Title: Hope
Artist: NF
Record Label: NF Real Music
Release Date: February 16, 2023

Hope is the first song NF has released since his album Clouds (The Mixtape), which he released in 2021. The rap song is powerful and well-written, showing NF in his “healing era” (as his fans call it). I’ve been waiting since Clouds (The Mixtape) was released for a song like this, and it was well worth the wait. Hope is the best song NF has released in his entire music career.

The four and a half minute song talks about healing, growth, and, hence the title, hope. This song will be a part of the album Hope, along with 12 other songs, which will be released on April 7, 2023.

The Christian rapper first released two EPs before releasing his first studio album, Mansion, in 2015. He then released Therapy Session in 2016, Perception in 2017, The Search in 2019, and Clouds (The Mixtape) in 2021. 

This song is amazing because of its raw, deep lyrics that are happy and hopeful. Also, the music video for this song is his best yet. It has deep meanings behind everything in the video. We see two versions of NF, one wearing all white and the other wearing all black. The one wearing all white is NF right now while in his healing era, and the one wearing all black is past NF. There’s even a portion of the song where he is back inside of the mansion from the music video for the song Mansion, which represented his head and mental health at the time. There are even little easter eggs throughout the song’s lyrics. At one point in the song, he says, “What’s my definition of success? / Listening to what your heart says.” This is hinting back to his song Why from the album The Search, because in the song he says, “Yeah, what’s your definition of success? / I don’t trust the thoughts that come inside my head / I don’t trust this thing that beats inside my chest / Who I am and who I wanna be cannot connect, why?” In his song The Search, he says, “I’m lookin’ for the map to hope, you seen it?” which many fans think connects to the title of the song Hope and the map he is holding on the album cover. In another part of the song Hope, NF makes many references to past songs. For instance, at one point he says, “…thirty years of searching / … thirty years of (Nate) / … thirty years of (wait).” All of these refer to the names of past songs (The Search, Nate, and Wait).

However, some people may not like this song because of how much the music changes throughout it. Some parts are a lot slower than others, some parts are a lot louder than others, etc. This can be kind of annoying, because it isn’t set up in a way that most songs are. There are also portions of the song where there is a version of his voice that is deeper and creepy sounding, which some people may think is strange. These are just minor flaws, though. 

All in all, Hope is NF’s best song yet, and I can’t wait for what’s in store for us in the new album. 

Title: That 90’s Show

Director: Laura Prepon

Starring: Kurtwood Smith, Debra Jo Rupp, Tommy Chong

Studio: Sunset Bronson Studios in Los Angeles 

Release date: January 19, 2023

Available: Netflix

That 90’s Show is definitely nostalgic for the kids who grew up watching Red Forman (Kurkwood Smith) embarrass Eric Forman (his son on the show, Topher Grace). There’s so many good things that I was excited to see as an add on from the original, That 70’s Show. On the other hand, it seemed to be a bit more obviously staged in my opinion because it wasn’t terrible, but it’s not as good as the original. I had a mutual liking towards the show. 

Danny Masterson (Hyde) did not attend to be casted in That 90’s Show because in his real life, he did in fact face some legal trouble. Obviously it won’t be as good as the original, but the newer characters were stiff- and more clear at acting- meaning it was obvious that they were acting and not feeling what they’re saying. On the original, it was flowey, and they were spot on. 

The newer cast stammers, isn’t with the program, and I had second hand embarrassment. Callie Haverda (Leia Forman) was made to act dumb, and anxious throughout season 1. She has no confidence whatsoever. In the original, they just made decisions, ran with it, and had fun the whole time. For example, “Streaking” is the third episode of the first season, where the boys streaked in front of everyone. That was funny. But the fact Leia can’t make what’s right of her direction, it’s not as fun to be yelling at the screen “JUST DO IT!!” when she isn’t acting right.  Also, some of the newer cast outfits didn’t seem to be “90’s”. They wore things I’d wear in 2020 or 2023! It did not fit the 90’s aesthetic. 

There are some pros to my argument though. I loved seeing the original cast just show up here and there, making their own entrance. It’s nice to see that they’re all together still, and I’m glad to see how some of the couples turned out. 

Overall, I don’t love it, but it could have been way worse. In some parts it was funny, but nothing like the original cast. I wish they were more chill and went with the flow, rather than being so stiff.

When people come across the book Ender’s Game in the library or a bookstore, many pass it up due to its thickness. I can assure you that time isn’t a problem. The book only takes about two to three days to finish or if you are me. I read it in a day. 

