Talent Show Re-Cap
By: Stephanie Jolivert, Staff Writer

    On Friday 10^TH, 2006 Reading High had their annual talent show many students said that this was on of Reading High's best talent show. Patrica Pierre, a senior at RHS, said that this year talent show was fun and everyone who performed did well.
         A lot of kids said that they wish that it was  more of a contest than a regular talent show. Many students were unable to enter because there were too many people already signed up.
        This year a lot of people sang their favorite songs and there were a lot of dancers.
          Niki Lee and Sean Reily sang a duet of "How Do I Live". We had Marcus and Matt danced to Omarion "Touch," and many other outstanding performances.
        A lot of students said that it was so packed they couldn't even come inside even when they brought they're tickets. The students also said that going to the talent show made their Friday, because usually on Fridays they wouldn't have anything to do. Due to the talent show freshman; sophomores and juniors said they hope that the next year's  would be even better.

DECA State Competitions
By: Anne Paulemont, Guest Writer

       February 22- 24^th was the most hectic and competitive I've been all my high school life.  Wednesday, the 22^nd of February my Retail Marketing Distributions teacher Mrs. Gantkowski drove us to Hershey, PA for the 55^th annual DECA Career Development Conference.
        On Wednesday, February 22^nd after the 3 hour ride from the Vo-Tech to the Hershey suites in Hershey, PA we were joined by all of the Marketing students in Pennsylvania who were competing. Surprisingly, my nervousness passed and I grew eager for the written part to begin, which was later that night. Walking about the lobby of the hotel was over three hundred students each with the same goal- that first place trophy and the chance to compete at Dallas, Texas with thousands of Marketing students throughout the whole United States, Canada and another foreign country.
        That night in the chocolate ballroom, right after the written part was over it was straight to the Chocolate ballroom in the Hershey suites for a night of partying. Inside was very dark with a rainbow of colors flashing throughout the ballroom from club lights. Two huge screens displayed the music videos of the songs played while a group of cameramen catch the teens dancing on another TV. Screen. Everything was over around 11:45 and it was back to our hotel rooms because 12:00 was curfew.
         On Thursday, February 23^rd it was the day of the role plays (you handle a business situation).  Business suits were worn, hairs were in buns, worries began to appear in a stream of faces, and the competitive factor silently rose. Everyone knows the hardest part is a role play (where faced by a judge who is also a business professional seeing how you'd handle a situation and / or maybe help they're business.)
          At 9:04 my first role-play event began and surprisingly I wasn't at all nervous, it was like I was standing atop on a faraway cloud and had nothing to do with everything going on. We had only 15 minutes to prepare and I'd done well. I spoke to the judge (an owner of a Sporting Goods store.) And did the entire curriculum required for everything and knew that I'd done well.
            My second role-play was at 10:21, I did really bad on this one. I didn't finish preparing and had no idea how to approach the judge (a business owner and teacher.) It all went okay at the end but I had known that I did some errors.
          Thursday, February24th, the morning of the Awards ceremony and the last day of my DECA competitive journey, the morning was frenzied. In the hotel room Doris, Marie, Erica, and James had all finished packing and we all looked good wearing our business suits.
              Walking the hallways to the Chocolate Ballrooms was anything but plain. Light jazz played from a ceiling radio, lit chandeliers, and pale dried sunflower colored walls. Barely seen shadows reflect from the warm lighting, casting wherever any object has been detected. The whole place looked nice, everyone passing by looked so professional even though they were only teenagers in they're high school life. Hundreds were seated on the chairs provided in the Chocolate Ballroom waiting for either devastation to happen, I mean not every finalist gets a trophy. They'd rather happiness to occur instead of bad news.
         My event, Retailing Merchandising Associates Level was announced and the winners were being said. I was eager and hoping for a prize. When every name was recited except mine I had realized like a heavy blow to the head, what was reality moments later. I was startled I had lost. Disappointed and letdown I remembered that I got as far as a finalist, heading home with two DECA medals, enough to show my efforts.