THE

The SUmmer

Issue

AKHBARA Stu den t Pu b l i cat i on of t h e A m er i can Sch ool of Du bai

...and more!Senior humans of asd The Secret Pl ight of

Immigrants Don't be afraid of Delhi

bel ly

Inside this issue

Senior Athlete Profile

THE AKBAR 2015:STAFF & EDITORS

A Letter from the Editor: SummerMani Seeber, '15

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Mani Seeber, '15

LAYOUT EDITORS: Noor Mohammad, '15

Kaley Garvey, '16

COPY EDITOR: Haya Anis, '17

STUDENT LIFEBeat Editor: Cheyenne Belt, '16

Layan Abu Aysha, '16

Chloe Folmar, '18

Rania Khan, '18

Jessica Nelson, '18

ARTSBeat Editor: Sophia Syed, '15

Noor Mohammad, '15

Nick Leibman, '15

Kaley Garvey, '16

Mohammed Suliman, '18

SPORTSBeat Editor: Louis Le Roux, '18

Natasha Graves, '15

Jonathan Shipcott, '18

Kian Sohrabi, '18

CURRENT EVENTSBeat Editor: Mani Seeber, 15

Martina Elia, '15

Sophia Dennelly, '16

Haya Anis, '17

Yasmin Hamwi, '18

FOODBeat Editor: John Henderson, 15

David Saba, '15

Anah Malik, '15

And what a year it was!

From the Fall,

a fall back into careful routine,

to the Winter,

a consolidation of that routine,

to the Spring,

a time to rejuvenate that routine,

and lastly,

to the Summer,

a time to bring a timely end to routine,

dear reader, it was a fantastic voyage.

In this issue, we aim to provide some closure to a wonderful academic year.

From the food beat, with a tasty, yet sentimental exploration of favorite food items from back home, to the arts beat, we celebrate, and depict, new ends, and new beginnings.

W ith an eye on the great achievements of this academic year, and an eye on the next,

we thank you for your loyal readership. Read long and prosper.

17 18 2219 21 23

SUN MON TUE W ED THU FRI SAT

25 27 2926 28 30

31 1 3 52 4 6

20

24

7 8 10 129 11 13

15 1714 16 18 19 20

CALENDARMAY 17 - JUNE 20

S U M M E R !

PromSenior's Last Day

Beach Day

Graduation CeremonyExams Exams

Exams Exams Exams Noon Dismissal

Noon Dismissal

Last Day of School

STUDENT LIFE

Jessica Nelson, ?18

Taur us: Apr i l 21- M ay 21Str en gth W or ds:

Dependable, Persistent, Loyal , Pat ient, Generous

W eak n ess W or ds:

Stubborn, Lazy, Possessive, M ater ial ist ic, Sel f-Indulging

Taur us i n a Nu tshel l : Taurus is the one who has im m ense perseverance, even when others have given up, the Taurus rages on, just l ike the bul l , which is Taurus' wel l sui ted sym bol . Taurus's have a wel l known reputat ion for being stubborn, which is not necessar i ly a bad th ing.

Taurus are not fond of change. They l ike the fam i l iar and rout ine com for t of l i fe. Taurus is easy going and not one to pick a f ight but should som e poor souls attem pt to provoke Taurus, the wrath wi l l be known, for they have a tem per underneath the calm sur face. Taurus are very

responsive to their sur roundings. They l ike decorat ions, color, anyth ing that appeals to al l the senses. Taurus l ike possessions and are down to ear th, they do not l ike gaudy, f lashy or over the top th ings. They prefer com for table and creat ive sett ings and objects. Taurus l ikes secur i ty, in

every aspect of their l ives fr om hom e, to love, to career. Taurus tend to be sel f-indulgent and lazy, Taurus are m aster procrast inator s of the astrology zodiac! They do however have a str ong, persistent dr ive that com es to l i fe when they chose, and no one would ever know that they

are lazy.

Fr i en dsh i p : A Taurus is an excel lent fr iend. Taurus has few close fr iends as opposed to m any acquaintances. The few people they hold dear to them are guarded and protected. Their fr iends are tr eated l ike fam i ly and they are f ier cely loyal and dependable. Taurus loves to be the host

or hostess. Al though not a total social butter f ly, they can be shy around strangers, the people who Taurus let in to their l ives are lavishly catered to when Taurus decides to throw a par ty, they decorate and present everyth ing lavishly. Taurus wi l l always pam per them selves and their close

group of fr iends.

Busi n ess: Taurus is a str ong business person. Taurus is the one who has im m ense perseverance, even when others have given up, the Taurus rages on. They have a knack for f inance and their f inancial advice is pr ized. They know where m oney is to be m ade and have the abi l i ty to

m anipulate and set the path for their own success. Taurus are not fr ivolous spenders but they l ike to l ive lavishly and sur round them selves with n ice possessions and foods, which al l adds up resul t ing in large spending habi ts. They wi l l not spend al l their m oney and cause their

business to fai l because i f they do, their secur i ty and stabi l i ty wi l l be gone and th is wi l l cause them great str ess.

H ow to at t r act on e: You?d have to be ?l ike m inded?; they tend to go for those who l ike sim i lar th ings. Don?t m ake them feel r ushed, in anyth ing. Take them to a n ice restaurant and in tr oduce them to som e good m usic. Show them you have assets that provide secur i ty (aka. long

term relat ionships, good job etc.) Final ly, express your love for fam i ly and togetherness.

Photo Credi ts to: www.google.com

Summer Dest inat ionsChloe Folm ar, '18

Close your eyes for a m inute and visual ize where you?l l be in on ly a few weeks. The warm sun beating down on your face and the feel ing of sand against your body. The sm el l of sal t water, the beachy feel ing of your hair, the sound of waves lapping up against the shore. Tropical per fect ion washes over you with another soft breeze.

Just k idding, have fun studying for the SAT for two m onths! Check out the m ap below to see where h igh schooler s are tr avel l ing over the sum m er...when they aren?t cram m ing in their sum m er AP assignm ents.

M ost popu l ar dest i n at i on s:- Uni ted States

- Texas- Boston- Cal i forn ia- New York

- Canada- Lebanon- Egypt- France- England- Spain

STUDENT LIFEWho's Your Per f ect Pr om Dat e?

Ran i a K han '18Ther e you ar e on the dan ce f l oor , dan ci n g the n i gh t aw ay, l augh i n g at som e jok e abou t the l i m o d r i ver ...bu t w ai t ! W ho am I supposed to be doi n g th i s w i th?! Tak e th i s qu i z dow n bel ow , to f i n d ou t w ho you r per fect pr om date i s.

W hats the m ost st r essfu l

th i n g abou t pr om

p l an n i n g?

Finding the per fect dress/ tux.

M ak ing sure m y crush hasn?t asked anyone to

prom .

Lol , what even is ?prom

planning??

H m m , I?m st i l l t r ying to

nar row i t down to one

person.

I have two people in

m ind, their nam es are Ben

and Jer r y.

M ost l ikely to be seen gett ing

M ost l ikely to be

si t t ing down,

M ost l ikely to organize

That per son you?ve been eyei n g i n cl ass.

I t?s pretty obvious you two have som e sparks, why not

k ick i t off at prom ? H eading str aight to the dance f loor

wi l l defin i tely break the ice. I ts? the per fect way to get to know som eone, wi thout al l the f i r st date awkwardness

gett ing in the way.

Go i n a gr oup!

W hy stress over one speci f ic person when you

can sur round yoursel f wi th everyone you care about? Prom is about having fun, and not

wor r ying about look ing good in fr ont of your date

is a plus!

Your best f r i en d .

You both know how to have a great t im e together, and

value each other?s com pany. You wi l l defin i tely have an unforgettable exper ience, and wi l l create m em or ies that wi l l last for a l i fet im e.

