Kirsten.Michelle

           Since the talk of dress colors, matching tux’s and ‘who -will – be- picking-up – who’, has finally vanished from the halls of Fort Morgan High School, students are now talking about the romantic, fun-filled night. On April 17th, a mass of girls filled the salons, putting the final touches on their nails and hair spraying their up-do’s for the Junior – Senior prom.
       Every year the Prom Committee, lead by Ms. Jordet, spend hours upon days cutting and pasting decorations to fit their ‘Black and White’ themed prom. The Prom Committee was put on by volunteers from the Junior class. The masterpiece that completed the decor, was a lit up fountain, at which our school photographer, Mr. Brito, took a snap shot of each couple as they entered the ball room during ‘The Walk’.
     The Grand March began at half past seven and lasted until eight fifteen. After each couple had there chance to show off their significant other and their attire, the parents and friends left, lights dimmed and the 2010 Prom began.
      After prom actually began, many special evens occured, Seniors danced to their last high school dance, first kisses took place, and last but certainly not least, Ms. Jordet was proposed to. As you can see, the 2010 Junior – Senior Prom was a special event to many.

     Recently, Fort Morgan High School held auditions for the upcomming children’s play called ”The Emporers New Cloths”, for every one who tried out, you can go to the libary hall and next to Ms. Yentez’s room are posters that have the names of all the students who were chosen as the cast and crew.
    In the past, Fort Morgan’s drama club has had many plays in the past.
Before each member of the cast goes on to the stage, they’re told ‘break a leg’. Everyone has heard this saying one time or another, but have you ever wondered where it came from or why it’s said?
     According to Wikipedia, ”Break a leg” is a well-known saying in the theatre, which means good luck. It is typically said to actors and musicians before they go out onto stage to perform.
    It is a superstition for people of the arts, because wishing theatrical people ”good luck” is concidered ”bad luck”. So remember, if you have a friend who is preforming at ”The Emporers New Cloths”, not to wish them ”good luck.” Tell them to “Break a leg!”

     Everyone knows the routine. You shove your books in your locker after fifth period and head down to the commons to scope out your friends. Once you’ve spotted them, you head down to the lunch line and scoot up through the line step by step. Then your grab a fork and then your tray, but have you ever thought about how many people have touched that fork before you placed in on your tray? 
         The custodians, here at Fort Morgan High, help keep our school sanitary and clean. They clean our hallways and bathrooms, and make sure our school remains dust free. But there are always places that bacteria hides, like in the containers that hold the plastic ware.
         Here at Fort Morgan High school it was discovered that worring about school trays is actually not all that rare,”Sometimes I wonder how clean my lunch tray really is.” Says Jordan Johnson, a Sophomore, but Jordan is not alone. Several students including Austin Hoskinsin agree’s and says ‘I eat out because of the worry of how clean the silverware is.’
   While many students state there concern about the cleanliness of the school lunch trays, the Fort Morgan School caffiteria trays are throughly cleaned and safe for eating from. Not only are the trays cleaned but the forks and sppons are replaced on a daily baises.

    In1973 the first cell phone ( pictured to the right)  was invented, later in 1995 texting was invented by Matti Makkonen.
The cell phone seems to have been around forever. The first cell phone was created to make calls, and nothing more.  As time passed, the cell phone became more advance.  Cell phones now have everything you need from an alarm clock and calendar to a camera and built in mp3 player, all in a small transportable device.
     As teenagers, we use our cell phones for one main thing, communication. Here at Fort Morgan High School everyone seems to have a cell phone. But in the school handbook it states that all electronic devices are against school policies, this includes everything from an IPod, MP3 players, Cell phones and cameras. This is because of the distraction that they bring to the student using the device and the students around him or her.
   But what if students started using the cell phones for something a bit more useful, other than telling there ‘BFF’ what they had for lunch or that the girl next to you smells like she hasn’t showered in about 3 years. Currently, phones have a built in note pad that can hold up to 130 words on each page and up to ten pages. Another thing that comes in handy is the voice recorder for those long speeches that you’re assigned to take notes on.

