SOMS Odd Journal March 2014 Edition

The Odd Orange Journal

S O U T H

ORANGE MIDDLE

SCHOOL is proud to

p re s en t Mered i th

Willson’s “The Music

Man” as its All-School

Musical for the 2013-

2014 school year. It will

be presented in Sterling

Hall at South Orange

Middle School – 70

Nor th Ridgewood

Road, South Orange,

NJ 07079, on April 4th

and 5th at 7:00p.m. as

well as a matinee

performance on April

6th at 2:00 p.m. Tickets

may be purchased in

advance, $10 adult and

$7 student/senior for

general admission at

both the South Orange

Middle School Main

O f f i c e a n d

SPARKHOUSE TOYS

(15 Scotland Road,

South Orange).

Reserved tickets for

$15 may also be

purchased at South

Orange Midd le

School by contacting

Mrs. Jessica Knasel

a t

[email protected]

om or by calling 862-

205-3723. Please

visit the South

Orange Midd le

School website and

click on the activities

tab to locate a ticket

order form. Tickets

will also be available

on the days of the

performances at the

door.

“The Music

Man” is a lively

musical taking place in

River City, Iowa in

July of 1912 where a

SOMS All School Musical: The Music Man

March 2014

Volume 8, Issue 4

The Evolution of Boy Bands

2

The All School Musical (continued)

3

Movie Review 4

Sudoku 4

Time Travel 5

Comic Zone 5

Yogo 6

Staff Profile 6

World Hunger 7

Dear Crabby 7

Inside this issue:

Odd Orange Journal

Staff:

Advisors: Mr. A. Cicenia,

Ms. A Corino, Ms. D.

Levine

Contributors to

this issue:

Alieke Parrish,

Anabel Legspi,

Gregory Wenoker,

Janine Bacchus-

Joseph, Sanaa

Walker, Kaila

“Puma” Murray,

(Continued on page 3)

The Odd Orange Journa l Volume 8, I ssue 4

By Alieke Parrish

Teens around the world cry

and scream for boy bands. The loyalty

and emotion is amazing. A boy band is

a group, usually four or five teenage

boys, who pull the attention of girls in

the same age group. Boy bands have

been around since the 1960’s but the

term is fairly new. Boy bands have

some of the most successful music

careers. Unfortunately, these careers

are usually also short-lived. Over the

years, boy bands and their members

have changed their music to be more

appropriate for teens and young

adults.

The 1990’s

The 90’s were a big time for

the rising popularity of boy bands.

*NSYNC and The Backstreet Boys, both

from Orlando, Florida sang catchy

tunes aiming for the adolescent girl

range. Their young ages made them

easy for girls worldwide to love. Lyrics

were becoming less intense, and boy

band’s music was becoming even

more popular. Although lyrics were

changing, there were still music videos.

Of course not all videos were

inappropriate, but going for something

different, boy bands started making

edgier videos.

For example, *NSYNC’s ‘It’s

Gonna Be Me’ video. The band

members posed in a toy shop as dolls.

Towards the end they were invited

over to what looked like a doll house,

while the dolls in the doll house wore

skimpy bathing suits, and danced.

Even the girls wearing shorts, had

shorts so short they just barely cover

their bums. A lot of parents didn’t

want their children watching music

videos like these.

Not only were these videos

inappropriate for young people to

watch, but they also brings up the

issue of self-image. Teens compare

themselves to the people they see,

which is a problem because

everyone can’t be the same

(kidshealth.org). This puts an idea of

“perfection” in their head, but truly

everyone has a different definition.

Comparisons can result in eating

disorders, and self-harm.

The 2010’s

In 2011, millions tuned in to a

new season of ‘X Factor UK’. In the

same episode, five teenage boys,

Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis

Tomlinson, Harry Styles, and Liam

Payne, all from England except Niall,

who was from Ireland. Each

auditioned as a solo artist. They

didn’t make it on their own, but they

were grouped together by the

celebrity panel. The boys had never

met, but quickly formed a strong

bond. As more and more teens, who

were channel surfing, tuned in, ‘One

Direction’, the band’s name, rose to

fame. Although they never won the

show, they did get signed to a record

label and are now on world tours.

