All posts by HPSH Plaid Line

Best places to see fall colors in Minnesota

September 22, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

By: Natalia Gercheva

Autumn in Minnesota is one of the best places to experience some of the most beautiful leaf colors. Luckily, there are many parks you can go to, and walks you can take to be surrounded by nature’s beauty.

In Minnesota, mid-September to mid-October is when the trees start to change color. The official first day of fall is September 23rd so if you have the chance, I highly recommend going outside to admire this annual glorious phenomenon.

1. Winchell Trail in Minneapolis
This hike is a 2-mile round trip on a mostly unpaved trail with a moderate climb. This beautiful hike goes right along the Mississippi River gorge, and it is popular with bird watchers and naturalists. There are many trees along the trail, and the lighting makes the leaves’ colors pop.

2. Lake Maria State Park
This state park has a wide variety of trails you can go on varying in distance. There are 9 trails that range from 0.5 mi- 5.3 mi long. Lake Maria is located in Minneapolis, and it is an easy drive from anywhere in the area. This would be a perfect state park to go to with your family or friends to enjoy being outside in nature.

3. Minnehaha Falls Regional Park
Minnehaha Falls is one of the oldest parks in Minneapolis, where visitors can enjoy not only the autumn colors, but also a luscious 53-foot waterfall, river views, and limestone bluffs. The park is 193- acres and contains oak, elm, silver maple, basswood, hackberry and cottonwood trees. There are also native and prairie woodland wildflowers.

These parks/ trails are my personal favorites, but some other noteworthy destinations are Taylors Falls, Fort Snelling State Park, and the Hyland Hills Ski Area. Although the time is limited, and the fall colors will change quickly, it will be a memorable experience, and definitely worth it if you decide to make one of these trips.

Soccer

Highland vs. Central soccer games

September 21, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

By: Brennan McMahon

On the first day of school the Highland soccer teams played the Central soccer games.

The B team had a rough game with no ref so the Central coach was reffing the game. This resulted in there being a lot of bad calls that went in the Central teams favor. The end result of the game was 1-4 in Central’s favor with Edward Fuentes scoring for Highland.

The JV game went a lot better than the B game. The JV game had a ref, and they managed to score 3 goals. Sadly, they were not able to tie the game before time ran out. The team tried their very best and got very close to tying up the game. The game ended with a score of 3-4.

The varsity game was very close and with 15 minutes left the score was still 0-0. The last 15 minutes got very chippy from both teams with multiple fouls for both teams.

The Central team got a rebound goal and were winning 0-1. The Central team started to slow the game down and run down the clock, but the Highland team was so close to getting the tying goal. There were many scoring opportunities and not much time left.

Central got the ball and one of their strikers shot the ball from midfield and it barely slipped past Highland’s goalkeeper. The final score of the game was 0-2 but the Varsity team tried their best and it was a very close game.

The Varsity and JV teams have home games tonight, and B team has a game on Saturday.

Please come watch and cheer on the teams!

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Red White & Royal Blue’

September 21, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

By: Abisola Dosunmu

*Note: This article contains spoilers

‘Red, White & Royal Blue’ is a movie adaptation of Casey McQuiston’s bestselling original novel. It was released on August 11, 2023, on Amazon Prime. The movie recently reached No. 1 on Prime due to its popularity.

It featured two talented actors starring as the main leads: Taylor Zakhar Perez playing Alex Claremont-Diaz, the first son of the first female president, and Nicholas Galitzine playing Henry Fox, the prince of Britain. They meet, they cause an international scandal concerning a lot of cake during a very public royal wedding, and somewhere in the months of forced – then not so forced – contact to perform damage control, they slowly fall in love. But before that?

The ocean that separates those two couldn’t be wider, according to Alex. Alex has had a problem with Henry ever since he brushed him off at the Olympics, while Henry was just trying to grieve his dead father. This plot point doesn’t change much in the movie, however, the friendship part of their relationship felt rushed, rather than the natural progression and banter that was seen in the book. Understandable, the directors had to smush the entire book into a two hour movie, which meant some parts had to be entirely cut out from the movie, as it is with most movie adaptations. However, the movie would have been better if it was fleshed out in a six part series, rather than a two hour movie.

