Wow, as I sit here I realize how fast my senior year has passed by. Over the past few weeks, I’ve realized how much I’m actually going to miss high school and wish that I could re-live some of the moments; Making it to the state tournament for hockey, going to the state tournament all four years of volleyball, the music festivals, the choir performances, the talent shows, spirit weeks, and the hilarious happenings that sometimes occur in the high school hallway. But sadly, I know that this wish cannot come true and these “moments” will just have to stay treasured memories.
    Attending this school since kindergarten has taught me a lot. One of is not to take the staff here for granted. I realized that I probably would not have the support, help, and love from any other staff.  I came to realize that this school is one of kind and I won’t experience anything else like I had here.
    As flashbacks keep popping into my head of my high school career, I realize today, May 8, 2013, I only have 12 hours left of attending Kenny Lake School. I must bid this school farewell. Farewell to the hallways that have made me late to class because of traffic jams; farewell to the lockers that I have been locked in and I apologize for not keeping you neat and organized; farewell to the desks that have given me back aches; farewell to the lunch table where I have spilled my lunch on numerous occasions; farewell to the Monday morning assemblies that have had me wish my birthday wasn’t in the summer so I can be sung to; farewell to the parking lot that has provided me a space every morning; but most importantly farewell to the students and staff of Kenny Lake School.    
    Farewell to the students who have brought me much joy, laughter, sadness, and so many memories throughout my high school career. Farewell to the teachers who have brought me stress, tears, headaches, knowledge, laughter, joy, and appreciation.

Although I am leaving, the memories and relationships I have made will stay with me forever. Also, don’t worry, I’m not going to disappear after I graduate, I will come back and visit every once in a while. So farewell and thank you Kenny Lake School.

    I know all of us enjoy a relaxing, soothing, peaceful, and tranquil vacation. Imagine yourself lying on a beach with the hot sun beaming down, sand being sifted between your toes, sound of waves crashing, and a slight breeze running through your hair. Sounds like a dream, correct? Although now-a-days students have no understanding of what it was like to plan a vacation in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s. Some kids don’t realize what a travel agent is or what their job is. We just know that to plan a vacation we find everything on the internet. Before the internet, it was challenging to gain access to different vacation hotels and activities. These days you can have your whole itinerary laid out before you even step foot on the plane.
    In the 1980s it wasn’t easy for the average person to research vacation spots, book flights, hotels, and find attractions along the way. Information wasn’t available instantly. A travel agent had to call various places and find out availability and rates.  Now it’s all at our fingertips. When you arrive in a new place and don’t know where to stay? A hotel room is just a click away. Hungry for some local food and don’t know where the best place to eat is? Search for reviews on your Smartphone. Can’t communicate with the locals? Google translator comes to the rescue. We’ve long ditched the paperback guidebook for our lightweight Smartphone’s that are loaded with everything.  Right now we have the most up-to-date information possible.
    My mom said that when she had to plan her honeymoon they used a travel agent. She had to call her travel agent multiple times to figure out all the details. She asked them about booking a hotel, car, and flights. She would then have to wait a couple of days before the travel agency called her back to tell her what they had available.
    The reason travel agents often took days to help book a trip is because of the research. They had some pamphlets ready in the office, but anything beyond that required more research. Clearly it was an intensive process that is no longer necessary.  
    Having someone take care of the details is nice, but you don’t know the options or make the choices. Technology has rendered the process easier. The effects of these technological changes in travel are pretty easy to see. So students be thankful that you now have the internet that makes planning vacations a whole lot simpler and not an annoying hassle.

    Right now my thoughts seem like they are being thrown into a blender because I can’t make heads or tails out of them. This happened to me many times throughout my high school career. Especially when I have no idea what to write about and I just sit for hours while my mind tries to organize itself. I know this happens to many people. This is called writer’s block.
    Writer’s block: “A usually temporary psychological inability to begin or continue work on a piece of writing.” This happens to even the most creative of writers. Sometimes we just find ourselves stuck. So to help those writers who find themselves trying to write, but have writer’s block, I’m here to deliver a few ideas as to how to avoid or overcome this problem.

