea of one of them. “We can’t open our eyes.”

People also like to stereotype people with blonde hair for a variety of reasons.

According to Senior Brad Griffin, “when you hear people stereotyping blondes, it’s usually about girls.”

According to a recent article by Slate, the stereotype of a “dumb” blonde began in 1925 when a famous novel, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos, painted the picture of a fictional character named Lorelei who “was more superficial than stupid” and “got ahead by using her looks.” This novel was made famous by Marilyn Monroe, who acted the part of Lorelei in the movie.

The stereotype continued to be popularized when it was applied to recent movies that are incredibly popular in our youth today. Actress Reese Witherspoon portrayed a “dumb blonde” in the widely known comedy, Legally Blonde. But this movie showed that there are more to blondes then their bodies when she was able to get a degree in law.

Another ethnic community that gets stereotyped are African Americans. Constantly, you hear the stereotype that African Americans prefer fried chicken, corn bread, and watermelon to most other foods.

Amina Blyden, who is an African American student, describes another example to us that she has experienced. “People are surprised I’m smart. They don’t expect [African Americans] to be.”

Where do these stereotypes come from? Authentichistory.com predicts that they were taken from southern traditions where there’s a large majority of the African American population. Although this theory hasn’t been confirmed, it does explain why they might enjoy foods such as cornbread, watermelon, and fried chicken.

Hispanics also get stereotyped. Junior Cristian Godinez explains that “they call us wetbacks (someone who illegally enters the US) because we cross the river and border.”

According to WordPress.com, “these stereotypes originated when Mexicans started illegally crossing the border from Mexico into the United States. The Mexicans were trying to escape Mexico from all of the drug trafficking and terrible living conditions. They wanted to come to the United States and live the American Dream.”

Although this stereotype exists, it is in no way an accurate description of the hispanics in our community or in our nation as a whole.

There are more stereotypes than just ethnicities, such as cheerleaders, nerds, jocks, stoners, and the populars.

We all see them on the sideline getting the crowd and the players pumped up. But once those cheer uniforms come into the school courtyard these young women automatically become vapid mean girls.

“People judge too quickly by the look of a girl—what she wears, how she does her hair and even her makeup,” senior Alexa Grim said. “‘Mean girls’ are stereotypically pretty, but if people got to know someone before deciding that they’re mean, they’d be surprised.”

Another common stereotype is about nerds. People stereotype nerds as people with only other nerds as friends and spend all of their free time studying.

“I check every nerd category.” senior Matthew Lundberg said. “In math class, I’m such a nerd. But people are surprised when they see me in my Jeep, or when I’m skiing or four-wheeling. If I enjoy something, it’s not going to stop me from doing it no matter if it is a sport or something ‘nerd.’”

When seeing or meeting anyone for the first time, remember the simple rule of treating people how you want to be treated. No one wants to be generalized or unwillingly shoved into a category based on the color of their skin or what they are wearing.

Stereotypes sometimes have a base of truth; so yes, maybe people of Asian decent have narrower eyes compared to others but the same fact will get exaggerated and blown out of proportion. We are all human and have to live on the same planet together; so lets get to know each other first before passing judgement.

What are some of the typical colors you see more when spring time comes around? We see more corals, pastels, brighter pinks and sometimes some mints.

Around the school each and every person has their own style. When it comes to spring, junior Katelyn Cowger said “I try to incorporate more of a 1950s look to my outfit every day.”

Senior Alexa Grim believes “it is important for me to make sure to have a certain color and just go with it.”

Let’s get real. Who really has the time or the money to go to the spa every day and get a full beauty treatment? There are some easy and cheap things that you can do to almost get the same results as an expensive spa.

We all have homework, outside reading, extra curricular activities and much more that causes us to get very little sleep. When you wake up the next morning your eyes are bright red and puffy, and no matter how much concealer you use, that puffiness just won’t go away. To fix the puffy problem, you can use green tea. According to seventeen.com, make some green tea the day before and soak some cotton rounds in the tea then lay them on your eyes; the caffiene in the tea will help the swelling go down.

Blow dryers, flat irons and curlers all strip your hair of its natural shine and nourishment; but, with some household items, your hair can look healthy. Mix together one egg yolk (for protein), one tablespoon of mayonnaise (to detangle), 1/4 of an avocado (to nourish), two tablespoons of olive oil, and a handful of conditioner in a small container and apply to hair for one to two hours; then simply rinse out for hair with a healthy glow and bounce.

