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OPINION

I want, I wish, I hope: A week- long feature

December 19, 2011

We at the Prospector wish all of our readers happy holidays and share our respective wants, wishes and hopes for the upcoming holidays and new year. Each day the members of a different Prospector section will share their holiday spirit. Monday will be News and Online, Tuesday will be Opinion and Features, Wednesday will bring In- Depth, Thursday is Entertainment and Sports and the rest of the staff will be posted on Friday. These entries will be tacked on to the end of the previous day’s posts.
*All opinions expressed in these wish lists are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Prospector.
Maggie Devereux, Online Managing Editor
I want the Urban Decay Naked palette, my ears double pierced and a grey scarf. Make-up, jewelry and accessories: typical teenage girl list, let’s be honest.
I wish I didn’t have to take Physics the rest of junior year. Sorry Mr. B (Bellof) , but I just don’t get it and I have a hard time believing I’m going to be asked what type of reflection a mirror has, or how fast a ball falls from the sky in the future. Joe Physics is on his own.

I hope that people that cannot spend the holidays with their families or don’t have loved ones to spend them with find a way to still enjoy the holiday season. Everyone deserves to be happy on Christmas.

Miranda Holloway, Executive Online Editor
I want “Psych” on DVD. I could watch this show all day and I plan on doing just that for at least one day during winter break. That is if I get a season of it on DVD this Christmas. So Santa, if you just so happen to be reading this, I have been absolutely perfect all year and I want every season. All of them.
I wish someone would do something about the smell in Craig Bianchi’s room. I have eighth period AP US History in that room and I basically gag every time I walk to my seat in the back corner. Once I pass the door frame I am hit with a wall of B.O. and stale air. It smells like the freshman football team had an all day practice in 90 degree heat and then hung out in there for a few hours. Gross.
I hope that people consider doing volunteer work more than just once or twice in the coming year. They should do this out of the goodness of their hearts, not for the length of their college applications. There are so many opportunities out in the community to get involved and that doesn’t mean you need to go clean up at the animal shelter or collect food for the hungry. If you look hard enough there is probably something that suites your interests as well as helps the world around you.

Tess Bauer, Online Editor

I want to spend all summer in Europe. I’ll go to cute little cafés and see Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower and more. While all my friends are stuck at the Wave Pool, I will be in Rome dipping my hand in the Fontana di Trevi.
I wish that schools would realize how annoying and boring homework is. There aren’t many things I truly dislike, but homework is definitely one of them.
I hope that every girl and boy around the world has one of their wishes come true on Christmas, no matter how big or small.
Heather Dove, Online Editor
I want new gangster shoes! I am so pale, and my foundation is lighter than my fair skinned, red headed mother’s. What’s funnier than a white, short girl wearing gangster shoes? Well a lot. The point is though, they make me feel like the coolest kid on the planet. Paired with aviators, nothing can touch you. My old pair of gangster shoes are falling apart though, and I need to keep my style sleek. Ya digg?
I wish that people were more understanding of one another. I’ve realized that I tend to be very cynical about the people I don’t personally know. Sometimes I get this vibe in my head that the girl who was just bumped into me without saying sorry just thinks that everyone should jump out of her way and kiss the ground that she walks on. Except, the other day when I was in a panicked frenzy, adrenaline pumping, I accidentally bulldozed another girl down in the hallway. I said sorry, and I normally don’t trample people like an enraged elephant, but I was beginning to see how much of a fault I’m at. You don’t have to shout it to the world, but maybe just admit to yourself that sometimes you put yourself first a little too much. Once you do that, you can recognize what the people around you are going through. And maybe.. then you can… defer to what I hope for.
I hope that, once each day, I can make someone smile. Maybe not even just smiling-making someone’s day better is the real goal. We seem to forget how much impact one single person can have on our lives. I can still remember the day a random guy handed me a calculator that said “Happy Valentines day (: !”. Random kindness is something I strive for. Give it a try.
Meghan Doyle, Executive News Editor

I want to walk down the stairs on Christmas morning and see a big box. I want to walk slowly over to the big box with the shiny paper decorated with snowmen and unwrap it. And when I unwrap it, that big box with the shiny green wrapping paper, I want a life-size Orlando Bloom to walk right into my living room and take me to dinner.

