October Is More Than Just Halloween in Parke County, Indiana

by Andreanna Smith

It’s October and to most people across the country that means that it’s almost Halloween time, but for one county in Indiana, it means more than that. To the people of Parke County, October means get out the yard sale equipment and get ready for customers, because Parke County, Indiana is home to the Covered Bridge Festival.
Every year for ten days after the first Saturday of the month, the Covered Bridge Festival is held. This year was the fifty-third annual Covered Bridge Festival. From Bridgton to Rockville, every community is in on the festival. There are multiple things to do during the festival. Some of the activities are shopping, hiking, and tours of the 28 covered bridges in the county. People come to the festival from all across the world.

Kelsey Fuqua, a sophomore at Paris High School was one of the many people to come to the festival. Kelsey went to Mansfield and Bridgeton. When asked what her favorite part was, she along with many other people, including junior Erin Marietta stated simply, “The food.” To many people this is a time where you can try new and unique food choices, for example just some of the many festival food was fried pickles and sirloin tips. When asked what she would like to see improved for next year, Kelsey stated that she would add more vendors for different sweatshirts and more jewelry vendors. Erin Marietta also stated that if she could improve anything for Rockville, she would have added more places to shop.

If you missed out on this year’s festival, don’t worry. Next year’s festival is already being planned.

Fall Attractions in Paris, IL

by Rachel Kenderdine
(Pictured: Pumpkin Works (above), Halls of Madness (right)

Costumes, scares, candy, and trick-or-treating. All are staples of Halloween, right? But in Paris, Illinois, there is more to Halloween than just the holiday. Two popular local attractions bring people from everywhere to celebrate the Halloween season.

One such attraction is the Halls of Madness, a haunted house that can be found just outside of town, on Route 16. Open every weekend in October, the Halls of Madness draws in crowds looking for a scare each season. Now in its seventh season, the Halls is staffed by members of the community who enjoy the thrill of seeing others scared.

One such person is Katie Garver, a junior at Paris Cooperative High School. She, who got involved because her family works there, has been working there for three years. “I enjoy doing that sort of thing, scaring people,” she said. She also has a favorite part of the job. The best part, she said, was, “seeing the look on people’s faces.”

Another attraction that is popular with fun-seekers of all ages is Pumpkin Works, which is open through Halloween. In operation for seventeen years, Pumpkin Works started as a pumpkin patch with a corn maze and haunted house and has grown to a prime Halloween destination with eleven mazes, strawberries, and the original pumpkin picking patch, according to its website.

“It’s fun when you’re with a lot of friends,” said Mary-Hunter Smittkamp, a sophomore at PCHS. “I liked the more challenging mazes.” The only downfall to Pumpkin Works? “I didn’t like how expensive everything is,” Mary-Hunter said. “Twenty-five dollars barely got me through half the mazes.” But that appears to be the only downside to a day of fun.
Both the Halls of Madness and Pumpkin Works have special hours for their seasons. These hours, along with the rest of their information, can be found on their websites. Click on the following links:
Halls of Madness
Pumpkin Works

No More Textbooks?

by Meredith Penczek

New this year are EBooks. Ebooks, text books over the internet, are used in all of the biology classes. EBooks were introduced into PCHS as a step to moving into the technological age of teaching. EBooks are also helpful because more students are signing up to take biology classes. All biology students, even those without internet, were asked to set up an EBook account. Many students had trouble creating their accounts. Most of the problems were caused by issues with creating a username.

Freshman Renna Throneburg said, “I had to try three or four times because it would not take my username.”

One of the main pluses to having EBooks is having one less book to lug home with you when there’s homework. On the other hand, one of the downsides is the students with slow or no internet still have to take the book home. Also, students with slow internet take longer on their homework because unlike with a physical book, the EBook has to go page to page instead of just flipping to the section you need if you don’t know the page number.

Many students find it easier to read through the book on the computer though. However, using the internet does cause problems. Some students have already had problems with their internet being down so they can’t do the assignments, and some students have trouble focusing when they know sites like Facebook and Myspace are only a click away.

Freshman Quinn Shockely said, “Yeah, I have drifted off from reading to check status updates, but I’m getting better at waiting until I’m done with my homework or studying.”

It sounds like the new EBooks do have their upsides as well as their downsides. The big questions most students are asking is, "Are they here to stay?"