            Idea 1: Fresh air/ blood moving. Go outside and clear your mind. Take a deep breath and let the clear Alaskan (or wherever you are) air run throughout your body. If need be also get your blood pumping. Take a short run, walk, or bike trip. Exercise can trigger blood to move through your brain and cause your creative juices to flow.

            Idea 2: Change your surroundings. Are you being distracted by other people or objects where you’re at? If so, move yourself to a location where nothing will distract you. Your best writing is when you are focused. Even turn off your phone if you find that distracting.

            Idea 3: I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but yes, turn off your internet connection. The internet can be very distracting and very time consuming. For example when I had writer’s block once, I found myself on Facebook and YouTube wasting away precious hours. Facebook and YouTube will consume many hours of one’s life without you knowing it.

            Idea 4: My final idea: stop thinking about it and just start writing. I have heard this advice many times from my mom when I find myself thinking too hard about a topic. Trust me, this advice really does work. The best way to beat writer’s block is to just start writing. The first sentence can sometimes seem the hardest, but the more you write down the easier it will become. Just make sure to go back and edit your writing.

            Trying to come up with a “how to” topic had me stumped. I at first just sat and complained that I couldn’t come up with anything, but then I took these ideas and my mind began to organize its thoughts. I just started to write and everything fell into place. I hope these ideas will help you if you find yourself banging your head against a wall, hoping that it will help you overcome writer’s block. (Trust me: banging your head doesn’t work.)

    At only 11 years old Georgia Davis was approximately 300 pounds. Doctors continually told her that if she didn’t lose weight she would die. Yet, Georgia did not listen to this advice because by age 15 she weighed 462 pounds. Georgia started to gain weight after her father died and she tried to wipe out that memory with food. She could eat a whole loaf of bread a day, half a pie in one sitting, and two sandwiches at a time. Her mom tried to help, but Georgia wouldn’t listen. She saw her life going nowhere. Desperately wanting to change, she went to a weight loss boarding school. She took an inspiring nine-month journey, which left her 202 pounds lighter, and with a renewed sense of hope. “I finally decided to take control of my life, instead of ruining myself,” she said.
     Most people in America are not as obese as Georgia was, but 35.7 percent of adults and 16.9 percent of children are considered overweight. America’s expanding waistlines has caused alarming supersizing in some places you wouldn’t expect. Those include Santa costumes, CT scanners, fuel usage, caskets, and ambulances. I think America shouldn’t make accommodations for obese people. I believe the consequences of supersizing these items are great. Making these items bigger doesn’t help the American people. It doesn’t encourage them to lose weight. Making the objects bigger obviously sends a message that the American society is willing to accept obesity.
    In 1996, santasuits.com’s largest offering for a Santa costume was size 2X, and oversize suits accounted for 12 percent of sales. Today it’s estimated that size 3X suits account for up to 20 percent of sales. CT scanner companies, such as Siemens and General Electric, are also building new equipment to accommodate America’s growing waistlines. Siemens’s CT scanner went from a 60 centimeter diameter in 1997 to an 80-centimeter diameter in 2011, a 25 percent increase. Cars, trucks, and planes use more gasoline and jet fuel when extra pounds are added. Americans consume at least 1 billion more gallons of fuel today than what they did in 1960 because of increasing waistlines. A standard-size casket for adults used to be 24 inches wide, but 28-inch wide models are becoming more common. One company began making 29-inch caskets in the 1980s, but sold around one a year; now they ship half a dozen oversize caskets every month. American Model Response introduced bariatric ambulances in 2001. Their cot can hold up to 1,600 pounds, compared with older models that sustain 800 pounds.
    I think there are multiple sources of who’s to blame for the epidemic in America. I believe parents play a large role. Wherever you look or go, you’ll most likely end up seeing an obese child. Children’s most important role models are their parents. When children arrive home from school or playing sports, they generally want a snack. The snacks are not what they used to be; instead of an apple or some crackers, Cheetos and cookies are now the norm. To reward children, parents tend to use food; unfortunately they are not the healthiest food items. Kids are ruining their bodies at too young of an age. If the child stays overweight throughout their life they will undoubtedly pass the same bad habits on to their children.
    I also think television is to blame for overweight people. On an average day, the television broadcasts a fast food or junk food commercial at least a few times per break. This strongly imprints desires on a person’s brain and encourages them to eat what they see on the television. Fast food corporations aren’t concerned about people’s health. Their main objective is to make money.
    If Americans stick to their eating habits or exercising habits (or lack thereof), by 2030 half of the U.S. adults will be obese. Obesity raises the risks of numerous diseases, from type 2 diabetes to endometrial cancer (cancer of the uterine lining). This means more sick people and higher medical costs for the future. In 2030 it is projected that as many as 7.9 million new cases of diabetes a year could occur, compared with 1.9 million new cases in recent years. There could also be 6.8 million new cases of chronic heart disease and stroke every year, compared with 1.3 million new cases. The increasing illnesses will add $66 billion in annual obesity-related medical costs over and above today’s $147 billion to $210 billion.
    Some people can’t help their obesity because it may be caused by medical issues or may be in their genes. But for those where this isn’t a cause, there are basic steps to prevent obesity. The simple steps that can be taken are as follows: Be active, keep a check on your weight, drink plenty of water, stay away from junk food, eat slowly and only when you are hungry, and only consume the recommended number of calories. This sounds difficult to do, but if people want to change, they’re going to need determination, self-control, and perseverance. These are good steps for everyone, whether overweight or not, as poor eating habits will cause health problems in thin people.
    I believe the American society shouldn’t accommodate obese citizens because it means we are accepting and agreeing with the lifestyle of the overweight. Like Georgia Davis, the obese citizens need “to take control” of their lives, “instead of ruining” themselves.

