Honey Grove is the best town ever, just not the best people around, so when you come, watch your back cause there will always be people talking to you and if not to you, they're talking about you, so watch your friends, but most important, watch your back cause no telling what's going to happen to you. If you ever move here, always be alert. Yes, the town says "sweetest town in Texas," yea, don't let it fool you.

So, you're running a marathon. I know it's a stretch, but just imagine. You've made a mental to do list: 1)take deep breaths, in the nose out the mouth; 2) Keep a steady pace; 3)Stay SUPER hydrated.
Sounds like a good safe way to make your first marathon a safe, healthy, and fun experience, right? Well, that's what many runners think. The first two ideas are good and safe tips for maximum performance in any running event, but in the past decade doctors and runners have been faced with the ironic problem of runners drinking too much water. Mark Robinson suffered from Hyponatremia (too much water) in 2004 while running his first Boston marathon. He had drunk a gallon before the race, and stopped at every station for a couple of cups of water. By mile 23 he could no longer run and had to walk the rest of the race. Thinking water would help his nausea and leg cramps, he continued to drink more water after the race. Eventually, he was hospitalized and had a near death experience. Hyponatremia usually occurs when runners, such as Mark Robinson, are over zealous to "avoid becoming dehydrated, so they may end up drinking so much that they dilute their blood. Water rushes into cells, including cells of the brain. The swollen brain cells press against the skull, and the result can be fatal."
According to Dr. Arthur Siegel, the chief of internal medicine at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass.,"perhaps a dozen hyponatremia deaths had been recognized, according to informal communications among doctors at recent marathons." This is a serious issue for uninformed marathon runners. New York City Marathon directors, as a preventative action, have added to their marathon handbook the amount of water suggested for the marathon--eight ounces for every 20 minutes. As race directors, running magazines, and internet articles address this issue more and familiarize the average runner to the dangers of hyponatremia, hopefully deaths from hyponatremia will cease. So when you run your next marathon, drink water, but keep a handle on yourself, and save some for the fish.

My name is Franzi; I'm 16 and an exchange student. I had the chance to stay with a new family for one year, here in the United States. I'm a junior and go to Honey Grove High School in Texas. Being an exchange student has a lot of good things but you have to realize that not everybody wants to deal maybe with homesickness or something like that.

So why should you be an exchange student?

You will learn a lot over your new country you will go to. You learn to know new people and their culture. I always liked to meet new people, so it was a great chance for me. I can say that everybody was really nice to me and I found a lot of new friends. Also, when you come back to your home country, you will know the language perfect. Those were all reasons why I really wanted to do an exchange year. I know it is hard to leave your family in your home country and go and live with all those new people you don't know. Of course, I can say from my own experience that there will be some times you're homesick and you think why am I doing this? I would say that it is normal and if you think about all those good things you have and all the experience you'll make, you probably will have a great time you won't regret.
Maybe I could encourage you to do something like that and you will have an amazing year like me which you'll never forget.

OMG! Does anyone else hate how much the gas prices have increased? I mean it is ridiculous having to pay three dollars for a gallon of gas that will only take you about 15 miles. Is it not? It's bad when you are parked at home because you don't have a job, and you have to beg your parents for gas money all the time, and a majority of the time they will pen you down with saying, "Well, what have you done this week to get money?" Then probably nine times out of ten you haven't done a thing at home all week so, therefore, "you ain't getting any money to go anywhere!" So what I am getting to is that gas prices are terrible and I hate them!!

I love my school to death but there are somethings I disagree about!...I think we should not have 5 periods because we sit in a class for an hour or an hour and a half...but after awhile when the teachers are talking, we start to get bored listening to somebody talk for an hour or so...I think we should get excused for being sick...now, I know some people will take advantage but you would know if somebody is sick or not...I wish we could have open campus because I would want to eat more food than the same food every week! Our food for the week is always the same...I can tell you what we're having everyday!...Well, I just thought I should say some of my dislikes!