     Everyone knows how the grading system here, at Fort Morgan High school, works. Right? We’ve been taught that anything form 90 to 100% is an A.
And 80-89 is a B. Or that a 70 to 79 is a C, and 60 to 69 is a D. But has anyone noticed that anything from a 0 to a 59% is an F? That leaves an extremely large gap to fail a class.
The school year 2010 to 2011, a new grading system may to be put into effect. The high school A.P (Advance Placement) classes have been graded on a Zero  to 4 scale, leaving less room to fail. SO, a Zero being an F and a 4 being an A, students have an equal advantage to pass a class.
      Although, it seems there is only a bright side to the classes being easier to pass, it also comes with a down side. Students who are having trouble in school or are merely not trying their hardest, can pass with straight 1′s or D’s. This can become a disadvantage in many ways, for example, if you are not doing homework but participate in class you will not learn much of anything.
Some teachers are all for the change but others are not so sure if this ‘quick fix’ will be benifital in the long run. “I see there are benifits to changing the grading scale but there are also some disadvantages. So I’m still on the fence about whether or not I’m for it” says Mr. Humpfrey, an English Teacher.
       By doing this you can pass, say Algebra, with a D. By passing a class you are then able to go and continue into Al-Geo ( Algebra and Geometry transitions.) Not only will you not be able to pass Al-Geo from lack of knowledge but you won’t be able to go back and complete Algebra again because you ‘passed it’.

Here is a riddle for you, I‘m on the bathroom walls, the lockers, written and handed out in a note during passing period and on the tip of your tongue. What am I? It’s a rumor, a tale, a story, a lie or an accusation made up by an Ex-best friend. Whatever you call it, it’s still the same thing.
Here at Fort Morgan High school, rumors are one of the many highlights of our school, as they are in every school. Everyone seems to care “who’s wearing what” and “who asked who out.”
The truth about rumors is that no one seems to enjoy them, except the person that’s spreading them. Not only do rumors hurt people emotionally but they end up foiling one reputation at a time.
Now than ever, rumors are twice as easy and fast to spread across school, and everyone seems to know how. Step one, open cell phone. Step two, click new txt/message. Step three, forward messages. Step four, click, send, and ruin a life.
The thing about a rumor is that whether or not they’re true they always seem to be something bad, it’s never “The best thing about Sarah is …” or “I think Josh and Hannah make such a cute couple, don’t you?” Here is what the Hoofbeat have to say about rumors here at FMHS…

      Here at Fort Morgan High School there is much diversity, whether it is through their religion, their opinions and values or their background. The school is full of students with brightly colored views and self expression. Many if not all of these students have a tradition they celebrate over the winter break.
      Some students celebrate Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or something completely unique to us, while many observe Christmas as their custom. But even for those who celebrate Christmas, it can be done many different ways. Most of the time when we hear the word ‘Christmas,’ we think of our houses being decorated with colorful lights, a Christmas tree in our living room and Santa Claus bringing us a stack of presents but not everyone does Christmas that way. Many traditions are alike in certain ways but are done differently. Here is how some of Fort Morgan’s students celebrate it;

Nichole Atwood; ”We have family come to my house and we eat!” says Nichole. ”After we finish eating we usually go into the living room and pass out a bunch of  gifts for each other and the younger the person is the sooner they open their presents.”

Kayla Quick; ” We wake up really early and go to the stockings and each take turns opening whats inside, then eat lunch with my grandparents.” replies Kayla.

Breanna Ramsey; ” Every Christmas Eve we head down to my grandmothers and she cooks goose!”

Aubrey Threlkel; ”Wow, for Christmas it seems like we do something different each year. This year we are going to my Grandpa’s house to eat dinner as a family! we haven’t done that in years, but if I had to pick a tradition that my family has it would be coming together.” Says Aubrey.

Aron Rascon; ” Honestly for Christmas we don’t do anything, it’s more of a family reunion.”

Michelle Chubuck; ”We just get my family together and open gifts.”

Below is a video of Christmas traditions in different regions, check it out!
French Traditions;

Main points that were told about include;
- Children put out there shoes instead of stockings.
- Lots of families put out nativity scene.
-Christmas tree’s never caught on.

German Traditions;

Main points that were told about include;
- December 6th is the date Christmas is held on.
- Lots of cookies, gynger bread houses and other sweets are baked.
- The savior child (Christ) sends out an angel to give children presents and the kids make shiny things to give the angel.

Argentina Traditions;

Main points that were told about include;
- Decorating a tree is important.
- Lots of food is eaten and dances are held very late in tell midnight (when you get to open your gifts.)
- Christmas is very Commercialized.