Although winter is long gone, Washington can get a bit chilly, and if you are not properly hydrated your lips can get a bit chapped. A good way to get rid of those chapped lips fast is to exfoliate them. To make a natural exfoliater you will need one tablespoon of sugar, one tablespoon of cacao powder and one tablespoon of raw honey. Just combine them in a small bowl and apply to lips and let them sit for ten minutes. After ten minutes, simply scrub away and apply some chapstick.

Even when washing your face before you go to bed, you wake up and still get that occasional zit. One simple way to almost get rid of the zit is after you wash your face and get out of the shower, put some toothpaste on your pimple and let it sit there. In the morning wash your face and the pimple should be noticeably smaller.

We may not all have the luxury of going to the spa and getting a head to toe beauty treatment, but we can all pamper ourselves at home.

Spring may be here, but summer is just around the corner. During the spring the weather starts to get warmer, so the layers come off. What this means for girls is that the shorts and tanks come out.

Right now the shorts girls seem to be into are rompers. Lace shirts have been in for a while, but girls seem to be incorporating them in with their outfits very well.

Girls tend to wear more dresses and skirts that have some sort of floral print.

The guys seem to be deeply into their cargo shorts. Cargo shorts go with everything. Some guys wearing polos.

Guys and girls do have some fashion trends in common. Girls are still wearing toms, and sometimes guys are rocking the toms too.

When it comes to shoes both guys and girls wearing are wearing Vans. The newest shoes seen a lot from everyone are boat shoes.

No matter if you wear a baggy T-shirt or a Vera Wang dress, rock whatever you are wearing and be confident. Don’t follow the newest fashion trends if they don’t make you feel beautiful; you are beautiful just the way you are and you don’t need to wear certain clothes to feel that way. And remember, you are never fully dressed without a smile.

These glasses are a product of Google, though there is more to it than just that. Imagine the scanners in Dragon Ball Z, the ones that the bad guys used as their maps, power level scanner, and GPS. Google Glass is just like the scanner but instead it’s a pair of glasses that takes pictures, records videos, tells time, answers calls, and opens apps. Google has basically gone into the future, stole blueprints from a successful future company, and brought it into this century.

The way Google Glass works is that a small projector from the CPU is attached to the sides of the glasses, and projects whatever is needed to the prism. The prism is a small piece of glass that helps project everything from the CPU to the front of the user’s eyes. For people with prescription/normal glasses, Google Glass can actually adjust itself around the normal glass.

On one arm of the glasses, there is a touchpad and a micro USB cable. Amazingly, the glasses are lightweight despite all the features and parts in it. But Google Glass isn’t a cell phone by itself. To get all the features that are listed, the user must connect it to their phones through Bluetooth.

The biggest concern when it comes to any new invention is cost. At the moment, a person must pay $1,500 to even be a tester for these glasses. To most people, it sounds like for someone to get their hands on one of these miracle glasses, they are going to have to empty out their wallet and bank. According to Alex Marin from Policymic, “Google hopes to launch Glass by early 2014, though the company is already pushing out developer editions, priced at $1,500. A consumer version will be available by the end of 2013 for under $1,500.” Unless you’re a developer willing to invest $1,500 dollars for these futuristic pair of glasses, you’re going to have to wait until 2014.

With new innovations comes new controversy. Having a pair of glasses that can record videos and take pictures sounds something from a spy movie and most people are worried because of that. Already there are 18+ places (i.e. strip bars, clubs, etc) banning Google Glasses due to obvious reasons.

Despite all the problems, Google Glass is still a huge step into the future depicted in movies and comic books. With glasses that shoot images into your eyes, the technology of the future is something to look forward to.

The threats of sneaking out don’t bother some students at Riverside. Many students have different points of views on sneaking out. “I think it’s wrong because anything can happen to you without adult supervision” freshman Brandon Rojas says.

“I think people who sneak out are pretty cool. I consider them interesting people,” freshman Evan Korn says.

“I feel like it’s fine, because they’re just kids,” freshman Kyle Sutrick says.

According to shoutoutnews.org, in a study done with one hundred students, 73 percent of students have admitted to sneaking out of the house before. Even more, 85 percent have lied to their parents about where they are going.

