The Insider is an ALC student publication.  The articles reflect the

     opinions and views of ALC students and do not necessarily reflect

     the views of either the ALC or of Independent School District 518.

 

 

The Worthington ALC

Insider

Volume 2, Issue 11                             December 10, 2004

Retail store “Christmas basket”

By Rosa Hurtado

     Our ALC very kindly decided to donate food from the ALC Retail Store. What donation you may ask?  The donation included Tootsie Pops and Breakfast Bars.

 

     Janelle Johnson and Marcia Gallin came to the Worthington ALC on November 30 to receive donations for the Community Christmas Baskets. According to Janelle Johnson, “It’s all about the committee donating items to help out families that won’t have that good of a Christmas.”

 

     During Retail Store class time last week, Javier Esqueda and Ashley Mangel, representing the product committee, handed Johnson and Gallin the donations of Tootsie Pops and Breakfast Bars. 

(Continued à)

 

 

     While the ladies were here, they talked a little about how the Christmas Basket program works. It started in the 1920s by leaving baskets at the front door of needy neighbors. Last year they helped out 436 households.

 

     Each Christmas Basket is determined by the size of each family. They helped out by giving 1600 people worm clothing for Christmas this year. They also gave 675 kids under the age of 13 toys.  The kids were lucky enough to get 2 toys per kid!

 

     People help by volunteering and distributing their time and by gathering apples and sorting out everything.  Last week they delivered to handicapped people in boxes, and to others in bags. Several ALC students helped out as volunteer translators.  Each family received about 15 bags. This year was a good year for the program because they reached an all-time record in donations.

 


 

The Insider                              December 10, 2004                                  Page 2

 

Deep (Holiday) Thoughts

By Naythen Gross

           

     Christmas is suppose to be a “jolly, and happy occasion” and some stuff like that, but I am TOTALLY against it as of the past three years.  Why?  Because it doesn’t have the same meanings as it once had so many years ago. For instance, twenty years ago, they didn’t refer to Christmas as “Twenty SHOPPING days ‘til Christmas,” it was just “Twenty days ‘til Christmas.”

 

     One thing I would like to point out, is that people now-a-days are LITERALLY taking the CHRIST out of  “Christmas,” hence  “x-mas” and all of that.  That is one thing that I really don’t like about Christmas.

 

     Another reason I am against Christmas, is because, it’s a holiday of greed.  Everybody always says that it’s a holiday of giving, but most people just get greedy, and want things, as opposed to giving them.

 

     Also, people completely forget about the whole religious reasons for Christmas, and instead they think about a fat man, in a fat coat saying “ho ho ho,” who goes around giving kids all over the world things that they want for “X-Mas.”  But did you notice that if you take “Santa’s” name, and you switch the letters around, SANTA is an anagram for SATAN!!!!  (Cue Dramatic music)

 

(Continued à)

 

 

 

     Well, you can call me an Ebenezer Scrooge, but I beg to differ.  He hated Christmas for personal reasons.  I hate modern Christmas for reasons that go against my religion. 

 

 

 

 


 

The Insider                              December 10, 2004                                  Page 3

Trends in Music

 

By Nohelia Hernandez

 

    Here in the United States the music that is often heard by young people is known as Rap. Latin people listen to this music and do enjoy it, but the music style that most every young Latin prefers, is known as Reggaeton.

 

     Some Rap singers in the United States that are famous or were famous include M & M, Snoop Dog, Jinxy, Chingy, Usher, Petey Pablo, Lil Scrappy and many others. Many young people listen to them because it’s the music that’s “going on”.

 

     Young people usually listen to this music because of the beat. They not only like the music but they also enjoy the videos. Many like the videos because of the girls in bikinis, others because of the black sexy males, others want to learn the steps they show on the videos, some like the humorous things that happen in videos, and of course others simply like the scenes that the videos show.

 

     Some Latinos do listen to Rap and enjoy it. But the new beat that young Latinos are into right now is Reggaeton.  (Continuedà)

 

 

Anigif by rw51

 

Reggaeton is a musical style that has been in Puerto Rico for over 10 years.  Most of the singers are male, though there are some female singers.

 

     The style is hip-hop with native bomba and plena styles that give the music a Latin touch and a better dance beat. The lyrics are about the reality on the streets, misunderstandings, unfair situations, love, cheating and passion.

