VOL.55,ISS.05

Volume 55, issue 04 April 2012 Bryan Adams High School, Dallas, Texas 50 Cents dallasisd.org/bryanadams

HoroscopesCheck out

page 5 tosee whatthe starshave in

store for

you.

British Boy Bands invade!

Cougar

Fittness!

Get back intoshape with

thesefitnesstips.

Page 3

Spring

FashionStay caughtup thisspring withthe latestfashiontrends. SeePage 4

Video GameVideo GameVideo GameVideo GameVideo Game

Review.Review.Review.Review.Review.

See whatscore the

latestvideo

gamereceived.- page 8

JROTC passes inspection with flying colors.Staff writer Karina Melendez ‘14

On February 28, 2012the JROTC 14th Battalion had itsannual formal inspection. Theyreceived a total of 97.6; meaningthe Battalion gets to maintaintheir H.U.D (honor unit withdistinction). They’ve been thereigning title holders for the last7 years.

Although the annualformal inspection was February28, preparations for this bigevent began way before. Thefloors were polished; everythingwas cleaned and freshened up toperfection. The JROTCinstructors made sure everythingwas “Dress Right Dress”,sergeant talk for looking good.

Many cadets took timeout of their busy day to come tothe JROTC room to help with thepreparations. This may soundeasy to the average person butin reality it isn’t. The little thingsthat make no difference to youmake a huge difference to theJROTC unit. The tiniest mistakecan cost them their H.U.D.(Honor Unit with Distinction)

The JROTC Staff wasfirst in line for inspection,starting bright and early at7:45AM. This year’s inspectors

traveled all the way here fromSan Antonio.

The inspectors alongwith the school principle,Mr.Vanhoozer and Senior ArmyInstructor CSM Clark sat in theJROTC range where the staffdelivered their briefing. TheBattalion staff gave a shortbriefing about the work they doin JROTC. The inspectors thenproceeded to inspect the Staff’s

uniforms and their knowledge ofJROTC.

Next the staff wasinspected on their calendars,files, inventory, publications, andthe work that they’ve completedup to inspection day..

The companies were upnext and are inspected two at atime by two different inspectors.Their inspection started promptlyat 9AM. The companies are also

graded on their appearance,knowledge of questions and ontheir marching. Overall thecompanies did very well.

As a battalion only 3questions were missed and theinspectors only found 7 uniformdiscrepancies. The marching wasalso well done;

“Whenever there aremore than two feet marching,there will be some mistakes.”Commented one of theinspectors on the battalion’smarching.

Companies are requiredto march as a group whilekeeping count and stayingtogether. BA scored higher thanmost DISD schools.

After the companieswere inspected, the inspectorstested the battalion’s knowledgeof the team’s strengths. Theinspectors wanted only tencadets to be part of theknowledge team’s evaluation.Two were LET (LeadershipEducation Training) 1’s: ThomasJennings and Jason Pho. Threewere Let 2’s:

Teacher Proflie:Ms.Perkins

Staff writer Noor Shahed ‘14

BA’s 7 year bandDirector, Ms. Perkins has beenpart of BA team since 1997. Shefirst started off as the AssistantBand Director, later promoted toBand Director.

Born and raised in amale dominant family down inSouth Texas, Ms. Perkinssurprised her family when shereceived her Bachelor Degree.Especially, since she was the firstwomen ever to receive a MasterDegree in her family. Perkinsearned her Bachelor Degree inMusic at McNeese StateUniversity and a Masters inMusic.

Back in her high schooldays, she was considered as atotal jock, but at the same time aband geek. Mrs. Perkins was onthe softball, swim, volleyball, andtrack team.

“Music found me!”Perkins exclaimed.

She was and still is onebusy gal! She originally wantedto be a veterinarian buteverything changed when herfriend persuaded her to auditionfor McNeese University. Luckwas on her side because she wasoffered a scholarship there inmusic.

Ms. Perkins said, “I’mglad no one made me pick. Whoknows where I would havebeen.”

She never expected tobe where she is now. If someonehad told her to choose betweensports and music she wouldn’thave known what to do.

It’s obvious she lovesher job. She arrives at schoolearly each and every morningand doesn’t often leave schoolbefore 8PM, usually working onBand.

She loves her studentseven if it’s not obvious at times.

See BALL on page 2 See PERKINS on page

2

Before After

Senior reaches new lowSenior Brandon Lucio Tackles Weight Loss Battle Losing Over 100lbs.

Liliana Garcia Opinion Editor’ 13

You probably wouldn’trecognize him or believe hestruggled with his weight if yousaw him walking down thehallway today. He shrank downto almost half his size and is stillcurrently shrinking. Hisincredible weight loss has not See BRANDON on page 2

been easy; his journey has beenimmense, strenuous andtoilsome, but also awe inspiring,life changing and successful.

A year ago seniorBrandon Lucio weighed 312lbs.,not at all where he wanted to be.He realized, with a little help, that

he needed to do something orelse his health would be in greatdanger.

“I had a headache and Iwent to go check if I was pre-diabetic. My doctor told me Ineeded to lose weight and if Ididn’t I would die,” he explained.

The hardest part isgetting started, but his life-threatening condition life was allthe motivation he needed. Firsthe had to figure out what heneeded to change in order toreach his goal. Brandon had tochange his habit of watching TVto hitting the gym and made adrastic change to his eatinghabits.

“The first two weeks Ikept dragging myself to the gym.I ran for twenty minutes before Iworked out, and tried to get on a

diet of chicken, fish, and wholegrains,” he explained.

He also purchasedShakeology, a daily nutritionalshake that removes toxins whileabsorbing nutrients. Thisnutritional milkshake enhancedhis weight loss strategy. He alsocurrently uses a home fitnessprogram, a huge component tohis strategy.

Brandon ordered P90X,a home workout DVD thatimproves physical fitnessthrough a series of trainingprograms and a dietarynutritional plan. This ninety-dayprogram switches the order ofexercises and incorporatesdifferent routines so the bodywon’t adapt to specificworkouts, called muscle

Page 7

JROTC lets out a big sigh of relief as the formalinspection ends while cadets enjoy themselves at

the Military Ball.

Noor Shahed, BenjaminCervantes, and KarinaMelendez. Three were Let 3’s:Enrique Mendoza, RanierBarraza and Juan Sanchez andthe last two were Let 4’s:Nancy Cruz and PatrickAlexander.

They were eachasked a different question andevaluated by the cadets’communication skills anddiction. All the cadets thatparticipated did an exceptionaljob, receiving 100 out of 100total points.

Next the color guardperformed one of theirroutines after the inspection.They received 48 out of the 50possible points.

The final event of theday was the “out briefing.”During this final phase of theinspection the staff sat at atable listening as theinspectors critiqued theirstrengths and weaknesses.The room was filled withanxiety as each memberpatiently waited to hear the

highly awaited grade. Thebattalion was ecstatic with thegrade they received. Theydefinitely made their alumnivery proud, being able to keepthe tradition of receiving theH.U.D. Big congratulations toall the cadets!

