Book Review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

By Diana Herritt

Appealing to all ages, genders, and personalities, Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo pulls readers into a mind-gripping mystery.

Mikael Blomkvist, already in the middle of a scandal, finds himself trying to unravel the mystery of Harriet Vanger’s disappearance. Accompanying him is Lisbeth Salander, a character who certainly cannot be judged by her appearance. In their investigation, they work to uncover shocking secrets, and crack down on the Vanger’s case of over fourty years.

Steig Larsson’s intellectual writing style is intriguing and entertaining—not a single detail is left out in the novel’s thrilling plot. Each character is realistically created with unique features that flow perfectly into the story. If your looking for a one-of-a-kind tale sure to keep you up late reading, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo exceeds all expectations.

O.M.G.!

By Brian Scala

Electronic music is either a hit or miss with most people. For those who are into the scene, may have heard of an underground genre known as “dubstep” which is now scratching the surface of mass media. Dubstep, characterized by its insane wobbling bass and heavy subbass drops, is not a genre to be taken lightly. While true “dubbers” may wish for it to remain underground, Rusko is making that seem farfetched with his new banger. His debut LP, released in May, 2010, will change the dub scene forever.

O.M.G.!, is not your typical album by any means. Most albums tell stories and should be listened to in order (atleast the first time through), however, O.M.G.! is a collection of hits from all different subgenres incorporating a dubstep feel. At somepoints the listener wonders, “How are all these songs on the same album?” The answer is simple, the main goal of the album is to get you on to your feet and dancing. With hints of reggae, pop, hip hop, and techno, this album is well rounded in all that it is, and is excellent to listen to at extreme volume. Tracks to listen to first are “Woo Boost”(traditional dubstep feel), “Raver’s Special”(techno-dubstep), and the pop track “Hold On” featuring the Dirty Projectors lead singer Amber Hoffman.

Overall, Rusko is already a big name with quality music to back it up, and O.M.G.! is no exception. All those who are ready to change their musical world should take a listen, and then should take the plunge into the insane, mind/speaker-blowing world of dubstep. You will not be disappointed.

Hell's Kitchen

By Tucker Gaskill

We’re smack dab in the middle of season 8 of Hell’s Kitchen. The show starts with 16 aspiring chefs aiming for the prize of becoming head chef of LA market in Los Angeles and a salary of $250,000 a year. The show is on every Wednesday night at 8 P.M. on FOX. The first half of each episode the chefs have to compete in some sort of cooking challenge, the wining team gets the rest of the day off and goes somewhere with the host Chef Ramsay. The loosing team gets punished in some way either having to clean both kitchens or having to prep both kitchens for the dinner service. The second half of the episode Hell’s Kitchen opens for a dinner service that all of the chefs cook for. At the end of the service Chef Ramsay picks which team wins and which team looses, the loosing team has to nominate two team members for elimination. Chef Ramsay then picks who goes home.

This season has been full of surprises and full of entertainment. There hasn’t been an episode without a surprise or Chef Ramsay exploding at all of the chefs for messing up somehow. Every season there’s at least a couple of dinner services that both teams do extremely well, so far this season every dinner service either both teams or one team does terrible. Overall it has been an extremely entertaining season and you’ll be on the edge of your seat the entire time.

A Taste of Paris, France in the Heart of Concord

By Nicole Mitchell

Have you ever been to a restaurant with no menu? Well try this whimsical idea at Madeleine’s Bakery, located at 124 N. Main Street in Concord, NH. Madeleine’s is a Paris inspired work of art. While there is no concrete menu since the products change everyday, there is a basic menu of items the chef makes regularly. This menu is located on their website www.madeleinesed.com.

Consumers can get French pastries, cakes, homemade soups, sandwiches, quiches, and wedding cakes. Madeleine’s is a good place for spur of the moment desserts. Olivia Wheat, a senior at Hopkinton High School commented, “The coffee there tastes really good.” The bakery has a very cheerful atmosphere with a happy and welcoming staff. Another student, Kara McCluskey stated, “They have really good desserts and a large variety to choose from so it makes it hard to make a decision. [The bakery has a] really friendly atmosphere.” There is seating inside and outside during the summer. One can also walk across the street and eat in front of the State House or walk behind the building and eat in Eagle Square by the pond. Madeline’s specializes in personal sized cakes, which is a cake about 5 inches in diameter. While eating your personal sized cake, you can have an old fashioned soda in a glass bottle.

Chef Paul Brown, a New Hampshire native, opened the bakery in 2004 after attending UNH, culinary classes in Spokane, WA, and Delphin’s Gourmandise in Marblehead, MA under Master Pastry chef Delphin Gomes. Chef Paul has also visited Paris, France. Consumers can view his adventure to Paris on Madeleine’s website, noted above.

Weezy Baby

By Ashley Tibbetts

Most know him as Lil’ Wayne, Weezy, or Young Carter, but many know him as a rap legend. He has come to be one of the biggest names in today music. Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. is a role model for many. Through all the struggles and obstacles he has made it to the top. He is one of today’s most talented rappers. Creating rhymes since he was born. Weezy grew up in Hollygrove, a poverty-stricken and crime-ridden neighborhood in New Orleans. Just after he was born to Dwayne Michael Turner and Jacinda Carter, he was forced to say goodbye to his father who abandoned him and his mother just after his birth. At this time him and his mother were forced to survive in a criminal infested community. Soon enough his mother met Reginald “Rabbit” McDonald, who eventually became his stepfather. Years after his stepfather moved the family out from this poverty to East New Orleans. By that time Lil’ Wayne had begun to develop his interest in hip-hop and rap music.

