Sleep is essential to being healthy and most people need to get more zzz’s.
Freshman Shea Meisner trudges through the halls because she’s exhausted. In this article, you will find out how to improve your slumber.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT Do you remember being a child and dreading bed time because you just wanted to stay up as long as you could? Those days are over for sure. As teenagers, we need at least eight to ten hours of sleep every night. If you have recently pulled an “all nighter” to finish a paper (most likely due to procrastination), you may accumulate “sleep debt,” which is “the cumulative effect of not getting enough sleep.” If you attain a large sleep debt, it can lead to physical and/or mental fatigue. To put things into perspective, staying up 24 hours without a wink of sleep and preparing to drive is the equivalent to driving with a BAC (blood-alcohol content) that is illegal in all 50 states according to Sleep.org. According to the National Sleep Foundation, there is a brief period of time between 8 PM-12 AM where your brain is given the opportunity to start to fall asleep; this means your body is starting its circadian rhythm, which is your body’s “internal clock,” but waits until you give your body the command to rest. Your genetic makeup could also play a part in whether go to sleep around 8 PM-12AM, or if you prefer to go to sleep earlier than that. Do not fret, your circadian rhythm will change as you get older, so if you cannot fall asleep until 10-11 PM every night, you might find yourself in five years wanting to get some shut eye around eight o’clock. If you have ever heard the phrase “you woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning” from your parents or friends, you know the feeling of getting up only to feel exhausted. Experts advise to start sleeping on your right side because it can increase healthful slumber and make you wake up the next day in a better mood. Benefits of adequate sleep include increased attention and memory, heightened creativity, safer driving, and improved grades according to Health.com. It can be challenging to get more rest when you have seven classes a day, but try to create a sleep schedule that fits with homework and study time. Avoid caffeine and electronics before bedtime because this disrupts the “sleep signals” in your brain and instead creates “wakefulness signals.” Instead, try winding down with a book or a hot bath before bed. If possible, maybe try napping during the day to catch up on sleep and decrease your sleep debt. Sleeping is a major part of being a healthy individual, and whether you wake up at the same time everyday or scramble to be on time, learning to take care of your sleep schedule will set you up for success.
Although it may be winter still, it is not too early to start planning what you want to do to make your community green this spring.
Junior Kimberlee McDonald appears to have found a hidden recycling bin. Read the rest of this article to figure out how to improve your community.
Even though this year is only two months old, plans for the warm weather have already sprung. As we are all aware of the snow that covers the ground, as well as the frost that seems permanently cemented to your windshield, now is the perfect time to figure out what you can do for when the weather is finally, well, hopefully warm. There are many things that you can volunteer to do to “green-up” your community, MonaRae Tuhy, a board member of the Montana Organic Association, a member of Bigfork Rotary, and a seasonal state park employee for the West Shore State Park had a few ideas. One of Tuhy’s favorite ways to provide for her community is to garden, and she “helps out with the school gardens” and she had “done that for a few years now.” Tuhy has also worked with the 5th grade compost and she gives them “kudos” for keeping it running. She said that the trick with gardening is to “use raised [garden] beds” because they “help with weed control.” If you need to, you “can just plop down a chair and weed the raised bed [when needed],” as Tuhy put it. If you decide to grow a personal garden this year, Tuhy advises students to “grow what you like” and to not get too frustrated when you are having trouble jump-starting your garden due to “the micro-climates in the valley.” This can make it hard to grow some vegetables, like zucchinis, asparagus, and cucumbers. There is another way to get a green thumb this year… recycling! For Tuhy, “The biggest thing for Bigfork High School to do is to recycle.” She believed that “the recycling bins [are] practically hidden.” So if you see someone throw out a plastic container at a game, maybe take it upon yourself to put it into an appropriate recycling bin nearby. If you are interested in starting a recycling bin at home, it can be as easy as finding a large bins and marking them with paper, plastic, glass, and metal. And if you plan on trying to earn your “green-thumb” in 2017, your Bigfork community will thank you for years to come.
January 2017
New Year, New Hobbies
Instead of trying to go out and change certain things about yourself this new year, it might be beneficial to try out new pastimes.