I s ther e a speci f i c per son you have i n

m i n d for a date?

W hat w ou l d you r pr om super l at i ve be?

W hat ar e you m ost exci ted

abou t for Inhal ing the food.

Showing off your cute date. H aving a great

t im e with fr iends.

Tiptoeing in to the hal ls of our h igh school bui lding on our f i r st day back fr om sum m er, f inal ly as senior s, we gaze and m eticulously exam ine our sur roundings, bewi ldered by the rush of bi t ter sweet feel ings in every join t in our body. Could th is r eal ly be our last year of h igh school? Are we real ly the senior s of class 2016? Our m inds are blown away by th is sudden real izat ion, as we f inal ly com e to com prehend that th is is f inal ly i t . The year we?ve al l been look ing forward to. W e?ve m ade i t through jun ior year : the toughest grade in school , and now we?re f in ishing off h igh school wi th th is one last year.

By the t im e we?re senior s, we m ost defin i tely wi l l be distr acted by col lege appl icat ions and the in tense desire to just f in ish h igh school that we seem to neglect what?s m ost crucial about th is f inal year : the m em or ies. The ones we th ink we?l l forget, the ones we th ink won?t m atter in f ive years t im e. The day your hear t dropped when you watched your team score the winn ing goal at a footbal l m atch, br inging together your team m ates, as you cr ied fr om happiness. I t could even be the t im e you had every person in the audience cheer for you when you put on a phenom enal per form ance in the m usical . I t could also be just a sim ple m em ory, l ike that one class you were tr ying so hard not to laugh in , attem pting to avoid al l eye contact wi th the enraged teacher in fr ont of you or that one study block you had with the m usic burst ing so loud and

everyone singing along to your favor i te songs. These are the m om ents we?l l r em em ber when we look back at our h igh school exper ience, not the f ive hours we spent wr i t ing that col lege essay or the three hours of sleep we had when we stayed up al l n ight studying for an AP test. The m em or ies we wi l l r em em ber are t im eless. They wi l l br ing us back to the m om ents that?l l m ake us wish we could stay young forever.

Let us put aside our desir e to f in ish off h igh school and instead m ake last ing m em or ies with the people we love, so we can look back at these days and sm i le at al l the m om ents that have m ade us so happy. Our last few weeks of senior year is going to zoom past our eyes before we even know i t so we m ust not let i t pass with the apathy and languor of a typical senior att i tude. 2016 is our year ; i t is our turn to laugh at every fr eshm an that has just begun their h igh school journey, i t is our turn to wear senior hoodies and walk around school wi th our heads held h igh, and i t is m ost defin i tely our turn to show the wor ld what the class of 2016 has to offer.

STUDENT LIFEHel l o Senior Year Layan Abu Aysha '16

Being By Your sel fSTUDENT LIFE

Cheyenne A. Bel t '17

Last ly out of pure desperat ion, m ake a dash to the restroom and lock yoursel f in a stal l . Cry a l i t t le,

laugh a l i t t le, wai t i t out. This is 100% effect ive, on being invisible.

There?s been a m om ent in everybody?s l i fe where they?ve had to si t alone; whether i t be wait ing for that special no-one, having no fr iends, or just plain out wast ing the ?valuable? t im e you have. I t?s at t im es l ike these when you star t to wonder about your sel f wor th, and begin to feel l ike a com plete no-l i fe, loser. No one l ikes to feel alone, or m ore im por tant ly, to look l ike they?re alone (thanks social m edia). So here are som e ?creat ive? ways to look l ike

you?re doing som ething, when in r eal i ty, you'r e a loner.

Tr y to text (Snapchat/FB/W hatsapp/whatever you use) som eone you know that has no l i fe, and wi l l

im m ediately r espond. Luck i ly, you?l l have som eone to talk to! Unluck i ly , you?l l never be able to stop talk ing to them . This is because they now th ink you?re the poor schm uck who wants to be

best fr iends.

W hi le si t t ing at a cafe/ r estaurant, t r y people watching. Com e up with r andom background stor ies, or r eal ist ic suburban housewife catch

phrases they m ight use. Im agine their l i fe being rem otely in terest ing com pared to yours. The

possibi l i t ies are endless.

Listen to m usic. Give off the h ipster em o vibe, when in r eal i ty you?re gett ing your T-swift on.

Go shopping, and pretend that you?l l buy a lot of th ings. Tr y on the ugl iest outf i ts ever im agined

possible and act extrem ely ser ious. Then go up to people ask ing i f your butt looks big. Also ask i f you?re baby bum p is showing because you just

happen to be 5 m onths preggo.

Disconnect wi th the cyber wor ld and take a look around. Stay off your electron ics, and tr y to

im agine a l i fe where technology doesn?t exist. Then watch as everyth ing slowly takes a turn.

Ask yoursel f al l the deep quest ions of l i fe, and see i f you can answer any of them . Guaranteed to keep

you perplexed and in deep concentrat ion. Also guaranteed to m ake you look l ike you?re talk ing to

yoursel f, or worse tak ing a dum p.

The BEST way to pretend you?re actual ly en joying yoursel f is to r ead book . I t sends the m essage

?I-can-read-so-leave-m e-the-fr eak -alone?, or a tastefu l ?yeah-books-st i l l -exist?.

Go through old photos on your cam era and laugh at how stupid you look . Then tr y tak ing pictures of your elbow so i t looks l ike a butt . Don?t be afraid to

play around with angles. H eck take a sel f ie i f you?re feel ing dar ing.

ARTSSum m er, a t im e when people switch off their left side of the brain and let their creat ivi ty f low. Som etim es, you com e across a special m om ent and instead of snapping a picture, you?d rather in terpret i t in your own way. Ar t ist ical ly expressing your exper ience is a great way to capture a m om ent over the

sum m er. You m ight go to the beach and see an aston ishing sunset. You go back hom e and the feel ing you fel t when you saw the sunset st i l l l ingers and you th ink to yoursel f, ?th is deserves m ore than just a picture.? You not on ly want to

save the that one t im e, but also want to r ecord your em otions. The sunset then inspires you to create a m asterpiece of brushstrokes that r eal ly lets others feel the sam e way you fel t when your eyes gazed the sunset. M ak ing a pain t ing is on ly one of the m any ways you could preserve your em otional standpoint.

W r i t ing about what you?ve just exper ienced can help you keep a record of that t im e and the em otions you fel t . W hen people are told to wr i te, they often th ink of a journal / diar y entr ies, but i t doesn?t necessar i ly m ean that. A poem or shor t stor y is another way of r el iving the m em or ies. As Ter r y W hal in once said, ?I?ve never been m uch of a photographer. Instead I capture m y m om ents on paper. I t m ight not be pretty and per fect but the essence of i t is on paper and wi l l ser ve to jog m y m em or ies for the rest of i t .?

Another way of captur ing your sum m er vibes is by m ak ing som e m usic. You don?t have to be an award winn ing ar t ist to do th is. Just a quick 4 bar m elody on Garageband to get stuff of your chest could do. Seeing fr iends, or going som eplace you th ink is special m ight m ake you feel inspir ed to wr i te or com pose a song. You don?t have to m ake a fu l l 4 m inute

plat inum song, just a quick tune wi l l get the job done. You can play a song on an instrum ent that you l ike, or even learn a new instrum ent over the sum m er. So i f you DO som ehow m anage to pick up som e stress over the sum m er, just know, there?s m usic to be m ade.

W e al l wish we could capture every l i t t le m om ent of our sum m er, but sadly sum m er doesn?t last forever. M ak ing ar t can be just as good for r em em ber ing your sum m er. I f you?re ever bored dur ing your long sum m er, just know that wr i t ing a shor t poem or m ak ing a huge paint ing are always opt ions. Since you have m ore t im e to yoursel f over the sum m er, you m ight feel m ore inspired than usual . Sum m er is a t im e that com es with good vibes, so let?s do our best to keep those vibes going al l year long.

