August 25, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
After a week of sheer monotony, John Carroll Catholic High School opened its doors once more to fervent students, myself included. After waking up extra early to flat–iron my unruly curls into obedience, I grabbed my schoolbag (filled with fresh and colorful school supplies), popped a mix CD into my car stereo and set off for my last first day of high school. The day proved to be a great success. Fortune was in my favor as I managed to claim a parking space in close proximity to the yearbook room, a preferable locker that offers an easy exchange between classes and seats with my friends in nearly all of my classes. Although I am sure to have an increased workload, I look with great anticipation toward the progress of my AP classes, especially English. However, I am already feeling both the literal and metaphorical weight of these classes; my schoolbag is jam–packed with accumulating homework assignments and it’s only the first day of school!
I’m also eager to begin planning school retreats during my peer ministry class, called Alpha. Already, our class is debating on various themes for retreats, prayer services and memorials. Yearbook period was an exciting event due to my seniority and increased power on the staff, and I contentedly kicked back in front of my favorite computer and schemed about the upcoming year of deadlines, copy writing, and photography for the 2008–2009 yearbook. Then, released two minutes early for lunch by the senior bell — a privilege that I have anticipated since freshmen year — I sauntered off to the cafeteria to indulge in a Diet Coke and tossed salad with all of my friends.
The day was marred only by a rainstorm that struck the school just moments before I had to trek across campus to the portables for my final class. However, other than the aforementioned, the day went off without a hitch. My year is buzzing with potential, from (hopefully) witnessing a winning year in football for the Rams or auditioning for the school musical, the possibilities are endless. And at the culmination of four years of enduring tyrannical teachers, endless homework and exhausting extracurriculars, graduation promises both an end and a new beginning. As challenging as the road to senior year has been, the destination was well worth the effort of the journey.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, have homework to do!
Posted: 08.25.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 22, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
The first Friday of the school year has finally arrived — in the places it began on schedule.
By now, the glitz and glamour of the return to school has probably worn off, and students are counting the seconds until dismissal, full of exciting plans for the weekend and the anticipation of sleeping late once again.
However, for me, today is just another day. The floodwaters have finally receded in St. Lucie County, and all of its students are looking with great expectation towards the beginning of the school year on Monday.
School busses will once more pollute the streets, slowing down traffic and annoying commuters, myself included, in a major way.
Our school bags will burst at the seams from excessive homework, given by dictatorial teachers, and the onslaught of pressure from application deadlines, leadership responsibilities, and scholastic expectations will be felt once more.
I have never been more excited to endure these pressures in my entire life.
As for the after–effects of Fay, I am quite glad to see them leave. This has been my first experience with a tropical storm since moving to southern Florida from Jacksonville, and I must say, after the initial amusement and “danger,” I found the experience quite dull.
As interesting as it is to see the homes of my friends and the streets of my city each night on the news, the tediousness from the postponement of school greatly outweighs the curiosity.
My family and I are very lucky that we suffered minimal damage, and relieved that our friends and neighbors were also as fortunate.
I am thrilled to drive securely around St. Lucie West again; in fact, my friends and I are about to depart for the Treasure Coast Mall in celebration of the dry roads.
Come Monday morning, I am sure to experience the great enthusiasm, apprehension, and elation that my fellow bloggers underwent this week. I am positive that my year will be equally as enjoyable and complicated as theirs will; my year is simply starting a week later. And as stressful and lackluster as this delay has been, it is not the beginning that determines the success and value of the year, but the ending.
Posted: 08.22.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 22, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
This week has been definitely an eye–opener to the responsibilities and privileges that come with being a senior.
We were given new rules to follow for this year, and our classes had to adjust to this transition. Of course we have some privileges, being the leaders of the school, like eating outside and wearing our senior shirts every day, but the work we seniors have to do to prepare for college is heavy.
The classes all in all have been, for my taste, acceptable. I have a good balance of goof–offs and serious students in my classes, which gives each class a pleasant variety of personal views.
What’s my favorite class? Now it would be a four–way tie among journalism, comprehensive theater, yearbook and honors English.
One would never guess this, but I have a passion for writing. I’ll be starting two dual–enrollment classes at Lynn University, one for journalism and the other for comprehensive theater. I hope to attend Lynn University after high school, where two of my sisters are enrolled. But we’ll worry about that at a later date.
Next week is going to be very exciting! Our school has “Welcome Week” starting Aug. 25, and lasting through Aug. 29.
