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The Palm Valley School Student Blog

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What It’s Worth

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By Naturalist Poet Pete

What’s it worth?

What’s the worth in protecting the great outdoors? What dollar amount can be assigned

To open meadows, rolling hills, and swift streams? What are they worth

Once they are caught and defined? What is the profit of seeing the Grand Canyon strip-mined?

In blasting the mountains and depleting the veins? in taking the treasures beneath the earth?

There is something golden on the surface. There are green treasures that tower above,

Ancient giants from ages past, enduring symbols that are the heart of the forest.

They are the guardians of the old worlds and sentinels of life, creatures deserving of our love.

We must defend them; we must not soften. We must be undaunted in our noble quest.

There is a value in the untouched world, not in dollars but in the human soul.

Editor: Charles Schnell

Why An iPhone (or any expensive smartphone) Is Worth The Price

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BY Luke Langlois — guy with opinion

 

Apple’s newest phones, the iPhone X and the iPhone 8, were unveiled to the public at their 2017 presentation in September. The new “flagship” device, the X, has sparked a plethora of design nitpicking, debating, or just plain old praise.

 

The one complaint that people tend to agree upon is that the four digit price tag of $1,000 is just too high. Pair this with any Apple Care programs, any other irresistible pieces of tech, and the day-to-day costs of life on Earth, and you’ve got a noticeable absence of money in your bank account.

 

This raises a question for everyone who loves their smartphone: just how much am I going to have to shell out for my new phone every couple of years? Will the prices continue to rise? These are all valid questions. But, my humble opinion is that people have just become spoiled.

 

I don’t mean to call people spoiled as in children who whine and cry; people maybe have just forgotten (or never have lived in) the time before the lightweight and portable phone. If you think your phone is in your pocket, you reach for it and it’s not there, it is worrying to say the least. Our phones are such an amazing luxury. We have all of the world’s information, games, entertainment, connections, productivity, and notes available in our purses or pockets. Not only the functionality of the devices are incredible. The technology in these devices are FANTASTIC.

 

No, I’m not saying you need to shell out for the latest Apple or Samsung product. It will still be difficult to spend so much money on these phones now and in the future. Nevertheless, remembering the ridiculous amount of function and power these devices give you might help make the decision easier.

 

 

Editor: Shelby Armor

Hate/Love

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By Jackson Dean

Hate doesn’t discriminate between the sinners and the saints;

It takes, and it takes, and it takes.

Hate is not patient. Hate is not kind.

Hate steals, a thief that hides in plain sight.

Hate is a never-vacant motel that will always find room for you.

Hate is sadness, tearing at your very soul to make you weak.

Hate is not just a feeling. It is the never-ending pit that you think is inescapable.

Hate is a dark tunnel that attempts to block out all light.

Hate is feeling you are trapped inside a blank void, inside literal nothingness, and being unable to break free.

Hate is that voice that tells you you are not worthy and that you are just a useless “thing” taking up space.

Hate is deafening in its attempt to take Love away…

But Love is louder.

Love doesn’t discriminate between the sinners and the saints,

It takes, and it takes, and it takes.

But, Love is patient; Love is kind.

Love gives.

Love’s home has plenty of room and never charges for entry.

Love is happiness, lifting you up even at your most low.

Love is so much more than a feeling.

Love is the blinding light inside of any dark tunnel.

Love is being found, even when the dark is crashing through.

Love is there for you.

When you crumble, Love is there.

When you fall, Love is there.

When you feel like nothing, Love is there.

No matter what, Love is there for you,

Always.

*Inspired by Jackson’s undying love for Hamilton.

Editor: Claire Jenkins

 

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End

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By Josh Tyer

 

Blog stringer/free-lancer Josh Tyer introduces us to the first episode in a series.

 

The black enveloped her. Her thoughts were mismatched. She had not yet realized the ringing in her ears. It had fallen into a high-pitched white noise. She opened her eyes as the cracks of light shone down onto her face. A blur of a man’s face appeared through the cracks. Her eyes fluttered as she fell back into the depths of her mind.

Her eyes shot open; a cold sweat had overtaken her. Now the light was all around her, warming her sides. She looked up. The cinder block suspended above her head had been removed, along with the rubble covering up her arms and legs. She lunged towards this feeling of freedom, yet she couldn’t move. She looked side to side. Her eyes flared wildly as she tried to scream for help, but nothing came out. She was trapped, an onlooker in her own body. That blur of a face she had seen before looked down from above her. She tried to get up and run. She needed to get up and run.

