szachik@pvs.org, Author at the bird on fire

Oliver’s Totally Accurate Predictions for the NBA Season

January 31, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

By 10th-Grader Oliver Martinez

We’re still somewhat early into the NBA season, and, now, with 2024 starting up, we have gotten a glimpse of what each team and individual players have to offer. So, here is my list of totally accurate predictions for the 23-24 NBA season.

Most Improved Player

I don’t think there’s a better answer for this section than Tyrese Maxey. Last season, I don’t remember hearing about him much. But, this season, he has been one of the spotlights for the 76ers. He has been averaging 26.2 points per game compared to last season’s 20.3 ppg; he has basically doubled his assists per game, now averaging 6.7 assists per game compared to last year’s 3.5, and this while playing 7.5 minutes less than last season (espn). There just isn’t anybody else who has improved as much as Maxey. I think the reason he has been improving so much is thanks to James Harden’s departure. He has gotten more chances, and since he is the point guard, he gets the ball more often.

Rookie of the Year (ROTY)

I firmly believe that Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs center, is going to win this award. The only other guy competing with Wemby for this award is Chet Holmgren, who isn’t actually a rookie as he was drafted last year. I find it ridiculous that the NBA is allowing Chet Holmgren to be in this contest since this is his second year in the League. I don’t think that’s fair since he has more experience than everyone else competing for this award. Even with Chet in the competition, I think Wemby will pull through and win Rookie of the Year; he’s been averaging a double-double with 19.2 pts, and 10.1 rebounds. This is subject to change, though, and I think Wemby is going to improve even more in the coming games (espn). He’s been the main man for the Spurs, and, for his first year, he looks really good.

Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY)

So this one is between Rudy Gobert (of the Minnesota Timberwolves) and Anthony Davis (of the Lakers) and Victor Wembanyama (Spurs). I really don’t want Rudy Gobert to win it because he would be setting the record for most DPOY (he’s won 3 times already), and I don’t think he is a better defender than Dwight Howard (who also has 3 DPOY). I kind of want Victor to win it, but I think it’s unlikely he’d win both ROTY and DPOY. So, my prediction is that Anthony Davis will win the DPOY. He’s been averaging 12.2 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, 1.2 steals (espn), and thanks to his height (6 ’10’’), he’s able to defend the rim properly and not let shots in easily.

Most Valuable Player (MVP)

This is a hard one. Last year Joel Embiid (playing for the 76ers) won it, and everyone hated that. However, this season, so far, Embiid’s been averaging Wilt Chamberlain level stuff. The fact he averages more points than minutes per game is absolutely insane; he also is averaging a double-double (espn). He also scored like 70 points in 35 minutes just days ago. This, while playing for a team that was greatly weakened support-wise thanks to James Harden’s departure. I think this will be a close, hard-fought MVP battle between Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but I don’t see a way that the other two could take away the MVP with the way Embiid has been playing. I predict Embiid will be the MVP again.

Western Conference Regular Season Champion

This one is not that easy because there are some teams competing–the Timberwolves, Nuggets and Thunder–that are neck to neck currently. But, I think that the Nuggets will win their conference; they’re just so competitive, and their team is a perfect balance of talent and experience. I just can’t imagine the Thunder or the Timberwolves taking a conference win away from the Nuggets.

Eastern Conference Regular Season Champion

This is a quick one–it’s between the Celtics and Bucks. As good as the Bucks are, I think the Celtics will remain at first place in the regular season thanks to their plethora of talent and depth around their team. They also are very consistent. They have improved massively since last season, and they are definitely contenders for the NBA Championship.

NBA Champion

It’s really hard to decide who will win the championship because there are some teams that turn up during the regular season, but their presence is little to none during the playoffs. A perfect example are the Clippers, who always do well during the regular season but continuously fumble during the playoffs. Considering this, I’m going to predict the NBA finals will be the Bucks (from the East) vs the Nuggets (from the West). And, I think that the Bucks will come out victorious. I think this because they have an elite duo with power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and point guard Damian Lillard.

The truth is, there just isn’t anyone that threatening during the playoffs in the West apart from the Nuggets and maybe the Lakers. I’m almost sure the Timberwolves, Thunder, and Clippers will just be invisible during the playoffs.

That’s it, that’s my list of My totally accurate predictions for the end of the NBA season; obviously, I didn’t cover all of the sections, but I did the most important ones. If you think I forgot any important sections or you disagree with any of my takes, let me know in the comments!

PVS 2024 Resolutions

January 26, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org 2 Comments

We welcome 8th-grader Jack Edelstein to The Bird on Fire stable of writers. This is Jack’s debut post.

By Jack Edelstein, 8th Grade

A New Year’s tradition many celebrate, but don’t necessarily fulfill, involves making resolutions. Typical resolutions involve vowing to work out or manage stress. A little history on New Year’s resolutions – according to History.com, “The ancient Babylonians are said to have been the first people to make New Year’s resolutions some 4,000 years ago. They were also the first to hold recorded celebrations in honor of the new year…”

Although we aren’t ancient Babylonians, PVS staff and students make New Year’s resolutions. I went around the school and interviewed different people to see the resolutions they set for themselves.

7th Grader, Moses Gizaw

**“To be more athletic, I have got to get on the Middle School Basketball A team,” says Moses.**

I’ll see you there.

8th Grader, Jaden Ramer

**“Stop being mean because it does not benefit me.**”

Hard habit to break sometimes, I’ll admit.

Fellow Blogger and 8th Grader, Jackie Padgett

**“I guess I want to try new things this year because I don’t particularly like change.”**

And to be honest, who does?

Freshman, Evan Wang

**“Get Gold at my Jiu Jitsu tournament; I do not like losing.”**

True statement.

