Is it Better to Own a Cat or Dog?

By: Madison Grace Hansen

The common question, “is it better to own a cat or dog” circulates through social media at least once a year. Addressing this topic, I personally believe that it is better to own a dog rather than a cat because dogs are easier to clean up after, they can be trained easily, and they are better companions.

Dogs are easier to clean up after because most use the restroom outside and do not require cleaning because they are in the yard. Cats use the restroom in a litter box which is messy and constantly needs cleaning. Although litter boxes have been introduced to society, they are extremely expensive, therefore cat owners purchase the cheaper, messier litter boxes. No cat owner actually enjoys sweeping up the small litter box remnants.

Also, dogs are kinder pets than cats. Cats are not easily trained and they like to scratch and bite which is not good for the owner. Dogs can be trained quite easily if they are trained at a young age. When a dog is trained they can do a multitude of tricks like sitting, spinning, shaking, rolling over, and so much more. Cats do not do tricks, or at least no cat that I have ever seen.

Finally, dogs certainly make for better companions. Although cats can be cute and cuddly, dogs do not get nearly as aggressive as cats and tend to enjoy getting scratches and rubs. Dogs will go on walks and runs with their owners while cats enjoy being lazy around the house. Dogs are also great pets to have if you feel lonely because they are wonderful companions. Once your dog trusts you, they will be your furry companion forever.

All in all, dogs will forever be better pets than cats because they are easy to pick up after, they can be trained effortlessly, and they are amazing companions. Although cats have their own strengths as well, they will never reach the same level as dogs.

Why Being a Multisport Athlete is Beneficial

By: Ford Wilder

To begin, many high school athletes fall into the belief that they have to focus on one sport solely if they want to be the best and get offers in their sport. I am a firm believer that this is not true. Plenty of evidence shows that the greatest professional and collegiate athletes played not just one sport in high school but two, three, or even four! Some examples of people who fit this category are Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders, Michael Phelps, etc.

There are many downsides to specializing in one sport. The biggest one is getting tired or burnt out of that sport. I play three different sports throughout the year so I never really feel burned out since I am switching seasons every few months and mixing it up. Instead, I am eager to make the switch between seasons and this makes each sport enjoyable as I am ready to jump back into action and get back on track for each one. Those who get burnt out also tend to have poor performances in their sport due to a lack of enthusiasm and effort towards their practices and games. This will then often lead to a poor mental state all because they wanted to fall into the trap of specialization in high school. Specialization has a time and place which is in college because that is when your sport becomes a job and the competition picks up.

Another flaw of single sport specialization is not having another plan. I play three different sports and I am unsure of what I want to do at the next level. I am also unsure of which sport will open up the most in recruiting so I do not want to close any doors in case the one I choose does not end up working out. I have watched many great athletes in my area specialize in just football or just basketball and quit their sport which has led to them not getting an opportunity to play at the next level.

Furthermore, one of the benefits of playing many sports is mastering many different skills. This allows for a stronger mind since you have to overcome many challenges in not just one sport or area but in many different ones. You also have to stay extremely focused and can not slack off in between seasons since you are always competing. I have noticed great benefits from this since my competitive edge is always high and I am always ready to compete. This has made my mindset one of the greater parts of my game. Whether it’s my favorite sport, basketball, or my sport of lesser importance to me, track, I am just as competitive in both due to the mentality I take into being a multi-sport athlete.

Ultimately, I believe that the greatest athletes are those who perform many sports in high school and do not specialize too early. I have noticed the greatest improvements in my all-around mental and athletic performance through playing multiple sports.

Team Dipper Kupp Stats from Week 1

By: Cooper Scott

I’m in a ten man point per reception league with my friends, and after week one. My record is one and zero. First player is Patrick Mahomes, my Quarterback, Patrick threw for two hundred ninety-one yards, one touchdown and one interception. Mahomes was projected 19.3 fantasy points and he fell short of that with only 15.14 fantasy points.