One Direction is quite aware of

their audience. One Direction appeals

to a fairly young audience. They’ve

made their own style of music that

appeals to teens, and is st i l l

appropriate. Some refer to this type of

music as “bubblegum pop”, as in sweet,

popular music. One Direction’s new

album, Midnight Memories, is an

example of the band trying out a new

sound. They are trying to explain to their

fans that they are getting older, too,

and making music to suit both age

groups.

Is This The End?

Although boy bands have

been around for a long time, it’s hard to

form the perfect boy band. “They’re

young, beautiful, teen idols.” Says Mr.

Guastella, a science teacher at SOMS

a n d m u s i c p r o d u c e r . T h e s e

characteristics, along with voices and

songs that appeal to teenagers, can be

hard to find. Even if bands such as One

Direction keep making music, their

popularity has to fade sometime. “They

all grow up, and go their own way. They

get involved with other things.

Sometimes good, sometimes bad.” Mr.

Guastella says, explaining why boy

bands don’t stay popular for long times.

Soon, boy bands may come to an end.

Boy bands have changed

music quite a lot. In doing this, they

have also the average person’s

everyday life. Many people can’t go a

day without hearing about or talking

about a band, specifically newer, more

popular bands like, One Direction. Boy

bands have become more popular

over the years, and although many of

these bands and similar ones have

broken up many have stayed together.

These bands have given teens people

to look up to, especially because of the

The Evolution of Boy Bands

The All School Musical (cont’d from pg 1.)

con man, Professor Harold

Hill tries to take the

townspeople’s money by

posing as a boys’ band

organizer. The town is

hesitant to outsiders, but

falls under Harold Hill’s

spell. Town librarian and

piano teacher, Marian Paroo

is not as easily convinced.

Will Professor Harold Hill’s

plan work, or will Mrs. Paroo

force a change of heart and

risk being caught to win her

love?

Appearing in the

show are over 150 cast and

crew members who have

been working tirelessly for

months. Some featured

students are Matt Lintern

(Harold Hill), Linnea

Mumma (Marian Paroo),

Jack Dossett (Mayor

Shinn), Amanda Bradshaw

(Eulalie Shinn), and Jacob


Tall (Marcellus Washburn).

The show is under the

direction of Elizabeth Harris,

with Don Tighe as the music

director. The due are in their

4th year of teaming together

for the SOMS production.

Also returning in her 3rd year

as choreographer is Kyndell

Pierce. The wonderfully

crafted set was designed and

built by Ted Panayoutou, with

Lorry Ripley serving as the

costume designer.

Also involved are the

student assistants to the

Director: Chika Emeghara,

Adam Fr iedman-Brown,

SOMS

ALL SCHOOL MUSICAL

Sterling Auditorium

APRIL 4-5, 2014

@ 7pm

April 6, 2014 @ 2pm

South Orange Middle School Presents

MEREDITH WILLSON’S

THE MUSIC MAN

Book, Music and Lyrics by:

MEREDITH WILLSON

Story by:

MEREDITH WILLSON & FRANKLIN LACEY

The videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited.

THE MUSIC MAN is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. 421 West 54

th Street, New York, NY 10019

Everything in "The Lego

Movie" is awesome!

Sure everything is

Awesome… but the message

of the Lego movie goes

beyond the popular toy

blocks. The Lego Movie is a

hidden social commentary

on the evils of big business

and the poor treatment of

the workers of large

corporations. Everyone is

supposed to be happy,

whether they are going

about a teamwork project or

getting fired.

Emmett, an average

worker , becomes the

“special,” or chosen one to

lead the lego world from the

evil destruction of President

Business. Most of the Lego

residents who are leading the

rebellion against President

Business have little faith in

Emmett because of his

mediocrity and inability to do

anything well.

Movie Review: The Lego Movie


The music of the catchy

song “Everything is Awesome”

by Teagan and Sara, along

with the entertaining cameo

appearances of pop culture

stars such as Han Solo, Lando

C a l r i s s i a n , B a t m a n ,

Spiderman, Superman, Ninja

turtles, and even retro space

men!

