R.A.S. ink, is a collection of student work, art, and musings we want to share with the greater Ithaca area. 

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Cover Art: Nya Moore

The ocean waves crash up against the jagged rocks at the bottom of the cliffs. It's night. The moon, struggling to peek through the heavy cloud cover, shines faintly on the ocean's angry waters. 

Upon the cliff is where the Lighthouse itself resides. It sits alone, the village to which it had once belonged eroded away due to constant storms. Its beam periodically cuts through the darkness, bringing a flash of light to the vast, empty ocean it watches over. The light also brings a spark of hope to me, who has waited for a ship to find this shore on which I reside.

I want it to take me home. Home to clear blue skies, bright green grass, and the family I never meant to leave behind, even though they are no longer on this earth. I long to return home; to lay down my head and close my eyes. This is my greatest wish, yet it is still only that. A wish. I pray to whoever will listen to my pleas. Take me home. All I ask is that a ship finds this shore and takes me home. 

For as long as I have been on this island, I have never moved from the spot in which I sit now. I am on my knees in the center of a fairy circle a little ways from the cliff's edge. The mush- rooms are a dull yellow, and give off a faint scent that I can’t place. From my place within the circle, I have a clear view of both the ocean and the lighthouse. As I gaze upon the place where the sky meets the sea, I feel an acute sense of sadness, for the ocean remains the same. 

I sigh, lost in my past as the murky, raging waters spray me with salty water. I can barely feel it. 

Turning away from the ocean, I set my sights on the lighthouse. It has not changed much since I have been here. The only difference is the creeping ivy that grows up the tower. It makes the bricks more green than white. 

The lighthouse's yellow white beam will turn off anytime now. It turns on every evening at dusk, and turns off every morning at dawn. It is a cycle that has been going on for as long as I can remember, though I never see anyone enter or leave the lighthouse. I don’t know who operates it. Someone has to. Buttons can’t push themselves. Leavers can’t pull themselves. Unless the lighthouse runs on a timed generator somewhere. That's unlikely, as power to the island was cut off a long time ago. 

(to be continued in Vol.  3 of R.A.S. ink…)

I have a theory about Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games that could explain why it is hard for us to tell what she is feeling sometimes. As a 16 year old girl with autism, I have reason to believe that Katniss does as well. Her usual “rigid” behavior is something often characterized with autism. Assuming that my theory is correct, that she is autistic, I feel that this explains her behavior. She often doesn't understand her own feelings and tries to ignore them to be logical.  She also follows a structured plan of some sort, which is another sign of autism. During the first games, she thinks logically and “robotically” about ways to show affection towards Peeta instead of just doing whatever most people would do. In her own way she shows that she cares for him by taking care of him, and when it was announced that there would be a “feast” with things that the tributes need she immediately thinks of the medicine for Peeta’s leg. This can be another common sign of autism in which instead of the usual “words of affirmation” or “physical touch” acts of service are usually the more common love language among autistic  people.

It is known that all dogs go to heaven, but how do they get there?

In the United States, on average 7.6 million animals go into animal shelters each year. Out of those animals, 2.7 million are surrendered by their owners, and 4.9 million are found as strays or in poor conditions. Out of all of these animals, 4.1 million are adopted. That leaves 3.5 million animals to be adopted in shelters. 

Unfortunately though, many of these pets see the end of their days in these shelters, surrounded by the sounds of other lost dogs and the rush of people passing them day by day. At the end of the day, shelters are packed and can only keep so many animals in a safe environment and often there are pets that are unhealthy, and in pain. 920,000 pets are euthanized a year, nearly 2,200 everyday. While we love our pets, we must remember that what annoys us now, we will miss later. While you might not understand the pain of them leaving yet, there will come a time, a place, whether you expect it or not, they will leave us. But if there is anything we learned through their life, all pets go to heaven.

Tell me about the time you were hungry and all you could find to eat was a box of Cap’n Crunch... It wasn't anything special or interesting though. Not the fruity one, or the peanut butter one, or the Christmas themed one. It was just plain old boring Captain Crunch. I decided to stay hungry, because I wasn't interested in boring old cereal. No thank you. — Hannah F.

