Thanksgiving Food - Bryson Johnson

Thanksgiving

By Bryson Johnson

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday besides Christmas. I love Thanksgiving 

because you are allowed to eat all you want and nobody will question you. As we 

all know the best part about Thanksgiving is the food. The other awesome thing 

about Thanksgiving is getting together with family and just hanging around the 

house. The only bad thing about Thanksgiving is doing all the cooking! We don’t 

have a big family so we don’t have to cook for too long, but the people that have 

a big family and have to cook all that food, I salute you. 

I don’t know what other families have for Thanksgiving, but we have some 

mouthwatering delicious food. For our meat we usually get a turkey or a ham and 

cook it for a couple of hours; then the meat just falls off the bone. After getting 

the meat off the bone we put the meat back in the oven and let it sit for a while. 

My mom is the best at making green bean casserole. I don’t know what is all in it 

because I have never helped make it. We also have some mashed potatoes with 

brown gravy, which is amazing. Also we have stuffing and really soft rolls with 

butter, and some Jello or some pie to add some sweets to the mix. 

My favorite of all the pies ever made is pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie with a lot 

of whipped cream and you have the best food item ever thought of. I could eat 

pumpkin pie at any time of the year.

10 Things You've Probably said if you are as Right-brained as I am - Allison Redmond

10 Things You’ve Probably said if you are as Right-brained as I am.

By Allison Redmond

What does it mean to be “Right-brained”? That simply means that the right half of my brain is the dominant half. Right-brained people tend to be creative, spontaneous, tardy, forgetful, auditory, and gesticulators. If you know me at all, you know that basically all of these apply to my personality. However, this does not mean that we are irresponsible. We just tend to have so much going on in our minds at one time without a way to organize it that we are forgetful. Here are some frequent statements that I say because I am so right-brained:

1. “Where are my keys? Oh. They’re in my hand.”

2. “I had something very important to tell you, but I don’t remember what it was. This is going to drive me crazy!”

3. “Well shoot! That was today??”

4. “I need to write that down in my planner. WHERE IS MY PLANNER?! I’ll write it on my hand.”

5. “Huh? Oh, nothing. That was just me talking to myself.”

6. “What did I come in here for?”

7. “If I can’t remember what I am supposed to be doing at eighteen, what will I do at fifty-six??”

8. “Can you repeat that? I got distracted.”

9. “Wait. Where was I going with story?”

10. “I know I was supposed to do something on Wednesday. Oh well, someone will tell me eventually.”

Support our Thunderbirds - Peyton Reynolds

Support our Thunderbirds

by Peyton Reynolds

“Let’s go Panthers, Let’s go Panthers, Let’s go Panthers!” This is the chant we hear at every sporting event from our fans from the community. However, I think sometimes we forget that we have two amazing schools in our community, CHS and CCCC. It is a blessing to be able to live in a town that not only has a great high school but also a great college. Our community is so supportive when it comes to supporting us, Panthers, but we need to give just as much support to our Thunderbirds also.

Having a parent that works at Cloud County Community College, I realize that Cloud needs just as much support from our community as our community gives the the high school. We have many students who attend CHS, but their parents are part of Cloud in some way. Some of you may have noticed that some of the CCCC students and athletes come to many Panther sporting events. It is time for us as Panthers to return the favor and support the CCCC students and athletes.

Kids from all over the world come to Cloud to participate in sports and other activities, but not all of them have their parents, best friends and family on the sideline or in the stands supporting them. We all know that everyone needs support.

Not only do we need to support the athletes and students but also the coaches, faculty and staff. Eric Gilliland, CCCC’s Sports Information Director, has set up Cloud sports pages. To keep up-to-date on Cloud athletics, go follow Cloud athletics twitter page @CCCCsports and go like their facebook page “Cloud County Athletics”. Also, CCCC has just gotten a brand new website, “cloudtbirds.com”. I would like to wish all Cloud athletes and coaches a big good luck this year! I’m sure they would love to see more of the community support.  Go out and support the T-Birds!

15 Reasons Why it is so Beautiful to be an Aunt - Allegra Giacomelli

15 Reason Why it is so Beautiful to be an Aunt

By Allegra Giacomelli

Being an aunt or an uncle is the best thing that you can be. When you become an aunt your life changes completely. Here are 15 reasons why it is beautiful be an aunt.

