 Hailey Loftin
Staff Writer A friendly soccer match between Germany and the Netherlands was canceled when a bomb threat was made to the stadium. The German team was on their way to the arena when the threat came, and their bus was redirected to an undisclosed safe location. They were under police protection even before they knew about the bomb scare. There were several high-ranking German officials who planned to attend the game as well. Despite the scare in Germany, the game between England and France took place as scheduled. Before it started, there were tributes to those who lost their lives in the events of Nov. 14. The players from both teams along with England’s Prince William laid flowers along the sidelines in memory of the Parisians who died. Afterwards, the national anthems of both countries were played. The entire stadium sang the French national anthem “La Marseillaise”, and then the game began.  Jes Stiehm
News Editor Former candidate for mayor of Apex, Denise Wilkie, has chosen to donate her extra $1000 in campaign money to Wake County’s Habitat for Humanity. After falling short in votes to Lance Olive, Apex’s new mayor, Wilkie decided to look to the future and pay back the community in kindness. To dispel negative speculation of the usage of campaign money, Wilkie has encouraged her supporters to do the same. “If they [benefactors] were able to give money to a candidate, they should be able to give it to a charity.” Wilkie said. Wilkie is the civics teacher at Apex High School and has returned to her seat on the Apex Town Council. Some of her benefactors have already donated, gifting HfH with approximately $8000, presently.  Montserrat Rivera
Staff Writer The 2015 American Music Awards (AMAs), hosted by Jennifer Lopez, took place on Sunday, Nov. 22. Lopez started the show by singing a slowed-down version of her song “Waiting for Tonight” then dancing to some of this year’s hottest singles including “Hotline Bling” by Drake, “Anaconda” by Nicki Minaj, and “Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift, along with others. The show had a lot of big stars perform such as Selena Gomez, Meghan Trainor (with Charlie Puth), Demi Lovato, The Weekend, One Direction, Ariana Grande, 5 Seconds of Summer, Nick Jonas, and many more. A performance that caught the eyes of many was the Star Wars tribute by the a cappella group, Pentatonix, dressed in Star Wars inspired clothing. Celine Dion took the stage that night with her tribute to Paris by singing Edith Piaf’s “Hymne a L’Amour” (“Ode to Love”) in French. Actor Jared Leto introduced Dion by saying “France matters. Russia matters. Syria matters. Mali matters. The Middle East matters. The United States matters. The entire world matters and peace is possible.” Another thing that had viewers glued to their screen was the kiss shared between Trainor and Puth after their performance. Was it a hint as a new celebrity couple or just a publicity stunt? Only time will tell.  Hailey Loftin
Staff Writer The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 had great expectations, and it does not disappoint. It is jam-packed with action, romance, and betrayal. The series finale has been long-awaited by fans of the series, and it was worth the wait. Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) returns in the final installment of The Hunger Games to finish the war that she has inspired. This movie presents new challenges that she has not yet faced; someone who she loves has become a different person, and she struggles with loss throughout the film. Mockingjay was cut into two movies. The first one took Katniss to District 13 without fellow District 12 citizen Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), who was captured by the Capitol. In District 13, childhood friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth), her mother (Paula Malcomson), and her beloved sister Prim (Willow Shields) were waiting for her. She discovered her role as the Mockingjay there. Near the end of the movie, Peeta has recovered from the Capitol but is no longer himself. Mockingjay Part 2 picks up where Part 1 left off. Katniss moves around the districts with her team, which includes Peeta. His arrival disconcerts the squad; Peeta is still very unstable from his time being tortured in the Capitol. Katniss loses many members of her team, but eventually the rebels make their way to the Capitol. This film did an excellent job of following the book. As with any movie based on a book series, a few things were changed or taken out, but they were minor and barely noticeable. Action scenes, though, were difficult to follow. There were several instances where it was difficult to see which character was dying or injured because there was so much going on. For those who have read the books closely, however, there will be no problem knowing who is whom. The movie ends with a scene that highlights the series’ main emotion: hope. President Snow says in The Hunger Games, “Hope. It is the only thing stronger than fear.” The hope that the citizens of the districts maintained led to the destruction of the government of Panem, proving Snow right. Katniss closes her story looking to the free and peaceful future. It was a fitting ending to the series that showed that good wins over evil. Mockingjay Part 2 ended the series perfectly. It was bittersweet, just as the end of something great always is.  Dylan Snyder