Her mind was screaming, and she was sprinting, running, jumping, leaping away from everything weighing her down. Still, her arms would not spring her up, and her legs wouldn’t lunge her forward. She saw the outline of the man’s mouth move.

“You’re safe,” he seemed to say.

She couldn’t keep hold for much longer. She lost consciousness.

__________________________________________________________________________________

“Eden?”

“Yes, Adam?”

“How are you feeling?”

“Sore, but I can keep walking.”

 

It must have been days, maybe even weeks. I can’t remember. It all feels like a haze. All it felt like was a cycle of immense pain, thirst, hunger, and unconsciousness. I was trapped under debris when it happened. Our city, our families, everyone, destroyed. The calamity tore everything we knew and loved away. Now, we wander in the shell of what was.

If it weren’t for Adam, I wouldn’t be where I am now. Adam rescued me from the collapsed building that had pinned me down. I was with my family when it struck. A bright light filled the windows. It tore the walls apart. It flung rubble across the sky and crushed the ground it fell upon. That’s all I can recall from the explosion.

 

“Eden? What are you writing?”

“Nothing really.”

“Are you sure?” Adam leaned over to see text scrawled across a dirty page.

“Yes, I’m sure.”

 

“…Hey… do you see that?” She pointed towards the grey broken towers.

“Over there, above the buildings?”

“It’s… smoke?”

Adam’s face drained, and a shudder shook him to his core.

Editor: Shelby Armor

It’s Coffee Time: A Review of Java with a Splash of Politics

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By Peter Kadel, Consumer of Caffeine

Recently, I found out about the Black Rifle Coffee Company, a veteran-run-and-owned coffee-roasting operation based out of Utah. Their beans come from South and Central America. The company is owned by Evan Hafer, a veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and who has been working on his coffee-roasting skills for the past ten years. The company advertises itself as “the world’s premium conservative coffee company.” The BRCC roasts its coffee in small batches. The coffee is made to order. This means that the coffee isn’t made until you order it on their website. Thus, BRCC’s coffee takes a little longer to reach you due to the 2-3 day roasting period. Additionally, shipping takes about 7-10 days, but that is at the lowest cost for shipping. If you are willing to dole out the extra money, it can get there in two days.

BRCC carries a decent variety of coffee with 17 different blends that come in 1 of 4 roast types: light, medium, dark, and extra dark. The available textures are ground or whole bean.

I have tried two of the available blends. The first one was a medium-roast blend called the Fit to Fight blend which has an excellent aroma and decent taste. The coffee was delivered quickly. The blend tasted good. Usually I need to sweeten coffee in addition to adding heavy cream, but with the Fit to Fight Blend and with the Black Buffalo Blend–the second blend I’ve tried–I enjoyed the flavor of the coffee by itself. All it needed was a little cream. Even after I accidentally left the grounds out in the open air for a week, the Black Buffalo Blend kept its rich and full flavor and has not let me down yet. The Fit to Fight Blend had one incident where it began to taste sour as I was drinking it, but I’ve only had that issue once (but that might have been the cream).

Overall, the Black Rifle Coffee Company produces quality coffee that has the same effects on me as every other coffee I’ve had–virtually none. However, that doesn’t mean the coffee won’t offer the caffeinated kick most coffee lovers need to get through their day. While some people may be hesitant to support a company with strong political views, BRCC is not the only coffee company to have a political bias; Starbucks is a nationally recognized coffee chain that has often taken a political stance on various issues, rather than remaining neutral. For years, Starbucks has supported same-sex marriage legislation. And, in February 2017, Starbucks offered to hire 10,000 refugees in reaction to recent immigration legislation. The BRCC, in response to Starbucks, stated it wants to hire “veterans instead of refugees.” It should be noted that Starbucks also has a 10,000-veteran hiring initiative. The fact of the matter is, you’re voting with your wallet when businesses get political. You don’t have to buy their product. But, do note, BRCC makes some great coffee!

 

 

Referenced:

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/why-trump-supporters-boycott-starbucks-2017-2

https://www.snopes.com/politics/sexuality/starbucks.asp

Editor: Charles Schnell

Murder Mystery: New Letters Received

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Case 4501 Update  

Submitted by Officers Shelby Armor and Claire Jenkins

Additional evidence has surfaced in Case 4501–The Demise of Ben Snyder. A written note, with what appears to be a cough-drop wrapper on it, was found in Detective Armor’s office, and a small typed note was found in Captain Kadel’s living room.

