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College Holds Your Future By Emily Sims
How do you want your future to turn out? Do you want it miserable or successful? Most would agree a successful future is the way to go. It is never too early to get started preparing for you future, and nowadays there is no successful future without a college diploma. However, in order to begin to prepare for college you have to use some common sense to start early using several guidelines. Today, lots of careers require a certain amount of education in order for you to even be acknowledged. When it comes to preparing for college, figuring out what kind of career you want is helpful because it can help you figure out what kind of education you need, and how to prepare for it. After considering what type of career field you want to enter, then you need to get advice. For anyone, it is highly recommended to go to a counselor or someone that knows what you need to do in order to prepare for college. Both counselors and teachers can give you great advice to get you focused on what you need to do. They can help you figure out what classes/courses you need to take in order to prepare and when they need to be taken, what colleges are looking for and what you need for a certain type of college. They can also give you information on academic programs at local colleges that can help you see what college is like, which, in turn, would look wonderful on your college application. Another big tip would be to start saving money for college. As everyone knows, college is expensive and the prices are rising. According to the type of career you choose, which leads to the type of college you are looking for, money is an important factor in how much you will need to pay for college. Many students drop out because they cannot afford the classes and the dues. This leads to futures flushed down the drain. However, if you start saving young and save every little penny, it helps out in time. Students should also be aware of the financial aid around them. Everyone deserves a good life. You cannot control what happens in your childhood as much as you can in your adulthood; therefore, start early as you can preparing using these several guidelines to go to college and enchant your life with new opportunities.
Cole Conner
In the coming months, many young people will be looking forward to pastel colored gifts and large dinners with extended family. But, how many people really know the true story and importance of Easter? Easter is a celebration of Christ’s Resurrection. Since there is no definite date of this event, the celebration usually takes place mid-Spring. Easter Day is currently determined as the first Sunday after the full moon on or after March 21. The name Easter is derived from the pagan goddess Eostre. Aside from the name, many pagan symbols have become affiliated with Easter. The Easter Bunny is a relic known as Oschter Haws, the egg laying bunny from Germany. The eggs so commonly used for scavenger hunts and decoration were used in Ancient Rome and Greece as symbols of fertility and life. Other traditions have become prevalent mainly due to corporate advertising. The gifts, candy, and decorations sold in relation to Easter bring in billions of dollars for retailers and manufacturers alike. This spending frenzy is only furthered by making some specialty items only available in the Easter Season. Easter will be celebrated on Sunday, March 23 this year. As always, delicious candy and decorative gifts are available by the truckload, but may society not forget the real reason for the season; Christ’s Resurrection and celebrating this blessing with family.
Generation Y: Will we fall or Will we stand? By: Katie Tacakberry
Born into the multimedia world, we are able to multi-task by listening to music, do work, talk by instant messaging, and talking on the phone all at once. We are able to be an individual and have opportunities that are endless; however, we refuse to recognize those opportunities, such as financial aid, more information on diseases, birth control, adoption, and support groups. There is a total of 80 million of us according to US Today, making us 1/3 of the population and spend about 170 billion a year. We are young, intelligent, yet ignorant and arrogant. We are “Gen Y” (Generation Y) or the Millennial generation. The oldest in our generation are barely out of college and the youngest are in grade school (US Today). The world today is a constantly evolving disaster; between sex, drugs, alcohol, and the continual desire for individualism by going against the grain, the current generation is throwing away their lives. Ever since we were kids our egos have been inflated constantly, whether or not we did something right or wrong. This in turn has made us a need generation. Constant praise, immediate results, and acceptance are what we want. Although we are high performance we are also high maintenance. We strive to be independent, but we have what is known as “helicopter parents’, or parents who fight our battles and watch over our every move, preventing us from being and ‘individual’ and not being able to learn that things don’t always go our way. We are children of Generation X, a time of misfortune and complete blind-sidedness. So where our parents went wrong, they put us under pressure to do well and work hard to make up for their lost times. Besides the pressure of our parents, we have the pressure of out society and schools. This is where sex, booze and drugs fall into the great plan of survival; so let me get real with you. Most of us fold at this point, ditch school and the ever-changing world for that matter; props to the once who haven’t. We do this to escape to a world of our own, leaving us dumbfounded when we come back to reality. Even though it may have numbed us for a while, in actuality it is setting us farther behind and adding more weight on our shoulders. Because while you were in the biggest high of your life, which can last from one hour to up to more that once year or stuck in a party that won’t stop, life has changed for you and everyone around you. You don’t only hurt yourself, you hurt you family and your friends, Our generation has financial smarts and we were predicted to run the country with great swiftness, but the once who are still stuck in the phase where they think they are going to last forever are leaving the rest of us out to dry. There is no interest in politics, and even if some of us vote, half of us don’t know what to vote for. The economy is failing and education being on the back burner certainly won’t help it any. Where do you stand in this behemoth of a mess? Is this all we have to offer? If it is, then in our lifetime America will fall; it will fall as soon as it is our time to step up to the plate. Why? Because we will be too busy having sex, doing drugs, and getting wasted to even show up for the game.
