FRESHMEN:

Akanksha Ray: “I’m going to Jersey to visit my friend who does Indian dance. [She’s] graduating Indian dance so I’m going to watch her do that and I get to meet all my friends from Tulsa. And I’m also going to my friend’s graduation party in Oklahoma.”

Tristan Corcoran: “[I’m] going on a trip to Mexico with friends. And end of the school year parties.”

Aaron Albury: “I am excited mostly about the weather changing. I’m excited to finally get my final grades so I can know how successful I was as a freshman.”

SOPHOMORES:

Corinne Landy: “I might go on vacation with my family and I’m planning to have a couple parties with my friends to celebrate the end of the year.”

Kayla Reed: “I’ll remember Goldust, the spring choir performance. It was filled with popular music, singing, and dancing!”

Connor Bruce: “I’m excited for no more homework for a while. I’m looking forward to moving up to the other balconies in the gym and being finished with finals when they come around.”

Ryan Zenoni: “[I’m excited for] wrapping school up and just getting everything done and the feeling of being done with school.”

Nathan Korinek: “Did the Iron Man 3 premiere count? Because that was the best movie I’ve ever seen! I’ll absolutely remember it.”

JUNIORS:

Aparna Krishnaswamy: “My friend, Karishma [Patel] (11) and I compete in FBLA and we went to the state competition and qualified for Nationals. I’m also excited to get all my AP tests over with so that I can just relax and watch movies in all my AP classes. I’m kind of excited for finals to just be over so I can enjoy my summer and be free. I’ll also remember The Great Gatsby [movie]. We read the book in English and it was probably one of the most amazing books that I have ever read. Leonardo DiCaprio was an amazing Gatsby [in the movie] and Tobey Maguire was a perfect Nick.”

Tom Place: “I’m excited for school to end. Just like every high school student I just want the school year to end as quickly as humanly possible.”

Josie Chavez: “I’m excited to see Iron Man 3 because it’s action-packed and I like action. And Robert Downey Jr. is awesome!”

Elizabeth Workman: “I am excited for the final orchestra concert. We get to play movie music, including selections from Harry Potter and the bands are playing Lord of the Rings. It is by far the best concert each year.”

SENIORS:

Jake Laughlin: “I’ll remember Prom. I’ll remember all the stuff leading up to Prom, like dodgeball. I’m also excited for the last times we get to spend together. I’ll be completely honest, I do not care anymore about any classes I have, but the time I get to spend with my friends in those classes is really important to me. Also, getting my yearbook because that’s something I look forward to every year.”

Chayenne Theberge: “Because everything is starting to pile up people tend to get overwhelmed with finals, graduation coming up, getting community service hours, and it’s just… everything! It’s kind of hard to focus on single things. But I’ll definitely remember Prom. I feel like that’s such a ‘favorite’ thing to say but I will.”

Meredith Tolleson: “Things I’ll remember: the TOC [Tournament of Champions], getting ready for Prom with a group of my friends. Things I’m excited for: graduation getting a job as a mermaid at the aquarium, senior breakfast, senior cording, and senior awards.”

Robby Stewart: “I’m actually excited for a lot of things before the year is over! Spending the last month of high school with my entire class. Graduation for sure! It is the last day the class of 2013 is all together which is exciting and sad at the same time. I am just trying to enjoy every moment we have left in high school because we will never have this same experience again. And I’ll remember Iron Man 3. It was life-changing.”

This years class of 2013 graduation will be held at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre, May 22, 2 p.m. All families of 2013 graduations are welcome to attend the ceremonies, and watch the former seniors receive their high school diplomas. Students Alex Harget, Jon Heisler and Gabi Capocelli will be speaking at the event as well.

Lyons, also a winner of the Colorado High School Journalist of the year award, was ecstatic of her accomplishment. 

“This is an honor and privilege to represent such a great organization and Mountain Vista High School,” Lyons said.

Youth Journalism International is an organization that recognizes and aids student and youth journalists around the world to better their craft and present their work to larger audiences.

Mark Newton and VISTAj wish Joanie the best in her future as she pursues her journalism endeavors.