“That’s pretty darnHOOAH!”, Sgt Guzmanscreamed out as theinspectors left.

The Bryan Adamshigh school 55th annualMilitary Ball was held March 32012 at the VFW Post. Thetheme this year was Parisunder the stars; the ballroomwas decoratively arranged tohelp portray the theme. Withmini Eiffel towers on tablesand stars dangling from theceiling, the atmosphere felt asif it really was Paris. Manycadets donated some of theirprecious time to pitch in andhelp decorate the hall beforethe grand event.

Much planning wentinto making this special nightpossible. The night was a bigsuccess thanks to the amazingjob cadet Claudia Espino, who

was appointed to be in chargeof this year’s ball.

The ball had manyevents; the first was thereceiving line. This is wherethe cadets get the chance togive their food orders andgreet the staff and cadre.Cadets chose betweenchicken or steak each servedwith a baked potato andbiscuit.

After the receivingline, the special guests wereintroduced, such as thehighest ranking cadet in DISDPatrick Alexander. The colorswere presented by BryanAdams JROTC color guardcommanded by Juan Sanchez;a quick prayer was said beforethe toast was presented.

Each member of thestaff presented a toast as thecadets joined in on thecelebration. The cake,decorated in honor of theveterans that have served ourcountry, was cut by CadetClaudia Espino and cadetcolonel Patrick Alexander. Thefood was served and thedining commenced. Cadetsmingled as they ate theirdelectable food. The drill teamdid their routine conductedmy cadet David Hernandez.

Their presentationended in an elegant arch, inwhich the knights andprincesses walked under asthey were being presented.There was one knight and oneprincess from each company,sixteen in all. They werehonored to represent theircompanies.

Then came themoment everyone had beenwaiting for, the crowning ofthe queen and king. Theknights and princesses all

stood in line anxiously waitingfor the king and queen to bepresented. It is a high honorto win the Battalion king andqueen.This year’s ball queenwas Lupita Rios, and the kingwas Bany Trujillo. Theydanced the traditional Kingand Queen Dance; during thechorus of the song all theknights and princesses joinedin.

Finally it was time forthe fun to begin! The actualdancing began as the firstsong of the night was “PartyRock Anthem” by LMFAObegan to play. Each individualthroughout the whole dancefloor shuffled to their heartsdesires. The fun continuedthroughout the night, with avariety of up beat songs.Even the instructors got in onthe action, dancing along withthe cadets to many of thesongs played. Not a singleperson was found sittingdown once the infamous song“The Cha Cha Slide” came on.

As the night grewold the last song began toplay. All the cadets hit thedance floor not wanting tomiss out on the last song.When the song was over, thecadets helped clean up thevenue. This was indeed amemorable night for all thecadets.

Contined from page 1

“It’s weird. We are likefamily evenwhen wedon’t likeeach other.The kids aregreat. I lovethem.” Shecommented.

Always wanting toexpand her horizons, Ms.Perkins teaches music historyalong with her responsibilitieswith Band. One of her manystudents, Serafin Fuentesstated, “She is very dedicatedto her music and it’s remarkablethat she has such a passion forit.”

Ms. Perkins is anopen book. What you see iswhat you get. She is quite theopen person, though she waspretty hesitant when asked thespill the beans of her lifeduring this interview.

“I don’t likeinterviews”, she told me. Idon’t know why she washesitant as I found her to be asweet, funny, and a passionateperson.

When asked what sheprefers to listen to, she saidclassical music. She doesn’tfind classical music assoothing as most people do.She likes to analyze it andfollow the score. She listens toall types of music and stayscaught up with what the kidsare “jamming” out to. Shedoesn’t really enjoy rap andcountry but sure does respectit.

Ms. Perkins has quitea sweet tooth, especially forBlue Bell Mint Chocolate chipice cream. It’s one of her majorguilty pleasures, as well as DrPepper. In her free time, shelikes to hang out with herfriends, watch movies, watchthe Dallas Cowboys play, andpractice perfecting herinstruments.

She loves to watchold black and white movies. Onthe Waterfront, starring MarlonBrando is one of her all timefavorites but she enjoys alltypes of movies like Gladiatorand Secretariat.

“Gets to me everytime.” She elaborated.

Ms. Perkins doesn’treally have a teaching style.Her main rule is to work firstand not procrastinate. A rulewe should all follow. She likesto get things done and notplay around at theinappropriate times.

“Every thing iscompetitive therefore, weshould work hard”, she said.

Ms. Perkins is not‘tough’, she’s just passionateabout her music and findsinspiration for what she does.Like one her drum majors fromband stated, “Even though sheyells at us. She is one of thefunniest and best teachersBryan Adams has ever had.” In parting she said,“Music is my life. I don’t knowwhat I would do without it.”

Perkins passion formusic

Contined from page 1

Brandon’sSuccessful strategy!

Contined from page 1

confusing. It includesstrength training, yoga,cardio, plyometrics, andstretching.

“I started and didn’twant to stop. It became a partof my life.” he exclaimed.

Brandon has beenreceiving a lot of attention forhis astonishingaccomplishment. People takedouble takes when then spothim down the hall.

When he looks in themirror he is proud of himself.He’s proud of how far he’straveled since the beginningof his journey. He’s proud ofthe person he has become.Currently weighting 193lbs.,he’s a role model for others

around him who are in thesame situation he used to bein.

“He is an inspirationto people who struggle withtheir weight.” Senior JosySierra said.

With the help ofP90X, shakeology, and thesupport from his family andfriends, Brandon was able tolose more than one hundredpounds in just one year!

Senior MykelAlvarado, cousin of Brandon,witnessed Brandon’s triumph.“A couple of times hestruggled but I’m proud ofwhat he did and how he isnow.”

According to theCenter of Disease Control, thenumber of teenagers dealingwith obesity has tripled in thelast thirty years ranging from

16 to 30 percent ofadolescents. With the fastfood craze and the lack ofexercise, teenagers risk theirhealth in the present and inthe long run. Many people aretrying to help prevent thisfrom happening.

Schools are not justencouraging students toenroll in physical activitiessuch as sports, dance, orcheerleading but, also

convincing teenagers to dropthe fries and pick up thecarrots, and to get off thecouch and exercise.

Brandon has provedthat teenagers can doanything they set their mindsto, no matter how big thatthing may seem. The secret isto never give up.

“Do your best andforget the rest. You can reallylose a lot of weight if you stopdrinking soda.” Brandonshared.

Child obesity in the last 50 years

2

Dear Amber:One of my best friends hasdeveloped strong feelings forme. He tells me that he reallycares for me. He even tellsme that he loves me. He’sreally sweet, and I’mattracted to him. However,there’s just one problem: Ifear the consequences of arelationship. I don’t want theextra pressure of a long termrelationship. I mean, thistime next year I’ll bepreparing for college.Amber, I don’t want to bemean to him, but my friendseeks a relationship from methat I’m just not willing togive. How do I get my pointacross without hurting hisfeelings?