Weezy was a straight-A student, but never felt that his true intelligence was expressed through a report card. He found music was the best way to express himself, and after taking the name Gangsta D he began writing rhymes. Combining a strong work ethic and aggressive self-promotion at 11 years old convinced the Cash Money label to take him on by rapping at block parties where Weezy caught Cash Money rappers eyes. Through the latter, recording artist Lil’ Wayne met Cash Money Records most powerful people, Brian “Baby” Williams and Ronald “Slim” Williams. He did leave an impression on the two influential people, but did not get a contract. After this Weezy did not give up. He repeatedly left free style recordings on Baby’s answering machine. At only 11 years old Wayne got his shot to sign with Cash Money, being the Records’ youngest artist.

A year after signing the contract Lil’ Wayne was caught in an incident that almost took his life. When he was 12 years old, Wayne left school early and headed home, according to police records he was sitting non the mattress in the master bedroom and began eating, but he stopped when he noticed a blue-steel Taurus 9 mm handgun. This gun claimed to be an unregistered gun that had belonged to his stepfather. Little Dwayne picked up the gun and began horsing around with it in front of the stereo blaring music. At 1:15 p.m., the boy accidentally fired a bullet through his chest. The slug then shot out of a lower left corner of a window. Somehow, it missed every vital organ. But he was dying. Dwayne dialed 911, wheezing as he spoke. He then awaited an off duty police officers arrival.

After recovering he had his first gig, it was during that time he was forced to drop out of the 10^th grade, had a daughter, Reginae Carter, with his high school sweet heart, Antonia.

Though Lil Wayne had been known in several states by 1999, it wasn’t until he released his solo debut, “Tha Block Is Hot” (1999), that he really got a big break being known all over the states. His solo album peaked at number three on the billboard’s album chart and at number one for the Top R’n’B/Hip-Hop Albums, while at the same time scored a nomination for 2000 Source award for New Artist Of The Year, Solo.

Following his success in 2004 this well-known rapper released his most recognized album yet, “Tha Carter.” Around this time, he collaborated with Destiny’s Child and T.I., earning him some awards such as the 2005 BET Award-Best Collaboration. While his lead single "Fireman" became a hit peaking at number 32 on Billboard Hot 100. Once again, the rapper that is famous for the red bandanna tied on his right arm or leg received positive reviews and gathered notable nomination for the 2006 BET Hip-Hop Award, the 2006 Billboard Music Award and the 2007 BET Award. In the period of 2006 to 2007, he gained more fans by releasing a series of mix tapes, "Dedication" and “Dedication 2” (2006), whereas in 2007, he recorded another Carter-titled album “Tha Carter III.” And in 2007 Weezy received the BET Hip-Hop Award, for MVP of the year.

Now, biggest selling rapper Lil Wayne has spent much of the past year in jail after pleading guilty to gun possession charges. In a statement, Cash Money owners Ronald ‘Slim’ Williams and Brian ‘Baby’ Williams has this to say. “The Cash Money family will continue to supports out artist and friend Lil Wayne in his current court case. We have worked with him since he was a teenager, and have seen him grow into one of the world’s most successful hip-hop artists, with a work ethic that is second to none. Wayne has our love and commitment during this difficult time. We always have and always will stand behind him.”

While Weezy is out of sight of fans, he has a website (weezythanxyou.com) that say how he is doing. This is a great site for fans! When he is released he plans to put an album in stores and shoot more videos for it. Lil Wayne is a legend and that will never change.

Fast, No Grease

By Jimmy Angell

A delicious and healthy alternative to fast food, Dos Amigos is located in Concord, NH. Fast and friendly, Dos Amigos serves a variety of different burritos, as well as an assortment of tacos, grilled items and other quick-serve, quickly eat foods. With their burritos they offer a ranchero sauce that comes in mild, medium, hot or even XXX. A Dos Amigos burrito is packed full with rice, black beans, lettuce, and whatever else you want; beef, chicken, guacamole or even fish. Dos Amigos is a fantastic alternante to typical fast food. Along with your main meal, you get a serving of delicious chips and guacamole. The food at Dos Amigos is both tasty and filling.

Contoocook Pizza Parlors

By Joshua Isabelle

In the small village of Contoocook New Hampshire the locals have two choices of pizza right in town only minutes from their homes. On the slightly more expensive side, there is the choice of Dimitris Pizza and Subs, right off of Park Ave in the center of town. It’s in a cute “small town” building. The property is clean and well kept. Inside this pizza parlor is very comfortable and a lovely setting which makes it a great place to bring the family. The service is amazing and all who work there are friendly. The pizza is tasty and enjoyable. The crust is semi-thick with minimal sauce and a thick layer of melted mozzarella cheese baked on top with your choice of toppings.

On the cheaper side there is Louie’s Pizza. Located also on Park Ave, in the same plaza as Colonial Village. Inside is very laid back and not so clean. The environment very comfortable; the floors are stained and dirty. The pizza is thin and taste-less with crust that is hard and undesirable. The cheese is thin and over cooked. The customer service isn’t preferable due to the fact that Louie doesn’t speak English that well. The building is unappealing not maintained. There is trash and debris on the property.

If neither of the choices are preferred there is Charlie Mac’s locate in the center of Warner just ten minutes from town. The pizza is very different then the original style. The crust is thin but well cooked, the cheese is also very good and the pizza itself is much larger the average pizza. It is a nice change every once in a while from eating the same pizza in town.

All Killer

By Alexander Beckwith

The Gaslamp Killer is unlike any artist currently on the scene. This musician from Los Angeles dabbles into so many different genres of music he is almost indescribable. His beats are often experimental, sometimes sounding like hip-hop, and sometimes psychedelic rock. Obscure, foreign vocalists and musicians are often added into his tracks, as are “wobbles”- sounds most commonly heard in dubstep, a modern genre which blends electronic and hip hop music. During live performances, he tends towards complex dubstep, sometimes edging on glitch. It is common for him to grab his sampler and make beats live- without looping. He also has a tendency to act out the sounds he makes, and is a master of the scratch.

