Post #15--Our Monthly Visitor--by Tsuki Bear

Yes, I know I have discussed this before, but here I am again, discussing the matter that all girls must go through.  BOYS, IF YOU ARE READING THIS, STOP RIGHT NOW. DO NOT CONTINUE ANY MORE. THAT MEANS IF YOU HAVE GOTTEN THIS FAR YOU'RE AN IDIOT AND YOU'RE BRINGING THIS ON YOURSELF!

Anyways. So, we all know how our period goes. It happens once a month and brings along a bad attitude, cramps, a craving for anything and everything in the house, raging hormones and a lot of crying and feeling sorry for yourself. Face it girls, its not a fun week. But I have some ways to make it better.

Heating Pads: Heating pads are a miracle, especially when it comes down to cramps. I use the one at home all the time. If you don't have an available heating pad, use a corn bag, which works equally as well (even though you have to warm it up more frequently then a heating pad)

Drink lots of water!: Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate! This will help reduce cramping! Drinking a lot of water before and during your period will not cause you to bloat up. If anything, it will actually make you feel better. If you get tired of drinking water, drink Gatoraid. Those electrolites taste really good when you're dehydrated.

Eat less salt: Salt meet water. Water meet salt. BAM! Its called osmosis, or diffusion. Salt and water are literally best friends, but not when you're on your period. Eating salt  on your period is part of what causes you to bloat. So instead, eat pretzels with no salt, carrots, or something that has sugar instead.

Avoid Caffeine: Caffeine will contribute to bloating and cramping. Don't have it. This means laying off on ANY soda with caffeine (Sunkist, Coke, Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper, etc.) (Yes, Sunkist has caffeine in it!), coffee, and CHOCOLATE. I know that chocolate makes you feel better around this time but leave that candy bar on the counter (or hidden) until its over.

Lots of sleep: The last thing you need during this time is lack of sleep. This will add to your crankiness. Please do us a favor.

Light Excersize: By doing Yoga, stretching, walking or swimming, it pumps blood through your body, which will cause less cramps. Even if its just dancing around your room like you're crazy. But don't go out running, or go rock climbing. This is too strenous, and can cause other problems...like leaks.

Eat a banana: Bananas carry potasium, which is needed in your body. Try eating some throughout the week (unless you're like me and can't because you're allergic)

Pain Pills: So you've done all the things I suggest, but nothing is working. Try taking some pain medication. They sell some at the stores specifically designed for menstral cramps. I know that this definately works when all else fails.

These are just a few suggestions to reduce cramps, and make things better over all. If you have any other suggestions, please feel free to post a comment. Thanks for reading!

--Tsuki Bear

Post #14--School Funds?--by Tsuki Bear

This article was inspired by a very heated discussion in Sociology the other day.

We hear it all the time. School funds. We hear about money going to the Science Department, the English Department, etc. But where does most of the school funds go? Sports. We hear about that one the most. "The basketball team needs money for new jerseys." "The soccer team needs money for this." Always the sports. And what department gets jipped from all this? Fine Arts. I'm talking about music, drama, photography, art. Those things.

Why is it that the sports get more funding then music? There are roughly the same amount of kids participating in both, and putting an equal amount of time into both. I can narrow it down to one things: popularity.

The people in sports are usually the popular kids, right? They're the ones who have friends who want to support them, parents who have money to give them for their sport. And the Fine Arts people? I'm not saying that they're losers, because they're not, and I'm in this category, but typically, they're the ones who don't care about popularity, and name brand stuff. I'm also not saying that that's what all sports people are concerned about, but its a general stereotype for an athlete.

The other part of popularity is the nation's focus on sports. Most of the kids who are in sports have parents who love that sport. Some of them are the ones you see at soccer games who yell at the referee because the shot was "not a foul". You know who I'm talking about. These parents contribute a lot of money to their child's sport.

The misunderstanding starts here. Discussing this in class, a soccer player (who will remain anonymous) said that the Fine Arts department "didn't need as much money as the sports teams. Everything they needed is paid for with their fees." THIS IS NOT TRUE.

We also have several extra fees to pay. The fees we pay at the beginning of the year? Speaking from experience, the money I paid for orchestra last year was for my orchestra "uniform", which was an ugly maroon and black dress coat that was three times too big for me at the smallest size. There were not enough coats to go around, so I had to share the coat with a band member (Tc, who is contributing to this blog) I was not the only one who had to share a coat, and swap it at the last minute while carrying an instrument and running on stage. To add to it, these coats have been "the orchestra/band uniform" for years. The coats smell, and they're itchy and scratchy. They don't fit more then half of the students they are loaned to for the night of the concert.

Several students rent their instrument from the school. "They pay for all their stuff with their fees," says the anonymous soccer player from earlier. Yes, this part is true. We do pay for them with our fees. But have you seen the rented instruments that are loaned to students? Like the uniforms, they've been around the school for years. They are worn out, dirty, scratched, and some have problems that need to be fixed that we end up paying for.

The football team gets money to go to the State Championships. What about the band/orchestra/choir getting money to go on tour in California? The school doesn't pay for that, or hardly even contribute to it. We do. Out of our own pockets. We earn the money to go. We pay for the bus fees, the food fees, the hotel, etc. EVERYTHING.

