PTSA Silent Auction co-chair Donna Beausoleil stands at the ready, yellow highlighter in hand. There are fifteen seconds to go in section B.
Three minutes. No props. Original poetry only. The rules are clear for Blair's second annual Poetry Slam, which took place in the media center tonight as part of the Blair Fair festivities.
Between their witty banter, over-the-top story lines and outrageous humor, Gilbert and Sullivan had "high-school-production" written all over their work. And good thing director Kelly O'Connor scooped the opportunity right up; with the hilarious "Pirates of Penzance," she, along with the cast and crew, nailed it all. Hurrah, hurrah!
All facts, figures and names have been fabricated.
The Silver Spring – Takoma Thunderbolts, a local college summer baseball team, participated in a pre-season picnic to preface their upcoming season last night. Players on the team from across the country joined their host families for food and discussion of the seventh season in Thunderbolts history.
Silver Chips Online was one of three winners of the 2006 National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) Online Pacemaker Award. The award was presented at the NSPA National Spring High School Journalism Convention in San Francisco on April 22.
Shirley Brandman, a candidate in the upcoming Montgomery County Board of Education (BOE) race, spoke to Blair's Young Democrats on Tuesday April 4 in room 134 at 3 p.m. Brandman briefly discussed her experience in education before moving into a longer dialogue with members of the club.
Silver Chips Online was one of seven finalists selected in the National Scholastic Press Association's (NSPA) annual Online Pacemaker competition. Of these, three winning online publications will be announced in April during the Spring High School Journalism Convention, which will be held in San Francisco.
Local community activist Jamie Raskin, a Democratic candidate for State Senate, from District 20, spoke to about 40 students last Thursday, March 9, in room 168 at 2:10 and 3 p.m. The event, coordinated by SGR, provided a forum for discussion on Raskin's campaign as well as his work as a constitutional law professor and public interest attorney.
Senior Chelsea Zhang won third place in the 2006 Intel Science Talent Search, according to an Intel press release issued today. She received $50,000 in scholarship money.
Local politician Aaron Klein spoke to about 15 Young Democrats about his upcoming campaign for the Maryland House of Delegates, as well as his intended policies as a potential representative of District 20, today, Feb. 7, at 3 p.m. in room 134.
They're flashy, they're multitalented and they're in town. "Bowfire," a ten-part string group, is making its rounds across the country, bringing forth a show that will knock the socks off of instrumental music fans everywhere.
Well, one thing is for sure. After their last two nearly identical releases, The Strokes needed a change-up, and they needed one badly. It's not that there was anything wrong with what their sound, but by the 2003 release of "Room on Fire," it was clear that the next album would need to be more innovative and distinguished if these guys wanted to keep their fans close.
Twelve Blair seniors were selected as semifinalists in the 65th annual Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS), according to a Jan. 11 Intel press release. Blair tied for the most semifinalists in the country with Ward Melville High School in East Setauket, NY.
By now, you've probably heard something on the 6 o'clock news about a scandalous mess going on just across the Beltway. You've most likely read about it in your Washington Post, heard about it over the radio on your way to school and perhaps even talked about it in class. There has been a lot of clamor and hubbub about a case regarding New York Times journalists, investigations in Africa, uranium, undercover CIA agents and more finger-pointing than a Three Stooges film.
By instinct, you may be reluctant to poke your head into any restaurant located on a street with such an unappealing name as "Grubb Road." But at the Red Dog Café, the cuisine does not merit association with the unfortunate address and certainly deserves some attention.
It was only a matter of time before revolutionary rock-opera "Rent," was brought to the silver screen. Director Rob Marshall did it magnificently with his "Chicago," a production which earned six Academy Awards. And while director Chris Columbus may have trouble boasting the same for "Rent," the film doesn't do the Broadway musical anything short of justice.
The step up from a PG to PG13 rating was the first clue to a likely quantum leap of intensity with the 4th Harry Potter film in the series. But a movie so powerful that you can detect the heart rate of the person sitting next to you through a firm grip of their hand is another story, and one that is a reality with "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire."
Okay, it's official; we have lost our trick-or-treating rights to old age. Instead of opening our hallowed plastic pumpkins for a handful of candy, we're opening our eyes and ears to disapproving looks and deep sighs from the neighbors who now toss the bite-sized Snicker bars - the ones that that should have gone to the kids behind us - into our bottomless bags. Our scavenging is on the brink of pathetic, and our lame endeavors show through our questionable made-from-whatever's-around-the-house costumes.
Senior class t-shirts, which were scheduled to be distributed on Oct. 25, will now be available for purchase on Oct. 28. The delay has been attributed to delivery problems, according to Senior Class Treasurer Nina Yang.
Heather Mizeur, Domestic Policy Director for Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), spoke to Blair's Young Democrats club yesterday, Oct. 12, at 3 p.m. Mizeur focused on her upcoming campaign for State Delegate from District 20 as well as the importance of getting involved early with local politics.
