George Mason High School - Mustang Yearbook (Falls Church, VA)

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HAVE A HEART For the first time since 1962, since the days of John Carlo and Coach Crain, the George Mason Mustangs clinched first place in the Northwestern District by annilahating visiting Clarke County, 35-22. The Mustangs waited for the most impor- tant game of the season thus far to unleash an awesome display of offense, particularly on the ground, to carry themselves into the regional playoffs. GM did not waste any time as co-captains George Swick and John Boaz combined for numerous long-gainers which resulted in an eleven yard touchdown, run by John Boaz with 7:11 remaining in the first quarter. Six minutes later, George Swick made the score 14-0 in favor of the Mustangs as he scampered into the endzone from five yards out. Swick added his second touchdown with 10:43 left in the second quarter on a one-yard run and Glenn Goodnight proved to be a comparable substitute for the injured Harry McGinnis by booting the ball through the uprights for the point-after-touchdown and 21-0 lead. Jim Gathercoal caught a twenty-six yard pass from Doug Moore, and carried the entire Clarke County team over the goal line with him, for still another Mustang touchdown. Goodnight kicked his second PAT of the afternoon which made it GM 28, Clarke County 0. Clarke County finally scored just before halftime on a ten yard pass from Terry Ashby to Mike Carter. The two point conversion was unsuc- cessful as the Mustange enjoyed a 28-6 half- time lead. Unwilling to sit on the lead, John Boaz added his second touchdown and fifteen of his one hundred twenty-seven rushing yards as GM continued to roll. If the Mustangs showed any weaknesses at all, it was in their depth as Coach Gambill began substituting freely, which led to two quick Eagle touchdowns, to suddely cut the Mustang’s lead, 35-22. As usual, George Mason’s defense rose to the occasion by stiffling the Eagle attack time and again during the fourth quarter. Charlie Boaz, Steve Kennedy, George Swick and Audie Wilson all intercepted passes as the im- possible dream came true. The fans were in a complete state of hyste- ria during the game and as the clock ran out, they covered the field as the championship trophy was presented to the team and Coach Gambill. The success of this year’s football team can be attributed to one human bond - heart. The team played with a tremendous amount of heart which easily made up for the lack of size and physical ability. - by John Edmondson Reprinted from the LASSO COMMENTARY Open-mindedness and consideration for others are two characteristics many students at George Mason seem to lack. It shows con- stantly i n and out of class, at assemblies and whenever kids are together. So many people are too quick to stamp a label over the face of anyone who passes by. One finds himself being a “loser”, a “beastie”, and worse, every time he turns around. It may seem funny to those who do the name-calling but it can hurt the victims. Often in a class a student or teacher will try to express an idea to the group and won’t get three words out before he is cut off by antago- nistic feedback from a student. Too often, peo- ple are too quick to jump to conclusions on a matter. If they could open their ears and listen to someone else’s viewpoint instead of cutting down another guy by stating, “He’s stupid!” or “You’re crazy!”, maybe they would learn something. George Mason audiences are notoriously bad and no one knows this better than the per- formers. Loud response to acts intended to be funny is fine, but rude disruption to someone trying to do a good, serious performance is in- excusable. It hurts the performer and those who enjoy a serious performance because they don’t see the performer at his best. To pur- posely ruin an act through disruption is worse than unfair; it is sadistic in the sense that it deprives the performer and those who so want to listen, of the satisfaction that comes from a good performance. There is a time and place for everything. But it seems that when the time for seriousness comes up at GM, it can only be rejected. Those who do reject it, suffer the worst. Maybe when they realize they have lost their chance to learn, they will regret having waited too long. - by Jan Edmondson Reprinted from the LASSO.