In this album, GLK takes his love of vintage music and the Finders Keepers Records collection and mixes a wide variety of their records together into a seamless mix. This CD is perfect for anyone who loves music of any type, as many different genres are incorporated into this border-shattering work of art. For example, on the Finders Keepers web site, they describe some of the music that they employ- “Discerning purveyors of the bizarre and abnormal should expect the Japanese choreography records, space-age Turkish protest songs, Czechoslovakian vampire soundtracks, Welsh rare-beats, bubblegum folk, drugsploitation operatics, banned British crime thrillers and celebrity Gallic Martini adverts”. And that is just where Gaslamp Killer begins.

Nightmare In New England

By Cody White

Teenagers and young adults looking for a thrill should check out Nightmare New England. Around Halloween decorations start flying up and pumpkins are carved to celebrate the holiday. And if you are looking to get your pants scared off then you would love to visit this attraction.

Creatures roam the grounds of Litchfield from the 24th of September to the 31st of October. There are seven different haunted houses you have access to when you purchase a ticket for $34.99 on a weekend. The actors and actresses really know how to strike fear into people with loud bangs and surprising and creepy screams. The design of the park makes it easy for creatures to jump out and scare someone. There were both indoor and outdoor haunted houses. The indoor haunted houses tended to be pitch black or filled with flashing lights and tight spaces.

This attraction is not recommended for small children, people with claustrophobia, or those who need a pace maker.

The haunted houses are geared toward an older crowd with a taste for spookiness. You will have a wonderful time if you enjoy fear, and a thrill.

So, You Think You Can Dance?

by Lindsay White

Yes, they certainly can! You may have seen this hit television show on Fox sometime between May and July and it is now in its eighth season. If you have never seen the show, it is all about dance. The audition process starts in October and goes until March. The judges tour all around the country to see who will be America’s favorite dancer. Once they send the best dancers from each city to Vegas, the real competition starts. The top ten guys and the top ten girls are picked to compete and each week 2 contestants are eliminated.

The show is now on tour with contestants from season 7, season 6 and All-stars from all of the other seasons! The contestants on tour include season 7 winner Lauren Froderman, and season 6 winner Russell Ferguson. Other contestants of season 7 on tour include Robert Roldan, Kent Boyd, Ashley Galvan, AdéChiké Torbert, Billy Bell, and José Rulz.

This season, there was a spin put into the competition. Dancers from other seasons were paired with the new contestants. The alumni are called All-stars. The All-stars that went on tour are Ade Obayomi, Alison Holker, Courtney Galiano, Kathryn McCormick, and Dominic Sandoval. Since these dancers already had their turn in the competition, it is their job to make sure they help their partner look good.

Tune in to the Fox Channel next year to see if your favorite dancer will be America’s favorite as well. If you are really looking for a challenge, audition yourself!

Top of the World

By Rachel LeGros

David “Campa” Benjamin Singer-Vine and Niles “Cyrano” Hollowell-Dhar are the two masterminds behind The Cataracs, the name coming from a Snoop Dogg song. Their sound has been described as rap and pop, but it is much more than that. It is a mix of techno, dance, and electronic beats. Their genre is right in the title of their first album, Technohop Vol. 1. Once you hear a Catarac beat, you won’t be able to get it out of your head.

Campa and Cyrano met when Cyrano made a diss response to a song Campa was featured in. Not too long after that, The Cataracs were formed in 2003. Right off the bat, the purpose of their music was to get people off their feet and moving. It is obvious after listening to a majority of their songs that they make music for the ladies. When listening to songs like “Baby Baby (The Lover’s Anthem)” and ”Luv Song,” listeners know that these two party boys are just trying to woo the women.

If you like to dance and have fun, The Cataracs is the band for you.

Get Spooked

By – Rachel Partlow

If you’re too old to Trick or Treat on Halloween, and love haunted hayrides and houses, you should check out SpookyWorld in Litchfield. It’s a scream park, an area full of haunted attractions and horrific inhabitants whose main goal is to scare you. Open October weekends and select other days, the events start up around 6:30pm and continue well into the night.

The main attraction of the park, the seven haunts, are masterfully made. For example, customers can walk through a run-down hospital, duck through stone tunnels, scramble through the dark and meet “Cleatus the Fetus.” These encounters really make the night something to remember.

The seven haunted attractions each have their own theme and generate the most traffic, but there are a variety of other things to do. There’s go-karts, mini-golf, zombie paintball and Buried Alive, a booth that allows you to experience the feeling of being trapped underground in a coffin. Like a carnival, a variety of stands sell food and drink to tired visitors and a wide amount of merchandise is available.

If you can’t bear the thought of waiting in line for up to an hour, it's recommend you buy VIP tickets, though they are very pricey. Overall, the value of general admission was rather good. Lines moved slowly, but costumed actors kept the crowd entertained by sneaking up on and scaring patrons. However, part of the experience of waiting in line is passing the time chatting with the people you’re with, getting to know them, just having fun.

With elaborate scenes and props in the haunted attractions, talented actors and a variety of things to do, SpookyWorld: Nightmare New England is a great way to spend the night this Halloween season.

Facebook Addiction

By Kaylee Foote

Many teenagers and adults are using Facebook these days. It is one of the easiest ways to communicate with people online. It was launched in February 2004 to Harvard students, but in September 2006 it was made available to anyone age thirteen and up. As of July 2010 there were more than 500 million active users. So many people use Facebook that schools and workplaces have had to block it because students and workers try to get on during the day, and it interferes with their work. Entertainment Weekly once said, "How on earth did we stalk our exes, remember our co-workers' birthdays, bug our friends, and play a rousing game of Scrabulous before Facebook?"

Rosanne Poulin of Hillsborough says that Facebook is "a great way to keep in touch with people long distance and great way to get back in touch with people you have not seen in a long time like high school or college friends." While another point of view is, "Facebook is like an addiction. Drama. Keeping in contact with friends, new and old. Dating. News. They should call it Crackbook," Tanner Bourguet of Hopkinton says.