 

Photo 1: Contents of letter left in Capt. Kadel’s living room. Unidentified text font. 

*Transcript of Letter: “don’t trust the janitor. she’s concealing something. she knows more than she is revealing.”

 

 

Photos 2 + 3: Message left in Detective Armor’s office. Same handwriting as first letter found in Capt. Kadel’s squad car weeks ago. Take note of cough-drop wrapper and threatening tone. 

*Transcript of Letter: “I have a question. Do you trust each other? Plan your next steps very carefully . . . . See you soon. I’ll be waiting.”

*Transcript of Letter, page 2: “A gain always comes with a loss. I hope his death was worth the information! I can’t wait to see how you all handle this in court.” (Referencing the demise of informant Jackson Dean)

 

Photos 4 + 5: Detective Jenkins examines handwritten letter. 

Reviewed by Superintendent Patencio and Agent on Special Assignment Vazquez

The Road Less Traveled

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By Peter Kadel

Last month, I went to the Schoepe Scout Reservation at Lost Valley to work as a volunteer for one of the off-season events. The entire weekend was packed with activities and shenanigans that made my time up there enjoyable. The event itself was not the only fun part; the journey there was also a part of the adventure. This is not because I don’t like the camp, but because to reach the camp I drive up a series of windy mountain roads that culminate in a ten-mile dirt road–a dirt road that is legend among the Boy Scouts of Southern California and parts of Arizona.

“The Road,” as we call it, is a bumpy, windy, washed-out, pot-hole-covered, ten-mile gauntlet that acts as the only public land entrance to the camp. The only other entrances to the camp are by helicopter or through an Indian Reservation. The road has quite the reputation with those who frequently drive to the camp. While the faint of heart may dread the long drive to Lost Valley, I cherish it. I would rather drive down a ten-mile dirt road through a stunning wilderness landscape that makes me feel at peace than drive for one mile on I-10 or any busy freeway in America.

Windy roads are more fun to drive once you have the hang of driving them. The rougher terrain and the sharper turns on windy dirt roads are much more engaging than straight busy highways. You can’t use cruise control or go on mental autopilot. The looser terrain also allows for sliding or drifting, which can be really fun as long as you are careful. The thrill of a fast turn of a dirt road is quite the adrenaline rush when you do it right. And, aside from the obvious fun, a windy dirt road signifies a separation from hustle-and-bustle cities and the trappings of society that in the end don’t really matter.

On my drive home, I actually had to stop driving for a good five minutes so I could just take in the beautiful vista before me, breathe in the clear air, exist for a minute in this paradise with a sky so blue that it took my breath away. The spiritual benefits cannot be replicated on busy highways. If that doesn’t convince you of the benefits of off-road driving, then consider this: when I’m on a major highway, I see people exchanging insults and honking at each other. In the backwoods, I barely see a soul. And, when I do, they’re kind-hearted people with a respect for nature and for those around them. The experiences found off the beaten track and in the heart of nature are something that everybody needs and most don’t get enough of. So go; find them.

Editor: Shelby Armor

One time at Summer Camp . . .

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By Charles Schnell, Survivor of the Fire Ants

Funny camp story. So, I walked into the dorm room after eating dinner. Two of my four roommates were in there. We’ll call them Andy and Jerry. So, we were in there for about an hour, just us three, until Andy said that he was going to take a shower. When he opens his suitcase, he noticed some ants crawling around. Bewildered, he lifted up his suitcase and his nearby laundry bag to discover a dead moth covered and surrounded by maybe fifty ants. They were everywhere: the carpet, the wall, the bottom of the legs of the bunk bed, the moth.

He shouted a word I can’t post on this blog and started hitting the ants with his laundry bag. Little did he know that the ants had already invaded the laundry bag. They started flying out with all of his flinging. Andy was screaming, “Get out! Get out! AHHHHH!” and, by this point, Jerry was up flailing his arms everywhere. Then, Jerry’s all like, “Hold on! Let me go get a vacuum!”

After Andy savagely whipped around his laundry bag (full of smelly clothes and fire ants), Jerry came back to save the day with a vacuum. He plugged it in on the other side of the room and turned it on. But, here’s the thing–he didn’t use the vacuum like a normal person; rather he started slapping it against the floor repeatedly. Yeah, that’ll show those ants….

The thing is, it actually did.