Sophomore, Matteo Lam

**“Work out more, be more disciplined; I’ve been trying to do it, and it’s nice to call it a New Year’s resolution.”**

Me too, me too.

Junior, Riley Jorgenson

**“Get better at baseball; I want to get a college scholarship.”**

I want a scholarship, too, Riley.

Senior, Arsh Rehman

**“Get better at baseball, so I can MAKE 30 million dollars a year.”**

I think the most relatable and greatest resolution by far.

Mr. Killeen, MUS Science

**“I usually plan on what I need to do, but I would say probably to keep my good grades at grad school. I am attending San Diego State.”**

I wish you good luck toward your studies.

Big Coach Erenberg, Athletic Director

**“I don’t have a New Year’s resolution. I always try to improve our programs and win.”**

Indubitably.

These are your PVS 2024 New Year’s Resolutions!

If you were wondering, my New Year’s resolution is to learn how to play guitar and walk my dog more. If you have any interesting or admirable resolutions let us know in the comments!

Still Afraid of the Dark? There’s More To Be Afraid Of – According to PVS Lower Schoolers

January 23, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org 2 Comments

By Freshman Louisa Richardson

If you’ve read my colleague Jackie Padgett’s post about phobias, some people are afraid of clowns, some of tight spaces, some of balloons. I was always afraid of heights. However, something I never feared was cheese–which appears a rampant fear on the Palm Valley campus. Believe it or not, there are Firebird Scholars afraid of cheese on their hamburgers. Fear depends on the person, and, in many cases, their stage of life. I thought that it might be nice to give the middle/upper schoolers a break from my interviewing persistence. So, I took my investigative journalism to the Lower School (with Ms. Spurlock’s permission, of course). Over the course of my surveying, I tried to get as much Lower-School representation as possible, and, in the end, it was revealed what the overall greatest fear in the Lower School is.

In first grade, ten kids stated that, yes, their greatest fear was cheese on their hamburger though they never really specified why; they were too busy screaming over cheese on their hamburger. They were all afraid of roller coasters (to some degree). And, a few of them were afraid of spiders and snakes.

Second grader Theo is NOT afraid of cheese on his hamburgers.

In the 2nd grade, almost every student was afraid of losing their parents. Others were afraid of losing their spine. However, there were still a few of them who were afraid of snakes and spiders.

In the 4th grade, the number one fear of students was meeting their exes and being depressed. One student, Sheldon Kirsh, is afraid of facing all 15 of his exes. The #2 fear was “a skibidi toilet” (stated by student Thomas Washington–then they all jumped in agreeing). I have no idea what that means, but I have been told I don’t want to know. . . .

The 4th-Grade: Can you guess which one has 15 exes?

In the 5th grade, there were many surprising fears, from “being decapitated” to “being unarmed and busted.” The most votes went for small holes, spiders, and snakes. One student shared the idea that she is scared of the holes in the beach. “I hate the little holes that the critters come out of,” said Lena Kakoussian.

Overall, there were around 30 Lower-School students afraid of spiders and snakes (it is a package deal apparently); ten kids afraid of cheese on their hamburger (all in first grade); and every single one of them (except the 1st graders) was afraid of losing their parents to some degree. In my opinion, this should be the greatest fear as many of the kids my age and older are also afraid of this.

Note: I will say that a lot of these kids were afraid of not being able to medal in their sport or were afraid of bad grades. I won’t name these kids, but parents please let your elementary-school children know that your whole life shouldn’t revolve around a sport or a grade.

*No Lower Schoolers were scared in the gathering of this “fearful” information. Louisa, however, was quite scared.

My Favorite Dog Breeds and Why They Might Be Good For You

January 17, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org 4 Comments

Louisa is Ziggy’s very first dog sitter.

By Freshman Louisa Richardson

One New Year’s resolution easy to keep would be spending more time with my dog this year. Louisa is a dog lover as well, even something of a professional in the world of dogs. Are you looking to bring a dog into the family this year? Louisa’s got some match-making tips.

As some of you readers may know already, I have been dog walking and sitting for the last few years, and it’s been going great! I met a whole lot of wonderful people, and even better dogs, plus a few kids. Although I always say that I love all the dogs that I walk equally, I do have a lot of dog breeds that make my experience with pups more enjoyable. Perhaps I do have a favorite dog, but you will have to stick around until the end to find out which dog wins my heart. Over the years, I have developed a love for five dog breeds due to the wonderful experiences I have had walking them. If you are looking to adopt a dog (as everyone should), I have many recommendations–so many in fact, that I had to narrow it down to five. So here it is, my top five dog breeds, and why they might be good for you.

Golden Retriever

These dogs are friendly, funny, and great family dogs! I have met my fair share of dogs, but my favorites have always been Goldens because they are great to play fetch with; they are great with other dogs, and great with kids of all ages. The Golden Retrievers that I walk are usually very perky and excited to see me. When they get home, they usually want to play more, which is one of the only downsides–they are impossible to wear out. As puppies, they are either the sleepiest or the most energetic dogs. This means that they are great for families! Having a couple kids to wear out a puppy, or vice versa can be a blessing. Goldens are very cuddly dogs, and they live a decently long time–about 12 years. Note: they are prone to hip problems in old age. I love Golden Retrievers, and I think you should, too.

Lab

My grandmother had a variety of Labs and loved all of them. She still has pictures of them up all over her house. Though I only met two of them (one of which I don’t remember), I do know that they were very good dogs. Labs tend to be a bit more laid back then Golden Retrievers but still have the old-age hip problems. Labs have always been one of my favorite dog breeds because of the good memories I have with them, but even now when I dog-sit one, they are always good dogs. They are great for families (for the same reason as Goldens), but they are also very good guard dogs. Labs make for amazing hiking buddies, too. Labs also come in a variety of colors (black, brown, yellow, and white), which makes them very cute colorful floof balls.