M oham ed Sul im an' 18The Summer Ar t ist Inside of You

1. Left H and Free Al t -J

2. Ever last ing Light The Bl ack K eys

3. On Fire Loon Lak e

4. Si l ly Boy The Bl ue Van

5. Islands On The Coast Ban d of H or ses

6. Nightt im ing Cocon u t Recor ds

7. Al l Those Fr iendly People Fun er al Su i ts

8. Take a W alk Passi on Pi t

9. M idnight Ci ty M 83

10. I . Crawl Chi l d i sh Gam bi n o

11. You & M e (ft . El iza Dool i t t le) [Fum e Rem i x] Di scl osu r e

12. Favor i te Song (ft . Chi ldish Gam bino)

Chan ce The Rapper

13. You've Got Som ething The Jun gl e Gi an ts

14. The M iddle Ji m m y Eat W or l d

15. Gir ls Like You The Nak ed an d Fam ous

16. Back To The Shack W eezer

17. The King and Al l of H is W ol f Gan g

18. Suck M y Kiss Red H ot Ch i l i Pepper s

19. Better Days Edw ar d Shar pe & The M agn et i c Zer os

20. H ang Loose Al abam a Shak es

21. The City The 1975

22. Roses Outk ast

23. Be W ho You W ant To Be M ax Fr ost

24. Breeze XXYYXX

25. Tel l Even s

Every sum m er m em ory has a soundtrack playing behind i t . This sum m er?s playl ist covers a wide range of di fferent m usic styles including Indie, Rock , Al ternat ive, Rap and m ore. Find som e ar t ists you know and get to know som e new ones. Enjoy l isten ing!

Summer Pl ays f or Sunny DaysKaley Garvey, '16

SUMMER MOVIES: WHAT DO YOU THINK?ARTS

M ay 1st 2015

M ay 15th 2015

M ay 22n d 2015

Jun e 19th 2015

I bet you didn?t see th is com ing: H awkeye is actual ly awesom e. Avengers Age of Ultron was an enter tain ing f i lm , fu l l of thr i l l ing act ion sequences and Joss W hedon hum or. Even though Age of Ultron does not end Phase 2 of the M arvel Cinem atic Universe, i t successful ly sets up several Phase 3 m ovies: Black Panther , Thor : Ragnarok, and Avengers: I nfinity W ar Par t 1 & Par t 2. Som e people m ay cr i t icize the pacing of the f i lm , but I sim ply don?t agree. That par t of the m ovie was vi tal to the developm ent of several character s which elevated the m ovie fr om just a sim ple act ion sum m er blockbuster f l ick .

I have no idea what to expect fr om M ad M ax. The f i r st t im e I ever heard of th is f i lm ser ies was when I saw the tr ai ler for th is f i lm . H owever, i t looks l ike a real ly in terest ing and fun f i lm . The m ain cast provides m e with hope for th is f i lm as they are respectable actor s and actresses in the industr y such as Tom H ardy (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises). As of now, I?m not sure i f I?l l be m otivated enough to watch the m ovie in theaters, but I am defin i tely going to check th is out when i t com es out on DVD.

There isn?t m uch known about Tom or rowland except that i ts based fr om a Disneyland r ide. H owever, the tr ai ler has personal ly been extrem ely in tr iguing as i t shows Br i t t Rober tson em bark ing on an a grand journey with George Clooney, tr anscending t im e and space. M y exci tem ent is founded on the facts that i ts dir ected by Brad Bird, the dir ector of M ission Im possible: Ghost Protocol , and that the leading actor s are both exceptional ly talented. I can?t wait to see where th is m ovie takes m e.

W oah. That?s what I was th ink ing after watching the tr ai ler. Pixar m ovies are a guarantee to have the per fect com binat ion of adorable, feels, and wow. The idea of actual ly personi fying people?s feel ings is a r eal ly or iginal idea that prom ises to be one for the ages. M y only concern is wi th how th is m ovie wi l l f i t in wi th the in fam ous pixar theory.

Personal ly, I have heard noth ing about Tomorrowland other then i t is fr om the creat ive m inds of Dam on Lindelof and Brad Bird which, in other words m eans we have the co-creator and wr i ter of ?Lost? team ing up with Brad Bird the wr i ter of the Incredibles . I would be lying i f I said that beauti fu l t r ainwreck of a wr i ter 's duo did not in terest m e at al l , not to m ention there appears to be in terdim ensional t im e tr avel wi th H ugh Laur ie (H ouse) playing the vi l lain . W ith al l that is in th is f i l lm , Tom or rowland m ay just be the h idden gem of sum m er m ovies.

Look i t?s a Pixar m ovie, m eaning for better or less words the m ovie is going to be pretty good. Pixar does a good job of appeal ing to both the chi ld genera, wi th wacky and zany character s and br ight color s but also sneak in a few adul t joke for the grownups and ?Inside Out? looks l ike i t wi l l have al l those th ings.

I am st i l l on the fence regarding Avengers: Age of Ultron. Fir st off, I can see the appeal of the Avengers fr anchise, six icon ic heroes al l m erging together in to one m ovie (thats awesom e!). The col laborat ion that needed to be done between f ive separate dir ector s and a plethora of wr i ter s to m ake the stor ies bleed in to each other is also im pressive. H owever, Since the dir ector s want to connect al l the new m arvel m ovies to The Civil W ar and I nfinity W ar m eans som e act ions are m ore scient i f ic than natural . M ore or less focusing on how Tony Stark is never r eal ly is chast ised for h is act ions because he is st i l l needed as a hero. There are som e genuine good m om ents in the Avengers sequel , wi th the team com bing powers, H awkeye having a bigger r ole and the team 's attem pt to l i f t Thor 's ham m er.

Chi r ag's Tak e Ni ck 's Tak e

The m ovie seem s to be playing al l the r ight cards, keeping M ad M ax in Austral ia, having George M i l ler, (the dir ector of the past three M ad M ax M ovies) dir ect ing, and even using a the or iginal screenplay M i l ler wanted publ ished. The only concern for th is m ovie is, i t was tr apped in product ion purgatory for about 25 years due to actor s leaving the project or loss of funding. W hich sparks the quest ions did the m ovie take so long due to investor s th ink ing i t?s ter r ible?

Nicholas Leibm ann '15 Chirag Garg '15

Senior humans OF ASD Noor M oham m ad, '15

Sophia Syed, '15

W hat i s som eth i n g you w i sh you w er e bet ter at?

I wish I was better at avoiding people that I r eal ly don 't l ike and real ly don 't want to talk to... you know who you are.

Describe a t ime that has made you happy?

So, at the beginning of this year I was so happy. Like I just don't know why but I was so happy and loved life. So I went to my room and just painted this huge colorful square on the middle of my wall--it was like a mixture of colors and was so big. And yeah, that is a time I was really happy.

Descr i be an even t that has shaped you r l i fe.

An event that has shaped m y l i fe was when I worked with underpr ivi leged chi ldren. M oving to India was one of the hardest exper iences of m y l i fe. I was unaware of the wor ld around m e, and witnessing chi ld pover ty shocked m e. "Cul ture shock" is one way to descr ibe i t , but I th ink of the "shock" as an awakening. W ith m y parents' help, I joined an NGO which sponsored underpr ivi leged chi ldren. W ork ing with these chi ldren opened m y eyes to the real i ty of the wor ld. I know without th is exper ience I would not be the person I am today.

W hat i s on e of you r best m em or i es?

