The Arrowhead

Planning Prom: Dresses

Anna Heim — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:59:58 +0000

Over the next ten weeks, most juniors and seniors will be getting ready for prom. Already, whispers of limousines, tuxedos, and gowns fill the hallways. But with the economic recession, people are trying to find ways to cut back their spending. I have a few tips for finding the perfect prom outfit without breaking the bank.
First, you need to realize that everything you buy is an investment. For prom, you’re investing in the belief that what you buy will contribute to making prom the best night of high school. Setting a budget with your parents (if they’re the ones paying for your evening) is the first thing to do. Sit down and make a list of the things you want that will cost the most, like your dress, tuxedo rental, limousine, etc. Then you can plan a realistic budget for your outfit.
Girls, don’t be afraid to look online or at magazines for your dress. A lot of them may be super expensive but if you find something in a book you like, it’s much easier to find a dress that appeals to you that is within your budget. Plus, many of the designer dresses can be ordered from local dress shops.
When you find your “dream dress,” order it as soon as possible. Most designer dresses that are not local do not ship directly to dress shops. To simplify orders for the manufacturers, they will ship all their dresses to a middle man. After the dresses are shipped to the middle man, they are delivered to the shops who place the orders first. And believe me, those dresses go quickly. If you have a dress in mind, you should think about purchasing it as soon as possible. I recently visited Annie’s Room, a dress shop in downtown Kingsport, and discovered that when ordering a dress, you have to pay half of the cost of the dress upfront. However, if you decide later that you do not want that dress, the money you put down can go to another dress they have in the store. This is great if you end up changing your mind.
If you’re leaning toward the less expensive dresses, Deb Shop is not your only choice. Whitney’s Closet, on Eastman Rd. by Sloopy’s, is a seller of used prom dresses and many boutiques have sale sections with nice dresses. If you don’t want to spend more money on a dress, chances are, you will end up spending more time searching for one in your budget. But it is not impossible! There are some places in the tri-cities that even rent out dresses for prom. This is an excellent solution to the age-old problem: Why pay this much for a dress I will only wear once?!
Whether this will be your Junior or Senior prom, it should be a night to remember. Planning is the key to a worry-free night. So start early and plan thoroughly!

Tim Tebow

Anna Heim — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:17:32 +0000

The biggest question of this year’s upcoming NFL draft is not who will be the number one pick (Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska defensive tackle, more than likely) or who will be the first quarterback taken (Sam Bradford of Oklahoma). It won’t even be who is the sleeper of this draft (no estimates from me here). The biggest question of the 2010 NFL draft will be the success or failure of Tim Tebow as a NFL quarterback.
For those of you who don’t know who Tebow is, you must have had your head buried in the sand for the last four years. Tebow, one of the most celebrated college football players ever, has graduated from the University of Florida and is eligible for the NFL draft. He won two national championships at Florida and was a Heisman Trophy finalist three times, winning the award once. You might be thinking, “Wow, this guy sounds really good.” Yes, he indeed was. Even though I am a Tennessee fan, I have to acknowledge his greatness. But he was great in a way that no successful NFL quarterback has ever been. See, at Florida, they run a “spread offense”, with an emphasis on spreading the defenses out and then running through the areas where defenders would be, but aren’t because they have been spread out. There are several variations of the spread, each one putting emphasis on the pass or run. Since Florida’s spread is based on running, Tebow was essentially a running quarterback who could throw. But he wasn’t a great thrower. In fact, his passing skills are probably below average. You can’t succeed in the NFL like that. If you doubt me, look around to the NFL’s elite QBs right now: Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Carson Palmer, Drew Brees, Brett Favre, etc. What do all of those guys have in common? They all throw the football exceptionally! Tebow doesn’t do it great. He normally throws a wobbly football. Look at any of the previous QBs I just mentioned. Watch all of them throw. Look at the football! The spiral is flawless! Not only does he not throw a good football, he also has the longest, most drawn out release in the history of the football. He brings the ball all the way down below his waist and then slings it up. His arm almost goes around 360 degrees. The NFL looks for a quick release. Once again, go watch the previous QB’s. Their releases are all quick and almost perfect.
The spread offense is also known for one thing that hurts a QB: they are always in shotgun, no matter what. On 80% of NFL snaps, the QB will take the snap from under center, not from the shotgun formation. The shotgun formation allows the QB to stand straight up and observe the whole defense instantly. If the QB takes a snap under center, he has to back up 3-7 steps. When he is under center, he cannot see the defense as well, so when he gets to the point when he is standing straight up, he has lost time on reading the defense, making this task more difficult. Since Tebow has always been in shotgun, it concerns a lot of NFL personnel men that he won’t be able to read a defense if he’s not in shotgun. Also, when under center, can Tebow get the snap down? You may not think this is too difficult, but at the first day of Senior Bowl practice, Tebow fumbled the snap from under center quite frequently. To make matters worse, Zack Robinson from Oklahoma State and Jarrett Brown from West Virginia, who also run spread offenses, had almost no trouble taking the snap. I’m not saying that Tebow can’t be successful in the NFL, but it might need to come at another position.

