NICK KRENISKY demonstrates
a karate hold on one of his students.
STACY PUZO
"And everybody was Kung Fu fighting..."
Well, maybe not everybody, just Nick and Justin Krenisky. These two brothers from Ashtabula have been punching and kicking their way around town and even to other countries.
Nick, a 16-year old junior at Ashtabula High School, has been participating in Go Ju Kenpo Ryu Karate (say that five times fast!) for eight years. He has achieved, among other things, a black belt, brought home one gold and two silver medals from a competition in Russia (yeah, the country!) and most recently has begun to teach his skills to people of all ages.
Along, with his brother, Justin, an AHS freshman, who has also been learning karate for eight years and is a brown belt, instruct classes every Monday and Wednesday night from 6:30 to 8:30.
The Krenisky Brothers were originally recommended by their sensei, (master or teacher, IF you didn't know) Brad Leonard, to replace the instructor of the karate program at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School and did so until Thurgood's program's were cut. Then, Karen Ridell, their business manager, set up a meeting with a nearby church and consequently, scored them a new home, which is were they are continuing their classes.
The Police Athletic League then stepped in and graciously provided funding for the program. Nick informed me that they must keep very up-to-date records in-order to report their stats back to the PAL, who gives them a budget, which they must stay within.
I asked Nick which aspect he enjoyed more: taking classes or teaching classes? His reply: "Taking classes. Teaching is fun, I mean it's all right, but I like to learn, too."
Well, the brotherly dynamic duo will be taking their classes to Erie in February for the annual King Cobra tournament, held by Master John Barton.
For more information , call 992-9804. All classes are free of charge. Also, Nick and Justin may soon be looking for a new place to set up camp, if you have any information that may help them out, call the number listed above.
Until next time...Hi-ya!
Puzo, even though just a junior at Ashtabula High School, says she played the Kato on the old "Green Hornet" TV series. She also says she writes Mario's Music News in Friday's Inns `N' Outs. Sure.
An Amber Thompson column
Today's teens are very versatile and crave individualism. This includes multiple piercings, tattoos and clothes.
I've read several girls' magazines with makeovers and often the stylist dyes their hair to create a new look.
I also pass by guys with bleached heads, wacky colors or even highlights. It seems to be a unisex way to express yourself.
The intent may be to make hair look livelier or completely change the overall look.
How does one make sure he/she gets everything the person wants out of color choice?
What if it shows up too much?
Will it ruin the hair?
I asked Chris D'Itri, "Barber in the Harbor" stylist, how to get the results desired from dyes.
A.T.: Are there any harmful problems to look out for when dyeing with an at-home colorant?
C.D.: No, but you can get defective color if directions aren't followed.
A.T.: Why do you suggest going to a salon?
C.D.: Simply, so you can get good, even coverage. Color can change unless you know what you are doing.
A.T.: What are the most requested hair colors for teens right now?
C.D.: Teens. I'd say blonder hair, auburn and highlights.
A.T.: Do you suggest temporary week-long dyes?
C.D.: No, not at all. Your hair'll never go back to normal. If you go from blonde to auburn, you'll be pink by the end of the week. (This surprised me most of all. I thought temporary color would be less harmful.)
A.T.: Can a person go really drastic without damaging hair? Dark hair to blonde?
C.D.: Depends on the color. Dark to blonde -- that'll damage hair.
Mr. D'Itri also put a nix on bleaching or using peroxide on hair.
"That'll really damage hair. High ammonia will, too."
Much thanks to Chris D'Itri for his professional advice.
So go. Streak, highlight and dye and do it smartly. G'luck with the new you!
Thompson will color your hair with Lucite if you provide the roller.
'I Have A Sexy
Secret'A Jim Waid column
I caught you didn't I? Don't deny it, you saw the title and wanted to be shocked.
We're a nation of voyeurs, aren't we? The universal pastime has now become watching others, their families, their faults, their fights, and their affairs.
It's a drug, our heroin if you will. And Jerry Springer is our dealer. For a while, we were all having a lot of fun, wild train rides of prostitutes, hillbillies, racists and drag queens parading themselves into our living room for us to enjoy in private.
Daytime programming had become a party and everyone received a scented invitation, sealed with a kiss.
But since that golden age of television, just a few months back, the banquet had been crashed by a new breed of guest. All of a sudden the pregnant women have lost their glow and seem intent only in bashing the heads of the guest next to them; the friendly transvestites are no longer content with simply competing in Jerry's "Mr(s). He/She America" contests, and are fighting back, getting up in the audiences face and shaking their moneymakers. We've been eyewitnesses to domestic violence right up on center stage, every form of prejudice possible, racial violence, gay bashing, adultery and hatred.