W hen I was l i t t le we went snorkel ing in the hotel area. W hen we went there, I r em em ber, in the m om ent I was ter r i f ied because there were hundreds of jel lyf ish around m e! I t was just so random ! And I was just scream ing through the tube and fr eak ing out. M y dad then pul led m e back to the pier. So, even though that was ter r i fying in the m om ent, look ing back i t was one of m y fondest m em or ies.?

W hat do you w an t you r l ast w or ds to be befor e you l eave th i s ear th?

Live your l i fe l ike how you want to l ive i t . Don?t let anyone else tel l you what to do. The m ore you do th ings for yoursel f, the happier you wi l l be. You can?t let other people dictate what you want to do.

W hat i s you r favor i te p l ace?

There's th is one corner of m y room where I have l i t t le statues and candles and f lowers and a bunch of l i t t le cact i and a lucky bam boo and i t 's al l r ight next to m y bed. I t 's r eal ly calm ing and I usual ly just si t there and th ink about l i fe.

Our names are Sophia and Noor and we started Humans Of ASD in the Spring of 2014. We thought it would be really cool to create an exhaustive catalogue of ASD's inhabitants, so we set out to photograph students and teachers and began collecting quotes and short stories from the people we met. Taken together, these portraits and captions became the subject of a very vibrant project.

W hat i s som eth i n g you fear ?

W ell , I?ve always had a di ff icul t t im e grasping the idea of ?growing up.? To m e, being young is a tr u ly wonder fu l th ing. I feel l ike the exper ience you have at th is t im e is un l ike any other. Like, these are the m om ents you star t understanding what l i fe's al l about, these are the m om ents you exper ience th ings for l i teral ly the f i r st t im e. I t?s such an im por tant t im e of m y l i fe and eventual ly, the nuances of youth and adul thood wi l l becom e m ore apparent, and when I th ink about that, I get a bi t sad. I don?t know, i t m ay sound a bi t weird, but I fear that idea of losing m y youth.

Descr i be an even t i n you r l i fe w h i ch chan ged you ei ther for the bet ter or for the w or se? In m y jun ior year I had to m ove to the States where i l ived with on ly m y sister s. The tr ansi t ion to publ ic school did not go wel l for m e and I was real ly not in a good place at the t im e. Dur ing winter break , m y sister s and I cam e back to Dubai to visi t our parents and fr iends and towards the end of the break I decided I wanted to m ove back . So without m y parents' knowledge, I r e-enrol led m ysel f in to ASD and when I I got in , I told m y parents. This was the 1st t im e I fel t l ike I took control of m y own l i fe and that event m ade m e a str onger and a m ore independent person.

Who or what is your favorite thing and explain why?

My dog. Why? Because he can't talk.

W ho i s som eon e you adm i r e?

I?d choose m y brother, Ram sey. So m y brother left when he was 16 years old and I was 6. H e m oved out because he did som e bad th ings according to m y parents. M e and him were real ly close. W hen he left , he obviously wouldn?t be around as often. But the th ing is I would see him as a role m odel . I m ean he?s st i l l a r ole m odel despi te al l h is f laws. I t was so awesom e when he?d pick m e up and br ing m e out to do stuff. Just the fact that he would st i l l take that t im e out to see m e even though he m ade the choice to leave, shows that he?s am azing. Ram s is understanding of everyth ing I do in m y l i fe, and never judges m e based on anyth ing. H e?s--he?s everyth ing that I want to be.?

W hat i s som eth i n g you cher i sh?

Recently I student dir ected the m iddle school one acts and I love i t . I loved in teract ing with the younger grades; i t?s fun, and i t was bonding t im e with m y 8th grade brother. Som etim es the m ost m eaningful th ing you can do is to guide and inspire k ids, because i t?s the k ind of in teract ion they?l l r em em ber. But I also can?t forget about the one very special person in m y l i fe r ight now -- I cher ish you always. Plus, r ecently there's been a steady str eam of H aagen Dazs crem e brûlée ice cream in m y fr idge, and I?d say I?m pretty gratefu l for that.

W hat do you w an t peopl e to r em em ber abou t you w hen you l eave th i s ear th?I want people to r em em ber that even on m y darkest days, I did whatever was in m e to rem ain posi t ive. The energy you em it often tr ansfer s to those who you sur round yoursel f wi th, so why not pass on the posi t ivi ty?

Spor t sNHL Top pl ayer s of 2015 season Johnathan Shipcott '18

NH L?s regular season has off icial ly ended, and the playoffs have off icial ly star ted. There are som e big team s playing, and there are qui te a lot of predict ions for th is years playoffs

There are sixteen of the NH L?s best team s com peting for the biggest pr ize in hockey h istor y. The Stanley Cup!!! Sixteen team s entered the batt le for the cup, and hal f of those team s have been knocked out. But look ing back at the regular season, there have been som e very good new and old players. Alexander Ovechk in (W ashington Capitals) had the m ost goals scored with a total of 53 goals. And the next best goal scorer is John Tavares (New York Islanders) wi th a total of 38 goals. The top two goal ies of the regular season, are Carey Pr ice (M ontreal Canadiens) wi th a total of 44 wins out of 66 gam es, and a GAA (goals against average) of 1.96. The second best goal ie was Braden H ol tby (W ashington Capitals) wi th a total of 41 wins out of 73 gam es, wi th a GAA (goals against average) of 2.22. W hat m akes these players so exqiset, and al lows them to be the top players in the leauge is the fact that they

are always on top of there gam e, contr ibut ing to the wins, and keeping their team s hopes up in loses. They are also the top players, because they never stop pract icing, and i f som ethings goes wrong they look to the br ight side of the problem , and f ix i t .

Now look ing at the playoff 's and the top players in the playoffs. W hat m akes a good player in the playoffs, are the ones who use the whole r ink , to m ove the puck towards the goal . They are the players that are always contr ibut ing, and always contr ibut ing to the wins. The top goal ies in the playoffs are the ones that don 't let in lots of goals, and the ones who m ake spectacular saves. Look ing at stats on the cur rent standings, the top players are Cor rey Per r y, Patr ick Kane, and Tyler Johnson. The Top goal ies are H enr ik Lundqvist and Craig Anderson. And what m akes them the best goal ies are the am ount of shots they block and the types of saves they m ake, and there overal l gam e. So overal l what m akes players good, are there sk i l ls and dedicat ions to the spor t, and their posi t ion, and al l of these players show great talent and sk i l l in there gam es throughout the season.

Top Player : Alexander Ovechk in Top Goal ie: Carey Pr ice

Photo Credits: Google.images.com

Spor t sHow t echnol ogy can impact your f it nessLouis le Roux '18

As we find new ways to workout and exercise, we com e in to contact wi th m any di fferent technologies that can m ake your hard work m ore eff icient, but on the other hand i t can back fi r e. Nowadays, there is probably som e electron ic m achine at your f inger t ips that can be used to workout, and becom e a m ore f i t person. These include tr eadm il ls, assister s for l i f t ing weights, and other in terest ing th ings l ike rowing m achines. I would suggest that we use these technologies to the best of our abi l i t ies. Al though these new technologies you m ight f ind wi l l help i f you use them , there are other distr act ing technologies that can keep you fr om excel l ing. So technology can do al ter your out look on cer tain th ings, especial ly f i tness.

Technology can be used easi ly to work out. W el l known th ings such as tr eadm il ls, el l ipt ical m achines, and other th ings such as rowing m achines. And on the other side of the spectrum there are the th ings that wi l l keep you fr om wanting to go outside or go exercise. Going outside to work out wi l l help you in your personal f i tness. This wi l l lead to you feel ing better about yoursel f and you wi l l feel l ike you have m ore energy and can be m ore focused. I f you get in to watching a m ovie on your TV, or playing a gam e on your laptop, you feel qui te com for table. You can spend hours si t t ing down with your laptop, or playing a gam e on a gam e console of som e sor t, and you can end up doing the sam e work ing out. W hen you do get going, since som e of these electron ic workout m achines can be qui te helpfu l , you

can push yoursel f and get som e good work done.

