Lee in first grade

There is a secret club expertly hidden within the walls of Leesville Road High School. Started in 2006, this club is extremely exclusive, and its members are few and far between. They know things no one else knows and have been a part of this secret society since the age of six. They are the Leesville-For-Lifers.

Many seniors at LRHS have attended a Leesville institution since their baby-teeth days. They are part of a legacy that starts in first grade and lasts until they graduate and even beyond. Only a handful of students in each Leesville graduating class can claim the title of Leesville-For-Lifer. It is a process that includes surviving recess cliques, puberty and first kisses. Members of the LFL can recall one another’s characteristics at age 6, 12 and 18, from embarrassing lisps to goofy braces to first cars.

Parents embrace the community they and their child create throughout the student’s childhood. Ilona Johnson, mother of LFL Brooke Johnson, cites “a sense of loyalty to the community” and a “comfortable community feeling” around Leesville. “[Brooke] will always feel like ‘this is home’,” she said.

LFLs have an unspoken agreement that recalling memories of awkward pre- and post-pubescent moments is strictly prohibited. This

Weiss in first grade

unspoken solidarity is perhaps the reason the Lifers present such a united front: They all know each other’s dirty little secrets. This volatile information is the glue that keeps the affiliation intact.

Jane Lee enjoys the “consistency” she has had the past twelve years as a Lifer. “I didn’t have to completely readjust to my surroundings, and I didn’t have to worry that I wouldn’t know someone at school,” she said.

However, many smaller adjustments came in the form of cliques breaking up and coming together over time. “I’ve noticed that many people have drifted from clique to clique over the years,” said Lee, “but those who stayed true to their core group of friends have had a very gratifying school experience.”

Kelsey Weiss enjoys being a Leesville-For-Lifer for similar reasons. “I’m not one who fares well with change. Becoming an important part of a school so big gives me an easy sense of belonging,” she said.

This sense of belonging means also belonging to a group of people you may not necessarily like, Weiss explained. “Sometimes it becomes impossible to rid yourself of things or people who you aren’t particularly fond of,” she said.

Johnson in first grade

Lee cites the same annoyance as the single drawback of being an LFL. “I was stuck in my comfort zone of the same people and surroundings, and I would often wish for change of scenery,” she explained. However, both agree that the benefits greatly outweigh the drawbacks.

Christina Fraiwat, however, does not see any drawbacks to being a LFL. “It’s awesome to grow up through the years with everyone,” she said. “It’s so weird seeing someone I used to play with in preschool and elementary school driving and they’re all grown up now, just like me. Where else can you get that feeling?”

Fraiwat in first grade

Friendships are easily made and kept when the same people stick with you from year to year, every year. “I’ve noticed that as we grew up, barriers between cliques broke down and everyone became acquaintances with one another because we all had Leesville in common,” said Lee.

Everyone was very clear on one aspect of being a Leesville-For-Lifer:

“If given the opportunity, I would do it all the exact same, in a heartbeat,” said Weiss.

Stop it, Woong-Soo!

It is with a (somewhat) heavy heart that I write my final Senioritis column.

We seniors have less than two weeks of school left. We have made countdowns, set phone alarms and decorated the June 11 square on our calendars with pretty markers and stickers. My mom and I even came up with a brilliant business idea for the “graduate” demographic: Advent calendars for seniors; Gradvent calendars, if you will.

The Class of 2011 is a creative one. We’ve turned The Mycenaean from a legitimate news source into one big class diary for all to read, created “Senior Days” in order to justify the obnoxiousness of seniors on every eleventh day of the month,  and even painted the O’Neal-Leesville intersection a total of three times (thank you class of 2010 and 2012 for giving us the opportunity). We like to do things differently.

The fact that my senior class is the red-headed stepchild of Leesville is the reason I began this column. It has been a difficult year and a stressful one, which I personally think has only strengthened the evidence that my class is stranger than the warlocks Charlie Sheen seems to see everywhere.

On behalf of my (stupid? innovative? daring?) class, I apologize to underclassmen and future classes. We will most likely be remembered as “That Class That Ruined Everything For Everybody.”

I thought by now I would be nostalgic and wistful about this being the last month of the last year of my childhood life. However, I am too busy going to superfluous “Senior Assembly Speech Meetings,” nearly wetting my pants after reading the scary Senior Bulletin (“If you do not wear black shoes, YOU WILL NOT GRADUATE! If you do not wear your mortarboard parallel to the ground,  YOU WILL NOT GRADUATE!), and telling Woong-Soo and Matt, the people in charge of the Senior Map, that no, I am not going to UNC-CH, and please stop mapping me on Chapel Hill, NC. As anyone can see, I am far too busy to reminisce.