So, in conclusion to my brooding, and venting, let me just say to all those people out there who think the athletic department does not get enough money for their stuff. You guys get PLENTY. Do fundraisers, like we have to, to earn money to go to state. Get a job so you can pay for the jersey yourself. The Fine Arts needs some of the money that is going to you to get stuff that we are in dire need of.

--Tsuki Bear

PS If any of you are angered by this, please keep your comments TO YOURSELF

Post #13--One Quote Every Girl Needs Taped Somewhere She Will See It Every Day--By Q

"...remember, never judge yourself by the actions or inactions of adolescent males. No less substantial standard exists."

--Mr. Carpenter

Post #12--Embarrassing First Day!--by Tsuki Bear

Okay, so its the start of the new school year and such and I'm a little spacy right now. You know, summer just ended. Everyone is spacy.

So Friday (remember this, very important) after stopping to get my schedule from the school, I went to say hi to my favorite teacher. I had a class with him when school started, so I told him I'd see him Monday.

Monday arrives.

I look at my schedule and see that I have Seminary A1. I feel very lucky because Shane has it too. And so do three of my other good friends. Sweet!!

So then I go to second period, happy.

Half way through second period, I'm texting one of my friends from my last period, who is currently in Sociology with Mr. Glahn, the teacher I talked to on Friday.

Wait a second. I told Mr. Glahn I'd see him Monday morning... SHOOT!

It turns out that my A1 class was actually SOCIOLOGY and not SEMINARY. I was looking at my second semester class for A1!! So, I accidentally skipped first period. I went and talked to the teacher during lunch. He simply laughed, told me not to worry about it, and grab a disclosure document. Phew. That's a relief.

--Tsuki Bear

Post #11--Idea--by Tsuki Bear

So I have an idea I would like to fly by every reading this (girls and boys included...mostly girls...okay just girls!)

I have decided that I'm going to write a book about understanding (okay, trying to understand) the male species. Originally I planned to do this with my friend Amy, but it seems we have had a slow start (no start) on this what-so-ever. So, my plan is this: find someone who is savvy with a camera, and go around the mall (school or somewhere) and ask random guys questions about why they do things, etc.

If you think this is a good idea comment right now! I mean NOW! Click on that button down there, yes, right there that's right, and comment. If you don't know which button I'm talking about, I mean the one that says X# comments.

If you are willing to contribute to this, also comment.

--Tsuki Bear

Post #10--Back to School Must Haves?--Tsuki Bear

I only put the question mark because its different for everyone.

Anyways, we all know what's happening in three weeks. School is starting again. Yipee. I love my enthusiasm. Anyways! If you aren't sure how to start the school year off as a fun year (well, I know it'll get boring after a while, but it can be fun at first right?) here are some suggestions.

BACK TO SCHOOL MUST HAVES! (???)

• New clothes! What's a better way to start off a school year then to have a new wardrobe you can pick from? If you girls (and guys) are anything like me, your wardrobe gets boring after you've had it for over a year (actually, my current one is older then a year old...All of my new clothes from last year shrunk). So if you have the money and the time, go out and get some new jeans, shirts, skirts, etc. Even if you don't have much money, getting a few new items to wear is still fun.
• A new back pack. Back packs are the number one most used item (besides pencils and paper) used by students. After a while, these life saving items get worn out, torn, ripped, etc. So if your bag looks worse for wear, go get a new one before it splits out in the middle of the hallway on your way to class.
• A (new) binder with folders of your choice. Binders with folders are great ways to keep your homework in one place. If you're like me, you tend to lose stuff if you don't put it somewhere you know you can find it again. Make your school year easier (and less of a stress problem) by having a way to organize your homework so you can actually find it. On the plus side, your homework stays neat and doesn't get wrinkled and bent up from not being in a protective sleeve. There are school sales going on now, so these should be pretty inexpensive right now.
  
• Paper and Pencils/Pens. Go and get some fun writing materials! Who wants to use those boring yellow pencils? Okay, maybe I do, mostly because they're ugly and I have no problem sharpening them. Also, go get some notebooks. They don't have to be totally awesome like your pencils or pens, but make sure you have some to last you a few months. The stores are having major back to school sales now, so you should be able to get a ton for like ten cents each.
• FOR GIRLS: Hair stuff. Now would probably be a good time to get new ponytail holders, scrunchies, headbands, etc. You don't even have to buy them, you can make your own head bands with a pair of old panty hose and a plastic flower.
• Reading books. Go to the book store (or library) and pick out a few reading books that look interesting to you. You will most likely need these books for English reading time, or book reports so read up! Plus, its something good to do if you get bored in class.
• New music. If you have an Ipod, or an MP3 Player or some sort of music device, get new music! There are a few classes that will probably let you use these items when you're not supposed to be learning. So get on Itunes and download that song you've been wanting to get forever.

So I hope these things help you know some things you could be looking for for back to school. You don't have to take my advice if you don't want to.

On the other hand, I would suggest at least getting a binder/folders, pencils/pens, notebooks and a back pack.

--Tsuki Bear

Post #9--One Year Ago--Tiana ba Llama

Just a few things I've realized recently...

-This time last year, I was in Hawaii, having a pretty great time. *sniff I always hate leaving it so badly!
-It has now been over a year since I last held hands with someone.
-Since this time last year, my mindset is totally different.

So there you have it. Literally, a few things.