Creating a savings using your everyday change may not sound like a great idea, but it’s actually a great way to get started on the road to savings.  Between all the members in your house, there is most likely change floating around. Change can usually be found in cars, on top of the washer, on tabletops, drawers, bathroom sinks, and in couch cushions. Gather all this change and place it in one spot. The most popular place would be the good ol’ piggy bank. If a piggy bank is not your forte, you can use a jar, box, bowl, candy dish, or pretty much anything that can hold plenty of change.

I have personally started saving all the change I have into a shiny, blue piggy bank.  This has been the easiest way I have ever saved my money.  Each time I make a purchase, I always put the change into a separate compartment in my wallet then when I get home I empty all the loose change into my piggy bank.  I work in fast food so I’m around a lot of people who occasionally drop their change periodically over the night. When we close I always find all the forgotten change and collect it from various places like the lobby or the drive thru. It is fun to watch my savings grow each and every time I drop my change into my new, money saving friend.

If you think saving change doesn’t add up, I challenge you to try it for one month. If you leave change in your pocket or purse, you will probably spend it and have nothing to show for it. Saving your change each night is a painless way to fatten your piggy. Next thing you’ll know you’ll have an extra $40 to spend if you save wisely!

Working and going to school has to be one of the hardest things to handle over the two year span I’ve been juggling both.  It’s hard trying to have a steady paycheck during (in my case) senior year and still keep my social life and spend time with my family.  Don’t get me wrong when I say I love my job, because I really do, but the only thing that stinks is working all night five days a week while also trying to keep my grades at the level I want them to be.  Having a job also comes with a lot of stress. Instead of hanging out with your friends all the time like you used to, you have to work instead.  Also, if you are someone who has a lot of homework after school, having a job gives you less time to get that done and may interfere with your grades. I learned that with a job, you have to put that before everything. For example, over break I had to work on Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve.  Sure, I made extra money because it was the holidays, but was it really worth not being able to spend time with my family and friends during the holidays?

I work five days a week at your local Chick-fil-A and four days are usually closing and every Saturday I work 11-7:30.  It’s easy to infer that I work ALL THE TIME! Needless to say, my Tuesdays through Saturdays are spent selling people the “best chicken sandwiches” to the multitude of people that flood the lobby of CFA.  Wanna know why I work so much? Well, I need money for gas, weekends, spring break, prom, and just spending cash.  My parents were generous enough to pay for my part of the payment for the house I’m staying in Destin for spring break, but they sure got me because the spending money I’ll need for the week I’m there will be more than my payment so they left the spending cash for me to handle.  That right there means that I’ll probably have to live in a hole for the next 29 days so I’ll have money to spend.  Working that many hours and trying to have a tight grasp on my two college classes and my AP class is the meaning of STRESS! I have grades that I’ve never had my entire career and it’s really bringing me down.  At least I already got accepted into college because right now I have no motivation to do anything, not even drag my butt to work.

All in all, working while in school is hard, especially when you’re working so many shifts to save up for upcoming events of the school year.  You got to find a way to find time to keep all things (school work, social life, work, etc.) in sync, a task, which I have yet to accomplish.  Props to everyone who works and keeps their good grades because it’s hard out there for a working teen!

Yearbooks are a tradition.  Students should take great pride in seeing themselves in a yearbook enjoying many of the activities they’ve involved themselves in over the time span of their schooling. Most yearbooks feature sections devoted to student accomplishments in athletics, academics, and community service. What would a school be without its yearbook? Those are MEMORIES, people! The images that make up the yearbook are what you’ll later look back on and relive the greatest experiences of your teenage years.  Yearbooks are popular items to keep as people age. Looking back at past school years is a pleasant experience for many people, and it can help to promote good relationships between a school and its alumni. Don’t you want to look back on the memories of high school?