Ender’s Game (written in 1985) is a science fiction novel written by the American author Orson Scott Card. The book came from the short story with the same name, published in ‘Analog Science Fiction and Fact’ in 1977. Card soon wrote more books to create the Ender’s Game series. An updated version of Ender’s Game was released in 1991, updating some political facts in the book to accurately reflect the era. This science fiction novel tells the story of a young boy, Ender Wiggin, who is sent to a training academy named Battle School, located in orbit above the Earth, built to train people to become soldiers that will one day battle against a vast alien race known as “Buggers”.  Ender goes up there, trying his best to become promoted into the difficult training scheme; his brother and sister are trying to restore the world and make it a better place. For Ender, the training is tough. He is granted a special teacher, who will help him to become a commander to save humanity from the Third Invasion. Themes of the book are love, hate, prejudice (Ender is socially excluded for some time at Battle School), strength and courage. We see many characters being introduced in this story, Ender’s family (which includes Ender, his mean brother Peter and his sister Valentine). Ender also meets many friends (and enemies) at Battle School, some of those being Petra, Bonzo, Bean, Alai, Dink, Crazy Tom, Hot soup and Carn Carby. We also have Colonel Graff and many other people of authority, and even The Queen, from the Buggers. All of these people have very different personalities. 

Card was born August 24, 1951. He is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and public activist. He has written several books in different genres, but primarily known for his science fiction novels. His novel Ender’s Game and its sequel Speaker of the Dead (1986) both won Hugo and Nebula awards. Thanks to this, Card is the only author to win both top US prizes of Science Fiction in consecutive years. 

 Ender’s Game has an interesting narrative style. Card has placed descriptions where appropriate, and he always narrates in an exciting manner. One way he provokes tension in the book is by having an unidentified narrator at the beginning of every chapter. At the beginning, the reader has no clue about who is narrating; at one time I suspected it being the Buggers, which can be quite chilling, as the unknown narrator knows everything about Ender. Only gradually does the reader come to understand who the narrator is. Not only do we have an unknown narrator, but some chapters also switch between Ender’s perspective and his family’s situation. 

The reason why I liked this book is because it follows a busy, unpredictable, action-packed plot, but the end of the novel is still sad and strong enough to make us reflect on our behavior and on the book’s events. It is also gripping and exciting, and the reader never knows what will happen next. For example, at one point, another random day turns into a battle in a washroom. 

The beginning instantly grips you, as the reader is thrust into a new and unknown situation. So much is unknown in the book; slowly everything is explained, as you constantly gather more information about the situation. If you were to start reading from the end (I actually tried it) you would have no idea of what was happening to whom.

Overall, I would recommend this book to readers because of its excitement, meaning and unpredictability. 

Title: The Gold Finch

Author: Donna Tartt

A grand painting has been a fan favorite at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art for generations, until a bombing is set off, and the painting presumably vanishes. Many say it must have burned in the fire, others speculate it was stolen by the raiders. However, one person knows the truth, but what he will do with it, he does not know. This person’s name is Theodore Decker, yet the multitude of problems that stem from this singular painting is only a small factor of what ultimately leads him to his downward spiral in life. This all takes place in the coming-of-age novel, The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt,  which is an emotional rollercoaster of a tragic hero that constantly messes things up, leading him deeper and deeper inside the drawn-out pages. The character development within the novel was down-to-earth and harshly real. As I read through it I could not help but get frustrated as I watched the character constantly make the wrong decision. Theodore in his older years struggles with addiction, jealousy, and stealing- and without the common story trope, “Deus ex Machina,”* as a reader, you are just constantly drawn back in waiting for a happily ever after. The book tells a cut-dry story that expresses a believable narrative of a boy who turns into a man after being constantly betrayed by the world. Some things I personally could not stand was how drawn out and long the book was, at 771 pages, you are in for an extremely long time investment. The payoff at the end was definitely not a good one either. The language and situations in the novel were also extremely vulgar, and sometimes I was tempted to skip scenes solely on that factor. Other than that, the characters were extremely rounded and well-developed. I felt as if I were actually Theo living his life, and happy story or not- it was extremely well written. Overall, the book was seamlessly written, and for the topic it kept me engaged, for the most part. There were at multiple times while reading the book, that I found it unbearable because the book had a bad habit of going nowhere with the plot. The book is very drawn out, but if that’s your cup of tea by all means I recommend the book. The book has more of a mature audience, and would only be enjoyable to more sociological people who enjoy analyzing people’s character, and do not just read for the plot. So give it a read, even if it is just 

for the bragging point of, “I basically read an 800-page book.” 