Who wants an open campus? We do, we do. We need a breather from school and the only one we get is for what? 45 mins, lunch? I believe we should be able to have a break. But I also think it should only be sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Cuz freshmen tend to ruin everything. That's all we really want bad enough to write about.

As a dragon rider there are a lot of things to know and learn about dragons. The first important thing is to give your dragon a name when it first hatches so that when he/she gets older he/she knows that he/she is important. When it comes to taking care of your dragon, you need to know what to feed him/her so that he/she can grow up healthy and strong, you need to train him/her so that he/she can defend him/herself in dangerous situations. If your dragon gets sick, you need to know what to give him/her to make him/her better, or if your dragon hurts his/her wing or leg, you need to know how to treat its wounds. So as a dragon rider there are a lot of responsibilities on having a dragon, but it is a lot of fun of having a dragon.

I don't know what to write about, so I'm going to right about something I like to do. I love to listen to music because it takes me out of reality. If I am mad, I listen to some music that is funny. If I am in a good mood, I listen to any music I feel like, mainly any kind of rock. If I can't sleep, then I listen to music until I fall asleep. Some music I like is Shadows Fall, Nickleback, Dragonforce, and some other bands/singers.

Some songs I like:
1. "Redemption" by Shadows Fall
2. "Savin' Me" by Nickleback
3. "Final Call" by Dragonforce
4. "Sad Statue" by System of a Down

Okay, so whoever's reading this has, more than likely, been talked about, or you have talked about somebody else. So when you talk about people, basically all you're thinking is how funny your jokes are or how paranoid it's making the person feel that you're talking about...so yeah, it's fun. But, the tables turn when somebody starts talking about you. You begin to feel sorry for yourself and feel like everybody's laughing at you. Not much fun, huh? No. I didn't think so. So why is it so easy to put other people down and make fun of them, but when it's done to you, you can't take it? Here recently one of my friends experienced this. She talked about this one girl FOREVER, like every 5 minutes she would crack a joke. Were the jokes funny?? OH YEAH! Was it right...well, no. But today the girl that my friend was talking about gave my friend a taste of her own medicine. This girl started talking about my friend. So, of course, it hurt my friend's feelings. All day she's been feeling sorry for herself and talking about how this girl was being rude. But what my friend doesn't realize, is that what this girl is doing to her, she used to do the same thing. She just doesn't like that everything she did to this girl is being done to her now. I honestly don't blame this girl for talking about my friend for the simple fact that I probably would have done the same thing. What are you supposed to do?? Turn the other cheek?? UHHH, no! This is high school...Girls are always catty and defensive. That's just the way we are. We're like cats, we react when somebody steps on our tail...(that was a metaphor just in case you didn't already know that). Sitting back and smiling and pretending it doesn't bother us is above us. People don't expect that. They expect us to act out in catty, jealous, mouthy ways. So while typing this, I thought of a name for us high school "drama queens"..."Gossip Goddesses." If you disagree with this, then you do nothing but prove my point. =)

Today is Feb. 1st, which is the first day of Black History Month. Americans have celebrated Black History Month since 1926. But it was first called "Negro History Week." This month is pretty special to me because I'm an African American. This month celebrates our culture and religion. Around the world lots of churches will celebrate this month by having programs to celebrate and make people aware. Dr. Carter G. Woodson is the founder of Black History Month; he chose this month because Abraham Lincoln's and Frederick Douglass's birthdays are in this month. These two men really influenced the African American culture. Also, today marks the day of a sit-in by the black students at a segregated lunch counter in Greensboro, N.C., around 1960. I celebrate my birthday in this month too! Let me leave you with a quote:

"Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today." - Malcolm X

Meet the Spartans is a funny comedy movie that just came out this past Friday (1-25-08). It is PG-13 and is directed by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Sheltzer. It is approximately 1 hour and 24 minutes long. If you like funny movies, I advise you to go out and watch it.