April the Lab was Louisa’s grandmother’s dog for 13 years.

Labradoodle

I love Labradoodles. I have one, and dog-sit for multiple. I love the way they look (if they’re not cut like poodles). I love their personality. And, I like that they require a good amount of exercise. Walking them is easy because they are very flexible in their adaptability. I walk my dog anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour and a half. She is always happy to walk, just hard to harness. The Doodles that I have walked and sat for are all very good. They are pretty easy to get to know, and although a little hostile at first, they become your best friend within a few minutes (this means they aren’t so great as guard dogs). For the most part, they have great personalities. They are very intelligent and cuddly dogs. The only big downside is that they love to counter-surf. For those of you who don’t know what that means, I will give a brief example. Labradoodles are tall dogs. I cannot leave anything on the counter or table without it being gone within seconds. It doesn’t matter the type of Doodle, they are ALL like this. It can be a great reminder to wash the dishes, or clean up after yourself. To others, counter-surf-ing can be a total deal breaker.

Husky

Huskies are some of the cutest, most annoying dogs ever. They really like to erm… vocalize their opinions on the most random things outside. Despite this, they are great dogs. They shed a lot, but they are super fluffy. They require a lot of exercise, so it can get you out of the house. Though some people view a lot of exercise as a bad thing, I think that says more about you than your dog. They are great farm dogs, family dogs, and guard dogs. They require a lot of exercise and love, but so do most other dogs. Huskies are great dogs for kids as they love to play and love, but are still kid friendly. Huskies have a really bad reputation as being loud and obnoxious, but under all that they are such good pups, and I really love them. I have never met a bad Husky.

Australian Shepard

I have a lot of experience with Australian Shepherds, and they are amazing dogs. They are super cute, good with other dogs, and good with (most) humans. They do have a pretty big downside though. They are big herding dogs. If you are running with one, or if they are playing with other dogs, chances are they will start barking and trying to herd you in a particular direction. You can’t blame them; it’s in their DNA. This can be hard to deal with if you have kids constantly running around the house. Of course the dogs will never hurt you, or at least they haven’t in MY EXPERIENCE. But it can be a pretty big hassle telling your kids not to run around because they’ll upset the dog. Are Australian Shepherds good family dogs? Sometimes. Are they good farm dogs? Always. They are also the cutest dogs in the world, but require a decent amount of exercise. If you like exercise, they’re a good fit for you. They are decently good guard dogs, too. I love Australian Shepherds and walk one quite frequently. (He is my favorite).

Of course the breed of dog doesn’t always reflect an individual dog’s personality (unless it’s a Chihuahua). But, I’ve found that usually the dog’s looks and personality are reflected well in the breed itself.

Blog 2024: Where Things Get Blogged

January 11, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

Did you know that Palm Valley School has a blog? It’s called The Bird on Fire, and it’s back! Our holiday break is over; it’s a new year; and Palm Valley’s blog is in full swing. Indy, Gil, Jackie, Oliver, and Louisa are now joined by new writers Jack and Jess. This means we will have more variety, insight, and sauciness posted throughout the remainder of the year. You can be part of the fun and publication by submitting anything you’ve written, drawn, or filmed to Advisor Zachik. Email her at szachik@pvs.org. If you want to get thebirdonfire.org articles delivered directly to your inbox upon publication, visit the home page of thebirdonfire.org and subscribe today.

What are you afraid of?

January 9, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org 3 Comments

By 8th Grader Jackie Doyle Padgett

It’s a new year–that time of year many of us make resolutions, affirmations, envision a better life, vow to turn over a new leaf, get over our fears. Jackie’s interested in fears. Turns out, there is a lot to be afraid of in life: heights, dark water, spiders. And a healthy fear helps us survive: keeps us from dangling from high places, entering uncharted waters, getting bit. But, some extend their fear to clowns, mirrors, balloons, the sun. Fear–is it survival instinct? or irrational debilitation? Jackie looks at fear.

Common Fears

This section focuses on common fears you’ve probably heard about before; maybe you even have some of these fears. They might look a little bit different as I listed them by their “phobia names.”

Acrophobia

Acrophobia is commonly known as the fear of heights. Acro comes from the Greek word akron, which means “high point.” Most people get this fear from seeing people get hurt from falling or falling themselves (Forbes Health).

People could also get this fear from a natural survival instinct that inhibits an accidental fall off of something high enough that it could kill them (Medical News Today).

Arachnophobia

This is one of the phobias everyone knows, the fear of spiders. I have met many people who have a disliking of spiders or who are outright afraid of them. Researchers think this fear comes from multiple things, the main ones being the spiders could hurt us, or the fear is passed through scary movies (Psychology Today). The probability of someone getting hurt or dying from a spider/spider bite is very low, around one tenth of a percent. While there are around 43,000 species of spiders, a very small amount is dangerous to us–only around 30 of those could be deadly to humans (Britannica). Movies do capitalize on the scariness of spiders. There are so many where spiders will kill people–that’s literally one of the main plots for a movie called Arachnophobia.

Coulrophobia

When I was a kid I definitely had a mild version of Coulrophobia, the fear of clowns, especially at theme parks. There have been multiple studies to see why people fear these, supposedly, happy mascots. Researchers found that this fear comes mostly from pop culture and not being able to see the clown’s emotions (Scientific American).

Since they have so much makeup on, the person behind the clown face could be frowning, but we wouldn’t be able to tell. Similarly the eyebrows (which are pretty good indicators at what a person is planning/thinking) are covered. Movies/books, like IT, promote the horror of clowns. There was even a serial killer clown named John Wayne Gacy (Britannica).

