Kelan Reilly: Adventures in Colorado

By Kelan Reilly

Staff Writer

            This year, as always, I thoroughly enjoyed my spring break. My family and I went to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, a town known for great skiing.  Our vacation started at 5 in the morning on Saturday, March 24, when we woke up, got ready, and headed to the Philadelphia Airport.

            The day we flew out there was obviously the most tiring. For starters, I woke up at about 5 a.m. so I had sufficient time to get ready for our flight to Dallas, which departed at 8:15 a.m. Since we could not get a direct flight to Steamboat, we connected through Dallas-Fort Worth on American Airlines. After we landed in Dallas, I got to step into the cockpit of the plane, where the pilot demonstrated some of the plane's warning systems and told me which colleges had good flying programs. This was a thrill for me because I want to be a pilot.

Once we were in the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, my father, who is a die-hard Eagles fan, saw a Dallas Cowboys shop and tried to jokingly pick a fight with the man who worked there. Little did he know that the man was a Chicago Bears fan. When my father congratulated him, the man said he was a Bears fan, "because they beat the Eagles."

            Our flight to Steamboat was generally routine. We flew on a Boeing 757, my favorite type of airplane. I recorded the landing, which was cool because we were very close to the mountains. After we landed, I stepped into the cockpit again but this time, the pilot recommended that I join the Air Force, because it would get me a good job in a commercial airline. The ride to The Lodge, the name of the place we stayed, was very nice through the mountains of rural Colorado. Once we got to The Lodge, I decided to go in the hot tub, which was next to our room. Unfortunately, I hadn't taken into account the dehydration factor -- not only from being in a hot tub, which dehydrates you, but also from the high altitude and dry air. After about ten minutes, my mouth was dry, and I was feeling somewhat dizzy, so I got out before I nearly passed out.

We ended our first day with an outstanding dinner at a restaurant called The Ore House. I had a prime rib, which was phenomenal. That concluded our first day in Colorado.

            The next day was our first skiing day. The only two people who had skied earlier this year were my father and me. It was the first run of the year for everybody else; therefore, we had to do easier runs to begin with. Fortunately, everyone warmed up quickly. There were a few wipeouts here and there, which I didn't see because I was ahead of everybody else. We stayed out until about 3 p.m. When I got back to The Lodge, I brought down three drinks (water and Gatorade) for myself, because the day before, I got severely dehydrated. After a few minutes, my cousin came and told me I should come into the pool because there was another kid named Will there who was learning how to fly. Upon meeting him, I realized that we were around the same age. According to my father, we had the same sense of humor, but I am not so sure about that.

For dinner that night, we went to a restaurant called the 8th Street Steakhouse. This was my favorite restaurant because you get to grill your own steak. My cousin was affected by the high altitude and got a headache, but he made it overly dramatic. After that incident, he and the rest of his family went back to their hotel, and we went back to The Lodge.

            Two days later, the weather was not in our favor. It was sunny, but the wind was gusting severely. The wind was so bad that the resort started closing ski lifts early. When we got to the bottom of the mountain, my cousin, who's pretty small and light, got knocked over by the wind. This was the last day that my cousins were out there.

After we got back to the Lodge, we went back to the pool. Our friend Will was there, too. We were all throwing a ball around when a man rode by on his bike. We were talking about how funny it would be if the ball accidentally hit him. After that, another family came down to the pool. We were quick to invite them into our game, and we got along with them very nicely.

My cousin was nicknamed Elvis because when he got his hair wet, he folded it back and it looked like Elvis Presley's hair. After a while, our parents were yelling for us to come back up to the room and get ready for dinner. We went to an Italian restaurant where the food was outstanding.

            The next day, our cousins flew home. Because our cousins weren't there, I had a ski lesson. I could go on and on about what I learned, but that wouldn't be necessary for this blog. I skied for about three hours before I went back to The Lodge. When we got back, my brother and I went down to the pool with our friend Will. We brought the deck chairs into the pool to sit on. When my father came down, he asked why there were chairs in the pool. We told him that a man rode his bike by the pool, got off, threw the chairs into the pool, and left. He actually believed us at first. After that, we went to a new restaurant at the bottom of the mountain. The steak that I had was outstanding. When we got back to the room, my father, my brother, and I pigged out on desert, mainly fudge.