I suppose watching Glee and discussing how homosexual the show has become as well as taking naps all the time drains a lot of my time as well. But I digress.

If I’m being totally honest, this year wasn’t that bad. But doesn’t everybody say that once the horror movie is over and their soiled pants are fresh from the dryer?

Suffice it to say that yes, the seniors before me were right: this year has passed quickly. But I will not burst into tears when I share my pearls of wisdom with seniors to come. I will probably advise them to learn from my idiot class’s mistakes and to behave themselves and take into serious consideration their own senioritis before signing up for twelve AP classes in hopes of impressing UNC.

Also, if they’re ever in Missouri, don’t be a stranger.

The state championship, taking place at the WakeMed soccer park in Cary at 8:00 p.m, hosts Leesville and Ardrey Kell High School from Charlotte. This is the third state championship in four years that the two teams have played each other.

“They are a strong team with fast forwards,” said Anne Cushman, sophomore, of Ardrey Kell’s team.

Caroline Gentry, junior and seasoned starting player, realizes the advantage of having played Ardrey Kell before. “When I played them my freshman year, they were a young team,” she said. “It will be interesting to see how they have matured in the past two years.”

The main difference between a freshman and senior player, said Gentry, is experience and confidence. “Freshmen just run the ball every single time. They don’t think as much on the field because it can be intimidating as a freshman playing with bigger girls who have more experience. The seniors know what to do and when. They think more on the field and are less impulsive. Experience is important.”

The freshmen on the team, however, are a staple to the Pride’s success. Mary Kate Bowers, freshman, is a starting forward on the team with her own mental preparation strategy. While others consciously focus on the game and how to defeat their opponent, Bowers prefers to ignore the instinct to obsess and thinks about other things. “I’ve psyched myself out before and I don’t want to do it again,” she said. “I’m my own worst enemy.”

One thing every player has in common, however, is game day rituals. The girls are superstitious about everything, from lining up in the same order on the bench and in the locker room to working with the same partners in warm-ups to sharing the same piece of gum.

“Every game day, I chew a piece of gum and then give it to Sydney Frizzelle,” explained Gentry. “The first time, I did it just because she wanted some gum and it was my last piece. That game was her best game she’s ever had.”

Other interesting rituals of individuals on the team include refusing to wash their game day jersey and gear throughout the season, even going so far as to not allow Cushman to clean her cleats after a bird defecated on them.

“I wasn’t superstitious until I made this team,” said Bowers. Now, before every game, she explained, she must chew Trident cinnamon gum. “The one time I didn’t do it, we lost to Sanderson,” she said gravely.

Needless to say, “we are a very superstitious team,” said Gentry.

But with a record like theirs, eccentricity is overlooked. Especially because of another strong quality the team shares. Unanimously, the ladies agree that the team’s unity, trust and ability to stay positive are the team’s strengths.

“We have a lot of heart,” said Cushman.

The seniors present a strong sense of leadership on the team. They are just as responsible for keeping the team motivated and prepared as Coach Dinkenor is– perhaps even more so.

“Kelsey Weiss is very big on motivation. She’s where we go for energy,” said Bowers.

Despite having two starting players sitting out due to torn ACLs, the team is confident they will defeat their rival once again.

A smattering of student art and patrons

On Monday, May 23, Jose Espinal’s Honors Art IV class presented their favorite works at the new restaurant Fiasco’s in Brierdale Shopping Center.

This showcase, which is the first of its kind for most Leesville art students, attracted a large crowd of students, parents, teachers and friends wanting to explore the works of the talented artists.

According to Espinal, Fiasco’s just opened in December and was in need of some decoration. Espinal, who is friends with the owner, said, “I told David [the owner] that he had some bare walls, and I could help him out.” Thus, the art exhibition was born.

The only requirement Espinal had for the students, aside from choosing their favorite or best piece or series, was the task of matting their work. “Matting gives the art a look of professionalism,” he said.

The class, described Espinal, is “rigorous.” Students in Honors Art IV are required to complete three pieces every fifteen days. In that time, students must propose their ideas to him and the class as well as critique others’ work. By the end of the semester, said Espinal, the students should have more than 20 items for their portfolio should they decide to apply to an arts college.

Dakota Rose, senior, decided to present her ink wash piece, called “Razor Face,” at the show. Featuring a closeup of the

Rose's "Razor Face"

upper left side of her face wearing glasses and earbuds, Rose says she chose this particular piece because she “had the most fun doing it.”

