Obama vs. Ryan

Reading two articles that talk about the same issues but have completely opposite opinions is a lot for me to personally take in. First I read the article favoring Ryan, which was an extremely conservative article, I was thinking Obama's plan is going to be bad for people hopefully Ryan's bill is passed. Then, I read an article, that was very libral, and I was like oh wait, maybe Obama's plan would work better. I'm very torn on which would be the better choice!

Reflection of High School Experience

As a senior as AHS my high school journey is about to end. Overall, school wise, I've had a pretty good four years. I have many memories at AHS that I will never forget. Also throughout the four years our school has made many changes both good and bad.

Freshman year was a very crazy year for me. I entered high school as a member of the JV Football Cheerleading Team, which was the best way to enter a new school. That was my most memorable cheerleading season and I know I will never forget that team. After that ended I went on to Varsity Hockey Cheerleading which was a whole different experience. It was still a good experience, just different.

On my first day of freshman year my first class was gym. I didn't know anyone in the class. That class I met two girls that were in the same boat as me and the three of us ended up becoming friends. To this day I am still friends with both of those girls. That gym class was definitely the most memorable out of all my gym classes.

My freshman year study is the other class that sticks out in my mind. If I am remembering correctly my friend and I were the only freshman in a study full of seniors. Some people in that class, that I never talked to, I ended up becoming friendly with years later which  I think is so cool.

I don't really remember anything big happening that year. Mr. Anderson and Mr. Mead were still at the school. Having the two of them at AHS gave the school a completely different atmosphere.

Sophomore year was a boring year in my opinion. I honestly don't remember a single changing/new event. Mr. Anderson and Mr. Mead were still there, and I was again on the same two cheerleading teams.

I didn't try hard in school. I slacked off really bad when it came to schoolwork and it was the biggest mistake. My laziness came back to haunt me and it could have possibly made an impact on my future. Out of all the mistakes I made in high school this is probably the one I regret the most.


My 20th Century class was the one exception to that. Mr. Simpson's class was demanding and challenging to the point where I almost switched out. It ended up being one of the best high school experiences through out all four years.

Junior year was definitely eventful. I had entered the year after my family had gone through a tragedy and I was just not myself which had a huge impact on my junior year. Junior year then started with Mr. Anderson and Mr. Mead leaving and Mr. Harris and Mr. Phillips coming in. With a new principal and assistant principal the school completely changed. An atmosphere that all the students were use to was completely changed. I know personally it was hard to adjust to the new system and rules. Junior year I was on Varsity Football Cheerleading and Varsity Hockey Cheerleading. Again both great experiences.

Of course junior year meant college stress and pressure. I had gone into junior year with the same attitude I had had sophomore year. That all changed after the first weekend after school started when I went to visit UNH. I completely fell in love with the school and knew that was were I wanted to go. I also knew that at that point in time I didn't have the grades to get in there. That visit changed everything. I did everything I could to get my grades up and I had an amazing academic year.

Last but not least, Senior year. By far the best of all years. I still tried very hard in school and it all paid off because I got into UNH and that is where I am going in the fall. I have applied for a couple scholarships and so far I've gotten one, The Stacy Stott Cheerleading Scholarship.

Things got kind of shaken up at the beginning of the year when our principal, Mr. Harris, decided to leave right after school. Mr. Sharkey stepped in right away as principal. Once again the school atmosphere changed.

I'd have to say when I think of my best memories they have to do with cheerleading. The first one is the big football game when we one 88-82 that took eight overtimes. The other great memory is my Hockey Cheer Senior Night. We played Central Catholic and won by one point. Both games were games I know I will never forget.

Overall I've had a great high school experience. I am so excited to go on to high school but it is kind of sad leaving a place where I've spent four years of my life.

Death of Bin Laden

When I came to school today I had no idea such a big event was happening. During my first block class, drawing, I was informed that Osama Bin Laden was assassinated. I could not believe that after everything that has happened since 9/11 he was finally killed. Ever since 9/11 it has been drilled into my head that Bin Laden was a horrible, scary person. So now that he's dead I guess I feel safer even though I was never directly impacted by him. The tragedy of September 11th has always been linked with Bin Laden, so the fact that he's gone has to make people feel some what relieved that he can't take part in anymore terrorist attacks on our country.