*Deus ex Machina is a story trope that means “God from the machine” and is talking about how an unsolvable problem suddenly is solved by an abrupt and unlikely thing 

There are many words one could use to describe the heightened visual quality of James Cameron’s original “Avatar”  words like incandescent, immersive, bedazzling. But in the 13 years since that movie came out, the word I tend to remember best is glowing. The primeval forest and floating-mountain landscapes of Pandora had an intoxicating fairy-tale shimmer. You wanted to live inside them, even as the story that unfolded inside them was magnificent.In “Avatar: The Way of Water,” Cameron’s bigger, longer and even more dizzyingly spectacular sequel the technology that Cameron uses to take us back to Pandora has been sharpened  in every way. The 3D images have an uncanny tactility; if you had to describe them in just one word, it might be hyper clear. The film also has the eerie present tense quality peculiar to high frame rate shooting. It’s a rather soulless feeling, as it was in Peter Jackson’s “Hobbit” films. But it can make you feel like you’re sharing the same space with the characters. And that’s something of a feat given that most of them are tall, blue skinned Na’vi warriors with the eyes of mountain lions and the speed of gazelles.

Title:Avatar The Way of Water

Director:James Cameron 

Starring:Sam Worthington

Studio:20th Century Studios

Release Date:December 16

Available: Hulu, Amazon Prime Video

         Homework- Killing or saving students GPA? the Teachers’ statements.

Homework is a very controversial topic among students and teachers. Many believe that homework is too much with work ,chores ,practice , and more. Some teachers give hours of homework with no regard for the students’ outside lives, while others rarely give any. Many students think that homework is a waste of the teachers and their own time and that it doesn’t help. Mrs. Shoemaker is a math teacher and she said  “Homework is to provide extra practice so students can master the skills being taught. Students who complete homework have better retention and an easier time remembering and applying what they learn. Students can learn time management and how to know what needs to be prioritized compared to what doesn’t. Homework being overused can be an unnecessary weight on students and can cause more harm than good.”

Students see homework as a punishment and pointless. Teachers believe it is preparing you for the real world.  For instance Mrs. Myer,  an English teacher,  said “Teachers often assign homework to assess student’s comprehension outside of the classroom or when working by oneself. The same way that adults are expected to manage their work,life, and hobbies. You learn to prioritize things that mean the most and make time for things you enjoy. Most jobs have some form of “Homework” whether it’s preparing for a presentation, studying a case, going over patient or client history, etc. This is a normal part of life and homework is practice for the real world. Often the result of homework is a grade, but also preparation for continuing classwork, a quiz, or test.” 

Most teachers are not giving you homework to punish you, but prepare you for the real world. Teachers want you to understand the topic being taught and know that you know it.

Winter Formal Fun

Saturday, February 11 2023 is the first winter formal for Carter high school students in over 3 years. 

Mrs. Lee, one of the principals, is in charge of setting up winter formal along with the student government. The winter formal attire will be Semi-Formal, “Not Prom but still nice” said Mrs.Lee. There will be a DJ and Small appetizers. Many students wondered why it was at the school Mrs.Lee said “It is at the school due to places being booked or just too pricey”. The dress code is encouraged but not heavily enforced due to it being semi-formal. The date was picked because it was close to valentine’s day and there was not too much overscheduling. They hope to see many at winter formal and to host more dances in the future. 

Are you tired of only having the option of French or Spanish? Well then we could work together to have Carter High School offer more language classes. I believe we should have more options. Several people here at Carter wish to expand their knowledge past the basic French and Spanish language. Carter High School should offer more different language classes that we have options. One reason we should have more language classes is it offers more options to students who aren’t wanting to take Spanish and French. This reasoning explains that not everyone fits the frame for wanting to learn Spanish and French. It would be cool to offer ASL, German, etc. Another reason might be that it can be beneficial to learn outside the box with languages that aren’t so popular in school. This conveys that people want to feel unique learning a language that isn’t common and fits places they want to travel. Another reason might also be that it can help with job opportunities being able to help other people who might not be from around here. Some would say we don’t have enough teachers to support other languages. Well since Knox County Schools are moving to academies there should be more ways to focus on supporting the arts of other languages to allow for more teachers. I think schools should offer more language classes because it offers more options for students who aren’t wanting to take French and Spanish, it can be beneficial to learn outside the box with languages that aren’t so popular in school, and it can help with job opportunities being able to help other people who might not be from around here. 