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WHAT? by Dan J ones Having spent a number of months working in contention with the natural human preference to be unfettered, unenclosed, and catching kisses from the wind, attempting in my rather surreptitious manner to entertain and educate the little people assigned to me, (while at the same time being cautious not to crush them as I lumber through the hallways), I now feel properly predisposed to make a few passing comments on the metaphysics of George Mason Junior and Senior High Schools. There can be little doubt that I am at the necessary altitude to effectively handle the situation. My position above the undulating sea of multicolored heads affords me a good opportunity to observe the total picture. Of course, it also provides a threat of danger from both low-hanging doorways and cliche-wielding “mouthketeers”. The weather is fine up here, thank you. And so is the air. How did I get to be so tall? One cell at a time, just like everyone else. Actually, I don’t really mind being taller than average (make that a tall average), and, after all is said and done, I suppose that there are certainly worse ways to relate to people than as a unique experience. Also, I can always console myself with the fact that if I ever meet Wilt Chamberlin, I will have to UP seven inches or so to see the top of his head. It is additionally reassuring to think that I might be a forerunner of the superior, vertically-evolved species of Man. (Then again, I may be a throwback to Goliath and the Philistines.) to have more than two terminating points in the lines creating its form, (unless you were one of those barbarians who sundered off the tops ot their Fours or drove slashes through your Sevens). FOUR (presented properly) had a sharp intellect and was notoriously top-heavy. FIVE had turned to face the other direction not because it was unfriendly, but because it was simply more interested in checking out what was happening between SIX and SEVEN, who were always having private conversations. EIGHT had a hollow personality and stood around a lot looking sur- prised. NINE was not a happy sort because it knew that given the slightest excuse someone would come along and round it off, or tax would be added and it would be caught in the middle of the ensuring revolution and eliminated. You could hardly blame Nine for its pessimistic nature. Finally there came ZERO, who was a real hanger-on and always open to question. So, you can see that I was very familiar with the first ten digits. But then things started getting illogical. Suddenly there were fractions; wierd little fractions all over the place; small, smaller, and infinitesimal. Then there came counting numbers, rational numbers, real numbers, irrational num- bers, and even (far out) imaginary numbers! And they begat algebra, and calculus, and trigonometry, and all the other higher mathematics. And I became baffled. Where there had been ten simplistic personalities, I now find that 1 must deal with characters and plots that resemble a Russian novel typed by two hundred tireless, unrelenting monkeys. The illogical has still not been illustrated. At any rate, I do have a few observations I would like to make. Someone once said that “education is simply the process of illustrating the illogical”. (The truth is, the person who said it was me and I rather like it; especially the part with the alliteration.) There’s a fair amount of truth in that statement, for whatever is not understood is also illogical. It is only when a reality becomes understood that it also takes on a logical placement in the scheme of a person’s thoughts and actions. Unfortunately, there are some things for some people that never become logical. For me, mathematics claims that honor. When 1 was a youngster (axle high to a coal-hopper), I could relate on an intelligent plane to numbers. 1,2, 3,4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0. Stretched carefully across my paper, they had individual personalities and character. 1 knew them (juite well, and, better yet, they knew I knew them. There was no fooling around. ONE was a solitary sort ol fellow and leaned toward the contemplative, always starting off into space, engrossed in the responsibilities of leadership. TWO, on the other hand, was very outgoing, constantly making himself part of every alternating number’s affairs, as well as being overly sensitive and living life with his neck out of joint. THREE was the oddest of the bunch, as f ar as I am concerned. It not only had a hard time finding other numbers it could be divisible into, hut it also resembled a bisected Eight and was the only number that could he said The other day, however, I did come up with a solution to all the problems plaguing the American educational system. The answer came to me as I stood in the mimeograph room, watching the ditto machine perform its graphic imitation of the human condition. Poised there, breathing in the fumes from the ditto fluid (tor which I may someday either he arrested or become the first medically recorded case of W ' ashableBlue Lung Disease), the answer came to me as in a vision. It was so simple and yet so obviously correct. All we need to solve the problems ol the American education system is (continued on page 34) 18

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