Also, the celebrity voice

overs are fantastic, with the

r e c o g n i z a b l e M o r g a n

Freeman playing Vetruvius

and Will Farrell as President

Business.

If you haven’t ventured out to

see this Pixar creation, do so…

as the movie is all that it is

Sudoku!!

Can You Really Travel Through Time by Gregory Wenoker

Time travel is the aspect of moving through time. It allows a person to go into the future or

the past. But there are consequences. Time travel may

seem impossible.

Many people have heard of time travel, but

that was in movies and books. In a survey, 100% of the

children said they had heard about time travel, but in movies and books, and only 1 said that they knew about

the real thing and knew the consequences. There are

many of those and it could be dangerous for those

eager to try but do not know the possibilities. It is

possible, just not yet.

Time travel is associated with going through time at a different rate than time itself. time

travel could theoretically be used to fix mistakes, or

see if something bad happens in the future, so the

information could protect us. Time travel is also

somewhat mixed in with teleportation. There have been many theories and ideas on building a time machine,

and they are proven to possibly work, but they don't

have enough money to fund the project. It may actually

be possible to build a time machine in the next century.

But, there are some problems. A man named Professor Cox says that time travel is possible, and has already

been done - albeit at a very small scale. The technology

to accelerate something as big as a police box to near

light speed does not yet exist. Professor Cox says that,

armed with such technology, “You can go into the

future; you've got almost total freedom of movement in the future.” To “travel” forward in time, you simply

need to accelerate to speeds close to the speed of light,

Cox says - as you get close to that speed, time slows

down, but only for you, according to Einstein’s Theory of

Special Relativity. “If you go fast, your clock runs slow relative to people who are still. As you approach the

speed of light, your clock runs so slow you could come

back 10,000 years in the future," said Professor Cox

(uk.news.yahoo.com).

The issues with time travel are few, yet those

few are quite diverse and complicated. One of the issues

the time and money it would take for research and testing.

Another issue is about how it would be tested. The main

hindrance is, when most people hear time travel, they think about science fiction or movies. They don’t think anything

bad can come out of the fact that you're traveling through

time, and breaking the laws of physics. they don’t even

know how it works. So how can scientists to get people to

know about this so they can donate money, or even help out in the job? Teddy Yablonsky, an average middle school child,

says that “I never knew anything about time travel, except

for the fact that it is to travel through time, and I have only

seen it in books and movies.” When interviewed, about 95%

of other people said the same thing.

Some people have the idea of using time travel to protect us. Their idea is that someone goes into the

future to see what's happening, and if its bad, come back to

regular time and try to figure out how to prevent that

problem. Now, that is a great idea and, if necessary, society

could use the strategy to help our time from being obliterated. There is an effect of that. For example, if

someone tried to see the problem again, they wouldn’t be

able to because someone were there to see it, and then

solved it, so there was no problem. If thought about , it’s a

conundrum.

The idea of protection by time travel would

intrigue many people. But, are there any ways to make time travel even better? Yes. It could help even further, by

helping people for their own issues. Then, since everyone

wants to know how to prevent bad things, the company will

make a lot of money. That way, everyone wins. The company

makes it’s money, and people would have a problem free

future. But is that all to it? Or is there a complication to it?


A problem is how to go through time. One issue is

how to make it back or forth in time. One way is to build a time machine, and the other is to go through a wormhole.

Wormholes are links in curved space-time between two

points. That way, one could travel to a distant star in seconds.

The problem with that is the wormhole itself. One type of

wormhole is a black hole. If someone were to jump into a black hole, they would die horribly. So, that's one way for time travel

out the window. That is, for now. Right now, the world does not

have the technology to make a time machine. So there goes

the idea for time machines, for the time being.

The problem with time travel is that it can cause

cataclysmic effects. For example, if someone goes BACK in time, it ruptures the space-time continuum, which is a very

large statement of general relativity, one of Einstein's

greatest theories. Even if it may be a theory, it makes perfect

sense to all scientists. Anyway, the rupturing of the space-

time continuum can do many things. What happens is that the

effect of the time travel makes a “quantum decision” which then lead to the creation of a parallel universe. This idea was

proven by the Schrodinger’s cat theory/experiment. Then,

what they did in the past changes, causing this quantum

decision and making a whole other universe. That may not

seem bad, but there is a theory that suggests that when someone then tries to travel back to their own time, it

transfers them to the parallel universe they had just created.

