AP Language Arts Trip 2012 by Kelsey Devasure

A lovely view of London. Photo by Kelsey Devasure.

      Many people would like to travel the world, everyone has that one foreign place that they have always wanted to go to. For me that place was England. Last year Mrs. Anthony and Mrs. Hays announced that they would be sponsoring an A.P. English trip and go all the way to England. Everyone was invited that met the criteria, of course I signed up.

     What was perhaps the most surprising thing was how different the two countries really are. When I first though of going to England I thought gloom, British accents, and royalty. While you do encounter many British accents, they all sound a little different depending on the region. And gloom is definitely present in England, though it is accompanied by freezing temperatures and relentless pop up downpours.

Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
Photo by Kelsey Devasure.

    Royalty is another story, they are very much a monarchy, even if the Queen no longer rules. “Queen Elizabeth II's Regime” is displayed in all important places. But, while we were there, they held a parade in which the whole royal family was carried down the streets in horse drawn carriages. Of course we have nothing like that, or the crown jewels in America.

     Now, if you were the average American who eats many fried and preserved foods it is likely that you either die of starvation or your body would go into some sort of shock. The food there is either very light, sandwiches, tea, etc. or very, very dense; haggis, lamb, some sort of beef looking thing. In addition to having different foods than America, you had probably better not hope to wash down their interesting food choices with a tall ice cold glass of soda. The old countries do not use ice in their drinks, and the cups are the size of Dixie cups used here to brush your teeth. (okay, maybe a bit bigger) And I certainly hope you don't need a refill because it will be another five pounds.

"Can you say, Olympics?" Photo by Kelsey Devasure

    Bringing up the next point, British money is worth much more thank American money. While I was there I withdrew 50 pounds from my bank account and it ending up converting to cost me $86 dollars. You felt like you were getting a deal when you paid a pound for a candy bar, but really you just paid about $1.75. I wish I had been a British person coming to America, I would have felt rich.

     “Across the pond” there is a whole different world, these are just a few differences. Experiencing a new culture can be enriching if not shocking too, you may be surprised by how the country you dream of visiting does things differently.

LHS Archives: 1962-1963

LHS Archives: 1960-1961

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Summer 2012 by Faith O'Quinn

My sister and I parasailing.
Photo provided by Faith O'Quinn

     My family likes to travel. We normally go on a trip every summer, and have a lot of fun.This year was a little different though. My summer started off kinda slow, sleeping in, not doing much of anything... then my parents started talking about going on a trip, even though we hadn't planed on it. We decided we'd drive down to Alabama, rent a condo, and have fun!

     About a mile before the Alabama state line, we hit traffic. We were supposed to get to Gulf Shores around 2, but we got there around 5. We were stuck in traffic for 3 HOURS. We got to our condo on compass point, it was on the bay side, but the gulf was across the road. We went to the beach every day, all day long.

    On the day before we left, my parents let my sister and I go parasailing!! We were headed out on the boat and we started talking to the family that went with us, and found out they were from Missouri also! When Grace and I went up, we took her water proof camera with us. We took alot of pictures in the air, it was fun. I got alot of seashells, and spent some time with my family. The funny thing is, when we got home and I got on Facebook, I found out alot of my friends and people I know were down there at the same time we were!

     The only part of my summer I didn't enjoy was that the day after we got home from Alabama, I had to go to Springfield to have my wisdom teeth taken out. Other than that, it was an amazing summer!

New Mandate for School Lunches by Christian Munzner

School lunches should include more fruits and vegetables,
and grains have to be at least 50% whole wheat.
Photo by Riley Pitt

     First Ladies of our nation always have a project that they undertake, Nancy Reagan started an anti-drug campaign, Laura Bush promoted children’s literacy and so on and so forth. Mrs. Obama decided that she would like to focus on child-hood obesity. To curtail the fat on our Nation’s youth she, along with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, have mandated through federal action healthier school lunches. 

     This mandate is the reason behind our having to pay extra for milk shakes now as well as being forced to have a certain kind and amount of sides. The mandate requires school lunches to include a maximum amount of bread that can be served, more fruits and vegetables, and grains have to be at least 50% whole wheat.

     The mandate comes as a bad time for the Obama Administration, because the phrase “federally mandated” has a bit of a bad taste to it after the Obamacare debate, since that law forced people to buy health insurance or face a stiff financial penalty.

     Andy Randolph(12) said of the new school lunches, “I don’t like that I have to go and pay extra for the only decent food up there, I don’t like certain types of foods and I don’t want to eat them, I don’t like that they make me get specifically what I don’t feel like eating.”

     Other students are happy with the new program Matt Baty (12) said “I’m glad that they are finally making school lunch healthy, I mean I like to eat healthy food.”

Students waiting in various lines for food choices.
Photo by Riley Pitt

     Whether this mandate is taking it too far or not we still must abide by its changes. From now on at the High School we will have baked sweet potatoes on the salad bar every Tuesday and Thursday. The pizza line will have pizza; hamburgers and French fries will appear only on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. We will have Taco Tuesday and Chinese Thursdays; on the main line we will still have something new every day.  

