Volume 2 Issue 5

The House Cup!  By Anna Petersen

Well, here it is folks, the end of Hail the Dragonslayers. With it a new house cup! The scores as of last Friday are: in first place we have Gryffindor, in second place we have Hufflepuff, and in third its Ravenclaw.  I have interviewed somone from each house to see what they think.  

For Gryffindor, I have interviewed Professor Hunt.

Can you see your house winning the cup? “I think they have a fair chance!”

Do you think the Gryffindors will share the candy? “Most definitely!”

If the Hufflepuffs win, will They share? “They are Hufflepuffs!”

If the ravenclaws win, will they share? “YES!”

As you can see, she has complete confidence in the students of Quercus Alba!a

Next I spoke to William Hans Petersen of Hufflepuff.

Can you see yourself winning the house cup?s “No, Anna is, but could you even share with the Hufflepuffs?” (Said very pleadingly)

If the Gryffindors win will they share? “I don’t know.”

If the Ravenclaws win, will they share? “Yeah, you said you would, but I don’t know if the other Ravenclaw will share.”

What do you want to be in the house cup? “I don’t know. I want whatever candy I want. I want candy in the house cup.”

As you can see William will be happy for whoever wins, just like a true Hufflepuff.

Next I interviewed Emma Palmer fromRavenclaw house.  Do you see yourself winning the house cup? “A small window of opportunity is currently open.”

If the Gryffindors win, will they share the prize? “No idea. Sam says maybe, but it could go either way.”can

If the Ravenclaws win, will you share? “Of course! We may be smart, but we’re not stuck up.”

If the Hufflepuffs win, will they share? “Of course! They’re Hufflepuffs, nice and generous people.”

What kind of candy do you want in the house cup? “Mentos.”

As you can see each house is of it’s own opinion.  Personally, I think whoever wins, the candy will be split. Maybe not evenly, but everyone will get some.

 


Eve of Destiny Mission Opener By Bradley Palmer

Sam Cardiff finds himself in a giant abandoned military world creation base, alone. His only defense is his custom made gunblade. He walks down a dim lit hallway. He enters a room full of computer consoles. "Where am I?" he says. All of a sudden he hears the voice of a man who sounds like he's in his late twenties and from New York.

"You lost?" the voice says.

"Yea." Said Sam.

"How did you even get here?"

"I was hoping you knew."

"I know. I just wont tell you."

"Why you little…"

"Now ,now."

"So why am I here?"

"I need you to do some work for me. Your brother tells me you'll get the job done"

"Which brother?"

"Zaenor."

"Oh."

"Now let me give you your first mission and briefing."

"I need you to go to w3, Mansul. I need you to retrieve a journal that Atrax, one of my rivals, stole from me. He will probably have it well guarded. Do you accept?"\

"Yes. Got nothin' better to do."

"That’s the spirit. Sort of."

Sam walks into a near by elevator. The door shuts. It starts by its self. He is on his way to Mansul. Whether he wants to or not.

The rest of this story will be told in first person by Sam Cardiff.

To Be Continued…

 

Sam's Story By Samuel Palmer

Once upon a time, there was a little boy named Scarlet. He wnted to go on an adventure but his mom wouldn't let him. But his mom went out and so he left on his adventure. So he found a bb gun in his room. And grabbed it for his adventure. Then he put all his gear on. Then he went on his adventure. So when he got outside he put on goggles. He found an owl. So he shot the owl with bb gun and knocked him out.

Then he saw a golden trail. So he followed the path. On the trail he saw bunny tracks. He wanted the bunny for a pet so he followed the tracks. Soon he found the bunny. The bunny jumped up to him. He kept it as a pet. So he ran home. And right when he got home he let the bunny free.

THE END

Musings

A Weekly Column by Damarco Montoya

Is the Glass Really Half Full?

When I opened the windows to my soul, I realized my life had been blessed with another day.  I polished my pearly whites and then rinsed my pie hole with germ-killing solution.  I drank a tall glass of life liquid, and searched for the most important meal of the day. 

Everything is a matter of perspective.  Is the glass half empty or half full?  Have you heard that phrase before?  When describing a glass as being half empty rather than half full, you’re telling those with whom you are conversing that you see the negative before you see the positive.  The perspective is the glass is missing half of its capacity, rather than seeing the substance instead, or in this case, the wonderful liquid.  This person could have easily chosen to ignore the negative space, which would allow him (or her) to see the positive, or what was actually there.

It’s funny when talking to people and to see how differently things are viewed.  The glass analogy (a fancy word to describe when two things are compared, often using imagery) is cliché (over used saying) and therefore not very imaginative.  I thought it might be more fun to talk about eyes being the windows to a person’s soul, teeth as being “pearly whites”, and water as being “life liquid”.  All those items could just as easily been described with negativity rather than as being positive.  A person’s perspective might see the phrase above and instead describe the scene as being a set up for another dull day, as the person might choose not to see the good in even the mundane (often used to describe boring, regular-occurrence tasks or daily items and events). 