- Befuddled

This sounds like anextremely simple answer forsuch a complicated situation,

Dear Befuddled:

Do you find yourself in a sticky situa-tion? Or do you just wish someone

would lend an ear? Have more prob-lems than you have friends?Then askAmber! Stop by Room 249 to submityour question, or simply send your

question to [email protected].

Ask AmberAsk AmberAsk AmberAsk AmberAsk Amber

ATTENTION SENIORS!

- Idali JuarezEditor in Chief

Thanks again!

Are you curious to know what you’ll be remem-bered for? The funniest, the friendliest, bestdressed, or most attractive? Well don’t miss thisyears final issue, the senior edition coming toyou in May. Drop by room 249 to nominate yourfriends, admirers or even yourself for the manysenior superlatives that will be awarded in thefinal issue input is greatly aprecited! Pleaseremember only SEANIORS can nominate and/orbe nominated.

but just tell him how you feel.If he really cares for you, hewould want you to be happy.He’s one of your best friends,so you should be able to talkto him about how you feel.Tell him your fears of havinga relationship. It’s okay to stay“close friends.” You can stillspend time together withoutcalling it a relationship. Imean, it’s obvious that youenjoy his company becausehe’s one of your best friends.Telling someone that you’renot ready for a relationshipisn’t mean. Its how you feel.Share your feelings with himand go on from there.

Dear Amber:I’m developing

feelings for a friend of mine,but I’m unsure about how Ishould proceed. Amber, howdo you show a guy that you’reinterested without being tooclingy?

-Fainthearted

Dear Fainthearted:You definitely don’t

want to be too clingy.“Clinginess” freaks guys out. Itmakes them anxious, and youdon’t want to appear as high-maintenance. Give subtle hints.Smile at him whenever he talksto you. Be interested andattentive whenever he talks toyou. Everyone likes to feel likesomeone is listening to them.

Give him occasional glances,and when he catches yourglance, smile. If he blushes,you’re in. Make sure you’regiving glances and not staringat him. You don’t want to looklike a creeper. If he responds tothese subtle hints, take it a stepfurther. Touch him on the armwhen he walks up to you. Lookhappy to see him. Guys alwaysrespond to radiance. However,if the guy appears uninterested,back off. See if he chases you alittle bit to ensure if he’sinterested. Base your behavioron his reactions; otherwiseyou’ll look like a fool.

Dear Amber:I have a HUGE

problem. I started talking tomy crush from 6th grade. I’mbeginning to fall for himagain, but I have a boyfriend.Oh, and did I mention that mycrush is my friend’s ex-boyfriend? I need helpAmber!

- Hopelessly lost

Dear Hopelessly lost:Follow your gut

feeling. Your decisiondepends on how much youvalue your friendship with thatgirl. If you decide to date yourcrush, more than likely thatwill end your friendship withyour friend. When you date afriend’s ex, it stirs up mixedfeelings and is a volatile

recipe for resent. Step backand take a good look of whatyou have, and then examinethe results of dating yourcrush. I cannot make thedecision for you, but you mustbe aware of the consequences.All I can say is trust your gut.

Pump It Up!A Word of Advice to Stay in Shape

Desiree Romo, Staff Writer ‘12

Doctors recommendmoderate amounts of physicalactivity daily for people of allages. Physical fitness can beeasily obtained and doesn’ttake much time off your busyschedule.

You can achieve yourneeded amount with shortsessions of intense activities,such as jogging, playingbasketball or doing Pilates for15 to 20 minutes. But forthose who have time on theirhands can try longer sessionsof moderately intenseactivities, such as briskwalking for 30 minutes, yogaor swimming.

“Yeah! Kids todaydon’t get enough exercise andthe fault for that istechnology”, CoachCheesebrough replied when

asked if there is a problemwith fitness in today’s society.He recommended thatstudents take up a lifetimesport that they’ll enjoy; andcould play without gettingbored or quitting.

Mr.Vanhoozer agreesthat fitness is important to oursociety because there are somany health issues with kidstoday that we wouldordinarily see in old people.

“The cost for healthinsurance keeps going upbecause of all the unhealthypeople, but as a country weare too undisciplined to doanything about it,” he said,“exercise and a healthy dietwould do a lot for our societyas a whole.”

The BA principalfollows his own regimen to

staying healthy. He gets up at4:45AM each morning andworks out 4 to 5 days a week.He runs 5 miles a day,averaging up to about 20miles a week, except whenhe’s preparing for a marathon.When event like that occurs,he pumps up his routine fromrunning 20 a week to 30-40miles a week.

Nearly half ofAmerica’s young peopleranging from 12 to 21 years ofage are not as active as theyshould be. About 14 percentof young people surveyedreported no recent physicalactivity.

Though there aresome exceptions; when westroll down the halls of BryanAdams we see that most of thestudents are fit.

Senior RickyRichardson works out everyother day or whenever he hasspare time. He recommendsthat students should becomefit because they owe it tothemselves to be healthy.

“It makes you feelbetter,” he said.

Ricky suggestedpick-up games with friendsand listening to music whileyou work out to keep yourmind off the pain as a fun wayto stay fit. But he’s not theonly fit Cougar on the block.

Senior TympleFreeney also works out on adaily basis.

“ I work out becauseit feels good as well. But themost important reason to stayhealthy is because I want tostay looking good and keep

fitting into my favoriteclothes. Join sports, they helpkeep you fit while having somuch fun,” she said.

Whether you care ornot being physically fit, itaffects everyone in the worldnot just you. There are manybenefits to joining in physicalactivities.

Being fit helps buildbut also maintain healthybones, muscles, and joints. Ithelps control weight, buildlean muscle and reduce fat. Italso prevents or delays thedevelopment of high bloodpressure and helps reduceblood pressure in someadolescents with hypertension.A little help and support fromfamily and friends goes a longway; check out what it did forBrandon Lucio on page 1.

Workout even a lazy person can do it!1. Stretch! If you don’t

your muscles will cramp.2. 10 minute jog, at your

own pace.3. 10 push-ups. Start out

on your knees if you have to.4. 5 Pop-ups. Try to do

one more each time you dothis workout.

5. 15 sets of the mountainclimber. Don’t cheat!

6. 10 Squats. Rememberkeep your back straight.

7. 5 lunges per for eachleg. Challenge yourself with10 lunges per leg!

8. 15 woodchoppers foreach side. Yes 15 right and15 left.

9. Relax. That doesn’tmean go sit and watch TVand eat chips; instead choosethe carrots.

· Don’t forget to drinkplenty of water whileworking out.· Eat a healthy diet. No

chips. No soda. NO JUNKFOOD!· Encourage others to

workout with you as well.

3

Rather than wearing simple tank tops andspaghetti shirts wear a top that flows in the

spring’s breeze. They are incrediblycomfortable and they look great.

You can find flowy tops at Bui-Yah-Kah for$19.99.

Its time to put away the chunky clothing, Ugg boots, coats, turtle necks and startto lighten up your wardrobe .Flower prints, light denim, and pastel colors are

your best friends this season.

