Blog 7

William Ball and band perform at Bellaire's Annual Earth Day Festival.

I took this photo at earth day because it showed the atmosphere of the festival very well. The band looked very laid back and comfortable, while still having fun.

The annual Bellaire Earth Day Festival takes place in the courtyard, transformed by art posters of nature.

I took this photo because it showed how well the courtyard was decorated for earth day.

Gabriel Byrd participates in the Annual Bellaire Earth Day by completing quizzes on earth conservation information.

I took this photo because it was a very good example of a different way that some students interact at Earth Day.

Kirkland Schuessler

Blog 7

The up and coming Houston Rockets gave the Oklahoma Thunder all they could handle by taking the series to 6 games. The Rockets lost the first three games but due to a major injury for the Thunder, Russell Westbrook had to have surgery. Due to the shift in the momentum, the Rockets lead by James Harden were able to to win the next two games. James Harden was traded from Oklahoma City at the beginning of the year. Harden lead the young upstart Rockets all year. Another player traded to the Rockets this year, Francisco Garcia from Sacramento,  helped out the Rockets with bench scoring and energy. The Rockets were not expected to make the playoffs at the beginning of the year but surprised the league with an up-tempo offense. To improve for the next year the Rockets need to add another scoring option to go along with Harden and Parsons. This will probably be addressed in Free Agency with lots of cap space available. Possibly Josh Smith or Chris Paul could be added. The defense needs to be improved in Kevin Mchale's second year. The future is bright for the Houston Rockets.

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At Bellaire High school, a group of girls performed their cultural dance at Holika as they competed for cash prize.   

I took this photo because the green and yellow semicircles gave a unique contrast against the red background. Also, it showed symmetry for each pair of girls as they leaned in opposite directions.  

Keila shows off her colorful nail art after class.   

This color of her nails (green and white) pops out against the color of her pale skin. Therefore, the focus of the picture is her nails which was the purpose of the story. Also, the hand in front of her face shows an unique personality that corresponds with her nail art. 

A group of students design a poster for Earth Day in the courtyard. 

This photo depicts teamwork as they all work really hard on the poster. Not only does it show teamwork but it also shows their positive attitude towards Earth Day as they raise awareness. 

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1. Emma Bryce
Bryce continues to write about issues concerning wildlife and the environment. She often discusses the impacts that human actions towards these two areas have on the world as a whole. Her style is to-the-point and precise. She makes sure to get good interviews with the right people and focuses her stories on what they have to say.

2. Jerome Solomon
Solomon has been covering the Houston Rockets as they faced the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the playoffs. His writing style is more personal, and offers more commentary and wit than Bryce's. I feel makes readers respond more to what he writes. His writing doesn't feel empty nor generic. Now that the Rockets season is over, Solomon will focus more on the Houston Texans and how they are preparing for the new season.

Laurence Zhang
Writer, TPP

Blog 7

     Isabella Rossellini's new line of clothing, "Creature Moms", cannot be called anything but weird. The once respectable designer has got all out, creating an entire line of insect inspired clothing. Rossellini modeled a spider inspired outfit herself, complete with a multitude of eyes. This is the first of many outfits that will go on to include a hamster and bird with an attached nest. She plans to debut the outfits in a series of shorts to be broadcasted on the Sundance Channel.
     Has Rossellini gone to far? She wouldn't be the first designer to draw inspiration from nature and other living things, but where do we draw the line between inspiration and outright foolery? What Rossellini has done is, in my opinion, an insult to her position and to the entire fashion industry. She has opened a door for mediocre designers to claim themselves her equal. The fashion industry will suffer because of her choices, and in the meantime, she will continue to roll around dressed as a spider.

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3 things I loved This Week:

1. Sunday was ILPC

My head was resting on my shoulder, body slouched in the cabaret-red chairs, legs spread out comfortably (classy as always), when they announced "the Three Penny Press" as Bronze Star winners. My head jolted straight out of my seat and the background coos and 'ah!' from the Carillon jolted my attention. The purple shirts didn't move. We remained seated. I looked from left to right and noticed that everyone had a look of "holy crap" on their face. HOLY CRAP WE WON AN AWARD. No one was prepared for this. None of the running chiefs, none of the running editors, none of the business managers, no one. 

2. My mother moved to the Meyerland location of Kelsey-Seybold
Okay, it's not the most exciting news for most, but for me, having my afternoon commute back to an air-conditioned environment decreased by 10 minutes is a truly happy event. Having various food and clothing venues to spend my mother's hard earned money, so close to her job, also makes me extremely happy. I can now stop by Chick-fil-a, Starbucks, Berrypop for a snack on my way home. Granted my introspective walks will be cut down, but at least my stomach will be satisfied!

3. SECRET releases their Yoo-Hoo MV
There's no booty-bouncing or endless hip thrusts in this one- the dance is more of a mini-flail, but the song is so addicting. It does resemble Lovin' You by SISTAR, and I'm sure that with the recent success SISTAR had the past year, TS Entertainment wanted to emulate the same concept to get a better result for SECRET. In my opinion, SISTAR only has Hyorin and Soyou as trump cards. Dasom and even Bora are black-holes, who only provide the prettiness for the group. SECRET on the other hand has two amazing vocals, although neither have the vocal prowess of Hyorin, one pretty decent vocalist and a damn good rapper (who's talent doesn't show in their title songs). SECRET can definitely surpass SISTAR in 2013.