I wish my never-ending pile of homework would find a way to deplete itself — without my help.

I hope my family is able to enjoy this holiday season, despite recent heartbreaking losses. Christmastime is for being together and reminiscing on the old days, while celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. In this regard, I hope my family can look back fondly on the times when we were all together, yet not forget the true meaning of Christmas.

Jenny Johnson, News Editor

I want the Wipeout video game for Xbox 360 Kinect. I am already in love with the show on ABC, “Wipeout”. If you have yet to watch it, Wipeout is a show about crazy people trying to complete a not-so-normal course. Well, I have always dreamed about playing on the course and trying it out, but they seem to only pick people that are nuts. So instead I’ll just play it in my room.

I wish it would snow already! I mean come on, we are in Chicago and it’s in the middle of December. I don’t want to wait until January where the snowballs are now iceballs and the fun game turns into a bloody war. It is also depressing to go around my house singing I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas. If it does not snow by Christmas Eve, I am moving to Colorado where I can not only dream of a white Christmas, but have one!

I hope my youth group raises enough money for our mission trip in North Dakota. We are about half way there and I am so excited. Since North Dakota is farther out, it will cost more money to get out there. I believe that since we are ready to serve people in need by helping with whatever they need, we will be able to achieve our goal.

Nabi Dressler, News Editor
I want a keytar for Christmas. I mean, it’s my two favorite instruments rolled into one, and it’d be pretty b.a. to rock one of these beauties at a jam session. If only I had $1,300 lying around…
I wish someone would start a new trend for winter attire. It’s pretty tiring having to go to school everyday surrounded by herds of students with no originality. This North Face+PINK sweatshirts+Uggs+sweatpants obsession needs to stop.
I hope the weather holds out for Christmas this year. Don’t get me wrong, I love snow too, but it causes so many accidents and fatalities. With families traveling by car this year as usual, hopefully the weather won’t cause them too many problems.
Kiley Walsh, Opinion Editor

I want a big, fluffy, but sweet, polar bear. I have always loved polar bears and have been wanting one for my whole life. Even though my mom says they aren’t very nice, I would name him Poley and play with him every day.I wish I had a life time supply of clementines. These delectable little cuties are so irresistible that you really can never have enough.I hope all my loved ones that have passed away are having a wonderful holiday season up in heaven. I hope they are watching over me and hear all my prayers. I love them very much and hope they are enjoying the season just as much as I am.I also hope everyone enjoys the holidays, but for the right reasons. Gifts and food are great, and I enjoy them too, but being with family and celebrating the birth of Christ are the real reasons for Christmas.

Jane Berry, Associate Editor- in- Chief
I want to go to Africa and meet Simba.

I wish Michelle Bachmann would become president so she can finally prove to me that the swine flu outbreaks that happened under democratic presidencies are not just coincidences, that she could solve the unemployment crisis by taking away minimum wage and, most importantly, I would like her to prove whether congress is pro-America or anti-America. (And, yes, please read America as “Ah-mer-i-ka”.)

I hope my grandpa gets better so we can see one more Broadway show together, I can fall asleep on the couch watching one more PGA golf tournament with him and we can spend one more afternoon in the restaurant with all the toys on the ceiling making up fairy tales.

Anna Boratyn, Features Editor
I want a Gryffindor scarf. Badly. I know the movie and book series are both over, but my obsession with all things Harry Potter never will be. I also wouldn’t say “no” to a time turner, a rememberall, or an invisibility cloak. Or, you know, a semester at Hogwarts. That would be cool too.