Shorts are a must this season, You can purchasethese shorts from Bui-Yah-Kah for $39.99

Toms, Vans, flats, Converse, and sandals arewhat are being worn the most this season. Theyare really comfortable, cute, and affordable.Toms range from $35-$50 dollars depending onthe size. However, sandals are cheaper.Theyrange from $10-$20 dollars also depending onthe size. You can find these sandals at RUE 21for $12.99

This season’s hairstyles are all about braids. It isa great way to style your hair in just three easysteps. It’s very simple and doesn’t take a lot of

time.

We’re all tired oflistening to the same music overand over again. Now we can stop.It’s 2012, so it’s time to stophitting the replay button and starthitting the download button;because several of our favoriteartists are debuting fresh newalbums with new twists to theiralready banging music.

Students at BA arealways ‘jamming out’ to the thelatest hip artists of today, such asLil Wayne, Drake, One Directionand J Cole. Whether it is on thebus, or in class, studentincorporate music into their life. Nicki Minaj’s “Pink Friday”

sophomore album isbeing upgraded to “Pink Friday:Roman Reloaded, which wasreleased on April 3rd. She hasadded a few more songs to themulti-platinum album of 2011. Thefirst single off of the album “Va

Spring Season has arrived!

Julia ArriagaStaff Writer’13

Fresh New Music in 2012Time to upgrade your playlist with songs from these highly awaited albulms coming this year.

Suzanna Santana, Staff Writer’13

These cute andgirly ankle strapsandals are only

19.99 atTarget.com

These whitewash shorts are

19.99 atHollister.com

This cute flowytop is perfect forspring and is only

14.99 atmarshalls

The Aussie SprunchSpray is light on

your hair, easy onthe stickyness andsmells great while

still giving youamazing results only

3.00 at Target.

4

Va Voom” is certainly the oneNicki lives up to.

“Nicki Minaj is verydifferent than most rappers inour generation. The way thatshe can act like differentcharacters and still rap like oneof the guy rappers is so cool”,said Julia Martinez.

Everybody might bewondering whether “RomanReloaded” will unleash anotherpop single that is even half asinfectious as “Super Bass”. Ifanyone can do it, Nicki (andRoman and her other egos) can.

We all know that whenit comes to crazy lyrics andstrange music videos, She is thequeen. Her new album gladyshowcasing her magnificanttalent, with the release of Ke$ha’s “Cannibal”.

Ke$ha’s second studioalbum is set to be realeasedsometime in the spring. However,an album title is not yetannounced. Even though we areused to her upbeat dance songs,this album will reportly be moreinfluenced by rock “n” rollperformers like Janis Joplin, IggyPop, and Alice Copper.“Ke$ha is always trying to comeout with brand new ideas.Unique is the word that woulduse to describe the person sheis”, Alex Molina said.Everyone needs to keep their eyeout for the new and improvedKe$ha. Instead of a fun, wildKe$ha we will see an edgier sideof her.

Dre fans across thenation can finally put thoseDr.Dre headphones to good use.His anxiously awaited album,“Detox”, which is coming outApril 20th.

“I am such a big fan ofDre and I think that it is abouttime that he came out with a newalbum. When it comes to hismusic, he is always speakingabout what is really going onwith society and plus his songshave great beats,” commentedCristian Garcia.

Dre’s longtime friendsSnoop Dogg, Eminem, Jay-Z,and many other artists are saidto collaborate with him in thisalbum. Dre said that he isdefinitely bringing back his westcoast flavor with his first singles“Kush”, “I Need a Doctor”, and“Under Pressure”.

Jay-Z and Kanye west “Watchthe Throne”

All hail the princes ofrap. They’re going to be doing acollaborative album that iscoming out August 2nd called”Watch the Throne”.

According to MTVNews, Jay-Z is already deep ontwo songs into the project.“I know exactly the tone and thewhole feel of the album”, hesays.

“Jay-Z and Kaynereally know how to make the

perfect albums. I have followedthem from the minute they cameto the music industry and I can’twait until they release therecollaboration album” Jesus A.said.

These are just a few ofthe various artists that areplanning on launching their newalbums this year. Stay on thelook out for more of your favoriteartists’ releases. You dont wantto be left behind in the dust withonly your songs from the oldies.

All Time

Favorite

Animation

Asst. Editor in Chief Amee Castro

‘12

Popular among girls and the littleones Despicable Me makes thetop of the list with its greatanimation and overall fun familyentertainment. Adding 3D makesit all thebetter.With littleminionsrunning allover andfunnypunchlines how could it be forgotten.Starring Steve Carrell, RussellBrand, Miranda Cosgrove, JasonSegal and the amazing JulieAndrews in this heartwarmingmovie of how a super villainbecomes a super dad. This issure to not disappoint and willleave you saying “It’s so fluffy.”Don’t miss out on DespicableMe 2 set to hit the big screen

July 3, 2013

Toy Story (Franchise)

Toy story has been around since1995 and for most of us it’s our

childhood. Toy Story gives us alook into all of our childhoodsand what it waslike having animagination.Although manyfavor the first ToyStory, Toy Story 3was a hugeimpact. When itwas announcedpeople wentcrazy. Theatressoldoutandthemagicwasreborn.Manyof what are now adults andteenagers who remember thispowerhouse of a movie lined upto await the movies release; andit was worth the wait! The toyswere as memorable as ever, thescenes just as funny and thenew character where all butlovable. From the scene of thetoys being donating to Andy’sfinal good-byes tears wherejerked from audiences eyes but itwas a satisfying ending to an

epic journey through childhood.

Hayao Miyazaki

Many do not know of Hayao

Miyazakis’ anime but for those

who do, they all feel the same

way. These movies are hard not

to fall in love with. From Kiki’s

Delivery Service

to the all time

favorite of My

Neighbor Totoro

each and every

one of his films

has that little tug

to all of our

emotions that

we feel

connected to

each and all characters. East of

Eden, Hal’s Moving Castle,

Spirited Away and many more are

those type of amazing films that

will always be remembered by his

most

devoted

and

die

hard

fans.

Lion King

Disney is one of those movie

companies that never ceases to

come out with guns blazing. The

Lion King is one of those

examples. From its funny and

witty lines to its toe-tapping

musical

numbers

it keeps

you

wanting

more.

Animation can explainwhatever the mind of

man can conceive. Thisfacility makes it the most

versatile and explicitmeans of communication

yet devised for quickmass appreciation.

-Walt Disney

It’s one of those movies that

show what it is like growing up.

Tears are shed and laughs are

shared, The Lion King will

always hold a place in our hearts

that no other movie will ever will.

Finding Nemo

Pixar is known for making greatmovies, and Finding Nemo is noexception. In 2003 Pixar releasedthe funny and epic journey of adad going across the world tofind his son who was kidnapped.This movie has become apowerhouse with a hugefollowing of fans both youngand old, and has become one ofthe most quoted movies Pixarhas released. Memorablecharacters and fun facts aren’twhatjustsetthismovieapart.Disneyhas always had a love foranimals from all the belovedcharacters in The Lion King tothis new generation of FishFriends, Finding Nemo will notbe easily forgotton.