Starting off with my running back one: Jonathan Taylor. Taylor had 10.8 fantasy points on sixteen touches for forty-eight yards and one touchdown. He fell short of his projection of 16.5 points and he finished as running back thirty on week one. My running back was Kenneth Walker III, Walker had twenty touches for one hundred and three yards and one touchdown. Walker was also involved in the passing game with three targets, two catches, and six receiving yards. Walker was projected 16.1 fantasy points and he did better than his projection with 18.9 fantasy points. Walker got beat up a little bit and exited the game with an abdominal injury late in the second half.

Now onto wide receivers, My wide receiver one last week was Garret Wilson.

Wilson was projected to have 16.5 fantasy points, but Wilson busted with only 12 fantasy points.

Wilson was targeted 11 times with only 6 catches with only 60 yards. Cooper Kupp is wide Receiver two, and Kupp had a monster week. Kupp was projected 14.7 fantasy points, and Kupp boomed with 32.0 Fantasy points.Kupp was targeted 21 times, and came down with 14 of the 21 targets with 110 yards and a touchdown. Kupp finished as the wide receiver 3 this week!

I started Rashee Rice from the Kansas City Chiefs as my flex this week. Rice was projected to have 14.1 fantasy points this week, and finished with 17.3 fantasy points. Rice had 9 targets and 7 receptions for 103 yards. Rice was one of my sleepers going into this year, and my friends called me an idiot but I am proving them wrong.

Onto with the defense and the kicker, I started the Bengals defense. The Bengals projected 7.9 fantasy points and he ended with 4 fantasy points. The Bengals defense gave up 16 points to the Patriots and the defense had 1 sack. My kicker was Cairo Santos, he was projected 7.8 fantasy points. Santos finished with 13.0 fantasy points, and Santos had 3 field goals and 1 extra point.

That is a wrap for team Dipper Kupp Fantasy breakdown week 1. We will see you in week 2.

The Fall Off of Tim Anderson

By: Benson Elmore

Tim Anderson, the Chicago White Sox shortstop, could have had a historic career for the Chicago White Sox, and he had very high hopes for the future. Here’s a breakdown of how severely one of the most electric players in recent years has fallen off since his amazing season in 2021:

2021: In 2021, Tim Anderson made hitting in the majors look easy. He hit .309, showcasing his strong hitting ability and consistency. He was known for his excellent contact skills and agility on the base path. Anderson made the All-Star team this year, underscoring his status as one of the best all-around shortstops in the league. His defensive and offensive production were key for the White Sox, who were very competitive in the American League Central division that year.

2024: By the year 2024, Tim Anderson was just another “could have been” kind of guy for baseball fans. His batting average had settled around .218, reflecting a decent dip from his peak performance causing productivity concern. Injuries and changes in the White Sox roster in 2024 caused Anderson to be sent to Miami Beach to play for the marlins where he is now not half the player he was imagined to be. Ever since the infamous fight with Jose Ramirez, his career has never been the same, even seeming to affect his attributes, such as having no home runs this whole major league season. Since becoming a marlin though, Tim seems to be a simple name brought up only when someone needs something nostalgic to ponder on.

When the name Tim Anderson appears in your mind, you probably think of the talented all-star shortstop for the White Sox, but that Tim Anderson seems to not exist anymore. The downfall of not only Tim Anderson, but the whole White Sox organization should be studied. Though Tim is no longer the electric middle infielder we all know, he will always be remembered for how significant his role was on the White Sox throughout his short-lived major league career.

Dogs in Need

By: Campbell Cromer

Every year, many dogs find themselves in shelters, abandoned, or living in unsafe conditions. These dogs are left in need of care, love, and a safe place to call home. While it’s easy to overlook the situation, we all have the ability to make a difference in these animals lives. Many of these dogs come from difficult backgrounds. Most are strays, many others are surrendered by families that can no longer care for them. They are often in need of medical care, rehab, or simply a love and a good family. Shelters and rescues work hard to care for these dogs, but they are often have too many dogs for the amount of money they have.

