By: Karlee Montgomery

A question many people have is should people be able to have big dogs? I think people should be able to have big dogs. Because they can protect you and dogs are great pets to have. 

Let’s get one thing right: Big dogs aren’t for everyone. And people who do have big dogs or any size dog know they cost a lot. Everyday prices are skyrocketing, making it hard to take care of our pets’ vet bills, food, and toys. Big dogs especially have the worst reputation. 

Don’t let the size fool you, dogs are the most passionate and loyal pets ever. They are perfect to help with anything like depression, anxiety, and many more. If you train your dog in the right environment a dog will see that’s how they should act, but if you abuse your dog or they came from an abused family it’s harder to train them. When you train a dog in an aggressive home, their instinct will be to protect themselves by being aggressive back. 

There are many steps you can take to make sure your dog doesn’t turn out aggressive like: Making sure your dog is getting enough exercise and other canine enrichment activities, maintaining a calm demeanor around your pet, using positive reinforcement and reward-based training techniques, purchasing and use a muzzle if your dog bites or you suspect they might. 

If you also need help training your dog you can visit places or have a person come to you. But dogs are so sweet and really help people with their problems. It doesn’t matter the size of the dog, when a dog is aggressive it’s not their fault it’s yours. That’s why I say you should be able to have big dogs.

By: Gracie Hanlon and Sofia Marquez

Are you going to be stuck at home during spring break? Are you fatally bored? Well we have recipes for you! Follow these and you might have a full stomach over these next couple of days!

NOT FOR KETO PEOPLE, OR VEGANS! We have a cookie cake recipe, easy meringues and a “healthier alternative”, banana oatmeal cookies!

Easy Meringues:
Hello! Just in case you’re stuck at home during spring break, or a weekend or weekday and you’re bored, here is a quick recipe you can whip up in about 1 hour and 30 minutes!  (Warning: these are addictive, so eat with caution.)

Ingredients:
3 egg whites
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pinch of salt

Recipe:
1)Preheat the oven to 200 degrees fahrenheit, and prepare 2 parchment paper lined cookie sheets.
2) In a stand mixer (or bowl and hand mixer) whip the egg whites until foamy. Add in the salt, and vanilla extract.
3) Whip the egg whites until medium stiff peaks form, then gradually add in the sugar. Whip again until stiff peaks form. If you want to take a huge risk, grab the bowl and put it over your head, if the egg whites stay put in the bowl, you have achieved stiff peaks!  (I do not take fault for giving you this idea, if the egg whites fell out and your kitchen is a mess.)
4) Put a bag in a tall glass, flipping the edges inside out. Then using a spatula put the meringue in the bag, cut the tip and began piping Chips Ahoy sized dollops.
5) Put the finished cookies in the oven for 1 hour, checking every once in a while.
6) When out of the oven, let sit for 45 minutes to 1 hour to harden.

Enjoy with caution!

Banana Oatmeal Cookies:
The second recipe is these delicious banana oatmeal cookies. They only require a few ingredients but there are many things you can add in to spice them up a bit. They are also a great way to get rid of brown bananas you might have. Plus, they are also somewhat healthy and are great snacks. 

Ingredients-
Brown Bananas (the number isn’t exact but two would be my recommendation)
1.5 cups of Oats
⅓ cup mini chocolate chips 

Extra ingredient ideas:
Raisins
Chopped Nuts
Cinnamon
Vanilla

Recipe:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
2) Line your baking sheet with parchment paper. (or you can use cooking spray)
3) In a medium sized bowl mash your bananas until they are broken down (that’s honestly my favorite part). You can mash with a fork or if you have one a potato masher.
4) Next, add in the oats and stir until it’s all mixed together properly, it should look like a thick batter. If your batter looks runny add in more oats until your batter is able to form a cookie.
5) Once you have achieved this batter, you can add in the chocolate chips! Mix until the chips are spread throughout the batter. (This is also when you can add any extra add-ins!)
6) Now using a spoon, scoop out some batter and plop it onto your baking sheet. You can kind of shape it with your hands to fix it up. Make as many as you can!
7) Finally bake for 12-15 minutes until they are lightly golden. Once they cool you can enjoy them warm! You can also freeze some for later –  they taste great both ways! (Also eat with caution. I can almost guarantee you will want more!) 