Pretty much everyone has a Facebook these days. It can be used to just chat with friends, or to do your schoolwork while getting help from other people. It is also a way that people can see updated pictures of their friends to see whether or not they have changed at all since the last time they saw them. Overall Facebook was a very good thing that was invented. Oh, and did you know? It was invented by a college student by the name of Mark Zuckerberg.

Review for Country Music

By Breanna Ostrander

Country may be labeled as a genre that ‘hicks, or rednecks’ listen to but really it is relatable to many people around the world. There are many variable in country music such as the style and emotion the song portrays. Whether it is sad or happy, country music is a great genre for everybody.

A few of the top names in country are Lady Antebellum, Josh Turner, Zac Brown Band, and Sugarland. The top 10 of the week usually lists a variety of different singers. This week Kenny Chesney is on top with his new song “The Boys of Fall” which highlights high school football players. The song has a sound of typical country music including guitar, drums and a singer with a southern accent. Taylor Swift has also been getting praises by country listeners for her relatable lyrics and great melodies.

Although there is a certain sound to country music, a new sound coming from Sugarland has sparked new interests. The new song called “Stuck Like Glue” is ranked a 4 on the top 10 country songs of the week. This song has a slight sound that is similar to reggae. That is very different from most of the songs played on the top 100. Yet it’s bubbly lyrics and great story has attracted many people into downloading it.

Overall, country music has come back from the grave with its new singers and sound. More and more people are listening to country music for various reasons. It is clear that with new times, it has changed from the slow, drab music it used to be. Country music is great and that will not change.

What is THE EVƎNT?

By Kara McCluskey

The Event is NBC’s newest suspense thriller. It airs Mondays at 9:00 pm. The series premiere began with some sort of catastrophe. Shaky camera, people running, pure chaos; viewers found themselves instantly hooked. Just then, it jumped to a commercial break; viewers were completely confused, but dying to find out more.

The episode itself is a series of flashbacks and flash-forwards as the stories that lead to the catastrophe at the start of the episode, “the event”, are pieced together. In addition to these changes in time, the point of view jumped from character to character. By the time the show reached the second commercial break, viewers were still confused, as there were many loose ends to the story.

In the final parts of the episode, viewers were able to piece together much of what occurred. The episode comes full circle, back to “the event” at the beginning. At this point if viewers thought there weren’t going to be any more surprises, they were mistaken. The final scenes of the episode left viewers wide-eyed and in pure disbelief. What initially seemed like some sort of government conspiracy seemed to be something different, something supernatural.

The episode ends. Viewers should have a general understanding of what happened, but will definitely be left with many unanswered questions. Suspenseful, thrilling, shocking, indescribable; you’ll have to see for yourself to find out, what is The Event?

image from: networkexposure.wordpress.com

The Beats and Rhymes of Mattafix

By: Alexandra Trahnstrom

Mattafix is a group of two members that originally started making beats and singing songs in the United Kingdom in 2003. Marlon Roudette and Preetesh Hirji produced two records; “Rhythm and Hymns” and “Signs of a Struggle”. According to the web page, sing365.com, Hirji says, “Whether through hardship or celebration, music is a uniting force for good. That’s what’s so great about having our music accepted everywhere. One of the best things you can do for anyone is make them smile.” To Mattafix, music is a passion that everyone deserves to experience.

Once listeners hear the first few beats of any Mattafix song, they will immediately start dancing and an instant smile spread across their face. Mattafix combines hip-hop, jazz, reggae, blues, and calypso music to create a soulful song. The beat of the bass pounds through the speakers and hits the soul. Listener’s ears will hear every instrument and emotion will race throughout the body. The pick up to verses and the chorus is a sudden transition that makes listeners really connect with the music.

If the beat wasn’t enough to get people hooked, the lyrics will reach out to each and every person. Roudette and Hirji write their own songs about experiences the world and different cultures are having. They write songs about struggle to show listeners the truth. The song, “living”, was recorded in Darfur. Mattafix’s goal is to reach out to individuals and fill their minds with knowledge of the world. Not only do they make they struggles of our earth prominent, but they make the good times rise up and let the positive be known.

People in over thirty countries know Mattafix. The people who listen to them undergo some soul searching as the band sings songs about happiness or struggles. They really make people think about who they want to be as a person. The message that all of their songs give is; do all you can in order to help, and once you cannot do anything more all you can do is be happy. Let the beat of this two-man band carry your body and let the lyrics flow into your mind.

Find Buried Treasure at Goodwill

By: Olivia Hamel

In a time where consumers are struggling economically, it is difficult to enjoy times of leisure, such as shopping, as they once did. In this economic turnaround it is difficult for people to find jobs, never the less, extra funds in their budgets, to spend on un-needed items. Unfortunately, as leisure funds disappear, the want to buy leisure items does not.

However, the belief that shopping has to stop once the economy turns sour is a false belief. What has to change is where the shopping takes place, not the funds of the shopper. In this tough economy that is exactly what consumers have started doing and because of that, a certain establishment has gotten a fair amount of attention in the consumers eyes. That “certain establishment” being Goodwill, Goodwill is qualified as a consignment store, which is store that receives second hand items and merchandise donated to it. The establishment takes all merchandise that is donated and sorts through it in order to distinguish the merchandise that is a lost cause to merchandise that is readily available to sell. Not only does Goodwill offer secondhand items, but their establishment also sells unused items that other companies have either chosen to stop selling or items that have not reached a larger market. This merchandise is prepackaged and set at a lower price than what it would be offered for in larger stores. Merchandise varies from furniture, toys, jewelry, clothing, accessories, shoes, decorations and games.