I wish the week before winter break didn’t have to be so hectic. I’ve got one thing to say to all the teachers of Prospect: calendars. They’re there to help you space things out. Who says we need to take the last test during the last week? We could take some final tests the week before last and take naps and watch movies for the last week. It’s a win-win: More teachers will have less things to grade over the break, and students won’t drool on their desks from sheer exhaustion.

I hope people will just start being nice to each other. I don’t care if we’re stressed. Learn from the lolcats, friends. Not like this. Like this.

Katie Best, Executive In- Depth Editor
I want to marry Matthew Gray Gubler (A.K.A Dr. Spencer Reid on “Criminal Minds”). You think I’m joking, partially because almost everyone knows I’m against the institution of marriage and partially because he is 14 years old than me, but I’m serious. The Gubes is intelligent, witty, hilarious, geeky AND a director/actor/artist/superstitious-freak all wrapped in to one adorable hipster package. Age is but a number people! (Unless, of course, you’re a pedophile or a cougar, then it just isn’t cool).
I wish It was socially acceptable to wear ugly holiday/ Bill Cosby sweaters and watch “A Christmas Story” all year around. Holiday sweater day was the one day a year I can wear my most prized ugly sweater in public and not have people give me this face: yikes.“A Christmas Story” was one of the movies that defined my childhood, and for about five years, I secretly wanted my own bunny suit. Plus, nothing is better than hearing the iconic line of “You’ll shoot your eye out kid!” during the 24 hours of “A Christmas Story” on Christmas day. It may be the highlight of my Christmas.
I hope this Christmas people learn to enjoy the time they get to spend with their family. In the words of “Lilo and Stitch:” “Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten.” People should be thankful for their family, cherish their family, and love their family. I know I take my crazy, neurotic, weird, random — yet, lovable — family for granted sometimes but I wouldn’t trade them for anyone in the world (except maybe The Gubes (see I want)
Maddy Moloney, In- Depth Editor
I want the iphone 5… oh wait that hasn’t come out yet? Oh, then I just want which ever one is out, plus chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate.
I wish my sister would stop blasting the itunes top ten songs on full volume throughout our house. I can only listen to “I’m sexy and I know it” so many more times before I stop being sexy and start being violent.
I hope that my math teacher comes back healthy so that she can raise my grade back to where it was before she left a month ago, in order for me to avoid summer school…
Tallyn Owens, Executive Entertainment Editor
I want my mom to finally cave and buy our dog a Christmas sweater. She’s got a Facebook page , for crying out loud. She obviously needs a more sophisticated wardrobe.
I wish my new laptop would wise up and successfully transfer all my music over from my old computer. Having nothing to listen to is not a thing that I want to deal with over winter break.
I hope that after I have sifted through the endless sea of cookies and fatty foods that come with the holidays, that I can find some halfway decent produce that I may or may not get in the habit of regularly eating.
Kyle Brown, Entertainment Editor
I want it to snow. A lot. Because that’s the only way I can go skiing, sledding and ice skating, and to be honest, those are the only things I really want to be doing. But I suppose a lack of snow allows me to carry out my plan to go on daily jogs with my best friend, so there’s that. But still, I was really hoping to make some ca$h off of shoveling driveways this year, but I’m not so sure it’s gonna happen right now. There are worse things in the world than a green Christmas, but they are truly awful.
I wish there was more to do in Nebraska, since that’s where I’m spending Christmas. Don’t get me wrong, I love my grandma; I just wish she lived in a more exciting place. Have you ever found abundantly fun things to do in a vast expanse of corn fields? I didn’t think so. At least they have fried mayonnaise balls.

I hope that with the death of Kim Jong-Il, North Korea can finally move on to a democratic government. His son is taking over, and he is an unknown leader with a very small following. This is the time, if any, for the UN to assume control and convert their oppressive society into a democratic one. It was awful to see the North Koreans suffer under Kim Jong-Il, now, I hope, the world will band together to make sure another era of suffering and nuclear brinkmanship does not follow.