1. Being an aunt it is like being a child again. With your niece or nephew, you can do all the things that you did as a child or the things that you never got to do as a child.  In any case, everything with them is more fun.
2. No matter how often you see them, it is not enough, but you know that they love you anyway.
3. You are so proud of the progress of your niece on nephew just like they are your children.
4. When you go to see them and they run towards you with a big smile and open arms, you know that you cannot go anywhere too far away.
5. When they call you “aunt” for the first time it is the best day ever.
6. Even if you do not intend to you always pamper them. In every place you go there is always something absolutely too cute that you have to buy for them.
7. They view you as their heroes when mom and dad scold them.
8. When , they talk about their family, they also include their aunt.
9. Hearing their little voices on the phone is a beautiful thing.
10. They make you feel important when they want it to be you to put them to bed.
11. Those smiles and their laughter! They are the best ever.
12. The uncle and aunt are free to cultivate a relationship with them and become their friend.
13. You get a taste of what having a kid is like, but you get to sleep at night.
14. You can teach them anything.
15. You are the perfect combination of mother and friend!

What it Means to be a Middle Child - Kayla Dvorak

What it Means to be a Middle Child

By Kayla Dvorak

            Although I’ve gained a plethora of younger siblings through remarriage over the years, I spent the majority of my childhood as the middle child. Over the years I’ve also endured countless jokes about “Middle Child Syndrome” any time I declared unfairness over bedtimes, inconsistencies in money spent on birthday gifts, and more recently, curfews. Urbandictionary.com defines Middle Child Syndrome as, “A disposition that generally arises with the middle child of three children in a household. Middle children often lack the attention that the oldest (the most important child) and the youngest (the parent's favorite child) receive.” While that definition is fairly accurate, whoever wrote it neglected to mention some vital parts of what it means to be a middle child.

            They forgot to mention the hours a middle child will spend pestering an older sibling for advice. It’s almost unhealthy how dependent I’ve grown over the years on my sister’s wisdom. She’s a good sport, though.

            They forgot to mention the insane need you feel to protect and parent your younger sibling. I’d like to take a moment and reflect on the trip my family took to the Grand Canyon this summer. My eleven year old brother ventured out to a rock that I DID NOT deem safe. I grew hysterical, in front of dozens of tourists, and had to go back to the car. I simply could not bear the idea of my baby being in danger.

            They also forgot to mention the golden moments featuring the middle child as the most important sibling, moments that the middle child treasures for all eternity.

            The life of a middle child has been chronicled as a lonely, angry, and destitute journey. Well, I’m here to say that while it is frustrating at times, it is also incredibly humbling and has taught me untold lessons over the span of my life. For that reason and many more, thanks Mom and Dad.

Tough Mudder - Connor Reynolds

The Tough Mudder

By Connor Reynolds

     Last month I participated in an event called the Tough Mudder. It is a 10 to 12 mile mud run with all sorts of obstacles. Some of the most memorable obstacles were Mud Mile 2.0, Cry Baby, Artic Enema 2.0 and Electroshock Therapy 2.0. Now I’m going to go into detail about of these obstacles and you’ll probably think to yourself “Why would anyone want to do this?” Well, to answer that question I’m a little crazy and enjoy the thrill sensation.

     The Mud Mile is a bunch of these mud humps that you have to climb over. Sounds easy but it’s not. There are a lot of people and the mud humps are about 8 feet high, plus you’re standing in about two feet of water with nothing to grab onto.

     Cry Baby is like a “Tear Gas” simulation. You have to crawl through this chamber with gas (which I think was spearmint because it tasted like it) that makes it extremely hard to breath and see. Once you’re out of the chamber your body is just covered from the gas and it sticks to you keeping you cold and it SUCKS! Plus jumping in water doesn’t wash it off; you just has to let it wear off. 

     The Artic Enema is a giant ice bath that you have slide into. This will make your adrenaline go crazy. I was in and out of the ice in about three seconds. I also had to jump over a wall into more ice and climb out. My brother jumped over a girl to get out.

     Electroshock Therapy is probably why a lot of people would say I’m crazy because I did the whole race just to get shocked. At the end of the race there are all these wires dangling down. You have two options here. First put your arms over your face and walk slowly through and get shocked five or six times. The second option is to just run full force through. This is the option my brother and I chose because he tried to beat me at the end, but it didn’t happen. What happens when you choose this option is you’ll be running, and you get shocked once. It happens when your feet hit the ground and it just knocks you into the mud and you slide over these humps in the middle. 