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In the style of Texan Talk by Stephanie Stradley, Houston Chronicle:

First of all, I'd like to welcome the new swimmers to the 2013 team. Welcome! This year is anticipated to be better than any other. With a new coaching staff, a remodeled pool, and a batch of talented rookies, the Cardinals are gleaning with strength in numbers and innate talent. It is my hope that this year will be even more successful than the last, and that the Cardinals will take it all the way to State, with a winning District Championship.
To gauge this year's potential, I must highlight a few of this year's all-stars:
Logan Schiller: Height-5'7"; Stroke-200 IM/100 Freestyle
Schiller is a force to be reckoned with. This agile and slim swimmer has taken the State championship for the 100 Freestyle at the TAGS championship.
Hannah Sumbera: Height-5'8"; Stroke-100 Breastroke
Sumbera teams up with Schiller in one of the Houston Swim Club's fastest all-star relays. Sumbera is well known for her powerful stroke and finish in her specialty stroke, breaststroke.
Caleb Zhang: Height-5'6"; Stroke-100 Backstroke
The Cardinals need to fear no more with this speedy asset. Zhang holds the record at HSC for the 50/100 Backstroke.

With this talented crew, the Bellaire Cardinals are expected to have the strongest season yet.Can anyone smell success?

Cari Bonilla
Staff Editor

Blog 7- Claire Fisher

Wake up. Go to school. Go home. Do homework. Check Facebook. Cry. Scream for your mother. Call your friends. What started as a normal soon became one of the worst days of my life when I discovered from a Facebook post, that two of my best friends had been run over by a car.
On a warm day in September, the Lanier Middle School cross-country team went running around the Montrose area for their after school training. Two of my overachieving friends decided they would lead the group and jogged ahead with one of the coaches. They came to an intersection, waited for the light to change, and went on again. Soon, ambulances and news helicopters arrived at the seen and the trio was sent to the hospital. An old man, temporarily blinded by the sun, was rushing to get a pizza, when he almost killed the three pedestrians.
My friends' lives became a whirlwind of doctor's appointments, pity, and elevators. One of the friends, Matt, received brain damage and internal bleeding from the blow. My other friend, Kyra, was run over and the bone in her left thigh started to degenerate. She had surgery once she entered the hospital, but this was ineffective and she had to receive an experimental surgery at Duke University months later. The coach hit the windshield and flew over the car. She only fractured her tibia.
I remember seeing Kyra for the first time after the accident. She was sitting up in bed, eating a large burrito. Any bystander would think she was there for a routine check up. Before the accident, Kyra was my small, spunky friend, who was your run of the mill band kid. Since the accident, Kyra is my strong, unyielding friend, who can take on anything and come out better than before.
Kyra was in a wheel chair for nine months and on crutches for two. Most would complain and lose hope of getting better. Everyday for those eleven months, Kyra did exactly as she was told and was even able to dance a little at our 8th grade dance, with the permission of her doctor.
The second surgery was a huge success and Kyra is not limited by her leg. She is my reminder that life goes on and nothing can stop you.

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Phillip Corbett writes for the "After Deadline" blog in New York Times, which  discusses the grammar and usages encountered by writers and editors of The Times.  In some of his posts, he even includes critiques and mistakes the journalists have made. 

Why do we find it so hard to read Shakespeare? Where art thou for.. What does that even mean?!?! The romantic and metaphorical old English has long fled the conversations of modern times. We like our literature short and to the point. And as an effect, our minds work to cut out the details and focus on the meat. 
The new technologies have not helped this either. I for one always type my work if it involves anything over a paragraph and rely on Spell Check for proofreading. The invention of Spell Check may seem like the life raft of those kids who lose the spelling bee during the first round, but it may actually be what drowns them. To this day, I still do not know how to spell "restaurant". On Word, the trustee red line will always be there to point out my mistakes; the reliable right click will always be there to fix it.

Tonya Chen
Staff Writer  

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(In the style of Beth Kissileff, blogger for NY times and writer of "Rejection Is a Process". She taught at Carleton, Smith and Mount Holyoke Colleges. Kissileff is also the editor of "Reading Genesis")

Success Doesn't Always Come Easy

Life would be so much easier if we were all guaranteed success the first time we tried. Getting up from bed every morning would be more encouraging, because of that assurance that the day will be a happy, successful, and promising one. As well as the morning after that.

But of course life doesn't work that way and as humans, it is inevitable that we will all make mistakes. Mistakes which allow us to grow for the better, and become better people in general. If I could speak to my own future children from experience, I would tell them that the most important thing in life is that they tried. To try is to succeed. Making an effort every single day, and trying again when all has failed is the key to success. The only time we can say we failed is when we realized we stopped trying.

Failure isn't exactly a bad thing. Life would be boring if we got everything we wanted first time around.
I don't think people understand the importance of building an unbreakable character. People who fall at times, must always get back up, because life may throw unbearable things at you- however you cannot let it beat you.

It took me 18 years to finally figure that out. Getting depressed over a failure only makes that failure seem unbeatable. Nothing is unbeatable because it all lies in your own hands. Simply try and try again. That's all that matters at the end.

Lara Hattab
Features Writer
Bellaire TPP