Angela Hanigan

The babies just keep on coming! Science teacher Erin Arredondo and Drama and Speech and Debate teacher Angela Hanigan are pregnant and they couldn’t be more excited. Soon, they have to endure the endless diaper changes, sleepless nights and constant crying but for now, they’re anxiously waiting for their upcoming babies by picking out names or decorating the baby’s room. Carrying an extra weight for nine months is no piece of cake but once the baby arrives, it’s all worth the wait.
Angela Hanigan
Alice Lee: Is your baby a boy or a girl?
Angela Hanigan: I don’t know what it is yet. I’ll find out next week.
AL: How do you feel about being pregnant?
AH: I’m feeling excited and, not really scared but there is a lot to think about and prepare for. It can be a little overwhelming at times, but overall I’m excited and I think it will be a wonderful new adventure.
AL: Do you have any food cravings?
AH: No crazy food cravings yet. I haven’t eaten red meat in 4 years and started eating it again recently. It’s pretty awesome. And for some reason I’m really into lemonade right now.
AL: What did you do so far to prepare for your baby?
AH: Ha-ha. I haven’t done much. I’m reading some books and of course seeing the doctor on a regular basis. I’m not due until late July so I’ll start thinking about all that stuff in the next couple months.

Erin Arredondo
Alice Lee: Is your baby a boy or a girl?
Erin Arredondo: boy
AL: Do you have any special cravings?
EA: Nothing crazy, but there were a couple weeks where I ate PB & J for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
AL: How do you feel emotionally? Excited/ scared?
EA: I am very excited about adding to my little clan (I already have a two year old daughter), because I have always wanted to have at least one son and daughter, but I am dreading returning to sleepless nights and hourly diaper changes.  However, my daughter is very smart for her age so I think I can teach her how to change the stinky ones by then!
AL: Have you chosen a name for your baby?
EA: Well, my husband is voting for Pirate “Arrrrrrr”edondo, but since I am the lucky one that gets to squeeze the watermelon out, I get two votes and right now I like Chase Parker.
AL: How did you prepare so far for him or her?
EA: Honestly, I haven’t done much to prepare for him yet.  Since he will be our second child we already have a bunch of baby stuff.  I just hope he likes pink.
AL: Does being pregnant affect your teaching days?
EA: I was extra tired during the first three months, which made it difficult to feel energetic during the school day.  Now that my belly looks like it is housing triplets (it’s not, it just looks that way…at least I hope so) I just find it difficult to maneuver around the desks in my room without bumping the back of students’ heads, but it’s a good way to wake them up when they fall asleep in class.

Photo: tripadvisor.com

On February 8, California Adventure, sister park to Disneyland, turned a decade old.  Through these 10 years, California Adventure has had many renovations. This includes the recent World of Color completion, Flynn’s Arcade attraction opening and The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.

California Adventure recently announced its new plans for “Cars Land” opening in 2012. Inspired by the movie Cars (2006) and the upcoming Cars 2 (in theaters June 24), this expansion to the theme park will have three new rides: Radiator Spring Racers, Luigi’s Flying Tires and Mator’s Junkyard Jamboree; three dining areas: Cozy Cone Motel, Flo’s V8 Café and Fillmore’s Taste-in; two retail shops: Radiator Springs Curator Shop and Ramone’s House of Body Art and four recreations of the movie’s settings: Cadillac Fins, Radiator Springs Courthouse, Main Road and Sarge’s Surplus Hut.

“Cars Land” will be located in between “A Bug’s Land” and “Paradise Pier.”  This big transformation of the park will extend into an unused parking area behind the theme park. Disney is finishing its biggest transformations yet as it nears its $1 billion dollar makeover next year.

Recent teen survey results were released naming the top six attractions at California Adventure. At the top of the list was The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror, followed closely by California Screamin’. Trailing behind these top two were Soarin’ Over California, World of Color, Toy Story Mania! and Grizzly River Run.

February 8, also marked the tenth anniversary of the Downtown Disney District, which connects Disneyland, California Adventure and all three resort hotels. This lively promenade contains 5 nighttime entertainment locations, 25 shopping locals and 16 different dining experiences, opened from the early morning to late night. This boardwalk is great for people who would like to experience Disney, without spending the money to get into the parks.

Photo: allaroundphilly.com (Sample Crossword Image only)

Here are the crossword puzzle answers from the March print issue:

Across:

2. AQUAMARINE

3. PRIMETIME

6. ANTHEM

9. PALLADIUM

11. WOMEN

12. GREEN EGGS AND HAM (no spaces)

Down:

1. DIMES

4. MOONLIGHT

5. GRAHAM

7. HOMER

8. MARATHON

10. FORMAL

Spinning flags. Twirling ribbons. Flying sabres. Whirling rifles. These are the many items the NHS Colorguard team uses for their various performances. Color guard, or what others may know as flag spinning, is an extracurricular activity offered at Northwood.

This dedicated group of students represents an artistic side of sports. In the fall semester, they are often seenperforming with Marching Band in the half-time shows, parades, and field competitions. During the spring semester, they participate in various Color Guard Competitions.