This upcoming week will be full of activities, such as crazy hair day, giving the students a chance to show–off their school spirit and their wacky sense of creativity. Wrapping up the week on Friday, our school will be having a freshmen/senior picnic. It’s a chance for the seniors and freshmen to bond and spend some quality time together.
I must say, this experience with the Florida Catholic has simply been amazing! It was the second time I have had my work published and the first time I was able to speak my mind so openly.
I hope to continue writing in the future, whenever I am needed. As for now, I will continue my senior year with an open mind and high expectations.
Posted: 08.22.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 21, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
My teachers are tough but fair.
As for the work, let’s not talk about the work. No, I’m kidding. The work is expected and not too demanding for the first week of school. I’m already finding that my leadership positions are starting to come into play, which just means lots and lots of work. Speaking of play, I couldn’t be more excited for our school production of “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” in the spring. Tryouts will be coming up soon and I’m ready to roll! Our director and my comp. theater teacher, Mr. Castellano, has made my experience with drama truly enjoyable. He is a wonderful teacher; very openly interacts with the students, receiving positive feedback and rightly so.
We’ll also be starting work on the school paper in journalism very soon along with the school yearbook. With deadlines waiting at every corner, it’s times like these where I have to wonder, “Where is life’s pause button?” I must say, though, I’m not too worried about yearbook deadlines. My co–editor, Kristen Bonelli, has tackled several pages a week before they were due. Yes, our team is that good.
Am I feeling a tad bit stressed? Yes, but nothing I cannot handle. If this gets to be too much, I’ve got my best friends Dayna Gangi and Mitchel Baccinelli to help me out and snap me back into shape. They are like family to me, not that I don’t have enough siblings already. I am thrilled to have them in two and four of my classes and lunch.
All in all, my schedule this year rocks! Occasionally, I’ll find myself spacing out in some classes and doodling little pictures here and there — which turn out to be very cute, thank you very much — but rarely is an opportunity presented to me. Being a senior means that now the pressure is on. As long as I don’t catch the ever–contagious and dreaded “senioritis,” until at least after grad night, I’ll be just fine.
Posted: 08.22.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 21, 2008 | ANDREW GENTILE | Cardinal Newman High School
Because I’m involved so much with music, sports are kind of a negligible thing for me.
Newman does have a few good sports teams. I know our lacrosse team is pretty good and football has always been big at our school. I guess other people care more about sports than I do.
When homecoming comes around, sports take the school by storm. The whole homecoming week is kind of a rite of passage for high school students. Everything, from the different class themes to the pep rally at the end of the week, aids in the hindering of any academic progress during homecoming week.
As a musician, I enjoy hearing our school band’s renditions of pop songs at pep rallies. This year the pep band is trying to bring things to the next level by adding some electric instruments. They have asked a student to play bass and me to play guitar. It should be a lot of fun. Maybe this year I’ll become more involved in sports by playing with the pep band.
Maybe it’s because Newman is a smaller school or maybe the whole idea of a “star high school athlete” has just kind of faded away, because I don’t think a single student has reached the kind of superstar status associated with being an all–star athlete in a high school.
I’m not sure if the Olympics will have an influence on high school sports as much as people think they will. School sports are so competitive that it is hard for anybody who hasn’t trained most of his or her life to get involved.
I can say from personal experience that the Olympics do have a way of stealing sleep from anybody who gets hooked watching some obscure sport till they can’t keep their eyes open anymore.
Posted: 08.22.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 21, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
Photo | Chelsea Cutchens
Practicing my guitar is another way to relieve the boredom of being home-bound for the second day in a row.
A fleeting look outside my bedroom window reveals nothing out of the ordinary. The blue sky, dotted with innocent clouds, does not suggest that any irregular weather has taken place in St. Lucie County. However, Fay has rendered the area still incapable of beginning school; thus, I sit writing not about my bustling schedule, fascinating classes, or anticipation of an upcoming sporting event, but of another day of solitude and boredom. The waterlogged roadways have been deemed too unsafe for bus transportation, so John Carroll, among other public schools in the vicinity, cannot reopen for the 2008–2009 academic year until Monday.
Leisurely, I perform and re–perform various household tasks that I would, under normal circumstances, never perform without threats of punishment from my parents.
Out of sheer boredom, I attack the dust bunnies of the living room and monstrous hairballs of my constantly shedding pets under the sofa. I have caught up on a year’s worth of scrapbooking and even ventured far enough to practice my guitar, something that I seldom do, because it necessitates that I clip my fingernails in order to play properly.