“I use apps on a daily basis. Twitter and Instagram are the ones I use the most, because it is fun to see what other people are doing on the App,” Emma Krajewski, freshman, said.

Apps can last for months or only a couple days it depends on how much they change our lives or how popular they become. They are what all teenagers spend their time on. Social networking, games and school related apps, are the most popular on most of the phones of teenagers.

“ Words with friends is so last semester, FML (F*** My Life) is so this semester, “Eric Lopez, junior, said from the survey,

Mountain Vista STUDENTS HAVE a different top 20 than iTunes because the student body revolves around fun games and social networking.

“Twitter or Tumblr are my favorite apps because it’s all social networking,” said Allison Raschke, sophomore.

Top 20 Apps for Teenagers at Mountain Vista

1. Twitter

2. Tumblr

3. Pinterest

4. Instagram

5. Vine

6. Temple Run 2

7. FML

8. Wanelo

9. Snapchat

10. YouTube

11. 4 pictures 1 word

12. Doodle Jump

13. Fruit Ninja

14. Spotify

15. Pandora Internet Radio

16. Flashlight

17. Facebook

18. iFunny

19. Draw Something

20. Angry Birds Star Wars Edition

Source: Survey of three juniors and two sophomores.

The apps most high schoolers use are mostly social media because this is a way for students to stay connected. Sophomore, Kendall Lemere, said Instagram is my favorite and the most productive app I think because I use it all the time.

The Top 20 free apps according to iTunes are:

1. FallDown!2

2. Hardest Game Ever 2

3. Dots: A Game About Connecting

4. Vine

5. Candy Crush Saga

6. Path

7. Draw Something 2 Free

8. Sniper Shooter by Fun Games for Free

9. Robot Unicorn Attack 2

10. Iron Man 3-The Official Game

11. Snapchat

12. Angry Birds Friends

13. Google Maps

14. Face Swap!

15. Instagram

16. Moldiv-Collage Photo Editor

17. YouTube

18. Sonic Dash

19. Dentist Office

20. Flashlight

“Facebook and Gifboom are my favorite apps because I use Facebook all the time and (on) Gifboom I have a lot of followers,” Sean Harris, sophomore said.

Most of these apps will soon lose their standing on iTunes within the week in the Top 20, but at this point these are the most popular apps on iTunes.

Apps have changed all generation and have made every person move and think much faster.

“Apps have changed our generation because we spend more time on the App gaming than doing our homework or something else that might be more productive,” Esmeralda Rodriguez, senior, said.

The memory of the Royal wedding and its surrounding hype can be recalled by almost anyone in the United States, let alone Great Britain.  However, a far less publicized event is taking place just across the channel that will have consequences far greater than those that happened in England.

In the Netherlands, Queen Beatrix will be abdicating her throne in favor of her son, Willem-Alexander this spring.  She follows a seeming Dutch tradition of monarchs stepping down rather than remaining monarch until death.

At only 75 years of age, Beatrix is over a decade younger than Queen Elizabeth II of England.  She plans to step down not due to the pressures of the job on her age, but because she believes that the next generation needed its turn to lead.

With Willem’s coronation, he will become the first Dutch King in over a century, yet he does not plan any grand reforms of the position.  Instead, he has stated that his focus will be the maintenance of tradition while exploring the possibilities of modernizing the royal family.

While the Netherlands may not be as connected to the United States as Great Britain is, the events do offer a look at an event we may see in the near future of the island nation.

The Colorado Avalanche’s head coach, Joe Sacco, was fired Sunday, April 28.

Sacco coached the team for four seasons before being fired.

A replacement coach has not the hired yet. There are talks who will be hired, including Patrick Roy, former goalie for the Avalanche, to fill the position.

“Honestly, I think it was about time, because he was awful,” Kyle Kauffman, senior hockey player for Mountain Vista, said.

Joe Sacco was in the running for the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year after his first season with the Avalanche, but his last year was not as superior.

“I don’t necessarily think he’s a bad coach, it was just didn’t really work out,” Kauffman said.

The team continues to look for a coach for the following season.