Adopting a dog from a shelter or rescue is one of the best ways to help. Homes that suit dogs are filled with love, attention, caring for the dog the way it needs to be cared for. These homes provide a safe home, proper health regulations, exercise, and routine veterinary checks. A truly good home also offers friends and treats dogs. By giving a dog a loving home, you not only save that animal from their prior situation, but also make space for another dog that need help. There are many strays in Sumter and all over the world and many of these dogs need to be adopted.

If adoption isn’t possible, fostering could be an another way to help dogs in your community. It gives dogs a temporary, loving home and helps them adjust to family life. Volunteering your time at a shelter, donating supplies, or raising awareness about the issue are other great ways to help dogs in need. Even little differences like saving a single dog can make a huge difference in the lives of these animals. Every dog deserves a chance at a happy, healthy, and well cared for life. Whether through adoption, fostering, or volunteering, you can help many dogs in need

Rating Crumbl Cookie Flavors

By: Morgan Aycock

I will be starting a series of rating the Crumbl Cookie flavors of the week. As many know, Crumbl Cookie has soared throughout the internet and blown up all around the US. The company, founded in 2017, was recently deemed the fastest-growing chain of dessert shops in the US. This viral sensation is popular for their weekly-changing menu which consists of six cookies. The company uses social media to acquire customers and gets customers to purchase when their favorite flavors are available and plays on the fear of missing out. My ratings are solely opinion based.

This week’s menu items (September 2-7):

Semi-sweet chocolate chunk

The afterlife cake

Banana bread

Churro

Strawberry shortcake cookie

Triple chocolate chip

Strawberry shortcake cookie

Crumbl Cookies’ description: A cakey cookie topped with silky whipped cream, freshly chopped strawberries, and a house-made strawberry jam. (4.4 stars)

I have not tried this cookie, however, I think I would like it the most because it has whipped cream and not their traditional icing with the strawberries on top.

Semi-sweet chocolate chunk

Crumbl Cookies’ description: Chocolate chip, but make it chunky—a delicious cookie filled with irresistible semi-sweet chocolate chunks and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. (4.6 stars)

Crumbl has this flavor every week. Although some say it gets old, I believe that it is a classic and Crumbl has yet to fail with this cookie.

Triple chocolate chip

Crumbl Cookies’ description: A chocolate cookie packed with semi-sweet chunks, creamy white chips, and milk chocolate chips. (4.3 stars)

I have had this cookie numerous times, and it has been pretty good every time. It is a little boring as a whole, but there is not much to mess up on, and I like how warm it is.

Churro

Crumbl Cookies’ description: A warm cookie bursting with cinnamon flavor and topped with a swirl of smooth cinnamon buttercream and a dusting of cinnamon sugar. (4.5 stars)

I also have not tried this cookie, but I think I would like how it is served warm. I have watched reviews on this cookie from numerous people, and they have all said that it tastes almost exactly like a real churro. However, I think the immense amount of cinnamon would overpower the cookie and I do not think I would like it.

The afterlife cake

Crumbl Cookies’ description: A ghostly two-tiered dark chocolate cake layered with vanilla and dark chocolate cream cheese frosting, NATURALLY colored by rich dark cocoa, and finished with sprinkles and a special-edition topper. (4.3 stars)

I do not think I would like this cake and I also think the idea of a Beetlejuice cake is not popular. Many people have said that the cake is bland and dry, and I do not like the dark chocolate and vanilla mix. I think it should be a more interesting cake and have more flavors.

Banana bread

Crumbl Cookies’ description: A fluffy banana bread loaf topped with a crunch of brown sugar and cinnamon-packed streusel. (4 stars)

With this being the most on average lowest rating of the week, it obviously had to be last. I think that Crumbl should stick to only selling cookies, and after watching many reviews on this bread, many have said it is bland and dry. I have also heard that it had no banana flavor in it.