Cookie Cake:
Surprisingly cookie cake is not that hard to make. So for our third recipe we’re doing just that! This cookie cake recipe doesn’t make the typical flat and large cookie but instead a smaller but thicker cookie. You can even top it with frosting or whipped cream or anything else you like.  

Ingredients:
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (room temperature)
⅔ cup brown sugar
⅓ cup white sugar
1 egg and 1 yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup all purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips 

Recipe:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and then grease a 9 inch cake pan. (I used a 8 inch pan when I first made this so whatever you have will work)
2) Cream the brown sugar, white sugar, and butter together in a stand mixer for two minutes.
3) Then blend in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla.
4) Next add in your dry ingredients: the flour, salt, and baking soda, mix until combined. It should start to become more like dough.
5) Now for the best part, the chocolate chips! Take your bowl off the stand mixer and mix in the chocolate chips using a spatula. Save 2 tablespoons of your chocolate chips for later!
6) Take your dough and put into your greased pan, pressing it down with your hands until it meets all the edges. Before you do this wet your hands slightly so your hands aren’t covered in cookie batter. (unless you want them to be)
7) Sprinkle the rest of your chocolate chips on top and then press them into the batter softly.
8) Bake your cookie cake for 22-25 minutes until the top of the cookie is golden brown.
9) Once it’s done, let it completely cool before removing it from the pan. 

Finally, once your cookie cake is out of the pan you decorate it with frosting or just eat it as is! Enjoy your delicious cookie cake with a glass of milk! We hope you enjoy all three cookie recipes!! 

By: Izzy Rosa

(For legal reasons, please do not follow these instructions if you have strict parents and/or a snitch for a brother, or any other reason that could result in serious punishment for you.)

Dear Izzy, 

I’ve got a bit of a problem. My younger brother is being really annoying to me every day and just doing everything he can to make my life a turd pit. What should I do? 

From,
Your biggest fan 

Hello reader, I’m Izzy, the beloved advice giver. This problem is very relatable and I have the perfect solution. 

Imagine, it’s dinner time on a cold Wednesday night, you’re walking to the table. Grab your food and offer to get some for your brother. You walk into the kitchen and grab your pre-placed and disguised sleep meds. You sprinkle the powdered sleep meds onto his food and bring it to the table very UNSUSPICIOUSLY. 

You all enjoy dinner and afterwards your brother states that he feels tired and is going to bed early. 

You wait until about 12:00 when all your family is asleep and you creep to the kitchen slowly. You slowly open the creaky cabinet door and glance over your shoulder for any people. You grab the Nutella and shut the cabinet door. You creep out of the kitchen and to your brother’s room, avoiding all the creaky floorboards you marked earlier. You manage to get into your brother’s room and he is fast asleep, just as planned. You sneak to his underwear drawer and open it, lifting the drawer slightly so it doesn’t squeak on its rails.

You take out a pair of his underwear with two fingers, though you know they are clean, it’s still gross, And you take the Nutella jar and unscrew the lid. Then take the plastic knife out of your pocket and scoop the Nutella. You smear it in his underwear, imagining his reaction when he discovers it. You repeat the process on all his underwear and chuckle under your breath. You’ve done it. It’s the perfect payback. 

Now imagine, in the morning, waking up, and seeing that face. The expression on your brother’s face… And it was all worth it.

Sounds great? Well this could be you if you follow this advice. Thanks for reading! Submit your problems in the comments or at rosais2028@u4sd.org. If you want a silly article dedicated to you, submit a problem and I will choose 1 to 3 every month!

By: Madyn Strauss

Have you ever wondered what sparked the idea of having live entertainment? Many people have seen live performances like The Nutcracker, CATS, Hamilton, or any sort of Pantomime performance or a theater program for school. However, wouldn’t it be nice to know what came before them? Well, after doing a little research, I found just that.

Jesters were popular entertainment for a king to entertain and make the people laugh. Sadly for them, the Jester craze almost completely went away except for Russia, Spain, and Germany. Around this period, traveling groups of jesters could be found performing plays that included customized characters of many different acts. These acts were called the Commedia Dell’arte.

In the early 5th century, the very first plays were performed in a theater of Dionysus, built under the shadow of the Acropolis in Athens. After their popularity grew Greece ran with it as well and later became classified under three genres: Comedy, Tragedy, and satyr plays.

The next time you watch any sort of live entertainment and want to know where it might have branched off from, the inspiration from the original plays and performances that have sparked into what we know today can help to understand the more modern take on live performances and the acting that we know and love today.