    February 14th, a day believed by all Americans as a day to give your loved ones roses, boxes of chocolate, or a fuzzy teddy bear holding a heart saying, “Will you be my Valentine?” When the season rolls around, stores are bursting with pink, red, and purple Valentine décor. There are heart pillows, heart candy, aisles of Valentine cards, and etc.
    When I think of Valentine’s Day, I always recall celebrating it in Ms. Schierholt’s second- and third-grade class. Everyone had to make Valentine “mail-boxes” and make Valentine notes for all their classmates. When Valentine’s Day arrived, all the kids were excited about putting their Valentines in their classmates’ boxes. When the party started, eager children opened their Valentine boxes, read their notes and ate the candy delivered by their friends.
    The first time I heard about the actual origins of the holiday occurred when the radio show, Adventures in Odyssey, broadcast a 20-minute show on the topic. That’s when I realized companies have altered Valentine’s Day into a commercial holiday.
    I believe that teachers or parents should teach students the origin of the holding so they know why we’re celebrating it.

I think the real story as to why we celebrate this holiday is very intriguing. One legend states that St. Valentine was a priest who served during the Third Century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, disobeyed Claudius and continued in secret to perform marriages for young lovers. When his actions were discovered, Claudius ordered him put to death. The imprisoned Valentine fell in love with the jailor’s daughter, who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression still used today.

This Valentine’s Day if you’re someone who buys or receives roses, boxes of chocolates, or a note that says, “From your Valentine” enjoy these gifts, but remember why you’re celebrating this holiday.