The team works hard after school, practicing for their sectionals.

“Color guard is a great group to be a part of. We have a lot of fun together during practices and performances. The group bonded together pretty quickly and we are all one big happy family.” said Brittany Silva, senior. “It helps everyone express their individuality and self-expression throughout a process of art and athletics.”

Everyone in the group has their favorite spinning item.

“The flags are the best part of color guard. I get to perform many tricks with them during the awesome performances. Plus, they come in a variety of different colors,” said freshman Iman Serag.

“I actually prefer the sabre because it allows more creativity during the performances,” said sophomore Melinda Jenkins.

Not many people realize the amount of work and dedication the group puts into their art. Spinning a flag, rifle, sabre, or ribbon takes a very specialized strength, control and coordination.

Photo: teacherweb.craven.k12.nc.us

With report cards arriving at home, it’s no wonder many Northwood students are looking particularly discouraged lately. However, while some are taking their borderline B’s badly, others are looking to the new semester with optimism.

“My goal? I’m gonna get me some A’s. And a life, hopefully,” said sophomore Tiffany Cheng.

Some are expecting to (actually) change their study habits, instead of putting it off, year after year (really, who doesn’t procrastinate?).

“I want to be more organized this semester … not forgetting to do homework is going to be my goal,” said sophomore Lorraine Liao.

Though most students seemed to be focused on academically orientated goals, others look to improve in their extracurriculars.

“I’m looking to make it to State for Speech and Debate,” said sophomore Alan Sun.

“I want to make the lacrosse team,” said sophomore Emma Wilson.

Of course, there are always those kids who aren’t affected by recent grades, and look forward to just kicking back for the rest of the year.

“I really want to watch ‘500 Days of Summer’ … I was planning it all last month, but it kept getting delayed because of those stupid finals,” said sophomore Connie Oh.

But if you think that’s outrageous, take into account the expectations of some of Northwood’s more … out-of-the-box dreamers.

“I’m hoping to meet Selena Gomez this semester,” said sophomore Eashani Sathialingam.

And finally, we have our favorite type of goal setter: the honors student. One would think they’d just keep aiming higher, from A to A+, but I had to see to be sure. What were sophomore Jay Gopal’s goals, for example?

“Who needs goals when you’re already perfect?”

Irvine has become a hotspot for a new delicious trend: food trucks. Inspired by the famous Kogi BBQ truck, there are now countless options driving around Irvine, offering savory alternatives to familiars like McDonald’s and Chipotle.  

These trucks often specialize in a certain ethnic cuisine or have a unique take on convenient gourmet food. Here are some of the food trucks that are less well known than Kogi but are equally delicious.

The Lime Truck: This California beach cuisine food truck serves up the most satisfying Carnitas fries known to man. Like a Mexican version of In-n-Out’s animal fries, guacamole, sour cream and chipotle-honey slaw topping beautifully complements the pulled pork and fries. Additionally, their pulled pork is absolutely mouthwatering.

The Piaggio Gourmet Food Truck: This truck offers gourmet Argentinean food, including meat empanadas and the Tres Amigos burrito, a stunning combination of shrimp, steak, and pork. Don’t forget to finish off a tasty meal with Churros con Dulce de Leche (churros smothered in caramel).

The Bacon Mania Truck: This is definitely a must-try for bacon lovers. They have everything from bacon-wrapped bites of macaroni and cheese (Bacon Ball Trio) to bacon wrapped brownies.

The Seabirds Truck: For staunch vegetarians craving a bite of heaven, the Seabirds Truck is the place to go. An interesting item is their Jerk Jackfruit Taco, which, for a fruit taco, is pretty delicious. The jerk seasoning perfectly complemented the meat-esque texture of the fruit. This truck definitely offers a fresh spin on vegetarian cuisine.

The downside—or, for some, the fun side—of food trucks is that it’s a bit of a hassle hunting them down. For the busy bees too preoccupied to constantly check a food truck’s schedule on its website or Twitter page, the Orange County Din-Din A-Go-Go event is a great opportunity to try out multiple trucks. The event hosts different food trucks every Wednesday in the parking lot of Irvine Lanes.

With their easy street convenience and gourmet styled fast food, food trucks are definitely here to stay. Get out your car keys.

Photo: blogspot.com

Valentine’s Day means gifts. Whether it may be the classic flowers and
chocolates or something extreme like a diamond necklace, this lovers’ holiday has everyone up
and about (usually them men) searching for a good present to give to their significant other. This
being high school however, girls should set their standards a little lower instead of expecting
a pricey necklace. Boys at Northwood were asked how much they were willing to spend on a girl for Valentine’s Day, and here are their responses…

“Depends on the girl … if I really like her, I wouldn’t really cap on how much I spend on her.
Unless it’s too ridiculous … if not, I’d say maybe $50?” Andrew Lee (12)

“Love is priceless.” Vance Nguyen (10)

“Vance stole my quote.” Jasper Lee (10)

“All the money I have.” Derek Lim (9)

“I’d give her my love and you can’t put a price on that … I would also spend $50 for flowers and
dinner.” Kyle Wakayama (11)

“How much is she willing to spend on me?” Sathon Phowborom (12)

“Like … $10-20 … um … yeah.” Chris Tsao (9)

“If it’s a girl I really like, I’m willing to spend as much as possible.” Patrick Enriquez (11)

“I don’t have a girl.” Bryan Sam (12)

“Definitely depends on the girl.” Homin Kwark (10)

“30 bucks. Ok, that’s all I have so far …” Jonathan Le (9)

Most of Northwood’s students have been to the Media Center at least once in their high school career at NHS. But do we really know about it as much as we use it?