            Thursday was our last full day in Steamboat, so we made the most of it. We got out to a later start, so we went skiing in the afternoon only. I had to deal with more than my fair share of reckless skiers. An example of this was when I was about to go over a small jump. I was just about to hit the jump when all of a sudden, somebody skied about three inches away from me at about double my speed and hit the jump the same time as I did, almost taking me out. I had a few choice words for him, which I didn't get a chance to say, because he was already long gone.

After that, my brother and I decided to try a different part on the other side of the mountain for the first time. We could easily say that was our favorite run, because there were so many opportunities to go off the main trail and ski through the trees. We stayed there for the better part of an hour. After that, my father bet my brother $200 that he couldn't ski on moguls (bumps) without falling. My brother succeeded, but my father never paid up -- and still hasn't. However, I did fall on the bumps. It was the first time I fell in about two years.

After skiing, my brother and I went to the pool, but unfortunately, Will wasn't there. My brother and I still had fun, though. For dinner, we went to a different Italian restaurant. The atmosphere wasn't that great, so my father wouldn't stop complaining to us. However, the food was incredible. After we ate, we walked around downtown Steamboat and shopped.

            The next day, we flew home. We left for the airport at about 11:45 a.m. It was about a half hour ride through the mountains up to the tiny Yampa Valley Regional Airport. When we got dropped off at the front of the airport, I saw Will's plane leaving the gate. Once we were waiting for our plane to arrive, I saw his plane take off. It was a long wait until we actually boarded the plane, but when we actually boarded, it was very quick. The plane was only about half full, so my brother and I had the whole row to ourselves -- we were on a larger plane, a Boeing 757. That flight was probably the best one of the trip. After a three-hour layover in Dallas, we boarded our flight back home to Philadelphia. That plane was a much smaller MD-80, and the flight was booked solid. The coolest part was when we flew next to a thunderstorm at night and we got to see the clouds light up.

When we were landing in Philadelphia, all I can say is that the pilots were flying the plane as if it were a sport car. They were turning the plane incredibly steeply, and continuously revving up the engines. At one point, I heard the engines go up to about full power for about two seconds. When we touched down, it was so hard that I thought that the landing gear might have been severely damaged. Then I felt us dramatically slowing down. On the way to the gate, the flight attendant messed up on the announcement, saying, "Have a rest nice of the evening," instead of, "Have a nice rest of the evening." At that point, I realized that my spring break was over, and what a spring break it was.

Ben Weisman: The Homeless Should Be Treated with Respect

By Ben Weisman

Staff Writer

The experiences that I had volunteering at soup kitchens have been fantastic, for the most part.

I have had the chance to talk, serve, and observe the people who were homeless and the people who were serving. However, I don't like using that word "homeless." It makes me feel as if they're inanimate objects, instead of actual people.

When I got the chance to talk to these people, it was very interesting. They said that they hate it when others treat them like second-hand citizens or charity cases. They don't want any money or food. All they want is for someone to listen to them. They hate it when people give them their sympathy. They just want to be treated with respect.

At the soup kitchen I volunteered at in Philadelphia last winter, two of the homeless people got into a fight and the security guard had to split them up. I felt really bad for them, and I wished I could help them.

Another interesting thing that happened was a bunch of homeless people at the soup kitchen were protesting about unfair treatment. This seems to only happen in the city soup kitchens, not the in the suburban ones in which I've volunteered.

Working at a soup kitchen has meant a lot to me, because it has showed me how bad our economy really is and how grateful we really should be for the material items that we have. Some of the things that we take for granted are cars, houses, food, clothes, heat, TV's, and our electronics.

Playing Lacrosse for the First Time Is Tough, But Fun

By Breana Daniel-Schnobrich

Staff Photographer

    I just started lacrosse and so far, I really like it.

    It is overwhelming at times and I feel as if I cannot do it because I have never played a sport that requires carrying a stick in your hand the whole time you are running around playing the game.

    The only sports I have ever played were soccer and gymnastics -- and I haven't stuck with any of those. So I know I have to stick with it and not give up when it gets tough.