Tell me about the time you found a troll living in the basement... So one night, I remembered that I had to switch my laundry to the drier, else I wasn’t gonna have any clothes for school tomorrow. I went down- stairs not expecting much, and what do I see but a troll sitting on the couch with his mossy butt all up in the cushions. Unacceptable. Even worse, he was watching Mr. Beast videos on the TV. I immediately got my troll thwacking stick and started thwacking the troll until it left, no Mr. Beast watching trolls in my house. He tried to fight back but my troll thwacking stick was too strong.

There are many truck brands and models in today's age that either can not do the work it is needed for, or it breaks down halfway through. Cars are just about only good for transporting people but trucks can do that too. Trucks are a kind of a vehicle that were created for durability, utility, diverse terrain and are often used by farmers, outdoorsmen, and businesses that involve some sort of transportation of people and cargo. Because of weight and towing capacity, if you are hauling an animal transporter with ten cows in it, you will need more than a Nissan Altima for efficient hauling. When it comes to hauling trailers or anything heavy, there is a difference between torque and horse- power. Before I get into that, torque is the measurement of how much force is used to activate the rotational force and to then drive the vehicle. Horsepower on the other hand, to put it simply, is how fast the engine can work at. Nissan Altimas typically have around 182 to 188 hp (horsepower) and 178 to 180 foot pounds of torque. Feet per pound is a unit of measurement that means when energy is raised by a pound, it increases length by a foot simultaneously. The Ford 300 4.9 liter inline 6 engine has around 117 to 120 horsepower typically and 223 to 260 foot pounds of torque. Despite the Nissan Altima having a higher horsepower, the Ford would absolutely haul a lot more because of the torque.

As for truck brands, there is no single truck brand that is good, it all depends on where you are getting the vehicle from and how new it is. Sure, if you buy an old pickup truck; there might be a lot to fix, but when that truck is restored, it will last longer, it is easier to work on because of its age and you will be spending significantly less money as opposed to a new truck. The best trucks ever built though are the Ford F-Series 9th generation, nothing comes close to it. Two stock options for the truck are the Ford 300 and Ford 460 series and these engines are amazing. The Ford 300 is known for its durability, they are known to last as long as you want them to. The Ford 460 series is known for its speed with a horsepower range of 365 to 485 hp.

Let’s start with one of the simpler types of dirt bikes to work on, and one of the most common problems… dirt getting in your carbs. Dirt can enter the engine through the air filter or contaminated gas, clogging the fuel jets, which clogs your fuel jets, which are small pinhole needles that inject your gas into an air mixture for your engine. When this happens your bike may just start and bog down, or when you go to give it throttle it bogs down like it's not running right or not at all. It could be your bike not getting enough air or fuel to the engine. This would be caused by a problem with your carburetor. 

One of the easiest ways to fix this is by taking off the air intake manifold and then your throttle cable off the carburetor. Next, unhook your gas line and take apart your carburetor and clean your fuel jets. To clean them, personally I have used carb cleaner, or you can, in a pinch just use brake cleaner; just make sure you get the brake cleaner out by either letting it dry or wipe it down and you can use a needle or blow into the fuel jet to unclog it. If this doesn’t work you may have to buy a whole new carburetor. Once it’s clean, put it all back together and you’re good to go.

The movie Logan follows a man better known as Wolverine. The character has been played by Hugh Jackman for 25 years. Wolverine is a superhero known as a mutant and has super powers such as regeneration and three claws on each hand. Before being injected with an indestructible metal, his claws were made of bone, but now they form a metal exoskeleton. The movie follows Logan as he helps rescue young mutants from a group that experiments on them. Logan's daughter was also a part of the group being hunted by the scientists’ lackies. Over time, Logan suffered metal poisoning which weakened him. Ultimately, he was killed by a cloned version of himself. The film ends with Logan’s death. His daughter and the other young mutants bury him before escaping to safety. The main point of the movie was that mutants and humans can live in peace. Even if their kids have those powers to do good or evil, they shouldn't be hunted like animals. The movie was well received because it gave Wolverine a proper ending, evoking a range of emotions.