NBA Play-In Tournament

by: Andrew Brown

Rules: The 7 and 8 seeds of both conferences will play one game. The winner of the side will receive a spot in the playoffs facing the 2 seed while the loser of this game will get another chance to get in the playoffs as it will play the winner of the 9 and 10 seed games. The winner of the 7/8 seed game on the western side will play the 2 seed Denver Nuggets and the winner of the eastern seed side will play the 2 seed New York Knicks. After those seeds play, the 9/10 seeds will play. The winner of the 9/10 seed game will go on to play the loser of the 7/8 seed to get a spot in the playoffs against the number 1 seed. Whoever loses this matchup will be eliminated from the playoffs.

Western Conference
Tuesday 16

8 Lakers vs #7 Pelicans 7:30pm

Who’s going to win: Pelicans. The Lakers won the regular season series 3-1. With Zion looking better than ever I see him having a really good game. With Zion being physically matched to handle Lebron strength expect him to have a low scoring game. With them being one of the best defensive teams in the league it’ll be hard for the Lakers to get shots up especially in the paint as they rank number 5 in the nba in opposing teams points in the paint per game. But scoring in the paint is one thing the Lakers are good at. The Lakers are the second best team in the Nba in doing that. The Lakers also might lose this game on purpose just so they don’t have to play the Nuggets. This game is going to come down to Zion, whoever wins the battle down low and if the Lakers are hitting from deep.

10 Warriors vs #9 Kings 10:00pm

Who’s going to win: Kings. The regular season series was a tie at 2 apiece (2-2). This team feeds off energy and when they get hype they get hot. After the Warriors made them pack their bags up last year this is a revenge game. For the Kings this game is more than making the playoffs. They want to destroy the Warriors and let them know how it feels. I expect Fox and Sabonis to have big games and send the Warriors home. As for the Warriors Curry likes to be
the villain. He has carried his team to the playoffs and when you think they have no way of winning he shows up and gets it done. If he isn’t shooting well in this game then they have no chance of winning. With that being said Veterans like Klay and Paul need to use their experience to help Curry out and win this game.

Eastern Conference
Wednesday 17

8 Heat vs #7 76ers 7:30pm

Who’s going to win: 76ers. The regular season series was a tie at 2 apiece (2-2). With Embiid back, winning will be much easier for the 76ers. When Embiid plays they win 79% of their games (31-8) but when he doesn’t play they win 37% of their games (16-27) which means they are losing 63% of their games when he doesn’t play. As for tonight, Embiid should easily score. Losing will be embarrassing especially when they only have Jimmy Butler. As for the Heat, their only priority for this game is slowing down Embiid. Playoff Jimmy also needs to be activated for this game in order to win and get into the playoffs.

10 Hawks vs #9 Bulls 10:00pm

Who’s going to win: Hawks. The Bulls have won the regular season series 2-1. This team is hard to figure out. They can beat the number 1 Celtics back to back nights and then lose to the Hornets 2 weeks later. Even though they are on a 6 game losing streak Trae Young and the Hawks won’t go out without a fight. They know that if they lose their season is over so I expect Young and Murray to come out aggressively and have big games. As for the Bulls who have been dealing with injuries this season they just need to focus and win this game. Demar DeRosen needs to come up big to win this game.

Eastern/ Western Conference
Friday 19

Winner of Eastern #9/10 vs Loser of Eastern #7/8 Time TBD

Winner of Western #9/10 vs Loser of Western #7/8 Time TBD

My Favorite Things

By: Alli Reagan Fidler

My Current Favorite Perfumes/ What Perfumes I’d Recommend

Background:

Anyone that knows me personally, knows I have a thing for perfumes. I quite literally have a collection of Bath and Body Works along with a bunch of miscellaneous finer perfumes. Why do you have this? What started this obsession? One might ask. … Well, to be quite honest, it started around middle school. I’m not really sure what event sparked it. My best friend, Maggie, also has the same sort of obsession, so I think I was influenced by her around that time.

Current favs and recommendations:

Starting off strong, a really great affordable perfume is Amber by Nemat, you can get it at Ulta for around twenty dollars. This perfume is SO GOOD. I’m Not sure if this is true, but I heard it kind of changes scent to adapt to your own skin, meaning that the way it smells on someone else might be slightly different than it smells on you. Then again, I just heard that. I have absolutely zero clue if that is true. Sometimes, if you wear it for a long time, you can no longer smell it on yourself, so it may seem like it isn’t working. I don’t really know why that happens, but even if you cannot smell it on yourself, people can smell it on you. It has a very fresh and slightly sweet scent. I purchased it after my friend, Mary Carter, told me about all the compliments she’d received while wearing it. Overall, I’d definitely recommend this perfume.