Why would OHS get rid of yearbooks? I just don’t understand! I find my parents looking back at their yearbooks reminiscing on life in their teenage years through the pages of their annual.  Yearbooks show that in 20 years you can still look back and see what people, some being your closest friends now, looked like before they’d aged drastically, or had 4+ children. The pictures that are in the yearbooks you won’t see on Facebook or any other social media networks.  Have any of you guy ever sat and looked at the yearbooks in the library and saw what many of the staff looked like when they were our age? Students should want yearbooks! For one, the yearbook staff works hard to create yearbooks and spends time and money to make it the best, and for two, they are only $50 when they could be sold for $90! What a deal! Students are lacking the common sense that they are getting an annual of memories for a great price thus making the sales lacking. Some students just don’t care, like sophomore Manolo Aju who stated, “I honestly don’t care if they get rid of yearbooks and I don’t care to have one.”  This is NOT the mentality to have, people!  Spanish teacher Mr. Gaynor has his opinion on the possibility of no more yearbooks and stated, “A school without a yearbook is indicative of a school loosing culture and tradition, and Owensboro High School is all about tradition!” We all need to agree with Mr. Gaynor because then we, OHS as a whole, would loose the tradition of these memories.

All in all, yearbooks have been a part of schooling for years upon years upon years.  I have kept the yearbook I got in Kindergarten all the way to when I purchased my senior year one back in November.  Yearbooks, like mentioned, are the years we’re living now bind in a book to conveniently look upon when we want a flashback.  Quit being lazy students and buy some yearbooks! If you don’t soon there won’t be anymore at all!

As of January 31, 2012, there is exactly one month and 27 days until spring break; two months and 27 days until prom, and three months and 21 days until graduation. Exciting, huh? It’s crazy to think that in three months, our four years here at OHS will soon come to an end.  As you can probably tell, I have these countdowns down just because I cannot wait for spring break, prom, and graduation. It’s getting to the point where I just can’t stand it anymore; I want graduation to come now! It’s a given that every senior in the world at this point is ready to graduate. The thing is, we need to not let senioritis get the best of us.  I know it’s hard; I’m a victim of it too. I have no motivation for anything because all I got my eyes focused on is the three major events and the fact college is so close.

Spring Break is the second most waited for break (other than summer break of course) of the school year! What’s better than getting out for a week and getting to relax with all your people either in town (boring) or off somewhere like PCB or any other beach!?! The answer is nothing! Being at the beach is so great especially because we’re so close to graduating.

Prom is the social event of junior and senior year. Nothing is better than getting to buy a pretty dress, get all dolled up, and dance the night away with all your friends. It’s a great moment to share such a great night with all your closest friends.  Senior prom will probably be the best dance because of the bittersweet moment that it’s the last dance of our high school career. Prom is an excuse to get the best dress and the best tux just to feel gorgeous/handsome for the night!

Then comes graduation, which is the day all seniors pray from day one of high school. The thing is though; we can’t let all of this slip away so fast.  Just think about it, next year there’s a chance that the people you surround yourself with won’t be there like they have been the past 3 years…not everyone is going to the same place.  It is kind of scary actually. College is a new start but none of us seniors can wait to endure and yes, I do have a countdown for that too. I know for a fact that I can’t wait to move to Lexington this fall, without a doubt, undoubtedly (wise words of “Eminem”).   Everyone will soon be parting ways. Friends will be separated but in a way everyone will still be together. Senior Jordan Haire states, “Our best friends are going be miles away from us and that’s just sad. It’s a part of growing up though and we’ll always be friends no matter what.” Senior Carlton Blair stated, “I’m excited to be leaving Owensboro but I will for sure miss all the friends I’ve made here at OHS.” Almost every senior has probably thought about this because college and high school are two different things. College is a new opportunity, one we each have to endure with a clean slate.

Even though we’re all excited, embrace every moment of this year.  Senior year is the cream of the crop, the best year of high school.  Enjoy the company of your friends you have, and live life to the fullest, seniors! But just remember spring break, prom, and graduation are just around the corner!

Now that it is 2^nd semester, that means the juniors and seniors are so much closer to the biggest event of the school year…PROM! Prom is going to be April 27^th this year and even though the theme is still unknown and it’s 3 months away, that doesn’t mean you can’t go browse at some potential prom dresses. If you are a little confused as to where to look for a prom dress, here’s some help! Owensboro is a good place to look because it is convenient, but there are others.  There are three other good places that first pop into my head that you can shop: Evansville, Lexington, and Nashville. Over the weekend, I went to “Miss Priss” (that’s in Lexington) and I was overwhelmed by all the gorgeous dresses they had in their shop.  I didn’t know where to look first because they had such a huge selection, I felt like I was in heaven! Senior Taylor Lewis said, “I usually look on Facebook at people’s dresses from last year and message them about buying them, but this year I might go look at Elizabeth’s or go to Evansville. Prom dress shopping is so fun!” That shows that the traditional shop hopping isn’t everyone’s thing. Nothing wrong with a little Facebook prom picture creeping! Senior Monica Campos shared her opinion and stated, “I might just look online for a dress, I haven’t had much luck here in Owensboro, but I have found tons of cute dresses online!” You have tons of options in looking for prom dresses so don’t worry! You have 3 months and a bunch of stores to go to! To help you out, here is a list of popular shops that could possibly hold your dream prom dress! J