I have actually known people who start their day dreading to go to work and counting down the days until they can make changes in their lives.  The funny thing is when (or if) those people make changes in their lives they’ll STILL be miserable.  The only thing that will have changed is the scenery.  A person like that will be unhappy if he won the lottery because winning the lottery means beggars start calling and knocking on the front door, or because he’ll have to pay so much in taxes.  “Yeah, I won $10 Million, but now I need to pay $4 million in taxes!  That sucks!).  Why not be happy with the other $6 million?  You see, he only saw what was missing from the glass instead of what was still there.

Isn’t it wonderful to be blessed with another day when we wake up?  We could feel overwhelmed by chores and items on a list rather than feeling blessed to be able to DO them.  How about this one; car accidents are terrible, right?  Instead of focusing on the broken bones, cuts, and bruises, one could be grateful to still be alive since car accidents kill so many people every year.  I think we could all benefit by noticing the ways in which we are blessed rather than how our lives are difficult.

Let’s all grab a tall ice-cold glass of life liquid (water) and enjoy the many obstacles that make our lives interesting and fun.  Let’s look at the silver linings of our dreary clouds and see the beauty in even our most undesirable outcomes.  Some might say when they are given lemons (a lesser used sour fruit), they make lemonade (a delicious drink).  That person is able to turn “sour” moments into delicious and refreshing outcomes.  So squash those “sour” moments, add some sweet silver lining and maybe some of that glass that’s half full and sip down some delicious ice-cold lemonade.

 Ravenclaw Challenge

Congratulations to this week's winners of the Ravenclaw Challenge, Emma Palmer of Ravenclaw House for solving riddle number one, and Robert Petersen of Gryffindor House for solving riddle number two!  

Last weeks answers: 1. Anchor 2. Towel

This week just as the one before

Riddle one for those of eight or more.

Riddle two if you are seven or below

Let's see how fast this one will go!

Riddle One

My house is not quiet, I am not loud; But for us God fashioned our fate together.

I am the swifter, at times the stronger, My house more enduring, longer to last.

A times I rest; my dwelling still runs; Within it I lodge as long as I live.

Should we two be severed, my death is sure.

Riddle Two

Why is it easy to weigh fish?

Minerva Bronte

Living in Emergency Mode By Jane Smith

I live in Quadrant One.  If you’ve read The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey, you know what I am talking about.  If you haven’t, what that means is that I spend my time doing things that are important and urgent.  That doesn’t sound like a bad thing, but it is because I don’t do anything unless it is urgent, unless it is practically an emergency!

This is why I am sitting here in the evening of a Thursday trying to come up with a topic for an article for tomorrow’s paper.  I am trying to think of something that I want to write about, but all I can think about is the half-finished giraffe piñata sitting on the kitchen table, that has to be finished in time for my daughter’s birthday tomorrow.  Or, I am thinking about all the food I have to make.  Or, I am thinking about cleaning up after the tornado that must have blown through my house. 

Living in Quadrant One is exhausting!  It means that as soon as you finish one project you have to race to finish the next in time. 

Quadrant One is a very stressful place.  It is a place where people lose sleep, where people have to compromise all their great plans and ideas, because there is no time.  I don’t care what people say about being their best under pressure, no one is their best in Quadrant One.

And, anything that is important, that I really should do, doesn’t get done if it doesn’t have a deadline.  I just tell myself, I don’t have time for that now, I'll do it after (insert major event here).  Completely failing to recognize that once that major event ends I immediately have to get ready for the next major event.

If I do get a little space between emergencies, I end up spending it in Quadrant Four, the place for those of us burnt out from life in Quadrant One.  Quadrant Four is where I do things that are neither important nor urgent.  Things like watching TV or surfing the internet for way too long.  I get so exhausted that I just veg until I’ve procrastinated my way into another crisis.

It’s not a very effective lifestyle.  Trust me, I know that its not!  I have been trying to get out of Quadrant One.  I have been trying to get a little ahead of my calendar and actually get things done BEFORE I have to, so I have time for other valuable things. 

I have a sneaking suspicion that some of our acorns may be living the same kind of ineffective lifestyle.  So, I invite you to join me in my efforts, let’s break the habit together!  Starting in the new year I am going to be giving out house points to students who turn in their Leaf submissions at least a day early.  I hope you will take the time to gather your thoughts and really consider what you want to write about.  Try to start your articles at least a week before they are due.  We can work together to make The Leaf the best that it can be!