The award show villain is the one film that the Academy loves, typically in the Best Picture category, though the general consensus online is that everyone hates it. Examples of this in recent years include “Green Book,” the Best Picture winner in 2019, and “La La Land,” the 2016 Best Picture nominee.

The term “awards show villain” was created to describe the movie that critics loved but audiences did not. Reasons that audiences may dislike these films often stem from controversies regarding the film’s story, production or contributors. Regardless of the specific reason behind it, the term creates a culture of people collectively rooting against a movie’s success.

This year, the two most likely candidates for the award show villain are “Don’t Look Up,” a satirical comedy about the impending end of the world from an asteroid, and “Being The Ricardos,” a biographical film about the relationship between actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.

Though many claim that the two films possess Oscar nomination-worthy traits, some of the main reasons the films have become villains are because of behind-the scenes controversies. In the case of “Don’t Look Up,” director Adam McKay faced backlash for saying that viewers who criticized his movie didn’t care about climate change. “Being The Ricardos,” on the other hand, faced backlash for casting a Spanish actor in the role of Desi Arnaz, who was Cuban.

According to projections, these two movies are likely to win awards at this year’s ceremony, much to the dismay of some movie fans. However, the award show villain should be at least somewhat appreciated, because it accomplishes the goal of movies: bringing people together through both love and loathing.

The main perks of Middle College are the flexible options it provides. Students can attend college classes in a hybrid or online format and take classes at an accelerated pace while still participating in Gunn athletics, extracurriculars and school events. These flexible options can be appealing for students who have not found success in Gunn’s competitive academic environment or have faced difficulties connecting with peers. It can also provide the opportunity to gain credits to transfer to a University of California (UC) or California State University (CSU).

Despite these benefits, some students may still experience difficulties when transitioning to this new pathway. Middle College is a mostly independent experience, which can be hard for students who prefer academic support or peer collaboration. Furthermore, the commute to Middle College decreases students’ access to one-on-one time with Gunn teachers.

Due to the increased freedom that comes with Middle College, students who lack the motivation to do their work won’t find success. Additionally, college classes at Foothill are much less forgiving than classes at Gunn, where there are multiple assignments, assessments and projects that can provide a cushion for grades or help bring a low grade up. In college-level classes, grades are based on fewer assignments that are worth more, and one assignment can make or break your grade. This type of system can create more stress for students who might feel like an assessment or project is their only opportunity to get a good grade.

Another drawback is that not all college classes are available to Middle College students. For instance, college classes that are held
at the same time as classes required for high school students are not accessible to students in Middle College. This takes away opportunities from students who might have wanted to take specific electives or explore other courses. The limited offering of college courses can be a drawback, especially since students are also missing out on the opportunity to take Advanced Placement (AP) classes that are offered at Gunn.

Last but not least, Middle College can become an isolating experience. Although Middle College students are able to participate in Gunn-sponsored activities, they miss out on cherished Gunn traditions such as Homecoming Week and lunch events like Clash of Titans and Love Week, because they spend significantly less time on campus. Even though Middle College students are still Gunn students, they might feel disconnected from their peers because they aren’t spending time with them every day. Additionally, since students at Middle College are placed into cohorts, it is often difficult to find friends outside of the cohort. If students
struggle to get along with members of their cohorts, they have no other groups to turn to.

While Middle College is for independent learners, the drawbacks of the experience should be considered before a student decides to make a switch, because it could lead to an isolating, more challenging high school experience.

“Love Actually” never gets old. Every year when the holiday season rolls around, it plays on almost every network channel on TV, and it’s a tradition to watch it at least once. What makes “Love Actually” such a great rom-com is that it’s enjoyable all year round, as it radiates comfort and includes a silent confession of love. With an incredible ensemble that features Keira Knightley, Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant, “Love Actually” is a love story for everyone.

“To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” should be considered one of the best Netflix rom-com movies of all time. The film’s protagonist, Lara Jean Song Covey, is a loveable, hopeless romantic, and love interest Peter Kavinsky is a dream boyfriend. This movie utilizes the “fake dating” premise, leaving viewers rooting for Peter and Lara Jean from the moment her letters are mailed to the moment of their first (fake) kiss on the high school track.

Some of the best rom-coms come from Shakespeare plays, and “10 Things I Hate About You” is no exception. Based on the play “The Taming of The Shrew,” “10 Things I Hate About You” features iconic standout scenes including a charismatic Heath Ledger, who plays Patrick, singing on a soccer field and main character Kat Stratford reading a dramatic poem at the movie’s end. The
enemies-to-lovers genre is at its peak with Kat and Patrick, and no one can resist the happy ending.