Owensboro:

• Abbingtons Bridal House- 1531 Frederica Street
• Blossoms- 805 Frederica Street
• Patti’s Resale- 105 West 2^nd Street
• Elizabeth’s Wedding and Formal Wear- 1616 Frederica Street

Evansville:

• Sixteen Candles- 4710 Vogel Rd Evansville, IN
• Magic Moments- 209 N. Wabash Ave. Evansville, IN
• David’s Bridal- 300 N. Green River Rd. Evansville, IN
• Bridal Warehouse- 865 N. Green River Road. Evansville, IN
• Rice-N-Ribbon- 415 Main St. Rockport, IN
• AnnaLe’s Twice Chosen- 1110 Washington Square Mall Evansville, IN

Lexington:

• Miss Priss- 401 W. Main St. Lexington, KY
• Geno’s Formal Affair- 392 Southland Dr. Lexington, KY

Nashville (or close to it):

• Glitz Bridal and Formalwear- 241 Old Hickory Blvd. Nashville, TN
• Bella Boutique- 6484 Kingston Pike Knoxville, TN
• Just For You- 513 Gallatin Rd S. Madison, TN
• Romantic Creations- 2817 W. End Ave. Nashville, TN
• Southern Belle Rose- 99 White Bridge Rd. Nashville, TN

Stress…its just one simple word with such a powerful impact.  Everyone knows what stress is and has experienced it more than once in his or her lives.  The only thing that is really apparent with stress is that it sucks!  High school is suppose to be the time where you enjoy every little thing and you shouldn’t be stressing. Well, why in the heck am I so stressed then?

It’s my senior year…should be the best year, right? Well, it is to an extent, but with all the tests, college admissions, work, essays, friends, this, that, and everything. It’s starting to weigh me down. When I was sitting at home one day, I just needed someone to help me relax, which is my motivation for this very article you are reading. No one likes to be stressed; at least I’d hope no one would like that…it’s terrible. The whole “take a few deep breaths and close your eyes” thing isn’t really working.  I’m here to provide some tips on what you (and I) should do when in stressful times.

Tips for Reducing Stress

(Provided by: http://www.webmd.com/balance/stress-management/tips-to-control-stress)

• Keep a positive attitude.
• Accept that there are events that you cannot control.
• Be assertive instead of aggressive. Assert your feelings, opinions, or beliefs instead of becoming angry, defensive, or passive.
• Learn and practice relaxation techniques; try meditation, yoga, or tai-chi.
• Exercise regularly. Your body can fight stress better when it is fit.
• Eat healthy, well-balanced meals.
• Learn to manage your time more effectively.
• Set limits appropriately and say no to requests that would create excessive stress in your life.
• Make time for hobbies and interests.
• Get enough rest and sleep. Your body needs time to recover from stressful events.
• Don’t rely on alcohol, drugs, or compulsive behaviors to reduce stress.

Stress is a normal. Everyone has it.  Whether you’re a freshman or a senior, it happens to the best of us.  Those tips are helpful but that’s only if you use them.  Personally, just sitting back and listening to music helps. That’s just me; I don’t know what everyone else does because you do what you want to do.  But, just know when you need someone to help you get some stress off, you always have friends, family, and all the people here at OHS to help. Relax and enjoy life

Girls, the internet gods have given us a gift that teaches us many useful things like hair tips, DIY projects, and information on anything imaginable. Its name is Pinterest.  What exactly is Pinterest, you may ask?  Well, Pinterest is a vision board-styled social photo sharing website and app where users can create and manage theme-based image collections.  Since joining Pinterest, I’ve learned tons of cool crafts and also neat things to do with my hair.  I have successfully perfected my fishtail braiding thanks the wonderful how-to videos people pin on Pinterest.