One of the most appealing features about Goodwill is the fact that, like some other stores that consumers are familiar with, Goodwill offers a large variety of merchandise. When a shopper walks into Goodwill they can more likely, than not, find what they are looking for or at the very least they can find an item that peaks their interest. Not only does every shopping trip hold a promising outcome, but a certain fact is that because Goodwill is a secondhand store prices are lower than average. In comparison to normal clothing outlets prices plummet, for example sweaters are available at Goodwill for the fabulous price of $4.99 as opposed to other retailers who offer their sweaters at steeper prices that range in the teens to twenties.

Along with that valuable feature, there are some other interesting features that Goodwill offers to its consumers. Because of the fact that Goodwill is, in simplest terms, a thrift store, each piece of merchandise holds its own value because of the fact that there is no other item like that in the store, or any other. Due to this fact shopping in Goodwill is unlike shopping in any other store. When a consumer is shopping at Goodwill it is more like a treasure hunt than a shopping experience. Each time varies from the last because the outcome is different, a new treasure can be found every single time the consumer visits Goodwill. In this tough economy there is still a way to find the funds to shop, just take a trip over to Goodwill, located in Concord N.H., and your treasure hunt will commence.

Hermano’s Mexicanos Restaurante Review

By Justin Tracy

Concord area residents and nearby Mexican food lovers might want to grab a bite at Hermanos Mexican restaurant. When you first walk into their lobby, if you can find parking, you are welcomed with the smell of fresh Mexican food, and the friendly waiters. The dimmed lights give it a nice feel. One thing people will find nice is some of the live music you won’t find at Margaritas, along with the generic soundtrack that Margaritas plays over and over again.

Hopefully you know some Espanola because their menu, for the most part, is in Spanish. Once you have figured out what some of the menu items are, then it’s not hard to choose. It takes them a little while to get the food to you because the place is always packed from the time it opens until it closes.

Diners may want to choose the beef quesadilla. Once the dish comes, there won’t be much talk happening since you will be shoveling food into your mouth with delicious steak, sour cream, and melted cheese. The meal was excellent. Hermanos did not get famous for their price, that’s for sure. They do make up for it with the freshness of the atmosphere, real music, friendly waiters, and the food quality. Overall people will say it’s definitely worth another trip back sometime soon.

Life's Greatest (Burrito) Conundrum

By Rin Conley

It’s Tuesday at 11:59 am. Your stomach is rumbling and your mind is too far-gone to concentrate on work. The clock strikes noon and your heart skips a beat. Finally: lunch hour. As you rush to your car, you contemplate what you want to eat. One word comes to mind: burritos.

In Concord, NH, there are two serious choices for burritos: Boloco and Dos Amigos. Trying to compare the two restaurants is like asking someone to compare a Ferrari and an iPhone. It just wouldn’t make sense since both are so great. The restaurants each have very unique and ingredients and styles regarding burritos.

If you’re in the mood for something fresh and Mexican, Dos Amigos is the place to go. Located on Main Street, this food will fill you up. The menu ranges from BBQ chicken burritos and vegetarian chili to grilled corn on the cob. A regular chicken burrito, including marinated chicken, rice, black beans, lettuce, cheese, your choice of hot sauce and yogurt or sour cream, will set you back $6.50 plus tax. All burrito orders come with a side of tortilla chips covered in a salt and pepper type seasoning.

There are options for vegetarians too, including bean, vegetarian chili, portabella mushroom, sweet potato, or spinach and tofu. The bean burrito is simple but delicious. The sour cream and homemade salsa are a great addition to the black beans, and the burrito is made even better by the Tabasco sauce sitting at your table.

Dos Amigos also has a small kid’s menu, options of side orders, and a variety of drinks, both bottled and fountain.

But maybe you’re craving for something different. Mexican food may not be the first word that comes to mind when you step into Boloco. The atmosphere is almost that of a café: the Starbucks of burritos if you will. The menu is quite extensive. They have eight different pre-made burritos you can choose from in three different sizes, Original, Small, and Mini (each burrito can also be ordered as a bowl, something similar to a salad). For these burritos, you decide on a filling, including chicken, white meat chicken, steak, carnitas (braised pork), tofu, fajita vegetables, or “none of the above” (served as is).

Another option at Boloco is the “Goloco” burrito in which you decide absolutely everything that goes in the tortilla. A small burrito, considered the “regular” size, of any flavor, costs $5.35 plus tax.

One great meal at Boloco is the Memphis BBQ burrito. It’s unconventional and will remind you nothing of a normal burrito, but the flavors definitely work. It’s packed full of sweet barbecue sauce, creamy coleslaw, pinto beans, “Boloco” rice, and served on a flour tortilla. The coleslaw and barbeque sauce meld together for a sweet, creamy, spicy, crunchy, medley of flavor. Either chicken or tofu greatly compliments this burrito.

Boloco also has a wide array of smoothies, with eight different flavors and optional add-ins such as whey and vitamin-c.

Regardless of what restaurant you chose, you’re in for a treat. Both have friendly employees, great ingredients, and above all, delicious burritos.

Hard Work FInally Pays Off

Varsity girl's field hockey victorious to Conant, September 22nd.

Defeating Conant 3-0 leaves the Hopkinton varsity girl's field hockey team high and ready to shine.

"We've worked really hard this year," says Karissa Hazen, senior, "And I believe we can only get better."

Coach Connolly prepares the team with a daily workout routine. The girls start with a warm up lap before their two mile run, followed by individual and team skills, and ending with a few rounds of sprints.

The girls have their own routine way of preparing for a game as well.

"To get motivated, we have team spirit, and wear ribbons for each game," says Hannah Durant, junior. "While warming up, we listen to music, and before we play, we read a quote."

The strong, family-like bond the team holds is a great aid to victory. Nothing can seem to shatter their confidence. "Our strongest aspect is our teamwork and perseverance, even when we don't win."