     There are about 20 obstacles total and thousands of other people are also on the course. The greatest feeling is not finishing the race but the camaraderie that everyone has through the course, helping each other with each obstacle.

     Other great parts of the Tough Mudder were the warm up area where the guy leading was extremely motivating and got your blood pumping. Also the guy who gave another motivational speech right before we began the race was great. I’d recommend that everyone to do the Tough Mudder or any mud run at least once in their life just for the experience. If you say you can’t because of the distance you’re wrong. I saw a 70 year old man with a broken arm run the whole race, and I guy with a gas mask and chains complete the race.

Perks of an Elementary Teacher's Kid - Mallory Thompson

Perks of an Elementary Teacher’s Kid

By Mallory Thompson

My mom is a first grade teacher. Some people like to brag about their parent being a high school teacher. But, having an elementary teacher as a parent can have its perks too.

In the summer, my job is a daycare type job and I work with 4-6 year olds. Whenever my mom gets her class list for the school year I go through all the 1st graders I know, picking out the sweet kids and the trouble kids. I tell her anything I know about her kids. When the school year starts, she comes back with stories, and it’s nice to know who she is talking about.

Anytime I have to grade papers it’s really easy. There is lots of addition, subtraction, and matching. It does get a little boring because of all the repetitiveness, and sometimes I can’t tell what number they are trying to write. My mom has become a pro at reading that writing.

Her classroom is so fun to be in. Everything is mini and you can play with the smartboard. Added bonus- since my mom is a 1st grade teacher she got moved to the new fema shelter. I love her new classroom with all the space in it. If there is ever a chance that she is in school and I am not, I go there for a day and help out. It is fun to help the kids with whatever activity they are doing.

When I was in elementary school I was in Mom’s classroom before and after school. My friends and I would meet there in the morning and play games with each other. I have lots of memories from that.

Another great thing is she has information. When there is stuff going around the school district, she usually knows about it so I know the truth to all the rumors. When there is anything going on in high school she somehow finds out about that too.

Even though there are some downsides to my mom being a teacher, like knowing everything about my school work, there are way more perks.

Irrational Fear? - Allison Redmond

Irrational Fear? No.

By Allison Redmond   

I would venture to say that everyone has some sort of phobia that they struggle with. The fear of heights, spiders, snakes, or tight spaces are just a few. Some come from traumatic life events, and others can’t be explained. The phobia I struggle with is Coulrophobia, the fear of clowns. I have been terrified of clowns ever since I was a baby.

This fear first developed in my life from a traumatic event when my parents were attending a convention. As part of the convention, a clown troupe was performing and one of the clowns knew my parents. My dad was holding me and the clown came up behind my dad to surprise him. As soon as I saw him I began screaming in horror, and I have never been the same.

This same man came to visit our church in Concordia a few years ago. Thankfully, he was not dressed up as a clown. However, as soon as I saw him, I wasn’t sure who exactly he was, but I knew that I recognized him and had some sort of negative memory associated with him. This was a good sixteen years after the initial incident, but I was still terrified. I began to hyperventilate in the middle of our church fellowship area. Eventually, my dad reintroduced me to him, I calmed down, and I figured out that he is actually a really nice guy.

Some people think that it is funny to tease me about my fear. By this, I mean dressing up as a clown and scaring me, saying, “Hey, Allie! Look at this picture on my phone!” and instead showing me a picture of a clown, or many other creative, horrific ways. IT’S NOT FUNNY. They simply do not understand.

So the moral of the story is that this is actually a serious phobia of mine. If you use this fear against me just to get a good laugh, I will cry. It has happened before. So please, save me the emotional turmoil, and yourself the guilt of making me cry, because it’s not worth it.

Cool & Fun Halloween Costumes - Connor Reynolds

Cool Halloween Outfits/Costumes

By Connor Reynolds

Every year on October 31st the spirit of Halloween is reawakened. We get to dress up, hoard lots of candy, scare people and even pull pranks. Each year though we see those same costumes: zombies, witches, hobos, football players, ghosts and cowboys. Here are some cool and different ideas for people of all ages. Use ideas from this blog and you’ll be the coolest adult at your kid’s Halloween party or the coolest person at a normal party. I don’t really know you, so just keep doing what you want to do.

#1. The Transformer

This can be a great (but expensive) costume for anyone. You won’t have the hassle trying to drive somewhere; you just roll up in this awesome costume, transform and get your candy and leave or in the famous words of Optimus Prime, “Autobots, Roll Out.”