Staff Writer The OSU vs. Michigan game is one of, if not THE, best rivalries in college football. Michigan leads 58-46-6 and won the majority of the games in the early 1900s, but it has since evened out with back and forth contests through the rest of the century. The 2000s have been a different story with the Buckeyes dominating 11-3. The game was made famous by Michigan coach Bo Shembechler and OSU coach Woody Hayes.It has always been a physical contest with a lot of hard hits, fights, and ejections. This game is usually close and entertaining because of how tight this rivalry is. Fans take it very seriously, making bets, showing school spirit, and often taking the day off to watch. Tickets must be bought at least a year in advance and prices skyrocket over regular tickets. Even people who are not regular fans or have no ties to these states will be tuning in Saturday for what looks to be a great game as always. McKenzie Feldman
Staff Writer Looking for ways to spice things up this holiday season? The most wonderful time of the year is almost here, which means it is time to decorate. These festive pieces can help you dress up your room or even places around the house. Holiday decorating should not be stressful, so here are some fun, quick, and easy decorating ideas to get you in the holiday spirit. Bedrooms are where people most often spend their time, so adding warm and cozy elements can help a lot. The first thing you should do when decorating is decide a color scheme. For those of you who do not have neutral colored walls, it can be tricky to decorate. However, do not let that hold you back. There are still a plenty of ways to make your room joyful this season. When decorating, it is very easy to go overboard. Remember, less is more. You will notice that most of these decorations below add a lot to the space, despite being simple.  Meenakshi Sathish
Staff Writer Chipotle Mexican Grill is a “chain of restaurants in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and France, specializing in burritos and tacos”. With the attractiveness of “fast casual food” restaurants emerging in America, Chipotle was, for the longest time, at the peak of their popularity. With a food business so dear to the hearts of many, the E. Coli outbreak linked to many of the chain’s outlets in Washington state and Oregon was a shock for all. Those who have taken some sort of biology class may know that most strains of E. coli are harmless. Escherichia coli, the scientific name for the bacteria, can be found in the intestines of humans and animal. While some strains of the bacteria are necessary to a healthy intestinal tract, there are harmful strains that can cause severe stomach cramps, diarrhea (often bloody), and nausea. These strains are usually found in contaminated food or water and can spread through human contact.  Kenison Garratt
Editor-in-Chief and A&E Editor The Apex High chapter of Nourish International will be hosting a Sweet Tomatoes percentage night on Nov. 24 from 5 to 8 p.m. Nourish International is a student driven organization that allows its members to conduct ventures where they raise funds to fight poverty. Nourish Club of Apex High represents Nourish International at the high school level. “Our club at school supports Nourish International,” explains senior co-president Dhvani Bhatia. “We don’t conduct fundraisers [on] campus, but [raise] awareness, learn about poverty eradication and participate in community fundraisers.” Nourish Club has high hopes for this year’s fundraiser at the Cary Sweet Tomatoes, having conducted its largest fundraiser ever last year. “We raised over $700 in revenue for Sweet Tomatoes,” says Bhatia, “and this year we want to beat that.”  Andrew Bulieris
Staff Writer What was once a fun Fourth of July festivity quickly turned into a nightmare for Jason Pierre-Paul as fireworks exploded in his hand and caused him to have severe third degree burns all over his right hand. The rumors and stories came out as quick as that day. Would JPP lose his fingers? Would he lose his whole hand? All Giants fans sat in horror as they watched the report come out that their star defensive end possibly would be out for the season, or maybe even his career would be over. About a week passed, and JPP decided that it would be best for him and his career that he has his right index finger amputated as he had lost most of the nerves, tissue and skin on that finger. It was the headline for most of the summer; would Jason Pierre-Paul return to full form or would he comeback a mere shadow of his past self?  Meenakshi Sathish
Staff Writer Every year, families across the country come together for Thanksgiving and have a nice, home cooked feast, telling each other how thankful they are. Why? Because apparently, Halloween wasn’t scary enough. Hollywood comes out with an unfathomable number of movies about dysfunctional families and their Thanksgiving holidays with an ending that says “for family, the craziness is worth it”. This is the director’s way of saying “We still don’t know how to survive it.” Sure, family is great and stuff. But there is only so much you can hear about the economy and your aunt’s coworker’s brother-in-law’s second cousin once removed. |