Hopkinton Varsity Soccer Freshmen Power Duo, “McFleury”

By Brian Scala

Soccer has always been one of Hopkinton’s most popular sports throughout the youth in the town. Many start with joining the Hopkinton Soccer Club in the “U-10” division, or ten years old or younger. However, once you enter high school, you have the option of playing for the junior varsity or varsity squads.

The main difference between the junior varsity and varsity teams is the level of play. What is meant by this is the speed of which the game flows, and the amount of technical, and mental skills that are displayed by the players throughout the league. McNicholas was asked whether or not the level of play was difficult to adjust to at first, he answered “Yes, it was hard to adjust to the different level of play because it was so much faster.”

The varsity has won the State Championship the past four years in a row, and has proven to be one of the state’s most prestigious programs. The team, coached by Scott Zipke, has two freshmen who have taken permanent spots on the roster, Liam McNicholas and Doug Fleury.

When McNicholas was asked if he has always wanted to play varsity soccer, his response was, “Yes, I have always wanted to play varsity soccer, but I did not think it would happen as a freshman.”

For the 2010 season, one of the team’s strongest attributes is the team chemistry and positive attitude throughout practices and games. Fleury and McNicholas have joined the close-knit family. When asked if he felt welcomed when first joining the varsity team, McNicholas responded, “Yes I felt welcomed.”

Leaf with Emissions

By Anthony Davis

The Nissan Leaf is one of the first fully electric production cars that will actually be released to the public. The pricing starts at 25,280, after tax savings from the federal government. You can go anywhere from 68 to 138 miles. They say this is based on how you drive and weather. The car is fully electric, not a hybrid which has a secondary gas engine. There is a lot of time and technology that went into this car; however, it would never work for me and many other people. They say that to fully charge it would cost about the same as it would to fill up with a tank of gas. Now does it make sense to spend more on the car and not save money? And you can't go nearly as far as you can on a tank of gas.

Fresh New Face on Fast Team

By Jimmy Angell

Lone senior Sam Helrich leads a team of young improving runners. With funny personalities like Matt Angell, Sam Smith, and Cam Debrusk, along with a team trip to Casey’s rib shack at the beginning of the year this is definitely a team with good chemistry. But no doubt the biggest story of this season’s cross country team is that of Czech exchange student Fabian Stocek. From the beginning of the season he has done nothing but impress teammates, coaches, and opponents.

Hopkinton currently ranks 18^th in the state. This is impressive being a small school in Division III. With good leadership, a strong core of solid runners, and an exchange student who has the chance to come in first every race, the Hopkinton Cross Country team looks to continue their successful season.

The Intellectual NFL

By Alex Beckwith

The goal of achieving a basic literacy level in today’s youth is a common one, but justified as well. All too often, words are replaced with emoticons, and creative insults with dirty looks. Fortunately for the students at Hopkinton High School, Susan McClellan has orchestrated a magnificent program to help students learn the joy of public speaking and eloquence in conversation.

This program is called Forensics club. During this time, students practice the art of public speaking in various forms. Some of these include debate, speech giving, and interpretation of works. If students truly demonstrate intelligence in speech and creative discourse, they may be asked to attend a district tournament, and after that the National Forensics League’s National Speech and Debate Tournament.

Hopefully with all the talented youth at our disposal here at Hopkinton we can go a long way this year.

Spotlight

By Cody White

Standing at 6 feet 6 inches tall, Mike Auger is a key player for the Hopkinton Hawks Basketball team. He is a powerful center on Varsity. He started playing his beloved sport of basketball when he was around three or four years old. As soon as he picked up a basketball and did a slam dunk on his four foot tall basketball hoop he knew which sport would be his favorite, basketball.

Auger has played basketball every year since his career began at such a young age. But when he started his first high school season last year he had an unfortunate crippling injury that benched him for eight games. He is hoping for a great season this winter full of loads of playing time and hopefully victorious games.

Hurray For Homecoming!

By Ashley Tibbetts

At Hopkinton High School, eighth grade teacher Mrs.Cross tells the Talon about the Middle School events that will be happening during homecoming. Middle School followed the same schedule as the High School. Starting on Friday the first at the end of the school day, the entire school will be attending a pep rally where there will be many games going on concerning the sports teams.

At the pep rally the king and queen were crowned as well as the prince and princess. The middle school had a dance that night as well in celebration of homecoming. Also Friday night there was a spaghetti dinner for all of the sports teams to enjoy.

To kick off homecomings main events, after school following the pep rally, the sports teams play their homecoming games, and of course since its the Hawks homecoming weekend we did not lose!

This year all the events for Friday after the pep rally were canceled because of the rain. Therefore all the event and such were moved to Saturday.

Of course this is not the end of homecoming! Saturday night there was a High School homecoming dance.

An Under Appreciated Sport at Hopkinton High

By Nicole Mitchell

Hopkinton High School has a great athletics department with State Champions in almost every sport. Parents, students, teachers, and people from the community all come to watch all the games in all the sports, except one. This one team that the high school has receives very little publicity is the golf team. When asked about the golf team, Laura Jones commented, “The golf team is a very under appreciated sport in our school that deserves more publicity and praise.” Most people do not even knows who is on the golf team or what their record is. Once this information came out, it was decided that the golf team would have to be investigated a little more.

New this year, the golf team changed where they practice. They used to practice at Dustin’s Country Club, but now the golf team travels to Country Club of New Hampshire to get their practice in. The golf team usually practices three or four times a week with an optional practice on weekends. They normally have meets two or three times a week. At the end of the season, the golf team has tournaments. Tyler Guilmette, co-captian of the team, commented on how the score is kept in golf by saying, “To keep score we use the scorecards that they provide at the golf course. Out of all the teams that were competing, the team with the lowest score wins.” This year the golf team includes, Curtis Fraser, Jake Lessels, Jack Hastings, Alex White, Ben Olimpio, Colin O’keefe, Sam Winslow, Taylor Cloutier, Josh Coe, Betty Wallingford and Tyler Guilmette. Curtis Frasier co-captians with Guilmette, and the coach is Jeff Cahill.