    Ah, a new year, a fresh new start, another opportunity to make New Year’s resolutions, and sadly, a time to review the failed New Year’s resolutions from the past year. Usually our intentions are for our resolutions to last, but somehow they just won’t stick. If this happens to you, don’t worry; you’re not alone. There’s research that shows after six months, fewer than half the people who make New Year’s resolutions have stuck with them, and after a year that number declines to around 10 percent. With those kinds of statistics, what’s the point of even thinking about New Year’s resolutions?
    Personally, I love making New Year’s resolutions. Although in July it can seem overrated or pointless. I’m usually not thinking of my New Year resolutions; I’m just trying to get through my daily life. But a few days after Christmas, the energy of the upcoming year starts to fall upon me. I have figured out two pointers to help you keep from breaking New Year’s resolutions throughout the year.
     Stop for a second and ask yourself, “How many times have I set a New Year’s resolution that is similar to the one that I’m going to set this year?” For me this happens a lot. We need to stop and ask ourselves why these resolutions are important to us. Most people don’t take the time to understand their goal and this is what probably causes the decreasing motivation throughout the year. We need to look at our resolutions and actually figure out why the goal is so important to us, and write down our New Year resolutions with the “why” behind it.

                Since we now know we need to figure out the “why” behind our goals, we should take the next step and figure out the “how?” Most people are too vague when going through the “how?”  We need to figure out all the different changes we’re going to have to make within our lifestyle to get where we want to go.

                New Year’s resolutions are great because it brings a change into our normal everyday lifestyle.

                Now you might be thinking this seems like a lot of pain to go through these steps, but ask yourself if your New Year’s resolution is important to you. If it is important and you want to accomplish your resolution, it shouldn’t seem like a lot of work. You should be excited about accomplishing your goal(s). I know I want to, and hopefully you too want to stay on the New Year’s resolution wagon rather than fall off like most people do.

    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Kenny Lake, with the recent snow falls and the cold, crisp winter nights. Students and teachers alike can’t wait for three o’clock on Tuesday when school ends for Christmas break.  Since Christmas break is around the corner, I figured I would write a blog in the spirit of Christmas. I decided to re-write “Twas the Night before Christmas”, as if it happened at my house.

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through our home
Everything was stirring, like New Year’s Eve in Rome.
The stockings were hung on the log beam with care,
Knowing that Santa Claus would soon be there.

The children weren’t nestled all snug in their beds,
They were all busy talking and laughing instead.
Mom in fleece jammies and dad in his too,
Crawled into bed long overdue.

When out in the lawn there arose such a clatter,
Our dog Tip sprang from her bed to see what’s the matter.
Away to the window I went to explore,
Pushed away the curtains and opened the door.

The bright shining stars and the moon in the sky,
Made me shut the door for the cold would intensify.
When what to my chilled eyes would appear,
But a gigantic sleigh, and eight reindeer.

With a fat little old driver, so frozen and thick,
I knew in moment it must be St. Nick.
Slower than molasses, his courses they came,
For the cold weather quieted him as he called them by name.

“Now Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now Prancer and Vixen!
On Comet! On Cupid! On Donner and Blitzen!
To the top of the roof all colored blue,
Dash away! Dash away, we’ll soon be passed due!”

Like snowflakes that before the wild blizzard fly,
As the gusts of wind threw them to the sky.
So up to our house-top the courses they flew,
With a sleigh full of loot, and St. Nicholas too.

And then all of a sudden, I heard on the roof,
The prancing and pawing of each heavy hoof.
As I started freaking out, and turning around,
Down our stove Santa Clause came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, to ward off the frost,
Covered with ashes and soot, he would come at any cost.
A bundle of presents he had with him there,
For he was about to place them under our tree with care.

His eyes how they twinkled! His dimples how funny!
His cheeks were frost-bit, his nose was runny.
His lips were chapped from the dry Alaskan air,
And his beard on his chin was as white as a hare.

The stump of a pipe in his mouth he held tight,
And the smoke had me coughing into the night.
He had a broad face and a large round gut,
That shook when he laughed, like a squirming halibut.

He was chubby and plump, in great need of shedding a pound,
And I burst out laughing to what my eyes have found.
A smile from the corner of his mouth did appear,
Soon gave me the knowledge I had nothing to fear.