#2. The Silverback Gorilla

You’re at party, but not in a great mood. All you want is that Snickers bar that everyone is getting, but you’re at the back of line. Well, no one is going to fight such a realistic looking 400 lb. ape. So you go ahead and take all those Snickers by force.

#3. Luigi and Mario

Here’s an adorable costume scheme to for little kids or dogs. It’s simple, all you need is overalls, some red and green shirts, drawn on mustaches, and some hats with an “L” and “M”.

#4 Shadow (Black) Morph Suits

This costume set up might make you to spend a little bit more and you’ll need sets of two, but it’s perfect for anyone. So what you have to do is have two people dressing up as the same thing, say football players. They both will wear their football player costume but one will have a black morph suit over his. This will make the person look like a shadow. With the right costume this could turn into a creepy and scary get-up, especially at night.

#5 French Kiss

A great couples costume is the “French Kiss”. No they aren’t just to people making out the whole time. You wear clothing the stereotypical French person wears, a black and white striped shirt, a beret, maybe a scarf if your girl. Then you paint your face with white and black face paint to look like a member of the band KISS.

#6 Mean Girls

A great costume for a group of three girls is dressing up like the popular girls from the movie Mean Girls. Now let me give you some reasons why this a great idea. First, who doesn’t love Mean Girls? (If you don’t I’m going to assume you are crazy.) It’s HILARIOUS! Second, it’s pretty simple, but reason one is the only important reason.

If you get stumped this Halloween keep these cool costume ideas in your head. Because being the person(s) that stands out the most is always enjoyable.

What You Don't Know About Librarians - Mallory Thompson

What You Don’t Know About Librarians

By Mallory Thompson

In my advisory class I work in the library. I also was a library tech last year. During this time there are many things I have noticed about being a librarian.

We eavesdrop on your conversations. Listening to everyone's conversations is how I catch up on what is going on around the school, especially when it is just a few people and me. It is kind of hard not to listen to you talking when it’s the only noise in the library. However, sometimes I don’t want to listen to your conversation. When I was a library tech, it was a good time to get homework done when I wasn’t helping anyone, but when you are being obnoxious and loud it is pretty tough.

When the library gets crazy busy, please tell us what you want. I can not read your mind when you come up to the circulation desk and just stand there. Ask me to recheck your book or tell me you need a Chromebook. When I ask for your name, I have to type it in, so please speak up so I don’t have to ask you, “What?” five times before I can understand you.

Newsflash. We do not memorize every single book in the library. Surprising right? If you want a certain type of book, there are computers for you to look it up. That’s why they are there. When I am busy working the desk I don’t have time to look up a book for you when you are too lazy to do it yourself.

I have also become a pro at unjamming the printer. Everyone seems to think the librarians can fix the printer just because it is in the library. Sometimes it gets hard.

When you ask for book suggestions, please tell me what type of books you like. I will probably have a completely different taste in books than you do, so it’s helpful if you give me an idea of what you like.

Although there are many things to be annoyed about, I love being a librarian and the craziness of it all.  

The Tales of a Benchwarmer - Bryson Johnson

The Tales of a Benchwarmer

By Bryson Johnson

    At a football game there are the starters, who play on offense or defense the entire game. Then there are the players who stand on the sidelines...they just simply stand there.I am one of them. While on the sidelines we are expected to cheer for the team and help them play their best. We encourage them to keep hitting the other team. This may seem easy, but it is really hard to get into the game when you have no chance of playing. SO, while on the sidelines we make our own entertainment. The “entertainment” that we come up with is probably not the most appropriate thing but it keeps us occupied. For instance, if you go to the high school basketball games and you watch Coach Holmes you will notice that he always flings his arms outward and stomps his foot if the basketball players do something wrong. Those movements are the only thing I look forward to at the basketball games.

    Another conversation that happens on the sidelines has to do with Segues. You know; those two-wheeled personal transportation devices?  We imagine all the football players rolling around on the field on Segues and trying to get tackles and blocks.  (It makes me laugh just thinking about it now.)

     Something else that we think is funny is how at the football games last year, Coach Lambert would always throw his hat on the ground and yell. (It was funny until you were the one being yelled at.) Sometimes he would try and throw it again, but it was already on the ground so he would bend down and pick it up and throw it on the ground again:)

    The only time that the sideliners are really into the game is when the score is really close, and sometimes we don’t even pay attention then. The coaches on the sideline always tell us to get it up and cheer and we do….until they walk away and then we go back into our groups and mess around again. Every once in a while when we’re just smoking the other team then they let the players on the sideline play. Then everybody cheers.        