If you’re wondering how Pinterest works exactly, you must be invited to join Pinterest. Users may request a invitation on the home page or someone they know can send them one. The only information asked for is an email address, and immediate “thank you” acknowledgement of the request is sent, but users must wait for a formal invite to actually participate.  After getting your request, you set up your own account, which you can connect to your Facebook account or twitter.  That is convenient because everyone has a Facebook and/or a twitter account.

Once you’ve done those things, it’s time to starting “pinning” You can pin things you like, things that interest you, and things that you want to do.  You can learn all kinds of things through Pinterest. Pinterest is created with the aim of ease of access with further instruction under what is Pinterest?, pin etiquette, help, press, team, terms, etc. Pins may be added from a website using the “Pin It” button or as an image uploaded from a personal computer. A Pinterest member may create a board. A board is a set of pins created on any given topic. Suggested boards include: “products I love” “favorite places & spaces,”" books worth reading,” “my style,” “for the home,” and “food.” Like I mentioned before, my fishtailing has been perfected thanks to the DIY videos people upload to their profiles.

I just want to throw a special thanks to Pinterest for finally giving me something useful (besides homework, of course) to do on the internet. You’re the best, Pinterest and I’m sure tons of other girls feel the same way; like Allison Palmiero and Selena Hayden.  Palmiero said, “You learn all kinds of things from Pinterst. I learned cool things to do with my hair and nail thanks to the website.”  Selena  Hayden agreed, saying, “Pinterest shows you all kinds of different things that I can do like hair styles, fashion ideas, and recipes.”  With those words, isn’t that enough proof that Pinterst is AMAZING! It is, so all you guys need to check it out!

Winter is your enemy. Freezing temperatures force you inside, where you shovel heaps of high-fat comfort foods down your throat. Before you know it, you’ve gained 10 pounds and your New Year’s resolution has you racing to the gym to a treadmill. Winter weight gain isn’t just an urban myth it’s driven by the laziness that winter forces all of us into and the boredom of doing nothing thanks to the cold weather. In fact, most of us gain between three and four pounds during the winter months, despite our best efforts. But do not fear, you can combat winter weight gain and remain slim and trim for spring.

There are lots of things that we could blame our newfound weight on, but cold is the number one suspect. When temperatures drop, we stay inside. It’s a fact…do you really want to be outside shootin’ hoops when it’s 40 degrees? No, ya wouldn’t. Our metabolisms slow down and we pack on the pounds. But the problem runs deeper than that. During the winter, we ditch the fresh fruit and veggies for prepackaged, high-fat items like chips, nuts and crackers. We also get less sunlight, which makes us feel down in the dumps. To fix those feelings, we eat them away. Sad fact of the season, but it’s a true one.

One aspect of the winter season that does not help the weight gain is the major food related holidays.  Thanksgiving is known for the turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and of course deserts.  That is a lot of carbohydrates if you ask me.  Yes, it is delicious and its good to spend time with all your family and enjoy the home cooked goodness on your plates but you have no one else but yourself to blame when you’re complaining in the spring when you’ve got a lil extra padding.

Here are 7 sneaky reasons that you gain winter weight (provided by www.fitbie.msn.com):

1. You sleep under a pile of blankets
2. You’re nursing a cold
3. Your house is drafty
4. You turn to carbs as a quick fix
5. Everyone else is gaining weight
6. You’re a stress mess
7. You hate winter greens

We can prevent weight gain over the winter season; it just takes some hard work.  Here are some useful tips to help:

• EXERCISE, EXERCISE, EXERCISE
• Never go to a party hungry
• Practice calorie damage control
• Lay low on the deserts
• Have Fun!

Hello, my name is Zoe and you are reading an article I wrote to help all of you Devils with the grammar our world needs.  You see that sentence, well this is what it has become…Yo, mii name iz Zoe nd yhu r readin a article ii wrote to help all yhu devils wit tha grammer r world needs.  I’d like to throw a special thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace (wait, does that still even exist?) because grammar has been thrown away like last night’s leftovers.