We all know that basketball here in high school comes before baseball, right?
Well, if you're in a tight situation, and you've been waiting to play baseball all year long, then why won't the administration let you drop out of basketball and go straight to off-season to begin baseball? I mean, if you're not enjoying what you are doing in the sport, or the sport at all, then why continue with it? I think they should make it to where if you want to do that, then you can and not wait another two weeks at the end of the season to go to off-season. Let's say that in basketball, you're on JV and you don't get much playing time, but in baseball, you're on varsity and start every game. Wouldn't you say that going straight to baseball would be more of a benefit so you could go ahead and start the season, getting ready for district? I do.

Now, there are a bunch of rules that apply to you and your school for you to be exempt. If you get one single I.S.S., then you will not be exempt no matter what you are making for your final grade. And the other thing is that if you get more than 3 tardies, then you will get a detention. There are a whole lot of other rules, but it is hard to name them all. All I am saying is that they need to lighten up on the absences, and the detentions, because there might be a logical explanation to the problem, and if you are not there, then they just go ahead and mark you up for no reason.

So when you drive a big truck like me it's hard to survive the high gas prices. Especially when it is up to like three dollars a gallon. I only get 11 miles to the gallon so it feels like every time I get in my truck the gas hand moves. I can hardly make it through a weekend without running out of gas. Some times I feel like every one should just start riding bikes. I just wish that either I was rich or they would make a vehicle that ran on water.

While strolling down the sweets aisle at the grocery store, my attention was drawn to a new product I had never seen before: Yogos Rollers, fruit flavored rolls, and Yogos Bits, tiny yogurt covered fruit flavored bits. These Kellogg's snacks were colorfully packaged and looked fun. It's a combination I always look for when I am purchasing sweets. At first I thought the taste was interesting, I couldn't relate it to anything else I'd ever tasted before. There was a sweet taste, but not so sweet. I expected it to taste like candy, but it didn't. It was yogurty with a sweet like coating. Yogos are not as healthy as I thought they were, I didn't look at the ingredients list when I bought them but later I did, and I saw that the first ingredient was sugar, the next ingredient is Partially Hydrogenated Palm Kernal and Palm Oil. That is not so good, but the list only gets scarier from there. So I guess I will call this a neutral snack, they are not healthy for you but I would not say they are bad for you. Bottom line, they are OK to get once in a while.

Anyone want an open campus? Heck, yeah, dude! We're locked in this place till 12:20, our first breath of freedom for barely an hour, lunch. WOW, woopedy doo. But I also believe that it should only be sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Cuz freshmen tend to ruin everything. That's all we really want bad enough to write about.

Being a student at Honey Grove High School is very fun and exciting. There are a lot of teachers that all know what they're doing and they are very good at teaching you. There are also plenty of students to be friends with and most of them will welcome you with a big smile and a hello. Now let's talk about the classes, shall we?...You have 5 classes a day, such as Art, English, World History, Multimedia, and P.E. But there's a catch; you take your 1st and 5th period classes all year long. But you only take your 2nd, 3rd, and 4th periods half a year, then you will switch them with 3 other classes. You will have all your credits for those classes and will be done with them. Despite the fact that it sounds completely confusing and odd, it's actually very easy and a fast way to finish all your classes. You actually learn a lot more this way. Ive learned more the last two years than I have the last past 9 years of my life. So these are just some of the reasons I like our school...I just wish we had open campus again!

Using the internet to find information is great when it comes to research projects. The internet also has its flaws like some sites are unsecured meaning that people that didn't create it can still edit the information. So when you're doing your project, find reliable sources. You may ask how do you know when they're reliable? One way is to see if the source has a sponsor. If it has a sponsor, it is most likely a reliable source. That's one way and there are many more but I can't think of them right now. Well, what are you waiting on? Get to researching!

Sadly a few days ago Heath ledger was found dead in his Soho apartment after an apparent overdose on sleeping pills. The young star was only a mere 28 with a daughter and great acting career. The question is, Was it suicide or just a freak accident? Still awaiting an autopsy his father declares it was "accidental". If it was suicide, what would have caused this great young actor to want to end his life? At this point we may never know.