    The reason I chose lacrosse was because my brother has been doing it for years and I thought it looked fun and very interesting. I knew nothing about lacrosse, and when I started here at Woodlynde, I thought I would never understand the sport, but I picked it up very fast. I am happy I am doing it because I have become friends with lots more people who are all very nice.

    All the girls on the team are all supportive and they will help you thorough the tough runs and try to kick your butt when playing a game called, "Steal the Bacon", which is fun because you watch the girls who have been playing lacrosse for a long time and you see the moves they make when someone is trying to get the ball from them. It's almost like watching someone teach you without purposely trying to teach you.

    I am at that point where I feel as if I want to quit. But I keep going because I know that I will like it even more in the future when I know all the tricks and rules. I also know that my teammates and Coach Sara will help me through the difficult and/or nerve racking moments before a game or at practice.

Nick Scaramuzza: Sightseeing in D.C.

By Nick Scaramuzza                                                                                            

Staff Writer

For Spring Break, which starts tomorrow, I am going to get up, get into the car, and head to Washington D.C, with my mom and my aunt. First, we are going to check into our hotel. Then, we are going to go to the Smithsonian, which is the world's largest museum. We will probably stay at the museum for most of the day. Next, we will find somewhere to eat dinner. Finally, we will take a night walk, then go back to the hotel room, watch a little T.V., and then go to sleep.   

            The next day, which will be Saturday, we are going to go see the White House, the U.S. Capitol Building, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Jefferson Memorial.

If we run out of things to do, we might even go to the aquarium to see what that is like. In addition, my aunt, my mom and I are going to bring our cameras so we can take many pictures and put them in our photo albums to have great memories forever and ever.

Cassia Enright Commentary: Ryan Seacrest Should Simply Brush Off Academy Awards Debacle

By Cassia Enright

Staff Writer

Post Academy Awards conversation of who wore what, questionable wardrobe malfunctions, and shocking winners flooded headlines. But by far, the most talked about stunt was that of Sacha Baron Cohen. Cohen is best known for his controversial and over exaggerated portrayals of Borat, a man from Uzbekistan, and Bruno, a flamboyant German male model.

Cohen is often forgotten, because his last film came out years ago. Last night, he made his return when he came dressed as his newest character, The Dictator. Despite a ban The Academy put into place in an effort to keep Cohen out of costume and to only attend as himself, The Dictator arrived anyway.

Cohen had requested an interview with only one person, Ryan Seacrest, the host of American Idol. The Dictator arrived and approached Seacrest holding what he claimed to be the ashes of Kim Jong-il, the late North Korean dictator. The interview proceeded and The Dictator rambled on, talking about his dear friend Osama Bin Laden.

The Dictator, who was fumbling with the urn, suddenly dumped it on Seacrest. The famous interviewer was clearly shocked and upset as he tried to brush himself off. In the background you can see two security guards approach and begin removing The Dictator as he spills the "ashes" over the red carpet.

Honestly, Seacrest should hold no hard feelings toward Cohen. The Dictator just got him even more attention and fame than he already has. I would personally love to be in Seacrest's position, and so would many others. Seacrest's passive aggressive responses when interviewed about the incident become even more transparent when everyone else clearly finds the stunt amusing. My suggestion to Seacrest is to brush it off -- literally and figuratively -- and to stop being such a big baby that everyone already knows he is.

Breana Daniel-Schnobrich: Moving from CA to PA has been an adjustment

By Breana Daniel-Schnobrich
Staff Photographer 

Hi, I am Breana and I was born in California. I lived in San Francisco for awhile, then I moved to L.A. I lived there for about nine years, and just last year my dad told my brother and me that we were moving to Pennsylvania.

I was very sad and angry. California was my whole life. I had never moved out of California before, and I guess I was scared, too. I told all of my friends and they ended up throwing me a surprise party, which was really fun. 
  
My brother had been going to boarding school since 9th grade in Santa Barbara, CA, so my dad let him stay. Soon, we had to start packing up all our belongings and we would be on our way. When the moving trucks came and emptied the house, I was so sad and didn't want to leave. It was summertime when we were moving, so my brother came with us up to PA. After our flight, we got to our new house, which was a rental, and we ate dinner. I then went straight to bed.

