Within the past few weeks, five Tantasqua students have gotten staph infection. They’re all being treated with antibiotics but the thought of possibly getting it is still frightening to most. If students were asked to explain what staff infection is, most probably couldn’t and are truly worried about getting it.

Junior Kristen Cloutier feels slightly different about the topic. “I think it’s not as big of a deal as people are making it, but I still take precautions to prevent myself from catching it.”

Staphylococcus is the official name of staff which is a type of bacteria. These bacteria are live underneath the skin and most of the time people don’t realize they have it for a while. If you’re a teen, most of the infections are minor and aren’t a huge deal. A person can get staph by bacteria entering cut on the body. The most common way of receiving staph would be direct contact to the surface of an infected person. A person who has problems with their like eczema or even burns are more likely to be infected with staph.

As you all know, one of our fellow students has been in an accident. On October 9th, 17 year old Alyssa Mayette was in an accident involving her red 1997 Pontiac Grand AM on Holland Road in Sturbridge. Although there have been massive rumors running around the halls of Tantasqua Regional High School, they are not all truthful, clearly. She was in fact in an accident, this is true.

The rumor mill has been saying that she went through 2 telephone poles, 2 trees, and hit a car. This is not true, she “{I} hit 2 trees, and a {telephone} pole.” Rumors have been circulating that she was driving 80 mph on Holland Road, and crashed on purpose. The worst part is that Mayette did not get into this accident on purpose. It was, at all costs, an accident. She was not going as fast as people say, in fact she was driving at 70 mph. The initial investigation showed that she was speeding while traveling south near 262 Holland Road when she lost control, police said.

Mayette was in fact wearing a seat belt, and reports say that she was ejected from the car. The truth of the matter is that Mayette was not ejected from the car, but the seats in her car automatically eject themselves. This meaning that they separated themselves from the car and unhooked and fell into the back seat.

Costumes and candy, pumpkins and scarecrows: yes it’s that time of the year again. Halloween is a holiday looked forward to by many, including the very young and the very old. Between picking a costume, deciding where to trick-or-treating, and carving one’s pumpkin, there is so much involved with Halloween. Most individuals at Tantasqua have their very own unique and exciting plans for Halloween this year.
Some may argue that high school students are too old to trick-or-treat; however, this opinion is not a concern among many Tantasqua Students. “Oh my God, of course I’m going to trick-or-treat,” said Chelsea O’Leary.

Many students, including O’Leary wouldn’t think twice when it comes to trick-or-treating. “I’ll be out there, I’m not too old yet,” comments Rebecca Ritchie. Several students, no matter how old, are very excited about trick-or-treating this year. Some of the older students are so excited that they’re even going to put on a costume!

On the other hand, there are some students that find it just as exciting to hand out candy at home. Tyler Gustufson is one of many that will be answering the ringing doorbell on Halloween night. “I don’t need to trick-or-treat, I’ll steal my brothers candy,” said Gustufson. Whether trick-or-treating, handing out candy, or in some cases stealing candy, being a part of Halloween night in some way will be quite the thrill for many.

Halloween, October 31st, All Hallow’s Eve, Day of the Dead. This festive holiday is right around the corner, and there is some controversy over the purpose and significance of this holiday.

Most students still find it acceptable to trick-or treat. Many go with their friends, and surprisingly, most dress up. However, junior Richie Davis is completely against this holiday as one for teenagers. “It’s for little kids. When I see bigger kids walking around with costumes on, it aggravates me. I want to slap them!” he says, pounding his fist against the table. He thinks that there should be an age limit of 14 or 15.

On the contrary, junior Allie Jones says that she will never stop trick-or-treating. “Halloween is a great tradition that brings family and community together,” she said. Indeed, there is a sort of tradition in Halloween. For junior Sara Thomas, it’s a time to get free candy, be creative with costumes and traditionally, “freeze your butt off!”

Halloween is not a holiday based upon religion, but “a holiday for everyone,” says junior Ashlyn Lee. Her philosophy is that anyone who doesn’t want to dress up, have a night out, and get tons of free candy is crazy. It seems that the major consensus is that the best part of Halloween is the free candy.

Hundreds of students rush from class as the halls smell of hot tomato soup and rice. The tables of the cafeteria fill quickly with hungry young adults as some students wait in line for school lunch. This is the ordinary scene during the three lunch periods at Tantasqua High School.

The opinions of the lunch program differ between students, and their opinions depend on their taste and expectations. Freshman Courtney Lee and Junior Matt O’Brien both enjoy the lunch menu provided. “It is easy to buy lunch, and you don’t need to worry about packing a lunch,” says Lee, whose favorite lunch is chicken patty. O’Brien likes many of the school lunches, especially Cesar salad with popcorn chicken. However, there are a few meals he does not enjoy, including corndogs.

Sean Canty, junior, likes the chicken nuggets, but overall he is not impressed with the lunch program. “I don’t like lunch very much because the food is flavorless.” Canty says. He buys lunch twice a week, while O’Brien buys lunch everyday.

Varsity cheerleading captain, Cayla Laporte-Rivera, came to Tantasqua about a year ago. All her life, Cayla went to Worcester Public Schools. Her sophomore year, she went to school in Leicester. She then decided to move in with her aunt and uncle in Brookfield so that she could transfer to Tantasqua.

“I didn’t want to go back to Worcester schools,” she said.

Cayla says her first year at Tantasqua was pretty easy, “it was fun and exciting.” Everyone seemed to like her right off the bat, “I didn’t have a hard time making new friends.”

Cayla has been a cheerleader for both basketball and football seasons since she was a freshman. This year, among two others, Cayla is captain of her varsity cheerleading squad. Cayla claims that her squad is “power hungry, and she goes on to say, “I’m not as aggressive with the squad as the other captains and coaches may be.”

The Cheerleaders practice everyday after school until five at night, and every weekend there’s a game. Along with cheering, Cayla also deals with the pressures of two jobs, school, home life, and planning for college.