Lincoln a Must See!

By:  Burke Palmer

“My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.”

-Abraham Lincoln.

 
As the civil war rages on, the divided nation’s President wants to stop slavery.  However, the only way he can is by doing two things: Pass the thirteenth amendment to the US Constitution, (also known as The Emancipation Proclamation), and claim the slaves as property seized through war (thereby setting them free.) But, the war is coming to a halt before long, so Lincoln is faced with a harsh decision; Stop the war and give up the hope of abolishing slavery, or battle on to become a free nation?

Lincoln is one more “Spielberg Classic” for the ages. Not surprisingly, Lincoln was a great movie.  All of the parts of this film; acting, writing, directing, casting, set design, and musical score all came together like the mechanics of a well-oiled machine. I was amazed at the depth and accuracy of this time period film. Starring legendary actor, Daniel Day-Louis’s (Abraham Lincoln) performance was phenomenal. Supporting cast includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Robert Lincoln) and Jarred Harris (Ulysses S. Grant), just to name a few. But really everyone’s performance was just amazing.

The producers spent sixty-five million dollars making this movie.  That may sound like a lot until you hear how much they made:  This movie grossed $167,051,523 in the U.S. alone, and of that $944,308 was made on opening weekend.  Up for twelve Oscars including best picture, best actor (Daniel Day-Louis), and best director (Spielberg.)  With all of these Oscars, Lincoln is a must-see!

 

 

 

WIZARD101

      By: Aaron Horowitz 

                                             

       Wizard101 is a virtual-world game where you travel to the imaginative zones of the spiral. Every few months, the creators introduce new worlds for players to explore, which are treated with great care. It is very realistic, even if it is animated.  You feel as though you really are the wizard that you created. In this game you are able to buy clothes, houses, pets, (such as Fire Cat, Ice Cat, Mini Minotaur, Fire Elf) and Mounts, or ‘rides’ if you prefer. (Such as Horses, Dragons, Griffins, 3 person Hydra ride)

    Once you have your equipment, you are able to battle your way to the edge of the game. This means you will be able to use your cards from your school and class along with others to fight monsters and creatures. There are 88+ levels that you play and more levels coming. It would take months just to get to level 30, years even to get to level 90.

    The first worlds of this universe are- (1)Wizard city, where the game starts, and you will meet the legendary Merlin the wizard for the first time, though he is named Merle Ambrose in this game. (2)Krokotopia, which looks very much like Egypt. (3)Marleybone, just like the Streets of Paris, France and you will meet a talking dog named Sherlock Bones, but mostly cat people. (4)Mooshu looks like China. I don’t know very much about this place, but I do know one thing, beware of the Ninja pig! (5)DragonSpyre, you feel as though you are in a land of insanity here, luckily you are able to withstand it. Also there are ghosts and stone giants here. Celestia is Neptune Themed, this place has mostly water, but it also holds Hawaiian-themed islands on the coast, and I mean the coast since the islands are floating on the water, also you can fight fish, like shark people, goldfish people, Hermit crab people, and many more. (6)Zafaria, This is where you meet African Animal people that you would most likely encounter after completing your level 68 quests. It has an African theme.

 And there will be many more fun adventurous places that you will someday find amazing if you played today. Just Type www.wizard101.com into your browser

This is my Character in the game

~ Wizard: Aaron FireEyes, Class: Fire, Pyromancer, Pet: Life Treant, Rare

I interviewed a couple of students who play Wizard101 to get their opinions.

What is your favorite world?

Davey Breaky- “Celestia, Underwater land in the stars.  

Drew Meier- “Grizzlehiem, Home of the legions of Bears, Wolves, Treants (Tree people) and other talking creatures.

Choose the best teacher from the schools of Magic.

(1) Madame Falmea- Fire School Teacher

(2) Lady Greyrose- Ice School Teacher

(3) Cyrus Drake- Myth School Teacher

(4) Haleston Balestrom- Storm School Teacher

(5) Moolindu Wu- Life School Teacher

(6) Malorn AshThorn and Dworgyn- Death School Teachers

(7) Arthur Wethersfield and Alhazred- Balance School Teachers

Davey- “Halston Balestrom, Storm School Teacher”

Drew- “Alhazred, Balance School Teacher”

Any useful advice from some high-level wizards would be helpful, here are some-

Davey Breaky- “Follow your main quest line, but do every quests!”