Remember that awful Diflucan commercial with the middle-aged women running up and down escalators in distress, all to the beat of the nauseating "Gotta Go"? theme music? Maybe you don't; after all, its infamy did put an abrupt halt to the annoying advertisement, and we haven't really seen much more of that campaign from the bladder fixer-upper. But now, whether wanted or not, we Blazers can't help but wonder why we constantly find ourselves singing the catchy jingle during the school day.
"New Orleans is no more." Senior Carl Fortenberry recalls the words his mother spoke the morning of Aug. 28 when Hurricane Katrina, a category four storm, hit Algiers Point, New Orleans, washing away the only home he had known for the past 18 years. By the time Katrina struck, Fortenberry had already left behind his extended family, his friends and his life to drive with his mother to Little Rock, Arkansas. Now, he is a student at Blair struggling to begin a new life.
In 1967, the Beatles came out with "Magical Mystery Tour," a film that is still often described as something only a true Beatle fanatic could appreciate. The production is totally over the top, containing flashy scenery and performances which strongly suggest the combination of hallucinogenic substances and boundless imaginations. Among the wacky performances included in the film is a cut from the jazz-rock-comedy group, the "Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band," featuring their parodist, "Death Cab for Cutie." In the song, the group narrates a taxi accident, in the style of honky-tonk, turning an otherwise grim story line into a comedic routine. The song was made even stranger with the Beatles' decision to synchronize the audio with a striptease act by 1960's icon Jan Carson.
Not often does one find sixteen varieties of fresh oysters on the menu of a somewhat hidden restaurant in the middle of a busy town. At Black's Bar and Kitchen, these fresh oysters are only a fraction of the seafood options on the menu, and the rest is equally impressive. The bill may not be easy on the teen wallet, but it sure seems worth it when you're served some of the freshest seafood in town.
With eleven years of establishment and six successful albums, InToneNation (ITN), Blair's student-run a cappella group, has made quite a name for itself. In this case, the name is "Leave a Message After the Tone," ITN's seventh and most recent release. The album is a live recording from May, complete with nineteen tracks which demonstrate the group's strengths and show their potential for the future.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
"Chocolate-covered frogs and Hagrid's Hot Cocoa!" a sign advertised in a very crowded basement. A daunting figure stood behind the counter, dressed in an ominous cloak and a painted white face, serving small children clad as wizards, witches, elves and even…You-Know-Who.
"No I'm never, no I'm never, no I'm never gonna let you down now," Jack White promises in "The Nurse," a single from The White Stripes' latest release, "Get Behind Me Satan." He was true to his word. Though Jack and Meg White have held onto a reputation for producing unusual music, this eccentric pair has created an album that is truly in a unique world apart from any of their other releases.
Aperture. The word, in this case, means a scope of some of the most imaginative pieces Blair students have to offer. This year, the literary magazine includes one hundred and four pages of poetry, prose, and even sheet music, paired with artwork and photography to make for a truly inspired and cohesive work of creativity.
As 10:30 p.m. rolled around on June 3rd, the 9:30 club in Northeast DC was filled to capacity. The headlining act was Spoon, a band which began on an independent label, and has steadily gained notice since their premier on the popular teen television drama "The OC." Not only has the group undergone several facelifts since their first album release in 2002, but their recorded sound has become very methodical and calculated, and I was interested to see how this would translate on stage.
The Blair Sports Academy (BSA) will implement several changes in the fall, but activities such as table tennis tournaments will continue to be a part of the program.
Security guard John Toombs looks on as a student makes a call to Senator Barbara Mikulski to plead for action in Darfur, Sudan today during 5B lunch.
Freshman Safarah Khan makes a call to a congressman.
Freshman Philip Mallari joins Blazers in the Sudan call-in campaign.
Freshman Philip Mallari joins Blazers in the Sudan call-in campaign.
Security officer John Toombs looks on as a student makes a call to Senator Barbara Mikulski.
Tom Hucker, Executive Director of Progressive Maryland, spoke to Blair's Young Democrats after school on March 21 about his campaign for the Maryland House of Delegates.
The Blair Sports Academy (BSA) will implement several changes in the fall, but activities such as table tennis tournaments will continue to be a part of the program.
The Kennedy Center and the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China put on performances for the month long Festival of China exhibit. Chinese fireworks are displayed near the Kennedy Center to celebrate the Chinese culture.
Takoma Park Elementary students tend a Hurricane Katrina relief stand in hopes of raising $2000 for their cause. The students made the jewelry and lemonade to hand out in exchange for donations, and raised $1,262 during their previous appearance at the Takoma Park Folk Festival in September.
Children at the Street Festival line up to receive balloon figures created by this street vendor. This was one of the few donation-based activities dispersed among the food and craft stands at the festival.
Blair junior Brenna Mork exchanges $5 for a crab cake sandwich at the Street Festival. Local food venues like this one lined the sidewalks from 3-5 p.m. last Saturday, serving hungry customers throughout the day.
The Takoma Park Street festival hosted a variety of food stands from local areas, including this one which specialized in teriyaki chicken skewers. Neighboring food joints served Middle Eastern, Thai, and Korean cuisine to the thousands of customers who attended the festival.