When asked how many years we have had a golf team, Tyler Guilmette responded, “I think we have had a golf team for about forty years now.” Guilmette has been on the golf team for four years now and when asked what he likes about the golf team, he said, “Golf team is wonderful because it allows you to be outdoors, enjoying the weather and the beautiful course. It’s a nice break from being in school all day. I also have a good time with everyone on golf team, and share great memories with everyone… Golf is a very difficult sport that takes a lot of patience but when you get the hang of it its a great time.” Guilmette also commented on what got him into golf by saying his grandfather got him into the sport when he was younger.

The Chance of a Lifetime

By Olivia Hamel

On February vacation during the school year of 2010-2011, an exciting event is taking place that the Spanish II-III students will be lucky enough to participate in. A trip to Spain was planned, for the students now enrolled in the level III Spanish classes, and is being offered to some of the more advanced students enrolled in the level II Spanish classes. Although the price seems steep, $2,895, for each student, it includes airfare, hotels, 2 meals a day and tours. Students will only be required to bring spending money for 1 meal a day and money to purchase souvenirs if wanted. The price is definitely reasonable for all that is included, and not to mention the fact that, for some students, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. To have almost everything included is rare and usually only offered to larger organizations that are going on trips such as these, because of the fact that they most likely receive a group rate on most expenses. So the question is, why not snatch up this opportunity while it was there?

The departure day is February 22^nd and the students will return on March 2^nd, the flight will be six to seven hours depending on whether or not the flight is actually a direct one, if not then it will be expected to be longer due to lay-overs.

Seeing this marvelous opportunity for what it was, many of the Spanish II-III students jumped at the chance to travel across the world and embark on an amazing journey. Seventeen students are planning on taking this trip, this school year, along with two staff members from the school, Senora Hassett and Ms. Gelineau. Senora Hassett, one of Hopkinton High School’s Spanish teachers, is a veteran traveler. She has been to Spain, twice before, with students. When questioned about her previous two trips, she stated that her favorite place to visit was El Hambra, a Moorish fortress, or in other words castle, located in Southern Spain. She also stated that it was on the itinerary for the planned trip coming up. Along with that historic site, many more are on the itinerary to be visited such as, El Prado, which is a museum of fine art, The Valley of the Fallen, which is where soldiers were buried due to the Spanish civil war. Duly noted this trip will be an amazing learning experience along with the opportunity of a lifetime.

The Future Looks Bright for Team Oz-Ram

By Tucker Gaskill

Every January thirty students and ten adults huddle together in a small room for hours at a time every night for six weeks. Why you might ask? It is Hopkinton and John Stark’s First Robotics Team. The season begins on January 8th, when 2500+ teams all around the world, at the exact same time, sit down and watch a broadcast that gives them all the information about this year’s game. Starting from that time, all the teams have exactly six weeks to design, build, and ship the robot.

Before that cold morning in January, no team across the planet has any idea on what the game might be this year, or what rules might be changed since last year. The only thing teams know is that they have six weeks to build and ship the robot. After that broadcast explaining the game, all the teams across the world meet to start to design and build the robot. In the first few days Team Oz-Ram sits around the room and discusses (or argues) about how our robot is going to work, what our robot is going to do, and what our robot is going to look like. Throughout the six weeks, we somehow get a robot put together through all of the meals, arguing, mechanical problems, and through just the challenge of time itself.

All throughout March and the beginning of April, the Regional events start all over the world. All of the events are three days: Thursday is a practice day, Friday is qualifying rounds, Saturday morning is the last of the qualifying rounds, and Saturday afternoon is all of the championship rounds. Out of every event there are five teams that can go to the championship event at the end of April previously held in Atlanta, but now in St. Louis. The three teams who win the regional get to go, as do the Chairmen’s award winning team, and the Rookie All Star award winning team.

Team Oz-Ram has had huge success since their rookie year in 2006. They have received these awards: 2006 rookie all stars, 2007 semi finalist in Boston regional, 2007 website award in the Granite State regional, 2007 Imagery award in the Granite State regional and the Boston regional, 2010 finalist in Granite State regional, 2010 winners in Boston regional, ranked 12^th in the world 2010.

When asked what he would like to accomplish this year, head mentor Will Renauld said, “I’d like to equal or even better what we accomplished last year.” When asked what he thinks about the team itself Renauld said, “It’s been an amazing run so far. Just traveling with the kids and competing at the level we compete at for this small of a school, it’s been a great experience.”

Turning The Pages

By Kaylee Foote

At Hopkinton High School there are many different types of groups and clubs. One of these clubs is called the “Page Turners.” When asked, Janet Moore said that she started the Page Turners, “To talk about books with kids, have fun, share their lunch, and eat cookies...definitely cookies!”

The Page Turners get together once a week during first and second lunch. What they do is everyone gets their lunch and then they to the library to eat and talk about a book. They also get to enjoy the cookies that are provided.

Currently the Page Turners are reading the book The Last Exit To Normal by Michael Harmon. Every time the group chooses a new book to read, everyone decides which book it will be. Moore said, “One time I chose [a book] and made a big mistake.” With everyone’s input, the book will be one that everyone can enjoy together.

This club is not just for fun and getting together, you can also put it on your college résumé and there is even an official photograph of the club members in the yearbook.

A New Face in Hopkinton High

By Justin Tracy

Today we sat down with Carolyn Lynch who is conducting a student internship with one of our history teachers, Mr. Krogman.

First things first: How long has Ms. Lynch been here? Ms. Lynch states that this will have been her first year interning with Mr. Krogman. Ms. Lynch also tells us that she plans to stay with us until January of this year. One thing we wanted to know was if she had gone to college. Ms. Lynch tells us that she did four years at Michigan State University, and received a Bachelors Degree in the English department.

