The Bluffer - Red Bluff, CA
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/57885
Mardi Gras Aaron Vasey Editor-In-Chief Gras took place. "There was no model. As ardi Gras is a holiday that can be traced back to ancient Rome. far as I know, there is no other school that does anything like this," said Palubeski. Mrs. Palubeski has been It is a holiday that translates to "Fat Tuesday" and is centered around the practice of lent. A high school French class celebrating this holiday, how- ever, is practically unheard of. Betsy Palubeski, the only French teacher at RBHS, has grown this tradition on the cam- pus over the last 8 years since the first official RBHS Mardi teaching at RBHS for over twenty years, and began as a Spanish teacher, but began teaching French ten years ago. Since then she has remained the school's only French teacher, in charge of three different levels of French. There being only one teacher has also prevented the French program at RBHS from taking on more students. " Page 3 March 9, 2012 The teacher behind it all M As far as I know, there is no other school that does anything like this. Betsy Palubeski " According to her, the admin- istration has been very support- ive of her ideas, willing to ex- cuse kids from an entire school day to participate in the event. On the other hand, many teachers have trouble support- ing such an event, given that it is currently not an academic event, meaning that the students involved aren't exactly learning anything specific. This is why Mrs. Palubeski has decided to approach Mardi Gras in a new way. She wants to focus the event more on aca- demics in a way that supports the kids involved. She is also seriously considering moving the event into May so that it wouldn't clash with so many other programs that are also taking students out of their classes. The holiday has changed significantly since it began, as it originally took place over a single period, but now spans over the entire school day. The idea behind the holiday is eating more fatty foods than normal before having to give them up for lent, and the holi- day followed the French into the United States. The 8 games of Mardi Gras 1.) The Flour Game "Jeu de Farine" A game that requires a great amount of focus and steady hands, the Flour Game challenges players to gradually scrape away a column of flour supporting a single coin. The player who causes the column to collapse and the coin to fall loses. the ten Krewes of Mardi Gras: 1. Barkus 2. Cleopatra 3. du Vieux 4. Orpheus 5. Pegasus 6. Poseidon 7. Rex 8. Thoth 9. Zeus 10. Zulu 2.) The Scavanger Hunt "Antiradicalaire Chasse" Crews compete against each other in a race around the cam- pus, searching for and deciphering clues. Clues are held by participat- ing teachers, and they often require the members of a crew to fulfill an odd requirement, such as acting like a wild animal. Once a crew has all the clues, all that's left is a mad dash for the finish line. 3.) Crazy Bats "Des Battes Folles" Easily the most entertaining game in Mardi Gras, crazy bats have players racing each other back and forth across the football field. The twist is that on one end of the field, players must place their heard on a baseball bat and spin around ten times before heading back, making for very entertaining stumbles and falls. The first team to have every member run back and forth wins. 4.) The Three-legged Race "Des Course de Trois" Although this game may be famil- iar to some already, it did originate in France. All it requires is that two people tie their legs together and race. For Mardi Gras, players placed their legs in pillow cases and raced from one side of the mat room to the other. 7.) 007 "Zéro Zéro Sept" The fastest game in Mardi Gras, 007 is its own version of Rock, Paper, Scissors with much more skill involved. Players compete in a fast-paced competition with only three possible moves: reload, shoot, and block. Any French student will be able to explain how the game is played in more detail. 8.) Spoons "Cuillères" Spoons: a game that stress- es the importance of a fast reaction-time. Players sit in a circle and pass around cards until one of them has four of a kind. This person then reaches for the spoons in the middle of the table and it is up to everyone else to grab a spoon as fast as they can before they are the one left without a spoon, and thus, out of the game. Photos by Aaron Vasey and Shelby Keeler. 6.) Balloon Stomp "Éclatez leurs ballons" An interesting game that pits play- ers against each other as individu- als as they try to both survive as long as they can and eliminate other players. Balloons are tied around players' ankles and players are eliminated if their balloon is popped. As more and more players are eliminated over time, the area in which they play gets smaller and smaller, forcing them to confront other players more aggresively. 5.) Horse and Rider "Cheval et Cavalier" One of the roughest games played during Mardi Gras, Horse and Rider has players fighting each other for pieces of cloth. Basically a different version of Musical Chairs, this game has people compete in pairs, one playing as the horse, the other as a rider. A large circle forms around the pieces of cloth, and the horses are tasked with running around the circle as the music plays, and dashing to their partner once the music stops. The horse then dives through his or her partner's legs, into the middle, in a frantic attempt to grab hold of one of the pieces of cloth. The horse and rider without a piece of cloth at the end of each round lose. As the holiday is now, the French students are divided up into ten different "Krewes", each with their own crew lead- ers from the higher level French classes so that they may com- pete against each other on the day of Mardi Gras. These crews are tasked with raising funds to be donated to a variety of chari- ties and preparing authentic food for the event. Despite the enormous amount of work to put on this holiday, Mrs. Palubeski made it clear that she intends to continue the tradition as long as possible.