Teachers Favorites

Coach Mondragon

Southpark is one of

those shows that defines a

generation. When a full length

movie was announced in 1999,

Southpark: Bigger Longer &

Uncut, both excited people and

scared them. With crude humor,

rude and vulgar language, and

the occasional poop joke, Trey

Parker and Matt Stone throw in

all their chips in this over the

top animation movie. “The

screenwriting and the climax are

the way movies should be

written” Coach Mondragon

commented when question

about his all time favorite

animation.

DespicableMe

Mr. Bolster

Spirited away followsthe tale of a young girl whomoves to a new town and getstrapped in an alternate realitythat is inhabited by monsters andspirits.”I love how the little girlgrows into a hero and ends upsaving her parents. I also reallylove the animation”Mr. Bolsterstate when questioned aboutwhy spitited was his favortieanimation.

Pisces

You’re going above andbeyond for the people in yourlife, but are you doing it for allthe right reasons? Doingsomeone a favor is one thing,but doing it to get him or her tolike you that’s somethingcompletely different. Be yourloving self, but let your friendsand family handle any otherdetails without your capablehands. Why not let someone dosomething for you for a change?Accept this favor with grace andlearn to treat your self.

Aries

You could have a suddenrealization today about yourlife’s path today, a distinctpicture of yourself in pursuit ofyour passions and dreams, thiswould be a good chance to takeit to the next level, allow yourselfto think big—there’s no need totake any major steps so soon,after all, so what’s the harm inletting your imagination runaway with you? Consider thatsome of these “pipe dreams”may not be so easy; withplanning, hard work, anddedication; they could be yourfuture reality.

Taurus

Just because someone hasmore money or a better title thanyou, does that mean they shouldbe your role model? While itmay seem as though this personor the crowd to which thisperson belongs has everythingyou could ever dream of,

spending a week’s paycheck orsacrificing your ideals in order tomatch his or her apparentsophistication or class just isn’tworth it. Be yourself, and wearyour individuality with pride.Stop posing, and just start beingyou. If you feel you can’t hangaround the athletes then try theDrama club, the point is get inwhere you fit in.

GEMINI

A part of you just wants torush to that finish line and seewhat’s next, and another part ofyou is happy to settle in for thelong haul. Before you make anydecisions today, do your best tojudge fairly between that impulsefor spontaneity and that “slowand steady wins the race” typeof attitude—different situationscall for different processes. Onlyyou can be the judge of theappropriate path. You might wantto ask the counselors whatshould your next step should bebut If you DO decide to go thespontaneity route, just be carefulthat you’re not disregardingimportant risks in your efforts toseize an opportunity, remember,safety first!

Cancer

Let your imagination run awaywith you today. There’s more tolife that facts and figures,especially when it comes to yourhopes and dreams for the future.Do some free-writing today, ortalk through some of yourthoughts with a fellowstudent…and don’t giveyourself any reality checks that

could get in the way of yourimagination.

LEO

In this new world of social mediait’s sometimes hard to discerntrue-blue kindred spirits from thepeople you “friend” onFacebook, Twitter, and othersocial networks. Today, it’simportant that you learn to drawthe line between realities andfake you should focus on yourclasses and get your workdone.—keep those intimatethoughts for those that havealready proved themselves, andbe careful not to bend overbackwards for someone who maynot be deserving of the effort.

VIRGO

Make sure that you’re nottaking on too much on behalf ofsomeone else, even if this personis extremely important to you.Just focus on you and makingyou happy. Allowing him or herto handle his or her problemsindependently will probably bethe best solution in the long-run,and it will help you learn to givethe people in your life the spaceand time they need to step intotheir own power. Gracefully stepaside, and let the cards fall wherethey may. Turn your focus backto your own life today.

LIBRA

Despite your best efforts,you’re having trouble getting ridof those bad habits once and forall. Consider that you’ve beentoo hard on yourself as of late,

especially if you’ve beeneliminating things from your dietor your everyday routinescompletely cold turkey. Giveyourself a few little luxuries to letyour body relax. Working hard isa great quality but all work andno play make you a dull person.Don’t let your life pass you by.

Scorpio

Romance could be tricky foryou today, you might be headover heels for someone whoseems too good be true, but youthere’s a part of you that can’tstop thinking, “Is this too goodto be true?” no one can’t tell youwhat the best path is, but whatyou can do is catch this personduring passing periods or betteryet while buying something atthe cougar den taking all the timeyou need to make that firstimpression the best one. But youshouldn’t you allow yourself tobe swept away by yourpassions. You shouldn’t let cool,calm, logic take the take over.Remember: deciding to trust yourheart is sometimes the first stepin falling in love.

Aquarius

Now is your chance to spendsome much needed time inreflection. Try to relax a little andlet the stress of the weekdissipate. You like to have a clearunderstanding of all that hasoccurred and taking a moment toclear the racing thought fromyour head or makes sense ofthem, requires effort. Take thetime now to catch up with

yourself and prepare your hardworking mind.

Capricorn

You are in the midst of anaction packed week and itdoesn’t appear as if this slowsdown anytime soon. Keep inmind however; activity andproductivity are two differentthings. You don’t want to bebusy, yet accomplish nothingsignificant. If it feels as thoughyou’re just spinning yourwheels, take a moment to focuson your thoughts and organizeyour life find out what is reallyimportant to you. It would be agood thing to go the schoollibrary an work on you

Sagittarius

Everyone loves a good burgerand some salty fries, but rightnow you will want to getphysically fit. You will need toreassess how your diet isinfluencing your over all well-being and what changes you canmake on a permanent basis.Without our health in tact, thereis not much we can accomplishso you’ll want to take a moreactive role in improving yours.You should spend more time inthe gym play basketball, softballor something.

5

The Cougars’ seasonbegan with the bar set highfrom the previous year’svictorious season. The teamknows it will take a lot of workin order to succeed onceagain. As the “big six” put it,“We are very confident in ourabilities and in our team.”Confidence seems to be whatthe team is made of. TheCougar baseball team is anotoriously confident bunchand the most historiclysuccessful sports team in B.Ahistory. The team has hit the seasonoff with a good start winingthe B.A tournament and going2 for 0 in district play. Theteam relies on the shouldersof captains 1st basemanMason Buhrkuhl, and short

stop Aubrey Lohrengel. Theteam has a strong senior coresuch as players JonathanPatino, Carlos Castillo, NestorMancha, Niko Martinez,Kevin Melendez, and RickyFlores. These seniors areaware that this is their lastyear to represent B.A and thelast chance to win state. While the season is inprogress, the baseball team’smessage to the student bodyis simple. They would like formore support from thestudents and teachers. Theyfeel that students don’t knowwhat it means to truly attend abaseball game. The teamhopes students will attendand show more support intheir quest for victory.

Christian Ramirez ‘12Staff Wriuter

Out of the Park!BA Cougar Baseball Strikes Again

The JV Lady Cougarsdid a fantastic job in theirseason! With an excellentcoach like 9th grade teacherCoach Bohlin, losing isn’t anoption. The rigorous practicesand tough workouts haveproved to be successful thisseason. JV started their seasonwith a win against Adamson 1-0 at Forester Stadium.