What happens if someone try to go forward in

time? That has a different effect. that person hasn’t changed

the way things had happened in the past, so nothing bad could

happen. When traveling forward in time, there is no quantum decision, and no universe is created. However, one can still

mess up the flow of time because they are changing

something in the future and that can affect their own

universe, where they were born in.

Comic Zone!! By Janine Bacchus-Joseph

YOGA—The Newest Craze in Fitness and Body Wellness by Sanaa Walker

Over the past four

years, 30% of Americans have

been doing yoga. Many people

have still not tried yoga and are

out of shape. Most Americans

that are out of shape and not

participating in sports don’t

realize how easy yoga is and

how strong and healthy it can

make you. Many people around

the world have no idea what

yoga is and people need to

encourage eachother to take

yoga and to experience the effect

yoga has on your mind and body.

According to World

Book Online, “Yoga is a system

that benefits the body, mind, and

spirit by teaching self-control

through a series of exercises, as

well as through breathing,

relaxation, and meditation

techniques.” There are several

different yoga poses. Some main

poses are: the downward dog,

the eagle pose, and the tree

pose. Certain positions are hard

for most people to do because of

injuries or physical problems.

Mrs. Danielle Levine

said she felt "Relaxed, very

stretched out, and sometimes

tired.”after doing yoga. In an

article written by William J Broad

for the New York Times, he

writes “He spoke of well-known

yoga teachers doing such basic

poses as downward-facing dog,

in which the body forms an

inverted V, so strenuously that

they tore Achilles tendons.”

These two statements show the

effect yoga has on two different

people. Further into the article,

the writer states that a male

college student was doing yoga

and took it a step further and

began to balance on his heels.

Soon, he was having trouble

walking up stairs, walking, and

running. However, hatha yoga is

good for strengthening larger

parts of your body.

In another article

written by Annie Murphy Paul,

she states that “yoga is a

decidedly mixed bag.” meaning

there are good things and bad

things about yoga. Some bad

things include injuries/disabilities.

One good thing is having a

tightened core.

“A yogi, under the

guidance of a guru (teacher),

goes through eight stages of

training on the way to moksha.

The yogi first learns yama and

niyama. Yama includes the

behaviors of not hurting others,

truthfulness, not stealing, and not

being possessive. Niyama

includes the virtues of purity,

c o n t e n t m e n t , a u s t e r i t y ,

studiousness, and devotion to

God. Yogis next learn bodily

postures (asana); control of

breathing (pranayama); control of

the senses (pratyahara); fixing of

the mind on a chosen object

(dharana); and meditation

(dhyana). The final stage of

development, called samadhi, is

a state of concentration in which

yogis realize that their soul is

pure and free, and empty of all

content. A yogi who has


completed these eight stages has

reached kaivalya. Kaivalya is

total isolation of the soul from the

body, from all other souls, and

from all of nature.” written by

Charles White for World Book

Student.

Many people (including

Levine) become relaxed and tired

when they complete yoga

sessions because after stretching

out your body, your brain is telling

your body to go to sleep. Yoga

also removes most stress from

the mind. This is a main reason

to do yoga for most people.

People also use yoga to help with

studying and to keep distracting

thoughts away. During a study

taken on thirty college students,

researchers noticed that all of the

girls’ self awareness was

enhanced.

In conclusion, many

people are still seeking the

benefits of yoga, and what it does

for your mind and body. Most

people who do yoga do it to

relieve stress or as an easy way

to work out. Many people need to

Staff Profile: Who Am I?!?!

I graduated from Syracuse University.

I am a frequent flyer of lifetime fitness

after my long days of “sludging” around

And I’m always right…

WHO AM I!?!?!

I am in a band

I graduated from Rutgers University

You MUSTACHE me your math questions!!

WHO AM I?!?!

