Word search puzzles are part of my childhood. I found them everywhere: inside magazines in the doctor’s waiting room, on the backs of kids’ menus, and even class worksheets. But despite the initial thrill of a word treasure hunt, these brain teasers can quickly get old and repetitive. The New York Times reignited my interest…

(CA Flickr) When you go to the administration building, the walls are anything but blank. The once plain, cream-colored walls hold vibrant artworks and stunning photographs. Every piece tells a story, whether produced by an Explorer or an upper school student. Head of School, Mrs. Soderberg, chooses artworks from the school’s divisions to decorate her…

(Abbey Z./Staff) As its image embodies, a dragon, the fifth of 12 zodiacs in the Lunar New Year cycle, represents charisma, power, ambition, and confidence. Families and communities around the world welcomed the Year of the Dragon on Saturday, February 10. Lunar New Year is also called the Spring Festival because it occurs on the…

(Audrey L./Staff)   Music swelled in the air in the Schoedinger Theater on Thursday, Feb. 8, as the Jazz Band performed their second concert of the year from 7:30 to 8:00 p.m.  The band’s twenty-seven members have been preparing a five-song program for the regional Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival held…

(Wikimedia) by Bittania T. The hum of a java pot filled my ears while the door jingled as new customers entered this serene Roaming Goat cafe. Buried in their computers and books, college students with headphones on zoned into their studies. Decorative leaves draped from the ceiling to the shelves gives this coffee shop a…

Misty Copeland and Edwaard Liang at MCA (Milana B./Staff) Copeland (Wikimedia Commons) On Tuesday, February 6, I arrived at the Jeanne B. McCoy Center for the Arts. Hosted by the New Albany Community Foundation, accomplished history makers share their experiences in New Albany’s Lecture Series. Edwaard Liang, BalletMet’s artistic director, welcomed Misty Copeland as the…

(Flickr) by Eesha T. Premiering four days before Christmas, Dunki, which means “donkey flight,” features the renowned Shah Rukh Khan as a Punjabi immigrant. Along with three friends, he illegally enters London after failing to secure student visas at home, engaging in a method of migration involving individuals entering a foreign country through a series…

(Pixabay) The cult classic Mean Girls has had many iterations, from parodies to books and even a Broadway musical; reimagining the movie is no surprise to the public. The most recent Mean Girls replication, a musical film released earlier this month, might be the worst.  The original Mean Girls movie, released in 2004, follows the formerly home-schooled Caty Heron as she…

Wikimedia) Capping off 2023 by streaming “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” I viewed forty-four of her hits in a three-hour documentary that offered first-timers and returning fans the perfect holiday opportunity to enjoy this concert experience.  This blockbuster earned $123.5 million in its October debut and then $261.6 million globally in 2024, surpassing “Michael Jackson’s…

(Courtesy/ Ms. Sneeringer) Under the direction of Ms. Sneeringer, fifteen upper school band members and Ms. Barger-Amato from the Development Office traveled to North Broadway United Methodist Church on Thursday, December 14, to play an hour’s worth of holiday music for the elderly. Players were Adam A. (trombone), Ridah A. (french horn), Graham A. (trumpet),…