I don’t like holding onto things. I happen to be the type of person who is more likely to resolve the issue before it has time to fester. I know that a lot of people don’t have the same habits as me. Many more are probably going to jump to drama. The arguing, gossip and name calling are the sole reasons that I choose to resolve the problem before it reaches that point, even if it means putting myself back in a situation that is emotionally harmful.

I have always be the type of person who sacrifices her feelings for the benefit of others. I have had countless friendships that I continued even though it deemed itself harmful to me in everyway. I have been called names, had many gossip stories told about me, and still I found myself calling this person my best friend. That is not healthy, at least in my opinion.

My experiences with friendships are anything but normal. I have struggled with equal friendship for the majority of my life. My mom once told me that when I was 5 years old I told her, “I don’t care what they say about me, as long as they play with me.” Luckily, through years and years of tears and pain, I taught myself that if I am not appreciated for my qualities as a friend, then they are not worthy of my friendship. I have several amazing best friends who love me for me and not anything else. I am proud of myself for the growth I have made in appreciating myself for the face, body and personality that I possess.

“(I’m) really exciting to see all the hard work by the coaches and kids pay off,” head coach Tim Kelly said. “We have been shooting for this goal for a number of years and to get the city championship for the kids, coaches and school means a lot.”

Corona competed against the other five schools in the Tempe Union High School District, finishing with 58 more points than any other team. Normally, Desert Vista is a huge competitor for the Aztecs, but on Friday, the boys were finally able to come out on top.

“It’s a stepping stone for the program,” Kelly said. “It puts our program up with some of  (the) top in state.”

A win for the Aztecs wasn’t the only success story Friday told; Corona junior Nathan Rodriguez broke his father’s 20-year city record in the 1600 meter, only a few seconds off from cracking the school record, which he’s looking to beat next week at state.

“(It’s) not as sweet as it’s going to feel when I get the big one, the real school record,” Rodriguez said. “He’s always encouraging me. If anything he just eggs me on. He actually talks a lot of smack about it.”

With a city championship under the boys’ belt, the Aztecs are hopeful of a state championship.

“We had some people definitely step up on Friday that we didn’t expect to,” Rodriguez said. “We’re trying to calculate where our teams are going to stack up for the state meet. We’re really hoping for everyone to have their best day and come out on top; that’s our goal. We can’t always have our best day, especially when you have crazy things happening at state, and with how hot it’s going to be. You never know what to expect, but we’re definitely going to try to put our best team out there and hope for the best.”

The concert started with both bands performing together. Then the steel drum band left the stage for the jazz band to perform solo. The jazz band featured the signature tune of the saxophone, along with a variety of other instruments working together in harmony. The result was a masterpiece, one that clearly pleased the entire audience.

Next came the steel drum band. This was my favorite part of the evening. The band played several Hawaiian tunes, corresponding to their Hawaiian attire, then performed a Beatles mix. Narrell performed with the students during many of these songs, then performed a solo of his own. I will admit that the way he played was phenomenal, but he played for such a long time that I felt it took away from the students’ performance.  However, it was still a great addition to the evening.

The concert closed with a performance with both bands together. The music was great and it left a lasting impression on the audience.

Photos courtesy of Elizabeth Cheney.

Students Against Disruptive Decisions (SADD) and Site Council helped put the assembly together.

“Site Council and SAAD both try to come up with ideas for preventing drug use and alcohol abuse,” Principal Brent Brown, “We decided it was time for another DUI assembly.”

The assembly generated mixed feelings amongst students, like junior RJ Micks

“It sent out a good message,” said Micks, “but it looked expensive.” Another student, senior Amanda Espinoza has experienced a mock DUI twice this year.

“I went to Marcos de Niza at the beginning of the year.” Espinoza said, “I thought Corona’s was cool but Marcos’s was more rehearsed.”

The assembly did send out a wholesome pre-prom message and will likely happen again in the near future.

“Don’t ever drink and drive,” said Brown, “That’s just crazy!”

“I still can’t believe I’m actually in the program,” junior Evan Anderson said. “I’m incredibly excited!”

The students who are going to other countries are Evan Anderson, Caroline Lull, Olivia Van Vleet (Beaulieu Sur Mer, France). Elizabeth Cheney, Johnny Osgood, Byrnn Wheeler (Carlow, Ireland). Everett Johnson, Jack Robertson, Alisa Rodriquez, Vicky Sanford (Regenburg, Germany). Tim Snelling (Cuenca, Ecuador). Sean Ewen (Lower Hutt, New Zealand). Jameson Langlois (Trollhattan, Sweden). Alex Heisler (Skopje, Macedonia). Otzma – Bie Paz (Zhenjiang, China).

Sister Cities started in 1971 when the first country to join the program with the US was Macedonia. Currently, the president of the program in Tempe is Richard Neuheisel, and the expectation of the students is quite high.

“I’m really excited to learn more about the cultures of a different country, especially one that is so different from ours,” Alex Heisler said. “The lifestyle in Macedonia is pretty different from ours and I know it’s going to be a huge culture shock, but I think that’ll be the exciting part,” Heisler said.

Everyone who goes usually has a great time, but whether it’s missing friends and family, all the time spent or missing out on something, these students usually miss something.

“The only downfall I could see anyone having is maybe missing out on summer sports, but it is all worth it in the end,” Van Vleet said.

With the choice of countries, the delegates were able to pick three of their favorite countries and the board chooses where they are going. The students have their different reasons for choosing their countries, some being family.

“I had a lot of family in Sweden that I’ve never met before, and I’ve always been interested in it. I always wanted to go there because of the scenery” Langlois said.