Work less and get more

Anna Heim — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:03:56 +0000

Have you ever wanted to turn the things you love to do into ways to get fit fast without all the work and sweat? Well, it turns out you can. According to WebMD, you can turn the activities you love to do, such as playing catch with your friends, walking your dog, or tossing a Frisbee with your family into a well-disguised work out. Their methods take away all the sweat and straining and open up your schedule for more time to do those fun activities.
WebMD says disguise is the name of the game. Barry A. Franklin, PhD, national spokesman for the American Heart Association’s Choose to Move program, told WebMD, “We have, as a nation, over-emphasized the value of structured exercise and under-emphasized the value of lifestyle physical activity as a way to get more fitness into our lives.” It is shown that if you move and get out more in your daily life that you will benefit from it, maybe even more then you would from hitting the gym. People who sit all day and aren’t active until they go to the gym will have more ground to cover when they finally do, and their results will also take far longer to show.
Dino Novak, a master physical trainer and older adult exercise specialist at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, told WebMD, “The whole gym environment, especially if its machine-based, focuses on very fixed, linear path movements, but the body doesn’t really work that way in real life.” All that fixed training could even be setting you up for an injury. By being more active in your daily life, you will increase your fitness level and make your routine tasks easier to perform. It will also minimize the risk of injury. So instead of spending hours at the gym, just get out and do more everyday and you will feel yourself get healthier and more fit

An Apple a day, keeps stress at bay

Anna Heim — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:54:49 +0000

Have you ever purchased an iPod and you were really excited about it? …Then the next thing you know, you are watching television and you see an advertisement for an iPod even better because it holds more songs, takes videos, and has internet. You then decide you want that iPod instead, wishing you could have waited.
Technology is advancing more and more every day, especially for Apple. The most recent gadget is the iPad, which is Apple’s “magical and revolutionary device at an incredible price, $499.” This iPad is the best way to experience the web, email, photos, music, and video in a 9.7-inch (measured diagonally), 1.5-pound., and 0.5-inch thin device. It is a slightly larger multi-touch or iPhone that allows you to search the web in outstanding picture quality and sharp text by scrolling with your finger and is easy to carry anywhere. There is also a thumbnail view that shows all your open pages in a grid to let you move from one page to the next.
This new gadget also has an up to 10-hour battery life. Apple engineers took the same lithium-polymer battery technology they developed for the Mac notebook computers and used it for the iPad. Lastly, the iPad has built-in wireless which takes advantage of the fastest Wi-Fi networks and automatically locates and connects to them.
This new product was officially announced on January 27, 2010 at an Apple press conference in San Francisco. The iPad will go on sale at the end of March 2010, and right now, you can go online and get one reserved.
This product is very fascinating and makes you wonder what sort of device Apple will come up with next.

Dear John

Anna Heim — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:38:19 +0000

Nicholas Sparks, best selling author, has written many books that have become films such as, Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John, and The Last Song. The most recent film, Dear John is playing in theatres right now.
Personally, I felt that The Notebook was better than Dear John. Dear John is a romantic drama about a soldier (Channing Tatum) who falls in love with a conservative college girl (Amanda Seyfried). Then, the soldier eventually goes oversees and the college girl is left at home, working on school work.She eventually gets married to a close friend who gets sick with cancer. While John is away, they constantly write letters back and forth.
Although this story plot sounds like it could be really good, I just couldn’t get pulled into the movie. I felt that the movie trailer showed all the sweet parts of the movie, but then, that was it.
Also, this love story was meant to be a romantic novel about two young people falling in love and the struggles between the soldier at war and a girl attending college, but instead, I was more interested in the soldier’s relationship with his autistic father, who collected coins.
At first John didn’t realize the mental illness of his father until he met Savannah who is majoring in psychology. Then, he notices that his father is quiet, calm, and routine-oriented. As the story progresses, we see the interaction grow more and more between John and his father, which is why this was the best part of the movie.
Lastly, romantic stories are supposed to be “tear jerkers,” but I only cried once during the entire movie, and that was when his father passed away. Then, I thought maybe the ending would make me cry, but the ending was anti-climactic. Yeah, they got back together after she had married her friend who was sick, but you just assumed they got back together in the movie. In the end, Savanna looks out the window and sees John, and they smile at each other, then you see the credits. That’s it.
If you are one to love romantic movies, such as The Notebook, I wouldn’t suggest Dear John. Sure, it was a sweet story, but it just isn’t emotionally rich.