Claustrophobia

I definitely have a very mild version of claustrophobia. I can’t stand being in an elevator, or a locker. It makes me feel like I’m going to be stuck there forever. Researchers think people have this fear from getting stuck in a tight space as a child. This can also be passed on if your parents have claustrophobia. Most parents will keep their child with them at all times, so if a parent has this fear, their child likely will avoid the enclosed spaces their parents have so carefully kept away from (NHS UK). I think I have this fear from getting stuck in an airplane’s bathroom, twice. I couldn’t figure out how to undo the lock (okay, I know it’s meant to be super easy, but the lock got stuck or something).

Thalassophobia

If deep, dark, empty water has ever scared you, you might have a bit of Thalassophobia. It sometimes relates to the fear of the unknown, which makes a lot of sense. Around 95% of the deep ocean is unexplored (Ocean Wise), so that’s a lot of stuff we don’t know about just living in the ocean we swim in–how fun. This fear can also come from having been close to drowning, seeing a creature lurking in the water (sharks, whales, big fish etc…), or even hearing about someone’s bad experience with deep water (Health Line).

Unique Fears

Most of these are fears I’ve never heard about before or knew little about. You’ll notice I use their most common name, but they have multiple names depending on where you’re from.

Eisoptrophobia

Eisoptrophobia (or catoptrophobia, or spectrophobia) stands for the fear of mirrors. The Greek word eisoptro means mirror, and phobia, of course, means fear. There isn’t too much knowledge as to why people have this fear, but it’s probable that it comes from someone scaring you (Health Grades). For example, you entered the bathroom and were about to fix your hair when you saw something in the corner of your eye. You look into the mirror, and there is your friend creeping up behind you as a joke, and now you’re stuck with this fear of catching something creepy in the mirror. It could also do with self image problems, like you’re scared of seeing yourself in the mirror (Very Well Mind).

Globophobia

This is the fear of balloons; sometimes this fear comes with an attachment of the noise it makes when the balloon pops. Imagine going to the Winter Formal last year with this fear….Anyways–this fear is commonly started at a young age, whether you got hurt by a water balloon or someone scared you with the pop of it (Louis Laves Web). People with this phobia can also be frightened with any type of balloon including hot air balloons (Hot Air Flight).

Heliophobia

A lot of fears are unfortunate/annoying to have, but this fear, the fear of the sun, is definitely one of the worst. People have to go outside to see the sun everyday, and it’s very hard to avoid it. The word helio comes from the Greek word, hēlios, which, of course, means sun. Researchers think people who have this fear are scared of getting skin cancer or wrinkles from the sun (aka photoaging) (Lybrate).

Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

Whoever came up with this name definitely thought they were funny. This is the fear of long words. It’s called hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia because sesquipedalian means long word. Somewhere along the way they added hippopotamus and monster (Verywell Mind). This fear is considered more of a social phobia because it commonly gives people anxiety to pronounce these long words in front of people, scared they will get judged if they mispronounce it. Most people get this fear when they are young and learning how to pronounce, for example, antidisestablishmentarianism. Maybe the teacher was being too harsh with them mispronouncing the word, or the students made fun of this person for it (Health Line).

Submechanophobia

This is the fear of underwater/partially underwater human-made objects, for example, planes, submarines, statues, ships, or any other machinery. Similar to Thalassophobia, this fear also could come from a fear of the unknown, fear of losing control or bad past experiences (Very Well Mind, India Times). These experiences could include being on a ship/plane that crashed and sunk (Dove Med).

Trypophobia

Last but not least, the fear of holes grouped together in some sort of pattern. If someone with this fear sees a cluster of holes in food or flowers, etc… It might cause them to have a gag reflex. This is under the phobia category, but people with this fear aren’t really scared of it, they’re mostly disgusted (Cleveland Clinic). Researchers think that people get this fear by a survival instinct in their brain telling them that these patterns could be dangerous. For example, the holes are reminiscent of spider eyes, or a deadly skin disease, etc…. Another reason for the fear could be that it takes a lot of brain power to look at complicated patterns, which could cause people some distress (Osmosis).

I find that fear is such an interesting thing–look at all these different fearsome phobias. Of course, I missed a lot; there’s practically a fear of everything and anything. If you know any fun facts about a fear I didn’t cover, I’d love to know about it. Tell me about your favorite phobia!

These are the Best Sports Jerseys Ever, Without a Doubt

January 5, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

By Sophomore Blogger Oliver Martinez

Oliver is a big sports fan. And, he has the sports jerseys to prove it. When we asked him to discuss “His favorite things . . . ,” he turned to his revered pile of jerseys.

With the NBA at the beginning of its season, the MLB over its season, and Soccer/Football midseason, jerseys in all three sports have been trending. For that reason, I have decided to make a list of my favorite basketball, baseball, and soccer jerseys. I will be showcasing six NBA jerseys–three older, and three newer, six soccer jerseys, and two baseball jerseys.

Basketball

My first older jersey is this Pistons jersey.

Pistons legend Joe Dumars #4 looking menacing wearing this awesome jersey. Photo Source: theathletic.com

This jersey is very nice. The horse in the middle of the jersey actually looks threatening, and the fire on top of the horse makes it even better. The letters are very clean. The white of the letters makes great contrast with the rest of the jersey. This is infinitely better than their rebrand:

Boring new pistons jersey. Photo Source: nike.com

Although simplicity is good, the complexity of the classic Piston jersey works perfectly.

My second favorite jersey is this Utah Jazz mountain jersey:

Karl Malone and John Stockton of the Utah Jazz confer in style. Photo Source: legendsofsport.blog

This jersey is absolutely amazing. It has good colors that make good contrast, and it has some meaning behind it. These are the mountains that encircle Utah. These jerseys debuted in 1996 and were discontinued in 2004.