Next is the Vanilla Musk perfume by Nemat. You can also find this at Ulta for twenty dollars. I really love this scent. It’s super sweet but not too overwhelmingly sweet. I’m not sure if this makes sense, but it is like a comforting, clean sweet scent of vanilla. I would definitely recommend this perfume. It is an oil perfume you dab on your skin. It comes in a little small bottle, which lasts a really long time. This perfume is one of my consistent go-tos!

One new perfume I recently got and love is the Pink Cloud perfume by Ariana Grande. I have had the regular cloud perfume before and I liked it. However, the Pink Cloud is something out of this world. It’s similar to the cloud perfume, but has a slightly sweet/ fresh twist towards the end of it. It’s such a good perfume, and it comes in the cutest bottle that is shaped like a pink cloud. I typically wear this one every day!

Ok, this last perfume is my current all time favorite. It’s Daisy Intense by Marc Jacobs. I don’t even know how to describe the smell of it to be completely honest. It’s simply amazing. It’s very sweet and fresh. It smells kind of like spring. It’s very fruity and fresh. I’m not sure of the exact size, but the smaller size bottle is ninety dollars. It’s a little more pricey than the others but still not super expensive. All in All, I would definitely recommend investing in this perfume.

Amber by Nemat

Vanilla Musk by Nemat

Daisy Intense by Marc Jacobs Pink Cloud by Ariana Grande

Why the Packers are going to win the Super Bowl.

By Connor Hanson

When I look at the packers I see a really young team that has completely filled out the shoes that they are expected to. They had no expectations at the beginning of the year due to an injury filled wide receiver room while still being really young, and an unproven quarterback that had a rough first couple starts in the absence of Aaron Rodgers.

Last weekend the Packers played the Dallas Cowboys, which were the favorites to win the game on every website that does odds. And why wouldn’t they be, they had to play against the most lousy run defenses I’ve ever had the chore of watching, while combining with a quarterback with no playoff experience. Despite all this the Packers shocked the world and pummeled the Cowboys in an avalanche of scoring due to effortless throws by Jordan love.

This weekend the Packers matchup with one of the most explosive offenses of all time in the San Francisco 49ers. Offense is going to have to win the Packers this game, because the 49ers are going to put up points either way, we are just going to have to score more.

Is it Finally Baltimore’s Year?

By: Dylan Jones

As the road to the Super Bowl is on the horizon, the Baltimore Ravens have looked to be a clear favorite. Lamar Jackson has been playing great football and is projected to win the Most Valuable Player. This year is also brings the most weapons that Jackson has had around him during his time in Baltimore. Some of these weapons include veteran receiver Odell Beckham Jr, 1st round draft pick Zay Flowers, third year receiver coming back from injury Rashod Bateman, tight end Mark Andrews and rookie running back Keaton Mitchell. The defensive line has been playing the best it has played in a very long time. I think this is due to the offseason signing of Jadeveon Clowney. Clowney was the first overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft so the potential was there it was just a matter of getting him to produce. Many labeled him as a bust, but this year he is helping out this defense to take the next step.

The Ravens were great in the regular season, but now it’s win or go home. The Ravens are dealing with a lot of major injuries like tight end Mark Andrews, star safety Kyle Hamilton, and rookie running Keaton Mitchell so that already starts them behind the 8-ball because they won’t be 100%. Now Lamar Jackson has had some phenomenal regular seasons like when he won the MVP in 2019, but once again that is the regular season. Throughout his career, he has not played his best football during the playoffs. It is also very hard to count out Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. They have had their struggles, but Mahomes is still an elite quarterback and performs well in the playoffs. I am not saying the Ravens can not get it done, but they are definitely not my pick to win Super Bowl 58.