I graduated from Indiana University

I love “Colby” cheese and Princess

“Sophia”

Favorite Books: Chrome and The Giver

WHO AM I?!?!

#1 #2

#3

ANSWERS: 1-Ms. Wright 2-Mr. Keating 3-Ms. Levine

Hunger is killing people all over the world. When you're throwing away leftovers, a person somewhere is starving. This is one of the biggest problems of poverty. World hunger is killing people every year.

Worldwide, one in eight people are hungry or undernourished and this is a problem because it leads to people living off of food programs. Food programs such as food stamps, soup kitchens and food pantries supply people with a certain amount of money for food or certain amount of food. This certain amount of food or money will only last a couple weeks in the month. For the days where food and money is not available , the members of those programs will have to rely on themselves or have nothing at all.

Moreover, kids suffering from hunger have trouble in the classroom because it affects the ability to learn. Seventy-three percent of teachers say they see students who come to school regularly hungry because there isn't enough food at home. Teachers have to spend thirty-seven dollars a month of their own money on snacks for hungry students. Princess Moss, an elementary school teacher in Virginia

said she would always keep snacks in her c lass fo r students that were hungry and who were having trouble concentrating

during instructional time. “Sometimes lunch is the only thing a kid will eat everyday and that's at school.”

In addition, people are noticing its a problem that isn’t visible to the naked eye. Educators especially know what to do to help. Some schools have adopted the model to feed kids breakfast. Statistics show that less than half of the students (twenty-one million) who receive a free lunch eats a free breakfast. Josh Wach, chief strategy officer for Share our Strength says “that gap must be closed”. Since schools been now serving breakfast, seventy-six percent of kids were more alert, fifty-

seven percent had better attendance, disciplinary issues dropped and students have fewer trips to the nurses office. Wach thinks part of the problem is many folks are not aware that this is such a huge issue and that one in five students

struggle with hunger, “but everyone can do something in their community to put an end to child hunger.”

In fact, it’s not that hard to do your part in world hunger. You can become apart or start an organization at school or in your community. To help, many people start or join organizations, donate can goods and raise money for fundraisers. Ms. Harley and Ms. Butler, both language arts teachers at South Orange Middle School have connections to people who suffer from hunger and make a difference in hunger. They raise money and donate goods to a Victory Primary School in Uganda, Africa with the help of their club and school. Harley had her own connection to world Hunger also, “ My great grandmother starved to death in Russia in the war”! She believes that all people deserve to have their basic necessities met.

World leaders are trying to split the number of hungry by 2015. People suffering from hunger probably wouldn’t understand but having people stare and strategize on this issue, is joyous. Even though everyone’s eyes isn’t one this topic, people should know it’s bigger than what it really is. Anyone that’s hungry right now would accept the fact people

End World Hunger by Kaila “Puma” Murray

Dear Crabby, An Advice Column by Crabby Stinkernews


Dear Crabby,

I’m in love with

my best friend’s

boyfriend!!!! And I

know that he kinda

likes me, too. What

should I do?!

Sincerely,

Crushed On BF’s BF

Dear Crushed,

In this situation, you have two

options. One you could talk to your

friend about it and resolve your issue,

but then she would never let you near

that guy again! And we all know how

tragic that would be!! Your second

option would be to become his secret

girlfriend and wait till it all blows up in

your face! :D

Dear Crabby,

My best friend is

COMPLETELY OBBSESSED with

her celebrity crush! It

is all she talks about,

thinks about, and writes

about. What should I

do?!?!?!?!?!?

Sincerely,

Fan Girl Frenemy

Dear Frenemy

Your friend is in a trance. Like

sleepwalking, if you wake her up too

q u i c k l y ,

she could

b e c o m e

hopelessly

lost!!!!!!!!!

What you

need to do

is break

into her

b ed ro om

and take all of her celeb memorabilia.

Leave a ransom note for a large sum of

money. When she doesn’t pay it, your

problems are solved!!! You can dispose of

the “missing” goods in a far away

dumpster. If she does pay the ransom,

take the money and go on a long vacation

SOMS Odd Journal March 2014 Edition

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