For my third vintage jersey I choose this Phoenix Suns jersey.

Legendary Power Forward Charles Barkley rocking this jersey. Photo Source: boardroom.tv

I think that you just can’t go wrong with purple, orange, and white. This jersey is great because it includes everything a jersey should have: the name of the team, the number, and the symbol of the team. The symbol here is the sun, and it’s even better because the basketball represents the sun. Orange just contrasts so well with purple, and the white letters work well with the rest of the jersey.

My first newer jersey is this Warriors Oakland Jersey.

Golden State Warriors Oakland Jersey. Source: bluemanhoop.com

It’s a special jersey because it remembers the Golden State Warrior’s days when they were a team based in Oakland; now the Warriors are based in San Francisco. The colors match so well, and it’s a clean, slick jersey.

The fifth jersey I picked was this black vice city Miami Heat jersey:

Jimmy Butler’s black vice city jersey. Photo Source: cbs12.com

According to cbssports , this jersey is “A tribute, honoring its past through the prism of our future. A uniform, coded as a composite of those that came before it.” Honestly, the meaning for this jersey makes me like it even more; I like the black base with the blue and pink. They make good contrast, and the jersey is overall very clean. You could argue that the white version of these jerseys is better, but personally, I prefer the black one.

Lastly, the “Black Mamba” Lakers Jersey is a favorite of mine.

GOAT of basketball LeBron James and teammate Anthony Davis wearing the “Black Mamba” jersey in the 2020 NBA Finals. Photo Source: mb.com.ph

This jersey is in my opinion one of the best modern jerseys. Black and yellow go so well together it’s impossible to go wrong with it. Plus, it is a jersey made to honor the legendary Kobe Bryant (nicknamed the Black Mamba, who played with the Los Angeles Lakers for twenty years and became an icon of the sport. Sadly after retiring, he passed away in a helicopter crash.) The Lakers wore this jersey throughout the 2020 playoffs. The Lakers won that championship.

Soccer/Football

So, for my first soccer jersey, I choose this Corinthians Paulista 2022/23 third jersey:

Its inspiration comes from Corinthians’ 2012 Club World Cup victory in Japan; this is clearly shown in the beautiful design which has many characters in Japanese and a nice base color. These quickly sold out, and even after a year, they are still not back in stock. Authentic ones have been reselling for over $110, which is crazy considering they retailed for $95.

My second favorite football jersey is this Arsenal 2022-23 away kit:

Winger Gabriel Martinelli and midfielder Thomas Partey posing for the picture. Photo Credit: arsenal.com

This jersey perfectly demonstrates why you can’t go wrong with a black jersey. It goes with everything. The golden badge, Adidas logo, and letters are such a great contrast with the black. According to arsenal.com, the meaning of the jersey is that “Gooners everywhere connect with the club through their own Little Islington community, no matter where they are in the world. Chinatown, Koreatown, Little Italy – in cities across the United States these cultural outposts are everywhere.” I actually own this jersey, and if you look very closely, it has the letters “AFC” all over the jersey in different patterns. This is the abbreviated version of their name, Arsenal Football Club. This, on top of the two great colors, make for a great jersey that deserves to be in my list of favorite soccer jerseys.

My third favorite soccer jersey is this 2022 England World Cup away.

Top England players, Jude Bellingham on the left, Declan Rice in the middle, and Jack Grealish on the right wearing this jersey. Photo Source: Footballfashion.org

Usually blue and red wouldn’t work too well, but this time the English FA have made it work. England has proven they have a plethora of talent in their team as they have made the final for the Euro Cup in 2020 and have been very dominant against most teams, especially in the World Cup where the team barely lost to France. The soft blue color makes a good contrast with the red, and the simplistic design is perfect. The collar having dark blue and light blue is a nice detail, too.

For my fourth football jersey favorite is this unreleased China 2018 jersey:

This jersey was actually only released for a very short time. Nike went all out for China in 2018, releasing this amazing jersey that had a great dragon design with perfect contrast as it had yellow as its secondary color. But, the China FA rejected this design. And the reason is absolutely insane. Their reason for rejecting this jersey was that its “aesthetic is too similar to tattoo-style art. Tattoos have been historically associated with organized crime groups in China” (footyheadlines). This rejection is a shame considering how great this jersey was. I predict it would’ve sold extremely well.

Don’t overlook the 1992-1994 Manchester United home jersey:

Manchester United won back-to-back Premier League titles with this jersey, and it’s honestly stunning. The vibrant red is such a great color; it reminds me of the days when Manchester United was actually good. This season has been atrocious as they struggle to win in the European Champions League and can’t maintain a top 5 spot in the Premier League. This jersey is just iconic, as one of their biggest legends, Eric Cantona, who scored 82 goals in five seasons and aided the red devils in winning four Premier League Cups, six English Super Cups, and two English FA Cups, wore this jersey.

My last soccer jersey is the 18/19 Paris Saint-Germain third jersey:

What can I say, I’m a sucker for black jerseys. PSG is always coming out with amazing jerseys, but I think this may be their best. The white Paris logo looks so good, and it’s nice seeing them collaborate with Jordan–which not many teams do. They initialized their collaboration with Jordan in 2018 for three years, then extended it for one more year. After 2022, their collaboration ended. The line in the middle is a nice detail so that it’s not too simple but also not complicated.

Baseball

I just want to let it be known that I am not too familiar with baseball, but I have seen some jerseys I do like.