As m ost of us know, technology runs a lot of our l ives, and m ost th ings nowadays include som e electron ic in tegrat ion. This does increase eff iciency in our l i fe, but m aybe not in the ways we need. Your work can get done quicker. There is m ore accessible en joym ent, but that gets in the way of exercise and ?treat ing our bodies l ike tem ples?. So don?t get stuck on watching a m ovie, or si t around on Facebook for several hours. Instead go out and do som ething, go for a walk , go to the closest gym , jog around your block . I t wi l l not on ly keep you m oving but i t wi l l also help you feel better.

Get t hat summer beach body! Natasha Graves '15

Everyone wants the per fect sum m er beach body to show off to al l your fr iends back hom e or wherever you m ay m igrate to after school ends. H ere are som e fu l l body workouts, along with diet t ips for heal thy eat ing to give your body the per fect glow before sum m er.

2-Pi ece tum m y ton er :

20 si t-ups

50 russian twists

20 leg raises

1 m in plank

50 bicycle crunches

20 reverse crunches w/ yoga bal l

30 sec each side plank

*repeat x4*

20 m in run

Boxi n g bi cep bu r n er :

1 m in shadow boxing

20 bicep cur ls

20 lateral r aises

20 tr icep dips

1 m in shadow boxing

25 air punches with weights

5 m in jum p rope

25 pushups

*repeat x4*

20 m in run

Photo Credi t : Google.com

Spor t sSenior At hl et e Pr of il e

Seniors are the l i feblood of the h igh school spir i t here at ASD. They are in charge of organizing events, becom ing leaders, and dem onstrat ing role-m odel behavior to al l in the grades below. H owever, when academ ics are put on hold, our senior s use their fr ee-t im e to do am azing th ings. H obbies and spor ts that r ange fr om horseback r iding and rock cl im bing, to m ar t ial ar ts and l i f t ing. In th is ar t icle we wi l l in ter view two senior ath letes, David Saba and John H enderson. Together they have over 9 seasons of spor ts that they have par t icipated in , and are st i l l keeping their test-scores h igh.

Fir st off, we have David Saba. H e wi l l be graduating in 2015 and has on ly one season of wrest l ing on h is bel t . So, you m ay ask what m akes h im a senior ath lete? W el l David Saba has gone to the gym for every season since 8th grade, and i t shows. H is r ecord Deadl i f t com es in at 400lbs and he can throw around dum bbel ls as though they were feathers. H e says that going to the gym has m ade him ?swole?, able to ?bounce his pecks?, and great ly r educed his aggression and stress. H e told m e, ?I f you'r e ever m ad, go l i f t?. H owever, going to the gym everyday for hours m ust be eat ing away at hom ework and study t im e. W e asked him how he m anages his t im e between school and tr ain ing and his r esponse was shor t and sim ple, ?I don 't , gym takes pr ior i ty?. I t?s th is sor t of determ inat ion that al lows him to keep on tr ain ing despi te chal lenging classes and a m assive work load. Now, we real ize that th is is David?s last year here at ASD and we asked him what h is favor i te spor t r elated m em ory was. H e said, ?The day that I f inal ly got m ad enough, and angry enough to deadl i f t the 400lbs.? This to h im was a m ajor m i lestone on the road to a str onger body and m ind, and a m em ory he wi l l keep with h im long in to h is adul thood.

On the f l ip-side, we have John H enderson. John personi f ies what i t m eans to be spor ty and has par t icipated in just about everyth ing. H e has fu l ly com pleted 5 seasons of ath let ics over a two year span and in doing so has shaped his character. H e says that having to be on a team and st i l l work hard has taught h im how to be organized and proper ly take advantage of h is t im e. H e says that he always m akes sure to leave Saturday com pletely fr ee so that he can work on anyth ing that he needs to, and get caught up on al l of h is studies. This gives h im enough t im e to f in ish off h is work , whi le use the rest of the week for ath let ics and spor ts. H is favor i te spor t m em ory fr om high school ath let ics was the 2014 Basketbal l f inals. H e said that i t fel t am azing seeing al l of the hard work pay off, and seeing the dream s final ly com e tr ue.

Rebal Adbul H adi '18

"K FC cal l ed , they w an t thei r ch i ck en l egs back , Zu l f i ?

-Dav i d Saba

John Henderson

David Saba

Kian Sohrabi '18NFL Dr af t weekend and NBA MVP RaceSPORTS

It?s crunch t im e in the NBA r ight now, the playoffs are happening and stor yl ines are form ing. W i l l LeBron get another r ing and im prove his argum ent of being the GOAT (Greatest of Al l Tim e)? W il l the H awks show that you don?t need star players to win? Or wi l l Stephen Cur r y and the W ar r ior s cont inue their am azing season and win i t al l? These are the quest ions that wi l l be answered dur ing the NBA Playoffs.

The second round of the playoffs and the M VP race are heating up. Also, Der r ick Rose is back ! W e say i t every year, but hopeful ly th is t im e he?s real ly back . The Rockets pul led off an am azing com eback against the Cl ippers. The Conference Cham pionsips wi l l be between the At lanta H awks & Cleveland Caval ier s, and the H ouston Rockets and Golden State W ar r ior s. Throughout the season, Stephen Cur r y played and won the M VP Award. The 2 m ain candidates were Steph Cur r y and Jam es H arden. Russel l W estbrook was in the conversat ion, but the Thunder were not able to m ake i t to the playoffs and i t becam e a huge knock against h im . Som e people thought LeBron Jam es should be M VP, but he didn?t do anyth ing out of the ordinary to win i t . This left Stephen Cur r y and Jam es H arden. Jam es H arden?s team , the H ouston Rockets, had qui te a few in jur ies dur ing the season, yet Jam es H arden was st i l l able to win them gam es and help them advance in the playoffs. Also, he averaged a h igh am ount of poin ts per gam e. Stephen Cur r y?s W ar r ior s coasted to the #1 seed in the power fu l W estern Conference and Steph Cur r y dom inated the stat sheet. H e was in the top 6 for poin ts per gam e, steals per gam e and assists per gam e.

In the NFL, i t?s cur rent ly the m ost im por tant (and for som e, bor ing) t im e of year, the offseason. This is where team s can m ake or break their season. A huge sign ing or a great draft pick could be what propels a team to a Super Bowl victor y. The f i r st r ound of the NFL Draft happened on Apr i l 30th and there was an ent icing class of players. There was a great var iety of players throughout al l posi t ion groups. M any bel ieved that Leonard W il l iam s was the best player in the the draft . H e's a DT that has el i te length, str ength, and ath let icism (and he can play 3-4 DE). The draft 's m ost in tr iguing player is Jam eis W inston. A pro-ready quar terback that needs to im prove his decision m ak ing, both on and off the f ield. H e threw 18 INTs to a m ere 25 TDs and he has a lengthy cr im inal r ecord. M ost fam ously, he's had shopl i f t ing incidents (involving crab legs and soda).

As m any people expected, Jam eis W inston was selected by the Tam pa Bay Buccaneers with the f i r st pick of the draft . Afterwards, the Ti tans selected Oregon?s dual-threat QB, M arcus M ar iota. The Jacksonvi l le Jaguars took a prem ier pass rusher in Dante Fowler Jr. (who unfor tunately tore h is ACL less than an hour in to h is f i r st pract ice, he's now out for the season) and the Oak land Raiders got second-year quar terback , Derek Car r, a legi t im ate target in Am ar i Cooper. The draft?s top player fel l to the f i f th pick where people bel ieved that the Redsk ins would take h im or tr ade the pick . Neither happened as the Redsk ins drafted Brandon Scher ff. The Redsk ins f i l led a huge need on the offensive l ine, but m ight r egret passing up on such a h ighly r egarded player. Only t im e wi l l tel l i f they m ade the cor rect choice.