Throughout the day, I have been on and off the phone with stranded friends, who are relieved by the report that the floodwaters are finally receding, and have made plans for the upcoming days of our extended summer vacation.
Until my dad returns home with his Explorer, I, too am left high and dry. My car, although sporty, is much too low to venture into the vast puddles that still fill our roadways and hinder transportation. Therefore, until I can “borrow” his car to escape to civilization, I am left to daydream about the beginning of school, about how powerful and impressive my class will appear to the timid freshmen, and about my responsibilities as co–president of Spanish Club and copy editor of the yearbook, which I eagerly take on with great anticipation. I think of the familiar, institutionalized hallways, the Dreamsicle–orange cafeteria, and the sunny courtyard where my friends and I gather each day. I imagine donning my white senior polo for the first time, and the blisters I am sure to receive from my six new pairs of ballet flats for school. However, until order may be once more established in the aftermath of Fay, these musings of mine cannot become a reality.
Posted: 08.22.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 20, 2008 | ANDREW GENTILE | Cardinal Newman High School
Photo | Andrew Gentile
My class lineup for this year is reflected in the titles of my textbooks. My favorite is the one on top: Patterns, Scales & Modes for Jazz Guitar.
Cardinal Newman has concocted this crazy rotating letter schedule. The only logic I can see behind it is that it prepares you for all the possible curve balls real life can throw. We have six of seven classes a day. Each day we drop a class, which is the first class the next morning. This perpetual confusion is just another thing an already frazzled high school student has to deal with day in and day out.
Surprisingly enough, I am actually looking forward to most of my classes. My band class is probably my favorite this year. It is a small ensemble class where we either study independently or play together in different ensembles. This class is the go–to group when the school needs music for events. The jazz combo was asked to play at the school’s annual auction fundraiser and a string of other private parties last year. I have been playing guitar for 12 years and nothing comes close to the effectiveness of performing in front of people to learn an instrument.
I am definitely looking forward to my physics class with Mr. Payne. From what I’ve heard, he tends to elaborate on topics related to physics but not necessarily covered in the textbook. He can tell you things that just completely obliterate your understanding of reality. In high school, its nice to get a teacher that you’ve had before, granted that teacher has no reason to hate you. I had Mr. Seelinger for algebra II and now I have him for AP calculus. He’s a great teacher and has some great stories about being in the Navy. I’m psyched about getting Mr. O’Hare for economics and government. He was the bass player in my mom and dad’s band back in the day.
All of the classes at Newman run around 30 students. Most, if not all, teachers have seating assignments. The teachers do a pretty good job remembering that this is a Catholic school and classes start with a prayer. They keep their classes interesting for the most part. Only once in a while, when I’ve been up to the wee hours of the morning cramming for some test on who knows what, do I start to feel the nods coming on.
Posted: 08.21.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 20, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
Photo | Bianca Barioli
There was just enough time for a photo of my brother, Guiseppe, and myself as we leave for school.
I awake to the sound of my alarm clock happily chiming, “It’s time to wake up, it’s time to wake up” I roll over fighting the urge to chuck that alarm through the window and convince myself that if I ignore it, the alarm will go away. Nope, the chiming continues. Oh well, it was wishful thinking though. Just as I am about to get up to turn the alarm off, my sister, Francesca, sits up and knocks the clock to the floor, thus ending the ever–persistent beeping that interrupts the sweetness of my dreams. Finally, that’s over. 5:55 a.m. It’s dark, it’s quiet … and that’s very unusual for my house. I sit up, reluctantly, resisting the temptation from my inviting pillow and flop out of bed.
During the process of this transition, I trip over my sister’s trundle bed beneath my own, and stub my toe on the CD case by the door. So far, this is turning out to be a great start for the first day of school. I hold back my screams and my poor little toe, trying not to wake my other five sleeping sisters in my room. After regaining myself, my new bright pink toe and I hobble our way down the hall and into the bathroom. Once I’ve completed my daily hygienic routine, I walk to the kitchen to find something to eat. Now normally, I’m not very hungry in the morning, but I still force myself to eat something so I don’t get a headache throughout the remainder of the day.