Check out this Space City Houston jersey:

I’ve seen this one trending recently, and I can see why. This jersey is stunning. The contrast being made with dark blue and orange with yellow is a nice detail, and it makes a reference to Houston always being called Space City. According to the MLB website, “There is no better way to represent the city that continues to believe that human potential is limitless.”

I also like this Padres jersey:

I think the brown and yellow make good contrast with the white, and the pinstripes all over the jersey are a nice detail to keep it interesting. It isn’t their traditional jersey; their traditional one is gold and brown. Here the Padres keep the color scheme, but add a contemporary touch with the lines.

The new jersey looks better in my opinion. I just don’t really like the buttons on MLB jerseys, but sometimes wearing button-up jerseys can be comfortable.

Do you think you could improve on my list? If so, let me know if I missed any potential jerseys in the comments!

Why are the French Called Frogs?

January 4, 2024 by szachik@pvs.org 1 Comment

By Sophomore Oliver Martinez

Here at thebirdonfire.org, we thought we’d pursue “Chaos” for a while, as it’s so unlike our day-to-day lives–or so I thought. At the mention of “Chaos,” Oliver immediately went to English class.

While in English Class we were reading Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel Maus II, and on page 93, Vladek (Spiegelman’s father) is in a concentration camp when he encounters a French frog character who then proceeds to socialize with him and become his friend. You see, Vladek is the only character with whom the French frog can communicate, as they both speak English. In Spiegelman’s book, character groups are represented as different anthropomorphized animals. We were used to seeing human-like cats and mice and dogs. But, a frog? We started wondering why a frog is used to represent a French person. To be frank, my interest piqued, and after some research, I’ve compiled a list of circulated reasons as to why the French are called frogs.

Frog Legs

Well, there are many theories about why the French may be called frogs. For example, according to stackexchange, “Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable traces the use of the word ‘frogs’ for the French to eating frogs’ legs.” Apparently, the French have been eating frogs since the twelfth century. Since it technically wasn’t meat, the Catholic monks could eat it during Lent–when Catholics abstain from meat. So, yes, one of the reasons for the French being called frogs is their tendency to eat frog legs (tastefrance).

Revolution and England

A more reliable source, England’s The Guardian – its “Notes and Queries” section, includes a reason the French are referred to as Frogs: during the French Revolution, “the Aristocracy fled and made their way to England, where they disparagingly called the revolutionaries ‘les grenouilles’ – the Frogs.” This spread very quickly all around England. Everyone started calling the French “Frogs.” Still, other explanations pop up.

Fleur-De-Lys

The French adopted the Fleur-De-Lys as their national flag during the 14th century (study.com). The French are called Frogs because according to thingsiloveaboutfrance, “The English, unfamiliar with the fleur-de-lys (Lily Flower), mistook the flower for a frog, and had a right old laugh about a country that would put a gold frog on their flag, and thus began sarcastically calling their nemesis ‘frogs.’” This reason, I find one of the most hilarious; I mean, how could you confuse this shape with a Frog?

To me, it looks more like a skinny turtle. Either way, if I had to choose a reason as to why the French are called frogs, this would be my reason.

How they sound…?

I found one more reason as to why the French might be called Frogs, but I have a hard time believing it, and it sounds mostly satirical. According to a Fodor’s Travel user named Bob The Scholar, “The French were called Frogs a very long time ago because, as the story goes, they sounded like frogs to the people who encountered them (fodors). The French men were said to speak with very deep voices that reminded the strangers of frogs ribbiting!” This is probably the funniest reason I read while researching this topic. It made me chuckle when I first read it. I’ve been taking French since 7th grade, and I don’t really see the resemblance to ribbiting frogs. I know the French speak very fast, and they kind of gag or make a noise like gagging when pronouncing the R’s, but I personally don’t believe they sound like Frogs.

What Ms. Brady (the French teacher) thinks about this–

To end it, I asked Ms. Brady to tell us what she thinks of this term. “I think it’s meant to be derogatory, . . . and we need to stop doing stuff like that.”

Although this may be a new term to some, it’s still a derogatory, potentially harmful or offensive term that we shouldn’t use. Instead, we can hold a friendly conversation with our French peers.

That’s it; those are the best reasons as to why the French may be called Frogs, whether Spiegelman (author of Maus II) represented the French as frogs was motivated by the common nickname or not, I kind of am thankful he did because I got to learn an interesting, but chaotic origin of a common idea about the French.

Congratulations, PVS Poetry Recitation Winners!

December 19, 2023 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

Upper-School Poetry Recitation winners Mirabelle Lee (1st place), Kristina Panagiotaros (2nd place), and Louisa Richardson (3rd place) hold up the book awards carefully curated by English teacher Mr. Chris Griffin.

In the weeks before the Winter Holiday Break, the Palm Valley School English Department hosted the annual Upper and Middle-School Poetry Recitation Finals. The Poetry Recitation is a long-standing Palm-Valley tradition. All Upper and Middle-School students participate at the classroom level. Judges are invited in to select two or three students per classroom to advance to the division-wide finals.

Judge Wallach presents the Middle-School Poetry Recitation winners: Jackie Padgett, Sophia Bottine, and Benjamin Rouche.

The Upper-School Finals took place December 1 before an audience of Upper-School students, teachers, and parents. Junior Mirabelle Lee, after reciting Toi Derricotte’s “my dad & sardines,” was chosen as Upper-School winner by Judges Maguire, Sarkis, and Wallach. Mirabelle will advance to Riverside County Poetry Out Loud competition. Our POL alternate and second-place winner is junior Kristina Panagiotaros. The audience also selected Kristina as Audience Favorite with her recitation of “Self-Help” by Michael Ryan. Third-place winner is freshman Louisa Richardson with her recounting of “What to Say Upon Being Asked to Be Friends” by poet Julian Talamantez Brolaski.