For some, it is the culture that draws them in.

“I’ve always wanted to visit that country (Germany) since I was little and Regensburg is such a neat city,” Sanford said.

Photos courtesy of Manali Chavan.

I don’t like holding onto things. I happen to be the type of person who is more likely to resolve the issue before it has time to fester. I know that a lot of people don’t have the same habits as me. Many more are probably going to jump to drama. The arguing, gossip and name calling are the sole reasons that I choose to resolve the problem before it reaches that point, even if it means putting myself back in a situation that is emotionally harmful.

I have always be the type of person who sacrifices her feelings for the benefit of others. I have had countless friendships that I continued even though it deemed itself harmful to me in everyway. I have been called names, had many gossip stories told about me, and still I found myself calling this person my best friend. That is not healthy, at least in my opinion.

My experiences with friendships are anything but normal. I have struggled with equal friendship for the majority of my life. My mom once told me that when I was 5 years old I told her, “I don’t care what they say about me, as long as they play with me.” Luckily, through years and years of tears and pain, I taught myself that if I am not appreciated for my qualities as a friend, then they are not worthy of my friendship. I have several amazing best friends who love me for me and not anything else. I am proud of myself for the growth I have made in appreciating myself for the face, body and personality that I possess.

“(I’m) really exciting to see all the hard work by the coaches and kids pay off,” head coach Tim Kelly said. “We have been shooting for this goal for a number of years and to get the city championship for the kids, coaches and school means a lot.”

Corona competed against the other five schools in the Tempe Union High School District, finishing with 58 more points than any other team. Normally, Desert Vista is a huge competitor for the Aztecs, but on Friday, the boys were finally able to come out on top.

“It’s a stepping stone for the program,” Kelly said. “It puts our program up with some of  (the) top in state.”

A win for the Aztecs wasn’t the only success story Friday told; Corona junior Nathan Rodriguez broke his father’s 20-year city record in the 1600 meter, only a few seconds off from cracking the school record, which he’s looking to beat next week at state.

“(It’s) not as sweet as it’s going to feel when I get the big one, the real school record,” Rodriguez said. “He’s always encouraging me. If anything he just eggs me on. He actually talks a lot of smack about it.”

With a city championship under the boys’ belt, the Aztecs are hopeful of a state championship.

“We had some people definitely step up on Friday that we didn’t expect to,” Rodriguez said. “We’re trying to calculate where our teams are going to stack up for the state meet. We’re really hoping for everyone to have their best day and come out on top; that’s our goal. We can’t always have our best day, especially when you have crazy things happening at state, and with how hot it’s going to be. You never know what to expect, but we’re definitely going to try to put our best team out there and hope for the best.”

Martin is a part of Corona’s Competition Government team. The team had won state back in January and was in Washington, D.C. this past weekend to compete at nationals. At the same time, Martin’s baseball team was playing its first round game against Hamilton on April 27.

“Our other starting pitcher pitched that game and my dad gave me updates because he went to the game,” Martin said.

Corona beat Hamilton, 6-5, and was set to advance to Tuesday’s second round game. Meanwhile, back in Washington, the Comp. Gov. team placed in the top 10 and was set to continue onto the third round, which involved competing all through Monday. It was then that Martin realized just how much was occurring within the next 48 hours.

“Once I found out that we won (baseball) I knew I was going to have to get a flight back early,” Martin said. “The plan was to fly home as soon as the competition ended so I could get back in time to pitch because I would be the starting pitcher for that game.”

Martin has been a part of CdS baseball for three years and didn’t plan on giving up on his team now, but for the time being he was determined to stay focused on the national We the People competition.

“On Sunday night, getting ready for the final round of Comp. Gov. I was up late studying so I wasn’t functioning on much sleep at all,” Martin said.

Despite the lack of sleep, the team was able to place sixth in the nation, a first time accomplishment for Comp. Gov.. Although the majority of the team was celebrating, Martin knew it was now time to switch gears and prepare for Tuesday’s baseball game.

“I had to wake up at 3 a.m. and got to the airport about 5 a.m. and tried to sleep as much as possible on the flight,” Martin said. “I got into Tempe around 9 a.m. and got home, ate breakfast, took a nap, woke up, took a shower, got dressed and went to my game.”

The hectic travel that would have left anyone exhausted didn’t seem to phase Martin’s determination or cast any doubts with his coaches.

“They were definitely nervous about me coming back and being jetlagged, but before the game when I got to his (Dave Webb) office, when we were doing pregame batting practice, he asked me how I was feeling and I told him I was feeling great,” Martin said. “He might have been a little nervous, but he trusted me enough to go pitch in the game.”

On April 30, just 12 hours after being half way across the country, Martin was ready to pitch for the CdS varsity baseball team in its second round game against St. Mary’s.

“I hadn’t touched a ball in about a week so I felt a little bit weird,” Martin said. “I didn’t have great control over my fastball, but as the game progressed I really got to improve and felt really well out there on the mound. By the end of the game I felt almost perfect.”

The boys baseball team was able to dominate the field, winning 12-2. The boys are set to play their next game today against the No. 1 Desert Mountain at Diablo Stadium, which begins at 6:30 p.m. However, the playoffs are double elimination, meaning if the boys win today they’ll advance on to the quarterfinals on Saturday and possibly have to play through Prom with the game beginning at 6:30 and prom starting at 8 p.m. If they lose today then they’ll be placed in the loser’s bracket and will play their game on Saturday at 4 p.m.. If they’re placed in the loser’s bracket they will have to fight their way back up to the winner’s bracket.