Now that my belly has been satisfied, I relocate myself back into my bedroom and grab my clothes for school. I lay them on my bed, knowing full well I will be joining them momentarily, and get my backpack together for school. 6:15 a.m. “Perfect,” I say to myself. “I have to be out of the house by 6:50 to get to school on time, which gives me 25 minutes to sleep and 10 minutes to get dressed minus the three minutes it took me to do that math.” Having everything now all ready I flop back into bed for my 22 minute power nap. I awake once more, but to my sister, Angela, shaking me saying, “Hey, you’ve got 15 minutes. Hurry UP!!” Magically now, wide awake, I quickly throw my uniform on, brush my hair, brush my teeth and spend the next four minutes searching for my shoes in the dark. No, not fun. I race to the car, of course not before kissing my mother goodbye, and hop into my dad’s van at 6:50 a.m. Yes! Right on time. Sometimes I amaze myself. I spend the car ride putting on my makeup and jamming out to my iPod, trying to stay awake. I get to school, kiss my father goodbye and head off to homeroom. See, that wasn’t too difficult now was it?
Posted: 08.21.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 20, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
As students in adjacent counties begin school with a flourish, students in St. Lucie County, myself included, still must wait languidly for the floodwaters to recede in order to begin the school year. Backyards and streets transformed into lakes and rivers as Fay passed insolently through the Treasure Coast, leaving its victims quite literally stranded. Although my home has been unaffected by flooding, several friends of mine endured the storm, watching anxiously as the waters rose menacingly closer to their front doors. With 20 percent to 30 percent of the area roads closed due to flooding, returning to school was out of the question. While trucks and SUVs are fortunate enough to tolerate the excessive water, smaller cars such as mine were sent to higher ground to avoid damage. My community’s citizens are left floundering for aid and rescue from the captivity of their homes, which have become personal islands, surrounded by water on all sides.
I realize that safety is everyone’s main priority and until the waters subside, school cannot commence. But I cannot help but feel (very selfishly so) extremely irritated that school must be further postponed. In sheer boredom, disconnected from the civilized world by closed roads and puddles the size of ponds, I have not only finished my summer reading book (finally!), but also begun the tedious process of applying for college scholarships, something which I have procrastinated since the beginning of summer vacation.
My schoolbag sits dismally by my door and I despairingly abandoned my uniform in my closet. I never before imagined that I would wish to be at school, but I find myself glancing at the clock and imagining what I would be doing at that instance, under normal conditions. As 11:47 rolled by, I wondered idly if I would have had first lunch today, and what I would have been chowing down on in the cafeteria. By 2:24, I realized the school day would have already been drawing to a close, and my fellow students and I would sit, eyes glued to the clock, counting the very seconds until our release bell at 2:29. As 3 o’clock ticked nearer, I thought of all my cancelled extracurricular activities and which club would normally be meeting after school today. Presently, I cringe as I think of our first yearbook deadlines and wonder when student portraits will be rescheduled.
As disastrous as this tropical storm has been for our school calendar, it indeed has given students a chance to regroup and re–energize one last time before the official beginning of school. And although right now my friends and I stay connected via text messages, phone calls, and Facebook comments, wasting away from the boredom of another day stuck inside our homes, I know this brief hiatus of the school year will render us even more enthusiastic for the year to finally get under way.
Posted: 08.20.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 19, 2008 | ANDREW GENTILE | Cardinal Newman High School
Because of Tropical Storm Fay, Newman, like most of the schools in Palm Beach County, was closed on Tuesday. It didn’t really matter much to me because only the freshmen had classes scheduled for Tuesday. Cardinal Newman gives the freshmen a whole day to run their schedule by themselves. I actually feel bad for them because now they have to jump right in to the very confusing rotating schedule at Newman amongst the other 600 students. Since the weather kind of killed any hopes of going somewhere or doing something outside the house, I just spent the day practicing guitar and checking in periodically on the Olympics. No matter what time of day it is, the Olympics are on somewhere in TV land. Luckily the power only flickered once during the seemingly never–ending squalls, but the Internet did go down for a few hours in the afternoon. I don’t doubt that school will be back in session on Wednesday. That means another morning of waking up at 6 a.m. and doing the same thing I’ll be doing every morning for the next eight months.
The mornings in our house are pretty calm. Everybody wakes up at different times so they have enough time to get ready. Catholic school hinders personal expression with uniforms, but it is something that we just put up with. It does make a part of the morning easier by eliminating the hassle of trying to pick out something cool to wear. The hardest part of the morning is trying to figure out the transportation situation. Since my mom, my stepdad and I all have to get to the same place, we try and consolidate to one vehicle. Some days this just isn’t possible for one reason or another. After school, things can get interesting as we’re all trying to get somewhere by this time which always seems too soon. At some point, we all get home and get ready to do it all over again.