My Summer by Audrey Palmer

Belle from Beauty and the Beast and I at Disney World.

     This summer was unlike any one I have had so far. I was very blessed to be able to go on three very exciting trips with three different groups of amazing people. 
     At the end of May and beginning of June, I rode with the band to Disney World for a few days. 48 hours of "bus riding bliss" was filled with many movies and much sleep. Once we finally pulled up to Animal Kingdom at 7:00 the first morning, there was no way we were going to let the rainy weather slow us down. I got to live out my childhood dream in Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Magical Kingdom. Everywhere  we went we saw characters from all of our favorite movies, but my favorite part was meeting the Disney Princesses. :) And let me just say that if you have never been to Magic Kingdom at night and seen the firework show, put it on the list of things to do before you die. Truly,it was the happiest place on earth.

     My second adventure this summer was a trip that I had won to Washington D.C. with Missouri's 2012 Youth Tour (Sponsored by our local electric cooperatives). Adam Coffman and I, along with 89 other seniors from around Missouri, had the privilege of getting a first class tour of D.C. In the hotel we stayed in, there were 47 other states represented by their youth tour. So throughout the week, we traded our state pins with 1500 other kids that we may or may not ever see again. It was a blast and we made a ton of friends and memories that will last a lifetime. One of my favorite sites that we visited, that I hadn't seen before, was the Newseum- the historic museum of all things news. There was a newspaper from every major event in US history, the Berlin Wall, and a 9/11 memorial. We could have all spent the whole day in there, but we had other things to tour as well. To anyone who has the opportunity to write a paper and submit it in the Laclede Electric Essay contest their Junior year, I highly reccommend it.

     The last week of July I went on a missions trip to Nicaragua with a group of 24 from my church. Throughout the summer we had collected 350 school packs to take to kids who have not been able to go to school because they simply did not have the supplies. On our trip, we got to personally meet and pass out the packs to the kids, as well as present the gospel, sing songs to, and play with the kids. We did a 3 day VBS in one of the villages, and you could tell it meant the world to them. We fell in love with the kids, their stories, their smiles, and their hearts. I could go on forever about it, but if you wanna hear a story, just ask. I'd be more than happy to tell you a story about the beautiful and loving people of Nicaragua. They have a life that none of us could imagine, but are far more content than most of us.

Exciting as my summer was, I am just as excited about Senior year and being a difference maker in our school! Can't wait to have a great last year with you all!

Summer Trip to Chicago: A Bazillion Seagulls by Denise Elam

Me at the Navy Pier. Photo by Denise Elam.

Here I am at a gorgeous bridge at the Lincoln Park Zoo.
Photo by Denise Elam

                 What I’m about to admit may make me seem a little dim and uninformed, but it’s the hard truth: I had no idea Chicago, Illinois was home to a bazillion seagulls.

                 I guess I should’ve used my context clues: seagulls thrive near oceans, Lake Michigan is one big ocean – er, lake – and Chicago is planted along the shores of Lake Michigan.  Unfortunately I rid of all English terminology when summer began, so I must’ve stood out as a typical, naïve tourist as I exclaimed, “Oh my gosh, a seagull!” and pointed at one like it was a UFO.

                 Needless to say: Chicago was definitely a learning experience.

The offending beast. Photo by Denise Elam.

Not only did I encounter countless seagulls hopping about and even being chased by kids as if they were dogs and not relentless scavengers, I also ate the best pizza ever, stood inside the tallest building in the United States (felt more like the world, honestly), and rode a water taxi for nearly an hour.

                 There’s not a single thing I dislike about Chicago; the people are nice, walking is encouraged, and the constant wind was more of a blessing than a burden considering the high temperatures. I had the best summer imaginable thanks to that wonderful city that never seems to sleep.

                 And hey – if the city never sleeps then that makes two…. at least until school starts.

LHS Band Goes to Disney World by Kelsey Devasure

Photo Taken by Kelsey Devasure

     As tradition calls for, one of Lebanon High School's biggest classes takes a trip every four years, and 2012 was the year for Disney! Fundraising and anticipation of this trip had been going on for over a year. Of course, you can't take nearly 200 students on a plane to Florida, so before the fun began the crowd was met with 23 hours on a charter bus. Through climate, scenery, and time zone changes the students drove toward the trip of their band careers.

Photo Taken by Kelsey Devasure

     Early the next day a week of magic met them. The students truly got to enjoy several aspects of a Florida vacation. 5 Disney parks, Cocoa Beach, Planet Hollywood, what else could a high school-er ask for to enjoy with their friends. Of course band kids make up more of a family than most clubs. Sweating and practicing together, winning together, traveling together, and now vacationing together.

     Of course, the trip wasn't all fun and games. The band also enjoyed a professional clinic to learn how to put music to movies.    The trip of a lifetime has to be accompanied by the opportunity of a lifetime. In four years time a new group of band students will again be taken on the trip of a lifetime thanks to our wonderful band program.