Drew Meier- “Don’t skip any quests! Rare prizes are common on side quests.”

Here is a list of Pets you can acquire in the game

Wildfire Treant, (Fire, Ultra-Rare) Treant, (Life, Ultra-Rare) and Symbol Knight. (Balance, Hybrid of Hollow Knight, and Sea Dragon, Ultra-Rare) Fire Walker (Fire, Ultra-Rare)

The game is free but you can purchase gift cards to buy crowns (The currency of Wizard101) or membership and you can purchase the (A)Mega Bundle, which includes: a Sultans Palace, a Magic Carpet mount, some epic gear, a Cobra pet, and a Genie with daily prizes from the eternal sands. (B)Super Bundle which includes a Sun Palace, a two person Hornocerous Rhino mount, some epic gear, a Giraffe pet, and a friendly gorilla with daily prizes from his banana pile and also holds a mystery teleport tapestry. (C)Dino Bundle, which includes The Aztecosaur Pyramid w/ Hidden Catacombs), a two person Dino mount/ ride, some epic gear, a pet babysaurus. (D)Hawk Rider bundle, which includes, a high flying hawk mount, some epic gear, and a Night hawk pet. (E)Prehistoric Bundle, which includes, a Scarodactyl tree house decoration, a two person scarydactyl mount, some epic gear, a Babydactyl pet Scarydactyl tree house housing  decorations which gives daily prizes, (F)Pagoda Gauntlet, which includes, a Midnight Sun Pagoda, a Rickshaw mount, some epic gear, and a Shaolin Monkey pet. (G)The Majestic Bundle includes a Tower of Winter Winds, Arthurian Dragon Mount, a Silver Lance of Day Break, True Silver Armor, and a Strange Beast pet

 The prizes all include random things. If you don’t like them you can sell them for wickedly high (or low) prices. Also there is a limitation for buying 3 houses (MAX) since there are so many players that it slows down the game if you buy more, there is no limit on mounts or pets, so you can get as many as you want. The mounts in my inventory include: Hornoceros (War Rhino) Magic Carpet mount, and High Flying Hawk mount, and I have too many pets to list, but I have about 30 of them. If you want a way to get around that 3 house rule, Go to the Crown shop in the upper left corner, and click on potions, you will find a tunic called Additional Housing Slot, Buy it and you will be able to get another house, but only do this if you already have 3 houses.

This game is very fun and creative. It would have to be my #1 favorite game!   Happy Adventuring Wizards! I hope you have good luck with your character. J

Summary about the Hobbit an Unexpected Journey

By Aaron Horowitz

Bilbo Baggins is taken to the lost Kingdom of Erebor, but on his way he meets many mystical creatures such as: Stone Giants, Orcs, Trolls, Gollum, and a Dragon Guardian. Will he ever reach Erebor alive?

How much money did the Producers of Hobbit make and how much did they spend? $300,000,000 was spent to make the Hobbit movie.  So far, as of January 24th, the movie has only made $200,000,000.

The movie has sold thousands of tickets but they are still sitting at a loss of $100,000,000.

Will the next movie send them to the poor house? Maybe, but they might make more money from all the other Hobbit related stuff that is on the market: toys, music, games, costumes, etc. .

“The Hobbit was a good movie, but I felt like they were trying to recreate Lord of the Rings instead of making a whole new movie.” Burke Palmer stated.

“The Hobbit was an Amazing movie, but I felt like they shouldn’t have split it into three different movies, but kept it like the book.” Orion syth announced 

“I thought The Hobbit was a great movie with amazing special effects, although the costumes could have been better.” Commented Ellie Mearns.

 

 

 

Top 3 songs for America

By Kiki Glenn

Latest update for America’s favorite songs, songs from Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift and Rihanna, this month’s songs are going off the chart!