Posted: 08.20.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 19, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
PHOTO | CHELSEA CUTCHENS
I embrace the grace period provided by Tropical Storm Fay, and resignedly finish summer reading, scolding myself for leaving it until the last minute.
I woke early this morning, just before six o’clock — not by the gurgling of the coffee pot, the whining of my black Labrador, Jasmine, or the detestable beep of my alarm clock, but by the howl of the wind and pitter–patter of the rain as it lashes against my bedroom window. Tropical Storm Fay is attacking my home and the sound of its fury is a constant reminder that the first day of school has been cancelled.
I groan, flop onto my stomach and kick my cat off my feet as I try to drown out of the sound of the wind and enjoy a final, extra morning of sleeping late.
In some ways, I’m glad to have an additional day to prepare for the arrival of school. I have been granted 24 more blissful hours of relaxation and solitude before I fling myself into the crowded hallways of scampering freshmen, droning back–to–school announcements, and heaps of homework that will consume my first day back at John Carroll.
I feel as if God himself sent the storm across the Treasure Coast per my request, conceding me one last day to hurriedly digest the contents of “Pride and Prejudice.” Only 217 more pages to go!
A thousand last–minute preparations must be made before school begins and I have received an entire day to complete them. Mental to–do lists flood my thoughts as the rainwater of Fay floods my backyard.
Mechanically, I hurry through the daily motions as if I’m on cruise control, ironing uniforms, gathering my school supplies from the nooks and crannies of my bedroom, and begging my mother for a few dollars for lunch, all while nursing an agonizing sunburn I obtained the last weekend before school was due to begin.
However, disappointment creeps into my thoughts, as I mourn the loss of our junior/senior orientation. Orientation day has always been one of my favorite days of the school year. I feel so empowered by the syllabi and supplies lists of each class, and excited by the buzz of welcome–back greetings from acquaintances I haven’t seen all summer. In addition, my closest friends and I can no longer celebrate our half–day orientation at school by going to lunch at one of our favorite local restaurants.
Wednesday will kick off the school year as another average day, filled with our regular, 45–minute rotation schedule, cafeteria lunch and a final release at 2:29 p.m.
Despite the letdown of the postponement of the first day of my senior year, I feel no sense of foreboding as I approach the day–late beginning of school.
I embrace the grace period provided by Tropical Storm Fay, and resignedly finish summer reading, scolding myself for leaving it until the last minute.
Another day’s worth of anticipation and enthusiasm flows inside me and I am more excited for the commencement of the school year than I was before!
Posted: 08.19.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 19, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
PHOTO | BIANCA BARIOLI
It looked as though my siblings were having fun painting plaster figurines, so my sister, Angela (center), her boyfriend, Shane Quinn (left), and I decided we would try our hands at it.
It’s rainy and windy. Too bad they couldn’t give us a day off from school when it’s sunny out. Weather like this reminds me of the time my sisters and I were bored during one of the hurricanes and tried to make a kite out of a garbage bag. Don’t ask — it did not end well.
It looks like it is going to be a day to stay home and help clean up the house and get ready for school tomorrow. Nah! Today, we took my little siblings to Plaster Carousel, also known in our house as “the painting place,” to paint little plaster figurines. They had a lot of fun.
I have to say, it was a nice day, spending time with my siblings playing board games, reading stories and just making a holy mess of the house. No doubt mom is going to make us clean it up later, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. My dad’s company, Blue Coast Storm Shutters, builds and installs hurricane shutters, so this weather is good for business. When he went around to close the shutters for some of his customers, I tagged along. We stopped by the beach, since it was close by, and even though it was really windy, the view was still amazing. I took some pictures of the waves and the palm trees for our school newspaper. I figured someone in our journalism class will do an article on Tropical Storm Fay.
This extra day of summer has built up my suspense for school to start, but I do like the fact that I have an extra day to get everything organized and make sure that I have everything ready for school. I never thought I’d say this but, I can’t wait for school tomorrow!
Posted: 08.19.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
With all of the pressures of my senior year weighing me down, the last thing I need is 20 pounds of dead weight hanging in a hideous sack from my shoulders as a constant reminder of my responsibilities. As somebody who loves a challenge, I embrace the hardship of finding a schoolbag that is both chic and functional. My goal is to stand out within the sea of traditional JanSport backpacks, obnoxiously cheerful Vera Bradley quilted bags and leather purses stamped with their designers’ initials that flood the hallways of John Carroll. So, armed with my navy blue messenger bag, I will take on the year while showcasing my panache and flair.
