Every day reporter Tom Ricks wakes up at dawn, conducts interviews, checks in with the Washington Post bureau and later works on a story. But throughout these typical journalistic routines, Ricks also adorns body armor, a helmet and sunglasses to protect him against bomb blasts, because security is always a problem when reporting in Iraq.
When petite sophomore Mindy Or and timid freshman Adam Jackson walked onstage carrying a wooden cot, their presence seemed unimpressive. But when the pianist began to play, Or suddenly sloughed her blank expression and captivated the audience with her strong voice and authentic emotions. Jackson responded with an equally exceptional pitch in their love song, "Sun and Moon," from "Miss Saigon."
The unofficial Blair Frisbee Club was ranked fifth out of 84 high school teams across the nation by the Ultimate Player's Association based on its performance at the Fall Brawl tournament played on Oct. 3, according to team member junior Camden Lee.
Parents of black students met Tuesday for Blair's NAACP Parents' Council meeting to discuss strategies to increase black and Latino parental involvement in school and to pursue programs that will boost minority academic achievement.
Senior Rachel Martin's arms flow like water and her back arches as if she were spineless. Her hips sway in rhythm with the Middle Eastern music and the bells on her skirt jingle as she captivates the crowd at last year's SGR Spectacular. Half a year later, Martin uses her dance skills hoping to get a college boost in a scholarship competition.
The Blair cafeteria revised its lunch menu this year in response to a Maryland health mandate passed this summer and concluded MCPS's gradual menu changes over the past six years, according to cafeteria manager Maddalena Bianchini.
Coaches from the fall sports teams honored students with the most valuable player award (MVP), the most improved player award (MI), the coach's award (CA) and the outstanding senior award (OS) at the Fall Sports Banquet on Nov. 21 in the auditorium.
Communication Arts Program (CAP) juniors visited Sligo, Silver Spring International (SSI), Eastern and Takoma Park middle schools in the past two weeks to encourage more minorities to apply to the program this December.
The girls' and boys' cross-country teams finished ninth and eleventh respectively out of 12 teams at the 4A Maryland Regional meet today at Watkins Mill High School. Neither team qualified for the state championship races, but three juniors finished in the top 25 percent and qualified individually.
The wind howls and waves lap up against the deck of the ship. Crewmembers struggle to control the sails while staying on their feet. The ship tips to the left and half of the sailors stumble onto their knees, fighting to stand up again. Suddenly, the scene ends and the actors relax on the bare stage, dropping their arms at their sides and steadying their legs. Kelly O'Connor brings the performers back to reality to take questions and comments about the first scene in "Twelfth Night."
Popular music isn't always the best music. Sub-par artists will always manage to attract fans. Britney Spears, who ruled the pop scene five years ago with her robotic voice and uninspiring lyrics, is one of the most prominent examples. Nickelback, though slightly more talented than Spears, pulls off a similar stunt. Their lyrics are bland, their songs all sound the same, and their style is trite. Nevertheless, it's hard not to sing along to singles such as "How You Remind Me," "Someday" and the recent hit "Photograph."
The girls' and boys' cross country teams finished 9th out of 19 and 14th out of 23 respectively at the County Championships this morning at Gaithersburg High School. Junior Halsey Sinclair came in first place out of 137 varsity girls with a time of 18:59.
In light of deadly violence at two high school football games last month, Montgomery County officials could have taken the brash action of moving the night events to the daytime. However, no dates have yet been changed and only one school changed the time of one game to an hour earlier on a Friday. Administrators should be commended for the calm and collected manner in which they reacted to these serious incidents. Changing the games from Friday night to Saturday during the day would have resulted in a significant drop in attendance because students are less likely to attend Saturday games.
Admissions officers from over ninety colleges will visit Albert Einstein High School on Monday, Oct. 10 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Students will be able to ask representatives individual questions and learn about important application information.
The girls cross-country team defeated Springbrook today with a total score of 18 points to Springbrook's 43. The boys lost 31-24 even though a Blair runner came in first place.
The girls' cross-country team beat Richard Montgomery and Paint Branch in a double dual meet today at Paint Branch High School. The boys conquered Paint Branch but lost to Richard Montgomery (RM).
Downtown Silver Spring flourished yesterday as an estimated 15,000 people came to the second annual Silver Spring Jazz Festival on Ellsworth Avenue on the lawn across from the Majestic Cinema, according to police officers. High school jazz bands played on colorful floats, sponsors set up booths along Ellsworth and several world-renowned jazz artists, including Wynton Marsalis, performed on a stage erected on one side of the lawn.
Blair athletes caught using illegal substances will be suspended from athletic activities for the rest of the school year as part of a new drug policy implemented by the Blair Athletic Department. If caught a second time, the athlete will be expelled from athletic participation for the remainder of his or her time at Blair.
Juniors Halsey Sinclair and Joshua Uzzell won third and eighth place in their respective races in a cross-country invitational meet late this afternoon. Overall, the girls A team came in 13th place out of 16 and the boys A team came in 9th out of 19 teams. The boys B team came in 10th place out of 19.
It's summer time and the baseball spirit is back in D.C. Sports fans all over the metropolitan area have wasted no time in buying season tickets, stocking up on Nationals' paraphernalia or tuning in to Z104 on game days. But if the brouhaha hasn't yet attracted the less-enthused Washingtonians, it won't be long before newcomers join the Nationals' fan base. Playing at R.F.K. stadium just a half hour drive or a convenient Metro ride away from Silver Spring, the Nats offer games full of excitement, drama and cheers all around.