 

     Although many people dance to this music in the same way as they dance to rap, its beat and rhythm are very different. Some famous Reggaeton singers include Tego Calderon, Noriega, Wisin & Yandel, Xion & Lenox, Hector & Tito, Baby Rasta & Gringo, Don Omar, and many others.

 

     As in the rap videos, people like these videos because of the sexy men and women that they show.  These videos basically show the men and women doing their sexy dance moves together.

 


 

The Insider                              December 10, 2004                                  Page 4

 

Local Band Turns Famous

(almost)

By Naythen Gross

 

     Several of the greatest, local, underground rap musicians out there, 99 Scentz, McBuck, and McBank, have all come together to form a band called McUnit.  With their first Album out, In the Land of Burgers, Big Mac is the Bomb, and their hit single, “Bacon Tastes Good on Burgers,” these local, “Worthingtonian” rappers are destined for platinum.

     I recently sat down with McBuck (Frank White), and interviewed him on “His” band. 

 

Q: Where did you come up with the name “McUnit”?

A:  We were watching, what was that movie?  Oh yeah, Supersize This, and 99 Scentz (Cody Phrommany) and I, came up with the awesome idea that we start our “own band.”

 

Q: Who influences you guys?

A:  We came up with our own, we don’t have ANY influences (Although MOST tend to think G-Unit influences us, they DON’T!)

 

Q:  When do you plan on going on tour?

A:  Let’s see…sometime in July…I don’t really know.

 

Q:  How many toes do you have?

A:  Ten-izzle

 

(Continued à)   

 

McUnit’s first CD, In the Land of Burgers, Big Mac is the Bomb

 

Q:  Anything else you would like to say to the world?

A:  We’re gonna make it big…for shizzle!

 

     I sat down, and listened to the album, and personally I like it.  Although the beats and lyrics have a strange resemblance to G-Unit, I think McUnit will make it much bigger than G-Unit.  Personally, I think McUnit is one of the greatest rap bands out there.  I leave you with this quote:

 

Burgers taste better

When your makin’ ‘em with bacon

And fakin the bacon, it’s really ham

And it’s sometimes good with jam

And Pam, the spray on cooking stuff

Don’t you think that this is enough?

--McUnit

 

--“Bacon Tastes Good on Burgers”

From The Album: In The Land of the Burgers, Big Mac is the Bomb (2004)

 

 


 

The Insider                              December 10, 2004                                  Page 5

My disgusting cousin

 

He may be gross and dirty but he is my cousin

He hates himself and he wants to die

Not caring about his surroundings

Drowning his sorrows with beer and cigarettes

Not caring about life

Dressing dirty, not caring about the nasty puke on his sleeve

Not caring about what people think of him

Always wiggling his ears and picking his nose

Grossing people out with his freakish talents

Five freakishly funky flexible fingers

Touching his nostrils with his tongue

Eating the snot that runs out of his nose
Hearing the whistling of his monstrous burp

But through all these gross things about him he still is my cousin

I will still hang out with him

No matter what he does

Defend him when people make fun of him

I tell people that he is part of my family

And family is not something that you can choose

And that I am lucky I have a grungy cousin

And I don’t care what people think

 

By Frank White

 

 

If we were movie stars

 

Amanda                             Sergio                              Naythen

 


 

ALC Insider                        December 3, 2004                              Page 6

 

Film Reviews

The Chronicles of Riddick

 

By Ramon Barazza

 

Action/Adventure and Science Fiction/Fantasy   Rated PG-13

     The adventures of Riddick continue after five years when the escaped convict who can see in the dark finds himself caught in the middle of a galactic war with one faction controlled by the Lord Marshal, the leader of  the Necromongers who wage the "10th Crusade" in the 26th century.

 

     Helping Riddick is Aereon.  He helps Riddick unearth the secrets of his origin, and Kyra, who has grown up since Riddick knew her as a young girl in movie one. While trying to free himself and Kyra from an underground prison, Riddick ends up inside the Necromonger flagship.  It is there that he gets his chance to battle the Lord Marshal over the future of the galaxy.      (Continued à)

 

 

 

     This movie is kind of hard to follow but if you watch a lot of sci-fi type of films it help help you.

 

     I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars because I like it but the ending was too sudden.

 

****

 

Starring:

Vin Diesel, Keith David, Thandie Newton, Karl Urban, Yorick Van Wageningen

 

 

 

 

 

This week’s Separated at Birth…

 


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