By simply glancing at my schoolbag, you will learn several things about me: I like simplicity, kindness and color. A single, striped, pink shoulder strap adorned with yellow songbirds and clean white zipper give my schoolbag function and privacy, while pink, teal and white words proclaiming “PEACE, LOVE & PINK” pop against the navy blue fabric of my bag. Lastly, a purple and silver peace–sign appliqué patch displays my humanitarian side and my love of all things ’60s.
However, the things I carry within my schoolbag are much more important than the bag itself. Within my bag, I find sanctuary. If glancing at the exterior of my schoolbag hints at my personality, you will fully discover my persona by perusing the interior. I keep my hectic life organized through my simple and structured daily planner, in which I can keep track of birthdays, appointments, club meetings and the endless due dates that will plague my senior year. My fully stocked iPod rests within one of the mesh pockets of my schoolbag, always willing to supply me with uplifting and energizing music during my yearbook period, the only class of the day in which I can listen to music. Perhaps yearbook has brainwashed me, because I always tote around my camera, a Kodak Z740, in order to capture every memory of my year. My lunch money is always tucked within my bright orange wallet, and I keep a plethora of colored sharpies, pens, highlighters and mechanical pencils in my denim pencil pouch.
The contents of my schoolbag keep me afloat during even the toughest, most stressful days of the school year. My friends jokingly call my schoolbag my “body bag,” because of its unnecessarily large size, but I call it my life vest. It never ceases to save me!
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | ANDREW GENTILE | Cardinal Newman High School
My main goal this year is to try and travel light. Because of my schedule last year, I ended up having to carry four of my thickest textbooks in my bag at once.
After taking a look at my schedule for this year, it looks like a slightly lighter year. My backpack is one of those messenger–style side bags. It’s just right for me. I like it because it sits off to the side and allows me to get at papers and things while I’m walking between classes. It used to have all sorts of things attached to it, such as my luggage tag from the band’s trip to Boston last year or my wristband from the music festival last spring. Now all those things have fallen off due to the heavy wear and tear of everyday high school life.
In my bag are the usual school essentials — pencils, notebooks, etc. I carry around a few tech gadgets to help me get a few more things done around the school, such as my jump drive and a few CDs of some software. And I can’t forget the most essential device for every high school student, the cell phone. Newman has a strict policy that all cell phones must not be kept on the person and they must be kept off. Failure to conform to this communication breakdown results in harsh disciplinary action, such as dean’s detentions and three–hour Saturday detentions.
We’re not allowed to carry open bottles around the school, but there are water fountains which I use religiously. School lunch is good, but I prefer to bring my lunch most days. Very rarely am I seen braving the long lines of the lunch counter. Seniors do get to cut the line, so maybe this year things will change a bit.
Monday night was supposed to be the freshmen orientation night at Newman, but due to the heavy weather on the way it was cancelled. On the second day of school, only the freshmen have classes so they can run their schedule without all the congestion in the hallways. School for Tuesday is still up in the air.
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
Ah yes, the backpack; every student’s lifeline and a freshman’s mobile locker.
My backpack is more like a purse/first–aid kit/makeup case than anything else. I always like to feel prepared, so I carry with me a little bottle of Purell to battle everyday germs, a Tide–to–go pen because one never knows when a stain will rear its ugly head, Band–Aids for boo–boos and, of course, my cell phone, which is off during school hours, except at lunch.
Occasionally I’ll bring my iPod to jam out to on the ride to school or to keep me entertained while waiting for after–school activities to start.
Since my backpack doesn’t have any pockets, I carry three tiny handbags that divide the contents of my bag neatly. One handbag has all my yearbook and journalism supplies, such as my camera, cords and so on. I use another one to carry my pens/pencils, sharpies and other writing utensils. Last, but definitely not least, is my makeup and all around personal bag — something no girl is ever without for reasons that require no explanation. I also carry with me a spiral notebook just in case I encounter a situation that requires paper.
As strange as the contents of my backpack may seem, many other senior girls I’ve talked to carry similar, if not the same, items. The freshmen, on the other hand, carry, well … just about everything! I wouldn’t be surprised if a computer tower popped out of one of their suitcases, I mean, backpacks.
Yes, we laugh now, but at one point, a long three years ago, that was us. When asked to give advice to the freshmen, my friend and fellow senior, Amanda Ferazzoli, very poetically said, “Your backpack should never weigh more than you do.”
Well, there you have it. The only things I don’t carry in my backpack are my textbooks because, just as the freshmen will soon discover, that’s what lockers are for.