That summer seemed very long and boring, because the whole time we had to unpack. When we got settled in, my brother and I went to our friend Max's house in Haverford. He is a really good friend who we met in Cape Cod, MA, where we would vacation every summer.

We would only get to see him every summer for a week, but now we get to see him as much as we want. Over that summer, my parents were looking to buy a house that we could live in. It took them a very long time, but we finally found one. The house was across the street from Max's, which made me extremely happy.  

When school started, I was at Harriton High School in Lower Merion School District. I loved Harriton because it was so big, and when I was in CA I was going to a small private school, so being in a really big school with lots more people seemed really fun. 

Toward the middle of the year, it became difficult academically and I was falling behind. I would ask teachers for help, but there were so many other kids, they couldn't help me. So I told my dad that I wanted to go to a different school. He thought that it might be a good idea to check out new schools, so he started looking. 

When he found Woodlynde, he thought it looked great. When we got the chance, we went to see it a few months ago and I shadowed two Upper School students, who were really friendly. I liked it a lot and wanted to go to Woodlynde as soon as possible.

When I heard I got accepted, I was so excited and my dad ordered my school uniform. On my first day just before winter break, I was very nervous but also excited.

So far I love Woodlynde. People here are so nice and they make me feel very welcome. I feel more confident thanks to the teachers' support. Lacrosse season is starting and I can't wait to try it for the first time. My brother is a very good lacrosse player and ever since he started playing, I've wanted to try it out. I will be going to a lax store with a friend and we're going to choose our sticks, which should be really fun.
 
When I started at Woodlynde, I heard about the Informer and wanted to try it out. When I heard I could take pictures for the Informer, I was very excited and now I want to start taking pictures even outside of school and not just for the Informer. So I asked my dad and I might get a camera.

I am very happy that I found out about Woodlynde. I like PA very much and I'm even getting used to the cold weather.

Nick Brayton Movie Review: Total Recall Features Memorable Execution

By Nicholas Brayton
Staff Writer

The concept of Total Recall 1990 has been done multiple times before -- Man vs. Evil Corporation -- but the way it is executed is what makes this movie memorable.

The basic plot is that in the year 2084, a construction worker named Doug Quaid, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, has a recurring dream of a terrible experience on Mars in which he dies due to being exposed to Mars' atmosphere.

After obsessing over this dream, he concludes that he should live on Mars or at least go on a vacation to Mars. He hears of a business called Rekall, which allows a person to simulate what it feels like to be on a planet for two weeks. They also have certain programs to make the simulation more exciting, like an option where you are a secret agent, which Doug chooses.

After finally entering the machine, something goes wrong and he wakes up believing that he is a secret agent known as Hauser. He keeps claiming that the Rekall technicians blew his cover.

Eventually, they sedate Quaid and as he enters his dream, he continues to stay as Quaid and is no longer Hauser. So begins the story of Doug Quaid as he saves the Mars Colony from its cruel dictator.

What gains most people's attention immediately upon viewing the film is the surrealistic setting. The director exploits the idea of living on Mars to its fullest. For example, people who were exposed to radiation due to poor shielding from the sun were mutated, and in some cases, became psychic. Also, Mars has an enclosed area, which, if punctured, can suck people out of the atmosphere. This happened multiple times throughout the film.

The CGI and set pieces also help create a unique atmosphere for this movie. I could go as far as to say that some of the CGI is actually greater than much of the CGI we see today.

The twist on the concept of Man vs. Corporation is actually quite intriguing, because the setting allows the director to create different plot devices. For example, when arriving at Rekall, Quaid is told that he will be subjected to a simulation through a machine that implants the memories of him visiting Mars.

Since scientists are able to implant memories, they are also able to manipulate what kind of memories you want, as mentioned before. The greatest part about the plot is that you are never entirely sure if Doug Quaid is living in the implanted memory or a false reality.

As per most films staring Schwarzenegger, there are multiple action scenes and shootouts. Most of these scenes are top notch, with no over-the-top violence or Arnold blindly shooting everywhere.

Overall, Total Recall is a simply miraculous movie thanks to the director's exploitation of the plot setting and spectacular special effects implemented into the film.