The 2013 Colorado High School Activities Association 5A Baseball brackets were announced yesterday with Mountain Vista seeded 10th out of the 32 teams.

The seedings brought about controversy as Cherry Creek High School was seeded fifth when they are ranked eighth in the nation and had the best overall winning percentage in the state of Colorado. They were seeded behind Grandview High School who they defeated during the regular season.

Vista is in the District Six qualifier which is being hosted by Dakota Ridge High School. They will play the 23rd seed Cherokee Trail. Vista played Cherokee Trail in their first game of the season and won with a walkoff home run from sophomore Mark Mumper. Vista also beat the host and seventh seeded Dakota Ridge by a score of 7-1.

Vista will play at 12:30 p.m. at Dakota Ridge and play again at 3:00 p.m. if they win their first game. Come and support your Vista baseball team!

Seniors! You only have seven days of school left, and fifteen until you graduate. Before then, though, you have some things to get done:

1. Print out your Senior Check-Out form from Infinite Campus. This will have a checklist on it; you need to complete everything it says by May 16.
2. Pick up your yearbook. You can get your yearbook at the distribution party on May 8, 4:30-7:30 p.m. in the commons. For $5 admission, you get, in addition to your yearbook, a signing booklet, a marker pen, two coupons to Dickey’s Barbecue Pit and BTO Yogurt, snacks and drinks. Alternately, you can wait until Taste of Mountain Vista on May 9 during lunch, where you can buy signing books and marker pens, $3 for each or $5 for both. Remember to bring a picture ID to pick up your yearbook.
3. Ace your AP exams, if you have any. If you’re in AP chemistry, environmental science, psychology, Spanish, or art history, you’ve already taken your exam, but for everyone else, keep studying! Make sure to read Alia Reza’s article for tips on passing AP exams.
4. See The Great Gatsby on May 10! Okay, maybe that’s just me.
5. Ace your finals. Seriously. You can have senioritis after you graduate. Now is not the time to start failing classes. Be wary of deadlines; many classes will have your final due before the actual final day–which are May 15-16, so watch out for that.
6. Get your community service in if you haven’t already; there are still about 20 seniors who need to do this. Remember you need at least 20 hours. This was due two and a half weeks ago. If you need help or ideas on where to volunteer, go to the counseling office.
7. Senior prank. Seriously. Get on it, guys. Remember that pranks cannot be dangerous, destructive, disruptive to classes, or messy.
8. Go to the Senior Sunset on May 17 at 8:00 p.m. Join your class up on the turf to celebrate memories, sign yearbooks, listen to music, and eat s’mores. Get there an hour early to support Ensemble!
9. Graduate on May 22! Woo hoo, you’re done!

At the 2013 Taste of Vista event, all of the students will be able to get their hands on the 2012-2013 yearbook. However, anyone who attended the distribution party was able to get their yearbook early and look back on the biggest events of the previous year.

The students who have received their yearbooks have had positive first impressions.

The yearbook is being praised as a being professional and worth the money.

“The yearbook looks very professional,” Amanda Richerdson, 12, said. “It always seems like we get more than what we payed for. I always love seeing pictures that I didn’t even know were taken”

The theme of the yearbook, punctuate, has gone over well with the people who got their books early.

“I like how colorful the book is, and I think the theme really works,” Kelly Strife, 12, said.

When getting their books, most students turn to see the senior pages to check out what they have to say.

“I look forward to the senior pictures the most because I love seeing the quotes and all of my friends,” Ally Parks, 11, said.

Students have also been enjoying looking at this yearbook compared to other yearbooks.

“I like seeing them (senior pictures) because I can see where the seniors are now from where they were,” Robbie Stewart, 12, said. “I like how appealing the book is and it seems better than a lot of the other yearbooks.”

1. Boys Cross Country won state
2. Snow day (with no snow)
3. Raising over $20,000 for Jaidyn to go to Disney World
4. Taste of Vista
5. Homecoming
6. Prom
7. Sadies actually turned out this year
8. Boys basketball made it to the final 4
9. Marching Band was selected to play at Disney World
10. DECA went to California and placed in Nationals.