      Here at Fort Morgan High School there are many sports to choose from, but for those who are in wrestling it’s not just another sport. On December 3^rd The Morgan Mustangs wrestlers went up against the Fredrick wrestlers and played it out to the best of their abilities.
      The Mustang wrestlers are mostly made up of freshman and sophomores. On our Varsity team we have Ian Wingstorm, a ninth grader weighing in at 103, Jacob Gerken another freshman weighing 119, Nathan Scheneman, grade10 weighing 125, Shea Hopkins grade 11 weighing 130, Caleb Silz grade 10 weighing 140, Derek Gray grade 10 wieghing in at 145, Brandon Hoffman grade 10 weighing 152, Ben Hochanadel grade 10 weighing 160, Ryan Hoffman, a senior, weighing in at 171, Zach Carpender grade 11 weighing in at 189, Rey Corona grade 10.
      On our Junior Varsity Team we have Aaron Gross grade 12, Sebastian Diego grade 10 and Justin Wood grade 9, all weighing in at 125. Then we have Nick Northrup grade 10 weighing in at 130, Ezekiel Rivera grade 10, weighing in at 152 and Angel Del Campo grade 10.

By the time you reach high school most students have heard about kissing someone when you meet under Mistletoe, but how many people know ‘why’ your supposed to kiss? After reading this you’ll know the legend about a goddess named Frigga and how kissing under the Mistletoe came to be.     
   Mistletoe is an old English word. ‘Mistle meaning dung and ‘tan’ meaning twig. MistleTan is the old English form of Mistletoe, it was thought that Mistletoe was dropped and once grew from birds, rather than the seeds just going through birds, the mistletoe plant was an inherent result of birds landing in the branches of trees.
      So how did Mistletoe become associated with kissing and Christmas time? First off the story of kissing under the Mistletoe is based on a Greek legend. Mystical power of mistletoe and the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe owe itself to the legend of Goddess Frigga and her son Balder.
      Frigga was the Goddess of Love. Frigga had a son named Balder. He was the God of the Summer Sun. 
       One night Balder had a dream of his death. He was worried and told his mother about the  dream. Frigga was worried not only for the life of her son but also for the life on Earth because she knew that without Balder, all life on Earth would come to an end. 
      Frigga did her best to avoid her son from dying. Frigga went everywhere and went to every living thing in air, in the water, fire and on the earth to extract a promise that they would never harm her son. She was promised safety of her son by every animal and plant under and above the Earth. 
     However, Loki, the God of Evil, who was the enemy of Balder, always had evil designs in his mind. He was aware that there was one plant that Frigga had overlooked. It grew on apple and oak trees and was known as Mistletoe.
     Loki made an arrow and placed Mistletoe at its tip. He then deceived the blind brother of Balder whose name was Hoder. He was the God of Winter. Loki made Hoder shoot this arrow at Balder.
   This poisoned and killed Balder. Everybody was worried as the Earth turned cold and life became dreary. Every creature tried to bring Balder back to life for three days but it was finally Frigga who managed to revive her son with the help of Mistletoe. Her tears on the plant became pearly white berries and she blessed the plant. So, anyone who stands under the mistletoe plant would never be harmed and would be entitled to a kiss as a token of love.
  To learn more about Mistletoe or greek mythology click HERE.
Bleow is a picture of the godess Frigga (middle) and Balder, the god of the summer sun (right)./’
To the left is a picture of Loki, the god of evil.

     The book  ’BURN’  is a just one of many of the new books the libary has ordered (Go to Michelle’s Blog to learn more). The split novel is written by Suzanne Phillips. The story is written about the averageteenager dealing with high school. The only problem is his high school days are a lot worse than the ‘average teen.’ On a daily basis Cameron is beat up, tripped, humiliated and called names. A rumor starts through out the school that Cameron is a homosexual, causing him to lose all but one friend. The friend that he has left is named SciFi. (He’s really into science and seince fiction stories.) One day SciFi is beat up to the point of almost murdered for being friends with Cameron. Cameron feels that he is to blame for SciFi being placed into the hospital and promises himself he’ll fix it.
       This is where Camerons life goes from bad to worse to terrible, really quickly. Cameron makes quick decisions without thinking about the reaction that they will cause. Read Suzanne Phillips novel to discover the pain that words can have on your fellow high schooler’s.