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | ANDREW GENTILE | Cardinal Newman High School
Since I work at the school all summer anyway, it isn’t that much of a change just waking up an extra half–hour early to beat the morning traffic. The first few days are always cool because you get to catch up with people you may not have even instant–messaged or sent a Facebook message to in two months. It’s always interesting to see how much friends have changed, or stayed the same, after summer break.
I think this year is going to be a lot of fun. At least that’s the vibe I get from most of the seniors who have graduated. But under all the good times that will inevitably roll this year lies a constant sense of nervousness. College is something that is on every senior’s mind and it is something that is becoming more and more competitive every year. Keeping the grades good, raising the SAT and ACT scores, avoiding “senior–itus,” these are all things that are in the back of your mind all year long, reminding you that getting into college is easier said than done.
By this time in my academic career it seems kind of silly to be nervous about the courses, especially because the students pick a good portion of their classes as alternates or electives. And there are a few teachers for which it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if I didn’t get them; it wouldn’t be the end of the world. One thing that does make for a good year is a good schedule. For me, what makes a good schedule is having the classes you want with the people you like. Hopefully this year I will have some classes with my best friend, David.
I can’t believe it is already my senior year. It seems like just yesterday I was scrambling around the hallways of my freshman year trying to find the next class. Overall, I’m hyped to finally be at the beginning of the end of this chapter of my life, but with every passing second I get closer to leaving what I have called home for the past three years.
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | CHELSEA CUTCHENS | John Carroll High School
The final days of summer and, therefore, freedom, are slipping through my fingers. As much as I hate to trade my beach towel and bathing suit for a polo and chinos, I look eagerly forward to the beginning of my final year of high school. The year promises to be one of great success, as my friends and I take on our role as seniors. Our hard work through freshman, sophomore and junior years will finally pay off with acceptances to prestigious colleges and memories to last a lifetime. However, the year will be marred with a twinge of sadness; after graduation, my friends and I shall part our ways and continue down separate paths that do not promise a future reunion.
I am overcome with a whirl of activity as I prepare for the arrival of my first day of senior year. I desperately scour the racks of the Treasure Coast Mall in pursuit of the most flattering, and licit, school pants, and frantically begin the final novel of my summer reading list. I’m already kicking myself for taking AP English and it hasn’t even started yet! Senior year, I believe, will be the most overwhelming; between college applications, AP classes, re–taking SATs for the last time, and the frenzied hunt for scholarships, I don’t know where I can possibly find time to factor in innumerable homework assignments, extracurricular activities, a possible part–time job and time for hanging out with friends.
I groan as I recall the excruciating agony of waking up before nine in the morning, and spending late nights cramming for exams, fueled only by Diet Coke and delirium. I also shudder to think of how much gas my cute little Mazda will devour on my daily round trips between my home in St. Lucie West and school in Fort Pierce. However, despite all of the tedious work and dedication that school will require, I approach the year with great expectations and excitement, recalling the joy of homecoming, class retreats, prom and, of course, graduation. Between the laughter and tears, stress and relief, good times and bad times, I’m sure the tassel will definitely be worth the hassle.
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 18, 2008 | BIANCA BARIOLI | John Paul II High School
Finally, senior year; let the countdown begin! Back to waking up at the crack of dawn, running around to find clothes, shoes and homework, then racing to the car to make it to school on time. Somehow, this all seems enjoyable.
It’s surreal how fast the time went by. My years at Pope John Paul II High School have been memorable, emotional and eventful. Since this year I am going to hold numerous leadership positions, organization is not optional — it is mandatory. I am not too worried, however; about being organized, living with 11 other people has made any other options obsolete. Yes, buttons may be pushed and the possibility of stress levels shooting sky high is present, but I am up for the challenge.
I have a talented and hardworking team right beside me. Our journalism class is completely in sync with one another. No questions asked, we help each other out when the work is piled high — not to mention our yearbook staff and dance team. I have witnessed firsthand our yearbook staff pull through to make deadlines, while our dance team learned one of its whole routines with only three days before our performance. So yes, we definitely work well under pressure.
Expectations for this year are definitely lots of laughs, lots of work and too many deadlines. As far as the summer–to–school transition goes, life will not change too much. Instead of chasing around my little siblings making sure they eat, get changed and do their chores, I’ll be chasing around 17– and 18–year–olds making sure they turn in their articles, submit their photos or learn their dance numbers. Stress levels might be tested a tiny bit, but I couldn’t be more excited for school to start. I mean, I am finally a senior! What is there not to be excited about? There’s prom, grad night, our school musical, ceremonies, of course graduation, and Kairos, a secret spiritual retreat offered to only the seniors. There is so much that senior year has to offer and I plan on making the most of it. College is right around the corner now, so there is not a moment to lose.
