Every year at St. John High, we have our annual Sadie Hawkins Dance. It is a small dance, put together by the Key Club that brings the school together to have fun and dance. This year’s Sadie Hawkins will be different than the past years. For 2008, the theme of Sadie Hawkins will be “A Black and White Affair”. The dance will be held on January 26, 2008. It will take place from 7:00-10:00 p.m., with a lock-in at 7:30.There is a very specific dress code for the dance. Students will be allowed to wear their favorite black and white attire, but they will not be allowed to wear jeans. The dance will take place in the St. John School Cafeteria. There will be a D.J., a photographer, tons of decorations, and fun for all.

Many students at St. John are very excited about the dance. I asked Senior Dallas Landry how she felt and she replied, “I am very excited for this year’s Sadie Hawkins. I had tons of fun last year and I hope to have tons of fun this year. I can’t wait till Saturday. I also love the theme. It is something different and it sounds like it will be very fun.” While some students are enthusiastic, others are dissatisfied. Senior Blaine Delaune says, “I am disappointed in this year’s theme. I feel that it affects the way we must dress. Now we have to obey to certain colors. I have always been able to express myself at Sadie Hawkins, but now I feel that we don’t even have an option. It feel like many restrictions keep occurring during my senior year, I wish this year’s theme could have been different.” Although there are many different opinions on this year’s dance. I firmly believe that the dance will be full of fun and excitement for all who attend.

By Allie Hebert

During the New Years, most people popped fire work, celebrated with their family, or got drunk with friends. The most important part was what everyone was doing at 12:00, the start of the New Year.

My friends and I were popping fireworks with each, throwing them into the bonfire. Other people were getting drunk in the cane fields or simply watching each other get drunk. A lot of people went over to Mike’s with their friends. Hardly anyone did stuff with their family this New Year. The most important thing though, is that now 2008 has began, the past has now left us, and the future is open, and we now walk down it’s long path. The time for change is now! In other words we all have a New Years resolution, obviously. Hopefully we’ll have our minds set on achieving large goals, and not petty achievements that won’t effect on a large scale of time. Hopefully, this year will not only be good for the people of American, but everyone in the world. Maybe our corrupt government won’t start another pointless war for pollution. Overall what ever happens this year happens, I highly doubt that it’ll be anything significantly good, but we’ll most likely learn from the mistakes we are bound to make this year.

By Robbie Gomez

As May draws near, many seniors are anxiously awaiting graduation, the day we, as a senior class, can walk down the aisle in our caps and gowns. The arrival of acceptance letters from the college of our choice is also a perk after tedious semesters of studying and testing. Although a difficult and time consuming task, the results, for the most part, will not be disappointing.

Senior Lindsey Breaux, shared, “I am excited for college life and ready to move away from home so I can feel more independent. Although I will miss my mom’s home cooking, I will be with new people and doing exciting things; therefore, not being homesick. Being a college student makes you a busy person giving you opportunities to meet new people and venture to new places. Even though I’ll only be an hour away, going to college gives me a new sense of freedom, something I’ve been long awaiting.”

As we all so gladly rejoice throughout the halls during school hours, the “big day” is almost here. So, as we count down the days until graduation, let us remember the good times, the bad times, the tears, and the sweat we shared together, and may we let no one at St. John ever forget the legendary senior class of 2008. Although we may be gone, our memory will not be forgotten. Congratulations to you all!

Life after high school may be tough, but it is up to us to succeed. Always look forward, never back for your future is in your own hands. No one can choose your destiny except you. Good luck!

By Megan Himel

Wii Sports is more than likely the first game that many people, including myself, have ever played. Wii Sports consists of 5 different sports to play, with different tastes for each person. There is also Wii Fitness and Wii Training. This game is amazingly popular to a lot of people right now.

Wii Sports has 5 different sports. They are: Tennis, Baseball, Golf, Bowling, and Boxing. With Wii Training, you can use various exercises to help you master the sports. Wii Fitness lets you use you Mii to lower your Wii Fitness Age. The lower the Age, the more powerful your Mii is.

Every Sport uses movements of the Wii Remote, and buttons too if necessary, in order to play the sports. Wii Tennis is 2 on 2 matches, swinging the ball like you’re actually in the game. Wii Baseball lets you pitch the ball different ways, depending on the A/B button combination you use, while you bat to try to score and get Homeruns and possibly Out of the Park Homeruns. Wii Golf let you hit the ball, until you make it into the hole. This sport is the hardest sport, because of the power limit you have to swing the ball. Wii Bowling is fun, and you can try for a Perfect 300 game. Try to find the perfect angle and power for your strikes and turkeys (3 strikes in a row). Finally, Wii Boxing uses the Nunchuk as well for a double combination of punching and blocking. This sport is exciting, but stressing at times.

I think that a lot of people these days really enjoy playing Wii Sports. By creating your own Mii and playing along, it really spruce things up. It’s Fun, and its normally the first game everyone plays, including myself, so have fun and live a little!