Although Hertzler graduated high school fewer than two years ago, he is a junior at UC Berkeley because he doubled up on his classes, allowing him to complete his transfer requirements in one year instead of two. “A lot of schools don’t give you the chance to transfer as a sophomore,” he said. “Either you transfer as a junior or not at all. I didn’t want to do two years of community college. So, I took twice as many classes and transferred as a sophomore going into junior year.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hertzler took many of his classes online, which allowed him to explore his studying habits. “I found it really beneficial to have all my classes be asynchronous and online,” he said. “It allowed me to divide up my work in a very efficient manner, since I knew I had a certain amount of work to do each day and I could plan out my week ahead.”

Hertzler believes that community college helped prepare him to manage his workload at Berkeley, but he did not find the content of his classes to be too challenging. “Conceptually, it was just a lot more busy work, because I had twice as many dead-
lines or twice as much homework or reading to do,” he said. “But the content itself was not that much harder, so it more prepared me for college in the sense that everything I’ve done since community college has been much easier workload-wise.”

Although it was hard to see his classmates move on to different schools, Hertzler used this as motivation to succeed at community college. “I struggled seeing everyone around me get into schools that they were really excited to get into,” he said. “However, it made me more ambitious and drove me to pursue two years [of classes] in one.” Now, at UC Berkeley, Hertzler has settled in as a student on campus and found his place at the school.

Although it is more challenging to be immersed in the college community as a transfer student, Hertzler believes that it is doable with effort. “I definitely had to make more of an effort coming in as a junior because a lot of people had already formed their groups and their cliques,” he said. “I was just outgoing and went to any opportunity I had to meet people and socialize, and I ended up doing completely fine.”

Hertzler’s biggest takeaway from his experience is that community college is a great opportunity for any student who wants to save money or is unsatisfied with their options for attending a four year university right out of high school. “You’re getting a head start on everybody,” he said. “You can take advantage of this and graduate a year early. You can also take a little extra time at your university and graduate as you normally would. There’s definitely a stigma around the whole community college track, but at the end of the day, you’re really only going to be showing your bachelor’s degree to jobs.”

Overall, Hertzler is satisfied with his path to higher education. “I’m having a great time and I don’t feel like I really missed out on anything,” he said. “If anything, I’m a year ahead and I’m anxious to get out into the real world to start working.”

Toksvig became an admin as a sophomore in 2020.“Gunn Style Watch didn’t have anyone to run it, so [Dajiana] sent out an application,” Toksvig said. “It asked a bunch of questions about photography, style, and what I’d done with fashion. I got picked to run the account.”

Toksvig’s time running the account was interrupted shortly after due to COVID-19. Although Toksvig wasn’t able to post many students at school, she did keep the account active during remote learning. “I did an at-home style watch, which turned out to be pretty fun,” she said. “I’m hoping to do more interactive things, like reviews of big events such as the Met Gala.”

Now, with in-person school, she is working to get the account running again. “I’m getting back into the rhythm of posting again,” Toksvig said. “I’m also finding juniors or sophomores who I can train to take over [the account] later.”

The main characteristic Toksvig looks for when finding students is their behavior in the clothes that they wear. “It’s all about confidence and how people wear the clothes they’re wearing,” she said. “You can be wearing something really interesting and be very reserved and quiet, which doesn’t stand out as much. It’s all about taking chances and wearing something that not everyone would wear and being confident in that choice.”

Gunn Style Watch aims to display a wide array of different fashion interests at Gunn, so Toksvig makes an effort to photograph students who wear outfits that are different from her own style. “We try to be as inclusive as possible, so [we post] outfits that I wouldn’t necessarily wear,” Toksvig said. “I like to challenge myself to find outfits that I think are interesting. This is a big part of making sure that it’s not just my own personal style, despite how all over the place others’ outfits can be.”

Toksvig is proud of Gunn Style Watch because she believes it shows a different, more vibrant side of the Gunn community that people wouldn’t otherwise see. “Gunn Style Watch shows that [Gunn students] do care about something other than academics,” she said. “We have passions other than school, and we like to dress up and wear cool stuff here.”