Kylie McMullen stands with a clarinet and a very perplexed look on her face because she doesn’t know how to play that instrument. In this article, you will find some new options for how you could spend some of your free time in 2017.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT The long wait is finally over, and it is 2017! Some of you have probably written a New Year's resolution or mapped out a plan for this year. While becoming a “better person” is great, it can be even more favorable to find a new hobby this year. If the winter blues are bringing down your “New Year's spirit,” you might want to try an activity that gets you moving, like ice skating or snowshoeing. Jordan Schiermeister, a new freshman who recently moved to Bigfork, is a hockey player for the Flathead Fusion hockey team. He first began to ice skate when he was seven years old and living in Minnesota. “It is not the easiest sport to learn, and it takes a lot of practice,” he said, “but the hard work pays off.” Stumptown Ice Den in Whitefish and Woodland Ice Center in Kalispell are two local ice rinks to visit. If you are more musically inclined (or would like to be), then it may be best to learn how to play a new instrument. Randi Tunnell is our Bigfork Schools band teacher. She teaches five music classes including fifth and sixth grade, middle school, and high school band, along with a new high school guitar class. Mrs. Tunnell’s favorite instruments are trombone, piano, and guitar. She has been playing [the trombone] for over 23 years. “If you work hard, you can do it [learn to play an instrument]. But it won’t come together without working on it!” said Tunnell. If art is more your thing, here is some good news. Our high school art teacher, Amber Britt, offers a large variety of art classes that may fit your desires. Mrs. Britt teaches Advanced Painting, Advanced Drawing, Photography, Ceramics, and also General Art. Freshman Abby Benton has been in art for 3 years and is enrolled in this year’s General Art class. She really enjoys art and how nice Mrs. Britt is and says that her teacher “makes art a lot more fun.” Abby hopes to continue doing art at Bigfork High School, and wants to try the photography class that Mrs. Britt teaches. Her advice to beginning artists is to, “Just keep trying. Art is not something that comes right away,” and the better you get at art, “the more fun it is.” There are also many amazing art galleries and programs in Bigfork like ARTfusion, Bigfork Art and Cultural Center, and Eric Thoreson Fine Art Gallery. However, you do not have to visit galleries or take a class. Art can be as simple as picking up a pencil and a piece of paper and drawing what you see around you. Whatever you choose to do in 2017, make the most of it and try something new while you are at it.
November/December 2016
Spice It Up
Hot chocolate is a Christmastime staple, and why not dazzle yours up a bit this season?
Above shows a picture of a few of the ingredients suggested in the article that can be added to “spice up” your hot cocoa. Continue to read this article for more options for your hot chocolate mug this season.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT Most of you readers know the classic hot cocoa mix that you stock up as soon as Thanksgiving is over and you might even have a dozen or so packets of the hot cocoa powder left over from last year. If you keep reading, your hot chocolate will be #goals this season. Candy canes and marshmallows are probably the most basic things that someone can add to your cozy drink, but did you know that that there are such things as mint-chocolate candy canes and sugar cookie marshmallows? There are so many different varieties of flavors for you to try, have fun experimenting with them! Freshman Carly Stodghill says that she enjoys “just whipped cream on top” of her hot chocolate most of the times, and while there are very few different types of whipped cream, sometimes the original can be perfect. Coffee creamer isn’t just for your “cup o’ jo” anymore, you can add your favorite French vanilla flavoring to your hot cocoa for a creamy flavor. You may even be able to combine your hot cocoa with a shot (or two) of espresso to wake you up. Adding spices like cayenne, cardamom, ginger, and cinnamon can also bring an authentic touch if you are looking for a nice kick. Cayenne is also known for increasing internal body temperature, helping burn a few calories, and revving up metabolism Courtney Boese, freshman also says she prefers “sprinkles in” her “hot chocolate.” If you have not had the opportunity to try it, go ahead and help yourself to either chocolate, rainbow, or even cinnamon roll sprinkles. If you’re looking for a fruity element to your cocoa, raspberries, bananas and orange zest, which brings out the sweetness in the cocoa, can be the perfect choice. Fruits, like raspberries, oranges, and strawberries are high in Vitamin C and adding them to your hot chocolate can lighten up your day (pun intended). Hopefully you decide to include some of these accompaniments to your hot cocoa this year!
November/December 2016
A Successful Start
The end of the year is upon us, bringing along the stress of making New Year's Resolutions. Below are some tips and tricks to begin the year right.