W i l l iam s? wait cam e to an end at the 6th pick after the New York Jets selected h im . This gives the Jets 3 versat i le, power fu l defensive l inem en. In addi t ion to the defensive l ine, the secondary looks str ong with Dar rel le Revis, Anton io Crom ar t ie and 2014 f i r st r ound pick , Calvin Pryor. W ith so m any great players, th is defense looks to be one of the best in the league. This draft had m any steals throughout, the Dal las Cowboys snagged 3 f i r st r ound talents in Byron Jones (1st Round), Randy Gregory (2nd Round), La'el Col l ins (UDFA). The Cowboys show a lack of r egard for players' legal tr oubles in an attem pt f i l l their team with talent. One of the m ore under rated players in the draft was Tyler Lockette, whom was drafted by the Seatt le Seahawks, was a great value pick by the Seahawks. H e could becom e a legi t im ate slot weapon and a great com pl im ent to big Jim m y Graham . H is scouting repor t is sim i lar to another Seahawks player, Russel l W i lson. Com ing out of col lege, the on ly knock against them was their size. I t hasn 't been a problem for Russel l W i lson, who has led the Seahawks to 2 NFC Cham pionships and a Super Bowl Cham pionship.

Photo Credit: Google.com and NFL.com

(Left to Right) Marcus Mariota, Leonard Williams, Jameis Winston, Todd Gurley

(Left to right) Stephen Curry, James Harden, Russell Westbrook

Leonard Williams

Cur r ent Event sThr owing it out The Ivor y Tower : How Russel l Br and Pr oved Pol it ics is Ever yone's Game H aya Anis ,'17

W hether he m akes your blood boi l wi th sheer fr ustrat ion or wi th the spir i t r evolut ion, Russel l Brand has cer tain ly m ade ser ious headl ines th is year. In late M arch of 2015, the com edian turned act ivist earned the nod of approval fr om one of Br i tain?s m ost in f luent ial cur rent affair s m agazines, Prospect M agazine, whose readers have voted h im four th in their annual table of the wor ld?s top th inkers. Prospect M agazine?s table th is year places Brand am ong figures such as leading econom ist and bestsel l ing author of Capital , Thom as Piketty, who tops the table, as wel l as Greek f inance m in ister Yanis Varoufak is, who com es second. The Canadian econom ist and environm ental act ivist Naom i Klein cam e in th ir d. Brand?s nom inat ion for th is prest igious pol l is a testam ent to h is success in the pol i t ical sphere, despi te h is non-pol i t ical background.

As an actor and com edian, Brand?s im m ersion in to pol i t ics is qui te unexpected. Robin M cGee, one of Brand?s m any detractor s, cr i t icizes Brand for not being a ?ser ious pol i t ical th inker.? According to M cGee, Brand?s col loquial language and hum or do not sui t the ser ious nature of pol i t ics. But Brand?s wit ty del iver y and usage of com m on language is what al lows him to engage a wider audience in issues the general publ ic usual ly ignore. As the Canadian pol i t ical phi losopher W il l Kym l ikca wrote, ?dem ocrat ic pol i t ics is the pol i t ics of the vernacular.? M cGee?s cr i t ique of Brand?s language is r eflect ive of the reasons pol i t ics are often considered i r r elevant to the youth today. The language used by the pol i t ical in tel l igentsia is exclusive and hard to understand. Brand?s use of sim pler and understandable language is opening pol i t ics to the m ainstream , a step necessary

in curat ing an educated and in form ed society.

Russel l Brand?s appearance in th is l ist is the culm inat ion of al l h is work concern ing pol i t ical and social issues. In 2014, Brand publ ished his book ,

?Revolution,? a pol i t ical m anifesto in which he advocates a social r evolut ion wherein , "corporate tyranny, ecological i r r esponsibi l i ty and econom ic inequal i ty" com e to an end. H e proposes the eradicat ion of the "nat ion state", the dem ise of m ul t inat ional corporat ions and the in ject ion of spir i tual thought in to the str ucture of society. In late Decem ber of 2014, Brand cam paigned against the evict ion of fam i l ies fr om their hom es at the New Era estate in East London. H e did so

successful ly, earn ing a pol i t ical success for society?s invisible souls. Brand is cur rent ly work ing on h is shor t f i lm , ?The Em peror?s New Clothes,? a f i lm about the growing dispar i ty between econom ic classes, dir ected by M ichael W interbottom , and star r ing Brand him sel f. H is other projects include ?The Trews,? a Youtube show on which Brand analyzes news and provides h is own, often in terest ing, insights.

In a wor ld where vot ing rates am ong young adul ts are rapidly fal l ing (dur ing the Am er ican president ial elect ions, vot ing rates am ong young adul ts fel l to 38.0 percent in 2012 fr om 44.3 percent in 2008), i t?s evident pol i t ics are of no in terest to the average person today. By br inging pol i t ics in to the m ainstream and m ak ing conspicuous effor ts to change the status quo, Brand is tr u ly changing the pol i t ical landscape. H e?s using h is celebr i ty to draw attent ion to the stor ies the m edia often ignores. I f anyth ing, h is effor ts should be encouraged rather than condem ned.

Photo Credi t : Google

Cur r ent Event sTo Live or To Die?Sophia Donnel ly, ' 16

On M ay 16th, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was sentenced to death. This al l began two years ago, on Apr i l 15, 2013, when Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's bom bs detonated at the f in ish l ine of the annual Boston M arathon, scorching f lesh, sever ing l im b, and k i l l ing 3 innocent people. The juror s have just r eached the verdict that the 21-year -old Boston M arathon bom ber should receive the death penal ty for the cr im es he has com m itted.

The vict im s who were in jured in the bom bings test i f ied dur ing the penal ty phase of the tr ial as prosecutors tr ied to show the physical and em otional im pacts the attack m ade on the vict im s, and their fam i l ies.

W il l iam Cam pbel l , father of Kryst le Cam pbel l , a 29 year old wom an who died in the bom bings, said, "Kryst le was the l ight of m y l i fe. She was extrem ely sm ar t, hardwork ing, beauti fu l , every father 's dream . I m iss her a lot." (CNN)

Celeste Corcoran, another vict im who lost both legs, also test i f ied with her em otional r ecol lect ion of the blast. She said, "I t hur t too m uch. I just didn 't care. I r em em ber th ink ing I was going to die, that no one could go through that m uch pain.? (CNN)

W hi le a large m ajor i ty are in favor of the death

sentence, som e fought against i t including Bi l l and Denise Richard, the parents of eight-year -old M ar t in who was k i l led in the bom bings. They say, ?W e know that the governm ent has i ts r easons for seek ing the death penal ty, but the cont inued pursui t of that punishm ent could br ing years of appeals and prolong rel iving the m ost pain fu l day of our l ives." (CNN)

As for now, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev faces an appeals process that wi l l l ik ley last a decade. H e is now the youngest person on deaths row in the United States of Am er ica.

The United Kingdom , one of the m ost r elevant, and econom ical ly str ong countr ies in the wor ld, is going through a pivotal elect ion process. The par l iam entary general elect ions, an elect ion that decides the sequence and scope of the new Par l iam ent, is essential in fom enting the cont inuat ion of the dem ocrat ic par l iam entary tr adi t ion that the UK so pr ides i tsel f on. The chal lengers, David Cam eron, the leader of the conservat ive par ty, is squar ing off wi th Ed M i l iband, the leader of the labor par ty, wi th var ious chal lengers such as Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage rounding off the elect ion. This elect ion, predicated on the changing econom ic and social cl im ate that the UK finds i tsel f in , prom ises to be tr ansform ative.