Rose intends to continue with her art at UNC-Charlotte where she will study graphic design. This being her first show, she was emanating with nervous energy and was all smiles. “I’ve never done this before. It’s really exciting,” she said.

Many students featured in the exhibition are similar to Rose in their aspirations to pursue art after high school. Four of Espinal’s Honors Art IV students intend to enroll in AP Art at Leesville next year. AP, which will be more intense and require more commitment, will arm the students with more than 30 completed works for a portfolio.

“I have some friends who are just uncomfortable about their bodies and prefer not to wear dresses. It’s not fair to force them to wear something they are uncomfortable in,” she said.

So Kilcup decided to take action. She first approached Principal Scott Lyons with her concern, who consulted the graduation committee and decided to maintain the original dress code. “He explained that it was tradition,” she said.

“It was important to maintain the formal uniform decorum that has been established at graduation ceremonies,” explained Lyons, via e-mail, in response to Kilcup’s request.

Kilcup then sought support from fellow students. She made an online petition and shared the website with friends through Facebook and fliers to share with other LRHS students. She managed to get sixty signatures, which she shared with assistant principal Will Pope.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, explained Kilcup, it is against women’s First Amendment rights to force them to wear dresses and cited a 2002 ACLU case in her petition to strengthen her point.

Despite some opposition from students, teachers and administrators, Lyons and the graduation committee acknowledged supporters of the proposed dress code modification and reconsidered changes to the policy.

Heather Dinkenor, Leesville’s graduation coordinator, said, “We didn’t want to change the uniformity of the ceremony for one student. Until this year, all girls were required to wear dresses with the exception of medical or religious reasons.”

“After meeting with Nora, two additional students came forward with the same request.  At this point, we felt that we should re-examine the issue since more than one student shared the same concern,” said Lyons.

As of Tuesday, May 10, the policy requiring that women wear dresses under their gowns was modified to include dress pants as well.

“I am proud of the way she handled it,” said Dinkenor.

Marbles Kids Museum, the 2011 Prom venue

Leesville’s 2011 Prom was predicted to be a magical night full of beautiful dresses and marbles galore. However, there were key features that prevented the dance from reaching its ultimate potential. Actually, in a word, it was just plain bad. Here’s why.

1. Dear teachers and administrators, you already had your prom. Kindly get off the dance floor.
Leesville faculty and staff were in abundance on Saturday, April 9 at Marbles Kids Museum. They hid in corners, surrounded tables, manned ticket booths and breathed down students’ necks. The. Entire. Night. These walkie-talkie-wielding chaperones surrounded the edge of the dance floor and watched everyone like hawks, sniffing out bad behavior despite requiring everyone blow into Breathalyzers at the door. Believe me, staff: Mission accomplished. There was no fun to be held under your mindful watch.

2. Hey Mr. DJ, put a different record on. Please.
Just because a DJ plays Top 40 music does not mean that it is music people can dance to. Jumping up and down, fist-pumping and screaming the lyrics may be fun for some people, but a dance usually means that you dance to music. Music that is danceable. How, pray tell, does one dance to P!nk?

3. Bright lights, big failure.
Shining a spotlight on the dance floor does not bode well for a fun-filled night of, well, anything. A brightly-lit atmosphere at a dance ensures lots of standing around and complaining from students who feel too uncomfortable to put their dance moves on display. Dim lighting sets the mood and puts students at ease and more likely to enjoy themselves on the dance floor.

4. Wide open spaces
What was most appealing about the Sisters’ Garden location for Prom last year was the small space of the dancing area. A small surface area means those who want to dance are forced to get close to each other and form a large clump, thus no one can pick anyone else out of the group and stare at their horrible dancing. Marbles was too wide open for those less gifted in their dancing abilities to feel secure busting a move.

It doesn’t take much to make a high school dance successful. It also doesn’t take much to completely blow it. Simple adjustments make the difference between a night to remember and a night students wish they could forget. Mere lighting and size of the dance area may seem like minute, silly details, but these tiny changes are essential to ensuring a decent time for all.

Two of Leesville’s students, Sasha Anistratova and Clara Freeze, placed in individual events at the State Festival and now have the opportunity to compete at the National Festival held at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln June 20-25.

Freeze, junior, has been Leesville’s Lighting Designer for the school’s past three productions and co-designer for one. At the Festival, she received a “superior” for her Lighting Design for Leesville’s fall play Blithe Spirit and placed first in the Tech Challenge for the light hang.