To all of those starving students out there I can hear your cry. The food we eat should be our choice, not just between two things from the cafeteria, but from wherever it is available. We should have the choice to eat at Fast Lane or Hello Burger. It should be our choice whether we want chicken or beef. Also with the exemption policy, there wouldn't be a threat of students skipping school. Open the doors of oppression and let us step out into a new world of liberty, freedom, and french fries.

Why is it that we play high school softball in the winter? Wouldn't it make more sense to play an outdoors sport in better weather? We softball players are practicing and playing in freezing cold weather, which only causes more problems and distractions. Some of us take high school softball very seriously. If we have the potential to get better, but can't due to distractions, then there's no point in even having the sport. I know that our school is not a softball oriented school, but we are hard workers and we should have better working conditions. Who ever decided to make softball a winter sport didn't think it through.

I don't really like our new district, but that's the way it has to be for the next two years. Our new district is District 11, which includes Bells, Gunter, Honey Grove, Howe, Leonard, Melissa, Tom Bean, and Whitewright. We don't even have our rival in our district, so I guess now we have to make a new rival. At least some of the places are closer than some of the other places in our old district. I think these schools will have some great football, basketball, and possibly baseball/softball teams. Since I don't know a great deal about these schools, I'll find out how good they are next year. Let's go, HG!

Many young people drink and drive, which is not a very good thing to do. When you drink, you have impaired vision, and you react to things at a much slower rate; unlike you would if you were sober. Many people die everyday from drunk drivers. When a drunk driver is involved in a alcohol related accident, the drunk driver is usually alright. Most times the person they are in the accident with are usually killed. If you decide to drink, make someone your designated driver so that you and everyone around you is safe. Never drink and drive.

I don't sleep in class because it's disrespectful to the teachers. They're taking time out of their day to come to school and teach us, and students just go to sleep. I know if I was a teacher, then I definitely wouldn't allow kids to sleep in my class. What's the point of teaching when they don't want to learn? So all you kids who sleep in class...WAKE UP!!!

Wow! I am so close to graduating that I am so scared that at the end I will not even get to walk through the stage and get my diploma. I want to have all my old friends in my graduation. I wish I could have graduated at my other school with my old teachers there and all my friends that I have known for more than seven years. I wish I could move back to Trenton and finish my last four months of school there. I miss my old life and my old friends. I wish they were here with me.

About the new district, there are a few things I don't like about it and then there are things that I do like. One thing that I don't like about it is that we have a lot of better teams than what we usually have. Also we don't have Cooper anymore as our rivals. How are we not going to have them anymore? Some things that I do like about it is that we have better competition than what we normally have. But those are my thoughts on the new district.

There are internet chat rooms all over the web. There are some on Yahoo!, AOL, MSN, and other places too. No matter where you get on to a chat room, there are still some bad things about them. There are good things too, but mostly bad. Many older men get on to chat rooms that try to mess with younger girls. They will say that they are younger, but they really are not. The men that do this are called online predators. Many men, also women, are getting caught everyday when trying to talk to younger people.

The benefits of chat rooms could be meeting new people and talking about some similar things. Usually this may lead to meeting that person in real life though. Anybody can lie about who they are though. People need to watch out when they are in chat rooms.

My fellow classmates and I were skeptical about the amount of food we were served, so we organized a strike against the cafeteria. The strike did not work as planned so we took it to the next level and confronted the lunch room ladies. They quickly explained that the amount of food we receive is not up to them but the school's budget. So we are very sorry and would like to apologize to the ladies. Sorry, lunch ladies.

http://www.news.com/2100-1025_3-5121479.html

So, Canada has a download only piracy policy - which is better than what we have right now. Why can't we have a policy like this? We're one of the few countries that really tries to stop piracy... and we don't even really do a good job. The RIAA is a joke that can't even secure their own website. (the RIAA website was hacked a week or so ago)

So, why can't we have a more lax piracy policy?