Perhaps the mostexciting game of the seasonwas against Conrad, CoachBohlin’s former team. The LadyCougars defeated the LadyChargers 5-0 in an excitinggame at Forester Stadium.Goals were scored by VanessaHernandez, Maria Hernandez,Elizabeth Reyes and other JVgirls. The powerful defense dida great job of keeping theopponent from scoring.

The last game of theseason was against Adamson,who BA barely beat in the firstgame of the season.. The gamewas played at Kincaidstadium. In the first half ofthe game the wind wasagainst the Lady Cougarsmaking it fairly hard to keepthe ball in their possession.The girls tried hard to keepit out of enemy hands - andfeet! The mid-fielders anddefenders did an excellentjob of keeping the ball upwith the forwards, butAdamson’s defense wasn’teasy to get by. A corner kickfor Bryan Adams and awonderful header from guestArlene Carcamo won the LadyCougars their first goal with tenminutes to spare in the first

half. The team kept pushingand trying to make anotherscore...but the clock keptticking. With only oneminute left Leslie came inwith a powerful shot scoringthe second goal for BA with22 seconds left. The LadyCougars were up going intothe second half confidantthat they would win it. Therewas a close shot forAdamson but goalie Janetmade an incredible save. Thecrowd cheered for the gamewinning defensive play. Timewas running out and thescore board was still 2-0.Adamson started gettingnervous as they sensed theirfate. The Cougars howeverdidn’t let up as they keptshooting for the goal. Timeran out and BA wasvictorious.

Keeping their slateclean, the JV Lady Cougar’ssoccer teams were

undefeated in their districtand weren’t scored on! Thecaptains did a great job ofmotivating the team allseason and especially duringpractices. The season wasshort but successful. Way togo JV Lady Cougars!

The girls Varsity did agreat job in their season as well.They were 4-4. Although therewere some injuries here and therethe team have managed to pulltogether and win many games.

The closest and mostexciting game of the season wasagainst Thomas Jefferson.

“We clicked a little moreand had lots of opportunities,”said senior forward LaurenRoberts.

The team later went toshootouts where they won 4-3.Lauren believes their worst gamewas the one against Hillcrest.

“We were missing somany starters, and we started offon a rocky start then went up,”she said.

Perhaps the highlight ofthe season was the game againstLincoln. The Lady Cougarsdefeated Lincoln 16-0 in a gamein which almost everyonemanaged to score. Many peopleargued that BA was piling on but,“hey, a win is a win.”

Junior goalie ViriMorales said,” we could’ve donebetter in the games played , mostgames we lost by only one pointbut we had lots of opportunitiesto score.”

Senior goalie NancyAguilar said “It’s not aboutwinning, but about havingfun….nah just kidding, it’s allabout winning,”

The Lady Cougars camein 5th place in district.

Girl’s soccer teams kicks competitionBA girls finish season on positive note

Karina Melendez 14’Staff Writer

As the last chills ofwinter move north of theequator and photosyntheticlife shakes off Jack Frost’scold touch, the game ofbaseball reappears like theNorth American brown bearawaking from hibernation.Even if you do not appreciatethe elegance of baseball, youmust respect the game that isso intrinsically American.Baseball in its purest form isa game played in the dirt,matching a team’s intellectwith their ability to out hit,out run, and out pitch thecompetition.

As flowers flourishin spring, so does baseball.The smell of pollen in the air,the taste of freshly grilled hotdogs, and the sound ofumpires dramatically callingballs and strikes as the ballraces into the catcher’sleather mitt with a poppingthud, makes the atmosphere

at any baseball game sodistinctly special.

In these turbulentdays of partisan politics and aclass warfare, the UnitedStates, more than ever, needsto get return to its roots.When America was roaringand leading the worldeconomically, baseball godsdominated American sports.As Babe Ruth hit towering 400foot home runs in YankeeStadium, America was busybuilding toweringskyscrapers. Perhaps, theRepublican dominated Houseshould take a trip to theballpark with the DemocraticSenate to watch StephenStrausburg throw flamingfastballs for the WashingtonNationals. Maybe theatmosphere will engender aspirit of cooperation andbipartisianship sorely neededat this critical time in ournation’s history.

Getting Back to Our RootsReturn of Baseball reminds us of what’s right with

AmericaLiam Veazy Sports Editor ‘12

The Cougar boys’soccer team fought off youth,red cards, and playing with thetarget on their backs thatcomes with deep playoff runsto finish 7-3 in a strongDistrict. Although the 3rd placedistrict finish was lower thanmany expected, senior ForwardErick Rodriguez told me thatdistrict games turned out to be“way more competitive thisyear”.

Senior forward LuisGuerra led the Cougars inscoring this season. Practicingfrom 4:15-6 PM every day, theCougars worked hard to reachtheir ultimate goal of winningState. Unfortunately, they lostto Lovejoy High School 2-0 ina hotly contested match.Missed cues on offense anddefense plagued the Cougarsall evening. Despite theirdisappointment in the out-come, a certain amount of pridestill lingered with the seniorsafter their extremely successfulcareers came to a close.

Boys’ Soccer WalksTall

Cougar boys’ soccer fallsshort of goals, but remains

proudLiam Veazey Sports Editor ‘12

Crossroads StaffCrossroads StaffCrossroads StaffCrossroads StaffCrossroads Staff

2011-20122011-20122011-20122011-20122011-2012

EditorsEditorsEditorsEditorsEditorsMr. Hall……………………………….....The Big BossIdali Juarez ‘12……………………......Chief and EditorAmee Castro’ 12……………….Assistant Chief EditorLiam Veazy ‘12……….................……....Sports EditorPedro Ramos ‘12………………..Entertainment EditorRachel Gulotta ‘13…………………Student Life EditorLiliana Garcia ‘13……………………….Opinion Editor

Staff WritersStaff WritersStaff WritersStaff WritersStaff WritersKarina Lopez ‘13

Jennifer Hatcher ‘12Edith Sanchez ‘13Julia Arriaga ‘13

Jennifer Duran ‘13Emmanuel Eugenio ‘12

Beth Gallegos ‘13Karina Melendez ‘14Ramiro Sanchez ‘12Suzanna Santana ‘13

Noor Shahed ‘14Liliana Valdez ‘13

Christian Ramirez ‘12

6

Varsity Girls

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7

How well do you know the Bryan Adams’ Staff?How well do you know the Bryan Adams’ Staff?How well do you know the Bryan Adams’ Staff?How well do you know the Bryan Adams’ Staff?How well do you know the Bryan Adams’ Staff?ACROSS 2. Tall, blonde worldhistory teacher 4. Italian bodybuilder 5. Economics teacherwho is also a rocker 8. Key club sponser 10. Mr.Pasillo a.k.a. TheBoss 11. Responsible for allthe cools effects on stage 12. MOST dreaded, yetloved, history teacher fromLSU 14. Varsity Cheerleadingcoach 16. Debate Coach 18. Physics teacher withold hair but young face

DOWN 1. Salsa-making spanishteacher 2. Foreign languageteacher raised in Africa 3. You can find him inthe Cougar Den 6. AVID teacher7.Coach of baseball team 9. Boisterous Banddirector (also on the frontcover) 13. AP Biology teacher 15. Soft spoken Pre-calteacher 17. Loved by theBelles. Name also a schoolcolor.