Ashley Anderson struggling to write her resolutions list. The article below should hopefully help her, and you, write and finish your own list.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT As this year comes to a close, the new year is going to be starting soon, and besides going to parties and watching the “big ball drop” The first tip is that when beginning to construct your resolutions list, start out with something like a trait or characteristic that you would like to work on. The next piece of advice is to pick something (or multiple things) that you can do multiple times, not just a one-time thing, like “volunteering at an animal shelter whenever possible.” One piece of advice is to not to write resolutions to the nitty-gritty detail because if an individual subject is too challenging, people are more likely to quit trying. An example of what not to do is to put something to the extent of “work out everyday after school for 3 hours.” Start out with practical goals, and eventually move up; it is totally okay to add on to your list throughout the year. If it is important to you, you can try to “eat healthy for two weeks” then if you are feeling good after it, maybe move it up to “eat healthy for a month,” or whatever you have in mind. Another suggestion for a fruitful year is to write down your goals and put up the list somewhere in your house or car or type it out on your phone so that you will see the list everyday because often times, people forget about the lists when they are not reminded of them often. The final piece of advice is to KEEP TRYING! Even if you slip up, you still have 355 days left of the year to try again.
October 2016
The Beginning and the End
A new chapter of life has begun for this years’ freshmen, and for the graduating class of 2017, another one is closing.
Freshman Maggie Piazzola and senior Deidre Leslie posing together. In this article, you will find a sneak peak into their high school lives.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT We have been in school for over a month now and we are already making history; freshman have had their first look at the high school scene and seniors are finally, well, almost done with high school. Freshman Jimmy Abney said he was “super excited [for] a new time of life” and that he was ready for the new change in pace of sports compared to middle school, but was “nervous for the school part of things.” On the other hand, senior Deidre Leslie was “ready to get started.” “There’s so many decisions to be made this year and I feel so overwhelmed! So far, senior year has not been what I expected,” she said. For freshman Maggie Piazzola, this is her first year at Bigfork so “it’s a lot different than my other school, I don’t think high school is as bad as a lot of people say.” Both Jimmy and Maggie say that they do not feel intimidated by the upperclassmen and have a few good friends that are older than them, and for Deidre, “there seems to be some fun people coming in.” Some common worries for these freshmen are the new speed of classes and the pressure of school work, however Piazzola “[feels] good about all of [her] classes.” As one wise senior told me, “Have fun. These four years can either be the best or worst of your life depending on your attitude” (Deidre Leslie).
October 2016
That which we call Halloween by any other name..
Pictured here is the Journalism skeleton, Buster, dressed up in his best Halloween attire. As Halloween season is rounding the corner, different cultures may be starting the celebration.
BY JOSEPHINE HOWLETT Halloween can be celebrated in several ways; dressing up in your best costume and roaming the neighborhood or downtown Bigfork for your yearly supply of candy, getting together with friends and having a horror movie marathon until you all have to walk together to the kitchen, carving out your champion pumpkin design with your family, planning for a month in advance for the best Halloween party ever, or just simply, hang out at your house doing nothing. For several countries, their traditions are nothing like the examples above, so just sit, eat your candy corn (or whatever you like) and enjoy these unique customs. In CHINA, a festival known as Teng Chieh is when food and water is put in front of pictures of lost family members, and lanterns placed in paths to represent how they “walk” on earth during Halloween. Buddhists also make “boats of law” out of paper that vary in size and then are burned. The purpose of the ceremony is to remember the dead, and if the family member that has passed died of an accident, it is said that the “boats of law” can release their souls. ENGLAND: Although Halloween has started to taper off in England since Martin Luther’s Reformation, it was a tradition to throw items such as vegetables, nuts, or stones into a bonfire for either fortune telling abilities or to scare off evil spirits. It was said that if a couple threw a nut into the fire and the nut exploded, the relationship is a bad one. And if a rock were thrown into the fire and by the morning the stone was gone, the thrower would die within a year. (!!!) Apparently in GERMANY, spirits are not trusted because residents hide their knives and weapons in fear of violent ghosts returning to them on Halloween. SPAIN, MEXICO AND LATIN AMERICA: On October 31-November 2nd, these regions celebrate El Día de Los Muertos, “day of the dead,” is a time to celebrate loved ones lives, beginning with visiting grave sites of their dead and grooming the tombstone(s), then decorating it with flowers, paper streamers or wreaths. If in a village, a parade takes place where people dress up as skeletons and dance through the streets, commemorating the dead. With food, drink, and family, the atmosphere feels like a festival. Of course there are many other traditions around Earth, but whatever you celebrate, all of us from Norse Code wish you a happy Halloween.