There is no right age to stop trick-or-treating. Even if it can feel like you’re out of place walking down the streets of your neighbor-hood surrounded by younger kids, you should still be there and celebrate Halloween how you want.
Halloween is one of the only nights in the year where you can dress up and look scary or goofy. You don’t have to worry about what anyone else thinks of your appearance because everyone is dressed ridiculously with you. Each year, as the day approaches, it’s exciting to plan your costume with your friends and discuss how you want to dress up. After deciding what to wear, I always look forward to the trip to the Halloween store to buy things for my costume, and a fun alternative if you don’t or can’t buy one is to make it yourself.

The best thing about trick-or-treating is how accessible it is. Even if you don’t have plans on Halloween, you can make an impromptu trip around your neighborhood and get a bunch of candy. Everyone deserves to celebrate Halloween, and trick-or-treating is both the easiest and the most iconic way to do so. All you have to do is dress up and say “trick or treat.”

Additionally, the candy you receive from trick or treating tends to taste better in a way. Even though anyone can go out and buy a big bag of candy, the chocolates received on Halloween always feel more rewarding to me. Maybe this is because it was free. Maybe it’s because it feels like it was earned through the many miles walked through neighborhoods while dragging a heavy bag, along with the effort put into planning a costume. Maybe it tastes sweeter because it’s associated with good memories of spending a night with friends. Either way, the sweets become extra rewarding on this one special night.

I have years of memories of sitting in a circle with my friends to trade candy after dumping it all on the floor. In fact, I still remember eating candy until my stomach hurt.

A holiday like Halloween is made for everyone, so why do people say that teenagers shouldn’t trick-or-treat? One explanation I have for this is the pressure that high schoolers put on themselves to grow up fast. In high school, you finally have more freedom and responsibility, and with that comes the urge to start acting like an adult. One way that people do this is by letting go of childhood traditions such as trick-or-treating.
While I relate to these sentiments, I regret letting go of my favorite childhood traditions. I think that trick-or-treating can be a good way to stay connected with your younger self, and it can be fun to indulge in innocent fun for one night. Once we go off to college, the next time we’ll go out trick-or-treating will probably be when we have kids. If you love it, you should ignore anyone who tells you you’re too old and go. You won’t always have the opportunity or time to do so.

If you’re a teenager and plan to go trick-or-treating this Halloween, do it. Go all out this year and dress in the craziest costume you can; it’s the one night of the year when anything is possible.

The main goal of the construction is to improve the flow of traffic and make it easier for bikers to commute to school, according to project supervisor Assistant Principal Leonel Argumedo. “The bike path from Arastradero to the Village will be paved with gravel, so it should be a lot smoother of a ride for those riding bikes on campus,” he said.

The project was originally predicted to be completed by the beginning of September, but that date has since been pushed back to the first week of October, according to Argumedo. “Initially, the contractors told us Sept. 1, and then that got pushed to Sept. 18,” he said. “Now they’re telling us the first week of October. By the end of September, we should have a better indication of what the completion date is actually going to be.” The unexpected extension of the construction project has caused issues for students driving to school. Parking permits are only being issued selectively to students, and those without a permit may not park in the parking lot. As a result, more students are parking in the surrounding neighborhoods and streets, such as Georgia. The Palo Alto Police (PAPD), however, has been ticketing both students and staff who park in the incorrect areas of those streets. “If you do get a ticket, there’s nothing Gunn can do about it, because it is through PAPD parking enforcement,” Arugumedo said. “As far as parking on Georgia [Avenue], I would just say that you should follow the signs, because I understand there are some restrictions.” Students and staff without their permit visible on their car can receive a ticket if they parked in the parking lot.

Students had hoped that the construction would be completed before classes resumed so that the Gunn parking lot would have open access. Senior Catherine Hsieh expressed frustration regarding the parking lot completion dates. “They should have done it during the summer when none of us were at school,” she said.

Senior Max LaWer is also disappointed with the fact that construction is happening during the school year. “They had all of the pandemic to do it, but they chose to do it now,” he said. To alleviate serious issues, some students have been given permission to park in the parking lot by the Gunn administration due to special circumstances. “We are issuing temporary permits for students who might have some hardships, but we do have limited spacing,” Argumedo said.

Junior Pooja Bucklin had been parking on Willmar Drive, just off Georgia, before receiving a permit to park in the Gunn parking lot due to a foot injury. “I live three miles away from Gunn, so I have to leave 30 to 40 minutes before school to get to school on time,” she said. Bucklin also mentioned how her commute is made slower due to not only the construction, but also traffic and crowds of bikers. “It has definitely made my commute way longer, and its become a lot more crowded everywhere,” Bucklin said.