One thing I liked in the movie was the chemistry between the two male leads, Taylor and Nicholas. They really brought the characters Henry and Alex to life, the charisma and the banter between the two characters was very entertaining to watch. The movie wouldn’t have been half as enjoyable to watch without these two.

Still, the heart of the novel, ‘Red White & Royal Blue’, remains entirely the same in the movie. It reads like a corny romcom on the pages, but the actors and directors really brought the lightness and humor of it to life on screen.

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Editorials/Student Voice, Tech/Games

Why social media is bad for teenagers

September 19, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

By: Lauren Kottke & Ella Sutherland

*Note: This article was written at the end of the 2022/23 school year.

Social media has been consuming the lives and minds of teenagers and young adults. All of our friends have some type of social media platform and account. We use this as a way to see what each other is up to, keep in touch with distant friends, but mostly we get bored and we just scroll. Many times people we know, including us, have felt really down and our solution to these problems is to start scrolling on social media apps. This creates unhealthy habits and there are many problems with doing this.

In order to prevent social media from consuming teenagers the creators of social media platforms should restrict the amount of time teenagers can spend on social media.

The rise in mental illness within teenagers has skyrocketed since the rise in popularity of social media. COVID and the pandemic affected how often people used social media and the amount of time people went on these platforms and apps per day.

We were inside all day and we couldn’t go out and hang out with friends or go out to eat. We relied heavily on social media to keep us occupied and we resorted back to that when we were bored. Because we had access to this at the tap of a finger, we became lazy and we stopped doing creative things like crafts and projects, or even simple things like reading a book or journaling.

According to Statistica.com, a survey conducted between July and October 2020 revealed that 61 percent of Generation Z and Millennials were watching more videos on social media apps during the COVID-19 pandemic.

People spend too much time on social media per week which can lead to many negative things. There are many studies that show that being chronically online can affect your mental health and you can develop mental illnesses like depression and anxiety. Social media can also affect teenagers self esteem. When you see your friends posting together you might end up feeling very left out wondering why you weren’t invited.

Social media also sets very unrealistic beauty standards for teenagers, and when you see them and feel like you don’t look as pretty as the people that post edited photos, you start to feel terrible about how you feel.

“Those who find themselves in this category often make toxic comparisons between themselves and those they follow online, and they come face-to-face with society’s perceptions of perfectionism, which is never truly obtainable.” – Selecthealth.org

Social media can be dangerous. On social media when you post things for the public you can become a target for bullies, stalkers, or unsolicited pictures. There are many instances where people have felt uncomfortable online whether that be from creepy messages or pictures of yourself getting exposed, or even receiving inappropriate photos that were not wanted. This can make it very scary for teenagers, especially young girls online.

Onlinedegrees.unr.edu reported, “The Pew Research Center’s 2018 survey of U.S. teens determined that one in six teenagers have experienced at least one of six different forms of abusive behavior online:

Name-calling (42%)
Spreading false rumors (32%)
Receiving unsolicited explicit images (25%)
Having their activities and whereabouts tracked by someone other than a parent (21%)
Someone making physical threats (16%)
Having explicit images of them shared without their consent (7%)”

The creators of social media apps need to restrict and limit the amount of time that teenagers are allowed to spend on social media. The consequences of social media outweigh the rewards greatly and in the end, is not worth it for anyone. It is unsafe, it is mentally draining, and it is how we spend too much of our time.

Cross Country, Football, Scoreboard/Schedule, Soccer, Volleyball

Sports schedule for: Sept 18-23

September 18, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

ATHLETIC EVENTS SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER 18 – SEPTEMBER 23
MONDAY	SEPTEMBER 18
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
4:00pm	2:45pm \| 5:15pm	JV Football vs. MPLS Southwest	Southwest High School
*5:00pm*		*B-Squad Boys Soccer vs. St. Agnes*	*HOME*
*5:30pm / 5:30pm* *7:00pm*		*Volleyball vs. Johnson*	*HOME*
TUESDAY	SEPTEMBER 19
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
4:00pm / *4:00pm*	V: 3:15pm \| 6:00pm	Girls Tennis vs. Harding	V: Harding High School *JV: HOME*
4:15pm / 4:30pm 7:00pm	JV/B:3:15pm\|5:45pm V: 5:45pm \| 8:45pm	Boys Soccer vs. Humboldt	Humboldt High School
*5:00pm / 7:00pm*		*Girls Soccer vs. Humboldt*	*HOME*
WEDNESDAY	SEPTEMBER 20
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION

THURSDAY	SEPTEMBER 21
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
4:00pm */ 5:00pm* *7:00pm*		*V/JV Boys Soccer vs. Johnson* B-Squad vs. Cretin-Derham Hall	*V/JV: HOME* B: Cretin-Derham Hall
*4:00pm / 4:00pm*		*Girls Tennis vs. Como Park*	*HOME*
4:15pm	2:00pm \| 7:00pm	Girls Swimming vs. Humboldt/Washington	Humboldt High School
5:00pm		Girls Soccer vs. Johnson	Johnson High School
FRIDAY	SEPTEMBER 22
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
TBD	12:00pm \| 4:15pm	Cross Country Roy Griak Invitational	Les Bolstad Golf Course
*5:00pm*		*JV Football vs. Harding/Humboldt*	*HOME*
SATURDAY	SEPTEMBER 23
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
9:00am / 11:00am		Girls Soccer vs. Visitation	Visitation School
*11:00am / 11:00am* *1:00pm*		*Boys Soccer vs. North St. Paul*	*HOME*
1:00pm	11:15am / 2:45pm	Football vs. Harding/Humboldt	Harding High School

Cross Country, Football, Scoreboard/Schedule, Soccer, Volleyball

Sports schedule for: Sept 11-16

September 11, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

ATHLETIC EVENTS SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER 11 – SEPTEMBER 16
MONDAY	SEPTEMBER 11
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION

TUESDAY	SEPTEMBER 12
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
4:00pm		Girls Tennis vs. Washington	Washington Technology Magnet
5:00pm */ 5:00pm* *7:00pm*	B: 3:45pm / 6:30pm	*Boys Soccer vs. Washington*	*HOME*
*5:30pm / 5:30pm* *7:00pm*		*Volleyball vs. Hill-Murray*	*HOME*
7:00pm		Girls Soccer vs. Washington	Washington Technology Magne
WEDNESDAY	SEPTEMBER 13
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
*4:00pm*		*Tennis vs. Visitation*	*HOME*
*5:30pm / 5:30pm* *7:00pm*		*Volleyball vs. St. Croix Lutheran*	*HOME*
THURSDAY	SEPTEMBER 14
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
4:00pm / *4:00pm*		Girls Tennis vs. Central	V: Central High School *JV: HOME*
4:15pm	2:00pm \| 7:00pm	Girls Swimming vs. Como/Johnson	Humboldt High School
*4:30pm / 4:30pm* 7:00pm	5:50pm \| 8:45pm	*JV/B Boys Soccer vs. MPLS Southwest* Varsity Soccer vs. Simley	*JV/B: HOME* V: Simley High School
5:00pm / 7:00pm		Girls Soccer vs. Two Rivers	Two Rivers High School
6:00pm	4:15pm \| 7:45pm	Football vs. MPLS Southwest	Southwest High School
FRIDAY	SEPTEMBER 15
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION

SATURDAY	SEPTEMBER 16
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
8:30am	9:15am \| 4:00pm	Girls Swimming Invitational	St. Catherine University
9:00am		Girls Tennis Quadrangular	Harding High School
*11:00am / 1:00pm*		*Girls Soccer vs. Chisago*	*HOME*
1:00pm / 1:00pm 1:00pm	11:45am \| 2:45pm	Boys Soccer vs. Irondale	JV/B: Edgewood Middle School V: Irondale High School
7:20pm	5:15pm \| 10:00pm	Cross Country Metro Invitational	Flying Cloud Fields Eden Prairie

School Life

We’re back! (almost)

September 8, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

Though the 2023-24 school year has started, it will take us a little time to get new content out to all our readers.

Our hope is to start having new articles the week of Sept 22, but we may be releasing some unpublished articles from last year before then!

