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“Family and friends.” –Senior Jake Johnson

“Family and friends.” SophmoreJack Gibson

“Friends and famiy.” –Sophmore Mike Hornung

“Activision, Call of Duty, Microsoft, my sister Jillian, my mom, and my dad.” –Junior Jordan Dahms

“My awesome second hour physics class.” Which was followed by rooring applause and expressions of gratitude from the class. –Science teacher Mr. Schaedel

“Family.” –Science teacher Jame Holt

“The 2011 senior class.” –Math teacher Lindsay Mynaugh

“Derrick Rose.” –Senior Sean Brennan

“Family.” –Senior John Schraidt

“My five division one offers that I turned down to get a full ride at Lewis University(Division two) to play basketball and also my mom and dad.” –Senior Ryan Jackson

“My very wonderful family, loving husband, and my three healthy children.” –Science teacher Michelle Koehler

“A great job that I love here at RB.  And I’m grateful for my beautiful grandson.” –Librarian Doreen Fritz

“David Akers.” –Senior Mike LeBeau

“Karl Marx and his teachings in Berlin.” –Senior Thomas Linehan

“Splurging and being known around the school.” –Senior Watoris Slater

“Friends and family, dogs, being a senior so I can leave this school, my art teacher Mrs. Bartelson, and giving Bryan Doyle a ride to school in the morning.” –Senior Kayle Vitek

“My job.” Fine Arts teacher Susanne Bartelson

“Doing what I have always wanted to do with my life, working with kids and coaching basketball.” –Security guard/Boys basketball coach Genes

“A successful fantasy football team, family, and no problems.” –Senior Brandon Mitchell

“The children in my room each day.” –Math teacher Steve Yurek

“Family, friends, the house I live in, and a good neighborhood.” –Sophmore Jordan Peklo

“Five day vacation.” –History teacher John Fields

“Living in Riverside.” –Freshman Christian Verdin

“I’m thankful for a job in this hard economic time, an amazing student teacher, a home for my children, and my wife.” –English teacher Tom Fuller

Now it’s time to ask yourself, what are you thankful for?

I am a huge fan a Christmas. I enjoy presents just as much as the next guy, but I think it should be celebrated after thanksgiving. I am not saying to switch your way of celebrating holidays, but give Thanksgiving more honor and respect. After all, it does feed you.

My thanksgiving was very small but I enjoyed it very much. Though being a vegetarian and not being able to eat turkey, I still ate like no tomorrow. Sitting around the table with family, eating good food and just hanging out and talking, there is nothing better. Football is always on during Thanksgiving, and to me, it is a perfect complement to such a great holiday.

Not only is the dinner tasty you have the good ol’ desert to have afterward. It could be the pumpkin pie, French silk pie, lemon squares and even those oh so delectable grandmother’s cookies. When all the commotion of making dinner and eating was done my family sat down and played quite an intense game of Apples to Apples. That is what thanksgiving is about, no different than Christmas: giving thanks for what you have and spending quality time with your family.

So though Thanksgiving has passed, be sure to tell it “thank you” next time it comes around.

The first game features the New England Patriots (8-2) and the Detroit Lions (2-8) at 12:30 PM ET. The Patroits’ only losses this season came on the road and the Lions’ two wins were when they were in Detoit. Tom Brady is having a decent season so far and Benjarvus Green-Ellis, who is getting the bulk of the carries in the backfield, has only taken four rushes to the end zone this season. The Lions feature the quick Calvin Johnson who is leading the team with ten touchdowns and is on pace to break the 1,000 yard mark this season. New England’s defense has been struggling this season, and may leave Johnson deep which can cost them. If the Lions play their best, this matchup can become a great one to watch.

At 4:15 ET, the New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys square off. The Cowboys are hurt with Tony Romo out, but Jon Kitna has done well taking the team over since. Drew Brees has had his ups and downs this year and his TD-Int ratio is causing some concern (22-14). Last year, Dallas topped the Super Bowl champions. The Cowboys have struggled especially at home (1-4) and may turn this week’s game over to the Saints.

The final game at 8:15 ET includes the New York Jets (8-2) and the Cincinnati Bengals (2-8). Cedric Benson of the Bengals has been a dud this season and cannot get anything going for him thus far. LT is having a great year, but his numbes have been slowly declining as the season continues. Both teams need this win, but the Jets look to have the better chance with Mark Sanchez doing his job under the quarterback position.

Overall, this Thanksgiving day matchups are shaping up to be some interesting games. The Patroits,  Saints, and the Jets look to have the edge and I can expect them to secure these wins on Thursday.  Even though the opposing teams might not have the best records, they all can make strong pushes to make these games close.

Kate Walsh, Junior:
“I’m thankful for my family.”

Mrs. Marielli, Staff:
“I’m thankful for my granddaughter Vivienne.”

Natalie Viscarello, Senior:
“I’m thankful for good teachers.”

Eleanore Wazak, Junior:
“Friends and family.”

Kayla Gallik, Senior:
“I’m thankful for great times over the years with friends.”

Taylor Dalton, Junior:
“My mom.”

Brianna Griggs, Junior:
“Family, friends, people who love me, and a house over my head.”

Andrew Brondos, Junior:
“Family and Friends.”

Frankie Hackle, Senior:
“I’m thankful that I have a roof over my head.”

Amiee Patterson, Senior:
“The cast and crew of the fall play.”

Jake Payne, Freshman:
“I’m thankful I have friends in high school.”

Dovas Lietuvninkas, Sophomore:
“I’m thankful for Lithuania.

Alex Wilson, Senior:
“The World Wide Web.”

Caitlin Clark, Junior:
“I’m thankful for books, and chocolate, and tea.”

What to be thankful for:

New facilities and the end of construction. I’m pretty sure everyone in the school is relieved that every hallway is open and the construction is over. This also means there are new facilities that make everything easier. The field house, the new weight room, and the new swimming pool enhance the athletics at RB.

Football. Fans of any football team can agree on one thing: Thanksgiving is for football. The Thanksgiving weekend gives football fans the opportunity to watch the sport all weekend, highlighted by the annual NFL games on Thanksgiving.

Skyward: The new Edline has sure been a hit at RB. This online grade book is more updated and more visual-enhancing. The calendar on Skyward allows students to see what grade they got on each assignment. The gradebook mode shows students what overall grade they are getting in each class, and the message center is also very simple.

Thanksgiving break: This is always one of the best breaks of the year, but then again, what break isn’t great? Thanksgiving break is filled with food and family, and is a great holiday. This four day weekend is always needed for students and teachers alike.

What not to be thankful for:

Finals after winter break. Since we started school later than usual, RB had to change a few things. One of these things included having Finals after winter break rather than before. This makes winter break a little less enjoyable because rather than having no work to do over the break, students have to study for their finals.

Cold weather. When Thanksgiving arrives it brings with it some winter weather. Few people enjoy going outside in freezing weather to shovel paths or to warm up the car.

AP classes: This could go either way, but it lands on the not thankful list. This is the time of year when AP classes tend to start getting to students, and the homework load is very time consuming.

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving: In the past, this was a day students could be thankful, but not this year. Because of the construction, this is a mandatory school day, rather than an extra day off. This is the second year in a row that school has been in session on this day; last year was because of the flood.