Celebrities- Why do we care?

Anna Heim — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:32:41 +0000

Is it just me, or is the media coverage in America given to those we consider celebrities far overblown? What’s with all the coverage about Tiger Woods’ personal life and the late-night comedians losing their shows and so forth? Why are Americans (and, for that matter, most Westerners) so obsessed with this kind of stuff? Aren’t there a lot more worthwhile things we could be looking at, like what’s happening in the political world and the economic world? Maybe if we watched the news more often than celebrity gossip, a lot of the negative stuff that happens in the world (recessions, wars, natural disasters) wouldn’t be such a surprise.
I’m not criticizing the idolizing of certain individuals per se, even though it’s certainly not very egalitarian. All societies have had their form of hero worship, certainly, from ancient Greece on, but here’s the thing: ALL THEIR HEROES ACTUALLY DID STUFF. Theirs were warriors and conquerors and generals, men who accomplished things. Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Davy Crockett, the list goes on and on. Ours? We follow the lives of actors, singers, and athletes (i.e.: people whose sole purpose in life is to entertain. Now, I’m not beating down on their professions, this is a free country and we can do whatever we want for a job, but come on. Does what they do in their personal time really, actually matter? Is it even really that exciting and unique? We have enough love triangles, men cheating on their wives, people addicted to drugs, etc., in our actual lives.
We even make movies about the topic for those of us fortunate enough not to be entangled in these situations, but no, we have to go back to the whole “hero-worshipping” deal. Why do the problems of a select few people matter? Why does ANY bit of their personal life matter!?!? I’ll probably never find an answer to this question, or at least one that will restore my faith in humanity, but at least I can take solace in the fact that I don’t follow this stuff. In the end, it kind of reminds me of bread and circuses, the Roman term for keeping its masses happy and generally apathetic on what was happening all around them. Well, I can only say one thing: we all know what happened to the Roman Empire.

Valentine’s Day: the movie

Anna Heim — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:27:35 +0000

Now the number one movie in America, Valentine’s day will be a box office hits for weeks. Ironically enough, Valentines Day came out into thaters just in time for the holiday, and is a film filled with many big shot actor and actresses.
This movie resembles He’s Just Not That Into You, where many couples are struggling to find themselves and wonderful relationships. Theres all kinds of relationships in this movie, from young sparks, to engagments, to long lasting love, to lost love. It has relationships that everyone can relate to.
Actors that star in Valentine’s day include Jessica Alba and Ashton Kutcher, who are playing newlyweds. Jessica Biel plays a smart over acheiver who just wants that special someone, but hasnt quite found him yet. Heart throb, Taylor Lautner has a fiery relationship with america’s sweetheart, Taylor Swift. Bradley Cooper and Julie Roberts play another happy couple trying the make it through another Valentines day. Kathy Bates, Patrick Dempsey, Anne Hathaway, Eric Danes, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, and Queen Latifah are some other actors who star in this romantic comedy!
So whether you’re watching Valentines Day by yourself, or with that special someone, it’s bound to put a smile on your face no matter what! You’ve got to just love these movies that warm your heart, and give you a good laugh at the end of the day! Valentine’s Day hit theaters on Friday, Febuary 12th. So grab that special someone and go see Valentine’s Day and enjoy a romantic evening!