I don't like to hear about these terrible things because it makes me nervous so I will avoiding hearing about them at all costs. I've been exposed to some facts but I have to admit I have been very sheltered when it has come to terrorists and the current war that is going on.

After Math of Mount Vernon Murder

Reading the after math of the Mount Vernon home invasion was really depressing. A ten year old daughter, Jamie Cates, has lost her mother and has been phyically and emotional scarred for the rest of her life. Cates will not only have to live with the devastating reality of not having her mother, she was attacked so brutally that part of her foot has been amputated which will never change. I feel that this article can hit home for a lot of kids. I know that personally my mom is my best friend and just thinking about going through the events , listed by Cates's father, David Cates, without her makes me feel sick. "There will never be another birthday, anniversary or Christmas Eve with Kim’s family that isn’t tinged with grief. Instead of Jaimie simply indulging in the joy of picking out her prom dress, or stepping into her graduation gown or planning her wedding, my daughter will ache because her mom, her best friend, the most important woman in her life isn't there beside her," said David Cates in the article. Knowing that a ten year old has to go through this is truely devastating.

Creditability

Creditability is one of the most important and honorable qualities a person can have. Whether a person is creditable or not can greatly affect his or her life. In my opinion creditability is a person's reputation and how he or she is viewed by others. The only way to get it is to earn it.

You can earn creditability by being honest, trustworthy, and loyal. When I hear the word creditability those three words are the first thing that comes to my mind. If you are honest, trustworthy, and loyal you can earn creditability. As soon as you are not honest, not trustworthy, or not loyal you creditability is immediately gone. There is no three strikes and your out, it's one strike and your creditability is gone.

Creditability can also be applied to the way you present yourself. Ms. Meagher told our journalism class an example of creditability outside of the journalism world. The example was a person walking into a job interview and they way you are dresses and the way you present yourself will either help you gain or lose creditability. I've never thought of creditability in that way but now that I have I completely agree that that is a huge part of creditability. A personal example would be my summer job. I am a parking attendant a Falmouth Beaches in Cape Cod. There was an employee who always did what he was told and never did anything wrong. He showed up for work late one time and by the way our boss treated him after it was so clear that his creditability was gone. It had taken him over a year of working to earn his creditability and it was gone by a five minute mistake.

Gaining creditability can be very difficult. It depends on the situation but it can take between a day and years to prove you are creditable. Losing creditability is much easier. A person can make one mistake and their creditability can be gone. Also, once you've lost it it is very hard to earn it back. It's hard to gain and easy to lose and even harder to get back.

Senior Slide

It is now almost the beginning of April which means spring is finally here. Most people have probably noticed that the senior slide has finally hit all of the seniors at Andover High.


As a senior the motivation for schoolwork and high school is now rapidly going away. I've spoken to my friends and other seniors and I know that they all feel the same way and a lot of them feel it more.


The senior day count down is now down to it's thirties. A lot of seniors now know where they are going to college or what they are doing next fall. The excitement of leaving high school and starting a new, fresh chapter in our lives has taken over.


A lot of seniors got senioritis much earlier than now but from what I've noticed ot has now effected mostly all of the seniors at AHS. Lets hope we can all keep it together for two more months!

Home Invasion in New Hampshire Reaction

The first time reading this article a couple things jumped out at me. The first was that a mother was killed and a child was severely injured. The second thing that jumped out was that Nasusha, New Hampshire is mentioned in the article. Kimberly's Cates, 42 years old, was murdered from multiple sharp injuries to the head, torso, left arm, and left leg. Her ten year old daughter had serious knife injuries that required hours of surgery. I get really upset when I heard horrible stories like this. I just don't understand how people can do such horrible things to other people. I have family that live in Nasusha, New Hampshire. For different events and occasions I have been there many times. It's weird to think that a town that I go to so often has some invovlement in this horrible article. The home invasion wasn't in Nasusha, New Hampshire it was in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire, but Cates worked as a registered nurse at St. Joseph's Hospital in Nasusha. I never thought I could make so many connections to a home invasion article in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire but I guess anyone can make any kind of connections to any article or story.