OK, so maybe those have always been components in Jerry's super-secret party mix, but until recently, they never dared to overtake the whole show. It used to be about the guests, the people that had decided to air their families' old, nasty, mildewed laundry to all of suburbia.
And then at the end of the show, after feeling your conscience nagging at you a little, old man Jerry would return and provide the viewing public with his vision of the world, a little bit of his homespun wisdom, tempered with his hip urban edge.
Then everything was all right. There really HAD been something redeeming about the show - the "final thought" was exactly what we needed to hide our tracks, to soothe us out of this world guilt-free, to make our addiction look harmless and our highs fun.
Unfortunately, our heroin lost its effect a couple of months ago and now even the "final thoughts" are unable to make us rationalize how were spending our time and attention.
Every segment has its knock-down drag-out brawl, people get their noses broken, hair pulled out, black eyes, bruises, and the guests don't even seem to realize that this is actually socially unacceptable behavior for television. What used to be the show's main draw, the possibility for some kind of rumble, has turned the tables on us when our backs were turned and has now seemed to have set upon the mission of pushing us away.
Unpredictability used to be a key element in the equation. The viewer was never sure what the panelist was going to say or do, how they were going to respond to something, or if they would actually say something that could cause us, the audience, a twinge of embarrassment for turning their hurt into mindless entertainment.
But Jerry's in a rut, it seems, and his guests are all cut from the same cloth. Yes, they look differently, dress differently, walk and talk differently, but deep down they all adhere to the same philosophy: Beat the heads of anyone that dares to talk trash.
And that's where its become sad, because the only thing they do know how to talk IS trash. They aren't mainstream society, but rather a depressing, exhibitionist, sensationalistic subculture that loves nothing more than to wallow in the deepest depths to which they can burrow.
An appearance on "The Jerry Springer Show" is the ultimate culmination of every fantasy they've ever dared to dream.
Jerry's on the verge of being boring. He's stagnant. And sadly, that's where he has failed us. How much of our society's underside can he dare to show on network television? He has pushed the envelope as far as its going to be pushed for the time being. He can't go any farther ahead, forging into uncharted territory, and trying to retreat will only make him lose a good portion of his audience.
In the end, nobody's going to win and we'll just be searching for a new diversion, a new drug we haven't tried before.
Waid has been practicing chair throwing in case he gets on Jerry's show. His record: 9 feet, 5 inches. And that's with a Lazy Boy.
Hey, here's Adam Dresnek, 13, a seventh-grader at Jefferson Area High School.
Way back when, Adam lived in Andover and likes to read scary stuff. (A connection there, maybe?)
Right now he's reading a biography of Edgar Allen Poe. He got turned on to the subject after reading the poem "The Raven" in English class.
He's a contemporary guy, too. He said the best thing he's read are volumes in "Goosebumps," a well-known teen terror series by R.L. Stine.
What does the future hold for Dresnek? He said he's extremely interested in taking Spanish classes as an upperclassman.
"I want to go to Mexico," he said.
You can read there Adam, but please, please, don't drink the water.
Need money for college? Sure you do. That's like saying, do you need gasoline for your car or special sauce on your burger?
Well, nine hardworking Ohio graduate students will be awarded full tuition via the Ohio Bicentennial Legacy Scholarships for the 1998-99 academic year.
There's a Feb. 13 deadline, with scholarships announced March 2.
Scholarships are designed to encourage series study of topics associated with Ohio's past in a wide range of academic disciplines. The scholarships cover full tuition, supplemented with a one-year stipend of $9,000 to $12,000.
Hey, we aren't talking about a shiny quarter from Great Aunt Bertha.
Write to the Ohio Bicentennial Commission at Statehouse Room 021 North, Columbus 43215 or visit the Web site at www.ohio200.com. You know Bertha's address.
Wonder if there's a stipend for Teen/Currents editors.
Lake Performing Arts musical theatre classes for kids and teens ages 8 to 16 start Jan. 31 at the center at 28700 Euclid Ave., Wickliffe.
Get training in acting, movement and voice. You could be the next Macauley Culkin. (Slap your face.)
Students will participate in a final production April 4 and 5.
Classes go from Jan. 31 to March 28 from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Also, the center hosts a musical production of "Lil Abner" and "Once Upon a Mattress." Auditions are Jan. 24 and 25 for kids 12 to 18.
Send us free tickets.
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