-HPSH Plaid Line

Cross Country, Football, Scoreboard/Schedule, Soccer, Volleyball

Sports schedule for: Sept 4-9

September 5, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

ATHLETIC EVENTS SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER 4 – SEPTEMBER 9
MONDAY	SEPTEMBER 4
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION

TUESDAY	SEPTEMBER 5
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
*4:00pm / 5:00pm* *7:00pm*		*Boys Soccer vs. Central*	*HOME*
*4:00pm /* 4:00pm	3:15pm \| 6:00pm	*Girls Tennis vs. Johnson*	*V: HOME* JV – Eastview Park
5:00pm / 7:00pm		Girls Soccer vs. Central	Griffin Stadium
WEDNESDAY	SEPTEMBER 6
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
*4:00pm*		*B-Squad Boys Soccer vs St. Agnes*	*HOME*
THURSDAY	SEPTEMBER 7
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
*4:00pm*		*Girls Tennis vs. Humboldt*	*HOME*
4:30pm	3:15pm \| 5:45pm	JV Football vs. Tartan	Tartan High School
5:15pm / 5:30pm 7:15pm	JV/B: 4:15 \| 6:45pm V: 6:00pm \| 8:45pm	Boys Soccer vs. Como Park	Como Park High School
*7:00pm*		*Varsity Girls Soccer vs. Como Park*	*HOME*
7:00pm	5:00pm \| 9:00pm	Girls Swimming vs. Harding	Humboldt High School
FRIDAY	SEPTEMBER 8
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
*4:00pm /* 4:00pm	3:15pm \| 6:00pm	*Tennis vs. Holy Angels*	*V – HOME* JV – Christian Park
4:30pm / 5:00pm	2:30pm \| 6:00pm	Cross Country St. Paul Two Mile	Battle Creek Regional Park
*6:00pm*		*Football vs. Tartan*	*HOME*
SATURDAY	SEPTEMBER 9
TIME	BUS TIMES	EVENT	LOCATION
9:00am		Volleyball B-Squad Tournament	Lakeville North High School
11:00am / 1:00pm 3:00pm	B:10:00am\|12:45pm JV: 11:50am\|2:45pm V: 1:30pm \| 4:45pm	Boys Soccer vs. Breck	Breck School
11:00am	8:45am \| 1:00pm	Girls Swimming vs. Hastings	Hastings Middle School

School Life

The end of another year

June 15, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

We are at the end of another school year, and so will be going on hiatus until fall.

Thank you to all that have been following us and for reading the articles students have worked hard to bring you all year.

Over the summer feel free to peruse our back catalogue of articles, and don’t forget to check back in September for new content!

-HPSH Plaid Line

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ review

June 15, 2023 HPSH Plaid Line Leave a comment

By: Mushtaq Yonis

*Note: This article contains spoilers

Official ‘Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse’ movie poster

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ is a sequel to ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’, a film based on Miles Morales as Spider-Man. This film stars Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Jake Johnson, and more. It’s directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson. The plot revolves around Miles Morales as he journeys through alternate dimensions and teams up with other Spider-People to stop a new villain and to save his family!

Miles Morales is a 15-year-old sophomore in high school who was bitten by a radioactive spider and was Brooklyn’s one and only spider man for a year.

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ was probably one of the best animation movies I have watched before, the way they animated Hobie or Spider-Punk was incredible. Animators typically change poses and details every second frame but for Hobie his pose changed every third frame making it different from the characters around him.

I also love how they added characters from ‘Spider Man: Into the Spider- Verse’ to this new movie, like Peter Porker, Penni Parker, Peter B. Parker, Noir, Gwen, Spider Man 2099 etc.

We also saw some new characters/Spidermen in this movie as well, we’ve seen Ben Reilly or Scarlet Spider, Pavitr Prabhakar, Hobie or Spider-Punk etc. There’s a lot more we’ve seen when Miles visited the Spider-Society and having to fight the Spider Society in order to go home.

One thing I’ve wanted to talk about was the soundtrack for this movie, which was released by Metro Boomin and had features from Swae Lee, Lil Wayne, Offset, ASAP Rocky, Roisee, Future, Lil Uzi Vert, JID, James Blake Nav, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Ei8ht, Don Toliver, Wizkid, Beam, Toian, Coi Leray, 21 Savage, 2 Chainz, and Nas. The professional Rating for this Album 6.4/10 but for me I’ll give it a 7.5/10. My favorite song from this movie wasn’t in the album, which is “Mona Lisa” by Dominic Fike. It was played while Gwen was visiting Miles and they were swinging through the city of NYC.

If you haven’t watched the movie yet I highly recommend you to watch it! It’s still playing in theaters so make sure you watch it!