Sneaking out can be dangerous, but for many students, it’s the only way to get out of the house.

Students have less important reasons for sneaking away. “I was hungry and wanted to walk to go to McDonalds, and I don’t regret it” Rojas says.

“I decided to just go swimming,” Korn says.

  Kids and teens don’t usually think twice about sneaking out, but rather just think of the fun they think they will have.  Sophomore Tiffany Orlovski, who used to enjoy sneaking out, believes in the saying, “Strict parents create sneaky children.”

Paranoia also sparks when you’re walking around during the night time. “Whenever I sneak out, I’m always afraid that cars are following me,” Korn says.

Sneaking out of your house can cause serious consequences. Whether it’s getting hurt or getting caught, it’s something many students don’t want to risk. “I think that it’s a bad idea because there’s no one that could help out in case something bad happens,” freshman Melissa Chamberlain says.

In 2012, one high school student, after being caught sneaking her boyfriend into the house, was punished in a way almost unimaginable. Rather than being grounded, she was forced to stand on a street corner wearing a sign that read “I sneak my boyfriend in at 3am and disrespect my parents and grandparents.”

Whether you chose to stay indoors or you play the dangerous game of sneaking out, think about any potential consequences.

According to Auburn police, the curfew for the city of Auburn happens to be 11 PM. If a student under the age of 18 is outside without a guardian or parent, they must be inside by the time the clock hits 11.

Orlovski is an example of a student being caught for sneaking out by her parents. She got her phone taken away for five months and received little trust from her parents. “I don’t really like talking about it because it really pisses me off. It was a really rough time for me.”

Getting caught by your parents is not the only consequence that can happen.  There are many dangers out in the night time because there is no one around to stop any illegal activity from happening.

Whether you sneak out or not, always remember to stay safe.

HSPE stands for High School Proficiency Exam and it’s just a state-wide exam that tests students on a set of standards that are decided by the state.

Taking the HSPE is tiring, but it’s not all that hard. Your teachers prep you all year for the test, so it’s pretty basic and it’s only based on things you have definitely been taught. You only have to pass it one time, and it’s easy. You even get multiple chances to retake if you fail or miss the test, making it almost impossible to let the HSPE keep you from graduating, because it is a high school graduation requirement.

Taking the HSPE is useful, and people are always going to find reasons why they don’t think it’s accurate. One that I hear fairly often is from people who say they are smart, but not good at taking tests.

Comedian Daniel Tosh has an opinion that I find to be accurate, “Don’t you love it when people in school are like, ‘I’m a bad test taker.’ You mean you’re stupid. Oh, you struggle with that part where we find out what you know?”

“It doesn’t seem to test the student’s ability accurately,” sophomore Chandler Price said. Although the test may seem like it doesn’t test the student’s abilities, it’s not a test to find out all of your strengths and weaknesses, or how smart you are. The point of the test is simply to make sure you can pass basic standards.

It sucks to get up early on mornings that everyone else gets off, but you only have to do it once. And if you think about it, you put up with those three days of testing one time, you get nine extra half days your freshman, junior, and senior years. It’s only three hours early and it’s not like they’re requiring you to get up three hours earlier than usual at 5 am or something absurd, just regular school time like you do every single week.

Nothing really good comes from taking the HSPE, the only reward you’ll really receive won’t come until after the HSPE is over. There is one thing, however, that benefits strictly sophomores, and that’s the fact that teachers are much nicer when they know you’ve been testing for three days.

“The day of the HSPE, Ms. Garcia and the students were tired because of the HSPE and she didn’t care what we did,” sophomore Collin Sutrick said. “She didn’t care what we did so most of the students laid down and slept.”

When you’re taking it, it seems like the absolute worst. Once you look back on it though, it’s not all that bad and we’re lucky we have to pass something as simple as the HSPE to graduate.

As I watched my second condom challenge video—seemingly made viral by Shane Dawson—I was enthralled by the never-ending fascination that has befallen so many of my peers. [For the small percentage of you who don’t know what the condom challenge is, it’s quite simply just this: Person A snorts a condom, and in an effort to out-gross the majority of his peers, pulls said condom out through his mouth.] Video after video, I witnessed this disturbing trend being mimicked by boys and girls of different ages from all around the world.