Senior Sawyer McKenna received a parking permit because she does not live within walking or biking distance from school. “I live in San Mateo half of the time, so I emailed Mr. Arugmedo and told him I need to be able to drive to school,” McKenna said.

Despite some special parking permits being issued, most seniors still have limited access to the parking lot. Seniors have expressed frustration about the impact the construction has had on their daily commutes to school. Hsieh lives about three miles away from school and drives every day, but parks far from campus and has to walk the rest of the way to school. “I have to park at a friend’s house far from school and then walk, which means I have to leave my house earlier to have time to walk to school,” Hsieh said. “So sometimes I’m late to school.”

LaWer echoed Hsieh’s sentiments. “It’s really annoying to not be able to park in the parking lot,” he said. “You have to park on Georgia [Avenue] and walk ten minutes, and I’m late to classes sometimes. It’s really a pain.”

As a result of the volume of students parking their cars on Georgia Avenue, traffic has greatly increased, in addition to the typical bike and pedestrian traffic. “Some of the cars in front of me wait behind the bikers instead of going around, which holds back the entire line,” Hsieh said. Georgia Avenue doesn’t have a consistent dedicated bike lane, so bikers bike freely on the road.

Despite having a parking permit, McKenna still feels like the construction has affected her. “The construction definitely has impacted me because now I feel like I need to drive more people to school since I have a [parking] permit and they don’t,” McKenna said. “It’s also hard to make plans with people after school because they’re parked far away. I either have to wait for them or drive them to their cars.”

Even with a hectic first few days of school, staff members haven’t run into many problems with navigating through the construction and finding parking. English teacher Ethan Halter has been satisfied with how Gunn has addressed the parking concerns for staff. “We are blessed to have the funding to maintain such quality infrastructure here,” Halter said.

Students without special circumstances who would like to get a parking permit must wait until the construction is finished to purchase one. “Once the parking lot is completed, the SEC will be able to sell parking permits, with seniors being the first priority,” Argumedo said.

Argumedo is also looking to work with the district to reserve a set number of spots for electric vehicles to charge on the Miranda Avenue side of campus. “As of now, all staff are allowed to park back there [on Miranda Avenue] even if they don’t have an electric vehicle,” he said. “So what we’re trying to do is set some parameters around who can park out there.”

Campus Supervisor Jorge Sanchez, who directs the traffic in the parking lot, says that despite construction, drop-offs and pickups from school are running smoothly. “All I can ask is for drivers to be a little slower and careful,” Sanchez said. “Be aware of your surroundings [and] for students and cyclists.”

I have two staple outfits for my two moods at school, each of which can be customized with accessories, jackets and shoes. For days when I feel more motivated, a nice pair of jeans with a white tank top is one of my go-tos. If I want to look like I put in effort, I add lots of jewelry, a headband or patterned jacket. Another outfit I have been into recently is matching my skirt and top. The set looks really put-together but doesn’t require much thought or effort.

For days when waking up is tough, though, I turn to a pair of sweatpants or leggings. I put on a graphic T-shirt or one of my favorite hoodies, and I’m pretty much ready for the day. The sweatpants look is one of my favorites during finals week, when my fashion is the last thing on my mind.

While residents have the right to share grievances about their communities, there is a point where the constant negativity in the comments on NextDoor becomes toxic. The comments on the platform represent the bubble of privilege that Palo Alto exists in.

On any given day, posts on NextDoor can include a variety of complaints. People post about the smell from their neighbors using their firepit. Another user shares their annoyance about a dog getting too close to someone’s food at a park. Another post shares a complaint about children playing on the tennis courts. In many cases, these insignificant incidents would be forgiven with a simple exchange. But when people use the platform to voice their frustrations about such small annoyances, problems can be blown out of proportion.

These complaints represent the privilege that Palo Alto residents are accustomed to, as small incidents create more drama than they should. At times, people tend to lose perspective on how big their problems really are because they may not experience larger struggles in their everyday lives.

NextDoor shouldn’t be entirely abandoned as it provides a space for community members to share resources and ideas. However, constant complaining on the platform—often over small things—can create a negative atmosphere that can drown out positive posts. Instead, moderators on NextDoor should filter posts so that more relevant posts aren’t overwhelmed by more mundane complaints. Additionally, people should try to keep trivial rants contained in smaller groups—or just not post them at all—to avoid harmful discourse. NextDoor can still be a good resource when used properly.