He spoke not a word, for I thought he was frozen,
And filled the stocking with the gifts he had chosen.
And laying his numb finger aside of his nose,
And giving me a wink up the stove he rose!

Out of the stove he sprang to his sleigh,
Gave his reindeers a whistle and flew away.
I popped my head out the door and heard him say as he drove out of sight,
“Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!”

    I hope my rendition of this classic poem brought some Christmas cheer to you. I wish everyone a very merry Christmas!

    Keeping a mother happy can be a difficult task, but I know from personal experience, a surefire way to keep a mom happy is to have a clean bedroom.
    Most people know that I usually don’t have a clean room. In fact, I rarely have a clean room. In times like these I tell my mom not to go down to the basement, or if she does, to avoid looking in my room. Unfortunately, almost every night she comes down, looks in my room, and then gives me “the look.” I know she is unhappy and disappointed in me, and I tell her I’ll have it clean…someday.
    The problem is that I have to feel like cleaning, which only happens on rare occasions or really late at night when I need to go to bed. I sometimes start, but then I get distracted by something or I get bored and take a break, which can last two weeks or more.
    Recently I even reached the point where I looked up on google.com “how to clean up a bedroom”. I know you’re probably thinking, “Wow that’s pretty pathetic.” Don’t worry, I agree. Disappointingly, the answers I found on Google wouldn’t help me.
    One idea someone had was to make cleaning your room a game, like a cleaning show. I would have a commercial break for when I wanted break time. I figured if I tried this, my TV show would last from a whole day or up to a couple of weeks. I would also get bored of my own TV show because if I went back to watch it, the show would be filled with just commercials. Another game idea was to pick up five items before you can leave your room at any time. I have tried this, but I failed. I tell myself, “Oh, I’ll do it next time.” But the “next time” never happens.
    Another piece of advice was to open all of your curtains or blinds to let in natural light. Also consider opening the windows for fresh air. Right away I found a problem. Problem one: my bedroom is in the basement, so there’s not a lot of natural light through my window. Also, it starts to get dark here around 4 p.m. Problem two: right now it’s 40 below outside, so opening a window for fresh air would raise my parents’ heating bill drastically.
    A different idea was to make your bed in the morning. Apparently an unmade bed will make your room look messy no matter how clean it actually is. My problem with that is I usually feel very rushed in the morning.
    One more idea someone had is that you could clean a bedroom in 15 minutes. I laughed at this and made the remark, “If only they could see my room.” I’m pretty sure cleaning my room in 15 minutes would be nearly impossible.

The funny thing is I like to clean; just not my room. There’s something about it that I just don’t like to do. My grandma even cross-stitched a wall hanging for me that said “It’s my mess and I love it.”

I know that I have to buckle down and clean my room sometime, because after awhile I get tired of it. Also if I do get my room cleaned, I’ll have a pleased mom. If your mom doesn’t seem so happy, just go take a look in your bedroom. So for those people who find they have constant messy rooms here’s my advice: clean room equals happy mom.