Confessions of a Sandwich Artist - Kayla Dvorak

Confessions of a Sandwich Artist

By Kayla Dvorak

Once upon a time, I worked at the local Subway. For the first two weeks I could barely cut the bread. After about seven months, though, I became kind of a sandwich stud. (Just kidding.) I did have the job figured out fairly well, though. Working there for seven months was quite an experience, so since I no longer work there I’ll share with you my favorite and least favorite aspects of Subway.

Positives:

Free Sandwiches

Every single time you work a shift, even if you have a split shift, you get free food. You can either get a free footlong or a free six inch and your choice of chips or two cookies. It is wonderful.

Comfy Pants

Other than the obvious “don’t wear ratty or revealing clothing to work” rule, I believe the only rule was that our footwear had to be closed-toe and our pants had to be black or khaki. Do you know what that means? That means I wore comfy yoga pants to work every day. Oh, yoga pants are too revealing, you say? No. I was issued a medium shirt that covered my behind, therefore, my butt was never visible.

Nice Coworkers

Most of my friends and family will roll their eyes at this positive aspect, because I worked there with my best friend. Aside from her, though, my coworkers were generally tolerable.

Coworkers Who Were Willing to Switch Shifts

Self-explanatory, really.

Short Shifts

It wasn’t until the last few month that I was considered a professional around there, so I wasn’t given very long shifts. However, I worked quite a few shifts. The hours added up nicely without me having to spend long stretches of time there.

Not Minimum Wage

Subway is the only place I’ve ever worked where I was paid more than $7.25 an hour, and I’ve got to say, it was rewarding.

Negatives:

Bread Smell EVERYWHERE.

It was in my clothes, in my car, in my house. The smell of fresh subs never left my hair. My last day was in the first week of August and I feel like my hair still reeks.

Annoying Customers

I’m not trying to stereotype the elderly of Concordia as clueless when it comes to technology, but man oh man did some of them have issues with our new drive thru. Some would press the speaker and shout at us, “Your drive thru is not working. There is no ham on there.” Umm, yes, there is a ham option on there. You just have yet to find it. Stop yelling at me.

Okay, new stereotypical customer. The, “Add bacon, guacamole, extra cheese, double meat, oh and everything else you have.” These people also had a habit of complaining when I rang up their $15 masterpiece of a sandwich.

There’s the good ole, “Oh, I see that you’ve already put together my sandwich, piled it with veggies, drenched it in sauce, and wrapped it…..but could I add guacamole?” NO.

Little known fact: as you punch in your order on the drive thru, we’re making your food. So, when you ask for a Footlong BMT on Honey Oat, then change your mind- after we’ve added all of your veggies AND the extra mayo you requested- and ask for Italian bread instead, you’re being annoying.

Now, you would not believe the amount of people who come through the drive thru and place an order for a Cold Cut Combo salad, just to delete the entire thing because they meant sandwich.

Free Sandwiches

I’m a very picky eater. Up until the time I started working at Subway, the only sandwich I ever ordered was a Footlong Spicy Italian on Italian bread, with American cheese, no veggies and no sauce. I occasionally asked for a cup of black olives on the side. After about my first month of work there, I would also eat turkey sandwiches. Then I added turkey salads and BLTs on Flatbread to my small menu. As you can guess, I quickly grew tired of all my options. The idea of a turkey sandwich from Subway is nauseating at this point. I’m going to give it a year, and if by then Subway doesn’t become appealing again, I’m going to blacklist the entire restaurant chain.

The Actual Act of Making Sandwiches for a Living

It just kind of made me feel dumb when I thought about it. I would be sitting on my couch watching Grey’s Anatomy, and I would realize I had to be to work in three minutes. Which- in case you control freaks out there are concerned about how irresponsible I am- wasn’t a big deal because I live a block away from Subway. I would get up from my couch and head for the door, so sad that I was going to work and I would think- wait, what’s your problem, Kayla? People are getting shot at or working construction somewhere, and you’re annoyed that you have to go make a couple sandwiches? Get it together. In all fairness, though, knowing that other people had more unpleasant jobs than I did definitely didn’t make my job any more desirable.