What I am least looking forward to this year would be the ACT and SAT tests, although I don’t know anyone who is excited about taking those. That is pretty much it. After I get those test done and over with, the rest of my year will be a blast! In the end, when all the papers are submitted, the yearbooks are sent to print and the dance numbers are through, I’ll look back on my senior year and know that I have done everything possible to make it the best year ever.
Posted: 08.18.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
August 15, 2008 | Linda Reeves | Florida Catholic Palm Beach Bureau Editor
PALM BEACH GARDENS | Summer is over and students are heading back to school — to face new classes, teachers, schedules and social scenes.
Though I hear stories when I am reporting or talking with parents or teachers, I know only a fraction of what goes on in the 21 Catholic schools in the diocese. So, I thought it might be interesting to get the inside scoop on the first days of school, a time that used to be a little crazy for me back when I attended St. Mary School in Natchez, Miss. Those were the days before books were carried in oversized backpacks and before hand–held communications gadgets were “in.”
The Florida Catholic invited three experts to share their experiences as they tackle uniforms, strict back–to–school schedules and saying goodbye to vacation. Their blog entries will begin here Monday, Aug. 18 and continue through the first week of school.
Andrew Gentile, 17, is a senior at Cardinal Newman High School in West Palm Beach. He is part of the technical assistant program at the school, has a 3.8 grade point average and has mixed emotions about graduating, leaving friends behind and venturing off to a new school environment next year.
Andrew’s favorite subjects are music, math and science, and over the summer he attended three weeks of musicians’ camp at the University of Miami enjoying being “submerged in music.”
The summer was not all fun and games for Andrew, though. He spent weeks of vacation working at Cardinal Newman, labeling and sorting more than 12,000 books that will be distributed to students on the first day of school.
Andrew, a parishioner at St. Paul of the Cross in North Palm Beach, has two stepsisters — Stephanie Murphy, 21, and Alyssa Murphy, 15 — and a brother, Daniel Gentile, 25. He enjoys playing the guitar, and says his love of music stems from being a part of a family of music lovers. He hopes to attend the University of Miami and study music engineering technology.
Senior Bianca Barioli agreed to take us inside Pope John Paul II High School in Boca Raton. When it comes to Catholic schools, Bianca can definitely be labeled an “expert,” as she has attended Catholic school her whole life, starting off at St. Ambrose Catholic School in Deerfield in the Archdiocese of Miami.
Bianca comes from a large Italian family of 10 children — seven girls and three boys, ranging in age from one to 24. Her father, Giuseppe Barioli, was born into a family of six on the Isle of Capri in Italy and moved to the United States at the age of 14. Her mother, Elizabeth, was born into a Sicilian family of five in Cleveland, Ohio and moved to Florida her senior year.
She is a top student in the National Honor Society, editor of the school yearbook and newspaper, The Eagle’s Eye, and is at the top of her journalism class with a passion for writing.
This summer, Bianca spent time hanging out with friends, watching the 2008 Euro Cup, going to the beach, making rosaries to complete service hours and celebrating her baby brother Franco’s first birthday.
Her passions are Tae Kwon Do, where she ranks as a green belt, and dancing, singing and performing.
Bianca is excited about school starting, but is expecting a busy year.
Chelsea Cutchens, 17, is a senior at John Carroll High School in Fort Pierce and a member of St. Bernadette Parish in Port St. Lucie. The teen has been a part of the Catholic school system all of her life, and when asked to describe her feelings about her final year, she used the word bittersweet.
Chelsea is a top student with a 4.97 grade point average, and is taking on the role of copy editor for the school’s yearbook project this year.
When asked about her favorite subject in school, Chelsea did not hesitate to answer. She loves Spanish. She is president of John Carroll’s Spanish Club, and a member of the Spanish competition team.
Photography is her great passion, and as for the summer, Chelsea was traveling, but it was more about taking photos of exotic places. She also toured colleges around Florida, but is not sure which school she will attend next year after graduation.
Chelsea has one sister, Ali Willen, 25. Her mom is Kathleen and Robert is her father. A favorite pastime is singing. She performs in a contemporary Christian band, For God’s Grace.
Posted: 08.15.08 | Return To Top | Return to Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page