Although the exterior remains the same as it was from 1999 when NHS first opened, the interior of the library has been changed drastically over the 10-year period that NHS existed. The tables were changed to the current arrangement, in long rows, to allow students to collaborate.

“We actually want to change the name from the library to ‘learning commons,’” said NHS Media Center specialist, Alan Simsovic. A “learning common” can be defined as a place where students can communicate and collaborate to work together, at the same time learn, study and relax.  Students can use the variety of resources offered by the Media Center: textbooks, fiction and non-fiction books, laptops and the space to work.

The library, media center, learning commons — whatever you prefer to call it — remains the go-to place for students to finish up homework, research using laptops, use textbooks or even relax on the large bean bags.

But remember, food is not allowed inside the library. There is a serious mice problems in school buildings and keeping food out will definitely reduce, if not stop, the problem. Although at first the policy was “no food or drinks,” drinks are currently permitted inside because they do not directly cause the mice problem.

NHS is currently number one in the district among all high schools for checkouts, including all resources such as laptops and textbooks, according to Simsovic. So keep it up, Northwood! Take advantage of those plentiful resources in the library to fill up your brain!

Photo: blogspot.com

As Winter Formal fast approaches, girls are bubbling with excitement and anticipation, but for guys, it’s just plain confusion and anxiety. Among all this commotion, it really comes down to one question. How do you ask? Although every girl is different, most have the same advice for guys. Some Northwood students share their thoughts and preferences:

“It should be nice and simple,” said sophomore Vanessa Greenman.

And sophomore Maxine Yang agrees. “Anything works. Just remember to follow the three S’s: simple, sweet and special,” she said.

“Something classic, in public and in front of a lot of people with nice flowers, balloons and a teddy bear,” said junior Jessica Lee. “Asking in front of a crowd shows courage, guys.”

“A single rose,” said sophomore Nicole Johnson.

Others prefer it to be more personal, so creativity is welcome.

“I would want the biggest cookie in the whole world! But it has to taste good,” a Northwood student said.

“Surprises are best,” said senior Paula Soto. “Maybe have it be in one of my classes or have my parents in on it. And it should definitely be in public.”

“A handshake and some chocolate milk,” said senior Sara Clayton.

“Leave a note and a rose in each of her classes, and at the end of the day have a note leading to where you will ask her,” said sophomore Elisha Kim.

“With flowers, hugs and surprises,” said freshman Tiffany Zhang. “Something worth remembering.”

As for the more imaginative, don’t worry if you need to tone it down a bit.

“A giant heart made of 1,000 roses handpicked by Japanese strawberry farmers. A haiku of exactly 18 syllables and five lines and a giant heart cookie with chocolate of the highest quality imported from Belgium,” said senior Teddy Hsieh. “And don’t forget the barber shop quartet kidnapped from Venice.”

“He must fly a plane and spell out F-O-R-M-A-L in the sky. Not to mention the shower of fireworks afterwards,” said senior Nichole Chung.

And let’s just say others are more flexible.

“I don’t really care how,” said sophomore Jessica Dang.” It’s enough that he has the courage to do it.”

Photo: iconarchive.com

Guys, did your Valentine’s Day not go as planned? Well, here are some tips for next year to hopefully make it better. For starters, when girls think of Valentine’s Day, they think of presents: Chocolates, teddy bears, flowers, hugs, kisses and many other ideas enter their imagination.

Although February is commonly referred to as the month of loving, it should be a month of intense planning and expenses for all males throughout the world. Guys must endure through an intense course of planning and worrying until the dreaded day finally arrives.

Here, on The Howler Online, we care about our readers, so here are 7 tips on how to create a successful Valentine’s Day next year for you and your special someone.

Tip #1: Don’t procrastinate: Planning for a date is like doing your homework. The earlier, the better.

Tip #2: Use the Internet: Google, Yahoo Answers and Ask.com are all good sources you can use to get ideas!

Tip# 3: The classics never hurt: Out of ideas? A dozen long-stemmed roses and a box of chocolates can never fail.

Tip #4:  Know your lover: It’s always awkward when you give her an allergic reaction…

Tip #5: Dedicate the day to her: That’s right. No “Call of Duty.”

Tip #6: Don’t be stupid: Enough said.

Tip #7: Be creative: In the words of our beloved Spongebob Squarepants, “IMAGINATION” is key.

And for those who plan to spend Valentine’s Day alone, don’t fret. You’re not alone! Hang out with others, rent a DVD or pig out on junk food! Either way, everyone can finally have fun on Valentine’s Day!