On a daily basis, I hear someone in class or in the halls mention something “awesome” or “super gross” they saw the night before. And later that day, or even at that moment because of the wonders of modern technology, they check out the fascinating video.
Guys. This fascination needs to stop.

You may ask: “Danielle, what fascination are you referring to?” And I would respond quite succinctly: the obsession that seems to plague our generation, often labeled as Generation Z.

Coined by many magazines during the ’80s and ’90s, Generations X, Y, and Z are easy terms to classify groups of people born in a certain time period, such as the baby boomers. Generation X, our parents, is known as the “latch-key kids,” while Generation Y is our older brothers and sisters.

According to Newsweek, Generation Z is simply you or me. We are the students walking the halls of this school, and we roam the cities, malls, plazas all around the world. We are the first generation born into the information age. We are the generation that has wonders such as Google and Wikipedia.

We have so much at the tips of our fingers, and yet, here we are, watching videos of little girls listening to Taylor Swift while snorting a latex barrier device that has been created for use during sex.

We always come across new videos that somehow finds a way to outdo each of its predecessors.

Generation Z, where have our heads gone? Why are we taking part in these useless fads and trends?

Senior Chris Boettcher might have a reason to why our generation is so preoccupied with these internet sensations. According to Boettcher, our generation “has the constant need for attention and to be different.”

We are already a part of a consumerist society that exists to sell us useless products like the Tiddy Bear, or a Potty Putter.Why are we falling even further into the claws of social media and the big corporations by becoming mindless drones that are only entertained by slapstick, and borderline, disgusting behavior?How can we sit in front of our glowing computer screens and watch these videos that do nothing more than burn brain cells and help egg on these ridiculous behaviors.

The cinnamon challenge. The condom challenge. The knife game. All useless.

Did you know that in taking the risk in trying to eat a tablespoon of cinnamon your lungs may collapse? Or maybe the possibility of cutting off a finger while playing the knife game never occurred to you—or worse, just slipped your mind?

Our actions are only helping support the typical teen stereotype. Time after time, I’ve heard my fellow peers use words like “yolo swag,” “dank,” and “swol.” And time after time, I cringe with agony at the unintelligible words they utter. I have no idea why my fellow classmates continue to use these words that really mean nothing at all. There are no logical benefits from partaking in any of these behaviors. The only logical side effect of any this behavior is to simply reinforce the stereotypical teenager archetype that we are all so well acquainted with. We all want to be treated like adults, and receive the respect and courtesy that comes with being “mature,” but if we continue to act this way, teenagers will never be taken seriously.

So please, listen up. Take the headphones out of your ears. Stop checking Facebook.

Generation Z, we really have to shape up. Because if we don’t, we will all be mindless zombies by the age of 25. And none of us want that.

Captains this year are seniors Brenna Bruil and Natalie Jones.

Some key players for this year are Brenna Bruil, Natalie Jones, Carson Heilborn and Lindsey Sanborn.“They are seated in districts,” coach Bruce Diehl said. “A lot of girls came from volleyball which is a good crossover.”

Tennis coach Diehl has been coaching in the district for 22 years. In his 22 years he has won 12 league titles, two district titles, two runners up in State, and a whopping 363 wins with only 154 losses. “This is not our most successful year, but we do have a lot of good players and a lot of potential for next year.” He enjoys coaching tennis because “its a fun sport and playin with the kids. I wouldn’t want to coach if I couldn’t participate.”

Tennis creates more than a team, it also creates a family. “One of my favorite parts of tennis is being able to be a family,” said Natalie Jones.

Sophomore Lindsey Sanborn’s favorite part is different. “I like having fun and having the choice between doubles and singles,” she said. “Relaxing with the girls, too.”

Some goals for the team are to win the most they can and prepare next season’s girls to have fun and be aggressive. “My personal goals are to have fun this season,” Sanborn said.

Riverside tennis has been around since 1995 and since then our team has really grown. “I have been playing for seven years,” Jones said.

Some players are just joining the family. “I have been playing since my freshman year and I’m only a sophomore,” Sanborn said.
Sports create long lasting memories and friendships. “Memorable parts of my career are making varsity my junior year, or playing my first singles game on Junior Varsity my freshman year,” Jones said.

The girls participated in the SPSL league the last few days and due to the printing date of our paper, we do not know how they did. The season has officially ended for the team and Riverside hopes to see many of them back next year.