When I’m bored at home and find myself falling in to the casual late night Facebook creeping, I am disappointed in the way people go about their status’, photo captions, wall posts, etc. In case you didn’t already know, grammar is our friend.  We need it in order to be taken seriously in real world.  Do you think you’ll be spelling “you” “y-h-u” in a college essay and actually make a good grade? The answer is NO! We live in a world where technology is advancing more and more every day.  We having things called auto-correct that helps us when we misspell something, but the thing is…some people clearly don’t care for auto-correct’s help and go on doing everything wrong.  It’s sad because all those years of learning how to spell were flushed right down the toilet.  I’m not saying that it is completely bad to abbreviate because I too like to shorten some things like taking “about” to a simple “ab” when I’m writing a long text or wall post but when a simple word like but goes from B-U-T to B-U-H-T.  Really? Is that extra, unnecessary letter really needed?

If you are (aka” you’re” not your!) reading this and notice that you find yourself losing all grammar skills when Facebooking or tweeting, there is still time to fix it.  There is a way to gain back all the grammar you’ve learned over the many years of your education.  Here are some tips…

1. Delete every status you’ve ever made because it most likely is full of grammatical errors
2. Open dictionary
3. Study every word in dictionary
4. Log on to Facebook
5. Post first status that will show your “friends” that you have become best friends with grammar!

Maybe I am just overly concerned with being ‘correct’.  Am I being too picky about this or what?  I mean, it is just wrong to use the word ‘no’ when the correct word is ‘ know’. It’s not like there is even a debate about that.  If this kid grows up to be my doctor, I certainly hope that she spells my medication properly on the prescription, you know?  It has become a nuisance to many OHS students like Azlin Lewis. Lewis says, “I think they’re stupid, it demotes learning and allows ignorance.”   Whitney Galloway agrees, saying,“For one, G’s and Q’s are two totally different things. it’s stupid how people spell on Facebook.”  These are two very true statements from two Devils that see the grammatical errors all over the internet as a problem.  We can fix it; it just takes some common sense. Facebook and Tweet wisely.

As if Owensboro, Kentucky does not already have enough restaurants in town as it is, OBKY will soon enough be graced with its very own Dunkin’ Donuts. The new addition to our city will be located at 3011 Frederica Street, which is convenient for everyone since Frederica St. is one of the main roads that everyone uses in Owensboro. Dunkin’ Donuts is a well-known restaurant all across America, especially for their famous donuts and coffee. It is a very popular bakery and according to their website they have over 9,700 locations in 31 countries worldwide, which include more than 6,700 Dunkin’ Donuts locations throughout the United States. If you think that Dunkin’ Donuts is strictly donuts, well, you’re wrong! It’s not only those glazed pieces of heaven but also Dunkin’ has a wide variety on their menus which includes coffee, bagels, cookies, breakfast sandwiches, tuna and chicken salad sandwiches, and other food items.  This assortment of food choices is what makes it different than most bakeries.

Despite originally focusing on donuts and other baked goods, Dunkin’ Donuts has it’s own coffee making it a competitor to Starbucks.  In the aspect of donuts, Dunkin’ is usually in competition with places like Krispy Kreme and Tim Horton’s, but since Owensboro has neither a Krispy Kreme or a Tim Horton’s, it’s local competitors will be The Rolling Pin and Koehler’s Bakery. Both are locally owned and known through the city of Owensboro but will they feel threatened once Dunkin’ opens. The local bakeries that many people of Owensboro have come to love and visit on a daily basis will still be in business and delivering their delicious baked goods like they have been for years.  They may state that they are not threatened by once Dunkin’ Donuts opens, the business will be the judge of that. If you’re curious about prices and the three restaurants, I have the answer to a portion of your donut needs.  Say you need 2-dozen donuts for a club event; well, if you got an assortment from Rolling Pin it’d be $16.50, from Koehler’s it’d be $17.99, and from Dunkin’ Donut’s the price would be $15.50.  Which sounds like a better deal to you?.

Dunkin’ Donuts  will give people a new option other than the usual Rolling Pins and Koehler’s.  Junior Taryn Lewis is enthusiastic about the new restaurant.  “I’m excited for Dunkin’ Donuts and I’ll probably go every morning because I love donuts!” she said.  Sitting in AP Government class, Senior Monica Campos shared her view on the opening of Dunkin’ Donuts.  Monica’s words were, “I can’t wait for it to open, and I might even have to stop there every morning because it is convenient for me on my way to school.”   Words from OHS students that could even possibly be the same statement half of the people here would say. Everyone loves donuts and Owensboro will be runnin’ on dunkin’!