By Warren Carlin

As you all well know, sleeping in class is a pastime at this school. Over the years the faculty and administration has made more strict rules regarding this. Still, students sleep in class. There are students that know they will get in trouble for sleeping in class, and go to sleep any way. The problem with this is when students go to sleep they miss out on class. Common sense will tell you that if you sleep through a lesson, you will not learn it. Some students (mostly gifted students) can on the other hand pull this off. Even though they can teach themselves, it is still more effort that you would have to pull through. The aggravation of that faculty and staff comes from the student’s grade. Generally a student will sleep during class. They will not learn the lesson. They score poorly on the test. Their grade will go down. The parents call the school.

Most students won’t admit that the decline in their grade is their “drowsiness” during class. They will blame it on the teacher. I guess that it is our human nature to point the finger of blame rather than blame yourself for your own misconduct. That still doesn’t make it right though. Some students blame that the teachers give them homework or the test are too hard therefore they have to stay up late and study. A simple solution to this problem would be to not sleep in class, learn the lesson being taught, and the student would not have to stay up all night trying to figure out the home work or the material at that. “The classes are boring”, some will say. I will even admit that yes, they are boring. The thing is at this age, this so called “maturity” level a student should be able to at least stay awake and persevere through the boredom.

To all students that actually read this, think about it. Is it really that difficult to maintain awareness of what is going on in the class? You could at least draw or play on your calculator rather than blame the teacher for your mistakes. All it takes is one student to stay awake and blow you whole case against the teacher. So give up the charade. Either take responsibility for you own faults and stop making faults accusations against your teacher or just plain stay awake. It is only seven hours a day.

By Scotty Baldwin

This week at St. John, Mr. Waldron was name Teacher of the Week. Mr. John Waldron was named teacher of the week for many reasons. He has been a teacher here at St. John for the past three years. He came to St. John High in 2005 to be an ACE teacher. He taught various sciences such as Biology and Physics. He currently teaches Biology Two, Environmental Science, and Physics. These days, He is only a part-time teacher. Mr. Waldron is currently enrolled in Louisiana State University. He is going back to college here in Louisiana to get his Masters Degree. Mr. Waldron is a very intelligent and helpful man. In the beginning of December, he put his knowledge to work and created recycling bins for the campus. Along with the Environment Science classes, He currently collects tabs for coke cans. He came up with this idea in mid-October. The coke tabs will be donated to the Ronald McDonald house for charity purposes.
Mr. Waldron has also done many other things to help out St. John School. For the past three years, he has helped out with the cross country team. Even though here at St. John, Cross Country is not a big deal, he kept to his promise of being in charge. He has helped many of the runners place in regional competitions. Mr. Waldron also helps with the track team. Mr. Waldron has been working with the track team for the past two years. He is currently one of the Head Coaches of track. Not only does Mr. Waldron help with these things, he also spreads his knowledge and faith with the students of St. John. Mr. Waldron is a very strong man of the Catholic religion. He encourages all of the students at St. John to pursue the Christian way of life. Mr. Waldron is truly an amazing guy. Although he is very young, he has accomplished many things in his life. He continues to benefit the students and community of St. John High School.

By Allie Hebert

The Mario Party series

The Mario Party series is one of the biggest series in video game history. It contains Mario Party’s 1-8, and the GBA and the recent DS Version, where 1-3 was on N64, 4-7 is on Gamecube, and 8 is on the Wii. A Mario Party’s is when our favorite hero, Mario, and his friends have a party. All parties contains Stars, Coins, and Mini-Games. However, there were additions and changes as the years have gone by.

The First Mario Party, the one that started it all, began is February 8, 1999, and was promoted to Player’s Choice 1 year later. The first simple Mario Party begins in a simple town of the Mushroom Kingdom. Toad wanted to see which one of these following players can become a superstar first, by collecting the most stars: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Wario, and Donkey Kong. Keep in mind, more players are added starting in Mario Party 3. In every Mario Party (MP), you get to play and choose from a certain amount of stages, and unlock the final stage by doing something. Every Mario Party has items, which are the keys to winning the game, that and stars and mini-games.

Also in the MP Series, there is a different theme that is played throughout the whole game. In MP, was the original. MP2 has a costume theme, where in every board, all the characters wear the same type of costume. Mario Party 1 and 2 only lets you store 1 item at a time. MP3 has everyone trapped in a storybook, and the only to get out is to party, with the help of Tumble. MP4 has Toad and company invited Mario and Friends to a party cubes and giving out presents. MP3 and MP4 lets you store up to 3 items, and when you play Co-op or Tag team battle, each team stores up to 5 items. MP5 contains the 7 Star Spirits, from Paper Mario, starting the parties. Here is when they use Capsules, instead of items, and you get to either use them, or throw them. MP6 stars a sun named Brighton, and a moon named Twila who stars here. Also, this begins the use of Microphone games. Here and in MP7, Capsules are now named Orbs, and instead of up to 10 Spaces forward, its 5 Spaces forward or back. MP7 stars Toadsworth on a cruise ship around the Mushroom Kingdom. The only MP by far that plays 8-Player games. Mario Party 8 is when the host, MC Ballyhoo, allows us to play in huge tents on the Star Carnival. Here, we use candy, instead of Orbs, and you can’t throw these. MP Advance is quite different from the other games, as its basically a story mode, for playing missions with only 4 characters to choose from, and doesn’t let you collect stars and coins and all that, but plenty of games to choose from. Not much to say on MPDS, since I haven’t played it yet, but it’s lets you play up to 4 player party games on the road. Also, as a hint, by linking with someone and play party mode, you can unlock all the mini-games in the game.