Middle-School Poetry Recitation Finalists: Moses Gizaw, Kimberly Sayers, Lorilei Behr, Jackie Padgett, Sophia Bottine, Benjamin Rouche, Jaxon Pacilio, Maxwell Pretorius, Alexander Kirov, and Addison Uhlhorn

The Middle-School Poetry Recitation followed a week later. Judges Griffin, Nayfack, and Wallach selected three winners: Sophia Bottine, grade 6, with her recitation of James Dickey’s “Heaven of the Animals”; Jackie Padgett, grade 8, with her recitation of Sara Teasdale’s “There Will Come Soft Rains”; and Benjamin Rouche, grade 6, with his recitation of Mary Karr’s “All This and More.” We had a tie for Audience Favorite: 8th-grader Kimberly Sayers with her recitation of “The Raven” and 6th grader Jaxon Pacilio with his recitation of “Football.”

Upper-School Poetry Recitation Finalists: Indiana Behr, Riley Jorgensen, Kyle Knight, Pip Watson, Landon Elder, Louisa Richardson, Simee Patel, Mirabelle Lee, Gabe Rodriguez-Portugues, Kristina Panagiotaros, and Rylie Conway

Poetry Recitation winners are selected based on the Poetry Out Loud criteria of physical presence, voice and articulation, interpretation, and evidence of understanding. We wish to applaud all finalists who continue–with poise and thoughtfulness–our poetic tradition: in the Upper School – Indiana Behr, Lily Jones, Kyle Knight, Riley Jorgensen, Pip Watson, Simee Patel, Gabe Rodriguez-Portugues, Landon Elder, Rylie Conway, and Luke Sonderman; in the Middle School – Lorelei Behr, Alexander Kirov, Moses Gizaw, Addison Uhlhorn, and Maxwell Pretorius.

The History of the NBA

December 13, 2023 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

This semester, thebirdonfire.org bloggers examine History: the PVS history teachers, the complicated history of the speakership, the history of science. Oliver picks one of his favorite topics. He tells us how it all began in the NBA.

By 10th grader Oliver Martinez

The NBA has been around for over 70 years, and it has been filled with memorable moments, changes, and talents. So, I decided to write about that precisely, the history of the NBA. This will be composed of three sections: early NBA days (1940s-early 1970s), middle NBA days (latter 1970s-2000s), and the modern NBA days. There will be three subsections in each: one detailing the most important and interesting moments of this era; another mentioning key changes to the game; and a last one naming the top players of that era and their accomplishments–note, all of these players are either in the Hall of Fame or are in the 75-year Anniversary NBA List.

Early-NBA Days (1940s – 1970s)

The NBA is the National Basketball Association which was founded in 1949 when two leagues, the National Basketball League and the Basketball Association of America fused together, which technically makes the NBA 74 years old as of 2023. However, the Basketball Association of America was the bigger league, and the NBA itself considers the founding of that league in 1946 the actual original founding of the NBA. The NBA considers itself to be 77 years old.

Back in 1946, there were 11 teams: the Boston Celtics, the Chicago Stags, Cleveland Rebels, Detroit Falcons, New York Knickerbockers, Philadelphia Warriors, Pittsburgh Ironmen, the St. Louis Bombers, Toronto Huskies, Providence Steamrollers, and the Washington Capitols (NBA.com). From these 11 teams, only three are still here today: the Celtics, the Philadelphia Warriors (now the Golden State Warriors), and the New York Knickerbockers (now the New York Knicks). All the other teams folded due to financial problems.

By 1970, there were 17 established teams which still stand today: the Bucks, Knicks, Bulls, Lakers, Suns, 76ers, Pistons, Celtics, Wizards, Warriors, Rockets, Sonics (now the OKC Thunder), Hawks, Kings, Blazers, Clippers, and Cavaliers.

The major changes over time were the teams, but also the rules changed: the most notable changes being the introduction of the shot clock in 1954 (nytimes), and then, ”in 1951, the free throw lane was widened from six feet to twelve feet” (limaohio). In 1969, the current NBA logo was designed; it was the iconic Jerry West in the logo.

From the 40s to the 70s, the most notable players were Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, and Jerry West.

Some of their accomplishments were noteworthy. Bob Cousy was the leader in assists in the NBA for eight years; he played in 13 All-Star games in a row, and, to top it off, he won six rings (championships) with the Celtics, including a five-peat (five in a row) from 1959-1964. Bill Russell won a staggering ELEVEN rings, making him the player with the most championship rings ever. To put that into perspective, he, as one player, has more rings than all franchises in the NBA except for the Lakers (17) and the Celtics (17). Lastly, Wilt Chamberlain won two rings with the 76ers and the Lakers. He also holds the record for most points ever scored in one single game, dropping an astonishing amount of 100 points in a game against the New York Knicks while playing for the Philadelphia Warriors in 1962; also, he’s the only player to ever drop a quintuple double–over ten steals, ten blocks, assists, rebounds, and points (sportskeeda.com). He’s also widely considered one of the greatest players to play the game of basketball. Oscar Robertson teamed up with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to get the Bucks their first chip ever, and he is considered one of the top centers of all time. And, Jerry West is the face of the NBA (literally) as he has been the logo for over 50 years now. He won a ring later in 1972 and made the All-Star roster fourteen times and all-NBA ten times.

Middle-NBA days (1970 – 2000s)

The NBA in the late 70s had a somewhat bad image as some games weren’t even televised, and there was evidence of drug abuse. Actually, according to apnews-NBA drug abuse, “up to 75% of NBA players used cocaine and one in ten smoked, or freebased, the drug.” Thankfully, NBA Commissioner David Stern helped get rid of this problem; according to basketballnetwork-David Stern, “He put up free counseling, rehab, and treatment centers for players dealing with addiction. The programs didn’t click at first, so Stern resorted to implementing a strict policy that would ban players if they were caught under the influence of illegal substances.” This all led to the use of drugs being eradicated in the NBA.