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Use the clues to figure out which teacher we’retalking about!

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Fans want to go in One Direction!Boy Bands are back!

Staff Writer: Noor Shahed ‘13

Girls all over the worldare going ballistic over the newhot British Boy Bands, OneDirection and The Wanted.Every day on twitter, girls aregushing over these young

groups.

One Direction is aBritish-Irish boy band consistingof members Niall Horan, ZaynMalik, Liam Payne, Harry Stylesand Louis Tomlinson. The groupwas signed to Simon Cowell’srecord label, Syco Labels, afterbeing formed in the seventhseason of The X Factor, whereunfortunately they placed third.The teens were later signed witha very successful NorthAmerican record company,Columbia records.

Originally, eachmember walked in to the XFactor as solo artists trying topursue a successful career. Everysingle one of them made it to thenext round. But here were somany solo artists with amazingtalent that the judges didn’t wantto take their chance of becomingstars; so they grouped these fivetalented guys, therefore Onedirection was created.

They made U.S musichistory as being the first Britishboy band to top the Billboardcharts with their widely famoussingle, “What Makes You

Beautiful” from their debutalbum “Up All Night”.

Zayn Malik, 19, is ofBritish-Pakistani descent. He isknown as the “quiet andmysterious one”. He hadproblems with dancing while atThe X Factor boot camp. Hisnerves got the best of him and hebailed out the challenge. He isjust not a good dancer.Whenever his fans get thechance to meet him, they goballistic when he says his catchphrase, “Vas happenin?”

Niall Horan, 18, isfrom Ireland and is the only Irishmember of the band. He isknown by his fans as, the “cutelittle Irish one”. He is the onlyband member who plays theguitar and he loves it.

“People think that a boyband is just about air-grabs andbeing dressed all in one color.We’re boys in a band. We’retrying to do something differentfrom what people would think isthe typical kind of boy band.We’re trying to do differentkinds of music and we’re justtrying to be ourselves, notsqueaky clean,” said NiallHoran.

Harold ‘Harry’ EdwardStyles, 18, the youngest, was partof a school band called, “WhiteEskimo” before he joined OneDirection. He auditioned for The

X Factor to prove if he truly hadthe talent to become a successfulmusician. In the band, he isknown as “the Charming one.”He is a major flirt and is intogirls of all ages especially thosewho are older than him, just notyour grandma. He is the veryclose to Louis. He lives with himand their fans call them LarryStylinson because of theirbrotherhood (bromance).

Louis WilliamTomlinson, 20, the “leader” ofthe group is known for his senseof humor. He is very funny andhas the most unique sense ofstyle in the band; he’s alwaysrocking the suspenders. He hasalso starred in several musicalproductions and a drama called“If I Had You.” If he weren’t inOne Direction, he would havepursued an acting career.

Liam Payne, 18, “thesensitive one”, auditioned on thefifth season of The X Factor butwas considered ‘not ready’ fromSimon Cowell and was advisedto come two years later. So hedid and was put in OneDirection. He was born threeweeks early. At the age of four,Doctors found out one of hiskidneys was dysfunctional,which forced him to take thirtytwo shots day and night to copewith the pain. Now he has only

one kidney and is very consciousof his diet.

The Wanted issomewhat similar to OneDirection. It consists of fiveband members, Max George,Siva Kaneswaren, JayMcGuiness, Tom Parker, andNathan Sykes. In the U.S, theyare widely known for their hitsingle, “Glad You Came”. Theywere formed in 2009 in a wideaudition held by Jayne Collins,who also formed The Saturdaysand Parade. They currently havetwo albums released, TheWanted and Battleground. Lastyear, they were privileged to bea part of Britney Spears andJustin Bieber’s tour.

Thomas ‘Tom’ Parker,23, is known as ‘the partyanimal’; he went on The XFactor but didn’t make it. Later,he went to college, but droppedout to pursue his musical career.Now he’s part of one of the mostpopular bands in the world, TheWanted.

James ‘Jay’ McGuiness,21, ‘the funny one’ was alwaystheatrical; in dance and theatre.A fun fact about him is that hehas a non-identical twin.

Siva Kaneswaren, 23, isknown as the ‘quiet’ one. He ishalf Irish and half Sri Lankan.He was a model with his twinbrother and appeared in multipletelevision series. He was spotted

from one of his modelingcampaign and got to be part ofThe Wanted.

Max George, 23, isknown as the ‘flirt’ by his bandmates. He was an aspiringfootball player, but when he gotthe chance to be a part of a bandcalled Avenue, he put down thepigskin and picked up themicrophone. They auditioned forThe X Factor and made it butthey didn’t comply with the rulesand were banned because of arecord deal they had alreadysigned.

Nathan Sykes, 18, the‘baby’ of the band, is known asthe ‘cute’ one. He receives mostof the attention from the youngercrowd. Sykes had a lot ofexperience before being part ofThe Wanted. He has beenperforming since the age of six.He even got to participate in“Britney Spears’ KaraokeKriminals” in 2003Henotoriously ‘stole’ a kiss fromthe famous Britney Spears.

Both bands, OneDirection and The Wanted, arerivals in the music industry.However, both appreciate eachother’s musical talent. Bothbands seem to be on top of themusical world. We’ll just have towait and see whether theymaintain their musical fame orfall from grace like so many boybands before them.

Video Game Review: Tekken and Street FighterRamiro Sanchez Staff Writer ‘12

Throughout the yearwe have had many releases offighting games includingTekken and Street Fighter, butwe have never had a crossoverof your favorite Tekkencharacters clashing againstyou’re favorite Street FighterCharacters.

This was a big eventfor many BA gamers. Threeyears ago we had the releaseof Street Fighter 4 back in2009 which garnered theattention of millions offighting game fans with suchclassic fighting characterssuch as Ryu, Chun-Li, E.Honda and Akuma.

The game took in alot of sales within the firstweek of its release. The gamewas greatly anticipatedbecause the long awaitedrelease since Street Fighter 3strike which was releasedback in 1997.

Tekken was releasedin 1993 to the Playstation,which showed a 3d version ofthe characters we know andrespect such as Jin, Kazuyaand Heaichi. Many fans of the○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

series love the 3rd renovatedgraphic that bring out abeautiful environment evenfor standards of graphics backthen. Tekken 2 was in 1996which even brought more fanswith its fluid gameplay.

The game brought anew form of fighting style togameplay from previousfighting games. It captured theaudience with its other sequelslike Tekken 4, 5, and 6.

“Tekken is right up inthe terms of 3d fighters,combine them together andwell, you pretty much haveTekken characters fightinglike Street FighterCharacters”, says seniorLionel Breaux.