So many good things about Mario Party, with so little time. Don’t worry, if you’re looking for a true party, especially if you’re having a party, play a Mario Party and really have a blast.

By Warren Carlin

Sonic Adventure 2 Battle

Sonic Adventure 2 Battle is a game only available for the Gamecube, although this game came out from the Sonic Adventure 2 game in the Sega Dreamcast. This Sonic game features 2 different sides to play. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles are the Hero Side. Shadow, Rouge, and Dr. Eggman are the Dark Side. Each side depends on taste, but you will eventually have to complete both sides to unlock the Final Story.

Sonic and Shadow’s stages are Running Stages. You have to run and collect rings and destroy enemies in order to reach the Goal ring. For every character, you must collect Power-ups to help them advance and make them stronger. Use moves like the Homing attack and the Spin Dash to help you get combos and get bonus points. You’ll need this to help you get a high score and get a A-Rank. Tails and Eggman work on Giant Robots, and their stages are Machine stages. You must destroy your enemies along to clear your path to the Goal Ring. Like Sonic and Shadow, collecting Power-up can really come in handy. The missile and Lock-on missiles can destroy your enemies and proceed through the stage. Knuckles and Rouge’s stages are Treasure stages. In each stage, most of the time, you must collect 3 pieces of the Master Emerald. Some stages require you to dig for treasures, but that is not until you collect the Dig Power-up. You may also have to destroy certain enemies to get the piece.

In certain parts of the story, you must face off against other players. It’s Sonic vs. Shadow, Tails vs. Eggman, and Knuckles vs. Rouge. You may also have to face off against bosses from certain stages. You can also play multi-player matches with the Characters, Chao, or racing. Also in the game, you can take care of Chao. Chao are cute creatures that you can train. You need them to help you get Emblems.

This is not one of the most exciting games in this story, but once you play this game, including the last story, you will enjoy it. As a sequel to Sonic Adventure DX, you should know it is better than the first.

 By Warren Carlin

Each year, Evangeline attends the Natchitoches, City of Lights, Christmas Festival. My family and I attended the festival on November 30-December 2 this year. The Natchitoches Christmas Festival is on the Cane River, and downtown Natchitoches is covered with beautiful Christmas lights. The decorations on the bridge, river, and throughout the town were unlike any I have ever seen.

Friday night we watched the boat parade on the Cane River. There was band with tons of food and people walking around just enjoying the festival. Saturday was the festival’s parade. The Natchitoches Christmas parade is one of the largest parades in the country. Before the parade, all of the visiting queens were invited to a reception, where we ate, got to know each other, and just had a good time. There were festival queens from festivals all around Louisiana in Natchitoches, ranging in age. I was able to meet many queens throughout Louisiana. During the parade, I rode on one of the three visiting Queen’s floats. After being in the parade, I definitely see how it is one of the biggest parades in the country. It was amazing and I have never seen so many people at a parade, it was unbelievable.

A thirty minute firework show also took place Saturday night, which the Natchitoches Christmas Festival is also known for. The firework show was a beautiful show with music, lasers, and spot lights, and I’ve never seen anything like it. I had a great time with my family and the new girls I met at the Natchitoches Christmas Festival, and it will always be a great memory of mine.

By Corrine Reeves

Super Smash Bros.

The first Super Smash Bros. is for the N64. This was the beginning of the Smash Bros. Series. The Smash Bros. Series all features fighting matches. You start by selecting a character, usually either selecting a stage or an event, and then starting the match. Using attacking moves and special moves, you can damage and then try to KO your opponents. You can get help from allies and the items that fall from the stage overtime.

There are 12 Characters and 9+3 Stages in Smash Bros., where +3 Stages are the stages that can only be played in 1 Player mode. In 1 Player mode, there are specific stages and modes you play as you progress. They are: Regular matches, Giant match, Team match, 3 bonus stages, a metal match, 2 multi-player matches, and a Final Boss Master Hand Match. Playing 1 Player is good for unlocking stuff, but it would be better to play with 4 players. With more people= a lot more fun. Play Break the Targets and Board the Platforms to test your reflexes. Play Training Mode to practice with a certain character and master the game. You can also try out all the items in the game, especially with the Pokeballs, because playing with a bunch of Pokemon is very fun.

The 12 Characters of the game are: Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, Yoshi, Kirby, Fox, Pikachu, and the hidden characters; Luigi, Captain Falcon, Ness, and Jigglypuff. Also, unlock the sound test to listen to all the Smash Bros. Music and Sound Effects.

Although this is the first game, and there are 2 sequels, the first has its qualities and things which make it originally sweet. When you start playing this game with friends, you will have a blast. But don’t expect the sequels to be worse than the first, especially the third.

By Warren Carlin