Freeze explained the light hang challenge in tech theater lingo: “We had to run up, hang [the light] on a bar, tighten the C-clamp, put on the safety cable, undo the shutters, angle it at the wall and shutter it, gobo it and gel it, and then run back to the line. We had to do it in a certain order, or we would get time penalties.”

Freeze completed the challenge in 1 minute and 45 seconds.

“I didn’t really prepare for it. I just hang a lot of lights,” she said.

For the Lighting Design competition, Freeze was required to select a show and create an imaginary light design (she used the actual Blithe Spirit light design), provide a “light plot,” a diagram that shows which lights go where on stage, and write an essay about her design choices. If she goes to the National Festival, she will bring this same design for competition.

Freeze plans to major in Theatrical Design and Production at either UNC School of the Arts, Elon or UNC-Greensboro.

Anistratova, senior and the Assistant Lights Crew Head for Leesville productions, received second place in the light hang event with a time of 2 minutes and 21 seconds. She also designed the set for an entire play for the Scenic Design event and received “Superiors” from the two Scenic Design judges, making her eligible to compete at the National Festival.

This individual event required Anistratova to build a 3-D model of her design and present it to the judges as well as answer questions about her design. “I started building it in October,” she said, “but the actual building took me about three weeks.”

Anistratova plans to create a 3-D model on a computer for her Scenic Design entry if she attends the National Festival.

In college, she plans to pursue Scenic and Lighting Design.

Both Freeze’s and Anistratova’s favorite part of the experience was meeting other “Techies” from different high schools. “My favorite part was learning about what other students do at their schools and learning different techniques,” said Anistratova. “That’s what I hope to do at the National Festival.”

Their one hindrance from going to Nebraska is the expenses and time crunch. Jeannine Wrayno, Leesville’s Technical Theater teacher, is working on ways to raise the $1990 registration due  before spring break. “We’re going to put a donation bucket at the concession stand for Cinderella,” she said. “With the musical, we really don’t have much time at all for fundraisers other than to pay for our flight.”

“Since it is mainly for the benefit of these two girls and me, the responsibility for fundraising is really going to be on our shoulders. We have to make sure the excitement of being invited to Nationals doesn’t distract us from Cinderella, which opens at the end of April as well,” Wrayno said of the possible conflicts.

However, all three are grateful for the experience. “It gave the girls a new appreciation for how lucky we are here at Leesville to have so many resources and such a supportive school environment from administration to teachers,” said Wrayno.

Our America with Lisa Ling

The controversies Ling has addressed in the new series are sex offenders, mail-order brides, Christians battling with homosexuality, transgender individuals, heroin addicts and faith healers. Ling immerses herself in every situation presented to her, blending in flawlessly. She has had a conversation in the middle of the woods with a man convicted for molesting children; flown to Barranquilla, Colombia to follow ten men searching for the perfect bride; and eaten dinner with a married couple in which one was born a man and had genital reconstruction surgery to become a woman.

What is so captivating about Ling is her openness and acceptance of even the highest social pariahs. She comes across as curious and inquisitive, not accusatory and judgemental. Many see her as cheerleader for the underdog, giving people normally shut off from society a voice and a chance to speak their piece.

“Bravo for such an informative show. These are every day people with extraordinary problems, trying to do the best they can. I love how Lisa Ling is so compassionate, yet makes very honest observations. Shows like this make us feel less isolated, I think. It’s a small world, and we need each other! Bravo!” was one of the many similar comments left on the show’s website opinion forum. It seems America has been waiting for an edgy show like this to show what really goes on in the heartland.

When asked point-blank why he molested his girlfriend’s two children, an unidentified sex offender said simply “because they were there, because I could.” Ling didn’t insult or belittle the man, who was forced to live like a hobo in the woods of Florida with other sex offenders.

One of the most emotional episodes, the premiere, was about faith healers and their following. Ling attended a conference in California with several faith healers and a couple hundred devout followers hoping to have their ailments healed by the hand of the healer.

An extremely memorable attendee, a paraplegic man with a speech impediment, shared his story. After living a normal childhood, he was in a horrible car accident as a teenager, sustaining brain damage. Several years later, he fell off a roof and lost function of his legs and most function of his arms.

He explained to Ling in an interview that God told him to go to this convention and on the last day of the convention, he would walk. His faith was unshakable. Other believers prayed with him, passionately chanting and screaming and grabbing the man’s unmoving arms and legs.

Ling had to leave the area they were in because she didn’t want her doubt or fear anywhere near the people who were so devout and so strong in their belief that the man would walk.

