Thomas Carr Howe Community High School - Hilltopper Yearbook (Indianapolis, IN)

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PRESSURIZE]) CCH jr erk calling Erson. Merk calling Krson. Come in, M YES, MERK! WHAT IS IT? Your Immenseness, I have been carefully studying what is know on this planet as ' teen- agers in their natural environ- ment. I have discovered some very interesting quirks in their behavior. WELL, GO ON. They experience a strange and somewhat dangerous disease called ' pressure. Sometimes it comes from other people, par- ents or friends, urging them to do something. But even more of- ten this pressure is caused by little voices INSIDE them telling them what they should do. DONT THESE EARTHLINGS HAVE ANY INTELLIGENCE? WHY CANT THEIR GERMS BE ISOLATED AND SHIPPED OUT INTO SPACE? It ' s not as easy as that. There are lots of ways to become ' pres- surized. Some of these young people don ' t like the way they are, so they feel pressured to change themselves. They want to be more like the people around them. I CANNOT UNDERSTAND YOUR SO-CALLED ' TEEN- AGERS. ' J know they seem strange, but they look at things differently than Erkans do. What thev HAVE can be as important as who they ARE. If a lot of peo- ple have ears, then a car becomes very important possession. The male Earthling especially seems to feel bad if he doesn ' t have a car, and the more he worries about it, the more pressured he feels. The female also feels the same kind of pressure. Some- times she dresses a certain way because it is ' popular, ' which means that most people wear this style of clothing. ON ERK EVERYONE LOOKS THE SAME. I CAN ' T SEE WHAT DIFFERENCE IT MAKES WHAT ONE WEARS! Since our society is so differ- ent, you can ' t be expected to relate to these teenagers. This is just ONE of the special problems that they must deal with! Deci- sions that young people make can also be important. If a teenager stays out late parents get angry, and yet if he leaves a party early his friends don ' t like it. Deciding which way to go seems to cause those little voices from inside to fight and strug- gle. MAYBE NOW YOU WILL AP- PRECIATE YOUR OWN SOCI- ETY. Really it is very interesting to watch these young people plan their futures. Young people must decide what they want to do for the rest of their lives. That statement, THE REST OF YOUR LIFE, is enough to scare them to death. Some people say, ' Whoa, man, there aren ' t enough jobs. ' Then someone else yells, ' Well you can ' t go to college- it costs too much! ' On top of that the little voices keep saving, ' Hurry up— time is running out. ' It ' s no wonder that this disease causes headaches and ulcers. IF THEY HAD ANY SENSE THEY WOULD JUST SIT AT HOME AND LET SOMEBODY ELSE DO THE WORK. If they didn ' t care about any- thing, their lives would certainly be easier, but they do! To suc- ceed (for all Erkans, this word translates as ' ribholtz ' ) is what all these Earthlings work for. These strange little voices make students stay up all night working on a paper or cause panic before, during and after tests. Not because their parents beat them if they don ' t do well in school, or because friends won ' t like them, but because thev them- selves care. THIS CARING BUSINESS SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF TROUBLE TO ME! Without emotions I know it ' s hard for you to understand, Erson, but lots of these Earth- lings have very strong feelings about the things they do. Inside themselves, they feel an urge to be successful at any activity. Everyone, at some time in his life, pressures himself to do well. 26- PRESSURIZED

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LEFT: Steve Moloy pays close attention to Mr. Jack Lawson during ICT class. ABOVE: Teresa Barger, a DE student, prepares clothing for distribution at Lane Bryant. More than just a job ?? T ' m getting knowledge of how a real Mm office works, how to get along with the people you work with, and how to keep things running smoothly, said Mary Chand- ler as she explained why she was in COE. Cooperative Office Education is just one of the work study programs that give a stu- dent the experience he needs to enter a job. Howe also offers Industrial Cooperative Training (ICT) and Distributive Education (DE). Besides credit and money the work study programs benefit the students in other areas as well. They get the advantage of on-the-job training and a head start on their knowledge of how to handle a job or future career. Mrs. Perry, the coordinator of COE, has been involved with the program lor eight years and feels her students are verv capable of climbing the ladder. I ' m to the point now where I have some of my former stu- dents as my student supervisors because thev kept going up through the ranks, she ex- plained. There are many reasons why a student enters a work study program. Experience, money, credit or the knowledge one gains- whatever the reason, there is a steady increase of students entering the programs each car. There were approximated 112 students enrolled in the work study programs this year. Howe is known to have one of die strongest work programs in the city. Main businesses involved in the programs prefer I low estudents because of their work records. (J ICKBESKAGGS) Work Study-25

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THESE EARTHLINGS Ml ST BE REAL NIMM ' LS. WE DID AW U WITH ALL THESE TROUBLESOME EMOTIONS BLEAMS AGO. Emotions can bo fun, Erson. This pressure disease isn I always bad. It makes teenagers earn money to get cars, and work hard to make good grades, i ou are right, though. It does ha o had effects. When high school students here on Earth care too much about something, a strange thing occurs. Thev often lose interest in EVERYTHING they ' re doing, and without pros- sure they end up standing still in space. ISN ' T THERE ANY CURE FOR SUCH AN ILLNESS? Well, some of the more intel- lectual Earthlings, called college professors, are doing research on this subject. There are even counselors to help over-pres- sured students. These advisors suggest everything from deep breathing to yoga. THAT IS THE FIRST SIGN OF LNTELLIGENCE I ' M ' . SEEN IN THIS PRIMITIVE SO- CIETY. IF THEY HAVE LEARNED THE VALUE OF MEDITATION, MAYBE THERE IS SOME HOPE FOR THEIR FUTURE. Yes, sir, I really think there is hope for them. For now, this is Me.rk from Erk signing off. I ntil next year, Na-No, Na-No! With apologies to Mork and Mindy (KAREN MARSHALL) PRF.SSURIZED -27