Jerry was lowering their numbers; however, they never died out completely. And, after about maybe five minutes of them screaming like it’s the end of days, Andy and Jerry eventually found the source of the ants: a little, puny hole in the wall. So, they came up with a grand plan to stop the ants.

“I’ll go get some bug spray!” Jerry yelled as he ran out to the hallway, vacuum still running. Andy decided it was his turn to slam the vacuum on the carpet (and against the walls where the ants were crawling). During the time Andy and I were the only ones in the room, there was a moment where I looked out the open door into the hall to see Jerry being chased by boys a foot taller than him with cans of bug spray.

“Here’s your bug spray, Jerry!”

“AHHHHH!”

I was thankful to find out that Jerry survived, but he came back empty handed. But, it was fine because as soon as he did come back, Andy put down the vacuum he’d been smashing against the wall and whipped a cylinder out of his bag: “Look, Jerry, I had some ALL ALONG!”

Andy started spraying practically everything in the room with bug spray, while the room’s portable fan carried the spray further. Jerry ran out again and came back with some thick, heavy-duty scotch tape and sealed up the bug-spray-drenched hole. Then, in overkill enthusiasm, Andy started spraying the scotch tape. “You never know, man. You never know,” he said shaking his head.

So, the tape and all the bedsheets were drenched in bug spray. I didn’t want to sleep in bug spray; the can said it was poisonous, but Andy and Jerry complained about a much more serious problem: the smell. The room reeked of bug spray. Then, Jerry got another brilliant idea. He went over to one of our other roommate’s bags (we’ll call him Dave) and pulled out his big can of Febreeze–which was only half full. To suppress the bug-spray stench, he sprayed it all over the room. The Febreeze didn’t really do anything other than add on to the stench, rather than suppressing it.

So, let’s take a look at the room in its new form: a carpet now clean of ants; a wall with a bunch of dents in it; wet, bug-spray-stained pieces of scotch tape; a vacuum that no one bothered to turn off for the whole dilemma; bedsheets laced with bug spray and Febreeze; and two idiots bragging how they saved the day.

So, here are the morals of the story: I’m horrible for not helping in the slightest and I’m sorry (although it did make for a good story); don’t use a vacuum like a moron would; and a job that could take one person ten to fifteen minutes to fix took two teenage boys almost an hour.

 

Editor: Brennan Nick

Celtic Knot

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Graphic by Harlow Berny

By Harlow Berny

 

Here are 6 Celtic knot facts, because why knot?

  • The Irish Celts were the people who perfected the art of the Celtic knot, but it is thought that the knots may have originated from Romans, and possibly have roots in Byzantine Constantinople.*
  • True Celtic knots have absolutely no loose ends and are completely one line.
  • Certain Celtic knots can have different meanings and purposes.
  • The basic understanding is that they symbolize how life is an unending cycle.
  • According to Irish tattoo artists, it’s mainly white Americans that get a Celtic knot tattoo.
  • It’s more culturally relevant for a white person to get a Celtic knot tattoo than a “tribal” or “native inspired” tattoo.**

 

Editor: Shelby Armor

*Disclaimer: This does not represent the beliefs of all members of thebirdonfire.org or PVS.

**Disclaimer: This line comes from the perspective of a Native American.

Sources: http://www.gaelicmatters.com/celtic-knot-symbols.html and http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2014/11/25/366584255/the-american-origins-of-the-not-so-traditional-celtic-knot-tattoo

easy self care tips:

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By Makena Behnke, Lifestyle/Poet Guru

  • take care of your skin. wear face masks, wash your face, etc.
  • drink your water. it improves your mood and overall helps your health.
  • take some time to yourself. don’t always feel like you have to talk and/or hang out with your friends 24/7.
  • drink some green tea. it has multiple health benefits; makes your skin glow as well as boosting your metabolism. if you don’t like the taste, you can always sweeten it.
  • plan for the future. don’t get too stressed out though, just make a list of things you want to do when you’re an adult/later on in life.
  • read. just read.
  • take care of your body. inside and out.
  • eat some fruit every once in awhile.
  • find something interesting and educational to study outside of school. like religion or different languages.
  • don’t keep your feelings bottled up.
  • treat yourself to something sweet every once in awhile.
  • find some way to calm yourself down wherever you are.
  • write a song or poem about how you feel. it doesn’t have to be good, no one needs to see it if you don’t want them to.
  • fake it till you make it. stand tall, and smile often.

Editor & Lifestyle Co-Guru: Brennan Nick