Hass Jumpstarts MHS band program By Katie Layton Photo caption:
Ms. Kim Hass, our school’s new band director, is taking the Moody Blue Marching Band in a new and improved direction. Hass grew up in Scottsborro, Alabama, and said it was a small town just like Moody. So when The Devil’s Advocate asked Hass if it was easy to adjust to Moody, she eagerly said, “yes, because it reminded me of my home.” The Devil’s Advocate asked Hass what she was expecting for next year, and she said, “perfection” in a joking manner, but went on to say that she expected more support for the band and more excitement from the band during the half time show. Hass also said that she hopes to have 20 to 25 more students in the band and harder more difficult music to make next year’s show more exciting. Hass also went on to say that the band is going to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii next year to perform. The Devil’s Advocate asked Hass how the Moody Blue Marching Band came to be invited to Hawaii, and she said, “Through a lot of applications and hard work.” The Devil’s Advocate had to ask Hass the hard question of how it was dealing with the band after Mrs. King died (former band director of Moody) and Ms. Hass went on to say, “It was the hardest thing I have ever done.” Hass went on saying it wasn’t just hard because of the weeping children, but also because she and King had been friends for many years. Still, Hass pulled through for the band and made the Moody Blue Marching Band stronger from the loss of Mrs. King. Ms. Hass even had a dedication show for Mrs. King and the band performed it that Friday night. Hass has helped the band in so many ways. She has pulled them through emotional and physical difficulties and said she hopes to stay at Moody for a long time. The Devil’s Advocate asked Hass for her overall opinion on the Moody Blue Devil’s Marching Band, and without a hesitation she said, “I love them and they are like family to me.” |
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aHistory of St. Patrick’s Day By: Joshua Vernon
For most people St. Patrick’s Day is just about wearing the color green, because they are unaware of the true meaning of this holiday. This day was founded in honor of St. Patrick a Christian missionary who was credited with converting Ireland from paganism. He was born in either Scotland or Wales, were at the age of sixteen he was captured and enslaved by an Irish Chieftain. He spent several years enslaved there and during his time he turned his life over to God. After years of religious study, following his escape from slavery, he became a priest. He would live a long life serving the Lord and would eventually die on March 17th. This date is the day that we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Also people are unaware of the history of things that are associated with this holiday such as shamrocks, leprechauns, and the color green. The shamrock is often associated with this day, but many people do not understand why. When St. Patrick tried to teach the pagan Irish about the Doctrine of Trinity they had a hard time comprehending it. So St. Patrick had top come up with a way to relate it to them so they could better understand the message. That’s when he began to hold up a shamrock demonstrating the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost combining together to make the Holy Trinity. The color green is probably the most closely associated with this holiday, as it represents the rolling green hills of Ireland. The tradition surrounding this color on this holiday is that if you are wearing green and you see someone who is not then you are allowed to pinch them. Although, if you pinch someone who is wearing green they are allowed to pinch you back ten times. Another thing associated with this day are leprechauns. The truth is that leprechauns have little to do with St. Patrick’s Day. Leprechauns have been described as Ireland’s national fairy, so over years it has become a part of the celebration.
.Michael Letcher
Michael Letcher
A very popular form of entertainment for teenager’s now is going to the movies. So The Devils Advocate staff saw it fit to take a look into three recent movies that people are talking about. The first movie released Friday February 22nd. “Vantage Point” was a good movie for many reasons. Since it was rated Pg-13, any high school teenager can go see it. An impressive cast, Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, and Sigourney Weaver, helps to bring this movie together. The movie tells the story of the assassination of the president of the United States from eight different view points. Although there were several good things about the movie, there were also things that we found that we didn’t like so much. For example, they show you the same thing eight times; it gets extremely repetitive. Overall, “Vantage Point” is a well put together movie and is definitely worth going to see. Another movie that we are expecting to see great results form is the “Bank Job”. It was released Friday March 7. Jason Stratham and Saffron Burrows team up to make this thriller movie come together. Terry, played by Stratham, has avoided major scams for the majority of his career, but when Martin, a beautiful model from his old neighborhood, offers him a lead on a foolproof bank hit on London’s Baker Street, Terry recognizes the opportunity of a lifetime. The target’s a room full of safety boxes worth millions in cash and jewelry. But Terry and his crew don’t realize the boxes also contain a collection of dirty secret, secrets that will place them into a deadly web of corruption and scandal that involves everyone from London’s criminal underworld, the highest ranks of the British government, and even the Royal Family itself. We are expecting this to be an excellent movie and definitely recommend going to see it when it comes to the theaters. The last movie that we looked at and expect to have a good turn out is “Boarding Gate”, set to release March 21. The movie features Asia Argento playing as Sandra, a women who is having an affair with the very wealthy Miles Rennberg, played by Michael Madsen. As if one affair isn’t enough, she is also having another affair with a hit man, Lester Wang, played by Carl Ng. All goes well and she is able to conceal her dark secrets from the world until the two meet and Lester is assigned to kill Miles. This is expected to be a great for the ladies when it releases.