“It’s fun how NamcoBandai characters translate inCapcom’s fighting gamesystem just as it should beenjoyable watching Ryu andfriends moving about in 3dwhen Tekken X Street Fighterreleases. I always thought ofRyu and Ken being the bestcharacters out if the StreetFighter series but I would ofnever imagined them going

against my favorite TekkenCharacters, Kazuya Mishimaand Paul Phoenix.”, saidsophomore Chris Moreno.

“Imagine Law goingon and on with Fei Long at afurious battle - now that’s agame I would buy,” exclaimssophomore Marco Santos.

There’s plenty ofcontent in Street Fighter XTekken geared towardsplayers that just want to seetheir favorite characters clashwith each other. Uniquestories unfold for each matchpair of your favorite fightinggame characters, makingreplaying a must for thegame’s fighting challenges.

Challenge mode isgiven to each other, giving theplayer a chance to mastermoves more complex anddifficult for those hardcorefans of the series of bothfighting game genres. Themission mode features a seriesof fights with specificconditions, putting acquiredskills to the test.

“Can you defeatBalrog using only normalattacks? I can’t but I wouldlove to see my favoritecharacter do it,” proudlyproclaims freshmen IsmailVallejo.

Street Fighter XTekken brings together two ofthe greatest fighting gamefranchises of all time. It’salso incredibly accessible to awhole new fighting gamemashup of you’re favoritefighting game characters.

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8They Kicked Their Way to Victory

(Literally)B.A .Belles win 1st place after a weeks of hard work.

Liliana Valdez staff writer’13On February 25 the

BA Belles competed in theDallas SpectacularCompetition at Poteet HighSchool and won first place forthe first time afterparticipating in thecompetition for 4 years.

The Belles hard workpaid off, and their numerousawards are the evidence. The“high-kicking Kelly greengirls” won the SweepstakesAward, which means that theyreceived a 90 or above fromall of the judges. They werebest in category for Hip-Hopand Pom. For the first time theBA Belles were GrandChampions of the mediumteam division.

“We practiced forquite some time, about 3months or so”, said Ms.Green, the BA danceinstructor. “It really takes along time to find the song,choreograph the dance, teachthe dance, learn thechoreography and then cleanit up and get it ready to

perform. It is such a longprocess but worth everysecond.”

She wasn’t the onlyteam member bursting withpride and excitement. All thegirls were extremely excitedwhen they were announced thewinners.

“It was unexplainable,I was speechless, it was a greatexperience,” Senior BelleSharice Jackson said.

Coming in third placeat the competition, wereneighborhood rivals the BishopLynch Brigade Drill team.Second place were the CyprusSprings Panteras high School.

All the Belles workedhard for this competition but,“the officers stood out themost, they put in a ton of timeto help me choreograph andperfect the dances.” Ms.Greensays.

All Cougars can beproud of the girl’s hard work. Itpaid off in the end and we’reexpecting many more trophiesto come.

The history of St. Patrick’s DayCool facts that you never knew about St. Patty’s Day

Beth Gallegos Staff Writer ‘13

Militarymarchedthrough NewYork City thathelped themreconnect withtheir Irish rootsalong withtheir music.

Irishhave observed

this day as a religiousholiday for over 1,000 years.St. Patrick’s Day falls duringthe Christian Lent. Irishfamilies would traditionallyattend church in the morningthen celebrate in theafternoon. Lenten prohibitsthe consumption of meat.People would dance, drinkand feast. The traditionalmeal would typically bebacon and cabbage.

St. Patrick’s Day iscelebrated world wide suchas the United States, Canada,Austria, Japan, Singaporeand Russia.

Beginning in 1995,the Irish government began anational campaign in interestof St. Patrick’s Day to drivetourism and showcase to therest of the world. Today,approximately 1 millionpeople take part in St.

Patrick’s Day annually!

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Are you craving a nicejuicy burger served with apiping hot side of fries?Maybe a cold milk shake orsomething classic like a float?Well, if you’re craving thistype of classic grub thenMcDonalds probably isn’tcutting it. No, for food likethis you have to gosomewhere a lot more lowkey, somewhere that you canget the type of food that willmake the high fat caloriesworth it.

For this type of eatingyou have to go to the Dairy-Ette. This 56 year old classicdrive-in is just down the streetfrom BA on Ferguson andOates. It first opened inOctober of 1956 by husbandand wife team Ed & AndyPrikryl, Bryan AdamsAlumni. With the best oldfashioned burgers, fresh cutFrench fries and home maderoot beer, you’ll definitely beback for more.

The vintagedrive-in and dine-in has a

The Old, The New, The AffordableThree local burger joints will make you think twice about that dollar menu

Emmanuel Eugenio Staff writer ‘12

uniquely retro feel that willtake you back to the 50’s andgive you a great diningexperience.

The Dairy- Ette isn’t isn’tthe only good burger jointthough, Keller’s Burgers, onGarland road has changednames at least 3 times since2001 but the food and servicehas remained as great asalways. The atmosphere isamazing. It includes tablesinside and out which allowsyou to enjoy a nice sunny dayin Dallas to the fullest or letsyou grab a great bite in theshelter from the rain. Theburgers aren’t that big butevery bite is flavor packed.Their prices are wallet friendlyand affordable, and just likethe Dairy-Ette, you can buy asatisfying meal under $10.

Although Flaming Burgerhasn’t been around for longit’s already making a name foritself as another awesomeburger place. It’s locatedbehind McDonalds on GarlandRoad and very similar toKeller’s burgers, the poppyseed buns enhance the flavorof the burger dramatically. Butnothing can top off doublemeat with cheese, bacon,lettuce, mayonnaise, tomatoes,and mustard. Of course, you

can remove anything youdon’t like or add anything youlike. Although they only havedine-in service, you can ordertake out, so you can take itanywhere you’d like. Theenvironment is completelydifferent than the Dairy-Etteand Keller’s. There’s more ofa Mexican restaurant feelingwhen you’re there. It’sHispanic owned and theyhave Mexican importedbeverages. Their service isgreat, too. If you’ve had along day and just want to sit

down and relax to enjoy yourfood, this place is perfect foryou.

All three of theserestaurants have so much tooffer but the one thing theyhave in common is the greatburgers you’ll find at eachone, so the next time you feelthe need, don’t settle for thedollar menu, go all out andgive something new a chance.

Saint Patrick was born inRoman, Britain and livedduring the fifth century andwas a saint of the CatholicChurch. At the age of 16, hewas kidnapped and brought toIreland as a slave. He escapedbut returned to Ireland. Hehas been credited withbringing Christianity to itspeople.

Saint Patrick’s deathwas believed to be on the dateof March 17, 461.

The myth becamemore ingrained with the Irishculture because of a legendthat explained the HolyTrinity (Father, Son and HolySpirit) using three leaves of anative Irish clover- theshamrock.

The first parade heldto honor St. Patrick was notheld in Ireland but in theUnited states. The Irishsoldiers serving in the English