W ith the elect ions scheduled to be held on the 7th of M ay, each pol i t ical par ty has scram bled to produce a viable cam paign. The Labour Par ty is cam paign ing on a prom ise to m ake Great Br i tain m ore equi table, cutt ing back on som e of the excesses resul t ing fr om the econom ic

recovery after the GFC. The Conservat ive Par ty is cam paign ing on m aintain ing a str ong econom ic recovery, and a general per iod of prosper i ty that the Conservat ive

Par ty m anaged after the GFC. M any of the other par t ies, nat ional ist par t ies in Scot land, W ales, and Nor thern Ir eland, are cam paign ing for greater autonom y with in their hom e nat ions. Others, such as the controversial UKIP par ty, are tapping a r ich vein of nat ional ist sent im ent.

Opin ions are polar ized in Great Br i tain over the com posit ion of the

new Par l iam ent. W ith the econom y in r ude heal th, the Conservat ive Par ty seem s to have a reasonable base to cont inue m ajor i ty r u le over Great Br i tain . H owever, that econom ic growth has com e with a degree of inequi ty, and r ising pr ices. M any social and pol i t ical quest ions have not been answered by the cur rent governm ent, quest ions that National ist , and m ore left ist par t ies m ight have com pel l ing answers for. Al l in al l , th is prom ises to be a power fu l elect ion, one that should define a countr y that defines m any th ings.

A VINDICATION of t he stat us quo: THE ELECTION

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

M ani Seeber '15

The Yemeni Conf l ict : Sectar ian Tensions Boil Over

The Yem en that was form ed in 1990 was never a peaceful nat ion, nor was i t ever un i ted. I t i ts shor t 25 year h istor y, i t has had several arm ed revolut ions and has been Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's hom e for the past decade. The confl ict that boi led over in m id-February of th is year is is the resul t of the H outhi m i l i tar y coup that was successful and had taken over the central governm ent. The H outhis are a Shia group who represent 40 percent of the countr y's populat ion. H owever, due to their close t ies to I r an and disl ike of Saudi Arabia; the gul f states m ade the decision to invade Yem en with the suppor t of the president that was disposed by the H outhis, M ansur H adi. Yem en had al r eady been the poorest, and least developed Arab nat ion; th is confl ict can on ly do m ore dam age to a countr y that has been in com plete turm oi l since 2004. So how did Yem en get in to the cur rent state i t is in?

The confl ict t r u ly star ted in 2004 when The H outhis lead an arm ed rebel l ion against the central governm ent. The H outhis are m em bers of a r ebel group, who adhere to a branch of Shia Islam known as Zaydis. Zaidis m ake up 40 percent of the populat ion and ru led Nor th Yem en under a system known as the Im am ate for alm ost 1,000 years unt i l 1962. Ever since the un i f icat ion of Nor th and South Yem en; th is group had been oppressed and exi led out of power. The in i t ial r ebel l ion in 2004 was star ted by H ussein Badr al -Din al -H outhi . H e rebel led in an effor t to win greater autonom y for their hear t land of Saada province, and also to protect Zaidi r el igious and cul tural tr adi t ions fr om perceived encroachm ent by Sunni Islam ists. After H outhi was k i l led by the Yem eni m i l i tar y

in late 2004, h is fam i ly took charge and led another f ive rebel l ions before a ceasefi r e was signed with the governm ent in 2010.

H owever tensions boi led over again as protests against M ansur H adi broke out. The H outhis saw th is as an oppor tun i ty and used these protests to gain m ore suppor t and land in Yem en. Thousands of H outhi f ighter s fr om nor thern Yem en seized control of the countr y's capi tal , Sanaa. The governm ent was weak , i ts arm y fr actured, and the rebels they took the ci ty in on ly four days. The gul f states, seeing that another Shia, and Ir an backed governm ent has com e to power, were in fear of I r an star t ing to creep up on their borders. M id-February a Saudi-led coal i t ion announced "Storm of Determ inat ion" which was the nam e of the invasion of Yem en through air, and possibly one the ground once the H outhis' gr ip on the countr y is weakened. This br ings us to where we are now. Yem en is in a state of Instabi l i ty, large-scale displacem ent, weak governance, cor rupt ion, r esource deplet ion and poor in fr astructure. This has on ly been worsened by an Invasion by neighbor ing states that are in fear of the confl ict spi l l ing out unto their own borders. H owever, the invading states have had no real success in their object ive of pushing the H outhis back to the nor thwest of the countr y, and loosening their gr ip one the nat ion 's capi tal , Sana'a. The H outhis are holding str ong, and i t seem s l ike th is confl ict wi l l be in deadlock as long as each side is not back ing down. W hat is saddening is that al l th is f ight ing is hur t ing no one other than the Yem eni people, and separat ing them far ther than they ever were.

Cur r ent Event sH ashim Shubbar, '18

Photo Credi t : Google

Pro Government soldier holding up his gun at a protest Houthi Rebels moving towards the Frontline in Aden

Cur r ent Event sA mass Gr ave : The Secr et Pl ight of Immigr ant s

A m ass grave is being created in the m iddle of the M editer ranean Sea. This weekend, three boats sent out distr ess cal ls to the I tal ian coast str uggl ing to tr anspor t the hundreds of im m igrants ar r iving fr om Libya. Over the years, there?s been an abundance in im m igrant ships that haven?t been able to safely m ake i t to their dest inat ion, m ost of them being m ost of them being ships star t ing fr om the Nor thern Afr ican coasts and heading towards the South of Europe. This year alone i t is bel ieved that 900 im m igrants have died just tr ying to m ake the tr ip to safer shores. The EU does not have any pol icies for these ships or the si tuat ion in general m eaning that there are no safety procedures set in stone for the wel fare of these people m ak ing the journey. W ho?s to blam e? Does the EU have a m oral obl igat ion to help these countr ies in need? H owever the m ore the deaths increase, the m ore the EU is being pressured to f ind a solut ion. Talks wi l l be held in I taly between the Pr im e M in ister of M al ta and I tal ian Author i t ies to see what steps need to be taken to stop th is death surge.

The im m igrants who do successful ly m ake the voyage, ar r ive in I taly in hopes of f inding jobs. They are left disi l lusioned though because of the f inancial cr isis happening in the region, m ak ing i t hard enough for the people of the countr y i tsel f to f ind jobs, let alone for these newcom ers. These im m igrants are then placed in cam ps in Sici ly or go as far as Germ any to f ind fam i ly. The m ayor of Sici ly, Enzo Bianco, states that the avai lable room in Sici ly for these new com ing im m igrants, is decreasing rapidly and that

i f som ething is not done, these accidents are going to happen m ore and m ore often.

I f three accidents are capable of happening in one week alone, what would an increase of them look l ike? The problem needs to be solved in Libya to begin with, as m ost of the boats leaving fr om there are pressured not to because of the safety of the voyage and condit ions of the boats. W ith the ongoing confl ict happening in Libya and the instabi l i ty of their governm ent the problem s happening in the M editer ranean haven?t m ade the l ist yet. One of the survivors fr om th is r ecent accident stated that people were being locked in the bottom room s of the boat and asked not to m ove to keep the boat steady; the boat contained 950 people. According the M al tese Pr im e M in ister, Joseph M uscat, ?gangs of cr im inals are putt ing people on a boat, som etim es even at gunpoint.? In r esponse to th is, I tal ian Pol ice states that several ar rests have been m ade on the shores of Sici ly of suspected operator s of hum an tr aff ick ing.