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Tanning Bed
Why do we usually go to tanning beds and what kind of effects do they have on our skin? Girls and some boys got to tanning beds because they want to get a tan for prom or they go just because some of them like the attention of people saying. “Oh my goodness, you’re so tan!” What you may not know are the effects and dangers that indoor tanning can do to your body or your health. One of the side effects of tanning beds is the UVA rays that cause skin damage and eye damage. Some of the diseases that can be caused by UVA radiation are cataracts, snow blindness, and skin cancer around the eyelids. Tanning may even cause various types of cancers, such as basal cell carcinoma, Squamous-cell carcinoma, and Melanoma. According to www.all-tanning-beds.com, basal cell carcinoma (BCC) can be caused by radiation of tanning beds or the complications of scars, burns, or tattoos. Squamous-cell carcinoma, (SCC) if not treated immediately, will go deeper in the skins underlying tissues. The last type of skin cancer is Melanoma. It is least common and considered to be the most dangerous. It originates from the cells that produce melanin which is the pigment that colors the skin, eyes, and hair. It is known to be very difficult to treat and can be fatal. Some of the positive effects of tanning are that if you tan naturally in the sun, the ultraviolet light causes your body to naturally produce vitamin D when the light touches your skin. Vitamin D has been linked to treat and/or prevent many diseases and conditions. Tanning beds help with a condition such as acne because when under the bulbs, the light soaks up the oil in your skin and causes your pores to open. Some of the negative effects of tanning beds are that you do not get the vitamins from the bulbs as you do in the sun. Tanning under bulbs, you get twice the damage to your skin than tanning naturally under the sun. That’s because indoor tanning devices emit ultraviolet rays. Some of the tanning lotions that you can use for indoor tanning and are really good for your skin are Black 20x Bronzing Body Silk which is a magical silicone to firm and smooth while tanning. Activated Amino Acids promote optimal results, leaving fade-defying radiance. Then, there is Majesty, which employs an exclusive juice-based formula to quench skin for the ultimate tanning cocktail. Micronutrients and antioxidants nourish, while the advanced 10 bronzer blend swathes skin in deep, dark color. The finally lotion is Tinted Love. It is a lavish moisturizer with the added benefit of a sunless tanner to gradually enhance and deepen complexion and color, without streaking or staining, deeply hydrating and color enhancing with a hint of radiance for luminous, glowing skin. Antioxidants and vitamins intertwine to visibly improve skin’s appearance. All of these lotions can be found at www.tanmybod.com. We teens love tanning, but when tanning indoors or outdoors, teens have to remember the dangers of it, even though there are some positive effects. So if you do not want to have cancer or look like someone with leather type skin in your later years of age, just watch how many times a week you tan. Months before the Queen of Hearts pageant, young high school girls go shopping for their dress, making sure it fits good. Girls will plan out a di
A Car Wreck that leads to a Ministry By: Stephanie Howard
The club The Warriors was started with a guy that knew God’s calling and purpose for his life. That guy was Jacob Peterson. Amazingly a car wreck is what helped Jacob to see what God’s passion for him really was. Jacob started his sophomore year being what most considered a “jock”. He was playing football, partying, hanging out with the “cool” kids. He felt like he had everything he needed. One night he and some friends where driving around having a good time until they took a turn to sharp and flipped. That night God put a passion in Jacob’s heart to start living right and save lost souls. It was not a easy challenge for Jacob to change his life, he would get in God’s word and start living how he was suppose to and it seemed like he would always end up going back to they way that he was before. Jacob attended a camp that summer after school let out. The vision that Jacob saw that night would soon bring a lot of change to Jacob’s life. “One night I was sitting in service and the Lord showed me a vision. I saw myself going into Coach Glover’s office and telling him that I was quitting football to go into the ministry. I thought I was crazy! I turned the thought away, but then the lady that was leading the service stopped in the middle of the service and said that someone is dealing with God raise your hand if it is you. I raised my hand and knew that I was called. So I got back to town and immediately called Coach Glover. He was very supportive of my decision. I then spoke my first message the following Wednesday. I began to preach and share the word of God. I never really knew the reason why God wanted me to quit football until this summer at the Basement. It was during worship that God spoke to me clearly and told me that he wanted me to start a ministry at my school. I began to doubt myself by saying that I could not do it because I had no one to help me and I asked God to please lay it on someone’s heart to help me. That night Bj Handley called me and told me that he and Beau Ryder felt they needed to start something. So I knew it was a God ordained ministry.