Someone worth mentioning was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Kareem was basically LeBron James and Kobe Bryant before there was LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. Kareem went on to play until 1989; in these years, he became the top scorer of the NBA, won six rings with the Bucks and the Lakers, won multiple MVPs, Finals MVPs, nineteen-time NBA All Star, fifteen time All-NBA, eleven-time all defensive. Kareem was a brutal point scorer and created the famous “skyhook.”

According to the NBA, some of the best moments of the 70s include The Lakers going undefeated for 33 games in a row, Jerry West hitting a three pointer from 60 feet away to win the game, Suns and Celtics going into a triple overtime in the finals.

The best moments of the 80s were Kareem becoming the top scorer in the NBA–a record that lasted from 1984 to 2023 (nba.com). Michael Jordan dropped 63 points on the Celtics, causing Larry Bird to call him, “God disguised as Michael Jordan” (nba.com).

The best moments of the 90s include the first “dream team” winning gold for the USA in the Barcelona Olympics, Michael Jordan three-peating… twice, and John Stockton becoming the top assister in NBA history.

Remarkable rule changes in the 70s to the 2000s include increase of referees from two to three then back to two some years later then permanently back to three. Timeouts increased from six to seven. And the 3-point line was changed from 23 feet, 9 inches to 22 feet around the basket (marca).

The most notable players of this era are Karl Malone, Dr. J, John Stockton, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Michael Jordan.

Michael Jordan and his team of superstars, which included Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, three-peated on two different occasions and went 72-10 in a regular season. Karl Malone was very consistent and became one of the top power forwards ever; he was nick-named “the mailman” for his constant delivery. John Stockton, a teammate of Karl Malone, became the player with the most assists and surpassed Magic Johnson. Larry Bird is one of the most iconic shooters of all time, having a funny, unorthodox, jumpshot; he won three rings and is the meaning of what it is to be a Celtic. Magic Johnson is widely considered the best point guard ever, only rivaled by Stephen Curry. Johnson won five rings in his career and won three MVPs, made many All-Star appearances and all-NBA, too. He was an amazing passer, as he averaged 11.2 assists per game and 24 points per game (Quora- Magic Johnson). Julius Erving, better known as Dr. J, won one ring in his career, entered the Hall of Fame, revolutionized the game of basketball as he introduced new fancy ways of dunking the ball; on top of that, he was an 11-time All Star, won an MVP, and, as a bonus, LeBron James said he would put Dr J on his all-time starting five.

Modern NBA days (2000 – today)

The best moments of this generation include the iconic duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, a duo which led the Lakers to a three-peat: something that hadn’t happened since Michael Jordan’s Bulls. After a long career, Michael Jordan finally retired in 2003 from the Washington Wizards. One of the best NBA drafts happened in 2003; that included LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, etc. In modern days, Kobe Bryant scored 81 points, which is the closest someone has gotten to beating Wilt’s 100. Derrick Rose became the youngest MVP ever at 22. LeBron finally won a championship in 2012. In 2016, LeBron returned to the Cavaliers and got them their first championship. The Warriors won 73 games in one season, which remains as the unbeaten record to this day.

The important rule changes included the following: 1) Instant replay was created to help referees; 2) Teams were given nine timeouts, but then it was dropped back down to seven per team.

The most notable players of the era were Ray Allen, Tim Duncan, Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Dirk Nowitzki, Allen Iverson, Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Paul, LeBron James, and Kobe Bryant.

Since there are a lot of notable players in the last 23 years, I will go over them briefly.

Ray Allen was the number one three-point shooter for a long time until being passed by Steph Curry. Tim Duncan or “The Big Fundamental” won five rings and earned himself that title as his style of play was considered “boring” but fundamental. Kevin Durant with the Warriors was one of the most lethal scorers ever. Giannis Antetokounmpo is the best player in the NBA currently, has won a ring, and is very consistent. James Harden is a top three-point shooter and created the infamous step back travel where he takes up to four stepbacks before shooting the ball; although he never won a ring, he came very close on many occasions. Dirk Nowitzki is a giant scoring menace; he won one ring and is a Hall of Famer; standing at 7 ‘0”, it was really hard to stop him. Allen Iverson was a great player; he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He came very close to winning a ring though he never did. Kobe Bryant even said he was one of the hardest players to guard. Dwyane Wade had a fulfilling career, winning three rings with the Miami Heat and teaming up with some of the best of all time like Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James. He was also inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2019. Shaquille O’Neal is considered by many to be the most dominant player ever, only rivaled by Wilt Chamberlain. He was huge standing at 7 ‘1 and weighing 330 pounds. Nobody could stop him; he broke an insane amount of 12 backboards in 19 seasons in the NBA. He also won four rings. Chris Paul is one of the best point guards of all time. He has never won a ring, but he is a brilliant player with a great scoring ability and has been able to dominate even though he is one of the smallest players on the court. LeBron James is the best player in NBA history. He has four championships, is the top scorer of all time, and is in the top 10 of a lot of the top categories. He has played with and against some of the best players of all time and has been dominating the league for over 20 years and has remained consistent even though he’s aging. And, Kobe Bryant is probably the most influential player ever as he has had much success as an individual and with the Lakers, too. He has generations of fans all the way from the 90s to even today and from all over the world.

The NBA has had a lengthy history. Since its founding in 1946 it has encountered ups and downs and hundreds of changes. It has seen amazing talent come and go as the years pass.

Did I miss anything? If you think so, leave it in the comments.

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