Mrs. Chun, a Biology and Chemistry teacher, prides herself on teaching Biology to many students here at Carter High School. She invests 8 hours of her everyday life teaching students and helping them learn more about the amazing world of Biology. 

Mrs. Chun states, “I took a really roundabout way to get my degree.” She was on the doctorate track at the University of Tennessee to get her Ph. D in biochemistry. After a few years she realized she hated research and loved teaching so she quit her Ph. D program and joined the College of Education to start teaching. Mrs. Chun stated, “My plan was to be a college professor when going into the Ph. D program.” She is more familiar with Biology so it’s easier to think of examples or alternate ways of explaining concepts that go along with Biology. She says, “Chemistry is more about chemical bonding in physical science whilst Biology is a life science.” Her favorite type of Biology is molecular biology which is the intersection between biology and chemistry. It’s when the small chemical molecules interact. Mrs. Chun also stated that, “ When I was in high school I took a Microbiology class and I always knew I wanted to do something medical related or research based.” 

Mrs. Chun states that, “I would prefer to have more time before state testing or just not have it at all for Biology.” There isn’t enough time beforehand to cram everything in before state testing seeing as biology is a state tested class. She says, “I like the experiments and labs are fun.” She likes when students get the composure of looking into microscopes. She also likes the dissections. She says, “It’s fun to gross the students out while doing these experiments.” Asha Carter, a current CHS senior, says, “I like doing the projects and how funny she is.” Her favorite project was when they dissected frogs. She also stated, “The classroom is peaceful and comforting.” She enjoys the setting of Mrs. Chun’s classroom just as much as she loves Mrs. Chun. Mrs. Chun’s classroom is a very welcoming place for those who pay attention and engage in the conversations during class. 

Mrs. Chun said, “I don’t take work home anymore because I used to stay up all night preparing for the next day.” Mrs. Chun also stated that, “I don’t change things all at once to help balance work and home life.” She says, “If I change something I can do it within my planning time.” 

She has a two year old son that is very funny and weird. She likes spending time with her husband. Her husband is her favorite person. Mrs. Davidson, a chemistry teacher here at Carter says, “Me and Mrs. Chun participates in several things outside of school. We go to plenty of Carter events like Prom, Football games, Musicals, etc.” As you can see Mrs. Davidson and Mrs. Chun are good friends and enjoy teaching in the same vicinity. It was definitely a blast to know both of them and get to know them when I did. They are amazing teachers inside and out. 

Recently Knox County Schools have made changes with lunch prices. They’ve made lunch no longer free. We have to pay $3 for lunch. 

Many students have reported that they don’t have the money to pay for lunch or they don’t think the food is good enough to pay $3 everyday for lunch. This seems to have become a problem with several people. Several students have gone hungry from the simple fact that school lunches are pricey and not all that good. 

A mother of a former CHS student says, “I think it’s ridiculous that parents have to pay because they don’t have the money to pay for lunches. The poverty in America hasn’t changed, if anything it’s grown more now because of things like this sudden change from free to having to pay for lunch.” 

This statement can be backed up by many experiencing this unfortunate situation. National poverty rates have had an amazing increase within the year 2021 and 2022. In 2021, poverty rates were at a whopping 11.6 percent with 37.9 million people in poverty. In 2022, poverty rates were at a slight increase of 14.4 percent.  

Assistant principal Karyn Lee says, “There are pros and cons in paying for lunch. It teaches budgeting skills.” Plenty of parents and staff would agree that budgeting money at a young age is important in learning to manage your money. Students should be taught how to budget money because not everything is free once you get out of highschool. Assistant principal Karyn Lee also stated, “ I do wish they would look into more vendors and more variety in choice of food with the county.” Plenty of people would agree that there needs to be more food choices. Our main foods are always nuggets, pizza, nachos, cheeseburger, etc. There definitely needs to be more options. Not everyone likes these foods every week. If anything they should have tastier more health options along with the choice of food we are offered now. 

If you are struggling with payments towards lunch for your kids or you’re a high school student paying for yourself. There are papers in the office that you can sign to get free lunch or lower prices on lunch food. You can also visit www.lunchspplication.com. This website is also available for any information you need on the free lunch and you can apply for your child to receive this option of free lunch.