“Til Beth do us part” Debuts at Kingsport Renaissance Center

Anna Heim — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:14:25 +0000

At the Kingsport Renaissance Center, a new play,”‘Til Beth Do Us Part”, is getting rave reviews.
The play follows the story of Suzannah Hayden, a woman trying to be successful in her job, while struggling with her lazy husband, Gibby. To help organize her life, Suzannah hires an assistant named Beth. However, besides keeping Suzannah’s life organized, Beth decides that it is time to get rid of Gibby. Meanwhile, Gibby realizes that all Beth really wants is Suzannah’s job, and the play then becomes a race to see who can outwit who.
Director Joe Smith stated that the characters are “ordinary people we see on a daily basis.” The character of Suzannah, played by Debbie Shoun, is very ambitious and career-minded. Suzannah’s husband, Gibby, played by Brent Edwards, is basically a slob who, even though he loves her, does not help Suzannah take care of the house or himself.
Gibby also has a friend named Hank, played by Eric Hyche, who constantly bickers with his ex-wife Margo, played by Becky McClanahan. The character of Beth is played by Brandy Oerly and the character of the CEO Celia is played by Elaine Murray.
Additional cast for the play will include Amber Kent as stage manager, as well as Anna Heim and Betty Casey.
Smith says that production came along well, and also mentioned that this would be the play’s debut performance in Tennessee. The play is sponsored by Pal’s Sudden Service and the Tennessee Arts Commission. The play debuted on Friday, February 12th, at 8p.m.and will also run on February 19th at 8p.m., as well as February 20th and 21st at 3p.m.

European Exchange

Anna Heim — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:48:08 +0000

Many people dream of traveling the world. A majority of those people are older people who have jobs, problems, and obligations. Luckily for me, I am only seventeen and the sky is the limit. It’s supposedly the time in my life when I’m supposed to be carefree and adventurous, and I’m going to take advantage of this common outlook.
This summer, I plan to participate in a foreign exchange program sponsored by the Rotary Club of Kingsport. An interview with Rotarian officials is required before one can participate in the program. My meeting went well and I was given the green-light. Mrs. Judy Fischer, the Rotarian with whom I met, was enthusiastic and encouraging of my desire to spend the summer in Germany. I found out that I could host an exchange student for up to three months, and spend them same amount of time living in Germany. Although three months is too long to spend in Europe before I got to college, I figure that six weeks in Germany would be the best way to begin my life outside of Tennessee.
Mrs. Fischer gave me the paperwork I would have to fill out in order to sign up. It was well over forty pages of bureaucratic redundancy, requesting my name, address, phone number, and other personal information multiple times. It was tedious, but the outcome should be well worth the hours I put into completing the forms.
I hope that my trip to Germany will pay off in many ways. I’m very interested in learning the language. I’ve been practicing my German daily since I was in German level two. I’m currently in AP German level five, and I am going to the University of Cincinnati to study German language, literature, and culture more in-depth, as well as European history with an emphasis in Germanic people and regions My favorite historical figure is Frederick the Great. I want to experience the differences in culture that exist between the United States and Germany, so when I am in college learning about Germany, I will be able to compare what my professor tells me to what I’ve seen, heard, and felt with my own senses.
Unfortunately, not everyone has the resources to travel the world. Sometimes they come from a family who just don’t have the money. Some people just don’t want to learn about other cultures. Some of these people are convinced that the U.S. is the best country in the world, and foreign countries aren’t worth thinking about. Nothing could be further from the truth. The United States is a great country, and nobody will ever convince me otherwise. But how can someone possibly know how great a country it is when they have no base for their claim? Countries may be like different dishes of food. Sometimes they’re too small, sometimes they’re too big, sometimes they’re unhealthy. Sometimes they’re too hot, and sometimes they’re too cold. But you’ll never know unless you try them on.

Helping Haiti

Anna Heim — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:37:11 +0000

Everyone knows about the tragic event in Haiti that happened a few weeks ago, and now, like every disastrous event, almost everywhere you look someone is trying to help the victims in need. It is great to see our country come together and help thousands of people that are in trouble, and what makes things greater, is our own school is doing some fun and creative things to help Haiti.
Dobyns-Bennett has always had ways to raise money for charities, clubs, and other things. Car washes and selling candy are just a couple of things that clubs do to raise some money. But for the Haiti relief, more people seem to want to help. The 4v4 soccer tournament was last week, letting students play with their friends in a fun game of soccer. The cost to play was five dollars per person, and each team had to bring at least 2 cases of water per person, with all the money going to Haiti. Last Tuesday was the dodge ball tournament that everyone loved and anticipated the most, since students seem to have so much fun throwing balls at people’s faces. It was ten players per team and five dollars per person as well, and of course, all money went to Haiti.
One way D-B is showing support in a fundraiser this past week is the somewhat disturbing, hairy leg contest. This is another funny way to raise money for Haiti, and is something totally new and creative. Select students were chosen to participate in the contest. The student body donated their change in jars with their picture on it during lunch to the person they thought had the most appealing or appalling leg, and whoever gained the most money won. The contest started on February 5th and ended February 12th. All money went to the American Red Cross to give to the Haiti relief.