The EU is being pressured to help stop the deaths of im m igrants in the M editer ranean but unfor tunately on ly so l i t t le can be accom pl ished in Europe. A lot of the problem solving is also going to have to com e fr om the al r eady tr oubled countr ies in Nor th Afr ica such as Libya. I f som ething is not done to help these im m igrants then the m ass grave in the M editer ranean wi l l just keep increasing unt i l the voyage is noth ing m ore than a road to death.

M ar t ina El ia '15

Photo Credi t : Google

FoodIndia is hom e to som e of the best food, and everyone knows th is. That?s why the cuisine has m ade i t to pract ical ly every countr y, and i ts big dishes are wel l known throughout al l nat ional i t ies. I wouldn?t blam e you i f you went to India just for the food. But when i t com es to eat ing in the crowded, poor ly r egulated countr y i tsel f, issues ar ise. Tour ists and locals al ike rem ain caut ious and wary of eat ing in India, and where they eat, understandably, but in som e cases perhaps too caut iously. Tour ists and other in ternat ionals do not need to be so afraid, just a cer tain level of knowledge and awareness, though, is defin i tely im por tant.

1. Street food is an essential exper ience, i t?s del icious, i t?s fast, and i t?s com pletely di fferent to r estaurant food. I t?s easy to be fr eaked out by str eet food that doesn?t look sani tar y, but i t?s al l about f inding the r ight spots. Look ing for crowded street food areas is a good indicat ion, but locals can help tel l you what?s what too (so long as you can tr ust who you?re talk ing to).

2. The general idea of tr ust ing others? incl inat ion is very im por tant in India, when you?re in a restaurant don?t be afraid to ask for the m ost popular dishes, as you wi l l know that they are probably the safest eat consider ing they are m ade for so m any people al l the t im e. Popular r estaurants are also general ly safe to eat in (as wel l as the fact that they probably have the best food).

3. Ask for disposable plates. W hen i t com es to str eet food, utensi ls are defin i tely som ething you want to be careful of, 99% of str eet vendors wi l l have disposable plates/ for ks/ kn ives to eat wi th, but do not keep them in obvious view as i t is cheaper to serve food in m etal plates. I f you ask for disposable plates, chances are they wi l l have them , and they wi l l never have been used before.

4. Order ing very hot food is a good indicat ion that every has been cooked wel l , and wi l l decrease your chances of eat ing any harm ful bacter ia (the hotter the better !)

5. The f inal t ip I wi l l leave you with is order ing water. I t is tr ue m any people are given unsanitar y water, such as fr om the tap, but there is a way to ensure you are given sani tar y water. W hen order ing, speci fy you want Reverse Osm osis water, as th is is probably your safest bet. Reverse Osm osis is a type of sani tar y dr ink ing water and is offered alm ost everywhere in India.

As India grows and m odern ises, so are i ts r egulat ions on heal th and safety. Com panies such as Coca Cola with a big fr anchise nam e enter India and dom inate as a tr usted com pany. This invaluable tr ust draws a larger crowd of custom ers, and as a resul t r aises the bar on sani tat ion and heal th safety in India. Today, the standards are m uch higher than before, and th is wi l l on ly keep increasing. I f you?re f lying al l the way to India, don?t m iss the oppor tun i ty to fu l ly exper ience the cul ture, and indulge in the del icious food!

Don't be af r aid of Del hi bel ly by Anah M al ik '15

FoodLiving overseas is tough, and som etim es al l you want to do is go hom e grab that bag of non-crunched up

Funyuns or throw a hot pocket in the m icrowave and binge watch a season of Gam e of Thrones. Yet there's on ly one problem , i ts unheard of to f ind a per fect ly preserved bag of chips in Dubai and hot pockets can?t seem to m ake the tr ip over. So you cr y as you eat a bag of BBQ Fr i tos whi le dr ink ing a Pocar i Sweat th ink ing about how far away sum m er is. Thank ful ly for ASD students sum m er is r ight around the corner and the food we?ve al l been craving th is school year wi l l f inal ly be with in our grasps, and with the taste on our tongues I asked the quest ion to a few m em bers of ASD ?what food have you been m issing??

The Food We've Missed

Griff in Kennedy'15

Chipot le steak bur r i to's

?W hat m akes the steak bur r i to so am azing??

?Because you can put anyth ing in that bur r i to and i t wi l l always taste of per fect ion.? said Gr i ff in , whi lst a tear of longing ran down his cheek .

M athew Dum olt and Aust in Pervis'15

Chick -f i l -a

"W hy Chick -f i l -a? "

?Because i ts del icious? said M att wi th a nod, on ly to be cor rected by Aust in ?Because i ts scrum didlyum ptious.?

Zachary M asr i '17

Buffalo W ild W ings

?W hy do you m iss Buffalo W ild W ings??

?Endless wings on Thursday n ight. I always get honey barbecue and hold a cur rent r ecord of 35 but m y brothers is 50...?

M s. Apost le - Engl ish Teacher

Orange Door

"W hat is i t about the Pho at Orange Door that m akes i t so special?"

?It has the best, m ost f lavor fu l broth. I 'l l defin i tely m ake m ul t iple stops there th is sum m er to get m y f i l l of th is del icious soup!?

By John H endeson '15

Foodguil t y univer sit y pl easur es: Teacher Edit ion by John H enderson '15

Universi ty is (probably) the f i r st t im e you'r e on your own, and the wor ld is your oyster. You can f inal ly decide what you want to eat (m aybe tak ing in to about what you sor t of need to eat), and indulge. Before Senior s are off, and faced with th is, the teachers at ASD wanted to drop som e of their un iversi ty survival foods (ei ther as recom m endations or foods to avoid at al l costs). In their own words, here are som e gui l ty pleasures. Read with caut ion.

M r . Bl esk e - M ac and cheese dressed up. Easy and cheap. 10 m inutes to m ake.2 boxes of m ac & cheese (gener ic was f ine 50 cents a box). M ade to dir ect ions, wi th butter and m i lk . Sautee an on ion in butter, add gar l ic, add ground beef. M ix with m ac and cheese. Feeds, l ike 6 people. Keeps wel l . Good for break fast, lunch, dinner. For extra f lavor, add sour cream , m ore cheese, even veggies.

M r . Shubai r 1) A pizza place at Indiana Universi ty cal led "M ad M ushroom ". They had th is cheesy bread that we would devour at al l t im es!!! 2) A bur r i to place cal led "La Bam ba's". They adver t ised "bur r i tos as big as your head" and they were hum ongous!!!

The food was so cheap and I thought i t was del icious, which is why i t was survival food. The restaurants were also open t i l l , l ike 2-3am , so you could order at al l t im es, which was awesom e for a un iversi ty student staying up way too late. In r etr ospect, i t was probably pretty disgust ing even i f I thought i t was del icious, but late n ight orders of cheesy bread and tr ips to La Bam ba's for a m assive bur r i to defin i tely br ing back a lot of fond m em or ies of un iversi ty and fr iends.

M r . Con fer - Ram en noodle soup. I used to buy i t in 24-packs along with a knock -off Dr. Pepper cal led Dr. Thunder. M y hear t and k idneys are forever dam aged.

M r . Nel son - Taco Bel l and Coffee - i t was cheap, good, and per fect for late n ights!

M r s. Nel son - chocolate covered espresso beans... I used to eat them dur ing tests.

M r s. Ru i z - One of the m ost disgust ingly del icious habi ts that I learned in col lege was eat ing deep dish pizza dipped in r anch dressing, and other del icacies such as French fr ies dipped in W endy's Frost ies or super sized value m eals with a Diet Coke.

ASD AKHBARISSUE 7, ''14- '15

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edi tor s...m an i seeber , ed i tor -i n -ch i ef :

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Summer Issue 2015