Bruno Mars came out with “Locked out of Heaven” on October 1^st. It hit 1^st on the billboard of Hot 100. The song finds Bruno singing of his relationship and the “narrator” found that he was “locked out of heaven.” Before it came out, one of the fans asked him to name the song after his/her favorite lyric from the song called, "But Swimming in Your Water is Something Spiritual.” The music video was directed by Cameron Duddy, who also directed the video “Lazy Song.”

Eleanore Mearns says “My favorite part of the song is the chorus, because it’s fun and funky!”

Taylor Swift released an album on October 22^nd 2012 named “Red.” The song “I Knew You were Trouble” came out on October 9^th 2012; a week later 416,000 copies were sold. What inspired her to write this? people ask. She says that her old boyfriend inspired her to write the song. She had also said that the song “pushed her boundaries” because she had never written something like it before. She also said that her favorite part of the video was when the girl didn’t just get into the relationship but she forgot who she was, that was the sad part of it.

Elizabeth Marshall said “I love this song because it’s very relatable.”

And last, “Diamonds” by Rihanna. “Diamonds” made it on the Hot 100, number 1 single. The song came out on November 25^th on Thanksgiving. When she performed it on “The Voice,” she was wearing a black shining jumpsuit, but while she was singing she kept the audience wanting more. Laura states “I love this song because it’s catchy.”

The big night is coming up! It has been predicted the Grammys will show on February 10^th at 7 p.m. They also think that this year’s Grammys will be filled with more surprises than last years. The record of the year includes Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You) Kelly Clarkson, We Are Young by Fun featuring Janelle Monae, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together by Taylor Swift, and a few more. The album of the year includes Some Nights by Fun, El Camino by The Black Keys, and more!

From Rihanna to Taylor Swift, 2013 is looking up to be a great year for the music industry.

New Year New Fashion!

By Eleanore Mearns

New Year new fashion, read what’s in and what’s out. From bright colors of spring to a sparkly winter. What is 2013 going to look like fashion wise? 2013 fashion is going to look a lot like 2012’s sparkly collared button downs and floral colored pants.

Women:  Colored pants? Yeah! Colored pants are super cute why pass them up? Tall girls look amazing in red and blush pink, they give more attention to your leg shape not the height. Shorter girls look great in light green and dark pink, those colors say “HEY look at me!” and remember that floral is your friend the pattern gives the allusion that you may be taller.  Skirts are always a question “should I wear a skirt or a dress? Pencil skirts are the way to go they flatter your shape and feel awesome Keonna Glenn (7th grader) says “I love pencil skirts most because it shows your figure”.

     A big thing in the end of 2012 was floral shirts and sparkly collars, but they are still in now in 2013. Black and white polka dot sweaters go great with your colored jeans. Colored blazers are in for girls in almost any outfit they add a business feel and a mature look to your outfit.                                                  

                                                                                    Photo By: sulit.com

Accessories are always a must have. Shoes are a great way to accessorize. Madisen McAurther says about heeled sneakers “they are super cute I need a pair!” Scarves are super cute and comfy and a total yes.

Floral and sparkles add class making this year look good.

Men:  Men’s fashion in 2012 was all t-shirts and skinny jeans but 2013 is looking better than the last. Brown and tan was in but a colorful horizon is here! Orange and blue are this year’s guy colors.

Colored pants are in for guys?! Sure you may think red jeans are a girl thing but they are big in the men’s section. Skinny jeans are your friends! Do not take them for granted plus they look great. Remember just a casual black or denim looks great too! Just a little reminder for some guys wearing your pants down to your knees is not in style so don’t do it!

                                                                      Photo credit: photogallery.indiatimes.com

    Blazers? Yes please! Just like the girls, a guy wearing a blazer gives a mature and business look. Denim jackets are also making their way back in, they look good with some brown skinnies and a colorful scarf. Don’t forget the sweater! Just like the picture to the right a bright sweater makes a good outfit, they also say “Hey look over here!” if you want to get noticed. 

    Accessorize! You may think “Eww accessorizing is for girls.” Not really. Shoes are accessories so are scarves and bracelets. Bright shoes are totally in, don’t forget yellow and blue, they are great together and great shoe colors. What else is in? Scarves! Scarves are in and big in the winter. They keep your neck from freezing outside and keeps it looking good inside.