The people then lifted him out of his wheelchair and the man attempted to walk, to no avail.

His faith wasn’t shaken, though. “At the end of my last day here, I am going to walk,” he said confidently. He patiently waited for his turn with the faith healer, who screamed into a microphone and eventually began to speak in tongues, sweating and clutching to the man’s body.

Ling caught up with him at the end of the day at the end of the weekend. As she had quietly predicted, he was no closer to walking than when he arrived two days ago. Despite this emotional disappointment, he refused to stop believing. “Today just wasn’t my day,” he said. “When God decides, I will walk.”

I was in tears by the end of the hour.

Starting the season with such an emotional topic established Ling as a serious reporter determined to show her audience what really happens behind the closed doors of these hush-hush groups. Ling does so in a classy way that allows her interviewees to maintain their dignity.

Our America’s objective is for viewers to challenge their own beliefs about controversial issues and reconsider their preconceived notions about certain subgroups in America. She never fails to reveal an interesting story or a thought-provoking individual we never knew existed.

Our America with Lisa Ling is on OWN Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m.

my mom's and my first (grad school) graduation! we were magna cum laude!

I’ve come to a startling realization, folks; an epiphany, if you will. A school year is nine months long. Nine months is also the duration of a normal pregnancy. Ergo, if senior year were a pregnant woman, that crazy lady would be entering her third trimester this month.

“Third trimester pregnancy can be tiring and uncomfortable,” says the Mayo Clinic website spelling out the discomforts of last three months of pregnancy. “[It] can be physically and emotionally challenging.” Sound familiar, seniors?

Raging hormones, uncontrollable crying spells, cravings for pickles dipped in Cherry Garcia ice cream at 3 a.m, we’ve all been there. We remember a time several months ago when we were glowing with anticipation of the months ahead, telling everyone we know “I’M A SENIOR!” and expecting to be treated with more respect and kindness due to our “condition.”

However, as the months wore on, we became less and less pleased with the growing thing inside of us; not a baby, of course, but rather a gnawing pain to get out of here that grows and grows until it explodes out of us like that horrifying birthing scene from Breaking Dawn.

After further research, I’m surprised I’ve never compared school to pregnancy before. There are many eerie similarities between growing a fetus inside of you and surviving high school. (Mothers who have experienced the “joy” of childbirth may disagree about the differences in pain thresholds of the two, but I digress.)

One could argue that seniors, every one of us, is pregnant with hope and desire and intentions to make the transition from childhood to adulthood as swift as possible, but it’s kind of awkward to think of everyone in my class bearing a baby bump.

Reading articles about pregnancy can be enlightening as well as helpful to a senior looking for ways to cope with their condition. Replacing the word “baby” or “pregnancy” with “diploma” or “graduation” can equate almost any advice given to soon-to-be Mama Bears to high school seniors.

“Your [desire to get high school over with] may make it hard for you to get comfortable. You may be tired of [school] and anxious to get it over with. If you’ve been gearing up for your [graduation], you may be disappointed if it comes and goes uneventfully.”

“Try to remain positive as you look forward to the end of your [high school career]. Soon you’ll hold your [diploma] in your arms! Here’s what to expect in the meantime.”

WebMD tells us that we will experience fatigue, back pain and difficulty sleeping. Check. Parenting.com says we may have bizarre dreams like giving birth to frogs or puppies. I’m not sure how common that last part is among the senior class, but given the lunacy of these people, quite frankly, I would not be surprised.

The countdown continues to the big day, June 11. We’ve marked our calendars, bought the necessary supplies and have begun planning graduation parties, the high school equivalent of baby showers. I won’t go into the graphic explanation of childbirth, but we all know it’s coming. If I were you, I’d get plenty of bed rest.

Called “Walk With Me,” the funds raised through the 1.2-mile “Family Fun Route” (which can be walked up to three times) helps the foundation provide services for those in need. The Triangle Walk With Me will be on N.C. State’s Centennial Campus. Check-in is at 9:00 a.m. and starting time is at 10:00 a.m. Another walk, a 1-mile “Family Fun Walk” in Sanford, North Carolina, will be held May 7.

Following the walk will be several games, activities, music and a picnic lunch for all those involved.

Registration can be done through their website, and volunteers are always needed and appreciated to help out.

Another way to support the Easter Seals and Triangle Walk With Me is to eat at ZPizza in Cary (96 Cornerstone Drive) on Monday, March 21. Mention the Easter Seals and the restaurant will donate 20% of their sales to the organization.

The Triangle Walk With me is one of 62 walks held across the US to benefit the Easter Seals.