The warriors club is a ministry created for students by students. This club is a place where students can come and feel comfortable. The Warriors has helped students start a relationship with God, and has helped others renew theirs. We asked some people how this club has helped them with their relationship with God and these are some of the responses that we received. These people wish to remain anonymous. “The Warriors club really helped me with my relationship with God and other Christians. I could really tell when I went to the services that my relationship with God grew stronger. It was nice to know that I had people that I could talk to and they would be able to give me advice because they were going through the same things that I was going through.” Some other responses that we received were “ I really love coming to the warriors things are not really great in my home life and it feels really good to be able to come and gather with people that not only love God but I know that they love me also. It has really helped me through hard times just knowing that I have people that love me and are praying for me daily” “I remember one Wednesday morning I felt like everything Satan could have made come against me he did, it was so bad that I had even been pulled over by the police for speeding on my way to the service. I was so upset when I got there and just felt like nothing else could go wrong. I remember walking up to the service and I was like fifteen minutes late. I mean Jacob had already started preaching. I walked up and in the middle of the sermon Jacob stopped and smiled at me and said hey. I don’t know why he did that day but I began to pray as soon as he finished preaching and all of the sudden I could feel God’s presence all over me. I knew then that The Warriors was for real and that God’s hand was really in it. This was not the only service that I really felt God’s hand in. One morning The Warriors just had a prayer service and it was like if you needed prayer then you just step out of the circle and someone would come and pray with you. I had been fighting it all morning because I knew that I had slipped away from God and that there was definitely a reason that I was there that morning. I remember Jacob looking at me and it was like we both had heard from God. Jacob and I prayed that morning and I’m telling you it was like Jesus had just lit a fire under my butt and it was time to go and tell people about Jesus. I experienced many things at The Warriors that will stick with me for the rest of my life.”
The Warriors meet every Wednesday morning at 7:15 around the flagpole. The beginning is a time for worship that then leads into a message being given and then is closed with worship. The Warriors is a place where students can come and feel welcome. This ministry was created for students by students so that they can come and fellowship with teens that are going through the same things that they are.
The Womanless Beauty Pageant
By: Chelsea Taylor
Moody High School held their annual Womanless Beauty Pageant on February 21st. It had many laughs, joys, and funny moments including: the dancing, the fights, and the boys trying to “strut their stuff.” The contestants included: Brandon Adair, Kyle Breece, Alex Burch, Michael McClure, Matt Perry, Michael Self, Philip Simon, Bryan Quesenberry and Phillip Williams. The contestants all had to come up with a stage name and tell something about themselves. Brandon Adair’s stage name was “Miss Hibbs” and her best physical feature was her legs because they are silky smooth. Kyle Breece or “Candy” was asked if she were stranded on a desert island that would choose to be there with her. She responded, “Coach Guinn because he is hot.” Alex Burch was “Elfonza the Fanta Girl” and said her description of Mr. Right would be “tall, blonde, and know how to work a sax.” Michael McClure was “Miss Kitty” and her favorite perfume is anything Britney Spears because everyone loves her. Matt Perry was “Miss Guinn” and said her future plans are “to live in the moment.” Michael Self was “Rishbushia” and her role model is Queen Latifa, because she reminds Rishbushia of her beautiful self. Philip Simon or “Phyllis Simone” claimed that the best song to describe her is “Bubbly”. Bryan Quesenberry was “Peaches” and she said her ideal date would be a candle-lit dinner. Phillip Williams or also known as “Precious”, said her favorite place to shop is Claire’s. The pageant was full of action as the contestants “showed their stuff” on stage. The pageant first started off by introducing the contestants one by one. Then, the contestants “busted a move” as they showed their best dance moves. At this time, Kyle Breece tried to seal a win with his all-showing hand stand across the stage. The judges seemed impressed by all the participants. It was a close decision, but in the end, Phil Simon took home the victory and won the Miss Blue Devil Pageant. Alex Burch took home second runner-up. Following Alex was Michael McClure taking home first runner-up. An upset Brandon Adair, Miss Hibbs, settles for Miss Congeniality. |