    “Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! I’m really going to die dad!” I squealed, as I knew we were mere seconds from being shot into the sky.
    Halfway through August most everyone receives a pamphlet in the mail advertising the Alaska State Fair. Usually my family would throw the pamphlet away or use it as fire starter, but this year we kept it because we were going to the fair. My family has a tradition; whoever is about to start their senior year must go on the slingshot. This year was my turn.
    I didn’t know how to feel about this. I was extremely excited, but also nervous. I knew that I wouldn’t mind the being shot-up part, but the free-falling is what I wasn’t sure about. I had a feeling that my stomach wouldn’t agree with the flipping around.
    Walking through the gates at the state fair, I knew I was only a couple minutes from getting shot into the sky. I was surprised to find that there was no one in line for the slingshot. One couple was on the ride, but that was it.
    Dad and I took all of our loose items such as car keys, loose change, wallet, purse, etc. and gave them to my mom and sisters. Walking to the slingshot, my heart started to pound faster and the next minute was a blur. Time seemed to be on fast-forward, and the next thing I knew, I was strapped into this seat and the guy in charge told me to keep my feet braced on the bar or I would fall. I couldn’t tell whether or not he was joking.
    As the bungee was tightening, I gripped the handles with all my strength. My dad was laughing at me. We slowly rose, and then I heard the click! We were shot straight up in the air. I was screaming extremely loud and my dad was just laughing and smiling. When we came down, I was actually all right because my stomach didn’t feel a thing. Halfway through the ride, we were trying to flip, but the slingshot wouldn’t.
     “We gotta flip it,” I told dad.
    “That’s no fair! It didn’t flip at all! Oh well,” dad said.
    The rest of the ride we just bobbed up and down with no flips or anything. I could tell my dad was disappointed and wanted a better ride.
    As we lowered to the platform the man in charge came over and asked, “What happened to the flips?”
    Dad replied, “Well I was going to ask if we get a discount. That’s like, a bummer. We weren’t fighting it at all.”
    “It was lame, huh?”
    “It was lame.”
    As I was trying to figure out how to undo the straps and buckles, the man walked away. I was quite confused as to why because he didn’t unbuckle dad. Then I felt the seat jerk. “Are we going again?” I asked.
    “Yep,” Dad said with a grin on his face.
    Deanna said the look on my face was priceless. I was ecstatic to go one more time. I just wanted to flip, to know what it felt like.
    Click. We shot off, but instead of coming down sitting up we came down upside-down. So our feet were above our heads! We flipped so many times during this ride. It was exhilarating! I screamed pretty much the whole time. On our way back down I could tell dad was thrilled with this ride because, with a huge smile on his face, he said, “He gets a tip from me on that one.”
    I was surprised the man charged both rides for the price of one. I was also amazed to find myself wanting to go back on the ride.
    I left feeling fantastic, knowing that one day I would definitely be back to ride the slingshot again.

    Most residents from Kenny Lake probably have had a difficult time explaining to outsiders where they come from.  Well I have, and if the other person doesn’t know where Valdez, Chitina, or Glennallen is, that is when things get a little awkward. This is when I say, “It’s pretty much in the middle of nowhere.” 
    People who pass Pippen Lake and keep driving the Richardson Highway toward Valdez miss something spectacular. As you turn on the Edgerton Highway and start to drive down the hill, you can see a remarkable view of the Wrangell Mountains.
     As my family and I were coming home from Anchorage with my sister, who was in Australia the past seven months, she couldn’t get over how beautiful the Wrangells were. She continuously exclaimed, “The mountains! Look at the mountains! I love Alaska!”
    The mountains are only one thing that makes Kenny Lake scenery incredible.
    Summer sunsets can illuminate the night sky, outlining the clouds with a vibrant shade of pink. On certain autumn nights the astonishing northern lights can be seen. Winter night skies are marvelous as you look up and see nothing but a sheet of stars.
    Kenny Lake, once believed to be completely covered with water, is also home to multiple bluffs, the Tonsina River running to the south, the Copper River flowing to the north, Willow Creek, and many homesteaders’ fields. 
    The beauty of Kenny Lake isn’t just its physical appearance, but also the warm heart of the community.
    Words cannot describe the willingness and generosity of the people. When August rolls around everyone knows what happens: the Kenny Lake Fair. Gathering volunteers to help set up, serve dinner, take down decor, make food, and clean the fairgrounds is never a problem. So many people give up their time to help, even if it’s just a little bit.
    The community also comes together in times of loss. When my sister recently passed away, the love and support of the community was overwhelming. For the first two weeks we constantly had visitors stop by to comfort us. In addition during the first two weeks we had a hot dinner prepared for us by a different member of the community each night. Most people also said if there was anything that we needed, just give them a call.
    From my experience and what other people have said, Kenny Lake is a special place.
     I’m Kristi Knutson: 17, a senior, a third generation homesteader, and even though Kenny Lake is a place that most people don’t know exists, I call it home.