Alyssa Zediker, Executive Sports Editor

I want a new casual dress, one that I can comfortably wear to school. I have always been the kind of girl that wakes up in the morning finds a clean pair of jeans and then searches for a T-shirt befitting of my mood. So, it is rare to find me wearing a dress to anything other than some important event. I even get comments from my friends if they catch me in a dress. However, dresses can be comfy and flirty. Maybe it has been seven years and every cell in my body has changed and along with it a new personality. As of recently I have become obsessed with http://www.modcloth.com/ it has great dresses and other girly fashion items.

I wish I could have a break from my dad. Don’t get me wrong I love him, but there are those days where he just gets on my nerves. If you have ever met my dad, you would understand my complex relationship with him. I describe it as having the same personality, which leads to butting heads disorder. He always has to be right, which is a problem for me, because I tend to argue the opposite point while needing to be right too.

Distance truly makes the heart grow fonder, and that is all I wish to gain by this simple break.

I hope to end world hunger. Cliche, believe me I know, but it has always been a passion of mine and I intend to make a career out of it. I did my junior lit paper on solving the issue and also did a power point sophomore year. One way for Prospect students to solve world hunger is to simply donate to Mount Prospect’s food pantry. Another way would be to drive out to Schaumburg to one of Feed My Staving Children’s permanent packing locations. The company recruits volunteers to package dried food into bags and boxes to be shipped around the world.

Matt Bajkowski, Sports Editor

I want a vintage 1960 three color sunburst Fender Stratocaster guitar. I want this guitar because when Fender Guitars was bought by CBS, the production quality of Fender guitars went down. Although the quality is back up again today, the best guitars were anything made before 1970, which are harder and harder to find intact. Also, my hero, Jimi Hendrix used Fender Stratocasters.I wish Congress could forget about their political parties’ promises and realize the need to compromise on issues to actually accomplish anything. If they don’t, I wish that Harvard Model Congress and comedians like Stephen Colbert would take over in February, seeing that there is a better chance of things getting done with a bunch of teenagers and comedians than politicians.

I hope my Grandfather continues to have good health this coming year, as he has been in and out of the hospital in the last few years because of cancer treatments.

Maddie Conway, Editor- in- Chief
I want a new purse, since the one I have broke the other day.
I wish the cold I’ve had for two weeks would finally go away.
I hope my grandpa, who’s turning 89 this month, is here to enjoy many more holiday seasons with me and my family.
Emmy Lindfors, Managing Editor
I want a pug puppy. With their curly tails and big eyes, they melt your heart with one look, and they make you want a hug from them. Not to mention, they could be my shopping buddy. While they can’t come in the store, running errands won’t be as nearly bad if I had a pug next to me.
I wish that during the cold months all of the parking spots I find could be next to the door. Spinning around the parking lot trying to find spots that seem to be miles away, in 30 degree weather, doesn’t please me. Even though I wear a winter coat and gloves, the cold always seems to get to me and makes me want to be anywhere but here.
I hope my family’s hearts can heal from the passing of their beloved uncle. While the hole will never be filled, I hope the hurt can subside. They mean the world to me, and seeing them hurt makes my heart ache. I am so proud to know all of them and definitely wouldn’t be the person I am today without them.
Carly Evans, Copy Editor
I want Ron Weasley for Christmas. That is all.

I wish I wasn’t so good at grammar so that I could stop correcting everything I read. Whether it’s another newspaper’s article, a powerpoint full of notes or an advertisement, I really wish my grammar instincts would take a back seat sometimes.

I hope my Uncle Doug, who passed away two summers ago, is watching over me and my family this Christmas. Last Christmas was the first real holiday that we had without him, so it was too difficult to mention anything, but this Christmas I really hope we can all feel his presence and him being with us always.

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