We then asked some down to earth questions. Such as does Ms. Lynch like it here? She replied saying that she found it “interesting” and that she likes the students. Ms. Lynch also said that it is “fun to be in high school.” There was still one important question left to answer. Do you like Mr. Krogman? Ms. Lynch responded with a prompt “Yes, he is very thorough, and he keeps it fresh!”

To summarize Miss Carolyn Lynch’s story. This is her first year doing a student internship at Hopkinton High, and she plans to leave in January. She did four years at Michigan State University and earned a Bachelors Degree in the English department. Ms. Lynch likes being back in high school, and she enjoys interning under Mr. Krogman.

New Year, New Goalie

By Rachel LeGros

In 2009, the Hopkinton Boys Varsity soccer team won the State Championships for the 4^th time in a row. With a reputation like that, the other teams in Division III need to step up their game in this 2010 season. The boys are currently 7-1-1 and in 4^th place.

Despite the success of the 2009 season, they saw the loss of 10 seniors, one of them being a key starter, the goalie Jay Leblanc. With 87 saves and only 17 goals allowed throughout the entire season, it was hard to see Leblanc go.

At the start of the 2010 season, senior Ben Harrington decided to step up and fill in the goalie position. Harrington had no past experience as a goalie, but he and Coach Scott Zipke had talked about the possibility of Harrington being the goalie after the 2009 season.

When asked if Harrington has been going through extra goalie training, Zipke says that they have been working on and off throughout the season, but it’s less than he had anticipated. This isn’t a problem though, because “Biggie Benz is a naturally gifted athlete,” says Zipke. At the start of the season, Harrington didn’t know when to be aggressive or how to play various balls, but he now knows when to attack and when to stay back. He is also said to have a tendency to fall down, which Ben refers to as “diving.”

Varsity captain Brooks Wood was concerned at the beginning of the season, but once he saw Zipke’s training with Harrington, he was confident in Harrington’s ability to be the goalie. To this, fellow captain Billy French says “samesies.” Both captains say that Harrington has improved by “leaps and bounds.” Unfortunately, goalie Ben Harrington himself could not be reached for comment.

The only question that exists now is with Harrington being a senior this year, who will step up and be goalie for the varsity boys in the 2011 season?

The Wonderful World of DRAMA

By Kara McCluskey

So why Drama Club? What makes students join? What do they like about it?

Emily Meister, a junior who has been doing drama at the school since the end of her freshman year, but who has been acting and doing plays for as long as she can remember, initially became interested because her brother was involved. When asked what her favorite part about drama was, Meister responded, “I like being able to be all the different characters. And when you really get into the characters, and really act them out, then you kind of start to see things from their perspective, to act well, and that’s the cool part of it”.

Meister also said she really likes the other students that do drama. Megan Edmonds, a senior, who is doing drama for the first time this year, said the same, “ I really like the people that do it…drama is a bunch of people that are fun…every drama meeting is always a really hilarious time”. Edmonds joined for a different reason. She said, “I like trying new things…also I’m afraid of speaking in public so I’m also trying to conquer a fear and build my confidence”.

Image From: SkokieNet

Fresh Talent

by Lindsay White

When the seniors graduate, there is room for more players on varsity. Not only are the juniors and sophomores aspiring to make the team, but the upcoming freshmen are too. The lucky few who made girls varsity are: Courtney Benson, Sabrey Montore, and Kelly Scammon. Nikki Cullinan and Caroline Sweny are swing players, meaning they play both JV and Varsity.

When asked if they thought there were high expectations from them, Benson responded, “We’re younger so they expect us to play good.” Even though Benson is emerging as one of the best players on the team, she still feels she has to play her best all the time. Scammon was asked how it feels being a freshman on varsity? She responded, “Even though I’m a goalie, it’s cool to say I’m a starter.” Montore’s favorite game was “definitely the first game when we won against Belmont in double overtime.” When asked if they have learned more by playing on varsity, Cullinan says, “Yes I have, I have learned many positions than I knew before.” And Scammon says, “I learned how to be a goalie.”

Graduates Will Learn A Language

By: Breanna Ostrander

“Everyone can learn a language,” states Michelle Cotnior, a French teacher at Hopkinton High School. Cotnior is all for the new requirements for a modern language. As of the new 2010 school year, students in 9th grade at Hopkinton High School are now required to take two years of a language. A choice of French, Spanish and German is offered. There are many different opinions about this new graduating requirement. Many of the teachers think that having a second language is not only important for college résumés, but also to get a bigger picture of the world outside of the United States. Leanne Hassett, Hopkinton High School Spanish teacher, confirmed, “A world language is a wonderful thing to have, but it can also be a challenge.” There are many students who find languages to be a challenge and drop out, but this is now not option for freshman.

When asked, many students believe that it should be their choice whether they take a modern language or not. Now that it is forced upon them, they feel as if it will not be an enjoyable experience. There is one possible way to get out of the language you are taking; but that is by taking the next available language that is offered. Every year, Hopkinton High School switched the offered language for students from French to Spanish. Therefore, if you are in Spanish and next year Spanish is being offered, there is no way to get out of taking Spanish. This has aggravated students, who believe if they want to try a different language they should be able to.

For those who are now required to take a language, there are a few tips on being successful with your studies. “Study everyday. Practice using the Internet or listening to the language,” Cotnior believes that taking a head on approach will give great rewards. From those students in higher levels on a modern language, they will also agree that studying everyday is an important skill to master. One student gave the recommendation of studying in little segments of time instead of cramming the night before because that is how more information is retained. “If you don’t have any bricks, you cannot build a house,” stated Hassett when asked about studying habits and vocabulary usage. Students need to be able to identify the best way for them to study and utilize that knowledge. An anonymous source gave a few words of encouragement stating that “Success isn’t just a grade on a test, but how you feel about what you’ve learned, and how you continue to use that information.”